All Posts by Phil Nickinson | Android Central

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All Posts by Phil Nickinson

Huawei P9 review: Dual cameras meet the best EMUI yet

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Posted by Phil Nickinson on 29 Apr 2016 12:00 pm
With but a few minor software annoyances and a wealth of options, this is easily Huawei's best mainstream phone yet. The quick take Huawei's newest flagship phone — the P9 — isn't the most inspired design you've ever seen. It's sort of your basic smartphone. But this is the best iteration of its EMUI software yet, full of features you might want in a third-party launcher. Huawei's Kirin 955...

Where to buy the HTC 10 in the United States

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Posted by Phil Nickinson on 29 Apr 2016 9:33 am
HTC 10
You've got a few options for buying the HTC 10 in the United States. And they are ... The HTC 10 is the best smartphone we've seen from the manufacturer in years. Of that there is little debate. (It says so in our comprehensive HTC 10 review, after all.) And so now you've got the tough question ahead of you. Where to buy the HTC 10? In the United States, you've got a few options. We'll walk...

Podcasts in Google Play Music: It's better than nothing

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Posted by Phil Nickinson on 28 Apr 2016 2:00 pm
After more than 3 years, podcasts are back on Google's radar. So why did it launch with so much room for improvement? Once upon a time Google had a little app for listening to podcasts. It was called Google Listen, and it lived alongside other podcast apps during a time of great peace and prosperity. But Google Listen died an untimely death, killed off in one of Google's infamous "Spring...

The LG G5 spare battery coffin is a brilliant little charger

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Posted by Phil Nickinson on 26 Apr 2016 4:00 pm
LG G5 spare battery charger
This is what you can get for free in the U.S. if you get an LG G5 by April 30. One of the more important features of the LG G5 is the battery. Specifically that it's removable. And because you can swap in a spare battery whenever you feel like it, it makes sense to have an extra on on hand. To that end, LG is giving a good many folks who ordered early a free spare G5 battery, complete with...

From the Editor's Desk: Quick hits for the end of April

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Posted by Phil Nickinson on 24 Apr 2016 9:08 am
We're knee deep in another series of reviews. The Huawei P9 is coming up next. A really good, expensive phone. Maybe not the best for right now, but a solid effort and a huge step in the right direction in terms of software. I've got the Xiaomi Mi 5 on the way, too. (But be sure to read Harish's review first!) So since it's (another) working weekend, some quick hits to get a few things off my...

Android Central 284: Your questions, our answers ...

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Posted by Phil Nickinson on 22 Apr 2016 3:00 pm
You fine folks out there have been sending in your questions for weeks. And we're dedicating this entire podcast to answering them. We talk phones. We talk tablets. And, yes, we dive once more head-first into the world of adult subject and technology. You don't want to miss this one!!! Audio only this week, folks!

The most important news from the Android Security recap had nothing to do with malware

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Posted by Phil Nickinson on 22 Apr 2016 3:00 pm
Nexus Fingerprint
Viruses and exploits get headlines, but they're not the most promising news coming out of Google's 2015 security recap. The funny thing about security, of course, is most of us on the end-user side of things tend to not worry about it until it's too late. That's natural, of course. It's why we close the barn door after the horse is long gone. For most of us, security isn't sexy — it's a...

Watch our HTC 10 video review!

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Posted by Phil Nickinson on 21 Apr 2016 6:00 pm
If you've got a few minutes, we've got everything you need to know about the HTC 10. From the camera to the battery to the beautifully chamfered edges to the software, it's all there, in one video. Enjoy. More: Read our comprehensive HTC 10 review!

Samsung Pay now supports Regions Bank

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Posted by Phil Nickinson on 17 Apr 2016 2:41 pm
Samsung Pay with Regions Bank
If you're in the Southeast and use Regions Bank, know this — you're now supported by Samsung Pay. That means you can now add your puke green debit card or any of your Regions credit cards to Samsung Pay. And, well, that's it. The big deal here is that, first, there are a ton of Samsung phones out there, with the GS7 and GS6 lines (and the Note 5) supporting Samsung Pay. The second is that...

From the Editor's Desk: Ask away ...

310 Comments
Posted by Phil Nickinson on 17 Apr 2016 9:36 am
I'm spending all day on an airplane. Maybe not my favorite thing to do on a Sunday, but there are worse ways to get from Point A to Point B, for sure. And as is the tendency when I end up at 35,000 feet for the better part of a Sunday, I'm going to spend most of it working. Writing, actually. But let's also open things up a bit. Have a burning question? Ask away in the comments. I've got hours...

Be sure to check out our LG G5 video review!

4 Comments
Posted by Phil Nickinson on 15 Apr 2016 1:00 pm
We've got a plethora of new and awesome Android phones available — or soon to be available. And that means we're knee deep in reviews for all sorts of things. One of our more recent reviews is the LG G5. As you've no doubt heard by now — from us as well as others — is that it's an unconventional phone. That's not to say it's a bad one. But different doesn't always work. There are some things...

Android Central 283: The HTC 10 special edition podcast!

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Posted by Phil Nickinson on 14 Apr 2016 3:59 pm
The HTC 10 is here! We've been waiting with bated breath for the newest phone from the Taiwanese manufacturer, as it's been some 14 months since the last flagship release. Expectations are high. Excitement has been building. And we've got a whole bunch of thoughts on the HTC 10. Enjoy. Audio-only this week, folks! Blessed

Sprint CEO casually hears from a loyal customer: T-Mobile is 'ghetto'

320 Comments
Posted by Phil Nickinson on 12 Apr 2016 7:49 pm
Update: The video has now been taken off of YouTube, and so we have removed the dead link from this post. Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure this afternoon tweeted from his "Listening Tour" — which in all likelihood will come to a sudden stop — asking what we presume are "normal people" weighing in on the competition. And like most normal people who engage in normal conversations every day, things were...

HTC selling the HTC 10 directly in the U.S. for $699

136 Comments
Posted by Phil Nickinson on 12 Apr 2016 8:04 am
HTC 10
Preorders for the new flagship start today, with the phone shipping in May. The HTC 10 is officially official. And as it's done previously, HTC will be selling the phone directly in the United States. That's in addition to it being carrier on Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile. Here's what you need to know about buying the HTC 10 in the United States: Verizon Verizon has confirmed it will offer...

From HTC One M7 to HTC 10 — a specs showdown

26 Comments
Posted by Phil Nickinson on 12 Apr 2016 8:21 am
HTC 10, HTC One M9, HTC One M8, HTC One M7
The road leading to the HTC 10 is long. And full of metal. And codenames. From the HTC One M7 in 2013 all the way to today's HTC 10, you can easily see the growth in design, and overall look and feel. And along with those more organic differences, you also can see how the basic specs have increased in three or four years. A lot has changed, for sure. So let's take a look at how the specs stand...

HTC's 'Ice View' case replaces the lower-res Dot View

22 Comments
Posted by Phil Nickinson on 12 Apr 2016 8:05 am
HTC 10 Ice View Case
A major new phone means a new kind of case — and the HTC 10 Ice View case is an intriguing way to protect (and still use) your phone. With the announcement of the new HTC 10, we also have a new kind of case to go along with it. HTC's old Dot View cases were fun, but pretty limited, sort of an 8-bit peek at the screen. With the HTC 10, we now have the Ice View case.

HTC 10 supports Apple's AirPlay streaming standard

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Posted by Phil Nickinson on 12 Apr 2016 8:05 am
HTC 10 and Apple AirPlay
A three-finger swipe will stream to Apple TV, or any AirPlay-capable speaker or receiver, without a third-party app. Funny thing about standards — there are so many of them that you've got a pretty good chance your device supports at least one. But when it comes to Apple's AirPlay, Android devices haven't been invited to play. At least not out of the box. Third-party apps can get the job done...

LG G5 review: Great cameras attached to a modular mess

199 Comments
Posted by Phil Nickinson on 11 Apr 2016 11:00 am
LG G5
The quick take The strength of the LG G5 as an Android smartphone is as much overshadowed by its "modular" design. And the one module we have available in the U.S. isn't all that great. The other is great, but unavailable to us as yet. But even those hardware innovations are plagued by early manufacturing problems — and we have no idea of the long-term viability of these phone modules, or of...

LG 360 CAM review: A relatively fun way to capture the whole world

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Posted by Phil Nickinson on 11 Apr 2016 11:30 am
Some software quirks aside, LG's entry into the 360-degree video and photography world is a fun little way to show off everything that's going on around you. A picture is worth a thousand words, the old cliche goes. And it's not wrong. There's something about a good photograph that brings out the seen and the unseen. That answers as much as it leaves up to the imagination. What's going on just...

From the Editor's Desk: Life in 360 degrees

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Posted by Phil Nickinson on 10 Apr 2016 9:30 am
The world is in 360 degrees. it's about time our cameras caught up to it. I've been a big fan of the little handheld cameras that never took off. (Thanks, smartphones!) The HTC RE Camera is one of my favorite underrated devices of the past year or so. It's an extra thing to carry and charge, sure. But it's also quicker to take a pic than a smartphone. It's (marginally) more waterproof than...

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