01
May
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In September of 2011, Google introduced a product called Wallet. Android lovers were understandably thrilled by the idea of paying for things with their Android phones. A month later, Google introduced a product called the Galaxy Nexus, and it had Google Wallet, and Android lovers were, once again, thrilled. A few days after that, Verizon announced its own version of the Galaxy Nexus. There was yet more thrillilation.

Some of the thrill was short-lived, though, as it was discovered that Verizon's version of the Pure Google Experience™ would not include a pure Google Wallet experience. In fact, it lacked a Google Wallet experience of any kind.

01
May
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If we showed you a picture of the rumored HTC M4 right now, you would just think it's the One. Since HTC's newest flagship has such a fantastic design, it only makes sense (I really love that pun when talking about HTC) that the company would apply the same design elements to other handsets, as well – but the M4 is essentially a direct copy, only smaller. So it should be perfect for those who don't like huge phones. There's a downside, however: the M4 also takes a hit in the spec department, leaving this device in the mid-range department.

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Rumor has it the M4 features a 4.3-inch 720p display, an unnamed dual-core processor, 16GB of storage, and the trademark UltraPixel camera.

30
Apr
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Several days ago, something happened that sent a not insignificant ripple through coverage of Google Glass: someone "jailbroke" the device.

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Saurik, who posted the above photo to Twitter, had modified Glass' software "while in the Bay Area after picking it up from Google's headquarters in Mountain View."

Understandably, this idea was a bit bedeviling to the press – ostensibly, Glass is a relatively limited platform for developers, who can only write apps using a web-based API, allowing software to be integrated with the device over the internet. Eric Schmidt's words regarding the relative closed-ness (or at least, less-than-total openness) of Glass' platform to start were still wet on the page.

30
Apr
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After some teasing, Paranoid Android has unveiled (in a lovely promo image) their plan for multi-window functionality on Android, which they promise to "get right," – Halo.

The premise is simple, yet extremely ambitious in scope – allow apps to give you notifications right on top of your screen, which allow you to pop into that app without leaving the one you're in (no matter what it is), take care of business, and resume your experience uninterrupted. The general concept, which rejects the notion of a distracting notification shade, and shuns implementations like "whacky s-multiwindow,"  is no doubt inspired by Facebook's admittedly awesome Chat Heads functionality, perhaps the most compelling feature of its new Home app.

30
Apr
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Changing ecosystems is hard. You have to download your apps all over again and if you're going to a platform that's not made by Google or Apple, you have to wonder whether or not you'll even have your apps available to you. Well, thankfully, Microsoft has stepped in to provide a tool for users to find out whether or not you'll be covered if you switch. I tried it out and guess what it found? 92% of the applications I use are available on Windows Phone! Except...

2013-04-30_21h00_47 2013-04-30_21h07_52 2013-04-30_21h02_22

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Yes, Microsoft insists that a full 92% of my apps are available on Windows Phone.

30
Apr
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Google just updated the sold out I/O 2013 conference website with the full schedule developers have been dying to see for months, ever since the initial announcement back in February. During the three days in mid-May (May 15-17), the company's engineers will host over 120 talks on such topics as:

  • Android
  • Chrome & Apps
  • Google+
  • Google Cloud Platform
  • Maps
  • YouTube
  • Glass
  • Ads
  • Wallet
  • Knowledge & Structured Data
  • and other tech subjects

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On day 3, developers will also be able to participate in Code Labs on the topics of Android, Google+, Chrome & Apps, Google Cloud Platform, and YouTube.

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The full agenda of everything (not just code labs and tech talks) that's going to be happening is live as well.

30
Apr
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Mophie, purveyor of popular Juice Pack cases, today announced its offering for the acclaimed HTC One. The case maker is offering the One-specific 2500mAh case for $99.95 in Black at first, with a Silver version to come in "mid-May."

For those who aren't familiar, Mophie manufactures cases that are just a little more special than your average shell – besides protecting your device, they also charge its battery. The cases do this using a special "pass through" port that can be used for data transfer, or charging the case and the device inside (simultaneously, if you're into that).

Though Mophie's claims of the case being "lightweight and low-profile" may be a bit of a stretch, the shell does look quite elegant, if a little puffy surrounding the svelte physique of HTC's all-metal One.

30
Apr
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Let's take a trip down memory lane, shall we? The year was 2012, the Galaxy S III and the HTC One X were still new, and some jerk on the internet suggested that maybe it's cool if people started appreciating their amazing phones instead of complaining about how their device wasn't revolutionary.

In the time since then, certain segments of the tech community have opted to go in the other direction. Rather than accept that smartphones are incredible and that the wow-factor comes from using them instead of hyped up tech events, some people believe that the next revolution is just right around the corner.

30
Apr
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Google's official Glass YouTube channel released its first video today – a minute long introduction to Glass' most basic controls. The video is titled Glass How-to: Getting Started, which leads this writer to believe there may be more How-to's in the works.

Impressively well-produced and perfectly simple, the video discusses Glass' gestures – tapping, swiping forward, backward, and down, and gives a very digestible explanation of the device's time-based card interface. The video shows off a few possible Glass cards, but nothing we've not seen before – Google Now notifications for a flight and nearby places, a message, the clock home screen, and calendar items are all represented.

30
Apr
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In this edition of "apps that you probably don't need by will likely buy anyway because they're cheaper than normal," we have some good picks. A music player, a realistic boxing title, a music-maker, and a couple of reverse-tower defense titles are all on sale at the moment.

Update: A lot more stuff has been added since the original post went up this morning. Newer stuff is at the bottom of the list.

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