Huawei wants more freedom to customize Android Wear
The smartwatch market is filling up with unique hardware designs to suit your tastes, but many of them share identical software features, as they are running Google’s Android Wear OS. Huawei recently joined the smartwatch market with its announcement at MWC 2015, but the company is apparently unhappy with the lack of freedom offered by the Android Wear platform.
Yang Yong, Huawei’s Vice President of Product Management, citing the company’s own market research, suggests that consumers are looking for more unique features with their smartwatches. Something that looks and feels their own and that isn’t just a standard device. The problem, as he puts it, is that the platform makes it very difficult for competing companies to differentiate their products.
“Android Wear is not as open as Android. For the watch it cannot be a standard.” Yang Yong, Huawei’s Vice President of Product Management
Beside hardware aesthetics, Android Wear only really allows the manufacturer to supply interchangeable watch faces. The user interface, apps and menus cannot be adjusted and additional features can’t seem to be embedded into the OS as they have been done with Android. This lack of freedom also makes it more difficult for companies to experiment with the hardware formula and features, as software support relies on Google. However, the upside for consumers is that features are supported across all Android products.
“What we are doing is trying to make from the hardware view, in the design view, in the software view, in the surface view, we are trying to differentiate our watch to appeal to the consumers who will use it.” – Yang Yong
Android Wear is likely to evolve over time and may eventually assuage Huawei’s concerns, but the question for Google and manufacturers is whether consumer demands can be met more efficiently by using a different OS right now.
Samsung has been working on its Tizen platform for a while and other smartwatch manufacturers are also looking into their own operating systems, albeit for individual reasons. LG has already unveiled its Wearable Platform OS, based on webOS, with its Urbane watch, and Asus CEO Jerry Shen has announced that a future smartwatch being developed by the company will not be running Android Wear.
Google’s wearable platform isn’t going anywhere just yet, but it doesn’t seem to be catering to all manufacturer needs in its current form. Would you like to see a more open Android Wear OS, or is Google’s tight control helping to focus the growing wearables market?
Uh-Oh: HTC’s new warranty program offers some serious benefits (US only)
HTC is extending its Advantage warranty program with new benefits and a longer validity period. The new program is called Uh-Oh, and while the name is funny, the benefits it offers are nothing to laugh at.
Customers who sign up for Uh-Oh will receive a free one-time replacement if their One M9 or One M8 suffers a broken screen or any water damage. The coverage lasts for 12 months from the purchase of a device, and all users are automatically signed up upon purchasing a device. Like Advantage before it, the Uh-Oh program will be available in the United States only. It’s not clear yet if other devices besides the M9 and M8 will be included, but we know for sure that Desire series phones are not covered.
Compared to last year’s Advantage, the new Uh-Oh doubles the coverage time and extends it to water damage, one of the most common ways to ruin a smartphone. Even if you don’t damage your phone, there are some benefits – HTC will give you a new device if you switch carriers (you have to give back the old one), and, if you don’t use any of these replacements, you will get $100 credit to use against a future HTC One purchase.
For more details, HTC will be holding a live customer Q&A session with US president Jason Mackenzie from 12PM ET/9AM PT. Watch the live stream here. Mackenzie is pretty confident that Uh-Oh will help differentiate the M9: “Our competitors look at cracked screens and broken phones as a way to milk more money from [their] customers,” he said. “We see it as a way to change the game, and give customers a premium experience with a premium product. We think the Uh Oh Program is something that will tip people over the edge.”
Uh-Oh looks like a nice little bonus for One M9 buyers, especially if you’re a butterfingers like me (and you don’t like bulky cases.) Too bad it’s US-only at this point.
Is this warranty program something that would sway you towards picking up the M9 when it becomes available later this month?
Canada’s economic issues might affect Thirty Meter Telescope’s future
The Thirty Meter Telescope’s (TMT) construction finally began in 2014 after a decade of delays, but its struggles aren’t over yet. Its developers might find themselves $235 million short, since the Canadian government still hasn’t released its part of the budget that the other major players have been expecting since last year. While the telescope’s parts are already being built, the team needs Canada’s money to proceed with the building’s construction, as half of $235 million will be used for the telescope’s gigantic steel enclosure. The Association of Canadian Universities for Research in Astronomy played a key role in getting the project off the ground — and its government already spent $27 million on engineering plans — so its members aren’t giving up that easily.
The organization’s chairman, Donald Brooks, said pulling out at this point “would be a shattering loss of obligation on [their] part.” He and his colleagues have been in talks with the government in Ottawa, trying to make officials understand how important the project is, especially since astronomy is apparently one of Canada’s highest-rated research fields. Their country’s economy has been suffering recently, but they’re still hoping that the government decides to stay true to its word and hand over $235 million early next month. If that doesn’t happen, the telescope’s board will hold a meeting on April 29th in an effort to convince Canada and ensure TMT’s future.
The Thirty Meter Telescope is one of the three gigantic observatories currently under construction, with the other two being the European Extremely Large Telescope and the Giant Magellan Telescope. Those two are being built in Chile, while TMT will be located near the summit of Hawaii’s Mauna Kea volcano. Once finished, the telescope itself will measure 100 feet across, boasting 10 times the resolution of NASA’s Hubble.
Filed under: Science
Source: Nature
Perfect Music – a clean looking music management and playback app for Windows Phone
While we try to keep an eye out for the latest apps and games arriving in the Windows Phone Store some sneak in under our radar. Perfect Music is one of those titles.
Perfect Music is a feature rich, clean looking Windows Phone app for managing and playing your music files. The initial release was a little buggy and even up until the last batch of updates, I couldn’t get the app to run on my Lumia 830. However, after a strong effort on the part of the developer the app is now running smoothly and is an impressive music player worth considering for your Windows Phone.
Samsung rumored to be developing a custom mobile CPU core
Samsung seems confident in its Exynos 7420, having opted to cut Qualcomm out of the picture with regard to the Galaxy S6. Building on its Exynos line-up, the company is rumored to be moving towards a completely in-house processor design, as sources suggest that Samsung is developing its own mobile CPU cores for future products.
According to sources in the semiconductor industry, Samsung Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong has instructed executives to “to strengthen technology capability in order to design not only mobile devices but also various semiconductors.” The implication being that Samsung could begin designing its own CPU and GPU cores or other integrated circuits from scratch, if it hasn’t done so already.
The rumor comes as analysts are raising this year’s expectations for Samsung’s growing semiconductor business, which has become an increasingly important division for Samsung as smartphone sales have slowed.
The same sources state that Samsung will be working on its own 64-bit CPU core design, rather than licensing the reference Cortex-A designs provided by ARM. The CPU is expected to begin showing results sometime in the first quarter of 2016. “Seeing results” isn’t exactly a clear statement, but seems to suggest a transition from the internal development stage towards final production, right around the time that the company should announce the Galaxy S7.
Samsung has actually been hinting at moving over to its own CPU core design since Samsung Analyst Day 2013, with presentation slides suggesting that Samsung’s own 64-bit core will be its successor to the current 64-bit ARM implementation.
Rumors have also pointed to some in-house GPU technology too and Samsung has been catching up with Qualcomm in the LTE modem department too, with a SoC integrated modem package expected later this year.
As well as gaining more control over the specifications of its mobile products, Samsung looks to be keen to and reduce its reliance on Qualcomm SoCs and technologies developed by other companies. Although research and development in the IC industry is expensive, Samsung will be able to leverage its leading foundry business to close the cost gap on its competitors.
Apple in Talks With Discovery and Viacom Over Streaming TV Service
Discovery and Viacom are in discussions with Apple to be included in its rumored streaming TV service, reports The Wall Street Journal. The partnerships could see mid-tier channels such as Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, TLC, MTV, Comedy Central and Nickelodeon available through the subscription-based service on devices including the iPhone, iPad and Apple TV.
The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this week that Apple is planning to launch a streaming TV service anchored by American networks ABC, CBS and Fox. The rumored service would offer a lightweight package of about 25 channels for between $30 to $40 per month. Apple is expected to announce the service at WWDC in June ahead of a September launch, according to the report.
Rumors of Apple working on a streaming TV service have circulated since at least 2009, when it was reported that CBS and Walt Disney were considering participating in the web-based service. Later reports indicated that Apple had ambitious plans to launch the service in the second half of 2012, but those plans have yet to materialize nearly three years later, likely due to roadblocks with content providers.
Virgin Media customers finally get access to Sky Sports’ Android app
As part of its tie-up with Sky, Virgin Media has been letting subscribers use their logins to access Sky Sports and Sky Movies. Apple users gained access to both services in August last year, while Android device owners have had to make do with Sky’s movie streaming app. Today, the cable giant announced that it’s finally completing its Android rollout by granting customers access to the Sky Sports app. Like the other services, users need to have already signed up for the TV package, but if that prerequisite has been fulfilled then Sky Sports 1 to 5, Sky Sports F1 and Sky Sports News HQ can be streamed right away.
Filed under: Cellphones, Internet, Software, Mobile
Source: Sky Sports for Android
Want a Samsung Galaxy S6 or S6 Edge in 24 karat gold, rose gold or platinum? Goldgenie has you covered
Have you been thinking about getting the Samsung Galaxy S6 or S6 Edge in 24 karat gold, rose gold or platinum? Well, Goldgenie has you covered. The customization company is at it again with Samsung‘s latest flagships, covering either device completely in your choice of gold, rose gold or platinum, all for around $2,500 – still […]
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What would make people switch from iPhone to Galaxy S6? A lower price, apparently
There’s a lot that Android enthusiasts don’t like about the new Samsung Galaxy S6 – its lack of microSD slot immediately springs to mind as well as its lack of removeable battery. The list is exhaustive, as it usually is, but in the bigger picture where Samsung is doing battle with Apple for top dog […]
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Latest Chrome Canary release utilizes next-gen HTTP/2 web standard
The latest build of the experimental Chrome Canary web browser, which early testers can download to see what’s coming to Google’s web browser, now supports the HTTP/2 web standard. This next-gen standard requires websites to be configured to use the improved tech (so you’ll likely fail to notice any improvements for the time being), but it’s a solid step towards a speedier web experience.
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