Volkswagon revealed at CES 2015 that it will launch Android Auto support later this year. The automaker has stated that its next generation modular infotainment platform (MIB II) will include support for Apple’s CarPlay and Android Auto.
Volkswagon's MIB II dash electronics, which launched in some countries in 2014 and will come to the US in 2015. MIB II also supports MirrorLink, a similar technology supported by Sony. VW's MirrorLink support will work with its My Guide, Think Blue. Trainer, Shared Audio, and Sound Journey apps. My Guide flags up nearby points-of-interest, such as restaurants, while Think Blue is an eco-driving instructor, throwing out tips for minimizing gas use.
Android Auto and CarPlay support will be launched under the company’s App-Connect label. Volkswagon said Android Auto will support devices from the likes of Samsung, HTC, LG, and Sony, while CarPlay will support Apple's iPhone. The services will allow smartphone owners to access their device content, apps, and services through the infotainment console of their Volkswagen.
Volkswagan support for Android Auto was announced back at Google I/O 2014, but with no set launch date or specific compatibility information. The first cars to show up with the modular infotainment platform II will be on the market in ...Volkswagon revealed at CES 2015 that it will launch Android Auto support later this year. The automaker has stated that its next generation modular infotainment platform (MIB II) will include support for Apple’s CarPlay and Android Auto.
Volkswagon's MIB II dash electronics, which launched in some countries in 2014 and will come to the US in 2015. MIB II also supports MirrorLink, a similar technology supported by Sony. VW's MirrorLink support will work with its My Guide, Think Blue. Trainer, Shared Audio, and Sound Journey apps. My Guide flags up nearby points-of-interest, such as restaurants, while Think Blue is an eco-driving instructor, throwing out tips for minimizing gas use.
Android Auto and CarPlay support will be launched under the company’s App-Connect label. Volkswagon said Android Auto will support devices from the likes of Samsung, HTC, LG, and Sony, while CarPlay will support Apple's iPhone. The services will allow smartphone owners to access their device content, apps, and services through the infotainment console of their Volkswagen.
Volkswagan support for Android Auto was announced back at Google I/O 2014, but with no set launch date or specific compatibility information. The first cars to show up with the modular infotainment platform II will be on the market in ...
YouTube is gearing up to add support for 360 degree videos, according to a new report from Gizmodo. Google has revealed to the publication that the 360 degree video feature will hit YouTube in coming weeks.
Currently no other information about how the company plans to implement the feature on YouTube. A 360 degree video is taken only by using a camera that supports the feature. Giroptic, makers of what it claims to be the world’s first 360-degree full HD camera, told The Verge that its 360 camera will be the first of its kind to be supported natively by YouTube. Other cameras that support 360 degree videos are the Ricoh Theta, Kodak SP360, Giroptic 360cam, VSN V.360, Bublcam and so on.
360 degree videos give even a greater experience using a virtual reality headsets like Google's Cardboard and Samsung's Gear VR. This could be a new venture and we will have to wait and see how will the 360 degree videos avenue will hit YouTube.
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Soon after the Android 5.0 (Lollipop) announcement from Google, Sony Mobile confirmed that it will update the entire Xperia Z series of smartphones and tablets to Android Lollipop. Today the company announced at its CES 2015 press conference that it will start rolling the Lollipop update for its Z series globally starting from next month, which is February.
The list of Z series devices that would get the Android 5.0 Lollipop update include, Xperia Z, Xperia ZL, Xperia ZR, Xperia Tablet Z, Xperia Z1, Xperia Z1 S, Xperia Z Ultra, Xperia Z1 Compact, Xperia Z2, Xperia Z2 Tablet, Xperia Z3, Xperia Z3v, Xperia Z3 Compact and Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact.
The Sony Xperia Z Ultra Google Play Edition already got the Lollipop update directly from Google last month. The Android 5.0 Lollipop brings Material Design with bold, colorful, and responsive UI design, better notifications, battery saver feature, better security including Android Smart Lock, New Quick Settings, Improved network handoffs, flexible sharing, faster, smoother and more powerful experience with ART, 15 new languages and more.
Sony will reveal other roll out details next month.
SmartThings, the smart home company from Samsung has announced new features, updates and integrations to its service at the ongoing CES 2015.
The new version of the SmartThings Hub, which connects all compatible home sensors, features an improved processor, a local app engine, built-in backup battery power, and expanded connectivity protocol options. New and improved Hub also adds some updated connectivity, in the shape of Bluetooth Smart, which will expand the number of devices it can connect to.
Samsung has reduced the size of the sensors like SmartSense Presence, SmartSense Motion, and SmartSense Multi to almost one third the size of its predecessor. The new third-party integrations include compatibility with Netgear Wi-Fi cameras, Honeywell thermostats, Philips Hue bulbs, August locks, Chamberlain garage-door openers and all Samsung smart appliances.
The Korean electronics giant acquired SmartThings last August for a reported $200 million. The new SmartThings Hub will go on sale in the US and Canada in April 2015, as will the new sensors and the premium subscription service.
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Atari has launched a fitness app in collaboration with Michael Porter, certified personal trainer. Dubbed as 'Atari Fit', the app will come to mobile devices this year.
The Atari fitness app will have 150 exercise routines and custom programs in the app, ready to go – with tracking facilities for all of the key exercise metrics, like distance, speed, pace and calories burned. There will also be a multiplayer mode, enabling you to virtually work out against your friends – and there will even be online leaderboards.
“Atari Fit is the first fitness app to motivate and reward players with gameplay for being active in between gaming sessions. It’s a gamified fitness experience with an Atari twist. Players are motivated to work toward their fitness goals, while offering a fun, competitive experience where they earn coins and can unlock their favorite classic Atari games. The team and leaderboard components are especially unique to the Atari Fit experience, as players around the globe can exercise, play and get healthy together.”
said Fred Chesnais, Chief Executive Officer, Atari in a press release.
One of the key selling points of the fitness app is that it will motivates users to exercise individually or in collaboration with friends, ...
Vodafone have announced they have secured a six-week exclusive on the LG G Flex 2 which was announced at CES 2015 yesterday in Las Vegas. The follow-up to the LG G Flex - which launched in November 2013 - brings improvements to the processor, OS, screen and camera and will go on sale in Korea at the end of this month before launching in the UK next month.
The LG G Flex 2 is powered by the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 processor with a 2GHz 64-bit octa-core CPU and runs on the new Android 5.0 Lollipop operating system. It features a smaller 5 inch display - versus six inches on the G Flex - with Full HD 1080p resolution, which is an upgrade to the 720p panel on the G Flex. The G Flex 2 comes with 2GB RAM, 16GB internal storage and a range of connectivity options including LTE Cat 6, Bluetooth 4.1, Wireless n/ac and NFC.
The G Flex 2 also comes with LG's self-healing back cover from the LG G3 last year and takes just ten seconds to heal at room temperature (a large improvement from three minutes on the LG G3). LG said that the G Flex 2 ...
Lenovo recently announced that it is planning to a launch a new 4G LTE smartphone in India with an affordable price tag. Today, we know that the upcoming model is nothing but the ‘K3’ which the company unveiled in its homeland a couple of weeks ago.
While the smartphone has been named as K3 in the Chinese market, Lenovo hasn’t finalised the naming scheme of the device in India, according to a report.
The hardware configuration of Lenovo K3 is already known and if you aren’t aware of it yet, here’s what the smartphone has got to offer – a 5-inch HD display, 64-bit Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 processor, 1GB of RAM, 8GB of internal storage, dual-SIM capabilities and a 2,300mAh battery.
One of the most prominent features of the Lenovo’s upcoming smartphone is its ability to support 4G LTE network. The device is said to be priced around INR 8,000 in the Indian market and if it turns out to be true, the K3 will the most affordable LTE smartphone out there.
Lenovo’s K3 will compete against the likes of Xiaomi Redmi Note 4G and it will be interesting to see which of these two Chinese smartphones will win the hearts of ...
Alcatel OneTouch have unveiled their first smartwatch at CES 2015 this week - named the Alcatel Watch, it is a cost-effective entrant into the wearables arena and unlike many current smartwatches, it supports both the Android and iOS platforms.
The Alcatel OneTouch WATCH looks similar to the Motorola Moto 360 but unlike the Moto 360 and most other current smartwatches, it doesn't run on the Android Wear platform. Instead, it uses a companion app installed on your phone to connect from either iOS or Android and this app allows you to choose the notifications that appear on your watch, adjust your watch face and see health data collected by the watch.
Like many other smartwatches, the Alcatel OneTouch Watch comes with an integrated heart rate sensor alongside other sensors including accelerometer, gyrometer, altimeter and compass. The health data available is likely to include the number of steps taken, distance travelled, number of calories burnt and the time spent sleeping - it's unclear if the sleep information will also include information such as quality of sleep.
Another area where the Alcatel OneTouch Watch could excel is in its battery life - according to Alcatel OneTouch, it is capable of two days battery life on ...
Acer launched the Liquid E700 smartphone with Triple-SIM support recently priced at Rs. 11,999. We already brought you the unboxing, photo gallery and battery test results for the smartphone. It is powered by a quad-core MediaTek MT6582 processor with four ARM Cortex A7 CPUs clocked at 1.3GHz per core and has Mali 400 GPU. It has a 5-inch HD display, comes with 2GB RAM and runs on Android 4.4 (KitKat). Check out the synthetic benchmark scores below.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kt3w0lhaUDs
Quadrant Benchmark
It scored 7347 points in the Quadrant benchmark.
AnTuTu Benchmark 4
It scored 17491 points in the AnTuTu Benchmark 4.
Vellamo 2.0 HTML5
It scored 1952 points in the Vellamo 2 HTML5 browser benchmark and lies behind the Obi Hornbill smartphone.
Vellamo 2.0 Metal
It scored 589 points in the Vellamo 2 Metal CPU subsystem performance test.
Linpack Single Thread
It clocked around 115.31 MFLOPS in the Linpack Single Thread benchmark.
Linpack Multi-Thread
It clocked around 258.2 MFLOPS in the Linpack Multi-Thread benchmark.
NenaMark 2
It clocked 54.5fps in the NenaMark 2 GPU benchmark.
GFXBench 2.7 T-Rex (On screen)
It clocked 7.1fps in the GFXBench 2.7 T-Rex OnScreen benchmark.
Basemark X 1.0 HD (Onscreen)
It managed to clock around 4.7fps in the Basemark X 1.0 OnScreen benchmark.
Basemark X 1.0 HD (Offscreen)
It managed to clock around 2.6fps in the Basemark X 1.0 OffScreen benchmark.
Basemark OS ...
vivo launched the Y15 entry-level smartphone last month priced at Rs. 8990 (MRP). Here we have the unboxing of the smartphone.
Box Contents
vivo Y15 smartphone in white color
2-pin AC charger
Earphones with microphone
Micro USB cable
1900mAh battery
Quick start guide
Here are the specifications of the vivo Y15 smartphone
4.5-inch FWVGA (854 × 480 pixels) multi-touch IPS display
1.3 GHz quad-core processor
512MB RAM, 4GB internal memory, Expandable memory with micro SD
Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) OS
Dual SIM with Dual Standby
5MP Autofocus Camera with LED flash
2MP front-facing camera
Dimensions: 130.4 x 65.85 x 8.9 mm; Weight: 139g
3.5mm audio jack, FM Radio
3G, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth with A2DP and GPS
1900 mAh battery
The smartphone has nice design with curved corners and the build quality is decent, but it is slightly costly for its features. We will be brining you the photo gallery, benchmarks and more soon.
Micromax has launched Canvas Breeze Tab P660, the company’s latest tablet with 3G connectivity via dual SIM card slots and voice calling capabilities. It has a 7.85-inch (768 x 1024 pixels) IPS display, is powered by a 1.2 GHz quad-core processor and runs on Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean). It has a 5-megapixel rear camera and a 2-megapixel front-facing camera. It is just 6.9 mm thick.
Micromax launched the Canvas Tab P666 with 8-inch HD display, dual-core Intel Atom processor and Android 4.4 (KitKat) back in November last year for Rs. 10,999.
Micromax Canvas Breeze Tab P660 specifications
7.85-inch (768 x 1024 pixels) IPS display
1.2 GHz quad-core MediaTek MT8389WM processor
1GB RAM, 8GB internal memory, expandable up to 32GB with microSD
Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean)
Dual SIM
5MP rear camera
2MP front-facing camera
3G, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth, GPS
4000mAh battery
The Micromax Canvas Breeze Tab P606 comes in black and red colors and is priced at Rs. 9,999. It will be available exclusively from Snapdeal. It comes with 500 MB( 2G +3G ) data per month for 6 months for Aircel customers and a free Micromax MMX440W Wireless Router with 4400mAh power bank worth Rs. 2,499 (MRP).
Lenovo today announced two new Android tablets, Tab 2 A7-10 and Tab 2 A7-30 in the A-series. These Tab 2 series of tablets, successors of last year's A7-30 have 7-inch (1024 x 600) IPS displays, are powered by a , 1.3GHz Quad-Core MediaTek MT8382M SoCs and runs on Android 4.4 KitKat. Both these have 1GB RAM, 8GB of internal storage and pack a 3450mAh battery. The Tab 2 A7-30 also comes in 16GB variant.
The Lenovo A7-30 comes in WiFi and 3G with voice calling support and the Tab 2 A7-10 comes only in Wi-Fi version.
Lenovo Tab 2 A7-10 specifications
7-inch (1024 x 600 pixels) IPS display
1.3 GHz quad-core MediaTek MT8382M processor
1GB RAM, 8GB internal memory, expandable up to 32GB via microSD
Android 4.4 (KitKat) OS, upgradeable to Android 5.0
9.3mm thick and weighs 269 grams
0.3MP (VGA) front-facing camera
3.5mm audio jack, front-facing speaker, Dolby Audio
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS
3450 mAh battery
Lenovo Tab 2 A7-30 specifications
7-inch (1024 x 600 pixels) IPS infinity display
1.3 GHz quad-core MediaTek MT8382M processor
1GB RAM, 8GB / 16GB nternal memory, expandable up to 32GB via microSD
Android 4.4 (KitKat) OS, upgradeable to Android 5.0
8.9mm thick and weighs 269 grams
2MP rear camera
0.3MP (VGA) front-facing camera
3.5mm audio jack, front-facing speaker, Dolby Audio
3G (with voice calling), WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS
3450 mAh battery
The Lenovo TAB 2 A7-10 and A7-30 tablets start ...
TCL Communications, parent company of Alcatel Onetouch, has confirmed that it has acquired the Palm brand. The confirmation comes a week after rumors about the acquisition.
The Chinese electronic maker will resurrect the Palm brand but it is not sure what will it exactly do with it. TCL is seeking ideas and suggestion from the mobile community on new devices, software, apps and so on. With the acquisition of the global Palm trademarks from HP, it now plans to offer Palm-branded phones as well.
"We are interested in the brand because we believe the brand has value. It was once a very strong brand and there are many fans of this brand around the world, including people at TCL."
told TCL CEO, George Guo to PhoneScoop.
TCL stated that it plans to deliver absolute breakthrough innovations in Technology, Design, User Experience, Eco-system, Marketing, Supply Chain, and Business Models.TCL already sells Android-based smartphones in various global markets under the Alcatel OneTouch brand. It remains to be seen whether TCL will bring a Palm smartphone running on Android.
UC browser has jumped to number one spot and become the largest third party browser in the world, according to a latest report from Statcounter.
UC browser reached a market share of 11.1%, becoming the 4th most popular mobile browser after Chrome, Safari and Android Browser, said the report. Unlike the other three mobile browsers, UC Browser is not a default app on Android or iOS, making it the largest third party mobile browser in the world. Giving insights about user base in India, the report stated that UC Browser captured 41.23% of total mobile browser usage in India, up 9% from the year earlier. Its Daily Active User (DAU), has registered nearly 50% growth second half of 2014, garnering millions of mobile users’ loyalty and advocacy in India.
In overall mobile browser Chrome, Safari and Android Browser are the top three with 29.76 per cent, 21.94 per cent and 18.87 market share respectively. UC browser crossed 500 million users globally in March last year.
Micromax's YU launched the YU YUREKA (AO5510) smartphone running Cyanogen OS last month for Rs. 8,999. We already brought you the a hands on impressions,unboxing and a comparison gallery of the phone with the OnePlus One. Now let's compare the phone with Xiaomi Redmi Note in our comparison photo gallery.
The YU Yureka has a 5.5-inch (1280 x 720 pixels) IPS display and is powered by a Octa-Core 64-bit Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 (4×1.5GHz + 4×1.0GHz) processor. It runs on Cyanogen OS 11 based on Android 4.4 (KitKat). The Xiaomi Redmi Note on the other hand has a 5.5-inch (1280 x 720 pixels) IPS display based on OGS technology and 178-degree wide viewing angle. It has a 1.7 GHz Octa-Core MediaTek MT6592 processor with Mali 450 GPU and runs on MIUI v5 ROM based on Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean). Both the devices have a 5MP front facing camera.
Both the phones have capacitive touch buttons below the display.
The YU Yureka is entirely made of plastic although it has a matte finish on the back that gives it a smooth rubber-like feel. Redmi Note is also encompassed in a plastic body, but it has shiny finish. Both the phones have a removable back cover. ...
WhatsApp messenger is continuing to multiply the user base and the popular messenger now has 700 million monthly active users. This numbers has increased by 250 million more users since February 2014, when Facebook announced plans to buy WhatsApp for $19 billion.
WhatsApp had 600 million users in August, which means that the service has added more than 100 million monthly active users in just four months. The popular mobile messenger is now sending over 30 billion messages everyday.
"Today, we’re thrilled to share that WhatsApp has more than 700 million monthly active users. Additionally, every day our users now send over 30 billion messages. "
announced WhatsApp CEO, Jan Koum in a Facebook post.
In comparison Facebook Messenger has 500 million users while Instagram has 300 million Twitter has 284 million users. Facebook still remains the largest social network with 1.35 billion monthly active users. WhatsApp is now gearing up to add voice calling feature to its service this year. Screenshots of the features have been leaked couple of times last year suggesting the launch is inching closer.
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Google recently updated its Hangouts app for iPhone and iPad to add several new features, including intelligent, one-tap location sharing. It automatically detects when a contact in a text chat asks where you are, and lets you share your location with a single tap. This also adds option to access SMS and voicemail messages from your Google Voice account, new stickers and more. Check out the complete changelog below.
New features in Google Hangouts v2.5.0
New sticker packs!
When friends ask where you are, share your location in one click with smart sharing suggestions.
Leave status messages so people know what you're up to or how you're feeling.
Find your friends and family on Hangouts more easily by phone number.
See SMS and Voicemails from your Google Voice account.
Improved video call experience and misc bug fixes.
Google Hangouts for iOS v2.5.0 update is available from the
Toshiba has unveiled two models of Encore 2 Write tablets that come with a pressure-sensitive pen and an ultra-responsive screen for more paper-like precision.
The company has revealed 8 inch Encore 2 Write WT10PE-A and 10.1 inch Encore 2 Write WT8PE-B which come with 1280x800 display. Both are powered by Windows and use an Intel Atom processor. 2GB of RAM, 64GB of storage, an 8-megapixel rear-facing camera, and battery life of up to 11 hours.
The Encore 2 Write tablets includes a multi-touch screen with innovative sensor technology that supports sharp pen strokes so you can write more naturally on the tablet’s surface, Both the tablets will come with a one-year subscription to Microsoft Office 365, along with a preinstalled TruNote handwriting application. Toshiba Encore 2 Write tablets will go on sale January 11th starting at $349.99 for the 8-inch variant and $399.99 for the 10-inch version in "satin gold flavour".
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MHL Consortium has announced the superMHL specifications, the next-generation of MHL technology for CE and mobile devices. It offers higher resolution and frame rates along with 40W of power charging, support up to 8K video resolution and expanded audio formats. This enables consumers to link their mobile devices, set-top boxes (STBs), Blu-ray Disc players, AVRs, streaming media sticks and other source devices to TVs and displays.
MHL has introduced the new reversible 32 pin superMHL connector with support for 6 high-speed data lanes can carry concurrent video, data and power charging all in a slim, consumer-friendly form factor. Since it has a reversible design, consumers don’t have to worry about the plug’s orientation or the cable’s direction eliminating frustration and offering a high level of flexibility.
Connectors supported in superMHL specification include, Micro-USB (Source), USB Type-C (Source), Proprietary connectors (Source), HDMI Type-A (Sinks) and superMHL connector (Sources and Sinks).
Commenting on the announcement of superMHL, Rob Tobias, president, MHL, LLC, said:
MHL enables consumers to share what they love – photos, videos, music and ideas – with the world around them. Our goal is to make content more meaningful and accessible. With the release of superMHL, consumers can experience content beyond resolution, focus on ...
Wacom has unveiled new Cintiq Companion 2 touchscreen tablet that is aimed at professional creators of digital content. The Cintiq Companion 2 has a 13.3-inch high-resolution 2560×1440 resolution display.
The Cintiq Companion 2 comes with 4-16GB of RAM, and 64-512GB Solid State storage. It measures 14.7 x 9.9 x 0.6 inches and weighs 1.75 kgs. The device comes with advanced controls like the Wacom Pro-Pen and multi touch. It can operate either as a standalone Windows 8 tablet or as a secondary display connected to a computer has redesigned and additional controls called ExpressKeys that can be used for different shortcuts. The tablet runs Windows 8.1 on Intel processors and incorporates a specially finished, super-sensitive screen meant to replicate a "natural pen-on-paper feel."
The Cintiq Companion 2 will be available at the Wacom eStore in several configurations this February. The Entry version with 64GB SSD will be $1,299.99. The Value version with 128GB SSD will be $1,599.99. And the Standard version with 256GB SSD will be $1,999.99. The Premium version with 512GB SSD is expected to be available in the spring at $2,499.99.
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