'Minecraft' adds a shop for mobile add-ons

Source: https://www.engadget.com/2017/04/10/minecraft-marketplace-on-mobile/

For many, the biggest limitation of Minecraft's Pocket and Windows 10 Editions has been the lack of community material. What good is playing on your phone if you can't try out that sweet new texture pack you saw on your PC? You're about to get that option. Microsoft and Mojang are launching a Marketplace that lets both Pocket and Windows 10 gamers download content from community creators, including skins, textures and whole worlds. You don't buy any paid content directly -- instead, you buy "Minecraft Coins" that let you snap up the add-ons you want. It's ostensibly to help producers set "flexible prices," although it also helps mask the value of what you're buying. You might not want to let kids have unfettered access, in other words.

The Marketplace only permits creators with registered businesses, so it's not going to take your just-for-fun project. However, those that do get in receive a 70 percent cut of the revenue, much like typical mobile app stores. A successful merchant stands to make a healthy amount of money, even if it's not as much as they might make by selling directly.

Access to the Marketplace will be limited at first. A public Android beta is launching in mid-April, and there won't even be any creator content -- that has to wait until a formal launch later in the spring. Still, this should do something to bridge the gap between your Minecraft experiences on computers and mobile devices.

Source: Minecraft

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Want an action camera that's also a watch?

Source: https://www.engadget.com/2017/03/01/want-an-action-camera-that-s-also-a-watch/

Back in the days of Google Glass, people balked at the idea that people could, or should, walk around with a camera on their face. Spacemap wants to see if there's similar hostility to those folks who are effectively carrying an action camera on their wrist. Beoncam is a removable five-megapixel hemispheric camera that you can wear like a watch, pulling it out for those moments when a smartphone snap would be too slow.

In order to justify its placement on the edge of your forearm, the Beoncam also tells the time thanks to a digital display located below the camera lens. Otherwise, the chunky disc houses a microphone and lens inside a casing with three buttons. In addition to the wrist strap, the device is designed to be quickly hitched onto other things, like bike handlebars, a camera tripod or your backpack.

According to the company, the camera's 400mAh battery will sit on standby for up to four days before you need to recharge. Once in use, however, it'll tire out within three hours before you need to recharge it with a microUSB cable. You can also set the device up as a wireless hotspot, enabling you to preview your footage via a companion app for iOS and Android devices.

Like so many outlandish products with dubious use cases, Beoncam is launching today on Indiegogo in a hunt for your cash. Early birds can snag one of the units for $119, while everyone else will have to spend $149. Delivery is currently scheduled for July 2017, although it's worth remembering that deadlines can, and often do, slide well into the future.

Source: Indiegogo

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Lenovo's latest Yoga 2-in-1 packs uncommonly fast graphics

Source: https://www.engadget.com/2017/02/27/lenovo-yoga-720-and-flex-5/

With most 2-in-1 laptops, you're giving up any hope of running games or other graphics-intensive apps -- if there are dedicated graphics at all, they're usually too slow for more than the basics. Lenovo thinks it can do better. It's unveiling the Yoga 720, and its 15-inch variant is supposedly the most powerful convertible in its class. Max it out and you can get a 4K display, a 7th-generation Core i7 processor and (most importantly) GeForce GTX 1050 graphics. It's still not a powerhouse, but it's uncommonly gaming-friendly for a PC that can double as a tablet.

The system also touts Thunderbolt 3, up to 16GB of RAM, a 1TB hard drive (or 512GB SSD), a 9-hour peak battery life (8 hours with 4K) and the option of an active stylus. And if that's overkill, there's a smaller 13-inch version with integrated graphics, SSD-only storage and an 8-hour battery. Both models are due in April, starting at $860 for the 13-inch system (with a 1080p screen) and $1,100 for the brawnier 15-inch rig.

Lenovo is also introducing a middle child of sorts. The Flex 5 (Yoga 520 outside the US) splits the size difference at 14 inches, and can ship with GeForce 940MX graphics if you need a little more visual prowess than Intel's built-in solution. You're stuck with a 1080p screen, but this is the longevity champ of the three with a 10-hour battery pack. It's the more affordable of the bunch, too, starting at $800 when it ships in May.

Click here to catch up on the latest news from MWC 2017.

Source: Lenovo

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Razer's Power Bank keeps your laptop running

Source: https://www.engadget.com/2017/02/23/razer-power-bank/

External battery packs are a dime a dozen, but you might want to pay attention to this one. Razer has unveiled the Power Bank, a 12,800mAh external battery designed primarily for laptops. It's clearly intended as a companion for Razer's own portables, and can extend the life of a Blade Stealth to as long as 15 hours. That's more than a little helpful if you're stuck traveling all day. However, its reliance on USB-C makes it compatible with any laptop that can charge using the newer connector. Yes, you could keep a MacBook running on this brick if you don't mind the style mismatch.

Like some of these batteries, the Power Bank doubles as a phone charger thanks to two USB-A ports. It even supports Quick Charge 3.0 for those phones that can handle it. This definitely won't be an inexpensive peripheral when it ships in March, at $150 (£170) -- we've seen higher-capacity batteries that sell for less, like Mophie's Powerstation XXL. Not all of those are designed to charge your phone and laptop at the same time, though, and the logo-emblazoned aluminum body might be worth it if you're a dyed-in-the-wool Razer fan determined to coordinate the look of your gear.

Source: Razer

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Samsung's next smartphone chip is ready for gigabit LTE

Source: https://www.engadget.com/2017/02/23/samsung-s-next-smartphone-chip-is-ready-for-gigabit-lte/

Mobile World Congress is nearly upon us, giving Samsung ample reason to show off the latest product from its chip foundries. The company has announced the Exynos 9 Series 8895, a flagship CPU that's made with a 10-nanometer manufacturing process. The smaller circuits, it's hoped, will offer 27 percent better performance while drawing 40 percent less battery.

The 8895 ships with eight cores, four of which are Cortex A53s, paired with a quartet of Samsung's custom-designed variants. The company claims that it'll play back 4K video at 120fps as well as offering VR content at the same resolution. Security fans will also note that the 8895 comes with an additional processing unit designed to keep your fingerprint, iris and payment data securely locked away from prying eyes.

Additionally, the chip is Samsung's first to boast a gigabit LTE modem and support for five carrier aggregation. The hardware is expected to throughput data at 1Gbps and upload those Instagram selfies at a top speed of 150Mbps. That should keep your lust for high-capacity data networks at bay while those 5G networks are built out.

If history is any indication, it's more than likely that the Exynos 9 Series 9985 will sit at the heart of the forthcoming Galaxy S8. At least, it's the chip that'll be found inside the international version of the device -- since the US edition of the last few flagships used Qualcomm CPUs instead. We're likely to find out for sure in the run-up to the device's expected launch at the tail-end of March.

Source: Samsung

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