Twitter has been used for several years now as a major form of communication between a person and their followers, but in recent years, we’ve seen the service be used by brands to reward customers with real-world goods for the cost of a tweet. Starbucks looks like it’s getting in on the Twitter game as they are launching a beta program called Tweet-a-Coffee.
Starbucks Allows Twitter Users To Buy Coffee For One Another original content from Ubergizmo. 
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You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours — all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
When one goes to any of the numerous Starbucks coffee joints around the world, chances are your favorite brew would taste more or less the same throughout the entire franchise, and we do know that Starbucks has tried to be at the front of technological advancements too. For instance, they have started to offer wireless charging for your compatible devices in select parts of the country, not to mention give out free apps with each drink purchase from time to time and enabling Square wallet payments as of last year. Another endearing aspect of Starbucks would be having free Wi-Fi, and if you need to know, it does seem as though AT&T’s Wi-Fi at Starbucks outlets in the US will be ousted by Google soon.
We are talking about a massive number of 7,000 stores throughout the US, and Google themselves did promise to deliver up to 10 times a faster speed, which would bode well for Starbucks regulars. This entire process will be a lengthy one, taking approximately 18 months to complete. Of course, we do drool in anticipation of areas that do have access to Google Fiber which will theoretically deliver up to 100 times faster speed that before.
Like It , +1 , Tweet It , Pin It | Starbucks’ AT&T Wi-Fi To Be Replaced By Google original content from Ubergizmo. 
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Tough loss for AT&T, which will lose some business from Starbucks thanks to a new deal with Google that will see 7,000 Starbucks locations replaced with Google WiFi in order to provide faster speeds. The transition will happen over the next 18 months, and Google claims coffee drinkers will experience speeds 10-times faster than AT&T’s
Google and Starbucks are teaming up to boost WiFi speeds at all 7,000 Starbucks stores in the US. The move, which should be complete within 18 months, is a major loss for AT&T, the chain’s contracted ISP to date. Google claims that you’ll experience WiFi speeds up to 10x faster than what’s currently available, with a 100x boost in Google Fiber cities like Austin, Provo and KC. The rollout will begin in August — if you see “Google Starbucks” as an available SSID, you’ll know your store has been tapped with boosted access.
Filed under: Wireless, Internet, Google
Source: Google
Counting out nickels and dimes at the cash register as you pay for your overpriced coffee is quickly becoming fodder for back-in-my-day stories. Ever since Starbucks debuted Square Wallet payments last November, the pay-by-phone approach has proved to be a popular strategy. According to a recent Wall Street Journal report, mobile purchases now account for 10 percent of the chain’s transactions, a number higher than many would have expected. Considering that Starbucks announced yesterday that it would soon introduce wireless charging to a handful of locations in Silicon Valley, it looks like the company is determined to build its growing street tech cred.
Back in October last year, we did report that Starbucks debuted the in-store wireless charging capability for smartphones across 17 stores throughout Boston. Well, this time around, Starbucks has decided to team up with Powermat in order to deliver a similar wireless charging technology to the Silicon Valley. In fact, the very first installation of this wireless charging capability is said to be completed later this Sunday over at a San Jose store, where there will be up to 10 area locations that will experience a similar set up before August is over.
Why was the Silicon Valley chosen for this particular endeavor? Well, Powermat President Daniel Schreiber did mention that this particular move was made so that it can boost the technology’s exposure among key industry players. After all, did not AT&T already confirm that some of its smartphones will play nice with the PMA standard from next year onwards? This move could signal Starbucks as the go-to place to cure your dead battery anxiety in the future. If you want to have a better idea on just where wireless charging can be found, you can head on here. [Press Release]
Like It , +1 , Tweet It , Pin It | Starbucks And Powermat Delivers Wireless Charging To The SIlicon Valley original content from Ubergizmo. 
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Following a successful trial rollout at 17 stores in Boston, Starbucks has decided to join up with Powermat to bring the company’s wireless charging tech to Silicon Valley. The first installation will be completed this Sunday, at a store in San Jose, with up to 10 area locations set to be online before the end of August. Powermat President Daniel Schreiber explained that Silicon Valley was selected in order to boost the technology’s exposure among key industry players — AT&T has already confirmed that several of its smartphones will be compatible with the PMA standard in 2014, but the alliance needs event more support in order to grow momentum. The next logical step for this partnership would be for Powermat to sell coffee-resistant charging cases in Starbucks stores, of course, though neither company has made any announcements to that effect.
Filed under: Household, Wireless
Source: Duracell Powermat (PR Newswire)
As you may remember, yesterday, we put up a post poking fun at this then-stranger who’d been photographed using a typewriter in Starbucks by one of his fellow students. Cries of rage soon followed from both sympathizers and opponents alike. This man’s typewriter and our mocking tone struck a chord. For some of you, a very deep, perhaps-could-be-helped-with-therapy chord. More »
We’ve already been plenty vocal on our opinions of people who use coffee shops as their personal office. But this guy—this digital rebel found by Twitter user @DGoddamnGlover—makes those non-ordering, space-consuming table squatters look like saints—and this their new pope. More »
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