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LG V30 US release dates finally announced

Josh Noriega
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We figured that LG would have wanted to improve on the V20’s large announcement to release gap last year, but unfortunately the V30 has found itself in the same predicament. It’s been just about a month since we had official word about LG’s hot alternative to Samsung’s Note 8 big-hitter. It’s been frustrating to say the least for those who LG has made excited about this promising flagship phone.

Also check out: Our hands-on and first impressions of the LG V30

But if you’ve managed to hold out, you’ll finally get to see if the wait was worth it next week. AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon have let the cat out of the bag; here’s the scoop:

  • AT&T: Very short pre-order window. You can technically order the V30 on Oct. 5th, but it will be in stores the next day, on Oct. 6th. Retail cost is $810 or you can finance it for $27/month for 30 months. Read the official word here.
  • T-Mobile: A week behind in comparison. The V30 won’t be in stores until Oct. 13th on T-Mobile, with pre-orders starting on Oct. 5th. Retail price will be $800 or $30/month for 24 months (with $80 down). Bear in mind that this will be the first phone to launch that can use the carrier’s brand new 600 MHz frequency, enabling the potential of better coverage and future-proofing. Read the official word here.
  • Verizon: The V30 is also launching Oct. 5th on Verizon. That’s literally all we know right now. No pricing or info about pre-ordering. We should see official word soon.

As a refresher, the LG V30 is a powerhouse of features. We’re looking at a 6.0″ QHD+ P-OLED screen with 2:1 aspect ratio (LG has finally moved to OLED on its flagship), Snapdragon 835 chipset with 4GB of RAM, 64GB internal storage with microSD expansion, 16MP standard camera (f/1.6 aperture, OIS) + 13MP wide-angle camera (f/1.9 aperture, no OIS), 3,300 mAh battery (no longer removable), IP68 rated waterproofing, wireless charging, and headphone jack powered by the newest HiFi Quad DAC.

Exit secondary screen, enter Floating Bar.

It’s looking like Silver may be the only color we’re getting, but it may be too early to conclude that. The V30 was initially announced with four colors: Aurora Black, Cloud Silver, Moroccan Blue, and Lavender Violet. We knew all these colors weren’t coming to the US, but dang. I personally really wanted the Moroccan Blue, especially after Samsung shafted the Note 8’s blue color in the US.

All the V30 colors.

Have you managed to hold out for the V30’s untimely release? One thing that’s nice is that we’ll be able to check out the new Pixel phones on Oct 4th before having to decide on the purchase.

AutoPi wants to make every car much, much smarter

Donovan Jeska
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In a world where the Internet of Things is becoming more and more a reality, the large majority of cars on the road are still disconnected from that world. Sure, many cars these days come standard with Bluetooth and some even have 4G hotspots baked into them, but for the most part our cars are totally separate from an otherwise connected world.

That’s where AutoPi comes in. On Kickstarter right now – and with a mere $500 to go! – the Raspberry Pi-based AutoPi system plugs into your car’s ODB-II port (every car since 2002 has one), transforming your dumb car into a smart one. This brings a world of functionality to your vehicle:

The features it can bring to your care are legion: create a touchscreen car computer, use Google Assistant, and create If This, Then This style rules for your car. AutoPi Cloud is the backend of the AutoPi system, where you can govern all the functionality remotely, from your desktop or phone. AutoPi starts at $100 for a DiY model, ranging up to $274 for the best model, which includes WiFi and 4G connection.

The idea is pretty genius, really, and I’m shocked it hasn’t been done at this level before. But the AutoPi team wants to do it, and is this close to making it happen. Let’s see if we can’t make their dream a reality, dear Android Guys.

It’s a full house for the Wink Bingo App for Android (Promoted)

Guest Blogger
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They say that bingo first originated in Italy in the 1500s, possibly as a way for the government of the time to raise money, just like our National Lottery today. But it wasn’t until the 1920s and 30s that it really took off in America. In the UK the 1960s were its true heyday with thousands of bingo halls up and down the country and millions of people playing each week.

But for several decades bingo hall attendances have been on the decline as people have chosen different ways to spend their leisure time. It’s a decline that’s continuing as, according to Gambling Commission figures, between 2016 and 2017 the number of bingo halls in the UK fell by nearly 6%.

However, the advent of the internet and mobile access to it have given the game a whole new lease of life with many operators finding that bingo translates very well to being an online experience.

One of the biggest and most successful of these operators is Wink Bingo. As one of the most innovative of the online bingo operators it’s not surprising that Wink also have a cutting-edge app that makes mobile play simple.

Getting started

The app is easy to download from the Google Play Store and installing it on any Android device is simple, although you will have to register on the Wink Bingo site too. Luckily this is also a very easy process that takes only a couple of minutes to complete.

Once the app is installed you’re ready to go.

An especially good feature for anyone starting to play via the app is the so-called “Newbie Room”. For 7 days it gives free access to games so you can find your feet by playing games for free as well as having online access to help if you find you need it. Then, at the end of the 7 days, you should have all the confidence you need to play whenever you want.

Choice of games

The Wink Bingo App gives you a great choice of games to enjoy on your Android device including both 75 and 90 ball games which are easy to play. Experienced players even have the opportunity to play a selection of VIP games for even bigger prizes.

Payments and withdrawals

One of the most important aspects of any online bingo app is being able to make payments and withdrawals quickly and easily – and the Wink Bingo app makes sure this is simple. You can use all major debit and credit cards but lots of players prefer methods like PayPal, PaySafe Card and Entropay so you certainly do have plenty of choice.

Bonuses and incentives

Another real area of strength are the welcome bonuses that Wink Bingo offer for new members – though it is a good idea to read through the terms and conditions for these before you play as there are certain wagering requirements to be met before you claim yours. Nevertheless, they do offer fantastic value when you claim them.

So, to sum up, the Wink Bingo App is a great way to play this popular game on any Android device and installing it couldn’t be simpler. If you want to find out more about Wink Bingo before you commit then visit their website where you’ll also be able to download the app.

So eyes down, and get ready to play!

Editor Note: Our editorial stance on including links to apps or games with gambling and/or casino links is as follows: We will only consider them if there is an official app in the Google Play Store and/or Apple’s iTunes. The sentiment being that if it’s good enough for those outlets, it’s good enough for us to mention. Wink Bingo can be found in iTunes now.

Canvaspop wants to print out those killer Instagram photos for you

AndroidGuys
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So you’ve taken some great photos, tweaked them a bit and then shared them online. Now you’ve got all sorts of friends and family asking for copies. Why? Because nobody captures the moment like you do.

Instead of letting your loved ones download the images to their devices, why not take things a step further? Why not get them a gift that just happens to center around the photos?

Canvaspop is an outlet that specializes in turning your pictures into printed artwork. Be it in the form of a poster, collage, Triptych print, magnet, or pillow, it’s an easy process with quick turnaround.

We recently had a chance to test out the custom photo pillow and were really impressed with the way in which things were handled. Moreover, we were delighted to see the finished product, an 18″ x 18″ pillow that has become a conversation piece.

For us, the hardest part about ordering was figuring out which picture we were going to use to test it out. Now that we’ve had a chance to check it out, we’re ready to dive back in with more stuff.

Having recently gone to a concert with lasers and lights, we’re interested in checking out a triptych print. What is a triptych print, you ask? That’s where you take an image and break it apart over three pieces. You can space them out, offset them, and do other cool things with the artwork. It works great in cases where you have a lot of colors or objects and don’t need to focus on, say, a single face.

There are plenty of options at Canvaspop, each of which speaks to a different sort of use case or photo. We invite you to check them all out to see what would make a good gift.

Not everything has to be done from scratch, either. There are existing designs to start with and patterns which could make for interesting pillow backs. Prints can be done in just about any size with various framing and color options. And, if you’re not sure where to start, check out the gallery of inspiring ideas.

Save 35% with AndroidGuys

While you might find a coupon code upon entering the site, we have a special one just for you. Indeed, if you use CPGUYS, you’ll save 35% on anything in the store.

With Christmas coming up, now’s the perfect time to get started on your shopping. You’ll have the perfect, custom printed gift ready to go and a few months to spare, too.

Google Assistant finally comes to Android TV, NVIDIA SHIELD TV gets it first

Alexandra Arici
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Back at CES 2017, Google promised the Google Assistant will soon make its way to the Android TV platform. Well after months of waiting (CES took place in January), the feature is finally rolling out, first for the NVIDIA SHIELD TV, but Sony Bravia TVs with Android TV will also be getting it in the upcoming months.

Having the Assistant live and listening on your NVIDIA SHIELD TV means that you’ll be able to do things like play content, discover content, get answers, set the mood or get ready for your day by using voice commands directed towards your Android TV.

To summon Google’s AI-infused virtual helper on your SHIELD TV you can either press the microphone button on the remote or just say “OK Google” from within shouting distance of the SHIELD controller.

Google Assistant on SHIELD TV is basically Google Voice Search on steroids, coming with a cleaner, more intuitive visual design, but also more features.

So you’ll also be able to cast audio to the Google Home or other Google Cast speakers, as well as play content directly from Netflix, HBO and more.

In order to celebrate the arrival of the Google Assistant on Android TV, NVIDIA SHIELD TV owners will be given a free three-month YouTube Red trial, so they can watch ad-free videos and play all the music they want.

The Assistant comes with the SHIELD 6.0 software update which is currently available for download on SHIELD TV devices.

Samsung Galaxy S7/S7 edge getting the Note 8’s new UI with next (big) update

Alexandra Arici
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Samsung’s 2016 flagships, the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge might soon get a taste of the Galaxy Note 8 new UI, Samsung Experience 8.5.

The two flagships have remained stuck to Android 7.0 Nougat for a while now, which also brought a newer version of TouchWiz called Grace UX on board.

But the Samsung Galaxy S8/S8+ introduced the new Samsung Experience 8.1 which received an update to version number 8.5 when the Galaxy Note 8 made a debut.

But while other Samsung smartphones like the Galaxy J5 or the 2017 Galaxy A series received Samsung Galaxy 8.1, year’s flagships continue to run the same UI. But according to a Samsung Members community admin, the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge will get Samsung Experience 8.1 as soon as the next update – which will probably be Android 8.0 Oreo – starts rolling out. No exact timeline for the release was provided.

Given that the Samsung Experience 8.5 update is more cosmetic in nature and not feature-oriented, it would make little sense for the Korean tech giant to invest time and resources to deliver only a UX-focused update. The Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge haven’t been updated that many times anyway and with Android 8.0 Oreo out, it’s quite unlikely the phones will get the bump to Android 7.1 or Android 7.1.2 now.

So there you have it. If you were hoping to get the UI running on the new and shiny Samsung Galaxy Note 8 on your older Galaxy S7 or Galaxy S7 edge, now you can rest assured you will. When will that happen? We can’t tell you at the moment, but we’ll update you.

Premium Google Home Max with stereo speakers said to be in the works

Alexandra Arici
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Just last week we found out Google is gearing up to introduce a new Google Home Mini speaker during the Pixel 2 launch event. But according to recent information coming to us from 9to5Google, it seems the search giant is also developing a larger version of its Google Home smart speaker.

Two industry insiders revealed for the publication that Google is also working on a larger, higher-quality Google Assistant-powered speaker dubbed internally the Google Home Max.

Sources agree that the device will come with stereo speakers that will be able to deliver advanced sound quality, as well as a premium design – although no specific details were offered further.

Google Home Mini

The status of Google Home Max is currently unclear, so we don’t know whether the smart speaker will make a debut alongside Google’s new Pixels and the Google Home Mini. One of the two sources said this was a possibility, but added nothing more.

Amazon, Google’s biggest competitor in the smart speaker market, just unveiled a smaller, re-designed version of its original Echo speaker, as well as the Echo Plus model which supports Dolby Sound.

And by the looks of it, Google will be replicating Amazon’s strategy by rolling out a smaller version of its Home speaker, as well as a larger higher-end version of it.

Twitter character limit expands from 140 to 280 to encourage more English tweets

AndroidGuys
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Twitter has become a thriving social media platform for brevity, with the company making changes all the time (such as the introduction of Twitter Lite earlier this year for less-than-stellar cellular data networks) to encourage growing participation by its growing user base.

While the company is famous for its 140-character limit, its brevity has proven to be a pain for English “Tweeters.” This week, Twitter Product Manager Aliza Rosen and Senior Software Engineer Ikuhiro Ihara took to Twitter’s official blog to announce the arrival of a new character limit for Twitter. Instead of the long-held 140-character limit, Twitter will now expand the character limit to 280 to help ease the frustration of cramming English expressions into 140 characters.

Rosen and Ihara state the motivation behind the character expansion: while English tweets must often be edited and reduced before posting, Japanese users don’t run into the same problem because “in languages like Japanese, Korean, and Chinese you can convey about double the amount of information in one character as you can in many other languages like English, Spanish, Portuguese, or French.” The old 140-character limit has put English users at a greater disadvantage, with 9% of English users reaching the 140-character limit when tweeting as opposed to 0.4% of Japanese users reaching the same character limit.

The company says that it is rolling out this feature to a few users before releasing it to the entire Twitter community, so most users will have to wait a while. The new feature will see a mass release, though a dedicated timeframe hasn’t been mentioned yet.

What do you think of the new 280-character limit? English tweeters, excited or indifferent? Let us know if you’re experiencing the new character expansion in the comments below.

ZTE’s upcoming Axon Multy foldable smartphone smiles for the camera

Alexandra Arici
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Remember we told you ZTE was gearing up to introduce a foldable smartphone? Well, the handset in question leaked this week giving us a glimpse of what to expect in the near future.

With rumors of Samsung’s foldable smartphone nearing launch, it now appears that ZTE will beat the Korean tech giant to the punch and introduce its on take on the concept first.

According to invites that have been sent out to some members of the press, we should see the new ZTE handset codenamed Axon Multy make a debut on October 17. And according to Android Authority who also revealed the first images of the device, the phone could launch as the Axon M with dual fullHD displays. The two screens will fold out to offer a larger 6.8-inch display with 1920 x 2160 resolution.

As you can see in the images, the two displays aren’t foldable on their own, but the overall device is thanks to the hinge system that connects the two parts.

According to previous rumors, the Axon Multy should make a debut with an older Snapdragon 820 chipset, 4GB of RAM, 32GB of storage and a 3,120 mAh battery. As it’s visible in the images, the phone will also include a 3.5mm headphone jack and should be just under 10mm thick.

Sure, the phone might not have the impressive specs of the LG V30 or Samsung Galaxy Note 8, but its unusual form factor will certainly attract curious onlookers.

It’s expected that the ZTE Axon Multy or Axon M will be sold exclusively by AT&T with a price tag of around $650. We’ll find out more about the device on October 17.

What do you think? Would you be interested in ZTE’s foldable phone?

Amazon’s new Echo speakers come in all shapes and sizes

Alexandra Arici
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It hasn’t been long since Amazon launched the Echo Show (back in May), but this week the tech giant introduced a new lineup of Alexa-powered devices including three new Echo models.

The first one is a re-designed Echo which is a shorter, rounder version of the original Echo speaker which will go on sale for only $99, despite bringing improved speaker and voice recognition capabilities.

That’s $80 less than the price of its taller predecessor. Amazon will offer a pack of three for $130, as well as cloth clovers of different covers which will ensure the device will match the the room it will be placed in.

Then we have the Amazon Echo Plus which looks very much like the original Echo speaker featuring a tall cylindrical body. Like the re-designed Echo, it will come with enhanced voice recognition, but also improved Dolby sound. It’s standout feature, however, is the ZigBee smart home hub which makes it easier to connect to smart products around the house. The Echo Plus will be available in white, black and silver for $149.99 and will ship out with a Philips smart light bulb on the house.

Next up, we have the Amazon Echo Spot which is a tiny smart speaker featuring a round 2.5-inch screen. According to Amazon, the Spot takes advantage of the best voice recognition system available and arrives with four built-in microphones. Thanks to the small display, it can be used for video calls and also doubles as an alarm clock. Customers will be able to get the Amazon Echo Spot for $129.99.

Last but not least, Amazon also introduced the Echo Connect which is a small device that turns any Echo products into a landline speakerphone.

Amazon has already opened up pre-orders for the new Echo models, including the re-designed Echo, Echo Plus, Echo Spot and Echo Connect. Expect them to start shipping in the fourth quarter.

Apart from all the new smart speakers, the tech giant also announced Echo Buttons – which are basically Bluetooth-powered buzzers that connect to Alexa to allow you to play games. For example, they will make trivia games more fun to play. Echo Buttons cost $19 for a two-pack.

Of course, Amazon also took this opportunity to reveal it has improved Alexa with a set of new features.

Now Alexa can do something which Amazon calls “routines”. This is a set of actions that can be triggered by a voice command. So if you walk into the kitchen and say “good morning” Alexa will immediately open the blind, turn on the lights and start reading the news/weather forecast.

What’s more, Alexa now allows users to group smart home devices and associate them with specific rooms. So now you can say to your Echo “Alexa, turn on the lights” rather than “Alexa, turn on the bedroom overhead lamp”.

Amazon also announced its expanding Alexa calling and messaging – which was introduced four months ago – to include support for free outbound calls to numbers in the US, Canada, and Mexico.

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