Cult of Android - page 5

5 ways the Galaxy S7 beats the iPhone 6s

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Samsung-Galaxy
Yup, water-resistance is one of them!
Photo: Samsung
Yup, water-resistance is one of them. Photo: Samsung
Yup, water-resistance is one of them. Photo: Samsung

As the iPhone’s biggest rivals, Samsung’s latest Galaxy smartphones have to be good enough to convince consumers that they’re a better buy. None do that better than the new Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge.

According to the overwhelmingly positive reviews published today, the duo have a number of big advantages over the iPhone 6s. Here are 7 of them.

Smartphone fingerprint scanners fooled by inkjet printer

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It’s as easy as that!
Photo: Michigan State University
inkjet fingerprint
It’s as easy as that! Photo: Michigan State University

Your fingerprint is supposed to be the most secure method of locking your smartphone, but that’s not the case if your device can be easily fooled. Researchers have been able to hack those from Samsung and Huawei using only an inkjet printer and conductive ink.

iPhone 6s destroys brand new Galaxy S7 in speed test

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The S7 Edge shows that on-paper specs aren't everything!
Photo: Evan Blass
The S7 Edge shows that on-paper specs aren't everything! Photo: Evan Blass
The S7 Edge shows that on-paper specs aren’t everything! Photo: Evan Blass

Samsung’s new Galaxy S7 edge isn’t officially out until later this week, but according to some early out-of-the-box speed test comparisons it’s doesn’t fare too well against the six-month-old iPhone 6s Plus — despite having twice the RAM of Apple’s 2GB handset.

Check out the video below:

Galaxy S7’s camera is so good, it makes DSLRs look bad

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Galaxy S7 continues to amaze. Photo: Samsung
Galaxy S7 continues to amaze. Photo: Samsung

We’ve already watched the Galaxy S7 batter the iPhone 6s in a series of camera tests, but how well does it stack up against a professional DSLR? When it comes to phase detection autofocus, surprisingly well, actually.

See Samsung’s new smartphone make the Nikon 70D look bad in the mind-blowing autofocus test below.

Amazon’s new approach to encryption is the exact opposite of what you’d expect

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You might want to avoid Amazon's Fire OS 5 update.
Photo: TechSmart/Flickr CC

While Apple is embroiled in an ugly battle with the FBI in the hope that it can protect the privacy and security of its users, Amazon is throwing away the encryption it previously offered its own.

With its latest Fire OS 5 update, the company has removed the ability to encrypt data on its Fire tablets.

Google’s next Nexus to rip off iPhone’s 3D Touch

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3D Touch is awesome on iPhone 6s.
Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android
3D Touch is awesome on iPhone 6s. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android
3D Touch is awesome on iPhone 6s. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android

Google’s next-generation Nexus smartphone will adopt the iPhone’s 3D Touch technology, according to an “insider” familiar with the company’s plans. It’s thought HTC will be tasked with building the device, and it should arrive later this year.

Samsung won’t commit to supporting Apple in FBI standoff

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Samsung supports Apple... kind of.
Photo: Kārlis Dambrāns/Flickr CC
apple-samsung-iphone-galaxy-patent-war
Samsung supports Apple… kind of. Photo: Kārlis Dambrāns/Flickr CC

Chiming in on one of the biggest tech stories of the year, Samsung says that customer privacy is “extremely important to it” and argues against software backdoors — but won’t totally commit to supporting Apple, either.

New torture tests pit Galaxy S7 edge against iPhone 6s Plus

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Samsung's IP68 rating keeps it usable and safe underwater, but not so much when it gets dropped. Photo: EverythingApplePro/YouTube
Samsung’s IP68 rating keeps it usable and safe underwater, but not so much when it gets dropped. Photo: EverythingApplePro/YouTube

In the endless battle for supremacy between Apple and Samsung, the Korean company has leaped ahead of Cupertino when it comes to water-resistance. But the iPhone 6s Plus still reigns supreme in terms of shatter-resistance.

A YouTuber set the new Samsung Galaxy S7 edge next to an Apple iPhone 6s Plus in a big deep tub of water, then dropped them both from different heights, and the results are pretty predictable (yet still fun to watch).

The results definitely aren’t pretty.

Switch-hitting cord flips from Lightning to micro USB

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LMcable Kickstarter
The LMcable can connect to most of the stuff you own. Source: LMcable

It might sound like the black-and-white portion of a late-night informercial, but the fact is that we have a lot of stuff that needs charging and syncing, and not every cable will work. But the LMcable, which is currently seeking support on crowdfunding site Kickstarter, aims to take some of that pain away.

It’s a cool idea: One end of the LMcable is a standard USB plug that fits into your computer or wall adapter. The business end, however, is a multitasker. Orient it one way, and it’s a micro USB bit; flip it over, and it fits the Lightning port standard to Apple’s mobile devices. And anything that might help out our increasingly tangle-prone cord storage is alright by us.

Google Photos now lets you edit your snaps online

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Google Photos
Filters! Finally! Screenshot: Killian Bell/Cult of Android

Google Photos users can finally edit their images on the web, thanks to new browser-based tools that are available today.

The update sidesteps the need to use a third-party editing app to apply filters, effects, and other modifications — and allows you to view your images on a larger screen while perfecting them.

Amazon Echo will now keep you up-to-date on election news

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Amazon Echo
Maybe just go with your brain, too, when you hit the voting booth.
Photo: NBC News

Keeping up with the latest information on the current presidential election just got easier if you’re an Amazon Echo owner.

NBC News has created a new “skill” for Alexa, the Echo’s virtual assistant: Now Alexa can read you top election headlines, candidate bios, election calendar events, and even the latest delegate counts.

Let’s see Siri do that, eh?

Pebble Time, Time Round get permanent $50 price cuts

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Pebble Time now starts at under $200.
Photo: Pebble
Pebble Time
Pebble Time now starts at under $200. Photo: Pebble

Pebble has slashed $50 off its latest Time and Time Round smartwatches.

The permanent price cut lowers the starting prices of these models to $149.99 and $199.99, respectively — and makes them more competitive against other affordable wearables from the likes of Asus, Fitbit, and Jawbone.

PS4 Remote Play is coming soon to Mac and PC

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Prepare your PC for PS4 Remote Play.
Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android
PS4 Remote Play
Prepare your PC for PS4 Remote Play. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android

Playing PlayStation 4 games on your Mac or Windows PC will soon be possible thanks to Remote Play. Sony has confirmed the feature is making its way to desktops soon as it looks to catch up with Xbox One’s close relationship with Windows 10.

Android Pay is taking its fight against Apple Pay international

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Android Pay is expanding its reach.
Photo: Google
Android Pay is expanding its reach. Photo: Google
Android Pay is expanding its reach. Photo: Google

Android Pay, which made its debut in the U.S. just five months ago, is already gearing up to take its fight against Apple Pay international.

The U.K. will be the second market served by Google’s mobile payments system, according to a new report — and Britons will be able to sign up by the end of March.

Samsung may take on Apple Music by acquiring Tidal

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Apple Music
Apple Music
Apple Music's competition might be changing owners. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android
Apple Music’s competition might be changing owners. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android

Tidal, the high fidelity music streaming service owned by Jay Z, has been struggling to compete with Spotify and Apple Music, but according to a new report Samsung is planning to throw the fledgling company a lifeline with a new acquisition deal.

Galaxy S7 jacks iPhone’s front-facing flash feature

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Get better selfies with the Galaxy S7.
Photo: Samsung
Galaxy S7
Get better selfies with the Galaxy S7. Photo: Samsung

Samsung’s new Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge have a front-facing flash feature that helps you shoot brighter selfies, but it doesn’t come from an extra LED. Instead, the new devices have stolen the same trick Apple uses on iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus.

Xiaomi shames iPhone by showing off new image stabilization tech

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Mi 5’s new camera is a-Mi-zing.
Photo: Xiaomi
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Mi 5’s new camera is a-Mi-zing. Photo: Xiaomi

Xiaomi’s brand new Mi 5 handset boasts a revolutionary new image stabilization technology, and there’s no better way to showcase that than by shaming the iPhone.

In the video below, Xiaomi pits the Mi 5 against the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus in an optical image stabilization test — and makes them look downright disappointing.

Forget ‘Likes,’ Facebook gives you 5 new emotions to play with

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Now you can do more than just Like that funny video.
Photo: Facebook
Now you can do more than just Like that funny video. Photo: Facebook
Now you can do more than just Like that funny video. Photo: Facebook

Seven years to the month after Facebook first added a “like” button, the social network has finally acknowledged that there may be emotions other than a vague sense of approval by introducing a range of new emoticons — although, sadly, the much-requested “dislike” is not among them.

Facebook users now have the option of responding to posts with six reactions, including “Like,” “Love,” “Ha Ha,” “Wow,” “Sad” or “Angry.” These are available on both the Facebook website and mobile apps.

iPhone’s perfect ports don’t make up for all the missing features

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Galaxy S7 is pretty, powerful, and packing huge improvements.
Give me a Galaxy S7 over an iPhone 6s... please!
Photo: Samsung
Give me a Galaxy S7 over an iPhone 6s... please!. Photo: Samsung
Give me a Galaxy S7 over an iPhone 6s… please! Photo: Samsung

Samsung is under fire again from iPhone fans for its apparent lack of attention to detail when designing the new Galaxy S7 and S7 edge. Apparently, the fact that the ports don’t line up on the bottom of these devices automatically means they’re not as good as Apple’s.

But it’s total rubbish.

Fertility study accuses your phone of spermicide

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Sorry, guys: We have some bad news for your berries.
Photo: Holger Schué/Pixabay

We were already worried about keeping hotel keycards in the same pocket as our cell phones, but it turns out that our devices might be erasing some slightly more important things. Namely, men’s sperm.

In a new study, fertility experts claim that men who keep their mobiles anywhere near their reproductive organs — in their front pants pocket, for example — “may bear adverse effects on sperm concentration.” The scientists also found some correlations between lower sperm counts and talking on the phone for more than one hour a day and using the phone while it is charging.