The Tech Influencer

Fixing the latest bugs and exploits in Android every month. Google has detailed the latest Android Security Bulletin and released the fixes for Nexus and Pixel devices. These are exploits and other security concerns that affect Android as a whole. Issues with the operating system, kernel patches, and driver updates may not affect any particular device, but these need to be fixed in the Android base by the folks maintaining the operating system code. That means Google, and they've detailed the things they have improved for this month. Updated factory images for Pixel and Nexus devices that are supported are available, and over-the-air updates are rolling out to users. If you don't want to wait, you can download and flash the factory image or OTA update file manually, and here are some handy instructions to get you started. How to manually update your Nexus or Pixel The company that made your phone uses these patches to send an update out to you. These changes have ...

The Nokia 7 Plus marries Nokia's industrial design with the simplicity of Android One. HMD Global revived the Nokia brand last year, initially focusing on the budget segment with the Nokia 3, Nokia 5, and the Nokia 6. While the manufacturer rolled out the Nokia 8 to cater to the premium category, it wasn't quite as good as the OnePlus 5T or the Mi Mix 2. For its 2018 portfolio, HMD is introducing several phones aimed at different price points in one go — there's the Android Go-based Nokia 1 for the entry-level segment, the Nokia 6 2018 for the budget category, the Nokia 7 Plus at the mid-range segment, and the Nokia 8 Sirocco is the company's flagship. The Nokia 7 Plus is the most interesting device of the lot, as it is the first Nokia-branded phone to feature an 18:9 form factor. The 6-inch FHD+ (2160x1080) IPS LCD panel has vivid colors and decent saturation levels, and it gets sufficiently bright that I didn't face any issues trying to read the co...

Honor hasn't forgotten about the 7X, and the recent beta rollout of Android Oreo has made it an even better budget offering than before. When we first reviewed the Honor 7X back in December, we called it "the new budget champion." Never before had a sub-$200 phone offered such a modern design and premium build quality, all while also delivering on the basics like battery life and camera performance. The one thing that set the phone back was its software; not just because of the love-it-or-hate-it EMUI interface, but because even at launch, it was already outdated. The Honor 7X originally shipped with EMUI 5.1 on top of Android 7.0 Nougat, but Honor has since begun rolling out a beta version of an Oreo update with EMUI 8, and it's changed quite a lot about the phone. So it's time to revisit the Honor 7X and answer the burning question — is it still worth buying? Still sleek Honor 7X Hardware Nothing has really changed on the hardware front; the Honor 7X is...