Category: Articles

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Google Previews Android L and Material Design

material design google android lGoogle looks to be streamlining the Android experience, and more polish to the already functional UI will always be appreciated.

For Android L (no candy or dessert title G?) the focus is on flat simple design which improves on the cards layout of apps like Google Now. Dubbed ‘Material Design’, elements will slide in and expand fluidly, and depending on hardware it should render at up to 60fps for buttery smooth transitions.

We should also see improved notification support from the lockscreen, improved battery life with a new battery saver mode, a new Do Not Disturb mode, and support for Bluetooth 4.1.

Developer Previews will be rolling out later today, so get cracking developers! Expect to see L for everyone else later this Fall.

See the new UI elements in action below!

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Qualcomm adds Stopwatch to Toq Smartwatch

qualcomm toq activity tracker update smartwatchIt’s a simple update, but it’s nice to see a company committed to improving their product.

Rolled out this afternoon Toq owners found a new little applet which provides a simple stopwatch and lap timer. It’s one of those things which probably should’ve been included from the beginning, but better late than never.

While it’ll never unseat dedicated fitness trackers, the Toq is shaping up to be one of the better smartwatches for active folks, thanks in part to the screen which is visible in direct sunlight, and these most recent software updates.

If you’re rocking a Toq, check out Google Play to see if you’ve got the update yet, and you can see the watch in action below.

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Amazon Fire Phone Coming Exclusively to AT&T – 32GB for $199 on Contract

feature-fireos._V349436017_The long rumored Amazon phone is official!

The Fire Phone builds off of Amazon’s Kindle ecosystem, delivering a similar “FireOS” user interface running on top of a custom build of Android. This means 3rd party Android apps will be compatible, but Google services wont be included as this will use the Amazon App store instead of Google Play.

The hardware is a mix of mid-range and high-end. I’m glad to see the slightly smaller 4.7″ screen, though it’ll come in at 720p instead of the terrific 1080p found on the HTC M7. The venerable Qualcomm 800 quad-core is on board backed up by 2GB of RAM, plenty powerful for gaming on this screen resolution. Storage comes in 32GB and 64GB flavors, with no MicroSD card expansion it seems like a good platform to push Amazon Cloud Storage, as you can upload photos taken from a Fire Phone for free. Continue reading “Amazon Fire Phone Coming Exclusively to AT&T – 32GB for $199 on Contract”

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Samsung Galaxy S5 LTE-A with QHD Screen Officially Headed for Korea

galaxy-s5-lte-aFollowing LG’s  release of the G3 with a QHD screen, the rumor mill has been cranking on what Samsung’s response might be. It doesn’t look like this is the mythical Galaxy F or S5 Prime, but it could be an indication of where Sammy might go with a beefier Galaxy.

Maintaining the same waterproof body as the “normal” GS5, the LTE-A variant will come with a 2560×1440 resolution screen (QHD) powered by a Qualcomm 805 Quad-Core processor, 3GB of RAM (up one gig from the stock GS5), and will pack 32GB of storage with a MicroSD card slot. Of course the most exciting element of this refresh is the hyper-fast LTE radio capable of connecting to Korean networks with download speeds topping out at 225Mbps. Sure puts our “Super-Fast” Time Warner Cable connection into stark perspective when they start bragging about “50 megs innernet” in my area… Continue reading “Samsung Galaxy S5 LTE-A with QHD Screen Officially Headed for Korea”

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Can a Corporation Commit Homicide?

gm-logo_100168934_mI try not to get too political on this blog, when I do I try to focus on the tech industry. Recently however, an interesting case made a little noise, and I’m curious how my readers feel about it.

You’ve no doubt heard of General Motors recent issues with faulty ignition switches installed in GM cars which have caused at least 54 accidents and 13 deaths. It was a difficult case for the courts to sort as the GM we have today didn’t technically carry the liability of the company which existed before the auto bailouts. The NHTSA determined that GM delayed reporting the problem and ordered the company to pay out a $35 Million civil penalty.

However, prior to this penalty, individual accidents have already been judged. In 2004 Candice Anderson was found guilty of criminally negligent homicide after a collision which took the life of her fiance. Though she had no drugs or alcohol in her system, she was determined to be at fault. She plead guilty to the charges to get a reduced sentence, thankfully not serving any jail time, but she has a felony conviction on her record.

With GM in the news, she recently discovered that GM counted her fiance’s death as one of the 13 lives lost due to these faulty ignition switches.

Continue reading “Can a Corporation Commit Homicide?”

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Silicon Wadi Attracts Richard Meier Designed Tower

WP_20140609_18_51_59_ProSilicon Wadi (Hebrew for “Valley”) attracts some the largest players in the tech industry. Microsoft, IBM, Intel, Google and other large players keep offices and facilities in and around Tel Aviv, Israel. With that kind of tech talent on tap, it should come as no surprise that it’s also one of the hottest markets for tech start ups, second only behind Silicon Valley in the United States.

That kind of talent and money also attracts ambitious land development. Unveiled at an event in Beverly Hills, the John Aaroe group showed off their tower nearing completion in Tel Aviv. While I often don’t blog about architecture and real estate, the Meier on Rothschild tower was designed by none other than Richard Meier who gave us the amazing Getty Center in Los Angeles, which happens to be one of my favorite places on the planet.

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What could be more appropriate than a white tower in The White City, designed by the same man who gave us The Getty Center?

$50 million Apartment in Meier-on-Rothschild Tower Still Awaits for BuyerOf course this kind of gorgeous design doesn’t come cheap, and a penthouse view from this forty-two story tower, which is only minutes away from the Mediterranean Sea, will run you in the ballpark of around $50 Million dollars.

However, if you just sold Waze to Google, that might not be too steep a price tag…

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Portland City Council Unanimously Approves Google Fiber Franchise

Google-Fiber1It’s a critical first step to offering up Gigabit to the citizens of Portland Oregon.

The Oregonian is reporting that Portland’s City Council has approved Google’s franchise agreement. Google is looking to roll out gigabit broadband in the city and surrounding suburbs. Google will have until year’s end to decide whether it wants to start offering the service to residents, and that could depend on the other cities near Portland where Google also wants to offer Fiber.

Interestingly enough, part of the Franchise agreement depended on a joint Portland+Google legal defense strategy if other ISP’s get cranky about potential preferential treatment.

After that, Fiber could still be delayed by zoning and licensing issues, but it’s an encouraging step in the right direction for folks wanting more broadband competition.

(Via Oregon Live)

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First Google Voice App update in 9 Months Brings No Updates or Improvements

google voice updateWell now you’re just teasing us Google.

Google’s telephony service Voice is seeing its first update in months, and what new awesome features or improvements can we look forward to?

Well… None actually…

No seriously. Firing up the app just brings a new pop up about how international rates will be announced before calls. I guess that’s… Cool?

Voice is starting to feel a little neglected. When Android 4.4.2 was released, it changed how Android handles defaults, and Voice can no longer be selected as the default SMS app. This is supremely frustrating for those of us who have been using Voice as our primary phone number.

default sms apps android kitkatWe can be pretty sure that Voice will get swallowed up by the Hangouts app eventually, but there are no indications of this transition happening in this new Voice update.

Kind of a bummer. The update should be rolling out over the next couple days on Google Play, but it’s really no big deal if you get it anytime soon.

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