BlackBerry Virtual Expert app comes to Android

With the release of the BlackBerry Priv, it was inevitable that the company’s self-guided diagnostics app will launch on Google Play. The Virtual Expert app basically gives your device a “health assessment” to see if everything is running as it should. It’ll put your device through various hardware tests to see if everything is working properly. It’s customized to whatever BlackBerry device you are using. In the case of the Priv, it can test things out like camera and camera display, keyboard, vibrator, stereo headsets, to name a few. After testing, it’ll send you a summary of the results. If there are any issues, then you can show that your provider and get it fixed.

Source: Android Community | Download: Google Play Store (Free)

There won’t be an extended cut for ‘The Force Awakens’ Blu-ray edition

If you were thinking scoring the Blu-ray version of Star Wars: The Force Awakens will score you extra footage you didn’t see in the cinema, well you thought wrong. The film’s director J.J. Abrams has said there will be extras in the DVD/Blu-ray release but these will come in the form of deleted scenes from the movie. He hasn’t specified though how many scenes or how long these scenes will run.  Abrams said during the recent panel that the first cut of The Force Awakens clocked in at two hours and 50 minutes, which is 35 minutes longer than what we saw at the cinemas. Unfortunately, we don’t know yet when the DVD/Blu-ray editions of the new Star Wars trilogy will come out.

Source: EW + SlashGear

Starbucks expands reach of Mobile Order & Pay in Canada

It’ll now be easier for Starbucks customers in Toronto and Vancouver to get their favorite beverages with the expansion of its Mobile Order & Pay service. Starting January 12 in Toronto and January 19 in Vancouver, customers can use either their Android or iOS devices to get their drink of choice faster and easier. Starbucks initially launched feature for iOS in Toronto back in October 2015. Mobile Order & Pay lets you skip the lines at your favorite Starbucks by placing your order and paying within. It will even show you estimated pick up times. It comes seamlessly integrated into Starbucks’s mobile app and is tied in with the My Starbucks Rewards loyalty program.

Starbucks boasts they are the first national retailer to offer mobile payment technology that combined with a loyalty program. According to the company, the mobile payment service already represents 18 percent of all in store transactions in Canadian Starbucks stores.

Download: Apple App Store (Free) + Google Play Store (Free)

Facebook Messenger has over 800 million monthly users now

Whether you like Facebook Messenger or not, a lot of you use it. Facebook recently announced that the messaging service now has over 800 million monthly active users, which puts Facebook’s messaging platform closer to WhatsApp’s 900 million user mark that they hit back in September. Facebook has worked on innovating the service last year and introduced new features like video calling and bringing businesses and customers together with Businesses on Messenger.

What’s in store for Messenger in 2016? Facebook’s Vice President of Messaging Products David Marcus didn’t go into specifics but one of the things is they seem to still be working on Facebook’s AI-based virtual assistant, M, and they’re developing how to better interaction on the service. “At Messenger we’re thinking about how we can help you interact with businesses or services to buy items, order rides, purchase airline tickets, and talk to customer service in truly frictionless and delightful ways. It is so much easier to do everything in one place that has the context of your last interactions, as well as your identity (no need to ever login), rather than downloading apps that you’ll never use again and jumping around from one app to another.” Marcus said.

Source: Facebook + Mashable