Salesforce.com adds reports, dashboard to mobile app for instant access to analytics

By R. Padla, Tech Times | July 4, 2:09 AM

The trend now is to go mobile. Smartphones and tablets are not only ideal to use for communication, gaming, and entertainment. These devices are now in demand in businesses and different types of industries.
Salesforce.com is taking advantage of this and has recently updated its Salesforce1 Mobile App to include a dashboard and mobile reports. The cloud computing company based in San Francisco is enhancing its analytics and is set to bring more business data to the customers as needed.

Salesforce believes that data should be accessible even while in the field. This means customers are allowed to access data right on their phones or tablets.
The company is pushing the app's functionality to improve the mobile ecosystem. Accessing business data through mobile gadgets is crucial in this age of Internet mobility.

The Salesforce1 App will still feature the basic dashboards but this time, customization is allowed. Senior director of analytics at Salesforce Todd Enders said they don't "want to restrict the end user's ability to innovate, but want to give them a starting place. Our customers are really passionate about reporting."

Salesforce is adding more business tools. The app has been updated to feature a new interface that contains different dashboards. New functions and features include the following:

• Easy access to all of Saleforce's CRM, dashboards, and custom reports
• Better analysis with new reporting and dashboards APIs
• Report and dashboard customization by the customer
• Contextual information and charts can now be embedded
• Third-party chart libraries like Google Charts, Chart.js, RGraph, HighChart JS, and Canvas JS can be lined into the dashboard

These new enhancements aim to allow the users a broader visualization of data they need to manage their businesses. More information have been included that might be more helpful to the customer.

The new functionalities will be available before the month of July ends. Salesforce isn't asking for additional fee for the update. More functionality has been added at no extra cost to the customers.
The updated app is Salesforce's answer to the demands of customers who want to access data even while on the field. It's information available on their mobile devices anytime, anywhere.

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Is Emoji a serious Facebook alternative or just another hyped app?

By Quinten Plummer, Tech Times | July 3, 1:11 PM

Offering a haven from spam and trolls, Emojli, an inbound messaging app, promises to serve as a platform on which users can only communicate through emojis.

Emojis, also known as smilies, can express a variety of emotions and ideas, each as refined as the tiny images that populate emoji libraries. The creators of Emojili, Matt Gray and Tom Scott, believe users can have regular, meaningful exchanges through the use of emojis  and the duo are assuring prospective users the app is no joke.

"We know what you're thinking. It's satire -- no one would actually make this thing," stated Emojli's teaser trailer. "It's not and we have. emojli launches very soon. reserve your username -- you username has to be an emoji."

While a release date for Emojli hasn't been etched in stone, Gray and Scott have been encouraging interested individuals to reserve usernames on the company website. Usernames are selected from emojis and attached to email addresses - keeping in the spirit of their platform's supposed spam-free nature, Emojli has promised not to send spam messages to the email accounts of individuals who sign up for the service.

So does Emojli have the staying power to chink away at the armor of the likes of Facebook and Twitter? The emoji-only premise may seem a novel idea, but apps such as the SnapChat and Whatsapp have developed a cult following among teens and have millions of dollars thrown at them by Facebook.

Due to the ambigous nature of emojis, Emojli could serve as a more intimate and whimsical platform close friends and family members use to stay in touch during those times when the phone calls start to spread apart. General acquaintances may struggle to interpret some of the chains of emojis, much more so than family members and close friends.

The jury hasn't even begun to deliberate on Emojli, as only the basic details of the app have been revealed. Only time will tell if Emojli will crash and burn or will develop a following of devotees and have Facebook court it as another service to join its stable of standalone apps.

So far, Emojli has been confirmed from iOS devices. But the company has stated its intent to release Emojli on other platforms.

Watch the teaser trailer for the Emojli app here.

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Yahoo cans services including Xboni, Shine to re-focus strategy

By Mark Hawver, Tech Times | July 3, 5:21 P

Renowned Web portal Yahoo.com continues along the path of trimming non-strategic properties from its portfolio by terminating the existence of four services. The list includes Shine, a women's lifestyle site; Xobni, a contact-management application; the editorial site Yahoo Voices and a people-finding search engine. These business units will be shuttered by the end of this month.
 
These moves are in keeping with Yahoo's corporate strategy of focusing its efforts into four core businesses - communications, digital magazines, search and video - or as Jay Rossiter, Yahoo's senior VP of the Cloud Platform Group stated, "making the world's daily habits more inspiring and entertaining." The company will excise their least profitable and popular sites and services first, in many cases adding some of their functionalities to Yahoo products that will remain available.

A brief history of Yahoo's other cuts within the past few months includes the end of Newlook Service - an online virtual makeover tool for maktoob.yahoo.com; removing the ability for users to generate research reports on Yahoo Finance; the closing of Bookmarks.yahoo.com - this bookmark storage site has been replaced by adding its functionality to Yahoo Toolbar for Firefox and Internet Explorer - and Yahoo Toolbar is no longer available for Chrome, due to changes in Google policy. It is being replaced with Yahoo Extension for Chrome. The Yahoo Toolbar for Chrome product will be gone from the Chrome Web store by July 22.

Also to be assumed into pixel heaven is the Yahoo Contributor Network.
With Xobni (inbox spelled backwards), which was purchased by Yahoo only one year ago, the company is incorporating Xobni-like features into Yahoo Mail, such as compose auto-suggest and people-centric mail search; the company will also borrow snippets of code and technology from the Xobni app to grace future new Yahoo products.

Yahoo Shine will be shut down at the end of this month. In its place will be several new digital magazines that will cross over into Shine territory. Current webzines Yahoo Beauty and Yahoo Travel will also pick up Shine's slack.

"By focusing our energy on Yahoo's four core areas - Search, Communications, Digital Magazines and Video - and the two incredible engines that power them, Flickr and Tumblr, we can make a bigger impact on the things people do everyday," said Rossiter.

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Android Wear app arrives at Google Play as do a slew of compatible apps

By Mark Hawver, Tech Times | July 3, 5:20 PM

Google just recently announced the launch of Android Wear, its smartphone app for controlling the next generation of wearable tech devices, including smartwatches.
The Android Wear app is now available on Google Play for free download to most Android smartphones and tablets. The app will control voice action preferences, adjust notification settings and configure devices. Currently, Android smartwatches are available from Motorola, Samsung and LG.

Android Wear will organize information and present it to the user intuitively. It will accept messages, appointment notifications and deliver weather updates. It will work together with health and fitness apps to provide real-time heart rate and other fitness parameters to the user.

The development of Android Wear is an important step toward accelerating growth of the nascent smartwatch wearable tech market. Earlier smartwatches were also Android-operable but could not work together with other Android-powered mobile devices.

Android Wear, which establishes a clear communications system and linkage with other Android devices, will break the logjam.
The debut of Android Wear will also help Google get the jump on Apple, whose iWatch or iWhatever is still thought to be another three to four months from market. By the time Apple's time comes, Google may already have cleaned their clock.

Another important step in planting the Google flag firmly in the wearable tech marketplace comes with the sudden availability of 31 wearable tech-compatible apps for Android Wear that have popped up on Google Play in the last 24 hours.

Some heavy hitters, like Pinterest, American Airlines, Fly Delta, Google Maps and Thomson Reuters are there. Other free apps include:
Banjo - a news-gathering app that culls headlines from live events and breaking news and features feedback from Banjo players on the scene of breaking news.

Duolingo - a language learning application that teaches Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Italian and English.
Eat24 - Order food online from over 25,000 restaurants in over 1,000 cities. But not all at once.
Onefootball Brasil - you guessed it; a full-featured World Cup news and score feeder, with a live ticker, push notifications, videos and pre- and postgame news coverage. Better jump on this quickly (buy a smartwatch right now!) - the tournament ends next weekend.

The Guardian - the UK news giant is available in a comprehensive format. Free, but there are in-app purchasing options for expandability.
Allthecooks Recipes - read the recipe on one hand while you flip the meat on the grill with the other.
Talkray - a free calling and messaging app that enables phone calls, text messages, photo and video transmission over Wi-Fi or 3G. Uses data, not phone minutes to operate.

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Google Play Services gets an upgrade and a quest

By Mike Cannon, Tech Times | July 3, 10:15 PM

Google has released a software update to Android devices called Google Play Services 5.0. The update paves the way for the influx of Android Wear devices.
Google Play Services 5.0 includes new application programming interfaces (APIs) for developers creating apps for Android Wear devices. The APIs include a program messaging interface that allows the smartphone app and the wearable device to exchange commands and information. The APIs also give programmers with automatically sychronized data storage for information collected by the wearable device. This allows Android Wear smartwatches and other devices to record information such has heart rate and location and store it for analysis using the smartphone app.

Another prominent feature of the update is the App Indexing API. App Indexing allows a Google search on a mobile device to provide links not only to websites, but to pages on installed apps. Developers can use the App Indexing API to inform Google about deep links present in the app that Google can use to connect users that search for related terms.

"Integrating with the App Indexing API allows the Google Search app to serve up your app's history to users as instant Search suggestions, providing fast and easy access to inner pages in your app," says Google in a statement.

Google has also added new features for game developers. The most prominent of these is the saved game snapshot API. Developers can now sychronize saved games across multiple devices. That way a user can download the app on both a smartphone and a tablet without having to complete the same levels or tasks on each device separately. Developers can also use cover images to inform the user at a glance what level the game was on when it last closed. The update also includes a new feature to increase user engagement called "Quests."

"Quests are a new set of APIs to run time-based goals for players, and reward them without needing to update the game," says Google in its statement. "To do this, you can send game activity data to the Quests service whenever a player successfully wins a level, kills an alien, or saves a rare black sheep, for example. This tells Quests what's going on in the game, and you can use that game activity to create new Quests."

Google has also added a new feature to its Wallet service that allows users to upload information from compatible loyalty cards and coupons to the cloud. Stores can also use geo-fencing to remind a user to scan the loyalty card when in the store, or notify users of available offers.

Google Play Services 5.0 is now available on Android devices worldwide. The accompanying software development kit is also available, through the Android SDK manager.

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Facebook Messenger for Apple iPad. Finally.

By Aaron Mamiit, Tech Times | July 4, 3:59 PM

Facebook has finally released an iPad-optimized version of its Messenger app.
The updated Messenger app for the iOS includes an interface that is designed to look and work better with the iPad's larger screen compared to Apple's smaller iPhone and iPad devices.

iPad users updating to version 7.0 will see that Messenger will no longer just feature a stretched interface of the version for the iPhone. The new iPad version will have an interface of two columns, wherein the list of contacts of the user will take up one-third of the screen and is located at the left. The rest of the screen will be for the user's conversations, similar to how most other apps for messaging look like.

Aside from updating the interface to make Messenger look like an app made for the iPad, the version also keeps most of the features of the Messenger for the iPhone. The features include making voice calls and sticker responses.

Facebook said that the updated Messenger fixed reported bugs in the previous version, along with an increased reliability of phone calls. In addition, Facebook said that there were improvements made to the company's backend services, which will make it faster for users to find out which ones of their contacts are online.

However, despite the reported improvements and carried over features, Messenger for the iPad fails to deliver a complete messaging experience due to one missing feature. Video messaging, which was introduced into the app's version 6.0 update last June, is not accessible in the iPad version.
Facebook Messenger 7.0 is now available for download on the Apple App Store. The app has a download size of 39MB and is free.

Facebook Messenger is also available for the Android operating system. However, there is no available version yet that is optimized for tablets.

The much-awaited update for an iPad-focused version of the Messenger, however, is looking like it may be overshadowed by the controversy that Facebook is currently facing.

Late last month, a study published by Facebook data scientists revealed that emotional contagion, or the phenomenon of affecting the emotions of others through a person's own emotions, can be replicated in the social network.

The results, however, are not the issue; rather, the methodology of the study, which manipulated the News Feeds of Facebook users, without their consent, to display mostly negative status updates. 
Adam Kramer, one of the data scientists, has since apologized for the controversial methodology, saying that the benefits obtained from the research do not justify the amount of anxiety that it has caused.

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SMIC and Qualcomm Collaborate on 28nm Wafer Production in China

SAN DIEGO, July 3, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation ("SMIC"; NYSE: SMI; SEHK: 981) and Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM), have announced that SMIC and Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., a subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated, are working together in connection with 28nm process technology and wafer manufacturing services in China to manufacture Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ processors. Qualcomm Technologies'

Snapdragon processors are purpose built for mobile devices. SMIC is one of China's largest and most advanced semiconductor foundries, and Qualcomm Technologies is one of the world's largest fabless semiconductor vendors and a world leader in 3G, 4G and next-generation wireless technologies. This collaboration will help accelerate SMIC's 28nm process maturity and capacity, and will also make SMIC one of the first semiconductor foundries in China to offer production locally for some of Qualcomm Technologies' latest Snapdragon processors on 28nm node, both PolySiON (PS) and high-K dielectrics metal gate (HKMG).

Previously, SMIC has supported Qualcomm Technologies on power management, wireless and connectivity related IC products at various process nodes. With this new collaboration involving 28nm technology and wafer manufacturing services, SMIC is further strengthening its strategic relationship with Qualcomm Technologies. SMIC will work with Qualcomm Technologies in bringing new 28nm design-ins and products for the growing mobile communication industry. Going forward, SMIC will also extend its technology offerings on 3DIC and RF front-end wafer manufacturing in support of Qualcomm Technologies as its Snapdragon product portfolio continues to expand.

"We are delighted to enter this collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies since this marks a significant milestone on the readiness and competitiveness of SMIC's 28nm process technologies," said Dr. Tzu-Yin Chiu, chief executive officer and executive director, SMIC. "This step forward demonstrates SMIC's capabilities and commitments on bringing up the needed advanced node technologies for addressing customers' demands and product roadmaps. With Qualcomm Technologies' support, we are confident that our 28nm technologies will become one of the most important growth drivers for the company. We expect that the 28nm product life cycle longevity will exceed previous nodes, which will help better position SMIC to service the needs of Qualcomm Technologies, as well as others."

"SMIC is an important supplier to Qualcomm Technologies, and we are pleased to be working with SMIC, whose capabilities and technology offerings are growing to meet our demanding product needs," said Murthy Renduchintala, executive vice president, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., and co-president, QCT. "We look forward to working with SMIC on bringing up its 28nm production in China and executing on our regional supply chain strategy. With SMIC becoming a more important supplier in our global operations, this collaboration will help further our manufacturing footprint and services in China, one of the world's largest mobile consumer opportunities."

About Qualcomm IncorporatedQualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM) is a world leader in 3G, 4G and next-generation wireless technologies. Qualcomm Incorporated includes Qualcomm's licensing business, QTL, and the vast majority of its patent portfolio. Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated, operates, along with its subsidiaries, substantially all of Qualcomm's engineering, research and development functions, and substantially all of its products and services businesses, including its semiconductor business, QCT. For more than 25 years, Qualcomm ideas and inventions have driven the evolution of digital communications, linking people everywhere more closely to information, entertainment and each other. For more information, visit Qualcomm's website, OnQ blog, Twitter and Facebook pages.

About SMICSemiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation ("SMIC"; NYSE: SMI; SEHK: 981) is one of the leading semiconductor foundries in the world and the largest and most advanced foundry in mainland China. SMIC provides integrated circuit (IC) foundry and technology services at 0.35-micron to 28-nanometer. Headquartered in Shanghai, China, SMIC has a 300mm wafer fabrication facility (fab) and a 200mm mega-fab in Shanghai; a 300mm mega-fab in Beijing and a majority owned 300mm fab for advance nodes under development; a 200mm fab in Tianjin; and a 200mm fab project under development in Shenzhen. SMIC also has marketing and customer service offices in the U.S., Europe, Japan, and Taiwan, and a representative office in Hong Kong. For more information, please visit www.smics.com.

Safe Harbor Statements
(Under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995)
This document contains, in addition to historical information, "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are based on SMIC's current assumptions, expectations and projections about future events. SMIC uses words like "believe," "anticipate," "intend," "estimate," "expect," "project" and similar expressions to identify forward looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these words. These forward-looking statements are necessarily estimates reflecting the best judgment of SMIC's senior management and involve significant risks, both known and unknown, uncertainties and other factors that may cause SMIC's actual performance, financial condition or results of operations to be materially different from those suggested by the forward-looking statements including, among others, risks associated with cyclicality and market conditions in the semiconductor industry, intense competition, timely wafer acceptance by SMIC's customers, timely introduction of new technologies, SMIC's ability to ramp new products into volume, supply and demand for semiconductor foundry services, industry overcapacity, shortages in equipment, components and raw materials, availability of manufacturing capacity, financial stability in end markets and intensive intellectual property litigation in high tech industry.

In addition to the information contained in this document, you should also consider the information contained in our other filings with the SEC, including our annual report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC on April 14, 2014, especially in the "Risk Factors" section and such other documents that we may file with the SEC or SEHK from time to time, including on Form 6-K. Other unknown or unpredictable factors also could have material adverse effects on our future results, performance or achievements. In light of these risks, uncertainties, assumptions and factors, the forward-looking events discussed in this document may not occur. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date stated or, if no date is stated, as of the date of this document.

Qualcomm and Snapdragon are trademarks of Qualcomm Incorporated, registered in the United States and other countries. Qualcomm Snapdragon is a product of Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.
Qualcomm Contacts:
Jon Carvill, Corporate Communications
Phone: 1-858-658-1993
Email: corpcomm@qualcomm.com
Warren Kneeshaw, Investor Relations
Phone: 1-858-658-4813
Email: ir@qualcomm.com
SMIC Contacts:
Michael Cheung, English Media
Phone: +86-21-3861-0000 x16812
Email: Michael_Cheung@smics.com
Angela Miao, Chinese Media
Phone: +86-21-3861-0000 x10088
Email: Angela_Miao@smics.com
SOURCE Qualcomm Technologies

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Qualcomm, SMIC team up on Snapdragon wafer

By Joseph Mayton, Tech Times | July 4, 11:44 AM

One of China's most advanced semiconductor foundries Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation is partnering with Qualcomm to develop and manufacture 28nm process tech and wafer services in the Asian giant's market. The goal is to deliver Qualcomm Snapdragon processors.

As a global leader in 3G, 4G and next generation wireless tech, the partnership between Qualcomm and SMIC should help to increase the speed at which SMIC's 28nm is developed and put into the market. It should also give Qualcomm the opportunity to locally produce the wafers.

The two players are not new to working together, as they have developed power management, wireless and connectivity IT products. But the new relationship goes a step further into the manufacturing sector and should help SMIC grow its own offerings in wafer manufacturing through the support and expertise of Qualcomm and its Snapdragon portfolio.

The move is seen as a major boost for the chipmaker and its Chinese partner ahead of major tech companies' launching a plethora of new products later this fall and into the holiday season.

"You're going to have an iPhone launch, then holiday selling season. There could be a pretty substantial increase in wafers for back half (of 2014)," FBR analyst Chris Rolland said.

The news also comes as Beijing continues to push out new efforts to bolster its economy and the technology sector has become a main development goal for the country. Still, Qualcomm has faced a number of issues in China, including being accused of overcharging and abusing its position in the market, amidst reports suggesting it could face a $1 billion fine if the accusations are taken further.

SMIC, according to research firm IC Insights, is the fifth largest contract chipmaker in the world.
Still, SMIC appears optimistic about the new partnership.

"We are delighted to enter this collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies since this marks a significant milestone on the readiness and competitiveness of SMIC's 28nm process technologies," said Dr. Tzu-Yin Chiu, chief executive officer and executive director, SMIC.

"This step forward demonstrates SMIC's capabilities and commitments on bringing up the needed advanced node technologies for addressing customers' demands and product roadmaps. With Qualcomm Technologies' support, we are confident that our 28nm technologies will become one of the most important growth drivers for the company. We expect that the 28nm product life cycle longevity will exceed previous nodes, which will help better position SMIC to service the needs of Qualcomm Technologies, as well as others."

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Google Play gets an update, holds 1.5M apps

By Robert Lawson, Tech Times | July 4, 5:15 PM

Google has rolled out a new update for developer services of its Google Play Store, which currently holds 1.5 million apps. The new update will provide better inclusion of a variety of these apps.

The legacy and popularity of the digital apps store is becoming solidified as more than half of the apps within it have garnered success. In fact, the free apps and games have boosted the popularity of the platform by leaps and bounds. The announcement was reportedly made on Google's Android Developers Blog.

"This release introduces Android wearable services APIs, Dynamic Security Provider and App Indexing, whilst also including updates to the Google Play game services, Cast, Drive, Wallet, Analytics and Mobile Ads," said the announcement.

According to reports, Google offered a sneak peak at the Google Play Services update to 5.0 at the Google I/O Developers Conference that took place in San Fransisco recently.

The update includes a new set of APIs that streamline development for wearables. The APIs reportedly provide "an automatically synchronized, persistent data store and a low-latency messaging interface that lets you sync data, exchange control messages and transfer assets."

New security options are available to provide patches for the API as well, sources explained.
One particularly noteworthy feature of the new Google Play Services is something called "Quest". Quest is an API set that enables developers of games to create a series of in-game challenges.

Financially, the Google Play Store couldn't be doing better. According to a report citing an App Annie study, the company's app store doubled its revenue YoY from June 2013 through this June. Gaming apps made up the bulk of that revenue, around 90 percent according to the findings. Of all apps revenue, "freemium" downloads provided a whopping 98 percent.

The number of apps grew by 60 percent over the same year. The Play Store had more than a million apps in June 2013, but this month the number sits at 1.5 million.

The Lyft app is reportedly going to be one of the first apps to make it to market in the newly released Android Wear compatible apps. Android Wear is an operating system for smart watches. The app allows users to hitch a ride with a registered driver that also has the app. You can tell who the drivers are by the pink mustaches attached to the grill of their vehicle.

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Amazon: In-app purchase policies are fine, see you in court FTC

By Nicole Arce, Tech Times | July 5, 7:19 AM

Amazon is refusing to comply with orders from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to change its in-app purchase policies and has announced in a letter to the agency that it has "no choice" but to defend itself in court.

The Internet retailer faces the possibility of a lawsuit filed by the FTC after it said it will not change its in-app purchase process for Amazon mobile devices, such as the Kindle Fire tablet and the upcoming Amazon Fire Phone. The FTC says Amazon's one-click buy feature makes it too easy for children of parents owning Amazon devices to make unauthorized purchases while using the apps.

In-app purchases are crucial in maintaining the business of an app store. Examples of these digital goods include extra lives and special tools that will allow players to advance to the next level in a gaming app.

The FTC says Amazon is liable for the thousands of complaints it has received from customers involving millions of dollars in unauthorized purchases by their children because the e-commerce company does not obtain "informed consent" from device owners before processing in-app purchases. In the most extreme cases, a few individual complaints involved hundreds of dollars in unauthorized in-app transactions.

But Amazon is unwilling to revise its in-app purchase policies, saying it has already installed full safety features to prevent children of device owners from buying digital goods without their parents knowing. The most notable of these features is the child-proof FreeTime mode, which parents can turn on to block all purchases and choose which apps their children are allowed to use. Amazon says it also provides instant notices to Amazon account holders whenever their credit cards are charged and has always provided refunds to parents of children buying things without their parents' consent.

"We have continuously improved our experience since launch, but even at launch, when customers told us their kids had made purchases they didn't want we refunded those purchases," writes (pdf) Amazon associate general counsel Andrew DeVore in a letter sent to the FTC. "And as we have made it clear from the outset of your inquiry, our experience at launch was responsible, customer focused, and lawful, including prominent notice of in-app purchasing, effective parental controls, real-time notice of every in-app purchase, and world-class customer service."

The FTC, however, is adamant, saying Amazon only required informed consent from parents last month. The agency says it wants Amazon to provide password protection for every purchase and offer a more "streamlined" refund process. It could also impose heavy fines on Amazon and require the company to provide full disclosure of how it changes its policies.

Apple faced a similar situation last year, when it agreed with the FTC's terms to pay $32.5 million to customers who were charged for unauthorized purchases made by their children. However, Amazon asserts it is different from Apple because the iPhone maker does not have a children-specific mode for its iOS devices like Amazon does.

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Wimbledon gets more social with IBM's cloud technology. Tennis fans, rejoice!

By Aaron Mamiit, Tech Times | June 18, 6:34 AM

 

The Wimbledon tennis tournament for this year will be using the SoftLayer cloud technology by IBM to be able to host a new tool for social media.
Wimbledon, or known as the All England

Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club, will be launching the Wimbledon Social Command Centre, which will allow it to monitor trending topics in social media regarding the tournament.

Using the data generated, WImbledon.com can then be adjusted to display the most relevant information according to what is most talked about online.
"The Wimbledon Social Command Centre will help us follow the evolving topics on sites like Twitter to see what is being discussed, how the volume is changing, and we can tune and tailor that to the Wimbledon.com website," said Alex Willis, AELTC content and communications manager.
"So if the social media coverage is actually talking about a match on court 12, rather than centre court, it means we can understand that and give people the content they want."

The new social media tool that the Wimbledon will implement confirms that the tournament isn't averse to using technology to make the game more exciting and accurate. The Wimbledon tennis tournament is also one of the first tournaments in the sport to use the Hawk-Eye ball tracking system in 2007, which drastically reduces the officiating errors in a match by pinpointing the exact spot where the ball hits the ground.

In addition to the Wimbledon Social Command Centre, the Slamtracker platform was also updated. Tasked with providing real-time data to users, the platform has been simplified. Slamtracker's predictive analytics system also gives users insights into a match through the identification of three vital performance indicators for each player.

Wimbledon's official apps for the iPhone and Android phones have also been upgraded, with new functionality included in the iPad app.
All these technological improvements aim to provide fans with the best Wimbledon experience possible, even if they are on the other side of the world.

"We continue to look for new ways to innovate and strengthen our leadership position in the sports industry, and one of the ways we will do this is by delivering content and information about The Championships to fans in the way that they want to consume it, no matter where they are," said AELTC commercial director Mick Desmond.

"Working with IBM is a winning partnership because it allows us to create a unique digital environment that delivers stats, video and information to our fans whenever they want it on all devices and is the next best thing to being there."
The two-week Wimbledon tennis tournament begins on June 23.

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Garmin debuts víago navigation app for the iPhone

By Mark Hawver, Tech Times | June 17, 2:29 PM

Garmin, the company primarily known to consumers as the makers of in-vehicle GPS navigation products, has launched víago, a new smartphone app for both Android and iOS platforms.
The list price for víago is $1.99, and Garmin refers to it as a premium navigation app. It is available for download for an introductory price of 99 cents through July 13.

Still, Google Maps offers most of víago's features at no charge. Once a user starts accessorizing víago, the price can get north of comfortable quickly. But víago's intro price will still attract a lot of Garmin loyalists and encourage Google users to give it a try.

Basic víago offers step-up features from free apps on the market. It includes access to off-board maps for many regions around the world and features such as current speed, speed limit display, lane assist, weather info, in-map traffic display and photo-realistic junction views.

Garmin's víago is also easily expandable through the purchase of app add-ons. Some of these include downloadable maps (Maps to Go) that can be viewed in offline mode, real-time traffic with automatic re-routing, public transportation navigation, 3D terrain view and more.

Víago also offers Garmin's Real Directions as an in-app purchase ($9.99). Real Directions provides spoken turn-by-turn directions that are more detailed, by including landmarks, buildings, stop signs and traffic lights.

"Garmin víago offers the best navigation available from Garmin, helping drivers to reduce stress and save time on the road," said Joern Watzke, VP of worldwide mobile business at Garmin Wuerzburg GmbH. "The comprehensive feature set goes far beyond simple turn-by-turn directions. Premium in-app purchase options allow users to only choose the features they want."

Right "out of the box" víago includes weather reporting, current speed and posted speed limits, photo-real junction views and a multiple-destination route planner.
For pedestrian navigation, víago offers an in-app purchase (for iOS only, initially) that features walking directions and public transportation locations. The app will allow users to easily switch from driving directions to walking guidance.

The Safety Kit in-app purchase ($9.99) includes Active Lane Guidance, which provides brightly colored graphics to indicate the proper lane for turns. The Traffic Live ($19.99 when off promotion) add-on automatically routes drivers around gridlock and other delays, using both historic data and input from other drivers. Panorama View features 3D views garnered from NASA height and terrain data.

Urban Guidance integrates public transportation, including detailed itineraries of public transit stops.
Accessories available from Garmin that work together with a víago-enabled smartphone include Garmin HUD (heads-up display), which uses a transparent film on the windshield. HUD projects navigation data onto the screen, within the driver's line of sight, and costs $149.99 or $179.99. There are also a variety of hardware mounting devices to secure the smartphone to the vehicle dashboard.
Garmin víago is available on Google Play and Apple's App Store. In-app purchase packages range from $4.99 to $19.99. The Maps to Go and Traffic Live apps are half-off during the promotional period (ending July 13).

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Agency Aims to Regulate Map Aids in Vehicles

 

By MATTHEW L. WALD JUNE 15, 2014

Getting directions on the road from Google Maps and other smartphone apps is a popular alternative to the expensive navigation aids included in some cars. The apps are also a gray area when it comes to laws banning the use of cellphones or texting while driving.

The Transportation Department wants to enter the argument.

The department is intensifying its battle against distracted driving by seeking explicit authority from Congress to regulate navigation aids of all types, including apps on smartphones.

The measure, included in the Obama administration’s proposed transportation bill, would specify that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has the authority to set restrictions on the apps and later order changes if they are deemed dangerous, much the way it currently regulates mechanical features of cars.

The measure has the support of automakers, which already mostly comply with voluntary guidelines for built-in navigation systems, but it has run into stiff opposition from technology companies, which say that any such law would be impractical and impossible to enforce. It’s another example, they say, of federal regulators trying vainly to keep up with a rapidly changing industry.

“They don’t have enough software engineers,” said Catherine McCullough, executive director of the Intelligent Car Coalition, an industry group. “They don’t have the budget or the structure to oversee both Silicon Valley and the auto industry.”

The underlying issue has already worked its way into the courts. In California, Steven R. Spriggs received a $165 ticket two years ago for using his iPhone while driving in stop-and-go traffic near Fresno. A highway patrol motorcycle officer rolled up alongside his car after seeing the glow from the screen on Mr. Spriggs’s face.

“I held it up and said, ‘It’s a map,’ ” Mr. Spriggs said. He was not talking on the phone, which is prohibited by California law.

But the police officer would not budge. “He said, ‘Pull over, it doesn’t matter,’ ” said Mr. Spriggs, the director of planned giving at California State University, Fresno.

An appeals court ruled this year that it did matter, and Mr. Spriggs’s conviction was reversed.

Regulators maintain that they already have the authority over navigation aids and merely want it clearly written into law.

Twice last year, David L. Strickland, when he was administrator of N.H.T.S.A., told Congress that navigation systems could be “classified as motor vehicle equipment.” The electronics industry, in response, argues that “motor vehicle equipment” includes objects like key-chain fobs that can unlock a car by remote control, not apps on a smartphone.

Last year, after negotiations with the industry, the Transportation Department released voluntary guidelines for automakers stipulating that any navigation system should not take more than two seconds for a single interaction, and 12 seconds total. At 60 miles an hour, two seconds is 176 feet.

Now the Transportation Department is angling for more leverage in negotiations over electronic distractions, but it says it has no immediate plan to issue rules. The idea is now in the mix of proposals that could end up in the highway bill that Congress is likely to pass in the coming months.

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Regulators are making the push as navigation apps are proliferating and increasing in sophistication.

While most smartphone users are familiar with straightforward navigation aids like Google Maps, Waze, for instance, relies on a social network of users to report road conditions, hazards and the presence of police cars in real time. Wazers, as users are known, earn points the more they contribute, and gain status in the community.

But Waze’s user agreement contains a warning that says, in part, “Sending traffic updates and text messages to the service while you drive is strictly prohibited.” And the app’s interface is meant to prevent a report while the car is in motion, unless the user hits a button saying a passenger is making the entry.

Despite the warning, there is nothing to prevent a driver from hitting the passenger button. Waze, which Google bought last year, declined to comment.

Safety advocates say regulators need to do more.

“We absolutely need to be looking at these nomadic devices,” said Deborah A. P. Hersman, president of the National Safety Council, a nonprofit group chartered by Congress, and a former chairwoman of the National Transportation Safety Board.

The dominant companies in the industry are Google and Apple, which have made maps a central part of their smartphones — not only for navigation but also as a way to gather data and contextual information for their search functions and apps. Google and Apple declined to comment.

The technology industry has also voiced concern that the provision could give regulators the authority to review apps and order changes before they are put on the market, but safety officials said they would not have that power. Instead, they would retain the authority to have an app changed if it was deemed dangerous, in the same way they regulate cars and light trucks.

Harold Feld, senior vice president of Public Knowledge, a digital rights advocacy group, said the navigation apps were not inherently dangerous. Being able to enter a new destination into a navigation device on the fly, he said, is “a pretty good thing” and could often be done by a passenger. And navigation apps allow for voice commands.

With Google Maps or Apple’s Maps on nearly every smartphone sold in the United States, he asked, “Does their regulatory status change in a car? How the heck would anyone monitor that?”

The highway agency is following a plan to focus first on electronics built into the dashboard, which it began last year with the voluntary guidelines, and now to focus on smartphones and tablets, which can be used virtually anywhere. Regulators convened a public meeting on those this year, before the administration came out with its version of a transportation appropriations bill.

Without a consistent standard across all navigation aids, automakers and safety advocates say, people will turn to the hand-held devices.

“If you put restrictions on the built-in systems designed to be used while driving, it’s going to encourage people to use hand-held devices that are not optimal for use by a driver,” said Gloria Bergquist, a spokeswoman for the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, an industry trade group. “We believe that if you’re looking at a smaller screen, that’s less effective than looking at a larger screen on the dashboard.”

Even Mr. Spriggs would agree that driver distraction is a pressing problem. His 22-year-old son, he said, was riding his bicycle and was struck by a car whose driver was on a cellphone.

“I would support a law, reluctantly, that these things cannot work while the car is moving,” he said.

 

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Transportation Department wants to regulate navigation apps and aids to arrest distracted driving

By Vamien McKalin, Tech Times | June 18, 11:07 PM

Many drivers have chosen to get extensive directions on the road from the likes of Google Maps, Bing Maps, HERE Maps and Apple Maps, instead of using the expensive navigational aids included in several cars. These free apps are also in a bit of a pickle since driving and using a smartphone or tablet is banned in several states in the U.S.

The Transportation Department is planning to step in and make a difference, though it is not certain if the plan has any chance of taking off. The plan here is to battle distracted driving by seeking congress' permission to regulate driving navigational aids of all types, even the ones that are used on smartphones and tablets.

A new piece of the Obama administration proposes a transportation bill that is aimed at granting the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration the ability to set certain restrictions on navigational apps, and later order changes if they are deemed dangerous.

Several technology companies and developers are complaining about this measure, as they believe it would bog down innovation. However, officials claim that they have no intention to interfere with apps in development. The bill would simply give them the ability to mandate changes if an app should prove dangerous for use on the roads.

So far, the new measures have the support of automakers who believe that since their own built-in navigation solution must face voluntary guidelines, apps such as Google Maps and Apple Maps must face the same treatment.

However, how is it going to work if the Transport Department lacks the resources to handle both Silicon Valley and the auto industry?
"They don't have enough software engineers," said Catherine McCullough, executive director of the Intelligent Car Coalition, an industry group. "They don't have the budget or the structure to oversee both Silicon Valley and the auto industry."

Regulators claim that they already have the authority over navigation aids, and only want it to be clearly written into law. If it should become law, it would mean a person on his/her smartphone while driving should not be forced to pay a ticket, but only if they were using a navigational app.

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Streem will help Box users stream cloud-stored files. Buh-bye hard drive

By Vamien McKalin, Tech Times | June 18, 7:03 AM

Box, one of the top cloud storage companies around, has acquired start-up Streem for its streaming technology that specializes in streaming large media files.
It's an interesting acquisition, as the technology that the start-up has in its arsenal, which is called StreemFS, makes its service behave as if it was attached to the user's computer similar to a hard drive.
"The entire team at Streem will be joining Box to help work on the future of content management and collaboration in the enterprise," says Box CEO Aaron Levie, in a blog post. 

It allows users to natively access their data in the could via their desktop. Furthermore, users don't have to keep a copy of a particular file on their computer for syncing with the next copy stored on Streem's cloud. They can simply store a copy of the file on Streem and have it streamed to their desktop on demand.

"Files are opened natively on the device, requiring no special software, configuration, or any change in the consumer's behavior," stated Streem when it launched the service in beta back in April of this year.

Streem seems very proud of its technology, as the company claims that by using custom streaming and buffering algorithms, users can open a file from its cloud service just as fast as opening a file natively from the desktop. This is really important for folks who are looking for the same desktop like performance from cloud services.

Additionally, Streem says it has developed what it calls "on-the-fly video transcoder," a feature that allows cloud users to stream video content from any format, in a way that is compatible with the device being used. The technology can even automatically adjust video quality based on the user's Internet connection speed.

The overall plan here is to have Streem fully integrated into Box, though the company is not saying when it will be available for users.
Box in its current form is designed well for business users, though we are guessing Box might eventually put more focus on non-business consumers to fully put Streem's technology to the test.
Customers with accounts on Streem will be fully migrated to Box as both companies prepare to become a single cohesive unit.

Streem planned to charge users $20 per month to use its service after the beta ended. Now the company is owned by Box, which means the price maybe wavered for a long time.

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Facebook pitches iPad app as entertainment hub with trending topics, videos and games

By Vamien McKalin, Tech Times | June 18, 7:07 AM

Facebook has released a new version of the Facebook app for the Apple iPad. The new app aims to become an entertainment hub for those who are interested in playing Facebook games, and are interested in the hottest videos on the social network.

At the time of writing, over 70 percent of those who use the Facebook mobile app play video games from within the social network in the past 90 days, so it is clear why the company is attempting to keep these players coming back for more and hopes to attract new players.

The new game and video focused entertainment hub will come in the form of a sidebar on the right side of the Facebook app. It will include social notifications for Facebook games both native and on the web, along with video trailers of games that users have yet to play, trending videos and new articles.

This move by Mark Zuckerberg and friends could have a huge impact on developers, as it could provide more users for their gaming related apps, which means increased ad revenues. Facebook also wins if this plan works out, and we've seen no reason why it wouldn't.

Overtime, Facebook plans to place advertisements in the new sidebar to allow game developers to better promote their apps. Game developers who are interested in being part of this new Facebook feature are required to register their iPad and Canvas apps with Facebook, and upload a video detailing what the app is all about in App Center.

"In the latest update to Facebook for iPad in the US, we're testing new ways to help people discover more timely and entertaining content. This update will show content on the right-hand side that's relevant to how people use tablets today, which is primarily to read news, watch videos and play games," writes Facebook in a blog post.

The new app is available right now, but only iPad users within the United States will get a chance to give it a spin. This might have a lot to do with the new feature being in the testing phase, so if everything goes according to plan, the entertainment hub sidebar should find its way to users around the world.
Furthermore, the social network is not focusing on bringing the new entertainment hub sidebar to smartphones just yet. This is understandable since smartphone displays are quite small compared to a full sized tablet.

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Slingshot: Facebook takes a shot at Snapchat with new vanishing photo messaging app

By Mike Cannon, Tech Times | June 17, 11:03 PM

Facebook released a new app called Slingshot on Tuesday. Slingshot is made for sharing photos that disappear when viewed, similar to Snapchat. However, Slingshot requires that the recipient reply with another photo before the first can be viewed.

Facebook attempted to purchase Snapchat in November 2013, but when Snapchat declined the offer Facebook began looking into options for a similar app. A previous attempt called Poke was a commercial failure, and was shut down in May. With Slingshot, Facebook has created not another Snapchat clone, but a unique app that lets users share in a different way.

Slingshot opens with the camera pulled up, encouraging users to snap a photo or capture video up to 15 seconds. The user can then add text or draw on the photo before sending it to any number of contacts. When a contact received the photo, it is locked, showing only a small and obfuscated preview. To view the photo, the contact must first send a photo back. One sent picture can unlock a photo from each recipient, encouraging users to share photos with their entire contact list rather than sending to only one person.

In some ways this goal is the opposite of Snapchat, which lacks a select all button in its app to encourage photos to be sent to just one or two people. The idea is to make each photo received to feel more special. With Slingshot, however, photos and videos will be traded back and forth often. Instead of sending messages through pictures, Facebook envisions Slingshot as something more like Twitter, where users post updates on their daily lives. Unlocking the photo only when the recipient sends a reply requires users to be active participants and not passive consumers.

Although being forced to send a photo before you view one may seem like a hassle for many users, Facebook believes Slingshot will create a different kind of environment.
"When everyone participates, there's less pressure, more creativity and even the little things in life can turn into awesome shared experiences," say the app's developers in a statement. "This is what Slingshot is all about. "

Joey Flynn, the app's creator, says the idea was inspired by his own experiences. When he sent photos to his brothers, he would rarely receive a reply, simply a notification from the program that the image had been viewed. Slingshot was created as a way to encourage participation and interaction.
"This creates a totally new type of sharing that has two parts - part self expression and part letting your friends know you want to hear from them too," Flynn says in a Facebook post.
Slingshot is available now for free on iOS and Android. While currently available only to US users, the app may be released in other countries soon.

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Nokia paid extortionists millions to protect source codes six years ago

By Aaron Mamiit, Tech Times | June 19, 3:41 AM

A report by Finnish TV station MTV revealed that Nokia was extorted for millions of euros by blackmailers six years ago.
Nokia was forced to pay the amount to the blackmailers, who were threatening that they would reveal the source code of the Symbian operating system that the company used for its mobile phones.
The report said that the blackmailers were able to hack into Nokia's systems and steal the encryption code of the Symbian.

The hackers demanded a ransom of millions of euros in exchange for the source code, which Nokia management decided to pay. With the help of Finnish police, a bag containing the ransom money was delivered to a parking lot near a theme park in central Finland. Police saw the money being picked up by the hackers, but they were not able to catch the culprits.

To this day, the Finnish police said that the case is still open, as the blackmailers have not yet been identified and found.
"We are investigating felony blackmail, with Nokia the injured party," said Detective Chief Inspector Tero Haapala. However, Haapala declined to disclose additional details about the case.

Nokia was forced to pay the ransom because, besides the company wanting to keep the secret the framework of its operating system, anyone that has the Symbian's source code will be able to create seemingly legitimate applications. These applications can even look like official Nokia apps, making it very dangerous if the source code was used to develop malware and root-kits. Hackers can pass off their harmful files as official Nokia files, potentially damaging millions of Nokia users worldwide.
Six years ago, being able to have such destructive power over the Symbian was a grave threat, as Nokia then had over half of the market share of mobile phones worldwide, with a majority of the company's phones running in Symbian. While the company would eventually move away from the Symbian to use the Windows Phone operating system, the Symbian was then the most prevalent operating system for mobile phones in the world.

Earlier this year, Nokia was purchased by Microsoft for $7.2 billion. The deal will rename Nokia as Microsoft Mobile. If Nokia decided not to pay the ransom and allowed the hackers to release the source code for the Symbian, that would have damaged the company's reputation, and it would not have been acquired by Microsoft.

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Made in China smartphones come preloaded with spyware, says security firm

By Anu Passary, Tech Times | June 18, 8:59 AM

A German security firm has highlighted that smartphones made in China may be pre-loaded with spyware, which compromises the privacy of its user.
In the last decade, smartphones have gained a lot of popularity in the entire world. Along with the basic functionality of a phone, a smartphone also offers other capabilities like browsing the Internet, listening to music, GPS navigation and more. A user is required to have an Internet connection to use many functions of the handset. However, logging to the Internet without sufficient security software in place can pose threats to smartphones as well especially, if they already have spyware pre-installed.

Security firm G Data Software reports that it has discovered a smartphone, which comes pre-installed with spyware straight out of the box. The report suggests that the malicious app is camouflaged as Google Play Store and the app runs on the background and users cannot detect it. The malware sends personal data from the smartphone to servers that are believed to be located in China. The app can also allow installation of additional malware without the user's knowledge.

G Data Software has identified the smartphone as "N9500" manufactured by Chinese company Star. The security firm also points out that the smartphone looks very similar to a top-end smartphone manufactured by a reputed and well-known handset manufacturer.

"The only thing users see is an app with the Google Play Store icon in the running processes; other than that, the application is completely disguised," says, Christian Geschkat, Product Manager Mobile Solutions. "Unfortunately, removing the Trojan is not possible as it is part of the device's firmware and apps that fall into this category cannot be deleted. This includes the fake Google Play Store app of the N9500."

The N9500 is said to have a price tag of between 130 and 165 euros, which is considered to be relatively low when taking into account the standard of technology deployed to the device. A powerful quad-core processor powers the smartphone and the handset comes packed with a number of accessories such as a secondary battery, car charger and a cover. Smartphones of similar standard produced by reputed companies are priced three times or more.

Geschkat says that the price of the smartphone is covered by selling personal data of the users to hackers.
Good smarthphones from reputed companies such as Samsung, Apple, LG, Motorola and more can also be quite steeply priced. Chinese smartphones are usually cheap, which makes them an attractive buy. However, with the privacy of the user on stake, many smartphone enthusiasts may be deterred from using handsets made in China altogether.

© 2014 Tech Times, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.

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Running on fumes? Automatic iOS app will alert when you need to fill gas

By Vamien McKalin, Tech Times | June 19, 5:54 AM

Ever wished a smartphone could one day alert drivers whenever the car is running low on fuel? Well, that wish has been granted in the form of an app called Automatic. It's only for iPhone, but an Android version is incoming.

Automatic is a car connected app that has been around for quite some time, though it didn't have the feature to track fuel up until now. For it to work, drivers are required to purchase Automatic Link, a device that plugs into the on-board diagnostics (OBD) of any car, as long as the car was manufactured after 1996.

The device then connects to the driver's smartphone via Bluetooth, and uses the vehicle's control network access to deliver information to the mobile device. Information that can be delivered to a smartphone includes engine diagnostics, acceleration and braking patterns. Now with the new updates, Automatic Link can give users relatively detailed information about fuel consumption.

The app will have the ability to track how much fuel is left in the tank and show it onscreen, along with calculating how many miles a driver will get from the available gas in the tank based on driving methods.

The driver can customize alerts sent out by Automatic. For example, if the driver wants an alert when the gas tank is quarter full, the option is there for that. Drivers can even choose to get an alert when they only have 20 miles worth of gas left.

With Automatic, you can:

• Learn fuel-saving driving habits to save big on gas.
• Know what that check engine light means and clear it with a tap.
• Track your car's fuel level and set custom low-fuel warnings (not available in all cars)
• Always remember where you parked.
• Get emergency assistance in a serious crash

The fuel alert is a good idea, though not every vehicle created after 1996 is able to take advantage of the Automatic Link hardware. In addition, many modern cars have built-in alerts that tell drivers whenever they are low on fuel, so this feature might not be of much use to some drivers.
The app is available right now for iOS.

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Take that, Snapchat: Facebook unleashes Slingshot

By Vamien McKalin, Tech Times | June 21, 2:53 AM

Facebook once attempted to acquire Snapchat for $3 billion, however, the offer was turned down, and that's reason why a new app only known as Slingshot exists today. It is Facebook's answer to Snapchat that should not be considered as a complete clone of Snapchat.
 
This isn't the first time Facebook created an app that is designed to compete with Snapchat. The company made the first attempt back in 2012, which failed, thus paving the way for Facebook to approach Snapchat for an acquisition, which also failed.

The new app is similar to Snapchat in many ways as the main selling point here is sending short-lived images and videos to friends. However, Facebook took a different route with Slingshot that is quite interesting, and also a bit odd.

When a user sends an image, the receiving party is required to send something back before they can view the content. This forces users to share images themselves instead of just being a spectator, according to Facebook.

"With Slingshot, we wanted to build something where everybody is a creator and nobody is just a spectator," says the Slingshot Crew in a blog post. "When everyone participates, there's less pressure, more creativity and even the little things in life can turn into awesome shared experiences. This is what Slingshot is all about."

While forcing users to participate seems like a good idea at first, it is quite easy to break the rules. If a person sends another an image of them in a coffee shop, that person is probably expecting the receiving party to send an image of themselves to unlock the first image. Well, the receiving party could simply send an image of a pencil, which adds nothing to the conversation.

Slingshot has some similarities to Paper, in that it comes from the same developer at Facebook, Creative Labs. Furthermore, we understand that the idea for Slingshot was born from a recent Facebook Hackathon, but we won't say it all came from Snapchat.

When users launch the app for the first time, it will require them to create an account, along with adding their mobile phone number. Once done, Slingshot fires up the device camera to allow the user to take a photo or record a video with a length of up to 15 seconds.

Similar to Snapchat, users can add doodles and text to their image and video content. Whenever a doodle is added, music is played in the background, and it doesn't appear if there's a way to turn it off. Those who might want to turn it off should consider switching their device to silent mode.

Furthermore, Slingshot users can tag their videos and images with their location before sending. This can't be done in Snapchat, at least not yet. Interestingly enough, Slingshot allows users to save image and videos received in the camera-roll automatically. However, this is not turned on by default.
Slingshot is available right now for both Android and iOS. Windows Phone might have to wait a little longer, but it all depends on whether or not Slingshot is a success.

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