Google has updated its Play Services to version 4.1 bringing new features and improving on others. First off the update brings support for turn-based multiplayer – now developers can create games with turn-based gameplay and Google Play Services will distribute turns among players.

There’s also a preliminary Google Drive API, improved battery life with Google Location Reporting, Google+ sharing and Mobile Ad SDK improvements. Read more »

Every tech company seems to be making smartwatches, but also Android-powered game consoles. At CES Huawei unveiled the Tron – despite the name, it looks more like a coke can (or a Mac Pro) rather than something to have come out of the neon and black movie.

Anyway, the Huawei Tron is powered by a Tegra 4 chipset, similar to the Mad Catz M.O.J.O. but will reportedly cost around half as much (about $120). Read more »

Motorola has made the Moto X even more tempting. After permanently slashing the price from $549 to $399 a couple of weeks ago, the company is now giving away a free Chromecast with every Moto X.

The offer is valid on the unlocked, off-contract version of the phone on both the 16GB and 32GB variants. The offer will be valid until January 14, so if you are were looking to buy the phone, now would be a good time to get one. Read more »

Chinese phonemaker Gionee hasn’t been the most prominent player in the smartphone market, but the company wants to start making dents with its latest candidate – the Elife E7. The company claims the Elife E7 to pack the best Android camera on the market and at least on paper it’s hard to argue with that.

That’s why we were eager to pay the Gionee both a visit and see for ourselves what the phone is all about. The phone itself was announced at the end of November last year and its CES 2014 appearance marks its US debut, which is in line with the company’s plans for distribution outside China in early 2014. Read more »

At this year’s CES, ZTE outed the second iteration of its Grand S flagship, alongside a worthy Nubia Z5 successor and an entry-level CDMA Iconic Phablet.

We also got our hands on the ZTEs first wearable tech offering, the eerily Pebbe-like BlueWatch. Read more »

Xiaomi unfortunately has yet to make its smartphones global, but the smartphone maker was at CES and we got to handle the MI-3.

It’s an Android-powered phone but Xiaomi uses a custom interface – MIUI v5 built on Android 4.2. It looks and feels quite different. Read more »

Smartwatches are a hot new trend at CES but as with any new tech, they can get pricy quick. Archos brought three models, the cheapest of which (pictured below) starts at just $50 – this could make your introduction to the world of smartwatches pretty painless.

The manufacturer also showed a flagship model with curved, e-ink touchscreen and aluminum casing. Read more »

The middle name of Samsung’s Galaxy devices is “value-added”. The latest batch of tablets fresh from CES, the Pro lineup, are getting a list of goodies so complex it comes in table form. That’s for the new Galaxy Note Pro 12.2 tablet, but also the Galaxy Tab Pro tablets (12.2, 10.1 and 8.4).

With these apps under its belt, the Pro tablet will be all set for cloud storage, social networking, organizational tools, news sites, creative and other tools. Read more »

In terms of tablets, it’s hard to get more bang for your buck than the Nexus 7. Well Woot made buying one an even sweeter deal today but knocking off $50 from the price of Google’s tablet.

Keep in mind that these are for factory reconditioned Nexus 7 (2013) WiFi only units, so they won’t be brand new out of the box.

With the discount, you can pick up the 16GB version for $189, and the 32GB Nexus 7 for only $219, making it one of the better bargains out there right now. Especially when you consider the specs: a quad-core 1.5GHz Krait CPU, 2GB of RAM, a 1200 x 1920 IPS display with a 5MP primary camera and a 1.2MP front-facing unit. Read more »

The Alcatel One Touch Hero is a 6″ phablet with a stylus to boot that aims to win the hearts of people who can’t afford the Samsung Galaxy Note 3. We were pleasantly surprised at how well put together the device is – solid build quality, small bezels and good materials bring the Hero well out of Alcatel’s usual entry-level range.

The phablet also has an intriguing accessory system that promises to be among its biggest assets. Read more »

Samsung unveiled the Galaxy Tab Pro line of slates in 12.2″, 10.1″ and 8.4″ flavor at CES 2014 – all sporting the impressive 2560 x 1600 screen resolution and all having LCD displays.

However the middle child in the bunch – the Galaxy Tab Pro 10.1 may have a PenTile screen matrix meaning not your typical RGB variety pixel arrangement. Read further for the scoop. Read more »

Samsung and BMW have collaborated on a rather cool use for the Galaxy Gear smartwatch. At CES 2014, Samsung showcased a specially developed application, which connects to the BMW i3′s “i Remote Application” allowing it to control some of the car’s functions and give you status information.

The Galaxy Gear will be able to show information of the BMW i3 such as door and window status (opened or closed), battery charge levels and drivable range. Read more »

Late last year we heard about Audi and Google’s partnership to provide an in-car infotainment system powered by Android.

Google has since unveiled its Open Automotive Alliance, and their new partnership with Audi has resulted in a specially designed tablet optimized for in-car use, but also can be taken outside the car as a fully-functioning standalone device. Read more »

Yahoo! continues its shopping spree and the latest item in its shopping basket is the popular homescreen replacement app Aviate. The homescreen replacement is unique in its contextual features and tracking the usage patterns of its users to provide better experience.

Yahoo seems to be quite fond of these capabilities of the app, which also lay the foundation of automatic homescreen layouts. The possibilities that open up with are quite great – you can get different widgets (such as weather, news, etc.) for the different times of the day or shortcuts which are rearranging themselves so the most often used ones are always nearby. Read more »

If you find yourself constantly running out of space or juice on your iPhone 5 or 5S, Mophie’s Space Pack could be right down your alley.

The creators of the popular Juice Pack line of battery cases have released a new model for the latest Apple smartphones that helps boost battery life while also adding more storage space. Read more »