LG V20 review: Great for audiophiles, but who else?
After the unabashed wackiness of its G5, LG had a real conundrum on its hands: Does it keep up the modular streak for its 2016 V-series flagship phone and risk lousy sales, or try something a little more traditional? As it turns out, LG chose the latter and built a more conventional kind of powerhouse: the V20. None of that means the phone is boring, though. Between its stellar audio, a neat dual-camera setup and a second screen, there’s theoretically enough charming weirdness here to help the V20 stick out from the competition. The bigger question is whether all those disparate bits come together to form a compelling whole. As is often the case, the answer depends where your priorities lie.
Hardware
It’s funny how little the V20 ($672+) looks like its predecessor. Last year’s V10 all but shoved its rugged design in your face, with its rubbery DuraSkin rear and a pair of stainless steel bars flanking its display. The design looked better in person than I thought it would, but it definitely wasn’t for everyone. The V20, meanwhile, is more subdued in its style, even though it’s rated to handle 4-foot drops, just like the V10.
Now, don’t go confusing “subdued” with “attractive” — the V20’s aesthetic is best described as utilitarian, and I’d be surprised if anyone felt the blow-to-the-gut pang of attraction that sometimes comes with seeing finely crafted gear. In fact, when I first laid eyes on the V20, I couldn’t help but point out visual similarities between it and the BlackBerry Z10 — not exactly a comparison LG should be proud of. Regardless, the V20 is plenty sturdy: It’s made of 6013-series aluminum capped on the top and bottom with a tough polycarbonate to help it deal with drops.
It’s also huge. The 5.7-inch Quantum LCD display is a handful as it is, but the V20 also has a tiny secondary display above the main screen. For the sake of comparison, the V20 is just a hair longer and thicker than the iPhone 7 Plus, which is itself a whopper of a smartphone. Both of these phones also coincidentally share a dual-camera setup (which I’ll dive into later), but the V20 is noticeably lighter. It’s too bad that the V20 isn’t water-resistant like some of its rivals, but the trade-off might be worth it to some people. You see, LG is one of the few flagship smartphone makers who still let users remove their batteries. To that end, there’s a button low on the phone’s left side that pops off the V20’s metal battery cover, revealing a 3,200mAh battery and a combination SIM/microSD slot. The phone takes memory cards as large as 2TB, by the way, though the 64GB of included storage will probably be enough for most.
Sitting directly above is the standard rear-mounted fingerprint sensor, which is among the fastest I’ve used on a smartphone. Many people seem to appreciate its placement on the back of the phone, and I’m slowly becoming one of them. Sure, it would be nice to be able to unlock the V20 with a touch while it’s sitting face-up on a table, but I like that the sensor is in the perfect spot for my finger to rest on it when I pull the V20 out of my pocket.
Displays and sound
As mentioned earlier, the main screen is a big ol’ 5.7-inch IPS LCD running at Quad HD, and it’s noticeably brighter than the panel on the G5. As a result, legibility and color reproduction are also better under direct sunlight than on the G5 or the V10, though I’d be shocked if they weren’t. Speaking of colors, they’re rendered well across the board and look surprisingly natural, thanks to LG’s Quantum display tech. When LG first embraced quantum displays in the G4, it claimed it offered a more accurate take on colors. That may be true, but the V20’s screen might not be for everyone right out of the box; it’s quite cool, so there’s a tendency for whites to look a little blue. You don’t get the visceral vividness and deep darks that come with AMOLED screens, but hey — it’s ultimately a matter of personal preference.
More important, the secondary display is back. To be clear: It’s not actually a separate screen — just an extra bit that juts out from the top of the main panel. In theory, the 1040×160 overflow area is a neat idea: It acts as a dedicated zone for the time and notifications when the main display is off, and offers shortcuts to apps and actions when the main display is on. I have a few issues with LG’s multiscreen implementation, but let’s just get the big one out of the way first: As with the V10 and even Samsung’s Edge line, very little about this second display is essential.
Most of the shortcuts — like toggling WiFi and Bluetooth and grabbing a screenshot to mark up — exist in the Quick Settings tray above the notifications shade anyway, so you’re rarely saving time. Ditto for app shortcuts: I’ve found it much easier to leave my most used apps on the bottom row of a home screen rather than scoot up my hand (or use my other one) to tap on an app icon in the overflow area. Still, it’s not like the second display is without merit entirely. The best part is having a set of music controls available while the phone is locked. Your mileage may vary, but I’d have given up on the second screen completely were it not for that.
So yeah, the second screen is of dubious value. The V20’s audio performance more than makes up for it, though: The phone is kitted out with a Quad DAC and support for 24-bit high-resolution audio. I’ve been a little dismissive of this stuff in the past, but the V20 has helped me turn a corner. With the DAC enabled and headphones plugged in, your audio will automatically sound at least a little richer and fuller. The differences can be harder to suss out with certain songs — particularly ones you stream — but the changes stemming from the DAC are almost universally welcome. LG’s choice of DAC also means the V20 supports 32-bit audio and lossless formats like FLAC, if that’s something you’re down with, though it goes without saying that the V20’s single speaker won’t come close to doing them justice.
Chances are you won’t see them, but the V20 also plays host to a trio of microphones for high-quality audio recording. They’re technically what are called acoustic overload point microphones, and I’ll spare you the drawn-out explanation — just know they’re designed to keep distortion to a minimum in very loud situations. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how crisp and clean the resulting records have been, and while these microphones would really shine at concerts and right next to musicians, they’ve also been great for recording interviews and conversations for work.
Software
LG pulled off a neat coup with the V20: It’s the first smartphone that shipped with Android 7.0 Nougat preloaded. Google made that victory a hollow one when it launched the Pixel and Pixel XL with Android 7.1, but whatever: Nougat is still surprisingly hard to come by, and I’ll take it where I can get it. (You can check out our full Android 7.0 review here, by the way.) All of the new little — and not so little — Nougat tricks are here and ready to play with. Even LG left some facets of Nougat almost completely untouched, like the notifications shade and the quick-settings panel above it. Nicely done.
That said, not every Nougat feature works as Google intended. Android 7.0 lets you play with the display size, for instance, allowing you to adjust the size of text and app icons. When left untouched, Nougat gives you five display options to help you find the perfect size, but LG’s implementation gives you only three. Fine, that’s probably not the biggest deal, but it’s a sign that Google’s word still isn’t gospel for OEMs. At least the horsepower on display here makes the V20 an efficient multitasker; not every app works with Google’s new multiwindow mode, but the ones that do run smoothly.
Of course, Nougat is only part of the equation — LG painted over it with an updated version of its custom interface, called LG UX 5.0+. For the most part, it’s a rehash of the interface on the G5, but there’s at least one big change to keep your eyes peeled for. By default, the V20 doesn’t have a traditional app drawer; all of your stuff gets splashed across your home screens by default. Seeing a flagship Android smartphone ship in the US without an app drawer is a little unusual because these setups are more popular in Asia, but it’s easy enough to revive the launcher if you miss it.
The rest of LG’s custom skin is as bright and inoffensive as always. I do wish LG would pare back its paint job to let stock Android shine through, especially since there’s a tendency for some of the company’s first-party apps to feel clunky. It doesn’t help that my review unit is a Verizon model, which means it’s loaded with bloatware I couldn’t wait to uninstall or disable. At least Verizon was kind enough to shove most of its apps in a folder for easy decimation.
The cameras
Remember the G5’s fascinating dual-camera setup? The one that was eventually overshadowed by the iPhone 7 Plus even though they aspired to the exact same thing? Well, LG tweaked the formula for the V20, swapping in different sensors. All told, the 16-megapixel main sensor and 8-megapixel wide-angle camera next to it are fun to use in tandem, even if the resulting photos aren’t as good as what competing devices are capable of.
Most of the time, you’ll be using that 16-megapixel camera with its f/1.8 aperture and optical image stabilization and more often than not you’ll get photos that look pretty good. Other phones do better with color representation and detail — here’s looking at you, Galaxy S7 and Google Pixel — but the V20 puts up a decent fight. The larger problem here is one of consistency. When shooting in Auto mode — which many people will be doing — the V20 often gets the exposure a little wrong or gets a little too ambitious when it tries to automatically reduce noise. Low-light performance is decent too, but not even a wide aperture, image-stabilization and multiple autofocus methods can prevent grain and ghosting.
The smaller, 8-megapixel sensor has to grapple with these issues too, plus the barrel distortion that becomes prominent when you’re shooting from a distance. It also would’ve been nice if LG tightened up the transition between the cameras when you’re zooming in and out on a subject. There’s still about a one-second pause while the phone makes the switch, which could make the difference between nabbing the shot you wanted and missing it completely.
As far as off-the-cuff shooting goes, the V20 could be much, much better. Ironically, the manual-shooting mode LG included might be my favorite on any smartphone. Familiar settings like ISO, shutter speed, white balance and more can be found at the bottom of the screen, but they’re joined by a tremendously helpful manual focus mode that highlights parts of the image when they’re nice and crisp.
The tragically vain will be glad to know that the 5-megapixel front-facing camera is perfectly adequate, and offers a wide enough field of view that squeezing a few friends into the shot should be no trouble. While we’re talking about the perfectly adequate, shooting video with the V20, even in 4K, yielded footage that was pleasant enough. If only LG were better at playing the expectations game. The company spent a decent chunk of its V20 launch event talking about how awesome Qualcomm’s built-in video-image stabilization is. And while it’s certainly helpful, it’s hardly the miracle-worker I was hoping for.
Performance and battery life
For all the V20’s quirks, the stuff under the hood is very familiar. Like the G5 before it, the V20 packs a quad-core Snapdragon 820 chipset paired with 4GB of RAM and an Adreno 530 GPU. It would’ve been nice to see LG give the V20 another edge in the form of the newer Snapdragon 821 chip, but alas, we probably got a little screwed by the intricacies of supply-chain management. Either way, we’re still working with a phone that keeps pace with the best of ’em; the slowdowns I experienced were thankfully rare, even when running graphically intense games.
Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge
LG V20
AndEBench Pro
14,941
16,164
13,030
13,172
Vellamo 3.0
5,343
5,800
4,152
5,266
3DMark IS Unlimited
28,645
29,360
26,666
27,968
GFXBench 3.0 1080p Manhattan Offscreen (fps)
46
48
47
39
CF-Bench
30,997
39,918
46,290
32719
That’s great, but horsepower doesn’t count for much without a good battery to back it up. Alas, the 3,200mAh cell here fails to impress. Sure, it’s more capacious than the one that shipped with the G5 earlier this year, but that doesn’t mean the V20 lasts any longer on a charge. In my nearly two weeks of testing, the V20 typically powered through 12-hour workdays full of Slack messages, emails, podcasts and the occasional Hearthstone match, and came out on the other side with about 10 percent charge remaining. For those keeping count, that’s almost exactly the same usage I squeezed out of the G5 and its smaller battery.
Now, 12 hours of continued, mixed usage on a single charge isn’t bad, and Qualcomm’s QuickCharge 3.0 tech means topping up the V20’s battery takes very little time. And if that’s not fast enough, you could always carry around a spare battery and just swap it in as needed. Even so, there’s no denying that devices like the Pixel siblings and Samsung’s Galaxy series tend to last longer with their sealed batteries.
That was also true in our video rundown test, where we loop an HD video with screen brightness set to 50 percent while connected to WiFi. The V20 stuck around for 11 hours and 10 minutes — that’s a bit better than the 10.5 hours I got on the G5, but hours behind devices like the Galaxy S7 and Google’s Pixel phones.
The competition
I’ve been making not-so-veiled references to Samsung’s current line of Galaxy phones and Google’s Pixel family, and for good reason. If you’re looking for a new flagship and the V20 is on your shortlist, these devices need to be too — after all, they offer similar horsepower for around the same price. For those who like the idea of the V20’s second screen, there’s always the Galaxy S7 Edge. It packs just as much horsepower as the V20 and an always-on display you can rub to peek at your notifications and the news without having to unlock the phone. In general, its battery life is much better too, though you’ll have to deal with a custom interface and a lack of Android Nougat.
Then again, if it’s great photos you’re after, you won’t do much better than the Pixel or Pixel XL. Both pair impressive 12-megapixel cameras with really impressive (not to mention instantaneous) HDR image processing, which add up to the best point-and-shoot camera experience on an Android device. It doesn’t hurt that the Pixel phones run a clean version of Android 7.1 Nougat, offer access to Google’s clever new assistant, and offer speedy performance.
By now, though, it’s clear the V20 isn’t your average Android flagship. There’s an underlying emphasis on creativity here that extends way beyond what other device makers have attempted. In that regard, no clear competitors come to mind.
Wrap-up
LG has done a fine job choosing top-tier components and focusing on things like audio quality and manual photography. On paper, that sounds great! In practice, there’s an underlying lack of cohesiveness between these parts. Audio nerds will find a lot to like here, the swappable battery is nice, and there are some great shots to be captured if you’re comfortable tinkering with the shooting settings. If what you need out of smartphone matches LG’s vision, the V20 is a great choice. But for people who value power and polish over a highly specific set of tools, there are more well-rounded options out there.
Tesla self-driving demo shows you what the car sees
Sure, Tesla’s first demo of full self-driving features was intriguing. But did you wonder what it was like from the car’s point of view? You’re about to find out. Tesla has posted another demo video that shows what an autonomous EV sees as it navigates local roads. As the clip illustrates, the cameras and sensors have to detect many, many different objects at any given moment: road lines, signs, lights, pedestrians and cars are among the many examples. The car even captures the “motion flow” of the environment to get a sense of where it’s going.
This isn’t a flawless test run. You see the vehicle slow down unnecessarily for people running by the roadside (about 1:30 in), for example. It’s also uncertain how well this sort of demo would work in less than favorable conditions, such as snowy weather or nighttime drives on poorly-lit roads. However, it’s still impressive. The car is sufficiently aware of its environment that the driver doesn’t have to touch the wheel once, even in relatively complex situations.
Via: Elon Musk (Twitter)
Source: Tesla
Watch the US launch a next-gen weather satellite at 5:10PM ET
If all goes according to plan, the US is about to enter a new era of weather tracking. The United Launch Alliance is scheduled to launch the first instance of GOES-R (Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite), the US’ next-generation weather observer, at 5:40PM Eastern (live NASA coverage starts at 5:10PM). The new satellite not only captures sharper images width more wavelengths, but takes those snapshots at a much higher frequency that promises to change how meteorologists and climatologists track environmental conditions.
Where previous GOES satellites would only report back once every several minutes, GOES-R provides images every 30 seconds. In tandem with the expanded information, that makes it far more practical to monitor wildfires, hurricanes, fog and other rapidly-developing phenomena. Nature notes that it could even be used for proactive responses. You’d have a better idea of when a serious storm is about to roll in, and firefighting crews could deploy before anyone on the ground even spots a given blaze.
It will take a lot of time and money before NOAA’s vision is complete. There are three other GOES-R vehicles in the pipeline, and it’ll cost almost $11 billion to keep them going until the end of their mission in December 2036. However, it might be worthwhile if it helps with timelier, more accurate responses to (and predictions of) environmental trouble in the US.
Via: Ars Technica
Source: NASA TV, NOAA Satellites (Twitter)
Samsung is trying to sell a Galaxy Note 3 on Black Friday and it should feel ashamed
There are bad deals, and then there are sales that show a disrespect for your customers.
Samsung’s online Black Friday deals kick off on November 20, and it’s always great to get an early look at what products will be available — and at what price — before the sales go live. As is often the case with these kinds of sales there are a couple of great deals out there, surrounded by lots of so-so offerings and a couple of complete head-scratchers.
This year, the biggest head scratcher of them all is Samsung attempting to sell a certified pre-owned Galaxy Note 3 for $249 … yes, in the year 2016.
Alright, the Galaxy Note 3 was one hell of a phone back when it was released in 2013. This was well before big phones were the norm, and it had a great set of specs: Snapdragon 800, 3GB of RAM, a 1080p display and of course the S Pen. Our review was, to say the least, positive:
It’s big and brash and expensive — but it’s also brilliant. And whether you’re a power user looking for bleeding-edge specs or a professional seeking a larger screen with stylus-based productivity features, the Galaxy Note 3 is the best device in its class, and a phone that’s earned itself an enthusiastic recommendation.
But that was October 2013. It is now November 2016. The Note 3 is running Android 5.0 Lollipop, hasn’t been updated since November 2015 and will not receive any future updates. It’s well over 3 years old and will not receive any sort of support or warranty service by Samsung. It’s an old phone, and nobody would recommend that you buy one, especially for $250.
For that kind of money you can buy a Moto G4 Plus, a OnePlus 2 or maybe a ZTE Axon Pro. Heck, you’re not too far off from the likes of the Honor 8 or even stretching for the OnePlus 3T.
It’s the kind of money-grabbing insensitive move that any company should be repulsed by the thought of.
I know this, and most of you know this, but the unsuspecting average consumer looking for a deal on Black Friday may not know this. And because of that, Samsung needs to respect its potential customers and not attempt to sell them a used phone that launched in 2013 and will not be supported from the day they purchase it. That’s the kind of money-grabbing insensitive move that any company should be repulsed by the thought of, particularly a company skating on thin ice when it comes to consumer confidence in its phones.
Considering that the sale is starting and the phones are still listed, it seems as though Samsung is going to sell more than zero Galaxy Note 3s this holiday season. Tell your friends, your family, your coworkers and anyone you see: do not buy a Galaxy Note 3 on Black Friday.
Samsung
Samsung is a massive South Korea-based multinational company that makes some of the best-selling phones, tablets and mobile accessories, but also spans industries such as televisions, appliances and semiconductors (like memory and processors). Samsung is the largest Android device manufacturer worldwide.
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Alfa Romeo Stelvio preview: Alfa’s first SUV
At the LA Motor Show – or AutomobilityLA as it’s now known – it felt as though every brand brought a new SUV. From Honda and Mazda, through to Chevrolet, Jaguar and – most surprisingly of all – Alfa Romeo.
Alfa has never made an SUV before, but the demand for these vehicles simply isn’t slowing down, so enter the Stelvio (which is named after a famous Alpine mountain pass).
It’s a Porsche Macan-sized SUV with design language that riffs on the Giulia, the latter Alfa’s new saloon – that feels like it’s been around for some time, but which we’re still waiting to drive in the UK.
Pocket-lint
Shown in LA in its range-topping Quadrifoglio Verde form (that’s Cloverleaf in British), the Stelvio is Alfa pushing hard the sports part of Sports Utility Vehicle. The QV model gets the Giulia QV’s 2.9-litre V6, making 510-horsepower and driving through an 8-speed auto box. It’s going to be Porsche Macan Turbo fast, too, this Alfa.
It’s also Macan Turbo-sized, despite perhaps appearances to the contrary. The main response to the Stelvio at the Los Angeles show was how small it was, particularly in height. It bears more of a resemblance to a hatchback on steroids, than a genuine SUV. But it’s not a crossover.
Part of the reason for this is the gargantuan 22-inch wheels the Stelvio QV wears. Bigger wheels have an impact of making you feel that the actual car is smaller than it might seem. But at just 1650mm tall, the Stelvio is low for an SUV. And with the ground clearance on offer, you’ll be better off on the Nurburgring than you will the muddy field of your country fair.
Pocket-lint
It’s perhaps no surprise the Stelvio bears a strong resemblance to the Giulia, given they shares the same platform and many components. With rear-wheel drive biased chassis, and a purported focus on driving dynamics, the Stelvio should be great to drive then. That low height and corresponding centre of gravity will probably help out too.
However, despite wearing the Alfa shield, and being painted in an evocative red (which tends to trip critics into automatically stating that a car is beautiful) in the metal we found the Stelvio a little underwhelming. It looks derivative and brings very little new to the SUV party (indeed, flick through the gallery in our LA show round-up, and many of the cars there almost begin to merge into being one and the same).
- LA Motor Show in pictures: The best cars from the AutomobilityLA show floor
In design terms, the Stelvio manages to appear both overly soft, and yet too flat – like the design hasn’t been properly worked through in 3D. Italian car brands traditionally don’t use clay to develop their new models, whereas other brands do – which is seen as the best way to refine surfaces. For Alfa, we think that approach shows. Around the rear three quarters, in particular, the Stelvio looks stodgy and the body ill-connected to the rear wheel.
Pocket-lint
Inside, however, the Stelvio’s cabin is sporting, featuring a similar architecture to the Giulia. That means a rotary control, not touchscreen centre display (should be easier to use on the move), alongside heavily cowled Alfa dials for speed and revs, which flank a digital display.
The start button is on the steering wheel, and the seats grip you tight and feel snug and low. It’s a sporty driving position inside, for sure. We didn’t manage to get into the back seats, but the boot space looks class competitive, which is good news for families.
First Impressions
There’s clear demand for an Alfa-branded SUV, so Alfa Romeo is sure to do well with the Stelvio.
Of course the Alfisti will hate this type of vehicle wearing one its badges, just as Porsche drivers did when the first Cayenne emerged. But it’s SUVs like these that generate the profits for the brands, which enable them to stay alive, and then build the low-volume sports cars that everyone wants to see.
We just wish the Stelvio’s design looked a little more resolved, though we will caveat that by saying, as with the Giulia, we actually think the regular models look better than the QV – and that could be the case here.
So we’ll await full judgement until we’ve seen the Stelvio on smaller wheels, without the body kit and in either the 2.0 petrol or 2.2 diesel versions that people will actually buy.
Jaguar I-Pace preview: More titillating than a Tesla?
It only seemed like 15 minutes ago that we were arguing about whether or not Jaguar should build an SUV. With the I-Pace shown off at the LA Motor Show – or AutomobilityLA as it’s now known – Jag shows us it’s not only thinking about building more SUVs, but making them electrically powered, too.
So what is the I-Pace? It’s smaller than size than the F-Pace SUV, it’s lower and shorter (4680mm long) and the profile is very different too.
Rather than Jag’s traditional long bonnet and rear-wheel drive proportion (“cab backwards” in designer speak) with the I-Pace the British company has made the bonnet short, with a “cab forwards” proportion.
That creates quite a snub nose and a large, spacious passenger cabin. The tail is chopped off and the rear window more of a coupe profile, creating something that looks altogether new and fresh.
Pocket-lint
Under the floors, and integral to the structure, is a 90kW, liquid-cooled battery pack. That’s three times the capacity of the battery in, say, a Nissan Leaf. And Jaguar is projecting this means the car can travel around 500km on the official European drive cycle.
However, everyone who’s owned or driven an electric vehicle (EV) knows that measurement to be fallacy, so a better estimate of real-world range is the USA EPA system, on which Jag says the I-Pace will deliver 220 miles range. This sounds much more realistic to us.
Jaguar has also set out to go Tesla baiting, it seems, so the I-Pace makes 400 horsepower and 700nM of torque, and the company is conservatively saying the car will run 0-60mph in around four seconds.
Pocket-lint
But as it’s all a concept isn’t this all just powder puff stuff anyway? Well, not so fast because – and having talked to Jag’s team – we’re fairly confident that the design of the I-Pace represents 80-90 per cent of the production design. Lose some of the concept details and you’re almost there.
- LA Motor Show in pictures: The best cars from the AutomobilityLA show floor
And when it comes to the powertrain, this is the real deal. Jag, like many other brands, has been working on its EV technology for some time now. Unusually the battery has been developed in house, whereas other brands primarily use Samsung and LG-chem technology. So the I-Pace will arrive, for real, in 2018. Whether it wears the same name, is up for debate.
Pocket-lint
Inside Jaguar has evolved its current interior design language, added some clever design devices to remove mass and developed some thin seats, but overall it’s quite restrained and not as arresting as that exterior. It doesn’t push things to quite the futuristic lengths as a BMW i in terns of materials, or as a Tesla in terms of tech screens and button removal.
Nonetheless, there’s what Jag calls its “flightdeck” control interface, with everything to hand, meaning things like normal indicator stalks, gear selector buttons exist on a high, floating console – which also contains the climate control knobs.
Pocket-lint
Combine this tech setup with a 12-inch, TFT driver display, plus a 12-inch centre touchscreen and tertiary 5.5-inch display for the climate. It might not be a Tesla, but there are plenty of screens to hand. The graphics have a much crisper, linear and monochrome design than current Jags, which feels more in-keeping with the I-Pace’s concept overall. It’s something we hope Jag will strive to keep and move forward for production.
First Impressions
In general we sense that EVs are reaching a tipping point. That 200 miles of range feels like the magic, acceptable number for many people. Meanwhile battery prices are falling and battery energy density continuing to increase.
With Tesla already there, and Audi, BMW and Mercedes all planning their own fully electric SUVs between now and 2020, Jaguar won’t have the market to itself when the I-Pace makes its real-world debut.
But what the I-Pace will have – if it’s even 80 per cent of what we see here on the Los Angeles show floor – is a highly appealing, good-looking car that pulls off the neat trick of feeling authentically like a Jaguar and yet advanced and modern enough without being so far out it puts the more conservative buyer off. Roll-on two years’ time.
24 hours with Sony’s A99 II full-frame DSLR
With high-end mirrorless cameras such as the A7S II and A7R II, it’s easy to forget that Sony also makes full-frame DSLRs. Its latest one, the A99 II, is set to arrive later this month for $3,200 body-only. That gets you a massive 42.2-megapixel sensor, max ISO of 102,400, 12-fps continuous shooting and, for the first time, in-camera image stabilization. While I’ve only been using it for a day or so, I can tell you the camera shows a lot of promise — which isn’t surprising given its sensor type and how much it costs.
As you’d imagine, it helps to have it paired with expensive lenses, like Sony’s 70-400mm f/4-5.6 G2 ($2,200) and 70-200mm f/2.8 G SSM II ($3,000), among others. What impressed me the most about the A99 II is its autofocusing speed, which makes use of a hybrid 4D Focus with a wide area of coverage (79 phase detection points and 399 focal-plane). In theory, that technology is also supposed to make the camera’s AF more accurate, especially when you’re trying to capture moving subjects. So far, that’s been working out well for me.
I’ll have more on the A99 II soon. In the meantime, check out my sample images from Sony’s new flagship DSLR.
To view our sample images in full resolution, click here.
Recommended Reading: Fake news writer takes blame for Trump’s win
Facebook Fake-news
Writer: ‘I Think Donald
Trump Is in the White
House Because of Me’
Caitlin Dewey,
The Washington Post
Facebook’s struggle with fake news has been widely reported and the issue is still a hot topic in the days following the US presidential election. The Washington Post caught up with Paul Horner, a man who has made a living off of news hoaxes over the last few years, some of which got picked up by the media and the Trump campaign as legit stories.
“His followers don’t fact-check anything — they’ll post everything, believe anything,” Horner said. “His campaign manager posted my story about a protester getting paid $3,500 as fact. Like, I made that up. I posted a fake ad on Craigslist.”
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Q-Tip Got It From Here The Ringer reviews the new A Tribe Called Quest album that combines a political statement with a masterfully crafted album that’s, as writer Donnie Kwak puts it, “an exceedingly rare example of a successful, age-appropriate project from 40-something rappers.” |
Review: ‘Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life’ on Netflix Gilmore Girls is set to return to TV next Friday after a much-anticipated revival at the hands of Netflix. While there’s plenty to satisfy the show’s faithful followers, Variety says its four 90-minute installments prove problematic for pacing. |
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The Alphabet That Will Save a People From Disappearing Two brothers developed a new script for their native language and now they want to make sure it’s available on every smartphone in the world. |
Shirtless Trump Saves Drowning Kitten Mark Zuckerberg told the American people not to hold Facebook responsible for Donald Trump’s win. Should the CEO pay attention to the group of employees who have taken it upon themselves to combat the problem? |
Get certified to become an ethical hacker with these awesome bundles!
Hacking is generally associated with negativity, and with recent attacks and breaches people are scared of the word. Ethical hackers do a completely different thing though, they work with the companies to build up their systems to prevent attacks from happening in the future. They look for vulnerabilities in different systems, code bases, and more to see if there are any holes that people can get into and work to get them closed up before someone else can access them.
Getting into the field can be a difficult thing, but there are tons of great resources available that can help you get started to get your foot in the door. Here are some of the best courses that you can take at a huge discount.
Certified Ethical Hacker Bootcamp
The Ethical Hacker Bootcamp offers a ton of information that you have access to at any point during the day. You’ll be able to utilize the more than 140 lectures and 45 hours of content 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. With more than 600 exam questions you’ll gain practical experience with DDoS attacks, policy creation and much more.
Normally, this bootcamp would set you back over $5,200, but right now you can get it all for just $45.
See at Android Central Offers
IT Security & Ethical Hacking Certification Training
With this certification training you will have instant access to more than 50 hours of training and nearly 50 hours of courses to help you get on your way. If you invest up to three hours per week, you should be able to pass all the certification exams in under six weeks, which is not a whole lot of time at all. You’ll be able to learn how to secure Windows systems against attacks, discover methods for guessing passwords and study different types of keyloggers.
Regularly this certification training would be priced at just under $2,000, but for a limited time you can get it for only $30, which is a 98% savings.
See at Android Central Offers
IT Security & White Hat Hacking: CompTIA & Cisco Certifications
Information is key when it comes to getting started. There is so much information out there, but accessing it is pricey. Getting your CompTIA & Cisco certifications with this bundle may put you a step ahead of the competition. With more than 50 hours of information and 40 lectures that you can access on-demand, this bundle will get you ready to pass your exams with ease. Some of the key topics that you’ll master include cyber-security, spyware, keyloggers, and much more.
If you want to avoid paying the $1,400 retail value of the courses, you’ll want to act quick so that you can pay only $29 for it all.
See at Android Central Offers
Cyber Security Hacker & Pen Tester Certification Training
If you want to have access to the most classes, you’ll want to check this one out. With nearly 120 classes available to pull information from and 20 hours of content that you can access on your own schedule, this can help you get certified in the time that you have available. This will help put you ahead of the competition by teaching you through video, quizes, assessments and even discussions.
For the low price of just $39, you’ll save a boatload of money to act quick. If you decide to delay, you may be stuck paying upwards of $800 for this package, do be sure to act quickly!
See at Android Central Offers
ICYMI: Wildland firefighting is about to get an AI assist
Today on In Case You Missed It: Lockheed Martin just demonstrated its AI aircraft system that can spot fires and put them out independent of human intervention, while also checking to see if any humans were left behind near danger. The system is supposed to be in service within five years.
Researchers discovered that Goffin cockatoos are smart enough to make tools from various materials, judging how long and narrow they need to be each time to pass through a hole and also reach a treat. Meanwhile, if you’re interested in the rapid repair of a sinkhole in Japan, the timelapse video is here. There have been a lot of interesting stories this week but people will be talking about the judge’s decision to allow a dying girl to be cryogenically frozen for quite a while. As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
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