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Samsung Galaxy S9 packaging leaks showing off some specs

Dan Bartram
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Samsung has already confirmed it will be showing off the Galaxy S9 in February at Mobile World Congress next month and we may have just seen a sneak peak of the retail packaging.

That might not sound extremely exciting and on its own, it’s not. Samsung retail packaging often lists the specifications of the device inside on the exterior of the box, so getting sight of the retail packaging for the S9 has given some insight into what the specs could be.

A Reddit user uploaded an image of the claimed Galaxy S9 retail packaging so obviously, this must be taken with the usual ‘caution’. However, if truly the S9 packaging then we could be in for a treat.

According to the packaging, the Galaxy S9 is to feature a 5.6-inch Quad HD+ sAMOLED screen and an 8MP AF Selfie camera, accompanied by a Dual Pixel 12-Megapixel OIS f/1.5 + f/2.4 rear camera. Of most significance is the stereo speakers tuned by AKG that could reveal Pixel inspired front-facing speakers for the first time. Most likely the speakers will be downward firing since conflicting rumors suggest Samsung are trying to make the bottom and top bezels even slimmer simply leaving no room for speakers. It also seems the S9 will remain at 4GB of RAM as opposed to the 6GB found in the Note 8.

As we already know, the Galaxy S9 will be powered by Samsungs own Exynos 9810. Stay tuned for the latest news about the Galaxy S9 as we approach MWC and the release date of the device.

Planet Computers’ Gemini brings the classic PDA into the Android era

Alexandra Arici
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Some of you might remember the Psion Series 5, a personal digital assistant (PDA) device that launched back in 1997. Well, the original Psion designers have returned to give the classic pocket computer a modern form.

Under the umbrella of UK startup Planet Computers, the Psion Series 5 revival project is named Gemini.

The Gemini looks like a tiny laptop with a 5.99-inch 18:9 ultrawide 1080p display and a full physical keyboard which sits on top of the display when folded. Closed it becomes a pretty sturdy device, tipping the scales at around 320g and being 15.1mm thick.

It runs a pretty stock version of Android and includes a deca-core MediaTek Helio X27 processor, aided by 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage. It’s kept alive by a pretty impressive 4,220 mAh battery.

On top of sporting a physical keyboard, the Gemini is also unique among other Android smartphones because of its ability to dual-boot Linux.

The clamshell phone can also work as a desktop, but you’ll need some additional accessories for it to do so. The two USB-C ports on the phone can be connected to a USB, Ethernet hub and HDMI-out allow you to connect things like an external display, mouse, and keyboard.

For those interested in reviving the good old says, you should know the Gemini is available on Indiegogo for $399 and up. Shipping is expected to start soon.

Your next OnePlus phone might come from a carrier

Alexandra Arici
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After months of being rumored, Huawei hot deal with US carriers, Verizon and AT&T eventually fell through.

One of the world’s biggest smartphone makers, Huawei had hoped to finally crack the US market with the launch of the new Mate 10 Pro. Now it looks the firm will be launching the phone without a carrier partner, although it’s a well-known fact that US customers tend to buy their phones through a carrier.

This is something other Chinese companies are well aware of. For example, OnePlus – which appears to have some expansion plans in this direction, as well.

The company, which originally set out selling phones through an invite system, has matured enough to start considering the next step in their evolution – inking a deal with US carriers to sell their phones through them.

OnePlus 6 concept

Speaking at CES 2018 with CNET, OnePlus’ CEO Pete Lau said that if the right opportunity and timing were to come along, the company would be very happy to experiment in this direction.

Building on the grand success of the OnePlus 5T, the company is currently working on their next-flagship which might make it on the market as the OnePlus 6.

According to Lau, the phone will arrive late in the second quarter of the year and will be powered by a Snapdragon 845 – no surprise here.

But will OnePlus manage to succeed where Huawei has failed? It might. An apt example that a Chinese company can secure partnerships with US carriers is ZTE. The company has been a presence on the American market for a few years now and recently released the experimental Axon M phone in partnership with AT&T.

While the US government continues to be wary of Huawei’s supposed ties to the Chinese government, it apparently has no objections to ZTE’s practices. Although back in March, ZTE received a record $1,2 billion fine for illegally selling US-made goods in Iran and North Korea.

Will the US government’s goodwill extend to OnePlus? We’ll just have to wait and see.

Google reveals the first batch of Android Excellence Apps and Games for 2018

Alexandra Arici
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Since June, Google has been trying to highlight the best apps and games in its Play Store through a new category called Android Excellence.

While not all the apps included in Google’s elite list are widely-known (sales and installs are not a factor here), they do offer an incredible experience and are in line with Google’s best practices.

In order to celebrate the arrival of 2018, this week Google unveiled the best Android apps and games for Q1 2018.

Below you can find the complete list:

Android Excellence Apps

1tap

Acorns

Airbnb

Blink Health

Blinkist

Clue

Ditty

EyeEm

Fabulous

IFTTT

iReader

Journey

KKBOX

LinkedIn

Mobiils: Budget Planner

Musixmatch

Shpock

Stocard

Video Editor

ViewRanger

YAZIO

YOP

While you might be familiar with apps like Airbnb, EyeEm, Musixmatch or LinkedIn, other names are a bit more obscure. For example, Blinkist is an app which provides users with the abstracts of bestselling nonfiction books. Google is obviously looking to encourage users to discover new apps. Moving on to games:

Android Excellence Apps

Agent A

Bit Heroes

Bloons Supermonkey 2

Dancing Lane

DEAD WARFARE: Zombie

Dragon Project

Fire Emblem Heroes

Futurama: Worlds of Tomorrow

Idle Heroes

Last Day on Earth: Survival

Lords Mobile

Lumino City

Modern Combat Versus

Old Man’s Journey

The Walking Dead: No Man’s Land

War Wings

So, in case you were looking for a new game to play, Google’s list arrives just on time.

CES 2018 roundup: Best smartphones

Alexandra Arici
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Even if CES 2018 is still going on, the majority of companies already made their big product announcements. So below we take a look at some of the best smartphones that were launched this week in Las Vegas.

Sony Xperia XA2 and XA2 Ultra

Sony introduced two new solid mid-rangers with great specs and a focus on taking better selfies. The XA2 Ultra is actually the first Sony phone to come with a dual selfie camera setup.

There’s more good news – the fingerprint scanner on these phones will finally work for US users. Although it no longer resides in the power button on the side, but on the back of the devices.

Xperia XA2

  • 5.2-inch IPS LCD display with fullHD resolution, 16:9 aspect ratio, 424ppi
  • Snapdragon 650 with Adreno 510 GPU
  • 3GB of RAM
  • 32GB of storage (microSD card slot available)
  • 23-megapixel rear facing camera with f/2.0, phase detection autofocus and LED flash
  • 8-megapixel front facing camera with f/2.4
  • 3.5mm headphone jack
  • 3,300 mAh battery
  • Android 8.0 Oreo out of the box

Xperia XA2 Ultra

  • 6-inch IPS LCD display with fullHD resolution, 16:9 aspect ratio, 367ppi
  • Snapdragon 650 with Adreno 510 GPU
  • 4GB of RAM
  • 32GB/64GB of storage (microSD card slot available)
  • 23-megapixel rear facing camera with f/2.0, phase detection autofocus and LED flash
  • Dual 16-megapixel (f/2.0, OIS, AF) + 8-megapixel (f/2.4) front-facing camera
  • 3.5mm headphone jack
  • 3,580 mAh battery
  • Android 8.0 Oreo out of the box

Sony also announced the Xperia L2, a budget smartphone coming with a 5.5-inch 720p display, quad-core MediaTek MT6737T processor and 3GB of RAM/32GB of storage out of the box. Unfortunately, the phone will ship with Android 7.1.1 Nougat out of the box, unlike the XA2 and XA2 Ultra.

Huawei Mate 10 Pro

Despite loosing the AT&T/Verizon deal, Huawei announced at CES 2018 that Mate 10 Pro flagship is still coming to the States and will be offered via retailers such as Amazon, Best Buy, and Newegg. The Chinese company has even partnered up with Wonder Woman (aka actress Gal Gadot) to help promote the shiny new phone in the country. Any takers?

Mate 10 Pro

  • 6-inch AMOLED display with 1080 x 2160 resolution, 18:9 aspect ratio, 402ppi
  • Kirin 970 with Mali-G72 MP12 GPU
  • 4GB of RAM
  • 64GB of storage
  • Dual 12-megapixel (f/1.6, OIS) + 20-megapixel (f/1.6, 27mm) rear-facing camera with phase detection & laser autofocus, Leica optics, dual-LED dual-tone flash
  • 8-megapixel front facing camera with f/2.0
  • 4,000 mAh battery
  • Android 8.0 Oreo out of the box
  • Price: $799

Huawei also said it will be bringing the Mate 10 Porsche Design to the States. The exclusive model comes with 256GB storage and some premium design tweaks. This version is going to set you back with a whopping $1,225.

Zenfone Max Plus (M1)

Looking for a smartphone with an 18:9 aspect ratio display and a big battery that won’t break the bank? ASUS has your back with its latest Zenfone Max Plus model which will become available this February.

Max Plus (M1)

  • 5.7-inch IPS LCD display with 1080 x 2160 resolution, 18:9 aspect ratio, 424ppi
  • MediaTek MT6750T with Mali-T860MP2
  • 3GB of RAM
  • 32GB of storage (microSD card slot available)
  • Dual 16-megapixel (f/2.0) + 8-megapixel (17mm) rear-facing camera with phase detection autofocus, LED flash
  • 8-megapixel front facing camera with f/2.0
  • 3.5mm headphone jack
  • 4,130 mAh battery
  • Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box
  • Price: $229

BlackBerry Motion

Introduced a while back, the BlackBerry Motion is now available for pre-order in the United States via Amazon. Unlike, the KEYone, the BlackBerry Motion comes sans a physical keyboard under the display and it’s the first handset in the company’s portfolio to offer water-resistance.

BB Motion

  • 5.5-inch IPS LCD display with FullHD resolution, 16:9 aspect ratio, 403ppi
  • Snapdragon 625 with Adreno 506
  • 4GB of RAM
  • 32GB of storage (microSD card slot available)
  • 12-megapixel with f/2.0 and phase detection autofocus
  • 8-megapixel front facing camera with f/2.0
  • 3.5mm headphone jack
  • 4,000 mAh battery
  • Android 7.1 Nougat (planned upgrade to Oreo)
  • Price: $449

Alcatel 5

Alcatel isn’t really known for high-end phones, but the company is looking to change directions with the new Alcatel 5 series. Details are scarce for now, but we do know the phones in this series will come with 18:9 screens, brushed metal bodies and facial recognition. Prices will start at around $300.

Essential unveils new accessories for its phone including HD earphones, fast charger

Alexandra Arici
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Did you purchase an Essential phone? Well, then you might find yourself in need of a few accessories for the phone.

Just as CES 2018 is currently in full swing in Las Vegas, Essential Inc. announced it has started selling a bunch of new accessories for the bezel-less smartphone. So far, the company only offered the Essential 360 Camera for purchase.

Well starting this week you’ll have a few more options to choose from. Here’s what you can get:

  • Essential Earphones HD – $99
  • Essential Earphones Mini – $49
  • USB Type-C Fast Charger – $39
  • USB Type-C to 3.5mm headphone jack adapter – $15

The Essential Earphones HD use a 9.2mm High-Resolution driver, which allows you to enjoy high-quality music on your phone (and even on your computer). The audio accessories also come with a multi-function button which let users to control music playback, answer phone calls and activate the Google Assistant. For added protection, the Earphones HD – which also feature a digital USB-connect, support USB Audio Class 2 – ship with a custom-built, hard shell.

The Essential Earphones Mini are a toned down version of the Earphones HD, offering less impressive sound. They will ship with the same multi-action button on board and are compatible with other USB Type-C devices.

The Fast charger is a 27W power adapter that ships with a USB-C cable. It can provide up to 4 hours of battery life in just 10 minutes.

Additionally, two other accessories for the Essential phone are coming soon:

  • Essential Phone Dock: enables wireless charging on the Essential Phone via its magnetic Click Connector
  • Protective case for the Essential 360 Camera

The Moviphone is a smartphone that doubles as a movie projector

Alexandra Arici
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Being able to use your smartphone as a movie projector is not a novel idea. Motorola offers the InstaShare Projector Moto Mod which can project images as large as 70-inches, but the caveat here is that these modular components only work with a Moto Z handset.

For those who don’t own a Moto Z, but would still like to give the whole smartphone as projector idea a try, there’s an alternative. It’s called Moviphone.

If you live in the US you’re probably familiar with Moviefone – a movie listing and information app that provides users with information regarding movie plots, screenings, TV show info and much more. But the Moviphone is something totally different.

This is actually an Android smartphone that comes with a built-in Laster High Definition (HD) 720p pico projector. Images projected can be as large as 100-inches, which tops the 70-inch of the InstaShare Projector Mod, and at 50 Lumens, the projector is quite bright.

What about specs, you might be wondering? Well, the Moviphone comes with a 5.5-inch display with FullHD (1920 x 1080) resolution and includes an octa-core MediaTek MT6750V chipset aided by either 3GB or 4GB of RAM with 32GB/64GB of internal storage (microSD card slot available for memory expansion up to 128GB).

When it comes to photography, the Moviephone takes advantage of the services of a 13-megapixel rear-facing camera with PDAF (phase detection autofocus) and an 8-megapixel wide-angle selfie snapper.

The device also has a fingerprint scanner on the back and runs Android Nougat out of the box. But don’t hold your breath for the Android Oreo update. Last but not least, the Moviephone relies on a pretty generous 4,000 mAh battery to keep things alive on board.

If the Moviephone sounds interesting to you, then you should know the device is available for $599 a pop. The listing on the company’s website says the phone will ship with 128GB of storage, although the specifications page does not mention a 128GB version. The phone will ship unlocked and is compatible with all carriers.

The Moviephone is currently on display at CES 2018, so if you’re in Las Vegas you might want to swing by and take a look before you place an order.

Google publishes new directory for Google Assistant commands

AG Deals Team
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Google Assistant has been one of the biggest centerpieces of new products being unveiled at CES 2018. We have seen new smart speakers announced, along with a new lineup of smart displays from the likes of LG and Lenovo.

However, one of the problems for the “everyday” person when it comes to Google Assistant is that there was no real way to know everything it’s capable of. Much of using an Assistant-powered device was just trial and error to see what would work and what wouldn’t work.

It seems Google has finally recognized this problem and has created a new landing page for Google Assistant. This new directory has a myriad of sections, making it easy for you to narrow down commands that you are looking for. There is even a search bar, making life even easier if you’re looking for something specific.

On top of being able to find specific commands, this new directory also shows you which devices are compatible. You can even see more information about the services that are acting as the backbone for the various commands, including ratings.

Finally, across the top of the directory, you’ll find some presets which will show you which commands work with select smart home devices. These include Philips Hue, Wemo, LG, and of course, Nest. From there, you can get some extra help to make sure you’re using the right commands with Google Assistant.

With the probability of more Assistant-enabled smart displays on the way, this is definitely one way to familiarize yourself with Google Assistant commands ahead of time. Or, this can be a great way to figure out everything you can do with Assistant if you happened to get a Google Home Mini for Christmas.

Hit the button below to check out the full list of Google Assistant commands, and be sure to let us know some of your favorites.

Explore Google Assistant Commands!

Android Oreo starts rolling out to the OnePlus 5 (again)

AG Deals Team
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OnePlus has been working on updating its lineup of devices to Android 8.0 Oreo, and apparently, the company has been experiencing a myriad of issues. The company started rolling out the OxygenOS 5.0 update for owners of the OnePlus 5, but that update had to be pulled after a series of issues were found.

Fast forward a week or so, and now the fun is back on, as OnePlus has started rolling out the update again. However, instead of carrying the OxygenOS 5.0 software version, the update currently rolling out is OxygenOS 5.0.1.

As for everything that the new update brings, here’s the full changelog:

  • Updated to Android O (8.0)
  • Launcher
    • Optimizations for Shelf
    • Now you can upload your photo through Shot on OnePlus
  • Camera
    • New Camera UI design
    • Optimizations for photo quality
    • Added beauty effect for Portrait Mode
  • Gallery
    • Added “Places” tab for viewing photos on a map
  • Calculator
    • Added history feature
  • Clock
    • Added alarm calendar feature
  • System
    • Added Parallel Apps feature
    • New design for Quick Settings
    • New design for Lift up display
    • Added “Adaptive model” screen calibration
    • Optimizations for Wi-Fi
    • Optimizations for Battery Saver
    • Updated Android security patch to December

According to folks on the OnePlus Forums who have already installed the update, it seems to be finally stable and there are not any major or glaring bugs. Although the update is rolling out via OTA for many users, I know there are some impatient folks out there.

For those who don’t feel like waiting for the OTA update to arrive on their devices, you can hit the link here. This will direct you to the OnePlus Downloads page where you can download the correct version of OxygenOS for the OnePlus 5.

If you have received or flashed the update, let us know how it’s running for you in the comment section below.

T-Mobile begins offering BOGO deals on plethora of Android phones

AG Deals Team
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While everyone else is focused on whether the power is out at CES 2018, T-Mobile is still getting the ball rolling. The Un-Carrier is working on continuing to expand its user base and has started offering its first BOGO deal of 2018.

In the press release, CEO John Legere states that “another 5 million people joined the Un-carrier last year,” and that big things are planned for 2018. This first BOGO promotion includes “TWELVE superphones from Samsung, LG and another major player”. This “major player” is obviously the iPhone, if you’re into that kind of thing.

In addition to offering BOGO on select devices, T-Mobile is also offering up to $150 off certain smartphones. The list of eligible devices includes the following:

Finally, T-Mobile is offering up to $650 off select devices when you switch from Verizon, as this is part of T-Mobile’s current #GetOutoftheRed campaign. This deal will allow T-Mobile to pay off your current device, provided that it’s one of the following:

  • Pixel 2
  • Pixel 2 XL
  • Samsung Galaxy S8
  • Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus
  • “Another ultra-popular smartphone”

The best part about T-Mobile’s first big deal of 2018 is that you can actually combine all three deals on the same account, provided that it’s not for just a single line. Nonetheless, if you want to learn more, hit the link here and get switched over to the Un-Carrier today!

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