Microsoft Testing Revamped Version of Cortana App for iOS

Microsoft is testing a version of its Cortana app for iOS and Android devices that features a major interface overhaul and new features, according to Windows Central.

The updated app, which is being tested by beta testers, features a user interface that’s focused on conversational experiences with Cortana, along with support for music and podcast suggestions, and a focus on setting reminders, timers, and meetings.

For those unfamiliar with Cortana, it is Microsoft’s personal assistant, available on Microsoft devices and other devices through iOS and Android apps. It is equivalent to Apple’s Siri, Samsung’s Bixby, and Google’s Google Assistant.

Full release notes for the new features in the current beta are below:

– An update to the UI enabling conversational experiences with Cortana and a new place to manage and set up your Cortana devices

– Listen to music and podcasts on the go. Just ask Cortana to play your favorite tunes and podcasts with Spotify, iHeartRadio, and TuneIn on your phone or through a paired Bluetooth device

– Stay organized and on task. Set reminders, timers and create meetings with your voice

– Join your next Skype or Teams meeting by simply asking Cortana. You can also manage your calendar or send a quick email by voice

Following the beta testing period for the app, the new features with the redesigned interface will roll out to the official Cortana for iOS app. Cortana for iOS can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]

Tags: Microsoft, Cortana
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Caviar Launches $6,000+ Custom iPhone XS With Built-In Mechanical Skeleton Watch

Caviar, a site known for creating extravagant, expensive replacement casings for Apple’s iPhone models, today announced the launch of its latest custom creation, an iPhone XS with a built-in skeleton watch.

The Grand Complications Skeleton collection, inspired by luxury watches, features iPhone XS and XS Max models in titanium, pink gold, and black and gold, all of which have mechanical watch components included right in the casing.

The front of the iPhone has been left untouched, but the back features a mechanical watch with an accurate Swiss watch mechanism complemented by intricate guilloche work and matching engravings.

According to Caviar, the watch built into the customized iPhones is wound manually through a crown that’s included on the right side of the casing.

“We’ve been keeping this development as a secret for a long time, that’s why now we’re especially happy to present it to your attention. We ourselves are fascinated by the idea of meeting of the heritage of the past and the achievements of the future in the body of one device. We got used to thinking that a smartphone is all we need today and this is our whole life. But in fact, our life is not limited by the technologies only. The passage of time, majestic and implacable is still worth watching by real hands. The watch is, if we may say so, the beginning of the progress, the mechanism, from which everything has begun. This is why a mechanical watch today is a real luxury.”

Caviar is limiting the Grand Complications Skeleton iPhones to 99 pieces in each colorway, with each iPhone numbered via an engraving on the side of the device.

More details on the new Grand Complications Skeleton collection can be found on Caviar’s website. The new iPhones are priced starting at $6,320 for a 64GB titanium iPhone XS model and go up to $8,080 for a black and gold iPhone XS Max with 512GB storage.

Caviar also sells a range of other customized luxury iPhones made from unique materials and with intricate designs.
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How to Request a Copy of Your Apple ID Account Data

Apple now allows its customers to download a copy of their personally identifiable data from Apple apps and services. This can include purchase or app usage history, Apple Music and Game Center statistics, marketing history, AppleCare support history, and any data stored on Apple servers, including the likes of calendars, photos, and documents.

This article outlines the steps you need to take to request a copy of your data from Apple. As of writing, the service is available to customers in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland. If you live in a country or region that’s not listed above, you can still contact Apple to request a copy of your data.

Apple promises to fulfill all data requests within seven days. Bear in mind that the size of the data download depends on the items that you choose to include (iCloud Photo Libraries can be several gigabytes, for example), but Apple will divide it into multiple files to make the download more manageable.

How to Request a Copy of Your Apple Account Data

Open a web browser on your Mac, PC, or iPad, and navigate to privacy.apple.com. (Note: this procedure won’t work on an iPhone).

Enter your Apple ID email and password, and authorize two-factor authentication on another device if prompted.

On the Apple ID & Privacy page, click Continue.

Under “Get a copy of your data”, click Get Started.

On the next page you’ll see a list of data categories. Click the selection box next to each category that you want include in your download. You can refine inclusions from certain categories by clicking Show more to reveal sub-categories of data, or click Select All to include all your information.

Click Continue.

Using the dropdown menu on the next page, choose a maximum file size that you want to download (1GB, 2GB, 5GB, 10GB, or 25GB). Apple divides the data into files of this size or smaller. You can review your selection below the dropdown.

Click Complete Request to confirm.

Apple will email you to let you know it is preparing your data, with a reminder that this process can take up to seven days. As a security measure, Apple uses this time to verify that the request was made by you.

You can view and check check the status of your request at any time by visiting privacy.apple.com/account.

Tag: privacy
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Gear Up: Check out our favorite smart wallet options

Smart products are everywhere. Anything that we can add technology to, we usually end up doing. That ranges from everything like lights, fans, and security systems to garage doors, car chargers, and more.

Adding smart technology to otherwise dumb products can be a real game changer. No longer do we have to wonder if that shadowy figure in front of our door is a robber or sweet old grandma. Now we can unlock the front door of our home so we can get in even faster since its pouring down rain. Connected tech, in most instances, makes our lives easier.

But, there’s a different kind of tech being added to products too. It’s tech that keeps us from doing dumb things. You can see traces of this in Google’s new Android 9 Pie operating system. It includes the Digital Wellbeing app that alerts us to how much we’re actually on our phones. Smartwatches and fitness trackers can let us know where we’ve gone or how long we’ve been running, but also when we’re doing too much.

Did you know there’s tech that can keep you from losing your wallet too? If you’ve ever been lucky enough to lose your wallet or have it stolen, you know it can be a serious situation.

So, we went on a search for the best connected wallets. There isn’t a ton out there right now but we feel we’ve brought together three of the best options you can purchase right now.

Ekster Senate and Parliament

Ekster Parliament

The first two wallets we’re taking a look at are both from Ekster, the Senate and Parliament. These two don’t look like traditional wallets, but that’s actually an advantage to some consumers. Sometimes you want something just a little bit different.

Both the Senate and Parliament are a little bit bigger than your standard wallet. While they aren’t as wide, they are taller to account for the card holder inside. This card holder can house up to six cards (three if you have raised print on the cards) or the Trackr, the little device that makes these wallets smart.

Read more: Monet review: All-in-one wallet, kickstand, and phone grip

Trackr is a third-party company that Ekster teamed up with for these wallets. The Trackr device is about the size of a business card and a few centimeters thick. If features a small window for solar recharging (one charge can last three months) and a small button.

Pressing this button interacts with the Trackr app you can download from the Play Store. If you’re ever missing your phone but have your wallet, a quick press of this button will ring your phone through the app. You can also ring your wallet through the app and set up alerts to tell you when you’ve walked out of range of your wallet. You can turn these off or tell the app to not alert you when connected to your home WiFi network.

This Trackr came in especially handy in a recent situation. I asked my brother to carry the wallet and give me his impressions of it. Due to some poor driving in front of him, he, unfortunately, rear-ended a truck and his phone went flying. He remembered that he could press the button to ring his phone and he found it wedged between seats. It saved the day.

You can see the Trackr poking out of the rear card slot here.

The Trackr app has some other excellent features as well. Of course, you can use it to ring your wallet if you can’t find it. But, it also helps passively find other Trackr devices as well. As I was testing the Senate, I got an alert on my phone that I recently walked passed another Trackr-enabled product that had been lost. The app found the product and alerted its owner with an updated GPS location.

 

Back to the wallet itself, this is one of the softest leathers I’ve ever felt. I’m not a big leather person, but I never want to put this wallet down because it feels so nice. As you can see in some of the pictures, the brown is wearing rather nicely and should have a nice patina as it gets used more and more.

The biggest difference between the Senate and Parliament is the flap that allows you to store some extra cards. If you want to keep it minimal, you can grab the Senate and just throw your cards in the middle pop-up slot, which is RFID shielded. If you need a bit more, grab the Parliament.

Both wallets have the option for the cash strap that allows you to hold important papers or money. I don’t love having money exposed in this way, but it seems like the best option given the design of the wallets.

Overall, the Ekster Senate and Parliament are not only excellent smart wallets, but they’re also conversation starters. I’ve had multiple people ask me about them as I got out a card to pay. I told them what I’m about to tell you, they’re simply fantastic. Sure, you don’t need a smart wallet, but if you’re as forgetful as I am, I would definitely suggest picking one of these up for the outstanding Trackr support.

If you decide to pick up one of the wallets from Ekster’s site, they’ve provided a discount code for our readers. Just copy and paste androidguys-EKSTER to receive 15% off your order. You can also check out Ekster’s new Kickstarter campaign for its brand new wallet with voice activation tracking!

Ekster Senate purchase links: Ekster | Amazon

Ekster Parliament purchase links: Ekster | Amazon

Nomad Slim Wallet

If you’re looking for something that looks more like a standard wallet, the Nomad Slim Wallet might be for you. There are two big differences between the wallets from Nomad and Ekster; design and tracking.

As we said, the Nomad Slim Wallet looks like a regular wallet. It’s a bi-fold design that features card slots on both sides. One side houses the tracking card and one slot where I keep my license and insurance cards. The other side has four slots for your cards. I’ve found that these are big enough for one card, two if you have something small and laminated. On the back of the wallet is another slot big enough for one more card.

Read more: The world’s thinnest charger can fit in your wallet

The Nomad also uses different leather than the Ekster wallets. It uses Horween leather that doesn’t feel as soft and is pretty lightweight. Now, don’t take that as a negative because it isn’t. Sure, we love some soft leather, but I have zero doubt how well this wallet will stand up to abuse over time and how long it’ll last. It’s a quality product.

As for tracking, Nomad is teaming up with Tile for the Slim Wallet. Yep, that Tile. Tile has been one of the most popular tracking companies in recent years and makes trackers that you can stick in your bag, on your keyring, or pretty much anywhere else you can think of. This time, it’s stuck in a pocket inside the wallet and you can’t tell it is even there. While the Trackr on the Ekster wallets is tall and a little thick, the Tile tracker is much smaller and feels thinner.

There are some downsides to this though. While you can recharge the Trackr, you can’t with the Tile. Tile says the included tracking device has a year-long battery life and then you’ll need to buy a replacement. Luckily, you get a discount on your replacement.

Tile’s app is fantastic it. You get the features you’d expect like tracking, GPS location, and crowd location, as well as the ability to ring your phone from the tracker and vice versa. I love the layout and how easy it is the navigate. Everything feels intuitive.

Overall, I love the Nomad Slim Wallet. It is a fantastic intersection of classic style with modern technology. If you’re as forgetful as I am, you need a wallet with tracking because you’ll definitely leave it behind at some point. If you’re looking for something that looks traditional but offers fantastic features, the Nomad Slim Wallet is the one for you.

Nomad Slim Wallet purchase links: Nomad

Get certified with an HAI photography course!

Breaking into the photography industry can be overwhelming. Where do you start, and where do you find the time to get the required education? You need a comprehensive course that starts from the ground up, and you need to get certified once you’re finished with the course.

Learn the tricks and skills used by professional photographers! Learn more

Hollywood Art Institute has everything you’re looking for — this is a comprehensive photography course that starts with the basics and moves through everything you need to know to gain certification. This type of education, the kind needed for a lucrative career, is usually very pricey.

Right now at Android Central Digital Offers, we’re offering the Hollywood Art Institute photography course with certification for only $19. No, that’s not a typo. That’s a 99% discount from the regular price of about $2600. This course is almost free, and you’re getting everything you need for a career in photography.

In total, there are 22 separate modules that make up the course. Starting with the basics and moving to the techniques used by professionals, you’ll learn through video tutorials, articles, and ebooks, and will be able to test your knowledge with quizzes and flashcards. You will also have direct access to level 3-certified professional photographer tutors — no matter your question, they’ll have an answer.

This course, despite the 99% discount price of $19, even comes with full certification when you’ve completed all modules of the course. This is literally all you need to get started down a new career path. Access to the course remains open indefinitely, which means you can learn at your own pace.

Get lifetime access to 56 hours of content for just $19! Learn more

Have you always had a flair for photography, and now want to become a true, certified professional? With this course from the Hollywood Art Institute, you’ll be able to work around your schedule, and you won’t drown in tuition fees. This 99% discount won’t last forever! Get started today down the path of a new career.

Set yourself up for victory in Call of Duty’s new battle royale mode

Learn how to play the world’s favorite new Battle Royale game.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 has three fantastic multiplayer modes on tap. Blackout is the sole newcomer of that bunch, and we’d understand it if more than a few of you have more than a few questions. Read these tips and take what you learn into Blackout mode to see if you can survive as the last one standing.

$60 at Amazon

Blackout basics

As Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 doesn’t have much in the way of a tutorial for Blackout, let us help you. This mode is what we like to call Battle Royale.

The schtick is that there are up to 100 people dropping into a huge map, and their sole goal is to survive as the last person or team standing. That means others will be hostile in their attempts to make it to the end, making this a bloodbath from start to finish.

You’ll drop from a chopper and race to the ground to pick up your first gun, shooting anyone who threatens you and picking up better guns and more useful items on the way. Rival players aren’t the only ones gunning for you, though, with a safe zone that continues to collapse and force everyone inward until, eventually, there’s no more room to run.

You will die and fail, a lot. But don’t let that get you down. The only way to get better at Blackout is to continue playing it and trying to be a little bit better than you were the last time. That said, we have some tips that’ll give you a better fighting chance than if you were to go in blind.

Don’t use vehicles unless you absolutely have to

It isn’t often we get vehicles in a Call of Duty game, but there are a whopping four of them to use in Blackout. Land, air, and sea are all covered with a truck and ATV, helicopter, and boat providing your transportation options, respectively.

We understand it if you’d want to hop into these things and take them for a spin every chance you get, but we’d exercise caution with these things. Not only are they loud (which means you’ll be drawing the ire of any hostile bystanders), but they also leave you and your teammates pretty well exposed to gunfire, and the vehicles are also relatively weak to damage.

A fire team of even just 2 people can blow up a military truck with just dozens of rounds. Use the vehicles for desperate getaways or to escape the collapsing circle, but ditch them as soon as you can.

Learn how to land like a pro

Blackout’s skydiving is some of the most forgiving you’ll find in a battle royale game. It’s smooth and fairly easy to land exactly where you want, so long as you aim your camera roughly at the location you intend to go.

But it can be tricky when you want to land somewhere a bit of ways away from the flight path. Thankfully, it’s pretty easy to reach any corner of the map if you employ the trusty “S-Drop” technique.

As you jump from the chopper, tilt your camera downward until your character hits a swan dive and the meter on the right reads 70 miles-per-hour or faster. Once it does, pull your camera back and level your character out.

Not only will you continue to fly at comparable speeds, but you’ll also be flying horizontally. Do this in a cycle and it’s possible to go cross-country without spending too much time rocking back and forth on a parachute.

Never go without armor

Don’t go anywhere without armor if you can help it. Level 1 armor will suffice, but level 2 armor will block enough body damage to buy you some time in a firefight. Level 3 armor adds even more protection with you gaining a helmet, though you’ll have to be lucky and find this thing in a supply drop or Mystery Box if you want one.

Stay out of the danger zone

The game will warn you about this an annoying amount of times, but it bears stressing anyway: stay out of the danger zone, at least while you’re still learning the game. You’ll find that the first circle starts hitting your health bar for 2 damage per second, and late game circles do far more. You’ll be fine if you have a pocket full of meds, but then you won’t have any of those for when they really count.

Aim for the head

Headshots are everything in Blackout, especially because the most widely available armor doesn’t offer any cranial protection. Go straight for the head during firefights, because you’ll do way more damage and drop your opponents faster than they can react to your gunfire.

Pick up trauma kits for extra health

Health items are actually plentiful in Blackout. You have bandages and medkits at your disposal, but nothing is better than the trauma kit. These things not only heal you to full form any state, they actually give you an extra 50 health to bring you up to a total of 200. That’s the only way to get that much health in the game, and if you’ve seen how fast the time-to-kill is, you’ll know that every little bit helps.

Use your wingsuit for quick getaways

If you ever find yourself trapped atop a structure, cliff, or even inside a helicopter and you’re looking for a safe way down, just jump off. No, we’re not trying to nominate you for the Darwin Award. You can do this because it’s possible to redeploy your wingsuit at any point in the match. Just jump off like you normally would, only instead of tapping the A button, you hold it. How’s that for a dramatic exit?

Shoot, then look, THEN loot

You should always exercise caution when looting in any Battle Royale game, as all the gear in the world won’t mean anything if you’re dead. But that’s doubly true in Blackout because the game actively makes looting a dangerous affair.

You have to actually open enemy bags and scroll through items one by one to see what’s on them. Swapping attachments from one gun to the other requires opening your inventory screen which blocks your vision and makes you unable to move. And you have to actually look down at items to pick them up if they’re sitting on the floor instead of quickly opening a menu and looting an entire building in seconds.

Oh, and if you’re looting out in the open, go prone. Remember, you can’t move, so if anyone sees you while your head is buried in a bag you are as good as dead.

Horde all the ammo

Unlike some other games, ammo does not count toward your hard inventory space in Blackout. Ammo actually has its own place in your bag, allowing you to store massive amounts of ammunition of all types.

As such, there’s no good reason not to pick it all up. Take what you can in the early going just in case you decide to switch guns later on, and if you’re in a squad then your mates will thank you later for having the exact type of ammo they’re looking for.

Stop bombs dead in their tracks

Blackout uniquely offers a trophy system as one of the gadgets you can find lying around. These things can be lifesavers. Camping in a house? Put one on the wall to protect yourself from enemies who might have the sense to chuck a grenade in there.

You can get even cheekier with the thing and attach it to your vehicle. This effectively shields you from any incoming projectiles like, say, a massive rocket. Save some inventory space to store one of these and use it at the right moments to save yourself from unsuspected objects flying your way.

Fix Blackout’s awful looting button

Annoyingly enough, Blackout’s default control scheme has you holding down the X button to pick up loot. Thankfully, Treyarch added an option to change the looting mechanism to a tap mechanic instead. This will make it much more natural and quick to pick items up.

There is a downside to this option, however: if you need to reload while you’re near items, it’ll favor picking up the item over the reload. This can be a deadly downside in a lengthy firefight, so only exercise this option if you’re comfortable with the risk.

Grab a gift from the sky

Seeing an airplane in other Battle Royale games is a common event, but it’s rare you’ll benefit from it unless you’re just this unkillable specimen of a gamer. Instead of chasing down supply drops that have surely either been looted or is being watched by snipers by the time you get there, try to knock one out of the sky. It’s possible if you’ve found the Hellion rocket launcher, so next time you thought you saw a bird, a plane, or some other strange flying object over your head, let her rip.

Use your items without skipping a beat

As dangerous as it is to go into your inventory, you should know that you don’t have to enter that menu to use gadgets, throwables, consumables, and perks. Simply press up on the d-pad and scroll left or right to access all these items on the fly. Press X to equip your preferred medical equipment, gadgets, and throwables, and hold X when hovered over a perk to activate it. You could even do all of this while in full sprint.

You can run and heal at the same time

Building on the previous tip, let us be perfectly clear that you can use and activate any item in your d-pad menu while moving, including healing items. This means it’ll be much easier to heal while trying to escape the danger zone or in the middle of an intense firefight. Keep moving and don’t stop healing!

Don’t overindulge on perks

Yes, Blackout has perks, and you’ll want to use them as much as you can. But don’t get too crazy picking all of them up and activating them, though. Not only does each perk take up one whole inventory slot, but that inventory slot stays filled throughout the entirety of its duration when activated.

So don’t overindulge. Pick up only what you need, and activate them when it makes the most sense. Some of the perks are highly situational. You won’t need Looter — which lets you see loot through walls — if you’re in the late game and out in the desert, while those who aren’t sniping can ditch the Iron Lungs perk which steadies your aim through a sniper scope (and also lets you hold your breath underwater longer, though that part of it isn’t quite as useful). It’s up to you to decide which scenarios call for which perks and when to pop them, so figure out your preferred playstyle and plan accordingly.

Find stronger weapons (and zombies) at the Mystery Box

Look in the sky and look for a beam of light erecting toward it: there are zombies there, but more importantly, there’s also guaranteed to be a Mystery Box. This little relic from the Zombies mode in Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 will grant you some decent weapons, and if you’re lucky you’ll even find crazy stuff like a ray gun.

The catch is that you’ll need to kill a horde of zombies in that area before the box can open, an act which not only consumes ammo but also makes a ton of noise. It can be worth the risk, though. Grab a cymbal monkey to attract the zombies and blow it up once they’ve huddled around it to make the killings a little bit easier. Snag the weapon and the box will be on its way to another random location.

And if you’re beyond the first few collapses of the safe zone, don’t even think about it. The zombies get stronger the longer the game goes, and you don’t want to be messing around with them when more deadly foes are sure to be right around the corner.

PS: There’s a chance for zombies to drop classic World War 2 weapons, so be on the lookout for those if you want some throwback fun.

Create your own rolling early detection system

This last little trick is worth trying for the cool factor alone, but it’s also damned helpful in a game where information is key. If you find an RC car, take it without hesitation. You can roll it up a hill and around a corner to scope out an area without putting yourself in harm’s way. It’ll be just like Home Alone, only without the terribly neglective parents and dirtbag criminals looking to capture the world’s cutest boy.

Now, if you are really lucky and also come across a sensor dart, you can attach the dart to the RC car and have yourself a rolling enemy detection system that’ll expose anyone in and around the thing. You can also do the same thing to an actual vehicle, though if you’ve been paying attention to now you’ll know that we wouldn’t advise using one of those for too long.

Don’t give up!

Most importantly, don’t let your first few or 10 or 100 games get you down. It’s tough to win a battle royale, and even the best players will eventually fall short of the mark. Just remember that Blackout is all about having fun, going as far as you can, and learning from each game you play,

So, our final tip to you is to shake those bad feelings off you’ll inevitably get after a loss and hop right into the next one. The fun of it all is that no two games are quite the same, so you never know what could end up happening in your next session. Have fun!

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

Panasonic RP-HD605N Headphones review: The Bose QC35’s cheaper cousin

Panasonic’s entry into noise-canceling headphones is surprisingly great.

If you own a pair of noise-canceling headphones, there’s a really good chance that they’re made by either Sony or Bose. These two companies have dominated this market with products like the WH1000XM3 and QC35 II, and in an attempt to undercut these two giants, Panasonic decided to enter the ring with its more affordable RP-HD605N headphones.

Panasonic’s goal with the RP-HD605N is to deliver a pair of high-quality wireless headphones that look good and sound great for less money than what you’d pay on a competing pair from either Bose or Sony.

Believe it or not, Panasonic actually seems to have achieved that goal — by quite a lot, too.

A solid choice

Panasonic RP-HD605N

$222 – $299 at Amazon

A great, cheaper alternative to the Bose QC35.

Panasonic isn’t the first name that comes to mind when you think of noise-canceling headphones, but after you use the RP-HD605N, that’ll soon change. These puppies offer great sound, a solid design, and more for at least $50 less than what Bose and Sony have to offer.

Pros

• Really great sound
• Up to 20 hours of batter per charge
• Noise canceling works quite well
• Fun passthrough feature

Cons

• Charges via microUSB
• The Bose QC35 II and Sony WH1000XM3 are just $50 more

Panasonic RP-HD605N What I like

Going into this review, I honestly wasn’t expecting too much out of the RP-HD605N. Panasonic’s not really well-known for great, premium headphones, but after spending some time with the RP-HD605N, I’m thrilled to say that they exceeded my expectations.

In regards to the design and fit, the Panasonic RP-HD605N are a lot sleeker than the name would suggest. There’s very minimalistic Panasonic branding on both earcups, MemoryFoam cushions around the speakers, and a big, cushy leather headband up top.

Adjusting the length of the headphones is as easy as pulling down on the speaker units, and when it comes time to turn your music off, you can easily swivel the headphones up into themselves for compact storage in the included carrying case.

Wearing the RP-HD605N, they felt a bit tighter on my head compared to the Bose QC35s. However, after playing around with the length and wearing them for a couple of days, I ended up really liking how they feel. The leather surrounding the earcups and headband does a great job at allowing you to listen for hours on end. The right speaker offers easy controls for your volume, noise canceling, and power.

As for listening to music on the RP-HD605N, this is another area that caught me off guard. Boy, do these things sound good!

Sound quality and noise cancelation is right up there with Bose and Sony.

I find that the sound on the QC35 II is a bit more balanced and accurate, but the RP-HD605N sound mighty nice. Bass is plenty strong (if a tad too much at times), the volume is plenty loud, and everything from podcasts to Trench just sounds awesome.

When it comes to the noise cancelation, Panasonic gives you three different stages/levels to choose from to help you find the perfect fit. Although not quite as impressive as what Bose and Sony have achieved, the noise canceling here still works darn well and isn’t anything to complain about in the slightest.

Similar to some Sony headphones, the RP-HD605N come with a feature called Ambient Sound Enhancer that allows you to put your hand over the right speaker housing to temporarily allow ambient noise to pass through the headphones so you can hear what’s going on. You need to apply a small amount of force in order for this to work, but when it does, it’s almost like magic and something that could really come in handy if you want to talk to someone quickly without having to take your headphones off.

Panasonic RP-HD605N What I don’t like

What don’t I like about the Panasonic RP-HD605N? Admittedly, not much.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again — premium headphones in 2018 should absolutely use USB-C for charging instead of microUSB. The Bose QC35 II don’t do this and neither do the Panasonic RP-HD605N.

This is far from a dealbreaker, but it is annoying to have to once again make sure you’ve got a microUSB cable when most of our other gadgets have already adopted the newer USB-C standard.

Should you buy the Panasonic RP-HD605N? Sure!

Overall, I’m quite impressed with what Panasonic’s cranked out here. The RP-HD605N sounds like the unsexiest pair of headphones you could imagine, but in real world use, they’re surprisingly comparable to the Bose QC35 II and Sony WH1000XM3.

The RP-HD605N are a good buy at the retail price of $299, and for some people that savings of $50 over Bose and Sony’s options is a big deal. If you can afford to spend the extra money, however, you will be able to get headphones that offer a better overall experience.

At the time of publishing this review, the black variant of the RP-HD605N are going for just $222 on Amazon. I’d argue that Bose and Sony’s latest headphones offer $50 more in their fit, finish, and features, but definitely not almost $130 more.

4
out of 5

The Panasonic RP-HD605N are worth looking into at their normal pricing, but if you can find a deal like the one going on now, you’d be a fool to not scoop them up.

See at Amazon

Nest Secure vs. Vivint home security: Which should you buy?

We’re a virtual company made up of tech experts from across the globe. We work from home and need to keep our belongings, both personal and work-related safe. We care about home security because we have to care about it.

Nest Secure

DIY and advanced

$399 at Best Buy

Pros

• No-tool installation.
• Tight Nest and Google Assistant integration.
• Modular.
• Nest Secure is optional.
• “Off-the-shelf” components.

Cons

• Initial expense.
• Basic package is bare-bones.

The Nest Secure package is one of the best DIY home security solutions you’ll find. It’s easy to install without drilling holes and easy to setup. You’ll probably have to buy more pieces and will still end up with a monthly fee, though.

Vivint home security

Professional option

Call 855-668-7885 for quote

Pros

• Customized and complete package.
• Professional installation and monitoring.
• Smart integration and mobile apps.

Cons

• Drilling holes is semi-permanent.
• Contract required.

Vivint home security is a professionally installed smart home security system. You’ll be quoted a monthly price that includes professional monitoring, but it requires a lenghtly service contract.

Do you DIY?

Nest Secure and Vivint home security both are able to monitor and protect your home the way you want it monitored, but the journey there is completely different.

Nest Secure is a modular DIY system that you can install yourself without any tools (it’s perfect for renters) and add any cameras or extra sensors as you need them. Vivnet home security, on the other hand, is a professionally installed and monitored service that’s part of Vivnet SmartHome. The installation is done at your convienence and is free, but it’s also semi-permenant like any good professionally installed system will be.

Indoor and outdoor components	Yes	Yes
Mobile access	Yes	Yes
Smart home integration	Yes	Yes
Warranty	Two years	Lifetime
Installation	DIY	Professional
Monthly service plan	Optional	Required (3 – 5 years)

The big difference between Nest Secure and Vivint is the buying process. You’ll find that most users of both products are very happy with them and once up and running they each work well in your smart home. But like reaching Nirvana, the journey there is the important part.

Nest Secure comes as an expensive base package with a Nest Guard, Nest Tags, and two Nest Detect sensors. While this is a pretty bare-bones system, you can add cameras, more sensors, range extenders, even smart camera-equipped doorbells as needed at any time. The base station also acts as a siren, and a monthly subscription to Nest Aware, a professional monitoring service through Brinks, is entirely optional.

Vivint doesn’t offer any DIY options. You call the company and speak with a specialist to get a security system that’s exactly what you want and need, then schedule a convienent time to have a professional come install it. The initial cost can vary wildly, but the company’s 0% financing option can help. You are required to have a monthly service plan which starts at $40 per month. The length of this contract runs from 3 to 5 years, depending on your pricing.

When everything is said and done, you’ll have a smart (Nest Secure works with Nest and Google Assistant while Vivint works with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa) home system that works exactly the way you like. That’s the important part. It all depends on how you want to get to that state.

If you’re renting, Vivint probably isn’t going to be an option. Technically the pieces can be removed and the system reinstalled in another place (which is not advised by the company or any reputable contractor I could find) but then you’re left with holes to patch and walls to paint.

If you own your home and plan to stay there forever, decide if you want the fun — and frustration — that comes with a DIY system. Once you’re done buying all the essentials to round out a basic Nest Secure package things will get very pricey, and it’s our opinion that a monthly Nest Aware subscription is almost a must-have with a Nest Secure. But you’re not signing a contract to do so, and that matters.

Nest Secure

DIY and advanced

$399 at Best Buy

Do it your way, yourself

Nest Secure offers the potential to be an outstanding home security system that integrates into any smart home. You’ll just have to figure out what you need and install it yourself.

Vivint home security

Professional option

Call 855-668-7885 for quote

The pro option

Vivint home security is a custom, professionally installed home security system built with your needs in mind. You will need to sign a multi-year contract for service with the company, though.

Google Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL review: The Android iPhone

Historically, Android sat in diametric opposition to iOS. Where Google’s Nexus phones offered cheaper price points and endless customization, the iPhone was expensive and locked down. Apple had a great camera, Android did not. One was built for developers and enthusiasts, and the other for the mass market.

With the Pixel line, Google is basically making the Android equivalent of the iPhone.

Nowhere is this more obvious than Android Pie on the new Pixel 3. As I said in my Android 9 review a little while back, the new Android feels like it’s losing touch with its tinkerer roots, heading further and further down the fully automated path that has proven so successful for Apple. The “it just works” mantra applies to the Pixel 3 just as easily as the iPhone.

Controlling the hardware and software stack finally allows Google to create something none of its Android partners can: a real challenger to the iPhone.

The most iPhone-like part of the Pixel series is undoubtedly Google’s approach to the camera. Where other Android phones offer all manner of advanced features, preset modes, and added extras, the Pixel camera “just works.” The Pixel line is the Pixel camera. The phone is just a vehicle for getting that camera out there.

With the Pixel line, Google is basically making the Android equivalent of the iPhone.

The Pixel 3’s price tag will seem outrageous to some, given its position on the spectrum of high-end hardware. With the Pixel line, you’re not buying a specs sheet. You’re buying a camera first and superior software second. The Pixel 3 on Pie is the least Android-like Android phone I’ve ever seen, but it puts forth a very compelling case for why this is the way forward. This is the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL review.

About this Google Pixel 3 review: I, Kris Carlon, have been using the Pixel 3 for eight days on Project Fi in NYC. Lanh Nguyen has been using the Pixel 3 XL for the same amount of time on the T-Mobile network in Kansas City. Both devices are running Android 9 Pie with build number PD1A.180720.030 and the September 5 security patch. Both devices were temporarily provided to Android Authority by Google. We’ll add review scores once we’ve put both devices through our full suite of lab tests with final software.

Design

The Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL are perhaps the best-looking smartphones Google has ever produced. Where the original Pixel hardware was garbage and the Pixel 2 hardware looked dated even at launch, the Pixel 3 looks a lot more like a contemporary product.

The phone is still very much infused with Pixel DNA, with the two-tone back, single camera lens, and recognizable but unassuming design. The shift to an all-glass back is great, with a matte soft-touch treatment on the bottom section of Gorilla Glass 5. Wireless charging is now possible and fingerprints are much less of a problem. Gorilla Glass 5 also coats the display.

The changes are subtle, but the new phones feel more premium than previous Pixels.

The blocky edges of the Pixel 2 phones are gone, replaced by rounded aluminum rails. The smaller Pixel 3 is five grams heavier than the Pixel 2, and this year’s XL model weighs nine grams more than last year’s version. Even ignoring the slight bump in weight, the design of the new phones feels more premium than previous Pixels.

The single SIM tray now lives on the bottom of the phone, right next to the USB Type-C charging port with USB 3.1 and Power Delivery 2.0 support. The right-hand side features the volume and power buttons, the latter of which gets a colored accent on all but the black Pixel. There’s nothing else anywhere on the edges barring a pinhole mic up top. Active Edge is again included, so you can squeeze the Pixel 3 to summon the Google Assistant. The haptics on the Pixel 3 are top-notch too, right up there with the iPhone. In terms of color options, you’ve got Clearly White, Just Black and Not Pink.

Display

The display is perhaps the most contentious design aspect of the new Pixel phones, with the larger Pixel 3 XL sporting the most atrociously large notch ever made. It is huge, ugly, and intrusive. If, like most of us, you have been able to eventually get past the notch on other phones, you will be able to do it here, but it will take some time.

If the presence of a notch means you won’t buy a phone, period, you’ll be pleased to know the smaller Pixel 3 doesn’t have one. Besides the smaller screen and battery, the smaller Pixel 3 is otherwise identical to the larger 3 XL.

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Fortunately, Google has promised to provide an official option to hide the notch in an upcoming software patch. In the meantime, you can use a setting in the developer options to camouflage it (notifications will appear below the filled-in areas though).

No matter which way you cut it, the solution is awkward:

Accept the notch. You’ll have barely enough room for notifications or status bar icons.
Use the developer options to hide it and your icons will be pushed down, meaning the space is wasted.
Wait for Google’s fix which will deliver the same issue as above, just on a black background.

The Pixel 3 has a 5.5-inch Full HD+ P-OLED display with a 18:9 aspect ratio and 443 ppi. That’s a noticeably larger screen than the very similarly sized Pixel 2 which had a 5-inch Full HD AMOLED screen with the traditional 16:9 aspect ratio. Gesture navigation is enabled by default.

The Pixel 3 XL has a 6.3-inch notched QHD+ P-OLED display with a 18.5:9 aspect ratio and 523 ppi. For reference, the Pixel 2 XL already had a P-OLED panel with QHD+ resolution and newer 18:9 aspect ratio, but it only measured six inches on the diagonal and had no notch.

The P-OLED displays on both are great. We’ve seen no evidence of the blue shift that tainted the Pixel 2 XL, and they feel very close in quality to each other. We noticed a very slight difference in color temperature but the difference is minimal.

The new P-OLED displays are great. We’ve seen no evidence of the issues that tainted the Pixel 2 XL.

You can adjust the level of color saturation in the settings, but all new Pixels ship with what Google’s calling Adaptive display enabled by default. Adaptive display is the most saturated of the three options but it does its best not to oversaturate skin tones.

The new Pixels have HDR support with UHDA certification. They’ve got a 100,000:1 contrast ratio covering 100 percent of the DCI-P3 color space (which supports a wider color gamut than sRGB) for full 24-bit depth.

The display brightness is a little concerning, at just over 400 nits. In outdoor daylight you’ll almost always need to have the screen set at 100 percent to guarantee legibility. The Pixel 3 slider just doesn’t seem to get very bright at all until you’re past 50 percent, and 80 percent is the bare minimum we’d recommend outside. Of course, this means your battery life will take a hit if you’re outdoors a lot. More on that later.

Hardware

You’ll find stereo front-facing speakers on both phones. On the Pixel 3 XL they’re different sizes but on the Pixel 3 they’re the same. The speaker below the display is more powerful, which makes the stereo audio experience a little lopsided. The speakers get pretty loud but the audio is a little flat, lacking in the low end and still getting distorted at higher volumes. As with most smartphones, I wouldn’t recommend maxing them out if you actually like music.

As smartphone speakers go, they’re perfectly serviceable but are far from the best around. The back of the phone vibrates noticeably when playing music too, and even though they’re relatively loud in a quiet room, don’t expect to hear them clearly in a crowded space. They’re less tinny than the Pixel 2 speakers at least.

The USB-C wired Pixel Buds provide a much better audio experience. Google isn’t in the habit of bundling earbuds with its phones, so this is a big deal for that reason alone. They’re basically a dumb version of the wireless Pixel Buds with the earpiece controls replaced by an in-line remote, but they’re still nice headphones and above average for bundled earphones. The fitting method with the expandable loops is reliable but they do get a little uncomfortable if you’re wearing them for long periods at a stretch.

The wired Pixel Buds come with several nifty Google tricks.

The Pixel Buds support Google Assistant, so you can interact via the headphones without looking at your phone. Of course, voice-activated search on your phone fulfills the same need but having responses fed into your ear, rather than to everyone in your vicinity, is handy.

The in-line remote is pretty basic, with up and down volume controls and a single multi-purpose button in the middle. Long press it to summon the Assistant, press it once to play or pause music, twice to skip to the next song and three times to go back to the previous song.

The wired Pixel Buds are surprisingly good for bundled earphones, and they have several tricks up their sleeve.

If you want the Assistant to read your notifications to you through the Pixel Buds, you’ll need to grant the Google app access to read all your incoming notifications. This might be a bridge too far for some, but if you’ve already given your entire life over to Google the feature is very handy, especially if you’re always wearing headphones. The Pixel Buds also let you respond to incoming texts with your voice, hear calendar reminders, listen to emails, and receive voice navigation in a less noticeable way.

Both Pixel 3s have an improved water-resistance rating at IP68, bringing them up to par with the rest of the flagship crop. Other notable additions this year include wireless charging and fast wired charging. As with previous Pixel phones, these come with NFC, a reliable and quick rear-facing capacitive fingerprint scanner, e-SIM, Bluetooth 5, and they support several advanced audio codecs including aptX HD and LDAC.

The box also includes a USB Type-C to 3.5mm dongle for wired headphones and a USB Type-A to Type-C adapter.

Performance

The 4GB of RAM will be a sticking point for many, but in my solid week with the Pixel 3 I haven’t noticed any problems. On the contrary, the Pixel 3 is perhaps the smoothest, most buttery Android phone I’ve ever used.

Google doesn’t need tons of RAM to make Android run smoothly on a Pixel phone. Having 4GB of RAM might be a problem in two years, but the out-of-the-box experience is smooth, fluid and reliable. I’d say the Pixel 3’s touch response is on par with the iPhone and better than a Samsung or LG phone.

Google doesn’t need tons of RAM to make Android run smoothly on a Pixel phone.

The Pixel line has never been about high-end specs across the board, so if you’re a fan of phones like the OnePlus 6 or Razer Phone 2, you likely won’t be impressed. Despite sticking with the same amount of RAM, Google has made the jump to the 10nm Snapdragon 845 mobile platform with the Adreno 630 GPU for more demanding tasks and gameplay. The Pixel Visual Core has also been upgraded.

Performance is always a little hard to judge straight out of the box, as it typically deteriorates over time, but in the first week, I’ve been very impressed with the Pixel 3. It may not be the most powerful Android phone on the market but it is definitely the smoothest.

Here are the benchmark results for both devices.

Pixel 3 XL:

Pixel 3:

Battery

As usual, battery life is the Pixel 3’s downfall. There is a larger battery in the smaller Pixel 3 – from 2,700mAh in the Pixel 2 to 2,915mAh in the Pixel 3 – and a slightly smaller one in the Pixel 3 XL – from 3,520mAh in the Pixel 2 XL to 3,430mAh. Regardless, neither will knock your socks off.

As usual, battery life is the Pixel 3’s downfall.

With the Pixel 3 we averaged around 4-5 hours of screen-on time, with the brightness set to somewhere between 50 percent and full blast. That was on what we would consider normal days. When I went out to shoot a ton of photos, with the screen brightness set at 100 percent and the camera app open frequently, I barely scraped by with three and a half hours. The Pixel 3 XL achieved similar results on normal days, with screen-on time averaging around 3.5-4.5 hours with brightness set around 75 percent or on auto.

The Pixel 3’s battery management is good when the battery starts to deplete. I reliably got another hour of screen-on time when I had 25 percent remaining. The first 15 percent of battery life seems to vanish very rapidly though with the remainder depleting more consistently.

Pixel 3:

Pixel 3 XL:

The new battery saver mode not only restricts background app activity and server pings, it also applies a dark mode to select apps and UI elements. It’s not the full system-wide dark mode many of us have been waiting on for years, but it’s something. If nothing else, it’s a nice bonus when your battery gets low.

Charging is speedy with the included 9V/2A 18W wall charger, and the optional Pixel Stand – which retails for $79 – can provide wireless 10W charging. The Pixel Stand also essentially turns your Pixel 3 into a Google Home by changing the way it acts when docked. You can use it as a sunrise alarm, automatically enter Do Not Disturb mode, or use it to display digital photos when you’re not using it, all while having Google Assistant at your beck and call whenever you need it. Read David’s full Google Pixel Stand review for more.

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Software

Downtime is becoming an increasingly important part of the smartphone experience, with both Apple and Google pushing for better phone-life balance. In Android Pie it’s called Digital Wellbeing and it’s significant enough to get its own dedicated space in the settings menu.

It’s supposed to help you track and limit your app activity with timers and over-use reminders. In some ways, it feels like this almost gamifies app usage and you’ll need to actually stick to your limits to truly benefit. For those committed to making a change, though, it’s a welcome addition. Once your app time limit is up, the icon will turn gray and you won’t be able to access it again until the next day. Unless you just hop in the settings and change your time limit, that is.

Downtime is becoming an increasingly important part of the smartphone experience.

Digital Wellbeing also lets you set a Wind Down schedule so you can more easily disengage as the night wears on. Night Light will reduce your screen’s blue light emissions after sunset (or at any time you want it on) and once Wind Down starts your screen will turn to grayscale to remind you it’s almost time for bed. You can also add a grayscale toggle to your Quick Settings and flip it on any time you like.

Digital Wellbeing is the new home for Do Not Disturb mode. Both it and Wind Down will limit your visual and audio notifications to help you get a proper sleep or focus on what you need to. In the morning, your phone will return to normal. You can even wake up to a digital sunrise courtesy of the Pixel 3’s screen displaying warm tones that gradually increase in brightness.

The Pixel Stand also encourages you to set your Pixel 3 to Do Not Disturb mode when docked. Routines can be set to automate parts of your day, again requiring less interaction with your phone. Google really wants you interacting with the Assistant with your voice as much as possible, so Google services are only ever a voice command away, even when your phone is not in your hands.

I guess my accent threw the Assistant for a loop, because I simply could not get it to understand either “time to wind down” or “start wind down mode.” I found it much easier to either just schedule Wind Down or toggle on grayscale and enable Shhh mode instead. With Shhh enabled, any time you place your phone face down it automatically enters Do Not Disturb until you pick it up, with no visible, audible or haptic notifications interrupting you.

The other big deal with the Pixel 3 software is the new call screening feature, where Google’s Duplex can answer potential spam calls for you. You’ll get a live transcription of the call so you can answer if you need to, and you can let Duplex know what kind of message to send for you. While this is undeniably cool, it seems like a fail if you’re sitting there watching a live transcription of a spam call and still forced to pay attention. Letting Duplex handle things entirely on its own is the ideal here.

The Pixel 3 can answer spam calls on your behalf thanks to Google’s Duplex.

Gmail on mobile now has the Smart Reply feature which is handy, if a little robotic. If you typically use the next suggested words on your predictive keyboard you’ll probably like this. If you normally just keep on typing away, you’ll probably just ignore it. Smart Reply for Android Messages is also available both in-app and from the notifications shade. Duo has been baked into the dialer but I didn’t use it before so I didn’t use it now.

The rest of the Pixel 3 software experience is a continuation from Android 9 Pie, and the bulk of it you can read about in our Android 9 Pie review. A couple of features have returned, like Active Edge for launching Google Assistant, and some are coming soon, like Smart Pair 2.0 which will make pairing Bluetooth peripherals a simpler and more secure affair. Likewise, Driving Mode will be automatically initiated when you get in a car, but that won’t be available until the Pixel 3 hits shelves.

Camera

The Pixel 3 camera on the back remains a solo shooter, but this year there are two cameras on the front. The front-facing cameras are both 8MP sensors, with a regular and wide-angle lens. The regular lens has f/1.8 aperture, a 75 degree field of view and phase-detection autofocus, while the wide-angle lens has f/2.2 aperture, a 97-degree field of view and fixed focal length.

While the wide-angle camera up front is a welcome addition, it is an unusual surrender.

While the wide-angle camera up front is a welcome addition, it is an unusual surrender to additional hardware. Google is famous for successfully staving off the need for a second rear camera thanks to superior software. It’s a little jarring to see the company renowned for finding software solutions cave into a second lens. I’m a little surprised Google didn’t just add a wide-angle lens on a larger sensor it could then crop into for “regular” selfies.

The good news is the photos from both front-facing cameras are quite good. There’s a nice amount of detail without any of that horrendous smoothing or beauty mode you get on almost all front-facing cameras, often by default. There are face retouching settings if you’re into them, but I prefer the cracks and wrinkles of reality. I noticed shifts in color balance between the two lenses, but this is often the case on dual camera systems. For all the benefits two front-facing cameras offer, I still think a single wide-angle lens would’ve made more sense.

One of my favorite camera modes on the Pixel 3 is Top Shot, which works on both the front and rear-facing camera. Top Shot records a second and a half burst of shots before and after you press the shutter. This means you can choose a frame from what is essentially your Motion Photos clip if you happen to miss the decisive moment.

When triggered, Top Shot will pop up a notification to let you know there are better options available, and you can swipe up to see what it recommends or choose any of the frames from within the clip. Alternate images won’t have resolution as high as the original shot, but if it saves you a photo with closed eyes or a blurred subject it’s not a bad price to pay.

Top Shot requires Motion Photos to work, so you’ll need it either set to Auto or On. I’d recommend keeping it set to On. On Auto it only seems to activate reliably when faced with a moving subject. But that means you can’t always rely on it to work if your subject blinked, so it’s better to just leave it On.

The hardware for the main camera is mostly the same, although Google tells us the Pixel 3’s main sensor has been upgraded. The primary camera is a 12.2MP dual-pixel sensor with 1.4-micron pixels and dual-pixel phase detection autofocus. An optically stabilized f/1.8 aperture lens sits on top with a 76-degree field of view with a flicker sensor added to limit banding under certain lighting conditions.

Google’s excellent electronic image stabilization backs up the OIS for even smoother images and footage. Compared to the Pixel 2, the Pixel 3’s video is less “bobby” when walking and that added smoothness also pays off when panning to the side, with a less janky experience. All in all, video on the Pixel 3 is better.

Both the front and rear-facing cameras can shoot 1080p video at 30fps but only the main camera can shoot at 60fps and 120fps. If you want to drop your video resolution down to 720p you can even shoot at 240fps.

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Google’s subject tracking feature also comes in for handy for shooting video or just photos. Subject tracking is hardly new, but it works a treat when shooting video or multiple photos of a moving subject. Simply tap the screen to focus on your subject and even if they or you move around they’ll remain in focus. I really like this feature and it works just as advertised.

As you probably would expect, photos from the Pixel 3 are excellent. They have excellent dynamic range, beautiful color reproduction, natural detail, and they come out as reliably good as any camera anywhere. The Pixel 3 supports RAW capture now too.

This is what the Google Pixel camera is all about: producing excellent, reliable photos every time with just one button and no worries. There is literally no learning curve with the Pixel camera, just launch it and shoot.

Popular modes like panorama and portrait mode have moved from the hamburger menu into a swipeable camera modes menu just above the shutter. It’s a much better setup to previous Google camera app layouts and encourages use of more than just the standard camera and video mode.

A “More” menu sits to the far right of the camera app now, providing access to less important modes like Photo Sphere, slow motion, photobooth, playground, settings, and Google Lens (which can also be activated by long-pressing your subject in the viewfinder).

The Pixel camera is all about producing excellent, reliable photos every time with just one button.

Photobooth basically just auto-snaps photos based on the intensity of the smiles and laughter the camera sees. A meter appears on the side of the viewfinder so you can see how close you are to being “happy enough.” To my mind this kind of felt forced, and regularly missed natural smiles. Unless you’re consistently over-the-top with your selfie emotions, Photobooth won’t always take the shot.

Playground is basically just an AR mode where you can place characters from Marvel and Stranger Things into your shots. It’s fun and fairly well executed, but pretty gimmicky and not something you’ll likely use much.

In the daytime, the Pixel 3 shoots immaculate photos, as Pixels always have. Take a look at the sample gallery below if you want to check out the uncompressed originals, just click here.

You still get free unlimited original quality image storage when you buy a Pixel 3, but that free upload only lasts for three years. The photos you uploaded at full resolution will remain at full-res, but you will have to switch to Photos’ “high quality” uploads after that date. For what it’s worth, Google has also updated its previous Pixel limits: unlimited original quality uploads from your original Pixel until 2020 and until 2021 for the Pixel 2.

Google Lens is back, letting you run visual searches from within the Pixel 3 camera app. I’ve never been a fan of granting Google access to all my viewfinder searches (especially considering I accidentally trigger Lens all the time) so I didn’t use it.

One thing I really liked was Lens suggestions, which provides on-device shortcuts when you put a QR code, business card or URL in the viewfinder. If there’s a phone number visible, the Pixel Visual Core will suggest the dialer or a VoIP app. Show it an email address and it’ll prompt you with Gmail or Paypal and so on. You don’t have to do anything special, or even hit the shutter button. You don’t even need internet access to use it.

Rather than hiding features in overflow menus, Google wants them to work automatically when needed. HDR+ was perhaps the first great example of this. On the Pixel 3, that attitude continues. Object tracking kicks in as soon as you tap something to focus on. Top Shot works as long as Motion Photos is on. Portrait mode uses a learning algorithm now, rather than simple dual-pixel depth mapping (it’s better but still can’t handle my unruly hair). The list goes on.

Synthetic fill flash automatically detects a human face and highlights it, providing an effect similar to a photographer’s metallic reflector. Rather than physically applying light to a subject’s face, the Pixel 3 relies on the same computational algorithm portrait mode uses to identify a face and add a natural glow to it. The same segmentation system is also used to stabilize the subject in front-facing video.

Super res zoom uses the micro-movements of your hand to generate a more detailed zoomed-in photo. Google claims it’s equivalent to a 2x optically zoomed shot on other phones, but I have to disagree. The results are not that good (stay tuned for our camera shootout), though still better than your average digital zoom.

The Pixel 3 camera sharpens a little more than the Pixel 2, has more contrast and detail and slightly better colors.

All told, the Pixel 3 camera is very impressive. It isn’t light years better than the Pixel 2 camera, but at this level you have to expect incremental improvements. Nevertheless, the Pixel 3 camera still resolves detail noticeably better than the Pixel 2. Take a look at the closeup of the sign below to see what I mean. There is a little more sharpening going on than in the Pixel 2, but the Pixel 3 produces significantly less noise and also handles color and white balance slightly better.

Interestingly, I didn’t find low light on the Pixel 3 much better than the Pixel 2. It does, however, produce slightly more detail, bump colors a tiny bit and apply a little sharpening for added clarity. The Pixel 2 was already a great low-light shooter, but noise and image degradation was always a bit of a problem for me, so I appreciate the subtle changes Google has made this year.

Night Sight, which we didn’t have access to for this review, should dramatically improve that low light performance. Night Sight takes a longer exposure with multiple frames being stacked like HDR to generate a much brighter image in extreme low light conditions. Google’s demo looked great but we’ll have to wait and see just how good it is.

HDR performs pretty similarly across this and last year’s Pixels, but dynamic range is slightly better on the Pixel 3 and images tend to be a little more contrasty. In the shot below from the Pixel 2 and Pixel 3, the glasses on the table appear pretty similar up close, but when you look at the close up of the window you can see where the Pixel 3 pulls ahead, even handling the reflection on the car doors well.

The Pixel 3 camera is likely to sit at the top of the smartphone camera charts all year, and for good reason. We’ll have a full camera comparison with the major flagships out soon, but it doesn’t even come down to individual results here. What matters most is consistency, and the Pixel 3 is the most reliable camera I have. Other phones might be able to get better shots sometimes, but only the Pixel 3 gets a great shot every time.

Pricing and availability

Both phones come in a 64GB and 128GB version, with the Pixel 3 price at $799 and $899 respectively and the Pixel 3 XL price listed at $899 and $999. The Pixel 3 and 3 XL will be sold through Google Play, Verizon, Best Buy, and Target. Verizon is again Google’s exclusive carrier partner in the U.S.

Pre-orders are live now, or you can wait till October 18 for sales to officially start (November 1 outside the U.S.). The Google Play Store has the Pixel 3 and 3 XL unlocked as well as on Project Fi or Verizon. You can pay upfront or on a 24-month installment plan with zero percent interest for approved customers. You can also get up to $400 back if you trade in an eligible phone.

Buying the Pixel 3 XL direct from Verizon will cost you $30 more than via Google or Best Buy. Both Verizon and Best Buy have a buy-one-get-one-free deal going if that helps sweeten the deal. With Project Fi you can also get $799 in bill credit if you buy two Pixel 3 or 3 XLs. Target does not currently have prices listed.

Pre-Order Google Pixel 3 at Verizon
Pre-Order Google Pixel 3 at Google
Pre-Order Google Pixel 3 at Project Fi
Pre-order Google Pixel 3 at Best Buy
Pre-order Google Pixel 3 at Target

Specs

Display	5.5-inch flexible OLED 1,080 x 2,160 resolution 443ppi 18:9 screen ratio Gorilla Glass 5	6.3-inch flexible OLED 1,440 x 2,960 resolution 523ppi 18.5:9 screen ratio Gorilla Glass 5
Processor	Qualcomm Snapdragon 845	Qualcomm Snapdragon 845
GPU	Adreno 630	Adreno 630
RAM	4GB	4GB
Storage	64GB, 128GB No microSD slot	64GB, 128GB No microSD slot
Cameras	Rear: 12.2MP f/1.8 sensor, 1.4 micron pixels, OIS and EIS, spectral and flicker sensor Front: Main: 8MP standard angle (75 degree FOV) f/1.8 auto-focus sensor Secondary: 8MP wide-angle (97 degree FOV) f/2.2 fixed-focus sensor	Rear: 12.2MP f/1.8 sensor, 1.4 micron pixels, OIS and EIS, spectral and flicker sensor Front: Main: 8MP standard angle (75 degree FOV) f/1.8 auto-focus sensor Secondary: 8MP wide-angle (97 degree FOV) f/2.2 fixed-focus sensor
Headphone jack	No	No
Battery	2,915mAh Wireless charging	3,430mAh Wireless charging
IP rating	IP68	IP68
Other features	Dual front-facing speakers, Active Edge, USB Type-C, single nano-SIM	Dual front-facing speakers, Active Edge, USB Type-C, single nano-SIM
Connectivity	Wi-Fi 2.4GHz + 5GHz 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, 2×2 MIMO, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC	Wi-Fi 2.4GHz + 5GHz 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, 2×2 MIMO, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC
Network	World-wide network/carrier compatibility with:  GSM/EDGE: Quad-band (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz)  CDMA EVDO Rev A: BC0/BC1/BC10  WCDMA: W1/W2  FDD-LTE: Bands 1/2/3/4/5/7/8/12/13/17/18/19/20/25/  26/28/29/32/66/71  Supports up to CAT 16 (1Gbps DL / 75Mbps UL), 5x DL CA, 4×4 MIMO, LAA, 256-QAM  DL and 64-QAM UL depending on carrier support  eSIM (Select markets. See your carrier for details)  FeliCa (Japan only)	World-wide network/carrier compatibility with:  GSM/EDGE: Quad-band (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz)  CDMA EVDO Rev A: BC0/BC1/BC10  WCDMA: W1/W2  FDD-LTE: Bands 1/2/3/4/5/7/8/12/13/17/18/19/20/25/  26/28/29/32/66/71  Supports up to CAT 16 (1Gbps DL / 75Mbps UL), 5x DL CA, 4×4 MIMO, LAA, 256-QAM  DL and 64-QAM UL depending on carrier support  eSIM (Select markets. See your carrier for details)  FeliCa (Japan only)
Software version	Android 9 Pie	Android 9 Pie
Colors	Just Black, Clearly White, Not Pink	Just Black, Clearly White, Not Pink
Dimensions and weight	68.2 x 145.6 x 7.9mm / 2.7 x 5.7 x 0.3in 148g / 5.2oz	76.7 x 158.0 x 7.9mm / 3.0 x 6.2 x 0.3in 184g / 6.5oz
In the box	Quick Switch Adapter  USB-C to USB-C cable  USB-C 18W Power adapter  Pixel USB-C earbuds  USB-C digital to 3.5 mm headphone adapter  SIM tool  Quick Start Guide	Quick Switch Adapter  USB-C to USB-C cable  USB-C 18W Power adapter  Pixel USB-C earbuds  USB-C digital to 3.5 mm headphone adapter  SIM tool  Quick Start Guide

Gallery

Conclusion

The Pixel 3 is a great phone. It’s not the Android phone designed to appeal to everyone. It’s the Android phone designed to appeal to everyone else. It has a great camera, better build quality, improved screen, updated water-resistance rating, fast charging and wireless charging, new chipset, and the latest version of Android.

The Pixel 3 is not the Android phone designed to appeal to everyone. It’s the Android phone designed to appeal to everyone else.

On the downside, the Pixel 3’s battery life is still not great and most of its headlining software features will come to existing Pixels. If you already have a Pixel 2 I’d be hard-pressed to say you should run out to buy the Pixel 3. Its lack of widespread availability will not do it any favors and its price tag will deter many.

Like the iPhone though, perceived value is about more than just specs on paper.

I’ll refer to Apple again: if you love the camera, don’t mind the price, and put software fluidity and updates above more RAM and a big battery, the Pixel 3 will be an easy sell. There’s no denying it has one of the best cameras available, if not the best. It is also the smoothest Android phone you’re likely to find.

It feels unlike any other Android phone I’ve ever used — in a good way. I have fewer concerns about the Pixel 3 than any previous Pixel and I’ve enjoyed all of them. Is it the phone for you? I can’t say, that depends on how much you like the Android of old, but I can definitely recommend it. I can also tell you it is among the best Android phones available today.

Quite simply, the Google Pixel 3 takes what’s good about the iPhone and applies it to Android. Whether you think that’s a good or a bad thing, this is Google’s path now. It’s easy to get riled up based on specs, press conferences, renders, and price, but you need to try the Pixel 3 to properly understand it. You may not end up liking it in the long run, but its fundamental difference to the rest of what Android offers is important enough that you should at least be familiar with it. I expect once you let a Pixel into your life, you’ll start seeing things Google’s way too.

What do you think of the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL? Will you be buying one?

Fitbit Charge 3 review: Fitbit is getting really good at this

Fitbit is synonymous with the term “fitness tracker,” and the Charge line has a lot to do with that. Fitbit Charge devices are some of the most popular fitness trackers in the world, likely because they strike a good balance between features and price.

Let’s find out if this new entry keeps that up in our Fitbit Charge 3 review.

Fitbit Charge 3 review notes: I’ve been using the Fitbit Charge 3 as my main fitness tracker for two weeks. The Google Pixel 2 XL has been my smartphone companion of choice for the duration of this review.Show More

Design

My favorite part of the Charge 3’s design is its versatility. It doesn’t look too sporty or classy, and the standard silicone band strikes a good balance between the two.

It also feels much nicer than any other Fitbit I’ve used. It almost seems cliche to describe a device as “premium” anymore, but that’s really how the Charge 3 feels. All the bands are really nice, the quick release latches are much less finicky than the Fitbit Versa’s, and the tracker itself is like a hybrid of the Fitbit Ionic and Charge 2. It takes the Ionic’s build quality and mashes it up with the Charge 2’s aesthetic.

Nothing about the Fitbit Charge 3 feels cheap.

The Charge 3 looks and feels much nicer for two reasons: the new display and the lack of a physical button.

Gone is the tap-based navigation from the Charge 2. The Fitbit Charge 3 now has a full touchscreen OLED display, so it feels more like a smartwatch than any other Charge device. It’s still a monochrome display, but the resolution has been improved so text and animations look crisp and readable. I’ve had no issues with outdoor visibility either. In fact, keeping it on auto-brightness is a one-way ticket to getting blinded if you move your arm in the middle of the night. This screen can get bright.

In place of a physical button, there’s a new inductive button on the left side of the case. It’s a pressure-sensitive area on the case that reminds me a lot of the “buttons” on the HTC U12 Plus, but way less horrible. This acts as the back button, and how you turn off the display. Most of the time, I press it too hard and the screen just comes right back on. I still haven’t really gotten the hang of it, even after a few weeks of using it.

If we’ve learned one thing from HTC, it’s that button substitutes don’t make for a good user experience.

On a positive note, the lack of a physical button means it was easier for Fitbit to make the device water resistant. The Charge 3 is resistant to depths of 50 meters (5ATM), which is on par with fitness trackers from Garmin, Misfit, and others. This is a big step up from the Charge 2’s “splash resistance.”

Fitness and health tracking

Just like we have mid-range smartphones, we also have mid-range fitness trackers. Fitbit’s Charge 3 falls right in between cheap, bare bones trackers and high-end, expensive wearables. It may not have things like built-in GPS (more on this later), but you still get things like 24/7 heart rate monitoring.

Also read: Fitbit Ionic review | Fitbit Versa review

The Charge 3 can track 20 different exercise modes, such as running, biking, pool swimming, weight lifting, interval workouts, hiking, and more. The full list can be found here. If you find yourself taking part in an impromptu workout, Fitbit’s SmartTrack will kick in and start recording the exercise after about 10 minutes. The feature works just fine for me, but it’s worth mentioning Valentina Palladino of Ars Technica had some issues with SmartTrack not kicking in.

It’ll also keep track of your steps taken, distance traveled, calories burned, floors climbed, active minutes, heart rate, and sleep — par for the course with most fitness trackers these days. Most of these tracked metrics — including steps, calories, and active minutes — are very much on par with other competing fitness trackers like the Garmin vivosmart 4 and vivosport. However, distance tracking won’t be all that accurate since there’s no built-in GPS module.

You can connect the Charge 3 to your smartphone’s GPS — via Fitbit’s Connected GPS feature — if you don’t mind taking your phone with you on a run. If you want to run phone-less, you won’t get detailed or accurate distance or pace metrics

Related reading

Best GPS running watches (August 2018)

Garmin vívosport review

I can’t help but think including GPS wouldn’t be a big deal for Fitbit. It’s not like it would make the Charge 3 overly bulky (Garmin’s vivosport has a GPS and it’s even thinner!), and, come on — this is Fitbit. It’s going to sell a ton of Charge 3s. I really don’t think a slight price increase would stop people from buying it.

With all that said, saying your product costs less than $150 is much nicer than saying it costs less than $200. You have to exclude GPS to hit that price. I guess I’m just the type of person that would pay more for it.

Fitbit claimed the PurePulse heart rate sensor on the Charge 3 has been “enhanced” for better accuracy when measuring things like calorie burn and resting heart rate. I originally thought this was sort of a throwaway line during the Charge 3 announcement, but I think the heart rate sensor has actually been improved this time around.

Take a look at my recent treadmill run. I wore my trusty Polar H10 heart rate strap, Garmin Fenix 5, and the Fitbit Charge 3.

Fitbit Charge 3

Surprisingly, all three devices reported the same max heart rate, ~162bpm, at about the same time in the workout. All three devices also caught most every major dip or rise in the workout. Wrist-based heart rate sensors are often slow to catch up to chest straps, but the Charge 3 performed wonderfully. Of course, you’ll want to buy a heart rate chest strap if you want the most accurate readings.

I also compared calorie details for a few workouts with all three of these devices, and I have no problem saying the Charge 3 is a good calorie counter, too. It’s consistently within 10 calories burned of the Fenix 5 and H10. Not bad.

If you ask me to recommend a good sleep tracker, I’ll pretty much recommend a Fitbit every time. Fitbit’s app is just so good at clearly laying out your total time awake and time in REM, light, and deep sleep. It also gives you a 30-day sleep average and a benchmark to compare against other people your age and gender. As for the accuracy of the Charge 3’s sleep tracking, I’m pretty sure it’s accurate (I am asleep during this time, after all), and haven’t noticed any big outliers.

A Sleep Score feature is coming soon to the Fitbit Charge 3. I haven’t had the chance to try it out (the beta launches in November), but the idea sounds pretty cool. Basically, your Fitbit will give you a nightly score based on your sleep quality and how much sleep you’re getting. It’s a small feature, but it could make understanding your sleep habits over time easier.

With the launch of the Sleep Score beta, Fitbit will also activate the Charge 3, Versa, and Ionic’s relative SpO2 sensors. When activated, these sensors will monitor for disruptions in your breathing and include that information in your Sleep Score. They also have the long-term potential to help discover early signs of sleep apnea, but that won’t happen for a while.

Editor’s Pick

Garmin vivosmart 4 review: If you don’t need GPS, this is a great option

Garmin’s vivosmart 3 fitness tracker tried some interesting things, but it didn’t follow through so well on all of them. This year, the company not only needed to make up for the vivosmart 3’s faults, but …

This contrasts with Garmin’s vivosmart 4, which uses its pulse ox sensor to give users real-time estimates of blood oxygen levels, as well as tracking it during sleep.

Female Fitbit users will be happy to hear, just like on the Versa and Ionic, female health tracking is available on the Charge 3. This lets you track your menstrual cycles and understand how it affects your health. I haven’t been able to test this out on the Charge 3, but you can read all about it right here.

With the announcement of the Charge 3, Fitbit also said it would introduce new dynamic health insights to the Fitbit app “soon.” That feature still isn’t available, but when it rolls out, the app will give you personalized tips and tricks to improve your activity, heart rate, and sleep.

Fitbit claims the Charge 3 can last up to seven days on a single charge. In my experience, it’s only lasted six days, but that’s with it monitoring heart rate 24/7, wearing it every night to sleep, and tracking four to five exercises a week.

Fitbit Charge 3 specs

Display	Touchscreen OLED Corning Gorilla Glass 3
Battery	7 days Lithium-polymer
Memory	Saves seven days of motion data, daily totals for past 30 days, heart rate data at one-second intervals during exercise tracking and at five-second intervals all other times
Sensors	3-axis accelerometer Optical heart rate monitor Altimeter Vibration motor Relative SpO2 sensor NFC for Fitbit Pay (special edition only)
IP rating	5ATM
Smart features	Call, text, calendar, email, music control, and much more Quick replies (Android only)
Compatibility	Android, iOS, Windows
Dimensions	Small: 139.7 – 180.3mm Large: 180.3 – 220.99mm
Colors	Black / graphite aluminum, blue gray / rose gold aluminum, lavender woven / rose gold aluminum, frost white sport / graphite aluminum

Smartwatch features

With the arrival of the Ionic and Versa, it’s clear Fitbit is now focused on competing in the smartwatch game. Luckily for us, the focus on smartwatches is bleeding over to its other fitness trackers.

The Fitbit Charge 3 is like a fitness tracker-smartwatch hybrid. It can receive all your smartphone notifications, and Fitbit even plans to roll out its quick reply feature to the tracker sometime later this fall. There’s no planned launch date yet for the quick reply update, and when it does arrive, it’ll only be for Android devices.

Fitbit’s focus on smartwatches is great news for people who are only interested in fitness trackers.

Also, notifications are much easier to read on the Charge 3 than devices with narrower screens like the vivosmart 4.

The software on the Fitbit Charge 3 is wonderful. It’s not the same version of Fitbit OS as the Versa or Ionic, but it’s similar. You still swipe down to get notifications, swipe up to access the Dashboard, and swipe left to select the Exercise, Relax (on-device breathing guidance), Timer, Alarm, Weather or Settings apps. In a future update, Fitbit will bring Calendar and Leaderboard apps to the tracker as well.

It feels weird to geek out about fitness tracker software, but I don’t care. The Charge 2’s UI was a huge headache, and the Charge 3 is much more intuitive. The new touchscreen display makes it much easier to sort through menus and select different options, too.

Fitbit is also working with a handful of companies to bring third-party apps to the Charge 3, similar to the apps available for the Versa and Ionic. Don’t expect a full-fledged app store on the Charge 3, but a few of Fitbit’s major app partners will likely release Charge 3 apps sometime soon.

You can even pay for things with the Charge 3. That’s right, Fitbit Pay support is here. Unfortunately it’s not available on every model.

This is something I just don’t understand. Fitbit is trying to get people to use its contactless payment service, so only including it in the special edition model and charging $20 more for it is strange.

The Fitbit app

The Fitbit app is fantastic. It’s designed intuitively, looks great, and it’s super easy to find what you’re looking for.

The app’s home screen, or Dashboard, consists of a snapshot of the current day’s activity, complete with shortcuts to see things like steps taken, calories burned, and intensity minutes. Below that, you’ll see a shortcut to view any activity recorded that day, as well as the previous night’s sleep, your current heart rate,  and weight, water, and food logs.

My biggest gripe with the Fitbit app is the lack of a proper calendar view. In Garmin’s app, you can easily see all your activities/health stats in a month-view calendar, so it’s easy to see how many days you’ve exercised in a certain week and so on. With Fitbit’s app, you can only scroll through your history day by day. It’s not very helpful. Now, you can see a month view calendar from the Exercises screen, but you can’t actually click on any of those days to get more information.

If anything, the Fitbit app emphasizes simplicity and social features at the expense of hardcore fitness data.

One other complaint — pretty much my only other complaint — is that the data screens for each of your tracked metrics (heart rate and calorie burn data) are very hard to read in the app. You can’t click to expand any of your stats, and the Fitbit app doesn’t use landscape mode. You have to go to the Fitbit Dashboard website to get in-depth details.

Fitbit’s app is one of the more social fitness apps out there. The Challenges section lets you compete with friends at certain locations, or participate in challenges alone. There’s also a Community tab in the app that’s basically a mini social network. You can join groups, share photos, comment of people’s posts, and more. It’s also a great way to stay motivated if you’re struggling to get up and go to the gym.

Related: Fitbit vs Garmin: Which ecosystem is right for you?

The Fitbit app also plays nicely with dozens of third-party fitness apps. That means if you’d like to keep using your favorite workout app — like MyFitnessPal or MapMyRun — all your fitness data recorded with your Fitbit will automatically sync with your health and fitness app.

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Price and availability

The Fitbit Charge 3 is available now from Fitbit.com, Amazon, and many other retailers for $149.95. The model with Fitbit Pay is $20 more at $169.95.

Should you buy it?

Absolutely.

Fitbit knocked it out of the park with the Charge 3. At under $150, you’re getting an attractive, accurate, and feature-packed fitness tracker. The display is awesome too, and it’s water resistant. This is also one of the more accurate fitness trackers I’ve used in recent months.

This is one of the most polished devices Fitbit has ever made.

There are only a few things missing.

A lot of people (including myself) aren’t thrilled with the lack of GPS, but it helps bring down the cost at least. If you absolutely need GPS, you should check out the Garmin vivosport — it’s just $20 more and sports a thinner profile. Additionally, with all the features that still haven’t launched yet (quick replies, third-party applications, Sleep Score, and dynamic health insights), the Charge 3 almost feels like a beta product. Don’t get me wrong, the features that are here are great, but this is one of those “fine wine” devices. It’ll get better with age.

If you’re looking for one of the best activity trackers in this price range, look no further than the Fitbit Charge 3.

Next: Best Fitbit alternatives: Garmin, Misfit, Samsung and more