Octodad is coming to mobile with its cephalopod-y goodness
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There are some weird games out there, and Octodad is definitely one of them. If you haven’t heard about Octodad before, it’s somewhat of a cult hit, starting as a university project and coming to pretty much every major platform. The premise of the game is that you are an octopus, undercover, as you try and fool a human family into believing that you are their paternal figure by performing normal everyday tasks. Naturally, the controls are maddeningly difficult, which makes the ordeal, if nothing else, hilarious. And it looks like Octodad is coming to mobile after the game’s Twitter account tweeted this out earlier today:
Octo-ber pic.twitter.com/D4T7gV44xR
— Octodad (@octodadgame) September 9, 2015
http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
Obviously it’s a pair of cephalopods posing as the iOS and Android logos, but let’s keep that secret to ourselves. And guessing from the rather blatant tweet caption, we should be expecting this version of Octodad next month in October. It will be very interesting to see how the controls translate to mobile, but presumably the developers have already worked out a way to make them suitably difficult.
What do you think about Octodad coming to mobile? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
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Pokémon GO is the AR game we all wished for when we were young
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The Pokémon Company is obviously trying to push its mobile agenda this year – first there was Pokémon Jukebox, then Pokémon Shuffle Mobile, and now there’s Pokémon GO, a title for Android and iOS which was collaborated on by the Pokémon Company, Nintendo, and Niantic Labs. Yes, Niantic Labs of Ingress fame.
The game itself is an Ingress-style augmented reality game where the world will be filled with Pokémon which you can fight, capture and trade with other trainers. Check out the trailer that was just launched:
There’s also a peripheral you can get to enhance your Pokémon GO experience. Dubbed the Pokémon GO Plus, it’s essentially a Bluetooth wearable that will alert you when something is happening nearby, and can help you capture Pokémon as well. It’s unclear how good your experience will be if you don’t get the Pokémon GO Plus though. Speaking about the game and their ambitions, the Pokémon Company’s president and CEO Tsunekazu Ishihara said:
“Our challenge was to develop a great game for smartphone devices that expressed the core values of Pokémon.”
We’ll have to see just how good the game is when it comes out in 2016. What do you think about Pokémon GO? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
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EasyAcc 2nd. Gen Brilliant Power Bank (review)
With a 4.5 star rating on Amazon.com from almost 4k reviewers, I didn’t have much doubt that the EasyAcc 2nd generation power bank would let me down when I had the opportunity to review it. I love to review these portable power banks. There are still many people who don’t know what they are and once they find out about them, they are life savers. I have many friends and family who are constantly running low on battery and wait to get home to charge their devices. They will stop using their phones while they are out just because they need to save that 5% remaining power for an emergency.
In my arsenal of techie stuff, I own at least 5 power banks at any given time. Us writers usually have a lot of stuff, and our friends and family are always oohing and ahhing at our stuff so we end up giving it to them at some point. But this power bank from EasyAcc is going to stay in my arsenal and here is why.
Design and Usage
A few years ago, when phones had much smaller batteries, portable chargers didn’t need to be excessively large. I remember my first power bank being very small by today’s standards. It was made by Mophie and easily fit in my pocket. Today, with phones like my Samsung Galaxy Note Edge and Galaxy Note5, 3000mAh is what I am used to which means I need a decent sized backup battery if I want more than one charge.
The EasyAcc battery pack is not much larger than my Amazon Fire phone, which makes this a pretty small package at 10000mAh. It makes for easy carrying when I don’t have my backpack with me and just need to throw it in my back pocket.
The battery has a micro USB on the side of it, with a flashlight in the front, flanked by two USB charging ports. It definitely has a solid construction and is coated with a matte plastic cover which doesn’t attract fingerprints. I simply love the design. In order to turn on the flashlight, all you have to do is click the power button twice and it will provide about as much light as the flash on your smartphone.
The EasyAcc 2nd generation Brilliant 10000mAh bank fits just in the right spot where I can charge my phone three times on one battery charge, or I can charge my Note Edge and Note5 at the same time. The other cool factor of this battery is that you can charge this battery while also charging a phone connected to it at the same time. Most other batteries usually can only do one at a time. This is great if you need to charge your battery, while on a trip, and your phone at the same time. It eliminates the need to have a second wall charger on yourself, keeping traveling as light as possible.
10000mAh is not too big and is not too small. Just like the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears, this battery is just right.
I recently brought the EasyAcc battery pack with me on a 3 day camping trip. By no means was I on my phone much during the trip, but with a weak signal, my battery on my Note5 drained rather quickly. This battery pack provided me enough power to make it through 2 nights and 3 days without needing to hop in my truck for a recharge.
The version I tested was the orange and black model, but there are also 5 other colors available through Amazon.com.
Specs
- 10000mAh
- Smart charge technology
- Auto on/off
- Output 5V/2.4A(max)
- Input DC 5V/2A
Summary
For less than 20 dollars, you can get the EasyAcc 10000mAh 2nd generation battery pack on Amazon.com. You really can’t go wrong with this battery pack – with a superb price, excellent build, and incredible specs, the EasyAcc Brilliant battery pack is perfect. It has little features like a built-in flashlight and big features like the ability to smart charge your devices quickly making it a well rounded device.
Battery packs are typically a dime a dozen, but there are instances like this where it is easy to recommend to anyone. This battery pack is mine and will stay mine – if any of my friends and family ask for my EasyAcc battery pack I will simply point them to Amazon.com where they can order their own.
If you would like to read more about this battery pack head on over to EasyAcc.
If you would like to purchase your own battery pack, you can order it here.
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China boosts flexible display efforts with a new 5.6-inch QHD AMOLED panel
Flexible displays are the future. A recent IHS Technology report predicts over half of all display shipments will consist of flexible screens by 2024. We have seen plenty of manufacturers enter this market, including Samsung, LG and others. But where has China been all this time?
Remember the Asian giant is no stranger to new technologies. This country will no doubt continue to play a key part in the mobile industry, so you can be sure they are not sitting idle while the rest of the world is working on the next-generation displays. Shanghai’s EDO Technologies has just announced its new 5.6-inch WQHD (2560x1440p) flexible AMOLED display, and this is only the beginning of their push for a future with better panels.
EDO, pioneering AMOLED technology from China, is committed to leading edge display technology, flexible one at this juncture. In order to win the favor over, EDO understands that– in this super competitive market — it has to keep reinventing itself.
It is no secret that new form factors are not the only reason why the whole industry is moving towards flexible displays. So far we have only been exposed to unnecessary curved devices and edged screens, but that doesn’t mean flexible hardware is purely gimmicky. These hardware components are known for being thinner and stronger.
Arguably, it was time for China to jump into the game. The Koreans and Japanese have been pumping research and resources into this bendable technology. It was only a matter of time before China came into the picture, and we have to see how their products will benefit the industry.
China is a force to be reckoned with. The country also houses growing smartphone makers like Xiaomi (#1 in China and #5 in the world), OnePlus, Lenovo, Huawei and others. If EDO Technologies (and other suppliers) manages score some deals with these companies, things will definitely look up for all involved parties, as some of these are expected to make it big in the coming years.
But what do you guys think? Will China take all the business away from other flexible display makers? They sure aren’t doing bad in other markets!
Alienware will give recent laptop buyers a free upgrade
It’s tough to buy a laptop when new processors are imminent — you can’t help but feel that the system you just bought will be rendered obsolete weeks later. That might not be a problem if you snagged one of Alienware’s latest laptops, though. The Dell-owned PC maker is promising free upgrades if you bought one of its updated portables (those introduced on August 27th) and new processors reach the relevant Alienware line within 30 days. In other words, you’re not hosed if a Skylake-based system shows up while you’re still getting used to your days-old machine. The company tells us it has “high confidence” that Skylake will show up by late September, so you’ll be future-proofed as long as there isn’t a delay.
Filed under:
Gaming, Laptops, Dell
Source:
Frank Azor (Facebook)
Tags: alienware, alienware13, alienware15, alienware17, alienware18, computer, dell, laptop, pc, skylake, upgrade
‘Pokémon Go’ uses your phone for real-life Mewtwo hunting
We’ve seen Pokémon in VR before, but how about getting them about and playing with them in the real world? That’s what Pokémon Go wants to achieve. It’s a collaboration between Niantic Labs (the folks behind the GPS-based Ingress) and the Pokémon Company. From what we can tell, it’s going to use Niantic’s location-based backend to have you catching and fighting the pocket monsters in the streets all around you. Of course, there’s a wearable involved dubbed the Pokemon Go Plus. It’s a Bluetooth device from Nintendo that’s shaped like one of the series’ Pokeballs (capture-gizmos that store monsters after defeating them) that pairs with both Android and iOS to flash and vibrate, giving you alerts when something is happening in the game in your vicinity. It goes a bit further than that though, and you can even use the Go Plus to capture a monster with it.
When it launches next year, Go will be free-to-play and involves you catching, trading and battling the beasties, and will apparently have you scouring the real world for hidden ones near you. “Our challenge was to develop a great game for smartphone devices that expressed the core values of Pokémon,” the Pokémon Company’s president and CEO Tsunekazu Ishihara says in a prepared statement. This isn’t the first time the adorable little creatures have appeared on mobile devices, and it’s further steps of Nintendo tip-toeing into the space. There’s no way that playing the game is going to be anything like what the involved parties are selling in the video below though, but you can always dream, right?
Filed under:
Cellphones, Gaming, GPS, Home Entertainment, HD, Mobile, Nintendo
Source:
YouTube
Tags: gaming, hd, hdpostcross, ingress, mobile, mobilepostcross, nianticlabs, nintendo, pokemon, pokemongo, pokemongoplus
New Google Wallet app launched, may signal the impending Android Pay release
A new Google Wallet app has just shown up at the Google Play Store, and we mean that in every sense of the word. This is literally a separate app that you can install and see being positioned right next to the older one in your app drawer. The first question you may be asking yourself is: what the heck is going on here?!
We are expecting substantial changes to come to Google Wallet as Android Pay makes its way into the market. The whole situation is confusing, but it will all make sense once everything is said and done.
First, let’s talk about the new Google Wallet app. What is it good for? The more recent application will take care of all the functionality this service had before, sans the mobile payments bit. You can use this new application to manage your Google Wallet Card, withdraw your funds, see your account activity and send money. Oh, and you also get the new snazzy logo design language, which Google has been implementing for all its apps lately.
Google goes on to mention the following in their Google Play Store description:
“Looking to tap & pay in stores? Stay tuned for the new Android Pay app – coming soon.”
Our expectations are that the old Google Wallet will later be converted into the Android Pay application. This would make sense, as most of the contact-less payment coding is already there. Google just needs to work its magic, make it a system-integrated service (as opposed to just another app) and get the ball rolling.
Now there’s only one thing to worry about – when is Android Pay finally launching? Sadly, we don’t know, but we can almost taste the release. Google has already updated the Google Play Services app to include Android Pay. And now that the new Google Wallet has already hit the Play Store, we can assume Android Pay fun time is getting very close.
Head over to the Play Store to get the Google Wallet app. I have been testing it and seems to work like a charm!
Download the new Google Wallet from the Play Store!
Baidu unveils a voice-activated, AI-based smartphone assistant
Chinese tech company Baidu announced at its Baidu World conference on Tuesday that it is launching a voice-activated assistant for its Android-based smartphones. The program is called “Duer”, which roughly translates into “Du Secretary”, is expected to directly compete with Siri, Cortana and Google Now. Initially, the app will allow users to perform tasks like ordering food as well as controlling smart devices around the home and accessing other on-demand services (ride hailing, designated driver services, or housekeeping) via voice command. Eventually, the company plans to integrate Duer into its other apps, like Maps, and potentially even into the self-driving BMW that the company is rumored to be working on.
[Image Credit: ChinaFotoPress via Getty Images]
Filed under:
Internet, Apple, Microsoft, Google
Via:
The Guardian
Source:
China Daily
Tags: AI, apple, Baidu, BMW, Duer, google, Google Now, microsoft, search, Siri, voice-activated
Here Maps for Android Beta rolls out the ability to share your route
Though Google is the king of mapping solutions to most of us, there’s no denying Nokia managed to do some amazing work with Here Maps. The application’s offline capabilities, advanced public transportation details and traffic info are only some of the great features Here has to offer. And now that Here Maps for Android Beta is readily available to all of us, the team has been hard at work, constantly updating the capabilities that make this app special.
The latest addition to Here Maps for Android Beta is the ability to share your full route, a feature Here 360 claims users “have been asking for”. This new attribute applies for any type of route, whether you are driving, walking or using public transportation. The company calls it the “missing piece of the puzzle”, as users have already been able to share places, position and ETAs.
How sharing route works
This new function’s operation is very simple. Once a route has been set, simply scroll over until you find the “Share” button at the bottom. Tap on this option and choose which sharing method is the best for you. Those who are given access to the information can then click a link to access route information from the Nokia Here app (or the website, if they don’t have the application installed).
Creepy or convenient?
Some of you may be worried about this, as it may seem a bit invasive at first sight, but the user does get total control over his sharing needs. Those who don’t want to share anything can choose not to use this feature. It definitely won’t be information anyone can access at their own will, so don’t worry about the crazy stalkers!
But what do you guys think? Is this too information to hand out? Will you be taking advantage of these route sharing potentials? Hit the comments and let us know!
How to join the Here Maps for Android Beta program
Needless to say, this is not a stable update and may have some kinks to be worked out. It’s also not available to those of you with the stable version of the app; you will need to join the beta program in order to get all these bleeding edge updates.
Want in on the action? Head over to the Here Beta Google Group and click the “Join group” button. The next step is to visit this link and become a tester. Finally, you can go to the Google Play Store and get your Here Maps update. This Beta app will simply replace the regular Here application, so those who already had the stable version need only get the update.
Minecraft PE adds cross-platform mulitplayer, the Nether, and more
In an unexpected, but not unwanted move. Mojang has released Minecraft PE 0.12.1. While still technically in alpha stage, the new update brings it up to par with the Windows 10 edition.
What’s new in version 0.12.1
- What’s New in Version 0.12.1
- The Nether and all its inhabitants. Fight Ghasts and make friends with Pigmen
- Cross-platform play for up to five players between Pocket Edition and Windows 10
- Revamped touch controls, controller support, and a controller mapping screen
- Enhanced Weather effects! Accumulating snow and more
- Ocelots! Try taming one with a fish
- Experience, Anvils, Brewing, and enchantments. Time to up your game, crafter
- Golems. We recommend you approach with caution
- Flower pots. We recommend you fill them with flowers
- Sneaking and sprinting! Express yourself through movement!
- Loads of bug fixes that are too boring to list here
- Lots, lots more!
It’s important to note that the Windows 10 version is not the same as the standard PC edition and it won’t be compatible with those versions.
The 0.12.1 update is available on both the Amazon App Store and Google Play now.
What do you think? Are you excited for the new features? Let us know in the comments below.
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