Latest Android update for the Sony Z Ultra Google Play Edition fixes major bugs
As Android updates go, version 4.4.2 shouldn’t get anyone hot under the collar — it’s mostly just bug fixes and software removals. But in the case of the Sony Z Ultra Google Play Edition, the requisite fixes are, in fact, quite substantial. As we noted in our hands-on with the massive 6.44-inch device, the Z Ultra shipped with a few unforgivable quirks, like the inability to uninstall apps (which is what you’d expect from a skinned device, not pure Android), or sideload apps via the Unknown Sources option in the security settings menu. With 4.4.2. rolling out today, all of that’s now been remedied, in addition the convenient deletion of Google’s not ready for primetime Apps Op feature which allowed users to manage privacy settings for individual apps. Again, it’s as humdrum as updates get, but at least now your très cher Z Ultra is actually worth the money.
Filed under: Cellphones, Software, Mobile, Sony, Google
Source: Talk Android
Google Releases New ‘MyGlass’ Companion App for Google Glass [iOS Blog]
Google today released a new MyGlass companion app for the iPhone, which is designed to increase compatibility between Google Glass and iOS devices. MyGlass is used to configure and manage Glass devices.
Use it to set up Glass, get directions on the go, screencast what you see on Glass to your phone, and add Glassware and contacts.
If you don’t have Glass, then downloading this will be a waste of time. Sorry about that. Learn more at google.com/glass.
Prior to the release of the MyGlass app, Google Glass had much more limited functionality with the iPhone, but Android users have long had access to an Android version of the MyGlass app which lets users Screencast from Glass to an Android smartphone and provides an interface for turning Glass apps off and on.
The same functionality will now be available for iPhone users, making Google Glass far more useful on Apple’s platform.
Google Glass can be purchased via invitation from Google for $1500. MyGlass for iOS can be downloaded for free from the App Store. [Direct Link]
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ASUS Padfone X Shows Up in AnTuTu Becnhmark
Looks like a new device from ASUS has shown up mysteriously in the AnTuTu benchmarks, and as of now it is named the Padfone X. Seems that ASUS has cooked up another phone to add to the Padfone line, and I am wondering if it will be one of the first phones that is reportedly coming to the United States.
Now As you can see from the screenshot, the phone is pretty high-end in specs. Snapdragon 800 processor, 1920 x 1200 resolution display. 2GB of RAM, Android 4.4, and…5 MP camera? Some of you might cringe when you see that the camera is fairly low in the megapixel department, but that doesn’t really mean anything these days. With the introduction of ultrapixels by HTC, we must remain optimistic when it comes to megapixels in phones. What’s funny is, it doesn’t mention anything about a front-facing camera, which is a bit odd since front-facing cameras are standard in today’s devices.
It’s interesting no doubt, and any device that has an X in it always seems to grab the attention of the community. Hopefully we will found out more information about this phone in the coming months. Let us know if you have heard anything about it.
Source: Android Headlines
Big Update for Dead Trigger 2, nearly doubles content and Holiday Gifts
A few weeks ago MADFINGER Games pushed out an update for Dead Trigger 2 that brought 50 new gameplays, more helicopter and sniper missions, some Zombie tweaks and various other things. When that update was pushed out they let us know that there was a Big Update coming shortly. Today is that day fellow zombie killers.
In the mix of todays update you will find some new melee weapons: Big Hammer, Brain Mill, Machete or the special Butterfly Sword. As for travel, there is a new single player story and warfare missions in a beautiful Chinese environment. Being the holidays, MADFINGER has also packed in some limited time Christmas presents for the Dead Trigger 2 family.
Grab the update in the Play Store (
Press Release
The Big Update of Dead Trigger 2 Released on App Store and Google Play
Just in time for the Christmas Holidays, MADFINGER Games has released The Big Update for Dead Trigger 2 on App Store and Google Play. Two months after its initial release, the first person zombie shooter has gained more than 10M downloads. This special Christmas update brings with it many changes, new additions and anxiously awaited gadgets. MADFINGER Games has also released an update for the original Dead Trigger, the first title from its first person zombie series, which now features support for new devices.
December 17th, 2013 – Brno, Czech Republic – Dead Trigger 2 is constantly getting bigger and bigger. The update that has been released today on App Store and Google Play, has almost doubled game content. The fight for survival continues in the beautiful Chinese environment, where a new single player story and warfare missions await survivors.
Now players are able to travel across 3 regions across different parts of the Earth, explore 15 various environments, grab their favorite from one of 30 kinds of weapons and enjoy the action in more than 150 gameplays.
In connection with the Christmas holidays, MADFINGER Games have prepared some cool limited-time Christmas presents for Dead Trigger 2 players that will be available during Christmas time.
There are still rewards for player participation in global missions. In addition, the current update brings with it a system of achievements and challenges. Players will be rewarded with gold – the exclusive in-game currency. This includes full support of Achievements in Game Center on iOS and Play Games on Google Play.
The Christmas update also makes available some truly non-conventional melee weapons such as the Big Hammer, Brain Mill, Machete or special Butterfly Swords that provide a completely different gaming experience and make the game much more enjoyable.
Moreover, Dead Trigger 2 has been selected as a Blockbuster Game for App Store Best of 2013! Chosen by the App Store Editorial team, this feature celebrates the most remarkable, innovative, and entertaining apps of 2013.To celebrate this win, players of all MADFINGER’s free games can enjoy 1.5 times more free Gold with Tapjoy’s Free gold offers during Christmas time – December 24th – 26th and during New Years – from December 31st – January 2nd.
The original Dead Trigger gets an update, too! Finally even the first Dead Trigger will support the newest Android and iOS devices with the highest graphic resolutions available. MADFINGER Games has also fixed the slot purchase in the Equip menu as well as the occasional crash issues and has updated Facebook, Twitter, Game Center, IAP, TapJoy and Chartboost support
Box updates with better photo experience and launches alpha test Channel
Box is pushing an update out to its Android app today that adds a little more polish and a better viewing/interacting experience to your beloved cloud app and service. They have completely overhauled the photo viewing capabilities of the Android app. To more precise, you guys should see a smoother transition between folder levels and fancy fading effect for thumbnail icons as you dig through your folders.
They swapped things around on the file preview pages and cleaned up the mess of overlapping icons and shifted functionality back to the action bar and submenus. Also while swiping between photos you should notice a much smoother transition between images.
If you are like the thousands of Android junkies out there that like to check things out before the rest of the general population gets too, then the latest Alpha Testing option will be of some interest. Box lets you sign up for this feature right in the app after the update. If you choose to go ahead and let Box hook you up with some new features that they are testing out or considering, you can get in on that action now. It is a two part sign up though. After you give the thumbs up in the app you will need to navigate to the Box Google Groups page and Join. The app will redirect you to do so, if you didn’t take the time just use the link above. Make sure you do so with the same email/gmail account you use the Play Store with. Thats about it, after you are joined you will periodically see updates in the Play Store to Box for you to test out and provide feedback on.
Be sure to hit the Play Store and pick up the Box update.
Via Box Blog
Oppo racing to introduce first 2K smartphone with Find 7
Remember how this time last year we were being introduced to the world’s first 1080p HD smartphone displays? Do you recall who was first out of the gate with something in that 1920×1080 pixel resolution? Yes, it was Oppo.
The next generation of smartphone displays looks to double down in early 2014 with 2450×1440 pixel resolutions. Leading that charge once again is Oppo, who expects that their Find 7 will be first to market.
Other specifications for this device are rumored to include a Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 processor, 3GB RAM, and a 4,000mAh battery. While it does sound pretty outlandish and a little too good to be true, we’re not ready to outright dismiss the chatter.
The annual Consumer Electronics Show is coming up in a few weeks where we expect to learn more about the Oppo Find 7. For what it’s worth, we could actually see a slew of models introduced in the first quarter with this screen resolution.
The post Oppo racing to introduce first 2K smartphone with Find 7 appeared first on AndroidGuys.
12 Days of Giveaways: Win MOGA Pro Power Controller (DAY 4)
Today marks the fourth 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 MOGA Pro Power Controller, $25 Google Play Card
First prize we’re offering up today is a brand new MOGA Pro Power Controller. Paired over Bluetooth, this device charges your smartphone while you take on the bad guys in your favorite games. The internal 2200mAh battery is enough to get your phone back up where it needs to be while the $25 Google Play card pays for a handful top-notch games. Learn more about MOGA or follow them on Facebook and Twitter!
Prize #2 Bundled Goodies
The second prize we’re hooking you up with is a Kensington Virtuoso Touch Stylus & Pen and iHome OverEar Headphones. The former is an actual pen that doubles as a stylus for your smartphone or tablet so that you can capture, create, and sketch your ideas. The latter are a pair of padded headphones with in-line volume control and an adjustable headband.
Learn more about iHome or follow them on Facebook and Twitter!
Learn more about Kensington or follow them on Facebook and Twitter!
Prize #3 Powramid Power Center and USB Charging Station
The third prize tossing out to a random winner is a Powramid Power Center and USB Charging Station. This guy lets you plug in up to six devices into one outlet and offers dual USB charging as well, even a 2.1A tablet!
Learn more about Accell or follow them on Facebook and Twitter.
Daily Prizes
Oh… don’t forget we’re also 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 24 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!
The post 12 Days of Giveaways: Win MOGA Pro Power Controller (DAY 4) appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Now you can search Steam by games with virtual reality headset support
Assuredly tired of trawling news sites and forums to find games with virtual reality headset support, the fine folks of Valve recently added a search filter to the widely used Steam game store for games with VR headset support. Think of it like the grown-up version of Oculus Rift’s own Share developer portal: the same principle, but for full games.
The filter is called “VR Support” (as seen above), though the Oculus Rift is the only VR headset we know anyone using. Of course, Valve is working on its own VR tech — though it remains unclear if that’s intended for anything beyond R&D — and we suspect several other companies are as well (Sony, perhaps?). Nine games currently show up as supported, from Valve’s first-party software to Surgeon Simulator 2013. With more games on the way, that list will assuredly grow as we move comfortably past the 2013 holiday release lull into 2014′s very busy first quarter.
Filed under: Gaming, Internet, Software, HD
Via: Road to VR
Source: Steam
Fully wearable Iron Man Mark III suit is made to 3D printed order for $35,000
We joked yesterday about finding the perfect gift for that eccentric billionaire (or millionaire, or really just any “rich” person) in your life, but nothing truly says money to burn like your very own Iron Man suit. The real kicker here is that this Iron Man Mark III suit, made by (wait for it) Iron Man Factory, is actually fully wearable and made to fit anyone as tall as 5′ 5″ to 6′ 1″. It also incorporates sensor-controlled motors — powered by a AAA battery — to activate the “thrusters” on back and even slide open the helmet so your loved ones can smack that smug Tony Stark-like perma-grin off your face. Oh and did we mention the seven-pound suit, which is made from a carbon fiber polymer and features a cushioned interior, also contains an LED lighting system? Yeah, there’s that too, but also no lasers. Sorry, you can’t have everything.
There’s just one major catch: Iron Man Factory needs to fulfill 5,000 pre-orders of the $2,000 suit before it can even broach the eight months of production time needed to build it with injection molding. For $200 less, you can always snag just the helmet, but if you’re going to go all in, what’s a few hundred more? Of course, this being an extreme cosplay toy for the 1 percent, Iron Man Factory’s offering an expedited option that’ll have the suit 3D printed and shipped out in only four months’ time — for $35,000. Folks, that’s the real baller option. It’s what we imagine Elon Musk shells out when he needs an appropriate Halloween costume.
In the event you need more visual eye candy to help force your wallet (and debt load), Iron Man Factory’s put together a sizzle reel for the 3D-printed suit set to none other than Black Sabbath’s “Iron Man.” You can check it out and sing along after the break.
Filed under: Wearables
Via: TechCrunch
Source: Iron Man Factory
Xbox One cuts out the middle man, gets live TV directly with Verizon’s FiOS app
The Xbox One is built to blend with its owner’s existing TV-watching setup thanks to the HDMI-in, but customers with Verizon FiOS TV can sidestep that entirely. FiOS has launched a version of its app — already available on the Xbox 360 and mobile devices — for the Xbox One that promises 74 live channels streamed over the internet. Already announced as part of the first wave of entertainment apps for the Xbox One, Verizon’s app makes it the first TV provider to stream live TV directly to the box. TV viewing with the Xbox One is unusually seamless with the passthrough, but with FiOS, it’s just another app like Netflix or Hulu Plus, complete with built-in Kinect support for voice and gesture controls.
If your FiOS cable box is already plugged into the Xbox One, it means the two can be used together for picture-alongside-picture with the snap feature, or that you can use the Xbox somewhere in the house without the cable box at all. Features we’d like to see are access to video on-demand, and integrated control/awareness for DVR recordings so we can ditch the remote entirely, and the ability to pin shows directly to the OneGuide, but so far, it’s just live TV. The app is live in the Xbox One store but — at least for now — it’s only useful if you live in a FiOS area and have the service.
Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment, HD, Microsoft, Verizon
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