These are all the carriers that support Google’s ‘Chat’ enhanced messaging

Chat is Google’s bold bet on RCS.

Google pledged its support for Rich Communications Services back in 2015 by acquiring Jibe, and last week we heard that the company is looking to build out a suite of advanced messaging services into its Android Messages app with a new feature called Chat.

Chat will bring a whole new set of capabilities to Android Messages, and the feature will leverage the Rich Communications Services standard to do so. As a refresher, RCS is the next-gen SMS protocol that includes features like read receipts, group chats, file transfers, and much more. Its feature-set is similar to what you’d find on messaging platforms like WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger, but the key difference is that it is built on top of SMS.

The main goal with RCS is to facilitate seamless conversations across carriers and phone manufacturers, and major carriers as well as manufacturers have committed to the standard already. The four main carriers in the U.S. — AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, and Sprint — will support RCS, but only Sprint and T-Mobile thus far have committed to the GSMA’s Universal Profile.

Universal Profile is essentially a specification that guarantees interconnection between carriers. This is where Google’s acquisition of Jibe comes in: Jibe built a cloud platform that allows carriers and phone manufacturers to implement RCS without any hassles. So if you’re on T-Mobile and are looking to send messages or transfer files to a Sprint user over RCS, you’ll not face any issues as both carriers have committed to the Universal Profile.

Here’s the full list of 48 carriers that have pledged their commitment to the GSMA’s Universal Profile:

• Advanced Info Service (AIS) – Thailand
• Airtel – India
• América Móvil – Mexico
• AT&T – USA
• Axiata – Malaysia
• Beeline – Russia
• Bell Mobility – Canada
• China Mobile – China
• China Telecom – China
• China Unicom – China
• Claro – Latin America
• Deutsche Telekom – Germany
• Etisalat – UAE
• Globe Telecom – Philippines
• Ice – Norway
• Indosat Ooredoo – Indonesia
• KDDI – Japan
• KPN – Netherlands
• M1 Limited – Singapore
• MegaFon – Russia
• Millicom – Latin America and Africa
• MTN Group – South Africa
• MTS – Russia
• NTT Docomo – Japan
• Optus – Australia
• Orange – France
• Personal – Argentina
• Play – Poland
• Reliance Jio – India
• Rogers – Canada
• Singtel – Singapore
• Smart Communications – Philippines
• Sprint – USA
• StarHub – Singapore
• Telcel – Mexico
• Tele2 – Nordic countries
• Telefónica – Spain
• Telenor – Norway
• Telia Company – Sweden
• Telkomsel – Indonesia
• Telstra – Australia
• Telus – Canada
• TIM – Italy
• T-Mobile – USA
• Turkcell – Turkey
• Verizon – USA
• VEON – Netherlands
• Vodafone – UK

In addition to the carriers listed above, RCS is being rolled out by phone manufacturers, including the likes of Samsung, Huawei, and HTC:

• Alcatel
• ASUS
• General Mobile
• HTC
• Lava Mobiles
• Lenovo
• LG
• Huawei
• Intex
• Samsung
• ZTE

With Chat, Google is finally looking to integrate RCS into Android Messages and make sure that at least a base set of features are available on every Android phone. That’s a wonderful thing.

Kryptonite bike locks are on sale, with prices starting at $19

Amazon is offering some savings on Kryptonite bike locks. Prices start at $19, and 14 different product are on sale. Whether you need some light security or a more heavy-duty lock, definitely make sure to check these deals out before the prices jump back up.

One option, the Kryptonite KryptoLock Series 2 Standard Heavy Duty Bicycle U Lock, is down to just $23.96. That’s the best price ever – it normally goes for $30. Users gave it great feedback, too.

A smaller choice, the Kryptonite Kryptolok Series 2 Mini-7 Heavy Duty Bicycle U Lock, is only $21.69. That’s about $5 off the average price and brings this down to a whole new low.

Finally, this basic Kryptonite Keeper model is down to $19. It won’t provide the same security that a $70 lock will, but it will provide some light security if you’re not too worried about your bike getting stolen. Usually it goes for $25.

Check out the full selection of bike locks on sale to see which ones fit your specific needs.

See at Amazon

How to move photos on your phone to a microSD card

MicroSD cards can free up precious storage space on our phones, but only if you set it up to.

We wish all phones came with unlimited storage out of the box, but at least many Android phones have the option to expand that storage with microSD cards. Not every phone supports a microSD card — looking at you, Google Pixel 2 — but for those that do, the microSD card can give you more space for your app data, for your music and movies, and of course for your photos! That said, you can only reap these benefits if you take the time to set up your device to take advantage of it.

• How to pick a microSD card for photography
• How to change directories in the camera app
• How to move photos you’ve already taken to a microSD card

How to pick a microSD card for photography

MicroSD cards don’t usually come with your phone unless it’s part of an accessory bundle, but these cards are easy to find at most electronic and department stores. You can almost always find good cards on sale, so keep an eye on Thrifter if you don’t need a microSD card right this second.

If you want the best and you want it now, we suggest picking up a Samsung EVO U3 microSD card. It’s available in four storage capacities, from 32GB up to 256GB, and with a U3 speed rating it should be able to handle your photo and video-taking tasks.

See at Amazon

Once you buy your microSD card and get it inserted into your phone, it’s not going to magically move all your photos and videos to it. We have two important tasks we need to accomplish for that.

How to change directories in the camera app

Your camera app picks a spot to save photos based on the available storage. In most cases, the default is typically the phone itself. Changing that will make your life a lot easier, especially after you have a microSD card installed.

This will ensure that any new photos you take are automatically stored to the microSD card rather than internal storage. Note: these steps are taken from the Samsung Galaxy S9+ and Samsung Camera app, but the steps should be more or less the same on most devices.

Open your **Camera app*.

Tap Settings (the gear icon).

Scroll down and tap Storage location.

Tap SD card.

Now the camera app will send newly taken photos to the microSD card, but what about all the photos you’ve already taken that are taking up storage space on your internal storage? We need to move those over to the microSD card.

How to move photos you’ve already taken to a microSD card

To move files from internal storage to the microSD card, we’ll need a file manager app. Some phones come with file manager apps already installed, like Samsung’s My Files app, but if yours doesn’t, there are plenty of third-party apps that will do this as well, like Solid Explorer that you can use for this. We’ve used the Samsung My Files for these steps on a Samsung Galaxy S9+, but the steps should be the same on most devices.

Open your file manager app.
Open Internal Storage.

Open DCIM (short for Digital Camera Images).

Long-press Camera.
Tap the three-dot menu icon and then tap Move.

Tap SD card.

Tap DCIM. If a DCIM folder isn’t on your SD card, tap Create folder and make a DCIM folder.

Tap Done to initiate the transfer.

Time for more photos

Once your photos are set up, you can snap away, content in the knowledge that you don’t be filling your internal storage to the brim and bogging down your phone. It is also worth mentioning, however, that while it’s easy to assign Camera photos to go to the microSD card, on many phones you cannot reassign Screenshots to capture to SD the same way, so be sure to come back every now and then and copy your screenshots over to SD to keep them from filling up your phone.

You can also back up everything with Google Photos, check out how!

Motorola has sold over 70 million Moto Gs

The goal for this latest generation is to reach the 100 million mark.

Motorola just launched its latest generation of the Moto G, with three phones — the G6, G6 Plus and G6 Play — that bear little resemblance to the humble original Moto G from 2013. Though the size, features and specs of the G series have evolved heavily over the last five years, the mission is still the same: be a phone for the masses that’s affordable but also has an experience beyond its price. And apparently, it’s worked — Motorola’s Sergio Buniac, whom I spoke with prior to the G6 launch, said that Motorola has sold over 70 million Moto G series smartphones since the line launched.

Any company would love to have a phone line that sold 70 million phones in just five years.

That’s 70 million phones in five years, or an average of 12 million phones per year. And considering sales numbers were initially quite low, selling only a few million per year, 2016 and 2017 have obviously been enormous for the Moto G series and Motorola as a whole. Even though the Moto E and lower-end Moto Z Play series phones have been solid growth areas for Motorola in some markets, the Moto G has driven a large portion of its success since being acquired by Lenovo in 2014. Buoyed by what have clearly been strong Moto G sales, Motorola has taken a top-2 position across the biggest markets in Latin America, and also become the No. 1 unlocked phone brand in the U.S.

Motorola sees the growth continuing on an aggressive upswing as well. Mr. Buniac said that within this generation of Moto G phones, the company’s goal is to reach 100 million total sales. Considering these phones will be on sale for roughly 18 months, that’s an extremely impressive number. The new Moto G6 series won’t be on sale in the U.S. for a few weeks, but went on sale on announcement day in Brazil and other Latin American countries — and I expect that sales were strong from the start.

Best Wireless Charging Pads for Samsung Galaxy S9

Keep your Galaxy S9 charged without the charging cables.

If you’re upgrading to the Samsung Galaxy S9 in 2018, you’re going to want to try out the wireless charging functionality. There’s a large number of options out there for wireless charging, but not all are made equal.

If you want a reliable wireless charging pad that won’t let you down, check out these great products!

• Samsung Fast Charge Convertible Wireless Charging Pad
• Samsung Wireless Charging Pad w/ 2A wall adapter
• iOttie iON Wireless Qi Wireless Charging Pad
• Aukey Wireless Charger
• Spigen Qi Wireless Charging Stand

Samsung Fast Charge Convertible Wireless Charging Pad

Samsung’s wireless charging pad combines the best wireless charging technologies packed into a really sleek design. Launched alongside the Galaxy S8, it features a premium leather-like appearance and ingenious design which allows you to easily convert this pad into an angled charging stand.

The charger also comes with a spare Samsung Fast Charge wall charger which is another accessory that ensures your phone charges safely, and allows you to fast charge your Galaxy S9 wirelessly at your home or office. you can snag one of your own from Amazon now in black for $45 or brown for just $35.

See at Amazon

Samsung Wireless Charging Pad w/ 2A wall adapter

If functionality and cost are your two biggest buying factors, you’ll want to consider Samsung’s old style of wireless charging pad.

These charging pads look like mini-UFOs and are Fast Charge-compatible for devices that support it such as the Galaxy S9. It also comes with a Samsung 2A wall charger — always great — and comes with a standard one-year warranty.

This is a great option if you’re looking to set up wireless charging at your home and at work because they’re so damn cheap right now — only $28. You can also get the older style as a charging stand ($39)if you prefer that look instead. You may also want to consider this bundle which includes Samsung’s car charger along with two cables (Micro-USB and USB-C) for just $38.

See at Amazon

iOttie iON Wireless Qi Charging Pad

This updated wireless charger from iOttie might seem like a slightly bulkier option compared to the sleek Samsung chargers, but it’s packed with smart features. It’s Qi-compatible with charging zone that’s capable of 5V/1~2.4A output with a non-slip ring to hold your phone in place on top while it charges.

It supports Wireless Fast Charging up to 10W for Samsung Galaxy S9, and with an 18W USB-C input you’ll be able to wirelessly charge one phone and then charge a second device with the included USB-A port.

It’s all packaged in a beautiful and soft fabric that’s so trendy these days, and proper heat ventilation to maximize charging efficiency. Get yours for just $50.

See at Amazon

Aukey Wireless Charger

Aukey has once again updated its wireless charging pad for Qi-enabled devices, and it’s arguably the coolest and slimmest pad on this list. It’s an updated version of Aukey’s coaster-sized charger, and has a pretty stylish and minimalist look to it and won’t take up much space on your desk or nightstand.

This charger makes use of a USB-C cable to supply power which should make for more an efficient energy transfer, and you’ll need to use a Samsung Fast Charging wall charger to get the fastest speeds for your Galaxy S9. You can get one for your home or office for just $28, with Aukey currently offering a promotion where you can snag one for just $20 on Amazon.

See at Amazon

Spigen Qi Wireless Charging Stand

Spigen’s charging stand is angled, making this a great option for your office desk so you can easily see your display while your phone is charging. If you need a way to quickly top off your phone on your desk or a new place to keep it safe on your nightstand, this may be the choice for you. Pick yours up for $25 on Amazon.

See at Amazon

Update April 2018: Added the new charging pad from Aukey and updated the pricing information.

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

Verizon
AT&T
T-Mobile
Sprint

Casio is reportedly done making compact cameras

Sure, Casio may be known more for remaining committed to digital wristwatches while introducing its own take on the smartwatch fad. But the company has kept a foothold in the compact camera market, producing inexpensive little devices that casual shutterbugs could slip into a pocket. Those days are coming to an end, according to Japanese site Nikkei, which reports that Casio is abandoning the compact digital camera market.

Per the report, Casio cited declining demand for compact cameras as reason to leave the market. The company will remain committed to higher-end cams, but this decision will reduce the company’s earnings forecast.

The company produced some oddball cameras in its day, like the ‘Kawaii Selfie Mirror Cam’ with a front-facing reflective service to, well, improve your selfie game. Its experiments included a detachable action camera and a nine-exposure burst-shot point-and-shoot. But in the end, the rise of smartphones with high-resolution lenses are likely to blame for killing demand for discrete little cameras.

Via: Ephotozine

Source: Nikkei