news

  • Everybody Gets an Upgrade Fee!

Verizon’s upgrade fees were something that you just dealt with unless you either purchased a phone full price or participated in their Edge program. A recently leaked screenshot suggests that Verizon might be charging upgrade fees for just about every type of upgrade you could imagine. Yes, that includes Edge. The two year upgrade fee remains at $40. Verizon will be charging $20 for upgrading with a device payment, paying retail price, using the iPhone Upgrade Program and the device payment annual upgrade. Check out the screenshot here.

  • Amazon Says “You Shall Not Pass” to bad USB-C Cables

Buying cables online got pretty tricky recently when bad USB-C cables started frying people’s devices. Amazon has decided to put their foot down and no longer allow non-compliant USB-C cables. Amazon states that “any USB-C cable or adapter product that is not compliant with standard specifications” is prohibited. Take a look at the prohibited listings section here.

  • Samsung’s Doing Better Than Projected 

Experts state that we could see the Samsung sell 9.5 million Samsung Galaxy S 7 units in quarter one. Industry analysts had originally estimated that we would be seeing about 7 million units sold for quarter one, but those projections have since been changed. Are you going to be part of that 9.5 million? For more information on these projections, take a look here.

  • Get Rid of your PC’s Notifications from your Phone 

Microsoft was rumored to be working on an update to Action Center. Although the rumors state that we’ll be seeing a new, cleaner UI, it appears that the update is more than just cosmetic. Android users who use the Cortana app will be able to dismiss notifications from their phone that showed up on their PC. This works the other way around, as well. Windows 10 users can dismiss notifications on their Android device from their computer as well. Find out more here.  DSC00079

  • Snapchat Makes Chatting Look Nicer 

Snapchat has been steadily making UI and overall app updates to pull in more users. Their most recent update is to their built in chat functionality. The new update brings chatting, video and pictures all in line. Now it’s easier to see chats and switch between video and phone calls. Snapchat has also taken it upon them to help you get through your friends’ stories by automatically moving onto the next one when the story is over. Take a look at Snapchat’s announcement here.

  • Google Calculator Comes to a Non-Nexus Device Near You! 

Google’s minimalistic yet functional calculator app was previously only available on Nexus devices. We’re now seeing the Google Calculator app (bundled with the Android Wear calculator app) on the Google Play Store. The awesome news is that it’s now available to download on whatever Android device you’re using (whether it’s a Nexus or not). It looks like people are liking it, since it has a rating of 4.7 on the Google Play Store. Download Google Calculator here.

  • Google Drive Sneaks in an Update

Google Drive released a small update that allowed you to view and restore files that you had put in the trash. The update squashed some bugs and made it possible to change the color of your folders, too. Also, if you receive a link to something in Google Drive the link will now open in the application. Make sure that you update your Google Drive app if you haven’t already.

 

Kevin Nether