Chrome for iOS Updated With Handoff Support, Material Design, iPhone 6 Optimization [iOS Blog]
Google today announced an update for its Chrome iOS app with several new features, perhaps most notably the ability to transfer from Chrome on your mobile device to a browser on OS X thanks to integration with Handoff.
The Handoff support works seamlessly, allowing users to continue browsing a mobile webpage on their desktop of choice, but the update also brings a couple of other updates to Chrome on iOS, namely a graphical overhaul in line with Google’s Material Design aesthetic and general optimization for “bigger phones.”
The Chrome team is excited to announce Chrome 40 for iPhone and iPad. Chrome 40.0.2214.61 contains a number of improvements including:
-New look with Material Design bringing bold graphics, fluid motion, and tactile surfaces
-iOS 8 optimizations and support for bigger phones
-Support handoff from Chrome to your default browser on OS X
-Stability improvements and bug fixes
The update is available now and Chrome can be downloaded for free from the App Store. [Direct Link]
NBC to Stream Super Bowl XLIX on iPad and Mac for Free, No Cable Subscription Required
NBCUniversal today announced that it’s debuting a new “Super Stream Sunday” promotion, which will allow all U.S.-based users to watch 11 continuous hours of NBC content through the NBCSports.com website and through the NBC Sports Live Extra app on the iPad/iPod touch without the need for a cable subscription.
Super Stream Sunday, which starts on February 1 at noon Eastern Time, will include Super Bowl XLIX, the Super Bowl XLIX halftime show with Katy Perry, and the Super Bowl XLIX pre- and post-game shows. It will also feature an episode of The Blacklist.
Accessing NBC content through NBC.com or within the NBC Sports Live Extra app typically requires a cable subscription and authentication through logging into the service, but for the Super Stream Sunday period, no logins will be required, allowing everyone to watch the Super Bowl for free. NBC is running the promotion in an effort to make people aware of its TV Everywhere offerings, which offer television content on a range of devices with a cable subscription.
While iPad and iPod touch users can watch the Super Bowl using the NBC Sports Live Extra app, NBC is not able to stream content to the iPhone as it does not have NFL live-streaming rights for smartphones due to an exclusive deal the NFL has with Verizon Wireless.
Verizon Wireless and the NFL plan to introduce a Super Bowl Stadium app that will offer “exclusive in-stadium video content” that includes commercials and replays shown from four camera angles. Users not in the United States or Mexico can access the Super Bowl through the NFL’s Game Rewind service.
NBC Sports Live Extra can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]
Kenu Stance compact tripod review
Is it possible for a tripod to be so compact even if it is holding just a smartphone? The people at Kenu would say absolutely. The Kenu Stance compact tripod manages to hold smartphones big and small in place with ease. It allows for the smartphone to be setup in various positions which can each serve a different purpose. If that’s not enough, the Kenu Stance doubles as a bottle opener.
The Kenu Stance is composed of a few different materials, none of which feel cheap. The overall body is constructed from zinc alloy. The rubber feet and other green-covered areas are thermoplastic elastometer (TPE) rubber. And the MicroMount piece connecting the gadget to a smartphone is what Kenu calls Grilamid. The Kenu Stance, like the company’s other products, features a simple design that has a premium look and feel. It measures 3-inches long and weighs 1.2 ounces: the footprint is smaller than a pack of gum.
There are four purposes that Kenu emphasizes with the Stance: watch videos, self timer, time-lapse, and video calls. None of them are bound to any particular position and users will likely find more purposes. You can thank the ball-and-socket joint for so much versatility.
Three legs, when separated, provide the support required to hold the smartphone in its portrait mode. The zinc alloy legs are sturdy and the rubber feet have a good grip on the surface underneath. I wanted to see how the Kenu Stance would handle smartphones of different sizes; therefore, I enlisted the Galaxy Nexus, Galaxy S 4, Galaxy Note 3, Galaxy S 5, and One (M8) for help. As expected, the Kenu Stance kept each one upright at all times. One might think the Galaxy Note 3 would provide some trouble, but that was not the case. The ball-and-socket joint is tight and the gargantuan smartphone didn’t phase it.
Aside from using it for timed photographs and video calls, I found it perfect for stationary use. You can set up the Kenu Stand at your workstation and have something opened on the smartphone. Apps like Pocket Casts and Yahoo Weather suited me just fine as I did work for school and TalkAndroid. When a notification rolled in, I picked up my phone and pushed the legs back to return to conventional use. The Kenu Stance was also handy when cooking because you can view a recipe and have a timer going simultaneously. No need for an actual timer and expensive stand.
Bringing the three legs together are for Kenu Stance’s landscape mode. Make the Kenu Stance perpendicular to the smartphone and then angle it accordingly. Now watch videos with comfort rather than leaning the smartphone against something or holding it in your hands. Again, the ball-and-socket joint becomes valuable because of its freedom to angle the smartphone perfectly.
Did I mention it can open bottles, too?
Who knew such a compact gadget could be so versatile.
The Kenu Stance compact tripod is available online (and in select retail stores) for $29.95. It works with any phone that has a micro-USB charging port; therefore, all Android and Windows Phone devices are supported. Kenu also sells a Stance model for iOS devices. So anyone can use a Kenu Stance regardless of their operating system.
Click here to view the embedded video.
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Evernote shutting down support for BlackBerry 7 and PlayBook
For those of you who might still be using Evernote on your BlackBerry 7 device or BlackBerry PlayBook, Evernote has now announced they’ll be discontinuing support on those platforms while BlackBerry 10 support is still ongoing.
NianticLabs ‘Field Trip’ app gets the Material Design treatment in complete overhaul update
Google has a slew of apps on the Play Store and other app stores around the technological ecosystem. Inside the Mountain View giant is a set of smaller, but equally wonderful, branches that do their own things. NianticLabs is one such group and while their first app, Field Trip, might not ring too many bells, […]
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Khan Academy brings its online course catalog to the iPad
Despite having an iOS app for some time now, Khan Academy hasn’t offered the full range of course material on those mobile devices. With an update today, though, eager learners can access the company’s full range of courses on an iPad. The new version brings 150,000 exercises to the mobile device, with the opportunity to get instant feedback. Khan Academy’s iOS software got some slate-specific tools too, including handwriting recognition and a “friendly guide” that observes your response time to suggest activities that’ll help you get better at the tough questions. There aren’t any plans to bring the app to Android or Windows yet, as the e-learning provider says iPad is it’s most popular platform behind the desktop experience. However, folks with one of Apple’s tablets can nab the update from iTunes now.
[Photo credit: Neilson Barnard/Getty Images for The New York Times]
T-Mobile is attracting new customers and retaining existing ones
Earlier this month, T-Mobile recapped 2014 and proved to everyone that consumers are very much aware of the carrier’s advantages. T-Mobile does trail behind the other carrier’s in a few areas such as size, but there is one area that no one else can beat. When it comes to attracting new customers and retaining existing ones, T-Mobile is the winner. Research firm Consumer Intelligence Partners (CIRP) discovered that the amount of consumers feeling won over by T-Mobile was much greater than by Verizon, AT&T, or Sprint. Among the big four carriers, T-Mobile’s percentage of new customers and retained customers was unrivaled.
Via: CNET
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‘123456’ Named 2014’s Worst Password of the Year
Despite the multitude of password management apps that are available, like 1Password and LastPass, many people continue to use easily guessable words and number strings to protect their sensitive information.
One of the most popular passwords in 2014, for example, was “123456,” according to a list of leaked 2014 passwords gathered by SplashData (via Re/code). The second most used password was “password,” followed by “12345,” “12345678,” and “qwerty.” Both “123456” and “password” have also been popular in past years, ranking as the top two most commonly used passwords in 2013.
Similar number strings were the sixth and seventh most popular 2014 passwords, followed by the words “baseball,” “football,” and “dragon.”
“Passwords based on simple patterns on your keyboard remain popular despite how weak they are,” said Morgan Slain, CEO of SplashData. “Any password using numbers alone should be avoided, especially sequences. As more websites require stronger passwords or combinations of letters and numbers, longer keyboard patterns are becoming common passwords, and they are still not secure.”
To get its list of the worst passwords in 2014, its fourth annual year of collecting password data, SplashData looked at more than 3.3 million passwords that were leaked across 2014. Passwords came primarily from users in North America and Western Europe.
Based on the data that it gathered, SplashData recommends against using keyboard sequences like “1qaz2wsx” or “qwertyuiop,” and it advises users not to use a favorite sport. Baseball and football made the top 10 list of most common passwords, while hockey, soccer, and golfer were in the top 100. Team-based passwords like Yankees, Eagles, Steelers, Rangers, and Lakers also made the top 100 list.
Birthdays and birth years are also not recommended, nor are names, with common monikers like Michael, Jennifer, Thomas, and Jordan listed within the top 50 most commonly used passwords. Swear words, phrases, hobbies, athletes, car brands, and film names were also heavily featured in SplashData’s top 100 list.
Using a password management app like SplashID, 1Password, or LastPass is highly recommended, to generate random passwords that are used for a single site and that are more secure than self-generated words, numbers, and phrases.
Widely publicized data leaks across 2013 and 2014 seem to have spurred more people to choose stronger passwords, as the top 25 passwords represented just 2.2 percent of passwords exposed. Along with the well-known iCloud breach, many companies including Home Depot, Target, and Staples saw major data leaks.
Google wants the US’ wireless spectrum for balloon-based internet
Google’s internet-by-air effort, Project Loon, isn’t necessarily limited to countries where data coverage is frequently spotty; it might be headed to the US, too. The search firm recently sent a letter to the FCC suggesting that potentially available high-frequency spectrum (above 24GHz) should be handy for providing “broadband access via airborne platforms” like balloons and drones, not just on-the-ground networking. In other words, it’s open to deploying Project Loon stateside beyond limited test runs.
This doesn’t amount to a launch roadmap, and Google isn’t commenting on the letter. However, the idea is technically feasible. Improvements to wireless technology have made ultra-wideband wireless useful for networking where it was previously restricted to very short-range uses, like PC peripherals. The FCC will still have to parcel out these frequencies before companies like Google can even consider using them. All the same, the letter hints at a future where rural Americans don’t have to lean on expensive satellite connections (or get lucky with cable, DSL and fiber rollouts) to receive high-speed internet access.
Filed under: Networking, Internet, Google
Via: Wall Street Journal
Source: FCC (PDF)
Free Music: Google gives Mötley Crüe’s The Greatest Hits album as a freebie
There is something magical about bolstering you music collection for free, and legally. If you were an 80’s child, or grew up in the 80’s then Mötley Crüe most likely had some playtime in your life. I know they hit my CD collection back in the day right along Led Zeppelin and Van Halen. If you […]
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