Samsung Galaxy A devices (2016) will get updated to Android 7.0 Nougat

It's common — and expected — for a manufacturer to release Android updates for its high-end and flagship smartphones. But unfortunately, some mid-range devices get overlooked all too often when it comes to these things.

Updates are important for most users, regardless of how much money they have spent on their new smartphone. Samsung knows this, and that's why it has decided to update the entire 2016 Galaxy A lineup. According to the report from SamMobile, the South Korean giant will be releasing the Nougat update for the Galaxy A3, Galaxy A5, Galaxy A7, Galaxy A8, Galaxy A9, and Galaxy A9 Pro.

The exact time frame as to when the devices will be updated to the latest and greatest Android 7.0 Nougat remains a mystery for now. But we can safely say that we don't expect to see the update this year.

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It will most likely hit the above-mentioned devices sometime next year, only after Samsung updates its more popular models, like the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge. But fear not. As soon as the biggest smartphone manufacturer in the world starts rolling out the Nougat updates for its Galaxy A series of devices, we'll be sure to let you guys know. Stay tuned.

Any Samsung Galaxy A owners out there? Are you excited to hear that your device will get the Nougat treatment? As always, let us know by posting a comment below.

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Plex Cloud now supports Google Drive, DropBox and OneDrive

Plex has added support for Google Drive, DropBox and OneDrive to its cloud service. Users can now upload and store files on one of the aforementioned platforms and then access them through the Plex Cloud interface.

Plex Cloud, like the other services mentioned above, seeks to provide quick-and-easy access to content accessible across a number of devices. Plex sets itself apart with its software, however, which automatically retrieves information about your files – such as album art or posters, lyrics, descriptions etc. – and its streaming functionality, which eliminates the need for a physical server in your home or Networked Attached Storage (NAS) devices.

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Plex Cloud launched in September and relied exclusively on use with Amazon's Cloud service to function. Having run into "technical challenges", the developers have subsequently broadened the range of compatible products.

Plex Cloud is still in closed beta (you'll need to register for an invite to take part) and costs $5 per month or $40 per year, in addition to whatever you pay for the storage host. Download it for Android from the Google Play Store here.

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Telltale announces Guardians of the Galaxy series, shows off new Walking Dead season

Telltale Games has revealed its plans for a Guardians of the Galaxy series. The announcement was made on-stage at The Game Awards yesterday before Telltale divulged a few details about the project via its blog.

Titled Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy: The Telltale Series, Telltale Co-Founder and CEO Kevin Bruner said that players would have the opportunity to "take on multiple roles within the ragtag band of heroes, and take the pilot's seat in directing their escapades around the universe." Telltale plans to release the first episode of the five-part season in 2017 on "consoles, PC, and mobile devices".

Meanwhile, Telltale also offered an extended first look at the latest entry in its Walking Dead series, A New Frontier. Check it out in the trailer below.

The first two of five episodes in the series, which takes place four years after the outbreak events of season one, will go live on December 20 on Android and other platforms. "The Walking Dead: A New Frontier will act as a new beginning for players fresh to the series and unfamiliar with Clementine [the previous games' protagonist], as well as a continuation for players who have experienced Seasons One and Two," said Telltale.

Telltale has previously created games series for franchises including Minecraft, Game of Thrones and Batman.

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Action Launcher 3 beta update brings more customization options

Launchers are quite popular with Android users. They change the look and feel of your device and make it more fun to play around with. Action Launcher 3 is one of the more popular ones you can get your hands on and has been downloaded on millions of devices across the globe.

In hopes of keeping up with the latest trends and users happy, Action Launcher 3 has recently received its December beta update. It offers quite a few new features that will enhance the user experience.

Starting with the design changes, the launcher now has a new "Round (exclude white plates )" icon style, which imitates the look of the newest version of Android. It also brings Quicktheme support for customizing page indicator color, multiple dock pages, new page indicator styles and offers infinite home/dock page scrolling.

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Keep in mind that the update is currently only available for the beta version of the app. But we assume that it will hit the stable build sometime this month. The update also requests a few extra permissions that are currently unused but will be used in the final release.

If you're currently using Action Launcher 3, do tell us how you feel about it in the comment section. If you don't have it installed on your mobile device yet, feel free to download it by clicking the button below.

Action Launcher 3

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LG appoints new CEO to revitalize its mobile business

Despite releasing some very capable hardware this year, LG's mobile division hasn't been performing particularly well lately. Although the V20 looks to be off to a strong start in the US, the launch of the G5 earlier in the year saw a 23 percent drop in mobile sales in the previous quarter, which is pretty much a full blown disaster for a flagship manufacturer. To help steer LG's mobile division to brighter horizons, the company is appointing CEO Jo Seong-jin to head up the business.

LG announced a management reshuffle on Thursday, in which the company eliminated its triple-CEO structure and promoted Jo as sole CEO of the mobile business. Jo had previously headed up LG's home and appliance unit since 2013 and oversaw a 25 percent boost to the company's operating profit last year. Despite the reshuffle, LG Electronic's mobile chief Cho Juno will retain his position into next year.

"LG Electronics decided to name Jo as our new sole CEO in recognition for his charismatic decision-making in recent years to launch innovative new products, and his performance has been proven in quarterly earnings," – LG Electronics official.

The reshuffle comes after LG's mobile division reported an operating loss in six consecutive quarters, since Q2 2015. Although much of the focus has been on LG's flagship G5 and V20 releases this year, the company's strategy for the lower end market hasn't been working out either. Budget smartphone launches in the US have failed to grab a significant market share and has ended up worsening the division's profitability at a time when the G5 also posted weak sales.

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LG clearly needs to try something a little different next year, and the G6 flagship is rumored to be packing in plenty of bells and whistles. Hopefully Jo Seong-jin will oversee a return to LG's prime in the mobile market.

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Mods could bring 5G data to the Moto Z series

The Moto Z appears to have been a successful handset for Lenovo this year, and the company is looking to extend the handset's life cycle with more modes for the range over the next year. A new 3,000mAh Mophie battery pack that's available from Verizon will be heading out to more regions, and there are plans for an Incipio car dock charger with a 3.5mm audio output connection too.

Alongside these additions, John Touvannas, senior director of product management at the company, believes that we could eventually see secondary e-ink displays, a baby monitor, and even a 5G modem appear in the Moto Mods line-up in the future.

"Without having to wait for the next-gen phone that can bring the next technology or capability, we can get to that quicker through the mod," – John Touvannas, Motorola/Lenovo

The prospect of something like a 5G modem being available via a modular extension is interesting, as it could mean that customers won't have to upgrade to an entirely new phone for faster data speeds. Motorola's mods can communicate via USB 3.1, as well as to the phone's image and display processors, which would technically be fast enough to handle faster data coming in at 5G speeds. Although the form factor of such an accessory would need to be sleek enough for users to carry round, say a back panel with the required radio antennas and modem. Verizon, a close partner with Motorola, plans to begin its 5G trials in mid 2017.

While some are still sceptical that modular smartphones are nothing more than a gimmick, Motorola's research suggests that around half of all Moto Z owners make use of at least one mod. The battery mod seems the most popular, with users clocking in 37 hours of typical use. 20 percent of users have even stumped up for the expensive camera and projector mods, with the latter being used 10 hours a week on average.

The good news is that Motorola is actively pursuing new mod ideas, rather than letting the idea flounder through a lack of development like a certain competitor. The company is running hackathons and an Indiegogo campaign to entice third-party developers, and the Motorola aims to bring out four new mods each quarter starting from the middle of 2017.

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Popular app Airdroid is riddled with security holes

AirDroid is a popular remote access management tool for Android devices that allows you to check the latest notifications, send and receive messages, and access files directly from your computer. According to the data on Google Play, the app has been downloaded between 10 and 50 million times.

But despite being useful as well as popular, it does have a major problem. Back in May, the security company Zimperium discovered a number of security issues in AirDroid. And although the developer has acknowledged them, the issues are still present in the latest version of the app, six months later.

According to Zimperium, an attacker on the same network would be able to intercept the request check for add-on updates and send a malicious, fraudulent APK to the user's device. In addition, the attacker could also gain full access to the device and see user sensitive data including, among others, the email address and passwords.

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In the official report posted on its website, Zimperium wrote, "AirDroid relies on insecure communication channels in order to send the same data used to authenticate the device to their statistics server. Such requests are encrypted with DES (ECB mode) however, the encryption key is hardcoded inside the application itself (thus known to an attacker). Any malicious party on the same network of the target device could execute a man in the middle attack in order to obtain authentication credentials and impersonate the user for further requests."

It's sad to see that the developer hasn't fixed this major security issue despite knowing about it for around six months. Security should be a priority for every developer. Let's just hope that it will be sorted out with the next update. Until then, we advise you to stop or at least limit the use of the app. Safety first.

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