Google has confirmed that the original Pixel phone is going to receive one more security and software update, in December, and after that it's no longer supported. There will be no more security patches or added features from then on. 

The original Pixel was launched in 2016 as the first completely in-house smartphone designed and built to Google's own plans, following years of relying on third party manufacturers to build its Nexus smartphone line. 

When it launched, it was only ever guaranteed to get two years of software updates. That means, theoretically, its last major software upgrade should have been Android 9 Pie in 2018. Then Google surprised owners by allowing them to install 2019's Android 10. 

Despite just reaching into its fourth year of updates, this is where it ends for the original Pixel. 

What this shows is that, while Google has reached further than it originally intended or promised with its first home made phone, it still has a little way to go if it's going to compete with the software updates offered by Apple.  

As an example, iOS 13 - which launched on iPhone this year - is compatible with devices as old as the iPhone 6s, which launched in 2015.

If up to date software is of importance to you though, the Google Pixel is still the shining light in the world of Android devices. Offering current software on a three year old device is far from being the norm. 

Third party manufacturers on the whole prioritise the latest and greatest devices when releasing updates, and that can often mean that phones even just one year old can be left waiting for a long time before being updated, or at worst, neglected. 

It might not matter so much when it comes to new features, but one could argue that having a phone without the very latest security patches can leave you vulnerable. 

With all of that being said, the Pixel marked a turning point in 2016, and by offering current software on a phone that was launched just over three years ago, it shows things are changing in the world of Android. 

In fact, with the latest tools used and offered by Google with Android 10, the company is making it easier than ever for phones to be updated. So even the tradition of waiting for ages with third party phones is shifting for the better. 

If you have the original Pixel, Google confirmed to The Verge that you'll be due to get your very last software update in December, and after that it might be time to think about upgrading. 

It might not be the biggest selling smartphone range in the world, but in so many ways, the Pixel shows what is possible on Android. If it can add a fourth year on to its update promise for later devices, the Pixel will be matching the iPhone for longevity, and that would be a momentous day indeed.

We get the feeling that's not very far from being possible. 

Remember the days when text messages and Snake on your Nokia 3310 were two of the most exciting things a phone could manage? We do too. Fast forward 15 years and we have in-display fingerprint scanners, bezel free displays, punch-hole front cameras and a whole new take on slider and flip phones.

Flip phones were once slim, compact and hinged devices. Now, flip phones have morphed into foldable phones and they unhinged, in both senses of the word. With bendable screens, Android support, plenty of potential and huge price tags, here are the devices leading the crazy foldable smartphone trend.

Huawei

• 6.6-inch front, 6.38-inch rear, unfolds into 8-inch OLED tablet
• 4500mAh battery with 55W fast-charging
• Kirin 980 chipset and 5G modem
• Leica triple camera

Huawei stole the show at Mobile World Congress 2019, unveiling its take on a folding phone in the Mate X. Unlike the Samsung Fold (below), the X has its screen on the exterior fold - presented as a 6.6-inch main screen and elongated 6.38-inch screen on the rear. Unfolded, the two present as an 8-inch tablet form.

It's seamless, with no separation, no kinks or creases but it might struggle with scratches. 

Elsewhere the Mate X offers top-end spec: its got a 4500mAh total battery capacity with fastest-in-class 55W charging (80 per cent in just 30 minutes), the company's top-end Kirin 980 processor and a 5G modem for the fastest possible connectivity. Huawei has said it will be out before the end of 2019 despite delays - and it will start at €2299, which is about £2000.

• Huawei Mate X initial review

Samsung

• 7nm 64-bit octa-core processor, 12GB RAM
• 4.6-inch to 7.3-inch Infinity Flex display
• 512GB storage
• 4380mAh battery capacity

The Samsung Galaxy Fold was made official in February, following years of rumours. The device was revealed alongside the Galaxy S10 range at Samsung Unpacked 2019, but while it was due to go on sale at the end of April in the US and beginning of May in Europe, with a starting price of €2000, it had a few teething issues.

A "fixed" version of the device is now available to buy though and you can read all about what Samsung changed between the first and second generation of the device in our separate feature.

The Galaxy Fold foldable smartphone has a 4.6-inch screen that folds out to a 7.3-inch tablet, but unlike the Royole FlexPai (below), it has a more consumer-friendly design with a more considered hinge. It features a 7nm Exynos chip, coupled with 12GB of RAM and 512GB of storage. There is no microSD but the device does offer six cameras and the software allows for three-app multi-tasking when open on the larger display. Rumours have started for a Galaxy Fold 2 however so watch this space.

• Samsung Galaxy Fold initial review

Royole

• Qualcomm SD855, 6/8GB RAM
• 7.8-inch flexible screen, 308ppi
• 16MP/20MP cameras
• 134 x 190.3 x 7.6mm (unfolded), 320g

Royole beat everyone to the punch, announcing the first commercially-available smartphone with a flexible display back at CES 2019. It's only available in China as a developer model at the moment but the FlexPai turns from a 7.8-inch tablet to a smartphone by folding in half.

It's got all the power of a typical flagship smartphone but it's a bulky bit of kit when folded and it doesn't fold flat, leaving a nice big air gap next to the non-existent hinge. It also starts at £1209/$1300. There's plenty of future potential though, especially given the screen technology is just millimetres thick.

• Royole FlexPai in action

Xiaomi

President of Xiaomi, Lin Bin, tweeted a teaser video of a foldable phone so the trend is on the Chinese company's radar, though it wasn't ready for Mobile World Congress.

The device folds both sides, allowing for a smaller phone unit from the larger 4:3 tablet. The video shows the software adapting accordingly depending on the form factor, but Xiaomi's vice president told us the company is still studying what technologies should be offered.

Currently, the device is just an engineering sample, though Bin said if it is liked by enough people, the company would consider developing a consumer version and a patent has appeared since. He asked for name suggestions. We are all about Foldy Mcfoldface.

TCL

TCL announced at a hinge at Mobile World Congress 2019 called the DragonHinge that that could feature on various foldable phone designs, as well as wearables. There was also a prototype device at MWC, which opened and shut like a wallet. The screen was on the inside and while there was no external display, the company also showed a concept with a display on the cover, allowing users to check notifications and messages.

Since MWC, the company has shown off another prototype that features two hinges, expanding into a device offering three screens. Unfolded, the TCL prototype has around a 10-inch screen, basically turning it into a tablet. It's not available yet though.

• TCL is entering the foldable device game with versatile DragonHinge

LG

• Not ruled out foldable device

LG announced the V50 ThinQ at Mobile World Congress 2019, followed by the G8X ThinQ at IFA 2019, but neither are a foldable phone. Instead, the smartphones have a Dual Screen accessory that allows users to experience two screens together but they can be detached from each other.  

The company hasn't completely ruled out making a foldable phone though. It told us in our pre-MWC 2019 briefing that a foldable phone doesn't make business sense just yet but that if things change in the future, it's something it might consider. The company also patented a Z-folding device with two folds so who knows what LG has planned.

• LG G8X ThinQ Dual Screen review

Motorola

• Internal and external display
• Camera
• Fingerprint sensor

Lenovo-owned Motorola is quite literally morphing its 15-year old Razr flip phone into a foldable phone, switching the numerical keyboard for a full display that folds when you shut the phone - at least that's what all the rumours and leaks suggest.

An event is pegged for 13 November in Los Angeles, where the foldable Razr is expected. You can read our rumour round up feature for all the leaks and details surrounding the device. In terms of specifications, it has been claimed there will be mid-range muscle under the hood.

Lenovo has also committed to offering the first foldable laptop by 2020, so the company is definitely into the foldable market.

• Motorola Razr foldable phone: Release date, features and specs

Oppo

• Leaked on Weibo

Oppo has filed patents for a foldable smartphone. The company's product manager was reported to have said news regarding Oppo's foldable smartphone plans would potentially appear at MWC but not much else was said and nothing appeared at the show.

Instead, images of the device landed on Chinese micro-blogging site Weibo and there have been some official patent renders too. The phone is clearly a prototype and has an OLED wraparound display on the outside rather than folding internally. Based on the Weibo images, one side of the screen has a thicker bezel for cameras and so on, though this wasn't the case on the patent images.

When the Oppo foldable phone will launch is not yet known but it certainly looks like the OnePlus parent company will launch one at some point. 

Sony

• 6.2-inch, OLED, 4K
• Dual rear camera (19MP + 12MP)
• Qualcomm SD855
• 8GB RAM, 128/256/512GB storage

It's long been claimed Sony is also working on a foldable smartphone and several concept videos from Tech Configurations show just how amazing the device could be. With various names speculated, including Xperia Note Flex, it's claimed Sony's foldable device will take things to the next level and also offer a transparent display.

An in-display fingerprint reader, dual rear camera and Qualcomm's Snapdragon 855 chip are all listed specs in the concept leaks. The Sony Xperia folding smartphone is also said to have a polymer joint and a 6.2-inch OLED display with a 4K resolution when folded out.

Apple

Apple has filed a couple of patents for foldable phones, suggesting the Cupertino company is also working on a device to meet this trend. According to one patent, the Apple foldable smartphone may use "overlapping hinges" attached to "flexible displays".

Another patent suggests the device could roll rather than fold, while another suggests the folding area will be kept warm to prevent cracking. Naturally, rumours are very contradictory but it has been said Apple will wait till 2020 to release a foldable smartphone so we might have a little longer to wait yet. The company's co-founder told Bloomberg it really wants one though.

Google

Google is also said to be looking into foldables, but we aren't expecting a foldable Pixel any time soon. Ahead of Google I/O 2019 earlier this year, Google told CNET it is prototyping foldable devices: "We're definitely prototyping the technology. We've been doing it for a long time," said Mario Queiroz, Google's Pixel development lead.

However, he added: "I don't think there's a clear use case yet...We're prototyping foldable displays and many other new hardware technologies, and have no related product announcements to make at this time."

Segway is breaking new ground (or is that dirt?) with a new electric dirt bike known as the Dirt eBike.

The company best known for its scooters is at SEMA, the automotive products show in Las Vegas showing off its new wares that include two new eBikes, the X160 and X260. 

• 19 weird and whacky personal transportation vehicles that you'd love to ride

The Segway Dirt eBike is said to be a hybrid between a dirt and mountain bike that offers a superior off-road experience with all-electric power. The company says it's also compact, lightweight and easy to look after as well. It's lighter than a traditional petrol-powered machine and yet still has the power to thrill. 

The flagship model, the X260, has a 74.6-mile range and a 46.6mph top speed with the ability to accelerate to over 30mph in around four seconds. The smaller X160 meanwhile is more agile but has less range and a lower top speed (at just 40.4-mile range and a 31.1mph). 

Both eBikes can be fully charged in just four hours and have swappable batteries to help you extend the range. With Bluetooth connectivity, you can update onboard firmware via an accompanying app. 

The Segway Dirt eBikes are also designed to help novice riders tear up the slopes. It's said to be easy to learn and comes with novice, standard and sport modes to suit your needs.

Both versions of the new eBikes will launch in sometime in the first quarter of 2020. The X160 will set you back $3,000, while the X260 will cost $4,500.

• Here's why you can't ride electric scooters in the UK (yet)

Fossil has announced a new addition to its hybrid smartwatch portfolio in the Hybrid HR. The Hybrid HR smartwatch offers heart rate tracking, along with a read out display for important notifications but it retains the look of a traditional watch with integrated mechanical hands.

The fully-round read out display will show incoming text messages, app alerts, contextual information like weather and second time zone, along with wellness stats like heart rate, steps, calories and active minutes.

There's an integrated heart rate sensor on board - new for the company's hybrid range - and the display is a power-efficient display, enabling Fossil to promise around a two-week battery life for the Hybrid HR. Smartwatches like the Apple Watch Series 5 and Samsung's Galaxy Watch offer between one and three days before requiring a top up.

Other features of the Hybrid HR smartwatch include water resistance up to 3ATM, rapid charging for 100 per cent battery in an hour of charge and a front light for low light visibility. As with many traditional smartwatches, the Hybrid HR also offers workout modes, music control, activity and sleep tracking and goal tracking.

Through the Fossil Smartwatch app, users will be able to customise the watch face dial, filter incoming smartphone notifications, view activity and sleep metrics, set on-watch features and track fitness goals.

The Fossil Hybrid HR has interchangeable straps, with leather, silicone and stainless steel options available and it comes in a couple of different case colours too. The Fossil Hybrid HR is available to order from 6 November for £189.99 in the UK.

Ring offers a versatile system that lets you easily add a connected doorbell or security light to your home. Compatible with smart platforms like Google Home and Amazon Alexa, Ring has grown into one of the must-have devices of the smart home revolution.

Now owned by Amazon, Ring devices get great discounts in Amazon's sales, and we're expecting Ring to be one of the hot sellers in the Black Friday sales. 

• Best US Black Friday deals
• Best UK Black Friday deals

Ring Video Doorbell 2

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The Ring Video Doorbell is the most popular device from Ring: it's battery powered, connecting to your Wi-Fi network and then giving you alerts on your phone, smart speaker or computer so you know someone is at the door. It will allow a two-way conversation with callers, give you video of how is at your door and also detect motion - with night vision for the hours of darkness. It offers 1080p video capture.

Ring Video Doorbell

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The original Ring Video Doorbell isn't quite as slick as the updated version, but it is often available for a lot less money. It doesn't have a removable battery, instead you have to dismount the unit to get it to charge. It offers 720p video capture.

Ring Video Doorbell Pro

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The Ring Video Doorbell Pro is a wired version of the Ring video doorbell, so it has no battery - instead you'll have to connect it to existing wiring. This means it can be a lot slimmer so it looks better on your door. It offers 1080p video capture.

Ring Door View Cam

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The Door View Cam is a little more niche than Ring's other devices, as it integrates a peephole into it - which is also how you mount the device on your door. This means you can remove your peephole/spyhole and attach the Ring camera on the door going through this hole. As such, it's a clean install and might be better for those in rented apartments. It offers 1080p capture.

Ring Floodlight Cam

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Taking security to the outside of your house, the Ring Floodlight Cam pairs Ring's camera with a pair of floodlights. It needs to be hardwired to give it the power, but it means you can also keep an eye on the outside of your house, while providing security lighting too. It offers 1080p capture.

Ring Spotlight Cam

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The Ring Spotlight Cam comes in various flavours to suit your requirements - battery powered, hardwired and solar. It pairs a Ring camera with a spotlight in the body, so provides security for smaller spaces, without the illumination power of the Ring Floodlight Cam, but with all the connected features. It offers 1080p capture.

Ring Stick Up Cam

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The Ring Stick Up Cam is a simple camera without any lights that is designed to give you video capture and motion detection anywhere you want to put it. It's waterproofed for use outdoors and comes in the range of different models - battery, wired or solar - so you can choose the version that best suits your needs. The all-new Stick Up Cam offers 1080p video.

Ring Indoor Cam

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Exactly as the name suggests, the Indoor Cam is a camera designed for indoor use. It's wired, so you just plug it in and point it at whatever you want to keep an eye on. It offers 1080p video capture. It's about as simple as it gets.

Ring Replacement Battery

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If you've got a selection of Ring devices, then you'll be wise to grab yourself some spare batteries too. While the battery devices come with a battery, having at least a spare charged battery means you can quickly switch it out when you get that low battery message.

Spanish car manufacturer Seat will enter the motorcycle market for the first time next year, with its all-electric eScooter concept.

The scooter will be unveiled on Tuesday 19 November at the Smart City Expo World Congress being held in Barcelona. Plans are to then make a 125cc equivalent model available commercially in 2020.

Part of the Volkswagen Group, Seat is the brand chosen to spearhead the micro mobility strategy, which will include the Minimó all-electric quadricycle due to go into production in 2021, and the eXS Kickscooter developed in collaboration with Segway.

Seat is also planning to start production on its El-Born electric car next year.

"The constant growth of large cities makes achieving efficient mobility one of the main challenges to overcome," said Seat's president, Luca de Meo.

"Today we are taking a further step in our urban micro mobility strategy by confirming the launch of the first eScooter in the history of the brand."

• Seat to release six EV and PHEV models by 2021, develop a new platform for sub-€20k electric cars

Little more is known about the eScooter at present, apart from the fact that Seat plans to make it available to both private customers and sharing services.

The Smart City Expo World Congress is an annual event that explores multiple ways to improve urban environments, partly through the employment of technology.

Google's Home and Nest devices aren't just speakers with built-in Google Search. They allow you to control compatible smart home devices, cue up a film on your TV, replace your desktop speakers, and plenty more.

To get the most out of your Google Home, Home Mini, Nest Mini, Home Max, Nest Hub or Nest Hub Max, we've rounded up a selection of the top tips and tricks to help you master the voice-activated speakers and displays in no time.

There's a few device-specific tricks at the bottom of this feature, while other tricks are split into general tips, entertainment tips, information tips and smart home control tips.

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Google Home Assistant tips and tricks

Google Assistant is Google's personal assistant, like Amazon's Alexa and Apple's Siri. It's conversational so you can ask a question and follow-up questions, and Assistant will track the conversation, determine context, and audibly respond with the right information.

Google Assistant is a stand-out feature in the Google Home speaker line-up. You can use it to control Google Home devices, Pixel devices, as well as third-party services and devices.

To help you figure out everything Assistant can do, we've rounded up some specific Assistant tips and tricks, which you can find here. However, if you want to learn tips and tricks unique, exclusive or specific to Google Home and Google Nest devices, read on.

Google Home general tips and tricks

Remember to use a wake word

Google Assistant responds to two 'wake words': "Ok Google" and "Hey Google". Unfortunately, you can't change it from these two phrases at the moment. You need to say one every single time you wish to engage with a Google Home device too (say the phrase, followed by a question or command).

Google Home devices do support Continued Conversation so you won't need to say the wake words for a follow up question but you'll need to turn Continued Conversation on.

Add a Home member

Google Home supports up to six users, all of which will be able to control any devices linked to your Home, as well as teach Google to recognise their voice for a personalised experience when it comes to calendars and work commutes, for example.

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the screen > Tap on the Add icon > Tap on Add Home Member > Type the name or email address of the person you want to add > Confirm.

Remove a Home member

If you want to see who has access to your Google Home devices, click on the settings icon in the Home tab of the Google Home app and then tap on Household.

A list of Home Members will appear here. Tap the three dots on the right of their name and then hit 'remove' if you want to revoke access. You can also add a Home Member here too by tapping on the "+" in the top right of the Home Members screen.

How to change your Home nickname

When you set up a new Google Home device, you'll need to create a "Home" to put it in. This then allows you to add various other devices to that particular home, or a new home, naming each Home you create to make them easier to differentiate between when adding to them. 

To change the name of any of your Homes > Open the Google Home app > Tap on the Home tab in the bottom left > Tap on the settings cog under the name of the home you want to change > Click on Home Nickname > Change the name > Save.

Create a speaker group

For those lucky enough to have multiple Google Home devices, you can create a speaker group with all, or selected Home devices. You can then ask Google Assistant to play music from those speakers and it's possible to rename any groups too. 

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the screen > Tap on the Add icon > Click on Create Speaker Group > Select the Google Home devices you want to make up your group > Name the Group > Save.

How to filter content

Not all content is suitable for all ages and as Google Home devices have the power of Google Search behind them, you might want to filter content to make sure any of the smaller people in your home don't see or hear things you don't want them to. 

You can set up filters for music, videos and features available through Assistant. It's also possible to choose the devices you want to filter and then set the filters, so you don't have to filter the Home Mini or Nest Mini in your locked office, for example.

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the screen > Tap on Settings > Digital Wellbeing > Follow the setup instructions.

Schedule downtime

For those that want time off from their Google Assistant, you can schedule downtime. It's also possible to physically turn the microphones off on all Google Home devices so you can use that option too.

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the screen > Tap on Settings > Digital Wellbeing > Follow the setup instructions for downtime scheduling.

Give your Google Home device a new name

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the screen > Tap on the Google Home device you want to rename > Tap the Settings cog in the top right corner > Click on name and change it to what you want.

Manage your email notifications

If you opt in, Google will email you to keep you up-to-date on the latest about Chromecast, Google Home and Nest devices and Google Assistant. There are tips and tricks, new features, offers and partners.

To manage your email notifications, open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the screen > Tap on Settings > Notifications > General Notifications > Update your preferences.

View your Search and Watch History 

To view your search and watch history, open the Google Home app > Click on the profile icon in the top right corner of the screen > Tap on My Activity.

A website will open with everything Google Home devices (and Assistant on your phone) has recorded. You can sort by date and time, play back exactly what Home devices heard, get details, and delete them.

Use the Google ecosystem

To get the most out of Google Home, using Google's other products delivers the best experience. Home and Nest devices are designed to work with products many people frequently use, such as Google Calendar and Gmail.

When combined with Google Home, you can make Assistant a true personal assistant. It can check your schedule, set reminders, add items to your shopping lists, and more, all with a simple voice command. It will even pull reservations and flight details from your email for example.

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Google it

Google Home is basically Google.com. Want to find your closest supermarket? Need to convert ounces to cups? Curious how old Teresa May or Donald Trump are? Ever wonder what the capital of India is? Google Home and Nest devices can be your assistant and set appointments, but they also double as a search engine.

Remember you can also ask follow-up questions. Google Assistant will always remember the topic or subject in your string of questions and you can ask follow up questions without saying "Ok Google" before each one if you turn on "Continued Conversation" - as we mentioned above.

How to turn on or off Continued Conversation

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the app > Tap on Settings > Scroll down to 'More Settings'> Tap on the Assistant tab under your name and email at the top of the screen > Scroll down to Continued Conversation > Toggle Continued Conversation on or off.

How to set up Guest Mode for your Google Home devices

You can set up a guest mode to let anyone connect to your Google Home devices once they enter a four-digit PIN provided by the Google Home app, without them needing to be on your Wi-Fi network. You can turn guest mode on or off for each Home device you have. 

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the screen > Tap on the Google Home device you want to set guest mode up for > Tap on the Settings cog in the top right > Scroll down to Guest Mode > Toggle Guest Mode on view the PIN below.

Guests will need to have the Google Home app and enter the PIN shown when requested. 

Set an alarm or timer

Google Home devices can replace your alarm clock and they also support timer functions.

Say "OK Google, set a timer for five minutes" or "Ok Google, set an alarm for 7AM" and you'll get a nice tune when the the timer is up or it's time to wake up. To turn off the alarm or timer, you just have to say "Stop" - no need to say the wake words first.

How to add home and work addresses for more custom responses

Adding home and work addresses will allow Google Home devices to offer more customised responses, including weather and morning commute times. If you didn't set these up when you first set up your Google Home device, you can still do it afterwards.

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the screen > Tap on the Settings icon > Scroll down to 'More Settings'> Tap on the 'Your Info' tab at the top under your name and email > Tap on 'Your Places'> Add home address / Add work address.

How to add payment information

Adding payment information allows you to use Google Assistant to order a taxi or take away, for example. There are various settings allowing you to ensure your identity is confirmed before you pay for example. 

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the screen > Tap on Settings > Scroll down to More Settings > Tap on the Your Info tab at the top under your name and email > Payments > Add payment information, delivery address and choose purchase approval settings.

How to change what Google Assistant calls you

Want Google Assistant to call you boss, batman or the finest lady of them all? No problem. 

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the screen > Tap on Settings > Scroll down to More Settings > Tap on the Your Info tab at the top under your name and email > Nickname > Change what you want Assistant to call you. You can even check it pronounces it right and if not, you can spell it out. 

How to change the temperature unit

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the screen > Tap on Settings > Scroll down to More Settings > Tap on the Your Info tab at the top under your name and email > Weather > Choose Fahrenheit or Celsius.

How to teach Google Assistant to recognise your voice

Teaching Google Assistant to recognise your voice will give you a more personalised experience. It will pull up your calendar for example, or your morning commute, rather than your partners. It's worth getting other Home members to set up Voice Match too in order for Home devices to deliver the best experience all round.

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the screen > Tap on Settings > Scroll down to More Settings > Tap on the Assistant tab at the top under your name and email > Voice Match > Follow the instructions. If you have a Nest Hub Max, you can also do Face Match, which sits just underneath the Voice Match setting.

For those with multiple Home devices, you should only need to Voice Match once. The other devices will pull the information through.

How to change your default calendar

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the screen > Tap on Settings > Scroll down to More Settings > Tap on the Services tab at the top under your name and email > Calendar > Default Calendars. 

From here, you can choose which calendar you want to use to create events.

How to set up voice calling for Google Home devices

You can get Google Assistant to make calls on your Google Home devices, though calls to emergency services are not available for all providers.

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the screen > Tap on Settings > Scroll down to More Settings > Tap on the Services tab at the top under your name and email > Voice and Video Calls > Follow the instructions.

Hear about your day

Google Home devices can tell you about your day, such as your calendar, morning traffic commute, the weather, and any reminders. You can also customise your report to exclude certain things, like the weather. The report will also finish with a news briefing.

All you have to do once you have set up your calendar preferences and added addresses, etc, is say "Ok Google, tell me about my day".

Manage a family shopping list

You can automatically add things to your shopping list with Google Home and Nest devices, either physically or using your voice. For example: "Ok Google, add coffee to my shopping list". The list will appear in the Google Home app, and can be added to by tapping the "Add Item" on the Shopping List screen.

To see and edit your shopping list, open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the screen > Tap on Settings > Scroll down to More Settings > Tap on the Services tab at the top under your name and email > Shopping List.

The shopping list can only be associated with the primary account holder but you can add collaborators so they can access it too. Simply tap the icon in the top right of the Shopping List screen to share your shopping list.

Find your phone using your Home device

Can't find your phone? Google Home devices can locate your device but you'll need to link it with a service called IFTTT. You'll need to sign up for a free IFTTT account, after which if you use this recipe or applet as they are called, you can automatically call your number from your Google Home device when you say "Ok Google, find my phone".

Set a schedule or routine

Its possible to get Google Assistant to do multiple things with just one command. For example, "Ok Google, bedtime" or "Ok Google, good night" could tell you the next day's weather, ask what time to set your alarm, adjust lights, plugs and more, as well as lock your doors (if you have compatible devices).

To set a routine, open the Google Home app > click on the Home tab in the bottom left > Tap on Settings > Scroll down to More Settings > Click on the Assistant tab under your name and email > Click on Routines > Select one of the routines and tick/untick the boxes within it.

Once you have routines set up, a Routines icon will appear on the Home screen of the Google Home app. You'll then be able to access your routines more easily and manage them.

Google Home entertainment tips and tricks

Add a music service to your Google Home

Google Home can play music from several sources, such as Google Play Music, Spotify, Deezer, or YouTube Music. Unsurprisingly, it doesn't work with Amazon Music. 

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the Google Home app > Click on the "Add" icon at the top > Click on Music and Audio under the Add Services section > Select from the list and follow the instructions.

To set your default source, head to the Home tab of the Google Home app > Tap on Settings > Scroll down to More Settings > Click on the Services tab > Tap Music > Select the linked service you want to use as the main source for music.

Add a video service to your Google Home

Google Home devices also work with various video services, including YouTube, Netflix, BBC iPlayer and All4.

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the Google Home app > Click on the Add icon at the top > Click on Video and Photos under the Add Services section > Select from the list and follow the instructions.

Cast movies, shows and audio to a TV

If you have a Google Chromecast, you can ask Google Home devices to play Netflix movies, a TV show or YouTube videos on your TV. Of course, if you have the Nest Hub or Nest Hub Max, you will be able to play some of these services on the Hub's screen itself too even if the displays are significantly smaller.

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom right of the app > Tap on Settings > Scroll down to More Settings > Tap on the Services tab under your name and email at the top of the screen > Go to TV and speakers > Tap the "+" sign in the bottom right corner of the screen. The Google Home app will search for voice-supported TVs on the same Wi-Fi network as your Google Home.

You must connect third-party services, like Netflix, to your Google account using the Google Home app. After doing this, you can simply say things like "Ok Google, play House of Cars from Netflix on TV". You can even also Google Home to pause playback or rewind a minute to something you might have missed.

Cast photos to your TV

Google Home can't just control Netflix or YouTube on your TV, it can also control Google Photos, Google's free cloud photo storage service.

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the app > Tap on Settings > Scroll down to More Settings > Tap on the Services tab under your name and email at the top of the screen > Tap on Videos and Photos > Toggle Google Photos on or off.

Once your account is linked, you can say things like "Ok Google, show me photos of my pets on TV". The service is able to tag and recognise people, things, and places, so it's able to smartly serve up whatever you ask for.

Play podcasts

All you have to do to hear podcasts is ask. Say "Ok Google, Play This American Life" to hear the most recent episode of the show. If you should pause it, the next time you ask for that podcast, your Google Home device will pick up where you left off.

Replace your desktop speakers with Home

Google Cast is built directly into the Chrome browser. So, when you click the cast button in the corner of Chrome, you can look for your Home device(s), select it, and then cast audio from your computer through to your Google Home device.

Google Home information tips and tricks

How to follow stocks and set Stock preferences

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the Google Home app > Settings > Scroll down to More Settings > Click on the Services tap at the top under your name and email > Tap on Stocks.

You can add your favourite stocks to a watch list for quick access to them. There is a search bar at the top if you know what you're looking for, as well as local market and world market tabs, both of which offer suggestions.

How to change your news sources

Say "Ok Google, listen to the news" and your Google Home devices will reel off news from various sources. You can change which sources you want the news to come from, as well as the order.

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the Google Home app > Tap on Settings > Scroll down to More Settings > Click on the Services tap at the top under your name and email > Tap on News.

To add a news source, tap the "+ Add News Sources" at the bottom of the list. To change the order, select "Change Order" at the top of the list. To get rid of a source, tap the "X" on the right of the source.

Google Home Smart Home Control tips and tricks

Google Home can control internet-connected appliances around your home, including lightbulbs from Philips Hue, Hive and Ikea, cameras from Nest and Netatmo, plugs from TP-link and Wemo, thermostats from Nest, Honeywell, Tado and Hive, and plenty more.

You can not only turn devices on and off using either your voice or the Google Home app, but you can also separate devices by room and control everything from the Home app, making smart home control super simple. You can also leverage IFTTT recipes to get the most out of Home and your devices, but that's not required.

How to add third-party smart home devices

Google Home relies on third-party services to provide you with a richer experience, especially when it comes to smart home control. There are a huge number of compatible smart home devices and the list is continuously growing. If you already have smart home devices set up, or you want to know if a device you're looking to buy is compatible:

Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the Google Home app > Click on the Add icon at the top > Tap on Set up Device under the Add to Home section at the top > Choose the "Have something already set up" option under Works with Google > Search for the manufacturer of your device and follow the instructions.

Add a device to a room within your home

Once you have set up a third party smart home device, it will appear at the bottom of the Home tab in the Google Home app. There will be a "Add to Room" icon you can tap on to place the smart home device into a room within your Home but if that icon doesn't appear:

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left > Click on the room you want to add your new device to > Click on the Settings cog in the top right > Click on Choose Devices > Select the device you want to add to that room > Next.

You can also access a list of your devices and where they are via the Home tab in the bottom left of the Home app > Settings > More Settings > Assistant tab at the top under your name and email > Home Control.

Change the room a device is in

You might move your Nest Hub from your kitchen to your bedroom, or your smart plug from your office to your living room, for example. Placing devices into rooms within your Home makes it easier to control them. For example, you can then say "Ok Google, turn the living room lights off" and all lights linked to the living room will turn off.

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left > Click on the device you want to move > Click on Room > Choose a Room > Save.

Rename a smart home device

Naming a device makes it easier to control through Google Assistant. For example, you might name a smart plug controlling the lamp in your living room to "Living Room Lamp" rather than it be called "TP-Link Smart Plug 45688", allowing you to ask Google to turn the living room lamp on or off, rather than have to remember the name.

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left > Click on the device you want to rename > Click on the Settings cog in the top right > Click on Name > Choose a name > Save. 

Google Home device tips and tricks

Reset Google Home

To conduct a factory reset and restore your Google Home to a good-as-new state, hold the microphone button for about 15 seconds. From there, you can link it to a different Google account using the Google Home app.

Reboot Google Home

What do you do when some gadget stops working? You restart it, or "reboot" it. Google has included this in the Home app and it works for all Google Home devices.

Open the Home app > Select the Home tab in the bottom left of your screen > Select the Home devices you want to reboot > Tap the Settings cog in the top right > Tap on the three dots in the top right > Reboot.

Touch your way through things

Aside from your voice, you can control Google Home with your touch. Tap the top of the speaker once to awaken your Google Home or to pause and play a broadcast. You can also slide your finger along the centered circle at the top to change the volume.

Mute the mic

If you want to stop Google Home from "always-listening", look for the button on the back of the speaker. It's the only button, and it has a microphone on it. Press it and Home will turn off the microphone (four amber lights will light up on top). Press it again, and it'll tell you the microphone is on.

When it's on, Google Home is in the always-listening mode and will listen for and respond to your commands.

• Google Home review

Google Nest Hub and Nest Hub Max tips and tricks

How to reset Nest Hub and Nest Hub Max

Press and hold the volume up and volume down buttons on the back of the Nest Hub or Nest Hub Max simultaneously for 10 seconds to reset the device. Continue to hold them down until the device has reset. A warning message will appear beforehand.

Adjust the display to fit with your home

Google Nest Hub and Nest Hub Max feature a display and a speaker. The display can be adjusted in a variety of ways to enable it to blend into its surroundings better, from choosing when low light mode is activated to setting the minimum brightness. You can even set the Nest Hub and Nest Hub Max's displays to adjust their colour to match their environment.

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the screen > Tap on your Hub device > Tap on the settings cog in the top right > Scroll down to display > Adjust the settings according to your preferences. 

Turn night mode on

Night mode will reduce the volume of responses during specific times.

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the screen > Tap on your Hub device > Tap on the settings cog in the top right > Night mode > Toggle on or off.

Change what the Nest Hub or Nest Hub Max display shows when not in use

You can change what your Hub display shows when it isn't being used to control your smart home devices, present you with news snippets or play a YouTube video on how to make the best cocktails.

You can select between Google Photos, Art Gallery, Full Screen Clock and Experimental. You can also select to hide or show the weather for your area, whether or not to show the time when in ambient mode and the speed at which images change when in ambient mode.

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the screen > Tap on your Hub device > Tap on the settings cog in the top right > Photo Frame > Select your preferences.

Change the clock format between 12 and 24-hour

Open the Google Home app > Click on the Home tab in the bottom left of the screen > Tap on your Hub device > Tap on the settings cog in the top right > Time Format.

Using the Nest Hub touchscreen navigations 

Swipe from the left edge to the right to display the clock screen. Double tap the clock screen to return to ambient mode. Double tap the display again from ambient mode to show calendar, weather, news information, or whatever you have set to appear.

Swipe up from the bottom to access display brightness, volume, alarms and settings. You can also turn do not disturb on from here.

Swipe down from the top of the display to see and control your linked smart home devices.

Mute the mic 

Like Google Home, there is a microphone button on the back of the Nest Hub's display at the top. Simply toggle it off to turn off the microphones. As the Nest Hub Max also has a camera, toggling this switch will also turn off the camera with the microphone.

• Google Home Hub / Nest Hub review
• Google Nest Hub Max review

Google Home Mini and Nest Mini device tips and tricks 

Mute the mic

Both the Google Home Mini and the Nest Mini have a microphone mute button on the rear. Toggle it to switch the microphone on or off.

Change the volume

You can of course ask Google to turn the volume of your Home Mini or Nest Mini up or down, but you can also do it on the devices themselves too. Tap on each side (on the material) of the Nest Mini or Home Mini and your volume will go up or down depending on the side you tap. You'll be guided with small LED lights on the Nest Mini, but you'll need to guess on the Home Mini.

Play or pause 

The Nest Mini offers on device control for play and pause as well as volume. Tap the four lights in the middle of the Nest Mini when a song is playing on your Nest Mini and it will pause. Tap again to play.

Google Home Easter eggs

Looking for some fun things to do with Google Home devices? These are technically Google Assistant easter eggs, but you'll find they really give your Google Home device some personality:

• Say "Be my (insert language) interpreter to get real-time translations. 
• Say "I'm feeling lucky" to start up a multiplayer game show.
• Say "Give me a random number between (x) and (y)" to hear a random number between the two - with beeping sounds to boot.
• Ask it to "Roll (insert number)-sided dice": It'll give you a random number, complete with sound effects.
• Say "(Contact name) is my (relationship)" to ask Assistant to associate certain relationship information with a contact for future reference.
• Say "Good morning" to hear a rundown of your day's agenda, along with the current weather and news.
• Say "Send a message to (Contact name) on (messaging service like WhatsApp)" to dictate a message to a contact.
• Say "Wubba lubba dub dub" to get Assistant to respond with: "Are you in pain? How can I help?" or "Sorry, I don't speak Birdperson" (a reference to the show Rick and Morty).
• Say "Beatbox" to hear a clip of someone beat-boxing.
• Say "Sing a song" to hear a horrible, brief song.
• Say "Read a poem" to hear a random poem from Google search.
• Say "Tell me a joke" to hear an age-appropriate joke from Pixar.
• Say "F*** you" to submit a bug report.

The Xiaomi Mi Note 10 makes no hestitation in proudly shouting "first". For this is the first time a 108-megapixel sensor has made its way into a phone. Yes, one-hundred-and-eight megapixels. Not only that, the Note 10's penta camera arrangement means there are no fewer than five individual lenses and sensors, each there to deliver a different feature. This is a phone that wants to be all about photographic functionality.

It's also a phone that wants to be familiar in wider markets. Officially announced in China on 5 November 2019 as the Xiaomi Mi CC9, that name has dropped away for something altogether, um, more familiar: there's no doubting that the Note 10 name is certainly reflective of a propular Samsung Galaxy device (so Xiaomi's "CC" name is kind of ironic, as it could be read as "carbon copy").

Namesake aside, however, does the Xiaomi Mi Note 10's penta camera setup make for a genuinely impressive photo-focused phone, or is it just a lot of extras that adds relatively little? We've been living with one as our primary phone for a full week to test out how it handles.

Design & Display

• Display: 6.47-inch 3D curved AMOLED, 1080 x 2340 resolution, 19.5:9 aspect ratio
• Dimensions: 157.8 x 74.2 x 9.7mm / Weight: 208g
• In-screen fingerprint scanner
• 3.5mm headphone jack

Despite having a very clear camera-forward unique selling point, the Mi Note 10 arguably isn't a true flagship phone. Why? We'll get into the processor ins and outs later, but in simple terms it's because it's not the top-end hardware from Qualcomm.

This perhaps sets the tone for why Xiaomi hasn't gone all-out in other design areas on the Mi Note 10. The screen, for example, hasn't gone down the waterfall display route, as embodied in the Vivo NEX 3, but Xiaomi has utilised 3D curved glass edges to both left and right sides to give the panel a greater sense of pop away from the phone's surface. 

That's not to say the Mi Note 10 doesn't look every bit the flagship though. The panel itself, a 6.47-inch AMOLED, is the same as you'll find in the Huawei P30 Pro – and given the demise of that Chinese company (due to US sancions and bans), Xiaomi is surely looking to establish itself as an obvious camera-heavy alternative here – with an elongated Full HD resolution. It doesn't excessively auto-dim, the colours have punch, while blacks are deep and rich. It's an attractive display.

There's a small notch up top of this screen, where the front-facing camera is tucked away, offering facial recognition unlock if you want it. We've preferred using the under-screen fingerprint scanner, though, which is about as good as such features get – it's quick and we've rarely had an issue logging in, although the Vivo Apex Concept 2019 is the device that really rules in this department (shame that's not a real device, eh?).

The Mi Note 10 is somewhat chunky, in part because that camera arrangement demands it, but also because it has a huge battery capacity. To negate that chunkiness those curved screen edges help it not feel too massive – but they can cause some accidental touches, resulting in on-screen action – despite this phone's camera bump making it wider than the chunkier-framed OnePlus 7T Pro.

Interestingly, the Mi Note 10 comes with a 3.5mm headphone jack, which is becoming a rarer sight in smartphones these days. There's plenty of room within this thick frame to accommodate it, of course, so we're pleased the opportunity has been taken rather than not. As the front speaker quality is poor for calls, you might find yourself using wired or Bluetooth headphones for calls anyway.

Flip the phone over and you'll immediately spy that camera arrangement. The three main lenses feature in a considerable bump, which protrudes from the rear, well, just a bit too much. Lay the phone flat on a table and it'll wobble around as you tap it, given the to-the-side camera position. Perhaps the centre would have been a more balanced position for such a feature. Aside from the protrusion we like the way it looks; it's a lot more balanced and visually pleasing than the iPhone 11 Pro (although we do love that phone's green colour option).

Otherwise the Xiaomi's rear is a glossy glass, featuring the company's new logo to the lower corner (only existing fans will notice the font change), finished here in a subdued grey (Xiaomi calls it Midnight Black, we're not convinced on the accuracy of that) that helps any obvious fingerprints from appearing too prominently. There's no fancy gradient colour finishes, but we're hopeful one of the more eye-catching colours (Glacier White and Aurora Green will also be available – there are also blue and red options, just not for the EU region it would seem).

Hardware & Performance

• Qualcomm Snapdragon 730G processor, 6GB RAM
• 128GB storage, no microSD card slot
• 5260mAh battery capacity
• 30W USB-C fast-charge
• MiUI 11 software
• Dual SIM

And so back to our point about the Mi Note 10 arguably not being a true top-of-the-stack flagship. At its heart is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 730G, which is an overclocked version of the standard 730, bringing a little more graphical grunt and being designed to eke more out of camera and gaming applications thanks to separate chipsets on the platform. It's perfectly powerful enough, but it's no Snapdragon 855 – which you can find in the highly affordable Mi 9T Pro– as found at the top of Qualcomm's current offering.

But does this really matter? Generally it doesn't for most things. Gaming is no trouble, with our evening hours whiled playing South Park: Phone Destroyer. Having multiple apps open and flicking between them is smooth. All that day-to-day work and play won't throw up hurdles or slow you down when it comes to a variety of apps.

The hindrance comes with some of the more demanding tasks that are inevitable from a phone with a 108MP main camera. The camera app isn't especially quick to flick between its different camera options, the processing time for a 108-megapixel shot is longer than we'd like (leaving the camera ineligible to shoot), and we suspect a more powerful hardware setup could further aid this kind of performance – as could some software tweaks.

Speaking of software, the MiUI 11 skin brings its own set of challenges. If you're used to Google's Android OS, which this is based upon, then it's not a massive shift, but as Xiaomi is a Chinese brand it brings its own apps and store in addition to Google's Play Store (the former exists because it's a must-have in China for user security – apps aren't Google verified over there, hence the big brands handling this themselves).

That means we've had both Play Store and Xiaomi's own store updating different apps at different times, the latter all Xiaomi specific and system apps. Alerts can be a bit haphazard, with some repeating even once we've disabled them within the settings. The 'Silent' mode also isn't silent, requiring much deeper tweaks to ensure both sound and vibration are disengaged. But there are also useful features, such as Dual Apps, for duplicating apps that you may wish to use with a dual SIM setup (there's no microSD card slot, by the way, it's 128GB storage with no expansion).

Given the dimensions of this phone's design, it's able to cram in a really large battery capacity. At 5,260mAh it's one of the most capacious batteries we've ever seen in a phone, which sets this device in good stead for super-long innings. While we've never had a problem making it through long days of use, the battery doesn't quite click into two-day mode, which is what we thought more likely. Still, getting through 20 hours with no issues when using all manner of apps shows decent longevity. There's 30W fast-charging, too, for when you need those rapid top-ups.

Five Cameras

• Wide-angle (1x / 25mm equiv.): 108MP, f/1.7 aperture, 0.8µm pixel size, optical stabilisation (OIS)
  
  • Uses 4-in-1 pixel method for 27MP shots as standard
• Ultra-wide (0.6x / 13mm equiv.): 20MP, f/2.2 aperture, 1.0µm pixel size
• Zoom (2x / 50mm equiv.): 12MP, f/2.0 aperture, 1.4µm pixel size
• Zoom (5x / 125mm equiv.): 8MP, f/2.0 aperture, optical stabilisation (OIS)
• Macro: 2MP, f/2.4 aperture, 1.75µm pixel size
  • Doubles-up as depth sensor
• Front-facing: 32MP, f/2.0 aperture, 0.8µm pixel size

And so we arrive at the Mi Note 10's big sell: its penta camera arrangement. Which, as it turns out, is a mixture of inspired and tired. We'll get the main two bad points out of the way first.

Really the so-called fifth camera, a 2-megapixel macro for close-up shots, is something we've seen before on both the Moto One Macro and Honor 20 phones – and in all instances it's of limited use for a multitude of reasons, from its small scale output, to poor processing, and inability to function well in low light. The idea of shooting close-up to subjects sounds great, but the implementation is anything but a high-end feature.

Then there's low-light performance from the main camera set. It's just not very good. We shot some night scenes when on vacation in Toronto, Canada, and found the prominent grain in shots to be excessive, lacking the sort of night mode smarts that you'll find in the Apple iPhone 11 Pro, Google Pixel 4 or Huawei P30 Pro.

For such a camera-focused phone to sit behind in this department feels at odds with its main sell. But part of this performance is down to the mixture of lenses: the main sensor is far better in low-light than the wide-angle or either zoom lens, for example, but a user might not think through that when framing things as they'd like.

There's also a dedicated night mode, said to be in version 2.0, but while it did a good enough job of capturing sunrise over the city in Toronto – see the shot below – it just lacks that intricacy of its main competition.

Fortunately it's far from being all bad news. Those four main camera options enable versatility in shooting, whether that's ultra-wide or snapping a distant subject as if closer in the frame. However, switching between camera modes and zoom steps is too slow at present, as we said above, but the results between the different sensors look fairly consistent when shooting in daytime for best quality – which is something other makers, including Huawei and Oppo with its Reno 10x Zoom handset, have struggled to achieve.

The quality from frame to frame does differ on account of the available resolution, which is a given. The main sensor shoots 27MP shots by default (it uses four-in-one so-called "Super Pixel" processing, using the available 108MP resolution and pulling four pixels into one for optimum results), the 2x zoom is 12MP, while the 5x zoom is 8MP. Those are optical zoom solutions, meaning no cropping, for greater resolve. The 5x also comes with optical image stabilisation, which can be felt in use; it's like an added air-cradle to steady shots when shooting.

At its best the Mi Note 10's shots have plenty of detail and colour. Take one look at the photo above of a T-Rex dinosaur statue located in the crazy golf park at Niagara, shot using the main camera, and the details of its scales are distinctive. When there's light, the Mi Note 10 is happy to deliver strong results.

However, at the full 108MP resolution – which is available through a dedicated mode – the main sensor doesn't function quite as well. First of all, it's more pixels than you're ever going to need. Second, the camera is poor at sensing subject movement, so despite there being optical stabilisation it doesn't make the best of situations through lack of an intelligent interface – we've got loads of landscape shots out of a plane window and all of them have movement in them, which a faster shutter could have fixed. Third, it doesn't deliver the sharpest of results, with some colour abberation oddities throughout the frame, as visible in the shot of Niagara Falls in the gallery below.

So the Mi Note 10's big sell is, ultimately, a mixed bag. Sure, it's the first with a 108MP sensor, but that's best for taking potentially great 27MP shots rather than at its full resolution. Xiaomi currently seems to lack the processing smarts for low-light shooting across the board, while its night mode isn't a leader among the advancing pack, and in-camera operation is a little plodding.

It's often great, certainly versatile, and in a relatively affordable phone there's a lot to like about these cameras. But it's also an oversell in some regards.

Who said the megapixel race is over? Xiaomi has just announed the Mi Note 10 at its European launch event, complete with penta camera arrangement, the main sensor being a 108-megapixel unit.

That makes the Mi Note 10 – known as the Mi CC9 in China – the highest-resolution camera on the market. But this main camera shoots 27MP images by default, utilising a four-in-one compression method, called Super Pixel technology. We've seen other cameras with 48MP sensors doing similar, albeit with 12MP output.

It's not all about that main sensor, of course, as the five-camera arrangement on the Mi Note 10 encompasses a 0.6x ultra-wide (20MP), a 2x zoom (12MP), a 5x zoom with optical stabilisation (8MP), plus a dedicated macro (2MP).

Wrap those cameras into a glass body, with 6.47-inch AMOLED screen, and you've got a phone large enough to embody a huge 5,260mAh battery for ultra-longevity. If you'll be using those cameras aplenty then you'll be needing that juice to keep you going.

We've been living with the Xiaomi Mi Note 10 for a full week ahead of its unveiling, check out what we found about the cameras in our full review, below.

• Xiaomi Mi Note 10 review: Five-camera fun?

The Apple iPhone XR launched in 2018 but Apple still sells it alongside the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max. The buttonless smartphone for everyone comes with a large 6.1-inch Liquid Retina LCD display, a single 12-megapixel camera on the back, and a great battery.

But how do you do use it? With no button, those moving from the iPhone 6, 7, or 8, might find the new phone a little daunting.

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Whether you want to master the gesture-based navigation, find out how Portrait Mode works in the camera, or even set up a Memoji, there's plenty to learn. In the guide below you'll find almost everything you need to know about the iPhone XR, but you can always read our iPhone 11 tips for some extra tips on the iOS 13 software.

Apple iPhone XR gestures

Like the iPhone X that launched in 2017, the iPhone XR doesn't feature a physical home button, instead opting for gestures to control the interface. It will take a few days to get use to the change, but stick with it.

By day three you'll wonder how you ever coped without it and using an "old" iPhone will seem old and antiquated. 

Unlock your iPhone XR: Look at the phone and swipe up from the bottom of the screen. It really is that easy and you don't need to wait for the padlock icon at the top to change to the unlock graphic before swiping up.

Tap to wake: Simply tap on your iPhone XR screen when it's off to wake it up and see what notifications you have. To unlock it with Face ID you'll still have to pick it up slightly and look at it.

Back to the Homescreen: Whatever app you are in, if you want to go back to the Homescreen simply swipe up from the bottom of the screen. If you are in an app that is running landscape, you'll need to remember sliding up from the bottom of the screen (i.e., the side) rather than where the Home button used to be.

Take a screenshot: Simply press the power button and the volume up button together quickly and it'll snap a screenshot of whatever is on the screen.

Getting to Control Centre: It used to be a swipe up, now it's a swipe down from the top right of the screen. The iPhone XR doesn't have 3D Touch, but it does have Haptic Touch, allowing you to long press on the icons to gain access to further settings within each icon. Read our separate feature on Haptic Touch and what you can do with it.

Accessing open apps: Previously you double tapped on the Home button to reveal what apps you had open. On the iPhone XR, you swipe up and then pause with your finger on the screen. You can then see the apps you have opened in the order you opened them.

Launch Siri: While you can use the "Hey Siri" hot word to wake up Apple's digital assistant, there's still a way to launch the function using a button press. Press and hold the wake/sleep button on the right side of the phone until the Siri interface pops up on screen.

Switch your phone off: Because long-pressing the wake/sleep button launches Siri, there's another method for switching the phone off. To do so, press and hold the wake/sleep button and the volume down button at the same time, then slide to power off.

Launch Apple Pay: Again, the wake/sleep button is the key here. Double tap it and it'll bring up your Apple Wallet for Apple Pay, then scan your face and it will ask you to hold your phone close to the payment machine.

Access widgets on the lock screen: Swipe from left to right on your lock screen. This tip is great for checking your activity rings if you have an Apple Watch or checking WhatsApp chat icons. If you scroll to the bottom, you can edit the widgets and add more. 

Using Memoji

Create your own Memoji: Open Messages and start a new message. Tap the little monkey icon above the keyboard, and then hit the "+" button to create your own character (swipe left to right). You can then customise face shape, skin tone, hair colour, eyes, jewellery and much more.

• What are Memoji? How to create an Animoji that looks like you

Use your Memoji/Animoji in a FaceTime call: Start a FaceTime call, then press the little star icon in the bottom corner. Now tap the Memoji you want to use.

Memoji your selfies: If you decide your Memoji face is better than your real life face, you can send selfies with the Memoji replacing your own head in Messages. Start a new message and tap the camera icon, and then press the star button in the bottom left corner. Now choose the Animoji option, by tapping that monkey's head again. Select your Memoji and tap the 'x' not the "done" button and then take your picture.

Record a Memoji video: Sadly Memoji aren't available as an option in the camera app, but that doesn't mean you can't record one. As with the photo selfie, go to Messages, tap on the camera icon, tap on the video option and then tap on the star in the bottom left corner. Load the Animoji or your Memoji and off you go.  

iPhone XR Notification tips

Notifications set to deliver quietly: If you are worried that you are getting too many notifications you can set how they deliver on an app by app basis. Swipe left when you've got a notification on the Lock screen and tap on Manage. Tap 'Deliver Quietly'. Quiet notifications appear in Notification Centre, but do not appear on the Lock screen, play a sound present a banner or badge the app icon. You;ve just got to remember to check from time to time.

Turn off notifications from an app: Same method as the "Deliver Quietly" feature, except you tap the "Turn off..." option.

Open Notification Centre on Lock screen: From your lock screen, swipe up from the middle of the screen and you'll see a long list of previous notifications if you have any.

Check Notifications at any time: To check your Notifications at any time, simply swipe down from the top left side of the screen to reveal them.

Using Screen Time

Checking your Screen Time: You can check how you've been using your phone with the Screen Time feature. You can find the reports in Settings > Screen Time.

Schedule Downtime: If you need a little help using your phone less, you can restrict what apps you use when. Head to Settings > Screen Time and choose the Downtime option. Toggle the switch to the "on" position and choose to schedule a time when only specific apps and phone calls are allowed. It's great for stopping you or your kids using their phones after a set time for example.

• What is Apple Screen Time and how does it work?

Set app limits: App Limits let you choose which category of apps you want to add a time limit to. Open Settings > Screen Time > App Limits. From here, you'll be able to 'Add Limit' before choosing what you add it to, whether it be Social Networking, All Apps and Categories or Productivity apps, for example.

Choose "always allowed" apps: While you might be keen to lock down your phone to stop you using it, that's no good if your primary way of contacting people is via an app that gets locked out. Open Settings > Screen Time > Always Allowed. From here, choose which app you add to your always allowed list regardless of what limits you apply.

Content & Privacy restrictions: This section is also within the main Screen Time settings menu and particularly useful if you're a parent with kids who use iOS devices. Using it you can restrict all manner of content and options, including iTunes and in-app purchases, location services, advertising and so on. It's worth taking a look at - head to Settings > Screen Time > Content & Privacy Restrictions.

Siri shortcuts

Siri Shortcuts: There are lots of little "helps" the iPhone XR offers via Siri Shortcuts and Suggestions. Open Settings > Siri & Search. From here, you can turn Siri suggestions on or off for each app listed and choose which apps Siri learns from.

If you want to install specific Siri Shortcuts, open the dedicated Siri Shortcuts app.

• What are Siri Shortcuts and how do they work?

iPhone XR display tips

Standard or Zoomed display: Since iPhone 6 Plus you've been able to choose between two resolution options. You can change the display setting from Standard or Zoomed on the iPhone XR too. To switch between the two - if you've changed your mind after setup - go to Settings > Display & Brightness > View under Display Zoom > Select Standard or Zoomed.

Enable True Tone display: To get the iPhone XR's screen to automatically adjust its colour balance and temperature to match the ambient light in the room, swipe down from the top right of your screen to pull down Control Centre and then force press the screen brightness slider. Now tap the True Tone button.

You can also go to Settings > Display and Brightness > Toggle the "True Tone" switch.

Enable dark mode: To enable Dark Mode on the iPhone XR, or schedule when you want dark mode or light mode to turn on, head to Settings > Display & Brightness > Select Dark or Light. For scheduling options, tap "Options" and you can choose Sunset to Sunrise or Custom Schedule.

iPhone XR Photos and Camera tips

Enable/disable Smart HDR: Smart HDR helps boost colours, light and detail in difficult lighting conditions. It's on by default, but if you want to manually switch it on or off you can head to Settings > Camera > Toggle Smart HDR on or off.

Keep a normal photo alongside HDR: Right beneath the Smart HDR toggle in Settings > Camera, is a "Keep Normal Photo" option which saves a regular, non HDR version of your photo as well as the Smart HDR photo.

Portrait Lighting effects: To shoot Portrait Mode shots with artificial lighting effects, first open the iPhone XR's camera app and select Portrait Mode. Portrait Mode only works with people on the iPhone XR when shooting with the rear-facing camera.

To select your Portrait Mode shooting style press and hold on the screen where it says "Natural Light" and then move your finger to the right.

Edit Portrait Lighting effects after shooting: Open any Portrait shot in Photos and then tap "edit" in the top right corner. After a second or two you'll see the lighting effect icon at the bottom of the image, tap it and swipe exactly as you did when shooting the image.

Edit Portrait mode Depth: With the iPhone XR, you can adjust the blur effect after shooting the Portrait shot. Head to Photos and choose the photo you want to adjust, then select "edit" in the top right corner. You'll see a depth slider at the bottom of the screen. Swipe right to increase the blur strength, swipe left to decrease it.

How to Merge People in Photos app: Photos in iOS has the ability to scan your photos and detect people and places. If you find that the app has picked out the same person, but says they are different people, you can merge the albums together. To do this, go to the Photos app > Albums > Scroll down to People & Places > Tap on the People album > Tap "Select" in the top right of the screen > Select the images of the people you want to merge > Tap "Merge"> Confirm they are they same person by tapping "Yes".

Remove people in Photos app: Go to Photos App > Albums > Scroll down to People & Places > Tap People. To remove a person, tap on "Select" and then tap on the people you don't want to see before tapping on "Remove" in the bottom left of your iPhone screen.

• Apple Photos tips and tricks

iPhone XR Control Centre tips

Add new controls: You can add and remove controls from Control Centre. Head to Settings > Control Centre > Customise Controls > Choose which controls you'd like to add.

Reorganise controls: To change the order of the controls you've added, open Settings > Control Centre > Customise Controls > Tap and hold the three-bar menu on the right of whichever control you'd like to move > Move it up and down the list to wherever you'd like it to be.

Expand controls: Some controls can become full screen. Swipe down from the right of your iPhone XR's display and press harder on the control you want to expand. If it is compatible, it'll fill the screen.

Activate screen recording: It's possible to add Screen Recording to Control Centre, allowing you to record everything that happens on your screen when you press it on. To add the control, open Settings > Control Centre > Customise Controls > Tap the "+" next to Screen Recording.

You'll then be able to swipe down from the top right of your screen and press the icon that looks like a solid white circle inside a thin white ring to start screen recording. Press the icon again when you're done, and it'll save a video to your Photos app automatically.

Adjust flashlight/torch brightness: You can switch on your camera flash, using it as a torch, by opening Control Centre (swipe down from the top right of your screen) and tapping on the torch icon.

If you want to adjust the brightness, force press the icon, then adjust the full-screen slider that appears.

Quickly switch where audio is played: It's possible to change where music is playing. While music is playing, through Apple Music, Spotify, or wherever, force press on the music control or just tap the little icon in the top corner of the music control.

This brings up a pop-up showing available devices that you can play through. This could be connected earphones, a Bluetooth speaker, Apple TV, your iPhone or any AirPlay device.

Set a quick timer: Instead of heading to the timer app, you can force press on the timer icon, then slide up or down on the full-screen to set a timer anywhere from one minute to two hours long.

How to access HomeKit devices: Open Control Centre (swipe down from the top right of your screen) and then tap on the little icon that looks like a house. You'll need to have added the Home control to your Control Centre. To add the control, open Settings > Control Centre > Customise Controls > Tap the "+" next to Home.

iPhone XR battery tips

Check your average battery consumption: Head to Settings > Battery and you'll see two graphs. One shows the battery level, the other shows your screen on and screen off activity. There are two tabs. One shows your last 24 hours, the other shows the last 10 days.

This way you can see how active your phone life is on average, and breakdowns showing your average screen on and screen off times show beneath the graphs.

Enable Low-Power Mode: The Low Power Mode (Settings > Battery) lets you reduce power consumption. The feature disables or reduces background app refresh, auto-downloads, mail fetch, and more (when enabled).

You can turn it on at any point, or you are prompted to turn it on at the 20 and 10 per cent notification markers. You can also add the Low Power Mode control to Control Centre, and access it quickly by swiping down from the top right of your screen.

Find battery guzzling apps: Go to Settings > Battery and then scroll down to the section that gives you a detailed look at all your battery-guzzling apps.

Check your battery via the Battery widget: Within the widgets in Today view, there's a card that lets you see the battery life remaining in your iPhone, Apple Watch and connected headphones. Just swipe from left to right on your homescreen to get to your Today view and scroll until you see the "Batteries" widget.

Charge wirelessly: To make use of the iPhone's wireless charging capabilities, buy a wireless charger. Any Qi charger will work, but to charge more efficiently you need one optimised for Apple's 7.5W charging.

Fast charge it: If you have a 29W, 61W or 87W USB Type-C power adapter for a MacBook, you can plug in your iPhone XR using a Type-C to Lightning cable and watch it charge really quickly. You'll get up to 50 per cent battery in 30 minutes.

iPhone XR: Keyboard tips

Go one-handed: The QuickType keyboard lets you type one-handed, which is great on the bigger devices like the iPhone XR. Press and hold the emoji or globe icon and then keyboard settings. Select either the left or right sided keyboard. It shrinks the keyboard and moves it to one side of the display. Go back to full size by tapping the little arrow.

Use your keyboard as a trackpad: Previously with 3D Touch displays you use the keyboard area as a trackpad to move the cursor on screen. You still can, but it works a little differently with the iPhone XR's Haptic Touch. Instead of force pressing anywhere on the keyboard, press and hold on the spacebar instead.

Swipe to type: It's also possible to swipe to type on the iPhone XR's keyboard (as long as it is running iOS 13 and above). Just swipe your finger or thumb from letter to letter without taking it off. Take it off when you want to move onto the next word. It makes typing much faster when you get used to it.

Face ID tips

Adding another face to Face ID: If you regularly change appearance you can add a second Face to Face ID to save the iPhone XR getting confused. This is also really handy if you want to add your partner so they can use your phone while you're driving for example.

Open Settings > Face ID & Passcode > Enter your Passcode > Set Up Alternative Appearance > Follow the setup instructions.

The Amazon Echo is one of a range of hands-free speakers and devices from Amazon that can be controlled with your voice. The voice-controlled "personal assistant" on these devices is called Alexa, which will perform various tasks for you and control various systems.

In this feature we'll explain what Echo is and what Alexa can do.

As well as being available on Echo devices from Amazon directly, Alexa is available on a lot of third-party devices like speakers or TVs as well as through the Alexa app on phones. Alexa is also available in some cars and in some wearables, like the Fitbit Versa 2.

What devices offer Alexa?

There are two sides to this question - devices that work with Alexa (such as Philips Hue) - and devices that offer Amazon Voice Services, which is the platform that runs Alexa. 

First and foremost, Alexa is designed around Amazon's own Echo devices. The Amazon Echo range includes the standard Echo, Echo Plus, Echo Studio, and Echo Dot, which are all speakers, and then the Echo Show, Echo Show 5, Echo Show 8, and the Echo Spot, which also feature a display, so can give you visual feedback, like weather widgets, videos or song lyrics. There are several Amazon Alexa gadgets too though, like the Echo Wall Clock and Echo Flex smart plug for example. 

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The cheapest Echo device is the Echo Dot, which is a good starting point for building an Echo system and getting started. You can see all the Echo devices compared right here. 

There are plenty of other devices that offer Alexa voice control, such as the Sonos One, Sonos Move, Bose Home Speaker 500 or Polk Command Bar. You can see a range of Echo alternatives here that offer Alexa too.

All these devices feature far-field microphones that can pick out your voice through background noise and are waiting to take your command when they hear the Alexa wake word. Once you say this, Alexa will swing into action and respond to your commands. But what can Alexa actually do?

What can Alexa do?

Alexa is able to play music, provide information, deliver news and sports scores, tell you the weather, control your smart home and even allow Prime members to order products from Amazon. Alexa sits in the cloud, expanding the information offered all the time and refining the responses to give you more accurate information. No matter what Alexa device you ask, all can return these sorts of answers, be that on your soundbar or in your car.

One of the core functions is playing music and Alexa can draw many sources. Amazon Music is supported, of course, but beyond that there's support for many more services like Spotify, Deezer, Apple Music, TuneIn as well as apps from individual providers, like the BBC.

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The Echo devices with a display can also return visual information, extending beyond widgets to news videos, recipes or games. On the display-equipped devices - Echo Show and Echo Spot - you can also use touch controls to respond, for example to control smart home devices.

Alexa can also tap into information from other devices and services by using Skills (which are like apps), so will be able to give you specific information about your car, your latest weigh-in or to find your Tile.

What about Alexa in the smart home?

Smart home control has emerged into one of the most significant areas of Alexa's influence. It's no longer just about asking for the weather and playing music with fancy voice control - it's also about connecting to and controlling other devices in your home.

You can view your Ring Video Doorbell on your Echo Show, for example, as you can with Arlo cameras. You can connect Alexa to your Philips Hue or other lightbulbs, like Ikea, to turn them on or off with voice, or link to your heating controls so you can check and change the temperature in your house. 

In this sense, Alexa is a great smart home controller - and once linked to Alexa, can be accessed through anything that supports Alexa voice commands. 

• How to set-up an Alexa smart home

Some Echo devices take this a step further offering Zigbee support, which will allow you to directly connect and setup smart home devices without needing a separate app or hub for that device. For example, you can buy a single Philips Hue bulb and set it up with your Echo Plus second-gen or Echo Studio, without needing a Hue Hub.

What can you ask Alexa?

There are plenty of things you can ask Alexa to do. Skills in the Alexa app enable you to customise your Echo device with capabilities to suit your preferences.

There are several skill categories within the Skills section of the app, including Connected Car, Food & Drink, Travel & Transportation, Music & Audio, Smart Home, and plenty more. To get started, you just have to tap Enable Skill when you've found one that is suited to you - or you can ask Alexa to enable skills via voice.

Some will require you to link to an existing account or separate subscription to use. For example, to use Uber with Alexa, you'll need to have signed into your Uber account within the Skills section of the Alexa app.

Here are just a few examples of what you can ask Alexa to do:

• "Alexa, wake me up at 7 in the morning"
• "Alexa, ask Skyscanner for a flight to New York"
• "Alexa, ask The Telegraph for the top stories"
• "Alexa, what's on my calendar today?"
• "Alexa, what's the weather in London?"
• "Alexa, play Taylor Swift from Amazon Music"
• "Alexa, how's my commute?"
• "Alexa, shuffle my Favourites playlist"
• "Alexa, turn it up"
• "Alexa, will it rain tomorrow?"
• "Alexa, read my audiobook"
• "Alexa, what's in the news?"
• "Alexa, ask Uber to request a ride"
• "Alexa, open Just Eat and ask for my last order"
• "Alexa, turn on the coffee machine"
• "Alexa, turn on all the lights"
• "Alexa, set the master bedroom to 20 degrees"
• "Alexa, ask Jamie Oliver for a recipe"

What apps and services work with Alexa?

Numerous companies offer partnerships with Amazon Echo devices, as you will have seen from some of the questions above. There are thousands and thousands of skills available but here are some of the services that work with Alexa and what they mean you can do.

Just Eat

The Just Eat partnership means you can get Alexa to order you a take away from one of the thousands of restaurants it has available.

Met Office

The Met Office skill is available for various locations around the United Kingdom so make sure you download the one specific for you. You can then ask Alexa for detailed weather forecasts.

Uber

Need an Uber from home? No problem. Just ask Alexa to request you one and you'll have a driver on its way to you.

National Rail

Want to know what your commute has in store for you before you leave the house? Ask Alexa to check and she will pull in the information from National Rail regarding train times and schedules.

The Guardian

For those who read The Guardian, Alexa will give you a rundown of the paper's top stories so you can find out which ones you'll want to read before your commute.

The Telegraph

Like The Guardian, the partnership with The Telegraph means users can ask Alexa for this paper's top stories too.

TimeOut

A great one for those that live in or around London, Alexa will give you a daily briefing delivering a round up of the most exciting news, reviews, openings, events and things that shouldn't be missed taking place near you.

Sky Sports

Want to know how your favourite football team is doing? Or how your rival team is doing? Just ask Alexa and she'll deliver the bad news in her lovely accent.

Jamie Oliver

Need a recipe from the Jamie Oliver app but have your hands full? Just ask Alexa and she'll find it for you so you can carry on with whatever you're doing.

Fitbit

Want to know how you slept or how many steps you've done? Fitbit's partnership with Echo means you can just ask Alexa and she'll let you know. No need to open the Fitbit app. Alexa is also built into the Versa 2 smartwatch.

Skyscanner

Take me to New York. The partnership with Skyscanner allows users to ask Alexa for flight dates and prices using a natural conversation search method.

EasyJet

Check the latest arrival and departure information for EasyJet flights quickly by asking Alexa, or ask for the status of a flight your travelling on.

TuneIn

For those that love a random radio station, the TuneIn partnership with Echo allows you to ask Alexa to find your favourite station and listen to it all day.

RadioPlayer

Like TuneIn, RadioPlayer offers numerous radio stations meaning you can ask Alexa to recommend you one or just play one you know you like.

Spotify

The Spotify partnership allows users to request songs, artists or playlists through Alexa, which she will then play through Echo's 360-degree omni-directional audio.

Laundrapp

Have a suit or dress that have needed dry cleaning for months? Ask Alexa to take care of it and the partnership with Laundrapp means they will be collected, cleaned and redelivered.

BMW

BMW Connected is available as a Skill, allowing users to ask Alexa for an update on their fuel and battery levels, as well as ask her to lock their car remotely.

Tado

The partnership with smart heating system Tado means users of the system can ask Alexa to set, increase or decrease their home temperature without moving a muscle.

Netatmo

Like Tado, the collaboration with Netatmo means users with this heating system can also ask Alexa to turn the temperature of their house up or down.

Hive

Hive is another smarthome partner of Echo, allowing users to ask Alexa to turn the heating up or down, turn lights on or off, as well as turn anything with a Hive Active plug on or off.

Neato

Neato's collaboration with Echo means you can ask Alexa to tell your Botvac Connected robot vacuum cleaner to start, stop, pause or resume cleaning. More commands will also be coming in the future, such as scheduling.

Philips Hue

Need to turn off the bedroom light, or all the lights? The Philips Hue partnership allows you to control your Hue lights by asking Alexa rather than having to go into the app.

Logi Circle

For those that have the Logi Circle cameras, you can ask Alexa to start a start a recording, disable Privacy Mode or turn your camera on.

EDF Energy

The EDF Energy partnership allows users to ask Alexa to access their energy account, check their next payment data give a meter reading, without lifting a finger.

TP Link

The partnership with TP-Link means users with any of the company's smart plugs or bulbs can ask Alexa to control them with their voice.

WeMo

Like TP-Link, the WeMo collaboration means users can ask Alexa to turn their WeMo connected devices off or on without needing to open the app.

Honeywell

Have a Honeywell connected system? Just ask Alexa to turn your heating up or down in and she'll make sure it gets done.

SmartThings

SmartThings is also a partner of Echo, offering users the ability to command their smart home through Alexa, whether it's turning the lights off or the temperature up.

Nest

The Nest compatibility with Echo means users can control their thermostat through Alexa, like other smart heating systems on this list. You can set a specific target temperature, lower the target temperature, as well as say things like "I'm too hot".

• Amazon Echo vs Amazon Tap vs Echo Dot vs Echo Show: What's the difference?

Bluetooth speakers come in all different shapes and sizes from larger options that have the power to fill your whole living room to smaller portables that are great for taking to picnics or moving from room-to-room.

Finding the right speaker for you and your needs is no easy task so we've rounded up our pick of the best portable speakers currently available to buy. You'll find a mix of styles, power, sizes and budgets.

• Black Friday is just around the corner and we'll be bringing you all the latest deals - check out our pages for the best Black Friday US deals and Black Friday UK sales.

There can be some crossover with Wi-Fi or wireless speakers, but in this roundup we've concentrated on units that are predominantly designed to stand alone and use Bluetooth for a direct connection with your phone or another device.

Our pick of the best Bluetooth speakers to buy today

Ultimate Ears Megaboom 3

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The UE Megaboom is a standout product; one only really limited by the high price point. But even the high price can't muddy the raft of good points that see it swim along - literally if you dunk it in the bath, thanks to waterproofing and floatability.

This bass-booming cylinder sounds great (with even better bass than before), looks great, and is tough enough to tackle music in the office, for that summer picnic or festival, or whatever else you happen to throw at it. It's Bluetooth speaker bliss. 

• Ultimate Ears UE Megaboom 3 review
• Which UE speaker is right for you?

Marshall Stockwell II

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It's not a party speaker - we'll leave that to the bigger Kilburn II (below) and larger-than-life Tufton, but this is a super-portable unit that provides you with powerful audio on the go. It's ideal for camping and picnics (both tried and tested by us). It probably isn't going to be your main speaker at home - though it's totally capable of being that if you so require.

As well as the standard Marshall bass, treble and volume controls there's also a battery level indicator, too. You'll get well over 20 hours of listening time out of it. Indeed, you'll try hard to remember the last time you had to charge it. 

• Marshall Stockwell II review

Sonos Move

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The Sonos Move is both a Bluetooth speaker and a Wi-Fi speaker - offering a toggle on the rear to switch between the two modes. In Wi-Fi mode, it connects to other Sonos speakers for a multi-room audio experience, while in Bluetooth mode, it delivers a fantastic sound experience with plenty of bass and a durable and water-resistant design. It will also automatically tune itself to its surroundings.

It's not cheap by any stretch of the imagination and it's weighty too, which means while it is portable - there's an integrated handle on the back - it's not the kind of device you can pop in your backpack for a picnic. That said, if you take it to the park or the beach, its sound and volume will impress most around you. 

It's a great option for those with a Sonos system, offering the best of both worlds - an excellent Wi-Fi smart speaker with AirPlay 2 support that you can move around as you please. 

• Sonos Move review

B&O BeoPlay A1

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It's small, but the B&O BeoPlay A1's big sound makes it stand out in the portable Bluetooth speaker market. We may have baulked at its price tag at first, but given how good it sounds, we think it's worth every penny.

Sure, there's no Wi-Fi, AirPlay, waterproofing or 360-degree design like some of its competitors, but the solid battery, build quality, extra bass punch and sheer audio clarity give this speaker the upper hand when it comes to sound quality. The BeoPlay A1 is well worth saving up for.

• B&O BeoPlay A1 by Bang & Olufsen review

Ultimate Ears Boom 3

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The UE Boom 2 was excellent - taking one of our favourite portable Bluetooth speakers, the original UE Boom, and makes it even better. There was also IP67 waterproofing and a sharper sound. The Boom 3 takes this on a notch - for a cheaper price, too. 

If you're looking for portable, premium sound wherever you are, then the UE Boom 2 hits the nail on the head. Have reasonable expectations for bass delivery and it's one seriously hot Bluetooth speaker.

• Ultimate Ears UE Boom 3 review

Marshall Kilburn II

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The beauty of the powerful Kilburn II is its simplicity and portability. The Kilburn II is truly a wall of sound; a bass blaster that turns it up to 10 (not 11 sorry). Mind you, if you get up to anything like that volume level you'll be doing well to still be next to it. 

We have listened to cleaner-sounding models and if you need 360 sound then plump for the UE Megaboom 3 instead. Battery life is impressive at around 20 hours though and naturally, being a Marshall product, the whole speaker has a very distinctive look and feel. 

• Marshall Kilburn II review

Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 2

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If you want to invest in UE's range of portable Bluetooth speakers, but want something smaller than the Boom 2 or Megaboom, the Wonderboom is the boom for you - now available in this improved version. When you turn it on, prepare yourself for an explosion of 360-degree sound that belies its size. It's palm-sized, and like other speakers in the range, is protected against knocks, bumps, drops and splashes thanks to its rubberised casing and IP67 rating.

It can float too, so you can comfortably take it in the pool with you. What's more, several colours are available - black, grey, red, blue and pink. It can tackle all genres of music with aplomb and will add life to any social scenario. You can even stereo pair two together. 

• Ultimate Ears UE Wonderboom 2 review

BeoPlay P6

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Delivering sensational sound, there's lots to like about the P6 including its beautiful sound quality and pleasant-to-use physical controls. It's also dust and splash-proof and has a rechargeable battery that lasts a thoroughly decent 16 hours. 

The only real disadvantage is the high asking price (which has come down a bit) and you may want to look at the cheaper A1, above. There's also no 3.5mm auxiliary input, either, which is a little disappointing. 

• BeoPlay P6 review

JBL Xtreme 2 

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This highly portable speaker is loud and crisp and, even though it doesn't have 360-degree sound, it'll give you some pretty impressive bass from the dual woofers.

It's undoubtedly a party speaker and also features a large carry handle plus it's IPX7 water-resistant as well. There are only two disadvantages - a reasonably hefty price point for one, while it's also rather weighty, too. 

• JBL Xtreme 2 review

Denon Envaya DSB-250

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Denon is a well-known name from the world of Hi-Fi. And true to these roots, Envaya is a great-sounding speaker that balances fidelity and power. In fact, we'd go as far as to say it's one of the best-sounding small wireless speakers around. 

By the way, Denon has three models available, the 250BT being the largest and naturally the beefiest. The Envaya Mini (150BT) and Envaya Pocket (50BT) slot in underneath. The DSB-250 is semi-rugged, with IP67 water resistance. It can handle being submerged in water a metre deep for half an hour.

• Denon Envaya DSB-250 review

Pure StreamR

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This compact little box has a lot of tricks up its sleeve. Pure is a name synonymous with DAB digital radio and yes, this is a portable digital radio and Bluetooth speaker with around 15 hours of battery life (it also has FM). But it has Amazon Alexa too, which works using the connected Pure Home app on your phone - the speaker itself isn't internet connected and instead uses the internet connection of your phone.

As such it also doesn't have Spotify Connect or AirPlay and so despite the presence of Alexa, we'll still class it as a Bluetooth speaker rather than a Wi-Fi one, hence its appearance in this list. 

Sound quality is surprisingly beefy for such a small box and it has more tricks too - you press down the entire top portion of the unit to turn it off (or it pops out to turn it on) while there's an aux 3.5mm cable wrapped around the device, too - see that grey band just above the base? That's it. 

Tesla plans to unveil an electric pickup truck later this month.

CEO Elon Musk announced in a tweet on Wednesday that the reveal is finally scheduled for 21 November. The truck, which the billionaire entrepreneur calls Cybertruck, is supposed to be inspired by the film Blade Runner and will have a “heart-stopping” design. Musk has been toying with the idea of a truck since at least 2013. He's teased Tesla's truck several times, comparing it to vehicles like the Ford F-150 and Porsche 911.

• Tesla models compared: Model S, Model 3, Model X, Model Y, and more

However, he says the pickup will offer better utility and performance, and it should seat six and offer 400 to 500 miles of range at the top-end. The priciest version will even be powered by a dual-motor setup. Speaking of price, it will start at $50,000. There's no word on how much the Tesla truck will cost at the far end of the scale, but Musk has promised a towing capacity of 300,000 pounds.

Other than that, details are scarce. We don't even know what it the truck looks like, save for a dark image teased a while back. 

Cybertruck unveil on Nov 21 in LA near SpaceX rocket factory

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 6, 2019

Tesla plans to unveil Cybertruck at Tesla’s design studio, which shares a lot with SpaceX’s headquarters in LA. Keep in mind the annual LA Auto Show will also kick off that week. In fact, Ford is set to unveil a Mustang-inspired SUV, its first mass-market EV, at the same time.

Amazon has announced which of its devices will be on sale ahead of Black Friday.

These "early Black Friday" deals begin 22 November and will last through to Black Friday and Cyber Monday. At which point, several more deals will likely be announced. But this is a start, so if you want to save money on Amazon devices - like Kindles, Fire tablets, and Echos - here you go.

• Amazon announces Black Friday 2019 UK deals event

This is the list complete list, direct from Amazon:

From 22 November:

• Fire HD 8 for $49 (normally $79)
• Fire HD 8 Kids Edition for $79 (normally $129)
• Fire 7 for $29 (normally $49)
• Fire 7 Kids Edition for $59 (normally $99)
• Fire HD 10 for $99 (normally $149)
• Kindle Paperwhite for $84 (normally $129)
• Ring Video Doorbell Pro and Echo Show 5 bundle for $189 ($149.99 off, if you buy separately)

From 24 November:

• Fire TV Stick with 4K with Alexa Voice Remote for $24 (normally $49)
• Fire TV Stick with Alexa Voice Remote for $19 (normally $39)
• Fire TV Cube for $89 (normally $119)

From 27 November:

• Blink XT2 three-camera kit for $184 (normally $249)
• Ring Indoor Cam two-pack for $99 (normally $139)
• Amazon Smart Plug for $4.99 when purchased as a bundle with an Echo)

From 28 November:

• Echo Dot with clock for $34 (normally $59)
• Echo Dot third gen for $22.00 (normally $49)
• Echo Auto for $29 (normally $49)
• Echo third gen for $59 (normally $99)
• Echo Show 5 for $49 (normally $89)
• Echo Show second gen for $149 (normally $229)

For more US Black Friday deals, check out our guide here.

Imagine you love American football and want to find interesting tweets about the sport on Twitter. But, when you search for it, all you find are meaningless tweets from random fans. This is a pervasive problem on Twitter.

However, Twitter has begun to roll out a new feature, called Topics, which aims to correct this issue. You will be able to follow more than 300 areas of interest - whether it is sports, entertainment, or gaming - similar to how you follow regular accounts. Then, you’ll see tweets from accounts that you don’t follow but have expertise on or have said something notable on the topic.

This feature has been in testing since August for Android users. It is now rolling out globally. Here's what you need to know.

Why are Twitter Topics a thing?

Twitter seems to think this feature will be ideal for fans of certain subjects, aka fandoms. Whether it's a professional sports team or a music group, rather than follow a few official accounts that post developments, you can just follow a relevant topic, and Twitter will show you popular tweets. Topics are public also - so anyone (who can see your full profile) can view the topics you follow.

Here's how Twitter described the new feature:

"Following a topic allows you to stay informed on what’s happening and see more relevant content, including tweets, events, and ads, about that topic. On your Home timeline and in search results, you’ll see prompts to follow topics. Tap the Follow button in the prompt and we'll personalize your Twitter experience based on your interest in this topic. We may also match you with other topics that we think you are interested in based on your profile and activity, such as the tweets you view or like."

Twitter is working on rolling out more topics, including a feature to mute topics, plus it's exploring letting you browse topics on an explore page.

How do Twitter Topics work?

When will Twitter Topics be available?

Topics will launch around the globe on 13 November 2019.

When the Sonic the Hedgehog movie trailer appeared in May, there was an almighty backlash. The internet went bonkers over aspects of the lead, animated character.

Game fans and the Twittersphere went crazy over the Sega character's big screen design - not least his creepy human teeth.

That lead to the director of the film, Jeff Fowler, subsequently tweeting that the animation team would completely redesign the character before the movie is released. And, he has remained true to his word.

Multiple leaked images - also released on Twitter by @TailsChannel - now show a much better Sonic, who looks more like the game character. Without scary human teeth.

Here's a wider picture of the allegedly leaked redesigned #SonicMovie standee image. Source is also unconfirmed. #SonicNewspic.twitter.com/fdS1KbBleU

— Tails' Channel | Sonic the Hedgehog News & Updates (@TailsChannel) November 6, 2019

#SonicMovie rumour: Multiple images featuring an alleged redesigned Sonic has surfaced online. This is a RUMOUR! We are working to confirm its authenticity. (h/t BestInTheGalaxy) pic.twitter.com/ZFLqBcANM5

— Tails' Channel | Sonic the Hedgehog News & Updates (@TailsChannel) October 14, 2019

You still get Jim Carrey playing Dr Robotnik in the style of Ace Ventura, but our favourite blue, spiky Erinaceidae seems to be back to his non-scary best.

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Hopefully, there will be a new trailer out soon, although the film has been put back to a Valentine's Day, 14 February 2020 release - from an originally proposed November slot.

You have to admire a director actually listening to the fans though, and doing something to his film in response. Shame we can't get Justin Kurzel to retrospectively reshoot almost the entire Assassin's Creed movie.

It seems that Roborock is doubling down on what it does best - creating better and better robot vacuum cleaners on a regular basis. We've seen the Roborock S5, then the S6, since which the S5 Max has been announced, and now the S4 is here for review.

The company seems to be working on the basis that incredible robot vacuums don't need to cost the earth to perform well. The Roborock S4 is the latest example of that. It is, on paper, a feature-rich robot vacuum cleaner with a power and feature set that defies the price tag. 

But is it another great cleaner or does it just plain suck? We've been living with it around the home to find out. 

Overall design and features

• Dual-action anti-tangle main cleaning brush
• Single edge brush
• Washable dustbin and filters
• Semi-transparent design finish

At first glance, the Roborock S4 looks the same as other robot vacuums you might have seen. It's round, it has a raised sensor system on top to track where it's going and it has a single edge brush protruding from its side. It has a bump rail, multiple sensors and charging rails to connect with its charging dock.

But it's under the hood where this robot vacuum cleaner shines. Small design aspects make for an overall great cleaning bot. The main cleaning brush, for example, is a large dual-action anti-tangle brush. A combination of classic bristles and rubber fins means this brush works on both carpet and hard flooring too. It's also cleverly designed to avoid getting knotted with hair as much as other brushes. 

If it does get tangled, there's an included tool for de-knotting it. You can also remove the tips of the brush to pull any tangled hair or fibers off easily. Being able to keep the bot clean is an important part of ensuring it functions as it should.

There are even tiny design features built to minimise the amount of effort you have to put in to keep this bot in tip-top shape. For example, brushes on the underside are there to brush the main intake brush to keep it problem-free. 

Other design features, such as a washable dustbin and filters, also means you're not regularly spending a fortune on maintenance as well. 

On a basic level, the Roborock S4 is also easy to use on a daily basis. There's a power button and a home button on the top of the bot. A press on one sends it out for the clean, while the other sends it back to the dock for a charge. Simple. 

Robot setup and cleaning cycles

• Android/iPhone app
• Remote control functionality
• Scheduled, zone cleaning and room cleaning options

But the real power and controllability comes within the app, available for your iPhone or Android smartphone.

From within the app, you can do things like adjust vacuum settings, set up timers, view cleaning history logs and even use simple commands like "find my bot" to make the robot shout - if you can't find it for some reason. 

This app also gives you access to interesting data and the useful power of the intelligent mapping system.

Real-time intelligent mapping and room scanning

• 11 sensors including 4 cliff sensors, clog sensors and more
• Real-time mapping system
• LIDAR laser scanner

The Roborock S4 is packed to the brim with sensors and cleaning smarts. One of these is the LIDAR laser scanning system, which is one of the sensors driverless cars use. This enables the bot to make use of a real-time mapping functionality. As the robot cleaner moves around your home, it scans the room to work out what the area looks like, to suss out obstacles that might get in the way and work out where it needs to go.

As it's done in real-time, this mapping system works really well - even if you adjust the layout of the room regularly. If you move a footstall, rearrange the chairs or just leave a large box in the hallway for collection, the bot will adjust for it. It will also work out which rooms it has been in and report where it had any issues too. 

This real-time laser mapping also means the Roborock S4 is less likely to get stuck. That isn't to say it doesn't run into problems though: if it sucks up a sock or runs over a tissue that then gets wrapped up in its wheel it'll soon be begging for a helping hand.

Should this happen the Roborock will send an audible notification, including a notification on your phone detailing the problem. Whether that's a case of the bot has run over something it can't get off, or the wheels or brush are tangled and blocked. You can then use the app to find where the bot is in the house according to the map and go rescue it. 

We found we rarely had to do this as the S4 is great at both getting about and getting back to its dock. It moves well, navigating rooms and making its way around or over obstacles with ease. We also like that even when the dock is nestled in a tight corner it still manages to get back there easily. 

Obstacle detection and room cleaning capabilities

• Multiple suction modes: Silent, Standard, Medium and Turbo (up to 2000pa)
• Supersized 5200mAh LiPo battery, up to 3 hours cleaning time per charge

You can use the app to send the bot out to clean the entire house (on the floor it's located, these bots still can't climb stairs), specific zones or even certain rooms. This cleaning can be carried out with the choice of multiple suction modes, including Silent, Standard, Medium and Turbo.

Silent is reasonably quiet (not totally silent) and could be used to clean the house before you even get up in the morning - depending on how heavy a sleeper you are. The quieter cleaning modes mean the bot can clean for longer before needing to charge, but won't clean as effectively as when on the higher suction modes. 

We found Turbo mode to be effective. We regularly found ourselves emptying the dustbin when using this mode, which in itself is fair proof that the S4 is a good cleaning machine. It also managed to pick up dirt and dust when out for a clean after another competitor bot on test had already given the house a sweep. 

The Roborock S4 can clean for as much as three hours on the lowest suction level, but we usually found that it would get through four or five rooms in under 40 minutes in a satisfactory way before returning to its home. 

The Roborock S4 cleans in a regimented way. It moves from room to room, passing up and down in a z-shaped cleaning pattern, zig-zagging its way about. On thicker carpet, it leaves pleasing track marks in the fibres showing off where it's been in the same way a professional lawn mower leaves lines in the freshly mowed grass. 

It also performs well on any surface. We witnessed the S4 cleaning both plush carpet and hard wooden floors. The floating main brush means it can clean between gaps and adjust to compensate for the area it's cleaning. The edge brush has a dynamic speed and works well at cleaning the edges of rooms and skirting boards too. 

Beyond auto cleaning, you can drag and select a cursor over certain sections of your home within the app to send the bot to clean that area or just pick a specific room for it to go and deal with. There's also a pin-and-go functionality to let you drop a pin on the virtual map and tell it to go spot clean. 

If there are areas you don't want the Roborock S4 to go, then you can set "no-go" zones and virtual barriers, meaning you can stop it from going into rooms without even having to close the door. It also means you can specify areas within a room which the bot should avoid too, be that to avoid knocking over a vase or a pile of Lego a child is playing with. The cleaning options are incredibly flexible.  

Elements of Samsung's next flagship Galaxy S11 have leaked, and indicate that not only are we expecting to see an increase in battery performance, but we might see an Oppo-style periscope zoom camera. 

A leaked image from the Safety Korea site (via Galaxy Club) displays the smaller Galaxy S11's battery capacity as 14.36Wh. Presuming it operates at the same typical voltage of existing batteries, that means we're looking at a capacity of around 3,730mAh. 

To the average user, these numbers don't mean much. But to put it simply, that's - as near as makes no difference - a 10 per cent increase on the Galaxy S10, which was itself a 13 per cent increase on the previous one. 

If there's one feature on the smaller Galaxy S that's not lived up to the performance you'd want from an all-singing all-dancing flagship smartphone in recent years, it's battery life. 

To a certain extent, the S10 did improve things by offering a 400mAh jump over its predecessor, the S9 (which only had 3,000mAh capacity). 

But then again, battery performance isn't at all just down to size. A big part of it is how the software and other hardware components use that battery power. 

If those other parts aren't efficient, it doesn't really matter how big a battery is in the phone, because it'll drain quickly. It's why you often see phones with the same capacity performing differently from different manufacturers. 

Huawei and OnePlus - for example - have long offered phones that perform really well in daily use. Apple's larger "Max" sized iPhones, typically offer much lower capacity than the industry norm, and still last a long time thanks to the manufacturer's in-house approach to software and hardware. 

In theory then, if Samsung equips it with a more power hungry processor or display, or require more energy to process images and information it could mean a negligible increase in actual daily battery life.

On the flip side, it could make everything much more efficient and squeeze more life out of the extra capacity than we thought possible. The proof of the pudding - as they say - is in the eating. So we'll just have to wait on that one. 

As for the camera leaks, it seems Samsung is going a similar way to Oppo (above) and Huawei in recent years with a camera it has code-named "Hubble". 

A rumour published by Galaxy Club states the company is working on a periscope-like camera which allows 5x optical zoom, similar to the camera on the P30 Pro and the Oppo Reno 10x Zoom. 

The way these work is that a prism-shaped lens element is placed directly beneath the exterior element, firing the image at a 90-degree angle towards a sensor.

That means the other elements can be lined up horizontally within the camera, which in turn means lots of extra space and zoom capability without a huge protrusion sticking out the back of the phone. 

Of course, we don't know how much of the most recent speculation will turn out to be accurate, but we only have a few months to wait. Samsung's Galaxy S series normally debuts in late winter/early spring, and we'd expect the same to be true for 2020. 

Just last month Google announced that it was killing off its Daydream VR project. The news came in the midst of the company's annual "Made by Google" event when the search giant revealed that it's new Pixel smartphones would not support Daydream. It also said that it would no longer be selling the headsets. 

Now, however, comes the news that Google is making the Cardboard VR project open source.

Google Cardboard has been around for quite a few years now, with all manner of affordable smartphone-centric headsets available from numerous manufacturers. Even the search giant claims that more 15 million units of its cheap Cardboard Manufacturer Kit have shipped worldwide since it launched. 

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This move to make the Cardboard project open source will mean that developers will have an easier time creating their own VR experiences and even adding support for Cardboard headsets to their pre-existing apps. 

It seems that Google has seen fewer people using Cardboard since it launched but the company is keen to support developers who want to embrace the ecosystem:

"While we've seen overall usage of Cardboard decline over time and we’re no longer actively developing the Google VR SDK, we still see consistent usage around entertainment and education experiences, like YouTube and Expeditions, and want to ensure that Cardboard's no-frills, accessible-to-everyone approach to VR remains available."

The open source project will provide APIs for head tracking, lens distortion rendering and input handling. Google also says it has included an Android QR code library, meaning that any newly developed apps will be able to pair with any Cardboard viewer without depending on the Cardboard app.

If you're interested in dabbling with the Cardboard VR project, Google has released developer documentation and uploaded the Cardboard SDK to a GitHub repo.

Google is pushing a new feature it its Nest Hub and Nest Hub Max devices that will use "ultrasound sensing" to detect where people are around the device.

It uses the device's speakers to emit an inaudible signal that's then detected by the mics when it's reflected back to the device - a little like echo location that bats might use. The audio signal is outside of human hearing range so you shouldn't notice or hear anything.

The aim of the system is to let the device know whereabout you are in the room and if you're close or far away. Google says that it will be able to detect if you're within 4ft (1.22m) of the device and then it can change the display accordingly. 

For example, if you're close to your Nest Hub then a cooking timer can be in a fairly small size - but if you're across the room, then you'll want it to be larger. The same logic applies to weather and details of your commute. It's this sort of thing that ultrasonics are going to offer on the Nest Hub devices.

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When it comes to media controls, you'll get touch controls appear when you're close to the device - but when you're not there, there's no point in showing those controls as they are just visual clutter.

With the Nest Hub Max there's also a front camera, which can use Face Match to serve up personal results when it recognises you. These will still remain, but ultrasound sensing can now alert those who aren’t face matched or those using the smaller Nest Hub to pending notifications when they're near their device.

The ultrasound sensing will be on by default, but if you want to do so, you can find the settings in your Google Home app and turn off the feature. Additionally, if you use the mute button that turns off the microphones, this will also turn off ultrasound sensing.

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