If you're lucky enough to be able to pick up both a PlayStation 4 and an Xbox One this holiday season then there's one party trick that is sure to have your friends green with envy, and if we're honest you can probably put us in that bracket too.
JoinedJanuary 21, 2011
Articles20,352
Oliver Haslam has written about technology for over a decade. His work has been published in print at Macworld and online pretty much everywhere else. If it plugs in or has a battery, it's fair game.
Apple's Touch ID had been rumored to be on its way to devices for some time, and when it was finally unveiled as part of the iPhone 5s we all marveled at how Apple managed to take a fingerprint sensor and build it right into the Home button to the extent that you wouldn't know it was there. These things always seem even more impressive when shown as part of an exploded diagram, which is why everyone should take notice of the fact that Apple's Touch ID is now part of a patent application with the United States Patent & Trademark Office.
We've already spoken about our high hopes for what Apple's iBeacon may turn into and we've made no bones about the fact that it may be the best kept secret of iOS 7, considering it got little to no press when the mobile operating system launched a couple of months ago. It seems that some people were paying attention though, and hot on the heels of Major League Baseball's decision to trial iBeacon at ball parks, department store Macy's is also putting Apple's location aware technology through its paces at some of its own stores.
Tweetbot may be best known for its presence on iOS thanks to it being possibly the most popular Twitter app on the platform, but what some may forget is that Tweetbot has also got a home on the Mac after Tapbots brought the popular app across to the desktop. It's been chugging along nicely ever since, and today received a sizeable update that brings one or two features that will be useful to anyone who happens to be using OS X Mavericks 10.9.
Jailbreaking and unlocking our smartphones and tablets may be something that those in civilized countries take for granted, but that doesn't mean that everyone has the same luxury. Those in the United States for example currently find themselves in a situation where unlocking a smartphone is illegal, as is jailbreaking a tablet. Oddly, jailbreaking a smartphone is not. Who thinks these things up?
Back when Google announced its new Nexus 5 smartphone, the company promised that fans of the device would be able to pick up two rather important accessories sooner rather than later. Both of those accessories can now be ordered from the Google Play Store, meaning those wanting to pick up either a wireless charging station or one of Google's bumper cases can now spend to their heart's content.
Microsoft is busy getting ready for its Xbox One release around the globe, but that doesn't mean that it hasn't been able to find time to release a new Xbox One edition of its SmartGlass app that allows owners of smartphones and tablets to interact with their new game console without having to pick up a controller.
Google Glass goes through good and bad spells. Sometimes Google's wearable technology is front and center, very much in the limelight and showing us all where computers of tomorrow may take us. Other times, Glass feels like something of an afterthought, or perhaps Google's hobby rather than something that it truly believes will be the future of how we receive information when on the move. Today is very much the former, with Google offering developers a sneak peek at its Glass software development kit, called the Glass Development Kit, or GDK.
An official guide on how to fix the PlayStation 4 blinking blue light of death issue which users are experiencing has been posted by Sony. More details can be found right here.
One of the accusations often leveled at the majority of Android smartphones is that they often don't make the best cameras. Granted there are the exceptions to the rule, but right now many would say that Nokia is leading the way when it comes to taking the best photos with a smartphone, perhaps followed by Apple.
