YouTube hopes messaging will keep viewers glued to their screens

When I heard that Google was adding direct messaging to YouTube, the first thing I thought was “great, Google has another messaging app.” After juggling Google Talk, Hangouts, Allo and Google Voice messages with mixed success, the idea of yet another way to communicate from this particular company was a bit laughable. However, YouTube’s newest feature isn’t Google’s latest attempt at finding its own answer to iMessage or Facebook Messenger. In this case, it’s more about keeping customers on its platform, sharing and watching as many videos as possible.

It’s a lesson that YouTube has seemingly learned from Instagram, which first introduced in-app sharing in late 2013. Initially, that feature let you share photos privately with specific individuals, rather than posting them to your entire feed. It’s evolved quite a bit since then; you can share any public photo or video you see on Instagram with an individual or group and then chat away about it right in the same interface. And you can also still shoot new photos or videos and share them with a specific group.

It’s probably not a coincidence that YouTube’s implementation is basically identical to Instagram’s. You can share any public video on the platform with an individual or group; that then opens up a standard chat that can just be text messages back and forth until someone adds another video to the conversation. Unlike Instagram, though, which lets you shoot and share photos or videos that aren’t posted on the platform, YouTube only lets you share videos that have already been posted. So it’s not exactly going after Snapchat in the way that Instagram has; you won’t be able to share fresh clips with your friends in YouTube.

Despite that difference, YouTube figured out what Instagram has known for a few years: Messaging and sharing directly on-platform is key to keeping your users engaged. Instagram has been working towards this ever since it removed support for Twitter cards way back in 2012. At the time, users frequently posted pictures edited in Instagram directly to Twitter, diluting the value of Instagram’s own platform. There was an outcry when rich Twitter integration was removed, but time has shown that Instagram made the right decision. Though this move was initially user unfriendly, Instagram fans ultimately got a better experience being compelled to check out pictures on a platform that Instagram controls.

While you’ll initially need to invite your friends to share videos on YouTube with an SMS request, YouTube messaging is simple and user friendly once it’s set up. It basically takes three taps to share a video: Hit the share button, tap on one of your frequent contacts and hit send. You can add an initial comment as well; it’s a fast and easy process. Of course, it wasn’t hard to share YouTube on your phone’s native messaging app before — so YouTube had to make this simple and better in some ways. The combination of front-and-center frequent contacts made sharing easier, and being able to go back to your threads and pick up the conversation days later from within YouTube is handy as well.

Even if YouTube’s in-app sharing isn’t much better than dropping videos in your messaging app of choice, the company had little choice but to introduce a feature like this. YouTube may be a video juggernaut, but if people are jumping over to Facebook to share videos, they’re just as likely to keep on browsing Facebook, viewing and sharing more content there than back in YouTube proper. Basically, the better a job YouTube can do at keeping people on its platform, the better off it’ll be — users will be more engaged, and that means they’ll watch more ads. And to avoid being completely cynical, it’s entirely possible that YouTube will continue to enhance the experience when you share and watch video directly in its app, just as Instagram did.

Additionally, the tremendously social nature of YouTube makes this a natural addition. I personally use YouTube mostly to find videos on specific topics, regardless of who created it. But plenty of people actively follow friends and strangers alike, consuming every video they post. And given how personal a medium video is, these YouTubers can end up feeling like your friends, even if you’ve never met them before. Basically, YouTube is one of the biggest and most active social networks that isn’t Facebook — giving people a way to communicate through it is a pretty important feature.

So if you’ve felt burned by Google’s unorganized and slapdash approach to messaging, don’t be too worried here. Google and YouTube have a lot of incentive for making this work simply and well; for years now, CEO Sundar Pichai has talked about how important YouTube is to Google’s ad business. YouTube remains the king of video publishing and sharing, and finding new ways to keep people watching more videos will help keep it that way.

Venmo adds QR codes to make finding friends easier

Venmo wants to make it easier for you to find your friends. Instead of searching for their exact quirky handle, the payment service just added QR codes to user profiles. Just click the “Scan Code” option in the app’s menu, which lets you capture others’ codes with your mobile device’s camera or display your own for others to scan.

QR codes latest cool feature, but it’s certainly more secure to scan someone’s individual Venmo-approved code than take your best guess about which username corresponds to whomever you’re trying to pay. There’s even a feature that lets you export your personal code to other messaging services, email or as an image to pass around later.

The payment app isn’t the only online service to try applying this older tech to IRL interactions, either. Back in May, TechCrunch discovered that Facebook was experimenting with a rewards program within its mobile app that gave discounts when scanning objects in select stores. And not just tech luminaries, either. In March, retail colossus Walmart started rolling out a feature for its mobile app that formatted prescriptions and money orders into QR codes, which could be quickly scanned and paid for at store counters.

Via: TechCrunch

Source: Venmo

MIT uses radio waves and AI to more accurately study sleep

Sleep tracking has moved to the bedroom, with apps, peripherals and wearables that use movement or your device’s microphone to figure out when you’re sleeping or awake. Those with sleep disorders, however, are still stuck with large, disruptive arrays of physical sensors for sleep studies. Now, however, researchers at MIT have started using radio signals and artificial intelligence algorithms to analyze patients’ sleep stages without physical sensors and they’re reporting a high rate of accuracy. This could help people with Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and epilepsy, all of whom can have sleep disruptions that are hard to detect. Eventually, it may help all of us.

While the MIT system is in its infancy now, it’s easy to imagine a near future with home-based sleep monitoring using radio frequencies (RF). “Imagine if your Wi-Fi router knows when you are dreaming, and can monitor whether you are having enough deep sleep, which is necessary for memory consolidation,” said study leader Dina Katabi in a statement. “Our vision is developing health sensors that will disappear into the background and capture physiological signals and important health metrics, without asking the user to change her behavior in any way.”

While other systems use radio signals to monitor sleep, this is the first study that claims a high rate of accuracy (80 percent) as measured against EEG recordings. The RF signals gather some irrelevant information when tracking sleep, so the MIT team had to come up with new algorithms to help separate out the important data. The new sleep monitoring system uses deep neural networks and unique, MIT-written AI algorithms to analyze the data to translate the raw information to valuable sleep data. The team plans to use this new technique to study how Parkinson’s affects sleep next.

The researchers plan to present their research at the International Conference on Machine Learning on August 9. The current sleep monitor builds on previous radio-based systems the team has created that use low-power RF signals to detect and analyze emotions via vital signs like pulse and respiration. They’ve also used RF to measure walking speed, which can help doctors predict cognitive decline, falls and some cardiac or pulmonary diseases.

Source: MIT

Uber co-founder says Kalanick will not return to as CEO

After a series of missteps including a videotaped argument with one of his company’s drivers and a scathing written account of Uber’s sexist, toxic culture, the company’s then-CEO, Travis Kalanick, took a leave of absence, then stepped down from the role. An employee petition to return him to the CEO reportedly circulated throughout the company and Kalanick himself allegedly said he was “Steve Jobs-ing it” (a reference to Apple’s co-founder leaving and then triumphantly rejoining the company), an email sent Monday morning by co-founder Garrett Camp promises unequivocally that Uber will not hire Kalanick back.

As reported by ReCode, Camp wrote, “Our CEO search is the board’s top priority. It’s time for a new chapter, and the right leader for our next phase o growth. Despite rumors I’m sure you’ve seen in the news, Travis is not returning as CEO. We are committed to hiring a new world-class CEO to lead Uber.” The email continued to assert that Uber must “evolve and mature” as it seeks to improve its corporate culture and business practices. While the email does not directly say that Kalanick will never return to Uber, for now, at least, he will not take the CEO seat anytime soon. We’ve reached out to Uber for comment and will update this post when we hear back.

Via: ReCode

Xbox One is getting a completely new customizable interface

Microsoft just updated its suite of products for online gamers a month ago, adding a few quality-of-life features to Xbox Live and its streaming service Mixer (previously Beam). But today, they’ve announced an even bigger overhaul, revamping the user interfaces Xbox One and Windows 10 users.

The Home screen has been restructured, adding suggestions for new friends (and maybe an ad or two), but the big change is the new hot bar at the bottom. The first button sends users straight to their game library, but the next few are recently-played games or apps — a nice addition, if available elsewhere, that keeps you from having to dig around for your last-loaded title.

Microsoft also added a feature Xbox One fans have long desired: The freedom to customize their Home screens. Users can manually add games, and the system will automatically drop in related content like developer news releases or show when your friends start playing that title. The Guide’s a bit quicker and its smoother layout aims to make navigation easier, letting players switch between layered tabs with bumpers, the left joystick or the d-pad.

The Community page has also gotten a facelift, with new functionality that lets users peek into Activity Feed moments or comments and make them full-screen. There’s new filters for the feed itself, too. These updates are only coming to the first ring of Xbox’s Insider program for now before expanding slowly into wider groups of players as a sort of beta test, but a wider release is expected in the coming months.

Windows 10 players get a few new options added directly to the Game Bar, like a Game Mode switch. Mixer users also get a few sound toggles, allowing them to switch between game-only and system-wide audio straight from the bar. Unlike the Xbox One changes, these are assumedly rolling out immediately.

What we’re listening to: Nine Inch Nails, ‘Men in Blazers’ and Kitty

Welcome back to IRL, our series dedicated to the things that Engadget writers play, use, watch and listen to. This week, we’re focusing on music and podcasts, from Tumblr-Wave to Trent Reznor. First up, Managing Editor Terrence O’Brien uncovers some hidden SoundCloud gems.

Medslaus

Terrence O’Brien
Managing Editor

I honestly can’t tell you how I found this album. I know I was randomly trawling for New York hip-hop on SoundCloud, but I can’t remember which sequence of artists led me to the profile of Bed-Stuy rapper Medhane (pronounced: meh-donny). But I just clicked on his most-played track, “Marie.” It starts with a slow build over a couple of samples stretched to their breaking point. Then skittering drums kick in, and Medhane launches into his first verse — I was instantly hooked.

“Marie” is the fourth track off of Poorboy, the second album from Medslaus, the project of Medhane and producer Slauson Malone (real name: Jasper Marsalis). The sometimes-lumbering, always unpredictable beats share some DNA with MF Doom and J Dilla but have a swagger all of their own. And Medhane’s delivers thoughtful lyrics with unwavering confidence. It’s New York through and through and even harks back to the heyday of NYC punk through its DIY ethos and aesthetic.

Three weeks after discovering this hidden gem I’m still listening to it almost every day and it has quickly become one of my favorite records of the year. Medslaus is giving the album away for free, but I highly encourage you to throw a few bucks their way. Art like this needs and deserves your support.

Men in Blazers

Billy Steele
Senior News Editor

As an American soccer fan who’s still trying to grasp the finer points of European leagues, I need all the help I can get. Sure, there’s a load of coverage online, but if you’re trying to keep up with an entire league you didn’t grow up watching, the task can be rather daunting. Thankfully, there’s a podcast that keeps me up to speed on English Premier League happenings alongside a healthy dose of US National Team updates, MLS action and news from other clubs. Plus, the two hosts are hilarious.

The Men in Blazers podcast is the creation of Michael Davies and Roger Bennett, a complementary piece to their weekly TV show on NBC Sports. Davies is a Chelsea fan and Bennett an Everton supporter, so there are equal parts elation and disappointment during most shows and tons of British humor. Episodes during the European season typically feature a rundown of EPL scores and any newsy bits about US soccer or US players in other leagues. There’s understandably been a lot of talk about wonderboy Christian Pulisic at Dortmund, for example. Davis and Bennett break down the slate of results with a ton of wit and humor, hurling one-liners at an astonishing pace.

If I understand that Nymeria scene with Arya correctly, it was a faintly veiled retelling of Rooney’s return to Everton #GoTS7

— roger bennett (@rogbennett) July 24, 2017

The usual podcast stuff is here as well: interviews, comments from listeners and more. Players, managers and special guests all make an appearance for interviews on a regular basis to provide perspective on the game. Perhaps the best part is the episodes typically publish midweek, so the show gets me through until can get my live-match fix the next weekend. Well, that and all the bald jokes soften the blow that my own hairline is quickly retreating.

Kitty

Aaron Souppouris
Features Editor

It’s been five years since Kitty (formerly Kitty Pryde) did whatever the musical equivalent of going viral is with “Okay Cupid.” She quickly became one of my favorite artists, drip-feeding a steady supply of great tracks in EPs like Frostbite. Since 2014, though, things have been pretty quiet, as the Florida-based rapper has been working on a debut album, Miami Garden Club.

That album is out at the end of the month, and its eponymous lead single is fantastic. If you’ve not been following Kitty closely it’ll seem a long way from her original sound, which Vice half-jokingly dubbed “Tumblr-Wave,” but it’s all the better for it. A dreamy, melodic track with almost nightmarish overtones, it’s her best track in years.

Baby

Cherlynn Low
Reviews Editor

I never feel cool enough to contribute to our IRLs because I’m usually late to every movie, album or podcast in the world. But if there’s something I know better than my coworkers, it’s Broadway, and show tunes are just obscure and evergreen enough for me to provide a valuable suggestion. Of course, instead of telling you how awesome Hamilton’s soundtrack is or how the music from Wicked rouses deep feelings in me, I’ll point you to less-familiar titles.

This month, consider the lovely tunes from Baby, which originally ran on Broadway from 1983 to 1984. In particular, I’ve been learning to sing the song “The Story Goes On” sung by expectant mother Lizzie, who is just starting to realize the meaning of life and the endlessness of time. This is the number right before the musical goes to intermission, and it’s befittingly expressive, rangy and climactic. It’s a great track to get you marching on to work or to drown out noisy coworkers around you, but if you get a second to ponder the masterful (and clever) lyrics, you may find yourself contemplating your own progeny and even life itself.

Nine Inch Nails

Timothy J. Seppala
Associate Editor

I’m an easy mark for Nine Inch Nails. While I regrettably spent my high school years listening to Korn, Limp Bizkit and Slipknot (the late ’90s were a weird time), my adult life has been dominated by Trent Reznor’s music, both NIN and his film scores with longtime collaborator Atticus Ross. New material from him is always an event. It means I have something to dissect and listen to on repeat for a few months, new merch, vinyl and probably a tour to check out. Thankfully Reznor’s been incredibly prolific lately. But for awhile, the idea of new music was more enticing than the music itself.

In terms of soundtracks, the Patriot’s Day score didn’t strike me the way the duo’s work with director David Fincher does. And as far as NIN goes, the band’s last full-length album, 2013’s Hesitation Marks, was a solid effort but was more The Slip than it was Year Zero or With Teeth. That’s to say, it felt like the 52-year-old Reznor was losing his edge as he entered the next phase of his life/career as a creative director of Apple Music and film scorer.

That started changing with December’s surprise release Not the Actual Events and its “sequel,” last month’s Add Violence.

At just five tracks each, there isn’t any room to meander. I’m not going to dig into the Reddit rabbit hole about how Events, Violence and the forthcoming third EP are connected and that they may or may not form a Year Zero sequel. For me, it’s all about the music. And what’s on Add Violence definitely feels like fresh ground. It feels like a return to sleazy older sonics and styles, but with a confidence that wasn’t present before. Case in point: the 11:44-long album closer “The Background World.”

It starts off with a seductive bass line before Reznor comes in with quiet menace, voice getting louder and stronger as the music builds in time. But rather than crescendo in typical NIN fashion with a caustic keyboard or guitar solo, the song peaks four minutes later with the multi-instrumentalist screaming “This is what you want?” That’s when a locked groove takes over for the next seven minutes, repeating the chord progression every few seconds and progressively fucking it up until it’s pure static by song’s end.

It’s ballsy, and on the first few listens it sounded like filler or a lazy way to eke out extra time on the album rather than writing another song. But closer listens revealed hidden intricacies and made it my favorite track on the EP.

I’m not sure where the third release is going to go, and from the sounds of it neither is Reznor, but thankfully I have plenty to digest between Events, Violence and his score for Ken Burns’ Vietnam War documentary before it arrives late this year.

Blink-182

Jamie Rigg
Reviews Editor, Engadget UK

Some 16 years ago, a gig ticket was an extravagance. Despite being a Blink-182 superfan, teenage me just couldn’t justify spending the little money I had on a rock show. When the band announced an “indefinite hiatus” in early 2005, I thought I’d blown it — I would never see my beloved Blink live. When the group reformed several years later, I promised myself I would go to a gig every time they toured the UK.

Blink recently played two dates at London’s O2 arena. I bought my tickets as soon as they went on sale, nine months earlier. As you do, I spent the first few weeks of July revisiting the band’s pretty extensive back catalog. In between long stints of stress-relieving, 19th- and 20th-century classical, I nodded my head to the raw, messy, punky sound of Buddha, Cheshire Cat and Dude Ranch.

Then there was Blink’s international “big-break” album, Enema of the State. Compared to previous records, its slicker, cleaner production and accessible tracks like the hits All the Small Things and What’s My Age Again? came to epitomize pop punk. After Take Off Your Pants and Jacket, the self-titled Blink-182 album took the band to a much heavier and darker, more experimental place. Eight years later, and its post-hiatus comeback record Neighborhoods felt like it had a bit of everything, taking sips of influence from all the albums that came before it.

I’ve listened to Blink so frequently throughout the years, so saying I’ve been “revisiting” the music might be a bit of an overstatement. Truth is, in cliché superfan style, I love every album; every transition in sound. Apart from California, the band’s latest record released this time last year. Bored To Death is a pretty good track, but the rest of it is just really vanilla and uneventful.

Founding Blink member Tom DeLonge left the band sometime in late 2014/early 2015. Alkaline Trio’s Matt Skiba now fills that Tom-sized hole, and this is undoubtedly why California sounds the way it does — like a really good imitation of Blink, but lacking any soul or originality. The London show was borderline disappointing. Thanks to the pop punk/emo revival that’s been bubbling over the past few years, Blink-182 can sell out midweek shows at 20,000-capacity arenas.

It was a way more impersonal concert than I’m used to. Typically it’s sweaty walls, Gnarwolves T-shirts and Real Friends playing to a few hundred people. This time around, I wasn’t really at a show, I was watching one. There was fire, plenty of choreographed visuals, several generic tunes from California and Matt Skiba doing his best impression of Tom DeLonge. Not the most memorable of evenings, but, well, I guess this is growing up.

“IRL” is a recurring column in which the Engadget staff run down what they’re buying, using, playing and streaming.

Brain-controlled VR game hints at a hands-free future

We may be a long way off from a Holodeck-like virtual reality where your body is the controller, but Neurable might have the next closest thing. It recently unveiled a prototype peripheral that adds brain control to VR experiences. The device replaces the regular strap on an HTC Vive and uses specific brain signals (event-related potentials, not the EEG patterns you usually see) to trigger actions. In a showcase game, Awakening, you use your mind to escape a lab as if you had telekinetic powers — you don’t have to hold plastic wands as you battle robots and grab objects.

Games are the first application, and Neurable tells IEEE Spectrum it’s hoping to bring its experience to VR arcades in 2018. The brain controller should be slicker, too, so the bulky design you see here (which makes you look like you’re part of a lab experiment, really) won’t last long.

However, the company clearly has larger ambitions. It sees brain control as a big step up in VR interfaces. When done well, it both eliminates the learning curve (you just think about what you want to do) and allows for input that’s difficult or impossible when you can’t see your body, such as fast text input. This isn’t guaranteed to completely replace physical controls, at least not for a while (many games and other apps will still benefit from hands-on interaction), but it does hint at a future where you don’t need controllers for every instance of interactive VR, even when they’re relatively complex.

Via: IEEE Spectrum

Source: Neurable (Medium)

Apple Details 2017 Back to School Promotion in Europe: Free Beats With Select Mac or iPad Pro Models

Apple today launched its annual Back to School promotion in Europe — links below. Apple is offering the choice of a free pair of Beats Solo3, BeatsX, or Powerbeats3 headphones to qualifying students, parents of students, and educators who purchase an eligible Mac with education pricing for a limited time.

Eligible models include any new MacBook, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, iMac, or Mac Pro. Mac mini does not qualify.

The promotion also offers free BeatsX wireless headphones with the purchase of any 10.5-inch or 12.9-inch iPad Pro, or students can pay extra for Beats Powerbeats3 or Solo3 wireless headphones. Apple’s new 9.7-inch iPad and iPad mini 4 models do not qualify for the promotion.

The promotion is available on Apple’s online education store, and at Apple retail locations where available.

Participating countries in Europe include Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, and the United Kingdom.

Students are required to verify their enrollment or acceptance in a higher education institution in order to participate in the promotion. Not a student? Visit our Apple Deals roundup for other deals on Apple products and accessories.

Update: Apple’s education store may still be temporarily unavailable in some countries, but it should come back online shortly.

Tags: Europe, Back to School promotion
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Gear Up: Anker’s SoundBuds lineup provides great value while keeping your music bumping

More and more devices are being launched without our beloved 3.5mm headphone jack, and that is causing some frustration for those who want to consume media on their favorite phones. Thanks to the power of USB Type-C, some OEM’s are still including a 3.5mm to USB Type-C dongle, but those can get lost very quickly which can end up being a big pain.

There is another option, which may not be as popular, and that’s to join the Bluetooth revolution and invest in some Bluetooth headphones. The market has been dominated by the likes of JayBird, Bose, and Beats, but there are more viable (and cheaper) options on the market.

Today, we’re going to take a look at the suite of Anker SoundBuds Bluetooth headphones, which includes an option for just about everyone.

Anker SoundBuds Slim

Starting with the SoundBuds Slim, this set is for those want to keep a low (or dare I say, SLIM) profile with their headphones. The first thing that you’ll notice when you take them out of the box is that the earpieces are magnetic, and is something that I fell in love with when I picked up my BeatsX headphones.

Before diving too far, in the packaging, you get the SoundBuds Slim, microUSB cable for charging, and a few different ear buds and ear hooks to accommodate those with different ear canal sizes. There’s also a little quick start guide, but you can throw that off to the side as getting everything set up is pretty straightforward.

As with the other options listed here, the headphones will already be charged a bit, but you’ll want to plug them in to get them up to 100%. There’s an LED indicator on the controls which lets you know how much juice is in the chamber.

When it comes to battery life, Anker rates the SoundBuds Slim to provide up to 7 hours of playback on a single charge, and I was able to get very close to that. Some days, I listened non-stop and got between 5 and 6 hours, but the battery was a bit better if I stepped away from them and came back to them later for another extended session.

Pairing the SoundBuds Slim is also extremely easy, as you’ll only need to press and hold the “Play/Pause” button on the controls until the Blue LED begins flickering. Once the light starts flickering, you can go to the Bluetooth Settings on your favorite device and get things paired up.

If you’re looking at these to accompany you on a workout, we have good news. Anker claims that they feature an IPX4 water-resistant shell and an “internal nano-coating”. This provides a “double layer of water protection”, which is great if you get caught in the rain, or want to sweat it out in the gym.

Finally, we come to the important part — the sound quality. I wouldn’t say these can replace your cans that you use on a daily basis, but if you travel at all, the SoundBuds Slim are a welcome addition. I’m a fan of a lot of bass (see BeatsX), and while these don’t make my eardrums rattle, they still do an adequate job of giving me the extra oomph that I want.

I’ve mentioned the BeatsX as my go-to set of Bluetooth headphones, but those were priced at over $100, and that doesn’t fit into everyone’s budget. Thankfully, the Anker SoundBuds Slim are priced at just $25 and come in Black, Blue, or Red. If you’re interested, you can hit the button below to learn more!

Buy the Anker SoundsBuds Slim!

Anker SoundBuds Tag

Next up we have Anker SoundBuds Tag. These are a bit chunkier than the SoundBuds Slim, but have some hidden secrets to provide you some excellent sound quality while you’re on the go or at home.

As with the SoundBuds Slim, the SoundBuds Tag also includes an array of ear tips and “AirWings” to help make sure that the earpieces stay secure while you’re on the go. There is also an inline controller which allows you to answer calls, and control your media with a press of the button.

What sets the SoundBuds Tag apart from the others is the inclusion of Qualcomm aptX Bluetooth lossless technology. As explained by Qualcomm, aptX Bluetooth reduces the size of audio files “so they can be squeezed through the wireless pipeline without affecting the sound quality”. This is great news for those audiophiles who are concerned about losing sound quality while using Bluetooth headphones.

Speaking of sound quality, I must say that out of the three options listed today, the SoundBuds Tag is my favorite of the bunch. These were either paired to my LG G6 or my MacBook Pro and provided much more clear sounds compared to the SoundBuds Slim, but are a bit awkward to pair, and are a bit heavier.

When it comes to the SoundBuds Tag, these also feature magnets in the earpieces, but the cool thing here is that they automatically pair to the last device connected. This makes it perfect for pulling them out of your bag and getting your music with out messing around with settings.

In addition to automatically pairing with your last-used device, the magnets in the earpieces serve another purpose. When you pull the earbuds apart, your SoundBuds Tag automatically turn on, while attaching them automatically turns them off. This has cause a bit of a problem when I’m fumbling around in my bag and accidentally disconnect them, but is still a great feature.

When it comes to pricing, you may expect these to be priced alongside the BeatsX, but that’s not Anker’s style. Instead, the Anker SoundBuds Tag is priced at just $32.99, and come in either Black or White. If you want to pick these up for yourself, hit the button below, and let us know what you think!

Buy the Anker SoundsBuds Tag!

Anker SoundBuds Sport

The final option for those looking for a set of Bluetooth headphones is geared towards the gym rats out there. The Anker SoundBuds Sport is one of the best options for those who want to a set of headphones that keeps going as long as they do.

Anker rates the battery for the SoundBuds Sport at 8 hours and I was able to reach that mark, if not pass it, a couple of times throughout my testing. While these don’t offer the aptX Bluetooth technology as the SoundBuds Tag, there is still CNC active noise cancellation built-in. This will help you make sure that you stay focused on the task at hand and not be interrupted.

The differences don’t stop there, however, as there are not in-line controls on the SoundBuds Sport. Instead, all of your controls can be found on the side of the earpieces themselves. On the left earbud is your play/pause button, while the right earbud houses the volume control for the SoundBuds Sport.

I must admit, this was a bit frustrating at times, but it wasn’t enough to drive me away from continuing to enjoy these headphones. What did frustrate me was the call-quality of the SoundBuds Sport. The person on the other end of the call always complained that I wasn’t speaking up, leaving me to almost have to yell for them to hear me — a problem not experienced with the other SoundBuds products.

Now, I’m not the most active person in the world, but when I was warming up for some basketball, the SoundBuds Sport stayed in place for me, after I switched up the ear tips. Before then, one earpiece would fall out, only for the other to fall out after being put back in.

Regardless, the SoundBuds Sport is definitely worth a look if you’re looking for some budget-minded work out Bluetooth headphones. Priced at just under $30, you don’t have much to lose when giving the SoundBuds Sport a shot.

If you’re looking to pick these up, they are available in Black, Green, and Blue color options and you can get them as soon as tomorrow thanks to Prime Shipping. Hit the button below to learn more and let us know what you think about the SoundBuds Sport!

Buy the Anker SoundsBuds Sport!<

Conclusion

The great thing about the world we live in is that technology is always evolving, making it possible for smaller accessory-makers to provide budget options. What’s even better is when these accessories hit the mark and save you more than a few bucks in the process.

Anker’s SoundBuds lineup does this and so much more, and I can’t say enough great things about these awesome headphones. Let us know what you think about these Anker headphones and if you’ll be looking to pick up a pair for yourself!

Sara Is Missing: Prepare to be entertained in a horrific way (Review)

If you are a fan of horror games and you own a console, then you have a plethora of choices at your disposition, thanks to years of success of franchises like Resident Evil and Silent Hill. However, if you only game on your Android devices, the choices become more limited. Sure, there are some available, such as Dead Effect, Limbo, and Five NIghts at Freddy’s, but there’s not a lot to choose from nonetheless. Sara Is Missing is here to appease your need for horror games, and it manages to immerse you in its world in such a way that I’ve rarely seen on a mobile game.

Developer: Kaigan Games
Price: Free

Overview

Upon launching the game, you will be greeted with an unlock screen, similar to the lock screen found in the gleeful iOS 6 era of iPhone devices. The history behind it is that you found a device and it is your job to find its owner. The first thing you might think is something like “Sure, I’ll just call the owner’s mother and that should settle it. What a boring game.” Oh, if it was that easy…

You’ll soon find I.R.I.S., which would be the result of a baby between Siri and Jarvis (you know, Tony Stark’s intelligent assistant). She will start talking to you about how Sara, this phone’s owner, has gone missing and you need to help it find her.

However, this is not easy because a lot of the data inside this phone has been “intentionally damaged.” I.R.I.S. recovers some data, and, from there, one hell of a ride starts.

The game is completely done on a phone interface, so you actually feel like your phone is Sara’s phone. You can access her messages, email, gallery, phone history, and contacts, just like a real phone. After going through the game a little bit, you will even start receiving messages and phone calls, which makes it amazingly believable and immersive.

You’ll have to explore through the phone and find clues about Sara’s whereabouts. If you find something, I.R.I.S. can examine it and she will tell you her opinion on it. Through these interactions with her, the story progresses further and you will be presented with choices that really do matter.

Talking about the story, it will get creepy really fast. You have to watch a video at the beginning that sets the tone pretty well for what’s about to come. The game foreshadows the events that will happen later through texts and emails. Some of the multimedia that you have to deal with is seriously macabre, but everything does a good job in setting a very tense and frightening environment.

There are three different endings, all based on the big choices you have to make. When the game ends, it resets itself so that you can go through it again and try different combinations to see where do your choices take you the next time.

General Impressions

I must admit that I’m not the strongest person when dealing with horror stuff, but the game does a terrific job in keeping you tense at all times. There is nothing that could be considered ultra scary, but watching the story unfold in front of you and slowly making you a part of it is one of the most fascinating experiences I’ve ever had on a mobile device.

Unfortunately, I can’t give you full details because anything more and I would start to spoil the story for you, but the developer did an astounding job in making sure that the game closely resembles your normal interaction with a regular device.

Going through a gallery of images and videos, receiving phone calls and voice messages, and sending messages to other people is what makes this experience so enthralling. It feels like you’re part of that world because everything feels so natural.

There’s a part where you are receiving messages from a person. He answers very fast, and the typical “is typing” dot animation accompanies all of his messages. However, there’s a moment in which the animation stays there for a while and you don’t receive an answer. You really start to wonder what happened to the guy and why he doesn’t answer, especially after reading his last replies.

A few minutes later you start receiving creepy pictures based on your choices. The phone starts to malfunction in some instances. The messages you receive and the choices you have to make get creepier by the minute. This all may sound like small things but every little detail adds up to make such an engaging experience.

Graphics

As previously said, the whole game is just experienced through a phone interface. If you remember how iOS looked before Scott Forstall was fired (that is, before iOS 7), then you already know how Sara Is Missing looks. This makes the game look outdated. Why would the phone interface of my Samsung Galaxy S8 look like an operating system from 2012?

The interface for messages, gallery, and even the keyboard look like Forstall was hired for designing the interface for this game. I can understand that it would be too much to ask for the interface to change according to the phone being used, but if the developer wants to provide an iOS interface, then at least iOS 10 looks more modern.

One thing to note about the graphics is that the game reaches amazing levels of performance with them. Every click triggers an action immediately, fluidly, and without frame drops. It’s even better than the TouchWiz versions from a couple of years ago.

Sound

The game is not that sound-intensive. There are some sound effects here and there, especially those ones made by the messaging app. The audio from the videos you will have to go through is clear and of decent quality. Phone calls and voice messages can sound a bit muddy but I’m pretty sure this is done on purpose.

Since you’re in a phone interface, there’s no background music. The game, however, recommends you to play with headphones so that you get more immersed. This is especially good while watching videos and receiving phone calls. However, I played most of the game without headphones and it was as enjoyable as it was without them.

Conclusion

No one can blame you if you think that a game that simulates a phone interface could be fun. However, Sara Is Missing is able to provide a compelling experience, thanks to a intriguing story that keeps you on the edge at all times. The biggest complain about it is how short it is. We are talking about one hour, maybe one hour and a half of gameplay. There are three different endings, however, but no one can deny how short it is. Anyways, two hours of one of the most enthralling experiences around are awaiting if you download Sara Is Missing, for free and without ads. Sounds like a good deal to me.

Download and install Sara Is Missing from the Google Play Store.