Overwatch League star fired amid sexual misconduct allegations

Overwatch League (OWL) is fairly new on the eSports scene; we’re watching it evolve before our eyes. The last few months have shown us that acting badly in real life has gotten a handful of players punished, like Dallas Fuel player Felix “xQc” Lengyel first being suspended — then released — from the team for his awful behavior. Now, the Boston Uprising has terminated Jonathan “DreamKazper” Sanchez’s contract over allegations of sexual misconduct with a young fan over Twitter.

Statement from the Boston Uprising: pic.twitter.com/N06NmoDgfI

— Boston Uprising (@BostonUprising) April 8, 2018

The young fan is apparently 14, and claims to have screenshots of the conversations, which allegedly included the exchange of sexually explicit photos and texts. “”After talking with close friends on the subject over the course of a month, I realized what a power dynamic it was,” she wrote in a Google document. “I’m stepping forward to hope this doesn’t happen to anyone in the future. DreamKazper should have known better to engage in explicit activity with someone seven years younger than him, especially when he represents a team. He used his social status to blind and take advantage of me.”

Via: DotEsports

Source: Boston Uprising / Twitter

HQ Trivia Tests New ‘Friends on HQ’ Social Feature in the UK

Popular iPhone trivia app HQ Trivia is testing a new social feature in the UK, which allows its users to locate and add their real life friends in the HQ app, reports TechCrunch.

When you add your friends to the HQ app using the new feature, you can keep track of their progress and see who else is playing in any given game. Adding social features is the next major step for HQ Trivia, which now has a player base in the millions.

If you’re unfamiliar with HQ Trivia, it’s an iPhone and iPad app that hosts multiple daily trivia sessions where players can win real money by correcting answering all of the questions. Each game features a set prize pool, and the prize pool is divided among all of the winners.

In the U.S., games take place at 6:00 p.m. Pacific Time each day, with a second game available at 3:00 p.m. Pacific Time on weekdays. Other special games are also often added to the lineup.

HQ Trivia launched last year and has seen strong user growth since then. The company recently started offering sponsored prizes provided by corporate sponsors that include Nike and Warner Bros. HQ just this morning announced an upcoming guest host episode that will star Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and will offer a $300,000 prize pool.

This Wednesday afternoon, Dwayne Johnson (@therock) guest hosts HQ for our largest prize ever – $300,000. Keep your phone close 📱 pic.twitter.com/unfVaUX05b

— HQ Trivia (@hqtrivia) April 9, 2018

The Friends on HQ feature is rolling out in the UK first, with a United States launch to follow “soon after.” HQ also plans to roll out “a variety of new features” that will be “leveraging friends’ connections.”

HQ Trivia can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]

Tag: HQ Trivia
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Apple Now Powered by 100 Percent Renewable Energy Worldwide

Apple today announced that its global facilities, including retail stores, offices, data centers, and more, are powered with 100 percent clean energy.

Apple’s 100 percent clean energy figure encompasses facilities in 43 countries, including the United States, UK, China, and India. In a statement, Apple CEO Tim Cook said Apple is “committed to leaving the world better than we found it.”

“We’re committed to leaving the world better than we found it. After years of hard work we’re proud to have reached this significant milestone,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “We’re going to keep pushing the boundaries of what is possible with the materials in our products, the way we recycle them, our facilities and our work with suppliers to establish new creative and forward-looking sources of renewable energy because we know the future depends on it.”

To reach its clean energy goals, Apple has invested in and constructed renewable energy facilities all around the world, such as solar arrays, wind farms, biogas fuel cells, micro-hydration generation systems, and other energy storage technologies.

Solar panels on the roof of Apple Park, Apple’s newest Cupertino campus
Apple says it has 25 operational renewable energy projects around the world, totaling 626 megawatts of generation capacity. 286 megawatts of solar PV generation came online in 2017, which Apple says is the most ever in a single year. An additional 15 projects are under construction, and once finished, will offer a total of 1.4 gigawatts of clean renewable energy generation across 11 countries.

Some of Apple’s renewable energy projects include the solar panels on the roof of Apple Park, its newest campus, 485 megawatts of wind and solar projects across China, solar facilities in Reno, Nevada and Maiden, North Carolina, more than 300 rooftop solar systems in Japan, and an 800-rooftop renewable energy system in Singapore.

Reaching 100 percent renewable energy for all Apple facilities has been a longtime goal for the company. Since 2014, 100 percent of Apple’s data centers have been powered by clean energy, and since 2016, 96 percent of Apple facilities have been run on renewable energy.

In an interview with Fast Company, Apple VP of environment, policy, and social initiatives Lisa Jackson said that Apple has been working hard in recent months to ink energy deals to cover its remotest offices and retail stores in countries like Brazil, India, Israel, Mexico, and Turkey.

“If you look at our trajectory, for the last couple of years we’ve been close to 100%,” she says. “It’s just four percent more, but it’s four percent done the right way. So this announcement feels like a classic Apple product release. Like our products, we sweat the details, we have pretty strict standards, and we prefer to wait and meet our standards than to rush and make a claim.”

Since 2011, Apple’s projects have reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 54 percent and prevented close to 2.1 million metric tons of CO2e from entering the atmosphere.

Apple has also been pushing its suppliers to use clean energy, and along with its own announcement, nine additional manufacturing powers have committed to using renewable energy sources, bringing the total number of supplier commitments to 23. New suppliers that plan to use renewable energy include Quanta Computer, Pegatron, Finisar, and more.
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The Web World: Who Owns Who?

Briefly about eBay

Founded in 1995, eBay is one of the largest auction websites, where people can buy literally everything. There have even been instances where people tried to sell air on eBay! As a matter of fact, there was an active listing for a bag of air up until a while ago. Now that we’ve proved our point – that people can find everything on eBay – let’s talk about some stats.

There are 6.7 million sellers on this auction site that offer a large selection of products. eBay lists about 1 billion items and covers 190 markets from around the world. On average, Americans visit eBay two times a week and spend approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes on the website on a weekly basis. Among eBay’s visitors, you’ll also find NASA that had used the auction website in search of outdated replacement parts.

Companies acquired by eBay over the years

About 59 companies have been acquired by eBay. The greatest number of those companies belongs in the online auction industry. The first company of the sort that was acquired by eBay was Up4Sale.com, while others include Butterfield & Butterfield (1999), Kruse International (1999), Alando (1999), Internet Auction Co. (2001), iBazar (2001), CARad.com (2003), Baazee.com (2004), and Tradera (2006).

Another type of companies eBay has acquired over the years belongs to the classified advertising field. The most famous company in this category is Craigslist, which eBay purchased in August 2004. Other names that eBay has bought include Marktplaats.nl (2004), Rent.com (2004), Loquo (2005), and Gumtree (2005).

The last big group of companies that eBay acquired over the years is from the electronic commerce industry. These companies include StubHub (2007), GittiGidiyor (2007), Bill Me Later (2008), Magento (2010), and brands4friends (2010)

Biggest eBay acquisitions

The two biggest acquisitions for eBay were Skype (2005) and PayPal (2002). The eCommerce giant paid $2,600,000,000 for acquiring Skype, only to sell it to a private investment group four years later for $1.8 billion. Skype eventually ended up as a part of Microsoft which bought the Luxembourg-based company for $8.5 billion.

As far as the relationship between eBay and PayPal goes, eBay had a long history with PayPal from 2002 to 2015. The two companies worked side by side for 13 years until they decided to go separate ways and function as two standalone businesses in 2015.

Briefly about Amazon

Founded back in 1994, Amazon was first known as Cadabra, Inc. The founder, chairman and CEO of Amazon, Jeff Bezos had the vision to build a place where people can buy anything, but he also wanted that company to be heavily focused on its customers. In the beginning, Amazon sold books only. Today, it’s one of the largest retailers selling everything from software and electronics to toys, jewelry, and more.

There are 541,900 employees working at Amazon, and the company’s revenue is US$135.98 billion. According to research, Amazon has about 300 million users. The company ships about 3 million packages on a daily basis and has more than half a billion items on sale. The most popular products on Amazon are books, followed by electronics. When it comes to specific products, the best-selling items are tablets, memory cards, Amazon Bluetooth speakers (Amazon Echo and Amazon Echo Dot), robotic vacuum cleaners, and headphones.

Companies acquired by Amazon

The biggest acquisition Amazon has ever made happened in June 2017, when Amazon purchased Whole Food Markets for $13.7 billion. The following companies were either bought in full, or Amazon only bought shares in those companies. The first ever acquisition Amazon made was back in 1998 when the company acquired PlanetAll – a reminder service. That same year Amazon bought four other companies – Bookpages.co.uk, Junglee, Telebook, and IMDB.

1999 was another good year for Amazon, as they bought 16 more companies. Some of them include Gear.com, Alexa Internet, MindCorps Incorporated, Back to Basics Toys, GeoWorks, Drugstore.com, and LiveBid.com among others. In 2002, the online shopping giant acquired CDNow.com, and in 2004 Joyo.com which is an eCommerce website. Between 2005 and 2010, Amazon purchased more than 20 companies and Shopbop, Brilliance Audio, CreateSpace.com, Zappos, Stanza, and Woot are only some of them.

In the period between 2010 and 2016 Amazon bought 25 more companies and among the most profitable acquisitions were Twitch, Annapurna Labs, and Kiva Systems. In 2017, Amazon purchased Harvest.ai, Do.com, GameSparks, Body Labs, and as previously mentioned, Whole Foods Market – its biggest acquisition ever.

Based on what we’ve outlined above, it’s evident that both brands are keen on expanding their kinship. However, they are not the only ones to keep up with this trend – especially when it comes to the online shopping business. Check out the infographic below to see what other online giants have bought and sold over the years.

Elephone U Pro review: Absolutely gorgeous, but flawed

The popularity of Samsung’s flagships has inspired numerous companies, especially Chinese ones, to make copycat versions for profit.

But while clones might look like their gorgeous flagship counterparts on the outside, they usually bundle mid-range specs inside. This strategy allows companies with names like Doogee or UMIDIGI to sell these lookalikes for extremely affordable price tags.

These Chinese brands know very well that not everyone can afford to spend $800+ on a new and shiny flagship like the Galaxy S9. In an attempt to cater to the needs of budget-minded consumers, smartphone makers from China have flooded the market with blatant but affordable copies of the Galaxy S9/Galaxy S8. But the question is, are they really worth it?

In what follows we’re going to take a closer look at one of these copycats offered by Elephone. The device is called the U Pro and it’s currently up for grabs for around $400 (depending on configuration and retailer), which is half of what the Galaxy S9 costs.

For the last few years, Elephone has built a reputation for building phones with designs inspired by iconic smartphone models. Its S8 model, for example, was an obvious tribute to the super popular Galaxy S8 flagship.

Well, in 2018 Elephone is offering its next-gen flagship under a different name. Instead of the continuing to replicate Samsung’s naming scheme, the Chinese brand has opted to rebrand. So this year, instead of the Elephone S9, customers will be able to grab the Elephone U Pro instead.

So, should customers consider the Elephone U Pro or simply skip this inviting offer? Continue reading below to find out more about this exquisite Galaxy S9 rip-off.

Design and display

As you pull the Elephone U Pro out of its box, you can’t help but be amazed. The phone looks extremely sleek. Just like the Galaxy S8/S9, the U Pro it’s a metal/glass sandwich. Elephone did a remarkable job of recreating not just the razor-thin bezels, but also the iconic dual curves of the screen.

Indeed, even to the trained eye, telling the difference between the U Pro and the Samsung Galaxy S8 or Galaxy S9 will not be an easy task to accomplish.

Elephone has included a gorgeous 5.99-inch AMOLED display with 1080 x 2160 resolution.  And thanks to the tall 18:9 aspect ratio, the phone slips comfortably in hand. The only problem is that the back, being made of glass, it’s quite slippery, so it’s highly recommended that you use this device in concert with a protective case.

Another drawback is that, albeit being super sleek, the back is a magnet for fingerprints. That’s why using a case with the phone becomes essential. On the other hand, one can’t help by being impress by how gorgeous the back is. It’s reminiscent of the HTC U11 with its unique back metal finish that changes as light hits it. Given that the Elephone U Pro’s rear is highly reflective, it can also be used as a mirror.

Anyway, the back is also home to the main dual-camera setup. Underneath it, sits the fingerprint scanner.

The arrangement is one of the best I’ve seen so far. Elephone has designed the scanner as a seamless extension of the dual-camera setup and the result I have to say looks quite pleasing to the eye. And easily surpasses the setup we’ve seen on last year’s Galaxy S8.

On the other side of the coin, the fingerprint scanner on the U Pro is not nearly as good as the one on other phones I’ve tried. It’s very fast and at often times it failed to authenticate me.

The Elephone logo is placed at the bottom, and looking below you’ll notice the USB Type-C port (sorry folks, no 3.5mm headphone jack) and the two speaker grilles, which are surprisingly loud. The power and volume rocker are placed on the right side, while the left part is devoid of any buttons. At the top, you’ll find the SIM slot.

Unlike Elephone’s older models, the U Pro does not have a physical home button. Instead, it relies on on-screen navigation buttons, which aren’t everyone’s cup of tea. Fortunately, Elephone also included here iPhone-style gestures for navigation. Basically, you’ll be able to go Back, Home or access the multi-app window easily via swipes. Bonus, you free up more screen real estate by removing these buttons at the bottom.

While the gestures are a nice idea, they don’t always work as intended. For example, when you’re in an app and have to perform the back gesture, you’ll most likely swipe through the active app which might trigger an unwanted action. Use the nav gestures enough, and it becomes annoying.

Elephone U Pro next to the OnePlus 5T

Anyway back to the beautiful AMOLED display, Elephone has included an option which lets you regulate color temperature. There’s also an adaptive brightness feature that can optimize brightness levels for available light.  What’s more, the U Pro also includes a Night Light feature which tints the screen to amber. This makes it easier to look at the screen or read in dim light.

Android’s Ambient Display is available here too. This offers a more efficient means of interacting with your Android notification system while your device is locked. Since the feature is now baked into Android, we’re left wondering why more OEMs don’t include it.

My initial assessment of the Elephone U Pro was pretty optimistic. The exterior was extremely sleek, the AMOLED display was gorgeous and the software tweaks a bonus. And then I started using the phone every day as my main phone…

Performance and battery

While many smartphones launched by the obscure Chinese brands rely on MediaTek chipsets, the Elephone U Pro does not. Instead, it offers a mid-range 2.2GHz Snapdragon 660 chipset.

Even if I wasn’t expecting a stellar performance, I was anticipating the Elephone U Pro would prove quite agreeable to use.

Unfortunately, that was not always the case. Even if the phone comes equipped with 6GB of RAM on board (a version with 4GB of RAM is also available). Despite the plentiful amount RAM, it kept freezing on me while I was playing games. Even more frustratingly, the camera froze while I was trying to focus and shoot a subject, on more than one occasion.

Overall, the interface is pretty fluid, yes. But start doing something more intensive like quickly switching between apps and you’ll soon notice a slight stutter.

Even as the Elephone U Pro relies on a pretty decent 3,550 mAh battery, battery life is pretty average. If you’re the type who is always playing games on your phone, you’re going to be disappointed to see that battery levels drop pretty fast.

The phone is better suited for non-gamers. With standard usage, you can easily go through a day without having to pop in for an additional recharge. I’d get about 30% left at the end of the day, if I only used the phone for chatting, checking the web/email and making a few phone calls.

On the bright side, the phone supports Qualcomm’s quick-charging technology, so it juices itself back up quite fast.

Another thing I’ve noticed: the phone gets hot. It gets hot while playing games and it gets hot while charging. It doesn’t always happen, mind you, although, I expect this problem to become more pronounced over time.

Photography

Like the majority of Chinese phones launching these days, the Elephone U Pro also comes boasting a dual-camera setup on the back. And it’s a proper one even, with two 13-megapixel sensors for bokeh shots.

According to Elephone, one lens is for RGB color information, while the second is monochrome for capturing brightness and detail.

The description sounds good on paper, but in real life, the Elephone U Pro’s camera turned out to be disappointing. In good lighting, I was able to capture some decent bokeh shots. Although it took some effort to take them.

Even in scenarios where there was adequate light, the camera had a hard time telling the difference between an object in close proximity and one that was farther away. When it did focus correctly, half the times the blurred edges weren’t that clearly placed which resulted in some weird-looking shots.

The phone was randomly extremely slow to focus and even froze up a few times as I was trying to shoot. Once I even got an error saying the device “Can’t connect to the camera” and I couldn’t get rid of it issue until I rebooted the phone.

In low-light situations, things get a lot worse. Results turned out to be spectacularly grainy and the colors were washed out.

Yes, Elephone tries to offer quite a few options in its default camera app. You can adjust things like ISO and white balance. There’s also an OptiZoom option which you can use to zoom in on a subject. But the results are cosmeticized automatically and look really bizarre.

Bottom line, I can’t recommend this phone if your main reason for buying it is to be able to shoot great pictures with it.

Software

Elephone U Pro makes up for some of its shortcoming in the software department, as it comes pre-installed with a pretty stock-looking version of Android 8.0 Oreo.

The phone features the complete suite of Google’s apps and luckily, Elephone has abstained from including unnecessary apps on board. There’s an app drawer you can access by swiping up from the bottom of the screen.

Given that the U Pro was made in the image of the Galaxy S8/S9, we aren’t surprised that Elephone has also replicated some of Samsung’s software gimmicks. Like the ability to pin app shortcuts to the edges of the screen.

The phone also lets you change the way your home screen and app icons look by switching to a different theme in the pre-installed theme app. You can also change the order and look of the on-screen nav keys.

The device is set to get a Face Unlock feature in a future update, although you can enable the option now by using Android’s Smart Lock feature.

Overall the software experience is a pleasant one. The phone is not too bloated and includes enough neat features to keep most customers satisfied.

Conclusion

Before I go ahead and state my conclusion I should point out an important aspect. Like many Chinese phones, the Elephone U Pro isn’t meant for the US market. As such, it does not support LTE bands, so it won’t work on the country’s major networks. If you’re in Europe like me, the phone works just fine.

So basically for customers in the US, the Elephone U Pro could only find a purpose as a gaming device or YouTube video player. But if you travel a lot, the phone might be a useful purchase.

Now comes the hard question: Is the Elephone U Pro a worthy buy?

I really want to recommend this phone because it’s so damn gorgeous. But I can’t wholeheartedly do so.

Yes, the device is super sleek and is offered at a bargain when compared to the Galaxy S9. It also comes with Android 8.0 Oreo out of the box and packs some neat software tricks.

While all this is nice and peachy, I can’t get over the freezing issues and that the camera is average at best. To top it all, the device has a tendency to overheat, which I find a bit disconcerting.

But if you want to try and see how it feels like to own a premium-looking phone, the Elephone U Pro might be for you.

Get the Elephone U Pro

Xiaomi-backed ‘Blackshark’ phone will be a powerful gaming beast

A phone specialized for gaming is an odd beast. We’ve seen the Razer Phone attempt to capture this market with mixed results — but the concept has its fans, and it’s clear that focusing a phone toward gaming is going to score dividends with certain parts of the population.

It seems that Xiaomi is looking to capture its own part of that pie, with a phone code-named “Blackshark.” Apparently being made by Black Shark Technology, Xiaomi is quietly backing this phone from the wings. But will the shark sink or swim? Here’s everything we know about the Blackshark.

Name

Sources for the phone reveal intermittent usage of “Blackshark” and “Black Shark” when referring to the phone, and it’s most likely named after the company making the phone — the aforementioned Black Shark Tech. However, it’s highly possible that the phone will have a different name when it’s officially revealed.

Design

Droidholic

We don’t have much to go on with regard to the looks of the Blackshark, but what we do have shows a very interesting and unique design. In a world of glass and metal smartphones, it seems that the Blackshark will be looking to stand out with a rugged-looking design that resembles a protective case from UAG or Otterbox.

It’s clear this won’t be a stylish trend-setter like the Huawei Mate 10 Pro or the iPhone X, and given the rubberized look and chunky looking sides, it’s likely that it’s not going to be the thinnest and lightest phone around either.

A dual-lens camera can be seen on the back of the device, alongside an LED flash unit. The top section appears to be some sort of ergonomic attachment — possibly some sort of controller accessory designed to aid in gaming. There’s no Xiaomi logo on the back, in keeping with the company’s seeming hands-off approach — but there is a large green “S” reminiscent of the Razer Phone’s branding.

According to the source, the Blackshark will be packing an OLED screen, stereo speakers, and — excitingly — a fingerprint sensor inside the screen. Under-display fingerprint sensors are something of a holy grail in mobile tech right now, with only one company having done it correctly so far — if Black Shark can pull this off then it will be a massive slam dunk for the phone.

Specs

If you’re going to push yourself as a phone for gamers, or even as a media-centered device, then you’re going to need the power to back those words up. Thankfully for the Blackshark, it seems that it won’t be lacking any punch. Some of the first leaks around this device showcased some exceptionally high specifications well on a par with the flagship phones of the moment. An AnTuTu listing for the phone shows the new and exceptionally powerful Snapdragon 845, 8GB of RAM, Android 8.0 Oreo, but a slightly disappointing 32GB of onboard storage. Hopefully it will come with expandable storage to boost that up a little.

According to another source, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 inside the phone seems to be shaping up to be an exceptional performer, scoring 2,452 in single-core tests and 8,452 in multi-core tests. By contrast, the extremely powerful Galaxy S9 scored slightly lower, with 2,377 on single-core and 7,982 on multi-core. While benchmarks aren’t everything, this bodes well for the Blackshark.

Release date and price

There’s no word on an official release date, price, or whether this phone will be available in the U.S. However, a date has been set for the official reveal: April 13. Xiaomi has always been aggressive with its pricing, so expect this phone to be no more expensive and possibly cheaper than its closest competitor, the Razer Phone.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Everything we know about the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S
• The LG G7 smartphone: News, rumors, and everything we know
• Razer Phone review
• Oculus Go relies on an older Qualcomm Snapdragon chip, gets Chinese version
• Meet the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845, the power behind next-gen phones

Moasure ONE brings actual rocket science to any measurement you could ever need

This may be the futuristic measuring tool you’ve been waiting for.

Smartphones have ushered in cool new ways of measuring things around the home, whether by using accelerometers, cameras, or other onboard sensors. And be honest — it still feels pretty cool to use your phone to hang level hanging some art in your home or using a cutting-edge augmented reality to measure virtually any space in your home…virtually!

The Moasure ONE is a cool new gadget that hopes to offer the next big leap in measurement technologies. Using a sophisticated array of accelerometers, gyros, and magnetometers, the Moasure ONE is able to plot its position in three-dimensional space and record it to measure distance, angles, levels, area, and even 3D space and volume.

It’s all built off of the success of the standalone Moasure app, a paid measurement tool which uses the accelerometer and sensors in your phone to take measurements for distances, angles, space, and height differences. The Moasure ONE is designed to pack even more sensors and work with your phone to take more accurate measurements.

Part of what makes the Moasure ONE such an exciting concept is the ability to easily measure in ways you simply can’t do with conventional tools. Say you want to measure the thickness of a wall separating two rooms, or the combined size of two rooms. With the Moasure ONE, it’s as simple as setting it at the starting point, tapping the measure button, and moving to your next measurement point. Everything is tracked in the app, and you can easily export and share your measurements.

The Moasure One Kickstarter Campaign has already surpassed its funding goal. With a retail price set at $250 there’s still time to jump in early and save up to 44% by pledging towards the Kickstarter in its final days. Backer prices start as low as $139 and there are multi-packs available if you know some people who would love this. The Moasure One will start shipping to backers in December 2018.

See Moasure One on Kickstarter

Samsung DeX Pad pre-orders finally open for $99, free with Galaxy S9 purchase for a limited time

Galaxy S9 purchases will include a free DeX Pad for a limited time.

Samsung’s second-generation desktop docking system, the DeX Pad, is finally coming up for pre-order after being announced alongside the Galaxy S9 and S9+ over a month ago. The DeX Pad comes in at $99, which is cheaper than the original MSRP of the DeX Station that launched the whole DeX ecosystem back with the Galaxy S8 and S8+ — though nowadays you can pick up a DeX Station for about $80.

See at Samsung

The new DeX Pad is merely a change in form factor over the original DeX Station, with the same basic goal of letting you plug your phone into a larger monitor for a desktop-like experience. The big differentiator with the DeX Pad is that it orients your phone flat when connected, so that it can be positioned next to your keyboard and used as a trackpad. That removes one more barrier to using DeX, no longer requiring a mouse, and also makes the total package far smaller than the old DeX Station. The DeX Pad includes a standard Samsung wall charger and USB-C cable, plus an HDMI cable, and the Pad itself has two USB ports for peripherals.

This is mostly the same DeX that few people cared for last year, but now with a new form factor and a few software improvements.

The rest of the latest DeX experience comes with the new Oreo software on the Galaxy S9 series, Galaxy Note 8 and Galaxy S8 series. This latest update brings a refreshed version of the DeX desktop, a few changes to the way you interact with the system, and fresh partnerships with big names like VMware, Citrix and Amazon providing remote desktop solutions alongside video apps like MX Player and VLC signing up to work well with DeX. This time around Samsung is also spending some time touting the ability to play many popular games with a keyboard and mouse on the big screen, though naturally you’re limited to mobile titles and the power of the Galaxy S9 compared to a full-fledged computer.

Pre-orders for the DeX Pad are open right away from Samsung’s own website, but full retail sales aren’t going to open for another month, on May 13. At that point you can expect to see the DeX Pad on sale just about anywhere Samsung’s phones and accessories are sold. For a limited time (we’d expect until roughly May 13), anyone who buys a Galaxy S9 or S9+ from Samsung.com will get a DeX Pad for free — a nice little gesture to anyone who waited to get one of its latest phones.

See at Samsung

Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+

• Galaxy S9 review: A great phone for the masses
• Galaxy S9 and S9+: Everything you need to know!
• Complete Galaxy S9 and S9+ specs
• Galaxy S9 vs. Google Pixel 2: Which should you buy?
• Galaxy S9 vs. Galaxy S8: Should you upgrade?
• Join our Galaxy S9 forums

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Press release:

Samsung DeX Pad Delivers Desktop-Like Experience for Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+

DeX Pad available for preorder in advance of May 13 retail and online launch

RIDGEFIELD PARK, NJ – April 6, 2018 – Samsung Electronics America, Inc. announced availability of the Samsung DeX Pad in the U.S. beginning May 13. Introduced alongside the award-winning Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+, DeX Pad creates a desktop-like experience for the Galaxy smartphone. For those who are always on the go, the DeX Pad enables enhanced document editing, full-screen mobile gaming, PC-style multitasking and more. Consumers are able to pre-order DeX Pad on Samsung.com starting today, and for a limited time, a purchase of the Galaxy S9 or Galaxy S9+ on Samsung.com will include a free DeX Pad ($99.99 retail value).

“The Samsung DeX Pad bridges the gap between smartphone and desktop. With its desktop interface, and easy connection to a mouse, monitor, and keyboard, DeX Pad helps you get the most out of your favorite apps,” said Alanna Cotton, senior vice president, Samsung Electronics America. “DeX Pad is more than a powerful accessory, it is reflective of our philosophy of mobile technology: innovative devices and services, working together seamlessly, to help consumers do more.”

DeX Pad empowers the mobile lifestyle by leveraging the power of your Galaxy smartphone. On a monitor, movies and mobile games instantly become more immersive, productivity gets amped up when users make the most of DeX optimized apps, and creativity knows no limits. DeX Pad features multi-resolution support, providing a choice of clear and vivid visual experiences from HD+ to WQHD (2K) resolutions so you can now play your videos on various partner applications like MX Player and VLC and view more content at a glance. In addition, phone calls, messages and notifications are all readily accessible on the taskbar and the phone’s Infinity Display can be used as a virtual touch pad.

Samsung DeX for the Enterprise

Samsung DeX is also a powerful business tool, supporting secure virtual desktops from Citrix, VMware and Amazon. In addition, DeX gives enterprise IT admins enhanced customization and management tools through Knox APIs, including the ability to disable apps, change the loading screen, add/remove shortcuts from the home screen, and
set the screen timeout.

More information about the DeX Pad visit http://www.samsung.com/dex. Promotional details can be found on http://www.samsung.com/us/smartphones/galaxy-s9/buy/s/Device.

Learn the ins and outs of Excel for $49

Microsoft Excel is one of the most widely used programs in business. It helps companies take care of their books, pay employees, build plans, and much, much more. You can probably get the very basics of Excel, but if you’re looking into a job where proficiency is a big asset and/or required, chances are you’ll need a little more help.

There are many courses that teach you how to use Excel — you can likely take many at local schools and colleges — but these courses can be quite costly, and then there’s the fact that you have to leave home and learn on someone else’s time.

Excel with Business is perfect if you want to learn all there is to know about Excel, on your own time. By enrolling in the school, you’ll receive a lifetime subscription to four complete courses, so you can learn at your leisure and refer back to the material when you need a little help. These courses are usually $1380 altogether, but through Android Central Digital Offers, you’ll pay just $49. That’s a savings of 96%.

If you’re looking to delve into the business world in any capacity, it’s a great idea to brush up on your Excel knowledge. If you want to truly excel (see what I did there?) in the business world, then it’s a great idea to know Microsoft Excel like the back of your hand. Just don’t go spending over $1000 on courses when you can spend just $39 for a lifetime subscription to Excel School at Android Central Digital Offers.

See at Android Central Digital Offers

Why I’m still using a BlackBerry KEYone in Spring 2018

I’ve used a lot of phones, but none fit me as well as the BlackBerry KEYone does.

If you had asked me, or anyone, really, two years ago if I would be using a BlackBerry in 2018 I’d have quietly replied with a no. Like everyone else, I was sure the company was a goner and I hated thinking about that. BlackBerry was not only in financial trouble, but had a stigma following it through conversations on- and offline. BlackBerry was on its way out and it was time to wave goodbye or send a farewell text from a Samsung phone. Thankfully, I’m here to tell you that BlackBerry never left and the KEYone is one of the best Android phones you can buy today.

I’ve been a BlackBerry user forever. It’s awesome to be able to still be one.

I hated saying goodbye to my old Curve. I was a BlackBerry user since forever, as the company I worked for issued me a big, blocky BlackBerry 857 so they could bug me 24 hours a day. Being able to read more than the 240 characters (and the 10-digit sending number counted against them) and reply made the BlackBerry a step above a pager or PDA, and I was fascinated. I’m sure there were some other reasons the IT department loved them, but I got hooked on being able to carry a tiny computer with me wherever I went. I stuck with BlackBerry as my personal phone through the years where it seemed the company struggled to keep up with Apple, but when the T-Mobile G1 was announced I decided I was going to jump ship. I never thought about carrying two phones because nobody did back then. Ahh, the good old days.

My boss can send me any phone I want, but I don’t want a different phone.

Thankfully, BlackBerry and Android have hooked up, and after releasing a couple of good phones (the Priv in particular got me itching for a BB again) its new overseer, TCL Communications, released the KEYone. While most every review of the phone was very positive, I think I went a step further than most tech bloggers and knew it was the phone for me. I was lucky enough to get one a bit early, and have been using it ever since. Like a lot of people who also use and love the KEYone (those capital letters, ugh) it does everything I want my phone to do and does it all really well. I also use a Pixel 2 (I ended up carrying two phones after all) and really like it, but it’s in my pocket because of where I work — Android Central means I need to know “regular” Android inside and out. But if I’m in your phone book and you give me a call, it will ring on my KEYone because that’s my phone.

Changed my phone number for Signal and Allo from my Pixel to my BB Keyone. Shit just got serious now.

— Jerry Hildenbrand (@gbhil) May 5, 2017

I want my phone to do three things flawlessly: have a great battery, be secure, and be able to act as my mobile office. I know a lot of people have other priorities when it comes to the things their phone can do, but those are mine. I use a handful of apps, but if you see me with my phone in my hands, chances are I’m “talking” to someone. My phone is a tool. So is yours. And we all need the right tool for the job just as a mechanic or plumber does.

My KEYone will go two days on a single charge easily. Granted, I’m not watching movies or chasing Pokemon with it, but I am using it — location is turned on, messages never stop coming (the Mobile Nations Slack channel is noisy), it’s syncing two email accounts that get a lot of mail and doing all the other things that need to be done to make all this happen. You can ask anyone who uses or has used a KEYone and they’ll tell you that it’s a total battery life champ.

BlackBerry wants to keep intruders out of your phone but also makes sure they can’t do anything if they get in.

BlackBerry thinks about security the same way I do: focus on what can happen once something or someone gets in, not just keeping that someone or something out. If an app or any type of other silliness tries to modify the core system, the phone shuts off and won’t restart. You can’t get at someone’s data when it’s offline. I’ll admit I don’t agree with BlackBerry’s corporate policy of giving encryption keys to governments (after a lawful order, mind you) and if I happen to visit China or Pakistan, or chat regularly with someone from either country, I’ll need to consider what I do. And while I’d like to see the latest version of Android because of the features, Google isn’t doing anything that BlackBerry isn’t already doing when it comes to security. I have absolute faith that if my KEYone gets hacked it’s because I did something really, really stupid and not just because of an app I installed.

The marriage of physical keys to capacitive sensing make the KEYone’s keyboard the best BlackBerry has ever had.

My favorite feature is the keyboard. There was a time when all smartphones had physical keyboards, but none measured up to what BlackBerry offered, and seeing it in 2018 and better than ever is downright glorious.

BlackBerry users know what I’m talking about here; it’s the most natural way for me to communicate with my phone. I can type just fine on a standard on-screen keyboard, but I can type better and faster on my BlackBerry. And I can do it without looking at it with enough proficiency that I’m not embarrassed to send anything I type with my one blind thumb. I can reply to friends or family or I can get some work done — I’ve written blog posts here at AC using my KEYone. That’s not my favorite way to work, but knowing I can is great.

This is the phone BlackBerry fans have deserved for years.

Add in the things Android brings to the table; things like application intents and information sharing, a gigantic app store that will have whatever thing I might need in it, and the integration with Google’s online services and the KEYone is one of the best phones you can buy in 2018. I don’t see myself replacing it until we see a KEYtwo.

See at Amazon

BlackBerry KEYone

• BlackBerry KEYone review
• KEYone vs. Priv: Battle of the BlackBerry keyboards
• BlackBerry KEYone specs
• The latest KEYone news
• Join the discussion in the forums

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