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Showing posts from January, 2018

Deal: HTC U11 is available for $100 off from Feb 1 to Feb 15

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HTC U11 will be discounted to $549 starting February 1 through February 15. If you buy the U11 or U11 Life, you can also get the Under Armour HealthBox for $99 instead of $399. Just in time for Valentine’s Day, HTC is offering a $100 discount on its flagship device, and if you buy one, the Under Armour HealthBox can be yours for just $99. Editor's Pick HTC U11 review There's no denying HTC has had a rough go of it in the extremely competitive flagship space, and the company needs a hit on their hands to make a comeback. Now, with its latest high-end offering, … It’s no secret that HTC loves running special promotions – whether it’s Christmas, Black Friday, or the beginning of summer, it seems like the Taiwanese electronics manufacturer is always looking for an opportunity to offer discounts for its phones. No one is complaining, of course. Well, Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, and what better time to offer special tech deals than on this “corpora

LG settles lawsuit over smartphone bootlooping, members get $425 cash or $700 rebate

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LG recently settled a lawsuit launched by smartphone who were plagued by bootlooping issues. Those affected who joined the lawsuit must file a “Proof of Claim” survey by February 12 to get the full rebate or cash amount. As of this writing, the survey and the settlement page has been taken down. Do you remember the lawsuit that angry LG smartphone owners filed against the South Korean company? The lawsuit was settled today and you could potentially have some money headed your way. If you are not familiar with the term “ bootlooping ,” it is when a phone is stuck in a loop of reboots that prevent owners from actually using their devices. The issue is not exclusive to LG smartphones, though it affected the likes of the G4 , V10 , V20 , Nexus 5X , and G5 . Because such a side swath of smartphones were plagued by bootlooping, owners filed a class-action lawsuit against LG. Law firm Girard Gibbs has just reached a settlement with the company—one that hopes to net members some f

10 best new Android games from January 2018!

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Android gaming is getting bigger and better every month it seems and there is always a slew of new titles coming to Google Play. Whether you’re a casual gamer or you want something with a beat more meat on its bones, there’s usually a game coming out to suit everyone’s taste. Let’s take a look at the best new Android games from the last month! You can watch the videos on YouTube from passed months by clicking here ! Looking for more new stuff? Check out these recommended app lists! 10 best new Android apps from January 2018! App developers are pushing the envelope on a daily basis trying to improve and enhance our smartphone and tablet experiences. In fact, so many Android apps come out every day that it's difficult to keep … 15 best Android games of 2018! Gaming on mobile has been improving at a far greater rate than any technology that came before it. Android games seems to hit new heights every year. With the release of Android Nougat and Vulkan … Bridge

NVIDIA Shield TV 6.3 update adds Nest Cam streaming, additional app support

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The 6.3 Experience Update for the Android TV-based NVIDIA Shield TV set-top box is rolling out. The update adds a way for users to watch Nest Cam footage on their TV with Google Assistant voice commands. It also has the latest Android security updates, firmware improvements, and new app support. NVIDIA closes out the month of January by rolling out the 6.3 Experience Update for its Android TV-based Shield TV set-top box. This is a rather major update as it adds some new app support, along with the usual security patches and firmware improvements. NVIDIA’s support page for the Shield TV shows that the 6.3 update adds support for viewing footage from Nest Cam cameras on your TV. If you own a Nest Cam in your home, you can now use the Shield TV’s support for Google Assistant to simply say, “Show me the front door camera” to begin viewing the live footage from your Nest Cam location. There’s also new app support in this Shield TV update, adding in Cartoon Network, VH1, The

US Cellular lowers its prepaid unlimited plan to $55 a month, down from $70

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U.S. Cellular has lowered the price of its prepaid unlimited plan from $70 to $55 a month. However, speeds go down to 2G levels if you exceed 15 GB before the end of your month’s billing cycle. There’s also a new 3 GB high-speed prepaid data plan for $40 per month. There’s some good news for people looking for a bargain on unlimited prepaid phone plans. U.S. Cellular , the nation’s fifth-largest wireless provider, has revealed it has lowered the price of its prepaid unlimited plan from $70 a month to just $55 a month. Editor's Pick Best unlimited data plans in the US Data is a precious commodity these days. The cost of using mobile web services can get high. Even if you have multiple options available, you must be smart about picking the best among the  unlimited data … The company’s press release does have some fine print to this price cut, however. Unlimited users will have a speed cap of   1.5 Mbps, and customers who pay for this plan and exceed 15 GB a mo

Game Dev Tycoon combines gaming with business on Android for $4.99

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Game Dev Tycoon has made its Android debut. In the 1980s-style game, you must launch and grow a successful video game development studio. The mobile version includes a super-hard pirate mode, and more awesome features. We have all played video games, and many of you reading this may have even made games. But have you ever run a game development studio? Well, now you can run a virtual one with the Android launch of the cult hit business simulation Game Dev Tycoon. Editor's Pick 15 best offline Android games A lot of Android games depend on a mobile data connection. Whether it's downloading stuff from the server like Clash of Clans, or using it for DRM protection like most Final Fantasy games, it seems … The game was first released for PC, Mac, and Linux by Greenheart Games, and made its way to iOS in late November 2017. The Android version, which is priced at $4.99 with no in-game ads or purchases, puts you in the great decade of the 1980s, when the video g

Square Enix’s Dissidia Final Fantasy Opera Omnia released for Android

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Update (01/31/18):  As promised, the Android version of  Dissidia Final Fantasy Opera Omnia is now available for Android. The latest free-to-play RPG based on Square Enix’s Final Fantasy series can be downloaded now from the Google Play Store at the link below. Get Dissidia Final Fantasy Opera Omnia Original story (01/18/18):  We have yet to hear a peep from Square Enix regarding Final Fantasy XV Pocket Edition ‘s missed release window. Even so, the company announced that  Dissidia Final Fantasy Opera Omnia , the mobile offshoot of the upcoming  Dissidia Final Fantasy NT , is available for pre-registration on the Play Store . While other Dissidia Final Fantasy titles have been fighting games,  Opera Omnia is a free-to-play RPG with turn-based combat, which makes the mobile title a spin-off of a spin-off. Combat does not appear to be overly complicated; you dish out damage to your opponents and unleash powerful attacks once you build up enough Bravery. The simple combat is

Huawei P20 likely to be revealed in Paris on March 27

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Press invites have been sent by Huawei for an upcoming event in Paris on March 27. The event is likely to officially reveal the long-awaited Huawei P20 flagship smartphone. There may be as many as three P20 phone models shown in Paris on that date. We have been waiting patiently for Huawei to give us a clue about when they plan to reveal the long awaited P20 flagship smartphone. Today, invites from Huawei to a number of media outlets have arrived, announcing the company will indeed show off “new flagship devices” at a press event in Paris on March 27. Editor's Pick Huawei P20 and P20 Plus: all the rumors in one place (Updated) In this post, which will be updated regularly, we take a closer look at the latest rumors surrounding Huawei's upcoming P20 and P20 Plus smartphones. Although the Huawei P10 and P10 Plus are great smartphones, they … Huawei didn’t mention a specific brand name for the phone that would be revealed at the Paris event, though it’s alm

Move over, Intel: Samsung is now the world’s largest chipmaker

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For the first time in 25 years, Intel is no longer the world’s top chipmaker by revenue. Samsung knocked Intel off its perch by posting $67 billion in revenue for 2017. The switch underlines the growth of mobile chips and Samsung’s increasing presence in the computing space. Intel might have dominated the chipset market for a quarter of a century, but Samsung  has officially taken over the top spot for the first time in company history, reports TechCrunch . According to the South Korean outfit, its chipset division made $67 billion in revenue for 2017. By comparison, Intel reported $62.8 billion in total revenue for the year, a six percent increase from 2016. In other words, 2017 might have been a record year for Intel, but it was not enough to hold back Samsung from becoming number one. To be clear, this is not a one-for-one comparison. Keep in mind that Intel primarily focuses on x86 processors for computers, while Samsung flexes its muscles in memory and flash storage p

The Sharp Android One S3 embodies stock Android goodness in a tough shell

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Sharp Corp., Japan has announced the company’s next Android One phone, the Sharp Android One S3. As the name suggests, it is Sharp’s low-cost Android One offering and will be available in Japan via Y! Mobile in four colors. The phone comes with Android 8.0 Oreo out of the box and sports a fairly modest spec sheet. The Android One S3 is a successor to the Sharp X1 , which was part of the Android One program in 2017. The Android One S3 is powered a Qualcomm Snapdragon 430 SoC with 3 GB RAM and 32 GB of storage that can be expanded via microSD card. The phone features a 5-inch 1080p IGZO display, which has not yet embraced the (near) bezel-less philosophy. However, the company is touting vivid images thanks to the S-Pure LED backlight. A 13 MP rear camera and a 5 MP front-facing camera help with the imaging. Rounding off the specs is a 2,700 mAh battery that should last for a typical workday considering the low-end SoC and the bloat-free OS. Sharp The S3 is restricted to the Japan

Tekken Mobile soft launches in Canada (Updated: US release date revealed)

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Update #2 (01/31/18):  Bandai Namco has announced the launch dates for its upcoming Tekken Mobile game. The title will launch on February 1 in Latin America, Eastern Europe, Middle East, Africa, South East Asia, before moving further West in the following weeks. Tekken Mobile will hit the U.K., Germany, France, Spain and other European nations on February 15, before landing in the U.S. on March 1.  Bandai Namco says it has received “1,500,000 pre-registrations” for the title already, and to celebrate, has revealed a new mobile exclusive character. Rodeo will be available for free for all players from March 1— take a look at his reveal trailer here . Update #1 (01/24/18):  While Tekken Mobile is still in soft launch mode in Canada, you can now pre-register in the US to get the mobile fighting game directly from the Google Play Store. Bandai Namco will inform you when the game is finally released. Hopefully, the pre-registration on the Play Store means that the game is close to

Is LG launching a new V30 variant at MWC 2018? (Update: LG official confirms)

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  Update (01/31): LG’s PR machine has been sending mixed messages ever since the company announced it was dialing back its release schedule. Despite the confusion surrounding the LG G7’s status (Is it delayed? Is it being redesigned? Is it still called the LG G7?), an LG official has now confirmed that the LG V30 variant rumored for launch at MWC 2018 is definitely happening. Talking to reporters at an Innofest event in Cape Town (thanks, GearBurn ), managing director for LG Electronics South Africa, CY Kim, said: “We will introduce at MWC for V30… upgraded version (sic).” Kim also apparently said that the G7 would be a “little bit late”, which is about as non-committal as it gets. Original story (01/19): LG has certainly picked an interesting time to undergo a transitional period. With ailing sales and losses spiralling into the hundreds of millions , the South Korean OEM recently revealed that it is throwing out its strict annual release schedule for a leaner, variant-heavy ap

Alcatel 5 price, specs and availability details leaked—plus some new renders

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Evan Blass Update (01/31):  The Alcatel 5 has been leaked again, providing us with almost everything we need to know about the upcoming device. The leak arrives via  WinFuture [translated], which suggests that the handset will come with a 5.7-inch, IPS LCD display with 18:9 aspect ratio and HD+ 1440 x 720 resolution. In addition, the phone is expected to include an octa-core, MediaTek MT6750 chipset, 3 GB of RAM and 32 GB of internal storage space (plus microSD support). On the back is said to be a single 12 MP camera with f/2.0 aperture, while the front would be home to a dual 13 MP + 5 MP camera setup (with 1.4 µm sensor and 120-degree wide-angle lens). This would support the trending Face Unlock feature, too.   Previous rumors regarding the 3,000 mAh battery and USB Type-C support also appear to have been accurate. The Alcatel 5 price is likely to be set at 229.99 euros, or around $285, and it will go on sale first in Europe. We don’t yet know if/when it will la

OnePlus 5T update tracker (Update: Oreo-based OxygenOS 5.0.2 OTA rollout begins)

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Update (01/31/2018): OnePlus has finally begun rolling out the first public OxygenOS build based on Android 8.0 Oreo for the OnePlus 5T. In an official forum post , OnePlus’ Adam Krisko confirmed that the OxygenOS 5.0.2 OTA update will start hitting users’ devices today as part of an incremental rollout, with a broader rollout set to follow in the coming days. The stable build includes all of the features we’ve come to expect from Oreo, such as Picture-in-Picture mode, notification dots, and much more, as well as a new design for Quick Settings, general bug fixes, and the January Android security patch. The OTA also includes several OxygenOS app updates for the Launcher, Gallery, Weather, and File Manager. Welcome to the OnePlus 5T Android update tracker page. This page covers all major software news for the OnePlus 5T will be updated regularly with new information. Unlike our other Android update tracker pages, this article doesn’t contain specific carrier details because the