BlackBerry Live
Friday, December 20, 2013
BlackBerry demos world’s first smartphone to car video chat
During the BlackBerry Live Keynote, the Canadian handset manufacturer carried out the world’s first smartphone to car video chat, demoing upcoming technologies.
Utilising a BlackBerry Z10 handset and a stunning Bentley car, BlackBerry showed how it is working on in-car video calls, with users soon to be able to make face-to-face video chats from their smartphone synced in-car entertainment systems.
Although demoed on a concept vehicle, the in-car video call shows where future in-car capabilities are going to head, with the demonstration Bentley boasting a BB10 powered system further enhanced by a 17-inch touchscreen display.
Functioning in much the same way as modern smartphone sync entertainment systems, the smartphone to car video call demonstration saw BlackBerry CEO Thorsten Heins chat with one of the company’s product managers.
While offering new business potentials, in the interest of safety, however, these video calling features will not be available at all times, with drivers able to make use of in-car video calls only when their car is stopped, with calls automatically switching to audio only communications when the car begins to move.
As well as showing the world's first smartphone to car video call, the BlackBerry Live keynote saw the unveiling of the BlackBerry Q5, a new budget QWERTY hosting handset with four colour schemes set to see it appeal to youth markets.
More to follow.
Friday, December 13, 2013
Battlefield 4 campaign mode details unveiled, introduces Tombstone Squad
Battlefield 4
EA has teased a range of new Battlefield 4 campaign mode details, confirming gamers will take control of Sergeant Daniel Recker, a member of the elite Tombstone squad.
Sent on a mission deep into Azerjaian, the latest Battlefield 4 story line previews have revealed gamers will be caught whilst looking to glean intelligence on a potential coup in China. The resulting furore will reportedly see World War 3 become a distinct possibility, with the Tombstone Squad again tasked with easing tensions.
Late last month developer DICE revealed that the Battlefield 4 campaign mode would be far less linear than that of its predecessor, with a selection of multiplayer elements able to be introduced at gamers’ discretion.
“There are signature multiplayer elements that we want to bring into single-player,” DICE’s General Manager Karl-Magnus Troedsson said of the upcoming game. “We want to give the player a choice. Do they want to go for the sneaky approach with a sniper rifle and a silenced pistol, or do they want to take the jeep and have the entire squad shoot at everything they see?”
Officially unveiled earlier this year, a Battlefield 4 release date has already been confirmed for both current and next-generation consoles, with the eagerly awaited first-person shooter to touch down for the upcoming Xbox One and PS4 consoles after hitting PS3 and Xbox 360 platforms.
The full Battlefield 4 campaign mode description as confirmed by EA reads as follows:
“In Battlefield 4, you take on the role of Sergeant Daniel Recker, member of an elite group of soldiers known as Tombstone squad. While on a mission to collect intelligence from a defecting Russian General in Baku, Azerbaijan, your squad is discovered and you must fight your way through waves of Russian troops in order to escape. Upon getting back to the USS Valkyrie, a Wasp class carrier, the intelligence you've retrieved confirms previous suspicions. The Chinese Admiral Chang is planning a coup in China, and if this happens, the Russians would back him up.
“With this intel secure, the USS Valkyrie sets a course for Shanghai. You and Tombstone squad are sent on a covert mission into the city to extract a group of VIP's. China is in uproar after the U.S. has been implicated in the assassination of Jin Jié, the future leader and voice for peace in China. Admiral Chang has cancelled elections and martial law has been declared. As U.S. and Russian naval forces position themselves off the coast of China, and the situation quickly escalates into a stare down akin to a tinderbox waiting for a spark.
“In Shanghai, protestors clash with police as the streets are filled with chaos and turmoil. Tombstone manages to find the VIP's, among them a CIA field operative known as Laszlo W. Kovic. With him is a mysterious individual that the Chinese military has been franticly searching for. Together with Kovic you fight your way out of Shanghai and back to the Valkyrie as countless civilians flee the city, many of which are brought aboard the Valkyrie as refugees. With communications dead, the Valkyrie sets course for Singapore to rendezvous with the USS Titan and the 7th US carrier group at their last known position. As you reach Singapore you are shocked to find a horrific scene of fire and mayhem. The flagship is sunk and its fleet is eradicated, and from this point on nothing is certain.”
Read More: Battlefield 4 Review – Hands-on
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
Apple bans Saga #12 comic for gay sex images
Saga comic
Apple has banned a comic written by acclaimed writer Brian K. Vaughan for two “postage stamp-sized images of gay sex”, the author announced.
Vaughan has released a statement criticising Apple’s decision to ban the latest issue of Saga, which has always been aimed at more mature readers due to its explicit and graphic nature.
The new Saga issue was due to be released this week and featured two small images depicting gay sex acts displayed on the TV set head of one of the characters, Prince Robot IV, when he is lying injured on a battleground.
“As has hopefully been clear from the first page of our first issue, Saga is a series for the proverbial ‘mature reader’,” said writer Brian K. Vaughn in a statement on his publisher’s Tumblr page. “Unfortunately, because of two postage stamp-sized images of gay sex, Apple is banning tomorrow’s Saga #12 from being sold through any iOS apps.”
“This is a drag, especially because our book has featured what I would consider much more graphic imagery in the past, but there you go. Fiona [Staples, Saga’s artist] and I could always edit the images in question, but everything we put into the book is there to advance our story, not (just) to shock or titillate, so we’re not changing shit”.
The science fiction comic book series follows the story of new parents, Marko and Alana, struggling to raise their newborn child in the midst of a galactic war, and often features graphically violent images. Charlie Jane Anders at sci-fi site io9 described Saga content as often featuring “some intense stuff, including straight sex, bloody violence and child birth.”
Despite Apple having a strict anti-porn policy in its App Store, the iPhone 5 manufacturer has still faced a backlash of criticism for its decision to ban the sale of Saga #12. The Saga series has already featured other sexual content including bare breasts and situations that include child prostitution, but Apple has not previously banned the comic or required Vaughn to make changes.
Due to this, the books industry has been very vocal about the ban, calling the move “homophobic”. The New Statesman said previous issues of the comic featured “larger issues of heterosexual orgies”, which were allowed to pass through Apple’s selective filters.
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
Following Apple, Microsoft to open mini-stores in Best Buy
Much as the Redmond giant attempted to do with its own dedicated retail locations, Microsoft will now follow Apple's lead in opening mini-stores in Best Buy retail locations across North America.
Microsoft and Best Buy announced the collaboration on Wednesday, noting that it will bring Windows-focused mini-stores to 500 Best Buy locations in the United States and more than 100 Best Buy and Future Shop locations in Canada. The stores will be between 1,500 and 2,200 square feet in size, and they will showcase devices running Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8, Microsoft's Xbox products, Windows software, and Microsoft's hardware peripherals.
Microsoft will provide training for more than 1,200 Best Buy sales associates in order to help them better pitch products to customers.
For Microsoft, the move may make it better able to compete against Apple in the new computing paradigm. The company's Windows 8 platform has continued to struggle in the face of a weakening PC market and an exploding mobile device market.
Microsoft has attempted to follow Apple's lead in the past, opening its own retail stores. Those locations, though, have failed to reproduce the considerable success Apple has achieved with its physical locations.
For Best Buy, the new Windows Stores are a continuation of a trend that has seen the retailer reaching out to major electronics brands, getting them to open mini-stores within Best Buy locations in an effort to transform the retailer. Best Buy has struggled to retain relevance in the era of online shopping, and one big problem the retailer faces is "showrooming," wherein customers check out devices within Best Buy before going home to order them online.
Apple was the first company to get its own dedicated mini-stores within Best Buy, with distinctive installations showing off MacBooks, iPads, and iPhones. Samsung has followed suit recently, opening 1,400 mini-stores over the past few months.
Microsoft and Best Buy announced the collaboration on Wednesday, noting that it will bring Windows-focused mini-stores to 500 Best Buy locations in the United States and more than 100 Best Buy and Future Shop locations in Canada. The stores will be between 1,500 and 2,200 square feet in size, and they will showcase devices running Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8, Microsoft's Xbox products, Windows software, and Microsoft's hardware peripherals.
Microsoft will provide training for more than 1,200 Best Buy sales associates in order to help them better pitch products to customers.
For Microsoft, the move may make it better able to compete against Apple in the new computing paradigm. The company's Windows 8 platform has continued to struggle in the face of a weakening PC market and an exploding mobile device market.
Microsoft has attempted to follow Apple's lead in the past, opening its own retail stores. Those locations, though, have failed to reproduce the considerable success Apple has achieved with its physical locations.
For Best Buy, the new Windows Stores are a continuation of a trend that has seen the retailer reaching out to major electronics brands, getting them to open mini-stores within Best Buy locations in an effort to transform the retailer. Best Buy has struggled to retain relevance in the era of online shopping, and one big problem the retailer faces is "showrooming," wherein customers check out devices within Best Buy before going home to order them online.
Apple was the first company to get its own dedicated mini-stores within Best Buy, with distinctive installations showing off MacBooks, iPads, and iPhones. Samsung has followed suit recently, opening 1,400 mini-stores over the past few months.
Sunday, December 1, 2013
Amazon smartphone reportedly delayed due to production difficulties
The much-rumoured Amazon smartphone has been hit by production difficulties which could well result in a delayed launch, according to reports.
Taiwan-based industry rumour-monger DigiTimes cites sources within the flat panel supply chain concerning the delayed Amazon smartphone. Apparently its planned Q2 release date will probably slip.
No specific reasons are given for such a delay, other than the fact that "the production progress at its manufacturing partner, Foxconn International Holdings, has not been as smooth as expected."
Amazon's original roadmap stipulated that its smartphone should complete its production verification test phase during the first quarter of 2013, which would lead to mass production in the second quarter. However, with the PVT phase ongoing, the Amazon smartphone is likely to miss its June production window.
Like the Amazon Kindle Fire HD, it's believed that the first Amazon smartphone will come with an extremely cheap and subsidised price tag. Initial reports suggest it could cost around the £100 mark.
As with its tablets, the Amazon smartphone will run on the company's Silk browser - a heavily modified version of Android with Amazon's own online ecosystem deeply integrated.
Reports late last year suggested that Amazon was planning to have five million smartphones ready to ship this summer. These latest reports of production difficulties could put paid to such ambitions - at least in the immediate future.
Would you be interested in an Amazon smartphone? Would it tempt you away from your iPhone or Android device? Let us know what you think in the comments section below, or take to the Trusted Reviews Twitter and Facebook feeds to have your say.
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