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There's some great news if you're an Optus customer. Starting from May 2nd, they will be zero-rating a number of online streaming services for their prepaid customers, allowing them to listen to as much music as they want without racking up a heavy data bill.
It's common knowledge that Google has been working on a travel application for some time now. Last week, Maps Explorers were emailed and asked to complete a short survey for a chance to test it before everyone else. Now we know what this app is called, and what it does. Meet Google Trips.
Late last year, Amazon started to allow hobbyists and developers to integrate the Alexa virtual personal assistant into their own products through the developer preview of Amazon Voice Service. This effort has already borne fruit with Invoxia's Triby.[EMBED_YT]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eEgYCuCu62w[/EMBED_YT]Looking a bit like an FM radio from yesteryear, the Triby immediately loses points in the looks department, especially when compared to the sleek, futuristic aesthetic of the Amazon Echo. It packs a magnetized back, allowing you to attach it directly to any metal surface, such as a refrigerator or knife rack, as well an E-Ink display for showing messages and notifications.Not only can it be controlled through voice commands, but there's also an official companion application available for Android and iOS. It also has a number of hardware buttons, which allow the user to flick through their music, as well as call pre-defined contacts with a connected smartphone.The Triby also includes a two-day lithium ion battery, rechargable through the built-in MicroUSB port. This lasts just eight hours while listening to music and, as SlashGear notes, battery longevity is shortened even further when listening mode is turned on.Since it uses Alexa, you would be forgiven for assuming the Triby would be able to control the various third-party services that the Echo can, but that turns out to not be the case. Spotify, Belkin WeMo, Philips Hue, and Pandora are all unsupported, according to its Amazon page.
Probably the biggest event on the Android calendar is Google I/O, and it's just around the corner, running from the 18th of May to the 20th. This year's event will be held at the Shoreline Amphitheater in Mountain View, where the first Google I/O event took place in 2008, rather than the usual Moscone Center in San Francisco.
Like most journalists, I own a voice recorder for recording interviews. Mine is pretty basic. I think it cost me around $30 on Amazon. But for the most part, I've been satisfied with it. I've never felt the need to upgrade to something a bit more powerful. But this new Android-powered voice recorder from Philips is making me question that.
Today is Earth Day. It’s that time of the year when we consider the impact human behavior has on the environment and the changes we can make to better look after it. Well, some of us at least. Google Play Movies is marking the occasion by lowering the price of Independence Day – a movie where Earth is invaded and very nearly destroyed by extraterrestrials – to just $0.99.
Adverts for tech products tend to range wildly from being excellent to being excruciatingly terrible. When executed properly, they have the potential to be charming, funny, and effusive, and demonstrate the features of the product well. The latest marketing campaign for the Samsung Galaxy S7, starring rapper Lil’ Wayne, is a great example of that. But when they go wrong, they go really wrong, as seen by the TV spot for the new Huawei P9.
If you've ever flown into the United States, you know how frustrating the customs declaration forms can be. Not only do you have to write your entire biographical and passport details, but you also have to itemize the things you're bringing into the country, and include details about your trip. They're time consuming, and if you make a mistake, you have to start from scratch.
One of the biggest problems with TV news is that if you're not interested in a particular story – say, sports or celebrities – you have no option but to sit through it. Haystack TV aims to solve that by turning the news into personalized streams which are curated through artificial intelligence, big data, and editorial decision-making. The idea being that if you're especially interested in finance or international affairs, you can create a TV channel just about that.
Using your phone while on the road is extremely dangerous. A safer way to stay connected is to use a hands-free kit. This is great if you want to make calls, but less helpful if you're dependent on the myriad of messaging services currently in use.
The Blackberry Priv launched last November. While it undeniably has an interesting form factor and shipped with some compelling enterprise-oriented security features, it has remained on Android Lollipop as its flagship competitors received their Marshmallow updates left and right.
Taking an Uber is already a much more enticing option than hailing a cab. One of the things that makes it so great is that it's so amazingly convenient. Uber is almost everywhere, and you can get a lift without having cash on you, or even knowing the local language. All you need is a smartphone.
Instagram is about more than showcasing what you had for dinner. Since 2013, users have been able to upload videos to the hugely popular photo sharing service, and now Instagram has announced that it's increasing the maximum length of these from 15 seconds to a whole minute.
If you're looking for a mid-range smartphone with the stock Android experience, you can't do much better than the LG Nexus 5X. It packs a zippy hexa-core Snapdragon 808 processor clocked at 1.4GHZ, 2GB of RAM, a sharp 12.3MP rear camera with dual LED flash and laser autofocus, and a vivid 5.2” display. Since it's a recent Nexus phone, you can guarantee it's running an untainted version of Android 6.0 Marshmallow.
The seventeenth Humble Mobile Bundle just launched, and it looks set to be one of the biggest yet. This time around it's packing top-tier Android games from the likes of SQUARE ENIX and Double Fine, as well as the usual indie darlings, while benefiting the Electronic Frontier Foundation and the American Red Cross.
There's some great news for anyone using CyanogenMod. A long-existing bug that prevented users of the hugely popular ROM from displaying their screen on the Google Chromecast has finally been squashed. The problem is present in applications that use the Chromecast Remote Display API. On devices running CyanogenMod, instead of the intended content, users would see a solidly black screen. This issue is limited to CyanogenMod and its derivatives.
There are a lot of sports-oriented tech products, but not many are aimed squarely at surfers, skiers, and snowboarders. Which is why this new Android Wear smartwatch from Nixon – a major Californian manufacturer of watches and accessories – is so fascinating.
Everyone knows someone who has made the switch from iPhone to Android. This latest convert will surprise you though. It’s GoogleBot – the all-important web crawler used by Google.