Samsung Shuttering its Milk Music Service in the United States
Over the weekend, Samsung announced plans to shut down its Milk music streaming service in the United States, more than two years after it first launched. Milk Music, powered by Slacker Radio, was never able to compete with more popular music streaming services like Pandora, Spotify, and Apple Music.
As of September 22nd 2016, Milk Music will no longer be available. Samsung is encouraging current Milk Music users who want to continue to use the service to sign up for Slacker Radio, and listening history will be able to be transferred over.
Rather than pushing its own music service, Samsung says it plans to pursue a “partner model” that will allow Samsung devices to seamlessly integrate with third-party music services. Samsung also says it plans to “invest and refine” its strategy for delivering “new and engaging connected experiences” to its users.
Samsung is sun setting its Samsung Milk Music service in the United States on September 22, 2016.
We have made the strategic decision to invest in a partner model focused on seamlessly integrating the best music services available today into our family of Galaxy devices. We believe that working with partners will accelerate innovation, enhance device sales and provide amazing new experiences for our customers.
We have no additional details to share at this time.
Positioned as a freemium radio-style app that required users to pay $3.99 per month to remove ads, Milk Music was originally designed to compete with Pandora, but it never gained steam as a Pandora alternative. It was initially launched beside “Milk Video,” a video aggregation app, but that was shuttered in 2015, and earlier this year, many Milk Music employees left the company.
Milk Music will continue to operate in South Korea, Malaysia, and China. It was also discontinued in Australia and New Zealand earlier this year.
Tag: Samsung
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EyeCons is a speed-matching game that offers some fun! (review)
There are approximately 1 billion tile matching games in the Google Play Store. EyeCons is a a new 2-tile matching game that offers some unique twists as well as look & feel. It’s a great selection for all ages, as there is almost no text to get through. The game is actually a take on a board game of the same names from Hersch games, for you trivial buffs.
Setup
Easy enough; download for free from the Play Store. Once on your device, go ahead an open it…there is a screen to register via either your Facebook login or an email/password combo, but can also skip this step if you don’t want the social aspect to the game.
Once in you select single player and level 1 to get rocking. On this setup screen, though you can also see your profile (provided you’ve registered & logged in), adjust settings (sound & in-app purchases), shop for said in-app purchases, as well as a help/tutorial screen.
Gameplay
Eyecons is a pretty simple game to get rolling on. You are 
provided a screen full of stacked tiles, each with a unique icon-type of picture on them. The goal is equally simple: match any two like tiles by tapping on them. This makes them disappear and reveal the tiles below it (think Mahjong). Speed is key here; each level has a countdown timer, and your goal is to beat the timer to advance. But the game wouldn’t be complete without a set of power-ups and other available accelerators.
Examples are:
- Hammer: Elimates a tile and its buried match with a single tap.
- Shuffle: Rearranges the tiles to give you a fresh view.
- Hint: Gives you a visual highlight of an available pair to clear.
- Bombs & Super Bombs: Clears 2 or 3 pairs of tiles (respectively) .
- Clock: Adds 5 more seconds to your countdown timer.
You accumulate these power-ups through good gameplay. You can also purchase these in the setup screen using coins either earned or bought using in-app purchases. The effectiveness of these power-ups was rather muted though; I found the effort to abort your focus on the tiles to hit a power-up almost wasn’t worth it…..I would prefer the power-ups to be more rare but also more powerful.
There is also a sort-of “turbo bar” that appears when you’ve matched a certain number of tile pairs. This bar allows you to earn multi-fold in coins with every subsequent tile match during its existence, but it depletes quickly so you need to max out your speed while this is up.
Graphics and Sound
This area is a real highlight of the game, for two reasons:
The dark overall theme is pretty nice on the eyes, allowing for longer focus on the screen before your eyes tire out. A simple but very effective choice for the player.
Both the the sound and the colors are punchy but not all-out garish, like in so many tile match games out there. In too many other titles the “bubble-gum bonanza” effect makes me want to put the game down within seconds, not to mention all the zany background music and sound effects flying out of my devices constantly.
EyeCons really dials this back; the music is constant but not at all intrusive (and completely mutable in the setup menu)…..and the sound effects upon tapping and clearing titles is a set of very simple ‘clicks’ and ‘boops’. In fact it almost sounds fickle to say that some sounds may be a little too subtle, as when you tap on non-matching tiles, nothing much happens…..I found myself re-tapping a couple of times occasionally only to finds that I was a little off on my matching.
Overall
EyeCons is a pretty fun game to play: easy to pick up and learn, very re-playable, and not annoyingly loud or obnoxious in any way. I highly recommend this title for your Android!
Download EyeCons from the Play Store for free here.
Google Duo: Finally, a FaceTime for the rest of us
Overview
Duo is a simple, yet very well done video calling app from Google that aims to be the FaceTime for Android users.
Developer: Google
Cost: Free
Impressions
Long has the Apple community had access to a intuitive, simple and functional video calling service called FaceTime, and as long as Apple has had it, the Android faithful have been waiting for Google to offer up their own version for us to enjoy. Enter Duo, a simple video calling app that is super easy to use and works great on both iOS and Android.
You may be asking “what about good old Hangouts? Doesn’t it already do that stuff?” Well Duo, unlike Hangouts, is tied to your phone number and only offers two-way video calling. It has no group chat, messaging or cross-platform support for your PC and other devices. Duo is simply a video calling service and even though it only does one thing, it does it very well. Google made Duo with a minimalist interface, and some neat little features that help to set it apart from Hangouts and make it the go-to video calling app for Android users.
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The most notable feature of Duo is Knock Knock, which allows whoever you call to see a preview of the person calling them. Its a neat little addition that adds a little something to the experience. It also makes filtering potentially undesirable calls based on what the other side of the call looks like. Knock Knock is only allowed from people in your contacts list, and you can easily turn it off if it’s not something you’re into. The other great feature Duo offers in end-to-end encryption, so all of your conversations are protected.
Video call quality and audio quality are excellent, with clear sound and smooth high definition calls. I initially had a few calls freeze or drop on the first day using Duo, but since then the calls have been consistant in performance and quality, I couldn’t be more satisfied. I’ve used it from Android to Android, and Android to iOS and both worked as expected with no issues due to compatibility. The only thing that iOS can’t do is show Knock Knock when the app is closed, otherwise you’ll just get an incoming call notification.
If there was any negative thing I could say about Duo, it would probably be the lack of any additional features. It only does the one thing, and it does do it well, but maybe an option of “video voicemail” or a group chat option would have been interesting to have at launch. The good thing is that there is always the possibility of new features with future updates so here’s hoping Google sticks by this one.
Conclusion
Duo is a excellent option for frequent video callers, and a worthy competitor to FaceTime that anyone can use. The app is simple, intuitive and functional and call quality is solid. EVen though Duo is fairly light on additional features, Google has done an excellent job of bringing video calling to the masses with Duo and you should definitely check this one out.
Download Duo from the Google Play Store
Android 7.0 Nougat available today for Nexus devices
Launch day for the next version of Android!
After a five-month developer preview program, the next version of Android is finally upon us! Google has announced that Android 7.0 Nougat is complete, and Nexus devices will begin receiving the update from today.
Nougat brings a host of new features, including split-screen multi-window, improved notifications and longer battery life through the improved Doze feature.
We’re not expecting the final version of Android 7.0 to feature any significant changes compared to the last developer preview build, which arrived a month ago. (With the natural exception that Nougat is now considered final and stable, and ready for everyone to use.)
The final code lands today — but no new Nexus devices yet.
Google says the over-the-air update to Android Nougat will go out to the Nexus 6, Nexus 5X, Nexus 6P, Nexus 9, Nexus Player, Pixel C and General Mobile 4G (Android One) as part of a staged rollout over the coming weeks. (Only a few Nexus owners will receive the OTA today, Google tells us, and some carriers will get it later than others.) Of course if you don’t want to wait, you’ll be able to manually update by flashing a system image from today.
Nougat is the first named Android version to arrive without an accompanying Nexus device since the program started back in late 2009. And while we’re not getting new Google-branded phones today, we’re expecting to see new HTC-built handsets later in the year, likely with extra Google software goodies atop Nougat. On Sept. 6, LG will unveil the first new phone with Nougat, the V20.
Android 7.0 Nougat
Android Nougat is the 12th nicknamed version of Android and was released to the public in August 2016. Here’s everything you need to know so far!
- Android 7.0 Nougat: Everything you need to know
- Will my phone get Android Nougat?
- All Android Nougat news
- How to manually update your Nexus
- Join the Discussion
Android 7.0 Nougat: Everything you need to know
The latest version of Android is here, and it’s coming to a Nexus near you.
Android 7.0 Nougat is Google’s way of refining what we already have, and adding some essential features to an operating system they were already happy with.
Since Android 5.0 we’ve seen how Google was shifting their design language on the phones they sell themselves and the apps and services that come on your phone. Android itself has followed this trend, and with Marshmallow we saw a flat but bold design that tied everything together.
Android Nougat doesn’t make major changes to the way your phone looks or the way it “feels.” But what Google has done under the hood brings some new features — and much needed polish — to our favorite smartphone operating system.
Android Nougat makes updates faster and easier
When it’s time for your phone or tablet to get updated, you won’t have to do anything. While you’re doing the things you normally do all the hard work is done in the background — very similar to the upgrade experience on Chrome OS. The only thing you need to do is restart your phone to finish things up.
Here’s Google’s succinct explanation about the situation:
Android Nougat also adds some important new features to help keep users safer and more secure. Inspired by how Chromebooks apply updates, we’re introducing seamless updates, so that new Android devices built on Nougat can install system updates in the background. This means that the next time a user powers up their device, new devices can automatically and seamlessly switch into the new updated system image.
Changes to what’s called the run-time compiler also mean that you won’t have to wait as long while all your apps are optimizing once you do restart — we’ve all been there watching an “Optimizing …” screen for 30 minutes after an OTA update.
More: Seamless updates come to Android in version 7.0
Multi-window multitasking
Sometimes when you’re doing two things at once it’s handy to be able to see them both at the same time. That’s what Multi-window is: more than one “window” on your phone’s screen.
We’ve seen a similar feature with the same name from Samsung (and to a lesser extent LG) for a while, but Google has built things in a way that any app will just work, without the developer — or you — doing anything special. The screen will be split 50/50 by default, and it’s quick to pull up different apps on the top and bottom on a phone or left and right on a tablet.
For devices with larger screens, there’s also a freeform mode that let’s you change a window’s size.
More: Multi-window is now for everyone
Even better notifications
With Android Nougat, you can reply to your notifications directly from their spot in the tray. You won’t have to open the app or install anything extra, either. Once the folks who built your app support the feature, it will just work.
Don’t worry though. When you need to see more or do more than just send a quick reply, you can still tap the notification to open an app and see everything. And with better bundling of multiple notifications from the same app, you’ll be able to tell when you need to see everything even easier.
More: Understanding notification changes in Android Nougat
Your phone will feel faster and use less battery
Google’s “Project Doze” — its code name for ways to have your phone use less battery while it’s not in your hands with the screen on — that was introduced with Marshmallow has gotten a major update in Nougat. While it previously worked great while the phone was sitting still and not plugged in, now it works while it’s in your pocket or purse. How it does it hasn’t changed much; once your phone’s screen has been off for a while, it stops doing things in the background all the time, and instead uses what Google calls “windows” to check for new messages or do things like update your location.
Better ways to manage memory and when (and how) apps can run in the background (Google’s “Project Svelte”) means that you won’t have as much unnecessary stuff happening when you weren’t expecting it to happen. By only allowing things that you really need to run, your phone will perform better and use less battery.
More: Android 7.0 improvements in performance and battery efficiency
Using less mobile data
Overage charges from your phone company suck. With Android Nougat new tools can help keep them from happening.
When you’re on a metered connection (one that’s not unlimited) — cellular or Wi-Fi — the new Data Saver setting can block background random data usage and restrict things like checking for tweets or emails so that your phone uses less data.
You can tell Data Saver to ignore certain apps, and while it’s active you’ll have an icon in your notifications to let you know what’s up.
More: Data Saver goes above and beyond to help keep bills down
More human emoji
In addition to 72 new glyphs, Android 7.0 has over 1,500 emoji, many of which have been revamped to look a bit more…. human. Traditionally, Android emoji have been cartoony, which has encouraged other manufacturers like Samsung and LG to write their own.
More: Nougat changes Android’s emoji to look like people
Improved security
Keeping your data private and personal is important. New features in Android Nougat make things even more secure.
When you start your phone, some apps are able to partially work before you sign in with your password or PIN. Things like the actual phone app or your text messages can still come in, your alarm will still work and any accessibility features needed to better interact with your phone can still run. Other apps and their data will remain unavailable and/or encrypted.
Once you sign in, everything will work normally.
This feature helps keep your data safe if your phone gets lost or stolen, and synergizes well with the remote features of Android Device Manager.
More: What is Direct Boot in Android Nougat?
With Android Nougat, you can give an app access to a certain folder (like your picture library) without letting it have access to all of your external (SD card) storage.
Only granting permission to the folders an app needs to function is the best practice when it comes to security. Scoped directories does just that.
More: Developer documentation on scoped directories
For apps targeted for Android Nougat, the geolocation API is allowed over secure origins (over HTTPS.) This policy is designed to protect users’ private information when they’re using an insecure connection.
Android For Work
If you use your personal Android phone on the job through a managed system, changes are coming.
For us, things will mostly look and act the same — but better tools and easier ways to set things up mean your IT guy might not be so busy (or so grumpy) and everyone’s information will be safer and more secure.
The things we could see, like not being able to use an app we love on company time or being forced to a certain network, depend on what your company needs and how they have things set up. Be sure to go over any questions with your hopefully less-grumpy IT guy if you have them.
Language and locale
If you have your phone set for a specific region — let’s say the French-speaking portion of Switzerland — your phone will now try to use a similar region setting if it can’t find a specific match. In our example, that means an app can display text and numerical data for standard French instead of just using the default language settings if Swiss localization wasn’t included.
You can also select multiple languages (or regionalizations of the same language) in an order of importance — if an app you’re using is localized for multiple languages you’ll see your top pick — if it’s set up for one but not all of your languages, it’ll pick the highest one it can.
More: Android Nougat is a big deal for bilingual smartphone users
Android TV recording and Picture-in-Picture
Basic DVR functionality is coming to Android TV with 7.0. Besides basic controls like Play or Rewind, you’ll be able to save multiple sessions. This means you can schedule recordings or record as you watch.
This should be a great feature for Televisions that come with Android TV installed.
More: TV recording and picture-in-picture come to Android TV
New accessibility features
Not all of us are the same and have the same needs. Better accessibility features in Android Nougat make it easier for everyone to be able to use their phone.
New ways of zooming in on what you see on your screen or adjusting the size of text make a big difference for folks who need them, and bringing accessibility features like TalkBack and a custom display resolution to the initial setup process means it’s easier to get started, too.
More: Understanding new accessibility features in Nougat
Want Android Nougat on your Nexus right now?
You don’t have to wait for Android 7.0 Nougat to roll out over the air to get it on your Nexus phone. If you’re enterprising, you can download the factory image and install it over your current Marshmallow install.
More: How to get Android 7.0 Nougat on your phone right now
Android 7.0 Nougat
Android Nougat is the 12th nicknamed version of Android and was released to the public in August 2016. Here’s everything you need to know so far!
- Android 7.0 Nougat: Everything you need to know
- Will my phone get Android Nougat?
- All Android Nougat news
- How to manually update your Nexus
- Join the Discussion
How to get Android 7.0 Nougat on your Nexus right now
How do I get Android 7.0 Nougat on your Nexus phone right now?
Android 7.0 Nougat is officially available for the Nexus 6, Nexus 5X, Nexus 6P, Nexus 9, Nexus Player and Pixel C (and the General Mobile 4G Android One), but your phone may not get the OTA (over-the-air) update for another couple of weeks.
If you know your way around a command line, you can skip the waiting game by downloading the factory image for your particular device and flashing it on top of your software. But there are some caveats you need to know about when flashing a factory image, so read on to find out what you need to know.
Note: The Android 7.0 factory images are not yet available, but these steps will apply when they go live.
How to get the right tools to flash a factory image
Note: This portion is performed on your computer.
The first thing you need to know about flashing a factory image on top of your Nexus phone is that you need to have a portion of Android SDK installed on your computer. Specifically, you need adb and fastboot, which you can download from the Android Studio portal.
Go to Android Studio webpage
Scroll to the bottom of the page.
Find command line tools for your platform — Windows, Mac, or Linux.
Extract the accompanying file (.exe, .zip, .tgz)
How to unlock your bootloader
Note: This portion is performed on your phone.
The next thing you need to do after downloading the command line tools is to make sure that your phone is ready for flashing. This is a two-step process: you need to enable USB Debugging; and you need to unlock your bootloader. If you have already unlocked your bootloader, you can skip to flashing.
Enable developer settings and USB debugging
Go to your Nexus’ Settings.
Scroll down to About Phone/Tablet.
Tap on the Build number seven times until the dialog box says you are now a developer.
Open Settings and you should find a new option called Developer options.
Click into the Developer options.
Make sure that the developer options are turned on and that USB debugging is checked on.
Check Enable OEM unlock.
Plug your Nexus device into your computer.
Tap OK on the dialog box asking you to Allow USB debugging while connected to the computer.
If done correctly, this will be everything you will need to do on your phone or tablet for the moment. After this, you need to unlock your phone’s bootloader.
Unlocking your bootloader
Unlocking your bootloader is relatively simple, but you must know one thing: your phone will factory reset, and you will lose all of your apps and personal data stored on the phone. Make sure that you back up your device before this process.
Turn off your phone or tablet.
Hold down the power button and the volume down button.
On your Nexus device, type: ./fastboot flashing unlock
Press volume up button and the power button to confirm bootloader unlock.
On your Nexus device, type: ./fastboot reboot
Now your bootloader is unlocked and ready to flash the Android 7.0 factory image for your device.
How to flash the Android 7.0 factory image
Note: This portion is performed on your computer.
Visit Nexus Factory Images page.
Scroll down to your phone and find the Android 7.0 image for your phone.
Once downloaded, extract the file in your Platform tools folder.
Put your phone into bootloader mode (see above) and plug it into your computer.
Open Command Prompt (Windows) or Terminal (Mac).
On the command line, type:./adb devices to ensure your phone is seen by your computer.
Type the flash-all command. On Windows, that will be flash-all.bat On Mac, that will be flash-all.sh
Note: The flash-all script is prone to failing on OS X/macOS, and by default wipes your phone. Follow our step-by-step manual flashing tutorial to bypass this issue.
Learning about Nougat
Once you flash the Android 7.0 Nougat factory image onto your Nexus phone, you should reboot into the operating system. Depending on whether you unlocked your bootloader (and wiped your phone in the process), or kept your data intact by flashing the images manually, Nougat should look considerably different to Marshmallow. Now you have to learn what’s new in Nougat.
Everything you need to know about Android 7.0 Nougat
Your turn
Having issues flashing your Nexus phone? Just want to wait until the OTA is pushed to your phone? Tell us your experience with flashing the Nougat factory image in the comments below.
How to manually flash your Nexus
Continue the conversation in the forum
Android 7.0 Nougat
Android Nougat is the 12th nicknamed version of Android and was released to the public in August 2016. Here’s everything you need to know so far!
- Android 7.0 Nougat: Everything you need to know
- Will my phone get Android Nougat?
- All Android Nougat news
- How to manually update your Nexus
- Join the Discussion
LG V20: Google gives us our first look at Nougat-powered phone
Google ‘introduces’ new LG phone on Nougat promo page.
As Google officially unveiled Android 7.0 Nougat, there’s a small surprise waiting on the shiny new Nougat promo page — an early look at the upcoming LG V20.
The V20, which will be the first phone to ship with Android 7.0, is referenced at the end of the page, along with an image showing a home screen and a holographic-style outline of the handset. The image is broadly in line with CAD renders that leaked a couple of weeks back showing a modular, G5-like design.
Google hails the device as “the first new smartphone that comes with Android Nougat, right out of the box. Coming soon.”
The home screen itself mirrors what we’ve already seen on the LG G5, with a app-drawer-free layout and rounded rectangular icons. Beyond that, there’s not a whole lot to see here.
However it is unusual to see Google promoting LG’s phone alongside its new operating system. In the absence of any new Nexus phones — those aren’t expected for another month or two — it’s a natural fit. LG is set to officially unveil the V20 at an event in San Francisco on Sept. 6.
Android 7.0 Nougat
Android Nougat is the 12th nicknamed version of Android and was released to the public in August 2016. Here’s everything you need to know so far!
- Android 7.0 Nougat: Everything you need to know
- Will my phone get Android Nougat?
- All Android Nougat news
- How to manually update your Nexus
- Join the Discussion
Pretend Rdio never died with this Spotify theme
Remember Rdio? I do. A beautiful music streaming service that was eventually outmuscled by Spotify, Google Play Music and the like. If you miss its light, well-considered design like I do, you might be interested in “Spotio,” a new Spotify theme by designer and writer Devin Halladay. The legality of his work is a tad questionable, but until it’s pulled by Spotify’s overlords you can grab it right here. You’ll need to set your Mac’s security preferences to accept apps from “anywhere,” and close the regular version from Spotify HQ. Then it’s just a matter of deleting the original app from your Mac, should you prefer Halladay’s Rdio-inspired alternative.
It’s only a reskin, so temper your expectations — this isn’t a full recreation of the Rdio interface. Still, for fans of the now deceased music streaming service, it’s a nice way to show your appreciation. We miss you, Rdio.
Via: Aziz Firat
Source: Spotio
AIVAnet 