Today, smartphone giant Samsung held a press conference to reveal what caused their defective Note7 phones' battery to explode. Surprisingly, the theory that the battery was packed too tight into the handset's frame was incorrect. According to the company, they discovered there were actually two different causes of battery explosions, after months of research by hundreds of researchers. The batteries that were made by Samsung subsidiary Samsung SDI, which were sold internationally, suffered "an electro deflection and incorrect positioning of the negative electro tip" in the top right corner of the Note7's battery. After the first wave of reports about Note7 explosions came out, Samsung switched to their Chinese battery supplier, Amperex Technology Limited (which also makes iPhone batteries) to supply batteries for all Note7 devices in their new "safe" editions of the handset. Unfortunately, these batteries had a spot where the battery swelled and then short-circuited the phone. Samsung also says that to ensure a phone like the Note7 doesn't happen again, they will now conduct eight battery safety checks on every Samsung phone from now on. The first check will be a durability test, followed by a visual inspection on the battery, an X-ray, a charging test, a TVOC test, a battery disassembly test, a heavy use test, and finally an OCV test. These checks, Samsung hopes, will prevent it's rumored S8 phones and many more to come free of issues. Roan Thibault is the editor-in-chief of Mirror Journal.
The social media giant Twitter has been making some changes to it's platform. In 2015, for example, the network rolled out Moments, which sum up news in a collection of tweets. More recently, Twitter has been testing a new "Explore" tab, which is where the search function will be moved, along with trending topics and the Moments feature. So far, it is unknown if this will roll out to the public, as it's currently in a testing phase. Additionally, VentureBeat reports that Twitter is also testing a new timeline layout to replace the flipbook-esque layout currently in Moments. To see a preview of both of these features, please feel free to click "Read More." Roan Thibault is the editor-in-chief of Mirror Journal.
HTC, was once a behemoth of the smartphone industry, famous for their signature dual front facing speakers with unmatched audio quality. Today, the company's growth has been stagnating, with more and more consumers becoming unaware of HTC's products. Last week, the company unveiled their latest flagship—the U Ultra. Will this phone again go unnoticed by all but the most hardcore HTC fans? The short answer is, probably. Only time will tell, but the handset still has no standout features to offer. The main reason why this will be ignored is again, price. The U Ultra is priced similarly to last year's 10, and will boast a $749 price tag. Luckily, the U Play loses features for a more manageable midrange price which is yet to be disclosed. The rest of the features aren't exactly enticing either. Like the Moto Z and the iPhone 7 before it, the headphone jack will be dropped, and it will rely only on USB-C audio. The dual-screen setup has already been seen in LG's V series of phones, and like the V10 & V20, it's still in the wrong place—the top. The Sense Companion, HTC's AI assistant, has yet to beat Google's Assistant, and the 5.7-inch screen size is also standard in a sea of ever-so-similar phones. There are a few good things going for it, like the beautiful glossy design and a near-stock build of Android Nougat, however. There are a few things that need to be worked out from previous versions, like the issue we had with the HTC 10 where the home screen crashed, and the fact that the camera records in a hard-to-edit format (MKV) with hi-res audio turned on in the 10. To conclude, the HTC U Ultra stuffs several compelling features into one package, but it may just be too little, too late for HTC in the ultra-competitive (no pun intended) market of smartphones. Roan Thibault is the editor-in-chief of Mirror Journal.
Note: While this overview of the U Ultra contains some strong opinions, we were not able to obtain a unit of the device to review. Do not treat this article like such. With the iOS 10.2 update, a large chunk of attention has been geared towards the the new Unicode 9.0 emoji update, Apple has also added two new full-screen effects to the iMessage service. In addition to the current 'Balloons,' 'Confetti,' 'Lasers,' 'Fireworks,' and 'Shooting Star' effects, the 'Love' & 'Celebration' effects will most likely debut with iOS 10.2. This update will include the previously mentioned new emojis & also the TV application that was announced at the tech giant's MacBook Pro event in October. For Mirror Journal, this was Roan Thibault. For a preview of these new effects, please feel free to click "Read More."
This week, Lenovo-owned Motorola began pushing out Google's Android 7.0 update to the Moto Z and Moto Z Force phones. The update allows for the devices to be used with the Daydream VR platform, making the Moto Z line the first third-party devices to be compatible with it. In a blog post Wednesday, Motorola stated that their phones offer the high-resolution displays, smooth graphics, and sensors needed for Daydream to work. The platform features exclusive content such as a Fantastic Beasts game, and was previously supported only on the Pixel and Pixel XL phones. Google says "this is just the start" for Daydream and even more phones are coming soon. We'll keep you updated with news on Daydream, so stay tuned to @mirrorjournal on Twitter for quick updates. For Mirror Journal, this is Roan Thibault.
Over the past few days, technology company Samsung has been setting up temporary "customer service booths" for returning Note7 phones across South Korea, the United States, and other countries such as Australia at select airports. The company will exchange the faulty Galaxy Note7 (2016, Samsung) handset, which was removed from Samsung's lineup last month, for a new phone. Representatives at the booths will swap over the Note7's SIM card as well. These booths are located before security checkpoints at large terminals. This may be because, in the US, it is a crime to bring any Note7 device, original or replacement, onboard an aircraft. Offenders will risk a hefty fine and possible jail time, so if you have a Note7, make sure to return it or stop at this booth before you take off. Please keep in mind that using this phone will not only risk hurting you, but also others around you. The Note7 is a disaster that needs to be turned off and returned right away. For Mirror Journal, this was Roan Thibault. Do you have a Note7 device? Share your experiences with us at [email protected].
In the iOS 10.1 beta 3, we've been on the lookout for new features, finding a replay option for bubble effects and a new scroll animation in iMesssage apps. The latest new iOS 10.1 feature is a warning for apps that don't support a specific phone (ex: screen size cropped) and can slow it down. We tried this feature on an app that has not been updated since iOS 4's release, and here is what we found:
On Friday, radio service Pandora rebranded and announced it's new paid tier, Pandora Plus (the service is expected to launch an on-demand tier later this year). On iOS devices, the company also rolled out an app for iMessage that allows users to share songs with their friends and an accompanying sticker pack. The app also experienced a small redesign on both Android and iPhone, as well as, of course, a new app icon. Below is a quick look at Pandora's new features.
We recently got the chance to try out the iOS 10.1 beta, and we discovered some minor improvements in the Messages app. The first was a new look for scrolling between sticker packs and iMessage apps, but the craziest new feature in iMessage is the ability to replay bubble effects (gentle, loud, slam). Apple also added the ability to replay fullscreen effects. Here's a preview of this new feature:
On October 4th, the Mountain View-based tech company Google is set to release several new pieces of hardware, backed up by one of the company's most tremendous ad campaigns ever. The advertisements feature a silhouette of a phone with the hashtag "#MadeByGoogle" in the bottom corner. Based on rumors and leaks from several sources, we've compiled the most interesting below. First, Google is set to kill the Nexus branding on it's devices and rename them the Pixel (codenamed Sailfish) and the Pixel XL (Marlin). Other rumors say that the 5-inch phone might also be named the Pixel X. The Pixel XL is set to have a 5.5 inch screen for comparison. Although it is said to be manufactured by HTC, the phone might only feature Google's branding. Both phones will also have the new Snapdragon 821 processor from Qualcomm, 4 gigabytes of RAM, 12-megapixel cameras (no dual camera system), fingerprint scanners, and luckily, it will have a headphone jack. The Pixel will have a 1080p panel, and the XL will feature a Quad HD AMOLED display. Leaked images show that the phones will have aluminum backs with a large glass window with an uppercase 'G' near the bottom. Unlike the Nexus 6P, the phones are not expected to have front-facing speakers. The phones will likely start at 649 dollars with carrier financing available. Finally, the Pixel phones will ship with Android 7.1 Nougat and a custom "Pixel launcher," which is available for download right now online. The three other products expected to be announced are a 3rd-generation Chromecast, a new Wi-Fi hub, and a new computer platform codenamed Andromeda. If you want to livestream the event, it begins at 1PM Eastern Time in San Francisco. For Mirror Journal, this was Roan Thibault.
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