Tesco launches the £129 Hudl2: bigger, better, faster
A popular supermarket chain isn’t the first place you’d expect to find an own-brand tablet, but with its low price and a prime spot next to the beans, Tesco’s Hudl has sold over 750,000 units since launch. While plans to also enter the smartphone racket have been put on hold, today Tesco’s spilled all the details on its second-gen slate: the Hudl2.
The first thing you’ll notice is that Tesco has stayed with what works. The Hudl2 shares a similar design with its predecessor, but is a little bit bigger. However, the bezels are vastly smaller, giving it a more premium look. It comes with a toughened 8.3-inch Full HD touchscreen, and a thinner chassis that ships in a variety of eight different colours: black, blue, purple, red, aqua, pink, orange and white.
Like the original tablet, Tesco’s Hudl2 undercuts many of its rivals at £129, and you can also bring that cost down by trading in some of your Clubcard points. While the device is being unveiled today, you’ll have to wait until October 9th to get your hands on it (although pre-orders will open the day before). Inside, there’s a 1.83GHz Intel Atom quad-core processor (which Tesco says makes it three times faster than the original) and 2GB of RAM, stock Android 4.4 KitKat, 5-megapixel rear-facing camera and a 1.2-megapixel front facer, Dolby-optimised rear-facing speakers, dual-band Wi-Fi, 16GB of internal storage (with a microSD slot taking it up to 48GB) and according to Tesco, a battery that’ll last around 8 hours on a full charge.
Recognising that customers are buying Hudls for their children, Tesco has included a new range of child-safety tools. When they first turn on the tablet, parents will be asked to set up features that can block sensitive content or restrict the amount of time that a child plays on the Hudl 2, to the point where it’ll turn itself off when it’s time to go to sleep. App access can be locked down in up to seven profiles, protecting young eyes from the darker downloads on the Play Store.
Read more: Tesco’s Hudl2 vs. Hudl: what’s changed?
Tesco is also ramping up the number of accessories it offers with its tablet. This year, Tesco is offering up to 64 tablet and case colour combinations for the Hudl2, including the wonderfully-named Perky Purple & Red and Dreamy White & Bluespotted cases, as well as coloured on-ear and in-ear headphones, screen protectors and stylii.
You’ll be able to turn every £5 of Clubcard vouchers into £10 towards the hudl2 and its accessories, bringing the price down to just £65. That’ll make it a much more attractive proposition when you’re traversing the aisles during your weekly shop. Tesco will also continue to sell the original Hudl for £99, but the company says when stock is gone, it’s gone.
Via: BBC News
Source: Tesco, Hudl Store
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Bring out your inner spy with the Stealth360 watch face
When designing a watch face for a smartwatch, designers need to strike a delicate balance. On one hand you can make the watch face too simple. This ends up making your fancy, new smartwatch look cheap and boring. Worst of all, designs that are too simple don’t take advantage of your smartwatches capabilities. On the… Read more »
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Moto 360 review: The watch you’ve waiting for
From the time Motorola first announced they were working on a smartwatch, they had everybody watching them. Unlike the LG G Watch or the Samsung Gear Live, the Moto 360 was different, and everyone could see that. It took smartwatch design to a whole new level – not only with the circular screen, but with… Read more »
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Cyanogen refuses Google’s money in an effort to keep Android ‘open’
For a lot of start ups, winning Google’s interest is the goal. Not Cyanogen. According to The Information, the Cyanogen CEO Kirt McMaster told shareholders that it recently shrugged off Google SVP of Android Sundar Pichai’s interest in purchasing the company — choosing instead to focus on obtaining a $1 billion valuation to aid in its third round of funding. The company’s grounds for that number, and perhaps Google’s interest for the company, lie with its long-term goal: to become the third most popular mobile ecosystem. Considering the fact that Cyanogen’s third-tier mobile OS is essentially a more “open” version of Android, it’s no surprise the company has Mountain View’s attention.
Even so, dismissing Google’s interest is a pretty bold move — especially considering that the company is now looking for more funding on top of the $30 million it collected last year. There’s confidence there, however: Cyanogen investors are being told that the company has struck a deal with Micromax to build Cyanogen-based phones, echoing its partnership with OnePlus to bake its flavor of Android into the One. It’s still too early to say if Cyanogen’s efforts will pay off in the long term, but the company is definitely on Google’s radar, and that’s something.
Filed under: Cellphones, Google
Source: The Information
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Samsung’s take on Android L looks very familiar
You’ve probably seen plenty of Google’s stock Android L interface by now, but custom interfaces are another story. What will the OS look like when device makers get hold of it? If SamMobile‘s experience with an early, leaked version of Samsung’s TouchWiz software is any indication, it will be… remarkably familiar. At least on the Galaxy S5, it looks like the current front-end with splashes of Google’s Material Design philosophy thrown in. Core apps and notifications are now full of card-like, colorful elements, but the home screen, app tray and many other elements resemble what you’ve seen on existing Samsung hardware.
This doesn’t preclude a more conspicuous interface redesign for devices built for Android L from the start, of course. Also, SamMobile is quick to warn that this is very rough code. Many animations are missing, and the performance isn’t up to par just yet. And however unfinished this TouchWiz build may be, its mere existence is good news — it suggests that manufacturers could upgrade your device to the latest Android release comparatively quickly.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Samsung
Via: MobileSyrup
Source: SamMobile
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Snake for SmartWatch [‘Watch’ This App]
Smartwatches are amazing things. They have so many amazing functions that can make our lives so much easier, but for far too long the game snake hasn’t been available for smartwatches. The app Snake for SmartWatch changes that. The name says it all it’s the classic game snake that you can play on your smartwatch…. Read more »
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Popular reading app Instapaper is now free on iOS and Android
Thanks to a new subscription model it plans to take on, Instapaper’s making its mobile applications available at no cost starting today. That said, the reading app does plan to lure in users to a premium tier it recently created, which costs $3 per month or $30 a year. If you recall, last year Instapaper was acquired by Betaworks, a company that also owns websites Bitly and Digg, so this recently adopted business scheme is part of the goal to continue growing and developing the read-it-later service. Those who choose to go the premium route will get access to features that won’t be on the free version of the app, such as unlimited highlighting, text-to-speech playlists and others that haven’t been announced yet. Having solid competitors like Pocket meant that Instapaper had to change its pay-for-play ways sooner or later, and this is definitely a great start.
Filed under: Misc, Internet, Software, Mobile
Via: iMore
Source: Instapaper
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Google Play Newsstand gets a redesign and new magazine view
Google is working is working its way through all its apps and updating them in anticipation of the release Android L. Next on the list is Play Newsstand, which most obviously is getting a Material Design facelift. That means a card based UI with bigger images and lots of transitional animations. But a visual revamp on its own isn’t particularly exciting. The best news is that the reading experience for print magazines has been revamped. Until now reading a magazine meant scrolling around a PDF version of the print editions, with a few notable exceptions that had “interactive” editions. Now, you’ll actually be able to browse a list of articles in the issue and open them up in a format that’s much more phone friendly. You get clean easy to read text, without having to sacrifice the big images. Newsstand is also getting much more fine grained control over the topics in the explore section. So instead of just Food & Drink, you can get articles dedicated to vegetarian cuisine or the paleo diet delivered straight to your phone. The new version of Google Play Newsstand will be rolling out on Android over the next week. iOS users will probably have to wait a long while…
Filed under: Software, Mobile, Google
Source: Google
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Download and install Google Play Services 6.1.11 with Google Fit [APK Download]
The latest version of Google Play Services has been released, bringing it to version 6.1.11, and although it includes features users probably won’t notice directly, it has some pretty nice under-the-hood enhancements.
There are a few small UI tweaks, along with the usual performance enhancements, but most notable is the inclusion of an updated preview for Google Fit to allow developers to test their fitness apps on “any Android device”.
The update also includes some enhancements to the Drive Android API, and Google says further changes are coming soon.
You can download the new Google Play Services 6.1.11 APK below.
APK Download
Why Download?
If you’re the type of person who likes to stay on the cutting edge of software then you’ll want to get your hands on the file. And, given software updates can take days or weeks to fully roll out, this ensures you’re moving up in the line.
What’s the Risk?
We’ll only share files or links to files that we feel can be trusted. Google does a great job of signing apps, checking them for malware, and protecting users. If you’re not sure whether you want to download the app at this time, simply wait for your update to arrive. No harm, no foul.
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Dropbox for Android can now move your cloud files to an SD card
If you’re a longtime Dropbox user on Android, you’ve probably bemoaned the lack of SD card support. What good is having gobs of cloud storage if you can’t use all the free space you have on your own phone? At long last, though, Dropbox has released an Android update that lets you export files directly to external storage. It’s a simple addition, but it’s potentially a big deal — you no longer have to worry about downloading that multi-gigabyte video so long as you have a card with enough room. The upgrade is already available in Google Play, so go and grab it if you’re eager to fill up your device.
Filed under: Cellphones, Storage, Internet, Mobile
Source: Dropbox Blog, Google Play
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