TAG Heuer’s Android smartwatch is (relatively) popular
TAG Heuer’s $1,500 Connected smartwatch may have been a big gamble, but it’s paying off… relatively speaking. LVMH watch chief Jean-Claude Biver tells Bloomberg that his company is upping production of the Android Wear timepiece to meet demand from retailers, and it’s even freezing online sales until May or June for the sake of giving physical stores a better shot. However, the numbers aren’t about to keep established smartwatch makers awake at night. Production is increasing from 1,200 per week to a not-so-whopping 2,000 — for context, IDC estimates that Apple sold 3.9 million smartwatches in the third quarter, or about 43,000 per day. TAG’s device is successful in the luxury world’s terms, but numerous smartwatch brands will easily outsell it.
Source: Bloomberg
Verizon begins Wi-Fi Calling rollout for Android and iOS
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Verizon Wireless, the largest carrier in the United States, is rolling out Wi-Fi calling for the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge on December 8th. The feature will also be coming to iOS devices in early 2016. The full statement from Verizon’s site is as follows:
“Beginning December 8, Verizon customers with Advanced Calling on two different Samsung smartphones can make and receive calls and initiate video calls over a Wi-Fi Internet connection. Verizon customers already enjoy the largest and most reliable wireless network in the United States, and Advanced Calling with Wi-Fi Calling provides an alternative for those who wish to use Wi-Fi in the home, office or while traveling. Wi-Fi Calling will initially be available on the Samsung Galaxy S 6 and Samsung Galaxy S 6 Edge and will be rolled out as a software update in phases. Additional Android and iOS devices will receive Wi-Fi Calling capabilities via future software updates expected early next year. All Wi-Fi calls made to U.S. phone numbers are free. Calls made to foreign numbers are billed at international long distance rates.”
Instructions on how to enable Wi-Fi calling on Verizon smartphones were also posted on the company’s website, and are as follows:
“To activate Wi-Fi Calling on Android, customers must first download and install the latest software update and turn on Advanced Calling from the settings menu. Once Advanced Calling is enabled, customers can activate Wi-Fi Calling. When a customer uses Advanced Calling on our 4G LTE network and travels outside of coverage, the call will seamlessly transfer to a known Wi-Fi hotspot when available. Advanced Calling has been available for more than a year and enables HD Voice (on 28 smartphones) and Video Calling (on 21 smartphones) on the nation’s largest and most reliable 4G LTE network. For more information on Advanced Calling from Verizon, visit http://www.verizonwireless.com/landingpages/advanced-calling.”
The FCC granted Verizon Wireless the waiver needed to launch Wi-Fi Calling last month. However, Big Red is a bit late to the game on this feature as AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile have had Wi-Fi Calling for some time now.
You may be wondering what the benefits of using Wi-Fi Calling may be. The feature allows for calls and texts to be done over any Wi-Fi network, rather than over a traditional cell tower. This is extremely handy if you find yourself in a situation in which you have a strong Wi-Fi connection, but poor cell service. I, personally, use T-Mobile and the Uncarrier has had this feature for some time now and has proved to be useful in some circumstances, particularly when I traveled to Michigan last summer. I had relatively poor service in my family’s home, but I was still able to make calls and texts like normal over their Wi-Fi connection.
Do you utilize Wi-Fi calling on your existing carrier? Let us know in the comments below!
Source: Verizon Wireless; Via: iClarified
The post Verizon begins Wi-Fi Calling rollout for Android and iOS appeared first on AndroidSPIN.
Watch two minutes of remastered ‘Final Fantasy VII’ on PS4
Square Enix teased a remastered, PlayStation 4 version of Final Fantasy VII back at E3 2015 — and today we get a better look at what that remake means. Final Fantasy VII kicked off the PlayStation Experience keynote this morning, with a two-minute trailer for the remaster (embedded below) and news that the original game is available on PS4 today. There’s no word on a launch window for Final Fantasy VII on PS4 just yet.
NASA shows the sharpest ever close-up photos of Pluto
I can practically hear you groan — more Pluto photos? Well, these are kind of special: they’re the sharpest pictures the New Horizons probe took during its closest flyby in July, and NASA believes these may be the best snapshots of the dwarf planet we’ll see for decades to come. These series of images captured by the spacecraft’s Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) from 10,000 miles away have a resolution of 250 to 280 feet per pixel. That makes them, according to the agency, six times better than the global Pluto map it released earlier. When stitched together, those photos form a 50-mile strip full of craters, ice fields and mountains that show up so clearly, it’s as if they merely display one of the polar regions filmed from aboard a helicopter.
Source: NASA, Alex Parker (Twitter)
Apple Raises iTunes Match and Apple Music Library Matching Limits
Over the past couple of days, MacRumors has received several reports from users who have been able to upload music libraries of greater than 25,000 tracks to iTunes Match or Apple Music’s similar scan-and-match feature, and Macworld‘s iTunes expert Kirk McElhearn has also noted a number of reports on his personal blog.
Just ahead of the launch of Apple Music in late June, Eddy Cue revealed on Twitter that Apple was working to raise the matching limit from 25,000 tracks to 100,000 for iOS 9, but the increase did not occur in September when iOS 9 debuted.
MacRumors checked with Cue back in October for an update, and he indicated Apple was “definitely working on it” with the expectation the increase would go live “before the end of the year.”
Apple has yet to update its support page on uploading music Apple Music to document the new limit.
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Google Search updated with song recommendations, lyrics, covers, and more
Google Search on mobile is receiving an update. Now, when you search for a particular musician, Google will display the normal information about them, but also any upcoming events in your area. Plus, song recommendations, lyrics, covers, and more will be displayed.
Also, it goes beyond just music artists. You can now search for any TV show or movie and get more detailed information about them. You will get a list of past or upcoming episodes when searching for TV shows, or get a list of the cast and show times near you when searching for movies. All of these features are out for Android tablets or phones today, and will be coming to iOS in the future.
Source: Google Inside Search
Come comment on this article: Google Search updated with song recommendations, lyrics, covers, and more
Double Fine’s next games include a ‘Full Throttle’ remaster
Double Fine isn’t counting solely on a crowdfunded Psychonauts sequel to capture your imagination — it just unveiled a ton of new projects at Sony’s PlayStation Experience event. The highlight (at least for gamers of a certain age) is a remastered version of Full Throttle, Tim Schafer’s action/adventure classic. It’s not certain just when the motorcycle-heavy game will arrive, but it’ll be available on both the PS4 and PlayStation Vita.
Source: Twitter (PlayStation), PlayStation Blog (1), (2)
Hey, Kid: ‘Bastion’ is out on Vita today
It’s a good day to be a Vita owner. Bastion, the gorgeous 2011 isometric adventure from Supergiant Games, is out today on Vita. Sony announced Bastion‘s Vita launch during its PlayStation Experience keynote this morning. This brings Bastion‘s platforms up to seven: PC, Mac, Linux, Xbox 360, iOS, Chrome, PlayStation 4 and, now, Vita. It’s a Cross-Buy game on Sony’s platforms, meaning if you own it on PS4, you automatically get it on Vita, and vice versa. Score!
‘Ratchet & Clank’ hits PS4 on April 12th
The PlayStation 4 version of Ratchet & Clank, a mega-remaster of Insomniac’s PlayStation 2 game, lands on Sony’s new console on April 12th. That’s just before the Ratchet & Clank movie hits theaters on April 29th. Ratchet & Clank on PS4 is more than a simple visual upgrade: It’s a completely new game based on the PS2 version, with an expanded story, more planets to explore, new weapons, fresh controls and other goodies.
Music shooter ‘Rez’ is coming to PlayStation VR
Sony has a ton of PlayStation VR content lined up at its PlayStation Experience gathering, but there’s a truly special title in that mix: a modern version of Rez. The upcoming Rez Infinite will bring immersive visuals to the legendary (and borderline hallucinogenic) music shooter, including 3D audio and brisk 60 frames per second gameplay at 1080p. There’s a whole new area, too, which will help tackle gripes that the original was too short. There’s no word on a ship date, but it’s safe to say this is good news if the game’s mix of iconic graphics and memorable dance tracks (Adam Freeland’s “Mind Killer,” anyone?) is still etched in your brain.
Source: PlayStation (Twitter)
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