You can now use Cortana’s beta app to replace Google Now
Microsoft’s Cortana has been talked about more and more, as the feeling of its impending release is upon us. Microsoft originally announced back in May that the personal assistant replacement, would be coming to Android. Then, last month, the APK for the original beta of the Google Now competitor was leaked, but lacked a few options.
Well, the latest version of the APK has been released, and this fixes something that was not previously available. You can now set Cortana to replace Google Now, with the Swipe-Up gesture on the home screen. The other issue that is still around is that you can not activate Cortana by saying “Hey Cortana” or anything like that.
It’s only a matter of time before the voice-activation of Cortana will be coming to our devices. But, of course this is only beta software, so we can’t expect everything to work right out of the gates.
Speaking of beta software and things not working, it seems that Cortana doesn’t really like the 2014 Moto X. Every time I tried to start her up on my stock Moto X 2014, Cortana crashed after a second or two of being open. However, Cortana works perfectly fine on our in-house Moto G 2015. So maybe there’s some type of conflict with Moto Voice that is preventing Cortana from working correctly.
My advice would be, if you really want to use something other than Google Now, just wait for the official version of Cortana to be released.
Source: Phone Arena
The post You can now use Cortana’s beta app to replace Google Now appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Song sharing service This Is My Jam shuts down the ‘right’ way
When internet services shut down, that’s usually all she wrote. You have a few weeks to grab your data, and then all those memories are lost forever. Well, that’s not going to happen with song sharing service This Is My Jam. While the service “in its current form” is unfortunately riding into the sunset this September, it’s bending over backwards to keep as many things running as possible. You won’t get to post, but you will have access to just about everything else — everyone’s shares will still be available (including through Spotify playlists), and developers can still tinker with a lot of TIMJ’s code. As the founders put it, this is more about putting the product into a “time capsule” than turning the lights off.
So why is it shutting down? The creators are candid there, too. Simply put, internet music is no longer as accommodating to TIMJ as it was back when the service launched in 2011. Streaming is gradually moving from the web toward apps, and the combination of service changes with tougher copyright protections has made it difficult to keep song links working. TIMJ could theoretically do its own mobile app, but that would require a “total product reboot” and evidence that it might succeed. We’d add that the service just isn’t as vital as it used to be. When numerous music providers make it almost trivial to share what you’re listening to on social networks (Spotify treats sharing as a tentpole feature), there might not be much point to adding an in-between service, however helpful it might be.
Filed under:
Internet
Source:
This Is My Jam (Tumblr)
Tags: internet, music, shutdown, thisismyjam, web
Quantum VJ puts a glitchy audio visualizer around your neck
Do pendants and other wearable ornaments lack pizzazz for you? Alexander Zolotov has a way to spice things up… if you’re fond of 8-bit graphics gone haywire, at least. His Quantum VJ is small enough to hang around your neck, but clever enough to turn audio into wonderfully glitchy visuals on its 128 x 64 OLED display. As you’ll see below, the result is at once modest yet mesmerizing — plug in some tunes and you’ll have a tiny, synchronized light show several inches away from your face. It runs for 20 hours on a typical coin-sized battery, too, so it can distract passers-by all day long. This is currently a one-of-a-kind device that doesn’t even have video out, but Zolotov tells The Creators Project that future models might have output. If so, you may one day have a dance party backdrop dangling around your chest.
Via:
The Creators Project
Source:
WarmPlace.ru
Tags: alexanderzolotov, audio, glitch, music, necklace, quantumvj, video, visualizer, vj, wearable
Cyanogen has “more users than Windows Mobile and Blackberry combined”
We knew Cyanogen makes the most popular Android ROM in the world, but it seems their influence now expands far beyond the echelons of the third-party developer world. In fact, the company’s own Adnan Begovic has just taken the stage at the Seattle Code Rush, where he announced their numbers are so high they have surpassed BlackBerry and Windows Phone users… combined.
Reaching 50 million users is no small feat, and it’s specially an accomplishment considering Cyanogen (and CyanogenMod) is not even its own platform, it’s just a modified version of Android.
Let’s put things into perspective. According to the IDC research firm, Windows Phone’s market share is at 2.7% (worldwide) as of Q1 2015. On the other hand, BlackBerry’s numbers continue to decline and are down to 0.3%. Both platforms are definitely struggling as numbers continue to drop.
IDC’s statistics and Cyanogen’s latest numbers also suggest that the ROM maker alone probably holds about 3% (or a bit more) of the world’s total smartphone market share. That is pretty insane, guys. And honestly, I don’t see their success dropping anytime soon.
Cyanogen keeps getting funded left and right. They are also hiring high-class talent and continue on their quest to get new partners to distribute their tailored Android experience. Their deal with OnePlus has ended, but they plan to partner up with “bigger Chinese vendors”. If they manage to get some of the big Asian companies on their side, Cyanogen just might be able to “put a bullet through Google’s head”.
Motorola reveals plans for Stagefright patch rollout
Worried about the Stagefright vulnerability that affects 95% of all Android phones? Surely, you don’t want your phone to be taken control of with a simple MMS message. Google, Samsung and LG (among others) have already gotten to work, and Motorola wants to let you know they also have your back.
The manufacturer is now getting ready to update its entire line-up, going back to phones released as far as about 2 years ago. New handsets like the Moto X Style, Moto X Play and Moto G (3rd-gen) will be updated at launch, meaning all new users will be protected. As for other devices and previous generations, Motorola has provided a neat list, so just check and see if your phone is to get this crucial update.
- Moto X Style (patched from launch)
- Moto X Play (patched from launch)
- Moto X (1st Gen, 2nd Gen)
- Moto X Pro
- Moto Maxx/Turbo
- Moto G (1st Gen, 2nd Gen, 3rd Gen)
- Moto G with 4G LTE (1st Gen, 2nd Gen)
- Moto E (1st Gen, 2nd Gen)
- Moto E with 4G LTE (2nd Gen)
- DROID Turbo
- DROID Ultra/Mini/Maxx
These patches will begin rolling out soon, but Motorola warns that some of you may have to wait a bit more due to carrier delays. The manufacturer is planning to begin sending upgrades to their carrier partners beginning August 10th, so tomorrow. After that, the ETA is all up to the service providers, which need to test and verify all updates before pushing them out.
Don’t want to wait until the update comes around? There are other ways to stay protected. We have detailed all the methods in our Stagefright attack prevention post, so go give it a read if you want to stay on the safe side.
Also, you may notice the Nexus 6 is not listed. Don’t worry, remember that phone gets all its updates from Google, and the Search Giant has already taken care of business.
With all that said, all we can do is ask you to stay secure and sit tight for your update to come. That is a very good list, so most of you should be covered. If your phone is not included, you should probably be worrying about getting an upgrade by now!
Drones may get better cell service thanks to an old ambulance
Aerial internet connections will likely be crucial for courier drones and other robotic aircraft, but modern-day cell towers are usually designed to serve people on the ground, not machines in the skies. What to do? Carnegie Mellon researchers might have an answer. They’ve converted an old ambulance into a full cellular network, and they’re using it to test connections to quadcopter drones carrying phones on their stomachs. As it turns out, in-air wireless links aren’t that reliable using current technology — you need to point the antennas upward, and the signals propagate differently above a cell site than they do below.
Provided scientists can refine the experience, there might be a shift in how cellular networks are built. Rather than focusing on tower-building in populated areas, companies might also think about coverage that keeps drones online as long as possible. That, in turn, could lead to unmanned vehicles that can easily receive new instructions mid-flight (such as a new shipping address), or send you a message when they get close.
Filed under:
Robots, Wireless, Networking, Science
Via:
PCWorld
Source:
Carnegie Mellon University
Tags: ambulance, carnegiemellon, cellular, drone, networking, robot, science, wireless
New Huawei handset images leak ahead of IFA announcement
Evan Blass (@evleaks) is back for one of his now-rare appearances, and this time the leakster is giving us a bit of information on what could be Huawei’s upcoming large-screen smartphone, as well as an image. Let’s take a look at it!
As you can see, this is a large-screen smartphone that looks to be the successor to the Huawei Ascend Mate series. It’s not yet verified if this is the branding the device will be released under, though. In fact, not much is revealed about this mysterious smartphone. All Evan Blass could tell us is that the device will be launching at IFA 2015, on September 2nd.
At first it was believed this smartphone would be a part of the D-series and feature Force Touch, but Blass later confirmed neither bits of information were correct, leaving us in the dark.
Followup: I’m told that this is not a D-series — which is dead — and that the force touch feature has been pulled from this model.
— Evan Blass (@evleaks) August 8, 2015
What we can capture from the image is that the new Huawei handset will come with a sizable display, a fingerprint reader on the back and what looks to be a full metal body. We had actually seen a leaked video of this phone before, but we couldn’t confirm its validity. I mean, even the branding in the back was off, but now that this image is around we can see a huge resemblance.
Maybe the weird brand in the video is just being kept as a place-holder, something Huawei has been known to do in the past. Just remember all this information is unofficial, so don’t hold your breath on the image, the video or any of this information just yet.
We are sure more leaks and rumors will show up before IFA, so keep it tuned to the Android Authority home page for more details to come. Also, you can be sure we will be in Berlin covering all the goodies, so you will hear from us as soon as this phone goes official (if it does).
Other Huawei videos!
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New update to Cortana for Android allows it to be the default voice assistant
Microsoft is trying to expand its digital assistant Cortana by offering access on phones, tablets, and computers. A new update (1.0.0.204) for the Cortana for Android beta app has hit the Play Store. With the update, Android users will now be able to replace Google Now as the default voice assistant with Cortana. Instead of holding down your home button or swiping up from your on-screen home button to launch Google Now, you can set Cortana to open.
Microsoft hasn’t mentioned when the official version of the app will be available, but one could expect it to arrive shortly. Once the official app is released, all of the features you get with Windows Phone will be available for Android users to enjoy.
Via: Unofficial Microsoft News
Come comment on this article: New update to Cortana for Android allows it to be the default voice assistant
Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 820 chipset will not be announced on August 11
A few days ago, we heard that Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 820 chipset would be revealed on August 11 but it turns out this isn’t the case.
Qualcomm’s event scheduled for Tuesday in Los Angeles is actually the SIGGRAPH 2015 conference to bring new computer graphics technology. The conference got mixed up with all the rumors about the Snapdragon 820 chipset and its alleged high speeds and performance increases. Analyst Pan Jiutang stated the new chip will start shipping in December and will debut inside the Xiaomi Mi 5 which is expected to launch in March of 2016.
According to recent leaks and tests, the Snapdragon 820 will bring many new enhancements and will not heat up like the Snapdragon 810 chip. It allegedly includes a 40% performance boost and an all-new Adreno 530 graphics core. The company has put together four new custom cores that will bring this large boost in performance.
Reportedly, manufacturers such as LG, HTC and Sony have already received samples of the new chipset in order to test for their upcoming flagships. These flagships are scheduled to launch in Q1 of 2016. Qualcomm has a lot riding on this processor and will have its work cut out time come this winter.
Come comment on this article: Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 820 chipset will not be announced on August 11
500px’s redesigned iOS app is an Instagram for pros
500px built its service around serious photographers uploading DSLR shots on their PCs, but it knows that mobile users matter, too — and it’s not going to sit idly by while Flickr and Instagram steal the spotlight. The company has launched a brand new iOS app that gives the entire experience a much-needed overhaul. For one thing, there’s a new home feed that makes it far easier to keep up with what your fellow shutterbugs are doing. It’s really a souped-up version of the timelines you see in other photo apps, but that’s not a bad thing if you’re used to photo-driven social networks. There’s also a Discover tab that, like Flickr’s Explore, helps you stumble across interesting pictures you might not have found on your own. An interface rework greatly simplifies basics like uploading photos or finding other users, and there’s a slate of Adobe editing tools to tweak your shots.
The iOS software is available now, and its Android equivalent is “coming soon.” Don’t count on a version for your Lumia or Chromebook, though. 500px dropped support for its Windows Phone, Windows 8 and Chrome OS apps back in April, so you may have little choice but to use the website and give up many of the conveniences of a native app.
Filed under:
Cellphones, Tablets, Internet, Mobile
Via:
Ubergizmo
Tags: 500px, app, internet, ios, ipad, iphone, mobilepostcross, photography, smartphone
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