Foursquare's been rather attentive to the other mobile plaforms this year, releasing updates for Android, BlackBerry and iOS in 2013. The time has finally come for Microsoft mobile users as well, as a fresh WP8-compatible version has just hit the Windows Phone app store. Version 3.0 lets users pin people and places to your Start screen, provides lock screen notifications and lets users check-in and share via NFC. Oh, and should you grow weary of using swipes and taps, the addition of speech controls allows you to search and check-in using only your voice. Should you be among the socially-inclined Microsofties, you know what to do.

Filed under: Cellphones, Software, Microsoft

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Via: The Verge

Source: Windows Phone Blog, Windows Phone App Store

via Engadget RSS Feed http://www.engadget.com/2013/05/07/foursquare-updates-windows-phone-8-app/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget

Engadget RSS Feed johalputt Michael Gorman

09:37

More Info

• Sonos Playbar: a home theater soundbar that wirelessly streams music for $699, we go hands- (and ears) on


• Sonos Playbar appears at the FCC


• Sonos for iOS adds direct device streaming, takes PCs out of the equation (hands-on)

Sonos has found a sweet spot in the audio world. Its wireless technology and ability to stream music from almost any source -- be it from the cloud or local storage -- have given it considerable geek cred, yet its simple setup still offers mass appeal. Of course, none of that would matter if its systems didn't sound good, but fortunately, Sonos' Play:3, Play:5 and its Sub have all impressed with the quality of audio they produce. The $699 Playbar is the newest member of the family, and with this product, Sonos is setting its sights squarely on the home theater market. Is it fit for your living room? Read on to find out.

Gallery: Sonos Playbar review

Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD

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via Engadget RSS Feed http://www.engadget.com/2013/03/25/sonos-playbar-review/

Engadget RSS Feed johalputt Michael Gorman

07:19

Qualcomm unveiled its new Snapdragon SoC flag bearer at CES, and here at MWC 2013 we got to see some of what the 800 series can do. Last week, the company revealed the chip's voice activation feature that allows users to wake the chip up using a voice command. We got to see one application of this technology used to launch Google Now using the keywords "hey Snapdragon," though when it makes its way into consumer devices, that keyword will be customizable. It was a limited demo, but the ability to wake your phone and launch apps without having to press a button (see: Siri and Google Now) is certainly an attractive proposition.

We also got to witness the 800's image processing capabilities when paired with one of Pelican Imaging's array cameras. Using images taken with that plenoptic shooter, changing the focal plane of an image or cropping out individuals from a group photo was easily handled by a Qualcomm prototype tablet packing a Snapdragon 800. Enough chatter on the matter, however, you can see for yourself in the video after the break.

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Mobile

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via Engadget RSS Feed http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/25/qualcomm-snapdragon-800-voice-activation-plenoptic-photo-editing/

Engadget RSS Feed johalputt Michael Gorman

05:49

Marvell made waves last year with its 802.11ac wireless chips, but the company's looking to make a splash in 2013 with a new quad-core ARM Cortex-A7 SoC. Called the PXA1088, the new silicon's calling card -- other than those four CPU cores -- is its ability to beam 3G data to mobile devices anywhere in the world thanks to auto-roaming and compatibility with 21Mbps HSPA+, TD-HSPA+, EDGE, and WCDMA networks. In addition to those cellular radios, it also has an Avastar 88W8777 chip that brings WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0 and FM radio, plus it has a GPS and GLONASS location processor on board.

Worldwide connectivity isn't the PXA1088's only trick, either. It's got some serious video chops thanks to a hardware 1080p encoder and decoder, and a GPU from Vivante compliant with OpenGL ES 2.0 and 1.1 as well as OpenVG 1.1. Can't wait to get your grubby mitts on a phone packing Marvell's latest? The company tells us that several well-known OEMs will be rolling out devices with the PXA1088 in the first half of the year. Of course, we're hoping to see a few of them ourselves next week at Mobile World Congress, so stay tuned.

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Mobile

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via Engadget http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/19/marvell-pxa1088-quad-core-cortec-a7-soc/

Engadget johalputt Michael Gorman

05:19