Deal: Save up to $300 on flagship phones from Verizon and Sprint

Verizon and Sprint are turning it up with some great savings on flagship devices like the Google Pixel 2 or 2 XL, LG G7 ThingQ and a bunch of Samsung Galaxy devices.

Verizon is offering up to $300 off the Google Pixel 2 or 2 XL, LG G7 ThingQ or LG V30, and the Samsung Galaxy S9 & S9+. To take advantage of this deal, you’ll need to trade in an eligible device and sign up for a monthly installment plan. Discounts will come in the form of monthly bill credits.

See at Verizon

Meanwhile, Sprint is offering 50% off new Samsung Galaxy phones, including the Galaxy Note 8, Galaxy S9 & S9+. Galaxy S8 & S8+, and the Galaxy S8 Active. To be eligible, you must sign up for a new line with Sprint Flex Lease for 24 months. You’ll get the discount in the form of monthly credits on your phone bill ($16.50/month). Also for a limited time only, you’ll get free activation when you sign up online (saving you $30).

See at Sprint

Latest iOS 12 Beta Lets Users Generate iCloud Links for Sharing Pictures in the Photos App

In the latest beta of the upcoming iOS 12 update, Apple has included a feature that lets users generate iCloud links for sharing pictures via the stock Photos app.

The iCloud.com URL link option, first noticed by Reddit user Hunkir
The new sharing option appears in the bottom row of the iOS Share Sheet, and allows users with iCloud Photos enabled to copy an iCloud.com URL link to one or several selected images that lasts for 30 days.

Clicking a link in an email takes the recipient to a web page containing the image in question, as well as an option to download it. Sharing a link in the Messages app also shows a preview of the image right in the chat thread. The link also includes the author’s name, the photo’s title, and associated EXIF data, excluding location information.

The addition should come in handy for times when you quickly want to share an image from your iOS device, minus the hassle of uploading it to a third-party service. It’s also more than likely that the iCloud link sharing option will feature in macOS Mojave.

For more on all the changes coming in iOS 12, check out our dedicated roundup.

Related Roundup: iOS 12
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Apple’s Senior Siri Director to Discuss Natural Language Processing at AI Frontiers Conference

Apple’s senior director of Siri, Alex Acero, will speak at the AI Frontiers conference in San Jose, California, this coming November.

The event brings together specialists in the fields of robotics, natural language processing, virtual assistants, autonomous driving, and more, with speakers from the likes of Google, Microsoft, Amazon, and Uber.

As part of a panel exploring the role of personal assistants, Acero will about how deep learning informs the way Siri works on Apple devices. From the AI Frontiers online schedule:

Siri brought personal assistants to the mainstream after its introduction in 2011 in the iPhone. Deep learning is powering many components in Siri: trigger word detection, large vocabulary recognition, text-to-speech, machine translation, and natural language understanding. In this talk I will show a few examples of how deep learning is used in Siri.

Also on Acero’s panel are Amazon Alexa director Ruhi Sarikaya and Google research scientist Dilek Hakkani-Tur.

Acero arrived at Apple in 2013 after spending two decades at Microsoft, where he oversaw research into computer vision, speech, neuro-linguistic programming, machine learning and translation, amongst other areas. His work on Siri takes in speech recognition, speech synthesis, and machine translation.

The AI Frontiers conference takes place from November 9 to November 11. For more information on the event and scheduled speakers, check out the AI Frontiers website.

Tag: Siri
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How to Use the New Screen Capture Interface in macOS Mojave

In macOS Mojave, Apple has introduced a new screen capture interface that unifies the screenshot and screen recording features on Mac, making accessing them easier than it used to be.

A new floating palette brings the traditional Mac screen capture functions together under a single menu. You can access it by hitting Command-Shift-5. Let’s take a closer look at what’s on offer.

The three buttons to the left of the first menu divider provide you with options to take a screenshot of the entire screen, a selected window, or a selected portion of the screen. Note that the keyboard shortcuts for these actions still function as before in macOS.

Meanwhile, on the right of the palette’s first divider are two buttons to begin a screen recording – taking in the whole screen or just a portion of the action. These actions were previously only accessible in the macOS Grab utility.

If you choose to capture a window, hover your mouse cursor over it: The window will be highlighted and your cursor will change to a camera. Simply click your mouse button to take the capture.

If you’re capturing a selected portion of the screen, use the mouse cursor crosshairs to select the area you want to capture. When you take a screen recording, a button will appear in the menu bar for you to click when you’re ready to end the recording.

You can click the rightmost button on the palette to reveal an additional menu of options for controlling other variables, like where you want your captures to be saved (Desktop, Documents, Clipboard, and so on) and whether to include a 5 or 10-second delay before the capture takes place, giving you time to get your screen in order.

As you’d expect, unchecking the Show Mouse Pointer option ensures the mouse cursor doesn’t appear in your capture. The Show Floating Thumbnail option takes a little more explaining.

When you take a screenshot or screen recording in Mojave, a floating thumbnail appears in the bottom corner of the screen, just like it does when you take a screenshot on an iOS device running iOS 11 or later.

Clicking on the thumbnail opens the capture in a window, which includes image Markup tools, or a clip trimming option in the case of recordings, as well as options to share the image/recording or delete it if it didn’t turn out like you wanted.

If you’re taking multiple screenshots in sequence, you probably won’t want the floating thumbnail showing up in subsequent captures, which is why the option to turn it off exists.

For additional tips on controlling the behavior of screenshots using keyboard shortcuts, click here.

Related Roundup: macOS Mojave
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Netflix Testing New ‘Ultra’ Tier of Service That Cuts Premium Plan Streams From Four to Two

Netflix is reportedly testing a new tier of service for subscribers that supersedes the existing top tier Premium plan, according to Italian blog Tutto Android.

Titled “Ultra”, the new plan would allow up to four devices to receive Ultra HD video and audio streaming at the same time. In Italy, the tier is priced at 16.99 euros, or approximately $19.80.

Image credit: Evan Davis
Netflix has three subscription plans at present: Basic ($7.99), Standard ($10.99), and Premium ($13.99). Basic subscribers can watch Netflix on one screen at a time, Standard enables simultaneous viewing on two screens, and Premium allows up to four screens to be used at once to stream the service.

Commenting on the story, Netflix provided CNET with the following statement:

“We continuously test new things at Netflix and these tests typically vary in length of time,” Smita Saran, a Netflix spokeswoman, said in an email. “In this case, we are testing slightly different price points and features to better understand how consumers value Netflix.”

Saran went on to say that not all Netflix subscribers would see the Ultra tier currently being tested, and the company many never offer the plan and its features to a wider base.

The screenshot above indicates that the Ultra plan would reduce the number of simultaneous streams for Premium users from four to two, with Ultra subscribers getting four for their money at the higher price point. Similarly, users on the Standard plan appear to be getting only one stream instead of the usual two.

If the Ultra tier was ever to be officially adopted, it would essentially mean existing Premium users having to pay around $6 more for the same level of service they’re used to.

Netflix has increased the price of its subscription plans in the past. Back in November the company hiked its Standard plan by $1 and its top Premium plan by $2.

Tag: Netflix
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Amazon is opening a second, much larger checkout-less store

Amazon is opening its second “grab-and-go” store in the coming months, and it promises to be much larger than its first one.

Amazon Go lets customers take their items and leave without having to visit a checkout. Cameras and sensors placed around the store automatically record a shopper’s selections before charging them to their account when they exit the store.

The new Amazon Go will be located inside the Madison Centre building at the corner of Fifth Avenue and Marion Street in the company’s home city of Seattle, GeekWire reported on Tuesday. That’s about a mile from Amazon’s Day 1 tower where the first Go store opened in January.

“We are excited to bring Amazon Go to 920 5th Avenue in Seattle,” Amazon confirmed in a statement, adding that it’ll open in the fall of 2018.

Permit filings seen by GeekWire suggest the store will be significantly larger of the original one, with space of 3,000 square feet compared to 1,800 square feet.

In May, Amazon confirmed it’s also looking to open Go stores in Chicago and San Francisco, though it declined to offer any specific dates. It’s already secured a permit for the construction of what’s believed to be a Go store in Chicago’s Loop district, while Union Square has reportedly been selected for the San Francisco site.

There have also been reports that the company wants to open as many as six Amazon Go stores in U.S. cities before the end of 2018.

The apparent expansion drive is confirmation that the company is happy with the operation of its original checkout-less store, with its technology functioning as it should. As you’d expect with such a revolutionary idea, the original store saw extensive testing with Amazon employees before it opened to the public, and things didn’t always go to plan.

To shop at the high-tech store, customers only need to scan their Amazon Go app when they enter the premises. After that, it’s simply a case of choosing your items and popping them in your bag. The system can even track when you put a previously selected item back on the shelf, should you change your mind as you make your way around.

The interest in checkout-less stores is apparently spreading to other big companies, too. Last month, reports surfaced that Microsoft is developing similar technology and is in talks with Walmart about a possible partnership.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Amazon Go: Checkout-less store heading to two more cities
• Report: Microsoft is building checkout-less store tech to take on Amazon
• DNA link to Golden State Killer raises questions of privacy versus safety
• Target will deliver your large in-store purchases straight to your door
• Whole Foods perks are rolling out to all Amazon Prime members

ASUS ZenFone 5Z with Snapdragon 845 debuts in India for just ₹29,999 ($440)

ASUS is taking the fight to OnePlus in the mid-range segment.

We’ve seen ASUS take an aggressive stance in India’s budget segment with the ZenFone Max Pro M1, and the Taiwanese manufacturer is now doing the same in the mid-range category with the launch of the ZenFone 5Z. The ZenFone 5Z sits at the top of the ZenFone lineup, and is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chipset.

The phone also features a 6.2-inch 19:9 FHD+ display, dual 12MP + 8MP cameras at the back with OIS and EIS, 8MP front shooter, 3300mAh battery with Quick Charge 3.0, Wi-Fi ac, FM radio, Bluetooth 5.0, 3.5mm jack, and a high-fidelity DAC.

On the software side of things, the ZenFone 5Z is running ZenUI based on Android 8.0 Oreo, and ASUS has committed to rolling out the Android P update shortly after it becomes available. ASUS significantly dialed back on the customizations with ZenUI, and the interface doesn’t feel as bloated as before.

I’ve been using the device for just over a week, and the interface feels much more polished from even a year ago. ASUS is heavily touting the AI capabilities of ZenUI, with the phone featuring an AI-assisted screen calibration tool that adjusts the color balance of the panel, an AI ringtone mode that automatically adjusts the ringtone volume based on ambient noise, and a host of camera tweaks. I’ll delve into the AI features in the review next week, so stay tuned.

The ZenFone 5Z isn’t the first device to feature the Snapdragon 845 in India — the OnePlus 6 has that distinction — but ASUS is effectively undercutting OnePlus by launching the ZenFone 5Z for ₹29,999 ($440). By contrast, the OnePlus 6 retails for ₹34,999 ($510) in the country. ASUS undertook a similar strategy with the M1 in the budget segment, and it’s clear that the manufacturer is looking to regain momentum in the country, and isn’t willing to lose out on short-term profits to do so.

ASUS is selling the ZenFone 5Z in two color options — Midnight Blue and Meteor Silver — and the base variant with 6GB of RAM and 64GB of storage will be available for ₹29,999 ($440), and a version with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage will retail for ₹32,999 ($480). The high-end variant with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage will be available for ₹36,999 ($540). The ZenFone 5Z will go up for sale exclusively on Flipkart starting July 9.

OnePlus went unchallenged in India’s mid-range segment for the last two years, but we finally have an alternative in the ZenFone 5Z.

How to Use the New Screen Capture Interface in macOS Mojave

In macOS Mojave, Apple has introduced a new screen capture interface that makes taking screenshots and screen recordings on your Mac easier than it used to be.

A new floating palette brings the traditional Mac screen capture functions together under a single menu. You can access it by hitting Command-Shift-5. Let’s take a closer look at what’s on offer.

The three buttons to the left of the first menu divider provide you with options to take a screenshot of the entire screen, a selected window, or a selected portion of the screen. Note that the keyboard shortcuts for these actions still function as before in macOS.

Meanwhile, on the right of the palette’s first divider are two buttons to begin a screen recording – taking in the whole screen or just a portion of the action. These actions were previously only accessible in the macOS Grab utility.

If you choose to capture a window, hover your mouse cursor over it: The window will be highlighted and your cursor will change to a camera. Simply click your mouse button to take the capture.

If you’re capturing a selected portion of the screen, use the mouse cursor crosshairs to select the area you want to capture. When you take a screen recording, a button will appear in the menu bar for you to click when you’re ready to end the recording.

You can click the rightmost button on the palette to reveal an additional menu of options for controlling other variables, like where you want your captures to be saved (Desktop, Documents, Clipboard, and so on) and whether to include a 5 or 10-second delay before the capture takes place, giving you time to get your screen in order.

As you’d expect, unchecking the Show Mouse Pointer option ensures the mouse cursor doesn’t appear in your capture. The Show Floating Thumbnail option takes a little more explaining.

When you take a screenshot or screen recording in Mojave, a floating thumbnail appears in the bottom corner of the screen, just like it does when you take a screenshot on an iOS device running iOS 11 or later.

Clicking on the thumbnail opens the capture in a window, which includes image Markup tools, or a clip trimming option in the case of recordings, as well as options to share the image/recording or delete it if it didn’t turn out like you wanted.

If you’re taking multiple screenshots in sequence, you probably won’t want the floating thumbnail showing up in subsequent captures, which is why the option to turn it off exists.

For additional tips on controlling the behavior of screenshots using keyboard shortcuts, click here.

Related Roundup: macOS Mojave
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Casio G-Shock GBA-800 review

Research Center:

Casio G-Shock GBA-800

Fitness trackers, for the most part, are not very attractive pieces of wearable tech. They may be cheap, but they never look quite right outside the gym. How about a hybrid smartwatch? They often provide way more functionality than a traditional fitness band, but at a steeper price.

Casio has found middle ground with the G–Shock GBA-800, which visually is obviously a G-Shock, but with all the step-tracking functionality you want from a simple fitness band. The price is realistic, and you’re getting all the usual G-Shock watch benefits — toughness, toughness, and a bit more toughness — to go along with a Bluetooth connection.

Unmistakably G-Shock

The GBA-800 is unmistakably a G-Shock. The angular, chunky, built-for-anything body is attached to a flexible strap, and the whole package is made to resist even the harshest treatment. Waterproof to 200 meters and able to withstand knocks, bangs, and long drops, you’ll have to work hard to even scratch the GBA-800. It may look over-engineered, but that’s a part of its appeal, and at least it has the brawn to match the looks.

Glance at the face and you’ll see it’s a hybrid analog, with two hands telling the time and a digital readout underneath. The display shows time, world time, stopwatch and timers, plus information on fitness levels. There’s also a circular graphic at the one o’clock position showing progress towards your daily step goal. There are four buttons on the body, each performing a different function, and a single large button to activate the backlight. There’s no touchscreen or complicated functionality here.

Put the GBA-800 on, and it’s a comfortable everyday watch. Casio has fitted a set of plastic case protector mouldings either side of the 15-hole strap, which helps it fit better around the wrist. But these often painfully catch our wrist hair. These aren’t found on the majority of G-Shock watches, so they will come as a surprise to even the most experienced G-Shock wearers. The watch is made to be worn loosely, so it never became sweaty, and despite it still being a fairly large watch, it’s compact by G-Shock standards.

Casio doesn’t seem to consider the GBA-800 unisex, and advertises it on men’s wrists. But while it’s larger than Casio’s Baby G range of G-Shock watches aimed at women, it is still smaller than most other regular full-size G-Shock watches. This means if your wrist is too slender or small for other G-Shocks, this one may still work on you. For women who don’t want the masculine design, Casio’s BGS-100 is the Baby G equivalent.

The GBA-800 is unmistakably a G-Shock.

Although we’ve been wearing the shockingly-bright lime green model, there are other versions in more muted colors out there. The combination of the green and dark grey is so funky, it’s hard to settle for the matte green or blue versions. They’re just a bit dull after looking at this one.

The GBA-800 looks like a G-Shock, and G-Shocks look like watches, not fitness trackers. This is a very good thing, and provided you pick a more everyday color, there’s no reason why you wouldn’t want to wear it everyday, with anything. Try saying that about a basic Fitbit or Misfit wearable.

Casio G-Shock GBA-800 Compared To

Tag Heuer Connected Modular 41

Mondaine Smart Helvetica

Nixon Regulus

Alpina AlpinerX

Garmin Vivoactive 3

Apple Watch Series 3

Motorola Moto 360 (2015)

LG Watch Sport

Huawei Fit

Apple Watch Series 2

Martian Passport MP100WSB

Garmin fenix 2

LG G Watch R

Martian Notifier Watch

Phosphor Touch Time

Fitness tracking and app

It’s a fairly basic fitness tracking system using a three-axis accelerometer inside the G-Shock. It’ll count your steps, estimate calorie burn, and measure exercise intensity. Using the timer, you can count the number of sets you do, and the stopwatch is there for runners who want split times and to assign targets. There’s no heart-rate monitor or sleep tracking, and the app doesn’t provide instruction, motivation, or exercise plans.

On the watch, press the Reset button to see exact step count, and features are cycled through using the Mode button. Progress is quickly visible on the graphic at the 1 o’clock position. Handily, the stopwatch is all setup using the G-Shock app, which quickly and reliably connected to iOS on our iPhone every time. This is a massive improvement over early connected Casio watches, so if you were put off early on, things have changed for the better.

The GBA-800 is the epitome of wear-and-forget tech. You don’t have to remember to start exercise routines, worry that the watch isn’t tight enough on your wrist for the heart rate monitor to register, or even to charge the watch on a regular basis. You put it on, go for a run or a workout, or just about your daily business, and get a basic indication of your activity levels. The GBA-800 isn’t for the serious fitness addict, but it doesn’t aim to be either. The chance to download stopwatch logs will make it attractive to runners though.

The app is Casio’s general G-Shock Connected app, and it looks after all G-Shock watches with a Bluetooth connection, should you own more than one. We tried the version for iOS, but were disappointed to see it still hasn’t been tweaked for native display on the iPhone X. It’s only been about 8 months, so no hurry Casio.

It’s attractive and pleasantly designed, with menus spread across the bottom of the screen, and big red text that’s easily found and tapped for more details. We like the way it’s possible to set the world time in the app, adjust step count targets, timer and stopwatch goals, and even see a visual user guide. Few other fitness apps are so concise and user-friendly. It’s not the fastest app, which seems to be a design choice, as swiping through screens is often slower than we’d like due to animations and screen fades.

Watch features and battery

What else can the watch do? Outside of telling the time, you can select an additional world time zone, and activate a phone finder with a five-second press of the Start button. There are five different alarms, which sadly have to be set on the watch rather than in the app, which would have made life easier. Everything worked as you’d expect without any problems.

Good news on the battery side. You don’t have to charge the GBA-800. It has a standard CR2016 battery inside, which is expected to last two years before it needs replacing.

Price, warranty, and availability

The G-Shock GBA-800 is reasonably priced at $100, or 120 British pounds, which puts it above cheap fitness bands from Xiaomi, but alongside some of the better looking fitness bands from Fitbit. It’s also less expensive than most smartwatches, including hybrids. It’s available directly from G-Shock’s online store, through its retail stores, and selected partner retailers. G-Shock watches have a two year warranty.

Our Take

The G-Shock GBA-800 is visually exciting, practically indestructible, and straightforward in every respect. It’s a classic G-Shock watch first, with added activity tracking to tempt you more, and it’s a massive style improvement over a cheap fitness band. A regret-free buy you’ll enjoy.

Is there a better alternative?

The world isn’t short of fitness trackers. There are dozens if not hundreds out there, at all different prices. We recommend the $25 Misfit Flash if you don’t want to spend much. Alternatively, Fitbit’s Flex 2 is the cheapest from the popular brand, costing around $60 now, while the Xiaomi Mi Band 2 or Mi Band 3 are around $35 with an importer. They’re great examples of fitness bands, but aren’t exactly stylish. We’re not denying their functionality; but the G-Shock GBA-800 has them beaten when it comes to wearability.

The Garmin Vivosmart HR+ is our pick for anyone that doesn’t want a smartwatch-style tracker, all of which cost at least $200. The Garmin is feature-packed and definitely one for fitness addicts. However, while it comes in different colors, it’s still damn ugly. The GBA-800 is better compared to hybrid watches like the Nokia Steel HR, but that’s $180. If you’re a fan of the G Shock look, the GBA-800 is the only G-Shock watch with fitness tracking.

How long will it last?

It’s a G-Shock, therefore it’ll outlast us all. The battery will only need attention every couple of years, so provided Casio maintains the app, the GBA-800 will give you many years of happy use.

Should you buy one?

Yes. The GBA-800 has that unique G-Shock style and provides basic activity tracking without any fuss, all for a sensible price. The app works perfectly, there are plenty of colors to choose from, and it’ll withstand anything up to and including light artillery fire. We actually wanted to wear the GBA-800 without worrying about daily step count, something we’ve never felt about a fitness band, showing Casio has managed to breathe a little life into the sub-$100 fitness wearable market. The GBA-800 is here so you don’t have to settle for an ugly, cheap fitness band anymore.

Win yourself an Amazon gift card ahead of Prime Day 2018

Here’s your chance!

Amazon took the wraps off of its Prime Day 2018 event today and our friends at Thrifter are giving away several Amazon gift cards to celebrate.

It couldn’t be easier to enter for your chance to win $50/£50 in Amazon credit! Simply follow the link below for your region’s contest and follow the instructions:

• Thrifter US Giveaway
• Thrifter CA Giveaway
• Thrifter UK Giveaway

This year, Amazon has a bumper Prime Day in store for us. Extended to 36 hours, the event is set to feature over a million limited-time deals. Of course, there is no way you’ll be able to keep up with all of that so the team at Thrifter will be covering all of the best deals as they happen.

Be sure to follow Thrifter on Twitter in your region — Thrifter US, Thrifter CA and Thrifter UK — to keep an eye on all the announcements and sign up for its Prime Day newsletter to get the best deals delivered directly to your inbox.