Articles about Smartphone

Take your phone with you wherever you go, and you can use it to get your laptop online thanks to the wonder of tethering. This seemingly simple technological marvel is a delight for people working away from the home or office, and Google is now making things easier than ever with Instant Tethering.

The new feature is rolling out to some Android devices now, and it takes the 'hard work' out of creating a hotspot with your phone to which your other devices can connect. As the name suggests, the aim is to make the connection instantly.

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You may have seen our story earlier today about the worrying permissions used by photo app Meitu -- and you have almost certainly seen the disturbing images created in the app and shared on Facebook. The company behind the app -- also called Meitu -- has jumped to defend itself, insisting there is nothing sinister going on.

The company insists that there is a very good reason for asking for so many permissions on iOS and Android. It insists there is a very good reason for gathering so much information about users. It insists this data is stored securely and is not shared with or sold to third parties. The defense is worth reading, but whether users are happy to accept what the company says about transmitting collected data back to a Chinese server remains to be seen.

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Samsung started the Android Nougat roll-out for the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge last week, but only members of the Galaxy Beta Program could get it right away. That changes today, as Samsung is finally making the much-awaited update available to more users, starting in China and UK.

After installing the hefty Android Nougat update on my Galaxy S7 edge, it became immediately clear that Samsung has put in a lot of effort to deliver a much more user-friendly experience. Its skin is much improved over what we had before on Android Marshmallow, packing lots of nice changes, both visual and under the hood. It is not perfect, but there is lots more to like now.

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Samsung announced in late-December that it would release Android Nougat for the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge in January. And it has lived up to its promise, as the much-awaited software update is now rolling out for the two flagships.

At the time of writing this article, the official Android Nougat update is only available for Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge users who joined the Galaxy Beta Program, but it is expected to be rolled out to more customers in the following days.

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HTC has a serious problem: it cannot deliver a flagship worth getting excited about. A while back, the company at least tried to do things differently, to get consumers talking, but lately it seems happy just to have a new high-end smartphone on the market -- even if everyone knows it's way behind the competition.

Last year's flagship, called HTC 10, was better than its most-recent predecessors, but it failed to stand out against devices like Apple's iPhone 6s and Samsung's Galaxy S7. So no one cared about it. This year's HTC U Ultra is no different -- it's probably the most uninspiring device in its segment. How disappointing.

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Apple traditionally enjoys very strong iPhone sales after it launches new smartphones. And this is certainly true of the three months ending November 2016, when the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus topped the sales charts in US and helped iOS close in on Android in Great Britain.

In US, it is actually an all-iPhone podium, with the iPhone 6s joining the newer models in the top three, according to a new Kantar Worldpanel ComTech report. Apple saw its share rise to 43.5 percent, while Google's Android dropped to 55.3 percent of the market.

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After apologies and updates to kill batteries, it would appear that Samsung has managed to convince most customers to part with their faulty Galaxy Note 7s -- in the US, at least. As a result of this, the Department of Transport has announced that airlines no longer need to warn passengers that taking the phone on planes is prohibited.

Airline passengers were banned from taking their Note7s on flights back in October; the ban remains in place, but the Federal Aviation Authority now believes that the issue gained so much publicity that it no longer needs to be advertised.

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Today we arrive at the first of two 10-year anniversaries regarding iPhone: Steve Jobs unveiling the handset six months before its release -- unusual for Apple's then-CEO to pre-announce something, but necessary, with the federal regulatory rigmarole that cellular devices go through. Jobs and his management team brought the smartphone to market at great risk: Established and entrenched manufacturers, mainly Nokia, had huge distribution channels and massive amounts of research and development invested in their cellulars. iPhone debuted in one market (United States) and on a single carrier (AT&T, which concurrently rebranded). By most measures of business strategies: Insanity. But risk was a defining characteristic of Jobs' leadership style running the company.

You will read many "state of iPhone" analyses and commentaries this week spotlighting slowing sales, as buying growth plateaus in major markets (China, Europe, and the United States) and observing that Android continues to gobble global market share. The problem with iPhone is something else, and it's a metaphor for what's desperately wrong at Apple as 2017 starts: Loss of innovative mindshare; obsession with an outdated design motif; unwillingness to take meaningful risks. The company's fortunes rose with iPhone, and they will fall with it.

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Google Doodles are fun little additions to Google search that highlight major events in history, important birthdays and so on. Unless you make a point of hitting Google every day, you could easily miss one of the many animations, images and games that are added throughout the year. Until now.

While there is more than one way to find out if there is a new Google Doodle -- as well as checking the Google homepage, you can also follow the Google Doodles Twitter account -- Google has only just got round to providing notifications. Here's how to receive a message on your phone when a new Doodle is posted.

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Smartphones are great for doing a spot of work in a pinch, but they aren’t really a substitute for a laptop.

The Mirabook solves this problem by giving your smartphone all the capabilities of a laptop, including a large full HD screen, a keyboard, touchpad, additional storage, and a high capacity battery.

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Welcoming the new year with a trumpet of doom, WhatsApp is bringing misery to many users. If you're using old versions of iOS, Android or -- heaven forbid -- Windows Phone 7, Facebook's popular messaging tool no longer works.

There is a brief stay of execution for anyone still packing a BlackBerry, but as of June 30 these will also be cut off. WhatsApp says that "BlackBerry OS, BlackBerry 10, Nokia S40 and Nokia Symbian S60" will stop working by the middle of the year, but it is the hundreds of thousands of Android and iOS users that will be hardest hit.

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When you install apps from Google Play, you'll be notified whenever an update is available. If you have opted to side-load apps from other sources, however, this update notification is not available, leaving you having to keep manually checking for new versions.

This is, of course, a massive pain in the derriere, and far too much like hard work. Install APKUpdater, and your side-loaded apps will be kept up to date just like those from more official sources. Here's what you need to know.

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We are less than 48 hours into 2017, and Samsung is already on the ball with a series of new smartphone announcements. Kicking things off for the new year is the updated Galaxy A series -- comprising the Galaxy A7, Galaxy A5, and Galaxy A3.

Available in Black Sky, Gold Sand, Blue Mist and Peach Cloud, the handsets feature 5.7-, 5.2- and 4.7-inch screens respectively. The main focus of the product line refresh is the enhanced camera, but Samsung also highlights the metal frame and 3D glass back which it says draws on the company's "premium design heritage".

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OnePlus announced in November that it would release Android Nougat for its latest flagship killers by the end of 2016. And it has kept its promise, as the much-awaited update will reach OnePlus 3T and OnePlus 3 units starting today.

CEO Carl Pei revealed on Twitter that Android Nougat will be gradually rolling out on December 31 and that, indeed, it is a "stable" build -- not a preview, like OnePlus publicly released for OnePlus 3 users to test.

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Samsung introduced the Galaxy Beta Program in November to give Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge users in select markets the option to beta test the upcoming Android Nougat update. Four builds have seen the light of day so far, but there will not be a fifth -- the program closes today.

The Android Nougat betas have been well received, with users reporting a solid user experience and few major issues. So, as a result, Samsung is moving on to the next phase, putting the final touches on the much-awaited upgrade. The company expects it to be ready for prime time soon, announcing that it will release Android Nougat for Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge in January.

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