The Android Crew by COOL BLIND TECH

The next generation of Amazon's best-selling Fire tablet ever - now thinner, lighter, and with longer battery life and an improved display. According to Amazon, it is more durable than the latest iPad.

CBT initializes VoiceView and goes through the setup of Amazon's newest Fire 7 Tablet.

The accessibility features allows you to magnify the screen and increase the size of text in menus on your Fire tablet. You can also navigate your device using VoiceView gestures and hear spoken feedback about the items you touch and open

The Fire 7 Tablet has a 7" IPS display with higher contrast and sharper text, a 1.3 GHz quad-core processor, and up to 8 hours of battery life.

8 or 16 GB of internal storage and a microSD slot for up to 256 GB of expandable storage.

Enjoy millions of Kindle eBooks, games, and apps - including Prime Video, Netflix, Facebook, Prime Music, Spotify and more.

Prime members get unlimited access to over one million songs, thousands of movies and TV episodes, and unlimited photo storage - at no additional cost.

Watch downloaded videos anywhere with a Prime membership or Netflix plan.

Technical Details

Display

17.7 cm touchscreen, 1024 x 600 resolution at 171 ppi, SD video playback, with IPS (in-plane switching) technology and advanced polarizing filter

Size

192 x 115 x 9.6 mm

Weight

295 grams (Actual size and weight may vary by configuration and manufacturing process.)

CPU & RAM

Quad-Core 1.3 GHz with 1 GB of RAM

Storage

8 GB (4.5 GB available to user) or 16 GB (11.6 GB available to user) of internal storage. Add microSD card for up to 256 GB of additional storage for even more movies, TV shows, music, photos, personal videos, and apps. (Some apps may require that they are installed on internal storage.)

Battery Life

Up to 8 hours of reading, surfing the web, watching video, and listening to music. Battery life will vary based on device settings, usage, and other factors such as web browsing and downloading content. Actual results may vary.

Charge Time

Fully charges in under 6 hours using the micro-USB power adaptor included in the box, or slightly longer with other micro-USB power adaptors that you may already have

Wi-Fi Connectivity

Single-antenna dual-band Wi-Fi. Supports public and private Wi-Fi networks or hotspots that use the 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, or 802.11n standard with support for WEP, WPA, and WPA2 security using password authentication; does not support connecting to ad-hoc (or peer-to-peer) Wi-Fi networks.

Ports

USB 2.0 (micro-B connector) to connect to a PC/Macintosh computer, or to charge your device with the included power adaptor; microSD slot for external storage

Audio

3.5 mm stereo jack and integrated speaker

Content Formats Supported

Kindle (AZW), KF8, TXT, PDF, unprotected MOBI, PRC natively, Audible Enhanced format (AAX), DOC, DOCX, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP, non-DRM AAC, MP3, MIDI, PCM/WAVE, OGG, WAV, M4V, MP4, AAC LC/LTP, HE-AACv1, HE-AACv2, MKV, AMR-NB, AMR-WB, HTML5, CSS3, 3GP, VP8 (WEBM)

Sensors

Accelerometer

Camera Specs

VGA front-facing camera. 2 MP rear-facing HD camera

Location Services

Location-based services via Wi-Fi

Additional Features

External volume controls,

CBT takes a look at the Google Home Mini with updated touch controls. Shortly after launching the Mini, Google disabled all touch controls due to an issue with the touch control on the top of the device constantly being triggered even when not touched.

Google recently added some touch controls back to it’s Mini speaker. Here's what you can do:

* To play, pause, stop music playback or end a phone call, long-press on either side of the Home Mini.

* Stop a timer or alarm with a tap on either side of the device.

* Tap the left side to decrease volume.

* Tap the right side to increase volume.

Touch control on the top of the Home Mini is still missing. You will need to summon Google Assistant using your voice, instead of a long-press on the top of Home Mini as was originally intended.

If the long-press actions aren't working for you quite yet, be patient. An update is rolling out to all Google Home Mini devices to add the new touch controls.

CBT gives you our first impressions of the Google Pixel 2 XL. Find out how this maybe the best of 2017.

Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL

The Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL both use Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processors with 4GB RAM. (You can also choose between 64GB and 128GB options.) They have the same camera, processor, and speaker specs. They have 12.2-megapixel rear cameras that have an autofocus with laser and dual-pixel phase detection, and optical and electronic image stabilization. In the front, the Pixels have a fixed-focus 8-megapixel camera. Both phones use USB-C, but no wireless charging. There is no headphone jack and it runs on Bluetooth 5.0.

The Pixel 2 XL has a bigger battery and a 6-inch screen with a 2880 x 1440 smart OLED resolution; the Pixel 2 has a 5-inch screen and 1920 x 1080 OLED resolution. This year’s XL is slightly bigger than last year’s 5.5-inch screen. The Pixel 2 is also slightly lighter and slimmer than the XL. The Pixel 2 comes in “kind of blue,” “just black,” and “clearly white.

The regular price for the Pixel 2 64GB is $649, while the Pixel 2 XL 64GB costs $849. The 128GB variant costs $749 and 949. Look out for holiday discounts!

CBT gives you the first impressions of the new Essential Phone.

The Essential Phone’ has a stunning edge-to-edge Full Display and is a large-screen device that fits comfortably in the palm of your hand.

Essential PH-1 features

Materials

* Titanium body

* Ceramic back

* Corning Gorilla Glass 5 cover glass

Dimensions

* Height: 141.5mm

* Width: 71.1mm

* Thickness: 7.8mm

* Weight: < 185 grams

Display

* Resolution: 2560 x 1312 QHD

* Aspect Ratio: 19:10

* Diagonal Size: 5.71” with radiused corners

* Brightness: 500 nits (typical)

* Contrast Ratio: > 1000:1 (typical)

* Technology: CGS / LTPS

Human Input + Sensors

* 10 finger multitouch; palm and water-error rejection

* Fingerprint reader: fastest available technology

* Proximity / Ambient light sensor

* Volume buttons, Power button

* Environmental pressure sensor (barometer)

* Accelerometer, Magnetometer and Gyroscope

Audio

* Microphone: 4x microphones with noise cancellation and beam forming

* Low Audio (earpiece)

* High Audio: (loudspeaker)

Rear Camera

* 13MP Dual RGB + Mono camera with image fusion technology

* 13MP True Monochrome mode

* f/1.85 lens

* Hybrid Auto Focus combing Contrast, Phase Detect and IR Laser

* Video at 4K 30fps, 1080p 60fps or 720p 120fps

Front Camera

* 8MP resolution with 16:9 aspect ratio

* f/2.20 fixed hyperfocal lens

* Video at 4K 30fps, 1080p 60fps or 720p 120fps

Battery

* 3040mAh.

* Fast charging via USB

Memory & Storage

* RAM: 4GB

* Storage: 128GB UFS 2.1

Connectivity

* Bluetooth: 5.0 LE

* WiFi: 802.11a/b/g/n/ac with MIMO

* NFC: yes

* Positioning: GPS and GLONASS

Network / Bands

* UMTS/HSPA+: 1, 2, 4, 5 6, 8

* GSM: 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz

* CDMA EV-DO Rev. A: 0, 1, 10

* FDD-LTE: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 11, 12, 13, 17, 20, 21, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 66

* TDD-LTE: 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43

* TD-SCDMA: 34, 39

System Architecture / OS

* Android

* Qualcomm® Snapdragon 835

* CPU: Kryo 280 Octa-core (2.45GHz Quad + 1.9GHz Quad), 64 bit, 10nm processor

* GPU: Adreno 540, 710MHz, 64bit

Ports

* USB Type-C

* 60GHz, 6 Gbps Wireless Accessory Connector

* 2x accessory power pins

* NanoSIM tray with pin eject

* Water and Dust Resistant

* IP54

From Andy Rubin, Essential CEO, Android Founder

Why I started Essential

I know people are going to ask me a lot of questions about why I started this company. Why didn’t I just travel the world, ride my motorcycle, tinker with my robots, hang out at my bakery with friends and family. And to be honest I still do ask myself that sometimes…but not too often.

So why did I create Essential? Well, my hardware engineers wanted me to talk about how we are bringing real passion and craftsmanship back into this category. My software engineers wanted me to talk about our vision for making all devices, even those we don't make ourselves, play well together. My partners wanted me to talk about how we are using methods that could change how successful technology companies are built forever.

The over the air update for the Android O developer preview has arrived, and there are some very interesting new features for those of us who use TalkBack.

Listen to this podcast to find out what accessibility improvements are on the way.

If you are considering installing the developer preview of Android O, make sure that you backup your device before enrolling in the Android Beta program, and downloading the update. Listen to this podcast on how too backup and enroll an Android device in the Beta program, if you need a step by step guide on how to do it.

In a previous podcast, James Oates showed us the features available on a Google Home voice activated speaker. Now he gives us a live demonstration of those features in action. After listening to this podcast, you should have a good understanding of what the Google Home can do.

Version numbers are not always what they are cracked to be. Windows 10, for example, has kept the version at 10.0, with only incremental build numbers which are prefixed by the month and year.

Google is a little different. Talkback has undergone major evolution even in minor releases. Yet in the last few ones from 5.0 up to now, the changes to Talkback have refined much of what we experience. In 5.0, screen dimming, and in 5.1, abilities q export custom labels and more intelligent interaction handling removed many pain points for the user.

With 5.2, perhaps one of the largest ones is addressed. Have the accessibility developers behind Talkback made the right choice with the redesigned sounds? For the first time, there is a mobile screen reader which allows for desktop-quality granular control. Is this useful? Be sure to check out this article to get the full Changeling of to this release.

Google is offering some users the opportunity to get a sneak preview of Android Nougat 7.1.2. To take advantage of this offer, you must enroll in the Android Beta program and have an eligible device.

To enroll, just visit android.com/beta and provide your Google sign in credentials.

The following devices are eligible at this time.

* Pixel

* PixelXL

* Nexus 5X

* Nexus Player

* Pixel C

Google has confirmed that the Nexus 6P will also be eligible.

Before launching the Beta version of Android Nougat, you should back up your device. In this podcast, James Oates shows us how to back up a Pixel phone and enroll it in the Beta program.

Google released the Google Home, which is a voice activated speaker that can control your smart home devices, play your music, answer your questions about almost anything, stream the news from sources you select, and so much more.

In this episode, James Oates tells us how to setup the Google Home, and walks us through the Google Home app on his Pixel phone. Here he shows us all the different configuration options available for the Google Home. The Google Assistant is built-in to the Google Home, and it is amazing how many things it can do.

In this episode, we look at the TalkBack settings on a Google Pixel running Android Nougat 7.1.1. James Oates gives a brief overview of accessibility settings while primarily focusing on the settings for TalkcBack 5.1. He also shows us Moves, which are specialized gestures for Android that can be toggled on or off, depending on your preferences.

Although James is new to Android, he is very impressed with the Google Pixel, and looks forward to bringing more Android content to our listeners.