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Withings Steel HR review

As an upgrade to the Withings Activité Steel, the Steel HR is a timepiece that features an analog watch with smart, fitness tracking capabilities. It’s one part “regular” watch, mixed one part “smart, activity tracker”. This goes for its physical look as well as its functions.

The Withings Steel HR is offered in 36mm ($180)  and 40mm ($200) case options with both sold in black; the smaller one is also available in white, too. The watch feels smaller than it sounds, even at the larger size. This was welcome to us, particularly as it’s designed to be worn during physical activities. The last thing you want to wear when out running or doing rigorous activities is a big wonky face or thick strap.

The watch face itself looks entirely analog at first blush. A second look, however, reveals the pair of complications. At the top you’ll find a digital circle sub-dial with an analog one below. The former delivers notifications while the latter represents your progress toward goals. The entire face is a stainless steel case which looks more business than casual.

The Steel HR is a very light watch that is also quite comfortable to wear. Thanks to the silicone straps, it’s something you’ll not mind having on you during a run. It breathes nicely and cleans up easily, too. Should you want to switch up to something more professional looking, the watch allows for that quite easily.

Our first overall impression of the watch was that it looked a little more “basic” or outdated than it appeared in press renders. Moreover, the monochrome complication initially seemed unimpressive and generic. After wearing the Steel HR a couple of days, we had completely warmed to it and didn’t mind at all.

The complications are a nice size and serve their respective purposes quite well. The upper one only displays your information for a few moments, but the 8-bit-like graphics are easy to glance at. You don’t have to worry about a strange font; a quick and simple glance is all it takes to see notifications.

Pressing the button on the side of the face lets you scroll through the various information to track or view, including the date, alarm, battery level, calories burned, steps taken, distance, and heart rate. There’s also a digital version of the clock should you need to check it in the middle of the night.

This was actually a pain point for us as the analog watch is essentially invisible when it gets dark out. Use it in dim environments or at night and you’ll have a hell of a time seeing the time, something we rely on watches for… a lot. We would have loved glowing tips on the hour and minute hands. Nevertheless, we press the button quite often come evenings.

As for dealing with notifications, though, it’s a mixed bag. To see who is calling, or look at a calendar notification requires reading through a scrolling message. Additionally, it’s somewhat of a limited experience in that notifications don’t work for Facebook Messenger, WhastApp, and a number of other apps. We’d like to see that rolled out in a software update, and think it is within the realm of possibility.

The Withings app gives users control over notifications for calls, calendar, and messages. Moreover, you can set up the various types of vibrations to know exactly what sort of notification you are receiving. If you want to track your weight (and you should), you can do that. Set goal, log activities manually, or get tips — whatever you imagine a typical activity tracker to do, this one does it.

Perhaps one of the best features in the Steel HR, and one that should be standard in wearables that run about $180 and above, is a heart rate monitor. This function alone opens up the door to deeper tracking.

The watch is able to discern when you’re out running, sleeping, or doing nearly ten other activities automatically. Among them are swimming, running, basketball, and tennis, however, you can also manually input your own activities.

Speaking of swimming, the Withings Steel HR is water resistant to 50 meters. This is far more than you’ll get in most wearables which tend to tap out around 3 meters. Just know that by swimming you’ll not get the accurate heart rate or calorie burning.

The battery is downright fantastic on the Withings Steel HR. We’re talking weeks off of one single charge. Withings calls for 25 days of usage, which looks to be just about right. We’ve used this one off and on for the last two weeks and aren’t yet ready to charge it up.

If you’re the type of person who doesn’t mind sleeping with a watch on, this one works nicely. It’s thin and light enough to not make you feel constricted; the watch can also help you wake up with a silent vibrating alarm during your lightest sleep.

In terms of accuracy, we noticed that it didn’t match up step for step with any other wearable. Whether it was literal steps or calories, it varied slightly as compared to the Fitbit Charge 2, Wear24, and a couple others. Generally speaking, though, it was nothing that concerned us. To us, variance is expected across the different types and brands in that space. On its own, though, we found it accurate, if not, perhaps more importantly, consistent.

Distance is one area where we think it could do better. Because it does not have a built-in GPS sensor and does not tie into your phone’s GPS, it’s not quite as accurate as it could be. Somehow, the Steel HR infers distance based on a variety of sensors and input. This is not a running watch so much as it is an “every man” activity tracker.

As for charging the Steel HR, it’s fairly easy if not a touch wonky. There’s a charging pad that you place the watch against, which takes some orienteering and playing around. Even though we didn’t need to charge our review unit, we were able to figure out the mechanics in a few tries. It’s a tad cumbersome and clumsy at first, but it’s easy enough to learn.

Battle Islands: Commanders (Review)

DISCLAIMER: We were provided with a code that provides us in-game currency. Boohoo, I know, but it has not influenced the review in any way.

Battle Islands: Commanders is a Clash Royale-style game (why does that concern me) made by 505 Games (I can feel my childhood coming back) that sets it’s premise to World War Two. You can see 505’s page on it here, where they provide links to download on Android, Apple, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Steam! Now that’s a collection!

Permissions and Storage

Me being me, I always like to disclose the permissions an app uses. In this case, I have zero issues with Battle Islands and what it wants. Just storage (since it’s a large app) and the basics for any game.

Very Clean, nothing unnecessary

Storage wise? As of writing, Commanders is using 291MB of storage. Those with newer phones shouldn’t need to worry, but you may need to if you have a smaller storage – say, 8GB. (Then again, Google Play Services is 473MB, so no worries!)

Now, For the main attraction…

(You are here to read a review of the game, after all.)

Gameplay!

The gameplay plays like Clash Royale, but with more things stuck onto it. If you aren’t aware, these deck-building/tower-defense hybrids have you build a custom deck of up to 8 units, which you then take into a real-time battle with another player. by charging points (Called ‘command points’ in this case) you can summon units into battle. The goal? Destroy all 3 of your opponents buildings in 3 minutes. In the last minute, the rate you get command points doubles. In a tie, you get an extra minute – if it’s still a tie after that minute, the game ends in a draw. Sounds simple, right?

Taken Milliseconds before disaster.. at least for them.

Of course, winning games (or earning stars in a game, although this can be slower) earns you chests. These little guys give you money (or ‘supplies’, in this case) as well as some unit cards. Said cards can be used in the deck editor to upgrade existing cards(if you have more than 1 of them) or be swapped out.

Gotta catch them a…. wrong developer.

Tutorials? Much like similar games, the tutorial is in-depth and covers everything it can. I won’t narrate it here, it is a long one, but be assured that you will know how to play after it.

There are also alliances, where you can team with players and give them cards. And then leaderboards, which allow you to watch some of the top fights.

As for looks and sound, 505 have done well. You can tell that a lot of detail has gone into every single unit. Oh, did I say each unit is individually voiced in a variety of languages and accents?

-Via Giphy

English and American Accents? Got ’em. You want German and French units, with accents thicker than butter? Sure! But you must keep the Australian flamethrower guy. That accent warrants special powers. You must adhere to these powers.

 

In App Purchases! 

What can I say? It’s what you would expect from this sort of game. The basic pack costs 99p (or cents) and the most expensive £/$99.99.

Pretty average.

Conclusion

Overall? Not too shabby, 505. Not too shabby. I was expecting a disappointing clone of Clash Royale, but it’s gone beyond the base to make a feasible product. Fairly good gameplay, sounds and graphics are pleasantly surprising, and I can’t really complain over the IAP’s. Only real issue is that the game’s play store page can is a little confusing in its layout, but that’s not too bad. They just used PC screenshots, that’s all.

What’s the difference: Honor 9 vs Honor 8

The Honor 9 made a debut not so long ago and even though the phone won’t be available in the US for a while, you can use this time to consider whether the Honor 9 is actually worth the upgrade or not?

We really loved the Honor 8, but what could the Honor 9 bring extra to your life? Most importantly, is it worth shelving your beloved Honor 8 or does the older model still have what it takes to be your companion throughout 2017?

Design and Display

Honor’s new affordable flagship features a glass and metal chassis with curved 3D glass on the rear. The curved back will at least, in theory, make the Honor 9 more comfortable to hold in hand. Not that its predecessor wasn’t comfortable to work with.

The Honor 8 features the same sleek glass/metal design, which is available in a more polished form in the Honor 9. But a downside of using such materials to build the phone is that the Honor 8 can easily slide off any surface with a slight inclination. Hopefully, the tighter joins between metal and glass on the new Honor 9 will help prevent that.

A stark design difference between the two is that while the Honor 8 housed the fingerprint scanner on the back, the Honor 9 has it embedded in the home button.

Moving on to specs, last year’s model takes advantage of a 5.2-inch panel with 1920 x 1080 resolution and Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection, while the newcomer relies on a 5.15-inch display also with fullHD resolution. But the Honor 9’s screen covers the DCI-P3 standard, so it should deliver better color reproduction.

Internals

The Honor 9 relies on the same chipset Huawei’s previous flagships, the Mate9 and P10 bundle under the hood. The home-grown Kirin 960 is an octa-core SoC clocked at a maximum of 2.4GHz.

The new Honor will be available in several configurations including 4GB/64GB, 6GB/64GB or 6GB/128GB. A microSD card slot is also available for expanding memory up to 256GB.

In contrast, the Honor 8 rocks last year’s Kirin 950, also an octa-core affair clocked at 2.3GHz. The phone features two configurations – one with 4GB/32GB and another with 4GB/64GB.

Cameras

Both Honor 8 and Honor 9 feature main dual camera system. The older model includes a dual 12-megapixel assembly with f/2.2 aperture, laser autofocus and dual-LED.

The newcomer pairs a 20-megapixel monochrome sensor with an RGB 12-megapixel one. The main camera setup features f/2.2 aperture, phase detection autofocus, two-tone LED flash and 4K support, but note there’s no optical image stabilization (OIS) module.

When it comes to selfies, the Honor 9 has an 8-megapixel secondary shooter with f/2.0, while the Honor 8 offers the services of an 8-megapixel one with f/2.4.

Battery

The Honor 9 relies on a 3,200 mAh battery, while the Honor 8 included a non-removable 3,000 mAh battery. In our review of last year’s model, we found battery life was a big standout with the Honor 8, so we have to assume the 3,200 mAh battery will offer even greater results.

Other differences

The Honor 9 comes with some other notable differences compared to its predecessor. For starters, it’s the first model to get Huawei Pay treatment – the Chinese company’s own mobile service solution that comes to compete head to head with similar services like Android Pay, Samsung Pay or Apple Pay.

Moreover, the phone embeds a Hi-Fi audio chip that can according to the company, will bring 90% improvements in sound purity and 60% increase in fidelity. The product will ship with a bunch of custom Monster earphones.

None of these options are available in the Honor 8.

Being a newer device the Honor 9 ships out with Android 7.0 Nougat with the newer Emotion UI 5.1 onboard, while the Honor 8 has Android 6.0 Marshmallow by default. Luckily, Huawei rolled out the Android 7.0 Nougat update for the phone a while ago.

Value

If you’re looking to buy the Honor 8 now, you can pick the 32GB version from Amazon for $349. Oddly, buying the 64GB proves to be the cheaper alternative (at least on Amazon) as the phone is listed with a $319 price tag.

At Oppo Mart, the device is even cheaper, as the 32GB version can be acquired for $269.

As for the Honor 9, the phone is yet to become available for purchase in the US. Yet, retailers like Amazon or Best Buy will surely make it available at some point.

In Asia, the Honor 9 with 4GB/64GB will be sold for approximately $338, while the 6GB/64GB model will be available for $400. The most advanced variant with 6GB/128GB will bear a more advanced $441 price-tag. The Honor 9 seems a worthy upgrade over the Honor 8, so we’re quite excited to be getting our hands on it. Hopefully it will happen soon.

Verizon debuts first LTE-only (flip) phone, the LG Exalt LTE

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Verizon launched a new affordable phone in the US. But this time it’s not a smartphone, but a flip-phone.

While flippers like the new LG Exalt LTE are popular choices in countries like Japan, customers in the US aren’t completely immune to their charms either. Actually, there’s a lot of people who still prefer these “dumb” phones to their more intelligent alternatives.

Anyway, despite being an unimpressive device spec-wise, the LG Exalt LTE does come with a special characteristic. It’s Verizon’s first LTE-only phone. Which means the LG Exalt LTE can only connect to the carrier’s LTE network and not its 3G CDMA network.

This launch indicates Verizon is looking towards the future and the future is LTE, not 3G. With this in mind, the carrier will slowly but surely start to retire its CDMA-compatible phones and bring out new 4G-only devices. The LG Exalt LTE is only the beginning.

Verizon actually announced a while back it will start shutting down parts of its CDMA networks by the end of 2019, to make more room for LTE. But in order to do that, Big Red needs to start migrating people from 3G CDMA networks onto LTE ones. And a sure way to do that is to start offering 4G-only phones like the LG Exalt LTE.

Now let’s take a quick look at the specs. The new product comes equipped with a 3-inch display with 400 x 240 resolution and a Snapdragon chip clocked at 1.1GHz plus 8GB of internal storage (microSD card slot available for memory expansion up to 32GB).

The LG Exalt LTE also includes a 1,470 mAh battery. In addition to LTE, it supports Wi-Fi, HD voice, Bluetooth 4.1 and integrated text-to-speech function.

You can purchase the LG Exalt LTE flip phone for $7/month for 24 months or for $168 outright. Naturally, for this amount of money you’ll be able to purchase a low-end smartphone, but if you’re looking to change it up, the LG flipper is waiting for you.

Why is antivirus software so crucial?

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Yes, yes, we have all heard it a million times and anyone with half a brain is well aware of the need to protect your laptop by having a reliable antivirus installed. The truth is, as technology is getting smarter, and so are the bad guys who are trying to spread malicious viruses and hack personal data.

In the last 12 months alone it was stated that over 900 million users could be at risk – and that is just on Android devices! It goes without saying we store so much personal information on our devices, from bank details to copies of identity documents, ultimately antivirus is to stop our details getting in the hands of the wrong people. Make sure you know how to block your information remotely should your device or computer fall under the eyes of someone else- a reliable antivirus can protect against unauthorized access to your confidential data, as well as on memory cards.

But it is not as simple as just googling antivirus and downloading the first one that pops up as some sneaky hackers have created FAKE antivirus programs that contain malicious codes just waiting for you to install. More so than many other products, finding a reputable, thorough, and safe antivirus provider is paramount and the best way to do this is by reading reviews on top-quality sites such as bestonlinereviews.com.

Downloading

A strong antivirus can protect against harmful downloads, and that doesn’t just mean the latest movie that you want to see. Opening any file, or email attachment could potentially threaten your device. If that file is infected the antivirus will recognize it instantly and destroy the intruder.

Making the most of battery life

Did you know that a great antivirus can also help you manage and maximize your devices battery life? An antivirus will enable to you to take note of the consumption and space your apps are occupying on your device.  They can help you to take control and block apps that are not necessary to enable your device to work more efficiently.

Don’t just assume you only protect laptops and desktops

Unfortunately, the rise in malicious viruses has also spread to handheld devices. Hackers are increasingly interested at getting to your tablet and smartphone but thankfully there are many efficient apps on the market to protect your phone e.g. some apps enable you to block your phone remotely, and lock the device. Games are frequently a common means of acquiring a nasty virus. A solid antivirus will perform frequent checks on your devices, not just the imminent downloads.

Keeping the little ones’ safe

The weird and wonderful worldwide wide web is no place for children without anything to block them from harmful images. A purely innocent google search can throw up a whole manner of inappropriate material and an infected computer can receive explicit popups and adverts, not suitable for younger eyes. Innocent websites can also be disguised, and in fact bear x-rated material.  In the world we live in, be sure to pay attention to internet safety for children. An efficient antivirus software helps keep the younger members of your family safe online.

Illegal activity

Many hackers try and obtain the IP address of the victim, to perform illegal operations, not just stealing identities. The pro’s most certainly outweigh the cons when it comes to securing your devices. Prevention is always better than cure. Is a costly laptop repair, loss of personal data and the inconvenience while you don’t have it, really worth the risk.

How Samsung exposed your old Galaxy phone to hacking

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If you own or owned an older Samsung device, you’re probably familiar with the S Suggest app. An ancestor of Bixby, the app – which came pre-installed on most Galaxy devices in the past – is a device-specific Android app recommendation tool.

But as Samsung is now focusing on Bixby, the older S Suggest got pushed aside – with some potentially dangerous consequences. S Suggest wasn’t even particularly popular with users, so Samsung decided to pull the plug on the service. This happened three years ago, but in doing so, the tech giant forgot to wipe out all traces of S Suggest’s existence.

2.1 million of unprotected Galaxy phones you say?

The problem is that Samsung let the ssuggest.com domain expire, leaving the channel of communication between the domain and the remaining millions of older Samsung devices intact.  This act of carelessness could have given hackers easy access to these phones, potentially allowing them to serve up malware to unsuspecting users. Ouch!

According to a report from Motherboard which cites Anubis Labs’ CTO João Gouveia, up to 2.1 million unique older Galaxy devices checked in the ssuggest.com domain merely 24 hours after Samsung’s ownership expired, so the potential for disaster was a great one. Luckily Guoveia took over the domain, thus preventing someone with less benevolent intentions from doing so.

If you too are using an older Samsung phone, you could simply disable S Suggest to make absolutely sure you are 100% safe. On your older Galaxy device go to Settings>Application Manager>Find the All section.

Inside the “All” tab you should see a list of stock apps, S Suggest among them. Tap on it and then the Disable button on the top right. In case you don’t see the Disable button, but the “Uninstall Updates” tap on that instead. Afterward, the Disable option should appear.

Maze Alpha available for pre-order as super cheap Xiaomi Mi MIX alternative

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A few months ago we brought you news that industry newcomer, Maze was working on a bezeless smartphone in the vein of the highly acclaimed Xiaomi Mi MIX, called the Alpha.

Well, the phone has been made available for pre-order on GearBest. And the biggest surprise is the super low price tag. While the Xiaomi Mi MIX with a Snapdragon 821 processor, 4GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage onboard can take you back with $523, prices for the Maze Alpha start at $179 (!!!).

For this amount of money, customers will get a phablet with a 6-inch IPS LCD display with 1920 x 1080 resolution. The side and top bezels are almost non-existent, but the bottom bezel remains quite consistent while also housing the physical home button that doubles as a fingerprint scanner.

The Maze Alpha embeds an octa-core MediaTek Helio P25 processor clocked at 2.5GHz working in combination with 4GB or 6GB of RAM and 64GB or 128GB of internal storage.

On the photography front, the phone includes a dual camera setup featuring a 13-megapixel sensor made by Samsung and a secondary 5-megapixel one for collecting depth and lighting info. The main camera has f/2.2 aperture, but doesn’t offer optical image stabilization. As for selfies, there’s a 5-megapixel snapper living up in front.

The phone includes a pretty hefty 4,000 mAh battery and runs Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box.

For the time being, only the Maze Alpha variant with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage is up for pre-order. Until June 30, customers will be able to secure a unit for $179.99, afterward the phone will be sold for $219.99.

If you’re interested in Xiaomi Mi MIX lookalikes, the Doogee MIX is also an alternative. The phone is available for pre-order for $169.99 and up depending on configuration.

LG G6 now comes with a two-year warranty instead of one (in the US)

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Do you own an LG G6 or are planning to get one? If you are in the US, we have some good news to share with you. LG just announced the “LG G6 Second Year Promise” program which extends the phone’s warranty from 1 year to 2 years.

The program is available for users who purchased the LG G6 from any mobile carrier or authorized retailer and will require registration on LG’s official website. Customers will need to provide a proof of purchase, on top of the phone’s IMEI/MEID and serial number within 12 months since they bought the phone. Those who are looking to purchase the LG G6 today or very soon, are given 90 days to register.

The LG G6

Why is it a good idea to join the program? For starters, it’s free. Secondly, LG will award you a new phone in case your LG G6 gets damaged and it’s not your fault. Under LG’s new initiative you’ll now be covered for two full years.

Most handsets in the US come with the standard one-year warranty, but as LG itself notes, customers tend to use a new phone for an average of 18 to 24 months. The company pledges to replace faulty G6 units within two business days after the original device shipment date, with all shipping costs being covered by the company.

However, it should be noted that LG’s Second Year Promise does not cover damage from drops or other accidents, so if the phone accidentally slips from your hand and ends up on hitting the concrete sidewalk, LG won’t replace it. Regardless, knowing you’ll be protected against issues like bootloops, which LG has become infamous for, certainly brings some piece of mind.

Exclusive: Google Assistant could replace Siri on iPhone 8

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Google and Apple are giving it another go. The search giant is teaming up with Apple for closer integration of Google Assistant according to a source. Our source indicated that the launch of Google Assistant on iOS devices that we saw at Google I/O 2017 was indeed a soft launch for future plans between the two.

Currently on iOS, you can use Google Assistant like any other third party app. You open it up, have a chat with Assistant and close the application back down. What’s lacking is the first party integration that Siri on iOS or Google Assistant on Android enjoys.

Our source confirms that a plan is in motion to make Google Assistant a full Siri replacement should the user decide that they want to use Google Assistant instead of Siri. What we do not know right now is where Google and Apple are in this process.

How to get Google Assistant on any device running Android 5.0+

Unfortunately, our source could not confirm that this will be an official partnership ala Google Maps on the first several iPhones. They could also not confirm the limits of the functionality of Google Assistant on iPhone but did compare it to other phone manufacturers integrating Alexa into their phones, namely Huawei.

Another tidbit that our source passed along is that there will indeed be three iPhones released this year: the iPhone 7S, iPhone 7S Plus, and the iPhone 8. We’re light on details about what these phones will look like, but the iPhone 8 is said to carry a premium price tag.

We reached out to Google for comment on this rumor but it stated it had no comment on the matter.

Three tips to help you choose a high-quality case for your new Galaxy S8

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“No phones are more sleek, more stunning, or more powerful.” – BGR

There is no doubt that the new Samsung Galaxy S8 is pure quality, both inside and outside. In fact, the official Samsung website states that the S8’s features “mark the beginning of a new way to experience the world.” CNet.com gives the phone a score of 8.8 out of 10 as well as noting that, while the S8 is an “extremely fast, highly competent, visually stunning device”, it is a good idea to purchase a high-quality case with your phone as it is not worth risking breaking the phone should an accident occur. Tech Surprise, specialists in smartphone technology, recommends that you remember these important things.

What constitutes a high-quality mobile phone case?

It might be stating the obvious, but the most important function of a case is to protect the phone from damage as a result of being dropped, liquid spills, and scratches, etc. Even though modern design technology is producing tougher and possibly even waterproof mobile devices, there is no doubt that the vast majority of phones will not survive an accident without some damage of sorts. Furthermore, your phone might not show outward signs of damage after being dropped the first time, there will more than likely be invisible damage, and it will eventually break after being dropped more than once.

Therefore, a high-quality case needs to be well-constructed from shock- and water-proof materials. It also needs to look good and stylistically flattering to the design and shape of the phone. Additionally, the mobile device case needs to follow the latest industrial design trends as well as function as a fashion accessory.

What to look for when purchasing a Galaxy S8 Case

It is easy to spend hundreds of dollars on the latest mobile device and forget about buying a high-quality case to protect your new device. As stated above, this is not necessarily a good idea as your new phone could end up being seriously damaged or even destroyed without a phone case to protect it. Therefore, here are several tips to help you choose a high-quality phone:

Type of case

How do you typically carry your phone – on your belt, in your pocket, bag, or in your hand? The answer to this question will determine what type of case you should consider. The most popular cases are constructed as holsters, side cases, skins, cases with lids, and pouches, etc. Do not dismiss any option as you never really know which one is the best for you until you get to see them.

Level of protection

The next step is to decide how much protection your phone needs. For example, do you work outdoors on a dusty construction site? If so, it is advisable to purchase a cover that is rubberised, dustproof, and waterproof. Unfortunately, rugged, protective cases tend to be bulky and heavy. On the other hand, should you use your phone in a fairly sanitized, protected environment, a slim or basic case will suffice.

Fashion accessory or not?

Does your phone case need to complement your outfit? It is possible to purchase an assortment of mobile device cases and exchange them depending on your outfit as well as the function you are attending.

Related: Caseology cases for the LG G6

Final words

The good news is that mobile device cases are interchangeable. You can buy one to suit your working environment as well as another protective cover for your weekend and vacation adventures. The salient point; however, is to ensure that your phone is adequately protected at all times. It is not worth risking having to replace your phone because of accidental damage.