Pre-orders for Blackberry Keyone Black Edition are now live in UK

The BlackBerry KEYone limited edition black variant was launched earlier last month, and since then, it has only been available in India. Yesterday, at the ongoing IFA conference in Berlin, the company made it official for global markets as well. The UK was in the first list of countries where BlackBerry said the model will be available later this year. And it turns out that pre-orders for the device have already gone live in the country. Retailer Carphone Warehouse has the device listed on its website for £549, which currently translates into around $710. The listing reveals...

Google Assistant is coming to new speakers, washing machines and other home appliances [Updated]

Update: Sony has announced a new wireless speaker that features Google Assistant. Dubbed LF-S50G, the device will be available for purchase sometime in the month of October. It'll set you back $200. Original story follows: Google is also at IFA 2017 and is announcing an updated presence of its Google Assistant. The voice service is arriving at speakers, washing machines, dryers, and vacuums. First devices and appliances are going to come "later this year" so you can finally say "Ok Google, wash my clothes." Panasonic GA10 Google Assistant is very useful for asking...

LG V30+ with 128GB storage is coming to Sprint

While T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon have all announced their plans to carry the newly-unveiled LG V30, Sprint has gone ahead and done something different. The carrier has revealed that it will be offering the LG V30+. The revelation was made by none other than the carrier's CEO in a tweet. 1/2 Yes, it's true, @Sprint will carry the new #LGV30+ from @LGUSAMobile! Amazing display + great speakers = win! http://pic.twitter.com/kX7ZMtqfot— MarceloClaure (@marceloclaure) August 31, 2017 The difference between the LG V30 and V30+ is storage. While the former comes with 64GB, the plus variant...

You can no longer switch BBM from Android to BlackBerry legacy devices

Users over at CrackBerry's forums have been reporting that they've been unable to switch their BBM account back to BlackBerry's legacy devices running BlackBerry's operating systems. Users have experienced a server issue that does not let you access contacts, groups, and channels after performing the switch back to a BlackBerry OS device. You can still hop around between BlackBerry OS devices, but if you move from a BlackBerry device to an Android-powered BlackBerry (or otherwise), iOS, or Windows device, you will not be able to successfully access BBM on a legacy BlackBerry...

ZTE Axon 7 OTA rolling out with multi-user support, and Quick Settings tile support

If you've got the ZTE Axon 7, you'll be glad to know there's an OTA update rolling out now with several improvements, fixes, and added features. Here's the full list, sent in by one of our readers: Multi user support added Enhanced Daydream performance Improved battery efficiency Quick Settings Tiles support added Night mode updated with adjustable scale Modified notification from tone to vibrate on calls Hiya app able to be updated via Google Play Store Android Pay issue (isolated 6GB/128GB version) resolved Google Security patches updated to August 1 2017 Miscellaneous...

Acer Liquid Z6 Max appears with a 4,670 mAh battery and a 5.5-inch display

Acer has held a ceremony in its home country of Taiwan to celebrate the closing of the 2017 Taiwan Universiade Games. The ceremony was held to honor those who participated in the games where the General Manager of Acer Taiwan presented 380 special-edition Acer Liquid Z6 Max smartphones to those who participated in the presence of Su Liqiong (Secretary of the Taipei Municipal Government) and Li Weibin (Director of Taipei Municipal Govt. Information Bureau). Source: China Times The kicker here is that we've not heard of such a smartphone before. We've heard of the Liquid Z6 and...

Motorola Moto X4 hands-on review: First impressions

There's a new top Sony dog in town and its name is the Xperia XZ1. So, it's official: Sony is persisting with its, let's say, questionable naming convention. To be fair, we do see the consistency in it all, but it is still a rather silly title. Plus, we do have to complain about some aspect of the XZ1, since, frankly, after spending a bit of time with it, our initial impressions are really positive.

Samsung Galaxy S9 is rumored to debut in January

These days we're witnessing the proverbial calm before the storm in the mobile world, with the storm in this case being the iPhone 8 that Apple will unveil at its event on September 12. The tenth anniversary iPhone has the potential to once again shake up the space, despite its rumored hefty price tag. And Samsung knows this. As it should, being Apple's No.1 competitor in high-end smartphones (in terms of sales). Now a new report from the company's home of South Korea claims the iPhone 8 is actually influencing Samsung's development schedule for the Galaxy S9. The S8 duo was announced...

Lenovo adds an Alexa tablet docking station and a mixed-reality headset to its lineup

Lenovo Home Assistant IoT is clearly on an upward spiral with no end in sight. Navigating the constantly shifting and branching field can be a daunting task. But even in this fragmented market chaos, certain trends have started to emerge. For one, it is becoming increasingly clear that most of the industry loves Amazon's Alexa platform, both for her smarts and vast device compatibility skills roster. In keeping wit this trend, Lenovo just unveiled its Home Assistant - yet another Alexa-powered, home assistant type device with a twist of its own. Lenovo's angle seems to stem from...

Promo videos for the Moto X4 are up

Earlier today Motorola finally decided to make the incredibly oft-leaked Moto X4 official, as you may know if you've already gone through our post covering the announcement. The company is eager to showcase its latest smartphones in video form, and as such it has already uploaded two promotional creations to its YouTube channel. The first one lets us know that the X4's tagline is "Hello Perfection" - you'll be the judge of how well that works for a mid-ranger. Next up, we're told that the new device comes with both style and substance - not an easy feat to achieve. Oh, and also dual...

Lenovo unveils Yoga 920 and Yoga 720 convertibles, Miix 520 2-in-1

This year at IFA it felt like convertible laptops and 2-in-1s have taken over the world. Lenovo is a stalwart in this field and it brought two Yoga convertibles and a Miix 2-in-1. All three are thin and light and lovely. Lenovo Yoga 920 "A nearly edgeless 4K display" immediately caught our attention. Indeed, the Yoga 920 has a 13.9" touchscreen with vertical bezels that measure just 5mm. The IPS touchscreen flips around 360° on a hinge built from machined aluminum (for extra durability). The Lenovo Active Pen 2 can be used if you prefer a stylus to finger input. Note that the...

Moto X4 with dual-camera announced

Lenovo introduced the Moto X4 at a special event at IFA in Berlin today. It's an upper-tier mid-ranger with a 5.2" 1080p IPS display with Gorilla Glass, sleek profile, water-resistance, dual-camera, and Alexa integration. The Moto X4 is powered by the Snapdragon 630 chipset (8x Cortex-A53, Adreno 508), has 3GB of RAM, 32GB expandable storage, and a 3,000 mAh battery capable of 15W fast charging. Lenovo chose a dual-glass sandwich design for the Moto X4 and the phone has IP68 rating - meaning water-proof. The dual-camera on the back of the Moto X4 has one 12MP camera...

Instagram Stories now available on mobile web

If thought you can escape Facebook's Stories assault by hiding in the mobile web version of Instagram, think again. Instagram has now brought over the Stories feature to the mobile version of its website. Users who, for some reason, don't want to install the app and get the full experience can also now see their friends' stories. Alternatively, those who wanted to get away from the noise of Instagram Stories present on the app and were using the web version for that express purpose now have one less place left without Stories. For what it's worth, the desktop of the Instagram still...

Lenovo is livestreaming its IFA 2017 event, watch it here

There is one big manufacturer left to present its latest technology at IFA 2017 and its name is Lenovo. The company has broad portfolio of products across the whole mobile spectrum and we expect new products in every category. The source code of the livestream page reads: Explore Lenovo's innovations showcased at IFA 2017, including Lenovo Explorer, Star Wars: Jedi Challenges, Lenovo Legion Gaming Towers, Moto smartphones, Yoga 2-in-1s, voice assistants, and more. The event should include an unveiling of the Moto X4, which will not be a big surprise since it already leaked...

Hisense HLTE300T hands-on review

Hisense is not exactly a household name, by any stretch of the imagination. To be fair, in certain markets and in specially in the TV realm, the Chinese government-owned brand is a rather formidable force. That being the case, we can't and really won't try to recommend the HLTE300T. However, it is still quite the attention-grabber. Passing by it at the IFA venue, we just couldn't resist snapping a few shots and getting some impressions. The Hisense HLTE300T, which we really hope is not its end-market title, definitely has one distinctive feature going for it - the 5.99 inch, 18:9...

Cat S41 and Cat S31 hands-on review

You'll often see walkie-talkies at construction sites, but what if you need more - like the full power and flexibility that Android has to offer? You might reach for an IP68 phone but most won't cut it. No, you need something like these Cat phones if you want to go home at the end of the day and still have a working phone. Meet the Cat S41 and S31. They are follow-ups to the S40 and S30 and belong to the mid-range and entry level respectively. They have some things in common, like Android 7.1.2 Nougat, LTE connectivity and protection against the elements and gravity. The S41 is covered...

Logitech announces Craft keyboard with Creative Input Dial

Logitech has announced the Craft wireless keyboard with the Creative Input Dial. Also called the Crown, the dial is almost like having the Surface Dial built into your keyboard. The Crown is compatible with a handful of applications and basic Windows functions by default. In Photoshop and Illustrator, for example, users can control functions like zoom, brush size, hardness, opacity, brightness, contrast, saturation, object size and more by just turning the dial. In Excel you can navigate the tables, zoom into them, quickly create charts by marking the tables, and more. In Spotify, you...

Android 8.0 Oreo is now rolling out to all supported Pixel and Nexus devices across the globe

Android 8.0 Oreo was officially named last Monday, which is when the final version of it started going out to Pixel and Nexus devices enrolled in the Android Beta program. Yesterday, Verizon started rolling out the same build of Oreo to Pixel and Pixel XL units it's sold. In the meantime, the Oreo update has been spotted arriving on many more carriers across the world, for supported Pixel and Nexus devices - which are the Pixel and Pixel XL, Pixel C, Nexus 6P, Nexus 5X, and Nexus Player. So at this point the rollout is pretty much hitting every device that Google's in charge of,...

Deal: Get a Galaxy Note8 for just $20 per month at Sprint, or wait for T-Mobile's BOGO offer

If you want to pre-order a Samsung Galaxy Note8 in the US, but want to pay as little as possible for it (and you haven't owned one of those ill-fated Note7 units last year), then Sprint has a very good deal for you. If you use the carrier's Flex Lease scheme and switch to Sprint or add a line you will only pay $20 per month for the phone (after $20 bill credits that start within two invoices). This isn't an installment plan, keep in mind, it's a lease. You can keep paying $20 per month for 18 months, but after that you need to decide what to do: make the device yours - which requires...

iPhone 8: gesture controls fully replace the home button, new report claims

The upcoming iPhone 8 (or iPhone X, or iPhone Edition) that Apple might unveil at a rumored event on September 12 will completely kill one of the most iconic features of all its predecessors: the home button. This has been a staple ever since the first iPhone launched ten years ago, but according to a new report the iPhone 8 will not have any semblance of such a button - not even a software-rendered one. Instead, you'll use gestures to control the device and replace the multiple functions of the physical home button found on the other iPhones. Alleged iPhone 8 dummy unit A thin...

Galaxy Note8 will become available in India on September 25, rumor says

Regarding the availability of Samsung's recently announced Galaxy Note8 in India, we've so far reported that pre-orders in the country are due to start on September 11. When that info came out, the rumored price point for the new phablet was INR 74,900 ($1,170 or €984 at the current exchange rates). However, a new rumor today says the official pricing of the Note8 in the subcontinent will actually be INR 69,900 (that's about $1,092 or €918). That's certainly more palatable than the previously rumored price point. This new report also gives us a prospective release date for the...

Palm is making a comeback in early 2018

Guess who's (going to be) back? Palm. While we may not have heard anything about the now-defunct mobile brand for a few years, it's making a comeback early next year. Seriously. The company responsible for Palm's upcoming resurrection is TCL, as revealed back in 2015 when it first made its intentions known. It's definitely getting pretty good at recycling old brands in the mobile space: first Alcatel, then BlackBerry, now Palm. We wonder what's next. Don't be surprised to see a TCL-made Sagem smartphone near you at some point. Anyway, the word regarding Palm comes straight from TCL,...

Google Assistant is coming to new speakers, washing machines and other home appliances

Google is also at IFA 2017 and is announcing an updated presence of its Google Assistant. The voice service is arriving at speakers, washing machines, dryers, and vacuums. First devices and appliances are going to come "later this year" so you can finally say "Ok Google, wash my clothes." Panasonic GA10 Google Assistant is very useful for asking questions, keeping schedules and controlling your smart home. The AI voice service is already available on Google Home but is also arriving at Zolo Mojo by Anker, Mobvoi's TicHome Mini and the GA10 by Panasonic. The list should get longer...

Archos unleashes more than half a dozen smartphones at IFA 2017

Archos is a French brand with announcements that often go under the radar. The company is at IFA 2017 in Berlin, and we can't miss the massive amount of new devices that the manufacturer is introducing. Archos is unveiling its incredibly cheap smartphone series Access along with just a bit more expensive Archos Core 50. The rugged Sense series welcomes a new smartphone and a new tablet while the star of the show is the Archos Diamond Alpha+ and its 10.1" slate sibling the Archos Diamond Tab. Archos Access and Archos Core The Archos Access is offered in four different...

Samsung announces Gear Sport, Gear Fit2 Pro, and Gear IconX (2018)

The news about the Samsung Galaxy Note8 is already out in the open and the company is moving on to its next big things. In the case of IFA 2017 those are TVs and smart wearables such as Gear Sport, Fit2 Pro, and IconX (2018). Samsung Gear Sport Samsung Gear Sport is the latest smartwatch entry designed exclusively for sport and with focus on swimming. It's a unisex device, which means it comes in one size - 42mm, 1.2" Super AMOLED 360p screen - and one size band at 20mm width, though the latter will vary in length. The Gear Sport weighs 50g without a strap, runs on a...

Livestream: Samsung takes the stage at IFA to bring us new smartwatches

Now that the Galaxy Note no longer calls IFA "home", it's up to Samsung's Gear wearables to supply the wow factor. The Gear Fit2 Pro fitness tracker went official spontaneously, but the rumor mill also spotted the Gear Sport - the first Tizen 3.0 device - packing its bags. The same leak that showed the Sport also featured a Gear VR (with controller) and IconX Bluetooth headphones so today's even could have more to offer than just hand accessories. We're not entirely sure if those are new devices or not - that said, the original IconX headphones were SM-R150 and these are R140, so. Well,...

Livestream: Samsung takes the stage at IFA to bring us new smartwatches

Now that the Galaxy Note no longer calls IFA "home", it's up to Samsung's Gear wearables to supply the wow factor. The Gear Fit2 Pro fitness tracker went official spontaneously, but the rumor mill also spotted the Gear Sport - the first Tizen 3.0 device - packing its bags. The same leak that showed the Sport also featured a Gear VR (with controller) and IconX Bluetooth headphones so today's even could have more to offer than just hand accessories. We're not entirely sure if those are new devices or not - that said, the original IconX headphones were SM-R150 and these are R140, so. Well,...

Samsung at IFA 2017: Gear Sport, Fit2 Pro, IconX (2018) hands-on review

Samsung has already unveiled the Galaxy Note8 just a week prior to the IFA in Berlin. It did even spill the beans, accidentally or not, on the Gear Fit2 band. So, what was left for the actual expo then? The Gear Sport, of course, the next-gen cord-free fitness earbuds - Gear IconX (2018), and some additional information for the previously obscure Gear Fit2 Pro.

Snapdragon 670 rumored to be a 10nm chip with next-gen Kryo cores

The Snapdragon 660 is just barely getting a foothold on the mobile scene but rumors of its successor have started surfacing. Dubbed Snapdragon 670, this chip will allegedly come in early 2018 and be the first of the series to hit 10nm. Even more interesting, the chip will allegedly have an octa-core Kryo CPU - 2 high power cores (Kryo 360) and 6 low-power ones. Note that Kryo 360 would be a third-generation core, while the Snapdragon 835 and 660 use second gen cores (but they are split 4+4 in terms of high and low power). This new processor will use ARM's DynamIQ tech, which...

Moto X4 announcement imminent at IFA 2017

The Moto X4 has been in a holding pattern above the rumor mill until it was finally cleared to land on September 2. That was for a Philippines launch, but we may see the new mid-ranger here in Berlin too - a Moto X4 booth has been spotted. IFA officially takes place between September 1 and 6, but most announcements are over before August ends. Still, by Saturday, most of the launch buzz would have settled and the X4 would hit the internet front pages without much competition. The phone is set to cost around $350 ($400 if you want more storage) and will be durable (IP68 waterproof)...

Diesel On Full Guard is the company's first smartwatch

Diesel's first smartwatch - named On Full Guard - is now available for pre-order at Macy's for $325. This Android Wear 2.0 watch features a round AMOLED display and will start selling on September 25 in the US. The UK is getting in on October 14 for £330. The case - which measures 48mm - comes in multiple finishes with a choice of multiple bands, leather (black or brown) or metal (black or gold). The case is IP67 water resistant. Diesel On Full Guard (Android Wear 2.0 smart watch) The Diesel On Full Guard is powered by a Snapdragon 2100 chipset and features some cute if not...

Huawei Pay might arrive in Europe

More than a year after the launch of Huawei Pay in China, the service might expand to Europe as well. The manufacturer filed for a trademark with the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) of the name "Huawei Pay" and of an accompanying logo. According to a pdf at the EUIPO website that can be found in our Source link, the logo, and the name are referring to computer software and financial services, leading to the conclusion that the service may indeed arrive in Europe, instead of Huawei just securing a patent to protect the name of its in-house wallet. Huawei Pay...

ZTE announces the Nubia Z17 Lite with a Snapdragon 653 chipset

ZTE announced the Nubia Z17 with impressive features like QuickCharge 4.0, 8 GB RAM and top-notch Snapdragon 835. Now the manufacturer decided it should launch a phone with the same body but without all the cool features under the name Nubia Z17 Lite. The nubia Z17 Lite arrives in the same body as the nubia Z17 Img The chipset of the Nubia Z17 Lite is Snapdragon 653, paired with octa-core CPU and Adreno 510 GPU. The stripped phone has only 6 GB RAM + 64 GB storage. Since the body is the same as the Nubia Z17 with the 5.5" edge-to-edge display, a microSD slot is nonexistent. The...

Samsung Galaxy Note8 to reportedly land in China on September 13

According to a new report, the Samsung Galaxy Note8 will land in China in a couple of weeks from now. Specifically, the report notes the unveiling is set for September 13, while launch will happen on September 23. There's currently no information on the pricing aspect, although it's reasonable to assume that the price tag would be somewhere around $1,000. There have been rumors about China getting an Emperor Edition Note8 model with 8GB RAM and 256GB storage. Recently, however, the phone was spotted on China's TENAA with 4GB RAM, which is even lower than the standard 6GB RAM the...

Alexa and Cortana join forces to win the Assistant race

Amazon and Microsoft are teaming up to present a united Smart Assistant front. Starting later this year Amazon Alexa and Microsoft Cortana will be able to talk to each other on Amazon's Echo lineup of smart home speakers and everywhere you can use Cortana - iOS, Android and naturally Windows 10 devices. Say you have an Amazon Echo - now you'll be able to use Cortana to schedule appointments to your Calendar or read you your emails. And vise versa - you'll be able to control smart home appliances with Alexa from your Windows 10 PC or order stuff from Amazon. Let's hope this...

Asus unveils mixed reality headset and super thin laptops at IFA

Asus took the IFA stage to unveil its new Windows Mixed Reality Headset along with a number of portable but powerful laptops. Asus Windows Mixed Reality Headset The headset features Microsoft tech for both real-world and virtual experiences. It has displays with 3K resolution and two built-in cameras on the front. The cameras are used for six degrees of freedom position tracking without the need of additional external sensors. You can set up the headset in just 10 minutes. Asus Windows Mixed Reality Headset The Asus Windows Mixed Reality Headset is comfortable to wear -...

Acer unveils Android-powered 360° camera, multiple portable computers

360° cameras have become popular in the Android world - some companies released add-ons, others made stand-alone devices. Now Acer has entered the game with an Android-powered camera. The company also unleashed some highly portable mobile computers and a full contingent of Predator gaming gear. Acer Holo360 and Vision360 Two LTE-enabled 360° cameras - one for handheld photography and one to use as a dash cam. The Holo360 is particularly interesting because it is powered by a Snapdragon 625 chipset and runs Android 7.1 Nougat. It's 3" screen is small by today's standards, however, and...

Asus IFA event starts soon, watch the livestream

Asus recently released a full team of Zenfone 4 phones so we don't expect to see new phones, though there's a good chance that we'll see a new Zenwatch. We wouldn't be surprised to see new gaming hardware from the ROG brand too. Watch the livestream below, if you want to see the latest in Android Wear and Republic of Gamers.

Vivo X20 appears in World Cup 2018 posters

Back in May vivo and FIFA signed a partnership agreement that makes the Chinese phone manufacturer an official sponsor of the next two World Cup tournaments. Less than a year before the 2018 event in Russia posters of the new vivo flagship leaked on Weibo. The images do not reveal much, but we clearly see an 18:9 display, similar to the Full Vision screen LG implemented in its flagship G6. There are minuscule bezels on the sides and the top and bottom are kept small too. Over the phone renders a slogan says "The era of full-screen" along with "Vivo X20 coming soon". Surely...

Sony G8541 with 6.2-inch display and Android Oreo spotted in benchmarks

A new Sony smartphone has been spotted in benchmarks. Listed as Sony G8541 on GFXBench, the device is powered by a Snapdragon SoC with octa-core, 2.4GHz processor, and sports a 6.2-inch Full HD display. As you'd notice, the listing also reveals a 12.3-inch display with 3,840 x 2,160 pixel resolution. It's possible that GFXBench messed up while calculating display-related info. If not, then it could be that the device will have a tablet variant as well. Anyway, moving on, RAM is 4GB, while internal memory is 128GB. The camera department is handled by an 18MP rear unit and a 12MP...

Watch Acer's IFA livestream here

The IFA events have begun - Acer is currently streaming its press-conference and 360° cameras seem to be a hot topic. There are a number of laptops and 2-in-1s on stage too. The company also showed off the Aspire S 24 All in One computer, which features an 8th gen Intel chip (the first in the world) and a screen that measures a mere 6mm thick. There's a built-in Qi wireless charger and a subwoofer at the base below the screen too. Watch the stream for more new devices.

Xiaomi confirms September 11 unveiling for Mi Mix 2

The unveiling date for Xiaomi's upcoming Mi Mix 2 smartphone has been officially confirmed. In a teaser image posted on Weibo, the Chinese company has revealed that the Mi Mix successor will be made official on September 11. Nothing else about the phone is officially confirmed at the moment, although rumors/leaks so far indicate the device may come with a dual rear-camera setup. It's likely that bezels will be even thinner this time, and the handset is also said to offer 3D facial recognition support. Talking of specs, benchmarks have revealed details like Snapdragon 835 SoC, 6GB...

Motorola Moto Z Droid and Z Force Droid on Verizon getting Android 7.1.1 update

Verizon has started pushing out a new update to Motorola Moto Z Droid and Moto Z Force Droid smartphones on its network. It's a major update that brings along Android Nougat OS version 7.1.1. Aside from the bump in OS, the update also includes Android security fixes for the month of July - the security patch level says July 1. As is usually the case with OTA roll outs, it might take some time for the update notification to pop up on your handset's screen. Via

OxygenOS 4.5.10 is rolling out for the OnePlus 5 with camera improvements, bug fixes

Today OnePlus has started rolling out the latest software update for its newest smartphone, the OnePlus 5. The new release arrives over-the-air as OxygenOS version 4.5.10. As always, the rollout will be incremental. The OTA update will reach a small number of users today, with a broader release expected in the next few days. OxygenOS 4.5.10 doesn't bring any new features with it, but it does focus on squashing bugs, fixing nagging issues, and improving the phone's camera performance. On the latter subject you'll get photo noise reduction, improved camera stability, and noise and texture...

Verizon's Pixels are starting to receive the Android 8.0 Oreo update

Last week Google started rolling out the final version of Android 8.0 Oreo to those devices enrolled in the Android beta program, and today it looks like it may finally be ready to expand the rollout. Verizon has announced that the Pixel and Pixel XL units it has sold should be receiving the update to Oreo starting today. The carrier has published the official update documentation, so the over-the-air rollout of the new release is probably already underway. As usual in such cases, expect at least a few days to pass before every single Pixel or Pixel XL sold by Verizon is updated. After you...

Lenovo rumored to launch K8 and K8 Plus in India in September

Lenovo made the K8 Note official for India earlier this month, but that isn't the only member of the K8 series that the Chinese company has planned. In fact, the K8 Plus was spotted in a benchmark a few weeks back, but apparently there will be a third phone in this line too. A new unconfirmed rumor says the Lenovo K8 and K8 Plus will both arrive in India at some point during the second half of September. That's the time frame for their actual availability - the launch event will reportedly take place "by mid-September", so it's only a matter of weeks now, at most. Unfortunately that's...

YouTube gets a new logo, Material Design on computers, dark theme, mobile enhancements too

YouTube has announced a lot of updates today. First off, the service has a new logo, combining the wordmark with an icon. The icon is the familiar Play button, which now sits on top of the red outline of a CRT TV that used to be under the "Tube" part of the wordmark. The icon is to the left of the wordmark on the website, but in some cases the brightened up icon will be used as an abbreviated logo. This is rolling out today. The service's mobile apps have been updated with a new design that has the navigation tabs on the bottom (including new Library and Account sections), the ability to...

Google announces ARCore SDK preview, enabling augmented reality on existing Android phones

Today Google has officially introduced its answer for Apple's ARKit which was unveiled back in June. It's called ARCore, and it's a software development kit (SDK) that will enable augmented reality capabilities for existing and upcoming Android smartphones, without the need for any additional hardware. So it looks like Tango is dead. Tango is Google's previous AR-focused effort, which requires a host of dedicated hardware on handsets that support it. Thus, so far we've only seen the Lenovo Phab2 Pro and Asus Zenfone AR boasting Tango functionality. It's clearly hard for makers of...

TCL: the BlackBerry Keyone is a runaway success, new device to come in October

We attended a TCL briefing today as part of IFA's press days (you know, TCL the company behind BlackBerry) and they shared some interesting tidbits on the BlackBerry Keyone and what's to come next. The QWERTY-packing bar allegedly proved to be a "runaway success" and phones sell as fast as TCL can make them. The maker had to resort to launching on markets sequentally. So far they are at number 35, but with plans for that number to reach 50 by the end of the year. Those sales are split about 50/50 between businesses buying them for their employees and people getting one themselves...

Moto G5S Plus hands-on review: First look

This is it then. The long-awaited Finnish flagship that goes all in against the phones that rule today. The Finnish cameraphone returning to claim the prize that was once its birthright. Everybody bow and make way?