This story is part of CES 2016. Our editors bring you complete CES 2016 coverage and scour the showroom floor for the hottest new tech gadgets around. During the first few days I wore the Huawei Watch, a beautiful but big-screen Android smartwatch, it shocked me how many compliments I received for a heavy, bulky …

The next generation of Google Glass, Google’s head-mounted wearable display, is the real deal. A filing to the Federal Communications Commission, the U.S. government body that must review and approve personal electronics like phones and wearables, reveals photos of the device’s external design, along with internal circuitry (see below) and also a basic user manual. The filing also includes a …

Verizon Wireless wants your business badly enough to pay for it. On Monday, the carrier said it will give new and returning customers up to $650 per line when switching over from another carrier. The company is the last major US network to trot out a contract buyout offer, which typically pays for the remainder of your device if you …

Advancements in the technology your phone is made of have plateaued, on that we can all agree. But I’m still excited about where smartphones will stand in 2016. Yes, we’ll see more sensitive cameras and higher-resolution screens. There will be more interesting sensors that only some of us use, and biometric scanners everywhere and anywhere you can put one. All …

Apple rocked the phone universe when it started a program to sell you a new iPhone every year directly from its own store. What you may not realize is that Apple isn’t the first or only phonemaker to skip Verizon, T-Mobile, Sprint and AT&T and reach out to buyers one-on-one. Motorola’s been doing this for years through its own website …

This story is part of CES 2016. Our editors bring you complete CES 2016 coverage and scour the showroom floor for the hottest new tech gadgets around. Huawei is planning double duty at CES 2016 this year in Las Vegas with two events earmarked for press. We just received an invitation to a party/announcement for Honor, a brand name that …

Enlarge ImageThe Axon Pro from ZTE. Josh Miller/CNET Don’t call phone-maker ZTE behind the times. The Chinese handset maker on Wednesday unveiled a lease-to-own payment plan for customers who want to spread the cost of buying an unlocked ZTE phone or other mobile device over several months. The payment plan, which extends to devices such as the well-rated Axon Pro …

The war over camera megapixels has moved from the back of the phone to the front as smartphone-makers like Samsung, Apple, Asus and now LG scramble to outfit their handsets with clever and capable tools to make vanity shots look as good as they can on a typically weaker, cheaper front-facing lens. Selfies, the common slang for self-portraits taken with …

HTC’s invitation to its online event. HTC Minutes after Google debuted its two new Nexus phones, HTC issued an invitation of its own. The sparsely worded email announced that the phone maker will unveil its first HTC One handset running Google’s Android 6.0 Marshmallow software on October 20. Rather than host a live show with an opportunity for hands-on time …

Enlarge ImageIs Wilson’s connected basketball the future of hoops? Sarah Tew/CNET Fitness leads the pack in beneficial things a smartband or smartwatch can do for you, but a crop of smart sports hopefuls believe that isn’t enough. More than tracking individual fitness goals like exercise duration and calories burned, makers of athletic equipment from basketballs to running socks say that …