How are you liking Tizen 3.0 on the Gear S3?

Time to get familiar with all of your new goodies.

Samsung recently started to roll out Tizen 3.0 for last year’s Gear S3 smartwatch, and there are a lot of new features and goodies included with it as part of Samsung’s “Value Pack Update.” Whether you’re a fitness nut, use your smartwatch to help you be more productive throughout the day, or simply want access to some new UI tricks, Tizen 3.0 has something for just about everyone.

Some of our forum users have already started using the new software on their Gear S3, and this is what they had to say.

vader4633
11-20-2017 03:09 PM

“

Little cool thing, hold down on the watchface to see your other watchfaces. Turn the bezel all the way left and it will show 4 of the faces at a time to scroll through with the bezel.

Reply

Cowboy8467
11-20-2017 03:31 PM

“

Finally have the ability to see an entire text message thread even if you don’t have default samsung messaging. Using Textra and I am able to see the whole thing.

Reply

stmax
11-20-2017 10:42 PM

“

My favorite feature so far… The quick settings can be edited and one of them is AOD! I use AOD at work but screen off after work. Now it’s one step away rather than drilling into settings.

Reply

RustyFJ
11-20-2017 10:48 AM

“

Make sure you sync your steps and other health measurements with your phone before you update. Annoyingly I’ve lost all steps and number of floors climbed today since the update.

Reply

If you’ve already downloaded the update, we’d like to hear from you – How are you liking Tizen 3.0 on your Gear S3?

Join the conversation in the forums!

Best Medium-Sized Android Phone

• Best overall
• Best for simplicity
• Best for camera buffs
• Best for less

Best overall

Samsung Galaxy S8

See at Verizon
See at AT&T
See at T-Mobile
See at Sprint
See at Best Buy

The Galaxy S8 is an easy pick for best medium-sized phone, and it’s one that is most likely going to feel substantial while remaining easy to use in one hand. That’s owed to the beautiful, extra-tall 18.5:9 screen that delivers some of the best visuals we’ve ever seen on a phone.

Add to that a whip-fast Snapdragon 835 chip and plenty of specs to keep early adopters happy and you have some of nicest hardware on the market today. More surprising (in a good way) is Samsung’s software, which continues to improve year over year, even if it does stuff a million and one features in the settings.

Bottom line: The Galaxy S8 does most things right so even its negatives are easily to overlook.

One more thing: If you’ve got the extra room in your pocket or hands, the Galaxy S8+ or Galaxy Note 8 are nice size boosts over the S8.

Why the Galaxy S8 is the best

You get more for your money with the GS8.

Everyone has their preference, but I think most people would agree that the Galaxy S8 is still one of the better-looking phones on the market today. The way the curved glass meets the aluminum sides — 👌. But here’s the thing: if it were just aesthetic, the Galaxy S8 wouldn’t be on this list. For all of its quirks — the displacement of the fingerprint sensor to the back, and the unreliable face unlock that replaces it — the phone is rock solid in almost every other respect.

Great touch response; amazing color accuracy; incredible camera; awesome battery life. And the Galaxy S8 manages to pack in 64GB of internal storage as standard, along with wireless charging and water resistance. There aren’t a lot of things this phone can’t do. It also manages to stay pretty easy to use in one hand, thanks to its taller-yet-narrower 18.5:9 aspect ratio.

Best for simplicity

Huawei P10

See at Amazon

If the Galaxy S8 is too ritzy for your taste, the Huawei P10 may be a bit more your style. It fits a 5.1″ 1080p display and excellent dual-camera optics into a svelte aluminum body, and manages impressive endurance out of its 3200mAh battery as well.

There’s no elongated display or glass back to enable wireless charging, but the P10 manages to nail the core functions of a smartphone and offers fast performance at a relatively low cost.

Bottom line: If you want a phone that’s simply reliable without some of 2017’s trending features, the P10 and the larger P10 Plus are great devices.

One more thing: While the IPS LCD display is nice, there’s no oleophobic coating, so it can quickly become dirty without a screen protector.

Best for camera buffs

LG G6

See at Verizon
See at AT&T
See at T-Mobile
See at Sprint
See at B&H

This list wouldn’t be complete without the Comeback King of 2017, the LG G6. This phone makes up in almost every way for the misfire of the G5, and once again positions LG as the main competition with its South Korean rival, Samsung. The G6 may not have the fastest chip on the market — it ships with the Snapdragon 821 — but everything else, from the software to the camera setup, is completely modern.

Indeed, the camera setup may be a good reason to pick this over the Galaxy S8; its dual cameras offer both a “normal” field of view as well as an ultra-wide lens that makes for incredible landscape photos. A beefy manual mode and excellent sound capture round out the G6’s excellent optical pedigree, though the phone is fundamentally sound in other ways, too. Its 18:9 aspect ratio screen is nearly as good as the S8’s, as its fingerprint sensor is much easier to reach.

Bottom line: The G6 keeps up with the Galaxy S8 in almost every way, and surpasses it in the camera department.

One more thing: The North American G6 comes with wireless charging, which is a bonus, but all models are waterproof.

Best on a budget

OnePlus 5T

See at OnePlus

The OnePlus 5T offers flagship-class performance without the sky-high price tag. Starting at $499 for a Snapdragon 835, 6GB of RAM, and 64GB of storage, it’s a bargain that brings an all-aluminum chassis, dual cameras, and a 2:1 display.

OxygenOS, the software running on the OnePlus 5T, is one of my favorite versions of Android around; it’s almost identical to stock Android, with a touch of added customizability. Because it’s so lightweight, the OnePlus 5 runs exceptionally fast given its price. There’s also an incredibly convenient audio profile switcher above the volume rocker for quickly adjusting levels, and outrageously fast face unlock security.

Bottom-line: With a big, bright screen, a great dual-camera layout, excellent build quality, and loads of nice software touches, the OnePlus 5T is one of the best smartphone deals you can find today.

One more thing: The 5T won’t receive Android Oreo until Q1 2018, but OnePlus will be running an open beta program by the end of November.

Conclusion

The Galaxy S8 may not seem like a medium-sized phone, but that’s because its tall screen is deceptive. In fact, this phone is easy to use in one hand (and has a great one-handed mode to make it even easier) along with a spec sheet for days. While the Huawei P10 is still our favorite for simplicity, the G6 takes some amazing photos, and the OnePlus 5T is a perfect budget option, the S8 does more than all, and most things better.

Best overall

Samsung Galaxy S8

See at Verizon
See at AT&T
See at T-Mobile
See at Sprint
See at Best Buy

The Galaxy S8 is an easy pick for best medium-sized phone, and it’s one that is most likely going to feel substantial while remaining easy to use in one hand. That’s owed to the beautiful, extra-tall 18.5:9 screen that delivers some of the best visuals we’ve ever seen on a phone.

Add to that a whip-fast Snapdragon 835 chip and plenty of specs to keep early adopters happy and you have some of nicest hardware on the market today. More surprising (in a good way) is Samsung’s software, which continues to improve year over year, even if it does stuff a million and one features in the settings.

Bottom line: The Galaxy S8 does most things right so even its negatives are easily to overlook.

One more thing: If you’ve got the extra room in your pocket or hands, the Galaxy S8+ or Galaxy Note 8 are nice size boosts over the S8.

Update, November 2017: We’ve added more current information and chosen the OnePlus 5T as our top budget pick.

Samsung Pay is now available in Mexico

Samsung Pay’s expansion throughout other countries heads south of the border.

Android Pay has grown into an incredibly solid mobile payment service over the years, but for a lot of folks, Samsung Pay still reigns supreme. The ability to make payments at both NFC and MST terminals has put Samsung Pay in a league of its own since 2015, and it continues to do so to this very day.

A Samsung Pay page on Samsung’s Mexico website was recently spotted, and although specifics on the service in the country are still pretty scarce, it does appear that you can start using it today – November 21, 2017.

Supported devices include the Galaxy S8/S8+, S7/S7 edge, S6 edge+, Note 8, Note 5, J7 Pro, J6 Pro, A7, A5, and A3. There’s still no word on which banks or cards are compatible with Samsung Pay, but we’d expect this information to be made available soon.

This is a big step for Samsung Pay, and it’s not even the first expansion we’ve seen this month. Samsung recently added support for debit cards a ton more banks in Canada, making it clear that this is a service the company is dead serious about.

If you live in Mexico and have had a chance to try out Samsung Pay, let us know in the comments below how you’re liking it.

Samsung Pay in Canada gains new partners, option to use debit cards

Please don’t buy a crappy cheap tablet on Black Friday

You owe it to yourself to avoid buying something terrible.

We’ve all been there, scrolling down the list of sales online or flipping through the heap of ads that arrive in the newspapers that week. A tablet that was “regularly priced at $199” is going to be available for $50, but only to the first 20 people in line who ask for them. That tablet never cost $199. The store probably didn’t spend $299 to get those 20 units into the store to trick you into buying in the first place. If you go stand in line for that tablet, you will come home to find little more than sadness in the box.

Let’s get this out of the way right here and now — there is no such thing as a good cheap tablet on Black Friday. They don’t exist, and any company trying to sell you one knows you’re going to get more use out of the box that tablet comes in than you will the hardware contained within.

If you are dead set on purchasing any kind of technology on Black Friday, here’s what you need to know.

Haven’t started scoping out Black Friday deals yet? Check out the ultimate guide to Black Friday at Thrifter!

If it seems like too good a deal, it probably is

If there’s one thing we can say for sure about this past year, it’s that manufacturers have gotten very good at pricing Android phones at tablets low enough that they’re appealing every day of the year and not just on special sales. The inherent downside to this is the decrease in likelihood the established brands will have extreme sales on proven hardware that was released this year, because these devices were already sold close to cost.

The only time you’ll see any significant discount on Android hardware right now is when a manufacturer is trying to get rid of stock. This isn’t always a bad thing, but requires some research to make sure you aren’t buying garbage. The Galaxy Tab A is a perfect example, especially with some of the deep discount sales we’ve seen on this tablet over the last couple of months. While not explicitly Android related, the Anova Sous Vide cooker is another good example of something nice that will likely also be cheap. These things weren’t necessarily worth it for one reason or another when they were released, but at discounted rates the tech becomes significantly more compelling.

Pay attention to bundle deals

Since the cost of hardware has come down, retailers are likely to rely heavily on bundle deals for those first in line this year. This usually means a tablet will be priced nearly identically to what you’ll see in stores, but it comes with several accessories to create the value. With a tablet, this could be anything from cases to docs to screen protectors, which you’d basically be getting for free with the cost of your tablet.

Bundle deals like these are usually assembled by the individual stores based on the stock they have available, and will often only be available when the doors open or for hour windows during the store’s normal hours of operation. It’s also the kind of thing you won’t see advertised until you’re in the store, depending on what is available. You best bet here is to stop into a store the day before and ask about these bundles so you can see which are the best bet for you.

What to look for when shopping

So you now know what not to buy. Here’s a short checklist for a tablet worth your money. Follow this, and you’ll be gifting something anyone would be happy with for quite a while.

• Know what you want: If you know you’re looking for a tablet, make sure you’ve answered a few basic questions before you head into the store. What is this tablet being used for? What accessories are needed with this tablet? How long will this tablet be used? The answers to these questions will narrow down your list a bit, and make choosing in the store much easier.

• Pay attention to brand names: Tablets aren’t like those bags of cereal that taste just as good as the big brands. These little computers are usually sold just about as cheaply as they can be from the beginning, which means companies who are able to get a brand new tablet way down in price are either selling ta a huge loss or cutting corners with the internal hardware. With a major brand, you know it’s usually the former. With a brand you’ve never heard of, you can be sure it’s the latter.

• Look for Google apps: Unless you’re buying an Amazon Kindle Fire tablet, you want to keep an eye out for Google’s apps on any tablet you want to buy. Not only does this guarantee this tablet will have access to the latest apps, but it means this tablet has passed a rigorous series of tests Google requires in order to install those apps. If you see the Google Play Store or the Gmail app on the homescreen, you know this is something running software Google trusts.

• Don’t buy something old: You’ll see this a lot with Samsung tablets this time of year, but there are several manufacturers with this issue. Old tablets taking up space will be sold for next to nothing, and unfortunately that probably means the hardware is already showing signs of age and isn’t as likely to get software updates for more than a couple of months. Do a quick search to see when the tablet was released, and that will help you determine whether you’re actually getting a deal.

• Read some reviews: If a tablet is reputable and sitting on a store shelf, there will be reviews online for it. Read a couple so you get a good idea for what the tablet is capable of. While we’d obviously love for you to start here at Android Central, you really should read more than one if you’re trying to decide which tablet will give you best experience.

If you don’t see what you want on Black Friday, there are still plenty of deals to be found

Retailers have figured out there’s plenty of other shopping days in the year, so if you don’t find the tablet you’re looking for on Black Friday it’s not the end of the world. You don’t have to settle on something less because it’s available right then and there. You can keep an eye on all of the retail websites, and you’ll find there will be plenty of great sales between Black Friday and Christmas Day. Do that, and you’ll be sure to get the tablet you actually want at a reasonable price this year.

Check out Thrifter’s guide to Black Friday for all the best sales!

Buying anything during the holiday season can be a little on the stressful side, but tablets are one of those things that are almost always available and on sale in some fashion. You’re bound to find what you want if you know where to look, and with this guide as your holiday helper this purchase will hopefully be much easier on everyone.

Skyrim on PlayStation VR: Tips and tricks for survival!

Skyrim can be an unforgiving place, but these tricks ought to help you thrive.

Skyrim has arrived for PlayStation VR allowing you the ability to really feel like you are traveling the world. This huge, open world game has dragons, magic, combat, necromancers, vampires…and a whole lot more. While it is true that you can do, well, just about anything, having a few tricks up your sleeve can definitely help keep you alive. Whether this is your first visit to Skyrim, or you’re returning for the umpteenth time, these tips and tricks should help you survive the journey.

We’ve got the tricks to survival in Skyrim VR for you here!

Read more at VRHeads

HTC’s Blackest Friday sale offers $50 off U11 and free $200 JBL earphones

The sale is live now and will be available until November 29.

Although we’re still a few days away from the official Black Friday, there are more than a few sales and promotions that you can already take advantage of. HTC recently launched its “Blackest Friday” campaign, allowing customers to get discounts and freebies on some of HTC’s latest handsets.

Probably the best deal being offered here is on the U11. HTC is offering $50 off the phone to bring the price down to $599, and along with this, you also get JBL’s Reflect Aware C Earphones (a $200 value) and HTC’s Fetch accessory ($25 value) for free.

The HTC Fetch is also included with the purchase of an HTC U11 Life or HTC Bolt, and similar to a deal that was running earlier this month, you can pick up the Bolt for as little as $200.

Along with these deals, HTC is also offering 50% off an accessory of your choosing with the purchase of any phone, as well as $5 cases for the HTC One M8, M9, and A9. The sale is live now and will run through November 29 at 12:00 AM EST.

See at HTC

OnePlus 5T is now available for purchase, starts at $499

OnePlus’s best (and most expensive) phone is here.

The OnePlus 5T was officially unveiled just a few days ago in New York City, and the phone is already available for purchase from OnePlus’s website if you want to be among the first people to own the company’s latest and greatest.

Just like with the OnePlus 5 earlier this year, there are two models of the 5T to choose from – the 6GB of RAM and 64GB of storage variant will set you back $499, but upgrading to 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage will increase the price to $559. There’s only one color to choose from this time around (Midnight Black), and placing your today, November 21, will allow you to get 50% off the Early Bird Bundle.

OnePlus’s Early Bird Bundle comes with either a Sandstone or Karbon protective case, as well as a 3D tempered glass screen protector. This bundle usually costs $39.90, but you can get it now for just $20.08 when ordered with a new 5T.

Both models of the OnePlus 5T are slated to ship out within four days of placing your order, shipping is free, and OnePlus offers a 15-day return period for some added peace of mind.

See at OnePlus

Here are all the official OnePlus 5T cases

OnePlus is a phone maker, but it’s also well-known for its excellent cases, too.

Over the years, OnePlus has refined its product strategy: it started by releasing one phone every year along with a couple of in-house accessories, and has since expanded to two phones a year with a suite of cases, headphones, backpacks and other swag.

For a company selling phones for such razor-thin margins, this strategy makes sense: the cases are between $20 and $30 each, which isn’t a huge number in the case world, but the company makes a considerable profit on each one. Rinse, repeat.

That brings us to the OnePlus 5T. As with every previous device in its arsenal, OnePlus is issuing a bunch of cases, and we’re going to take you through them right now.

Sandstone case

The Sandstone case harkens back to the early days of the OnePlus One, offering the same ultra-grippy sandpaper-like texture from the company’s first phone. It’s my favorite snap-on case, as it’s both adequately protective, extremely low-profile, and lightweight. This style is also available in Karbon coloring (see below) and comes in at just under $20.

See at OnePlus

Karbon Bumper case

The Karbon Bumper case is one of the more protective ones available for the OnePlus 5T, with a hard plastic shell that covers all the sides fairly well. At $30, it’s not cheap, but its carbon fiber pattern (hence the name) is quite attractive.

See at OnePlus

Ebony Wood case

OnePlus’s wood cases are among the nicest out there. The Ebony version is darker and has a more defined, almost feline pattern that the Rosewood case. There’s a plastic lip around the front to protect the screen, and it’s done so that it’s not distracting. At $30, it’s excellent value.

See at OnePlus

Rosewood case

Rosewood is my favorite of the OnePlus case styles. It blends beautifully with a wooden desk (seen here at a local coffee shop 😂) and its lighter tone looks fantastic. It’s not that protective, but the plastic bumper around the front definitely helps protect the Gorilla Glass of the OnePlus 5T.

See at OnePlus

Silicone case

The Silicone case definitely looks familiar, but if you’re cloning an iconic design, you might as well do it right. OnePlus does, and at $20, charges significantly less for the privilege. The Silicone case wraps around the back of the phone and feels awesome to hold. Very grippy, too.

See at OnePlus

Your favorite?

What’s your favorite official OnePlus case? Let us know in the comments!

OnePlus 5T and OnePlus 5

• OnePlus 5T review: Come for the value, not the excitement
• OnePlus 5T specs
• Should you upgrade from the OnePlus 3T?
• OnePlus 5T vs. Galaxy S8: Beast mode
• All of the latest OnePlus 5T news
• Join the discussion in the forums

OnePlus
Amazon

Android has tracked location info regardless of privacy settings

When you tell your phone to stop sharing your location, you expect it to honor your request, don’t you? Unfortunately, that hasn’t been entirely true with Android as of late. Quartz has confirmed that, starting in early 2017, Android phones have been sending the addresses of nearby cellular towers and sending it back to Google, regardless of your location sharing settings — even if you didn’t have cell service turned on and hadn’t used any apps. In theory, Google or an intruder could have triangulated your approximate position using the data for multiple towers.

A Google spokesperson stressed that the tower info, known as Cell ID codes, wasn’t being used and was tossed out as soon as it was received. The company had been “looking into” using the data to speed up message delivery. Also, Google has promised to end the behavior. Android phones will stop sending Cell ID by the end of November.

The immediate threat to your privacy wasn’t high, then. Google wasn’t spying on people, and a hacker wouldn’t have found a treasure trove of data sitting on Google’s servers. However, the real concern is that Google decided to transmit location info despite your privacy settings, using a service (the network sync system) you couldn’t turn off. Simply put, the company wasn’t fully respecting your intentions — you couldn’t completely eliminate the risk of location-based surveillance.

Source: Quartz

Sonos One now supports voice control of Spotify with Alexa

The Sonos One is the company’s first voice-activated speaker, letting users control their music via Amazon’s Alexa assistant. When we reviewed it back in October, editor Nathan Ingraham called it the best-sounding smart speaker you can buy. But when it launched, the Sonos One’s voice control features didn’t work with Spotify, though Sonos promised it this integration would arrive by December 21. It turns out it’s here early; Alexa can now use Spotify to to play your favorite album, artist, playlist or song on the Sonos One.

If you have Sonos speakers, but not the Sonos One smart speaker, this news is still relevant to you. Older Sonos speakers can be controlled with your voice, thanks to the Echo, Echo Dot and other Alexa-enabled devices. If you have this integration set up, you can control Spotify with your voice on your non-Sonos One speakers as well.

Sonos is all about improving its connections and integrations; last week, it announced direct control for both Pandora and Tidal through their respective apps. The timing of this new Spotify voice features is also nice; it’s just in time for holiday cooking and entertaining.

If you don’t have a Sonos system yet, Sonos is offering some great Black Friday deals this holiday season. From November 23rd through the 27th, you can get $25 off the Sonos One, $100 off the Playbase and Playbar and $50 off the Play:1 and Play:3.