Motorola shows how it could make smartwatches with flexible displays
Motorola has already filed for patents on both wrist-worn gadgets and flexible displays. Today, we’re seeing what happens when the company merges the two technologies. A newly published patent application has revealed a Motorola concept for a smartwatch-like device where both the screen and the shell underneath can flex in tandem. Much like a metal watch band, the chassis would be made of links; grips on each link would bend the display. It’s a simple idea, although we’re not expecting a product out of it any time soon — the company will need flexible circuits before any bendy wearables can reach its roadmap.
Filed under: Peripherals, Wearables, Google
Source: USPTO
Wired’s LED-powered Moto X ad lets you try custom colors before you buy
Designing compelling interactive ads for web is hardly a challenge for experienced marketers, but engaging print magazine readers in a similar way requires significant creativity. One method is through technology — Esquire stood out at newsstands with its attention-grabbing E Ink cover in October 2008, and Forbes turned some heads with a Microsoft ad earlier this year that integrated a functioning T-Mobile WiFi hotspot — but Wired‘s January 2014 issue shall not go without mention, thanks in no small part to a partnership with Motorola.
A trio of LEDs, a slab of plexiglass, four batteries and an array of buttons make up an interactive Moto X ad, right in the middle of the magazine. The design enables readers to “customize” a Moto X’s rear, with bright LEDs illuminating the phone in 11 different colors. Tap blue and the phone lights up blue, yellow and it’s yellow, red for red, and so on. The ad shuts off after a few seconds of inactivity, so those four lithium batteries should last you for quite some time, serving as a reminder of Moto’s accomplishment long after the smartphone is laid to rest, while boosting this issue’s appeal for collectors as well.
Digitas, the advertising agency tasked with creating the ad over the last six months, says 150,000 copies of Wired in New York and Chicago will include the interactive advertisement. It’s available on newsstands in those cities as well, so you should be able to get your hands on one even if you’re not a subscriber. It’s a costly endeavor, no doubt, but if today’s publicity is any indication, it should pay off. Take a closer look in our hands-on (and teardown) video, embedded after the break.
Filed under: Displays, Household, Wireless, Mobile, Google
Source: Motorola
Google’s charity donation app comes to iOS for the holidays
It’s the season of giving, and this year, iOS users will be entitled to share the love with Google’s One Today app. Each day, users will be shown the details of a different non-profit and encouraged to make a $1 donation. It’s a nominal amount, but the company’s hoping people would challenge their friends to match their pledges through social media. Note that Google still takes 1.9 percent per $10 to cover credit card charges, but the company swears it gives the rest of the amount to charities. For now, the project remains US-only, so those outside of the country will have to resort to other methods to help out those in need.
Filed under: Misc, Mobile, Google
Via: Benjamin Cole
Source: Twelve Days of Giving, iTunes
Google Play Music source code suggests browser uploads coming soon
Right now if you want to upload your stash of tunes to Google Play Music, you have to download Music Manager, an application that hooks into your computer’s hard drive so that you can transfer selected audio files to Mountain View’s storage cloud. But what if you don’t want to download yet another piece of software on your already bursting hard drive, or you just want to upload a few songs from a friend’s computer without having to get the app? Well, according to an eagle-eyed tipster of the unofficial Google system blog, you might be able to upload songs directly from the browser in the not-too-distant future. The source code in Google Play Music apparently suggests this via a dialog description text that reads “Drag songs or folders here to add music to your library. Or, if you prefer, select from your computer.” While we’re not sure if Google will actually implement browser uploads for its Music service, the line of code indicates the search giant is at least considering the idea. If you’re a regular Google Play Music user, sound out in the comments below if this would be a welcome feature.
Source: Google System Blog
Google Play Movies Now Available In 13 More Regions
Google Play Movies has never been as big a part of the Google ecosystem to me as say Google Play Books, but there are still plenty of regions that still don’t even have access to the app. Well, that list has just gotten a little bit shorter with Google pushing their movies app to 13 more regions.
The lucky regions in question are:
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Belize
- Botswana
- Fiji
- Hong Kong
- Jamaica
- Nepal
- New Zealand
- Papua New Guinea
- Sri Lanka
- Tanzania
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Zimbabwe
All of these regions can now rent and buy movies from Google’s immense library of films, however, as with restrictions on the app itself, TV shows and streaming are not available outside of the States, the U.K. and Japan.
Who actually uses Google Play Movies a lot? We’d love to hear from you and hear your experiences with the app and how it fits in with your use of Android.
Source: Google Play support via Android Police
This Chromium experiment takes the URL out of the address bar, because why not?
Chromium, Google’s open-source Chrome project, isn’t for the average Joe (or Jane); it’s for open-source fanatics. So today’s two Chromium experiments, announced by Product Evangelist François Beaufort, should give that subset of users something curious and something useful to play with, in that order.
First up is a Chrome OS experiment that mixes up the traditional URL-in-omnibox setup by removing the host URL altogether and placing it within the toolbar, just off to the right side (as pictured above). You can still click on that “origin chip” to display the full URL, as well as permissions data, if you’d like, but the the omnibox will remain empty for — we’re not sure — a cleaner search experience, perhaps? Again, the reasoning behind this odd switch up is unclear, but knowing Google, it likely has to do with reducing clutter in the user interface as much as possible.
The other, much more sensible experiment involves a bit of code that allows you to make any site of your choosing (presumably a favorite) into a Chrome App. The option, once enabled, will appear under Tools in Chrome’s dropdown menu. All it requires is one click and you’re done. And no, you wouldn’t be wrong for thinking of this as a new way to bookmark sites… it is and it’s simple to do.
Just hit up the source below to get cracking on this Chrome customization and that other, weird one if you’re so inclined.
Filed under: Internet, Software, Google
Source: Francois Beaufort (G+), (2)
Google Glass update brings The Wall Street Journal, storm warnings and RSS to your face
Sure, you’ve read The Wall Street Journal, but can you really say you’ve experienced it until you’ve experienced it #throughglass? The Dow Jones-published paper is among the latest batch of Glassware apps coming to Google’s wearable, letting you keep up on breaking news, politics, business and, of course, technology. Weather Alerts, meanwhile, offers 120 different warning categories, including tornadoes and air quality alerts. Also on the docket is Winkfeed, which brings RSS to the device, letting you read news and save stories to your Pocket account. All of those join the recently announced ability to upload videos to YouTube and take part in Google Hangouts through Glass.
Filed under: Google
Source: Google+
Google Play Movies expands to Jamaica, New Zealand and ten other regions
If your local Blockbuster just shut down or you can’t get Netflix in your nation, there’s always Google Play’s Movies. It’s now available in nearly double the countries it was yesterday and 27 total, having added a dozen more nations to its rota. Notable new regions include New Zealand, Hong Kong, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago. If you’re seeking a flick fix there or the other nations (at the source) and have Google TV, Chromecast or an Android device, now’s the time to grab the app.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Internet, HD, Google
Via: Android Central
Source: Google
Opera Max beta compresses most of the data going through your Android device
Opera’s mobile browsers are quite popular because of their ability to compress data, but it’s unfortunately been limited to just that — the browser itself. This becomes less and less useful as smartphones continue to evolve, since our data usage patterns encompass so much more than just the simple browser: many of us are constantly streaming music, uploading and downloading images and apps, and so on. To lighten the hefty load we inflict on our monthly data allotments, Opera has launched a beta of its new Android app called Opera Max, which compresses most of the information that goes through your device — websites, images, videos and many of your usual apps (Instagram and Vine immediately come to mind, but the possibilities are wide open).
Opera makes this happen by setting up a Virtual Private Network (VPN) that measures all of the data coming through your device. Data requests are then sent through Opera’s servers, though the company tells us that it only measures how much data you use and how much you save — in other words, it says your information is safe. There’s no guarantee on how much data you’ll save, but if you’re a gulper like us, we suspect it’ll be a significant amount. While the company hasn’t specified how many beta testers are allowed, it does say that room is limited; if you’re into the idea, you’ll need to join its Google Plus Community, opt in to the beta and then download the app from the Play Store.
Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile, Google
Source: Opera
LG’s 21.5-inch Chromebase all-in-one puts ChromeOS on the desktop
Besides Samsung’s Chromebox series ChromeOS has appeared mostly on laptops, but now LG is ready to put its new Chromebase up against Apple’s iMac and Windows-based all-in-one desktop PCs. According to the spec sheet, that 21.5-inch 1080p LCD hides an Intel Celeron CPU, 2GB of RAM and a 16GB SSD inside, along with an assortment of ports in the back and on the sides. It won’t compete with high-end PCs on horsepower or internal storage, but it’s ready to play a part in Google’s vision of network computers that run mostly web-based apps, are hassle free and require no real maintenance. We’re not expecting to get Steam loaded up on here, but when we’re playing IT for relatives over the holiday something like this may be on our minds. Without a pricetag however, it’s hard to judge this one properly, so we’ll look for that and more information next month at CES.
Source: LG
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