HTC M8 Looking to Launch Late March and will Look Very Similar to the HTC One [Rumor]
When it comes to rumors or actual information regarding the HTC M8, evleaks is the name to follow. He has already given us a lot of info about the HTC M8, and now he has given us possible period of time of its release, as well as his description of what the phone looks like.
Starting to look like a late March, NYC launch for HTC M8.
— @evleaks (@evleaks) February 2, 2014
End of March may by the period of time the HTC M8 will be unveiled and launched, but then he had something interesting to say about how the phone looks.
So, yeah, the M8 looks strikingly like the M7. It’s too bad they already named another phone One S.
— @evleaks (@evleaks) February 3, 2014
Makes sense. The HTC One is a beautifully designed phone, which a lot of tech sites would vouch for. It isn’t shocking to me that it won’t strive away from that gorgeous design, I just find it funny how he talks about HTC already using the name HTC One S. I’m guessing that maybe the slight tweaks in design don’t compliment the phone to make it look like a hardcore successor to the HTC One, but as long as it still has that sexy design with BoomSound, and some powerful parts underneath the hood, everything should be okay. Let us know your thoughts about what he said.
Source: @evleaks
HTC Desire 310 to have Stock Android UI with BlinkFeed Built-In
Last week, we got our first look at a new HTC device that was rumored to be a new HTC Desire. Rumored specs included an Mediatek octa-core processor, but other details were scarce. Today we are getting some new information about this HTC Desire “310″, and some of you will be on board what information has come about.
According to miyachiki on Weibo, the HTC Desire 310 will rock a stock Android UI, and will merge HTC’s BlinkFeed within the UI. If many of you are like me, the words “stock Android UI” are glorious words to read, and even though a lot you out there might not be on board with BlinkFeed, I am sure they will give the option to turn it off.
Miyachiki shared those screenshots above which shows the stock Android UI dialer, as well as some of the icons we are used to seeing in stock Android. At first I thought they were phony because if you look at the on-screen buttons on the screenshots, two of them have the Nexus navbar buttons, while one of them has the new buttons we saw leaked out yesterday. Miyachiki claims that, that was due to the different stages the UI was going through as he took the screenshots. There was also mention that HTC isn’t actually developing the HTC Desire 310. Turns out it will be developed by Compal Comm, a Taiwanese ODM that is the second-largest contract laptop manufacturer in the world. Kind of doesn’t make sense, but hey, does anything with HTC?
So as soon as we find out more information about this phone, we will let you know. Tells us what you think about a stock Android UI running on a “kind of” HTC phone.
Source: HTC Source
Holofication Nation reimagines Android apps one at a time
For every Android app or game that has been glossed up with the platform’s Holo design aesthetics there are countless titles that have not. And, while we generally like the stuff coming out of bigger development teams, sometimes a small unit is just as good – if not better. Such is the case with a small team known as Holofication Nation.
After starting out as a small Google+ community of just a few people early this year, there are now nearly 1,700 members and growing quickly. These guys (Connor Kirkby and Brandon D’Souza) have been slowly sexing up one Android app at a time and hopefully letting other developers know what’s possible.
Doing what the big companies cant seem to do properly, to make a decent app UI that fits in with the Android OS. These are modded official apps, given the holo touch.
No, this idea is not new and these guys are not the first people to create concepts. It’s just one particular group we feel might be worth rallying behind and another group of folks with which to familiarize yourself.
If anything, we like watching how these guys take an already existing Android app and dress it up in Holo. Some titles get a minor tweak here and there, others get a top-to-bottom overhaul. The community is hard at work with their own concepts and seem to be sharing quite a bit through Google+.
In a sign of great things to come, the team has already created working versions of Instagram, Steam, Grooveshark, and Snapchat which employ the Holo principles. Note that you’ll need to uninstall the current, official copy of the app first. If you’re interested in seeing more apps with these standards and want to help, be sure to join the (private) community.
There is bit of “Wild West” feel to things right now as many of the newer members haven’t quite figured things out (don’t look for Facebook, system apps, etc) and seem to suggest every app gets a makeover. The community is set up quite well and works well, provided users read and follow instructions. Just know there’s a bit of noise-to-signal right now.
The post Holofication Nation reimagines Android apps one at a time appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Google Calendar now helps you remember holidays in 30 more countries
If you’ve ever made the faux pas of contacting foreign coworkers while they’re out celebrating national holidays, you’ll appreciate the latest update to Google Calendar. The service now accounts for special occasions in 30 more countries, including Argentina and Switzerland. It also covers a larger range of holidays, and you’ll see their dates further in advance. Google may not patch up any damaged international relations with its Calendar update, but it’ll at least help you avoid future incidents.
Source: Official Gmail Blog
The government wants our cars to ‘talk’ to each other
The US Department of Transportation (DOT) is throwing its weight behind vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication systems. After years of experimentation and a real-world trial in Ann Arbor, MI the government is (almost) ready to make peer-to-peer networking a required safety feature on all new cars. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has announced that it’ll “begin taking the next steps” towards implementing V2V, though, what those steps are is still somewhat shrouded in mystery. One major detail left to be ironed out is when exactly these new safety standards will go into effect. The agency is currently finalizing its analysis of the data gathered during the Ann Arbor trial, which it will then use to build a regulatory proposal.
For those that don’t know, V2V systems allow cars to share information about their position, speed and heading with each other and alert a driver when there is potential for danger. That could be a car speeding through an intersection ahead or a truck in your blind spot when trying to change lanes. While there is potential for integration with automated collision avoidance technology in the future, initially the DOT will be focused on passive systems. If you’re concerned about the government having yet another avenue through which to track you, breathe easy. The data passed between vehicles includes no personally identifiable information. In fact, it doesn’t even identify the car — it only contains basic safety data. In addition to that, the NHTSA envisions multiple layers of security and privacy protection to ensure vehicles are sending and receiving reliable data.
Filed under: Transportation
Source: Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Adobe’s Photoshop guru John Nack is heading to Google’s photography team
If you needed further proof that Google was serious about its photography efforts, one of Adobe’s main Photoshop folks is heading for Mountain View to pitch in. John Nack, former Senior Product Manager for Photoshop, has been with the creative software outfit for about 14 years and led the software’s first public beta (CS3) and the introduction of notable features like Smart Objects. Most recently, Nack has worked on Adobe’s mobile efforts as Principle Product Manager. It’s no surprise that Google is looking to dive further into photo editing after debuting Auto Awesome last year and snatching up Snapseed before that. In a blog post announcing the move, Nack noted that the two companies have collaborated for quite some time and that he hopes to pursue that relationship further, writing “There’s so much we can all do to help photographers & storytellers of every sort.” For now, we’ll just have to bid out time until Google’s next snapshot-focused software release.
Filed under: Software
Source: John Nack
Apple May Be Building Its Own Content Delivery Network
As Apple continues to develop its new data centers in North Carolina, Oregon, and Nevada, it could have greater plans to develop a content delivery network (CDN) to deliver content to its iTunes and iCloud users.
Analyst Dan Rayburn with Frost & Sullivan believes that Apple is looking to expand its CDN capabilities, but isn’t entirely clear how in-depth the system will be. Currently Apple uses Akamai and Level 3 to handle most of its distribution needs for iTunes, the App Store, and iCloud, though its data center initiative gives it a good base of operations for distributing content as well as storage for user data.
Apple built its retail store chain because Steve Jobs wanted to own Apple’s interactions with its customers. With iTunes and iCloud, Apple controls the data and the service, but must outsource the less visible but still incredibly important job of reliably delivering data packets to users. With hundreds of millions of users downloading apps, music, TV shows and movies — with many of those being streamed in real-time to the Apple TV — ensuring quality of service for all users will be essential.
I’m hearing that part of Apple’s reasoning for building their own CDN is because of performance issues with iCloud, with Apple wanting to have more control over the QoS of content going to their devices. Apple already controls the hardware, the OS (iOS/OS X) as well as the iTunes/App store platforms. Right now they control the entire customer experience, except for the way content is delivered to their devices. Since Apple does not own the last mile they won’t be able to have complete control, but having their own CDN would give them more control and security than they have now. The next set of questions to ask is what type of technology Apple uses? Will they go the open source route and built it in a non-proprietary way, or keep it closed? Some will also wonder if Apple might make their CDN into a commercial offering, but that wouldn’t make any sense for their business, unless they had some kind of content subscription service akin to Netflix.
A content delivery network allows companies to ensure that their data can reliably get to customers on any ISP, in any geographic locale. A number of other companies that move large amounts of data, including Google, Microsoft and Netflix, have brought much of their data delivery platforms in-house, rather than outsourcing them to other large companies. Many extremely large companies have found that building their own CDN makes financial sense because of the control it gives them, something that Apple values highly.
Rayburn has been saying that Apple is planning to build a CDN for nearly five years, though with three major new data centers coming online and more in the works, Apple is clearly investing in something big. The company is rumored to be working on a new television service of some sort, either a new set-top box or an entire television set, and such an effort would likely require a significant expansion of the company’s content streaming abilities to support HD streaming video to a large number of new customers.
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World Wrestling Entertainment Channel Coming to Apple TV on February 24
A World Wrestling Entertainment representative has seemingly confirmed on Facebook that the new 24/7 WWE Network will be available as a dedicated channel on the Apple TV on February 24.
In a conversation with a fan who asked specifically about an Apple TV app, a WWE Network Facebook representative said the WWE Network app can be launched directly from the Apple TV.
In order to experience WWE Network on an Apple TV, you must have a second generation or later (black) Apple TV and be a WWE Network subscriber. Once WWE Network is available, you will be able to launch the WWE Netowrk app directly from your Apple TV. Let us know if you have further questions! Thank you.
First announced in January, the World Wrestling Entertainment Network is a 24/7 streaming network that includes original programming, reality shows, documentaries, classic matches, and more. Available for $9.99 per month, it also includes 12 WWE live pay-per-view events.
When introduced, WWE executives noted that the service would be available via the WWE website and through numerous consoles, smartphones, and tablets. While the Roku was listed as an available device, as was the iPad, no specific mention was made of the Apple TV.
WWE Chief Revenue and Marketing Officer Michelle Wilson did, however, say that the service would also be available on “a connected device I am not allowed to mention at this press conference,” presumably alluding to the Apple TV. Attendees at the service’s introductory event were also given Apple TVs to take home.
Apple historically exercises control over announcements related to its products, so it is no surprise that news of a potential WWE app for the Apple TV has been suppressed. Over the course of the last several months, Apple has introduced several new channels to the Apple TV, each with no advanced notice.
Most recently, Apple added the Red Bull TV action sports channel to the Apple TV, and before that, the company introduced channels for Watch ABC, Bloomberg, Crackle, and KORTV. Apple is also said to be working on a major overhaul to both the Apple TV software and hardware, which could debut later this year.
The WWE network will be available for $9.99 per month at 9 AM Eastern Time on February 24, 2014 and will reportedly launch on the Apple TV at the same time. Fans will be given a free one week trial to the service.
(Thanks, Josh!)
Update: The WWE Facebook page has since been updated to delete the comment about the Apple TV, but the original text can be seen in the image below.
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Apple Acknowledges Continuing Issues with OS X Mail, Offers Manual Workaround
Ever since OS X Mavericks was released, some customers using the built-in Mail.app application have repeatedly had issues retrieving new mail messages, deleting or moving messages, and more. Some of the problems were fixed in an update released back in November, and then in OS X 10.9.1, but for some, the issues retrieving new messages persist.
Some users found that quitting and restarting Mail forced the application to download new messages, but Apple has now published an awkward workaround that allows the app to stay open while still forcing a download of new messages.
OS X: New email messages not received until Mail is quit and reopened
Quitting and reopening Mail forces it to re-establish a connection to the email server. You can use these steps to receive new mail messages without quitting Mail:
1. Choose Mailbox > Take All Accounts Offline.
2. Choose Mailbox > Get All New Mail.As a shortcut, you can also add the Take All Accounts Offline and Get Mail buttons to your Mail toolbar.
1. Choose View > Customize Toolbar.
2. Drag the Take All Accounts Offline button to the Toolbar if it is not there already.
3. Drag the Get Mail button to the Toolbar if it is not there already.
4. Click DoneTo receive new mail messages, click the Take Offline button, then click the Check Mail button.
There is no indication of when the bugs with Mail.app will be fixed, though beta releases of OS X 10.9.2 ask developers to test Mail.app for issues.
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Google Now Comes to Desktop in Chrome Beta
For those of you that have Chrome Beta running on your desktops, you will soon (if not already) have you some Google Now cards in your notifications section. Google Now comes to our desktops, so now when you need to check the weather really quick, or need to get those traffic conditions before you go to work, you will be able to access those helpful notifications right on your desktop.
If you are not running Chrome Beta on your computer of choice, you can click here to download it to Windows, Mac, or Chromebook, and the Google Now notifications will be auto-enabled. Apparently if you click on the little bell in the top right corner, the cards can be accessed there. If you choose not to run Chrome Beta, be on the lookout for the update. If you are not running Chrome Beta click the link provided below. Let us know how you are liking it.
Download: Chrome Beta Desktop
Source: Chrome Blog
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