drag2share: People Use This App To Chat With Each Other Through A Hidden Feature In Apple's Software

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/firechat-app-uses-hidden-ios-7-feature-2014-4

FireChat — a new anonymous messaging app that has been download more than 100,000 times since it launched — uses one of the coolest features we've seen so far for people to talk to each other.

The app harnesses a feature in Apple's mobile software, iOS 7, called a Multipeer Connectivity Framework. This is found on all Apple devices and enables a direct connection to other devices over Bluetooth or Wi-Fi without the need of an Internet connection to act as an intermediary.

FireChat is a hybrid of Snapchat and Whisper: the app lets you send anonymous messages to a chat room filled with random people, but the messages are not stored anywhere and are quickly deleted when you close the app.

Anonymous chatting apps are big right now, even though some people think they might just be a fad. But more than just an anonymous chatting app, FireChat is actually a new way to chat, where people can connect regardless of whether they're connected to the Internet or cell service.

The app could come in handy if you're at a crowded concert where lines of communication are typically clogged. FireChat would let you quickly share photos and comments with the people around you without interference.

FireChat is an interesting app, but it's far from perfect. For now, the app is only available for iOS, but you can see what it looks like below:

The set up process is really easy. All you need to do is create a username. It can literally be anything.

The app barely provides a demo. After you finish the setup process, you're immediately thrown into a chat room titled "Everyone." CNET writes that this part of the app randomly organizes 80 people from around the country into one room. The conversation moves fast, and you can literally talk about anything. The downside is you still need some form of data connection for it to work.

Swipe over to the right to go into another chat room called "Nearby." This part of FireChat is supposed to enable more-personal conversations but only works within certain distances. If other people are on the app within around 100 feet, you can quickly jump into the room and start talking.

SEE ALSO: If you're bored of regular TV, use this app to find something new to watch online

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drag2share: These Adorable Penguins Can Show You How Skype Is Trying To Revolutionize The Classroom

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/skype-in-the-classroom-2014-4

Since Skype launched its education initiative, Skype in the Classroom, nearly three years ago, the community has really taken off. 

To date, the program has helped more than 80,000 teachers in 235 countries collaborate on more than 8,000 lessons taught over Skype. 

Teachers create profiles that list things like where they're located, the ages of their students, and the subjects they teach. Meanwhile, Skype has partnered with organizations like NASA, Penguin Books, SeaTrek.org, and Microsoft, who post upcoming Skype lessons for teachers to enroll in so they may take their students on free, virtual field trips.

With Earth Day on the horizon, Skype shared an adorable video of a class of UK students getting an interactive lesson about endangered penguins from Rifqah Taliep of The Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds.

The video encompasses the initiatives goal: To use technology to give students amazing, immersive educational experiences that they couldn't get from reading a textbook or watching a film. Instead of reading about endangered penguins, they can see them, while asking an expert questions, live. 

 

Without stepping outside the classroom, the students learn about real-world wildlife rehabilitation.

The idea is that learning about something by actually seeing and interacting with it, makes the topic more exciting and memorable for the students.

By registering for the Skype in the classroom community, teachers receive free Skype Group Video Calling for 12 months as a spec! ial bene fit of the program. 

Watch the full video here:

SEE ALSO: Oprah wants you to put down your smartphone and just say hello to someone instead

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drag2share: Airtame wireless screen-mirroring dongle shipping in October for $99

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2014/04/01/airtame-wireless-hdmi-dongle-shipping/

Airtame, the Danish startup that received our Best of CES 2014 award for its awesome wireless video dongle, has confirmed that it will be shipping its first lot to its beta users this month in July. Better yet, the device has since been upgraded from a single-core Freescale chip to a dual-core version, along with dual-band WiFi and hardware acceleration on all three PC platforms: Windows, Linux and Mac. Over 15,000 Airtame dongles have been pre-ordered so far, and these will start shipping in May or June October after some tweaking based on the beta feedback.

For those who aren't familiar with Airtame, this is an HDMI dongle that you plug into a monitor or TV. With the software installed on your PC, you can wirelessly mirror or extend your desktop to one or multiple remote screens equipped with the dongle. What's more, you can also choose to do so over your home network or over a direct WiFi connection (while somehow still maintaining your PC's internet connection). The team claims that the performance is superior to that of existing Miracast dongles and Chromecast, featuring a low 25 to 30ms latency that's good enough for gaming -- as we found out at CES. The Chromecast, on the other hand, has a one- to two-second delay (plus it's not really made for screen mirroring); and we've yet to come across a Miracast pairing that works reliably.

The Airtame dongle will eventually support smartphone and tablet video transmission, as the team received a lot of requests for a way to beam local content to the remote screen. However, app developers will need to use Airtame's SDK to enable this feature -- there will be supported apps at launch, and the dongle will also have its own browser that can be controlled from your mobile device.

In terms of retail availability, you can already pre-order the $99 Airtame dongle via the official website, or you can wait for its launch at select large, but unnamed retailers in the US, Canada, UK and Europe. Russia and some Asian countries will get the dongle later, as they require local safety certifications.

Update: We have been notified of a change in delivery date after this article went up, so we've updated the dates accordingly.

Filed under: Home Entertainment, Wireless, HD

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drag2share: Samsung confirms thinner and lighter Galaxy Tab 4 tablet range

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2014/04/01/samsung-confirms-tab4-tablet-range-will-be-thinner-and-lighter/

Though the FCC already ruined the surprise, Samsung has just launched three new lower-tier Galaxy Tab 4 tablets. The series consists of the 7-inch Galaxy Tab 4 7.0, 8-inch Galaxy Tab 4 8.0 and -- wait for it -- the 10.1-inch Galaxy Tab 4 10.1. The design has changed substantially from the Galaxy Tab 3, instead following the lead of the Galaxy Tab Pro series with thinner bezels and less weight. Unlike the high end range, though, the Tab 4's specs are squarely aimed at the mainstream: a 1.2GHz quad-core CPU, 1,200 x 800 WXGA graphics, Android 4.4 KitKat, 1.5GB of RAM, 16GB of memory, a MicroSD slot and 3/1.3-megapixel front/back cameras on all models. All three will launch with LTE Cat 4 capability from the get-go, along with Samsung services like Link and WatchOn. They're set to arrive this quarter in black and white colors, with no pricing yet -- but we'd figure on around the same as last year's $300 Galaxy Tab3 8.0.

Filed under: Tablets, Samsung

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drag2share: This quarter-sized chip platform could power future Android Wear devices

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2014/04/01/mips-ingenic-newton-android-wear/

While Intel has backtracked on its "Edison" chip size claims, another Android Wear partner is claiming that its system-on-chip is the size of the proverbial SD card. Imagination Technologies (MIPS) has just revealed the Newton platform based on its MIPS architecture, built by chip-making partner Ingenic. It uses Ingenic's power-sipping, Android-compatible 1GHz JZ4775 CPU (similar to that in the GEAK watch), to help it give smartwatches and other wearables 30 hours or more of battery life. A laundry list of other features is also baked in, like support for up to 3GB RAM, 720p video, WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0, NFC, MEMS sensors, health care sensors and USB support. Device makers can pick and choose those options thanks to the modular design, which also allows for rapid prototyping. In theory, that will help Android Wear hardware makers turn their designs into products more quickly -- and fulfill Google's ambitious product launch timetable.

Filed under: Wearables

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Source: MIPS

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