Category: Android

If you have been reading my site for the past few months, you know that I recently switched over to Project Fi after being an AT&T customer for over 17 years. You can read my review of Project Fi here but you can find all of my Project Fi related tips, tricks and How To’s at this link.  One of the key advantages of the service is the ability to switch between T-Mobile and Sprint, the two providers that make up Google’s MNVO (Mobile Network Virtual Operator).  In principle, the way it works is that whichever carrier has the stronger signal in your area is the one you will connect to but as you travel, you may switch from Sprint to T-Mobile or vise-versa.  The challenge is that you never really know which network you are on at any given moment and that fact, along with several other key features, is why Signal Spy is a must have app for Fi users.

Signal Spy is an app you may have heard of before as it was know as Fi Spy up until a few weeks ago after what I think was a discussion between the developer Novvia and Google’s legal team. 🙂  The name aside, Signal Spy gives Fi users the ability to not only see what carrier they happen to be using but also what LTE band they are using with that carrier, their Wi-Fi information (if connected) and the ability to force your Nexus device to switch from one carrier to another.  I have been using the app for several weeks now (I’m part of their beta program) and now that it is out and available for everyone, it should be an app that Fi users download right after the Project Fi app itself.  Even if you are not on Fi, you can still get some really useful information out of Signal Spy that makes it worth the download for anyone.

For the purpose of this review I am going to assume that you are a Project Fi user so I can explain all the features and usefulness of the app.  If you are a non-Fi user, keep in mind that your mileage will vary on what you can see in the app.

Signal Spy – Free (In-App Donation) – Download Now

One of the nice changes that has come with the latest update to the Google Phone app under Android Marshmallow has been a significantly improved Caller ID function.  Caller ID itself is a rather old technology with its origins back 1984 and while in principle it hasn’t changed a lot, providing this information on mobiles has been a less than perfect scenario.  Unlike land lines where you can associate a number with a specific point geographically on a map, mobiles are, well, mobile, and tying a number to them when they could be triangulating between cell towers is a challenge.

That is where this latest update from Google comes into play.  With the abilities built into the Phone app and Marshmallow, you can now get far more detail on a call than you could before including how far away that person or business is from your current location and information on that business.  All if this is possible of course with Google having the machine learning and apps that take advantage of it on your phone and in the cloud.  While it is far from perfect, it certainly is more robust than simply depending on the person calling you to be in your contacts – the most common way around the Caller ID problem on mobiles.

As I’ve implied a couple of times already, you have to have the latest Google Phone app and Android Marshmallow on your phone for this new functionality to work.  The app comes by default on Nexus devices but you can now install it on any Android phone and use it as your default phone app.  However, to get this new function you must be running Android Marshmallow.  With that established, now it is just a matter of enabling the function which I go into after the break.

The updates to devices with Android Marshmallow continues and the Moto X Pure Edition from 2014 is the latest to get it.  The news is certainly welcome for those waiting for it but keep in mind that this is for the unlocked variant of the phone only.  If you have one that is locked to a carrier, your wait will be a bit longer.  The update is a hefty 800+MB so be prepared for a rather lengthy upgrade from Lollipop.  As always,  I recommend that you have a backup of any important files or photos prior to you starting the update.  The update will come to owners as an OTA update and you should start seeing it anytime from today but it could take several days or even weeks for everyone to get it.  Manufactures, like Google themselves, tend to stagger these updates to their devices.

The good news is once you do get the update, you will have all the benefits of Marshmallow at your fingertips.

Today over at Amazon you can pick up another amazing deal.  Right now while supplies last they have the Samsung Galaxy S6 with 32GB of onboard storage for only $489.98.  That is a saving of just over $400 off the regular price.  There isn’t much you probably don’t know about this fantastic phone from Samsung but here are some of the highlights for you.

• Quad-core 1.5 GHz Cortex-A53 & Quad-core 2.1 GHz Cortex-A57 Processor
• 3GB RAM/32GB
• 16MP Rear Camera/5MP Front Camera
• 5.1″ Super AMOLED Quad HD display at 1440 x 2560
• GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
• HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100
• LTE band 1(2100), 2(1900), 3(1800), 4(1700/2100), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 12(700), 17(700), 18(800), 19(800), 20(800), 26(850)

The unit that is on sale at Amazon at this price point is the white version while you can pick up the gold version for about $10 more.  The phone is unlocked so you can use it on any GSM carrier.

Samsung Galaxy S6 – SALE $489.98 – Amazon

With Android Marshmallow being available now for a couple of months, there has been plenty written on its impressive list of highlight features. My review of the release covered most of those and I have also posted that I think Doze and App Sleep are the true killer features of the release.

But there is another feature that Android users have long wanted out of the platform that has come with Marshmallow: Native USB On-the-go (OTG) support. For those who aren’t familiar with OTG, it allows you to plug in a small adapter to your device and then read things like USB memory sticks, run a USB based keyboard or mouse as if your phone or tablet were a PC. It gives you the ability for example to transfer files from your Android tablet to a USB key to share with others.  In previous released of Android, OTG support was not inherently supported and effectively required that you have your device rooted even if your hardware technically supported it.  That, it seems for Nexus devices, has gone away.

That last phrase is key as I explore this with you.  Right now it appears that the only devices that this works on with Marshmallow are Nexus devices:  Nexus 5, Nexus 5X, Nexus 6, Nexus 6P, Nexus 7 (2013), Nexus 9 and Pixel C.  I can confirm that I was able to connect a USB drive and a mouse successfully to my Nexus 6 and Nexus 7 while I was equally able to connect both to a colleague who as the Nexus 6P and Nexus 9.  Based on information available, the Pixel C should have no problem supporting it either.  Technically the Nexus 5 does support it but there have been reports of challenges getting it to work.  At the end of the day, your mileage may vary so keep that in mind.  Importantly, you don’t have to spend a lot of money to try this out on your devices – especially if you have a non-Nexus device – to see if it work.

Here is another awesome deal running at Amazon today.  You can pick up the Nexus 6 with 32GB of storage for only $249.99.  That is a savings of $400 off the price of this flagship phone from 2014 was released.  I personally use a Nexus 6 as my daily driver and love this phone.  It has outstanding specs and performance and with it being a Nexus device, it already has Android Marshmallow running on it and I can use Project Fi.

• Display: 5.96″ AMOLED, 1440×2560, 16:9 aspect ratio, 493 ppi, Corning Gorilla Glass 3
• Weight: 184 grams (6.49 ounces)
• Battery: 3220 mAh Mixed usage up to 24 hours*
• Processor: 2.7GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 with quad-core CPU (APQ 8084-AB), Adreno 420 GPU
• Memory: 3GB
• Camera: 13MP IMX 214 Image Sensor

Nexus 6 32GB – SALE $249.99 – Amazon