Facebook rolling out new messaging options for Pages
Facebook has announced they are rolling out a new set of features for Pages and their admins to be able to communicate with with followers using the platforms private messaging function. The new tools will make it easier for customers to contact a business using a private message while giving Page admins more tools to manage their responses.
For businesses or other entities with pages that use local awareness ads, they will be able to add a call-to-action button labeled “Send Message” that will appear on the ad. Users who see these ads can simply click on the button to launch a Facebook Messenger window to shoot off a private message. On the receiving end, Page admins will not only see the message, they will also see an attachment showing the ad that generated the message.
Page admins will find a new option present when viewing comments to their posts. In addition to the Like and Reply options, admins will now see a link for “Message.” Using this, an admin can reply in private to inquiries from posters. The message will include a link to the original comment in case anyone needs to refer back to the comment. Should a Page admin respond in this manner, future viewers of the comments will see a note indicating the Page responded via private message.
Along with the new indicator that visitors will see for comments responded to privately, Facebook is also planning to show a new badge on Page profiles for those businesses that are “very responsive.” This appears to be defined as Pages that respond to 90% of messages within five minutes or less. Page admins will have access to more robust data regarding response rates through their Insight panel.
On the backend, Page admins will find some other features to help them respond more quickly. Canned responses will be available and Pages can customize and save these responses. Bulk actions on messages in the Inbox will be available as well including archive, delete, flag and mark messages as read, unread and spam.
source: Facebook
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Shazam helping free Rdio and Spotify users grow their playlists
Shazam has announced some new features that will work in connection with Rdio and Spotify and will be especially useful for users of those services who opt for free accounts. Before settling on a free account with Rdio, Shazam is working with Rdio to offer a free 48-hour long trial of Rdio Unlimited if a user signs up via the Shazam app. The Unlimited trial gives users the ability to playback full tracks from Rdio from within Shazam.
Users of Spotify and Rdio who also use Shazam to identify songs will find they can add tracks to their playlists with a few taps. Shazam can be setup to automatically add tracks to a “My Shazam Tracks” playlist or they can choose specific playlists.
You can read the full press release from Shazam after the break.
Shazam Makes Music Discovery Even Easier with Rdio and Spotify
New Rdio Users Can Enjoy Free Trial of Rdio Unlimited and Listen to Full Tracks in Shazam
Users with Free Rdio and Spotify Accounts Can Now Add Shazamed Tracks to Playlists
New York, August 5, 2015 – Music fans asked, and Shazam listened. Today, Shazam announced upgraded features for both Rdio and Spotify users that will create new, seamless paths to discovery.
New Rdio users who sign up through Shazam will now get the perk of a 48-hour free trial of Rdio Unlimited, giving them full-track playback in Shazam, so that they can listen uninterrupted to playlists and top charts without ever having to leave the app. Once the trial is over, free Rdio users can still listen to previews of any track or playlist in Shazam and add songs to any of their Rdio playlists.
Free Rdio or Spotify users will now be able to add any song they Shazam to their playlists with just a few taps, making it easy to listen to new tracks later. Users can either automatically add their Shazams to a “My Shazam Tracks” playlist or choose a specific playlist. Rdio Unlimited and Spotify Premium users already enjoy this feature, as well as the ability to listen to full tracks, curated playlists and top charts right in Shazam.
“By working with our streaming partners, Shazam is making it simple for fans to do what they love most when they discover a new song or artist – sit back and listen,” said Daniel Danker, Chief Product Officer, Shazam. “It’s also never been easier to add tracks you discover to a playlist — just connect to Rdio or Spotify, and anytime you Shazam, we’ll make sure those tracks are waiting for you on a playlist the next time you look.”
The expanded features are available today for iOS and Android users.
About Shazam:
Shazam is one of the world’s most popular apps, used by more than 100 million people each month to magically connect to the world around them. Building on its pioneering leadership in music identification, Shazam now helps people discover, interact with, and share video, audio, or printed content on TV, radio, movie screens, magazines, newspapers, packaged goods, and retail stores — and now Shazam lets music fans follow their favorite artists to see their Shazams and share in the thrill of discovery. The app has exceeded 20 billion total Shazams since its launch, and users Shazam over 20 million times each day. For more information, visit http://www.shazam.com or follow us on Twitter @shazam
Come comment on this article: Shazam helping free Rdio and Spotify users grow their playlists
LG Nexus will reportedly have a fingerprint scanner as well
There have been no shortage of Nexus rumors as of late, and while most of these claims have focused on the alleged 5.7-inch Hauwei Nexus, there is also enough quasi-evidence to suggest that LG is also prepping a smaller Nexus as well.
Not a lot is known about the next-gen LG Nexus 5, other than it will reportedly be cheaper than its phablet-sized brother and will also offer less aggressive specs and build materials. It is unclear whether that means a Snapdragon 808, as some rumors have suggested, or something even less impressive like a Snapdragon 615.
One premium feature that LG isn’t skimping out on is a fingerprint scanner, at least if a new report from Korea Herald proves accurate. While early reports suggested only the Huawei model would get a scanner, the new report suggests the LG Nexus will sport a 5.2-inch display and will “incorporate new technologies, which were unprecedented in the previous models, such as a fingerprint sensor and a mobile payment system called Android Pay.” The report goes on to say a “market official” has confirmed that not only is a fingerprint scanner coming, we can expect future LG flagships to also sport the technology.
It’s obviously too early to confirm or deny the validity of this report, but for what it is worth, earlier this week a leaked TPU case hit the scene purporting to be for the new LG Nexus. As you can see in the image, there appears to be a slot in the center that could very well be for housing a fingerprint scanner.
What do you think, like the idea of fingerprint scanners on both Nexus phones? Based on the rumors we know about each so far, which Nexus do you find more appealing?
US appeals court says a warrant is required for authorities to obtain cell phone location data
A U.S. appeals court ruled Wednesday that in order for authorities to obtain a suspect’s cell phone location data, a probable-cause warrant under the Fourth Amendment is required. This 2-1 decision by the Richmond, Virginia-based Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is a big victory for those who advocate for cell phone privacy rights. Although this ruling only spans through North Carolina, Maryland, South Carolina and Virginia, the federal appellate court’s decision increases the probability that the United States Supreme Court will take up the issue.
Back in July, the American Civil Liberties Union asked the Supreme Court to overturn a decision filed in May that would require all authorities to obtain a warrant before seeking out cell-site location tracking data on a national level. We told you last week that all federal appellate courts rulings have been in favor of not constitutionally protecting users’ location data through cell-site records, so the decision made on Wednesday is a particularly big win for privacy advocates.
This recent case involving the Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals involved a number of robberies that took place in 2011 in Baltimore and Baltimore County, Maryland, which resulted in the convictions of Aaron Graham and Eric Jordan. A portion of the state’s claims against the two were based on cell-site location data obtained by authorities from Sprint/Nextel without warrants.
The court, led by Judge Andre Davis, explained that being able to access one’s location data at all times essentially turns a mobile phone into a tracking device. From the decision:
As we have explained, society recognizes an individual’s privacy interest in her movements over an extended time period as well as her movements in private spaces. The fact that a provider captures this information in its account records, without the subscriber’s involvement, does not extinguish the subscriber’s reasonable expectation of privacy. Applying the third-party doctrine in this context would simply permit the government to convert an individual’s cell phone into a tracking device by examining the massive bank of location information retained by her service provider, and to do so without probable cause.
As for the case itself, the court ultimately refused to void the convictions of the two robbers, stating that the government relied in “good faith” on the court orders.
This decision made on Wednesday will hopefully give the U.S. Supreme Court enough ammunition to resolve this debate on a national level, once and for all.
T-Mobile’s latest Android is the entry-level ZTE Obsidian
Arriving August 13, the smartphone is aimed at budget-minded buyers
T-Mobile on Thursday debuted its newest Android handset, the 4.5-inch ZTE Obsidian. Set to launch next week, the phone is all low-end hardware with a price to match.
Features for the Obsidian include a 4.5-inch 854 x 480 display, 5-megapixel rear camera, and 2-megapixel front-facing sensor. Powered by a 1GHz quad-core processor, it packs 1GB RAM, 4GB internal storage, and support for 32GB microSD cards.
As a plus, the ZTE Obsidian does run the most current version of Android, 5.1 Lollipop. Also, the phone supports 4G LTE as well as T-Mobile’s Wi-Fi calling feature, too.
T-Mobile will offer the Obsidian starting from August 13 with a $99.99 price tag. Those who wish to split up costs over 24 months can do so at a rate of $4.17 per month.
The post T-Mobile’s latest Android is the entry-level ZTE Obsidian appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Ultra HD Blu-ray will have 4K discs here in time for the holidays
After locking down a name, logo and spec, the Blu-ray Disc Association has announced it’s just about ready to start licensing the Ultra HD Blu-ray technology. The group anticipates we’ll hear about products for the 2015 holiday season (and naturally is revealing this right after Western Digital’s 4K movie ready hard drive appeared). Coming around just about nine years after the first Blu-ray players arrived, this upgrade is about more than just high-res 4K (3,840 x 2,160) video — it also includes support for high dynamic range (HDR), high framerate (HFR) and a “digital bridge” feature that should give viewers more ways to store and play their movies, even while keeping the disc on the shelf.
In a talk recently posted on The Digital Bits, BDA exec Victor Matsuda talked a bit about the digital bridge, explaining that it allows for two features on movies: copy or export. With copy, an exact replica of the movie from the disc can be stored on an “authorized” media drive, while export pushes over a lower quality version, intended for mobile devices. The exact implementation of these features will be up to device makers, so we’ll have to wait and see how they work out in practice, but hopefully they’ll be simpler than the redemption code/account creation slog that we’ve experienced with digital copies through iTunes, Ultraviolet and Disney Movies Anywhere.
As far as HDR and HFR, there are a few answers there also. According to Matsuda, every Ultra HD Blu-ray disc will support a standard form of HDR (SMPTE ST2084), which should allow for better colors, more contrast, etc. They can also support two proprietary standards pushed by Dolby and Philips, so it will be interesting to see how well each works with UHD TVs from manufacturers that have chosen to implement various forms of the tech. As far as high frame rate, Ultra HD Blu-ray can do up to 60fps, which should make things interesting, but as Bill Hunt learned in the interview, it does not have a standard for using HFR, HDR, 3D and 4K all at once. While that could end up disappointing James Cameron — depending on what he has planned for the Avatar sequels — we hope there’s enough room for the next gen of Blu-ray to be a worthy follow-up.
Filed under:
Home Entertainment, HD, Samsung, Sony
Tags: 4K, Blu-ray, DigitalBridge, hdpostcross, HDR, HFR, samsung, sony, UltraHD, UltraHDBlu-ray
Engadget giveaway: win a Synology DiskStation DS415play!
This week’s giveaway really hits the sweet spot in a big way. Synology, a well known name in networked storage has handed over one of its multimedia-optimized Play series DiskStations for one incredibly lucky Engadget reader. The DS415play is a media server with enough capacity to satisfy even the most ardent movie, music and photo enthusiasts. It features 1080p full HD video transcoding (on the fly) and multichannel streaming to DLNA devices once set up on your home network. As always, DiskStation Manager software serves up files to your computers, tablets and mobile devices wherever you go. This Synology DS415play is already loaded with four 4TB Seagate NAS class drives to let you store an enormous amount of content that you can access 24/7. All you need to do is head to the Rafflecopter widget below for up to three chances at winning this pre-configured media-streaming powerhouse.
- Entries are handled through the Rafflecopter widget above. Comments are no longer accepted as valid methods of entry. You may enter without any obligation to social media accounts, though we may offer them as opportunities for extra entries. Your email address is required so we can get in touch with you if you win, but it will not be given to third parties.
- Contest is open to all residents of the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and Canada (excluding Quebec), 18 or older! Sorry, we don’t make this rule (we hate excluding anyone), so direct your anger at our lawyers and contest laws if you have to be mad.
- Winners will be chosen randomly. One (1) winner will receive one (1) Synology DiskStation DS415play including four hard drives for an approximate total value of $1,499.
- If you are chosen, you will be notified by email. Winners must respond within three days of being contacted. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen. Make sure that the account you use to enter the contest includes your real name and a contact email or Facebook login. We do not track any of this information for marketing or third-party purposes.
- This unit is purely for promotional giveaway. Engadget and AOL are not held liable to honor warranties, exchanges or customer service.
- The full list of rules, in all its legalese glory, can be found here.
- Entries can be submitted until August 7th at 11:59PM ET. Good luck!
Filed under:
Announcements
Tags: contest, engadget giveaway, giveaway, NAS, synology, synology ds415play
Researchers reduce VR sickness by letting your eyes focus
Virtual reality has unlimited potential, but it could make you sick. Stanford researchers are trying to solve that problem by tapping another new tech, light-field cameras. You see, VR devices can cause fatigue and nausea because of the “flat plane” 3D images they produce. Since those images don’t contain any depth information, your eyes can’t focus on near and far objects like you would in real life. Our brains want physical actions (like focusing) to jibe with what we see, so any disconnect can make us sick. And if companies can’t solve this “VR sickness,” the tech may go the way of 3D TVs.
The Stanford team found a clever way to make your eyes focus inside its device. Using the same principal as a “light-field” camera like the Lytro, but in reverse, they built a headset that has transparent LCD panels stacked in layers, which each layer representing a light field with the correct depth information. As shown in the video simulation (bottom) that helps your eyes to naturally shift focus between front and near objects.
The researchers say their tech could let users immerse themselves in VR experiences for longer periods. (Oculus, for one, recommended last year that Rift users take breaks every 10 or 15 minutes.) They’ve only used 3D rendered images so far, but say that the product could also work with cinematic content shot on a Lytro Illum or similar camera.
Before any of that can happen, however, there’s still a lot of work to do. The extra images required for light-field effects cause “rendering times to grow quadratically,” according to the paper. The stacked display will also need to be brighter and have more resolution to reduce artifacts like diffraction. Still, the idea of using a new tech like light-field to fix a different new tech is intriguing, and we might hear more about it when the consumer VR gold rush starts.
Filed under:
Displays, Wearables
Via:
Road to VR
Source:
Stanford University
Tags: Light Field, Lytro, Nausea, Stanford, video, Virtual Reality, VR
HBO Now finally gets Google Chromecast support
A few weeks after HBO Now hit Android, HBO is continuing to roll out the new streaming service beyond Apple’s devices. Next up is Google’s Chromecast, the company announced today. HBO Now’s iOS app currently lists Chromecast support, and its Android app is expected to be updated today as well. While flinging shows from your smartphone and tablet to a Chromecast might not be as convenient as a standalone Apple TV app, the slight inconvenience is probably worth the gadget’s low $30 price. HBO also plans to add support for Amazon’s Fire TV devices soon. The big missing platform for HBO Now is Roku’s devices, which already support the HBO Go app. A rep from the network couldn’t divulge when we’d see HBO Now on Roku’s wares, but noted that the company intends to bring the service to all of the devices that support HBO Go.
Filed under:
HD, Mobile, Google
Via:
TechCrunch
Source:
Google
Tags: Chromecast, google, HBO, HBONow, hdpostcross, mobilepostcross
DSCOVR photographs the moon’s journey across the Earth
The DSCOVR satellite has outdone itself: after taking a photo of the Earth in July, it has now captured a series of images showing the moon making its way across the Pacific Ocean. Since the satellite is in orbit a million miles away (much farther than most satellites and the ISS) to measure solar winds for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the images show the dark side of the moon, which we never see from our POV. The photo series was taken by DSCOVR’s Earth Polychromatic Imaging Camera (EPIC) on July 16th between 3:50PM and 8:45PM Eastern time.
EPIC took three monochromatic shots per stage in red, blue and green channels with 30-second intervals per — those shots were then combined to produce each photo. You can watch all the pictures in succession in the video below. By the way, you’re bound to see a new Earth photo taken from the satellite’s vantage point every day starting next month: DSCOVR will be observing the planet from its orbit and posting pictures on a dedicated website.
[Image credit: NASA/NOAA]
Filed under:
Science
Source:
NASA
Tags: dscovr, nasa, space
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