Google Maps update brings enhanced voice controls and elevation information for bicycling

Google Maps users (that should be just about everyone) will find a nice update rolling out now in the Google Play Store. Version 8.2 brings a host of new features, the biggest being the ability to execute voice commands from inside the app. This can be done by clicking on the new microphone icon in the search bar, used to execute commands like “navigate to” or “show traffic.” What’s more is you’ll find another microphone while in navigation mode (towards the bottom left).

While that sounds extremely useful, the number of voice actions are pretty limited at the moment and require users to experiment with what works. Basic commands like asking Maps to show routes or give a route overview works fine. Even display traffic or show the time left until you reach your destination. The main problem we found is that, unlike Google Search hotword detection, you’ll need to physically touch the microphone icon to engage voice controls — they’re not done purely by voice.

There’s also elevation info for bicyclists to help avoid unnecessary uphill climbs when necessary. Routes will not only show elevations but the distance of the elevation changes as well. This makes it easy for cyclists to pick the easiest route based on their current elevation (see above image).

As usual, you can either wait for the new Maps to become available on your device in the coming days, or download our 3rd party link down below. Safe travels!

Download Google Maps 8.2: MediaFire

Maps (Playboard) | Maps (Play Store)

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NVIDIA Shield tablet press render leaks, shows front stereo speakers

A legitimate gaming tablet could be on the way later this year. The image above is allegedly an upcoming tablet from NVIDIA. It is currently being called the Shield Tablet. What we are looking at today is a tablet that has a built-in gaming hub. This gaming hub list sections covering a store, news, Android games, and PC games. The most interesting part of all of this is that games like Half-Life 2 and Portal are present in a subsection of the store when looking for compatible games with a controller. This essentially confirms what we heard previously that NVIDIA’s Shield successor could be a pairing of a tablet with a controller.

Being that this is an NVIDIA device, we expect it to feature the company’s upcoming Tegra K1 processor. And this would not be NVIDIA’s first attempt at a tablet. The Tegra Note 7 was released last year but did not quite meet expectations. Like that device, this one seems to have stereo speakers on the front side. Current rumors about the Shield Tablet claim it has a 7.9-inch display with a resolution of 2048×1536.

Are you excited for this device if it becomes official?

Source: @evleaks (Official site)

Come comment on this article: NVIDIA Shield tablet press render leaks, shows front stereo speakers

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Xiaomi Mi Band Wearable Potentially Seen In The Wild

Xiaomi has made a name for itself by bringing consumers medium to somewhat high end smartphones with decent specs for a low cost, but one area where they haven’t really touched base on just yet is with wearables. That may soon change though as we reported just about a week ago that Xiaomi had plans to bring a wearable to the market that would cost a mere $32, which is bargain price to say the least when you compare it to the cost of most other wearables out there currently. The Mi Band, as it’s too be called may not be available for consumers just yet but it seems to be ready to pose for the camera, as last week when we first brought up the existence of the device, an image accompanied the story that was of Xiaomi’s CEO and if you look closely, you’ll notice what looks like the Mi Band on his wrist.

As of today, it seems the Miband is ready for another pose, and this time it’s more of a close up. That is of course considering this is the fabled Xiaomi wearable in the first place. The image looks like it may have been taken from a top down shot by someone who noticed the smartband looking device worn by someone else and decided to take a couple pictures, made up of a black band covering the same silver piece we can see in the photo of Lei Jun. Rumors are that the wearable device will release sometime this month although no one at Xiaomi has said anything about hard dates or actual dollar amounts.

This will be another wearable running on an OS that is designed and built presumably all by Xiamoi itself, and not Android Wear. That’s not something too hard to believe as Xiamoi is the company responsible for the fairly popular Miui custom ROM that runs on every single one of Xiaomi’s own smartphones out of the box as well as other supported devices from other OEMs. Xiaomi is apparently holding an event later this month on July 22nd, and rumors state a possible launch of the Mi Band the same day, with event attendees potentially getting a free Mi Band much like those who attended Google I/O this year were given Android Wear based smartwatches. July 22nd is just around the corner so we should know more soon about the Mi Band and when it will be available and how much it will cost officially.

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Amazon Prime Is The Main Focus In New Fire Phone Ad

It has been a month now since Amazon unveiled their Fire Phone to the world. Now the time has come for Amazon to release their new smartphone in an already crowded market. As for first steps in getting their phone into consumers faces, they have begun airing commercials on TV. Unlike other companies that create commercials that are mostly focused on the phone itself such as design and innovative features, Amazon focused on something just a little bit different. The commercial is based around the phones access to Amazon Prime. The commercial has two little kids sitting in a coffee shop and being questioned by some adults about their phones. They begin to tell the lady about Amazon Prime and all the cool stuff to watch. If you’re not familiar with Amazon Prime, its Amazons large library full of your favorite TV shows and movies. There are also books, games and of course apps all in one place for you to access and download to your fire phone. At the end of the ad, its stated that a full year of prime is included, which means an entire year of entertainment, absolutely free.

The commercial at first glance may seem odd with two little kids conversing about what they have installed on their fire phone, but take it how you want it, the ad does get across how great Amazon Prime is. Amazon could have focused on other cool features that the phone sports like the Dynamic effect or the firefly technology. Overall the phone is neat and will more than likely be a big seller. Availability for the Amazon Fire Phone will be next Friday, July 25th. Sadly, the Fire Phone will only be available through AT&T. We could see the Fire Phone move on to other carriers as we did with the iPhone but only time will tell. Until then, let us know what you think about Amazon’s new ad. Another ad will be released next Thursday, so stay tuned to the air waves to catch another commercial that may focus on a different Fire Phone feature.

Click here to view the embedded video.

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Google and Samsung arguing over smartwatch conflict of interest

Partnerships in the mobile industry can be a bit odd. Companies often have altercations and even sue each other for insane amounts of money, but ultimately they have to keep working together. Google and Samsung do relatively well in their friendship, but reports say they are not doing so well right now.

Google and Samsung are said to be arguing over their smartwatch business practices. More specifically, Google CEO Larry Page is said to not be very fond of Samsung putting more effort into their own Tizen platform than the new Android Wear ecosystem. The report claims there is a “tense private meeting” between Page and Samsung Vice Chairman Jay Y. Lee.

It seems conflicts of interest will always be a problem. And it makes sense, Samsung is Google’s biggest partner – their new ventures and interest in Tizen are something to worry about. The problem here is that Samsung is pushing their Tizen line much stronger.

Can Google really complain much, though? For starters, they are breaking no rules, as far as we know. Google can only hope that Samsung will want to cooperate with them. It’s also important to note Samsung did release an Android Wear device… a very good one, at that.

It does follow the same design as the Gear 2, meaning Samsung didn’t really create a completely new device to feature Google’s new wearable platform. So far the Gear Live is the most affordable Android Wear device around, and it’s not one bit inferior. In fact, some may prefer it over the LG G Watch.

This is nothing but reports, so always take them with a grain of salt. In fact, we may not even consider it a rumor; it’s more like tech gossip, to be honest. Do you think Google has the right to be upset at Samsung? Will the Korean manufacturer make any changes?

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Google Will Hire Popular Software Developer/Hacker GeoHot For Project Zero Team

Google is on a mission to make the internet a safer place for everyone and there are many ways they’re going about doing this. Just one way is the ever evolving Chrome browser that they continue to advance in hopes to make it lighter, faster, and more secure so that everyone can get back to doing the things they love most online, whether that be watching videos of cats playing the piano or playing the occasional game, or simply just surfing social media. Google’s Project Zero, their next initiative to try and make the internet a much safer place to be is made up of a team of security researchers whose sole purpose is to hunt down and find bugs and other types of security flaws that touch basically every corner of the internet. Once found, their job is to report it to the software developer of the website, page or program where the bug was found so that a patch or fix can be developed.

It seems like an honorable cause right? Putting together a team of elite security researchers to track down and squash bugs that make using online services a nightmare? Yeah of course it does. Google will no doubt be using this team to track any bugs inside of their own products and services, but they won’t stop there. The team will be dedicated 100% to finding bugs anywhere on the internet, Google owned and operated or not, and they’re apparently enlisting the help of a popular developer/hacker George Hotz, better known as GeoHot to those who may have used his various pieces of software like the recent Towelroot for the Galaxy S5.

Hotz will come on as an intern among the team of security researchers which Google has plans to introduce to the world today. Even though this is just an internship and not an actual job position(just yet), Hotz was awarded $150,000 from Google during the Pwnium hacking contest that Google held a few months back, after tracking down and hacking through some defense flaws in Google’s Chrome browser. For someone who is known as the first person to ever jailbreak the original iPhone, reverse engineer and hack the PS3, and hack through Chrome’s defenses, we’d say that Google has found an invaluable member of the team to help Project Zero do just what Google has set out for it to do.

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Balloons 3D live wallpaper – Indie app of the day

What is Balloons 3D live wallpaper?

Okay that’s probably a silly question to ask since the description is also in the title. Balloons 3D live wallpaper is a live wallpaper and within it are a number of 3D balloons. It features a very colorful backdrop and it does inspire a feeling of happiness and tranquility. It probably helps that some of the balloons have smiley faces on them and that’s awesome.

The live wallpaper is optimized for both tablets and phones so it doesn’t matter which device you’re using. On top of the smiley balloons, there are also blue skies, rainbows, and some puffy white clouds. It really is quite pleasant to look upon. Some people may find it juvenile and it may be more enjoyable for kids than some adults but if you like colorful things you’ll probably like this live wallpaper.

In the settings you can find some options to customize the wallpaper. You can add or remove the rainbow, determine how many balloons are on the screen, and how fast they fly. You can also activate gyroscope mode which will move the wallpaper when you move your phone. It may be disorienting for some but the effect is pretty fun. You can even configure the frames per second if you need to turn it down for older devices.

Don't worry, be happy.

PROS

• Totally free with advertisements. No IAPs.


• Settings menu lets you configure pretty much all parts of the wallpaper.


• Optimized for phones and tablets.


• Excellent for kids.

CONS

• We wish you could do more stuff like interact with the balloons. That would've been awesome.


• Ads can be annoying but are quickly dismissed.

7.0

Overall this is a pretty fun little live wallpaper. The ads are a tad annoying but you only see them in the settings menu. It’s a great LWP for kids but some color-loving adults could find it enjoyable to look at too. We wish there were a few more features but all in all, not bad.

Check out our last indie app of the day: Android L Torch

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First Amazon Kindle Fire Phone commercial airs, forgets to show off a single cool hardware feature [VIDEO]

Amazon and AT&T are busy gearing up for the release the Amazon Kindle Fire Phone next week, but before then, they gotta get the word out. The phone’s first commercial has been uploaded to YouTube and features 2 young children (acting like adults) bragging to nearby adults about their new Kindle Fire Phones.

It’s cute, but doesn’t show off any of the phones unique hardware features — like Firefly which scans over 100 million products, movies, songs, books and more — choosing instead to focus on media content and Amazon’s free 1-year subscription to Amazon Prime. A nice value, but one we don’t imagine will help move units from store shelves.

The phone will be available next Friday, July 25th at your local AT&T store, or through Amazon here . Check out the new video down below.

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Mysterious Motorola battery cover leaked with Kevlar material and 2 large holes – could it be the Moto X+1?

The folks at HellomotoHK stumbled upon a mysterious batter cover for an alleged Motorola device, posting the image to their Facebook page for all to see. The image — which we’ve color corrected — shows black battery cover with kevlar-like material woven throughout. It’s not too unlike the back covers we’ve seen on the Motorola Droid line, currently exclusive to Verizon.

Although there appears to be 2 HTC One M8-style camera holes, we wouldn’t go that far in our assumptions. More than likely, the bottom hole will be used for the Motorola logo (which is absent on this battery cover), although we will admit it’s a bit strange to have a cutout for what is normally a printed logo.

Now, exactly which device this leaked battery cover belongs to is anyone’s guess. HellomotoHK lists off a few possible devices, naming the Motorola Moto X+1, a Google Play edition of the same phone, or some upcoming Motorola Droid 2014 device as likely candidates.

We hope this is only the beginning of a flood of leaks that will begin pouring out like we saw with last year’s Motorola Moto X.

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Kyocera Set To Bring Truly Affordable Pure Sapphire Glass Displays To Market Soon

In the ever continuing search and effort to make screens on smartphones tougher and tougher, the next step seems to manufacturing displays out of sapphire glass. Of course the rumors of the next iPhone model carrying a sapphire glass display are probably buzzing around like those annoying flies that just won’t leave you alone, however Apple is apparently not the only one gearing up to manufacture sapphire glass displays. Kyocera just sent out a press release about a new sapphire glass display that they’ll be working with in some way although they were very vague in their video with details.

Their short but sweet video mentions that they have over 41 years of experience in synthesizing sapphire and that they are the only manufacturer who has been working with it for that period of time. Apparently we can find their work with synthesized sapphire in everything from electronic components to LED lighting, and even high end wrist watches. It would be interesting to find out that they provided the sapphire glass for the watch face of the Moto 360 now wouldn’t it? Kyocera is calling this new type of glass display, “sapphire shield”, which isn’t surprising considering they’re wanting to play to the toughness that it will be able to provide.

Kyocera currently is one of the manufacturers who focuses on durable and tough smartphones that can take a beating, although they make no mention in the video if they’ll be using these “sapphire shield” displays on their own phones in the future or not. What they do mention is that their Sapphire Shield displays will be pure and “truly affordable”. That would fall in line with most of kyocera’s other products, a brand in electronics known for bringing affordable products pricing to the table for consumers. How affordable remains to be seen but Sapphire Glass displays are usually something that isn’t cheap. It’s an overall expensive process so the displays manufactured using that process in turn end up seeing that cost passed on, and down the line the consumer ends up paying a higher cost for the device or product that has it built in. The only other details they give out is that Sapphire Shield is “coming soon”, so that could be anytime during the rest of this year for all we know.

Click here to view the embedded video.

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Leaked Image Surfaces Of Potential Unreleased Motorola Droid back Cover

What does Verizon and Motorola’s next Droid device look like from the back? For certain, no one really knows yet. However it is possible that the image shown below could be the back for an upcoming device from Motorola as part of the Droid lineup. Motorola is the only OEM thus far that has used this type of material and design for the back covers for some of their phones, which is a possible indicator that we could be looking at one of the new Droid devices. Posted up on Hellomotohk’s Facebook page, this picture leaves us little detail and information, if any at all really, but we can speculate at least on what we see.

The back cover has numerous holes in it, and no those aren’t simply design flaws they’re there for a reason. Which was obvious right? The top hole is most likely for the camera, which is what most people are speculating on HK’s facebook comment thread, and the other assumption is that the bottom hole directly below it is for the Motorola logo stamp. While it is possible that they could implement a second camera lens here like HTC did with their duo camera on the M8, Motorola has never done anything like that before or hinted at it coming in a new device so it’s more unlikely that would be the case. Although anything is possible, and it would be cool to see what Motorola had in mind for such a feature should they decide to build it into a new phone.

The other two holes would most likely be set in place as openings for the LED flash to accompany the rear camera, which actually makes plenty of sense and they are the right size for it. It would have been nice to see something next to the back cover for a contrast to size, but we suppose we’ll have to wait for something like that to pop up. The back cover appears to have some rounded corners and a slight curve to the surface, similar looking to the curve on the HTC M8 but it could just be the lighting and the way the picture was taken making it look like that. Sadly that is really all we can tell from the picture. What do you think about this potential unreleased Moto Back cover?

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Google posts Q2 2014 earnings report: $15.96 billion in revenue, 22% increase from previous year

Ahead of their Q2 2014 earnings call, Google has issued an official press release for their Q2 earnings. Revenue is up 22% from last year, hitting a cool $15.96 billion.

Operating income came in at $4.26 billion (up from $3.47 billion the previous year), making for 27% of their revenue. When all is said and done, Google’s net income came in at $3.42 billion. For those curious about how Google did last quarter, they posted $15.4 revenue and $4.12 billion net (27% of revenue). That’s a nice 3% increase.

Google sites (Google owned properties like YouTube, Maps, etc.) accounted for $10.94 of their total revenue, a 23% increase from last year (partner sites accounted for $3.42 billion). Paid clicks saw a 25% increase from 2013, while cost-per-click dropped 6%.

Patrick Pichette, Google CFO Patrick Pichette said during the call:

“We are moving forward with great product momentum and are excited to continue providing amazing user experiences, with a view to the long term.”

Google also mentions they saw 300% increase in bringing traffic to businesses via smartphones and tablets and when it came to the Motorola team, they’re said to still hard at work, seeing “strong sales in emerging markets” with the wallet-friendly Motorola Moto E and Motorola Moto G.

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Kyocera Says It Will Make Sapphire Screens For Smartphones

Kyocera isn't exactly a big name in modern Android smartphones, but it does make a lot of rugged devices that don't get much press. It's also big in materials science, which is where sapphire comes in. See, it seems like a safe bet that the next iPhone will have a sapphire glass display, and Kyocera happens to know a lot about manufacturing synthetic sapphire for watches and electrical components. So, they're making sapphire screens for smartphones.

Kyocera Says It Will Make Sapphire Screens For Smartphones was written by the awesome team at Android Police.

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Google Announces Q2 2014 Financial Earnings – $15.96 Billion in revenue

It’s earnings time. And it’s Google’s turn. So it’s time to see how well the search engine did in Q2 of the 2014 year. Their revenue for the quarter ending on June 30, 2014, were $15.96 billion, which is a 22% increase year over year. Q2 2013 saw a $13.11 billion revenue. Breaking that down, site revenues accounted for 69% of their revenue which is roughly $10.94 billion. Bringing in a 23% increase year-over-year. Google’s partner sites generated about $3.42 billion in revenue which is roughly 21% of their total revenue. Also a 7% increase over Q2 2013.

As far as their operating income goes, in the second quarter it accounted for $4.26 billion which is 27% of their revenues. Compared to $3.47 billion in 2013. Making a 1% rise year over year. As of June 30, 2014, cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities were $61.20 billion. This excludes the cash classified as held for sale, compared to the $58.72 billion as of December 31, 2013. As far as head counts go, Google had 52,069 full-time employees as of June 30, 2014. Compared to 49,829 full time employees as of March 31, 2014. Now remember that Motorola is still under Google’s ownership as the Lenovo deal for Motorola isn’t yet official. So the breakdown between the companies are 48,584 for Google, and 3,485 for Motorola as of June 30, 2014. Compared to 46,170 for Google and 3,659 for Motorola as of March 31, 2014. Also important to remember that results for Motorola is presented as “Net income (loss) from discontinued operations”.

Net income from discontinued operations for Q2 were $68 million. Which compared to $454 million in Q2 of 2013, is quite a difference. Google noted that if they had presented Motorola Mobility as an operating segment, their revenue for the second quarter would have been $1.73 billion. Which is $72 million lower than what was included in the net loss from discontinued operations.

Google’s webcast for the second quarter financial earnings will be taking place in just a little bit. Around 4:30pm ET or 1:30pm PT. If you’re interested in watching, we have the video embedded down below for your convenience.

Click here to view the embedded video.

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This could be our first look at the upcoming NVIDIA Shield Tablet [LEAK]

After the rumored NVIDIA Shield Tablet appeared in a Global Certification Forum database earlier this month, we were curious to see what NVIDIA had up their sleeves for the upcoming gaming tablet. Today, we may finally have our first look.

Rumored to usher in the NVIDIA Tegra K1 processor, there’s no question the tab would be able to handle Android’s current crop of high-end games. But how will the thing look? Well, @evleaks is once back again doing the honors, presenting an alleged press shot for the upcoming tablet. In the render, you’ll notice stereo front facing speakers housed in what could be an aluminum body. Other than that, well, there’s really not much else.

Evleaks mentions the tablet is due out sometime this year (2014), but no word on exact timing of release. It was only a year ago NVIDIA launched their Shield handheld to lackluster sales. We suppose now is a good time as any to introduce something new. We’re sure to learn more about the NVIDIA Shield Tablet as the weeks progress, so stay tuned.

[@evleaks]

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Guardians of the Galaxy movie tie-in arrives to Android, no in-app purchases

What is one thing nearly every movie-tie app has in common? If you said, a freemium model littered with in-app purchases, you are correct! Thankfully this doesn’t seem to be the case with Guardians of the Galaxy: The Universal Weapon, a premium game that will set users back $4.99.

While the game is in fact a tie-in to the movie’s upcoming release, the story here isn’t the same as the movie. The game is essentially an action RPG that allows you to play as Star-Lord, Gamora, Rocket, Groot and Drax. You can also unlock 25 additional characters, all of which can be upgraded with new talents and skills.

In total, there are 60 levels in the story mode, and there’s also an arena mode that pits you against various foes. And best of all, there are NO in-app purchases, and you don’t need to be online to play. To check out the game for yourself, you’ll want to head on over to Google Play.

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LG G3 Now Available at Verizon Wireless for $99 on Contract

Today’s the day. The day that the LG G3 finally arrives at Verizon and finishes up it’s launch tour of the US carriers. It launched last week on Sprint and AT&T. Yesterday it came to T-Mobile’s magenta network and today it’s Verizon’s red network turn. Verizon is actually selling the LG G3 for just $99 on contract, which is a pretty decent deal since AT&T and Sprint are selling it for $199 on contract. If you want to grab it on Verizon’s EDGE promotion, it’ll be $29.99/month, which works out to about $600 for full retail. Verizon is also selling the LG G Watch which is $229.99 and a great compliment to the LG G3.

For those unaware, the LG G3 features a 5.5-inch 2560×1440 resolution IPS display, 3GB of RAM, 32GB of storage with a microSD card slot that fits up to 128GB, 13MP camera on the back with Laser Auto Focus, and a 2.1MP front-facing camera, Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor clocked at 2.5GHz, 3000mAh removable battery and Android 4.4.2 Kitkat with LG’s latest overlay on top. We reviewed the LG G3 last month – albeit the Korean version – and were quite impressed with the device. As far as an upgrade from the LG G2, it’s definitely a good upgrade, even though the spec sheet doesn’t seem like a huge jump. After you start using it, you’ll notice the difference – and this comes from an LG G2 user.

Those that pre-ordered the LG G3, you should be seeing your device show up later today if it hasn’t already. Others looking to stop by a Verizon Wireless store and check it out, by all means go ahead and do so. It’s a great device, and one I’d recommend to everyone. How many of you are picking up the Verizon LG G3 today? Let us know in the comments below.

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Verizon Brings 4G LTE to Prepaid plans Beginning Today

Today is a pretty big day for Verizon. The Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet and LG G3 went on sale and now their new ALLSET plans which brings 4G LTE to their prepaid plans, goes live as well. We’ve been hearing about their new ALLSET plans for a few weeks now and the carrier confirmed it earlier this week, stating it would begin on July 17th, which is today. There’s not much new to these plans, but the big thing is that Verizon prepaid subscribers can finally get 4G LTE. Up until this point, they were stuck with just 3G, which their 3G network has been deteriorating pretty fast.

With these new ALLSET plans you can get unlimited talk and text with 500MB of data for just $45/month. But for a limited time, when you sign up you can get 1GB for that same price. Now that might not seem all that fantastic, but this is Verizon we’re talking about. The ones with the best network. You can also add an additional 500MB for just $5/month. Customers looking to take advantage of the new ALLSET plans can choose from any smartphone Verizon already offers. This means you can buy a Samsung Galaxy S5, HTC One M8 or the LG G3 and put it on prepaid, quick and easily. Once more, ALLSET also includes XLTE and not just 4G LTE, so you’ll likely run through that data cap pretty quickly. You can do this both online and in their stores.

It’s great to see Verizon beginning to get competitive with their prepaid plans, as that market has been booming in the past few years. Especially for GSM carriers like T-Mobile and AT&T. But that’s mainly from the Nexus lineup and the Moto G, since they are so cheap, people are going prepaid now. How many of you are interested in the ALLSET plans from Verizon?

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The Galaxy Note 4 will tell you to apply sunscreen when the UV index is high

Samsung has been developing the health and fitness component of its high-end smartphones, and now it’s reportedly taking the concept a step further with the addition of an ultraviolet sensor on the Galaxy Note 4.

As reported by Sam Mobile , the new sensor will allow the Note 4 to determine when the UV index reaches potentially harmful levels and offer recommendations based on it. The functionality will be integrated into the S Health app, but the readings won’t happen automatically – reportedly, users will need to hold the phone at “over 60 degree angle of elevation towards the sun against the back of the sensor”.

It’s not clear where on the Note 4 the UV sensor will be located. In addition to it, the phone will also feature the heart rate monitor first launched on the Galaxy S5.

Based on the UV readings, the Note 4 will assess the UV threat from Low to Extreme and offer practical protection advices, such as wearing sunglasses, applying sunscreen, and avoiding going out during certain times of the days. You can check the full recommendations on EPA’s site.

The Galaxy Note 4 will probably launch at the IFA 2014 electronics show in Berlin, in the first week of September.

Do you consider having an UV sensor an useful addition to the Note 4?

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Android Wear watch face API still in the works, likely to arrive alongside Android L

Android Wear is still in its early days, and so it’s really no surprise that there are parts of the platform that aren’t fully ready to go just yet. In particular, current Android Wear custom watchfaces arguably leave a lot to be desired as they employ several workarounds and act as standalone apps in order to work at all. This means that certain things don’t work just right, in particular the way the faces interact with incoming cards can be a bit wonky.

So what’s the deal here? Wayne Piekarski, a senior developer advocate at Google, has now taken to Google+ to clarify what’s going on. In his post he says that Google is still working on the custom watch face API and so he suggests that developers hold off on releasing their custom watch faces, at least outside of beta and alpha channels, until everything is ready — though obviously many developers have already ignored this advice.

So when will we see the API? While Google doesn’t give an exact timeframe, Piekarski does say that some of the changes needed for the API will require Android L, so we’d imagine that Android Wear users will be waiting at least a couple more months. In the meantime, if you want a custom watchface, you’ll have to put up with some of the potential issues and glitches found in the current unofficial offerings on Google Play.

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Magic 2015: Duels of the Planeswalkers for Android now available from Google Play

Card slingers and dice rollers should be pleased by this bit of news: Magic 2015: Duels of the Planeswalker is now available from Google Play. The game is a casual-focused offering of the popular Magic the Gathering card game where people duel with creatures, enchantments and spells to bring their opponents’ life to zero.

The 2015 release coincides with the launch of the latest core set in the physical trading card game, and as such will feature many cards from the new set as well as from years prior. So what’s new in this release that they’re hoping will get you to drop another $10 (minimum) to play? Let’s take a look:

• New, clean user interface that puts more emphasis on the attack phase of a turn


• A free-form deck building system that allows you to mix and match cars however you want


• Unlock cards using booster cards that can either be earned through gameplay or purchased via $2 premium purchases


• Online multiplayer (wasn’t present in last year’s Android version despite being available on iPad version)


• New advanced cards such as dual lands

And that’s just scratching the surface. For the story (which we never play Magic for, but it’s there anyway), you’ll be working to defeat Garruk, the planeswalker whose beast-hunting pastime was replaced by a thirst for human blood thanks to a nasty curse. Having beaten the game on PC already, let me just say you’ve never seen Garruk quite like this before.

Some will be disappointed to learn that there are cards that can only be unlocked using the $2 premium booster packs, though the fact that you can still get more than 85% of the game’s cards without paying more than the initial $10 cost of admission should be a bit comforting.

This download won’t be for weak-willed internet connections at a whopping 1.3GB, so be sure to hop on WiFi if you decide you want to play. You can give it a try for free if you’re interested (you’ll be able to play the tutorial and the first Innistrad planes), so hop on over to Google Play for the download and see if you can’t fall in love with Magic all over again. Be sure to check out the gameplay video above while you’re waiting for your download to see what awaits you inside the multiverse.

Magic 2015 (Playboard) | Magic 2015 (Play Store)

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Latest Maps update allows you to take tour of London in 3D

In Google’s latest update for Maps users of both the mapping app and Google Earth will be able to take a 3D tour of London. In the 3D map you’ll be able to take a virtual tour of the Thames, and other landmarks from the city. London is just one of five cities that appears in 3D in Maps. Others include Birmingham, Leeds, Reading and Stoke on Trent. Of course, the 3D aspect isn’t just exclusive to the tourist portions of the English City and 3D imagery has extended to cover the entire city.

So if you’re in an exploring mood, head here to get started. Of course it should be noted that a decent Internet connection is a must.

source: Engadget

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Goodbye Nokia Android phones, we hardly knew you

Microsoft just announced that future Nokia X devices will be running Windows Phone instead of Android.

This puts an end to Microsoft’s brief adventure in Android land, which began less than five months ago when Stephen Elop, then CEO of Nokia, announced the Nokia X at MWC in Barcelona.

In a letter to employees released today, Elop, now head of Microsoft’s devices division, announced a series of measures meant to bring focus and efficiency to the company’s newly acquired phone manufacturing unit. Among these measures is the transition of “select Nokia X” devices to the Lumia line and the replacement of Android with Windows Phone on upcoming Nokia X devices.

The shift to Windows Phone is already underway, but Microsoft will continue to sell and support existing Android Nokia X devices. This includes the Nokia X2, announced on June 24 and scheduled to become available globally by the end of the month.

Ditching Android for the X line is a sign that Microsoft is looking to compete more aggressively at the bottom end with Windows Phone. The Redmond company recently made its mobile OS free for smartphones and small tablets, in an effort to convince manufacturers to adopt instead of the much more popular Android.

We plan to drive Windows Phone volume by targeting the more affordable smartphone segments, which are the fastest growing segments of the market, with Lumia. In addition to the portfolio already planned, we plan to deliver additional lower-cost Lumia devices by shifting select future Nokia X designs and products to Windows Phone devices.

Stephen Elop

Nokia X devices, available for as little as $130 and targeted at price conscious users in developing countries, feature a forked version of Android skinned to look like Windows Phone, while still maintaining compatibility with Android apps. However, because they run a forked version of Android, Nokia X phones don’t have access to the Play Store, though users can pick up Android apps from a store maintained by Microsoft.

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Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet Available from Verizon Wireless Beginning Today

Just last week, Verizon and Sony announced that the Xperia Z2 Tablet was making their way over to Verizon’s network and would support XLTE as well. The Xperia Z2 Tablet is not a cheap tablet, but that’s what we’ve come to expect from Sony these days. Is, much like Apple, you’re paying for the Sony name with their devices. The Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet has a 10.1-inch 1920×1200 resolution display, it’s also IP67 rated water resistant and dust resistant. It’s also packing a Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor clocked at 2.3GHz, 3GB of RAM, 32GB of internal storage along with a microSD card slot supporting up to 128GB of extra storage. It’s also running Android 4.4.2 KitKat along with the latest Sony overlay on top.

Verizon is offering the Xperia Z2 Tablet for $599 outright, or $499 on contract. If you really want this tablet, I’d urge you to not buy it on contract, and to go ahead and buy it outright, as the difference is only $100, you’re going to save more money in the long run. Verizon also expanded their EDGE program to tablets last week, so that you can purchase the Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet on Verizon and pay monthly for it – which isn’t a bad idea either if you plan on keeping it for a while – on EDGE it’ll cost you around $29.99 per month for about 20 months. Which actually comes out to right about $599, which isn’t bad.

It’s great to see more Sony products making their way onto US carriers, although I think we would have rather see the Xperia Z2 instead of the Xperia Z2 Tablet on Verizon, or any other carrier. Sony has typically not been in the US market due to the carriers taking their sweet time. We’re still crossing our fingers and hoping that changes pretty soon though. How many of you are going to be picking up the Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet from Verizon Wireless?

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[For Developers] Google I/O 2014 Wrap-Up: The Must-See Sessions For Every Developer

Google I/O was pretty amazing this year, right? We got the deets on Material design, a preview version of Android L, the formal release of Android Wear, the first manifestations of Android TV and Android Auto, and plenty of other bits and pieces. However, all of that content and all of those developer sessions can take forever to absorb, and professional developers just don't have time for that. Now that all of the videos have been posted, I've combed through over every last one to narrow the list down to just the sessions that absolutely can't be missed.

[For Developers] Google I/O 2014 Wrap-Up: The Must-See Sessions For Every Developer was written by the awesome team at Android Police.

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