Grab the 32GB Moto G5 Plus for $199, 64GB model for $249

For one day only, get the Moto G5 Plus with 4GB of RAM and 64GB storage for $249.

The Moto G5 Plus is one of the best budget phones currently in the market, and you can pick one up for just $199 on Newegg. That’s a $30 discount on the model with 2GB of RAM and 32GB storage. Amazon is also getting on the action, offering the variant with 4GB of RAM and 64GB storage for $249, which comes out to a savings of $50 from the phone’s $299 retail price.

As a refresher, the Moto G5 Plus features a 5.2-inch Full HD panel, and is powered by the Snapdragon 625. Other specs include a microSD slot, 12MP rear camera with f/1.7 lens and dual pixel autofocus, 5MP front shooter, Bluetooth 4.2, and a 3000mAh battery. The phone is unlocked and compatible with all four major carriers, and runs Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box.

The sale is valid for one day only, so if you’re in the market for a budget phone with decent specs and an uncluttered software experience, head to Amazon from the link below to get your hands on the Moto G5 Plus.

See at Amazon

ASUS’ Tango and Daydream-ready ZenFone AR debuts in India

World’s first smartphone with 8GB of RAM lands in India.

When ASUS unveiled the ZenFone AR earlier this year, it became the first phone to feature 8GB of RAM. It’s also the first device that can handle both Tango and Daydream — Google’s AR and VR platforms. The ZenFone AR is now available for sale in India for ₹49,999 ($775), with the device exclusively sold on Flipkart.

The ZenFone AR has a 23MP primary camera that’s augmented by a motion tracking camera and a depth sensing camera to deliver a smooth augmented reality experience. The motion tracking camera assists in tracking a user’s position in three-dimensional space, and the depth sensing camera measures the distance between objects through an IR emitter.

Meanwhile, the 5.7-inch QHD Super AMOLED display is ideal for Daydream, allowing users to explore VR-ready content via YouTube VR, Netflix, or dedicated apps. Specs include a Snapdragon 821 chipset, the aforementioned 8GB of RAM, 128GB storage, microSD slot, 8MP front camera, Wi-Fi ac 2×2 MIMO, USB-C, Bluetooth 4.2, and a 3300mAh battery with Quick Charge 3.0.

On the software front, the ZenFone AR is running Android 7.0 Nougat. The phone certainly looks interesting, but with mobile AR and VR platforms still in their infancy, it’s hard to see the device gaining momentum with a mainstream audience.

As part of the launch day offers, Flipkart is rolling out a ₹2,500 discount on the Daydream View for customers purchasing both the ZenFone AR and Google’s VR headset. You’ll also be eligible to get up to 100GB of additional 4G data if you’re a Jio customer.

Interested in picking up the ZenFone AR? Head to the link to know more.

See at Flipkart

Why the Huawei Mate 9 is severely underrated

The Huawei Mate 9 slipped between the cracks of high-end U.S. releases in late 2016, but I’m here to tell you that, in 2017, you should give it a look.

I’ve used a lot of phones in the past year, and one device continues to age better than most: the Huawei Mate 9.

For me, the phone kind of came out of nowhere: it was my first interaction with Huawei’s flagship lineup, after having suffered through the middling performance and aging software aesthetic of the Honor 5X, and the Mate 9 came out swinging. You can read more about the phone in our review, but the thing that I can’t say seven months later about every phone I review is that everything holds up.

Pretty much everything is great except the low-light camera performance.

From the screaming performance of the phone’s Kirin 960 chip to the seemingly-everlasting battery life, the Mate 9 impresses as much today as it did in December. Perhaps even more so, actually, given the relatively frequent software updates that cleared up some performance issues and software inconsistencies.

Truly, the one thing that irked me, and continues to do so to some extent, about the Mate 9 is the camera. Not that it’s bad, because it’s not, but it is easily outperformed in low light by newer devices. Even the separate-but-equal P10 and P10 Plus seem to be a better job in darker situations. But that hasn’t stopped Huawei from issuing a bunch of updates to improve how the camera reacts to particular situations, and while I can’t say the results are night-and-day improved, they’re certainly better.

But I’m not the only one who loves the Mate 9 all these months later. In our forum, people continue to praise the phone for its great value-to-performance ratio:

DamianP
05-22-2017 08:00 AM

“

I got the Mate 9 back in Feb and used it as a daily driver for a while and switched to a pixel XL, and LG G6. Ultimately I came back to the Mate 9 for a few specific reasons that are important to me.

1. Radio – it’s incredibly strong. It’s typically 4-10 db better than my G6 in the same location. I haven’t found a phone that I have used that’s better. I have been carrying both the G6 and…

Reply

All of this poster’s points are true: the phone does have a great, bright screen despite its relatively low pixel density — something that I don’t notice at all during day-to-day use. The battery is astoundingly good, and that Huawei fit a 4000mAh cell inside this slim and almost single hand-friendly chassis is amazing. And the black-and-white secondary sensor is one of the most enjoyable experiences I’ve had with a camera phone in years.

Gayle Lynn
07-05-2017 01:47 PM

“

5 hrs sot and 70% left. How many phones can do that?

5.8″ screen real estate. Would love to see more but hey.

There were 4 updates. Bought it Jan 5th from Amazon. So yes it does.
Would like to see 7.11 and EMUI 5.1 but at least seems to get essential security update.

Wickedly fast fps.

Paying is more reliable fast and easy without even installed Android Pay, even than iPhone 6S…

Reply

The phone also posts battery numbers that are really hard to account for by any other device except, perhaps, the original Moto Z Play.

And though the form factor does seem a bit wide when placed next to the Samsung Galaxy S8+, the perfect placement of the rear fingerprint sensor and high-quality aluminum chassis more than makes up for it in my opinion. Huawei also arguably got on board the slim bezel train before LG debuted the G6 four months later, since despite retaining a 16:9 screen aspect ratio there are barely any bezels on the sides of the LCD panel, and the ones above the screen are impressively tiny.

You may want to wait for the Mate 10, but if you need a great unlocked phone right now, you should consider the Mate 9.

With the Mate 10 approaching in October or November, normally recommending this phone would be a cautionary tale, but with its frequent discounts to under $500 on Amazon, its primary sales channel in the U.S., I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend the phone right now. Huawei has already committed to an Android 8.0 update, though it’s pretty slow on the trigger in general, and the Kirin 960 chip inside the phone is actually faster in many respects than the much-newer Snapdragon 835, for what it’s worth. I wouldn’t pay its MSRP of $599, but even its current-as-of-writing price of just under $550 is a pretty great deal.

See at Amazon

The Morning After: Thursday, July 13th 2017

Hey, good morning! You look fabulous.

The internet took a stand on net neutrality and Microsoft’s default font settings have the spotlight in Pakistan’s political drama. It must be Wednesday.

Thousands of sites stood up against the FCC’s plan to gut net neutrality.The internet rallies around the fight for net neutrality

Yesterday was the net neutrality Day of Action, and with the first deadline for comments on the FCC proposal up in five days, plenty of sites are making it easy today to voice an opinion. Some websites, including Netflix, Twitch, Spotify and PornHub, have added banners to their pages. Mozilla, Vimeo and Airbnb have added more-substantial additions to the top of their pages while websites like Twitter and Google have opted for blog posts. In short, lots of reminders to speak your mind here.

A political scandal that’s not in the US for onceMicrosoft’s Calibri font is at the center of a political scandal

Meet #FontGate. And yes, it deserves the name. In Pakistan, financial documents submitted by the prime minister’s daughter are under scrutiny because of the Panama Papers leak and due to the font used — Calibri. The documents were supposedly submitted in 2006, but use a Microsoft font that wasn’t available by default until 2007. It’s a big deal.

A sled hit 70 MPH at Devloop in Nevada this past May.Hyperloop One claims its first successful test run

The potential is an easy sell, but until now, we haven’t seen Hyperloop One’s proposed mag-lev transit system in action. The company has now announced that on May 12th, it completed its first full-scale test. The sled hit 70 MPH, in a vacuum, at the company’s Nevada testing facility. Eventual target speed? 250 MPH.

It got a nose job.See how Tesla’s Model 3 has changed since its debut

We’ll let the gif do most of the talking.

Now we just need the TVs.MIT solves a major problem holding up glasses-free 3D TVs

One of the reasons you don’t have at-home 3D without glasses is a lack of content that would be compatible with such a display. MIT’s Home3D system makes it easy to convert traditional stereoscopic 3D movies to formats ready for ‘automultiscopic’ displays without glasses.

Third time’s the charm?LG teases a V30 reveal for IFA 2017

A teaser image promising an August 31st unveiling likely means we’ll see the third iteration of LG’s V-series phone at IFA next month. Unsurprisingly, the image suggests we’ll see another version of its extra-tall FullVision screen. The bad news, unfortunately, is that it could be the end of the line for the V’s secondary display feature (and removable battery).

New ‘dog, new tricks.AirDog’s ADII ‘follow me’ drone doubles down on action sports

It seemed every other new drone a few years ago was quick to publicize its ‘follow me’ features, but only a few of the companies behind these bots remain. The small AirDog team survived, and now it’s back with the ADII, which follows its pilot even better than before — and with a slightly more subtle color scheme.

But wait, there’s more…

• Sports and tech pros own the first seven Overwatch League teams
• Louis Vuitton’s $2,490 smartwatch is an extravagant take on Android Wear
• High-tech solutions top the list in the fight against eye disease
• Audi’s AI future tackles autonomous driving one solution at a time

The Morning After is a new daily newsletter from Engadget designed to help you fight off FOMO. Who knows what you’ll miss if you don’t subscribe.

Link your Blizzard and Bungie accounts in time for ‘Destiny 2’

PC players may be a bit sore about having to wait longer to play Destiny 2 compared to console gamers. However, there is some good news for mouse and keyboard fans: You can now link your Blizzard account to a Bungie.net profile. Hurray!

Okay, that’s not as good as getting your hands on the sequel to the intergalactic grind-fest as soon as everyone else, but it has its benefits. Authenticating your account lets you sign into the services that Bungie.net offers, which should appeal to the Blizzard faithful and newcomers alike. These include access to the Bungie forums, special offers, and the ability to redeem codes for special in-game items, like emblems. Gamers with PlayStation Network IDs and Xbox gamertags already had the option available to them. You can find out more about linking your profiles here.

Blizzard account authentication is live. Blizzard accounts may now be linked to https://t.co/4ucwiEYycJ profiles: https://t.co/MgxGthKirX

— Bungie Help (@BungieHelp) July 12, 2017

Bungie announced in May that PC gamers will have to download the Blizzard app to play Destiny 2, and its beta. Using the service formerly known as Battle.net makes sense. It gives those hooked up to Blizzard’s gaming hub access to chat functionality and the ability to see when friends are online. These types of social interactions could also draw more Blizzard players to Destiny 2 (which probably factored into publisher Activision Blizzard’s decision to link the two gaming networks).

Destiny 2 lands on PC on October 24th — over a month after it arrives on consoles. Yes, the extra wait sucks, but at least those of you with powerful gaming rigs will be able to play it at a solid 60fps.

Source: Bungie (Twitter), Bungie.net

Apple Offers Free Redeem Codes for ‘Infltr’ Photo Editing App

Apple is offering users of its Apple Store app free redeem codes to download photo editing app Infltr. Usually $1.99, the acclaimed photo app for iPhone and iPad offers more than 7 million possible filters thanks to a sophisticated color gradient mapping algorithm, and lets users choose a filter before they take a picture or record video.

Moving a finger in any direction over the screen causes the photo filter to change its hue, while double-tapping shuffles the filter for a random pot-luck effect. Users can save customized filters to their collection, which can be synchronized to an online account to make it available on multiple devices.

Using 3D Touch gestures on supporting iPhones brings up a secondary menu that flips the camera front or back, lets users enable Live Photo, add vignette, and change the flash setting.

Infltr can be used to edit photos, videos, animated GIFs, and DSLR shots in HD without a loss in resolution, using over 10 included adjustment and transform tools. Users can also apply Infltr filters to the live camera feed while in iMessage.

Infltr is compatible with Apple Watch, allowing wearers to shoot remotely and adjust filters using the Digital Crown. The app also features an optional Home screen/Notification center widget that showcases new curated filters on a daily basis.

To get the app, first download the free Apple Store app [Direct Link]. The Infltr offer is featured in the Discover section on the main store screen. Offer ends August 15.

Update: Users running the iOS 11 public beta appear unable to redeem the offer through the Apple Store app.
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Amazon Working on Echo Successor to Rival Apple’s HomePod

Amazon is reportedly working on a successor to its Echo connected smart speaker for release later this year in a clear attempt to one-up Apple and its HomePod speaker, which is due to launch this December.

Sources who saw a working unit spoke to Engadget, claiming that the new Echo will improve on the first speaker “in every way”, being shorter and slimmer than the original, with rounded edges and a cloth-like covering preferred over the current Echo’s plastic shell and flat ends.

Perhaps unsurprisingly given Apple’s focus on the HomePod music experience, Amazon is aiming to significantly improve the sound quality of the next Echo, according to sources. The company’s new flagship smart speaker will feature multiple tweeters as opposed to just one large one (Apple’s HomePod packs in seven tweeters).

Amazon is also reportedly enhancing the new Echo’s far-field microphone technology, but it’s not clear how. The current Echo has a seven-mic array, while the HomePod has six and Google Home has two, although the software running the mics significantly dictates their listening quality.

Pricing remains unknown, but Amazon’s new Echo is likely to significantly undercut Apple’s HomePod, which will retail at $349 and go up against the likes of Sonos in the premium speaker market. The existing Echo costs $180 as a reference.

First impressions of Apple’s HomePod were largely positive following its unveiling in June, with journalists agreeing that the 7-inch tall device easily beats the Sonos Play:3 and 9-inch-tall Amazon Echo in terms of pure music playback quality. The HomePod initializes by playing 360-degree audio and listening back so that it can dynamically adjust sound output to fit environmental acoustics. Apple claimed it honed the technology over many years, so Amazon’s next smart speaker has plenty to live up to.

Related Roundup: HomePod
Tag: Amazon Echo
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NASA releases close-up photos of Jupiter’s Great Red Spot

Anybody who’s taken a look at images of Jupiter has seen its Great Red Spot, the planet’s massive storm that’s been raging for the past 350 years. This is the first time we’re seeing it this close, though, and it’s all thanks to NASA’s Juno spacecraft. The probe flew 5,600 miles above the spot on Monday, the closest it’s even been to the planet’s iconic feature, while all eight of its instruments collected data. Now, NASA has released the first batch of close-up images taken by JunoCam, showing the ancient storm in greater detail than we’ve ever seen before.

The agency has uploaded raw images featuring the spot and the area around it on the JunoCam website. They’re unprocessed, but people have begun editing them to look like the sharper, prettier images of space we’re used to, such as the photo above. NASA is hoping to figure out the inner workings of the storm and the turbulence surrounding it using the info Juno collected. It’s expected to release an analysis of the images coupled with the data gathered by the probe’s other instruments in the near future. For now, you can check out the red spot’s close-up photos right here.

Via: Wired

Source: Junocam

Pokémon Go celebrates first birthday with events across the globe

Still playing Pokémon Go? Might as well have fun on its first anniversary. Now that we’re only a few days away from the Pokémon Go Fest taking place in Chicago, Niantic has revealed more details about its game’s first birthday celebration. Apparently, you can participate in the event no matter where you are in the world by working with the participants at Grant Park during three Challenge Windows that will take place throughout the day.

During the Challenge Windows, trainers at Grant Park will have to catch monsters that will give remote players various perks, such as reducing the distance needed to hatch an egg. Trainers elsewhere in the world will then have to do their part and catch as many critters as they can to extend the duration of the perks unlocked by the participants in Chicago.

In addition to Pokémon Go Fest, Niantic will also hold several Safari Zone events in Europe featuring monsters previously unavailable in the region. And if you’re in Japan from August 9th to 15th, you can use the game as an excuse to attend the annual Pikachu Outbreak in Yokohama. The gamemaker is promising a special experience for players during the event. A word of warning, though: you might get tad distracted by the thousands of Pikachus marching and dancing around.

Source: Pokémon Go

EVE Online starts putting players to work finding exoplanets

EVE Online has finally launched the Project Discovery mini-game it announced earlier this year, and you know what that means? You can now defend all the hours you spend in the game by telling your mom or SO that you’re helping the scientific community find exoplanets. EVE has uploaded real astronomical data from the CoRoT space observatory that you can analyze within the mini-game as a pilot — once enough players reach the same conclusion on the data’s classification, that piece of info will be sent to the University of Geneva for a deeper look.

The space sim’s developers teamed up with Massively Multiplayer Online Science (MMOS), Reykjavik University and University of Geneva professor Michel Mayor for this particular project. However, it’s far from the their first time to crowdsource a scientific endeavor. Back in 2015, they also asked their users for help analyzing images for the Human Protein Atlas. The new Project Discovery effort is more connected to the game’s theme, though, so you may want to take a peek and see if you’re willing to put in a few hours for this one.

Source: EVE Online