Why have normal smartphone notifications when you can use the smell of bacon?

Scentee wants to expand your smartphone horizons and add smell to the senses your phone already stimulates. The plug-in accessory attaches to headphone socket on both iPhones and Android smartphones and, when told to by the companion app, releases a burst of fragrance, paired with a customizable LED …

Bluetooth Certification Points To LTE Nexus 4 Possibility

Bluetooth Certification Points To LTE Nexus 4 PossibilityIf there is one particular piece of hardware that looks set to roll out in the days to come, it would most probably be the Nexus 5, which would be a collaboration between the folks over at Google as well as LG. Well, that might be the successor to the Nexus 4, but does that mean the outgoing flagship will be no more? Apparently not, as there is some new evidence which has surfaced which hints that the awesome twosome might actually be working on a plan to give the Nexus 4 a new lease of life.

What do we mean by this? Well, it seems that there is a brand new filing over at the Bluetooth SIG which has revealed a listing for the LG E960 smartphone – aka the Nexus 4. Apparently, this particular device has gained certification with LTE support onboard on the sly, and it also happens to carry a similar model number with the original handset that picked up Bluetooth 4.0 certification earlier in 2013. This alone would suggest that the LTE chip which has remained dormant within the Nexus 4 all this while could actually be put to use at long last. Assuming this particular rumor to be true, would you hold off your upgrade to the Nexus 5?

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  • Bluetooth Certification Points To LTE Nexus 4 Possibility original content from Ubergizmo.

        



    Late-2013 15-Inch Retina MacBook Pro Review: Apple’s High-Performance Notebook Tops The Field

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    Apple’s MacBook Pro with Retina Display will soon be just the MacBook Pro, period. But this generation two version of both the 13- and 15-inch super slim notebooks with high-res displays is still something many average users will be weighing as an outlier possibility versus the more mainstream MacBook Air. But thanks to price cuts and smart improvements under the hood, Apple’s Retina MacBook has grown up a lot since the 15-inch version made its first appearance back in June 2012.

    Video Review

    Basics

    • 2880 x 1800 (Retina), 15.4-inch display
    • 256GB storage
    • 2.0GHz quad-core Intel Core i7
    • 8GB RAM
    • 0.71 inches thick, 4.46 lbs
    • 802.11ac Wi-Fi
    • 8 hours battery life
    • $1,999

    Pros

    • Screen is best-in-class
    • Thin and light design despite ample power
    • Now includes iWork apps for free
    • $200 price cut versus previous entry-level version

    Cons

    • Still pretty beefy compared to Air and 13-inch Retina Pro
    • Battery life now on the low end of MacBook spectrum

    Design

    The MacBook Pro with Retina display is a crowning achievement for Apple’s notebooks not only because of its screen, but also because it manages to trim size and weight compared to the legacy non-Retina MacBook Pro models. You’re not going to get the featherweight quality of the MacBook Air, but you will get a big break if you’re used to one of the older, bulkier pro models.

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    This 2013 15-inch model retains the exact same physical dimensions as its predecessor, weighing in at just under three and a half pounds, and under three-quarters of an inch thick. In absolute terms, that’s not all that svelte, but for a device that gives you a spacious 15 inches of display real estate, which can manage a surprising 2880 x 1800 resolution if you use a third-party app to scale beyond the built-in supported max resolution, it’s very impressive.

    It’s hard to tell from my limited time with the machine so far, but I also believe that Apple has addressed one of the primary failings of the generation one product, which could suffer from case creak with the bottom panel in some instances. Compared to my personal 2012 15-inch Retina Pro, it feels more solidly constructed, for what it’s worth. And as always, Apple’s aluminum and glass construction stands up to any aesthetic test you could apply to it.

    Performance

    This Retina Pro actually appears on paper to take a step back when it comes to its graphics card, which is an Intel Iris Pro integrated model, vs. the NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M that shipped alongside an Intel HD 4000 integrated card on the original version. The dedicated graphics on the past model could definitely come in handy for graphics-intensive processes, but as AnandTech pointed out in a review of the Iris Pro earlier this year, it manages to come “within striking difference” of the 650M when it comes to performance, while offering considerable battery and heat savings, both of which are good in the short term and for extending the overall life of the notebook.

    Of course, the really important factor to consider here is how the Iris Pro holds up in real-world usage situations, and I found I didn’t miss the discrete GPU in any of my usage scenarios. Whether working with Final Cut Pro X, Photoshop CC or even games like Bioshock Infinite, the Intel Iris Pro seemed to handle my needs pretty adequately, though you aren’t going to want to run games at maxed out graphics settings. One advantage of not having the discrete GPU, too, is that I find the fan spins up far less often, making for a much quieter notebook overall.

    If you’re new to flash storage, you’re also in for a treat with the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro, since it now uses a super fast PCIe-based memory type that all but eliminates any thought of startup delays, or stutters while opening apps. It’s now gotten to the point where, just like on mobile, it’s not a question of how fast your computer is – the only way you notice any slowness is when you go back to a previous version. This year’s model is snappier all around that the one it replaces, and that was already essentially a machine that gave you everything at your fingertips pretty much as soon as you think about wanting it.

    Battery

    Apple’s 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro from mid-2012 boasted seven hours browsing time on Wi-Fi on a full charge; this year’s model bests that by an hour. Apple also said separately during its launch event earlier this week that the OS X Mavericks update it’s putting out will add about an hour to the Haswell MacBook Airs it just launched, so this could be mainly a software benefit. But in terms of actual usage, I found that indeed, the new version beats the old, even when both are running Mavericks.

    Estimated life on a full charge on the new Retina MacBook Pro in my “extreme battery extension” conditions (Wi-Fi on, brightness to minimum visible, no keyboard backlight, Bluetooth off, running browser with just a few tabs) comes in at over 10 hours on the new version, while the older model barely edges out 9. In practice, the new version seems to get about two hours more than the older one given similar usage patterns. Some of that could be ascribed to natural decrease in battery health, but there’s still a difference, and it favours the newer machine.

    Display

    The screen on the Retina MacBook Pro this year looks as good as it always has, which is to say it’s the best in the notebook business. But Apple also appears to have gotten rid of any image ghosting on the 15-inch version, based on my tests, which was an issue that plagued a healthy percentage of last year’s model. Devoid of any of those failings, the 220 PPI screen is a visual smorgasbord. And as mentioned above, you can also tweak it to display at ultra high resolutions in non-Retina mode, giving you a still very crisp huge canvas to work with, arraying windows wherever you please.

    Maybe the best part about the screen is that by now, many websites and apps have managed to catch up with the concept of high-resolution screens. That means there’s more content that looks amazing on the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro, versus when it launched back in June. I still remember marvelling at how ugly most of the web was when I switched; that’s no longer the case.

    Bottom Line

    This year’s Retina MacBook Pro packs some great new hardware features that were absent on the first-gen device, including Thunderbolt 2 (20 Gbps maximum throughout vs. 10 for the original) and 802.11ac Wi-Fi networking. Both are nice features, but mostly forward-looking, so if you’re not dissatisfied with your current Retina MacBook Pro I’d wait a cycle for the next upgrade, when 802.11ac will be more commonplace, and some peripherals will be able to take advantage of Thunderbolt 2′s higher data transfer rates.

    On the other hand, this year’s model ships with iWork (Pages, Numbers and Keynote) free, which is a great productivity suite made even better. And Apple has ironed out any rough edges the bleeding edge first-generation Retina MBP may have had, so this is the one to get if you’ve been waiting for something better to come along, or if you were satisfied with your original machine but want something just *that* much better. Apple’s 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pros with Retina Displays are simply the best available notebooks, and which you choose depends totally on budget and priorities over anything else. If power is what you’re looking for, look no further than the 15-inch reviewed here.

    Comcast’s HBO + Internet Plan Is the One You’ve Been Waiting For

    Comcast's HBO + Internet Plan Is the One You've Been Waiting For

    No cable, no problem. The rumors that Comcast is going to let you pay for HBO like you pay for Netflix are true. Comcast is now the first company to let you have HBO without being trapped in a basic cable plan.

    Read more…


        



    Nexus 4 LTE Bluetooth SIG suggests 5 is near

    The LG-made Nexus 5 is right around the corner – more signs of the release of this device appear every day. Today’s clue comes from the Bluetooth regulatory station showing off a Nexus 4 with 4G LTE connectivity – a device that’s not existed on the market yet. This release – alongside the fact that […]

    NASA explains mysterious ocean lights seen by satellite

    The cluster of lights is seen in midst of the Atlantic Ocean.

    (Credit: NASA Earth Observatory/NOAA National Geophysical Data Center)

    It sounds like the setup for an episode of “The X-Files.” A satellite records evidence of a mysterious cluster of lights in the Atlantic ocean, far from human civilization. Could it be the reappearance of all the lost ships from the Bermuda Triangle? Could it be a secret alien headquarters hidden in plain sight on the ocean’s surface?

    The actual answer is a little more mundane, but still fascinating. The lights, seen in dramatic groupings between 200 and 300 miles off the coast of Argentina, have been identified by NASA as fishermen. The lit-up boats are gathering a particular species of squid (Illex argentinus) found in those waters.

    The brightness of the boat lights is due to the fishers shining lamps into the water to attract the smaller critters the squid eat. The squid follow the food source up to the surface and are in turn scooped up to feed humans.

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    Sony’s PlayStation 4 will require a Day One update, mobile app to be released pre-launch

    Sony’s PlayStation 4 US launch is now less than a month away and — surprise, surprise — it’s going to require a Day One system update. The company just announced today that a significant software patch (about 300MB in size) will be necessary to enable a slew of functionality, like Remote Play on …

    Pola Roll: Greatest Toilet Paper Dispenser Ever

    While you’re sitting on the pot, the last thing you want to see aimed at your butt is a camera. But in this case, I’ll make an exception. Yes, what you’re looking at here is a toilet paper roll holder made to look like an old Polaroid Land 1000 instant camera.

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    Just set the Pola Roll on your toilet tank or hang it on the wall, load it up with a roll of T.P., and get down to business. As an added bonus, Charmin is so much less expensive than that overpriced SX-70 instant film.

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    The Pola Roll is available from doiy. design for €19.95 (~$28 USD). Toilet paper sold separately.

    I only suggest that you move quick if you want one, before Polaroid’s lawyers try and flush this thing down the toilet.

    Sony PlayStation App Arriving This November 13th

    Sony PlayStation App Arriving This November 13thSony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCEI) has just announced that when November 13 arrives later this year, it will roll out the all new PlayStation App. This particular application will target mobile devices, and folks living in the US will be able to enjoy it first, while our friends who reside across the pond will have to wait for slightly more than a week after that – November 22nd to be exact. Oh yeah, it is also nice to hear that the PlayStation App will not cost you a single cent.

    Among the compatible devices with the PlayStation App are the iPhone, iPad, iPod touch and Android-powered smartphones and tablets, where you can pick it up from the App Store and Google Play. I guess BlackBerry and Windows Phone owners will have to sit this one out! When installed, these devices will function as secondary displays in supported PlayStation 4 titles, while letting you access PSN features such as Friend Lists and Trophies in a jiffy. Hmmm, does this mean that it pays to have a higher resolution display on your mobile device in order to maximize the visual beauty of a PS4 title?

    Apart from that, users of the new PlayStation App can exchange messages with members of their Friends List, in addition to browsing through news and information on the official PlayStation website. [Press Release]

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  • Sony PlayStation App Arriving This November 13th original content from Ubergizmo.

        



    Pokemon X And Pokemon Y Patch 1.1 Solves Lumiose City Save Bug

    Pokemon X And Pokemon Y Patch 1.1 Solves Lumiose City Save BugWhen you are having fun, a week can seem to pass by in the blink of an eye, but whenever you are suffering, even a day can feel like an eternity. I would not rank those Pokemon gamers who find themselves weeping over the fact that they have fallen victim to the Lumiose City save bug under the same category of “suffering”, but it would definitely be irritating to say the least. Nintendo did come up with a stop gap measure in the past, and here we are with official word that Nintendo has finally released a patch on the 3DS eShop which will update Pokemon X and Pokemon Y to version 1.1, all the while squashing the Lumiose City save bug, too.

    This is a blanket patch, so regardless of whether you were affected by the save bug in the past or no, it does not matter. Not only that, this particular patch would also fix a particular error that some folk had run into when using the GTS with filters. Well, if you happen to play either version of the game, it would be highly recommended to search for the update over on the 3DS eShop, as it is always better to be safe than sorry, right?

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  • Pokemon X And Pokemon Y Patch 1.1 Solves Lumiose City Save Bug original content from Ubergizmo.