Think Snapchat is dead? Then check out Like and its AR music video effects

Now that Kylie Jenner has declared Snapchat to be dead (and wiped out more than $1 billion in the company’s value), there may be space for a new social media app to ascend to new heights. If Snapchat is over, what’s new and happening? Hoping to fill the void is Like, a short video app with what is said to be some of the most advanced technology in its category. Already an international sensation, Like has proven its popularity by attracting more than 25 million users in 19o countries. So move over indeed, Snapchat, because Like may be the new ruling monarch.

The app, in some ways, is much like Musical.ly, the so-called “global video community” that allows users to create, share, and explore short music videos. But Like takes things a step further with a number of augmented reality effects, resulting in what the Like team calls “music magic.”

Using Like seems simple enough — all you need to do is pick a song (there are plenty of current pop hits that you can select within the app itself) — and then begin recording videos that you can either share in the app itself or on other social media outlets. But before you say that this sounds just like the millions of other social music video apps already in existence, you’ll have to explore the variety of special effects, many of which, ironically enough, seem to take their cues from Snapchat.

You can apply face filters, change your voice with sound effects, and most importantly, check out a host of AR effects. With its 4D Magic effects, Like allows users to transform video backgrounds with simple animations like bubbles, or with impactful moments like a big explosion. You can also turn your background into a fanciful place — after all, why make your bedroom the backdrop when you can make it the moon? Plus, you can do face swaps, and a range of other (again, admittedly Snapchat-esque) effects.

A number of young Hollywood influencers, including Mackenzie Ziegler, Johnny Orlando, and Tessa Brooks have begun using the app, but only time will tell if the real queen of social media gives her stamp of approval. But even if Kylie isn’t using Like just yet, you can try it out yourself.

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Who you gonna call? ‘Ghostbusters World’ AR game will slime phones in 2018

A new augmented reality (AR) game from Sony Pictures and publisher 4:33 promises to unleash “specters, poltergeists, full-roaming vapors, and more” on your iOS and Android phones later this year. Following in the footsteps of successful AR games like Pokémon Go, the new game sends you on a quest to capture hundreds of ghosts from the Ghostbusters universe.

Ivan Reitman of Ghost Corps, who directed the original movie, said in a release announcing the new game, “The Ghostbusters Universe is rich in characters and Ghostbusters World is the perfect medium to get to know these characters in a whole new dimension.”

More information, including a hands-on demo, will be revealed at the Mobile World Conference in Barcelona.

Google is emphasizing AR technology with the announcement of its ARCore mobile AR platform ahead of the MWC, as an exclusive report in Variety detailed. ARCore allows third-party developers to create AR apps for Android phones. “Ghostbusters is the perfect brand and best content to utilize AR technology,” said Jamie Stevens of Sony Pictures.

After announcing ARCore last year, Google has been testing preview versions of the new tools on its own Pixel devices. The company previously said that it plans to reach its goal of 100 million ARCore-enabled phones by March 2018. Samsung has already teased “immersive new experiences” in a joint statement and some Samsung phones are already equipped with developer versions of the new software.

Other manufacturers that will include ARCore are LGE, ASUS, and OnePlus. Google also announced new partnerships with Sony, Huawei, Xiaomi, and other companies as part of the ARCore rollout.

Although it won’t be available when ARCore debuts, Ghostbusters World promises hundreds of ghosts to battle and capture from all elements of the franchise, from films to comic books to the theme parks.

Sung-Jin Han, CEO of 4:33, said, “Fans will have the opportunity to take a walk through an immersive game environment that merges our everyday world with the many ghosts from the Ghostbusters Universe. It’s an unparalleled experience!”

If we get our hands on the game at the MWC and give ghost hunting a try, we’ll be extra careful not to cross the streams.

Editors’ Recommendations

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• Thanks Samsung, you’ve ruined Mobile World Congress 2018

Android won’t be getting long-awaited systemwide ‘dark mode’

Android fans were in for a bit of disappointment regarding Android’s long-awaited dark mode. Earlier this week, a Google employee stated that the company was working to implement a system-wide dark mode in the upcoming Android P. It turns out that those statements were the result of miscommunication between Google employees and users on the company’s issue tracker forums.

In response to a user’s query regarding “dark mode,” a Google engineer said that “our engineering team has added this feature” and that “it will be available in a future Android release.”

Sadly, this is not the case. Google has recently clarified its stance on this issue, and has stated that it will not be implementing a system-wide dark mode. Instead, the company is working to make it easier for third-party developers to implement the feature within their own apps.

The engineer recently took to the forums to clarify his previous remarks and address any confusion.

“What we *have* added in a future Android release is a developer-facing setting (via Developer Options) to toggle the -night UI mode qualifier, which will make it easier for developers to create and test apps that implement night mode,” the engineer wrote, as reported by Tech Crunch. “This qualifier has been in the platform since Froyo (SDK 8) and globally modifiable via UiModeManager since Marshmallow (SDK 23); however, there was never an explicit toggle made available anywhere in Settings.

“If it’s any consolation, we will also not be adding Hot Dog Mode (where all UI elements are yellow and red).”

While increased third-party support is welcome, the news will likely still come as a disappointment to Android users who were hoping for a universal dark mode that could be toggled within the OS’s base settings. Some Android devices do support a system-wide dark mode based on a user’s wallpaper settings, but many people were hoping for something baked into the core Android OS.

Dark mode has become popular in both third-party apps and Google’s own first-party services such as YouTube. In addition to users who simply prefer the aesthetics of dark mode, the feature has some practical uses in terms of power consumption.

Unfortunately, it looks like Android fans will have to rely on third-party apps for the time being.

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Alcatel 5 Series hands-on review

Research Center:
Alcatel 5 Series

Alcatel is a brand that’s synonymous with affordability, but with its latest range of Android smartphones, there’s a clear attempt to bring some premium design features to the budget end of the market. We went hands-on with the top-of-the-line Alcatel 5 Series and found that it has some pleasant surprises in store.

The first thing that strikes you about the Alcatel 5 Series is the modern design language. This is a phone with slim bezels around the sides and bottom of the display. It’s quite square, with sharp corners, but it feels light and easy to handle. There is still quite a big bezel at the top, but it houses one of the phone’s headline features – the dual-lens front-facing camera.

The first thing you notice about the Alcatel 5 Series is the modern design language.

Combining a 13-megapixel lens with a 5-megapixel, 120-degree lens allows you to capture good-quality individual and group selfies. The camera app has face recognition built-in and when it detects more than two faces, it automatically switches to the wide-angle lens. We found that it worked quite well in testing and it’s a nice feature for selfie addicts.

Alcatel is also talking up its Face Key technology, which is facial-recognition security for unlocking your device. Apparently, it breaks down facial scans into more than a hundred data points to unlock your phone in under a second. We weren’t able to test it during our short time with the phone, but it’s a surprising feature to find in a phone this cheap.

The textured power key and volume rocker sit on the right spine of the Alcatel 5 Series, which has a metallic paint exterior, though it’s actually made of plastic. The back has an attractive brushed metal finish in gold or black, with a single camera lens ringed in silver, which is echoed in the fingerprint sensor directly beneath it. We like the look; it’s clearly inspired by flagship trends, but in the budget crowd, this kind of design is enough the make the Alcatel 5 Series really stand out.

Simon Hill/Digital Trends

Simon Hill/Digital Trends

Simon Hill/Digital Trends

We found the display in the Alcatel 5 Series to be bright and clear, though it only sports a resolution of 1,440 x 720 pixels, so it’s not the sharpest. It was LG that ushered in the 18:9 aspect ratio for smartphone displays, but it has fast become a standard – one that Alcatel has embraced. It’s not just the 5.7-inch Alcatel 5 Series display that’s 18:9, Alcatel’s entire lineup, including the 3 Series and even the 1 series, have adopted the same ratio.

The main camera is rated at 12-megapixels and seems to work reasonably well, though it’s not the fastest to load and snap a shot. That may be partly due to the octa-core MediaTek 6750 processor, which is backed by 3GB of RAM.

Alcatel 5 Series Compared To

LG V30S ThinQ

Google Pixel 2

LG V30

HTC U11

Nokia 8

Moto Z2 Play

HTC One Remix

Huawei Ascend Mate 2

LG G Flex

LG Lucid 2

Motorola Droid Razr HD

Sony Xperia P

Motorola Droid Bionic

Motorola Photon 4G

T-Mobile myTouch 3G

The 5 Series is not the fastest phone around in terms of performance, but Alcatel obviously had to compromise somewhere to keep the price down. Switching from a flagship more than twice its price, there’s definitely a sluggish feel, but if you’re upgrading from an older budget phone, this will feel plenty fast enough.

Speaking of compromise, there’s only 32GB of storage onboard, but thankfully there is support for a MicroSD card, so you can add up to 128GB more.

Simon Hill/Digital Trends

The battery is a respectable size at 3,000mAh, but there’s no support for fast charging. You also won’t find wireless charging or water resistance for that matter. But we were pleased to find a USB-C port on the bottom and a standard 3.5mm audio jack up top.

To be fair, the Alcatel 5 Series is being offered for 230 euros (around $280) in Europe. It’s available now. Although it does have some stiff competition from the Honor 7X and Moto G5S Plus, it’s a decent device that’s sure to draw some admirers. If you prize style over performance and love those selfies, then it could be a good choice for you. It will be coming to the U.S. soon.

LG V30S ThinQ hands-on review

Research Center:
LG V30S ThinQ

Have you recently purchased an LG V30? You may be frustrated to learn LG has released an updated model called the LG V30S ThinQ. Have you wasted your money, and now own an outdated device? The good news is that you haven’t. The V30S ThinQ looks identical to the V30, and only has a handful of technical alterations, plus some software changes that you may, or may not, be that worried about.

The V30S ThinQ is an enigma. It’s not the new G Series smartphone many may have expected to arrive at Mobile World Congress, and it’s not an existing device revision on the same scale as the OnePlus 5T over the OnePlus 5. The V30S ThinQ has 6GB of RAM and you can choose between 128GB or 256GB of storage space. The older LG V30 has 4GB of RAM and either 64GB or 128GB storage. Aside from this, everything else specification-wise is identical.

Artificial intelligence

What’s the reason for updating the V30? Because the artificial intelligence bandwagon is about to depart, and LG wants to be onboard. This has translated into two primary new features in the camera software, the integration of LG’s ThinQ smart home control system, a visual search engine called QLens, and a Korea-only voice control system called QVoice. Aside from QVoice, there’s a strong chance these new AI features will come to the old V30 too, so you may not miss out at all, although the decision on when and if they’re coming hasn’t been finalized yet.

Standard Mode

Bright Mode

Standard Mode

Bright Mode

The first AI feature is Bright Mode, which enhances low-light photography by increasing the “brightness” of photos taken in dark environments by two times. It does this by enlarging the pixels, but lowering the megapixel count. It’s decreased from 16-megapixels to 4-megapixels for Bright Mode pictures. Think that sounds like a bad deal? Surprisingly it’s not. We took photos in a dimly lit bar and the Bright Mode image was considerably more detailed than the standard picture, just not as pixel dense. If it was a picture we were taking to share on social media, we’d pick the photo using Bright Mode, which makes it worthwhile. We also like that this is an optional feature. It activates automatically, but can be quickly switched off if you don’t want it.

It’s nowhere near as polished and instantly usable as Huawei’s AI camera.

But while effective sometimes, it didn’t do much sometimes, and differences between the a Bright Mode picture and a normal picture were impossible to spot. This downward slide in AI feature quality continues with AI Cam, LG’s other AI feature. This operates somewhat like Huawei’s AI-driven scene and object recognition system on the Mate 10 Pro, which adjusts camera settings based on what the camera “sees.”

Switch to AI Cam on the V30S and point it in the general direction of something, and a bizarre word cloud starts to appear. Words like Fashionable, Beer, Architecture, Hand, One Person, and Technology manifest on the screen, sometimes unrelated to what’s in front of it, eventually prompting the camera to select a mode. We pointed it at a tea cup, and after flashing up various words for a while, it selected Food mode. There are eight categories right now, with more to be added in the future.

This is on-board machine learning, without the help of a dedicated AI processor, although the majority of the processing is still carried out on the phone rather than in the cloud. It’s also not LG’s own technology, it’s from a company called EyeEM, and has been tweaked by LG following installation on the V30S, including changes to make the software more power efficient. Due to AI Cam’s reluctance to actually change modes in a timely manner, it’s nowhere near as polished and instantly usable as Huawei’s AI camera. The changes it makes are optional though, and you can turn off the selected mode if you prefer.

Andy Boxall/Digital Trends

QLens is a visual search engine and translation tool, which integrates with Amazon and Pinterest for product search and identification. We didn’t have network connection (it was a Korean model) when we tested the V30S so were unable to check how this worked. Finally, ThinQ allows you to control LG smart home products using Google Assistant. Again, we haven’t tried this because no LG connected devices were available at the time.

New colors

LG will introduce the V30S ThinQ in two new colors — moroccan blue and platinum grey. These are variations on existing V30 colors, and the blue in particular looks fantastic, with a greenish hue appearing through the deeper blue color. The platinum grey is also darker than the V30 version. Prices will be announced locally upon release, and the V30S ThinQ will launch first in South Korea in March. It won’t necessarily replace the V30 everywhere, but may do in some markets. If we don’t sound sure, it’s because LG itself isn’t sure at the moment.

LG V30S ThinQ Compared To

Alcatel 5 Series

Google Pixel 2

LG V30

HTC U11

Samsung Galaxy Note 8

Nokia 8

Moto Z2 Play

HTC One Remix

Huawei Ascend Mate 2

LG G Flex

Motorola Droid Razr HD

Sony Xperia P

Motorola Droid Bionic

Motorola Photon 4G

T-Mobile myTouch 3G

The LG V30S ThinQ is a confusing phone. It adds very little to an already capable phone, and the features it does add — that work effectively, at least — should really have been included on the V30 when it was first announced, less than six months ago. They’re not a reason for LG to update the phone, let alone a reason for you to update your V30 to it. Another flagship LG phone is coming later this year, and we’re hoping it’s considerably more focused than the V30S ThinQ.

Samsung (accidentally) publishes full Galaxy S9 promo video early

Well, this is awkward.

Samsung’s launch event for the Galaxy S9 and S9+ is set to start in just a handful of hours, at 12:00 p.m. ET on February 25, but someone was apparently a bit too hyped about the launch and accidentally published a full-length product promo video. It was promptly taken down, of course, but Slashleaks was able to grab it first.

Feast your eyes on this gorgeous leaked footage. It’s our best look yet at the Galaxy S9 — or, at least, how Samsung wants it to be portrayed in its own advertising. We’ve seen far more of the phone in an extensive set of leaks up to this point, and have a good idea of many of its specs. As always, the real test will be when we can all get our hands on the phone(s) and see what they’re really like to use.

The event kicks off for real at 12:00 p.m. ET on February 25 — so be sure to join us live as we see them unveiled!

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

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• Join our Galaxy S9 forums

This $7 Aukey USB-C car charger features two USB-A ports and Quick Charge 3.0

Charge via USB-C or USB-A with this travel essential.

Right now, you can grab the Quick Charge 3.0 Aukey USB-C Car Charger for only $7.40 when you enter promo code 9KYM5X68 at checkout. That’ll take $13 off its current price.

This car charger can recognize your device and alter its power output for safe and efficient charging, allowing you to charge three device at once – two via USB-A and one via USB-C. There are built-in safeguards to protect against excessive current, overheating and overcharging.

You’ll also receive a 2-year warranty with this purchase. Aukey’s USB-C Car Charger has over 300 reviews on Amazon with 4 out of 5 stars.

See at Amazon

LG V30S specs: More of the same, plus A.I.

The LG V30S isn’t a brand new phone, but it’s a nice refresh on one of 2017’s best flagships.

The LG V30S builds on the success of the audiovisual-focused V30, and while it adds a few tantalizing specs and a couple of notable A.I. features, it lacks any big-deal upgrades like an improved camera or current-gen Snapdragon processor.

LG V30S hands-on: A 2017 smartphone with 2018’s buzzwords

The V30S brings the ThinQ brand to LG’s phone lineup.

There’s something about a new phone. It gleams, free of fingerprints, as you gingerly take it from its box.

The accessories, perfectly wrapped, have infinite potential. You turn it on and it boots to a clean home screen, ready for you to make it — anything. That’s the beauty of the modern smartphone it; it does so much and it can do whatever you want it to do.

The LG V30S — technically, the LG V30S+ ThinQ, if you’re being pedantic — is a sort-of refresh of the eponymous V30, which was released to great fanfare in late 2017. That phone vaulted the Korean company once again into the spotlight as one that cares about creators, but its robust photo and video tools were hobbled by poorly-performing camera sensors on the front and back.

As we approached MWC 2018, it became apparent that, under new management, LG’s mobile division would not be releasing a successor to the G6 — that will come later this year, under a different naming scheme. It would instead revisit its most recently released phone with a renewed emphasis on AI, and an improved camera experience. Oh, and more memory.

Here’s what you need to know about the LG V30S.

It comes in two versions

The V30 itself arrived on the scene with two storage options, a standard model with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage, and a V30+, sold at select carriers, with 4GB of RAM and 128GB of storage.

The V30S proposes the same naming convention: the standard model offers 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, while the V30S+ doubles the storage to 256GB. The latter is overkill for most people, but LG is framing this S variant as a special edition of sorts, so in that context, it makes perfect sense.

Outside of the RAM and storage differences, the hardware is identical to the V30: 6-inch 2880×1440 POLED display, Snapdragon 835, 16MP primary camera, 13MP wide-angle secondary camera, 5MP front-facing camera, 3300mAh battery, Quad DAC (and headphone jack), IP68 water resistance, HDR10 support, and more.

LG V30S specs

There’s one other hardware change, actually: new colors.

There are two new colors

Along with the fresh memory and storage options, LG is touting two new colors — only weeks after debuting the LG V30 in Raspberry Rose, mind you — New Moroccan Blue (Europe received a darker, more navy-like Moroccan Blue V30) and Platinum Gray, which is slightly darker and more matte than the Cloud Silver V30. Still with me?

LG says that plenty of work went into making sure these colors stand out in a scrupulous 2018 design ethos, and they do indeed look great and feel modern. Whether they feel particular greater and more modern than the V30 … well, we’ll leave that up to you to decide.

Low-light photography gets a boost

One of the biggest criticisms of the V30 was how its 16MP rear sensor and f/1.6 lens handled low-light situations — in a couple words, not great. With the V30S, LG has implemented a familiar solution to alleviate the problem and help eke additional detail out of poorly-lit scenes: pixel binning.

LG V30S Bright Mode enabled (left) | LG V30S Regular low-light capture (right)

Specifically, when its new Bright Mode is enabled, it uses data from four pixels for every one it outputs, spitting out a 4MP photo with ostensibly four times the detail. It’s not going to give your nighttime shots daytime detail, but it’s a significant improvement.

AI for the win

Back at CES, LG debuted its nascent ThinQ AI ecosystem, which will adorn almost every product the company makes, from washing machines to fridges to speakers to phones, that has AI features built in. What does that mean? Right now, that’s not exactly clear, though LG believes that proactive assistance will make all of its products better and easier to use.

On the V30S, which is LG’s first ThinQ-powered phone, AI manifests itself in a few ways: the most instantly noticeable is a camera app that automatically detects scenes and changes shooting settings and color profiles for a variety of objects, from people to dogs to cans of beer. LG reportedly trained its AI engine using millions of photos from the EyeEm database, and the company plans to push regular over-the-air updates to improve and expand its recognition database. Right now, the scenes adjust for eight categories:

• Portrait
• Food
• Pet
• Landscape
• City
• Flower
• Sunrise
• Sunset

According to LG, “each mode enhances the characteristics of the subject taking into account factors such as the viewing angle, color, reflections, lighting, and saturation level.” I’ll have to employ further testing, but in my short time with the phone, a cloud of terms constantly cycles on the screen, settling on a particular one as it comes into focus.

It’s a neat visualization for what I assume to be a very processor-intensive activity, but it remains to be seen whether these changes improve the quality of photos taken on the V30S. On the Mate 10 Pro, which also takes a similar approach to object optimization, the enhancements are quite subtle, and don’t add much to the overall experience.

Another aspect of LG’s AI prowess is QLens, which uses the camera app to read QR codes to more quickly and easily identify potential products to buy online. LG says that this is what people are doing already — window shopping in physical retail stores and then going online to find it cheaper — but I think the company overestimates the ubiquity of QR codes.

Does the LG V30S matter?

The question of whether LG should have released the V30S looms large over this product. By not announcing a successor to the G6 at MWC, it probably felt some pressure to put something up against the Galaxy S9 behemoth. But there may not be enough here to warrant much interest from the general public — the V-series is already pretty niche.

At the same time, LG says that the V30S could potentially replace the V30 in some markets, and live alongside it in other less price-pressured locations like the U.S., where phones are normally paid on monthly installment plans.

While the Bright Mode really does improve low-light photography, it doesn’t turn a lemon into lemonade — just a slightly more palatable lemon. Similarly, the extra RAM should make a small difference in performance, especially when multitasking, but it probably won’t offer any considerable improvement over the existing V30.

Pricing and availability?

At the time of writing, the LG V30S has only just been announced. LG says that local markets will release their own pricing and availability, though South Korea will definitely receive it first, and will likely only have to wait a few weeks from now for the privilege.

Given that all four U.S. carriers jumped on the chance to sell the V30, and some the V30+, it stands to reason than the V30S and V30S+ should find their way stateside in the coming months. But even the least expensive V30 is still $800 in the U.S., so it wouldn’t be unreasonable to see the V30S crack $1000, a hard pill to swallow for 2017 tech wrapped in 2018 marketing.

Your take

What’s your take on the LG V30S ThinQ? Let us know in the comments below!

LG V30 + V30S ThingQ

• LG V30S hands-on: A 2017 phone with 2018’s buzzwords
• LG V30S specs
• LG V30 review: The no-BS flagship
• Top LG V30 camera features
• Full LG V30 specs
• Join our LG V30 forums

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Fully driverless car tests in California could start in April

Automakers testing their self-driving cars on California roads might be able to go fully autonomous as soon as April, according to the state’s DMV. Instead of putting someone behind the wheel to take over in certain circumstances, such as when the self-driving system isn’t working as well as it should, the companies will be required to link their cars to remote operators. Those remote drivers’ job is to keep an eye on multiple cars and to take over their controls if and when needed.

The automakers are allowed to hire third-party companies to handle remote operation. Some of them, though, including Waymo and Nissan, have already developed their own remote-driving technologies — Nissan even built a monitoring center for its driverless taxi’s tests, which will begin in March and take place in Tokyo.

Even if they pass on developing their own remote-driving technology, the companies will still have to comply with quite a lengthy list of requirements to be able to get approval for driverless testing. To start with, their vehicles will need to have steering wheels and brake pedals. If they want to test cars without those controls like the models GM plans to release in 2019, then they’ll need to secure a waiver from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. San Francisco Chronicle said they must also state where they intend to operate, notify local authorities about it, list the instances wherein their systems may not work and conjure up a plan on how to communicate with law enforcement.

The DMV believes California’s legal compliance agency will approve the new regulations by February 26th. It will welcome comments from the public starting March 1st and could start handing out permits by April 2nd. According to the DMV’s website, a total of 50 companies have permission to test their cars in California, so at least few dozen giant corporations and startups are probably already preparing to secure permits under the new regulations.

Source: Reuters, San Francisco Chronicle