Samsung today introduced the latest members of the Galaxy A series, the Galaxy A8 (2018) and A8+ (2018), the successors of the Galaxy A5 (2017) and A7 (2017).
Often leaked in the past few months, the two smartphones will be on display at CES 2018 in a few weeks, where more details about availability and pricing will hopefully be shared with the public.
Samsung has given the InfinityDisplay treatment to these new premium middle-rangers, which means the Galaxy A8 and A8+ feature thin bezels all around and an immersive 18:5:9 display ratio. However, unlike Samsung’s flagships phones, the two Galaxy A8 duo offers only 1080p+ resolution, which is apparently enough to support the Gear VR. The smaller of the two is the Galaxy A8 which includes a 5.6-inch display, while the Galaxy A8+ includes a 6-inch one.
Display aside, the Galaxy A8 and A8+ are really unique among Samsung phones, as they are the first phones from the company’s portfolio to come with a dual selfie camera on the front – a 16MP+8MP combo with f/1.9. The module switches between the two sensors as needed, so users can get the selfie they want. Samsung also throws in a Live Focus Feature which lets Galaxy A8/A8+ owners easily adjust the bokeh effect before or after they take a shot.
The main camera is a single 16-megapixel sensor with f/1.7 and digital stabilization for shake-free videos. A new hyperlapse feature for creating time-lapse videos has also been added.
Both phones are powered by an octa-core chipset, but the Galaxy A8 will be offered with 4GB of RAM and either 32GB/64GB of storage. The Galaxy A8+, on the other hand, boast 4GB/6GB of RAM with 32GB or 64GB built-in storage. A microSD card slot is available in both cases for memory expansion up to 256GB.
Samsung has also bundled the two new models with Samsung Pay support, IP68 certification, fast charging over USB-C and 3,000 mAh and 3,500 mAh batteries respectively (just like the Galaxy S8 duo). The new handsets will be available in four color options including Black, Orchid Gray, Gold and Blue.
Unfortunately, the Galaxy A8 and Galaxy A8+ will launch with Android 7.1.1 Nougat out of the box, which is quite disappointing. God only knows when the Android 8.0 Oreo update will be available, but all products come with their disadvantages.
Samsung says the new phones will become available in early January, so don’t forget to tune in for CES 2018 to find out more details.
It’s been a while since we’ve seen movement from Sennheiser’s higher end earphones. That is, the company’s IE line of in-ears, where the mid-range has been owned by the IE 80 and the flagship of the series being the IE 800 (which we looked at) for the past few years. Well, Sennheiser is now getting around to updating its shining stars. And judging by the nomenclature, we very well are looking at refinement rather than reimagining.
Taking a page from Apple’s naming method, Sennheiser tacks on an “S” to the model name. Here, we’re taking a look at the new contender for mid-range in-ear king, the IE 80 S.
Much of what made the original IE 80 great is still here, like the detachable cable and analog bass adjustment, but the design/ergonomics and acoustics have been reworked for the better. Let’s take a look at what to expect.
Design
Since this is a refinement, the overall form of the IE 80 S reflects that of the original. They still have that interesting trapezoidal shape and are meant to be worn around the ear. One immediate difference in the design is the reduction of the brushed metal plate on the flat, outward surface of the earpieces.
We don’t think everyone will be a fan of this move, as the metal looks more premium than the predominate material of the earpiece chassis, which feels like your standard-fare hard plastic (but with a stealthy, smooth matte finish). But we can understand what Sennheiser was going for. This is a more streamlined look and it draws the eyes to the Sennheiser logo and that intriguing bass control dial.
Durability is something else Sennheiser says was a focus with the IE 80 S, and we believe it. The earpiece housing, connector neck, and cable construction all feel like they can hold up to a beating.
Speaking of the cable, it’s also looks like it’s made of a pretty standard-fare black sheathing. It feels better in-hand, by sporting a smooth, rubbery finish. It has a thickness that backs its durable up-bringing, which serves good for resisting tangles but not for being the most compact when rolled up for travel.
Usability
We’re glad that the IE 80 S comes with a similarly awesome selection of accessories like its predecessor. First and foremost are the wide variety of ear tips, which now include different sizes of Comply foam tips. The in-canal seal is extremely important with in-ear headphones, and anyone should be able to find something that works out of these nine different pairs.
That said, I didn’t have a very positive experience with either types of the silicone tips. I don’t know if it’s because the stubby shape of the tips, or their firmness, but I had a hard time getting an appropriate seal. It’s hard for a reviewer to comment about this aspect of an in-ear, because all ear canals are different. But for what it’s worth, I try a lot of earphones and these gave me more fit trouble than usual. I eventually found that jamming them in tightly got me the seal I wanted. Anyways, I’m glad that Sennheiser threw in foam tips as an option. Things were all good using those. And you may want to opt for foam anyways, because isolation isn’t this earphone’s strong suit.
Fortunately, our fit issues didn’t bode badly for comfort. The earpieces are lighter than they look, and their unique trapezoidal shape actually fit nicely in the ear. We actually barely feel them when donned, and that’s what you want. The around-the-ear wear makes for a secure fit, which works together with the thick rubbery sheathing to stop microphonics at its tracks. These are earphones you can workout with; they stay in place despite movement.
We love that Sennheiser retained cable swappability, but hate that it’s with a proprietary 2-pin connector – which means third-party cables are a no-go.
We must mention a slight difference with the design of this around-the-ear earphone compared to others. The stem interface where the cable connects to the earpiece is long and sticks up vertically when you wear the earphones. This is partly what makes the IE 80 S so comfortable, but we did find that it caused the cable to fall from our ears at times (when turning our head). You’ll want to utilize the chin slider to keep the cables tightly against you, or use the optional ear hooks that are included.
The cable has a generous length short of 4 ft (3.93′ to be exact). Sennheiser made a tweak to the Y-splitter, smoothing out the original blocky form. For some reason, it has also changed the orientation of the 3.5mm jack. It used to be right-angled and now is straight. We feel like this is an unnecessary change and also inconsistent, because the update to the IE 800, the IE 800 S, continues to use a right-angle connector. Please choose one method and stick to it.
The bass tuning dial on each earpiece requires a small flathead tool, which Sennheiser places on the opposite end of the ear wax cleaning tool – so you’ll want to make sure you have this around if you often change the bass. There’s five little markers with a quarter circle section in which to increase the bass.
We really wish that Sennheiser at the very least marked the lower and upper limits of the bass dial. There’s no visual reference, so you have to remember what you last set it on. If you forget, you’ll have to listen, change it, and listen again to figure it out. You of course can try to remember what’s what relative to the earpiece orientation, but we still stand by that a simple marker would have been best.
Sound
Sennheiser set themselves up for scrutiny when it comes to the sound of the IE 80 S, because it’s one of the big updates and a big reason why you’ll be paying the original premium of this headphone. Suffice to say, the IE 80 S doesn’t disappoint.
One of the things that continues to stands out in Sennheiser’s audio reproduction is clarity. We’ve seen it in our listen of the wallet-busting IE 800, and we can tell a similar prowess in the IE 80 S. Throughout the spectrum, notes cleanly hit with appreciable separation. There’s plenty here to enjoy from an analytical standpoint, but that doesn’t mean that there isn’t the kind of energy that gets our feet thumping.
Many headphone makers opt for a V-shaped frequency response to get this kind of impact. Sennheiser aims for a good balance between impact and accuracy with a U-shaped response, which lifts bass and treble but keeps the mid-range appreciable. I’m usually a stickler about ample mid-range presence, but didn’t find the IE 80 S really lacking in this area. What helps is the natural and airy vocals.
Out of the box, we didn’t feel that the bass needed any boosting. It’s the strongest aspect of the sound by default. But it is nice that Sennheiser includes an analog boost for bassheads; this is an option rarely found on earphones. We really enjoyed the bass on the IE 80 S. It’s authoritative, which coupled with its ability to be tuned should make this the best choice for basshead audiophiles. The qualities of both the bass and treble are about the same level for us; they’re where they should be at this price range but could be better. The mid-bass has a looseness to our ears, and the sub-bass isn’t as deep as what you’d find on the IE 800, nor is the treble is extended/sparkly as it either.
But what helps the entire presentation (and pleasure) is the airy soundstage. The IE 80 S follows in the steps of its more expensive counterpart in this respect. So this means that it’s a more 3D space than it is wide, and the dynamics of different notes in the space are superb.
Final Thoughts
We reckon that the two biggest questions that the IE 80 S will raise are if they’re a worthy upgrade and if they’re worth their hefty $350 price. We’re more inclined to say Yes to the second question than the first, but it will come down to what the listener values. The IE 80 S in no way wipes the floor with the original IE 80, and the recommendation becomes difficult when the still-capable original costs $150 less than the new guy.
But if sound quality means a lot to you (which, if you’re thinking about dropping a few hundred, then it probably does), than the IE 80 S may be worth it. Sennheiser has carried over some of its higher level expertise to its mid-range champ and it can make a valuable difference. It also helps how the device is refined as much out as it is in.
KOOGEEK has launched a special sale just in time for Christmas with as much as 57% off the RRP.
The sale focuses on the Internet of Things devices that will help you connect your life to the cloud from a smart arm blood pressure monitor with 35% off and a wireless digital body weight scale with 30% off.
Up for grabs is an Apple Homekit enabled smart plug reduced down from $28.99 to $24.64 and a smart light bulb reduced from $36.99 to $31.44. There’s also a variety of smart light switches for $33.59 or less.
KOOGEEK are even offering smart fitness gear for as little as $49.99 from the $79.99 RRP. For all the best deals in time for Christmas, be sure to check out the store for all the discounts to be had – there’s simply too many to list here.
Editor Note: This article is a paid or sponsored publication. AndroidGuys has vetted the links at the time of publication; however, the articles should not be considered a blanket endorsement for the products or services highlighted herein. In some instances AndroidGuys may receive a small percentage of revenue derived from purchases through affiliate links. Money generated here is used to help pay for the site and/or staff.
In the market for an affordable, quality Bluetooth speaker? You might want to check out what Wicked Audio has to offer.
A brand many of you are probably acquainted with (their products are sold via Best Buy, Amazon and more), Wicked Audio’s portfolio also includes two Bluetooth speakers. I’ve been testing them both for the last few weeks, and I have to say I’m quite taken with them. With competitive price tags attached to them, these two speakers provide a great alternative for music lovers who don’t want to spend premium on an entertainment device they might not use on a daily basis.
The first thing that struck me when I received the two speakers was the super cool packaging. I am an illustration/graffiti lover, and the their boxes were adorned with lots of fun art to behold. A real visual treat indeed and definitely something I wasn’t expecting. Also kudos for the name; Wicked Audio sounds a lot better than Sonos or Sennheiser or anything of the sort.
But what about the products? I’m getting there…
Wicked Audio Outcry, the mini Bluetooth speaker
The two Wicked Audio speakers are named Outcry (the smaller, portable one) and Outcry Extreme (the bigger one) and you can get them set up in an instant. Just turn them on, while also making sure Bluetooth on your mobile device is also on. The Wicked Audio speakers should show up in the Available Devices section on your phone and from there you can easily pair them together. Note that you can only pair one mobile device to either of the speakers at a time.
The smaller Outcry speaker is a tiny cylinder, that can fit basically anywhere (in your pocket, palm or in your bag/purse). It feels quite sturdy in hand, as it’s made of durable materials. It’s also water-resistant. The speaker grill lives at the top and that’s where the sound comes out.
The tiny Outcry does a pretty swell job of filling a room with music, even as it relies on a less than stellar 40mm driver. Portability is probably this speaker’s main selling point, as well as the fact that it features manual controls that let you adjust the volume on the speaker without actually doing so from the smartphone.
What’s more, as mentioned above the Outcry is pretty sturdy. I’m a pretty clumsy person and I must confess I must have dropped the speaker at least three times. Two times it was playing music, but it continued to stream the sound unperturbed. I could not spot any post-battle scratches on it either.
The mini speaker has a battery life of only 3 hours – which isn’t much – and takes up to 1.5 hours to fully recharge. Wicked Audio notes it has a Bluetooth range of 32ft/10m and in my experience of using it in my small apartment, I didn’t notice any connection drops.
What about the larger Wicked Audio Outcry Extreme?
Wicked Audio Outcry Extreme gets the party started
Despite the aesthetically pleasing package design, the Wicked Audio Outcry Extreme Bluetooth Speaker boasts a very familiar look. It’s rectangular in shape with rounded ends and features a grille made from metal that wraps around most of the speaker except for plastic-made top and bottom. Technically, the Outcry Extreme isn’t a true 360-degree speaker, but it does have sound coming out from the back, as well as the front.
The Outcry Extreme features an On/Off switch on the back of the device, alongside a 3.5mm headphone jack and microUSB port for charging. On top of the speakers, you’ll find the manual controls for adjusting volume, skip or play/pause tracks, as well as answering phone calls.
Like it’s smaller brother, it’s designed to entertain. Not only will the speaker provide a robust musical background, but it also put a smile on your face every time you connect (or disconnect) your phone to it. When the Bluetooth connection is lost or you disconnect it, the speaker lets out a frustrated “Grr” sound, but when it connects again, it will greet you with a goofy “Ding!”.
Moving on to sound quality, the Outcry Extreme features twin 45mm drivers that managed to do a pretty decent job when the sound volume wasn’t too high. When playing some tracks (mostly metal or rock) at full volume, the sound had a tendency to become quite distorted. Bass lines aren’t particularly striking either, although Wicked Audio promises “earth-shattering, rock you to the core, ghetto blaster bass”. Fortunately, if you have a music player such as nPlayer installed on your phone, you can use its embedded equalizer to enhance the bass experience.
Obviously, the Outcry Extreme is louder than the tiny Outcry, but even so don’t expect it rattle your windows.
And here’s an observation that might prove relevant to some. The Outcry Extreme and smaller Outcry don’t shut themselves off when you disconnect Bluetooth or leave it inactive for a while. You’ll just have to do it manually, annoying as it might sometimes be.
The Wicked Audio Outcry Extreme offers up to 8 hours of audio playback but will take more than half that time (4.5 hours) to fully recharge, so it’s best to do it overnight.
The Outcry Extreme has the same Bluetooth range as the tiny Outcry (32ft/10m) and is also water-resistant, so it shouldn’t be harmed if you forget it in the backyard and a few drops of rain touch it overnight (although I did not test this scenario).
Conclusion
While the Outcry speakers don’t deliver the kind of audio that makes you feel you’re standing in a concert hall while the band is playing on stage in front of you, they do offer decent quality sound and set of functions without breaking the bank. Not to mention great packaging. The mini Outcry is available for $29.99 a pop, while the Outcry Extreme can be yours for $54.99. They can surely make for great Christmas gifts!
Enjoy talking to your Google Assistant on your phone, but don’t like using the traditional “OK Google” trigger? Well, you don’t have to anymore.
Google is finally letting people use the much more intuitive alternative “Hey Google” to wake up the virtual assistant. Users from all over the world have started receiving a prompt to setup voice recognition with Google Assistant, with the new command being included.
Smartphone owners were asked to repeat a few phrases a few times including “Hey Google” in order to retrain their voice model settings. Don’t be worried if you’ve grown attached to the old “OK Google” phrase, you can keep using it if you prefer it. It’s up to you!
The “Hey Google” command was already available for Google Home owners, but now the search giant is expanding its availability to phones. Back in October, Google started testing the new way to interact with the Google Assistant on smartphones, but made it available only to a few select users.
Speaking of the Assistant, Google recently started rolling it out for Android smartphones running the older Lollipop version. The Mountain View-based company also said the virtual assistant will make its way to tablets starting this week. Will the “Hey Google” hotword work on slates? It remains to be seen.
If you haven’t received a prompt on your device, you can manually check whether the new hotword is available for you by checking Settings>Google>Search>Voice>Voice Match to see if the new command is there.
An interesting rumor just surfaced online fueling dreams of a Nokia e6 comeback. You see according to an anonymous tipster Nokia could be in the process of working on a handset with a QWERTY keyboard à la BlackBerry.
According to the information, the BlackBerry-inspired Nokia phone will allegedly feature a 3.3-inch display with 480 x 480 resolution.
The source claims it will be an entry-level device to be powered by an unimpressive Snapdragon 205 processor. What’s more, we’re told the handset won’t run Android, but KaiOS – a lightweight mobile operating system based on HTML 5 designed for entry-level phones. Still, users will be able to have access to an app store, third-party apps, video calls, live TV streaming and more.
What’s more, the mystery device might have already popped at the FCC. The Nokia TA-1047 – which recently passed through the regulatory agency for certification – is apparently one and the same with the QWERTY-equipped Nokia revealed by the leakster.
Sadly, the FCC filing does little to corroborate the story, as the documents merely reveal the phone takes advantage of dual-SIM support, Bluetooth 4.2, LTE bands 5, 7 and 38 and an FM radio antenna. Oh, and the phone is listed as being 2.7-inch / 68 mm wide and 5.2-inch / 133 mm tall.
What do you think? Would you be interested in a modern take on the Nokia e6?
Although unlocking your phone with your face was part of Android for a long time, Apple’s introduction of Face ID has prompted many Android manufacturers to focus on facial recognition once again.
Most recently we talked about OnePlus including a face unlock feature in its latest OnePlus 5T, although unlike Apple’s implementation (or Samsung’s for that matter), the OnePlus 5T doesn’t have any special sensors to identify your face with. Instead, it uses just the camera.
The same approach was taken by Chinese company, Vernee with its most recent flagship – the Vernee X. The company boasts it has equipped the smartphone with the latest face ID recognition technology, which is said to be able to unlock the device in only 0.2s. Although we can’t really say how safe it is.
Face unlock aside, the Vernee X is quite pretty to look at. The phone is made of metal and boasts a 6-inch display with 2160 x 1080 resolution and the modern 18:9 aspect ratio. It’s available in Black or Blue.
When it comes to hardware, the handset relies on an octa-core MediaTek Helio P23 chipset clocked at 2.5GHz working in concert with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. Power-users will probably be thrilled to hear that the device include a massive 6,200 mAh battery that should ensure they don’t run out of power during critical moments.
We should note the Vernee X is also part of the emerging trend of having four cameras on board. The device boasts a 16MP/5MP camera combo on the back, while up in front there’s a 13MP sensor assisted by a secondary 5MP one.
Of course the Vernee X doesn’t come without it bad sides. For example, it runs the outdated Android 7.1 Nougat and probably won’t get updated to Android 8.0 Oreo anytime soon (if ever).
Update: Good news! It seems the Vernee X will get the Android 8.0 Oreo update soon after it hits the market in a form of an OTA update.
But as you’d expect from a Chinese phone such as this one, the Vernee X offers a lot of features in exchange for little money. You can pre-order the phone between December 18 and 25 for $249.99. Once the period expires, the price of the phone will go up to $299.99.
If you’re feeling lucky, you can go ahead and post a comment on Vernee’s website for a chance to win a free Vernee X smartphone.
LG’s own mobile paying solution dubbed LG Pay, debuted back in June and so far was exclusively available in South Korea.
Well, it appears that the service will soon become available on the Western Market. According to a new report coming out of ETNews, it seems LG is gearing up to launch the LG K10 (2018) with LG Pay on board during the CES 2018 tradeshow next month.
In its home country, LG bundled the paying service with some of its high-end phones including the LG G6 and LG V30. Yet, the LG K10 (2018) is a middle-range device expected to make a debut with a 5.3-inch display with FullHD resolution, 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage.
LG K10 2017
If rumors are correct, the phone should also include a 1.2GHz quad-core processor and a decent 3,000 mAh battery under the hood, as well as a 13-megapixel/5-megapixel camera combo. Furthermore, the LG K10 (2018) might also feature a fingerprint sensor on the back and FM Radio support.
The LG K10 (2018) wouldn’t be the first middle ranger to take advantage of a mobile paying service. Samsung’s Galaxy A (2017) series made a debut earlier this year with Samsung Pay on board.
But unlike Samsung Pay, LG Pay uses Wireless Magnetic Communication system to authenticate payments, which are confirmed on the phone via the fingerprint scanner. The system – which was created by Dyanmics Inc. – enables an LG device to read and save any standard card with a magnetic stripe, and then send the info to the paying terminals used by retailers from around the world. Samsung Pay uses a technology used Magnetic Secure Transmission, while Apple relies on NFC technology for Apple Pay.
In related news, Samsung is also expected to launch a couple of mid-rangers at CES 2018 in the form of the Galaxy A8 and Galaxy A8+. The two devices – which have leaked extensively in the past months – are expected to come with an edge-to-edge design and 18:9 InfinityDisplays reminiscent of the Galaxy S8.
What else can we look forward to at CES 2018? Read more about it here.
Just as Blackberry promised, the company has stopped issuing updates for the Blackberry PRIV right on the 24-month mark.
The Blackberry PRIV was launched in 2015 where the company promised to release updates to patch security vulnerabilities for 24 months. That period has now expired and right on the dot Blackberry are cutting support for the phone.
However, Blackberry has made the following promises going forward for owners of the device:
All warranty obligations for the Priv will be fulfilled.
The phone is still secure, even without monthly updates.
Should a critical vulnerability appear, BlackBerry will work with its partners to address it.
A new trade-in program for Priv and BB 10/BBOS owners is coming to help them upgrade to a KEYone or Motion.
At this point, your best bet if you still own a PRIV is to go for the trade-in program if you’re set on a new Blackberry, but to be honest you’re probably better off picking up a device from another manufacturer at this point.
It’s not even been a month since we saw the first Beta of Android Oreo for the OnePlus 5 and the custom OxygenOS layer that OnePlus has. The company is now releasing the second Beta of OxygenOS for the OnePlus 5 and while it isn’t a release that has a ton of new features like the last, it does contain a bunch of bug fixes and performance improvements.
What’s new:
Launcher
Fixed widget issues
Fixed shortcut issues
Camera
UI improvements
File Manager
Added f4v format in video category
Speed improvements while deleting massive files
System
Improvements for Reading Mode
Improvements for vibration
Improvements for Bluetooth audio
Fixed Parallel Apps bugs
Fixed reboot issue when using Picture in Picture
Updated Android security patch to November
General bug fixes and stability improvements
You should receive an OTA for Beta 2 of Oreo if you’ve previously had an Open Beta installed on your device. If you were waiting for the second release and the bugs to be patched before jumping ship then just sign up here and sideload the update or install it via recovery.
It’s worth highlighting this is a Beta release so, despite the whole host of bug fixes in this release, you may find some additional bugs not yet patched, so proceed with caution. If you do find a bug, go ahead and help out OnePlus by reporting it here.
