If Apple Is Slowing Down Your iPhone, Here’s How To Fix It

Note: This “fix” is only possible if you’re running iOS 10.2.1 on an iPhone 6, 6 Plus, 6S, 6S Plus, or the SE. If you’re using an iPhone 7 or 7 Plus, you’ll need to be running iOS 11.2 or higher. If you don’t have one of the aforementioned devices running either iOS 10.2.1 or iOS 11.2, then replacing your battery will likely have no effect on processor speed.

If you weren’t already aware, Apple recently admitted that it intentionally slows down processor speeds on older iPhone models in order to compensate for degrading batteries. After publicly apologizing for incident — and upon receiving a deluge of consumer backlash — the company announced that it would offer replacement batteries for about $30, which amounts to a $50 discount. Assuming the battery is the primarily source of your iPhone’s recent sluggishness, opting for a replacement from Apple should increase processing speeds and allow it to operate like normal for the foreseeable future.

Before heading down to your local Apple store to get a replacement battery, however, it’s important to ascertain if you truly need one. On the surface, this may seem hard to do, but it’s relatively simple if you run a diagnostics test on your iPhone using an app like Geekbench 4.

The freemium app is available in the App Store, and allows you to quickly test your processor speed. The CPU test takes some time to complete, but based on your Geekbench score, you will know if you iPhone is affected by the dreaded slowdown. If your Geekbench score is 500 points or so below the average — a score that falls within the 500 range could be the result of normal operating conditions — then you’re phone is likely suffering as a result of Apple’s supposed software “fix.” If this is indeed the case, we suggest that you get your battery replaced sooner rather than later.

Here’s a list of the average Geekbench scores for each iPhone model:

• iPhone 6/6 Plus — 1400
• iPhone 6S/6S Plus — 2300
• iPhone SE — 2400
• iPhone 7/7 Plus — 3400

Again, replacing your battery will set you back $30, and involves a trip to your local Apple Store. If you want a cheaper option and have a bit of a do-it-yourself attitude, you can also purchase a replacement battery from The Unlockr for a mere $15.

David Cogen — a regular contributor here at Digital Trends — runs TheUnlockr, a popular tech blog that focuses on tech news, tips and tricks, and the latest tech. You can also find him on Twitter discussing the latest tech trends.

Editors’ Recommendations

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A.I.-powered guitar gadget ‘hears’ what you play, backs you up in real time

We’ve previously covered guitar-based gadgets designed to help new players learn their instrument of choice. But what if you’re already a guitar player who’s just in search of a backup band? Then you should check out the new Kickstarter campaign for OneManBand, a smart device that “listens” to what you’re playing, adapts to it, and then generates a real-time backup music track to play along with you.

According to the project creators, the technology “utilizes capacitive and inductive tech to detect signals from the strings and convert them to digital data without any latency.” This backup sound isn’t just a simple drumbeat or matched guitar sound, either. It can produce a rhythm or bass guitar to play along with you, or even piano, percussion, horns, or a string section to deliver a sound that’s pretty darn convincing. You can also select from a range of rhythms, genres and styles, meaning that OneManBand promises to work well for country music, rock or jazz guitar players alike. Factor in the ability to record your sessions, and solo playing will never be the same again.

You can choose from several different options, including an acoustic or electric OMB guitar with the tech already built in, or an upgrade kit that allows you to incorporate the tech into your favorite guitar with a bit of “light soldering.” (The kit includes soldering iron.) There’s also an OMB foot pedal that connects to your guitar and app via Bluetooth, letting you control it hands-free.

At the time of that writing, OneManBand has 22 days left on the clock, although it’s already smashed its original target of $50,000 to the tune (get it!) of $467,010 and counting. If you’d like to get your hands on the technology, you can place a pre-order on Kickstarter. An OMB upgrade kit starts at $149, while an OMB acoustic guitar will cost you $249 and an OMB electric guitar $449. Options including a pedal will set you back some extra cash. Shipping is set to take place in September 2018.

Until then, you’ll just have to play the old-fashioned way!

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HP embraces USB-C with the new Chromebook 14 G5 and Chromebox G2

With CES 2018 just around the corner, HP has introduced a new batch of Chrome systems made for light office and educational work.

The first is the HP Chromebook 14 G5, an updated laptop with options for an HD touchscreen. The second is a bit more unique — the Chromebox G2, which is a desktop computer that runs Chrome OS and has a bit more processing power behind it.

HP Chromebook 14 G5

Key Specs

Intel Celeron N3450 or Intel Celeron N3350 processor

8GB of RAM, 16-64GB of storage

14-inch HD or FHD (1080p) display

0.72 inches thin, 3.39 pounds

Pricing has not been announced

The new HP Chromebook 14 G5 runs on the updated Intel Celeron N3450 (or N3350) processor. The Celeron CPUs provide enough processing power for the kinds of activities Chromebooks are made for. While storage options might seem oddly sparse at a starting configuration of just 16GB, much of the work that is done in Chrome OS is done with Google’s extensive cloud services. HP also throws in an extra 4GB of RAM (for a total of 8GB) from the previous version to help out with multitasking.

The chassis of this new Chromebook doesn’t strive to compete with something like the Pixelbook, but instead goes for a bulkier build intended to handle the heavier usage of an educational or office setting. HP has still managed to cut down a little bit of the weight from the previous version.

As for the display, you can opt for either a non-touch 720p or a touchscreen 1080p model. Touchscreens have become increasingly more useful with the integration of Android apps in Chrome OS, allowing you to use your favorites from the Google Play ecosystem.

The last upgrade worth mentioning here is the new port options. With the Chromebook 14 G5,  you get two USB-C ports and two USB-A 3.0 ports. HP offers a USB-C dock, as well for legacy accessories, but it’s listed as selling separately.

The Chromebook 14 G5 is expected to be available in February 2018, though pricing has not been announced.

HP Chromebox G2

Key Specs

Intel Celeron 3865U, Intel Core i5-7300U, or Intel Core i7-8650U

16GB of RAM, 32-64GB of storage

SD card slot

1.48 pounds

Pricing has not been announced

The Chromebox G2 is an update of an older HP Chromebox — and looks to be a pretty solid upgrade across the board. The biggest gain is in the CPU department, which has configurations for more powerful 7th-gen Core i5-7300U or 8th-gen Core i7-8650U processors. HP has also greatly expanded the amount of RAM available on its Chromebox. The new system can be configured up to 16GB of RAM, a major jump from the initial 2GB. Only in the recently released Core i7 Pixelbook has this amount of power been seen on a Chrome system.

The design, weight, and overall size of the Chromebox G2 looks very similar to its predecessor, but the port options on the back have changed, with USB-C now being added to the more common desktop selection of USB-A 3.0, HDMI, and an SD card slot.

We can expect to see the Chromebox G2 hit store shelves in April 2018. pricing has not been announced

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Keep pirating content and you may lose control of your thermostat, ISP warns

There’s tough love and then there’s borderline cruelty, and it would appear that one internet service provider (ISP) in the northeast is veering toward the latter. In what can only be described as a very, very serious line in the sand, local ISP Armstrong Zoom is suggesting that suspected content pirates could not only have their internet privileges revoked, but might also risk their smart thermostats and security systems. So if that doesn’t convince you to stop torrenting, we don’t know what will.

Around one million people in the Northeastern region of the U.S. use Armstrong Zoom’s internet services, and at least some of them are also using file-sharing services (which are, of course, illegal). While it’s not unusual for an ISP to throttle your bandwidth if they catch you breaking the law in such a way, this does appear to be one of the first times that a company so openly noted further consequences as well.

“If Armstrong receives additional notifications of infringement connected with your Zoom Internet Service, Armstrong will remove you from your current service level and place you at the lowest service level. This will allow you to access email, but limit your speeds and affect your ability to upload or download material to the internet or use other file-sharing capabilities,” wrote Armstrong Zoom in a letter to subscribers, which was first noted by TorrentFreak. The letter continues, “Please be advised that this may affect other services which you may have connected to your internet service, such as the ability to control your thermostat remotely or video monitoring services.”

Of course, it’s not the case that Armstrong Zoom would purposefully make it difficult for you to use your connected devices — really, if any of its competitors throttled speeds, customers would similarly have trouble accessing their Nest thermostats. After all, if your internet is no faster than dial-up, there’s no way you’ll be able to connect to … well, much of anything. Armstrong Zoom, however, is being much more explicit in spelling out potential ramifications, which could be a much more effective way of getting people to stop pirating.

Given the well below freezing temperatures outside, this is not the time to be on your ISP’s bad side, especially if that ISP is Armstrong Zoom.

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Our latest weapon in the fight to save dying coral reefs is … a concrete pod?

Coral reefs are rapidly degrading around the world. As a result, conservationists can carry out coral transplants, in which coral grown in one place is moved to another to help rehabilitate imperiled reef communities. Unfortunately, this can be extremely expensive and labor intensive, which limits how widely it is performed. One of the most costly phases in the process is the physical attachment of corals back to the reef, in which teams of workers secure the corals to their new home using cable ties, epoxy, and underwater drills.

A new approach pioneered by marine ecology group Secore International could make things easier and more affordable, however. Researchers on the project have developed small tetrapod-shaped concrete structures, which can be seeded with coral larvae. These spiky pods, called Seeding Units, can be wedged into reef crevices, without needing to be attached using other materials. Because of this, divers can place thousands of corals on the reef in a short amount of time — resulting in a substantial cost reduction of up to 18-fold. The team has been exploring this technology since 2014, focusing initially on smaller areas.

“We wanted to verify if the seeding units would indeed remain in place on the reef, and we also had to assess if the young corals would survive and grow on the substrates in the reef environment,” Valérie Chamberland, a research scientist at Secore International based on Curacao, told Digital Trends. “We are also testing this technique on a range of reef habitat types, and with a range of different coral species. On Curacao, we have implemented about 12 pilot sites around the island — including reefs ranging from a healthy to a degraded state — where coral offspring of a total of seven species have been outplanted using the sowing technique. While the success of this new technique varies depending on the coral species and on the environmental quality of the restoration site, the results are promising.”

The team now hopes to take these findings, described in a recent article published in Scientific Reports, and use them to apply the approach to larger areas.

“We are further developing and refining technologies that will enable us to mass-produce coral offspring at low costs and with low labor investments,” Chamberland continued. “We currently can only produce at most a few hundred Seeding Units at a time due to logistical constraints, such as manual production of our current tetrapod design and labor-intensive culture methods for the larvae small-volume laboratory facilities. Thus, our additional areas of development include implementing industrial production of the improved tetrapod designs and methods for large-scale culture of coral offspring directly in the ocean.”

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When you need a last-minute present, here’s how to give a Steam game as a gift

One of the best things about games is how they can bring people together. In this age of digital distribution, it’s easier than ever to give games as gifts to friends and family anywhere in the world. Steam, Valve‘s PC game distribution platform, has a stranglehold on how PC games are bought and sold: It’s almost certainly the easiest way to give someone the game of your choice. Here’s a quick guide on how to give someone a game through Steam.

Before we begin, it’s worth pointing out that Valve recently changed its policy on Steam gifts. It is no longer possible to hold onto extra codes for handing out at your leisure, nor can you give games to people who do not have a Steam account. Any leftover codes you still might have kicking around from the previous system are still there, and we’ll show you how to gift those at the end, but going forward, all gifts will require the following procedure. Cryptocurrency fanatics will also have to get back on the grid for the time being, since Valve stopped accepting bitcoin as payment due to the upstart currency’s volatility.

How to gift a new game on Steam

Step 1: Make sure your friend has a Steam account

Previously, it was possible to send a game to anyone with an e-mail address, and the message would include instructions on how to set up a Steam account and download their new purchase. Now, however, you can only gift new games to people that already have Steam accounts and are on your friends’ list. If you want to buy someone a game who does not have a Steam account, send them here to set up a new account and download the Steam client.

Once they are set up, you should go to the Friends drop-down menu, select “Add a Friend,” search for the other’s username and invite the other to become your friend. Once they accept your request, you can send them a game.

Step 2: Find the game you want to buy and add it to your cart

Locate the game you want to give in the Steam store (either directly in the client or through the web portal) and select “Add to Cart.” If you already own the game in question on your own account, there will be a note just above the buy option that says “Buy this game as a gift for a friend.”

Step 3: Select ‘Purchase as a gift’

If you already own the game, “Purchase for myself” will be faded and unresponsive, since you cannot own multiple copies of the same game anymore.

Step 4: Choose your recipient

Select the recipient from your list of friends. You can choose to schedule the delivery at a later time and date if you want to set it up to arrive on a delay and be a surprise for a particular occasion.

Step 5: Fill out the customized message

Step 6: Complete the purchase

After personalizing your gift with a note, press Continue and you will proceed to the regular purchase screen, where you can proceed as you would to buy a game for yourself. Then pat yourself on the back, because you’re done! What a good friend you are, giving the gift of gaming.

How to gift a leftover game on Steam

Valve recently changed Steam’s gifting policy in order to crack down on key resellers or people circumventing regional price differences such that you can no longer purchase and hold onto game codes for an indefinite period. Any residual codes you may still have are still around, however, and can still be given out as before.

Step 1: Select ‘Manage Gifts and Guest Passes…’ from the Games drop-down menu in the Steam client

Step 2: Select the game you want to give, click ‘Send gift…’ and choose your recipient

At least for the time being, it is still possible to give older game codes to anyone with an e-mail address, or directly through Steam to someone on your friends’ list as in the current method. Once you have input the recipient through either method, press Next and proceed from step 5 above.

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‘Smart’ sunglasses from Vuzix work with Android and iOS, will debut at CES

Vuzix will unveil its latest headset supporting augmented reality (AR) during the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas next week. As a producer of compatible head-mounted displays for the technology, the company is no novice in the AR market. But the product hitting Vuzix’s booth during the show, the Vuzix Blade AR Smart Glasses, will apparently be more mainstream, and may remind attendees of a controversial project still brewing under Google’s roof: Google Glass.

At first glance, the Vuzix Blade AR Smart Glasses resemble your standard pair of sunglasses. But underneath the cool exterior is most everything we remember in Google Glass — the ability to project information in your field of view, internet connectivity, and a built-in camera for capturing images and video. You won’t need a smartphone glued to your face — all your Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter notifications are piped into your field of view.

“Directions, menus, weather, events, stocks, video conferencing, sports updates, social feeds, bio-metrics, and more, right in front of you, literally,” the company said in a statement. “AR smart glasses that right out of the box provide hands-free access to all the alerts from your phone, while allowing you to leave your phone in your pocket.”

Here’s what we know about the Blade AR Smart Glasses:

Displays:
2x Cobra II digital light processing displays
Full-color AR overlays
Transparent, photochromic
Prescription inserts are available
Multiple lens color choice
Standard UV protection
Processor:
Quad-core ARM-based chip
Memory:
Unknown
Storage:
Unknown
Camera:
8MP supporting 1080p video
Connectivity:
Wireless AC
Bluetooth
Ports:
1x Micro SD
1x Micro USB (audio, recharging)
Input:
Noise-canceling microphones (voice input)
Touchpad with gesture support (right arm)
Head motion tracking sensors
Output:
Dual haptic feedback
Batteries:
Internal LiPo rechargable
OS:
Android
Weight:
Less than 3 ounces
Cost:
Final product — unknown
Developer kit — $495 deposit
Availability:
Unknown

The Blade AR Smart Glasses were originally designed for enterprise use as an attractive alternative to the company’s more expensive (and more robotic-looking) M100 and M300 models. The version hitting store shelves appears to be identical hardware-wise, but its ecosystem will focus on social platforms and mainstream services rather than enterprise-focused applications.

“For consumers, the Vuzix Blade is the perfect companion to your Android or iOS smartphone, allowing users to always be connected, stay informed, and never miss a photo shot,” the company said. “The Vuzix Blade’s companion app will allow users to seamlessly pair their Vuzix Blade Smart Glasses to their smartphone.”

Given the Blade is powered by Android, the platform will be open to all developers. These apps and services will appear in a built-in App Store, although Vuzix doesn’t say if the Blade Smart Glasses will directly support Google Play Store apps, or if users can sideload Play apps into the local Android operating system.

Vuzix is taking $495 reservations for a developer kit consisting of the company’s development software, a preproduction design verification testing unit, and a production unit. The release date and price of the actual retail version are not yet known.

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‘Smart’ sunglasses from Vuzix work with Android and iOS, will debut at CES

Vuzix will unveil its latest headset supporting augmented reality (AR) during the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas next week. As a producer of compatible head-mounted displays for the technology, the company is no novice in the AR market. But the product hitting Vuzix’s booth during the show, the Vuzix Blade AR Smart Glasses, will apparently be more mainstream, and may remind attendees of a controversial project still brewing under Google’s roof: Google Glass.

At first glance, the Vuzix Blade AR Smart Glasses resemble your standard pair of sunglasses. But underneath the cool exterior is most everything we remember in Google Glass — the ability to project information in your field of view, internet connectivity, and a built-in camera for capturing images and video. You won’t need a smartphone glued to your face — all your Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter notifications are piped into your field of view.

“Directions, menus, weather, events, stocks, video conferencing, sports updates, social feeds, bio-metrics, and more, right in front of you, literally,” the company said in a statement. “AR smart glasses that right out of the box provide hands-free access to all the alerts from your phone, while allowing you to leave your phone in your pocket.”

Here’s what we know about the Blade AR Smart Glasses:

Displays:
2x Cobra II digital light processing displays
Full-color AR overlays
Transparent, photochromic
Prescription inserts are available
Multiple lens color choice
Standard UV protection
Processor:
Quad-core ARM-based chip
Memory:
Unknown
Storage:
Unknown
Camera:
8MP supporting 1080p video
Connectivity:
Wireless AC
Bluetooth
Ports:
1x Micro SD
1x Micro USB (audio, recharging)
Input:
Noise-canceling microphones (voice input)
Touchpad with gesture support (right arm)
Head motion tracking sensors
Output:
Dual haptic feedback
Batteries:
Internal LiPo rechargable
OS:
Android
Weight:
Less than 3 ounces
Cost:
Final product — unknown
Developer kit — $495 deposit
Availability:
Unknown

The Blade AR Smart Glasses were originally designed for enterprise use as an attractive alternative to the company’s more expensive (and more robotic-looking) M100 and M300 models. The version hitting store shelves appears to be identical hardware-wise, but its ecosystem will focus on social platforms and mainstream services rather than enterprise-focused applications.

“For consumers, the Vuzix Blade is the perfect companion to your Android or iOS smartphone, allowing users to always be connected, stay informed, and never miss a photo shot,” the company said. “The Vuzix Blade’s companion app will allow users to seamlessly pair their Vuzix Blade Smart Glasses to their smartphone.”

Given the Blade is powered by Android, the platform will be open to all developers. These apps and services will appear in a built-in App Store, although Vuzix doesn’t say if the Blade Smart Glasses will directly support Google Play Store apps, or if users can sideload Play apps into the local Android operating system.

Vuzix is taking $495 reservations for a developer kit consisting of the company’s development software, a preproduction design verification testing unit, and a production unit. The release date and price of the actual retail version are not yet known.

Editors’ Recommendations

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HP Chromebox G2 has a Kaby Lake Core i7 and 16GB RAM

HP returns to the Chromebox.

We saw some excellent Chromebooks in 2017, but the market for Chromeboxes has been much quieter. However, just in time for CES 2018, HP’s announced its all-new Chromebox G2.

For first impressions, the G2 doesn’t look all that exciting. In fact, if you quickly glanced at the thing, you might mistake it for an Apple TV. On the outside of the G2 is a solid selection of ports, including a 3.5mm headphone jack, one USB Type-C, three USB 3.0 and two USB 2.0 ports, one HDMI output, and one RJ-45 connector (not to mention a microSD slot).

Take a peek inside the G2, and that’s when you realize why you might want to consider buying the thing. You can choose to pick up a configuration with Intel’s Celeron 3865U, but we’d recommend going with the Kaby Lake Core i5 (7300U) or i7 (8650U). The Celeron model ships with Intel HD Graphics 610, but going for either the i5 or i7 will bump you up to Intel UHD Graphics 620.

You can get up to 16GB of DDR-2400 SDRAM that’s equipped thanks to two memory slots, and you have the choice of either a 32 or 64GB M.2 SSD for storage.

There’s currently no word on pricing for the HP Chromebox G2, but we should see a release at some point in April.

Chrome OS will finally let you run Android apps in the background

LG Tribute Dynasty coming to Sprint and Boost Mobile for $99

Act fast and get the phone for just $59.

If you wanted to buy an Android phone for $200 or less a few years back, you’d end up with something that had a good chance of breaking down within a week. We’ve thankfully left those dark days behind us, and as such, have devices like the LG Tribute Dynasty.

LG just announced the Tribute Dynasty ahead of CES 2018, and while there’s nothing here that’ll blow your socks off, the Tribute Dynasty does look like a respectable Android handset for tackling the basics. On the front of the phone is a 5.0-inch 1280 x 720 IPS display, and right above it is a 5MP front-facing camera for all your selfies and Duo calls. An 8MP camera is on the back with LED flash, and a 2,500 mAh removable battery promises up to 15 hours of talk time.

The Tribute Dynasty is powered by a MediaTek 1.5GHz octa-core processor and 2GB RAM. There’s 16GB of expandable storage (up to 32GB) for your apps, games, and pictures, and Android 7.1 Nougat is present out of the box.

You can get the LG Tribute Dynasty now from Boost Mobile and it’ll be available January 12 on Sprint. The retail price is set at $99, but if you buy the phone now, you can get it for just $59.

See at Boost Mobile