BT’s new home phone is as smart as your Android mobile
Now that smartphones have become personal companions, landline usage has understandably dropped. BT launched an Android-powered home phone, complete with smart call-blocking features and apps, in an attempt to lure people back, but because it only offered downloads via Opera’s app store, choice was severely limited. With the BT Home SmartPhone S II, it appears the company has learned from its mistakes. It’s partnered with Google to offer access to the Play Store, while Facebook, Twitter and BT Sport apps are already bundled. It means that you’ll be able to watch Premier League football if the main TV is out of action, but also download your favourite apps and games — as long as you’re connected to WiFi. At £169.99, BT’s Home SmartPhone S II is a little more expensive than Motorola’s current-generation Moto G, meaning you really must be intent on making the most of your landline for this handset to make any fiscal sense.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile
Via: BT Media Centre
Source: BT Shop
LG’s Watch Urbane bucks the trend of hard-to-fix wearables
Think that smartwatches are tough to fix by their very nature? LG is seemingly determined to prove otherwise. The repair-it-yourself team at iFixit has finished tearing down the Watch Urbane, and it turns out that this Android Wear timepiece is surprisingly easy to maintain. You’ll have to unstick the glued back, but it’s usually a cakewalk after that — there’s little stopping you from pulling out the motherboard or the battery. The biggest challenge is replacing the display, which is fused to the glass. No, you probably won’t need to pry apart your Urbane any time soon, but it’s good to know that the wearable won’t be reduced to a ritzy-looking paperweight if it breaks when you’re out of warranty.
Source: iFixit
The Nintendo studio behind ‘Kirby’ talks its new game ‘BOXBOY!’
BOXBOY! did not hit the 3DS with the fanfare it deserved this spring. It’s a brand-new game, with brand-new characters and it’s published by Nintendo. Which is precisely the sort of thing the company’s greatest detractors claim it’s missing. Then again, even though the funny, little puzzle game is ingenious and addictive, it’s also as quiet and unassuming as the studio that made it: HAL Laboratory.
Much like BOXBOY!, HAL does not have the reputation it should. For 35 years, the first-party Nintendo studio’s pumped out games that are deeply traditional while remaining deeply experimental. The Kirby franchise, HAL’s signature work, has been both a major sales success with more than 30 million games sold and a hotbed for creativity (as in Kirby and the Rainbow Curse) and old-school style (a la Kirby: Triple Deluxe.) That little pink puff Kirby tends to dominate HAL’s output, which is what makes an original like BOXBOY! so exciting. So to get some deeper insight into the creation of this new Nintendo IP, I interviewed Yasuhiro Mukae, the director of HAL’s first original in five years, via a translator through email. We discussed HAL’s creative process, the secret to making expressive characters and what it’s like making games at one of gaming’s most consistent, if underappreciated, studios.
Cleverly manipulating boxes is the key to navigating BOXBOY!’s deceptively challenging traps.
What is HAL’s usual creative process? When trying out new ideas for the Kirby series for example, do you come up with the gameplay first and say, “This is good for Kirby!” or do you take Kirby and try to come up with something unusual for him to do?
Using BOXBOY! as an example, we often come up with ideas that go with the gameplay.
This goes for the Qbby character design, which is a match for the gameplay, as well as the assorted new tricks we came up with to make it more fun to advance through stages. We devote a lot of effort to expanding the range of gameplay.
The game idea came first. We started with the ability to create boxes, and we did the character design from there. The result is Qbby, with that really simple design. He looks simple, but he can create boxes, dance around and more. I think we created a really vibrant and charming character here.
How long did it take to develop BOXBOY!?
Between the initial experimentation we did and the official project launch, it was about a year and a half. We devoted half a year to experimentation, and once we kicked off the official project, it took us a year to wrap up the game.
Why did you make BOXBOY! so visually sparse? HAL has a penchant for bold, colorful games.
Those simple visuals were something we aimed for in order to differentiate ourselves from other games.
In the modern scene, with tons of games with colorful visuals all over the place, having a simple monochrome game like BOXBOY! is something we thought would draw gamers’ attention and make them take an interest in the game.
The game idea came first. We started with the ability to create boxes, and we did the character design from there. The result is Qbby.
It’s interesting playing BOXBOY! so soon after Kirby and the Rainbow Curse since it feels very traditional by comparison in terms of control. Kirby and the Rainbow Curse is purely about using the touchscreen while BOXBOY! is still about buttons and a d-pad. What is different about making a game for old-style controls and for games controlled only with a touchscreen?
Intuitive, easy-to-grasp controls were something we treated very importantly during BOXBOY! development. On that point, I’m sure that there was no difference in the direction taken by both BOXBOY! and Kirby and the Rainbow Curse. Also, the action of creating boxes forms the core of BOXBOY!‘s gameplay, so we focused a great deal on making that box-creating action easy, comfortable and fun, without requiring complex controls.
BOXBOY! takes the Pac-man approach to charming design and, apparently, gendered fashion.
How did BOXBOY! change from when it was first conceived to when it came out?
Ever since the idea phase, BOXBOY! was centered around the idea of creating boxes in order to make your way through puzzle landscapes. We were able to proceed with development without this core gameplay concept changing much at all, from the very beginning.
One major change that did occur was how the game is structured overall. At first, we created rather large stages that you could really sit down and spend a great deal of time playing. We later reconsidered this, restricting the amount of content per stage and changing the structure so you could complete each stage more quickly. We also added story elements in a move to encourage players to enjoy the game all the way through to the end.
Were there any ideas you tried to implement in the game that just didn’t work out?
There are a lot of ideas that we couldn’t make happen within the game. These run the gamut from ideas that didn’t even make it into the project plan to things that wound up lacking in fun after we implemented them. As for exactly what ideas we had, I hope you’ll allow me to keep them a secret.
HAL is very adept at visual storytelling. Both Qbby and Kirby are very clearly defined characters with a lot of personality that comes through even though they’re silent. How do you convey character and story to players without using words?
The secret lies in how we devote time to the characters’ expressions and motions. Qbby is a simple character — composed of nothing but a square body, some eyes and some feet — but we paid particular attention to his animation to make sure that gamers would find him engaging.
We also included a lot of variation in the animation, from the stage-complete dances to the little motions when there’s no player input. I think he’s become a pretty cute character as a result, one that’s fun even if you’re just looking at him.
[Image credit: Nintendo]
Facebook taps Nokia for its mapping know-how
If Facebook’s maps for mobile have suddenly gotten a whole lot more (or less) accurate, there’s a reason. The social network is now sourcing its location data from Here, Nokia’s soon-to-be-sold mapping division. According to TechCrunch’s sources, only the mobile web version is using the new information, but Facebook is currently testing whether to roll Here’s Maps out to all of its standalone apps like Messenger and Instagram. It’s hoped that, with more accurate geolocation data, the company can offer advertisers even more minute control over who gets what product thrown in their face. Of course, Facebook is also one of the companies that is believed to be considering buying Here outright. Given this news, however, we’d imagine it being a lot less likely — after all, why buy the cow if you’re getting the milk for free?
Source: TechCrunch
Microsoft disses Android: ‘Google ships a big pile of … Code’
Recently Microsoft has been making plenty of curious but welcome changes, including focusing a bit more on apps and services for competing mobile platforms and even for devices like Android Wear. We’ve also seen Office come to Android, and Microsoft is even (sort of) embracing Android code for easy conversion over to Windows 10.
Gone are the days of Scroogled, right? Maybe not.
Microsoft: Google ships a big pile of… Code, with no commitment to update your device
During Microsoft’s Ignite conference in Chicago yesterday, Windows chief Terry Myerson managed to get a little jab in at Google, stating that “Google ships a big pile of… Code, with no commitment to update your device”. Furthermore, the exec said, “Google takes no responsibility to update customer devices and refuses to take responsibility to update their devices, leaving end users and businesses increasingly exposed every day they use an Android device.”
Obviously the statement was meant to knock down the obvious giant in the mobile space and to play up how Windows 10 will (supposedly) be different. But is there any truth to Myerson’s words?
Is Google taking enough responsibility for device updates?
Just last night, Google revealed the latest distribution numbers for Android, showing that just slightly under 10% of users are on Lollipop, Meanwhile, the majority still cling to KitKat, followed by older versions like Jelly Bean. The numbers speak for themselves. Google and its partners don’t necessarily do much to ensure that devices are rocking the latest versions of the Google OS. Of course, that doesn’t mean “Google takes no responsibility to update your device”.
In recent years we’ve seen Google and even a number of OEMs push their apps onto Google Play, allowing them to quickly update services and functions without having to rely on traditional OTAs for the job. With Lollipop, Google also introduced a developer preview and seemingly has handed the code over to OEMs much faster in the past, resulting in speedier Lollipop updates (from some OEMs at least…) compared to KitKat and earlier Android builds.
In recent years we’ve seen Google and even a number of OEMs push their apps onto Google Play, allowing them to quickly update services and functions without having to rely on traditional OTAs
Bottom-line, Google might not have it all figured out when it comes to ensuring that consumers have the latest updates, but they are making moves in the right direction. For what’s worth, Microsoft is in a similar position. With the debut of Windows Phone 8, Microsoft completely left its Windows Phone 7 users out in the cold by offering no upgrade path forward. Additionally, many devices have been slow to push out Windows Phone 8.1 due to carrier issues — such as the Verizon Nokia Lumia Icon, which took much longer than it should have to get the newest version.
Just as we saw with Scroogled and Microsoft’s insinuation that Google is spying on us and selling our data, this is a case of Microsoft pointing out a competitor’s “flaw” in order to hide the fact it has much of the same problem. The big question is whether or not Windows 10 will meaningfully speed up update cycles and security enhancements in a way that Android hasn’t. Only time will tell for sure.
T-Mobile’s Never Settle Trial allows Verizon customers to try out it’s network free-of-charge
One thing you can always count on with T-Mobile and it’s abrasive CEO, John Legere, is that a marketing campaign will have oodles of zing and lots of finger-pointing. Nowhere is it more evident than the latest offer that gives current Verizon customers the chance to try out T-Mobile’s network for up to 14 days without any charges. The offer is called Never Settle Trial and if customers like what they have tried out, T-Mobile will cover Verizon’s ETF (Early-Termination-Fees).
The Never Settle Trial is for Verizon customers only at this point, allowing them to port their number over to a T-Mobile phone whilst keeping hold of their Verizon handset in case they decide they like things as they are. If the customer decides to swap over, T-Mobile will pay up to $650 worth of ETFs or outstanding device payments, so long as they sign up to the Simple Choice Plan. If, after the trial, the customer decides to stay with Verizon, T-Mobile will refund any costs incurred whilst trying out the Uncarrier network as well as any associated costs with Verizon. Naturally, the customer will also have to return the T-Mobile handset.
It should come as no surprise that the T-Mobile CEO had something to say about the Never Settle Trial:
“Last week, I said we would hit right back at Verizon — I meant it,” said John Legere, president and CEO of T-Mobile. “T-Mobile’s 4G LTE network is the nation’s fastest. Not faster for the price … just faster, period. With T-Mobile, you don’t have to settle for trickery, gimmicks and carrier BS the way you do with Verizon. I’m so confident in our kick-ass network experience that we’re footing the bill so Verizon customers can give T-Mobile a try.”
T-Mobile has also come up with a list of reasons why people should move to it from Verizon:
- Paying too much
- A slower LTE network
- Limited data
- 2-year service contracts
- Overages and bill shock
- Waiting to upgrade their phones
- Being overcharged overseas
- Having unused data repossessed every month
- Being trapped by ETFs
- Music streaming eating up their data
- Limited WiFi calling
- No guarantee that plan prices won’t go up unexpectedly
- Hidden fees
T-Mobile has also released a bunch of ads for the #NeverSettleForVerizon campaign here. If the trial interests you, remember that it will run from May 13 to 31st and that you can take advantage of the trial by going online to T-Mobile’s website or by trotting off to one of its bricks ‘n mortar outlets.
Full Press Release:
Bellevue, Washington — May 5, 2015, 12:01 a.m. ET — Verizon seems to be spending billions on its latest ad campaign telling you to ‘Never Settle.’ T-Mobile (NYSE: TMUS) couldn’t agree more. So, today the Un-carrier launched the Never Settle Trial, exclusively for Verizon customers, so they can give the Un-carrier a try with no risk or extra out-of-pocket expense.
And, T-Mobile kicked off a new campaign of its own laying out the facts and all the ways wireless users shouldnever settle … like settling for an old carrier that penalizes you for using too much data, locks you into a two-year contract, makes you pay to leave, makes you wait to upgrade your phone, overcharges you outside the country or repossesses your unused data every month.
“Last week, I said we would hit right back at Verizon — I meant it,” said John Legere, president and CEO of T-Mobile. “T-Mobile’s 4G LTE network is the nation’s fastest. Not faster for the price … just faster, period. With T-Mobile, you don’t have to settle for trickery, gimmicks and carrier BS the way you do with Verizon. I’m so confident in our kick-ass network experience that we’re footing the bill so Verizon customers can give T-Mobile a try.”
With the Never Settle Trial, Verizon customers port their number to a new T-Mobile smartphone and hold on to their old Verizon phone, just in case. After the trial, if they love the service and want to join the millions switching to the Un-carrier, T-Mobile will pay off any of Verizon’s Early Termination Fees (ETFs) up to $650 or outstanding device payments when they trade in their phone and get a new one with T-Mobile’s wildly popular Simple Choice plan. If it doesn’t work out, the customer just hands in their T-Mobile phone within 14 days, and the Un-carrier will refund any trial costs from using T-Mobile … and any service costs for starting back up with Verizon, like activation or other related fees Verizon regularly charges. The Never Settle Trial starts on May 13, and Verizon customers can sign up through May 31.
At the same time, the Un-carrier is launching a new ad campaign − #NeverSettleforVerizon − highlighting the long list of painful ways Verizon forces its customers to settle for a subpar wireless experience, including…
- Paying too much
- A slower LTE network
- Limited data
- Two-year service contracts
- Overages and bill shock
- Waiting to upgrade their phones
- Being overcharged overseas
- Having unused data repossessed every month
- Being trapped by ETFs
- Music streaming eating up their data
- Limited Wi-Fi calling
- No guarantee that plan prices won’t go up unexpectedly
- Hidden fees
And, while Verizon is spending seemingly billions touting their network, T-Mobile is spending billions building out theirs. Not only does the Un-carrier offer America’s fastest nationwide 4G LTE, T-Mobile’s Data Strong™ network has more spectrum capacity per customer than Verizon. T-Mobile’s 4G LTE already covers 275 million Americans and is on pace to reach 300 million this year. And T-Mobile was first to offer its customers cutting-edge technologies like nationwide Voice over LTE and next-generation Wi-Fi calling.
Nearly 57 million Un-carrier customers have already figured out that they don’t have to settle. And more Americans will find out as the ads hit as part of T-Mobile’s national advertising campaign across multiple networks, as well as digital and social media. To see the new spots, visit http://newsroom.t-mobile.com/media-kits/never-settle-for-verizon.htm. To take advantage of the Never Settle Trial, Verizon customers can visit t-mobile.com or a T-Mobile store between May 13 and May 31.
Trial: Restrictions apply; pay-per-use services not included; qualifying postpaid service, deposit, & credit check may be required. Phone trade-in after trial req’d. for continued service. Payout for return to Verizon limited to activation fees for wireless service ; payment made via prepaid card. Additional validation may be req’d. See T-Mobile.com for details.
Source: T-Mobile
Come comment on this article: T-Mobile’s Never Settle Trial allows Verizon customers to try out it’s network free-of-charge
Home Depot Quietly Drops Apple Pay, But Service Continues to Work at Many Stores [iOS Blog]
While not an official partner for Apple Pay, the presence of NFC terminals at many Home Depot locations across the country has enabled the contactless payment service to work as normal at select stores in the home improvement chain. Today, however, a user on Reddit received a response from Home Depot customer care that suggests the company may soon begin quietly phasing out support for Apple Pay completely at its brick-and-mortar stores, with PayPal highlighted as an alternative solution for customers.
“We currently do not accept Apple Pay in our local stores or online. We do have the option of using PayPal, in store or online. We may offer this feature in the future, but we currently do not have a time frame for this and if we are going to accept Apple Pay. We truly apologize for any inconvenience that this may have caused you Andrew.”
The company’s response leaves an open door for the re-activation of Apple Pay in its stores in the future, but doesn’t commit to confirming that Apple’s NFC-based payment service will ever be seen at their checkout counters again. Apple recently updated a support document on its website confirming that Home Depot “might not be currently set up to accept contactless payments, including Apple Pay” at this current time.
Although no direct reason is given, the company’s mention of supporting PayPal online and in-store is a pretty good piece of evidence that Home Depot may simply be siding with a different electronic payments solution. It’s also worth pointing out that a few responses on the original Reddit thread have had no trouble with using Apple Pay in their own local stores, so either the company is keeping quiet support of the service or it’s taking a slow rollout to dismantling support for Apple Pay.
10 more crème de la crème nature wallpapers to kickstart your summer
Summer has once again made its return to our blue, round planet. Now instead of the cold, dark skies taking over and making everything look dull, we have some great lush greenery greeting us every time we go outside. Well, that is if you don’t work in an office all day like I do. Well, for all those that have to remain inside when everyone else is getting to go out and explore our great planet, I have some more nature wallpapers to make your day a little bit better.
Today I present to you 10 more luscious wallpapers that have been dying to make themselves at home on your mobile devices. These wallpapers come from all over the interwebs and are part of my collection of wallpapers that I have gathered over the years. Due to the fact that they have been collected over such a long period of time, I no longer have the information associated with them to determine their creators. So, if you see a wallpaper that is yours and you would like to be recognized as the artist, please drop me a comment below with proof, as I would love to give it to you.
The post 10 more crème de la crème nature wallpapers to kickstart your summer appeared first on AndroidGuys.
T-Mobile’s ‘Never Settle Trial’ takes aim at Verizon
T-Mobile’s latest Un-carrier offering is going straight for Verizon’s jugular. It’s called the “Never Settle Trial,” and as you might have guessed, it specifically mocks Big Red’s #NeverSettle ad campaign. The trial, exclusively available to Verizon subscribers, will give you free access to a T-Mobile phone with an Un-carrier plan for two full weeks. You can even port your Verizon number without cutting your old line. If you decide to sign up for a Big Magenta Simple Choice plan by the end of the 14-day period, Legere and co. promise to shoulder any Early Termination Fee you incur worth up to $650. Actually, the company swears to pay for any service costs incurred due to the trial, even if you decide to stick with Verizon.
Take note that the offering does have a number of conditions, including having to trade in your old phone once you’ve decided to continue with T-Mobile and subjecting yourself to a credit check if needed. Also, you’ll have to sign up between May 13th and the 31st either through the company’s website or its stores in order to participate. For now, you can check T-Mo’s new ads that harshly criticize “an old carrier that penalizes you for using too much data, locks you into a two-year contract, makes you pay to leave, makes you wait to upgrade your phone, overcharges you outside the country or repossesses your unused data every month.” Whew. Your move, Verizon.
7/ Starting 5/13, @VerizonWireless customers can port your number to @TMobile and try the #uncarrier! No bullshit. http://t.co/efs7ZUIE5L
– John Legere (@JohnLegere) May 5, 2015
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Verizon, T-Mobile
Source: T-Mobile
GOG’s Galaxy platform is one step closer to taking on Steam
It seems like just yesterday Good Old Games was giving away copies of Aliens vs. Predator to get folks to try its (optional) PC gaming service, Galaxy. Times have changed and leading into The Witcher 3: WIld Hunt‘s release — the first major title debuting on the storefront — the platform is moving from closed alpha testing into an open beta. The constant that’s carrying over from the alpha is that you aren’t required to participate in anything within the software. Not into automatic updates that might fix some of your favorite glitches in a game? That’s totally cool; you can opt out and still keep playing. Steam and Origin aren’t quite as keen on that.
Let’s say that you’re going to go all in and allow Galaxy to perform the patches for you. If one breaks the game to the point of it being unplayable, you can roll back to the previous, working version supposedly without much of an issue. You can download a separate DRM-free backup copy of a game, too.
As the press release quotes tell it, the idea is to make the optional features — and the platform itself — enticing enough and to such a high quality that you’ll choose to use them; it’s a motivator for the development team to do its best work. Want to see what this so-called digital freedom “tastes like?” Head over to GOG.com and grab the beta for Mac or Windows.
Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment, HD
Source: Good Old Games
AIVAnet 