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Which unlimited plan is right for you? Here is everything you need to know

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Last week was a bit of a crazy one in carrier news. T-Mobile has long been offering unlimited plans but Verizon shook up the world by beginning to offer unlimited data plans again after a years-long hiatus. Sprint and AT&T tried to make their own waves as well with tweaks to their unlimited plans in response to Verizon. If you’re in the market for an unlimited plan, now is a really good time to be a customer. But, which one is the best for you? Let’s take a look at the options.

T-Mobile

t mobile one

While T-Mobile has recently changed its strategy, it has been offering unlimited data for a while. Old plans, like mine, offered little to no tethering and may have left out perks like T-Mobile’s Mobile Without Borders which allow you to use LTE in Mexico and Canada. The newer T-Mobile One plan was a bit controversial when it first came out but the company has been pushing it hard.

Up until last week, T-Mobile One offered a flat fee (plus tax) for unlimited calls, text and LTE data. The caveat was that you still had to pay tax on top of the base price and your streaming video was limited to 480p (T-Mobile is quick to point out this is DVD quality). The big change for T-Mobile in the past week is that it’s now including taxes and fees into the base price of T-Mobile One and streaming video quality will now be upgraded to HD.

If you care about streaming in HD while using your data connection, this is a pretty great improvement. Everyone has 1080p or 2560p displays on their phones these days and the more pixels you can display, the better the video will look. If you don’t care as much about video streaming, you’ll still save on the taxes and fees that are now included in the base price of T-Mobile One.

At the time of writing T-Mobile is offering 2 unlimited lines for $100 a month all-in. This includes HD video and 10GB of tethering. If you only want one line you’re going to shell out $70 a month for the same service. Three lines will run you $140 a month and four lines are $160 a month. All of these offers require auto-pay and if you exceed 28GB of data per month T-Mobile reserves the right to slow down your data speed to 2G speed.

Verizon

Verizon’s unlimited plan, in contrast to T-Mobile’s, is brand new. Verizon had previously unveiled a new 5GB for $55 plan stating that most users don’t need any more than 5GB of data a month. They might be right but Verizon is missing out on the hardcore users out there that refuse to have limits on their data.

Under the new unlimited plan Verizon is now offering customers one line of unlimited data with HD (1080p) streaming, mobile hotspot, texting and calling to Canada and Mexico, and 500mb of data roaming a day in Mexico and Canada for $80 a month. If you happen to be part of a family plan, you can grab this same unlimited deal for $45 per line per month which comes out to $180 for four unlimited lines. Both of these options require that you use auto-pay.

Verizon is more expensive but Big Red expects that the extra $20 per month is worth it due to its superior network.

AT&T

AT&T has also been offering an unlimited plan for some time now but its only been offered to those customers who also have U-Verse or DirecTV, which is owned by AT&T. That is now changing as AT&T tries to keep up with Verizon and T-Mobile.

AT&T’s plan is a little confusing. The first line is $100 a month for unlimited everything. After that, you can add additional lines for $40 a month which equals out to $220 a month, but that’s only for the first two months. Starting in your third month your fourth line becomes free and drops your overall bill to $180 a month, which equals Verizon.

With its new unlimited plan, AT&T will allow you to call Canada and Mexico for free and send text messages to over 120 countries at no charge. After 22GB AT&T reserves the right to throttle down your data speeds, which sits at 6GB less than T-Mobile’s data cap.

We’re glad to see AT&T unlock the DirecTV and U-Verse restrictions on this plan, but it doesn’t seem to be as competitive as Verizon or T-Mobile’s. If you’re a loyal AT&T customer and you don’t want to switch to get unlimited data, this could be the right fit for you, but I don’t see many customers being swayed to leave their current carrier for this deal.

Sprint

Sprint’s new plan, like its network, is a bit of a mess. There are a couple of fairly large catches that come with the nation’s fourth-placed carrier’s plan including the requirement to port at least one line to Sprint. Here’s how it works.

When you sign up right now, your first unlimited line is $50 a month, which is significantly cheaper than the other three carriers. When you add a second line your bill jumps to $90 a month, $10 less than T-Mobile One’s two-line option. Lines three and four are both FREE which means you can get four lines of unlimited talk, text, and data for only $90. This includes HD-quality video streaming and 10GB of tethering.

But, here’s the catch. This price only lasts until March of 2018. At that point your price jumps to $60 a month for the first line, $40 for your second line, and $30 for lines three and four putting your bill at $160 for four lines. On top of that bill jump, this plan is only available to new customers who are required to sign up for Sprint’s auto-pay service.

The price jump may not sound like a huge deal but if you’re still paying off a phone you financed through Sprint or are locked into a leasing agreement you’ll have no choice but to pay the increase in line fees or pay off your phone and find a different carrier. It’s a gigantic pain.

Sprint’s plan will certainly save you some money in the short term, but you’re going to have to put up with a network that is subpar, no matter what its advertising says.

Who is the best?

So, who has the best plan? Well, that answer will change for everyone really. If you need the best network and you’re not worried about the absolute cheapest price it looks like Verizon might be your Huckleberry. If you want the absolute cheapest option, Sprint is where you should head. T-Mobile offers a better price than Verizon and a significantly better network than Sprint while AT&T has a strong network and is no more expensive than Verizon.

Are any of these plans good enough to get you to switch your current carrier? Will you be sticking with your carrier and changing to an unlimited plan? Let us know down in the comments!

PlayStation Communities is a handy tool for hardcore PS4 users (Review)

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Overview:

PlayStation Communities is another app from the PlayStation mobile app team, that aims to make using your PS4 and mobile device together easier than ever. This app is designed to allow you to manage your PS4 communities and find friends and other players who share your interests and play together.

Developer: PlayStation Mobile, Inc.

Cost: Free

Impressions:

PlayStation Communities is another app from the PlayStation mobile app team, that aims to make using your PS4 and mobile device together easier than ever. This app is designed to allow you to manage your PS4 communities and find friends and other players who share your interests and play together.

PlayStation Communities is an app from Sony that is designed to let you find friends and players with shared interests by joining “Communities” based on region, game, or whatever you’d like. There are hundreds to choose from, but a lot of them do suffer from low population issues. The app is serviceable and allows you to search, join, and message in communities without having to turn on your PS4, which is handy, but in all honestly the app isn’t something a casual PS4 user would really need. This app seems aimed squarely at the hardcore players in Sony’s camp, those who have a lot of friends and use the PlayStation as their primary gaming platform.

The Communities app has no glaring issues, you are able to search for communities by game name, or location and language and join them easily. Once joined, your communities are listed on the main screen and you are able to see player population and active players, as well as messages and updates from them at a glance. The app will also push notifications to you when a community updates if you prefer. There isn’t much more going on here, to be honest, the app does as advertised and nothing more. The user interface is inoffensive enough but could stand to be a bit cleaner, maybe delegate the different tabs to a hamburger menu button on the side, and let the community pages be larger and more readable.

PlayStation Communities is another in a string of PS4-centric apps from Sony that allows you to manage your PS4 remotely. The others are the PlayStation app, which allows you to manage friends lists, browse the shop, and use your phone as a remote or second screen. Alongside that, there is the PlayStation messages app which is solely for messaging on the PlayStation Network. This fragmented app library highlights the biggest issue with Sony’s PlayStation mobile device experience. Compare this triple app mess to the Xbox app for Android, which performs all of the functions of all of these apps in one making for a much easier and smoother experience for second screen gaming. PlayStation needs to unify all these apps into one, larger app that performs all of the same functions. It would reduce bloat on phones and tablets, as well as reduce confusion in the PlayStation community over apps and their functions. It’s 2017 guys, can we get our acts together?

Conclusion:

Overall, the PlayStation Communities app is a solid, functional app that has a very limited purpose and shouldn’t be a standalone app. That, however, has no significant bearing on its score here today. PlayStation Communities is a good companion to your PS4, and if you find yourself in need of a few players for a Destiny raid or to fill out your multiplayer lobby in Call of Duty then this app is a solid source of players and a recommended download.

Download PlayStation Communities from the Google Play Store

NBA VR app launches as an exclusive to Google’s Daydream platform

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Google’s Daydream VR ecosystem just got a new addition. In a partnership with Google, the NBA recently announced its first virtual reality app.

With the NBA VR app installed users will be able to watch highlight videos from recent NBA games on a virtual big TV screen and view team statistics from games.

But wait that’s not all, the new NBA VR app also arrives with an original weekly interview series called House of Legends. The first episode of the series welcomes fans into a virtual sports lounge where ex-NBA player Robert Horry will be discussing a wide range of topics, all for your enjoyment. Future episodes will include players like Chauncey Billups, Baron Davis, Bruce Bowen or James Worthy.

The app is a Daydream exclusive, so if you’re the owner of a Samsung Gear VR headset you won’t be able to use it. NBA VR is currently available for users in the US, UK, Canada, Australia and Germany.

The app is free to download and more 360-degree video content plus new episodes from the House of Legends will be added in the upcoming months.

Google’s Daydream platform is starting to get more and more populated. Back in December a few dozen compatible titles were introduced including HBO, Netflix, LEGO, EA, NextVR, Underworld Overlord and Layers of Fear: Solitude – to name a few.

Speaking of which NextVR can offer access to a live NBA game every week, but you will have to pay a pretty consistent fee of $199.

 

7 apps to help you look gorgeous on the cheap

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Want to look flawless on your next night out in town? You will need to invest in acquiring some decent makeup products and accessories. But as all lovers of beauty might know, buying makeup can get extremely expenses.

Luckily there are ways to buy these essential products at more affordable prices. Like constantly being on the lookout for deals and discounts. And your smartphone/tablet can easily be turned into the tool you need to hunt for these bargains. All you need to do is install the right apps and remember to check them on a regular basis.

And here’s a few applications for Android that might help you buy your high-end eyeshadow palettes at more acceptable rates:

Cute

Find the lipstick that will make you look super cute on your next date with the “Cute” app. Cute is a database of trending makeup and beauty products sold with discounts of 50% to 90% off. Beauty addicts can find anything from skin creams to makeup brushes. Cute works directly with manufacturers in order to make sure it delivers the best kind of discounts. You can download it for free.

Sephora

Sephora is one of the best known retailers that specializes in makeup products. So naturally there’s a dedicated application that lets you browse Sephora’s products from the comfort of your home.

The app includes a lot of useful features like allowing beauty trend followers to virtually try on products, get expert advice and access step-by-step makeover tutorials. But the reason we included the Sephora app in our list is that you’ll be able to get information about the latest product discounts in-shop and online.

Some Sephora products might be a bit too expensive, but if you regularly check the app you might find that the lipstick you set your eyes on is available with a discount.

Avon

Avon has been in the business of beauty products for more than 125 years. They offer anything from skin care products to makeup items and perfumes. And now it’s a lot easier to shop for your favorite Avon products. The catalogue is conveniently available at users’ fingertips, so they can shop for the latest products and deals on-the-go. You’ll get a wide range of products to choose from affordable prices – which is what Avon is best known for.

Think Dirty

We’re only listing this particular app because it is based on a great concept. Other than that, the app doesn’t work too well, so it does not come to highly recommended from the users who already tried it.

Think Dirty is not designed to offer information about deals and discounts, but it will still help you save money. Think Dirty was created to provide an easy way to learn about the potentially toxic ingredients in cosmetics and personal care products.

Users need to scan the product’s bar code in order to get the relevant info, but as it turns out the app doesn’t recognize most of the products although it boasts a database of 350,000+.

Once you have identified the product as safe, users can purchase from brand partners such as Amazon.com directly from the Think Dirty app.

So don’t spend your money on something just because it looks good in the commercial. Try and use the Think Dirty app to learn whether the desired item is made using potentially harmful ingredients. The concept is a good one, so hopefully the team behind the app will continue to update it.

Spurce

Once again you won’t find any deals here, but keeping your skin healthy might also require going to see the dermatologist once in a while. This app offers online consultations with board-certified US dermatologists. Embraced by the eruption on your face? You don’t have to go out, with Spurce you need only pay a $40 fee to get in touch with a dermatologist. This includes diagnosis, personalized treatment plan and 30 days follow-up messaging. Save money and time by using the online Spurce diagnostic tool.

YouCam Makeup

Not sure which make up products to buy? Avoid purchasing products you will end up never using by trying YouCam Makeup. Try different combination of colors and styles and see what fits and what doesn’t. Change eye shadow or lipstick color in an instant or add blush – all by virtue of a simple tap. Don’t spend money on something you’re not sure will look good on you. With this app you can give a certain look a go without having to take out your credit card.

Little

Pamper yourself a little bit with Little. The deal app offers spa and salon deals for those looking for an affordable hair treatment or full body massages. Just access the Spa & Salon section and check the available promotions. Then all you need to do is purchase and coupon and make an appointment.

 

Soundcast VG1- A little Bluetooth Speaker with real punch

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I love Bluetooth accessories. The Bluetooth standard is used in far different than it was originally developed for, but the result has been an array of mobile accessories that many of us would never have dreamed up a decade ago. Smart watches, alarms, headphones, earbuds, fitness trackers, speakers… All have been adopted into our daily lives. The search has turned from trying to find an accessory we can afford to finding the best accessory for our money. These accessories are so pervasive, where do you start your search?

Well, Soundcast recently sent over the VG1, a heavy-duty IP-rated Bluetooth speaker for us to take a look at in hopes we may agree its worth the $150 price tag.

When I took it out of the box, I was initially very impressed with the build quality of the speaker. It’s pretty heavy, but there’s a good reason for that. The body is made out of heavy-duty materials that will resist most falls.

The rubber body of the VG1 seems to be your standard hard, black rubber we’ve seen on many speakers that are designed to be used outdoors. The metallic looking grill is actually a hard plastic and I was pretty disappointed how the grill held up to my drop test. A drop from about five feet onto the corner of a wooden table left a pretty significant dent in the grill but did not damage the internals. Higher quality materials might have made the speaker a little heavier, but would pay off in the longer term health of the speaker.

That dent is ugly.

Disappointment over the grill aside, I did like the inclusion of a carabiner bar on the right side of the device. This allows you to easily hook your speaker onto your bag or your belt if you happen to be climbing and the solid construction of the bar means it’s going nowhere.

Another smart decision on the part of Soundcast is the inclusion of an IP rating on the VG1. The speaker is rated at IP67 which means the speaker is protected from harmful dust (6) and immersion in water up to 1 meter deep (about 3 feet) for up to 30 minutes. If you’re running to catch the bus while it’s pouring rain, you’re good, though I wouldn’t take it deep sea diving.

One of the biggest things that the VG1 has going in its favor is the small and angular design of its body. The speaker is just big enough to hold in one hand comfortably while the rubber body provides some decent grip. Soundcast is quick to point out that while the speaker is angular, it is important to keep the speaker on its feet. If you tip it back then the speaker “won’t produce the optimal listening experience”. The quality of the audio does drop when the speaker is put at an angle but nothing to write home about.

Don’t do this.

Speaking of audio quality, I was pretty pleased with what the Soundcast VG1 was able to produced based on the small body it’s housed in. Bass is about on par with other decently expensive speakers. It won’t blow you away and rattle your windows, but it does offer some really nice bass will make rock, rap, and EDM a pleasure. At higher volumes, the bass really kicks in and you can feel the backward-firing passive bass radiator really notch up and provide some awesome bass.

Where the VG1 really shines is in its clarity. The lows don’t step all over the mids, and the mids and highs are very well represented. Spoken word and instrumental shine here with this being the perfect speaker to listen to comedy albums or podcasts. I was really pleased that at higher volumes that the mids and especially the highs, maintained their integrity.

The VG1 has the ability to deliver that high audio quality partly due to high-quality parts, but also support for AAC and aptX codecs, but if you want true stereo audio, you can pair two VG1’s together. Now, that’s going to cost you about $300 and at that price, you may want to look at other options, but the ability to pair two speakers together is pretty enticing. Unfortunately, Soundcast only sent one speaker so I wasn’t able to try out this functionality.

All-in-all, I think the Soundcast VG1 is really an excellent speaker for the money you’re spending. It has all of the speakers you’d expect including Siri support (sorry, no Google Voice Search support), water resistance, and speaker phone, with the added ability to pair an extra speaker which most devices can’t do.

I would like to see the build quality be just slightly better to avoid those dented grills, but I can’t complain too much. My drop test is supposed to simulate the worst of what would be a “normal” drop and it survived up until that point. Still, I can’t get that dent out and it’s really bothering me.

Is the Soundcast VG1 worth your money? Yeah, I think it is. There are definitely other contenders out there that offer pretty enticing alternatives, but they generally cost anywhere between $50 to $150 more.

Project Fi subscribers will get LTE calls soon

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Are you a Project Fi subscriber? If that’s the case, we have a piece of good news we want to share with you. Google announced that for the past few weeks it has been testing Voice over LTE (VoLTE) calls for select users of Project Fi.

The most noticeable benefit consumers will experience with VoLTE is improved voice quality. On top of that users can expect to see faster mid-call data speeds and improved connection times.

It’s sounds all very promising, but there’s a few things that need to be taken into consideration. For starters, Project Fi relies on existing networks from Sprint, T-Mobile and US Cellular. Out of these three, only T-Mobile currently supports VoLTE.

So Google has been testing the feature for Project Fi subscribers that are located somewhere they can take advantage of the T-Mobile network.

Project Fi might come with its perks, but established carriers like AT&T and Verizon have been offering VoLTE for a while now, while Google is barely getting started. And not all its users will be able to take advantage of this feature. At least for the time being.

Google notes that users will be able to tell they are making a VoLTE calls because the signal indicator will continue to display LTE instead of H [HSPA] when making or receiving a call.

The search giant hasn’t pinpointed an exact date of when it plans to roll out LTE calling for its subscribers. But given that Sprint and US Cellular are also expected to make available VoLTE calling sometimes later in 2017, Google might put off the launch until then.

Vinci smart headphones put a Virtual Assistant on your head

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Virtual assistants are slowly becoming ubiquitous. You probably have one living in your phone, one on your desk (in your Google Home or Amazon Echo) and if you’re really fancy you might even have on hidden in your refrigerator.

But what if we told you that virtual assistants have also made it to headphones? Introducing the Vinci smart headphones – which offer an atypical mix of features borrowed from smartwatches, music players and phones.

The Vinci headphones are pretty sweet as they don’t need to be connected to a smartphone to be able to play your favorite music, act as an activity tracker, offer direction or read back text messages.

The headphones feature a touchscreen on one side which users need to use to set up the device. In order to ask the AI living inside a question, just tap and hold on the display and start talking. Or you can simply say “Hey Vinci”. You can ask it to play your favorite Linkin Park song, inquire about the weather or request to be told a joke.

Vinci also features dual-mic noise reduction technology to filter out ambient noise, which improves its voice recognition features.

The more you use Vinci, the more it learns you habits and preferences (like any self-respecting virtual assistant, right?). So your intelligent companion will be able to pick out songs to match your pace and preferences.

While all this sounds quite good on paper, to me Vinci seems like you’d be walking around with a smartphone strapped to your head.

The touchscreen on the side even features an audio visualizer (the default one features a circle of dots that flows with the music) that reacts to the music you’re playing. So basically you’ll be putting on a show for onlookers. The benefits of that? I’m not really sure. Maybe the visualizer might encourage others to start talking to you.

But if you’re open minded about new technology, the Vinci intelligent headphones are up on Indiegogo. The Early Bird bundle comes with a $129 price tag. For this amount of money, you will receive one pair of Vinci headphones in Black/White/Silver/Red or Lime Yellow. Estimated delivery date is listed as April 2017.

Congressman requests investigation into why Donald Trump is still using his Galaxy S3

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Last month we told you that before his official inauguration, President Donald Trump traded in his unsecure Android device for a locked-down, secure device which was approved by the Secret Services.

But as it turns out, President Trump continued to hold on to its trusty Android handset, which according to a body of evidence appears to be a Samsung Galaxy S3. Trump uses the phone mainly to post on Twitter, a pass-time activity he seems to be very fond of.

However, the Samsung Galaxy S3 is almost five years-old which means it is no longer getting updates of any kind. This makes the device pretty unsafe to use, which raises a lot of security concerns.

Trump is still devout to his Galaxy S3

That’s why a US Congressman has requested the US House Oversight and Government Reform Committee to investigate the matter. A Democrat from California, Congressman Ted Lieu has sent out a letter which was also signed by fourteen other Congressmen.

In it, mister Lieu states that “the use of an unsecure phone risks the President of the United States being monitored by foreign or domestic adversaries, many of whom would be happy to hijack the President’s prized Twitter account causing disastrous consequences for global stability.

Congressman deems Galaxy S3 unsecure

More particularly, Lieu wants to know if Trump is actively using his Android handset and if is how it is being used and whether or not he is actively being monitored. Additionally, Lieu also wants to investigate the administration of insecure email accounts.

This will certainly not be the last time we’ll be hearing about Trump’s unreliable but beloved Galaxy S3 handset. Last week, Democrat Sens. Tom Carper and Claire McCaskill sent a letter to Secretary of Defense, James Mattis asking to know whether the President was using a secure phone to place phone calls and Tweet.  What’s keeping Trump from upgrading to a newer Galaxy S7? We might never know.

The Mophie Power Capsule ensures your Bluetooth headphones are protected and charged

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We’ve all been there before. You’re either at the gym or out and about listening to your favorite music with your Bluetooth headphones, and then suddenly the music stops. Crap. You forgot to charge your headphones or thought there was more juice left.

One option is that you could pack a portable charger in your gym bag or plug them into your car charger. But that doesn’t help keep your expensive headphones protected. That’s where the Mophie Power Capsule comes into play.

Design:

Mophie is well known for providing some of the best high-quality portable chargers for numerous devices, whether they are cases or the good ole’ charging blocks. The Power Capsule is a bit different as it provides a case for your headphones, while making sure that you can charge your headphones or fitness trackers on the go.

As a fan of high-quality products, I became more and more enamored with the Power Capsule as I used it. The matte feeling on the outer casing makes for easy handling, and I have yet to have it slip from my hands.

Inside the zipper, the Capsule features the same matte texture, while providing enough room for your headphones to be plugged in. If you have a super long cable, like what’s found on the Jaybird Freedom’s, you may run into some issues keeping everything contained. However, that wasn’t the case here with the Jaybird X3’s.

Looking at the bottom of the Power Capsule, you’ll see one button, along with 4 white LEDs. This will allow you to check out the remaining battery life on the charger, so you’ll know when you need to plug it in.

Of course, the Power Capsule won’t be able to withstand being driven over by a truck, however, it will withstand much of the day-to-day damage that our accessories receive. Meanwhile, it will do an excellent job at protecting your headphones or portable accessories while charging.

Battery Usage:

Packed into the Power Capsule is a 1,400mAh battery, which will charge your devices via the built-in USB charger. Now, if you look past your Bluetooth headphones and focus on your fitness tracker, you may have some issues using the Power Capsule. This is because of the design, as you can plug in your USB cable, but are provided with a limited amount of space.

To put that 1,400mAh battery into perspective, let’s take a look at the battery of the Jaybird X3 Bluetooth headphones. I was able to charge the X3’s to 100% at least 3 times, with a little bit of battery left over. Of course, you can use an portable charger to do the same thing, but if you want to keep your Bluetooth headphones protected, the Power Capsule is the best option.

Once the 1,400mAh battery has been drained in the Power Capsule, you’ll need to recharge it. That’s where the built-in microUSB charger comes into play. This is placed on the side of the outer case, and can recharge in about about an hour or so.

Overview:

If I’m honest, I never knew there was an accessory which would double as a case for either fitness tracker, smartwatch, or Bluetooth headphones. So needless to say, I’ve been rather impressed with this little charging case. If you’re like me and do a fair amount of traveling and don’t want to risk ruining your headphones, the Mophie Power Capsule will be your best option, hands down.

If you’re looking for something to keep your Bluetooth headphones or wearables protected while charging, you won’t have to worry about breaking the bank. The Mophie Power Capsule is just $40 from Amazon with free Prime shipping.

ZTE Hawkeye might swap the Snapdragon 625 for the Snapdragon 835

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ZTE’s Hawkeye smartphone was born out of a daring idea – ask the community to come up with an atypical phone prototype and then make it happen. ZTE even asked fans to help name the device, but when the company finally announced the handset the masses were gravely disappointed.

But what happened? The eye-tracking, self-adhesive phone’s specs were only middle-range and as it turns out the community expected more – it expected a flagship device.

Hence ZTE’s Hawkeye Kickstarter campaign proved quite disastrous. Now according to new information coming our way via Engadget, ZTE has finally admitted defeat and cancelled the campaign for its $199 handset.

The company’s CEO, Jeff Yee explained ZTE took the decision to make the Hawkeye a mid-range affair, so the phone could become available to a wider audience. But the company is only now discovering what the community truly wants.

It’s a bit puzzling that ZTE didn’t think to poll users on Hawkeye’s specifications before making the announcement, when it did about (almost) everything else. Yee now says users still seem to be interested in the device’s main features – which can only mean self-adhesion and eye-tracking – so the company hopes to be able to release it on the market until the end of the year.

Here are the Hawkeye’s current specs:

  • OS: Android 7 Nougat with OTA updates
  • CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 (Octa-core 2.0GHz)
  • Display: 5.5″ FHD 1920 x 1080 resolution
  • Camera (Rear): Dual Lens 13MP + 12MP with optical zoom and OIS
  • Camera (Front): 8MP
  • Memory: 3GB RAM / 32GB ROM (expandable with additional 256GB microSD)
  • SIM: Dual SIM slot
  • GSM: 850/1900/900/1800
  • UMTS/HSPA: 850/1900/AWS/2100
  • LTE: B2/B4/B5/B7/B12/B13/B66 CAT6
  • Battery: 3000 mAh
  • WIFI 802.11 b/g/n/ac 2.4GHz/5GHz • BT4.2 / HFP1.6
  • Other Features: Fingerprint sensor, Senseye Hi-Fi audio, NFC, USB Type C, Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0, Voice Navigation

For the time being, ZTE is talking to fans so it can get a better idea of their expectations, but so far it seems the Hawkeye will get at least a Snapdragon 820, if not a Snapdragon 835. The latter option would be a better idea, especially if ZTE plans to postpone the launch of the phone for later in 2017.

So far 47% of the users taking the poll on ZTE’s website have voted for a Snapdragon 835 processor, while 19% said the OS should be Stock Android with added software for eye tracking.

Would you consider the ZTE Hawkeye if it were launched as a premium device?