Everything Flo is packing in her Gear Bag for Google I/O 2017

It’s basically just sunscreen and some phones.

If there’s one thing that stuck with me after attending last year’s Google I/O, it’s to always wear sunscreen. If you’ve ever had to carry a giant bag full of things on top of sunburned shoulders, then you know the pain. And that pain is not fun to have lingering around when you’d rather be soaking up developer sessions and checking out the latest Android-based demonstrations.

This year, I’m packing a ton of sunscreen. Bottles of it. I’m bringing the spray kind, the lotion kind, and some for my face — I’ll probably slather a bunch in my scalp, for the days I forget my hat. I’m packing a couple of other neccesary things, too — a laptop, a couple of smartphones— but I’m attempting to keep it my kit as concise and as whittled down to the necessary as possible so that I’ve enough room to carry all that sunscreen.

The bag: Something I bought off of AliExpress

I couldn’t do the Timbuk2 Classic Messenger anymore. The more gear I’d cram into it, the more my back seemed to ache for days after merely an hour with it on. So, I switched to this little backpack I found on AliExpress a few months ago, though it’s quickly turned into one of my favorite carry-all. And it was pretty affordable, too!

This off-brand bag is big enough to fit my MacBook Pro and Timbuk2 Snoop Camera Insert (the link takes you to the new version of the product). There’s also a front pocket that fits my phone and my wallet perfectly, and there’s enough room inside to store rolled-up sweater, too. Google I/O will likely be in the upper digits towards the mid-afternoon but at night fall it can get pretty chilly in the South Bay.

Also inside: So much sunscreen

As a pale-skinned woman who burns considerably after only minutes in the sun, I’ve gotten into the habit of carrying some very heavy duty sunscreen. My favorite is the Alba Botanica Hawaiian sunscreen. It smells nice and it’s water resistant, and it’s kept me protected through various hikes through the California Redwoods and beyond. It’s also available in spray form, which is convenient for quick touchups throughout the day.

On my face, I wear Tarte Guard Sunscreen, which offers all the protection without the grease. But if you’re put off by the bright pink bottle, Dr. Jart’s Every Sun Day UV Sunscreen is a great Korean-made alternative that’s also dermatologist-tested and cruelty-free.

See at Amazon

The phone: Pixel XL

I remember last year, I was already struggling with the Nexus 6P around this time — I vividly remember pulling over while navigating around Mountain View because the phone had randomly shut down in the middle of my route. You can bet there was plenty of screaming and cursing happening that day.

I don’t expect to run into the same issue with the Pixel XL, but that’s because it’s been so consistent since I adopted it last October. I know that I can trust it to post to Twitter, Instagram Stories, and Snapchat without shutting down on me, as well as provide ample battery life for answering the barrage of Hangouts messages and emails I’ll be fielding throughout the entire week. It also takes the best photos, and it’s the only phone I have in my arsenal with the absolute latest version of Android.

See at Google

The smartwatch: LG Watch Style

To be very honest with you, faithful Android users, I’ve long since ditched Android Wear 2.0 for the hybrid Fossil Q (also pictured here) because I don’t like having to charge a watch every single night. But during major event weeks, I’ll switch to the LG Watch Style, which is one of the most comfortable smartwatches for those with smaller wrists. I like to have the notifications pop up as they appear, not to mention it’s much more convenient to respond with a simple “ok” on Android Wear than it is to always have my phone in my hand.

See at Google

The other computer: Samsung DeX

I’m not actually planning to use the Samsung Galaxy S8+ to cover Google I/O. I’m actually bringing it to test out the Samsung DeX, which I’ll be using in my Mountain View hotel room to decompress at the end of each day. I’m impressed with what I’m seen from Samsung’s “desktop experience” thus far, but the real test will be whether it makes sense for me to travel with a mouse, keyboard, and HDMI cable in tow, too.

See at Best Buy

Other gear and accessories

There are a couple of other necessities I’m packing with me. My battery pack this year will be the AUKEY 20,000 mAh solar-powered battery pack, which is quite dense and will certainly add a bit of weight to my bag. But it’s got multiple ports for the crew to charge along, and I never have to worry about it running out of juice as long as the sun is still shining.

I’m also bringing along a Polaroid wide-angle lens, which easily screws on to the existing 40mm lens already affixed to my Canon SL1. This makes it so that I can widen the shot of the crazy sculptures placed throughout the Shoreline and switch back to the pancake lens when I need to snap a photo of a screen, for instance.

Coming to Google I/O?

Are you making the trek to Mountain View for Google’s annual developer conference? Leave a comment and tell us what you’re packing for the event!

Dive into summer with a new wallpaper

Prepare yourself: summer is coming.

Winter can be a cruel season, but if you ask a good Texan girl like me, there is no harsher season than summer. Triple digit heat and oppressive humidity, summer is a season that can kill far quicker, and in horrifying ways. As such, before we dive into these whimsical wallpapers, I’m going to remind everyone that it doesn’t matter how short you’ll be in the store or how shaded your parking space is, NEVER leave your kids or your pets in the car. It doesn’t take long for temperatures in a car to get unbearable and for heat stroke to set in.
If you’re the forgetful type, set a reminder on your phone.

Play a word association game with most folks, and when you say summer, they’ll say BEACH! I don’t blame them, there’s definitely an appeal to cooling off on a hot day by going for a swim in the deep blue sea. The freedom of the water, the beauty of the beach, the spectacular views… I want to go slip on a bikini and dive into the water right now, but I’ll settle for letting this sunflower-clad beauty take the dip instead.

Summer Rest by Redixx

Summer breeze makes me feel fine…

This wallpaper just makes me wanna blast that song on repeat. The wind sweeping across the beach and playing at Aqua’s hair, the palm trees swaying and the sea glistening with the glow of sunset… Everything about this wallpaper screams of summer, and I’m as ready as the water goddess to savor the sights, sounds, and tastes of the season.

Summer Vibes 4 by ojjustice

Summer flowers may not get the same fawning and devotion as the blossoms of spring, but the flowers that litter the gardens and fields of summer adventures paint our world in riveting, radiant hues. These flowers are the bounty of nature’s beauty and the fulfillment of the age-old rhyme: April showers bring May flowers…

Color refresh by Adopusina

The beach gets most of our adoration and attention in the summer, but the summer season is also a time for a lot of us to head to the mountains and forests to explore nature on a more solid surface. The mountains seem peaceful looking like this, as if there aren’t wolves and bears and mountain lions lurking within them… Who’s ready to climb a mountain?

Landscape Wallpaper by opreadorin1

Summer brings a lot of opportunities to visit new locations and see new things, but some of the best aspects of summer can be savored right here at home. There is no summer treat I crave more frequently than an ice-cold popsicle after I come in out of the hellish Texas heat. This cute popsicle wallpaper doesn’t give me that rush of cold sugar, but it’s not gonna get my phone all sticky, either…

Live in the Sunshine by Sarah Hearts

Watch our HTC U11 hands-on video preview!

Is squeezing your phone the next big thing in mobile? HTC certainly thinks so. Its new flagship phone, the U11, is built around this simple but convenient gesture.

But this phone is much more than just a quirky, gimmicky shortcut feature. There’s also a beautiful, shimmering, liquid glass design encasing hardware that’ll provide all the power you crave — along with upgraded camera and audio hardware.

As the name suggests, this is the direct successor to the 10, but it’s also a member of the new HTC U family, which started with the U Play and U Ultra back in January. But honestly, forget about those phones. The U11 is where the HTC U brand story should have begun.

The design is a considerable refinement of the liquid glass aesthetic that HTC introduced earlier in the year — metal flowing directly into glass, with tight tolerances and joins. And the phone comes in five gorgeous, shimmering colors, including two impressive new hues — “amazing silver,” which shifts between a sky blue and silvery gray, and the fiery “solar red,” my personal favorite.

HTC also hits all the necessary points for a current high-end handset: A Snapdragon 835 processor, plenty of storage and RAM, IP67 water and dust resistance, and an upgraded UltraPixel 3 camera which ranks as the current DXOMark champion.

Find out more about the HTC U11 in our hands-on video feature. And hit up our full hands-on preview for a detailed breakdown of what’s new, what’s great, and what’s not so great.

• HTC U11 hands-on preview
• HTC U11 specs
• Android Central on YouTube

Review: LG’s Tone Ultra neckbuds are as good as it gets

LG is still the best neckbud company out there.

Love them or hate them, Bluetooth earbuds you wear around your neck aren’t going anywhere. They’re inexpensive enough to be purchased on an impulse, the battery will never not last you a full day, and the connection to your phone is usually pretty strong. LG has dominated this category for years now with its quality and price, and after a week with the LG Tone Ultra (HBS-820) it’s clear that isn’t changing anytime soon.

See on Amazon

It doesn’t get much more generic-looking than the LG Tone Ultra. When you imagine neckbuds, this is basically the image that appears in your mind. A small flexible band connects a pair of plastic shafts with buttons on either side, and an earbud resting at the end of each tip. When you pull on the earbud you get a short shot of retractable cable, allowing you to connect to your ear regardless of head size. The earbuds have adjustable rubber tips for different ear sizes, and the inside of the plastic shafts have a soft rubber coating with ridges to help with airflow and discomfort against your neck.

The most important part of the design here is the buttons. Each button is a physical, tactile button, which is important. There are no touch surfaces here, nothing to swipe across or tap. You get a Play/Pause button, a Call/Google Assistant button, switches for volume and track skipping, and that’s it. There are no accidental button presses here, every button is nice and tactile so you know what to expect when you reach up to adjust something. The setup is simple, easy to learn, and there are no surprises when using these neckbuds throughout the day.

Audio from the LG Tone Ultra isn’t going to blow you away, but it’s decent.

The software is just as simple. When you turn the Tone Ultra on, a voice will let you know what the battery status is and either connect to your phone automatically or let you know it is ready to pair. Once connected to your phone, you can control audio from either the neckbuds or the volume toggle on your phone. There’s not much else to do here, no need for an app to add features or settings.

Audio from the LG Tone Ultra isn’t going to blow you away, but it’s decent. APTx is supported, so as long as you have a phone that also supports that tech, you’ll notice a difference in audio quality. As long as you’re streaming music from a source offering higher quality audio or playing a decent file locally, these earbuds are just about as good as comparably priced wired earbuds, which is great. The dual MEMS microphones in these neckbuds are great as well, even in windy environments.

LG’s big battery claims with these neckbuds include 13 hours of music listening time, 14.5 hours of talk time, and 30 days of standby. My use found the music listening time hovered right around the 12-hour mark before I was hearing battery low warnings every couple of minutes, and standby in my nine days of testing seemed excellent. Where I wasn’t at all impressed was in the operating range. LG claims the Bluetooth 4.1 headset can deliver up to 33ft, when in most cases for me the range was closer to half that before connection issues started. In some cases, that range was closer to 10ft before audio stutters appear, which isn’t great if you’re walking around a room with your phone on a charger.

There’s a lot to like about the LG Tone Ultra if what you want is a decent set of relatively inexpensive neckbuds. LG isn’t trying to be gimmicky with touch surfaces or NFC pairing, but at the same time there’s really nothing remarkable about these neckbuds. They get the job done, and for a lot of people, that’s all these neckbuds need to be. Personally, I’d prefer a better operating range and a USB-C port so I can charge directly from my phone instead of continuing to rely on microUSB, but in every other way these neckbuds exceeded my expectations.

See on Amazon

How to connect a PlayStation Aim Controller to your PlayStation VR

Connecting your aim controller to PlayStation VR is a simple process.

The PlayStation Aim controller is the newest accessory for PlayStation VR, allowing you to really feel like you are in the middle of the action when shooting baddies in a game. However before you go shooting anything that moves, you need to make sure that your Aim controller is properly paired and connected to your PlayStation 4 console.

Getting connected will only take a moment or two though, and we’ve got the details on how to do it.

Read more on VRHeads.com

Android Things Developer Preview 4 adds full support for Google Assistant

The new update also features support for more development platform and a few other minor tweaks.

With Google I/O just around the corner, it seems like every Google property is getting a boost of oomph in preparation for the big developer event. Android Things Developer Preview 4 is next to get a bump with full support for the Google Assistant SDK for every compatible development platform, rather than just limiting it to the Raspberry Pi.

Google has also added more hardware and driver support. From the official blog post:

We are now adding a new Board Support Package for the NXP i.MX7D, which supports higher performance than the i.MX6UL while still using a low power System on Module (SoM) design. Support for Inter-IC Sound Bus (I2S) has been added to the Peripheral I/O API, now enabling audio drivers to be written in user space for sound hardware connected via an I2S bus. The AIY Voice Kit sampledemonstrates how to use I2S support for audio. We have also provided the ability for developers to enable/disable Bluetooth profiles at run time.

Furthermore, if you’re interested in Android Things but are looking for some context on how it all works together, you can look at the code for the Edison Candle, the first in a series of production samples put out by Google that showcases how the software and hardware work together.

You can find links to all the relevant information at the official post on the Android Developers Blog. Or if you’re ready to dive into it, you can download the system images here.

Verizon cancels sales of the LG Watch Sport

You won’t find the Verizon variant on LG’s site either.

Verizon users who were looking forward to talking to family member through their wrists — a la Inspector Gadget — you’re out of a luck. Verizon has cancelled the sale of the LTE-connected LG Watch Sport, in addition to pre-orders, and this is after the smartwatch had already experienced a significant delay.

Droid-life reports:

We have yet to hear back from LG, but Verizon flat out told us that the LG Watch Sport has been cancelled. In other words, they are no longer carrying the LTE-equipped Android Wear 2.0 device. We’ve checked all over their site and it does indeed appear to be completely wiped from any sales pages.

The cancellation of the sale of the Watch Sport seems especially coincidental if you consider the fact that Verizon’s own LTE-connected Wear24 went on sale just last week. The Verizon-compatible watch option for the Watch Sport has also been removed from LG’s website.

Verizon will be offering those customers who pre-ordered the Watch Sport a discount on its other available connected watches — including the Wear24.

Android Wear

• Everything you need to know about Android Wear 2.0
• LG Watch Sport review
• LG Watch Style review
• These watches will get Android Wear 2.0
• Discuss Android Wear in the forums!

Apple’s iPad mini might not be long for this world

When Apple didn’t do much more to the iPad mini 4 this spring besides increase the storage, it left more than a few people wondering if the tiny tablet is on its way out. If you believe a BGR source, the answer is “yes.” The contact claims that Apple plans to phase out the iPad mini now that it has been “sized out of its own category” — why get one when the iPhone 7 Plus and new entry-level iPad can cover the bases for many people? That’s reportedly reflected in the sales figures, which make it “very clear” that the iPad mini isn’t in high demand.

Apple tells us it doesn’t comment on rumors, so don’t expect a definitive answer on the mini’s fate in the immediate future. As it is, the source doesn’t know whether Apple will abruptly drop the small iPad or keep it on sale for a while longer, much like it does with some legacy Macs. You might still have the option to buy the iPad mini — it just wouldn’t get further updates under this scenario.

If true, the move would make sense in more ways than one. The overlap between products is part of it, but there’s also the matter of an expanding iPad lineup. With talk of Apple introducing a 10.5-inch iPad while keeping both its 9.7-inch and 12.9-inch tablets, there’s a real risk of creating a muddled product line. Also, Apple is increasingly treating the iPad as a computer replacement — whether you agree or not, a 7.9-inch mobile tablet doesn’t really fit that bill. As sad as it would be to see Apple’s most portable iPad disappear, its time may have come and gone.

Via: 9to5Mac

Source: BGR

LG gears up for high frame rate 4K sports broadcasts

A few years ago, high frame-rate was a big talking point for movies. Director Peter Jackson bet big on it with his version of The Hobbit, but since then interest has died down mostly due to audience pushback against the unnaturally clear images it presents. While HFR might not work best with film, there’s the chance that it’d be a good fit for broadcast TV and sports — formats where we’re already used to watching faster frame-rates. At least that’s what LG is hoping for. The electronics company has partnered with satellite operator SES to demo 4K HFR broadcasts this week in Luxembourg.

The tech leapfrogs current broadcast standards by bumping frame rates up to 120 FPS, doubling (or, in Europe, more than doubling) the current 50-to-60 frames per-second limit of traditional broadcasts. For reference, shows like Breaking Bad and True Detective were shot at the cinematic 24 frames per-second, while the evening news and late-night talk favor 30 frames per-second for a clearer, more “real-looking” image.

HFR would amp that up considerably as a way to sidestep video artifacts like motion blur and judder in programming where the onscreen action is fast and copious. Specifically, with UHD sports broadcasts. This is just a limited demo, so expecting to watch the next baseball or football (soccer) match at a native 120 FPS in 4K might be a little premature.

More than that, it’s only being shown off on LG OLED displays at the moment. And even then, at a trade show and not as part of a pilot broadcast or anything so maybe don’t hold your breath on this taking hold industry-wide anytime soon.

But wait, there’s more. Buried deeper in the press release is word that LG and a host of other display OEMs, broadcasters and networks are prepping for high dynamic range video, Next-generation Audio (think: Dolby Atmos) to be baked into broadcast standards alongside HFR.

Given that we’ve seen sports lead the way for UHD broadcasts, this new standard probably can’t get here fast enough.

Source: BusinessWire

Apple reportedly announcing a slew of MacBook updates next month

Apple’s annual developer conference hasn’t been a venue for product launches in four years, but it might produce a bumper crop of laptops this time around. Bloomberg sources hear that Apple is planning to upgrade at least the 12-inch MacBook and MacBook Pro line when WWDC kicks off in June. The Pros would get improved 7th-generation Core (aka Kaby Lake) processors with little to no external changes, while the 12-inch system is only said to be getting a “faster Intel chip” (our money’s on Y-series Core i5 and i7 CPUs). However, the biggest deal may be an update to a system many thought Apple had left for dead: the MacBook Air.

One of the insiders claims that Apple has “considered” updating the 13-inch Air with a new processor in response to sales of the aging machine, which are “surprisingly strong.” Just what that entails isn’t clear, but you’d most likely find U-series Core i5 and i7 processors. There’s no mention of a Retina Display or other more dramatic upgrades, so don’t get too excited. This would be a maintenance update, not an overhaul.

The overall refresh would serve as a response to rumors alleging that Apple has put Mac development on the back burner. Even if it’s just a speed bump, it would show an ongoing commitment. If there’s an Air update, however, it would also acknowledge complaints that the 12-inch MacBook doesn’t fit people’s needs as well as its ancestor. It’s not really a shock that the 13-inch Air would sell well — it’s $300 less expensive than the 12-inch MacBook, it packs a faster processor and it carries more ports. Until the newer system is as fast or as versatile, its older sibling is likely to still see plenty of demand.

Source: Bloomberg