MIT’s Cheetah 3 robot doesn’t need sight to navigate stairs

When we first met the Cheetah, a four-legged robot built by engineers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the machine was, frankly, not all that fascinating. Sure, it could run pretty quickly for a robot. But at 10 mph, the Cheetah was hardly as impressive as Boston Dynamics’ line of robo-dogs, nor could it keep up with its living, feline counterpart.

Four years on, the Cheetah has made some progress thanks to its MIT engineers. Now dubbed the Cheetah 3, the robot’s current version can leap onto tables, handle rough terrain, and even use blind locomotion to navigate. By developing the machine to get around without the use of cameras, the engineers hope to create a robot that can “feel” its way through a room, no matter how dark an environment may be. In the real world, this ability could make the robot suited for reconnaissance and search and rescue missions.

“Blind locomotion is [locomotion] without vision,” Sangbae Kim, a mechanical engineer at MIT and the robot’s designer, told Digital Trends. Vision-oriented movement obviously seems natural to most humans, but it’s data intensive and noisy for machines. In comparison, movement can also be oriented by proprioception (a sense of one’s own body in relation to the world) and vestibular organs (those which help maintain balance). “Most research robots rely too much on vision and don’t utilize the other two enough,” Kim said. “Before we integrate the vision, we want to have robust behaviors first.”

The Cheetah 3 needs some help from humans to navigate blindly (it relies on manual commands for direction and speed) but it’s capable of tackling obstacles, such as stairs, autonomously. It does so by using sensors and algorithms to orient its body to its environment. For example, the robot uses a contact detection algorithm (which helps the robot determine when to move a particular leg) and a model-predictive control algorithm (which helps predict how much force the robot should apply to a given leg).

The Cheetah 3 weighs in at about 90 pounds, with four legs, a determined gait, and exposed wires and circuity. Each of its knee joints are invertible, meaning they can flex and bend in the opposite direction, which lets the robot adjust its stance to gain better balance and perform other double-jointed tricks. Among its new tricks, the Cheetah 3 can also jump onto a 30-inch desk, recover from being pushed, and twist.

In the near term, Kim and his colleagues are developing the Cheetah for use in disaster relief situations or for tasks that are difficult or dangerous for humans to perform. They plan to add an arm to allow the robot to manipulate objects around it.

The researchers will demonstrate their robot in October at the International Conference on Intelligent Robots in Madrid, Spain.

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Futuristic bandage can monitor wounds and deliver drug treatment

A smart bandage, capable of monitoring a wound and delivering periodic drug treatments, has been developed by a team of researchers at Tufts University. Currently just a prototype, the technology detailed in a recent paper in the journal Small could someday help transform medical treatment, enabling a doctor to more closely monitor her patient’s condition, while more actively treating it.

“What we have demonstrated is a flexible smart bandage that has your drug cocktail in it,” Sameer Sonkusale, a Tufts engineering professors who led the project, told Digital Trends. “It senses how the wound is healing and delivers the drug in real time in appropriate quantity to make it heal faster.”

As lifestyle diseases like obesity and heart disease increase, so too do cases of chronic wounds, which heal at unpredictable rates and in disorderly stages. Chronic wounds present a challenge to physicians, who must identify the underlying cause of the chronic states, while monitoring and treating the wound to avoid infection.

Tufts University

“Increasing cases in diabetes and obesity has resulted in an epidemic of chronic wounds,” Sonkusale said. “Chronic wounds are one of the leading causes of amputations outside of war settings. We believe smart flexible bioelectronic technology has the potential to improve the health outcome of these wounds.”

The smart bandage developed by Sonkusale and his team uses sensors to detect subtle biomarkers that signal wound healing. A microprocessor reads data captured by the sensors, communicates with a mobile device, and can direct the bandage to release medication if deemed appropriate.

For example, Sonkusale said, “It can sense whether it is getting enough oxygen. Is it at the right pH level, which is a sign of abnormal healing? What is the temperature near the wound? Is there any inflammation? All of this info is communicated to a central processor where the doctor has programmed drug release such as an antibiotic, or growth factor, to improve healing. This closed loop ‘sense-then-respond’ bandage is probably the first of its kind.”

Over the passed few years, researchers have demonstrated various next-gen bandages that can detect infections and track how well a wound is healing. These futuristic patches haven’t yet made it to the market and Sonkusale acknowledges that his still has plenty of development ahead, but, once complete, he envisions a wide range of use cases involving chronic wounds.

“It has applications in bed sores, burns, and surgical wounds,” he said. “It can reduce complications from infections and reduce the number of amputations. And all of this is possible because your bandage intervened appropriately at the right time to make your wounds heal faster.”

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Bixby is bringing up-to-date sports scores to Samsung phones with TheScore

Julian Chokkattu/Digital Trends

Bixby hasn’t exactly been the runaway success that Samsung hoped for when it introduced its own smart assistant last August. Unlike other A.I. assistants, such as Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa, or Microsoft Cortana, Samsung Bixby was meant to anticipate users’ needs and almost serve as an extra set of hands, editing photos, sending messages, and composing emails on command.

It was also slated to eventually control smart home appliances and Internet of Things devices, but so far, it seems as though it’s a bit less useful than we’d hoped for. But things may be looking up for the smart assistant, especially now that it’s growing its roster of third-party integrations. This week, TheScore announced that it will be bringing live sports scores and news from top sports leagues like the NBA, MLB, NFL, NHL, and EPL to Bixby.

While this may not seem like much, the move does represent an attempt by Samsung to make Bixby more applicable to users’ lives. Given the global popularity of sports and the frequency with which fans turn to their smartphones for updates, the addition of TheScore could serve Bixby well. The feature will make its debut in Bixby Home come August, and will allow users to create customized notifications based on sports or teams. However, it’s unclear how far-reaching the feature will actually be. On “select” Galaxy devices, you’ll be able to swipe right on home screens in order to get the most recent sports coverage.

Hopefully, Bixby will begin playing a larger role in our lives in the next several weeks. Samsung should be unveiling the Galaxy Note 9 in August, at which point the smart assistant should take center stage. This new flagship phone should feature an enhanced version of Bixby, named Bixby 2.0. Gray Lee, head of the A.I. Center under Samsung Research, has told the Korea Herald that the platform will be upgraded with enhanced language processes, improved noise resistance, and quicker response times.

Furthermore, Samsung has said that it plans to connect a total of 14 million products with Bixby this year and aims to connect them all by 2020. We’ll just have to see if it makes good on these promises.

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The best gaming phones

Once mocked as the home of “filthy casuals”, the mobile gaming market has come on in leaps and bounds in the last few years. Games like Hearthstone, PubG: Mobile, and Fortnite have shown that the humble smartphone is just as good a place for digital entertainment as the black monolith parked in front of the TV. But if you’re looking for a phone that is great at handling games and delivering the sort of performance that allows you to keep pwning and winning, you might not be sure where to look.

If you want a phone that’s great for gaming, then you’re after a different set of specs to a lot of other people. Great looks and cameras are good, but what about pure gaming performance and media presentation? Well, we’ve done the hard work so you don’t have to, and found the best gaming phones that you can buy, at any budget. While you’re at it, check out our best games for iPhone and Android so you’ve always got something to play.

iPhone X

Why should you buy this: You want the best possible gaming experience on an iOS smartphone, with an amazing screen, super-fast performance, and the huge iOS app store.

Who’s it for: Anyone who loves iOS and iPhone, and wants the very best.

How much will it cost: $1,000

Why we picked the iPhone X:

How could we not? Apple’s first real redesign since the iPhone 6 changed the world of smartphones as we knew it, doing away with the iconic Home button and introducing the contentious notch. Stylistically, it’s a real looker, with a modern bezel-less design and beautiful glass-and-metal construction. The display is the real jaw-dropper though, and the iPhone X’s OLED screen is a stunner. It’s a weird resolution (a strong Apple tradition), but it’s razor sharp, with vibrant colors, and deep blacks. It’s big too, and you shouldn’t have any issues seeing even small details on the 5.8-inch display.

It’s got the brawn to back up its good looks. Apple’s A11 Bionic processor is a powerful chip, and though it lags behind the Snapdragon 845 in AnTuTu benchmarks, it trounces the 845 in Geekbench 4, and in real terms it’s snappy, handles even demanding games with no problems, and didn’t show any drops in performance over our six-month testing period. There is only 3GB of RAM inside the iPhone X, but don’t let that put you off — Android and iOS use RAM differently, so bigger doesn’t equate to better in this case.

It’s not perfect. If you go for the 64GB model of the iPhone X, you might have some issues with keeping multiple large games on the system, as there is no MicroSD card. There is no 3.5mm headphone jack either, which means you can’t use wired headphones without the right dongle, and you can’t charge the iPhone X at the same time. The battery will last you a day, but heavy gaming will knock that down. However, these are all problems that iPhone users are used to, and shouldn’t put you off. With the other additions that come with the iPhone X — the incredible camera, Face ID unlocking, and iOS 11 — gaming on the iPhone X is a beautiful thing, and the iPhone X should always be your choice if you’re a passionate iOS gamer.

iPhone X Review

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Apple

Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus

Julian Chokkattu/Digital Trends

Why should you buy this: Samsung has refined an already brilliant formula, and produced one of the year’s most powerful and beautiful phones.

Who’s it for: Someone who wants one of the most powerful Android phones in the world.

How much will it cost: $840

Why we picked the Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus:

Samsung kept everything that made the Samsung Galaxy S8 brilliant and fixed everything else. The Galaxy S9 Plus is the culmination of years of work for Samsung and it’s simply one of the best phones in the world right now. It has an exceptional low-light camera with a mechanical aperture, and some utterly wonderful features packed into its smooth and gorgeously designed body.

But what really matters for gamers is the power. The Galaxy S9 Plus comes with the staggeringly powerful Snapdragon 845, giving the phone oodles of processing power. It handled every game we threw at it with contemptuous ease, tackling Tekken, The Sims: Mobile, and Sonic Forces with no issues. We picked the Galaxy S9 Plus over the standard S9 because the Plus version comes with 6GB of RAM (compared to the 4GB in the S9), giving the Plus that slight edge for multitasking — but since both come with the Snapdragon 845, either model should crush most modern games with no problems.

The AMOLED display is another gorgeous piece of work, with deep, vibrant colors and pitch-dark blacks. It’s super-sharp too, and the Quad HD+ screen should have no problems being seen, even in direct sunlight. Storage starts at 64GB, but there is the option to boost that with a MicroSD card, and Samsung is still including the headphone jack — so you can charge while using wired headphones.

It’s not perfect. Sound during games is good, thanks to the stereo speakers, though the placement and bass aren’t the best. The battery life could be better and though you’ll get a day out it with normal usage, expect gaming to impact that heavily. It’s expensive, with the lowest-tier model starting at $840. But if you’re after one of the very best phones for gaming on Android, look no further.

Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus Review

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Samsung Amazon

Razer Phone

Andy Boxall / Digital Trends

Why should you buy this: It’s a phone made for super-smooth gaming, from gaming specialist Razer.

Who’s it for: A pure gaming enthusiast who wants the smoothest possible experience.

How much will it cost: $700

Why we picked the Razer Phone:

The Razer Phone is one of the first phones built from the ground-up for mobile gaming, and while it may mean that the phone lacks in a few other areas, it really delivers as a media-consuming machine. The Razer Phone’s Snapdragon 835 might seem underpowered next to the more recent Snapdragon 845, but with Razer’s optimizations and 8GB of RAM, the Razer Phone is an absolute beast, crushing games and consistently delivering some of our best experiences with mobile gaming.

An expanding market of gaming phones.

Don’t worry if the Razer Phone isn’t the pure gaming phone for you, as more are on the way. The ZTE-backed Red Magic Phone is coming soon, offering similar power to the Razer Phone and some RGB lighting thrown in for good measure. Also keep an eye out for the Asus ROG Phone, which promises to be a staggeringly powerful gaming phone when it eventually comes out.

The key to this performance is Razer’s special display. Rather than a usual 60Hz display, the Razer Phone packs a 120Hz screen. This change means it can deliver more frames per second than your usual phone screen, which leads to gameplay that feels more fluid. It’s not all hype either; we found the Razer Phone felt better than phones with the same processor, running the same games. The dated looks and chunky bezels hide another impressive secret, too — front-facing stereo speakers that really pack a punch, and are one of the best features on the phone, thanks to the Dolby-tuned sound.

Unfortunately, the camera is extremely bare bones, you won’t find the colors on the display to be anywhere near as impressive as the other phones at a similar price, and there is no headphone jack. Still, the 4,000mAh battery gives considerable oomph and should keep you gaming for hours. The Razer Phone is one of the best gaming phones on this list, it’s just not as good an all-around phone as some of the others.

Razer Phone Review

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Razer Amazon

OnePlus 6

Andy Boxall/Digital Trends

Why should you buy this: The OnePlus 6 delivers flagship specs, power, and polish for hundreds of dollars less.

Who’s it for: Someone who wants the top specs at a lower price.

How much will it cost: $530

Why we picked the OnePlus 6:

Look at the OnePlus 6 and read its spec sheet and you’d be forgiven for thinking this phone belongs in the same price range as the iPhone X, the Galaxy S9, and other premium flagship phones. But no, the OnePlus 6 continues OnePlus’ fine tradition of offering top-level specs and a gorgeous design at a price that is hundreds of dollars less than you’d expect. The OnePlus 6 is king of the midrange, and while the $530 price makes it more expensive than any OnePlus phone before, it’s still a great choice for a gaming phone.

Central to the phone’s strong performance is the inclusion of everyone’s favorite powerful chip — the Snapdragon 845. As expected, the OnePlus 6 shows great performance with this processor, and should be able to crush most games thrown at it. That performance is bolstered by the huge 8GB of RAM available to the phone, which should help in handling large programs, and swapping between apps. The audio is impressive too, with AptX HD support and a 3.5mm headphone jack. The display is massive, a 6.28-inch AMOLED screen running a full HD resolution. You shouldn’t miss any details on this sharp and vibrant display.

Outside of pure gaming performance, the OnePlus 6 is still impressive. It has a great camera that is capable of standing up with the best, as well as those drop-dead gorgeous looks. If the high prices of current flagships repel you, then you’ll find a fantastic deal in the OnePlus 6.

OnePlus 6 Review

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Amazon

Nokia 6.1

Julian Chokkattu/Digital Trends

Why should you buy this: The Nokia 6.1 is one of the best budget phones in the world, and gives great bang for the buck.

Who’s it for: A mobile gamer on a budget who doesn’t mind making compromises.

How much will it cost: $270

Why we picked the Nokia 6.1:

If you’re looking to play mobile games on a budget, then you’re probably ready to make some sort of compromise in terms of performance and overall visual fidelity — and that’s mostly an unavoidable fact. However, the Nokia 6.1 is one of the best of the budget bunch for gaming. It’s dated in design, with a 16:9 aspect ratio and chunky bezels, but that display is full HD and more than good enough. The body is made from smooth metal, and it feels good in the hand.

Strong competition from below.

While we rank the Nokia 6.1 as the best budget phone of the moment, it’s a tight race with the brilliant Honor 7X. The Honor 7X offers great looks, an excellent camera, and good power from the Kirin 659 processor and 3GB of RAM. It performed very well playing Riptide GP3, Crossy Road, and Modern Combat Versus, so you shouldn’t be disappointed. Best of all, it only costs $200, making it even cheaper than the already cheap Nokia 6.1.

But what of the performance? The Nokia 6.1 is equipped with the Snapdragon 630, and that processor does an excellent job of providing smooth performance. It outclasses most other phones in the same price range, and the 3GB of RAM holds up well in persistent use. Though you’re likely to be playing on the lowest possible settings, the Nokia 6.1 managed to handle games like The Sims: Mobile, and PubG: Mobile with only a few minor hiccups during gameplay.

There is a 3,000mAh battery powering the phone, which should give you a decent amount of gaming time, and it’s also equipped with a capable camera for the price. The use of Android One as the phone’s operating system means that the phone will receive regular security updates from Google, as well as eventual major upgrades. On the minus side, it’s only usable on GSM carriers like AT&T and T-Mobile — so no Sprint or Verizon. Still, for those who like to play some games but can’t stretch to some of the higher priced models, this is a great choice.

Nokia 6.1 Review

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Amazon

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Get the best of both worlds: Enter to win a Dell Inspiron 13 5000 2-in-1 laptop

Tablet computers, as handy as they are, have a long way to go until they fully replace laptops – if they ever do at all. Although they’re great for entertainment, these mobile devices are generally pretty lousy for getting serious work done, and Bluetooth tablet keyboards often aren’t ideal when you’re writing for extended periods of time (plus, they’re an extra expense).

Laptops, on the other hand, feature the traditional QWERTY keyboard – essential for writing, data entry, and other common work tasks – but usually lack tablet conveniences like a touch display and stylus. So, it’s easy to see why 2-in-1 hybrids like the Dell Inspiron 13 5000 are becoming so popular, as these PCs offer the best of both worlds. If this sounds like your cup of tea, you may be in luck: We’re giving one lucky reader a chance to bring home a brand-new Inspiron 13 5000 2-in-1 laptop.

At first glance, the fairly straightforward appearance of the Dell Inspiron 13 5000 doesn’t give away its unique hybrid design. It’s got a fold-down display, keyboard, and touchpad, just like other laptops. Its 13.3-inch display has a crisp Full HD resolution of 1080p and doubles as a touchscreen,, allowing you to use it as both a PC and tablet interface. (The Dell Active Pen, sold separately, also turns the Inspiron into a mobile workstation for graphic artists.)

The Inspiron 13 5000 display features a 360-degree hinge that allows you to use it in one of four ways: A standard laptop mode, a tablet mode with the touchscreen folded flat, a stand mode with the keyboard folded back to hold the display at an optimal viewing angle, and a tent mode – perfect for when you’re standing at places like a crowded counter and there’s not enough space to lay the tablet flat.

The Dell Inspiron 13 5000 2-in-1 laptop comes loaded with Windows 10. It also features handy conveniences like the voice-activated Cortana virtual assistant, as well as Continuum, which makes it easy to instantly switch between tablet and desktop modes. An 8th-generation Intel Core processor and an Intel Graphics 620 integrated GPU provide plenty of power for work, web surfing, light gaming, and video streaming, while SmartByte technology delivers a lag-free entertainment experience by prioritizing your connection for streaming.

If you’re in the market for a portable computer and have been hemming and hawing over whether to get a laptop or a tablet, then why not try your luck and roll the dice? Enter below for a chance to win your own brand-new Dell Inspiron 13 5000 2-in-1 PC:

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Top BlackBerry KEY2 keyboard tips and tricks

The hardware keyboard isn’t wasted space, it’s untapped potential.

The BlackBerry KEY2 is definitely a polarizing device, just like the KEYone and Priv were before it. You’re either immediately drawn to the appeal of a hardware keyboard, or you think it’s a waste of space. If you’re in the latter camp, it may be because you think the keyboard is only for typing — to the contrary, this little set of keys can do so much more than type out words.

Whether you already have a KEY2 or are willing to be convinced that the keyboard is worth the room it takes up, you’ll want to know all of these tips and tricks for making the most of this advanced little keyboard.

Use the keyboard to scroll

This is the simplest thing, but it makes the keyboard dramatically more useful.

This is step one in learning how to use the KEY2: you can use the keyboard to scroll through anything that’s displayed on the screen. Just swipe up or down on the keyboard just as you would on the display, and it will scroll the content on the display. This works in (just about) every app, including the home screen and app drawer — some chat apps may give you trouble, though. For the best results, touch the keyboard very gently — it’ll make it a little easier to get the right amount of scrolling motion out of your movement, as it’s not really possible to “flick” up or down to get a faster scroll like you can directly on the screen.

Horizontal scrolling using the keyboard is hit or miss … mostly miss. The home screens let you scroll horizontally, but most apps don’t know how to handle it — but it’s always worth trying once. Hopefully more apps will be update to take the KEY2’s keyboard swiping, because switching between the keyboard and screen to handle vertical and horizontal scrolling is quite annoying.

After you’re done scrolling around, remember you can always get your left thumb to land back in the right place by finding the small nub on the D key — it’s like landing on the F and J keys on a desktop keyboard.

Learn advanced swipe and gestures

Scrolling isn’t the only thing you can do with the keyboard, there are tons of advanced swipes.

• Swipe quickly left to delete your last typed word: When you’re typing, you don’t have to reach over to the backspace key to delete words — just give a quick right-to-left swipe across the keyboard to delete one whole word at a time — a quick way to quickly clear out a few words and start over.
• Swipe up to select word suggestions: Like most phones you’ll see suggested words at the bottom of the screen corresponding to what you’re typing — but on the KEY2, you don’t have to reach up and tap them. Instead, just swipe up on the section of the keyboard underneath the suggestion — roughly split into thirds to correspond with the three suggested words. A little flick up is all it needs.
• Swipe down to cycle between symbol keyboards: Rather than click through on the SYM button, a simple swipe down on the keyboard will pull up the on-screen symbol viewer, and then cycle through the different pages.
• Double tap to display a cursor for text: When you’re typing and you need to go back and correct just one little part, you don’t have to reach up and try to tap it. Just double tap on the keyboard, and it will go into cursor mode — you can then swipe left/right/up/down on the keyboard to move the cursor around and get to the right spot, then type the letter or other correction you need to make.

Use shortcuts and the Speed Key

BlackBerry fans will love to know the KEY2 has robust keyboard shortcut support. Whenever you’re sitting on the home screen (in the stock launcher), you can press any of the letter keys to launch a specific app. To set it up, just press a key you want to assign and then choose the app or action you want to happen. You can make it launch a specific app, speed dial a contact, send a message, or perform all sorts of advanced functions within apps — like jump straight to creating a new calendar event, go into video mode in the camera or toggle system functions.

You’ll be able to launch most apps and perform most functions without touching the screen.

Then, you have the Speed Key — that’s the little grid-looking button to the right of the SYM key. This key lets you use any of those above keyboard shortcuts inside of other apps or when using a non-stock launcher. Hold the Speed Key and press any letter to perform that shortcut even when you’re not on the home screen. You can also go a step deeper and assign a second shortcut for a long-press of the same key, so you could use Speed Key + M for Messages, and Speed Key + long-press M for Maps.

You can go super deep with these keyboard shortcuts if you want, and completely skip touching the screen for most app launches throughout the day. Our suggestion is to take it simple at first, just assigning some letters to common apps, and once you’re comfortable slowly expand to further functions so you don’t get overwhelmed and just forget all of the shortcuts you assigned.

How to use the Speed Key and keyboard shortcuts on the KEY2

Predictive emoji suggestions

One great thing you lose when switching to a KEY2 is Gboard’s emoji search — a godsend for anyone who doesn’t inherently know exactly where specific emoji are listed. You can enable a setting to help you out at least a little bit here:

Go to Settings, scroll down and tap System.
Tap Languages & input.
Tap Keyboard settings and then BlackBerry Keyboard.
Tap Prediction and correction and toggle on Predict Emojis.

It really shouldn’t be that buried. But it is. Now, as you type you’ll see that emoji will be suggested in the bottom bar right alongside words. So when you type “bus” you’ll see suggestions for words like “business” and “busy,” but also the bus emoji — you can swipe up on that part of the keyboard to enter it, just like any other suggested word.

As always if you need any other emoji you can tap the three lines to the left of the suggestions and tap on the emoji button to get a standard scrolling emoji viewer.

Use the currency key for an advanced function

BlackBerry knows that we don’t all need to type “$” all that frequently, and lets you customize that currency key to perform other functions instead. Go into Shortcuts & gestures settings again and find Customize the currency key. Here are you choices:

• Ctrl key: You can use the currency key like a ctrl key on a desktop keyboard, so you can perform two-key shortcut actions like cut/copy/paste with ctrl + x/c/v, undo/redo with ctrl + z/y, etc. This may be the most useful for power users.
• View notifications: Rather than having some sort of swipe gesture to drop the notification shade like other phones, you can make the currency key drop (and retract) the shade at any time. Save yourself those awkward reaches to the top of the screen.
• Switch keyboard language: If you’re a multilingual typist and want to quickly switch between your installed language, this is the choice for you. Though honestly it’s not all that useful when you consider you can switch pretty quickly using the notification shade whenever you have a text field selected.
• Shift key: Just in case you prefer to have two shift keys, you can enable this. This also isn’t super useful considering you don’t have to hold the left shift key to get a capital letter — you can just press it once to get a single capitalized character or twice to set a caps lock.

If you choose any of the options other than the standard currency key, all of your currency characters will still remain in the on-screen symbol viewer — which now you know is just a swipe away. So you really don’t give up much, and you’re far more likely to use it for a ctrl key or notification shade expander than you are for the $ symbol.

See at BlackBerry

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What deals/promotions do you want to see offered with the Galaxy Note 9?

Free microSD cards, fast wireless chargers, VR headsets, oh my!

In just a few short weeks, Samsung will take the wraps off of the Galaxy Note 9 on August 9, 2018. We’re expecting the phone to be expensive, but similar to past releases, Samsung will likely throw in some free goodies here and there to try and justify the high cost.

When those deals and promotions go into effect, what are you hoping to see?

Some of the AC forum members recently chimed in with their thoughts regarding this topic and this is what they had to say.

Kilroy672
07-05-2018 02:45 PM

“

What kind of promotions would you like to see this time around? For me I’m tired of the SD cards, I have
two from the last 2 Notes and two wireless chargers. Maybe they can throw in a Gear watch or even a high end fitness watch. I know it depends on the carrier ad well. Its not to early to think about the this.

Reply

Ryano89
07-05-2018 04:27 PM

“

Seriously, how bout skip my “free gift” and make the phone $700.

Reply

Nakrohtap
07-06-2018 05:36 PM

“

Seeing as they are making new faster wireless chargers to go with the faster charging speeds and the increased battery size, how about throwing in one of those?

Reply

evohicks
07-07-2018 03:40 AM

“

Samsung should throw in a case.
99% of the time I always buy the rugged case or whatever Samsung branded case gives the most protection.

I like the Samsung branded cases but for the price of £35+ it would be a nice freebie.

On another note, I still use my free Dex dock alot but as a desktop charger more than docking PC.

Reply

What say you? What deals/promotions do you want to be offered with the Galaxy Note 9?

Join the conversation in the forums!

Samsung Galaxy Note 9

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What is Playstation Hits, and why should you care?

Are you interested in what the PlayStation Hits program has to offer? Check it out!

In the life of any given console, there is a time when it starts to get a bit long in the tooth. The PlayStation 4 is moving into middle age and it can see its retirement out there on the horizon. That being said, the PS4 has a few more years of work before it buys a condo in Palm Springs and starts living that retirement life.

One of the things that tend to happen in the later years of a console’s lifecycle is that they start to look at ways to move some of the older games in the catalog. To that end, Sony has started PlayStation Hits. PlayStation Hits will offer some of the amazing classic games that have come to console at a deep discount. If there are any titles that you might have missed, this a great way to play them for around $20.

Here are a few of the very best titles available in the PlayStation Hits program.

• Yakuza 0
• Bloodborne
• Doom
• The Last of Us Remastered

Yakuza 0

Yakuza 0 is one of my favorite games that came out on the PS4. Explore 1980’s Japan as you dive into an amazing story that is chock full of drama and insanity. There is a ton to do in this game and the hours of gameplay you can squeeze out of this title is well worth the $20.

See at Playstation

Bloodborne

If you are one of those gamers that likes a challenge then you might want to spend the $20 to Bloodborne. An action RPG in a gothic horror setting, Bloodborne rewards you for perfect play and punishes you for missteps in the best possible way.

See at Playstation

Doom

Fans of over the top, chaotic, visceral gameplay would do well to pick up Doom on the PS4. If you missed this title, now is a great time to give it a spin. For only $20 you get the game itself and all three of the premium DLC packs.

See at PlayStation

The Last Of Us Remastered

When The Last of Us was originally released it was in danger of drowning in awards and for good reason. A stellar adventure game with an engrossing story, Last of Us Remastered is totally deserving of the $20 they are now asking.

See at PlayStation

PlayStation Hits is an awesome program that will allow gamers to pick up games that they may have missed for more than reasonable prices. I know that I will be picking up at least a few of these titles. It’s hard to go wrong with a $20 price tag.

Will you be picking up any PlayStation Hits games?

Let us know which ones are catching your eye!

PlayStation 4

• PS4 vs. PS4 Slim vs. PS4 Pro: Which should you buy?
• PlayStation VR Review
• Playing PS4 games through your phone is awesome

Amazon

These Ecovacs Robot Vacuums are heavily discounted for Prime members today only

“Alexa, clean my floors!”

Update: The Deebot N79s is now down to $169.98, though it lacks some of the standout features that the two below offer.

Amazon has a pair of great Ecovacs Deebot RoboVacs on sale as part of its Gold Box deals of the day. Both of the models are slightly different, and with just $20 separating the prices, it will come down to personal preference and what you need from the vacuum. The Deebot 901, which is down to $279.98 from an average price of around $400, has more premium features than the $259.98 Ozmo 601 does.

The Deebot 901 is more of a Roomba competition than the Ozmo 601. It integrates with Amazon’s Alexa, maps out your floor so you can view the cleanings in real-time using the app, has systematic path cleaning, protective sensors, and you can prevent it from going in certain areas if you wish. There’s also a setting to have it resume cleaning after it charges, so if your area is larger than it can clean with its 100-minute runtime, it will head back to the charging station to recharge, and then go back and pick up where it left off. A Roomba with similar features would set you back over $600.

While the Ozmo 601 may not have as many of the premium features that the 901 has, it does have a few tricks of its own. This one is a robot vacuum and mop, meaning you can add water and cleaner to the reservoir to have it mop your hard surfaces, getting them even cleaner than if it were to just vacuum. You’ll want to make sure that you don’t have carpet in the area that you’re using this, though, since it lacks some of the intelligent features that would allow you to map where it does and doesn’t go.

Given the choice between the two, I’d personally opt for the 901. I have one in my house and it gets used 7 days a week. We have three pets and a mix of hardwood floors and carpet downstairs. It’s set to vacuum before we wake up and does a great job. During the day we use it to clean up dirt, dust, and crumbs from the floor as well, and being able to set it to do a certain area instead of the whole floor is a huge help.

These deals are all exclusive to Amazon Prime members, so if you aren’t already a member, you’ll want to sign up for a free 30-day trial right now.

See at Amazon

The OnePlus 6 is now my go-to phone instead of the Pixel 2

OnePlus is starting to beat Google at its own game.

Ever since last October, the Pixel 2 has been my daily driver and go-to choice for the smartphone I want to use. It’s ridiculously fast, has the best camera on the market, and is first-in-line for software updates and security patches as they roll out.

The Pixel 2’s been a great phone and an all-around joy to use, but for the past couple weeks, I’ve found myself using the OnePlus 6 instead.

I still love my Pixel 2 and jump on it here and there to mess around with the Android P beta, but when it comes to the phone that’s now in my pocket day after day, that title’s gone to the OnePlus 6. Here’s why.

Why the OnePlus 6 works better for me

In a lot of ways, the OnePlus 6 and Pixel 2 are more similar than they are different. Both have excellent displays, performance is blazingly fast, and even though the Pixel 2 has the upper hand, the OnePlus 6 still has a great camera.

These similarities aside, though, there are some aspects of the OnePlus 6 that I find better-executed than the Pixel 2 — the first of which is the software experience. That might sound preposterous considering that Google’s Pixel phones are widely considered to have the ultimate Android experience out there, but there are a lot of things that OnePlus just does better.

After using both, I’ve come to prefer OnePlus’s software over Google’s offering on the Pixel phones.

Most notably, OxygenOS on the OnePlus 6 is much more user customization-friendly than the software Google’s crafted for the Pixel 2. With the OnePlus 6, you can set custom accent colors, create your own actions for the on-screen navigation buttons, use icon packs with the built-in launcher, and turn on a system-wide dark theme that’s light years better than Google’s poor excuse for one in Android P.

Speaking of Android P, OnePlus’s gesture system is easily ten times better than the jumbled mess Google’s created. It’s more intuitive, easier to use, and is a really solid alternative for folks like me that hate looking at Android’s navigation bar 24/7.

Something else that continues to be a game-changer more than two years since it was first released is Dash Charge. The Pixel 2’s quick charging does top its battery up rather fast, but the OnePlus 6 + Dash Charge is a combo that cannot be beaten. Even though battery performance itself isn’t the greatest I’ve ever seen on a phone with the OnePlus 6, Dash Charge really does make up for it 100%.

Add all of this together with Reading Mode that turns the screen to a grayscale to be easier on your eyes, the physical alert slider for quickly toggling notification sounds on/off, and the mind-blowingly fast Face Unlock system, and you end up with a truly unique phone that’s both fun and practical to use.

The things I miss from the Pixel 2

Even though the OnePlus 6 has proven to be a better fit for me, there are still some things about the Pixel 2 that I miss having.

Now Playing, the Pixel 2 feature that automatically detects songs that are playing in the background and shows them on your lock screen, is hard to live without after using it for so many months. It’s an admittedly small feature, but the convenience it provides is something no other phone offers and one that I wish more OEMs would adopt.

Features like unlimited Google Photos cloud backup and Now Playing still help the Pixel 2 remain unique.

Another Pixel 2 exclusive I long for on the OnePlus 6 is the squeeze gesture to open up the Google Assistant. This sounded like the most gimmicky thing Google could have come up with when I first heard about it, but sure enough, it became something I used every single day.

Lastly, even though I don’t take a ton of pictures or videos, I think it’s fantastic that Google includes unlimited cloud backups in original quality for these on Google Photos. That peace of mind you get with not having to worry about storage for the memories you capture is almost priceless, and after owning both the original Pixel and Pixel 2, it’s easily become one of my favorite features of Google’s smartphones.

OnePlus is fighting to make a better Pixel than Google can

Ever since the OnePlus One was released in 2014, OnePlus has been all for creating high-quality smartphones that are fast, look good, and have excellent software for a fraction of the competition. That’s something that continues with the OnePlus we have today, but recent decisions from the company are making it even more competitive with Google’s hardware efforts.

Among all the things Google’s Pixel phones do right, one of the main reasons so many people choose to go with them is the fact that they’re first in line for software updates. This is something that’s been true since the Nexus phones and something no other OEM will ever be able to perfectly match.

OnePlus has been making all the right decisions lately to be a true alternative to the Pixel.

However, OnePlus has been making all the right moves to copy this formula as best as it can.

On June 28, OnePlus announced its Software Maintenance Schedule. Under this, OnePlus guarantees two years of software updates for all phones following their release and three years of security patches that are sent out once every two months. That’s not quite as impressive as Google’s three years of guaranteed software updates, but it’s a huge step in the right direction nonetheless.

Along with that, the most recent OxygenOS Open Beta for the OnePlus 5 and 5T added Project Treble support — something OnePlus previously said it wasn’t going to do in late November of last year.

OnePlus has always been snappy when it comes to OS updates, but with Project Treble improving turnaround time and the new Software Maintenance Schedule squashing any worries about long-term support, Google finally has serious competition in these regards.

Add that together with a software package that’s just as smooth and clean as what Google’s offering and the argument that Pixel phones are the only choice for the best Android experience around starts to lose a lot of weight.

What do you think?

With that said, I’ll jump off my soapbox and let you have your say on the matter. Do you think OnePlus phones are becoming better alternatives to the Pixel line? Is Google still the top dog when it comes to Android phones? Does pineapple really belong on pizza?

Whatever you’ve got to say, drop a line down below and I’ll do my best to respond!

OnePlus 6 review: The matter is settled

OnePlus 6

• OnePlus 6 review
• OnePlus 6 vs. OnePlus 5T: How much changes in six months?
• OnePlus 6 vs. OnePlus 5: Should you upgrade?
• These are the official OnePlus 6 cases
• The OnePlus 6 doesn’t work on Verizon or Sprint
• Join the discussion in the forums

Google Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL

• Pixel 2 FAQ: Everything you need to know!
• Google Pixel 2 and 2 XL review: The new standard
• Google Pixel 2 specs
• Google Pixel 2 vs. Pixel 2 XL: What’s the difference?
• Join our Pixel 2 forums

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