New Sonic Game Rumored To Be Announced Next Month

Sonic is one of those classic games that is right up there with Mario Bros. And just like Mario, Sonic keeps coming back to please fans. Some new rumors suggest that SEGA is ready to announce a new Sonic game in February.

Blizzard Still Working On Blizzard All-Stars

Many gamers are wondering what is going on with Blizzard's Blizzard All-Stars. It was unveiled at BlizzCon in 2010 and they promised that it was "coming soonish". And here we are in 2013. Many gamers have given up hope.

Tim Cook congratulates employees on another record quarter during Town Hall Q&A

“Following reporting what CEO Tim Cook referred to as another record-setting quarter, today the Apple executive sent out an email to employees congratulating the team,” Jordan Kahn reports for 9to5Mac. “Within the email, Cook thanked employees for their ‘incredible hard work and focus’ and highlighted that the company sold over 75 million iOS devices during the quarter.”

Kahn reports, “Like last year, when Apple held a Town Hall meeting following its Q1 results, Cook is asking employees to attend an employee communications meeting scheduled for today at 10 a.m. Pacific time. The email sent out last night following Apple's earnings results conference call, and it noted that employees would be able to submit questions via AppleWeb in advance.”

Read more in the full article here.

Apple in danger of losing ‘Most Valuable Company In The World’ crown

On Jan. 25, 2012, Apple Inc. passed Exxon Mobil as the most valuable publicly-traded company in the world. The gap between #1 and #2 had widened to as much as $240 billion by September 2012 as Apple shares hit all-time record highs. You know, back when we all should have sold our AAPL stock (wink).

“That gap alone is greater than the value of some 98% of the companies in the S&P 500,” Steven Russolillo noted for The Wall Street Journal. “Over the summer Apple even gained the title of biggest U.S. company of all-time, surpassing Microsoft's previous peak in 1999.” (See related articles below.)

“But Apple's fall in recent month has been fast and furious. Thursday alone, the company's market cap fell by as much as $59.48 billion, according to WSJ Market Data Group,” Russolillo reports. “At one point, the gap between Apple and Exxon's market cap had narrowed to only about $6.2 billion.”

Read more in the full article here.

MacDailyNews Take: Damn that all-time record performance! Damn it all to hell!

Embrace the lunacy, folks, for calmer, saner heads will someday prevail and this too shall pass.

Google unveils a more beautiful, reliable, and faster image search with inline results and metadata

Google on Wednesday announced a redesign of its image search feature on Google.com that the company claims is faster, more beautiful, and more reliable. Google says you will see the new look “in the next few days” but wouldn’t get any more specific beyond that.

The new design displays images in an inline panel and lets you quickly flip through a set of images by using the keyboard (we assume this will also work on touchscreens eventually with gestures):

Google says that going back to browsing other search results is as simple as just scrolling down and picking up right where you left off. Yet this is more than just a visual update: the company is finally going to show useful information about the images it is surfacing.

Google’s images section will soon display detailed information (the metadata) right underneath it in the search results; more specifically, key information will be shown much more prominently next each image: the title of the page hosting it, the domain name it comes from, and its size. The company also says the source page will no longer load up in an iframe in the background of the image detail view, significantly speeding up the experience for users.

Do you know what that means? It means no more annoying redirects and landing pages.

All those extra clicks just to get basic data about an image has always been one of my biggest pet peeves about the company’s image search so I’m rather excited about it. Google and Bing have played around with including more details by default (but this required a setting to be turned on), hovering over images, and so on, but I’ve still found all of this to be rather unnecessary. We’ll see soon enough if Google has figured out how to address all these shortcomings.

This is great news for users, but Google is also saying it will be a boon for webmasters. With image search ditching iframes that show the image’s original site in the background, Google says it will reduce the load on the source website’s servers and also improve the accuracy of metrics such as pageviews.

This might seem like a bad idea since image search often leads to a lot of click-throughs for many sites. To compensate, Google is making the domain name for each image clickable and is also adding a new button to visit the page the image is hosted on.

With these changes, Google has effectively doubled the number of clickable targets to the source page from two to four. The company says its tests have revealed a net increase in the average click-through rate to the hosting site, but only time will tell if the same holds true once users become accustomed to the new image search.

We’ll keep you posted as Google rolls out the new image search design.

Image credit: AFP/Getty Images

Apple in China Q1 2013: Revenue up 67% to $6.8 billion as iPhone sales double YoY

Apple began breaking out its Greater China operating segment with the release of its Q1 2013 financials on Wednesday, reporting $6.83 billion in revenue in the region, up 26% sequentially and 67% year-over-year.

The company recorded $54.5 billion in revenue the first fiscal quarter, with $13.1 billion in profit. It sold 47.8 million iPhones and 22.9 million iPads.

Its performance in Greater China, which includes Taiwan and Hong Kong, continues to gain strength, but it did see the region’s share of overall revenue decline sequentially. In Q4 2012, the region accounted for 15% of overall revenue, but it made up just 12.5% in Q1 2013. It is a significant improvement year-over-year, though, as Q1 2012 saw just 8.8% coming from Greater China.

Looking across all of Apple’s operating segments in Q1 2013, Greater China actually had the lowest sequential revenue growth (26%). Japan and the rest of Asia Pacific had the highest with 88% and 89% respectively, and the company’s overall revenue jumped up 52% quarter-over-quarter.

The most likely cause for the lower growth in Greater China is the fact that the mainland didn’t receive the iPhone 5 and the iPad 4 and iPad mini until late in the quarter. The new iPads arrived on December 7th and the iPhone 5 hit the market a week later.

While some naysayers have expressed concerns that Apple’s handset market share in China is under tight pressure from low-priced Android handsets, the iPhone does still appear to be doing well in China. CEO Tim Cook noted during Wednesday’s earnings conference call that iPhone sales grew by triple-digit percentage year-over-year.

“We experienced strong iPhone growth in each of our geographic segments most notably Greater China where iPhone sales more than doubled year-over-year,” he said, as transcribed by Seeking Alpha.

It’s worth noting, though, that the year-ago quarter didn’t have a new iPhone launch on the mainland, as the iPhone 4S didn’t arrive there until January 2012.

Apple reported record iPhone sales of 2 million units in mainland China during its first weekend of sales. The iPad mini also appears to be quite popular in China, as the company has had trouble keeping it in stock since it arrived last month.

Cook himself is optimistic about China, as he told Chinese reporters earlier this month that he expects the region to eventually become its largest market. His recent trip to China included visits with top-ranking government officials and executives at Chinese carriers.

In order to continue its impressive sales growth in China, Apple will eventually need to strike a deal with China Mobile, the country’s largest carrier by a large margin with over 700 million subscribers. Sales on China Unicom and China Telecom are going fine, but the country’s smaller carriers have a much lower ceiling.

China Mobile has said it expects to sell 120 million 3G devices this year, up from 60 million in 2012. By releasing an iPhone compatible with China Mobile’s TD-SCDMA 3G network, Apple could grab a portion of that pie. Though the company might be more inclined to wait for China Mobile’s 4G TD-LTE network to arrive, that’s still a year or two away.

Next quarter will be the quarter to watch for Apple in China, as it will contain the first full quarter of iPhone 5 and iPad mini sales there, as well as the Red Friday shopping event to take advantage of Chinese New Year spending.

Garmin Approach S2 Golf Watch Contains Data On 30,000 Courses Worldwide

If you are an avid golfer and are looking to improve your club selection a little more using the latest technology, you might be interested in a new wrist deveice unveiled by Garmin today, in the form of the Garmin Approach S2.

The Garmin Approach S2 watch has been packed with the data on 30,000 golf courses worldwide out of the box, and includes extensive measurement features and a digital scorecard.

Wii U Receiving Speed Updates And Virtual Console This Spring

Nintendo has today announced via its Nintendo Direct broadcast, that two new updates will be rolling out to the new Wii U games console during the Spring.

Nintendo’s president Satoru Iwata made the announcement this morning revealing that the new updates will provide a speed boost when returning to the Wii U’s menu system.

Apple’s all-time record quarterly earnings disappoint

Apple Inc.’s “fiscal first quarter marks the first full period to include sales of the iPhone 5, which launched in September. The company, which doesn’t break out sales by models, sold a record 47.8 million iPhone smartphones in the latest period, up 29% from a year earlier,” Nathalie Tadena reports for The Wall Street Journal. “Apple also sold a record 22.9 million iPad touchscreen tablet computers in the most recent quarter, a 49% year-over-year increase.”

“For the quarter ended Dec. 29, Apple reported a profit of $13.08 billion, up 0.1% from $13.06 billion a year earlier [and the most profitable quarter for any tech company in history, narrowly edging out Apple's own $13.06 billion record set in the same quarter last year]. On a per-share basis, earnings fell to $13.81 a share from $13.87 a share as the latest period had slightly more shares outstanding. Revenue jumped 18% to $54.5 billion,” Tadena reports. “In October, the company predicted earnings of about $11.75 a share on revenue of about $52 billion. Analysts most recently projected $13.47 share and $54.73 billion, respectively.”

Tadena reports, “Shares fell 10.4% to $460.66 after hours. The stock, which reached an 11-month low last week following reports that Apple cut production for the iPhone for the current quarter, has fallen 16% over the past three months.”

Read more in the full article here.

MacBreak Weekly 334: Kobe Beef Bandwidth

This week on MacBreak Weekly, Leo Laporte, Alex Lindsay, Andy Ihnatko, and I discuss the rumors about new Apple products in 2013, Apple's upcoming quarterly earnings report, and more.

Download and subscribe: TWiT.tv

How to Guest Blog from Your SmartPhone

Guest blogging is a great way for you to reach a brand new audience for your business, grow your brand awareness, and boost your credibility and improve your SEO all while helping out a fellow blogger. The newest way to blog is of course on the trendy Smartphone, and if it is one thing bloggers like it is trends. It can be convenient to blog on the go and not have to sit down at home on a desktop computer. Here are some of the top ways you can use the phone to improve your guest blogging experience.

Smartphone Blogging is Not Impossible

It can be a little tricky writing out a full post from a phone, especially for those that are new to the idea. This won't be a daunting task for the super texters among us who have trained their thumbs accordingly. Some people choose to write the gist of their posts on their laptop and then transfer that to their Smartphone for editing on the go. There are apps, such as voice to text options that can make this an easy task. It all depends on how much you like to type, talk or transfer files.

When you are blogging as a guest on someone else's page you really do want it to be perfect. Luckily you can surf the web, double check facts and stalk Wikipedia for answers all on your phone. What if, even after all your research, while you are out and about you view a comment from a reader pointing out a glaring mistake? How awful it would feel knowing you'd have to wait until you got all the way home in order to fix it. Luckily Smartphones work wonderfully for editing your guest blog. Now if you notice a typo, or have made a huge mistake you can simply delete, retype and then be back to your perfect post in no time.

More Benefits of Smartphone Blogging Apps

Speaking of comments, another great use for the Smartphone is editing and responding to comments while on the go. In this fast paced world people expect a response to what they have said on a blog in a hurry. With the Smartphone, you don't have to stay tied to your computer at home, but can be out and about and still reply to comments, delete spam, and deal with trolls while still being out in the real world, gathering information for your next post. It is also a great way to keep the conversation going on your post, while also filling in any lulls in your day.

Lacking inspiration for your guest blog? Hit the streets and bring your phone along with you. Jot down any inspiration that strikes in a note taking app, research things on the internet, and talk to the locals. Take pictures with your phone to use on your post later, in fact, your adventure to find inspiration may just turn into the post itself!

Checking out your guest blog on your Smartphone is smart for another reason; many viewers are now viewing blogs more often from their phones themselves. If the blog looks good on your mobile phone, you can rest assured that you are reaching the widest possible audience and gaining the most potential followers. See something that isn't meshing well with the mobile view? With Smartphone in hand you are able to make tweaks and changes.

Guest blogging from your Smartphone is a fairly simple and straightforward thing, plus you get all the added convenience of having all your information on the go. If you want to make things even simpler for yourself, download blog helping apps such as BlogPress, Evernote, Photoshop Express, iBlogger, and TypePad. Blogging from your phone may soon be the only way you want to blog!

“ Helene Lazarenco is a dedicated writer at Kepard.com. She is passionate by Technology, Security software and Blogging. Don't forget to try out a VPN service when need a reliable UK VPN. ”

Technology Providers Look to The Future

Five years ago the first iPhone was released and was regarded as a whole new way of using technology on the go; phones were finally capable of not only connecting to the internet, but also surfing it smoothly. Now there are thousands of phones that can do this and most people who use these phones say that they cannot live without them and the information that they provide. With phones now able to navigate you to wherever you want to go or stream live programs while receiving important emails and phone calls all at once, you can understand why people might not be able to function without their phones.

Games have also become something that – instead of just being played at home on a computer or console – you can now play anywhere on your phone. With massive app stores filled with thousands of different games and apps, it's almost hard to choose what type of game you want to play these days. One type that has become very popular is the online casino game; with the many variations on the classic slots or roulette games you can find on some online casinos sites like JackpotCity, there is a lot to choose from. The simplicity of the games has allowed the people who make these games to spend more time on the presentation, and it shows – with great-looking as well as great-playing games available.

But what of the future, what is next on our horizon? Many people believe that cloud computing is the next step we will take in the world of technology. This would allow us to access our home computer wherever we are in the world as long as you have a screen and input methods. You would always be able to access all of your data wherever you are from a simple terminal and the internet.

Image Source : Ashleyellis

Samsung Launches White ATIV Smart PC In South Korea

Samsung launched their ATIV Smart PC, which runs Microsoft’s Windows 8 OS last year, and now they have launched a new version of the device in South Korea, although the only changes are the color scheme as this new version comes in white and keeps the same hardware specifications as the existing model.

The Samsung Ativ Smart PC features an 11 inch display with a resolution of 1366 x 768, and is powered by a 1.5 GHz Intel Atom Z2760 Clover Trail processor, it also comes with 2GB of RAM.

Samsung Galaxy S4 To Go On Sale In April, Feature Wireless Charging (Rumor)

We have been hearing a number of different rumors about Samsung’s next generation Galaxy S smartphone, the Galaxy S4, and now it would appear that the Galaxy S4 will go on sale in April of this year.

That would mean that Samsung will either unveil the Galaxy S4 at Mobile World Congress next month, or at a separate Samsung Unpacked event some time in March.

UK Satellite broadcaster Sky set to roll out local downloads on its Sky Go mobile apps

UK satellite television broadcaster Sky will launch updates to its hugely popular Sky Go apps next week that will enable users to download content and not just stream it. According to UK newspaper The Telegraph, the service will see Sky launch a subscription based service that will not only allow users to stream content that matches their actual home Sky subscription but be expanded to include movies and TV series too.

The subscription will cost 5 a month and will allow you to register up to four devices to download on-demand TV shows and movies from Sky's huge catalogue. The content will stay on your device for 30 days after you have downloaded it then it will not be available. You will be able to download as much content as you like with the only restrictions being the available storage on your device.

The move by Sky will certainly bring some competition to Lovefilm and Netflix which both offer movie and TV show streaming services in the UK. Sky however is such a well-known brand that it is sure to take a big chunk of that market when it launches next week. Currently Netflix offers its streaming service for 5.99 a month and Lovefilm is offering a special price of 4.99 a month; it's no surprise then that Sky chose the 5 a month figure for its service.

Sky claims that more than a quarter of its 11 million subscribers already actively use its Sky Go service. The Sky Go Extra service will be the first mobile TV subscription service in the UK and Ireland that offers Hollywood movies to download and watch offline.

If you are currently a Sky subscriber, would you be happy to pay an additional 5 a month to get access to this service?

Source: The Telegraph

Why Apple had to close at $500 on January 19

Joe Springer on Seeking Alpha proposed the following theory on why institutional money had a lot to gain by pushing Apple's stock price down to $500 by January 19, and a lot to lose if it had remained substantially higher.

So here is our logic to being patient. It is threefold:

1. 
   

   Apple had an enormous amount of call options speculation related to its Summer surge

   
   
2. 
   

   A huge share of this was calls with a strike of around the current price of $550 and higher that expire January 19 2013

   
   
3. 
   

   The institutional money managers that wrote those call options and bought common stock to cover will make a lot of money if a) those options expire worthless, and then b) Apple runs after that expiration date

   
   

It's an interesting theory that I don't know enough about, one way or another, to provide any commentary on. (We'll ask Chris Umiastowsky to weigh in when he can). Maybe Apple just sucks now and everyone who likes Apple products is panicking and ass covering, or maybe there's a concerted effort to make money at Apple's expense. Often the truth lies in between the extreme.

Any smart investor types out there have any light they can shine on this?

Source: Seeking Alpha via Daring Fireball, Loren Brichter

Apple job posting seeks hire to improve Siri’s wit, zeal, and overall banter

“Apple's virtual assistant Siri may have its roots in a Pentagon-funded artificial intelligence research project, but algorithms aren't everything and the Cupertino company is now turning to writers to make Siri smarter,” Tom Simonite reports for MIT Technology Review.

Simonite reports, “A job ad posted by Apple on LinkedIn appeals for: ‘[S]omeone who combines a love for language, wordplay, and conversation with demonstrated experience in bringing creative content to life within an intense technical environment.’ They'll need ‘experience in writing character-driven dialog,’ a good vocabulary, and ideally knowledge of more than one language. The end result, says the ad, will ‘evolve and enrich Siri... known for ‘her’ wit, cultural knowledge, and zeal to explain things in engaging, funny, and practical ways.’”

Read more in the full article here.

All eyes on Apple as company readies Q113 earnings release this Wednesday

“Apple this Wednesday is expected to report record iPhone and iPad sales from the 2012 holiday season,” Neil Hughes reports for AppleInsider.

“This Wednesday’s earnings conference call has already been declared Apple’s most important in a decade,” Hughes reports. “The report arrives as AAPL stock has taken a significant hit in recent months, dipping below the $500 threshold.”

Hughes reports, “The timing of Apple’s selloff is particularly interesting, as the company just completed a holiday quarter that was likely the strongest in its history. Consensus calls for Apple to report $54.58 billion in revenue, which would be up from its previous record of $46.33 billion set in the holiday 2011 period... Particular attention will also be paid to Apple’s guidance for the March quarter. Any potential decreases in demand are expected to be seen in the company’s second quarter of fiscal 2013, which is currently underway.”

Read more, including the analysts’ consensus estimates for Apple Inc. and Apple product unit sales, in the full article here.

MacDailyNews Note: Today is Martin Luther King Day in the U.S. and the markets are closed. As usual on such trading holidays, we will have limited posting today.

PadGadget’s iPad Tips: KikStart, The Perfect App For New iPad Owners – App Review

Here at Padgadget, we feel like it is part of our mission to help others make the most out of their iPad. Whether you are a businessman looking to get the most productivity out of your tablet, or an artist trying to take your creativity to the digital world, we want you to be able to use your iPad to its fullest potential.

For our first installment of Padgadget's iPad Tips, we are going to tell you about KikStart, the app for iPad beginners.

This app is an educational tool that works like an interactive textbook. It is laid out like an instructional course for new iPad users. There are 15 different chapters and a test at the end. Each chapter goes over basic details of your iPad.

For example, in the Multitasking chapter, you'll learn how to switch between apps, access the multitasking bar, and close out apps correctly. In the Camera chapter, you'll find out how to focus a shot, edit an image, and send videos to YouTube.

There are lots of video clips in addition to the reading materials to help you absorb the information. Once you've completed all 15 chapters, you can take the test to see how well you've learned to use your iPad.

This app would be perfect for an organization that is switching over to iPads for employee use. The first chapter touches on proper security and care for iPads and even mentions internal IT practices. If you own a small (or large) business and need to be sure that your new employees know how to use an iPad, you can sit them down with this app and make sure they can pass the test before they can use it. When you pass the test, you can have an official certificate of completion from BCS Charter Institute for IT emailed to you.

Because this app only offers the most basic of information, it is not useful for iPad owners that are already familiar with the fundamental workings of their tablet. If you already know how to access your music playback controls from the multitasking bar, or are aware of the photo sharing features, then you don't need this app. If the sentence above sounded foreign to you, then this should be the first app you buy.

It is a dry read- the app is more like a training manual than anything else- but it is worth it for new iPad owners. I even came across some information that was new to me. For example, I didn't realize I could split my keyboard using touch gestures (if you don't know what it means to split your keyboard, you need this app).

What I liked: The app goes over the basics pretty thoroughly. If you are new to the iPad, it is definitely worth the price.

What I didn't like: The information is presented like a training manual or textbook. It is very dry and kind of boring.

To buy or not to buy: If you are brand new to the iPad, you should get this app. If you know the basics, like how to delete apps, access Siri, and copy and paste text, then you already know most of the information presented in this app.

• Name: KikStart
• Version Reviewed: 2.0.1
• Category: Education
• Developer: BCS Learning and Development
• Price: $6.99
• Score:

This Week’s App Store Editor’s Choice: Temple Run 2

A few months ago, Apple started spotlighting a weekly Editor’s Choice for games and other apps. While the “editor” in question and the criteria for being considered a top pick are unknown, Apple has made it easier to find out about apps that deserve recognition. This week’s Editor’s Choice game is Temple Run 2. The sequel to the most popular endless runner game is more than just another version of the same. Temple Run 2 has better graphics, a more lively landscape, and offers a variety of alternatives to just running.

Temple Run was a huge hit from the moment it launched in the App Store in August of 2011. The tiny start up development team who created Temple Run, Imangi Studios, gained immense notoriety through the following year. When Temple Run: Brave, the Disney-collaborated version of Temple Run hit the App Store in June of 2012, it skyrocketed to the top of the paid apps chart.

It is no wonder Temple Run 2 is generating the kind of attention that its predecessors did. Not only did Imangi Studios launch a sequel game that is set in a new environment with a new enemy (the trifecta of evil monkeys has been replaced by a single, monstrous ape-like beast), but they managed to remake the game to be more exciting, have better graphics, and offer a greater gaming experience.

The game is very similar to its namesake. Players swipe up to jump, down to slide, and side-to-side in order to move left and right. Tilt your iPad to veer from one side of the path to the other, collecting coins and power ups.

In Temple Run 2, the path is more three-dimensional. Instead of a flat run with left and right turns, players run up and down hills, around curves, and up stairs. Additionally, players slide down zip lines and hop into a mine cart, zooming through a gem-filled cavern like Indy himself.

The graphics are significantly better than in Temple Run. The team at Imangi has not been sitting on their hands this past year, eating chocolates and drinking Champagne. They’ve been hard at work developing the next generation of the endless runner genre.

While we may not know why Apple’s “Editor” decides why an app deserves the recognition of being chosen, it is clear that Temple Run 2 receives this week’s Editor’s Choice nod for the advancement in technology, design, and overall performance from the company’s first foray into the gaming world.

Temple Run 2 is free to download and available in the App Store now.

Frog eBike – the Electric Successor to 1985 Frog FZ750 Concept

San Francisco-based Frog Design released images of a new electric motorcycle concept, just as its influential Yamaha FZ750-based Rana concept gets enshrined at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.Frog designer Jin Soek Hwang prepared the Frog eBike concept as an expression of how electric motor technology can influence motorcycle design. In a post on Frog's blog, the designer says he was inspired in part by Frog's 1985 FZ750 Rana concept (pictured after the jump).The Frog Rana was designed by the company's founder Hartmut Esslinger and made the covers of magazines from Cycle World to Business Week. The iconic Rana design was influential for its time, helping lead to the design of the Honda Hurricane.


The new electric concept is highlighted by the large open space where one would expect to find a traditional motorcycle engine, symbolically representing the technological shift from internal combustion power to electric.
The eBike's electric motor is actually located in the hubless rear wheel. The batteries would be located in the lower part of the chassis beneath the open space, helping lower the center of gravity. The handlebars are fixed to the chassis so instead of physically moving the front end, the eBike uses electronic fly-by-wire steering. Other features include , an OLED digital display and online connectivity. The Frog eBike would be accompanied by a helmet equipped with heads-up display with retina tracking.
Via

Nokia Lumia 800 to control Microsoft’s Concept Car

Microsoft has just recently unveiled a concept car called "Project Detroit" which can be controlled using a Nokia Lumia 800 Windows Phone.



Microsoft had this 2012 Ford Mustang with a 1967 body "pimped" Fast and Furious style with the help West Coast Customs, to "inspire developers to think about building apps and automotive technologies of the future." This muscle car is equipped with almost everything that Microsoft currently has in its arsenal: Kinect for Xbox 360, Xbox 360, Windows 8, Windows Phone, Windows Azure, Bing, Ford Sync and more.The Nokia Lumia 800 comes into play by allowing it to remotely unlock and start Project Detroit with the Viper SmartStart app for Windows phone. It also allows you watch and listen to live video streams from the Kinects that are embedded in the car, rendering the rear-view mirror almost obsolete. A few swipes from the Lumia 800 and you can change the accent lighting and horn sound or send a projected message to the rear windshield - "BATMAN CAN KISS MY ***!"Project Detroit also has a Windows 8 - powered tablet embedded on the dash, allowing you to browse the internet or play Xbox games. So, getting stuck in traffic with this baby is no big deal. I know this is still far from getting a real life GTA but it's exciting to see Microsoft's plans in using its technology for a whole new purpose other than showing how rich Bill Gates is.
Did I hear you say, "Shut Up And Take My Money!"?

Written by Louie Diangson

This article was contributed by Louie Diangson, a special features contributor and correspondent for YugaTech. Louie is a staff writer for an American owned BPO company. A social media advocate with high regard for Steve Jobs. You can follow him at @John_Louie.
VIA

Luna: Shattered Hearts Gaming In the Raw

Many aspects go into getting a game up and going and KickStarter has seen hundreds of indie developers try to do just that. So what does it take for a successful campaign? Quite a bit actually and a development team is essential. Does it mean because a game didn’t get funded it wasn’t a good game or even a great idea? Not always but that’s where games like Luna fall in.

Luna has the potential to be a great game especially if it was focused towards the mobile platform of Android and iOS. However lack of funding often means the components and software needed don’t make that a possibility. So what is Luna and what does it have going for it? Luna is an RPG fantasy with the basis that the character relies on a light orb and another in-game character to keep him progressing from level to level. It’s a neat idea though the light orb, which is how you can see in the dark, could use some tweaking. It’s uniqueness is in the fact that all the backgrounds are hand drawn by artist and developer Gillis and it fits in the Retro Game Genre which the mobile platforms are excelling in. Hit the break for more.

However what Luna lacks will also probably be its KickStarter demise. Gillis is the design team and that’s it. Along with that he needs development packages and equipment upgrades. So how does he have a successful campaign, well this one probably won’t hit his desired goal but thankfully you get more than one strike with Kickstater and you can always relaunch a new campaign. Gillis needs the tools and could do so by taking a chance on a small loan which could get him his equipment and networking more his other developers. If all works well and he nails down the right components and preps the game past its current infancy stage he could come back with a strong campaign and possibly blow his goal out of the water. We’ll see how it goes for Gillis click the link here to see his current KickStarter campaign. Press release incoming!

For Immediate Release – Brighton, CO – Luna: Shattered Hearts

solo indie developer Daniel Gill, of Gillis LLC out of Brighton, CO is currently making a platform RPG game called 'Luna Shattered Hearts' and is seeking Kickstarter crowd funding capital. Luna is an amazing 2D side scroller that Daniel Gill, the developer has been working on for six years, and the project is nearly complete. The game features an engaging story and has beautifully hand-drawn graphics. All that's left to do is give Luna an awesome soundtrack, dialog, and sound effects to go along with Luna's already amazing art style. Daniel needs to raise eight thousand dollars to complete the project, and release it. He has already raised close to two thousand with 45 backers on Kickstarter. We are asking for your help letting the public know about Luna, and how they can help this project come to fruition. Once you see Luna you'll be incline to help out also. As an added incentive to help fund this game immediate access to the Beta once the project is funded will be given to all backers. Time is running out and the game is still looking for supporters. The Kickstarter campaign ends February 1st.

We'd like to thank a few journalist who have helped us get Luna to the public:

Louis Edwards – www.terminalgamer.com

Kev J – www.electronictheatre.co.uk

Phil & Brad – www.capsulecomputers.com.au

Patrick Hickey – www.reviewfix.com

Elizabeth Burnette – www.vividgamer.com

Khris Golder – www.gamercheeese.com

William Usher – www.cinemablend.com

Julie Wenzel – www.go-critic.com

Thank you for your continued support.

Supernatural: “Torn and Frayed” Review

Warning, this article contains spoilers.

It’s been several weeks since the last episode of Supernatural, so it was nice to see this one start off with a brief recap. Purgatory, demon tablet, Kevin, Cass, and so on. The last we saw Benny, he killed Martin in self-defense, which drove a deep wedge between Sam and Dean.

Samandriel, or Alfie, was still being tortured. At first, I wasn’t sure how I felt about an angel giving secrets to demons. I understand that Crowley is willing to do anything and go anywhere to get what he wants, but I thought even an angel could still handle him. With how Alfie was treated this episode made me feel sorry for him though. Alfie was put through so much pain that he was able to cause a bush to practically explode. The demon helping Crowley with the interrogation gets is able to get down to Alfie’s “coding,” which makes Crowley focus on nothing but more torture.

Castiel is back from his little respite. He cures a baby from an aneurysm before Naomi sends him on a mission to save Alfie, making Cass think the idea was his and his alone. I don’t really like the meetings with Naomi with how Castiel forgets her yet remembers the topics discussed, but the ending seems to offer a possible explanation behind this. Knowing he can’t handle angel-defensive demons by himself, Castiel turns to Dean. Castiel is still making his awkward entrances and hilarious conversations. Dean knows they need all they can get to handle Crowley, so they find Kevin so they can make more demon bombs. While Castiel is gathering the material for the demon bombs, Kevin is focused on the half of the demon tablet he has and puts headphones on to drown out Dean. Dean takes the opportunity to stand right behind Kevin talking about how hot Kevin’s mom is, which was pretty hilarious. Castiel grabs Sam on his errand run and Dean couldn’t complain because of what they were up against. It’s always nice to see that the brothers can always put their problems aside when the time calls for it and can still work together.

Sam is given the choice of leaving or staying with Amelia. All I will say about this is Sam choose to stick with Dean and I can only hope there is no more Amelia in future episodes. On the other side, Dean gets a call from Benny that felt a little like a cry for help. Benny seemed okay for now, but it was clear he was struggling with his control. I like how all of Benny’s phone calls are outside in a public place like a park. The entire time he talks to Dean he keeps starring at the people who are all around him. At first, Dean wanted to help Benny, but decided that he could no longer help. I don’t know if it’s because of Sam, the demons, or whatever else it could be, but this decision could have a nasty side effect. Benny seemed like he knew this day was coming, but now he is all alone with no one to turn to.

The raid of the demon stronghold was excellent. Castiel had to wait for Sam and Dean to take care of the anti-angel charms, so he gives Sam his weapon. Demons were being stabbed and blown away. Since Castiel kept saying that they needed everything in their arsenal, I was hoping beyond hope that they would still have Thor’s hammer, Mjolnir, from the demon tablet auction episode. Unfortunately it looks like they don’t have the hammer and probably just left it behind after it’s one and only use. Before Alfie could be rescued, Crowley is able to learn that there is an angel tablet. While this news wasn’t too surprising, what was revealed about Naomi is. When Castiel is able to get inside, he started having some sort of mental break down. It seems like he was being affected by Alfie’s painful screams. He begins to see himself being tortured by Naomi in a similar fashion to Alfie’s torture. Castiel is able to save Alfie, who begins to tell Cass things like Naomi is controlling them and he spilled the beans on the angel tablet. Naomi was able to force Cass into killing Alfie and even gave him an explanation to give to the brothers for why he did it. The brothers had to wait before they angel-proofed the room they were in before they felt safe to say “What the hell?” We are starting to learn more about Naomi, and nothing about her seems pleasant.

I normally don’t care about how the camera is handled, but there were some odd shots, such as zooming in on the Impala through a fire. Benny might be falling off the wagon, Crowley is on an angel tablet hunt, Amelia could be out of the picture forever, and Naomi is proving to be a character to watch out for. It makes sense that Amanda Tapping would play a character with more than a desk job, but personally controlling angels? I give Supernatural: “Torn and Frayed” a 9 out of 10

Related articles

• Supernatural Season 8 – Episode 10 Torn and Frayed
• ‘Supernatural’ Torn and Frayed – There’s more than just relationships at stake (Photos)
• Laura Prudom: ‘Supernatural’ Season 8, Episode 10 Recap: Tough Choices In ‘Torn And Frayed’

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This Wacky Angle Makes Trombone-Playing Look Like Bungee Jumping

GoPros are tough little buggers. You can drop one out of a plane and its no worse for the wear. That does mean you always have to go to the extremes, though. CDMVette stuck his GoPro in the relatively un-extreme position of the end of his trombone and the footage is more intense than you might expect. And also just silly. A great combination. [Viral Viral Videos]

Download This App and Learn To Play Blackjack

Contrary to popular belief, Blackjack is not an easy game to play or master. You could learn how to count cards but you'll get kicked out of the casino and possibly banned, like those MIT students from the book Bringing Down the House: The Inside Story of Six MIT Students Who Took Vegas for Millions or the movie "21".

The "book," not the above mentioned book, suggests you do a lot of things under many a circumstance to beat the house. It's rather complicated and if you're the type who learns on the fly, then I suggest you download Blackjack Strategizer for iOS ($1.99).

It'll teach you basic strategy and the touch gestures are the same gestures you'd use at the tables anyway. The app also crunches and displays your statistics in case you're the analytical type. I played it on the plane ride out to Vegas last night and left the tables with an extra $82.50. [iTunes]

Help a Little Planet Find its Way Home in Paper Galaxy – iPad Game Review

Paper Galaxy, from Liquid Entertainment, is a puzzle game featuring a moon named Luna, who has simultaneously lost her way from earth and caught a cold. Players will use the little moon's sneezes to rocket from planet to planet, in search of Luna's lost home.

When I first opened Paper Galaxy, I was reminded of another paper-centric game, Paper Monsters, which featured a 3-D design that had been constructed out of paper, cardboard, and some bits and bobbles. Paper Galaxy has a similar design, with everything made from cute paper cutouts.

To play the game, you will jump from planet to planet. Luna will spin around each planet and you wait until she is lined up with the next planet, tapping to jump.

The goal is to continue on, leaping from planet to planet, collecting the stars that surround each one on your journey.

The stars that are collected are used to purchase power ups, like the super sneeze, used to jump over planets and escape from enemies.

To spice up gameplay, there's a Cosmic Butterfly that Luna can chase for a speed boost. There are also planets that spin faster than other planets, which can be more challenging to navigate because of the increased speed.

In addition to collecting stars, there are also a series of goals to be completed, which can be found by tapping the pause button. Goals might include collecting a set number of stars or traveling a certain distance, and completing each goal will reward you with extra stars.

While you climb upwards, you will need to avoid enemies like the Crab Nebula. When you hit ice walls, you need to tap to get away, and there are also several other obstacles to avoid which keeps gameplay dynamic.

When you are gobbled up by the Crab Nebula, the level will end, and at this point you can purchase upgrades and continue to move on through the game fulfilling a new set of goals.

All in all there are more than 100 goals to fulfill and 120 upgrades to earn, along with Game Center achievements and leaderboards for plenty of gameplay.

What I liked: The graphics in this game are cute, appealing, and colorful. The gameplay is also simple, making this a great choice for children.

What I didn't like: Despite enemies and power ups, the gameplay can be repetitive for more experienced gamers.

To buy or not to buy: If you're looking for a simple casual game that the whole family can play, you won't go wrong with Paper Galaxy.

• App Name: Paper Galaxy
• Version Reviewed: 1.0.1
• Category: Games
• Developer: Liquid Entertainment
• Price: $1.99
• Score:

PadGadget Daily App Deal – 28 iPad Apps on Sale

For today’s Daily Deal we’ve found 28 great apps to add to your iPad collection. We have 6 productivity / entertainment apps and 22 game apps in today’s bundle.

We used our PadGadget Apps Tracker to find these great deals and we’ll continue to look for the best app deals as they pop-up. Some of these apps are up to 90% off, several are even free, so be sure to check them out because they are on sale for a limited time.

Game Apps

1. Burnout CRASH! () – This fun racing game from EA has a 4 star App Store rating and is now available for $0.99. That’s a savings of 80% off the apps’ normal price of $4.99.
2. Fieldrunners 2 HD – This is definitely one of the best tower defense games in the App Store. This game has a 4.5 star App Store rating and is now on sale for $2.99 instead of $7.99. This app weighs in at 330 MB so please be sure that you have enough space on your iPad before downloading.
3. Fieldrunners for iPad – This classic tower defense game has a 4 star App Store rating and is now on sale for $2.99 instead of $7.99.
4. FIFA SOCCER 13 by EA SPORTS () – This popular soccer game has a 4.5 star App Store rating and is now available for $0.99. That’s a savings of 86% off the apps’ normal price of $6.99. This app is a whopper, it weighs in at 1.38 GB so be sure that you have enough space on your iPad and that you are on a speedy network before purchasing.
5. Flight Control HD – This extremely fun plane landing game has a 4.5 star App Store rating and is now available for $0.99. That’s a savings of 80% off the apps’ normal price of $4.99.
6. Fluke HD – This cool strategy game has a 4 star App Store rating and is now on sale for $0.99 instead of $1.99.
7. Fruit Ninja HD – This insanely popular fruit-slashing game has a 4.5 star App Store rating and is now on sale for $0.99 instead of $2.99.
8. Legendary Wars HD () – This role playing game has a 4.5 star App Store rating and is now available for Free instead of $1.99.
9. Mirror’s Edge for iPad – This very popular EA game has a 4 star App Store rating and is now available for $0.99. That’s a savings of 90% off the apps’ normal price of $9.99.
10. MONOPOLY for iPad – This classic board game is now available for $0.99. That’s a savings of 90% off the apps’ normal price of $9.99.
11. NBA JAM by EA SPORTS for iPad – This very popular basketball game has a 4 star App Store rating and is now available for $0.99. That’s a savings of 80% off the apps’ normal price of $4.99. This app weighs in at 251 MB so please be sure that you have enough space on your iPad before downloading.
12. Need for Speed Hot Pursuit for iPad – This great racing game has a 4 star App Store rating and is now available for $0.99. That’s a savings of 80% off the apps’ normal price of $4.99. This app weighs in at 432 MB so please be sure that you have enough space on your iPad before downloading.
13. Need for Speed Most Wanted () – This slick racing game has a 4 star App Store rating and is now available for $0.99. That’s a savings of 86% off the apps’ normal price of $6.99. This app weighs in at 607 MB so please be sure that you have enough space on your iPad before downloading.
14. Plants vs. Zombies HD – This extremely popular zombie game has a perfect 5 star App Store rating and is now available for $0.99. That’s a savings of 86% off the apps’ normal price of $6.99.
15. Power of Logic HD – This cool game has a 4.5 star App Store rating and is now available for Free instead of $0.99.
16. Real Racing 2 HD – This great racing game has top graphics. Real Racing 2 has a 4.5 star App Store rating and is now available for $0.99. That’s a savings of 86% off the apps’ normal price of $6.99. This app weighs in at 444 MB so please be sure that you have enough space on your iPad before downloading.
17. SHIFT 2 Unleashed for iPad – This fun EA car racing game is now available for $0.99. That’s a savings of 80% off the apps’ normal price of $4.99. This app weighs in at 336 MB so please be sure that you have enough space on your iPad before downloading.
18. TETRIS for iPad – This classic brick stacking game has a 4.5 star App Store rating and is now on sale for $0.99 instead of $2.99.
19. The Last Express () – This adventure game has a 4.5 star App Store rating and is now on sale for $2.99 instead of $4.99. This app is a whopper, it weighs in at 1.26 GB so be sure that you have enough space on your iPad and that you are on a speedy network before purchasing.
20. Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 12 for iPad – This insanely popular golf game has a 4.5 star App Store rating and is now available for $0.99. That’s a savings of 80% off the apps’ normal price of $4.99. This app weighs in at 274 MB so please be sure that you have enough space on your iPad before downloading.
21. Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 for iPad – This popular game is now available for $0.99. That’s a savings of 80% off the apps’ normal price of $4.99.
22. Woozzle HD – This puzzle game has a 4 star App Store rating and is now available for Free instead of $1.99.

Productivity and Entertainment Apps

1. Ansel & Clair’s Adventures in Africa – This educational app has a 4.5 star App Store rating and is now on sale for $1.99 instead of $4.99.
2. Halftone () – This very popular photography app has a 4.5 star App Store rating and is now available for Free instead of $0.99.
3. Letters with Pooh () – This Winnie the Pooh app is now on sale for $1.99 instead of $2.99. This app weighs in at 785 MB so please be sure that you have enough space on your iPad before downloading.
4. Perfect Web Browser – EXTRAORDINARY Fullscreen Browser – This very popular web browsing app is now on sale for $0.99 instead of $2.99.
5. Runner’s Log () – This runner’s app has a 4.5 star App Store rating and is now on sale for $0.99 instead of $2.99.
6. WolframAlpha () – This very popular reference app has a 4 star App Store rating and is now on sale for $2.99 instead of $3.99.

Also be sure to check out yesterday’s Daily Deal to find more great savings.

= Indicates app is Universal and will run on an iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch.

We use our PadGadget Apps Tracker to constantly monitor the App Store to find the biggest price changes on iPad apps. Our editorial team goes through the data, picks the best deals on the most interesting apps and then brings them to you on a regular basis. All app prices are checked at the time of posting but prices are subject to change without notice. When developers put their apps on sale it’s usually for a very limited time, often 24 hours or less, so be sure to check pricing on iTunes before making a purchase.

There are only two mapping companies that could possibly make sense for Apple to buy

“We've seen a great deal of speculation in the past week about Apple buying a company to help it solve its nagging mapping headache. The big rumor, both started and squashed by TechCrunch, was Waze, the crowdsourced mapping and traffic app,” John Koetsier reports for VentureBeat. “The only problem with that theory? Waze would only slow Apple down.”

“At least, according to Skobbler's Marcus Thielking. He's the cofounder of Skobbler, a spinoff from Navigon that sells one of the top mapping solutions in the world: GPS Navigation 2 (US$0.99 for iPhone and iPad). It's got a No. 1 sales ranking in app stores in 20 countries and has sold more than three million copies. It's also based on OpenStreetMap, the crowdsourced ‘Wikipedia of maps,’” Koetsier reports. “‘There are only two companies that could possibly make sense for Apple to buy,’ Thielking said this morning from Europe. ‘There's Garmin, which doesn't use TomTom, on which Apple Maps is built, and there's TomTom itself. TomTom would be my bet.’”

Read more in the full article here.

Apple paid $6 billion in U.S. federal income taxes, 1/40th of all corporate income taxes collected by U.S. government in 2012

“Congressional investigators are wrapping up an inquiry into the accounting practices of Apple and other technology companies that allocate revenue and intellectual property offshore to lower the taxes they pay in the United States,” Charles Duhigg and David Kocieniewski report for The New York Times. “The Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations inquiry now drawing to a close began more than a year ago and involves at least a half dozen technology companies, according to people with firsthand knowledge of it, who declined to be identified.”

“Those people said the subcommittee had subpoenaed or otherwise asked the companies to explain methods they used to avoid domestic taxes,” Duhigg and Kocieniewski report. “They said Apple had become a focus of the inquiry and was cooperating with the subcommittee, which is expected to issue wide-ranging recommendations that are likely to play a significant role in Congressional tax code negotiations. Tech companies are able to easily shift ‘intellectual property, and the profit that goes along with it, to tax havens,’ said a former Treasury Department economist, Martin A. Sullivan. ‘Apple went out of its way to try and ensure that its tax savings didn't attract too much public attention, because tax avoidance of that magnitude - even though it's legal and permissible - isn't in keeping with the image of a socially progressive company.’”

MacDailyNews Take: Apple “went out of its way” to legally fulfill their fiduciary duty to their millions upon millions of shareholders worldwide. If you don’t like the laws, change them. How about lawmakers ignore special interests, lobbyists, and campaign contributions and do what’s right for a change? (We know: Ridiculous pipe dream.)

Don’t blame people for following the laws as scribbled, crossed-out and re-scribbled by a decades-long parade of chuckleheads; run through with loopholes into loopholes on top of loopholes.

The problem isn’t Apple Inc. The problem is the tax code.

Duhigg and Kocieniewski report, “In its statement, Apple said it paid ‘an enormous amount of taxes’ to local, state and federal governments. ‘In fiscal 2012 we paid $6 billion in federal corporate income taxes, which is 1 out of every 40 dollars in corporate income taxes collected by the U.S. government,’ it said.”

Read more in the full article here.

MacDailyNews Take: In 2012, Apple paid $6 billion in U.S. federal income taxes, 1/40th of all corporate income taxes collected by the U.S. government.

The New York Times: How Apple sidesteps billions in global taxes – The New York Times, April 28, 2012

[Thanks to MacDailyNews readers too numerous to mention individually for the heads up.]