Google’s Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL smartphones will be able to make phone calls to local businesses to ask about hours or even book an appointment on your behalf, saving you the trouble of talking to a human being. The feature will be available starting next month when Google’s Duplex technology gets a public […]
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Would you pay for Facebook if it were ad-free?
Facebook has been coming under some pretty heavy scrutiny for its privacy practices. That’s caught the attention of lawmakers in the US and abroad, and it’s led many people to consider joining the #DeleteFacebook movement. While Facebook is trying to win back users (and avoid hefty fines related to Europe’s new data privacy regulations) by […]
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Amazon Prime gets a price hike: Is it worth $119 per year?
Amazon is increasing the annual price for an Amazon Prime membership in the US for the first time since 2014, when the company raised the annual fee from $79 to $99. This time the price is rising to $119. The new pricing takes effect May 11th for new members and June 16th for existing customers… […]
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Do you actually want a folding smartphone?
Rumor has it that LG and Samsung are both working on foldable smartphones with flexible OLED displays that allow you to use a single device either as a phone or a tablet. ZTE beat them both to market by taking a big shortcut: the ZTE Axon M that ships this week doesn’t have a flexible […]
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Do you actually use smartphone-based VR systems? (Daydream, Cardboard, Gear VR)
A few weeks ago a friend who doesn’t keep up on the latest tech trends asked me about virtual reality, so I explained that right now you can break things into expensive, PC-based systems like the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift, or cheaper, but less powerful smartphone-based solutions like Samsung Gear VR, Google Daydream, and […]
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Do you prefer Disqus comments or WordPress/Jetpack comments?
This one’s for all the regular (or occasional) Liliputing commenters. This site has used the Disqus comment system since we first launched in April, 2008. At the time, Disqus offered clear benefits over the default WordPress comment system, including support for threaded comments, upvotes, spam detection (which clearly doesn’t always work), comment moderation tools. At […]
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When Chromebooks run Android apps, do we still need Android tablets?
After years of hinting that the lines between Android and Chrome OS were getting thinner and blurrier, Google recently announced that Chromebooks would soon be able to run just about any Android app. The Google Play Store will be available for three Chromebooks with touchscreen displays starting in June, and the list of Chrome OS […]
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How do you listen to podcasts?
Podcasting has been around for more than a decade, but it’s really taken off in recent years with the success of shows like Serial, the launch of new podcast networks including Gimlet, Panoply, and Radiotopia, and many independent productions. I’ve been a fan of (some) podcasts for a long time, but I’ve been thinking a lot […]
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What web browser do you use?
There was a time when Mozilla’s Firefox web browser was the most popular alternative to Microsoft’s Internet Explorer. But over the past few years it seems like Firefox has lost market share while Google Chrome usage has surged. While there’s some serious disagreement between groups that track browser usage over whether Chrome or Internet Explorer is […]
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SmartRings are a thing: MOTA crowdfunds $100,000 to build one
The MOTA SmartRing is a wearable device designed to let you view notifications at a glance to let you know when new email, text messages, phone calls, or calendar appointments pop up on your phone. But while most wearable devices that meet that description these days are watches, the MOTA SmartRing is… well, a ring. […]