Google Play gift cards now available in UK supermarkets
Apple has offered its iTunes gift cards through various UK high street retailers and supermarkets for years now. It’s taken a long while, but Google is finally following suit.
Google Play gift cards, in £10, £25 and £50 denominations will be available from today in Tesco and Morrisons stores. The roll out is happening slowly so they might take a few weeks to reach every location.
How I came to love Windows again
Two words: Surface Pro. For most of February, I used Microsoft's Windows 8 Pro tablet as my primary PC and loved the experience.
I haven't felt so good about using a Microsoft operating system for a decade. Actually, I've never felt like this. Windows 8 Pro is simply amazing when experienced on the right device, and starting point is touch. Modern UI really works for me. Windows 8's visuals are stunning, making a truly satisfying and fun place to work. I enjoy working on Windows 8, which pretty UI beckons me to come back again and again.
Green Throttle turns the Kindle Fire HD into a games console, Samsung Galaxy S III next
This year is certainly going to be a big one for games consoles, with a new PlayStation and a new Xbox (rumored) to be arriving before Christmas. But it’s Android-based gaming systems that’s the big trend at the moment, with the likes of OUYA and GameStick grabbing their fair share of the headlines.
Green Throttle is another Android games system, but it’s one that doesn’t require you to make space for a dedicated console under the TV. Instead you just need to buy one or more Green Throttle Atlas controllers, download the free Green Throttle Arena app from the Amazon Appstore, and hook up your Android tablet to a TV using a micro HDMI cable.
CyanogenMod 10.1 M2 -- second monthly release -- is available
We've had to wait a tad longer than expected, but it's finally here. The team behind the popular custom Android distribution CyanogenMod unveiled the second monthly release based on Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, more than a month after the last build.
Like it usually happens with monthly builds, with CyanogenMod 10.1 M2 the focus is on stability improvements rather than introducing numerous new features that have yet to pass rigorous testing. As a result some of the latest features found in nightly builds may be left behind for future monthly releases in order to provide a custom Android distribution suited for daily-driver use.
PC shipments go from worse to, well, you don't want to know
IDC sure knows how to ruin a Monday. The analyst firm released final personal computer shipment tabulations for fourth quarter and all 2012 and made a dismal forecast for this year. If you're as tired of reading "PC is dead" stories as I am writing them, cover your eyes. Read no further. The horrors ahead are unbearable.
Global shipments will decline for the second year in a row in 2013, with Windows 8 giving no perceptual lift at all. Holidays were a bust, as will be the year. You can't fault Microsoft for trying, but there is only so much water you can throw off a sinking ship with buckets before it plunges beneath the waves. Perhaps only the rumored Windows Blue can save the PC now, but Win8 was supposed to do that -- and look what happened. When an analyst firm uses "underwhelming reception" to describe a Microsoft operating system, it's time to abandon ship.
Android 4.2 Jelly Bean comes to ASUS Transformer Pad TF300
ASUS Transformer Pad owners are in for a treat, the latest treat in the candy jar in fact -- the Taiwanese manufacturer has announced that it will upgrade the popular tablet to Android 4.2 Jelly Bean.
On its Facebook page, ASUS revealed that the Transformer Pad, in TF300 trim, is set to receive an update to Android 4.2 Jelly Bean this month, although there's no exact date as to when the roll-out will begin. According to the company, the Transformer Pad is the first non-Nexus device to receive the upgrade to the newest iteration of the popular green droid operating system.
Judge denies Apple request to increase damages against Samsung, cuts them by 40 percent instead
Apple's patent case against Samsung took an unexpected turn today. Judge Lucy Koh cut the damages, citing jury errors, removing some devices previously found to infringe the fruit-logo company's patents. Jurors had awarded about $1.05 billion in damages, which now are just $600 million (rounded up slightly). The South Korean electronics giant isn't off the hook by any means. More than a dozen devices remain infringers.
Judge Koh's order is a blow to Apple, but not one that invalidates any real part of its patent victory. The judge found that the jury had inappropriately calculated damages for some products, based in part on their acceptance of arguments made by Apple expert witness Terry Musika.
Apple's mini is more popular than iPad, and that's not a good thing
Nearly two months ago, when forecasting that tablets would outsell laptops this year, NPD DisplaySearch dropped dirty data bomb: shipments of slates with 7-7.9-inch screens will eclipse larger ones. Now the analyst firm puts real numbers behind the prediction, and they are grim for Apple. Talk about mixed blessings. iPad mini sizzles, while iPad fizzles. The problem: Higher sales of one takes away from the other, rather than expands demand. As such, margins are lower for the important category, likely biting Macs, too.
Panel shipments reveal the trend, and it is dramatic in just one month. "Shipments of 9.7-inch tablet PC panels collapsed, falling from 7.4 to 1.3 million, while 7-inch and 7.9-inch panel shipments grew rapidly, from 12 to 14 million", David Hsieh, NPD vice president, says. "Shipments of 10.1-inch panels grew only slightly" from December to January. Apple and Sony are the major manufacturers selling 9.7-inch tablets, the overwhelming majority iPad. Starting today, Sony sells the Xperia Tablet Z, in a move to 10.1 inches, but 9.7-inch volumes aren't high enough to account for such a dramatic shift in panel orders.
HTC One wins best new device at Mobile World Congress
HTC had a reason to celebrate yesterday as the HTC One picked up the Best New Mobile Handset, Device or Tablet at Mobile World Congress 2013, the final award of the 18th Annual Global Mobile Awards.
The main ceremony, hosted by actor, comedian and swimmer David Walliams, was held on Tuesday and saw the Galaxy S III named the best smartphone of 2012, beating out the likes of the Apple iPhone 5, Nokia’s Lumia 920, and HTC’s Droid DNA.
That wasn’t the only upset for Apple as the iPad missed out too, with Google’s Asus-built Nexus 7 scooping the award for Best Tablet of 2012.
Promises, promises -- more stores will sell Microsoft Surface
The biggest problem with Microsoft Surface is you probably can't buy it. The model running Windows RT is available in just 20 countries, and Pro even fewer (say, how do you like them Canada and United States). Today, Microsoft promised expansion into new geographies starting in late March, and, get this, taking several months. I can't imagine why tell us all now, other than perhaps to remind everyone that Surface exists and to keep those wanting one hanging on instead of buying something else.
Surface RT is currently available online or in stores: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland, United Kingdom and United States. Microsoft added 13 on February 14. The months long expansion will bring the tablet to Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Russia, Singapore and Taiwan.
Amazon Cloud Player now available on iPad
Amazon has launched Amazon Cloud Player 2.0 for iOS. The app, which lets users stream or download music from their Amazon Cloud collection, has been revamped to support the iPad and iPad mini for the first time, in addition to previous support for iPhone and iPod touch.
Version 2.0 also debuts a revamped user interface and adds a new setting that allows users to configure the size of the offline cache used for storing streamed music for access while offline.
New multiplayer game for Chrome uses smartphones as controllers
Google has created a new sports game for Chrome, which lets you challenge up to four friends at running, swimming and cycling.
What makes Chrome Super Sync Sports so special is while the game is displayed on your computer screen, the characters are controlled using smartphones or tablets.
To play it you need to have Chrome installed on your computer, and on any Android or iOS devices you want to use as controllers.
Dell unveils the Latitude 10 Enhanced Security tablet
Dell has rolled out a new, more secure iteration of the 10-inch, business-oriented Windows 8 tablet it originally launched five months ago.
The Latitude 10 in stock trim, retails from $449 as an "essentials" model, but the American computer manufacturer has government agencies, financial institutions and healthcare organizations in its sights with the more expensive Enhanced Security model, which is available for $779, a not so insignificant difference.
Ubuntu Touch -- interesting concept that needs work [preview]
The concept of Canonical taking a stab at the mobile market eludes me. Unless we want to split hairs, which I know will happen, Android already is the Linux ambassador across the globe, so why would the world need Ubuntu Touch? Furthermore, any new player starts out with a clean slate, which means many consumers will be skeptical at purchasing devices running the new operating system and therefore developer interest does not surpass a low threshold.
The PC market is not what it used to be a couple of years ago when people rushed out to buy new computers, rather than tablets or smartphones first. In some ways Canonical right now is Microsoft before Windows Phone and Windows 8 -- an important player further heading into obscurity down the road unless the boat steers in the right direction. Ubuntu Touch is supposed to give the world a breath of fresh air, the X factor that would sway enough people into switching from Android, iOS, Windows Phone or a feature phone, even.
Sony ships waterproof Xperia Tablet Z
Well, somebody finally announces something that's actually shipping. One of Mobile World Congress' worst traditions is the unveiling of new products not available for months. Today, Sony stepped out from the ranks with the ultrathin, waterproof, Xperia Tablet Z, which goes on sale March 1. That's right, this week! Damn, if only my local Sony store wasn't closed for renovations (until April).
The 10.1-inch tablet stands apart from many of this week's MWC 2013 announcements. Many of the new devices are down-market, offering lower-performance for less money, targeting economy shoppers in mature or emerging locales. By contrast, Xperia Tablet Z packs premium features at premium price.
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