Braintree, which allows business to process credit card payments online, announced its acquisition of startup Venmo last Friday. Venmo lets you pay friends for things like drinks or a cab ride using a bank transfer, debit card, or credit card. By joining forces with Braintree, the two companies can move toward the utopian “digital wallet,” where...
The post Braintree Acquires Venmo, Goes After PayPal appeared first on Tech Cocktail
Greetings citizens of Android Central! The Mobile Nations World Tour continues, and I confess I have been slacking. My BlackBerry duties pulled me away. I have a couple more quality posts due to hit the blogs here before I move onto my stint with Windows Phone. But I wanted to chime in quick to let you know about a new app that just went live minutes ago in the Google Play Store... the CrackBerry Forums App for Android!
Yes, there is a story behind this one. We wanted to get an interim CrackBerry forums app up and running for the BlackBerry PlayBook quickly while we continue to work on our upcoming native BlackBerry 10 app. We found the easiest and best way to do this was to have our friends at Tapatalk port over their Android client. We launched that version yesterday in BlackBerry App World. As a byproduct of those efforts, we had the .apk in our hands so figured it wouldn't hurt to get it live in the Google Play store as well. Judging from the comments to my previous posts here, I know a bunch of you are former BlackBerry users and CrackBerry members. It's all good.
The app is of course free. So if you have a soft spot for your old BlackBerry, want to keep in touch with CrackBerry friends or want to keep up to date with all the chatter surrounding the upcoming launch of BlackBerry 10 phones, be sure to give the CrackBerry Forums app a download in Google Play. The app makes it easy to browse the forums from your Android device. Just remember, if you're going to post, don't be a troll about it. Nobody likes trolls. Be like Phil and Jerry who have already downloaded the app and given it a 5 star rating along with some awesome reviews. ;)
The next move is yours Phil. I can't wait for you to come on CrackBerry and announce the launch of the Android Central app in BlackBerry App World.
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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/fUZJqLe78ww/story01.htm
JDS UNIPHASE JDA SOFTWARE GROUP JACK HENRY and ASSOCIATES IXYS
Samsung has announced three Windows 8 tablets under a new Ativ brand -- the Ativ Tab, Ativ Smart PC and Ativ Smart PC Pro -- which use ARM, Intel Atom and Intel Core i5 processors, respectively.
They look like triplets, but they actually differ in subtle but important ways. We're going to go enzymic on the details and break them down like a protein to help you digest them.
By: Nate Lanxon, Edited by: Olivia Solon
Continue reading...Source: http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/30/samsung-ativ
Mitt Romney delivered a startling line in his speech last night.
And part of the line got a startling and unfortunate reaction.
The line, however, also invoked a profound truth, one that politicians and people on both sides of the aisle need to pay attention to.
This was the line:
"President Obama promised to begin to slow the rise of the oceans. And to heal the planet. My promise is to help you and your family."
The first part of that line--the part about slowing the rise of the oceans and healing the planet--was met with laughter. That's unfortunate, because it confirms the stereotype of the GOP as the party of benighted meatheads who couldn't care less about the environment or science.
(You don't have to think it's ridiculous to care about the environment to believe that the well-being of people is a more important priority).
But the end of the line--about helping families--was met with cheers and applause. As it should have been.
President Obama wants to help families, too, of course--in fact most of his speeches and policies are about doing just that. And protecting the environment is often very consistent with helping people. So Romney's trying to draw a contrast with Obama in this way is unfair.
But Romney's line does get an an important truth:
When it really comes down to it, if you forced most people to choose between easing human suffering OR slowing the destruction of the planet, they would choose easing human suffering.
Put differently, the health of the environment will always be a lower priority for most people than the health of themselves and their families and friends. And that's perfectly fair.
So if we really want to help the planet--and we should want to, given that we live on it--we need to remember where that priority falls in the hierarchy of most people's decision-making. And we need to do everything we can to help everyone on the planet satisfy their basic needs--food, shelter, safety, and healthcare.
Because it's only once those needs are met that people can reasonably begin to care about things that are as vague as "rising oceans" and "healing the planet."
Here's the clip from Mitt Romney's speech:
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IFA 2012: In real life
Samsung has announced the first Windows Phone 8 smartphone, the?Samsung ATIV S,?at its?IFA 2012?press conference, and the Windows Phone blog has snapped it from all directions to show us what we can expect from the metal-clad device when it launches later this year.?
Inside the 8.7mm brushed-aluminum chassis is a huge 4.8-inch HD Super AMOLED display made from Corning Gorilla Glass 2. Powered by a 1.5Ghz dual-core processor, 1GB of on-board RAM, and an 8MP autofocus rear camera and 1.9MP front-facing camera it's similar to Nokia's Lumia 900 but features a bigger screen and obviously Windows Phone 8?rather than Windows Phone 7.?
Storage wise you'll get 16GB or 32GB version and a MicroSD slot for expanded storage. Don't forget there will be SkyDrive support as well to go one step further.
The ATIV S next to previous Windows Phones from Samsung
Backing all of this up is a massive 2300mAh battery to keep you rocking all day. We?are going to try to track down the phone at IFA to bring you our own batch of photos and first impressions on the device. In the meantime enjoy Microsoft's efforts of the new Samsung ATIV S. ?
Tags: IFA2012 Samsung Samsung ATIV S Phones Windows Phone 8 Microsoft
Samsung ATIV S Windows Phone 8 smartphone in pictures originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 30 Aug 2012 00:10:00 +0100
Source: http://www.pocket-lint.com/news/47196/samsung-ativ-s-windows-phone-8-pictures
Videos are important to your marketing strategy, but the ability to easily share them is much more important. Video sharing took a giant leap forward with the launch of YouTube in 2005. With over 2 billion views daily, which encompass 83% of the US Internet audience according to comScore, YouTube has solidified video as the...
The post Increase Video Sharing By Fixing “Premature Video Boredom” appeared first on Tech Cocktail
Source: http://tech.co/video-sharing-premature-video-boredom-2012-08
CEO Kaz Hirai says new portable is performing just about where company expects it to in most territories, but won't disclose where system is lagging.
The PlayStation Vita has sold 2.2 million units worldwide since its launch in February, which--according to Sony CEO Kaz Hirai--is roughly in line with expectations. Speaking to Reuters in an interview published today, the executive said the new portable is performing up to par in most territories.
"Worldwide, the Vita is pretty much along where we would expect it to be; maybe trending behind in certain territories," Hirai said, declining to specify where sales of the PS Vita were coming up short.
The PS Vita, which went on sale in February at $250, will have to perform better if it wants to draw even with Nintendo's 3DS. That system, which went on sale about a year before the PS Vita, has sold 19 million units worldwide.
One of the criticisms of the PS Vita is that there are simply not enough compelling games available for it. Nintendo designer Shigeru Miyamoto said in May that, "It's obviously a very hi-spec machine, and you can do lots of things with it, but I don't really see the combination of software and hardware that really makes a very strong product."
Big-name games that have yet to release for the PS Vita include Assassin's Creed III: Liberation, Call of Duty: Black Ops Declassified, Little Big Planet, Killzone: Mercenary, Lego Lord of the Rings, and PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale.
Sony Worldwide Studios boss Shuhei Yoshida said earlier this month that it is "too early" to implement a price cut for the PS Vita this year. Instead, he said he hopes software bundles like those for Little Big Planet and Call of Duty: Black Ops Declassified will steer prospective buyers toward purchases.
Read and Post Comments | Get the full article at GameSpot
Source: http://www.gamespot.com/news/sony-ps-vita-sales-nearly-in-line-with-expectations-6393927
Sony didn't exactly go out of its way to talk up the new HMZ-T2 during its press conference the other day at IFA, never actually mentioning it on stage. The device did, however, pop up in a small corner of the company's show booth. The reason for the silence is pretty clear, when you get down to it -- not a lot has changed here. Really, the T2 is just a minor update to a first generation product, most of its changes revolving around making the admittedly slightly uncomfortable wearable a bit easier on your head. It's 100 grams lighter than its predecessor and features improvements to its adjustable parts.
The head pad is larger and can be moved to better fit your head, the strap can be adjusted at a number of points and the sliders beneath the 0.7-inch OLED monitors can be adjusted independently from one another. Oh, and while there are Virtualphone built-in, there's also a headphone jack, so you can bring your own pair. All in all, we have to say it did feel a bit more comfortable than the set we tried on for the first time roughly this time last year. The headset also features different viewing modes, including 24p True Cinema for slower paced movies and Clear mode for action scenes, as well as Auto Color Temperature to help improve the picture.
All told, however, it's not much to write home about -- if you were thinking of picking up the T1, this guy is certainly an improvement. If you've already got one to call your own, however, it's probably not worth the upgrade when it hits later this year.
Continue reading Sony HMZ-T2 3D display, heads-in (video)
Filed under: Displays, Wearables
Sony HMZ-T2 3D display, heads-in (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 30 Aug 2012 13:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | | Email this | CommentsSource: http://www.engadget.com/2012/08/30/sony-hmz-t2-3d-display-heads-in-video/
