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Samsung Galaxy Tab A 8.0 preview

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The Galaxy Tab A 8.0 is one of Samsung’s recent Android tablets aimed at the budget market. The tablet is aimed at non-heavy users, and the 4:3 aspect ratio is optimized for reading ebooks or websites.

The Galaxy Tab A 8.0 has an 8.0-inch, 1024×768 display, Snapdragon 410 processor, 2GB RAM, 16GB memory, 5 megapixel rear camera, 2 megapixel front camera, LTE, and Android 5.0 Lollipop. Read more »

HTC has people ‘blind test’ the One M9 compared to its competitors in new ads

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Blind tests have now reached mobile device related marketing. HTC has taken exactly this approach in three new ads for its One M9. The handset maker’s representative has regular people test three aspects of smartphone use by using three devices which are fully covered by big, bulky cases – so as not to give away what they are.

If you’ve guessed that the HTC One M9 wins every single one of these tests, you were right, amazingly. App opening speed? Check. Sound quality? Check. Low-light selfies? Check. Read more »

OnePlus Cardboard can now be ordered for free, though you do pay shipping

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Back when it revealed that it would launch its next smartphone in VR, OnePlus also made its own version of Google’s Cardboard official. The Chinese company promised to make this available to people before its grand unveiling event for the OnePlus 2, which will happen on July 27.

And now you can order one, straight from the OnePlus website. The rather surprising fact is that it’s free. You only have to pay for shipping, which is going to be $5 if you’re in the US, £5 if you’re in the UK, or €7 if you’re elsewhere in Europe. Read more »

Samsung Pay under testing, nearing the home stretch

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Remember Samsung Pay? It is the company’s ambitious payment solution, announced at this year’s MWC in Barcelona alongside the Galaxy S6 and S6 edge duo, so naturally it got slightly pushed to the sidelines. Since then, we haven’t really received any major progress updates, but the promise for a September release in the US and South Korea still stands.

A new report indicates that Samsung Pay is already in the final stages of its testing. The Korean tech giant is working in cooperation with eight local card vendors to ensure everything works as intended. But, there might still be quite a few problems along the way. Unlike most other payment services, Samsung seems to be facing technical issues, rather than legal ones. Read more »

Seriously, there is a YouTube player app for Android Wear devices

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In case you were looking for more ways to waste the battery of your Android Wear device, I have some good news for you! There is now a YouTube app for your smartwatch.

Sporting the rather unexciting name Video for Android Wear & YouTube, the app will cater to those who find the screen of their smartphone a tad too large. Read more »

Nexus 6, YotaPhone 2 get big price cuts in the UK

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Following Motorola’s UK summer sale, which saw the Nexus 6 smartphone being offered on discounted rates, Google has also slashed the price of the handset in the country.

The 32GB and 64GB models of the device – which usually sell for £479 and £549 – are now listed at £304 and £379 on the Google Play Store. It is, however, not yet known whether or not it’s a temporary price cut as Google hasn’t yet officially announced it. Read more »

HTC giving away $100 Google Play credit to buyers of One M9 for Verizon

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If you are planning to purchase an HTC One M9, here is a deal that might interest you: the Taiwanese company is offering a $100 Google Play credit to those who purchase the flagship smartphone from Verizon.

The promotion has already begun, and it runs through August 31. To claim your $100 Google Play credit, you’ll have to visit a specific webpage (click the Source 2 link below), where you’ll be required to provide proof of purchase, your contact information, as well as the smartphone’s IMEI number. You can redeem your $100 credit by September 30. Read more »

LG G4 comes with a free leather back and second battery in the US in July

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Last month, LG ran an interesting promotion for its G4 smartphone in the US. The company offered people who purchased the handset a free microSD card, a second battery, and a charging cradle. This month, LG is up to something very similar.

Only this time around the microSD card in the giveaway has been replaced with a leather back cover. You still also get a second battery with a charging cradle. Read more »

The YouTube mobile app now offers 60fps video streaming

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YouTube is working hard retain its dominance in the online multimedia realm. And while a lot of that has to do with engaging audiences and encouraging creativity and content-creators, maintaining a technical edge is equally important. Innovations on the PC front are now way past high-definition content, with resolutions of 4K and beyond already available, as well as frame rates up to 60fps.

Dealing with mobile devices, however, presents a whole new set of challenges for YouTube, along with new possibilities to explore, like offline playback for example. Still, it is only a matter of time before our increasingly-powerful mobile tech gets access to proper high-definition content as well. Today, YouTube has made another step in this direction. The company’s Android and iOS apps now have 60fps content at 720p and 1080p resolutions. Read more »

Facebook Messenger’s money-sending feature now available to everyone in US

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Just a few months after it was announced, the peer-to-peer payments feature of Facebook’s Messenger app is now available to everyone in the United States.

The news was announced by David Marcus, who leads the company’s messaging business. “Add your Debit Card and pay anyone on Messenger in a few taps. Money goes straight from your checking account to the recipient’s checking account. Easy and safe,” he said. Read more »

Samsung Galaxy Tab A 8.0 and Tab A 9.7 prices slashed in US

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Just a couple of months after launching them in the US, Samsung has slashed the prices of its Galaxy Tab A series tablets – the Tab A 9.7 and the Tab A 8.0.

Both tablets have received a $30 price cut, which means that the 8-inch model is now available for $200, while the 9.7-inch variant will set you back $270. They are available in white, smoky blue, and smoky titanium colour options. Read more »

Android 5.1.1 Lollipop update starts rolling out to Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 8.0 (SM-T335)

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The official Android 5.1.1 Lollipop update for the LTE variant of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 8.0 has started rolling out.

Dated June 20, the update weighs in at around 925MB, and carries a build number of T335XXU1BOF8. It is currently rolling out in Switzerland, available both over-the-air (OTA) as well as via the company’s desktop PC companion app Kies. Read more »

Google Maps will soon list all railroad crossings in the US

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Last year there was a big rise in the number of rail crossing accidents in the US, and the authorities are working with Google to try and do something about it. Namely, you will soon find all of the railroad crossings in the US inside Google Maps.

We’re talking about around 215,000 crossings in total, of which 130,000 are public and 85,000 are private. Not only will you be able to see each railroad crossing placed on the map inside Google’s app, but you’ll also be notified when one’s approaching if you’re in navigation mode. Read more »

Facebook’s lightweight Android app ‘Lite’ officially launched in India and Philippines

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Just less than a month after Facebook announced Lite, a lightweight Android app aimed at emerging markets, the company officially launched it in India and Philippines.

The app uses less data and hence works well even when your bandwidth is at a minimum, the social networking company claims. It is less than 1MB in size (430 KB to be precise), which makes it quick to download and load. Read more »

Samsung Galaxy S6 Active battery life test

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Samsung Galaxy S6 Active features a massive 3,500mAh battery. The rest of the rugged device’s internals are identical to those found in the regular Samsung Galaxy S6, so we were quite curious to put it through our battery test.

The 2,550mAh battery of the SM-G920 was sufficient enough to propel it to a stellar endurance rating of 73 hours. With roughly 40% more battery capacity than its non-rugged sibling, Samsung Galaxy S6 Active commands seriously high expectations. Read on to find out if the device delivers! Read more »