Apple Store in Nashville Closing in Early February During Renovations

Apple recently announced that its Green Hills retail store in Nashville, Tennessee will be temporarily closed for renovations beginning February 11.

Apple Store at The Mall at Green Hills in 2008
Apple Green Hills will likely remain closed until late 2018, so customers will have to venture a bit further south to Apple’s nearby store at the CoolSprings Galleria shopping mall in Franklin, Tennessee until further notice.

This is years overdue, but delighted to see this! Congrats to the team at Apple Green Hills! pic.twitter.com/lzgv72Re53

— John William Sherrod (@jwsherrod) January 19, 2018

For the past few years, Apple has been renovating dozens of its older stores with newer designs. In addition, many of the locations have expanded by adding a floor or taking over adjacent storefronts, while some have relocated entirely.

Last week, Apple announced that its first store in South Korea opens on January 27, just a few weeks prior to the 2018 Winter Olympics in the country. By our count, the location should be Apple’s 500th store around the world.

Via: 9to5Mac

Related Roundup: Apple Stores
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The first phone with an in-display fingerprint sensor will launch January 24

The first smartphone with a very desirable in-display fingerprint sensor will launch at the end of January. It won’t come from Apple, Samsung, LG, or another familiar brand; but Vivo, a Chinese manufacturer that has been working hard to perfect the technology where others have failed. We know it has done a great job, because we went hands-on with a working prototype of the phone at CES 2018, and ended up giving it a coveted award.

Vivo couldn’t confirm the launch date outside of early 2018 or the final name of the device at the time, but has now announced an event on January 24 in Beijing, where the Vivo X20 Plus will be revealed, complete with the in-display fingerprint sensor. Rumors have previously suggested the phone will be named the X20 Plus UD (presumably for Under Display), but this isn’t certain. The associated teaser image shows a swirling pattern that looks a little like a fingerprint, complete with the strap line, “Unlock the future.”

The Vivo X20 Plus already exists and was announced in October last year. The specifications of this modified version are likely to be very similar, and are in-line with the device we saw at CES 2018. These include a 6.4-inch screen, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 processor, 4GB of RAM, and a dual-lens 12-megapixel camera on the back. We liked the stylish phone demoed in Las Vegas, especially the almost bezel-less screen.

However, it’s the fingerprint sensor that will attract all the attention. Vivo worked with sensor company Synaptics to integrate the Clear ID in-display fingerprint sensor, and it performed very well in our tests. We spent some time with the phone, and found the sensor to be accurate, fast, and simple to setup and use. While Vivo will be first out with such technology, expect others to follow in 2018. Apple and Samsung were both rumored to be working on a similar fingerprint sensor for release in a phone during 2017, but were unable to produce a model suitable for release at the time.

We don’t know how much the Vivo X20 Plus with an in-display fingerprint sensor will cost yet, and we doubt it will be sold outside China, at least for a start. Vivo has recently release the V7 Plus internationally, and a desirable model like the X20 Plus would be a great follow up release. We’ll keep you updated.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Vivo Fingerprint Sensor hands-on review
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• Vivo V7 Plus Review
• Vivo’s giant-killing, on-screen fingerprint scanner keeps getting better
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GeForce Now hands-on preview

Nvidia’s GeForce Now will make you a believer in game streaming.

Game streaming isn’t new: The now-defunct OnLive service pioneered it back in 2010, and Gaikai came soon after — and was quickly gobbled up by Sony, which now uses Gaikai’s technology for PlayStation Now. Then Nvidia entered the fray, launching GeForce Now for the Shield console way back in 2013.

Despite the age of these services, there’s a good chance you’ve never used one. 2018 may be the year that changes. Blade, a French start-up, used CES 2018 to make the North American debut of its Shadow streaming service. Shadow isn’t a supplement to a game rig, but a straight-up replacement for top-tier gaming desktops.

Then there’s GeForce Now for Mac and PC. While Nvidia isn’t pitching it as aggressively as Blade, the beta does more or less the same thing. It gives access to a virtualized PC that can run any games you own on Steam or Battle.net, at whatever detail settings and resolution you want.

Can it really compare to having a great gaming PC at home? Surprisingly, yes – as long as you have a big, fat internet connection.

How does this even work?

As a streaming service, GeForce Now for PC can get away with a very thin client. If you’ve ever used Netflix, Hulu, or any other video streaming service, you already know what you’re getting into. The software, a mere 55-megabyte download, installs in seconds. All you have to do is create an Nvidia account or log in to the one you already have.

As you can probably imagine, this doesn’t come free. Game streaming services usually ask for a monthly fee. GeForce Now is in beta, however, so it’s free if you manage to get in (there’s a waitlist). The home screen even shows an array of popular games – some you may own, and some you may not – so it seems you can play any of them.

That’s not how it works. You need to personally own a game to play it. Launch Overwatch, and the GeForce Now streaming client will take you to a Battle.net login screen. You then log in to your Battle.net account, and launch Overwatch from the Battle.net interface, just as you would on your home PC. The rule, then is simple; to play a game on GeForce Now, you must already own it on a supported digital Storefront (Steam, Battle.net, or UPlay, at time of this writing).

Big fat pipes

You must clear one other hurdle before playing: a bandwidth test. GeForce Now requires at least 25Mbps of bandwidth, or a recommended 50Mbps. That’s actual bandwidth, not what your ISP advertises. The client tests to make sure your pipe is big enough, as well as the latency and reliability of your connection.

The client gives you a little wiggle room, but it won’t let you play if it doesn’t think your connection is up to the task. I tested GeForce Now on two different  systems. First was a desktop computer with a 1440p monitor over Ethernet, with Gigabit Ethernet connected. The client had no complaints there.

Asus Zenbook UX330

Bill Roberson/Digital Trends

Next, I tried using an Asus Zenbook UX330UA connected to the same network, but over 5GHz Wi-Fi. It managed a passing grade, but just barely; the client threw up a warning that 3.2 percent of all frames were lost, and our bandwidth was measured at just 48Mbps. I re-tested the Zenbook in a couple different areas, at different distances from the Wi-Fi router, and the client was never entirely satisfied with the results.

That should tell you how stringent the client is. In this case, it seems the Zenbook UX330UA itself was the pinch point, as its Wi-Fi adapter couldn’t make the most of the Gigabit connection. Frankly, I’d never noticed this before, even when downloading large games. GeForce Now really pushed it to the limit.

I also tried to use GeForce Now on a Lenovo ThinkPad T420, which has a 2.4GHz Wi-Fi adapter. It didn’t stand a chance, as its old Wi-Fi adapter limited bandwidth to less than 20Mbps on most tests. GeForce Now wouldn’t even launch the streaming client. That wasn’t unexpected, but still a bit disappointing. You can’t use this service to turn a five-year-old laptop into a gaming capable machine – at least, not without buying a new Wi-Fi adapter for it.

Gorgeous graphics, occasional buffering

A key bullet point on GeForce Now’s list of features – one that’s shared with its emerging competitor, Blade – is gorgeous graphics.  The service lets you play games with the details ramped all the way up even on a PC like the Asus Zenbook UX330UA, which has Intel UHD 620 graphics and can’t play some games even at low detail and 1080p resolution.

It’s a big promise, and one that’s delivered. You can adjust the in-game settings however you’d like, so you can turn everything up – way up. That includes the most outrageous graphics settings, like super-sampling and maximum shadow quality, which can drag framerates down even on a GTX 1080 or AMD Radeon RX Vega 64.  I didn’t see any evidence of locked graphics settings in PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG), Overwatch, or World of Warcraft. The only limitation was resolution, as GeForce Now supports a maximum of 2,560 × 1,600.

Performance seemed solid, too, in frames-per-second. Nvidia says it can deliver up to 120 frames per second, enough to satisfy many high-refresh gaming monitors. Games don’t always play at that pace, as the company also promises “GTX 1080-class performance.” Overwatch, at 1440p with 200 percent resolution scale and every setting at maximum, delivered between 40 and 60 FPS. World of Warcraft dipped into the high 30s when pushed to the limit.

We also tested the performance by running 3D Mark. Technically, you’re not supposed to be able to do so, but we were able to find a loophole. We saw a 3D Mark Fire Strike score of 16,134. That’s in line with GTX 1080-powered desktops we’ve tested, such as the Lenovo Ideacentre Y900. A GTX 1080 Ti is quite a bit more powerful, generally hitting 19,000 to 20,000 in the same benchmark.

Nvidia’s core promise of ultra-quality gaming even on a $500 laptop stands up to scrutiny. But there’s a catch.

GeForce Now is, of course, a streaming service. The client operates a bit like Netflix or YouTube, streaming a feed of the game you’re playing to your PC. When your bandwidth is solid, the quality of the stream is solid, with no easily discernible difference between the stream and what you’d see playing the game off your local PC. When your bandwidth isn’t so hot, though – and remember, the requirements are quite high – the stream compensates by reducing resolution. Here’s a few screenshots from a single round of PUBG.

Take a close look, and you’ll see lots of variance in quality. Inspecting the interface, with its small text elements, is the easiest way to spot the differences, but they’re also visible when you examine details like the license plate on the truck, the thin powerlines in the distance, or the barrel of a gun. These screenshots were taken on either our desktop, connected via Ethernet to Gigabit internet, or on a laptop connected over 5GHz 802.11ac Wi-Fi to the same internet service provider. These are optimal conditions, but I still saw decreases in resolution from time to time.

I also played World of Warcraft under the same conditions. Blizzard’s MMORPG is a bit of a different beast, because it relies on many fine UI elements and small icons.

Blizzard’s cartoonish art style arguably holds up better when the stream’s resolution is downscaled, but the many UI elements, like quest text, make the dip in resolution obvious. This is an example of where GeForce Now is at an image quality disadvantage. Many games allow some form of UI scaling, which preserves the quality of the interface at any resolution. GeForce Now can’t change the game’s UI based on stream resolution, so any reduction can be easy to see, depending on the game you’re playing. You can, for example, play Football Manager through GeForce Now, but it wouldn’t be ideal unless you had enough bandwidth to almost always stream at your monitor’s native resolution.

It’s not all bad news. While a few of the screenshots may look dire, the resolution drops didn’t affect actual gameplay. It was occasionally noticeable, but I was usually too caught up in the action to care. PC gamers treat playing at a display’s native resolution as the gold standard, but there’s some wiggle room before a decrease becomes truly disruptive — as console gamers can easily tell you. I never thought the decrease so severe that it made a game unplayable. On the contrary, the stream remained smooth and consistent, even on the Asus Zenbook UX330UA, which is about as far from a gaming laptop as it gets.

Nom nom the bandwidth

When the conditions aren’t optimal, well…things can go south rather quickly. GeForce Now tries very, very, very hard to make everything alright. It tries so hard that you can end up with a stream that temporarily looks like a 240p YouTube video. Eventually it will give out, flagging an error message after freezing for several moments. There is a silver lining, however. If you reconnect immediately, you can usually jump right back into your active session, bypassing the annoyance of lost progress due to a connection glitch.

To play a game on GeForce Now, you must already own it on a supported digital storefront

I experienced several drops when I tried playing over Wi-Fi in the Digital Trends office, which is a more congested and slower network than that I used for most our testing. In the office, obtaining anything near the recommended bandwidth of 50Mbps per second is impossible over Wi-Fi, and the percentage of frames lost can exceed five percent. That, I found, was the real problem. Games would stream well for 10 or 15 minutes, but then drop out as some shift in the network degraded reliability.

Obviously, the Digital Trends office isn’t set up with high-bandwidth streaming in mind. But at home, I’m connected over a broad pipe that, on Ethernet, can easily exceed Nvidia’s requirements. In both cases, I suspect it’s a better network than many people have at home. The average connection speed in America is about 19 Mbps. That’s not enough to drive GeForce Now, so a lot of people won’t be able to use it at all.

There’s another bandwidth issue to consider: data caps. An increasing number of people have a data cap imposed by their ISP, and the fall of net neutrality won’t help that. I was interested to see how much data GeForce Now used, so I used network monitoring software to gauge bandwidth used over several five-minute chunks of PUBG. Our initial test was performed at 1080p resolution on the Asus Zenbook UX330UA.

Averaged out, GeForce Now consumed a convenient number: 100 megabytes per minute. To be more precise, I found it used an average of 487MB every five minutes when connected over Wi-Fi, and 520MB every five minutes when connected over Ethernet. That means you’d eat 6 gigabytes of bandwidth every hour.

It’s a lot, but I don’t think it’s enough to be a serious concern. You’d have to play 166 hours to eat through the typical 1TB data cap in a month. The time you spend using GeForce now is also time you’re not using the internet for other high-bandwidth tasks, like Netflix. I can only see it becoming a problem if you have multiple people using GeForce Now in the same house.

GeForce Now is the future. We’re not ready for it.

Nvidia’s GeForce Now beta impressed me. Digital Trends staffers who’re less familiar with PC gaming found it even more impressive; most didn’t own a gaming PC, so GeForce Now opens a whole new world of entertainment. I used it at home, on a laptop, to play games without being tied down to my desk. The humble Asus Zenbook UX330UA suddenly became a viable gaming rig, capable of 1080p gaming with every detail turned up. If you have a fat internet connection, sign up for the GeForce Now beta immediately. It’s absolutely worth your time — especially while it’s free.

This might be the future of gaming. It’s also only that – the future. Though I enjoyed it, I had the luxury of connecting over an internet connection most people in America can’t purchase even if they want, and the ghost of net neutrality also looms large over GeForce Now. We’re a long way from an average connection speed that meets even the service’s minimum bandwidth requirement, and data caps seem more, not less, likely to be a problem in the future.

It’s a shame. GeForce Now, even in beta, could entirely change how people use computers. Finally, the long-held dream of thin “client” PCs, with barely any internal hardware, seem possible. Yet the internet itself has become a roadblock. We need fast, reliable, uncapped connections for a service like this to work for more than a lucky few. It’s hard to say when, or if, that’ll become reality.

But hey. At least you can play PUBG on a crappy laptop while you wait.

GeForce Now is in free, closed beta for PC and Mac. The release date and price haven’t been announced.

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Tag Heuer shrinks the size and the price tag for its new Android Wear smartwatch

The Tag Heuer Connected Modular 45 is a big smartwatch, with the model number denoting the size of the body in millimeters, meaning it won’t suit all wrists. Tag Heuer recognizes this, and has announced a slightly smaller model with a few upgraded features, crucially for a lower price tag. It’s called the Connected Modular 41, and rather than a 45mm body size, it has a 41mm body size.

Tag Heuer certainly expects the Connected 41 watch to be worn by men and women, and has introduced the range with a wide selection of straps and bands, including some more colorful options. The size, while still quite big, is about the same as the recently announced Kate Spade Scallop Android Wear smartwatch designed specifically for women. However, the Connected Modular 41’s design is quite masculine.

It’s not just the size that has changed. Tag Heuer has altered the screen slightly. It’s now smaller at 1.2-inches, but has a 390 x 390 pixel resolution and a higher 326 pixel-per-inch density, and greater brightness. A 2.5mm piece of sapphire crystal still covers the display, giving a familiar Tag Heuer feeling of depth to the watch face, and increasing durability.

Inside is a new Intel Cloverdale Peak processor, replacing the Intel Atom inside the Connected 45, and this time it’s paired with 1GB of RAM and 8GB of memory. Intel worked closely with Tag Heuer to develop the Connected 45 and has likely been similarly involved here. The Connected Modular 41 runs Android Wear 2.0 and has NFC to support Android Pay.

The Connected 41 is a modular watch, so the lugs, strap, and buckle can all be removed and replaced with different versions, changing up the watch’s look. Additionally, the main module can be replaced with a Tag Heuer Calibre 5 three-hand module, converting the watch from smart to mechanical instantly. There are nine new straps available for the Connected 41, including a pink, blue, and white leather, while the body remains made from Titanium, with a single push button crown on the side.

For the base Connected Modular 41, Tag Heuer will charge $1,200, or 1,000 British pounds, which is $350 or 200 British pounds less than the Connected Modular 45. Still a big price tag, but considering the change in processing power, storage, and screen brightness, a welcome alteration. Choose metal straps or the black PVD body finish, and you’ll pay more. Tag Heuer already lists the Connected Modular 41 watches on its website with an expected release date of January or February 2018, depending on the color and strap combination you select.

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Xiaomi may launch the Redmi Note 5 in India in February

Xiaomi teases the imminent launch of the Redmi Note 5 in India.

After a frenetic launch schedule during the latter half of 2017 that saw the introduction of the Mi A1, Mi Mix 2, Redmi 5A, and the Redmi Y1, Xiaomi is having an unusually quiet start to the year. However, if a recent tweet by Xiaomi India PR lead Clinton Jeff is any indication, that’s all set to change next month.

Next month is going to be lit 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

— Clinton Jeff (@clintonjeff) January 19, 2018

Although Jeff doesn’t go into any specifics, we’re likely to see the Redmi 5 Plus make its debut in the country. The device launched to much fanfare last month in China, and considering Xiaomi’s increased focus on the Indian market, the manufacturer would undoubtedly be looking to bring it to India soon.

Furthermore, we’re just over a year out from the launch of the Redmi Note 4, and while it continues to rack up sales, we’re due a new device in the series. Only problem with that is there isn’t a Redmi Note 5 just yet, so we could see a scenario where the Redmi 5 Plus gets rebranded as the Redmi Note 5 for the Indian market.

A more exciting possibility would be if Xiaomi launched the Redmi Note 5 with the same 18:9 display as the Redmi 5 Plus but with upgraded internals and a new design. As much as I like the display on the Redmi 5 Plus, the rest of the design is identical to the Redmi Note 4. And with the Redmi Note series turning into a serious moneymaker for Xiaomi, a lot is riding on the launch.

There are several possibilities here, but what we do know is that February is going to be a busy month for Xiaomi. The Chinese manufacturer is also set to exhibit at MWC, where the Mi 7 is slated to make its debut.

What do you want to see from the Redmi Note 5? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Vivo X20 Plus with in-display fingerprint sensor launching this week

The first phone with an in-display fingerprint sensor is launching in China later this week.

Vivo showed off its first phone with an in-display fingerprint sensor earlier this month, and the company is now ready to put the device into production. The phone of choice is the X20 Plus, which made its debut last September. The phone is now being retrofitted with Synaptics in-display sensor, which is located near the bottom of the display.

This particular variant of the X20 Plus made its way through TENAA — China’s equivalent of the FCC — last week, giving us a look at the specs on offer. The phone is likely to sport a 6.43-inch OLED 18:9 display with an FHD+ resolution, 2.2GHz octa-core chipset (Snapdragon 660), 4GB of RAM, 128GB of internal storage, dual 12MP + 5MP cameras at the back, 12MP front shooter, and a 3800mAh battery.

Synaptics has mentioned that its in-display fingerprint sensor will be available in over 70 million devices in 2018, so it’s likely we’ll see a wave of new phones that feature the sensor. We’ll have more to share about the X20 Plus later this week, so stay tuned.

Vivo’s in-display fingerprint sensor shows the future of smartphone biometrics

MIUI 9.2 now rolling out to Mi Mix 2, Redmi Note 4, Redmi Y1, and more

MIUI 9.2 brings a host of new features to the popular ROM.

Xiaomi released MIUI 9.2 earlier this month, and the ROM is now rolling out to a range of Xiaomi devices including the Redmi Note 4, Mi Mix 2, Redmi Y1, and others. The update brings a host of new features to the stable build. including the ability to remove background elements from images. The feature was demoed during the launch of MIUI 9, and this is the first time it is being available on the stable channel.

If you’re interested, the download links are now available on MIUI’s website if you want to flash the files directly. The update will be rolling out to more devices shortly, but there’s no

Here’s the full changelog detailing all the new features:

Highlights

• New – Mi Mover, supports data migration restarting. During migrating data to the new phone, device hotspot connection will be restored automatically in case of interruption to complete the data migration. (10-25)
• New – Simplified the UI (10-31)
• Optimization – Hide free and incompatible themes in the list of the purchased items (10-10)
• Optimization – “Add to favorites” icon adjustments (10-24)

System

• New – Distance sensor dynamic calibration function, to ensure that black screen appears correctly (10-26)
• Fix – Individual user fingerprint failure problem (10-19)
• Fix – Fingerprint module damage caused by fingerprint identification error (10-19)
• Fix – KRACK WPA2 security vulnerabilities (10-19)
• Fix – Compatibility issues for some third-party software on the full-screen devices (10-18)

Phone

• Optimization – Vibration no longer affects the features which reduce ringer volume when the phone is lifted or flipped to silence (10-10)
• New – Simplified the UI (10-31)

App Lock

• New – App lock supports hiding messages from selected apps (10-31)
• New – Simplified the UI (10-31)
• Lockscreen, Status Bar, Notification Bar
• Optimization – Adjusted time for tapping the Lock screen notifications (10-24)

Home screen

• Optimization – Display effect when the virtual navigation button is on a light-colored wallpaper (10-18)
• Optimization – Multiple themes supported on the clock widget (10-19)
• Optimization – Move app icons into a folder easier (10-19)
• Optimization – Adding widgets to an empty spot with a single tap (10-31)

Themes

• Optimization – Hide free and incompatible themes in the list of the purchased items (10-10)
• Optimization – Themes prompt about connecting to the internet when it’s required (10-12)
• Optimization – “Add to favorites” icon adjustments (10-24)

Gallery

• New – Erase lines and objects while editing photos (10-12)
• Fix – Image has been compressed multiple times (10-19)

Backup

• New – Mi Mover, supports data migration restarting. During migrating data to the new phone, device hotspot connection will be restored automatically in case of interruption to complete the data migration. (10-25)
• Fix – Mi Mover can’t continue to migrate data after the network connection is interrupted and restored (10-25)
• Fix – Mi Mover can’t migrate all apps to the new phone (10-25)

Mi Account

• Optimization – Reduced the number of push notifications when the user is signed out (10-30)

Security

• New – Performance mode for game speed booster (10-26)
• New – Set default dual app for faster WeChat, Weibo, and QQ actions (11-22)

Mi Wallet

• Fix – In some cases, the use of MiPay in the POS machine credit card transactions failed (10-19)

Mi Drop

• Optimization – Received files are sorted by time (11-06)
• Fix – Issues with loading big GIFs (11-06)

Other

• New – “Apps” support updates now (10-11)

Already installed the update? Let us know how you’re liking the changes in the comments below.

How to back up and restore text messages on Android

How do I back up and restore text messages on Android?

Backing up text messages on Android isn’t part of Google’s cloud service, mainly because Google isn’t in the text messaging business.

But if you want to make sure you never lose texts again — whether by mistake or when switching over to a different device — here’s how to do it, using an app appropriately called SMS Backup & Restore by SyncTech Pty Ltd.

How to backup your SMS messages

The first thing you’ll need to do is download the free SMS Backup & Restore app from the Google Play Store.

Launch the Google Play Store from your home screen or app drawer.
Tap the search bar and search for SMS Backup and Restore.

Tap SMS Backup & Restore by SyncTech Pty Ltd, which should be the top result. You can also try email backup.

Tap Install.
Tap Accept.

Tap Open once the app has been installed.

Tap Backup once the app has opened.
Tap OK if you’re fine with using a default folder on your device, or tap Custom Folder if you want to store your backups on a MicroSD card or in a specific folder on your phone.

Tap the checkbox next to the things you want backed up, especially the text messages (it’s why you’re here, right?).

Tap the checkbox next to Call Logs if you want them backed up.
Tap the file name next to Text Messages if you want to re-title it yourself.

Tap the checkboxes next to Include MMS Messages and/or Include Emojis/Special characters if you want those included in the backups.

Optionally, tap Selected Conversations Only if you only want specific text conversations backed up. A window will pop up that lets you select the specific convos you want backed up.
Tap your choice between Local Backup only or Local Backup and Upload, which reveals options to upload to Google Drive, Dropbox, or to Email. To upload your backup, you’ll need to install an Add-on for SMS Backup & Restore.

Tap OK.

If you decide to only back up your messages locally, you’ll get a message warning that you risk losing your backups if you lose or damage your device. You’ll also be warned that if you set backups to be stored in the default internal storage, you’ll want to transfer them to an external storage device whenever you decide to switch phones.

Your text message conversations will now automatically be backed up to wherever you chose to back them up!

How to restore your SMS messages

Once you’ve got your SMS messages backed up (again, if you just found this article and didn’t have your messages backed up somehow, you’re essentially out of luck), you can restore them on a new device or on the same one.

Launch SMS Backup & Restore from your home screen or app drawer.
Tap Restore.

Tap the checkboxes next to the backups you want to restore. Depending on what you chose to back up, you may have both call logs and SMS messages.

Tap the arrow next to the SMS messages backups if you have multiple backups stored and want to restore a specific one.
Tap Restore.

Tap OK. This info box informs you that to restore your messages you’ll need to temporarily set SMS Backup and Restore as your default messaging app.

Tap Yes. Your messages and/or call logs will start restoring.

Tap Close once the restore is completed.

And there you have it! Your messages (and maybe even your call logs) have been restored! If you’ve decided to back up your data to a cloud service, you should also be able to restore your old messages onto a new phone by following the same steps. Since the data is stored in an XML file, it’s compatible with any Android device, no matter the make or model.

Kids can use VR, but be careful

You aren’t going to harm your child by letting them check out VR.

There are few adults out there who climb inside of a VR headset and aren’t smiling the whole time. Fully immersing yourself in a virtual environment is an incredible experience, and the wonder we see from those experiences is a big part of why we’re here. Everyone should have the opportunity to explore VR, especially right now when developers are trying so hard to encourage new experiences at every turn. What about our kids, though? Is it safe for children to use any of these VR headsets? If so, what are the rules for making sure they are using these headsets safely? We’ve asked these questions repeatedly over the last year, especially with Google Cardboard offering experiences to classrooms and headsets like the Merge Mini specifically targeting children.

The good news is your child is just fine to use VR, but you’re going to want to step in and make sure everything is safe before letting kids wander off into the virtual world on their own.

There are several important concerns when it comes to kids using VR headsets, and most of the issues are the same concerns parents and doctors have had about any form of stereoscopic imagery. This includes the 3D effect in the Nintendo 3DS game console, 3D televisions that require special glasses, and now Virtual Reality headsets. The primary concern is that these images cause the eye to focus in a way that can quickly cause fatigue and strain, and extended exposure to those stresses can cause eye damage over time. Kids aren’t usually the best at recognizing things like eye strain before it becomes eye pain, which is where parents come in.

Take breaks at least once an hour, and everything should be fine.

Using something like Google Daydream, many doctors recommend a strict enforcement of at least 10 minute breaks for every hour of usage. This falls closely in line with warnings found in Nintendo’s 3DS, which regularly encourages players to take breaks after extended gameplay. Google Cardboard isn’t really designed for an hour of continuous use to begin with, so as long as there’s an adult nearby to manage time behind the lenses there’s little concern of damage from those experiences.

It’s also important to keep an eye on the minimum suggested age for the hardware you are using and take a look at why. The Merge Mini is rated for kids ages 10 and older, while Samsung’s Gear VR has a warning on the display to avoid using the headset if you are under 13. In fact, most VR headsets suggest you start at age 13 for VR. The reason for this has a lot more to do with the hardware design than actual safety. Most of these headsets have lenses that can’t be moved, which means it’s impossible to adjust them to the correct interpupillary distance (IPD) for the most comfortable VR experience. The potential for eye strain when the IPD isn’t set correctly is much higher, so a lot of these companies are taking a “better safe than sorry” approach and guessing if you are under age 13 your eyes aren’t spaced quite far enough apart to enjoy these headsets yet.

Larger, more complicated VR headsets like Windows Mixed Reality headsets or the HTC Vive have some different rules to keep in mind. These headsets include adjustable pieces to set the lenses to your IPD, which should be adjusted for each person that uses the headset to reduce eye strain. Setting the correct interpupillary distance for children is difficult for several reasons. The size of their heads and the distance between their eyes isn’t part of the general spec used to design these headsets, so there may not be an ideal setting for younger children. Second, asking a 10 year old to let you know when the image you as the adult can’t see becomes clear requires a degree of trust and honesty that will either work out fine or end in your child deliberately choosing the setting that “looks coolest” to them. Once you have set that interpupillary distance, the same basic time management rules apply in these VR headset. Take breaks at least once an hour, and everything should be fine.

PlayStation VR is an exception to this.

PlayStation VR is an exception to this, in that as the user you get the right “eye fit” by going through a multi-step setup process. This setup process uses the sensors in the headset to make a good guess at your interpupillary distance and has you line up a series of dots to make sure it’s the right setting for you. There is an IPD adjustment setting if you know the exact measurement for your child, but most users are encouraged to use this setup tool.

This article is not a note from your doctor to let your kid play video games with you. While we’ve done the research, including interviews with pediatricians and found papers with medical professionals on the best ways to keep your kids safe in this environment, it’s always a good idea to talk with your own doctor. Get an eye exam, ask your pediatrician, and when you get the all clear you and your children can have all of the perfectly responsible fun you want in VR. Enjoy!

The Morning After: Nike’s PlayStation sneakers and Amazon Go

Hey, good morning!

Welcome back to the week. Playboy demonstrates once again that it doesn’t understand the internet, Nike and PlayStation come together in a sneaker and Amazon’s checkout-free store opens to the public this week.

Boing Boing warns that Playboy winning this case could ‘end the web as we know it.’
Playboy sues Boing Boing over a web link

Playboy has filed a lawsuit against Boing Boing, accusing the offbeat news blog of copyright infringement for linking to an Imgur gallery and a YouTube video that showed every Playmate centerfold. Boing Boing wasn’t involved in the creation of the gallery and the video at all — it simply reported the archive’s existence. In its post announcing it has filed a motion to dismiss, the publication called the case “baseless” and “bizarre.”

Paul George’s new signature shoe lights up, vibrates and glows in the dark.
Nike’s ‘PlayStation’ PG2s are like a DualShock for your feet

Nike has never been afraid to use different technologies to experiment with its sneakers. After all, this is the company that brought you the Mag and HyperAdapt, two shoes powered by auto-lacing mechanisms. And while its latest basketball silhouette isn’t as tech-forward as those, there’s still plenty to like here, especially if you’re both a sneakerhead and an avid gamer. Meet the PG2, Paul George’s new signature shoe, which Nike created in collaboration with Sony and was inspired by the PlayStation. Sorry, Xbox, maybe next time.

It took ages to arrive, but automated retail is nearly here.
Amazon’s checkout-free store opens to the public January 22nd

Amazon’s bid to automate the convenience store is finally ready for the public. The company has confirmed that the Amazon Go store attached to its new Seattle headquarters will be open to non-employees on January 22nd — more than a year later than planned. The premise remains the same. You have to scan in with a smartphone app when you enter the store, but it’s largely friction-free beyond that.

But wait, there’s more…

• Glasses could prevent motion sickness in self-driving cars
• After Math: First!
• Google’s Gboard debuts a quick way to create reaction GIFs
• Verizon’s lower-cost unlimited plan now works in Canada and Mexico

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