CorysTechTime

  Last week the Pixel Buds received a firmware update to 553. The previous update was nearly 6 months ago when the first Pixel Buds Feature drop was released. There are no release notes as of today so I assume this is a bug fix update since the firmware version went from 552 to the aforementioned 553.  As for the update, so far so good. The Pixel Buds seem to be a bit more stable. The connection is solid and performance during phone calls is noticeably improved. Since the update, I have noticed that the left earbud gets a little louder randomly. It does go back to normal once I pause and play again. By the way, this only happens when both earbuds are being used and occurred twice in 5 days. Not a big deal just something I noticed and hope it gets fixed in the next update. As for the Pixel Buds, they are pretty good and are my favorite true wireless earphones to date. I've tried many others but these seem to offer a feature set and sound quality that's tough to match. The one ye

  Look, this may sound fanboy-ish but it's true. It's the little things that makes the Google Pixel line the smartphone for me. I appreciate that Google tends to focus on the experience and deliver real world quality of life features. Some of these features are added over time and some have been existing for awhile now. Nevertheless, here are some Pixel features I rely on day to day. At a Glance - Located at the top of the homescreen. Here you will find relevant and timely information. Such as upcoming calendar events and reminders, birthdays, weather and severe weather alerts. Having this information on my homescreen and lockscreen keeps me on track throughout the day. I recently received a severe weather warning and appreciated that I could properly prepare myself prior to leaving the house that morning. See it's the little things.  Now Playing - not critical but a nice feature that displays song title and artist information when music is being played around. The cool t

If you didn't know the Nest Secure Alarm System is no longer being sold. You may be able to find one online or randomly at a Home Depot but your mileage may vary. Google says they’re committed to providing our existing Nest Secure users with continued feature support, software fixes, and critical security updates. You can still expand your alarm system with additional Nest Tags and Nest Detects. Nest Detects will be back in stock in early 2021. I'm especially interested in the Nest Detects for the expansion possibilities and to just have some spares.  In my review, I will discuss the hardware, software, reliability, and what I expect and want from Google Nest in the future. Before we get started I will say that the Nest Secure Alarm was developed prior to Nest being brought under Google and this has me even more excited for what they can do together now. So with that let's get started. What is the Nest Secure alarm? The Nest Secure is a DIY home alarm security system. Setu

  I’m a huge fan of on-ear headphones and my go-to brand of choice tends to be JBL. Although, I do try other brands from time to time but I seem to go back to JBL.  JBL is known for great sounding products and the JBL Club 700BT are no different. Let's dive in. Design I favor simple but modern designs and JBL hits the mark here. The metal frame of the headphones makes it feel premium along with the well-made cushions for the head and ears. The cushions are not leather but they're very comfortable to wear. Even for those extra-long listening sessions.  Features The JBL Club 700BT features Hi-Res Audio and JBLs Pro Sound. The combination of these features creates very detailed sounding music with the clarity and bass you expect from JBL.  Speaking of bass, the Club 700BT features a bass boost button that's really not needed. It does provide extra oomph but it comes at the expense of clarity and details in the music. For those reasons, I keep the bass boost off. Besides, the d

Typically Google releases the Android Security Patch on the first Monday of every month and here we are. The February 2021 Google Android Security update is now available to Pixel 3 devices and newer. I tend to look forward to the Google Feature drops for Pixels and we should get one next month.  More details on the February update can be found below.   Happy updating! Link(s) Google

  Not sure if this is new or not but there is some new iconography in Gmail for the web. I use the web version of Gmail daily and haven't noticed this change until this afternoon. The new-look pretty much matches what's available on the Android app. This may be an A/B test or server-side push so don't fret if you don't have it yet. Have a good weekend folks!

  I tend to look forward to these updates. Cool thing is that they come every six weeks or so. Check out some of the highlights Google mentioned in their blog post. Faster and easier web sign-in - Now you can securely sign in to websites with the PIN or fingerprint you’ve set up to unlock your Chromebook with our new Web Authentication (WebAuthn) feature. Lock screen enhancements with a Screen saver - You can use your lock screen to check information like the current weather and what music is playing; you’ll also be able to pause a track or skip songs without unlocking your device. Link(s) Google

With Chrome apps set to cease to exist in the near future on Chrome OS. Here are the Google apps I wish to get PWA support. Google Keep - My go-to notes app and offline support would be great. The Android app does the job but this is one app students such as myself can benefit from having an app built with Chrome OS on top of mind. This is one app I can see being improved with updates to the Android app. Google Calendar - Offline support was recently announced so I assume PWA support may be around the corner. Youtube Music - I'm not sure how likely it is for this app to have PWA support but it would be great. One issue off the back I can see is with offline support especially for those who wish to have music saved locally. My guess the Android app will receive better support on Chrome OS and a major makeover to match the web version.  To a lesser degree Gmail - Don't get me wrong PWA support would be dope but I’d be more interested in multi-account support similar to the Androi