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Be sure to follow 9to5Toys to keep up with the best gear and deals on the web: Twitter, RSS Feed,Facebook, Google+ and subscribe to the new Safari push notifications feature.

Today’s can’t miss deals:

Last Call updates:

RadioShack dropping 16 GB iPhone 5s to $99 Friday, free if you trade in an iPhone 4s
NETGEAR AC Dual-Band Wireless Routers at 30% off: $70 – $168 with free shipping

Lowe’s Coupon: 10% off online orders (includes Nest Thermostat). Some exclusions apply… http://t.co/7q7RR8c2rE pic.twitter.com/VwZn8FnkWS

— 9to5Toys (@9to5toys) April 17, 2014

RAVPower 10400mAh Power Bank for $26 shipped (Reg. $35) http://t.co/ZIFlKuhRXy

— 9to5Toys (@9to5toys) April 17, 2014

Sling Media Slingbox 350, stream live HDTV to your iPhone/iPad $99 shipped (45% off)

Western Digital Hard Drives:

My Passport Ultra 1TB USB 3.0 portable + Patriot 32GB Micro SD $68 shipped (Reg. $168)
My Passport USB 3.0 portable 1TB $57 shipped (Reg. $69)/2TB $97 shipped (Reg. $109)

Adobe Photoshop Elements and Premier Elements 12 (PC/Mac) $75 shipped (50% savings)

2-pack of D-Link DCS-930L wireless network cams with iOS/Android app: $50 shipped (Reg. $160)

Logitech UE 4000 Headphones $19 + $5 shipping (Reg. $100) http://t.co/4V7VkgRYmE

— 9to5Toys (@9to5toys) April 17, 2014

Staples is going to be taking $10 off $50 iTunes gift cards next Monday and Tuesday ONLY. 1 per customer. pic.twitter.com/6Ik8w1Gjsc

— 9to5Toys (@9to5toys) April 17, 2014

Other deals from today:

New! iPad mini with Retina display hits the Apple Refurbished Store for the first time, starts at $339
New! Bowers & Wilkins Z2 wireless Lightning speaker dock: $297 shipped (Reg. $400)
New! Games/Apps: Rayman Legends $22, Toy Defense 1, 2 & 3 go FREE, Contra: Evolution FREE, more iOS freebies
New! Daily Deals: Beats by Dre Studio Headphones refurb $149, PNY 64GB Flash Drive $25, Otterbox Armor Series Cases $25, Smart HDTVs, more

New games/apps:
Pixelmator (Mac) $15, Windows Store gift cards (apps/xbox games) 20% off, The Lorax (Android) $1: http://t.co/VMuJ3E2ZyJ

— 9to5Toys (@9to5toys) April 17, 2014

More deals still alive:

General Imaging ipico Handheld LED Personal Projector for Apple iPhone/iPod Touch $43 shipped (Reg. $130)
SquareTrade Protection Plans: 2-yr smartphone for $79, and 40% off all others (iPad, Macs, HDTVs, cameras, etc)
SanDisk Connect Wireless iOS/Android Flash Drive: 64GB $80 (Reg. $100)/32GB $50 (Reg. $60)
BodyGuardz 15% sitewide sale: Save on accessories for your iPhone, iPad, and other gadgets
JBL OnBeat Lightning Micro Speaker Dock: $40 shipped (Reg. $100)
Wacom Intuos Creative iPad Stylus w/ Bluetooth $70 shipped (Reg. $100)
Jawbone MINI JAMBOX Bluetooth speaker in many colors from $106 shipped (Reg. $180)
VIZIO 24-inch Razor 1080p LED HDTV w/ HDMI (refurb): $130 shipped (Reg. $200)
Seagate Backup Plus Slim 2TB Portable HDD w/ $50 Dell gift card $120 shipped ($200 value)
Target Apple Deals: Free $50 gift card and 5% discount on iPad Air/Retina mini, iTunes cards 10% off, more
MOGA Ace Power MFi Lightning iPhone game controller w/ built-in battery $67 shipped (Reg. $100)
Samsung 840 EVO Series 1TB 2.5″ SATA III Solid State Drive $455 shipped (Reg. $850), 256GB Pro: $180 shipped
Heartbleed Sale: 1Password for Mac/iOS/PC/Android is 50% off
2-pack of rooCASE Apple iPad Air cases for $11 with free shipping (Reg. $36)
Headphones: Beats Studio Over-Ear (multiple colors) $270, Beats Tour 2.0 In-Ears $149 w/ $20 GC, Monster DNA In-Ears $46, more
Power banks: 5600mAh Battery Backup $16, 2600mAh Battery Charger $7, 2600mAh Universal $7

New products/useful info:

New Sony 4K UHDTVs go up for preorder, and a couple are even halfway affordable
Nintendo announces price drops coming to some of its most popular 3DS games
EPOCH.2 for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch is IGN’s FREE game of the month (Reg. $5)
Logitech Illuminated Living-Room Keyboard K830: $100 shipped
R.B.I Baseball is back! Get it today on iOS, PS3, and Xbox 360
Samsung Chromebook 2 now available for preorder with limited time free case offer
Amazon Officially Releases FireTV Today for $99
NVIDIA Shield portable gaming system gets a temporary $50 price cut while KitKat upgrade looms

Microsoft/Google/Android:

Microsoft’s new 365 subscription gets you Office on one Mac or PC & tablet for $69/year
HP 11.6″ Chromebook LTE available from Best Buy for $199
HTC One (M8) on Verizon and Sprint for $150 with a 2-yr agreement (Reg. $200)
Samsung Galaxy S5 for Verizon free after $100 bill credit and new 2-yr agreement (Reg. $200)
Corsair Flash Voyager GO 64GB Micro USB Flash Drive for Android devices $45 shipped (Reg. $55)
Android $0.99 app/game deals: Need for Speed Most Wanted, NBA Jam, Unified Remote, more

LG’s new Connect SDK helps bridge the gap between mobile apps and TVs

Sarah Guarino Apr 17 2014 - 8:45 am PT

LG today announced a new system to help bridge the gap between a range of televisions and mobile software. The Connect SDK is an open-source, multi-platform tool that developers can use to make their mobile apps compatible with different TV set-top boxes and smart TVs. In a press release, Samuel Chang, LG Electronics USA vice president and head of the LG Silicon Valley Lab said:

Connect SDK is breaking down barriers to enable apps and devices to work together harmoniously. The screen size, capabilities and social nature of Smart TVs enable experiences that consumers will absolutely love.

Connect SDK is designed to address the problem of connecting apps with a second screen, the TV, which still serves as a main point of content consumption for many households. The company has released versions of the SDK compatible with devices on both iOS and Android.

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MLB At Bat mobile apps adding Chromecast support today for Premium subscribers

Jordan Kahn Apr 17 2014 - 8:15 am PT

5 Comments

Google announced today on its Chrome blog that Major League Baseball is adding support for its $35 Chromecast streaming stick through the MLB At Bat app for Android and iOS. That means that users with the app and an MLB.TV Premium subscription will be able to stream live and on-demand video content from the app (or from a browser tab in Chrome through MLB’s site) to a Chromecast connected TV. You’ll also be able to use the phone or tablet you’re streaming from as a second-screen experience to “check scores, stats and news” while watching the game on the bigger screen:
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Flickr 3.0 redesigned for iOS, sets its sights on Instagram

9to5 Staff Apr 17 2014 - 8:11 am PT

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_eC-cwC4Kk]

Flickr — Yahoo’s photo-sharing service — has been completely redesigned for iOS to focus on the social aspect of the service, making for a direct competitor to Instagram. The new design is similar on both iOS and Android, though the specific look and feel has been tailored to each platform. The iOS update makes use of blurs and other iOS 7-motifs, while the Android app keeps a darker feel. Both apps are fast to load photos and browse the feed.

The update is expected to debut on the App Store sometime today. Flickr isn’t the most popular photo-sharing service around on mobile, but version 3.0 makes it one of the nicest for iOS — plus that free terabyte of storage helps sweeten the deal.

Square Enix brings Hitman to iOS w/ new turn-based strategy game

Jordan Kahn Apr 17 2014 - 8:01 am PT

Today Square Enix Montreal released a mobile version of the popular Hitman franchise responsible for a handful of critically acclaimed releases on consoles and PCs over the last decade. The iOS spin-off called Hitman Go sees players taking control of the franchise’s main character, hitman Agent 47, but the gameplay is a completely new twist on what we’ve seen from Hitman games in the past.

In the mobile game, you’ll still have to sneak your way through environments using disguises, distractions, and find secret areas and hiding spots to get to your target and complete a hit, but this time you’ll be doing so with turned-based puzzle/strategy gameplay on your iPhone or iPad.

With Hitman GO, you’ll experience:

• Challenging puzzles that put your assassination skills to the test
• Beautiful scale model-style visuals
• Environments with secret passageways and off-limit areas
• Agent 47’s tools of the trade: Distractions, disguises, hiding spots, sniper rifles and even the iconic Silverballers
• Different enemy types with unique and deadly behaviours
• Different ways of completing each level, silently or forcefully

Hitman Go is available for $4.99 on the App Store now.

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9kJxrLSwHU]

RunKeeper launches friendly fitness app “Breeze” for iPhone 5s users

Zac Hall Apr 17 2014 - 8:00 am PT

FitnessKeeper, the makers of the GPS tracking and fitness monitoring app RunKeeper, is out with a new activity monitoring app called Breeze. Breeze is simple: it takes advantage of the M7 co-processor on the iPhone 5s that measures steps taken and presents the data in a clean, approachable user interface. Using that data, Breeze reminds you each morning how many steps you took the previous day so you start out motivated. Its activity monitor presents total steps taken each day and summarizes the number of steps and hours spent moving in total.

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Pixelmator teases new version with revamped Repair Tool, cuts price to $15 for limited time

Benjamin Mayo Apr 17 2014 - 7:13 am PT

8 Comments

In a new blog post, the developers behind Pixelmator have just announced the next iteration of their software. Codenamed ‘Sandstone’, Pixelmator 3.2 will include a brand-new repair tool teased in the above video.

To celebrate the upcoming new version, Pixelmator is on sale in the Mac App Store for just $14.99 — half the normal price. Version 3.2 will be a free update, so all existing Mac App Store customers will get the update automatically.

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Twitterrific adds tweet editing workaround as Twitter announces ad-based app installs

Jordan Kahn Apr 17 2014 - 6:33 am PT

3 Comments

Twitterrific for iOS gets a welcomed update today that notably brings the ability to edit tweets with a simple tap of the “more actions” icon. Of course, in order to get around the fact that Twitter doesn’t actually allow editing of tweets, what the function is really doing is quickly deleting the tweet and opening the compose window with original tweet’s text. From there you can quickly edit and share it as fast as possible.

The app also gets a number of other bug fixes and improvements in the version 5.7.2 update available on the App Store now.

In other Twitter news, Twitter announced today on its blog that it’s launching a new mobile app promotion suite that will allow advertisers to promote mobile app installs both on and off of Twitter.

We have developed a full suite of targeting, creative and measurement tools to enable Twitter advertisers to effectively promote their mobile apps. These are being tested in a private beta, and you may have already seen some examples of these app promotions on Twitter. For marketers, this means a rich, native ad unit that combines the best of Twitter Cards and Promoted Tweets. Users can easily install and engage with apps, directly from the Twitter timeline.

While the Twitter Publisher Network will let mobile app devs run campaigns on Twitter with promoted tweets, Twitter is also teaming up with MoPub Marketplace for ads outside of its service. Twitter says MoPub is one of the biggest mobile ad exchanges in the world reaching over a 1 billion unique devices and serving “more than 130 billion ad requests inside Android and iOS applications every 30 days.”

Twitter has already been testing the new mobile app advertising suite with partners such as Spotify, HotelTonight, Kabam, and Deezer that you might have already seen in your Twitter timeline, but today it’s letting all U.S. advertisers sign up to the private beta through ads.twitter.com.

Photos+ 1.1 adds EXIF info support for Dropbox Camera Uploads

Zac Hall Apr 17 2014 - 6:00 am PT

We first showed you Photos+ by Justin Williams of Second Gear last December when the app that shows you photo EXIF info debuted. Jonathan Hayes of SilverPine Software, who worked on Sunlit with Manton Reece of Riverfold Software, has since purchased Photos+ and today version 1.1 is debuting.
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Fandango 6.0 for iPhone & iPad adds colorful new icon, Facebook & Google+ sign in, more

Zac Hall Apr 16 2014 - 10:43 am PT

3 Comments

Fandango 6.0 for iPhone and iPad is out now with a colorful new orange and blue icon replacing the previous white and red version. It also brings the Spotlight carousel to both iPad, a feature previously limited to the iPhone, which lets you swipe through poster-style cards of movies being promoted.

Signing in is easier now as well with support for both Facebook and Google+ to log in to your Fandango account.

The movie trailer and ticket buying app is available on both iPhone and iPad on the App Store

9to5Toys Last Call: Two D-Link WiFi cams $50, new Sony 4K TVs are almost affordable, SquareTrade 40% off, more

Apr 16 2014 - 9:50 am PT

Be sure to follow 9to5Toys to keep up with the best gear and deals on the web: Twitter, RSS Feed,Facebook, Google+ and subscribe to the new Safari push notifications feature.

Today’s can’t miss deals:

2-pack of D-Link DCS-930L wireless network cams with iOS/Android app: $50 shipped (Reg. $160)

New Sony 4K UHDTVs go up for preorder, and a couple are even halfway affordable

SquareTrade Protection Plans: 2-yr smartphone for $79, and 40% off all others (iPad, Macs, HDTVs, cameras, etc)

Just added to our Daily Deals: iPad Air for $440 and WD 2TB portable Hard Drive for $90 http://t.co/GQS5DlSMfM

— 9to5Toys (@9to5toys) April 16, 2014

Beats Executive Over-Ear noise canceling headphones: $180 + $5 shipping (Reg. $300) http://t.co/zbNfDvxXGr

— 9to5Toys (@9to5toys) April 16, 2014

Other deals from today:

New! Games/Apps: Thief $20, Final Fantasy 8 $5, Gold DualShock 3 $35, Horn & Geared go FREE, more iOS freebies
New! Daily Deals: iLuv Home Audio Speaker $23, Insignia 48″ 1080p HDTV $380, Roku 2, Bluetooth Speakers, more
New! Belkin Thunderstorm iPad (30-pin) Theater Speaker Case $85 shipped (Reg. $200)
New! JBL OnBeat Lightning Micro Speaker Dock: $40 shipped (Reg. $100)
New! General Imaging ipico Handheld LED Personal Projector for Apple iPhone/iPod Touch $43 shipped (Reg. $130)

Buffalo's AirStation AC 1200 Gigabit Dual Band Wireless Router: $89.99 shipped (40% off) https://t.co/UiRSQJrjrZ

— 9to5Toys (@9to5toys) April 16, 2014

More deals still alive:

SanDisk Connect Wireless iOS/Android Flash Drive: 64GB $80 (Reg. $100)/32GB $50 (Reg. $60)
BodyGuardz 15% sitewide sale: Save on accessories for your iPhone, iPad, and other gadgets
Wacom Intuos Creative iPad Stylus w/ Bluetooth $70 shipped (Reg. $100)
Speck and Incase Apple accessories up to 90% off
Jawbone MINI JAMBOX Bluetooth speaker in many colors from $106 shipped (Reg. $180)
VIZIO 24-inch Razor 1080p LED HDTV w/ HDMI (refurb): $130 shipped (Reg. $200)
Seagate Backup Plus Slim 2TB Portable HDD w/ $50 Dell gift card $120 shipped ($200 value)
Target Apple Deals: Free $50 gift card and 5% discount on iPad Air/Retina mini, iTunes cards 10% off, more
MOGA Ace Power MFi Lightning iPhone game controller w/ built-in battery $67 shipped (Reg. $100)
Samsung 840 EVO Series 1TB 2.5″ SATA III Solid State Drive $455 shipped (Reg. $850), 256GB Pro: $180 shipped
Heartbleed Sale: 1Password for Mac/iOS/PC/Android is 50% off
2-pack of rooCASE Apple iPad Air cases for $11 with free shipping (Reg. $36)
Headphones: Beats Studio Over-Ear (multiple colors) $270, Beats Tour 2.0 In-Ears $149 w/ $20 GC, Monster DNA In-Ears $46, more
Power banks: 5600mAh Battery Backup $16, 2600mAh Battery Charger $7, 2600mAh Universal $7

New products/useful info:

Nintendo announces price drops coming to some of its most popular 3DS games
EPOCH.2 for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch is IGN’s FREE game of the month (Reg. $5)
Logitech Illuminated Living-Room Keyboard K830: $100 shipped
R.B.I Baseball is back! Get it today on iOS, PS3, and Xbox 360
Samsung Chromebook 2 now available for preorder with limited time free case offer
Amazon Officially Releases FireTV Today for $99
NVIDIA Shield portable gaming system gets a temporary $50 price cut while KitKat upgrade looms

Microsoft/Google/Android:

Microsoft’s new 365 subscription gets you Office on one Mac or PC & tablet for $69/year
HP 11.6″ Chromebook LTE available from Best Buy for $199
HTC One (M8) on Verizon and Sprint for $150 with a 2-yr agreement (Reg. $200)
Samsung Galaxy S5 for Verizon free after $100 bill credit and new 2-yr agreement (Reg. $200)
Corsair Flash Voyager GO 64GB Micro USB Flash Drive for Android devices $45 shipped (Reg. $55)
Android $0.99 app/game deals: Need for Speed Most Wanted, NBA Jam, Unified Remote, more

Texas Instruments adds iBeacon support to its Bluetooth LE chip and dev kit products

Jordan Kahn Apr 16 2014 - 6:44 am PT

2 Comments

Texas Instruments announced today that it is adding iBeacon support across its Bluetooth LE chips and development kits. The company is starting by adding support to some of its Bluetooth wireless micro controllers, an automotive connectivity device, and other combo Wi-Fi/Bluetooth products and development kits. TI’s Oyvind Birkenes imagines support for iBeacons in its Bluetooth chips opening up new possibilities for Apple’s Bluetooth LE platform including “asset trackers, retail, building automation systems, automotive and industrial applications, and a wide variety of consumer electronics” beyond what we’ve seen so far.
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Google debuts iPhone app for its Helpouts learning and tutorial service

Zac Hall Apr 15 2014 - 11:51 am PT

Google has added yet another app to its collection of iPhone apps today. This time it’s Google Helpouts, which connects users over its Hangouts service to experts knowledgeable in a specific subject for tutoring. Google’s Helpouts service first launched last fall.

Google on what Hangouts has to offer:

What you can do on the iOS app

Find and schedule a Helpout
Start a free Helpout
Give a free Helpout
Read reviews and listing details
Send a message
Report abuse
Leave a review
Change your settings
Receive text-message and mobile reminders

Google notes that Helpouts for iPhone does not support creating new listings for topics; that feature is currently limited to the Helpouts website.

Google Helpouts for iPhone is available for free on the App Store.

9to5Toys Last Call: SquareTrade protection plans 40% off, Speck/Incase accessories, Kingston memory products, more

Apr 15 2014 - 10:17 am PT

Be sure to follow 9to5Toys to keep up with the best gear and deals on the web: Twitter, RSS Feed,Facebook, Google+ and subscribe to the new Safari push notifications feature.

This weekend’s can’t miss deals:

Last Call updates:

Save 40% on SquareTrade protection plans for smartphones, tablets, and more

FitBit Zip Wireless Activity Tracker $35 shipped (Reg. $60) http://t.co/AMDHQgdTxw

— 9to5Toys (@9to5toys) April 16, 2014

Speck and Incase Apple accessories up to 90% off

Up to 65% Off Select Kingston Memory Cards and USB Drives

Wacom Intuos Creative iPad Stylus w/ Bluetooth $70 shipped (Reg. $100)

SanDisk Connect Wireless iOS/Android Flash Drive: 64GB $80 (Reg. $100)/32GB $50 (Reg. $60)

Update: Back in stock, but you better act fast..

RT @9to5toys: Apple iPad Air 16GB WiFi $400 shipped (Reg. $499) http://t.co/L6EUKGKlwA

— 9to5Toys (@9to5toys) April 15, 2014

Other deals from today:

New! Jawbone MINI JAMBOX Bluetooth speaker in many colors from $106 shipped (Reg. $180)
New! VIZIO 24-inch Razor 1080p LED HDTV w/ HDMI (refurb): $130 shipped (Reg. $200)
New! Games/Apps: Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag $20, Borderlands 2 (Mac) $7, Wii U Fit Meter $10, 2K iOS sale, freebies, more
New! BodyGuardz 15% sitewide sale: Save on accessories for your iPhone, iPad, and other gadgets
New! Daily Deals: iPad $100, SOL Wireless BT Speaker $79, Toshiba 40″ 1080p HDTV $330, more
New! HP 11.6″ Chromebook LTE available from Best Buy for $199
New! Microsoft’s new 365 subscription gets you Office on one Mac or PC & tablet for $69/year

More deals still alive:

Seagate Backup Plus Slim 2TB Portable HDD w/ $50 Dell gift card $120 shipped ($200 value)
Target Apple Deals: Free $50 gift card and 5% discount on iPad Air/Retina mini, iTunes cards 10% off, more
MOGA Ace Power MFi Lightning iPhone game controller w/ built-in battery $67 shipped (Reg. $100)
Samsung 840 EVO Series 1TB 2.5″ SATA III Solid State Drive $455 shipped (Reg. $850), 256GB Pro: $180 shipped
Heartbleed Sale: 1Password for Mac/iOS/PC/Android is 50% off
2-pack of rooCASE Apple iPad Air cases for $11 with free shipping (Reg. $36)
Headphones: Beats Studio Over-Ear (multiple colors) $270, Beats Tour 2.0 In-Ears $149 w/ $20 GC, Monster DNA In-Ears $46, more
Power banks: 5600mAh Battery Backup $16, 2600mAh Battery Charger $7, 2600mAh Universal $7
Intel 530 Series 120GB 2.5″ SATA III Solid State Drive $80 shipped (Reg. $170), 240GB $136 shipped (Reg. $300)
Apple 2TB Time Capsule (previous generation) $169 shipped (Reg. $249)
Up to 83% off 12 top rated iOS apps: 1yr. Parallels iOS access, Printer Pro, Scanner Pro, iDownloader Pro, Day One, more
AKG K44 over-the-ear studio headphones or Ultimate Ears 500vm for phones: $20 shipped ($60 off)

New products/useful info:

Nintendo announces price drops coming to some of its most popular 3DS games
EPOCH.2 for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch is IGN’s FREE game of the month (Reg. $5)
Logitech Illuminated Living-Room Keyboard K830: $100 shipped
R.B.I Baseball is back! Get it today on iOS, PS3, and Xbox 360
Samsung Chromebook 2 now available for preorder with limited time free case offer
Amazon Officially Releases FireTV Today for $99
NVIDIA Shield portable gaming system gets a temporary $50 price cut while KitKat upgrade looms

Microsoft/Google/Android:

HTC One (M8) on Verizon and Sprint for $150 with a 2-yr agreement (Reg. $200)
Samsung Galaxy S5 for Verizon free after $100 bill credit and new 2-yr agreement (Reg. $200)
Corsair Flash Voyager GO 64GB Micro USB Flash Drive for Android devices $45 shipped (Reg. $55)
Android $0.99 app/game deals: Need for Speed Most Wanted, NBA Jam, Unified Remote, more
Google Chromecast streaming media player $30 w/ free shipping (Reg. $35)
Microsoft Surface Pro Tablets: Refurbished 64GB $399 (Reg. $499 new), 128GB $500 for .EDU emails (Reg. $600)
Google Nexus 7 16GB (2nd gen) and Chromecast media player: $199 for .EDU emails ($265 value)

A&E and History Channel add live TV stream in iOS apps

Jordan Kahn Apr 15 2014 - 9:34 am PT

A&E Networks has just updated iOS apps for two of its most popular TV channels, A&E and History, with the ability to watch live TV on both iPhone and iPad. The apps, which previously provided full episodes and clips on-demand to users in the US, will now provide a live stream of what’s playing on the TV channels. The live TV feature, however, will require a cable subscription.
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Microsoft’s new cheaper 365 subscription gets you Office on one Mac & iPad for $69/year

Jordan Kahn Apr 15 2014 - 9:10 am PT

5 Comments

Microsoft is launching a cheaper ‘Personal’ Office 365 subscription today that will give you access to the cloud services and mobile apps for $69/year or $6.99/month opposed to the $99/year Home subscription. The new Personal subscription only provides access for one Mac (or PC) and iPad (or tablet) instead of the 5 PC or Macs and 5 tablets you get with a Home subscription.

You might want to hold off on the new subscription, however, as Amazon is currently selling the full Home subscription for just $63 (37% off). That’s cheaper than the new $69 Personal plan, but it’s possible Microsoft could soon end that discount and change prices on Amazon now that the new Personal subscription is launching.

The Office 365 subscription gives you access to full editing features in Microsoft’s recently released suite of Office apps for iPad, but also access to desktop and online versions of Microsoft’s Office apps, 7GB of cloud storage, and 60 minutes of Skype credit a month.

Pioneer says CarPlay firmware update for existing 2014 in-dash systems coming this summer

Jordan Kahn Apr 15 2014 - 6:42 am PT

8 Comments

Following reports yesterday that car electronics manufacturer Alpine was planning to launch aftermarket CarPlay units in the fall, Pioneer issued a press release today confirming a firmware update for existing in-dash systems. Pioneer will be bringing Apple’s new CarPlay system to existing vehicles using the company’s five 2014 NEX in-dash multimedia receivers this summer through a firmware update.

Utilizing large, in-dash Pioneer LCD displays, CarPlay featuring Siri® voice control, gives iPhone users the features while allowing them to stay focused on the road. With CarPlay, consumers with iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c and iPhone 5 can use Siri to make and receive calls, compose and respond to text messages, use Apple Maps for navigation and listen to their music, podcasts and iTunes RadioSM. For more information about CarPlay, visit www.apple.com/ios/carplay.

As for what vehicles and in-dash systems it will support, it sounds like it will be limited to 2014 editions of the in-dash receivers mentioned above. For the US, those include the following:
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Condé Nast’s Epicurious teams up with inMarket for in-store iBeacon experience

Jordan Kahn Apr 15 2014 - 6:02 am PT

Today, Condé Nast’s Epicurious becomes the latest to take advantage of iBeacons in-store by teaming up with inMarket to beam location-based notifications and offers to shoppers in retail environments. I previously wrote about inMarket, an in-store marketing platform that recently started rolling out iBeacons to retailers (mostly grocery stores), when it announced Zatarain’s would become the first consumer packaged goods brand to use the platform. The company was using inMarket’s Mobile to Mortar (M2M) platform to beam notifications and offers directly to shopper’s smartphones when in proximity of one of inMarket’s in-store iBeacons. Today the company is announcing its biggest news yet after recently expanding into New York, Boston, and Miami with the addition of Condé Nast’s Epicurious as the first major app partner to take advantage of the M2M iBeacon platform.
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Screens VNC client for Mac updated to version 3.0, rebuilt from the ground up with a new UI and much more

Mike Beasley Apr 14 2014 - 3:15 pm PT

11 Comments

Screens, the popular and powerful VNC client for OS X (with an iOS counterpart), has been updated to version 3.0, introducing a host of new features. But the update is more than just a few new features crammed into old software. The entire app has been completely rewritten with an all-new interface, big speed enhancements, and other optimizations for OS X Mavericks.

For the full details on what’s new, keep reading:

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Amazon Cloud Drive Photos 3.0 adds iOS 7-friendly redesign, upload enhances, timeline, and more

Zac Hall Apr 14 2014 - 1:23 pm PT

Amazon updated its Cloud Drive Photos app today to version 3.0 bringing an iOS 7-friendly and a number of features and improvements. With the redesign comes a new navigation view that now contains toggles between photos, videos, and both. This view also includes a progress bar while uploading photos; previous versions of the app only said that photos were being uploaded, not how many or how long it would take. The progress bar feature works with both automatic and manual photo and video uploads.
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Windows Phone 8.1 update lets users add Passbook cards to Microsoft Wallet

Jordan Kahn Apr 14 2014 - 11:42 am PT

3 Comments

WPcentral notes that the upcoming Windows Phone 8.1 update introduces support for Apple’s Passbook iOS app, allowing users to load coupons, tickets, boarding passes, etc, designed for Passbook into the Microsoft Wallet app.

While the Microsoft Wallet app will be able to load the various coupons and loyalty cards usually reserved for Passbook, it’s still a little unclear exactly what’s going on behind the scenes. Microsoft appears to be allowing users to download the Passbook files and rendering its own card for Microsoft Wallet, but the report speculates Windows Phone won’t be able to tap into the push notifications Apple’s uses to update cards like on iOS.

There seems to be some confusion over whether or not Mircosoft is officially supporting Passbook in one way or another, but with a developer preview of Windows Phone 8.1 rolling out today, I’m sure we’ll be hearing more about this soon.

Pandora adds alarm clock feature for iPad, new app for Pebble users

Jordan Kahn Apr 14 2014 - 9:38 am PT