Review: ASUS ZenFone 2

By Gadjo Cardenas Sevilla

The Asus ZenFone 2 is clearly designed as the company’s best vision for a modern Android smartphone. That they have managed to make it affordable and available contract-free, really shakes up the market and puts the ZenFone 2 at the very top tier of available affordable Android devices.

ASUS has made one of the most compelling 5.5-inch smartphones in the market today. The Zenfone 2, which comes to Canada this June, is designed as an affordable and contract-free option for anyone looking for a larger Android smartphone with all the power and functionality to match more expensive models from established competitors. 

A product of many firsts, the ASUS ZenFone 2 eschews the usual Qualcomm or NVIDIA processor for one of the first Intel Atom mobile processors designed for high-end smartphones and tablets. Both ASUS and Intel are avowed PC companies, so seeing them team up to take on the North American mobile market in this one device is surprising and very exciting.

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Pre ordered Pebble Time smartwatches begin arriving

People who pre-ordered the new Pebble Time smartwatch on KickStarter are starting to receive their kickstarter edition watches in the mail, sometimes even before receiving a notification email and tracking number. The Pebble Time began shipping out the last week of May and once most KickStarter orders are fulfilled, the company will begin selling non KickStarter editions. The Pebble Time Steel is coming to market next month. Users on Android will be able to install and explore the device right away by downloading the new Pebble Time app. iOS users will have to wait for the app to be cleared at the iOS App Store. Stay tuned for a full review of the new Pebble Time and its corresponding OS once we get our KickStarter edition.

(thanks to Corey Herscu for the picture) 

Update on Friday, June 5, 2015 at 3:11PM by Gadjo Cardenas Sevilla

The Pebble Time app on iOS has been approved and should be appearing in the App Store anytime now.

Last.fm gets design overhaul

If you’re the type who loved keeping track of your favorite music and new tunes on Last.fm, this update might be of interest to you. The streaming music service is getting a new look in hopes to get more people to pay attention to the site. The design update was first made available to paying subscribers and now it’s in open beta for the public. You’ll only be able to see it if you log into your account. There’s no word yet from the company when the new design can be seen by everyone.

The new look features a home page that shows all your tracks, artists, albums, and events. You can also play new tracks right away through the new playbar. The desktop utility has the playbar that lets you listen to music from different sources. Last.fm is also introducing a Library Explorer to help feed your throwback nostalgia for older songs you’ve loved.

Source: The Next Web

Airbnb helps hosts optimize pricing with new tool

A new recommendation tool from Airbnb hopes to help its hosts to get more bookings. The tool is called Price Tips and it shows recent data about demand and how much similar listings are going for. It’s meant to help hosts adjust their prices accordingly based on different times of the year. For example, they can lower prices during low travel seasons or increase the rate a bit. It won’t guarantee an increase in bookings but it’ll at least keep you in the know. The feature is expected to roll out gradually beginning today.

Source: The Next Web