You can now install Samsung’s browser on Nexus + Pixel devices

Samsung is making its browser available on Google hardware.

In a bid to deliver faster updates, Samsung decoupled its browser from TouchWiz and started offering it on the Play Store since 2015. The browser was limited to Galaxy phones, but a beta version of Samsung Internet is now being listed on the Play Store with support for the Google Pixel and Nexus devices.

The description for the app states that it is available on all “Galaxy and Google Nexus phones” running Android 5.0 Lollipop and above. I was able to install it just fine on my Pixel XL in India, and the browser itself is packed with features. You get support for 360-degree videos, DuckDuckGo search, ability to transact online with Samsung Pay, indicator for Progressive Web Apps, integrated QR reader, pop-up video player, and an Amazon shopping assistant that will automatically compares prices to the retailer.

Samsung is debuting Physical Web support with a feature called CloseBy, which lists websites for points of interest in your vicinity. There’s also the option to install an ad blocker extension to filter out ads. The browser is built on Chromium 51, and is surprisingly agile considering the number of features it offers. If you’re rocking a Nexus device or a Pixel, head to the Play Store to give it a try.

Sonos PLAYBASE is off-the-wall wireless for home theater

Sonos PLAYBASE is a connected soundbar for those of us who don’t mount our TVs on the wall.

A couple of years ago, after my week-out-of-warranty amp decided to start flagging everything as HDCP non-compliant, I switched to a Sonos PLAYBAR for my home theater. And I never looked back. Until today. Now, Sonos has a PLAYBASE as well, and it’s designed not to be mounted on a wall but to sit under a TV. And to boom.

You can also pair it with your existing Sonos system, or use it as the starting point for full 5.1 surround sound. (Still waiting on 7.1, though, because more is more.)

PLAYBASE Comes in black or white and is priced at $699. Current Sonos owners can pre-order PLAYBASE starting today on Sonos.com. It ships April 4, 2017.

I already have the PLAYBAR, but am I wrong to consider making that a hand-me-down and hooking into the new, shiny PLAYBASE? Let me know!

See Sonos on Amazon

Sonos introduces PLAYBASE – an off the wall approach to TV sound

PLAYBASE slides the best of Sonos underneath your TV, delivering powerful home theater sound when the TV is on, and music all the time when it’s off.

Santa Barbara, California – March 7, 2017 – Today, Sonos announced PLAYBASE, the latest addition to its wireless home sound system and the newest speaker in their home theater line-up. Inspired by the simple insight that up to 70% of all TVs stand on furniture and are not mounted to the wall, PLAYBASE is a thin, yet powerful speaker that sits discreetly under the TV. Priced at $699 US and available in both black and white, PLAYBASE will be available globally starting on April 4, 2017.

At just 58 mm in height and packing 10 drivers, PLAYBASE offers everything you’d expect from a Sonos speaker – great sound when the TV is on and music all the time when it’s off. It was designed to disappear into the home. Appearing as if it was cut from a single piece of granite, it challenges conventional expectations of sound from a thin speaker. The construction comes together with no visible seams resulting in incredibly clean lines, an ultra-flat top surface, and more than 43,000 holes that make up an acoustically transparent grill.

PLAYBASE was built from the ground-up by Sonos with unique manufacturing processes and materials to meet the level of quality Sonos stands by, including a complex insert molding process and a custom-designed glass-filled polycarbonate exterior to keep vibration to a minimum and withstand the weight of a TV for years to come.

“When we think about what product we’ll invent next, we think first about the home, and the role each of our products play in the home. What we realized is that PLAYBAR only met the need of the small percentage of homes where people mount their televisions on the wall,” said Sonos CEO, Patrick Spence. “We saw a tremendous opportunity to deliver great sound in great style for the majority of homes where the TV sits on a piece of furniture. It was a huge challenge where we pushed the boundaries of design, acoustics, materials, wireless and software, and we can’t wait for people to bring it home.”

Designed for TVs that aren’t wall-mounted, PLAYBASE is easy to control and set-up using just two cords (optical and power). It expands to other rooms when wirelessly connected to your Sonos home sound system, and is equal parts TV speaker and music speaker, with access to more than 80 music services. Later this year, like every other Sonos speaker, you’ll soon be able to control PLAYBASE using your voice and any Amazon Alexa enabled device. PLAYBASE and PLAYBAR are Sonos for your TV space, allowing listeners to choose the best set-up to fit any room.

“We have built a product that can not only handle the complexities of home theater – delivering open and natural sound, clear dialogue, and immersive bass that fills the room – but also fits perfectly in any home environment,” said Giles Martin, Sound Experience Leader at Sonos. “The challenge with PLAYBASE was upholding the desire for it to be beautiful from all angles without compromising any of our design, acoustics or engineering principles. We were obsessive in our approach and decisions, resisting every urge to pack anything in here that wasn’t needed, and custom built everything else to find the perfect fit – it’s our thinnest, most beautiful speaker yet.”

Through a unique balance of hardware and software, all of PLAYBASE’s 10 custom-designed drivers with dedicated amplifiers – six mid-range, three tweeters, and one woofer – are powered by software to precisely control the sound coming from each transducer. The result is a sound stage much wider than the speaker itself.

With software, we’re also able to deliver flexible control experiences – whether with your TV remote, Sonos app, or select partner apps—and add new features over time. This includes Trueplay, recently available for Sonos’ home theater products, which adjusts the sound of PLAYBASE to the specifics of any particular room. In addition, Dialogue Enhancement and Night Mode, both options within the Sonos App, allow for enhanced vocal clarity or toned down bass for loud action scenes.

Starting today, current Sonos owners have access to an exclusive pre-order of PLAYBASE on Sonos.com.

BLU’s Life Max boasts an enormous battery for under £100

Amazon promo price gets you a 3,700mAh battery, fingerprint scanner and 5.5-inch display for £89.99.

Budget smartphone brand BLU continues to make inroads into Europe, and its latest effort, the Life Max, targets the entry-level segment with a surprisingly solid collection of hardware. The regular price for the phone is £109.99, but it’s on sale right now for £89.99.

See at Amazon

That gets you just about enough power for a decent, basic Android experience on BLU’s Marshmallow-based software. The quad-core MediaTek chip inside the Life Max isn’t bleeding edge, and we’re a little nervous to see 2GB of RAM in any current Android phone, but the phone performs just fine, in part thanks to the fact that it’s only pushing a 720p display. (There’s no oleophobic coating on the screen, but there is a factory-fitted screen protector included.)

Spread across 5.5 inches, that’s not a whole lot of pixel density, but for the price, the overall brightness, viewing angles and color quality isn’t bad at all. Other notables include a relatively cramped, but not surprising 16GB of storage (of which around 10.5GB is available out of the box), backed up by SD expandability, and a decidedly basic 8-megapixel rear camera.

Network	(GSM/GPRS/EDGE) 850/900/1800/1900 MHz, (4G HSPA+ 42Mbps) 900/1900/2100MHz, (4G LTE Cat 4 Up to 150 Mbps) FDD 1/3/7/20
Display	5.5-inch 720 x 1280, 267 ppi
Processor	64-Bit MediaTek MT6737, 1.3 GHz Quad-Core with Mali-T720 graphics GPU
OS	Android 6.0 Marshmallow
Camera	Rear – 8.0 megapixel with LED Flash, (1.12mm pixel size, 1/4 inch sensor, 2.8mm aperture) HD 1080p@30fps video recordingFront – 5.0 megapixel, LED Flash
Connectivity	Wi-Fi b/g/n, GPS, Bluetooth v4.0, Hotspot, NextRadio
Memory	2GB RAM, 16GB Internal Memory, Micro SD Slot up to 64GB
Dimensions	154.5 x 77.1 x 8.7 mm
Battery	Li-Polymer 3700 mAh
Available Colours	Midnight Blue

All of that’s standard fare, as is the plasticky exterior it’s all packaged in (Galaxy Note 3 veterans will see a very familiar faux leather back panel.) The Life Max’s big selling point is its enormous battery — a 3,700mAh cell which according to BLU’s numbers will keep you up and running for a maximum of three days. In my less-than-scientific testing, I’ve been hard pushed to kill this thing off in five days of on-and-off, lighter use.

The inclusion of a fingerprint scanner is a big deal too, given the price point. BLU’s rear-mounter scanner isn’t the quickest out there, but it’s perfectly serviceable, and gives the Life Max a leg up on competitors around the £100 mark.

The firm’s Android 6.0-based software is at once highly differentiated in its feature set, launcher and menus and yet with some visual nods towards stock Android. And aside from a couple of Amazon apps, Opera’s browser and NextRadio, the Life Max is pretty light on preloaded bloat.

Picking up a fully-fledged Android phone for less than £100 is always going to be an exercise in compromises, yet the Life Max walks that particular tightrope as well as can be expected. Obviously, spending a little more — say, £50 — will let you score a significantly upgraded camera, or bag something with metal construction from Honor or Moto. But if you’re looking for an inexpensive device that’s fast, and boasts epic longevity, you could do a lot worse than BLU’s new budget offering.

The BLU Life Max is available now from Amazon UK at its promotional launch price of £89.99

NVIDIA Shield continues console ambitions with new Tomb Raider release

The NVIDIA Shield is becoming an even more compelling product with each new major game release.

Tomb Raider — not the 1996 original but the 2013 reboot — is now available in its console-grade entirety on the NVIDIA Shield Android TV. Square Enix and NVIDIA worked together to optimize the game for the nascent set-top platform, and for $15 you get the entire experience, optimized for the company’s Tegra X1 processor and rendering at 720p.

The new title, which was released over three years ago on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles, is considerably darker, harder and more brutal than the original Lara Croft games, as the now-younger explorer finds herself alone on an island with few tools and no experience.

New NVIDIA Shield Android TV: Everything you need to know

Like the original, Tomb Raider was extremely successful, selling over 8 million units and gaining an aggregate score of 87% on Metacritic. The Shield version appears to be identical to its console counterparts — the Tegra X1 processor inside the Shield is quite a bit more powerful than that of the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 — but it is limited to 720p output to ensure a high frame rate.

Will you be spending the $15 on this awesome game? I still haven’t completed it since I got it for free as a free Xbox Live game a couple years back, but I can attest to its excellence.

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Nintendo’s Parental Control app is amazing. Here’s how to use it!

Every game console should have parental controls this nice.

While there are definitely adults roaming the world right now with Nintendo Switches in hands, rescuing the lands of Hyrule or racing in futuristic hovercrafts, plenty of new Switch owners are actually kids. Not every parent is a gamer, but most parents want to make sure their children are not up at all hours of the night playing on this new highly portable console. Switch is small enough to hide under a blanket or sneak out of the house to school with no problem, which is why Nintendo made sure parents had an extra tool to help make sure everyone behaves.

Parental controls on a Nintendo console are not a new thing by any stretch, but now those controls can be accessed remotely with an app on your phone. Even better? That app gives you a ton of information about how Switch is being used and includes new tools for controlling access. Here’s how to set up parental controls on your phone!

Before you get started

In order to get set up, you’re going to need a few things.

• Make sure you have about 15 minutes set aside
• Install the Nintendo Switch Parental Controls app from the Play Store
• Grab your Nintendo Switch
• Hide from your children

Adding Parental Controls to your Switch

Using the app to control settings on your Switch means you need to first log in to your Nintendo account on your phone. When the same account is on your phone and your Switch, it becomes much easier for the two to talk. If you do not have a Nintendo account, you will need to create on from within the app to continue. If you are already logged in to your Nintendo account through the Miitomo or Fire Emblem Heroes apps on your phone, you will be an option to use that login automatically.

Open your Switch Parental Controls app
Tap Next when prompted to register your Switch to the app
Tap Sign in/Create Account when prompted to log in

Once you’ve logged in to your Nintendo account, you will see a Registration Code. This six digit pin needs to be entered on your Nintendo Switch. Keep your phone display on, but set your phone down and pick up your Switch for this next part.

Head to System Settings on your Nintendo Switch home screen.

Navigate down to Parental Controls and select Parental Controls Settings.

Select Use your Smart Device from the options listed

Select Yes when asked if you have the Parental Controls app

Enter the registration code from your phone.

Select Register when you see your name appear

Now that you have registered your Switch to the Parental Controls app, you need to go back to your phone so you can adjust system settings to your desire. On your phone you will now see Set Parental Controls and Later as your two options. If you want to add controls now, tap the top option. If not, refer back to this guide when you are ready!

Setting Parental Controls

Nintendo’s basic parental controls include three basic settings. You can set a time limit for how long your child can play Switch every day; you can set a content rating restriction if you don’t want your child playing games above a particular age rating; and you can set a pin to bypass the first two options. Gameplay and content restriction settings offer several extra features if you want to be more detailed, but the initial setup will walk you through basic time and content options. As soon as you save these options, the restrictions are immediately enabled on the Switch as long as it is connected to Wi-Fi.

If you want to be more detailed in your time restrictions — for example to set different time restrictions for different days of the week — head to the Console Settings tab in the bottom right corner of the app and select Play-Time Limit from the top. From here you will see Set Days Individually at the top, which will give you a Monday-Sunday list for you to set individual timers on. You’ll also see a Bedtime Alarm option, which will render the Switch unplayable past a specified time unless the pin is entered.

Adjusting the Restriction Level when first setting the Switch up allows you to set a content rating limit, but if you want to go deeper you can select Custom Settings from the Restriction Level list and adjust things as you see fit. You can place limits on the ability to post screenshots to social media, and restrictions on the ability to send or receive messages from anyone Nintendo Switch user. The ability to pick and choose these settings makes it a little easier if you have family members with Switch consoles to share with your kids, or if you’re interested in a higher content restriction but have no interest in the ability to share to Facebook.

If you’re interested in more actively monitoring Switch activity, the Time Played tab will break down what games are being played each day and for how long. This information is later organized in the Monthly Report, so you can see total hours played over the course of any month. Nintendo generates this information automatically, and you can either choose to be notified when this information is available or look in the app when you’re curious. Usage information is sent to the app several times a day, but is not sent in real-time so it won’t be entirely accurate if your child is playing on your Switch at the moment you are looking at reporting.

How to remove parental controls from your Switch

Decided you don’t need these features on your phone? It’s pretty easy to turn off but don’t just uninstall the app and walk away. You want to de-register the app from your Switch, which means you’ll need your phone and your Switch handy for a few minutes.

Head to System Settings on your Nintendo Switch home screen

Navigate down to Parental Controls and select Parental Controls Settings

Select Unregister App from the available options

Enter your Parental Control pin (check the app if you forgot!)

Confirm you want to do this by selecting Unregister

Uninstall the Parental Controls app on your phone

And that’s it! You now know all you need to know about controlling the Nintendo Switch remotely. Got an idea for a future feature in this app? Share it with us in the comments!

Now may be a great time to buy a Galaxy S7

A nice discount on two of the best phones right now.

We know the Galaxy S8 is coming pretty soon — announced at the end of March and released sometime in April — but increasingly, this year’s models aren’t putting last year’s out of business.

To wit, the Galaxy S7 is getting a steep discount at U.S. carrier T-Mobile (and Sprint, too, on the S7 edge) — $250 off their retail prices (via Thrifter) — and with the Nougat rollout complete the phone is now more compelling than ever. That brings the price of the Galaxy S7 down to $323.99, and the S7 edge down to $429.99 and $444.99 (the Sprint option is $15 more).

It’s clear that the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge are going to hold up particularly well even into late-2017 and beyond. As we’ve seen, the Nougat update brings a number of performance and feature improvements to the Galaxy lineup, and the hardware is still quite strong, both aesthetically and in terms of specs. While the Snapdragon 820 inside the phones is no longer top-of-the-line, Samsung managed to eke impressive performance and stability out of the devices, managing to stay at the top of our best-of lists until the release of the Pixel phones in October.

The best Android phones

The Galaxy S7 line also has a number of features the Pixels don’t, namely waterproofing and wireless charging, and arguably much nicer designs. That the phones don’t have USB-C ports is unfortunate, but the qualm is easily overlooked considering all of their other upsides — especially at $250 off.

Both the discounted Sprint and T-Mobile versions of the devices also come with 64GB microSD cards to sweeten the pot, but the phones must be ordered through Samsung’s online web store, so there is no possibility of wallet-friendly financing. The good news is that the T-Mobile version of the GS7 is probably the best of the bunch if you’re going to be roaming at all, since, after unlocking it, it has the most bands and support for the fastest LTE speeds of any of the variants.

Are you taking Samsung up on its discount offer? Let us know in the comments!

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Picking up an LG G6? Check out these new cases!

What are the best cases for the LG G6?

If you’re planning to pick up the brand new LG G6 when it launches early next month, you’ll want to keep it protected with a good case. With a wide selection of cases available, you can find the perfect case for your new phone before you even have it in your hands.

Here’s our breakdown of some of the best cases you can find for the LG G6.

• Spigen Rugged Armor
• Ringke Air Prism
• SUPCASE Rugged Holster Case
• Trianium Clarium Series Case
• Spigen Thin Fit
• LK wallet case

Spigen Rugged Armor

Spigen’s Rugged Armor cases are always a great option, offering good protection without adding too much bulk to your phone. It features a premium look with carbon fiber textures on the back, clear cutouts for your ports, camera and fingerprint scanner, as well as all the protective features that Spigen is known for — spiderweb shock absorption on the interior of the case along with Air Cushion Technology in all the corners.

For a case that offers great protection along with a sleek and stylish appearance, you can’t go wrong with the Spigen Rugged Armor case for your LG G6.

See at Amazon

Ringke Air Prism

Ringke is known for making some some stylish cases, and this Air Prism is no exception. This one-piece case is made from soft TPU and will provide a perfect fit for your LG G6.

The first thing that you’ll notice with this case, however, is the modern geometric texture pattern on the back. Besides looking really cool and offering drop protection, it adds a bunch of great textures to help you maintain a solid grip on your brand new phone. It’s available in three color options — black, rose gold, and clear — so pick the perfect style for you.

See at Amazon

SUPCASE Rugged Holster Case

If you’re the klutzy type who’s constantly dropping your phone, you want this rugged case from SUPCASE. This is a two-piece case that features a front plate with a built-in screen protector that, along with the LG G6’s waterproofing, will pretty much keep your phone in pristine condition. It features multi-layered protection that combines TPU and polycarbonate materials to create a shock absorbing core and impact resistant bumper.

It also comes with a belt clip holster that swivels 360-degrees, making it a great accessory for anyone who’s constantly on the go throughout the day and needs quick access to their phone at all times.

See at Amazon

Trianium Clarium Series Case

The thing about having a new phone is that you want to show it off, right? But not at the expense of leaving it open to damage. That’s where a great clear case come in.

Trianium’s Clarium Series cases are sleek and minimalist, so if those are important features in a case for you, you’ll definitely want to check it out. Your phone will get all around protection from this slim case that also perfectly preserves the look of your LG G6.

See at Amazon

Spigen Thin Fit

If you absolutely hate the idea of using a case because of the added bulk, perhaps you should consider Thin Fit case from Spigen. While it won’t offer as much drop protection as the other cases on this list, it will prevent your phones from being scuffed or scratched while in your pocket.

All your ports and side buttons are left wide open, and the case is thin enough to let NFC and wireless charging pass through without issue. Again, if you’re looking for a case that offers sound protection, your best to look at other options. But if you’re looking for a slim and lightweight case to offer the most basic protection from nicks and scratches, this is your best bet.

See at Amazon

LK Wallet case

Wallet cases are a great option for protecting your phone — as long as you’re able to justify the added bulk for the extra convenience of having your phone, cash, cards and ID all in one place.

This wallet case from LK has been perfectly designed for the LG G6, and offers full protection in all four corners via the TPU inner shell along with the protection from the leather exterior You’re able to fit three cards along the inside of the front cover, along with a pocket for folded bills. There’s ample cutouts for the headphone jack, charging port and fingerprint scanner, and the case also folds up to create a kickstand for your phone for hands-free viewing.

For a classy and versatile case, look no further than this leather wallet case.

See at Amazon

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LG G6 vs Google Pixel XL vs Pixel: What’s the difference?

LG announced its latest flagship smartphone on 26 February 2017 in the form of the G6. The new device brings some exciting features with it, including a huge HDR display in a small premium and waterproof body.

It seems to right the wrongs of the G5, at least on paper, but how does it compare to its competition? We’ve put the LG G6 up against Google’s brilliant Pixel and Pixel XL to see how they compare and what the differences are.

LG G6 vs Google Pixel XL vs Pixel: Design

• Pixel is the smallest and lightest
• LG has waterproofing
• All three have USB Type-C

The LG G6 features a lovely metal, premium build with a glass finish on the rear. There is a circular rear-mounted fingerprint sensor, coupled with a dual-lens main camera and USB Type-C.

LG has introduced IP68 water and dust resistance to the new device, while also significantly slimming down the bezels surrounding the display and rounding off the corners for a lovely looking device. The LG G6 measures 148.9 x 71.9 x 7.9 and hits the scales at 163g.

The Google Pixel and Pixel XL also both have great premium metal bodies, along with glass on the rear, though only the top third of their backs is glass, while the rest remains metal. The camera setup is much more subtle than the G6, but they both have a rear-mounted circular fingerprint sensor.

Both models feature USB Type-C and neither has any physical buttons on the front, though the bezels surrounding the display are slighty wider than the G6. The Pixel measures 143.8 x 69.5 x 8.6mm and weighs 143g, while the Pixel XL measures 154.7 x 75.6 x 8.6mm and measures 168g.

The LG G6 is therefore the slimmest of the three devices being compared here, but it sits in the middle of the Pixel and Pixel XL in terms of weight and size. Neither Pixel device is waterproof.

• LG G6 preview

LG G6 vs Google Pixel XL vs Pixel: Display

• G6 has largest, sharpest display
• G6 has HDR
• G6 has wider aspect ratio

The LG G6 has a 5.7-inch display which features a Quad HD+ resolution at 2880 x 1440, resulting in a pixel density of 564ppi. It has an 18:9 aspect ratio and HDR, with support for both HDR 10 and Dolby Vision.

The Pixel has a 5-inch display, while the Pixel XL has a 5.5-inch display, meaning the G6 is bigger than both models, despite having a smaller body than the Pixel XL. The Pixels have an AMOLED display however, while the G6 opts for LCD, meaning colours could be punchier on the Pixels.

The Pixel XL has a Quad HD resolution and the Pixel has a Full HD resolution, putting both their pixel densities lower than the G6 at 440ppi and 534ppi, respectively. Both are protected by Corning Gorilla 4.

• What is Mobile HDR?

LG G6 vs Google Pixel XL vs Pixel: Camera

• G6 has a dual-rear camera with two 13MP sensors
• Pixels have higher resolution front camera
• G6 has OIS

The LG G6 has a dual-rear camera setup featuring two 13-megapixel sensors, one of which has a 125-degree wide-angle lens that is designed to offer the same field of vision you see with your eyes. One sensor has a f/1.8 aperture with OIS and phase detection autofocus, while the other has a f/2.4 aperture and no autofocus.

The 5-megapixel front-facing camera on the G6 has a f/2.2 aperture and it too has a wide-angle lens, albeit a little narrower than the rear at 100-degrees.

The Pixel and Pixel XL both have a 12.3-megapixel rear camera with 1.55µm pixels and an aperture of f/2.0. They feature both laser autofocus and phase detection autofocus, but no optical image stabilisation. The front camera has an 8-megapixel resolution with 1.4µm pixels and an aperture of f/2.4.

• Google Pixel XL review

LG G6 vs Google Pixel XL vs Pixel: Hardware

The LG G6 has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 821, supported by 4GB of RAM and either 32GB or 64GB of storage, both of which have microSD support. There is a 3300mAh battery, charged via USB Type-C as we mentioned.

The Pixel and Pixel XL both have the same Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 processor and 4GB of RAM, but their storage options are 32GB or 128GB, neither of which offer microSD support. The Pixel has a 2770mAh battery, while the Pixel XL has a 3450mAh battery, both of which are charged via USB Type-C.

Like we said previously, all three devices have a fingerprint sensor on the rear and all three also have the 3.5mm headphone jack.

• Google Pixel review

LG G6 vs Google Pixel XL vs Pixel: Software

• Android Nougat on all three
• G6 has extra software

The LG G6 runs on Android Nougat with the LG UX 6.0 software over the top, offering a range of new features, some of which are designed to make full use of the 18:9 display.

The Pixel and Pixel XL on the other hand run pure Android Nougat, with no extra bloatware. They are the poster boys for the Android experience so they will offer a more refined interface than the G6, though some may like the extra features offered by the G6.

LG G6 vs Google Pixel XL vs Pixel: Conclusion

The LG G6 and the Google Pixel XL and Pixel all have lovely, premium designs made from a combination of metal and glass. Some will prefer the G6, while others will prefer the Pixels.

The G6 has waterproofing, a huge display with very minimal bezels and its screen has a higher resolution and supports HDR. The G6 also has microSD support and a dual-lens rear camera. The Pixel XL has the largest battery capacity of these three devices, along with pure Android software, like the Pixel and the cameras on both Pixels are great.

All three of these smartphones have the same processor and RAM support so in terms of performance, they should be similar, meaning the decision comes down to design and software preference.

31 best, stupidest and most famous internet memes around

The Oxford English Dictionary defines “meme” as “an image, video, piece of text, typically humorous in nature, that is copied and spread rapidly by internet users, often with slight variations.”

And if you’ve spent any time on Reddit or Buzzfeed then you’ll probably find many who believe this is what the internet was made for.

Well, they say laughter is the best medicine so crack a smile at some of the best, stupidest and most famous memes we’ve found from around the web.

Doge

wallpapersafari

Originating in the depths of 2010, this meme came to life thanks to some glorious photos of Shiba Inus – a breed of tiny and agile Japanese dog with a quizzical face. Posted on a personal blog, the original photos appeared with one such dog named “Kabosu” casually lounging on a sofa with a sideways glance at the camera.

With the help of Reddit, “Doge” was then born. Images of the dog are Photoshopped into various poses and situations, plastered with internal monologue quotes in Comic Sans font and delivered to the internet for the world to enjoy. 

This popular meme spawned a trademark claim, a satirical form of cryptocurrency (Dogecoin) and much more besides.

Grumpy Cat

Deviantart

Grumpy Cat is a particularly irritable looking pussy who goes by the real name “Tardar Sauce”. This meme again took off thanks to Reddit, in late 2012 when original photos of Grumpy Cat were posted online.

Various Photoshopped pics of Grumpy Cat appeared online with captions expressing his distaste for whatever the topic happened to be about.

Grumpy Cat proved so popular that it spawned all sorts of spin-offs including stuffed toys, books, t-shirts and even a coffee drink.

A sneak peek for our Twitter fans. Coming soon. #grumpycat #Grumppuccino http://t.co/S4vnf4aEfw pic.twitter.com/ZkZg9M8CNg

— Grumpy Cat (@RealGrumpyCat) 28 July 2013

Success kid

The Verge

Success kid (also known as “I hate sandcastles”) became popular in around 2008 when a photo of a smug baby at the beach was used across the web on social media, mainly as personal profile photographs.

Later, the photograph was Photoshopped and turned into thousands of different memes in the animal advice style or referencing his apparent hatred for sandcastles.

Success kid goes by the real name Sammy Griner and has now aged a few years, but still seems just as pleased with himself in all the recent photos we’ve seen. His fame also helped to successfully pay for his father’s new kidney after a plea for funding for a transplant went online in the middle of 2016. So maybe he is successful after all!

Ermahgerd girl

Maggie Goldenberger

In 2012, a post titled “Just a book owner’s smile…” was submitted to Reddit and, shortly after, the glory that is Ermahgerd girl was born. Featuring a young girl, awash with nerdy excitement and brandishing a trio of Goosebumps books, the photo soon became synonymous with “oh my God” levels of excitement.

Some say the misspelling of “oh my God” as “ermahgerd” is meant to represent the difficulty that would come speaking with teenage braces. As a result, the text accompanying these memes is often misspelt along the same lines.

Ermahgerd spawned many spin-off memes in the form of various excited animals eying up treats and tasty morsels.

The girl in the original photograph was eventually found. Maggie Goldenberger was actually just playing dress-up with friends when the snap was takenand found it hilarious many years later when told about the meme.

The most interesting man in the world

Huffington Post

In 2006, Jonathan Goldsmith appeared in a series of advertising campaigns for Dos Equis beer in which he was pitched as “the most interesting man in the world”.

During that campaign his catchphrase was “I don’t always drink beer, but when I do, I prefer Dos Equis…”. The campaign took off and the resulting meme was born – all using the same format “I don’t always…” and finishing “…but when I do…”

Video spin-offs popped up all over the place and Jonathan Goldsmith even appeared in a Reddit Ask Me Anything.

Memegenerator

Shut up and take my money!

IMGUR

Animated science-fiction series Futurama features a down-on-his-luck delivery boy Philip J. Fry who finds himself trapped somewhere in the 31st Century after an unfortunate incident with a cryogenic freezing machine.

In season six, an episode aired called “Attack of the Killer App” in which the creators parodied Apple with the release of the new “eyePhone”. Fry rushes to purchase one of the new devices and interrupts the sales genius with the phrase, “Shut up and take my money!”

Fry’s words and a screengrab of him waving money quickly became a famous internet meme and a subreddit.

Many other nerdy memes also appeared along similar lines and became a simple expression of desire for an invention, proposed idea or consumer product.

IMGUR

Sad Keanu

Splash News

Keanu Reeves is something of an internet legend to the point that some have said he might be immortal. There’s even a Snopes page dedicated to dispelling (or enforcing) some of the myths.

So when he was snapped by paparazzi miserably snacking on a sandwich on a bench in New York city, “Sad Keanu” was born.

The photograph first became a meme in 2010 when it appeared on Reddit and Green-ovale and from then on lead to Keanu being Photoshopped, sandwich and all, into other photos and settings across the world.

The meme got such attention that the BBC even asked Keanu about it in an interview with him in 2011.

Joseph Ducreux

Know Your Meme/Meme Generator

Joseph Ducreux was an 18th Century French artist known for a peculiar style of portrait paintings. In 2009, his particularly quirky self-portrait joined the world of internet memes when superimposed with rap lyrics.

The words often featured on these memes include an archaic reinterpretation of the original lyrics with an 18th Century spin. The first recorded version read “Disregard Females, Acquire Currency” – a take on Notorious B.I.G’s song Get Money but has since seen many variations.

Be like Bill

Be like Bill

In the wonderful world of the web, keyboard warriors and discourteous people are rife. “Be like Bill” is aimed at combatting that plague and trolls in general by sending a message of common sense through means of a simple stick figure called “Bill”.

In a series of single frame comic strips, Bill is put into different everyday situations with simple guidance on how to act – basically tips on how not to annoy other people in real life and online.

Ceiling Cat

Umad

Ceiling Cat is perhaps one of the earliest known internet memes dating back to 2003 when the original photograph of a ginger cat peering through a hole in the ceiling was submitted to FunnyJunk.

The image later became a Photoshop meme and appeared in many different variations across the web. The most popular and common version didn’t appear until 2006 when the photo was given the wording “Ceiling Cat is watching you…”.

So popular was this meme that a mythology appeared around it which purported that Ceiling Cat was the LOLcat equivalent of God and his nemesis Basement Cat was akin to the devil.

Good Guy Greg

Quick Meme/Meme Wow

Good Guy Greg is rumoured to have its roots in the murky depths of 4chan. This simple photo of a cheerful chap is meant to symbolise a kind and generous human being who we’d all be happy to call our friend.

The actual subject of the original photograph is unknown and was a matter of some debate on Reddit in 2011. Nonetheless, Good Guy Greg has been spreading his excellent attitude ever since.

Scumbag Steve

Daily Dot

Scumbag Steve is the antithesis of Good Guy Greg. He stands for everything Greg does not. He is selfish and doesn’t care about your feelings or being polite.

The original photo of Scumbag Steve features a young man with a baseball cap on sideways standing in a doorway. The photo appeared on Reddit in 2011 and quickly caught on as a popular meme. It often features text portraying Steve as a bad buy who’d happily steal medication from his grandparents or borrow money and never pay people back.

The real subject of the photograph is Blake Boston a rapper from the group “Beantown Mafia” who purports not to be a bad guy after all. Though he’s certainly making the most of his internet fame. 

Donald Trump’s first order of business

Huffington Post

US President Donald Trump has been the subject of many a meme in the run up to and well into his Presidency.

One of our (and the internet’s) favourites is the Photoshop meme that shows various drawings, doodles and delightful scribbles on the open folder that in reality displayed his signature on an executive order from January 2017.

This all started on Reddit with the posting of a Dickbutt GIF.

IMGUR

Then various examples of the meme found their way onto Reddit and the joyful Twitter account that is @TrumpDraws was also born.

cooky pic.twitter.com/bQbWdf9V1l

— Trump Draws (@TrumpDraws) 13 February 2017

That escalated quickly

Quick Meme

A favourite meme for when things get a bit crazy or out of control on the internet, this meme comes from a memorable quote by Will Farrell when he played character Ron Burgundy in 2004’s Anchorman.

This phrase was heavily quoted across the web on message boards, social networks and in blog comment systems. The Anchorman film has spawned a number of other memes due to its popularity, but this is perhaps the most well-known.

Domo

Know Your Meme

Domo-kun is of Japanese origin and was originally a mascot for one of the major TV stations there. He was originally seen in sketches in 1998.

The character first appeared in meme form when two Domo-kuns were photoshopped into an image to look like they were chasing a kitten a relevant threat about God killing a kitten. 

That meme saw many different iterations itself, then Domo-kun began making appearances in disaster-based photos giving the impression that he was the cause of the misery.

Disaster girl

Dave Roth

In 2004, a photograph of a young girl with a devilish smile in front of a burning house appeared online. It was picked up four years later by Buzzfeed and soon got the attention of the internet with posts and re-posts all across the web.

Zoe’s face has since been doctored onto a multitude of disaster scenes ranging from WW2 to modern sinkholes and natural disasters.

Know Your Meme

First World Problems

Good3d

This meme takes several different forms and often uses a variety of photographs commonly including a woman crying with head in her hands, a tearful photo of James Van Der Beek from 90’s TV Show Dawson’s Creek and more.

The idea behind this one is the summing up of the (often insignificant) frustrations of privileged peoples of the developed world. These memes are meant to be delivered with a dash of tongue-in-cheek humour poking fun at how trivial first world problems are.

A taste of the issues are playfully demonstrated in this video:

I will find you and I will kill you

Know Your Meme

From the Liam Neeson film “Taken” comes a meme based on his character’s memorable quote paraphrased to “I will find you and I will kill you.”

The meme is used to show annoyance with frustrating situations in everyday life, often in a similar way to the First World Problems meme.

One does not simply walk into Mordor

Youtube

Dating back to 2001, this meme originates from Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring and features Boromir (played by Sean Bean) explaining how “One does not simply walk into Mordor” to throw the ring into the fires of Mount Doom.

The meme features a picture of Sean Bean and is often used to express the difficulty of doing something particularly arduous. The meme proved so popular that it even appeared as an Easter egg on Google Maps.

Winter is coming

HBO

Sean Bean has proven popular in the meme world, so much so that he made another appearance thanks to his character Ned Stark from Game of Thrones.

Here the character’s quote “brace yourselves, winter is coming” has been used in various ways to humorously predict the influx of internet posts about a specific event or product. The classic example being an increase in the number of people complaining about changes to their Facebook newsfeed.

Know Your Meme

What if I told you/Matrix Morpheus

Moddb

This meme is a paraphrasing of a scene from the Matrix. In the film, the character Morpheus (played by Laurence Fishburne) is explaining to the main character Neo (Keanu Reeves) that he exists inside a computer simulation. He poses a choice between two pills to find out the truth or to carry on living in blissful ignorance.

Like many other memes, this one apparently first appeared on Reddit and has since been used to show a revelation about a particular behaviour.

Philosoraptor

Meme Generator

Philosoraptor is an unusual one in the meme world as it came about after the creation and copyrighting of a design for a new t-shirt.

However, that may well have had some inspiration from the web too as in 2007 a Photoshopped image was posted to 4Chan of a Velociraptor from Jurrassic Park holding a book by Plato.

Since then, the Philosoraptor t-shirt image has been the subject of many memes and is simply accompanied by various philosophical questions that an intelligent dinosaur might ponder.

Examples include “is a key still a key if there is no lock?” and “is a fly without wings called a walk?”

Bad luck Brian

Youtube

This meme features a young lad with braces wearing a tartan vest and a cheeky smile. It originally appeared on Reddit in 2012 and was used with an accompanying caption to describe various embarrassing circumstances.

The photo was later revealed to be of Kyle Craven who rose to some level of internet fame after revealing himself in a Reddit AMA. Kyle also has a claim to fame after being spotted (and recognised) by Seth Rogan when out in public.

By all accounts, he’s not as down on his luck as the internet would have you believe.

Walking Dead “Carl!”

Know Your Meme

The Walking Dead is a very popular, often controversial TV show about zombies. Also popular is poking fun at the way the show’s character Rick Grimes pronounces his son’s name “Carl”.

He said/shouted and called it a lot during the various seasons:

And is often heard mispronouncing it as “Coral”.

Besides this, the scene where Rick discovered his wife was dead also reached the internet in meme form but this time as a comic strip for poor dad jokes.  

That’d be great

Memeful

From the 1999 classic “Office Space” comes a meme derived from Gary Cole’s character Bill Lumbergh. His sole purpose in life seems to be getting people to finish paperwork and work extra hours over the weekend.

The meme is inspired by this scene where Peter tries to duck out of the office on Friday but is caught at the last second by Bill who asks him to come in on Saturday.

This is phrase is then turned into a meme where something horrible is requested followed by a non-confrontational “that’d be great”.

Drunk baby

Meme Generator

What’s funnier than a baby drinking beer? An intoxicated infant spouting drunken wisdom that’s what. And that’s how this meme was born when a photo of a child sitting next to a pint was uploaded to Reddit in 2012.

This simple meme gained popularity on 9gag, Facebook and more with a variety of different captions being added to the original photo.

Ain’t nobody got time for that

Image Flip

In 2012, Kimberly Wilkins (aka Sweet Brown) was interviewed by a local news station in Oklahoma City after being evacuated from an apartment building that was on fire.

Her quote finished:

“….I said ‘Oh Lord Jesus, it’s a fire’, then I ran out, I didn’t grab no shoes or nothin’ Jesus! I ran for my life. Then the smoke got me. I got bronchitis. Ain’t nobody got time for that!”

Which made hilarious waves on the internet, especially when autotuned:

In the meantime, the perfect meme was created and could easily be used for anything taxing that you might not have time for.

The Indestructible Nokia 3310

Risasinmas

The classic Nokia 3310 mobile phone has developed somewhat of a legendary status over the years. Originally released in 2000, this phone was a brute of a device; hard-wearing and long-lasting compared to today’s fragile phones.

The result has been many an amusing meme purporting the 3310 to be indestructible with near God-like qualities.

Know Your Meme

Strutting Leo

Know Your Meme

In 2010, Leonardo DiCaprio was caught on camera merrily strutting around the set for blockbuster hit Inception.

The image of DiCaprio was promptly cut-out and put online as an exploitable template on a transparent background which meant that anyone could have their way with it and thus, Strutting Leo was born.

The cut-out photo then found its way into a variety of different scenes including one of Leo strutting his way casually into Mordor and across the moon.

Know Your Meme on the moon

Facepalm

IMGUR

The classic facepalm is a well-known symbol for dismay at someone’s foolish actions – especially where a lapse in judgement or common sense might apply.

The most common usage of this meme features an image of Patrick Stewart playing Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek with his head in his hands in reaction to events unfolding on the bridge of the Enterprise.

There have been many other instances since, including the joy of double facepalms and this wonderful collage.

Meme Centre

Yo dawg

Meme Generator

This classic meme was inspired by American TV show Pimp My Ride. In it, host Xzibit and his team improved people’s automobiles, usually by adding something they liked into the vehicle so they could experience it while out and about. And thus the meme was born.

This meme follows a simple formula where X and Y are replaced with the relevant subject matter:

“Yo dawg, I herd you like X, so I put an X in your Y so you can VERB while you VERB”

This simple yet effective humour lent itself to thousands of memes across the years, with Xzibit’s smiling face happily photoshopped into relevant images.

Tech companies and game devs are gearing up for AR

Last year’s Game Developers Conference was ruled by virtual reality. From Sony detailing its PSVR launch plans to Oculus showcasing the first batch of games for the consumer Rift headset, you couldn’t swing a Meowth at the event without hitting a VR booth. But, perhaps fueled by the success of Pokémon Go in 2016, augmented reality has become the new industry darling. That’s not to say VR has been kicked to the curb completely, but at GDC 2017 we saw the emergence of AR as a compelling technology for gaming and beyond.

Take Epic Games, the maker of game-development platform Unreal Engine — it showed the potential of high-end augmented reality with “Project Raven.” The company created a tool that lets content creators, like filmmakers, merge visual effects with live action shots. Epic Games said at its GDC 2017 keynote that in TV or movie shoots, a single computer-generated frame typically takes hour to render and days of editing before it can resemble a “photoreal” image. With Project Raven, which will be coming to Unreal Engine later this year, a director of photography can essentially get a live preview of what a CGI scene will look like. For Hollywood, this could be a game changer.

Epic Games also partnered with Chevrolet to create an experience for Google Tango that gives users a 360-degree view of a Camaro ZL1. The software uses 3D depth-sensing features from a compatible device, such as Lenovo’s Phab 2 Pro, to show different angles of the car as you configure it to your liking in real time. Right now it only works when you change the ZL1’s color, but there may be options to tinker with the rims, headlights and other parts later on. Epic says the idea is to give you a more immersive view of your dream car, rather than just imagine it by looking at mockups from still images.

Meanwhile, Microsoft announced at GDC 2017 its plans to bring mixed-reality to the Xbox in 2018. That’s going to be huge for consumers, particularly those who own one of the company’s latest consoles. Even though Microsoft prefers to refer its efforts in the space as mixed reality, not augmented, they’re both basically the same thing. The goal with AR and MR, unlike with VR, is to blend digital objects with environments from the real world. Up until now, Microsoft’s been showing the capabilities of mixed-reality through HoloLens, but that’s a $3,000 device which not every consumer (or even some developers) can afford.

That’s where Acer’s Mixed Reality headset, revealed last week, comes in. While the price remains unknown, it’s expected to cost much less than Hololens. Microsoft says this will give more developers a chance to build mixed-reality experiences for Windows devices, including its PCs and Xbox — which could be an alternative to Sony’s PSVR. The tech giant was coy about its strategy for mixed reality and consoles, but we’ll likely learn more about that at its Build conference or at E3, happening in May and June, respectively.

In case the augmented reality boom wasn’t clear enough, Pokémon Go capped it all off by winning Best Mobile/Handheld Game at the GDC awards. The title from Niantic edged out Nintendo’s Super Mario Run for the top honor in the category, showing how important the AR game was to the industry. As for why augmented reality could more compelling than virtual reality, it may come down to a couple of factors: motion sickness and hardware setup. “For a very significant portion of the population, it doesn’t take very long for you to feel nauseated using it [VR],” said an executive for a major technology company involved in the AR space, who asked to remain anonymous.

The exec went on to say that one of the main problems with VR headsets, at least high-end ones like the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive , is the amount of work that goes into setting these up before you can them. “The primary reason that these devices will get returned is people gave up when they were trying to set them up,” the executive says. “The positional-tracking, drilling holes in your walls or getting the beacon, it’s way harder than it seems like it should be.”

There’s no doubt augmented and virtual reality can coexist, and it’s up to consumers to use the medium best suited for their needs. We know what developers can do for gaming with both and how fun it can be. But, there are areas where AR has the potential to be more useful than VR, including medicine and education — where you need to have some sort of real-world interaction to make the most out of the technology.

Click here to catch up on the latest news from GDC 2017!