HMV is back. And this time it back with a new app for iOS and android. iOS link, click here.
The new apps let you listen to or buy tracks by scanning images of CD albums and posters or by tagging audio tracks thanks to Soundhound’s music discovery algorithms. Nice idea.
Samsung some 20 months after the European Commission launched an investigation into its patent licensing practices, says it will not seek an injunction against any company, including Apple, wishing to license its patents for a period of five years. The company says it will also agree to a negotiation period of up to 12 months, after which it will rely on a court or arbitrator to draw up an agreement.
So is Samsung feeling the heat or showing good practise ?
Just a quick heads up. 2 new reviews going live next week.
First the Netatmo Urban Weather Station. This works with all 3 operating systems. iOS. Android and Windows Phone.
Next to be reviewed is the Sony XBA-H1 hybrid in ear headphones. These are creating quite a storm.
Google is due to announce the Nexus 5. Below is a reminder of the specifications. So with android 4.4 and the below specs, are you going to buy one?
Google Nexus 5 (LG D821) Official Technical Specifications:
Display: 4.95-inch IPS LCD HD, 1920 X 1080 px
Processor: 2.3GHz quad-core Snapdragon 800
Ram: 2GB RAM
Camera: 8MP Rear with OIS (optical image stabalizer), 1.3MP Front
Storage: 16 and 32GB internal
Battery: 2,300mAh
Network: UMTS/GSM/CDMA/LTE (Micro SIM card slot)
Sensors: Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Pressure, Proximity, Ambient Light
Connectivity: HDMI via Slimport, NFC, Wireless charging, Bluetooth 4.0
Dimensions: 133.9 x 68.7 x 9.1 mm ? (Same as Nexus 4, which is not likely)
Weight: 139.5 g
Other: Notification light
Operating System: Android 4.4 KitKat
Google announced its Q3 earnings a few hours ago. Full details click here http://investor.google.com/earnings/2013/Q3_google_earnings.html
The highlights are –
Q3 Financial Highlights
Revenues and other information – On a consolidated basis, Google Inc. revenues for the quarter ended September 30, 2013 were $14.89 billion, an increase of 12% compared to the third quarter of 2012.
Google Segment Revenues – Google segment revenues were $13.77 billion, or 92% of consolidated revenues, in the third quarter of 2013, representing a 19% increase over third quarter 2012 Google segment revenues of $11.53 billion.
Google Sites Revenues – Google-owned sites generated segment revenues of $9.39 billion, or 68% of total Google segment revenues, in the third quarter of 2013. This represents a 22% increase over third quarter 2012 Google sites segment revenues of $7.73 billion.
Google Network Revenues – Google’s partner sites generated segment revenues of $3.15 billion, or 23% of total Google segment revenues, in the third quarter of 2013, compared to $3.13 billion of Google network segment revenues in the third quarter of 2012.
Other Google Revenues – Other revenues from the Google segment were $1.23 billion, or 9% of total Google segment revenues, in the third quarter of 2013. This represents an 85% increase over third quarter 2012 other Google segment revenues of $666 million.
Which recently conducted tests with a number of smartphones made by Apple, Samsung, HTC and LG.
Apple’s iPhone 5S came out on top while the HTC One Mini took last place. The
Samsung Galaxy S4 dropped from first to third behind the LG G2. The iPhone 5S was twice as fast as Samsung’s Galaxy S4 in certain tests. Apple’s new high-end handset was around 50 per cent faster overall.
As you can see the iPhone 5C didn’t feature as well.
Above is a high quality press render of the Nexus 5 which is soon to be announced by Google. No surprises on the hardware front, but details of the full package on offer cannot come quick enough.
Update – Google by accident put the N5 up on the Play Store. $349 for the 16gb version. Looks like a bargain already.
Sony is pushing over the air updates to its Z1 and Z Ultra. These are quite important updates so you may want to request the software update from within the system settings l.
With the Z1 the upgrade brings several camera tweaks and new camera algorithms for better all round performance. There have also been some changes to the Sony smart camera platform, which now enables built-in apps to run more fluidly.
The Xperia Z Ultra update brings optimized touchscreen sensitivity for fingers and styluses, therefore, effectively broadening the range of input methods, empowering the device to compete with the likes of Samsung’s flagship Galaxy Note III.
In addition, both the Z1 and Z Ultra will receive battery life enhancements, display calibration tweaks and significantly faster e-mail synchronisation over Microsoft Exchange.
Sounds like very good updates.
That great TV app, TVCatchup that provided live TV on your iPhone or android phone has lost a legal case.
This means ITV1-4, Channel 4, Channel 5, E4, More 4, 4 Seven, Five Star, Film Four, Four Music, and CITV are no longer available via the app.
A few days ago I wrote about my early days with the Netatmo Urban Weather Station. To recap on the earlier part click here.
The Netatmo Urban Weather Station has apps for iOS, Windows Phone and android. Below is a couple of screen shots from the iOS app.
But it also has a PC web app. I will write a more complete review soon but I thought I would show you the view you get when using the PC web app for the first time.
I have since discovered that there are some third party apps that works with the Weather Station. First is WeatherPro for iOS. Baratmo for Mac OS. And for those android fans, there is also a widget with the official app.
Screenshot of Baratmo – with this all you get is an icon in the status bar. Click on this and the following pops up as below.
With WeatherPro you can fully integrate the Urban Weather Station into the app. First it appears in the list of favourites.
And then you can tap on it to get more detailed info as shown below. You can scroll down for even more info, or hit the top right bar chart info to get specific graphs on an individual item of weather, similar to the Netatmo official app.
So what do you think of the data available?
Gavin's Gadgets & Photography 