Samsung launches the Galaxy C7 Pro in China, but there’s no C5 Pro in sight

Samsung is upgrading its Galaxy C series with follow-ups to last year’s Galaxy C5 and C7. Both the C5 Pro and C7 Pro have been the subject of quite a lot of rumors to date, but now we have some official information: The company has quietly launched the Galaxy C7 Pro in China. The phones will join the already-released C9 Pro, which is only available in China.

So what should we expect from the new C-series phones? Here’s everything we think we know so far.

More: Nokia gets back in the phone game with its first Android model, the Nokia 6

Galaxy C5 Pro

The Galaxy C5 Pro, which hasn’t been released yet, was first leaked on import tracking website Zauba with the model number SM-C5000 — proving that the device does exist. Then we got a full-on spec leak for the device on Chinese social media website Weibo, which showed that it would be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 processor and sport 3GB of RAM or more.

Now, we finally have a better look at the device thanks to an introductory video that has surfaced online. According to the video, which was picked up by SamMobile, the device pretty much matches up with previous leaks. The video largely focuses on the phone’s camera, which is expected to be 16MP on both the front and the back. Check out the video for yourself below.

Our first look at the design of the C5 Pro came from a tweet that also showed the C7 Pro and the already-released C9 Pro. The leak comes from Twitter user @mmddj_china, and shows that the phones will indeed feature quite a sleek design.

C is coming. pic.twitter.com/QIU3wBTxu3

— 萌萌的电教 (@mmddj_china) January 10, 2017

It appears as though the leak also shows that the phones will feature a 16MP rear-facing and front-facing camera — which will be very nice for the selfie-lovers among us. That makes sense, as the C9 Pro did indeed feature a 16MP camera on both sides, and the C7 Pro does too.

Galaxy C7 Pro

The Samsung Galaxy C7 Pro has finally been unveiled on Samsung’s Chinese website, confirming almost all of the specs we already knew about.

The device is built with a 5.7-inch super AMOLED display, along with a Snapdragon 625 processor, a nice 4GB of RAM, and 64GB of storage. One of the more interesting things about the Galaxy C7 Pro is that both the front-facing and rear-facing camera are 16MP, so this is a perfect option for the selfie-lovers among us.

The phone will be up for pre-order in China on January 16. However, there is unfortunately no word yet as to whether the device will come to other markets.

Updated on 02-10-2017 by Christian de Looper: Added leak of Galaxy C5 Pro introductory video.

Weekly Rewind: Vertical forests, vaping safety, and vending machines for cars

A lot can happen in a week when it comes to tech. The constant onslaught of news makes it nigh impossible for mere mortals with real lives to keep track of everything. That’s why we’ve compiled a quick and dirty list of this week’s top 10 tech stories, from the best ads from Super Bowl LI to breathing buildings — it’s all here.

How to root your Android phone or tablet in 2017 (and unroot it)

Is the allure of being a superuser tempting you? Android rooting opens up a world of possibility, but it can also void your warranty, or even leave you with a bricked device. Yes, when it comes to rooting your Android, you’ll want to know the benefits as well as the risks. This guide will walk you through the necessary steps to root your phone. Some devices can be rooted in minutes, while others take a bit more time and research. One thing is clear: Rooting your phone can be one of the best ways to tap into the deep potential of your Android device.

Read the full story here.

Long-term study shows that vaping really is safer than regular smoking

E-cigarettes are are gaining popularity and social acceptance, but is vaping provably any safer than smoking? According to a new in-depth study, which analyzed the quantity of cancer-causing chemicals in the bodies of smokers, the answer is a definite yes. “To date, most studies on e-cigs have either looked at the product itself, [by analyzing the vapor/aerosol] or e-liquid, or investigated its effects on animal and cell models,” Dr. Lion Shahab, one of the investigating scientists from University College London, told Digital Trends.

Read the full story here.

Watch the best Super Bowl commercials of 2017

Great news! It’s time for the annual pants-wettingly exciting, must-watch TV segment where the latest and greatest commercials are aired over the space of several hours during the biggest televised sporting event of the year. The biggest attraction comes in the form of the advertisements, and we’ve compiled all our favorites here.

Read the full story here.

Finally, a public place to put your pee: Paris introduces ‘pavement urinal’

Paris is a beautiful place full of great food, great people, and great scenery. However, anyone who has actually visited Paris knows that underneath all that glamor lies a problem. In any given day, Parisian sanitation workers wash the sidewalks of Paris in their attempt to fight the smell and damaging effects of public urination. To help combat this problem, Laurent Lebot of the French product studio Faltazi has designed a simple solution. The Uritrottoir, which roughly translates to “pavement urinal,” is essentially an eco-friendly place to pee.

Read the full story here.

Groundbreaking new prosthetic translates spinal cord signals into movement

Scientists at Imperial College London have developed smart sensor technology that allows a robot arm to be controlled via signals from nerves in the spinal cord. In order to use the prosthesis, wearers think of actions, which are then interpreted as commands courtesy of electrical signals sent from the spinal motor neurons. The robotic arm potentially represents a significant step forward from existing robot prostheses, which often rely on users controlling them via commonly damaged remnant shoulder and arm muscles.

Read the full story here.

Weekly Rewind: Vertical forests, vaping safety, and vending machines for cars

A lot can happen in a week when it comes to tech. The constant onslaught of news makes it nigh impossible for mere mortals with real lives to keep track of everything. That’s why we’ve compiled a quick and dirty list of this week’s top 10 tech stories, from the best ads from Super Bowl LI to breathing buildings — it’s all here.

How to root your Android phone or tablet in 2017 (and unroot it)

Is the allure of being a superuser tempting you? Android rooting opens up a world of possibility, but it can also void your warranty, or even leave you with a bricked device. Yes, when it comes to rooting your Android, you’ll want to know the benefits as well as the risks. This guide will walk you through the necessary steps to root your phone. Some devices can be rooted in minutes, while others take a bit more time and research. One thing is clear: Rooting your phone can be one of the best ways to tap into the deep potential of your Android device.

Read the full story here.

Long-term study shows that vaping really is safer than regular smoking

E-cigarettes are are gaining popularity and social acceptance, but is vaping provably any safer than smoking? According to a new in-depth study, which analyzed the quantity of cancer-causing chemicals in the bodies of smokers, the answer is a definite yes. “To date, most studies on e-cigs have either looked at the product itself, [by analyzing the vapor/aerosol] or e-liquid, or investigated its effects on animal and cell models,” Dr. Lion Shahab, one of the investigating scientists from University College London, told Digital Trends.

Read the full story here.

Watch the best Super Bowl commercials of 2017

Great news! It’s time for the annual pants-wettingly exciting, must-watch TV segment where the latest and greatest commercials are aired over the space of several hours during the biggest televised sporting event of the year. The biggest attraction comes in the form of the advertisements, and we’ve compiled all our favorites here.

Read the full story here.

Finally, a public place to put your pee: Paris introduces ‘pavement urinal’

Paris is a beautiful place full of great food, great people, and great scenery. However, anyone who has actually visited Paris knows that underneath all that glamor lies a problem. In any given day, Parisian sanitation workers wash the sidewalks of Paris in their attempt to fight the smell and damaging effects of public urination. To help combat this problem, Laurent Lebot of the French product studio Faltazi has designed a simple solution. The Uritrottoir, which roughly translates to “pavement urinal,” is essentially an eco-friendly place to pee.

Read the full story here.

Groundbreaking new prosthetic translates spinal cord signals into movement

Scientists at Imperial College London have developed smart sensor technology that allows a robot arm to be controlled via signals from nerves in the spinal cord. In order to use the prosthesis, wearers think of actions, which are then interpreted as commands courtesy of electrical signals sent from the spinal motor neurons. The robotic arm potentially represents a significant step forward from existing robot prostheses, which often rely on users controlling them via commonly damaged remnant shoulder and arm muscles.

Read the full story here.

Dell is ‘looking into’ getting its XPS 15 notebook eGPU certified

Why it matters to you

Your Dell XPS 15 might one day be certified to work with the newest eGPU enclosures, adding a new dimension to your gaming.

Buying a new Windows 10 notebook can be a challenging proposition today. So many options exist, from thin and light machines, to 2-in-1s, to massive gaming systems, that picking between them can difficult. Toss in the wide ranges of prices, and the task can seem downright impossible.

For anyone who wants a gaming system, one theoretical option is to buy a notebook or 2-in-1 that’s good enough for productivity and then connect an external GPU (eGPU) enclosure for gaming back in the office. Unfortunately, discovering whether a machine supports an eGPU can be difficult, and that’s something Dell is working on making a little easier for its XPS 15, as Notebookcheck reports.

More: Razer’s Core is here to make any Thunderbolt 3 system ready to game

The minimum specification required for a notebook to support an eGPU is the presence of a USB Type-C connection with Thunderbolt 3 support. However, that alone isn’t sufficient. The port needs to use the right controller, and in the case of newer eGPUs, specific support needs to be enabled by the manufacturer.

With older eGPUs, the TI82 Thunderbolt 3 chipset provided support without an official stamp of approval, as long as the user was willing to put in some effort. That includes the Razer Core and the Akitio Thunder 3. With the introduction of newer eGPU options that use the TI83 Thunderbolt 3 chipset, however, machines need to be explicitly supported or they simply won’t work. That means that manufacturers like Dell need to get their machines eGPU-certified to work with options like the Asus XG Station 2 and Akitio Node.

That’s not something that Dell has done so far, but it looks like it’s going to consider making the effort going forward. As Dell’s Alienware and XPS General Manager Frank Azor said on Twitter:

@jackeyjoe IDK, no guarantee that we can support, we are just looking into it now based on all of the recent demand since 9560 launch.

— Frank Azor (@AzorFrank) February 9, 2017

There’s no guarantee that the XPS 15, either the old or brand new versions, will support eGPUs, But at least Dell is looking into it, giving owners of those machines — or anyone thinking about picking one up — some hope that they can combine an outstanding productivity powerhouse with an awesome gaming experience to go with it.

Ready to dye your hair? Madison Reed’s quiz finds the right shade

Why it matters to you

Startup Madison Reed is leading the way in the app-ification of hair color.

With our penchant for makeovers — whether it be in the form of home renovations, weight loss, or facelifts — it’s no wonder that a startup in the business of new looks is making serious waves. Madison Reed, branded as a “prestige hair color brand,” is on the up and up, fresh off a new $13 million funding round, its first physical location (the Madison Reed Color Bar in Manhattan), and the hiring of a new chief marketing officer. Turns out hair is a hot business.

If you haven’t heard of Madison Reed yet, it’s a company that is looking to help you get professional hair color results at home. Following in the footsteps of other tech-esque beauty startups like Birchbox, Madison Reed actually started off as little more than an app that helps users determine what color to dye their hair.

More: Put a ring on it: three smart rings with plenty of beauty and brains

Since 2004, nearly 2 million people have taken Madison Reed’s signature 12-question quiz, which asks users about their hair and their aspirations for their hair. This information has helped the company determine what demand really looks like when it comes to haircare. Of course, in this day and age, this kind of data is priceless.

To capitalize on all this knowledge, Madison Reed brought Heidi Dorosin aboard their team, where she has been tasked with growing the business “substantially in 2017 as the company launches new products, continues to grow its relationships with retail partners Sephora and QVC, and opens new store locations that will enable customers to have an immersive brand experience.”

“The philosophy behind Madison Reed spoke to me on a deeply personal level. I believe that all women should demand gorgeous hair and an experience that respects their time, wallet and health,” Dorosin said. “Amy’s vision is shared by every single person at Madison Reed, and I feel privileged to work at a company devoted to empowering women and giving them what they deserve.”

So if you’re looking for something new, you may want to sashay into Madison Reed — or just pull up the app on your phone — and see what your own makeover can look like.

Panasonic details sensor that can capture both visible and near-infrared light

Why it matters to you

With applications in security and science, the new sensor avoids the loss of resolution suffered by traditional visible+NIR cameras.

Panasonic has been working on organic imaging sensors for a few years now, but its latest design goes beyond full-color imaging to offer near-infrared (NIR) sensitivity suitable for night vision. Whereas normal visible+NIR cameras sacrifice some spatial resolution in order to serve double duty in both daylight and night vision, Panasonic’s new design avoids this by using two stacked layers of organic photoconductive film (OPF), one for the visible spectrum and one for NIR light.

By controlling the voltage to the OPFs, it is possible to switch between visible or visible+NIR sensitivity. The voltage is distributed unequally between the OPFs, so that the visible light layer on top always receives a greater amount than the NIR layer below. At low voltage, both layers are inactive, while at medium voltage just the visible layer is active. At high voltage, both layers are active.

More: The speedy stacked sensor of the Sony RX100 IV could be coming to smartphones

Compared to a traditional CMOS imager, an organic sensor captures more light and separates the photoelectric conversion and circuit readout stages of digital imaging, enabling a true global shutter. The sensor can also hold more information at each pixel location which leads to a claimed 3 EV improvement in dynamic range.

While this technology, in general, holds a lot of promise for all aspects of digital imaging, Panasonic’s visible+NIR version of the sensor probably won’t ever be found in the company’s photography or filmmaking products. Instead, it is likely destined for use in security cameras or scientific equipment. The ability to switch between visible and visible+NIR imaging at a frame-by-frame basis, potentially at very high frame rates, could be beneficial for machine learning, object recognition, and motion analysis.

Because the OPF layers themselves are designed for sensitivity to specific wavelengths of light, the system does not require an IR cut filter employed by typical digital cameras. This minimizes the space required, which could potentially make the technology viable for consumer smart home cameras in the future.

Samsung Galaxy A5 + A3 (2017) video preview!

Samsung’s high-end phones, like the Galaxy S7, are great, but also expensive, and the Galaxy A series has traditionally been about creating a leaner product at a more affordable price. Samsung has just launched the 2017 refresh of the Galaxy A3 and A5 in the UK, where they’ll sell for £299 and £399 respectively.

The physical design is very similar and very Samsung-eqsue — glass front and back, and the back panel actually has a nice subtle GS7-like curve to it. They’re both metal-framed, and feel every bit as solid as Samsung’s flagship-tier stuff. The most noticeable difference is the size — the A5 is a 5.2-incher with a 1080p panel, while the A3 downscales to 720p at 4.7 inches. Other specs, including the CPU, RAM, storage, battery and camera take a small hit on the A3, which you’d expect for the £100 price difference. Then again, this isn’t necessarily a phone for spec fiends.

But nor is it a phone you should necessarily dismiss out of hand. Performance is smooth, the A series boasts water and dust resistance, and the A5’s camera matches that of the Galaxy S6 on paper — a proven combination of a 16-megapixel sensor with OIS behind an f/1.9 lens. Despite one big, Marshmallow-shaped software compromise, the 2017 Galaxy A phones are definitely worth a look if you’re looking to spend between £300 and £400 on something new and shiny.

Check out our hands on preview video above, and be sure to hit the comments and let us know what you think!

• Android Central on YouTube
• Galaxy A5 + A3 (2017) written preview
• Best new features in Nougat for the GS7

Honor 6X vs. Honor 8: Which offers better value for money?

Does Honor’s new budget contender deliver more bang for your buck, or should you opt for the more expensive Honor phone from late 2016?

Comparing a $250 handset to a $350-400 one might seem just a little unfair. After all, the more money you pay, the more phone you usually get. So instead, we’re going to try and quantify whether the Honor 6X or Honor 8 delivers the better bang for your buck across four key categories.

Does paying an extra hundred bucks or so really give you a noticeably superior Android experience? Let’s jump in!

Hardware + Build quality

Gone are the days when picking up an “affordable” phone meant compromising on its look and feel. Both the Honor 6X and Honor 8 punch above their weight in terms of build quality and materials. The 6X is a metallic beast, with lustrous chamfers and a sturdy in-hand feel. By contrast, the smaller Honor 8 combines two sheets of “2.5D” multi-layered glass to eye-catching effect. In the middle of that reflective sandwich sits an anodized aluminum trim.

The choice between these two on build quality largely comes down to you preference between glass and metal. However, with fewer noticeable plastic joins between the display and body — and a unique shimmering effect behind the glass — the Honor 8 pulls ahead. By comparison, the Honor 6X’s anodized metal rear is a bit more run-of-the-mill — there’s no shortage of phones with almost identical looking back panels.

Do you prefer hairline scratches or a smudgy, fingerprinty display?

An all-glass design comes with a few compromises of its own, however. The Honor 8 has become notorious for a few unfortunate side effects of its slick glass rear. Firstly, it’s prone to (ever so slowly) sliding across flat surfaces when placed down, a phenomenon we’ve seen before in other flush, glass phones. And because lint and grit can easily become stuck to it, it’s also pretty bad at picking up hairline scratches.

The Honor 6X commits a one big sins of its own, however, failing to include any kind of oleophobic coating on the screen, which means it gets gunked up with finger grease incredibly easily. It’s an unfortunate money-saving decision which completely undermines the phone’s primary input and output device, that 5.5-inch screen.

And for that reason, we have to swing our decision in the direction of the Honor 8. Saving a few bucks just isn’t worth it.

Best value: Honor 8

Software + Performance

Both devices are in a tricky spot right now in terms of software, with neither having yet received an update to Android 7.0 Nougat. (The Honor 8 is due shortly, and the 6X should follow sometime in early April.) So for the moment, it’s a bit of a deadlock, with both phones ticking along on Huawei’s EMUI 4.1 software, based on Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow.

The Nougat upgrade is a bigger deal for Huawei and Honor phones than other Android handsets, because it brings with it EMUI 5, a significant, meaningful improvement over the older version 4.1. Whereas EMUI 4.1 is aggressively customized, to the point of breaking parts of some apps — case in point: navigation notifications in Google Maps — EMUI 5 toes Google’s software line a little more. In short, it feels more like an Android phone, and less like a mashup of iPhone visuals and features that weren’t really tested in Western markets.

Both Honor phones are in a holding pattern until EMUI 5 drops.

What lies ahead: The promised land of EMUI 5.

As it stands, the software setup is almost identical on both, and that extends to many of the camera features, which rely on information from the second sensor. What’s more, performance isn’t noticeably slower on the 6X unless you’ve got both handsets sitting side-by-side.

So the decision on software has to come down to the timing of updates. The Honor 8 should be getting Nougat and EMUI 5 in a matter of weeks (or even days in some regions.) The Honor 6X, sitting a notch below the flagship tier, has a little longer to wait.

We’ll have to revisit both phones once they get this all-important update, but for the time being, an imminent Android 7.0 update tips things in favor of the Honor 8.

Best value: Honor 8

Battery + Charging

A bigger screen necessitates a more capacious battery, and as such the Honor 6X boasts an 11 percent larger cell than its higher-end sibling. But things aren’t quite as even as you might think when it comes to day-to-day longevity.

To start with, both phones perform admirably in this area, with long battery life able to see you to the end of an average day with ease, and an arsenal of battery-saving options if you’re running low on juice. However the Honor 6X also has the power-sipping Kirin 655 processor working in its favor. Sure, it’s not as speedy as the Kirin 950, but it also doesn’t seem to consume anywhere near as much power in day-to-day tasks like social apps, web browsing and camera use.

Meanwhile the Honor 8 wins points for shipping with a reversible USB-C connector and offering 9V fast charging through through the bundled plug. It’s a step ahead of the 6X technologically. So it’s not really possible to call an overall winner here. Ultimately, it just depends on which you value more.

Best value: Tie

Camera

The Honor 6X and Honor 8 feature dual-camera setups around the back. In the case of the Honor 8, they’re twin 12-megapixel sensors — one full color, the other monochrome. For the 6X, you’re stepping down to 2 megapixels for the black-and-white sensor. But surprisingly, the difference in image quality outside of a few rare cases in low light really isn’t that noticeable.

Or to put it another way, the cases where the Honor 8 produces a noticeably better shot than the Honor 6X are so few and far between that in my view, you might as well just go with the 6X.

I’ve talked up the Honor 6X camera previously, calling it the best imaging setup in a budget phone, and I stand by that. Much of the 6X’s camera prowess comes from the software it shares with other Honor phones, allowing it to conjure up artistic depth effects based on data from the second sensor, and sharpen up shots in conditions where you’d expect things to become grainy.

The Honor 8 does pull ahead in a few fringe cases, for example supporting 4K video recording, and offering sharper definition in photos using Honor’s fake depth-of-field effect. But ultimately, it’s so close that this category has to go to the cheaper 6X by default.

Best value: Honor 6X

The bottom line

Overall, being a six-month-old “affordable flagship” phone, the Honor 8 represents better value for money than the more budget-oriented 6X. Part of that is due to successive price cuts, pushing the Honor 8 further towards 6X territory on some retailers.

But it’s also important to consider the Honor 8’s impending upgrade to EMUI 5, something which gives owners of the phone a far superior software experience. Meanwhile, the Honor 8 manages respectable battery life of over a single day. Its cameras, although not notably superior to the Honor 6X in all but the darkest conditions, match the mid-level competition. And although I’m no fan of the Honor 8’s hovercraft-like tendency to slide off desks tables and even the occasional couch arm, I’m more turned off by the 6X’s greasy, fingerprint-prone display.

Best value overall: Honor 8

See Honor 8 at Amazon

See Honor 6X at Amazon

Do you own an Honor 8 or Honor 6X? Share your thoughts down in the comments!

Honor 8

• Honor 8 review
• Honor 8 specs
• 5 things to know about the Honor 8 in Europe
• All the Honor 8 news
• Join the discussion in the forums

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Why Xiaomi is developing its own smartphone processors

According to reports, Xiaomi will announce its new SoC within a month.

Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi is looking to have more control over its own hardware. According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, the company is looking to move away from Qualcomm as its primary chip provider and start developing smartphone processors for its own hardware. The report cites sources familiar with the matter who says Xiaomi is planning to release its new processor, allegedly codenamed “Pinecone”, within a month.

In developing its own chips, Xiaomi hopes to join the ranks of Samsung, Apple, and fellow smartphone compatriots at Huawei. Those companies successfully use the autonomy of developing its own chipsets to better design hardware and software experiences, while also further locking down its own supply chain for key hardware components.

According to Ars Technica, Xiaomi has acquired mobile processor technology from Leadcore Techology Ltd., a subsidiary of Chinese state-backed Datang Telecom. The deal was made via Beijing Pinecone Electronics, a Xiaomi-linked private entity back in 2014.

This is likely the right move for Xiaomi, as the company is still trying to make noise in the North American markets — but to be the best, you’ve got to have the best. Going head-to-head against the smartphone juggernauts at Apple, Samsung and Huawei will be no small task.

Xiaomi isn’t planning to attend Mobile World Congress at the end of the month, so we’ll have to wait and see for an official announcement from the company for more details on its future plans.

Google just made tethering dead simple on Pixel and Nexus devices

Instant Tethering is coming to save your tablet’s internet.

Google has just turned on a feature called Instant Tethering, allowing Nexus and Pixel phones and tablets to share internet connections automatically, as long as they are connected to the same Google profile.

Announced on the company’s support forum, the feature is a part of the new Google Play Services (so it may not be available for everyone just yet) and can be accessed through the Settings –> Google –> Instant Tethering menu. The feature, according to Google, is enabled by default on all compatible devices, through Play Services.

The idea is simple: the “host,” which is a Pixel, Pixel XL, Nexus 6, Nexus 5X, or Nexus 6P running Android 7.1.1 and up, automatically puts out a notification to a compatible receiver — Pixel, Pixel XL, Nexus 6, Nexus 5X, Nexus 6P, Pixel C, or Nexus 9 running Android 6.0 and up — to accept an internet connection. That’s it.

Such a feature has been available for some time in the Apple ecosystem, allowing iPhones and connected iPads to share cellular connections with other iPhones, iPads and Macs, using the same iCloud login. For its part, Google says Instant Tethering is very cognizant of battery life and usage, and won’t offer a phone’s connection if battery life is low.

When you unlock a tablet such as the Pixel C, it will notice if there is no internet connection available, and will ask your Pixel phone if it has internet and battery life. If it does, we will give you an option to enable a secure hotspot and pair automagically, without even taking your phone out of your pocket.

When you are done, if you don’t disconnect, we will notice that you stopped using your tablet and we will disconnect the hotspot for you to save your precious battery throughout the day.

Are you excited about Instant Tethering? Will you use it? Let us know in the comments!

Android Nougat

• Android 7.0 Nougat: Everything you need to know
• Will my phone get Android Nougat?
• Google Pixel + Pixel XL review
• All Android Nougat news
• How to manually update your Nexus or Pixel
• Join the Discussion