Best free Android apps
According to Statista, Google's Play Store started modestly back in 2009, with only 30,000 apps. Still, it has constantly grown since then, and today it is the home for almost four million apps. Under these circumstances, it can be time consuming to find the best app for a particular task.
This is where curated app lists come into play. Our friends at Android Authority have compiled a great list which will come in handy for sure.
Here are a few examples: 1Weather, an app that can display current conditions, forecasts, a weather radar, graphs, sun and moon trackers, Blue Mail, a powerful email and calendar application which supports several providers such as Gmail, Yahoo Mail, Hotmail, AOL, Outlook, Alto, iCloud, Office 365, and the list goes on.
Apps that help you earn money using your smartphone
Did you know that almost 90% of the people in the world who can access the Internet own a smartphone? Very few of them know that they can earn money online using their phones, though.
Fortunately, The Penny Hoarder has put up a list which includes 16 free apps, which can be downloaded and installed on your Android or iPhone device, and can help you make some extra cash whenever you've got some free time at you disposal.
So, check out the article and discover how you can earn money by taking pictures of your grocery store receipts, answering surveys, investing in a company which is committed to solving one of today's biggest challenges (clean water, zero waste, renewable energy, disease eradication) and so on.
Are mobile devices bad for your health?
If you ask a phone manufacturer about the health-related risks that may arise from using its products, you will receive the standard answer: there isn't any evidence that mobile phones' radiations can cause problems.
And yet, a recent study has demonstrated that rats that were exposed to a 900 MHz frequency radiation and mice that were exposed to 1900 MHz have developed heart tissue cancer.
The Guardian has recently published an article that shows how some of the key industry players have orchestrated an intelligent, global PR campaign whose goal is to mislead not only tech journalists, but also politicians and consumers.
"Android Wear" is now "Wear OS"
Android Wear has been rebranded as Wear OS. According to New Atlas, the move should make iPhone owners who are tempted to purchase an Android watch more open to the idea.
Google has recently stated that about 30% of Android-based watch owners also own an iPhone. So, it makes sense to remove the "Android" word from a device that can complement an iOS fan's smartphone nicely.
More than 50 watches have utilized Android Wear as their operating system since its launch, back in 2014. So, let's hope that Google's idea will help create a fresh line of smartwatches that utilize the new Wear OS.
Is Microsoft secretly working on a Surface Phone?
It's not a secret that Microsoft's Surface line of products has been a very successful one. And with the new Surface Go, which packs an impressive punch but will only set you back a modest $399, I guarantee that the number of people who want to buy a Surface device will grow even more.
But is Microsoft secretly working at a Surface Phone as well? The Inquisitr thinks so! Recent Microsoft patents hint at a special hinge, which would allow a mobile device to fold inwards and outwards.
Designer David Breyer has used some of the available patent sketches to create a series of great looking concepts. You can see them all by checking his Twitter feed.
Best free iPhone apps
Apple's App Store has almost two million apps now, and (surprisingly) many of them are free. Techradar has recently updated its Best free iPhone apps list, which includes social media apps, travel apps, productivity apps, and more.
Take the time to go through the 109 slides; they load really fast, and I guarantee that you will find at least a dozen of useful and/or entertaining apps in their list.
Here are a few examples: DuckDuckGo Privacy Browser, Vue, Letterboxd, Wunderlist, Bandcamp, RememBear, Canva, Pages, PhonoPaper, Notcho, Habitica, Squigglish!, JigSpace, Sweat Deck, Trips by Lonely Planet, and many more.
Samsung showcases unbreakable OLED screen
People tend to drop their phones quite often! This explains why companies such as Corning have started to produce tough glass covers which can withstand up to 15 consecutive drops.
This is great news for phone manufacturers, of course. But it looks like Samsung is investing its efforts and money in a different direction. The company has officially announced an unbreakable OLED panel, which will be used for its Galaxy smartphones in 2019.
The showcased display has a diagonal of 6.2 inches and a resolution of 1,440 x 2,960 pixels. The US Department of Defense was asked to test the display thoroughly. It reportedly survived 26 successive 4-feet drops, and continued to work fine in a controlled environment, in which temperatures ranged from +160 to -26 degrees Fahrenheit.
Google will start selling security keys
Two-factor authentication (2FA) mechanisms have been around for quite some time now. With 2FA, you need two different bits of information to log into an account: the password and a unique six-digit code that is send to your phone through an SMS, for example.
Security keys make it much easier to use 2FA by simply plugging a USB key into one of the available ports during the login process. This account protection mechanism is much safer to use, making it virtually impossible for hackers to get access to your accounts.
Google has recently posted information about its Titan Security Key, which can be delivered either as a USB stick or as a Bluetooth dongle. You will have to pay about $25 for a key, or $50 for the USB/Bluetooth combo.
