Planning a vacation overseas can sometimes feel overwhelming with the number of things you need to remember before heading out. Since smartphones keep us connected at all times, it's essential that you have everything you need here as well. Unexpected events can arise while on ...more
The fifth annual Amazon Prime Day is upon us. Starting July 15, Amazon will offer thousands of deals on products across its site, kicking off at 3 a.m. EDT. This year, it will only run for 48 hours, so you have even less time to act. To save you some of that time, we made a li ...more
If you're currently running macOS 10.11 or higher on your Mac and connect your iPhone to sync with iTunes, you may get an alert saying that "a software update is required to connect to your iPhone." Here's everything you need to know about what that means, how to update your s ...more
Apple has introduced a special edition iPhone 8 and 8 Plus to bring attention to the ongoing worldwide battle against AIDS. As the second iPhones to carry the (PRODUCT)RED name, these rare iPhones may quickly sell out when preorders open up on Tuesday, April 10, at 5:30 a.m. ( ...more
Reading the augmented reality news lately has felt a bit like reading a John Grisham novel, as the business side of things has dripped with legal drama. This week alone, a patent infringement case involving Meta Company (or what's left of it) approached its climax. Meanwhile, ...more
Your social security number, credit card information, and medical history can fall into the wrong hands if you're not careful about how and where you share your data online. If you really care about your data, there are tools and techniques you can utilize to protect yourself ...more
It appears a privacy lawsuit that began five years ago is about to come to an end, and you might get some money out of it. Eight companies—Foodspotting, Foursquare, Gowalla, Instagram, Kik, Path, Twitter, and Yelp—have agreed to a proposed settlement of $5.3 million in a case ...more
With wearable tech becoming the latest trend in electronics, it's a shame that most smartwatches are locked down to one ecosystem. If you purchase a smartwatch, you can expect that it will not work with devices from competing manufacturers. That will be the case for the Apple ...more
This may seem like an odd subject, because what do Steampunks and iPhones even have to do with each other? Actually, more than you might think! With the recent release of iOS 6 and the iPhone 5, I thought it was time to show how they relate to Steampunk. Photo by Robert S. Do ...more
Samsung and Apple are back in court, but this time it's not just money at stake. The Supreme Court's decision could have a far reaching effect on patent law and innovation in design. Smartphone design timeline. The so-called "Smartphone Patent Wars" began in 2011 when Apple su ...more
Your iPhone just went missing, and now you're panicking. You need it for work, to get around, to contact your friends and family, and pretty much everything else in your life. So, what are the chances you might get it back? The odds may be stacked against you unless it's just ...more
Advancements in technology have made it perfectly possible to make a short film or even an entire movie with your iPhone or Android — as long as you've got the right gear. Lenses, stabilizers, tripods, lighting, microphones, chargers, and cases can make the difference between ...more
AirPods are starting to show up everywhere, and with more and more people owning them, it can be fun to make yours a little more personalized. One way you can do that is by giving your AirPods a unique name, something a bit more fun than "John's" or "Jane's AirPods." With just ...more
If you're considering purchasing Apple's new 2020 iPhone SE, which brings many modern components into the compact body of an iPhone 8, you should know what its dust and water resistance rating means. Just how dirty and wet can the iPhone SE get without breaking any functionali ...more
Apple added "Announce Messages with Siri" with the release of iOS 13.2, and it came as a welcome surprise for me; I missed the feature from its initial run during iOS 13 beta testing. However, while users online gleefully showed off their newfound Announce Messages with Siri c ...more
While photography usually gets all the love, our phones have gotten really good at capturing video. Think about it — when was the last time you needed a camcorder for a vacation? With mobile cameras getting better each year, we're now at a point where smartphones can be used f ...more
The battery icon in your iPhone's status bar gives you a visual idea of how much power is left, and there's a battery percentage option you can switch to or view in the Control Center, depending on your model. But what you may not know is that there's a way to view the battery ...more
There's never been a better time for streaming videos on your phone. With so many options available (including a potential mobile-only Netflix tier) and so many new smartphones having large screens, there's a good chance you know someone who mainly use their phone for videos. ...more
Performance and stability improvements, as well as new features, are just some reasons to install iOS 12, but new changes mean new battery health challenges. It can be difficult to boost battery life while taking advantage of everything this update has to offer. Luckily, there ...more
If you lose your AirPods, AirPods Pro, or AirPods Max, you can turn to Find My to locate them. But sometimes, things don't go according to plan, and many things can go wrong. For example: Nothing happens whenever you try to play a sound through your AirPods. Their location wo ...more
If your new 2020 iPhone SE is frozen, unresponsive, or won't load the system, and a standard power down and up procedure didn't work, there are few more things you can try. Force-restarting the device may do the trick, recovery mode is a last-ditch option, and DFU mode is your ...more
Look, tests are no fun, and doing poorly on them is rarely an option. Whether you're studious or a slacker, everyone needs a little boost now and again. While students have found ways to cheat as long as tests have existed, the invention of smartphones has greatly enhanced the ...more
It's always a big deal when the company that makes Android releases a new phone. Google's Pixel series has made a name for itself in three short years behind its camera prowess, but now it's time to start competing with the major players. That said, Google should like how thei ...more
All of the new iPhones from 2018 were released with dual-SIM support, but none of them were capable of actually using the eSIM in iOS 12, only the physical nano-SIM. But on iOS 12.1 and later, you can finally take advantage of eSIM so you can have, say, a business and personal ...more
If you're an AirPods owner, you know the sound — that decrescendo of little beeps and boops means imminent "death" for your wireless earbuds. Other than that infamous chime, however, it's not overly clear how to check your AirPods, AirPods Pro, or AirPods Max power levels. Tha ...more
If you're an Apple fan, AirPods are the must-have wireless headphones to own. They know when they're in your ears, will pause music when one is taken out, and when you pair them with your iPhone they'll already work on your Mac, iPad, and iPod touch using the same Apple ID. Ho ...more
I've called 911 accidentally more than a few times on my iPhone using the Emergency SOS triggers, but it's also just as easy to trigger an unintentional call to emergency services using an Apple Watch. These accidental 911 calls can put a strain on local public-safety answerin ...more
If you've accidentally turned on "Read Receipts" for all of your iMessages, there's an easy way to disable it so that no one knows when you're actually reading their incoming messages. You could also pick and choose which conversations can see that you've read their messages i ...more
A judge just handed down a ruling that will make the U.S. government's quest to unlock the work iPhone of one of the San Bernardino shooters much more difficult. U.S. District Court Judge James Orenstein ruled against the government in another case, which argued that a search ...more
There's a good chance that your iOS device has become unresponsive at least once. It's usually at this point that you start thinking your device can no longer pass muster. You could upgrade to a newer model, but that's not always feasible, and often times, unnecessary. You se ...more
We recently ran into a serious iPhone 6 issue here in the Gadget Hacks office, where the device was stuck in an infinite bootloop with intermittent red and blue screens (of death?) and an unresponsive touchscreen and buttons. From what we can tell, we weren't alone, though som ...more
Update 6/20/17: Olixar, a smartphone case manufacturer, has released images of an iPhone 8 case design. While at first glance this might seem to confirm the iPhone 8's final design, 9to5 Mac reports that Olixar admits they produced these renders based on "information and schem ...more
A developer from a firm named Tendigi came up with a way to run Android Marshmallow 6.0.1 on an iPhone 6 Plus, and it's pretty awesome. The hack is the brainchild of Nick Lee, who had previously installed Windows 95 on an Apple Watch, and you can see it in action below. Video: ...more
Apple's new Watch models go on sale April 24th in Apple Stores everywhere, and can be preordered online starting April 10th. If you're set on preordering one, how do you know which size to choose? Whether you plan on getting an Apple Watch, Apple Watch Sport, or Apple Watch E ...more
A banner alert for notifications is like the Robin to our iPhone's Batman—they're taken for granted and don't really get the recognition they deserve. Yes, they can be disruptive at times, but just like Robin, they can be necessary for getting things done. I can't count the m ...more
More and more, our phones are becoming an expression of us. Whether it's the device we choose, the case it dons, or the ringer it bellows, we like to personalize. Unfortunately, there's not much you can do beyond cases and ringers on your iPhone, unless you jailbreak. We've a ...more
Your days as an ordinary Muggle are over — as long as you have an iPhone. With just a word or two, you can use your iPhone and newfound Muggle-born powers to cast spells or utilize charms just like Harry Potter and team. Only your "wand" is from Apple, not Ollivanders in Diago ...more
Your AirPods Pro can run up to 4.5 hours when 100% charged up. However, they're programmed to stop charging at 80%, and it won't kick back in until they think you'll need that extra 20%. That means they won't last as long in your ears before needing put back in the case. And y ...more
A good smartphone can be the perfect workout companion. You have music for motivation, videos for pushing through boring cardio sessions, GPS to keep you on course, and even an array of sensors for gathering data about your workout. But not all phones are created equal when it ...more
The wearables space experienced its "big bang" moment back in 2015 when Apple released its first wearable device, the Apple Watch. Although the device was initially dismissed by some as an unnecessary charm bracelet packed with frivolous tech, in very short order, the public l ...more
It's new phone season — new handsets are releasing every few weeks, we're seeing endless software updates, and the holidays are right around the corner. We asked our tech-obsessed writers and editors to give us the lowdown on their must-have accessories when they splurge on a ...more
Apple's latest updates to its operating systems add another security feature to its Find My service, so you have an even better chance at locating your lost iPhone, iPad, or Mac should it ever happen. As long as you have the option enabled, you can leverage other Apple users' ...more
There's something seriously wrong with Apple's new Shortcuts app, and it's severely limiting the number of shortcuts users can install on their iPhones. In version 2.0 of Shortcuts, when you open up the "Gallery" tab, you can browse all of Apple's recommended shortcuts that y ...more
Native screen recording, one of the hottest features that Apple included in iOS 11 and later, is easily started from the optional Control Center toggle on your iPhone. From there, you can stop recording from the same place or from the red status bar or bubble. It's a very conv ...more
When an iPhone is lost or stolen, it's imperative to start tracking it via Find My as soon as possible, whether that's from a computer, tablet, or someone else's phone. However, if it's stolen, there's a good chance the thief or robber turns on Airplane Mode, blocking all comm ...more
Phones these days are expensive. The iPhone 11 Pro is presumed to start at $999, following the iPhone XS and iPhone X's leads. One way to bring down that cost is to trade in your old iPhone, but there isn't one clear-cut way to do that. You could trade your iPhone into a parti ...more
Amber, emergency, and public safety alerts on an iPhone are loud — startle-you-to-death loud even. They can happen at any time, day or night, and sometimes back to back when you're in a big city. Those blaring sirens can wake you from sleep, interrupt an important meeting, or ...more
Night mode on the iPhone 11, 11 Pro, and 11 Pro Max is a godsend if you want clearer photographs in dimly lit environments. But if you want to keep the image dark or full of shadows as an effect of sorts, it's not immediately obvious how to disable Night mode, which turns on a ...more
Working from home is going to be a reality for more people than ever. With Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey announcing that his employees will be working remotely for an extended period of time (and even permanently, in some cases), the workforce is rapidly changing. More companies are ...more
The automatic software update setting on your iPhone is nice, but you may not always want to install new iOS versions blindly. New updates could contain bugs and vulnerabilities, and your favorite features may even disappear. With the auto-update option turned off, you can man ...more
This time last year, Snap CEO Evan Spiegel and his company were faced with an erosion of its user base that cratered its stock price. This year, on the strength of Snapchat's AR camera effects, the company has reversed course. And that's why Spiegel tops the NR30, our annual l ...more
Although styluses and smartphones have existed together for years, the iPhone has always ignored the pairing. After all, "Who wants a stylus?" But ever since the Apple Pencil made its debut on iPad, the rumor mill has churned out the idea that an iPhone could one day see stylu ...more
Smartphones are now indispensable when traveling. Domestic and overseas travel alike require food, navigation, translation, and so much more to make work or vacation successful. Gone are the days of lugging multiple tourist books around with you everywhere you go — you need to ...more
With the growing list of products Apple offers, the number of devices connected to your Apple ID can get quite extensive. Having all those devices connected to your Apple ID helps you keep track of them, but when it comes time to part ways with an Apple TV or Apple Watch, thos ...more
One gem that Apple added with iOS 12 is the perfect companion for the dictionary that's already available with the "Look Up" tool. I say gem because it's taken a backseat to all of the other new iOS 12 features, but it shouldn't, because a thesaurus is like the phloem to a dic ...more
Unlike on Android, you can't easily hide your iPhone apps. Sure, you can nestle them away in folders labeled "junk," but they're supposed to be omni-present somewhere on your home screen. That is, until one day they're just ... gone. The fact that some of your apps disappeared ...more
Contrary to popular belief, augmented reality apps have been available for a while now. I remember using the Layar app (still available for iOS and Android) to explore nearby businesses and landmarks with varying success via an early-generation Android handset. It would be ha ...more
With ultra competitive games like Fortnite Battle Royale and PUBG taking the mobile world by storm, gamers are looking for ways to get a leg up on the competition. One of the biggest advantages you can give yourself is the ability to aim and shoot while on the move, but that's ...more
I'm a little biased — I love HBO. I wouldn't want to cancel my subscription, because there are constantly shows I want to watch. But I understand not everyone is like me. Some people might only subscribe to watch, say, Game of Thrones, then cancel their subscription when the s ...more
Apple has finally addressed and issued a fix for Error 53, a "safety" mechanism that would prevent your iPhone from booting if you had certain repairs done outside of Apple's official channels. Essentially, if you had a repair done to fix a broken Touch ID on your iPhone 6, 6 ...more