Author: Clinton

After months of waiting, the official Starbucks app for Windows Phone has been released.  The app, similar to the one available for Android and iOS, allows you to pay for your coffee or food items at participating shops with your phone.  This is done by providing a barcode which is connected to your Starbucks account (which in turn is tied to a credit card) that is displayed on your phone and scanned at the register.  It is quick and simple and as one who has been using their app on other platforms, it is about time it got to Windows Phone!

If you have been trying to add your Gmail account to your Windows Phone over the past few days and keep getting an error, you are not alone.  Currently when users attempt to add their Gmail account to their phone, they get an error indicating that the browser (Edge) is not supported and provides links to download other browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer).  But, as you will know, that’s not an option for Windows Phone users.

The issue, it seems, is with Google and this isn’t the first time this particular issue has popped up.

In the latest platform version update from the Android team, the slow adoption of Android Marshmallow continues in the market.  The latest version of Android is now running on 15.2% of all devices that hit the Play Store during a 7 day period that ended August 1st.  That is up from 13.3% in the report last month.  While the growth is certainly not setting the world alight, it is a positive sign that more devices are either coming with the latest version of Android installed or are getting updated.  But, frankly, this also is a bit disheartening when you consider that in all likelihood, we will see Android Nougat released this month.

As expected, the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 has become available as a pre-order from the four major carriers here in the United States this morning.  AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon all have the phone available to order today through various payment options with delivery of the device expected to start happening on August 19th, the day the device becomes generally available.  Generally speaking, if you want to buy it outright, it is going to be at least $850 regardless of the carrier you go with but many are offering accessories when you pre-order your Note 7 (subject to availability).

AT&T

Outright, the Note 7 is $879 from the carrier or you can do one of the AT&T Next programs.  The 30 payment option is $29.34 while the 24 payment option is $36.67.  Along with this, the carrier is offering a $695 in credits when you buy one Note 7 and want to get a second one.  It’s pretty close to BOGO.  Or, if you sign up for a 2-year contract with the carrier, they will give you a free Samsung Gear S2.  Lastly, you can pick up a Galaxy Tab 3 for .99 Cents with the purchase of a Galaxy Note 7.

After a couple of months of guessing and speculation, Samsung has pulled back the cover on the latest version of their phablet device, the Galaxy Note 7.  The Note 7 is, as you would expect, a well appointed device with more-or-less the same innards of the Galaxy S7 Edge.  That means you are going to get some top end performance in a 5.7″ displayed device that is waterproof and is the first device to hit the market with Gorilla Glass 5.

The Note 7 has a 5.7″ dual edge screen that supports a resolution of 2560×1440.  It is powered by a Quad-core Snapdragon 820 processor (in the United States.  International models will be powered by the Octa-core Exynos processor).  It comes standard with 64GB of storage but can be expanded up to an additional 256GB thanks to the MicroSD slot.  Coupled with the processor is 4GB of RAM so you have plenty of power under-the-hood.

With the new Nexus phones from HTC coming later this year, there is already a fair amount of anticipation of what these two phones, code named Marlin and Sailfish, will bring.  But, for those who like wallpapers, the papers for these two new phones have already been leaked.  Thanks to the team over at Android Police, you can now download 15 new wallpapers for your devices today.  There is a nice mix of themes in them – aquatic, wildlife and fractals – and all look pretty darn spiffy.  I have re-posted the wallpapers here and you can see all of them after the break.  However, you can download from the original source here if you want to do so.