Unboxing Live 112: HTC One

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Cell Phones, Features, Handhelds, Videocasts,

HTC has produced its best-looking smartphone ever in the HTC One, and we open it up in this episode of Unboxing Live! The HTC One sports premium specs like the Ultrapixel camera, Beats Audio, a 4.7-inch 1080p display, and a quad-core SnapDragon 600 processp all running Android Jelly Bean, and the new BlinkFeed homescreen. The Ultrapixel camera pairs up with HTC Zoe features for unique picture taking. The HTC One is even compatible with Facebook Home, if that's your thing. Stay tuned for our full HTC One review as well!

Don't forget to subscribe to Gear Live on YouTube!

McCain’s Television Consumer Freedom Act calls for a la carte TV, end of sports blackouts

Posted by Jason Diaz Categories: Corporate News, Home Entertainment, Videos,

Speaking of TV, Republican US Senator, John McCain, of Arizona has introduced a bill to the house floor dubbed The Television Consumer Freedom Act of 2013. The legislation has three components. The first is the unbundling of TV programing from content and cable companies, which allows the consumer to have à la carte service options. It also lets the consumer pay for only those channels and shows they want to watch. The second will establish consequences for providers that misuse or don't properly execute the stipulations in the bill, such as downgrading their online offering. Lastly, it will eliminate local sports blackouts, finally!

All politics aside, every consumer should get behind this bill. Perhaps an indirect benefit for content makers is that the bill could help curb privacy, which is running rampant, although many do not admit so publicly. In the end, if done right, the bill could break the cable provider's stronghold on the traditional content distribution model, eliminate the exorbitant pricing scheme, or, as the Senator of Arizona eloquently put it, end the cable monopoly. As I'm writing this, a tear rolled down my eye. Thank you Mr. John McCain for thinking of my wallet. Watch the historical speech after the quick break.

Click to continue reading McCain’s Television Consumer Freedom Act calls for a la carte TV, end of sports blackouts

Watch this: The mythical Apple TV set conceptualized [Video]

Posted by Jason Diaz Categories: Apple, HDTV, Videos,

It's becoming customary within the Apple community to conceptualize ideas of future Apple products and software. In this case, Sam Beckett conceptualizes what the mythical Apple TV set, or iTV, display may look like and how it might behave. Interactions, mostly done by way of an iOS device, in this case are done with an iPad mini.  This, of course, is opposed to using the often confusing button-riddled TV remote. Interacting and navigating is user-friendly and intuitive while using DVR functions, swiping between channels using gestures, using Siri and Genius content recommendations, etc. In addition, apps are served up as channels, and the user would have the ability to tie into their cable provider of choice if they aren't ready to cut the cord. I don't know about you, but we're digging this much. Watch the video after the snappy break.

Click to continue reading Watch this: The mythical Apple TV set conceptualized [Video]

Check out this life-sized homemade Skeletor sculpture [Video]

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Design, Toys, Videos,

If you were a child of the '80s, you probably remember He-Man and the Masters of the Universe cartoon that was on television every weekday afternoon. He-Man would do his best to rid Eternia of Skeletor. I remember going to Macy's in NYC as a four-year-old and getting to "meet" a life-sized, robotic He-Man that was signing autographs. There was no Skeletor equivalent though, until now. The life-sized Skeletor replica is molded and sculpted based on the dimensions of the action figure. Check out the video after the break for more on the construction of Skeletor.

Click to continue reading Check out this life-sized homemade Skeletor sculpture [Video]

Read More | DDG Colecciones

Giveaway: Tickets to see Cody Simpson at Ogden Theatre in Denver!

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Features, Music,

Teen sensation Cody Simpson is currently traveling the country on tour, and the next stop for the kid with 3.1 million Twitter followers, 3.2 million Facebook Likes and over 137 million YouTube views is Bluebird Theatre in Denver, Colorado on July 27th. Once again, we've got your hookup. Continuing with our concert ticket giveaways, we are hooking two readers up with a pair of tickets each to see Cody Simpson live in concert on July 27th, courtesy of our friends at Monster and AEG Live!

How do you enter? Simply use the widget below! We've got a lot of ways for you to enter, but don't check off any that you don't actually perform. If you do, you'll be eliminated. Also, note that one of the options grants you ten entries. Might wanna give that one a look:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck!

Copy cloud storage aims to overtake Dropbox with Fair Storage, more space

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Internet, Storage,

Copy is a new cloud storage service, and it's got its sights directly on upheaving Dropbox as the cloud king. With Copy, you keep your files in sync across devices and get a web interface with easy sharing (including mobile devices,) similar to what you get with Dropbox. However, it differs in a couple of key areas that make Copy seem like a much better offering:

• When you share files with other Copy users, that space isn't docked from both accounts. With Dropbox, if you share a 1GB file, both you and the person you share with now have 1GB less storage space.
• When you sign up for Copy, you get 15GB of space right off the bat. With Dropbox, you get 5GB.
• Each time you refer a friend to sign up for copy, you are granted another 5GB, with no limit. Dropbox only gives you an extra 500MB, and has a hard referral bonus of 16GB.

Wanna give it a try? It's free, and it's great. Head on over to Copy to sign up - use this link, and you'll start out with 20GB free instead of 15GB!

Apple releases iTunes 11.0.3 with redesigned MiniPlayer, optimizations

Posted by Jason Diaz Categories: Apple, Music, PC / Laptop, Software,

Apple's iTunes multimedia application has been updated to version 11.0.3, the highlight of which is a redesigned and improved MiniPlayer that now includes rich album artwork and a progress bar. Songs view also brings album artwork into the fold, and now multi-disc albums appear as a single album rather than taking up multiple entries in your library. Here's the rundown list of what's included in the update.

This version of iTunes comes with several new features and improvements, including:

• New MiniPlayer. MiniPlayer now includes a beautiful new view that showcases your album artwork In addition, a progress bar is now built right into MiniPlayer.
• Improved Songs View. You can now enjoy your album artwork while in Songs view.
• Multi-Disc Albums. Albums with multiple discs now appear as a single album.

This update also provides performance improvements when searching and sorting large iTunes libraries.

Read More | Apple

You can now attach money to your Gmail messages

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Google, Internet,

Google is making the practice of sending money to friends as easy as attaching a document to an email. Using Gmail, you'll be able to attach cash money to your emails using your Google Wallet account, for free. The nice thing is that you don't have to have funds on your account to do this--you can just have a bank account attached to your Wallet account. Recipients of your paper won't need to have a Gmail account, which is one more thing you don't need to worry about, and anyone you send money to can return it to you as well. Google is rolling out the feature now to Gmail users over the age of 18. Check out a video that explains it all, after the break.

Click to continue reading You can now attach money to your Gmail messages

Mophie Juice Pack Plus more than doubles battery life of iPhone 5

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Accessories, Apple, Smartphones,

Following up on the Juice Pack Helium ($71) and Juice Pack Air ($92), Mophie has announced the Juice Pack Plus for iPhone 5. This is the highest-capacity iPhone 5 battery case offered by Mophie, the company that made these accessories a common purchase for Apple smartphones. On the inside of the Juice Pack Plus you'll find a 2100mAh battery that the company says will add a whopping 120% of extra battery life to your iPhone 5, which is good enough for 10 additional hours of talk time, 12 hours of Wi-Fi Internet usage, and 12 hours of video playback.

The Mophie Juice Pack Plus is available in black right now, with white and Product (RED) versions shipping within the next two weeks. All models cost $120.

Giveaway: Tickets to see Ross the Intern at Regency Ballroom on May 16!

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Announcements, Features, Home Entertainment,

Ross Mathews, better known as Ross the Intern from The Tonight Show fame, is currently on tour promoting his new book, and he is doing comedy shows to bring the pop culture stories to life. Continuing with our concert ticket giveaways, we are hooking you up with two tickets to see Ross live in San Francisco at The Regency Ballroom on May 16th, courtesy of our friends at Monster and AEG Live!

How do you enter? Simply use the widget below! We've got a lot of ways for you to enter, but don't check off any that you don't actually perform. If you do, you'll be eliminated. Also, note that one of the options grants you ten entries. Might wanna give that one a look:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck! Check out the video after the break where Ross details what to expect in his show. Sounds fun!

Click to continue reading Giveaway: Tickets to see Ross the Intern at Regency Ballroom on May 16!