Spotify tests new convenient Nearby Device feature

A new feature Spotify is testing out makes it easier to switch to your "favorite" nearby device. Thurrott's Mehedi Hassan reported that this new nearby device feature allows users to easily switch playback to their most-used device whenever they're nearby. If this test is available to you, then it'll ask you first if you want to set a "favorite" device within Spotify Connect. When you set it to your preferred device, the mobile app will ask you whether you want to start playback on that device whenever you are near the device.

An example Hassan gave was that he set a Harman Kardon Invoke speaker as a favorite device. Every time he comes home, Spotify detects that the Invoke is nearby. It would send him a notification asking if he wants to start playing on the Invoke. Spotify would then switch playback immediately from the notification, easing the process for him to make the switch. Theoretically, it should work with any device that supports Spotify Connect, but Hassan notes that it doesn't work with his Windows 10 PC yet. Since this seems to be a test, you may or may not get it yet. Let us know what you think if you have access to it.

Google Assistant will be less talkative when controlling lights

This may have happened to you. You asked Google Assistant to switch off the lights for the evening so you can sleep. Google Home then answers back, probably a bit louder than you'd like, to confirm that it's turning off the lights... as it, well, turns off the lights. It seems kind of redundant and counterintuitive, doesn't it? Google has heard you and it's started rolling out a new feature. Assistant will no longer verbally confirm that it's turning off lights. Google Home will chime to let you know that it's processed your request, as long as it's in the same room as the lights. And it doesn't just work for turning off lights, it'll work for all light-related actions like dimming, changing colors, etc. It'll also work for switches and plugs identified as lights in Assistant's settings. Smart lights will reportedly be getting the new, quieter confirmation in the coming weeks. And this feature will supposedly work for all Assistant-powered speakers and displays, as long as the device is grouped in the same room in your account.

Source: Android Police 

Twitter looks to improve DMs, will bring search into the feature

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It's definitely long overdue, and we can't wait until Twitter implements the change. The social network is going to be "re-energizing" its efforts around DMs. And one of the highlights will be adding a search feature to direct messages. It's high time for Twitter to focus on its more private space. With competitors like Facebook planning to turn its attention to chat and other "simple, intimate" spaces, this is the time Twitter can respond.

Twitter also plans to include support for Live Photos from iOS devices as GIFs and to give you the freedom to reorder photos in the app after you've uploaded them. So, if you're doing live event tweets, it'll help you rearrange the tweets in an order that makes sense. We don't have details yet on when these plans are coming, but they're something to look forward to.

Source: Engadget

Teardown shows that the Huawei 5G modem is less efficient than Qualcomm's version

A new IHS Markit teardown pitted early 5G smartphones against each other. And one of the revelations of the report is the weaknesses of Huawei's 5G chip. It's been found to be larger, less efficient, and more expensive than its counterpart from Qualcomm and even Samsung. The Kirin 980 chip already has a 4G/3G/2G modem, but the addition of the Balong 5000 5G modem renders the former redundant. Huawei says the Balong 5000 5G is the first commercial multimode 5G/4G/3G/2G chip. This additional chip takes up more space, which made the Mate 20X larger than it should be. Aside from being less efficient, having two modem chips in one phone is also more expensive. And at this moment, it still doesn't support millimeter 5G. It seems Huawei still has a lot of work to do to make a better 5G modem for its smartphones.

Source: GSMArena