SoundHound’s music search app turns its focus to the Grammys with real-time updates and more
Awards nights tend to give rise to slews of app tie-ins, and for this year’s Grammys, SoundHound’s tossing its hat in the ring. In addition to being able to recognize songs by “listening” to them, the refreshed app comes with a dedicated page for the event that currently lists performers and nominees. Anyone who clicks SoundHound’s orange button during the live broadcast on Sunday night, though, will see real-time info, the list of winners and relevant Twitter posts instead. Chances are, music lovers don’t exactly need SoundHound to identify “Just Give Me A Reason” and other nominated songs. Those who find these special features useful, however, can download the app from the source links below.
Source: Google Play, iTunes, BlackBerry World, Windows Phone Marketplace
Websites and High-end Technology – A Quick Case-study!
Oranum is a global spiritual community known throughout the world for helping people find the guidance they are searching for with the help of talented psychics. Often times, people look for answers to burning questions about their love life or possibly their careers. They help those in need by connecting people with psychics 24 hours a day. With the world rapidly depending on social media such as Facebook and technology used in smart phones, they have adapted to the current trends and times and used this technology to help its members.
The android Oranum App, which you can find in Google play, is one way their technology reaches its members. By simply downloading the free app, members can begin using its various features. Such features include saving a favorite psychic list, and receiving notifications for when your favorite psychics are online. The app offers 24/7 support for live chat, phone or email. This app is very important to those who travel daily and are in need of guidance. An app like this, on a mobile device, helps give them the option of contacting a psychic or even simply reading their horoscope when they are not able to access a home computer.
Some members may desire spiritual healing, a tarot reading or a palm reading. For some members, the option of a video chat reading is very important in these categories. One of the great aspects of a live video chat reading is being able to see the psychic. The member also has the option of having their chosen psychic see them as well. They might choose to just leave sound on so the psychic may hear their voice but not see them in video. However, some members may decide just to type their thoughts and feelings instead of directly speaking to a psychic through voice chat. To learn how to use these features, users can watch the video tutorials available at Oranum youtube channel.
The interface on the website offers new and returning members the option of viewing different psychics. Some psychics will even offera free reading in their video chat. This helps members gain knowledge on how readings work and what to expect from specific psychics. All psychics are different in their personalities and sometimes their way of doing readings will differ from one another. By viewing them in the video chats on their screens, members can identify who they best relate to. This process allowsmembersto select a psychic that best fits their needs and in turn, help find the guidance they are looking for in life.
Their video chat can help people all over the world who speak various languages get in contact with a psychic who speaks their native tongue. Many psychic experts speak languages such as French, German, Croatian and Holland. Therefore, some who are not native to the English language should not have to worry about finding a psychic who will be able to communicate with them because they offer numerous psychics speaking many languages.This spiritual community stays up to date with cutting edge technology so people from around the world can benefit from a psychic reading.
Red Nexus 5?!?! Google Meltdown 2014! – The ManDroid Show
It is Friday, so you know what that means…GOOGLE WILL FAIL US! Yes, that was quite a moment of panic when Google services went down today. Hpefully you all survived the ordeal. In other news, a red Nexus 5 showed its pretty face, which could very well be a Photoshop job, but we are hoping that Google will eventually let us pick the colors of our phones. Anyways, enjoy the show!
News Updates
Video shows different color options for the Nexus 5
Red Nexus 5 shows up
Nokia sends out invites for event
Moto X $100 off this Monday
Easter egg-filled panorama of Seattle is Microsoft’s latest Photosynth art project
After all the panoramas, street views and 3D flights of fancy through cityscapes, how can Microsoft make the next one different? Apparently, by teaming up with over 100 of Seattle’s local artists and performers to cram this 360-degree panorama full of imaginative easter eggs (like the airship seen above). Dubbed the Gigapixel ArtZoom, Microsoft unveiled it tonight at the Seattle Art Museum but like other Photosynth projects, anyone with a browser can dive in right now. 2,368 twenty-two-megapixel images were shot from the Bay View condominium building and stitched together with Microsoft’s Image Composite Editor software — it’s the same system behind Windows 8.1′s panorama feature and Bing Maps. Click and zoom through the resulting image on a Where’s Waldo-style search for the performers (inserted via separate photoshoots after the original shoot and highlighted with additional info) on its dedicated website here, or check after the break for a behind the scenes look at how it was made.
Filed under: Cameras, Internet, Microsoft
Source: GigaPixel ArtZoom
Netflix ‘post-play’ feature that automatically jumps to the next episode is now optional
Netflix has been rolling out a ‘post-play’ experience (shown above) on various platforms since late 2012, but not everyone is a fan of how it jumps to a new episode automatically. That’s not a problem anymore, since TechHive points out that now there’s a toggle in your Netflix account settings (under playback settings) that keeps it from playing the next episode automatically. By default the feature is on, although as Netflix explains, it still requires a prompt of some kind to keep going after a couple of episodes have played. The post-play UI remains intact no matter what you choose, so watching the credits for every last best boy, grip and “no animals were harmed in the making of” will still require jumping on the remote to zoom back in. Of course, if your main concern is of House of Cards moving on an episode or two after you’ve dozed off, then this will fix it. Like other settings it’s locked to individual profiles, so turning it off for the kids can keep them from turning out like the rest of us — far too lazy to bother clicking a button to advance.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD
Source: TechHive, Netflix Support
Apple Looking to Develop Mobile Payment Service
Apple is looking to develop a new mobile payment service on the back of its hundreds of millions of iTunes Store accounts, most of which have credit cards already attached, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The report claims Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president in charge of Internet Software and Services — including the iTunes Store — has met with other companies to discuss the company’s desire to handle payments in retail stores and elsewhere.
Eddy Cue, Apple’s iTunes and App Store chief and a key lieutenant of Chief Executive Tim Cook, has met with technology industry executives to discuss Apple’s interest in handling payments for physical goods and services on its devices, according to people familiar with the situation.
In another sign of the company’s interest, Apple moved Jennifer Bailey, a longtime executive who was running its online stores, into a new role to build a payment business within the technology giant, three people with knowledge of the move said.
Apple has been driving new payment technologies in its own retail stores, including the use of Bluetooth-based iBeacons and the ability to pay for smaller purchases through its Apple Store iPhone app, without the need to interact with a salesperson.
At the moment, Apple only allows accountholders to use their stored credit card information for purchases on Apple’s online and retail stores through its app as well as the iTunes and App Stores. The new Touch ID technology could speed up and authenticate purchases if Apple were to integrate that with its mobile payment service.
Tim Cook said last October that Apple would use its skills in building software, hardware, and services to create “great products” in categories that Apple does not participate in today. Passbook, the system that Apple released a few years ago to make it more convenient for customers using gift card or ticketing apps — along with Touch ID, iBeacon, and its vast collection of saved credit card numbers — could all be part of a larger mobile payments play by the company.
Mobile payments is a burgeoning industry, one that Tim Cook called “in its infancy” last year, with many players. Ebay’s PayPal, Google, Square, Visa, Mastercard and American Express are all examining — or have already developed — mobile payment platforms.
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Apple Campus Celebrates 30th Mac Anniversary With One Republic Performance [Mac Blog]
In celebration of the Mac’s 30th anniversary, Apple employees are being treated to a musical performance by popular band act One Republic, which is currently going on at Apple’s Cupertino campus.
(Photo courtesy of @soulo1200s)
Apple holds a bi-weekly “Beer Bash” for employees at its campus that often include musical performances when a bash coincides with a special event. Previous Beer Bash performances have included Darius Rucker, Brad Paisley, Maroon 5, Cake, The Fray, and Phillips Phillips.
The company also decorated its Cupertino headquarters with several 30th anniversary posters, which list every employee who has ever worked at Apple by badge number, and several Apple executives, including Tim Cook, have given interviews about the Mac to celebrate its birthday.
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Apple is reportedly building a mobile payment service
There are plenty of existing mobile payment systems that let you buy goods with your iPhone, but there are now signs that Apple wants to take on some of those duties itself. The Wall Street Journal claims that the company is in the early stages of building a mobile payment infrastructure that would let its customers buy all kinds of products and services, not just those in its own stores. Sources say that Cupertino has tasked the former head of its online store with getting the service off the ground, and it’s reportedly discussing the idea with other companies in the tech industry. Apple isn’t commenting on the rumor, but it has been researching mobile payments for years — we know it’s at least intrigued by the concept.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Apple
Source: Wall Street Journal
Daily Roundup: PlayStation Vita TV review, the future of Nokia featurephones and more!
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours — all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
The future of Nokia featurephones
Engadget’s Brad Molen discusses Microsoft’s impending acquisition of Nokia and how the deal might change the future of the manufacturer’s once-mighty featurephone linup. Follow the link for more information.
PlayStation Vita TV review
Sony’s PS Vita TV media streamer is cute, quiet and about the size of a deck of cards. You can even pair it with a PS3 DualShock controller and viola, you’ve got games. But would your $96 be better spent on a more portable PS Vita? Click the link for our review and find out.
Apple gushes on 30 years of Mac
It’s the 30th anniversary of the Macintosh computer, and what a ride it’s been. And to commemorate the event, Apple’s put together a video presentation and interactive timeline that’s sure to make many nostalgic. Click the link for details.
Google ad patent arranges shoppers’ transportation
Google was granted the patent for an ad that can arrange transportation for shoppers who want to visit its advertisers’ stores. Why shop online when a chauffeur can take you to a real store, right? Click on through for more information.
Filed under: Misc
[RUMOUR] Will LG be debuting the LG G Pro 2 at MWC 2014?
Assuming LG hasn’t lost its marbles recently, we are all expecting them to release a successor to the not-quite successful LG Optimus G Pro phablet. While competing with the equally mammoth Samsung Galaxy Note 2, the Optimus G Pro proved itself to be a decent phone in its own right with some semblance of useful stylus features, though its sales figures never seemed to reflect this. In the year since that phone was announced, LG has done away with the ‘Optimus’ nomenclature so we can probably expect the follow-up phablet to be called the LG G Pro 2 and if a report coming out of Korea is to be believed, we’ll be seeing this new phone next month at MWC 2014.
The report also specifies that such a device would carry specifications like a 6-inch display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 800, 3GB RAM, LTE/LTE-A support and Android KitKat. This sets the G Pro 2 squarely in the sights of the perennial phablet, the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and it has to wage somewhat of an uphill battle. Even so, assuming this rumour is true, it will be interesting to see if LG includes a stylus again and if they have made any strides with the UI that so many complained about in the LG G2.
Do you think the LG G Pro 2 has any chance in today’s market? Let us know what you think in the comments.
AIVAnet 