Facebook is testing public WiFi finder on mobile
Facebook has started testing a feature that will help you find the nearest public WiFi networks you can access for free. TheNextWeb has spotted the experimental feature in the iOS app, where chosen users can toggle on “Find WiFi” in their menus. The social network’s spokesperson confirmed its existence to VentureBeat, explaining that the company has begun rolling out a “new feature that surfaces open WiFi networks associated with nearby places” in order “to help people stay connected to the friends and experiences they care about.”
Once you’ve switched on the feature, the Facebook app will automatically detect places with free WiFi near your location and mark them on a map. It will even list the location’s business hours, its nature and WiFi name, so you know you’re not connecting to the wrong network. As TNW mentioned, the feature seems like an obvious move for a company that’s promoting its ability to broadcast live videos. But it sounds a lot more useful for developing nations where a lot of people don’t have mobile data subscriptions.
[Image credit: TheNextWeb]
Via: VentureBeat
Source: The Next Web
Chase Pay’s QR code-powered app only works at two stores
Retailers spent years trying to develop a mobile payment system capable of competing with Apple Pay and Android Pay, and at last, CurrentC has arrived. It’s come in the form of the Chase Pay app, which allows customers of the bank to use its QR code-powered transactions at exactly two retailers: Best Buy and Starbucks (Walmart will join the list in 2017). Ever since its unveiling, the system has faced charges that it exists to benefit retailers instead of customers, and there’s very little here to make us recommend using it over any other mobile payment service.
Now, many phones come with NFC built-in, so having a system where you press the Pay button and a QR code pops up on the screen isn’t really easier to use, even though it will work on any iPhone since iPhone 5, and any Android device running at least Android 4.1. Because it’s only available via one bank, and at the terminals of a couple of retailers, it’s hard to imagine that many people adopting it very quickly (oh, and it’s already suffered one security breach). Three years ago, Chase eagerly supported Isis (which changed its name to SoftCard for obvious reasons), before the mobile carriers gave up on that, and this could be a repeat of that situation.
Philips and Conoco gas stations are on the list of future retailers, but it’s still looking bleak. If you really want to try it out, the FAQ is here, and the Chase Pay app can be found both on iTunes and Google Play.
Source: Chase
HTC’s 10 Evo is its first phone you can only buy online
A couple of weeks ago, HTC launched its latest smartphone, the Bolt, as an exclusive device for US carrier Sprint. But as it turns out, that partnership isn’t as exclusive as first thought, for today the company has announced the Bolt will be coming to Europe, including the UK, under a new name: The HTC 10 Evo.
You’d be right in thinking “Evo” was shorthand for evolution, but the new handset is actually pitched as a sub-flagship, filling a niche between the One A9 and HTC 10. In a couple of ways, the Evo is actually better than the device it sits beneath. It boasts an IP57 dust and waterproofing rating, for example, as well as an 8-megapixel front-facing camera with panoramic selfie mode. The handset also runs Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box, which the HTC 10 hasn’t been updated to just yet.
Then there are the new USB-C “adaptive earphones” included with the device. One of the HTC 10’s clever features allows you to set up a personalised audio profile, but this requires the user to listen to a bunch of tones and report back. On the HTC 10 Evo, however, the fancy new earphones send out a lone ping and create this profile automatically. HTC imagines this feature will be oft-used, as it’s convenient enough that you can quickly recalibrate when you jump off that noisy train and start your quiet walk home, which might benefit from a different audio profile.
Otherwise, though, the Evo is lower specced than the flagship 10, but not by much. We’re talking 3GB of RAM and 32 gigs of expandable storage, an octa-core Snapdragon 810 processor, fingerprint sensor, 3,200mAh battery and 16-megapixel (f/2.0) primary camera with phase detection autofocus (no UltraPixels here). All in all, a pretty powerful device, and one that looks the part too.
In fact, the Evo looks a lot like the gorgeous HTC 10. The newer device has a flat back instead of a curved one though, because the larger chassis needed to accommodate the bigger, 5.5-inch Quad HD display gave HTC more room to pack in all the necessaries. Thus, no hump.
While the Bolt is exclusive to Sprint in the US, HTC isn’t partnering with any carriers in Europe to help shift the HTC 10 Evo. Instead, the company is doing something it’s never done before by only selling the device online. In the UK, at least, HTC doesn’t appear to have the greatest relationship with mobile networks. The HTC 10 was something of a return to form for the company, and yet two of the four major carriers — Vodafone and O2 — decided to ignore the device.
But HTC wants to target a different type of consumer with the 10 Evo. One that doesn’t tend to tie themselves into contracts and prefers to buy their phone outright. For a company that’s benefitted from carrier partners in the past, though, therein lies a new challenge.
We don’t know exactly when the HTC 10 Evo will launch or how much it’s going to cost, but we’re told it’ll be available soon for somewhere between £450 and £500 in the UK. That’s a pretty penny, especially considering you can pick up an HTC 10 for around £500 right now, but then the Evo is a well-built device with an impressive spec sheet of its own.
Whatever price HTC decides on, it will at least be on the fringes of competitive, but there is an elephant in the room. It’s called the OnePlus 3T, it arrives in the UK at the end of November, and though it only sports a 5.5-inch 1080p display, it starts at £399 for one monster of a spec sheet.
Moto Z phones are Daydream ready thanks to Android Nougat update
Motorola promised to upgrade its Moto Z and Moto Z Force phones to Nougat before the end of the year and today the company revealed that it’s rolling out the update before the end of November. Motorola says the Android 7.0 update will being rolling out globally this week and it delivers a big feature to the phones: Daydream. That’s right, with the addition of Nougat the Moto Z and Moto Z Force are ready to take advantage of Google’s VR platform.
What’s more, Motorola’s Moto Z duo are the first phones other than Google’s own Pixel devices to be certified as Daydream-ready. Back when the virtual reality platform as first announced, Google mentioned that existing handsets likely wouldn’t make the cut. The Moto Z and Moto Z Pure were revealed just after Daydream’s debut and both house a Snapdragon 820 processor to help with the immersive visuals on mobile. Of course, the new VR features that Nougat delivers to Motorola’s modular phones mean you can use with with Google’s $79 Daydream View headset.
Source: Motorola
Canada gets real wireless competition as a key carrier adds LTE
Canada was supposed to get proper, national-level cellular competition when Wind Mobile hit the scene in 2009, but that’s not quite how it panned out. You see, Wind hasn’t had LTE all those years — if you wanted fast data beyond a regional carrier, you still had to go with one of the three main providers (Bell, Rogers or Telus) that have a tight grip on the industry. At last, though, you don’t have to choose between low prices and high performance. Wind Mobile is rebranding as Freedom Mobile, and it’s launching its first LTE networks in Toronto and Vancouver on November 27th.
Freedom will only sell two compatible LTE phones at first, but they’re at least solid choices: the LG V20 and ZTE’s Grand X 4. Unlocked phones should function when they support the network’s AWS-3 frequency range, although you’re unlikely to find one right now. Sorry, that iPhone 7 or Pixel won’t cut it. You’ll likely have to wait a few months before more flagship-class smartphones take advantage of the speedier service.
You won’t have to worry about traveling, at least. All of the greater Toronto and Vancouver areas will have native coverage by spring 2017, and LTE roaming in both Canada and the US will be ready early in the new year. Calgary, Edmonton and Ottawa will have LTE by the summer, and the carrier’s remaining 3G areas (largely in southern Ontario) will get the upgrade by the fall.
The reinvigorated company still faces an uphill battle when the incumbents have LTE networks that blanket the country, not to mention frequencies that virtually guarantee support for most devices. However, the absence of LTE will no longer hold it back. Once Freedom has finished its rollout, your choice of carrier will mostly come down to local coverage and device selection — and that’s good news for Canadians wishing they had as many nationwide choices as their American counterparts.
Via: MobileSyrup
Source: CNW, Freedom Mobile
OnePlus 3T review: A satisfying update to a fairly new phone
Remember the OnePlus 3? It came out barely six months ago and was the best phone you could get for $400. Well, it’s about to be replaced by a faster, slightly more expensive version of itself that the company is calling the OnePlus 3T. (The T doesn’t stand for anything; it’s a cheeky take on the typical “S” suffix denoting many flagship sequels.) The new $439 device uses the latest Snapdragon 821 processor to achieve even faster speeds, and packs a beefier battery and sharper front camera — improvements in areas where the original sort of fell short. I say “sort of” because other than battery life, the OnePlus 3 didn’t need much improving. But OnePlus made it better anyway, and now it’s one of the best phones on the market, especially at this price.
Hardware
There isn’t much of a difference, at least externally, between the OnePlus 3T and its predecessor. Indeed, a lot of what I’m going to describe here was covered in greater detail in our review of the original. The most obvious physical change is the new “gunmetal” color, which is a slightly darker shade of gray-silver than the OnePlus 3. A “soft gold” option is also available, just like with the original.
Color aside, the 3T looks exactly the same as its predecessor, which itself is impressive, given that it has a larger battery. It sports the same 5.5-inch full HD Optic AMOLED display, which was sharp and bright enough to watch videos on indoors and outdoors. It also has the same single speaker at the bottom that was loud enough to fill my living room with sound, although it got tinny at top volume.
You’ll find the same fingerprint sensor, USB-C charging port and physical mute switch here as on the OnePlus 3. Just like the previous version, the OnePlus 3T has a dual nano SIM card slot, but no room for a microSD reader. Those who want more storage will have to opt for a new 128GB option, which costs $479. Neither phone meets widely accepted water-resistance standards, though the company says the handsets will survive wet weather. It didn’t rain during my review period, so I unfortunately wasn’t able to test that claim.
Software
You probably won’t notice many differences between the OnePlus 3’s version of OxygenOS and its successor’s; the changes here are very subtle. The company resized its app icons so they’re consistent across the home, all apps and Shelf pages, and added some new gestures, such as three-finger screenshots and flip-to-mute, to make the phone more convenient to use.
The OnePlus 3T also gets new apps for weather and voice recording, and allows you to lock specific apps with your fingerprint. It also features a quick-settings panel that’s more similar to what you’ll find on Android Nougat. The changes here aren’t major, but they do make getting around the system slightly easier.
Cameras
I don’t generally need an excuse to go on a selfie-taking binge, but I did appreciate having “testing the OnePlus 3T’s 16-megapixel front camera” as a reason to do so. The new setup is much sharper than the one on the OnePlus 3, which the company says makes for better low-light performance.
This was indeed true when I casually snapped dozens of portraits while traipsing around Manhattan one night, and the camera delivered several crisp images, despite all the motion. Not only were they sharp, but the pictures were also bright and relatively noise-free. I had to take a picture in a dark, poorly lit warehouse before I started to see any graininess. The one thing I wish the OnePlus 3T’s front camera had was some form of flash, for taking clear shots in near-darkness.
Just because they have the same megapixel count, though, doesn’t mean that the front and rear cameras are the same. They differ quite vastly on color quality, thanks to their different sensors and pixel size. The same scenes shot with the front camera looked washed-out and pale compared with those taken with the rear camera, which generally captured vibrant, richly colored images. OnePlus 3T also added a layer of sapphire glass to the back camera to protect it from scratches that could forever mar your shots.
As we mentioned in our review of the OnePlus 3, the rear camera is capable in most lighting conditions, but won’t impress the way the iPhone 7 Plus or many other smartphone cameras would. It delivered sharp, accurately colored exterior shots on sunny days, and rendered a respectable amount of detail in low light, but images looked flat indoors. Still, it’s perfectly adequate, and that front camera will please selfie fans like myself.
Performance and battery life
Most flagship phones released this year use the Snapdragon 820 processor, rather than the newer 821 chip that Qualcomm started offering later in the year. So, only the Google Pixel and LeEco Le Pro3 have it, which makes the OnePlus 3 slightly less competitive on specs (the LePro 3 costs the same as the OnePlus 3). I imagine this is one of the biggest reasons OnePlus decided to drop a new flagship so soon after unveiling its previous one, but still, it’s a smart move.
LeEco Le Pro3
Google Pixel
AndEBench Pro
14,399
13,841
13,354
14,941
Vellamo 3.0
6,144
5,202
6,559
5,343
3DMark IS Unlimited
31,691
30,058
31,753
28,645
GFXBench 3.0 1080p Manhattan Offscreen (fps)
50
48
30
46
CF-Bench
51,262
41,653
42,572
30,997
The Snapdragon 821 processor makes the OnePlus 3T faster than the original, which was already pretty speedy. It’s hard to tell the difference in day-to-day performance, because I’m not a robot and can’t detect minute differences in app-launch times, but overall the 3T was very responsive. Its Vellamo score of 6,144 beat the OnePlus 3, the Samsung Galaxy S7, the HTC 10 and the Google Pixel and Pixel XL, while its AndEBench result trumped the OnePlus 3 and the Galaxy S7 but fell short of the Pixel phones and HTC 10. The OnePlus 3T also bested the field in graphics-performance tests.
This means you’re mostly going to see similar speeds across these phones. Considering the Pixels use the same chip (albeit with less RAM) but cost hundreds of dollars more, the OnePlus 3T really delivers on value here.
The OnePlus 3T has the same 6GB of RAM as the original, which makes for swift multitasking. OnePlus says it also improved the launch speed for large apps and games, so you won’t have to wait quite as long to open these programs. I also found call quality to be perfectly adequate. I called a friend who was in Queens (on T-Mobile’s network), and he was able to accurately repeat a string of numbers that I recited, despite his dog barking in the background, which I heard as well. Unfortunately, as with previous OnePlus handsets, the 3T works only on GSM carriers such as AT&T and T-Mobile.
One area where the company says it received the most negative feedback about the OnePlus 3 was battery life. In addition to simply bumping up the battery capacity to 3,400mAh from 3,000mAh, OnePlus tuned the power efficiency of the CPU so that despite its faster speed, it sips power at the same rate as the previous handset.
I was expecting a slight increment on endurance and wasn’t quite prepared for the 3T’s epic stamina. It lasted 16 hours and seven minutes on Engadget’s battery test, which involves looping an HD video with the screen set to 50 percent brightness until the device conks out. That’s almost six hours more than the OnePlus 3’s runtime, and two hours longer than the Google Pixel XL, which has a 3,450mAh bank.
When the phone does eventually run out of juice, it charges back up to offer what the company says is a day’s worth of power in 30 minutes. After the OnePlus 3T finally died on Engadget’s battery test, I plugged it in and was able to take it on a quick video shoot just 15 minutes after, because it already got back up to 20 percent in that time. Not only is this fast, but that’s enough juice to last at least two hours.
The competition
The OnePlus 3T faces direct competition from the LeEco Le Pro3, which uses the same processor with less RAM for $400. But the Le Pro3 suffers from unintuitive software, has a less vibrant display and doesn’t last as long as the 3T.
Google’s Pixel phones also use the same processors, offering similar (if not better) performance in a premium frame. These handsets have better cameras and run the latest version of Android (7.0 Nougat), offering a cleaner interface and helpful new features like Google Assistant. But the Pixel lineup starts at $800, which is nearly twice the OnePlus 3T’s asking price. Indeed, the latest OnePlus handset is probably the best handset you’re going to find for around $440.
Wrap-up
The OnePlus 3T improves things about the original that were slightly lacking, such as battery life, and amps up on performance and software, making it a strong option for power users. I particularly love the sharper front camera for its solid performance in low light. I’d also argue that the boost in endurance alone is worth the $39 price hike, but the previous iteration offered enough stamina for the average user who may not want to shell out for a few extra hours of juice. As a replacement for an existing flagship, the OnePlus 3T is a refinement that not only feels timely, but also well-planned and executed. You’d have a hard time finding a better phone for the price.
Google Maps will help you avoid Black Friday hordes
For over a year now, Google Maps and Search have been telling people when stores, bars and restaurants are likely to be busy. Now, it’s going one step further. From today, searching for a business via Google will not only show you when it’s typically crowded, but also an estimation of how busy it is right now. So if you see that a particular store is very full you can plan to head somewhere else. It’s hoped that the feature will help users avoid the worst of the crowds over Thanksgiving long weekend, and beyond.
There are a couple of other additions rolling out today. Place listings in Search and Maps will now tell you how long the typical stay is at a location, so if you people usually spend two hours at a restaurant, you can plan the rest of your day accordingly. Finally, Maps will now list more complex opening hours. “You’ll know what time to pop by the pharmacy at your local drugstore or supermarket, when food delivery begins at a nearby restaurant and what the service hours are at the auto dealership,” said Google.
Snapchat Spectacles are available in New York City
You knew it was just a matter of time — after stops in California and Oklahoma, Snapchat is now selling Spectacles in New York City. If you can make it to 5 East 59th Street in upper midtown Manhattan (conveniently facing Apple’s iconic 5th Avenue store) and can afford to queue up, you too can score up to two pairs of the purposefully hard-to-get $130 camera glasses. The store will stick around through New Year’s Eve, although it’ll unsurprisingly be closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
Don’t be shocked if you’re in for a lengthy wait to use the lone vending machine in the store — there was already a line before 7AM on opening day. As with other locations, though, Snapchat wants this to be a bit of a challenge. The artificial scarcity creates a buzz that you might not see if you could just walk into an ordinary store and pick up Spectacles on a whim. With that said, Snapchat’s choice of location is clearly intended for maximum exposure. You might see hordes of New Yorkers wearing this video-capable eyewear before long.
One of the first 6 people at the @spectacles popup store in NYC *directly* across the street from the @apple store pic.twitter.com/v7ZLQJIQ3s
— Adam Besvinick (@Besvinick) November 21, 2016
Via: The Verge
Source: Spectacles
Barclays’ new ATMs let you withdraw money with your phone
Contactless technology is, we’re told, destined to replace physical currency. In the meantime, you’ll soon be able to use your phone to withdraw cash from an ATM — if you’re with Barclays that is. The banking giant announced today that it’s in the process of rolling out new in-branch cash machines that will let you withdraw up to £100 with your smartphone or contactless card.
Initially, Barclays will install new “Contactless Cash” machines in the north, before expanding it to 180 branches next year. Over 600 cash machines will be outfitted with contactless readers, which offer three ways to withdraw money. If you own an NFC-enabled Android smartphone, all you’ll need to do is tap on the contactless reader before entering a PIN. When you’re in a rush, the Android app will let you pre-select how much money you want to withdraw and enter your PIN. You’ll then have 30 seconds to tap your phone against the ATM’s contactless reader, which will automatically dispense your cash.
Cards must be added to the Contactless Cash section of the Barclays Mobile Banking app. They can also be tapped (followed by a PIN) instead of physically entering them into the machine.
Barclays argues that Contactless Cash doesn’t just save time, it is also more secure: “Whether using your smartphone or card, it removes the risk of magnetic card skimming and distraction fraud, as the device never needs to leave your hand.”
Ofcom bans BT/EE from bidding on new 4G spectrum
In a bid to bring balance to the UK’s mobile industry, communications watchdog Ofcom has confirmed it will limit BT and EE’s role in upcoming 4G auctions. Next year, Ofcom will sell off 190 MHz of spectrum in the 2.3 GHz and 3.4 GHz bands, upping Britain’s overall 4G footprint by almost a third, but BT and its newly-purchased subsidiary will be excluded from bidding on the entire 2.3 GHz band. Ofcom is worried their involvement “could harm competition in the next few years” if they were allowed to own nearly half of the usable spectrum in the market.
As it stands, BT and EE own 45 percent of the “immediately useable” UK spectrum, which is mobile connectivity that can be deployed right away. Vodafone has 28 percent, while O2 and Three own 15 percent and 12 percent respectively. Regardless of what happens in the auction next year, BT and EE’s share of useable spectrum will fall from 45 percent to 42 percent as a result of Ofcom’s block.
The good news for BT and EE is that there won’t be any limits placed on the 3.4 GHz band. That’s because this part of the spectrum can’t immediately be deployed and is earmarked for the development of 5G services. The idea is to let operators acquire spectrum early so they can begin advancing and testing the next standard in mobile networking.
Although Ofcom first announced plans for the auction in November 2014, the process has been beset by delays. The original plan was to sell off the bands in late 2015, early 2016 but when Three owner Hutchison Whampoa tried (but ultimately failed) to buy O2, the auction was delayed again.
When the 2.3 GHz allocation is made available, more carriers will be able to offer speeds of up to 450 Mbps. Newer iPhones and Samsung devices already cater for Cat 9 bands, but device makers are already beginning to include support for faster 4G in new devices as standard.
Source: Ofcom
AIVAnet 