A few days ago, Roku sent out an email to customers informing them that Fox standalone apps would go away after January 31st due to an expiring distribution agreement. That might make it a little harder and more complicated to watch the Super Bowl vi...
Now that Hulu is part of Disney's streaming triumvirate with ESPN+ and Disney+, there's a reorganization at the top and Randy Freer will step down from his role as CEO. He took over in late 2017, but now it will join the others under direct oversight...
We first met the prototype Model Y crossover last year, and this week during the company's earnings call, Elon Musk said deliveries of the vehicle will start in March. In the documents released (PDF), Tesla also showed off this picture of the car's p...
The FCC has finished investigating carriers' unauthorized disclosure and sale of subscribers' real-time location data, Chairman Ajit Pai has shared with (PDF) lawmakers in the House of Representatives. In his letters, he told Energy and Commerce Comm...
Microsoft has launched a bug bounty program especially for Xbox Live network and services, and it's paying bug hunters up to $20,000. Like any other bug bounty program, the payout depends on the security vulnerability's severity and starts at $500.The NEX 3 5G combines a stunning waterfall display with powerful hardware and insane battery life.
Vivo is a great bellwether for the smartphone industry. The brand has consistently pushed the boundaries for new technologies over the last three years, whether that's high-res front cameras, retractable camera modules, and bezel-less designs.
Vivo debuts its latest features in its flagship NEX series, and while these devices may not see sales in the millions of units, the technologies that are introduced here often trickle down to its mid-range phones. The NEX 3 is no different, with the phone picking up Vivo's latest waterfall display tech, which sees the edges of the screen flow over to the sides. It's a more pronounced take of what Samsung has been doing with its dual-curved screens for several years now.
The NEX 3 also has 5G connectivity, and hardware that puts other phones to shame. There's obviously a Snapdragon 855+ under the hood, along with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, a 64MP camera at the back, 16MP camera at the front that's hidden behind a retractable module, and a massive 4500mAh battery with 44W fast charging. Bring all of that together and you get a phone that packs a serious punch.
Bottom line: The NEX 3 5G is an outstanding showcase for an all-screen phone. The waterfall display with extreme curves on either side gives you a sense of immersion that you just don't get with any other phone. Combine that with top-tier hardware, excellent battery life with 44W fast charging, and 5G connectivity, and you get a true powerhouse.
The Good
The Bad
The NEX 3 is a great showcase for the future of phone design. With the Waterfall FullView Display, Vivo has essentially taken what Samsung has been doing for a few years and built upon that idea. The curves on either side extend all the way over the edges, with just a tiny sliver of the aluminum mid-frame present on the sides. If Samsung's curved designs extend to about the midway point, Vivo has managed to cover 90% of the sides with the screen.
The NEX 3 is the closest anyone has come to achieving an all-screen phone.
The razor-thin bezels also assist in creating that all-screen front, with the front camera and sensors tucked away behind a retractable module. The overall effect is rather striking, and makes using the NEX 3 that much more immersive. The NEX 3 is a more muted affair at the back, with NEX branding adorning an otherwise-plain slab of glass. The camera housing is circular this time around, and gives the phone just that added bit of flair. There are three modules tucked away in the camera housing, with the LED flash sitting underneath.
The sheer curvature of the screen means there's no room for physical buttons, so Vivo went with pressure-sensitive buttons instead. There's a textured surface at the mid-way point on the right side that serves as the power button, and you have pressure-sensitive areas above and below it for volume controls. Vivo has nailed the execution of the buttons, delivering just the ideal amount of haptic feedback. You get on-screen volume indicators that make it easier to change the volume, and overall I've had zero issues with the pressure-sensitive keys on the NEX 3 5G.
Vivo has a traditional power button as well, but that's tucked away at the top next to the camera housing. Given the phone's height and the inaccessible location of the physical button, I ended up using the pressure-sensitive key to unlock the NEX 3. Rounding out the features, there's a 3.5mm jack that sits on the other side of the retractable camera, and at the bottom you'll find the SIM card slot, USB-C charging port, and the solitary speaker.
With dimensions of 167.4 x 76.1 x 9.4mm and a weight of 219g, the NEX 3 5G is one of the tallest and heaviest phones available today. To put those numbers into context, the Galaxy Note 10+ comes in at 162.3 x 77.2 x 7.9mm and weighs 196g. The sheer height of the phone means it's virtually impossible to access the notification shade one-handed. That isn't a problem though, as Vivo's Funtouch OS has quick toggles that are accessible with a swipe up gesture from the bottom of the screen. I've never been a fan of this positioning, but in this particular instance it turned out to be quite handy.
Also, you wouldn't know this by looking at the phone, but the NEX 3 is astonishingly durable. The phone took a few tumbles from five feet onto a tiled floor and came away with both the front and rear panes of glass still intact. There wasn't any damage whatsoever even though the phone fell flat onto its back, so it's good to know that whatever glass protection Vivo is using here is working. On that note, the phone will slide off when laid flat on a table, so you will want to use the bundled snap-on case. It doesn't cover the sides, but you do get some reinforcement at the bottom.
The entire focus here is on the screen, and you get the feeling that you're just using a large display.
Of course, the star of the show with the NEX 3 is the massive 6.89-inch Super AMOLED display. With virtually no bezels and extreme curves on the sides, the NEX 3 manages to provide a level of immersion that you just don't get with any other phone. Everything from browsing the web to streaming videos feels that much more immersive because of the design, and it is just delightful to use that display. More often than not, the phone side of things just melt away in the background, and you get the feeling that you're just using a large display. And it feels fantastic.
The panel itself is pretty great, and although the resolution is FHD+ (2256 x 1080) and not QHD like Samsung's recent flagships, I didn't notice any drawbacks in day-to-day use. The colors tend to be on the cooler side of the box, but you can easily adjust the color balance by going into the settings. The screen also gets sufficiently bright for outdoor use, and I didn't have any issues on this front.
At this point, you may be wondering how the pronounced curves affect usability. With the curves extending all the way around the sides, you're basically holding the edges of the screen when using the device. Accidental touches are a major problem with curved screens, and Vivo solved this particular problem by getting rid of touch sensitivity from the sides. There's no way to register a touch inut from either edge, and that definitely makes using the NEX 3 less annoying.
On the hardware front, the NEX 3 5G is easily one of the fastest phones money can buy today. It is powered by the Snapdragon 855+ chipset, and there's also a vapor cooling system to manage thermals during extended gaming sessions. I'm using the version with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of UFS 3.0 storage, and the phone just flies in day-to-day use. There really hasn't been a scenarios where the NEX 3 felt flow or laggy, and the phone is particularly great for gaming thanks to that large screen and massive battery.
The Snapdragon 855+ chipset combined with a large bezel-less display and 4500mAh battery make the NEX 3 a fantastic gaming phone.
Vivo has used in-screen fingerprint sensors for some time now, and on the NEX 3 the sensor is finally reliable enough to use as the de facto authentication system. The sensor was able to authenticate unerringly and under half a second, and in general there weren't any issues. There's no face unlock, however, so you'll have to use the in-screen sensor to unlock the NEX 3.
I use a lot of phones with great battery life, but the NEX 3 is in a class of its own in this area. The 4500mAh battery managed to easily deliver over two days' worth of use consistently, and I generally never had to worry about battery life. When you do need to charge, the bundled wall plug goes to 44W, with a full charge from flat taking just over an hour. The one downside here is that there's no Qualcomm Quick Charge, so you'll have to use Vivo's wall charger to get fast charging.
Although the NEX 3 has 5G connectivity, coverage is limited primarily to China. Thankfully, you do get global LTE coverage — the phone has LTE bands 1/2/3/4/5/7/8/12/17/18/19/20/26/28/34/38/39/40/41 — and Vivo also sells a 4G-only version of the phone. I wasn't able to test out 5G, but I didn't have any issues with 4G or Wi-Fi connectivity.
The NEX 3 has a 64MP primary shooter that's joined by a 13MP wide-angle lens with a 117-degree field of view and another 13MP camera that offers 2x zoom. Like most 64MP phones available today, the NEX 3 is using Samsung's GW1 sensor and relies on four-to-one pixel binning to produce 16MP shots.
The camera interface has all the shooting modes laid out at the bottom, with toggles for the various lenses on the side. There's also a manual mode that lets you adjust the exposure and white balance. As with most Chinese manufacturers, you get a ton of filters and beauty effects to play with.
Daylight shots from the NEX 3 are vibrant and full of color, and the ultra-wide lens also does a great job in outdoor scenarios. Low-light shots also have great detail and low noise, but they came out underexposed at times. Switching to Night Mode fixed that particular issue. The NEX 3 also takes portrait shots with accurate edge detection, and you get great selfies from the 16MP front shooter.
The resultant image quality is closer to what you get on OnePlus than Samsung. That's not a bad thing necessarily, but in this particular area the NEX 3 doesn't measure up to the likes of Google, Samsung, and Huawei.
As is the case with every Vivo phone I've used in the past, Funtouch OS continues to be the main drawback. The interface still has a lot of visual cues that are "borrowed" from iOS, and it just doesn't feel cohesive. Chinese manufacturers have made their interfaces more palatable to a global audience in recent years, but Vivo is yet to make that change.
Also, as the NEX 3 is primarily aimed at the Chinese market, you don't get the Play Store or Google services out of the box. It isn't a huge drawback as you can just flash the Google apps package, but you miss out on things like Google Pay and HDR playback on Netflix.
The only major omission from a hardware point of view is the lack of wireless charging. Like all BBK brands, Vivo staunchly refuses to add wireless charging to its phones, and while the battery life is good enough that you don't need to charge the phone during the day, it's a notable omission. On that subject, there's no water resistance here either because of the large retractable camera module.
With the NEX 3 5G, Vivo is essentially giving us an early look at what phones will look like later this year. More manufacturers are set to make the switch to waterfall displays in 2020, and we'll likely see phones with similar designs from the likes of OPPO, Xiaomi, Huawei, and more.
But right now, the NEX 3 is the only game in town if you want a truly immersive experience. The lack of any bezels combined with those extreme curves makes it an absolute joy to use, and it's great to see Vivo tackling issues like accidental touches from the start. The AMOLED panel quality is vibrant, the pressure-sensitive buttons hold up in daily use, and the hardware on offer will hold up even after several years.
If you can look past the fact that there's no wireless charging or water resistance, the NEX 3 is a fantastic device. Sure, Funtouch OS has its share of issues and the interface looks cartoonish, but you can solve most of those issues with a launcher. At the end of the day, the hardware that you're getting here is excellent, and it makes the NEX 3 5G one of the best phones you can buy today.
The NEX 3 is a great choice if you want a phone with a massive bezel-less screen and two-day battery life. Sure, the software has its downsides, but when you factor in that stunning display and top-notch hardware, the NEX 3 becomes a much more enticing option. But if you want to play it safe and want a device with clean software, the OnePlus 7 Pro also has a bezel-less display and robust internals.
An early look at the future of phone design.
The NEX 3 5G is an outstanding showcase for an all-screen phone. The waterfall display with extreme curves on either side gives you a sense of immersion that you just don't get with any other phone. Combine that with top-tier hardware, excellent battery life, and 5G connectivity, and you get a true powerhouse.
If you've been patiently holding out for a genius smartwatch that will deliver superb performance, smart battery modes, and the newest processor, you'll love everything the Skagen Falster 3 has to offer.
Those who are looking for a very basic smartwatch with a fashionable design at an affordable price may be drawn to the original Skagen Falster. It may not be the newest model but it's beautiful and won't break the bank.
A lot can change in two years, and that's certainly the case with Skagen's line of Falster smartwatches. To say that there have been some significant improvements would be an understatement. This is especially true when you compare the first Skagen Falster to the new third edition. If you happen to still be rocking the original and you're considering an upgrade, now is the time to do it. You'll pay for it, but it'll be worth it.
The original Falster is still a fashionable accessory that's fun to look at it, but that's about as far as it goes in terms of accomplishments. It's lacking GPS, a heart rate sensor, and NFC payments. The buggy performance was the biggest complaint of all — and rightfully so. Two years later, we have the Skagen Falster 3. This genius smartwatch has managed to fix all of those issues and tossed in some extras.
Pictured: Skagen Falster
While the Skagen Falster design has consistently maintained the same minimalist look, there have been some subtle changes over the years. For instance, there was a collective frustration at the omission of a rotating crown with the original model. Now, you'll get an ultra-smooth rotating crown that's complemented by two side buttons that can be easily customized to launch your favorite app.
Most people will be happy to know that the Skagen Falster 3 has a 42 mm stainless steel case, much like the original. The 20 mm bands are interchangeable and they're now available in multiple colors and materials, including blue silicone mesh, gunmetal steel mesh, and two-tone brown leather. This is a refreshing change from the original Falster band options, which included leather, silicone, and stainless steel mesh.
| Skagen Falster 3 | Skagen Falster | |
|---|---|---|
| Case size | 42 mm | 42 mm |
| Sensors | Heart rate, accelerometer, altimeter, ambient light, gyroscope | Accelerometer ambient light, gyroscope |
| Connectivity | Bluetooth® Smart Enabled / 4.2 Low Energy | Bluetooth 4.1 LE |
| Water Resistance | 3 ATM | IP67, 1ATM |
| Battery life | 1 day and new smart modes | 1 day |
| Onboard GPS | ✔️ | ❌ |
| NFC payments | ✔️ | ❌ |
| Built-in speaker | ✔️ | ❌ |
| Snapdragon Wear 3100 | ✔️ | ❌ |
As you can see, every mark that the original Falster missed was graciously fulfilled by the new Falster 3. We're not just referring to a more modern design and the addition of a rotating crown either. Your fitness tracking experience is going to be exponentially better thanks to the addition of a heart rate sensor and onboard GPS. Not to mention that the water-resistance rating has improved to 3 ATM.
In addition to improved fitness tracking features, you can also expect an all-around smarter experience with the Skagen Falster 3. Google Assistant is always nice to have, but it's a bummer when there's no speaker and you're forced to read your smartwatch screen. Well, that problem is solved with this new release, too. A built-in speaker also means you'll be able to hear music, notification sounds, and phone calls on your wrist without the need for Bluetooth headphones. You also get Google Pay!
PIctured: Skagen Falster 3
You have to admit that these are some pretty sweet upgrades so far and there's still more to cover. The original Skagen Falster failed miserably with battery life and performance. This can really put a damper on the overall experience. Luckily, the Falster 3 comes with rapid charging so that your watch can reach an 80% charge in 50 minutes.
Fortunately, you'll also have new smart battery modes. The daily mode enables certain features, like the always-on display. The extended mode can last for several days on a single charge while you still enjoy main features such as notifications and heart rate tracking. The custom mode allows you to turn sensors on and off as you'd like. Finally, there's the time-only mode, which is pretty self-explanatory.
Perhaps the most important improvement is the long-awaited addition of Snapdragon Wear 3100. Along with the latest processor, you'll also have 1GB of memory and 8GB of storage. This is a much-needed bump from the original Falster's 512MB of RAM and 4GB storage. Needless to say, you'll have much smoother performance thanks to these key upgrades.
The answer is simple. If you're holding out for a truly genius wearable that's going to, well, serve its purpose as a smartwatch, it's hard not to love the Skagen Falster 3. It's come a long way from the original Falster. You can now look forward to a complete smartwatch experience with GPS, heart-rate monitoring, Google Pay, and better performance. This is a fine piece of tech with a thoughtful design to go with it. It's the clear choice for those who want a smartwatch that can do it all.
While the original Falster might be missing some important traits, it's still a gorgeous wearable that fashion enthusiasts will appreciate. You can get it a much lower price point now, too. This is a great watch for those who are just getting into wearables and don't want to spend too much at first. Don't expect much and you won't be disappointed.
The star of the show
Skagen set out to impress with the Falster 3 and it was a success, to say the least. This genius smartwatch filled in all the blanks left behind by the original Falster and then some.
A stylish timepiece but not much else
$128 at Amazon $197 at Walmart
The most appealing thing about the original Skagen Falster is the reduced price tag and the sleek design. Other than that, it's not bringing much to the table, especially in comparison to the new Falster 3.
We can stay up from dawn till dusk and we will never run out of YouTube videos to watch, but what do you do when you have to stray from your faithful Wi-Fi? You download some YouTube videos for offline playback, of course. Here's how — and who — can download videos in YouTube for offline playback.
There are two categories of YouTube users that offline playback are available to: YouTube Premium members and YouTube users in select developing countries.
Now, Google knows that in many countries of the world, mobile data is a precious commodity — assuming mobile data is available at all in some places — but it still wants people in these countries to be able to enjoy YouTube. To that end, in over 120 countries/territories around the world, users can download YouTube videos for offline playback without a subscription. This includes most of Africa, Asia, the Middle East and the Caribbean, and in countries like India, YouTube's offline features are widely used and have some extra features that YouTube offline in YouTube Premium countries do not, like Smart Offline.
YouTube Premium is YouTube's subscription service that removes ads across YouTube's apps and enables premium features, including background playback and offline playback. YouTube Premium also give users premium service on YouTube Music (except in South Korea) and Google Play Music, which makes YouTube Premium the best deal in streaming today. Here's the full list of countries where YouTube Premium is available.
Should you be lucky enough to have the option of saving YouTube videos for offline viewing, here's how to start downloading videos.
Tap Download, between the Share and Save buttons below the video's title.
You'll see a blue Downloaded tick on the Download button, indicating the video is available for offline viewing.
If you've got an entire playlist you want to watch offline, you can download that playlist without having to individually download every single video.
Tap Ok.The playlist should begin downloading.
You'll also see a pop-up warning you that downloading a playlist can take a lot of time and data. Based on the number of videos in the playlists and your internet connection, the download may take anywhere from a few minutes to an hour.
By default, after you pick the video quality for your first downloaded YouTube video, all other videos will download at the same quality. But you can change that quality — or tell YouTube to ask you the quality every time — by going into YouTube's settings. You can also tell YouTube to download on your SD card if your phone has one.
Tap Settings.
Choose Ask each time.
If you have a phone with a microSD card, you'll see a toggle on this same screen to Use SD card for YouTube downloads. If the toggle is blue, videos are downloading to the SD card. You can also see how much space your downloads are taking up by looking at the Available storage bar at the bottom of the screen.
Not everyone can afford unlimited data plans, so if you want to download videos for offline viewing without burning precious mobile data, YouTube can wait to download that video until you're off paid data and onto Wi-Fi.
Tap Settings.
Under Download, tap Download over Wi-Fi only to toggle it on.
Downloaded videos remain on your device until you delete them, but YouTube requires that you go online once every 30 days. This is so that the service can see if there are any new videos in a playlist you've downloaded.
Great mid-range phone that does it all.
The Pixel 3a XL is one of the best mid-range phones you can buy today. It has robust hardware combined with the best camera you'll find in this segment, and you get a vibrant screen that's great for playing YouTube videos. The battery life is pretty great as well, and you can stream videos for hours on end without any issues.
"We're rapidly approaching a 400-mile range for Model S," Tesla chief Elon Musk has revealed during a conference call following the company's Q4 2019 financial results announcement. "So, it won't be long before Model S has a 400-mile range." Musk mad...
Did you know it's possible to use an Xbox One controller with your Android device? That's because, as of the release of the Xbox One S, Microsoft started outfitting its Xbox One controllers with Bluetooth radios. While this feature was made mostly for PC gaming, you'll be happy to know that it works surprisingly well with Android phones. While there may be more appropriate controllers for mobile gaming available, this is a nice trick to have in your back pocket if you already have a compatible Xbox One controller and don't want to spend money to buy something you'll only use for your phone.
For starters, you'll want to ensure the Xbox One controller you have uses Bluetooth. As a rule of thumb, newer versions of the Xbox One S and Xbox One X come with Bluetooth by default. If you're buying the controller new, Amazon has them for $50. Assuming the phone you have works just fine with the Xbox One controller, the pairing process is painless. Here's how to get connected:
Tap Bluetooth.
If all goes well, your phone should show a connection to your Xbox One controller, and the Xbox button will stop blinking.
For some phones, you'll see evidence of the controller working right away, with the directional pad and buttons being used to navigate the system UI. To test further, fire up your favorite game with Bluetooth controller support to see how it all works out.
I've tried several games with the Xbox One controller, including Modern Combat 5, Riptide GP, and BombSquad. Not only did the games work with the controller flawlessly, they even show proper on-screen control prompts appropriate for the Xbox One controller. And for emulators, you should have no problem mapping the buttons however you prefer.
For those looking to use their existing controllers, the easiest way to check is to look at the controller itself. If the area around the Xbox button is part of the same piece of plastic as the rest of the controller, it has Bluetooth. If your Xbox button is recessed within a separate piece of plastic, it does not have Bluetooth. Reference the image below if you need help — if your controller has Bluetooth support, it should look like the bottom one.
The best thing to do for those who already own the controller is to simply try it. If you don't own it, be sure to search around for your specific phone to see if others have had success, as you don't want to be dropping cash for something that doesn't work. (Of course, Amazon's return policy is incredible, so if you're buying from them, then it may be worth the hassle.)
Easy to use
The Xbox One controller is a solid option that, when using Bluetooth, can easily elevate your Android gaming experience.
If you're planning on watching Super Bowl LIV using a streaming app, then you might not be able to use Roku hardware. While the platform has had a number of Fox apps available for years, their distribution agreement is set to expire after tomorrow, a...It is finally time to end the tyranny of the Lightning connector.
The European Union has officially encouraged phone manufacturers to use a common standard for ports and charging cords, but one major manufacturer never seemed to get the message. Now Reuters reports that the European Parliament has voted overwhelmingly, 582-40, to encourage the European Commission, the law-making body for the EU, to adopt new regulations to force the issue. European lawmakers say that the Commission should adopt the new regulations by the summer.
Of course, this leaves much undetermined, and that singular manufacturer is sure to raise a legal stink. Android manufactuers have almost entirely adopted the USB-C port standard on flagship devices and most other smarphones. Even before USB-C, all of the Android manufacturers had settled on microUSB, so the lone holdout to voluntarily following the European Union preference has long been Apple. This is especially ironic as Apple has seen fit to include USB-C on its high-end Macbook Pro laptops, as well as on its newest iPad Pro tablets. Only the iPhone and some related accessories still rely on the lighting connector.
The European Parliamenrt also encourages manufacturers to move to a common standard for wireless charging, which is a much more realistic goal as most manufacturers use some technology that is compatible with the Qi standard from the Wireless Power Consortium. Even Apple uses wireless charging that is Qi compatible, though like some other manufacturers it also has a proprietary faster wireless charging feature available.
Apple hits back at EU charger proposals, says it would create "unprecedented volume" of waste
IBM CEO Virginia Rometty, one of the most prominent female leaders in tech, is stepping down on April 6th, 2020. She will still serve as Executive Chairman of the Board through the end of the year, but she's retiring completely after that. Rometty wi...
The first new Animal Crossing game on consoles in several years is almost here, and Nintendo is rolling out a special edition of its Switch to mark the occasion. This $300 Switch will arrive on March 13th, a week before the launch of Animal Crossing:...Since the feature is currently in testing, not all issues can be detected.
Google is set to make its Nest thermostats smarter with a new feature that will alert users to heating and cooling system (HVAC) issues. The feature, which is now in testing, will also connect users with a professional to take a look at their HVAC system for problems.
Nest Thermostats will learn to detect unusual HVAC patterns to identify issues, based on your thermostat's historical data and current weather. For example, you may receive an email alert when your HVAC system takes longer than usual to heat your home. The email alerts, which will be sent to the Nest Home Report email list subscribers, will include a few details about the potential issue and which system (heating or cooling) could be having a problem. Users who do not wish to receive HVAC alerts can opt-out using the link that will be provided in the email.
The alerts will also include a link to fix an appointment with an HVAC via Handy. Initially, the option to book a qualified HVAC pro will only be available in 20 cities, including Atlanta, Boston, Denver Las Vegas, and San Diego. In the near future, Google says the option will be made available in a few more cities across the U.S.
As noted by the folks over at Android Police, however, the feature will only be able to alert you when parts of your HVAC system start wearing out. It cannot give you a heads up if a major part is about to fail.
Nest Learning Thermostat
$215 at Amazon $220 at Walmart
The smart Nest Learning Thermostat can help you save up to 12% on your heating bills and 15% on cooling bills. It can create a schedule for you once it has learned the temperatures you like and shows you how much you energy you use and why.
COPPA is important, but does it really need to bork Disney music for everyone?
Google got smacked for millions in fines last year because of how it handles children's data and children's content on YouTube, and so it rolled out sweeping changes to how kids content is handled going forward — changes that have been finally rolling out over the course of this month.
There's a whole gamut of features that can be turned off for "made for kids" content — ranging from disabling comments to restrictions on links and graphics, but one of those changes spells big, big problems for YouTube Music and any subscribers with kids:
For some "made for kids" content, you can't like or dislike it in YouTube Music, or even add it to a playlist. Oh, and you can't leave the Now Playing screen while those songs are playing or the music stops, even if you're a YouTube Premium subscriber.
At first glance, not being able to like a song seems like a small issue, at least until you remember that liking a song is how you add it to your library. When you go to Library > Songs, what shows up is just the Liked Songs playlist in a re-orderable format. So, so for millions of songs from Disney movies, you can't add them to your song library.
There's a few more levels to this problem and they each are different levels of torture, especially in that until you try and get batted down, you'll have no idea why these songs aren't working properly. Here are some of the restrictions that have started popping up on kids music and most notably Disney music in the last few days:
These random blocks are unhelpful to say the least, but I'm hopeful that YouTube finds some sort of happy medium between protecting the kids who watch YouTube — and adults like me who just need a pick-me-up in this bleak, bleak world — and keeping YouTube Music from failing at some very basic things. At the very least, I'm very hopeful that YouTube levels things out so it's not some compulsory game of minesweeper to see which songs work properly and which ones don't.
In the meantime, you can work around it on a computer, or if you're a YouTube Premium subscriber — which you should be because it's $2 more but comes with
Get YouTube Music and so, so so much more.
When YouTube Music is acting up, YouTube Premium allows you to double back to good ol' reliable Google Play Music.
