GoneGoogling

App Review: Falcon Pro

2012-12-22T20:47:00.002-08:00

I am a Twitter app maniac. I try almost any Twitter app I can get my hands on and to be honest I have more than likely tried every one currently available in the Play Store (at least all the ones with decent ratings).

This being the case, I have seen many different UI's, formats, color schemes, and gimmicks. But what I have really been looking for is a fast, clean, powerful client that doesn't attempt to do more than the rest, but rather do what Twitter does, and do it well.

That app is Falcon Pro. Hands down the best Twitter app I have used to date. With its super clean UI, amazingly fast built in browser, and quick loading times (both app loading and Twitter feed updating time) I believe its one of the best Twitter clients on any OS. Period.

So if you are looking for something new to spice up your Twitter life, check out Falcon Pro. Its only $.99 in the Play Store, and worth every penny. Oh yeah, not to mention it works on your tablet as well. No extra charge.

Falcon Pro in the Play Store.

The Way It Should Be?

2012-11-11T12:18:00.001-08:00

Are we finally starting to see companies make some smarter decisions when it comes to the patent wars? It appears so. And whats even more interesting is that the deal includes Apple, one of the greatest patent war companies in the market today.

With the completion of a 10 year cross licensing deal, Apple and HTC can now breathe a whole lot easier and get down to what really matters, innovation.

This is exactly what the mobile industry needs, companies working together for a common goal and the sharing of information. Whether its fear of litigation, or just finally realizing how stupid patents really are, this has been necessary step forward for some time now. The best part is it will breed only good things for consumers and open the flood gates once again for true innovation of products.

Let hope other companies can make deals like this as well.

Posted Nov 11, 2012
HTC AND APPLE SETTLE PATENT DISPUTE. All Patent Litigation Between The Companies Dismissed
1.Date of occurrence of the event:2012/11/11
2.Company name:HTC Corporation
3.Relationship to the Company (please enter “head office” or
“affiliate company”):Head Office
4.Reciprocal shareholding ratios:N/A
5.Cause of occurrence:HTC and Apple have reached a global settlement
that includes the dismissal of all current lawsuits and a ten-year
license agreement. The license extends to current and future patents
held by both parties. The terms of the settlement are confidential.
6.Countermeasures:None
7.Any other matters that need to be specified:There is no material
adverse impact on the financials of the Company.

HTC AND APPLE SETTLE PATENT DISPUTE

All Patent Litigation Between The Companies Dismissed
TAIPEI and CUPERTINO, California – November 11, 2012 – HTC and Apple have reached a global settlement that includes the dismissal of all current lawsuits and a ten-year license agreement. The license extends to current and future patents held by both parties. The terms of the settlement are confidential.
“HTC is pleased to have resolved its dispute with Apple, so HTC can focus on innovation instead of litigation,” said Peter Chou, CEO of HTC.
“We are glad to have reached a settlement with HTC,” said Tim Cook, CEO of Apple. “We will continue to stay laser focused on product innovation.”

[via Cult Of Mac]
[Image via Cult Of Mac]

Google Buys Out Snapseed

2012-09-17T14:46:00.000-07:00

Our favorite Internet search giant Google recently bought out Nik Software the developers beyond the popular iOS image editing app Snapseed.

Snapseed is a comprehensive image editing application available for Windows, Mac, and iOS. Nik Software was working on an Android version before it was bought out. Snapseed attempts to set itself apart from the competition with its rich set of features including the standard cropping, tilting, and image filters along side intuitive white balance, contract, and saturation editing tools.

This latest acquisition should go nicely along side Google's other image program Picasa and the also recently bought out Picnik. What this means for end users has yet to be seen but you can probably expect Nik Software to run business as usual until purchase is official. Most likely we should see the code in Snapseed folded into Picasa or Google+ for a better overall user experience but we won't truly find out for a while.

To keep up to date on all things Google be sure check Gone Googling regularly. Also remember to follow us twitter. @bdfull3r @thejdubb02

App Review: Analytix

2012-09-03T08:26:00.000-07:00

Whether you are a small time blogger, or a large company with multiple properties to manage, analytics are important. From gauging advertising campaign effectiveness, or simply how many people read my stories, analytics can tell us everything we want to know about whats happening and where to go in the future.

There are a lot of big names in analytics these days and they all offer a lot. Some are free and some are premium. Perhaps one of the largest out there today is Google Analytics. With so much offered for free users, its quick an easy to setup. The detail reporting is also amazing with a ton of great features for reporting, all the down to the most intricate details.

With all of this power its an amazing tool that many of us want to take on the road. Sure, Google Analytics has released an app of their own, but if you want beauty and power all in one place, look no further than Analytix.

Analytix takes all the data from all of your properties in Google Analytics and organizes in an easy to use system with every major report at your fingertips. Not mention, the way it displays your data is easy to digest visually. This makes it super easy to find the information you are looking for quick to find an analyze.

With color coded reports, and bar graphs style reporting, looking over your analytics data has never been easier. Check out more screenshots below.

Check out Analytix in the Google Play store in its phone version, and the HD version for tablets. Learn more about Analytix on the developers website.

App Review: Reddit News

2012-08-28T07:11:00.000-07:00

I have to admit I have become an addicted. It is not to a drug or a game, but to Reddit. If you have never used Reddit, you can't stop. Reddit is essentially a link sharing social network where users gather to waste time look at a few hundred million meme photos and other socially curated piece of information from all over the net. Users can up vote ones they like and down votes ones they don’t. The entire network is essentially a revamped Like button system to determine rank. The concept is insanely simple and massively addictive.

Being part of the digital and mobile generation, I need to feed the need to look up Futurama memes on the go. While Reddit doesn’t have an official application, there are easily a dozen to choose from. My favorite has to be Reddit News Free.

Available for the low price of free with a paid version that removes ads. Reddit News Free is an aggregator that will gather the listing from Reddit’s front page and to any sub categories you are subscribed to. The application is simple to use and (like the site) doesn’t require a Reddit account to use. Users can fire up the app and start losing hours clicking link after link after link after link.

Reddit News Free offers all of the same features as the reddit website. Users can sign into their accounts, manage the sub categories they follow, up vote awesome pics, and down vote horrendous gifs. They can check their personal feeds and read their messages.The application will open up links for you with the option to use the browser instead. If the bars on top and bottom take away precious space on your small screen (Optimus V like) device, the app has a full screen function. If the link is a straight picture link it will pull that image without the need for a browser. Users can also pinch to zoom to get a better look at the in app browser or displayed pictures.

If you are a fan or a user of Reddit, then you need an application to bring that world with you wherever you. If you snap a cute picture of your pet on vacation how else will it make it to the front page if you can’t share it with the universe? So instead of trying to imagine vacationing (or working, we don’t judge) without Reddit, download Reddit News and enjoy it.

Reddit News Free: http://goo.gl/8zDxA

Reddit News (Ad-Free): http://goo.gl/X6TEW

Courts Rule In Favor Of Apple Against Samsung

2012-08-24T20:42:00.000-07:00

The United States federal court ruled in favor of Apple in its patent infringement lawsuit with Samsung. The found all of the seven Apple patents valid and ruled Samsung “willfully” infringed on five of those seven. Samsung was originally ordered to pay over 1 Billion dollars, or $1,051,855,000.00 to be exact, however the judge later lowered that to a measly $1.049,343,540. The reduction was attributed to an adding error, (the jury ruled the Samsung Intercept and Galaxy Tab 10.1 LTE didn’t infringe on the patents but were accidentally including in damage calculations).

The jury look just 21 hours over three days to rule in favor of Apple. THe ruling included the Pinch to Zoom patent, the double tap to zoom patent, the one finger scrolling patent, and the elastic scrolling patent among others. Samsung was also found to be infringing upon the trade dress of Apple products. In Laymans terms, Samsung deliberately designed their product to look like Apple products. It is hard to argue for Samsung on trade dress infringement. If you have ever see that image below before, you know what i'm talking about. Samsung had a long shot of winning that patent argument.

In a completely unrelated court ruling, the South Korean High Court ruled that both Apple and Samsung infringed upon each others patents. Apple was ordered to pay $35,000.00 or $35 thousand in damages while Samsung was only ordered to pay$ 22 thousand. In addition to damages, The South Korean court placed injunctions barring the sell or certain Apple and Samsung devices until a cross licensing deal is reached or the products are manufactured in a way that doesn’t infringe upon these patents.

Samsung has filed to a dismissal and is expected to appeal the ruling once that fails. Samsung and Apple have both released official statements.

Samsung’s Official Statement

“Today's verdict should not be viewed as a win for Apple, but as a loss for the American consumer. It will lead to fewer choices, less innovation, and potentially higher prices. It is unfortunate that patent law can be manipulated to give one company a monopoly over rectangles with rounded corners, or technology that is being improved every day by Samsung and other companies. Consumers have the right to choices, and they know what they are buying when they purchase Samsung products. This is not the final word in this case or in battles being waged in courts and tribunals around the world, some of which have already rejected many of Apple's claims. Samsung will continue to innovate and offer choices for the consumer”

Apple’s Official Statement

“We are grateful to the jury for their service and for investing the time to listen to our story and we were thrilled to be able to finally tell it. The mountain of evidence presented during the trial showed that Samsung's copying went far deeper than even we knew. The lawsuits between Apple and Samsung were about much more than patents or money. They were about values. At Apple, we value originality and innovation and pour our lives into making the best products on earth. We make these products to delight our customers, not for our competitors to flagrantly copy. We applaud the court for finding Samsung's behavior willful and for sending a loud and clear message that stealing isn't right.”

App Review: PressReader

2012-08-24T09:55:00.000-07:00

Lets face it, newspapers and periodicals have been around for a long time. They are older than the oldest person alive and date back to the beginning of early human civilizations. As a matter of fact the first 'newspaper' is said to date back to daily news reports posted around cities under the rule of Emperor Julius Caesar around the years 100–44 B.C. So its safe to say, the newspaper helped shape humanity and the way we stay connected.

Age being the issue, you may have also noticed its decline in the recent years as the digital media machine is rapidly changing the game on how we report and acquire our news. With services like Twitter, blogs, and RSS feeds that turn out more up to date news than ever before and in almost real time, we are seeing less and less need for the conventional media sources and there inability to keep up.

However, there is some deep seeded pleasure that one gets holding a periodical that you just cant get from an RSS aggregation service or a blog post on a mobile device. From the layout, the ads, the headlines, and even the traditional obituaries, there is a lot to be said about how news is delivered in print that just can't be replaced.

Enter PressReader, the Android/iOS app that is looking to change the game and bring back the feeling of actually picking up an old school printed periodical but tailoring it to the fast paced digital age.

PressReader brings the good old printed press to the digital screen with so many features it will appeal to both new age technologists and old school paper flippers alike. And with access to over 2,100 periodicals from around the world, it is truly an international app for everyone.

Upon opening this app you will quickly find that the app is free, however you do need to give a little to actually get access to this amazing service. Fear not, the prices are great. For the casual reader $.99 gets you any periodical you would like from the entire catalog from 95 countries and in 54 languages. Or for you news lovers, there is actually a price planned named after you which gives you unlimited access to the entire library for $29.95/month.

The true beauty behind this app (other than its immense collection) is how many options you actually for viewing your publications.

Once you pick a country, language, favorited periodical or recent issues from the drop down menu, you get a small thumbnail of the front page of each periodical. Simply click on one that interests and you are given a small calendar to choose the issues you want to view and in seconds (depending on internet speed/connection of course) and you are presented with a fully interactive PDF version of your choice.

One of my favorite parts of this app and one of the most powerful happens now. You can choose to read the newspaper old school by just scrolling around and going from page to page with a flick of the finger. On a tablet, this serves as a very conventional feeling experience and allows the paper flipper in you to flourish. But what this?! You see the highlighted headings... yeah? Go ahead, give it a click.

Once you click a highlighted header you are brought into a more modern age of reading news. With clean digital fonts, formatted to fit your screen beautifully, as well as inline images straight from the pages of the paper itself. Whats more, now with a click of a button you can change font size, navigate from story to story, share what you are reading to Twitter or email, and even save the articles for later consumption on services like Evernote or Instapaper to name a few.

Oh and I almost forgot (not really, you can't overlook this), if you are feeling the need to hit the road or just want to enjoy a good audio form of your news just click the little audio button at the bottom right of you screen and you are taken to the built in audio player, yeah that's right, it reads you the news!

With so many features and sources, its no wonder PressReader for Android and iOS is one of the best apps I have ever seen for mobile. Breathing new age technology into old school news reporting mediums its amazing what this service has accomplished.

If you haven't already left this review because it was so long or because you couldn't wait to dig into PressReader for yourself, here are a few useful links to get started using the service:

Download the phone and tablet Android apps here, iOS app information here, and general about the service and to create an account here.

PressReader is also available on Blackberry Playbook and Windows Phone 7.

Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @thejdubb02 and let us know what you think of PressReader in the comments below.

WoW Remote Goes Free

2012-08-23T20:22:00.001-07:00

For you World Of Warcraft players out there, keeping in contact with guildies, and keeping an eye on your auctions just got a whole lot easier, and cheaper.

Blizzards previously subscription World Of Warcraft Armory app just went free for all. Now you can get all of the great features just ahead of the latest expansion pack release.

Some features include, full character profiles, 3D Viewer, Remote Auction House, Remote Guild Chat, Realm Status, and Talent Calculator.

Check out the official announcement here and download the Android app here.

Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @thejdubb02 and let us know what you think of the Wold of Warcraft Armory app in the comments below.

App Review: Fotor

2012-08-22T10:35:00.003-07:00

Out of all of the image editing apps out there its sometimes hard to filter out the stuff thats worthy of simply a look or actual implementation in your photo processing future.

I myself have used many apps and have found that I have more than on for all of my different needs. I use one app to create a collage of a trip or event to share on Instagram and Twitter. I have a completely different app to add stupid chat bubbles to weird pictures of my friends for a laugh. And if I want to make a HDR... you guessed it, another app.

When I scrolled through my apps drawer I discovered a total of 8 different apps for various image editing purposes. That might sound a bit strange but a quick check with my friends and it appears I am not the only one, 5 seemed to be the average.

So what do you do as a smartphone image editing master to compile these apps into one app? Fotor.

Fotor is so far the best app I have found in the app market for photo capturing, editing, and sharing. It combines powerful editing tools, filters, HDR capture, chat bubbles, text layovers, and even makes collage making fun and ultra customizable with drag and drop controls. I can't say enough about it, and its free.

Check it out in the Android app store here, and learn more about the app and other services made by Fotor on their website here. Oh and I forgot to mention that its even available to you all you iPhone lovers as well.

SMS Backup and Restore

2012-08-06T09:46:00.001-07:00

In the world of ever evolving mobile devices, one of the biggest problems that most people run into is the need to move all information from their old device to another. It seems that people are always getting the newest, latest device on the market, so today I'm going to start a new section on GoneGoogling with short how-to's and recommendations to make the transfer from your old device much smoother.

Being in the wireless industry for a long time, you run into people with a lot of very unique ideas on what is ans is not important to move from one phone to their next. Most are looking for pictures, music and apps to be transferred, but for many others one major part of their device's are the ongoing conversations via SMS.

After scouring the Internet I believe I found one app that can make this prospect of SMS transfer extremely simple. It's called, SMS Backup & Restore. This free, small, lightweight, easy to use application makes it simple to back up and restore all of your SMS conversations for later use or importing to a brand-new device.

The app takes you existing SMS conversations and exports them to an XML format and saves them to your SD card or in some cases your internal memory. You can then e-mail them to yourself, transfer them via external SD card or simply save them for safekeeping to access in the future.

Check it out in the Google Play store, and get more detailed information and support at the developers website here.

If you are checking this app out for the first time, already use this app, or have any other recommendations to transfer SMS messages please leave your comments or feel free to hit me up on Twitter @thejdubb02.

Google Wallet Now Accepting All Credit and Debit Cards

2012-08-04T13:14:00.002-07:00

Google’s NFC payment system received an update last week that finally open the service to all credit and debit cards. Previous versions of the application required the use of a Mastercard or the Google Wallet Prepaid Card.

The way the application works now, is that the majority of the information is now stored in the cloud. Google didn’t get explicit permission from every card company (more of that in a moment), instead it went around some by performing in a very similar manner to paypal. Purchases are made with a third party platform and charges are passed onto the payment card on record. This allows Google wallet to use the information users had already been using to buy apps inside the Google Play Store to make real world purchases if they had the one of seven phones that supports Google Wallet.

It should be known that not all retailers were happy with this announcement. Credit Card company American Express said Google never officially got their support for the application and is looking into settling the matter.

As of this moment, NFC still isn't a wide spread technology. Even though Google Wallet takes all types of cards after the update, in order to use it, your retailer of choice needs to have the MasterCard PayPass system installed. For a full list of PayPass locations, check out either the Google Wallet Support Map, or the more updated PayPass Locator from MasterCard

There is NO excuse (Editorial)

2012-08-03T21:30:00.000-07:00

Why do manufacturers have such a hard time with updating smartphone software. Unless you are talking about close sourced software made for one phone and one phone only (Apple). OEM's continue to struggle with software updates.

The biggest name in regards to software fiascoes is obviously Android. The Android OEM's have done nothing short of failure when it comes to updating their devices.

It took nearly six months (after the ICS source code was released) before we saw official updates to any other devices then a Nexus. Six months is simply inexcusable. They can do better, I know they can do better, they know they can do better.

The devices that did see the update were only the top of line flagship devices. The Droid Bionic for example, was released AFTER the ICS source code was released, and here we are, the Bionic still doesn't have ICS. What's the hold up?

A lot of developers will argue that ICS uses a heavily redesigned architecture and updating existing devices would take a long time. Add in the increased processing demands of the OS, only the high end phones can support. This defense is spread all across the internet. The OEM's hold onto it like a life preserver. I call bullshit. I have proof too.

That beautiful picture right there is the lowly LG Optimus V. The V is part of the insanely popular entry level Optimus One line LG slowly rolled out during in late 2010, and int most of 2011. It has a 600MHz qualcomm processor backed by 512MB of RAM. To top it off, the system has 160MB of internal storage, close to 100MB after the OS takes it piece. The Optimus One was last year's hardware two years ago. LG and Virgin Mobile never updates the V past Android 2.2. They gave up on updating the V officially. It is and extremely popular device available on Virgin Mobile and they don't want to update it.

My Optimus V is currently running a full version of Android 4.0 ICS. Not me mention, the V also has a working Jelly Bean port available already. Again, LG didn't want to update it. Instead, a group of developers working for FREE in their spare time got a functional ICS Alpha working by Christmas, just two months after the code was released. By March they had a full functional ROM.

Let that last paragraph sink it for a moment. Yes, independent developers, working for free got ICS on hardware two years out of date before professional OEM developers could get it working on existing, 'up to date' high end devices. It is almost unbelievable to think that manufacturers can be that slow and/or entirely unwilling. Even developers with the EXACT same platform as the Nexus, the TIOMAP 4460, took forever to see an ICS update.

So what is the hold up?

The next paragraph was an attempt to show other examples of failed update strategies, but it didn't fit into this article as well as I had originally intended. I didn't want to include it so I attached it at then end because I didn't like cutting it completely... so enjoy.

Horrible updating is not only an Android issue. As a matter of fact, Windows Mobile and Blackberry OS have a terrible track record in updating devices.

For a more recent example, lets examine the Windows Phone issue. Microsoft promised the Windows Phone 7.5 Mango update would get pushed to all existing devices on the same day. That failed. Most never even saw the update. Also, (to add insult to injury) no current Windows Phone 7 device will get updated to WP8.

Doesn't that make you want to get the new, amazing, awesome Lumia 900?! Why would you when a new platform has already been announced, demoed and give a tentative release date?

Microsoft has tried to make up for this extreme let down by promising a 7.8 update to existing devices which would bring a few of the new features to "older" (Lumia 900, 2012?!) devices. Even if you get the new tile layouts, great, but you still won't get any of the apps developed for Windows Phone 8. You don't get the to take advantage of updates that will come after the WP8 launch or any of the higher functioning features.

What do you think of all of this OSBS? Let us know in the comments below or shoot at me on Twitter @bdfull3r.

Android Consoles With Purpose, The Nexus Q and The Ouya (Editorial)

2012-07-28T22:45:00.000-07:00

Those of your reading this article with a Google TV please raise your hands. Thank you,

the two of you can put your hands back down. How would you feel if I told you its now obsolete. Its probably not news to anyone at this point but at this last Google I/O conference, the king of search announced three new Nexi devices. To round out the Jelly Bean Galaxy Nexus and the Nexus 7, Google also unvieled the Nexus Q. Less then a week after this news broke, we got confirmation the Nexus Q may be dead on arrival with the announcement of the Ouya.

Google TV, the Nexus Q, and the Ouya all attempt to bring Android into the living rooms, sound systems, and big screen TV's. The difference between these products, besides price, is their focus.

To touch briefly on price. The newest Google TV boxes retail for around $99, in line with the Roku and Apple TV boxes. The Nexus Q boasts a completely made in America label and sells at the premium price of $299. The Ouya attempts to undercut most of its competition launching at $99

Google made the Nexus Q with the idea of a center to sharing media. Users can hook up the Q to surround sound systems to play music playlists or to tv to stream Google Play or Youtube Content. One of the biggest selling points of the Q is its social attraction, if a friend of yours has an Android device, they can connect to your Q and share their content with you while they visit. The idea is revolutionary but is looks to a very fluid and enjoyable experience.

The Q runs the TIOMAP 4460 platform, so in theory it could run a full blown Android Jelly Bean OS with all of the associated app awesomeness. Unfortunately, Google has limited the app access of the Q for the moment. The device is hackable and has a running version of Cyanogen Mod 10. They biggest downfall to the Q may be the price. At the steep $299 price, you go well outside the impulse buy range. At that point you could buy a Playstation 3 or Xbox 3 and get a lot of the same functionality.

Where as the Nexus Q strives to be the elequant media service device, the Ouya wants to be an industrial industry changing console. The goal of the Ouya isn't to be an Android based media center, instead it wants to be the Android console. The team behind the Ouya is looking to bringing talented developers away from smartphones and tablets back to the big screen with a simple stress free platform. They hope to do accomplish this goal with a cheap serviceable open source platform that is really to develop right out of the box.

At the $99 price point, the Ouya is almost at the impulse buy level. For only $30 more then your average video game, you get an entire console running Android 4.0 with the Tegra 3 Quad Core platform. The Ouya quickly became the most funded project on kickstarter, hitting its $950,000 goal within in hours and sits at over $5.6 million at the time of this article.

The Ouya has faced its fair share of criticism. A lot of potential customers are hesitant to buy into a platform that doesn't exist yet and could run on last years hardware. While that is a legitimate concern, the Tegra 3 platform is a powerhouse. Many developers have already promised support for the console including an exclusive game. NVIDIA has already pledged full hardware support for the Ouya. When you take away battery balance, the Tegra 3 has almost limitless Android potential. Many have even gone on record as calling the platform a failure without seeing a working model. I can understand being hesitant to pay for a concept, but you can label the platform a failure until it actually goes to market and bombs.

My personal opinion. I am excited for the Ouya. I am more excited for the Ouya then I was for the PS3 and PS Vita launches. The Ouya could revolutionize the gaming industry. The Nexus Q is just another brick in the wall of media center devices.

What do you think? IS the OUYA going to be dead on arrival? IS the Nexus Q going to be a success? Let us know in the comments below or on twitter @bdfull3r

OUYA looks to bring affordable Android Gaming to your TV

2012-07-10T14:25:00.000-07:00

Kickstarter seems to bring us campaigns for some blockbuster ideas from budget concerned entrepreneurs. For those of you that are unfamiliar with Kickstarter, it is a website that allows you to help fund projects, and offers tiered perks based off of what you donate.

OUYA is an attempt to bring Android to console gaming. This would allow gamers to play games such as Sonic CD, Grand Theft Auto III, or even Dark Meadow: The Pact on your big screen TV. The Ouya has specs that are on par with high-end Android phones and tablets, including a quad-core Nvidia Tegra 3 processor, 1 GB of RAM and 8 GB of storage. It outputs 1080p video through an HDMI slot, uses Bluetooth 4.0 and USB 2.0 for connecting external devices and includes a wireless controller. All of these awesome insides for $99.

OUYA is what the Nexus Q should have been. This has the opportunity to be a ground breaking device. It appears as Android is making a jump to gaming already. The Nexus 7 was "Designed with gaming in mind". The Wikipad was designed with portable gaming in mind. What do you think? Have you funded this project yet?

Let me know on Twitter, @AmneonX

SwiftKey 3 The Best, Better

2012-06-21T08:42:00.000-07:00

If you have an Android device (phone or tablet) and you haven't tried SwiftKey in the past, today is the day. As of version 3's launch SwifyKey is on sale for half price! Only $1.99 in the Google Play Store.

This has been one of my favorite keyboards ever and with today's updates it has done the previously unbelievable, its even better than ever.

The word prediction on SwiftKey is the best because it learns over time what you are thinking and there are now times where I can completely use the recommendations to send a quick reply to a text or to let my wife know I will be running a little late.

The only other update I am going to touch on briefly is the addition of a larger space bar. Why? Because its awesome and instead of hitting the period all day (which I seem to have a problem with) I will not properly punctuate and space my sentences from here on out.

Here is a full list of all of the new changes:

Smart Space – adding to SwiftKey’s already cutting edge correction, Smart Space detects mistyped or omitted spaces across strings of sloppily typed words in real-time.

Two new themes – a new theme, ‘Cobalt’, to match SwiftKey’s new look and feel, and an Ice Cream Sandwich-styled ‘Holo’ theme, as voted for by SwiftKey’s VIP community.

An enhanced UI – a much larger space bar and smart punctuation key help improve accuracy and make it quick and easy to access common punctuation.

Additional languages – SwiftKey 3 now offers support for an additional seven languages, bringing the total up to 42. The new languages are Korean, Estonian, Farsi, Icelandic, Latvian, Lithuanian and Serbian.

Since launching the beta, we’ve taken feedback on board to include:

A dedicated comma key, and the <123> key in the bottom-left corner.

Refined the Smart Punctuation pop-up for better, easier use.

Improved Smart Space functionality for easier email addresses and URL entry.

Reduced lag on some devices for a more responsive experience.

Reintroduced the long-press duration setting by popular request.

Further improved prediction algorithms for even more accurate next word suggestions.

Updated gestures for easier shortcuts.

Check it out and let me know what you think and what your favorite keyboard is in the comments.

Oh yeah, don't forget to follow me on Twitter @thejdubb02.

[via SwiftKey Blog]

Where do we go from here? Editorial

2012-06-16T23:10:00.001-07:00

Recently, Google biggest competition in mobile operating system announced their latest updated. Apple unveiled iOS 6 at their annual WWDC. Reception was largely lackluster. Many of the major features announced had already been available for Windows Phone and Android for a long time now (facebook integration, turn by turn navigation). Siri got an update and is now available on a couple more devices. The MacBook and MacPro also saw refreshes but that isn't relevant to mobile operating systems.

What this event left me wondering is, where do we go from here. Apple has long been glorified as the innovator in any fields it wants to go into. They don't need to be the first in a field, but I will be damned if they aren't one of the best. With the release of iOS 6, its appears clear this is no longer the case. Any new features have already be done and done well by the competition. But its hard to blame Apple, on the software front, what is left to do?

Look back at just how far we have come. I know many of us are too young or too poor to have enjoyed the PDA days but go look at one. Look at the features there. Stop and think at how absurd the idea is of having the internet over thin air. Most first time PDA buyers saw the internet as this thing that needed massive and ugly desktop computers with sluggish and annoying dial-up modems. Along comes Blackberry PDA's and the now its gone. You can check your email on your own. Though it was a commercial flop the Apple Newton had primitive apps on it. Fast forward a couple years to flip phones. Phones thinner then the marker in your hand can access the internet for you and play games. That was the market.

In 2007, Apple makes its foray into phones official and it is the ICONIC iPhone. Yes there were touchscreen smartphones before Apple and iOS. But NONE there half as good as the iPhone. Apple describe iOS has being five years ahead of its competition and there is NO way to argue with that then.

The next year in 2008, Google goes official on its smartphone project it had been working on since 2004. Android goes official and open source and the war is on. What has transpired in the last few years has been nothing but incredible. I dare any smartphone user to pick up an iPhone 1 on iOS 1 or an HTC G1 on Android 1.5 and make the comparison. My smartphone is incredibly low end. For those who don't know I have an LG Optimus V worth all of $50 used (on a good day) and it will run circles around both of those devices and that was just 5 years ago. It has been nothing short of a miracle.

Single core, dual core, quad core, multiple core optimization, video streaming, tablet support, memory optimization, virus protection, voice dictation, thumb print scanners, facial recognition, smart covers, super AMOLED retina LCD IPS display with 1080 and 720p support. In the last 5 years a smartphone has gone from a novel step forward from PDA's to devices that replace many customer's home computers and that fact is overwhelming when you stop to think about.

When Apple's event lack news of any new ground breaking features, the Internet trolls went insane. I don't like Apple but I found myself defending them more times than I can count. Apple took a lot of features from its competition but turn about is far play. Android burrowed a lot of ideas from Apple. The first version of Android wasn't touchscreen or even supported touch input.

At some point, features stop becoming ground breaking and just become incremental and I think that stage is a LOT closer than a lot want to admit.

What is left for companies like Google and Apple and Microsoft? Where do you go in a field that has gone from non-existent to surpassing PC's in sales in just 5 years? Whats left for Gone Googling when the regular Android news (which makes up a substantial part of our coverage) stops becoming so regular?

Have an idea? Hit me up in the comments or on twitter @bdfull3r

Thu, June 7, 2012: Gravity Guy

2012-06-07T01:20:00.001-07:00

Today's free Amazon android app of the day for Thu, June 7, 2012 is Gravity Guy!

Application Description:

See You on the Flip Side

Breaking the rules ... of gravity!

In a world where gravity laws were broken, one brave individual is held captive for defying the rules. Not happy, he decides to escape, being the first one to run for his life. Flipping gravity at will, he became known as the Gravity Guy.

Being chased by Gravity troops, Gravity Guy can't stop, he has to keep running and it's your job to guide him through an impossible world of mazes, flipping gravity when needed. This fast-paced adventure features 30 challenging levels, three different worlds, and guarantees you many long hours of fun. Compete in all three game modes (Story, Practice, and Endless) and against up to four players.

PLEASE NOTE: This app lets you purchase digital content using actual money. You can configure parental controls for in-app purchases, which will require your Amazon account password or a 4-digit PIN, by tapping the Menu icon and then Settings.

via GeekExile: Free App of the Day from Amazon! http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007ZRZF8I?ie=UTF8&ref=mas_faad

Wed, June 6, 2012: The Treasure of Mystery Island

2012-06-06T01:20:00.001-07:00

Today's free Amazon android app of the day for Wed, June 6, 2012 is The Treasure of Mystery Island!

Application Description:

Can you find the hidden objects?

Adventure Awaits

Alex is making a routine run across the Atlantic Ocean in his cargo plane when his girlfriend's lucky talisman begins to glow. Moments later, as his plane dives toward choppy waters, Alex finds himself parachuting to the beach of an uncharted island. After a native rescues him, Alex begins a hidden object adventure that will take him to the heart of a strange island, where he'll find hidden treasure and unleash the curse of an angry god!

Play Mini-Games and Earn Trophies

Mmm...cheese!

Your seek-and-find skills will be challenged like never before as you complete 20 captivating episodes set in a world time forgot. You'll need to not only find lost objects, but also return them to where they belong in order to receive help from the natives. You'll also have to collect the scattered belongings of 24 clients, beat over a dozen mini-games, and earn a slew of trophies. You can also unlock achievements and compare your results with friends (as well as the rest of the world) on OpenFeint.

Can you solve the mystery of the island?

via GeekExile: Free App of the Day from Amazon! http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0074AKEDC?ie=UTF8&ref=mas_faad

Tue, June 5, 2012: Spelling Bee

2012-06-05T01:35:00.001-07:00

Today's free Amazon android app of the day for Tue, June 5, 2012 is Spelling Bee!

Application Description:

Hone your spelling chops with thousands of words

Love it or hate it, spelling is here to stay. Embrace this reality and become a better speller with Spelling Bee, an easy-to-use educational app for your Android device.

Spelling Bee is an ideal study aid for children, but it's also great for anyone who wants to improve their spelling skills. It features a database of more than 2,300 English words--along with definitions and clear audio clips of each word's pronunciation--so you can expand your knowledge base quickly and easily.

Practice Makes Perfect

As any seasoned competitor knows, you can't just walk into a spelling bee cold and expect to win. You have to prepare--and that means studying as many words as you possibly can, learning definitions and pronunciations as you memorize each word.

The app's Study mode gives you that opportunity, offering a no-pressure review of thousands of words. Each entry reveals the correct spelling of a single word and its definition. You can also touch an onscreen audio prompt to hear the word being spoken aloud.

Test Yourself

When you're ready, head to Spelling Bee mode for a virtual bee. Touch the onscreen prompt to hear a word spoken aloud, then type the word into a text box. You'll know immediately whether you got it correct--and if you didn't, the app will helpfully reveal the correct spelling so you can see your mistake.

Choose from four difficulty levels (Beginner, Easy, Medium, or Hard) and decide how many words you'd like to spell in a challenge (five, 10, or 20). If you want to improve your speed, select the Timer option; this keeps track of how long it takes you to complete a quiz.

The makers of Spelling Bee are busy (yes, you guessed it: busy like bees) adding more words all the time, so you'll always find new challenges. Have fun and get spelling!

via GeekExile: Free App of the Day from Amazon! http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007FGM2EE?ie=UTF8&ref=mas_faad

Mon, June 4, 2012: Icon Calendar

2012-06-04T01:20:00.001-07:00

Today's free Amazon android app of the day for Mon, June 4, 2012 is Icon Calendar!

Application Description:

Dozens of fun icons

Create a fun calendar

Beautify Your Schedule

Icon Calendar is a pretty calendar that allows you to add icons to each date. Add up to five icons with notes for each day of the month.

We Want Icons

Icon Calendar has an extensive collection of cute icons. Decorate your calendar with hearts, ice cream cones, stars, snowmen, or whatever icon catches your fancy. With these cute icons, you can instantly recognize the events on your calendar.

Icon Calendar is very easy to use. Just press the Add button (the dog and plus button) and select the specific date where you want the icon displayed. Tap the screen under the selected date, and a keyboard is displayed. Now you can save a note for that date.

More Features

Icon Calendar also features password protection, color customization, and an option to backup to the SD card. Let Icon Calendar make your appointments and scheduling fun and cheery.

via GeekExile: Free App of the Day from Amazon! http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006H7L9WI?ie=UTF8&ref=mas_faad

Sun, June 3, 2012: Mega Hearts 2 Slots

2012-06-03T01:20:00.001-07:00

Today's free Amazon android app of the day for Sun, June 3, 2012 is Mega Hearts 2 Slots!

Application Description:

With sweet graphics and entertaining multilevel features, Mega Hearts 2 is a unique slot machine app. Can you win the Chocpot, a chocolaty jackpot treat?

How Sweet It Is

This is not just a straightforward slot machine game. By getting special symbols on a spin, you launch different modes, including Super Spins and the Mega Feature. Win prizes, free games, and cold (virtual) cash, leading up to the big Chocpot bonanza.

Three or more Hearts appearing anywhere on the reels trigger the Feature --15, 20 or 25 free games! If you won Super Spins during the Feature, they commence immediately. The bonus wheel starts automatically at the end of the Super Spins. Spin the wheel to win one of four different prizes.

This game is for entertainment purposes only. No real money can be won or lost. The odds of winning in this simulation are not the same as in real slot machines--it's much better!

via GeekExile: Free App of the Day from Amazon! http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004Z267R4?ie=UTF8&ref=mas_faad

Fri, June 1, 2012: Score It (Word)

2012-06-01T01:20:00.001-07:00

Today's free Amazon android app of the day for Fri, June 1, 2012 is Score It (Word)!

Application Description:

Quick! Guess this word.

Show your word power with Score It (Word), a challenging word game. Stimulate your brain while having fun. Score It (Word) is a great way to improve word building skills that you can apply to many other word games.

Guess the Word

The object of the game is to guess the word from the first given letter. After each guess, a letter is placed in the word that is in the correct position. Any letter in the red ball is in the word but not in the correct position. If an invalid word is entered, you lose a turn, and the word is displayed in red. When you run out of time, the answer is displayed.

Extra Credit

The number of turns to guess the word is equal to the number of letters (five, six, or seven letters). If you solve the word in fewer tries, you earn bonus points. You start with three credits; with every five correct words, you earn an extra credit.

Score It (Word) helps warm up your brain before you hit that next Scrabble or Boggle game. Can you beat the clock?

via GeekExile: Free App of the Day from Amazon! http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007IUKQGS?ie=UTF8&ref=mas_faad

DISCUSSION: What would you give up first? Mobile Devices or Laptop?

2012-05-31T16:29:00.002-07:00

Here at GoneGoogling, we are interested in our viewer's opinions. So, we have a question to see which people prefer now. If you could only have one device, which would it be?

We are defining a mobile device as a Smartphone or Tablet, from any manufacturer, and with any OS. A lot of people have one or the other now, and some people prefer the portability of a mobile device. However, some people still prefer to use the good ole laptop, for the power, bigger screen, and attached laptop.

What do you prefer and Why? You can talk about it in the comments section on this page, or this Google+ thread.

In my opinion, I would prefer to keep my mobile devices instead of my laptop. I haven't used my laptop in several weeks anyways, and I use my Galaxy Nexus, and Galaxy Tab 7 all of the time. I am able to do everything that I would use my laptop for, with my mobile devices. They both fit in my pockets and are extremely portable.

Thu, May 31, 2012: Clown Ball

2012-05-31T01:20:00.001-07:00

Today's free Amazon android app of the day for Thu, May 31, 2012 is Clown Ball!

Application Description:

Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls...

Run away and join the circus

Fans of marble rolling games like Super Monkey Ball, Labyrinth, and Neverball will love Clown Ball with its fantastic tilt controls. If you enjoy playing marble maze or marble labyrinth games you've got to give it a try. You'll be tickled pink.

Swerve through mazes as you roll your ball past hammers, through tunnels, and over balance beams in this 3D circus game. Try your acrobatic skills on the trampoline, or dare to be fired from a circus cannon. Challenge your mind as you unravel some deviously tricky puzzles.

Kids love Clown Ball because the intuitive tilt control is easier to use than a touch screen. Parents love the game because it's good, clean circus-themed fun for the kids...and for the adults. Children can simply play through each level, while adults can attempt the more difficult challenges, such as getting all the stars or finishing before the bonus timer runs out.

via GeekExile: Free App of the Day from Amazon! http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007VFOB8Y?ie=UTF8&ref=mas_faad

Wed, May 30, 2012: Homerun Battle 3D

2012-05-30T01:20:00.001-07:00

Today's free Amazon android app of the day for Wed, May 30, 2012 is Homerun Battle 3D!

Application Description:

You're on deck! Are you prepared to go head-to-head with more than ten million big sluggers in Homerun Battle 3D? The incredible graphics, realistic sound effects, and real competition will make you feel like you've joined the big leagues. Take a couple of practice swings because you're about to step up to the plate.

Uniforms and Equipment

Outfit your rookie with more than 100 items from hats and uniforms to cleats and bats. As you move up in the ranks, earn better equipment. Choose from official baseball wear like DeMarini CF4, Voodoo, and other M2M bat equipment.

Statistics and Game Modes

Play in 4 different game modes: Online Match up, Arcade, Training, and Classic. Login to the Com2uS hub and your play data will automatically be saved in. Enjoy a game on multiple devices with the same ID and all data is saved in your personal hub account. Guest Play allows you to play a game without logging in.

Recognition

More than 10 million players in more than 300 million match-up gamesThe Best of the Best Apps Awards WinnerNominated as IMGA's Best Game

PLEASE NOTE: This app lets you purchase digital content using actual money. You can configure parental controls for in-app purchases, which will require your Amazon account password or a 4-digit PIN, by tapping the Menu icon and then Settings.

via GeekExile: Free App of the Day from Amazon! http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007OX0Q3M?ie=UTF8&ref=mas_faad