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Apps and Updates

1,635 'Apps and Updates' stories June 2013 - February 2016
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Nintendo: Our second mobile game will feature a ‘very familiar’ character

Avatar for Cam Bunton Feb 3 2016 - 4:04 am PT
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When Nintendo first announced that it would finally be launching a smartphone game, it’s safe to say, many of us children of the 90’s got a little excited. Sadly, we got excited too soon. Excitement turned to bemusement once the company revealed it would be launching a weird game called Miitomo, which wasn’t exactly a game, but rather a social network.

Following its disappointing Q4 results, Nintendo has confirmed that its second title would include a “very familiar character”, and won’t be another social network attempt. It did, however, stop short of confirming exactly which character we’re going to see.


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Chrome 49 Beta improves background sync, introduces new APIs, more

Avatar for Abner Li Feb 2 2016 - 10:52 am PT
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While Chrome 50 is expected to bring Material Design by default to desktop browsers and Chrome OS, version 49 will introduce more low laying features for developers. Notably, improved background sync, better JavaScript performance, a new API for recording audio and video, and a host of other features…


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OTA update to Google’s OnHub routers adds guest Wi-Fi network, device renaming

Avatar for Abner Li Feb 2 2016 - 8:52 am PT
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Unlike most routers that remain static after you purchase them, Google’s line of OnHub routers are meant to receive software updates and new features. While it launched without the standard feature of a guest Wi-Fi network, an update rolling out this week to both models remedies that…


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Samsung’s Internet browser updated with support for 3rd-party ad blockers

Avatar for Abner Li Feb 1 2016 - 9:01 am PT
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As the default browser on Samsung devices is their own ‘Internet’ app, many people never bother to switch often just end up using it. An update rolling out to the built-in browser will add support for third-party ad blockers, among other new things. While the feature is found in other Android browsers and is a common reason why people root their devices, Samsung’s scale may popularize it…


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Google’s VirusTotal service now scans for tampered computer firmware

Avatar for Abner Li Jan 28 2016 - 12:51 pm PT
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Google bought VirusTotal, an online virus and URL scanner, back in 2012 and it continues to run as an independent company even today. Their website and Mac app offers a very useful utility that lets users upload files to see whether they are ridden with viruses. They recently added the ability to scan a computer’s firmware for suspicious malware.


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Tesla planning to allow app mirroring from Android to center consoles

Avatar for Fred Lambert Jan 28 2016 - 12:36 pm PT
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Since Tesla launched the Model S in 2012, the automaker has been talking about releasing a software development kit (SDK) to create a full third-party app ecosystem for its 17-inch touchscreen, which acts as a center console for the Model S and X, but despite several inquiries from eager app developers, there has been little communication about the project until now.
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Over 5 million Cardboard viewers shipped, 1000+ VR apps in the Play Store

Avatar for Abner Li Jan 27 2016 - 10:25 am PT
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In a blog post, Clay Bavor, the recently anointed VP of Google’s new virtual reality division, announced that there are now over five million units of Cardboard and over 1000 Cardboard apps in Google Play. The numbers come as recent reports show Google getting into VR in a serious way, including possibly building their own headset.


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Chrome 48 vastly improves performance on iOS, Data Saver extension exits beta, more

Avatar for Abner Li Jan 27 2016 - 9:55 am PT
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While Chrome 48 began rolling out on browsers last week, Google has announced some new features for it across the various platformsm it is on. Most notably, Chrome for iOS gets significantly faster, the Data Saver extension exits beta, and extensions are now better highlighted.


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Hangouts 7.0 adds notification quick reply, encourages users to switch to Messenger for SMS

Avatar for Abner Li Jan 26 2016 - 3:10 pm PT
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According to a rumor last year, Google would remove the ability to send SMS from Hangouts in a future update. While version 7.0 released today is not that update, it advises users to switch to Google Messenger for SMS. It also adds quick reply to notifications and the ability to add message shortcuts to the homescreen.


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Inbox’s new quick search results mean you never have to dig around in your emails again

Avatar for Abner Li Jan 26 2016 - 8:52 am PT
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If Gmail was Google’s answer to email in 2004, Inbox is how the company wants everyone to do email in the future. Like Google Now, it has intelligent features that make it easier for regular users to manage their email. An update today makes search smarter so that users don’t have to dig around their messages to find something.


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Here are Snapchat’s revamped chat and video/audio calling features [Screenshots]

Avatar for Abner Li Jan 24 2016 - 6:45 pm PT
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On Friday, we wrote about new audio and video calling feature possibly coming to Snapchat. Since then, the developer who discovered the code references in the Snapchat APK has gotten these features to work and posted screenshots. They reveal that Snapchat is working on a completely revamped version of chat, dubbed ‘ChatV2’.


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Snapchat code reveals possible video/audio calling, livestreaming, other new features

Avatar for Abner Li Jan 22 2016 - 1:56 pm PT
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Two developers looking around in the Snapchat for Android APK have found references to video and audio calls possibly coming to the ephemeral social network at some point in the future. Additionally, there might also be an audio notes and a Periscope-like livestreaming feature coming…


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SwiftKey Stats brings signature emoji, your most-used topics to beta Android app

Avatar for Cam Bunton Jan 22 2016 - 2:01 am PT
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SwiftKey has updated the beta version of its popular keyboard app to include in-depth, personalized and visualized stats for all its users. Using SwiftKey Stats in the SwiftKey beta app for Android you can now see more than just the usual set of statistics. It looks at your typing habits, and brings you a pretty fun look at your most-used emoji, topics and more.

  • Topics – 3-5 different subjects you type about the most. We created a bunch of fun, diverse categories to show you some of the topics you love to talk about – from Art & Design to Comics and everything inbetween.
  • Top Emoji – the emoji you use most often. This is a cloud-like visualization of the emoji you use the most – the bigger the emoji in the ‘cloud’, the more you use it.
  • Signature Emoji – the emoji you use more than other people. This emoji is generated by the emoji you overuse compared to the average (this is not the emoji you use most often).
  • Vocabulary Size – how many words has SwiftKey learned from you? This number starts at zero when you install – find out how much your personal SwiftKey vocabulary has grown!

If you’re intrigued and want to try it for yourself, you can download the beta for free from the Play Store. Once installed, go through the set-up process and then sign in to your account. As soon as you start typing, the app starts collecting information and will be able to give you your stats.

Chrome 48 released to stable channel, better performance coming in future updates

Avatar for Abner Li Jan 21 2016 - 9:45 am PT
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Chrome on Mac, Window, and Linux is being updated this week to version 48. The latest update contains the usual bug fixes and improvements for the desktop browser, but mobile devices will see the bulk of the improvements. Future updates to Chrome, we’ve learned, will bring a new compression algorithm that will help the browser load faster pages and use less power on all platforms.


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