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Best Buy might have leaked Moto 360′s retail price

To say that the soon to be announced Moto 360, the first round face smartwatch in the market, is highly anticipated is like saying that a full moon is, well, round. Those who are waiting to purchase their very first wearable are holding out for the official launch, expected to be this September 4th at the Motorola event. But the main concern right now is if this smartwatch running on Android Wear will cost an arm and a leg. Best Buy might have inadvertently jumped the gun as a product page on their mobile site showed the retail price of the Moto 360.



As expected based on the previous leaks and also on the price of the current Android Wear devices in the market, the page lists the price at $249.99. It’s a little more expensive than the LG G Watch (SRP $229) and the Samsung Gear Live ($199) but that is not surprising since the hype, not just on the shape of the Moto 360 but on its functionalities as well, has been leading to the fact that it will be more expensive. It can also be considered competitive to the price of the Pebble Steel (which is compatible with other smartphone platforms) which has less functionality.


The listing at Best Buy’s site also confirms some previously leaked info about the smartwatch. It says that the Moto 360 is indeed waterproof and can survive being submerged in 3.3' water for up to 30 minutes. It also has an optical heart-rate sensor and a pedometer, must-haves for fitness enthusiasts with a penchant for wearable devices. The page also shows the unique charging dock that was leaked a few days ago.


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The Moto 360 is expected to be announced on September 4th, together with another anticipated Motorola device, the Moto X+1. If the leaks and rumours are indeed true and they meet people’s expectations, then these products from the OEM might just challenge market leaders Apple and Samsung even more.


VIA: SlashGear





Androignito: hide your personal files easily with one app

Truth be told, Android was never designed with security and privacy in mind. That is why when efforts at Android security like the Blackphone (recently rumored to have been rooted) come out, they are certainly notable. This app called Androignito, developed by XDA forum member “aritraroy” might just be another one to take note of when thinking about privacy on your device.



When we talk about security and privacy in Android, we talk about PIN codes and patterns, the patented KnockCode for premium LG phones, and even the rumored eye scanning being studied by Samsung. But once you get past those, the phone’s content is literally at the tip of the user’s fingers. The Androignito app adds another layer of protection at the file level so that your personal data – pictures, videos, documents – can be protected from casual snoopers.


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The new app is able to use 3 layers of encryption and is able to hide most popular file types like documents, images, apps, and the like from casual browsing by asking for a PIN. The app has a built-in Stealth Mode that asks users to log-in three times, and when the user fails to do so, the application blocks access to the files for 15 minutes.


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The caveat here is that the app does not give industry grade security and privacy. The developer did not discuss much about the encryption algorithms used by the app, so we assume that a dedicated hacker – one who really wants to get at your data – could break through the app’s wall given enough time. But for securing data so that they are not in plain view of those whom you casually allow to flip through your device, Androignito might just be the app for you. Check out the application thread at XDA and look for the Google Play Store download link within.


VIA: XDA





Huawei skips digits, Ascend Mate7 slated for Sept. 4

Huawei is jumping over numbers again. While the jump from Honor 3 to Honor 6 was believed to be motivated by the upcoming Apple iPhone 6 and next year's Samsung Galaxy S6, going from Ascend Mate 2 right to Ascend Mate7 is a bit more perplexing. Whatever the Chinese OEM's reasons may be, the Huawei Ascend Mate7 is coming next month at IFA 2014 in Berlin.



Leaked information about Huawei's next big, figuratively and literally, smartphone is a bit sparse but quite consolidated. They revolve around two variants, with one believed to sport a 2K resolution screen with 3 GB of RAM, while the other only has a 1080p display and 2 GB of RAM, both coming at 6 inches. Both variants will also be powered by the new Kirin 920 which Huawei flaunted inside the Honor 6 last June. There is believed to be a 13 megapixel camera at the back and 5 megapixels on the front.


The Ascend Mate7 might be interesting not in itself but by how much it might resemble some other high-end, and more expensive, smartphones. Previously leaked photos betray a design, specially with the rear cover, that looks eerily similar to HTC's finest. There is even talk of a fingerprint scanner on the back, similar to the HTC One Max. While that sensor seems to be mostly confirmed as coming, its placement is still uncertain.


The smartphone will also mark the debut of Emotion UI 3.0, the next major version of Huawei's custom Android experience. Like MIUI 6, which Xiaomi just announced earlier, Emotion UI, or EMUI for short, is switching to a flatter and more minimal look. Unlike MIUI, however, EMUI leans more towards the Android side of the spectrum, making the user interface uniquely Huawei's but still undoubtedly Android. Expect to see and hear more about Huawei's new baby come September 4, when the OEM unveils its latest products amidst the throng of competitors doing likewise.


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VIA: MyDrivers, Weibo


Xbox One SmartGlass beta: TV streaming, game recording

The Xbox One SmartGlass app beta version has received a major update to make your television, Xbox and your gadgets all the more interactive. While some of the new features will be rolling out first in regions where the upcoming Xbox TV tuner will first come out, it still is exciting to anticipate all these new functionalities when it eventually arrives for all other regions.



With the update, you now have the capability of streaming your TV content onto your smartphone or tablet through the Xbox One app (beta version, not the regular one). So even if someone is playing a game on the TV and you want to watch a particular show at the same time, you can stream it to your tablet or phone, and even change the channel or pause and resume it. However you can only do so if you have the Xbox TV tuner, which will be rolled out to the European market first. So sorry, US residents, this feature will not work on your app yet, since you’re missing that key component.


But worry not, there are other cool features in the update. You now have the ability to record your gameplay clips onto the Smartglass app and you can post this onto your Xbox Live activity feed if you want to boast about how well you played that particular game. You need to update your Xbox One system software as well, so you can now share and post activity feed items through your app and see all your activities on your profile.


Since this particular app is still in beta version, not all features might work as smoothly as expected. But if you want to try it out, you can download it for free from the Google Play Store (not to be confused with the regular app which doesn't let you try out the new features but is more stable)


VIA: Android Police





Qualcomm’s 64-bit Snapdragon 810 makes AnTuTu appearance

Judging from the focus on this feature, it looks like 64-bit computing might just be the next big thing for mobile devices – if the efforts from SoC manufacturers like NVIDIA and Qualcomm are any evidence. NVIDIA has the 64-bit version of the Tegra K1, and Qualcomm has the Snapdragon 810, with the latter now making an appearance at AnTuTu’s benchmarking databases.



The new SoC – earmarked with code number MSM8994 – is reportedly still in its testing phase, but what we see here is an unofficial sneak peek into what it looks like. The model is an octa-core chip – quad Cortex-A57and quad Cortex-A53 – with AnTuTu reporting some low speeds per core at testing phase (200 to 940.8Mhz). None of the cores are even breaking 1Ghz at this point, so we might still be seeing huge improvement in this aspect soon.


The test device is a strange one. It is yet unnamed, but what we know is that it sports a 6.2-inch 2560x1600 display being run by the SoC’s Adreno 430 graphics chip, backstopped by a whopping 4GBs of RAM on an Android 4.4.2 KitKat OS. Any guesses?


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This is clearly a developmental stage for the Snapdragon 810, and with NVIDIA already promising great leaps with its 64-bit Tegra K1, Qualcomm really needs to get this one together fairly quickly and efficiently. What will be the first Snapdragon 810 device? Tell us if you have any theories on this.


SOURCE: AnTuTu





Koush’s Mirror to Chrome now works with any device

Google has just added Android screen mirroring to Chromecast last month, but what if you didn't have the streaming HDMI dongle and only wanted to mirror to your computer? Koushik "Koush" Dutta's AllCast app and receiver duo might be your savior, but only if you had a Nexus 5. Soon, however, it will work with almsot any Android device you have in your hand.



AllCast is Koush's all in one Android streaming solution, encompassing both streaming select pieces of media to mirroring the whole screen. Last May, Koush announced a Chrome browser extension of his AllCast Receiver, which basically meant turning any computer into a makeshift Chromecast plus TV combo. In theory, you would be able to send your media or your screen to Chrome running on any computer (as long as they're on the same network of course). In practice, however, it's not so simple.


Due to technical issues, Koush ended up using the WebRTC protocol as well as the VP8 codec for mirroring to the Chrome browser. As he mentioned in his fiddling with the Fire TV port of his receiver app, WebRTC's performance was quite slow. But even more than that, the WebRTC/VP8 combo practically meant that only the Nexus 5 was supported, which severely limited its reach. Now, however, Koush rewrote the Mirror to Chrome feature on top of Broadway.js, a Javascript (technically, a C converted to Javascript) h264 decoder. By doing so, he is able to remove the WebRTC/VP8 requirement, meaning that the mirroring feature will be able to work almost any device.




Koush notes that there is still a bit of lag, which means it's far from perfect yet, though that's not really unexpected. Given how those apps are available for free and doesn't require the purchase of new hardware, it might not be a bad tradeoff. That said, this new feature does require an update to the app and Koush has not yet indicated when he will be pushing that out.


SOURCE: +Koush





Kiwi for Android Wear controls smartphone with gestures

If it’s always been your dream to control your smartphone with Jedi mind tricks, well you’re one step closer to that with a new app for your smartwatch. Kiwi for Android Wear allows you to control your smartphone through your wearable device not by actually touching it but through hand gestures that are set for specific actions. Yes, just a wave of your hand can now let you use your gadgets even without taking it out of your bag or pocket.



But don’t think that you can make your phone do whatever you want just like a Jedi master. For now, the gestures and resulting actions are fairly limited. You can set a hand gesture to dismiss calls that you don’t want to take by swiping left or right. You can also use a karate chop or an upper cut (maybe you need to study karate or some sort of martial arts before using this) to play, pause or skip tracks when using your phone’s music player.


While it is indeed a great app to have (if you have a smartwatch running on Android Wear, like the LG G Watch or Samsung Gear Live, and soon the Moto 360), as we said, the functions are still fairly limited at this point. It also might not be compatible yet with Google Music if your smartphone is running on Android 4.4.4 already. But as the developer said, they will be coming up with more actions and motions soon.


So if you feel like doing some awesome mind control tricks on your smartwatch and smartphone (just make sure you’re not in public to avoid actually hitting people), get the Kiwi for Android Wear app. You can get it for free through the Google Play Store.


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