On Gear Live: Samsung S95C: The OLED TV You Can’t Afford (to Ignore!)

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Find Our Latest Video Reviews on YouTube!

If you want to stay on top of all of our video reviews of the latest tech, be sure to check out and subscribe to the Gear Live YouTube channel, hosted by Andru Edwards! It’s free!

Latest Gear Live Videos

Amazon Fire TV Cube review

Amazon is trying to get its Alexa voice assistant into as many homes as possible. Its latest offering: The Fire TV Cube, which essentially turns any TV into a smart TV with Alexa voice control. We try it out live on this episode. The integration with certain apps, like Netflix and Hulu, is pretty cool. Simply saying "Alexa, play Stranger Things," opened the Netflix app and started playing right where we left off. Using voice control to fast forward, switch TV inputs and open apps also works well. But for other apps that aren't integrated, like Sling TV, the experience isn't quite so smooth. The box also doesn't work with over-the-air cable TV, as some reports said it would. In other news, Oculus announced a new virtual reality TV app this week, and some people are unimpressed. We also dive into a report that points to a new line of AirPods coming before the end of the year, including higher-end over-the-ear headphones.

Listen to the episode in the player below or subscribe to Geared Up in your favorite podcast app to listen on the go:

Gallery: Amazon Fire TV Cube hands-on review, new AirPods 2 coming soon - Geared Up!


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Huawei Mate 10 Pro Giveaway

I've teamed up with Huawei to give away a Mate 10 Pro smartphone for Father's Day! The Huawei Mate 10 Pro features impeccable build quality, the 6-inch Huawei FullView display, the Mate 10 Pro camera system developed by Leica, and more! If you're looking for an Android smartphone that lives up to the term "flagship" to give to the dad in your life, you can't go wrong with a Mate 10 Pro.

To enter, just use the widget below to manage your entries. Good luck to all who enter!

Huawei Mate 10 Pro Father's Day Giveaway!

Gallery: Enter our Huawei Mate 10 Pro giveaway!


The Geared Up Giveaway is back! We're giving Geared Up subscribers the chance to win an Oculus Go headset. See the bottom of this post for details on how to enter the giveaway.

High-end camera maker Red unveiled a mysterious new smartphone this week, and Geared Up co-host Andru Edwards was there for the hands-on experience. He said the new phone has some cool and exciting features, but also some strange ones.

Plus, Microsoft is once again trying to take on Apple's dominance in the tablet market. But can a new line of Surface devices make a real change?

We also dive into the hype around the Tesla Model 3, which is now rolling out to customers. Andru ordered his Model 3 more than two years ago and is picking it up in just a few days.

Listen to the episode in the player below or subscribe to the show in your favorite podcast app.

Subscribe to the Geared Up podcast:

Win an Oculus Go VR Headset from Geared Up!

Gallery: Mysterious new Hydrogen One smartphone from Red and getting hyped for Tesla Model 3 - Geared Up!


Oculus Go, a new VR headset from the Facebook-owned company, sprang onto shelves in a surprise launch Tuesday. It's lower-powered than existing headsets like the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive, but is portable and costs just $199. Is it the future of virtual reality? We debate on this episode of Geared Up.

Plus, T-Mobile and Sprint are finally tieing the knot with a huge merger. It will give the combined company (still called T-Mobile) a shot at competing with Verizon and AT&T as long as they can convince the Trump Administration to let the deal go through.

And in more huge news, Apple reported record-breaking iPhone sales in the first months of 2018, squashing rumors that the iPhone 10 has been struggling. Hear all that and more on this weekís episode of Geared Up, hosted by GeekWire Editor Todd Bishop and Gear Live's Andru Edwards. Watch the behind-the-scenes video above, listen in the player below, or subscribe to the show on your favorite podcast app.

Subscribe to the Geared Up podcast:

Gallery: Is Oculus Go the future of VR? Plus: T-Mobile, Sprint and Trump - Geared Up!


The Mega Smartphone Giveaway!

Welcome to our MEGA Smartphone Giveaway! We are giving away three of the best smartphones of 2017 to celebrate the end of the year, and this is your opportunity to walk away with an iPhone X, Samsung Galaxy Note 8, and Google Pixel 2! Here is how it will work:

  • The first place winner gets to choose their pick from the 3 smartphones - iPhone X, Note 8, and Pixel 2
  • The second place winner gets to choose between the 2 that are left
  • The third place winner gets the remaining smartphone (The winner that chooses the iPhone may substitute an iPhone 8 or iPhone 8 Plus instead of the iPhone X if they prefer)

Big shout out to Erica Griffin and David Cogen (The Unlockr) for teaming up with me on this giveaway! Good luck to all! Which phone would you pick if you won? Do the Pixel 2 cameras call your name? Are you all about Face ID with the iPhone X? The stylus of the Galaxy Note 8? Let me know!

Gallery: Mega Smartphone Giveaway: Win an iPhone X, Pixel 2, or Galaxy Note 8!


iPhone lock screen

With the holiday season in full swing, it’s easy to forget about the importance of privacy and security in this world of endless digital devices. More and more of our electronics are constantly connected to the Internet through cloud services, providing more and more entry points into our homes for those with nefarious intentions. McAfee reached out to me with some tips on staying secure when using different devices, and they’re good enough to be shared, as they just might help you avoid a privacy-related disaster. Additionally, McAfee is running a sweepstakes where the grand prize winner will receive a trip for two to Iceland. More details on that at the end of this article.

Click to continue reading Keeping your devices and info secure this holiday season (and win a trip!)

Gallery: Keeping your devices and info secure this holiday season (and win a trip!)


Vizio M50-D1 review

This is the time of year where many are looking to score a new TV hopefully at a great price. This year, we have a few new acronyms that people need to take into consideration when making a purchase: 4K, HDR, and WCG. If you’re familiar, then you know I’m talking about Ultra HD, High Dynamic Range, and Wide Color Gamut. All three represent a very positive shift in the TV viewing experience, and if you want all three you can end up spending a pretty penny. However, if you are just looking for a nice display with a fantastic feature that supports all the latest standards, then the 2016 Vizio M-Series should be on your list.

Click to continue reading Vizio M50-D1 4K HDR TV SmartCast display review

Gallery: Vizio M50-D1 4K HDR TV SmartCast display review


WD Blue SSD review

For decades, Western Digital has been recognized as one of the very few leaders in the world of storage and hard drives. If you open up that pre-built computer you bought, there's a good chance that on the inside you'll find a Western Digital-branded drive. If you're building your own, you likely purchased (or at least considered) going with Western Digital for your internal storage solution.

Where this might now have been the case is if you wanted to be a part of the growing trend of users switching to solid state drives. SSDs allow for faster speeds, both in read and write times, as well as the benefit of having no moving parts. They are faster, quieter, and more durable. When they were first released, they were prohibitively expensive, but as time has gone on, prices have dropped substantially as they do with any new form of technology.

The problem that Western Digital had was that it's class-leading hard disk drive prowess didn't mean that it was prepared for the new age of SSDs, and it had nothing to offer customers who wanted to go this route. It's solution was to purchase SanDisk in March 2016, a company that excels at flash storage solutions, and 8 months later we have the first results in the Western Digital Blue SSD.

Click to continue reading Western Digital Blue SSD review: A solid SSD

Gallery: Western Digital Blue SSD review: A solid SSD


Asus ROG G75

The key feature of a gaming laptop is that it should be, you know, a laptop: Easy to pack up and carry around for gaming sessions at a friend's house or on the go. Too many gaming machines add so many extra bells and whistles that you need a crate just to carry them around, which kind of ruins the point. The best gaming laptops should be light enough to easily tote, offer enough customization for you to make them your own, and include powerful features that can deal with demanding games without burning out your hardware by the end of the month.

Click to continue reading 2 Powerful & Stylish Gaming Laptops

Gallery: 2 Powerful & Stylish Gaming Laptops


The sun will set on 2015 in just a few hours, and we are just in time with our annual top 10 list of the most-watched Gear Live video episodes. Over the past year, as expected, there was a bunch of gear that made the list, with the release of the 4th generation Apple TV and Apple Watch. The launch of the Seagate Game Drive for Xbox was big with our viewers as well, appearing in our top 10 twice! Other items, like the New Nintendo 3DS XL, Alienware Steam Machine, and Toyota Entune platform also proved popular as well.

Oh, and if you wanna be sure to get our new video episodes as they come out in 2015, be sure to subscribe to us (free!) on YouTube, or in iTunes.

Also, you can check out the top ten videos from 201420132012201120102009, 2008, and 2007 - and when you're done, be sure to check out the top 10 most popular Gear Live stories of 2013 as well!

Click to continue reading Top 10 Gear Live Videos of 2015

Gallery: Top 10 Gear Live Videos of 2015


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