This shortcut app lacks the features to set it apart from the countless other shortcut apps out there, but at the same time, it does what it sets out to do admirably, and with style.
Shorty’s initial setup requires you to choose which shortcuts you’d like the option to launch. It took me a moment to figure this out, so let me walk you through it to save you the trouble:
Open Shorty.
Click the + button in the lower right hand corner.
Select which action you’d like Shorty to perform.
Customize any options, if necessary.
These actions are then stored in the floating “S” button on-screen; tap it to access them.
Impressions –
I’m torn on Shorty. Truly. I love the idea; a floating-button shortcut application that has a clean interface that matches Android’s modern styling, but also lacks the customization and options that would really set it apart from other shortcut apps.
A couple things that may make the app worthwhile; Giphy Support, and the ability to pool together any combination of apps accessible anywhere in your system. Think of it as a home screen folder, but floating on top of everything else on your phone.
The Giphy support is, perhaps, the best thing about this app; thousands of .gifs at your fingertips, only two taps away. The .gifs loaded quickly in my experience, and inserted easily into most apps I tried. The other options within Shorty are rather pedestrian; launch an app, insert a predetermined text, send an SMS or make a phone call to a previously specified contact, launch the camera, or control a media app.
In addition to being a little light on options, Shorty is also light on customization; you can’t change the colors of the shortcuts, nor can you change any styling within the app itself. If you don’t like red, you are, unfortunately out of luck.
What I like
Giphy Support.
Create a custom folder accessible anywhere.
What I don’t
Limited options.
Only one theme.
For the price, I expected more.
Conclusion –
Shorty sets out to provide a shortcut app with material-design stylings, and in that arena it succeeds well. It has a few desirable features but otherwise underwhelms in customization. Options and features don’t quite stand up to the price.
Google has pushed an update to its official Google+ app on Android to bring it to version 7.3 and with it a few small, but notable, updates. The Google+ app is the interface on Android that users will use on their smartphone and tablet to access the Google+ social network.
What it brings?
This particular update to the Google+ app brings the usual bug fixes and speed improvements, but also some pretty cool features:
10 bugs fixed
4 accessibility issues addressed
Ability to filter your notifications by All, Unread & Other
Several Community moderation tools
Delete multiple items in Activity Log at once
Hide the top bar when scrolling Collections & Communities
Even faster Web browsing on WiFi
Search auto-complete
How to get it?
For those new at installing apps and updates manually via APK files, it is very simple process. The benefits of installing manually include not having to wait for the automatic update to hit your phone via the Google Play Store. First, you’ll download the APK file by hitting the button below, and this will download the file to your phone. Once downloaded, tap the file to bring up the installation prompt. You can read the app permissions if applicable and then tap ‘Install’. The app is now ready to use!
The cutest little creatures waddle around on rails while you determine which twists and turns they take with a simple tap of the screen. It sounds so simple. Like it should be the easiest thing in the world; then they start going the wrong directions, and you watch in horror as they drop into the wrong hole, ruining your perfect run while you wail in frustration and despair. That’s…basically how a game of Poly Path goes.
By escorting as many little cuties to their homes as possible, you accumulate stars which can then be used to equip said cuties with various hats to increase their cuteness by a factor of approximately 10. There are eight of these hats available to free users, with eight more available to premium users. As for levels, 75 of the frustrating things available to free users, with an additional 30 levels for those who purchase the full game (a bargain at $0.99).
Poly Path really is quite endearing; it makes you smile and giggle helplessly while it destroys your hopes and dreams. If you take your eyes off it for just a moment, it totally screws you over. And you can’t even be angry, because it was your own fault that the little cuties went the wrong way; you just weren’t paying diligent attention.
Micromanaging something so adorable takes a real strain on the player.
Conclusion –
This casual game features simple (if challenging) game mechanics, a ton of free content, and a worthwhile premium experience. The art and sounds are high quality, and the game itself is very well done.
The Samsung Galaxy S7 is fresh off the announcement slides at MWC 2016, with the maximum storage options available maxing out at 64GB. You can of course expand this using the MicroSD card slot that has been added in the Galaxy S7 range.
Only a few days following the S7 announcement though, Samsung have just announced its first 256GB UFS 2.0 internal storage chip for smartphones.
UFS 2.0 is faster in terms of reading and writing to and from storage than the traditional eMMC storage that most smartphones used for years. Samsung last year announced the 128GB of the UFS 2.0 chip, which was then used in the Samsung Galaxy S6; so why not do the same for the Galaxy S7?
Samsung claims this new 256GB UFS 2.0 chip is capable of handling read speeds of up to 850MB/s and write speeds of up to 260MB/s – three times as fast as high-end MicroSD cards.
So it seems a no-brainer to put this new chip in the Galaxy S7, right? Why Samsung chose not to is a mystery… Perhaps they are saving it for the Galaxy Note 6? Or perhaps it has something to do with the inclusion of a MicroSD card slot that they deemed it unnecessary?
More than likely is that this new 256GB UFS 2.0 storage chip didn’t align with the Galaxy S7 production schedule, but why not just use the 128GB one?
In an interview given to CNET en Espanol, OnePlus Co-Founder Carl Pei let it slip that the OnePlus 3 will be released “at the end of the second quarter”, which puts it right in line for a June release. OnePlus’ previous flagships, the OnePlus One and the OnePlus 2, were released in April 2014 and August 2015 respectively.
Pei didn’t release many more details, but did indicate that he hopes the OnePlus 3 will “captivate” in the way the OnePlus One did. The OPO broke onto the scene after a ton of designed leaks, and went head to head with many flagships of the year at half the cost. The internet couldn’t get enough of the phone from the Chinese start up, and it led to very good sales for the company’s first phone.
OnePlus followed it up with the OnePlus 2 last year, and even though it sold more units than its predecessor, it was very much an evolutionary step, instead of the revolutionary OnePlus One. OnePlus wants to get the buzz back and aims to do so with a new design. But, that doesn’t mean OnePlus will be leaving all aspects of their previous phones behind. The company will still sell the devices directly, and they will still come carrier unlocked.
Pei also indicated that, while they rely heavily on their online presence, they will start to use “more traditional marketing”. Currently OnePlus doesn’t spend money on regular advertising, instead relying on their forums and social media to get the word out about their phones, but it seems that now will change.
For all of you Gmail app users out there in Android land, Google has added a couple of new features that you might be interested in!
Rich Text Formatting
Have you ever been writing an email and wished you had the ability to bold text that’s really important, or italicize something? Well now you can. Google has just added the ability to include rich text in your emails, within the Gmail app. According to the official Gmail Blog, you will be able to:
Add bold text
Add italic text
Add underlined text
Add colored text
Add [textmarker color=”FFF024″]highlighted[/textmarker] text
Rich Text
Instant RSVP
Google is also adding a new feature called Instant RSVP. According to the Official Gmail blog:
[blockquote author=””]If you use Google Calendar or Microsoft Exchange, calendar invitations now include a one-tap option to show your schedule and respond.[/blockquote]
Google’s aim for this feature is to help you do as much as possible within a single app.
Instant RSVP
So what do you think? Are these features exciting for you? Are they enough to bring you back to the official Gmail app if you’ve defected to something else? Let us know in the comments!
The flagship smartphones that Mobile World Congress 2016 presented to us are very different. However, one thing most of them share in common is the underlying Snapdragon 820 chipset. Even the newest in the Galaxy series, which went all in on Exynos last year, jumped back in with Qualcomm.
It’s interesting that all of the OEMs can forgive and forget about getting burned by the previous Snapdragon 810. It was pretty much the laughing stock all last year; unable to keep those eight cores under control. Qualcomm hopes that we can put that misfire behind us and go back to the way things were.
We all understand the 820 to be a beast, but how so? What exactly has Qualcomm changed since the 810? I’m sure there’s more than worth covering in nerdy details. Instead, let’s go over the important highlights.
The most glaring change is that Qualcomm seized its competitive phase and dropped the processor back down to a reasonable four cores. It either couldn’t tame the blistering eight core powerhouse or didn’t think there was merit in trying to work it out. I would guess the latter. The drive to do eight cores in the first place was probably to not let MediaTek get ahead, but that’s not a very good reason for doing something.
That said, less cores doesn’t necessarily mean that the Snapdragon 820 will be a compromised offering. Performance isn’t just determined by magnitude; efficiency plays a huge part. Qualcomm claims that the 820’s new Kryo CPU architecture gives it generally 2x the performance from the 810, via an optimization called Heterogeneous Computing.
The 820 is engineered with custom-built, highly optimized cores designed for heterogeneous computing—the ability to combine different functional cores of the system-on-chip (SoC), like the CPU, GPU and DSP cores, to achieve previously unattainable performance and power savings, rather than using the same core for different tasks. – Qualcomm
Okay, so that’s cool. The whole system is working in a unified manner to accomplish functions with less effort (which saves on battery too). Let’s back up to what Kryo means.
On the surface, the 820’s processor may sound like just another 64-bit quad-core chip, but there’s more to it. First, the CPU is built off of a 14nm FinFET production process (compared to the 810’s 20nm CPU size). Reducing the chip’s die size means that it will run cooler and can be pushed further.
Next, the Kryo architecture tightly integrates the two other computational powers: Adreno 530 graphics processing unit (GPU) and Hexagon 680 digital signal processor (DSP) – which make the heterogeneous computing circle. They all share the device’s tasks (multimedia, camera imaging, audio processing, visuals, etc.) in a symphonic manner. And the Adreno 530 GPU is said to bring 40% more graphics capability than the last-gen Adreno 430 in the Snapdragon 810.
Lastly, you’ll see Qualcomm tout X12 LTE support on the Snapdragon 820. Also know as LTE Category 12, the new modem is capable of up to 600 Mbps download speeds. This is 33% faster than 810’s used X10 LTE 450 Mbps speeds.
Oh, and we also can’t forget that the latest chipset boosts the Quick Charge speed, now on version 3.0. Qualcomm claims that it is 38% more efficient than the previous Quick Charge 2.0.
Are you excited to get your hands on Qualcomm’s latest powerhouse? Which flagship from MWC 2016 do you have your eyes on?
The internet is still buzzing with details from the Sony presentation at Mobile World Congress 2016. We saw Sony take to the stage to announce three new phones, the Sony Xperia X Performance, Sony Xperia X, and Sony Xperia XA. Many speculated at the time, and it was later confirmed, that the X lineup will be taking the place of the Sony Xperia Z lineup.
We’ve gathered all of the details of the new phones, as well as posted the entire Sony Mobile World Congress 2016 presentation below.
Barcelona, Mobile World Congress, 22nd February 2016 – Sony Mobile Communications (“Sony Mobile”) today unveiled a new-look XperiaTM brand with the first “X” series smartphones and a vision for the future of communications, with ambient connected devices capable of changing the way you interact with the world.
“Sony Mobile will continue to create increasingly personalised and intelligent products and services that empower you to do more, and live more creatively than ever. Our products and services will connect you to each other and become essential and beloved parts of your lives.” said Hiroki Totoki, President and CEO at Sony Mobile Communications.
“With our continued passion for technology, we will keep adding new and exciting features to evolve our smartphones. At the same time, we want to change how you access information and interact with friends and family in a closer, natural and more meaningful way.”
First “X” Series smartphones: Xperia X, Xperia X Performance and Xperia XA
The Xperia X series embodies Sony Mobile’s new brand vision through adding new layers of intelligent technology across popular and acclaimed Xperia features: camera, battery and design, to make every day smarter and simpler.
Predicting the unexpected is difficult, but not impossible – the next generation Xperia camera takes spontaneous capture to another level allowing you to shoot in sharp focus, even for spur-of-the-moment shots. The all-new Predictive Hybrid Autofocus in Xperia X and Xperia X Performance is developed in close collaboration with Sony’s αTM camera engineers, it lets you choose your subject and then predicts its motion, so you can capture the action in perfect focus, free from blur.
Advanced features require the battery stamina to match, and Xperia X series incorporates Sony’s smart battery management to deliver up to two days battery life. Not only will it keep your phone running for longer from one charge, Xperia X series benefits from a battery lifespan that’s up to twice as long with Qnovo’s Adaptive Charging technology2 and Sony’s smart battery management system. Each phone is powered to make the most of their advanced capabilities, with Xperia X featuring the Qualcomm®Snapdragon™ 650 processor and Xperia X Performance introducing the Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 820 processor for ultra-fast connectivity.
As part of their unified design concept, Sony designers researched premium materials, texture and curvature for the most natural palm fit. Each X series smartphone brings a curved glass display within a rounded, continuous frame for a familiar form that feels comfortable in your hand. The unified design concept is also extended to Xperia XA, which features a stunning edge-to-edge display to integrate seamlessly into your life.
Xperia X, Xperia X Performance and Xperia XA each have a range of matching Style Covers and will roll out in four elegant finishes; White, Graphite Black, Lime Gold and Rose Gold, from Summer 2016.
Hola Launcher is a robust and feature-rich Android home-screen app and launcher with a plethora of content, all for free. Hola Launcher offers free themes and icons, wallpapers, add-on applications for further functionality and even has its own widgets available.
Setup for Hola Launcher is fairly easy. After you have downloaded from the Google Play Store, press your phone’s home button. You will then be asked to choose a launcher to complete the action; choose Hola Launcher. At this point, Hola Launcher will walk you through initial setup.
Features
Hola Launcher, like most custom launchers, offers a great deal of customization that your stock launcher that comes with your Android device, simply does not. Hola Launcher gives you this level of customization through offering you options like:
If you can think of it, more than likely Hola Launcher will allow you to customize it.
Look, Feel and Impressions
I’m pretty particular when it comes to my launcher. I guess I would consider myself a purist in that I prefer my launchers to stay as close to stock Android as possible. For the most part Hola Launcher provides the options I need to do this.
When you read the Launcher’s description, Hola Team calls Hola Launcher “lightweight,” “small,” and “simple.” I’m not sure I totally agree with this description. I certainly do not agree that Hola Launcher is lightweight and small. Quite the contrary, in fact. I think Hola Team is trying to give the impression of something big in a small package but I don’t think that’s what is being delivered. Instead, I would call Hola Launcher “robust,” “feature-rich,” but also “easy on system resources.”
Hola Launcher is supposed to be robust, yet not taxing on your device. For the most part this was the case for me. I did run into some performance issues with some of the themes, however, generally my phone ran like a champ while using Hola Launcher. For reference, I tested Hola Launcher on a ZTE ZMAX 2.
Graphically, or aesthetically, Hola Launcher looks fantastic! I would even go so far as to call it cute. Why? Little things such as random animations help me to see how truly adorable this launcher is.
For example, the default Clock/Weather Widget that comes with the launcher had a cute little animation that drew a cloud on the widget when loading the weather.
Another example is the page indicators above the dock. When you switched to a new desktop page, they sort of…melted into each other. It wasn’t just a boring, blink blink blink animation. This launcher has pizazz and style. It’s adorable.
There are also several hidden features in Hola Launcher that add to its charm and usability. I cannot begin to cover them all in this review so I’ll only mention a few that are very significant.
Hola Shine
One of the first things I’d recommend you start using is Hola Shine. Hola Shine is a sort of mini app drawer that presents itself as a semi circle when you swipe outward from either the bottom left or bottom right corner of your screen.
Hola Shine is really cool because it gives you quick access to any apps that may have a new notification, recently used apps and also a quick settings menu called “Toolbox.” I love Hola Shine and I think it’s a great feature. You can also download an app called “Omni Swipe,” for free, that allows you to theme Hola Shine and gives it a little more customization.
Hola Boost is essentially a built-in, automated task manager that comes with Hola Launcher. When you activate Boost, it will close any unneeded applications and processes to free up RAM for you, giving a little more oomph to your device.
There are a couple of ways that you can activate Hola Boost. Typically, you’ll activate it using the “Hola Boost Floating Window.” The Boost Window is a tiny little half-circle that, by default, sits on the left side of your screen. If you click on it, you’ll see icons for Hola Search, Hola Boost Settings and the Hola Boost function itself. Pressing the Boost Function icon will activate Boost.
If you press and drag the “floating window”, you’ll see it turn into a jet engine. When you see this, remove your finger from the screen and Hola Boost will take over and do its job.
Lastly, I’d like to mention the theme shop. The theme shop is exactly what it sounds like; a shop containing themes. What’s really cool about this theme shop is that the VAST majority of the themes available, are free. They cost you nothing and they are incredibly easy to apply. I think this will be the biggest appeal for new users looking to try out Hola Launcher.
Nothing Is Free
It is said that “Nothing in life is free.” Hola Launcher is no exception to this rule. I despise (read as: loathe) ads and in-app purchases. I also understand, however, that in the current state of this industry, this is about the only way a developer can make any revenue from their application.
To the point: Hola Launcher has ads. When you first start using it, you will get a few pop-ups suggesting an add-on application (like Omni Swipe) to improve your experience. It’s not a big deal to click no on these, should you choose to, and after that they shouldn’t bother you any longer. I also ran across ads on Hola Launcher’s lock screen. These particular ads were the only ones I considered intrusive.
Other than the app suggestions and lock screen ads, the ads contained in Hola Launcher, in my opinion, were not that bothersome. The majority of those I ran across were tucked away into settings menus or in the theme shop.
To summarize, if you’re going to include ads in your application, take a page from Hola Launcher’s book.
A few minor things I did not like:
Most applications on desktop can only be hidden instead of removed
It takes too many steps to get to my gallery wallpapers
There was no option for allowing me to place icons and widgets in the inbetween spaces of the desktop grid (a feature found in Nova Launcher)
I hate the default search bar. It shows weird, trending searches and is too reminiscent of Go Launcher.
I ran across a bug that caused my phone’s default weather/clock widget to appear jumbled on my home screen until I resized it. I think this has something to with the widget’s size and an incompatilbity with the grid size I was using for my desktop.
I could not get screen rearrangement to work. Following the instructions in Help and Feedback would not work for me except in one theme. After contacting the developer, I was informed that this features only works in 3D themes. I have asked Hola Team to update their documentation to reflect this.
Sans the bugs, most of my issues with Hola Launcher were nitpicky and revolved around personal taste. More than likely you will not have the same issues with Hola Launcher that I did.
Conclusion
Hola Launcher is a great choice if you’re looking for something a little more customizable than the default launcher on your Android device. With free themes, free wallpapers and a great deal of customization options, you really can’t go wrong with Hola Launcher. Give it a try and see what you think.
Your News Feed is about to get more emotional, except this time not in a creepy, manipulative way. This time, the Like button is getting an update that will let users react to posts to be more emotionally expressive.
First tested in a handful of countries last year, in addition to “Like” users can now “love”, “haha”, “wow”, “sad”, and “angry” posts. No more do you have to “like” your friend’s break up post – unless you still want to.
Each reaction has a different emoji attached to it, ones that have a close resemblance to several, more established Unicode characters. The Facebook team worked hard on which reactions to use, how the emoji will look and which ones were the most popular.
Facebook Reactions work universally on mobile and desktop, no matter what your operating system is. On mobile, users need only to briefly long-press on the standard Like button for the emoji to show up. On the desktop, users hover the mouse pointer over the Like button.
“We understand that this is a big change, and want to be thoughtful about rolling this out. For more than a year we have been conducting global research including focus groups and surveys to determine what types of reactions people would want to use most. We also looked at how people are already commenting on posts and the top stickers and emoticons as signals for the types of reactions people are already using to determine which reactions to offer.”
