Google+ is the latest Android app to get a Material Design makeover

Google+ is the latest Android app to get a Material Design makeover

Google's quest to bring that extra-flat, extra-colorful Material Design look to everysingleapp is still underway, it seems. The search giant has posted an update to Google+ for Android that flattens even more of the social network's interface and adds splashes of solid color, such as a bright red "new post" button. This isn't just a cosmetic update, mind you. The Photos section is both simpler and better-looking, so it should be easier to share recent snapshots with your circles. At this rate, about the only software Google has left to officially Materialize is Android itself... which might happen soon.

Source: Google Play

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Lamborghini's 910HP plug-in hybrid goes 30 miles on a charge (hands-on)

Lamborghini's 910HP plug-in hybrid goes 30 miles on a charge (hands-on)

Steve Dent

Engadget

Lamborghini knows what you want -- ridiculous, excessive power. But hey, if you need to pick up some groceries, the Italian automaker can do that too. We just got a look at the concept car that proves it, the Lamborghini Asterion, at the Paris Auto Show. It can run in three modes: the first two use only the rear-drive 610HP V10 gas engine or "eco-friendly" 300HP front-drive electric motor system. And if you really need those groceries now, both can join forces to bring an unholy 910HP. More surprisingly, if you're willing to settle for a paltry 300HP, you can actually drive it up to 30 miles or so on the battery alone. %Slideshow-229907%
Lamborghini told us that it has packed in a lot of tech concepts that it might bring later in production cars. For example, the front-wheel-drive electric system -- rather bizarre on a Lambo -- also provides torque vector steering, useful on a high-powered vehicle. It also looks decidedly different from current models, with a curved rear section that resembles an old Lamborghini Miura. The Asterion even has more interior space thanks to a higher profile than, say, the Aventador. Unfortunately, it's strictly a (fully functioning) concept car that'll never reach the market, so don't sell off that Hurrican yet.

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Google allegedly working on its own WhatsApp competitor

Google allegedly working on its own WhatsApp competitor

Google introduced its Android One program earlier this year, which focuses on building budget-friendly, solid quality smartphones for the developing world. Back then, the search giant made it pretty clear that, with help from manufacturers, it wanted to create a big splash in emerging markets -- such as India, where the first Android One devices were revealed last month. But a rumor suggests Google's next step is to build what it couldn't buy when it lost out on messaging king WhatsApp to Facebook. The Economic Times, a trusted Indian news outlet, is now claiming the company from Mountain View has started working on a messaging app of its own that will head to emerging markets first, before potentially launching elsewhere.
Citing sources familiar with Google's plans, The Economic Times says the purported service will "likely" launch in 2015, noting that it's still in the early stages of development. One key way it might differ from the existing Hangouts service is that it wouldn't require a Google account to login, and unlike WhatsApp, it would be entirely free to use. Hooking the service up to Gmail may have helped Google get messaging users in the US, but competing with Whatsapp and its ilk (WeChat, Line, Viber) may require more flexibility and support for different devices.
Source: The Economic Times

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The Tah Bluetooth stick lets you control (almost) anything with a smartphone

The Tah Bluetooth stick lets you control (almost) anything with a smartphone

Daniel Cooper

Engadget

We've seen plenty of development boards, but this might be the first that comes with both Bluetooth LE and built-in USB. Tah is the creation of India's Revealing Hour and has been designed to both lower the cost of adding Bluetooth to Arduino projects, but also to connect your smartphone to other devices in the home. For instance, adding an IR shield will enable you to create a universal remote control for appliances and your TV. Even better, is that you can slot the hardware into your games console and use your smartphone as a controller -- in the video embedded after the break, the company uses a smartphone as a substitute PlayStation controller, and there's an Xbox variant that's currently being developed. Naturally, Tah is currently gathering funds over at CrowdSupply, and its makers need $25,000 to begin manufacturing. If you'd like to get your hands on one, then early-bird customers can snag one for $40, while the late-comers will pay 10 dollars more.
Source: CrowdSupply

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Microsoft sues Samsung over the interest on billion-dollar patent payments

Microsoft sues Samsung over the interest on billion-dollar patent payments

Richard Lawler

Engadget

Microsoft had over a billion reasons (per year) to pursue a patent licensing deal with Samsung back in 2011 over the latter's use of Android. That fact is laid bare by a lawsuit today over the interest on payments (based on the number of Android devices sold) that are supposed to flow from Korea to Redmond. Re/code posted the unsealed lawsuit this evening, showing how despite the existing deal, Microsoft's purchase of Nokia last year lead to Samsung holding up its payment for the second fiscal year of the deal, and then refusing to pay interest on it. All of that is according to Microsoft, which also claims Samsung is threatening to hold off on paying its end for the third year of the seven-year deal. The documents reveal Microsoft's patent licenses cover some 80 percent of the Android phones sold in the US (up from 70 percent in 2012), and that the deal includes provisions for Samsung to lower the amount owed by developing and marketing Windows phones and tablets, and for Microsoft's use of Samsung patents. The amount in question? A paltry $6.9 million, although a decision on whether the deal will remain in force going forward is clearly worth more than that.

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Ariana Grande Shares Her Tips to Staying Healthy

We're so excited that Ariana Grande partnered with WAT-AAH brand water, because she's sharing her tips for staying healthy and hydrated. Water is essential to keeping your body and mind running strong, and Ari sure knows it!

“Living a healthy lifestyle is so important to me,” Ariana said. “My fans are my everything and, because of this, I could only endorse something I believe in. Also, I love drinking water and I want to inspire my fans to do the same."

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Did 5 Seconds of Summer Change Their Name

Even though 5 Seconds of Summer has "summer" in their name, that doesn't mean we are going to start abandoning them now that autumn has hit! But while performing on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, the 5SOS guys sang fall-themed parody lyrics — and even joked about changing their name to suit the season.

"Summer was fun/but I can hear autumn's call/It's time to change our name to/5 Seconds of Fall," they sang.

While it's obviously a big joke, the 5SOS Fan had fun pretending their favorite band was going by a new name.

We think this is just another sign the "Amnesia" singers have a great sense of humor!

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Taylor Swift Revealed How She Really Feels About Her Super-Autobiographical Music

 Taylor Swift  Revealed How She Really Feels About Her Super-Autobiographical Music 

Taylor Swift's confessional songwriting is part of the reason we love her, In a recent interview with Fashion magazine, the "Shake It Off" singer revealed how she really feels about her super-autobiographical music — saying that she gets a sense of satisfaction knowing that the person is hearing her songs!

"There’s a strange, eerie form of justice that happens when someone treats you terribly, you write a song about it, and that song ends up playing all over the world," she said. "You know at some point they’ve heard it in the grocery store, and they can’t escape.”

Taylor obviously means no ill will by it, but we're glad that it helps her work through her experiences.

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Google to launch own mobile chat app: Economic Times

Google to launch own mobile chat app: Economic Times

Reuters

Software giant Google Inc plans to launch a mobile messaging app it is likely to test in India and other emerging markets, the Economic Times newspaper reported on Friday, citing sources.
The daily said Google was in the early stages of development of the app, which will not make it mandatory to use a Google login.
If launched, the mobile app will compete in the mobile chat space with the likes of WhatsApp, Line and Hike.
The Mountain View, California-based company is also looking at localization, by adding Indian language support and voice-to-text messaging, the newspaper said.(http://bit.ly/1mXn7Kj)
A Google spokeswoman said the company did not comment on speculation.
(Reporting by Nivedita Bhattacharjee in Mumbai; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)

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Yahoo plans to invest in Snapchat: WSJ

Yahoo plans to invest in Snapchat: WSJ

Reuters

Yahoo Inc plans to invest a part of the proceeds from the Alibaba Group Holding Ltd stake sale in mobile app Snapchat, which lets users send messages that disappear after a few seconds, the Wall Street Journal said.
Yahoo and Snapchat held talks that are expected to lead to an investment in the mobile-messaging startup’s next funding round, the Journal said, citing three people familiar with the matter.
The round values Snapchat at about $10 billion and it was not clear how much Yahoo plans to invest in the hugely popular application, the Journal said.
Yahoo and Snapchat were not immediately available for comments.
Institutional Venture Partners and DST Global, two previous Snapchat investors, are also planning to invest in the company, the paper reported, citing two people familiar with the matter.
Yahoo's shares were up 1.4 percent at $41.07 in late trading on Friday.
(Reporting By Nayan Das in Bangalore; Editing by Don Sebastian)

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Google's secret brainchild: Giant TV technology

Google's secret brainchild: Giant TV technology

CNBC.com staff

CNBC

Think Legos, but with screens that together make up a giant TV of different sizes and shapes.
This is Google's (GOOGL) latest invention, led by former Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Mary Lou Jepsen, who heads Google's display technology division, reports The Wall Street Journal.
The details of the project are very hush-hush—it's unknown how big the screens are nor the size of the full display. To date, the largest screen is a little more than nine feet diagonally and costs $120,000 on Amazon, said Riddhi Patel, reserach director at NPD DisplaySearch.
A major challenge that the project's team is tackling is how to make the smaller display screens fit together seamlessly so the individual borders are not visible.
"The big challenge is to electronically, and through software, do the stitching between the seams," said a person familiar with the project. The person added that Google is recruiting new experts to solve the problem.
Patel said in theory, these large screens may be used in homes for multi-tasking—a person can watch television, browse the Internet and read email simultaneously on the big screen. 

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Apple plans iPad event on Oct. 16: report

Apple plans iPad event on Oct. 16: report

AFP

On the heels of a major launch of large-screen iPhones, Apple has scheduled an October 16 event to update its iPad line, technology news website Re/code reported Friday.

The event also will include a look at next-generation software for powering Macintosh computers, Re/code said, citing unnamed sources.

The gathering is to take place in an auditorium at Apple's headquarters in the California city of Cupertino, according to the report.

Apple did not reply to an AFP request for comment.
If the report is on target, the iPad event will take place a day before Apple begins selling its latest iPhones in China.

Apple launched the large-screen iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus on September 19 and has rolled the smartphones out to an array of countries, but not China where it took some time to clear licensing hurdles.

Apple's revenue in Greater China -- which includes Hong Kong and Taiwan -- is second only to the United States, and chief executive Tim Cook has said he expects it to become the company's biggest market in time.

Apple, which popularized tablets with its iPad, remained the largest single global vendor in the second quarter but its market share fell to 26.9 percent from 33 percent last year, as Android makers boosted their share, according to the research firm IDC.

iPhone 6 sales soar

The first day of global sales for the phones was a huge success, with Apple breaking its sales record for an opening weekend of a new iPhone model, delivering 10 million in three days and boasting it could have sold more if it had them.

Both new iPhones have larger screens as Apple catches up with the "phablet" trend pioneered by competitors such as Samsung, which has had success with its Galaxy Note series.
The iPhone 6 has a screen of 4.7 inches and the 6 Plus is 5.5 inches, reflecting a growing preference for big screens on smartphones.

Main rival Samsung has long had a range of larger handsets, which are popular in Asia.
Apple made a rare apology last week for a software bug in a freshly released version of iOS mobile operating system that saw iPhone users lose service, and sought to quell a storm over reports that its new handsets are susceptible to bending.

Apple downplayed reports on bending of its newly released oversize iPhone -- one analyst described the damaging claims as "a black eye" for Apple --- saying it had only received nine complaints about the matter.

The statement said that "with normal use a bend in iPhone is extremely rare and through our first six days of sale, a total of nine customers have contacted Apple with a bent iPhone 6 Plus."
Apple released fully updated iOS 8.0.2 software to fix trouble with the original version of the mobile operating system for its gadgets.

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