The Android TV Launcher is now available for download on Google Play. Google has decided to make it a standalone app from Android TV, similarly to the Google Experience Launcher.
The launcher gives you access to your media like movies, songs and Android TV apps like Netflix, TED and YouTube. To install it, you’ll need an Android TV device, like the Nexus Player and ADT-1.
With CES 2015 only a few days away the hype is on and companies are already gearing up for the marketing avalanche to come. Teasers and early announcement are starting to surface with everybody working hard to outshine competitors in the battle for consumer attention.
Keeping true to this tradition Sony created a really artsy teaser in the wake of this year’s tech show. This clip is only 43 seconds long and pretty vague in its message. It is full of various time-lapses, vivid colors and lights and a lot of fine camera work and the whole thing comes across as very emotionally charged.
Who wants to know more about group selfies, a.k.a groufies? Okay, for all the three of you, Huawei created a very nice infographic detailing their significance in today’s online world.
Here are some hard groufie facts – in the period between August 1 and October 31, 15,200 groufies were posted on Instagram. They received more than 67,600 likes and 20,000 comments. We don’t envy the person who had to count them, but this data is enough to convince Huawei that front-facing cameras need to more oomph.
If you picked up any of the recent Samsung phones, you’d notice there is no ChatOn application that used to always be around on older phones whether you liked it or not. That’s because the company has been planning on shutting down the service for a while.
Now Samsung has revealed to Engadget that it plans on shutting down the service in all markets except the US on February 1. The company said it will be “focusing on [its] core services.”, which basically means ‘we will stick to what we are good at’.
Samsung’s latest promo video could well be the coolest one we’ve seen to date. Dubbed “Holiday Dreams,” the clip features a synchronized dreamscape of 74 different devices.
The video tells the animated story of a young girl’s holiday dream.
Believe it or not, five years have passed since the European Commission forced Microsoft to add the Browser Choice screen to the versions of Windows it sold in the EU. And incidentally, this means that the requirement has in fact expired.
As of now, Microsoft no longer falls under the obligation to show people in the EU the Browser Choice screen, so it’s stopped doing so. The dedicated website for the feature is gone too.
If you were having doubts about Apple making its new payment service available outside of the US, then this is for you. Apple Pay is indeed coming to Europe, the Middle East, India, and Africa. This has been confirmed by a job posting by Apple on its website.
The ad has since been pulled, but it mentioned the company was looking for a London-based intern to “drive out the rollout” of Apple Pay across the aforementioned territories.
While the Google Glass project seems to have run its course Sony is picking up the slack with its Single-Lens Display Module. Unlike Glass, Sony’s device can be attached to conventional corrective glasses, sunglasses and even goggles.
Not much is known about the device itself though the company will make it available next year and will release the SDK to select partners.
Amazon has announced a new service that offers one-hour and two-hour delivery of daily essentials via a mobile app. Dubbed Prime Now, the service is only available to Amazon Prime members, who can use it to get products like paper towels, shampoo, books, toys, batteries, and more expressly delivered from 6 a.m. to midnight, seven days a week.
The service is currently available in selected areas of Manhattan, although the company is encouraging all Prime members to download the new Prime Now app, which is available for both iOS and Android, saying that they will be notified when the service launches in their area.
Quantum dot technology has been in the works for quite some time now and at his point it is definitely not a new concept. However it is yet to find a place on the mass market. This was set to change once two of the biggest rival tech giants – Samsung and LG, announced that they will be starting mass production of quantum dot displays, back in June. The hype around the technology is gathering momentum as CES 2015 draws near and we are sure to hear a lot of praise and awe-inspiring talks during the annual show. In light of all this LG has decided to get a head start and jumped the gun today with the official announcement of its first QD 4K TV.
The statement disclosed little other information concerning the new TV. No specifics are yet available regarding model number, price, expected shipping date or even screen size. All we know for sure is that the display will, unsurprisingly be capable of handling 4K resolution and that the new technology contains no cadmium and is not toxic in any way, which the Korean giant, somewhat oddly specifically stressed upon.
Barnes & Noble has discounted the Nook Glowlight eBook reader by £20 for one week only during the Christmas holidays. Starting tomorrow, December 19, you’ll be able to purchase the Nook Glowlight for £69.
At this price, the Glowlight makes for an even more tempting Christmas present for friends and family. In addition to its online availability, the e-reader will also retail in John Lewis, Argos, Asda, Blackwells and Foyles stores.
Nvidia’s latest update to the Shield Hub brings a new Material Design overhaul with better focus on games and the option to stream games from your Shield device to a TV in 1080p at 60fps quality. There is also the usual bug fixes and performance improvements.
The update affects both the Nvidia Shield gaming device and the Shield Tablet. Shield Hub will now show you more games on the same screen and reduce the need for scrolling.
Nokia will no longer be updating the HERE mapping and navigation apps on the Windows Phone platform. Although originally created by Nokia, the map data has now been licensed by Microsoft, who will now be updating the app instead.
On the other hand, Nokia has no plans of abandoning HERE maps but will instead be moving to greener pastures.
In order to showcase the 4K video capture credentials of the Moto X (2014), Motorola handed the handset to a professional drone operator. As expected, the company’s customizable smartphone took a ride above San Francisco and captured the trip in UHD resolution.
Because it is much lighter than a DSLR camera, Moto X (2014) allows the drone to fly much longer than usual.
Today Yahoo has announced it’s published a new version of its app for both iOS and Android to the iTunes App Store and the Google Play Store, respectively. The update is decidedly bigger for Android, where it introduces animated weather conditions (such as fog, rain, heat, snow, lightning, and frost).
Most of those have been available on iOS 8 since September, but today lightning and frost have made their way to devices running Apple’s mobile operating system as well.
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