Breaking: Pebble officially announces it has dissolved to join Fitbit

No joy: Existing Pebble devices will no longer be updated as the company has dissolved.

By Gadjo Cardenas Sevilla

It's a definite end of an era as Pebble has finally 'fessed up and confirmed it is joining Fitbit. In a celebratory letter to backers and fans today, Pebble stated,"due to various factors—Pebble is no longer able to operate as an independent entity. We have made the tough decision to shut down the company and no longer manufacture Pebble devices." Fitbit is said to have bought ailing Pebble for around US $40 million.

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Apple Watch sales are supposedly doing fine according to Tim Cook

While Apple has been very evasive about talking about the sales figures of the Apple Watch, Tim Cook felt like he needed to address a recent IDC report claiming Apple ranks fourth in the wearables business behind Fitbit, Xiaomi, and Garmin and it sold 1.1 million units during the third quarter of 2016, which represents a 71 percent decline in shipments when compared to last year.

But Apple CEO says the Apple Watch is setting sales records for them during the first week of holiday shopping. “Sales growth is off the charts. In fact, during the first week of holiday shopping, our sell-through of Apple Watch was greater than any week in the product’s history. And as we expected, we’re on track for the best quarter ever for the Apple Watch,” he said. Cook wouldn’t give the exact sales figures still.

Source: Reuters

Google Play Movies & TV gets 4K support

It might seem like a long time coming but Google is finally bringing 4K support to its Play Movies & TV app. Google claims there are now over 125 movies available in 4K and can be purchased via its web or mobile store. These movies can then be streamed via a Chromecast Ultra, Sony Bravia Android TV, or Xiaomi Mi Box 3. The Chromecast Ultra is available on the Canadian Google Store for $90 but it’s said to be available in “limited quantities.” If you do get your hands on the dongle, Google will be giving you a 4K movie title for free.

Source: TechCrunch

Lenovo plans to release 12 Moto Mods per year

Looks like Lenovo is taking the modular phone movement quite seriously. At least serious enough that they intend to release at least 12 Moto Mods per year. There are currently seven different Mods available since it was released back in July. Lenovo’s Moto Mods Director John Touvannas told CNET they intend to boost development of the Mods in 2017. “Our goal is to get more Mods out this year than we did last year, no question,” he said. There have been two new Moto Mods added recently into the mix: a battery pack from Mophie and a car mount from Incipio. We do hope Lenovo and Motorola do intend to push through with these plans to truly develop the modular phone segment.

Source: SlashGear