Facebook has announced it is joining the mobile publishing game

Facebook is taking new steps to boost its engagement on mobile and tap into the growing gaming market, announcing Tuesday that it has launched a new mobile games publishing platform for developers.

Mobile Game Publishing

According to social network page Facebook's new pilot program is aims “to help small and medium-sized developers take their mobile games global. Through the program, we will work with select game developers and provide promotional support for their games in placements across our mobile apps.”

Launching a game on Facebook’s mobile platform, the social network noted, gives developers a chance to reach around 800 million monthly mobile users. The company has recruited Dan Morris, formerly of Electronic Arts and DeNA, to lead its mobile games partnership team. Facebook will "promote a game across a variety of channels" and then "share in the success of those games by participating in the revenue share," Morris says.

Facebook also announced the first 10 developer participants in the program. They are

·         5th Planet, Dawn of the Dragons

·         Brainbow Dr. Newton: The Great Brain Adventure

·         Certain Affinity, Age of Booty: Tactics

·         Dragonplay, Live Hold'Em

·         Gameloft, Kingdoms & Lords

·         KiwiGames Shipwrecked

·         Outplay Entertainment, Monster Legacy

·         Space Ape, Samurai Siege

·         WeMade Entertainment, WIND Runner

·         Gamevil, Train City

Source:  Mobile game publishing by Facebook

Next year ASUS will be enter US smartphone market

Recently, HP has announced that they are going to make smartphone. So why not others, now ASUS has declared that they are also ready to enter US smartphone market but not this year. The ASUS chairman ended by saying that 2013 wasn't likely and he then said “I think next year is more reasonable.”

ASUS Chairman Jonney Shih

 In recent time, ASUS have been successful in the Android space with the Nexus 7 and Transformer tablet series, but one area they’ve struggled to gain traction is with smartphones. The company has been busy with their ASUS Padfone and FonePad, but penetrating the already crowded US smartphone market is the next challenge they want to take on.

Source: Taiwan’s Asus Aims to Enter U.S. Smartphone Market Next Year

Satellite E series notebooks E45T & E55t/E55D newly announced by Toshiba

Toshiba announced its Satellite E series ultrathin notebooks  14-inch Satellite E45T and the 15.6-inch Satellite E55t/E55Dt will feature touchscreens and will be available with either fourth-generation Intel Core processors (Haswell) or AMD A6-series (Kabini) CPUs

New Satellite E series notebooks will take design cues from the company’s luxury Kirabook, except they're made of aluminum instead of pressed magnesium, and the bottom isn't made of metal but rather, textured plastic. The screen resolution is also lower, at 1,366 x 768; these are middle-of-the-road machines, after all. On the bright side, they all support 802.11ac WiFi -- of a surprise on otherwise humdrum systems like these.

The E45T will be with a Core i5 Haswell processor and a 500GB hard drive paired with an SSD. Perhaps most interesting, though, is that the E45t will come with Dragon Assistant on board for simple voice commands (think: shutting down the computer, doing a web search, controlling multimedia playback, et cetera). You can expect to find that next week, on August 4th, with a suggested retail price of $818.

The 15-inch version, meanwhile, will be offered with either a Core i5 processor and touchscreen (that's the E55t) or a quad-core A6 APU. There are actually two AMD models: one configuration comes with a touchscreen (that would be the E55Dt) and one has a non-touch panel (that's the E55D). Strangely, the non-touch model also offers lesser storage; that has a 750GB HDD, while the touch version goes up to a full terabyte.

Source: Toshiba outs Satellite E45t / E55 mid-range laptops

Sony and Panasonic agreement for developing a next-generation standard for professional-use optical discs

Summary: Sony and Panasonic sign basic agreement to jointly develop standard for professional-use next-generation optical discs

Sony and Panasonic have announced that they have signed a basic agreement with the objective of jointly developing a next-generation standard for professional-use optical discs, with the objective of expanding their archive business for long-term digital data storage. Both companies target will be the development of an optical disc with recording capacity of at least 300GB by the end of 2015.

In a statement both companies said they had “a proven track record in developing Blu-ray Disc™ format technologies, and by actively promoting the adoption of a new standard for next-generation high-capacity optical discs, they intend to offer solutions that preserve valuable data for future generations.”

Source: Sony and Panasonic sign basic agreement to jointly develop standard for professional-use next-generation optical discs

Dell's thumb-size PC, "Project Ophelia" Available in Coming Months

The new product from Dell “Project Ophelia” should be available to customers in coming months.  It has already been shipped out for beta testing.

According to PCWorld, in an email a Dell spokesman announced that these mini computers would start shipping sometime in the next fiscal quarter, which runs from August to October.

Know details about the thumb-size PC "Project Ophelia"

Source:  Dell’s New Mini Computer Available in Coming Months

Know about thumb-size PC "Project Ophelia"

What is Project Ophelia?

 “Project Ophelia” is thumb-size PC, newly introduced by Dell. It is alternative to PCs and looks much like a USB stick. It can turn any screen or display with an HDMI port into a PC, gaming machine, or streaming media player. This thumb PC runs on the Android OS and once it is plugged into an HDMI port, users can run applications, play games, watch streaming movies or access files stored in the cloud.

What can you do with Ophelia?

 Project Ophelia can turn any compatible display into a virtual PC.  It can be plugged into any HDMI port, transforming the screen into a gaming device or a computer. It runs on Android OS and allows the user to access information on the cloud in order to stream media, play games, or access files. So anyone can easily run applications, play games, watch streaming movies or access files stored in the cloud by using this thumb-PC.

Features of Project Ophelia

Project Ophelia a relatively inexpensive way to create a computer anywhere the stick can connect to a network via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. Feature of its;

1.       Bluetooth and Wi-Fi wireless connectivity options

2.       Able to plugs into the HDMI port of any HDTV or monitor, turning it into a makeshift Android-based PC

3.       Stick-sized PC is a SoC with two Cortex-A9 cores clocked at 1.6 GHz

4.       8 GB of internal storage and a microSD card slot for adding more

5.       Android 4.1.2 "Jelly Bean

6.       Running on 19-inch and 55-inch screens

7.       Lightweight PC

8.       Able to run Android games or stream movies from Hulu or Netflix

9.       Capable to even download apps, movies and TV shows from the Google Play store

10.   Ability to access files stored in the cloud

How much it cost?

Priced at about $100, Dell hopes Ophelia will be an inexpensive alternative to PCs, whose shipments are falling with the growing adoption of tablets and SmartPhones.

Intel will provide Apple with an ultra-high performance version of its Haswell for Apple's upcoming MacBook Pros.

Summary: MacBook Pro may soon be equipped with a particularly powerful type of Haswell processor

According to SemiAccurate, Apple will utilize a “special version” of High-End Haswell Processors for  its upcoming MacBook Pro. The report claims that the chips will include a special version of Intel's highest-end GT3e (Iris Pro 5200) integrated graphics.

If this rumor is true, it would give the Cupertino-based company’s MacBook Pro a unique hardware advantage over its laptop competitors. “Apple has somehow convinced Intel to give them a unique part for the next MacBook Pro, something that no one else will get. Not only that, this ultra-high performance part is something no one else can get for technical reasons” states SemiAccurate.

KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo suggested that the updated MacBook Pros will launch in mid-September. It is unclear if Apple will refresh both the Retina MacBook Pros and the standard MacBook Pros, but many believe that Apple is planning to phase out the non-Retina varieties.

Source: Intel to Supply Apple with Special High-End Haswell Processors for MacBook Pro

Everyone should know before buying Google’s Chromecast

What is Google Chromecast device?

Chromecast device is a Web media player, introduced by the Google. It  plug into a TV and allows users to stream video, share tabs from the Google Chrome browser, or play music from  Smartphone, tablet or computer on the big screen. Instead of playing physical content, like DVDs or Blu-ray disks, Chromecast uses the internet to pull content from web-based apps, Chromecast does not have a remote control included in the box it’s delivered with when buying it because it’s able to connect with any smart device.

How Chromecast works?

First you have to plug in Chromecast into your TV, plug a microUSB power cord (included in the box) into Chromecast to keep it powered up, and press the single physical button on Chromecast to send out a wireless signal that effectively says, “I’m ready to go!”

Features of Chromecast

Size: 72(L) x 35(W) x 12(H) mm

Weight: 34g

Video Output: 1080p

Connectivity: HDMI, Wi-Fi

RAM: 256k

Processor: N/A

OS: Chromecast

Apps that Chromecast can support

chromecast can only support four apps: Netflix, YouTube, Google Music and Google Movies. However, an upside to this is that Google is offering both new and existing Netflix users three free months of the service if they buy Chromecast.

How it price?

Apple TV is $ 99, and Ruku is $49-$99 where’s Google Chromecast only $ 35. Chromecast is available starting today in the U.S., and will come to other countries later.

Ibrahim Balic claimed that he hacked Apple’s developer website

Summary: In a comment made on TechCrunch, Ibrahim Balic identified himself as a "security researcher" who attempted to point out serious issues to Apple about its Dev Center website.

Ibrahim Balic, claims that he was behind the "hack" but insisted that his intention was to demonstrate that Apple's system was leaking user information. He posted a video on Youtube which appears to show that the site was vulnerable to an attack, but adding "I have reported all the bugs I found to the company and waited for approval." A screenshot in the video showed a bug filed on 19 July - the same day the site was taken down - saying "Data leaks user information. I think you should fix it as soon as possible."

Balic told the Guardian: "My intention was not attacking. In total I found 13 bugs and reported [them] directly one by one to Apple straight away. Just after my reporting [the] dev center got closed. I have not heard anything from them, and they announced that they got attacked. My aim was to report bugs and collect the datas [sic] for the purpose of seeing how deep I can go with it."

Apple said in an email to developers late on Sunday night that "an intruder attempted to secure personal information of our registered developers… [and] we have not been able to rule out the possibility that some developers' names, mailing addresses and/or email addresses may have been accessed."

Source: Apple Developer site hack

A lots of surprising features (20-megapixel flagship) includes Sony Xperia i1

According to Chinese website ePrice, Xperia i1 will be equipped with a 5-inch full HD 1080p display and a 2.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 800 processor. All eyes will be focused on the smartphone’s rumored 20-megapixel rear camera, however, that is said to feature a high-end 1/2.3-inch ExmorRS sensor. The Xperia i1 will also reportedly be both dust-resistant and water-resistant and will include 2GB of RAM, a 3,000 mAh battery, 16GB of internal storage, a microSD slot and a 2-megapixel front-facing camera. Sony is likely to announce the Xperia i1 at the IFA trade show in Berlin on September 4th.

Week's top 10 iPhone and iPad apps on App Store

This week’s top 10 paid and free apps for iPhone and iPad on the App Store. App Store Official Charts for the week ending July 21, 2013:

Top Ten iphone Apps:

Paid Apps Free Apps 1. Where’s My Mickey?, Disney 2. Contra: Evolution, PunchBox Studios 3. Minecraft — Pocket Edition, Mojang 4. Heads Up!, Warner Bros. 5. AfterLight, Simon Filip 6. Smart Alarm Clock: sleep cycles & noise recording, Plus Sports 7. Plants vs. Zombies, PopCap 8. Block Fortress, Foursaken Media 9. Free Music Download Pro — Mp3 Downloader, ASPS Apps 10. Breach & Clear, Gun 1. Despicable Me: Minion Rush, Gameloft 2. Candy Crush Saga, King.com Limited 3. The Idiot Test 3, Nexx Studio 4. Can You Escape, Kaarel Kirsipuu 5. Riddle Me That, Gummy Crush 6. Google Maps, Google, Inc. 7. YouTube, Google, Inc. 8. WhatsApp Messenger, WhatsApp Inc. 9. Snapchat, Snapchat, Inc. 10. Instagram, Burbn, Inc. Top ten iPad Apps: Paid Apps Free Apps 1. Minecraft — Pocket Edition, Mojang 2. Where’s My Mickey? XL, Disney 3. Plants vs. Zombies HD, PopCap 4. Breach & Clear, Gun. 5. Doc McStuffins: Time For Your Check Up!, Disney 6. Sprinkle Islands, Mediocre AB 7. SpongeBob Moves In, Nickelodeon 8. Block Fortress, Foursaken Media 9. iStoryTime — Turbo Movie Storybook Deluxe, zuuka incorporated 10. Survivalcraft, Igor Kalicinski 1. Despicable Me: Minion Rush, Gameloft 2. Monster Doctor — kids games, George CL 3. Candy Crush Saga, King.com Limited 4. Google Maps, Google, Inc. 5. PAC-MAN DASH!, NamcoBandai Games Inc. 6. Doctor X — Med School, Kids Fun Club by TabTale 7. Angry Birds Star Wars HD, Rovio Entertainment Ltd 8. Turbo Racing League, PikPok 9. Disney Princess Palace Pets, Disney 10. YouTube, Google, Inc.

Awesome features of Nokia windows phone 8 "Lumia 625”!

Nokia today unveiled the largest addition to its Windows Phone lineup, the Lumia 625. Upcoming the Nokia windows phone 8 “Lumia 625” will have 4.7 inches and 221 pixels per inch display. This offers a large view of everything. It will be available to see the display in direct sunlight, and manipulate the touch screen while wearing gloves or with long nails. Others features are;

·         4G windows phone 8

·         1.2-GHz, dual-core processor

·         512MB of RAM and 8GB of storage, expandable up to 64GB via an SD card

·         5-megapixel rear-facing camera with autofocus and LED flash, as well as a VGA front-facing camera

·         Variety of colors, including orange, yellow, bright green, white, and black via changeable shells

The Nokia Lumia 625 will be available in the third quarter, but is currently only set to launch in China, Europe, Asia Pacific, India, the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America. Nokia said it will sell for about 220 Euros, though that's before any carrier subsidies.

Source: Lumia 625