Google Pixel XL vs Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge

The Pixel XL and its smaller sibling are the first smartphones that have been built from the ground up with Google at the helm, which is one of the many reasons that these devices are a couple of the hottest smartphones that are currently available in the market. This is also the first phone that Google is very serious about selling to the masses, but it features a price tag that puts in direct competition with the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge and iPhone 7 Plus.

• Google Pixel XL review
• Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge review

Speaking of the Galaxy S7 Edge, it is now the de facto premier Samsung flagship with the Galaxy Note 7 no longer in the picture, and offers everything that consumers are looking for with their smartphone experience. How do these high-end devices compare, and which is the better choice? We find out, in this in-depth look at the Google Pixel XL vs Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge!

Design

In terms of design, both smartphones may feature similar build materials, but they look and feel completely different. Starting with the Pixel XL, what you get is what appears to be a full metal unibody construction, with the exception of the glass window on the back. Not surprisingly, the build quality  of the device is great, but there's no denying that the Pixel looks a lot like the iPhone.

The design is rather generic when compared to Google's previous Nexus smartphones, which always had a unique appeal to them. Much of the generic feel stems from the front and empty bottom chin, and if you didn't already know that this was a Pixel XL, you'd be hard pressed to easily recognize it by just looking at the front.

On the other hand, the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge features a design that is a more flamboyant and eye catching. Ever since Samsung made the switch to a metal and glass build for their flagship smartphones just last year, they've done a great job at refining the design in a very short time.

With a smooth metal frame and curved glass on the front and back, the Galaxy S7 Edge is a very comfortable phone to hold and obviously looks fantastic. However, as is the case with any smartphone that is primarily built with glass, this device is a fingerprint magnet, and can be quite slippery as well.

The Galaxy S7 Edge has been around for a while now, but the engineering that has gone into its design is still amazing to think about. Both the Galaxy S7 Edge and Pixel XL come with 5.5-inch displays, but the curved glass and smaller top and bottom chin makes the former shorter and narrower than the latter. This really makes a huge difference in how the two feel in the hand in terms of size.

Display

Both the Pixel XL and Galaxy S7 Edge come with 5.5-inch AMOLED displays, or Super AMOLED in the case of the Samsung flagship, with Quad HD resolutions. These are by far two of the best displays you can get on a smartphone right now and look absolutely gorgeous.

They are sharp and vibrant, and outdoor visibility is not an issue with either. Watching videos, playing games, and browsing the web are all an absolute joy on these screens, and because they are AMOLED displays, you are also getting those deep inky blacks, superb viewing angles, and high contrast ratios.

Of course, the big difference here is the flat screen of the Pixel XL and the curved display of the Galaxy S7 Edge, that not only let Samsung make their phone smaller, but also has some software benefits. A swipe inwards from the edge brings up the Edge panels, which includes shortcuts to a lot of useful things like apps, favorite contacts, the weather, sports scores, the news, and more.

Samsung also takes advantage of the AMOLED screen by introducing the Always On display feature, that can display a clock, calendar, and notifications. While the Pixel XL doesn't have any such feature, you do at least get ambient notifications which will dimly wake the display whenever you receive a new notifications.

Performance

Under the hood, the Pixel XL comes with the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 processor, backed by the Adreno 530 GPU and 4 GB of RAM. The performance of the Pixel XL is easily the best we've ever come across on an Android smartphone. It really goes to show what Google is capable of doing when they take control of both the hardware and software side of things.

Granted, the latest and greatest processing package and a pure stock Android iteration are huge contributing factors, but this phone rarely, if ever, skips a beat. The animations and transitions are consistently moving at a fluid 60 frames per second, and the touch response is also excellent, which makes the whole experience feels even more snappy.

On the other hand, the Galaxy S7 Edge features the Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor that is also backed by the Adreno 530 GPU and 4 GB of RAM. As the numbering system suggests, the Snapdragon 821 isn't a significant upgrade from the 820, and unsurprisingly, the performance is fantastic with the S7 Edge as well.

You will notice a few hiccups and frame drops more often than you would on the Pixel XL, but for the most part, it is still a very fast phone and has help up well since its release. Both devices come with native Vulkan support, which means that you are going to get much better graphics and gameplay with Vulkan supported games, which is a big plus for those who are mobile gamers.

Hardware

Both smartphones come with fingerprint scanners, placed on the back in the case of the Pixel XL, and embedded into the tactile home button up front in the case of the Galaxy S7 Edge. There are positives and negatives with either placement and it basically is a matter of personal preference. Both scanners are very fast and accurate, but I personally prefer the sensor of the Pixel XL, simply because it doesn't require pressing down on a button to unlock the phone.

There are a few advantages the Samsung flagship over its Google counterpart, such as expandable storage. In the case of the Pixel XL, users will have to opt for the higher 128 GB storage option that requires quite a premium, or rely on the cloud to alleviate any storage concerns.

On the other hand, the Galaxy S7 Edge allows for expandable storage via microSD card for up to an additional 256 GB. The Galaxy S7 Edge also comes with an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance, which means that the phone will survive being completely submerged. The IP53 rating of the Pixel XL makes the device safe from a splash, but that's just about it.

Another feature the Samsung flagship has is wireless charging, which is something that has been available with some Nexus smartphones, but is not included with the Pixel line. Some people may not miss these features, but if any of them are important to you, the Galaxy S7 Edge is going to be the better option.

On the battery side of things, the Pixel XL and Galaxy S7 Edge come with 3,450 mAh and 3,600 mAh batteries respectively. If you are looking for a smartphone that can easily last all day, both these devices definitely fit the bill. My usage is quite heavy with a lot of gaming, streaming music, and watching videos on Youtube, and if these phones can last all day for me, there's no doubt that battery life won't be a complaint for most users.

Camera

The Pixel XL features a 12.3 MP rear shooter with a f/2.0 aperture and electronic image stabilization, while the Galaxy S7 Edge comes with a 12 MP unit, with a f/1.7 aperture, optical image stabilization, and a very fast dual pixel auto focus technology. As far as features go, Samsung's camera app offers a lot more controls and settings, while Google's camera app is a lot more simplistic, and doesn't include a lot of features or manual controls.

What really matters here is the camera performance, and picture quality is a complete toss up between the two. While the Pixel XL takes in the better shot in some instances, the Galaxy S7 Edge shines in other situations. One thing for certain is that if there were two cameras that deserve to be battling for the top spot in the camera department, it would be these two.

Pixel XL camera samples

Both cameras take excellent photos, with images having a lot of detail, sharpness, and vibrant colors. I would say that the Pixel XL is better in high contrast situations in terms of controlling highlights, but the Galaxy S7 Edge is much better in bringing out details in darker areas. Depending on what you're looking for in these photos, you can easily go back and forth as to which camera takes better looking shots.

In low light conditions is where the differences between these two cameras become a little more obvious. The Pixel XL tends to blow out highlights more when compared to the Galaxy S7 Edge. Some of this does have to do with the "halo effect" that the Pixel phones have been suffering from, and will hopefully be fixed in a future software update.

Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge camera samples

You will also notice that the noise in the Pixel XL's low light shots is much more prominent, which is because Google's image processing doesn't do a whole lot of noise reduction. The noise reduction is a lot more aggressive with the Galaxy S7 Edge, and while this does make the noise a lot less noticeable, it does cause the overall image to be much softer and with less detail. It boils down to your personal preference between more  noticeable noise but with better detail and sharpness, or softer noise with less detail.

Software

The biggest advantage that a Google made device has, and always will have, is in the software department. The Pixel XL is running Android 7.1 Nougat, which brings a lot of new enhancements, and you are also getting some exclusive Pixel phone features, like the Pixel Launcher and Google Assistant.

We've extensively covered the various new features of Nougat on Android Authority already, and the Pixel XL comes with all of them. These include revamped notifications, direct reply, multi-window support, and Doze on the go, and because this is Android 7.1, there are some additional features like the long press of apps to bring up a contextual menu and a reboot option.

Samsung's usual TouchWiz interface returns with the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge, which is still currently running Android Marshmallow. It will definitely receive an official update to Android 7.0 Nougat, but it's difficult to say when that will happen. However, you already get a lot of what Nougat brings to the table with TouchWiz, like editable quick toggles, multi-window support, a reboot option.

There are also a slew of other features that are specific to TouchWiz, like Samsung's game launcher, and a large collection of customization themes. While Samsung's take on Android is very different from stock, it is certainly not lacking in features, and with Samsung continuously refining and streamlining their user interface, it has only gotten better over the years.

Specs comparison

	Pixel XL	Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge
Display	5.5-inch AMOLED display Quad HD resolution, 534 ppi	5.5-inch Super AMOLED display Quad HD resolution, 534 ppi
Processor	2.15 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 processor Adreno 530 GPU	2.15 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor Adreno 530 GPU
RAM	4 GB	4 GB
Storage	32/128 GB not expandable	32/64 GB expandable via microSD up to 256 GB
Camera	12.3 MP rear camera, f/2.0 aperture, EIS, dual LED flash 8 MP front-facing camera	12 MP rear camera, f/1.7 aperture, OIS, LED flash 5 MP front-facing camera
Battery	3,450 mAh	3,600 mAh
Software	Android 7.1 Nougat	Android 6.0 Marshmallow
Dimensions	154.7 x 75.7 x 8.5 mm 168 grams	150.9 x 72.6 x 7.7 mm 157 grams

Gallery

Final thoughts

So, there you have it for this comprehensive look at the Google Pixel XL vs Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge! With regards to which smartphone is the better choice, I believe that the Galaxy S7 Edge is the more well-rounded device here. It has a more unique and distinguishable design, comes with additional hardware features like expandable storage, dust and water resistance, and wireless charging, and offers a software experience that has only improved over time.

The biggest advantage you get with owning a Pixel smartphone is the guaranteed and timely software updates and a clean stock Android experience. The Pixel XL is a fantastic smartphone in its own right, but if Google had just added a few more key features, which would have also made justifying its price point a little easier, it would have really put this phone over the top.

Buy the Pixel XL

Buy the Galaxy S7 Edge

from Android Authority http://www.androidauthority.com/google-pixel-xl-vs-galaxy-s7-edge-727101/
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Android Pay adds 30 more US banks and reconfirms Capital One support

Google has once again updated the list of US banks that support its Android Pay digital payment system. 30 more new banks are now part of the list, along with the previously confirmed addition of the major Capital One bank.

See also:

Android Pay vs Apple Pay vs Samsung Pay Overview

April 27, 2016

Google added Capital One to the Android Pay bank list a week ago, but unlike the last time that it appeared on the list in May, this appears to be the real deal, though it's worth noting that not all of the bank's credit cards are currently supported. Still, this is a major addition to Google's payment system as it tries to compete with rivals like Apple Pay and Samsung Pay.

Without further ado, here's the new list of 30 US banks that support Android Pay (since Capital One was added last week, it's not on this list):

1. Bank Independent
2. Bank of Rantoul
3. Bank of the Pacific
4. Citizens Savings Bank
5. Colony Bank
6. Community Bank
7. Denver Fire Department FCU
8. Elmira Savings Bank
9. Federal Savings Bank
10. First Security Bank and Trust
11. Five Points Bank
12. Generations Community FCU
13. Great River FCU
14. HAPO Community Credit Union
15. Impact Bank
16. Kitsap Bank
17. Kleberg Bank
18. Midcoast FCU
19. Monona State Bank
20. Novation Credit Union
21. Palmetto Health Credit Union
22. Pinnacle Bank
23. Popular Community Bank
24. Red Rocks Credit Union
25. San Antonio Federal Credit Union
26. Seaside National Bank & Trust
27. Shell FCU
28. TheBANK of Edwardsville
29. TIAA-CREF Trust Company, FSB
30. Vons Employees Federal Credit Union

Has your bank been added to the updated Android Pay list in the US?

Get it from Google Play

from Android Authority http://www.androidauthority.com/android-pay-adds-30-us-banks-capital-one-support-727829/
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Google Home first impressions: It’ll get better

Google has been on a mission to make its way into the living room for years. The Nexus Q, Google's futuristic digital media player from 2012, was perhaps the company's first big push into the connected home space, though the device never actually made it to market before getting discontinued. Then in 2013, Google debuted the Chromecast – a small, affordable media streamer that's become one of the most popular Google-branded products to date. But with the debut of the Google Home connected speaker, the search giant is trying something a bit different.

Google Home is meant to be a jack-of-all-trades device. You can speak to it, ask it questions, tell it to add things to your grocery list, play music through it, and even tell it to turn off the lights. It can even talk to your Chromecast, Nest Thermostat and a few other IoT devices to make your life a bit easier.

But is this a device you actually need? We've been using Google Home for a few days now, and there are some things you should know before running out and buying one right away. Here are our first impressions on the new Google Home.

Related:

How to set up and use Google Home

2 days ago

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Build quality is great, for what it's worth

You probably won't be carrying around your Google Home too often, but it's worth noting Google's new smart speaker is very well built. Yes, it's made mostly of plastic, and it may look a little like an air freshener, but it blends in quite well no matter which room of the house it's in. It doesn't really look like a speaker, either, especially compared to its biggest competitor, the Amazon Echo.

If you're not a fan of the default White Slate model (the one we're reviewing), Google has a variety of base color options to choose from at the Google Store.

See also:

More Google Home base colors now available starting at $20

2 days ago

Sound quality is actually pretty good

Google Home is a connected speaker, after all, so sound quality better be good. And from what we've experienced thus far, it's very good.

Google Home has a total of four speakers, which can be found under the detachable speaker grill. Overall, when it comes to playing music or listening to podcasts, sound quality is actually really good. The speakers provide low bass and clear highs, and we haven't really experienced any major downfalls in the overall quality of sound.

Perhaps the only thing you should watch out for is turning the volume up too high. The sound starts to crackle quite a bit when the volume is turned up to max, but thankfully it has to get pretty high before this becomes a noticeable problem.

App support is limited, but Google Assistant helps make up for it

As of right now, Google Home only supports a handful of apps, and only about half of them are from third parties. Google Play Music, YouTube Music, Keep, Calendar and YouTube are all supported, and so are a handful of other third-party services like Spotify, Pandora and TuneIn. But just because an app is compatible with Google Assistant, that doesn't mean you get all the functionality out of that app that you'd expect.

Just because an app is compatible with Google Assistant, that doesn't mean you get all the functionality you'd expect.

Take Google Calendar, for instance. You can ask Google Assistant to give you a daily briefing based on the events in your calendar, but you can't actually add calendar events to your schedule using your voice, nor can you set reminders. If you think about it, this makes sense; you don't want everyone in your house adding random things to your calendar whenever they feel like it. We understand why this functionality isn't put in place yet, but it's still unfortunate that Google couldn't get this figured out before launch.

We would have really liked to see Google's own services be integrated a little better. Google Assistant is only able to add items to your shopping list in Google Keep, and asking what podcasts are available in Play Music is like pulling teeth, for instance.

If you have a favorite app that's not supported yet, though, you may be in luck – Google Assistant is also compatible with IFTTT, which means even though third-party app support is pretty scarce at the moment, IFTTT might be able to help bridge that gap. For instance, Twitter doesn't have Google Assistant support yet. However, you can still ask Google Assistant to post something to Twitter, as long as you have IFTTT set up. The same thing goes for other apps – want to add a task to Todoist? Just set it up in IFTTT, and Google Assistant will be able to add tasks whenever you ask it to.

For a full list of IFTTT channels compatible with Google Assistant, head here.

Related:

Which apps have Google Home support?

October 8, 2016

What really makes Google Home interesting is the handful of smart home apps and services that work with it

What really makes Google Home interesting is the handful of smart home apps and services that work with it. You can control your Nest Thermostat, Chromecast, Philips Hue lights or Samsung SmartThings devices all from your Google Home. Out of this list, most people are probably going to be using Google Home in conjunction with a Chromecast device, since smart thermostats and lightbulbs are still sort of niche products. Telling your Google Home to play a YouTube video on your living room Chromecast sounds really cool in theory, but it's sort of weird in practice at the moment. You basically need to know the name of the YouTube video you'd like to watch before you ask your Google Home to cast it, which isn't really the way people watch videos on the internet. We suppose it could be useful to ask Google Home "Play the latest video from Android Authority on my Chromecast", but for basically anything else, you'll want to just pull out your phone and cast it that way.

While app support isn't quite there yet, Google Assistant helps make up for it. We've particularly taken a liking to the My Day feature, which will walk you through the current weather conditions, work commute, your next meeting, your reminders and daily news.

Google Assistant in action

Pixel XL Review: A Pixel's Perspective

Google Pixel XL review: first 48...

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But the fact that you have Google's powerful Assistant on board is one of the best parts about this device. It's conversational, meaning you can talk to it, and it feels like there's actually someone on the other end talking back to you. It can do cutesy things like tell jokes and read you poems, but it can also perform Google searches, give you sports scores, and a lot more. Plus, it can also understand the context of multiple questions. So when you ask "How tall is the Empire State Building?", you can follow that up with "Where is it located?", and Google Assistant will know you're still talking about the Empire State Building.

Multiple account support isn't here yet

Me: "Hey Google, do you support multiple accounts?"

Google Assistant: "Sorry, I can't help with that yet… but I'm always learning."

If you're planning on buying one Google Home unit for the whole family to use, there are a few things you should know. Google Home only supports one Google account at a time, which is extremely limiting in practice. This means that if you set up your Google Home with your personal Google account, everything you do with Google Home will be associated with that account. So, if your significant other asks "Hey Google, what's on my agenda?", Google Home will only respond with a daily briefing based on your Google account. The same goes for traffic updates, too. If someone else asks Google Home about current traffic conditions, it will respond with traffic updates based on your driving routes.

When multiple accounts are supported, Google Home will be much more useful for families

Taking things one step further, any YouTube video played through your Chromecast (via Google Home voice command) will affect your future recommendations on YouTube. Any Google searches performed through Google Home will affect future article recommendations in your Google app feed, what advertisements are shown to you on certain websites, and even how Google Assistant interacts with you on your new Pixel or Pixel XL.

Don't miss:

Google Pixel XL review: a Pixel's perspective

2 weeks ago

There is one exception – Google Home does support multiple accounts with music services, but everything else will still be tied to your personal Google account. Sure, you can blacklist certain apps and services like Google Calendar or Gmail from being accessed by Google Home, but that means you need to switch it off completely, meaning nobody can access those services.

Note: There's a handy Google Home FAQ page here if you need more details on accounts and services.

Google Home is a pretty amazing product, but there's certainly room for improvement. What if, one day, Home would be able to tell the difference between each user, and associate different accounts and services based on who's talking? That's actually touched on in Google's FAQ page:

Currently, we don't have an ability to differentiate users by different voice patterns. Here's more about data security and privacy on Google Home.

While it isn't possible with this first iteration of Google Home hardware, it's probably going to happen sometime in the future. And when it does, Google Home will be much more useful for families.

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Google Home will be a great product, but right now it's just a good product. And as the list of third-party applications and services grow, so will the value Google Home brings to consumers. It might not change any lives just yet, but Google Home is a necessary step in creating a more connected home.

We'll have more nitty-gritty details for you in our full review, which will be here in a few days. But for now, tell us – have you used Google Home yet? If not, are you planning on buying one for yourself in the future? Let us know what you think in the comment section below.

from Android Authority http://www.androidauthority.com/google-home-mini-review-727297/
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Why program apps for Android XOR iOS when you can do both at once?

The AA Picks team is on the prowl for things we think our readers will value. If we make an affiliate partnership to reduce the costs of purchases, then we may see a share of revenue.

Mobile developers – especially those who love Android – often find themselves in a frustrating situation. They want to develop their apps for both iOS and Android, but it's just so much easier to choose one or the other. And often, iOS ends up snagging the priority.

The reason is simple. For iOS you only have to design with a handful of devices in mind, but when you build apps for Android, you have to take into account the colorful and diverse array of handsets and tablets running the OS. It can be daunting.

But what if it didn't have to be this way?

What if you had an environment that let you develop for both platforms at once with only minimal adjustments?

You may have heard of React Native before, but the idea of learning a whole new system when there's already so much on your plate may have turned you off. But here are two bits of good news: it's probably way easier than you think, and you don't have to go it alone.

Meet Stephen Grider. By education and career, Stephen is an Engineering Architect based out of San Francisco. He makes his trade building complex Javascript front ends for major corporations in the area, but he soon learned that he had a knack for teaching.

We've heard it described as "putting the cookies on the bottom shelf." Stephen is adept at expressing complicated ideas in simple terms, and he eventually found himself mentoring other engineers who were embarking on fresh careers in software development.

Now Stephen has established himself as one of the leading online course instructors in the field. Indeed, his 'Complete React Native and Redux' course is the highest rated React course currently available. It sports 4.7 stars out of 860 ratings.

Right now, Stephen's React Native course has 4,157 students enrolled. Stephen is against copying and pasting code on principle, so he wants to make sure that you understand what role each individual line serves. To do this, you'll create a series of increasingly complex apps cover authentication, Redux, and even animations.

What what else will you get?

• Create real-world native apps using React Native
• Make truly reusable components that look great
• Understand the terminology and concepts of Redux
• Prototype and deploy your own applications to the Apple and Google Play Stores
• Get up to speed with React design principles and methodologies
• Discover mobile design patterns used by experienced engineers

The course also comes with an entire git repository with all of the course's code for your reference and use. The course is designed such that the content that you create while learning will actually prove useful in future applications that you build on your own for fun and profit.

The package comes with lifetime access to course materials so that you can work through them at your own pace. That's 161 lectures spanning 17 hours of video tutorials. Stephen assumes you have at least some basic programming knowledge and passing familiarity with Java before diving in.

Still looking for that price tag?

With good reason. These kinds of resources and content rarely come cheap. However, now is one of those rare times.

Stephen's 'Complete React Native and Redux Course' would normally cost you $95, but right now Udemy is having a site-wide sale that knocks 80% off the listed price. That means you get lifetime access to the whole kit-and-kaboodle for only $19, no promo code necessary!

Cut your workload in half. There's no need to work hard, when you can work smart. Get yourself a React Native education and start building professional apps at twice the speed!

The Complete React Native and Redux Course

Learn something else: The best of Udemy's November sale

6 days ago

Disclosure: This offer is brought to you by AA Picks. Our purpose is to highlight products or services we think you as our readers might be interested in and, if you buy them, we may get a share of the revenue. We operate independently from our advertising sales team, and we welcome your feedback and questions. Email us at aapicks@androidauthority.com.

from Android Authority http://www.androidauthority.com/learn-react-native-727683/
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Buy a Galaxy S7 and get another free from T-Mobile this weekend

If you missed out on those buy one get one free offers floating around back at the Samsung Galaxy S7's launch, you'll be in with another chance soon. This weekend, T-Mobile is offering customs a second Galaxy S7 for free, sort of, when they buy a new Samsung flagship on the carrier's Equipment Installment Plan.

I say "sort of free" because the cost of the second handset is eventually returned through 24 months worth of call credits with a qualifying line, as is usually the way with these deals. As a bit of an added bonus, T-Mobile says that customers from other carriers can use this offer in conduction with its "Carrier Freedom" promotion. This sees T-Mobile cover the costs of you switching carrier up to a value of $650 per line via trade-in credit and a prepaid Mastercard.

To quality, customers can opt for the T-Mobile ONE package, which starts at $70 per month for the first line and offers unlimited calls, texts, and 4G LTE data. Sadly, there's no mention of whether this deal applies to the Galaxy S7 edge as well, so we'll have to assume that it doesn't.

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T-Mobile will be running this buy one get one free deal starting from Friday November 11th at 6:00 am PT through to Sunday November 13th at 11:59 pm PT. You can pick up your offer through T-Mobile's website or in stores nationwide.

from Android Authority http://www.androidauthority.com/t-mobile-bogof-galaxy-s7-offer-727814/
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Snapchat World Lenses update brings augmented reality to the messaging app

The latest Snapchat update introduces an augmented reality component known as World Lenses which, once activated, overlay digital effects into the real world.

World Lenses features seven AR effects including a simulation of snowfall, a torch animation which illuminates a scene, and something inspired by the 'puking rainbows' meme.

To make use of effects, simply switch to the rear-facing camera perspective in the Snapchat app and tap on the display: the animations will pop up in circular tiles at the bottom.

New Snapchat update brings AR into the world around you. It's (unsurprisingly) pretty cool! http://pic.twitter.com/tMuaMpJpHZ

— Sean O'Kane (@sokane1) November 8, 2016

The update arrives ahead of the release of Snapchat's new AR glasses, Spectacles. The glasses, which will go on sale for $129.99, can connect to Snapchat and record short videos through an 115-degree lens. Support for Spectacles was also added in the latest Snapchat update.

You can download Snapchat for free in the Google Play Store and let us know how you like the new effects in the comments.

from Android Authority http://www.androidauthority.com/snapchat-world-lenses-augmented-reality-727808/
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Samsung is still working on that foldable smartphone

Samsung has reportedly been working on a foldable smartphone for many years now, and it seems that the company is still refreshing its ideas. A new batch of renders for a patent application published earlier today give us perhaps our best look yet at how such a folding smartphone might work.

The selection of images show a central hinge point that is located half way along the phone's display. This then allows the phone to bend slightly, making it a more ergonomic fit in the hand and which may be especially convenient for phone calls. This hinge can be extended further still to essentially fold the phone in half for easy portability. Although the two displays don't appear to rest flat against each other when closed.

Unfortunately, as this is a patent application there's no indication that such a design is going to appear in a consumer smartphone any time soon. Although Samsung has previously suggested that flexible handsets aren't that far away, and whisperings point to a possible unveiling of the company's first bendable smartphone at MWC 2017. Samsung isn't the only company working on bendable phones though, we've already gone hands on with Lenovo's concept handset.

See also:

Lenovo foldable smartphone and tablet concept hands on

June 10, 2016

It's seems very unlikely that this design is in anyway related to next year's Galaxy S8 flagship, as Samsung won't risk alienating existing fans with an entirely new design. Instead, we're probably looking at a limited concept Galaxy release more along the lines of the LG G Flex, if this or a similar design ever actually ends up coming to the market.

A foldable smartphone from Samsung would certainly be an exciting new announcement, but it remains to be seen if it would be a market game changer. What do you think about the design?

from Android Authority http://www.androidauthority.com/samsung-foldable-smartphone-patent-727784/
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