Category: Articles

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The GlowingRectangles 2021 Smartphone Elimination Challenge DAY THREE!

WE HAD A TIE!

In early voting Huawei, LG, and Alcatel were neck and neck,but later voting JUST BARELY edged out LG and Alcatel! Huawei lives another day!

Setting up a new bracket, and the vote starts again!

Hit the link below to cast a NEW vote! Remember, you’re voting for who you would “kick OFF the island”. You are NOT voting for who should stay.

https://www.reddit.com/r/glowingrectangles/comments/r8t96r/2021_alt_phone_brand_elimination_challenge_day_3/

If there’s a tie in the vote, then ALL brands that tied will get eliminated. We really need those votes, upvotes, and some sharing to get the whole GlowingRectangles community involved!

Happy voting! May your favorite brands survive!

DAY THREE ELIMINATION CHALLENGE IS GO!

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Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, Dimensity 9000, and the Problems with POWER

I’m always going to be excited by better competition.

In 2019, the mobile landscape was dominated by Qualcomm and Apple SOCs at the premium tier of phones and tablets. HiSilicon’s Kirin was facing issues due to political pressures placed on Huawei. MediaTek maintained a respectable reputation as a mid-range and entry-level chip provider.

We didn’t have much choice in what powered more expensive gadgets.

Flash forward two years, we’re starting to get some insight on what will power devices in 2022, and this market is a LOT more exciting.

MediaTek took the wraps off a premium tier competitor. We’re about to hear more from Qualcomm’s Snapdragon team. Apple’s A15 is solidly refined over the A14. Google launched their first custom chip with the Pixel 6.

A stale landscape has exploded, and more companies are rumored to be designing their own solutions over the next several years.

When it comes to pocketable portable performance, we just have one small issue…

Power. Continue reading “Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, Dimensity 9000, and the Problems with POWER”

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Surface Duo 2 One Week Later: My Favorite Tablet of 2021?

What IS a Surface Duo? Who is a Duo for? What can you DO with a Duo 2?

I’m a week into using the Surface Duo 2, and I REALLY like it, but it’s crazy difficult to predict if YOU will like it. This is a SUPER niche product, with a LOT of crossover appeal.

This is gonna be a LONGER conversation… Continue reading “Surface Duo 2 One Week Later: My Favorite Tablet of 2021?”

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#SGGQA 226: Less than a week with the Pixel 6 Pro and Surface Duo 2! Which kept my SIM card the longest?

EXCITING MORNING! We can FINALLY start sharing more in depth info on the Pixel 6 Pro! I’ve been rocking THREE screens for the last week! Surface Duo 2 has also been in the GadgetLab! There’s a LOT of tech to dig into, and I’m SURE we’ll have some audience questions to tackle.

FUN DAY!

Let’s get our tech week started right!

Continue reading “#SGGQA 226: Less than a week with the Pixel 6 Pro and Surface Duo 2! Which kept my SIM card the longest?”

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Pixel 6 Pro Creator Benchmarks: Tensor Performance Part 2

How powerful is the Pixel 6 Pro?

How fast is Tensor? We can finally dig into some numbers! Taking a look at some benchmarks and tests, we can give this new SOC its first comparison against some other premium phones of this year. We’re JUST starting the conversation on this phone, but even in these early days, competition is fun.

Let’s dig in! Continue reading “Pixel 6 Pro Creator Benchmarks: Tensor Performance Part 2”

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I’m Getting HYPED for Android 12! Here’s Why!

Android 12 is RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER!

Sharing some thoughts from the Android 12 Beta, UI improvements, new privacy features, are there good reasons for consumers to get excited about a smartphone update?

I think so! Continue reading “I’m Getting HYPED for Android 12! Here’s Why!”

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Apple Music Lossless, Amazon Music HD, Spotify Premium, Tidal Masters – But Your Phone Doesn’t Have a Headphone Jack? DAC Buying Guide!

It’s been one of the most frustrating trends in tech over the last several years.

Instead of improving the built-in headphone jacks on premium phones, manufacturers removed them to encourage more accessory sales. Bluetooth audio only became more popular when cabled audio was made more difficult to use.

Recently however, consumers have shown more interest in higher quality streaming. Despite all the tech reviewers claiming you “can’t even hear a difference”, or downplaying the audiophile community, it seems enough folks out there ARE interested in better audio and the gear to play that audio properly.

We know this market is real when Apple offers a streaming solution that their own phones can’t properly support.

Apple worked aggressively to make cabled audio a pain point, other manufacturers followed to make more sales, LG left the smartphone market, so now it’s up to us!

Here’s a (not so) quick primer on some different solutions for hooking up some headphones to a smartphone! Better music! Better movies! Better gaming!

Your ears will thank you! Continue reading “Apple Music Lossless, Amazon Music HD, Spotify Premium, Tidal Masters – But Your Phone Doesn’t Have a Headphone Jack? DAC Buying Guide!”

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MikMe Pocket Review: Wireless Microphone, but no Receiver?

MikMe Pocket review! I really dig on nerdy audio gear. MikMe is a boutique label with some pedigree from AKG. I’e enjoyed their products in the past, and I’ve been really curious to see what their take on a wireless lavalier would look like. Spent some time playing with the MikMe Pocket, and I’m ready to share my thoughts! Continue reading “MikMe Pocket Review: Wireless Microphone, but no Receiver?”

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