Windows 10 Mail will let you handwrite your email with a stylus

Credit: The Verge

Microsoft will soon give new meaning to “writing” an email. While you can still type out your mail message in Windows 10’s Mail client, you’ll soon also be able to ink your message using a stylus if your device supports a pen. In addition to stylus support in the Mail client, you’ll also be able to jot down your upcoming calendar appointments in the Windows Calendar app, according to OnMSFT, making it feel more like a paper planner for journaling addicts.

The update is rolling out to Windows Insiders now, though not all users may get the update right away — I haven’t seen updates to the Mail or Calendar apps on my Surface Book that enable the inking capabilities. However, if you have the update, you’ll see a new draw tab on the top in the ribbon interface when composing a new email message. The Draw tab, shown on The Verge, includes options includes options to erase, change pen tips and ink colors, and highlight parts if you want to add additional annotations. “There are plenty of pen options and colors with this new feature, and it should ship in time for Microsoft’s next major Windows 10 update, currently code-named Redstone 5,” the publication reported.

In addition to new inking features inside Windows 10’s Mail and Calendar apps, Microsoft also introduced its SwiftKey keyboard integration as part of the latest Windows Insider Preview build. The keyboard allows users to trace letters to form words, rather than tapping on each individual key, to make it easier to type on glass. Additionally, the keyboard also comes with auto-correct and word prediction.

These changes come ahead of Microsoft’s rumored and highly anticipated new hardware launches, including a dual-screen computing device with the Andromeda code name that could debut this year as well as a lower cost Surface Tablet. Given that these devices come with a notepad or notebook form factor, broader availability of inking support in Windows 10 will help them feel more like their paper counterparts. Microsoft’s partners are also working on dual-screen devices. Dell is rumored to be working on its own version called Januss, and Lenovo and Asus are said to be working with Intel to bring this new form factor to the market.

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AOL’s instant messenger rises from the ashes, but your buddies didn’t survive

America Online’s instant messenger, AIM, now rises from the ashes as AIM Phoenix. It’s not an official service but is instead run by Wildman Productions, a non-profit organization comprised of “hobbyist programmers and other artists.” AIM Phoenix essentially uses discontinued software to send messages through a private server and doesn’t actually connect to America Online (aka AOL). 

AIM first started as an extension to America Online’s desktop software so that subscribers could talk to other members without loading the main bulky platform. But with the rise of ICQ, Yahoo Messenger, and MSN Messenger, America Online opened its chat client to everyone, not just subscribers. Eventually, most chat clients lost their appeal, including AIM, as web surfers flocked to social networks and evolving mobile devices. 

By March 2012, America Online injected advertisements into its AIM client and let go of the development staff. America Online kept the chat service active and provided technical support until it finally shut down AIM on December 15, 2017. AIM originally launched on Windows 95 as a stand-alone client in May 1997. 

Currently, Wildman Productions serves up 10 releases of AIM spanning version 1.0 to the “lite” version of AIM 5.9. If you go for the latter “lite” version, there are nine themes you can install ranging from Gray Moose to Incredibly Pink. Also provided is an AIM Tamer program that handles AIM clients when they hang the PC. Software for establishing your own AIM Phoenix server will eventually be provided as well.

Installing AIM is somewhat hilarious as it takes you back in time to when web surfers mostly relied on dial-up connections. For instance, the installer asks for you to choose your current connection: A modem or a permanent LAN connection. The installer even asks if you want to make Netscape.com your browser’s homepage. 

To get these clients to work, you may need to run AIM Tamer in the background first, as after installing and running AIM 5.9, it completely seized our test PC, preventing us from even shutting down the process in Task Manager. AIM Tamer provides a pop-up window stating “it makes AIM behave” and presents an escape button if AIM doesn’t play nice on your PC. 

Unfortunately, we couldn’t get version 5.1 or 5.9 to run on our test Windows 10 PC, but version 5.0 worked just fine. Once it loaded without problems, we created an account through the AIM Phoenix website and then clicked on the client’s “wrench” icon to access its settings. After that, we clicked on the “connection” button and changed the host address and port to redirect America Online’s client to Wildman Productions’ servers. 

Of course, your AIM contacts aren’t present, so you need to bait your friends and family into using this free-yet-outdated service. It’s a great trip down memory lane, but a lonely one if you’re the only soul you know riding the dusty AIM stallion. Still, AIM Phoenix could rise up from the ashes of its former self and become a great-yet-nostalgic instant messaging platform through word of mouth. 

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Best Heavy Duty Cases for Samsung Galaxy S8 in 2018

Protect your Galaxy S8 with a sturdy, rugged case, and have some peace of mind while you’re at it.

The Galaxy S8 is a slender, sweet piece of glass, and if you like to live the rough-and-tumble, it needs some rugged protection to keep up with you and make through the day in one piece. Check out these heavy duty cases and slap a little peace of mind on that piece of glass.

Consider these the… Guardians of your Galaxy.

• Supcase Unicorn Beetle Pro
• Zizo Static Series
• Caseology Legion
• Poetic Revolution
• Spigen Tough Armor
• UAG Feather-light Rugged
• OtterBox Defender
• Pelican Voyager
• Trianium Duranium

Supcase Unicorn Beetle Pro

The old standby of rugged cases, the Supcase Unicorn Beetle Pro (around $20) is the utmost in heavy-duty protection for your Galaxy S8. These three-piece cases feature a front cover, back cover, and a holster so that you don’t have to carry a heavier phone around in your pocket. With that in mind, the Unicorn Beetle Pro doesn’t add a ton of bulk to your phone, but there still is a difference. You want thin, go with a slim case.

The Unicorn Beetle Pro is made of tough polycarbonate plastic and provides extra protection in the corners — the kill shot for just about any phone in the event of a drop. You have your choice of black, blue (doesn’t match the S8 coral blue color), pink, and white.

See at Amazon

Zizo Static Series

Zizo’s cases are military drop tested, so they’re guaranteed to protect your phone from drops, according to military standards. The Static Series features a fold-out kickstand and two layers of protection: a hard polycarbonate shell with a silicone layer to disperse impact and cushion your phone. This is especially necessary in the corners, which are incredibly vulnerable in a drop situation.

On top of excellent protection, the Zizo Static Series also looks really cool. You have your choice of seven color combinations, which feature a black layer and then a vibrantly colored layer. If you’re looking for heavy-duty protection for your Galaxy S8, along with a flash of style and a convenient kickstand, then check these out. Especially since they’re only about $11.

See at Amazon

Caseology Legion

I love Caseology cases. They always fit well and they’re fantastically protective. I use a Wavelength, and I had my phone knocked out of my hand onto a gym floor. After cleaning up my drawers, I picked up my phone and it was fine. That was a slimmer case, too. Check out the rugged Legion series. It features a layer of flexible a shock-absorbing TPU with an outer layer of polycarbonate. You’re protected from hard bumps and scratches, as well as shocks and drops.

All the buttons are covered, but the coverings provide great tactile feedback, and your ports are completely accessible. You have your choice of black or orchid gray, which is meant to match the S8 color, though we haven’t seen this one in person to verify that.

You can grab one from Amazon for around $15.

See at Amazon

Poetic Revolution

The Poetic Revolution is a two-piece case that you slip your Galaxy S8 into, and then you snap on the front. Most Poetic cases have a screen protector, but this one doesn’t because of the Galaxy S8’s curved screen. That being said, the raised bezel around the front protects your screen when you lay it face-down, and the raised cutout around the camera protects the lens.

The inside of the Revolution is made of flexible TPU, which is designed to disperse impact and protect your S8 from scratches. The outside of the back is a layer of polycarbonate, which takes the brunt of any bump or drop. The outer edges of this case are textured to give it a great in-hand feel that isn’t slippery, so you can hold onto your phone. You have your choice of black, a very vibrant blue, and pink.

Check it out for $10.

See at Amazon

Spigen Tough Armor

Spigen makes a phone case for every occasion and its Tough Armor series is perfect for heavy-duty protection. It has an inner layer of TPU for shock absorption and to protect against scratches, as well an outer shell made from durable polycarbonate. There’s also a handy kickstand on the back, so you can watch videos hands-free.

This may look a bit like Caseology’s Legion, but the button layout is a bit different, with a space between volume up and volume down, so you can control your music on the go without having to pull your phone out of your pocket. The Tough Armor series comes in gunmetal, black, coral blue (which looks like it matches the coral blue S8, but we can’t say for sure yet), and maple gold.

Pricing starts around $17.

See at Amazon

UAG Feather-light Rugged

Urban Armor Gear’s Feather-light Rugged cases are a staple of the heavy duty case market. These composite cases are made from hard plastic (outer shell) and a flexible and durable TPU rubber (inner shell), which come together to protect against drops, as well as a good deal of shock absorption.

The main nicety of the UAG case is its oversize cutouts for the headphone jack and USB-C port. You shouldn’t have to take the case off to listen to tunes or charge up your Galaxy S8, no matter the size of the cable.

There are 10 color options to choose from and pricing starts at $17.

See at Amazon

OtterBox Defender

I left this one off the list, much to the dismay of many a commenter, so here it is in all its glory: the OtterBox Defender. The old standby of rugged cases, OtterBox started it all with cases you could allegedly drive over and your phone would still be intact. I’ve never known anyone who’s tried it, but having had OtterBox cases in the past, it seems plausible.

The Galaxy S8 version is just as great as you’ve always known, with precise cutouts, a substantial in-hand feel, and a convenient hip holster for you and all your cool friends.

Pricing starts around $20 for black, and you have four other colors to choose from.

See at Amazon

Pelican Voyager

Another comments section special, the Pelican Voyager really shouldn’t have been left off this list. I’ve known an had friends who’ve used Pelican products for years, from cases to suitcase, and between the warranty, price, and truly rugged protection, this is definitely one of the top three cases in this roundup.

Tested to military specifications, this case has four layers of shock-absorbing protection, with two types of rubber inside a hard polycarbonate plastic shell, adding a bit of bulk, but the ultimate in protection. And the polycarbonate shell has a texturized rubber coating so that it’s not slippery. There’s also a rad holster that swivels, which you’ll probably need, since this will be substantial pocket carry. For roughly $20, you really can’t go wrong.

See at Amazon

Trianium Duranium

Anything that rhymes like the title of a Red Hot Chili Peppers album has to be good, right? Trianium’s Duranium case is a rugged mix of hard polycarbonate and flexible, shock-absorbing TPU rubber, and at $12, it’s a steal of a deal. Plus, if you want to be extra fashionable, it comes with a belt clip. So slap on those cargo shorts, get some socks on under those sandals for goodness’ sake, and grab this case.

See at Amazon

Looking for something a little slimmer or a bit different?

Best Cases for Galaxy S8

Got one yet?

Have you already picked up a case in anticipation for your Galaxy S8 pre-order? Let us know in the comments below!

Updated June 2018: Removed the Mascheri Prism, since it’s no long available. Added the Trianium Duranium to the list.

Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8+

• Galaxy S8 and S8+ review!
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• Join our Galaxy S8 forums

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Pressure washers, Instant Pots, microSD cards, and more are all discounted today

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

We found plenty of great deals today that include big discounts on the 6-quart Instant Pot DUO Plus, Sun Joe’s electric pressure washer, super-fast microSD cards and more!Time’s running out to take advantage of these prices, so hurry!

View the rest of the deals

If you want to know about the deals as soon as they are happening, you’ll want to follow Thrifter on Twitter, and sign up for the newsletter, because missing out on a great deal stinks!

The bezel-less OPPO Find X isn’t coming to the United States

OPPO’s not ready to tackle the U.S. market quite yet.

The OPPO Find X garnered a lot of attention when it was announced earlier this month, and for good reason. The phone has an absolutely striking design with a nearly bezel-less screen and slide-up camera system, but it also peaked our interest for being the first OPPO phone that’ll be officially sold in North America.

Image credit: The Verge

That opened the possibility of OPPO bringing the Find X to the United States, but unfortunately, it looks like that won’t be the case after all.

During the evening of June 25, PCMag’s Lead Analyst shared the following on Twitter:

Hate the break it to you folks but @OPPO tells me the Find X is NOT coming to the US. It’s a super-cool, innovative product, but they aren’t ready to deal with our market yet. Yes on Europe though.

— saschasegan (@saschasegan) June 26, 2018

Although the U.S. is out of the question, the fact that the phone’s launching in North America means that it could still appear in the likes of Canada and Mexico. It certainly would have been exciting to get the Find X in the States, but it’s really not all that surprising OPPO’s going this route.

Whether or not the Find X is coming to your country, do you have any interest in buying it?

OPPO Find X is here with a pop-up slider for all three cameras

The best smart TV is a dumb display and a streaming stick

Smart TVs are wonderful for the first year or so of ownership. But support needs to last much longer given how expensive TVs are.

The greatest trend of technology over the last 10, 20, even 50 years is consolidation: the smartphone combines an MP3 player, a digital camera, the cell phone, GPS navigator, and more. We’ve seen this consolidation happen in other parts of the consumer electronics world as well: TV’s that add smart functionality so consumers don’t need a separate streaming stick.

But while this is great when you first buy a TV — there’s nothing separate to plug in or route cables to — the experience can worsen over time.

Here are the upsides and downsides of smart TVs!

• The good parts
• The bad parts
• So what’s the answer?

The good parts

Less stuff

I believe that fewer gadgets are better. Having one less gadget on my network is good from a security perspective. Fewer gadgets mean I use less electricity, and less clutter is better for my mind. Any of these are good reasons on their own but put together, and combined they’re a compelling reason to use the smart functionality on your TV.

It’s darn near impossible to find a “dumb” TV

Unless you want to get a projector (cough) or just use a monitor, your options are limited — especially for 4K TVs. When a manufacturer spreads the cost of an operating system over millions of TVs — or gets Google or Roku to build that operating system — adding smart features doesn’t really cost anything, and makes it a more valuable purchase for most consumers. The market of people that just want a dumb display is niche, and niche markets don’t get served. If you have to buy a product with smart features, you may as well use them.

The bad parts

Overall longevity

This is the big one, and it’s something I’ve been burned by. It sucks when your $200 phone stops getting updates, especially if the one update it did get introduced annoying bugs. It sucks 15 times worse when the same thing happens to your $3,000 TV. I had one of Sharp’s earliest Android TVs, and it was awesome for the first few months. I could launch Netflix, Hulu or other services right from the home screen, or Cast something from my phone’s screen.

Then an update broke my volume. Every few times I would turn the TV on, there would be no sound and the only solution would be to unplug the TV and plug it back in. Long story short, it didn’t get better, and I had to get the TV exchanged. Things get dramatically worse when the company who built your TV goes out of business.

In the long run, the operating system on your TV probably won’t get updates. This means the applications on the TV will likely stop working as the streaming service ends support for older operating systems. Which leads us to…

You’ll probably need another streaming device anyway

In a perfect world, all software services would be on all hardware platforms. In reality, companies can and do choose where they release their content, and all it does is making things worse for the consumer. If you can’t watch the shows you want to on your TVs operating system, you’ll need another streaming box to fill the gap. You may also have a console to play games anyway, so the smart functionality is redundant.

So what’s the answer?

Like I said above, it’s hard to find an actual TV that doesn’t have an operating system, but that’s not the end of the story. You can get a projector or a monitor, but it’s easier and cheaper to just get a smart TV, never connect it to the Internet, and use the other gadgets you want through the HDMI inputs. This lets you find the TV that’s right for you, but doesn’t force you into a gadget maker’s ecosystem.

On the streaming stick side, the best answer for most of you will be a Chromecast: it’s inexpensive, works with every streaming service except for Amazon Video, and it’s dead simple to use. It’s even better if you have a Google Home, since you’ll be able to use your voice to control video playback on the Chromecast.

See at Best Buy

What say you?

How often do you actually use the smart features on your TV? Let us know down below!

Google Hardware

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Google Wifi: Google
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Chromecast Ultra: Google
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These leather Fitbit Charge 2 bands are priced as low as $2 today

Find a new style with this limited-time discount.

Swees’ Leather Fitbit Charge 2 Bands start at just $1.98 at Amazon when you enter promo code FVKBLKVH during checkout. They’re regularly priced between $11 and $15. The highest-priced bands drop to $2.70 with the code, which is still a really great deal. Each of the bands on sale is a size small, able to fit wrists between 5.6″ and 7.5″. The promo code will work on any color of the band while supplies last.

Replacing the band on your Fitbit Charge 2 is a nice way to keep it feeling fresh. You might even want to match it with your wardrobe, and at this price, you could afford to buy a few. You could choose between options like Rose Gold, Litchi Black, Lightning, Snake Skin designs, and more. Each one features a stainless steel buckle and comes with a two-year warranty.

See at Amazon

Instagram Gains Group Video Chat, Redesigned Explore Tab and New Camera Effects

Instagram today implemented several new features that were first previewed and announced at Facebook’s F8 developer conference in May, including a redesigned Explore tab, new camera effects, and a group video chatting feature.

Instagram’s new video chat option, which is a feature that’s designed to rival offerings like Skype and FaceTime, can be accessed via Instagram Direct, and it allows for video calls with up to four people at the same time. Instagram users can chat across iOS and Android without the need for a phone number.

As explained by Instagram, starting a new video chat can be done from the Direct inbox. Open a message thread, tap the camera icon, and the video chat will ring on a friend’s phone. While video chatting, the video can be minimized to one corner so you can continue to browse Instagram.

You can video chat with anyone you have an active Direct thread with, and blocking a person will prevent them from video chatting you. With group chats, a little icon will let you know when friends are talking and you can join in.

Video chat is perfect for groups. You can video chat with up to four people at a time, and the video will expand as more friends join. If there’s an active video chat in a group thread, the camera icon will turn blue. Simply tap the camera to join in the fun. You can video chat with your friends for as long as you’d like. When you’re ready to leave the video chat, tap the red phone icon at the bottom.

Instagram’s Explore tab has been revamped with new topic channels that are designed to make it easier to find content that you want to see. A “For You” tab offers up suggestions based on your interests, while channels like Art, Sports, Beauty, Fashion, and more offer up additional content suggestions.

You can swipe from grid to grid to discover content within a specific interest after tapping into a channel, and for things you’re not interested in, you can mute a channel by pressing and holding on it to bring up the “Mute” option.

In addition to group video chats and a revamped Explore section, Instagram now includes updated camera effects designed by Ariana Grande, Buzzfeed, Liza Koshy, Baby Ariel, and the NBA. If you follow these accounts, the new effects will be available in the Instagram camera through the face icon, while non-followers can tap an effect to try it on and add it to the camera.

Additional effects from other celebrities and popular Instagram accounts will be added in the future.

Instagram can be downloaded from the App Store for free, and all of the new features are available on both Android and iOS as of today. [Direct Link]

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Review: The Arbor Video Doorbell Lets You See Who’s at Your Door With No Monthly Fees

Available on Indiegogo, the wire-free Arbor Instant Video Doorbell from Arbor Home lets you keep an eye on your packages from shipment to delivery, and it lets you see just who’s at your door when the bell rings.

Prior to the Arbor, I hadn’t used a video doorbell, and I wasn’t sure if I needed one, but ironically, waiting for the delivery of the video doorbell itself taught me how valuable these products can be.

Arbor shipped me a video doorbell on May 21, and on May 22, I got a notification from FedEx that the package had been delivered. There was just one problem — there was nothing on my doorstep. I got in touch with FedEx, as did Arbor, but there was no sign of the package.

Right around the same time, I had a package from Amazon go missing. It too was marked delivered but never made it to my doorstep. I’ve had problems with both FedEx deliveries and deliveries made by Amazon’s in-house delivery service in the past so I don’t know if this was a case of two shipments gone wrong, or if I had a package thief.

I won’t know what happened to those packages, but with the Arbor Video Doorbell, there are no more mysteries.

I can see exactly who comes to my door throughout the day, from delivery people to solicitors, and while I haven’t had another package go missing, if there is a package thief haunting my apartment complex, I’ll have footage of the perpetrator.

Speaking of solicitors, this is another area where the Arbor Video Doorbell has come in handy. Just a few days before it was delivered, someone in a safety vest knocked on my door. I thought it might be a construction worker from my apartment building, but no, it was someone attempting to sell gas insurance who had worn the vest to attempt to look authoritative.

I had to deal with this in person, but using a video doorbell, I can now screen who is at the door and send them away without an awkward situation where I have to listen to a sales spiel. It’s also just nice to have the peace of mind of constant monitoring of my front door.

Design

Design wise, the Arbor Video Doorbell looks a bit odd, especially compared to more traditional doorbell-style video options like the Ring. There’s a big button at the top of the device, which is what you press to ring the doorbell, and underneath that, there’s a built-in 1080p camera.

The entire Arbor enclosure is made from plastic with the exception of a black metal mounting plate, and it’s available in either black/silver or all black. While this looks fine outside of my apartment, it is a bit modern looking and may not match some home styles.

Compared to other video doorbells, the Arbor is taller and narrower. This is an entirely wire-free video doorbell option (which means you can’t replace an existing wired doorbell with it), so it’s powered by batteries, which are inserted into a removable battery pack at the bottom of the device.

Arbor says the batteries should last for about a year with a “standard use case,” but with about 15-20 activation events per day, my battery is down to 80 percent after a couple of weeks. At that rate, it’s not going to last a year. I do, however, have a pre-production unit, so battery life could be improved in the final version.

I asked about battery life and was told that the app indicator is not 100 percent accurate yet. Software and hardware are being optimized based on feedback from beta users.

You can pull the battery pack out of the bottom of the Arbor when it needs to be charged without detaching it from the door, and charging it is done with a micro-USB cord, so it’s simple enough.

In addition to the standard outdoor doorbell component, the Arbor Video Doorbell comes with a WiFi Hub & Chime, which makes sure your WiFi extends to the Arbor Doorbell and produces a chiming sound indoors when the doorbell is pressed.

The WiFi Hub extends WiFi up to 700 feet, which is a nice addition for homes that may not have adequate WiFi coverage that extends to the front door. The hub plugs into any power outlet, and should be placed where you can hear it ring. Mine is in my kitchen not too far from the door, which has worked well.

There is one major caveat with the WiFi Hub — it emits a high-pitched electronic whine from the speaker built into it.

I can hear this whine from several feet away in my kitchen, and it’s what bothered me most about the Arbor and the reason why I won’t leave it installed at the conclusion of this review.

My kitchen is quiet and I would say that I have an above average sensitivity to these kinds of sounds, so users might not hear it in noisier areas or may not be as bothered by it.

I asked Arbor about this high-pitched whine, and I was told that it doesn’t appear to be affecting all units at this time. Arbor engineers tested several and while some were quiet, a similar whine was detected “about a foot or so away” with some units.

Arbor told me that this is something that the team will work on optimizing before the device ships out to customers, so I’m not sure if the final version will have this problem.

Aside from the high-pitched sound, the interior WiFi Hub and Chime worked well, with a loud, audible chime sounding almost instantaneously after the doorbell was pressed.

Installation

According to the instructions, the Arbor Video Doorbell can be installed using screws or with adhesive. There’s a metal mounting plate and the wedge-shaped spacers for a custom fit, and it comes with screws and anchors so it can be drilled into a range of materials.

I don’t have a traditional doorframe and it’s just stucco on either side of my door, so I opted to try out the adhesive for testing purposes before going with a more permanent installation route.

The adhesive is quite strong, and I did screw the doorbell to its mounting plate, but someone could still just rip it from the door with enough force. I live in a safe neighborhood and not many people are near my door, but I did have the aforementioned missing packages, so I’m honestly not sure if the Arbor is going to be safe with just adhesive long-term. It’s worked all right during the testing period, though.

Even though adhesive is an option, screw-based installation is superior because it makes it harder for someone to walk off with your camera. Many apartment buildings likely won’t allow for drilling into the doorframe or the wall, though, so adhesive may be the only option for some.

For the record, Arbor, like Ring, has a stolen device replacement program, and when I asked, Arbor said that so long as the user follows the official installation guide and sends in an official theft report, Arbor will replace a stolen doorbell regardless of whether it was mounted with screws or adhesive.

Because I don’t have a standard doorframe for my door and because I didn’t want to put it too close to my neighbor’s door, I put the Arbor on the door itself for testing purposes, but that’s not how you’re going to want to install a video doorbell in most cases. It should go on the doorframe or on the wall next to the door so it’s in a logical doorbell spot and so it doesn’t move when you open the door.

If you’re in a situation like mine where you need to use adhesive and don’t have an adhesive-appropriate surface to work with, it seems to do fine on the door itself. In general, though, given the size and narrowness of the Arbor (7.1 inches by 2.2 inches), it should work well with most standard frames.

Installing via adhesive consisted of screwing the Arbor to its metal mounting plate and then sticking the adhesive to the back and then to the door, so it was a simple process, but with only a few screws, the screw-in option is just as hassle free.

Cost

Pre-ordering the Arbor will cost you $159 ($199 at release), but there’s no fee after that. It comes with 48 hours of free cloud video storage, with 30 second clips captured for each event, which includes motion detection or when the doorbell is rung.

There are no monthly fees associated with the Arbor.

App and Monitoring

The Arbor Video Doorbell includes a 1080p camera, which is a higher quality camera than most competing doorbells offer. In my experience, the video is crisp and clear, especially the recorded snippets, but the Arbor did struggle somewhat with my lighting situation.

My door is at the end of a short hallway, and while the Arbor’s camera could see everything in that hallway, the bright lighting of the area beyond combined with the dimmer hallway lighting prevents me from seeing to the end of the hallway during the day. At night, it’s too dark to see that far.

While the Arbor camera doesn’t do well with complex lighting situations, I can see the area just in front of my door clearly, and that’s really all I need to see. The hallway area is clearly visible both during the day and at night thanks to the night vision camera, and I was always able to get a clear picture of who was at my door. 5x digital zoom is available if needed, but digital zoom always results in degraded quality.

The 160 degree angle of the camera was also sufficient to give me a full view of the entire area outside of my door.

The camera in the Arbor doorbell starts recording when the doorbell is pressed or, if motion detection is on, when it senses motion. With either situation, you get a notification that the doorbell has detected either an incoming ring or the motion of a person at the door.

When someone presses the doorbell, you’ll see the aforementioned alert, and when you open the Arbor app, there’s a call interface where you can tap to speak to the person using the built-in two-way microphone and speaker in the Arbor.

In my experience, the two-way speaker functionality was slow to kick in, so when I answered the incoming “call,” the person on the other end couldn’t hear me talking for a few seconds, which garbled the first part of whatever I was saying. Audio quality was not the clearest, but Arbor tells me that audio is its “top focus to improve” and the Arbor team is “working hard to create a great experience” before the doorbell begins shipping out.

What an incoming “call” looks like when someone rings the bell
Though I had some issues with sound, notifications came instantly. As soon as the doorbell rang, I had a notification on my phone with little delay. I did notice, though, that with motion detection, it was slow to start recording. For example, the delivery person who brings my weekly fruit and vegetable box comes at night and does not ring the bell.

I got a motion detection notice at 12:06 a.m. when the box was delivered, but the recorded video that went along with it only caught the tail end of the delivery — the person walking away.

The Arbor app is still under development, but there are some promising bells and whistles. You can set a motion detection zone for the motion detection feature, as well as a timer for when it should come on, and options to manually record video when desired.

Many features still need to be added or improved. There’s no way for me to download video clips from the iOS app at this time – Arbor requires me to use the web portal – and the timer feature for automating motion detection is limited. I can’t, for example, set it to record from 7:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. the next day, cutting out the three hours between 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. when my neighbor’s kids are out near my door nonstop.

One other complaint relates to the WiFi Hub. There’s a panic feature that you can activate to set off a 115 decibel alarm to “scare off package thieves,” but the doorbell doesn’t ring, the inside WiFi Hub does. So depending on where you have the hub situated, a person who is outside your door might not hear it at all.

Arbor’s walkthrough of the iOS app
While most video doorbell products on the market integrate with one smart home platform or another, the Arbor does not. There is no HomeKit support (though Arbor says “it is on the table”), and Alexa integration has not been included, though this is listed as a stretch goal (that’s been achieved) on the Arbor Indiegogo page.

Bottom Line

Because I have an unfinished, pre-production unit, it’s difficult to judge the Arbor since it’s still in development, but I do think it’s a promising product for those who want inexpensive, high-quality video monitoring with no-hassle wire-free installation.

Arbor is competitively priced at $159 during the Indiegogo ordering period, and even at the retail price of $199, it is on par with competing products. 1080p video monitoring beats many other video doorbells, and free 48 hour cloud storage for 30 second video clips makes the Arbor an appealing choice.

There are some software kinks that need to be worked out, but those are all improvements that can be introduced through over-the-air updates. My major concern with the Arbor is the high-pitched noise emitted from the WiFi Hub, but that’s a problem Arbor is looking to solve and it’s also an issue that may not bother some users.

How to Buy

The Arbor Instant Video Doorbell can be pre-ordered on Indiegogo for $159. Arbor Home plans to begin delivering Arbor orders to customers starting in August 2018.

Note: Arbor provided MacRumors with an Arbor Video Doorbell for the purpose of this review. No other compensation was received.
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Deals: B&H Photo Discounts 2017 13-Inch MacBook Pro and MacBook Air by $200

B&H Photo this week launched a sale on a collection of Apple’s MacBooks, with savings that reach up to $200 off the Mid 2017 refreshes of the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro. The 13-inch MacBook Air (1.8 GHz, 8GB RAM, 128GB SSD) has the lowest price in the sale, running for $799.00, down from $999.00. If you want to beef up the hard drive you can opt for the 256GB SSD that’s priced at $999.00, down from $1,199.00, and both computers are in Silver.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

For the higher-end 13-inch MacBook Pro from Mid 2017 (2.3 GHz, 8GB RAM, 128GB PCIe SSD), B&H Photo offers the computer for $1,099.00, down from $1,299.00. Only the Space Gray model is marked down to $1,099.00, however, with the Silver option priced slightly higher in the sale at $1,149.99. For both the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro, B&H Photo’s prices today are the best available online for the models, coming in $50-$200 under rivals like Best Buy, Adorama, and Walmart.

B&H Photo notes that these discounts will expire later tonight at 11:59 p.m. ET, so be sure to place your orders before that time if you’re interested.

In other sales, Pad & Quill continues to celebrate its 8-year anniversary with a sale that encompasses many of its product lines, from duffle and messenger bags to wallets, iPad cases, iPhone cases, and the company’s leather HomePod coaster. Check out some of the items on sale below, and then head over to Pad & Quill to place your order before the anniversary event ends.

• Leather HomePod Coaster – $15.96, down from $19.95
• Timberline Wood iPhone 8 Case – $31.96, down from $39.95
• Leather Apple Pencil Grip – $39.96, down from $49.95
• Bella Fino iPhone X Wallet Case – $71.96, down from $89.95
• Oxford Leather iPad Pro 9.7 Case – $89.96, down from $119.95
• Field Bag Waxed Canvas Messenger Bag – $296.10, down from $329.00

Over at StackSocial there are a few discounts on Mac apps that aim to help improve your workflow and protect your computer. Readdle’s PDF Expert is priced at $24.99, down from $59.99, and helps streamline PDF document editing and sharing on Mac.

If you’re looking to clean up your Mac, MacPaw’s CleanMyMac 3 is on sale for $27.99, down from $39.95, and optimizes your computer by scanning and deleting gigabytes of old junk files in a few steps. Lastly, a 2-year subscription to NordVPN is down $10 in a sale, priced at $69 so you can safely and anonymously browse online.

As usual, Anker also has a long list of useful Apple-related accessories on sale, a few of which we’ve rounded up below:

• Powerline+ II Lightning Cable (10ft, all colors) – $13.99 with code ANKER454, down from $19.99 (exp. 7/10)

• Waterproof iPhone Pouch (2 pack) – $6.99, down from $9.99 (exp. 7/2)

• Roav 30W Car Charger with Quick Charge 3.0 and Car Locator – $19.99, down from $23.99 (exp. 7/2)

• Soundcore Spirit Sports Earphones – $32.99, down from $39.99 (exp. 7/3)

If you’re on the hunt for more savings, be sure to check out our full Deals Roundup.

Related Roundup: Apple Deals
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