DirecTV for Android updated to 3.0, boasts voice commands and new UI

DNP DirecTV's Android app UI update

DirectTV’s comprehensive app overhaul has finally jumped to a second operating system: Android. The refined UI debuted on the iPad earlier this month before migrating to the iPhone, adding a Watch button to choose where content is played, a redesigned Info Page and more customization options in the guide. Now, these same improvements are available on Google’s mobile OS, including DVR scheduling and voice search for programming. There’s no word on when DirecTV for Tablets will get these features, but hopefully it doesn’t take two years.

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Source: Google Play

LG x Kyocera – Developed 2mm thin speaker for ultra-slim TV

LG x Kyocera - Developed 2mm thin speaker for ultra-slim TV

HTC’s mid-range market strategy in China continues as 4.3-inch 301e gets certified

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Lately, China’s TENAA telephone certification center has been an even bigger tattletale than the FCC, and it just leaked another unannounced handset: the HTC 301e. While likely not coming to the US, the dual-SIM device is another cog in CEO Peter Chou’s plan to grow its mid-range smartphone stable in China. It also has some One design touches, like the top speaker grill and two button design. Otherwise, it’s scraping the bottom of the mid-range, with a 4.3-inch 480 x 800 screen, 1GHz dual-core CPUs, 512MB RAM, WCDMA 3G, 8GB of storage expandable to 64GB via microSD and a 5-megapixel camera. While that won’t set anyone’s hair on fire, it does show that HTC is serious about more than just flagships in China.

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Via: Techkiddy

Source: TENAA (translated)

ESPN Deportes and ESPNews now streaming on WatchESPN

ESPN Deportes and ESPNews now streaming on WatchESPN

If you’ve ever wished that WatchESPN would offer more Spanish-language sports and non-stop news, today’s your lucky day. The streaming service now includes access to ESPN Deportes and ESPNews, both of which are available to TV subscribers through Apple TV boxes, mobile apps and the web. Xbox Live viewers will get the channels soon, the broadcaster says. Only some will appreciate the new WatchESPN content, but it’s hard to disagree with getting some extra fútbol coverage at no extra charge.

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Via: 9to5 Mac

Source: ESPN

Skype Building 3D Video Calls That None Of Us Will Likely Use

3d-skype

Skype is working on a technology that will no doubt be impressive when used once and then promptly ignored for the rest of time – 3D video calls. The project was revealed in an interview with the BBC to commemorate Skype’s 10th anniversary (which makes me feel old), but it could be another decade before we see that project bear fruit.

Microsoft’s Corporate VP for Skype Mark Gillett told BBC that Skype’s labs has been doing work on both 3D capture and 3D display of video calls, and while it’s impressed with the progress made in monitors and TVs that can produce a 3D image, the company still believes there’s a lot of work needed to be done before the 3D capture technology is where it needs to be. That’s because there’s too much tuning required to get the multiple cameras you need for producing 3D images angled as you need them for live video calls.

Gillett said in the BBC interview that Skype has the tech working in the lab, but needs the hardware ecosystem to be able to support it before it’s introduced. But he also said that 3D video chat would take longer to catch on with consumers than other 3D video tech in all likelihood, which begs the question of whether it ever really will.

3D movies and broadcast television efforts have been seen by many industry watchers as something of a flop, after all. The BBC abandoned plans to use 3DTV tech for its programming, citing weak demand and the need for glasses as part of the problem, neither of which helps encourage the massive cost related to filming and airing 3D content. Sony also seems pretty much to have discontinued (though no official proclamation has been made) its dedicated 3D display for PlayStation gaming, despite 3D gaming being one of the best use-case scenarios for the tech.

In the BBC article, Gillett says that Skype is looking in the near-term at more practical improvements, like bringing 1080p video calls to hardware beyond the upcoming Xbox One console. Building 3D calling capabilities in the unlikely event that the tech takes off in a big way may turn out to be a prescient move, but for now it seems like a case of building something no one likely wants. Maybe fix the way Skype syncs up IM conversations across platforms instead? Please?

BLU Products launches trio of Dash smartphones starting at $49

BLU Products launches trio of new Dash smartphones starting at $49

Too thrifty to buy a $199 Nexus 4, or even a $99 Lumia 520? BLU Products has you covered with three new smartphones in its Dash range. The line starts with the Dash Jr., a 3.5-inch dual-SIM phone that costs just $49 unlocked — cheap enough that we (almost) don’t mind its single-core Spreadtrum processor, 2G-only data, 2-megapixel camera and Android 2.3. If you can afford to splurge, the Dash Music 4.0 ($99) and Dash 5.0 ($129) jump to their namesake larger screens, 3G data, dual-core MediaTek chips, higher-resolution cameras and Android 4.2. BLU expects all three Dash handsets to ship before the end of September, so penny pinchers won’t have long to wait. Check out press shots of the Dash Music 4.0 and Dash 5.0 after the break.

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Source: BLU Products

Pioneer – DJ controller – Full-scale DJ play with smartphone app

Pioneer - DJ controller - Full-scale DJ play with smartphone app

What’s the Last Picture You Took on Your Phone?

There’s a lovely little video floating on the Internet that shows various strangers in San Francisco talking about the story behind the last picture on their phone. The video ‘What’s the Last Photo On Your Phone?’ by Ivan Cash provides a touching look into something we all do all the time now: take photographs. And even though we have Facebook and Instagram to upload pictures to, many photos just stay on our phones. It’s nice to hear the stories behind those pictures. The imperfect, unfiltered, real pictures.

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Skype is working on 3D video call capability, is held back by current technology’s limitations

Skype is working on 3D video call capability, is held back by current technology's limitations

In an interview with the BBC (which has canned making its own 3D content), Skype’s VP Mark Gillett says that the Microsoft VoIP service has been working on developing 3D calls. Don’t expect the capability to arrive soon, however, as Gillet soon added that it could be years before the tech gets to Skype users. “we’ve done work in the labs looking at the capability of 3D screens and 3D capture… we’ve seen a lot of progress… but the capture devices are not yet there.”

“We have it in the lab, we know how to make it work”, he added, saying that the company was looking into the device ecosystem and the capability to support the feature before it ever made it to a consumer launch. Also, if you liked the sound of full HD video, expect it to hit tablets and other laptops before it reaches your smartphone. The VP explained that due to the higher-level processing it entailed, it was looking into those platforms first.

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Source: BBC

Pioneer announces DDJ-WeGO2 entry level DJ console with iOS support, onboard sound (video)

Pioneer announces DDJ-WeGO2 entry level DJ console with iOS support, onboard sound (video)

Pioneer’s original DDJ-WeGO was an effort to secure some of the entry-level DJ-dollars (it does pretty well at the other end already). This time around, there’s more of a focus on iOS, with a grip along the back that doubles as a stand for your iPhone or iPad (a lightning cable is included, too). This also means that as well as support for PC and Mac DJ software (Virtual DJ LE is bundled,) you can ride the fader with the fancy new Djay too. The rest of the hardware is pretty familiar ground, with two jog-wheels, effects and a tiny mixing console crammed-in to the small footprint. Learner DJs can improve their skills thanks to visual prompts provided by the LEDs (that flash with the beat etc.,) and USB power means one less cable to worry about. Importantly there’s onboard audio, so you get the full DJ / headphone monitoring experience, and a decent audio line out. Prospective spinners will have to wait until October to get one, at a cost of $429. A shade more than the predecessor, but you do get three spiffy full-body colors (red, white and black) to choose from.

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Source: Pioneer