New Lineup

The iPhone doesn't stop at last year's excellent iPhone 12 lineup. Apple's been developing its iPhone 13 models for a while now, and there are a lot of rumors already with eight or nine months still to go until a release. This year, we're expecting four new models with similar ...more

Your iPhone is full of features, many of which you might not even know about yet. Still, Apple keeps adding feature after feature with each new iOS update, and iOS 14.5 is no exception. The latest iOS version adds at least 69 features for your iPhone that you should be happy a ...more

The "controversial" Pixel. No phone in the history of Google's Pixel lineup deserves this title more than the Pixel 3 XL. For some (including myself), the design is a welcome change that embodies the modern design of 2018 flagship phones. For others, it has an ugly huge displa ...more

The headphone jack is becoming outdated technology in smartphones — that's what many manufacturers would have you believe. For the convenience of the audiophiles out there, we recently published our list of all phones that have removed the 3.5 mm jack. But what did each compan ...more

Alongside Sesame Street, the Dr. Seuss universe has been a constant presence in the formative years of several generations of children in the US. Now, Dr. Seuss's creations are continuing to maintain relevance with today's youth via augmented reality, just as the Sesame Stree ...more

Smartglasses from Apple have become the holy grail of augmented reality, and 2020 has been the rumored time horizon for the product's arrival for the past two years. The latest analyst report sheds more light on its potential debut next year. In the present day, though, Sony ...more

While the three new iPhones won't even be announced until Sept. 12 during Apple's fall event, case makers are already primed for the launch of the devices. Some case designs are already live on manufacturer websites, and you can even buy or preorder cases for the iPhone XR, iP ...more

After a district judge approved the $85 billion merger between AT&T and Time Warner, we knew AT&T would be quick to reap the rewards of capturing Time Warner's media properties. Today, we get our first look at this with two cellular plans from AT&T. What makes these plans uniq ...more

Using the ARKit 2.0 announcement as its springboard, software maker Adobe is looking leap up to the level of Unity Technologies and Epic Games, the companies making the go-to tools for creating augmented reality experiences. Between with Photoshop, Illustrator, Creative Cloud ...more

Upon Google's release of ARCore in February, the platform wasn't only playing catch-up with Apple and ARKit in terms of downloads, but it also lagged in capabilities, as Apple already had vertical surface recognition and image recognition on the way with ARKit 1.5 for a March ...more

Spring is finally here (in earnest now), and a new batch of great augmented reality Snapchat lenses have come along with it. New life has been breathed into meme culture with the spring lineup of TV shows, Mark Zuckerberg's ongoing investigation, and college kids with too much ...more

Google's Pixel lineup hangs its hat on smooth software and a polished UI. At the core of this experience is the Pixel Launcher, a home screen app that is often imitated, but never perfectly duplicated. That is, until developer AmirZ released the latest version of his Rootless ...more

Nova Launcher continues to push the boundary of features available to home screen launchers. While most users are waiting for their OEMs to send out the Android 8.0 update, Nova provides access to many of Android Oreo's features to the 99.8% of devices currently using an older ...more

The launch of the latest line of iPhones came and went without major revelations for advanced AR hardware other than the next iteration of processors and cameras. The reaction to the new iPhones from AR investors and influencers of the NR50 was, in a word, tepid. Inbar & Emr ...more

CEO (and NR50 member) Tim Cook and Apple unveiled the long-awaited lineup of next-generation iPhones today on stage of the Steve Jobs Theater, packed with hardware improvements to facilitate AR experiences from ARKit, which will arrive with the iOS 11 on Sept. 19. The new iPh ...more

If it's not official by now, it really should be: if you're going to sell cosmetics, you need an augmented reality app. Of course, that's not all augmented reality is good for. It can be used to animate medical models and engage sports fans. Read on below… Meitu Launches Look ...more

When it comes to differentiating from the competition, brands are continuing to leverage augmented reality to give consumers to the point that there are few "firsts" left to achieve in the marketplace. While L'Oreal jumps on the augmented reality bandwagon for cosmetics, Acura ...more

The Augmented World Expo (AWE), the biggest event for augmented, virtual, and mixed reality companies, developers, customers, and connoisseurs, is happening right now. You know what that means for us here at Next Reality? Companies presenting and exhibiting at AWE are releasin ...more

Osterhout Design Group just announced the upcoming release of the newest addition to their smartglasses lineup, the R-7HL, short for R-7 Hazardous Location. ODG worked directly with customers who work in extreme environments to come up with a durable solution that fits their n ...more

This morning, Google opened a pop-up showroom where anybody can visit to get a hands-on look at the new Made by Google hardware lineup. At 10 am the line at 96 Spring st, in the SoHo neighborhood of New York City, was growing but still manageable. As we waited to be ushered in ...more

North American users get a raw deal when it comes to Sony devices. For some reason, the critically-acclaimed Xperia lineup of smartphones is hardly ever available here, whereas in Europe, the Sony Xperia Z series is one of the most popular flagship devices around. But now, th ...more

Back in the Nexus days, Google's approach to hardware was very different from most OEMs. You could say OnePlus swooped in with a similar mantra a few years later, focusing on great hardware at an affordable price tag. There were compromises, of course, but even then, it result ...more

Whether you're ordering a new 2019 iPhone model online or just want to know how they look in your hand before buying in person, use these printable cutouts to see which one looks and feels best. The sizes of the iPhone 11, 11 Pro, and 11 Pro Max are almost identical to that o ...more

With Apple releasing the iPhone XR, it appears Samsung is looking to challenge this "budget flagship" option head-on. They brought their usual two phone releases this year, but also threw in another three for a total of five phones, including the Samsung Galaxy S10e. And for m ...more

Apple's successor to the iPhone X is a beautifully made smartphone with much of the same characteristics, including a 5.8-inch OLED screen, two storage choices, and Face ID. But many features set the iPhone XS apart from its predecessor, as well as the other 2018 lineup of iPh ...more

It was a good weekend for OnePlus 5T rumors — it looks likely the 5T will be first appearing in New York, and we got a spec leak that supports the rumors we've already heard. However, perhaps the best 5T news came from OnePlus' CEO himself: The OnePlus 5T may cost $600 or less ...more

The new iPhone 12 Pro Max is equipped with MagSafe, the iPhone 12 lineup's most talked-about feature. While Apple previously used MagSafe for its magnetic charging connectors on older MacBook models, it's given new life to it on the iPhone, and in a much better way. But can it ...more

As excitement looms for Apple's annual parade of pomp and circumstance for its latest lineup of iPhones, some hidden hints in an internal build of iOS 13 has Apple enthusiasts salivating for what Cupertino is testing in the AR wearables realm. While Apple has yet to even conf ...more

While a viable version of consumer-grade smartglasses has yet to find mainstream success, two more contenders emerged this week, as Vuzix confirmed that a leak of a fashion-forward design is legitmate and Vivo introduced tethered smartglasses designed to pair with its new 5G s ...more

Google's has expanded ARCore support to numerous Android flagships like the Galaxy S10, so if you have a compatible device, you get access to all the cool new apps that can augment the world around you. One of ARCore's most sought-after features, AR Stickers, is normally exclu ...more

When Google introduced the Pixel 3 on October 9th, one of new additions they briefly mentioned was the Titan M security chip. While they did talk about how it will improve overall security, they didn't expand on the number of changes it brings to the Pixel 3's security. Well, ...more

Cited by many listed on this year's NR30 list as the most important event in the last 12 months, last year's release of ARKit catapulted Apple CEO Tim Cook to the top of Next Reality's rankings. This week, we dug deeper by explaining why he's at the top of the list of NR30 Mob ...more

With this year's iPhones, Apple built upon the success of the iPhone X in a somewhat iterative manner. All three phones borrow from the 2017 flagship's design, which many praised as being the best in years. They also tried to help those of us who don't have more than a grand t ...more

This week, Next Reality published its annual feature on the leaders in the augmented reality industry, the Next Reality 30. So it's no coincidence that the companies represented in the top four spots of the NR30 also made business headlines in AR this week. While Magic Leap i ...more

Right before the Labor Day weekend, Apple issued iOS 12 developer beta 12, which comes four days after dev beta 11 and public beta 9, and just one day after announcing the Sept. 12 event. This update primarily fixes a bug where you would be continuously prompted to install a n ...more

The rumors are still hot that Apple might include an 18-watt USB Type-C power adapter with the upcoming iPhone lineup so that there's fast-charging capability right out of the box. Leaked photos have surfaced that substantiate this rumor, though, they could also be fake. But h ...more

When it comes to the sub-$250 price range, the new Nokia 5.1 might be the perfect phone. Of all the new models announced at Nokia's event in Moscow, the Nokia 5.1 offers the most with the least compromises. For a third of the cost of a flagship, you get a phone with a premium ...more

Because of quirks with cell radios and how Android was previously set up, custom ROM support for Galaxy S phones has been sparse these past few years. It's been almost nonexistent for US customers, while international users would see some ROMs. Thanks to Android Oreo's Project ...more

Samsung has legions of loyal fans, and for good reason — their Galaxy S lineup ticks so many boxes that it would be a downgrade to switch to any other phone. Though if you're still rocking an older model like the Galaxy S7 Edge, the all-new Galaxy S9 can tick all the same boxe ...more

Huawei's sub-brand, Honor, just announced a pair of new smartphones to help close out the year. We knew the midrange Honor 7X was on its way, but what came as a surprise was the announcement of the Honor View 10 and its impending release in the US. Thanks to Honor, US customer ...more

HTC is heading in a strange direction lately. Instead of releasing just one flagship in the spring season, they released two top-tier phones, with one having last year's specs and both having last year's design. They were also supposed to manufacture both the Pixel 2 and 2 XL, ...more

The hatred is almost universal—by now, even late night TV hosts are bashing Apple's move to ditch the headphone jack in the iPhone 7. It's not like the disdain is baseless, either, because there are plenty of problems that come along with removing the iPhone's only analog soun ...more

Over the past two product cycles, Apple has been rumored to be preparing to reveal its Apple AirTags tracking devices that can help iPhone owners find their possessions with augmented reality. Now, it's 2021, and AppleTags are nowhere to be found. But Samsung has leapfrogged ...more

In the battle for best stock Android flagships, there are really only two choices: Google Pixel phones and OnePlus phones. Although the latter isn't true stock Android, it is impressively close and usually paired with more impressive hardware than the Pixel lineup. The latest ...more

Unlike past Pixel releases, it appears Google isn't done with their current lineup. Rumors have it that Google plans to put out two new phones that act as budget variants for their existing devices. And based on the leaks, it looks like one of these variants might be better th ...more

If you own a Google Pixel, you'll soon have augmented reality versions of Iron Man, the Incredible Hulk, and Childish Gambino on your camera. During its now-annual consumer hardware launch event, Google unveiled its rebrand of ARCore showcase AR Stickers, now known as Playgro ...more

Not content to just be a provider of rugged smartglasses for enterprise users, DAQRI has made the jump into the AR software side of the industry with its new Worksense productivity suite. With Worksense, DAQRI provides five apps that offer functionality typically seen in ente ...more

Are you thinking about upgrading your iPhone this year? Apple sure wants you to. Of course, that's no different than any other year, but Apple really wants you to upgrade this year. How do we know this? The rumors point to not three, not four, but five brand new iPhones in 202 ...more

When filtered through the prism of the top stories of the year, the business of augmented reality 2019 was defined as much by epic failures of AR startups as it was by the promising developments that propelled the industry forward into 2020. On the dark side of the spectrum, ...more

After North cut the base price of its Focals smartglasses, Vuzix is now testing the waters of a lower price point for its Blade smartglasses. As part of its "Dads and Grads Summer Spree" promotion, Vuzix is reducing the price of its consumer-grade smartglasses by 30% to $699, ...more

Considering Rovio Entertainment quite literally owes its existence to Apple and the App Store, it may ruffle a few feathers that the company has opted to aim the augmented reality debut of its blockbuster Angry Birds franchise at Magic Leap instead. Developed in partnership w ...more

It was only a few years ago when the idea of a 5+ inch display on a smartphone was unreal. With most hovering around four inches at the time, a phone that big seemed impossible to hold. We've come a long way since then, but it appears another wave of large displays will soon h ...more

Just in time for the release of Pixar's highly anticipated sequel, AR Emoji based on characters from The Incredibles 2 have arrived for Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+. Originally announced at the launch of Samsung's latest flagship devices, Mr. Incredible, Elastigirl, Violet, Dash ...more

The LG G7 ThinQ will likely be lambasted for its notch and awkward name, but one thing they seem to have gotten right is the new display. The G7 ThinQ will give many a first look at a new type of panel with lots of promise. While it was previously limited to TVs, from what we ...more

After two years of poor sales, LG decided to shake up its mobile division. New executives are at the helm, and changes to their flagship lineups are already underway. Specifically, the V series is expanding, as LG announced the second new device in the series, the LG V35 ThinQ ...more

At this point, we've seen Samsung's vision for Android Oreo on both the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy Note 8. Just last month, Samsung opened its Oreo Beta Program for the S8 to the public. A few days ago, we obtained and detailed a leaked beta build of Oreo for the Note 8. While both ...more

Hak5's products get a lot of attention. Popping up in popular shows like Mr. Robot, their hacking tools are bold proof of concepts with space built into the design for the community to add their own tweaks and modifications. On Friday, Oct. 27, Null Byte attended the Hak5 rele ...more

The Pixel 2 is a solid upgrade when compared to the 2016 model, but we've reached a point where the latest generation of a smartphone is never leaps and bounds better than the last. It's hard to justify dropping nearly a grand on a phone when it doesn't improve your situation ...more

Now that Android Auto and Apple CarPlay have finally arrived, the days of clunky in-dash infotainment systems are coming to an end. Instead of using software created by an automotive company to get directions, stream music, or take calls, we can now get the best user experienc ...more

Without a comprehensive root method for all Android phones and tablets, a device-specific approach is needed. And since we always cover new rooting methods for all the popular phones here at Gadget Hacks, we've built this always-updated guide to rooting many mainstream Android ...more