Disney unveils official ‘Star Wars’ app

Star Wars: The Force Awakens is almost upon us. And Disney isn’t wasting any time for ramping up promotions of the movie. This time a new official Star Wars app (which is also the name of the app) has been launched for iOS and Android devices. It shows breaking news about the film, rich media, social updates, interactive features, and special events. Also, you get features like a countdown timer to big releases, Augmented Reality experiences, lightsaber training, and soundboard and GIF features that show off clips from the film. You can even take Star War selfies with some of the famous characters of the series, and you shall be dressed appropriately by the app. The Star Wars app is already available for download.

Source: The Next Web + 9to5 Mac | Download: Apple App Store (Free) + Google Play Store (Free)

Instagram on Android promised to get better quality photos

Since last week, Instagram has been upping the image quality of the pictures it stores and shows to a higher 1,080 x 1,080 resolution for both Android and iOS. Now, it seems Android might be getting improved image compression so photo upload quality should also improve. According to Mike Krieger, Instagram’s co-founder, they are adding a “bunch of improvements to the image pipeline” to provide “better upload quality” for Android users.

It hasn’t exactly been explained why Android users suffer from lower quality uploads than iOS counterparts. Instagram developers have previously admitted that it’s a challenge to develop for Android with its wide variety of screen sizes. But they have never really explicitly said if that affected quality. But we’re all for better uploads, and if Instagram has that, we hope to see it soon.

Source: The Verge

Rdio debuts more curated stations, launches these in more countries

Rdio’s hoping to keep up with its bigger competitions (i.e. Spotify and Apple Music) with its new batch of curated music stations. These new stations, as well as the old ones, are available to all Rdio users (whether they use free, select, or unlimited). Some of the new “influencer” stations include A.V. Club, Alt Sounds, Refinery29, and, strangely enough, Yelp. Meanwhile, new labels creating their own stations include XL, Blue Note, and Glassnote Records.

Aside from being offered here in Canada, in the US, and the UK, Rdio is bringing these curated stations to Australia, Brazil, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand.

Source: Rdio | Via: The Verge

‘Simpsons’ voice actor Mr. Burns isn’t going anywhere

Harry Shearer, the voice actor of one of the biggest The Simpsons characters, left the show earlier this spring following a contract dispute. The production and Shearer seems to have reached an agreement and is back on the show. He now has the same contract deal as his fellow cast members, which include a two-year deal with a two year option following that.

Showrunner Al Jean had said they intended to recast the parts Shearer played. But if you’ve voiced the likes of Mr. Burns, Kent Brockman, and Ned Flanders, it’s going to be a bit hard to fill in those roles. The Simpsons will be coming back for its 27^th season this fall with Shearer back in the cast.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter | Via: The Verge