Android

This week both Samsung and Google broke down the components of the upcoming "foldables" trend in smartphones, starting with the next Galaxy. Today we're going to break down the basics and try to get a baseline understanding of what these folding display-toting devices are all about. Speaking this week at the Android Dev Summit 2018 were Adrian Roos, Engineer for Android Frameworks at Google, Andrii Kulian, also Engineer for Android Frameworks at Google, and Jisun Park for Samsung Mobile.

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Unlike with the previous Nexus generation, Google’s Pixel phones have features you won’t find in other phones, sometimes including its own older Pixel models. Some of those features do require specific and newer hardware, which is understandable. Some, however, don’t and their exclusivity feels more like a marketing strategy than a technical consideration. One such exclusive Pixel 3 feature is Top Shot and, surprisingly enough, it’s actually dead simple to make it available on last year’s Pixel 2.

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While the Pixel phone launches have never been perfect, most of the problems they exhibited weren’t exactly critical. Sure, a bluish tint might ruin color accuracy, randomly closing apps might be annoying, and failing to save photos might be downright frustrating and depressing. Recent reports surrounding the Pixel 3, however, are close to becoming physically hazardous. Owners of the smaller phone claim that the phone overheats while charging to the point that the phone shuts down to prevent what could be a disaster.

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As magical as fingerprint on displays or FoDs might sound, they are not so different from their regular optical sensor counterparts. They are practically just cameras and the real magic actually lies more in the display that lets the light through. That said, not all FoDs are created equal and OnePlus’ first attempt at one deserves closer inspection. Zack Nelson dives into the OnePlus 6T to uncover its secrets and notes how it might bode well for future under-screen selfie cameras as well.

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It has been more than a year since Samsung first teased the possibility of running a fully-supported full Linux (Ubuntu really) desktop on a Galaxy smartphone. Considering Samsung’s almost Google-like tendencies, it was perhaps considered DOA. At SDC this year, however, the company is making some noise to prove that Linux on DeX is very much alive and, in fact, will start its beta testing phase next week. But before us Linux geeks all get giddy, here is the fine print of what this upcoming power user feature will entail.

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Today we're taking a slightly closer look at the Samsung Galaxy F - assuming that's what Samsung will call its Foldable Phone. This week Samsung spoke very little about the Galaxy S10, their next hero phone, and instead revealed their foldable display tech, and branding, as they began their journey into a strange world of transforming Android devices. When they showed their device to the masses, they did so in the dark - because they didn't want to show everyone their final design. But we've got a slightly closer look today.

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Today Google revealed a bit of information on how your smartphone spends its battery life. They did this at this week's Android Dev Summit, speaking to developers about what they can do in their apps to avoid consuming massive amounts of battery life. But this isn't just about that. This is about the biggest factor in battery consumption: screen brightness! And not only that, but screen color, too!

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Samsung is making a foldable phone but, though we've seen the screen, there remain more questions than answers about the Android device and the market for others like it. Previewed at Samsung's opening keynote at its annual developer conference, SDC 2018, the heavily-disguised handset was more about showing off Samsung Display's flexible AMOLED technology than making a pitch to phone buyers themselves.

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Since my first Android phone, I wondered why I had to go to the app store to get an app that'd allow me to look at the files on my phone. I'd been spoiled by the idea that, since smartphones running iOS and Android looked somewhat like they were running desktop operating systems, they should also have easy access to the files they carried. Now, over a decade after Google first acquired Android, they've released a a proper file management app.

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Before we reach Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Motorola's decided they want to get in on the inventory clearing early. The company's headed for a future in which they have significantly fewer phones for sale at one single time - so say the rumors - so this might be the first outward sign that the switch is being made. The odd thing is, if that's true, why put on discount the smartphones that'll remain in the main lineup?

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With Wear OS receiving a redesign back in September, a few manufacturers have been looking to leverage the OS in new devices. Fossil is one of those manufacturers, today announcing a new smartwatch simply called Fossil Sport. Customization is the name of the game here, as the Fossil Sport is launching in six colors with what Fossil describes as "endless" strap options.

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The past few teardowns done by iFixit haven’t exactly been encouraging. We are at a time when, despite more hopeful laws, third party repairs have become more daunting and even more dangerous. To that extent, Huawei’s latest premium flagship isn’t really any different. Fortunately, the Huawei Mate 20 Pro does have a few things that make it easier, including instructions on how to pull out a battery.

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