Google Maps for Android getting offline access

Google Maps offline

Google today at a small event in San Francisco announced that it's taking Google Maps offline. That's right, no more will you be beholden to your data connection. Or if traveling abroad (or on a subway, for instance), you'll be able to kill data altogether and still find your way around. This, ladies and germs, is a big deal. What's more is that it's not just macro-level mapping. You'll be able to zoom all the way down into street view, sans data. You can't have it just yet, but Google says it's coming soon enough.

Google also showed off a backpack-type Street View rig -- powered by Android, if you'll believe it -- that's taken us down to street level in places cars can't go. Pretty slick.

And then there's 3D modeling in Google Earth. Google walked us through how it does things, making them better all the time. Its modeling has taken a big leap forward with the use of airplanes and oblique mapping, with computers doing some serious number crunching to make things impossibly smooth. It'll be coming to both Android and iOS devices in ridiculous resolution.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/MV_vDRjH4QM/story01.htm

QUALCOMM FEI COMPANY THQ BHARTI AIRTEL FAIRCHILD SEMICONDUCTOR INTERNATIONAL IDT CDW

Plague Inc. for iPhone and iPad review

A dark strategy game called Plague Inc. recently infected the top spot in the iTunes App Store. It puts you in charge of the evolution and spread of a globe-spanning virus, and as the epidemic spreads, your disease has to develop new traits, symptoms, and levels of deadliness to avoid immunization and eventual obliteration.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/uJsZh9M6bmc/story01.htm

ZIONS BAN SYNOPSYS SILICON LABORATORIES DELL COSMOTE MOBILE TELECOM ELPIDA MEMORY SYMANTEC

People Are Facebook’ing-and-Buying More Than Ever, Even If They Don’t Realize It

Facebook SubconsciousA thin Reuters survey says 34% of people THINK they're using Facebook less than six months ago, but Nielsen DATA shows usage is up 18 minutes to seven hours nine minutes per month per user in that time span. Meanwhile, Reuters says four out of five people THINK they've never bought something based on social network ads or friend recommendations, but that means a full 20% believe they have, and the rest were likely subtly influenced to prefer one brand over another. In the end, deducing facts about 900 million people based on the self-reported survey results of 800 people is shortsighted, and Reuters' framing to signal Facebook's demise is sensational. There are plenty of questions for Facebook's business model, especially how it will make more money on smaller mobile screens. But people are not abandoning Facebook, and it has 16 billion IPO dollars-worth of runway to make itself more useful for marketers.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/I4T6gZUXlWo/

MEMC ELECTRONIC MATERIALS APPLIED MATERIALS F5 NETWORKS DST SYSTEMS EMC LAM RESEARCH ITRON

HP TouchPad originally was to be an Android tablet, ex-webOSer writes

HP TouchPad

The HP TouchPad originally ran Android. Or at least it was going to. Point is, it was an Android tablet before it was a webOS tablet before it was an Android tablet again

That revelation (new to some, not so secret or surprising to others) comes from Josh Marinacci, formerly of webOS developer relations, writing in response to the epic recap from The Verge of the rise and fall of former smartphone manufacturer Palm. Chris Ziegler's piece is well worth reading. I cut my teeth on a Palm Treo. Marinacci's post also has some interesting nuggets in it. That the TouchPad was designed by HP with Android in mind isn't that big a surprise. It certainly explains that one FrankenPad that appeared to come from Qualcomm with an actual native build of Android on board. Marinacci puts it thusly:

"The hardware design for the touchpad came from HP. It was designed before the acquisition and originally ran Android. That's why you'll occasionally hear rumors of a touchpad the shipped with Android on it. That's also why the specs were a bit anemic when it shipped over a year later."

Another section caught my eye, where Marinacci talks about how the original Motorola Droid didn't necessarily kill off the Palm Pre Plus -- it was Verizon. Or, more specifically, that retail employees never got behind the Pre Plus, instead going for the Droid.

"In the U.S., at least, a phone lives or dies by the retail staff in the carrier stores. Nothing else matters. Not price. Not features. Not apps. If the retail staff doesn't like you ... you die."

True enough, even in the Android microcosm. It's something to remember.

Source: Josh Marinacci; more: webOS Nation

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/NCESk30_9XQ/story01.htm

SALESFORCE COM STANDARD MICROSYSTEMS DIRECTV GROUP INFORMATICA AMERICA MOVIL ROCKWELL AUTOMATION YAHOO

New iPad Smart Covers

At the release of the iPad 2, Apple also brought out its Smart Cover product, which quickly became a favorite. Although the new iPad 3 is a little thicker through the middle than the iPad 2 (due to a bigger battery), it is still compatible with the previous Smart Covers that are currently for sale. This is excellent news as the Smart Cover not only protects the iPad screen from scratches and scrapes but is also functional and practical, and [...]

Source: http://tabletbuzzblog.com/new-ipad-smart-covers/

SONIC AUTOMOTIVE MENTOR GRAPHICS EMULEX ARROW ELECTRONICS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES MILLICOM INTL CELLULAR PEROT SYSTEMS

Microsoft's SmartGlass Opens Windows All Over the Living Room

Microsoft demoed its new Xbox SmartGlass system at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles on Monday. SmartGlass will connect devices running Windows 8, Windows 8 RT, Windows Phone, iOS, and Android to a user's Xbox 360 console. The Xbox SmartGlass app is available now with select games and Xbox Live content.

Source: http://ectnews.com.feedsportal.com/c/34520/f/632000/s/200d9ac5/l/0L0Stechnewsworld0N0Crsstory0C7530A50Bhtml/story01.htm

EASTMAN KODAK CO VARIAN SEMICONDUCTOR EQUIPMENT ASSOCIATES ORACLE ZORAN XILINX NUANCE COMMUNICATIONS HEARTLAND PAYMENT SYSTEMS

LG Optimus LTE2 now available in white, still limited to Korean market

 

Optimus LTE2

LG announced today that its Optimus LTE2, the Korea-only device we first met back in May, is now available in a white variant. In case you’ve forgotten, the LTE2 comes packed with a 4.7-inch True HD IPS display, a 1.5 Ghz dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor, and 2 whole GBs of RAM. LG says that the LTE2 sold 150,000 units in its first 10 days on the shelves, which is certainly nothing to sneeze at for a phone limited to one market. We’ll keep our fingers crossed for that to change as we wait patiently for U.S. carriers to join in on the fun. 

Source: LG Korean (Korean)

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/tbfKLo5w4BA/story01.htm

ELECTRONICS FOR IMAGING ROGERS COMMUNICATIONS AMKOR TECHNOLOGY INSIGHT ENTERPRISES CANON TIBCO SOFTWARE PLANAR SYSTEMS

mophie juice pack PRO Protects and Charges Your iPhone 4/4S

In the past, getting ruggedized protection for your phone meant giving up cases with built-in battery extenders.  Now, with the juice pack PRO from mophie, you can have both.  The 2500mAh built-in battery, the largest ever included in a juice pack, can be used to constantly keep your iPhone 4 or 4S topped off at [...]

Source: http://the-gadgeteer.com/2012/06/06/mophie-juice-pack-pro-protects-and-charges-your-iphone-44s/

HYPERCOM NATIONAL INSTRUMENTS MOODYS COGNIZANT TECH SOLUTIONS FIRST SOLAR AMPHENOL QUALCOMM

Oracle's Java Case Takes Another Battering With API Ruling

With a ruling from United States District Judge William Alsup that application programming interfaces cannot be copyrighted, it appears Oracle's lost yet another battle against Google over Java. However, the war is not over. Oracle has indicated it will appeal, and the judge has indicated that Oracle should turn to patent laws in order to protect the Java APIs.

Source: http://ectnews.com.feedsportal.com/c/34520/f/632000/s/1fffd69f/l/0L0Stechnewsworld0N0Crsstory0C752820Bhtml/story01.htm

JACK HENRY and ASSOCIATES NOKIA DISCOVER FINANCIAL SERVICES GOOGLE NOVELLUS SYSTEMS SYNNEX QIMONDA

Charge Tablets and Smartphones with the Scosche goBAT II Portable Charger

It often seems that backup batteries are device specific, so you’ll need to buy – and carry – a one for each of your devices.  The goBAT II Portable Charger and External Battery from Scosche can charge most any USB-chargeable device.  It has a 5000mAh lithium ion battery that can charge up to two devices [...]

Source: http://the-gadgeteer.com/2012/06/05/charge-tablets-and-smartphones-with-the-scosche-gobat-ii-portable-charger/

FEI COMPANY THQ BHARTI AIRTEL FAIRCHILD SEMICONDUCTOR INTERNATIONAL IDT CDW SUN MICROSYSTEMS