Sometimes, an Amazon Echo Dot or an Amazon Tap might make more sense, considering that they cost less and are nearly identical in terms of functionality. The big differentiator between the Amazon Echo Dot and the Amazon Tap is the fact that the Echo Dot doesn’t have much of audio prowess on its own, and needs to stay plugged in at all time. That said, the Tap has one advantage over the Amazon Echo Dot, and one major disadvantage compared to the the Amazon Echo. For most people, we’d say the Amaz

In a move we admit we never saw coming, Sony is getting back in the record cutting game and making vinyl albums for the first time in nearly- 30 years. The Japanese music/gaming/technology mega-corp will resume domestic vinyl production starting in March 2018 using a factory based in the Shizuoka Prefecture, according to Nikkei Asian Review. It’s not just older music fans that have kept vinyl from going extinct. “A lot of young people buy songs that they hear and love on streaming services,” Son

Facebook’s internet-beaming autonomous drone Aquila has completed a successful second full-scale test flight, the company announced today. While the solar-powered aircraft, designed to fly non-stop for 60-90 days at high altitudes, flew once before, the first flight ended in a crash landing. This second flight took place on May 22 and lasted one hour and 46 minutes. Facebook didn’t provide a peak altitude, but said the craft reached at least 3,000 feet before continuing to climb. Aquila’s flight

To help data-conscious Android owners stay below their cap, Google is offering its newest experimental app, Triangle. Currently undergoing testing in the Philippines, Triangle lets you see exactly how much data you’re using and which apps are demanding the biggest shares. For prepaid members of Globe or Smart, two major telecoms in the Philippines, Triangle gets a lot more interesting. In addition to tracking usage and Data Saver, members also get to check their prepaid data balance and even ear

Google is the latest to join the mid-year bargain bonanza (see: here, here and here), today launching its Google Play summer sale. This means massive discounts on movies, apps, games, music, TV shows and books. During the summer sale, music lovers can nab a free four-month subscription to Google Play Music(two months free in Australia). Like movies, full seasons of Google Play TV shows are also seeing prices drop to $0.99/£0.99/AU$0.99 as well as some show prices being slashed completely in half

Apple promised it would drop the public beta for macOS High Sierra this week and it’s finally here at long last. The early version of Apple’s latest operating system for Macs is available to download now, all you have to do is follow through this link, enroll your devices and follow our how to install guide. High Sierra is the second installment of macOS – since the name change from OS X – and it brings some big changes including a completely new APFS-based file system that replaces the aging HF

Really though, this was just an excuse that I swallowed to hide that I didn’t have enough money to buy an iPhone. So, color me surprised that in less than five years following the debut of the first iPhone, I had finally caved and purchased my first iPhone, the iPhone 4S. Then two years after that, I bought my second iPhone, the iPhone 5S. After only a little time, the subsidized smartphone business model had wedged its way into my circadian clock of purchases. I’ll never forget how the iPhone s

As the Steam Summer Sale rages on and PlayStation players enjoy Sony’s Mid-Year Sale, Microsoft is jumping off the savings sidelines to attract frugal gamers of its own. The sale begins Friday, June 30, and runs all the way until Monday, July 10 — four days longer than Ultimate Game Sales from years’ past. In addition to console games, Microsoft is cutting prices on Windows 10 PC titles like Resident Evil 7, Gears of War 4, and Halo Wars 2. Finally, Microsoft is running a few extra promotions du

Amazon is giving users a $10 credit to be spent on Amazon Prime Day through a new promotion. Here’s the deal: the Amazon Prime Day 2017 date is Tuesday, July 11. If you’re not currently an Amazon Prime member, you can sign up and then take advantage of the promotion. You can peruse the entire Amazon Prime Video selection here, or keep an eye out for videos with a ‘Prime’ label on them. If you like the idea of $10 off your Amazon Prime Day purchases, you have until July 7 to get the credit.

However, a new Kickstarter is offering a nifty innovation on this front by bringing number pad functionality to the MacBook. Or more specifically, to the MacBook’s trackpad. Once fitted on the trackpad, you just need to install and fire up the companion app, then you can use the full range of number pad functionality. Currently, Nums has early bird orders starting at $32 (£25, AU$42), which is for the 13-inch MacBook Air, 12-inch MacBook, and 13-inch and 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro version. Those

Facebook Messenger is in an interesting stage of its existence, in the same week it launched a collection of fun Snapchat-style video add-ons and Discover, where you can find and communicate with businesses. It makes sense for Messenger to be integrating businesses into the platform, as currently there doesn’t seem to be a way for Facebook to monetize the platform. We were invited to a roundtable with David Marcus, head of Messenger for Facebook where we were able to discuss this with him. Marcu

Samsung’s Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus are two of the best phones on the market in 2017, and there are a variety of accessories you can buy to protect and improve your smartphone experience. That means it’s specifically designed for either the Galaxy S8 or Galaxy S8 Plus so you know it’ll fit and work with your phone perfectly. Then for when you’re on the go you can use the Samsung Battery Pack – in either Navy Blue or Grey – that offers 5,100mAh of extra battery. That will charge up the Galaxy

These are the top WhatsApp tips and tricksHow to send GIFs in WhatsApp on AndroidTo send GIFs on Android you’ll have to really dig deep, as it’s not at all obvious how to do it. Press on that, and you’ll see a selection of GIFs pulled directly from the service Tenor GIFs. How to send GIFs in WhatsApp on iOSIt’s not easy to find GIFs in WhatsApp on iOS either. Press here and you’ll be able to search for whatever GIFs you want to send. Then just tap on the GIF you wish the send, and you’ll be able

An astonishing amount of folks running Windows are planning to switch over to what Microsoft would consider the dark side – namely a Mac computer – according to some new research. The survey from Verto Analytics, which encompassed 6,000 Windows PC owners in the US, found that no less than 25% of those with Windows desktop computers were planning to migrate to a macOS machine – and to do so within the next six months. And the figure wasn’t much smaller when it came to Windows laptop owners, with

AMD has unveiled its new Ryzen Pro desktop processors, aiming to bring speedy performance, as well as security and reliability to business PCs. The Pro range mirrors the consumer Ryzen CPUs, with baseline offerings being named the Ryzen 3 Pro, which steps up to the Ryzen 5 Pro, with the top-of-the-line processors being the Ryzen 7 Pro. With the Ryzen 5 Pro 1600, AMD has gone with six-cores (12-threads) and a clock speed of 3.2GHz/3.6GHz. Pricing hasn’t yet been talked about, but AMD says that th

And – indeed – those phone reviewers have never given an iPhone a five-star write-up. And here’s the crux: why is the iPhone the coolest phone? You don’t need to be the best when it comes to features, you don’t need a shiny gimmick or a better camera. You certainly don’t need to be the cheapest, or come out of the left-field like an obscure indie band on the undercard at Glastonbury. For me, the iPhone, even without fundamental changes, has a swagger and a confidence that no other phone can matc

The follow-up to the world’s thinnest smartphone, the Moto Z, is on its way – and we now have a better idea of what its specs are going to be. Thanks to reputable tech leaker Evan Blass we’ve known the Moto Z2 has been coming since April, but now the phone has appeared on benchmarking site GFXBench, and it’s looking a lot like a flagship device. The screen looks to be the same as the Moto Z at 5.5 inches, with a resolution of 2560 x 1440, making it a QHD competitor for the Samsung Galaxy S8, whi

We’ve already seen what features Apple has put into iOS 11, so now it’s time to explore the little and big ways iOS 11 can make your Apple life even lovelier. These are our favorite iOS 11 tips and tricks that we think you need to know about. In addition, you can free up storage by enabling iCloud sync for Messages in Settings > Messages > Messages on iCloud and by deleting message attachments from the same page. Zoom in on MapsYou’re familiar with pinching to zoom in and out, but in iOS 11 the

The title I’ve decided to focus on for Throwback Thursday, however, is Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup. Curious releaseQuidditch World Cup was released during a lull period for the Harry Potter films and sticks out as an odd game as a result. NBA takes flightI bought every single Harry Potter video game release across multiple platforms. But it’s 14 years later and though the core Harry Potter audience is much older, this week has shown it’s no less passionate. If EA Sports had taken the game

While Android handsets have been wirelessly charging for years, iPhones have so far stuck with cables, but that could all change with the iPhone 8 as a sound file buried in the iOS 11 beta suggests wireless charging could be on the way. But it’s very different to the “connect_power.caf” sound file that plays when you plug a charger in. The new, unused file, is longer, but certainly sounds like a charging sound effect. Adding to the evidenceOf course, that doesn’t guarantee that it will be used f