AT&T Starts Pushing Android 4.4.2 Update to the LG G Flex
The self healing, flexible LG G Flex with AT&T has an update on the way today. AT&T has announced that OTA update that brings the LG G Flex up to Android 4.4.2 is rolling out as write this. Besides being brought up to a more recent Android build, the update is said to bring key enhancements to the user interface, battery efficiency and processing speed. Take a look at what AT&T has to say about it.
- Updated user interface with Android 4.4 KitKat: The latest version of Android includes enhancements such as restyled status and navigation bars, a new full-screen mode, improved closed captioning support, and stronger security.
- Improved battery efficiency: The phone plays music more efficiently and supports the battery-saving location mode, extending battery life.
- Faster processing speed: The latest version of Android provides a noticeable speed boost that runs applications faster than ever and improves web-browsing speed.
- Printing in the Cloud: Google Cloud Printer makes it simple to print documents via Wi-Fi or a Bluetooth connection.
- Knock Code ™: Tap a pattern to quickly and securely unlock the phone.
One of the more interesting additions is the Knock Code. That is where you can tap a pattern on your sleeping G Flex to unlock it. Those of you with a G Pro 2 will be pretty familiar with it.
If you don’t see the update yet you can always head into Settings>About Phone> Software Update>Update Now. You will want to make sure you have at least a 50% charge to your device, a Wi-Fi connection and some time to sit around waiting as the update comes in at 680MBs.
Source: AT&T via AndroidPolice
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Google dangles $100k carrot for Project Ara developers
Project Ara, Google’s modular smartphone endeavor, will be here before you know it. Just a few days ago, they held a developer’s conference for Ara, and gave us some great insight as to what’s to come. During the conference, Google unveiled a contest to Ara developers with a $100,000 grand prize. The two runners-up will receive all-expenses paid trips to the next Ara devcon in the next few months.
The contest details will be released sometime around mid-May, and will run until mid-September. To enter, developers need to submit a detailed outline along with a hardware loan to ensure they’ll get their hardware for free. The judging will reportedly be based on everyday use of the product, uniqueness, feasibility, and overall quality of the hardware.
The point of this contest will be to create great hardware ideas and get the ball rolling on open-sourced hardware, rather than waiting for Google to come up with the bulk of the ideas. Since the first Ara smartphone is due around January 2015, Google is right on time with this contest.
As more details emerge about the contest and Project Ara, stick around for more coverage.
Source: TechNewsWorld
The post Google dangles $100k carrot for Project Ara developers appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Chupacabra update makes the OUYA game console a better media center
Go ahead and dust off your OUYAs, friends — it’s updatin’ time. The little Android game console that could wasn’t exactly the runaway hit its creators were hoping for, but some fresh features found in the new Chupacabra update help this thing stand a bit taller. As far as the team is concerned, the biggest draw is the addition of AC3, DTS and AAS audio passthrough support for the exceedingly popular XBMC media center app. The OUYA itself doesn’t have the proper licenses to play certain bits of audio (say, a movie’s surround sound audio track), but now it can pass them over to a user’s home theater receiver that does have the licenses. In short, those of you using your tiny Android consoles as media centers can finally play some of the trickier videos in your collection.
Also tucked away in the update: a cleaner view at game information, a download manager and the ability to set certain games as favorites for easy access. Alas, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows here — OUYA said it would remove its free-to-try requirement, and that change has finally taken hold. Granted, the move basically neuters one of the most gamer-friendly parts about owning an OUYA (who doesn’t love free game demos?), but we suppose the company’s gotta do what it has to in order to keep those game developers happy.
Source: Ouya
Watch 80 year’s worth of bizarre and historic moments thanks to British Pathé
Between 1896 and 1976, British Pathé documented the everyday lives of Britons and events around the world with its pioneering newsreels. After a National Lottery grant enabled it to digitise over 3,500 hours of footage in 2002, the company decided it was high time to move its entire archive of moving images over to YouTube, where it’s uploaded a total of 85,000 new videos. So what can you expect to find there? Well, there’s incredibly vast amount of footage from both World Wars for starters, as well as interviews with survivors of the Titanic and videos cataloguing when Beatlemania hit the US. Not only do the videos give you a taste of how news was presented in the early 20th century, you might also enjoy a little history lesson at the same time.
Via: British Pathé Blog
Source: British Pathé (YouTube)
Submissions for our Insert Coin: New Challengers contest are open!
The Insert Coin competition has been a highlight of our Engadget Expand live events; a ton of great products have been demoed on-stage, and a few even walked away with piles of cash to help with funding. And with Expand NY on the books for November 2014, we’re accepting product submissions today through September 26th.
We’re looking for the latest crop of innovative devices — past winners include an aquatic drone and a cube for growing food indoors. Whether your project’s up for funding on Kickstarter or you’re just starting to show off hardware, we want to hear from you. Head here to submit your project, but not before reviewing our eligibility requirements past the break. And for those of you who’d like to attend our two-day tech fest, head to our event page for more info.
Prize Details
- 10 semi-finalists will receive tickets to Expand NY, exhibition space on the show floor, a chance to demo your projects live on stage and to an online audience of millions and a $1,000 travel stipend to cover costs while appearing at the event.
- 1 Judge’s Choice winner will receive $10,000 and a product review on Engadget.
- 1 Reader’s Choice winner will receive $15,000 and a product review on Engadget.
Eligibility
Please note that we have changed the rules for the competition this time around to accommodate a wider range of applicants. Whereas previous competitions required your project to be in a pre-crowdfunding stage, for Insert Coin 2014, your project can be in any of the following stages of development:
- Pre-crowdfunded
- Post-crowdfunded (successful or unsuccessful)
- Currently running a crowdfunding campaign
Your project cannot be in the following stages of funding and development:
- Angel-funded
- VC-funded
- Otherwise traditionally seed- or series-funded, actively seeking such funding or otherwise closing any such round of funding before November 8th, 2013.
Your product must have been announced after the submission for the last Insert Coin competition closed (11:59 PM EDT on September 27th, 2013), and must not yet have shipped any products to customers. Please keep in mind that existing products or updates to existing products will not be eligible. Products must fall within Engadget’s coverage scope, must have a hardware component and must have a working prototype that can be shown off on stage (i.e., renderings alone are not sufficient).
The Process
Phase 1: Submissions
Submissions accepted: 1:00 PM EDT on April 17th, 2014, until 11:59 PM EDT on September 26th, 2014.
To apply for Insert Coin, submit all of the details about your project and your contact information here — and Engadget editors will review all submissions and select 20 contenders. We will be judging according to the level of completion of the product, the problem that it solves, how well it would do in the consumer market, feasibility of bringing the product to market and, of course, general awesome factor. After submissions close, we will begin contacting the 20 prospective contenders the following week to confirm eligibility requirements. Please be sure to provide current and accurate contact information so we can get in touch with you.
Phase 2: Online voting
Readers choose 10 semi-finalists: October 8th, 2014, to October 15th, 2014.
After the 20 contenders are selected, Engadget will open online voting from October 8th, 2014, to October 15th, 2014, to let the audience choose 10 semi-finalists to appear at Expand NY and receive a $1,000 travel stipend. We will announce the slate of 10 semi-finalists on October 17th, 2014.
Phase 3: On-stage demos at Expand
Semi-finalists will exhibit on stage and demonstrate their projects: November 7th, 2014, to November 8th, 2014.
On Day 1 of Expand NY: All 10 semi-finalists will take the stage to give a short 5-minute demo and presentation of their projects on stage. Judges will select the top five finalists by their collective votes, and Reader’s Choice online audience voting will kick off.
On Day 2 of Expand NY: The five finalists will take the stage again to have the judges ask a number of questions before they cast their votes for the Judge’s Choice award.
Phase 4: Awards ceremony
Judge’s and Reader’s Choice winners will be crowned on November 8th, 2014.
We will crown two winners on Day 2 according to the following criteria:
Judge’s Choice: Selected by the judges based on presentations and a list of criteria. Winner will be awarded $10,000 to help fund the project, as well as receive a review on Engadget.
Reader’s Choice: The project with the greatest number of votes from the total pool of online voting will be awarded $15,000 to help fund the product, as well as receive a review on Engadget.
Rules Recap
- Existing products/updates to existing products will not be accepted.
- Products must fall within Engadget’s coverage scope, as determined by Sponsor.
- Products must have a hardware component and not be purely software or web services in origin.
- Inventors who are selected as Semi-finalists will need a working prototype or other presentation for a team of Engadget editors ahead of the event.
- Simulations or product renderings will not suffice to enter Insert Coin; what you have to show to us must be functional.
- No products from major manufacturers will be accepted.
- Company can be pre-crowdfunded, post-crowdfunded (successful or unsuccessful) or currently running a crowdfunding campaign.
- Company cannot be angel-, VC- or otherwise traditionally seed/series-funded; actively seeking such funding; or otherwise closing any such round of funding before November 8th, 2013.
- Company must have announced its product after the submission for the last Insert Coin competition closed (11:59 PM EDT on September 27th, 2013).
- Company must not have shipped any products to customers.
Facebook’s Nearby Friends feature keeps track of your pals, but only if they want you to
If you’re of the sort that likes to plan those otherwise impromptu encounters, Facebook has just announced a optional new feature that will certainly help with that. Nearby Friends will show you if your friends are close by, so you can reach out about meeting up. This isn’t automatically turn on inside Facebook’s apps though, as you’ll have to toggle it on and your friends will have to decide to share their location for it to work. However, there’s the ability to broadcast coordinates for a certain amount of time — the hour or two that you plan to be at your favorite bar, for example. You can also see when folks that have opted-in are traveling, giving you the opportunity to send any ramen or burrito recommendations their way. As you might expect, the feature will beam push notifications to your mobile device to alert you when your best mate is nearby. This news is certainly interesting in the context of the outfit’s push for its own location services, along with recent news of Instagram testing the in-house Places for tagging photos. While there’s no official arrival date, Nearby Friends is rolling out to both Android and iOS in the weeks to come.
Filed under: Software, Mobile, Facebook
Source: Facebook
MLB at Bat App Gains Chromecast Support, for Premium Members Only of Course
Baseball is one of America’s greatest past times. Some would say their is nothing better than sitting in the stadium with a beer and dog watching your favorite team. I myself am not much of a sports person, but I know how die hard sports fans are when it comes to being able to watch the game when they can’t be at the stadium. Google has announced today that, with the help of MLBAM, Chromecast support for the MLB.com At Bat app will be officially available later today.
There is always a catch of some sort. You need to have a MLB.TV Premium subscription in order to stream those live out-of -market games to your TV with the Chromecast. Yes, this means that even if you are a MLB.TV subscriber you still need to upgrade to Premium to cast those games to your big screen. A 1 year subscription is $129.99 or you can pay monthly at $24.99. However, it offers you “every 2014 Regular Season out-of-market game LIVE or on-demand in HD” on Android, iOS and your PC/Chromebook.
Be on the lookout for the app to update sometime today with details that support has been added. What team will you be following this year?
Source: Google Blog Via: 9to5Google
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Moto G Now Available at Republic Wireless Starting at $149
The Moto X and the Moto G are pretty hot little devices. Many say they are exactly what an Android device should be, feature rich, simplistic, mainly stock and affordable. Mix a great device with a steal of a deal for service and you have a inning combination. Republic Wireless has just announced that the Moto G is now available on their network.
The Moto G is available in black and you have the choice between the 8GB model, for $149, or the 16GB model for $179. It also launches with Android 4.4 KitKat and puts it a little ahead in terms of Android software versions than their Moto X offering, but we have heard that KitKat is set for a launch later this month for he Moto X.
Plan wise you are looking at a ridiculously affordable set of options.
- Unlimited talk, text, and data, on WiFi only – $5/month
- Unlimited talk and text on WiFi and cellular, and unlimited data on WiFi – $10/month
- Unlimited talk, text and data on WiFi, plus 3G cellular – $25/month
Math wise, even if you went with the $25 a month plan and bought the 16GB Moto G, you would be looking at $479 + tax for a device and service for a year. Not to shabby really.
Republic Wireless will also be offering a full range of accessories for the Moto G like flip, grip and stand shells in a variety of colors.
Head over to Republic Wireless’s Moto G page if you are interested in getting an order placed because shipping won’t start for 1 to 2 weeks.
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Angela Ahrendts May Delay Apple Start Until Mid-Year
Burberry chief executive Angela Ahrendts resigned last October from the British luxury fashion house to join Apple as the head of its retail division. According to The Guardian, Ahrendts is free to leave Burberry this month, having fulfilled her six-month notice period, but her actual exit date is not yet known.
Ahrendts may be staying longer at Burberry to help smooth the transition over to her successor Christopher Bailey, who is currently serving as the company’s chief creative officer. Money also may be a factor in Ahrendts leaving as she is slated to receive a two million pound bonus in June for her recent performance as Burberry CEO.
“It’s a big sum of money. In some ways it would be good to see the business moving on after six months of handover time. You want to see clarity,” said Rahul Sharma, an analyst at Neev Capital.
But he said investors were also likely to feel reassured by Ahrendt’s presence ahead of some big moves for Burberry and continuing concerns about Bailey’s ability to combine his creative role with that of a chief executive.
“That is a big concern in the back of investors’ minds and Ahrendt’s presence delays that point of judgment,” he said.
Another factor may be Ahrendts’ critical role in Burberry’s revamped Japanese business strategy, which involves severing long-term apparel licensing agreements in 2015 and creating its own distribution system in the important Asian market. Burberry is expected to confirm this plan as part of the company’s annual report next month.
Ahrendts will join Apple as the Senior Vice President of Retail and Online Stores, a position that has seen significant turnover in the past several years. In 2011, Ron Johnson left Apple for J.C. Penney, after building up Apple’s retail presence during his 11-year tenure. Johnson was replaced by Dixons CEO John Browett, who served less than a year at Apple.
How Mobile Devices Are Changing Business
A Gallup poll recently reported that 88 percent of millenials age 18 to 29 own a smartphone. Now that smartphones are a part of our everyday life, the rise in mobile use is changing the face of business. From the way a company uses mobile to attract customers to how it runs its business, mobile devices are the latest tool in the evolution of business.
Business Becoming More Social
More than 60 percent of people use their mobile devices to stay connected with social media, says Business Insider. To tap into this market, 81 percent of small businesses are now using social media, according to a LinkedIn study. Brand placement in lifestyle photos on Pinterest boards, “how to” videos on YouTube or Vimeo channels and eye-catching tweets are ways businesses are engaging their customers. This list of favorite company tweets from Mashable shows examples of simple messages from companies such as Taco Bell and Charmin that capture the consumer’s attention.
Mobile and Operations
The combination of cloud-computing and mobile devices has created new tools for running a business. Internal processes that once relied on large computing centers full of servers and disk dives can now be run remotely in the cloud with a tablet or smartphone.
Customer information can be managed with tools such as Zoho CRM. Accounting can be done with Quickbooks by Intuit completely in the cloud. Tracking social media campaigns on every platform can be done with Hootsuite on your tablet or smartphone. Employees are no longer tied to their desks. Mobile opens up the possibility of reducing physical office space with virtual teams and outsourced roles.
Apps Versus Website
More companies are developing their own mobile apps for both internal use by employees and external use by customers. This is becoming a way for businesses to support mobile without massive changes to their websites.
Businesses are spending money updating their websites to the latest responsive design techniques so they can easily be accessed by any device. This becomes a big budget item for very old or complicated web sites. For those companies with the capacity, mobile apps serve the same purpose more efficiently. Apps make use of the native functionality of the smartphone or tablet. The consumer doesn’t have to learn any new navigation techniques.
Consider Walgreen’s mobile app. Part of the functionality was in response to customers wanting an easy way to refill prescriptions and submit photos for printing.
Mobile and Service Delivery
Mobile chat products, such as LivePerson, allow companies to support customers through their smartphones and tablets. This lets the consumer deal with product questions and issues without waiting until they are home on their computer. Real-time mobile chat customer service keeps business engaged with their customers which opens up additional sales opportunities. According to eDigital’s Customer Service Benchmark, live chat received the highest customer satisfaction rating of all customer service options.
All Business is Affected by Mobile
Even the healthcare field is getting a facelift with the use of mobile devices. Doctors and nurses access medical and pharmaceutical databases from their mobile devices. The Electronic Health Record regulations went into effect in 2014 requiring patient information to be available electronically. This means healthcare providers can use mobile devices to get to your information quickly to help you.
Medical services are becoming available through mobile devices. A startup named Plushcare will provide face-to-face contact with a doctor over a mobile device. Their goal is to reduce the expense of going to a doctor or emergency clinic for routine medical issues that could be addressed in a video chat.
AIVAnet 