Citizen’s going to make hybrid smartwatches using Fossil’s established tech

Watchmaker Citizen will begin producing hybrid smartwatches using technology from the Fossil Group. The two companies have announced a multifaceted partnership based around hybrid watches, an area where Citizen has yet to make a splash, but Fossil is already highly accomplished.

There are three parts to the agreement. Citizen will produce movements that use Fossil’s hybrid technology, which will be sold as a component or inside complete watches. It’s not clear whether Citizen will sell this hybrid movement to companies outside its own family, or which of its own brands will use it either. Additionally, the pair will continue to work together on future smartwatch technology.

A hybrid smartwatch, in case you’re not familiar with the phrase, is a Bluetooth connected watch without a touchscreen. This enables notifications and other vibration alerts on your wrist,  along with fitness tracking features, from a device that looks exactly like a traditional watch. Fossil was one of the first to embrace hybrid technology, and we’ve enjoyed using its watches ever since. It has worked to refine the companion app, a crucial part of hybrid watch ownership, which we also hope will find its way into Citizen’s future watches.

While we have not seen a Citizen-branded smartwatch, the company has utilized Bluetooth connectivity in watches since 2006, in a similar way to competitor Casio with its connected G Shock watches. Citizen owns Swiss watch brand Frédérique Constant, which launched a complex mechanical hybrid watch under its name this year, along with another from Alpina, both to considerable acclaim. While Fossil’s technology is unlikely to be adopted by Frédérique Constant for this reason, there is a possibility Citizen will release hybrid watches under the Bulova or Caravelle names in addition to its own.

Citizen released a business plan recently, which outlined its strategy for the year and a target to double sales revenue it collected in 2012. Two of its tasks to help achieve this are to develop new customers, and develop new products and new technologies. Citizen’s CEO Toshio Tokura  clearly recognizes the opportunity with smartwatches, and states the company is serious about its plans.

There’s no indication when we will see the first hybrid smartwatches from the Citizen and Fossil Group partnership.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Fossil adds Noonlight’s emergency feature to its latest lineup of smartwatches
• Techy and trendy? That’s the new Emporio Armani Connected smartwatch
• Here’s everything announced at Samsung Galaxy Unpacked
• Apple Watch Series 4: Here’s how and where to buy it
• Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 3100 chip will finally make Google’s Wear OS competitive

These are the most popular use cases for a Raspberry Pi

The Raspberry Pi is a computer and can do almost anything a larger (and more expensive) model can. What makes the Raspberry Pi so great is it’s open nature. There are project boards from many different companies, but the Raspberry Pi Foundation provides everything needed to make this board suitable for just about any application. This means you’ll find plenty of project kits that are fun and functional once built. Here are some of the best we’ve found to get started!

For the kids

Kano Computer Kit

A Kano Computer Kit includes everything needed for a child to build a working computer, then teach them how everything works — including basic programming. It’s built specifically for kids with easy to follow instructions and you get to sit back and enjoy watching them do it all. For a child with an interest in STEM, the Kano Computer Kit is the perfect introduction.

$105 at Amazon

Retro gaming

CanaKit Raspberry Pi 3 B+ Retro Gaming Kit

A Raspberry Pi does a great job emulating your favorite retro gaming console. CanaKit’s Retro Gaming kit comes with everything you need to build a system that will take you back or show you what all the fuss is about if you didn’t experience it first-hand.

$90 at Amazon

Google Assistant

Google AIY Voice Kit

Google and the Raspberry Pi foundation have an awesome kit that lets you build your own smart home assistant out of cardboard. In just a few hours you’ll have a Google Home-style box that you built yourself!

$10 at Amazon

A Smart Camera

Google AIY Vision Kit

Google and the Raspberry Pi foundation once again have used the power of cardboard to bring you this excellent kit. This time you can build a complete intelligent camera that can even use a neural network to recognize images and patterns. Best of all, you’ll have a lot of fun learning how it all works!

$115 at Amazon

The Raspberry Pi was built as a learning tool, and one of the best ways to learn is by doing. The Pi uses standard components that are supported by several different operating systems, ranging from pre-built images you copy to an SD card to software you compiled yourself. Because it’s so well supported, it’s great for any number of fun and exciting projects. Whether this is the first time you’ve built an electronic kit or you’re a well-seasoned veteran, the Raspberry Pi offers a great base to get started with.

Looking for something fun to do that isn’t that difficult? The Google AIY Voice Kit is 90 minutes of fun to put together and you’ll feel awesome saying “OK, Google!” to something you built from scratch.

Can the Samsung Wireless Charger Duo charge older Gear smartwatches?

Best answer: The Samsung Wireless Charger Duo can charge more than just the new Galaxy Watch. It can also be used with the Gear S3 Frontier, Gear S3 Classic and Gear Sport. It isn’t guaranteed to work with any earlier Gear smartwatches.

Amazon: Samsung Wireless Charger Duo ($115)

You can also charge the Gear S3 series and Gear Sport

Samsung’s new Wireless Charger Duo was designed with the latest Samsung phones and watches in mind, but it actually has backwards compatibility with the last generation of Samsung smartwatches as well. In addition to the new Galaxy Watch, you can also charge the last-generation Gear Sport, Gear S3 Frontier and Gear S3 Classic.

The Gear Sport and both Gear S3 models will work on the new charger just fine.

All three of these older watches use the same charging system as the new Galaxy Watch, called Qi wireless charging, and can be used on one another’s chargers interchangeably. That cross compatibility extends to non-standard accessories, like the Wireless Charger Duo.

The Gear S2 series — both the standard and Classic — smartwatches also utilized Qi charging, but Samsung doesn’t guarantee compatibility with those older watches on this new charger. The standard Gear S2, in particular, won’t fit on the charger properly because of its inflexible bands. You may have a shot at getting the Gear S2 Classic to work with certain bands, but we can’t say it will work for certain.

Our pick

Samsung Wireless Charger Duo

$115 at Amazon

A nice dual charger for the last two generations of Gear smartwatches.

The Wireless Charger Duo works with the new Galaxy Watch, but also the still-great Gear Sport, Gear S3 Frontier and Gear S3 Classic smartwatches. You should not expect to use it with any earlier Gear smartwatches.

UK Deal: Save £50 off all Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL models

A huge saving off Google’s RRP for the phone.

Currys PC World has taken £50 off of Google Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL models, bringing starting prices down to just £449.

The discount applies to all models of the Google flagship phones including different colours and capacity models. Supplies seem to be pretty good as of the time of writing with free click and collect available so you could have it in your hands today. Compared to the £629 RRP direct from Google or over £500 via third-party stores at Amazon, this is a great deal.

• Google Pixel 2, 64GB – £449 (Was £499)
• Google Pixel 2, 128GB – £549 (Was £599)
• Google Pixel 2 XL, 64GB – £499 (Was £549)
• Google Pixel 2 XL, 128GB – £599 (Was £649)

These phones are unlocked to any network so you can just pop your SIM straight in. Here at Android Central we put the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL through their paces at launch, so check out our full review for everything you need to know about these handsets.

Google has a media event scheduled in New York City next week where it is expected to announce new Pixel hardware and more.

For more UK deals coverage, be sure to keep an eye on Thrifter UK, sign up for the UK newsletter and follow the team on Twitter.

See at Currys PC World

Nokia 7.1 met dubbele Zeiss-camera laat volledige gezicht zien

HMD Global staat op het punt om de nieuwe Nokia 7.1 aan te kondigen. Het mid-range toestel draait Android One en krijgt achterop een dubbele camera met Zeiss-lens mee. Gelet op de overige specificaties moet hij ondanks dat alles wel scherp geprijsd zijn.

De Nokia 7.1 krijgt volgens een bericht op WinFuture een scherm mee met een diagonaal van 5,84 inch en bovenin een notch. De toegepaste resolutie bedraagt 2244 bij 1080 pixels waarmee de verhouding uitkomt op 19:9. Ondanks dat de Nokia 7.1 een zogenaamde middenklasser is krijgt het toestel achterop toch een dubbele camera mee met Zeiss-lens.

De Nokia 7,1 in al z’n glorie

De resolutie van die dubbele schieter komt uit op 12 en 5 megapixel waarmee hij vermoedelijk scherpte/diepte effecten aan foto’s kan toevoegen. Denk aan het onscherp maken van de achtergrond (bokeh). Voorop zit volgens hetzelfde bericht een 8 megapixel camera die samen met de luidspreker de ruimte in de notch bezet houden. Binnenin de 7.1 zit een Qualcomm Snapdragon 636-processor. Dat is een eveneens mid-range chipset bestaande uit acht cores op maximaal 1,8 GHz. De basisuitvoering komt met 3 GB aan werkgeheugen en 32 GB aan opslaggeheugen. Er schijnt ook een variant te zijn met 4 GB aan RAM en 64 GB aan opslag maar of beiden tegelijkertijd te koop zijn valt te bezien.

Ontvang een e-mail wanneer de 7.1 verkrijgbaar is

E-mail

Prijskaartje Nokia 7.1

De ingebouwde batterij kent een capaciteit van 3000 mAh wat in theorie genoeg moet zijn voor een volle dag gebruik. Vooral omdat Android One niet gepaard gaat met bloatware hebben we hier goede hoop op. Qua prijskaartje komt de Nokia 7.1 mogelijk uit op 350 euro voor de 32 GB versie en 400 euro voor de variant met 64 GB aan opslag. Een mogelijke aankondiging volgt 11 oktober. Dan heeft HMD Global een persevent staat waar naast deze 7.1 mogelijk ook de 7.1 Plus aangekondigd wordt.

Google’s Voice Access app gives Android users total hands-free control

Google has launched a new app aimed at helping those with limited mobility to make full use of their smartphones and tablets.

Currently for Android only, Voice Access had been in beta for a couple of years, but ongoing development work has finally made the app suitable for a full rollout. While it’s long been possible to control elements of your Android device via voice, the app takes such functionality up a notch.

Indeed, Patrick Clary, product manager of Google’s Central Accessibility Team, points out that Voice Access offers “more fine-grained controls than other voice commands you might use on your phone — for example, letting you use your voice to ‘click’ buttons and controls within apps, or scroll and navigate app screens.”

Using only speech, Voice Access lets you navigate through all your apps, compose and edit text, and, of course, talk to Google Assistant.

Tasks are initiated through a system that places numbers (see insert) on the screen that let you tell the app where you want to begin. Settings can be changed by speaking instructions like “turn up volume,” “turn on Bluetooth,” and, when you’re done, “turn off device.”

You can also interact with the current screen by calling out gesture commands such as “scroll down,” “scroll to top,” and “swipe forwards.”

It’s all very intuitive. Editing can be performed simply by telling the app to change particular words. For example, you could request the software to “replace ‘Saturday’ with ‘tomorrow’,” after creating a sentence such as, “Shall we meet Saturday?” Likewise, if you want to delete the entirety of, say, the third line, simply say, “Delete the third line.”

A full list of commands can be found by navigating to Voice Access’ settings and selecting “Show all commands.”

Clary explains that while the app offers a wide range of benefits for individuals with conditions such as Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, arthritis, and paralysis, Voice Access could also prove useful for those who simply have their hands full, such as “people juggling with groceries or in the middle of cooking.”

In the U.S. alone, more than 50 million people have some form of mobility impairment that may impact hand function, data that suggests Voice Access will be a useful tool for many of those with an Android device.

Google’s Voice Access app is free and available globally. It supports English commands, with additional language support on the way. You can download it from Google Play here.

Editors’ Recommendations

• How to use Google Maps
• Become a master caster with these Google Chromecast tips and tricks
• The best Google Pixel tips and tricks
• How to use Android 9.0 Pie’s gesture navigation, and how to turn it off
• What is Android Auto?

Simplenote: Straightforward and reliable note taking in the cloud (Review)

Just as in any category at this point, there is a wide variety of applications for note taking in the Play Store. Applications like Evernote, Microsoft’s OneNote, and Google’s own Keep Notes are the most popular ones available, offering a plethora of tools and features. However, if all you want is to take notes in a dead-simple app with a minimal interface, astounding performance, and unlimited syncing across platforms, then you should definitely give Simplenote a chance.

Developer: Automattic, Inc
Price: Free

Setup

Upon installation of the app, you can login with your current account or sign up for a new one. In case you have a WordPress account, you can login with that as well. After logging in, Simplenote will create a new note for you with instructions tailored to the Android app.

Overview

Unlike competitors like Evernote or Google Keep Notes, the interface of Simplenote is dead simple. No notebooks, no image attachments, no grocery lists, nothing. Just a notepad and you.

Depending on the usage you want to give to it, this might be a good thing or a bad thing. If you just want a way to organize your random notes in a place while syncing them across devices (and for free!), then Simplenote is perfect for you. However, if you want more robust capabilities, then that is not what Simplenote was created for, and trying to use it in a complex workflow would just bring frustration to you.

Note Taking

As the name implies, Simplenote wants to make the note-taking process as simple as possible. This is apparent in every feature of the app. For starters, there is not even a title field or something similar. The first line of your note is used as the title automatically. After that, everything is plain text.

The good thing is that, if you want different fonts, titles and subtitles, and lists, Simplenote also supports markdown. In case you don’t know what it is, markdown syntax is a markup language that you can use to format documents. You can read more about it here. However, markdown support for a note is turned off by default, and you have to go manually into the note’s options to activate it.

This will change the interface to have a tab bar at the top: one for editing and one for previewing. This way, you can easily see how your markdown-formatted note will look. It is pretty neat and works without hiccups.

Tags

One of the flaws of the lack of notebooks or other types of categorization is that having a lot of notes starts to get disorganized pretty quickly. Simplenote’s answer to this is the addition of tags. At the bottom of the note, you can add tags to a note. Each one will then appear on the sidebar of your application, letting you filter by them.

For people coming from Evernote and OneNote, this might not seem enough. Then again, people coming from those apps are not Simplenote’s target. For people like me, who prefer a simple, streamlined, no-nonsense way of managing notes, tags are enough.

Publishing, history, and more

Regardless of the simplicity of Simplenote, it still has some tricks up its sleeve. There’s an option to publish a note, which will generate a link to it. You can then share this link and other people will be able to see it, even if they don’t have a Simplenote account. Also, you can delete this public link at any time.

There is also a Collaborate option, which lets you share a note with someone else. This will allow them to edit the note as well, similar to how Google Docs works for collaborating with documents.

In case you want to go back to a previous version of your note, Simplenote has the History option at your disposal. This takes snapshots of your notes and lets you go back in time to restore something you have done previously.

Finally, there is also a Trash, to which all your deleted notes go to die. Unlike how the Recycle Bin works in Windows or Gmail, the notes in Simplenote’s trash can are not cleared after a period of time. In order to delete them completely, you have to empty the trash, which fortunately is just a button away.

Settings

There’s a few settings that, while not truly earth-shattering, can make your experience a bit better. You can activate a “condensed note list” option, which strips away the note’s text and shows an interface with the title only. Also, you can change the sorting order of the notes. The default is “newest modified date”, but you can select options like newest created date, oldest modified date, alphabetically, among others.

For those of you who prefer a dark theme, I’m happy to tell you that, while Google shifts into making everything whiter and whiter, Simplenote offers a dark theme option. You can also change the fonts, select if links are formatted and ready for their opening in the browser of your choice, and protect the app with a custom PIN code.

Conclusion

If I have not been clear enough throughout the review, Simplenote follows the always-reliable KISS method for its app. There is no unneeded, flashy functionality. There is no power user options. There is no silly two-device limit. With Simplenote, just as with old HTML editors, what you see is what you get.

This, however, does not mean that Simplenote is a bad application or that it doesn’t have any useful features. Simple note taking, markdown support, collaboration tools, filtering through tags, and unmatched performance are all available in a package that has the accessible price of free. What more can one ask for?

Download and install Simplenote from the Google Play Store.

Here’s why you’re not getting Netflix in HD or 4K, and how to fix it

You’re home from a long day at work, you just fired up your killer 4K Ultra HD TV, and you load up your favorite show. But when you press play, it takes a while for the show to load, and when it does start playing, it looks terrible. Netflix very clearly states this show is in 4K UHD, but what you’re looking at is standard-definition at best, and “early days of streaming video” at its worst. What’s the deal?

First off, if you’ve suffered such a problem, know this: You’re not alone. The culprit could be any number of connection points, but the first place to check is your own setup. So before we start pointing fingers and blaming Netflix or evil internet service providers, let’s start with your TV and work our way backward to eliminate as many potential bottlenecks as possible. Then we’ll take a look at other factors that could be preventing you from getting the best possible Netflix experience, whether that means HD or UHD.

Go to the source

Before you bring your holy inquisition down upon your network connection and internet service provider, your first step should be checking your Netflix plan and settings. Chances are your plan supports HD streaming, but there are plans that only allow for streaming in standard def, and UHD streaming is only available on the most expensive plan, so it’s worth at least double-checking. If you’re not sure, we’ve got a clear breakdown of all plans.

If you’ve got the right plan, the next order of operation is to tweak Netflix’s streaming options. Begin by opening your account, and under the “Your Profile” section, find the Playback Settings. Here, you will see four different options: Low, Medium, High, and Auto. It’s probably obvious what those mean, but here’s a detailed breakdown of how each setting affects your picture quality (and, potentially, your data cap).

• Low: Streaming at this level will use up about 0.3 GB per hour. Streaming in low quality will force the content to play back at standard definition. This is the best option for those with poor connections, or those who are streaming with data limits.
• Medium: Medium-quality streaming will tick your data use up to around .7 GB per hour. At this limit, you’ll still be locked into standard definition.
• High: Streaming in high quality opens you up to HD and UHD streams with the proper plan, but that also means your data usage could vary quite a bit. Depending on your network, you could be using 3 GB per hour for basic 720p streaming or up to 7 GB per hour for UHD streaming.
• Auto: As the name implies, this will let your streaming quality fluctuate in accordance with your current internet speeds and network connection to provide the most stable streaming experience. With that stability, however, comes a greater likelihood of drops in quality.

If you’re streaming on any option other than High, you won’t be getting HD or UHD quality from Netflix. Be aware that any change to these settings can take up to eight hours to take effect, so if you switch and don’t notice an immediate change in your picture fidelity, be patient. Again, higher streaming resolution can impact your data plan, so be mindful of your usage if you have a data cap.

Browser limits

Not all browsers were created equal, and that’s especially true when it comes to streaming. While pretty much every popular internet browser is capable of streaming Netflix content in HD, just how HD it is will vary between browsers. Here’s a simple look at what maximum resolution each browser is capable of on a computer.

• Google Chrome: Up to 720p
• Firefox: Up to 720p
• Opera: Up to 720p
• Safari: Up to 1080p (on Macs running OS X 10.10.3 or greater)
• Microsoft Edge: Up to 4K (requires HDCP 2.2-compliant connection to a 4K display, with at least Intel’s 7th gen Core CPU, plus the latest version of Windows)
• Internet Explorer: Up to 1080p

We’re just as surprised as anyone that Internet Explorer outperforms Chrome or Firefox at anything.

Are you geared up to stream HD or UHD video?

You might be paying for a fast internet connection, but that doesn’t mean you necessarily have fast internet access. Try visiting testmy.net to see what kind of downstream speeds you’re getting. If you get anything under 10 Mbps and there is more than one device in your residence using the internet, you’ll be hard-pressed to see a full HD stream — and definitely not UHD — from Netflix, ever.

Not seeing a good number? There are several things you can do to make sure you’re getting the speeds you should, from picking the right internet plan to installing the right kind of router. We suggest checking our list of the best wireless routers to make sure you’re getting the fastest connection possible on your network.

With your home’s network in tip-top shape, you can rest easy knowing your internet pipes aren’t the ones that are clogged. With that in mind, it’s time to take a step back and consider whether the lines feeding your home are as open as they should be.

Is your ISP to blame?

After much pressure, Netflix started paying off a few ISPs, including Comcast and Suddenlink, for so-called “fast lanes,” which are meant to ensure its video streams get to its customers using those ISPs more quickly and reliably.

You could be doomed to poor Netflix picture quality…

If you’re using an internet service provider that hasn’t made some sort of arrangement with Netflix, be it a paid fast-lane agreement or through Netflix’s “open connect” program, it’s possible you could be doomed to poor Netflix picture quality — especially if you live in a large market with lots of internet users. You can consult the Netflix ISP speed website to get some idea where Netflix stands in your ISP’s graces. If it looks like your ISP ranks poorly, it’s possible — though difficult to prove — that your ISP could be throttling you and all Netflix users on its network. If you suspect that might be the case, one way to hide what you’re doing from your ISP is with a virtual private network (VPN). We have a handy guide to everything you need to know about VPNs that will likely come in handy here.

Check your watch

If you haven’t noticed, Netflix will start playing a stream sooner than it can be played at its full quality, buffering for the full-resolution version along the way. As soon as it is possible to do so, the stream will be displayed at full resolution.

If bandwidth slows down, video resolution will drop until the full-res stream is sufficiently buffered again. Ostensibly, Netflix does this to keep the load times short so you don’t feel like it’s taking forever to watch your show. This intelligent adjustment makes Netflix feel snappy, but at the wrong time of day, it can also make it look like garbage during the first few minutes of viewing.

As we experimented with Netflix quality over the course of an entire day, we discovered that the biggest factor influencing stream quality is the time of day and whether that time falls under typical peak hours for watching. You’ll want to keep peak hours (essentially prime time hours after 6 p.m.) in mind and adjust your expectations.

What else can I do?

If you know for certain your home network is solid, and the ISP you subscribe to offers good Netflix streaming speeds, yet your experience is bad, then call your ISP and report the issue. Make sure the agent knows that you know what you’re talking about before they drag you through a 45-minute scripted troubleshooting session, and cross your fingers that they will try to do something about it rather than just point a finger at Netflix.

Fortunately, this is a problem you will run into far less than you used to. On the other hand, depending on where you live, you may not have the option to switch ISPs or do anything else to get a better streaming experience. If this is the case, there isn’t much you can do aside from canceling your subscription to tell Netflix that if they can’t get you a better experience in your area, you’re not going to pay for it. Otherwise, it’s possible nothing will change.

Editors’ Recommendations

• HDR TV: What it is, and why you’ll want one
• The best streaming devices
• How much does Netflix cost? A pricing breakdown of the streaming giant’s plans
• These are the best 4K Ultra HD Blu-rays to show off your home theater
• Ultra HD Blu-ray: Everything you need to know

JLab JBuds Air review: A decent pair of cheap true wireless earbuds?

More and more flagship phones are ditching their headphone jacks, compelling many of us to join the ranks of true wireless listeners. While truly wireless earbuds tend to be more expensive than their traditional wireless counterparts, the JLab JBuds Air make a case for cheap true wireless earbuds. Sure, its sound quality doesn’t knock my socks off, but for just $49 these IP55 earbuds are hard to pass up.

Full review available at our sister site, SoundGuys.com

What is the JLab JBuds Air like?

The JLab JBuds Air truly wireless earbuds lack aptX and AAC support but stay connected within a three-meter range.

What starts with a “P” and ends in “-lastic”? Oh, right, plastic, which is what the JLab JBuds Air is made of, from the charging case to the earbuds. It may be unsightly to some, but it keeps the earbuds durable. Something that’s more difficult for me to overlook is the sheer size of the earbuds. Despite the bulbous housings, though, the ‘buds remain firmly in place when worn with the included Cush Fins.

While the JBuds Air excels in nearly every category for its price range, the omnidirectional microphone falls short of expectations.

The earbuds are IP55-certified and can withstand sweat or a spill — just don’t submerge them. These aren’t just ideal for the gym, though; outdoor running is a pleasure since the earbud shape mitigates wind noise. And while the 3.07-hour standalone battery life isn’t anything to write home about, it’s more than sufficient for most of our workout regimens. 

Headed to the gym? How long do you typically listen to music while exercising?

— Sound Guys (@realsoundguys) September 11, 2018

How do the earbuds sound?

Editor’s Pick

Best fitness trackers (September 2018)

Fitness trackers have come an extremely long way over the years. No longer are they glorified pedometers; they’re much more than that. Most standard fitness trackers nowadays can track your steps taken, distance traveled, how …

Bass notes are emphasized, which is appropriate given the exercise-oriented nature of the earbuds. Although the exaggerated bass degrades clarity, I don’t mind it as I’m not deconstructing Vivaldi’s Four Seasons; rather, I’m working out with these earbuds. To get a detailed rundown of the frequency response, read the in-depth review at SoundGuys.

Should you buy the JLab JBuds Air?

Silicone ear tips keep things comfortable, while the Cush-Fins effectively keep the ‘buds in place.

Yes, worthwhile cheap true wireless earbuds are currently few and far between, but those included with the JLab JBuds Air are unique. While the earbuds don’t provide any innovative or groundbreaking features, they function well and reliably which is what most of us want when buying cheap earbuds or headphones. Yes, the lack of aptX or AAC support is frustrating, but it makes sense at this price point. If you’ve been wanting to give true wireless a shot, but couldn’t bear the hit to your wallet, the JLab JBuds Air is an affordable, low-risk option that deserves a fair chance.

Read the full review

Buy the JLab JBuds Air at Amazon!
Affiliate disclosure: We may receive compensation in connection with your purchase of products via links on this page. The compensation received will never influence the content, topics or posts made in this blog. See our disclosure policy for more details.

Honor 8X hands-on review

Research Center:

Honor 8x

Honor has found itself in a very good position. The company has a range of phones — at least two of which are brand new this year already — and all are priced sensibly, have solid specifications, and are easy to recommend. The latest is the Honor 8X, and at first glance it seems to be another to add to the list, but the line between them all is becoming increasingly blurred, and knowing which to buy over another is difficult.

While definitely not a bad thing, we don’t want it to become complacency. We’ve been using the Honor 8X to see whether it not being drastically different to other Honor phones really matters.

Glass design

The Honor 8X is a sleek, colorful, and very capable smartphone with a large screen, an octa-core processor, dual cameras with artificial intelligence, and a price tag so low that you could put one in your hand, your partner’s hand, and even someone else’s hand for less than the price of a single new Apple iPhone XS Max. We mention Apple’s largest ever phone because the Honor 8X also has a 6.5-inch screen, with a 2,340 x 1,080 resolution here.

Replace the Honor 8X name in the above sentence for the Honor 10, the Honor Play, or to a certain extent the Huawei Mate 20 Lite, and not much will change, and you have to drill right down to find the small differences in the specification. No obvious differentiators arrive when you pick up the Honor 8X either, but it is a clear upgrade over the Honor 7X. This time it has a glass rear panel for added class. The new  design looks great — one edge reflects light differently to the rest of the back panel — and choosing between the blue and the red color is a real quandary. It’s prettier than the Honor Play, and comes close to the utter delectability of the Honor 10.

The Honor 8X is a sleek, colorful, and very capable smartphone with a large screen.

As a consequence of the screen’s 19.5:9 aspect ratio, the body is long, emphasized by the reduced chin bezel that measures 4.25mm, all for an impressive 91 percent screen-to-body ratio. The body is 7.8mm thick and like the Honor Play the edges are rounded for in-hand comfort, and the screen’s 2.5D curve means it blends into the metal body well. It’s all very polished, but there is nothing we haven’t seen before from Honor here.

At first the screen didn’t look great, a disappointment after the brilliant Honor Play, and we wondered if there was some issue with the new eye comfort mode on the Honor 8X. Honor says the 8X is the first phone to have a TÜV Rheinland-certified comfort mode to reduce blue light output. In fact, after digging through the menus we discovered Vivid viewing mode was active by default, resulting in the Honor 8X’s screen looking like an LSD trip. Pro-tip: Always check your settings, kids.

Andy Boxall/Digital Trends

Vivid mode also affected the camera, where photos took on an overly blue tinge in preview and the gallery. It’s still there a little, but this is less to do with the screen and more to do with Huawei’s artificial intelligence features in the camera.

Camera

The dual-lens rear camera has a 20-megapixel lens paired with a 2-megapixel depth-sensing lens, and the A.I. is an option activated with a special AI button. The effectiveness varies. In the worst cases, the colors are so amped up the scene becomes completely removed from reality. The best cases come when it balances out an HDR-style glow with subtly enhanced colors.

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The bokeh mode is a winner, accurately capturing edges and blurring out the background around them.

When the Honor 8X gets a photo right, it’s hard to believe the shot comes from a phone that costs so little.

There are plenty of other features to play with, ranging from a 3D portrait mode, slow-mo video, and the addition of a Night shot mode with Huawei’s image stabilization powered by AI. In our brief tests this isn’t as effective as the Huawei P20 Pro, where we saw the feature initially. It opens the shutter for around four seconds and doesn’t require a tripod, and instead uses AI to steady the shot. it’s worth experimenting with, provided you take a photo in normal mode too as sometimes the Night mode shot can be very noisy.

When the Honor 8X gets a photo right, it’s hard to believe the shot comes from a phone that costs so little, just don’t expect it to be consistent. This is true of the bokeh mode, and when taking photos in generally good lighting. It’s certainly one of the main reasons to own the Honor 8X.

Honor 8x Compared To

Sony Xperia XZ3

Moto E5 Plus

LG V30

HTC U11

Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge

YotaPhone 2

Sony Xperia Z3

HTC One Remix

Huawei Ascend Mate 2

LG G Flex

LG Optimus 4X HD

HTC One S

Samsung Galaxy S II

Google Nexus S

T-Mobile myTouch 3G

Selfies are taken with a 16-megapixel lens found in the notch above the screen, and we’ll be doing more testing to see how it fares.

Specs and other features

What else? There’s a fingerprint sensor on the back of the phone — which is mounted quite high on the body, sometimes forcing a grip adjustment to reach it — a fast face unlock feature for convenience, plus a 3,750mAh battery, a MicroSD card slot, dual-SIM, the Kirin 710 processor, and 4GB of RAM. Huawei’s GPU Turbo game tweaks are also onboard. A strong line-up, but nothing we’ve not seen before from Honor. The Android 8.1 operating system has Huawei’s EMUI 8.2 user interface over the top, so that feels very familiar too.

Downsides? Apart from the occasional camera missteps, we’re disappointed to see a Micro-USB charging port rather than a USB Type-C on the Honor 8X. We’re sure there are economic reasons why this is still being used, but we’d rather the newer port was adopted. NFC is also not a guaranteed feature in every market the Honor 8X arrives in, so Google Pay won’t always be available. It will be coming to the U.S., but the time and price has yet to be announced.

Price and availability

The Honor 8X is a strong mid-range package and it sits somewhere between 250 and 300 euros. In China it starts at around $200, which is how much the Honor 7X cost. If it can come in at this price again, it will be great value. What it doesn’t do is stand out. The 8X is Honor on cruise control, following up the Honor 7X with a safe device that if it were on a boat, it would be excel at not rocking it in the slightest. Arguably that’s all you want from a mid-range phone; but not only do we know Honor has got the talent to create talked-about phones like the Magic 2, but there’s also plenty of competition out there too.

We’re going to spend more time with the Honor 8X to see if its personality suddenly shines through, but at the moment we’d point you in the direction of the Honor Play, which as a gaming-centric phone has more of a reason-to-be than the Honor 8X, without ruining the phone for non-gamers. Yes it’s a little more expensive, but it’s a very focused and desirable product.