Facebook today released an updated Facebook Messenger app that has been redesigned for iOS 7 with a simpler interface and a cleaner look for easier navigation.
The update also includes messaging via phone number, allowing users to send messages to people outside of Facebook, and there is a new icon that indicates which friends are logged into the app.
Apple’s new Retina iPad mini includes the same 64-bit A7 chip used in the iPad Air and the iPhone 5s, which offers significantly better performance than the A5 chip found in the original iPad mini.
According to new Geekbench 3 benchmarks, the Retina iPad mini is running at 1.3Ghz, much like the iPhone 5s. The iPad Air, however, clocks in at 1.4Ghz, giving it a slight performance edge over both the iPhone 5s and the new mini.
The Retina iPad mini scored a 1390 on the single-core test and a 2512 on the multi-core test, which was similar to the iPhone 5s score of 1399/2523, and lower than the iPad Air at 1466/2856. Compared to the 261/493 score of the original mini, the Retina iPad mini marks an incredible boost in performance speeds.
It is unclear why the mini is clocked at 1.3Ghz instead of 1.4Ghz like the iPad Air, but in terms of real world usage, users are unlikely to notice the small speed differences. It is possible that Apple chose the lower clock speed in the iPad mini to improve overall battery life or to reduce heat within the smaller chassis.
Apple’s Retina iPad mini went on sale last night at midnight and is currently still available from the Apple Online Store and in Apple retail locations via Personal Pickup.
Following last week’s announcement of a significant update that would bring iOS 7’s Notification Center alerts to the Pebble Smart Watch, Apple has approved Pebble’s app update, enabling the new functionality for Pebble owners.
Version 1.3.0 of the Pebble Smartwatch app supports Apple’s iOS 7 notification system for the iPhone 4s and higher, allowing all Notification Center alerts to be displayed on the watch face. Previously, notification alerts were limited to calls and text messages, but now the Pebble Smart Watch is able to display notifications from apps like Twitter, Facebook, Google+, Calendar, Instagram, and more.
Along with the new notification functionality, Pebble has also launched its 2.0 SDK, adding APIs for Javascript, Accelerometer, Data Logging, and Persistent Storage to allow developers to create apps that interface directly with the web.
Apple is developing two next-generation iPhones with larger, curved glass screens set for release late next year, reports Bloomberg. The new iPhones will feature displays at 4.7 and 5.5 inches, with the report also claiming that Apple is working on enhanced touch sensors that incorporate pressure sensitivity for later iPhone models after next year.
Two models planned for release in the second half of next year will feature larger displays with glass that curves downward at the edges, said the person, declining to be identified as the details aren’t public. Sensors that can distinguish heavy or light touches on the screen may be incorporated into subsequent models, the person said.
The new iPhones will be Apple’s largest at screens of 4.7 and 5.5 inches, the person said, approaching in size the 5.7-inch Galaxy Note 3 that Samsung Electronics Co. debuted in September. The South Korean maker last month released the curved display Galaxy Round, the latest phone in an array of sizes and price points that’s helped keep it ahead of Apple in global market share.
The new Apple handsets are still in development and plans haven’t been completed, the person said, adding that the company will probably release them in the third quarter of next year.
While Apple routinely develops prototype devices that are never released, rumors of an iPhone featuring a significantly larger screen have surfaced occasionally throughout the past couple of months. The Wall Street Journal reported in July and September that Apple had begun testing prototype iPhones with screens as large as six inches, and a report last month from NPD DisplaySearch speculated Apple may launch both a 4.7-inch and a 5.7-inch iPhone in 2014.
MacRumors released a printable papercraft version of a 5-inch iPhone back in February of this year after other rumors of a larger iPhone surfaced.
Apple’s iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c were most popular with previous iPhone owners upgrading from older iPhones, according to new data gathered by Consumer Intelligence Research Partners.
Approximately 65 percent of total iPhone 5s/5c buyers in the United States previously owned an iPhone, compared to 55 percent of iPhone 5 purchasers a year ago. While 12 percent of consumers who purchased an iPhone 5 last year were upgrading from an iPhone 4s, just 6 percent of iPhone 5s/5c purchasers upgraded from an iPhone 5, with the rest of the former iPhone buyers coming from older models like the iPhone 4 and 4s or non-iPhone devices.
The lack of interest from iPhone 5 owners is likely due to the fact that the iPhone 5s and the iPhone 5c are somewhat minor updates that have not resulted in a change in form factor. The iPhone 5c in particular uses the same components found in the iPhone 5, and it is possible that continued iPhone 5s shortages have discouraged some iPhone 5 owners from upgrading to the latest model.
Popular fitness tracking app Runkeeper has been updated today with several new featurestaking advantage of some of the software and hardware improvements released by Apple with iOS 7 and the iPhone 5s.
As with several other fitness apps such as Nike+ Move, RunKeeper is now able to tap into the M7 motion coprocessor included on the iPhone 5s. The M7 automatically tracks movement in the background, and RunKeeper can use that data to add certain activity sessions to your workout list retroactively.
If you’ve ever been walking around a lot and wished you had tracked it with RunKeeper, regret no more! Our new Pocket Track feature tracks walks of at least 15 minutes automatically and gives you the option to add those to your activity list. Just be sure to opt in to background activity tracking when you install this update, and also open up RunKeeper at the end of each day so you can find those walks that were tracked.
The new version of RunKeeper also includes support for the AirDrop feature of iOS 7, allowing users to easily transfer friend requests and workout information to other RunKeeper users.
X431 Pro with Bluetooth/Wifi based on Android system is a new car malfunction diagnostic device developed by Launch Tech for internet application. X 431 PrO completely substitutes X431 IV and X431 Diagun III.
X431 Pro achieves the full car model and full system fault diagnosis through the bluetoooth communication between DBSCar connector and intelligent mobile terminal. X-431 Pro taking the advantage of mobile internet, can share maintenance data and case library, provide instant maintenance information, and build public and private maintenance social circle,etc.
Google today released a major update to its Google Searchapp for iOS, implementing a multitude of new features to Google Now, its built-in personal assistant often compared to Apple’s Siri.
With the update, Google Now has gained Notifications, Reminders, new cards that include tickets and boarding passes, and handsfree voice activation on the iPhone 4s and later. Voice searches and commands can be activated with the phrase “OK Google,” which implements a search.
With notifications, Google Now can provide information on appointments and meetings. Reminders is a robust feature that works with standard reminders, such as “Remind me to buy coffee beans at Starbucks,” and with requests that allow users to be notified when a favorite TV show has a new episode or a musician releases a new album.
In addition to the new Google Now capabilities, Google Search has also gained a simplified homepage, new zoom gestures, one touch sign in with other Google apps, and improved voiceover accessibility.
USB ELM327 V1.4 OBDII scanner does all of the hard work of protocol translation into a simple ASCII character based view.ELM327 V1.4 is used as an interface to connect virtually all OBD-II compliant vehicles to a PC for on-board diagnostics (OBD) Via the included serial cable. Such vehicles are VW, Audi, Seat, Skoda, Opel, Vauxhall, Alfa, Mercedes, Smart, Renault, BMW, Peugeot, Citroen, Lotus, Ford, Rover, Aston Martin, Ferrari, etc.
ELM327 V1.4 Feature:
USB ELM327 V1.4 supports 9 protocols in all – SAE J1850 PWM, SAE J1850 VPW, ISO 9141-2 and ISO 14230-4 as well as CAN Bus ISO 15765-4.
Precision-moulded diagnostic connector made to fit all VW/Audi vehicles, even those with “tight” trim around diagnostic socket.
USB port design.
Internal EEPROM can remember the last protocol.
Voltage input monitors your vehicle’s battery.
New for USB ELM327 V1.4:
General Items:
RS232 baud rates to 500 Kbps
Adaptive Timing automatically adjusts ST timeouts
Power up to AT MA is selectable
Source (tester) address can be changed
Can reset all PPs with a jumper
Receive addresses can be independently set
Power Control with a low power standby mode
A 4800 baud ISO option
A non-volatile memory location for storing user data
CAN extended addressing support
You can now perform ISO/KWP bus initializations without having to send a request
An SS command allows searching through the OBD protocols sequentially
A new TA command allows the Tester Address to be easily changed
Factory calibration for the voltage reading circuit can be easily restored
J1850:
Complete control over in frame responses (IFRs)
Delay before protocol 2 helps with some GM/Holden vehicles
ISO 9141 and ISO 14230:
The slow initiation address can now be varied
Control over key word checking
KWP protocols can now transmit 3 or 4 byte headers
CAN:
New J1939 protocol
Two user-definable CAN protocols
Improved error handling and recovery
Extended addressing support
Related ELM327 introduction: ELM327 1.5V USB CAN-BUS Scanner
