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

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

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.

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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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Archos MW13 ‘FamilyPad’ opens up to the FCC, bares its 13-inch soul

Archos MW13 'FamilyPad' opens up to the FCC, bares its 13inch soul

Archos has already been targeting kids with its Child Pad slate, and now it looks like it’s going after mom and pop, too. A recent FCC filing of a slate emblazoned with “Family Pad” shows a large tablet (13.3-inches according to the manual) that will apparently come in other — hopefully smaller — sizes. Likewise, there appears to be 8- and 16GB variants, 802.11n wireless, and an Allwinner A10 processor. The Android tablet also has a memory card slot for adding up to another 32GB, as well as a pair of USB ports, HDMI, and front- and rear-facing cameras. This choice of processor suggests it’ll be reasonably gentle on the pocket whenever it comes out, which considering it’s at the FCC, could be soon.

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Archos MW13 ‘FamilyPad’ opens up to the FCC, bares its 13-inch soul originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 15 Aug 2012 09:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Toshiba backs out of Windows RT devices on launch, pins it on part delays

Toshiba backs out of Windows RT devices on launch, pins it on part delays

Microsoft was quick to champion its new Windows RT partners, but it’ll have to count one out. Toshiba has opted not to join the ARM crowd at first and will limit itself to Intel-based Windows 8 systems, at least in the early days. The abstinence isn’t coming from any misgivings about the platform — there are unnamed “delayed components” that would make it “impossible” to put out a Windows RT system on time, Toshiba’s Eric Paulsen says. There’s no mention of when the company might dip its toe in the pool later on, and we’re not getting any reassuring signs that it’s anytime soon given that the firm is only “monitoring market conditions” rather than committing to a plan. Although Toshiba isn’t hurting for tablets given an abundance of Excite devices, the absence narrows an ecosystem that Microsoft was no doubt hoping would grow wider.

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Toshiba backs out of Windows RT devices on launch, pins it on part delays originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 14 Aug 2012 15:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Alleged images of 7-inch iPad shell appear from the east

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Hey, did you hear… Apple is making a 7-inch iPad. Well, the top brass at least thought about it, this much we know. What might it look like if it ever comes to be? Well, if you’re willing to be a bit skeptical, it might look like the above. These images — claiming to be legit iPad parts — popped up on Chinese social media site Sina Weibo. There’s little other activity on the account to back up the source, and the omission of a camera hole might irk some, but if these were early parts, then that could be something that is added later. For now, we’re left to fill in the gaps with out imagination, which also includes hoping other recent teases might also make the leap into reality.

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Alleged images of 7-inch iPad shell appear from the east originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 04 Aug 2012 14:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink TechnoBuffalo  |  sourceMark (Sina Weibo)  | Email this | Comments

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 appears in 30-second commercial (video)

Samsung Galaxy Note 101 appears in 30second commercial video

If — for some outlandish reason — you were still doubting the imminent release of the Galaxy Note 10.1, let us invite you to have a peek at the video just after the break. Sure enough, it’s an official Samsung teaser showcasing some of the more seductive features of its forthcoming Android slate — the slate that appeared for but a moment on Amazon. If you’re looking for a brief update on how we got here, you may recall us first touching the 10.1-inch Note back at Mobile World Congress in February, with the device caught on camera elsewhere as recently as last month. There’s still no definitive ship date to grab hold of, but it’s probably time you asked yourself: is okay to yearn after something that an honorable judge has deemed “not as cool” as some other tablet? Decision 2012 — we report, you decide.

Update: This post originally and erroneously made a connection between the Note 10.1 and the Judge Koh ruling on the Galaxy Tab 10.1. It has been updated.

Continue reading Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 appears in 30-second commercial (video)

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 appears in 30-second commercial (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 23 Jul 2012 10:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink All About Samsung, The Verge  |  sourceStepmgmt (YouTube)  | Email this | Comments

ULTIMAte hack: Nexus 7 hooks up with external USB storage, floppy drive for retro-gaming

ULTIMAte hack Nexus 7 hooks up with external USB storage, floppy drive

There’s only so much kit you can cram into a sub-$200 tablet without pushing past the price ceiling. And for Google’s Jelly Bean-blessed Nexus 7, corners were definitely cut, leaving users without a handy microSD slot for expansion and rear-facing camera. But where there’s a will, there’s the XDA and its community of developers to remedy the situation. As you can glimpse from the photo above, an enterprising forum member by the handle of c0m47053 devised an interesting workaround for the slate’s lack of expandable storage and then some. Using the StickMount app available on the Play store, which allows users to mount/dismount mass storage devices, he was able to connect the ASUS-made tab to a USB hub and hook it up to a keyboard, mouse and, most amusingly of all, a floppy drive — to play Ultima on DOSbox, of course. It goes without saying that a feat of this kind requires root access, but thankfully that’s what Mountain View made the Nexuses for.

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ULTIMAte hack: Nexus 7 hooks up with external USB storage, floppy drive for retro-gaming originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 21 Jul 2012 22:03:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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7-inch Acer Iconia Tab A110 lands at the FCC

7-inch Acer Iconia Tab A110 lands at the FCC

We knew Acer had some new tablets in the pipeline — heck, we got our hands on them at Computex last month — but the company still hasn’t officially announced the Iconia Tabs A210 and A110. Still, following in the footsteps of the 10-inch A210, which hit the FCC earlier this month, the Tab A110 just cleared that all-important obstacle for hitting the US market. The filing doesn’t shed too much light on the Tegra 3-powered 7-incher (you’ll find the standard test reports and RT exposure info in the source link below), but then again we already got a good look at the slate in Taipei, and we imagine Acer’s unveiling date can’t be too far off.

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7-inch Acer Iconia Tab A110 lands at the FCC originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Jul 2012 16:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Simmtronics’ $81 XPad debuts, winning the race to the bottom

Simmtronics' $81 XPad debuts, winning the race to the bottom

The marketplace is flooded with cheap tablets at this point. Some of them quite impressive, others are likely to make your tear your hair out. We think its safe to say that Simmtronics XPad will fall firmly in the latter category but, being a high-end pixel-pushing machine isn’t the point. The XPad is a highly customizable Android slate designed to be as affordable as possible. The Indian company took the wraps off the product line in Dubai this week, revealing a 7-inch A8-powered machine that puts Ice Cream Sandwich in the palm of your hand for only AED299, or about $81. The company even claimed it could push prices down to about $40, which would make it even more affordable than the elusive Aakash. The race to the bottom isn’t over just yet, but it seems like Simmtronics is now the company to beat.

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Simmtronics’ $81 XPad debuts, winning the race to the bottom originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 13 Jul 2012 17:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Fast Company  |  sourceITP  | Email this | Comments

GammaTech rugged T7Q launches at $2k and up, promptly steals your iPad’s lunch money

GammaTech ruggedized T7Q Windows tab announced, promptly steals your slate's lunch money

For people out there doing actual work (like tech blogging, for instance), there’s the need for a tablet like the GammaTech T7Q Windows slate, starting at $2,000. Standing out like an M9 tank among the daily driver tabs, the sealed magnesium unit meets military specs for environmental nasties — while packing a 7-inch resistive-touch TFT WSVGA LCD, Intel Atom N2600 or N2800 processor, 5MP camera with geotagging, compass, gyroscope and an mSATA SSD. It can also be accessorized to the nines with items like RFID, magnetic stripe readers and GPS through an assortment of connectors and expansion slots. To top it off, there’s three different lock-down methods for your your data: TPM1.2 security, built-in BIOS safeguards and a Kensington lock connector — plus Computracing ability piled on, for good measure. Sure, this guy is intended for oil rigs and desert archaeological digs, but hauling one out at Starbucks might give you a whole new level of shabby-chic cred — if you’ve got the cash.

Continue reading GammaTech rugged T7Q launches at $2k and up, promptly steals your iPad’s lunch money

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GammaTech rugged T7Q launches at $2k and up, promptly steals your iPad’s lunch money originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Jul 2012 18:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nexus 7 tablet now receiving Android 4.1.1 update

Nexus 7 tablet now receiving Android 411 update

Android 4.1.1 just made itself available on the AOSP servers yesterday, and evidently it’s wasting no time in heading towards the world’s first Jelly Bean tablet. The ASUS-built Nexus 7 is now receiving the update — a 12.6MB download that boosts the version number to 4.1.1. Our in-house unit isn’t pulling down the new edition just yet (nor is our Galaxy Nexus), so it seems to be one of Google’s typical phased releases. At any rate, Android Central is reporting that the code “improves performance and responsiveness system wide,” while also adding Google Wallet to your app library. Seeing anything else? Let us know in comments below!

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Nexus 7 tablet now receiving Android 4.1.1 update originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 10 Jul 2012 19:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Droid-Life, Android Central  |  sourceGoogle Developers (1), (2)  | Email this | Comments