BBM For Android and iOS Updates with Stickers, Larger File Attachments and More!

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Late last year, Blackberry Messenger finally went cross-platform. While many people thought it was a few years to late, and rightfully so, Blackberry has shown that they aren’t just going to release the app and forget about it. We’ve been seeing regular updates for both the iOS and Android versions ever since it launched. Today, they’ve pushed out another update which brings stickers, larger file attachments, and Group photo sharing to the app, which is definitely nice to see.

Let’s start off with the stickers. We all know what stickers are, since we’ve seen them in many other apps. I think Path was first to introduce them, which was a way for them to bring in revenue. Since then, quite a few messaging apps have included it like Facebook Messenger, and now BBM. BBM has a few sticker packs as well, like the WWE Superstars and Shaun the Sheep which are both exclusive right now. These sticker packs are either free or $1.99. Which isn’t bad, and it’s also a way for Blackberry to drive in some revenue which they desperately need, especially if you paid attention to their last few quarterly earnings.

As far as file attachments go, you can now attach files up to 16MB in size on any platform. Which still may seem small, but if you’re sending anything bigger, I’d suggest uploading to Dropbox, or Google Drive and then sending that person the link. It’ll be much faster. Then there’s also group photo sharing, which I don’t think I need to go into great detail about right now. But basically they are allowing you to share photos with a group of people, pretty self-explanatory right?

The update to Blackberry Messenger is now available on the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store depending on the platform you are using it on. Unfortunately it still doesn’t work for tablets, hopefully that’ll get updated soon.

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Xiaomi’s MiPad Tablet Leaks Out

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While today is April Fools day in the US, there’s going to be a lot more jokes than news. However, we think this leak is legit and not an April Fools Joke. Lately, Xiaomi has really been in the spotlight a lot lately, mostly after hiring Hugo Barra from Google. Xiaomi is a Chinese OEM who is pretty popular over in China and makes some pretty good devices. However, we haven’t been able to try them out since they aren’t available here just yet. Although I think that’s going to change rather soon. Xiaomi usually puts some rather good specs in their devices and sells them rather cheap, like the Redmi Note is about $200 and has flagship specs, which is definitely nice to see.

The specs for the MiPad sound pretty respectable. The screen is supposedly around 6 to 7 inches – which some might say that’s the size of a phone. 32GB of internal storage, 2GB of RAM and a 13MP camera on the back and a 5MP camera on the front. The Xiaomi MiPad supposedly is going on sale next week, April 8th, for about $209 USD, which is $1299 Yuan in China. So not a bad price at all, although the Nexus 7 is only about $20 more, however the MiPad does double the storage. So there’s that.

Xiaomi’s MiPad actually looks like a really nice device, but you won’t see it over here in North America unless you import it. The Xiaomi MiPad is going to be basically China only, and I wouldn’t be surprised to hear next week when it goes on sale, that they sold a few million in a matter of seconds. Because that’s typical for China. They get a batch of devices, sell them out and then wait for the next one. I believe last week Xiaomi sold about 4 million in 3 minutes. That’s pretty crazy.

How many of you are interested in the Xiaomi MiPad? Let us know in the comments below.

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On Launch Day, Google’s Chromecast Sold Once Every 4.5 Seconds in the UK

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Googles’s Chromecast is a great little device that has made streaming media from online outlets like Netflix (and now many more) for ridiculously great value. At $35, the Chromecast was an instant success in the US, selling out the moment they went on sale. It’s not surprising that Google has a winner on their hands here, it’s a simple and easy-to-use solution to get media onto the best screen in the house. It’s discrete, affordable and works with existing technology with only a couple of minutes set-up time needed. Having been on sale for some time in the US, it’s no surprise to us that the Chromecast is taking off in Europe as well.

The Chromecast has been a hot-seller in the UK particularly, with retailer PC World and Currys revealing that on launch day they were selling a Chromecast once every 4.5 seconds. No matter how you look at it, that’s incredible. For a device that might be easy enough for anyone to use, the Chromecast doesn’t have the sort of mainstream appeal as the Roku or the Apple TV just yet, so it’s definitely a shock to see it sell quite this well. I recently bought my own Chromecast here in the UK, and mt local Currys store isn’t exactly in a bustling metropolitan area, yet the staff did tell me they were surprised how quickly they were selling. There was also lots of stock there, so it looks like Google is ready and willing to keep on selling in these volumes.

Elsewhere in Europe, the Chromecast has been popular in Norway, where it hit the front page of a leading newspaper, and sold out in its first week. The “Chrome” branding here seems to have really done its magic, as Google Chrome is the most popular browser by far and for a lot of people these days it’s the first stop on the Internet train. If you’ve yet to get your hands on a Chromecast – what are you waiting for!?! – then now’s a good time to buy one. Lots and lots of apps now support the Chromecast and they’re still just $35 from Amazon in the US.

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One Part Nintendo Power Glove, One Part HTC One (M8); it’s the HTC Gluuv

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April Fools’ Day is almost upon us, and as we’ve seen in the past, the pranksters are out in full force. This year, it looks like everybody is getting their licks in early, as we’ve already seen jokes from both Google and Samsung hit the Internet. Next up, we’ve got a gem from the folks at HTC. It’s half Nintendo Power Glove, half HTC One (M8) accessory; it’s the HTC Gluuv.

Still in “beta” form, the HTC Gluuv is “designed to seamlessly integrate with the HTC One (M8), and lets you unleash your imagination and communicate in ways you’ve always wanted, and in ways you thought only lived beyond tomorrow.”

According to the fictitious specs sheet, the Gluuv is also compatible with the HTC BoomBass — a durable, humongous, and completely wireless obnoxious boombox that, when paired with the Gluvv, allows you to simply tap the device to change tracks, or control the volume. You know? Pretty much EXACTLY how a boombox works on its own, minus the gigantic, futuristic glove on your hand. And by the way, the 1980’s called. They want to know why we’re still using boomboxes in 2014.

Another “feature” the Gluuv boasts is “Social Fingerz”, which lets users “like” or “+1” posts on Facebook and Google+ respectively, or swipe left or right to interact with user profiles on apps like Tinder.

“Beyond a tiny eyepiece, the HTC One Sense-powered full-feature displays in brilliant HD 1080P resolution.” Of course it does. You’re strapping your phone to your arm. Did you expect it to magically display in a different resolution? Silly rabbit.

Rounding out the list, the Gluuv also features a whopping 87.2 megapixel camera because why? Because an “Armie” is better than a “Selfie” any day of the week. And with a promising suite of software titles like HTC HI5, Nomous, and Protekt, it’s a wonder you’re still reading this post and not rushing out to pick up a Gluuv of your own.

Obviously, the Gluuv is a bit overdone, but do you think gloves will ever make their way into the world of wearable tech? If so, what types of features or functionality would they need to make you consider picking up a pair? Drop us a comment below.

And before I forget, Happy April Fools’ Day, folks! Here’s to many, many more.

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Xiaomi Mi3 to be Available in Gold Color; Red Xiaomi TV On Its Way, Too

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Color is back baby, or at least it is when talking about smartphones and such. In the last two years or so, smartphones have gotten colorful again, with the likes of Motorola offering you a sort of paint mixer to choose your exact color, and folks like HTC offering some great-looking colors of their devices. Not to be left out on the whole color thing is Xiaomi, the fast-growing smartphone giant from China. Everyone likes a little color in their lives and it looks like Xiaomi is going to offer yet another gold smartphone, with a version of its popular Mi3 smartphone, as well as giving their TV offering a coat of paint in a subdued red color.

We bet you didn’t even know that Xiaomi sold a TV, right? Well, they do and it’s one hell of a set. Powered by the likes of LG and Samsung, the MiTV features a Snapdragon 600 CPU, 2GB of RAM and already comes in a variety of colors (like the fetching pink above). Unfortunately for a lot of us though, importing a TV is a lot more difficult than a smartphone. Nevertheless though, the MiTV is a great product and a popular one in China no doubt. While there are rumors a second-generation of the TV is on its way, we’re not so sure about that, and the image shared by Xiaomi themselves shows off a similar design, but in a different color.

Shown off in the photo below is also a gold version of the company’s Mi3 smartphone, a device that was launched last year to much fanfare in mainland China. If you’re unfamiliar with the Mi3 – we won’t judge – it’s their flagship device running MIUI and it’s a pretty well-speced machine. Featuring a 5-inch 1080p panel from LG or Sharp and variants with either an Nvidia Tegra 4 or Snapdragion 800 with 2GB of RAM. According to a sneaky new share from Xiaomi, the Mi3 is going to be available in a new gold color, which would make offerings from Apple, HTC and Samsung whom all offer a glitzy version of their latest smartphones.

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Sense 6 Apps from the HTC One (M8) Have Been Extracted; Inching Their Way to Other Devices

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On the day that HTC launched their latest and greatest smartphone, the new HTC One, they also launched a slew of apps into the Play Store. These apps were key parts of the Sense 6 experience, such as BlinkFeed, SenseTV and more. Of course, we all know that HTC have done this in order to keep their core features updated quickly, and outside of the control of the carriers, but the speculation of these apps heading to other devices still came, and in fact BlinkFeed has already been quietly confirmed to hit other smartphones soon.

The Android community however has long had a passion for porting apps from premium devices like the HTC One to other devices, and this is something we see with a lot of apps. Features from Sony’s Xperia devices end up on other Android phones and one enterprising folk has even gotten the Moto X camera running on the Nexus 5. So, what of these Sense 6 apps from the Play Store? Well, they’ve now been extracted from an M8 and available for download over at XDA-Developers. The bad news however, is that they don’t yet work on anything other than an actual HTC One M8, which is a little disappointing, but to be expected.

That doesn’t mean that these apps won’t be ported to other devices in working condition in the future however, but it does make it a little unlikely. After all, these were apps designed for a very specific device in mind and as we’ve found out so many times over the last few years, just because it’s in the Play Store, doesn’t mean it’s for everyone. Hopefully though, there’ll be some movement on these apps soon, I for one can’t wait to enjoy BlinkFeed on my Nexus 5 and there are other parts of Sense 6 that users will find appealing, too.

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Creighton Professor: Adding a Kill Switch to All Smartphones Will Save the US $2.6 Billion Annually

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According to a new study, United States consumers alone could stand to save approximately $2.6 billion a year if a mandatory Kill Switch were to be added to all smartphones. In case you’re unfamiliar, a Kill Switch is a feature that allows victims of mobile device theft to remotely shut down and lock their device, rendering it useless to the individual(s) who stole it.

If you have ever had your smartphone stolen, you know exactly how much of a hassle it can be, and that’s not even considering the financial aspect of having to cough up the cost of a replacement phone. Even with insurance, most customers are faced with an average premium of $150 to replace a high-end device, and without insurance we’re talking about a five or six hundred dollar setback to replace your phone at original cost. And if you’ve ever owned a high-end device, you know it’s nearly impossible to go back to a “dumbphone”, so you’re almost guaranteed to find yourself looking for something of value equal to or better than your last phone.

The study, conducted by Creighton University professor William Duckworth, Ph.D., suggests that by adding a Kill Switch to all smartphones, the incentive for criminals to steal smartphones would exponentially decrease. After all, what good would a completely useless device be to them? Duckworth figures that Americans spend roughly $580 million a year to replace stolen phones, and another $4.8 billion goes to the carriers for premium insurance. He also believes that Americans would switch to less expensive plans without theft coverage, like SquareTrade if a Kill Switch mandate went into effect. He estimates that the addition of a Kill Switch would eliminate the $580 million in replacement fees and lower insurance rates, which would result in $2 billion a year in savings for American consumers.

It’s worth noting that in Duckworth’s study, 99% of his survey respondents were in favor of a Kill Switch mandate. It’s also worth noting that the main reason this hasn’t already been put into effect is because the carriers don’t want it to happen. Think about it. If they’re making over $5 billion a year in insurance and replacement fees, why would they want to instate such a feature that would cut into their profits? It’s certainly not going to help their bottom line, so they’re all for tucking this situation under the carpet and hoping everyone forgets it. My guess: that’s not going to happen anytime soon.

Readers, what do you make of all of this? Do you think a Kill Switch mandate would be a good thing, or are you comfortable with the current insurance and replacement scenario?

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