Samsung Galaxy S9 vs. Galaxy S6: Should you upgrade?

It’s time.

Most people, particularly in the U.S., have fallen quite comfortably into a two-year phone upgrade cycle. But if you’re buying your phones outright, or you’re just one of the sensible set who doesn’t want to splash money on a new phone until you really need to, perhaps you make your flagship last a full three years. If you bought a Galaxy S6 or S6 edge, that was probably a pretty tough ask — but nonetheless, we know many people who did it.

At three years old, your Galaxy S6 is probably feeling the weight of time, and we know they’re unsurprisingly no longer being considered for software updates. So, is the Galaxy S9 the right phone to upgrade to? Here’s what you need to know to make the jump.

What’s the same

Samsung has done a masterful job of keeping its flagships in a consistent design language.

Samsung has done a masterful job of keeping its flagship phones following the same basic identity from year to year, and even looking at a three-generation change it’s undeniable that the Galaxy S6 and S9 are both Samsung phones. The Galaxy S6 still feels like a solid, well-made and modern device even in 2018, and that identity carries over entirely to the Galaxy S9. The newer phone is a bit more sleek and curved, but this is still the familiar metal-and-glass sandwich formula from 2015.

Funny enough, Samsung is still using the same Quick Charge 2.0-level charging speeds on the Galaxy S9 as it did back with the Galaxy S6, so you actually aren’t missing out on anything in that respect. Dual-mode (Qi and PMA) wireless charging was introduced on the Galaxy S6 and remains today as well, though the Galaxy S9 has at least added support for a bit faster speeds.

What’s different

As you’d expect for a phone that’s three years newer, the Galaxy S9 is better than the Galaxy S6 in every way. Hardware-wise Samsung has made advancements across the board: you get water resistance, USB-C charging, dual speakers and a notably improved display (albeit at the same resolution) on the Galaxy S9. And we should remember that Galaxy S6 owners haven’t had an SD card slot, so even though that came back with the Galaxy S7 it’s still “new” if you’re upgrading to the GS9.

Design similarities aside, the Galaxy S9 is better than the S6 in every way.

So long as you aren’t pushing things hard, the Galaxy S6 actually still performs pretty well. And with the Oreo update it has a very similar experience to the newest phones — albeit at a slightly slower pace. But from this point forward it won’t be getting any fresh software updates, and that Exynos processor and 3GB of RAM are really starting to show their age — particularly if you set it alongside the new Galaxy S9 and see how much quicker everything is. Apps are far more demanding today than they were in 2015, and if you want to keep up with the latest software you’ll need to move on to a new phone as well.

Then there’s battery life. We know the Galaxy S9 isn’t a stellar performer in this category, particularly with the Exynos processor, but even with that being said it’s going to be far better than the Galaxy S6. Battery life was arguably the biggest drawback of the Galaxy S6, with its 2550mAh battery incapable of making it through a day for most people — and three years on, it’s nowhere near what a new GS9 can do with 3000mAh.

A massive mark of progress three years on is in photography. Even the single-camera Galaxy S9 is a big improvement from the GS6. The same core idea of a good sensor, OIS and a fast lens are at play here, but all of the components have improved — the sensor is an entirely new generation of chip, the aperture is now wider at f/1.5 and Samsung’s processing has greatly improved. The daylight photos may not show as big of an improvement as you’d initially think, since Samsung had that well-handled even in 2015, but the low-light shots are in a new league. Plus, you get that awesome 960 fps slow-motion video.

Should you upgrade?

If you’ve held onto your Galaxy S6 or S6 edge this long, you got your money’s worth out of it. And perhaps the more telling thing about using a GS6 for that long is that you have to be a fan of Samsung’s hardware and software — and that points you right at the Galaxy S9.

If you enjoyed 3 years with a Galaxy S6, you’ll love the Galaxy S9.

If you’ve still been enjoying many aspects of the Galaxy S6 as a whole, and want to upgrade because you need something more modern so you can keep up with the times, Samsung’s latest flagship will be a fantastic upgrade for you. In typical Samsung fashion, the company has managed to add a whole lot to the experience without taking anything away — and the scale is simply higher when you look at a three-year upgrade.

And here’s the great thing: you can still sell a good-condition Galaxy S6 for about $100-150 on the second-hand market. That makes the $720 retail price on the GS9 far easier to handle. It’s time to upgrade.

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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Update May 2018: Updated with the latest information based on the age of the Galaxy S6.

How does Instagram’s new Focus mode compare to your phone’s portrait mode?

We pitted Instagram’s Focus mode against the stock portrait mode on a few popular flagships.

Instagram recently rolled out a new shooting mode in its Stories camera called Focus, which allows you to take artsy photos of yourself and friends with artificial bokeh and separation from your background. That’s right — it’s basically portrait mode, and it’s rolling out to iPhone and Android users as we speak. But a lot of phones already have portrait mode, so … what’s the difference, and should you ditch your default camera app and start taking photos with Instagram instead?

The answer may depend on what phone you’re carrying. I gathered some of the most popular phones I had sitting around the office and took some sample shots to compare the strengths and weaknesses of Instagram Focus. Here’s a collection of photos of me looking cold and frustrated at gray skies and flurries in the middle of April, all taken with different phones and shooting modes!

iPhone X

When Instagram launched Focus, it immediately began rolling out to all iPhone users, so it only made sense to compare it to the iPhone X’s portrait mode, which has frankly been pretty far behind what most modern Android phones are capable of. Focus solves one of the iPhone’s biggest problems with shooting in portrait mode; since the default camera app uses the secondary zoom lens for portrait shots, you need to be far away from your subject, making it hard to get photos of friends in close quarters.

Portrait mode (left) / Instagram Focus (right) — click to view full image.

Using the Natural Light effect in Apple’s portrait mode, image separation is impressive, doing a good job blurring out the banner behind me while leaving my hair mostly untouched. Background blur is mostly good as well, without any egregious stitching errors or focal plane oddities. Unfortunately, none of that can be said of the photo taken with Instagram Focus. Object separation is horrendous, with random sections of my body coming in and out of focus. The background and foreground are also uniformly blurred, which simply isn’t how natural bokeh works. Image quality is also noticeably lower in general than the photo taken with the stock camera app.

Selfies

So about how selfies? Like Instagram, the iPhone X’s stock camera app allows for portrait photos with artificial depth from the front camera as well as the rear. Comparing the two again, it’s a more even split of pros and cons. Once again, the Focus photo has noticeably less facial detail, almost as if it were out of focus. However, this time Instagram seems to do a better job of object separation, as the iPhone’s stock camera app inexplicably blurs my shirt along with the background.

Instagram’s object separation still isn’t perfect, though. Both of my ears are blurred away, whereas the stock app does a slightly better job of leaving them intact. Interestingly, Instagram Focus actually takes a reversed photo by default. I uploaded the original photo as well as a flipped version in case you’d want a closer comparison against the shot taken with Apple’s default camera app.

Galaxy S9

Things start to look better when we switch to the Galaxy S9, though Instagram Focus is still significantly softer than the selective focus mode in the stock camera app. From my glasses to my facial hair, the logo on my hoodie, and the sleep-deprived bags under my eyes, the S9’s own camera software was simply able to pull in more detail. Samsung’s selective focus also did a much better job at separating my hair from the sky behind me, whereas Instagram Focus seems to have started blurring the image just past my hairline. In Focus’s defense, however, the S9’s selective focus seems to have decided the entire lower half of my torso was on a different focal plane, leading to an unnatural bokeh effect.

One thing to keep in mind is that Instagram captures photos in the same aspect ratio and resolution as your display, so while the selective focus shot was captured in 4:3, the photo taken with Focus matches the Galaxy S9’s 18.5:9 aspect ratio, and measures in at 2076×1080. While the aspect ratio isn’t necessarily a big deal, the reduced resolution can be, since the 4:3 shot comes in at a much larger 4032×3024.

Selfies

The difference is a bit less noticeable when taking selfies. Instagram’s photo actually looks sharper than Samsung’s this time, though it still struggles with hair separation, and the difference in resolution is still in play.

One thing I didn’t care for with the photo taken with Instagram is how heavily saturated it is, but aside from that I’d call these sample shots pretty evenly matched. You may also find the Focus shot a bit oversharpened, pulling out more undesirable details and imperfections, but I personally prefer it to the softer look of the stock camera’s results.

Huawei Mate 10 Pro

On to the Mate 10 Pro, my go-to phone for dependable battery life, the differences here are a bit more subtle, with a few standouts for each camera. Yet again, the photo taken with Instagram Focus is less sharp, but by a slimmer margin than on the Galaxy S9. While the Mate 10 Pro’s portrait mode has more detail, I’m happy with the clarity in either photo.

The biggest difference I noticed was color; while the Focus photos were more saturated on the Galaxy S9, I found the opposite to be true with the Mate 10 Pro. The image taken in Huawei’s camera app is much more saturated, particularly in the shadows, and there’s a warmer overall tone than in Instagram’s Focus mode.

Selfies

Just like the Galaxy S9, the Huawei Mate 10 Pro allows you to take portrait mode shots with either camera, as well as within Instagram’s Focus mode. The Mate 10 Pro’s front-facing camera is far from my top pick for taking selfies, but my findings with the rear camera seem to remain true up front, as well. My hoodie is much darker in the shot taken within Huawei’s own camera app, and the grass shows a much warmer characteristic.

I actually prefer the background blur from Instagram’s camera here, though; particularly with the tree behind me, the blur looks considerably spottier in Huawei’s shot.

OnePlus 5T

Finally, we get to the OnePlus 5T, one of my favorite phones of 2017. This one exhibits the most drastic differences between stock and Instagram cameras, mostly because OnePlus’s built-in portrait mode is such a subtle effect. While this sounds like a criticism at first, I actually really appreciate this — it’s a much more natural look, in my opinion, and more closely matches the results you’d see from a dedicated DSLR at f/3.5 or so. There’s no overly heavyhanded background blur in the shot from the 5T’s default camera software, though my right arm (pictured left) falls out of focus around my elbow.

On the other hand, background blur is much stronger with Instagram Focus. I’m completely separated from the brick wall — even the spot I’m leaning against. Separation is noticeably weaker here compared to the Focus shots taken on other phones, with spotty stitching all around me from my hood to my shoulders. My face is also a bit blown out in the Focus shot, and colors are dramatically cooler toned than the photo taken with the OnePlus camera software.

While Instagram Focus still works with the front-facing camera, the OnePlus 5T doesn’t offer portrait mode for the front camera in its own software, so these rear shots wrap up the comparison!

What’s your take?

With a limited selection of phones at my disposal to test and compare, I can’t definitively say that Instagram Focus will be better or worse than your phone’s stock camera software overall. That’ll largely depend on factors like which phone you’re using, how important resolution and aspect ratio are to you, and whether you prefer a more natural look or full-stop artificial bokeh.

Whatever your preference, let us know in the comments below!

Google Now Launcher is (finally) dead

Sleep well, Google Now Launcher; you’ve earned yourself a rest.

Google Now Launcher was Google’s first public launcher, and it was shipped on Nexus phones as well as millions of other devices thanks to its inclusion in the Google Mobile Service package that Google offers to manufacturers. This was a simpler launcher for a simpler time in the Android ecosystem, and while its namesake feature has now been added to several launchers like Nova Launcher, Action Launcher and Lawnchair Launcher. Google Now Launcher’s retirement was announced back in February of 2017, but sunset never seemed to come for the historic — and historically popular — launcher.

At least, until May 2, 2018.

As of our check against dozens of devices of varying age, the Google Now Launcher shows as not compatible with just about every recent device except the Pixelbook — which can’t use it anyway — and the BlackBerry KEYone, for some reason. This has been a long time coming, and now that it’s here, it’s time to pour one out for the first launcher Google ever published to the Google Play Store for all users to enjoy. The Google Now page that sat to the left of the home page was something an Android lover could get addicted to, and many of us did. Alas, in the days of Google Assistant and its great and growing functionality over the old Google Now feed, the old launcher’s charm was wearing a bit thin.

Google Now panes, now in Nova Launcher, Action Launcher, and more.

Launcher 3 — what Google Now Launcher is based on — is a part of AOSP and the basis for many other launchers today, and with the Google Now pane can be added to launchers using an API that is sadly not Google Play-compatible yet, but separate add-ons have enabled it for many popular launchers. If you still have Google Now Launcher installed and you still use it, you can keep using it. When you upgrade phones, however, you’ll need to look for a new launcher, and if you want to replace it with something similar, here are a few ideas:

• Want a super simple launcher like Google Now with an easy-to-set grid and some handy gesture shortcuts? Try Evie Launcher, a light and fast launcher with a light touch of customization. It is lacking a Google Now pane, but a simple swipe down on the launcher brings up a search window.
• Lawnchair Launcher is a Launcher 3-based launcher that basically replicates the Pixel Launcher —the launcher Google currently develops for its Pixel phones — look and features for everyone to use. Lawnchair might even be better than Pixel Launcher since you can customize its feel and look. Lawnchair uses an add-on to enable a Google Now pane, if desired.
• Nova Launcher is one of the most popular launchers on the market and it can look like just about anything, including Google Now Launcher. Nova Launcher’s Settings can look a little daunting, but I promise you, this launcher is an absolute breeze to use. Nova has a Google Companion that can enable a Google Now pane.
• Action Launcher is a launcher with quick on the mind, with a Quickdrawer, Quickpage, Quicktheme, and more. It’s easy to set up, it can automatically adjust its colors to match your wallpaper, and its getting new features every day. It has a add-on to enable a Google Now pane for you, though you will have to choose between the Quickdrawer and Google Now.

Looking for something else? Check out the Best Launchers for Android

Let’s raise a glass to Google Now Launcher! May it rest in peace, and live forever in the myriad of launchers it has inspired and pushed to new heights. What features of the launcher did you love? What launcher have you moved on to? Does this finally mean that the Pixel Laucher will replace the Google Now Launcher during Google I/O next week and become available to all users? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Set up some bias lighting behind your TV with this $9 LED light strip

Spend all day reading a screen? You need this.

The Minger 6.56-feet TV Backlighting LED strip is down to $8.99 with code BN9Z2AGP on Amazon. This strip is $12 without the code and hasn’t dropped this low directly before.

Set this strip up behind your TV or computer monitor to create a bias lighting effect, which helps create ambient light around the screen and reduce the strain of using monitors in dark rooms. It also has a built-in mic and special mode that allows the lights and colors to sync with any music you’re playing. The strip is 6.56-feet long but can be cut on the marks to fit whatever size you need. The 3M adhesive attaches to most surfaces as well. It also comes with a portable controller. Users give it 4.2 stars based on 44 reviews.

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Why bother making a glass phone without wireless charging?

Without some kind of added benefit like wireless charging, what reason is there to use a fragile material like glass?

I don’t always have the most popular opinions on smartphone design; I’ve been arguing in favor of the display notch for some time now, and I firmly believe that every phone should have a quick switch for audio profiles like the OnePlus 5T and iPhone X. But one thing that everybody can seem to agree on is that glass backings just don’t seem like a good idea — at least, not without some kind of added benefit.

In most cases, that benefit is wireless charging. While it may not be quite as fast as traditional charging through a cable, wireless charging is a convenient way to top up your battery without wearing down your phone’s USB port — and if your phone’s gotten wet recently, it’s likely your only option until the port has time to dry. I still love the fit and finish of an aluminum phone, but wireless charging can’t work through a metal chassis (or at least not as easily), so manufacturers are left to choose between other materials like plastic and glass.

So why not use plastic instead? It’s much less fragile than glass, after all, and it’s cheaper as an added bonus. There’s a long list of reasons manufacturers aren’t using plastic in their flagships anymore, but the most applicable here is that glass just looks and feels better in a store. As superficial as it may be, when customers walk into a carrier store to buy a new phone, they’re going to notice the shiniest, prettiest phone first — and when they pick it up and feel the solid build quality, it’ll be all the more enticing.

Love it or hate it, glass back phones are here to stay. As a big fan of wireless charging, I’m not too upset about it, but despite the claims of “shatter-resistant” Gorilla Glass panels, the phone repair business has been booming lately. Everywhere you turn, there’s a phone in someone’s hand with a cracked corner or a totally shattered backing that could practically be considered a weapon. Wireless charging is great, but let’s face it — this is a bad tradeoff, made even worse when your all-glass phone still doesn’t support wireless charging.

They don’t make ’em like they used to.

But what are the alternatives? It’s easy enough to slap a case onto your phone for some added protection, and wireless charging still works just fine through all but the thickest of cases, but that shouldn’t have to be the only option. While glass isn’t going away any time soon, that doesn’t mean manufacturers can’t at least dabble in other materials. What if we revisited the polycarbonate backings we used to see on phones like the HTC One X and the Nokia Lumia 920? The latter was one of the first phones to support wireless charging, and it felt great in the hand. I’d love to see a modern take on that same design.

When an all-glass phone doesn’t support wireless charging, it just feels like an accident waiting to happen with no real justification. Sure, it looks better in a shop, but most everyone knows that, one way or another, glass breaks. It’s a liability, and especially on a device costing anywhere from a few hundred up to a thousand dollars, the fewer liabilities the better.

Do you use wireless charging every day like I do? Is it justification enough for a glass backing? And do you like all-glass phones, or would you prefer a more durable material like polycarbonate or metal, regardless of wireless charging capabilities? Let us know in the comments below!

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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Samsung Galaxy S9 vs. Galaxy S9+: Which should you buy?

An easy-to-manage decision.

Samsung’s seen serious success with launching its yearly flagship in two sizes. In the last couple of years, the larger version has become the more desirable model while the smaller turned into the solid, default choice at a lower price.

Unlike the Galaxy S8 release, the Galaxy S9 and S9+ have more differences than just size: you get a few feature and spec improvements as well, offering a bit more to justify the higher price.

So when you go to get a new Samsung flagship, you have a choice: should you buy the Galaxy S9 or Galaxy S9+? Here’s what you need to know to make the best decision.

What’s the same

When it comes to design, Samsung doesn’t discriminate between its two flagship sizes. Whether you get the compact Galaxy S9 or larger Galaxy S9+, the materials and proportions are identical. Neither size has an exclusive color or hardware feature. When it comes to the core experience of using the phones, you won’t notice a difference beyond the size.

The screens are of course different dimensions, but the resolution and quality of the panel are the same. Yes, that means that the Galaxy S9 has a slightly higher pixel density, but in real-world use you’d never notice the difference — particularly if you leave the phones set at the 1080p resolution they are out of the box.

What’s different

The Galaxy S9+’s differences come down to a larger size, two spec changes and a camera addition. The most important ones to consider are about size: moving up to a 6.2-inch display gives you more room to work and play, but also makes the phone larger and relatively tough to manage in one hand. The Galaxy S9+ is about 10 mm taller, 5 mm wider and 15% heavier than the standard Galaxy S9 — that’s nothing to sneeze at.

But to go along with that increased size is, of course, a larger battery, which at 3500mAh can help you get through a full day without worrying about charging. The capacity is over 15% higher than the Galaxy S9’s 3000mAh, but the larger display certainly doesn’t use that much extra power — so you’ll be able to do all of the same things for longer on a charge. Battery life hasn’t really improved from the last generation, so the Galaxy S9 once again is likely to leave heavy users in need of charging before the day is done.

The Galaxy S9+ gets a secondary camera, but it may not be a deciding factor in your buying decision.

The primary camera on the Galaxy S9+ is identical to the Galaxy S9, and that’s a great thing for everyone because this camera is great. But the larger chassis in the GS9+ afforded Samsung the room to add in a secondary camera that mimics the Galaxy Note 8’s. That means it has a longer “telephoto” focal length, roughly twice the length of the main camera. The secondary camera lets you seamlessly zoom in without losing resolution at 2X, and enables Samsung’s “Live Focus” portrait mode that artificially blurs the background behind your subject for a dramatic effect.

The secondary sensor isn’t the same type of “Super Speed” Dual Pixel that the main camera is, so the quality isn’t the same. And as we saw with the Note 8, those extra features of zooming and Live Focus aren’t something that completely changes the camera experience. The main camera’s improvements in this generation are far more important for daily photography — you just have to decide how much you want the zooming and Live Focus, because you just don’t get them on the Galaxy S9.

Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ specs

The least consequential addition in the Galaxy S9+ is more RAM, which Samsung bumped up to 6GB to match the Galaxy Note 8. Considering it left the standard Galaxy S9 with 4GB, and the two phones run identical software, it’s hard to think that Samsung’s done much optimization to take advantage of that extra RAM itself. But the extra memory will, of course, help you hold just a few more applications in the background, and give you more runway into handling future software updates and more powerful apps. This is absolutely a “nice-to-have” and not a necessary feature.

Bottom line: Which should you buy?

As I said from the start, the Galaxy S9 is the default choice for so many people when they walk in the store simply because it’s less expensive. If you’re unsure about whether you want a “big” phone, start by using the standard Galaxy S9 — you won’t regret the size, and it can do almost everything the larger Galaxy S9+ can.

You’re going to want to start with the standard S9 and decide whether it’s worth spending the extra money on a second camera and larger battery.

But by moving up to the Galaxy S9+, you get a better overall phone. To choose it, you have to know you want a bigger device — maybe you want the extra screen space for everything you do, or need the extra battery life. But you also have to know you can manage the extra size and give up some one-handed usability. If you want to take that trade-off, you then also get the bonuses of more RAM and a secondary camera for extra photography choices — I very clearly put those two additions below the decision regarding screen size and battery capacity, which have clear benefits in everyday use.

Finally, remember the cost involved. To get that bigger screen, larger battery and couple extra features, you have to pay about $120 more for the Galaxy S9+. Over the course of a two-year payment plan, it’s about $5 more a month, which is easy for a lot of people to handle — but everyone has their own threshold for how much they’ll pay for a new phone, especially when it’s just incrementally better. If you can afford it, and your hand can manage the size, the Galaxy S9+ is the better overall phone — and if you can’t, the Galaxy S9 gets you most of the way there for less.

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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Update May 2018: Changes made to reflect our further use of the phones and our opinions of their strengths.

Honor View 10 vs. OnePlus 5T camera comparison: Budget flagship battle

Which phone makes better use of its dual cameras?

There are two phones that come to mind when shopping with a $500 budget: the Honor View 10 and the OnePlus 5T. Both phones boast impressive build quality with powerful specs inside, offer great features like face unlock, and ship with Android 8 Oreo. They also both benefit from dual camera arrays that help them take some pretty impressive photos.

The biggest difference is in how each phone utilizes a dual camera system. Both are a bit unconventional; you won’t find a telephoto or wide angle lens on either phone. Instead, the View 10 features a 16MP primary sensor with a 20MP monochrome secondary sensor that helps pull in more detail and reduce noise. The OnePlus 5T has the same 16MP and 20MP combo, but its secondary lens is tuned for low light photography.

We’ve taken some photos with both the Honor View 10 and the OnePlus 5T to see how the cameras compare.

Outdoors

Honor View 10 (left) / OnePlus 5T (right) — click to view larger.

The OnePlus 5T takes brighter and warmer photos, but the View 10 pulls in noticeably more detail.

I tend to think outdoor photos look best on a slightly overcast day, but the last two weeks in Indiana has consisted of snow, rain, and gray in April, so I’ve had no luck getting any pretty photos of scenic blue skies or budding flowers. Still, the photos I’ve been able to capture show some differences in the ways the View 10 and OnePlus 5T process images.

The 5T consistently shoots brighter and warmer than the View 10. Too often, I find the View 10 underexposes a bit more than I’d like, and I tend to prefer the warmer look from OnePlus. On the other hand, photos from the View 10 generally looks significantly sharper than shots taken with the OnePlus 5T, and text is far more readable — that could be the work of the View 10’s secondary lens pulling in more fine details.

The View 10’s main advantage is the inclusion of Huawei’s Neural Processing Unit built into the Kirin 970 chipset. While neither phone features OIS, the NPU in the View 10 uses AI to help reduce motion blur in photos by predicting when you’ll take a photo and compensating for hand shakiness.

Indoors

Inside, with more artificial lighting, the tables turn a bit. The OnePlus 5T still errs on the warm side and the View 10 remains more cool-toned, but I actually start to appreciate Honor’s higher levels of saturation, particularly with dark subjects like a chalkboard. In the above samples, the chalkboard looks washed out in the OnePlus shot, whereas the chalkboard in the View 10’s image is punchy — maybe a bit too punchy, but it looks better to my eyes. Once again, the text is significantly sharper and more legible in the View 10’s photo, as well.

The View 10 also has a nice trick up its sleeve with its wide aperture mode. If you’ve ever used a DSLR or other professional camera, you’re probably familiar with how aperture works; essentially, the wider your aperture, the blurrier the background behind your subject will be. This is a great way to bring focus to the main object in the shot, and the difference is noticeable in my latte photos. With wide aperture mode enabled, the plants behind my mug are significantly smoother in the View 10’s shot than the OnePlus 5T’s.

Portrait mode

Wide aperture photography is also what the ever-popular portrait mode is based on, and while both the 5T and View 10 offer a portrait mode for taking artsy photos of your friends, they go about it in different ways. I’ll immediately say that I prefer the results from the OnePlus 5T overall, but it’s not a sweeping win.

The 5T is pleasingly natural-looking, with surprisingly good separation around the subject. It does a great job around hair, which is usually a challenge with artificial bokeh effects, though the stitching isn’t perfect — in my samples, the handbag behind my friend is a bit more in focus than it should be, given the different focal plane.

On the other hand, the View 10 produces a much sharper portrait photo, with far smoother background blur and better object separation. Interestingly, portrait mode seems to cancel out the View 10’s cool-toned nature, with roughly the same warmth as the sample photo from the OnePlus 5T. However, there’s significantly more smoothening on my friend’s face, even with the lowest configurable beauty setting.

Low light

In low light, the OnePlus 5T’s secondary camera really shines. It’s designed to automatically engage in low light situations — typically below 10 lux — and more often than not, the 5T manages to pull in more light than the View 10 in the dark. Take the photos of the Emerson Shoppes sign, for instance. The image shot with the OnePlus 5T is dramatically brighter than the one from the View 10, though details like the texture in the bricks are a bit softer on the 5T.

The 5T pulls in more light in the shot of my car, as well — the photo taken on the View 10 is dark enough that my car starts to blend into the street. The View 10 doesn’t have a specialized lens for low light like the OnePlus 5T, so to compensate the camera app asks you to hold your phone steady when shooting at night. Assuming a steady hand, this results in less noise and sharper detail on stationary subjects, but it also means that moving objects will be blurrier than on the point-and-shoot OnePlus 5T.

Bottom line

It’s pretty clear that both phones offer very capable photography experiences, but which works best for you will depend on a couple of factors. If you prefer warmer tones and a more natural portrait mode, the OnePlus 5T may be the better option for you. If you have an eye for sharper details and punchier colors, the View 10 could be your best bet.

Given the choice, which phone would you buy? And what are your camera priorities? Let us know in the comments below!

OnePlus 5T and OnePlus 5

• OnePlus 5T review: Come for the value, not the excitement
• OnePlus 5T specs
• Should you upgrade from the OnePlus 3T?
• OnePlus 5T vs. Galaxy S8: Beast mode
• All of the latest OnePlus 5T news
• Join the discussion in the forums

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How to connect Google Home and IFTTT to do amazing things with your connected tech

Controlling hundreds of smart devices and services by voice is easy with IFTTT’s Google Assistant channel.

One of the cool things you can do with your Google Home is using your voice to control connected items around your house. While there are native connections to things like Philips Hue lamps, SmartThings devices and Nest equipment, Google Home’s Assistant was ready for IFTTT on day one. That means you can control all sorts of things!

In case you didn’t know or just weren’t sure, IFTTT (short for IF This Then That) is an online service that smart devices can connect to and it facilitates communications between them. Companies like Facebook and Amazon and Google have used the service for a while and there are literally hundreds of “things” that connect to IFTTT. Some you’ve heard of and some you haven’t. Getting things to talk to one another is also simple to set up using a sort of flowchart system. Pick a “thing” that will be a trigger — the weather channel says it’s going to rain — then pick a thing that will act on that trigger — I get a text message telling me to bring my umbrella.

IFTTT is the messenger between two services and knows how to talk to both.

It works the same way with Google Home through Google Assistant. When you say “OK, Google. Turn on my bedroom TV,” it’s a trigger that the IFTTT Harmony channel can use to fire up my television through my Harmony remote. It’s really easy to use and works surprisingly well. Even if you don’t have a Google Home or a phone with Assistant it’s worth taking a look at because you probably are using something that is hooked into IFTTT. Have a look at the list of supported applets. Now think of things you can do to one of them that will make another do something on its own. Taste the rainbow.

The best way to understand how IFTTT works and to learn how to get it to play nice with Assistant is to just do it.

• Visit the IFTTT website or install the app from Google Play and get an account set up. If you already have an account at IFTTT, you can use it (and you likely already know how easy it is to add a channel like Google Assistant.)
• Make sure you’re logged in at IFTTT, and head to the Google Assistant applet page. You can find it at ifttt.com/google_assistant if you’re using a web browser, and if you’re using the IFTTT app tap the search button at the bottom and search for “Google” and it will be the first one on the list.
• Once you’re there, tap the blue Connect button. You’ll be redirected to a secure Google login page unless you’re already logged in through the browser or on your phone. If you have two-factor authentication enabled on your Google account you’ll need to authorize things. Once you’re logged in properly you’ll be asked to allow IFTTT to “Manage Google Voice commands.” Tap the Allow button and you’re done.

Native integration is always better

It’s awesome that IFTTT works so well with Assistant and that so many gadgets are supported. But you should be careful when you’re trying any IFTTT recipes for devices that natively connect with Google Assistant like Philips Hue or Nest products because the results can be … weird. You won’t break anything if you try and things go wrong, but you might be forced to disconnect whatever it is you’re trying from both IFTTT and Assistant and set it up again.

You’ll find a list of things that connect directly to Assistant at the link below.

These Products and Services Work with Google Home

You’re conveniently redirected back to the Google Assistant page at IFTTT. You’ll see all sorts of pre-built applets you can play with that have Google Assistant do things like tell your robot vacuum to clean the room or turn your lights on. You’ll also find practical things like writing a note to Evernote or Todoist or Google Drive, making your lost phone ring or logging meals and weights to FitBit. All you have to do to try one is give it a tap. You’ll be walked through everything you need to do to set it up and test it. From there, you can look through the services that use IFTTT and start building your own.

OK Google, let’s do cool stuff.

Update, April 2018 This post was updated to reflect slight changes in the IFTTT on-boarding process and to provide information about native integration vs. IFTTT integration.

Honor 7X vs. Huawei Mate SE: What’s the difference?

Two nearly identical phones set apart by a small price increase and an equally small spec bump.

Huawei hasn’t exactly been having the best year so far. Back in January, the company saw AT&T back out of a deal to sell its phones in the U.S., and more recently Best Buy pulled a similar move. But the company is nothing if not resilient, and has put out yet another phone directed at the U.S. market in the form of the Mate SE — a $250 aluminum phone with an 18:9 display and dual cameras.

If that sounds familiar, that’s because Huawei’s subsidiary brand Honor already released a nearly identical phone back in December, the Honor 7X. For $200, it’s one of the best bang-for-your-buck values around, but Huawei’s new Mate SE complicates things a bit. What’s the difference? And which one should you buy?

The reigning budget champ

Honor 7X

Even four months after its release, it’s hard to beat the value of the Honor 7X. For $200, you get an aluminum unibody chassis with dual cameras and a rear fingerprint sensor. There’s an 18:9 Full HD+ (2160×1080) display up front that brings a modern look and feel to the phone, and it’s even dual SIM-compatible.

Inside is a respectable Kirin 659 chipset — it’s a rough equivalent to Qualcomm’s mid-range Snapdragon 630, and while not blazingly fast it’s enough to power the Honor 7X through most tasks. Along with the processor, you get 3GB of RAM in the U.S. variant, and 32GB of onboard storage (expandable via microSD).

The budget champion is made even better with its recent Oreo update.

Even at launch, the Honor 7X felt a bit long in the tooth on the software side. It shipped with Android 7.0 Nougat and EMUI 5.1, which left out a number of improvements from newer software iterations that already existed on Honor’s other products (namely, the Honor View 10). Thankfully, the 7X just received an update to Android 8.0 Oreo with the much newer EMUI 8.0 software overlay. With this update, the Honor 7X feels like an even better value than before, and the newly added support for Project Treble means that it should stay up to date for years to come.

See at Amazon

The new kid on the block

Huawei Mate SE

The most perplexing thing about the Huawei Mate SE is how indistinguishable it is from the Honor 7X. Aside from differing logos and a full enclosure around the dual camera module (as opposed to the Honor 7X, whose cameras individually protrude from the chassis), the Mate SE is completely identical to the Honor phone that came before it. The antenna lines are in the same spots, and the fingerprint sensor and display remain unchanged as well. Unfortunately, that also means the Mate SE retains the ever-aging Micro-USB standard.

Where you’ll finally start to notice some changes made is in the internal specs. Though the Mate SE comes at a $50 premium over the Honor 7X, that extra money buys you an additional gigabyte of RAM (up from 3 to 4GB) and twice the internal storage at 64GB.

The Honor 7X and Mate SE are almost indistinguishable, but the latter pulls ahead with improved specs.

The rest of the specs remain the same, including the Kirin 659 processor, 3340mAh battery, and 16MP + 2 MP rear camera combo. In most applications, you likely won’t notice the added RAM (and some models of the Honor 7X already feature 4GB), but this should help with multitasking features like PIP video once the Mate SE eventually gets updated to Oreo.

Unfortunately, at the moment the Mate SE is running the same dated software the Honor 7X launched with — Android 7.0 Nougat and EMUI 5.1. Shipping with software from 2016 was bad enough back in December, but in late March of 2018 it’s just egregious. Hopefully, Huawei will be quick to update its new budget phone.

See at Amazon

Which one’s right for you?

This time around, this is a pretty easy question to answer. With both phones so similar, there are only a few things to consider when deciding between the Honor 7X and Huawei Mate SE. Is $50 worth an extra 1GB of RAM and double the storage to you? Rather, with the option to expand the storage capacity of either phone with a microSD card, you might only need to consider the extra RAM.

In the short term, you might also want to take into consideration the Honor 7X’s rollout of Android Oreo. While U.S. customers are receiving the update now, there’s still no word on a similar update for the Mate SE. If you’re in a rush to get the latest software, the Honor 7X might be the better option for now — otherwise, the Mate SE’s slightly improved specs may be worth the extra cash.

Which phone would you buy? If you already have the Honor 7X, do you wish you could switch to the Mate SE or are you content with what you have? Let us know in the comments below!

B&O Play redesigns its Earset headphones for the wireless generation

Today, B&O Play announced a refresh of its Earset earphones. These new premium in-ear headphones keep the adjustable design of their predecessors, but they’ve been updated with the latest technology. You can preorder the Earset wireless bluetooth earphones on B&O Play’s website for $299 (£269 in the UK), though only the Graphite Brown model is available. They also come in white, which will ship starting June 1st.

These wireless earphones boast a 14.2 mm speaker unit with a neodymium magnet. Two acoustic vents, a bass port and digital equalizers ensure that that you get great sound performance. The earbud grill helps disperse the sound into your ears equally. The earphones feature a 5-hour battery life, with a USB-C port to charge, and have an in-line remote with a microphone.

In addition to sound quality, the flexible fit of the Earset earphones has always been a huge draw. You can change the angle, height of the piston and the curve of the hook, customizing the earphones in three dimensions, in order to ensure that the Earsets fit in your ear.

Source: B&O Play