Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S review

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Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S

As prices for flagship smartphones have climbed in the last couple of years and improvements have been relatively modest, it feels like we’re suffering from diminishing returns. Manufacturers have placed more emphasis on design, but the two dominant forces in the market — Apple and Samsung — are also charging a premium for their top-tier phones.

Xiaomi’s Mi Mix 2S is a gorgeous flagship that can go toe-to-toe with the best in terms of high-end specs and stunning beauty, while costing significantly less (around $600). The problem? You will have to import it, because there’s no official U.S. availability yet. So, should you consider it? We took it for a spin to find out.

Who needs a notch?

Let’s not beat about the bush — this is one of the best-looking phones we’ve ever handled. The black ceramic back curves into the aluminum frame. There’s a dual camera module at the top left, with a glint of gold around it and a recessed fingerprint sensor, which doesn’t double as a button. We could live without the “Mi Mix designed by Xiaomi” slogan in gold lettering, but the Chinese manufacturer is clearly proud of this design.

While countless Android lemmings embrace the notch, Xiaomi has been pursuing a bezel-less design from a different angle for a couple of years now. The original Mi Mix was one of the first phones to aggressively shrink those bezels down and it still has one of the highest screen-to-body ratios you’ll find. The Mi Mix 2S continues the tradition, though it’s not quite as all-screen as its predecessor.

We’re told the notch is the answer to the tricky problem of where to put the front-facing camera and other sensors, but Xiaomi has chosen to put it at the bottom right corner below the screen. While we don’t tend to snap a lot of selfies, this placement is actually a lot less awkward than you might imagine. More on that when we dig into the camera.

On the right edge, you’ll find the power button with a volume rocker above it. The SIM tray and MicroSD card slot are on the left. The bottom edge is home to a USB-C port and the mono speaker, but you won’t find a 3.5mm audio jack anywhere.

Let’s not beat about the bush — this is one of the best-looking phones we’ve ever handled.

It feels reassuringly hefty in hand (it weighs 191 grams), which adds to the impression of quality. It’s a phone we enjoyed handling and one that draws admiring glances and questions when you slip it out of your pocket.

As gorgeous as the ceramic body is, you should be prepared for finger smudges galore. We also frequently woke the touch-sensitive fingerprint sensor, sparking a vibration every time we put the phone away or pulled it out.

This is not going to be an especially durable phone, though we were relieved to find that an accidental drop onto stone only scuffed the corner of the metal frame. Most phones nowadays are glass, so the need for a case is standard. Where the Mi Mix 2S does drop some points is its lack of water resistance, which is something we’ve come to expect in a flagship phone.

Minor gripes aside, we love the look and feel of the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S — it is positively dripping with class.

Display is just average

The 6-inch (5.99 if we’re being pedantic) display covers most of the front of the Mi Mix 2S. The thinnest of bezels separates it from the top and sides, and there’s a larger bezel at the bottom.

Simon Hill/Digital Trends

We’re a little disappointed to find that it’s an IPS LCD screen with a resolution of 2,160 x 1,080 pixels. It sports the modern 18:9 aspect ratio that has become standard over the last year, but it’s lackluster. Next to a Galaxy S7 Edge, which is more than two years old, the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S is dull and lacks the same razor sharpness.

We’re convinced OLED is the way forward, but even in the LCD world this isn’t one of the best displays around. The pixel density isn’t a big problem — text is perfectly readable and movies and games look fine – it just isn’t especially bright or vibrant.

Plenty of raw power, but shaky software

Xiaomi certainly hasn’t cut any corners in the processor stakes. The Mi Mix 2S has the latest Snapdragon 845 processor from Qualcomm, backed up by 6GB of RAM with 64GB or 128GB of storage, or a whopping 8GB of RAM with 256GB of storage like our review unit.

Performance is fast and silky smooth as you’d expect. We played PUBG: Mobile on maximum settings, Super Mario Run, Star Wars Commander, and a few other games without any issues. It did get warm while playing PUBG: Mobile, but that’s not unusual.

The benchmark results are equally impressive:

• AnTuTu 3D Bench: 268,787
• 3DMark Sling Shot Extreme: 3,557 OpenGL; 2,806 Vulkan
• Geekbench 4: 2,436 single-core; 9,097 multi-core

Two of those results are slightly better than the Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus managed, though it got a far higher 3DMark score. Benchmarks alone never tell the whole story, but this is certainly a speedy phone.

Performance is fast and silky smooth as you’d expect.

Unfortunately, despite the fast performance, we did encounter some strange issues with the Mi Mix 2S. Both Twitter and Chrome crashed more than once, something that has never happened to us with previous phones we’ve tested.

Xiaomi has applied its own MIUI on top of Android 8.0 Oreo and by default it wants you to sign up for a Mi Account and use Xiaomi’s cloud services, which are optimized for life in China. We prefer Google, and thankfully you can install all your usual favorites, but you can’t set up Google Pay or other contactless payment services.

There’s nothing wrong with MIUI, but it takes some getting used to as you navigate unfamiliar menus. But there are some real oddities – why have a watermark on every photo? Luckily, you can dig into the camera settings and turn this off. There’s also no app drawer, but you can always install a different Android launcher if you don’t get along with MIUI.

Simon Hill/Digital Trends

The odd quirks, such as spelling mistakes in pop up messages, reinforces the fact that this is a phone made for the Chinese market first. Although Xiaomi has been making noises about breaking into the U.S. market for years now, it hasn’t happened yet. Looking at the recent troubles Huawei and ZTE have run into, we can’t see it happening any time soon.

Camera is a mixed bag

You’ll find a dual rear camera in the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S pairing two 12-megapixel sensors. The main one has an f/1.8 aperture, while the secondary lens has an f/2.4 aperture. In good lighting the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S captures some great shots with plenty of detail and colors that are vibrant without veering into unrealistic. If you’re snapping your friends and family, or stunning landscapes, we think this camera will serve you well.

It doesn’t manage quite as well with close-up shots. You really must take time to focus where you want. This isn’t the fastest camera around to load, change modes, or shoot a photo.

When light is mixed or more limited, we found the camera results a bit disappointing. It can’t match the low-light performance of phones like the Pixel 2 XL or the Galaxy S9 Plus. Noise and graininess creeps in quite quickly and it doesn’t cope at all well with contrast between light and dark areas in the same photo.

The dual lens combination allows you to snap portrait photos with a pleasing bokeh effect, where your subject is in sharp relief and the background is blurred.

We shot a few different portraits and were pleased with the results. The subject is generally in focus with some slight blurring around the edges, especially with hair, but that’s par for the course. The only odd result we got was with Bodhi the cat – if you look at the left edge you’ll see it has decided to blur the whole side there.

When light is mixed or more limited we found the camera results a bit disappointing.

We’re told that there are AI smarts in the Mi Mix 2S camera, but it doesn’t show its workings like the floating word salad you get with LG’s G7 ThinQ, so it’s hard to know what it’s doing.

The front-facing 5-megapixel camera is entirely average. It will be fine for most people, but selfie addicts should look at another phone. The bottom right placement never bothered us – the first time you use it you’re prompted to turn the phone upside down, but it adjusts and works well whatever way you hold it and, as long as you remember to look into the lens, the results are fine.

While the camera is mostly good, it’s not in the same ballpark as the big boys. Phones like the Huawei P20 Pro, Pixel 2, and iPhone X are significantly better for photography.

Battery life

There’s a sizable battery in the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S, rated at 3,400mAh. We found that the phone lasted a normal day with some change, but you’ll likely need to charge it every night. Light use might stretch it to a day and a half or maybe two. When we played a lot of games and used the camera extensively it died on us in the early evening.

Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S Compared To

LG G7 ThinQ

Moto E5 Plus

Nokia 7 Plus

Samsung Galaxy S9

Cat S61

Asus ZenFone 4

Honor View 10

Alcatel Idol 5

OnePlus 5T

HTC U11 Life

Google Pixel 2

LG V30

ZTE Axon 7

Huawei Honor 8

Alcatel Idol 4S

We expected a little better from this capacity, especially since the display isn’t particularly high resolution or bright. We’re pleased to find support for Qi wireless charging, though. There’s also support for Quick Charge 3.0 via the USB-C port, for when you’re in a hurry.

Price, availability, warranty information

Looking at a direct conversion from the Chinese price, you should be able to buy the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S for a little over $500, but when we had a look at online stores like Gearbest and Honorbuy it starts from around $625.

If you want the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S you will have to import. It’s not going to get an official U.S. release, so it will never be in your local carrier store. Be careful where you buy to avoid import duties or problems with returns if something should go wrong. You should also check what bands the model you’re looking to buy supports to ensure it will work with your carrier’s network.

The warranty will depend on where you buy. Most online stores offer a limited one-year warranty for defects.

Our Take

The Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S is beautifully-crafted, powerful smartphone with a decent camera, but it does come with strings attached. Most people simply won’t be willing to import the phone from China, so we don’t expect to see many of them around.

Is there a better alternative?

Yes, there are lots of better phones on the market. The Pixel 2, the Galaxy S9, and the Huawei P20 Pro are all better, but they’re also more expensive. If you’re not married to Android, then the iPhone X or 8 Plus are also better, but again, they’re much pricier.

If you only have around $600 to spend, then we recommend waiting for the OnePlus 6. It will be much easier to buy in the U.S., and it only costs $530.

How long will it last?

You could certainly expect to get two years out of the Mi Mix 2S, but you should definitely get a case for it. In the past Xiaomi hasn’t always continued to update Android for more than a year or so, even though it does continue to update MIUI for longer, and that’s something worth considering.

Should you buy it?

Yes, if your budget is limited and you love the design, the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S is a very classy phone. For the money we think it’s a compelling prospect.

The Internet is sick. Here’s how Mozilla is making it healthy again

Mozilla

The suggestion that the internet is unwell sounds a bit goofy, but according to the Mozilla Foundation — a non-profit Silicon Valley organization which believes the internet should be a public resource that is open and accessible to all — that’s exactly the situation we find ourselves in here in 2018. And it may have a point.

While the internet as a global system of interconnected computer networks is healthier than ever, the idea of the internet may be suffering. Back in the 1980s and 1990s, the internet was envisaged as a utopian medium through which liberal values of inclusiveness, tolerance, and free speech would be disseminated throughout the world. Sure, the real world may have problems, but all of these could be solved in the non-hierarchical, free, non-judgmental realms of cyberspace. Right?

Things didn’t exactly work out like that.

“Part of what we’re trying to do is to help people see the bigger picture.”

Last month, Mozilla published the first in what it promises will be an annual Internet Health Report. This report consists of research and analysis carried out by a range of researchers, engineers, policy makers and more, intending to measure how well the internet is measuring up to its utopian early promises. “By [internet health], what we mean is whether the internet is healthy from a human perspective; not looking at industry trends or new technologies on their own,” Abigail Cabunoc Mayers, a project lead working on web openness at Mozilla, told Digital Trends. “It’s more about how the internet is impacting our lives.”

Like a yearly medical check-up, the Internet Health Report covers a litany of different measurements. However, two concerns that are particularly spotlighted include fears about the consolidation of power among a few big tech companies, and fears of fake news and its links to the popular advertising economy seen online. Both of these play a part in what has, for many people, marked the most pessimistic period since the internet’s inception.

The 2018 Internet Health Report Mozilla

“A lot of the conversation right now does seem to show a bit of disenchantment with the promise of the internet,” Samantha Burton, Mozilla’s director of insights, acknowledged. “But part of what we’re trying to do is to help people see the bigger picture. Although there are really concerning trends right now, there are also some really great things that are happening with these technologies — and the impact they are having on our lives.”

Mozilla’s Global Sprint

But Mozilla doesn’t just want to diagnose the problem. It wants to help treat it too. On Thursday and Friday this week, the Mozilla Foundation brought together thousands of open source activists and engineers at more than 60 events, in locations as far apart as Portland, Toronto, London and New Delhi, for its Global Sprint event. Their goal? To collaborate on close to 160 open-source projects designed to create positive change online. “People just work 9-5 in their time zones, but because of the magic of time zones that equates to around 50 consecutive hours,” Burton said. “People can collaborate online or in person.”

“No part of it can ever be owned by any individual or group in perpetuity.”

The projects created at Global Sprint aim to encourage web literacy, openness, privacy and security, and decentralization of web services. There are too many projects to mention every in the most cursory way (check out the full list of projects here), but there are a few standouts.

One is ETER, a community-built air quality monitor for teachers and students in Argentina. On a micro level, the project aims to build and install tech for measuring particle pollution in Buenos Aires. Beyond this, however, the goal is to promote web literacy by teaching the community to build an open-source air monitor: one which can be improved by the community and used for whatever future projects they can come up with.

Another project is the Open Humans project, in which users can upload their personal datasets from sites like FitBit and 23andMe to a private account, and then choose to share them with researchers, nonprofits, and citizen scientists.

Or how about Commons Platform, a social media platform which tries to invert the Facebook formula by making a big point of user privacy? The idea of the Platform is that everyone owns their own data. Founder Sophie Varlow likens the premise to public land: “No part of it can ever be owned by any individual or group in perpetuity.”

Can a hackathon change the world?

As both Cabunoc Mayers and Burton note, a couple of days isn’t close to enough time to develop a fully fledged product — let alone to unpick the larger challenges the internet poses. In many cases, these problems are so tough to deal with exactly because the problematic and beneficial aspects of online life are so wrapped up with one another.

“What we’re trying to encourage people to do is to see how we can take control of shaping this technology …”

A tool that allows anyone to share ideas equally? That’s great until the ideas are harmful ones. Anonymity to allow people to speak their mind with impunity, free of usual social stigmas and regulations? Same deal. As the cultural theorist Paul Virilio once said, all good consists of some bad, and all bad consists of some good; the invention of the ship was also the invention of the shipwreck.

So why bother with a hackathon at all? Because the idea of interacting with people from around the world, of all collaborating in the name of a greater good, of thinking about problems without an immediate eye to commercialization, but with the limitation of a tight deadline, is a fundamentally good one. Previous, non-Mozilla hackathons produced concepts such as the “like” button for Facebook, which helped change the way we interact online. (Given the recent Cambridge Analytica scandal, arguably for the worse.)

Abigail Cabunoc Mayers, Practice Lead, Working Open at Mozilla

What if those same principles of creativity and out-of-the-box thinking could be harnessed not just for individual projects, but for a larger collective reimagining of what the internet could be? That’s absolutely a tall order — but, then again, Silicon Valley was built on those kind of challenges.

“We really want people to see that we can and should take control of shaping the internet of the future,” Abigail Cabunoc Mayers said. “What we’re trying to encourage people to do is to see how we can take control of shaping this technology that is a big part of the society we live in. It’s not about being passive and letting decisions be made for us. We can really be a part of building the future that we want.”

We’ll have to wait to see how many of the projects from this year’s Global Sprint project wind up living up to their potential to know for certain how successful this year’s event has been. But as the basis for opening a dialog about reclaiming the internet for the masses? We certainly think Mozilla — and Global Sprint’s participants — are thinking along the right lines.

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House Appropriations Committee stops President Trump from helping ZTE

ZTE’s light at the end of the tunnel has vanished.

Last Sunday, President Donald Trump took to Twitter saying that he was working with President Xi in China to help dig ZTE out of the hole it’s been in for the past few weeks. Now, the House Appropriations Committee has issued an order preventing Trump from doing anything.

According to Democratic Representative Dutch Ruppersberger —

This amendment would prevent the Commerce Department from renegotiation of the sanctions it just enacted last month on ZTE.

Ruppersberger continued with —

Supporting this amendment will show that the U.S. government stands behind the sanctions that it enacts, and will enforce them. It also further prevents foreign companies beholden to their governments from further infiltrating our U.S. networks

Those “sanctions” Ruppersberger mentions refer to the Denial Order the U.S. Department of Commerce issued against ZTE in mid-April. This decision eventually led to ZTE stopping all main business operations on May 9, effectively putting the company on hold until it can figure out what to do.

Rumors have been circulating that Samsung will supply ZTE with its Exynos processors since the Denial Order prevents ZTE from buying Snapdragon ones from U.S.-based Qualcomm, and while that could help ZTE with its operations in other parts of the world, this most recent move by the House Appropriations Committee makes it look near impossible for ZTE to have any presence in the United States for the foreseeable future.

ZTE is DOA, but has the U.S. government gone too far?

Best multiplayer games on PlayStation 4

Get your party going with the best of the best

Sometimes games are that much better when you’ve got your favorite people, or even a couple of strangers online, playing with you! If you and your buds are looking for a new game to get into, these are bound to spark an interest in your heart!

This list isn’t in order of best to least because all of these titles are pretty stellar!

• Warframe
• Overwatch
• Minecraft
• Smite
• DC Universe Online
• Lego Games
• Overcooked
• Final Fantasy XIV Online
• Destiny
• 7 Days to Die
• Fornite Battle Royale
• Rocket League

Warframe

Warframe brings an interesting switch to third-person shooters by introducing the concept of all the powers coming from specific space suits as opposed to natural talents. It brings a game within a game by having you control a boy who controls the Warframe.

In this multiplayer game, you will all allow Lotus to guide you through defeating your enemies on the opposing teams. Lose yourself in this free game in a Sci-Fi world as you shoot each other in fun obstacles that pretty much resemble capture the flag.

See on Playstation Store

Overwatch

After winning a number of awards at the Game Awards 2018, including best on-going game, Overwatch is a title you hear frequently online and amongst your friends.

The best part about this game is that it’s just as fun in story mode as it is multiplayer! Each character you can choose from has a different number of special moves, creating an interesting balance in the world between teams. So, for only $43 join the crowds of people obsessed with the game and prove to the population that, “Heros never die!”

See on Amazon

Minecraft

Since 2009 Minecraft has captivated the hearts of children and adults alike. Despite the graphics looking like they belong on a Windows XP desktop, it’s easy to lose track of hours while playing. With a PlayStation Plus account you can create a world together with your friends.

You could also set your friends on fire or push them into vats of home-made volcanos, dealers choice! For $18 on Amazon, you can create your own adventure with your friends and explore the endless possibilities of pixels.

See on Amazon

Smite

Smite has taken the concept of DOTA or League of Legends and put it into a third-person fighting game. Here you’ll choose your champion and attempt to overthrow the enemy base by destroying their beacons.

The shop combos are significantly easier to master than DOTA itself, making this game easy to learn and therefore quicker to enjoy! Just like DOTA or League of Legends, this game is also free to play!

See on PlayStation Store

DC Universe Online

It’s time to take on an apprenticeship under your favorite hero or villain. You can even choose your power pool based on your favorite archetype, and build from that! From there you get a secret base you can design as you please and take jobs from your favorite idols.

I personally combined Mr. Freezes ice powers with Poison Ivy’s natural powers and a base in Gotham City, what would you choose? DC Universe Online is free massively multiplayer online (MMO) to download from the PlayStation store, but there are in-game purchases to enhance gameplay.

See on PlayStation Store

Any of the Lego games, really

The Lego series is one you can turn off your brain to play and still have an amazing time. It brings a sarcastic and sassy sense of humor to some of our favorite titles like Batman.

The fun is great for all audiences, children and adult alike, to enjoy and laugh while solving the various puzzles. Besides, what better way to get revenge on all the Legos you have ever stepped on than to turn it into dust in this silly adventure? So grab your best friends, your children or even your little siblings and pick up a copy of any of the Lego games, ranging from $15-$40, and show those bag of blocks who’s boss!

See on Amazon

Overcooked

I was first introduced to Overcooked when some friends and I were sitting in their basement trying to decide which board game to play. One of them jokingly turned to me and asked, “Do you want to play a friendship ending game?” Thinking she was talking about Sorry or Monopoly I agreed, and then we were all handed controllers.

The next 6 hours were spent yelling orders at each other, laughing, pushing each other off edges, laughing, then screaming, “NO. THAT WAS THE WRONG INGREDIENT HELP!” and, you guessed it, laughing, Overcooked was such a “time is moving too fast” kind of game that you want to play over and over again. From the adorable graphics to the hilarious gameplay, I promise you will never get enough. Overcooked goes for $20 on Amazon, and I’ll always recommend it.

See on Amazon

Final Fantasy XIV Online

Finally, a massively multiplayer online MMO where you do not have to chose a single class and stick to it the whole game. Unlike the most common MMOs instead of having just one class and having to create character alts, in Final Fantasy XIV (FFXIV) you can master all the classes and play as you choose when you choose to.

The game is free to download and free to play, with in-game purchases. Or, you could buy the starter edition from the PlayStation Store to get a head start. Now we all have the change to play our favorite FF games without having to make our friends sit and watch the show. So, embark on your quest in this gorgeous world that Square Enix continues to create for us, but this time turn on your Wi-Fi and encourage your friends to join the epic battles with you.

See on PlayStation Store

Destiny

Destiny 1&2 have gathered a great following in the past few years, and it’s all due to the multiplayer option of both of the games. While story-mode is quick to master and complete, there are still battles to be completed online.

There is an ever-changing update to the types of new and improved loot you can earn by the multiplayer challenges, so the feeling of your character ever-evolving feels very real. For about $30 you too can join this beautiful Sci-Fi adventure in a galaxy overrun by different aliens and sentient computers alike.

See on Amazon

7 Days to Die

Take a moment to remember how much you loved Nazi Zombies when Call of Duty: World at War came out. Now imagine that instead of a fun side piece for a bigger game, there was an entire game built specifically for all the things you loved.

Here in 7 Days to Die you will not only survive the invasion by killing the zombies, but you will also craft your base and play everything smart. For $27 on Amazon, you can find yourself in the apocalypse and see how many days you can survive with the help of your friends. Do you have what it takes?

See on Amazon

Fortnite Battle Royale

It’s hard to argue with the popularity of Fornite. It’s also hard to argue with the price tag of Fornite Battle Royale.

Fornite was developed by Epic games and initially published in 2017. The free-to-play Battle Royale mode is incredibly popular. The story is largely irrelevant. What’s important to know is that you are airdropped onto an island where it’s your job to take out every other player on the map. If you’re looking for a battle royale experience, this is your go to, at least until PUBG comes to PS4. The Battle Royale mode is free or you can buy the whole thing for $60.

See at Amazon

Rocket League

Rocket League offers a very specific experience that you can’t really find in other games. If you have been dying to see soccer and cars combined into a high-speed sport, Rocket League is the game for you.

The game allows you to join with seven of your friends to populate two teams and take each other on in a frenetic automotive based soccer game. In 2015 Rocket League was nominated for Best Multiplayer Game so you can be sure that you are in store for some quality multiplayer gaming. You can pick up the collector’s edition for $27.

See at Amazon

If your favorite multiplayer game for the PlayStation 4 wasn’t mentioned, tell us what it was and why in the comments below! Better yet, share your favorite game experience with your friends below!

Updated May 2018: Added some fresh titles to quench your multiplayer thirst!

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Amazon

Today’s best deals you won’t want to miss

Whether you’re looking for new tech gear or household items, we’ve got you covered.

Today you can get big discounts on the DJI Phantom 3 quadcopter, the HP ProBook x360, the Garmin Fenix 5X fitness watch, and more! Don’t pass these up.

View the rest of the deals

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Google News for Android: Everything you need to know

From national publications to local stories, Google News has you covered.

Way back in 2002, Google launched the very first version of Google News — a news aggregator that was designed to make it easy to find the stories you care about. Google News got a huge redesign at Google’s 2018 I/O developer conference, with the majority of the company’s efforts put into an all-new Android app.

There’s a lot going on with the latest Google News app, and to help make sense of all the goodies you’ll find in it, here’s everything you need to know.

For You is a collection of articles Google thinks you’re interested in

Every time you open Google News, you’ll be taken to the For You page. This is your central hub for Google News, highlighting the top 5 stories the app thinks you’ll be the most interested in, a collection of other local/national stories, and a simple 6-day weather forecast.

The articles that appear in For You are personalized to your interests, with Google using machine learning and AI to tailor them specifically to you as best as possible. The more you use the app and interact with certain articles, the better Google News will get at showing you content you care about.

Headlines houses the world’s biggest stories

Next to For You is a page called Headlines. Here, you’ll see everything that’s happening in the world. The latest stories are shown at first, but you can filter these by U.S., World, Business, Technology, Entertainment, Sports, Science, and Health.

Many of these stories feature videos as well as Newscasts — a collection of articles and tweets about an event/story to give you a quick insight into what’s going on if you’re short on time.

Specify the topics and sources you like the most in the Favorites tab

If you’re looking to catch up on a specific topic or source you’re particularly interested in, you’ll want to make sure you check out the Favorites tab.

After adding a few topics/sources you like the most, you’ll slowly start to help Google News give you better recommendations in the For You section. Additionally, you can just tap on a topic or source to browse through content that’s related only to it.

Newsstand is where you can subscribe to newspapers and magazines

The last section in Google News is titled Newsstand, and as the name suggests, this is where you can find newspapers and magazines to subscribe to.

You can browse through items in Newsstand by Featured and Popular, and scrolling down far enough in the Popular section will allow you to filter through publications by category, including Entertainment, Food & Drink, Health & Fitness, Home & Garden, News & Politics, and Science & Technology.

After finding a newspaper or magazine you like, you can choose to purchase just one issue, sign up for a monthly subscription, or go all the way with a yearly one. Additionally, if you’re already a paying customer for a certain title, you can enter your account details to start digitally reading it in the Google News app.

Dive deeper into the settings

Google News offers a pretty great experience out of the box, but there are a few controls you can take advantage of to fine-tune it to your exact liking.

If you look hard enough, you’ll find settings for changing the appearance of stories to see more on your screen at once, tools for conserving your mobile data, and much more.

Check out our 5 favorite tips/tricks for getting the most out of Google News

Google News replaces the Play Newsstand and News & Weather apps

Now that we’ve got Google News, Google’s axing two of its older apps — Play Newsstand and News & Weather. The Play Newsstand listing on the Play Store is gradually being replaced with Google News (similar to how Google Pay replaced Android Pay) while News & Weather is simply nowhere to be found anymore.

Play Newsstand and News & Weather had quite a few overlapping features, so getting rid of them in favor of one, simplified app is a welcome change.

Download: Google News (free)

What do you like?

Have you upgraded to Google News yet? What do you think? Let us know in the comments!

Around 200 million people had their real-time location exposed by LocationSmart

A bug allowed you to track someone’s location without obtaining their consent.

Earlier this week, it was reported that a company called LocationSmart partners with U.S. carriers to sell people’s real-time location to all sorts of third parties. This news came as a rather unpleasant surprise on its own, but it’s now been discovered that a bug on LocationSmart’s website exposed the real-time location for around 200 million individuals.

According to ZDNet, LocationSmart used to feature a tool on its website that allowed you to try its tracking service before you bought it. With the consent of a friend or colleague, you could use LocationSmart’s system to track their location for free. After entering your friend’s number, they’d receive a text to confirm it was okay for their location to be tracked, and you’d be able to see where in the world they’re at.

However, as noted by Robert Xiao, a Ph.D. student at Carnegie Mellon University —

Due to a very elementary bug in the website, you can just skip that consent part and go straight to the location. The implication of this is that LocationSmart never required consent in the first place.

What sort of bug are we talking about? Per ZDNet —

Xiao said one of the APIs used in the “try” page that allowed users to try the location feature out was not validating the consent response properly. Xiao said it was “trivially easy” to skip the part where the API sends the text message to the user to obtain their consent.

That “try” page has since been removed from LocationSmart’s site, and according to a spokesperson from the company, “the vulnerability was not exploited prior to May 16, and did not result in any customer information being obtained without their permission.”

Even so, this exploit potentially exposed the real-time location for around 200 million people in the United States and Canada and LocationSmart hasn’t provided any evidence to back up its claim that no info was stolen.

All major U.S. carriers give your real-time location info to third parties

Shop Amazon’s Thule sale for low prices on everything from bike racks to jogging strollers

This stylish travel gear can save you from so much hassle.

Amazon has hundreds of Thule products on sale right now. Think of Thule gear as designed to carry anything you need to transport safely and easily. That includes backpacks for camping, bike racks for your car, and strollers for your children.

The Thule EnRoute Backpack is down to $78.95 right now from an average price around $100. Every color is available at this price, too. This backpack can hold a 15.6-inch laptop and 10-inch tablet in dedicated pockets. It can also keep your phone, sunglasses, and other smaller accessories safe in a hard shell compartment.

If you’re a parent looking to go jogging with your kid, the Thule Glide 2.0 jogging stroller is $358.95 during this sale, which is a huge drop from its regular $450 price. It has never gone this low before, either. The stroller is designed to fold easily with just one hand. It’s ergonomic with an adjustable handlebar for comfort for the parent and a multi-position canopy with side windows for your child.

You can also get the Thule Raceway Pro Trunk Mount Bike Rack for $278.95 from $350. This is its lowest price since last year. The bike rack is designed to fit securely to any vehicle. It has a system to prevent multiple bikes from swinging into each other, and you can lock your bikes securely to the vehicle.

These are just some of the products on sale, so check out everything else you can get right now.

See at Amazon

Chromecast Buyer’s Guide

Chromecasts are cheap enough to get them all, but we can guide you to make sure you get the one you need.

Streaming media isn’t a new idea. Internet radio and video sharing sites have been around for over a decade, and smartphones might not have become as popular (some say necessary) as they are today had Apple and Google not worked together in 2007 to bring H.264 YouTube streaming to the first iPhone. We want to watch and listen to the things we like on our own schedule, and we all want it to be easy to do while still looking and sounding great.

While there are dozens of different ways to stream media from the internet to your TV or stereo, Chromecast remains one of the most popular options because of the way you initiate things. Clunky and slow user interfaces are replaced by your phone or your web browser with the ability to handoff control between devices and to allow multiple people to get in on the fun. You are comfortable with the way your phone works, and you know how to use the tools it has. Adding in one button to send media streams to the television is just better than most anything else. Add in a low cost of entry and you have a recipe for success.

If you’re thinking of buying a Chromecast, the first thing you’ll want to do is make sure you pick the right one. That’s where the Chromecast buyer’s guide comes in. In five minutes you’ll be able to make the right choice and get the device that suits your needs the best.

May 18, 2018 — You can now skip Netflix intros when using Chromecast

Ever since last year, Netflix has allowed you to easily skip the intros of TV shows when watching content on your computer, phone, or via an app on your smart TV. Now, as spotted by Android Police, that functionality is rolling out to Chromecast.

While casting Netflix to your TV, you’ll see a button on the cast screen on your phone titled “skip intro.” Upon pressing it, the intro will be skipped and you’ll be taken to the next part of the show. This is currently only available when casting from an Android phone, but it should roll out to iOS handsets at some point soon.

Chromecast Audio

If you are looking for a way to get music from the internet — whether it be a subscription service like Spotify or Google Play Music or audio from YouTube or even music stored on your phone — the Chromecast Audio is a great way to do it.

It’s an audio-only device, so if you want to send video or images you’ll need to look at other options in our guide. But it’s a dedicated audio streamer done right. With a 24-bit audio decoder and both 3.5 mm and optical audio output through the mini toslink jack, you’ll be able to send high-quality audio to just about any speaker setup available. Setup is easy — provide power and plug an audio cable from the Chromecast output to the input jack on your receiver or powered speakers and you’re done. You can even run the output through a small bookshelf amplifier to create a complete stand-alone audio system that sounds a lot better than the price tag would suggest.

Best cheap Chromecast Audio speakers

The Chromecast Audio is small and lightweight, uses very little power and delivers premium sound to almost any speaker or stereo system. If you’re looking for a way to play music from the internet on the system you have now or just plugging into the back of a small stand-alone speaker the Chromecast Audio is the best way to do it.

See at Google
See at Best Buy

Chromecast

The Chromecast is the device that started Google down the path of streaming media. We’re currently at version two of the hardware, and there isn’t another way to get online video onto your TV screen that’s this easy or this inexpensive.

Setup is simple. Plug the Chromecast into an available HDMI port on your TV or receiver, provide USB input for power (either directly from the TV or through the included power adapter) and use the Google Home app to get your Chromecast onto your Wi-Fi and able to be seen from your phone or laptop. Speedy and robust 5GHz ac Wi-Fi means you’ll be able to stream HD content (up to 1080p) smoothly and easily. Fallback to 2.4GHz Wi-Fi is available if you have a lot of interference on your network so you won’t miss a thing. And as mentioned, watching a movie or show on the best screen in your house is as easy as tapping a button on your phone screen.

More: Chromecast vs. Chromecast Ultra. Which should you buy?

Unless you have a 4K TV and a fast connection to the internet to stream UHD HDR content, the Chromecast is the right tool to get the job done cheaply and easily.

See at Google
See at Best Buy

Chromecast Ultra

The premium offering in Google’s Chromecast lineup, the Chromecast Ultra can deliver full UHD (4K) content in HDR to your high-end television, and it’s as easy to set up and use as the rest of the Chromecast family.

The Ultra costs a little more, but everything about it is an improvement over the regular Chromecast. You’ll need a better processor and more power to deliver demanding UHD HDR content and the Chromecast Ultra has that covered. The standard 5GHz/2.4GHz Wi-Fi option is available, but the Ultra also has a Gigabit Ethernet port built into the power supply (which you’ll need to use because your TV can’t deliver enough power for the Ultra) if you want the backhaul and speed a wire can offer. You’ll also need to have a fast connection — 20Mbs sustained not peak — and have a service like Netflix that can deliver UHD content. Using the Ultra is the same as the regular Chromecast — as easy as tapping a button.

Everything you need to know about 4K streaming on Chromecast Ultra

The Chromecast Ultra is for people who have high-end equipment and the internet speed to bring 4K streams to their television. But it’s also a great way to be “future-proof” because your next TV will be 4K.

See at Google
See at Best Buy

No matter what your needs are, there’s a Chromecast that can fill them and is in your budget!

Update August 2017: This post was updated with the latest information about Chromecast devices.

Chromecast

• Chromecast vs. Chromecast Ultra: Which should you buy?
• Chromecast and Chromecast Audio review
• Chromecast Ultra vs. Roku
• Join the discussion in our forums

Chromecast:

Google Store
Best Buy

Chromecast Audio:

Google Store
Best Buy

Chromecast Ultra:

Google Store
Best Buy

MacRumors Giveaway: Win an Apple Watch Band From Southern Straps

For this week’s giveaway, we’ve teamed up with Southern Straps to offer MacRumors readers a chance to win a high-quality leather or nylon watch band for the Apple Watch.

Southern Straps has a wide selection of nylon Apple Watch bands, which are similar in style and design to the Woven Nylon bands that Apple sells, but in unique color combinations. Bands are available in one, two, or three colors, and each comes equipped with lugs to match gold, silver, and black Apple Watch models.

All of the nylon bands from Southern Straps are made from a single piece of nylon that’s been carefully doubled over, sealed, and stitched for an ultra durable construction that’s still comfortable on the wrist. A buckle that matches the lugs is included with each band to keep it tight on the wrist.

The nylon bands, which are all priced at $35, are available in both 38mm and 42mm sizes and are able to fit nearly all wrist sizes, from 14 to 25cm.

Southern Strap’s leather bands are a bit more expensive at $75, but each one is made from a single piece of full-grain Italian leather that’s been vegetable dyed for a rich color that will gain a unique patina with wear.

The leather straps, available in black or brown, are hand stitched with a durable wax cord in San Francisco. Like the woven bands, the leather bands are available for 38 and 42mm Apple Watch models to fit wrists sized 14cm to 25cm, with several lug colors available.

Each Southern Strap leather and nylon band is equipped with pegged spring bars to make it easier to swap out your watch band or clean it. Using this system, bands can be taken apart and rebuilt in just a few seconds. Woven bands have a lifetime warranty, while leather bands have a two-year warranty.

We have 10 Apple Watch bands to give away to MacRumors readers, with winners able to choose the band, band size, color, and lug color to match their Apple Watches. To enter to win, use the Rafflecopter widget below and enter an email address. Email addresses will be used solely for contact purposes to reach the winners and send the prizes. You can earn additional entries by subscribing to our weekly newsletter, subscribing to our YouTube channel, following us on Twitter, or visiting the MacRumors Facebook page.

Due to the complexities of international laws regarding giveaways, only U.S. residents who are 18 years or older and Canadian residents (excluding Quebec) who have reached the age of majority in their province or territory are eligible to enter. To offer feedback or get more information on the giveaway restrictions, please refer to our Site Feedback section, as that is where discussion of the rules will be redirected.

a Rafflecopter giveawayThe contest will run from today (May 18) at 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time through 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time on May 25. The winners will be chosen randomly on May 25 and will be contacted by email. The winners will have 48 hours to respond and provide a shipping address before new winners are chosen.

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