Google Play Stories October 11, 2018
Google Play Stories February 3, 2016
Apple Music for Android updated with ability to save music to SD cards for offline listening
Apple has some good news for all of the Apple Music users on Android. The company has just released an update to Apple Music in the Google Play Store that allows users to download songs to an SD card so that they may store even more music for offline listening.
Google Play Stories September 29, 2015
When Apple Music officially launched earlier this year, we ran a poll seeing where people were switching from to use the service. A surprising 33 percent of the 18,000 responses said they were switching from Spotify to Apple Music, while another 23 percent said Apple Music was their first streaming service. At the time, however, anyone using Apple Music was getting it for free. In fact, 17 percent of people said they were using the service, but only during the trial.
As we noted earlier today, however, the first 3 month free trials are wrapping up, which means it’s time to see who’s sticking with Apple’s streaming music service and who’s leaving…
Google Play Stories September 24, 2015
9to5Toys Last Call: 5-Port USB charger $10, Segate 8TB Desktop HDD $200, iPhone 6/s Battery Case $20, more
Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.
Today’s can’t miss deals:
Last Call Updates:
App Store Free App of the Week: Doodle Jump SpongeBob SquarePants ($2 value)
- Kwikset drops the extras on its new internet-connected deadbolt lock to hit a lower price point
- Apple’s new Beats Active Collection brings sporty colors to familiar headphones
- GoPro HERO4 Session Action Camera $299 shipped (Reg. $400)
- Freebies: Krispy Kreme coffee & doughnut + Outdoor Life magazine + Natural Green Cleaning eBook + More!
- Minecraft is set to hit the Oculus Rift VR headset this spring
- Free Xbox Live Gold Games for October: Valiant Hearts, The Walking Dead, Metal Gear Solid V Ground Zeroes, more
- Home: Cuisinart K-cup brewer (refurb) $60 shipped (Orig. up to $200), $100 CVS gift card for $88, more
The best 5-port USB power supply (Aukey 8A/40W) is $10 Prime shipped (orig. $50)
Double your iPhone 6/s battery capacity w/ this 3,100mAh MFi Apple-Certified Case for $20 Prime shipped (Reg. $37)
Seagate Backup Plus 8TB USB 3.0 Desktop External Hard Drive $200 shipped (Reg. $250)
$100 iTunes Gift Card for $80 w/ email delivery via PayPal: save 20% on movies, apps, more
Gift Cards w/ email delivery: Staples $100 for $85, Applebee’s $50 for $40, other restaurants, more
Spigen iPhone 6s/Plus cases in multiple styles and colors as low as $3 with free shipping
Wrap your new iPhone 6s with Speck’s CandyShell Grip case for $14 shipped (Reg. $25+), more
Giveaway: This is Ground’s Mod Laptop 2 is a road warrior’s dream bag, up to $499 value
More new gear from today:
Shine on! Free MP3 Downloads: Pink Floyd’s Wish You Were Here (Reg. $8), much more
- Jawbone’s new high fashion UP2 Activity Tracker gets its first discount: $80 shipped (Reg. $100)
- Canon AirPrint Color InkJet Printers: MG7520 $80 (Reg. $100), MG6620 $50 (Reg. $65+)
- QNAP NAS w/ AirPlay: TS-131 1-Bay $135 (Orig. $215), HS-210 2-Bay Fanless $145 (Orig. $289)
- Games/Apps: XCOM Enemy Unknown Elite $10, Final Fantasy Heavensward $20, more
- Daily Deals: LifeProof iPhone mount $23, SoundLogic 3-Port USB Charging Station $13, more
- KeySmart 2.0 Titanium Key Organizer: $30 Shipped (Orig. $44, CA Tax Only)
- Lyrix Axis Levitating Wireless-Charging Speaker: $140 Shipped (Orig. $200, CA Tax Only)
More deals still alive:
Apple iPad Air 2 Wi-Fi up to $150 off (all colors): 16GB $349, 64GB $449, 128GB $549 (Reg. up to $699)
The best USB car charger (Aukey 4 port/48W) is just $7 Prime shipped, Lumsing 6000mAh Power bank: $10
- Runtastic’s Push Ups PRO for iOS goes free (Reg. $2)
- Power Banks: EC Technology 22,400mAh $27, TechMatte 5,600mAh Dual Port $15, more
- Bluetooth speakers: I-Venstar waterproof $26 (Reg. $35), Altec Lansing $44 (Reg. $54), more
- Grand Theft Auto iOS titles $3 ea: Chinatown Wars, Vice City and GTA III (Reg. $5 ea.)
- Jump into the Rainbow Six Siege closed beta on Xbox One, PS4, and PC for free
- Freebies: Cinnabon MiniBons + 8BitBoy on Steam + Zipcar $25 credit + More!
- Freebies: Best of albums from Elvis, Nas, 311, more + Nikola Tesla eBook + more!
- VIZIO 49-inch M49-C1 120Hz Smart 4K UHDTV $590 shipped (Reg. $720)
- Dell 27-inch 4K Ultra HD LED IPS Monitor: $450 shipped (Reg. $525+), more
- Headphones: Symphonized Wooden In-ear $16 (Reg. $25), Sennheiser Over-ear + DAC $500, more
- Saicoo 8A/40W 5-Port Rapid Car Charger $12 Prime shipped (Reg. $17)
- Plantronics BackBeat Fit Bluetooth Sport Headphones $70 shipped (Orig. $130), more
- GoPro HERO4 Black $389 + shipping (Reg. $500), HERO+ LCD $249 (Reg. $300)
- MacUpdate Bundle: 10 apps including Toast 14, DevonThink, ExpanDrive, Boom, and more for $50
- Rolo Travel Bag: $45 Shipped (Orig. $60, CA Tax Only)
- Private Internet Access VPN offers browsing protection, 2-year subscription now $60 (Orig. $80)
- proXPN VPN: Premium Lifetime Subscription $39 ($375 value)
- Pandora One: 6-Month Subscription $24 (Reg. $30)
New products & more:
Skreens combines your DVR, Xbox One, Roku and more onto one screen
Polk’s new flagship Omni S6 speaker goes after the multi-room audio crown
- Fallout 4 LE Loot Crate features over $150 worth of rare gear, pre-order now
- Sony reveals the first 1TB PlayStation 4 for North America w/ new COD: Black Ops III bundle
- Samsung goes old school on its new Serif TV set with help from fonts
- Infento’s Constructible Rides are a K’NEX-like bicycle system that grows with your kid
- The Makerarm 3D prints, laser engraves, and even assembles your electronics
- Square Enix is bringing the new Final Fantasy Type-0 Online to iOS, Android and P
- Review: Tile’s 2nd-gen Bluetooth tracker makes finding lost keys, dog, or iPhone easier than ever
- The all-in-one Bruvelo Coffeemaker hits Kickstarter with a lofty goal and slim design
- Tacos are the key to scoring one of Sony’s crazy limited edition Gold PlayStation 4 bundles
- This new Game Boy Guitar plays “both Pokemon and rock and roll!”
Google Play Stories September 18, 2015
While Apple’s new Move to iOS app appeared to be the company’s first ever Android app, Phandroid did some digging around in the code to discover that it in fact appears to be just a rebadged third-party app called Copy My Data.
If we take a look under the hood of Apple’s Move to iOS app, we see the […] android:name is still set to android:name=”com.mediamushroom.copymydata”. That’s just the tip of the iceberg. The two applications share a vast majority of code and functionality. In fact, all of the com.mediamushroom.copymydata strings were left inside Apple’s rebranded version. Essentially, the only differences between the two apps are Apple’s artwork being added, the inclusion of Apple’s licensing agreements, and Media Mushroom’s UI elements being removed. That’s really it.
Apple thus appears to have simply licensed an existing app, rather than creating its first Android app – meaning that the Apple Music app expected to makes its way across to Android sometime this fall may be the first Apple-coded app on the rival smartphone platform … expand full story
Google Play Stories September 8, 2015
Disney Movies Anywhere now available via Amazon Video apps for iPhone and iPad
Disney today announced it’s expanding the number of devices that can access its Disney Movies Anywhere service for viewing digital copies of Disney movies online and through various apps. Among the new additions, the company is making its movies available through the Amazon Video apps for users in the US.
In addition to the Amazon Video apps, which is available for various smart TVs, set top boxes, and mobile devices including iPhone and iPad, the Disney Movie Anywhere content is now accessible through the new Disney Movie Anywhere apps on Xbox 360 and Amazon Fire devices. To access the content through Amazon Video, you’ll first have to authenticate your Amazon account in your Disney Movies Anywhere account settings.
While the Disney Anywhere content is already available through iTunes on the Apple TV, Disney is planning to bring a dedicated app to competing platforms, Roku and Android TV on September 15th. No word on Apple TV, but with Apple planning the introduction a new model tomorrow, it’s possible the device could get the same treatment in the near future.
The Amazon Video app is available for iPhone and iPad on the App Store. For a limited time, Disney is giving away a free copy of Pixar’s Monsters, Inc movie to those that connect a new iTunes, Amazon Video, VUDU, Microsoft Movies & TV or Google Play
Google Play Stories August 31, 2015
Android Wear finally has iOS support after Google pushed its iPhone-compatible software to the App Store. This means that Android has beaten Apple Watch to the cross-platform game. Or, at least it would, if iOS didn’t restrict it to a state of almost uselessness. The only device officially supported is the LG Watch Urbane although — as we previously revealed — the older generation Android Wear watches do work. I got it set up with my Moto 360, and have been mostly disappointed by my experience so far.
Google Play Stories August 28, 2015
Samsung adds a $100-200 bribe to its test-drive program aimed at converting iPhone users
Samsung has upped the ante on its ‘ultimate test drive‘ program, intended to persuade iPhone owners to switch by offering them a free one-month trial of an Android-powered Galaxy smartphone. For those who end up purchasing the phone, Samsung will give them $100 of Google Play credit which can be used to buy apps and other content.
If you end up trading in your iPhone, Samsung will additionally send you a check for $100 – on top of whatever trade-in deal you were offered by the retailer.
Of course, switching to Android is not without its health risks …
Via Android Central
Google Play Stories July 17, 2015
Apple Music has been available to the public for almost three weeks and while subscriber data hasn’t been revealed by Apple, early reviews were generally positive. The service is not without its flaws, however, and users have been quick to point them out. With the service having been available for a couple of weeks, though, we’re curious: Are you using Apple Music? If so, did you switch from another streaming service to Apple’s or is this your first venture into streaming music?
Google Play Stories June 3, 2015
Image via <a href="https://twitter.com/mgbnet/status/605505402885672960/photo/1">Martin B. on Twitter</a>
[Update: Pebble says its app for Pebble Time users has been approved and should hit the App Store in 2-3 hours if you can’t see it yet.]
Despite its official release at the end of May, Pebble’s new Pebble Time watch is not yet fully functional for iPhone users, as its required iOS synchronization app is not yet available in the App Store. The Pebble Time Watch application allows users to set up the Pebble Time wearable, install new applications, watch faces, and software updates, but backers who have received the hardware have taken to social media to complain that there’s no iPhone app to use with it. Android users are unaffected as their version of the app is available on Google Play.
Pebble has used its Kickstarter page to pin the delay on Apple’s App Store review process…
Google Play Stories May 20, 2015
SwiftKey today released a major update to its iOS 8 third-party keyboard, bundling in a new theme store and critical performance improvements. SwiftKey is one of the more popular third-party iOS keyboards, and was launched last year with impressive word prediction technology that is similar to Apple’s QuickType keyboard…
Google Play Stories May 4, 2015
Google today announced that it’s acquiring Timeful Inc, the company behind the Timeful app that offers a central location for time management, calendar functions, to-do list and scheduling features. expand full story
Google Play Stories March 31, 2015
Data from IDC and App Annie suggested that both Apple and Google are likely to see their app store revenues doubling within the next four years, reports Re/code. Based on Apple’s 2014 total revenue of $10B, this would suggest that Apple is likely to hit total revenue of $20B in 2018, with developers seeing $14B of it.
“I would consider this projection conservative,” App Annie CEO Bertrand Schmitt said in an interview, noting that the company has consistently been revising its forecasts up over the past two years as revenue has exceeded expectations.
The study also suggested that the trend toward freemium apps, which derive their income from in-app purchases, will continue–though this model is more common on Android than iOS … expand full story
Google Play Stories February 20, 2015
9to5Toys Last Call: Free App of the Week, iPhone 6/Plus kick stand case $5, 200GB OneDrive Storage free, more
Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.
Today’s can’t miss deals:
Last Call Updates:
- Monoprice 15% off on orders of $50 or more: Bluetooth On-Ears $68 (Orig. $90)
- NETGEAR N300 802.11n WiFi Range Extender $31 shipped (orig. $60)
- Sony 48″ 1080p Smart HDTV (refurb) $400 shipped (orig. $650)
- Fashion: Macy’s up to 60% off suits, Lucky Brand Jeans more than 50% off, more
- Etekcity portable wireless Bluetooth speaker $16 Prime shipped (orig. $46)
- Gaming For Couples: Captain Toad Treasure Tracker and Kirby & The Rainbow Curse
- The latest batch of Halo toys: authentic Needler blaster and McFarlane’s new Master Chief
- Home: Panasonic electric shaver $70, Cuisinart Auto Bread Maker (refurb) $55, more
iTunes Free App of the Week: Duet Game ($2.99 value)
Baytek iPhone 6/Plus kick stand case $5 Prime shipped (Reg. $15)
Confirmed! Stack these two Microsoft promos for 200GB of OneDrive storage for free
$40 Mac Bundle: Things, ScreenFlow, Typed, Civ, ExpanDrive, Aftershot Pro 2, more
LAST CHANCE! – Small States: Cord Shoes churns out handmade boots with a story behind every pair, $250 giveaway
More new gear from today:
- New! TP-LINK AV200 Nano Powerline Adapter Starter Kit $21 shipped (Reg. $30+)
- New! Four-pack WD 3TB Red NAS drives $400 shipped (orig. $800)
- New! Daily Deals: Bluetooth sportbuds $70, iPad mini leather smart case: $29, more
- New! Games/Apps: $50 PlayStation gift card for $40, iOS freebies, more
- New! Google Play Movies from $3 – $5: A Million Ways to Die, Inception, many more
- New! Rovio releases new matching puzzle game ‘Jolly Jam’ for iOS and Android
More deals still alive:
- Grab Lightroom 5 at a steep discount w/ free external storage
- Brother Wireless Laser Printer w/ AirPrint & Duplex Printing $71 shipped (orig. $140)
- SoundBlock Ultra Portable Wireless Bluetooth Speaker $30 Prime shipped (orig. $140)
- VIZIO 50-inch 4K Ultra HD 120Hz Full-Array LED Smart TV $698 in-store (Reg. $1,000)
- iOttie Easy Flex 3 Car Mount for iPhone 6/6 Plus, more $12 shipped (Reg. $25)
- Samsung 50-inch 1080p 120Hz Smart LED HDTV $599 shipped (orig. $1,200)
- Hunger Games: Catching Fire eBook free (Reg. $7), iTunes movie trilogy $30 (Reg. $55)
- Patagonia jackets, shirts & accessories up to 50% off: Down Jacket $137 (Reg. $229), more
- Microsoft Office 365 Personal ($70 value) FREE w/computer/iPad/tablet purchase
- Audio-Technica Pro Headphones: ATH-M40X $79 (Reg. $139), ATH-M30X $55 (Reg. $99)
- iPad deal roundup: iPad mini $200, iPad Air $339, iPad Air 2 $424, more
- Mophie Juice Pack Helium for iPhone 5/5s (multiple colors) $35 shipped (orig. $80)
- Quirky President’s Day Sale + extra 25% off: Metal Cordies cable keeper $3.75, more
- Media: SNL 40th Anniv. free stream, discounted Blu-rays, $10 iTunes movies, more
- Samsung 2TB M9T PlayStation 4/laptop storage $100 shipped (Reg. $120)
- BJ’s 1-Year Inner Circle Membership + $25 Gift Card $35 (~$75 value)
- TP-LINK Dual Band Wireless N600 Gigabit Router $47 shipped (Reg. $56+)
- Free Google Play download of Jason Aldean’s latest album Old Boots, New Dirt
- Amazon Fire TV streaming media player $34 w/ Sling TV subscription or $84 w/o
- TDK TREK Micro Bluetooth/M Portable Weatherized Speaker: $25 shipped (orig. $60)
- Acer 11.6″ Chromebook 2.16GHz/2GB RAM/16GB SSD $160 shipped (orig. $200)
- RapidWeaver 6 Mega Bundle – themes, stacks, and plug-ins $80 ($673 value)
- Canon Printer w/ AirPrint + Adobe Lightroom or Photoshop $70 (~$220 value), more
- Mass Effect Infiltrator is IGN’s free iOS game of the month ($4.99 value)
New products & more:
- Trendnet’s new 1200 AV2 MIMO equipped Powerline kit is now available
- Ray’s 4.8-inch touch screen Super Remote takes TV watching out of the dark ages
- Marshall’s Major II headphones with updated audio and same iconic style are now available
- Kitchen Tech: Spherification lets you make your own caviar from fruit juice, more
- Make awesome ice spheres, cubes, Death Stars, diamonds and more for only $10
- Take your iPhone 6 Back to the Future with this highly detailed Delorean case
- Truffol’s wood/aluminum USB chargers w/ protection power up to five devices
- LEGO brings Jurassic world to life ahead of its summer release
- Blub Uno USB desk clock uses 1950’s Nixie tubes to display time, temperature and more
- Kitchen Tech: Catch up on 10 great food and drink tool columns!
Google Play Stories December 28, 2014
Apple, after reportedly being involved in early negotiations for the film, has put Sony’s “The Interview” up for streaming on iTunes. Apple is offering the film at the same price as Google, YouTube, and Xbox video – $6 to rent and $15 to own.
Google Play Stories November 28, 2014
TechCrunch points to a newly published patent filed by Nintendo that shows the company is interested in bringing Game Boy titles to mobile devices through emulation technology. Many emulators exist online to mimic old consoles and allow gamers to play back catalogs of games converted to ROM files on Macs and PCs, and Nintendo could possibly do the same to officially bring titles to mobile devices without much heavy lifting in terms of rewriting the games: expand full story
Google Play Stories November 3, 2014
Back in February, Apple and Disney teamed up on a new app called Movies Anywhere that allowed iOS users to access their library of purchased movies—whether bought on the iTunes Store, DVD, or other media (with the appropriate redemption code in the box).
Today, Disney has launched the same service for Android users. Movies Anywhere owners will now be able to access their movie library featuring titles from Disney, Pixar, and Marvel from any of their devices. Because this is a cross-platform solution, movies previously purchased on the iTunes Store will now be available to users on Android devices, and iOS users will be able to watch Disney movies they’ve purchased from the Google Play Store.
Google Play Stories October 31, 2014
Google Play Music app for iPhone gets iPhone 6 & iPhone 6 Plus support
Following a bigger update earlier this month, Google today updated its Google Play Music app for iPhone with official support for the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. That means that the app, which offers access to Google Play Music content and its All Access music streaming service, now takes advantage of the increased real estate on the larger, higher-resolution 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch iPhone 6 and 6 Plus displays.
Google also notes that the update brings “Lots of little tweaks and bug fixes.” In addition, the app receives a new icon (pictured right).
Earlier this year we reported on an under development iPad version of the Google Play Music app, but it’s yet to get an official release.
The updated Google Play Music app for iPhone, Version 1.5.3184, is available on the App Store now. The app received a big update earlier this month that introduced new Listen Now features for browsing radio stations and recently played music for All Access users in the US and Canada.
What’s New in Version 1.5.3184
– iPhone 6/6+ support – Lots of little tweaks and bug fixes
Google Play Stories September 23, 2014
Google’s Currents iOS app redesigned & renamed ‘Google Play Newsstand’
Following the renaming of its Google Currents news reader app to “Google Play Newsstand” on Android back in February, Google has now given a similar treatment to the iOS app. The app, like the Android version earlier this year, also receives a makeover in the process with a streamlined design and new features:
What’s new • New navigation helping you easily access the articles and editions you love including: – Read Now – Easily access articles you subscribe to and discover new articles and editions all in one place – Topics – Subscribe and get news from topics you are most interested in – My Library – All of your subscriptions will be found here • A brand new design giving you a streamlined news reading experience
The Google Play Newsstand app is available for free for iPhone and iPad on the App Store now.
Google Play Stories August 25, 2014
Swing Copters update makes Flappy Bird sequel slightly less impossible
If you’ve tried and thrown in the towel on Swing Copters, the follow up game from Flappy Bird creator Dong Nguyen, you may want to give besting your high score another try this morning.
An updated version of the game was released today, tweaking the gameplay and bringing it closer to the difficult-but-not-quite-as-impossible levels of its popular predecessor Flappy Bird.
Google Play Stories August 21, 2014
It’s been just over a month since the last big update to Google Play Music for iPhone, and today the Google Play Music team is rolling out another update with new features and improvements. The latest release brings the version number to 1.3.2.2559 for those keeping track at home, and adds a handful of new functionality like the ability to remove music from your library via the iPhone app. The update also boasts additional accessibility features which will surely be appreciated as well as fixes for issues with skipping during track playback and eliminating duplicate listings in the music library. You can see the full change log below. expand full story
Google Play Stories July 18, 2014
The European Commission has complained that Apple is taking too long to implement protections for freemium games in the App Store, reports BBC News. The Commission has decreed that both Apple and Google, the two biggest app store vendors, must make the “true cost of apps” clear before purchase. However, officials are upset that Apple has not yet committed to any such measures.
“Regrettably, no concrete and immediate solutions have been made by Apple to date to address the concerns linked in particular to payment authorisation,” the Commission said in a statement.
“Apple has proposed to address those concerns. However, no firm commitment and no timing have been provided for the implementation of such possible future changes.
Google Play Stories July 14, 2014
Yes, another secure and ephemeral messaging app. There’s Wickr, Snapchat, Confide, so what makes Wiper Messenger different? I’ve had the chance to play around with the new free chatting app on iOS, and it seems to act as a fusion of WhatsApp, Snapchat, and Wickr. The app prompts you for your email address or phone number in order to create your account, and then you are brought to a fairly simple interface with three tabs across the bottom: Chats, Contacts, and More. Let’s go tab-by-tab:
Google Play Stories June 30, 2014
Twitter’s mobile app install advertising feature comes out of beta, goes global
Twitter has taken its mobile application install advertising feature out of beta and it has also taken the service global. Twitter talked about the feature, which allows companies to advertise mobile apps within the Twitter mobile app timeline, earlier this year. The video above explains how the service works. The app install feature can show apps from the App Store and Google Play based on “interest, keyword, TV targeting and tailored audiences” as well as based on “gender, geo, language and mobile platform targeting.” The service allows apps to be installed on smartphones directly via the Twitter app and the Twitter app will even notify users when the app is ready to use.
Twitter explains how advertisers can use the functionality:
