Home News

ZTE Axon M’s dual screen foldable smartphone will make you do a double take (Hands-on)

With ZTE’s AXON M, you can watch videos on one display and scroll through your Twitter feed on the other.

ZTE has a new Axon phone to show off, and while it’s not a follow up to last year’s Axon flagship, it is pretty much one of the coolest devices we’ve encountered so far in 2017. That is because the new Axon M is a foldable dual screen phone. Because two screens are better than one! At least thats the concept behind the Axon M.

The ZTE Axon M houses 2 5.2″ displau

ZTE did research and learned that most folks do prefer larger screen phones, but that they top out at 6” when the phone stops becoming pocket friendly. Their solution is to provide users with not one, but two 5.2” screens in the Axon M. Each display is a 1080P TFT FHQ Gorilla Glass display with 426 PPI.

With the ZTE Axon M, the second screen is able fold out to a 180 degree angle, so the device can be used flat or in a laptop-like mode. And that’s where the possibilities roll in – and oh, there are so, so many, for this form factor.

Mirror mode is useful for two people watching movies on either side, or playing a game like Battleship.

Extended mode takes a single application and extends it across 2 screens. For example, that means double the real estate for your Facebook News feed.

Multitasking Mode

Multitasking mode lets you run a different application on each screen – so you can have your email opened on one display while viewing your calendar on the other. It’s pretty much a multitasker’s dream, and so much better than having just a split screen window mode on a single smartphone display. A simple 3 finger swipe moves an application over to the opposite display.

Mirror Mode

Under the hood, the ZTE Axon M is powered by an 821 Qualcomm Snapdragon processor and 4GB of RAM, and it comes running Android Nougat (7.1.2). The rear-facing camera sports a 20MP sensor with dual image stabilization, and a dual LED flash, and it can record 4k video at 30fps. Its aluminum full metal unibody weighs 230 grams, and it comes with a micro-SD card slot for expansion. The Axon M even includes a 3.5mm audio jack along with an AKM 4962 HiFi main chipset for HiFi listening and recording.

One thing is for sure – the ZTE Axon M is one of the most exciting and unique mobile devices we’ve seen in a while. Personally, it brought me back to my fond memories of using a Sidekick. Of course, it remains to be seen how many folks will gravitate to this kind of form factor, but from what we can tell, ZTE has done a great job with the first gen Axon M.

The ZTE Axon M will be available from multiple carriers, including AT&T. We’ll update this story once we have pricing and availability.

Filed in categories: News

Tagged: ,

ZTE Axon M’s dual screen foldable smartphone will make you do a double take (Hands-on) originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on October 17, 2017 at 10:40 am.

Note: If you are subscribed to this feed through FeedBurner, please switch to our native feed URL http://the-gadgeteer.com/feed/ in order to ensure continuous delivery.

Windows 10 Fall Creators update brings mixed reality and 3D to the masses

The Mixed Reality Viewer lets you bring your 3D creation into a real-life setting

If your Windows 10 PC isn’t up to date, you’re going to want to make sure you update your system with the Fall Creators Update. That is because the Fall Creators Update brings a slew of super cool new “tricks” and practical features. Specifically, on the creative front, the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update helps the “average joe” create some incredibly advanced 3D and mixed reality masterpieces. It’s no coincidence that Microsoft also announced today that Mixed Reality headsets are finally available from Dell, Lenovo, HP, and Acer, starting at $399. It’s clear that Microsoft is committed to encouraging the masses to start using Mixed Reality, and this update ensures that folks can get really creative with Mixed Reality beyond just playing games. 

Here are 15 features that the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update brings to the table:

1. The Photos app has been completely reimagined. The app now lets you easily edit and create polished video slideshows using photos, videos, and transitions. You can even throw 3D effects onto them. Available 3D effects include everything from lightning to confetti. A future update will even let you bring in 3D objects and animations.

The redesigned Photos app lets you create video slideshows, complete with Ink and 3D effects

2. Remember when the Paint app was just for scribbling? Well, times have changed and the Paint 3D now makes it incredibly easy for just about anyone to create and edit advanced 3D objects. You can create and design a 3D object from scratch, or you can import one to play with from the Remix 3D library which has thousands of free 3D objects to use. But wait – it gets better! Microsoft is focusing a lot on mixed reality in this update. But as cool as mixed reality is, until now, most users have just been end users. The Creators Update changes all of that with the Mixed Reality Viewer. Using your camera, Mixed Reality Viewer lets you bring your 3D creation from Paint 3D into a real life setting. You can also easily share your creation afterwards on social networks.

You can draw and create 3D objects from within the Paint 3D app

3. You can now bring your 3D creation into Powerpoint presentations, as well as Word and Excel documents.

You can bring your 3D creation from Paint 3D into PowerPoint

4. You can now pin your “favorite” people to the taskbar so that you can quickly communicate with them via Skype or Mail. When you want to share a file with that contact, all you have to do is drag a file directly onto the pinned contact.

5. Pinning your favorite web sites to the taskbar is back! This is one feature that I sorely missed.

6. Game Mode now enables developers to access all the power of the PC and dedicate it to games for an even better gaming experience.

7. Annotating your ebooks from within Edge is now possible. This includes being able to highlight in 4 colors, underline, and make comments.

Annotating your ebooks from within Edge

8. Microsoft Edge is coming to Android. A preview is already available in the Google Play Store, and the idea here is that just like with Chrome, you can use Microsoft Edge on your phone to catch up where you left off with the tabs you had open on your PC.

9. Do you often lose your pen? The new Find My Pen feature will tell you where you were the last time you inked on your PC, hopefully helping you figure out where you might have left it.

10. Your Pen can now be used as a PowerPoint Clicker!

11. OneDrive files can now be accessed on demand, allowing you to save disk space. So online-only files download on demand with just a double-click when you need them. Of course, you can choose to have select files readily available offline.

12. You can now recover your PIN or Password right from the lock screen – even if you’re using an AAD or MSA account.

13. The native calculator app now includes a currency converter, which even works offline for times when you’re traveling internationally and might not have internet access.

14. Filling out and annotating PDFs no longer requires a third party app! You can fill in PDFs right from within Microsoft Edge, you can ink on the PDF, highlight text and erase your annotations.

15. There have been improvements made for accessibility, including the addition of Eye Control.

EyeControl with the onscreen keyboard

Overall, the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update allows just about anyone to create advanced masterpieces for everything from videos, to 3D objects, and afterwards, that can easily bring their creations into a mixed reality setting with minimal effort.

Filed in categories: News

Tagged: , ,

Windows 10 Fall Creators update brings mixed reality and 3D to the masses originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on October 17, 2017 at 9:30 am.

Note: If you are subscribed to this feed through FeedBurner, please switch to our native feed URL http://the-gadgeteer.com/feed/ in order to ensure continuous delivery.

Microsoft’s Surface Book 2 can replace your gaming PC (Hands-on)

The Surface Book 2 now comes in a 13.5″ and 15″ model

The Surface Book was announced way back in October of 2015, so you might say that a Surface Book 2 has been long overdue. Fortunately, the Surface Book 2 has finally arrived and it offers fives times more graphics performance than the original. Not that the original Surface Book was a slouch by any means, but the new Surface Book 2 is quite frankly a beast. To that effect, the new Surface Book 2 is 3x more powerful than the original Surface Book. Microsoft says it’s powerful enough to be your gaming PC, and also a workstation replacement. You’ll be able to play 1080p games on the Surface Book 2 Pro without a hitch. A big part of that raw power is thanks to the Intel Quad Core i7 processor and Nvidia GeForce GPU it’s running on. 

Improved hinge

Design wise, the form factor is now more or less the same. But Microsoft has improved the dynamic fulcrum hinge for a more stable touch experience. There are now two Surface Book 2 display models to choose from – a 13.5” and 15” model. Both come with a PixelSense display and an improved backlit keyboard. The 13.5” model packs in a 3000 x 2000 (267 PPI) display, and the 15” model houses a 3240 x 2160 (260 PPI) display. The 15” model also comes with Xbox Wireless built-in.

When it comes to battery life Microsoft says that the Book 2 offers 70% more battery life than it’s predecessor and twice the battery of life of today’s MacBook Pro. More specifically, Microsoft is claiming a battery life of up to 17 hours or 5 hours in tablet mode. Microsoft has conveniently included both a USB Type-A and USB Type-C port.

Pricing for the Surface Book 2 begins at $1,499 (with a Core i5 configuration). Visit microsoft.com for more info.

Filed in categories: News

Tagged: , ,

Microsoft’s Surface Book 2 can replace your gaming PC (Hands-on) originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on October 17, 2017 at 9:00 am.

Note: If you are subscribed to this feed through FeedBurner, please switch to our native feed URL http://the-gadgeteer.com/feed/ in order to ensure continuous delivery.

This pill bottle will remind you to take your meds and warn you if you already did

At least once a day I roll my eyes at an announcement for a new IoT (Internet of Things) gadget. Do we really need another toaster, refrigerator, or toilet that’s connected to the internet? Ok, I made up the last one… at least I don’t think there’s a toilet that’s connected to the internet – yet. But back to the point of this news post. Pillsy is a pill bottle that’s connected to an app that’s connected to the internet. Wait, don’t click your back button yet because this IoT gadget actually sounds pretty useful.

Pillsy is really a pill bottle cap that uses Bluetooth to pair with your mobile device and the Pillsy app to remind you when it’s time to take your meds or vitamins. Yes, I know you can just use the calendar app on your phone to remind you to take your meds. But Pillsy goes two steps further. It records WHEN you took the medicine AND it will warn you if you try to take another dose before it’s due. This is really convenient if you have memory issues or if two people give meds to pets and humans in the same household.

Pillsy is available with a child-resistant vial or a twist off bottle for vitamins. Either version is $49 for one cap/bottle combo which I think is a little pricey. However, the price goes down a little when you purchase additional caps. For more info go to pillsy.com.

Filed in categories: News

Tagged:

This pill bottle will remind you to take your meds and warn you if you already did originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on October 17, 2017 at 8:00 am.

Note: If you are subscribed to this feed through FeedBurner, please switch to our native feed URL http://the-gadgeteer.com/feed/ in order to ensure continuous delivery.

Memobottle is a slim way to stay hydrated

I’ve been trying to get better about staying hydrated throughout the day. In addition to the fitness and health benefits, I just feel better when I’m hydrated. To that end, I’ve been on the lookout for unique containers to carry water, and I stumbled on Memobottle. Its unique shape is what caught my eye. Memobottle has a rectangular footprint with a relatively flat aspect ratio, about the size of a medium-sized textbook. What I like about this is that it is slim and can slide right in with your notebooks, laptop, and other ECD items into your backpack, purse or gear bag and its aspect ratio means that it won’t be bulky like most water bottles, which are cylindrical. It’s also made from reusable, washable, BPA-free plastic. Available in two sizes, the more petite 375mL A6 ($28) and the larger 750mL A5 ($36). Visit memobottle.com for more info and Amazon to order.

Filed in categories: News

Tagged:

Memobottle is a slim way to stay hydrated originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on October 16, 2017 at 10:00 am.

Note: If you are subscribed to this feed through FeedBurner, please switch to our native feed URL http://the-gadgeteer.com/feed/ in order to ensure continuous delivery.