Google Play Books adds textbooks for purchase or rent

Google recently announced the availability of digital textbooks on its Google Play Books app that can either be bought or rented. If you opt to rent a book, it will be available to you for six months and you’ll save up to 80% off the regular purchasing price.

Google carries books from some of the well-known publishers including Random House, Pearson, Wiley, McGraw-Hill, and Macmillan Higher Education. The books can be viewed on any Android or iOS device with the Books app or on the Web. 

Canada's Keek social video service passes 58 million user mark

It may not be as popular as Instagram or even Vine, but the Canadian-created social video sharing service seems comitted to compete against those leading apps. The company is reportedly raising $100 million for financing to better compete with more widely popular apps and services. Keek allows users to record and post 36-second long videos called "Keeks" from smartphones as well as computer connected webcams. Followers can then comment and like the videos. You know, sort of like YouTube.

Founded in 2011, Keek's aggressive moves could make it a big story in Canadian app innovation. Keek is available on browsers, Android, iOS, Windows Phone and Blackberry.

Source: Venturebeat

Translate like a pro with The Translator

If you travel constantly but don’t have a good grasp of the local language, The Translator app might just be what you need. It can turn written and spoken words into any of the available 58 languages and these can be easily sent via SMS, email, Twitter, or Facebook without leaving the app or you can easily copy the text to use it on other applications.

The Translator is available for download for the iPhone and iPad for $1.99.

Asus announces cheap yet powerful Asus MeMO Pad HD 7

Hot off the new Nexus 7 release, Asus is releasing a cheap but decently spec’d tablet, the Asus MeMO Pad HD 7. The $160 Android-powered tablet features a 7-inch multi-touch panel with 1280 x 800 HD resolution and IPS technology for a wide 170-degree viewing angle, high-quality dual speakers using Asus SonicMaster technology, 5-megapixel rear and 1.2-megapixel front cameras, and quad-core processor with 1GB RAM.

It is also equipped with 16GB internal storage with expansion capability via microSD (up to 32GB), Bluetooth 4.0, WLAN (802.11 b/g/n), Miracast, and has a supposed 10-hour battery life. The MeMO Pad HD 7 comes in blue, white, pink, and green and will be available on August 12 in Future Shop, Best Buy and Staples among other. Look out for a full review of the device here as we've been playing with a pre-release version.