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Google Glass comes under scrutiny with movie theater chain

The Alamo Drafthouse movie theater chain has recently been discussing Google Glass. And to get this out right from the beginning -- the decision isn't one that is going to be appreciated by many Glass users. It seems the Alamo Drafthouse CEO Tim League is worried about potential piracy issues.



League recently made the Glass ban official. On Twitter he mentioned that "Google Glass is officially banned from @drafthouse auditoriums once the lights dim for trailers." Follow up statements from League also touched on how a Glass ban had been under discussion for "over a year." He said they waited to make an official decision until they started seeing Glass in the theater, and "that started happening this month."


We aren't fans of an overall ban on Glass, especially knowing that battery life is not all that great when recording video for extended periods. But on the flip side, it seems League is taking somewhat of a fair stance with the ban. That comes by how he said Glass would not be able to be worn "once the lights dim for trailers." Or in other words, you can still enter the theater with Glass -- it is not a hard ban.


League also touched on how someone wearing Glass with prescription frames would be handled on a case by case basis. There was also some discussion about how "technology may change and this type of device may eventually become widely adopted and even replace traditional glasses."


Basically, at the moment Glass is banned at any Alamo Drafthouse theater (while the movies are playing), but this policy could change down the line.


VIA: Torrent Freak, Deadline


SOURCE: Twitter





Google Glass Shop X grocery app now available through MyGlass

Shop X isn't a brand new Google Glass app, however it has recently come available through official channels. Or in other words, the Shop X Glassware is now available through MyGlass, which means Glass users no longer have to worry about sideloading. Stepping back for a moment though, Shop X is an app aimed at helping you streamline your grocery shopping experience.



The app is touted as one that "enables you to create your shopping list by voice command." The items you add to your list are sorted by category and can then be checked off as you add them to your non-virtual shopping cart. The app also makes use of the cloud -- syncing your list just in case you need to access it on another device.


And nicely, the other device can be any device because the Shop X setup includes a web app. The Shop X Glassware is activated using the 'Ok Glass, Take a Note' command. From that point you speak the items you want to add to your grocery list. A benefit of using Shop X comes at this point as the app will then break those items down by category. You can also pin the card for easy access.


Anyway, those using Glass and looking to check out Shop X should head to the MyGlass website and look for the app in the Glassware section. Once found it is a simple matter of flipping the toggle from Off to On. The 'coming soon' video sitting below offers a bit of a walkthrough.




VIA: 9to5Google


SOURCE: Shop X, Google Glass





QuickClick starts any device action with volume buttons

Dedicated tactile features for specific functions – like the dedicated camera button on the Sony Xperia S, or the gesture shortcuts on Samsung’s Galaxy smartphones – are usually the realm of high-end Android products, making users of the more basic units a bit jealous because, hey, you get what you pay for. But then there are apps like QuickClick that let you get close to those dedicated high-end functionalities, with just a couple of clicks on the volume button.



That is the rationale for this new app by Blor, purveyors of all things “quick” – check out their apps at the Google Play Store to see what we mean. With QuickClick, you can program click sequences and patterns on your volume buttons to use those as triggers for certain device actions. The app will allow you to start your camera on a dedicated volume button pattern, or even start your favorite flashlight app.


quick1 quick2 quick3 quick4


Upon starting QuickClick, you will be surprised at the array of actions that you are allowed to start just by programming volume button taps or clicks. And when you chose an action, you will be given a few more settings to fine tune your trigger, making the whole process pretty personal. This is a very practical win for users, as all of these actions are available without rooting your Android device. The app also comes with Tasker integration, which gives power users access to device settings just with a few clicks on the volume rocker. Pretty neat, huh? (Note: Tasker integration may require root access.)




That being said, there are some drawbacks to the app – especially for music lovers who use their phones as their primary music player and will use their volume buttons all the time. In this case, using the volume rocker as app triggers will totally change the way a user who listens to music all the time uses their phone. One will have to program super unique patterns for app triggers so that the app does not interfere with your music listening experience – thereby defeating the “quick” purpose of the app. That being said, this app will be quite useful for entry level Android devices which can leverage on the app and action triggers from the volume rocker.


Download: QuickClick from the Google Play Store





HTC updates Gallery app, gives more UFocus controls

In April, HTC rolled out an update to its Gallery app that had a feature to take advantage of the One’s (M8) Duo Camera setup which it called UFocus. We’ve covered this specific functionality before, but today’s update to the Gallery app now allows users of HTC’s flagship smartphone to have more flexibility in using UFocus – something that is sure to make a lot of HTC One M8 owners happier.



The UFocus feature uses the HTC One’s Duo Cam setup in such a way that the second camera – a 1/3-inch 4MP CMOS sensor – provides a little bit of “depth of field” to the image captured by the main camera, something that could only be achieved with single lens reflex cameras before this. The main complaint about the feature was that it had no control over this “bokeh” effect and would apply the “depth of field” blur without control, giving the image a look that was closer to “fake” than “brilliant”.


With the update, HTC One users can now have control over how much blur they want to apply to achieve a more realistic “depth of field” effect with the images that they capture on the smartphone’s otherwise excellent camera. There is now a slider on the left side of the screen that gives users a blur intensity scale from 0 to 100. Users may still feel that the effect’s separation of foreground from background is not accurate enough, but this is mostly what you get with a non-SLR camera trying to mimic SLR features.


Also within the update are some additional features directed at HTC Sense 6 device users. The Gallery app for Sense 6 devices now allows use of the Dimension Plus feature, where users can apply 3D-like effects to images. The app update also incorporates the Pan 360 feature, mimicking Android’s Photosphere. So if you are an HTC One M8 or a Sense 6 device user, be sure to visit the Play Store soon to grab that update.





LG G3 Smart Tip videos show off the best features

LG is trying to build up the hype around its G3 flagship ahead of its availability in the US. It has just published a series of Smart Tip videos that demonstrate how to best use the smartphone's unique features, whetting the public's appetite in the process as well.



LG fans might be all too familiar with Knock Code, one of the manufacturer's most advertised UX feature. It is the evolution of the simplistic Knock On the debuted with the LG G2. The best thing about Knock Code is that the pattern is recognized no matter where you do the pattern or how big, or small, you make it, as long as the taps fall in the correct quadrants.




Smart Notice is somewhat like LG's equivalent to Google Now. It sits as a homescreen widget that offers you timely information and suggestions depending not only on context but also past actions you've taken or failed to take. For example, if you've missed or rejected a call, it will later remind you that you did so, in case you want to return the call. It also tries to be a bit more witty by actually giving you practical advice instead of just talking about the weather.




When it comes to multi-windows and multi-tasking, Samsung has had a head start. Nonetheless, LG has been catching up at its own pace, with the latest Dual Window incarnation landing on the G3. The feature, which is triggered by holding down the leftmost navigation button for 3 seconds, will let you split the screen between two windows. Like Samsung's implementation, however, the number of apps supporting this are quite limited.




LG puts privacy and multi-user on the same level with Guest Mode, giving owners the ability to configure a different homescreen and set of available apps for "guests" or other users of the device. Add that to Content Lock mentioned before, which hides your files from unwanted eyes, and you've got a handy, but basic, privacy feature right out of the box.




Smart Keyboard tries to remove the need to hunt down for third-party alternatives. Aside from learning about your favorite words, it also adjusts itself to invisibly enlarge or shrink letters so that you still hit them even when you don't, all based on learning from your habits of course.




And finally we come to the LG G3 feature that is not strictly a feature since it can only be used with an official accessory. QuickCircle gives a more rounded view of the smartphone than the earlier QuickWindow for the G2 and it offers more functionality than either its predecessor or Samsung's own S-View cover. Better yet, LG is providing an SDK to let other Android app developers take advantage of this feature as well.




If those videos have gotten you hungry for the LG G3, you might just have to wait for a bit, or maybe even longer. The smartphone isn't yet available in the market, except in Korea so far, and US carriers seem to be planning a late June or even later launch, though none have given an exact date yet.





Google Glass lets Jamie Oliver cook up homemade videos

Seeing through somebody's eyes is one of the inherent benefits of Google Glass. And nowhere is this feature better demonstrated than in trying to get an almost first-hand experience of how a professional sees his work, as this brief experiment with world-famous chef Jamie Oliver shows.



Jamie Oliver joins Roger Federer as the latest high-profile public personality to take Google's spectacles for a spin. Last week, the tennis player donned the glasses in a mock tennis match to give viewers a glimpse into the world of professional tennis, at least from Federer's vantage point. It's not yet the high tech goggles of sci-fi that will give players stats and other distracting info in the middle of their game. For now, it is merely an interesting and unconventional way of sharing a unique experience.


From outdoor to indoor, Jamie Oliver takes Google Glass to the kitchen in making a delectable salad. Again, no informational or visual aids from Google Glass, at least nothing that viewers will be able to see. All you get is a bit of jumping around as Jamie shows how to peel this or that veggie, measure ingredients, and other parts of the cooking process, all from his point of view.




Of course, Google Glass will hardly help you make your own cooking show, especially one like Jamie's, which will definitely need more equipment, staff, not to mention other angles that will better show what's being done compared to a first person view. It does, however, give ideas for homemade instructional videos in the future. And for a "meta" effect, you can even probably watch something like Jamie's Google Glass-made cooking videos from your own Google Glass to see if what he's doing is matching up with your own. Just be careful not to cut yourself in the process, of course.


SOURCE: +Google





Minecraft PE 0.9 has more blocks than you can count

Mojang is announcing the latest snapshot for the Android version of Minecraft Pocket Edition. The game developers are calling this the biggest update ever, and with a list of features and changes dozens of lines long, they aren't exactly kidding.



One thing that will best describe this snapshot is that there is a truckload of new things. There are around 21 new blocks, including emerald, podzol, cocoa, waterlily, and huge mushrooms. There are also new critters inhabiting the pixelated world, with slimes, wolves, and Endermen added to the list. There is also a bit more intelligence added to the world, to keep your time spent in Minecraft more interesting, if not more challenging. But perhaps one of the best news for Android users is that they now have access to unlimited worlds in-game.


Not every feature is new, however, and some build on or fix existing features, like fixing problems with names of stairs and eggs, adding smooth lighting for some objects while removing it for others. Players in normal difficulty might also discover that beds no longer restore their health to the full. Not all changes are good, however. At this point in the development of the release, there are naturally bugs, of the programming kind. The biggest bug right now seems to be related to multiplayer, which Mojang labels as still quite fragile.


As such, 0.9 is still pretty much an alpha version of the game. Of course, the very purpose of this announcement is to get brave souls to take the snapshot for a spin. Those willing to do so would have to go through the usual hoops of joining the Google+ testing community and signing up as a tester.


SOURCE: Mojang





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