As we're on the eve of Google IO 2022 , Android 13 has seen a public beta, and it includes hints towards Google's own take on Handoff, a feature that first appeared on Apple devices.

Handoff allows you to carry on using the same app as you switch between different Apple devices. This can be Safari, a music track, or a podcast, as long as you're signed in with the same Apple ID account. But Continuity lets you carry on in using a feature on a different Apple device, such as taking a photo and seeing it on your Mac.

While Google enables you to sync up your bookmarks and purchases when you sign into Android or ChromeOS , the same can't be said for when you're browsing a web page, or midway through listening to a Spice Girls track or watching The Batman again.

There's hints towards this already called Tap to Transfer in the Android 13 public beta build, but there's no confirmation from Google as yet. With this in mind, this is why Handoff should be one of the tentpole features in Android 13, with room to expand to other Google devices.

Hand on, hand off

I've been an Apple user ever since I bought a third-generation iPod back in 2004. I switched my PC for one of the first Intel iMac models, and I imported the first iPhone in 2007.

Throughout this, I've always appreciated the features where I could manage my content across the devices, without having to do the old-fashioned method of emailing it to myself.

With Continuity and Hand Off, these features allow me to transfer my workflow from my iPhone 13 Pro , to my MacBook Pro 14-inch with no issue.

But there are users who only own Google devices - whether that's owning both a Pixelbook and a Pixel 6 , or a Google Nest and a Fitbit . But managing and sending your data and content between these devices currently isn't easy as Apple's method, and in 2022 that's not good.

Android 13 looks set to include a feature that alleviates some of this, tentatively called ‘TTT’ or Tap to Transfer.

From an early build in January, you could send the media you’re either watching or listening to on an Android 13 device, to a device that could be nearby.

But it should be much more. Being able to transfer your music from your Pixel 6 to a Chrome web browser should be simpler, alongside being able to carry on listening to a track in Google Play Music that's on your OnePlus 10 Pro , onto a Pixelbook.

It's time for Google to realize that ease of use for devices matters. While its recent efforts with Material You, the redesigned themes for Android have been received warmly, there's still more work to do.

As more products appear (and more are seemingly on the way, with one rumored to be the Pixel Watch ) seeing more cohesion across devices will be more important than ever. Being given more control over your content on the devices you own will be appealing to many, and it looks as though Android 13 is the first sign of Google being aware of this.

It's now a matter of whether the same feature is not only going to appear on the rest of its product line, but whether the feature is better than what Apple's take has been for the last few years.

Don’t want Peaky Blinders season 6 to be the end? This Quest 2 VR game is for you

Peaky Blinders season 6 is here, but its arrival is bittersweet. While fans of the show will be glad to finally see how the series’ many cliffhangers resolve, season 6 marks the end of the Shelbys' adventures on the small screen.

But that doesn’t mean their story is all wrapped up quite yet. While you’ve likely heard that the Peaky Blinders will be getting a film in the near future, the Birmingham gang is also due to feature in a new VR game called The King’s Ransom on the Quest 2 headset.

We had the chance to sit down with Russ Harding, the Studio Director of Maze Theory and Creative Director of the upcoming Peaky Blinders VR game to find out why fans of the show need to check out this game when it launches later in 2022.

New faces, a familiar moral darkness

Peaky Blinders: The King’s Ransom will place players in the shoes of a new character on the run from the firing squad. On our mission to evade capture, we must turn to the infamous Tommy Shelby for assistance (with Cillian Murphy reprising his role).

In an attempt to win Shelby and the Peaky Blinders’ favor, we’ll join the hunt to retrieve Churchill’s Red Box - a chest containing important government secrets that could spell disaster if they fall into the wrong hands.

However, in true Peaky fashion, Harding promises that things won’t be as straightforward as retrieving the box and calling it a day.

Because the game is set between seasons 4 and 5 of the show we can be fairly certain that key figures (like Thomas and Arthur Shelby) will escape The King’s Ransom’s events relatively unscathed. But the same isn’t true of the game’s new characters.

As Harding was quick to point out, their fate rests squarely in Maze Theory’s hands and, by the sounds of things, our hands as well.

That’s because this wouldn’t be an authentic Peaky Blinders experience if players weren’t forced to make morally difficult decisions that could have major consequences for the virtual world around us.

Harding explains, “While [The King’s Ransom] isn’t a huge game with a branching story and multiple endings, we wanted to give players control over these heavy, and generally quite dark, moral choices. The sort of thing that, in the show, may have been left up to the Shelbys to decide.”

While the game’s ending is set in stone, each player’s individual experience will differ. In order to be accepted by the Peaky Blinders, players will need to be prepared to leave their moral code at the door.

Even if you want to do the right thing, the moral gray area the Blinders operate within may leave you with no good option when you’re forced to make a decision.

On top of that, while Peaky Blinders isn’t filled with unending gangster shootouts it does boast some incredible moments fuelled by intense violence and action. Harding warned us that players will want to get ready for similar combat experiences in The King’s Ransom.

A chance to explore 1920s Birmingham

Additionally, The King’s Ransom will give players a chance to get a first-person tour of well-known locations from the show that have been meticulously recreated in VR.

“We’re really fortunate that the Peaky team keeps a huge record of its sets and props,” said Harding, “This wealth of data, as well as visits to the Black Country Museum where the show is filmed, has allowed us to create an authenticate recreation of these well-known locations.”

As part of the title's 'semi-open-world experience,' players will have the opportunity to visit sites like The Garrison pub, Charlie’s Yard, and the Shelbys Betting Shop.

Harding hopes that this new perspective of the Peaky Blinders world - which sees players placed into the streets of 1920s Small Heath - will give us a better sense of the ever-looming presence of factories that are cropping up across Birmingham.

“There’s that feeling of suppression in Peaky as the factories are closing in on the houses. Steven Knight captures this excellently in the show, but when you’re actually immersed in the world with VR it feels even more real.”

Even once the roughly four-hour-long story has wrapped up Harding and the team has tried to ensure the immersive world offers players reasons to return; be it a desire to continue to experience the virtual atmosphere the game creates or to search every nook and cranny for hidden nuggets of Peaky Blinders lore.

There may even be a post-release update that could add additional content and support to the game. However, Harding remained tight-lipped on what this means in more practical terms.

He also didn’t give anything away regarding the release date. However, Peaky Blinders: The King’s Ransom is due to launch on the Quest 2 and PC VR sometime this year, so we expect it won’t be long before we’re exploring the Peaky Blinders world for ourselves.

Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra's 'best phone' status is about to get three major challenges

The Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra tops TechRadar's list of the best phones on the market right now, and it's easy to see why.

Whether you're a photography fan who needs a DSLR-rivaling smartphone, a constant note-taker who likes the look of the S Pen stylus, or someone who spends loads of time gaming or streaming video, there's lots to love.

However the phone's high price can put some people off, and that's why it's great that there are rivals to sway your attention. And in the next few days, three new ones are launching that could steal you away from the Galaxy.

We'll run you through these three phones, in the order they're set to launch, so you know what to expect.

ZTE Axon 40 Ultra

ZTE's Axon 40 line is set to debut on Monday, May 9, and there's said to be an Ultra member of the family coming along for the ride.

This sounds like a giant phone which bears more than a passing resemblance to the S22 Ultra according to one leak , though with an in-display selfie camera so the screen looks unbroken.

It's said to have three 64MP rear cameras, 1TB of storage and 16GB of RAM, and a 2K 6.8-inch screen - so it sounds impressive in a range of ways.

We'll have to see if this one becomes widely available because lots of ZTE Axon phones get launched outside the company's home region of China, but not all of them.

Sony Xperia 1 IV

Sony's flagship phones are often super-powerful - and super-expensive, and the company has confirmed that something is launching on May 11 - Sony Xperia 1 IV , perhaps?

Xperia phones are designed for creative professionals, with camera lenses and sensors built by the same minds that create Sony's Alpha cameras, and with extra tools lie the ability to use it as an extra viewfinder for photography.

Plus, they're often just as powerful as Samsung's phones, and the displays have a 4K resolution which gives them the trophy when it comes to high-res displays.

We don't know what Sony is planning to do new in the Xperia IV, but if we see some impressive improvements, the new handset could have the Galaxy beat.

Honor Magic 4 Pro

May 12 brings the final big launch of the week, and it's from Honor. It's actually the global launch of the Honor Magic 4 series, which we've already seen one member of.

This is the Honor Magic 4 Pro , and due to it already part-launching earlier in the year, we already know lots about it. It's set to have a 6.81-inch 120Hz screen, a powerful Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset and an eye-catching design.

Perhaps the highlights, on paper, are its cameras: there's a 50MP main, 50MP ultra-wide and 64MP telephoto trio on the back, and a 12MP camera and 3D Time-of-Flight sensor for selfies.

We'll have to see just how well it performs in action, but if it's priced right, this could be a top contender for our 'best phones' title.