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Apple Watch apps that should be available at (or near) launch

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Wearables, Software,

Apple Watch apps

Apple published a page that shows off a bunch of third-party apps that various developers are working on for the Apple Watch. As you can see, there are a lot of big name companies on board, like Target, American Airlines, Nike, MLB, Instagram, Starwood Hotels, and many more. Fitness, travel, shopping, fun, social networking, and even entertainment apps are all included on the page.

The more you wear Apple Watch, the more you’ll realize just how personal a device it is. Because with so many different apps available, you can choose the ones that are most relevant to you, and create a customized experience. There are already apps for airlines, department stores, social networks, and more that take advantage of the unique opportunities the wrist brings. And with new apps being built for Apple Watch every day, this is just the beginning.

Our guess is that the vast majority of these apps will be ready on day one, when the Apple Watch is released on April 24. See anything that surprises you on this list?


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10 great apps that are optimized for the iPhone 6 Retina HD display

iPhone 6 Retina HD display

Apple is renowned for paying extreme attention to user experience, so when their new lines of phones featuring bigger screens came out in September, it was just a matter of time before apps started being optimized to take advantage of this change. The difference in resolution is quite notable, the iPhone 6 coming with a resolution of 750 by 1334 pixels and a 4.7 inches screen, and the iPhone 6 Plus boasting a resolution of 1080 by 1920 pixels and a 5.5 inches screen, whereas the previous generation of iPhones (iPhone 5, 5C and 5S) came with a 4 inch display with a resolution of 640 by 1336 pixels. There are several apps that are already on the bandwagon with the new resolutions – here are the top 10 picks.

Click to continue reading 10 great apps that are optimized for the iPhone 6 Retina HD display


Giveaway: $1000 Google Play store credit

$1000 Google Play giveaway

Today in the Gear Live Deals Shop you can enter our $1000 Google Play giveaway! You can't get better than free money, right? That makes this our Deal of the Day.

Here's how this is gonna go down: The grand prize winner will talk away with $150 in Google Play store credit. Second place gets $100. 15 other winners will each get $50 in credit. Ready to enter? Go get it:

Enter our $1000 Google Play credit giveaway

Don’t forget, if you’re looking for other deals, be sure to check out our Newegg Promo Code thread. Oh, and if you're on Twitter, be sure to follow @TechPromos for the latest deals.


Facebook Paper brings elegance to your timeline

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Internet, Software,

Facebook Paper Facebook Paper profile

Facebook has released its new Facebook Paper app, a free version of Facebook that introduces new ways of interacting with the social network. Similar to the popular Flipbook app, Facebook Paper is centered around eye-catching, full-screen images, and gesture-based navigation, bringing the topics and people you care about most to the forefront.

A product of Facebook Creative Labs, Paper looks great, and could likely replace the default Facebook app for most users, what with its magazine-style layout. To get users acquainted, Facebook Paper launches with a gesture tutorial, helping you become familiar with the new way of interacting with Facebook. It's a bold move, but it works. Facebook needs to constantly monitor the pain points that its users experience when using the service, especially on mobile. Paper solves a lot of those issues that the common Facebook user encounters in the more bloated full app, bringing a simple elegance and sense of ease with it.

Give it a shot, and let us know what you think in the comments. You can grab Paper now, for free.


Pixelmator 3.1 released with Mac Pro dual GPU optimizations

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Software,

Pixelmator 3.1 marbles

One of our favorite Mac apps, Pixelmator, received a massive update today. Pixelmator 3.1 Marble brings a bunch of new improvements, the biggest of which might be full compatibility with the the Mac Pro's dual GPUs, as well as 16-bit support on Apple's flagship desktop as well. Both GPUs are used together when applying effects, and optimizations are in place for each model, including 4-, 6-, 8-, and 12-core Intel Xeon processors. Aside from all the new Mac Pro goodness, there are a lot of other improvements to layer styles, RAW image handling, and effects.

One other cool addition is the ability to order finished prints of your work right from within Pixelmator. You can download Pixelmator from the Mac App Store.

Also, if you're on the lookout for a new Mac Pro and don't want to wait the 2 months that it will take Apple to ship it, check out B&H Photo which has the Mac Pro in stock!

Read More | Pixelmator

Lady Gaga’s ARTPOP App Will Be Free

Lady Gaga

Lady Gaga is launching a free app to coincide with her ARTPOP album's release. The 27-year-old singer revealed details about the new interactive app during a Twitter chat with fans, explaining it can be downloaded via iTunes and Google Play from November 11, the same day as her third studio album goes on sale.

"The ARTPOP app is Free, available in App Stores on your device. You can purchase the music through the ARTPOP app once it's downloaded," she wrote on Twitter. "Or you can purchase the album at the music store+download the free app separately at the app store. -GAGA (sic)," she added.

Click to continue reading Lady Gaga’s ARTPOP App Will Be Free


A behind-the-scenes look at the creation of Facebook Home [Video]

Posted by Jason Diaz Categories: Smartphones, Google, Software, Videos,

Facebook Home making of

Take a gander behind the curtain of how Facebook designers created the Facebook Home launcher for Android. The forty-five minute video essay shows the evolutionary process of cover feed, chat heads, and the premise of mimicking the real world experience with a software operating system not based on apps, but focused rather on people.

On May 8th, the designers behind Facebook Home (Justin Stahl, Francis Luu, Joey Flynn and Mac Tyler) presented a behind-the-scenes look at their work at the Bluxome Street Winery for a small crowd. In this four-part talk, they discuss how they combined their high-level goals with an iterative process and interactive design tools such as Quartz Composer to bring the first version of Home to launch.

Click to continue reading A behind-the-scenes look at the creation of Facebook Home [Video]


Samsung hosting fall Devevelopers Conference in San Francisco

Posted by Jason Diaz Categories: Smartphones, Corporate News, Software,

Samsung Dev Event

It appears that Samsung is prepping for its first annual Samsung Developers Conference boasting a "cross-product, cross platform" event on October 27-29 in San Francisco. Perhaps, Samsung is shifting gears by lessening its dependence on Google's Android mobile operating system and blurring the lines of its long line portfolio of successful products with developers. The South Korean conglomerate has been working on different mobile OS like Linux based Bada and Intel processor based Tizen, which is a spin-off the abandoned Meego OS project by Nokia. Samsung promises more information to follow leading up to the event. Samsung and Google have had major successes as partners but, in the recent acquisition of Motorola, something that Google previously stated it wouldn't do and Samsung focusing on diminishing Google presence from its products have shown the relation is more stressed than first perceived.

Read More | Samsung Dev Con

Transporter 2.0 improves user experience, brings iOS, Android apps

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: PC / Laptop, Software, Storage,

Connected Data Transporter 2.0

We're big fans of Connected Data's Transporter device, which basically gives you locally stored and protected cloud storage without having to upload your files to third-party services like Dropbox or Copy, with no subscription fee. Now, on the heels of the Connected Data & Drobo merger agreement, comes the announcement of Transporter 2.0, a big software update for the NAS. Version 2.0 of the Transporter software brings a host of welcome improvements like:

  • Improved integration with the OS X Finder and Windows Explorer
  • Custom right-click options and drag-and-drop functionality
  • Share direct links to files and folders
  • Choose how folders are synced (locally or remotely)
  • Increased firewall support

Additionally, new Transporter iOS and Android apps will allow remote access and management of files stored on the device. Transporter v2.0 will be a free software upgrade for all existing customers. For new customers, Transporter starts at $199 without a hard drive, $299 for 1TB, and $399 for 2TB.


Google Hangouts now live, brings together Google Talk, Voice, Messenger

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Google, Internet, Software,

The new Google Hangouts has arrived, bringing together Google's Talk, Hangouts, Voice, and Google+ Messenger under one app and umbrella. Google Hangouts offers unified, synchronized chat that retains history across all devices, allowing you to dig into your history wherever you are, delete messages, and check out files, photos, etc. Hangouts naturally includes the previous Google Hangouts video chat features, which allows multiple people to video chat with each other, again, from a smartphone, tablet, or computer.

Hangouts it now available on iOS, Android, Chrome, and within the Gmail web client. Get a look at the video promo after the break.

Click to continue reading Google Hangouts now live, brings together Google Talk, Voice, Messenger


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