Pebble has some pretty attractive watches on the market
Among all the pros and cons of a Pebble smartwatch has until now remained one glaring flaw: they couldn't get all the notifications from your Android phone.
Thankfully the latest Pebble Android companion app update has finally fixed that.
Prior to version 2.1 Pebble watches could only display notifications from select Android apps, including Gmail and others.
But now if your Android phone is trying to tell you something, your Pebble watch will display it, no matter what app it's coming from. You can adjust these settings in the app itself.
That's if you're using a smartwatch like the Pebble Steel with Android 4.3 or higher, while support for Android 4.0 and up will arrive later.
Pebble hasn't released a new watch in a while, but with the new apps and price drop its existing offerings just got now is a good time to pick one up.
Via PC World
View the original article here
Showing posts with label finally. Show all posts
Showing posts with label finally. Show all posts
Pebble watches can finally see all the notifications from your Android phone
Thursday, November 27, 2014
Adobe’s Cloud Photoshop Suggests We May Finally Realize The Dream Of Streamed Computing
Monday, November 24, 2014
I’ve been writing about tech for nearly a decade now, and in that time, one thing has always seemed perpetually promising, and yet also ultimately unsatisfying: remote streaming consumer computing. I’m not talking about remotely connecting to your work PC to grab a couple of files, but actually using programs interchangeably with your own local apps, despite some being hosted and run entirely on a server in some data farm nearby. Inevitably, however, this idea has been met with the harsh truths of reality, which has led to situations like the original OnLive flameout, for instance.
Remotely streaming software has huge advantages – it means users don’t have to worry too much about their operating system, hardware specifications, or even necessarily device form factor when they’re choosing software, and that could be very good news for the future of low-cost, modestly specced devices like Google’s Chromebooks.
In the past, any of these solutions that I’ve tried have come with serious downsides, including unreasonable requirements in terms of connection capabilities, up and downstream speeds, and more. They’ve also performed in a manner that while sometimes workable, would not fit anyone’s definition of a ‘pleasant experience.’ Local crashes are one thing, but when your app continually pixelates and refuses to acknowledge input it’s incredibly frustrating.
Lately, legacy companies that have so far stayed mostly away from the fray have gotten into the streamed software game, and that’s a good sign that the market, and the tech behind it is maturing. Two recent examples are Adobe, which started showing off its previously announced version of Photoshop that streams in its entirety to a browser, and Nvidia, which launched its GRID remote gaming service for its Shield devices this past week.
In their rundown of an eyes-on preview of the software, Ars Technica found that Photoshop streamed worked pretty much like the native app, without the usual browser chrome you’d expect from web content, and without taxing your system resources. It’s still early in terms of a schedule for general public availability, but Adobe is making sure to get things right with at least six more months of limited testing before a broader roll out – and caution is the watchword when it comes to any kind of virtualized app deployment.
Nvidia’s Grid underwent a similar lengthy testing program, and its debut is initially limited to North American users only before it makes its way to others. And the testing paid off; Grid’s reliability and performance are rock solid so far, besting competitors like the recently-launched PlayStation Now service and others, with performance that you’d expect from a high-end gaming PC, but running on your tablet with resolution that seems impossible given it’s a streamed signal.
High-bandwidth connections are much more available than they ever were before, and devices can manage high-speed, dependable wireless transfer much more easily than before, both of which help explain why this is much more possible today than it was five years ago.
The big immediate benefit here is to Google and the Chromebook, which could continue its trend of taking over the education market easily if it can move past the current restriction of local software. Ultimately, though, it’s a shift that would democratize digital production on a grand scale – Google, Facebook and others are already trying to connect the world with usable data connections, but also providing them access to powerful, modern day software on low-end or older used hardware would be offering up a full, refined toolkit, not just a lone large hammer.
There are still many barriers in the way of a fully-streamed computing environment, but more of them drop day-by-day. Opposition to net neutrality, and the price of efficient, high-bandwidth connections might be the last thing standing in the way of ubiquitous, high-functioning local computing, but it’s no longer just the province of pioneering startups taking big risks on a market that’s not even real enough to be called “emerging.”
Week in Gaming: GTA 5 changes its perspective, Majora's Mask finally gets its remake, and Hearthstone tempts us back
Wednesday, November 12, 2014
I hate you, Rockstar. I love you a lot. But I also really, really hate you.
Despite all my efforts, you've persuaded me to re-buy a game I purchased only months ago. I was already intrigued by the idea of GTA 5 on new-gen, but this week was the absolute clincher.
GTA 5 on PS4 and Xbox One looks gorgeous. Stunning. Majestic. Look at the grass. Just LOOK AT IT!
Sure, it's the same game at heart. But the prospect of experiencing Los Santos in first-person perspective is alone a reason for me to throw my hard-earned cash at this. Yeah I feel like a sucker, but did I mention the grass?
Put side by side with last year's version, you can see just how big the graphical leap has been. Watch this and tell me that the PS3 doesn't suddenly look really old and rubbish.
CVG spent a couple of hours with the game, and released a special GTA V o'clock filled with initial impressions on Grand Theft Auto's first next-gen outing. Worth a watch.
I also hate you too, Blizzard. Just when I thought I'd kicked the Hearthstone addition, you've pulled me back in with the promise of a delicious expansion pack. Goblins vs Gnomes is the first proper expansion set for Hearthstone (Curse of Naxxramas didn't really count) and features 120 new cards.
You'll be able to win the card packs in Arena mode or purchase them with in-game gold/real money. In addition to the new cards, Goblins vs Gnomes will introduce a spectator mode that'll let you watch your friends' games (so long as they've enabled the option).
Finally, Blizzard announced that Hearthstone will come to Android tablets in December, while Android phones and iPhones will have to wait until early next year.
But there was bigger news at BlizzCon this week: for the first time in years and years, Blizzard is launching a brand new franchise. It's called Overwatch, it's a team-based shooter a la TF2, and it's entering beta next year.
With some subtle hints of Blizzard's cancelled MMO Titan, Overwatch looks hella fun. The game's cinematic trailer alone is superb, and that's before you get onto any of the gameplay footage.
"The action of Overwatch takes place in a technologically advanced, highly stylized future earth," describes the game's press release. "In a time of global crisis, an international task force of soldiers, scientists, adventurers, and oddities known as Overwatch had come together to restore peace to a war-torn world. After many years, the group's influence waned, and it was eventually disbanded. Overwatch might be gone now . . . but the world still needs heroes."
'Oh great, another Zelda game' some of you might have groaned at the announcement this week that The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask is finally getting re-released on 3DS. But this is not just another Zelda game, friends. Majora's Mask was different.
It stepped away from the formula and conjured up a game that was brave, sad, dark and downright beautiful. 15 years later and it's still my favourite game of the franchise (sorry Wind Waker, you only lose by a smidge) - I still think the three-day time structure was a stroke of genius.
Of course, if you are a Zelda fan then you've been clamouring for this remake for as long as I have; I don't need to tell you why this game is so important. As for the rest of you reading this, do yourself a favour and pick it up when it arrives in spring 2015.
Oh, and if you thought the moon was creepy enough as it was in the N64 version...
Far Cry 4 is almost here, and we've been having a lot of fun with it. So we wrote some stuff about it:
After making a name for itself with the insanely popular Moshi Monsters, British developer Mind Candy is taking a proper swing at mobile gaming with World of Warriors, which launched this week on iPhone and iPad.
The freemium title combines battling and strategy in the hope of winning over hardcore gamers and children alike. But unlike Moshi Monsters, World of Warriors is exclusively a mobile game, so it'll be interesting to see if it can find success in a market that's already got its grip on young gamers with popular names like Candy Crush and Clash of Clans.
The gold Moto 360 and slimmer watch bands are finally official
Sunday, November 9, 2014
Motorola knows a thing or two about presentation The Moto 360 is a sleek-looking smartwatch, but until now it's been lacking in options.
Thankfully Motorola has officially unveiled the champagne gold Motor 360, slimmer watch bands and more, new accessories and choices that popped up originally in an Amazon leak at the end of October.
At the time we spotted the gold smartwatch, new band sizes, a silver Moto 360 with a brown leather strap, and new bands in dark metal and dark silver.
Now Motorola's revealed all that and more.
The device maker says the new bands are made of aircraft-grade stainless steel with a tri-link design that matches the 360's round face.
The smartwatch launches with light and dark metal straps today, November 6, for $299 (about £190, AU$350) on Motorola's site. The slim bands, including a silver version and the more expensive $329 (about £210, AU$385) gold one, will arrive closer to the holidays.
Motorola also teased a bunch of other standalone interchangeable bands, including new colors of leather, new leather straps from DODOcase and silicone straps by TYLT.
Finally new watch face customization options and designs and a new Moto Body fitness app are coming to the Moto 360 in updates soon.
Blip: Someone's finally made a working hoverboard, and no, it's not cheap
Monday, October 27, 2014
That blue light just PROVES it's from the future Ah, the hoverboard. The most elusive of coveted future technologies. We've seen a number of products claiming to do the job, but so far none have come through. The Hendo Hoverboard, however, might just be the first.
Launched on Kickstarter, this so far looks like the real deal. The board uses electromagnetic technology to gracefully glide about an inch above the ground, though it can only work over conductive materials and runs for just seven minutes.
But limitations aside, it's still a working hoverboard, and its creators are hoping to turn it into something you'll actually be able to buy. All they need is $250,000 to make it happen, and if you actually want a hoverboard to call your own, you'll need to put up a cool $10,000.
But let us repeat: it's a working hoverboard.
Back to the Blips!
You will soon be able to finally buy a 24-inch QHD monitor
Wednesday, October 22, 2014
Do our eyes deceive us? Apparently not: a 24-inch QHD monitor really has landed on the market, and it comes courtesy of Taiwanese monitor maker BenQ.
The BL2420PT has a 2560 x 1440 pixel-resolution, a common feature on 27-inch (and above) displays, but few (if any) companies have taken the resolution to 24-inch territory before.
Aimed at professionals in CAD/CAM, animation, video editing and graphic arts, the monitor offers a 77% larger working area compared to full-HD screens.
Professionals will also be interested in BenQ's claim that it covers 100% of the sRGB space, something we're keen to check with our trusty colour calibrator.
Specs-wise, the BL2420PT has an IPS display with 178-degree viewing angles and a brightness of 300 nits, 1000:1 native contrast ratio, 20M:1 dynamic contrast ratio and 14ms (5ms grey-to-grey) response time.
Connectivity includes D-sub, dual-link DVI, DisplayPort 1.2, HDMI v1.4, a headphone jack, line-in and two 1W integrated speakers.
Other features include an adjustable height stand, optional VESA wall mount and CAD/CAM and animation modes, in addition to BenQ's eye strain-reducing Flicker Free and Senseye 3 technology.
We're still waiting for information on pricing and availability, so stay tuned.
VIA Tom's Hardware
Pokémon finally launches on iOS, kind of
Sunday, October 5, 2014
An official Pokémon game has finally arrived for mobile, but it's not quite what fans have been asking for: it's a digital trading card game.
Michelle Starr Michelle Starr is the tiger force at the core of all things. She also writes about cool stuff and apps as CNET Australia's Crave editor. But mostly the tiger force thing. See full bio
The Pokémon Company
If ever there was a hugely popular franchise that would work perfectly for mobile, it's Pokémon. The top-down perspective would work beautifully with a virtual D-Pad and the turn-based combat system would easily adapt to touch controls. In fact, we've seen several clones already that work really well, such as Kairosoft's Beastie Bay and MinoMonsters -- but they're never going to be as good as the real thing.
But it's an uphill battle: the Pokémon Company was founded by Nintendo, whose stance against making games for the mobile platform is legendary. It seems, however, that the games giant is releasing its hold, just a little: The Pokémon Company has just released its first-ever Pokémon game for iPad.
It's not, however, the title most wanted by fans -- that is, one that features travelling throughout a region, collecting Pokémon, battling fellow trainers and working to foil the machinations of an evil faction who want to somehow ruin Pokémon for everyone. It might be the next best thing, though: a port of the online Pokémon TCG, which you can log into using your Pokémon Trainer Club account.
The game has its roots in the original tabletop TCG launched in 1996, and contains the same gameplay: Pokémon cards for battling; trainer cards; energy cards to give your attacks extra power; and potion cards to heal or boost your Pokémon.
Like Hearthstone, it's free to play, and players can add to their decks by winning matches against other players to get Trainer Tokens. As an additional pot-sweetener, if you purchase physical Pokémon cards in the real world, you'll receive a digital code that gives you the same card in the game, redeemable in the in-game shop.
A notice that the game offers in-app purchases on the iTunes page also implies that players can purchase Trainer Tokens with which to buy cards and avatar items, but we've yet to figure out how this is accomplished; the interface is a little counterintuitive and crowded, and not very pleasant to look at -- a stark contrast to Hearthstone.
The game needs to be played online so that you can battle other players, but does have a single-player "Trainer Challenge" campaign so that you can avoid other people if you're the sort of person who likes to play alone.
A quick play indicates that the game isn't without quite annoying problems, but one could consider the fact that it exists at all something of a breakthrough. It might not be the Pokémon game we want to be playing on our mobile devices, but baby steps are better than none at all.
Download it free from the iTunes app store.
Michelle Starr Michelle Starr is the tiger force at the core of all things. She also writes about cool stuff and apps as CNET Australia's Crave editor. But mostly the tiger force thing. See full bio AT&T Lumia 820, 920 customers finally receive Windows Phone 8.1
Saturday, September 20, 2014
If you happen to be on the AT&T network with an older Nokia Lumia handset, the carrier has a bit of good news for you this week, with a software update that brings the latest and greatest features to two elder Windows Phone devices.
AT&T announced the availability of Windows Phone 8.1 for Nokia Lumia 820 and Nokia Lumia 920 smartphones, available as an over-the-air software update that delivers new features to some of the platform's most beloved models.
The carrier was already first in line to roll out the most recent Windows Phone software back in July on newer devices such as the Nokia Lumia 1520, followed soon after by the Lumia 1020, Lumia 925 and Lumia 520.
On Thursday, AT&T, Nokia and Microsoft enabled the update for Lumia 820 and Lumia 920, an on-device download that can be enabled from the Settings menu whenever the device is charged at least 50 percent.
One of the most highly anticipated Windows Phone 8.1 features for Lumia 820 and Lumia 920 owners is certainly Cortana, Microsoft's personal virtual assistant capable of setting reminders, searching for information or reminding users about nearly anything.
Windows Phone 8.1 also allows Lumia owners to customize their handset more than ever before, with multiple sizes, transparency and color options for pinning apps, music, people and more to the Start screen.
Nokia Lumia 820 and Lumia 920 users will also enjoy a full complement of Xbox games, music and video, as well as the complete Windows experience, including OneDrive, Skype, Office and Bing.
Last but certainly not least, Windows Phone 8.1 delivers a new Word Flow keyboard capable of integrating phrases, contacts and shape writing, all without the need to download and install a separate app.
Sprint and T-Mobile merger finally a reality
Thursday, June 5, 2014
The Wall Street Journal is reporting the often rumored Sprint and T-Mobile merger is finally moving forward. The two companies have agreed to “broad outlines” that put T-Mobile’s value at $32 billion, or about $40 per share.
This deal isn’t official, but it’s expected to be during the early part of the summer. Of course, negotiations could fall through, but unlikely as it seems as though both companies really need this deal to happen. Sprint and T-Mobile are the 3rd and 4th largest wireless operators in the U.S., and it appears a deal between these two companies has the best chance of clearing the FCC.
If you remember, AT&T’s bid for T-Mobile fell through so it’s unlikely that the FCC would approve any combination of the major four operators if one of the companies were to be AT&T or Verizon Wireless. That leaves Sprint and T-Mobile, and to be honest, this marriage makes a lot of sense.
If Sprint and T-Mobile formally announce a deal, the actual merger probably wouldn’t take place until early next year since the approval process could take several months.
What do you guys think? Will this deal be a win or a loss for consumers?
source: WSJ
Categorized as Android Carriers, Android News
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