Should I buy a Galaxy Note 8 or wait for the Galaxy S9+?

It’s the discussion we have every single year.

With Samsung’s continued strategy of launching both a Galaxy S flagship and a top-end Galaxy Note each year, it creates an odd middle ground for some people where they struggle with deciding to buy the latest Galaxy or wait for the new one just six months away. Right now we’re talking about the Galaxy Note 8, which has been out for over three months now, and the Galaxy S9+, expected to launch as early as late February 2018.

So for those on the fence still, who should buy a Galaxy Note 8 and who should wait for the Galaxy S9+? Well we can’t say for sure in every case, but we have the information you can use to decide whether to get a phone now or play the waiting game.

Reasons to wait for the Galaxy S9+

If you’re willing to wait, there will always be a better phone on the horizon. Whether that’s for the Galaxy S9+, or some other phone, you know if you wait longer there will be newer and better phones coming. Even though we don’t know the specifics, we can easily expect that the Galaxy S9+ will be better in many ways than the Galaxy Note 8. No phone can beat Father Time.

Based on the latest rumors, there are some specific areas where the Galaxy S9+ will seem appealing to those currently checking out a Note 8. We can expect a jump in battery size for the S9+, somewhere in the range of 200mAh, which is on top of a battery that was already larger than the Note 8. It’ll also come with the latest specs and a slightly faster processor, for what it’s worth — but the Note 8 is hardly a slouch in the spec sheet as it is.

Samsung Galaxy S9: Rumors, Specs, Release Date, and More!

A bump in specs, bigger battery, dual cameras and better fingerprint sensor are all reasons to wait.

Then comes the changes in security. Early renders show a fingerprint sensor that’s situated on the back still, but underneath the camera lenses in a place that should be much easier to reach than the current placement — plus, you shouldn’t accidentally smudge the camera lens in the process. Iris scanning is also rumored to be improved, which we all know has room to grow and if it were both faster and more accurate would remove the need for the fingerprint sensor, at least for initially unlocking the phone itself.

The Galaxy S9+ is also expected to add the same type of dual-camera setup as the Note 8 currently holds exclusively, which is simply one less reason to keep your eyes on the Note 8. We don’t yet know much about the actual functional improvements in the camera, though — the Note 8 is working with a pretty great pair of cameras, but we would expect Samsung to make another jump on the Galaxy S9 and S9+ to challenge the rest of the industry that has caught, and even surpassed, its cameras.

Reasons to buy a Galaxy Note 8 today

The biggest reason to just buy the Galaxy Note 8 today rather than wait for a successor is that it’s actually available to buy. Most people can’t just wait a few months to get a new phone … and if you can, is it really worth not having a new phone just so that in the future you can get a different one? Chance are if you buy today you could enjoy your Note 8 for a good three or four months before the Galaxy S9+ is widely available — and at that point, you could decide what to do once again.

In many ways, the Galaxy S9+ will just match the Note 8’s innovations.

The Note 8 is also still a really good phone. If you’re not thinking so much about the price, which still hovers around $925, the Note 8 is a wonderful phone for Samsung fans. It still has a fantastic spec sheet that the Galaxy S9+ is expected to just match in some areas, like RAM, and only exceed slightly in others, like processor speed and internal storage options. And being just a few months old, the Galaxy Note 8 is still right at the front of the line in terms of software updates and support — even once the Galaxy S9 and S9+ are out.

And when the Galaxy S9+ is out, that doesn’t mean it will completely supplant the Galaxy Note 8 in all areas. The Note 8 has a fantastic 6.3-inch display that actually made many strides in quality beyond the Galaxy S8+ from just six months prior — so while the Galaxy S9+’s screen may be a big step from the GS8+, it won’t be so much better than the Note 8. Your Note 8 will still feel perfectly modern in terms of display tech and size. Also, no matter what’s included in the Galaxy S9+ it definitely won’t have an S Pen — so if that’s in any way a driving factor for your Note 8 purchase, there’s no other way to get it than with a Note.

See at Amazon
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The Galaxy S9+ is shaping up to be a really nice phone overall based on early rumors, but Samsung isn’t releasing it with the goal of supplanting the Galaxy Note 8. It will be for the Galaxy S7 and S8 owners out there looking for an upgrade, or those who haven’t yet made a jump over to Samsung’s latest devices from a competitor — not for stealing the Note 8’s thunder or making those S Pen-loving buyers rethink their decision.

Samsung Galaxy Note 8

• Galaxy Note 8 review
• Complete Galaxy Note 8 specs
• Galaxy Note 8 vs. Galaxy Note 5
• Which Note 8 color is best?
• Join our Galaxy Note 8 forums

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Google Chrome vs Samsung Internet Browser — which do you prefer?

Chrome is great, but Samsung puts up a mean fight.,

Android has no shortage of web browsers to choose from, but for most people, Chrome is the go-to choice. Along with being installed by default, Chrome also offers excellent syncing between your phone and desktop, offline viewing, easy language translation, and much more.

As great as Chrome is, however, it also has some stiff competition that’s been getting better and better with each passing day. One such competitor is the Samsung Internet Browser.

Samsung made some sizable upgrades to its browser throughout 2017, and to kick off the new year, some of our forum users got together to discuss whether Google or Samsung’s option is truly the best.

justnivek
12-31-2017 10:34 AM

“

I’ve been a Chrome User app my life, one day I was just bored and decided to use the Samsung browser and I found a few really REALLY good options (like true full screen, fingerprint password login, ad block) I’ve never went back to chrome. Matter of fact I uninstalled chrome altogether

(Samsung internet is runs so much smoother as well, very odd)

Reply

bandofbrothers2112
12-31-2017 02:12 AM

“

I initially used Google Chrome but it impacted negatively on my battery life.
Something like media server kept showing up using lots and from ironically a Google Search it confirmed Chome could be the culprit so I uninstalled and it went away.
Ive been through a few browsers and most are just a skin so I ended up using the Stock Samsung Internet Option and battery life has been stable and…

Reply

TennisGuy45
12-31-2017 10:47 AM

“

I tried using Samsungs browser but kept running into sites where the web video player was just blank and did not show.
Moved over to Chrome and the video player shows up and works properly.

Reply

paridge
01-01-2018 11:25 AM

“

Samsung browser is nice with great features, but if you use Chrome on your computer, then Chrome is more convenient. The Samsung browser can sync with the Chrome bookmarks. But Chrome not only syncs in real time (because it uses your Google account) across devices, it also does autofill. It remembers your searches, user names, passwords, and credit card information across devices if you have that…

Reply

Now, we’d like to ask you – If you had to pick, would you choose Google Chrome or Samsung Internet Browser?

Join the conversation in the forums!

An essential guide to simplifying your living room setup

What’s the best tech for simplifying my living room setup?

There is so much great tech for entertaining these days that it can almost get overwhelming. If you’re not careful, your living room table can become overrun with remotes for your TV, cable box, surround sound system and streaming boxes. Stop the madness!

It’s time to simplify that setup by incorporating the latest technology to either replace those remotes with voice control, or scale everything down to one remote or device.

Chromecast and Google Home

Google offers one of the best ways to simplify your living room using a combination of Chromecast and Google Home smart speakers. Chromecast Ultra is an essential TV accessory — it’s small and plugs into the HDMI port of any TV, and is fairly future-proof with support for 4K Ultra HD and HDR. With it, you’re able to use your phone to cast content from Netflix, Youtube, and content from a bunch of other great apps.

But that’s just the beginning. If you pair a Chromecast with a Google Home smart speaker you can not only control your Chromecast with your voice, but you’ll also get a pretty decent speaker for throwing on tunes for any occasion.

It’s a system that can extend well beyond the living room, too. If you have a Chromecast plugged into every TV in your home along with a few Google Home speakers strategically placed throughout your house you can basically live in the future with endless entertainment options available to you, and all voice-controlled.

Best of all: there’s a good variety of Google Home speakers to choose from now. You can get the standard Google Home speaker that features a swappable base for complementing your home decor, the discreet Google Home Mini which trades a bigger speaker for a compact footprint, and then beefy Google Home Max which looks to compete with Sonos as a top-end wireless speaker.

See Chromecast Ultra at Google

See Google Home at Google

Amazon Echo and Amazon Fire TV

We couldn’t mention Google Home and Chromecast without also talking about the Alexa-powered equivalent. Amazon was the company that ushered in the A.I.-powered smart speaker, and perhaps you’ve already started building out your home with Amazon Echo products. Well, if you feel like you’ve already comfortable with Alexa over Google Assistant, it’s time to go all-in in the living room.

Amazon recently revamped its Echo speaker line up, with the second-generation Echo speaker looking like a natural pick for any living room, with its stylish fabric case options and respectable sound quality. Amazon also updated its Amazon Fire TV dongle for 2017, which includes Alexa voice controls built into the remote control.

Since both the Amazon Fire TV and Echo speakers are all controlled by the Alexa app on your phone, you’re able to control your Fire TV using just your Echo speakers. If your TV includes HDMI CEC, you’ll be able to walk into the room, ask Alexa to “Watch Fire TV”, and your TV and Fire TV will both turn on instantaneously. From there, you can use the remote to control things or use the built-in microphone to keep using voice controls.

The Echo speakers also work well for music and podcasts and can be linked together as rooms from within the Alexa app to fill your whole house with music — perfect for entertaining and parties.

See Amazon Echo at Amazon

See Amazon Fire TV at Amazon

Logitech Harmony Elite Universal Remote

Ok, so maybe you already have a pretty epic entertainment center setup in your living room and you don’t really need much else except for one remote to control it all. The Logitech Harmony Elite is the remote control of your dreams. Logitech says it’s compatible with an incredible 270,000 different devices that go well beyond entertainment and include home automation devices like smart lights, locks, and thermostats.

It also works with both Alexa and Google Assistant, so it won’t matter if you’ve got one or the other in your home the remote will work just fine with either. This remote is what happens when smartphone technology mixes with a remote control. You can program countless activities or scenes (based on the existing smart home tech in your house) and then easily select what you want using the full-color touch screen to at the top of the remote.

Now all these smarts don’t come cheap, and it might seem a tad ludicrous to spend $250 on a TV remote, but this thing goes so beyond just controlling your TV that it might just be worth it to be able to control everything — quite literally everything — with just one remote.

See at Best Buy

NVIDIA Shield

The NVIDIA Shield is the device that anchors my home entertainment system, and it’s probably the piece of tech that I use most beyond my smartphone. It’s a shame that Android TV isn’t a more popular platform because NVIDIA is really the only company out there that’s pushing it to the max.

The latest NVIDIA Shield supports 4K Ultra HD and HDR playback and now comes with Google Assistant built right into the operating system and controllable via the microphones built into the media remote and gaming controllers. There’s great app support for all your favorite streaming services, and there’s even an accessory from Tablo Tuner that lets you attach a digital antenna to the Shield and then watch and record live television for free.

The NVIDIA Shield is the cord cutter’s dream, and if you’re considering replacing your cable TV package with a streaming box in 2018, you should certainly consider the NVIDIA Shield. Oh, it also handles video games pretty well, and can also let you stream PC games to your living room. It’s the most versatile streaming box you can buy for just $169.

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Samsung Galaxy S9 shows up in mysterious hands-on photo (Update)

The photo’s admittedly sketchy, but it lines up with previous leaks/rumors.

Updated 10:00 – Since posting this, it was discovered that the image is a slightly modified version of a render that Concepts-Creator made up in late December. Sorry for the confusion on this one!

Original Post

2018 is officially underway, and one of the first big flagships we’re expecting to see is the Samsung Galaxy S9. A recent FCC certification suggests that the phone could be announced as soon as February, and leading up to that, the first hands-on photo of the phone has just been leaked.

The image comes from Chinese social network Weibo, and as such, we recommend approaching this with some restraint. We’ve seen legitimate leaks come from Weibo in the past, but there’s also been a fair share of garbage shared on there as well.

In any case, the photo shows both the Galaxy S9 and S9+ next to each other. The S9 on the left has a single rear camera, whereas the larger S9+ has dual rear cameras (something we were already expecting). We can also see that the fingerprint sensor has in-fact been moved below the camera housing, and the back is once again made out of glass.

What we’re seeing here lines up nicely with a CAD render that was discovered in mid-December, and while the S9 and S9+ will likely end up looking very similar to what’s being shown off here, it’s too early to say for sure whether or not this is actually the real thing.

In addition to the similar design compared to the S8, we’re also expecting the S9 to keep the 3.5mm headphone jack, slim down its bezels even more, have an improved iris scanning system, and possibly ship with a whopping 512GB of internal storage.

Do you plan on buying a Galaxy S9 this year?

Samsung Galaxy S9: Rumors, Specs, Release Date, and More!

How to unsubscribe from a YouTube channel

A tidy Subscription list is good for you.

A healthy YouTube feed is awesome. It keeps your constantly entertained and informed with regular videos from your favorite personalities, and if you tune it just right can feel like a DVR of everything you love with you at all times. Not every YouTube channel is a winner, though, which means sometimes you need to remove a few channels from your list to keep that feed just the way you like it.

Good news: YouTube lets you unsubscribe from any channel no matter where you are. Even better news: it’s really easy to do.

Want to learn how to subscribe to a channel? We have a guide for that!

Unsubscribing from your phone

If you’re on the YouTube app on your phone and want to unsubscribe from a channel, all you need to do is find the home page of that channel in the app an tap the same button you tap to subscribe. The easiest way to get there is:

Open the YouTube app.
Tap the Search icon in the top right and type in the name of the channel or personality.
Tap the grey button labeled “Subscribed” on the channel home page.
Answer the YouTube prompt confirming you want to unsubscribe from this channel.

Once that channel has been unsubscribed, you will see the grey bar turn to red. All of the videos from that YouTube personality will now be removed from your feed.

Unsubscribing from the web

If you’re at your computer instead of on your phone, you can also unsubscribe from YouTube videos with relative ease.

Head to YouTube in your browser.
Click the search bar at the top of the page and enter the name of the channel you want to find.
Click on the grey button labeled “Subscribed” on the right-hand side of the channel home page.
Answer the YouTube prompt confirming you want to unsubscribe from this channel

Once you have confirmed you want to unsubscribe, you will see that button change from grey to red. After this, you will no longer see that channel in your feed.

This is a quick and easy process that everyone can do no matter where they are, which is great. There’s also nothing stopping you from re-subscribing to a channel in the future, so be sure to keep this guide in mind for any channels you may want to remove!

Check out more tips in our Ultimate Guide to YouTube!

The Pixelbook is now a test device for Google’s Fuchsia OS

Fuchsia makes its way to Google’s best laptop to-date.

Back in 2016, it was discovered that Google was working on a brand new operating system by the name of “Fuchsia.” Knowing that Google has a new OS in the works is admittedly quite exciting, but just like it was in 2016, it’s still unclear what exactly Google plans on doing with it.

There haven’t been many developments on this front lately, but seemingly out of nowhere, Google has added the Pixelbook as an officially supported device for testing Fuchsia. The other two “target” devices that the Pixelbook is joining includes the Acer Switch Alpha 12 (a convertible Windows PC) and the Intel NUC (a mini PC), and while this doesn’t mean much for most of our readers, there are now instructions for installing Fuchsia on your Pixelbook if you want to test the OS in its very early stages.

One of the most distinct characteristics of Fuchsia is that it’s based on the Zircon kernel rather than Linux like Android and Chrome OS. We know that a big part of Fuchsia’s future will lie with internet-of-things devices, but seeing as how it’s being tested on the Pixelbook and other Windows machines, it appears that desktops/laptops might one day launch with it as well.

We aren’t expecting any sort of announcement of Fuchsia from Google anytime soon, but the addition of the Pixelbook as a test device does show that the company is still actively working on it and that it hasn’t faded away just yet.

Based on what we know about Fuchsia so far, how would you like to see the OS used in the future?

Google’s ‘Andromeda’ looks to be hiding in plain sight

Best Android games for Chromebooks as of January 2018

These are the best Android games to play on your Chromebook!

When Google announced that Android apps would come to Chrome OS, the biggest focus was on productivity. With Play Store access, any Chromebook would be able to use Photoshop, Microsoft Word and other key services that people need to earn a living. But a less spoken-about benefit: it gives powerful Chromebooks the ability to play Android’s best games.

Playing games on a Chromebook has some advantages and disadvantages compared to trying to play them on a smartphone or even a tablet. No Chromebook yet has an accelerometer, so certain titles just won’t work. Not every Chromebook has a touch screen, and very few games work with a mouse and keyboard. On the flip side, every Chromebook supports Bluetooth controllers and video output, so many will work when attached to a television.

I tested all these games on the Pixelbook, but they should all work just fine on less powerful Chromebooks. I used 8Bitdo’s excellent SF30 Pro gamepad, but any controller that works with Android phones will also work with a Chromebook. With that said, let’s get into the games!

Grand Theft Auto San Andreas

For those that don’t know, Grand Theft Auto San Andreas is an open-world game that takes place in a fictional version of California in 1992. The game fully supports controllers and plays wonderfully on Android phones, as well as on Chromebooks. The story itself takes a long time to complete, with plenty of side objectives to keep you entertained. The earlier installments — Grand Theft Auto III and Grand Theft Auto: Vice City are also available.

Download: Grand Theft Auto San Andreas ($6)

Monument Valley and Monument Valley 2

These games are for those with a convertible laptop, since they don’t support controllers and rely entirely on touch controls. Still, the M.C. Escher-inspired level design is gorgeous and the puzzles themselves are a fun challenge. The base games have hours worth of puzzles, but there are expansions for the first Monument Valley for those that want to solve even more puzzles.

Download Monument Valley ($3.99)

Download Monument Valley 2 ($4.99)

Asphalt 8: Airborne

The Asphalt series is one of the most popular racing series for Android, and that continues with Asphalt 8: Airborne. This game supports Google Play Games for synchronizing your progress, and supports Bluetooth controllers. There are over 190 cars and motorcycles in the game to race, and plenty of racetracks to keep things exciting. Asphalt 8: Airborne is available for free with in-app purchases.

Download Asphalt 8: Airborne (free w/ IAP)

Overkill 3

We featured this game on our roundup of the best shooter games for Android, and for good reason: the game is fast paced, features different loadouts to face different bosses, and includes a co-op mode to play online with your best friend. Overkill 3 is available for free with in-app purchases.

Download Overkill 3 (free w/ IAP)

Your emulator of choice

Emulators are nothing new in the Android world, and they work just as well on Chromebooks as they do on smartphones. Which emulator you use will depend on which games you’d like to play. I’m using John GBA for Game Boy Advance games, and while this emulator doesn’t support controllers, the controls are laid out well on screen so it shouldn’t be tiring to play. As always, make sure you get your game ROMs through legal methods.

Download John GBA($2.99)

What say you?

Do you play many Android games on your Chromebook? Let us know down below!

Chromebooks

• The best Chromebooks
• Should you buy a Chromebook?
• Google Play is coming to Chromebooks
• Acer Chromebook 14 review
• Join our Chromebook forums

OnePlus teases Sandstone 5T announcement for January 5

The Sandstone OnePlus 5T is almost here.

Right at the tail-end of 2017, OnePlus uploaded a video to its YouTube channel called “What’s in the Box?”. In the clip, a handful of people are feeling a mystery item in a box with numerous hints that they’re touching a OnePlus 5T with the company’s signature Sandstone material on the back.

OnePlus says in the video that this mystery product will be announced in January, but the company’s since shared a teaser image on its Weibo account that says there are “three days left” until “the classic returns.” There’s a date of January 5 on the image, and behind the text is what looks to be the Sandstone texture with a white paint job. In addition to this, many of OnePlus’s Twitter accounts have had their profile and header images changed to feature the same white Sandstone background.

Although it hasn’t officially been said, it’s quite obvious that January 5 will see the announcement of a white OnePlus 5T with a Sandstone finish. The Star Wars version of the 5T that was released alongside The Last Jedi featured this very same getup, and it looks like OnePlus is ready to expand it to more markets sans the Star Wars logo on the back.

We aren’t sure if the red alert slider will remain intact, but either way, we won’t have to wait too much longer before Sandstone makes the return that we’re sure many of you have been waiting for.

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

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The Movado Connect is the most striking smartwatch I’ve ever worn

The Movado Connect is hands-down the most beautiful smartwatch I’ve ever worn. It’s the kind of perfectly proportioned, well-balanced wristwatch you expect from a 136-year-old company, with a stock watchface modeled on a design that first saw the light of day in 1946. Even the band, made of a humble, soft silicone, manages to come off as somehow fancier than it really is. 

Yes, everything about the Movado Connect oozes sleek sophistication … which is why it’s going to break my heart to return it, as I’ll probably end up doing. Find out why in my Movado Connect First Impressions above – and let me know whether you’d keep it or toss it back in the comments on YouTube!

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Samsung Galaxy A8 now available for pre-order in South Korea

You can now pre-order Samsung’s exciting mid-ranger.

The past couple years have seen a lot of excellent mid-range Android handsets, but one that caught our attention for 2018 when it was announced in late December is the Samsung Galaxy A8. Samsung previously announced that the A8 would be launching in Vietnam on January 6, and now the phone is officially available for pre-order in South Korea.

KT Corp will be the official carrier for the A8 in South Korea, and it’s selling the phone for 599,500 won (or about $561 USD). Customers will be able to lower the cost of the A8 through subscription plans that are being offered, and available colors include blue, gold, and black.

Samsung will officially launch the A8 on Friday, January 5, and that’s when we’ll likely start to see it expand to additional countries.

The Galaxy A8’s price isn’t the lowest we’ve ever seen in the mid-range market, but it manages to offer a lot of the S8’s main attractions while still costing less. There’s an 18:9 Super AMOLED Infinity Display, support for Gear VR, IP86 dust/water resistance, and even the ability to use Samsung Pay for NFC and MST payments.

Seeing as how the S9 is shaping up to be a glorified spec bump of the S8, the A8 might not be a bad way to go if you’d like to save a few bucks on your next phone purchase while still keeping a lot of Samsung’s flagship features.

Galaxy A8/A8+ are official with dual front cameras and Infinity Display