Tidal delivers desktop app, refreshed UI and student pricing
Jay Z’s music-streaming service, Tidal, relies heavily on bringing exclusive content to subscribers. But it knows more features are needed to complement that. Today, in an effort to make the overall experience better for its users, Tidal is launching desktop apps for both Mac and Windows — albeit in beta form. There’s also an updated user interface on mobile and the web, along with the new applications, which comes with extra personalization options, a simplified menu and improved search results. Ticketmaster support has been added too, letting people view artists’ tour dates and purchase concert tickets directly from the music service’s website or apps; Spotify does something similar through Songkick.
Better yet, Tidal’s introducing a new pricing scheme for students. The plan, scheduled to launch next week, will let anyone with a valid .edu email address get a subscription for half the regular price. Tidal currently offers two tiers: $10 and $20. If you’re already a member, though, you can grab the Mac (10.6 and later) or Windows (7 and above) apps from the source link below.
[Image credit: Getty Images]
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Portable Audio/Video, Software, HD
Source: Tidal
Tim Cook says privacy is a fundamental, moral right
It should surprise no one that, while being honored as a champion of privacy, Tim Cook threw shade at Google for its attitude toward its customer data. As TechCrunch reports, Apple’s CEO was speaking at a Washington-based civil liberties non profit and said that his company believed that people had a “fundamental right to privacy.” He went on to say that “the American people demand it, the constitution demands it and morality demands it.” It’s a song that the executive has played several times before, expressing distaste for companies who seek to monetize a user in ways other than to sell them expensive gadgets.
Cook then called out a nameless product that mines your “family photos” to be “sold off for god knows what advertising purpose.” Which, if you weren’t aware, is probably a heavy-handed swipe at Google’s recently (re)launched Photos offering that uses plenty of algorithmic secret-sauce behind the scenes. The topic then moved onto the subject of Government backdoors to smartphone encryption, which the CEO described as “incredibly dangerous.” As far as he’s concerned, “the contents of [their] text messages and [their] video chats is none of our business.”
With Apple’s own annual developers conference kicking off in under a week, we can expect a few more barbs along this subject, and maybe even some improved security features in iOS. Of course, now the ball is firmly in Google’s court to refute the idea that they’re somehow asset-stripping pictures of your nephews for a fast buck.
Filed under: Internet, Software, Google, Acer
Source: TechCrunch
T-Mobile to start Android 5.0 Lollipop roll out for Xperia Z3 at midnight tonight
style=”display:block”
data-ad-client=”ca-pub-8150504804865896″
data-ad-slot=”8461248232″
data-ad-format=”auto”>
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push();
Looks like Sony Xperia Z3 owners on T-Mobile’s network are in for a treat late this evening. A tweet from Des Smith, T-Mobile‘s product man and social media maniac, made the announcement late this afternoon. Being a twitter share his word choice and his details were a bit limited, but he does state that the update is supposed to start rolling out after midnight pacific standard time, so 3 a.m. for those on the east coast. He also mentions that the update will bring Band 12 support.
Software Update: @TMobile #Z3 – #Lollipop + Band 12 support! Should start after Midnight Pacific 
Des pic.twitter.com/766pvQpKsq
— Des (@askdes) June 2, 2015
Android 5.0 Lollipop is news enough, but that Band 12 support is even better news. Band 12 enables T-Mobiles 700 MHz A block spectrum which will do wonderful things for coverage for many people. It is also one of the few devices that T-Mobile offers that supports that band too.
Be on the look out later tonight, or first thing in the morning, for the update to grace your device. You will want to make sure your device is charged up well over 50% battery, have a stable Wi-Fi connection and some time to kill for it download and install. I would imagine it will sit in the 1GB+ size range. Be sure to follow Des through @askdes on twitter to keep up with the happenings of T-Mobile products.
Source: Des Smith Twitter
The post T-Mobile to start Android 5.0 Lollipop roll out for Xperia Z3 at midnight tonight appeared first on AndroidSPIN.
Magic Leap opens its augmented reality platform to developers
Magic Leap’s vision for the future of augmented reality is mind-blowing. However, the mysterious startup, which Google backed with a hefty cash investment, knows this won’t be possible without support from third-party developers. That’s why it plans to open up its AR platform to content creators, including those who make games, films and more. Today’s announcement took place at MIT’s EmTech Digital conference, where CEO Rony Abovitz and other members of Magic Leap’s team took the stage to reveal their intentions. The SDK is expected to support both the Unreal and Unity gaming engines, which signals a good start. If you’re a developer interested in gaining access to these tools, you can register now via the company’s website.
Our own @rabovitz, @zaphodgjd & @nealstephenson taking the stage at this years @techreview conf: pic.twitter.com/OvEbqpbx1S
– Magic Leap, Inc. (@magicleap) June 2, 2015
Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment, Software, HD, Google
Source: TechCrunch
SoundHound takes on Siri and Google with new voice search app
While SoundHound hasn’t seen the tune-searching success as Shazam, the company behind it is taking a similar stance as the competition. Like Shazam’s recent addition of product queries, SoundHound is looking to tackle more than songs too, and it’ll do so with a new app called Hound. It’s more like Siri or Google Now (taking some design cues from the latter), handling searches for weather, directions, hotels, stocks and much more. And yes, the know-how from SoundHound is baked in as well, so you won’t have to wield two apps just in case you need to identify a track by humming.
There’s a voice search option that not only allows you to get specific (see above), but it’ll let you add a secondary set of criteria once you browse the initial results. All you have to do is say “OK Hound” and speak your search info — I wonder where they got that idea. Hound also handles spoken requests by allowing you to speak naturally, as it boasts “Speech-to-Meaning” abilities that recognizes language and not just words. Hound is currently in beta on Android with an iOS version set to join soon.
Google Maps real-time transit info is now available in more places
Public transportation info has been in Google Maps for quite some time, but today the feature is seeing some handy improvements. First, when you select a transit option in the app, you’re served a a list of options that will not only show you the next bus or train, but how long you’ll be playing Candy Crush if you miss it alongside some alternative options. The details are updated in real time and you can expect to leverage the tool in more places, too. Google added partners to the list in six new locales: UK, Netherlands, Budapest, Chicago, San Francisco and Seattle. While public transit info was available for those spots, you can now access real-time info as well. The folks in Mountain View say today’s news brings schedules for over 2.5 million stations, stops, terminals and more worldwide. Heck, you’ll even be able to see when your train leaves on your wrist.
Filed under: Internet, Software, Mobile
Source: Google
Google hopes to count the calories in your food photos
Be careful about snapping pictures of your obscenely tasty meals — one day, your phone might judge you for them. Google recently took the wraps off Im2Calories, a research project that uses deep learning algorithms to count the calories in food photos. The software spots the individual items on your plate and creates a final tally based on the calorie info available for those dishes. If it doesn’t properly guess what you’re eating, you can correct it yourself and improve the system over time. Ideally, Google will also draw from the collective wisdom of foodies to create a truly smart dietary tool — enough experience and it could give you a solid estimate of how much energy you’ll have to burn off at the gym.
This isn’t going to lead to a practical product in the short term. Google only just filed for a patent on Im2Calories’ underlying technology and has no immediate release plans, so you can post dessert photos to Instagram with relatively little guilt. Eventually, though, it could be a staple feature of health apps that help you balance your food habits with your activity levels. And the potential doesn’t stop there, either. While food is the “killer app,” the image recognition code could also apply to traffic prediction and anything else where a series of photos can provide a wealth of data.
[Image credit: Ana Arevalo/AFP/Getty Images]
Filed under: Internet, Software, Google
Via: CNET, The Guardian
Source: Popular Science
GameFly introduces game streaming, Amazon Fire TV exclusive launch device
style=”display:block”
data-ad-client=”ca-pub-8150504804865896″
data-ad-slot=”8461248232″
data-ad-format=”auto”>
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push();
Today the video game buying and renting service, GameFly, has announced that they be launching a game streaming service to deliver AAA titles to your living room. The company also announced that they have recently acquired Playcast Media Systems Ltd., which is a cloud based gaming company that that provided game streaming services to other devices, like Samsung Smart TV’s. With the acquisition of Playcast, GameFly will be able to utilize their game streaming compression engine to deliver titles quickly and efficiently. What makes the news a bit more interesting is that GameFly’s launch partner will be exclusive to the Amazon Fire TV.
“We’re excited to offer the GameFly streaming service worldwide with Playcast’s market ready and scalable technology,” said David Hodess, CEO of GameFly. “This represents the perfect evolution of GameFly by extending its mission of providing the highest quality video games available to gamers however they want to play. We are also very pleased to launch on Amazon Fire TV to make the service available to US consumers.”
“We are thrilled to offer Amazon Fire TV customers exclusive access to GameFly’s streaming service,” said Steve Rabuchin, Vice President, Amazon Appstore. “Amazon Fire TV’s quad core processor can enable powerful streaming of GameFly’s top quality gaming content, which was previously only available on high powered PC’s or consoles.”
The initial launch will bring gamers a number of monthly gaming options that are segmented into various packs; Action, Adventure, Gamer, Speed, Fun and Lego. Each gaming pack includes titles that fit that genre of gaming and will run you $6.99 a month per pack. The launch titles are pretty solid games too, not your unheard of indie developer titles. Not that there aren’t some amazing indie games out there though. Here is the current list at launch, but more will be added over time.
Action Pack (7 titles) – $6.99/month includes F.E.A.R. 3, Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising, Red Faction: Armageddon, Red Faction: Guerilla, Mafia II, Sleeping Dogs, and Hitman
Adventure Pack (7 titles) – $6.99/month includes Dark Void, Overlord II, Darksiders, Darksiders II, Batman: Arkham Asylum, Batman: Arkham City, and Batman: Arkham Origins
Gamer Pack (16 titles) – $9.99/month includes F.E.A.R.3, Red Faction:Armageddon, Red Faction: Guerilla, Sleeping Dogs, Hitman, Darksiders, Darksiders II, Batman: Arkham Asylum, Batman: Arkham City, Batman: Arkham Origins, Shank, Shank 2, Dark Void, Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising, Mafia II, and Overlord II
Speed Pack (7 titles) – $6.99/month includes Ace Combat, Dirt 3, GRID, GRID 2, MotoGP13, Ridge Racer Unbounded, and WRC 4
Fun Pack (7 titles) – $6.99/month includes Flock!, PAC-MAN Championship Edition, PAC-MAN and the Ghostly Adventures, LEGO Harry Potter Years 5-7, Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams, Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams – Rise of the Owlverlord, and BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger
Lego Pack (7 titles) – $6.99/month includes LEGO Batman, LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes, LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham, LEGO Lord of the Rings, LEGO Harry Potter 5-7, LEGO Marvel: Super Heroes, and LEGO The Hobbit
Digging into their site I discovered that the service is set to launch officially on June 2nd in the US. They list out various controller options that will be supported, like the XBox 360 controller, Logitech F-310 or Logitech F-710 game controllers. For an optimal experience they are recommending a wired internet connection with at least 10Mbps of bandwidth, but they also say a 5 GHz Wi-Fi service connection will do the trick too.
If you opted for a Fire TV Stick rather than a Fire TV box, you are out of luck initially. However, GameFly does say they are working on a version of the service for the smaller, less expensive device. Like all things, they don’t offer up a timeline of any sorts.
As an avid gamer, this shows some promise for those that picked up an Amazon Fire TV device. You might want to look at grabbing an extra controller or two if you are planning to give the GameFly streaming service a run. You can find those links down below. To get yourself started with GameFly streaming you will want to head over to the website and submit your name and email address for more information.
http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ac&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=wwwandcom-20&marketplace=amazon®ion=US&placement=B00CX5P8FC&asins=B00CX5P8FC&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true&linkId=OFLPPRBVAWGSUIM2http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ac&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=wwwandcom-20&marketplace=amazon®ion=US&placement=B00DU0ZI8Q&asins=B00DU0ZI8Q&linkId=JA4255OLOQH3PIPD&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=truehttp://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ac&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=wwwandcom-20&marketplace=amazon®ion=US&placement=B00DU15MU4&asins=B00DU15MU4&linkId=IQTY6IPDUVPGRIO3&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true
Via GameFly
The post GameFly introduces game streaming, Amazon Fire TV exclusive launch device appeared first on AndroidSPIN.
More than half of Android devices use Jelly Bean or KitKat
Google’s big developer conference is done for another year, which means that the company is ready to dish out some hot statistics regarding the state of Android’s union. Thankfully, the search engine can boast that Gingerbread no longer runs on a substantial portion of its devices, since it’s only running on 5.6 percent of all hardware. In fact, more than half of the ecosystem now runs Jelly Bean or KitKat, with Ice Cream Sandwich similarly dumped into the footnotes. The company also dug into the figures to reveal that almost half of all Android devices have a screen with a resolution of 240dpi, with only 20 percent of users rocking a weaker display. The TL;DR version of all that is simple: Google’s finally escaping its past, and almost everyone is rocking a device that won’t embarrass you in the playground/office/golf club.
Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Internet, Google
Source: Google
Nintendo’s next console won’t run Android after all
Aside from its codename, we know little about Nintendo’s in-development “NX” console. Yesterday, however, Japanese publication Nikkei claimed to have hit upon a particularly juicy detail about the next-gen gaming system, with its sources stating the NX will run some form of Google’s Android OS. The rumor wasn’t exactly far-fetched, given Nintendo’s plans to get into mobile games this year; but alas, it appears to have been a blast of hot air. Today, a Nintendo spokesperson’s commented on the hearsay — or rather, shot it down in flames — declaring “There is no truth to the report saying that we are planning to adopt Android for NX.” Denials don’t get much clearer than that, but hopefully whatever platform Nintendo’s outfitting the NX with will be less Wii U, more 200cc.
Filed under: Gaming, Software, HD, Google
Source: Wall Street Journal
AIVAnet 