Google has announced a slew of Android updates that should make phones and tablets more useful for many people. One of the more notable changes is for Nearby Share, Google's version of Apple's AirDrop, which should make transferring files between your own Android devices a cinch. After you opt in to the self-share feature, your Android devices will automatically accept files from each other, even if the screen is off. So, you may soon no longer need to email a file from your phone to your tablet or Chromebook. The self-share option should be available in the next few weeks.
It's not clear when you'll be able to check out some of the other freshly announced features, which include more accessibility settings. Android has a feature called sound notifications that's designed to help those in the deaf and hard of hearing community. When the feature is enabled, it can listen for sounds like fire alarms, door knocks and running water, and alert the user to them with a visual notification or vibration on a phone or watch. Soon, users will be able to add custom sounds to their alert library. They'll be able to record audio from appliances and so forth, and receive notifications when their device hears that sound again.
Google TV now has a selection of movies with audio descriptions. You can find these through Google Assistant by saying “Search audio description movies.” Moreover, Google is adding a multi-pinning option to Meet video calls. This will enable users to pin feeds from, for instance, the speaker and a sign language interpreter — or maybe a friend to see their reaction to what's being said a little more clearly.
SharePlay-style options are coming to Meet as well. You'll be able to watch YouTube videos and play games with up to 100 friends and family members simultaneously. Google says this feature is rolling out to Android phones and tablets.
On top of those changes, you can expect updated Drive and Keep widgets, more Emoji Kitchen mashups on Gboard and a way to stuff more emoji into your messages with a tap (or, in other words, "emojify" whatever you're typing). On Wear OS devices, there will be a new Keep tile — with the option to dictate a note or checklist — while Snapchat's Bitmoji is coming to watch faces.
For the past couple of years, Samsung has been putting out better and better wireless earbuds with every iteration. This year was no different with the Galaxy Buds 2 Pro, which we consider to be the best Samsung buds yet. Normally priced at $230, you can pick up Samsung's latest buds for only $155 right now at Amazon. That's the first discount we've seen since they came out at the end of last month, making it a great time to pick up a pair if you've been eying them since launch.
Samsung refined the Galaxy Buds 2 Pro by making them 15 percent smaller than the previous versions, covering them in a matte coating and giving them an IPX7 water-resistance rating. Touch controls a little hard to get used to, but they work just fine once you get the hang of them. Sound quality is good and ANC is even better than it was on the previous versions, blocking out most environmental noises around you. You'll also be able to switch between ANC and ambient sound mode whenever you want.
The Galaxy Buds 2 Pro work with Samsung's Galaxy Wearables app for Android, and there's no real iOS equivalent. So while you can use the buds with an iPhone, you won't have access to all of the features that Android users will. In the app, you can control things like Voice Detect, the feature that will automatically pause sound when the buds detect you speaking, 360 Audio, earbud finder and more. The app also has customizable controls for EQ presets, hands-free Bixby access, ambient sound during calls and other more advanced features. There's a lot you can play around with, provided you're using a Samsung phone or another Android handset.
Battery life is pretty standard on the Buds 2 Pro. You'll get five hours of listening time, plus another 18 hours with its charging case. While it could be better, that battery life estimate is in line with other flagship earbuds from companies like Apple, Google and others. Overall, Samsung did a good job making significant updates to the Galaxy Buds 2 Pro that push them well above their predecessors. If you have a Samsung phone and are in need of a new pair, these are the ones to get.
Apple’s long-awaited Far Out event was a showcase of all the gadgets the company is now ready to sell us. The new iPhone 14 was blessed with a super-size sibling, and the iPhone 14 Pros ditched the notch for a lozenge-shaped punch hole in its display. Sorry, the people at Apple are insisting we call the hole a “Dynamic Island,” since the screen around it will change size for notifications. The new Apple Watch was joined by the Watch Ultra, with all of the added ruggedization extreme-sports types have been waiting for. Plus, the AirPods Pro got touch-sensitive controls and better noise cancellation, thanks to the addition of the H2 chip. It was very much a show focused on quality-of-life tweaks for these devices, with some features you might consider neat, but nothing you might feel compelled to camp outside an Apple Store to be first in line to buy.
There are two iPhones 14: the 6.1-inch standard model and its 6.7-inch Plus variant, harking back to the old regime of one “regular” sized device and one super-sized version. (Sadly, the iPhone Mini’s poor battery life made the unit a poor seller, so Apple has swung the axe.) Engadget’s Cherlynn Low got her hands all over the new handsets, which focus on better camera upgrades. The rear camera has a larger 12-megapixel sensor (with bigger 1.9-micron pixels) as well as autofocus on the forward-facing lens, for better selfies. Despite the phone’s size, the 14 Plus is lighter than its Pro siblings, a small mercy if you’ve ever dropped a phone on your face in bed.
Apple saved most of the big upgrades for the iPhone 14 Pro and Max as it tries to put more water between its flagship handset and those in the ultra-premium tier. There’s a new A16 Bionic chip and a Super Retina XDR display that can run at 1Hz, giving users an always-on display for the first time. Plus, the Dynamic Island, a punch hole housing FaceID and the camera that can bleed into the display around it, making it look more like a notification window. The rear lens also got an upgrade, with a 48-megapixel primary sensor backed by Apple’s promise it’ll have dramatically improved low-light performance.
The iPhones 14 will be the first in the range to ditch the physical SIM tray in favor of eSIM technology. On paper, this is a smart move – another hole in the phone you can eliminate for better waterproofing and security. But it’s also a bit of a thumbed nose for travelers who might prefer to swap SIMs when on the go to take advantage of cheaper local rates. Plus, if you smash your device, you can’t simply put your SIM in an old phone you’ve got lying around.
Engadget’s Billy Steele spent some time with Apple’s new Watch Ultra, with its, uh, interesting design and additional action button on the side opposite the digital crown. The 49mm timepiece gets a 2,000 nit display, good for rough environments, an 86-decibel emergency siren and more accurate GPS. Given Apple products are always a little less rugged than we might hope, the promises the company made here are going to be well worth testing. Can this device really replace the hardcore Garmin for your extreme sport of choice? Only time will tell.
At the 2022 Code Conference, Tim Cook responded to a journalist's question about RCS text messaging by suggesting they buy an iPhone, The Verge reported. Asked how Apple could improve communication between iPhone and Android users, he said "I don't hear our users asking that we put a lot of energy into that." When the journalist replied that he couldn't send certain videos to his Android-using mother, Cook joked "buy your mom an iPhone."
That's bound to add fuel to the debate about a common smartphone messaging format. Google has long promoted the RCS (Rich Communications Service) as a way to allow for better interoperability between iOS and Android users, even shaming Apple about it last month. Doing so could help eliminate the dreaded "green bubble" seen by iPhone users when they receive a text message from an Android phone.
Apple considered offering iMessage to Android users but quickly shut the idea down, as internal documents revealed during the Epic trial. Former marketing chief Phil Schiller famously said that porting iMessage to Android "would hurt us more than help us," and another former Apple exec said in an email that "iMessage amounts to serious lock-in."
Cook did say that Apple isn't addressing RCS "at this point," appearing to not entirely rule the idea out. In any case, the green bubble issue is largely US-centric, as users in other countries tend to favor non-SMS apps like Telegram, WhatsApp and Signal.
You can now enjoy surround sound while streaming YouTube TV content on your Apple TV and Fire TV devices. As The Verge reports, the streaming television service has expanded the list of devices supporting its shows and movies with 5.1 audio after rolling out the capability to Android TV, Google TV and Roku devices back in June. YouTube TV first started testing 5.1 channel audio for those first three devices back in March, while also promising to work on support for Apple TV and Fire TV devices, as well as for gaming consoles. This rollout covers two out of those three — a tweet on the official YouTube TV page says the service is still in the process of bringing the capability to consoles.
5.1 Audio Update! 🔈🔉🔊 We now support 5.1 audio on Apple TV & Fire TV devices for compatible YouTube TV content (live, DVR, & video on-demand).
If you’re a game console user, we’re working on getting this available to you as soon as possible, and will share live updates here. pic.twitter.com/8Pmxrt1WqU
The Help page for YouTube TV doesn't explicitly mention Apple TV as a supported device yet, but it does list the Fire TV Stick 4K Max, Fire TV Stick, Fire TV Stick Lite, Fire TV Cube, Fire TV Stick 4K and Fire TV Stick with 4K Ultra HD. To note, surround sound isn't available for all YouTube TV content, only those that have it. So long as a user is streaming on a compatible device, 5.1 audio will be automatically switched on. That said, those who want to make sure that it's available for a specific video can do so by playing it, going to "More" under player controls and selecting the "bug" icon. YouTube TV's "Stats for nerds" will be displayed at the top of the video, and it should show AC-3/EAC-3 in the codecs section if it has surround sound.
Starting sometime this fall, you'll no longer need an Apple Watch to use Apple Fitness+. The service will be available on iPhone in all 21 countries where Apple currently offers it. Apple said at WWDC that a Watch-free iPhone Fitness app was on the way, so the news isn't exactly unexpected.
When Apple debuted Fitness+ in 2020, the experience centered entirely around its smartwatches, which seemed a little egregious for workouts that you could view on Apple TV. Soon, though, iPhone-only users will be able to access the full Fitness+ service, including 3,000 workouts and meditations that are guided by trainers. Your iPhone will estimate the calories that you burn, which will count toward progress on the Move ring (Apple Watch will almost certainly provide more accurate stats, though). While you'll need an iPhone to join Fitness+, you will be able to access it on iPad and Apple TV as well.
Moreover, Apple will release more Time to Walk episodes this fall. Time to Walk is an audio experience designed to prompt people to get out and walk more often. The fourth season will include stories from Regina Hall, Nicky Jam, Constance Wu and Meghan Trainor. Time to Run, meanwhile, will offer Fitness+ subscribers virtual running routes from the likes of Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming; Mexico City; Anchorage, Alaska; Monterey, California; and Seattle. Both Time to Walk and Time to Run will be available in the iPhone Fitness app as well.
Starting September 12th, Fitness+ users will gain access to more Artist Spotlight workouts featuring music from the likes of Mary J. Blige, The Rolling Stones and The Weeknd. There were also be a fresh collection of Pilates workouts designed to strengthen the entire body, along with classes with a new yoga trainer. On Apple Watch, select Fitness+ workouts will have extra onscreen guidance and trainer coaching.
Follow all of the news from Apple’s iPhone event right here.
As usual, Apple's September event was packed with new hardware, most of which we aren't too shocked to see. The rumor mill correctly predicted the all-new Apple Watch Ultra, as well as the more iterative Apple Watch Series 8 and a new Apple Watch SE. And the iPhone 14 and 14 Pro mostly met expectations, as well — including the sad fact that the iPhone mini is no more. The AirPods Pro have also gotten a long-awaited update, though we'd classify this as another iterative change.
The iPhone 14 and 14 Pro
Shocking no one, Apple introduced four new iPhones today across two different lines. The iPhone 14 is joined this year not by a mini model, but by a bigger iPhone 14 Plus with a 6.7-inch screen. Aside from the bigger screen, the design is essentially identical to last year's iPhone 13. As is often the case, the camera got some of the biggest upgrades — Apple says the main back camera as well as the front-facing TrueDepth camera are all new, and they're combined with a new photo processing pipeline called the Photonic Engine for improved low-light performance. The True Tone flash has been improved, as well. And for video shooters, a new "action mode" should reduce shaking and vibration that occurs when you move around while filming.
There are also some notable new safety features on board here. Just like the new Apple Watch models, the iPhone 14 features crash detection, which uses a new accelerometer and gyroscope along with machine learning models to detect severe car crashes; it'll automatically call emergency services if a user is unable to reach or use their phone. The new iPhone also has a satellite connection to contact emergency services in places where there's no cellular signal. As usual, Apple also says that the iPhone 14 will have better battery life than ever before — particular the iPhone 14 Plus, which can have a bigger battery thanks to its larger size.
The iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max come in the same two screen sizes and include all the features found on the iPhone 14, along with some notable improvements. The iPhone 14 Pro has an "always-on" screen for the first time. The refresh rate drops to 1Hz and the screen dims, similar to what happens on the Apple Watch's own always-on display. This lets you see notifications and widgets from the new Lock Screen in iOS 16 at all times.
Another significant change to the iPhone 14 Pro display is that the notch has been replaced with a circular cut-out that Apple calls the Dynamic Island. Rather than just leave this space as a blank hole to house the front-facing camera and face detection systems, this area will work alongside iOS 16 to provide a quick view at background processes running on your phone like timers, directions, Face ID or music playback. We haven't seen it in action yet, but it seems like a good improvement over the static and fairly large notch that has been part of the iPhone for years now.
Apple's iPhone Pro lineup always has some significant camera advantages, and that's the case again this year. The iPhone 14 Pro has a new 48-megapixel, quad-pixel sensor for the main camera lens. Typically, the iPhone 14 Pro will combine four pixels into one ultra-sized pixel that keeps image size around 12MP but allows for significantly improved low-light performance. You can also use 2x telephoto zoom with no loss of quality, as it just uses the middle 12 megapixels of the sensor for full-sized images. The ultra-wide camera and front-facing camera are also all new, and naturally the iPhone 14 Pro uses the new Photonic Engine for further image improvements.
All iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro models will be available for pre-order on Friday, September 9th. The iPhone 14 starts at $699 and will be widely available on September 16th, while the $799 iPhone 14 Plus arrives on October 7th. The iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max start at $999 and $1,099, respectively, and will also be in stores on September 16th.
Apple Watch Series 8, Apple Watch Ultra and Apple Watch SE
As expected, Apple Watch Series 8 is just a minor tweak to the existing Apple Watch formula. The main new hardware features are a temperature sensor and two new accelerometers that work in concert with the Watch's existing sensors to detect car crashes. If you use the temperature sensor overnight, women can get estimates about when they're expected to ovulate, as well. The Series 8 is also getting a new software feature called low power mode. Apple says this should extend battery life from the standard 18 hours to 36 hours by turning off features like the always-on display and features like automatic workout detection while keeping key tools like activity tracking on. Fortunately, this feature is coming to all Apple Watches since the Series 4.
The $799 Apple Watch Ultra, however, is an entirely new beast. It resembles the original Apple Watch, but with a much larger 49mm display and a flat front crystal that is built to project the screen from side impacts. The Digital Crown and side button are built into a new protruding area that helps protect the crown, and there's a new "action" button on the left side of the Watch, as well. You can customize that button to launch any feature or app you want — like starting a workout or activating a built-in dive computer.
Speaking of dives, the Ultra has twice the water resistance of the standard Apple Watch, and it also has a bigger battery rated for 36 hours of usage. That can be extended to 60 hours using the new battery saver feature. Given that the Apple Watch Ultra is much larger than its predecessors, it requires new bands, and Apple designed three entirely new options: Trail Loop, Alpine Loop and Ocean Band. Each of those bands is meant for a different activity. You can pre-order the Apple Watch Ultra today, and it'll be available in stores on September 16th.
Finally, Apple updated the entry-level Apple Watch SE. It starts at $249 and has a larger screen, the same crash detection features as the Series 8, a 20 percent faster S8 chip and health features like AFib history and heart rate notifications. Thankfully, this means Apple has finally stopped selling the ancient Apple Watch Series 3; the SE is now the cheapest option available.
AirPods Pro
The new AirPods Pro look essentially identical to the original model, but there are a lot of nice updates on board here. Perhaps most significant are touch-sensitive areas on the headphone stems that you can swipe to adjust volume, a pretty handy addition for when you don't want to ask Siri for help. The new H2 chip, meanwhile, offers up to two times the noise cancellation performance as the original AirPods Pro, along with improvements to overall sound quality and transparency mode. Battery life has been improved, too — you should get about 6 hours per change, or 30 hours total with the charging case.
The charging case has gotten some good improvements, too — it now works with the small Apple Watch charging disc as well as the MagSafe charger and any other Qi-compatible wireless chargers. It also has a built-in speaker so you can find it if you lose it, and there's also a lanyard attachment. The new AirPods Pro cost the same $249 as the last model, and they'll be up for pre-order on September 9th and available on September 23rd.
For the iPhone 14, Apple has decided to "go bigger." So instead of an iPhone 14 mini, this year we're seeing the iPhone 14 Plus take the smaller handset's place. The new 6.1-inch iPhone 14 is accompanied by the 6.7-inch Plus variant, with the company promising to deliver the best battery life on an iPhone. Though I can't verify that claim yet, I was able to spend some time with the new iPhone 14s at the Apple event. Though I miss the cute mini flagship, I can understand why the company opted for a larger phone.
Many reviewers like myself loved the small iPhone for its size, but lamented its short battery life. With a bigger frame, the iPhone 14 Plus should have room for a larger battery to last longer. Both the 6.1-inch and the 6.7-inch models also use the A15 Bionic chip found in the iPhone 13 Pro, and are generally not very different from the last generation.
In spite of its size, I liked that the iPhone 14 Plus felt lighter than the Pros, though. At 203 grams, it's lighter than the iPhone 14 Pro (206 grams) and the Pro Max, which is an absolute brick at 240 grams
The biggest difference here is that the rear camera has a larger 12-megapixel sensor and bigger 1.9-micron pixels. The front camera now offers autofocus for clearer selfies, and these were things that were hard to gauge at the crowded hands-on area. US models of the iPhone 14 will no longer have a physical SIM card slot, though this wasn't something I was very bothered by.
This story is developing, please refresh for updates.
Follow all of the news from Apple’s iPhone event right here.
Apple added plenty of new features to its latest iPhones, including a nifty display cutout on the iPhone 14 Pro it's calling the Dynamic Island. But as is so often the case with the company, Apple gives and it takes away, and the feature it's removing this time is the physical SIM slot. On US models, the company is going all in on eSIM technology.
In practice, that's a decision that will have a few effects on how you use the iPhone 14 if you decide to upgrade. For one, you won't be able to simply transfer the SIM from your current phone to your new device. Instead, you'll need to either call your carrier or complete an enrolment process online. Many people when they travel tend to buy local SIMs as a way to save on data roaming costs. That's something that won't be an option if you buy an iPhone 14 in the US. Thankfully, there are plenty of eSIM options like Airalo.
Apple has supported eSIM since it introduced the iPhone XS, XS Max and XR in 2018, and has included the technology in most of its recent Apple Watch and iPad devices. Starting with last year's iPhone 13, the company even began allowing users to use multiple eSIMs on the same device at the same time. The good news is the majority of US carriers support the technology. T-Mobile even recently began using eSIM to let iPhone users try its network.
Follow all of the news from Apple’s iPhone event right here.
It was a day of farewells today at Apple's 'Far Out' iPhone launch event. In addition to getting rid of the iPhone mini variant, Apple also ditched the notch on the iPhone 14 Pro in favor of a pill-shaped cutout. The company is calling this the "Dynamic Island" at the top of the screen. The iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max also feature brighter screens and offer an Always On Display so you can always see your most important information. At the Apple Event in Cupertino, I spent some time with the new devices and have to say that while the dynamic island still feels very obvious, it also seems a lot more useful.
The difference is that the interface now makes better use of the space by displaying different information on it. When I started a countdown on the timer app or played a song on Apple Music, the island would show an orange dot to indicate something was happening. Then, when I left the app, the island displayed a waveform to show that my voice recorder was still running, or that music was playing. When I long-pressed the island with one of these activities going on, the box expanded to show more controls.
Apple Music, for example, expanded to show the playback progress bar and buttons for rewind, pause and skip below it. For Timer and Voice Memo, controls appeared for stopping the countdowns and recordings respectively. The software cleverly camouflages the camera hole here, so it never interrupts the content and is hidden with empty black space in that area. Of course, so far, I've just used Apple's own first-party apps on the iPhone 14, and third-party options might not adapt to the island as well.
Cherlynn Low / Engadget
When nothing was going on, long-pressing the dynamic island resulted in a slight stretching animation and light haptic feedback. If you peer hard at the pill, you can also see the 12-megapixel TrueDepth camera off to the right under it. Again, it's not quite an all-screen display, but the camera cutout feels better hidden than before.
Speaking of, the iPhone 14 Pro also got an upgraded camera system, with a new 48-MP primary rear sensor backed by Apple's new Photonic engine for better low light performance. That's not something I could test here at the brightly lit demo space, nor was I able to check out the new Action mode for video stabilization. But there are plenty of improvements to the iPhone 14 Pros on the video and camera front, like Cinematic Mode support for up to 4K resolution and 30fps framerates that we'd have to check out in a full review.
Another new feature I was able to briefly try is the Always On Display. When left to sit for awhile, the iPhone 14 Pro dims its screen, but remains just bright enough so you can see your lock screen's contents. When I lifted the iPhone 14 Pro slightly, its display quickly reverted to full brightness, just as responsively as older iPhones wake from sleep.
Cherlynn Low / Engadget
Unlike the approach on Samsung or Pixel phones, Apple's version keeps things like your wallpaper and widgets visible in addition to the clock. This might tax the battery a bit more, but the company is still promising all-day endurance for the iPhone 14 Pro series. That might be thanks to the new A16 Bionic Chip, which is built on a 4nm design process that might be more energy efficient. But it's something that again, we'll have to wait till we can test for ourselves to verify.
There was quite a bit more that I couldn't properly check out here at the Apple event, including the company's new Emergency SOS and Crash Detection features. And though the Pro and Pro Max's respective 6.1-inch and 6.7-inch screens were plenty bright, it wasn't easy to determine if the new phones' displays were indeed brighter than their predecessors.
If you're already overdue an upgrade or can't want to make sure you get one next week, you can pre-order the iPhone 14 Pros on September 9th. Those who can should wait till we can perform a full review, and the phones will be available from September 16th starting at $999 for the Pro and $1,099 for the Max.
This story is developing, please refresh for updates.
Follow all of the news from Apple’s iPhone event right here.
