Google updated its popular Messenger app for Android with support for Stickers and Location Sharing. In the previous update, Google added support for emojis.

With sticker support, Google Messenger follows the suite of its competitors, headed by Facebook Messenger. Read more »

Your beloved Instagram photos are about to get a whole lot prettier! The social network quietly increased the size of its images to 1080 x 1080 pixels – up from the rather ancient 640 x 640 pixels.

Without telling anyone, Instagram started gradually rolling out the new resolution to iOS and Android last week. Read more »

According to internal memos obtained by 9to5Mac, Apple Pay will launch in the United Kingdom on July 14. The Cupertino giant announced its place to bring Apple Pay in the UK during this year’s WWDC.

Apple has reportedly informed its UK retail employees that its payment service will become available on the above mentioned date. Read more »

CyanogenMod has been working on a new browser, called Gello. The browser is based on Google’s open source web browser project and looks somewhat similar to Chrome, but is different enough.

Not much was revealed in the Google+ post announcing the browser but a short video gives a glimpse at the interface and some of the features of the upcoming browser, including edge swipe to go forward and backward, night and immersive modes, enhanced download manager, offline reading mode, and individual site settings to access features such as camera, microphone, and also ad blocking functionality. Read more »

Microsoft launched a brand new promo video for its Lumia smartphone family. The clip focuses on the brand’s business credentials.

Unsurprisingly, the video showcases the seamless integration of Microsoft’s productivity solutions into the Windows Phone platform. Read more »

David Beckham is the star of Sprint’s latest video ad, which focuses on the carrier’s unlimited plan. The video takes an interesting approach, ridiculing the other three US major carriers’ tariffs.

Sprint All-In Wireless promo shows David Beckham getting confused in AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon stores and finally he founds his unlimited plan without small print and hidden taxes in Sprint’s store. Read more »

Google announced that it will improve the click quality of mobile display ads. Recent studies have revealed that up to 50% of the current clicks have been accidental.

Going forward, the search giant will automatically block accidental clicks on several occasions. Read more »

Most Apple users are surely familiar with Apple’s warranty service, dubbed AppleCare. It offers pretty good coverage for you tech, but if you desire some extra care and attention, there is always Cupertino’s paid extended warranty service – AppleCare+. Among other things, the special program enables users to bring in their devices for repair or replacement, if the former is not possible, any time they experience battery life problems.

The US giant has silently made a few upgrades to the said battery clause and devices are now eligible for servicing if they have lost just 20% of their original capacity. This used to be set to 50%, but, under the new conditions you can practically bring your iPhone, iPad or Apple Watch into an Apple store with an almost perfect battery and still be eligible for a repair, or, as is often the case, a replacement with a shiny new unit. Read more »

Uber, the popular ride-sharing company, has really been extending its business lately. Besides launching in more and more countries around the world, it has also been branching out in often odd ways, like the UberEATS food delivery service in Barcelona. The international business has grown so rapidly that it might even be considering buying out a maps business for its own use, so, despite all the controversy and law suits, the service appears to be here to stay, at least for now that is.

Now Uber is launching yet another odd sub-service. It is called UberBOAT and the name mostly gives it away. The idea is centered around the Bosporus strait in Istanbul and utilizing certain local boats as a water-taxi service. Uber is actually already running similar services in other locations, under the very same name. The business partner in question is Navette-Tezman Holding – a local company that owns Beneteau boats, situated on the strait. The water service itself will be seamlessly molded into the Uber mobile app and boat ride suggestions will automatically pop up to users in close proximity to the Bosporus. Read more »

Clearly meant as a response of sorts to the launch of Apple Music, Google has today announced it’s adding a free tier to its Play Music streaming service. Previously, this was accessible only through a subscription.

From this point on, however, it also has a free, ad-supported radio version. Unfortunately it’s only going to be available in the US for the foreseeable future (Google has yet to announce when it will go international). Read more »

Apple is taking a second swing at music streaming, based on the Beats Music service. The base pricing in the US is pretty standard ($9.99 a month) but it was the family plan that turned some heads – up to 6 people can share a plan for just $14.99.

What if your cash doesn’t have dollar signs on it? For Europe at least you just stick your local symbol in front of 9.99 and 14.99 for the respective single and family plans. Read more »

Google has finally brought its Google Play prepaid vouchers (gift cards) for buying digital content to India. The new Play prepaid vouchers will be made available from physical stores in INR 500, INR 1,000, and INR 1,500 options. The Google Play prepaid vouchers are already available in 28 other countries.

The Google Play prepaid voucher like every other voucher contains a unique code to let you purchase digital content in form of apps, eBooks, games and even rent or buy movies. You just have to purchase it once and it would be available to all your Android phones and tablets, provided all those devices are registered to the same Google Account. Read more »

Waze brought Arnold Schwarzenegger and his Austrian accent to its navigation app. The movie legend will sound like the Terminator in the voice-guided navigation feature of Google’s community-driven application.

As per the teaser image shared on Twitter, the celeb’s finger clearly shows State of California Governor’s ring on it. This initiative is also meant to promote Arnold’s upcoming movie Terminator Genisys which releases on July 1. Read more »

Apple confirmed that it is hard at work on building its own mapping database with street view. The Cupertino giant is currently relying on third-party data for Apple Maps.

The Silicone Valley heavyweight has a number of camera-toting vehicles around the world that collect street view imaging data. Read more »

At its developer conference today, Apple has announced that its payment service is indeed headed to the UK, just like the rumors said it was. Apple Pay will become available in the UK next month.

Apple is also making progress with Apple Pay’s adoption in the US, with more than 1 million retail locations expected to accept the solution by July. And in the fall, Discover will bring Apple Pay to its members. Read more »