Table of contents for 115 in Android Advisor

REVIEWS Price: £649 from fave.co/3Lp3KbR The Fairphone 5 is not supposed to be a powerful, spec-heavy smartphone, so it isn’t. It’s not supposed to have cameras better than the iPhone 14 Pro or Google Pixel 7, so it doesn’t. Its design isn’t supposed to wow you, so it probably won’t. Instead, Fairphone has set out to make a smartphone that will get eight years of software support, possibly 10. And it knows not all the components in the phone will last that long, so many of them are user repairable or replaceable, with the company promising to stock key parts for it for several years. It’s impossible for me to test these promises right now, and the longevity of the phone relies on the company still existing in 2033. But…

REVIEWS Price: £139 from fave.co/3r7pzps Samsung makes some of the best, and most expensive, mobile phones in the world. Even their semi-expensive mid-range phones are mostly high quality and very popular. But something seems to be happening when the Korean manufacturer is forced to turn the tables on the budget class. Then Samsung doesn’t do nearly as well. Last year I tested the mediocre Galaxy A13. This year I couldn’t get hold of the sequel Galaxy A14, but instead had to check out its little sibling Galaxy A04s. I have no idea what the S stands for, and there is no ‘regular’ Galaxy A04 does not exist. It is at least a small step below the Galaxy A13, and most other budget mobiles I’ve tested, with a recommended price just…

AUDIO Price: £179 from fave.co/3LfEswN Shokz (formerly known as AfterShokz) is known for its boneconductor style headphones that can be used for exercise while staying secure, even if you’re sweating it out big time. For its latest, Shokz has ditched the headband and instead opted for a pair of true wireless earphones that hook over your ears for a more subtle design. Enter the OpenFit. Without a doubt, the OpenFit are the best-looking set of headphones from Shokz so far. Clocking in just shy of £180, these are the most premium earphones from the fitness wearable brand. If you’re wondering whether they’re for you, then read on. DESIGN Without a doubt, the OpenFit are the best-looking set of headphones from Shokz so far. They come in two colours: standard black,…

FEATURE Quick: What app do you use to manage your calendar on your phone?,If you’re anything like most people I hear from, the answer’s probably something along the lines of: “Uh…whatever calendar app came on the phone when I got it?” It’s a surprisingly common position, but guess what? On Android in particular, there’s a decent chance your phone’s default calendar app isn’t the best option. And it doesn’t take much work to give yourself an upgrade. In fact, you don’t have to look any further than this very page. After much exploration and experimentation, I’ve identified the best Android calendar apps available for different styles of professional schedule management. Some are meant to act as replacements for the less-thanstellar services that come preinstalled on certain phones, while others are…

By and large, wading your way around the web isn’t exactly an inspiring process. You open up Chrome – or whatever browser you prefer on Android – and you pull up the site you want. Right? Okay, you can always use Android’s system-level screen-splitting set-up if you want to look at two tabs side-byside or view another app at the same time. But let’s be honest, for most common purposes that isn’t the most effective way to get work accomplished. Unless you’re using the plus-sized screen of Google’s Pixel Fold or another expandable phone, that approach squeezes a lot of stuff into a small space. And for productivity-oriented tasks in particular, that isn’t optimal. So what if you could treat your Android phone browser like YouTube and turn an important…

REVIEWS Price: £153 from fave.co/46atjWh Affordable smartphones have been Motorola’s hallmark for many years. Both their high-end, mid-range and budget models have often provided more value for money than many of their competitors. Now I have tested a mobile phone at the cheaper end of the price scale, the Moto G23 which costs £153, and it is again a lot of mobile for its money. For that, you get a relatively lively little phone that looks and feels like it should cost more. It has an appealing design, with matte surfaces in a cool steel blue metallic finish. Everything is plastic, and the frame doesn’t feel too difficult to grip, but the device sits comfortably in your hand as long as your hands aren’t too small. On one long side…

REVIEWS Price: £289 from fave.co/3Pz1EZl Even if you were following Samsung’s Unpacked event this summer, it was easy to overlook the Galaxy Watch6. The foldable Z Flip5 and Z Fold5 were the headline announcements, with four new Tab S9 tablets not far behind. Even among smartwatches, the returning Galaxy Watch6 Classic and its physical rotating bezel hoovered up much of the rest of the attention. But despite this, the regular Galaxy Watch6 arguably has the most mainstream appeal of any of the new devices. It’s a relatively affordable watch that’s packed with premium features, including a few notable upgrades compared to its predecessor. That plus the fact it runs Google’s WearOS enough for it to become the new default smartwatch for Android users, but it won’t convince anyone who wasn’t…

AUDIO Price: £256 from fave.co/462IUXA Technics is one of the big old brands of audio. Half a century’s worth of hi-fis hasn’t left the brand with a whole lot of sex appeal, but instead there’s a reassuring sense that this lot probably know what they’re doing. And so it is with the new flagship EAH-AZ80 earbuds. It takes confidence to go toe-to-toe with Apple, Bose, and Sony at the £300 end of the true wireless earbud market, but Technics has earned it. With an understated design, excellent audio, and the near-unique ability to connect to three devices simultaneously, these are one of the best options around for those who care more about how their buds sound than what brand is on the box. The Technics EAH-AZ80’s audio performance is sublime.…

FEATURE What if I were to tell you that the browser you rely on for all of your web-based exploring on Android had lots of extra features to make navigating the web of ours meaningfully better? The four settings in this article will make your Android-based web browsing more powerful, more efficient and generally just more pleasant. They’re all just sitting there waiting to be found, too – so really, why not take advantage of what they have to offer? Before we go any further, though, one quick word of warning: all of these settings are part of Chrome’s flags system, which is a home for underdevelopment options that are still actively being worked on and aren’t technically intended for mainstream use. The flags system is meant for expert users…

One of the best parts about Android is how easy the operating system makes it to take total control of your experience and make your phone work any way you want. And one of the best ways to harness that power is by taking advantage of a custom Android launcher – an app that replaces your standard home screen set‑up with a more efficient and customizable environment. Our favourite Android launcher (Niagara Launcher, fave.co/3gCLkEM) has been given an update. At its core, Niagara replaces the standard Android home screen environment with a list of your most commonly accessed apps. Everything else lives within a scrolling alphabetical menu that you pull up by swiping along either side of the screen (1.). The launcher is all about simplicity, by design, and eliminating…

Price: £399 from fave.co/44LZzO3 Sony doesn’t release many mobiles per year but sticks to three in particular. The top model Xperia 1, the compact Xperia 5 and the equally compact mid-range model Xperia 10. Now I’ve tested this year’s Xperia 10, with a long narrow OLED screen and a recommended price of £399. Despite a lot of good features, I’m not entirely convinced it’s worth the money. One, 5 and 10 have looked more or less the same since the first generation of the series in 2019, and this year they are up to generation five. Or V, Sony wants to use Roman numerals, and insists that it be pronounced “mark five”. They can argue all they want, a five is a five and I don’t see any ‘mark’ so…

BUYING GUIDE We’ve seen some stunning phones so far this year. Thankfully, 2022 also gave us some absolute stunners, the best of which we’ve ranked alongside the latest phones in this article. You don’t always have to get the very latest release. Whether you’re looking for performance, camera smarts, design or value, our definitive list of the best phones has it all. Some of the prices will pleasantly surprise you, even for phones that fold in half. The top phone on this rundown won’t be the ideal phone for everybody so make sure to check out all ten. The best phone for you is out there, depending on what you value most – camera, battery life, design, specs, price, and more all come into play. Google features here of course,…

AUDIO Price: £299 from fave.co/3EAF4Jz Denon is no slouch when it comes to audio experiences and is perhaps best known to most of us for its home cinema receivers and amplifiers. But they have more to offer: multi-room speakers, turntables and soundbars to name a few. Over the years, we’ve tested a few of Denon’s models, mainly over-ear variants, and they have consistently performed well. Thus, expectations are high for the mischievous in ear headphones PerL Pro. They are undeniably oddly designed with their flat circular casing that, when the shells are in place, protrudes a bit from the ear. I doubt that everyone appreciates the shape, but on the other hand, you as a wearer will stand out from the crowd. DAMN ADAPTERS Speaking of shells, there are a…

When you talk about Google’s Pixel Fold, it’s tough not to focus mostly on the phone’s form. I mean, this is a device whose screen folds in half. And while it may not be the first Android phone to do so, it’s without a doubt the device’s defining characteristic. And it’s quite a sight to see, even in passing, and even more so to experience in person. While it’s easy to obsess over the phone’s fold, though, we’ve been there and done that at this point. And now I’ve personally been using the Pixel Fold for a solid month, I want to move beyond the surface and focus a little more closely on what might actually be its most significant innovation from an Android-wide, platform perspective. Here’s the thing: The…