12 Days of Giveaways: Win Jabra REVO Corded stereo headphones
Today marks the first day of our 12 Days of Giveaways promotion which sees us giving out all sorts of wonderful Android-related stuff. Okay, so there are some general smartphone-related things in the mix as well. Let’s get to it!
Prize #1 Jabra REVO Corded
First prize out of the gate is a brand new pair of Jabro REVO Corded headphones. These guys are some of the most comfortable headphones we’ve ever worn and sound downright awesome. In fact, the Bluetooth model is among the first pair we grab when heading out of the office for the day. Learn more about Jabra or follow them on Facebook and Twitter!
Prize #2 Bundled Goodies
We’re also giving away a ChargeCard MicroUSB which comes from the fine folks over at Nomad. This credit card-sized device fits inside of your wallet or purse and can be used as a MicroUS charger for your on-the-go time. Don’t worry about carrying around a full cable when you can break this thing out! Learn more about Nomad or follow them on Facebook and Twitter!
And, as if that weren’t enough, we’re tossing in a red Kensington Aluminum Case for Samsung Galaxy S4. This stylish case is as strong as it is bold and will protect your beloved Android. Learn more about Kensington or follow them on Facebook and Twitter!
Daily Prizes
Oh… and we’re also going to be giving out Google Play credits over the remainder of the month. On some days we’ll randomly pick someone to win $10, others will be $25 and higher!
How to Enter
We’re going to keep this short and simple. To enter today’s contest all you need to do is leave a comment below! We’ll let this run for 24 hours and then randomly select the winner(s).
Win Google Play Credits!
To enter to win one of the Google Play credits all you need to do is share the following on your social media platform of choice: “I want to win Google Play Credits, AndroidGuys! http://goo.gl/dGQhG6 #12DaysAndroid”
Yes, you can share over Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Google+. Yes, you can enter as often as you like.
Finer details
This post will be updated with the name(s) and we’ll reach out via the comments as well. Also, be sure to keep an eye on the 12 Days of Giveaways page where we’ll keep a running tally of prizes and winners.
Note that we’ll give each winner a 14 hour window to respond. Should the winner not reply in time, we’ll re-draw and announce a new name. Be sure to check back!
Here’s the rub: We’re limiting this contest to U.S. residents only. Yes, we know it sucks – we hate doing it. Also, you can only win one prize per household. If you happen to win a Google Play Credit as well, then so be it!
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Dial up your inner Zack Morris with bluetooth accessory, The Brick
If the cell phones of today are getting too light and thin for your liking, Binatone has just the device for you so you can relive the mobile glory days.
The UK-based electronics company, which was founded 55 years ago, just announced a new accessory called “The Brick” that connects to your smartphone through Bluetooth and lets you use it like one from the 1980s.
As for the design of this accessory, think Motorola DnyaTAC except with large speakers, a micro SD slot, FM radio and LED flashlight. Probably one of its most 80s worthy features of all, is that it also comes with the classic mobile phone game Snake. Need we say more?
The Brick offers up to one month of standby battery life and 14 hours talk time. That is, if your phone doesn’t die before that.
if you’re ready to look like an 80′s dork once again or you think it would be the perfect holiday gift for a friend or family member, it’s available now for $69.99.
The post Dial up your inner Zack Morris with bluetooth accessory, The Brick appeared first on AndroidGuys.
New SwiftKey beta brings number key row and emoji
SwiftKey, probably the most popular third-party keyboard for Android, has released a new beta. The new beta version 4.5 includes two major add-ons that have been being clamored for for a long time: emoji, and a dedicated number row.
Emoji, the picture-based emoticon replacement that is hugely popular for mobile users, comes by way of both dedicated tab auto-predict in this new beta. For example, typing the word “pizza” will bring up a pizza emoji that you can insert into your text. Also, there’s a full-fledged popup panel with tabs of categories that allow you to browse and choose the right emoji. All in all, SwiftKey has brought over 500 images. Swiftkey does warn, however, that “The appearance of emoji can differ between different versions of Android and different apps. Emoji are only supported on Android Jellybean and KitKat (4.1 and later).”
Also, there’s now an optional dedicated number row, something that this editor has personally hoped to see for a very long time. To turn it on in the beta, just press and hold the 123 key, select Settings, then Theme & Layout, you can then tick or untick the Number Row option.
If you want to download this beta for free, be sure to download it here. Also, if you’re not using the standard version of SwiftKey (which just about everyone should, in my opinion), you can pick it up at the download link below.
via swiftkey
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Eye-Fi’s Windows desktop receiver means you can say goodbye to the SD-card reader
We’ve always been fans of Eye-Fi’s wireless cards, but the fact that we still used an SD-card reader to pull the files to our desktops always rankled. Thankfully, the company is addressing that gripe with the Windows Desktop Receiver for the Eye-Fi Mobi, which launched earlier in the year. The new app will give users a choice between pushing pictures to their smartphone or desktop, presumably with far more ease than on the previous Class 10 X2. All you need to do here, we’re told, is enter a 10-digit activation code and watch your devices wirelessly pair, pushing images right where you want ‘em. The software will remain free so long as it’s in beta, with an OS X version currently in the works — so if you fancy giving it a try, head on to the download link and see what your experience is like.
Filed under: Cameras, Peripherals, Wireless
Source: Eye-Fi
Instagram debuts Direct, letting users share photos and videos with select friends
Invite blocks in hand, we’ve braved the cold New York weather to pop by Instagram’s big event. Naturally, the photo sharing service kicked off with some bullish numbers, noting that it has grown from 80 million to 150 million users this year. But the company’s CEO, Kevin Systrom, noted that today was all about looking forward to 2014. The big news was the announcement of Instagram Direct, a way of limiting specific photos and videos to select groups of up to 15 friends (a number the CEO noted serendipitously, is the same as the number of seconds you can shoot in Instgraam video) . The feature exists as a module in the Share To section of the app, showing a drop down of your friends. From there you can select who you want to receive a specific image or video, so if you want to, say, take a picture of your brunch, not every single follower has to look at your scrambled eggs.
All of the “moments” shared through the feature live in an inbox, so you can check out all of those photos in a private feed. Only people you follow can send you images and photos through direct and vice versa. If someone you don’t follow attempts to send you something, you’ll see a request from them. If you know the person but aren’t interested in following them (too many scrambled eggs photos, no doubt), you can chose to receive direct moments from them without following them — and you can always take them off that list at any time. When the user is still in pending mode, you wont be able to see the image they’re sending, making it easier to ignore them.
You can send photos and videos with text, but not text alone, naturally. Images and videos, Systrom added, is what the new feature is all about. According to Systrom, the new feature is all about “connecting people around moments.” Once a friend looks at the image, you’ll see a check mark next to it. If they like it, you’ll see a heart. It’s not quite the ephemeral Snapchat-inspired update a number of outlets were predicted, but it’ll likely push Instagram usage up even further, as users become less selective about what they send through the service. The update is available in the 5.0 versions of the iOS and Android apps today, by way of the Apple App Store and Google Play, just in time for selective holiday image sending. More info can be found in the source link below.
Filed under: Software
Source: Instagram
Blockbuster to shutter all of its remaining UK stores
Blockbuster’s fate may already be sealed in the US, but there was hope that its UK brand might lead itself out of the darkness. Today, administrators in control of the movie rental chain dealt it a killer blow, announcing the closure of its remaining 91 UK stores by December 16th, resulting in the loss of 808 jobs. Having already shuttered its online business following increased competition from streaming services like Netflix and Amazon’s Lovefilm, Blockbuster’s UK administrators hoped to find a buyer before reaching the decision to close the remaining stores. Remaining stock will be reduced by up to 90 percent in an attempt to sell it all before December 15th, so do head to your nearest (open) store, indulge in a bit of nostalgia and grab yourself a bargain before Blockbuster closes its doors for the final time.
[Image Credit: alwyn_ladell, Flickr]
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Internet
Source: Moorfields
Korean StarCraft pro among first foreign eSports competitors to obtain athletic visa
Thanks to support from the competitive gaming community, one of Korea’s most impressive eSports athletes has found a home in the US. Kim “Violet” Dong Hwan has ben trying to take his competitive StarCraft 2 career stateside for awhile, but a string of visa denials made his tournament schedule pretty sparse. With his country’s mandatory military service looming over his head, Hwan was facing early retirement if he wasn’t granted US-entry. Luckily that didn’t happen. Hwan’s manager rallied Blizzard Entertainment (StarCraft 2‘s publisher), Twitch.tv and Machinima execs, and over the course of seven months, they penned a 500-page application to immigration services. According to The Daily Dot, this tome included every article ever written about Hwan, translated into English.
The result? A P-1A pro-athlete visa that will allow Hwan to compete in the country for the next five years. This is only the second time an eSports competitor has gotten an athletic visa, and now, the government may view them on the same level as, say, baseball players. For the full story (including a harrowing tale of how Hwan’s house caught fire just after he sat down for a tournament) we urge you to check out the source.
[Image credit: Team Liquid]
Filed under: Gaming
Via: Kotaku
Source: The Daily Dot, Cyber Solutions Agency
Latest SwiftKey beta brings over 500 emojis to Android, makes your texts even more precious
If you’ve been aching for more emoji on your Android device, the SwiftKey team has something right up your alley. The popular Android keyboard’s latest beta brings over 500 of the adorable symbols to your device of choice and can even autopredict emjois, just like it does for regular ol’ words. What’s more, the test-version also adds a dedicated number row in case you’re one of the long-press averse. Of course, this is still a beta and your experience may vary once you side-load the APK. We tested the app on a Nexus 4 and found it was laggy to the point of being almost unusable, squashing our dreams of recreating Katy Perry’s “Roar” video like a grape.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile
Via: The Next Web
Source: SwiftKey
UK court relaxes ban on HTC One Mini despite Nokia patent win
Nokia’s recent legal victory over HTC, which imposed a sales ban on the latter’s One Mini in the UK, has ended up being quite short-lived. We’ve just learned from HTC that the Court of Appeals has suspended the injunction against the stunted smartphone, which also allows the firm to resume imports of the rest of the One family. The case is far from being closed, however, as HTC intends to “aggressively appeal the [patent] validity decision” that led to the One Mini ban, and could yet impact its bigger brethren. Furthermore, to avoid future courtroom dates, HTC says it’ll be engaging with its “chip suppliers on alternative solutions.” It’s almost certainly not the last we’ll hear from this ongoing skirmish, but however many haymakers Nokia throws, HTC just keeps bouncing back. Full statement from HTC after the break.
HTC is delighted that the Court of Appeals has granted a stay on the injunction against our products. We will immediately resume shipment of all of our devices into the UK, including the entire HTC One family. Similarly, our customers should feel confident in their ability to promote and sell all HTC devices. Even though we plan to aggressively appeal the validity decision of Nokia’s EP 0 998 024 patent, we will continue to work with our chip suppliers on alternative solutions to ensure minimal disruption to our business in the future.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, HTC, Nokia
Amazon now lets users send Amazon Coins as gifts
Amazon on Thursday introduced a new option which should help spur additional downloads of Android games and apps – and developer revenue. Starting today, you can buy Amazon Coins as gifts for friends and family members. These coins, which have been around for much of 2013, can be used to pay for in-app stuff like new levels, songs, power-ups, and weapons.
Many of the games offered through the Amazon Appstore use the Amazon Coin currency; more than 100,000 as of today. In fact, many of the most popular games take advantage of the coins.
To gift the Amazon Coins you simply log into Amazon, purchase them, and send to an email address. In other words, it’s like the Amazon Gift Card system, but for Android money!
To help get things going, Amazon is hosting a promotion where customers can receive up to 20% off Amazon Coins. To get in on this deal you just have to purchase before January 5. As a reminder, al Kindle Fire owners receive 500 coins with each device.
Coin bundles include: 500, 1,000, 2,500, 5,000, and 10,000
Give the Gift of Coins This Holiday Season – Amazon Coins Lets Customers Gift Apps, Games and In-App Items to Kids and App-Savvy Friends and Family
Use Coins on over 100,000 apps and games in the Amazon Appstore
Gift Coins in bulk and receive a discount up to 20% for a limited time
SEATTLE–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Dec. 12, 2013– (NASDAQ: AMZN)—Just in time for the holiday season, Amazon today announced that customers can purchase Amazon Coins and gift them for apps, games and in-app items in the Amazon Appstore and on Kindle Fire. Customers simply purchase a bundle of Coins on Amazon.com and an email is sent to the recipient to redeem. To celebrate the launch, customers receive up to 20% off when buying or gifting Coins through January 5. Giving the gift of Coins is a great way to introduce new customers to over 100,000 apps and games available in the Amazon Appstore, such as Angry Birds Star Wars II, Wheel of Fortune and Plants vs. Zombies. And, existing customers will love having extra Coins to use on in-app items such as new levels in Candy Crush Saga, recipes in iCookbook, or song collections in SongPop. Customers can gift Coins by visiting http://www.amazon.com/givecoins.
Amazon Coins became available for customers to purchase apps, games and in-app items in May and since that time hundreds of millions of Coins have been purchased. Here are a few fun facts about Coins:
- The top 5 purchased apps and games with Coins are Minecraft – Pocket Edition, Wheel of Fortune, Plants vs. Zombies (Kindle Tablet Edition), Bejeweled 2, and Scribblenauts Remix
- The single most purchased app using Coins is Minecraft – Pocket Edition
- The single most purchased in-app item using Coins is Get more lives! in Candy Crush
- The first app purchased with Coins was a tie between Jewel Legends: Tree of Life and Cut the Rope: Time Travel HD
- The woman pictured on the Coin was designed by Amazon and inspired by the Amazonian women of Greek mythology
“Customers love using Amazon Coins in the Amazon Appstore and on Kindle Fire to purchase apps and games,” said Mike George, Vice President of Apps and Games at Amazon. “We know that during the holidays finding that perfect gift can be hard. So, we’re making it easy for you to give the game-playing kids or app-savvy friends and family in your life just what they want – great apps and games to use on their phones and tablets. And remember, if you are a Kindle Fire owner, we automatically deposited 500 Coins in your account. So, if you haven’t used them yet, happy shopping.”
Here’s what customers have to say about Amazon Coins:
“Amazon Coins are such a simple, easy idea I’m excited for the future of it. Plus with the money you save it’s a no brainer.” – Dan, Amazon Coins customer
“I bought these Coins so I don’t have a lot of little charges on my credit card. I balance every single purchase I make, so writing down a silly 99 cent purchase my kids make can be annoying. I buy $10 worth of Coins every few months and I save 50 cents and I also don’t have to write down little purchases, so this is a win, win for me.” – J, Amazon Coins customer
“My daughter and I both have the Kindle Fire HD and the coins are a great way for us to stay on a budget. At the beginning of the month we each buy our Coins for the month.” – Devon, Amazon Coins customer
“Very good deal on Coins, I got at least 1 game paid for by Amazon and my money’s worth! Love Amazon and my Kindle.” – Nikki, Amazon Coins customer
Amazon Appstore developers will earn their standard 70% revenue share when customers make purchases using Amazon Coins. No Coins-specific changes are required for developers with apps and games currently in the Amazon Appstore. Customers can earn Coins when they purchase select apps and games and throughout the holiday season. The Amazon Appstore will have hundreds of titles that are either free or available between 50% – 90% off. The deals include popular titles like Super Why!, Where’s My Mickey, Monopoly, Angry Birds Star Wars II, NBA2K14, Wheel of Fortune and OfficeSuite Pro, among others.
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