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Pebble teases first ‘smartstrap’ concepts and pledges $1M to their development

Mar19
by on March 19, 2015 at 7:00 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, Insider

Pebble smartstrap 2
Although Pebble’s new Time and Time Steel watches made headlines for their color e-ink displays, arguably their coolest feature is support for interchangeable ‘smartstraps’ that interface with the watch for extra functionality. Still, so far we know next to nothing about what they can actually do. Pebble is today releasing some concrete details, starting with a $1 million pledge towards the development and support of smartstrap projects. While that may sound a little strange, keep in mind Pebble isn’t actually developing the straps themselves – that’s completely up to third parties. In the process, it’s also detailed two of its…

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Uber’s WeChat account in China has been blocked

Mar19
by on March 19, 2015 at 6:07 pm
Posted In: Apps, Around the Web, Insider

uber
Uber is not having a good week – with the raid on their office in France and attacks on drivers in Amsterdam – the car service has had its official account blocked on the popular Chinese social network WeChat as well. Some regional Uber accounts in China also appear to have been blocked. Accessing Uber’s account within the app will give you this error message, as shown on Sina Tech: WeChat has alleged that Uber violated the terms of the service by incentivizing shares by offering deals, much like the popular ‘like and share’ competition format used widely on Facebook. Looking at WeChat’s…

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Google releases an Android Auto app so your phone can interact with car dashboards

Mar19
by on March 19, 2015 at 6:01 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, Insider

Android Auto 2
While Tesla is busy announcing self-driving features, Google has gone and finally released an Android Auto app. Android Auto was first unveiled in June last year, and essentially brings Google Now and Google Maps to your car’s dashboard with enhanced voice control. Users can set reminders, control music or look up business hours with with voice, for instance. Google also released an API in November to let developers create custom experiences for the car. Currently, the app only works with Pioneer dashboard hardware that was released a few days ago. When the hardware was announced it was a bit puzzling as…

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Memoji Keyboard lets you send emojis of yourself

Mar19
by on March 19, 2015 at 5:25 pm
Posted In: Apps, Around the Web, Insider, Product Launches

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Emojis just got even more diverse. Memoji Keyboard is an app that lets you create emojis and gifs of yourself to send to your friends and family. The iOS app is available now and is a fun way to add a bit more character to your messages. When you download it, you can create five emojis of yourself for free, but after that you will have to pay €1.99 ($2.11) to unlock the full selection of templates. That being said, you could easily stick with the free version because it lets you change the images for the five you selected as…

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Tesla updates will soon bring autopilot mode and an end to ‘range anxiety’

Mar19
by on March 19, 2015 at 5:14 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, Insider

tesla-models
A few days ago Elon Musk tweeted a mysterious message suggesting Tesla was going to end range anxiety – fear that your electric car’s battery would run out of juice on a long trip – through a software update. Tesla press conf at 9am on Thurs. About to end range anxiety … via OTA software update. Affects entire Model S fleet. — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 15, 2015 People speculated about what it could be – perhaps an efficiency upgrade, some secret code, black magic – but we now know for sure: trip planning features, according to Engadget. At a…

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