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Gear S3 Frontier Review: Stylish, yet useful.
The world of Smart Watches has opened a pandora’s box for many watch makers. From home name brands such as Swatch and Nixxon coming into the fray to compete for the best smart watch, it can be a bit daunting to find the right one. However, Samsung has been one of the earlier pioneers of smart watch technology. A lot of their earlier smart watches have been hit or miss, but this year, they kept traditional watch design with extraordinary processing speeds to give us the Gear S3 Frontier and Classic.
From the start, the Gear S3 Frontier and Classic look very different. The Frontier has a rugged looking design, while as the Classic is just that; classic and safe. The buttons on the side of the Classic and Frontier are different, as the Classic protrudes and has knobs like your typical watch.Design
The Gear S3 is quintessential for any Samsung or Android user who wants to have a powerful watch that does more then your standard watch. It comes built in with a .22m band, that can easily be customizable. I personally have a few myself, and its great to be able to quickly snap on various, depending on the occasion. The watchband is sturdy and has that rugged frontier idea, but the texture is hidden by the color of the band. When it comes to wearing it around daily, I often forget that I have it on my hand. It is very comfortable to wear and it doesn’t bother me in the slightest.
Another great design feature is the moveable bezel. With it, you can receive calls just by turning the bezel left or right. It also feels reminiscent of the classic G-Shock watches. The Gear S3 can also be operated with touch, but I found myself enjoying to rotate the bezel, rather then using my fingers to click on the menu items.Texting is also surprisingly easy on the Gear S3. You can use the Voice Feature or you can reply to your texts via your fingers. Its not hard at all, although it does take a few tries to get it right.
Texting is simple with this. Since the Gear S3 is part of the Samsung Ecosystem, you can expect a lot of the great features you would get from Samsung onto the watch. Samsung Smart Watches have been notorious for over promising applications that will be useful for your Gear S3. It’s native apps are great. If you’re into health and keeping up with your heart rate, Samsung has utilize its own native app, S-Health to give you on the go health updates. It is keen, especially with one of the top selling points is a built in GPS. (If you are looking for something smaller, the Gear Fit 2 offers the same thing for the sportier types.)
However, when it comes to the Sleep Monitor on the Gear S3, I find it lacking. While the Gear Fit2 accurately tracked my sleep well, I feel that this doesn’t track it. On average, I sleep between 6 – 8hrs, but certain nights, it will only record 2 – 5 hours of sleep. I tried to tinker with the sleep monitor to no avail. But when it does work, it accurately tracks motionless sleep and it can easily be recorded onto your phone.
Having a Smart Watch is all about the extension of your phone. But the Gear S3 does a lot more, and with its design, its certain to be a welcoming addition to anyone who wants to keep themselves connected without pulling out your phone. -
Google Pixel – Worth the wait, but just short of perfect.
The saying goes: big things come in small packages. And while we can’t say that for the Pixel XL, we can certainly give it credit for keeping it safe, in terms of design and finish but giving a new spin on the UI and Android OS.
At first glance, the Pixel doesn’t seem like much. This is Google’s first phone but the exterior gives it an iPhone look, without having the iPhone’s iconic middle button. I found myself trying to tap on an invisible button, but with enough uses, you will soon forget about it and start using its finger print sensor, located on the back of the phone. It has a good weight to it, which gives it more of a finished feel. Nowadays, it’s very hard to find a smart phone that doesn’t have the same metal/aluminum finish. The old rhetoric stays true for this design: if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it. And with the rectangular bezel, camera placement and overall body, it pays homage to what works currently in the smartphone world.
Google has done an incredible job at optimizing the battery life and speeds on the Pixel. I t is extraordinarily fast, with very few lag inputs. The battery life on the Pixel XL is just as impressive. While a 3,450mh battery may not mean much with bigger batteries like the S7 Edge, its held out on strenuous tasks that I’ve assigned it to do. I’ve never had to charge it more than once a day. I connected two Bluetooth devices (my smartwatch and headphones) and watch Netflix on it for about an hour. The result? It barely dropped down to 15%.
Something that Google has proudly boasted is the camera quality. Being a skeptic coming in, I couldn’t possibly believe that it could rival Samsung’s flagship phones in term of camera. Perhaps even against the iPhone 7, I would have expected to see major differences within it. But it did. Taking photos on the Pixel XL in low-light is hands down, by far the best I have ever seen on any smart camera out on the market. It rivals virtually all smartphones that talk about its impressive aperture. Taking a few shots in comparison, you can see the difference this makes and how astounding it is.
Pixel XL Camera. 
S7 Edge Camera. However, when it comes to taking a photo in natural light, it doesn’t shine as bright as the Galaxy S7. In fact, the colors do not pop as much as one would have hoped. Regardless, it is all up to the photographers tastes and what they want. But these are note-worthy differences if you happen to be a fanatic of mobile photography.
Another great addition is Google Assistant. In essence it’s a Google Now v2.0: a more robust search function with more “smart” capabilities. Google Now assists with everything from Calendar appointments upto recent searches on your purchases. It takes it a step further with an AI, and can be a lot of fun when you set it up. But while it can make your life a bit easier and is more reliable, its still not “smart” enough. It recognizes my voice just fine. Its just not as personal and intuitive as I would have liked it to be.
I welcome the Google Pixel as a great contender between Samsung and Apple. It certainly has the potential to be greater (especially since it will always be the first one up in Android Updates.)
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SAMSUNG REINVENTS THE REFRIGERATOR
With groundbreaking new features and an unprecedented level of smart connectivity,
Samsung Family Hub™ transforms the kitchen appliance experience
Samsung Electronics America, Inc., a leader in home appliance innovations announced the availability of the Samsung Family Hub™ Refrigerator, a revolutionary advancement that changes the refrigerator category in meaningful ways. With the kitchen already being the heart of the home, the Family Hub™ becomes a focal point for family members, enhancing their lives with family connections, food and entertainment experiences like never before.
Enhanced by a 21.5 inch full HD LCD screen which serves as the refrigerator’s digital command center, and seamlessly connects to your smartphone, the Family Hub™ is a significant advancement in home appliance functionality and design. Whether sharing family calendars, photos and notes; viewing the inside of the fridge with your smartphone while grocery shopping; or accessing your favorite music or television content, Family Hub™ enriches family life in practical and empowering ways.
“The refrigerator was once viewed simply as a place to cool and store food. In time, it became the center of the home and the family bulletin board, where families shared notes, photos, artwork and kept shopping lists. We saw an opportunity to introduce a refrigerator that redefines the category – a refrigerator that goes beyond storage and one that brought the center of your kitchen into the digital age,” said John Herrington, Senior Vice President, General Manager of Home Appliance, Samsung Electronics America. “We’re excited to debut the Family Hub™ refrigerator and the great new possibilities it brings as part of Samsung’s commitment to bring meaningful innovations to the home.
Grocery Management and Organization Made Easier than Ever
Ask the average person what’s going on inside their fridge, and chances are they won’t really know for sure. The Family Hub™ features a series of smart and intuitive features that make food management and organization easier and more efficient. Most impressive are three tiny, high quality cameras positioned inside the refrigerator that capture an image each time the doors close. Now if you are at the store and trying to remember which food items to buy, you can view inside the refrigerator through a smartphone app. Other food management features in the Family Hub™ include:
- Instacart – The leading national online grocery delivery service, delivering groceries from your favorite stores straight to your door in as little as one hour.
- Groceries by MasterCard – Order groceries online from leading retailers like Fresh Direct and ShopRite and pay for them through a simple, single check-out with any U.S.-issued credit or debit cards
- Allrecipes – Access recipes rated and reviewed by millions of cooks, as well as cooking advice tips and how-to videos.
- Shopping List – Compile and keep track of your grocery lists, which seamlessly sync between fridge and smartphone.
- Food Reminders – Use the Family Hub™ screen or your smartphone to drag and drop expiration dates to the image of items inside to know what needs to be used, and by when.
- Fridge Manager – Easily control the refrigerator and freezer temperatures, and check the status of the water filter.
New and Smarter Ways to Connect with Family
The Family Hub™ screen packs a powerful, highly interactive digital punch. Within its 21.5 inch screen, you can easily access and store all important aspects of family life such as schedules, photos, artwork, tap into the Internet, check news and weather and more. Apps and features to help better connect families include:
- StickiBoard – Keep in touch with family members by sharing multiple calendars, posting photos and writing notes directly on the screen [or with] your mobile device
- WhiteBoard – Write notes and draw pictures on the Family Hub and through your mobile device to leave messages for your family
- Photo Album – Display daily photos and iconic family images for all to see.
- AccuWeather – Get weather updates with Superior Accuracy while multi-tasking in the kitchen
- Web Browser – Surf the internet using a full browser for all your family needs
Entertainment Right in the Kitchen
With today’s open home floor plans, people are moving freely between rooms and demanding a seamless flow of entertainment into the kitchen as they cook and socialize. The Family Hub™ enables favorite television shows to be mirrored from Samsung Smart TVs1 onto the refrigerator’s digital screen. Music lovers can stream their favorite songs and talk radio programs through apps such as Pandora using the built-in speakers. The refrigerator also connects to external Bluetooth wireless speakers like Samsung’s own Radiant 360 line for sound that stretches beyond the kitchen.
The Refrigeration Performance You’ve Come to Expect
The Family Hub™ also excels in food storage and preservation. It’s innovative and exclusive FlexZone™, located in the bottom right quadrant of the refrigerator. FlexZone™ transforms from fridge to freezer by toggling between five customizable temperature settings. The 28-cu. ft. Family Hub™ also places a premium on keeping food fresh with its Triple Cooling system. With three evaporators and a network of sensors, Triple Cooling maintains even humidity levels throughout the refrigerator to provide a more precise temperature calibration.
The Samsung Family Hub™ Refrigerator (model RF28K9580SR) is now available in a stunning new Black Stainless Steel design in a Counter Depth size ($5,999.99) and Full Depth size ($5,799.99) at major appliance retailers nationwide and online. It is also available in a Stainless Steel finish. To see Samsung’s latest home appliances and other products, visit http://www.samsung.com/us/.
About Samsung Electronics America, Inc.
Headquartered in Ridgefield Park, NJ, Samsung Electronics America, Inc. (SEA), is a recognized innovation leader in consumer electronics design and technology. A wholly owned subsidiary of Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., SEA delivers a broad range of digital consumer electronics, mobile products and wearables, wireless infrastructure, IT and home appliance products. Samsung is the market leader for HDTVs in the U.S and one of America’s fastest growing home appliance brands. To discover more, please visit www.samsung.com.About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. inspires the world and shapes the future with transformative ideas and technologies. The company is redefining the worlds of TVs, smartphones, wearable devices, tablets, cameras, digital appliances, printers, medical equipment, network systems, and semiconductor and LED solutions. For the latest news, please visit the Samsung Newsroom at news.samsung.com.
Want to know more about this super cool stuff?
Click here, http://www.samsung.com/us/explore/family-hub-refrigerator/#specs.
