Mad Catz L.Y.N.X hybrid controller hands-on

CES 2015 is bringing us loads of new technology content and Mad Catz was sitting safely tucked away from the competition. Making the trip out to their suite made the feeling that their content was a little bit more exclusive and that if you really wanted to check out their CES line, you’d make the effort. I was not disappointed as I was able to get hands-on with their latest mobile remote control announced this morning, the L.Y.N.X.

L.Y.N.X. is a hybrid controller that connects via Bluetooth to your Android device - with different modes that cycles through gaming on Android, media controls, mouse functionality, built-in mic, and gaming on PC. Our phones serves as a music player, camera, portal to the internet, and game console - L.Y.N.X. is able to control all these applications and softwares. A full QWERTY keyboard is designed and attaches to the controller, allowing you to type in-game messages, email, or update social media.

Staying focused on the gaming experience here - the controller has a cut-throat design that displays their skeletal trademark approach. It has a comfortable feel in hand as it replicates the prior MLG (Major League Gaming) controller feel. The controller is collapsable, detachable, and foldable making it fit into your pocket with ease and comfort. Adding the wing handle attachment to provide a better grip and sleek appearance is an option as well. Playing on an Android tablet is not limited. The controller arms detach and slaps into a tablet chassis with a built-in kickstand - if you get tired of holding it.

L.Y.N.X. is light in weight, but feels solid and dense in your hands. Included in box are Mad Catz BigPlay cables that connect your mobile to television and mounts for your smartphones and tablets. The controller is highly priced at $300. For some it’ll be worth it, while others might not feel so compelled to jump in on it.

CyanogenMod gets the ball rolling for Lollipop-based CM12

Among the flood of CES 2015 news this week, this announcement is probably what CyanogenMod fans have been waiting for to kickstart the new year. The developers of Android's most popular custom ROM have just switched on CyanogenMod 12 nightly builds for as much as 31 devices and variants. And with that, of course, comes the sweet promise of Android 5.0 Lollipop descending upon its users in the near future.

The CM12 builds are actually almost quite mature, with CyanogenMod claiming as much as 85 percent of functionality quite ready for the first M milestone release. For supported devices, core features such as calls, Bluetooth, WiFi, GPS, camera, and more are already functional, though there are some less common hardware that are not yet supported. Not showstoppers definitely, at least depending on your use cases.

That said, there are still a bit of CyanogenMod-specific features that are still in the process of being ported over to Android Lollipop and the new Material Design. These include the rather new CM Theme Engine, Quick Settings reorganization, Navigation bar customization, Sound panel settings, and Lock-screen quick unlock.

But there are also new, unheard of features yet to come. These include the now popular Ambient display feature, a new messaging app, and some small customization options like (finally) adding weather information on the extended status bar. This will definitely whet users' appetites, making the upcoming CM12 releases something to wait for with baited breath.

For reference, here are the devices that currently have CM12 builds running:

1. bacon


2. d802


3. dlx


4. e975


5. e980


6. evita


7. falcon


8. find5


9. flo


10. ghost


11. hlte


12. hltespr


13. jewel


14. jfltevzw


15. klte


16. m7


17. m7spr


18. m7vzw


19. m8


20. mako


21. mondrianwifi


22. moto_msm8960


23. t6


24. t6spr


25. t6vzw


26. serrano3gxx


27. serranoltexx


28. shamu


29. v500


30. ville


31. vs985

SOURCE: CyanogenMod

You Can Now Buy Dell's Incredible Android Tablet

Remember when Dell made Android tablets interesting again ? Four months later, you can finally buy the Dell Venue 8 7000 tablet. While it's still listed as "coming soon" on Dell's website, Best Buy is now carrying the slate which wowed us with a beautiful screen, crazy camera, and ultra-thin chassis. It'll set you back $400. [Best Buy]

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Canon Connect Station: store images and videos wirelessly

Aside from music, most of what takes up space on our mobile devices are pictures and videos. When using cameras, backing them up on your computer is sometimes a pain. Canon has announced during CES 2015 a new product that will help you solve your storage problem for your digital cameras and camcorders and manage those files as well, while viewing them on a huge screen. Welcome the Connect Station CS100 to your digital life.

The photo and video storage device has up to 1TB of space and can connect with your compatible Canon devices using both NFC and WiFi technology. Just tap on the NFC icon on your device and it will wirelessly import images and videos to the CS100. It also has a USB port and SD and CF memory card slots for compatible devices that may not have WiFi or NFC. If you want to view, upload, and download pictures from a smartphone, tablet or PC, you can also do it through a web browser. And if you know other people who have Connect Stations, you can also send and receive images using the Canon Image Gateway, where you can also share these pictures to your social networks.

Once transferred, you can view the images and videos on a compatible HDTV since it has HDMI connection as well.

The menu and interface is user-friendly so it would be easy to manage and navigate through your files when viewing it on the HDTV. You can sort by albums, date taken or by device from which they came from. The storage device can also connect wirelessly with PIXMA and SELPHY printers so you can print images directly from the CS100. The file formats supported are JPEG, MP4, MOV and AV/HCD among others.

Now if you can't wait to have this storage device at your service, you have to hold your horses a little while longer. Availability is expected by June this year, and the Connect Station CS100 is priced at $299.99.

SOURCE: Canon

Ultimate Ears Megaboom: 360 sound, life-proof,amazing sound

Mobile speakers are becoming a dime a dozen lately, and you would need a discerning ear and a working knowledge of sound technology to be able to determine which one best fits your needs. Ultimate Ears brings you a new one with its Megaboom speakers, which they say delivers "unrivaled sound" while coming in a tough little life-proof package.

Building on their previous release, the UE Boom, this new mobile speaker also brings you the 360-degree sound and pulsing bass that can work wherever you are as its portability and "grab-and-go design" is also one of its main attractions. But Megaboom has a few more tricks up its sleeves. It has IPX7 certification, meaning you can take it with you to the shower or the pool or when it's raining without fear of damage (well, at least for 30 minutes and at a water depth of 1 meter). The makers also say they put the product through rigorous testing, ensuring that it becomes "life resistant" (well, unless you deliberately set out to destroy it).

The Megaboom works as long as it's within 100 feet away from the device you're using to blast the sound from. It can actually connect to two devices at the same time so you and a friend can take turns in controlling the music at your party. It can play up to 20 hours non-stop but you would need just 2 1/2 hours to fully recharge its lithium-ion battery. You would need to download the app on your smartphone or tablet to be able to customize its five-band EQ. And through the app, you can also use the speakers as an alarm clock to wake you up with your favorite (or least favorite) song.

The UE Megaboom mobile speakers will be available in the US and selected countries in Europe and Asia by this month. SRP is at $299.99 which may be a little steep, but if it fulfills all its promises, then it may very well be worth it.

SOURCE: Ultimate Ears (1, 2)

Polaroid Selfie smartphone hands-on: part of a whole new line

Walking on the floor today at CES 2015, Polaroid has introduced their first line of smartphones. With several different models on display, The Polaroid Selfie smartphone was the only one listed with a unique model name. The rest are still in generic mode, prepared for Polaroid’ future in camera centric smartphones. Running on Android 5.0 Lollipop and powered with an Octa-core processor, the Polaroid Selfie is a robust seemingly unique design.

The Polaroid Selife is a beast at first glance rocking a large 5.5-inch HD IPS display (with a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels). Standard equipped is 2GB RAM and 16GB internal storage space. There is no micro SD card slot at this time for increase in storage capacity.

Though Polaroid has noted that the Selfie is powered by an octa-core processor, we do not know the manufacturer as of yet.

The rotate-able camera brings on a semi-unique design that lets you swing the 13MP rear camera to the front. You may recognize that the Polaroid Selfie looks extremely similar to the Oppo N1 with its camera-on-hinge design. We are surprised that it didn’t come to light that Polaroid is not facing a lawsuit for their shockingly similar execution.

Polaroid had a few other smartphones displayed that varied in sizes from 3.5-inch to 5.5-inch displays. The martphones shared similarities like quad-core processor, IPS screen display, Android 4.4 KitKat, and smaller units of onboard RAM and internal storage space.

At this time Polaroid has not released much information about pricing or availability for its smartphone line with the exception of the Selfie. The Selfie is expected to release Spring 2015 in USA and Canada.

Story Timeline

• Polaroid XS100i Action Cam review


• Polaroid Socialmatic combines old school instant pics with social media


• Polaroid Cube Review: big fun, tiny package


• Polaroid's Socialmatic camera coming in January; pre-orders now up


• Polaroid Zip Mobile Printer: instant printing from your device

Google Cast for audio announced

No doubt Chromecast became one of the most in demand streaming media devices in the the market today. From the US, Google has brought it to more countries around the globe. The Internet giant made Chromecast now ready in 27 countries and with more to be added this year. As proof, per device usage of the Chromecast increased by 60% compared to than when it first launched. Thanks to the new features and apps that have been added to the streaming media stick during the past year.

Google wants to make our lives even better by introducing Google Cast for audio. It uses the same Chromecast technology but now directed onto A/V receivers, sound bars, and speakers. It's very easy to use: just tap the button you'll see on your music or radio app playing on the web or your Android device. Just make sure the speaker is Google Cast Ready.

Google Cast Ready speakers bring music streaming to your home. They can pull content from the cloud directly. Sure, you can play your favorite songs on your tablet, smartphone, or laptop while working or web browsing but doing so will definitely use up all the battery. Feel free to use the Google Cast feature on popular music apps like Google Play Music, NPR One, TuneIn, Rdio, Pandora, and iHeartRadio.

More Google Cast Ready speakers will be available in the country this year. Brands like LG, Sony, and HEOS by Denon are joining the bandwagon. Chip manufacturers like MediaTek, Marvell, Broadcam, and system integrator Libre Wireless will also be supporting this Google Cast service. These companies have plans to roll out Google Cast Ready speakers that will support Google's latest service.

With this development, the Google Cast ecosystem is growing even bigger. From Android TVs to set-top boxes to game consoles, Google is really trying its best to bring "smart technology" into our homes.

SOURCE: Chrome

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