Google Pixel can’t charge at 18W, despite claims that it could

Google's Pixel smartphone is not capable of charging at 18W (Watts) despite Google marketing materials previously stating that it could.

The discrepancy was unearthed by respected product tester Nathan K, who outlined full details of the test and his methodology in a Google+ post. The reason for the lower-than-expected limit is thought to be linked to potential thermal concerns, though Google hasn't confirmed this.

See also: T-Mobile's excellent Google Pixel promo offer is now even better26

Google has since acknowledged the error – putting it down to a "marketing materials mistake" – and has updated its tech specs page for the Pixels to reflect the correct information.

It appears that the larger Pixel XL, however, is capable of charging at 18W. Nathan K speculates this in his post, and the Pixels' specs page also now indicates that the devices charge at "15-18W" (as oppose to simply "18W" previously stated), suggesting that the XL is not capped like the smaller handset.

See also: Why Google's Pixel phones should be a big deal for everyone255

What does the 3W discrepancy mean for the Google Pixel? Possibly not a great deal. Though a 3W improvement on 15W would theoretically represent an additional 20 percent charge being injected into the handset, the reality is that it probably wouldn't have had a like-for-like effect on load times (i.e the Pixel wouldn't have charged 20 percent faster if it could reach the 18W peak).

Charge speeds vary depending on many factors: the 18W limit would, on any smartphone, be reached only in certain circumstances, not consistently throughout the entire charge cycle. Daily smartphone usage is said to be unaffected the Pixel's imposed 15W cap.

Do you consider this is a major issue?  Let us know in the comments.

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Acer R13 Chromebook now has full support for Android apps (beta channel)

Thanks to their ease of use, affordable price tags, and great performance, Chromebooks are becoming more and more popular, especially in education, where they are currently being used by more than 20 million students.

In 2015, over 5 million of them were shipped out to consumers and according to the recent study, their sales are expected to exceed 17 million units by 2023. One of the reasons for their increased popularity is that back in May, Google announced that Android apps are coming to Chromebooks. This will obviously make the devices, which are already outselling Apple's Macbooks, even more in demand.

After the announcement, we saw quite a few Chromebooks hit the market. One of them was Acer's R13 that first saw the light of day back at IFA 2016. The device recently started shipping out to consumers but surprisingly without support for Android apps.

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Fortunately, it didn't take long for the functionality to become available. Acer's R13 Chromebook now has full support for Android apps in the Chrome OS beta channel, while support on the stable channel is expected to hit the device in December.

The R13 joins Chromebook Pixel 2015, Acer Chromebook R11 and Asus Chromebook Flip in the select club of Chrome OS devices that can run Android applications.

For those of you who already own the device and want to check out the new feature first hand, simply go to Settings > About Chrome OS > More Info > Change Channel > Beta. Wait a few minutes for the update to be downloaded, restart your device, and you're done. All that's left is for you to test drive the new feature and have some fun in the process. Enjoy!

This article originally appeared on our sister site TabTimes.

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Wear Dialer can initiate phone calls from Android Wear

Answering calls using your Android Wear smartwatch is no problem, but things aren't that simple once you want to actually place a call from your wrist-worn gadgets. Android Wear has no straight-forward way to do this, so third-party developers have needed to figure out their won solutions.

The latest one is simply named Wear Dialer, and it does exactly what the name entails. Initiate a call using the application's dialer, recent call history or contacts list. That's but the tip of the ice berg in terms of customization within this app, though.

There is a bevy of theme options you can unlock by paying the $2 premium fee. This will enable a quick dial mode, the ability to change Wear translation,, alter the color scheme, switch the speaker mode, enable the use of contact images and more.

See also: 10 best Android Wear apps46

Interested? The only requirements are that your phone has Android 4..3 or higher and that your watch sports Android Wear 1.3 or higher. There are plenty of compatible Android Wear devices listed, so chances are you can start making calls from your wrist right away.

How many of you have been looking for an app to do this? We don't make that many calls nowadays, but suppose it is helpful to keep the task simple when needed.

Download Wear Dialer now

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Google Wallet’s new web app is here

With the introduction of Android Pay, Google Wallet underwent some significant changes back in May of last year. Android Pay became Google's main virtual mobile payment platform, competing directly with the likes of Samsung Pay and Apple Pay. Meanwhile, Google Wallet became an app that allows anyone with a US debit card to send and receive money for free within minutes – even if the other person doesn't have the app. Well, the Google Wallet team just announced that its new web app is now available.

See also: Facebook Messenger will now keep track of PayPal payments in US6

If anything, Google Wallet is competing with PayPal or Venmo (which is owned by PayPal). The former is more ubiquitously used, especially for international transactions whereas the latter is limited to the US, and targeted at millennials specifically. I'm glad that the web app is finally here because I can now say Google's money transfer platform is on par with PayPal's, if not better. They are both intuitive, secure, and convenient to use, but one advantage that Google Wallet has is that it will automatically transfer your money to your bank. That's kind of a game changer for me because on PayPal and Venmo, the money you receive just sits there until you manually transfer it to your bank account.

The web app is unmistakably Google – it has a simple form in the middle, surrounded by Material Design elements. You set the amount, specify who the recipient is, and click send. It's as simple as that. I'm curious to see if Google Wallet will gain traction in the coming years given the already saturated field. On one hand you have PayPal dominating the money transfer realm, and on the other, you have much more commonly used apps like Facebook and Snapchat with mobile transfer options integrated into their apps. Google Wallet's approach of letting you receive money transfers even if you don't have the app – which is similar to Google Allo's – may work, but only time will tell if this strategy will pay off.

On one hand you have PayPal dominating the money transfer realm, and on the other, you have much more commonly used apps like Facebook and Snapchat with mobile transfer options integrated into their apps.

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Vivo X9 and X9 Plus to include 20MP and 8MP dual front-facing cameras

The China-based Vivo is getting close to officially announcing its two latest Android smartphones, the X9 and X9 Plus. These will be successors to the previously launched Vivo X7 and x7 Plus. However, the company is already posting teasers about the new phones' features, including a rather interesting move for their front-facing cameras.

See also: Best Android phones for taking selfies45

In a post on its official Weibo account, Vivo teased that the X9 and X9 Plus would both have dual front-facing cameras. One of them will be a massive 20MP camera, while the other will be smaller at 8MP. 

There's no doubt that having a 20MP front-facing camera in a smartphone is a huge step-up from the norm, but what the second 8MP front camera will do is still something of a mystery. Will each camera have a different degree of wide-angle lens? Will the 8MP camera serve as a way to capture depth of field for the larger 20MP camera on the phone?

Hopefully, all will be revealed when the Vivo X9 and X9 Plus are officially announced at a press event in China on November 17. In the meantime, what do you think the dual front-facing camera setup could be used for? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!

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Google’s Daydream and Tango teams are now under the Google VR division

Google is making a small, but potentially significant, change in its organization, linking two separate teams and putting them under one division. The Daydream team, responsible for the Daydream View VR headset and software, is now working alongside the Tango team, which created the 3D depth sensing camera for smartphones and tablets.

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UploadVR confirmed the change while speaking to Johnny Lee, the director of engineering for the Tango team, at a recent press event. Lee stated:

From an organizational standpoint, Tango and Daydream work together. I report directly to Clay Bavor, who reports directly to Sundar Pichai.

Bavor is the Vice President of Virtual Reality for Google, while Sundar Pichai is, of course, the company's CEO. The move indicates that Google wants all of their VR and AR teams under one roof, and that seems to be a sound idea.

Today just happened to be a big day for both the Daydream and Tango teams. Google confirmed that the Daydream View headset will begin shipping on November 10 in five countries. Meanwhile, the Lenovo Phab 2 Pro, the first ever smartphone with the Tango 3D camera, went on sale for $499.99, with over 35 AR apps developed specifically to use its 3D mapping features for AR experiences.

Bringing both teams under one division would seem to suggest that Google could combine the 3D mapping AR features on the Tango camera with the VR technology available with the Daydream View in a future Google virtual reality product. Indeed, when UploadVR asked Lee if this could happen, he simply replied, "That would be a very good idea."

It's going to be interesting to see how the next generation of Google VR products will benefit from two teams that have worked on different projects that have a number of similarities. Do you think this move means that Google is getting more serious about both VR and AR?

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Moto M – new leaked images and specs surface

A Moto M has been making the rounds through the rumor mill for a couple months now. We first heard of the mysterious handset back in August, when we were surprised by its metal uni-body and unusual fingerprint reader location (it's on the back).  A month later we got a look at some more intimate images.

What about today? We are starting November with fresh Moto M images and leaked specs coming from Steve Hemmerstoffer. The popular NowhereElseFr editor and OnLeaks superstar has a good track record preceding him, so we would say this is as legit as leaks can get.

The new images showcase the new smartphone surrounded by other Moto products. It does follow the same metal uni-body design we have seen in the past. We can also see the fingerprint reader placed on the back of the handset, a new move for Moto devices, which tend to sport this hardware in the front.

The leak comes with a set of specs that more or less follow previous murmurs. The unit is said to come with a 5.5-inch 1920×1080 display, a 2.2 GHz MediaTek Helio P15 processor, 4 GB of RAM, 32 GB of internal storage, a 13 MP main camera, an 8 MP front shooter and a 3,050 mAh battery.

Though the phone has a seemingly good construction and pretty fair specifications, it also doesn't seem like it should be an over-priced one. It's also important to mention it seems to have a high focus on Asian markets, especially when taking a look at its software, which looks to be far from stock Android.

Regardless, we should be hearing more about this phone in due time. Is it a gadget you would be interested in? It is true a better build quality is something Motorola/Lenovo fans have been asking for. Maybe this is their transitioning handset.

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