Google releases YouTube Capture app for iPhone

Google has released YouTube Capture app for iPhone in an attempt to plug a gaping hole in its existing YouTube app, which does not include the ability to upload videos.

Flush the toilet? There's an app for that

The Japanese, always at the forefront of innovative technology, now seem to have outdone themselves by devising a toilet that can be controlled by a smartphone.

App aims to keep up with Santa on Christmas Eve

Children eager to track Santa Claus on his annual yuletide journey to homes across the world can download a new mobile app from the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD).

Polling station information in India to be available on Google Maps

Indian electors can now locate their polling stations and access other electoral information online using Google Maps, an official said Saturday.

Comcast app to let viewers store, replay movies

Comcast, the country's largest cable company, says its tablet and phone app now lets subscribers download and store movies and TV shows from some channels for offline viewing.

Yahoo revamps Flickr iPhone app to make it more Instagram-like

Yahoo! joined the fray over smartphone photo-sharing Wednesday by making it more enticing for iPhone users to use its Flickr service amid a rift between Twitter and the popular photo app Instagram.

Yahoo revamps email; pushes new iPhone, Android, Windows 8 apps

Yahoo Inc rolled out new versions of its popular Web email on Tuesday, the first major product makeover since Chief Executive Marissa Mayer took the helm of the struggling Internet company five months ago.

New app prepares travelers for the holiday rush

Crowded airports and delayed flights are unavoidable hallmarks of holiday travel, but a new app aims to make the experience more navigable.

Government investigating makers of cellphone apps

The government is investigating whether software companies that make cellphone apps violated the privacy rights of children by quietly collecting personal information from mobile devices and sharing it with advertisers and data brokers, the Federal Trade Commission said Monday. Such apps can capture a child's physical location, phone numbers of their friends and more.

Weight loss? There's an app for that - and it works

Mobile devices that let people track how much they eat and exercise may help them shed weight over and above the benefits of a typical weight-loss program, according to a U.S. study.

Apple's Australia map glitch: Snakes! In the desert!

Australian police have warned travellers off using Apple's troubled iPhone mapping software after several motorists became stuck in a snake-infested, desert corner of the country while using their phone for directions.

Mobile video calling creates a new frontier

The next competition in technology is your face - anywhere, anytime.

As the cameras and screens of smartphones and tablets improve, and as wireless networks offer higher bandwidth, more companies are getting into the business of enabling mobile video calls.

Apple Maps glitch could be deadly: Australian police

Australian police Monday warned motorists about using the map system on new Apple iPhones after rescuing several people left stranded in the wilderness, saying the errors could prove deadly.

Google Apps Basic Free package discontinued, Now priced US$ 50 per user per year

Planning to host your official emails with Google Apps? Then you will be disappointed to know that Google is killing the Google Apps Basic Free package and replacing it with their premium only package. The premium pack costs US$ 50 per user per year, and promises 24/7 phone support, 25GB inboxes and a 99.9% uptime guarantee.

Delta Airlines sued over mobile app privacy policy

California sued Delta Airlines Inc. on Thursday, alleging the Atlanta-based company is breaking state law by not warning users that the airline is collecting sensitive information each time customers contact the company on its "Fly Delta" mobile application.

Skype slip indicates video messaging feature coming soon

Skype looks set to introduce video messaging service on its platform, a change to its terms of service indicates.

The change, first spotted by the guys at Computerworld, mentions a video message feature that will be available to Skype Premium subscribers without any limit. Regular (free) subscribers will be able to use the service, subject to certain limits.

"If you are a Skype Premium subscriber you can ... send and receive an unlimited number of Video Messages and any Video Messages you send and/or receive shall have no expiry date. If you are not a Skype Premium subscriber, the number of Video Messages you can send are limited, however you can receive an unlimited number of Video Messages."

Skype Premium is a service that costs $8.99 a month and offers unlimited calls to US and Canada (with fair usage limits) and other features like group video calling and group screen sharing.
The terms further indicate that messages sent by non-premium users will expire within 90 days.

"As a non-Skype Premium subscriber any Video Message you send or receive will expire within 90 days, except for Video Messages received from a Skype Premium subscriber or where you upgrade to a Skype Premium subscription before the 90 day expiry period ends, and in either case the Video Message shall cease to have an expiry date."

Skype refused to confirm the report despite Computerworld's request for comment.

 

Modern Combat 4: Zero Hour launched for iPhone, iPad

Gameloft's latest Modern Combat 4: Zero Hour has made its much-awaited debut on iPhone and iPad, while the Android version has been delayed. The game comes with enhanced graphics such as real-time shadows and other improvements including more "military support", tactical gameplay and campaign programming.

Modern Combat 4: Zero Hour is optimised for the iPhone 5's 4-inch display and is now available as a universal app for Rs. 390 ($6.99) from the App Store.

Full release notes:

The #1 FPS is back on smartphone with a new chapter to push the boundaries of mobile gaming even further. In the wake of a nuclear disaster, the only chance to avoid global devastation is in the hands of the few elite soldiers who must track down and rescue the world's leaders from a frighteningly familiar terrorist group.

DIVE INTO THE MOST MEMORABLE ACTION THRILLER EVER
* Feel the story's dramatic intensity and see both sides of the story by also playing the villain, Edward Page.
* Dominate the battlefield with a new tactical movement system!
* Fight all over the world, from Antarctica to Barcelona!

EXPERIENCE CONSOLE-QUALITY GRAPHICS AND SOUND
* Feel the chaos of war with console-like graphics, lifelike animations and dynamic objects.
* The first Gameloft title powered by the Havok Engine for amazing ragdoll effects and the most realistic-feeling vehicles ever.
* Improved sound & voice acting performed by a renowned studio in the movie industry.

ENJOY A FULLY REDESIGNED MULTIPLAYER MODE
* Forge your own gameplay profile with an improved loadout system & over 20,000 weapon arrangements!
* A new specialization system with redesigned skills.
* Lead your character to the top of the leaderboards with a new ranking system!

Modern Combat 4: Zero Hour is optimized for the 4-inch Retina display on iPhone 5

 

Checkout the video:-

 

Ask.com adds mobile apps to its search results

You're about to discover more useful apps for your smartphone or tablet computer at Ask.com beginning Tuesday.

At least that's the thinking behind a licensing agreement that Ask's search engine has forged with Silicon Valley startup Quixey, which has spent the past three years refining a technology to analyze the services offered through millions of applications designed for iPhones, iPads, Android gadgets, Windows devices and BlackBerrys.
Results from Quixey's database will now appear among the answers that Ask delivers to questions posed on its search engine. The apps results primarily will be featured in a new section of Ask that is scheduled to debut at 8 p.m. ET Tuesday.
In some cases, though, an app might appear in the main results, even when a request isn't explicitly seeking a mobile application. For instance, someone looking for good places to take a hike might see an app for locating trails listed among the results. Or a query for the television series "30 Rock" may highlight apps from Netflix or Hulu that offer entire episodes instead of just listing Web links with information about the show.
Ask's addition of an apps section is another example of the accelerating shift from personal computers to mobile devices, a move that is reshaping the way people interact with technology. The evolution will force general-purpose search engines to change their ways or risk becoming less relevant, predicts Quixey founder and CEO Tomer Kagan.
"Search is no longer about just reading documents," Kagan said. "It's about finding the technology to help us with what we are trying to do."
Ask, which is owned by IAC/InterActiveCorp is hoping the new apps feature can lure some traffic away from the Internet's much larger search engines.
Although it processes more than a half billion requests each month in the U.S. alone, Ask remains a distant fourth among search engines with a market share of about 3 percent, according to the latest data from the research firm comScore Inc. Google Inc. runs the dominant search engine with nearly 67 percent share of the U.S. market, followed by Microsoft Corp.'s Bing at 16 percent and Yahoo at 12 percent.
"Apps are gateways to some of the most top-notch digital content out there, so this integration fits perfectly with where our product is headed," said Shane McGilloway, Ask's chief operating officer.
The Ask alliance represents the largest licensing deal so far for Quixey, which has raised about $24 million since its inception in October 2009. The company currently employs about 50 people at its Mountain View, Calif. headquarters. Quixey's technology is also available on its own website and through a few other partners. It is also featured in the Skyfire browser that's included on some of the mobile phones sold by AT&T Corp.
People already conduct regular searches for apps, usually within the individual stores set up for each of the major operating systems that power mobile devices.
The database that Quixey is licensing to Ask is meant to serve as a one-stop shop to find any app available on any operating system. Kagan believes Quixey is better equipped to point out apps that pertain to general search requests because its technology analyzes the tasks programs perform instead of just relying on the words contained in brief descriptions of the software.
"We are trying to show you an app that answers your question, not just an app that matches a word in your request," Kagan said.

New app will let smartphones sense your moods too

Forget about your smart phone locating the nearest bus stop or restaurant. A new computer programme would enable the gadget to sense your moods too, through mere speech, with pinpoint accuracy, say researchers.
Surprisingly, the programme doesn't look at the meaning of the words.
"We actually used recordings of actors reading out the date of the month it really doesn't matter what they say, it's how they're saying it is what we're interested in," said Wendi Heinzelman, professor of electrical and computer engineering at the Rochester University.
Heinzelman explained that the programme analyzes 12 features of speech, such as pitch and volume, to identify one of six emotions from a sound recording. And it achieves 81 percent accuracy - a significant improvement on earlier studies that achieved only about 55 percent accuracy, according to a Rochester statement.
The research has already been used to develop a prototype of an app. The app displays either a happy or sad face after it records and analyzes the user's voice. It was built by one of Heinzelman's graduate students, Na Yang, during a summer internship at Microsoft Research.
"The research is still in its early days," Heinzelman added, "but it is easy to envision a more complex app that could use this technology for everything from adjusting the colours displayed on your mobile to playing music fitting to how you're feeling after recording your voice."
Heinzelman and her team are collaborating with Rochester psychologists Melissa Sturge-Apple and Patrick Davies, who are currently studying the interactions between teens and parents.
"A reliable way of categorizing emotions could be very useful in our research," Sturge-Apple said. "It would mean that a researcher doesn't have to listen to the conversations and manually input the emotion of different people at different stages."
Teaching a computer to understand emotions begins with recognizing how humans do so. "You might hear someone speak and think 'oh, he sounds angry!' But what is it that makes you think that," asks Sturge-Apple.
She explained that emotion affects the way people speak by altering the volume, pitch and even the harmonics of their speech. "We don't pay attention to these features individually, we have just come to learn what angry sounds like - particularly for people we know," she adds.
These findings will be presented Wednesday at the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Workshop on Spoken Language Technology.