These are Google Play’s best apps and games of 2016
The best of 2016 from Google Play.
Google Play has rolled out its Best of 2016 guide, highlighting the best-selling apps and games this year. As expected, Niantic’s Pokémon Go turned out to be the most popular game of 2016, Game of Thrones was the most-watched TV show, and Scoompa’s Face Changer 2 led the app charts.
Top trending apps of 2016
- Face Changer 2
- Lumyer – Photo & Selfie Editor
- Castbox – Podcast Radio Music
- Emoji Keyboard Pro
- MSQRD
Top trending games of 2016
- Pokémon GO
- Clash Royale
- Traffic Rider
- slither.io
- Dream League Soccer
Top TV shows of 2016
- Game of Thrones
- The Walking Dead
- The Big Bang Theory
- Mr. Robot
- The Flash
Head to the link below for the full list.
Google Play’s Best of 2016
OnePlus 3T lands in India for ₹29,999; 128GB variant debuts at ₹34,999
The best phone you can get for under ₹30,000 in India.
The OnePlus 3T has made its debut in India, with sales set to kick off from December 14 exclusively on Amazon. The 64GB variant will retail for ₹29,999 ($440), while the 128GB variant will be available for ₹34,999 ($512).
A quick rundown of the specs: the OnePlus 3T offers a 5.5-inch Super AMOLED display backed by Gorilla Glass 4, 2.35GHz Snapdragon 821 SoC, 6GB of LPDDR4 RAM, 16MP rear and front cameras, Wi-Fi ac, Bluetooth 4.2, LTE (3/5/40), NFC, and a 3400mAh battery. OnePlus is also committing to the local market, stating that it will assemble the 64GB model of the OnePlus 3T locally starting next month.
The device’s competitive pricing will attract a lot of interest, and for good reason. AC’s Andrew Martonik reviewed the phone earlier this month, and came away visibly impressed:
OnePlus took a proven platform that was already a crown jewel of “affordable flagship” phones, and refreshed it with a couple important improvements without removing anything that made it appealing when it launched the first time earlier this year.
Even with the modest price bump, the OnePlus 3T is an amazing value. It has great hardware, slick and responsive software, amazing battery life, strong rear camera and every internal spec you could want. Even its few weaknesses, like slightly low screen brightness, lack of waterproofing and questionable software update frequency, are minimal bad marks on what is otherwise an exceptional phone. At $439, you can’t find a better value than the OnePlus 3T.
OnePlus 3 and OnePlus 3T
- OnePlus 3 review: Finally, all grown up
- The OnePlus 3T is official
- OnePlus 3 specs
- OnePlus 3T vs. OnePlus 3: What’s the difference?
- Latest OnePlus 3 news
- Discuss OnePlus 3 in the forums
OnePlus
Your next Apple Watch could be round, according to leaked patent
An Apple patent has been unearthed that suggests the company is working on a round version of its Apple Watch. Or, at least, that it has mulled it over in the past year.
The patent, titled “Electronic Device Having Display With Curved Edges”, shows a circular watch face and drawings indicate tech elements that would drive a round screen. It works similarly to a normal display, and the tech would be hidden in a bezel around the edge much like the current rectangular Apple Watch or, indeed, the iPhone.
Apple
There are two similar patents filed by Apple, with the most recent being submitted in January this year, so that could mean the company still has ambitions to release a different style smartwatch. After all, most rival manufacturers have switched to round smartwatch designs in the last couple of years. The Huawei Watch and Samsung Gear S2 and S3 watches are particular popular examples.
Patents should be treated with a little pinch of salt though, as companies file thousands each year with many never making it to market. And with Apple Watch Series 2 only recently made available, we doubt we’ll see a refresh until the latter part of 2017 at the very least.
Apple
91 Locker: Is this the ultimate wallpaper picker?
If you’re looking for a new lock screen wallpaper to try on your Android phone, consider using 91 Locker.
It’s an app. The purpose of this app is to serve up all sorts of lock wallpapers, as well as templates, news, and tools, so you can customise your lock screen. You can create your own lock screen design with photos of you and your family, or you can use professional wallpapers. You can even pick unique passcode features to protect your privacy, and of course you’ll still get your alerts and messages and access to shortcuts.
Here’s what you need to know about 91 Locker.
What is 91 Locker?
91 Locker is a free Android app you can download from the Google Play Store. You can use it to create unique lock screen wallpapers (or select from high-quality wallpapers) and a personal passcode experience, and because it’s all about enhancing your lock screen, you’ll still get notifications on your custom lock screen, with access to shortcuts like airplane mode and display brightness.
How does 91 Locker work?
Download 91 Locker. When the app opens, you’ll see a menu bar along the bottom with three screen options: template, wallpaper, passcode. Tap the first one to create your own lock screen from personal photos; tap the second one to choose from a gallery of professional wallpapers; tap the third one to select a different passcode experience, such as glass bottle tops rather than typical dots.
The template screen has “latest” and “hot” sections, while the wallpaper screen has “categories”, “latest”, and “hot” sections, and the passcode screen simply shows you a scrolling gallery of different experiences you can choose to use/preview. The app also shows you which wallpapers and passcode experiences you’ve downloaded locally on your device, and there are settings options to control app notifications and more.
What does 91 Locker feature?
Lock screen templates
91 Locker provides you with “DIY templates” you can use to create lock screen wallpapers of photos of you and your family. And it’s simply a one-tap of application to get the template on your lock screen.
High-quality wallpapers
91 Locker lets you browse more than 5000 HD lock wallpapers for free. There are various types and categories to choose from, including “fair ladies, vehicles, travel, nature, sport, etc,” according to the app’s description.
Unique passcode experiences
91 Locker allows you to protect your privacy with a unique way to unlock your phone. You can choose a customised passcode interface that best matches your lock screen, such as a photo password or a range of password patterns and styles.
Notifications and shortcuts
91 Locker still lets you check messages for missed calls, unread SMS, and notifications when screen your screen is locked. You’ll also have access to a shortcut menu with toggles for camera, flashlight, calculator, alarms, etc.
Want to know more?
Watch the 91 Locker trailer above for more details. Also, check out the gallery for some screenshots.
Everything you missed from ‘The Game Awards’
Each year that Geoff Keighley’s Game Awards distances itself from its SpikeTV past, it gets subsequently less embarrassing to watch. And without a doubt, The Game Awards 2016 was the best show yet. Couldn’t watch the stream? Well, that’s too bad, but we’ve got you covered. Below you’ll find a list of the night’s big winners in addition to all the trailers that made their world premieres onstage at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. There were a few emotional moments onstage as well, including Ryan Green accepting the Games for Impact award for That Dragon, Cancer; Keighley presenting his friend Hideo Kojima with a statue for Industry Icon and Nolan North throwing striking voice actors under the bus during his acceptance speech for best performance.
Oh, and consider this an official plea for composer Mick Gordon to take the award-winning Doom soundtrack on tour. Seriously, just watch the performance embedded below and try saying that it wouldn’t translate to a huge stage production ridiculously well. I mean, if Dethklok can do it…
- Best eSports Game: Overwatch
- Best eSports Team: Cloud 9
- Best eSports Player: Coldzera – Marcelo David
- Trending Gamer: Boogie2988
- Most Anticipated Game: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
- Best Multiplayer: Overwatch
- Best Sports/Racing Game: Forza Horizon 3
- Best Family Game: Pokemon Go
- Best Strategy Game: Civilization 6
- Best Fighting Game: Street Fighter V
- Best RPG: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Blood and Wine
- Best Action/Adventure: Dishonored 2
- Best Action Game: Doom
- Best VR Game: Rez Infinite
- Best Mobile/Handheld Game: Pokemon Go
- Best Independent Game: Inside
- Games for Impact: That Dragon, Cancer
- Best Performance: Nolan North as Nathan Drake, Uncharted 4
- Best Music/Sound design: Doom
- Best Art Direction: Inside
- Best Narrative: Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End
- Best Game Direction: Blizzard/Overwatch
- Game of the Year: Overwatch
Source: The Game Awards (YouTube)
LG promotes its Home Appliance boss to Chief Executive
After a couple of rough quarters for its mobile phone division, LG announced today that it will promote Jo Seong-jin, the head of its profitable Home Appliance business, to the role of Vice Chairman and CEO of the company. While the company’s new flagship phone, the LG V20, appears to be selling well, the mobile division as a whole has been dragging the company down since Q3 2015 despite record numbers from the the home appliances division.
Despite those losses, LG’s mobile division boss Juno Cho will have another opportunity to help his group bounce back from flops like the LG G5. Cho is keeping his position for now, but the South Korean company also promoted 57 other executives this week, compared to the 38 it promoted in last year’s yearly restructuring.
Also worth noting: Mr. Jo only holds a high school diploma and no bachelor’s degree, but he’s been with the company since 1976 when he helped develop LF’s first automatic washing machine. (Earning him the nickname “Mr. Washing Machine” in the process.) Since taking over LG’s Home Appliance and Air Solution company in 2015, Jo helped roll out the high-end LG Signature brand which is responsible for smart home and IoT devices like this smart fridge with whopping 29-inch tablet built-in.
Via: ZDNet
Source: LG Newsroom
The White House goes augmented reality with new ‘1600’ app
Following the breakout success of Pokémon Go, the White House is apparently looking to capitalize on the sudden interest in augmented reality. A new, official White House app called 1600 allows anyone with a smartphone or tablet and a $1 bill to take a tour of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
“From hosting festivals on the South Lawn to allowing people to explore its rooms via Google Street View,” White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest writes today, “President Obama has used traditional events and new technology to open up the doors of the White House to more Americans than ever before.”
While the app won’t give you any actual security clearance, it does give you a cute, 3D-interactive version of the White House when you point your camera a dollar bill. As you fly around the tiny, Minecraft-esque White House, you can even watch as major events like like state arrival ceremonies and the annual Easter Egg Roll unfold.
The app is free to download (Thanks, Obama) and was built by the White House Historical Association and Nexus Studios. It’s available for iOS and Android devices.
Source: WhiteHouse.gov
Motorola isn’t making a new smartwatch anytime soon
We might not see a successor to the 2015 Moto 360 in the near future, or even at all. Motorola and its parent company Lenovo have confirmed to The Verge that they’re not working on a new smartwatch to be released in time for Android Wear 2’s launch next year. Moto’s head of global product development Shakil Barkat told the publication that the company doesn’t “see enough pull in the market” to justify developing a new smartwatch at this point in time. He even went on to say that “wearables do not have broad enough appeal for [Moto] to continue to build on it year after year.”
Based on Barkat’s statements, smartwatches and other wearable devices aren’t doing too well and haven’t been able to attract enough audience to make a regular refresh viable. It’s unclear if we’ll ever see another Moto 360, since it sounds like it’s not doing anything for the company. According to Barkat, though, Moto believes that the “wrist still has value,” hinting that the company hasn’t closed its doors on the possibility of releasing another wearable device.
Source: The Verge
Apple Looking to Set Up Distribution Center in India to Streamline Logistics
Apple is set to create a new distribution center in India to consolidate its logistics and supply chain in the country, according to The Economic Times. The center will be its first in India.
Currently, Apple products are brought to India via several different cities: Chennai, Mumbai, Bengaluru, New Delhi, Hyderabad and Chandigarh. Each city has a different value-added tax (VAT) rate, which causes price discrepancies when the products are shipped directly from the airport to distributors. Further, online retailers in the country source their inventory from low-VAT territories so they can gain a price advantage over brick-and-mortar retailers.
The distribution center, which Apple’s global logistics partner DB Schenker will own and operate, will be in the city of Bhiwandi, near the city of Mumbai. An unnamed executive told The Economic Times that the center will “allow Apple to stock its products adequately, will ease operations and streamline its logistics and supply chains.” It will also help Apple maintain consistent pricing for its products.
Apple has been ramping up efforts to gain a larger foothold in India. In July, the Indian government officially adopted rules that would pave the way for the first Apple retail stores in the country. The company is also opening up an iOS app design and development accelerator and a campus focused on Maps development in the cities of Bengaluru and Hyderabad, respectively. The Cupertino company has also asked for financial incentives to make it easier to create an iPhone manufacturing plant in India.
Tag: India
Discuss this article in our forums
Nikola unveils its hydrogen-powered semi-truck
It’s not just passenger vehicles that are moving away from gasoline, big rigs are also saying goodbye to fossil fuels. In Salt Lake City today the hydrogen-powered Nikola One long haul truck was unveiled. According to the truck maker, the semi will be in production and ready to transport goods in 2020.
The class 8 truck (the giant ones that transport goods) will have a range of 800 to 1,200 miles between refueling. If the company delivers on that range, the One — if running at peak efficiency — could get from San Francisco to Cheyenne, Wyoming on one tank of gas. And the fuel needed for that trip will be included in the 72-month leasing program that company is offering.
To solve the limited supply of hydrogen along the highways of the United States and Canada, Nikola also announced its plans to build stations to refuel its new trucks in both countries. The company will start breaking ground on the refueling stops in 2018 and they will open in 2019.
Without those hydrogen stations, it won’t matter how impressive the range of Nikola One is if it can’t be counted on to transport goods everywhere because it might run out of juice. Yet when it is on the road, the semi’s tech will be making the most of its trip.
According to CEO Trevor Milton, the truck’s navigation system will determine the most lucrative route between destinations. The dash will have a large display sort of like the one found in a Tesla.
Nikola is still determining where it’ll actually build its new trucks and says it will figure that out sometime during the first half of 2017. Once those semis are built they will be sold, serviced and warrantied by trucking company Ryder’s over 800 locations thanks to a agreement announced today.
The company also introduced the Nikola Two with the same range performance as the One but a smaller cab and more maneuverability. Like the One, it’ll be available in 2020. Both trucks will have an electric motor connected to each wheel which should help with take off thanks to torque vectoring and braking.
No word on pricing on either truck. But Milton said that information will be shared soon.
Source: Nikola
AIVAnet 