Periscope Named Apple’s App of the Year in Best of 2015 Charts
Apple has published its annual Best of 2015 charts for the App Store, iTunes and iBooks Store, naming live video platform Periscope its App of the Year and Tomb Raider puzzler spinoff Lara Croft GO its Game of the Year.
Enlight and Robinhood were selected as runner-ups for App of the Year, while strategy game Fallout Shelter and one-touch platformer Mr Jump finished second and third place respectively in the Game of the Year standings.
Popular automation app Workflow was deemed the “most innovative” app in 2015, while Dark Echo was awarded the same title in the gaming category. Instagram earned “Best App on iPhone 6s” and Warhammer 40,000: Freeblade won “Best Game on iPhone 6s.”
Apple’s Top 25 Apps of 2015
1. Periscope
2. Enlight
3. Robinhood
4. Workflow
5. Instagram
6. HBO NOW
7. Hopper
8. Darkroom
9. Lark
10. The Everything Machine
11. Pacemaker
12. Tandem
13. Jet
14. Timeline
15. Vee for Video
16. Fit Men Cook
17. Spark
18. RefME
19. Wildcard
20. Paper by FiftyThree
21. GIPHY CAM
22. PRY
23. Reuters TV
24. Zova
25. Blue Apron
Apple’s Top 25 Games of 2015
1. Lara Croft GO
2. Fallout Shelter
3. Mr Jump
4. Dark Echo
5. Warhammer 40,000: Freeblade
6. Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft
7. Vainglory
8. Dungeon Boss
9. Puzzle Craft 2
10. PAC-MAN 256
11. You Must Build A Boat
12. AG Drive
13. MARVEL Contest of Champions
14. Horizon Chase – World Tour
15. Shadowmatic
16. Wonky Ship
17. Super Sharp
18. Last Voyage
19. Ski Safari 2
20. Downwell
21. Rayman Adventures
22. Afterpulse
23. Psych! Outwit Your Friends
24. HoPiKo
25. Blades of Brim
The top five paid iOS apps in 2015 were Heads Up! Games, Minecraft: Pocket Edition, Trivia Crack (Ad Free), Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 and Facetune, while the top five free titles were Trivia Crack, Facebook Messenger, Dubsmash, Instagram and Snapchat.
Clash of Clans was the top grossing app in 2015, followed by Game of War – Fire Age, Candy Crush Saga, Pandora and Candy Crush Soda Saga. The full top charts are available on the App Store on iOS and iTunes on Mac.
Apple also named Max Max: Fury Road, Amy, Inside Out and Dope among its Best of 2015 movies, while Mr. Robot, Fargo, UnREAL and Inside Amy Schumer won Best of 2015 awards for TV shows. A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara was Apple’s favorite fiction book on the year.
All selections were made by Apple’s editorial curation team.
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Microsoft Launches Official ‘Cortana’ App for iOS and Android Devices
Microsoft today officially launched its virtual assistant Cortana as a downloadable app for iOS and Android platforms (via Business Insider). Similar to Apple’s Siri personal assistant, Cortana allows Windows users to set reminders, preview the weather, and answer basic questions thanks to integrated internet search abilities. Other Cortana for iOS and Android features include the following:
•Set and get location and time reminders across your PC and phone.
•Track packages, flights, scores, stocks, and other important info across your PC and phone.
•Use Cortana’s Notebook to view, edit and manage your interests
•Get information and answers to all kinds of questions. If you’re looking for it, Cortana can help find it.
•Have a little fun in your down time — ask anything, get jokes, and much more.
Microsoft detailed a few features for Cortana at Business Insider‘s Ignition Conference in New York City, including abilities like asking Cortana for help with your voice without having to open up the app. Unfortunately, most of those features won’t be available to iOS users due to certain developer restrictions that fence off Cortana from becoming fully integrated into iOS.
On the other hand, a few Android smartphones will gain a leg up on the iOS version of Cortana thanks to a partnership between Microsoft and start-up company Cyanogen, which runs a custom version of the OS on select Android devices. With Cyanogen software, Android users will have essentially all of the abilities Windows Phone users have over Cortana, including being able to speak to the personal assistant without opening up the separate app.
After some rumors and speculation earlier in the year, in May Microsoft confirmed that Cortana would be heading to non-Windows Phone platforms later this year. In November, the company opened up beta sign-ups for users to test out Cortana for iOS in a pre-release state.
Cortana for iOS is available to download now for free from the App Store [Direct Link].
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Nissan wants you to use its Leaf EV like a Tesla Powerwall
In May, Tesla explained why it’s a good idea to put multi-kWh batteries our homes. Half a year on, Nissan has worked out how to use the multi-kWh battery inside its Leaf EV in the same way. It’s teamed up with the energy company ENEL to debut a “Vehicle 2 Grid” (V2G) system that allows electric vehicles as mobile power plants for homes, offices or returning energy to the grid.
Why would you want to do that? For many of the same reasons you’d use Tesla’s Powerwall. Nissan and ENEL say you could save money by running your home from the Leaf’s 30kWh battery during peak hours. Then, at night time, you charge the Leaf’s battery when the grid is less strained and take advantage of off-peak pricing. You could also use excess power to feed back to the grid and get a discount on energy bills.
Of course, EVs don’t generate a massive amount of power themselves — regenerative braking only tops up the battery a little — so their main source of power is the grid itself. While the benefit of grid stabilization shouldn’t be downplayed, in isolation V2G doesn’t make a huge environmental impact alone. Much like Tesla’s Powerwall, it would ideally be paired with a renewable source of energy like solar.
Click image to enlarge.
The big unanswered questions are how much the V2G system will cost, and how well it can balance feeding your home against making sure your EV is still good to go at any time. Given the large capacity of the Leaf’s battery (30kWh) vs. Tesla’s Powerwall (7kWh or 10kWh, depending on the model), it’s not the biggest issue, but it’s unlikely to help much with range anxiety. The Nissan Leaf has a range of around 124 miles, making even a 80-percent charged car far less useful.
As for price, ENEL, through sponsored content, has previously pegged the cost of an V2G charger at around $900 — a good deal cheaper than Tesla’s $3,000 Powerwall system, although obviously that includes a battery. ENEL will pilot the system in Denmark, where it says “regulation allows sufficient value generation” for the system to work as-is. Germany, Netherlands and “other northern European regions” will follow.
Via: Auto Evolution
Source: Nissan (Automotive World)
Algoriddim’s djay Pro app isn’t just for the desktop anymore
Apple’s laptops have yet to adopt touchscreen capabilities, so when the super-sized iPad Pro was released, DJ software maker Algoriddim saw an opportunity. All that screen real estate could be well-served by bringing the djay Pro mixing app over from OS X to iOS. The new slate’s processing power provides a robust platform for features like video mixing, four tracks of audio and the ability to multitask during a gig (because email isn’t going to check itself). Starting today, you can download djay Pro for iPad from the App Store for a special limited time offer of just $19.99 (retail $29.99). It helps if you have an iPad Pro to truly enjoy the enhanced features and spacious layout, but the app is backwards compatible with any iPad running iOS 8 or later.
The djay app started out on touch-capable smartphones and tablets, but the Pro version, which has been available on OS X for over a year, has primarily been limited to mouse clicks and compatible controllers for interactivity. Now you can ditch the excess baggage, but still have a bit of room to play around, with the iPad Pro’s 12.9-inch touchscreen. There are expanded views for waveforms and effects, letting you take advantage of all that space for scrubbing through audio or video tracks with a swipe or using multitouch to bang out some manual fills. The iPad Pro’s Smart Keyboard can be put to use for even more control, offering over 70 shortcuts related to play functionality, like looping, start, stop, cue points and more.
The video mixing portion of the app supports 4K, but unfortunately the screen resolution and 1080p output keep it from truly being appreciated. Video can be captured on-the-fly with the tablet’s camera and fed it into the video portion of your mix, while the resulting output can be saved in real time to watch later. As for audio, djay Pro for iPad will let you view a combined library of Spotify tracks (soon including 320 kbps files), your own local collection and any files stored in iCloud Drive or Dropbox. Audio and video output can be streamed wirelessly using AirPlay or through a Lightning adapter.
Djay Pro for iPad is certainly a powerful and accessible tool to use, especially considering its limited time price of just $19.99. It’s a small enough investment (iPad Pro not included) that if you’re interested in becoming a digital DJ or VJ, it’s worth taking for a spin. If you’re watching every penny, you can even download the iPhone version of djay 2 from the App Store for free, as part of Algoriddim’s limited time launch celebration.
Microsoft officially launches Cortana on iPhone and Android
After several months of beta testing, Microsoft’s virtual assistant Cortana is officially making her debut on competing platforms. You’ll be able to snag the Cortana app for iPhone and Android phones on their respective app stores, or via Microsoft’s Windows 10 companion app, starting today. It’ll also be deeply integrated into the Cyanogen OS-powered OnePlus One come December (with the 12.1.1 Cyanogen update). If you’ve been following along with the Cortana beta releases, there won’t be much new with these finalized apps: At the most basic level, you’ll be able to track reminders and notifications for things like flights and packages across all platforms, as well as manually ask Cortana questions. Beyond that, Cortana’s feature set will be different for each platform.
On Android, you can use the “Hey Cortana” command to shout questions when you’re in the app or on your home screen, and you can even get text notifications sent to your Windows 10 PC. Unfortunately, those are features iPhone users probably won’t see for a while, if ever, since Apple likely won’t open up iOS enough to make them possible.
As for Cyanogen, Cortana will be pre-installed and you’ll be able to use the “Hey Cortana” command just about anywhere, even if you’re in another app. You’ll also be able to use the virtual assistant to do things like changing network modes, powering down your phone and going into silence mode. It’s not quite as extensive as Cortana’s Windows Phone capabilities, where it has access to a wider variety of settings and can even open and close apps, but it’s close.
“It’s been a fascinating experience to learn how you think about a personal assistant that runs across multiple platforms,” said Marcus Ash, a program manager at Microsoft who’s been heading up the Cortana iPhone and Android effort. Microsoft has been working since March to port Cortana, and while Ash’s team was able to take some notes from other teams that have built cross-platform apps, like the folks behind Office, OneDrive and Skype, this particular project presented entirely new challenges. For example, it’s still unclear how it’ll update the apps going forward, since they do very different things on each platform.
Unfortunately, the Cortana apps will only be available in US and China at launch. As with Cortana on the desktop, it’ll eventually make its way to other territories. You’ll need a device that’s running iOS 8 or Android 4.1.2, at the very least, to run the Cortana apps.
Source: Microsoft
Take a trip through the minds behind ‘Psychonauts’
Cult classic Psychonauts getting a crowd-funded sequel was perhaps the biggest news out of this past weekend’s second annual PlayStation Experience. But what about the game that came before it? The one that’s celebrating its 10th birthday this year? That’s where “The Color of the Sky in Your World” comes in. It features a who’s who of Double Fine employees past and present as they talk about the process of making the game, including creative director Tim Schafer and producer Greg Rice.
The Psychonauts we know started as an idea for Full Throttle where the protagonist from that game would take peyote, go into the desert and have a sort of vision quest inside his own mind. LucasArts, being a family company even before Disney closed it down, wasn’t about to let that happen, so Schafer shelved the idea.
Psychonauts 2 backer missions are live! And y’all already unlocked ep 1 of this awesome Psychonauts retrospective: https://t.co/n2NoJ9w2Im
— Greg Rice (@GregRicey) December 9, 2015
A programmer later misremembered that and brought it back up to Double Fine’s creative director asking whatever happened to the game idea Schafer had about going into other people’s heads. “Wait, that’s much better,” he recalls in the video embedded below. Another scene finds Schafer going through an old notebook full of rough, hand-written notes and sketches born of him sitting in his apartment in a bathrobe after leaving Lucasarts. It’s incredibly cool stuff.
The documentary’s actually a kind of mini stretch goal, and this first episode was unlocked for backers reaching a certain set of milestones, or “Psi Missions” in the funding campaign’s parlance — it’s similar to the tasks Bloodstained gave its backers to incentivize additional in-game features.
The doc’s being produced by the same company that chronicled the making of Double Fine’s last crowdfunded game, Broken Age, and it’s absolutely chock full of insight into how the game was made. The first episode clicks in at just over 18 minutes long, so viewing via Apple TV or Chromecast might be your best bet.
Chinese university finds a way to control cars with your brain
While Google and other automakers were developing autonomous cars, a group of Chinese researchers were working on a way to control vehicles with your mind. The team from Nankai University in mainland China has recently demonstrated the system, and it’s clear that you don’t have to be Magneto to be able to control a hulking piece of metal. It uses a headset (the girl in the image above is wearing one) that has 16 sensors to capture EEG signals from the brain, which are then wirelessly transmitted to a computer that sorts through them to find the relevant bits. The program then translates those relevant signals into commands the car can carry out, such as move forward, backward, stop and lock or unlock the car.
According to Reuters, the project was originally started a couple of years ago for the sake of people with disabilities who can’t use their limbs to steer a vehicle. The study’s head honcho (Associate Professor Duan Feng) believes, however, that merging this technology with driverless cars isn’t an impossibility. “Driverless cars’ further development can bring more benefits to us,” he said, “since we can better realize functions relating to brain [control] with the help of the driverless cars’ platform.” Sadly, a car that can both drive on its own and respond to your thoughts might still be far off, seeing as the Nankai team’s technology only allows the driver to move the car in straight lines.
[Image credit: ChinaFotoPress/ChinaFotoPress via Getty Images]
Source: Reuters
Yahoo spins itself off
After a week of debating options that included a possible sale, Yahoo has made a decision about its future… and it’s probably not what you expected. The web pioneer is conducting a “reverse spin off” where everything but its Alibaba stake is moving to another company. Supposedly, this lets Yahoo go ahead with its original plan to spin off the Alibaba stake (and thus make investors happy) without the risk of a ton of US taxes. It also provides “more transparency” into how much Yahoo is worth, if you ask company chief Marissa Mayer.
That makes it sound as if Yahoo is priming itself for a sale, but the company insists that’s not the case. There’s higher value in the spinoff and turning around its ailing web business, it says. With that said, it was quick during a phone briefing to emphasize that that it believes Yahoo stock is “undervalued,” and that it has a responsibility to “entertain offers.” It wouldn’t mind a buyer, in other words, but it wants the best possible offer if anything happens.
Whatever the exact intentions, this isn’t good news for Mayer. She’d intended the original Alibaba spin off as a quick way to please investors and give her turnaround a chance. The reverse deal suggests that it was never going to be that easy. To make matters worse, this move could take a year or more to go forward — there’s a chance that an uppity investor could derail the whole thing. Yahoo should still be in a better position if the deal goes through, but it’s that “if” which has people nervous.
[Image credit: AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez]
Source: Yahoo
Holiday Buying Guide 2015: The best Android tablets
The holidays are here and Christmas is just around the corner, arriving before you know it. Shopping for the gadget enthusiast in your life can be a difficult process, particularly because of how many different gadgets are available. Companies from all over the place are launching new tablets and trying to tell you what to buy. That said, it can be a hectic process finding and buying the perfect gift.
That’s why we’ve put together this guide: to help you dig through the mire and show you what’s best on the market today, whether that be as little as $49 or as high as $599. One thing I can guarantee you is that there’s something on this list for everybody, and you won’t leave empty handed!
Stocking Stuffers ($49 – $199)
Amazon Fire
With a 7-inch (1024×600) IPS display, a fast processor, 1GB of RAM, 8GB of interal storage, and microSD support up to an additional 128GB of storage, Amazon’s Fire is the perfect stocking stuffer. And it costs less than $100.
As far as software goes, this bad boy is running Fire OS 5, the latest version of Amazon’s own in-house operating system. With it comes plenty of extra features, such as quick access to your favorite applications, personalized recommendations, access to over 38 million movies, TV shows, songs, books, apps, games, and much more. Amazon’s a firm believer that tablets don’t need to be expensive to be good, and the Fire is a testament to that.
To enjoy much of the media on the Fire, you’ll need to have an Amazon Prime membership. So many great applications are free through Amazon Underground, but you won’t be able to have access to things like movies, TV shows, songs, and books without that subscription. A Prime membership provides a lot of benefits, adding even more value to a tablet that has standalone value. You’ll be able to access media content that you couldn’t otherwise enjoy on a service like Netflix, such as renowned TV series like Game of Thrones, Downton Abbey, and Rome. Access to music and an ever-expanding library of books makes this tablet perfect not only the movie lover, but the book worm as well.
Amazon has truly made the Fire a one-of-a-kind tablet. There are all sorts of accessories available for it, whether that be cases, flip covers, headphones, microSD cards, and so on.
It goes without saying, the Amazon Fire tablet provides an excellent amount of value at a low price point. And paired with the Amazon Prime subscription, it’s most definitely the ultimate affordable all-in-one media tablet at just $49.
[Amazon]
Nexus 7 (2013)
Even though the Nexus 7 (2013) is now two years old, the tablet is still one of the best 7-inch performers to date. Media, reading, and content consumption looks just as nice on this device as it does on any tablet today. And with a massive 3950mAh battery, you’ll get plenty of play time out of this guy. It might not necessarily be for the tech enthusiast in your life, simply because it’s not the latest and greatest, but it’s an excellent choice for just about any other individual. It truly is one of the best 7-inch tablets out there, as you just can’t find another premium tablet like this at such a low price point.
Made by Google in partnership with ASUS, the tablet sports a crisp 7-inch Full HD (1920×1200) display, a quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro at 1.5GHz, 16GB of internal storage on the base model, and 2GB of RAM. It’s also running the latest and greatest from Google, Android 6.0.
The tablet has an insane amount of accessories for it, whether it be tablet docks, flip covers, travel covers, cases, Bluetooth devices, and more. The Play Store also has a ton of content that looks great on the Nexus 7. Whether you’re playing Need for Speed or catching up on Game of Thrones, the Nexus 7 won’t let you down.
Starting at $129, tablets don’t get much better than this. It’s compact, portable, powerful, and Google will continue to update it with the latest Android releases. It’s truly a tablet everyone would like to see in their stocking Christmas morning.
Underneath the Christmas Tree ($199 – $299)
NVIDIA SHIELD Tablet K1
At $199, the SHIELD Tablet K1 is hard to pass up, especially with all of the extra goodies it brings to the table. This tablet isn’t for everyone, though. However, it is perfect for the gamer in your life, and any gamer would love to see this powerful device under the Christmas tree.
Built for PC gaming in mind with NVIDIA’s GeForce Now service, the SHIELD Tablet K1 sports a 8-inch Full HD (1920×1080) display, a quad-core Tegra K1 2.2GHz CPU, 2GB of RAM, and 16GB of internal storage, with microSD support. It’s running Android 5.0, and has a long-lasting battery that’ll give users plenty of hours for gaming and all sorts of media consumption.
There’s no doubt that the SHIELD Tablet K1 was built with dedicated gaming in mind. That’s why NVIDIA is giving device owners free access to the company’s gaming streaming service, GeForce Now. Put Angry Birds 2 and Bad Piggies on the sidelines, as you’ll be playing full-fledged titles like Street Fighter IV and Batman: Arkham Knight. These games do play rather awkwardly with just the touchscreen, which does bring in the thought that a controller might be necessary for this tablet. And it truly is.
NVIDIA has developed its own controller, the SHIELD Controller, that pairs and plays well with the tablet. Unfortunately, it doesn’t come with the tablet and will have to be purchased separately. Do keep in mind that it’s necessary to have it if you want to play PC games via GeForce Now. Additionally, NVIDIA offers a couple of different accessories for the tablet, including a specially designed flip cover, and a stylus.
[NVIDIA] [Amazon] [Best Buy] [Newegg]
Fire HD 10
The Fire HD 10 is Amazon’s largest and thinnest tablet yet, making it perfect for on-the-go use. It may not have the most beautiful screen or most powerful hardware, but it does have access to more media content than you could ever consume with Amazon Prime. The tablet’s display is certainly an upgrade from the Fire, making all sorts of media content look a lot better on the Fire HD 10. It also has Dolby Atmos speakers, which are a lot better than what sounds to be a hollow tube on the Fire.
It has a 10.1-inch (1280×800) display, a quad-core processor, 1GB of RAM, 16/32GB of internal storage, microSD support up to 128GB, an 8-megapixel rear camera, and a long-lasting battery said to last up to eight hours of straight use.
The tablet is running Amazon’s own Fire OS, meaning you won’t have access to Play Services. However, there are way to install Play Services on the Fire tablets with little hassle now, making the Fire HD 10 a real gem. With that in mind, not only will you get to enjoy Amazon’s extensive range of media services, but Google’s as well, if you’d like!
As per the norm with Amazon’s array of tablets, the retailer has an arsenal of accessories available for the tablet. You can get flip covers, cases, docks, earphones, and much, much more for the tablet. Much like the Fire, Amazon Prime opens up an arsenal of different content for the tablet, such as Amazon exclusives like Game of Thrones, Rome, Downton Abbey, and more. You also get unlimited access to support books, music, and of course, Amazon’s signature free two-day shipping.
At $229, the Fire HD 10 is a nice buy, but Amazon Prime is truly what makes or breaks it. Without it, it’s definitely worth considering something else, such as the Nexus 7.
[Amazon]
For someone special ($299 – $599)
Samsung Galaxy Tab S2
Samsung’s Galaxy Tab S2 is easily the best Android tablet money can buy. Between powerful specifications and a crisp display, the Galaxy Tab S2 lacks nothing. It’s the most beautiful solution for watching media content with its massive 9.7-inch display. It can also handle all of the bleeding edge games on the Play Store with its octa-core processor and 3GB of RAM. If you’re in the market for performance and a beautiful display, the Galaxy Tab S2 is it.
The Galaxy Tab S2 tablet also comes with Samsung’s own suite of apps–contacts, Gallery, Camera, Music, Video, Clock, My Files, Smart Manager, Calendar, SideSync, and Galaxy Apps. It’s great for those who enjoy all of the extra features Samsung provides, but also a pain for those that aren’t a fan, as they cannot be deleted. In my case, I usually find myself replacing stock applications with all of my favorites from the Play Store.
The tablet sports a 9.7-inch (2048×1536) Super AMOLED display, an octa-core processor, 3GB of RAM, 32/64GB of internal storage, microSD support, an 8-megapixel rear camera, and a 5870mAh battery. It’s also running Android 5.0, and Samsung hasn’t announced any plans for further Android upgrades just yet.
This tablet is perfect for power users. With an octa-core processor, 3GB of RAM, and plenty of storage space with the microSD card, even the most demanding Android games play without any issue. Games like Need for Speed and Auralux are an easy task for the Galaxy Tab S2. The 9.7-inch Super AMOLED display is also perfect for playing any high definition media content. Not only that, but its 5870mAh battery will let you watch movies and TV shows for hours on end.
Starting at $399, the Galaxy Tab S2 is an all-in-one media solution that’s hard to pass up. The only downside is that there aren’t a whole lot of accessories for this device, aside from the regularly available cases and microSD cards.
[Samsung] [Amazon] [Best Buy] [Newegg]
Nexus 9
The Nexus 9 is the latest and greatest from Google as far as tablets go. It’s not only running the latest rendition of Android, Marshmallow, but it’s also one of the best tablets for entertainment. Need something for kicking back, relaxing, and watching a few movies or reading a couple of books? Then the Nexus 9 is right up your alley! Being one of the latest tablets available from Google, it’s also a perfect choice for the tech-savvy individual.
The tablet sports a beautiful 8.9-inch 2048 x 1536 display, a dual-core 2.3GHz Tegra K1 processor, 2GB of RAM, and 16GB of interal storage on the base model. It also has a massive 6,700mAh battery, which means you’ll get plenty of playtime out of this guy. The downside is that there isn’t any microSD support, so you’ll have to be careful with how much media and applications are stored on your tablet.
Google has a lot of different accessories available for the Nexus 9, including a Bluetooth keyboard folio. They keyboard folio is not only great for helping the Nexus 9 double as a laptop, but it’s also a perfect solution for comfortably standing the tablet up for easy reading or watching media. Google also sells covers for the tablet in a variety of colors. These covers can also double as a stand for the tablet, but aren’t as sturdy as the keyboard folio.
The Nexus 9 is one of the speediest and cleanest tablets out there, as it isn’t plagued with bloatware and extra features found on other devices. It’s truly a demonstration of the vision that Google has for Android, making it a great choice for the aforementioned tech enthusiast. Another benefit is that this tablet only features a 8.9-inch display, which is the sweet spot for those that don’t want something as massive as a 10.1-inch option.
Starting at $399 for the base 16GB model, the Nexus 9 is a hard one to pass up, especially with Google’s plans to keep updating it with the latest in Android.
[HTC] [Google Store] [Amazon] [Best Buy] [Newegg]
Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet
Sony is getting a bit crazy in the naming department, but the Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet brings its users the best of Android in a large form factor. With a beautiful 10.1inch display, the tablet is the perfect choice for consuming all types of media and playing various high-end games. And like many other devices on this list, there is an arsenal of different accessories available for the Xperia Z4 Tablet, whether it be microSD cards, portable batteries, great earphones, cases, and so on.
As far as specifications go, the Xperia Z4 Tablet is sporting an 10.1-inch 2560 x 1600 IPS LCD display, an octa-core Snapdragon 810 processor, 3GB of RAM, 32GB of internal storage, microSD support, an 8-megapixel rear camera, and a long-lasting 6,000mAh battery. For those that want to enjoy more content on the device, it’s definitely recommended that you pick up a microSD card for the tablet. It’ll allow you to store many of the tablet’s applications, photos, and media content, allowing you to free up some of that internal storage for other means.
Technology enthusiasts will not only love this tablet for its power and beauty, but also for the slick user interface. It’s very close to stock Android, giving the tablet a smooth and buttery feel as the user navigates it. Sony also utilizes a lot of special technology not found in many other tablets. One of those aspects is that its water and dust resistant with IP65 and IP68 certification. As a result, the tablet has flaps that cover all the ports, keeping water and dust from intruding. This also makes the tablet look a lot sturdier and certainly more premium.
The Xperia Tablet Z4 is one of the more luxurious tablets you can get your hands on, thus its price tag. Despite it’s 10-1-inch display, it’s one of thinnest tablets around. A gust of wind could literally blow it out of your hands, figuratively speaking. It’s one of the most gorgeous tablets as well, truly making it a direct competitor to the oft more preferred iPad.
One of the nifty things about this tablet is the optional Bluetooth keyboard accessory. Sony has never been big on accessories, so the Bluetooth keyboard is actually a nice touch. Paired with the Bluetooth keyboard, the Xperia Tablet Z4 truly becomes a laptop replacement. And at $599, this is truly the best of Android right here.
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Kantar: iOS Adoption Rises in China as Android Grows in U.S. and Europe
Kantar Worldpanel has released new smartphone operating system market share data for the third calendar quarter of 2015, providing a regional breakdown of Android, iOS, BlackBerry, Windows Phone and other mobile platform adoption in the U.S., Europe, China, Japan and elsewhere during the three-month period ending October.
In the U.S. market, Android led the third quarter with 62.8% market share, compared to 33.6% for iOS. The U.S. smartphone market continues to be virtually a two-horse race between Apple and Google, with iOS and Android combining for 96.4% market share in the October quarter. Windows Phone was a distant third place with just 2.7% market share.
“With 33.6% of the U.S. smartphone market, Apple’s share remained down year-over-year, but up quarter-over-quarter, as iPhone 6s became the third best-selling smartphone,” Milanesi added. “Samsung retained its leading position in the U.S. smartphone market and, for the first time in 2015, the South Korean brand was able to show year-on-year growth.”
Android continued to have the highest market share among mobile platforms worldwide, experiencing 1.6% year-over-year growth in Europe’s big five markets — United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy and Spain. iOS adoption grew in China and Japan by 7% and 3.5% respectively compared to the year-ago quarter.
http://www.kantarworldpanel.com/global/smartphone-os-market-share/
Kantar Worldpanel data shows the iPhone 6s accounted for 24% of all iPhones sold in the U.S. in the three months ending October, compared to 33% for the iPhone 6 in 2014, and 22% for the iPhone 5s in 2013. Kantar says “overall volumes are pretty much identical to what was sold in 2013, while down 25% from 2014’s sales.”
Kantar Worldpanel’s latest data is also available in chart format for those that cannot view the embedded map above.
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