Facebook's 'new home on Android' announcement on April 4th could, if the latest reports are to be believed, take the form of a home screen dedicated to the social network. The WallStreetJournal has learned that next week's event will give us an overview of the home screen which will apparently "display content from users' Facebook accounts on a smartphone's home screen." More details after the jump.
There's not much we like more than a good emulator here at Redmond Pie. There's something about taking a modern, high specification smartphone and making it run software that was written long before anyone could ever have dreamt about such a think as an iPhone or Galaxy S. We'd call it magical, but Apple might try and take us to court over it.
Apple may already be the big player in online music sales, but it currently has no dog in the music streaming hunt, with the likes of Spotify and Pandora ruling the fledgling market. That doesn't mean that the Apple juggernaut isn't looking to crawl its way into the space that has already proven unpopular with music labels.
Learning to play a new instrument, particularly if you've never familiarized yourself with anything like it before, can be a little daunting. But the Web is a vast library of learning resources, and now, it only takes an Internet connection and access to a decent app, video or tutorial in order to get started. The very first thing one must master - particularly when using a stringed instrument - is tuning; and although it can be a tricky process, it's also essential for getting a good feel of the instrument. Tunable, an app for iOS and Android, not only wants to make tuning just that little bit easier, but with a very beautiful interface, users can also marvel at the stunning visuals produced during the process. More details and download links right after the jump!
In what must be filed as an especially speculative report, Pocketgamer claims to have gotten word from game developers that Apple may be planning to announce some description of standalone controller / joypad in the near future. The Game Developers Conference at San Francisco's Moscone Center concludes today after five days of new and exciting exhibitions and announcements, but under the surface of awards and revelations, it has been revealed that Apple may have been holding hush-hush meetings at the event to discuss its controller endeavors.
There's no doubt, despite less than spectacular early sales, that the Microsoft Surface is a device with great potential. But as many other companies in mobile space have learned, one cannot rely solely on one type of product if it is to make a lasting impression on the market. Thus, it has always been presumed Microsoft would follow the likes of Google and Apple by eventually working its Windows 8 ecosystem for compatibility with smaller tablets akin to the Nexus 7 and iPad mini, and new Windows 8 specifications appear to have opened the door to this possibility.
One of Android’s biggest complaints, or rather, complaints related to the smartphone and tablet OS, is the relatively poor battery life, where most users find it hard to even make it through one full day on a single charge. For this very reason, there exists a slew of battery saving and optimization apps not just in the Google Play Store, but also all over the XDA-Developers forum. Most of these apps deliver what they promise, and are generally very functional. However, there is always room for some new contender in such a market, especially if the approach that it takes is different (and new) compared to existing ones. One similar app in this category is Optimus Battery Saver.
Not so long ago, Google felt it necessary to remove the useful Play Store feature which allowed users to see which apps you'd paid for in the past. What we're left with, is a general summary of every app you've ever downloaded (even those deleted from your device), and while this is not a problem for many, the old system certainly didn't need any alteration. Thankfully, the old system that allowed you to view only purchased apps has made a dramatic return, in the form of a third-party utility called My Purchases.
Facebook has sent out press invitations to an event set to be held on Thursday, April 4th at its Menlo Park HQ in California, and although it would appear from the invite as though the topic of conversation will be Android-related, all sorts of theories are already being offered as to what Mark Zuckerberg's company has up its sleeve. It may well just be that the social network has overhauled the Android app, bringing a series of new and cutting-edge features. But with previous movements and rumors suggesting the company is keen to release a new round of Facebook-branded smartphones or perhaps its own, Facebook-centric OS based on Google's ecosystem, the potential for things to get really interesting is perhaps higher than usual.
As far as prominent figures in the jailbreak community go, Joshua Hill - also known as P0sixninja - is up there with the best of them. If you remove his various public Twitter based meltdowns from the equation, you are left with a person who has undoubtedly been one of the most important components in the production of recent jailbreaks. Although we haven't heard a great deal from him since his rather acrimonious departure from the Chronic Dev Team, it looks like he could be potentially about to propel himself back to the top of the pecking order after claiming to have all the necessary exploits required for the production of a new jailbreak.
