Parrot Zik 2.0: lighter, better battery controls

Headphones, while still one of the best way of listening to music (well, as compared to earphones), have a reputation of being too bulky and heavy to carry on your daily commute, walk or run. Parrot's Zik headphones aims to change all that by giving you a lighter (nothing can be done about the bulk we guess) but still as powerful device with its Parrot Zik 2.0.

The headphones have been designed by Philippe Starck, the notable French designer who has been dabbling in gadgets as of late, aside from his work in interior design and architecture. What makes the Zik 2.0 lighter at 270 grams is that it uses less visible metal and instead has been replaced by aluminum metal. It doesn't just lessen the weight but it also gives it a better look. But don't worry, the features that you loved from the previous model are still there. It still has the unique touch panel, where you just need to touch certain parts of the cans to be able to pause, forward, rewind and adjust volume controls.

Battery life of these Bluetooth-activated accessories have also been improved. You now have the choice of different modes with features and it will tell you how much battery life you can enjoy when using them. Flight mode will give you 18 hours if you plug in the headphones to your device with a wire. The Eco Mode (wireless this time) will give you up to seven hours and still uses the noise-canceling effects. But if you want to use all the features of the Parrot Zik 2.0, then you'll get up to six hours.

The headphones still aren't available yet in the market, but Parrot has been showcasing them through photos to show off the beautiful design. It will come in six different colors: black, white, brown, blue, yellow and orange. No word yet on how much this will cost, but you can choose to keep posted by signing up for their mailing list.

VIA: SlashGear

Story Timeline

• Parrot details 3 new Android devices for in-car entertainment


• Parrot ZIK Wireless Headphones Review

Increase the Speaker Volume of Your Samsung Gear 2

I think it’s pretty safe to say that any sound coming out of a wristwatch isn’t exactly going to be audiophile-grade. But then again, smartwatches aren’t meant to serve as standalone music players (for now at least), with their speakers acting as the outlet for notifications you may receive on your watch. However, if you own a Samsung Gear 2 and find yourself needing a bit of musical accompaniment from your watch as you quietly working at the table, you may want to boost its sound with XDA Forum Member tonydav’s tool.

The tool is a .bat file, which when executed on your PC, will automatically boost the sound volume of your Gear 2 within an indicated minimum and maximum range. XDA Senior Member gav83collins has also written a more detailed tutorial teaching you how to use the tool with accompanying screenshots to help you out. Additionally, the tool has an extra function of installing and deleting ringtones on and off your Gear 2. It should be noted that for this to work, your Gear 2 must be rooted.

If you would like to give this a whirl, check out the Sound Boost tool thread for more information.

The post Increase the Speaker Volume of Your Samsung Gear 2 appeared first on xda-developers.

LG trademarks G Flex Frame, G Frame, and F Frame names

LG has filed for three trademarks for some new product names. All of the trademarks have to do with smartphones, and wearable mobile phones are called out in the description. The trademarks are for G Flex Frame, F Frame, and G Frame.

The applications were all field with the USPTO a few days ago. Presumably, the G Frame and F Frame will be for new smartphones. In the past LG has field trademarks on the G Prime and F Prime smartphone series.

As with any trademark or patent, there is no guarantee that these devices will ever come to market. Who knows what the G Flex Frame device might be.

Those names sound a bit like wearable devices to me, but I could be wrong. The frame in the name makes me think of smartglasses. Only time will tell what these devices are and if they are actually coming to market.

SOURCE: MyLGPhones

NVIDIA Shield tablet update brings new features

NVIDIA has released a new update for gamers who own a Shield Tablet. The update landed on September 30, brings the tablet software to version 1.2, and packs in some important enhancements and big fixes.

Among the fixes are enhanced Shield hub features and network test capability. Users can now customize the My Android Games and My Media Apps sections. News items read on the tablet are now sharable and users can swipe between articles.

Touch performance on the tablet was improved in the update and Nvidia added in various stability and localization improvements. The last update for the tablet came in late August; NVIDIA is sticking to an update schedule spaced at about a month apart.

If you are unfamiliar with the Shield tablet, it rocks an 8-inch screen and can be paired with an optional Shield controller and it uses a Tegra K1 mobile processor. The 16GB version of the tablet sells for $299 and the 32GB version sells for $399.

SOURCE: NVIDIA

Story Timeline

• First ROMs for the NVIDIA Shield Tablet surface


• NVIDIA SHIELD Tablet gets a 32 GB LTE upgrade


• NVIDIA Shield Portable updated, fix for auto-rotate glitch

Nexus 6 Rumor Roundup: Everything We Think We Know

The Nexus line is Google's Android champion, the annual display of Android in its purest form. As we get closer to this year's refresh, rumors are beginning to flesh out what the Nexus 6 is going to look like. Here's what you can expect from the next great Android phone.

Read more...

LG F60 rocks quad-core processor and 2100 mAh battery

LG has pulled the covers off a new smartphone that it promises will bring a premium 4G LTE experience to users. The new smartphone is called the LG F60 and LG is billing the device as a "stylish" new smartphone. Out of the box, the F60 runs Android 4.4.2 KitKat.

Under the hood, the smartphone has a 1.2GHz Qualcomm quad-core processor. The screen is a 4.5-inch WVGA unit with 207 ppi, and the quad-core processor is mated to 1GB of RAM.

Storage options are 4GB or 8GB and the smartphone features a 5MP rear camera and a 1.3MP front camera. The camera has gesture shot support, a front camera light, touch and shoot capability, and the smartphone supports Knock Code.

Power comes from a 2100 mAh internal battery and the device measures 127.5 x 67.9 x 10.6mm. LG also equips the device with Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi, and A-GPS. Depending on the market, the smartphone will be offered in black or white colors.

SOURCE: LG Newsroom

Path Talk now allows you to message businesses in new update

Messaging apps are a dime a dozen right now with LINE, Viber, Kakao Talk, Hangouts, FB Messenger, etc. But Path Talk has found a way to stand out from among their competitors by offering something that most people will find very much useful: sending messages to places of business and acting like your very own personal virtual assistant.

Path Talk 1.1 introduces the Places feature where you can message specific places of business regarding their business hours, setting up appointments, asking for specific products, etc. (Because calling them up on their phone is so old school). But what if they're not on Path, you ask? That doesn't really matter as actually it's Path that will be communicating with the business. They have a team of agents that are on stand-by waiting for inquiries and then placing that phone call for you, relaying your questions or requests.

So for example, you want to check if that local bookstore in the city has the newest title by Robert Gailbraith (that's JK Rowling if you didn't know yet). Instead of checking their website (if they have one) or calling them up (you don't have the time), you just send a message to them on Path. You'll get an estimate as to how long you'll get your response. Once the Path agent has spoken with the bookstore, then they'll inform you through the same messaging thread whether or not the bookstore has the book.

This is a very convenient service for those who don't have much time to deal with calling up people or posting inquiries on websites and social networks (and let's face it, not a lot of businesses actually respond). Path Talk 1.1 is now available in the US and Canada. You can download the app from the Google Play Store if you don't have it yet.

SOURCE: Path