Samsung and Google sitting in a tree

from Greg
Samsung and Google have been in legal battle for years over patents. They announced today a 10 year deal to share patents. This is good news for both companies but particularly Samsung. This ensures a decade of innovation in the Galaxy phone line and Motorola products. 

Check out two great cell phone deal HERE

from Samsung
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. and Google Inc. today furthered their long-term cooperative partnership with a global patent cross-license agreement covering a broad range of technologies and business areas. The mutually beneficial agreement covers the two companies’ existing patents as well as those filed over the next 10 years.

 “We’re pleased to enter into a cross-license with our partner Samsung,” said Allen Lo, Deputy General Counsel for Patents at Google. “By working together on agreements like this, companies can reduce the potential for litigation and focus instead on innovation.”

 With this agreement, Samsung and Google gain access to each other’s industry-leading patent portfolios, paving the way for deeper collaboration on research and development of current and future products and technologies.

 “This agreement with Google is highly significant for the technology industry,” said Dr. Seungho Ahn, the Head of Samsung’s Intellectual Property Center. “Samsung and Google are showing the rest of the industry that there is more to gain from cooperating than engaging in unnecessary patent disputes.”

Related articles

• Samsung And Google Bury The Apple Hatchet, Sign 10-Year Patent Agreement
• Global patent agreement reached by Samsung and Google
• Samsung And Google Bury The Android Hatchet, Sign 10-Year Patent Agreement

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The Simpsons: Tapped Out

By EA

Price - Free
Buy it for Apple devices
Buy it for Android from Google

Buy it for Android from Amazon

Category - Game

from Mike
Those who regularly use their iPhones or iPads for games probably have a category of what I like to call "long-term" games. That is to say games that are going to stick around for a while. These aren't the ones you play while waiting in line at the bank. These are the ones you sit down and enjoy to the exclusion of all other distractions.

I've been playing "The Simpsons: Tapped Out" for more than a year, which is like three lifetimes in terms of mobile gaming. When was the last time you played "Angry Birds" or "Draw Something?" The reason I keep going back to "The Simpson: Tapped Out" is because they are continually updating and expanding the game's universe, adding characters, rules and interesting game mechanics. Not only that, but the developers seem to understand that this is the only reason any of us continue to play. Homer and his family break the fourth wall, letting the player know he's in on the joke. Last month the game introduced a new character that was to be featured in an upcoming episode of the TV show. Lisa told Homer about in the game and Homer said "Is that show still on? I thought we were just a game now." To which Lisa replied "No one expected anyone to still be playing this game."

Tapped Out is a villiage building simulation. The premise is that Homer has made a mistake at the nuclear plant and blown Springfield away. It is up to the player to rebuild the town, bring back characters and keep everyone busy and productive. During my year and a half, I've managed to build a good-sized town, the Squidport and even Krusty the clown's theme park "Krustyland."

The developers offer four major updates a year to coincide with the seasons or to tie in to the television show. In the winter, snow covers the ground and you can decorate many of the houses with lights. They did updates for Valentine's Day where you could send and collect valentine cards from other players via your EA Origins account. There was a Whacking Day event where you wack snakes to collect town features only available for a month. They did the same for St. Patrick's Day and Halloween.

Each building produces money which can be used to buy more buildings. Decorations and features such as lamp posts, mailboxes, newspaper dispensors, trees, flowers etc... add to the amount of money collected. Character are given jobs which also produce money and experience points. In addition, you can earn donuts by advancing levels and completing quests. Donuts can be used to buy premium content such as special buildings, characters and decorations or to speed up the waiting process for buildings to produce money. Donuts can be purchased for real-world dollars, but I've never found it necessary to spend any money on the game to enjoy it.

The Simpson's cosmology is such that they are never likely to run out of fresh content to push and everything has the Simpson's flavor of humor. When you tap on Homer and give him a job, he might say "Work? But I thought this was a game!" or "I wish this was a shooter game" or "Well, beats doing my real job." Part of the fun is collecting as many of the Springfield residents as possible and hearing them complain about living inside the game.

You can visit the Springfields of your friends and vandalize their buildings or help them collect money and experience points. The more friends you have playing, the more money and experience you can collect.

EA doesn't have the most sterling of reputations when it comes to mobile apps, but they hit it out of Isotopes Stadium with this one. It is a must for any Simpsons fan and a great free game for your iOS device.

Read Mike's review of the Stitcher Radio app HERE

from Developer
D’OH! Homer accidently caused a meltdown that wiped out Springfield. Now, it’s up to you to rebuild it!

From the writers of The Simpsons, tap into a city building game that lets you create your own living, breathing Springfield... for FREE.

Recreate Springfield just like you want it, as you help Homer find Marge, Bart and the rest of his family and friends. Complete comic quests like making Apu work ridiculously long shifts at Kwik-E-Mart, growing and harvesting Tomacco on Cletus’s Farm, partying down with Duffman at Duff Brewery, and more. Finish jobs and tasks to earn currency and… mmm, donuts.

We told you that this game is life-ruiningly fun.

Related articles

• The Simpsons: Tapped Out(Android, iOS)
• Why Tapped Out Might be the Best Simpsons Game Ever - Article
• How to Unlock Judge Snyder in The Simpsons: Tapped Out
• LEGO Simpsons!?

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Megacity HD tablet certified

By ColePowered

Price - $0.99
Buy it for Apple devices
Buy it for Android from Google

Buy it for Android from Amazon
Buy it for Windows phones

Category - Game

Greg's Review
Megacity HD game app is tablet certified.

Here is a great mash-up game that has me hooked big time. A combination of Simcity and Tetris. Can you believe that combo? Better than chocolate and peanut butter. You have to match up residential, commercial, and industrial properties to clear neighborhoods. The more you clear the higher the score and hard the play. Easy to learn but impossible to master.

Warning! Do not start playing this game unless you have a bunch of free time because it will suck you in!

Read the tablet certified review of Pacific Skies game app

From Developer
"addictive iPhone gaming at its peak." 9/10 - AppGamer

"going to make the hours melt away." 9/10 - 148Apps

MegaCity is a highly original and fun 'one-more-go' style city building puzzle game.

It's easy to learn but hard to master and features gameplay that sees you inadvertently creating your own puzzles!

Place requested buildings in the queue to earn points, but watch out: Nobody wants to live next to a landfill site or industrial estate! Everybody wants a nice park or school nearby, but the city's budget is limited.

This is where you come in...

Megacity is a game of planning and thinking ahead to squeeze the most points of out your citizens by clever town planning. And if it all goes wrong, it's their fault for electing you mayor, right?

Megacity is a real thinking person's game, which appeals to and is suitable for all ages.

Features:
-Dozens of different buildings
-10 unlockable buildings
-New challenge puzzle mode
-Achievements, local & online high scores.

Related articles

• Japan Shows the Way to Affordable Megacities
• Android App 4 Pics 1 Word Review
• Jigsaw Puzzle Food - Cute Puzzle Apps for Kids Under 5's
• Top 10 indie devs pick their faves, share hopes for 2014 (The Final)

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Beats Music

from Greg
Beats Music has a new app out that plays music from YouTube. The company has a special for AT&T customers. Exclusively with AT&T, you can get the Beats Music Family Plan with 5 accounts across 10 devices for $14.99/month. So everyone in your family can listen to what’s right for them. Exclusive 90 day free offer for AT&T wireless customers.

Buy the app for Apple devices
Buy the app for Android devices

from Beats Music

We’re excited to announce Beats Music will be bringing you the right song for right now on your smartphone January 21st.  AT&T customers are in for a treat — music for every member of your family — up to five people and ten devices — $50 in value for just $14.99. Don’t miss the launch, click here to join the Facebook event or here to add the Beats Music launch to your calendar. Claim your username now.

The team at Beats Music have devoted their lives to music, artists, and moving the industry forward with technology. Beats Electronics President Luke Wood has been pushing for subscription music since the mid-90s. Beats Music Chairman Jimmy Iovine first tried to establish a music subscription service in the late-90s. Our Chief Creative Officer, Trent Reznor, has done some of the most ground-breaking work between artists and fans in the history of the Web. I’ve been building streaming music apps for more than twenty years. Many others at Beats Music come from music companies both traditional and digital. Music, and for many of us digital music, is our life’s work.

We’re digital music consumers, too, and have used every service on the scene. But a feeling kept nagging at us — these aren’t actually “services”, they’re “servers”. Lots of ways to access music, but we noticed they provided little more than access to a catalog — we still found music from trusted human sources, from friends to magazines to DJs.

We wanted to build a music service that combined the freedom of an on-demand subscription service – unlimited, uninterrupted streaming and downloads of tens of millions of songs – but layer on top features that would give you that feeling only music that moves you can give. The right song at the right time will give you a chill. Make you pull someone close. Nod your head. Sing in the mirror. Roll down the car window and crank the volume to the right.

In our experience it’s always been a living, breathing human who has brought us that song we fell in love with. The song you couldn’t stop playing over and over. The album you deemed a headphone masterpiece. The mix tape that made you think “I’m gonna marry this one.” We tried to remember a time a robot found us magic but all we could find were the times the robot made us laugh: “You like Pantera? Have you heard of Black Sabbath?” “You like Mumford and Sons? Here’s another song with banjos!”

A great DJ picks the right song and knows the only thing more important than the song playing right now is the song that comes next. A great DJ gets bored before you do and knows when to switch gears to keep you listening.

But we have these powerful computers in our pocket and computers can learn a lot from what we listen to when. My phone knows when I’m driving. It knows I’m at the gym. It knows I generally listen to hip hop and metal while running and like a wide range of mellower music just before bed.

We wanted to build a service that was more than a server, one that was truly of service to the listener. We wanted to combine the trust that comes from excellent hand-picked music with the personalization that knows you’re an individual and that a handful of stations can’t satisfy all listeners.

We pulled together our personal heroes across the genres. Veteran radio programmer Julie Pilat leads our Music team with Global Head of Programming and Editorial Scott Plagenhoef (formerly Pitchfork) overseeing our programmers including Carl Chery (formerly XXL), Suzy Cole (formerly WRIF), Arjan Writes (www.arjanwrites.com), Mason Williams (formerly Rhino Records), Fuzzy Fantabulous (formerly Power 106), Ken Tucker (formerly Country Weekly), Jerry Pullés (formerly Latino 96.3). They work with tons of music experts to cover a huge spectrum of music, making sure the catalog is great for music fans (goodbye catalog spam) and you’re always stocked with great listening choices. We also invited in our favorite trusted sources — Pitchfork, Rolling Stone, Grand Ole Opry, Downbeat, DJ Mag, Hot 97/Power 106, Naxos, and many others — and built them right into the app, on mobile, no plugin required.

Then we built the intuition that takes these human curated playlists and hand-selected songs and albums and delivers you the right ones for you based on your taste. We made it simple so all you need to do is open the app and hit play to hear something excellent you’re likely to dig.

If you want to be transported somewhere else, try RIGHT NOW.  Just tell Beats Music where you are, what you feel like doing, who you’re with, and what kind of music you’re looking to hear and we’ll take care of the rest by delivering you an endless playlist for your context, be it real or imaginary.

Stay in the know by following along with our programmers’ picks in the HIGHLIGHTS section of the app.

Or find exactly the right playlist for right now by activity or a great, trusted curator.

If you want to make your own playlists, download hundreds of albums for offline listening, search for a friend’s and play their playlists, please do.

Everyone can try the entire service for free. If you like it, it’s $9.99/month for unlimited streaming, downloading from the catalog of more than 20 million songs but more importantly all the incredible curation delivered to your phone every day. AT&T customers, we have something very special for you: try Beats Music free for 90 days with your AT&T Family Plan then get Beats Music for your entire family — up to five people and ten devices — for $14.99/month. $50 in value for $14.99. More music in your family equals more joy.

We can’t wait for you to try it. We think Beats Music will change the way you listen to music. Instead of staring at a search box and finding something simply better than nothing you’ll find GREAT music every time you open the app.

Beats Music will be available on your iPhone, Android, or Windows Mobile phone starting from January 21st.

Don’t miss the launch, click here to join the Facebook event or here to add the Beats Music launch to your calendar. Claim your username now.

Related articles

• Beats Is All About Playlists. Here Is The Team That Creates Them
• Beats Music Launches Today
• Beats Music Streams With a Human Touch
• Beats Launches Music Streaming Service

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Apple beats Samsung in Mobile

Earlier this week I posted about the amazing deal Best Buy had on the the Samsung S4 and S3. The S4 rated higher than the iPhone 5S on the current CNET rankings. It is superior in every physical way. However they are on sale 75% off while iPhone remains at the same price as launched.

Read the post HERE

Now I think I know why. The NPD Group announced that research showed iPhone ownership increased from 35 percent in Q4 2012 to 42 percent in Q4 2013. Likewise, Samsung Android phones increased from 22 percent of smartphones owned in Q4 2012 to 26 percent in Q4 2013. In contrast, fewer smartphone owners reported having an HTC, Motorola, or Blackberry device in Q4 2013.

Source: The NPD Group/Connected Intelligence Connected Home Report

The NPD's first retail tracking service was for toys in 1984 and has launched services in more than a dozen industries since then.  Today, they track businesses representing over $1 trillion in sales in the Americas and more across Europe and Asia-Pac.

Read the full story HERE
As more US consumers migrate to smartphones, they are increasingly opting for iPhones and Samsung Android phones. According to the Connected Intelligence Connected Home Report from The NPD Group, over the past year, smartphone penetration increased from 52 percent in Q4 2012 to six-in-ten cell phone users in Q4 2013.

Apple and Samsung were the winners as more consumers migrated to their flagship devices.  iPhone ownership increased from 35 percent in Q4 2012 to 42 percent in Q4 2013. Likewise, Samsung Android phones increased from 22 percent of smartphones owned in Q4 2012 to 26 percent in Q4 2013. In contrast, fewer smartphone owners reported having an HTC, Motorola, or Blackberry device in Q4 2013.

As smartphone penetration increased over the past year, so has consumers’ data usage, which went from 5.5 GB per month in Q4 2012 to 6.6 GB per month in Q4 2013.  While this increase in data usage came from a variety of activities, a key driver has been the adoption of streaming music services such as Pandora and iHeart Radio. 

According to the Connected Intelligence Smartphone Usage Report, the percent of smartphone owners that use an app to stream music increased from 41 percent in Q4 2012 to 52 percent in Q4 2013. 

The market for streaming music services is getting more competitive.  While Pandora remains the most commonly used music app in Q4 2013, it is followed by iHeart Radio, Spotify, TuneIn Radio, and Slacker Radio, all of which experienced an increase in incidence of usage over the past year.

Top 5 Music Apps Used on Smart Phones
(Q4 2013)
1 Pandora
2 iHeart Radio
3 Spotify
4 TuneIn Radio
5 Slacker Radio
Source: The NPD Group/Connected Intelligence, Smartphone Usage Report

“Considering the increase in prominence of smartphone music apps, it’s not surprising that hardware manufacturers such as Beats are leveraging partnerships with carriers, like AT&T to break into the streaming music market,” said John Buffone, Executive Director, Industry Analyst, Connected Intelligence.  “This allows AT&T to offer subscribers more of what they want in the way of innovative music apps and provides Beats a partner capable of driving trial in a market where consumers already have an affinity for the music services they use.”

Smartphone Usage Report
Data is sourced from an on-device meter "SmartMeter" leveraging a three month rolling panel that provides the equivalent base of 4,500 smartphone users. The panel is weighted and representative of the Android and iPhone U.S. smartphone base. The data was collected between September and November 2013 and compared to trends from the same period in 2012.

Connected Home Report
More than 5,000 US consumers, age 18 and older were surveyed in the fourth quarter of 2013 for the Connected Home study; trended results are compared to the Q4 2012 survey.

About Connected Intelligence
Connected Intelligence provides competitive intelligence and insight on the rapidly evolving consumer’s connected environment. The service focuses on the three core components of the connected market: the device, the broadband access that provides the connectivity and the content that drives consumer behavior. These three pillars of the connected ecosystem are analyzed through a comprehensive review of what is available, adopted, and consumed by the customer, as well as reviewing how the market will evolve over time and what the various vendors can do to best position themselves in this evolving market.

Related articles

• Blogspot SEO: Optimizing Blogger Title Tags (SEO Friendly Titles)
• iPhone Ownership Increases to 42% of Smartphone Users in the US
• iPhone, Samsung smartphone use by U.S. consumers jumps
• iPhone, Samsung smartphone use by U.S. consumers jumps
• iPhone, Samsung smartphone use by U.S. consumers jumps

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What is a Chromebook?

from Greg
A Chromebook is a computer that runs entirely on Chrome the Google browser / operating system. No Windows or Mac operating system is installed. It backs up files onto the cloud instead of on a local hard drive. While this makes your data much more secure it also makes the laptop highly dependent on an internet connection.

Chromebooks may become more mainstream in the future as all software moves to the web. Right now they are best for students on wired campuses and rural or low income families that cannot get internet access wired to their homes.

Users must rely on online tools such as Google Drive and Microsoft Office Online to create documents. With the explosion in web based software there is no shortage of good (and often free) tools to use.

The laptops have good technical specs but it won't run Windows or Mac software out of the box. If you spend all your time on the web consider one. If you need specialty software (e.g. graphic design, video editing, playing high end games) then you need to get something different.

from HP and Google
Chromebooks are a unique class of mobile computing devices, designed specifically for Web-based tasks. They differ from traditional laptops in a few important ways:

Chromebooks run Web-based apps, not traditional PC applications.
Chromebooks are designed to be connected to the Internet. You can create documents and spreadsheets or edit photos on a Chromebook using Google apps designed for these purposes. The Chrome operating system will not load and run traditional PC software like Microsoft Office and Adobe Photoshop. However, files created in these applications can be viewed and edited using Google apps on your Chromebook or cloud-based applications like Microsoft’s Office web apps.

You store your files in the Cloud, not on the machine. To help make them thin and light, Chromebooks are built without large-capacity drives. So instead of storing your documents, videos, and photos on your computer, you save them to Google Drive (Google's Cloud-based storage service). Your files are password-protected and secure, and you can access them anywhere there's an Internet connection. If you know you'll want access to a file or photo offline, however, you can easily save it to the built-in solid-state drive.

Everything you need in one laptop. Clever touches like an extra bright screen and a charger that also works with your Android phone are designed to keep up with the things you do every day.

Relax with your favorite music, write a report using Google Docs, or put the finishing touches on a family video. Your Chromebook has 6 hours of battery life, slips easily into a bag or purse, and weighs just over 2 pounds – so it’s equally comfortable at home or keeping up with the things you do everyday.*

Chromebook starts in seconds, so you can go straight to playing or working (if you have to). Unlike traditional computers, Chromebook updates itself automatically so it doesn’t slow down over time. Browse the web at lightning speed with features like Chrome Instant and the Chrome Omnibox.

Video chats are loud and clear on digitally-tuned speakers. YouTube videos shine on the brilliant screen. And 100GB of free Google Drive storage safely stores all your stuff.** Your favorite Google apps are built-in, and there are lots of other apps available for free on the Chrome Web Store.

Your Chromebook is probably easier than any computer you’ve ever used – there’s no clutter, no waiting, and no nagging. It uses the same charger as most Android phones, starts up in seconds, and automatically stays up-to-date without interrupting you.


Tech Specs
Screen
11.6" IPS display with 16:9 aspect ratio
1366 x 768 pixel resolution
60% color gamut
300 nit screen
Wide viewing angle (176 degree)

Inputs
Chrome keyboard
Fine-tuned, clickable touchpad
VGA webcam
Ports
Two USB 2.0 ports
MicroUSB for 15.75W charging and SlimPort video output
Industrial Design
Magnesium chassis for strength
White with a blue accent color
Silent, fanless design
No visible screws, vents, or speakers

Size
297 x 192 x 17.6mm (not including feet)
Weight
2.30lb / 1.04kg

CPU
Exynos 5250 GAIA Application Processor

Memory
2GB (4x 4Gbit) DDR3 RAM
16GB Solid State Drive

Audio
Combined headphone / microphone jack
Digitally-tuned speakers with sound directed up through the keyboard

Battery
Your Chromebook has up to 6 hours of active use (30 Wh battery)*

Network
Dual-band WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n
Bluetooth 4.0

Goodies
100 GB Google Drive cloud storage, free for two years**
60-day free trial with Google Play Music All Access, and $9.99 per month after that***
12 free sessions of GoGo Inflight Internet****

Related articles

• Tech Outlook: Chromebooks
• Why Microsoft's Scroogled Ads Are Wrong About Chromebooks
• Google's Chromebooks Now Account for nearly a Quarter of all Notebook Sales
• Putting Chromebook Sales in Proper Perspective

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Google to acquire Nest

from Greg
Google to acquire Nest for $3.2 billion in cash. This is a great buy for the tech giant. Nest makes the best thermostat control you have ever seen. They allow you to adjust the temp with a smart phone.

Nest Labs is a home automation company that designs and manufactures sensor-driven, Wi-Fi-enabled, self-learning, programmable thermostats and smoke detectors. Co-founded by former Apple engineers Tony Fadell and Matt Rogers in 2010, the start-up company quickly grew to more than 130 employees by the end of 2012.


The company introduced their first product, the Nest Learning Thermostat, in 2011. In October 2013, Nest Labs announced the Nest Protect smoke and carbon monoxide detector.

from Reuters
Read the full story HERE
Google Inc on Monday announced plans to acquire Nest Labs Inc, a maker of smart thermostats and smoke alarms, for $3.2 billion, signaling the Internet company's intention to expand into a broader array of devices and bringing valuable hardware design expertise in-house.

Nest, which was co-founded by one of the creators of Apple Inc's iconic iPod music player, will continue to operate as its own distinct brand after the all-cash deal closes, Google said.

The deal is the second-largest in Google's history, after the $12.5 billion acquisition of mobile phone maker Motorola.

"Nest Labs appears to be focused on thermostats and smoke alarms, but it's not far-fetched to see Google expanding this technology into other devices over time," said Shyam Patil, an analyst at Wedbush.

(Reporting by Alexei Oreskovic with additional reporting by Noel Randewich and Poornima Gupta; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)

from The Verge
Read the full story HERE

Google has just purchased Nest Labs, the maker of the Nest Learning Thermostat and Protect smoke detector, for $3.2 billion in cash. According to a Google press release, Nest will continue to operate independently under the leadership of co-founder and CEO Tony Fadell; co-founder Matt Rogers will also make the move to Google. While the transaction is subject to the usual regulatory review, Google says it expects the sale to close within the next few months. Google Ventures had already invested over $100 million in Nest, so the company has been on Mountain View's radar for some time now.

It's not yet clear exactly how Google plans to use Nest, but the company obviously sees it as an important part of its future. A combination of Nest's home solutions coupled with Google's language recognition could give Google its strongest path yet into your home. "Google will help us fully realize our vision of the conscious home and allow us to change the world faster than we ever could if we continued to go it alone," writes Fadell on the Nest blog. "We've had great momentum, but this is a rocket ship."

from Tech Crunch
Read the full story HERE

Google is acquiring connected device company Nest for $3.2B. Google sent out an email to employees noting the acquisition today and later issued a press release.

In the release, Google noted that Nest has been offering its best-selling thermostat since 2011 and recently began offering the Protect smoke alarm, which networks with its other devices.

Nest Founders Tony Fadell and Matt Rogers will both join Google. Rogers, pictured above, was one of the first engineers on the iPhone team at Apple.

“They’re already delivering amazing products you can buy right now–thermostats that save energy and smoke/CO alarms that can help keep your family safe,” said Google CEO Larry Page in a statement. “We are excited to bring great experiences to more homes in more countries and fulfill their dreams!”

Related articles

• Google Acquiring Tony Fadell-Founded Nest for $3.2 Billion
• Report: Google to acquire smart thermostat maker Nest for $3.2 billion
• Breaking: Google acquires digital device maker Nest for $3.2B
• Google buys Nest for $3.2B - its key to the connected home?

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