Plain old gravel could hold the key to greener power stations
Renewable energy is getting better all the time, but no-one’s yet worked out a good way to store the juice for those cloudy, windless days. Batteries do work, but given the high cost of swapping out the cells for your EV, we doubt that Duracell will start making a five-megawatt version any time soon. That’s why British company Isentropic is developing a system that could store energy in cells that are filled with gravel. Using Argon gas and a heat-exchange pump, the electrical energy from solar panels or wind turbines is used to warm the gravel. When the energy is required, the process is reversed, and the heat is used to drive an engine that creates power ready for the grid. It’s nowhere near as efficient as other power storage systems, since you’ll only get out about 75 percent of what you put in, but the low cost and ease of installation means that it’s not so outrageous as you think. It’s a shame that the gravel has to be stored in a tank full of Argon — we quite liked the idea of filling the boot of an EV with rocks, or even just parking it on an energy-storing driveway, before driving away.
Filed under: Misc
Via: The Economist
Source: Isentropic
[Download] Android 4.4.3 OTA Update for the 2012 Nexus 7 3G is now Available
As you may have heard, the last software update for Android, Android 4.4.3, is now available and is now rolling out to devices, most notably the Nexus devices. While the factory images for all Nexus devices are available if you like tinkering, it’s been a bit harder to track down the more easily installed OTA updates so far. Luckily though, oldblue910 over at XDA has captured the Android 4.4.3 OTA update for the 2012 Nexus 7 3G and has it available for download here.
Unfortunately, the OTA update for the Wi-Fi version of the Nexus 7 has not yet been captured, but it’s only a matter of time now before it is. The Android 4.4.3 is bringing quite a few needed bug fixes, particularly for Nexus 5 owners, though it’s surprising that this build of Android has come so close to Google I/O, essentially dampening any hope of a new software build announcement at the event at the end of June. Still, it’s always better than nothing.
Do you have Android 4.4.3 on your device yet? If so, how do you find it? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
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[Download] Stock and inspired OnePlus One wallpapers remind you to “Never Settle”
Many of you who follow AndroidSPIN will know that when a new device is released, we like to take a look at the wallpapers that come with that device. We wouldn’t say that we’re particularly art-loving people, but the wallpapers that are included on devices these days are increasingly abstract and really quite beautiful. Perhaps ironically, many of these wallpapers are also large enough to be wallpapers for our personal computers. However, when it came to look for OnePlus One wallpapers, they have been somewhat elusive to find, so instead we’re offering a combination of both allegedly stock wallpapers as well as wallpapers that have been designed for, and inspired by, the OnePlus One. Check them all out:
While we’d love to give you just a list of stock wallpapers from the OnePlus One, the device is still only available via invite, something which has somewhat constrained the ability of the Android community to delve into the depths of the device. But you can bet that it’s only a matter of time before the original stock wallpapers make their way out.
What are your thoughts on the OnePlus One? Is it a device that you want to get? Let us know what you think in the comments.
Source: DroidViews
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App of the Day: UR Launcher with 3D Wallpapers
We love launchers here at AndroidGuys and today’s App of the Day is one of our favourite as it takes the focus off the actual launcher and introduces features unique to UR Launcher beyond what you’d expect from this category of app.
What makes UR Launcher great is the diverse catalogue of free interactive 3D live themes and wallpapers and the ability to add your own photo and text to the background.
In addition, your most recent and favourite apps are contained in a handy sidebar for quick access, which sets UR Launcher apart from the competition.
Some of the features include:
– recommended trending apps
– themed icons for your dock
– optimized for long battery life
– double tap to uncover actions
UR Launcher is a free download from the Google Play Store, and as our App of the Day recommend you go and check it out.
The post App of the Day: UR Launcher with 3D Wallpapers appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Android podcast apps with Chromecast support
Here at Androidguys we love the Chromecast and were massive fans of all the cool casting apps that make this tiny device what it is but this little streaming dongle is not just limited to beaming photos and on-line media up onto the TV. If you’ve got any kind of sound system hooked up to your TV and a Chromecast wedged in the back of it then you’re all set-up to listen or watch your favourite pod casts in all their glory on the big screen and through what ever sound system your rocking.
Over at Chromewatching, were always updating the ever growing list of pod cast apps which have Chromecast support but we wanted to highlight the ones that we like and which we hope you will too.
Pocket Casts is beautifully designed with a stunning phone and tablet interface which makes flipping through the app and finding content so easy and enjoyable. It’s an extremely robust app with all the bells and whistles you’d expect but with a few extra features like its sync option to keep your subscribed pod casts and progress up to date across other devices, smart playlists to organize your pod casts and an episode download scheduling feature so you can get the latest episode when it suites you. And of course, a seamless experience when you click that cast button.
Pocket Cast is not a free app and probably not the cheapest but you can guarantee continuous development and improvements that keeps this app at the top of its game.
Podcast Addict takes a cleaner and more simple approach to a pod cast app which makes it very easy to find your favourite content, however, it does have a lot of areas to navigate but it’s not a chore and becomes straight forward once familiar with the interface. When adding pod casts, there’s quite a few options to choose from. You can search for them manually, add an RSS feed, browse by top pod casts, import via OPML, and even browse popular pod cast networks like Twit, Revision 3, BBC, and others. All in all, it’s a great free pod cast app especially with its casting option.
Podcast Addict is a free app which is not bad for what it can do, so it worth a shot to try it out.
A rival to Pocket Cast, Upod Podcast player is the new kid on the block and that’s why we like it. It has all the usual features that you’ll find on the other big pod cast apps but uPod tweaks these to take them a little further, one of which is where video files can have the video component disabled for audio-only listening.The UI is clean un-cluttered and has an email like inbox concept to manage your pod casts, something that quite different to the rest of the apps out there, and you can link uPod to your Google account for backup and sync across devices.
UPod’s free 7 day trial is a great way to give this app a test run and then decide to pay for the full version.
Next on our list of favourite pod cast apps is DoggCatcher. This one has been around since the beginning of Android but this doesn’t mean that its stuck in the past, the developers of DoggCatcher have evolved it with time and now with Chromecast support, it is still one of the go to pod cast apps for the Android faithful. Managing your pod casts with this app is a breeze and it packs many features that are comparable to others in this list but DoggCatchers edge is its highly configurable settings and the amount of information that can be clearly displayed within its UI.
DoggCatcher is available as a Lite version (free) which still gives you a tester of what the app can do, but its best to upgrade to see what it can really do.
BeyondPod is yet another pod casting app that offers Chromecast support for listening to your favourite shows on the big screen. Featuring a clever downloading engine, you have complete control of how many pod casts to download at once and how long to keep the old versions, with new downloads being performed unobtrusively in the background. BeyondPod also supports variable playback speeds and also a convenient widget to offer full control of your playback even outside the app.
BeyondPod is a free download on the Google Play Store.
Why not give these apps a try and see what casting them to your TV really looks and sounds like, and drop us a comment below telling us what your favourite podcast app is.
The post Android podcast apps with Chromecast support appeared first on AndroidGuys.
iWatch Reportedly Launching in October with iOS 8 and Curved OLED Touchscreen
Apple’s highly rumored “iWatch” smartwatch is expected to launch in October and will run a version of iOS 8, according to a new report from Japanese business newspaper Nikkei.
Traditional watch-style iWatch concept by Gábor Balogh
Sources tell the paper that Apple has begun finalizing specs for the device, as it will use a curved OLED touchscreen while utilizing biometric sensors to collect health-related data such as calorie consumption, sleep activity, blood oxygen levels and more, in line with recent rumors.
Apple appears confident of the new product. According to a parts manufacturer, it plans monthly commercial output of about 3-5 million units, which exceeds the total global sales of watch-like devices last year.
The news contrasts a report from Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Brian White yesterday, which stated that iWatch production would begin gearing up this month ahead of a September launch alongside the iPhone 6.
While not much is known about the iWatch’s physical features, rumors have suggested the device will come in two separate sizes of 1.3 inches and 1.5-1.7 inches. It is also likely that the iWatch’s biometric sensors will work with Apple’s new Health app in iOS 8 in order to measure and aggregate health metrics.
Vodafone admits some governments have free rein to eavesdrop on calls
Gone are the days when we thought governments could only access our phone calls through official, naive-sounding procedures like “warrants.” Nevertheless, it’s only now, after the whole Snowden / NSA blow-up, that companies like Vodafone are trying to be more transparent. In a 40,000-word “disclosure report,” the multinational carrier says that “a small number” out of the 29 countries in which it operates demand to have “direct access to a phone operator’s network,” thus “bypassing” any control the operator might otherwise have had over the privacy of its customers. Needless to say, Vodafone doesn’t call out any of the culprit nations by name, since doing so would breach the same laws that it agreed to uphold in order to business with them in the first place.
This isn’t the first time Vodafone has faced controversy due its dealings with various governments. During the Egyptian revolution of 2011, for example, it sent text messages to all its Egyptian subscribers, supporting the dictatorship of President Mubarak and describing protestors as “criminals.” Even today, Egypt is one of six countries that refuses to let Vodafone publish any information about government wiretaps, alongside India, Qatar, Romania, South Africa and Turkey. (Note: We can’t necessarily infer that these are same countries that insist on having direct eavesdropping access.)
To be fair, Vodafone wasn’t the only operator to send dodgy text messages in Egypt, and the company’s new disclosure report emphasizes that it’s simply obeying national laws that other carriers are also forced to stick to. In other words, many phone companies may have sold to their souls, it’s just that Vodafone is now brave enough to give us a glimpse at the receipt.
Filed under: Cellphones, Internet, Mobile
Via: Reuters
Source: The Guardian
Huawei’s first octa-core chip promises faster LTE than its rivals
While MediaTek’s trotting its way into the premium smartphone market with an LTE octa-core chip later this year, Huawei’s creeping up right behind with its own octa-core offering. Like Samsung’s newer Exynos 5 Octa variants, Huawei’s new Kirin 920 consists of quad Cortex-A15 plus quad Cortex-A7 CPUs that work simultaneously, as well as a powerful Mali-T628 GPU. But what makes this 28nm chip special is its integrated multi-mode LTE Cat 6 radio, meaning it can offer data speeds of up to 300Mbps on networks that are set up for carrier aggregation. These are already live or being tested in the likes of Hong Kong, South Korea, Singapore and Germany.
MediaTek’s upcoming MT6595 chip, on the other hand, only has integrated LTE Cat 4 which is capped at 150Mbps; not to mention that it packs the lesser (but more efficient) quad-A17 cores instead of quad-A15. Qualcomm may have the LTE know-how, but its SoC’s with integrated LTE Cat 6 aren’t due until 2015. As for Samsung and Intel, their SoC portfolios just lack built-in LTE in general, though the latter company is already shipping its separate LTE Cat 6 modem.
The Kirin 920 also boasts a low-power I3 sensor co-processor plus a Tensilica HIFI3 audio processor, though only real life usage will tell how effective they are. Huawei has yet to mention when will its high-end chip end up in consumer devices, but it did confirm that its 64-bit offerings have been delayed until next year. Either way, we’re pretty sure that Huawei’s own phones will get first dibs, and hopefully we’ll see them well before end of year.
Filed under: Misc, Wireless, Mobile
Via: Engadget Chinese
Happy 30th birthday, Tetris
It’s been 30 years since Alexey Pajitnov crafted the world’s most popular game of all time, while as an employee of the Soviet Academy of Sciences in Moscow. Tetris spent the next 10 years bouncing onto every computer and arcade machine, including selling 33 million copies on the Game Boy alone. Pajitnov, however, saw almost none of the success of his creation, since the rights to his game wouldn’t revert back to him until 1996. But by that point, Tetris’ place in world history was secure, and the title has since gone on to sell 100 million copies, not to mention popping up in some rather unexpected places.
Rom of the Week: Paranoid Android
ROM of the Week is dedicated to highlighting our favorite custom ROMs and builds for Android users. If you’re the type who likes to tinker and push their device to new limits then this column is for you.
Note that this isn’t the sort of thing that every AndroidGuys reader will enjoy; however, it can be an eye opener. Our hope here is that we help you discover something new and exciting that you can do with your favorite smartphone. Enjoy!
This week’s ROM of the Week goes to Paranoid Android. There is really only one word to describe PA, “Awesome!” The developers that have created/working on PA over the years have constantly kept it up-to-date with the latest Android builds and are always thinking of better features to incorporate.Well lets get down to it and see why PA made the ROM of the Week.
Like a majority of ROMs out there for Android, they all start with Google’s vanilla version of Android and begin to modify it with features they think are necessary or cool!
PA is a rom geared more towards power users, so if you’re just a beginner, you might want to look into AOKP, Cyanogenmod or get a stable release. Now, why do I say this? Well, PA has always been on the edge of the latest features which curiously find themselves incorporated into Google’s latest Android release, so it can be buggy at first.
In PA you can change almost every aspect of the OS and some of my favorite features are Halo and Hybrid Mode. Halos are essentially apps that live on the edge of your screen (very similar to Facebook chat heads) and when a notification arises you have quick and easy access to it. You can also drag it onto the “X” to disable the halo all together. It is a really quick and easy way to move around without opening and closing a bunch of apps.
Hybrid Mode is also an awesome feature that allows you to make your phone go into “Tablet mode” where your phone will have a tablet looking interface. It is a neat feature to experiment with, now some people don’t like it especially if you’re on a device with a screen smaller than 4.5 inches, but on my Nexus 5 it is great!
Now if you head over to PA’s website, you will notice they only “officially” support Nexus and Oppo devices, however support is available to legacy devices which you can find here.
The features really speak for themselves and thanks to user @noodles90 for all the hard work in putting these together! Check out the features below or if you’re having JavaScript issues, you can check them out on the next page.
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