A new release of a mobile operating system is always met with a frenzy, and as well as giving the new firmware the once over, consumers are always anxious to learn whether their device will be getting an update, and when.
There were plenty of question marks raised when Samsung first announced its eagerly-awaited Galaxy S III device, the most puzzling being the lack of a black version. Invariably, the black version of a smartphone is the standard, with colors like white and, as Samsung calls it, "pebble blue," being options for those looking for something a little edgier.
If you happen to be one of those people who keep abreast with technology and open-source projects, or additionally just love movies and media in general, then the chances are; you will already be familiar with the extremely popular XBMC application. Over the last few years, XBMC has dramatically risen in popularity, with users loving the fact that it is not only free and open-source, but also cross-platform and extremely powerful. The project itself is supported by a host of volunteers from around the world, and although it is popular on things like the jailbroken Apple TV, it really comes into its own when installed and used on a high-end media PC.
The majority of the iOS community will more than likely be familiar with the work of French iOS security researcher Pod2g. For the better part of this year, the iOS security enthusiast has been working hard on finding and exploiting various bugs in iOS that have led to the production of jailbreaks for various iOS devices. He has also been seen out in the wild at various security conferences, including the HITBSecConf and has been nominated for a Pwnie Award for his kernel exploit that was used in the Corona jailbreak.
Although the Mac App Store is still relatively in its infancy, it is already home to a large array of fantastic and powerful apps, all located in one central hub. Working in a similar fashion to the iOS variant, the dedicated store for OS X based apps is broken down into different categories and makes it extremely easy to sift through free and chargeable apps that may make our day to day Mac usage more productive or just a lot more fun and engaging.
Need for Speed is one of the most exciting driving titles on the market. If you like tooling around in super cars, injecting them with subhuman doses of nitrous before bursting corners and markers at light-speed, then you've more than likely played at least one iteration of Need for Speed, and the next in line - Need for Speed: Most Wanted - won't be breaking from that mold for anybody. In fact, it's one of those enthralling motor-based gaming series where very little braking is actually done at all, and although it can be quite repetitive in terms of gameplay, the missions and achievements always keep drivers coming back for more.
Command & Conquer, for those who've not had the pleasure of acquainting themselves with the real-time strategy franchise, is one of the most enticing, addictive series ever to grace the gaming world, and an adaptation/sequel Command & Conquer: Generals - which first released a number of years ago - is set to be launching in the near future as a free-to-play.
Amid the talk of the next-generation iPhone and a smaller, "iPad Mini" device, it's easily forgotten that all of Apple's iOS devices evolved from the iPod - a long-standing series of music and media players which started off as a basic, yet elegant figure in the cauldron of digital players on the market.
Instagram has managed to make itself one of the most popular and well-known apps on the App Store and Google Play Store, notching up over 80 million registered members on its extremely eventful journey. The Instagram story hasn't been without its set backs, as you might expect from a team of developers venturing into the unknown on a relatively new platform, but with the membership-base growing everyday and the relatively recent acquisition by Facebook, Kevin Systrom and his twelve man team are now able to relax a little as they continue to build the app and grow the Instagram name.
There have been some major revelations over the past couple of weeks with regards to the purported "iPad Mini" device, and the consensus seems to be that it will look and feel somewhat closer to a larger iPod touch than it will a smaller iPad. Said to be releasing later on this year after the Cupertino's next smartphone - dubbed the "iPhone 5," it will not only be a great deal smaller than the 9.7-inch display of the main Apple slab, but it is also set to be a great deal cheaper than even the superseded iPad 2.
