These are all the Android One phones available today

Here’s what you need to know about the current wave of Android One phones.

The Android One program was initially designed as a way to ensure seamless updates for entry-level devices, but Google didn’t see a lot of traction on that front. As such, Google went back to the drawing board and reimagined Android One as an initiative that isn’t limited to the budget segment.

Today, you’ll find Android One phones on sale from $200 all the way to $800, and the unifying theme among all of these devices is a clean and uncluttered user interface along with the promise of quick updates. The program isn’t confined to emerging markets either, as there are Android One phones up for sale in the U.S., UK, and most global markets.

With handsets available across a wide variety of price points, there’s no dearth of choice if you’re looking for a capable phone with pure Android.

Nokia 8 Sirocco

Earlier this year, HMD Global announced that it would be committing to the Android One program for all of its upcoming phones. The Finnish manufacturer revived the Nokia brand last year, introducing phones with classic industrial design and a clean user interface devoid of any bloat. So it stands to reason that the next step for HMD would be to formalize its association with Google by partnering over Android One.

The Nokia 8 Sirocco is the most expensive Android One phone currently available, with the phone selling for just over $880 (£649) in the UK. HMD has also kicked off sales in India, where it costs $745 (₹49,999).

The Nokia 8 Sirocco features a 5.5-inch QHD panel, Snapdragon 835, 6GB of RAM, 128GB of storage, dual 12MP cameras at the back, 5MP front shooter, and a 3260mAh battery.

The phone has a dual curved screen, and while it’s still using a 16:9 display, it has minimal bezels at the top and bottom. The curved form factor and the durable chassis make it stand out in this segment, and being an Android One device means it will be one of the first to receive platform and security updates.

See at Flipkart

Nokia 7 Plus

The Nokia 7 Plus is one of the best mid-range phones of 2018. It comes with an eye-catching design that sees copper accents along the mid-frame and at the back, and is currently the only device in HMD’s portfolio to adopt the 18:9 form factor.

It isn’t lacking in the hardware department either, thanks to a Snapdragon 660, 4GB of RAM, and 64GB of storage along with a microSD slot. It also comes with dual 12MP + 13MP cameras, a 16MP front shooter, and a 3800mAh battery that delivers two days’ worth of usage from a full charge.

Nokia 7 Plus review: Come for the value, stay for the excitement

The build quality is outstanding, and honestly, you can’t ask for much more from a $400 phone. The Nokia 7 Plus is available from Amazon India for $385 (₹25,999), and is up for sale in the UK for $475 (£349).

See at Amazon

Nokia 6.1

HMD’s budget phone has been refreshed for 2018 with a beefier chipset and USB-C. The Nokia 6.1 has the same durable chassis as the 2017 variant, but is now powered by the Snapdragon 630.

You also get 3GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage, 16MP camera, 8MP front camera, and a 3000mAh battery. And unlike the rest of HMD’s lineup, you’ll be able to buy the Nokia 6 in the U.S. for $269.

See at Amazon

Xiaomi Mi A1

Xiaomi’s Mi A1 is one of the best value-for-money phones around. For what amounts to $220, you get a 5.5-inch Full HD panel, Snapdragon 625 chipset, 4GB of RAM, 64GB of storage, dual 12MP cameras with a dedicated zoom lens for 2x optical zoom, Wi-Fi ac, Bluetooth 4.2, and a 3080mAh battery.

Xiaomi Mi A1 review: Best of both worlds

The Chinese manufacturer hasn’t put a foot wrong with the Mi A1, but the main drawback with the phone is availability. The Mi A1 is officially sold in India and other Southeast Asian markets, and has recently made its debut in Europe for €229. If you’re looking to pick it up from a country where it isn’t officially available just yet, then your best bet is to go through a Chinese retailer.

See at GearBest

Motorola Moto X4

The Moto X4 is an important device as it’s the only device outside the Nexuses and Pixels that is officially certified to work on Project Fi. There’s plenty to like with the phone, and the decent hardware combined with Project Fi’s service makes it a potent combination.

Moto X4 review: A mid-range phone done right

On the hardware front, the Moto X4 offers a 5.2-inch Full HD panel backed by Gorilla Glass 3, Snapdragon 630, 3GB of RAM, 32GB of storage, dual 12MP + 8MP cameras at the back along with a 16MP front shooter, IP68 certification, and a 3000mAh battery. The phone retails for $399 in the U.S., and is up for sale in India for ₹22,999 ($360) for the variant with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage.

See at Google

HTC U11 Life

The U11 Life has a lot of hardware similarities with the Moto X4. You get a 5.2-inch Full HD screen, Snapdragon 630, 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage, and IP67 dust and water resistance. You lose out on the dual cameras — with the phone sporting a single 16MP shooter at the back — but you do get a 16MP camera up front as well.

HTC U11 Life review: High style at a low price, with compromises

HTC has opted for differentiation with a feature called Edge Sense, a squeezable frame that lets you launch the camera or Google Assistant by just pressing down on the sides of the phone. Other specs include a 2600mAh battery, and while that’s decent enough to last the better part of a day, the phone doesn’t have a 3.5mm jack. You do get HTC’s USonic earbuds bundled in the box though. Not bad considering the phone costs $349.

See at HTC

Y!Mobile X1/X2/S1/S2

If you’re looking to pick up an Android One phone in Japan, SoftBank’s Y!Mobile has you covered. The carrier has a strong lineup of phones, including Sharp’s X1 and S1, Kyocera’s S2, and the HTC X2.

Let’s kick off with Sharp’s offerings first: both the X1 and S1 feature Full HD IGZO panels and are dust and water resistant. The X1 has a 5.3-inch screen, is powered by the Snapdragon 435, and offers 3GB of RAM/32GB storage, microSD slot, 16MP rear camera, 8MP front shooter, and a huge 3900mAh battery.

The S1 features a 5.0-inch screen, Snapdragon 430, 2GB of RAM/16GB storage, microSD slot, 13MP camera, 8MP front camera, and a 2530mAh battery. Both Sharp phones are on Android 8.0 Oreo.

Coming over to the Kyocera S2, the budget phone has a 5-inch 720p display, Snapdragon 425, 2GB of RAM and 16GB of storage, microSD slot, 13MP rear shooter, a 2MP front camera, and 2300mAh battery. The S1 is available on monthly plans starting as low as $20 (¥2,138).

Finally, the HTC X2 offers a 5.2-inch Full HD panel, Snapdragon 630, 4GB of RAM, 64GB of storage, microSD slot, 16MP front and rear cameras, and a 2600mAh battery. The phone is certainly the most feature-rich when seen next to other Android One devices in the country, and that corresponds to a monthly plan of $30 (¥3,434).

See at Y!Mobile

General Mobile GM6/GM5/GM5 Plus

Turkey’s General Mobile 4G was the first Android One device to feature a Snapdragon chipset. The phone made its debut in 2015, and while Indian vendors rolled out Android One devices a year prior, they were running MediaTek’s MT6582 platform.

Currently, the Turkish phone manufacturer offers three Android One phones: the GM6, GM5, and the GM 5 Plus. The GM5 and GM5 Plus are older devices running the Snapdragon 617, with the former featuring a 5-inch 720p display with the latter offering a 5.5-inch Full HD panel.

The GM6, meanwhile, features MediaTek’s octa-core MT6737T chipset, and has 3GB of RAM/32GB of storage, 13MP rear camera, 8MP front shooter, and a 3000mAh battery. Crucially, all three devices have received the Oreo update.

See at General Mobile

Your favorite

What Android One phone piques your interest? Let us know in the comments!

Our favorite Android devices throughout the years, 2018 edition

Looking back, everyone has a point where they started loving Android. Often those products became sentimental favorites. These are some of them as told by the AC editors.

It’s hard to overstate the impact that Android has had on the world. In the last decade, it’s become the most widely used mobile operating system in the world, garnering massive communities of developers, enthusiasts, and even bloggers and reporters — like us!

Here at Android Central, we make our livings writing about the latest Android-related technology. As such, we get to play with and experience nearly every phone on the market, and as nice as that can be, it also makes it easy to feel jaded and unimpressed by new releases. Still, some devices are so captivating that they stick with us for years after their release — not necessarily because they were the best devices around at the time, but because they did something special to stand out against a sea of uniform options.

We did this in 2017 and it was a lot of fun, but it’s been over 15 months since that last roundtable, so we thought we’d do it again. Here’s the 2018 version of our favorite Android phones throughout the years!

Andrew Martonik: Google Pixel and Nexus 5

In the grand scheme of Android, the original Google Pixel was both extremely important for Google and also an overall wonderful phone to use. I’m specifically talking about the smaller Pixel and not the XL, though obviously the availability of two different screen sizes was part of the whole appeal.

Like so many other people, I just appreciated the simplicity and quality of the original Pixel. That solid metal body, fantastic construction and no-frills design really spoke to me. It was a delivery mechanism for the software more than anything, just like Nexuses were, but in being more expensive it was also dramatically better made than any Nexus. Top-notch hardware with Google’s great software — a perfect match.

The software was just so good, and integrated with Google’s services perfectly. Unlike Nexuses before, the Pixel had a little extra differentiation in the design and function of its software, too, giving it a bit more personality and distinction. It really paid off — the Pixel felt like a complete product top to bottom.

Sure the battery life wasn’t fantastic, and pushed me to use the Pixel XL instead when I was traveling, but that’s really the only complaint I could ever have with it. And of course there’s the camera, which 18 months on is still extremely good. Google just absolutely nailed so much of the experience on that phone that

I also want to give a nod to the Nexus 5 for a completely different set of reasons. It wasn’t well made, particularly beautiful, or even filled with the best specs for the time. But it was the pinnacle of what Google’s Nexus program could achieve: a phone that clearly cut corners in hardware and design but delivered an amazing smartphone experience regardless. It didn’t need the best specs because Google’s attention to the software and experience was so good — and the Nexus 5 remained in my pocket for so long as a result. When a cheaply made plastic phone with missing features can stay in use for that long, you know the whole package had to be something special.

Ara Wagoner: Moto X (2014)

The 2013 Moto X was the phone that turned me from Android user into Android fangirl, and while the 2014 Moto X wasn’t quite as small or cute as my Texas-built original AquaCherry Moto X, it made up for that with features that just felt completely and utterly magical. Google Assistant might be able to hear me in more environments and do way cooler things, but I miss the custom trigger phrases you could use on Moto Voice. I had mine set to completely made up words, so it sounded like I was casting a spell when I summoned Moto Voice for a command.

Even more magical than the custom phrases, however, were the IR sensors on the front of the phone. Yeah, they made the white-faced Moto X look like a pimply teenager, but they blended in well on the black front and they were handy as all get-out. I could leave my phone face-up next to my workstation, wave my hand over my phone, and see my notifications or wake up the phone for whatever I needed.

The Moto X 2014 felt magical in a way that no phone since really has. Maybe part of that has to do with the fact that I was still just a budding Android writer at the time, and maybe part of it has to do with the fact that in 2018 we don’t have more phones with custom hotwords or that wake up without being picked up or fingerprint swiped. I want back my pretty, magic Moto.

Alex Dobie: Samsung Galaxy S6 edge+

For reasons that made little sense at the time, and seem even crazier today, Europe didn’t get the Samsung Galaxy Note 5. Instead, we traded the Note 5’s utility for the more stylish S6 edge+, which was the only large form factor Samsung phone sold in Europe in 2015. After passing on the smaller S6 models, this was my first experience with an “edge” model Samsung phone, and my favorite device of the year. I had just come from using an LG G4 — a great phone in its own right, but one with many legacy design traits, like plastic contstruction, removable back panels and replaceable batteries. The S6 edge+ was unmistakeably a forward-looking, futuristic handset.

The curved display was great at the time, and has aged surprisingly well, as has the single 16-megapixel rear camera, which could go toe-to-toe with its successor, the S7, in many situations.

And although it shipped with the decidedly quirky Android Lollipop, we were on the cusp of Samsung’s software starting to become both stable and aesthetically pleasing, and the S6 edge+ became even better the following year with its update to Marshmallow, bringing parity with the design of the S7’s software. What’s more, Samsung’s use of its own Exynos processor meant it didn’t have to deal with the performance, heat and throttling issues of the Snapdragon 810 and 808 chips that powered many of its competitors.

The not-so-great stuff? Battery life was rough, with a huge 5.7-inch 16:9 display and a mere 3,000mAh battery. And the in-button fingerprint scanner was bad — so poor, in fact, that I eventually gave up and used Smart Lock.

Daniel Bader: HTC Hero

The HTC Hero in all its chin-wagging glory.

There’s something about Sense. Back in 2009, when the only version of Android one could know was what Google had built for the G1 and other early devices, the Sense-running HTC Hero was an outlier, a stylish, fluid, all-touch smartphone capable of taking on the Droid’s more aggressive qualities.

The version I had up in Canada was sold by Telus, and it looked a lot better than the one Sprint sold, which traded the chin for a flatter bezel and trackpad. Nevertheless, it was a game-changer and showed me that smartphone software could be intuitive and performant at the same time, two things that “stock” Android wasn’t at the time.

HTC deserves a lot of credit for designing a really good phone, even if today the 3.2-inch 320×480 display is comically small. I loved this device when it was released, and it holds a special place in my nerd heart because of it.

Harish Jonnalagadda: LG G4

LG hasn’t fared all that well in the smartphone segment in recent years, but it isn’t for lack of trying. The manufacturer consistently incorporated fresh designs into its flagships, like the flexible LG G Flex and the modular LG G5. What it failed to do was execute on them, as evidenced by the lack of paltry support for add-on modules for the G5.

The LG G4 wasn’t as outlandish, however, and it came with a fantastic QHD display and a great camera. It was the first phone I used with a QHD panel, and I loved the vibrant colors and the excellent contrast. The G4 also had a cohesive design for the user interface, and most of the software additions turned out to be useful.

What I particularly liked about the LG G4 was the ability to customize the back with removable shells. LG had a range of options available — from plastic to leather and a metallic finish — that altered the look and feel of the device significantly. The phone wasn’t the fastest and didn’t have great battery life, but there was a secondary battery in the box along with a charging cradle that came in handy during travel.

Hayato Huseman: HTC Inspire

One of my favorite phones I’ve ever owned was the first-gen Moto X. No other phone offered that kind of hardware customization — you could choose from different colored front panels and backings (mine was turquoise with a black front), get a custom phrase screen printed on the back (mine had my Twitter handle), and even choose a custom phrase that appeared under the Motorola logo on the boot screen! What a cool device.

Ultimately, though, my absolute favorite Android phone would have to be my first one: the HTC Inspire. That thing was far from perfect; the battery life was terrible, and the door to access the battery was near impossible to get off without breaking a fingernail or scratching the back of the phone with whatever you had tried to pry it off with. On top of that, it didn’t even have a front-facing camera — if you wanted to take a selfie, you had to do so with the rear camera … which also wasn’t great.

Still, it was my first ever Android phone, and I absolutely adored it. The 4.3-inch screen felt enormous at the time — so big that I traded it off for a more comfortable Motorola Atrix for about a month before realizing the error of my ways and trading back. Coming fresh from an iPhone 4, I was fascinated by the Android experience, and couldn’t believe I could do things like run GameBoy emulators without having to hack my software. I didn’t mind Android’s then-lacking app ecosystem, because it was just so much fun to tinker with. I’d be lying if I said I don’t still look at eBay listings of the Inspire from time to time.

Jerry Hildenbrand: Samsung Galaxy S

Samsung wasn’t always the dominant force in mobile that it is today, and the original Galaxy S is the phone that started its climb to the top.

Google and HTC started the mobile arms race with the so-called “Superphones” — the Nexus One and the HTC Evo 4G — and it didn’t take long for Samsung to show everyone how a phone with out-of-this-world specs should be done. The Galaxy S wasn’t nearly as powerful as what we have with today’s Galaxy S9, but for its time, the Hummingbird chipset was amazing.

Where Samsung excelled is also where they lead today: a beautiful AMOLED display and features that nobody else can offer. Samsung’s version of Android can be polarizing, but no matter if you love it or if you hate it you have to admit the company can think outside of the box and take the good ideas to a higher leright

Strategic partnerships with North America’s carriers rounded out Samsung’s strategy and soon you saw a Galaxy S in every carrier store in the U.S. and Canada. Sitting ight beside an iPhone it was easy to see the big beautiful display, and that hooked many a user on Android. Without the Galaxy S, the mobile landscape simply wouldn’t be the same.

Joe Maring: Moto X (2013)

Two Android phones that will always hold a special place in my heart are the 2013 and 2014 Moto X. Those were two of the first phones I purchased with my own money, and between that and the ability to customize each one to my heart’s content, I had a bond with them I’ve experienced with seldom other gadgets over the years.

The Moto X for its first two years didn’t try to conform to what the rest of the smartphone world was doing. Instead, it was its own thing. The 2013 Moto X didn’t have the best processor or display at the time, but instead, focused on delivering the best experience possible with software goodies that were genuinely helpful and exciting. Twisting for the camera and later chopping for the flashlight on the 2014 model are still some of my favorite gestures ever on a phone, and being able to call it whatever I wanted for Moto Voice is something the Google Assistant still lacks.

Also, can someone pleeeassee bring back Moto Maker? Tweaking a phone to look just the way you want it is something that’s still unique to the Moto X line, and there’s something special about knowing no one else has a phone that looks the way your does. Plus, that cognac leather on the 2014 Moto X was 🔥.

I still have my 2013 Moto X in a drawer, and whenever I’m feeling nostalgic, I’ll power that puppy on and play around with it for a few minutes. Even after all these years, it still looks incredible and moves way faster than it has a right to.

Motorola, please bring back the Moto X we know and love. I’ll give you cookies if you do.

Marc Lagace: Google Pixel XL

I have to go with the OG Google Pixel XL, which was as close as it gets to a perfect phone in my eyes. Its design stood out from the crowd, it was the perfect size for my hand, and it was the first phone to feature the Google Assistant — a feature I absolutely love.

The camera felt faster than anything I’d used before, and the resulting photos were nearly always crisp and detailed. Thanks to Google Daydream, I could be “the cool cousin” who showed up to family gatherings with a new VR game to show off. Even as we ruminate about what fancy new specs or features will be included with the Pixel 3, I’m still a big fan of the first Pixel that started it all.

Russell Holly: HTC One M7

For me, the original HTC One stands out as something special. The all-metal body felt nice, it had a unique look, and even though the cameras weren’t the best in the world it was clear HTC was doing something unique with the Ultrapixel tech.

HTC Sense, flawed as it was, had some great ideas as well. It’s kind of interesting to see some of the new digital wellbeing things Google is putting in Android P right now, because these things have roots in Sense UI’s early days.

In a world where so many of the “top tier” Android phones are barely different from one another, it’s nice to look back at the HTC One and see a company willing to try something new.

Tom Westrick: Asus Zenfone 3 Ultra

I love big phones. The only thing that stopped me from getting the Sony Xperia Z Ultra was its lack of a camera flash (seriously Sony, WTF?!) — especially once the Google Play Edition was released. I’ve always been intrigued by the idea of a tablet-sized phone — not just an LTE tablet, but full support for full phone calls. I don’t care how silly I look with a tablet next to my head either.

The closest I’ve come was with the Asus Zenfone 3 Ultra. I religiously tracked FCC announcements to see if this device was passing through certification for sale in the US, but it never did. When the rest of the Zenfone 3 series went on sale in the States and I saw the writing on the wall, I imported one of the Ultras. It was gloriously giant, but had limited network support — to the surprise of no one. It worked well enough though, and I absolutely loved watching videos, reading comics and browsing websites on that big display. I happily dealt with some of the quirks of Asus’ software (and there were many quirks).

Unfortunately, all good stories must come to an end. I dropped the Zenfone 3 Ultra in a Starbucks, and while I surprisingly didn’t cause an earthquake, I did destroy the camera. I begrudgingly sold the phone to someone who intended to repair it, and no phone since has matched the sheer joy I had when I used that.

I never owned one, but I was also super intrigued by the Nokia Lumia 1520. Windows Phone 8 (and 8.1 and 10 Mobile) never had all of the apps I need, but I’d love if HMD remade this device with modern specs and their minimalist software.

Your turn: What’s your favorite Android device?

There must be some Android device you hold dear. Maybe your first phone, or a tablet you particularly enjoyed? Let us know in the comments!

Watch: Honor 10 launch live stream

New shinies.

The Honor 10 — not to be confused with the View 10 — officially breaks cover today at a launch event in London. While the phone is already on sale in China, today we’ll learn the full details of the Western version of the handset, which looks set to bring some of the Huawei P20’s features to a lower price point.

We’ll be covering the event live from London, and you can follow all the details on Honor’s live stream below. The action kicks off at 2 p.m. BST — which is 9 a.m. EDT, or 6 a.m. PST.

Expect iridescent glass chassis, high-end specs and an AI-enhanced camera — and perhaps some surprises. Take a look over the Chinese announcement for more clues.

Google Announces New Cloud Storage Plans Including 2TB for $9.99 a Month

Google has announced a new series of cloud storage plans arriving for Google Account holders, including a new family option for divvying up a single storage plan amongst up to five members.

Called Google One, the new plans will replace existing Google Drive paid storage plans and include 100GB storage for $1.99 a month, 200GB for $2.99 a month, and 2TB for $9.99 a month (down from $19.99).

As a result, Google is removing its 1TB/$9.99 plan, but will continue to offer 15GB storage for free to all Google Drive users. The other existing tier that will continue to be offered is 30TB for $300 a month.

As before, the new storage plans provide users with space for Google Drive, Gmail, and original quality photos and videos (including 4K) in Google Photos.

All the paid plans come with access to live chat support, a feature that was previously limited to G Suite business account holders. The changes will be seen first by paying Google Drive users in the U.S. “in the coming months”, with rollout to users in other countries shortly after.

For the sake of comparison, Apple’s iCloud monthly storage plans are 50GB for $0.99, 200GB for $2.99, 2TB for $9.99, and 5GB free storage for non-paying users.

Tags: Google, Google One
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Realme 1 hands-on: Budget smarts from OPPO and Amazon?

These days there is no shortage of affordable devices with premium-like features. Now there’s one more: the Realme 1.

Realme is a sub-brand of OPPO and this handset is the result of a partnership with Amazon India, where the phone is launching exclusively. The device will sell for 13,990 rupees for the top version (6GB+128GB), which is the equivalent of $200 or 150 pounds.

And for that, you’re getting an interesting slew of features, while also facing some interesting compromises. The Realme 1 is not your usual combination, but rather a setup that seems to put the device’s smarts at the center of the equation.

Read: The best dating apps in India

Find out more in our Realme 1 hands-on.

Design

Editor’s Pick

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Indian smartphone brands are losing ground to Chinese manufacturers in their home market — not a single one made the list of the five biggest players in Q3. Samsung is tied with Xiaomi for first …The first thing you’ll notice is the Diamond Black Finish. It’s a glossy finish that reflects light in a kind of polygonal pattern. This looks a lot more impressive in press photos than in the flesh to be honest. At first I thought (and hoped) it would be textured in some way, but in reality it’s just a trick of the light that will often go unnoticed (especially under the provided case). In a lot of lighting conditions the pattern just simply disappears. Still, it is nice to see a budget brand trying something a little different.

The phone generally feels quite cheaply made – very plasticky and light

To be honest though, the phone generally feels quite cheaply made – very plasticky and light (and not in the good way). The buttons are pretty flaky too and instead of a volume rocker, you get two individual buttons located inconveniently on the left of the device.

I was also a pretty disappointed to discover a micro USB port down the bottom. That definitely feels like a cheap choice, as do the haptics effects, which come from a very noisy and clumsy motor. Most baffling, there’s no fingerprint sensor, which is something you almost always find even on budget handsets. This is a problem seeing as a lot of apps these days work with fingerprints – and going back to PINs just seems old fashioned.

Display

Better news comes from the 6-inch 2160 x 1080 screen, which features some very slim bezels. Some of the early official photos showed a notch, but it seems that this design feature was dropped last minute, as mine has a regular looking screen. It’s bright enough in use (perhaps a little tricky to make out in direct sunlight) and blacks are pretty black, though it does feel a little plasticky along with the rest of the device – you’ll notice when swiping to bring down the notification tray, for instance.

There’s a single speaker down the bottom, but it is actually pretty loud as they go.

I was pleasantly surprised during set-up to discover the option for face unlock.

Performance and features

That micro USB and cheap feel had set me up not to expect much when I first booted up the device. However, I was pleasantly surprised during set-up to discover the option for face unlock. This would be the result of the Helio P60 processor with its built-in NPU. And of course, it somewhat mitigates the lack of fingerprint sensor. Though not quite, seeing as it’s pretty slow and won’t be secure enough for some applications.

And that AI prowess should also be able to help get the very most out of a 3,410mAh battery. The 6GB of RAM is also a generous choice for a budget handset, as is the 128GB of internal storage. Some users will be glad to see a hybrid SIM here too, which means there’s the option to expand storage or add another SIM. And on the whole, performance seems perfectly adequate. The Helio P60 is roughly equivalent to the Snapdragon 660 in that regard, and the 12nm production process may help to contribute to the superior battery efficiency. That said, the chipset features a lesser GPU in the Mali G72 MP3. You may notice the odd dropped frame in demanding games, but nothing major. I’ll be testing that out myself in the full review though to be sure.

The Realme 1 is running Android 8.1 Oreo with the Color OS UI layer on top. I can’t say I’m a fan, but that’s a matter of personal taste and again, things seem to breeze by with nary a stutter.

The 6GB of RAM is also a generous choice for a budget handset, as is the 128GB of internal storage.

Camera

The camera also seems to be above-par for the price point and once again it gets to join in with the AI fun. Around the back is a 13MP shooter, while the front gets a decent 8MP. Both are capable of portrait-mode, depth-of-field effects as well as ‘AI beauty’ technology, which are handled by the NPU despite the single lens. Low light performance also seems better than I expected and in my brief tests so far, the camera performance seems pretty decent. I’m going to need a bit longer to give it a verdict.

Final thoughts

So, this is a phone that is very much a budget device. It feels it and it looks it, despite Realme’s best efforts with that weird pattern on the back panel. But there are also some cool features here that largely come down to the AI. And, at such a low price, this might just be enough for some punters.

Check back here for the full Realme 1 review soon, where we’ll put it through its paces and see how it performs under scrutiny.

Read: These are the best affordable phones in India

How to Stop Your Apple Watch From Launching the ‘Now Playing’ App When Audio Plays on Your iPhone

Most Apple Watch owners will recognize the “Now Playing” app – it automatically launches by default whenever you play audio through the Music or Podcasts app on your iPhone. A similar screen shows when you play audio through any third-party iPhone app that also has an Apple Watch extension, like Overcast, for example.

The Now Playing app provides quick access to playback controls on your wrist, as well as track options like Love/Dislike and Delete From Library. You can also turn the Crown on your Apple Watch to adjust volume, which is handy when you’re listening on AirPods or other headphones that don’t have built-in volume controls.

You might not like the way the Now Playing app automatically appears when you play audio on your iPhone. If you just want to see your watch face when you raise your wrist during audio playback, you can turn off the default behavior by following the first set of steps below.

You can still make it easy to access the Now Playing app without it automatically taking over the screen whenever you play audio. One solution is to add the Now Playing app to your Apple Watch’s Dock, accessed with a press of the Side button. Another option is to enable the Now Playing watch face complication. Click the links to find out how.

How to Disable Auto-Launch Audio Apps on Apple Watch

Press the Crown on your Apple Watch to invoke the app launcher.
Launch the Settings app.

Tap General.
Tap Wake Screen.
Toggle off Auto-Launch Audio Apps.

How to Disable Auto-Launch Audio Apps via iPhone

Launch the Watch app on your iPhone.
Tap General.

Scroll down and tap Wake Screen.
Toggle off Auto-Launch Audio Apps.

How to Add ‘Now Playing’ to Your Apple Watch’s Dock

Launch the Watch app on your iPhone.
Tap Dock.
Tap Favorites in the Dock Ordering section if it isn’t already selected.

Tap Edit in the upper right corner of the screen.
Scroll down to the Do Not Include section and tap the plus (+) symbol next to Now Playing to add it to the list of docked apps. Alternatively, drag the app into the Favorites list via the three-line button at the far right of the entry. (Note you can also use these buttons to control the arrangement of apps in the Dock.)
Tap Done in the upper right of the screen.

How to Enable the ‘Now Playing’ Complication

Before following these steps, make sure you’re using a watch face that accepts text-based complications (Modular and Activity Digital are two such examples.)
Hard press the watch face on your Apple Watch.
Tap Customize.

Swipe left until the large text-based complication space is highlighted.
Turn the Crown to scroll through the options until you get to the Now Playing complication (also shown as ‘Tap to Open’ in the text space).
Press the Crown twice to set the complication and exit Customize mode.

Related Roundups: Apple Watch, watchOS 4, AirPodsTag: Now PlayingBuyer’s Guide: Apple Watch (Neutral), AirPods (Caution)
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OPPO unveils $210 Realme 1 in India with Helio P60, 6GB RAM, 128GB storage

OPPO kicks off Realme sub-brand in India to take on Xiaomi’s Redmi series.

They say that imitation is the highest form of flattery, and that’s exactly what OPPO is doing with its new Realme sub-brand. The Chinese company unveiled the first product in the series, the Realme 1, and it’s immediately evident that OPPO is setting Xiaomi — particularly its Redmi series — in its sights.

OPPO is positioning the Realme 1 as a device that delivers on both price as well as quality, touting the fact that each phone goes through 18 quality tests for the motherboard, more than 100,000 drop tests, and multiple humidity and temperature tests. These kinds of tests are standard across the industry, but OPPO is highlighting them as a possible differentiator.

The phone features a 6.0-inch FHD+ 18:9 display, and is powered by MediaTek’s Helio P60 chipset with four 2.0GHz Cortex A73 cores paired with four Cortex A53 cores. MediaTek hasn’t fared well in the budget segment in recent years, but it looks like the P60 has the potential to change that. Other specs of the Realme 1 include a 13MP rear camera, 8MP front shooter, and a 3400mAh battery.

Like OPPO’s mid-range phones, the Realme 1 features the company’s AI-assisted selfie mode, which analyzes your facial features and fixes any blemishes. Another feature to make its way from the F7 is the Diamond Black rear design, an interlacing pattern that allows the phone to catch the light at various angles.

On the software side of things, the Realme 1 is running Oreo based on ColorOS 5.0. The Realme 1 is available in two storage configurations initially: a base model with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage for ₹8,990 ($135), and a version with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage for ₹13,990 ($205). While the rest of the specifications look great for a phone in this category, the Realme 1 misses out on a fingerprint sensor.

After-sales customer service has been a major pain point for consumers in India, and OPPO says that it is acutely aware of the issue. The brand says that it will be able to offer resolutions in just over an hour for up to 90% of all smartphone-related issues at its service centers.

The Realme 1 will go up for sale exclusively on Amazon India starting May 25 for as low as ₹8,990 ($135), and the aggressive pricing suggests OPPO is intent on stealing market share away from Xiaomi. The launch of the Realme 1 comes at a particularly difficult time for Xiaomi, with the company unable to meet the demand for the Redmi Note 5 Pro nearly three months after its release.

What are your thoughts on the device? Let me know in the comments below.

See at Amazon India

The Samsung Galaxy S9 can download up to 37 percent faster than the iPhone X

There are a few things to consider when buying a smartphone — you’ll want to think about a phone’s design, camera, performance, and so on. But what about how quickly phones can upload and download files? If speedy internet access is important to you, a new study has been released detailing the fastest phones out there — and it turns out that Samsung is the winner.

The study comes from Ookla, the company behind speedtest.net, and highlights that the Samsung Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9 Plus significantly outperform other smartphones when it comes to downloading and streaming content. By how much? According to the study, the phones are up to 42 percent faster — which is no small feat.

The speeds are largely thanks to the CAT 18 LTE modem built into the phones, which are able to deliver download speeds of up to 1.2 Gbps, though that obviously depends on network speeds. The real takeaway here is the fact that, depending on which phone you use, you could experience significantly different speeds, even on the same network and in the same area. The study highlights that the Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus boast speeds of up to 37 percent faster than the iPhone X, 17 percent faster than the Google Pixel 2, and 38 percent faster than the Galaxy S7.

“This summer, consumers are going to be on the road, at the beach, and relying on their phones more than ever, but without the latest and fastest network technology that’s available in the Galaxy S9 and S9+, their phones may quite literally slow them down,” said Justin Denison, senior vice president, Mobile Product Strategy and Marketing at Samsung Electronics America, in an emailed statement.

The Samsung Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9 Plus aren’t just fast — they also boast the latest and greatest Qualcomm processor, the Snapdragon 845, along with either 4GB or 6GB of RAM, and 64GB of storage.

Data speeds in general are only getting faster. As we move toward 5G, carriers are implementing LTE Advanced networks capable of delivering over 1 Gbps speeds. Of course, that not only hinges on carrier implementation, but also manufacturers taking advantage of new mobile modems that are capable of downloading files at such speeds.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Microsoft is selling its own customized version of the Samsung Galaxy S9
• Here’s how to buy the brand-new Samsung Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9 Plus
• Samsung beats Apple in smartphone activations during the first quarter
• Huawei P20 Pro vs. Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus: Are three better than two?
• Common Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus problems and how to fix them

The Galaxy S9 has dramatically faster LTE than the iPhone X, but that isn’t the whole story

The Galaxy S9 may be 42% faster than the competition, but that’s not as impressive as it may sound.

As technology advances and more of what we do transitions to the internet and cloud, it’s increasingly more important to carry smartphones that offer reliable LTE performance. Samsung recently revealed that the Galaxy S9 and S9+ have demonstrated LTE speeds that are up to 42% faster than competing handsets in real-world conditions, and while that might sound like a seriously impressive feat at first, it’s not as jaw-dropping as Samsung’s cracking it up to be.

First off, let’s go through how Samsung got the numbers it did. Samsung used Ookla Speedtest, a well-known company, to track LTE performance on the Galaxy S9, iPhone X, Google Pixel 2, and two-generations-old Galaxy S7. When doing so, Samsung found that the S9 series was:

• 37% faster than the iPhone X
• 17% faster than the Pixel 2
• 38% faster than the Galaxy S7

That’s on average, at least. The study was conducted via speed tests on “major nationwide carriers’ 4G LTE networks” from February to April of this year, and compiled along weighted averages to take out the outliers. All of that is perfectly legitimate, and while Samsung and Ookla are honest in their testing, being 37% faster than the iPhone X in average benchmark-like tests isn’t necessarily representative of real-world performance you’d actually experience.

The modem that’s being used in the Galaxy S9 and S9+ is considerably faster than the ones found in other handsets, as the test results show, but the variables that go into data speeds when using your phone like a phone and not strictly testing download speeds aren’t as clear cut. What network is your phone on? How’s the coverage in your area? How many apps do you have accessing data in the background? What kind of file are you downloading? Where are you downloading from? All of these questions (and more) weigh heavily in the end result of whether your Galaxy S9 would feel notably faster than an iPhone X or Pixel 2.

Real-world use is a completely different beast than benchmark tests.

A snappier modem can contribute to technically faster speeds, but when you throw in all of the real-world variables and the fact that most consumers likely wouldn’t notice any difference above a certain threshold, that “42% faster” figure loses some of its luster. Yes, it may be faster — but you may not actually notice it being faster given the real-world circumstances we all deal with as network conditions change.

The Galaxy S9 is a tremendously powerful phone and is capable of wickedly fast data speeds, but so are most other modern smartphones. There may be many instances where the Galaxy S9 is able to finish downloading an app or video file a handful of seconds faster than an iPhone X or Pixel 2, and while that’s a welcome convenience to have, it isn’t reason enough to ignore the rest of the competition — it’s just another data point to take into consideration.

Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+

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

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Solar-powered devices pull water vapor straight out of thin air in Australia

People across Australia may soon drink clean water pulled straight out of thin air. The water will be supplied by an array of solar-powered devices developed by Zero Mass Water, an American startup specializing in technology that can extract water from the atmosphere.

“Zero Mass Water’s ‘hydropanel’, called Source, creates clean drinking water from sunlight and air, so that every person in nearly every climate and corner of the world can produce their own water,” Cody Friesen, Zero Mass Water CEO, told Digital Trends “It’s that simple — if the sun is shining, Source makes drinking water.”

Thanks to $420,000 in funding from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA), Zero Mass Water will install 150 Source hydropanels in various locations around the country, including in Sydney, Perth, and Adelaide.

Friesen compares his company’s hydropanels to rice in a salt shaker. Fans in the hydropanels help pull surrounding air through an air filter, which attracts water molecules and funnels them to a reservoir.

“The water is collected as pure water vapor, is desorbed into an airtight system, and is converted to liquid form,” he said. “This liquid water flows into the Source reservoir, where it is mineralized with calcium and magnesium for taste and health benefit, stored, and then delivered straight to your tap, ready to drink.”

Each individual hydropanel can collect between four and 10 liters of water per day on average, according to the company, and has the potential to extract enough potable water over 15 years to replace 20,000 plastic bottles.

Raised in the Sonoran desert, Freisen said water scarcity was a feature of his life since childhood. But it wasn’t until he traveled abroad as an adult that he realized people all over the world suffer from lack of clean drinking water.

“With this in mind, we worked in my lab on developing the materials science, fluid dynamics, and thermodynamics it would take to solve this issue,” he said. “Ultimately, we found an incredibly efficient way to use solar energy to produce clean, great-tasting drinking water from the sun and air.”

The pilot project will see Source hyropanels placed in airports, cafes, and commercial buildings around the country. A third-party study will help assess the impact of the bottle water reduction in the country.

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