Windows 8 has now been out for a couple of weeks, and although many Metro-fied apps were ready for the big launch on the 26th of last month, the big applications from the biggest names are still being released by the hour. Video streaming outlet Vimeo is the latest to join the likes of Skype and The Weather Channel for Windows 8, and the new app allows users to carry out a range of functions with apparent ease.
If there’s one thing that Android makes really good use of, it’s the notification panel. Evolved quite a lot over the new versions, the biggest use I find for the notification drawer (apart from viewing the actual notifications, of course) is quick access to system toggles, which have become so much of a norm that manufacturers are including more and more customized solutions in their stock offerings. Then, there have been AOSP based ROMs like CyanogenMod, MIUI, AOKP etc., that have put as many as 15 toggles in the notification tray, making it almost entirely unnecessary for a casual user to venture inside the Settings menu. With Android 4.2, Google itself seems to have taken a liking to the whole idea, adding versatile quick settings controls in the same drawer. Open source has its advantages, and while your device may not be rocking Android 4.2 yet, you can get a taste of what the toggles feel like, right now.
Whenever a new iOS device releases into the wild, Apple works hard to ensure its software its up to scratch, and any lingering bugs are identified and eradicated post-haste. Aside from the obvious issue of iOS 6 Maps, the release of the latest and greatest mobile firmware from Apple has been relatively incident-free, and having released iOS 6 beta 1 to developers only ten days ago, iOS 6 beta 2 has now been released.
Apple should make iTunes available across the Android and Windows Phone platforms, according to the man affectionately known as Woz.
What with all the noise, hullaballoo and general excitement surrounding the release of the iPad mini, the slightly refreshed iPad 4 has found itself all but forgotten about. Replacing the existing iPad 3, or New iPad, the fourth generation unit is the same as the third bar some tweaks here and there, which may explain the lack of excitement. Still, if you've been waiting for the cellular versions of the tablet to be made available, then you won't have to wait much longer.
In the ongoing war between Apple and Samsung, it is the former which is currently left to lick its wounds after the iPhone maker had to accept new, less favorable terms to a deal for Samsung's chips.
The iPhone 5 has now been with us for approximately seven weeks but if you thought you were going to be sitting at the cutting edge of smartphone technology for a substantial period of time, then a report coming out of China could pour some cold water on that thought. A story coming from the Commercial Times is suggesting that Apple have no intention of resting on their laurels when it comes to updating and upgrading their iPhone hardware and could be planning on initiating a trial production run of iPhone 5S handsets as early as next month.
Sn0wbreeze has finally been updated to v2.9.7, bringing in support for iOS 6 / iOS 6.0.1 on Pre-A5 powered devices such as the iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS and the 4th-gen iPod touch.
The Windows 8 conundrum is perhaps far from over, even if subdued, and whether you love it or hate it (or are completely indifferent, for that matter), it remains a fact that Apple has a really healthy competition in the tablet battlefield for the first time. Windows 8 / RT shows promise in all the right places, and brings an element of ecosystem familiarity that has gained the Cupertino giant its massive numbers quarter over quarter. Things seem to be headed in the right direction, for now.
It's absolutely true that there is an app for just about everything on the App Store. If you want to take notes, there's more than enough choice out there. It's the same if you want a particular genre of game, too. There's one type of app we've not really come across before, though, and it goes by the way of Kount.ly.
