Do you want a virtual assistant on your desktop?
Microsoft showed off a number of new features from its upcoming Windows 10 yesterday. It brings support for things like universal apps, a new and improved web browser, potentially free upgrades, cross-platform gaming and more. One of the more interesting announcements was that Cortana, a voice-controlled virtual assistant similar to Apple’s Siri and Google Now, would be available on your desktop. Many of us spend our days in office environments, where it’s not convenient to talk to our computers (besides, I have other issues with virtual assistants as well). Is this something you’ll find useful on your computer? Head over to the Engadget forums and let us know what you think.
Filed under: Desktops
Source: Engadget forums
LG smartphone sales grew 25 percent in 2014
2014 was a tough year for some smartphone manufacturers and a prosperous one for others. LG has managed to squeeze itself into the latter category, having seen its smartphone sales grow by 25 percent year-over-year, according to industry sources.
LG is estimated to have sold around 59.6 million smartphones throughout 2014, up from 47.6 million units in the previous year. This matches up pretty closely with the 60 million unit estimate mentioned several times in the third quarter of last year and brings LG closer to taking third spot in the global smartphone market.
LG and Huawei are both contesting fourth place, based on third quarter 2014 sales figures, with Xiaomi beating both companies into third place, behind market leaders Apple and Samsung. Although not rising as quickly as the explosive Xiaomi, LG has seen smartphone shipments consistently increase at a strong pace since 2011. According to Strategy Analytics, LG shipped 20 million smartphones in 2011, 26.3 million in 2012, and has now risen close to 60 million this year. We should see official figures for Q4 and yearly 2014 smartphone sales within the coming month.
http://embed.chartblocks.com/1.0/?c=54c26cfdc9a61df15ffd3026&t=dc1c1d72ace9371
Industry commentators are attributing LG’s strong growth to the rising popularity and competitive price point of its G smartphone line-up. From its flagship G2 and G3 smartphones, to lower-end G3 Stylus and the G3 Beat, LG has managed to cater to a range of budgets and consumer needs.
With LG making use of its own cutting-edge technology, such as its in-house flexible display found in the new G Flex 2, the company is in a strong position continue to compete with its rivals throughout 2015 and beyond.
Samsung to use their own camera module in the Galaxy S 6
Rumors have the Galaxy S 6 sporting a 20 MP main rear camera along with optical image stabilization (OIS), but that’s not all that surprising. What might be surprising is the fact that Samsung is going to use their own camera module.
Samsung has been using Sony modules for the past few flagship phones so this is a major change. This news comes from a report in which Korean analysts were talking about Samsung Electro-Mechanics (SEM) in that they will benefit from a 20 MP module for smartphones that will be available during the 1st half of the year when the Galaxy S 6 will be released.
It should also be noted that it was reported over a year ago that Samsung was working on a 20 MP camera for smartphones and it would become available towards the end of 2014. Although a little later, this does line up.
Samsung has been one of the leaders when it comes to picture quality so let’s hope the trend continues with their own module.
source: etnews
via: Phone Arena
Come comment on this article: Samsung to use their own camera module in the Galaxy S 6
Today you can save 43% on these metal bumper cases for iPhone 6
The TETRA Case adds an advanced design to your typical bumper case with its geometrically shaped corners and CNC-machined aluminum edging. Even with the combination of aluminum and shock absorbent TPU, this case is amazingly thin and lightweight. Comes in 6 colors and is only $16.95 today!
Amazon Prime will be available for just $72 tomorrow
Been wanting to sign up for an Amazon Prime account but don’t have the $99 to play with right now? Perhaps Amazon’s upcoming promotion might be what you need.
Effective tomorrow, Saturday, January 24 only, you can grab a one year Amazon Prime account for only $72. A savings of approximately 27% it’s discounted to celebrate the recent Golden Globes awards for Best Musical or Comedy Series (Transparent) and Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy Series (Jeffrey Tambor).
And, if Transparent is the sort of thing you’re interested in checking out, you can watch it for free. Regardless of whether you have a Prime account or not, the show is available to all on Saturday.
Anyone can watch Transparent at no cost on Saturday using the Amazon Instant Video app for TVs, connected devices and mobile devices, or online at Amazon.com/Transparent.
Getting back to the Prime promo, you do get everything you would normally receive.
Amazon Prime members enjoy unlimited streaming of tens of thousands of movies and TV episodes, unlimited Free Two-Day Shipping on more than 20 million items, one million songs and hundreds of playlists through Prime Music, free unlimited photo storage with Prime Photos, early access to select Lightning Deals and access to over 800,000 books to borrow through the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library.
The post Amazon Prime will be available for just $72 tomorrow appeared first on AndroidGuys.
LG Electronics says no heat issues with new Qualcomm processor
You may have been aware of a comment Samsung made when it came to the new Qualcomm 810 processor regarding the chip overheating during testing, in which LG have no replied denying any such claim.
The new Snapdragon 810 processor is powering the curved-display LG Flex 2, which LG say has had no heat issues during its internal tests.
“I am very much aware of the various concerns in the market about the (Snapdragon) 810, but the chip’s performance is quite satisfactory,” Woo Ram-chan, LG vice president for mobile product planning, told reporters at a press event for the company’s G Flex2 smartphone.
Samsung have insisted on issues with the chip and will instead opt for their own manufactured processor in their next Galaxy S device.
Could it be something else attributable to the heat of the chip in Samsung devices, or are the company simply trying to big their own chip up?
The post LG Electronics says no heat issues with new Qualcomm processor appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Apple’s iTunes Radio, Beats, and Others Hit With Unpaid Royalty Suits Over Pre-1972 Music [Mac Blog]
Following a lengthy lawsuit that pitted Sirius XM Radio against members of classic rock band The Turtles in a fight over royalties for music recordings made before 1972, new class action lawsuits have been filed against Apple, Sony, Google, and Rdio over their streaming music services (via The Recorder). As noted by Law360, Beats Music has also been hit with a suit.
According to the suits, filed yesterday by Zenbu Magazines Inc., streaming services like iTunes Radio, Beats, and Google Play Music have been making money off of pre-1972 music recordings without paying any royalties to the owners of the original recordings.
Zenbu owns the copyrights to many songs in question and is represented by The Law Office of Jack Fitzgerald in San Diego. The lawsuit seeks to create a certified “class of all owners of recordings made before February 15, 1972, whose recordings appear on streaming services.”
While musical compositions have been protected under U.S. copyright law since 1831, sound recordings were only added to the federal copyright act in 1972. That’s meant that the holders of copyrights to pre-1972 compositions—largely music publishers—have been paid royalties for public performances while those holding the copyrights to recordings—largely record labels—have not.
As noted by The Recorder, last year a judge in Los Angeles decided to extend ownership rights for pre-1972 recordings to include public performances. Similarly, in that case of Sirius XM versus owners of the sound recordings made by The Turtles in the 1960s, U.S. District Judge Philip Gutierrez ruled against Sirius.
The lawsuits come at a time when Apple is working behind the scenes for an upcoming relaunch of the Beats Music streaming service, rumored to include integration into iTunes and iOS in general. “The streaming services don’t have a good idea of what their total liability is going to be,” noted Santa Clara law professor Tyler Ochoa, with the lawsuits against the numerous streaming music services “inevitable”, following the Sirius XM case.
Due to the growing popularity of streaming services worldwide, Ochoa sees some of the companies perhaps pulling those pre-1972 songs to avoid further liability, with record labels falling in line with their own lawsuits against the services for better royalty deals.
Samsung to demo three cinematic Gear VR experiences at Sundance Film Festival
To paraphrase the folks at Oculus, virtual reality could end up having an equally, if not bigger impact on films than it will on games. Samsung also seems to share similar visions for VR, as it has announced three new virtual reality experiences scheduled for this year’s Sundance Film Festival.
Samsung’s new cinematic VR experiences have been developed by Felix & Paul Studios and were created using live action 3D 360 degree recording technology. Each of these short films will be shown off through Samsung’s Gear VR headset at the festival’s New Frontier exhibition from January 23rd to February 1st.
Here’s a brief summary about each of the short films, taken from the press release:
- The World Première of Herders – Mongolian pastoral herders are one of the world’s last remaining nomadic cultures. For millennia they have lived on the steppes, grazing their livestock on the grasslands. Through a series of virtual reality experiences, the viewer is invited into the reality of a nomadic family of yak herders. (7 minutes)
- Wild – The Experience – Fox Searchlight and the Fox Innovation Lab present this virtual reality experience drawing from the film Wild. Viewers enter a fully immersive media environment to join an intimate moment on the Pacific Crest Trail between a woman, Cheryl Strayed (Reese Witherspoon), and her mother, Bobbi (Laura Dern), a vision from the afterlife. (3 minutes)
- Strangers with Patrick Watson – Viewers are invited to spend an intimate moment with the musician in his Montréal studio on a winter’s day. (5 minutes)
Virtual reality may still in its infancy as an artistic medium, but there is plenty of potential to create new and interesting interactive experiences, through both games and film. We could certainly see more of this type of experience in the future, as VR continues to grow.
As part of this year’s exhibition, taking place from January 23 – February 1, attendees will find themselves immersed in the three cinematic virtual reality experiences created by Felix & Paul Studios, using Samsung’s Gear VR technology:
· The World Première of Herders – Mongolian pastoral herders are one of the world’s last remaining nomadic cultures. For millennia they have lived on the steppes, grazing their livestock on the grasslands. Through a series of virtual reality experiences, the viewer is invited into the reality of a nomadic family of yak herders. (7 minutes)
· Wild – The Experience – Fox Searchlight and the Fox Innovation Lab present this virtual reality experience drawing from the film Wild. Viewers enter a fully immersive media environment to join an intimate moment on the Pacific Crest Trail between a woman, Cheryl Strayed (Reese Witherspoon), and her mother, Bobbi (Laura Dern), a vision from the afterlife. (3 minutes)
· Strangers with Patrick Watson – Viewers are invited to spend an intimate moment with the musician in his Montréal studio on a winter’s day. (5 minutes)
Felix & Paul Studios is currently focused on the development of original narrative and non-narrative virtual reality experiences in collaboration with a range of leaders in the entertainment and virtual reality industries. The program will be available to experience at New Frontier, located on the top two floors of the historic Claim Jumper, at 573 Main Street in Park City. Admission to all New Frontier installations is free.
Winklevoss twins want to make Bitcoin legit with US-based exchange
One of the biggest draws of using Bitcoin as a method of exchange is the lack of any form of regulation. Unfortunately, that’s left the cryptocurrency with a reputation problem, which is why countries like India, China and Russia are trying to shut it down. The Winklevoss Twins, however, feel that embracing the warm hand of government regulations may be enough to take Bitcoin into the mainstream. That’s why the pair are about to launch Gemini, a US-based Bitcoin exchange that, crucially, has the backing of both a New York-based bank and is likely to get the blessing of Governmental types, too.
The Winklevosses have been building a team of engineers and compliance experts over the last year, pulled from various successful hedge funds and other existing financial institutions. In an attempt to ensure legitimacy for Gemini, the outfit has also managed to team up with a proper, albeit unnamed, New York bank. In addition to the obvious promotional gains, the partnership means that your money won’t leave the country and is also eligible for federal deposit insurance – so users can trust their cash is safe. Gemini won’t launch until Ben Lawsky, the figure in charge of NYC’s financial services market, gives his blessing, but users can sign up from today to register their interest.
For the twins, however, a lot of this is personal, since they invested a reported $11 million into the currency back in 2012. By the end of 2013, the stake would have been worth significantly more, but Bitcoin’s value has fallen from as much as $1,200 at that time down to $226 today. By bringing the digital money out from the wilderness, it’s easy to assume that they hope to see the value begin to climb once again. The pair has flip-flopped on the subject of regulations before, however, claiming to be for them in 2013, before testifying that the “existing federal regulations are sufficient” at a hearing in 2014. Funny how things change, eh?
[Image Credit: Craig Ruttle / AP]
Filed under: Internet
Via: TNW
Source: Gemini, Gemini Blog
No smartwatch from HTC at Mobile World Congress, but there will be a fitness tracker
It has been rumored that HTC will unveil a smartwatch at Mobile Work Congress in early March, but Forbes is reporting that’s a no go. If you remember, HTC announced their partnership with Under Armour at CES for fitness bands that would be compatible with UA Record. Since that announcement was made, it’s more than likely they would show a product out of that partnership rather than an Android Wear smartwatch.
HTC could still show an Android Wear smartwatch, but it’s unlikely at this point. You can expect a heavy does of Under Armour marketing for both this new fitness band as well as with the new One (M9). I would imagine new UA Record software will be present on the phone as well.
Let’s hope that HTC doesn’t make this band only compatible with HTC phones because that would be a major mistake.
source: Forbes
Come comment on this article: No smartwatch from HTC at Mobile World Congress, but there will be a fitness tracker
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