If you remember Project Tango, it was this crazy device that could scan a room using multiple cameras and create a 3D model of it. Google had released a development kit for developers to purchase but it was $1024 and invite only.

The tablet recently got a discount to $512 and Google is now selling it on the Google Store without needing an invite. It’s interesting that this happened just a day before the I/O event, so there might be something related to this at the keynote. Read more »

The next major iteration of Android will reportedly bring dedicated permission controls to users. Android M is expected to debut tomorrow during Google I/O in San Francisco.

Currently, Android prompts users to accept all permissions an application requires before installing it. Read more »

Back in April, Microsoft introduced the Office Lens app for iOS. It lets you capture anything using a smartphone’s camera and get it automatically tweaked to be saved in OneNote or OneDrive storage.

After beta testing it for several weeks, the Office Lens for Android devices is finally live in the Google Play Store. The phones running Android 4.1 Jelly Bean and higher will be able to get the app. Read more »

There was some uncertainty about the Huawei Watch price, but you can pre-order one. Unfortunately, the shipping date is not listed yet.

Interestingly, the leather wristband version is more expensive than the metal band version – for most other smartwatches it’s the other way around. Read more »

Xiaomi’s Mi Fit app has just received a new update. The fitness tracker, specifically designed to work with the company’s inexpensive Mi Band tracker, now has integration with Google’s Fit platform.

This definitely simplifies data tracking on most Android devices. Up until now, the Android Mi Fit app was mostly closed off from data exchange, which is kind of odd, considering the company’s iOS application already has integration with Healthkit. Now, using the Google Fit API, your Mi Band, or rather Mi Fit, can feed information into Google’s platform, so, you can use both without dealing with the hustle of conflicting data. Read more »

Motorola has slashed the price of the Moto 360 by $100. Those interested in picking one up can now get it for $149 instead of the previous rather steep $249 for the leather band version.

The Moto 360 is one of the first Android Wear devices and the first to have a circular display. It’s still the best looking Android Wear device on the market and has a premium watch feel thanks to its stainless steel body and leather bands. Read more »

Today Microsoft has announced the expansion of its strategic agreements with Android OEMs for preinstalling its productivity apps on devices running Google’s mobile operating system. The first step in this strategy was revealed in March when we found out that Samsung and Dell agreed to preinstall Microsoft’s apps on their devices along with a few smaller, regional players.

And now the software giant is adding 20 more OEMs to the list, the most well-known of which are LG and Sony. This round seems to concern only tablets, by the way. So, “in the near future”, these companies will ship tablets with Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, OneDrive, and Skype preinstalled. Read more »

Since last fall when it launched, the Asus-made Nexus Player Android TV-running console has been offered for $99 in the Google Play Store. Now, though, it’s seeing its first price cut.

If you’re in the US, you can grab a Nexus Player for just $79. That’s $20 less than before, which doesn’t seem like much. On the other hand, consider that it’s in fact a 20% price reduction. Read more »

Periscope was launched by Twitter on iOS back in March, and today it’s finally become available for Android too. The app can already be downloaded from the Google Play Store, in fact. It should work on Android 4.4 KitKat or newer versions of the OS.

Periscope arrives on Android almost a month after its chief competitor, Meerkat (which was also iOS-only for a long while). Read more »

Once again, OnePlus is teasing something via its official Twitter account. This time it looks like we’re going to see a new announcement from the Chinese company on June 1, which is next Monday.

Obviously no big clues as to what that will be are given, but as you can see from the accompanying image OnePlus is talking the big talk. Read more »

Opera’s headlining trick – compressing the web – is evolving in the time of high-powered smartphones. Opera Max enables a Turbo-like compression for any and all apps on your phone, not just the browser. And now not just mobile data either, Max can now handle your Wi-Fi usage.

“Why?” you may be asking. Simple – public Wi-Fi hotspots often suck worse than mobile data. Also, this allows Opera Max to improve your battery life too. Read more »

Today, the Sony Xperia Z3+ finally saw the light of day. Just as promised, the Xperia Z3+, also known as the Xperia Z4 in Japan, made it to international markets and along comes a the first promotional videos for the new handset.

Just popped-up in Sony Xperia’s official YouTube channel, the video promotes the phone’s battery life, which the company claims is up to two days. Frankly, this isn’t really all that impressive, but, at least, the video is nicely made, so there is that. Read more »

Smartphones serving as the brain of a laptop always sounded like a great idea, until someone actually makes one. Undeterred by the cold reception of the Motorola Atrix and its laptop dock and the low profile of the Asus Padfone, Samsung has patented a Galaxy Note-like device, which docks into a laptop host.

The patent does get a couple of things right that eluded the Atrix and the Padfone. Read more »

The Asus ZenWatch, which was unveiled by the company at IFA in September last year and went on sale a couple of months later, is now available for purchase from Best Buy at a discounted price of $180. That’s a saving of around $20 as the smartwatch usually sells for $200.

Specs-wise, the wearable is powered by a 1.2GHz Snapdragon 400 processor, and sports an AMOLED screen covered in Gorilla Glass 3 and with a 1.63-inch diagonal of a square 320 x 320px resolution. It comes with 512MB of RAM and 4GB of internal storage, and has an IP55 dust- and water-resistance rating. Read more »

Popular quiz app QuizUp got a major update. The new version, available on iOS and Android, brings a new design. It also focuses more on the community and almost feels like a social networking app now.

You could always follow people through the app but now it shows you people around you, or in the same country or even the world who like the same topics as you and then you can add them and play against them. There is also a topic page for each topic where people can share stuff related to the topic and chat with other people. Read more »