Tech Explained

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Give Your Eyes a Break: Have Your News Read to You Using This App

Ok, I’ll admit it. I use Audible.com for the majority of the books I “read”. (Is it still called reading if I’m listening to it? Deep thoughts…) Maybe it’s the fact I can multitask while doing it (“…raised by technology, and majors in efficiency.”), the fact that it’s more convenient than carrying a book (since it’s on my phone already), or maybe it stems from a deep-seeded psychological need to be read to since I wasn’t as a child, who really knows. The fact of the matter remains though, that, while not the case for all my books, I enjoy […]

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The Best Weather App …That’s Not an App

Huddled inside a makeshift tent with thirty or so people (who, unlike myself, are just coming in from riding bicycles for 45 miles in the icy rain dreading the next 30 miles they still had to go), one’s words tend to be heard, whether you intend them to be or not. In this instance, a particular phrase catches everyone nearby like a slap to an already burning, wet face. I tell my mom standing next to me, “Don’t worry, the rain is stopping in one minute.” Ears perk, people stop shivering for a moment and turn slowly towards me. A reply

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Motorola Droid Turbo Unboxing (Video)

New phone, new box to unbox. The Motorola Droid Turbo was just released today and I managed to grab one real quick so I can see if it’s all it’s cracked up to be. Before we get into all of that, though, let’s do a quick unboxing and spec walkthrough. What It Comes With Here’s the box and it’s quick to note that this is a Verizon exclusive on the side (probably why they didn’t mention the Nexus 6 too much when it was announced). Let’s remove the sleeve and pull off the top and inside we find the phone

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Android 5.0 “Lollipop” Walkthrough (Video)

Google’s taking a crack at some fancy UI design. In their latest update, Android 5.0 aka Lollipop, Google’s done a fair bit of tweaking to the UI, animations, and the like (along with some optimizations for performance as usual) and it’s not going unnoticed. Most people seem to be having some great opinions of the new software upgrade and praising Google’s choices for the look & feel. I, for one, am a fan and after upgrading a Nexus 5 to the new Android version, I’m even more impressed with the sheer speed of the system (even on a slightly older,

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Samsung Galaxy Note 4 Unboxing (Video)

My Samsung Galaxy Note 4 arrived today, and as is the proper protocol on the internet for when a new gadget arrives apparently, let’s do an unboxing. Some of the key features/specs of the device and what it comes with are: Super AMOLED 5.7″ QHD display 2.7 Ghz Quad-core processor 3GBs of RAM 32Gbs of Internal Storage MicroSD card slot that will accept up to a 128Gb card. Comes with a 2.0A charger (and compatible 3220mah battery) so charging is done quicker. Capacitive buttons and nicer action on the home button at the bottom of the phone. S Pen feels nice,

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Moto 360 Unboxing (Video)

Finally got my Moto 360 and figured I should stick with the tradition of YouTube and do an unboxing of it for anyone curious as to what comes in the box and what initial impact the device has when you first hold it in your hand. Here’s a quick video on just that.

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iPhone 6 Unboxing (Video)

Better late than never. Figured there are a lot of people out there who didn’t get an iPhone 6 still (or are waiting for it to arrive from their pre-order) so thought it might be good to do an unboxing for them. Is it all you dreamed it would be and more?! Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!

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Oppo Find 7 Unboxing (Video)

Recently, I got an Oppo Find 7a to play with and with it, did an unboxing and then showed you how to root it. Now, it’s its big brother’s turn for an unboxing: the Oppo Find 7. There are a lot of similarities between these two devices. Both have the same sensors, screen size, same cameras, same connectivity, same pulsating notification “chin” that most seem to adore, and even the same dimensions overall. In fact, looking at them both side by side, it could be hard to tell them apart. The big differences are in the bumps that the Find 7 gets

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OnePlus One Unboxing

Today I have the OnePlus One finally in my hands and, as always, that means it’s time to do an unboxing. OnePlus, like it’s apparently affiliated company Oppo, have been in the press quite a bit lately. Sometimes for not so good reasons, and sometimes for good ones (like the fact that their phone has similar specs to the top of the line flagship devices from HTC and Samsung, but is about half the cost). The OnePlus One is a bit elusive though, requiring you to acquire an invite somehow before being allowed to purchase the device on their website.

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Oppo ColorOS Walkthrough (Video)

Every Android manufacturer adds their own UI skin on top of Android as a way to differentiate themselves from other manufacturers also running Android. Oppo, the new Chinese manufacturer getting a decent amount of publicity lately, is no different. Their UI is called ColorOS and it’s, um, different. I figured I’d do a walkthrough of ColorOS to show anyone thinking about getting the Find 7a, for example, what they’re in for in terms of software (for hardware, the full review of the Oppo Find 7a will be coming shortly). My rundown isn’t terribly brief but I’ve broken it down into a

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Motorola Moto E Unboxing (Video)

Motorola’s new budget friendly device, the Moto E, is getting a ton of praise from around the web for it’s extremely low price tag coupled with “better than expected” performance, styling, and pretty much all other aspects of it. I plan to do a full video review ASAP, but in the meantime, figured it was best to get a quick unboxing up for anyone interested in what comes with the device (or what doesn’t come with it as I’d imagine is the bigger question) and how it looks and feels when first unwrapped from it’s box. Check out said unboxing

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HTC One M8 vs Samsung Galaxy S5 (Video)

Looking at these two devices on a spec sheet is a bit like seeing double. Same chipset with a very similar processor speed, same GPU, same screen resolution with a similar screen size, same microSD expandability, similar battery capacities etc. So one can understand why it’s a big question as to which one you should get between these two. Thankfully though, soon as you have them in your hand, differences start to show themselves. These two manufacturers have very different approaches to what they think a flagship phone should look like, feel like, and run like. Let’s explore some of those

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Oppo Find 7a Unboxing (Video)

Oppo, a Chinese electronics manufacturer is getting a lot of press lately. If you haven’t heard, the reason for this press is their two new flagship devices, the Oppo Find 7 and the Oppo Find 7a. The former is the real show stopper with it’s super high Quad HD 5.5″ display (2560 x 1440 pixels) and metal body, but, since it isn’t available yet, the Find 7a, it’s slightly lowered spec’d, lowered priced brother is what we have for you today. Even with it’s slightly lower specs, the device is still on par with most flagship devices available at the moment. It

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Samsung Galaxy S5 Review (Video)

Regardless of this or any other review, for the most part, Samsung will sell a lot of the Galaxy S5’s (and, indeed, already have). With the previous Galaxy S4 and even the Galaxy Note 3 device, Samsung has made themselves pretty comfortable in the world of Android manufacturers claiming the number one spot in fact. Because of this, it’s easy to hear people calling other Android devices “Galaxy devices” and when told it’s an Android device their eyes simply glaze over “What’s an Android?” (It might be because of this that I’m noticing “Powered by Android at the bottom of

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