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Aug 22

Parent Builds A Messaging App That Forces Kids To Reply

When you’re a teen, we’re sure the last thing we want to see on our phone are messages from our parents asking us where we are, when we are coming home, and so on. For the most part it’s easy to ignore these messages by dismissing them when they arrive, although we’re sure that most parents do get pretty annoyed by that.

That’s why a dad from the UK, 45-year old Nick Herbert, decided to build a messaging app that forces kids to reply messages from parents. How it works is pretty simple, where upon receiving the message, the window cannot be dismissed until a reply has been sent back, meaning that kids are forced to say something in order to close the window.

The app is dubbed ReplyASAP and came about when Herbert’s teenaged son would not reply his messages because his phone was usually kept on silent, but the app solves it as it will ping the user regardless of the phone’s audio settings. It will also keep ringing until the message is acknowledged, and will also come with read receipts.

The app is free to download and currently only available on Android, but users will have to pay a subscription to use the service where it will range depending on how many users that they plan to use it with. It’s not a terrible idea, but we have to admit it sounds like a rather annoying one for kids, but given the digital age we live in, we suppose parenting styles will have to be adapted accordingly.

Parent Builds A Messaging App That Forces Kids To Reply , original content from Ubergizmo. Read our Copyrights and terms of use.

Aug 22

Samsung’s Bixby Voice Begins Rolling Out Globally

Posted in: Today's Chili

Just yesterday Samsung posted a teaser in which they were hinting at Bixby Voice features being rolled out globally. The teaser suggested that today, the 22nd of August, would be that date, and sure enough that is the case as Samsung has since officially announced on their website that Bixby Voice is now rolling out to over 200 countries around the world.

For those hearing about this for the first time, Bixby is Samsung’s new digital assistant for mobile devices. Bixby Voice is the voice activated portion of the assistant feature, and one that most users have been looking forward to, especially since it appears that Samsung is trying to compete with the likes of Siri, Google Assistant, Cortana, and Alexa.

However the feature was delayed at the launch of the Galaxy S8/S8+, before it started to rollout to the US and South Korea, and now it looks like after months of waiting, it is available globally. That being said, it should be noted that right now despite its global availability, Bixby Voice still only recognizes US English and Korean, meaning that if you speak with heavily accented English, there is a chance you might run into some issues with Bixby Voice.

However according to Samsung, “Natural language understanding allows Bixby to continuously improve its ability to interpret regional dialects. But, since Bixby learns more frequently used command terms more quickly, it will take more time for Bixby to fully understand regional dialects that are used less frequently. “

Samsung’s Bixby Voice Begins Rolling Out Globally , original content from Ubergizmo. Read our Copyrights and terms of use.

Aug 22

BlackBerry KEYone Will Receive Update To Android 8.0 Oreo

Posted in: Today's Chili

Yesterday Google officially took the wraps off their latest Android update and unveiled to the world Android 8.0 Oreo. While the update is expected to find its way to Nexus and Pixel devices, the question is for non-Google devices, when and will they receive the update? The good news for BlackBerry users is that you guys will.

If you own the BlackBerry KEYone handset, the folks at CrackBerry have reached out to BlackBerry Mobile and have confirmed that the KEYone will be eligible for the update. There is no word on when the update will be issued, but the handset is eligible for it, so we guess BlackBerry users will just have to remain patient.

However given that BlackBerry does not have that many Android devices under its belt compared to more established Android makers like Samsung, LG, or HTC, we suppose they won’t have to update as many devices so hopefully it shouldn’t take too long for the update to be released.

Android 8.0 Oreo will bring about a bunch of new features that we’ve been hearing and seeing in the developer preview before this, such as picture-in-picture mode for apps, autofill for logins, background limiting to prevent background activity from draining battery or data, and so on.

BlackBerry KEYone Will Receive Update To Android 8.0 Oreo , original content from Ubergizmo. Read our Copyrights and terms of use.

Aug 22

WhatsApp Wants To Prevent Fake News From Being Spread On Its Platform

Posted in: Today's Chili

There are a variety of ways of sharing news and information, although it seems that social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter are some of the more popular ways. However users have also been using messaging platforms like WhatsApp to share links with friends and family. In fact in some countries, WhatsApp is considered to be a top source of news.

With that taken into consideration, it seems that WhatsApp wants to prevent its platform from being used to spread fake news. Speaking to reporters in India, WhatsApp software engineer Alan Kao was quoted as saying, “We definitely do not want to see fake news on our platform and it’s a complex problem in determining what is fake and what isn’t.”

One of the reasons Kao claims the situation is complex is due to encryption, “Because of the encryption, we can’t read the contents of the messages.” According to Kao, the next best thing would be to educate its users on sharing information responsibly, and with 1 billion daily active users, that’s a lot of potential of fake news to be shared.

However over in India, it seems that the country’s courts have ruled that WhatsApp group admins are responsible for the messages being sent in group chats, and that they could be held accountable for the spread of fake news. Granted this isn’t a position shared by other governments, but we suppose it’s one way to force users to be more careful with the things they share.

WhatsApp Wants To Prevent Fake News From Being Spread On Its Platform , original content from Ubergizmo. Read our Copyrights and terms of use.

Aug 22

Nintendo Unveils SNES Themed 3DS XL Handheld Console

Posted in: Today's Chili

The next mini console that Nintendo will be launching is the SNES Classic Edition, but if you aren’t planning to get the console but love the throwback to the good old days, you will be pleased to learn that Nintendo has also announced during Gamescom 2017 that they have a SNES-themed 3DS XL handheld console in the works as well.

This particular console will be launched in Europe on the 13th of October, and essentially what this is is a new coat of paint on an already-existing device. Based on the image, it seems that the console is meant to mimic the look of the SNES when opened up, and that the A, B, X, and Y buttons have also been colored like the SNES controller from back in the day, but other than that it is still the same 3DS XL console that gamers are familiar with.

Note that over in Japan, Nintendo had also previously announced the Super Famicom Nintendo 3DS XL way back in 2016, so we guess this version was just a long time coming, and good news for those of us who do not live in Japan but would love a similarly-themed console anyway. No word on pricing but chances are it will be priced like a regular 3DS XL console, so don’t expect anything too different.

Nintendo Unveils SNES Themed 3DS XL Handheld Console , original content from Ubergizmo. Read our Copyrights and terms of use.