Starbucks app comes to Windows Phone devices in US, Canada and the UK

The much awaited Anniversary Update may have not yet made it to Windows Phone devices but at least users of Microsoft's mobile devices can drown their sorrows with Starbucks coffee. The company has made a Starbucks app available for supported Windows Phones, which means they can use their exisiting Starbucks cards or accounts on ther Lumia devices to buy coffee without a wallet.

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Nike launches new Nike + app

Nike launched its anticipated new Nike+ app, which gives athletes personal access to Nike’s signature services, including its most-coveted products, expert guidance and live events, all in one easy-to-access place, as only Nike can do. Nike also announced that it will open its first digital studio in NYC, focused on accelerating the company’s digital connection to consumers.

“Our consumers want instant access to the best of Nike and we’re excited to be offering expanded Nike+ services, personalized to athletes everywhere,” said Trevor Edwards, President, Nike Brand. “Digital enables us to better serve our consumers across our business and we will continue to invest in our digital portfolio of services and connect with athletes anytime, anywhere.”

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Stop snoring with Nora

Nope, Nora isn’t a person that comes in to prevent you from snoring too loudly and waking up whomever you’re in the room with. Nora is a smart snoring solution that promises to stop snoring before it wakes up the person you share a bed with. Nora is designed to work with whatever pillow you use and in whatever sleeping position you are in. It’s built to detect the early sounds of snoring and will gently move your pillow to stop you from snoring without waking you up. It can be customized to your sleeping preferences and your sensitivity to noise.

A compatible iOS app helps you track your sleep and snoring patterns so you can see the effect of using Nora over time as well as offer you tips to improve your quality of sleep. Nora is rechargeable and if you use it at home, it won’t need to be recharged for at least two weeks. But if you take it traveling with you, it can be used entirely on battery for three nights. Nora is up for pre-order for US$259 (about CA$330) and has a 30-day satisfaction guarantee and one-year limited warranty.

Instagram copies Snapchat’s Stories, names it the same thing

In the world of social media, the me-too mentality thrives. Facebook was a complete copy of Friendster and now Instagram (which is also owned by Facebook) is taking a play from its mother company and outright copying the competition. Instagram is introducing a new feature called Stories. And yes, it shares the same name as the Snapchat feature it’s gotten its inspiration from.

For those unfamiliar with how Snapchat works, the users can upload photos and videos that stay up on the service for 24 hours for your followers to see. Basically, it shows your adventure or “story,” if you will. What Instagram is doing is almost exactly the same thing. You can share photos and video clips that are up to 10 seconds long and draw or add stickers to these photos and videos, too. And yes, after 24 hours they’re off Instagram as well.

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