Latest Articles
Somebody - let's call him Joe - loves for his point-and-shoot camera to be powered by Android. Nothing inspires Joe Somebody to go out and take photos like being able to crop out stray pedestrians, apply filters, and upload straight to several social networks without having to move images off his SD card beforehand. He loves his old Nikon Coolpix S800c, but that Gingerbread-powered device is looking a bit long in the tooth these days (after all, it was already two versions behind when he bought it). He needs something with a little bit more pep. Thankfully, Nikon has just announced the Coolpix S810c running Android 4.2.2.
The Lyft community consists of people in need of rides and people ready to provide them, with all of this interaction going through a mobile app. Okay, not all of it. Before now, users have not been able to enter their desired destinations while requesting a ride, but the latest update addresses this by tucking the functionality in. This lets users tell the driver where they want to go before they arrive, getting the ride started faster and saving everyone time. And, as is especially true in this industry, time is money.
SoundCloud Version 2.8 Introduces Minor Visual Tweaks, Hashtags In Searches, Swipe-To-Refresh, And More
SoundCloud gets minor visual tweaks and updates with version 2.8.
SoundCloud has made the jump to version 2.8, bringing along a few new enhancements in the process. Many of them are visual, though the changes are small. Tabs are white now. The explore section introduced in version 2.7 has had the position of artist names and song titles moved around, as have the search results. Speaking of searching, the app has new support for hashtags and recommends a page filled with them when clicking on the search icon.
Not content to unveil one new Android app today, Dropbox's bringing along another. However, this one isn't a port, and it's launching for Android and iOS on the same day. The software in question goes by the name of Carousel, a gallery app that organizes all your Dropbox photos and videos in a way that's more manageable than the endless list of photos provided within the current app.
T-Mobile has just unveiled a new introductory plan that lets customers get a phone without a contract for a lowly $40 a month with unlimited talk/text and 500MB of 4G LTE data - and the carrier's quick to emphasize that this plans comes with no data overage charges for those who run over. The plan is $10 cheaper than the lowest priced "Simple Choice" plan, which charges $50 for 1GB of data instead, and it will become available a few days from now on April 12th.
is back with another round of leaked screenshots. We shared the reported experimental Gmail images last week, which showed a radically different interface from the one we've grown accustomed to. Those images, and these new ones, allegedly come from early test builds, so whether they reveal much about Google's future plans remains to be seen. Nevertheless, here are the new calendar screens, the last of which shows the name "Timely" at the top, apparently Google's internal name for the Calendar app that ships pre-installed on devices.
Yelp has come to Japan, which means residents can now create accounts at yelp.co.jp and begin the tedious but necessary work of leaving nasty reviews for perceived slights from waiters and waitresses everywhere. Japan is the second Asian country to gain access to Yelp, with Singapore being the first back in 2012. Following this announcement, it only makes sense that the Yelp team added the ability to search using emoji when they did. After all, those popular icons did originate in the Land of the Rising Sun.
Back at this year's Mobile World Congress, Sony unveiled its new SmartBand SWR10 activity tracker (like everyone else) and a Lifelog app to go with it. Together, the pair will be able to track your location, activities, and certain social data. Sony still has the SmartBand listed as coming soon on its site (despite Newegg showing it as in-stock and the accessory being temporarily available on Amazon last month), but the company has now released the Lifelog companion app into the Play Store.
When Namco's Tank! Tank! Tank! served as Wii U launch game in November of 2012, it was criticized for having little more content than a mobile game. As it turns out, that wasn't an exaggeration. That game's one drawing feature, hot multiplayer tank-on-tank action, is now available For Android in much the same form thanks to Iron Force from Chillingo and Cool Fish Games.
Google's steadily rolling out Google Play gift card availability to various countries around the globe. We previously reported that Austria, Italy, Spain, and Switzerland had all made the 'coming soon' list. Now all four have bumped to officially being available now. Not only can consumers find cards in local retailers, each country has its own gift card site. Here's Spain's below.
has gone hands-on with a prototype version of the upcoming Android Wear-powered LG G Watch, sharing some photos in the process. Judging from the press image released with the product announcement, we could already see that the accessory would be square and come without buttons. These vivid, up-close photos confirm this. Aside from that, we see a device that looks like a flatter, more subdued version of the Pebble. Unfortunately, none of the images show the screen on or reveal anything about what the final user experience will be like.
Pushbullet Update Adds Full Images To Desktop Notifications And A Powerful Tasker Events Feature That Turns Automation Up A Notch
A new PushBullet update adds full images to desktop notifications.
Mirroring Android notifications to a desktop is far from a new feature for Pushbullet, but now the app displays the full images that go with each message. This makes glancing at a pop-up and deciding whether it needs immediate attention even easier.
Update #1: Rovio has since taken to its blog to address the issue. Regarding Android in particular, the company has this to say:
Philips hue lights are already pretty cool. People can control these bulbs, which come in various colors and sizes, using a phone or tablet. That alone makes the product convenient and great for showing off. But at the end of the day, merely turning lights on and off with a mobile device and changing their colors ranks a 4, maybe 5, on the my-friend-is-a-wizard scale. To really impress people, give the Huey Android app a download, then sit guests down in front of a TV and blow their minds.
Back on Friday, HTC's executive director of product management announced that the One Max on Verizon should receive an OTA update bringing the latest version of KitKat after the weekend. Well, Monday's here, and so is the update. Verizon HTC One Max owners should now or soon receive an update notification that looks an awful lot like this one.
Emoji convey a lot using very little, and now Yelp has tapped into this to speed up its searches. No, the results don't come in any faster. Rather, instead of typing out a word as long as "hamburger," just insert a picture of one. Want to hit up a bar? Head to the emoji section of your keyboard and drop in a frosty mug. Yelp will know what to do.
Like it or not, TV-based operating systems aren't going away. Google TV, Samsung Smart TV, and others have all done their part to beef up your TV's IQ, and while each has found varying levels of success, none has quite gotten the situation right. One immediate problem with most options is the tool you're provided with out-of-the-box for controlling things. Typing in movie titles with anything that looks like a traditional remote is nothing short of a complete pain. One thing that can save you precious time is investing in a remote with a full keyboard.
Here's the arrangement, dear Jaded Android Gamer - you will pretend you have zero interest in FarmVille, and we will pretend not to judge. Instead, we're even going to provide you with this tidbit of news: FarmVille 2 is coming to Android phones and tablets soon, with an early version already available for testing in select regions.
Amazon Introduces Dash Shopping Accessory, Adds Integration To AmazonFresh Android App
Amazon is introducing a Dash Shopping Accessory.
Amazon wants to keep you spending money, and as a commerce company, it has the benefit of having no reason to hide this fact. Its recently announced FireTV set-top box marks a play for the television, but that's potentially small change compared to the money to be gained from locking in most of a person's grocery shopping.
HTC has put a deal of effort into getting speedy updates out for the HTC One, and the Verizon version of the phone received the update at the beginning of February. Unfortunately, One Max owners have had longer to wait for the newer software, even though HTC has promised that it's on its way. Well, now we have a date. HTC's executive director of product management has now announced via Twitter that the Sense 5.5 and Android 4.4.2 update has received technical approval from Verizon.