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A few years ago, a couple companies had the idea of creating credit cards with e-ink screens that could replace all the other credit cards in your pocket. You may remember them as Coin and Plastc. The former, after missing its target date by a year, hit the market in 2015. The latter is still in development. Since quite a bit of time has passed since the end of 2014, Plastc is now issuing a status update.
You might think that the field is too crowded for people to make more social networks, and you would be wrong. Peach debuted at this year's CES as an iOS-only messaging app that sought to differentiate itself from the Facebooks and the Twitters of the world. Instead, it's more of an instant messenger. And now it's available for Android.
Cars are the biggest piece of tech most of us own, but they're relatively conservative. Newer models may come with USB ports, Bluetooth, and touchscreens, but those have been elements for years. And the touchscreen experience isn't generally all that good, even with spiffy spoftware.
You could say external battery packs are the AA batteries of our times. They breathe life into your phone during an emergency, and some even come with a flashlight built-in. Such is the case with the RAVPower 16,750mAh portable charger that is currently Amazon's deal of the day.This charger is going for .99, which Amazon lists as a discount of 79%. According to CamelCamelCamel, the battery usually sits at somewhere over $30. Regardless, you're saving money on a sizable battery pack that should be able to charge your device several times. With two USB ports, you can power multiples at once.There are downsides to this product. It's not Quick Charge compatible, nor does it have USB C ports, but it does have 4.5A output altogether. It also has a snazzy LED light on top that shows you how much of a charge remains. That is not at all rare to see on a battery, but this one's blue and looks cool. For the next fourteen hours, you can buy the discounted battery in your choice of black or white. After that, the deal ends.[src]Amazon
Some people consider virtual reality exciting. Full disclosure: I'm not one of those people. The idea of shoving a screen inches from my face and combining that with sensory deprivation sounds closer to punishment than fun.
Some 2nd gen Moto E owners have it better than others.The long-awaited Marshmallow update appears to be making its way to handsets in India.
Minecraft comes in many forms, but the Pocket Edition is the only one that fits inside your Android phone. The experience isn't all that dissimilar from what you see on desktops, but it does lag behind on some features. Fortunately for players, more have made the transition. Version 0.14.0 has gone stable, bringing additional Redstone components such as comparators, repeaters, dispensers, droppers, hoppers, and more.
Consolidation is in the air. Fandango, the company behind that app or site you load up to order movie tickets online, has decided to purchase both Flixster and Rotten Tomatoes. This will give Fandango greater influence over which movies you discover, develop interest in, and ultimately watch.
Before Skype was known for video, it was known for placing calls. These began as one-on-one exchanges, but eventually the service started letting multiple users converse in groups. Then the service introduced the ability to chat in groups over video, but only on desktop platforms. Now that's changing.
A decade or two ago, homepages were king. Back in the days of AOL commercials, being a major tech company meant you had your own homepage, and these served as one-stop-shops for news and information. Yahoo, to this day, keeps that trend alive. But the readers just aren't there like they used to be.
Some of what Google does these days isn't all that impressive in the grand scheme of things. Yes, tweaking the interface of a mobile operating system is nice, but there is no shortage of companies doing the same thing. But being able to type or read a phrase and have it instantly translated into another language for free? A decade after Google Translate launched, that's still a lot to wrap my head around.
For the next week and a half, Spotify is giving people in the US and the UK who have never tried Premium a chance to get a free Chromecast if they sign up for three months, which comes out to $29.97 or £29.97. The company clearly hopes you will enjoy the experience enough to, at the very least, not notice that you forgot to cancel your subscription when the time is up. The deal ends February 28th. Spotify will send out an email within 7 days of your accepting the offer.
Google is winding down its Google Play for Education program. The company has confirmed to a news outlet or two that it will stop selling licenses to partner tablet vendors on March 14th.
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- According to T-Mobile's support page, this over-the-air update is now live.
Good news for HTC One M9 owners on T-Mobile! Your Android 6.0 cravings should soon be satiated. HTC VP of Product Management Mo Versi has announced on Twitter that an OTA is set to go out on Tuesday, February 16th.
Few would be surprised to hear that the Xperia Z5, Sony's latest flagship, would eventually get Android 6.0. The question is when that update will arrive.
When a manufacturer open sources the code that makes their device work, it's an occasion worth noting. This is one of the strengths of Android, the availability of files that enable developers and tinkerers to create software that can replace the firmware that our devices ship with. It's one of Android's differentiating factors compared to iOS and Windows Phone.
Smartphones have replaced digital cameras as the primary way millions of people take photos. But these days, many devices don't let users pop in a microSD card to store their photos as they would on a dedicated device. Companies have come up with an alternative solution by letting you upload and store your images on their servers.
You may not have paid much money for that new Nexus 5X, but the cost doesn't stop there. That single charger the phone came with simply isn't enough. You need one for your car, one to connect to your computer, one to keep in your bag, and one for every outlet of every room in the house, give or take a couple.To make the process even less pleasant, you can't just go to Amazon and snag any cheap cable you see. Some can do permanent damage to the gadget you're trying to charge. Googler Benson Leung lost a 2nd gen Chromebook Pixel to a no-name charger.Leung has approved the Tronsmart USB Type C-to-A cables listed below, and you can also snag Quick Charge 3.0-compatible chargers for your car and power outlets while you're at it. Make sure to enter the coupon codes next to each product before checking out.
I'm a fan of microSD card slots. I know, I know, there's absolutely no reason to have this debate right now. You either prefer to have expandable memory or you don't particularly care.If you're on #TeamGiveMeMoreCheapStoragePlease, then now may be a good time to head over to Amazon. Flash memory of all kinds is on sale there for up to 70% off. The 128GB microSD is going for a mere .99. The full-sized alternative is just .99. A massive 256GB SD card costs a bit more, at $64.99, but that may be enough storage to stick in your PC and effectively double the size of your SSD. Alternatively, you can grab a 128GB flash drive for .99.Small sizes are available too, and they cost less as you go down. You're welcome to go that route if you're inclined to view carrying around over 100GB of data on a mobile phone as overkill.You can browse the full selection at the link below.Source: Amazon
You could think of the Galaxy View as an Android-powered all-in-one computer that isn't tethered to a wall. The 18.4-inch tablet is so much larger than the competition that early images showed it being carried around like a briefcase. It launched at $599.99, but after only two weeks of availability, Samsung dropped the price by $100.Now the number is dipping down again. If you head over to Amazon, you can pick up a Galaxy View for $449.00. The price doesn't show up until you add the device to your cart, but the $50 drop is legit. B&H is selling the oversized tablet for the same price. So is Best Buy.