CorysTechTime

  2021 was a less interesting year in tech than I originally thought it would be, however, that doesn't mean that it was a bad year. For Google, in particular, I believe they have laid the groundwork to have an even better 2022 hardware year than in 2021 with the advancements they made in software development. Think Jetpack Compose. The following are some items I purchased in 2021 or was released in 2021. First up we have is probably my favorite device for 2021 and that's the Pixel 6. A clear upgrade over the Pixel 5 with a gorgeous all-new design, upgraded cameras, and a whole new UI called Material You. Google really went for it this year and it seemed to have worked out for them with the phone being mostly unavailable to buy. Although the Pixel 6 is not perfect I believe Google is moving in the right direction with design and software. After introducing their first pair of truly wireless earbuds in 2020 Google followed up the Pixel Buds with an awesome entry-level pair of ea

  Last week, Google announced that a firmware update was on its way to your Pixel Buds A-Series earbuds. Today, I received said update and decided to use the manual method since it's a new feature for the earbuds.  Once your Pixel Buds A are ready to update to the new firmware you will be greeted with a notification. Selecting the notification will bring you to the above image.  Pressing Start will send you to the above-pictured screen reminding you to ensure to snap in your earbuds and keep your case open. The light will be on during the update. Selecting Got it will start the download and then will install. I noticed that the light on the case blinked white and orange during the download. Turned white during the installation and the light turned off about halfway through the process. Updating the earbuds was fairly smooth but not without its faults. The update did complete for me but I was still provided with the above message. I double-checked in settings and... Voila... There

  I've been living with the new Pixel Buds A for about 2 months now and have some thoughts. The Buds A checks nearly all the boxes for a set of truly wireless earbuds. Good sound, great connection, hands-free Assistant, excellent minimal design, and solid battery life. I can go on but you get the point. The Pixel Buds A is literally everything I wanted the Pixel Buds to be. Pixel Buds was just too buggy and I am glad that Google went with another chip that allows for each bud to receive a Bluetooth stream from your phone or tablet.  There are two things that stand out to me that make the Buds A an instant hit IMO. The sound and the features Google were able to leave in at this price point. The sound is absolutely amazing, especially at this price point. Music sounds very detailed and crisp while keeping the bass prominent with pretty deep lows. As for features, you get Hey Google, Adaptive Sound, and Android Fast Pair. There is also in-ear detection to pause music when you take the

  If you didn't already know the Nomad Pixel Buds A-Series case is now available on the Google Store. I had no clue and decided to look on a random Monday and there they were. The case its self is nice. I like the blue color and the feel of the leather material. Pixel Buds A fits perfectly in the Nomad Rugged case which is what you would expect and it has a lightpipe for the LED on the front of the case. The Nomad Rugged case is exactly what I was looking for. I tend to rock cases on all of my devices because I can have butterfingers more than I would like to admit. I find the $30 dollar price point to be fair for the premium case but you may be able to find something cheaper that will suit your needs. I gravitate to build quality and premium materials so don't mind paying a little more. I believe the Nomad Pixel Buds A-Series case is worth a look if you are in the market. https://store.google.com/product/nomad_leather_case?hl=en-US

  It's not every day Google advertises on its homepage but that changed today with their newest product on full display. Clicking the link takes you right to the Google Store Pixel Buds A page where you can learn more about the product or purchase them if you are so inclined. Putting the Buds A in such a prominent position tells me Google is confident in the device and wants (needs) visibility by as many potential buyers as possible. I like the move and hope Google does more of this in the future. Link(s) Pixel Buds A

  I’ve been using the Pixel Buds A for about 24hrs and I have some thoughts. I will upfront say that I do like them but miss some features that are available in the more premium Pixel Buds from 2020. It's very early with me using the Buds A so I will be holding off on any future plans after I use them for a while. Things I noticed Sound - sound is good but is not as good as the OG Pixel Buds. Bass is just okay and does not hit as hard or deep as the current offering. The buds A are tuned differently and lean more on the highs and mids. The Buds A seem to work better for podcasts than music. Hopefully with me breaking them in will help with improving the sound. Mic - mic quality is solid and I can not tell a discernible difference between the Buds A and the Pixel Buds. My voice comes through nice and loud and just sounds natural. Google is underrated when it comes to mic quality when compared to other brands. Connectivity - Google made some changes and now Bluetooth streams into bot

  My Pixel Buds were just delivered and I was eager to give them a quick spin. Above are my current Pixel Buds pictured alongside the new A-Series buds. Right off the back, I noticed that the box is a bit smaller. Once I got the box and got them paired to my Pixel 5 I noticed that the weight of the A-Series feels quite a bit lighter. Too bad there's no case available for them yet. At least on the Google Store. From there, I tried them on and the fit is really similar to the OG Pixel Buds. Actually, I think they feel lighter and prefer the fit, so far. Music sounds very similar to the Pixel Buds. Rich sound comes to mind with details in the mids and highs. Bass is on par with the Pixel Buds too. If there is one area where the Pixel Buds beat out the A-Series buds is with the richness of the details. Mids seem just a bit louder and clearer but not by much. I may just need to break them, I only spent about an hour with them. I’ll report back soon but will say that I believe Google has