Move over H.264/AVC and HEVC, there’s a new video streaming codec in town and it’s got you in its sites. AV1 is here and it’s going to be everywhere before you know it.
AV1 is an open, royalty-free video standard with an improved compression system that should allow huge data efficiency savings without reducing video quality – and that could be key going forward into a world of higher frame rates, 8K resolution, HDR standards and audio demands.
As such, AV1 brings implications for those who use services such as Netflix, Disney Plus and Prime Video; people looking to buy a new TV or media streamer; and anyone interested in 8K TV. And as a catch-all compression standard there are many uses beyond, including gaming, realtime applications such as video conferencing and anything else where video streams are required.
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What is AV1?
AV1 (AOMedia Video 1) is the the next evolution of the defacto video streaming codec across the internet. It’s planned as the successor to the HEVC (H.265) format that is currently used for 4K HDR video on platforms such as Prime Video, Apple TV+, Disney Plus and Netflix.
It was developed by the Alliance for Open Media, which counts Amazon, Apple, ARM, Facebook, Google, Intel, Microsoft, Mozilla, Netflix, Nvidia and Samsung among its members, and is designed to offer internet streaming efficiency upgrades without affecting quality. That makes it an important step in the uptake of streamed 8K video, given the more data-heavy demands of this higher-res format.
The other big advantage to the streaming giants is that AV1 is royalty-free. That means video platforms, device manufacturers and, by proxy, users can avoid the hefty licensing payments previously associated with codecs such as HEVC. With any luck, that should also grease the wheels of AV1’s evolution and development by avoiding costly, time consuming and generally prohibitive law suits and patent claims.
At the time of writing, the AV1 video codec shows anywhere up to 30 per cent more efficient compression than HEVC, and those within the Alliance for Open Media will push for even bigger gains still. After all, it’s always good to leave room to squeeze more audio and video standards into the bitstream as and when they arise.
But while all sounds good for efficiency of the compression, there is a catch – it takes much, much longer to encode videos in AV1 in the first place. Imagine capturing a video on your mobile then having to wait an age for the AV1 file to be created before you can share it.
The aim for AV1 is for significant improvement here. Realistically, it’s a problem that needs to be solved before widespread adoption can happen. Until then, expect AV1 to be a more fringe player.
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AV1 specs
(Image credit: AOAlliance)
AV1 decoders are available at different profile settings and levels, depending on each piece of hardware’s capabilities. Theoretically, though, there’s plenty of scope and the very upper limits of AV1 have not yet been defined.
For the time being, the codec can go as far as 8K at up to 120fps, involving bitrates at up to 800mbps. Bit depth for colour comes in 8-, 10- and 12-bit varieties and with colour sampling up to a 4:4:4 full pixel level.
Can I watch AV1 video now?
Google has already implemented some AV1 use onto YouTube and requires AV1 support to view its 8K videos on TV.
Netflix has also started streaming AV1 content on a few titles. In fact, the subscription giant first took on AV1 as a way of keeping costs down for Android customers. The Netflix ‘Save Data’ feature on Android devices prioritises the use of the less data-heavy AV1 streams where possible. The company has also committed to take AV1 use across the board going forward.
Vimeo has adopted AV1 for the streams of its ‘Staff picks’ channel. Facebook has promised a roll out of AV1 as browser support emerges, and Twitch has 2022 or 2023 targeted with universal support projected to arrive in 2024 or 2025.
To watch this AV1 content requires both hardware and software support, which mostly breaks down to which device you’ve got and what operating system it’s using. At the time of writing, there’s no AV1 support on MacOS or iOS.
Android (10 onwards), Chrome (70 onwards) and Linux can decode AV1 streams, as can Windows 10 devices (once updated) for certain Windows apps.
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What devices support AV1?
Any device looking to support AV1 will need to have an AV1 decoder built-in at the chip level. Compatibility to the codec cannot be added as a firmware update for most devices. That means the very vast majority of devices out there at the time of writing aren’t ready for it.
There are one or two that were future-proofed in 2020, though. Of those, the Roku Ultra is probably your best bet to get going with AV1 content straight away, although it’s only available in the US for now.
LG’s 8K TVs from 2020 are also AV1 compatible with a decoder built into the α9 (Gen 3) processor. It’s a similar story for Samsung’s 8K sets from the same time – you can actually watch AV1-encoded 8K content from the YouTube app of those sets now.
The other notable AV1-enabled hardware is the Nvidia GeForce RTX 30 Series graphics cards, which would make a very handy video streaming addition to most PCs.
Otherwise, it’s a list of AV1 promises but these include a particularly good one. Google recently announced that any device looking to use the Android TV 10 OS produced after the 31st March 2021 deadline will need to have an AV1 decoder built in.
So, expect plenty of set-top boxes and smart TVs launched in 2021 and beyond to be ready to go and, with Google putting its foot down, all sorts of other products and services should fall in line over the next 12 months, and that’s good news for everyone. Higher quality video, here we come.
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The Samsung S21 FE (Fan Edition) will be the cheapest model of the 2021 S-series. How will this phone look like and what are the expected specs?
Last September, Samsung launched the Galaxy S20 Fan Edition, as an entry-level model within the high-end S20 series. The device was equipped with a relatively large display, a large battery, powerful hardware and the latest software. In addition, the S20 FE was marketed significantly cheaper than the other S-series models. It is therefore not surprising that this phone model became very popular. Now that the Galaxy S21 series has been officially announced, the question arises; will Samsung also release a Fan Edition of the S21 this year?
Although the S20 FE was the first Fan Edition within the S-series, it is likely that Samsung will release another FE edition in 2021, in the form of a Samsung Galaxy S21 FE. After all, the previous model was a direct hit and it was also a good replacement for the significantly less popular S10 Lite.
When is the Samsung S21 FE expected?
The timing of the release was also better. The S10 Lite was announced in January. While the S20 FE saw the light of day in September, so it was another half year wait for the new S-series models to be announced annually in February.
It is in line with expectations that Samsung will maintain this release schedule, in other words, an S21 FE will probably be released in the second half of 2021. Just as there seems to be a Samsung Galaxy Note 21 FE in the planning for the second half of the year.
This brings up the question; What can we expect from the S21 Fan Edition this year? Samsung has taken some unexpected steps within the S-series this year. Although flagship smartphones normally only get improved, this certainly wasn’t the case with the Samsung S21.
The S21 adopted various features of the cheaper S20 FE, such as the flat display with Full HD resolution and the plastic back. As a result, the S21 has also been marketed more cheaply than the S20 a year earlier. The first sales results show that Samsung has made the right decision in this regard. The pre-order sales of the S21 series went significantly better than the year before.
Now that the Galaxy S21 is cheaper than the S20, the question remains; what features will the S21 FE get. Which features will Samsung be able to omit to still deliver the same high-end experience, at a lower price level?
Design of the Galaxy S21 Fan Edition
For the time being, the specifications of this new model are still unknown. But now that the Samsung S21, S21 Plus and S21 Ultra have been officially announced, we can already look carefully ahead to the fourth model.
To give a first impression of the possible design of the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE, in-house graphic designer Giuseppe Spinelli, aka Snoreyn, made a series of product renders. The 3D images are designed based on the already available S21 and S20 FE and are cast in a matching Samsung style.
With the Galaxy S21 FE, Samsung will want to appeal to successful youngsters. That is why we have opted for four stylish colors with a light color palette; gray, blue, purple and green. The previous model appeared in no less than 6 sparkling colors, so you can assume that at least several color options will be offered.
Of course, the new Fan Edition is also made dust and waterproof (IP68), as you would expect from a high-end phone. Furthermore, the SIM compartment will most likely be moved to the bottom of the device, as is the case with the other S21 models. Audio enthusiasts will unfortunately have to do without a 3.5mm headphone jack.
What is immediately noticeable about the Samsung S21 FE, designed by Giuseppe, is the camera system. The three available S21 models are characterized by a specially designed camera, where the camera is merged with the frame on the side and top of the device. To make the Fan Edition cheaper, we decided not to implement this design twist in the S21 FE.
The design of the triple camera is comparable to that of the S20 FE. We have chosen to keep the color of the camera module the same as that of the housing. Last year, the camera island got a dark color scheme with a harder contrast, regardless of which color variant you chose.
In terms of camera specifications, we do not expect any major differences compared to last year. After all, the camera of the S21 and S20 is also largely identical to each other. The FE model was equipped with a 32MP selfie camera. The triple rear camera consists of a 12 megapixel wide angle and ultra wide angle camera and an 8 megapixel telecamera with 3x Hybrid zoom and 30X Space Zoom. The S20 FE can record videos in 4K resolution and played back in 8K.
The S21 FE will probably have the same camera configuration as the S20 FE. Additional functions are made possible by the renewed Android 11 OS, in combination with the One UI 3.1 interface. Think of the new features such as Object Eraser and Multi Mic recording, as well as an improved Single Take function and touch autofocus.
Expected technical specifications
The screen sizes of the S21 models have remained the same as last year. The S21 is the smallest with its 6.2 ” display, followed by the S21 Plus with its 6.7” display. The S21 FE will probably feature a 6.5 ”Full HD+ display again – meaning it will be positioned between the base and Plus model in terms of size.
The screen will most likely support the high 120 Hertz refresh rate, but HDR support will likely be lacking. Logically, a punch-hole camera system will again be chosen to accommodate the selfie camera.
Presumably the same Exynos 2100 will be used as with the other S21 models. However, less RAM will probably be built in, but two options may again be offered: 6GB and 8GB RAM. The storage capacity of 128GB / 256GB will probably be maintained.
It will be interesting to see whether the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE will have a memory card slot. With the other S21 models, Samsung has chosen to omit the microSD compartment, so that the options for expanding the memory are limited to cloud storage. Samsung may keep the microSD memory compartment with the Fan Edition, although it is just as likely that it will be left out for cost reasons.
Furthermore, it is in line with expectations that the S21 Fan Edition will also have an extra large battery. After all, this was also one of the strong features of the previous FE model. The S20 FE was equipped with the same size battery as the S20 Plus; 4500 mAh.
If Samsung continues this line, it would mean that the S21 FE will be equipped with a 4,800 mAh battery with support for 25W wired / 15W wireless charging. Since the FE has a slightly smaller screen than the Plus variant, it is likely that this model also delivers a slightly better battery life. The 4,800 mAh battery of the S21 Plus guarantees a battery life of more than 12 hours.
Probably the charger will not be included, the same goes for the earplugs. Samsung has already started this trend with the other S21 models. The official reason for this is that Samsung wants to counteract eWaste. By not supplying a charger / earplugs the environment can be saved.
Unfortunately, Samsung does not leave this decision to the consumer. If the environment is the main driver, why not offer the phone both with and without a charger for the same amount of money – as Xiaomi is doing with the Mi 11. At the end, many do want to purchase a fast charger which now needs to be packaged separately, be shipped separately etc. The environmental benefits will therefore be very limited.
How much will the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE cost?
The Samsung S20 FE 5G (128GB) carried a suggested retail price of € 750 last year, a 4G model was also released for € 650. The S21 models are cheaper than last year and, moreover, are only available with 5G. Most likely, the S21 FE will also be released exclusively as a 5G model, after all, 5G is the future and it will replace 4G in the coming years.
The basic model within the 2021 S-series is available for a starting price of € 850 (128GB). In six months’ time, the S21 will undoubtedly have dropped in price, making it plausible that the Galaxy S21 FE will also be marketed more cheaply than last year. This way, Samsung can prevent the Fan Edition from being even more expensive at launch than the basic model. You may be able to buy the new model for about € 650. By keeping the entry-level price the same as last year, but this time with 5G, the S-series will remain accessible to a wide audience.
For the already available S21 models, Samsung has chosen not to include a charger or earplugs in the sales package. This new trend, initiated by Apple last year, does not appear to have had a negative effect on sales numbers. It is therefore certainly not inconceivable that the new Galaxy S21 FE will also be delivered without a charger and earplugs.
Samsung will probably offer the Fan Edition in a range of standard colors. The S21 Plus and Ultra can also be purchased in various custom colors, which can only be ordered on request via the Samsung website. However, this option is not available for the base model, so it is unlikely that custom colors will be designed for the S21 FE either.
Nevertheless, different color variants will undoubtedly be made available. In addition, Samsung will undoubtedly announce a range of matching accessories, including phone cases made of a variety of materials such as silicone, fabric and leather.
The fourth model in the S-series will probably be announced around September, before then we first expect a new Galaxy Note smartphone. In the coming months, more details will undoubtedly be known about the technical specifications and design of the new Samsung Galaxy S21 FE.
Note to editors : The product images in this publication are created by in-house graphic designer Giuseppe Spinelli (aka Snoreyn). The presented concept renders are for illustrative purposes only. The images are copyright protected. Feel free to use the pictures on your own website, please be so respectful to include a source link into your publication.
(Pocket-lint) – For most people, buying the latest flagship usually means buying an iPhone or buying a Samsung Galaxy. But, there are some equally compelling powerful phones from other brands on the market too. Two of those are the latest from Chinese brands, Xiaomi and OnePlus. Those are – of course – the Mi 11 and the 8T.
Look down the spec sheet numbers and you might just conclude an easy win for the Xiaomi. But as many of us well know: numbers on spec sheets don’t tell the whole story, and there’s price to consider. Xiaomi’s premium model is more expensive. So which should you buy?
One thing that can be said about Xiaomi’s design is that the manufacturer has pushed the envelope when it comes to making its phone at least look different to others on the market. That triple layer camera housing with the contrasting ring and black pill-shaped under layer makes it instantly unique against the OnePlus, with its relatively standard rectangle housing.
In the hand, they don’t feel all that different though. Both feature a similar curved glass back, but the texture between the two specific models in the video above is different. Xiaomi’s frosted glass is softer to the touch, although it is ever so slightly longer, wider and heavier than the OnePlus, there’s not a lot in it, not enough to make a huge difference on a daily basis.
Turn them over to the front and you’ll notice a few more differences. Primarily Xiaomi’s curved glass on the edges. OnePlus went for a completely flat display, with only subtle curving at the bezel, which is similarly slim on both devices.
Saying that, looking closely you’ll notice that Xiaomi’s bezels are skinnier and that the punch-hole camera takes up a little less space in the panel.
While curved screens are technically more advanced than flat ones, Xiaomi’s implementation does mean it suffers from accidental touches.
Holding the phone in landscape we often found ourselves struggling to get deliberate touches to register as an unbeknown to us part of our palm was touching the edge of the screen.
Both phones support dual SIM setups, and neither phone has a microSD card tray, so you get the storage in the phone and that’s it. Which, in both cases is generous. You’ll get either 128GB or 256GB.
Display
Xiaomi: 6.81-inch 20:9 ratio AMOLED display
OnePlus: 6.55-inch 20:9 ratio AMOLED display
Xiaomi: QHD+ (3200 x 1400) resolution – 515ppi
OnePlus: FHD+ (2400 x 1080) resolution – 402ppi
Both: HRD10+ compatible and maximum 120Hz refresh rate
Look at the display specs and there’s surely one winner here? Well.. not quite. Xiaomi’s is the more advanced, technically, and has a sharper maximum resolution. That pushes it to more than 500 pixels per inch, compared to the 400 pixels per inch on the OnePlus. It is QHD over FHD after all.
That means on finer details when you look closely, the Xiaomi does look crisper. Despite similar peak brightnesses however, the OnePlus screen does seem a little brighter and more vivid with both pushed to maximum brightness.
The two phones offer plenty of calibration tools though, so you should be able to get them looking the way you want.
There’s really not a huge amount in it and – while Xiaomi’s is technically better overall – we’d be perfectly happy to game and watch movies and tv shows on either display. In fact, sometimes the flatter display is preferable. If only because none of your images are curved around an edge.
Both offer super smooth 120Hz refresh rates, so you’ll get smooth, sharp animation whatever you’re doing. Providing the content is optimised to run at those speeds.
Software
Xiaomi: MIUI 12 – based on Android 11
OnePlus: Oxygen OS 11 – based on Android 11
When it comes to software, we have to say OxygenOS 11 is a more reliable and less intrusive version of Android. Both are similarly fluid and fast with similar features like always on display when your phone is in standby.
However, Xiaomi has this habit of double-checking your Play Store apps are safe before installing, which can be a pain if you’re downloading apps in the background while doing something else. A popup screen takes over, interrupting whatever you’re doing.
More obtrusive however is that all apps are pushed to reserve battery mode by default, meaning unless you go into settings and give them unreserved access, you’ll miss notifications. If you don’t tinker in settings to allow them permanent ability to run, you have to physically open the apps to check if you have messages and updates.
Similarly, OnePlus seems a little more suited to one-handed use with its default apps at least, bringing controls down to a more thumb-able level.
Performance and battery
Xiaomi: Snapdragon 888 processor
OnePlus: Snapdragon 865 processor
Both: 5G support
Xiaomi: 8GB/128GB, 8GB/256GB and 12GB/256GB RAM/storage options
OnePlus: 8GB/128GB and 12GB/256GB RAM/storage options
Xiaomi: 4600mAh – 55W wired and 50W wireless charging
OnePlus: 4500mAh – 65W wired Warp Charge
With performance there’s not a huge amount to say, except that both phones are really quick and able to run the most demanding games and apps without a worry.
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Xiaomi has the upper hand, since it’s using Qualcomm’s latest 888 processor, but with similar memory and RAM levels and speed, you likely won’t notice a huge amount of difference on a daily basis. Run a benchmark and you probably will, but you’ll never have to worry about demanding games with either phone.
Similarly, battery life will comfortably get even the most demanding users through a full day. You get similar battery capacities – it’s 4,500 vs 4600 mAh – on the two phones, although, OnePlus is the smaller of the two. Still, with its lower resolution display, it doesn’t seem to use it up quite as quickly when doing visually intensive activities. So with similar screen time, the OnePlus lasts a little longer.
When it comes to fast charging, OnePlus wins this one with its 65W warp charge that can completely refill the battery in under 40 minutes.
Still, Xiaomi’s no slouch and not only can it do a full charge in 45 minutes, it has fast 50W wireless charging too, provided you get Xiaomi’s bespoke compatible wireless charger. OnePlus features no wireless charging.
Cameras
Xiaomi: triple camera system
108MP f/1.9 wide main camera w/OIS
13MP f/2.4 ultra-wide
5MP f/2.4 macro
OnePlus: quad camera system
48MP f/1.7 wide main camera w/OIS
16MP F/2.2 ultra-wide
5MP f/2.4 macro
2MP depth
Both: 4K up to 60fps
Xiaomi: 8K up to 30fps
Xiaomi: 20MP 1080p selfie camera
OnePlus: 16MP 1080p selfie camera
While resolution and sensor sizes are different, the makeup of the two camera systems are similar. There’s a primary lens alongside the ultra-wide and macro lenses. OnePlus also has a depth sensor, which is essentially useless on its own. It’s just for extra data.
Now, neither phone has a telephoto lens, but both will let you zoom further using a digital zoom. Xiaomi’s lets you go pretty far too, but once you push either over the 5x zoom mark the results can pretty ropy.
The one thing we did notice was that – while both take sharp, vivid pictures in daylight – the Xiaomi’s were consistently darker and more contrast-heavy. Sometimes that made them appear too dark and crushed, with the OnePlus looking more life-like and natural. Other times, the OnePlus looked comparitively washed out.
As for macros – it’s tricky getting a sharp in-focus shot with the Xiaomi, but it can take fantastic looking macros if you get up close. Xiaomi’s tends to magify the macros a lot more, but more importantly, the macro shot on the Mi 11 consistently had a much nicer and smoother background blur. OnePlus was noisy and grainy and just looked harsh a lot of the time.
As for night time, both phones have a night mode you can use on the primary and ultra wide cameras, but the ultra-wides are nowhere near as effective at drawing in light on either camera.
Results were a little inconsistent, with the OnePlus often struggling to focus and evening out the minor hand shake. But when it did, it often delivered better colour, dynamic range and detail than the Xiaomi. However, the Mi 11 was more often better at focussing and producing the sharper image when the light levels got particularly low, even if the colours are a little cooler and washed out.
As for selfies, the Xiaomi seemed generally softer and a little less natural looking than the OnePlus in both daylight and at night using the screen as a flash.
Pricing and availability
Xiaomi: Pricing around €750/£750
OnePlus: Pricing from €549/£549
The interesting part of this comparison is looking at pricing. Xiaomi’s latest flagship – due to its higher spec in a few places – means you pay more for it. In fact, around £200/€200 in some places. Even the higher spec 12GB/256GB OnePlus model is cheaper than Xiaomi’s.
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Xiaomi’s phone is brand new too, so you may struggle to find it as easily available in a lot of markets. OnePlus’ latest flagship has been on the market for a few months already and can be found direct through OnePlus or through partner carriers in a lot of countries. Or even through Amazon.
Conclusion
All in all, Xiaomi may have some features better than the OnePlus. The display for one stands out but – in a lot of ways that matter – the OnePlus more than matches it. The less intrusive software experience for one is a reason to choose it, as is saving money.
Still, the Mi 11 is a very capable flagship packed with potential. There’s no doubt it has a better display and camera system and maybe – just maybe – the software experience will improve when MIUI 12.5 arrives.
The Samsung Galaxy Chromebook 2 is beautiful, bold, and totally functional.
Samsung’s flagship Chromebook is less expensive and better than before
I’ll spare you the suspense: the battery life is good.
It’s not incredible. The Samsung Galaxy Chromebook 2 is far from the longest-lasting Chromebook I’ve ever tested. But after last year’s Samsung Galaxy Chromebook couldn’t even make it five hours on a charge, my expectations were on the floor. I performed my first battery test on this year’s sequel in an optimistic but nervous state. Finally, several months after the Chromebook 2 was announced, I’m breathing a sigh of relief. To repeat: the battery life is not a disaster, folks. The battery life is fine.
That’s sort of the theme of this machine. There are a couple of standout features, and the rest of it is fine. And I’m very happy with that.
Samsung’s Galaxy Chromebook, released almost a year ago, was a high-risk, high-reward play. There were a number of fantastic features, some of which (the OLED screen, the built-in S Pen, the 0.38-inch-thick chassis) were so fancy it was shocking to see them on a Chromebook. But two of its features were significant problems: the $999 price tag (putting the device in competition with the likes of the MacBook Air), and the battery life.
The Samsung Galaxy Chromebook 2 (which isn’t so much a sequel to the Galaxy Chromebook as it is a more affordable alternative) lacks some of the Galaxy Chromebook’s most ambitious features. The stylus, the fingerprint sensor, and the OLED panel have all disappeared. But in their place are all-day battery life and a sub-$700 price tag. In doing so, it makes its case not as a groundbreaking Chromebook of the future, but as a device you might actually want to buy today.
With colors like these, who needs OLED?
From afar, the Galaxy Chromebook 2 looks fairly similar to the Galaxy Chromebook. That’s a compliment — the Galaxy Chromebook’s striking design was one of its biggest selling points. The Chromebook 2 comes in a bold “fiesta red” color, which is a cross between bright red and bright orange. You certainly don’t see Chromebooks of this hue every day, and it’ll turn heads if you’re sitting in public. (You can also buy this in “mercury gray” if you’re boring.)
Pick the thing up, and you’ll start to see where Samsung has cut some corners. It’s thicker and heavier than its predecessor, at 0.55 inches thick and 2.71 pounds, respectively. It’s still plenty light, though it’s a bit hefty to hold as a tablet for long periods. With square edges, it also has a blockier vibe, and the finish feels a bit plasticky and is quite a fingerprint magnet (though the prints are easy to wipe off if you have a cloth on hand).
None of these changes are massive knocks against the Galaxy Chromebook 2, though, especially at this price point. It still looks quite nice, and the aluminum chassis is sturdy. There’s little to no flex in the display or keyboard, and while I saw a bit of screen wobble while typing and using the touchscreen, it wasn’t too distracting. This is where the Chromebook 2 has an advantage over our current top pick, the Acer Chromebook Spin 713. That device is bulkier than Samsung’s, quite bland in its design, and has a bit more flex in its keyboard and screen.
The really big chassis downgrade Samsung has made is in the display. The Galaxy Chromebook has a 4K OLED panel that’s absolutely beautiful but, to be honest, not necessary for the majority of people. Instead, the Chromebook 2 is the first Chromebook ever to feature a QLED panel. QLED panels aren’t OLED, despite the name similarity; they’re LED-backlit LCD screens that use Samsung’s quantum-dot technology.
But OLED or not OLED, this is still one of the best displays I’ve ever seen on a Chromebook. It’s gorgeous. Colors were vibrant and accurate, with solid contrast and fine details. This machine is great to watch videos on. It is glossy and kicks back some glare but nothing that was too distracting. The other disappointment is that it’s 16:9 (1920 x 1080 resolution). The Chromebook Spin 713 also has a very nice panel at the roomier 3:2 aspect ratio. But on the whole, the Chromebook 2 looks great. Its speakers sound quite good as well, making for a solid entertainment device all around.
I’ll admit that the keyboard took some getting used to. It’s flatter than some of the best Chromebook keyboards I’ve used, including that of Google’s Pixelbook Go. But it does have a nice key texture with a click that’s satisfying but not too loud. I was enjoying it after a few days into my testing. In terms of ports, you get two USB-C ports (one on each side — bonus points for convenient charging!), a microSD slot, and a headphone jack. The one thing I’d wish for is a USB-A, but I know I’m fighting a losing battle there.
As I noted before, the Chromebook 2 is missing some of the snazzier features you’ll see on more expensive devices (including the Galaxy Chromebook). The most significant is that there’s no biometric authentication on this; it’s password-only, and I do miss the convenience of the fingerprint reader on its predecessor. (If you’re super anti-password, you could, technically, pair the Chromebook to an Android phone and unlock it with that phone’s biometrics.)
Another thing you don’t get is a bundled stylus. The Galaxy Chromebook shipped with a nice pen, which lived in a tiny garage in the chassis. The Chromebook 2 is compatible with USI pens, but you’ll have to store them separately. And there’s no camera on the keyboard deck, something a number of recent Chromebooks have included to allow for easy front-facing photos while in tablet mode.
But while those features are all nice bonuses, they likely won’t impact the average user’s experience too much. And at the $549 to $699 price points, I’m not enraged by their absence.
Pretty chassis with no stylus garage in sight.
You can buy the Galaxy Chromebook 2 with one of two processors: the starting $549.99 configuration includes an Intel Celeron 5205U with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage, and the $699.99 model (which I received) includes a Core i3-10110U, 8GB of RAM, and 128GB of storage.
In my first hands-on with this device, I was hesitant about the base configuration. Despite the appealing price, a Celeron with 4GB of RAM is quite an entry-level system, and I generally wouldn’t recommend it for anyone who needs their device to do school or office work. However, I now think there’s one compelling use case for the Celeron model: a Netflix machine. If you don’t plan on using the Galaxy Chromebook 2 as a primary driver but want to take advantage of the QLED screen for entertainment, you can probably get away with the $549 price. (Everyone else should probably spring for the Core i3.)
The Core i3 is a step down from the Core i5, the processor that powered the Galaxy Chromebook. But like an OLED screen, that processor is overkill for many Chrome OS tasks. As I used the Chromebook 2 to send emails, fiddle with spreadsheets, write in Google Docs, stream Spotify, and do other standard work, I didn’t notice any performance issues. I also never felt any heat in the keyboard, the touchpad, or the bottom of the deck. (The Galaxy Chromebook 2 has a fan, which some thin Chromebooks don’t.)
Battery life, as mentioned, is quite acceptable. I averaged 7 hours and 21 minutes of continuous work at 50 percent brightness, sometimes using a mix of Chrome and Android apps and sometimes sticking mostly to Chrome. The Chromebook 2 does take a bit of time to charge, though. It only juiced up to 54 percent in an hour.
Where the system lagged was in tasks that leverage the internal storage. The Galaxy Chromebook 2 has eMMC storage, which is considerably slower than the SSD you’ll find in most laptops. The process of getting a batch of around 100 photos from a camera into Adobe Lightroom just dragged. It took so long that, several times, I considered aborting the mission and hopping over to my MacBook. I ran AndroBench to confirm that the storage was the issue, and the results were… not great. To be clear, eMMC isn’t a huge knock against a Chromebook at this price, but it is a spec I’d stay away from if you’ll need to do anything with photos or other tasks that involve writing files to the drive.
Great for lighter loads, meh for more.
Finally, I think this is my first Chromebook testing period where I haven’t run into any big hiccups with Chrome OS. The operating system itself has been smooth for a while, but I’ve run into all kinds of issues with Android apps (one of the OS’s big selling points) in the past. No major problems here, though: nothing crashed, nothing bricked the device, nothing randomly changed size, nothing disappeared during tablet-mode transitions. That’s a welcome relief.
Your experience with Android apps on the Galaxy Chromebook 2 will vary widely based on the app. I generally used them to keep distractions like Twitter separate from my browser where I was working. Some popular services, such as Podcast Addict and 1Weather, don’t have great browser equivalents, so it’s handy to be able to load those apps through Chrome OS. But on net, I found that the apps I used for stuff every day — Slack, Messenger, Google Docs, Reddit, Twitter, Gmail — were either equivalent to or worse than their browser counterparts. The Android interfaces were generally slower to update and still had some kinks to work out. (You can’t click and drag to highlight in Docs, for example.) Slack also wouldn’t let me clear my status icon and occasionally sent me multiple pings for the same message. And Facebook Messenger occasionally refused to minimize, and also sent me huge dumps of notifications each morning from conversations I’d had on my phone the previous night. If you run into issues with Android apps, you can use the web app versions, which mostly work great.
In comparing the Chromebook 2 to the market, the most prominent competitor that comes to mind is Google’s Pixelbook Go. It offers similar benefits (an attractive design, decent battery life, a portable build) with similar caveats (no biometric authentication, no built-in stylus). But as of this writing, the $649 Pixelbook Go configuration comes with only 64GB of storage and an older Core m3 chip. So while there are reasons certain folks might prefer Google’s device (it has a better keyboard, it’s thinner and lighter), I think the $699 Galaxy Chromebook 2 is the better value among the two. For just $50 more, you get a better processor, more storage and RAM, a brilliant color, a convertible build, and a spectacular screen.
A $549 Chromebook that looks like a thousand bucks.
A more difficult comparison is the convertible Chromebook Spin 713. For $70 less, you can get that system with a Core i5, an NVMe SSD, a better port selection that includes USB-A and HDMI, and a 3:2 screen that’s also excellent. On the whole, Acer’s device still offers better value for the average person. That said, there’s a valid reason some people may want to splurge on the Galaxy: looks. The Spin 713, like a number of Chromebooks that are great on the inside, looks like something that you’d see on a middle school laptop cart. Pared-down as it is, the Galaxy Chromebook 2 is still a Samsung device: it asks a premium for hardware that’s beautiful to look at and built to last.
Put the Galaxy Chromebook 2 next to the Galaxy Chromebook, and the former has clearly cut some corners. But it’s cut the right corners. In some ways, it’s the device I’d hoped the Galaxy Chromebook would be: beautiful, bold, and totally functional as well. It’s exchanged a bit of panache for a lot of simplicity. It’s, as I said in my hands-on, “a regular-ass Chromebook.” And I couldn’t be happier with it.
One of the world’s most popular and innovative computers officially launched on February 29, 2012. Nine years and 38 million units sold later, the Raspberry Pi powers a huge community of makers, students and businesses. What started as a small project, meant to increase applications for Cambridge University’s computer science program has become a global movement.
Every serious tech enthusiast should own at least one Raspberry Pi or, if you’re like me, 30 Raspberry Pis. You can use one as a lightweight PC, a retro arcade machine or to power a variety of projects, from home security cameras to tic-tac-toe-playing robots, self-driving trash cans or streaming media servers.
In honor of the Raspberry Pi’s ninth birthday, here are 9 key facts about it.
1. Raspberry Pi’s original target was just 1,000 units.
The Raspberry Pi was originally developed to solve a very limited problem: the decreasing number of people applying to study computer science at Cambridge University. The number of applications had dropped from 600 to 250 per year and Eben Upton, who was the director of studies and responsible for admission, became concerned that not enough kids were taking an interest in computers. By providing a low-cost, hackable computer to just a few kids in the UK, Upton intended to get more and better students for his program.
“The stuff we were designing, the business model side, they were all scaled around the idea that if you could get 1,000 units built and into the hands of the right 1,000 kids [you’d solve the problem],” he told us in 2019.
After interest in the project swelled, Upton and his team decided that they needed to make a lot more than 1,000 units. And the target audience expanded from U.K. children to people of all ages in all countries.
2. There have been at least 21 Different Models of Raspberry Pi.
(Image credit: Shutterstock)
Since its launch in 2012, the Raspberry Pi Foundation has released 20 additional models, 52 if you count all four RAM capacities of the Raspberry Pi 4 B and all 32 variants of the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 (which comes in different RAM and storage capacities and with or without Wi-Fi).
The original Raspberry Pi, the Model B had just 256MB of RAM and a single-core, 700 MHz processor. The current mainstream model, the Pi 4 B, has up to 8GB of RAM, a quad-core 1.5-GHz CPU and USB 3.0 ports.
Model
Year Released
CPU
RAM
Raspberry Pi 1 B
2012
700 MHz Broadcom BCM2835 (1 core)
256MB
Raspberry Pi 1 A
2013
700 MHz Broadcom BCM2835 (1 core)
256MB
Raspberry Pi 1 A+
2014
700 MHz Broadcom BCM2835 (1 core)
512MB
Raspberry Pi 1 B+
2014
700 MHz Broadcom BCM2835 (1 core)
512MB
Compute Module 1
2014
700 MHz Broadcom BCM2835 (1 core)
512MB
Raspberry Pi 2 B
2015
900 MHz Broadcom BCM2836 (4 cores)
1GB
Raspberry Pi Zero 1.2
2015
1 GHz Broadcom BCM2835 (1 core)
512MB
Raspberry Pi 2 B v1.2
2016
1 GHz Broadcom BCM2835 (1 core)
512MB
Raspberry Pi 3 B
2016
1.2 GHz Broadcom BCM2837 (4 cores)
1GB
Raspberry Pi Zero 1.3
2016
1 GHz Broadcom BCM2835 (1 core)
512MB
Raspberry Pi Zero W
2017
1 GHz Broadcom BCM2835 (1 core)
512MB
Compute Module 3
2017
1.2-GHz Broadcom BCM2837 (4 cores)
1GB
Compute Module 3 Lite
2017
1.2-GHz Broadcom BCM2837 (4 cores)
1GB
Raspberry Pi 3 B+
2018
1.2-GHz Broadcom BCM2837 (4 cores)
1GB
Compute Module 3+
2019
1.2-GHz Broadcom BCM2837B0 (4 cores)
1GB
Compute Module 3+ Lite
2019
1.2-GHz Broadcom BCM2837B0 (4 cores)
1GB
Raspberry Pi 4 B
2019
1.5-GHz Broadcom BCM2711
1 / 2 / 4 / 8GB (2020)
Compute Module 4
2020
1.5-GHz Broadcom BCM2711
1 / 2 / 4 / 8GB
Raspberry Pi 400
2020
1.8-GHz Broadcom BCM2711
4GB
Raspberry Pi Pico
2021
133-MHz RP2040
264K
Launched in late 2020, the Raspberry Pi 400 is Raspberry Pi’s first standalone computer. Instead of a bare board, the Pi 400 is a keyboard with the equivalent of a Pi 4 inside, though the CPU runs at 1.8 rather than 1.5 GHz. It’s sold either by itself or in a kit with a mouse, power supply, cables and an official guide.
The Raspberry Pi Pico is a completely different type of Pi, a microcontroller board that’s more like an Arduino than a traditional Pi (more on that below).
3. Raspberry Pi Pico marks a new chapter in Pi history.
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
Released in January 2021, the Raspberry Pi Pico is the company’s first microcontroller and marks the debut of its first custom silicon, the RP2040 CPU. Where every prior Pi has been a full-fledged computer that boots into a, typically Linux, operating system, the $4 Pico falls into the same category as Arduino. The Pico is great for controlling motors, lights and sensors and runs a program as soon as you turn it on, without the need to boot up or the worry that you’ll lose data if you pull the plug without doing a safe shutdown.
The Pico has three built-in ADC (analog-to-digital converters), something that other Pis lack, which allow you to connect directly to analog devices such as joysticks, potentiometers and distance sensors. See our articles about Raspberry Pico vs Arduino and which Raspberry Pi is right for you for more detailed comparisons between the Pico, the Arduino and other Raspberry Pis.
The RP2040 chip which powers the Pico marks an even bigger evolution than the board itself. This 133-MHz, dual-core Cortex M0+ CPU is designed by the Raspberry Pi Foundation and licensed out to other vendors such as Pimoroni and Adafruit who are building an entire ecosystem of RP2040-powered microcontrollers themselves. Even Arduino is getting in on the act, releasing the Arduino Nano RP2040 Connect, which will have built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
4. The most popular Pi is . . .
(Image credit: Shutterstock)
The Raspberry Pi 3 B is the best-selling Pi model of all-time, with 13.2 million units sold. Of the various Raspberry Pi 4 B RAM capacities, the 4GB model accounts for approximately twice as many sales as the 8GB and 2GB SKUs.
The Pico has only been on the market for a few weeks, but already has sold 250,000 units with 750,000 on back order. 2020 was the top-selling year for Pi, with 7.1 million units sold.
5. The Pi has more than 20 operating systems.
Raspberry Pi OS, a customized version of Debian, is the official operating system for Raspberry Pi boards, but it’s not the only choice, by far. From Pi-friendly versions of Ubuntu and FreeBSD Linux to unofficial ports of Android and Chrome OS, there are a ton of different operating systems available. Some of the most interesting include:
LibreELEC: A lightweight OS that runs the Kodi open-source media software.
RISC OS: Designed for ARM chips, this unique OS promises faster speeds than Linux.
Chromium OS: Turn your Pi into a Chrome Box.
Windows 10: Yes, you can install Windows 10 on a Raspberry Pi 4 (with some hacks), but it’s so slow you probably won’t want to keep using it.
Lakka: Specially designed for retro gaming, this OS comes with a series of emulators pre-loaded.
6. There are two Raspberry Pis in space.
The International Space Station is home to two “Astro Pis,” which are specially modified Raspberry Pi B+ models that have been “space hardened” and equipped with the official Raspberry Pi Sense HATs . The European Space agency runs periodic contests where children submit code to be run on the devices.
Though the Pis are older models, they recently got a storage upgrade as the Astro Pi project sent 256GB microSD cards to the ISS to replace the 32GB cards they were using.
7. The Raspberry Pi Foundation wants products to live forever.
Even though the Raspberry Pi B+, Raspberry Pi 2, Raspberry Pi 3 B and other models are way out of date, the Raspberry Pi Foundation continues to actively manufacture and sell them. The organization hates to End-of-Life (EOL) products, because there are industrial clients who may still need them even if they are really old.
“EOLing product is death. We’ve EOLed [just] five products in our life,” Upton told us in 2019. He said that the only five products that Raspberry Pi discontinued include the Pi 1A and Pi 1B, because “the Pi 1A+ and B+ are a better implementation of that world.”
Even after the price of the Raspberry Pi 4 B (2GB) dropped to $35, the 1GB model remained available at the same price, because some customers may still want it as a drop-in replacement.
8. The price of Raspberry Pi has dropped, relative to inflation.
The original Raspberry Pi cost $35 in 2012 while the Raspberry Pi 4 B (2GB) costs the same price today. However, if you consider inflation, $35 from 2012 is actually equivalent to $39.88 today. For that same price, you get:
A 40x faster processor (700 MHz, single-core vs 1.5-GHz quad core)
8x the RAM (256GB vs 2GB)
Wi-Fi vs no-Wifi
Dual monitor output vs single HDMI out
USB 3.0 ports vs USB 2 only
If $35 still seems like a lot of money, there are cheaper Pi models. The Raspberry Pi Zero goes for just $5 while the Raspberry Pi Pico, a microcontroller board, goes for a mere $4.
9. There’s a Pi War every year.
Yes, you can compete with your Raspberry Pi. Pi Wars is an annual robotics competition where all of the gear must be built with your choice of Raspberry Pi. Teams at Pi Wars compete in challenges such as navigating obstacle courses, popping balloons and navigating a maze.
There are both human-driven and automated challenges. The next Pi Wars will take place in July 2021.
Samsung’s latest Chrome OS laptop, the Galaxy Chromebook 2, is now available for purchase at Best Buy. The Chromebook 2 was first announced at CES in January and features a new QLED display, 360-degree hinge, and a striking red paint job. It starts at $549.99 for a Celeron model and goes up to $699.99 for a Core i3 version, putting it at the higher end of Chromebooks.
That price is the most significant thing about the Chromebook 2 because it’s considerably less than the Galaxy Chromebook that debuted a year ago. The older Chromebook had an 4K OLED screen and came with a stylus — neither of which you’ll fine with the new model — but it also cost just under $1,000 when it came out. In our review, we found despite the gorgeous screen and striking paint job, the original Galaxy Chromebook didn’t justify its cost, particularly thanks to abysmal battery life.
Samsung Galaxy Chromebook 2
$550
Prices taken at time of publishing.
The Galaxy Chromebook 2 is Samsung’s flagship Chrome OS laptop for 2021. It has a new QLED screen, either Intel Celeron or Core i3 processors, and comes in a striking red paint job.
$550
at Best Buy
We’ve yet to put the new Chromebook 2 through its paces, but we did get to see the machine in person back in January and it certainly seems like it will be competent. The QLED screen isn’t quite up to the marks of the OLED panel, but you’d be hard-pressed to notice without putting them side-by-side, and the rest of the Chromebook 2’s fit and finish are appropriate for the price Samsung is asking. Importantly, it still comes in that amazing red color, as well. You might notice the extra weight — the Chromebook 2 is about half a pound heavier — but it still falls under three pounds total and should be easily portable.
We will have a full review of the Chromebook 2 in the near future, but if you don’t want to wait and grab one yourself, you might be able to find one in stock at your local Best Buy right now. Let’s just hope Samsung improved the battery life over last time.
A well-stocked, easy-to-navigate catalogue of new and original content that Disney fans are bound to enjoy
For
Huge, intuitive catalogue
4K, HDR10 and Dolby Atmos/Vision
Vast device support
Against
Poor 4K HDR discovery
Once upon a time, a man called Walt Disney founded Walt Disney Studios with his brother and became one of the best-known motion-picture animators in the world. Fast forward nearly 100 years, over 400 movies and more than 60 Academy Award wins and, thanks to the Disney Plus video streaming service, nearly every Disney title ever committed to celluloid is now available to stream in one place.
Disney Plus (Disney+) is a natural rival to the likes of Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV+, available in loads of countries – US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK and several European countries. It offers a rich catalogue of films and TV shows from Disney and its subsidiaries – Lucasfilm, Marvel, Pixar and National Geographic, as well as a slate of new Disney+ Originals. As of more recently, Disney Plus subscribers in Europe, Canada, New Zealand and the UK also have access to Star, a channel that offers “grown up” content from ABC and 20th Century Fox back-catalogues, plus originals that already live on US service Hulu (which Disney has a majority stake in).
Many titles are presented in the best video and audio technologies available today – 4K, HDR10, Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos (technologies also adopted by its rivals) – and Disney has really gone the distance where device support is concerned.
Less than a year after it launched, Disney has attracted around 95 million subscribers – not far off half of Netflix’s headcount at the time of writing. So should Disney Plus be part of your world or should you let it go? Heigh-ho, heigh-ho, it’s off to Disney’s service we go…
Disney Plus: price, films, shows and all the details
14 of the best Disney Plus movies and shows to watch right now
Price
Disney Plus launched in the States in November 2019, rolling out to other territories (including Europe and the UK) the following March. The monthly fee was £5.99 ($6.99, AU$8.99, €6.99), making it a very tempting proposition indeed.
But, partly in light of the arrival of Star in several markets, that price has now gone northwards. Since 23rd February 2021, the monthly cost of Disney Plus is £7.99 ($7.99, AU$11.99, €8.99). In the US, the Disney Plus, Hulu, and ESPN Plus bundle will also get a $1 increase to $13.99 per month. Subscribers who signed up to Disney Plus before that February date will pay the original monthly price up until August 2021, when it will change to the pricier one.
Note that an annual subscription works out cheaper – £79.90 ($70, AU$120, €89.90) – if you’re willing to pay that upfront sum.
Features
(Image credit: Disney)
Disney Plus’s catalogue comprises over 700 films and more than 400 TV series, from all-time classics to family favourites, including three of the four most profitable films ever made: Avatar, Avengers: Endgame and Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
One of the service’s biggest selling points is its slate of original shows, such as The Mandalorian, The World According To Jeff Goldblum, Clone Wars, The Imagineering Story and High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (yes, that is its real title). Disney seems willing to splash the cash, announcing it plans to spend $8bn to $9bn on Disney Plus content alone in fiscal 2024, by which it hopes to have attracted over 230 million subscribers.
That title-dropping expands to more than 30 films and 50 series from the Marvel universe, including Black Panther, Avengers: Endgame, Captain Marvel, Guardians Of The Galaxy and Marvel’s Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Disney Plus is the only place to see Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Captain Marvel and all future releases from both Lucasfilm and Marvel, and is the exclusive streaming hub for every Disney theatrical release from 2019 and beyond. And yes, the service also has over 600 episodes (30 seasons) of The Simpsons, too.
The catalogue features plenty of 4K HDR content (some originally mastered, some remastered), which isn’t surprising considering Disney has been in the Ultra HD Blu-ray game for three years. When we first reviewed the service upon launch, we counted just over 100 titles in 4K HDR – including Frozen, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, The Lion King (2019), Aladdin (2019), Toy Story 4, Moana and all five of Disney’s new Original movies. But thanks in part to the Star expansion, that figure has grown considerably.
In Europe, Canada, New Zealand and the UK, Star has matured the service offering, appealing more to adults and sensibly introducing parent controls (which means parents can set limits on access for specific profiles based on content age ratings and introduce PIN locks on profiles with access to mature content). Star arrived in February 2021 as a 270-film, 75-show proposition, including four originals and plans for future premieres. Highlights include – deep breath – Modern Family, The X-Files, Deadpool 2, The Grand Budapest Hotel, The Favourite, 24, Lost, Grey’s Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, Prison Break, Scrubs,The Killing, How I Met Your Mother and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
(Image credit: Disney)
4K support isn’t limited to just new titles, either. Toy Story is in 4K HDR, as are the original Beauty And The Beast and The Lion King. Classics such as Alice In Wonderland, Pinocchio, Cinderella, The Jungle Book and Sleeping Beauty are presented in Full HD with 5.1 audio.
The fact you can download these titles in full 4K onto a compatible tablet or smartphone is arguably one of the best-value features of Disney+, considering the cost of individual 4K movies to rent or buy.
Downloads are unlimited, don’t expire, and can be downloaded on up to 10 devices. The same treatment isn’t so abundant with TV shows, with 4K HDR material limited to a handful of new Disney Originals series.
The service not only has plenty of content in 5.1 audio, it also supports Dolby Atmos, which was probably to be expected, given Disney’s commitment to the – the very first theatrical Atmos release was Disney’s Brave, after all.
Atmos content on Disney Plus spans over 100 titles – all movies, shorts and the odd Disney Original – including The Pirates Of The Caribbean franchise, The Mandalorian, WALL-E, Thor: Ragnarok, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol 2, Big Hero 6 and the Captain Americas. Those same titles are also available in Dolby Vision HDR.
Amazon Prime Video vs Netflix – which is better?
Ease of use
(Image credit: Disney)
Disney Plus’s interface is similar to Netflix’s – and just as easy to use. It hasn’t tried to reinvent the wheel with its layout, and the result is a service most people will feel comfortable navigating.
A banner of featured content heads up the home page, with titles grouped into categories such as ‘Recommended for You’, ‘Originals’, ‘Musicals’ and ‘Mickey Mouse Through The Years’. There is also a ‘Nostalgic Movies’ tab for those who wish to revisit Bedknobs And Broomsticks, Pete’s Dragon and Herbie Goes Bananas.
Above these categories – sandwiched between the featured content banner and title categories – are five blocks for Disney, National Geographic, Marvel, Star Wars and Pixar (or six in those regions that also have Star). These allow subscribers to dive right into the offerings of each of those specific Disney-owned brands.
(Image credit: Disney)
Disney Plus’s ‘Collections’ group similar content together – for example, films within the Spiderman universe or films featuring princesses. In the ‘Winnie the Pooh Collection’ you’ll find everything from The New Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh TV series (1988-1991) to 2001’s The Tigger Movie and the recent Christopher Robin feature.
A pull-out sidebar lets you view only movies, only TV series or Disney Originals, search for specific content using the search bar, and access your watchlist (titles you’ve pinned for easy access at a later date). Up to seven profiles for each family member can be made on one account too.
A nice touch is that each user can pick a character for their profile, which can be made child-friendly with bolder icons, and a more colourful, less dense interface populated with more kids’ content.
We previewed a Netherlands version of Disney Plus (launched in November 2019) prior to the European launch, and noted how useful the ‘Ultra HD and HDR’ category was for finding and accessing such content. Sadly, that category appears to be missing in the UK version.
A search for ‘4K’ doesn’t bring up any results, so it appears impossible to see what is available in 4K without going into the description for each individual title.
Logos for 4K, HDR (HDR10 or Dolby Vision) and Dolby Atmos are neatly flagged within the synopsis, alongside those for age appropriateness, year of release, genre, season count and audio format. But you will only see these badges if your device supports the technology.
Disney Plus streaming service: everything you need to know
Performance
(Image credit: Disney)
Unsurprisingly, Disney Plus has launched with exhaustive hardware support.
The service works across web browsers; iOS (iOS 11.0 and later) and Android (OS 5.0 Lollipop and later) phones and tablets; Google Chromecast, including devices with Chromecast built-in, such as select Vizio Smart TVs; Apple TV (4th gen or later) and Apple TV 4K (running tvOS 11.0 and later) streamers; Xbox One and PlayStation 4 consoles; Samsung (2016 and later), LG (2016 and later) and Android-based Sony and Sharp TVs; a wide range of Roku streaming players; Android TV set-top boxes such as Nvidia Shield TV and Mi Box; all of Amazon’s Fire TV streamers, Fire TV Edition smart TVs, and Fire Tablets (Fire OS 5.0 and later); and Sky Q.
Disney Plus’s catalogue can be streamed from an iOS device over AirPlay to Apple TV (including the 3rd- and 4th-generation boxes) as well as any TV compatible with AirPlay 2.
A note on Sky Q support, though: while you might reasonably expect Sky Q to support 4K streaming on Disney Plus, as it does on Netflix, sadly the service’s 4K titles appear only playable in HD and 5.1 audio. We hope Sky rights this in the near future.
Up to four screens can stream simultaneously on one account, which is on a par with Netflix’s pricier Premium tier and better than Apple TV+’s and Amazon Prime Video’s three-screen limit.
Here’s how to watch Disney Plus on Sky Q
Disney reduced the service’s streaming bandwidth by “at least 25 per cent” in order to ease pressure on internet service providers during the current coronavirus pandemic. Disney said: “We have instituted measures to lower bandwidth utilization, and in some circumstances streaming content in HD and UHD formats, including Dolby Atmos audio, will be limited or unavailable.”
With this in mind, our final judgment of Disney Plus’ picture quality compared to that of its rivals, which have also committed to lowering bandwidth, will be better reached at a later date. But we’re happy to report, for those considering subscribing to the service straight away, that the material is perfectly watchable right now.
We find ourselves drawn to the technically wonderful The Lion King live-action remake (a 4K HDR10 title) and are met with appropriately lush landscapes, tangible textures of lion fur, baboon skin and bird feathers, and a clean, crisp picture.
In the much darker opening scene of The Mandalorian (a 4K, HDR10 title) that crispness reveals itself again, complete with punch to lights and shine off helmets. There is enough gleam and sharpness to do justice to the series’ high production values.
Even older titles that have been remastered in Full HD, such as Pete’s Dragon (1977) and The Aristocrats (1970) display a surprising amount of clarity, coherence and richness on our 55in Samsung QLED TV.
(Image credit: Disney)
Verdict
Despite the understandable restrictions around streaming quality, we are very impressed with the Disney Plus streaming service.
As you’d expect from one that’s already been up and running for several months in some countries, this is a polished and personal streaming service that fans of Disney’s output are bound to enjoy.
With its rich, appealing catalogue, vast picture and audio quality support, intuitive usability and reasonable subscription price, Disney Plus is hoping to establish itself as a serious rival to the likes of Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV+.
It isn’t perfect, though – the UK service currently overlooks the importance of 4K HDR and Dolby Atmos content discovery – and it is restricted to Disney content, of course, meaning that, for many, it is likely to be a second subscription alongside a more general streaming service.
But with quality Disney Originals and plenty of theatrical releases, Disney Plus seems to have found its own particular niche and be living happily ever after in the competitive streaming world.
(Image credit: LG / Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Sony)
While gaming formats such as 4K@120Hz, VRR and ALLM are now getting plenty of attention, one that you may not have heard of is HGiG.
That might partly be because HGiG isn’t really a format (at least not yet), but rather a set of fairly loose guidelines designed to make HDR gaming better and more consistent. Nevertheless, a number of consoles, TVs and games now boast HGiG integration, and it works really well.
So, what is HGiG? How does it work? And how do you get it?
What is HGiG?
‘HGiG’ stands for ‘HDR Gaming Interest Group’. As the name suggests, rather than a format or spec, it’s a consortium of companies that have come together in order to create guidelines and best practices for the implementation of HDR in gaming. Console-makers Microsoft and Sony instigated the creation of HGiG, and members include TV manufacturers such as LG, Samsung and Panasonic, and game developers and publishers such as Activision, EA, Rockstar and Ubisoft.
Broadly speaking, the idea is to create a level of understanding between your TV, console and the game you’re playing so that HDR is displayed as the game creator intended. Because HDR plays a big part in the overall presentation of a game, getting that right gets you much closer to a properly authentic experience.
How does HGiG work?
Essentially, HGiG is all about tone mapping. Every TV has limitations in terms of contrast and colours, and tone mapping is the technique used to tailor content to the limitations of a specific TV model. The problem is that each TV manufacturer implements tone mapping in a different way, and it can often work against the tone mapping that’s being employed at the source, resulting in a picture that doesn’t look right and is missing important details.
The PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S and Xbox Series X all have HDR calibration menus. Go through the fairly straightforward process contained within and you’re essentially teaching the console the upper and lower contrast limitations of you TV. The problem arises when your TV then attempts to tone map the already tone mapped image. The aim of HGiG is to prevent this so that once your console has learned the parameters of your TV, it outputs all games accordingly.
Is HGiG any good?
In short, yes. LG was the first brand to add an HGiG setting, and it’s absolutely worth using. When playing an HDR game and with the HDR Game preset selected, the Dynamic Tone Mapping setting will have three available options: On, Off and HGiG. Let’s go through these one by one.
Switching Dynamic Tone Mapping on will tell the TV to analyse constantly the picture and boost it as it sees fit. Typically, it results in a really bright and punchy picture, but it also tends to flatten and blur bright elements, over-exposing them and removing detail. The black level tends to be lifted, too, which can reveal more detail but often also washes out the image.
Switching Dynamic Tone Mapping off disables only this on-the-fly element of the processing. The TV is still tone mapping the already tone-mapped image, but it’s doing so in a fixed manner. If you go through your console’s HDR calibration with Dynamic Tone Mapping switched off, you’ll actually end up telling the console to output images at a much higher brightness than the TV can really handle. In game, the TV will then bring bright highlights back down to within its limits, crushing bright detail and shading in the process.
The image below, supplied by Microsoft and Sony Interactive Entertainment, illustrates the issue of incorrect tone mapping in regards to the brightest part of the picture. Notice how the end of the tunnel is more or less flat white, revealing very little of what’s ahead.
(Image credit: Microsoft / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Switch Dynamic Tone Mapping to HGiG, though, and the TV essentially stops doing its own tone mapping. Instead, the image will be output based on the parameters set in the console’s HDR calibration process.
It’s worth pointing out that when switching between these three options, HGiG might look comparatively dark but, generally speaking, it’s also more accurate and closer to the creator’s intent, with the correct amount of detail and shading at the bright and dark extremes.
The second image from Microsoft and Sony illustrates the improvements to the brightest parts of the picture when tone mapping is implemented correctly. Now you can see that there’s a corner at the exit of the tunnel.
(Image credit: Microsoft / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
What’s more, while the image might look less bright than when either of the other two options is selected, the deeper, correctly set black point provides a great base from which bright highlights can punchily emerge. In other words, overall contrast is at least as good, and the picture tends to be more luscious and solid, too.
As mentioned, LG was the first brand to add an HGiG setting to its TVs. If you have an OLED from 2019 (such as the C9) or from 2020 (the CX, for example), you’ll find it by selecting the HDR Game preset, opening the Advanced Controls picture menu, and clicking on Dynamic Tone Mapping. You’ll notice this is off by default – just select HGiG instead.
Samsung added an HGiG setting to 2020 QLED models such as the Q90T via a firmware update released in October of last year. You’ll find it by opening the General settings menu and clicking on External Device Manager.
We’re not aware of other manufacturers having added dedicated HGiG settings, but if you can find a way to turn tone mapping off entirely, you might achieve a similar effect.
The most important thing is to have HGiG selected (or tone mapping disabled) before you go through the HDR calibration process on your console, otherwise the tone mapping will be incorrect.
When and if HGiG becomes an official standard, all of your games will then use this console-level calibration to define their HDR characteristics, but only a handful of games (Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War and Dirt 5, for example) do this now. Most still have their own HDR calibration screens, and these are worth checking, too. They will still generally look better and more correct with HGiG selected, even if they weren’t developed with HGiG in mind.
What’s next for HGiG and HDR gaming?
While the degree to which HGiG is being adopted, despite it being only a loose connection of guidelines, is impressive, it would be nice to see it become an official specification that becomes more widespread and more consistent. Having to calibrate your TV to your console just once and have every game use that to tailor the picture will be a vast improvement on having to tweak the picture for each game individually.
But even that one-time calibration might be unnecessary in the future. In the land of PC gaming there’s a technology called VESA DisplayHDR, which takes HDR standardisation to new levels and, as David Seperson from LG tells us, even “includes a way for the display to signal its capabilities to the OS”. In other words, we may get to a point when your console and TV talk to one another and the performance is tailored to your specific setup without you needing to do anything at all. Sounds like gaming nirvana to us.
MORE:
Check out our list of the best gaming TVs you can buy
Here’s our PS5 review
Still hunting for a PS5? Here’s the latest PS5 stock information
Activating the Google Assistant by saying “Hey Google” has been broken for months, according to a report from 9to5Google. Google tells The Verge it’s now working on a fix, saying that it’s “aware of the issues some users have been encountering” and will help its partners “address these and improve the overall experience.”
There are a good number of users reporting the issue — a post on Google’s Issue Tracker has almost a thousand stars. Reading through the thread, it’s clear that many users with different smartwatch models are all reporting the same issue going back to November 2020. They say the assistant isn’t completely unusable, as users are still able to trigger it with a long button-press, but if the voice-activation feature hasn’t been working for that long, it likely doesn’t help the perception that Google doesn’t care about Wear OS.
Google’s statement doesn’t make it clear how long it’ll be until the issue is fixed, but hopefully it’s getting attention now. While Wear OS may not be core to Google’s strategy, the Assistant seems to be, and it’d be nice for people who have chosen to put Google’s OS on their wrists to have easy access to it.
With Bitcoins trading at almost $50,000 per bitcoin, perhaps it is finally time for me to get into the cryptocurrency game? Instead of buying bitcoins, could I use my Raspberry Pi to mine for bitcoins instead?
What is Cryptocurrency mining?
Crypto mining is the digital version of mining for gold, combining performing complicated calculations and pureluck (being the first to complete the calculation) with your computer. Mining is essential to cryptocurrencies in order to maintain their distributed ledger, aka Blockchain.
While Bitcoin is the most well-known form of cryptocurrency, it’s hardly the only game in town. All forms of cryptocurrency use blockchains to maintain the validity of each transaction and prevent someone from fraudulently spending their coins more than once.
Is Raspberry Pi Bitcoin mining profitable in 2020?
My initial research showed that mining for bitcoins with any consumer grade computer is not profitable when factoring in the cost of electricity and hardware. Most bitcoin mining is now done on ASIC Bitcoin Miners; hobbyists and individuals can find limited success by joining a mining pool, harnessing the power of a group of distributed computers. What if we joined a mining pool, used solar panels to power our Pi, and ‘wrote-off’ the cost of our hardware? Bitcoin mining is an extremely competitive venture with too many other miners, increasing difficulty levels, and lower rewards for miners.
Despite this gloom and doom news, I decided to forge ahead with this project and set my sights on alternative cryptocurrencies. As of the writing of this article, there are over six thousand alternative cryptocurrencies traded today.
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
Mining Pools
Individual cryptocurrency mining was out of the question since we are using a Raspberry Pi and not an ASIC Bitcoin Miner. I looked at several mining pool software groups I could join; most had options for Windows and MacOS; there were no mining pools with support for Raspberry Pi. Raspberry Pi is not supported by Linux miner software due to its ARM Architecture. Supported Linux mining software is based on x86 processors found in typical PCs.
Disclaimer: This article is presented as an educational opportunity to spark interest in learning more about blockchain and cryptocurrency, and not necessarily to generate cryptocurrency. The methods described in this article are hacks and not officially supported. The easier and faster method is to download and install the free software associated with the mining pool of your choice on your PC.
What You’ll Need for this Project
Raspberry Pi 4 or Raspberry Pi 3
8 GB (or larger) microSD card (see best Raspberry Pi microSD cards) with a fresh install of Raspberry Pi Lite OS or Raspberry Pi OS with Desktop.
Power supply/Keyboard/Mouse/Monitor/HDMI Cable (for your Raspberry Pi)
Optional (Recommended): Heatsinks and fan for your Raspberry Pi
Optional: Solar Panel Power Bank with USB-C
Optional: Raspberry Pi Cluster Case with Heatsinks and Fans
This tutorial is based on terminal commands. If you are not familiar with terminal commands on your Raspberry Pi, we highly recommend reviewing 25+ Linux Commands Raspberry Pi Users Need to Know first
How to Mine for Cryptocurrency on Raspberry Pi
We will start by creating our account with Minergate, a cryptocurrency mining pool with 3.5 million users worldwide for Bitcoin Gold, Zcash, Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, and Monero. This tutorial is specific to mining Monero as it was the only cryptocurrency I had any level of success with.
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
2. Boot your Raspberry Pi. If you don’t already have a microSD card see our article on how to set up a Raspberry Pi for the first time or how to do a headless Raspberry Pi install.
3. If you are using Raspberry Pi OS with Desktop, open a Terminal, or press Ctrl-T. If you are using Raspberry Pi Lite, login as you would normally.
4. Once in your terminal, run the following updates and install the necessary dependencies:
6. After building and configuring our mining software on our Raspberry Pi, let’s start mining for Monero! Enter the following terminal command to start the miner, replacing YOUR_EMAIL with the email address you used to signup for your Minergate account.
./cpuminer -a cryptonight -o stratum+tcp://xmr.pool.minergate.com:45700 -u YOUR_EMAIL
You should see the mining software start and hopefully see a few shares ‘accepted’ with ‘yes!’
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
7. Let’s check your Minergate Dashboard by logging into https://minergate.com/internal. You can do this on a Chromium browser if using Raspberry Pi Desktop, or on your PC. Scroll down your dashboard until you see Monero. If everything is working, your Monero Status will indicate ONLINE. Congratulations! You’re now mining for Monero!
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
How to Start Raspberry Pi Crypto Mining on Boot
To automatically start our cryptocurrency miner on boot on our Raspberry Pi, we’ll use the Crontab method.
crontab -e
If you haven’t set the crontab previously, you’ll see the response “no crontab for pi, Select an editor.”
1. Type ‘1’ and hit Enter.
2. This will open a new crontab file, arrow down to the bottom of your crontab file and enter the command below, replacing YOUR_EMAIL, with the email address you used when creating your Minergate account
@reboot sudo /cpuminer-multi/cpuminer -a cryptonight -o stratum+tcp://xmr.pool.minergate.com:45700 -u YOUR_EMAIL
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
4. Press Ctrl-X, and y to save your crontab.
5. Now reboot your Pi by typing ‘sudo reboot’ in your Terminal.
How much Monero did I mine with Raspberry Pi?
My Raspberry Pi 4 calculated 357 good shares in about 8 hours of run time. Miners are rewarded for good shares. Bad Shares are calculations where I came up with the right answer, but my Pi produced the results slower than another computer. Miners only get paid when they submit the correct answer first. Invalid shares are the worst as a miner is penalized for every invalid share due to possible fraudulent activity. I was a bit worried when my first 4 shares were marked as invalid shares.
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
357 good shares = 0.000001410642 Monero = 0.00015569 USD
I made the equivalent of 1/100th of a penny in 8 hours.
In order to withdraw my Monero, I needed a minimum of 0.05 Monero, approximately equal to $5.811 USD. (Exchange rate at the time of the writing of this article.) At a pace of accumulating 0.000001410642 Monero per 8 hours, it would take me 3,762 years to reach the minimum withdrawal threshold of 0.05 Monero.
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
Lessons Learned about Raspberry Pi Crypto mining
As stated at the beginning of this article, the purpose of this exercise was to learn about cryptocurrency and not to make a profit.
Cryptocurrency mining rewards are calculated by shares and hash rates. My hash rate varied from 1.6 H/s to 33.3 H/s. The average hash rate for the pool was 10.27 MH/s, approximately 3 million times my Pi’s hash rate. For reference, 1 MH/s is 1,000,000 hashes per second.
The mining pool company (in this case Minergate), also charges a small commission on your transactions. You have the choice of luck based commission (higher risk, higher reward), or Pay Per Share (higher commission for Minergate, but less risk).
At various points during the writing of this article, my Pi had numerous ‘time out’ errors and ‘send_line failed.’ Sometimes a reboot of the Pi would help, and sometimes, the miner would eventually start working again without human intervention.
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
While the Raspberry Pi was not a ‘money maker’ in the crypto mining game, the excitement factor of watching my Pi successfully calculate and accumulate good shares was enough for me.
Is there something more productive I could do with my spare Raspberry Pis? If you’re interested in donating your spare computing power to finding potential treatments for COVID-19, check out World Community Grid. With World Community Grid, you can download and install a software package on your Raspberry Pi that will run a simulation to help predict the effectiveness of a chemical compound as a possible treatment for COVID-19.Check out our recent article about World Community Grid here.
Samsung has announced that it’ll be extending the amount of time that its Galaxy smartphones and tablets will be getting security updates. Now, devices released from 2019 and onward will receove at least four years of security updates.
Previously, Samsung offered either monthly or quarterly security updates for at least the first two years of a device’s life span, the frequency of which is determined by the device itself. More premium phones like the Galaxy Note or Galaxy S lines get monthly updates, while budget-friendly models like 2020’s Galaxy A71 5G get quarterly updates. Samsung also drops some of its higher-end devices down to quarterly updates after a certain point in time, like the Galaxy S8 lineup.
It’s important to note that Samsung is only promising four years of “regular security updates,” which is actually Samsung’s lowest tier of update frequency, reserved for devices that it still supports but without the promise of a monthly or quarterly cadence. Still, the new announcement does mean that Samsung is working to extend the usable life span of dozens of its devices, including some of its cheaper entry-level phones that might not ordinarily see that kind of long-term support.
To put that commitment in perspective, Google itself only promises “at least three years” of security updates for its Pixel phones. And there are far fewer models of Pixel hardware to support than the 40-plus phones and tablets for which Samsung is promising security updates.
The other important caveat here is that Samsung is promising security updates for at least four years, not Android OS updates. Samsung did guarantee support for at least three “generations” of Android OS updates in 2020, but only for some of its phones.
Today’s news from Samsung is also not the same commitment that Google and Qualcomm made in December to ensure that phones with new Qualcomm chips will support both four Android OS updates and four years of security updates. While similar in overall goals, that announcement only applied to devices starting with this year’s Snapdragon 888 and on, whereas Samsung is retroactively making its commitment for devices as old as 2019.
(Pocket-lint) – Huawei’s second generation of its foldable smartphone comes in the form of the Mate X2.
The Chinese company changed the format of the folding device from its predecessor – the Mate X and Xs- moving from a foldable display on the outside, to an inward folding display, like Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold series.
If you’re in the market for a vertically folding smartphone, here is how the Huawei Mate X2 and the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2 compare.
Design
Mate X2: 161.8 x 145.8 x 4.4-8.2mm unfolded / 161.8 x 74.6 x 13.6-14.7mm / 295g
Z Fold 2: 159.2 x 128.2 x 6.9mm unfolded / 159.2 x 68 x 16.8mm folded / 282g
The Huawei Mate X2 features a vertical folding display, in a book-style design. It has a glass rear with a prominent rectangular camera housing in the top left corner, a metal frame and a full display with dual cut-out cameras on the front when folded.
When unfolded, the premium device has a large 8-inch screen. The hinge is multi-dimensional according to Huawei, creating a water dropped-shaped cavity for the display when the phone is folded, allowing for no gap at all when shut. There’s also a wedge-like design that is just 4.4mm at the slimmest point. It comes in White, Black, Crystal Blue and Crystal Pink colours.
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2 has a similar form to the Mate X2 in that it offers a vertical fold in a book-style design. It too has a glass rear, with a rectangular camera housing in the top left corner, as well as a metal frame and a single, centralised punch hole camera on the front when folded.
When unfolded, the Galaxy Z Fold 2 has a slightly smaller 7.6-inch display. It’s hinge allows for multiple viewing angles but there is a slight gap at the fold of the device when folded. It comes in Mystic Bronze and Mystic Black colours.
The Huawei Mate X2 has a 6.45-inch OLED display with resolution of 2700 x 1160 and a pixel density of 456ppi on the front when folded. It features a 21:9 aspect ratio and a 90Hz refresh rate.
As mentioned above, it has dual punch-hole front cameras in the top left of the display and there are very minimal bezels. When unfolded, the Mate X2 has an 8-inch OLED display with a 2480 x 2200 resolution, which results in a pixel density of 413ppi. The unfolded display has a ratio of 8:7.1. It too has a 90Hz refresh rate.
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2 has a 6.23-inch external display, making it only slightly smaller than the Mate X2. It too is an AMOLED panel and it offers a resolution of 2260 x 816 pixels and an aspect ratio of 25:9.
When unfolded, the Galaxy Z Fold 2 has an internal display of 7.6-inches. It’s Dynamic AMOLED and it has a 2208 x 1768 pixel resolution, resulting in a pixel density of 372ppi. It also has a 120Hz refresh rate and supports HDR10+.
Cameras
Mate X2: Quad rear camera (50MP+16MP+12MP+8MP), 16MP front
Z Fold 2: Triple rear (12MP+12MP+12MP), 10MP front
The Huawei Mate X2 has a quad camera on the rear, which features Leica technology, like Huawei’s other flagship smartphones. The camera setup includes a 50-megapixel main sensor, 16-megapixel ultra-wide angle sensor, 12-megapixel telephoto sensor, and an 8-megapixel SuperZoom sensor.
The main sensor has a f/1.9 aperture and OIS, the Ultra-wide sensor has a f/2.2 aperture, the telephoto sensor has a f/2.4 aperture and OIS with 3x optical zoom, while the SuperZoom sensor has a f/4.4 aperture, OIS and 10x optical zoom. The front camera is 16-megapixels wide angle with a f/2.2 aperture.
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2 has a triple rear camera, comprised of a 12-megapixel main camera, 12-megapixel telephoto sensor and 12-megapixel Ultra-wide sensor.
The main camera has an f/1.6 aperture, dual pixel phase-detection autofocus and OIS, the telephoto lens has an aperture of f/2.4 and OIS and the ultra-wide sensor has an aperture of f/2.2. There is also a 10-megapixel front camera.
Hardware and specs
Mate X2: Kirin 9000, 5G, 8GB RAM, 256/512GB storage, 4500mAh
The Huawei Mate X2 runs on Huawei’s own 5nm Kirin 9000 platform, making it a 5G device. It is supported by 8GB of RAM and it comes in 256GB and 512GB storage variants.
It has a 4500mAh battery under the hood that supports Huawei’s 25W SuperCharge. Huawei’s own Harmony OS can be installed over the company’s usual EMUI interface running on top of Android.
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2 runs on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 865 Plus chipset, supported by 12GB of RAM and it comes in 256GB and 512GB storage options.
There’s a 4500mAh battery running the Fold 2, which supports 25W wired charging, 11W wireless charging and 4.5W reverse wireless charging. It runs Android with Samsung’s One UI over the top and there are some great multi-tasking features that make great use of the screen when unfolded.
Price
Mate X2: Equivalent of £1985/$2785, China
Z Fold 2: £1799, $1999
The Huawei Mate X2 costs RMB 17,999 or 18,999, starting at the equivalent of $2785 or £1985. It is available in China only for now from 25 February.
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2 costs £1799 in the UK and $1999 in the US.
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Conclusion
The Huawei Mate X2 is only available in the Chinese market at the moment, and it is a little more expensive than the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2. On a spec-by-spec comparison though, these two devices are very similar with both tipping the scales in certain areas.
The Mate X2 has slightly larger displays both interior and exterior, arguably a more streamlined design, an extra camera on the rear and a wide-angle front camera.
The Galaxy Z Fold 2 has more RAM, a higher refresh rate on the internal display and it supports Google services. It has less cameras than Huawei but the triple rear camera does offer great results.
Both devices offer the same storage options and the same battery capacities. The Samsung is more widely available though so while the Mate X2 might win on some specification areas, you’ll need to live in China to get your hands on one for now. It’s also worth remembering the Galaxy Z Fold 3 is tipped for a July 2021 launch.
(Pocket-lint) – Samsung announced the next generation of its Galaxy Watch in the form of the Galaxy Watch 3 in August 2020.
The smartwatch sits alongside the sleeker, bezel-free Samsung Galaxy Active 2 and replaces the original Galaxy Watch from 2018, but how does it compare?
Here is how the Galaxy Watch 3 compares to the Active 2 and original Galaxy Watch.
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Design
Galaxy Watch: 46 x 49 x 13mm / 41.9 x 45.7 x 12.7 mm
Galaxy Watch Active 2: 44 x 44 x 10.9mm / 40 x 40 x 10.9mm
Galaxy Watch 3: 45 x 46.2 x 11.1mm / 41 x 42.5 x 11.3mm
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 and the Galaxy Watch adopt a similar design to each other, with a rotating bezel sitting on the top of the display and two function buttons on the right, though the Galaxy Watch 3 is a little more refined and the bezel has been improved.
The Galaxy Watch Active 2 meanwhile, has a sleeker finish than both with a touch bezel around the face instead of the rotating bezel and two more streamlined function buttons on the right.
The Galaxy Watch comes in 46mm and 42mm size options and all models have a reasonably chunky, textured silicone strap.
The Galaxy Watch Active 2 comes in 42mm and 40mm size options and there are a couple of strap options, inlcuding leather, as well as a couple of different models, such as an Under Armour edition and a Golf edition.
The Galaxy Watch 3 comes in a three different finishes – Mystic Black, Mystic Silver and Mystic Bronze, and there is also a titanium option. Sizes are 45mm and 41mm and there are a number of strap options available, including a link bracelet.
All Galaxy Watches are IP68 water and dust resistant, MIL-STD-810G compliant and waterproof up to 5ATM.
Best smartwatch 2020
Display
Galaxy Watch: 1.3-inch/1.2-inch, 360 x 360 pixels, AMOLED
Galaxy Watch Active 2: 1.4-inch/1.2-inch, 360 x 360 pixels, AMOLED
Galaxy Watch 3: 1.4-inch/1.2-inch, 360 x 360 pixels, AMOLED
All three Samsung Galaxy Watch models being compared here have Super AMOLED round screens protected by Corning Gorilla Glass DX and they all have 360 x 360 pixel resolutions.
The 46mm original Samsung Galaxy Watch has a 1.3-inch display, while the 42mm model has a 1.2-inch display.
The 42mm Galaxy Watch Active 2 has a 1.4-inch display, while the 40mm model has a 1.2-inch display.
The 45mm Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 comes with a 1.4-inch display, while the 41mm model has a 1.2-inch display.
Galaxy Watch Active 2: Exynos 9110, 768MB/1.5GB RAM, 4GB storage
Galaxy Watch 3: Exynos 9110, 1GB RAM, 8GB storage
All Samsung Galaxy Watch models being compared here run on the Exynos 9110 dual core processor.
The original Galaxy Watch and Galaxy Watch Active 2 are both available in LTE and Bluetooth models with the LTE models offering 1.5GB of RAM and 4GB of storage and the Bluetooth models offering 768MB of RAM and 4GB of storage.
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 comes in LTE and Bluetooth models. There is 1GB of RAM and 8GB of storage.
The larger model of the original Samsung Galaxy Watch has a 472mAh battery and the smaller model has a 270mAh battery.
The larger model of the Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 has a 340mAh battery, while the smaller model has a 247mAh battery, which is the same as the respective larger and smaller models of the Galaxy Watch 3.
Galaxy Watch 3: Sleep tracking with REM stages, fall detection, 39 sports modes, ECG, blood pressure, blood oxygen
All Samsung Galaxy Watches being compared here are compatible with Android and iOS devices and run Tizen OS.
They also have heart rate monitoring, smartphone notifications and sports tracking, as you would expect. The Galaxy Watch Active 2 has a running coach too, as well as a stress feature.
The Galaxy Watch 3 has the most features, with the ability to take an ECG as well as your blood pressure and your blood oxygen level, fall detection, run analysis and 39 sports modes.
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Conclusion
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 offers a very similar design to the original Galaxy Watch but with a few welcomed refinements and several extra features, including ECG, blood pressure, blood oxygen fall detection and more sports modes.
The Galaxy Active 2 meanwhile, continues to be a smaller, more stylish smartwatch offering, whilst also offering a number of extra features over the original Galaxy Watch but not quite as many as the Galaxy Watch 3.
You can read our Galaxy Watch Active 2 review and our Galaxy Watch 3 review to see what we thought of the devices.
Think Raspberry Pi, and we instantly think of Raspberry Pi OS, a branch of Debian Linux tweaked to run on the board. But the recently-released Raspberry Pi Pico eschews the traditional Raspberry Pi setup in favor of an Arm-based microcontroller. This has not deterred David Given, who has ported a Unix-like operating system to the $4 board.
A Raspberry Pi Pico running Fuzix will not be replacing your Raspberry Pi any time soon, but it is amazing to see this Unix-like OS running on such low-power hardware. Given’s port of Fuzix is based upon Alan Cox’s original project, which can run on hardware almost 40 years old. Fuzix provides us with a proper Unix filesystem, support for SD cards via the SPI interface, a full set of Fuzix binaries, and all of this is available via a serial console to UART0.
Right now, there is no support for flash memory, evident in the requirement of an SD card. Given says that the code for this is complete, but a bad file system will crash the dhara FTL library and that the onboard flash is too small even for the 32MB system image.
Given provides a readme full of installation instructions, which are written for experienced Unix / Linux users to follow. The easiest way to get started is to download the Fuzix binaries and format an SD card as per the readme instructions. Then flash the UF2 file to your Pico, connect up an SD card reader via the SPI interface, connect to UART0 and start using Fuzix on a $4 microcontroller.
The Android 12 developer preview is out, and the internet is busy poring over it to find any new features or hints at the OS’s future. So far, there have been a few interesting things discovered, such as an Emergency SOS feature, some redesigns, and other useful, if minor, finds:
The ability to prevent specific apps from showing media controls in quick settings
The ability to wirelessly share Wi-Fi passwords to people nearby with the tap of a button
An update to Markup that lets you put emoji (and text) on screenshots
Bluetooth pairing options are now included in the media picker
A reduce bright colors accessibility option
Improved gamepad rumble support
A toggle switch redesign (that looks really nice in my opinion)
As pointed out by Android Police, the Emergency SOS feature is also much easier to access now. Before, making an emergency call required you to hold the power button down, tap the emergency button, then tap twice on the Call 911 button. In Android 12, however, it can be activated by rapidly pressing the power button five times, which will trigger a countdown telling you that an emergency call is about to be placed.
Android Police notes that, by default, it calls 911. You can set it to call a different number, but if the number isn’t a government-run emergency line, your phone will have to be unlocked for the call to go through.
The process for accessing the Emergency Call feature in Android 11.Screenshots: Sean Hollister / The Verge
There have been a few minor redesigns of the Settings app search bar and the lock screen and notification media player, but Mishaal Rahman found a feature flag that “dramatically” changes the settings UI to be easier to use one-handed.
BIG change: If you enable the “Silky home” feature flag that I previously mentioned, you’ll get a DRAMATICALLY changed Settings UI that’s MUCH more one-handed friendly. Here are a few screenshots: pic.twitter.com/EcwqnU0LlB
— Mishaal Rahman (@MishaalRahman) February 18, 2021
9to5Google has also found that some screens in the settings app have blue-tinted backgrounds. It speculates that it could be part of a rumored theming system, but at the moment, it seems very unfinished.
Image: 9to5Google
Of course, notifications have also gotten a redesign, with 9to5Google noting that there’s a dedicated snooze button now, and the icon bubbles are now much larger. This looks like it reduces the density of notifications, but it’s still very early days for Android 12, so it’s possible changes could be made or toggles could be added to control whether you want to see the larger app icon.
The app icon bubbles are now larger.Image: 9to5Google
There are also a few features that are hinted at, or even have settings present, but currently don’t seem to work or aren’t enabled, including:
Scrolling screenshots
A Pixel 5 double-tap feature
A one-handed mode
Privacy toggles to turn cameras and microphones off system-wide
Given the early state of the developer preview, it’s not really meant for day-to-day use on your main phone. And as with all betas, these features and designs are subject to change in new releases. Still, it’s a tantalizing glimpse at the future of Android and the features Google is adding to an already feature-packed mature OS.
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