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Showing posts from August, 2018

Google confirms it will not launch its own Wear OS watch this year

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Google plans to help third-party companies like Casio release new Wear OS watches, rather than develop and make one of their own. Google has confirmed it has no plans to launch its own Wear OS-based smartwatch this year. The report comes after posted rumors earlier this year, claiming the company was preparing to release a Pixel-branded smartwatch. The story says Google will focus on improving Wear OS while working with third-party smartwatch makers. If you were hoping Google was finally going to get into the smartwatch hardware business on its own very soon, you will be waiting a while longer. A new report from Tom’s Guide , based on an IFA 2018 interview with Miles Barr, Google’s director of engineering for Wear OS , says that the company has no plans to release its own smartwatch this year. The story said the company later confirmed that piece of news, via a statement from an official Google PR representative. Editor's Pick Best smartwatches (July 2018) Smar

The newest Sprint unlimited plan includes free Amazon Prime, Hulu, and Tidal

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Dallas News Sprint has announced a new high-end unlimited plan, called Unlimited Premium, for $90 a month. It includes a free subscription to Amazon Prime, in addition to free access to Hulu and Tidal. The plan also throws in 50GB of LTE mobile hotspot data a month. Sprint  made a surprise late Friday announcement, revealing that it has launched a new unlimited plan. This one is called Unlimited Premium , and it has a few features that might make it very attractive for many customers, even with its high price tag of $90 a month (with auto-pay) for one line. If you bring your own phone or buy a new phone at the full retail price from Sprint, you can get Unlimited Premium for the lower price of $80 a month.   You may remember that a few months ago, Sprint announced it was breaking up its one unlimited plan into two:  Unlimited Basic and Unlimited Plus . The new Unlimited Premium plan will have all of the features of the $70 a month Unlimited Plus. That cheaper plan includes

Two phones – likely the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL – hit the FCC

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BGR Two FCC listings just got declassified on the FCC website. It is highly likely these new listings are for the Google Pixel 3 and Google Pixel 3 XL. The only really new information here is the alleged model numbers of the Pixel 3 line. With all the Google Pixel 3 leaks we’ve been talking about over the past few weeks, we sometimes forget that usually at this point in the release cycle, FCC listings are some of our first looks at new devices. But nothing has been normal about the Google Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL so far. With that in mind, we now have FCC listings for two Google-branded devices that are almost certainly the Google Pixel 3 and Google Pixel 3 XL . Notably, the FCC listings were filed directly by Google , which is a big change from the Google Pixel and Google Pixel 2 listings. Those FCC applications were filed by the manufacturers of the devices, specifically HTC and LG . Editor's Pick Google Pixel 3: All the rumors and leaks in one place (Upda

Deal: Save $150 on the Razer Phone

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The recent trend of gaming phones all started with the Razer Phone . As usual, the first device to hit the market isn’t necessarily the best, and the Razer Phone has its share of issues. But those issues are compared against the $700 price tag. Today, you can nab a Razer Phone deal that will save you $150 off that list price, which gets you a Razer Phone for $550 with free Prime shipping. With that much money saved, the issues surrounding the Razer Phone may not be that big of a deal anymore. Editor's Pick Razer Phone review Gaming laptop and peripheral giant Razer surprised everyone with its entry into the smartphone space, born from the acquisition of contentious, but fondly remembered Nextbit. The result of this new partnership is one of the most … For $550, you’re getting a device with a 120Hz display, 8GB of RAM, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835, a 4,000mAh battery, and Android 8.1 Oreo . That’s pretty awesome. The biggest drawback of the Razer Phone is its lacklust

Get a Galaxy Tab A 8-inch tablet for less than a Kindle Paperwhite

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If you’re looking for an e-reader, the Kindle Paperwhite is the best on the market, hands-down. It’s compact size and crazy-long battery life will make any voracious reader happy. However, the Kindle Paperwhite doesn’t do much else besides show you text to read. If you’re looking for something that’s easy to hold but with access to the full Android ecosystem, and lets you read ebooks, why don’t you check out today’s tablet deal: a Samsung Galaxy Tab A 8-inch model, available now at Amazon.com for the low price of $130 . Editor's Pick Best tablets for business This is an increasingly mobile world, and many companies are turning to the tablet to satisfy their business needs. Tablets have responded with enterprise level apps and power to allow for companies to keep their … The Kindle Paperwhite (without special offers) goes for $140 , so you’re spending less money and getting a lot more. Now, there is a pretty big caveat here: the Samsung Galaxy Tab A 8-inch model

Super-strict California net neutrality bill attains victory, heading to Senate

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Wikimedia The California net neutrality bill just had a huge victory with the California Assembly voting in favor of the rules in a landslide. The bill — which is even stricter than the recently-dissolved federal mandates — now moves on to the California Senate. If the bill becomes California law, it could have major ramifications for the rest of the country. A California net neutrality bill that is even stricter than the recently-dissolved federal mandates just attained a huge victory: a 59-18 vote in the California Assembly, via Variety . With this success under the bill’s belt, it now moves on to the California Senate, where a vote is expected next week. If it passes there, it will head to Governor Jerry Brown’s desk, who will then either sign or veto the bill. If the bill becomes law in California, it could cause a legal quarrel between California and the Trump administration. The FCC — which dissolved Obama-era net neutrality rules earlier this year — is led by Trump-

What is the easiest programming language to learn? Python, start now at 95% off

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Coding is your ticket to a dream job. Developers can often work from anywhere  and, usually, make a very good living  doing it. According to Daxx.com, the average Python Developer’s salary in the U.S. is $103,492 . There are a variety of routes into coding. You don’t have to be a genius either, you just need a fairly logical mind and a willingness to learn. If you’re thinking about giving it a go,  Python is arguably one of the best places to start. Why? Well, it’s one of the most widely-used programming languages globally, including by big hitters such as Google and Instagram . It’s also one of the main programming languages sought by  remote employers , increasing your chances of working from any place where you have a laptop and Wi-Fi connection. Python is shorter, simpler, and easier to learn than most other programming languages out there. However, it’s no less powerful. Here’s one more reason: right now  The Python Power Coder Bonus Bundle is on offer for just $44 .

Deal: Get a new Samsung DeX Pad for only $38 shipped

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The Samsung DeX Pad may seem like a silly thing or the coolest thing ever, depending on what you do with your phone. If you think it’s a cool gadget, well today you’re in luck: we have a Samsung DeX Pad deal that gets you a brand new unit shipped directly from Samsung for only $38 . The Samsung DeX Pad deal likely won’t last long, so if you’re at all interested in this we suggest you head there now ! For those of you who don’t know what a DeX Pad is, we’ll fill you in. When you hook up your compatible Samsung smartphone to the DeX Pad it enables you to have a desktop experience using your smartphone as a kind of PC. The DeX Pad has ports that enable you to attach monitors, a mouse, a keyboard, etc., and the Samsung DeX experience gives you a very familiar PC-like workstation. Editor's Pick Using Samsung DeX as a PC for a week – can you really leave your computer behind? Maybe I'm a tech masochist with a passion for frustration and struggles, but somehow I always f

Hands-on with the huge Wear OS redesign (Updated with video)

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Google is launching a Wear OS redesign that will begin rolling out over the next few months. The Wear OS redesign will help you access wearable features faster and with more efficiency. This update to Wear OS along with the recent Google Fit update adds more fuel to the rumor that Google will launch its own smartwatch in October. Android Wear became Wear OS earlier this year , but not much has changed with the wearable operating system since the rebrand. But over the next few months, Google will roll out a Wear OS redesign that will dramatically change the way you interact with your smartwatch . Editor's Pick On September 10, your Wear OS smartwatch will likely become an old timer Qualcomm sent out mysterious invites today to members of the press that seems to suggest the long-awaited update to the Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear chipset is finally on the way. Although the invite image itself doesn’t say … The updated Wear OS will put more of an emphasis on gettin

Forget GoPro, the XtremePro Sports Cam is only $44.99

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If you are looking to buy a GoPro , the cheapest 4K camera is a whopping $300, or $400 for the latest model. Even if that’s within your budget, do you want to carry something so valuable on your all-action adventures? That also assumes that you accept it’s good value for money . You might not think so when you learn the XtremePro Sports Cam is currently on offer for only $44.99 . Whether you’re hurtling down a mountain, swimming with sharks, or throwing yourself off a cliff in the name of recreation, this sports camera will record it all in crystal clear 4K Ultra HD quality . The XtremePro Sports Cam comes with so many mounts that you can attach it to virtually anything . That includes your car, your bike, your helmet, or various parts of your anatomy. You can make sure all your Facebook friends are in no doubt about how much fun you’re having , using this camera. The built-in Wi-Fi ensures that you can live-stream all the action to your smartphone or device of your choosi

Huawei fined $10.5 million in America for 4G LTE patent infringement

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A Texas jury just found Huawei guilty of infringing on LTE technology patents with some smartphones. The jury found that Huawei should pay Texas company PanOptis — the owner of the patents — $10.5 million. Huawei has yet to respond to the ruling, but will likely appeal. Although Huawei smartphones barely have a presence at all in America, that didn’t stop a Texas jury from finding the Chinese company guilty of patent infringement related to 4G LTE technology, via World IP Review . PanOptis — the Texas company that owns the LTE patents in question — claims that it tried unsuccessfully nearly a dozen times over two years to strike an agreement with Huawei over the infringements. The jury agreed that Huawei should pay $10.5 million to PanOptis for the violations. Huawei has yet to respond to the ruling, although it’s likely that the company will appeal. Editor's Pick Still doubt Huawei? Well, it just became the second biggest smartphone OEM in world Back in 2016,

Mastercard has secret contract to supply Google with offline transaction records

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A previously-unknown Mastercard-Google agreement was just exposed by  Bloomberg. The agreement gives Google a way to connect online advertisements to offline sales in physical stores. Both Google and Mastercard declined to give statements specifically related to this previously-unknown contract. You can rest assured that when Google shows you an ad, it knows if you make an online purchase related to that ad. But what if you physically go to a store and buy a product because of an online advertisement? Well, it turns out that Google knows about at least some of those as well. We know this now because Bloomberg just exposed a secret Mastercard-Google contract which gives the search giant access to the offline transaction records of a portion of Mastercard’s two billion customers. While the contract itself isn’t that surprising, the fact that both Google and Mastercard kept the agreement a secret from the public is a little concerning. Editor's Pick Google might p

IFA 2018: Everything that’s happened at the Berlin trade show

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IFA 2018 has officially kicked off today in Berlin, an event truly bustling with technology from all players – from the big guns of Samsung , Huawei , Sony, HTC and more, through to the little guys trying to make an impact. August 31 sees doors open out at the Messe Berlin exhibition grounds through until Sept. 5 at Europe’s largest consumer electronics trade show. So what new devices, products, and updates have we seen, and what more is there to come? We’ve got everything rounded up and will keep this updated as often as possible with fresh information. Buy IFA 2018 tickets IFA isn’t just for tech media, either! The show is always open to the general public, and you can get tickets online. One-day tickets currently cost 40 euros (~$50), while two-day tickets cost 58 euros (~$66). These prices will rise to 49 euros (~$56) and 72 euros (~$83) if you buy them at the event. You can get them on IFA’s website via the button above. Samsung at IFA 2018 As expected, Samsung put on a hug