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Opinion: 3D Touch gives iPhone 6s one lead over every Android phone on the market

Avatar for Stephen Hall Sep 9 2015 - 1:41 pm PT
36 Comments

Apple is very rarely the first to introduce new features for features’ sake. The Apple Watch launched an entire year after the first Android Wear devices were unveiled. Touch ID came to the iPhone years after fingerprint sensors were seen on Android phones, and the company was one of the last smartphone manufacturers to offer a larger-screened phone with the release of the iPhone 6 Plus.  The examples of Apple being late to the game — although some would argue, the first to do things right — are endless. But this isn’t one of those cases. While Samsung dabbles with edged screens, Apple has today introduced what I think is a game-changing new experience for developers to play with. And play they will.

I’m not an Apple fanboy at all. In fact, I own one Apple smartphone — the iPhone 6 — at the moment, alongside five or six different Android phones. The Nexus 6 is usually my daily driver, and I (kind of, sort of) use Android Wear as my smartwatch OS of choice. I’ve never owned an Apple Watch nor an Apple TV, I didn’t even own an iPhone until the iPhone 5, and I have only been in possession of an iPad for maybe 6 months — the first generation iPad mini — before I found myself never using it at all and decided to sell it on eBay. All of this said, at least one of the improvements Apple brought to the iPhone line today has very much impressed me.

And not only do I think it’s cool, but it sets the iPhone line apart from anything that Android makers offer in 2015…
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Mobile Application Management now supports iOS, lets Google Apps admins suggest apps for their employees

Avatar for Stephen Hall Sep 9 2015 - 12:28 pm PT
0 Comments

Google Apps has offered Mobile Application Management (MAM) on Android for quite some time, but today the Mountain View company is introducing the same functionality on iOS. As was the case with the Android version, MAM lets Google Apps administrators suggest the apps that it would prefer their employees install on Apps-managed iOS devices…
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Game on: Sony uses Siri-themed secret message to taunt Apple

Avatar for Stephen Hall Sep 9 2015 - 8:52 am PT
2 Comments

Leading up to Apple’s “Hey Siri”-themed press event today, Siri has been giving out a lot of unhelpful announcement hints to users who say “Hey Siri, give me a hint”. One of these was a binary code, which when decoded only revealed the word “Gotcha”. It goes without saying that if you want some real hints about what Apple’s going to announce, all you need to do is to read Mark’s roundup.

But Sony, the company that just last week unveiled the world’s first 4K smartphone, the Xperia Z5 Premium, has taken to Twitter to taunt the Cupertino-based company. Also using the familiar binary, Sony wrote “01000111 01100001 01101101 01100101 00100000 01101111 01101110 00101110”. Converted to text? That’s “Game on.”
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HTC reportedly working on an Android Wear smartwatch codenamed ‘halfbeak’

Avatar for Stephen Hall Sep 8 2015 - 8:49 pm PT
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According to the well-connected Derek Ross, HTC hasn’t given up yet. Although its smartphone business is struggling more than ever, the company is reportedly working on an Android Wear smartwatch to compete with the devices we just saw announced at IFA. According to Ross’ report, the device is round a la the Moto 360 and the Huawei watch, sports a resolution of 360 x 360, and is codenamed “halfbeak”…
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This is the best look at LG’s upcoming Nexus 5 (2015) we’ve seen yet

Avatar for Stephen Hall Sep 8 2015 - 1:52 pm PT
1 Comment

Of the Nexus announcements scheduled for later this month, the rumored LG Nexus 5 is definitely the one we know more about. A month ago the first full renders leaked, and just a few weeks ago, a photo of the device in the flesh managed to leak out as well. At least a couple publications have confirmed that this physical build is indeed the new Nexus, and we’ve even seen independent reports confirming its specifications as well.

But it’s not over yet, as Android Pit has now come out with images it claims are the new device, and they’re definitely the best look we’ve had yet…
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9to5Toys Lunch Break: Free Galaxy Tab 3 Lite w/ Galaxy S6 purchase, Chromecast $22, more

Avatar for Stephen Hall Sep 8 2015 - 12:49 pm PT
0 Comments

Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.

Today’s can’t miss deals:

Free Samsung Galaxy Tablet w/ Samsung Galaxy S6 or Galaxy S6 edge purchase at Best Buy

Daily Deals: Logitech Harmony Ultimate Remote $200, Google Chromecast (Refurb) $22, more

Amazon Gold Box – Sandisk SSD, memory card & flash storage up to 60% off: 128GB Flash Drive $30 (Orig. $60), more

Amazon Gold Box – Surge Protectors: Belkin 6-outlet w/ Dual-USB $14 (Reg. $25), more

More new gear from today:

USB Accessories w/ Prime shipping: Aluminum 4-port Hub $6 (Reg. $16), 10-port Charger $20 (Reg. $35)

More deals still alive:

Motorola Nexus 6 Unlocked 32GB in Cloud White/Midnight Blue: $350 shipped (Orig. $650)

New products & more:

Minecraft: Story Mode gets a release date as pre-orders ramp up

Amazon now offers money back to Prime members after their first Dash button purchase

Report: Google to take on AmazonFresh, will begin testing fresh-food delivery in two US cities this year

Avatar for Cam Bunton Sep 8 2015 - 8:24 am PT
1 Comment

Bloomberg reports that Google will begin testing grocery and fresh food delivery in two US cities later this year in an attempt to directly compete with AmazonFresh. Brian Elliot, general manager of Google Express stated that the company will be partnering with Whole Foods Market and Costco Wholesale, among others, to deliver the new service. Initial testing will begin in San Francisco and one other unnamed city…


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Porn app for Android takes pictures of users, holds them for $500 ransom

Avatar for Tom Maxwell Sep 7 2015 - 7:35 pm PT
1 Comment

BBC News reports that security firm Zscaler recently discovered an app for Android which advertised itself as a way to access pornography, but which actually blackmailed its users for money:

Adult Player appeared to offer pornography, but secretly took pictures of users with the phone’s front-facing camera.

It then locked the user’s device and displayed a demand for $500 (£330) which was difficult to bypass.

Ransomware is the name given to malicious software which gains access to a computer — desktop or otherwise — and then threatens to wipe the device or release private information gathered from it if the owner doesn’t send the demanded amount of money. The BBC for its report quotes Intel Security as saying examples of this software appearing in the wild have increased 127% since 2014. “Apps like this rely on the embarrassment factor. If you don’t pay, your reputation is on the line,” said Raj Samani, chief technology officer for Intel Security.

One very important line in this story is somewhat buried, however:

The app was not available from vetted storefronts such as Google Play, but could be installed directly from a webpage.

What this means is that for someone to actually install this ransomware on their Android device, they’d have to intentionally bypass the security measures put in place specifically to prevent nightmares like what this software can do from occurring. And it’s clear that from descriptions of the app that its misbehaviors, like locking the device and constantly displaying messages across the system, would be blatant enough to trip up Google’s Bouncer anti-malware screening:

Zscaler said the app’s ransom message kept the phone’s screen switched on at all times, and reappeared if the handset was restarted.

Samani’s advice for steering clear of software like Adult Player is the same thing we heard during the desktop era:

Only download apps from the proper Google Play store. And if you receive an app download link in an email, don’t click it.

When it comes to software-based technology, attackers will always be digging from new exploits which means us consumers will always be on the defense. This is another case in particular, however, where the solution is simple: Download your apps and files from reputable providers, and if you need to download a new app store altogether, like Amazon’s, grab it straight from their official HTTPS-secured website.

This YouTuber got Game Boy Advance games running on Android Wear [Video]

Avatar for Stephen Hall Sep 7 2015 - 6:48 pm PT
0 Comments

We told you almost a year ago that one developer had managed to get Game Boy Color games running on Android Wear, but now someone has managed to do one better. In a recently-uploaded video shared by “Hacking Jules“, we can see Game Boy Advance games running on an LG G Watch — the oldest of the Android Wear. As usual, we in the Android community don’t need rhyme or reason for our tinkering…

As we can see in the below video, the emulator that this one particular user got running on his or her Android Wear watch is “My Boy!”, which can be found on the Play Store for just about $5. It’s pretty hilarious seeing the old Mario Kart for GBA played on a watch with a screen as tiny as this. For all intents and purposes, it’s completely unplayable. The controls completely cover the screen, and your finger would cover it more.

Nonetheless, check out the video below:

Google makes it harder for Adblockers to block YouTube ads in Chrome

Avatar for Cam Bunton Sep 7 2015 - 9:23 am PT
18 Comments

It’s no secret that Google makes the majority of its money from advertising revenue, and has done for a very long time. So, when a product comes along to threaten that major revenue stream, it has to find ways to combat it. That’s seemingly what it’s done with AdBlock Plus, a relatively well-known Chrome extension used to block out ads across the internet. This includes the ads shown before and during video playback on YouTube…


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Google OnHub Review: An excellent but expensive router with a lot of potential

Avatar for Seth Weintraub Sep 5 2015 - 10:43 am PT
0 Comments

While we’re off in Berlin at IFA, our good friend Mike “Detroit Borg” Kukielka got his hands on the $200 Google OnHub router manufactured by TP-Link. We’ve seen a lot of other reviews but this one is an excellent in-depth overview which hits all the right spots.

The TL;DR is that it is about as good a router you can buy but at $200 the differentiating features aren’t quite ready yet. Seems like a go especially if your home networking is currently lacking and you plan on living in Google’s home ecosystem in the future.  Pick up one at Amazon, Best Buy, NewEgg, Walmart, Google, or TP-Link .  Full video below


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9to5Toys Lunch Break: Samsung Galaxy S5 (unlocked) $190, Used Pebble Time smartwatch $93, more

Avatar for Stephen Hall Sep 4 2015 - 1:02 pm PT
0 Comments

Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.

Today’s can’t miss deals:

Samsung SM-G900V Galaxy S5 16 GB 4G LTE unlocked: $190 shipped (Reg. $500) | eBay

Pebble Time - Awesome Smartwatch, No Compromises by Pebble Technology — Kickstarter 2015-02-24 08-58-47

Used Pebble Time smartwatch: $92.69 shipped w/ code LDAY10 (Reg. $150+)  | CowBoom

Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge 32GB (factory unlocked): $500 shipped (Reg. $1,000) | eBay

Pre-orders for the new Moto 360 (2nd gen) and Huawei Watch are now live on the Google Store

LG G Pad V410 AT&T GSM Unlocked 7-Inch 4G LTE 16GB Tablet: $80 shipped (Reg. $200) | eBay

 

LG G3 D850 32 GB unlocked new 32GB blue: $250 shipped (Reg. $400) | eBay

Philips Friends of Hue: LightStrip Starter Kit $120 (Reg. $200), Iris Light $60 (Reg. $100)

Star Wars Force Friday: new Lightsabers, LEGO sets, Nerf blasters, drones, deals and more

Last Chance!!! Giveaway: $400 Belkin WeMo bundle including the new Lightify Starter Set, multiple winners

More new gear from today:

Aukey Smartphone Car Accessories w/ Prime shipping: 4-port USB Charger $7, Air Vent Mount $5, more

Canon Refurbished Labor Day Sale: Rebel SL1 DSLR w/ 18-55mm Lens Kit $350 (Orig. $699), more

More deals still alive:

SanDisk Ultra 200GB Micro SD card for Android devices: $200 shipped (Reg. $220+)

JBL’s Pulse 2 Bluetooth speaker takes its lightshow next level, previous gen on sale for $100 (Reg. $150)

New products & more:

Philips’ latest Hue lightstrips put out white light and are extendable

Review: Tucker and Bloom’s East to West XL Messenger Bag goes big to handle all your gear

Amazon now offers money back to Prime members after their first Dash button purchase

Report: Google planning to reenter China w/ special Play Store, Android Wear support, more

Avatar for Stephen Hall Sep 4 2015 - 10:29 am PT
3 Comments

According to a new report out this morning from The Information, Google is planning a re-entry into China which could come as early as this fall. Among other initiatives, the report says that Google is planning to launch a special version of its Google Play Store app marketplace made specifically for the Chinese market, as well as bringing support for its Android Wear mobile operating system to the country…
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Android Pay set to launch on September 16th according to leaked Verizon memo

Avatar for Stephen Hall Sep 4 2015 - 9:29 am PT
0 Comments

According to a leaked internal Verizon Wireless memo obtained by Derek Ross of Phandroid, Google is preparing to launch its Android Pay mobile payments service on September 16th. This leak comes a couple weeks after another memo from McDonalds leaked, suggesting that the service would launch on August 26th. Clearly that launch date has been missed, but now it looks like we might have more reliable information…
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LG’s upcoming ‘V10’ handset has a 5.7-inch screen, an auxiliary ‘ticker display,’ Snapdragon 808

Avatar for Stephen Hall Sep 4 2015 - 7:59 am PT
0 Comments

We told you yesterday about an unknown LG “V” handset, and now Evan Blass of evleaks has confirmed that this device is indeed the LG V10 handset that he shared many details about just a few days ago. Evan said that the device has an “auxiliary ticker display” not unlike that of the ye olde Samsung Continuum, and also went on to share some the specs of the yet-to-be-announced phone…
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Viewing websites in Chrome should now use 10% less memory on average [Video]

Avatar for Stephen Hall Sep 3 2015 - 1:52 pm PT
0 Comments

Following the public release of Chrome 45 a couple of days ago, Google yesterday detailed an important new feature for mobile: Chrome Custom Tabs. Now, Google is showing off more of the performance improvements that the company has introduced in the latest version, allowing Chrome to use less memory and power on the desktop. In one example, it seems Google has managed to reduce the memory footprint of most sites you visit through the browser…
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9to5Toys Lunch Break: Samsung Galaxy Gear $55, Sphero’s BB8 coming tomorrow for $150, more

Avatar for Stephen Hall Sep 3 2015 - 1:00 pm PT
0 Comments

Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.

Today’s can’t miss deals:

Daily Deals: Samsung Galaxy Gear Android Smart Watch (refurb) $55, Smallville Complete Series $85, more

Sphero’s BB8 Star Wars toy lands tomorrow for $150, and we all want it

Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge 32GB (factory unlocked): $500 shipped (Reg. $1,000) | eBay

Pre-orders for the new Moto 360 (2nd gen) and Huawei Watch are now live on the Google Store

LG G Pad V410 AT&T GSM Unlocked 7-Inch 4G LTE 16GB Tablet: $80 shipped (Reg. $200) | eBay

SanDisk Ultra 200GB Micro SD card for Android devices: $200 shipped (Reg. $220+)

LG G3 D850 32 GB unlocked new 32GB blue: $250 shipped (Reg. $400) | eBay

GoPro HERO4 Silver waterproof action camera: $319 shipped (Reg. $400)

Giveaway: $400 Belkin WeMo bundle including the new Lightify Starter Set, multiple winners

More new gear from today:

JBL’s Pulse 2 Bluetooth speaker takes its lightshow next level, previous gen on sale for $100 (Reg. $150)

More deals still alive:

Twelve South iPad Air/mini cases: BookBook from $35 (Orig. $80), leather SurfacePad $35 (Reg. $70), more

Incase MacBook Backpacks 50% off in multiple colors w/ free shipping: Cargo $40 (Reg. $80), Staple $30 (Reg. $60)

New products & more:

Polaroid’s latest pocket-sized Snap cam instantly prints photos with no ink

Review: Tucker and Bloom’s East to West XL Messenger Bag goes big to handle all your gear

Amazon now offers money back to Prime members after their first Dash button purchase

Google updates health Knowledge Graph with hundreds more conditions, printable PDFs for doctor visits, more

Avatar for Zac Hall Sep 3 2015 - 10:08 am PT
1 Comment

Google first introduced fact-checked health information to its Knowledge Graph earlier this year to present quality medical facts to users searching for specific conditions. Today the search giant says it will soon have over 900 health conditions included in its Knowledge Graph offering “quick at-a-glance info on symptoms, treatments, prevalence, and more.” Google says this more than doubles the amount of health conditions it included at the start. Google’s health information Knowledge Graph is getting smarter in other ways too.


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Barnes & Noble, Samsung launch the 8-inch Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK

Avatar for Stephen Hall Sep 3 2015 - 9:35 am PT
0 Comments

Following the introduction of Samsung’s Galaxy Tab S2 a couple of months ago, it appears that the Korean company has now partnered with Barnes & Noble to launch a “NOOK” variant of the device. While the standard S2 comes in both 9.7-inch and 8.0-inch screen sizes, the S2 NOOK embraces the 8-inch variant and packs plenty of Barnes & Noble software on top…
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Skype 6 for Android adds floating action button and improved messaging in latest redesign

Avatar for Zac Hall Sep 3 2015 - 8:36 am PT
0 Comments

It was only a month ago that Skype for Android was hit with a slight visual refresh, and today Microsoft is pushing out a much bigger redesign to the messaging app that it says was inspired by Google’s Material design. Skype 6.0 for Android replaces the custom action bar along the bottom of the app with a new floating action button that should be familiar to other modern Android apps. The action button ties in shortcuts to video messages, video calls, voice calls, and conversation chats.
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Google’s new ‘I’m feeling curious’ feature is really addicting

Avatar for Stephen Hall Sep 3 2015 - 6:36 am PT
0 Comments

Google is definitely known for its hidden easter eggs and features in search, and this one is really going to keep you occupied: Searching for “I’m feeling curious” now shows you a widget that rotates through some random and interesting facts about just about everything — from how much a “lifetime airline pass” costed in the 80s to facts about Oprah.

After clicking the “Ask Another Question” a few times, it looks like the box pulls information from anywhere and everywhere on the web. A few facts were pulled from Wikipedia, and plenty of others were from History.com, Princeton.edu, People.com, and several other sources. As a bonus, it looks like “thefactsite.com” is going to get some nice extra traffic today.

If you want to check it out, head over to Google and search “I’m feeling curious“. Alternatively, it looks like other similar queries like “fun facts” will also show the widget.

Google restructures payment options for users of Maps APIs

Avatar for Tom Maxwell Sep 2 2015 - 2:10 pm PT
0 Comments

Developers who want to do unique things with Google’s mapping technology, like plot markers on a map from a content management system, can now do it more affordably. Several Maps APIs have been moved to a payment model where you pay just for what you need.

With the move, the following APIs will begin to cost $0.50 per 1,000 requests after the first 2,500 in each 24-hour period: Geocoding, Directions, Distance Matrix, Roads, Geolocation, Elevation, and Time Zone APIs. This price will stay in place until developers pass 100,000 requests per day. Beyond that large number, developers will need to contact Google to request a premium license.

Previously developers who exceeded the 2,500 per day cap had to contact Google about purchasing one of its premium Google Maps for Work licenses, now called Google Maps for Business, which has been quoted as costing as much as $10,000 per year (Google doesn’t publicly list a price). Basically the APIs are now accessible to a much larger portion of those who want to use them.

Google Maps for Android gains richer local recommendation search

Avatar for Tom Maxwell Sep 2 2015 - 1:09 pm PT
0 Comments

Google Maps on mobile has since last year had an Explore section where users can find the best restaurants to eat at and things to do in their area. With an update rolling out today to the Android app, it’s becoming a bit more easy to specify and narrow down exactly what you’re looking for.

Prior to today, Explore only used the inputs of distance and time of day to determine what to show you. Users can now, however, specify a nearby neighborhood, category, and type of cuisine to find, on top of the existing inputs. Tapping on a suggested place will bring up more detail like who the vibe is best, or least, suited for, and sometimes it’ll include why Google chose to recommend that place in particular.

It seems crazy to me that Explore in Google Maps was lacking this type of gradual search before, but it was. The new inputs make perfect sense, too — what if I specifically want to find a place to have drinks with friends, and also make sure it’s not too upscale of a place? You couldn’t narrow your results down that far before, but now you can. Well, that’s if you’re in the US or UK, where the Explore update is limited to for now. And if you happen to be in NYC, San Francisco or London, Google will even curate its suggestions into named sections like “Best places for classic Mission-style Mexican food.”

Aside from the new search, the UI has been updated a bit with a card-based interface for swiping through suggested places and their corresponding photos. This interface closely matches what Google rolled out to its search product on mobile for rich content results just a few days ago. Maps for Android also recently saw its directions interface updated with a similar tabbed design displaying duration estimates for every form of transportation to a given location.

Other location-based recommendation apps like Foursquare and Yelp have had what Google is rolling out now for quite a while, it’s worth noting. When I find an APK for this new update I’ll be sure to update this post.

Google details performance improvements w/ ‘Chrome Custom Tabs’ available in Chrome 45 (Video)

Avatar for Jordan Kahn Sep 2 2015 - 12:06 pm PT
0 Comments
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[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QOxIdbNwpx0]

With the release of Chrome 45 yesterday for desktops and Android devices, Google introduced a new feature called Custom Tabs that it previously demoed at its Google I/O developer conference earlier this year. With the introduction of the new feature, Google today posted the Google Dev video above offering a walkthrough of the new features for developers and sharing some details on performance improvements for users.
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