Articles by Hayato Huseman

Whether you’re a writer, photographer, or someone with a long commute to work every day, backpacks are the most efficient way to carry a full day’s worth of gear without having to fuss with annoying rolling bags or messenger bags that wreck your shoulder. They’re also a huge commodity, with thousands of tech backpacks to choose from, ranging from plain empty bags to more specialized options with dividers, pouches, and pockets galore. These are the best backpacks that cater specifically to tech.

Best Overall: Peak Design Everyday Backpack v2

Peak Design makes one of the most instantly recognizable backpacks around. The San Francisco-based company makes backpacks that put an equal focus on both aesthetics and functionality. The result is a bag that many of us on the Android Central team use every day. The Everyday Backpack v2 is available in 20L and 30L configurations to accommodate different body types and carry needs.

The design is the same on either size bag, and starts with a …

How much do you really want 5G?

Ever since the Pixel 3a was first announced for $399, Google has held a prominent position in the low-cost market for its affordable phones with outsized camera performance. The A series has consistently made the appropriate sacrifices necessary to bring prices down and even improved upon the shortcomings of the company’s higher-end lineup — most notably, in its battery life.

After considerable delays, the subsequent Pixel 4a repeated the 3a’s success with even better camera performance, a larger screen signifying Google’s move over to hole punch camera cutouts, and an even better value at just $350. Those looking for a decidedly higher-end phone can turn to the Pixel 5 for double the price, while the upcoming Pixel 4a 5G splits the difference, both in terms of price and hardware accoutrements.

It isn’t that there isn’t a lot to say about the Pixel 4a 5G; it’s more that most of it has already been said in our reviews of the Pixel 4a and …

Google’s lineup of smart thermostats are terrific for regulating your home’s temperature, giving you remote control over your heating and cooling even when you aren’t there. Thanks to convenient features like Home/Away Assist, they can even save you money on your electric bill, but these smart thermostats are also great for preventative monitoring over your HVAC system. Here’s how to make use of HVAC monitoring on your Nest Thermostat.

Products used in this guide

Smart heating and cooling: Nest Learning Thermostat (3rd gen) ($249 at Amazon)
Newer and more affordable: Nest Thermostat ($130 at Amazon)

What is HVAC monitoring?

Because your Nest thermostat is essentially just a computer that’s directly connected to your HVAC system (as a reminder, that’s heating, ventilation, and air conditioning), it’s able to identify when something’s gone wrong — or better yet, the preliminary signs of a problem — and send you an alert so that you or a trained professional can fix it.

By c…

Point and shoot

Google Pixel 5

$700 at Amazon

Pros

Incredible camera for all lighting conditions
Three years of guaranteed software updates
Small, comfortable size
Rear fingerprint sensor enables gestures
All-day battery life

Cons

No telephoto camera
Under-display speaker is unimpressive

The Pixel 5 offers the purest possible Android experience, with clean Android 11 software and some of the best cameras around. It’s the first in line for new versions of Android and comes in a small form factor with all-day battery life.

Powerfully versatile

Samsung Galaxy S20 FE

$700 at Amazon

Pros

Versatile triple camera system
Three years of guaranteed software updates
Frequently discounted to even lower prices
Fast 120Hz flat display
All-day battery life

Cons

Won’t receive platform updates as quickly
Cameras aren’t as consistent

The Galaxy S20 FE has modern specs and amenities in a plastic body that helps bring the price down. You get a gorgeous flat display, alon…

One of the best parts about modern gaming consoles like the PS5 is having the ability to save your favorite moments, then quickly share them with your friends or to social media for others to enjoy. With the new DualSense controller, Sony has replaced its Share button with a Create button that allows for more flexible capturing, sharing, and broadcasting — and it’s incredibly easy to use.

Products used in this guide

Next-gen gaming: PlayStation 5 ($500 at Amazon)
Incredible controller: DualSense controller ($70 at Amazon)

How to use the Create button

Press the Create button to the left of the trackpad on the DualSense controller.
To capture a 4K image from the PS5, select Take Screenshot.

A preview of the screenshot will be displayed in the bottom-left corner of the screen.
Select the icon to the left of the Take Screenshot button to capture recent gameplay — you can save anywhere from 15 seconds to an hour of footage, since the PS5 is constantly recording in the backgro…

Samsung largely dominates the Android tablet space with a great device at nearly every price point, ranging from the ultra-affordable to more luxury tiers. The Galaxy Tab A sits somewhere in the middle, with reasonably powerful specs and a large, bright display at a fair value — and thanks to early Black Friday sales, it’s currently available for 40% off, making it a very difficult deal to pass up on.

Big, bright screen

Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1″ (2019) | 40% off at Best Buy

The Galaxy Tab A is an excellent mid-range tablet with a bright, large screen for watching movies and playing games. There’s plenty of room to multitask as well, making it ideal for all types of users.

$200 at Best Buy
$199 at Walmart
$230 at B&H

Sitting at just $200, the Galaxy Tab A offers a sharp 10.1-inch display that’s perfect for watching movies, playing games, and casual browsing. It also packs the Exynos 7904 processor and 128GB of internal storage — expandable via microSD, of course.

With…

A phone for everyone

Samsung Galaxy S20 FE

$700 at Amazon

Pros

Incredible value
Three great, versatile cameras
Gorgeous flat 120Hz display
All-day battery life
Three years of guaranteed software updates

Cons

No S Pen capabilities
No 8K video

The Galaxy S20 FE packages the entire core Samsung experience into a surprisingly affordable flagship with a plastic body and a flat display. It offers a 120Hz display, three great cameras, all-day battery life, and 5G connectivity.

Smart stylus

Samsung Galaxy Note 20

$987 at Amazon

Pros

S Pen with wireless controls
8K video capture
Display is flat and vibrant
All-day battery life
Three years of guaranteed software updates

Cons

Display is only 60Hz
More expensive

By comparison, the Galaxy Note 20 is priced a bit steep, but it offers a nearly identical experience with a faster processor and S Pen support. Like the S20 FE, it’s guaranteed to receive at least three years of continuous software updates.

Samsung h…

Point and shoot

Google Pixel 5

$700 at Amazon

Pros

Incredible camera for all lighting conditions
Three years of guaranteed software updates
Small, comfortable size
Rear fingerprint sensor enables gestures
All-day battery life

Cons

No telephoto camera
Under-display speaker is unimpressive

The Pixel 5 offers the purest possible Android experience, with clean Android 11 software and some of the best cameras around. It’s the first in line for new versions of Android and comes in a small form factor with all-day battery life.

Powerfully versatile

Samsung Galaxy S20 FE

$700 at Amazon

Pros

Versatile triple camera system
Three years of guaranteed software updates
Frequently discounted to even lower prices
Fast 120Hz flat display
All-day battery life

Cons

Won’t receive platform updates as quickly
Cameras aren’t as consistent

The Galaxy S20 FE has modern specs and amenities in a plastic body that helps bring the price down. You get a gorgeous flat display, alon…

How much do you really want 5G?

Ever since the Pixel 3a was first announced for $399, Google has held a prominent position in the low-cost market for its affordable phones with outsized camera performance. The A series has consistently made the appropriate sacrifices necessary to bring prices down and even improved upon the shortcomings of the company’s higher-end lineup — most notably, in its battery life.

After considerable delays, the subsequent Pixel 4a repeated the 3a’s success with even better camera performance, a larger screen signifying Google’s move over to hole punch camera cutouts, and an even better value at just $350. Those looking for a decidedly higher-end phone can turn to the Pixel 5 for double the price, while the upcoming Pixel 4a 5G splits the difference, both in terms of price and hardware accoutrements.

It isn’t that there isn’t a lot to say about the Pixel 4a 5G; it’s more that most of it has already been said in our reviews of the Pixel 4a and …

Best answer: While Mint Mobile operates on T-Mobile’s network in the U.S., it’s actually owned by Ultra Mobile, another MVNO.

Get in on this plan: Mint Mobile 3GB ($15/mo. at Mint Mobile)

The origins of Mint Mobile

Mint Mobile is a unique prepaid carrier that sells its plans in multi-month bundles, rather than on a per-month basis. With prices starting as low as $15 a month, you can buy up to a year of service at once and enjoy up to 12GB of LTE each month.

Because Mint Mobile uses T-Mobile’s towers in the U.S. for its service, it’s easy to assume that it’s owned by T-Mobile as well, but Mint Mobile is actually a subsidiary of Ultra Mobile, another MVNO (mobile virtual network operator). Ultra Mobile founded Mint in 2016 under the name Mint SIM, which sells SIM cards online and through partnering retailers rather than in its own physical stores. Mint SIM was rebranded to Mint Mobile in May 2018.

Actor Ryan Reynolds isn’t the exclusive owner but he did purchase an ownership st…