Category: Android

Today at 2:40 p.m. Eastern, the Android team will be hosting a live web event to announce the public availability of Android O.  The timing of the event coinsides with the solar eclipse that is happening and, you guessed it, will be at its height at 2:40 p.m. in New York.

The stream of the event will be available on YouTube and there will be a live video stream with the launch stream from NASA showing the eclipse.   You can watch the stream below:

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Yeah, so my opinion is go outside and see the eclipse (with proper eye protection of course).  That’s a rare event and while I’m a big fan of the ‘Droid, I think the timing of this is silly at best and marketing gone array at worst.  My .02.  And to top it off, there isn’t really anything outside of the official name that we don’t already know about Android O anyway at this point.

Microsoft has released a significant update to the task management app, Microsoft To-Do, for Android.  The updated build is version 1.11.29 for those keeping score at home and brings some nice improvements and new features.

First, and for those who have managed accounts (like Office 365) you can now add those accounts to To-Do.  Previously, the app would only work with @Outlook.com or @Hotmail.com accounts which was fine, but if you want to have all of your information within your Office 365 account, you couldn’t do it.  In order for this feature to work, you must have To-Do enabled on your account which is something that your administrator will need to do if you can’t sign in with your managed account credentials.  Also keep in mind that if you are adding a managed account, permissions to your Contacts will be required for it to work properly.

The ability to integrate with Office 365 accounts was something that the company said would be coming when the announced the original preview of Microsoft To-Do back in April.

HMD Global, the OEM who owns the Nokia brand, have finally announced their first flagship device, the Nokia 8.  Sporting impressive specs throughout, the Nokia 8 will be available in September, starting in Europe, for €599.  That translates to $704 at today’s exchange rate.  It is expected that the device will make it to the US at some point this year but for September, expect it to be in Europe and China first.  It will also likely be at a lower cost than $700 as device tend to be a bit less here than in Europe.

At that price point, the Nokia 8 is in the flagship category which begs the question of if the specs justify the price.  On the surface, it would appear that way.  The 5.3′ QHD device is powered by the Snadragon 835 octa-core processor and is coupled with the Adreno 540 GPU.   It has 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage.  That storage can be expanded by an additional 256GB thanks to the MicroSD slot.  The phone is rated as splashproof with an IP54 certification and will run a near AOSP version of Android Nougat 7.1.1.

For those of you who have had your eye on the Huawei Mate 9, today is your day to pick one up.  For Today’s Deal, you can pick up the 5.9″ phablet with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage for $435 in Grey, a savings of $150 off its original $599 pricetag.  I reviewed the Mate 9 earlier this year and it is an outstanding device with an awesome display, great battery life and excellent cameras.  At this price, it is well worth considering.

So what does $435 get you in the Huawei Mate 9?  A lot frankly.  It is a 5.9″ phone running Android Nougat, an octa-core processor running at 2.4GHz and Leica optics dual-camera setup shooting at 20MP and 12MP respectively with OIS.  The front facing selfie camera is 8MP shooter.  You also have 64GB of built-in storage that can be expanded up to an additional  256GB thanks to the MicroSD slot.  Finally, it comes with a US warranty so you are not buying an international version of the phone.

Good news this morning for those of you who pre-ordered the Essential PH-1.  Your device should be shipping to you over the course of the next seven days according to the company.  It follows delays in shipping as the Andy Rubin’s founded company had expected to ship the phones in July.

The Essential PH-1 has a titanium body with a ceramic back, a 5.7″ 2560 x 1320 Quad-HD display, 4GB of RAM and 128GB of storage built-in.  It is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor.  This octa-core processor has four cores running at 2.45GHz and the remaining four clocked at 1.9GHz.

The camera configuration on the back of the PH-1 is becoming somewhat of the standard.  It is a dual-camera setup with a 13MP RGB camera coupled with a 13MP monochrome camera.  It is has a f/1.85 aperture and hybrid autofocus (laser and phase detection).  It is capable of shooting up to 4K video.  The front facing 8MP camera is a fixed focus f/2.2 shooter that can also shoot 4K video.

The Google app for Android has a server-side update rolling out today that brings detailed Pollen forecasts at a glance thanks to the Weather Channel.  The update, much like the weather forecast feature of the app, will give you detailed information about how much pollen is in the air for your location as well as the different types of pollen.  The good news is, you don’t have to do anything to get the update.  Since it is a server-side update, so long as you have the latest Google app on your phone, it will come to your phone automagically.

To get to the new forecast, use the Google app to search for pollen forecast.  Using the location services on your phone, you will see the level of pollen in your area as well as the main type of allergen.  For those of us who suffer from seasonal allergies (Clinton raises his hand), it will mighty helpful in deciding how much time you spend outdoors or if you open up the windows at home.  Or maybe make double sure you take your allergy medication for the day.