Google to enter smart home appliance market with Nest Labs acquisition

From left: Nest Labs co-founder Matt Rogers, Google CEO Larry Page, and Nest Labs co-founder Tony Fadell

Google aims to increase its presence in your home with the planned acquisition of Nest Labs for US$3.2 billion. Nest Labs develops smart thermostats and smoke detectors, signifying a move to enter the app-controlled household gadgets market internationally.

Google CEO Larry Page said in a statement, “They’re already delivering amazing products you can buy right now—thermostats that save energy and smoke/CO alarms that can help keep your family safe. We are excited to bring great experiences to more homes in more countries and fulfill their dreams!”

Nest CEO Tony Fadell said in a blog post the company will retain leadership and brand identity and will still support Apple users.

Source: The Guardian

Travel apps to get you there with ease

Written by Sonya Davidson 

I know, the winter has been brutal and it’s only January. Luckily I’ve got a few dangling carrots to keep me from spiraling into the deep bowels of back-to-back episodes of Modern Family. I think I’ve seen every episode …four times.

If you're like me and in travel planning mode, it's a good time to download some useful apps that may make your journey a little more efficient and pleasant!

Click to read more ...

Shoot horizontal videos for any device orientation with Horizon 1.0 on iOS

Horizon 1.0 by Evil Window Dog,  lets users record horizontal videos regardless of the device's orientation. Users can hold their devices upright, sideways or even keep rotating them while capturing and the resulting video will always stay horizontal.

While many apps like Instagram offer straightening in photos, Horizon is the first app to do this on video and in real-time as demonstrated in the launch trailer. As the user records, Horizon auto-levels videos utilizing the device's gyroscope. The orientation of the resulting video stays corrected so that it is always parallel to the ground. Users can also choose between eight real-time filters to apply while recording and share the final result to their favorite social network right within the app.

Click to read more ...

Moto Assist update for Moto X now enables voice response to texts while driving

US models of the Motorola Moto X smartphone that are running the Android 4.4 KitKat upgrade received a notable update in the Moto Assist feature which automates tasks when you are driving, in a meeting or sleeping. The latest update brings the ability to respond to text messages via voice when the Moto X senses you are driving (which it can do with it's motion co-processor). This is good news for all Moto X owners since it will extend the functionality of their device when the update is made available by their respective country carriers. I plan on testing the new Moto Assist feature on my developer Moto X to see just how much of an improvement the update brings.