PlayStation VR accessory guide

There’s more to owning a PlayStation VR than you may realize.

As gaming VR systems go, PlayStation VR has been a hit so far. The initial launch gave us a decent slate of games, but in the months since we’ve seen plenty of new titles arrive, and with triple AAA titles like Fallout 4 in VR coming it’s time to take a look at what you need to enjoy this headset long term. Outside of a fresh controller and the new PlayStation Camera, this is what you need to fully enjoy your PlayStation VR!

All-in-one stand

By the time you have the headset, camera, Move controllers, and regular DualShock 4 controller set up, it dawns on you that there are not enough USB ports on your PS4 to charge everything. This sucks if your goal is to let everything charge overnight, especially if the other outlets in your living room aren’t easily accessible. There are several solutions to this particular dilemma, but the Power A charge and display stand is one of the better options out here at about $35.

It’s a simple stand for the headset itself, but also charges the three controllers used to fully enjoy PSVR. The controller dock lets you press down to release from the dock, and looks nice in the process. It’s a solid solution all around, especially if room on your entertainment center is limited.

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BD&A Travel Case

You aren’t always going to be playing PSVR at home, especially if you have friends who also have PS4s and want you to come convince them to grab one of these headsets for themselves. Your PlayStation VR is more than light enough for quick travel, but the lenses and display in the headset are fragile and need to be treated as such.

Carrying cases are a simple solution to your portability problem. All you really need is a nice sturdy body to keep from basic bumps and something to keep the lenses safe when you’re moving around. At around $16The BD&A travel case offers a great deal for keeping your headset safe and secure when you’re on the move.

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Hyperkin Sanitary Mask

This isn’t always something people think about, but passing germs from person to person through a VR headset is a possibility. There’s plenty of ways to deal with this, but if you’re planning on showing off your PlayStation VR to a huge group of people, you might consider upgrading from small alcohol wipes to a full sanitary mask. Hyperkin Sanitary Masks gives you a full sanitary mask that makes cleanliness while sharing a concern you don’t need to worry about. For only $10 for a 10 pack of masks, you’ll feel great sharing this experience with your closest friends and family while still being sanitary.

PlayStation VR is already one of the better headsets for multi-user VR because the headset is never pressed firmly against your face, but a sanitary mask removes any potential by creating a temporary barrier on your skin. Yes, this is basically a condom for your VR headset. Stop giggling and put it on.

See on Amazon

Stationary Bike

Wandering around your living room in PlayStation VR is fun, but there are other ways to enjoy this headset, namely on a stationary bike. VirZoom’s VR exercise bike, coming at $400, lets you really immerse yourself in the feeling of being in VR making it excellent for a virtual bike ride.

This stationary bike is a full fitness monitoring system, and it works by putting you in VR and making it feel like you’re really going for a bike ride around town. There are several experiences included with the bike itself, but the mechanics may one day also translate to motorcycle experiences or other racing games. The bottom line is full immersion, and we’ve yet to see what the limits are for that in the home!

See at Amazon

Thrustmaster VG T300RS racing wheel

While there aren’t many available just yet, racing games in VR deliver a whole new kind of awesome. Since VR is all about immersion, having the ability to feel a steering wheel in your hands as you take a curve at breathtaking speed, or being able to ghost the break just enough to drift between your rivals makes the already awesome racing games that are available even better.

Although it comes in at a hefty price tage, $347 for the Thrustmaster VG T300RS racing wheel is worth the experience. It has a solid sturdy feel in your hands, mostly because of the brushed steel and rubber grips that make the 11-inch wheel feel strong enough to take you through every race. With haptic feedback, you’ll feel it as you take turns way too fast and burn out as a result, and you’ll feel it if you get tagged by another car mid race. In terms of immersion, this adds layers and layers of new experiences for the racing genre of games, and this is still only the beginning.

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Kinsal Ergonomic Leather High-back Swivel Chair

Needing somewhere comfortable to sit down is especially true when playing PlayStation VR since several games are made to be played this way. Since you could be hanging out in the same place for several hours, a swivel chair can be a serious boon. It will help you to manage your cables and allows you to keep your balance while you spin and interact with your game.

The Kinsal Ergonomic chair has a high back, which also gives you adjustable lumbar and neck support. This makes it easier than ever to get comfortable in your chair and settle in for the long haul, and at $170, you’ll feel great getting the most out of your chair and games. It’s also a larger chair to give you plenty of room to settle in and enjoy yourself. This chair can also lean all the way back, and its height is adjustable. All in all, it delivers a super comfortable, and highly adjustable experience to help elevate your experiences in VR.

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Amazon Basics Microfiber cleaning cloths

The time will come when no matter how carefully you take care of your PlayStation VR, it’s going to need to be cleaned. When that happens, having a small stock of Amazon Basic’s microfiber cleaning cloths is a solid plan.

The biggest problem with cleaning a VR unit is ensuring that there isn’t any dust hiding near the lenses, or in the nooks and crannies of the headset. These cloths help to be sure that wiping your headset down doesn’t take more than a few moments, and that no debris is left inside to aggravate you at an inopportune time. At $12 for 24 of these cloths, you won’t be breaking the bank to keep your VR headset clean.

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Hyperkin VR Lens Protector

If simply cleaning your lens before and after play doesn’t seem like enough to keep your lens intact, purchasing these lens protectors would be the best thing to do. For only $10, this is a simple and cheap way to keep your headset lens in tact.

These protectors will keep your VR lenses from getting any scratches on them while playing the VR headset. To insure no damage to your headset, these are the best way to keep it safe. Make sure to put them on as instructed, as these are a bit tricky and can make a different to your VR experience if put on incorrectly.

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PlayStation Aim Controller

When Farpoint came out, it came with an awesome new accessory built specifically for shooting things in VR. The PlayStation Aim controller works as its own controller complete with all of the buttons that you are used to with your DualShock 4 controller. It looks a bit like the gun that it is emulating, but the important part is that when you are in VR it feels like you are carrying a rifle around. It uses the same technology as PlayStation Move controllers, which means there is a globe that glows when the controller is turned on.

It never hurts to have an extra controller around, however, if yours should get busted or lost. Although they come in at a hefty $60, it never hurts to be safe, and you feel pretty cool holding one while killing aliens.

See at Amazon

Mantis Headphones

While your PlayStation VR does come with a pair of decent earbuds that get the job done, the Mantis Headphones offer a great clip on alternative. These headphones deliver great sound, and since they clip onto your headset it’s easy to customize where, and how, they sit against your ears. They’re also far more solid when you’re playing games that require a lot of movement.

These headphones are available for $50 from Mantis, and it’s a solid investment. They even match the color scheme of your PlayStation VR so that they don’t look out of place when your headset isn’t in use.

See at Mantis

PlayStation Gold Headset

PlayStation has released a new Gold headset that has fixed many problems we saw with the older headset. A newer design and better on-headset controls are just a few examples that really make this headset new and improved. The Gold headset was also created with PlayStation VR in mind, which makes a perfect add on to your VR accessory collection.

These new headphones may be a bit of an investment, with the $100 price tag, but they are well worth the price. Not only are they great for PlayStation VR, but when you set them up with the companion app, you get extras to some great games that makes the headset worth it.

See at Amazon

Updated March, 2018: We’ve updated this list with new accessories to maximize your PlayStation VR experience as well as the new lowest prices.

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How to fix Galaxy S8 battery life problems

Battery life on the Galaxy S8 and S8+ is actually pretty good — but it fades over time.

After the first couple of months using a phone where battery life seems great, things can go south as we load up our new device with all kinds of things and turn on every last feature. The Galaxy S8 and S8+ aren’t immune to battery shortcomings if you push them hard enough, and that means you’ll be looking for ways to scale things back and return to great battery life.

We have a handful of solid tips here to help you get the most out of your Galaxy S8 or S8+ battery, whether you’re currently happy with its longevity or not. Read on.

Use power saving mode

The easiest way to save precious battery power is to use one of the built-in power saving modes. You can find them in Settings, Device maintenance then Battery. You can also toggle power saving mode in the quick settings area of the notification shade.

It’s all about finding a balance between features and battery longevity.

The power saving mode most people will use is the “mid” level, which tries to strike a balance between saving power and letting your phone do everything you need. When you tap “mid” you’ll see what it does — decrease brightness, lower the screen resolution, limit CPU performance and disable both background network usage and the Always On Display. It’ll add up to a couple hours to your battery life over the course of the day, but you probably wouldn’t want to use this all the time.

You can also tweak the parameters to maybe find a middle ground that works for you — just tap “Details” and see what you can change. For example you may keep the CPU speed limiter on, but also turn on background network usage so apps continue to sync when you’re not actively using them.

For the dire situations when you have very little battery or don’t have any idea when you’ll find power again, look at the “max” power saving mode. This mode dramatically turns down your screen resolution, limits performance further and turns off even more features — all in the name of letting the battery last as long as possible, while giving you the basic phone functions you need.

Uninstall unused apps

This is one of the easiest ways to cut down on battery drain, and also one that so many people forget as they use their phone over weeks and months. We all install apps that we use once or haven’t touched in a month, and those apps can sometimes be using battery even though you don’t need them. Head into Settings then Apps and scroll through to see if there are any apps hanging out that you’ve forgotten about and don’t need any more.

Remember, you can always re-install the app later on down the road if you think you need it again. There’s little need to keep an unused app installed and potentially running on your phone.

Check for power-hungry apps

The last couple versions of Android introduced some really nice system-level features that take care of runaway apps, but every once and a while they can get carried away. If you notice your battery draining faster than usual, it could be one or two apps causing it — whether they’re running when you aren’t aware, or are just using more battery than they should even though you’re using them. Go to Settings, Device maintenance then Battery to see what apps are using notable amounts of juice.

These settings are a bit confusing, but powerful if you want to tweak things.

This is best to do at the end of the day to get an accurate picture of just how much battery an app is using, but the bottom half of this settings screen shows what percentage of the day’s battery has been used by any given app. You’ll see usual culprits like social media apps or photo apps, but if something looks out of the ordinary you can tap on that app and hit “save power” to completely limit that app from running in the background. We wouldn’t advise you do this for lots of apps, but if something’s being problematic you can remedy that here.

For a bit of background, the system also automatically throttles back apps that haven’t been used in 3 days (customizable up to 7 days), so chances are any runaway app that you’re not using won’t be able to muck things up for too long anyway. If you don’t want an app to ever be throttled in the background, you can select it in the “unmonitored apps” area at the bottom of the settings pane.

Lower the screen resolution

One quick setting you can change semi-permanently to improve battery life without really hurting your experience is to reduce the screen resolution. Just go into Settings, Display and Screen resolution to see your options. By default the Galaxy S8 and S8+ actually don’t run at their max resolution — they stick at “FHD+” instead, because the processor doesn’t have to work as hard to run the phone, which saves you some battery.

If you’ve moved up to “WQHD+” for the best-looking screen possible, you can scale it back down to save a little battery life. We wouldn’t recommend going with “HD+” unless you’re really trying to save juice … but in that case you may be better off considering the overall power saving mode instead.

Reduce screen brightness

Samsung’s AMOLED displays keep getting more efficient, but the screen continues to be a notable drain on a phone’s battery life. You can simply lower the screen brightness on your Galaxy S8 to save battery life — either by using the slider in the notification shade, or in settings then display.

If you want, you can also turn off automatic brightness here so that even in bright conditions the screen doesn’t ramp up and use up more battery. Just realize that the amount of battery you save by doing so may not be worth it when you consider you won’t be able to see your screen as well in those conditions.

Turn off unused radios

If you’re looking to save battery at the cost of convenience, you should turn off both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth when they’re not in use. You can toggle either one from the notification shade quick settings, which makes the process easy.

Going a step further, you can also turn off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth scanning, which is actually used to help with location services even when both radios are technically turned off. You can find this in Settings, Connections, Location then Improve accuracy. By turning off these two switches your phone won’t use Wi-Fi or Bluetooth at all unless you have them turned on — the one downside being that it may take marginally longer to locate your phone in the world if your data connection and GPS aren’t functioning properly.

Last resort: a battery pack

No matter how much you tweak and change on your phone, sometimes that just isn’t enough — after all, the battery isn’t getting any larger either way. For those times when the power you need out of your Galaxy S8 or S8+ is more than you can reasonably achieve with the built-in battery, check out the battery pack and battery case options available out there.

Most of the battery cases out there are a pretty terrible compromise of bulk for not very much battery power, so we would recommend a compact external battery pack that offers fast charging instead. Samsung makes its own line of battery packs that will quickly charge the Galaxy S8 and S8+ while matching its look, but there are tons available out there from Anker, Aukey and more.

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Update March 2018: Refreshed to reflect the Galaxy S8 and S8+’s new Oreo software.

Google Play Movies & TV gets streaming service integration and watchlist

There’s also a tool to help you find something new to watch.

Google Play Movies & TV has long been Google’s answer to Apple’s iTunes for renting/selling movies and TV shows, but today it’s being taken a step further and being transformed into a service that helps you find the perfect content to watch no matter what platform it’s on.

Upon opening the updated Play Movies & TV app, you’ll see a new section at the top asking “What are you in the mood for?”. You can then select different categories to help you narrow down what you’re looking for, such as Comedy, Action, Recent, Classic, Highly Rated, etc. As you select these filters, suggested titles will change in real-time based on what you’ve chosen.

Once you find something you’d like to watch, tapping on it will take you to a page to learn more about said show. However, instead of just giving you the option to buy or rent it with Google Play, you’ll now have options for watching it on other streaming services that have it. For example, if you choose Silicon Valley, you’ll see an option for watching it on HBO GO and HBO NOW.

Google says its currently partnered with two dozen streaming services and TV Everywhere apps, including Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, ABC, HGTV, Showtime, CBS, and many others.

You’ll also find thumbs up and thumbs down buttons when looking at a certain title that’ll help Google better determine what shows/movies it thinks you’ll like best, and there’s a new Watchlist tab that makes it easier than ever to find titles you’ve been saving to watch at a later date. When something is added to your Watchlist, you’ll get notifications of price drops, if it’s added to a streaming service, and when it becomes available to rent/buy directly through Google Play.

The new Google Play Movies & TV app is rolling out to Android phones and tablets in the United States over the coming days. What’s your take on the new look and features?

Download: Google Play Movies & TV (free)

Court rules that Google owes Oracle for unfair use of Java in Android

Google could have to pay as much as $8.8 billion in damages.

For nearly 8 years, Oracle and Google have gone back and forth in a lawsuit in which Google was accused of unfairly using Java for the development of Android. The two companies have had their fair share of wins and losses over the years, but now a federal court in California has settled things once and for all.

The court ruled that Google didn’t have the proper rights to use Java to the extent that it did when creating Android, and as such, might have to pay up big time to Oracle. It’s unclear how much Google owes, but during a trial in 2016, Oracle demanded $8.8 billion in damages.

Although Java is a free and open-source programming language, Oracle says that things change when it’s used to power a physical device or to enhance a competing platform.

Java was originally developed by Sun Microsystems Inc. in 1995, but Sun was then purchased by Oracle in 2010 for $7.4 billion in January of that year. Eight months later, Oracle sued Google.

Speaking on the matter, Sun Microsystems co-founder, Scott McNealy, said —

[Java] is the foundation upon which our digital world is built. Google stole that foundation, used it to build Android, and destroyed Oracle’s market in the process.

Google previously argued that it did no wrong seeing as how Java was made for desktops and Android was a mobile operating system, but as we can now see, that wasn’t a good enough reason for the courts.

Do you think the court made the right decision? How much should Google be liable for? Sound off in the comments below.

Engadget giveaway: Win a Logitech Harmony Elite and Google Home Mini!

Universal remote controls have been around for a while, but with a product like the Logitech Harmony Elite, simplicity and future-proofing go hand-in-hand. The Elite’s Hub system lets you control IR, Bluetooth and even network-based products beyond your home entertainment system. Not only can you condense your media remotes into one easy-to-set-up package, but your power extends to connected home products like Philips Hue lights or Nest thermostats. That power goes one step further when you link a smart speaker like Google Home Mini to the Hub. Now that single remote can get a little dusty as you turn on your TV and navigate to preset channels using your voice alone.

Logitech has provided us with its Harmony Elite and a Google Home Mini for two winners this week, so they can sample they joys of smart home controls and deepen that groove in the couch cushion. All you need to do is head to the Rafflecopter widget below for up to three chances at winning this Logitech Harmony Elite universal remote and smart speaker combo. Good luck!

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• Winners will be chosen randomly. Two (2) winners will each receive one (1) Logitech Harmony Elite universal remote control ($249.99 retail value) and one (1) Google Home mini smart speaker ($49 retail value).
• If you are chosen, you will be notified by email. Winners must respond within three days of being contacted. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen. Make sure that the account you use to enter the contest includes your real name and a contact email. We do not track any of this information for marketing or third-party purposes.
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• Entries can be submitted until March 28th at 11:59PM ET. Good luck!

The new entry-level iPad works with the Apple Pencil

Apple’s education-focused event is underway in Chicago and, as expected, the hardware star of the show is a new iPad. VP Greg Joswiak just announced the “new” iPad, an update on the model introduced just about one year ago. The rumor mills predicted a new iPad keeping the traditional 9.7-inch form factor intact, and that’s what Apple is showing off this morning. Indeed, Apple said that last year’s 9.7-inch model has been the most popular iPad in education “by far.”

But for the first time, Apple’s entry-level iPad will support the Apple Pencil, a move that takes away one of the biggest differentiators between these cheaper tablets and the high-end iPad Pro lineup. Of course, the question remains as to how many schools can deploy both an iPad plus an expensive $99 Pencil along with it.

As for more traditional specs, the new iPad includes an A10 Fusion chip (the same found in the iPhone 7), the usual 10 hours of battery life, an 8-megapixel back camera and “FaceTime HD” front camera, the same 9.7-inch Retina display that we saw last year and optional LTE connectivity. This is all pretty similar to what Apple introduced last March, with the exception of the upgraded A10 chip.

Regardless of hardware upgrades, the software continues to be one of the biggest cases for iPads (in education and otherwise) — Joswiak says that Apple has over 1 million iPad apps in its store, with 200,000 of them focused on “education and reference.” Accordingly, Apple is releasing updates for its suite of apps including Pages, Numbers and Keynote that better support the Apple Pencil. One of those new Pencil-specific features is “smart annotation,” a feature that anchors handwritten notes to specific words — when you move things around in the project, the note goes right along with it. These new iWork apps will be available today.

This marks the first update to Apple’s entry-level iPad since last March. Previously, the basic iPad started at $500, but the addition of the iPad Pro line threw Apple’s lineup into a bit of confusion. But the addition of a $329 basic iPad as well as changes to the iPad Pro line last June had finally made the differences between the two product lineups clear. Now that the base iPad supports the Pencil, we’ll see what else Apple can do to justify the Pro’s higher price.

Unfortunately for those hoping for a price drop, this new iPad starts at the same $329/£319 price point as last year’s model. There’s a $299 price for schools, and it’ll start shipping this week. Storage remains the same at 32GB in the base model and 128GB as a $100 upgrade. Adding LTE connectivity still costs the traditional $130 extra, as well. Finally, Apple also saw fit to upgrade the piddly storage that comes with its iCloud education plans — education plans now include 200GB of storage, up from the pathetic 5GB previously offered.

Catch up on all of the news from Apple’s education event right here!

Correction: This article originally stated that the LTE-capable 128GB iPad cost $459; it is priced at $559.

Source: Apple

The James Webb Space Telescope will be delayed for at least a year

Today, NASA held a press conference on the status of the James Webb Space Telescope, the organization’s successor to Hubble, and the news was grim. The observatory was supposed to launch between March and June of 2019. JWST will miss that window; while a specific launch time frame hasn’t been established, NASA is currently targeting May 2020.

While the telescope’s individual components meet their requirements, contractor Northrop Grumman needs more time to test them, integrate them together and do environmental testing. In order to monitor the telescope’s schedule, NASA is creating a Independent Review Board (IRB) to monitor this testing and NASA will take its recommendations into account when determining a specific launch window. That will occur sometime this summer.

Many suspected this announcement was coming after a report from the US Government Accountability Office earlier this month. The GAO found that ongoing technical issues with the telescope meant that launch delays were likely, and that the project was at risk of breaching the $8 billion cap set by Congress, which would mean it would need to be reauthorized. The telescope has already encountered delays, and it’s safe to say that more will follow. It’s an incredibly complex, detailed and delicate device, after all.

Source: NASA

Apple’s retooled iWork suite includes Pencil support

Today, Apple announced that it is releasing new versions of its iWork suite of apps — Pages, Numbers and Keynote — that supports Apple Pencil. A variety of new iPad apps (including the Microsoft Office Suite and Notability) will support the Pencil, many of which were previously only available on iPad Pro. The Pencil is intended to be used for note taking, illustration and other detail-oriented purposes. Advanced sensors within the Pencil measure pressure and tilt, which helps with accuracy.

Attendees of the Apple event today were treated to a demonstration of a new Pages feature called “Smart Annotation.” This will allow you to handwrite notes using a Pencil in the margins of a document. The annotations will be tied to a specific word, so if you move around your paragraphs while editing, your notes will move right around with them. This feature isn’t live yet, but it’s coming soon.

Apple is also introducing digital book creation on the iPad. It’s designed to be used collaboratively within Pages. There are quite a few templates to choose from that will allow you to include image galleries you can swipe through and use the built-in camera on the iPad to record.

These features definitely look interesting, but the question is will the price of the Apple Pencil come down? Our Senior Editor for Mobile, Chris Velazco, is attending the event, and he pointed out that the $99 price tag is almost a third of what these iPads cost, once you factor in an education discount.

Catch up on all of the news from Apple’s education event right here!

Source: Apple

Logitech built a $49 digital crayon for the new iPad

Apple’s new starter iPad is designed to make drawing more accessible, but the $89-plus it takes to buy the official Pencil for that iPad is a lot to swallow for cash-strapped educators. That’s where Logitech might help: it’s introducing a $49 Crayon accessory for the new iPad that should put art and handwriting within the reach of more schools. It promises low lag, tilt support and sub-pixel precision with an 8-hour battery life, and won’t need pairing to get started. It’s evident that Apple is comfortable allowing Pencil alternatives if it means getting more iPads into classrooms.

At the same time, Logitech is also readying a $99 Rugged Combo 2 case for the iPad that includes a detachable keyboard (powered by the iPad itself) and a slot for your stylus. This should both make the iPad feasible as a laptop and help it survive the inevitable tumble or two. That makes the iPad/Rugged Combo pairing decidedly pricier than a Chromebook (you can easily find educational Chromebooks under $300), but Apple and Logitech are no doubt betting that the touch-native interface will be worth it in some classes.

Catch up on all of the news from Apple’s education event right here!

Source: Logitech

Apple’s Swift Playgrounds will let kids code for AR

At Apple’s educational event in Chicago today, the company announced that Swift Playgrounds — Apple’s coding app for kids — is getting an AR module. Though not much has been said about it, it looks like an extension of an Augmented Reality challenge that Apple implemented last year using ARKit (which basically overlaid the Swift Playground world onto the real one). Seeing as Apple is pushing augmented reality to be part of the overall educational experience, it’s not surprising to see AR being integrated on the coding level as well. That way, you won’t get just AR apps, but also the next generation of coders creating AR apps as well. No word on when the AR module will be in the app, but we expect it to be soon.

Catch up on all of the news from Apple’s education event right here!