This year’s ‘Call of Duty’ on PS3 and 360 comes with a free new-gen upgrade
Activision is taking a page out of its own book and throwing Call of Duty fans that haven’t yet upgraded to new consoles a bone. That’s right, if you pick up a digital copy of this year’s Advanced Warfare for either the PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360, you’ll get a free upgrade to a new-gen copy within the same console family. That means PlayStation 3 begets a PlayStation 4 download and Xbox 360 in turn unlocks an Xbox One version. What’s more, each console will retain its respective license and you’ll still be able to play online with your buddies on new and old boxes (with frickin’ lasers!) after you do the deed. The offer expires at the end of next March, and like with Destiny before it, premium content like season passes will carry over too. Sounds like a pretty great deal unless, of course, you were planning to pick up one of those special edition Xbox Ones.
Thinking of getting a new console? Upgrade your copy of #AdvancedWarfare for free. Details: http://t.co/zy4oBcHT1J pic.twitter.com/35RmYPV9kT
– Call of Duty (@CallofDuty) October 7, 2014
Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment, HD
Via: (2)
Source: Call of Duty (1)
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Nokia’s HERE Maps Android app now available on Samsung Galaxy devices
While we were able to get our hands on an advance release of Nokia’s new HERE Maps app for Android, the company had to a make a few minor tweaks before it was ready for public consumption. It appears all of those outstanding boxes have now been ticked, because the app has just gone live on Samsung’s Galaxy app store. Unfortunately, thanks to Samsung’s considerable marketing muscle, the app currently only offers Galaxy device owners access to its offline maps, turn-by-turn navigation and transit features. That means you’ll have to wait a little longer to grab the app (or until an enterprising developer extends its availability) if you own a non-Samsung device. However, if you’re looking for a very accomplished alternative to Google Maps, it’s definitely worth being a little more patient.
Filed under: Cellphones, Internet, Software, Mobile, Samsung, Nokia
Via: HERE Blog
Source: HERE Maps (Samsung Galaxy App Store)
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SwiftKey’s first iOS update helps you start typing faster
If you jumped at the chance to try the first wave of third-party iOS keyboards, you probably noticed that they’re a little… rough around the edges. You may want to give at least one of them a second try, though. SwiftKey has just released the first update to its iOS input method, and it tackles some of the larger gripes that early adopters have noticed. The biggest deal is the improved load time, which should let you start typing faster; there are also fixes for some easy-to-reproduce crashes, like one that occurs when you backspace over emoji. Head over to the App Store if you’re eager to iron out of some of SwiftKey’s earliest wrinkles.
Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Mobile
Source: App Store, SwiftKey Blog
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Ofcom slaps Three with a £250,000 fine for failing to handle customer complaints
While Three is currently the UK’s fastest-growing network, it certainly can’t rest on its laurels. In fact, it’s just been given a sharp wake-up call, after Ofcom, the UK’s communications regulator, handed the carrier a £250,000 fine over its inadequate handling of customer grievances. According to the watchdog, Three closed complaints before they were fully resolved and was guilty of not logging complaint calls from customers when it should have done. While it now has to hand over a cool quarter of a million to appease Ofcom (which is then absorbed by the Treasury), Three has apparently sorted out its internal processes and is now compliant with regulations — good news if you enjoy the carrier’s unlimited tariffs but weren’t so impressed by its customer service.
Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile
Source: Ofcom
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EE TV is a set-top box that streams video to your mobile devices
Already the UK’s biggest mobile network, EE is looking to branch out. The company today announced EE TV, a new set-top box that will serve up over 70 Freeview channels, as well as various catch-up and on-demand services. The box itself has DVR capabilities, with a 1TB drive capable of storing roughly 600 hours of recorded TV or film. Up to four channels can be recorded at any one time. With EE being a mobile network, smaller screen devices are integral to the product. EE TV will pump content to up to four different screens including your TV, so tablets and smartphones connected to the same WiFi network can tune in to different channels, watch on-demand video streams, or view anything that’s been recorded to the box.
As you’d imagine, this is handled through iOS and Android apps which mimic the set-top box’s UI. Or rather, the UI across all screens was developed with the mobile experience in mind. It’s very visually driven, and from a brief demo, appears to be relatively simple and intuitive to navigate. You can also use the apps as a remote for the main set-top box if you’ve misplaced the physical one, and “flick” anything you’re watching on a mobile device to the living room TV instantly. You can also pause whatever you’re watching on one device, and resume from another — something EE says is only possible on its set-top box currently. Probably the most interesting feature is called “replay,” which lets you record up to six channels all the time, with the last 24-hours of content always available to catch up on.
Alongside the 70+ selection of Freeview channels, and catch-up services like BBC iPlayer, apps including YouTube and Wuaki.tv will also be available at launch, with various other services said to be joining the platform soon. EE TV will be launching in the very near future, and will be free to any of the company’s broadband subscribers. Mobile customers will be able to get involved from £9.95 per month, and if you’re not an EE customer of any description, then you’re out of luck.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Internet
Source: EE TV
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IBM’s Watson sets up home in NYC to learn new tricks
Watson has gone a long way since its Jeopardy days. From that time, it has helped with cancer research, created its own recipes, pored over medical records and even reintroduced soldiers to civilian life. Sounds like IBM has even bigger plans for the supercomputer, though: the company has just launched Watson’s new headquarters in New York’s Silicon Alley, as well as five new client experience centers worldwide. IBM chose the location, because it keeps Watson near Silicon Alley developers and students from universities like NYU, making it easy to find talent when needed.
IBM has revealed the details of some of its more recent Watson partnerships. ANZ Global Wealth and Deakin University in Australia are using Watson to give customers financial advise and to assist students online, respectively. CaixaBank in Spain is helping Watson learn Spanish, while Bumrungrad International Hospital in Thailand is tapping into the computer’s abilities to improve cancer care and to analyze patients’ cases. Finally, Metropolitan Health in South Africa has been using Watson to provide its customers health and wellness services.
Since IBM believes the computer still has a lot more to offer, though, the company has also opened five Watson client experience centers in Australia, Brazil, England and Ireland. These centers are really more like interactive labs where potential clients can experience Watson for themselves, before deciding if they want to tap into its many, many talents for their services.
[Image credit: IBM Watson/Flickr]
Filed under: Misc
Via: TechCrunch
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Working Apple 1 Motherboard, Vintage Apple European Headquarters Flag to Be Auctioned [Mac Blog]
On October 22, British auction house Bonhams will auction off a rare working Apple 1 motherboard that is expected to fetch between $300,000 and $500,000, reports Mashable. The motherboard itself was constructed by Steve Wozniak in Steve Jobs’ family garage for The Byte Shop, and carries the number “01-0070″.
Also up for auction is an original flag from Apple’s European headquarters, which was in use until 1996. The flag is expected to fetch somewhere between $1,500 and $2,500 and is said to be the only flag from the headquarters that was kept in “fine condition.”
Last year German auction house Breker sold two working Apple 1 computers, as one unit complete with its original white cardboard box sold for $330,000 while another unit sold for a record-breaking $671,400. The Apple 1 was originally released in 1976 and sold for $666.66. Approximately 200 total units were produced, as few remain in functional condition today.
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Respite is in sight: Nexus 5 camera bug will likely be eliminated for good in Android L
The Nexus 5 camera bug is one of the best documented issues on Android KitKat and despite several fixes that have alleviated a lot of the outcry when the bug was first found, there are still people suffering from the debilitating issue, battery draining and all. Well, it seems there is good news for those of you still suffering as the specific issue that relates to the Nexus 5 camera bug has been marked as “Fixed” in the Google Issue Tracker and has been earmarked to be included in a future release, which we’re assuming is Android L.
While the camera part of the issue was resolved for many people in Android 4.4.3, the battery draining due to 100% CPU loads often remained, though it appears Google has now found a fix. Interestingly, this issue has only ever affected the Nexus 5, so only it will receive the fix, but for those who have been struggling with the bug, you’ll be glad to know that salvation is only a few weeks away – or at least, that’s what the rumours tell us.
Are you still living with the Nexus 5 camera bug? Let us know your thoughts on the release of a fix.
Source: Google Issue Tracker via Phandroid
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It’s official: HTC smartwatch will not be happening in 2014 because no one “has gotten it right”
We were surprised by the lack of presence of HTC during IFA 2014 this year, particularly seeing as most other manufacturers were making big pushes with their maiden, or even second, Android Wear wearables. This naturally gave birth to rumours that HTC had put their HTC smartwatch on hold while they reevaluate given the stiff competition, and today, the company has confirmed as much. Speaking on behalf of HTC’s Creative Labs team, Drew Bamford revealed the reason HTC won’t be releasing a HTC just yet is less about being scared of entering the market, but more about feeling irresponsible to their consumers:
“We’ve seen a lot of general purpose wearables come to market. There’s not a strong reason to wear one every day. When we come to market with our product we want to make sure the product has a strong point of view and there is a really compelling reason to strap it on your wrist. We think the strategy we were working on will get us there, but we want to take our time and get it right. We honestly don’t think anyone has gotten it right.”
Delaying your release so you can get it right – hardly a strategy that we can complain about, but presumably only if they come through with something. A HTC smartwatch has been on the radar for some time now, but everything has been vehemently denied, apart from the fact that they have been working on one. We’ll likely have to wait till 2015 to see even a trace of an Android Wear wearable from the Taiwanese manufacturer, so we’ll just have to wait and see.
What do you think about HTC waiting to release their first smartwatch? Let us know your opinion in the comments below.
Source: re/code via Droid-life
We think the strategy we were working on will get us there, but we want to take our time and get it right. We honestly don’t think anyone has gotten it right.
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Ambi Climate is the smarter way to control your air conditioner [Kickstarter]
The allure of the “Smart Home” gets stronger with each passing year with more and more cool technology released oriented towards making home life more connected. The primary issue of this currently is the formidable cost associated of this “Smart Home” – while the concept of connectedness is tantalizing, replacing swathes of equipment in the home isn’t exactly a cheap exercise. That’s why we were so excited to hear about Ambi Climate, by Ambi Labs, a new Kickstarter campaign that is looking at bringing smart air conditioning while still being able to utilize your existing air conditioner.
Using the Ambi Climate hub, you’re able to send infrared signals to air conditioners from almost all major brands and control it using an Android or iOS companion app. But it’s more than just an expensive AC remote – the Ambi Climate also uses “Ambi Mode” which allows it monitor not only your home’s climate, but the local weather and your air conditioner’s performance to judge what are the optimal settings for your home. What’s more, Ambi Climate also geo-location signals to turn on your AC when you are close to home so you arrive to your desired temperature, and is accurate enough to turn off the AC when nobody is in the room being cooled.
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ambi-labs/ambi-climate-the-smart-add-on-for-your-air-conditi/widget/video.htmlIf that sounds like the type of thing you need in your life, you can contribute to the Kickstarter campaign at the link below. In just first 24 hours of the campaign, the Ambi Climate campaign has already amassed $54,759, more than doubling its initial target of $25,000. While the early bird pledges are already taken, you can still get an Ambi Climate starting at $99, $50 off the expected retail price for the package.
What do you think about Ambi Climate – is this something you’d want in your home? Let us know your thoughts.
Source: Ambi Climate via Kickstarter
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AIVAnet 