Google surprised everyone when it launched a public beta of the Android Nougat back in March. Annual updates are nothing new for Android, but not only did this announcement come very early, it also offered users the option to easily install the beta with an over-the-air update. Now, half a year later, Nougat is out of beta and available for Google’s own Nexus devices (the Nexus… Read More
Chinese smartphone manufacturers are very much on the ascent, but it’s been a pretty mixed bag. Some have offered some truly exciting hardware to market (read: Nexus 6P) and others, well, not so much. Founded in 2003, Meizu is relatively new entrant on the scene, but the company knows how to make a nice piece of hardware. With its latest device, the MX6, the manufacturer has created… Read More
Twitter is rolling out night mode to users of its official iOS app, the company announced today. Night mode turns Twitter’s dark-text-on-light-background interface upside down, giving a darker look that should be easier to read at night or in dimmer indoor environments.
Rolling out today – we're bringing night mode to iOS! https://t.co/XxNZHQdth9… Read More
Microsoft has quietly released a new productivity application to both Google Play and the iTunes App Store called Project Sonoma. The app is aimed at those who work outside of a traditional office environment, like shift workers, waiters, and others who need to keep track of ever-changing schedules and who need to chat with co-workers at times.
The company hasn’t made any official… Read More
The Analogue Nt mini isn’t an NES – it’s better. The third-party system created by designer Christopher Taber is a work of art in its own right, crafted from a solid piece of aluminum and offering internals that boast no-compromise gameplay experience, vs. what you’d get from a home hack using emulation software.
Analogue’s Nt mini is the smaller sibling to the… Read More
We’re excited to announce the full agenda for TechCrunch Disrupt SF. The show runs from September 10-14 and is returning to the wonderful Pier 48 venue. General admission tickets and exhibitor packages are still available.
The event spans five days where we will celebrate entrepreneurship and technology with the best of Silicon Valley appearing on the Disrupt stage. Read More
When Newsela was created in 2012, the edtech startup aimed to help students master reading at their own pace, specifically with news articles adapted to different reading levels. The company’s app has racked up 800,000 teachers, and 7.7 million students as users and counting, according to Newsela CEO and co-founder Matthew Gross. But when it comes to teaching English Language Arts, the… Read More
Researchers at MIT’s Self-Assembly Lab have stepped up their game from an Ikea-like chair that can put itself together: the team built a working cell phone that’s self-building, Fast Company reports, using a basic DIY cell phone design create by MIT professor David Mellis as a model. How can a phone put itself together? The key is actually simplicity – there are six parts,… Read More
Things have been rough going on the home front for Xiaomi of late. According to numbers posted by IDC last week, the Chinese smartphone maker’s marketshare has slipped considerably on its own turf, tumbling to number four as fellow countryman Huawei took top honors.
Even so, the company is still looking toward international expansion, including, notably, a push into the US market… Read More
Microsoft has picked up another productivity app — announcing the acquisition of AI-powered scheduling tool Genee. In a blog post today the software giant said it will be plugging Genee into its cloud productivity suite, Office 365. Read More
Microsoft announced today that it acquired Genee, an AI-powered scheduling assistant bot that specializes in planning meetings for large groups or when organizers don’t have direct access to the calendars of everyone involved. Genee’s app is a chatbot accessible via an iPhone app, email, SMS, FB, Twitter or Skype, and it understands natural language input, so you can just text it… Read More
Talk about being at the right place and at the right time. Following revelations of government spying, data breaches, malicious hacking, identity theft and other online threats, the email and file encryption application Virtru has now grown to over 4,000 customers and has closed on $29 million in Series A funding, the company announced this morning.
The round was led by Bessemer Venture… Read More
Sony’s XAV-AX100 in-dash car stereo system might be the best way to get your hands on Android Auto or CarPlay without plunking down a fortune for a new car. The new receivers will retail for $499.99 when it hits stores in late November, and boasts a 6.4-inch, 800 x 480 touch screen, along with NFC support, Bluetooth, aux input and a dedicated hardware button for triggering voice input.… Read More
Startups like Eero and Luma have built entire companies on betting that your home WiFi situation just flat out sucks. But why look to address dead spots after the fact when you can cut the problem off at the pass with a more robust networking system right out of the box? Whatever configuration you ultimately opt for, the answer is ultimately going to cost you a pretty penny – or 39,999… Read More
AppFormix helps enterprises, including the likes of Rackspace and its customers, monitor and optimize their OpenStack- and container-based clouds. The company today announced that it has also now added support for virtualized network functions (VNF) to its service. Traditionally, networking was the domain of highly specialized hardware, but increasingly, it’s commodity hardware and… Read More
Apple has reportedly acquired health data startup Gliimpse, a company that collects and combines disparate threads of personal health info. Fast Company reports that the acquisition went down earlier this year, but there has yet to be any confirmation on the part of Gliimpse. However, FC says that Apple confirmed the acquisition, saying: “Apple buys smaller technology companies from time… Read More
Samsung is looking to sell its own refurbished devices in order to make money on its premium smartphones a second time around, according to Reuters. The company will introduce a refurbished device sales program “as early as next year,” according to Reuters’ source, and will use inventory provided by customer who sign up to a year upgrade program in markets where it’s… Read More
Brooklyn Bridge Ventures, a nearly four-year-old, seed-stage venture firm that’s solely run by founder and general partner, Charlie O’Donnell, just closed its second fund with $15 million, up from an $8.3 million debut fund in early 2014. Yesterday, we talked with O’Donnell about what the process was like, whether the New York venture scene will be impacted by the… Read More
The flow of Chinese capital into foreign ad-tech companies increased this morning with the acquisition of Media.net for $900 million USD. A consortium will be paying cash for the startup with key operation centers in New York City and Dubai. Eventually the company is set to be acquired from the consortium by Miteno Communication Technology, a Chinese tech conglomerate. The transaction is… Read More
A startup called SmartSite has released hardware and cloud-based software to help the construction industry track what their employees are exposed to and take measures to protect them from harm. Cancer, respiratory problems, dermatitis from skin exposure to hazardous substances, and health problems from high levels of exposure to noise and vibrations are among the occupational safety and… Read More
