Thursday, April 30, 2015

Microsoft Edge: The Windows 10 Web Browser

Meet Microsoft’s replacement to its old web browser Internet Explorer. The Project Spartan Web browser for Windows 10 has now an official name — Microsoft Edge.

Yes, Microsoft’s new web browser shipping on all Windows 10 devices, from computers to smartphones and tablets, is dubbed Microsoft Edge.

The company just announced in its Build developer conference that Edge is going to be its primary/default web browser built into Windows 10.


Microsoft Edge is the successor to Internet Explorer and designed to be basic and minimalist for the future.

There aren't many details about the unique features of Microsoft Edge yet, but here’s what we know about Microsoft Edge so far:
  • It has built-in Cortana support, Microsoft's virtual assistant.
  • It has a built-in reading list, web note-taking and sharing features.
  • The rendering engine is called EdgeHTML.
  • The design focuses on minimalism and simplicity.
  • It has a super useful and well-designed "New Tab" page (pictured below).
  • It contains the vast majority of the controls.

Tuesday, April 28, 2015

Apple sold 61.2m iPhones in first 3 months of 2015

China now biggest overseas market for tech giant



Apple just realised its Q2 earnings for the period ended March 28 and they revealed the company saw quarterly revenue of $58 billion and quarterly net profit of $13.6 billion. 69 per cent of that revenue came from overseas sales.

"The tremendous customer demand for our products and services in the March quarter drove revenue growth of 27 per cent and EPS growth of 40 per cent," said CFO Luca Maestri.

"Cash flow from operations was also outstanding at $19.1 billion."

The company sold 61.2 million iPhones in first three months of this year, compared to 43.7 million iPhones in the same period last year. iPad sales continued to decline in this quarter, possibly as a result of a lack of any major updates to the tablet and the release of the super-sized iPhone 6 Plus.

Monday, April 27, 2015

Chevy's concept car, LED bulbs and solar lanterns

Tesla made headlines again this week with the official (sort of) announcement that it will be unveiling a battery that can power your entire home at the end of the month.

Inhabitat's Week in Green

In autonomous vehicle news, some of the biggest automakers are starting to roll out self-driving concept cars. Just a few weeks after Mercedes-Benz revealed a self-driving concept, Chevrolet has now rolled out the FNR, a futuristic autonomous concept car of its own, at the Shanghai Motor Show.
In other automotive news, automakers from around the world are continuing to roll out more efficient electric vehicles and hybrids. Volvo has announced plans to release hybrid versions of its entire lineup, beginning with the 2016 Volvo XC90 SUV, which is slated to hit the road with a new plug-in hybrid powertrain.

Nokia says it's not going to start making phones again

We hope you weren't counting on Nokia reviving its phone business. The Finnish firm is now bluntly denying claims that it's planning to return to making phones -- there are "no plans" to make or sell any, Nokia says.

That's not surprising given both the company's expansion of its networking efforts and an agreement with Microsoft that it won't make phones until at least 2016. Simply speaking, Nokia wouldn't have the cash or permissions to build these devices in the near future.

With that said, the company mentioned this fall that it was considering licensing its storied name to a third party handset maker. If you don't mind buying a Nokia-approved phone, there's still a chance (however small) that you'll get your wish.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 is fast, frantic and adds a co-op campaign

Developer Treyarch has a good record of keeping things fresh in Call of Duty.
The company started working on the franchise back in 2005. With World at War it added zombies; Black Ops went to Vietnam; Black Ops 2 traversed time and added branching narratives.
For its next installment, Treyarch is, once again, trying something new. Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 (set to arrive November 6th on PC, Xbox One and PS4) brings campaign co-op back to the franchise. 

The entire campaign will be playable co-operatively by up to four players online (or two players locally). The addition of up to three campaign players meant building bigger combat arenas, better AI and adding social features for showing off medals and achievements.

Apple Watch found to be compliant with Qi wireless charging standard

AppleInsider reader Albert C. Lee reached out on Friday to share his video, where he shows the Apple Watch magnetic charger being used with the Moto 360. This would seem to confirm that Apple’s charger is Qi-compatible, despite the fact that Apple has not been announced as a supporter of the Qi standard.

That means it’s likely that the Apple Watch itself could also be recharged with a Qi-compliant charging mat. Such accessories are readily available, and even work with the iPhone with various third-party Qi accessories.

Friday, April 24, 2015

Xbox revenues dip 24% thanks to price reduction

Microsoft shipped 1.6 million Xbox consoles in its third quarter, down from 2.0 million during Q3 of the previous year

As part of its third-quarter earnings report today, Microsoft noted that its Xbox revenues have decreased by $306 million (24 percent) compared to the same period ended March 31 a year earlier. The company also said that its Computing and Gaming Hardware division overall suffered a four percent impact from unfavorable currency comparisons.

Xbox revenues dip 24% thanks to price reduction
The bigger cause for the Xbox sales drop, however, was a 20 percent volume decline and a price reduction on Xbox One. When Xbox One first launched, its sales were hampered by a $499 price tag. Since the holidays, though, Microsoft has extended promotions to offer the platform (regularly bundled with games) to get more consumers interested and make Xbox One more competitive with Sony's PlayStation 4, which has been seeing rapid adoption globally.

The company also noted that Xbox Live usage grew over 30 percent, "driven by increased users and deeper user engagement." Microsoft did not break out Xbox 360 versus Xbox One sales in its report, but it's likely that part of the overall sales dip also stems from plummeting numbers on the old Xbox 360.

Wednesday, April 22, 2015

PS4 Remote Play Now Works On Android

One of the last biggest selling features of the PlayStation Vita is the 'Remote Play' being able to play Games from your PS4 on your handheld, and Sony been slow in expanding the 'Remote Play' feature allowing it now only on their PSTV (VitaTV) console, and certain costly Xperia smartphone devices.

But recently, Twisted89 has made amazing progress on porting the Sony's exclusive Xperia app over to basically almost any other generic Android device.


Features:
  • Root Check/APK Signature Check Disabled.
  • Connection Speed Check Removed.
  • Wifi Check Removed.
  • XML/JAR Dependencies Removed.
  • Downgraded Minimum Required SDK to 4.0.
  • Native controller Support for Dualshock and Nvidia Shield (Beta) - Dualshock Instructions below.
Requirements:
  • Android 4.0+
Install Instructions:
  • Download APK.
  • Copy to device and install or use the adb command "adb install <apk>'' from your PC.
  • Done!
Dualshock Bluetooth Setup Instructions:
  • Download and Install Sixaxis Controller App
  • Follow in-app instructions for pairing your controller.
  • In the sixaxis app preferences ensure 'Enable Gamepad' is checked under 'Gamepad Settings'
  • Edit mappings in the sixaxis app so that x = A, circle = B, square = X, triangle = Y
  • Load up remote play app and play!
  • LTE setup/Error 8801e209
Download
Sixaxis Controller App
RemotePlayPortV1.2.apk
RemotePlayPortITBV1.2.apk (Invisible touch buttons)

Depending on your carrier all you have to do is create another access point name (via connection settings, more networks, mobile networks, then Access point names) with the same exact information
When you get to APN Protocol, input ipv4 instead of ipv6. you should now be able to remote play over data network as well as wifi
Known Issues
Sixaxis doesn't map the action buttons correctly, see bluetooth instructions above to fix this.
PS button and touchpad are not yet working.

CyberPower's three-blade gaming PC is built for showing off

Sure, you can accessorize a gaming PC with curved monitors and glowing lights to make it stand out, but what if you don't think they're eye-catching enough? CyberPower thinks it has an answer: it just started taking orders for the Trinity, an oddball gaming rig that divides the chassis into CPU, Performance (read: graphics) and Storage "blades." According to the company, that three-part design is both pretty and functional. The unusual split prevents the components from heating each other, so a hot-running video card shouldn't cook your processor.

CyberPower's Trinity gaming PC

The line starts out relatively modestly with the $955 Trinity 100, which carries an AMD A10 processor, 8GB of RAM, GeForce GTX 750 Ti graphics and a storage combo that includes both a 120GB solid-state drive and a 1TB spinning drive. However, you can pony up for higher-end pre-configured models (up to an Intel Core i7 and a GeForce GTX 970), and you can order advanced upgrades like the Titan X card if you insist on the best. This definitely isn't be the cheapest gaming rig you can buy, but there's no question that it'll get attention the next time your gaming pals stop by.

In five years, we will send as few letters that Posten activitys does not pay

In the Nordic countries sent 5.3 billion letter to the 25 million inhabitants through Postnord last year. It may sound a lot but the fact is that it is significantly less than in the early 2000s.

For PostNord part is drop significantly. In Denmark, 65 percent of letter volume disappeared since 2000 and in Sweden around 40 percent.

- In 2020 we might have 20 percent left of what we had in 2000, says HÃ¥kan Ericsson, PostNord's president.

The focus has shifted from letters section and instead ended up on e-commerce which increases very sharply. Some of it all is to offer e-commerce companies a complete solution, from transportation and handling of returns to such targeted analysis and marketing - both digital and physical.

Just like any other digitization also moved PostNord focus increasingly to the end customer, and where they plan, for example, that during the year to develop an app where the receiver should be able to put the package to be delivered - home, shop or perhaps summerhouse.

- Where can the online retailer to offer free options to the customer, but pay us, but what we believe will be the most common is that the customer may add a fee if you change the delivery. It's about mottagarmakt in a innovative approach, says HÃ¥kan Ericsson.

Another question is whether postnord slows down the development of digital mailboxes because it is expensive for them to regroup and fire staff. Post Nord is located is not particularly far forward in that area.

Postnord

Tuesday, April 21, 2015

The Top 25 Public Companies Generated $54.1Bn Game Revenues in 2014, Up 10.4% Year-on-Year

Tencent still the world's biggest games company with 37% growth

Newzoo has updated its chart of the world's biggest games companies by revenue, painting a picture of a year of almost universal growth across the industry's top 25 companies. Between them, those 25 firms accounted for 65 per cent of the global industry's revenues, a total of $54.1 billion. The figures come from the research firm's 2014 Global Games Market Report.


Top 20 Game Franchises on YouTube for March

Video game views on YouTube continued to grow at an astounding rate in March 2015 driven mostly by fan-created videos, which accounted for 97.6% of all views. The total views of our March 2015 rankings were significantly higher than February’s 2015 numbers by 1.5 billion views, rising to 12.3 billion – a statistically significant gain of 14%.

Small_Newzoo_Top_20_Game_Franchises_on_YouTube_March_2015_V1 (2)

IKEA's future kitchen tells you how to cook

For IKEA, your future kitchen shouldn't just have the occasional smart appliance -- it should be a technology hub.
The furniture store's Concept Kitchen 2025 includes tech and other helpful additions meant to save both time and resources, such as a pantry with induction cooling (to preserve food longer) and a disposal system that automatically packs your recyclables.
The highlight, however, is the Table For Living. It packs a camera-equipped projector that both shows recipes on its surface and recognizes ingredients, giving you an idea of what to make with what you have on hand.
There's an induction cooktop hidden in the table, too, so you wouldn't have to run between counters to get that hot stew ready. This is just a vision rather than something you can actually buy, but all of IKEA's technology is realistic enough that you could find some of it in your home within the next decade.

IKEA's smart table in Concept Kitchen 2025

Monday, April 20, 2015

Sony's new flagship smartphone Z4 has an image-stabilizing selfie camera

Sony's unveiled its new smartphone in Japan, the Xperia Z4, and like you might tell from the press images, it's a mighty familiar-looking one from a company still looking for its next big hit.

Yes there's a lot of similarities compared to the Z3 (a phone that we were pretty happy with), including a 5.2-inch screen, metal frame, support for Hi-Res audio and the same wide-angle 25mm lens on the main camera.
Upgrades since last year's model include a frame that's both thinner (down to under 7 mm) and lighter, while camera upgrades are focused on the front, which now gets the same wide-angle lens of the primary shooter as well as digital image stabilization to keep your selfie game completely on point.


Sony's also added timer functions for improved posing and group selfies - with or without a stick. The phone launches this summer in Japan, in four shades of metal finish, but no word on where (or if) it'll start its world tour after that. However, we'd put money on a very similar smartphone appearing at some point.

Google To Speed Up The Internet With Its New QUIC Protocol

Google is trying every effort to make the World Wide Web faster for Internet users.

The company has announced plans to propose its homemade networking protocol, called Quick UDP Internet Connections (QUIC), to the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) in order to make it the next-generation Internet standard.



Probably the term QUIC is new for you, but if you use Google’s Chrome browser then there are chances that you have used this network protocol already.

What is QUIC?
QUIC is a low-latency transport protocol for the modern Internet over UDP, an Internet protocol that is often used for streaming media, gaming and VoIP services.

The search engine giant first unveiled the experimental protocol QUIC and added it to Chrome Canary update in June 2013.

The protocol already included a variety of new features, but the key feature is that QUIC runs a stream multiplexing protocol on top of UDP instead of TCP.

The Idea behind QUIC:

QUIC was developed to speed up latency-sensitive web applications, such as search, by reducing the number of network round-trip time (RTT) that it takes in order to establish a connection to a server.

"The standard way to do secure web browsing involves communicating over TCP + TLS, which requires 2 to 3 round trips with a server to establish a secure connection before the browser can request the actual web page," Google's Chrome team wrote in a blog post.

"QUIC is designed so that if a client has talked to a given server before, it can start sending data without any round trips, which makes web pages load faster."

Friday, April 17, 2015

Lost Your Phone? Google Search 'Find My Phone' To Locate It

How many of you have an issue to forget your mobile phones? I guess, most of us.
Sometimes in our homes, sometimes in our offices, sometimes in our cars and sometimes we even don’t remember the exact place where we left our phones.
Now, Finding your phone is as simple as searching something on Google...



Instead of searching your phone everywhere, just ask Google where your phone is, and the search engine giant will answer you the exact place where you left your smartphone.

Sound’s interesting!

Google unveiled a new feature on Wednesday that lets you search for your Android smartphone or tablet using the search engine on your desktop computer.

How does it work?
  • Log-in to the same Google account on your desktop computer’s browser that you use on your Android smartphone, but before that make sure you must have the latest version of the Google app installed on your smartphone.
  • Now type "Find my phone" into Google's search engine, and that’s it.
As soon as you press the enter button, Google will display a map that eventually shows you a location on the map that is accurate to a certain distance, as for example, the map showed me the location of my smartphone was accurate to 35 feet.

However, what if your phone is not visible to you?

Google also offers you a Ring button on the map in order to pinpoint your phone.

You just need to click on Ring icon and the search engine giant will ring your smartphone at full volume for up to five minutes. Moreover, once you hand on it, simply press the power button to turn off the ringing.

Thursday, April 16, 2015

Adorable new 'Star Wars' droid proves it's not CGI


When the first trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens was released, the internet lost its collective mind. Not only were people up in arms over the fact that a stormtrooper could be *gasp* black, but also nobody could believe that this incredible rolling droid, dubbed the BB-8, was actually real. It must be CGI, right? Well, during today's Star Wars Celebration convention in Anaheim, California, the BB-8 made its first real-life debut by rolling onstage to riotous applause from the crowd. Check out the video below to see the BB-8 and the venerable R2-D2 engage in a beeping, tweeting chirp battle.


Google Launches Chrome 42 with Push Notifications

Google has finally rolled out the latest version of its popular web browser, i.e. Chrome 42 for Windows, Mac, and Linux users that now lets websites send you alerts, no matter your browser is open or not.



The release of the latest Chrome 42 version is a great deal as it costs Google more than $21,000.

The latest version of Chrome comes with fixes for 45 security vulnerabilities in the web browser, reported by different security researchers.

Will Sony, Microsoft remain relevant in games by 2019?

Research firm sees PC and mobile grabbing larger and larger share of the expected $100 billion pie

DFC: Will Sony, Microsoft remain relevant in games by 2019?

DFC Intelligence is once again preparing to release its latest forecasts covering the global games industry, and while the research firm is reiterating its $100 billion software revenues mark for year 2019, how the totals ultimately reach that mark may be slightly different than DFC previously estimated.

"We have slightly lowered our forecasts for the Xbox One and Wii U. We see the PlayStation 4 remaining as the best-selling system with North America really being the only competitive market. Previously we thought the Xbox One could potentially outsell the Xbox 360 but now we don't think that will be the case. The real issue is by 2019 whether Sony and Microsoft will still be relevant in the game space. That is a major question mark," he noted.

Wednesday, April 15, 2015

Nokia bought Alcatel-Lucent for $16.6 billion

Nokia could soon be the largest maker of mobile phone network equipment in the world ahead of Ericsson and Huawei. It just acquired French telecom equipment maker Alcatel-Lucent for 15.6 billion euros ($16.6 billion), or more than double the $7 billion Microsoft paid for its Windows Phone handset arm. The Finnish company also acquired Alcatel-Lucent's famous Bell Laboratories (established by Alexander Graham Bell in 1880) along with its numerous patents. With three major labs altogether, Nokia said "the combined company will be in a position to accelerate development of future technologies including 5G... as well as sensors and imaging." The merged businesses will run under the Nokia banner, but Bell Labs will keep the Alcatel-Lucent name.

Human Chain Against Nokia Factory Closing


Nokia won't necessarily be jumping into the Android business, as the company that makes Alcatel smartphones is a separate joint venture between Alcatel-Lucent and China's TCL. Nokia took pains to point out that while the merged business would be headquartered in Finland, France will remain "a vibrant center of the combined company." It added that it'll stick with Alcatel-Lucent's employment commitments in France -- no doubt because the Gallic nation is a shareholder and has been touchy about acquisitions of French companies like Dailymotion. The deal is scheduled to close in 2016.

Nokia said it may also sell off its Here mapping division to focus on the network business, but would only do it if the price was right. It was reportedly considering a sale to a German automaker consortium and even Uber, according to Bloomberg.

China is now the world's biggest market for iOS downloads

Q1 2015 brought a changing of the guard, according to the latest data from App Annie

Apple's longstanding plan to challenge Android in China is yielding results, with the country overtaking the US in iOS app downloads.



New data from App Annie suggests that the launch of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus has been decisive in China pushing past the US as the highest volume market for App Store downloads in Q1 2015. This is significant because, with mobile, the order of supremacy at the top of the global download and revenue charts doesn't change much from quarter to quarter. Now that China is ahead, it's likely to remain there.

Digital game sales in US have climbed 23% since 2010

New ESA Essential Facts report also shows that over 155 million Americans are now playing games

The Entertainment Software Association's 2015 Essential Facts report is filled with interesting information on the North American games business. From a sales perspective, you can see from the chart below that there's been a steady decline in retail game sales while digital comprises a larger and larger portion of the sales pie with each year. As of last year, digital revenues officially passed the tipping point and now make up the majority of game sales in the U.S. Back in 2010, digital only accounted for 29 percent of total game sales, but the rise of mobile and the continued growth of digital storefronts like PlayStation Network, Xbox Live and Steam have clearly grabbed consumers' attention.

1

While digital publishing has led to a wider variety of games and unique efforts from indies, when looking at the retail picture, it's actually the same genres that typically dominate sales charts. In 2014, action games accounted for more than 28 percent of sales and shooters were responsible for another 21 percent.

2

The ESA found that when looking at platforms, the PC still rules. The PC was cited as the device used most frequently for games at 62 percent, and this was followed by consoles (56 percent), smartphones (35 percent), other wireless devices (31 percent) and dedicated handhelds (21 percent).

Looking at the demographics, ESA said that there are now 155 million Americans playing games, and that 80 percent of U.S. households own a device to play games. 51 percent of American households have a dedicated console and ESA found that 42 percent of Americans do play games for 3 or more hours per week. There are still more male players (56 percent) than female (44 percent) but ESA noted that women age 18 or older actually represent a third of the game-playing population and more than double boys age 18 or younger (15 percent). When it comes to purchasing, however, males still represent a majority at 59 percent.

Tuesday, April 14, 2015

Apple's Worldwide Developer Conference begins June 8th

If you're wondering what Apple will do next with its mobile devices and the Mac, you won't have to wait too long to find out.

WWDC 2015

The tech giant has announced the 2015 Worldwide Developer Conference, which starts on June 8th. It's not providing too many clues as to what will be there, but you can apply for tickets now -- and you'll have the option to stream sessions live if you can't make it out to San Francisco.
It's safe to say that the event will include news on software for the Apple Watch, iOS and OS X, and it won't be shocking if Apple has something to say about a new streaming music service or a next-generation Apple TV.

New 3DS and New 3DS XL get Unity support

Nintendo's handhelds open up to millions of independent developers

The New 3DS and New 3DS XL are now a much more hospitable environment for independent game developers, with Unity now offering official support for Nintendo's popular handheld platforms.

New 3DS and New 3DS XL get Unity support

The announcement was made yesterday at the Unite conference in Tokyo, and there could be no more appropriate location: the various iterations of the 3DS hardware have been the dominant console platforms in Japan for several years, a situation that the launch of PlayStation 4 has done little to change so far.

Unity platform support will be available to Nintendo's first and third-party studios, as well as Unity's growing community of 4 million developers all over the world.

And the 3DS is one of the few remaining platforms to build that bridge with Unity. Nintendo said that it was discussing the possibility of doing so as early as March last year, despite the engine already having an agreement in place for the Wii U.

Apple Watch US preorders near 1M on first day

Slice Intelligence estimates suggest many customers preordered multiple watches, preferred 42 mm case size
Apple's long anticipated entry into the wearable market is poised for a hot start when it launches April 24. The company opened up preorders on the Apple Watch last Friday, and digital shopping research firm Slice Intelligence yesterday estimated that some 957,000 people in the US put down reservations for the gadget.
Slice based its estimate on results from its panel of more than 2 million online shoppers who provide the company with anonymized e-receipts of their digital purchases on a daily basis.

Apple Watch US preorders near 1M on first day - Report

The 42 mm Apple Watch models also proved more popular than their 38 mm counterparts. In the Sport line, 68 percent of purchasers went with the larger model. For the standard Apple Watch, 76 percent preordered the 42 mm version.

Monday, April 13, 2015

Xbox One's official UK price falls to £300

Plenty of UK retailers are already selling the Xbox One for under £300, but now Microsoft is making this markedly lower price-tag official. Effective immediately, the console will be available from £299.99, or £30 less than before. A spokesperson for Microsoft told Eurogamer that it's a "UK-only retail promotion," which suggests the reduction could only be temporary. However, given how Microsoft handled a similar price-drop in the US, we suspect this'll be a permanent discount before too long, if it's not one already. By making this the official price, Microsoft is also encouraging retailers to drop the cost of their bundles even further. The console has few exclusives prepped for the first half of 2015 (Halo 5: Guardians and Rise of the Tomb Raider will change that this autumn) but if you've been mulling a purchase anyway, now might be a good time to take the plunge.

View image on Twitter

Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 is comming soon

This year's Call of Duty is likely to be Black Ops 3, as hinted at in a fresh teaser trailer titled "#backinblack." Well, either it hints at Black Ops 3 or Activision is trying really, really hard to throw the entire world off its scent. Treyarch, the studio that created the Black Ops franchise within Call of Duty, is in charge of the 2015 game, so it was already likely that we'd see a third this year. Activision plans to reveal the new Call of Duty on April 26, and you bet we'll have all of the juicy details then. Watch the new teaser below.


Thursday, April 9, 2015

Aluminium Battery that Charges SmartPhone in Just 1 Minute

Most of us could not imagine our lives without Smartphone, but the most annoying part of Smartphone remains its battery life.

No matter how power efficient our device would be, the smart display, faster performance and several apps running on our phones end up consuming all of it.


Now, I am here just not to talk about all these problems that you are facing, but I am here to introduce you an ultra-fast-charging battery that can charge your Smartphone in as little as 60 Seconds.

Yes, you heard right! Recharge your battery in just 60 seconds means, 1 minute.

FAST BATTERY CHARGING TECHNOLOGY
Scientists at Stanford University in the U.S. have developed a prototype aluminium battery that charges smartphone to full capacity in just 60 seconds.

If aluminium-based batteries are so much fast and safe to use, then why didn't battery manufacturers use aluminium from the beginning? 7,500 RECHARGE CYCLES POSSIBLE

The aluminium-based batteries were tested in past as well. However, previous experiment with aluminium batteries lasted just 100 charge cycles while the Stanford aluminium-ion battery can withstand more than 7,500 charge cycles without any loss of capacity.

When compare with a typical lithium-ion battery that lasts around 1,000 recharge cycles, the aluminium cells are long-lasting.

Wednesday, April 8, 2015

Firmware update sets Chinese Xbox Ones region free

Reports from China are indicating that a firmware update has removed regional restrictions on Xbox Ones in the country, leaving them able to play games imported from elsewhere in the world, and potentially play online with players from other countries.

Report: Firmware update sets Chinese Xbox Ones region free

The initial reports come from Hao Gamers, with other sites, such as MyDrivers confirming that international versions of games have been successfully installed on Chinese machines. Reports of access to international servers are as yet unconfirmed, but Microsoft has been contacted for clarification on the issue.

The Xbox One launched in China last September, reporting very healthy sales of over 100,000 units in its first week.

Tuesday, April 7, 2015

Apple to Add Wireless Charging to Future iDevices

With Samsung’s Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge bundled with wireless charging inside, it’s about time Apple thinks about doing the same with their own devices.

Apple wireless charging

According to Apple’s website, they are currently searching for a Senior Wireless Charging Design Engineer which was posted on April 1. With the statement, “The position primarily involves advance wireless charging and DC-DC power design for Apple’s next generation mobile platforms” on the job summary, we can safely say that there will be wireless charging in the next iPhone devices to come.

We are not yet sure which wireless charging standard they will follow since it was not mentioned throughout the job posting. The only thing we can find regarding it is this absolutely vague phrase, “Candidate must possess deep knowledge of wireless charging standards…”

They might be making their very own wireless charging case covering Qi and PMA standards, like the wireless charging back covers for the past Samsung smartphones. Whether it will be built into the next iPhone or into a wireless charging case, it’s good to know that Apple is finally implementing wireless charging into their future devices.