Three’s Voice over LTE launch means better signal in more places

There’s more than one way to wipe out a not-spot, and to compliment Three’s inTouch app for WiFi calling, the carrier has today become the first in the UK to add Voice over LTE (VoLTE) support to its mobile network. Simply put, VoLTE — or “4G Super Voice,” as Three’s branding team would prefer you call it — uses your 4G connection to handle calls (when appropriate), instead of older 2G and 3G networks. That part isn’t particularly important, however, but it means customers will be able to call, text and check Instagram in places they haven’t been able to before. In addition to its existing 1,800MHz slice of 4G spectrum, Three’s been building out an 800MHz network to support VoLTE services. These lower frequency airwaves probe further into underserved rural areas, and deeper into buildings, lavishing mobile coverage on previous dead zones.

But, there is one catch: you need a VoLTE-compatible phone and the right software to take advantage of it. Three tells us only Samsung’s Galaxy S5 and LG’s G4 will work right away, but before the end of the year, many popular handsets like the iPhone 6/6 Plus (and their impending sequels), HTC’s One M9, and a handful of Lumia and other Galaxy models will be supported. At launch today, Three claims its 800MHz network covers 50 percent of the population, and the majority of London, Edinburgh, Exeter and Birmingham. By the end of the year, that figure is expected to jump to 65 percent as the umbrella widens to more towns and cities including Cardiff, Manchester, Liverpool and Bristol.

Three might be the first UK carrier to launch VoLTE services, but Vodafone and EE can’t be too far behind. They had both previously penned in summer launch windows, so we’ll probably be hearing updates from the pair soon enough. Just last week, Vodafone joined EE in switching on its app-free WiFi calling service, one of the benefits of that being seamless call handover between VoLTE networks.

[Image credit: Shutterstock]

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Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile

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Tags: 4g, 4glte, 4gsupervoice, lte, mobilepostcross, three, voiceoverlte, volte

UE Boom 2: One of the best wireless speakers gets even better

Ultimate Ears is at it again, updating the last straggler in its line of Bluetooth speakers to get them all on the same page in terms of build and software. A few months ago, the company revamped its entry level offering and today Ultimate Ears is announcing the UE Boom 2. This is the mid-level speaker in the UE lineup and although the changes may be hard to notice at first glance, they’re significant enough to warrant a second look. It sports a fresh set of colors and a tighter fabric mesh that contributes to its new IPX7 waterproof rating. The internals have been reworked to improve Bluetooth range, sound quality and offer a few special features. The UE Boom 2 is available today on the Ultimate Ears website, with Apple’s online store following close behind. You can pick one up for the same $199 price as the original UE Boom, but you’ll be getting a good deal more under the hood.

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The new internals have been packed in tight and your cylindrical speaker will have less roll potential, easily balancing in one spot when you lay it on its side. All the ports are now fully waterproofed, with the additional protection of tightly fitting port flaps. The Bluetooth range is said to have been bumped up to 100 feet and you’ll want to snag the new version of the app to take full advantage of conveniences like remote power on/off, a five-band EQ, Double Up and more. New software updates will also arrive automatically when the speaker is connected to a mobile device, helping you stay current.

The major points of interest here are upgrades to sound quality and the new accelerometer-driven tap features. You may notice the Boom 2 is a bit louder than its predecessor (25 percent to be exact), due to the decibel rating’s change from 88db to 90db. While you can Double Up with additional UE speakers, one of these should be more than enough for a small get together in a busy park. The battery is still rated for 15 hours, but if you’re always jamming out at full volume, you’ll find that time cut down significantly. If you really want to maximize volume and battery life, you should consider its bigger brother the Megaboom. The one thing that the Boom 2 is ahead of the game on, though, is with the new tap features. While holding the speaker (it won’t work standing or laying down) you can tap once on the top to start or stop the music, and a double tap will skip to the next track. The Megaboom should soon catch up with the next software update, but early adopters who prefer the more affordable and portable UE Boom 2 will get all the new features right out of the gate.

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Wireless

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Tags: megaboom, roll, rolling stones, speaker, ue boom, ue megaboom, ue roll, ueboom, ultimate ears

Stripe launches new ‘Buy’ button for Twitter and other apps

Stripe, the company that has powered Twitter’s “Buy” button from the start, has released a new and universal button merchants can use to sell across apps. This API (if you want to get technical) is called Relay, and it connects with the sellers’ existing inventory, so you don’t click “Buy” only to find out later that the item’s already sold out. For sellers, it means they can list products in a single place, knowing that items will show up on every app they use Relay with. Yes, that includes Twitter, which is one of this new tool’s launch partners and already allows users to sell within tweets. For you, it means being able to purchase an item easily in fewer screens using payment information you’ve previously used with Relay and Stripe. Unfortunately, that also makes it harder to prevent yourself from spending too much by shopping through mobile, which is typically more cumbersome than buying through a computer.

Grab a new fall read and Downing in English Oak—a go-to pair of sunglasses for any season. Buy now from this tweet! http://t.co/HcDMSVrzJD

— Warby Parker (@WarbyParker) September 14, 2015

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Stripe

Tags: paymentbutton, relay, stripe, twitter

E FUN announces its first 4G LTE Nextbook Android tablets, Ares 8L and 10L

E FUN, the fifth largest vendor of tablets in the US, announced its first 4G LTE tablets, the Ares 8L and 10L. Both tablets are compatible with Verizon’s LTE network, run Android Lollipop 5.0, and are powered by Intel’s quad-core Atom processor.

The Ares 8L is an 8″ display tablet designed for users constantly on the go and want access to streaming videos, email, social media and video games. The Ares 10L is more geared toward the power user with a 10″ display and a magnetic keyboard with two USB ports.

Both tablets share these specs:

• 1280×800 IPS screen
• Quad-core Intel Atom processor
• 1GB RAM
• Verizon 4G LTE
• 16GB memory
• Bluetooth 4.0 with WiFi
• Expandable memory up to 64GB via microUSB

Both the Ares 8L and 10L are available at Walmart for $144 and $193 respectively with a two-year contract.

Check them out at NextbookUSA.com or at Walmart.com.

Ares 8L -$144

Ares 10L -$193

The post E FUN announces its first 4G LTE Nextbook Android tablets, Ares 8L and 10L appeared first on AndroidGuys.

So you got your phone wet. Now what?

So you dropped your phone in a toilet, got hit by a rogue wave while running on the beach, or you got pushed into a swimming pool.

Don’t freak out. Getting your phone wet happens more often than you realize and sometimes your device can be saved if you stay calm.

A common myth is that you can surround your device with uncooked rice. Think about it for a second. Rice is usually packaged in paper bags which means, if it were to absorb water, it would naturally bet wet from the moisture in the air. Uncooked rice doesn’t absorb water which is why it needs to be boiled in hot water to cook. Rice doesn’t work and neither does saltine crackers, cat litter, or rolled oats.

Let’s go through a list of steps you can go through to possibly save your phone.

1. Remove your phone from the water source as soon as humanly possible

Water is the mortal enemy of electronic devices. The two simply don’t mix so the sooner you can remove your device the better. Sure, all of your water indicators built into the phone will change colors so your manufacturer knows they aren’t responsible for damage, but there’s still a slight chance your phone can come back to life.

2. Turn it off

Once you pull it from the water source, do not freak out and try to check buttons if they work. Turn it off with the power button, or better yet, if you have a removable battery pull it out as soon as you can.

The more time your device is powered on while in water reduces your chances at revival. Water conducts electricity and will fry your internal components if you try to use it while it is wet. Phones are built incredibly well these days and there is a good chance water didn’t seep into every crevice if your phone was immersed for a few seconds.

3. Wipe it down and absorb all of the water you can

Once your phone is powered down, absorb any water you can with paper towels or soft cloths. Open any panel or slot you can, which means if you can remove the back panel, do it and dry out any visible water. This also includes microSD card slots as well as SIM cards. Memory cards and SIM cards usually survive water immersions and can be just as valuable as the phone itself.

4. Vacuum excess water out of crevices

Get a vacuum and suck any excess water you can from the device. Do it for a long time, up to 30 minutes. Sure it is painstaking and noisy, but it will increase your chances of restarting your device.

5. Get Drierite or Silica and seal it in a bag with your phone

I am a chemist and frequently use Drierite to absorb any excess moisture from new chemicals I synthesize. If you have a friend who works in a lab, they most likely will know what it is and can get you a small stash to use. Drierite is a material designed to absorb water and moisture.

If you want to be prepared and don’t know a scientist, you can get products like BHEESTIE or DryNow which are similar to Drierite where they absorb moisture.

Drop your phone in a bag with the water absorbing material and let it sit for a minimum of eight hours. If it works properly, which it should, it will absorb any excess water your vacuum missed.

6. Blow air through it

Get one of those cans of pressurized air which is used to clean computers and other electronic devices. This step is arguably unnecessary, but you want to make sure ALL of the water is gone. Blow air into every crevice you can and if you see any water come out, repeat steps 4 and 5.

You can use a blow drier to heat your phone slightly, but don’t go crazy. Don’t let your phone get got, just let it get warm. Heat can damage your device as well so do not overdo this step.

7. Turn your device on

After you have done steps 1-6, your phone should be bone-dry. If you’re confident no water remains, go ahead and try to power on your device. If you’re lucky there is a good chance your phone will power back on.

8. If your phone is still dead, give it a few days

Sometimes water can sit in tiny areas where only time can dry it out. After a few days, you can give it one more shot at powering back on. You might get lucky.

If everything fails, you will need to get a new device but you can still sell your water damaged device to certain places like gazelle.com. It won’t be worth a ton of money, but it will still be worth a few bucks.

If you’re reading this article because you have gotten your phone wet, I wish you good luck in getting your device to turn back on and work properly.

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