Minecraft creator announces new game, entitled “ox10c”

April 4, 2012 11:45 AM ⋅

A new game has been announced by Minecraft’s creator (who no longer is active on the game), Markus  ’Notch’ Persson, dubbed “ox10c”.

In ox10c, Notch plans to create a storyline, where the year a player wakes up in is 281 474 976 712 644 AD, with the universe close to extinction. Gameplay will reportedly involve forms of engineering, exploration of ships and planets, space battles with AI and real players, as well as mining, trading, and looting.

And of course, this sounds fantastic. Still, it is in the early development stages, and nothing is final, but this is something to keep an eye on in the coming months, surely.

Via: o10xc (official site)

Posted in: Did You Know?, FTW, Gaming ⋅ Tagged: ,

Instagram for Android hits 1 million downloads in 24 hours

April 4, 2012 11:40 AM ⋅

This is what happens when a popular iOS app makes the move to Android with just as much effort put into the iOS app. In other words, more of this needs to happen. Instagram for Android has hit 1 million downloads (and counting) since its launch yesterday. There were 2,000 sign-ups per minute, plus the strain given by iOS users practically crashed the company’s servers. And in today’s age of servers, that’s actually a good thing, if success is looked into.

Via: TheNextWeb

Posted in: Apps, Did You Know? ⋅ Tagged: , ,

Galaxy Note’s Android 4.0.3 Build Leaked, Without Samsung Premium Suite

April 4, 2012 6:48 AM ⋅

Oh, joy of joys! The forums at Rootzwiki are very enthusiastic about the Galaxy Note right now — Android 4.0.3 has been leaked in its entirety, with the sole exception to the software build being the Samsung Premium suite that no one has ever seen before. In this 800MB download, you will have an EXE file that can only work for Windows, and in plugging your Galaxy Note to your Windows PC, you will simply have to initiate the EXE file and get the new software installed. Most users report it works flawlessly after one or so crashes of the Touchwiz UI. So, what are you waiting for — get a taste of Ice Cream Sandwich!

Via: Rootzwiki Forums, Blog

Posted in: Android, Leaks, Mobile, Samsung ⋅ Tagged: , , ,

Instagram Has Finally Launched On Android (Eyes-On)

April 3, 2012 4:36 PM ⋅

This is Instagram for Android. It’s one of the best-designed Android apps out there, and does exactly what it is supposed to do: allow the user to take photos and add filters to create even more beautiful images, which can then be shared on a variety of popular social networks. Also, now that the Instagram app is no longer an iOS exclusive, a massive influx of users to the platform will emerge.

Just like the iOS version, the app is designed to have five categories – home, popular, shoot, news, and profile. These five do the exact some things as the iOS version, and mostly all the buttons and animations are tailored (with taste) to fit Android, but again, still is very sharp; the quintessential of Android app design. In my side-by-side comparisons of the app with the iOS version, the Android version does tend to lag by a second or so when applying filters or publishing an edited photo, but to a native Android user, that would be virtually unnoticeable. It seems that as a whole, the only thing the app is missing from the iOS version is tilt-shift and vignetting (which can easily be added with an update).

And of course, I wholeheartedly recommend Instagram for Android to anyone, and everyone. It’s fantastic.

Via: Instagram (Google Play Store)

Posted in: Android, Apps, Breaking, FTW ⋅ Tagged: , , ,

This could actually be the HTC Evo One on Sprint with LTE

April 3, 2012 6:43 AM ⋅

Well, hello there, HTC Evo One! If tech site Pocketnow is to be trusted, this is the HTC Evo One, Sprint’s HTC One series smartphone, complete with Android 4.0, the latest version of the Sense user interface, LTE (Long-Term Evolution) data, dual-core Snapdragon processor, 8MP camera, as well as a 4.7-inch 720p HD display. The world will know for sure, come the Sprint/HTC press event this Wednesday.

Via: Pocketnow

Posted in: Android, HTC, Leaks, Mobile, Sprint ⋅ Tagged: , , ,

A Phone Could Soon Charge Itself In Your Pocket, Thanks To Military Tech

April 2, 2012 6:52 PM ⋅

This is a very early concept for a yarn that conducts electricity from a battery back, to anywhere in a person’s clothing. Developed by Intelligent Textiles for the British Army, the fabric can transport data or power from the solider’s clothes, backpack, and even helmet to gear that needs to be charged. Despite how glorious this sounds, it still needs to be weather-proofed and then it only becomes a mere prototype.

However, that’s not the real issue here. The technology officially exists, meaning that it may find itself in the home of civilians. You could charge anything, seamlessly, without the needs of cables, sockets, and chargers. This is also a massive blow to inductive charging, because still, to this day, it is cumbersome in its own way to use.

Of course, the battery in the clothing would itself need to be charged, but that still is far from — lack of a better word — annoying. These are the types of  computer and scientific innovations I’d like to feature more often here, but to do that, there’s needs to be more ingenuity and innovation. And it will happen. Via: BBC

Posted in: Did You Know?, FTW, Gadgets ⋅ Tagged: , , ,

Microsoft debuts a Chrome Xbox 360 controller, for those of you who enjoy shiny things

April 2, 2012 5:28 PM ⋅

This is a special edition wireless controller by Microsoft for the Xbox 360 game console. Gasp! It’s in a shiny chrome finish. *Faints*.

Yeah, it’s not that special, but each one comes in red, blue, and silver finishes/colors available in ”mid-May” for $54.99 apiece and the purported “transforming” D-pad — all very nice things for a very shiny Xbox 360 controller. Via: Major Nelson

Posted in: Gaming, Microsoft ⋅ Tagged: ,

This Week On LaptopMemo: This Week’s News Was Like April Fool’s

April 1, 2012 8:34 PM ⋅

Left: An April Fool’s Day related photograph.

Not so much occurred this week in the tech world. Not what it would be usually. Nonetheless, there’s the Lumia 900 price and release date, the post-patch changes to Battlefield 3, the hidden blade is confirmed in Assassin’s Creed III, a new Flash Player version, Google’s Chrome 18, we review a Portal 2 hoodie, and a left-handed gaming mouse (the famous Naga MMO) is confirmed from Razer, by their CEO.

So there goes the week in tech. Meh.

Next week, please.

Posted in: Roundups ⋅ Tagged:

Google Maps 8-Bit For NES Is Quite The April Fools Joke

March 31, 2012 1:22 PM ⋅

Nice one, Google. Since the big G is always in the April Fools spirit (come April, of course), it was time to debut Google Maps 8-bit for the NES. While you’ll have a laugh watching the official video after the break, you’ll find it rather ironic that there is actually a functional version of the 8-bit Google Maps seen in the video itself. The things you can do with power and ingenuity.

Via: 8-Bit Google Maps

Read More →

Posted in: Apps, FTW, Google, Internet ⋅ Tagged: ,

Razer Keeps Its Promise: Left-Handed Naga MMO Mouse In 2013

March 31, 2012 8:09 AM ⋅

Not too long ago, Razer announced a challenge to the PC gaming community: a Naga MMO 17-button gaming mouse, for left-handed users, but only if the post reached 11,000 likes. Well, less than a week later, it has reached the required amount of likes and beyond. ”It’ll take at least till next year, but it will be done,” said the CEO of Razer on his Facebook page. Thankfully, you can still buy the left-handed DeathAdder mouse for the meantime, before the left-handed Naga MMO mouse launches in 2013.

Via: Min-Liang Tan (Facebook)

Posted in: Did You Know?, FTW, Gadgets, Gaming ⋅ Tagged: , ,