Hasta La Gadget!

LG‘s next generation smartphone was unveiled today, and while we’ve been enjoying the features and brilliant 4.7-ich IPS+ display on their new Optimus G smartphone the various new features they added were worth a quick mention. One in particular is LG’s new picture-in-picture mode dubbed “QSlide” which essentially shows two screens simultaneously.

We’ve recently seen this feature from the likes of Samsung’s Galaxy S III and their new Note II, but this time around the show is all about LG. Instead of just offering picture-in-picture they have a complete dual-screen simultaneous mode. This will allow you to not just view a movie while browsing the web — but send a text message while viewing an email, or write an email while enjoying some YouTube videos. Here’s the explanation from LG themselves”

QSlide Function shows two different screens simultaneously on one display. As it doesn’t show a part of the screen but the entire screen of both functions, the user can complete two tasks concurrently – such as sending a text message or searching the web while watching a video

What they want to get across here is you don’t get a watered down floating window of the second app. With their implementation you have the entire screen and full functionality of both apps — simultaneously. Essentially one (or both) are slightly transparent allowing you to see both at once. This is true multitasking and just one of many features LG’s brought to the table with their “groundbreaking” new features. Take a peek below.

Pretty neat right? How useful or effective in daily usage remains unknown but we like the different approach. Some of their other new features include Live Zooming for up to 5x zoom in video playback and record, QuickMemo to jot down a note or info right on the display and add to a text or email, and even the option to edit icons to your own personal preference for size. You’ll surely want to check out our LG Optimus G hands-on, then stay tuned for a full review coming soon. Are you impressed with this 4.7-inch quad-core powered Android smartphone?

LG Optimus G QSlide picture-in-picture hands-on is written by Cory Gunther & originally posted on SlashGear.
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The app devs over at Sky Sports are having a busy year, and after improving their iPad offering for the F1 season, they’re back with a “second screen” update for football (soccer) fans. Just in time for the start of the UK Premier League season, the new Football Match Centre adds a content bar alongside your chosen stream showing team and player info, in-depth stats of the match in progress and a hand-picked Twitter feed for related musings. You might think the devs deserve a break, but sadly there’s no time — next on the agenda is a similar update for the Champions League tournament, then they’re bringing the second screen to golf fans before the Ryder Cup starts next month.

Continue reading Football fans score additional content in Sky Sports for iPad update

Filed under: Software

Football fans score additional content in Sky Sports for iPad update originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 20 Aug 2012 16:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Second screen apps seem to be all the rage as of late, and Vobile’s freshly announced TVSync API platform can help developers ride that wave of popularity. Compatible with iOS and Android devices, PCs and some smart TVs, the API can be leveraged to supplement what’s on the silver screen with relevant content ranging from polls to products. Apps developed with the interface can trigger what’s displayed on the companion screen at just the right moment by analyzing audio, video, or both. For instance, a recipe featured on a celebrity chef’s program could be pushed to your slate as soon as it’s first mentioned. Yearning to code an app of your own with the tech? Visit the source to request beta access to TVSync or look below for the full press release.

Continue reading TVSync API unveiled, helps devs build second-screen and smart TV apps

Filed under: Home Entertainment

TVSync API unveiled, helps devs build second-screen and smart TV apps originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Aug 2012 05:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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At CES 2012 we were promised that Yahoo would integrate IntoNow’s SoundPrint technology with its backend to pull up useful extra content about whatever TV program was being watched and now it’s delivered that and more. IntoNow 3.0 for iOS (no upgrade yet for the Android version) enhances the app’s TV companion experience in three key ways: TV / Music Sync, “CapIt” screengrabbing and finally Group Chat. The TV and music sync brings not only the associated info we’d heard about before, but also brings Shazam-style information about any music that might be playing. CapIt can pull screenshots from the cloud of any of the TV shows IntoNow’s backend is monitoring, which adds up to about 13 million frames a day, then pops them up ready for meme creation and sharing. Group Chat does exactly what it sounds like, and lets you talk to friends or set up circles of fans around particular shows.

We gave the app a try and found it worked as advertised, quickly identifying what was playing whether live or on DVR and popping up episode info, cast listings and Wikipedia links. The CapIt feature (shown above) pulls frames with surprising speed and ease, even on live broadcasts, and allows users to scroll backwards or refresh for new freezes to grab just the right one. It doesn’t monitor what you’re watching live, but punching the green TV icon in the upper left corner causes it to sync right away, which also creates an entry of what was being watched and when.

Continue reading Yahoo’s IntoNow TV companion app for iOS adds screen grab, music recognition and chat features

Filed under: Home Entertainment, Tablet PCs

Yahoo’s IntoNow TV companion app for iOS adds screen grab, music recognition and chat features originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 Jul 2012 19:13:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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As promised, Marvel and Disney have delivered The Avengers Initiative: A Marvel Second Screen App for iPhone and iPad ahead of Marvel’s The Avengers Blu-ray release September 25th. While much of the content will be released over time between now and then, it already has some character profiles and animated special effects deconstructions for users to paw through, as well as an Item 47 game for Comic-Con attendees. There’s a list of features after the break, or you can hit iTunes for the free app right now — if you prefer a Flash experience for PCs or other devices, it should be available at MarvelSecondScreen.com (currently redirecting to the Marvel site) once it goes live.

Continue reading The Avengers Initiative Second Screen app goes live on iTunes in time for Comic-Con

The Avengers Initiative Second Screen app goes live on iTunes in time for Comic-Con originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 08 Jul 2012 13:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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