Hasta La Gadget!

As Google I/O 2012 rolls along, the YouTube team is updating its Android app to v4.0 with a load of new features, but you’ll need Android 4.0+ to take advantage of them (at least for now, see below). Available in 47 countries, the new app brings a brand new UI with support for channels that reflects the redesign rolled out on the website last year (not the circle-centric look that it is testing with a select few), and it can precache videos from your favorite channels for viewing later. All you have to do is select “preload” in the setting menu and it will pull down videos from your subscriptions and Watch Later queue when plugged in and on WiFi. To actually view them later you will still need to be online, but they’ll load instantly from the device’s storage instead of streaming.

Another new feature is integrated remote functionality to control playback on connected TVs and other devices. This apparently extends to more than just Google TV, as we’re told to “expect more updates later” on how this feature will become broadly available. If you’re not rocking the latest Android software don’t freak out yet, as the team indicates these features will come to more devices later. Developers should be excited too as there’s a slew of new YouTube APIs available, hit the source links below to check them out or download the app yourself.

YouTube for Android 4.0 ends buffering on your favorite videos with precaching, adds remote originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 27 Jun 2012 18:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google’s own-brand entrance into the 7-inch tablet market with the Nexus 7 has refueled speculation about a so-called iPad mini, with Apple expected to face increasing pressure to compete at the tweener size. Rumors of a smaller iPad – which would slot into the mid-point between the existing, 9.7-inch model, and the 3.5-inch iPhone and iPod touch – have circulated for as long as the iPad has been on sale; however, the arrival of the new Nexus 7 running Jelly Bean is arguably the biggest motivator yet for Apple to make good on the heresay.

The Nexus 7′s more direct competitor in the slate market is Amazon’s Kindle Fire and Barnes & Noble’s NOOK Tablet range. Both of the rivals – which each run Android, albeit with heavy customization – fall into the same near-$200 price window, versus the iPad which starts at $499 for the latest model.

Apple was tipped to deliver a smaller model of tablet alongside its Retina Display third-gen iPad, though instead the company kept on the iPad 2 and lowered the sticker price by $100. Nonetheless, industry observers have continued to predict a new, smaller model, with talk that orders have already been placed and that the new iOS slate could ship in Q3 2012.

Whether Apple would choose to compete with Google (and the others) with direct price parity is questionable. The company has not been afraid to sticker up its products with a relatively premium tag, reflecting a preference to deliver a cohesive all-round device rather than make cuts for the sake of a price target. Nonetheless, the $200 segment could prove more tempting now that Google has waded into it itself.

iPad mini rumors reignite over Nexus 7 is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Parenting is an endless series of decisions: Natural birth or epidural? Co-sleeping or separate beds? Private or public school? Allowing them on Facebook or not? The list is infinite. ABC News recently spotlighted a parenting practice that has moms and dads with strong opinions on both sides of the debate: to leash or not to leash?

Last year, Judith Goldberg, author of the “Judy on Duty” advice column for Parents magazine, wrote:

“Leashes are for dogs. You wouldn’t put your child in a crate, or let him poop on the sidewalk, right? If you have a bolter, invest in a cheap umbrella stroller with a buckle.”

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Stop rubbing your eyes — you’re not dreaming.

Thousands of downtown LA residents woke up to a giant Christmas gift this morning when construction appeared to be complete on a gigantic replica of a Hot Wheels double loop.

Check out LAist for photos of the Hot Wheels double loop.

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Yesterday, Democratic officials announced that they were pulling the plug on their convention kickoff event at the Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. The event had been set for Sept. 3, the day before the convention is scheduled to begin in Charlotte.

Organizers had billed the speedway event as a great opportunity for North Carolina residents to obtain a small taste of convention activities and to excite potential Barack Obama voters. There will now be another type of event in Charlotte that Monday night. Concord and the surrounding county could still see boosts in revenue from convention attendees.

But a local TV station reported about the disappointment of a speedway official and noted that Concord workers had already put in hours prepping for the event and won’t be paid for their time. See that report below:

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