Droid my Drug

Snowball lets you read messages from many apps in one place

If you've found yourself confused by all the various messaging apps that you are now being "forced" to use (why can't all your friends and colleagues just use one app?) to communicate with various people in your life, then what you need is just one app where you can read all your incoming messages. That's the thinking behind the new app, Snowball, which is still in its beta version but may save your sanity to some extent.

If you use Facebook Messenger, Google Hangouts, WhatsApp, Snapchat, LINE, WeChat, Slack, Twitter and even your phone's own SMS, then you'll be able to just view them in Snowball. It follows the "Chat Head" design format of Facebook, and will just be floating on top of your homescreen. It will show you how many new messages you have in any of the apps that you use. Just tap on it to expand and read the messages and if you want to respond, you can launch the messaging app you need from the chat head and it should switch you to said app. To avoid confusion when viewing the messages, there is a small icon that tells you from where the message came from.

The developers don't want to become just another messaging app, and that is probably why you can't reply from the chat head itself. They want "to become synmbiotic" with all these apps and in fact, would like to work directly with these current apps that they are supporting, and those they'd like to add in the future. This could lead to an even better messaging interface and it might even lead to you being able to see what other messaging apps your friends are using.

Some user complaints have said the transition from Snowball to the other apps isn't that smooth, and of course, there are lots of other requests for other apps to be included, like Kik, Viber, Instagram, etc. Since the app is still in its beta phase, there will probably be more improvements in the later updates. Also, right now, it is only available in the US. So if you live in the country and would like this kind of app on your smartphone, you can download Snowball for free from the Google Play Store.

Endomondo gets compatible with Android Wear, Samsung Gear S

Popular sports and lifestyle tracking app Endomondo is now integrated with wearable platform Android Wear and its devices, as well as the Tizen-run Samsung Gear S. This means you can now use the app on your LG G Watch, G Watch R, Moto 360, Samsung Gear Live, ASUS Zenwatch, and the Sony Smartwatch 3, the wearable devices that are using Android Wear. The Sports Tracker app in particular now works well with these devices, letting you have access to stats and data while you do your workout.

The Endomondo integration with Android Wear works fairly easily, with just a few simple taps or the wonders of voice activation. Once you've paired your smartwatch with the app, you can just say "Start Endomondo" or if you want to jump to a particular exercise already, just say "Start a workout", "Start a bike ride", or "Start a run". Or if you want to preserve your voice or something, just go to the three dot menu, choose Endomondo from the apps and press start. Or if you want to use your paired smartphone, start the workout from there, click on the notification from your Android Wear and then swipe to the Open button.

The Sports Tracker gives you six real-time fitness stats and you can start, pause, restart and stop your workouts easily. Creating a training plan is also easier now as it gives you a detailed guide on how you can actually create one that will be tailor fit to your fitness needs. The Samsung Gear S integration works similarly like the Android Wear, but the added feature of the heart monitor on the wearable will show this data on both the app and the smartwatch display.

Looks like you won't need a personal trainor anymore with these integration features as it gives you even more freedom to workout on your own, whether you're running, riding a bike or whatever Endomondo will be offering in the future. You can download the app for free from the Google Play Store or you can get the Pro version for $4.99 for tons of other features.

SOURCE: Endomondo

Todoist Karma’s fated mobile launch turns jobs into games

Todoist's fast-paced development is quite interesting to observe and definitely a pleasure to experience first-hand. From integrating with popular calendar app Sunrise, to adding attachments from Google Drive or Dropbox, to pinning down location-based reminders, Todoist is quickly becoming a top-rated todo app, available on as much as 13 platforms. Now it is adding a new feature, at least for its mobile users, bringing Todoist Karma's gamification to Android as well as iOS and Amazon Fire OS.

The once popular "gamification" has developed a rather negative stigma lately, but the concept isn't exactly new and can even be traced as far back as Mary Poppins (I'll let you figure that one out). Parents and teachers do it all the time as well. The premise is simple. Humans tend to look positively at otherwise negative tasks when presented in a different light, usually involving some graduated reward system and comparative performance analysis. In short, a game.

Karma is Todoist's attempt to gamify your otherwise drab todo list. You setup your own tasks and then are given points when you accomplish them on time. You also gain levels every time you accumulate enough points to advance to the next tier. You even have performance charts to see how well you've grown and compare it with others. Karma has its own point-generating system so you don't have to worry about your tendency to cheat your own points. Todoist Karma has actually been around for quite a while now, but only on the web. Now that it's on mobile devices as well, you no longer have any excuse not to get your quests accomplished.

Todoist Karma on mobile will give you access to everything you could on the web right on your smartphone or tablet, whenever and where ever you want, from creating tasks to knocking them out. New to this update is the ability to set how many goals users want to accomplish on a daily or weekly basis. Karma will now also track your "winning streak", or how many straight days or weeks users have reached their goals without fail. And, of course, since we're talking about mobile here, you will also get to easily share, and even compare, your achievements and performance with others, and turn it into a bit of a competition as well.

Todoist Karma will be available today as an update to the regular Todoist app on Android and other platforms. Don't worry if you haven't gotten the notification just yet as it always takes time to rollout the update to everyone everywhere.

HTC One M8 EYE unveiled in China

HTC has been busy of late with the unveiling of some new digital imaging products like the HTC RE camera and the Desire Eye digital camera. This week a new smartphone from HTC has been unveiled in China called the HTC One M8 Eye. Interestingly the smartphone was unveiled in China with no fanfare.

Essentially the HTC One M8 EYE is the same device as the standard HTC One M8 smartphone, and this is the device that we spied passing through TENAA earlier this month. You get a 2.3GHz quad-core processor, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of storage, and a 5-inch full HD resolution display.

The main difference between the new EYE device and the normal M8 comes in the camera. The One M8 EYE has a duo camera system with a 13MP sensor for the rear camera and a 5MP camera in the front that lacks LED flash.

The camera on the EYE versions of the device has a suite of special features, and those features will be coming to the normal One M8 as well. The reality of this device is that it is available now rather than having to wait for those EYE features to land for the standard One M8. That explains why HTC made little noise about the device. HTC fans who want the One M8 EYE in China can get it for 3,999 RMB ($652) and it will be available officially on October 15 with pre-orders underway now.

SOURCE: SlashGear

Samsung releases two new Galaxy Note 4 videos

It’s not hard to convince people to buy a Galaxy Note 4. Hardcore fans of Samsung are just waiting for the next model to come along and then upgrade. One of the highly anticipated phablets in the market today is the Galaxy Note 4. Samsung is trying to convince you again why you should get one by releasing two new videos on YouTube.

The first 30-second video shows off what the Note 4 is and isn’t. It’s not quite a screen but a window. Two windows actually because of the Multi-window function similar to what Google has been experimenting on for Android. With the Quad HD Super AMOLED screen, you can watch your favorite film as if inside a movie theater. The Photo Note feature allows business people and students to take photos of notes and digitize them—using the phone as a notebook. And for the selfie addicts, you can take photos even in dim areas with the phablet’s bright camera.

The second video says that the Galaxy Note 4 is not a pen. It’s actually a pair of scissors that allows you to cut the photos. It also works as a gluestick to paste the photos anywhere on the screen as you wish. For some, it’s a head scratcher. Actually, the Galaxy Note 4 can be anything you want it to be in your mobile life.

Samsung is trying to convince us to get a Galaxy Note 4 with all the videos we’ve seen lately. It’s a pretty neat phablet actually with good results in a recent benchmark test. Pre-orders have started and will be available on October 17.

Samsung insist’s it’s neither a screen nor a pen. It’s Galaxy Note 4. Remember that.

SOURCE: Samsung Mobile

HERE maps app now available for Samsung Galaxy devices

It's now, uhm, here! We're talking about a great alternative to Google Maps, but only if you're on Nokia X and now Samsung Galaxy devices. It's called HERE and it seems to be a great-looking map app, although for now, access to it is still pretty limited. But if you own any of those devices and would like to have another app to look for places or explore the area around you, then this one looks like a good option for you.

Once you've downloaded the app from the Samsung Galaxy Apps store, you have three options: sign in with your existing HERE account (if you've previously had a Nokia X device and enjoyed this app already), create a new account or don't register at all and start using it. The advantage with signing in or creating an account is that you can save several maps for offline use and it will make even your online use of the app faster. Where you are now is shown on the app with a green dot with an arrow. If you see a big green circle around you, then it means you need to turn on your GPS because it can only see you through your mobile network or your WiFi connection, which isn't always accurate.

You can now explore the area around you, just like you would use any digital map on your phone. One finger means panning, pinch for zooming in and out, two-finger twist will rotate the map, two-finger swiping will tilt the map to different angles, etc. As we mentioned earlier, you can download the map so you can use it even when you don't have Internet connection. You can also search for the place you need to go to or explore the category lists (shopping, hotels, etc) if you have no idea what place you should be going to. It will then give you options, whether you're driving, taking public transportation or walking towards your destination.

The Android version is still in beta version so expect a few kinks and bugs for now. But if you have been annoyed with Google Maps as of late and you have a Samsung Galaxy device running on Android 4.1 and higher, with a 1GB of RAM, then head on over to the Galaxy Apps Store to download the HERE app. There have been several comments though that it can only work with Galaxy S3, S4, S5 and Note 3 and Note 4. But the folks from HERE said that it means it is still propagating its way to the Apps Store for other Galaxy devices and that you need to update the Galaxy Apps Store for you to find it.

SOURCE: HERE

Samsung Galaxy Note 4 gets dropped over and over and over

One of the constant nightmares of expensive smartphone owners is that they drop their phone, crack the screen, make it non-functioning and just make their life miserable, not to mention how much it would cost to have it repaired. And with the whole hullabaloo about a certain OEM that released a highly-anticipated smartphone only to have complaints about breaking and bendability, owners are now even more careful about their next big gadget purchase. Samsung decided to put your minds at ease by dropping their new Galaxy Note 4 over and over again and show how tough it is.

The extensive drop test they conducted on the poor Galaxy Note 4 showed that no matter how many times they dropped it, the phablet still worked properly. And from the video (or maybe the angle they shot it), there didn't seem to be any cracks. It showed three different kinds of tests on the gadget. The drop test showed the phablet being dropped from different heights, waist-level and up onto a solid granite floor with a rough surface and solid metal floors with a smooth surface. They even dropped it alongside a ceramic coffee cup, which wasn't as lucky to come out unscathed as the Galaxy Note 4.

The automatic drop test showed several phablets being dropped from different angles at different heights onto a hard metal floor. They say that they did this several hundreds of times, all without an effect on the devices. Probably the most grueling is the tumble test, which wants to simulate the gadget falling tumbling down the stairs (which of course happens quite often to be honest). The Galaxy Note 4 is put into a tumbling device, and a soda can in another machine. After 14 revolutions, the soda can looks pretty beat up but the phablet was still functioning properly.

Now of course this is no guarantee that your Galaxy Note 4 will survive every single time you drop it (why are you constantly dropping it anyway?) but it does give a level of security that it isn't as breakable as glass. Now let's wait and see if some third-party tests will confirm its strength as well.