Starz Play, Showtime Anytime, UFC.TV and Family-Friendly Games Gain Chromecast Support
Google has announced a slew of new apps and games that officially support the Google Chromecast Dongle. Among the new additions you can now cast movies and shows from Starz Play and Showtime Anytime. Neither of which will do you much good if you don’t have either of the premium channels added to your currently supported cable or satellite provider. However, it is good to see them jumping on the bandwagon like HBO Go did many moons ago. Now to just wait for individual streaming only packages, which are slated for some time next year.
UFC.TV also was added to the mix for those of you who are cage fighting die hard’s out there. Near as I can tell you can actually pull up Pay-Per-View content or subscribe to UFC FIGHT PASS for access through the app for everything. There are some blackout and contrary restrictions though, so be sure to check into it before you start looking to spend money.
For us cord cutters that no longer have cable or satellite, the above news does little for us. There is more news though that might interest you a little bit more. A set of family-friendly games have all gained support for the Chromecast that will bring a little more family entertainment to the living room on the big screen. Wheel of Fortune, Monopoly Dash, Scrabble Blitz and Connect 4 Quads. I didn’t find SIMON Swipe listed in the Play Store though, could just be a posting delay though as the others are all new additions today. Even the chromecast.com/apps page only gives links to iOS versions of the titles. Those aren’t the only new additions though. Just Dance Now will get you busting a rug on Pizza night. If you want to flex your brain rather than your muscles Big Web Quiz and Emoji Party now bring trivia to your TV.
To make finding these apps, and many others that are officially Chromecast supported and endorsed by Google, the company reconfigured the chromecast.com/apps page with categories. Now you can browse by TV & Movies, Music & Audio, Games, Sports, Photo & Video, New and a few others. Makes finding something useful to your life a little easier. Looks like the holidays could be pretty entertaining, don’t forget the eggnog though.
Source: Google
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[Deal Alert] 64GB Micro SD Cards on Sale for $26.49, 32GB for $12.99; Today Only
While there are a number of phones that do not offer micro SD card support anymore, there are still plenty that do and that is sometimes a deciding factor for many people when they buy their new phone. Then we have tablets, MP3 players, cmaers and a whole slew of other devices that still use SD or Micro SD cards. The beauty of a micro SD card is the fact that they come with a converter card to make them full size if needed. That kills two birds with one stone most of the time. Today’s deal on Amazon certainly gives the public a heck of deal if boosting external storage via an SD or Micro SD card is the direction you need to go.
That is a pretty killer deal on a 64GB card that has the speed to take those 1080p and 4k videos that some of these new devices can shoot. If you think 64GB is too much, you can get the 32GB for $12.99, 16GB for $7.99 or the 8GB for 8.99. Seems silly to not get the 16GB when the 8GB is a buck more. Snagging two 32GB could be good if you are on a bit of a budget and have multiple devices that could use the boost. They also have a few full size cards and USB flash drives on special today as well. The deal is only good for today, November 11th, so you best hurry if you want to snag some good deals on these.
Amazon Deal of the Day Storage cars and Flash Drive
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Must have been an Android fan: Man gets rejected despite using 99 iPhones in proposal
People do some pretty kooky things for love, and while some attempts end up outrageously romantic, others fall flat on their face. This is one case where the attempt has failed pretty spectacularly when a Chinese man purchased 99 iPhones, specifically the iPhone 6, in his proposal attempt to a young lady. The young lovestruck fellow, who proposed in the city of Guangzhou, even arranged the 99 devices in a heart shape (see above) and gathered friends around the heart to witness the supposedly romantic event.
Unfortunately, the lady in question didn’t feel the same way, leaving the young man standing in the middle of $85,000 USD worth of Apple products – I wonder if Android devices would have been cheaper/more successful. The unsuccessful proposal apparently cost the gentleman ¥500,000 in local currency, though he shouldn’t have too many issues finding buyers – the iPhone 6 is in hot demand in China. In fact, people have offered body organs in exchange for Apple products in the past so the man shouldn’t be short of lifestyle choices should he engage in bartering instead of cash.
Just remember kids: you can’t buy love.
What do you think about this man’s proposal with 99 iPhones? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
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The 2014 Moto G is the first smartphone to get Android Lollipop
Of course Motorola is actually the first to update its devices. After LG surprised us by saying that it would update its LG G3 starting this week, we almost thought there might be a new sheriff in town. However, if what Ars Technica is telling us is true, then Motorola has stolen the crown once again after it was reported the international unlocked 2014 Moto G is the first smartphone to get Android Lollipop. This comes just days after its bigger brother, the Moto X, was spotted running a soak test build in anticipation of the Android Lollipop roll-out, but it appears the Moto G has curried favour this time around.
Assuming unlocked devices are starting to be updated as we speak, Moto G devices locked to carriers will hopefully see the update in the very near future. Likewise, the Moto G’s 2013 version should also see the update soon seeing as the major difference between this year’s version and last year’s version is this year’s version has a bigger screen (and unfortunately worse battery life). We’d expect the Moto X’s update to start rolling out soon too, but we’ll call that one when we see it.
What do you think about the fact the 2014 Moto G is the first smartphone to get Android Lollipop? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Source: Ars Technica via Phone Arena
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Google Keyboard Updates with Light and Dark Material Design Themes [APK Download]
It is Wednesday and that usually means there will be some updates to our Google apps that we all know and love. While Google has been pushing many updates out more sporadically, today still has brought one to the Play Store that plenty will be happy to finally have. Today Google is updating the Google Keyboard and bringing with it the material design themes, in both a dark and light color option.
Google also added in the ability to configure the long-press duration in the settings menu as well. As always, the update is rolling out today in waves. You might already have it. If you don’t you can always pop over to Gappsearly and grab the APK at your leisure.
Google Keyboard v4.0 APK download
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Google Messenger 1.0 officially reaches the Play Store [APK Download]
A certain Google Messenger app was leaked earlier this year when Android Lollipop was first dropped, a strange sight seeing as Google went to all the effort of including SMS support in the Google Hangouts app. All the same, whatever Google has in mind in the long term, it has officially released Google Messenger 1.0 onto the Play Store for all to use.
As you might expect, the Google Messenger app is for SMS messages only, but it’s actually a pretty neat app. Material Design, of course, it colours the conversations with each of your contacts in the colour of their contact card, which is a nice touch, and makes it a snap to add photos and media into your messages. Unusually, the Messenger app doesn’t quite follow the conventions of the other Google core apps (not that the conventions are particularly consistent anyway), with the app employing a 3-dot settings drop down rather than the slide out menu. Still, it’s a sweet app, and if you’re looking for something a little less green (i.e. Hangouts) to handle your SMS’s in, then you can hit the download link below, or hit the Google Play Store to download.
Make sure to bookmark GappsEarly for the latest Google app releases:
Google Messenger 1.0 APK download
Source: Google Play
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Google Keep 3.0 hits the Play Store with Material Design in tow [APK Download]
Google has continued its charge to update all its Google apps according to the Material Design guidelines and the latest app to get this makeover is Google Keep. Google Keep 3.0 (specifically 3.0.01) brings in quite a few features which puts it on par with the other updated Google apps as well as adding in some nice new features that should make everybody’s life easier.
As you can see, the app is looking very snazzy with the new slide out menu and a new search function which lets you sort through your notes via type (e.g. note, voice, etc.) or by colour. Another neat feature is that there is now a new pop-up notification bar at the bottom of the app which will let you know various things like whether syncing is enabled or if you just removed a note and want to undo that action. The update Keep should be rolling out to your device soon (it’s not showing up in the Play Store yet), but if you want to try out the new feature, we have the APK available for download below.
Let us know if you spot something new.
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[GUIDE] How to get rid of the Facebook built-in browser
If you’re anything like me (and by that I mean you use Facebook), you will have noticed that the Facebook Android app now utilizes a Facebook built-in browser that opens all links while you’re surfing your newsfeed. While that might seem like a good innovation if you want to read that article right there and then, but the way I use Facebook, it’s ruined my mojo.
A big reason for this is the fact I use Link Bubble (if you haven’t heard about Link Bubble before, you should really look into it). In essence, the app opens links I click on in Facebook and opens them in a bubble that sits on the side of the screen, opening the webpage in the background while I continue to surf Facebook unimpeded. As you can probably see, this new built-in browser forces me to stop, wait while the webpage loads, and read it before I move on. Sure this might seem mundane for some of you, but those of you who like to skim through things and read interest webpages and tidbits later will understand where I’m coming from. As such, I thought I’d just mention the method by which I disabled this function, just in case anybody out there is suffering like I am.
First of all you will need to get to your settings – where exactly the settings button is will depend on what device you have, but if you have a physical/capacitive menu button, chances are that the settings option will pop up when you press that.
Once in the settings menu, you’ll notice a setting labelled “Always open links with external browser” (see screenshot above) which will be unticked by default. Tick this and Facebook will go back to its old behaviour, opening links in whatever external app you typically open links in.
Sure, it’s not the most riveting topic (or a particularly good guide), but it made a world of difference to me, and hopefully someone out there will be relieved to find this solution as well.
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Kogan suggests Nexus 6 release date in Australia will be close to Dec 5th
The state of Nexus 6 availability in the US hasn’t improved much over the last few weeks, but unfortunately the rest of the world, namely the 12 countries who were recently added to the support page, is still in the dark about when the device will even be able to be pre-ordered. Thankfully, we might be one step closer to figuring out the Nexus 6 release date in Australia at least after Australian online retailer, Kogan, put up its listings for the latest Nexus device. What’s most interesting about the listing is that the Nexus 6 is said to start shipping on December 5th, which hopefully means its official release in Australia, and other supported countries, will be around that date.
Obviously this is a little further away than expected, but it does make sense based on previous rumours. If you are interested in purchasing from Kogan, the Nexus 6 32GB will set you back $859 AUD and the 64GB version is $919 AUD, both of which are $10 less than the price listed on the Google Play Store and include free metropolitan shipping in Australia. Not a bad deal if you’re hoping to reserve your Nexus 6 before the inevitable scramble for devices when they officially go up on the Google Play Store.
What do you think about the Nexus 6 release date in Australia being close to December 5th? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Source: Kogan
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NVIDIA Shield Tablet Aims at November 18th for Lollipop Update plus On-Demand Cloud Gaming and More
Thinking back to the past few years with Android OS updates, I don’t recall there being nearly this much acceptance and adoption by manufacturers in such a short amount of time. I mean, sure, many of the big manufacturers came out with announcements that certain devices would get updates eventually. Beyond the Nexus line of devices though, I can’t personally recall actual updates heading out to devices with-in weeks of the source code being officially available. Yesterday we caught word from Motorola that the 2nd Gen versions of the Moto X and Moto G are already starting to get Android 5.0 Lollipop update roll outs. In a few short days we can add the NVIDIA Shield Tablet to the growing list of quick to release manufacturer updates as they have announced this morning that Android 5.0 Lollipop will be making its way out on November 18th.
The Android 5.0 Lollipop update might be the big news in terms of speed from release to update time-line, but NVIDIA has quite a bit more news to announce along with the update. The GRID gaming service is another pretty sweet treat mixed in with the update, think Netflix for gaming on the Shield. The GRID service will be free to Shield Tablet and Shield Portable owners from the time of update through July 30th of 2015. The GRID Hub and service has been in development for over a decade and will finally be making a its public beta release on November 18th as well. The GRID hub already has access to 20 AAA titles like Batman: Arkham City, Borderlands 2 and Psychonauts with new games being added every week.
If the GRID doesn’t give you enough oomph to love the Shield Tablet, NVIDIA also has the Green Box bundle on the way that 32GB/LTE Shield Tablet owners will get for free. That package brings in Half-Life 2: Episode One, Half-Life 2 and Portal.
Finally, there are four new Shield optimized games that will also be released: OddWorld: Stranger’s Wrath, Pure Pool, Strike Suite Zero and Turbo Dismount.
Source: NVIDIA Blog
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AIVAnet 