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TCL announces a new Android Go tablet – the Alcatel 3T – at IFA

Donovan Jeska
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At IFA in Germany this week, TCL announced a new tablet powered by Android Go; the 8″ Alcatel 3T. The Android tablet market is floundering to say the least these days, but perhaps Android Go is the way back to relevance? While no formal hardware specs have been announced, the Alcatel 3T looks to make sales purely on its price – starting at just $138.

The Alcatel 3T sports an LTE connection and a 4,000mAh battery, two of the only hard specifications we have on the device. And while TCL hasn’t announced availability for the North American market yet, we expect to be updated relatively soon. The 3T weighs in at just 279 grams and is only 8.2mm thick, giving it both a lightweight and slim profile.

Perhaps most unique among the announced features, however is that the Alcatel 3T will launch with Android Go Oreo right out of the box. At $138 I’m anxious to see what kind of hardware TCL has managed to cram into the budget tablet, which appears to be competing with the higher-end Kindle Fire tablets. I doubt we’ll see anything world-breaking in the specs department, but hey – stranger things have happened.

Even if the Alcatel 3T is a surprise hit, can it even begin to repair the Android tablet markets’ rather poor reputation? I guess we’ll find out.

Hot Take: Google Pixel 3 leaks, Sony Xperia ZX3, and BlackBerry’s new cost-efficient option (Episode 23)

Matt Adams
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Join us as we sit down and discuss some of the hot tech topics out there today. This edition focuses on the new BlackBerry Key2 LE, Sony’s new flagship device, and some brand new Pixel 3 (not XL) leaks.

What we talked about today

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Lenovo unveils the first Yoga Chromebook at IFA 2018, alongside other laptops and hybrids

Alexandra Arici
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Also present at IFA 2018 in Berlin, Lenovo today introduced a bevy of new products including laptops and a new family of connected devices. Below we take a short look at each product and see what they bring to the table.

Lenovo Yoga C930

The new Yoga C930 is Lenovo’s flagship Windows 10 hybrid laptop which comes with a Rotting Sound Bar with Dolby Atmos Speaker System. Dolby Vision and a Garaged Pen are also part of the package. Pricing is set to start from $1,399.

Lenovo Yoga Book C930

The laptop is apparently the world’s first to come with a dual display with E Ink. The versatile E Ink display has all kinds of functions like doubling as a dynamic, customizable keyboard, digital paper or even E-reader. You’ll be able to have it for $999.999 and up.

Lenovo Yoga S730

The Yoga S730 is a premium clamshell that has been designed to offer ultra-portability, as it weighs little over 2 lbs. It’s offered in an aluminum case and its battery can offer up to 10 hours of battery life. The laptop comes with Windows 10 pre-installed. It will be available for $999.99 and up.

Lenovo Yoga Chromebook

Lenovo also introduced the first Yoga device with Chrome OS on board. It sports a sleek 4K, almost-edgeless 15-inch touchscreen. Featuring a sleek all-aluminium body, it’s built for entertainment. Prices will start at $599.99.

Lenovo Yoga C630 WOS (Windows on Snapdragon)

The Lenovo Yoga C630 is the first laptop to be powered by a Snapdragon 850 Mobile Compute Platform. The device runs Windows 10 and boasts a 13-inch FHD IPS touchscreen which can be rotated at 360-degrees. It will go on sale for $849.99 and up.

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Extreme

For those who like the more classical approach to laptops, check out the ThinkPad X1 Extreme. It’s aimed at power users and comes with an advanced set of specifications. The device ships with a 4K HDR display with Dobly Vision, Dolby Atmos and 100% Adobe RGB. Prices start at $1,849.

Lenovo C330 Chromebook

Lenovo also announced an affordable Chromebook starting at $279.99. Powered by a MediaTek processor, the laptop features a 2-in-1 hybrid design and an 11-inch IPS touchscreen display. It weighs only 2.6 lbs.

Lenovo S330 Chromebook

The S330 is even a more affordable option at $249.99. It features a slim clamshell form factor with an up to 14-inch FHD IPS display.

Lenovo Smart Home Essentials

Lenovo Smart Home Essentials is a new family of connected devices that are compatible with the Google Assistant, Alexa and the recently launched Lenovo Smart Display. These Essentials include:

Lenovo Smart Plug

A small device that can be plugged into any outlet that gives users the ability to control any compatible device that’s plugged into it. It will be available for $29.99.

Lenovo Smart Camera

A small security camera that lets you remotely monitor your home. It has a built-in mic and speaker which can be used two-way. It will start selling for $99.99.

Lenovo Smart Bulb

A smart bulb that lets users remotely customize and schedule lighting. It can be yours for $29.99.

Avido Wiba review: Wireless power, anywhere – but at a price

Donovan Jeska
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After raising over $40,000 back in July on IndieGoGo, the WiBa wireless power bank from Avido is finally ready to ship. The WiBa (presumably short for Wireless Bank) is a combination charging dock and external battery bank, both with Qi charging built in. We got our hands on the innovative device, and took it for a test-drive. The WiBa retails for $99, available for pre-order directly from Avido.

Hardware

The Avido WiBa is actually two products that function symbiotically as one. The first half of the product is a Qi-charging cradle, with built-in pins to charge the latter piece, which is a 5,000mAh power bank. Said power bank is a little larger than a 6″ phone, and a little thicker as well. It features a Type-C input port (which is all-but superfluous, as you’ll see), USB-A Quick Charge output port, and Qi Wireless Charging on its top face. Its bottom face also features contacts to charge the battery wirelessly – when Avido advertises the WiBa as a wireless charging solution, it means it.

Aesthetically, the WiBa doesn’t try to do anything fancy. It’s made of a soft-touch bone-colored material, which unfortunately doesn’t quite fit in with the standard black of most smartphones these days. It does, however, fit rather perfectly with the white ceramic aesthetic of the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S – eerily so.

Specs & Performance

Specification-wise, both the Power Bank and Charging Cradle feature standard Quick Charge speeds. The former can charge devices both wired (5V/2.1A) and wirelessly (5V/5W). The latter only charges devices wirelessly – at the fast-charge rated 9V/10W current. But it churns out enough power to charge both the power bank and your phone by stacking them atop one another, which is a great convenience. One cable to the cradle charges both your Qi-enabled phone and the WiBa power bank, and taking them off the cradle is a simple as picking them up. No wires, no cables. It’s pretty cool.

Value

At $99.99, the 5,000mAh Avido WiBa is no cheap buy. Most batteries of that capacity are $20 or less. Even if you include a fast-charging Qi Charger to the cart, you’re only looking at about $40. But the wireless technology in both the charger and battery shouldn’t be underestimated, nor should the convenience of being able to stack a battery and phone on top of the charger for utterly effortless charging.

At this price point, the Avido WiBa is, unfortunately, a rather niche purchase. But if it can sell enough of these to make the investment worthwhile, I have a feeling a WiBa 2.0 could change the way we think about charging. If you just can’t do without the ability to stack your battery and phone atop one-another to charge, the Avido WiBa is up for pre-order for $99 on Avido’s website.

The Arlo Audio Doorbell and Arlo Chime have joined the Arlo family of products

Jason England
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Netgear has just welcomed the Arlo Doorbell and Arlo Chime into its line up of home security products. These two new security products work in tandem to guard the most important gateway into your home.

Arlo Audio Doorbell

Unlike many other smart doorbells on the market, there is no camera. Instead, the Arlo Audio Doorbell calls your phone via the Arlo app and allows you to communicate through a microphone and speaker in the doorbell.

You have the choice of speaking to the person in real time or playing a prerecorded message if you’re unavailable. If you want to see who is actually at your door that will require using one of Arlo’s wireless cameras which can be bought separately.

Similar to Arlo’s wireless cameras the Arlo Audio Doorbell is also completely wireless and weather resistant. It is powered by a pair of AA batteries and can last for up to a full year.

If used along with the wireless cameras you can also take advantage of Arlo Smart to intelligently detect people or call e911. With Arlo Smart, the Arlo app provides you with a way to call emergency services to the location of the camera instead of your phone by using e911.

Arlo Chime

The Arlo Audio Doorbell fully replaces your old doorbell and can connect to your old chime. However, if you don’t have an existing doorbell or simply want a more flexible chime that’s where Arlo Chime comes into play.

The Arlo chime plugs into any standard power outlet and plays back your choice of melodies when the Arlo Audio Doorbell is rung. You can use one or several Arlo Chimes to plug in throughout your house. Included among the different chimes is an 80+ decibel siren, as well as a do not disturb mode for those times when you require silence.

 

 

The KEY 2 LE is the new more affordable phone from BlackBerry

Jason England
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Calling all fans of BlackBerry and their hardware keyboard who would like to save some money. Today TCL and BlackBerry announced the new more affordable midrange KEY 2 LE at IFA 2018. The new KEY 2 LE includes all the modern style of the recent KEY 2 including the hardware keyboard except for a few caveats.

For starters, the KEY 2 LE is made out of a cheaper polycarbonate body and the keyboard lacks touch gestures. The good news is the Speed Key from the keyboard is still present. Using the Speed Key gives you quicker access to common functions on your phone with 52 customizable shortcuts.

Specs

  • Display: 4.5-inch 1620 x 1080
  • SoC: Snapdragon 636
  • RAM: 4GB
  • Storage: 32GB/64GB; microSD up to 256GB
  • Cameras: Rear 13MP+5MP f/2.4; Front 8MP
  • Battery: 3000mAh
  • OS: Android 8.1 Oreo

The specs are pretty typical of what you’ll find in most midrange phones these days. However, the KEY 2 still finds a way to stand out in a crowd. The hardware keyboard is the most obvious but it has more going for it than that.

One of the ways they do this is through enhanced security. Through the use of DTEK to scan and secure your phone and BlackBerry is dedicated to monthly security patches. There is also a Locker which allows you to protect your sensitive files or even apps on your phone from being launched without your fingerprint.

BlackBerry also includes dual messenger allowing you to use two instances of several popular social media apps such as Facebook, Instagram, and Whatsapp

Availability and Colors

The BlackBerry KEY 2 LE will be available for purchase starting next month in Canada, France, Germany, UAE, the UK, and the U.S. It will start at $399 USD for the 32GB model while the larger 64GB model will set you back $449 USD. It will come in three different colors including Slate, Champagne, and Atomic.

New Kylo Ren expansion is coming for Star Wars: Jedi Challenges

Jason England
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Last year Lenovo graced us with a Star Wars experience of a lifetime when they launched Star Wars: Jedi Challenges. Utilizing special hardware and offering an augmented reality experience Star Wars: Jedi Challenges allowed us to become a Jedi without even leaving our living room.

Darkside Expansion

Offering four different modes you were able to have one on one lightsaber matches, lightsaber battles, play Holochess, or command armies. This year Lenovo is expanding upon that with a free expansion pack.

The new Dark Side Expansion update will now allow you to play as Kylo Ren. Get ready to test your might against Yoda, Rey, and more as you battle as Kylo Ren for the fate of the dark side. This free update is expected to roll out beginning this winter so start training now.

New Lightsaber

The new Darkside Expansion update wouldn’t be complete without Kylo’s legendary lightsaber. Which is why they are releasing the limited edition lightsaber this winter for $99.99.

Huawei announced today the Honor Play is going global

Jason England
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The Honor Play is not a new phone from Huawei’s sub-brand, it was actually released in China back in June. However, the “crazy fast, crazy smart” Honor Play is now branching out to new markets.

Crazy Fast, Crazy Smart

Powered by the Kirin 970 AI NPU (neuron process unit) and GPU Turbo technology the Honor Play promises a faster and smarter performing smartphone. The GPU Turbo technology, in particular, boasts a 60% increase in performance with a 30% decrease in battery drain.

That sounds great on paper, but it is in comparison to the previous Kirin 960 and only for supported games. At this time, the only games that appear to be supported by GPU Turbo are PUBG and Mobile Legends: Bang Bang. More games are slated to be supported in the future but for now, GPU Turbo might not benefit you that much.

The Honor Play claims to be crazy smart making use of an independent AI NPU. According to Honor this makes AI smart applications run faster, improves camera performance, and face unlock. It also claims to help with providing 3D sound and 4D smart shock vibrations.

With 4D smart shock your phone will vibrate differently to certain actions in games such as switching or shooting guns and the use of special skills. Supposedly, Honor claims this will offer a more console-like haptic experience while gaming mobile. Currently, only PUBG supports this technology though.

Specs

  • Display: 6.3-inch 19.5:9 2160×1080
  • SoC: Kirin 970 AI NPU 4 x 2.4GHz A73 + 4 x 1.8GHz A53
  • RAM: 4GB
  • Storage: 64GB; microSD up to 256GB
  • Cameras: Rear 16MP f/2.2; Secondary Rear 2MP f/2.4; Front 16MP f/2.0
  • Battery: 3750mAh
  • OS: Android 8.1 Oreo; EMUI 8.2

Availability and Colors

The Honor Play comes in Midnight Black, Navy Blue, and Ultra Violet. There is also a special Player Edition of the Honor Play that comes in Red or Black with some added gaming style. As far as pricing goes the Honor Play will start for 329 Euros while the Player Edition will set you back 349 Euros.

Olloclip’s new Multi-Device Clip lets Android users take professional pictures with their phone

Alexandra Arici
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Not so long ago it was a given you’d take your camera on vacation. But in 2018 your smartphone may well be the best camera you’ve owned. And even if you don’t have a high-end smartphone like the Galaxy Note 9, there are still things you can do to make sure you take excellent mobile snaps.

For example, you could invest in some mobile photography accessories. Speaking of which, Olloclip just unveiled one recently and you might find it of interest. The company has been making lenses for the iPhone since 2011, but their latest Multi-Device Clip is now compatible with leading Android smartphones.

The product features an expanding clip design and works even with phones that have screen protectors and cases on (up to 12mm in thickness). Compact in size, the Multi-Device Clip can easily be switched from the front camera to the rear one.

For best results, users will need to pair with Olloclip’s line of Connect X interchangeable lenses. The company offers a series of options all meant to enhance photography on the go.

You can choose from the following models

  • Super-Wide: a four-element lens which offers more than 120-degree visibility
  • Ultra-Wide: 155-degree field-of-view lens for action shots
  • Telephoto: brings 2X optical zoom
  • Fisheye and Macro: for 180-degree wide-angle spherical effect and microscope-like magnification
  • Macro 7X + 14X: for detail-oriented shots
  • Macro 21X: turns your phone into a microscope

If you too are looking for ways to improve your mobile snaps, let us tell you the Olloclip Multi-Device Clip for Android devices is going to be available in mid-September on olloclip.com with any of the Connect X lenses, starting $59.99. Additional Connect X lenses will also up for order separately for $44.99 and up.

It’s also worth mentioning that the official website offers free shipping for those in the US who place an order over $50. So keep an eye out for the new Multi-Device Clip this September.

Sony launches the Xperia XZ3 with a display powered by Sony Bravia TV technology

Alexandra Arici
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Today at IFA, Sony unveiled its next-generation flagship device, the Xperia XZ3. The handset sports a larger 6-inch 18:9 display, compared to its predecessor, the Xperia XZ2. This translates into an increase in viewing area with 11%, although it’s only 5% bigger in overall size.

The Xperia XZ3 is the first smartphone to come with an HDR OLED display powered by Sony Bravia TV image processing technology. This allows the device to deliver more accurate details, depths, and texture in every scene when you’re watching images and videos.

Sony’s new flagship has an impressive display

Additionally, the display also takes advantage of Sony’s Triluminos Display which enriches viewing by offering a abundant palette of colors, as well as more natural shades and hues. On top of that, Sony also uses the X-Reality for mobile image processing engine to make pictures appear sharper, reduce noise and improve contrast.

The new Xperia XZ3 features Gorilla Glass 5 on the back, as well as the front. Sandwiched in between there’s an all-new 7000-series aluminum alloy frame, one of the highest-strength available, according to Sony.

The company notes it has made the speakers on the new device 20% larger compared to the Xperia XZ2. It has also expanded the range of bass and treble frequencies for overall louder volume.

The Xperia XZ3 also brings a few upgrades in the photography department. The main 19-megapixel Motion Eye main camera now offers a new streamlined interface that lets you switch between photo and video more easily. It also keeps the innovative 960 fps FHD Super Slow-Motion mode and 4K HDR video recording.

As for the selfie camera, it’s now a 13-megapixel sensor with f/1.9 and an improved viewfinder. This will allow users to take advantage of bokeh and beauty functions in selfie mode at the same time.

It’s also important to note that the Sony Xperia XZ3 is the first phone to be announced with Android 9.0 Pie pre-installed. Below you can check the device’s full list of specifications:

Sony’s Xperia XZ3 will become available for purchase in the US via Amazon and Best Buy from October 17. Pre-orders on Amazon are set to start on September 24. Unfortunately, it won’t be cheap, as the suggested retail price is of $899.99. However, customers that will pre-order the device via Amazon will also get the Xperia Ear Duo with their purchase.

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