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For the Android faithful who get frustrated by the use of older versions of the platform, take heart.  The problem is also shared by Microsoft Windows.

StatCounter has released their monthly report on Windows version usage globally and while Windows 10 has made gains, it still trails the now 8 year old Windows 7.  Windows 7 commanded 43.99% of all Windows-based internet traffic in September while Windows 10 jumped up to 39.3%.  That is up from 37.87% in August 2017.

Today’s Deal comes from Choetech on their durable USB-C cables.  Right now you can pick up a 3-pack of the nylon braided cables for $12.99 on Amazon.  That’s a $7 savings off the regular price.

The 3-pack of cables includes two 1m (3.3′) cables and one 2m (6.6′) cable, all of which support up to 5Gbps transfer speeds and USB 3.0.  All of the cables are USB-A to USB-C and are, of course, backwards compatible to older USB 2.0 and 1.1 connectors (but you lose the transfer speeds).

Today’s deal is on the compact, 4.6″ display Sony Xperia X Compact.  The 2016 phone packs a lot of punch and is down to $349 today on Amazon.  This is just about half of the cost of the new-for-2017 Xperia XZ Compact and you will still be getting Android Oreo at some point in early 2018.

I reviewed the Xperia X Compact in November of last year and it remains one of my favorite phones of the past year.  It’s compact size is great but the overall performance and camera quality is excellent.

The Xperia X Compact is powered by the Snapdragon 650 hexa-core processor.  It has four 1.4 GHz Cortex-A53 cores &  two 1.8 GHz Cortex-A72 cores.  The processor is coupled with the Adreno 510 GPU which provides good graphics performance.  The X Compact has 3GB of RAM onboard and has 32GB of built-in storage.  That storage can be expanded up to an additional 256GB thanks to the Micro SD slot that is built into the SIM tray of the phone.  With the smaller screen size, as you would expect, the X Compact is a pretty small device.  It measures 129 x 65 x 9.5 mm or 5.08 x 2.56 x 0.37″ in old money.  Weight wise it is 136g or 4.76 ounces.  The phone is comfortable to hold and very easy to slip into any pocket.

Nokia has been clear that all of their current line up of devices, the Nokia 3, 5, 6 and 8, would be receiving an update to Android Oreo.  The question, as is always the case with manufactures, was when that would happen.  Now we know and it is this year.

In an interview today, HMD Global’s General Manager for ANZ (Australia and New Zealand), Mark Trundle confirmed that the Nokia 3, 5 and 6 will get getting the Oreo update before the end of the year.  As for the Nokia 8, the Android Oreo update is already in a limited rollout.