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Would you be interested in a YouTube Phone made by Google?

Alexandra Arici
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Do you love watching YouTube videos all day long? Then you’d probably be interested if a phone built around the service showed up on the market, right?

According to a report coming out of Android Authority, that’s exactly what Google is trying to figure out. Apparently, the tech giant has been distributing surveys through UK-based Survey Bods in which it details a phone dubbed “YouTube Edition”.

The device reportedly comes with software and hardware optimized for watching YouTube videos and even includes a dedicated button called “You Capture” which would allow prospective owners to quickly access YouTube or to record videos.

YouTube app on Android

Other features were detailed in the survey like “You Twist”, which shows a grid on YouTube videos you might be interested in watching, once you’ve turned your phone into landscape mode. Users will also be able to use something called Creator Connect which bestows a design similar to Instagram Stories on YouTube accounts and is showed at the top of the home screen. A live video thumbnail will be shown on the lockscreen and by tapping on it users will be instantly connected to a live YouTube feed.

The phone’s specs were also listed in the survey revealing this product will most likely be a middle-ranger akin to the iPhone SE, iPhone 6, Sony Xperia XA1 or Samsung Galaxy A5. It seems Google’s YouTube Edition phone will come with a 6.01-inch 18:9 LCD display with FHD+ resolution (2160 x 1080), will be powered by a 2.2GHz processor, aided by 4GB of RAM and either 32GB or 64GB of storage. Other specs include a 12MP/5MP dual-camera with HD video recording on the back and 8MP selfie camera on the front, Dolby Atmos stereo speakers, fingerprint sensor and a 3,700 mAh battery.

Google’s alleged YouTube Edition phone

It’s interesting to note that Google has yet to produce any dual camera phones. However, some Android One models like the Xiaomi Mi A1 do benefit from dual cameras. Which, brings us to this phone’s naming scheme. The survey calls the device “YouTube Edition by Android One”, “YouTube Edition by LG”, “YouTube Edition by Samsung” or just plainly “YouTube Edition”.

This suggests the phone is still an ongoing project at Google or maybe only a concept for now, hence we shouldn’t expect to see this product make a debut anytime soon (chances are, it won’t make a debut at all). Interestingly, neither Samsung or LG have released Android One devices up until now, so maybe this is a clue that the two tech giants are indeed looking to join Google’s low-cost initiative.

Speaking of low-cost, according to the survey, the YouTube Edition phone should come boasting a price tag between $360 (£269) and $400 (£299). Three color options – Black, White, and Red – are said to be in the cards.

Last but not least, a blurry photo of the alleged device was also included in the survey. As you can see the image offers a distinct Pixel vibe with colored side buttons. Would be interested in purchasing one? Let us know in the comments section below.

Android 8.0 Oreo everywhere: here are the latest smartphones to get the update

Alexandra Arici
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Google debuted Android 8.0 Oreo three months ago, but up until now, not many smartphones have been updated to the latest Android version. Well, it appears several Android OEMs have waited for the Thanksgiving holiday to start unleashing the Oreo update for some of their models. Below you’ll find the complete list:

OnePlus 5

After the OnePlus 3 and OnePlus 3T where recently updated to Android Oreo, it was the OnePlus 5’s turn to receive the treatment.

Over the weekend, the Chinese company released an Oxygen OS Open Beta 1 for the OnePlus 5 that is based on Android 8.0 Oreo. However, keep in mind that this a beta so it might be riddled with bugs. The stable Android 8.0 Oreo update is expected to appear in early 2018:

Up next: OnePlus 5T

Nokia 8

Nokia debuted the Android 8.0 Oreo beta labs for the Nokia 8 flagship in late October and now the public version has started rolling out. Of course, like it’s the case with these kinds of updates, not everyone will get it at once, so some of you might have a few weeks to wait before being able to update your phone to Oreo.

Up next: Nokia 6 and Nokia 5

Sony Xperia XZ and Xperia XZs

After the Xperia XZ Premium, it’s time for the Xperia XZ and Xperia XZs to get sweet Oreo treatment which includes some of Sony’s own treats. Sony was the first to release a smartphone with Oreo out of the box (the Xperia XZ1) and it was quite quick to offer the update for some models, as well.

Up next: Xperia X Performance

HTC U11

We previously reported that the Oreo update for the HTC U11 started rolling out in Taiwan earlier this month. Well, HTC’s own Mo Versi announced on Twitter that owners of the U11 in the US can expect to see Oreo arrive starting today, November 27.

Up next: HTC U Ultra (?)

LG V30

Looks like LG is rolling out the Android Oreo beta for its latest LG V30 flagship too in South Korea. The company started accepting registrations for the beta program earlier this month. But even as this is good news, it’s still going to be a while until the public version will become available for all V30 users to try and use.

Up next: LG G6 (?)

Samsung Galaxy S8

The Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ are receiving a new Oreo beta which fixes the issues that were caused by the third Oreo beta update. The new build – coming in with version number ZQKI – has fixed the problem. Hopefully, we’re getting closer to a stable release.

Up next: Samsung Galaxy Note 8 (?)

KOOGEEK Cyber Monday special with up to 72% off (Promoted Deals)

Dan Bartram
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You may have missed out on the Black Friday deals but Cyber Monday is for those that haven’t had enough deals and want some more bargains.

KOOGEEK have set up some excellent deals as part of Cyber Monday with some deals getting as much as 72% off.

There’s no better time to get on the Internet of Things and KOOGEEK will help you achieve that on a budget. The store has a number of IoT items for sale including a Smart Arm Blood Pressure Monitor, Bluetooth & WiFi Smart Health Scale, and an Apple HomeKit Smart Light Bulb.

KOOGEEK also have a number of Smart Thermometers at 42% off just for Cyber Monday.

There are a ton of other Smart devices as part of the Cyber Monday deals at KOOGEEK that you do not want to miss. Be sure to check out their store here to grab yourself a bargain.

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.

10 best tech gift ideas under $25

Alexandra Arici
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Are you on a budget this holiday season? Not a problem, as there are plenty of ways to let someone know they’re in your thoughts, without overspending.

And if you have a techie in their circle of family and friends, below you’ll find a list of ten great tech Christmas gift ideas that will cost you no more than 25 bucks:

A stylish phone case

Everyone these days carries a phone, so protective cases have become essential accessories that help safeguard against damage.

You’ll need to know the exact phone model your friend or family member uses, before setting out to purchase a case for them, but once you do, you’ll be able to find a protective accessory in no time.

Amazon – which offer a large collection of phone cases – is a great place to start searching for one. For example, if the recipient of your gift is the owner of the Samsung Galaxy S8+ you could opt for the official Samsung Protective Cover.

The case is made of silicone, making the device a lot more comfortable to hold, and less likely to slip out of your hands, while its soft interior keeps the Galaxy S8+ from getting scratched up with extended use. The Protective Cover is available on Amazon with priced between $5.99 and $17.93 – depending on the color you wish to purchase it in. Fortunately, all versions fit in our $25 budget.

A fun Bluetooth speaker

Bluetooth speakers come in all shapes and sizes, but the 808 Canz definitely stands out from the crowd due to its more unique design. It’s still a cylinder, but a colorful one with a retro feel to it. It’s available for purchase on Amazon from as little as $15.99 in Black, Blue, Red, and Silver (the Purple version can be purchased from sellers).

The 808 Canz can stream music up to 6 hours using the built-in lithium-ion battery in a 30-foot range. It’s biggest selling point is perhaps that it can provide great audio quality, especially if you’re a fan of booming bass.

Earbuds for the music lover

Is the person you’re shopping for a fan of music? Then why not get them a set of earbuds? Even if it doesn’t seem possible you can actually get a very decent pair of earphones with just a $25 budget.

For example, the Sennheiser Twist-to-Fit earbuds are available for $21.79 on Amazon. The audio accessories were designed for street use, so they excel at keeping noise out and music in. Thanks to Sennheiser’s audio expertise, the buds can deliver powerful, bass-driven stereo sound.

Sleek power bank

A portable power bank is another essential accessory for smartphone users. But while some battery packs are chunky and uninspiring design-wise, the RAVPower portable charger is compact and colorful.

Despite being tiny, it houses a capacity of 6,700 mAh which should be enough to recharge your smartphone once or twice. You can grab it from Amazon in Pink or Silver for $18.99.

A smartphone lens

Trying to buy a gift for someone who loves taking photos on their smartphones? The VicTsing 3-in-1 lens might make for the perfect present. The lens – which can be attached to the phone via a sturdy clip – offers the option to shoot with either a fisheye, wide-angle or macro lens, thus allowing users to experiment with different types of shots. The VicTsing 3-in-1 lens is available from Amazon for only $9.

Tiny selfie remote shutter

Want to take better selfies? Then you’ll most likely need a portable remote shutter button. Like the Mooni. It’s small, colorful and can help you take photos up to 30 feet away. Forget the selfie stick, use a tripod instead and get shake-free photos with Mooni. You can get the shutter button for only $12.99 from Amazon.

A tripod

Speaking of smartphone tripods…the LOHA is compatible with both iOS and Android devices and provides both landscape and portrait mode capabilities. The tripod has bendable legs, so you’ll be able to take pictures and videos in a variety of angles and positions. It’s available for $25 on Amazon.

A cool smartphone stand

Have a friend that likes watching videos during their lunch break? Why not get them a phone stand? Like the Spigen S310? Made of aluminum and thanks to the fixed TPU mount, the stand can conveniently hold your phone or tablet in place and provide a better view. Get it for $19.99

Google Play $25 Gift Card

If you can’t think of anything else, there’s also the option of getting them a Google Play gift card. With it, recipients will be able to buy apps, games, music, books and more. So if you’re not sure of their preferences, a Google Play gift card could be the way to go.

Google Home Mini

We’re throwing this on the list even though it’s $4 more than our set budget of $25. However, at this price, the Home Mini is an extremely good deal, if you’re willing to throw in the extra bucks.

Powered by the Google Assistant, the donut-shaped device can be used to stream music, set a sleep timer, play news by voice on your TV and much more. The mini smart speaker will be available for $29 until the end of the year.

Elephone’s upcoming S9 flagship to boast a flexible display

Alexandra Arici
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As far back as 2015, Samsung was rumored to be working on a smartphone with a curved smartphone. Two years later, the phone has yet to materialize although the recent emergence of a support page for the device known as the Galaxy X on Samsung’s official website seems to suggest that its launch is imminent.

But an obscure Chinese smartphone maker might actually beat Samsung to the punch. The company called Elephone has built a reputation for copying the designs of famous smartphones. For example, its S7 flagship was inspired by the Galaxy S7, while the S8 has a distinct Xiaomi Mi MIX vibe.

Well based on a few leaked images and a video, it seems Elephone is hard at work experimenting with a new smartphone design based around a flexible display. If this information is correct, the company’s next-gen S9 flagship could actually launch as an affordable Galaxy X alternative. Assuming Samsung’s phone makes a debut first.

Images from a patent assumed to be related to the Galaxy X

Interestingly – for a smartphone coming out of an obscure Chinese brand – the Elephone S9 is said to take advantage of a Snapdragon 660 processor, not a MediaTek SoC, as you’d normally expect. Apart from that, the phone will apparently feature a bezel-less 18:9 display, as well as a 6GB of RAM and 64GB of built-in storage. Android 8.0 Oreo will ship on board of the device.

Sources familiar with the matter also claim the Elephone logo on the back will act as an LED notification light, while one of the leaked images reveal a dual-camera setup will live on the back the phone.

Based on the current evidence, we really can’t be sure how the final version of the phone will look like. Chances are the Elephone S9 will be different than the Galaxy X which will quite possibly fold in half akin to the ZTE Axon M, which isn’t actually a smartphone with a flexible display, but one that pairs two displays uniting them with a hinge.

The ZTE Axon M

It doesn’t appear the Elephone S9 will be able to do that, but who knows. There is no known time frame for the phone’s release, so it’s safe to assume it won’t be coming before the end of 2017.

Nokia 9 with bezel-less display, dual-cameras reveals itself in 3D case renders

Alexandra Arici
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Nokia released its first comeback flagship, under the HMD umbrella, earlier this year. Dubbed the Nokia 8, the phone never made it on the US market, which so far seems to be reserved only for lower-end models like the Nokia 6 and Nokia 2.

But Nokia’s next-gen flagship – the Nokia 9 – might make it across the pond, though. According to leaks and rumors, the high-end device is expected to be the first Nokia phone to feature a modern bezel-less design and 18:9 aspect ratio (?). It should be launching soon enough. How soon? We don’t know yet.

Amazon UK for its part, has already started selling a few Nokia 9 cases from HualuBro, thus revealing the unreleased phone’s design. Confirming earlier rumors, the alleged Nokia 9 appears to be sporting an all-screen front with thin bezels on the sides, but slightly noticeable chin and forehead. The flagship also includes a dual camera setup which is vertically arranged on the back. Below the cameras, we can spot a fingerprint scanner which no longer lives on the front embedded in the physical home button (non-existent here) like in the case of the Nokia 8.

For the time being, we don’t know anything about a possible release for the Nokia 9, but the smartphone has been long due, leaking extensively in the past few months. But given how close we are to the holiday season, we believe it’s pretty safe to assume that the phone will debut in early 2018.

OnePlus 5 gets Android 8.0 Oreo beta update

Dan Bartram
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The OnePlus 3 and 3T recently got the Android Oreo treatment and now its the turn of the OnePlus 5.

OnePlus today released an OxygenOS Open Beta 1 for the OnePlus 5 that is based on Android 8.0 Oreo. The software is part of an open test programme that means anyone can participate who want to get the latest major version of Android on their device.

You’ll be able to flash the software on your OnePlus 5 and will receive Open Beta OTA updates as and when they are released to keep your device on the latest version with the necessary bug fixes that are discovered as the Beta progresses.

You’ll get the latest features of Android Oreo such as picture-in-picture as well as OnePlus specific features baked into its Oxygen OS software. You’ll also get the October security patch bundled in with the Beta 1 release.

The stable Android 8.0 Oreo update for the OnePlus 5 is expected in early 2018. If you cannot wait, then be sure to grab the Beta from here. Just remember, it’s a Beta so expect some random bugs.

This is Vernee’s answer to the Samsung Galaxy S8 Active

Alexandra Arici
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Little-know device manufacturer from China, Vernee has slowly started to emerge from the underground with products like the Mix 2, a phone which brings with a massive 6-inch edge-to-edge screen with 18:9 aspect ratio and a big 4,200 mAh battery under the hood.

Well, it seems the company has set its sights on the rugged niche and will soon unveil a new phone with a distinctive Samsung Galaxy S8 Active flavor to it.

According to the leaked images that made their way online, the Vernee Active will be a pretty sleek device coming with really thin bezels (on the sides) and frame, but rather noticeable chin and forehead.

We’re also told the handset will feature a 5.5-inch display with high screen-to-body ratio and will include a new, upgraded version of the Helio P25 octa-core processor which is expected to be 30% more powerful and consume 25% less than its predecessor.

Other details regarding the upcoming rugged phone are yet to emerge, but so far it seems like the Vernee Active could make for a decent Galaxy S8 Active alternative. Especially for people who don’t like in the US, where the phone is exclusively sold. Not to mention that Vernee won’t probably ask more than $300 for the phone. In contrast, AT&T is selling the Galaxy S8 Active for a whopping $849.99.

3 Chinese smartphones that want to make you forget all about the iPhone X

Alexandra Arici
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The iPhone X is probably way too expensive for the majority of customers out there. Fortunately, Chinese manufacturers are making sure those who want to give the iPhone X experience a try will be able to do so.

Three Chinese OEMs are currently working on producing iPhone X clones and when they arrive they’ll most likely be available for purchase for dirt-cheap prices (at least compared to the original). You can check them out below:

UMIDIGI Z2

Not much information is available about the UMIDIGI Z2 – poised to be the successor of the UMIDIGI Z1 and Z1 Pro – except for what can be extracted from a leaked image and video.

Apparently, the Z2 will not only bring the iPhone X-look to the table, complete with notch and full-screen front, but will also take advantage of a fingerprint scanner built into the display. Since the iPhone X comes without a Touch ID and Samsung has yet to implement such a technology into its high-end handset, we’re quite curious to see how UMIDIGI will manage to pull this off.

Furthermore, the phone appears to sport dual cameras on the front and will probably also take advantage of dual-cameras on the back. And with the UMIDIGI Z1 Pro currently available for $299.99, we expect the UMIDIGI Z2 not to jump over the $350 threshold.

Ulefone X

Even less is known about Ulefone’s upcoming device which for practical terms we dubbed “X”. According to a recent leak, the phone will come with a dual-camera arrangement on the front, and most likely on the back too.

Ulefone says the handset will incorporate a 3D face ID technology that will replace their previous fingerprint solution. The Android OEM will apparently employ the help of Chinese company Face++ to make this happen.

The remaining specs of the Ulefone X are expected to be pretty high-end too. The phone could launch with 6GB/8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage and take advantage of the most powerful MediaTek processor available.

Little Pepper S11

Little Pepper is an obscure Chinese brand that is eager to draw attention upon itself. And with the S11 they copied the design of the drool-worthy iPhone X, but up to a point.

Yes, the phone offers very thin bezels all around and a notch on top, but upon closer inspection, you’ll realize that the notch is part of the upper bezel. Also, the phone does not offer 18:9 aspect ratio, but the standard 16:9. What’s more, the Little Pepper S11 also has a fingerprint scanner located below the display.

The S11 appears to include dual cameras on the front and back (arranged in horizontal position) and a shell that’s made to look like glass, but is actually glossy plastic. It’s probably headed to the market with a price 10 times lower than the iPhone X’s.

Google’s Pixels now offer more accurate battery estimates

Alexandra Arici
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While everyone was busy feasting on Thanksgiving dinner, Google announced it was rolling out a new feature called “Smart Battery” which aims to provide Pixel users with more accurate battery estimates.

Previously battery estimates where generated based on basic assumptions. For example, if a Pixel owner was using 10% battery each hour over the past few hours, the algorithm simply assumed the trend will continue and provided its estimates based on that logic.

However, with “Smart Battery” Google has introduced a new on-device model that learns your personal habits in order to provide you with personalized battery estimates. So for example, if you normally spend your lunch break watching videos, Smart Battery will take notice of that and adjust its estimates accordingly.

To give the new feature a try, first go to Settings on your Pixel device, and under Battery, you should be able to see your personalized battery estimate. As you can see from the screenshots, the new feature will tell you how much battery you have left based on your habits in percentages and hours/minutes. What’s more, tapping the battery icon will reveal a graphic estimate.

The Google Product Manager who made the announcement did not specify whether the new feature is headed to the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL as well, but we have to assume it will. Let us know if you’re seeing Smart Battery on your Pixel in the comment section below.

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