- A type of cyberattack that could set your smartphone on fire using its wireless charger Tech Xplore
- Researchers have figured out how to hack a wireless charger to fry your phone and heat objects around it to 280°C, so that’s just wonderful PC Gamer
- VoltSchemer attacks use wireless chargers to inject voice commands, fry phones BleepingComputer
- The VoltSchemer Charger Attack Can Fry Your Phone, Credit Cards, Passport, and Even Whisper to Siri Hackster.io
- Researchers Devise ‘VoltSchemer’ Attacks Targeting Wireless Chargers SecurityWeek
Tag Archives: smartphone
Security experts just found two giant smartphone privacy issues – Digital Trends
- Security experts just found two giant smartphone privacy issues Digital Trends
- Facebook, TikTok, X collect data when sending iPhone push notifications Mashable
- Facebook, X and other companies are mining iPhone user data through app notifications, research finds New York Post
- How Apps Use Push Notifications to Spy on You (and How to Stop Them) Lifehacker
- “The frequency at which many apps send device information…is mind-blowing” — popular iPhone apps are stealing your data using iOS push notifications, here’s what you need to do to stay safe TechRadar
Motorola Defy 2 is an affordable Android smartphone that features two-way satellite communication – XDA Developers
- Motorola Defy 2 is an affordable Android smartphone that features two-way satellite communication XDA Developers
- Motorola unveils Defy 2, a rugged phone with satellite connectivity: Check price, specs and other details msnNOW
- Mobile space race intensifies: New devices with satellite connectivity unveiled Interesting Engineering
- $99 Motorola Defy Satellite Link enables 2-way satellite communications on smartphones through 3GPP NTN technology CNX Software
- The new Motorola Defy 2 rugged phone is all about satellite messaging PhoneArena
- View Full Coverage on Google News
Smartphone app that could help identify stroke symptoms as they occur
Scientists develop smartphone app that spots stroke symptoms as they occur — looking at facial droopiness and slurred speech
In the US one person suffers a stroke every 40 seconds, and in the UK it is every five minutes, and acting quickly is key to preventing lasting brain damage.
However the symptoms, which include a drooping face on one side, slurred speech or being unable to lift an arm, are not so easily recognizable in an emergency.
Now, scientists have come up with an app that could help family and friends recognize a stroke when it is taking place – prompting them to call for an ambulance.
Scientists in the University of California developed an app that uses facial recognition and speaking patterns to detect whether a person is having a stroke with near 100 percent accuracy (file photo)
The app, called FAST.AI, uses a facial video of the patient to examine 69 facial points, measure arm movement and detect speech changes.
A team from the University of California trialed it on nearly 270 patients who had been diagnosed with acute stroke, within 72 hours of hospital admission.
Neurologists who examined the patients tested the app then compared the results with their own clinical diagnosis.
Analysis found the app accurately detected stroke-associated facial drooping in nearly 100 percent of patients.
The app also accurately detected arm weakness in more than two-thirds of cases, and preliminary analysis suggests it may also be able to reliably detect slurred speech.
It is important to recognize the signs of a stroke straight away since clot-busting medication should be administered within three hours after symptoms begin.
The faster the treatment is administered, the more likely for a better recovery.
Researchers said their study is ongoing and the app is still in development and not available to the public.
Author Radoslav Raychev said: ‘Many stroke patients don’t make it to the hospital in time for treatment, which is one reason why it is vital to recognize stroke symptoms and call [for help] right away.
‘These early results confirm the app reliably identified acute stroke symptoms as accurately as a neurologist, and they will help to improve the app’s accuracy in detecting signs and symptoms of stroke.’
The findings were presented at the American Stroke Association’s International Stroke Conference in Dallas, Texas.
Smartphone Attacks Could Release Deadly Microbes
The researchers suggested sound dampening or enclosing the pressure port in a protective structure as ways to prevent musical attacks on biosafety facilities. Both measures would reduce the sensitivity of the differential pressure sensor.
According to the study, hospital and laboratory biocontainment facilities are vulnerable to terrorist attacks.
A team of researchers at the University of California, Irvine has found that negative pressure rooms, which are used in hospitals and laboratories to prevent the spread of deadly pathogens, can be compromised by an attacker using a smartphone. These rooms are designed to protect against the exposure of outside areas to harmful microbes.
According to UCI cyber-physical systems security experts, who recently shared their findings at the Conference on Computer and Communications Security, mechanisms that control airflow in and out of biocontainment facilities can be tricked into functioning irregularly by a sound of a particular frequency, possibly tucked surreptitiously into a popular song.
“Someone could play a piece of music loaded on their smartphone or get it to transmit from a television or other audio device in or near a negative pressure room,” said senior co-author Mohammad Al Faruque, UCI professor of electrical engineering and computer science. “If that music is embedded with a tone that matches the resonant frequency of the pressure controls of one of these spaces, it could cause a malfunction and a leak of deadly microbes.”
Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning infrastructure maintain the flow of fresh air into and contaminated air out of a given space. HVAC systems in scientific facilities typically include room pressure monitors, which in turn utilize differential pressure sensors that compare the atmospheres inside and outside rooms.
The researchers said that commonly used DPSs are vulnerable to remote manipulation, posing a previously unrealized threat to biosafety facilities. They tested their hypothesis on eight industry-standard DPSs from five manufacturers, demonstrating that all the devices operate with resonant frequencies in the audible range and are, therefore, subject to tampering.
“When sound waves collide with the diaphragms inside a DPS, it starts vibrating with the same frequency,” said lead author Anomadarshi Barua, UCI Ph.D. candidate in electrical engineering and computer science. “An informed attacker can use this technique to artificially displace the diaphragm, changing the pressure reading and causing the whole system to malfunction.”
He said that attackers could thwart negative pressure room systems in a variety of ways. They could manipulate them wirelessly or pose as maintenance personnel to place an audio device inside or near such a room. “A more sophisticated attack might involve perpetrators embedding sound-emitting technologies into a DPS before it’s installed in a biocontainment facility,” Barua said.
In their conference presentation, the researchers suggested several countermeasures to prevent a musical assault on biosafety facilities. Sound dampening can be achieved by lengthening the sampling tube of a DPS’s port by as much as 7 meters. The team also proposed enclosing the pressure port in a boxlike structure. Both these measures would reduce the sensitivity of the DPS, Barua said.
Al Faruque said that this research project demonstrates the vulnerabilities of embedded systems to random attacks but stressed that with a little planning and forethought, facilities can be hardened against sabotage.
Reference: “A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing: Spreading Deadly Pathogens Under the Disguise of Popular Music” by Anomadarshi Barua, Yonatan Gizachew Achamyeleh and Mohammad Abdullah Al Faruque, 7 November 2022, Proceedings of the 2022 ACM SIGSAC Conference on Computer and Communications Security.
DOI: 10.1145/3548606.3560643
The Pixel 7 is the latest smartphone with spontaneously shattering cameras
The Pixel 7’s biggest design change over last year was in the camera bar, which switched from a single big sheet of glass covering every camera to a solid aluminum block with smaller glass cutouts over each camera lens. The thought at the time was that less glass would lead to fewer light streaks in the camera and maybe even slightly better durability thanks to a smaller glass area. Ironically this smaller glass seems to be more prone to breaking. Tons of reports have started to pop up on Reddit, the Google support forums, and Twitter claiming the camera glass just shattered one day. Besides the hundreds of responses on Reddit and the support forums, hitting up #pixel7brokencamera on Twitter will give you an endless stream of gruesome pictures.
We’ve seen this exact problem several times before in the world of smartphones. Samsung was hit with this issue in 2016 on the Galaxy S7 and again in 2021 the Galaxy S20, both of which kicked off class-action lawsuits. In the Samsung and Google cases, the shattered glass doesn’t look like it shattered from impact, which typically shows an impact point and outward spiderwebbing. In these cases, a large, round hole appears in the glass—it looks like the phone was shot with a bullet.
These specialized smartphone glass panels increase scratch resistance by building stress into the glass. We don’t know the manufacturer of Google’s camera glass, but a Corning engineer explains the general process in this Scientific American article, saying, “There’s a layer of compressive stress, then a layer of central tension, where the glass wants to press out, then another layer of compressive stress.” If you mess something up in your glass formula and these layers aren’t in a perfect balance, one day the glass will just go “pop” and you’ll get these outward mini explosions.
A Galaxy S20 from a few years ago. This is all so familiar.
That sounds like what people are describing, with some suspecting temperature changes from frigid outdoor weather to indoor heat are what set off the glass. To suggest it’s from a drop would be pretty difficult to believe. The camera cover is a tiny circle of glass surrounded by aluminum—even if you were trying to make the phone land on the camera cover, it would be extremely difficult.
Despite the difficulty in imagining this is user abuse, some users say Google isn’t dealing with the problem under warranty. Alex Hatzenbuhler, one of the victims of Google’s exploding glass, posted a screenshot from Google device support claiming the issue isn’t covered under warranty. Some users are being quoted around $200 for a repair.
Samsung’s class-action lawsuits over camera glass were both defused thanks to Samsung’s terms of use, which require “mandatory individual arbitration provision and class action/jury trial waiver provision.” Google defaults users into a similar agreement that provides them almost no rights, and while you can opt out of mandatory arbitration, most people don’t, so a lawsuit is unlikely to go anywhere.
What arbitration can’t stop is online pressure and negative press from websites like this one. So, hey, Google, cover your obviously defective hardware under warranty. The Pixel hardware division is very small and wants to grow, but you won’t get anywhere if you start screwing over your small customer base. A public statement saying this is covered under warranty would help people deal with customer support. You’ve got our email.
Listing image by blazers_n_bowties
MKBHD’s Smartphone Awards picks the best phones of 2022
Every year, popular tech YouTuber Marques Brownlee (better known as MKBHD) holds his own Smartphone Awards, in which he chooses the best smartphones in different categories. While last year the iPhone was awarded in three different categories, Apple’s smartphone lost the spotlight to its competitors at this year’s awards.
Just like last year, MKBHD has set multiple award categories for smartphone. They are:
- Best Big Phone
- Best Small Phone
- Best Camera System
- Best Battery
- The Design Award
- Value Award
- Bust of the Year
- MVP (Phone of the Year)
Unsurprisingly, there are a lot of Android smartphones competing for the awards, while Apple currently sells only eight different iPhone models – and just five of them were released this year. Of course, although the awards are based on MKBHD’s own criteria, he considered both technical aspects and his personal experience with each device competing for the awards.
But how does the iPhone compare with all the other Android smartphones?
Best Big Phone
iPhone 14 Pro Max is certainly a big phone with its 6.7 inch screen. However, MKBHD chose Samsung’s Galaxy S22 Ultra as Best Big Phone of 2022. According to the YouTuber, the S22 Ultra takes advantage of the massive 6.8-inch screen with the stylus combined with software optimized for the large screen, the 5,000 mAh battery, and four camera lenses on the back of the phone.
MKBHD also praised the ASUS ROG Phone 6, which is considered a gamer smartphone, in the same category for having “incredible, massive stereo front-facing speakers” and a headphone jack. The Xiaomi Mix Fold 2 also got an honorable mention for having the same thickness as a regular phone when folded.
Best Small Phone
Last year, Apple won the Best Small Phone category with iPhone 13 mini. After all, there aren’t many small phones left on the market, and iPhone 13 mini was essentially an iPhone 13 with premium hardware inside a body with a 5.4-inch screen. But this year, Apple killed the iPhone mini and replaced it with the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus.
So the winner of the Best Small Phone of 2022 was the ASUS Zenfone 9. It’s certainly not as small as the iPhone 13 mini since it has a 5.9 inch screen, but it’s still considerably smaller than most smartphones today. With flagship specs, “surprisingly great camera,” a headphone jack, and good battery life, MKBHD says the Zenfone 9 is “easily the best phone in this size.”
Oppo Find N2, which is a foldable phone, got an honorable mention in this category for looking extremely compact when it’s folded.
Best Camera System
Choosing the best camera on a smartphone can be extremely subjective, especially since there are different criteria for photos and videos, and each person has their own preferences when it comes to color level and sharpness. A few days ago, MKBHD shared the results of its blind smartphone camera test, in which Google’s Pixel 6A took first place, while the Pixel 7 Pro came in second.
But what about MKBHD’s preferences? Although he praised the photos taken with the Pixel 7 and Vivo X90 Pro+, iPhone 14 Pro Max won Best Camera System this year.
The YouTuber says that the iPhone has a more solid camera experience, which includes how fast it is to open the Camera app and take a picture, the consistency between all lenses, and how good the device is at shooting video compared to all Android smartphones.
Best Battery
The winner of Best Battery of 2022 is the ASUS ROG Phone 6. Since it’s considered a smartphone for gamers, ASUS put a 6,000 mAh battery inside the phone. At the same time, it supports fast charging up to 65W, which lets users recharges the battery from 0% to 100% in less than an hour.
Last year, iPhone 13 Pro Max won the Best Battery award, and many other reviews also praised the battery life of last year’s iPhone despite the addition of the 120Hz display. However, iPhone 14 Pro Max failed to offer the same battery experience as iPhone 13 Pro Max since Apple kept the battery the same size and added an Always-on Display.
Interestingly, Marques praised the battery life of the iPhone 14 Plus, which beats the iPhone 14 Pro Max since it has a regular 60Hz display without the Always-on feature. As a result, iPhone 14 Plus consumes less power than the Pro model.
The Design Award
The design category is also quite subjective, and even MKBHD agrees with this. And the smartphone that won The Design Award in 2022 is the Nothing Phone. Looking from the sides, the Nothing Phone reminds one of the latest iPhones. However, Nothing Phone has a transparent back full of LEDs that can be used for multiple things like notifications and flash light while you’re filming.
“It definitely skirts the line right between gimmick and feature. […] I find it really neat. I think it’s cool that you can see how much battery is as you’re charging. […] Little things like that. You don’t see a lot of phones trying new stuff.”
The Xiaomi Mix Fold 2 got an honorable mention in the design category for being a foldable phone that looks much more solid than other foldable phones.
Value Award
Last year, Google’s Pixel 6 won the Value Award, and this year the award was given to the Pixel 7. MKBHD argues that the Pixel 7 is the best in its $599 price range, and it even beats some more expensive flagships with its specs. “It’s so good that it made the [Pixel] 7 Pro kind of feel like not that good of a deal,” he added.
ASUS Zenfone 9 once again received an honorable mention, this time in the Value Award category for offering a “really unique combo” that includes a 120Hz display for $699.
Bust of the Year
The 2021 Bust of the Year was Microsoft’s Surface Duo 2, which has two separate screens and was launched at a $1,500 price tag. This year, however, MKBHD chose the OnePlus 10T as Bust of the Year for having a “pretty big delta between expectations and possibilities versus actual results.”
MVP (Phone of the Year)
Samsung’s Galaxy S21 Ultra was the 2021 winner of Phone of the Year. But what about this year? The winner for 2022 is Google’s Pixel 7. Just as mentioned before, MKBHD says the Pixel 7 has great value with its good cameras, display and battery, plus “flagship software experience” while it costs much less than other premium smartphones.
With similar arguments, ASUS Zenfone 9 also won an honorable mention as Phone of the Year. In third place, MKBHD chose the Galaxy S22 Ultra for this category, which he defines as “boring” and “expensive,” but at the same time one of the best phones one can get in 2022.
Wrap up
From three categories in 2021, the iPhone has now only been awarded in one of the categories in 2022. And yet, MKBHD pointed out that he prefers the iPhone camera because of its outstanding quality for shooting video.
When it comes to photos, MKBHD has already said in his videos that the iPhone 14 Pro’s camera exaggerates post-processing effects like HDR, which makes some photos look very unrealistic – and personally I agree with that.
What are your thoughts on the results? Would you have a different list than MKBHD for the best phones of 2022? Let us know in the comments section below.
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Google Pixel 7 was the best smartphone of 2022
Smartphones have reached a point of stagnation, with upgrades usually being fairly minor year to year. In 2022, there wasn’t a whole lot to get excited about, but two devices really stood out. Google’s Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro were, for a few reasons, the best smartphones of 2022.
Google has always struggled with its smartphone efforts. Each Pixel device to date has usually had one major flaw somewhere that hurt the experience and, frankly, usually kept that device from being considered the “best” smartphone of the year.
In 2021, Google’s Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro put out a solid showing, but issues with signal strength, broken features in updates, and the continued excellence of flagship phones from Apple and Samsung kept Google from really shining. Last year, I would have considered the iPhone 13 or the Galaxy S21 series as the best smartphone of the year despite how much I did like the Pixel 6 Pro.
In 2022, though, things felt drastically different. Finally, Google seems to be figuring out how to build a flagship smartphone. And our readers agree. In a recent poll, the Pixel 7 Pro took a whopping 40% of the vote for “Best Smartphone of 2022.”
Why the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro are so great
For me, there are a few key reasons why the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro stood out this year, and that starts with their value. The Pixel 7 starts at $599, way cheaper than comparable devices from Apple and Samsung. Since its debut, that value has been why the Pixel 7 has been my go-to recommendation for virtually anyone looking for a new phone. It’s just such a good deal.
And that value keeps up on the Pixel 7 Pro. $899 is a great price point for a device that’s effectively competing with the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra and iPhone 14 Pro. You might not be getting the same punch with raw horsepower on Google’s phone, but the experience is overall pretty darn similar for up to $300 less. The only real issue with the Pro’s price point is that the standard Pixel 7 is so much cheaper. When all you’re getting extra on the Pro is a telephoto camera, macro shooting, a slightly faster dispaly, and some additional RAM, it can be a little hard to justify the $300 upgrade.
But the Pixel 7’s excellent overall value only matters if the underlying functionality is just as good and, this year, it has been.
With the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro, Google has ironed out many of the issues of the prior generation. One of the biggest issues the Pixel 6 series faced was with signal strength, but the cellular modem in Pixel 7 is much improved this time around, leading to better signal strength and speed.
Related: Google Tensor G2: How has the signal strength and speed improved on Pixel 7?
Further, Google hasn’t had the same major issues with updates on the Pixel 7 as happened early on with the Pixel 6. Where 2021’s release saw decimated signal strength caused by updates and other major issues, the first few months of the Pixel 7 series have been pretty rock solid for the most part. There have been no major bugs, issues, or complaints. Everyone from users to reviewers seems quite happy with the Pixel 7 series. That’s not to say they’re perfect – there are always isolated issues that affect a few folks – but on the whole, these are the first Google phones in a long time that are pretty much free of issues.
And that all comes on top of the usual benefits that come from using a Pixel phone. The excellent photos, the speedy software, and the helpful features like Call Screen finally get a chance to be what makes a Pixel phone great, rather than what makes you want to ignore its flaws.
Apple and Samsung kind of dropped the ball
What might really give Google its chance in the spotlight with Pixel 7, though, is the disappointment that’s come from its competitors in 2022.
Looking first on the Android side, there really hasn’t been that much that’s been all that exciting this year, at least in the United States. OnePlus has clearly moved a lot of its focus to other markets, and Samsung pretty much kept the status quo going.
The Galaxy S22 and S22+ were very solid devices on the whole, but there was nothing particularly exciting going on or any real improvements over the last generation besides a slightly upgraded camera setup. The Galaxy S22 Ultra revived the legacy of the Galaxy Note which was great to see, but the device on the whole didn’t break any new ground. And the tough part was that it was all at the same hefty price tags. The baseline Galaxy S22 costs $799, and the series topped off at $1,199 for the S22 Ultra. Those prices are a little hard to swallow when you’re getting 95% of the same features and quality with Google’s devices for $200-$300 less.
And on Apple’s side, the big fumble this year was with the camera situation, at least in part.
The company’s flagship, the iPhone 14 Pro, switched to a new 48MP primary camera which turned out to be a rough transition. Reviews of the iPhone 14 Pro widely discussed that the camera was not as reliable or predictable as past iPhones in many cases and often fell well behind the Pixel series and Samsung’s Galaxy S22 Ultra. In a blind test, user votes left the iPhone 14 Pro low on the list.
That’s on stills, at least. The iPhone still dominates the smartphone market when it comes to video quality. While Google did make some upgrades there, Apple still leads by a wide margin.
But that gap is hard to really complain about when considering the value proposition. The iPhone 14 Pro starts at $999, and the comparably sized iPhone 14 Pro Max starts at $1,099, $200 more than Google’s Pixel 7 Pro. There are tons of valid reasons to get an iPhone over a Pixel, but if you’re just looking to buy a phone without dealing with all of the drama that surrounds the Android vs iPhone debate, it’s hard to make an argument here.
What can be improved on Pixel 8?
How can Google repeat this in 2023? That’s hard to say, really. Apple is sure to bounce back on the camera side of things with next year’s iPhone 15 series, and Samsung’s Galaxy S23 series is going to benefit greatly from Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. Google and its Tensor chips won’t be able to replicate the upgrades Qualcomm will be delivering.
But Google is rumored to be making some camera upgrades on the Pixel 8 series, as well as making its affordable flagship a bit smaller. We don’t know much about Tensor G3, but we know Google’s strategy. The company doesn’t really care about having “the best” chip in the game. It’s all about building something that will serve the Pixel’s goals of being helpful. Raw horsepower probably won’t see any major upgrades, but rather we might see better overall efficiency, much like we did in the move from Tensor to Tensor G2.
Personally, I doubt that 2023 will see a Google Pixel phone as “the best” of the year, but 2022 gave Google its chance to shine. The Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro may just be the best Pixel phones since the original, and they were a bright spot in an otherwise uneventful year in smartphones.
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Android apps: Install these on your new smartphone
Just got a new Android smartphone for the holidays? If it’s your first one it could be a little intimidating so, to get you started, here are a few apps you should immediately install or set up on a new Android device. Alternatively, if you’re not already using these apps, it might be time to give them a shot!
Up your messaging game
Google Messages (RCS)
In the US at least, messaging has traditionally been a sore point of Android smartphones. Thankfully, Google has been hard at work trying to fix that in recent months and now, the solution known as RCS (Rich Communication Services) is available to every Android smartphone in the world at this point.
How can you get RCS on your device and, more importantly, what’s the benefit? The benefit, firstly, is that RCS is much more capable than SMS/MMS. Pictures can be sent in higher quality, typing indicators, and more all arrive with RCS. Group chats also get a huge upgrade too. On top of that, RCS chats are now encrypted to offer better security.
Basically, RCS is like Apple’s iMessage, but for Android phones.
To get RCS on your Android phone, all you need to do is download Google Messages. The free app is an SMS app at heart, but in select countries including the US, it can also enable RCS messaging on any carrier and any Android smartphone too. Simply download, set it as your default SMS app, and wait for the prompt to turn on RCS. We’ve got a more detailed tutorial on the process as well, and some tips and tricks on the best features you should turn on.
As of 2022, Google Messages RCS has rolled out end-to-end encryption, as well as finishing up support for encryption in group chats.
Telegram, Signal, & other messaging apps
If you want an app for even better messaging, you can go beyond the RCS and typical SMS, Telegram is one of our favorite messaging apps and it works a lot like the super popular WhatsApp. Unlike that app, though, Telegram works easily on multiple smartphones or tablets at one time and backs up all of your messages automatically. Plus, everything is still encrypted end-to-end and you have both voice and video calls available.The app is always getting better through updates and has improved its messaging experience greatly alongside adding a more robust video call app too.
Discord is another great messaging alternative, offering private messages as well as “servers” to host a few friends or hundreds, all with rooms and chat admins. It’s a great experience, and one that’s especially excellent for gamers.
Meanwhile Signal is an even-more privacy-focused messaging app that became especially popular when the Facebook-owned WhatsApp was under fire for new privacy policies. Of course, we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention the populairty of WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger both globally and in the US. While many are uncomfortable with Facebook, these apps are still far better than the usual SMS you’d otherwise be using.
Staying connected
Google Meet
Video calling is a great way to keep up with friends and family beyond just texts and audio calls, and there are some great services to do it.
Google Duo was always one of the best video calling apps on Android, but in 2022, Google consolidated some of its services which saw Google Duo fall under the Google Meet brand. Previously aimed just as business matters, Google Meet now has a free experience that works a lot like Duo did. The change has been relatively seamless, but it’s worth knowing that Meet is your new home for video calls on Android.
Using Google Meet for calling friends and family is completely free, and it works across a ton of devices. Android phones and tablets. Chromebooks. Windows and macOS. It even works on iOS!
Think of it as Apple’s Facetime, but not locked down to one ecosystem.
The app works with your email address and features fun filters and even screen sharing on some devices. Its best feature though, might just be how well it works on less-than-ideal connections.
Zoom and more
One of the most popular video calling/conferencing tools during the pandemic so far has been Zoom. By its popularity alone, this is an app you should have installed. The service offers meetings that you can connect to with just a link or a password, easily connecting with loved ones, friends, or using it for business meetings. Many schools are also using Zoom for remote learning. It’s a powerful app, and one that’s not going to cost you anything unless you’re the one hosting, and even then it’s got a free offering.
Other great video calling apps include:
- Skype, one of the original video calling apps that still works great especially for friends and family.
- Facebook Messenger, a service that lots of people in the US currently use and has an excellent video calling option alongside its messaging features.
Back up your pictures and videos
Google Photos
One of the first things you should install on a new Android smartphone – or an iPhone for that matter – is Google Photos. For the vast majority of Android users, the app will be pre-installed on your device, but you’ll still need to get things set up.
To do that, simply open the app, sign in with your preferred Google account, and decide on backup options. Photos will automatically backup your pictures and videos in the background, but you’ll need to tell it if you want that done over Wi-Fi only or on cellular data as well.
From there, you’ll just need to decide on quality. Google offers full resolution backup as well as a slightly compressed, data-saving option that will lose a bit of quality, but you’ll be hard-pressed to tell the different.
In 2021, Google changed its storage policy with Photos, taking away the “free forever” offer that was attractive to so many, and instead pushing customers to use only the 15GB of free storage included with their account, or paid upgrades. You can still get fully unlimited photo storage through a special offer with T-Mobile, though.
Amazon Photos and more
Outside of Google, there are some other solid options for storing your photos. Amazon Photos has one of the best values, with unlimited photo storage for Prime customers, while OneDrive has affordable rates and a robust setup for both photos and files alike.
Upgrade your keyboard
Gboard
The keyboards pre-installed on a lot of today’s most popular Android smartphones are, well, not great. We have particular qualms about LG’s in particular, but in any case, you can get more features and in many cases better functionality out of a different keyboard.
Our top pick? Google’s own Gboard. This keyboard has a great layout that’s comfortable for typers of all styles and supports features such as gesture/swipe typing, GIF search and input, and so much more. There are even unique features such as the “Emoji Kitchen” which can create some wacky emoji stickers on the fly. You can also theme Gboard to your heart’s desire.
Put simply, it’s an excellent keyboard that’s totally free and, if it wasn’t already on your phone, it’s one you should absolutely try.
SwiftKey and more
If Gboard isn’t quite your style, there’s another great option on the Play Store inthe Microsoft-owned SwiftKey. This keyboard has been one of the most popular Android apps since the platform’s app store existed. Recently acquired by Microsoft, the app offers excellent gesture typing and features the neat trick of learning and adapting to your typing style and your spelling mistakes too. SwiftKey supports over 400 languages and is free. It even supports syncing your clipboard with Windows PCs.
Some other popular Android keyboards include:
- Grammarly was popularized as a Chrome extension, but works great on Android too. The Grammarly keyboard for Android goes beyond basic spell check to offer grammar fixes and alternate phrasing to improve how you send texts and emails.
- Fleksy is designed for speed typing with some excellent auto-correct. The keyboard is also adding support for “glide” typing and supports over 80 languages.
Use a password manager!!
We all have a ton of online accounts, and the best way to both manage and protect that data is with a password manager. Password managers usually work by encrypting your data behind a “Master Password” or some other means, while allowing you to organize that data by the site it works with or in folders.
One of our favorite password managers is 1Password, with affordable pricing, excellent security that uses both a master password and a “Secret Key,” and an easy-to-use app.
DashLane works similarly, but also has an option to automatically change your passwords for you and some free functionality too. If you really need a completely free option, though, Bitwarden is a great option.
The only password manager we currently don’t recommend is LastPass. While it has a solid free tier, the company has had several notable security breaches, including one just recently where password vaults from customers were stolen.
Don’t lose your phone or your data
Find My Device
Here’s another app that should already be installed on any new Android smartphone. “Find my Device” is a Google app designed to help you keep track of your smartphone should it be misplaced. If the app isn’t installed on your device for some reason, Find My Device available via the Play Store.
When you open up Find My Device, you’ll be prompted to sign in with a Google account and enter your password as well. Once that’s done, you’ll be able to see your device as well as any others attached to your account. You can then ring, lock, or wipe any device on your account. The same applies for your new phone as well from any other Android device you own, a friend’s Android phone, or even just a web browser. As a side note, the core functionality of actually finding your phone with this app is on by default in Google Play Services, but using the app you’ll get a bit more control as well as being able to find your other Android devices through the app as well as helping friends to find their phones.
Google One
If you do lose or break your phone, you don’t have to lose your data. That’s where Google One comes in handy. With any Google One storage plan (starting at just $2/month), you’ll get improved backups of your phone. By default, Android already backs up core data for free to your Google account, but the One app can back up SMS messages and MMS messages along with your photos and videos.
Manage your money
Google Wallet – Tap to pay and more
Mobile NFC payments are super conveinent, and setting them up on Android is easier than ever. Google Wallet is a free and quite simple app that lets you add credit/debit cards to your phone for NFC payments, as well as holding your loyalty cards, gift cards, COVID-19 vaccination data, airline passes, and so much more. The app is even working on support for holding your driver’s license.
Cash App, GPay, and more
Sending money has gotten a whole lot easier with apps, and there are some excellent choices to do so. Here are a few popular options.
- Google Pay: Google’s money-sharing app “GPay” makes it easy to send funds to friends or family with no added fees, and the app also holds hundreds of discounts, cashback options, and can even help you with your budget.
- PayPal: The classic, PayPal is a great way to send money to your friends and family, but is also super useful for online shopping as well as selling.
- Venmo & Cash App: Both using the same basic model, Venmo and Cash App are excellent apps for sending money between friends and family with usernames for sharing and easy linking to your bank. Plus, since they’re widely used, most folks are usually going to have at least one of these two.
Boost your savings and your security
To help you hit new goals in the new year, as well as up your security, there are two other money-related apps we’d recommend trying out.
Privacy is a virtual card service. After linking it to your bank account, the app can create virtual card numbers that are attached to a single online retailer, or even turn off after a single use. It’s a great way to ensure that some retailer’s security breach doesn’t affect your finances later on. Digit.co is a money-saving app. It links to your bank account and automatically saves funds here or there to help you establish some emergency savings or a rainy day fund. You can also set up manual goals to help you put away money for a vacation, special event, or big purchase.
Keep track of your Digital Wellbeing
ActionDash
Finally, let’s talk about smartphone habits. For many, smartphone addiction is a real problem and going into a new decade, there are ways to help curb that – Digital Wellbeing apps. There might already be one installed on your device but, if not, ActionDash is a free Digital Wellbeing app for Android smartphones that works on almost any device. The app tracks how you use your phone through the day including which apps are used, how many times you’ve unlocked your device, and even how many notifications you get.
To help curb your smartphone use, ActionDash offers tools such as pausing apps to keep you from using them, limiting how long an app can be used each day and more. Everything is done on-device and isn’t uploaded to the cloud and, better yet, the app is free and won’t hurt your battery either. ActionDash is available on Google Play.
Google’s Digital Wellbeing experiments
If you really have a smartphone addiction and you want to find a way to guilt yourself into stopping, Google’s collection of Digital Wellbeing experiments might be able to help. These include:
- Screen Stopwatch, a wallpaper that constantly updates with the amount of time you’ve been using your phone that day.
- Activity Bubbles, a wallpaper that shows how many times you unlock your phone in a day and how long each “session” lasts.
- Unlock Clock, a wallpaper that counts how many times you’ve opened up your phone each day.
The best note-taking Android apps
Google Keep Notes
Keeping track of reminders, lists, and more can be made much easier by using a note-taking app. Personally, my favorite note-taking app on Android is Google Keep Notes and it’s something that just seems to keep getting better over time.
Google Keep is completely free and lets you store notes, lists, and even drawings in the app. Those notes are also synced to your Google account which means you can access them on any other device including computers. With a quick setup, you can even use Google Assistant speakers such as the Nest Mini to manage a shopping list!
Microsoft OneNote
If you want something that’s not from Google and has a few more advanced features, Microsoft OneNote is an excellent option. The app is completely free, though works better with other Microsoft apps using a Microsoft 365 subscription. You can back up notes, drawings, and insert pictures in the app and, like Google’s app, they’ll sync across devices with your Microsoft account.
Keep connected to your computer
Link to Windows
If you spend all day at a desk, it can be super conveinent to keep your Android phone connected to your PC. With the Link to Windows app, that’s super easy.
After connecting, Link to Windows allows Android users to take phone calls on their PC, use messages, bring their notifications to their computer, and even access of their photos and videos without hooking up any wires. You can even mirror Android apps from your phone up to your computer.
How to set up Chromebook Phone Hub
Alternatively if you have a Chromebook, you can set up “Phone Hub.” This offers most of the same features as Link to Windows, but further building on it with support for setting up a hotspot and also using your phone as a “key” to unlock your ChromeOS device. You don’t have to download anything to set up Phone Hub either, just follow the instructions below.
A few more noteworthy apps:
- Waze: While Google Maps will do the trick for many, Waze offers crowdsourced live traffic data and reports for speed traps and more.
- Google News: Especially in these times, keeping up with the latest news is important, and using personalized data, Google News will bring you top stories in a slick app that’s really easy to use.
- Feedly: Want to keep track of the news using personalized RSS feeds? Feedly is one of the best apps for the job, and it’s free!
- Google Home/Amazon Alexa: Got some smart home speakers or displays? You’ll want to have the Google Home or Amazon Alexa apps installed depending on what devices you own.
- Get a 3rd-party launcher: Installing a new launcher is a great way to fully customize the homescreen on your new Android phone. Nova Launcher and Action Launcher are great options for this.
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China’s smartphone giant Xiaomi slashes workforce: reports | Technology
Chinese smartphone maker says it has implemented routine “personnel optimisation and organisational streamlining”.
Xiaomi Corp, one of China’s biggest smartphone makers, has begun mass layoffs, slashing up to 15 percent of its workforce, a Hong Kong-based newspaper has reported, citing social media posts and Chinese media.
Social media platforms such as Weibo, Xiaohongshu and Maimai have been flooded with posts by laid-off employees, with the layoffs taking place in several units of the company’s smartphone and internet services business, the South China Morning Post reported on Tuesday.
Xiaomi had 35,314 staff as of September 30, the paper reported, the vast majority of them based in mainland China.
The layoffs, if confirmed, would affect thousands of workers, many of whom recently joined the company following a hiring spree that began last year.
A Xiaomi spokesperson did not comment on the reported layoffs directly but said the company had undergone routine streamlining.
“Xiaomi recently implemented routine personnel optimisation and organisational streamlining, with affected parties totalling less than 10 percent of total workforce,” the spokesperson told Al Jazeera. “Those affected have been compensated in compliance with local regulations.”
The reported layoffs come just months after the smartphone maker announced audacious plans to challenge Apple’s dominance in high-end smartphones.
In February, Xiaomi chief executive Lei Jun said Xiaomi was in a “war” with Apple and had set its sights on becoming China’s biggest high-end brand in the next three years.
Xiaomi in November reported a 9.7 percent fall in third-quarter revenue amid China’s harsh “zero-COVID” pandemic restrictions and weakening consumer demand. Smartphone revenues, which account for 60 percent of total sales, fell 11 percent year-on-year, Xiaomi said.
Xiaomi enjoyed a surge in sales in 2021 as Washington-imposed sanctions hobbled Huawei Technologies’s business in the United States, before reporting its first-ever quarterly decline in revenue in May.
With Xiaomi’s stock price tumbling nearly 50 percent since the beginning of the year, the company has sought out new areas for growth. Those efforts include a foray into electric vehicles, with mass production scheduled to begin in 2024.