The official tablet (and other useless electronics) thread!

[Jake]

Yes, it uploads to a private MM Imgur account.

[JustinG]

Yes, it uploads to a private MM Imgur account.

Oh cool, figured we logged in somehow and it loaded to our own. Nice upgrade. Gold star, feel free to go home early today.

[RawrImAMonster]

Well for some reason Verizon (or my phone insurance company) decided to send me a new Pixel 2 as a replacement for my old Pixel 1 that stopped working. Definitely wasn't expecting that, but anyway now I have a pixel 2 I guess. That also means I no longer have a headphone jack so I guess I'll get to see how much of a pain in that ass that is.

Since I have a newer phone I guess I'll hold off on switching back to iOS for now. Overall the pixel 2 seems very similar so far, but I really haven't messed with it too much. The camera is noticeably better in low light and much quicker than the old one. Of course it's sized ever so slightly different so that my old pixel 1 phone case won't fit properly.

[Sijray21]

that's pretty sweet.

i got my 2xl in the fall and have really liked it since then. There was a period (with an update) where the battery life really took a hit, but i think Google fixed that. i've noticed that the lack of a headphone jack didn't affect me much. i have a BT headset at work and use BT with my car hookup. not having the wires is actually nice; i can keep the phone in my pocket and have a BT speaker or headset work without having to worry about wires.

[RawrImAMonster]

Holy shit my battery life is amazing compared to my old phone. I didn't realize how bad it had gotten. Normally at this point in the day I'd be at like 40% with battery saver on the whole time. Right now I'm at 70% without battery saver and I've been on the phone a lot with dealerships this morning.

I've heard the fast chargers that phones come with now are really hard on batteries. I might get a slow charger to use for overnight charging on this one.

[JustinG]

that's pretty sweet.

i got my 2xl in the fall and have really liked it since then. There was a period (with an update) where the battery life really took a hit, but i think Google fixed that. i've noticed that the lack of a headphone jack didn't affect me much. i have a BT headset at work and use BT with my car hookup. not having the wires is actually nice; i can keep the phone in my pocket and have a BT speaker or headset work without having to worry about wires.

I think the whole headphone jack thing only impacts the crazy audiophiles.

Good Bluetooth earbuds are like $20 now.

[Sijray21]

I think the whole headphone jack thing only impacts the crazy audiophiles.

that's true; i've never had an issue with any headphones/buds. my Shure buds were the best i've ever used, but i'm using over-ear BT that were $40 and they sound almost just as good.

Another thing: the front-facing speakers on the pixel 2/2xl - awesome. i'm a heavy user for media consumption and it really makes a difference. i think it's a feature i'll look for in an eventual replacement phone.

[RawrImAMonster]

My only real complaint so far is the vibration for calls/texts is so weak that you can't hear it setting on a hard desk right beside you. Some quick googling tells me there's no way to change this currently and a lot of people have the same problem. Definitely didn't have that issue with the pixel 1.

[Apoc]

Luckily, there's this thing called the ringer that can help!

[ScottyB]

There was a period (with an update) where the battery life really took a hit, but i think Google fixed that

i had the same thing happen with my Pixel2.  battery life sucked for a couple weeks and then another update corrected it, i usually go at least a day, sometimes 2 on a charge.  i'm don't run a ton of stuff so i wasn't expecting to use a lot, but still.

I've heard the fast chargers that phones come with now are really hard on batteries.  I might get a slow charger to use for overnight charging on this one.

wouldn't surprise me.  i don't overnight charge for that reason.  usually 20 minutes is enough to top off or get it charged enough to last the day for me.

[Sijray21]

There was a period (with an update) where the battery life really took a hit, but i think Google fixed that

i had the same thing happen with my Pixel2.  battery life sucked for a couple weeks and then another update corrected it, i usually go at least a day, sometimes 2 on a charge.  i'm don't run a ton of stuff so i wasn't expecting to use a lot, but still.

I've heard the fast chargers that phones come with now are really hard on batteries.  I might get a slow charger to use for overnight charging on this one.

wouldn't surprise me.  i don't overnight charge for that reason.  usually 20 minutes is enough to top off or get it charged enough to last the day for me.

Yeah, I don't charge overnight either. I typically put it in battery save mode and have 1-3% less when I wake up.

[Apoc]

I put my charger on a timer and have it turn off from 12a-6a. Yeah, timers cost money but I'm pretty paranoid about having to leave the house in an emergency and my phone not being fully charged. The six hour break ensures I'm not whoring my battery but it's pretty close to max without me having to think about it.

[Sully]

I put my charger on a timer and have it turn off from 12a-6a. Yeah, timers cost money but I'm pretty paranoid about having to leave the house in an emergency and my phone not being fully charged. The six hour break ensures I'm not whoring my battery but it's pretty close to max without me having to think about it.

Not a bad idea. I thought modern chargers had smart features to prevent overcharging and hurting the battery. I think one of the Samsung pads actually stopped charging when the phone was full and would only charge again if you picked it up and put it back down. I remember people complaining it did that in reviews it something. I don't think any of my Samsung pads (one first gen and one stand up fast charge) do that though. My dad has a second gen flat slow pad and that one might but I can't remember.

My battery life on my s7 is awful. I'm an extremely heavy user for things that keep the screen on like browsing articles or searching for jobs and what not (so Facebook and tapatalk) but lately I have to charge it a couple of times a day. If it's a day where I have to ride around a lot ( passenger not driver) I can be at 20% by noon easy.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

[JPolen01]

Matt is semi correct. Modern phones are equipped with a chip that stops the current from flowing to the battery once it is fully charged.

If you plan to keep your phone over 2 years then charging it over night might hurt the lifespan of the battery otherwise you'll be fine.

https://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/08/22/te...night.html

[Apoc]

It's not that straightforward. Pretty much anyone who's had a phone for longer than a year has experienced capacity loss. It has more to do with cycles than overcharging, but it's not like battery life is going to be the same at 15 months that it was at month one. By two years, they're usually trash. [Insert android vs. iOS argument here].

https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/exp...s-battery/

http://time.com/4949569/mobile-phone-charge-overnight/

[Jake]

Has anyone used any of the new line of macbooks, either the 13" pro or the 12" super light fancy one-usb-port-to-rule-them-all model?

My new work laptop is a 15" MBP. I like it for the most part, although the keyboard has an annoying lack of travel that I'm still getting used to. It's the one aspect where my Lenovo is better. Otherwise, it seems pretty solid.

The 12" MacBook didn't strike me as designed for more than casual browsing/work, so I guess it depends what you're doing. For my purposes, I'd end up with a 13" Pro.

[.RJ]

What's different about the new keyboards? I have a 15" MBP now that's a few years old, love it.

I was thinking it might be time to upgrade my wife's computer, its an older 13" macbook air - She does use it for work sometimes, so I'm hesitant to go for the smaller 12" and we dont really have an office space in the house to leave a monitor parked, although the form factor/size is really slick.

[Jake]

What's different about the new keyboards?  I have a 15" MBP now that's a few years old, love it.  

I was thinking it might be time to upgrade my wife's computer, its an older 13" macbook air - She does use it for work sometimes, so I'm hesitant to go for the smaller 12" and we dont really have an office space in the house to leave a monitor parked, although the form factor/size is really slick.

They changed the keys and they have very little travel now. I'm slowly getting used to it, but it'll be an adjustment from anything that's a few years old.

[D_Eclipse9916]

Okay kids, learn me my next TV. Moving our old 62" to my office. I am not a videophile, nor do I need the "latest and greatest". Would rather spend less (remember 80/20 rule here). Good reliability, on year 8 with my "black friday deal" TV with zero issues, just would like more things integrated.

Wants:
55-65 inch, going in a 2 story living room (see sound bar requirement)
Flat (not curved)
Bluetooth/wifi/have no idea? way for a decent sound bar that can fill a fairly large room and act as the "sound system" for the main level. Getting rid of our receiver as it's more pain than its worth. I want to use the TV remote to use volume on the sound bar (I know there are systems that can do this as I set up my moms). Need suggestions here on soundbars too. Not looking for a "wired" system, already going to have that in the movie room.
"Smart" AKA I want my Netflix/Amazon on it without having to plug in anything
Budget: $1k max for TV, prefer to spend less, $500 max for sound bar

[Apoc]

Buy whatever OLED is on sale that doesn't have crap reviews.