The next time you post a status update, you should probably keep your mouth shut. Facebook recently updated its mobile apps to include a frighteningly invasive feature. Facebook apps for iOS and Android will now activate your microphone whenever you post a status update. But don’t worry! Facebook is doing this for the greater good. It doesn’t save your audio recordings. Instead, it simply listens to them and uses audio matching technology to figure out what you’re listening to or…
As you probably already know, Microsoft makes a lot of money from Android. Specifically, Microsoft owns many patents used by Android devices. A few years ago, Google and Microsoft came to a patent licensing agreement: Microsoft agreed not to sue Android for patent infringement and Google agreed to pay Microsoft a lot of money for each Android handset sold. How much money? $3.4 billion per year. Without those licensing fees, Microsoft’s mobile and Xbox divisions would be in the red –…
You’ve probably never heard of a guy named George Hotz. If you have heard of him, then you know he’s one of the legends of the exploit world. In 2007, Hotz – age 17 at the time – was the first person in the world to jailbreak an iPhone. A few years later, He rose to fame after hacking into Sony’s PlayStation 3 and then reverse engineering the device. George Hotz was sued by Sony back in 2011 in a major case (SCEA v. Hotz). Sony claimed Hotz violated copyright laws and the…
Firefox is a web browser first and foremost. However, Firefox also recently released an operating system called Firefox OS. Firefox OS is based on a platform called Gecko – which is the same platform used by Firefox browsers on desktop and mobile devices. Firefox OS is a broad attempt to unify apps and browsing – two things that Mozilla feels will be connected in the future. Although there are only six apps for Firefox OS, Mozilla has now made them available for Android…
Full HD, we hardly knew ye. Today’s flagship smartphones are moving from full HD to QHD – also known as quad HD. Most people in the smartphone world thought that QHD wouldn’t really become popular until 2015, but several major smartphones have bucked the trend and implemented QHD screens in 2014. Those phones so far include the LG G3 and the upcoming Note 4. What is QHD and why do you need it? Why is it possibly a bad thing? Today, we’re explaining why the QHD revolution has…
One of the coolest CyanogenMod features is its Gesture lockscreen functionality. That feature lets you customize your lock screen and unlock your phone using gestures. It’s not a lifechanging feature, but it’s a feature that many users appreciate. Basically, you scribble a gesture on your lock screen and your phone unlocks in seconds. Some users choose to put a picture on their lockscreen and then draw a pattern on that picture. Others put a picture of themselves or a loved one and…
Google Now has lots of cool features and most users never scratch the surface of its capabilities. The other day Google Now told me where I parked my car. I didn’t even ask it to remember where I parked my car, nor was I looking for my car, but somehow it knew to keep track of my car while I was out and about. You can now use Google Now to stay updated on World Cup 2014. The World Cup runs from June 12 to July 13 and is the biggest sporting event of the year (sorry, Winter…
When the LG G3 was announced, people knew it was an awesome smartphone. It’s the world’s first major smartphone with a quad HD screen. It also features a cutting edge Snapdragon 801 processor, 13MP camera, 2GB or 3GB of RAM, and an Adreno 330 GPU. Yes, those specs are awesome. But Android users were worried that those tech specs would hurt the LG G3’s battery life. What’s the point of a quad HD screen if it can only stay on for 4 hours? Fortunately, the LG G3 has blown recent…
This summer will be filled with soccer. The FIFA World Cup is taking place in Brazil over the next four weeks. Whether you love soccer or you “just don’t care about it”, the World Cup is going to be impossible to avoid. The action kicks off on Thursday, June 12 and lasts for a month until July 13. 64 matches in total will be played over that time. During the last World Cup, mobile streaming was limited. Now, with 4 years of technological advancements at our back, this World Cup…
Custom ROMs are one of the best advantages of rooting Android. With a custom ROM, you can enjoy a wide range of benefits – and yes, a few downsides. Why would you install a custom ROM? Should you install a custom ROM? Here are a few important things to remember about Android custom ROMs. What is a ROM? A custom ROM is a file package which contains the core version of Android and additional customized code. If you use a Samsung or HTC device, you’re already using a custom ROM:…
