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Minuum shrinks all the letters of a keyboard down into a single row of text. This is potentially convenient for smartphones, but the learning curve alone is enough to push some users back to alternative options. Yet for smaller devices where a full-size keyboard is downright unwieldy, Minuum is uniquely situated to step in and scratch that itch. The app has now come to Google Glass, but unfortunately, this looks like one of those itches you don't want to scratch in public.
The Sonos Android app has been long overdue for an update, previously sporting a UI that looked out of date four flavors of Android ago. When version 5 hit beta, it brought about a much needed refresh, introducing a UI that looks just fine on KitKat devices. Now the app has exited beta and is ready for anyone with a Sonos sound system to download and fire up.
Carriers are pretty overt about making consumers pay for their devices using long-term contracts or high amounts of cold, hard cash. They're not so open about the subsequent payment in tears - thick, heavy tears dropped waiting for Android updates that feel destined never to come. Well, Verizon Galaxy Note 3 owners, you've officially paid enough. It's time to wipe away those tears, for the Galaxy Note 3 KitKat OTA update is finally rolling out to devices.
With the 2014 World Cup just around the corner, now's a good time to capitalize on that excitement by releasing a soccer game. Building a franchise from scratch could do the trick, but if you have a popular title out in the wild, why not kick out a sequel? Sriker Soccer 2 has just hit the Play Store with more of the friendly gameplay that helped push the original to success.
Point-of-sale systems are about as dull as computers can get. With the ability to figure out sums and print out receipts, they're little more than the digivolved versions of calculators (and not the cool, graphing kind either). This drab sector of the tech industry could benefit from something interesting, so Casio is doing its part by announcing upgraded versions of its Android-powered cash register.
The web version of Hangouts, tucked away in the bottom of left-hand corner of Gmail or the right-hand side of Google+, has just received an update that hearkens back to simpler times. Now when a contact is currently available, a green dot is displayed atop their avatar (instead of the green line the web version used to display). It's not exactly the same green dot that many of us grew accustomed to in the days of Google Talk, but it gets the point across. In addition, avatars are round now, and there's a new search icon for quickly picking out friends.
The impressive Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 Edition has gradually dropped in price in the time since its launch, but the 16GB option is still going for $479 new on Amazon. Today you can get a refurbished one off eBay for $339. That's nearly $150 less, enough to beg the question: How much is new really worth, anyway?
The HTC One M8 hasn't been out for all that long, but it's already feeling the blues. This isn't just a slight case of them, either. According to a leaked press shot from @evleaks, the phone's suffering them from its heads down to its toes. Just take a look at this press image and see for yourself.
For some reason, plenty of us just hate carrying credit cards around, and we cannot wait for the day when we're free from this burden. I can see our ancestors now, wondering what the fuss is all about. Not too long ago, you balanced your checkbook and you liked it. Before that, there wasn't a way to avoid walking around with a wallet stuffed with cash and a pocket loaded with coins. Even that was an advancement over leading around a pig you were looking to trade. But now we have LoopWallet, an app and accessory that, together, can replace credit cards at most locations. And unlike NFC or the upcoming Coin card, it both already exists and works with most cash registers.
The LG Volt, as a low cost phone destined to be sold with no contract, is shocking more in the static electricity way than, say, a bolt of lighting. But in the moment immediately following touching a doorknob after dragging your feet around too much on the carpet, who really cares? At $179.99, the Volt should hit a number of users with enough juice to keep them going starting today on Boost Mobile and Virgin Mobile.
The Amazon Appstore Android App received an update to version 9 earlier this month that introduced carrier billing. This feature will enable some users to add app purchases to their mobile bill at the end of the month rather than supply Amazon with a credit or debit card. The option is only available in select countries.
Live. Die. Repeat. That's the tagline for Warner Bros.'s upcoming film, Edge of Tomorrow, and the movie tie-in game takes this to heart. The game consists of one-part living, two-parts dying, and one-part repeating. Rinse, repeat, and you have yourself an experience that's roughly the same as any other game out there, just more overt about it.
Which tech company is the first to come to mind when it's time to have a good time? That's right, Microsoft. Now the company is ready to bank on this reputation by releasing QuizToWin for Android, a "real-time quiz application," according to its Play Store page. Okay, I was joking before, but this sounds like exactly the kind of entertainment Microsoft would bring to your next company party right after it helps with catering (Panda Express, again?).
SamMobile has gotten its hands on some pictures of the Galaxy Tab S 10.5, which is yet another Samsung tablet for us to keep up with (please don't hurt me if I accidentally type Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro S 7.7 one day - I'm really trying here). What makes this one special is its screen, as it is expected to ship with a 2560×1600 AMOLED display. The device will reportedly come in two sizes, 8.4 and 10.5 inches. As you can see in the photo below, it doesn't look all that different from from the Note and Tab Pro line of tablets.
Instapaper is a popular service for saving web pages to read later, one that competes with the likes of Pocket and Readability. Today the app hit the big 3.0, so I'm going to take a moment to highlight what's new. The headlining feature is text highlighting, the ability to save a section of an article to read or share with others later. The app groups all of these snippets together in an accessible location. These highlights are then synced with other devices and the web.
Eight inches is a fine size for a tablet, but the options are still pretty slim. People in want of a stock Android experience in the form factor pretty much have to go with the LGGPGPE or hack together their own solution. Thankfully the latter is, depending on the device, as simple as gaining root and flashing a ROM. CyanogenMod has just rolled out its first nightlies for Samsung's Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4. This provides consumers with a certain degree of tech-savviness another option for an 8" slate.
As we've said before, Phonebloks' concept of a modular phone built using swappable, easily upgradeable parts is as awesome as it is unlikely. Yet that doesn't mean we can't sit here, watch the company's videos, and dream. We have our eyes on Project Ara, Google's take on the idea, and we can't wait to see what comes of it. But apparently Phonebloks already sees this as small potatoes. The company doesn't want just a world of modular phones. It wants to see all of our Internet-connected devices utilizing such hardware.
The original Galaxy Gear was a tough sell at $299. Heck, even at the $199 price you can find it for these days, it's still a tough sell. Let's be honest, even paying that much for any of the quarter-dozen Gears Samsung replaced the gadget with takes some convincing. But $99? That's a number I can get behind, and it's one I'm sure some of you can as well. Today [ebay id="321401025973" text="eBay Daily Deals"] has the Galaxy Gear, refurbished, available in three colors for precisely that amount.
Out of the box, the game is ad-supported, but those can disappear for $1.97. There's also virtual currency to tend with, but that can be ignored with enough patience. If you've been playing Android games for a while now, then you know how the hustle goes. So here's a trailer, with a link to the Play Store available underneath.
Yahoo has released another Android app and - hey, come back here, this is actually cool - it's an attractive take on providing the news. Yahoo News Digest gathers bits of news from around the Internet (various reports, video, Wikipedia entries, Google maps, etc.) and puts them together to form a single story. The formula isn't quite the same as Circa's, but it should seem familiar to anyone accustomed to that bite-sized news app. Presentation is half the appeal here, and you may be pleased to know that Yahoo has done a good job creating an app that doesn't offensively ignore all of Android's taste in design. It even comes with a widget.