Has the Mars Curiosity rover found something? NASA shares news today

It’s been six years since the Mars rover Curiosity landed on the Red Planet, and now it seems that the space vehicle has some news to share. NASA has called a press conference to share the latest findings by its rover, which will begin later today (June 7) at 2 p.m. ET. It’s unclear exactly what we’ll learn from the conference, as the space agency has only revealed that it has new “science results” to share with its eager public. You can watch the entire stream right here, or head over to NASA’s Facebook page and its other social media channels.

To make things as interactive as possible, NASA is offering folks the opportunity to join in on the discussion via Facebook and Twitter. If you’re interested in being part of the conversation, or have a burning question that you’d like NASA to answer, you can submit inquiries using the hashtag #askNASA up until 1  p.m. this afternoon.

As it stands, conference participants include Paul Mahaffy, director of the Solar System Exploration Division at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland; Jen Eigenbrode, a research scientist at Goddard; Chris Webster, a senior research fellow at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California; and Ashwin Vasavada, Mars Science Laboratory project scientist at JPL.

It’s been quite some time since we heard from Curiosity, which first landed on Mars in August of 2012.  Its initial mission was to determine whether our closest  planetary neighbor had ever supported life, or might be suitable for life in the future. While the rover hasn’t exactly found solid evidence of life-like activity on Mars, it did make quite a major discovery a year after landing. In 2013, the rover found that liquid water and the chemical components behind life had once existed on Mars.

More recently, at the beginning of 2018, the Curiosity was thought to have found evidence of bioturbation, which is what occurs when organisms living in sediments leave an imprint on their structure. Not much has come of  that initial report since then, so it may not have been quite as exciting as initially thought.

In any case, we’ll soon learn what the latest discovery is in a few hours. We’ll keep you posted.

Editors’ Recommendations

• NASA abruptly shuts down its planned 2022 moon rover mission
• Get your Sagan on with 60 awe-inspiring photos of the final frontier
• NASA and ESA will team up to bring Martian soil samples back to Earth
• NASA will send a tiny drone helicopter to fly through the Martian skies
• Robot bees on Mars — NASA funding a swarm of drones to explore the Red Planet

Best Screen Protectors for the OnePlus 6

Never Settle for a cracked screen

The OnePlus 6 is a fantastic new phone from the brand that wants you to “Never Settle”. With a screen protector properly installed, you’ll never have to settle for a cracked screen.

Do note that because of the curved edges of the OnePlus 6 display, most screen protectors won’t be able to cover the entire display without peeling up around the edges. Even still, all of these options will cover 99% of the display and you’ll be glad it’s there to take the brunt of drops and scratches.

• OnePlus Tempered Glass Bundles
• LK Tempered Glass screen protector [3-pack]
• IQShield Matte Film screen protector
• Mr. Shield Tempered Glass screen protector [3-pack]
• Wellci Tempered Glass Screen Protector

OnePlus Protection Bundles

If you’re the type who loves to accessorize your phone, OnePlus is a brand that’s on your side.

You can buy a tempered glass screen protector made by OnePlus itself — so you know that it’s made perfectly to fit the OnePlus 6. It’s got all the features you’d expect from a quality screen protector such as oleophobic coating to reduce fingerprints and exceptional hardness to protect your display.

The screen protector alone is $20, which is a bit pricy, but if you cruise over to the OnePlus Store you’ll find four different bundle options that include a tempered glass screen protector along with your choice of wired OnePlus Bullets earbuds, charging accessories, and/or a bumper case. OnePlus offers a discount on each of those bundles, so if you want a case along with your screen protector or are planning on picking up some extra accessories, it’s your best bet.

See at OnePlus

LK Tempered Glass screen protector [3-pack]

From the expensive accessories offered by OnePlus itself to a great value pack — if you know you’re going to need more than one tempered glass screen protector, LK has got you covered with this three-pack of tempered glass screen protectors for just $9.

These screen protectors include a black border around the display and covering the notch, which should help with lining things up during installation. Each screen protector is precisely laser cut to fid the camera lenses and sensors in the notch and features oleophobic coating to prevent fingerprints and smudges.

These screen protectors will be in stock on June 12 and are available for purchase now on Amazon.

See at Amazon

IQShield Matte Film screen protector

Not everyone wants a tempered glass screen protector, although they do absolutely offer the best protection from damage. But if you want a film screen protector that will cut down on screen glare, you’ll want to check out this screen protector from IQ Shield.

Designed with a cutout around the top for the OnePlus 6 notch, this wet-install film screen protector features a matte finish that reduces the glare from sunlight. this is an ultra-thin screen protector that comes with everything you need for a clean and bubble-free installation.

Get yours for just $8 on Amazon.

See at Amazon

Mr. Shield Tempered Glass screen protector [3-pack]

Mr. Shield offers a great option for protecting your OnePlus 6’s screen. This three-pack of tempered glass screen protectors are crystal clear that’s been laser cut to fit the OnePlus 6 and it’s notch.

Mr. Shield gives you three screen protectors in the package and also backs up their products with a lifetime replacement warranty that covers installation issues or damage from use. The kit includes everything you’ll need for a clean installation.

Get this three-pack for just $8 on Amazon.

See at Amazon

Wellci Tempered Glass Screen Protector

Wellci offers two different styles of tempered glass screen protectors for the OnePlus 6 — whether you want the style with a black border around the display or a crystal-clear slab of glass. No matter which style you opt for, you’ll get two screen protectors for the price of one so you’ll have a backup.

These screen protectors are ultra-thin at just 0.26mm of thickness to help maintain the original touch sensitivity of the phone.

The clear screen protectors go for $8 for the pair or get the black bordered ones for $9.

See at Amazon

Do you use a screen protector on your phone?

Let us know what you think about the value of a screen protector and the brand you trust most, in the comments below!

OnePlus 6

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

Best Android Phones in 2018

Why trust us? We’re a company filled with people who have been passionate about mobile technology their entire lives. Decades of collective experience using and reviewing Android phones means we know all of the best products.

The Samsung Galaxy S9+ builds on years of Samsung’s excellence making some of the most popular and best-selling phones around the world. It starts with a gorgeously sculpted metal and glass body, available in three colors, that’s waterproof but still includes great features like dual speakers, a headphone jack and an SD card slot. Inside are the latest and greatest specs, plus a standout pair of cameras on the back and the best display on the market around front.

Our Pick

Samsung Galaxy S9+

Amazon — $830

• $830 from Amazon

The best Android phone for most people

Choosing the Galaxy S9+ doesn’t require much thought — it can do everything, and looks great doing it, with few real downsides. It’s beautiful, has the best screen, isn’t missing any hardware features and has one of the best camera experiences available in a smartphone today.

Who should buy this phone

Samsung designs its phones to be appealing to the widest possible audience, and that makes the Galaxy S9+ a great device for just about anyone. It has a big and beautiful display that’s quite simply the best in the industry, but with very small bezels and curved edges, it fits into a relatively compact size.

Internally, it has all of the latest specs to handle any app or task you need. It also has a pair of cameras on the back that are in the mix as the best available today. Samsung has also kept around crowd-pleasing features like wireless charging, waterproofing, an SD card slot and a headphone jack. Really, the Galaxy S9+ does a great job at being all things to all people.

Best of all, if you don’t care for the larger size of the Galaxy S9+ for whatever reason, you can simply buy the smaller and less expensive Galaxy S9 instead and get the same core experience with only a few changes.

Is it a good time to buy this phone?

Yes. The Samsung Galaxy S9+ launched the first week of March 2018, meaning it is still the latest and great phone that Samsung makes. The Galaxy Note 9 is expected to launch around October 2018, which will likely be only a marginal improvement over the Galaxy S9+, and the Galaxy S9+’s successor will not be unveiled until March 2019.

8 reasons to buy

• Sleek and beautiful hardware in multiple color options
• Top-notch specs, waterproofing, wireless charging and more
• Best-in-class display by all measures
• Up to 256GB of storage available, plus an SD card slot
• Fantastic dual cameras that take great photos
• Every software feature you could ask for
• Dual speakers and a headphone jack
• Available in just about every region on every carrier imaginable

3 reasons not to buy

• Lots of unnecessary apps and features
• Long-term software update speed is a concern
• Curved screen can be difficult for some to use

There are so many great Android phones available, but one stands out just a little extra

The Galaxy S9+ is all about giving you the most features, both hardware and software, in a beautiful package. You get a great display, top-end specs across the board, plus all of the hardware features you expect: waterproofing, wireless charging, an SD card slot, a headphone jack and more. It’s all wrapped up in a glossy and shiny metal-and-glass exterior that’s efficient and great looking.

The camera is all-new this generation, with a sensor that does fantastic processing to remove noise and sharpen fine detail even in poor lighting. It’s aided by a dual-aperture lens to get the best combination of light and detail in different shots, and is paired with a secondary telephoto lens for zoom and portrait mode shooting. Whether you shoot in auto or mess around in manual mode, you can get great shots in just about any scene.

You don’t get the clean and simple software experience of phones like the Google Pixel 2 XL or OnePlus 6, which may take some extra customization and tweaking on your part, but the Galaxy S9+ is far less polarizing overall because it just has so many features to appeal to everyone. When you take it all together, it’s a complete package.

Alternatives to the Samsung Galaxy S9+

No phone is perfect for everyone’s needs, and if you find the Galaxy S9+’s software to be overwhelming or grating, you’ll want to look at the Google Pixel 2 XL instead. Google’s take on Android is clean, fast and a pleasure to use every day — as you’d expect, it also perfectly integrates with Google’s apps and services.

The Pixel 2 XL doesn’t have a fantastic screen or headphone jack like the Galaxy S9+ does, but that’s one of the trade-offs you make in order to get this fantastic software experience. The camera on Google’s flagship is just as good, though, and some would say that the overall experience, aided by that great software, is more consistent and approachable. You also get three years of guaranteed software updates, which provides excellent peace of mind.

Runner-up

Google Pixel 2 XL

The cleanest, smoothest and most Google-friendly phone available. It has sleek hardware and a killer camera, with years of guaranteed software updates and unlimited Google Photos storage.

See at Google Store

These top-end phones are expensive, but that doesn’t mean you’re stuck paying top-dollar for your next upgrade. The OnePlus 6 provides nearly the same experience as these other devices at a substantial discount — just $529. You get all of the latest specs inside, and it’s wrapped up in a beautiful metal-and-glass frame not unlike the Galaxy S9+.

There are a few shortcomings, like an average display, basic speaker, and subpar vibration motor, but the software experience is more akin to the Pixel 2 XL than the Galaxy S9+ — and that’s a good thing. OnePlus has dramatically improved its camera offering to where the OnePlus 6 is just a stone’s throw away from the top-of-the-line phones, which just adds to the great value this phone offers.

Budget pick

OnePlus 6

Pretty much everything you expect in a high-end phone, but for $200-300 less. You don’t give up much with this $529 phone, and in many ways you get a better software experience.

See at OnePlus

You may think that the “Leica” branding is a bit of a joke at first, but don’t let that turn you away — the Huawei P20 Pro has an amazing set of cameras that can produce the best photos of any smartphone today. The combination of a 40MP main sensor, an 8MP telephoto camera and a 20MP monochrome sensor give you unending shooting options, and the software pulling it all together knows all of the tricks to create stellar photos.

The rest of the phone experience isn’t subpar, either — Huawei’s built a beautiful phone here with powerful specs. It’s just let down as ever by the Huawei software that heavily tweaks and modifies Android — to a fault. Some can look past that to get those wonderful cameras, though, and will even go so far as to import an international version to the U.S.

Amazing camera

Huawei P20 Pro

The P20 Pro is all about the cameras — a 40MP main sensor is assisted by an 8MP telephoto camera and a 20MP monochrome camera to give you so many shooting options and out-of-this-world results. It’s a photographer’s dream. The rest of the phone is solid, too, though the software still leaves a lot to be desired compared to the competition.

See at Amazon

Bottom line

The best Android phone for most potential buyers is the Samsung Galaxy S9+, as it provides the best experience and most features for the widest number of people — it’s also available everywhere, from any carrier or retailer you could imagine.

If you’re a bit more discerning about the software experience, you’ll want to look at the Google Pixel 2 XL instead — you’ll have to buy from Verizon or unlocked, but that Google software is worth it. For less money, the OnePlus 6 gives you a near-flagship experience and also has great clean software. The most versatile camera imaginable can be found in the Huawei P20 Pro, and the rest of the phone isn’t exactly bad — you’ll just have to put up with some software quirks to take advantage of that great imaging.

Update June 2018: The Galaxy S9+ takes over the top spot because of its great overall capabilities and wide-ranging availability. The Pixel 2 XL remains for those who want a simpler software experience and are willing to buy unlocked. The OnePlus 6 is the best pick for anyone who’s on a budget, and the Huawei P20 Pro remains the choice for photography-focused buyers.

Credits — The team that worked on this guide

Andrew Martonik is the Executive Editor, U.S. at Android Central. He has been a mobile enthusiast since the Windows Mobile days, and covering all things Android-related with a unique perspective at AC since 2012. For suggestions and updates, you can reach him at andrew.martonik@androidcentral.com or on Twitter at @andrewmartonik.

Daniel Bader is the Managing Editor of Android Central. As he’s writing this, a mountain of old Android phones is about to fall on his head, but his Great Dane will protect him. He drinks way too much coffee and sleeps too little. He wonders if there’s a correlation.

Jerry Hildenbrand is Mobile Nation’s Senior Editor and works from a Chromebook full time. Currently he is using Google’s Pixelbook but is always looking at new products and may have any Chromebook in his hands at any time. You’ll find him across the Mobile Nations network and you can hit him up on Twitter if you want to say hey.

U.S. government reportedly unhappy about Google’s relationship with Huawei

The U.S. is targeting Huawei again? Shocker.

Huawei has been in the United States’ crosshairs pretty much since the beginning of the year, resulting in a completely botched launch of its Mate 10 Pro flagship on U.S. carriers.

Now, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal, Congress is giving Google a hard time over its continued relationship with the Chinese company.

WSJ reports that Congress is unhappy with Google continuing to license the Android OS to Huawei and that:

Some members of Congress also plan to voice displeasure over Google’s continued partnership with Huawei in light of its more recent decision not to renew a Department of Defense contract, according to these people.

That “Department of Defense contract” is referencing Google’s decision to cease working on Project Maven with the Pentagon once its current contract expires in 2019.

In addition to using Android on phones and tablets, Google and Huawei furthered their relationship even more this January when Huawei announced it would start using Android Messages as its default texting app to help Google push forward in replacing SMS with RCS.

ZTE has also been receiving a lot of heat from the U.S. throughout the year, with things going as far to put ZTE out of business for a few weeks thanks to a Denial Order from the Commerce Department. A deal has reportedly been made between ZTE and the United States, but it’s unclear at this time if a similar agreement will be made with Huawei to ease tensions here, too.

These are all the Huawei/Honor phones coming out in 2018

Live sports you can watch with your Oculus Go

Get your peanuts and foam fingers ready

If you have to watch your favorite sports teams from home you might as well do it in style with your Oculus Go. Not only does this bring you a whole new way to experience your favorite teams but it will give you the ability to watch them from the sidelines of an arena without actually having to be there.

Now that you’ve got your headset set up and ready to go, let’s go over your options for watching your favorite sports in VR!

Next VR

Next VR brings you all your boxing, FOX Sports, International Champions Cup, NBA, NFL, and WWE pleasures and you can check their scheudle here for all upcoming events. If you missed an event there’s no need to panic all of their videos are kept on the app for you to watch at any time you want. All channels will offer you shot behind the scenes clips and “best of” moments. To unlock the full content of channels like NBA, NFL, WWE and FOX Sports you’ll need to log into your subscribed account to access the content.

Because you have the option of using multiple different subscriptions inside of one app this actually makes Next VR the most favored way of connecting with your favorite sports. Whether you want to watch football, soccer, baseball or even dance this app provides every service in one simplified method.

See on Oculus Store

Oculus Venues

Oculus Venues is a free app that came pre-loaded to your Oculus Go. If not you can find it for free on the store within your headset. Venues is good for so much more than live concerts and events because you can also watch a few different live baseball games as well. Did I mention it was free? Not just the app, but even watching these few baseball games won’t cost you a dime!

To see upcoming events all you have to do is load up the app and scroll through the live events that will appear before you. Otherwise here are all upcoming sports-related events:

June 6 – Arizona Diamondbacks @ San Francisco Giants : 12:45 pm PT

June 13 – Los Angeles Angels @ Seattle Mariners : 1:10 pm PT

June 20 – Atlanta Braves @ Toronto Blue Jays : 9:37 am PT

June 27 – Kansas City Royals @ Milwaukee Brewers : 11:10 am PT

See on Oculus Store

FOX Sports VR

Fox Sports VR is another app on the Ouclus Store you can find that offers you the ability to watch FIFA World Cup™, NFL, MLB, NASCAR, Soccer, NBA, UFC, NHL, and Golf. I personally would favor this app over the others if there weren’t reports of the app not being fully compatable with the Oculus Go as of yet. Currently there are complaints that when it comes time for you to authenticate your device the app will either crash or straight up not let you do it. In the hopes that there will be an update in the future (or you’re one of the lucky few it will work for) we’ll leave this in the list of live sports you have the ability to watch.

See on Oculus Store

Oculus Go

• A parent’s guide to Oculus Go
• Oculus Go vs. Lenovo Mirage Solo
• Best Gamepad for Oculus Go
• Best Battery Backup for Oculus Go

Oculus Go 32GB
Oculus Go 64GB

LG V40 ThinQ: News, Rumors, Release Date, Specs, and More!

This is LG’s most powerful phone of 2018.

Last year saw a big shift for LG’s V series. Unlike the V10 and V20 that experimented with metal designs, removable batteries, and secondary ticker displays, the V30 introduced a slick glass back, incredibly slim bezels, and a pOLED screen made by LG itself.

We’re anticipating the V40 to share a lot of similarities to its predecessor and this year’s recently announced LG V35, and as new information trickles in, we’ll be regularly updating this guide to help keep you up-date on everything that’s going on.

Without further delay, here’s everything we know about the LG V40!

The latest LG V40 news

May 2, 2018 —It’ll probably use an OLED display

Shortly after the G7 ThinQ was announced, LG confirmed something rather interesting — it only uses OLED screens for phones in its V series.

In other words, that’s about as close of a confirmation as we’ll get that the V40 will come equipped with an OLED panel. We don’t know what the resolution will be or if it’ll have a notch, but OLED is pretty much a guarantee at this point.

April 19, 2018 — “Storm” is the codename for the V40

Evan Blass shared on Twitter that the V40’s codename is “Storm.” This doesn’t provide much insight into specifics regarding the phone, but it is suggestive that LG’s flagship will be big and powerful.

Since there’s not much else to say about this, here are a few storm emojis 🌩🌪☔️

What specs can we expect?

Talk about the V40’s specs is still relatively quiet, but even so, we can make a few guesses about what it’ll come equipped with.

At the heart of the V40 will likely be Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 845 processor. This has been the chipset of choice for most 2018 flagships, and as we’ve seen before, the 845 is a beast when it comes to performance, camera processing, battery life, and more.

Something else the V40 will likely carry is an OLED display. In May, LG confirmed that it reserves its OLED panels for entries in the V series. Unless something has radically changed since then, this is a sure bet that the V40 will be graced with an OLED screen.

Lastly, the V40 will come with at least two cameras on the back. We don’t know what kind of sensors will be used or what the aperture rating will be like, but similar to past LG flagships, we should get a primary lens with a regular focal length and a secondary, wide angle one.

When will the LG V40 be released?

According to current sources, the V40 is scheduled for a release in either the late summer or early fall of this year. If accurate, this will see it launched during a similar window compared to the September 21 release of the V30.

We don’t have a specific month or day at the moment, but I’d imagine the V40 makes its appearance at some point between August and September.

How much will it cost?

We have a pretty good idea as to when the V40 will be released, but what about its price?

Details on this are still few and far between, but to make an educated guess, let’s first look at past retail pricing for other entries in the V series.

• LG V10 — $600
• LG V20 — $830
• LG V30 — $800
• LG V30S — $930
• LG V35 — $900

LG’s been steadily increasing the price of its V phones with just about every release, and based on the most recent V30S and V35, I think it’s safe to say that the V40 will cost around $900 and possibly cross that $1000 threshold.

The V series has never been cheap and the V40 won’t be an exception to that rule.

Samsung Galaxy Note 9 rumors: Release date, specs, price, and features!

LG V30 + V30S ThinQ

• LG V30S hands-on: A 2017 phone with 2018’s buzzwords
• LG V30S specs
• LG V30 review: The no-BS flagship
• Top LG V30 camera features
• Full LG V30 specs
• Join our LG V30 forums

Amazon
Best Buy
Verizon
AT&T

Router vs. Mesh Networking: What’s best for your home Wi-Fi network?

If your Wi-Fi at home is busted or you want to make a change, which should you buy?

Mesh Wi-Fi networks are the new thing. And that’s great because mesh networks can put fast Wi-Fi where you need it without getting complicated. There are some great products available that are easy to setup and keep running with Google Wifi, Eero’s Home WiFi system, Netgear’s Orbi, and Amplifi’s HD system. Setting up your own mesh Wi-Fi network is simple, thanks to consumer gear that does the hard work for you.

But “regular” Wi-Fi routers and access points are getting better, too. Faster speeds and longer range are more than buzzwords when it comes to buying the latest Wi-Fi router, and you’ll often find advanced tools that a simple mesh system can’t offer.

That leads to the obvious question — should anyone switch to a mesh-based Wi-Fi network in their house? Like most things, the answer isn’t a simple yes or no. There are a couple things you should consider before you dust off your credit card.

More: Google Wifi vs. Orbi vs. Eero vs. Amplifi: Which mesh system should you buy?

Do you need to upgrade your Wi-Fi network?

This is the first thing you should ask yourself. Ideally, a Wi-Fi network is something you should set up once and then never have to think about it until it’s time to replace it. When properly planned, a Wi-Fi router or a mesh client device should run unattended for several years — at least until it’s time to upgrade to a newer wireless standard for increased speeds and bandwidth.

Ideally, a Wi-Fi network is something you should set up once and then never have to think about it until it’s time to replace it.

Of course, that’s often not the case and many of us know our router needs that weekly reboot or things start misbehaving. Or even worse, we aren’t particularly savvy when it comes to network issues and gear and have to call Comcast or AT&T for help. Waiting for a technician to arrive sometime between 8 am and 5 pm is never fun.

If you have a solid Wi-Fi network that doesn’t demand you fiddle with it enough to become frustrating, you should probably hold off on doing anything until we see 802.11 ad technology become more mainstream. On the other hand, if you are tired of pulling plugs and counting to 10 or any of the other silly things we do to fix bad Wi-Fi, or if your home network is just too slow, you shouldn’t wait any longer than you have to. Don’t try to fix what isn’t broken!

Are you just trying to fix a dead spot?

This is a pretty common issue. You have great Wi-Fi in the kitchen or living room, but when you go downstairs or to the bedroom things are just slow or intermittent. If everything is working well in parts of your home that are close to the router or that aren’t blocked by things not Wi-Fi friendly — the walls of your bathroom are notorious Wi-Fi signal blockers because of the special drywall used and all the copper pipes inside them — you could be the perfect candidate for a wireless repeater instead of setting up a whole new network.

A Wi-Fi Extender is a cheap way to fix a single dead spot in your Wi-Fi coverage, but there are drawbacks.

Also known as Wi-Fi Extenders, wireless repeaters do exactly what their name implies — they take your existing Wi-Fi signal and repeat the signal to extend its range. Usually very easy to set up using a network cable or an online settings page, Wi-Fi Extenders are also compact and only need a power connection. One thing to be aware of is that you usually can’t connect a consumer-grade Wi-Fi Extender to an existing extender, so daisy-chaining them to reach your garage or the neighbor’s house isn’t very practical.

You also will have a new network name (known as an SSID) to use when connecting to the extender instead of the router itself. This can be a bit of a pain if you move in and out of a room that needs an extender very often. Quality Wi-Fi Extenders run between $30 and $150 dollars depending on the network type, so if you need multiple fast Wireless-ac extenders it might be more practical to set up a mesh network using Google Wifi. These drawbacks aside, a simple Wi-Fi Extender is an easy way to fix a single dead spot and a great idea if the rest of your Wi-Fi network is working well. If you’re in the market for one, we can recommend Netgear’s simple extender that plugs directly into a wall socket for home use.

See at Amazon

When to choose a mesh network

If you’ve decided you need to get rid of the gear you have and set up a new network or are setting things up in a new place, the choice between a mesh network and a traditional linear router-based network comes down to one thing — money.

For some, a simple Wi-Fi router and an extender is perfect.

A Wi-Fi router that will service a normal sized single floor home plus one extender for hard-to-reach spots can be had for around $100. You can also lease them from your internet service provider. While the more inexpensive models aren’t quite as easy to install as something like a Google OnHub router, they’re not too ornery, and as long as you have a phone, you can use Google to answer any questions you have.

I understand that wireless networking equipment is something that doesn’t have the appeal that other tech does. If you only want a Wi-Fi network so you can use the internet from your laptop or phone or tablet and don’t have any special needs like a home office or a favorite online video game, there’s nothing wrong with keeping things simple. We do recommend at least an 802.11n or faster network, though. The internet is too media-rich to go any slower. Netgear also makes a simple and reliable router that pairs well with the extender above.

See at Amazon

If you need anything more robust than a simple router solution, mesh networking makes the most sense.

The cost of a high-speed router with the tools for quality of service scheduling or port forwarding starts at about $120 — about the same as a single Google Wifi unit. When you add extras like long range antennas or multiple access points it doesn’t take very long to hit the $299 price for a three-pack of Google Wifi units. Either method should last the lifetime of the technology they’re using and offer trouble-free use during that time, but you’ll miss out on some key advantages of having a mesh network, like not having any single point of failure and the better traffic handling mesh networks offer. If you need Wi-Fi in a multi-story home or one that’s bigger than 1,500 square feet or so, mesh networking is simply a better choice most of the time. The only case I would hesitate to use wireless mesh network in favor of a linear router based setup would be if you have equipment that requires a physical wired network connection. Even then the addition of Google OnHub and a simple switch could be added to a Google Wifi powered mesh network. If you have those sort of networking needs, you’re probably not looking for basic networking advice and you understand exactly what we’re talking about here.

If you want or need a router-based solution that can handle more traffic or offers the power-user bells and whistles, you can’t go wrong building it around a Netgear Nighthawk router. Sticker-shock warnings apply.

See at Amazon

For the rest of us, Google Wifi is exactly what we’re looking for

Two of the biggest drawbacks to wireless mesh networking are no longer an issue when using Google Wifi — needing an advanced networking education to set things up and maintain them, and a pocket full of money.

Google Wifi tackles the biggest problems with home mesh networking — administration and cost.

A wireless mesh network is designed to handle high volumes of traffic in a big area with no downtime due to equipment failures. A three-pack of Google Wifi units will be easy to set up using the Google Home app and only costs $299. New stations are easy to add using the same app, and all traffic shaping and route handling are automatic so you’ll have no need for QoS scheduling when you want to play Call of Duty without lag glitching or when you want to work while the kids are watching Netflix. They’re small, don’t look like leftover robot parts, and everything you need to connect to your modem is in the package. And anytime you need to expand your network, adding a station only makes the rest of the network better by offering another node to handle traffic from all points.

The easy administration and relatively low cost make adding a mesh network to your home (or place of business, where it can be even more important) something any of us can do. Whether you’re upgrading your existing equipment or building a network in your new house, there are very few reason not to go with Google Wifi.

See at Amazon

Updated June 2018: this post has been checked for accuracy and updated with current product links.

Samsung Gear S4 smartwatch may use Wear OS, not Tizen [Update]

If true, this could be a huge win for Google.

Updated June 7, 2018: False alarm, folks. On June 7, Evan Blass responded to his original Tweet with — “Update: turns out these were actually just one-offs made by Google and seeded to some Samsung workers (i.e. keep moving, nothing to see here).” A Wear OS Samsung watch may happen at some point down the road, but not anytime in the near future.

It’s turning out that 2018 could be a very exciting year for Wear OS. Following rumors that Google’s working on its own Pixel Watch, it’s now being reported that Samsung’s developing a future Gear smartwatch that’ll ditch the Tizen operating system in favor of Wear OS.

Earlier this week, a rumor popped up on Chinese social network Weibo suggesting that the Gear S4 will be powered by Wear OS instead of Tizen. Weibo tips/leaks are usually pretty hit or miss, but shortly after that, Evan Blass took to Twitter with the following message —

Seen on the wrists of Samsung employees: Gear watches running not Tizen, but Wear OS.

— Evan Blass (@evleaks) May 23, 2018

This doesn’t necessarily mean that Samsung will decide to release a Wear OS watch to the masses, but this piling evidence leads us to believe that the company is certainly toying with the idea.

Tizen has been Samsung’s operating system of choice for most all of its wearables, save for the Gear Live that was powered by Android Wear and released in 2014.

Samsung’s gotten a lot right with Tizen, but one of its pain points has long-been lacking developer support. Wear OS is far more endowed in these regards, and having a big name like Samsung backing the platform would be huge.

Would you like to see a Samsung smartwatch with Wear OS?

Best Replacement Watch Bands for Samsung Gear S3

Android Wear

• Everything you need to know about Android Wear 2.0
• LG Watch Sport review
• LG Watch Style review
• These watches will get Android Wear 2.0
• Discuss Android Wear in the forums!

ZTE has reportedly made an agreement with the U.S. to lift Denial Order [Update – it’s official]

The company will be faced with $1 billion in fines.

Updated June 7, 2018: Just a few days after this report broke, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross has confirmed that the deal between the U.S. and ZTE is official. In a statement, Ross noted that the U.S. will “closely monitor ZTE’s behavior” and that “if they commit any further violations, we would again be able to deny them access to U.S. technology as well as collect the additional $400 million in escrow.”

In mid-April, the United States Department of Commerce slapped ZTE with a Denial Order over an issue it had with U.S. sanctions in 2017. However, according to a report from Reuters, both ZTE and the U.S. government have reached an agreement that’ll lift the Denial Order and allow the company to return to business as usual.

James Rockas, a spokesperson for the Commerce Department, says that “no definitive agreement has been signed by both parties”, but it sure does look like things are moving in the right direction for ZTE.

It’s unclear when the agreement will be formally announced, but according to Reuters, ZTE won’t be getting off scot-free —

The deal includes a $1 billion fine against ZTE plus $400 million in escrow in the event of future violations.

However, the U.S. stands to get even more cash —

The Commerce Department plans to amend its settlement agreement from last year and count the $361 million ZTE paid as a part of that, allowing the U.S. to claim a total penalty of as much as $1.7 billion, sources said.

A few weeks after the Denial Order was issued, ZTE announced that it was stopping all major business operations as a result of being unable to use any exported hardware or software from the United States.

President Trump later said he was working with China President Xi to get ZTE back in action, and on May 22, it was rumored that the two countries were close to making a deal that would allow the Denial Order to be lifted.

Although ZTE will be faced with a heap of fines to pay, this is undeniably good news for the company. We’re still waiting for this to be set in stone before we get our hopes up too much, but it sure does look like ZTE’s drama is finally coming to an end.

ZTE is DOA, but has the U.S. government gone too far?

Pay what you want to learn how to develop cloud storage apps!

As prudent as physical storage may be (hard drives, right on your computer, etc.), cloud storage is quickly becoming most people’s go-to for storing photos, files, projects, and much more. Since its early days, cloud storage has decreased in price while simultaneously increasing in capacity, and many companies are jumping on the bandwagon of offering cloud storage solutions to both consumers and businesses. If you’re interested in build cloud storage apps and services, there’s never been a better time to jump in.

The AWS Cloud Development Bundle is your solution to learning the ins and outs of cloud development using Amazon Web Services (AWS). The best part is that you get to pay what you want. If you beat the average price, you’ll get all 12 apps, containing various courses from learning Microsoft Azure to OpenStack for Architects. If you choose to pay less than the average price, you’ll still get something awesome. All of these courses together are valued at $1029, but at Android Central Digital Offers, you can get them for a fraction of the price (sometimes up to 98% off!).

The AWS Cloud Development Bundle will supply you with all the knowledge you need to start building great cloud apps for businesses and regular folks who just want secure cloud storage. You’ll start off simply, getting comfortable with the databases available on AWS, plus app and messaging services. You’ll the move into learning Microsoft Azure, then OpenStack (the “Linux of the Cloud”), and on to applying both of those tools to create various cloud solutions. You’ll also get training for AWS certification, which is one of the best ways to get noticed by IT employers.

If you want to start building also cloud services and helping the cloud storage industry grow, check out the AWS Cloud Development Bundle at Android Central Digital Offers, and pay what you want. Beat the average price, and you’ll take home all 12 courses. Pay less, and you’ll still get some tools to kickstart your cloud development career.

See at Android Central Digital Offers