Amazon’s Kindle for iOS update geared towards students

Amazon is looking to help students study better with the latest Kindle 4.1 update for iOS. A new Flashcards feature is available for print replica textbooks that allows students to convert important terms taken from X-Ray for Textbooks feature or notes and placed into a flashcard set. X-Ray has also been updated to allow for sorting by alphabet, order of appearance or relevance.

Amazon also updated in-book search; added notebook filters by bookmarks, highlights, notes, and even specific-colored highlights; and revamped the interface of the Dictionary feature to suit the look of iOS 7 and make it easier for users to switch between purchased dictionaries and alternate languages. The other changes can be seen on the changelog over at the Apple App Store. 

Microsoft introduces Bing Awards service for upcoming award shows

Fan of all things Hollywood or even just the award season? Microsoft recently introduced a new service under its search engine Bing that is geared towards the upcoming award ceremonies such as the Golden Globes, Grammy’s, and Oscars. Bing Awards is said to house everything related to the award season.

The site was opened just in time for Sunday night’s Golden Globes. Bing Awards contains a look at the event’s history, an insider look at the event, background on the nominees, predictions based on Bing search increases following nomination announcements, and even tips on planning a viewing party.

Source: The Next Web

Sony reveals future interactive user interface

Sony CEO Kaz Hirai demonstrated a new interface the company has dubbed as Life Space UX, which aims to bring home and technology together. The first manifestation of it comes in the form of the Ultra Short Throw Project coming out this summer. It turns any wall or flat surface into an interactive touch-screen or a viewing screen for entertainment purposes.

The Verge reports that Hirai showed off what the technology can offer with windows acting as screens or vice versa. "Imagine being an avid surfer and having the perfect wall-sized window to see the world's most vivid surf spots in real time on your television," he said.

Qualcomm announces Snapdragon chip for 4K TVs

The latest crop of smart televisions, particularly of the 4K Ultra HD variety, have all the latest video technology crammed into beautiful form factors. However, there is much left to do in terms of user interface and online integration. Qualcomm aims to boost the browsing and app capabilities of the UHD sets with Snapdragon 802 quad-core SoC to help with 4K content playback and application multi-tasking and operation. It even comes with Hollywood Quality Video processing engine designed to upscale 1080p videos to near 4K image quality.

Engadget reports some of the more technical specs including quad-core Krait 1.8GHz CPU; Adreno 330 GPU; AllJoyn integration; two-stream, dual-band 802.11ac; and Snapdragon Studio Access content protection.