In the modern Digital Age, the primary IM services are WhatsApp, Kik Messenger, iMessage alongside a myriad of others boasting millions of users. But not so long ago, Microsoft's MSN Messenger was the dominant force, but after the Windows maker acquired Skype for the tidy sum of $8.5 billion, things seemed to wane. Now, after 15 long years - the last few of which have been in relative obscurity - the software maker has finally decided to kill off MSN Messenger for good, which means users in China - which is the last place where Messenger lives - will have to say goodbye to Microsoft’s famed messaging service for good.
Sapphire Glass. It sounds so lovely, doesn't it? And for the past few months, it's been used to talk-up the impending iPhone 6. But while Apple will no doubt wax poetic about this material upon the launch of its next-gen smartphone, the only way to tell if it's more than just a gimmick is to see how it holds up against the current Gorilla Glass, and now, a video of the stress test that everyone's been waiting on has emerged.
The guest accounts feature present on most desktop operating systems is key, for it allows users to share their devices and machines with friends or family whilst maintaining privacy. If you just wish to let somebody use the Web for a quick search, though, logging out of your own account and loading up the guest profile is a bit of a drawn-out process. A new Chrome beta released by Google makes it easier to share your Chrome browser with the aforementioned thanks to the introduction of guest mode, meaning that you can permit folk to surf the Web on your device without potentially revealing any of your data.
It's a rumor that crops up every year and has Apple supposedly bringing NFC support to whatever iPhone it is working on at the time. This year has been no different, but with perhaps a little more to it this time around. If you've been hopeful of an NFC equipped iPhone in the past, then you may be in luck.
As well as continuing work on its bread-and-butter services like Search, Maps and Android, Google is always looking to expand with intriguing, innovative advancements. Project Ara is one, Project Glass another, and with self-driving cars also in the works, the Big G has just showcased Project Wing. A drone-powered courier service, Project Wing appears to be a competitor to Amazon's Prime Air, and the aircraft itself is lightweight, completely unmanned, and considered a cross between a helicopter and a plane.
Although most of the rumors we'll be hearing over the next couple of weeks will likely tread on old ground, the fact that we've official confirmation of the iPhone 6 event places renewed emphasis on whatever is divulged. For example, it has long since been suggested that Apple's next-gen iPhone will be pricier than the current-generation iPhone 5s, but with carriers now coming through with figures for the retail run of the fruit company's impending handset, we perhaps didn't realize just how much more it will be costing.
Although many of us have now adapted to the idea of a touch-based keyboard, there are still limitations to this feature. One of the glaringly obvious caveats is that when a keyboard is in use, it can often command half of a device's display real estate, and in some instances, we're forced to cease typing in order to review the content we've written or are replying to. Inconvenient indeed, but the author of the Minuum keyboard, which has a popular following on Android, has pledged its name to the long list of developers porting products over to iOS 8, and with it, confirmed that it will include a neat feature that will see the keyboard adjust in height.
Earlier on today, Apple confirmed the news that the blogosphere had long since suspected - that the special iPhone 6 / iWatch event would indeed be held in 13 days' time on September 9th. Wasting little time, preparations for the keynote are already well under way, and although the Cupertino company is doing its level best to keep everything under wraps, those in the know have already begun trying to piece together what's in store.
For a while now, it has been suggested that Apple will strengthen the front panel of the upcoming iPhone 6 with sapphire glass, but while there have been conflicting reports indicating that only some variants of the impending handset would indulge, one analyst has come through with something a little more clarifying. Apparently, every single model of the 5.5-inch iPhone 6L will be laden in the clearer, more robust sapphire glass material, while only a portion of the 4.7-inch inventory will follow suit.
Microsoft's Xbox One isn't a slick as it might have been, and although we're expecting revised design and coloring options to trickle out over the next few years, one concept maker has come through with something rather special. The matte black finish, which is curved and rounded off to complement the design of the all-new Xbox One controller, has us wishing it were real, and below, you can check it out for yourself.
















