Steam will refund nearly any online purchase within two weeks
Used to be that if you purchased and downloaded a game from Steam, and it didn’t work out for whatever reason, you’d generally be SOL. However, Valve has recently reversed its zero tolerance return policy and will issue refunds for online purchases (with a few caveats) through Steam Support. According to the newly established Steam Refunds page, “You can request a refund for nearly any purchase on Steam – for any reason.” That’s just so long as you’ve played the game for less than two hours and request the refund within two weeks of buying it. DLC content has a similar two-hour window while in-app purchases will be refundable for a full 48 hours. There are a few niggling exceptions to that rule — movies and games you’ve been banned in, for example, are not eligible — so head over to the refunds page if you have specific questions about your purchase.
Via: SteamDB (Twitter), Polygon
Source: Steam
Sprint jumps on the pre-paid rollover data bandwagon
style=”display:block”
data-ad-client=”ca-pub-8150504804865896″
data-ad-slot=”8461248232″
data-ad-format=”auto”>
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push();
The inevitable trickle down effect when a carrier makes a fairly radical change to how it provides service to its customers is pretty remarkable. T-Mobile seems to always be the one to poke the bear with something new and, often time, unheard of. In the world of rollover data packages in the prepaid sector though, Verizon was the one that started to push in 2014. Although, at that time the $45 plan with 500MB’s of rollover data was a pretty shallow offering considering you also had to get the BRIDGE DATA which was additional data you paid for but might not have used up. Today Sprint is jumping inline with AT&T and T-Mobile to offer rollover data to their prepaid customers, but they are doing it a little different. Rather than the 30 day roll over cycle that AT&T offers, or the 12 month offering from T-Mobile’s Data Stash, Sprint will let customer who pay on time bank up to 30GBs of data for an indefinite amount of time. At least, for now anyways.
The prepaid offerings from Sprint all offer unlimited talk and text with the base plan landing at $35 with 1GB of data. From there we move to $45 with 3GBs and $55 for 6GBs. Comparing to AT&T which offers $35 with no data, $45 with 1.5GBs and $60 with 4GBs. While T-Mobile offers 1GB for $40, 3GBs for $50 and 5GBs for $60.
The prepaid market certainly seems to be heating up quite a bit and, minus the fact you will have to shell out some major pocket change upfront for a device, is a pretty solid option for any people who are tired of high bills and overage charges.
Source: Sprint
The post Sprint jumps on the pre-paid rollover data bandwagon appeared first on AndroidSPIN.
Another Galaxy S6 Active press render leaks, this time with a black and dark grey color scheme
style=”display:block”
data-ad-client=”ca-pub-8150504804865896″
data-ad-slot=”8461248232″
data-ad-format=”auto”>
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push();
The Samsung Galaxy Active line of devices aren’t for everyone, but those that lead active outdoor lifestyles who don’t want a bulky case the device is a pretty attractive offer. Over the last few years Samsung has provided the Active line to AT&T here in the stats with the S4 Active and S5 Active. It was pretty safe to assume that there would be a Galaxy S6 Active in the pipeline somewhere. There have been a number of leaks that portrayed a black and white camo variant that brought to mind some Battlefield 4 to me. A new image has recently surfaced that brings a more traditional color option to the forefront in a simple all black, maybe a dark grey depending on your monitor, phone or personal take on colors.
It should come as no surprise that the new leak comes from @Evleaks once again. A recap of the spec leaks show the same details as the current Galaxy S6 with the Exynos processor, 3GB of RAM and so on. However, the Active is said to carry a battery that packs 900mAh more power inside which boosts it to 3500mAh. In my humble opinion that would be a good move since active users are generally nowhere near a power source more often.
Any current or would be AT&T subscribers holding off on hitting the NEXT program for the Galaxy S6 Active when it rolls out? Which my guess should be rather soon.
Source: @Evleaks Via 9to5Google
The post Another Galaxy S6 Active press render leaks, this time with a black and dark grey color scheme appeared first on AndroidSPIN.
T-Mobile to start Android 5.0 Lollipop roll out for Xperia Z3 at midnight tonight
style=”display:block”
data-ad-client=”ca-pub-8150504804865896″
data-ad-slot=”8461248232″
data-ad-format=”auto”>
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push();
Looks like Sony Xperia Z3 owners on T-Mobile’s network are in for a treat late this evening. A tweet from Des Smith, T-Mobile‘s product man and social media maniac, made the announcement late this afternoon. Being a twitter share his word choice and his details were a bit limited, but he does state that the update is supposed to start rolling out after midnight pacific standard time, so 3 a.m. for those on the east coast. He also mentions that the update will bring Band 12 support.
Software Update: @TMobile #Z3 – #Lollipop + Band 12 support! Should start after Midnight Pacific 
Des pic.twitter.com/766pvQpKsq
— Des (@askdes) June 2, 2015
Android 5.0 Lollipop is news enough, but that Band 12 support is even better news. Band 12 enables T-Mobiles 700 MHz A block spectrum which will do wonderful things for coverage for many people. It is also one of the few devices that T-Mobile offers that supports that band too.
Be on the look out later tonight, or first thing in the morning, for the update to grace your device. You will want to make sure your device is charged up well over 50% battery, have a stable Wi-Fi connection and some time to kill for it download and install. I would imagine it will sit in the 1GB+ size range. Be sure to follow Des through @askdes on twitter to keep up with the happenings of T-Mobile products.
Source: Des Smith Twitter
The post T-Mobile to start Android 5.0 Lollipop roll out for Xperia Z3 at midnight tonight appeared first on AndroidSPIN.
Amazon won’t charge for shipping on small, light items
In an effort to better compete with rival eBay, Amazon announced a new service today that offers free shipping on small, lightweight items for every customer — not just Prime members. Dubbed “Fulfillment by Amazon Small and Light” the new shipping scheme will bring tiny items your door in four to eight business days without the need for a minimum order value. The items just need to weigh less than 8 ounces, measure under 9x6x2 inches and cost less than $10 to qualify. Amazon reportedly hopes to attract a wider customer base including cost-aware shoppers — ie folks worried that shipping and handling will cost more than their ear bud inserts. Additionally, the new program will act as an alternative to the company’s existing $99 a year, delivery-in-two-days Prime subscription.
All orders will be fulfilled from the company’s Florence, Kentucky shipping hub. A majority of eligible items will be from third party vendors that give Amazon a cut of their profits in exchange for the mega-retailer handling storage, shipping and logistics of the products themselves. Previously customers had to order at least $35 worth of goods to qualify for free standard shipping. “Customers love that even if it’s a $5 item, shipping is free for everybody, Prime member or not,” Neil Ackerman, a senior manager at Amazon, told Bloomberg. “Customers love it and sellers love it.” Or at least Amazon is hoping customers will love it.
Via: Bloomberg
Source: Amazon
Sync Your Memories to the Cloud with the Google Photos app for PC
style=”display:block”
data-ad-client=”ca-pub-8150504804865896″
data-ad-slot=”8461248232″
data-ad-format=”auto”>
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push();
Since its Inception, Google Photos has been my drug of choice when it comes to online backup and cloud storage. The ability to take a quick photo or video with my phone and instantly have it backed up to my Google account is priceless. Throw in a few cool features, like Auto-Awesome — recently changed to Assistant — and I’ve found no reason to look elsewhere for my digital photography and scrapbooking needs.
One thing that was missing, however, was a simplified solution for backing up photos to your account from your PC. Of course, you could always load up Google+ and manually upload them, but the process was somewhat tedious, to say the very least.
Now, that problem is solved thanks to Google releasing the first version of its Photos Auto-Uploader software for Windows computers. A simple download of a .exe file and a hassle-free installation is all that stands between you and the ability to sync your photos to Google Photos — and with the recent announcement at I/O that grants users unlimited storage of photos at 16MP and video at 1080P, as well the ability to save photos and videos at their original size, up to the amount of Drive Storage you have available in your account, there’s no reason to NOT take advantage of this awesome service.
Once you have the uploader installed, you can set the program to automatically upload photos from designated folders,or from devices and SD cards attached to your computer. You can also set the app to upload in high quality (free unlimited storage) or full resolution that counts against your quota. You can also set it to upload RAW files, which will eat up your storage even quicker, considering how much larger they are than your average .jpg or .png file.
From there, you’re all set to go. Start taking some pictures, add them to your computer, and let the work be done for you, courtesy of El Goog. Like magic, you’ll find your memories waiting for you at the Google Photo website and on any of your devices with the Photos app installed.
Download Google Photos for PC here.
The post Sync Your Memories to the Cloud with the Google Photos app for PC appeared first on AndroidSPIN.
T-Mobile’s Xperia Z3 will get its Lollipop update starting tonight
If you’re the lucky owner of a Sony Xperia Z3 on T-Mobile’s network, you should see the update to Android 5.0 Lollipop make its way to your device sometime tonight. Des Smith, Senior Product Manager at T-Mobile, just announced on Twitter that the update should start making its way to devices at 12am PDT. Along with the update to Android 5.0, the Z3 is also gaining support for LTE band 12.
Software Update: @TMobile #Z3 – #Lollipop + Band 12 support! Should start after Midnight Pacific ✌Des pic.twitter.com/766pvQpKsq
— Des (@askdes) June 2, 2015
Android 5.0 will bring notable features such as Priority Mode notifications, actionable lock screen notifications, Smart Lock, and a redesigned user interface based off of Google’s Material Design guidelines. If you’re wondering what exactly your phone will look like after the Lollipop update, check out this quick YouTube video which shows off some of the main changes.
Related Videos
.rvs_wrapper
width: 350px;
.rvs_wrapper.align_left
float: left;
.rvs_wrapper.align_right
float: right;
.rvs_wrapper.align_center,
.rvs_wrapper.align_none
width: 100%;
.rvs_wrapper.align_center
text-align: center;
.rvs_wrapper.align_center.cbc-latest-videos ul li
float: none;
display: inline-block;
vertical-align: top;
.rvs_wrapper.cbc-latest-videos:not(.align_none) ul li:nth-child(2n+1)
clear: both;
.rvs_title
font-weight: 600 !important;
margin: 0 !important;
font-size: 24px !important;
.rvs_wrapper.align_right .rvs_title
padding-left: 20px;
.rvs_title a
font-family: ‘Roboto Condensed’;
color: #3a3a3a;
.rvs_wrapper.cbc-latest-videos ul
padding-top: 10px;
.rvs_wrapper.align_left.cbc-latest-videos ul li,
.rvs_wrapper.align_none.cbc-latest-videos ul li
padding: 0 15px 0 0;
.rvs_wrapper.align_right.cbc-latest-videos ul li
padding: 0 0 0 15px;
float: right;
.rvs_wrapper.align_center.cbc-latest-videos ul li
padding: 0 7px;
.rvs_wrapper.cbc-latest-videos ul li > a
font-weight: 400;
.rvs_wrapper.cbc-latest-videos ul li > a .yt-thumbnail
margin-bottom: 0;
@media only screen and (max-width : 480px)
.rvs_wrapper
width: 100%;
text-align: center;
body .rvs_wrapper.cbc-latest-videos ul li
padding: 0 7px;
display: inline-block;
float: none;
vertical-align: top;
As is the case with other OTAs, this update will be rolled out in stages, so it may be a few days before it makes its way to your device. Once you receive your update, be sure to let us know how you like it!
App Store, iTunes Store, Apple TV and Other Services Experiencing Downtime [Mac Blog]
Following this morning’s iCloud and iTunes downtime, Apple’s services appear to be experiencing another outage, this time affecting several of the company’s online stores.
The App Store, iTunes Store, Mac App Store, iBooks Store, and Apple TV are non-functional for some users at the current time, with content inaccessible. MacRumors has received several complaints about App Store apps not downloading.
According to Apple’s system status page, all of the above listed services are affected, along with iTunes Match, iTunes Radio, and Game Center. The page suggests the outage began just after 5 p.m. Pacific Time and it reads, “Users may be unable to access the above stores/services or make purchases.”
Game Center has been unavailable for some users for several hours now, having first begun experiencing issues at around 12:30 p.m. Pacific Time.
It is not clear when the outage issues will be resolved, but this morning’s iCloud problem was fixed within an hour.
‘Gravity Ghost,’ a game that heals, heads to PlayStation 4
Gravity Ghost is currently in development for PlayStation 4, but it’s already a success. It launched on Steam in January, offering physics-based platforming tucked inside of soothing, spiraling gameplay and wrapped in a touching story. Ivy Games founder Erin Robinson Swink of course hoped that people would enjoy Gravity Ghost, but reception to the game still surprises her five months after its release. She’s mostly touched by the emotional reaction many players describe on the game’s Steam forums. Gravity Ghost helps people deal with loss in a visceral way.
“It’s not a forum where I usually see people sharing personal details from their lives, but there are multiple posts like this,” Robinson Swink says. “One reviewer said the game changed how he felt about his reaction to losing his grandfather…. Another ended their review with this: ‘My mom died last year, and in some weird way, this helped me deal with that? I can’t explain it, but it… well, did.’ My jaw just dropped when I read those.”
It’s more than loss, too: Gravity Ghost has found its way onto a list of recommended video games for self-care and one of Robinson Swink’s acquaintances said she played at least 20 hours of the game after her home was severely damaged. “It surprised me because that’s far longer than it takes to beat the game,” Robinson Swink says. “She must have started over a few times. We’re so early in the life of the game, it’s hard to know what its legacy will be. But if it continues to help people bring down the level of stress in their life, I will consider that a great success.”
Gravity Ghost stars Iona, a celestial spirit searching the stars for her lost best friend, a similarly ghost-y fox. Iona soars through a splintered galaxy, flinging herself around the gravity fields of planets to collect survivors and fragments of broken worlds. In Gravity Ghost, you can’t die — you only fly.
Soon, Gravity Ghost will be able to entertain and help people on PS4. There’s no official release date yet, but the PS4 version will feature exclusive content, including a new constellation with new challenge levels, three new original tracks from composer Ben Prunty and a new, unlockable character to play. Until now, Gravity Ghost has been strictly a PC game, from conception to sale. Robinson Swink says she developed it entirely on her laptop, where everything is small and up-close.
She’s not just an avatar, she’s a character in this world.
“For me it’s a very different experience to be playing the game on a TV,” she says. “It feels larger and makes outer space feel more encompassing. I deliberately made Iona very small compared to the planets, but now I get to see her in high detail even when the camera is far away. It makes her feel a lot more real, somehow. She’s not just an avatar, she’s a character in this world.”
Robinson Swink believes Gravity Ghost should do well on PS4, considering that players already compare it with Journey, a soothing, highly acclaimed, PlayStation-exclusive game. Besides, PC sales have already covered her direct development costs, so from here on out it’s smooth sailing — or soaring.
“I’m pretty stoked to bring it to the PS4, as it’s a platform where I think not many people have heard of the game yet,” she says. “I think the chill-out gameplay and impressionistic art style will be a really good fit with that audience…. Obviously I’d be thrilled if our sales were really good on the PS4, but I think the port will be worthwhile no matter what.”
AMD’s latest chips bring gaming and video chops to mainstream laptops
With AMD’s new sixth-generation A-series processors, laptops in the $400 to $700 range could soon become far more capable. Formerly code-named “Carizzo,” the new chips offer twice the gaming performance of Intel’s Core i7, thanks to discrete Radeon graphics. They’re the first mainstream processors with hardware decoding for H.265/HEVC video, the successor to the current H.264 standard which includes far better compression and support for 4K resolutions. And they’ll also pack in up to 12 compute cores (four CPU and eight GPU), which basically means they’ll be able to handle whatever you throw at them. Why focus on mainstream laptops? AMD notes that it’s the largest segment of the PC market by revenue and volume sold, so it makes sense for a company that’s traditionally focused on value to show it some love.
AMD’s basically gunning hard for the gaming and media crowd with its sixth-generation chips. Naturally, they include its dual graphics technology, which can summon the power of Radeon R7 graphics along their built-in graphics for a 42 percent jump in frame rates. They also combine game performance with hardware video encoding, which should make for much smoother game streams on Twitch. Battery-wise, AMD says the new chips will last twice as long as their predecessors, even when watching video or gaming.
While it all sounds good on paper, AMD will face some stiff competition from Intel’s new Broadwell-H chips, which were announced yesterday. Those chips also double graphics performance and boost overall media performance. Intel’s chips seem pretty expensive though, ranging from $244 to $623, and while we don’t know the pricing of AMD’s new wares yet, they’re usually cheaper than Intel. So there’s a good chance AMD can keep up the value fight. We’ll find out for sure once the new chips hit the market. AMD says computers featuring the sixth-gen A-series will start shipping in June, while Intel expects its chips to hit computers within two months.
AIVAnet 