Todoist adds Dropbox and Google Drive support, audio notes for premium users
Todoist added key collaboration tools earlier this year, and now it’s going one step further for paid users. Users opting for premium account status will get Dropbox and Google Drive support to include cloud-stored files and documents with task lists. There’s support for native files too, as you can now record/play audio files and attach photos via the web or mobile apps. Alongside the aforementioned task and project sharing tools, folks using free accounts will can access the new features when they’re invited to work on a paid user’s assignment. The company says that real-time collaboration and this new file-sharing add-on is filling its productivity quiver to launch a dedicated enterprise version in the near future. If combining your storage repository with your to-do list sounds like something you’d like to add to your workflow, there’s a 30 percent discount on the $29 annual asking price for the next two days.
Filed under: Internet, Software
Source: Todoist
Sony hopes Michael Jackson’s legacy can boost its streaming music service
Sony sure knows how to dangle a carrot in front of its customers. In a not-so-subtle use of music industry clout to drive its technology business, the company is offering access to five of Xscape‘s tunes on its Music Unlimited streaming service days before the album’s official debut (May 13th in the US). Meanwhile, iTunes and other services are getting one early song at best.
Sony is milking the release for all it’s worth on other platforms, too. You can head to the PlayStation Store to check out a behind-the-scenes video, and buying an Xperia Z2 in Canada and other regions will get you a full download of MJ’s album as soon as it’s available. Are all these promotional stunts going to help Sony’s less-than-stellar financials? Probably not all that much, but at least a Music Unlimited trial is free — and if signing up is still too much of a hassle, you can always listen to the first Xscape single below.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Internet, Sony
Source: PlayStation Blog
Waitrose and Tesco begin trialling iBeacons for in-store offers and alerts
Apple’s Bluetooth-based iBeacon technology looks set to enrich in-store shopping experiences, so it should come as no surprise that two of Britain’s biggest supermarkets are looking to see what it’s all about. Mirroring pilots by their counterparts in the US, Tesco and Waitrose have commenced trials that deliver location-sensitive notifications and offers to shoppers via their smartphone without the need for GPS. Tesco began trialling in its Chelmsford store in April, issuing messages to customers to remind them to pick up pre-ordered goods. Waitrose started using the technology at its new experimental Swindon store last week, using iBeacon to alert shoppers to promotions when they’re near a particular aisle or food counter. Unlike its rival, Tesco has said it will holding off using beacons to issue marketing messages (including promotions) over fears it could scare customers away. Whether or not iBeacons will make their way to more supermarket stores across the UK depends on the outcome of the trials. However, the technology has seen strong early backing, suggesting your local store could one day begin sending you tailor-made notifications and offers.
Source: Marketing
AT&T and Verizon received one government data request per minute last year
Companies including Apple, Facebook and Google recently updated their privacy policies to disclose all government data requests to the individual users in question, a move meant to appease web denizens worldwide. While US telecoms like AT&T and Verizon haven’t announced plans to do the same, the Washington Post pored through the companies’ transparency reports to turn up a new stat. According to the publication, in 2013 AT&T and Verizon received more than one request every 60 seconds. This number is based on AT&T’s reported 301,816 requests from state, local and federal authorities, and Verizon’s reported 321,545 requests.
That may sound like a very high number, but as the article notes, it’s dwarfed by Canadian telecoms’ reported rate of one request every 27 seconds. However, the one-request-per-minute stat doesn’t account for T-Mobile and Sprint, since these two companies haven’t disclosed data for the same 2013 time period. (In fact, neither has committed to publicly sharing information about data requests at all.) If you were to consider data from 2012, though, requests made to the top four US carriers average about 2.2 per minute. If T-Mobile, Sprint and smaller US carriers hop on the transparency-report bandwagon, you could soon see more accurate — and even higher — numbers about the frequency of government queries for user info.
Filed under: Cellphones, Verizon, Sprint, AT&T, T-Mobile
Source: The Washington Post
HTC One M8 Prime rumoured for September release with Snapdragon 805, Quad HD Display
While we’ve heard of one Prime device, the Samsung Galaxy S5 Prime, that may be released very soon with an upgraded display which is capable of 2K resolutions, there may be another Prime device also on the distant horizon. That other device could be the HTC One M8 which was launched earlier this year with “only” a 1080p resolution display (the other being of course the Galaxy S5), but rumours are saying that HTC is also planning a HTC One M8 Prime which will update the device with a Quad HD, 2K display sometime in September.
Not only would HTC be updating the display of the device, the M8 Prime would also have an updated processor, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 805, which is likely to be available in September as well as an update of the pairing of the Duo camera to 18MP and 5MP (UltraPixel). While the details do appear to be a bit hazy, it wouldn’t be that unusual to see a second flagship device from HTC appear in September given that most other Android manufacturers have migrated to a biannual flagship cycle i.e. Sony, and likely LG. But as always with these rumours, we’ll have to wait and see.
What do you think about the existence of a HTC One M8 Prime? Would you like to get a device like this? Let us know what your thoughts are.
Source: HTCSoku via Phone Arena
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Rising Sapphire Display Cost May Limit Production of 5.5-Inch iPhone 6
A new post on Weibo citing supply chain sources (Google Translate, via GforGames) claims Apple’s 5.5-inch iPhone may see a limited production volume due to the use of high quality sapphire as a display material. According to the report, the high cost of producing the sapphire may hinder Apple’s ability to include the scratch-resistant material in a large number of its smartphone models.
The report notes that Apple’s sapphire display may cost 1743 yuan (or $280) in materials, which is a significant jump over the $44 estimated for the 4-inch Retina display used in the iPhone 5s. This extra expense could increase the retail price of the next generation iPhone by approximately 50 percent, which may price the smartphone beyond the affordability point for most consumers.
These latest reports suggest that the sapphire screen costs around 1743 yuan (or $280), which would raise the final cost of the device to about 8000 yuan (or $1285) – at least in China. At the moment, the 16 GB iPhone 5S costs 5288 yuan in China ($850), whereas the beefier 64 GB variant is retailed at the price of 6888 yuan (or $1106)
This rumor corresponds with an earlier report from analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who suggested that supply constraints may force Apple to reserve the sapphire display for premium iPhone models such as the 64GB version of the 5.5-inch iPhone 6.
Though Apple still buys sapphire from third-party suppliers, the company is starting to produce the material in small quantities at its Arizona facility. The sapphire production plant, which is financed by Apple and operated by GT Advanced, is expected to produce between 100 and 200 million sapphire displays, enough for an entire line of devices when it reaches full operating capacity.
MLB At Bat ’14 free for T-Mobile subscribers
T-Mobile is once again offering MLB At Bat free for T-Mobile subscribers. All you have to do is download the app, available on both Android and iOS.
MLB At Bat allows you to track and get updates of your favorite MLB teams. Normally the cost for a yearly subscription is 20 bucks, but for being a T-Mobile subscribe it is free.
For all you baseball fans, just head over to your respective app store and pick up your free subscription to MLB At Bat.
Source: TmoNews
The post MLB At Bat ’14 free for T-Mobile subscribers appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Google Stars leak reveals a new way to share and search your bookmarks
Google+ expert Florian Kiersch recently revealed that Google’s testing a bookmarking app called “Stars,” and he’s just posted a video (embedded below) showing how it might work. The initial leak exposed how you could star web pages from Chrome’s address bar, organize them by folders, and search content within those pages. Those searches would use suggestions and auto-complete like Chrome, displaying the results in an “image-rich grid.” Now, a splash screen (above) has confirmed much of that, and his demo shows how your favorites can be organized from a primary screen and set to private or public visibility. That’s how you’d automatically share links with the public or keep them confined to your Google+ circles. Stars may arrive in the future as an app or extension on Chrome and would probably be embedded in other Google apps too — assuming it survives the beta.
Filed under: Internet, Software, Google
Via: TNW
Source: Florian Kiersch (Google+)
CleverPet makes every dog Pavlov’s dog
Psychologist Ivan Pavlov conditioned dogs to salivate by ringing a bell, but maybe he should have made them play Simon instead. That’s the idea behind CleverPet, a device that plans to train your dog to solve simple problems while you’re at work. When it begins, all the pooch has to do is push a button to get food, with subsequent puzzles growing in difficulty until it’s playing whack-a-mole with the light-up pads. It’s the second smart pet device we’ve seen on Kickstarter in the last few weeks, with Kittyo offering a similar piece of kit for cat owners. CleverPet is currently half-way toward its $100,000 goal, but you can save $100 off the retail price if you make an early pledge of $160. Just be warned that it won’t launch until February 2015, so best make sure your dog will still be in the “young and able to be taught tricks” bracket by then.
Via: CNET
Source: Kickstarter
Gold, Platinum, or Rose Gold HTC One M8 available from Goldgenie for those with deep Pockets
We’ve previously heard of plans to bring out a 24 carat gold version of the HTC One M8, and even seen one gifted to T-Mobile CEO, John Legere. Gold-plating business Goldgenie, however, has their own plans in mind and now have available for purchase either a gold, platinum, or rose gold HTC One M8. And that’s 24 carat gold, of course. This isn’t the first time that Goldgenie has thought to modify HTC phones with precious metals having previously worked with last year’s HTC One and the HTC One Mini.
Naturally, these modified M8 devices are not cheap: the “cheapest” of the three, the gold HTC One M8, comes in at $2560.95 USD and the platinum one will set you back $2,830.95 USD. While that might seem a bit steep, you do get the bonus inclusion of a cherry oak finished box to store your M8 and its accessories, which seems entirely worth it. While the phone may be different on the outside, there have been no modifications to the hardware itself and the phones are fully unlocked so they can be used anywhere in the world.
To be honest, it doesn’t seem like there’s that much difference between the default chrome finish of the M8 and the platinum version, but that might just be my wallet talking. Let us know what you think about these Goldgenie plated devices.
Source: Goldgenie via Phandroid
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