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Microsoft unveils Windows Phone 8.1 with personal assistant Cortana, Action Center, customizable lockscreens

Apr02
by on April 2, 2014 at 3:44 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, Mobile

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At its Build 2014 conference today, Microsoft unveiled Windows Phone 8.1. Among the new features is a personal digital assistant named Cortana, a new Action Center, as well as support for customizable lock screens and backgrounds. Windows Phone 8.1 will ship on devices in “very late April or early May.” Cortana, Microsoft’s answer to Google Now and Apple’s Siri, completely replaces the search function on Windows Phone, which makes sense since she is powered by Bing. Launching her takes you straight to a list of personal suggestions based on how you use your device. Cortana, which is launching as a…

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Why LinkedIn co-founder Konstantin Guericke is taking a full-time role at German VC firm Earlybird

Apr02
by on April 2, 2014 at 3:25 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, Insider

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Germany-based VC firm Earlybird will be celebrating today with the news that LinkedIn co-founder Konstantin Guericke has formally joined the company. Having been a venture partner connected with the firm for two years, he’s now going full-time. Working from Silicon Valley, he will act as a portfolio development and support partner. The move comes as Earlybird announces a package of services for its portfolio of companies, which includes productivity app Wunderlist, photo-sharing app EyeEm and ridesharing platform Carpooling.com. With increasing competition in the venture capital market, firms have moved to differentiate themselves through ‘added value’ services in recent years. In Earlybird’s case,…

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Amazon launches fireTV – a media streaming and gaming device

Apr02
by on April 2, 2014 at 3:14 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, Gadgets, Insider

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Amazon today unveiled its first media streaming and gaming device, the Amazon fireTV, confirming rumors of a proprietary media set-top box. The black square box is equipped with a quad-core processor, 2GB of RAM, and of course, runs on Android. The fireTV launches with a number of video apps, such as Netflix, Hulu, YouTube, Vimeo, and Internet-streaming service Frequency. The usual social app suspects are also available, including Facebook and Twitter, and music apps like Pandora and iHeartRadio. The included remote control comes with a microphone for voice search, eliminating the lengthy process of typing sans-keyboard. The fireTV also comes with…

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Canonical to close Ubuntu One file services, says competing in ‘free storage wars’ was unsustainable

Apr02
by on April 2, 2014 at 3:04 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, Insider

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With ever-increasing competition from the likes of Dropbox, Google Drive and Microsoft’s OneDrive, Canonical today announced it will exit the “free storage wars” and shut down its Ubuntu One file services. Canonical said that to continue offering Ubuntu One “on a global scale”, the project would require additional investment that simply wasn’t in its best interests. “We choose instead to invest in making the absolute best, open platform and to highlight the best of our partners’ services and content,” Jane Silber, Canonical’s chief executive said in a blog post. If you navigate to the Ubuntu One homepage, you’ll see that…

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Wallaby’s new Chrome extension recommends which credit card to use when buying online

Apr02
by on April 2, 2014 at 3:00 pm
Posted In: Apps, Around the Web

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If you’re into maximizing the amount of rewards points and cash-back you get from your credit cards, Wallaby has a new Chrome extension just for you. The company also released a significant update to its iPhone app to coincide with the launch. Wallaby is a credit card optimization platform. It tracks your rewards programs, credit limits, due dates and other relevant information to keep you informed on your cards. Wallaby is also beta testing a first-party credit card that syncs up purchases with your existing plastic based on its algorithms. When you click the Chrome extension icon, Wallaby will scan…

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