This iPhone Case Runs Android, Creating the Ultimate Dual OS Mashup
For those who want a bit of Oreo with their Apple.
Smartphone accessory makers love to promote the idea that their product will enhance the functionality of your device. In spite of all the hype not all accessories will live up to those lofty expectations, but we sure do love it when designers push the limits of what consider possible from our phones.
The Eye Smartcase is an iPhone case that doubles as an Android phone complete with 4G connectivity and gives you access to both mobile operating systems at once.
It’s a really bold product which you may have seen featured on Unbox Therapy or elsewhere on the internet. The Eye Smartcase purports to combine the two most popular mobile platforms into one singular device so you can swap between iOS and Android as you need throughout your day. This case has been in the works for a couple of years now and is in the home stretch towards its official release.
This case is about the size of a Mophie battery case except instead of extra battery the Eye Smartcase offers a full-featured Android smartphone experience. The Eye Smartcase will be available for the latest iPhone models going back as far as the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus and up to the iPhone X.
So what are the specs for this Android device? The phone includes a MediaTek MT6739 chipset which includes 3GB of RAM and supports 2G, 3G and 4G networks (with two SIM slots), Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS. There’s 32GB of onboard storage with a microSD slot that supports up to 256GB and a 2800mAh battery that is supported by Qi wireless charging. The 5.7-inch HD 720p display is located on the back of the case and the whole thing will run Android 8.1. Oh, and it also brings back the headphone jack for those who were peeved at Apple’s decision to nix the legacy hardware with the iPhone 7.
There’s a number of reasons that make this case a compelling option. Maybe your required to use an iPhone for your job but you really prefer to use Android and don’t love the idea of carrying two phones around with you. You can also use apps and do things on Android that simply aren’t available for iOS and literally double up your phone’s functionality. We all know that the rear camera is the best camera for taking photos, and the Eye Smartcase will let you mirror your iPhone’s rear camera as a selfie camera on the Android OS, letting you take the best selfies ever (if you’re into that sort of thing).
Beyond that, there’s simply the cool factor of owning a phone case that features another freaking phone.
According to their campaign page, the Eye Smartcase is passed the designing phase and well into the prototyping phase before ramping up production by the end of summer. The team expects to start shipping cases for the Plus-sized iPhone models by September 2018, and then start shipping cases for the 6, 6s, 7, and 8 in October.
The Eye Smartcase has raised nearly $1 million and has raised six times its funding goal but there’s still time to back this project and save some money on this unique product. For $135, you can get an Eye Smartcase with no cellular connectivity (only Wi-Fi) or pledge $159 for the Smartcase with 4G cellular — saving you 30% off the expected retail price. If you’re thinking about buying one for yourself and give the second one as a gift for a friend or family member, the discounts only get better if you pledge to get two or more devices.
See at Indiegogo
Tim Cook Visits Ireland as Apple Promotes Its Support of Over 1.7 Million Jobs in Europe
Apple CEO Tim Cook has arrived in Ireland, the latest destination on his European tour, which has included stops in Italy and the Netherlands.
Apple CEO Tim Cook and Ireland’s Taoiseach Leo Varadkar
Leo Varadkar, the Taoiseach or Prime Minister of Ireland, tweeted that he had a “good meeting” with Cook in the capital of Dublin on Monday. It’s unclear what was discussed, but it appears to have been a routine meeting.
Good meeting with @tim_cook of @Apple this evening at @merrionstreet. He’s on to Cork next to open an extension to the facility there pic.twitter.com/XRBTHzNC2c
— Leo Varadkar (@campaignforleo) June 18, 2018
Cook has since headed to Cork, where Apple’s European headquarters are located. There, he will formally announce an expansion of its Hollyhill campus. Apple says a new building will provide space for an additional 1,400 employees. Since 2012, Apple says it has invested nearly €220 million to develop the facility.
Apple’s campus in Cork
Apple, on its recently updated Job Creation page in Europe, says it is Cork’s “largest private employer” and “proud” that many of its employees in the area have worked at the company for decades.
Apple’s website notes that it “has been based in Cork for over 35 years and now directly employs 6,000 people throughout Ireland supporting all aspects of the business.” The company also says its Irish team has “doubled in size over the last five years and includes over 80 different nationalities.”
Apple says Cork is home to its “only wholly owned manufacturing facility in the world. It provides configure-to-order iMacs which are for customers across Europe, Middle East, and Africa.” AppleCare support for those regions is also based in Cork.
Nicole, a Product Quality Engineer, at Apple’s iMac facility in Cork
While in Cork, Cook also visited The English Market, according to photos shared on Twitter. Earlier, in Dublin, he met with developers from Hostelworld. The app, featured on Apple’s website, allows travelers to search for and book thousands of hostels in more than 170 countries around the world.
Honoured & privileged to host @tim_cook at the @hostelworld Dublin office today, great honour for our iOS team, company & #hostels #ios #apple #meettheworld pic.twitter.com/rfgUvzRHbg
— breffni (@breffnih) June 19, 2018
All of this amounts to good PR for Apple in Ireland, just over a month after it abandoned its plans to build a $1 billion data center in the country due to “delays in the approval process,” primarily due to concerns from some local residents. Apple and Ireland are also in a major tax dispute with the European Commission.
Apple’s updated Job Creation page also reveals that it now supports 1.7 million jobs across Europe, including around 1.5 million jobs attributable to the App Store ecosystem, some 170,000 jobs supported by Apple’s supply chain in Europe, and some 22,000 direct Apple employees in 19 countries across the continent.
Since the App Store was created, Apple says it has now paid €20 billion to European app developers. The company says the United Kingdom leads Europe in terms of jobs linked to App Store development, at 291,000.
Tags: Tim Cook, Europe, Ireland
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Yahoo Mail Debuts New Mobile Web Service for iOS and Android Smartphones
Yahoo today announced the launch of a new Yahoo Mail website optimized for mobile devices, allowing users to access their inboxes without having to download an app on their iPhone or Android smartphone (via TechCrunch).
On the website for the new mobile web experience, Yahoo says that its users will have access to swipe gestures to easily mark messages as read or delete them completely, organizable folders, auto-suggest email addresses, and customizable themes.
According to senior director of product management for Yahoo Mail, Joshua Jacobson, the company built the new mobile web service for users who don’t want to download an app that takes up more storage on their device.
“We’ve heard loud and clear from users that they’re not always ready to make the big leap to downloading an app that takes up any storage space on their phone,” said Joshua Jacobson, senior director of product management for Yahoo Mail.
“People with high-capacity phones may want to save that space for photos or videos, while others with entry-level smartphones may just have limited space from the get-go. Further, some folks share devices or borrow a family member’s to access their email. This is all especially true in developing markets.”
The mobile web launch also ties into a new app for Android Go, which touts a smaller download size on the Android software that’s tailored for cheaper devices. With the new Yahoo Mail versions, Yahoo is aiming at both storage-concerned users and those in emerging markets where low-cost devices are popular.
The company hopes to boost stagnated user growth, which sits at 227.8 million active users per month, an increase from about two million from one year ago. As TechCrunch points out, Yahoo’s user base is far smaller in comparison to Google’s Gmail client, which reported 1.4 billion users in April.
As the company grows Yahoo Mail, just over a week ago it announced that it will be permanently discontinuing Yahoo Messenger on July 17, 2018. At the time, Yahoo said its reason for shutting down Messenger was to focus on “building and introducing new, exciting communications tools” that will be a “better fit” for its customers.
Tags: Yahoo, Yahoo Mail
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Smart Speaker Owners Aren’t Yet Widely Using Them to Control Connected Home Devices
IHS Markit conducted a new survey in March and April 2018, asking 937 smart speaker owners various questions about the usage of their devices, spreading across the United States, United Kingdom, Japan, Germany, and Brazil. According to the findings that have been shared today, just six percent of smart speaker owners used their speakers to command smart home devices like lights, switches, and thermostats.
The speakers and assistants included in the survey were HomePod/Siri, Google Home/Google Assistant, Microsoft Cortana, Bixby, and Amazon Echo/Alexa. The most popular category for smart speaker control for all speakers was asking about the weather and news, followed in descending order by: basic questions, music controls/discovery, sending a message and making a phone call, video controls/discovery, making a purchase, controlling smart home devices, and lastly a “none of these” category.
Despite the low usage rates for users interacting with smart home products through their speakers, IHS principal analyst Blake Kozak believes this will change in the near future.
“Controlling smart home devices by voice currently represents only a small fraction of total smart-speaker interactions,” said Blake Kozak, principal analyst, smart home, IHS Markit. “However, this category will continue to trend upward as more video-streaming devices come to rely on voice control, as security alarm systems adopt voice control to arm and disarm, and as more builders embed smart devices throughout new homes.”
Kozak believes that one area of potential smart home growth will come from insurance companies, who will “play a role” in educating customers about connected devices that could help them in their homes. These include products for water leak detection, flow detectors, and shutoff valves. In total, Kozak predicts more than one million home policies in North America will include at least one connected home device by the end of the year, and 450,000 smart speakers will be connected to insurance companies by that time as well.
In terms of smart assistant usage, Amazon Alexa was the most widely used voice assistant with 40 percent of respondents owning an Alexa device, and 23 percent owning a Google Home device. Siri came in third place, with the most inquiries for Apple’s assistant also pertaining to the weather, news, and asking Siri a question.
For HomePod, Apple yesterday launched the smart speaker in Canada, France, and Germany via the Apple online store, Apple Store app, and in its retail locations in each country. HomePod allows users to command Siri to activate or deactivate their personal HomeKit products in the Home app, and represents Apple’s first entry in the smart speaker market.
Related Roundup: HomePodBuyer’s Guide: HomePod (Buy Now)
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Adobe Unveils Project Rush, an All-in-One Cross-Device Video Editing App
Just ahead of VidCon, a conference designed for video makers, Adobe this morning unveiled Project Rush, an all-in-one cross-device video editing app that it plans to launch later this year.
Project Rush, unlike Adobe’s existing Premiere Pro video editing software, is designed to be easy to learn and easy to use, similar to Apple’s iMovie video editing software.
It will use technology from Premiere Pro and After Effects, but with simplified editing, color, audio, and tilting tools for a more intuitive user experience.
Adobe plans to make Project Rush available on both desktop machines and mobile devices, making video editing accessible no matter which device you happen to be using at the time.
With Project Rush, all of your editing projects will be synced to the cloud automatically, and it will also integrate with Adobe Stock and offer editable Motion Graphics templates for quick customization options.
Direct sharing tools with one-click publishing will let Project Rush content be uploaded right to YouTube and other social networks.
While Project Rush will launch later this year, Adobe is offering customers a chance to beta test the software. You can sign up for a chance to be a part of the beta on Adobe’s Project Rush website.
Project Rush will be previewed at VidCon this week, with a product demo available on June 23 at 11:00 a.m. in Room 260.
Tag: Adobe
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Ten One Design’s ‘Stella’ MacBook Power Cord Uses Light to Guide You to an Outlet
Ten One Design this morning debuted the Stella, a premium laptop cord that offers several compelling features over a standard extension cable for the MacBook, MacBook Pro, and other machines.
Made from a flexible fabric-covered material, the Stella has a built-in LED located near the plug prongs that activates when it’s near a power outlet, so you can easily plug in your Mac even when it’s dark.
Stella is able to detect faint electrical fields near common electrical receptacles, and when power is detected, the small LED turns on. Ten One Design says the Stella cord is safer to use because it eliminates temptation to feel around near live outlets when you can’t see.
Stella is available for Apple’s Mac lineup as a replacement for the standard power cable and for various 2-prong PC power adapters. For Macs, you can choose between a blue plug or an aqua plug.
A built-in slide-out clip is included in the version of Stella made for Macs so you can wind up the cable when not in use, storing it right with your power adapter.
Stella laptop charging cables can be pre-ordered from the Ten One Design website for $34.95. Ten One Design plans to begin shipping the cables in July.
In the future, Ten One Design plans to partner with other companies to bring its technology to additional products.
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TP-Link Announces New ‘Deco M9 Plus’ Mesh Wi-Fi System That Doubles as Smart Home Hub
The latest entry in the mesh router market comes today from TP-Link, which has announced availability of the Deco M9 Plus Tri-Band Mesh Wi-Fi 2-Pack System. The router is TP-Link’s newest mesh offering and promises to eliminate Wi-Fi dead spots with dependable connections to “more than 100 devices” throughout a home, and it also doubles as a smart home hub for IoT products.
TP-Link says the Deco M9 Plus provides a “stronger and more dynamic” backhaul than rival systems, supplementing its dedicated 5 GHz backhaul with additional backhaul throughput from other Wi-Fi bands as network demand increases. The system automatically identifies the strongest connection for every device (4K streaming boxes, game consoles, etc) to keep the network running smoothly.
“From everyday activities like streaming Netflix and using smart voice assistants, to occasional video chats with friends or online gaming, our home lives are more connected than ever before,” said Derrick Wang, director of product management at TP-Link USA Corp.
“Today, families need Wi-Fi systems that can support the higher demands put on their network, delivering reliable performance in every room of the home. Deco M9 Plus is a powerful solution designed to meet the Wi-Fi needs of the modern smart home.”
The 2-pack provides Wi-Fi for homes up to 4,500 square feet, and a single pack can be purchased to add to the network. Once set up, the connected Deco App can limit and monitor internet usage for all devices connected to the system. In terms of security, TP-Link HomeCare provides antivirus and malware protection in an effort to safeguard every connected device on the network from outside malware and hackers.
More Deco M9 Plus features:
– Standard 2-pack offers coverage up to 4,500 sq. ft.
– Powerful AC2200 tri-band Wi-Fi
– Three Wi-Fi bands with a dedicated backhaul to support 100-plus devices
– Quad-core CPU with 4 GB eMMC Flash and 512 MB RAM
– Wireless speeds of up to 400 Mbps on 2.4 GHz + 867 Mbps on 5 GHz (1) + 867 Mbps on 5 GHz (2)
– 6 Wi-Fi antennas, 1 Bluetooth antenna and 1 ZigBee antenna inside each Deco Unit
– 1 USB 2.0 port (reserved) and 2 Gigabit ports
– Built-in smart home hub compatible with Bluetooth 4.2 and ZigBee HA 1.2
– Advanced Wi-Fi security and HomeCare powered by Trend Micro
In addition, the Deco M9 Plus is a smart home hub that users can set up to enable control of ZigBee, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi devices using the Deco App. TP-Link says this “eliminates the need for additional smart hubs in the home” and the system supports a collection of smart home brands like the company’s own light bulbs and switches, GE, Samsung SmartThings, Nest, and Kwikset. The Deco M9 Plus is also compatible with Amazon Alexa and IFTTT.
The TP-Link Deco M9 Plus Mesh Wi-Fi 2-Pack can be purchased for $299.99, while a 1-pack will run for $179.99.
Tags: wi-fi, TP-Link, mesh routers
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How to change from YouTube Music to YouTube Premium
Sign up for YouTube Music but want Premium instead? Here’s how to switch.
YouTube Music and YouTube Premium are Google’s two premier subscription services for digital music and video content, and while YouTube Music isn’t necessarily a bad deal at $9.99/month, you might as well go all the way with YouTube Premium at $11.99/month.
The added benefits and features that come with YouTube Premium for just $2 more each month is more than worth it, but what if you signed up for YouTube Music and are now longing to join the YouTube Premium club?
Lucky for you, changing your subscription is a piece of cake!
The process for changing from YouTube Music to YouTube Premium requires just a few taps, and without further ado, here’s how to do exactly that.
Open YouTube and tap on your profile icon at the very top right.
Tap Paid memberships.
Tap Manage under your YouTube Music card.
Tap Upgrade to YouTube Premium.
Tap the blue Try It Free button.
Tap Upgrade to confirm.
Tap the red Let’s go button to get started with your new membership.
Happy YouTube Premium-ing!
With all that said and done, you’ve now successfully switched from YouTube Music to YouTube Premium! If you have any questions or want to say “hey”, drop a line in the comments below!
YouTube Music review: A mixtape full of promise
Amazon Kindle Oasis review: The best e-reader you can buy
The Kindle Oasis ups the ante for e-readers.
There are plenty of options available if you’re interested in reading e-books. You can pick up an Android tablet for under $100, load up the Kindle app, and get started right away. A tablet is a great option for most users as it offers more versatility — you can browse the web, watch YouTube videos, or just play games in addition to reading books.
Or you can pick up a dedicated e-reader. E-readers come with significantly better battery life, and the e-ink display is much more conducive to reading text for an extended duration of time. Amazon has been selling Kindles for well over a decade now, and the retailer dominates this space.
You can pick up a Kindle for as low as $79, but if you want a premium option that offers much more functionality, you’ll want to take a look at the Kindle Oasis. Amazon launched the first-gen Kindle Oasis back in 2016, and late last year the retailer rolled out a new version with an updated design.
More importantly, the new Kindle Oasis is the first waterproof Kindle, with the IPX8 certification allowing it to be submerged for up to an hour. Simply put, it is the best e-reader you can buy today.
Amazon Kindle Oasis
Price: $269
Bottom line: The Kindle Oasis is the most feature-rich e-reader available today. The screen is larger, it has automatically-adjusting backlighting, and you can take it to the pool. If you’re not daunted by the asking price, the Kindle Oasis is the e-reader to get in 2018.
The Good
- Large 7-inch display
- Ambient light sensor
- Physical page turn buttons
- Audible integration
- Water resistance
- Outstanding battery life
The Bad
- Pricey
- No headphone jack
See at Amazon
Everything but the kitchen sink
Amazon Kindle Oasis Full review
The Kindle Oasis doesn’t look like any other Kindle on the market today — the first thing you notice is the asymmetrical design. There are thin bezels on three sides, and a larger bezel on the right that features the physical page turn buttons. Its squarish form factor is designed to mimic that of a book, and there’s a bulge at the back where the battery and components for the e-ink panel are housed.
By moving all the components to one side of the body, Amazon was able to trim the overall thickness, with the screen tapering to just 3.4mm. The design also ensures that the center of gravity is always on one side, making it easier to hold and use the Kindle Oasis one-handed for an extended duration of time.
There’s also a built-in accelerometer that changes the screen orientation, allowing you to use the Oasis right- or left-handed.
The Oasis features a larger 7-inch display, but the overall width is the same as the 6-inch Paperwhite. That’s down to the thinner bezels, and the Oasis is also 10g lighter in spite of sporting an aluminum chassis. The 7-inch e-ink Carta display has the same 300PPI pixel density as the Paperwhite and the Voyage, but it has 12LEDs for a more evenly-distributed backlight.
There’s also an ambient light sensor that automatically adjusts brightness, like most modern phones. As you’d imagine, text on the Oasis looks crisp, and I particularly like the fact that the display is flush with the body. You’ll also be able to invert the colors — turn the background black and the text white, making it easier on your eyes at night.
You can use the physical page turn buttons or the sides of the display to flip through pages, and as the Oasis is also using a dual-core chipset for the first time, page turns are noticeably smoother and faster.
The Kindle Oasis also comes with Audible integration, but as the device lacks a headphone jack, you’ll have to pair a Bluetooth speaker or headphones to the device to listen to your favorite audiobooks. Another new addition with the Oasis is water resistance, which means you’ll be able to use the e-reader near a pool without any issues.
There’s plenty to like here if you’re coming from a Paperwhite.
Amazon advertises a six-week battery life for the Oasis — with a 30-minute daily usage — but battery longevity is entirely down to how much you use the e-reader. In the two months I used the Oasis, I averaged roughly two weeks between charges. That’s with at least two hours’ of reading time daily. Listening to audiobooks over Bluetooth will also result in the battery life taking a hit, but you should be able to get two to three weeks’ worth of usage with ease.
Coming from a Paperwhite, I love the Oasis’ design — the asymmetric body, larger display, and the physical page turn buttons. The Oasis’ design takes a while to get acclimated, but after a week or two you’ll start getting used to the asymmetric body. I preferred holding the Paperwhite with both hands, but the Oasis is much more comfortable to use one-handed.
A lot of that has to do with the weight: 10g may not seem like a lot, but it makes a difference when you’re holding the e-reader for several hours at a time.
The best right now
Amazon Kindle Oasis Bottom line
Amazon sells Kindles across a variety of price points, with the base model retailing for just $79. The entry-level Kindle lacks a backlight and comes with a 167PPI display, but the Kindle Paperwhite offers a backlight and a higher-res 300PPI screen for $120.
Then there’s the $199 Kindle Voyage, which offers pressure-sensitive haptics and a similar ambient light sensor as the Oasis.
With the Kindle Oasis, you’re getting the best that Amazon has to offer: the display is outstanding, the design is ideal for one-handed usage, Audible integration is a nifty addition, and the IPX8 certification makes it resistant to the elements.
The Kindle Oasis is available in two storage options: the model with 8GB of storage will set you back $269, and the variant with 32GB of internal memory retails for $299. Amazon says that the 8GB model will hold over 35 Audible audiobooks, with the 32GB version able to store over 160 audiobooks.
There’s also a model with cellular connectivity that is available for $350, and Amazon will cover the costs of the data plan for the life of the device.
4.5
out of 5
The Kindle Oasis offers features that you won’t find on any other Kindle, and is the best e-reader available in the market today. The $269 retail price is a lot for a Kindle, but it’s well worth it if you’re serious about e-books.
See at Amazon
UE’s powerful and long-lasting MEGABOOM Bluetooth speaker hits its lowest price yet
Got that boom boom pow!
As part of its Gold Box deals of the day, Amazon has the super powerful UE MEGABOOM on sale for $139.99, a savings of $110 from its regular price. This discount is only available on the Deep Radiance color option, which is multicolored and honestly, looks pretty great. It has an IPX7 waterproof rating so you can use it by the pool, at the lake, in the rain, and more. The MEGABOOM has 360-degree sound with deep bass and offers up to 20 hours of music playback per charge.
You can connect it with an Echo Dot for hands-free control of what’s playing, or connect it with up to 50 other UE speakers if you want to pretend like you’re at a concert venue. Most of the other color options are selling between $160 and $200 right now, so don’t miss out on this limited-time offer which saves you big.
See at Amazon
