Facebook acquires Luma to make real Instagram's video dreams

According to TechCrunch, Instagram has just acquired Luma for an undisclosed amount to help bring its video service to the next level. In addition to basics like video stabilization and adjustments for brightness and saturation, Luma will bring its "Infinite Filter" tech into the fold. What does this do? Well, with it you can add or remove filters to video clips at will once the footage is in the can. If you're one of Luma's existing users, the company is shutting its doors come December 31st, so consider this your fair warning to grab your clips before then. A revamped platform certainly couldn't hurt Instagram's video ambitions -- after all, the competition isn't showing any signs of slowing down.

0 Comments

Legend of Zelda Wii U Deluxe bundle leaked, teases gold trim

Waiting for the Legend of Zelda: the Wind Waker HD before picking up a Wii U? You're in luck -- the company seems to be prepping a bundle specifically for Hylian-minded buyers. NeoGAF users have salvaged an image of the special edition console from a trailer Nintendo posted to its YouTube channel and then immediately pulled. The video, which showed off the game's "hero mode" difficulty setting, teased a black Wii U gamepad decorated a golden Triforce and other Zelda inspired accents. The leak doesn't say much else about the hardware, but it's probably safe to assume that the black console matches the 32GB internals of the standard deluxe edition. Price, availability and additional information will have to wait until Nintendo makes this bundle official, but curious folks can find a mirror of the leaked trailer at the source.

0 Comments

Alleged Motorola Droid 5 pics suggest the QWERTY slider still lives

Fans of hardware keyboards have at least one reason to keep rooting for Motorola's Droid line, and these leaked pics suggest it will continue on. Posted on Weibo, these supposed Droid 5 pics show a QWERTY slider that seeming drops the capacitive buttons of its predecessors, and brings wireless charging, NFC and a "shockproof" water / dust resistant design. The laser cut 5-row keyboard we appreciated on the Droid 4 appears to be intact, along with a screen in the 4.3-inch to 4.5-inch range. The conveniently placed Verizon 4G LTE logos also places it as a higher-end companion to the just-announced LG Enact as Android options for fans of hardware keyboards. Any other details are still up in the air, if you have a login for the Chinese social networking service you can check out the source for yourself at the links below.

Read the Full Story | 0 Comments

Google Play Store at Google IO 2013

Google occasionally updates its Play Store rules to weed out inconsistent or shady behavior in Android apps, and we're witnessing one of its larger clean-ups today. The company's new guidelines more explicitly ban device interference: titles in the Play Store can't modify settings or other apps without permission, and they can't install bookmarks or icons that pitch a third-party service. Google is also adamant that any in-game purchases of virtual goods must go through its billing system. As usual, new apps have to follow these guidelines right away, while developers with existing apps have a 30-day grace period to make any changes. The policies won't necessarily stop rogue code from sneaking into the Play Store, but Google can at least say that it gave fair warning.

0 Comments

DNP iFixit disassembles Moto X, finds TKTKTK

Mere hours after the Moto X made it to stores, the iFixit guys have already torn it apart, revealing its innards to all. The guts of the American-assembled handset aren't entirely a surprise: under the hood we've got a motherboard, 16GB of eMMC NAND storage, the usual rear and front camera modules, inductive charging coils and a 3.8-volt 2200mAH lithium-ion battery. The disassemblers praised the replaceability of various modular components, as the tablet uses only one type of screw throughout. Its taped-in battery, display-fused digitizer and sticky adhesives took the Moto X down a few pegs, but its final score of 7 out of 10 still makes this one of the more easily repairable smartphones on iFixit's list. To have a look at just how Google and Motorola's lovechild was put together, hit the source link below.

0 Comments

DNP The Daily RoundUp

You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.

Read the Full Story | 0 Comments

YouTube for Android circa 2013

YouTube launched its Data API to let developers integrate online video into their apps, but the modest caps on daily use have limited the potential of those apps. As of today, YouTube is offering much more breathing room: developers now have 10 times more transaction units each day, and uploads require 10 times fewer units. The extra headroom should lead to apps that not only include many more YouTube videos, but also call more frequently on clip data. While it will likely take some time before we see software that takes advantage of the higher limits, we wouldn't be surprised if our favorite apps become multimedia extravaganzas in the near future.

0 Comments

Rdio for iOS updated with Station Tuning feature, new design for Collections

Rdio's used the past few months to bring an array of improvements to its iOS app -- some functional and some cosmetic. To keep the momentum going, the company today released yet another update, including a Station Tuning feature that lets listeners "adjust any station to play more familiar or more adventurous tracks." Additionally, the app's Collection tab now sports a redesigned look, which makes for an easier, better-looking way to view album artwork. Rdio says search within has been improved as well, while other undisclosed, under-the-hood UI enhancements are also part of this version. Per usual, we've included the download link below.

0 Comments

You can literally plug this phone into the wall

Gone are the days of bizarre phones with some special practical use, but not all hope is lost. Earlier today, this author stumbled upon a shanzhai Android 4.0.1 phone with a built-in power plug! It's a bit awkward, though, as you have to take off the back cover to flip up the Type A plug -- we're assuming it has a world-friendly voltage rating, but we'll double check. Should you wish to juice the phone up the old-fashioned way, the micro-USB port is still there.

Externally, this Daxian N100i seems to be very much "inspired" by the Xiaomi Phone 2 or 2S. Given the HK$599 (about US$80) price point (or about US$40 each in bulk), don't expect too many goodies from this outlandish candy bar: there's a dual-core 1GHz MT6517 chipset, a 4.3-inch 800 x 480 TN display, 4GB of storage, a microSD slot, an 1,800mAh cell (plus a spare in the box) and dual-SIM slots -- but for GSM 900/1800 only. The front and back cameras both have a resolution of just 3.1 megapixels, and it was hard to judge the picture quality on that horrible screen. Still intrigued? Then check out the flip plug in action in our video after the break.

Read the Full Story | 0 Comments