Let's Talk Tech
Test driving the Sony A7iii!
I’m so used to shooting on phones, it was refreshing to take a Sony mirror-less out for a spin. Our holiday memories this year are looking REALLY good. After a couple weeks, I’ve got some thoughts to share on this monster camera body, which completely deserves all the praise it’s been receiving.
Is it good enough to convince me to switch? Let’s take a look!
Continue reading “Christmas on the Sony A7iii: A full frame miracle!”
The OnePlus 6 is one of my favorite phones from 2018 to revisit. The last offering from OnePlus with a rear fingerprint sensor and a headphone jack, this phone STRONGLY tested my theory on waiting for the “T” version.
The OnePlus 6T was an exciting phone. It came in a gorgeous purple shell. It got a carrier deal with T-Mobile. However, the farther we get from 2018, the OnePlus 6 is the phone I hold closer for its practicality.
Over a year from its initial launch, how well is OnePlus keeping up with support for the 6? Pretty stinking well…
Continue reading “OnePlus 6 on Android 10: A High Water Mark”
Let’s be frank. If I hadn’t put “Apple” in the post title, would you have clicked on it?
The reason this article is going to focus on Apple, they are the highest profile company pushing these kinds of manufacturing decisions. If you’re a fan of Apple hardware, I’m sure there will be an inclination towards defending your brand.
Other companies should be criticized too.
Though, we should acknowledge that many of these companies wouldn’t be following this path without Apple. AirPods show how profitable it is to make expensive headphones as disposable as possible. Apple stands to take the lion share of the profits with this tactic. It’s my belief we should start with the largest companies, and THEN work down to smaller players copying Apple.
We should “punch up” with our criticisms. Apple is currently the king of this e-waste hill. We’ll start with them. Continue reading “Apple: Premium e-Waste and Normalizing Disposability”
Consumers are being pushed to Bluetooth audio, as phones ditch the headphone jack. The popular trend is true wireless. It’s kind of futuristic to cut the cord, but is it really better?
It is not.
There’s not a single comparison point where true wireless earbuds are better than a neckband solution, other than “they look nifty”.
Allow me to rant into your ear holes for a minute… Continue reading “Neckbands are BETTER than True Wireless Earbuds: It’s not even close…”
I love GaryExplains. Easily one of my favorite tech channels on YouTube. He’s one of the only TechTubers I feel actually explains things worth explaining.
Gary recently put out a video (embedded at the top of this article) where he explains why he doesn’t test network performance in his smartphone commentary. His reasoning is absolutely sound.
But, just because network speedtest apps can’t be counted on for consistency, doesn’t mean we can’t control for SOME variables on our own. Continue reading “We CAN test SOME Network Performance: Where I respectfully disagree with GaryExplains!”
Motion control showdown! We’ve been dancing around Jedi controls for years. Alternative actions are NOT easier. Google is taking a simpler approach to air gestures. Here’s how it stacks up against the other methods used by LG and Samsung!
I think simpler is better… Continue reading “Pixel 4XL vs LG G8 vs Galaxy S5: Air Gestures Are HARD”
I feel we all get swept up in popularity trends. It can be difficult to swim against that stream once a general consensus has been agreed upon. I have to be honest here, as an editorialist, I happen to enjoy those situations where I can shine a light on a topic, and maybe poke at that popular trend.
Whether I’m responding to a mega-youtuber about a jack-of-all-trades phone, correcting a popular Android blog about audio, or explaining how camera crop factor works when people flip out about a 3X zoom, I enjoy ruffling a few feathers to spread better data on complicated subjects.
The Pixel 4 was one of the worst kept secrets of 2019. It may be one of the worst kept secrets of all time. Now that it’s finally arrived, the tech community is in first stage of impressions and reviews. What makes the Pixel 4 different, we knew pretty much everything about the phone a month before it launched. Google isn’t facing a community just beginning to form opinions on the new Pixel, they’re facing a community that has already made up its collective mind on the Pixel.
It’s pretty clear that Google is setting their sights on Apple as the primary competition. For better, and for worse. When Apple does something, it seems to motivate a LOT of the decisions made by Google’s hardware team.
When the original Pixel launched, we all lovingly joked about it being “Google’s iPhone”. For a hot minute, I really tried to get the nickname “gPhone” to stick.
With the Pixel 4, it would seem Google took those early sentiments to heart. The Pixel 4 seems a purpose-built iPhone competitor, the closest way to recreate an iPhone-style experience, but in the Android ecosystem.
It’s entirely fair to compare Pixels against the phones Apple released this year. What’s frustrating though, is seeing folks cherry-pick one or two features to declare a winner, and to highlight “worth”.
Phones should be judged holistically, and any phone can win or lose a showdown if we move the goalposts to align with a user’s pre-determined bias. The common criticism I see now, is declaring the Pixel 4 unworthy to compete even against the cheaper non-pro iPhone 11. It’s a causally delivered verdict, folks kind of nod along. It’s a surface statement that sounds good, and throws a thumb in the eye of Google.
“The Pixel 4 can’t possibly be worth $100 more than an iPhone!”
The issue is, that statement doesn’t really hold water… Continue reading “Silly Tech Geeks! Of course the Pixel 4 is worth $100 more than an iPhone 11!”
Pixel 4XL performance!
Benchmarking a phone is tricky. Synthetic scores only tell PART of the story. If you’re shopping a premium phone, we should be looking at MUCH more aggressive use than just “covering the basics”. Let’s run the Pixel 4 through some tests that can make decent laptops struggle!
Also, the Pixel 4XL totally destroys the competition in these tests. It’s not even close… Continue reading “Google Pixel 4XL Benchmarked! The FASTEST phone of 2019!”