Full-screen ads might make their way to your smartphone soon

Whether you like it or not, more ads are making their way to your mobile devices. Google is creating new ad units to lure in big names to advertise on their mobile platform. Out of the four new looks, three are full screen ads and some are interstitial ads that would take over your screen in between “logical break points” while you use the app. There would even be video and interactive elements. Basically, commercials are coming to your phones.

Source: Inside AdWords | Via: Engadget

BlackBerry plans to give us weird devices yearly

If you thought the Passport was the end of BlackBerry’s experimentation with oddly-shaped devices, then you’re wrong. Ron Louks, president of BlackBerry’s Devices division, said they intend to introduce one “unconventional device” per year.

“When it comes to design and being a little bit disruptive, we want that ‘wow’ factor,” Louks said. And he also revealed that they are working on another unusual device but he is not spilling the details about that just yet.

Source: Reuters | Via: Engadget

HP shooting for the low end of the notebook market with new $199 notebooks

We're at an interesting place right now with Windows 8.1-based systems. Many users and potential buyers seem to be waiting out until the next revision (Windows 9, Codenamed 'Treshold') becomes available. Many of the recent hybrids, convertibles and ultrabooks have failed to gain much traction. Trying a different tact, it seems manufacturers like HP are going the Chromebook route. That is, offering cheap hardware to help push the OS. Revealed today is the colourful consumer focused US $199 HP Stream notebook that's geared to compete with similarly affordable Chromebooks. Interesting features include fanless design, 8-hour battery life and an HD screen.

Featuring modest Intel Celeron processors, an 11.5-inch non-touch display and 32GB of SSD memory. Each of these new-age netbooks will get access to a year subscription of Office 365, 1 Terabyte of OneDrive storage plus a $25 Microsoft Store gift certificate. The Stream notebooks accompany low-cost Stream tablets that offer Windows 8.1 functionalty starting at $150. No Canadian availability or pricing has been released but these will likely find their way to our shores for the holiday season.

Rumours of an HTC One (M8) Max surfaces

There are already two variants of the One (M8) out on the market and rumours have surfaced from China that HTC plans to unveil the phablet version of their flagship. The HTC One (M8) Max is tipped to carry a 5.5-inch Quad HD display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 processor, 3GB of RAM, Sense 6.5, and the latest Android operating system. It will also reportedly sport an 18-megapixel rear camera with Optical Image Stabilization and 3000mAh battery. There is no official word from HTC if this will be an actual device. We’ll keep you posted for any confirmation or denials of this device.

Source: Ubergizmo