News: Wonderscope iPhone App Turns Bedrooms into Stages for Children's Stories in Augmented Reality
Augmented reality content makers often position the technology as a new storytelling medium. And who loves stories more than children?
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News: NBA Star Steve Nash & Classic Galaga Game Come to AR to Show Off ARKit 2.0 as Apple Unveils New iPhone Lineup
On Wednesday, as expected, Apple unveiled the next generation of iPhones, namely the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max along with the more affordable iPhone XR, each equipped with a TrueDepth sensor.
News: The 8 Best FaceTime Features in iOS 12 for iPhone
From its introduction and all the way through iOS 11, FaceTime has been restricted to one-on-one calls. Apple will be changing that in a future iOS 12 update with Group FaceTime, which adds support for up to 32 people total in group audio and video calls. But that's not all we'll be getting in iOS 12 — there are more features that FaceTime has or will be getting soon that you should know about.
News: Holocaust Museum Preserves Memory of Victims & Survivors via Augmented Reality
They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but augmented reality is giving the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum the ability to add a few more poignant real words to its exhibits.
How To: Enable Encryption in Skype to Securely Call & Message Your Friends
For years, Skype has been synonymous with video calling and messaging. However, as the industry moved toward encryption and privacy, Skype usage was discouraged by experts due to its murky encryption. To combat this, Skype has introduced true end-to-end encryption.
How To: Quickly Turn on 'Do Not Disturb' in iOS 12 Until the Evening or Morning
Included with iOS 12 is an easier-to-use Do Not Disturb mode. Not only is there a new Bedtime Mode that makes waking up less annoying, but also new ways to quickly launch the DND temporarily. One example is having the ability to set Do Not Disturb based on a time of day — specifically, morning or evening.
News: Blippar Brings Its AR Navigation Capabilities Indoors
Computer vision company Blippar has already dabbled with outdoor AR navigation, but now it wants to make it easier for people to make their way through indoor spaces with augmented reality.
Market Reality: More Magic Leap One Details Unearthed, Apple Adds to Its AR Team, & Snapchat Learns New Tricks
The arrival of Magic Leap One is tantalizingly close and, although the company has been saving the last details for launch day, a few of the more important details were found this week hiding deep in the code on Magic Leap's website.
How To: Use WhatsApp's Four-Way Calls for Group Video & Audio Chats
While WhatsApp remains one of the world's most popular messaging apps, you could only call or video chat with one friend at a time. To group audio or video chat, you'd have to use a different app, but that's no longer the case. Announced on July 30, 2018, WhatsApp now lets you group audio or video call with up to three more users on Android and iOS.
How To: Get the New iPad Pro Wallpapers on Any iPhone
The current iPhone lineup inarguably features Apple's best displays to date, but the stock wallpapers don't really do the screens justice. There are plenty of third-party wallpapers you can use, as well as ones you create yourself. However, if you want that typical Apple feeling, you're better off sticking with Apple wallpapers, and the iPad Pro has some beautiful ones that look awesome on an iPhone.
Market Reality: Snapchat Expands Ad Offerings, Magic Leap Takes Flight with Content, & Microsoft Readies New HoloLens
At present, consumer-facing augmented reality is a mobile world, and Snapchat is making money on it through advertising partnerships.
How To: The Best Way to Keep Up with World Cup News & Scores on Your Phone
With the World Cup in Russia fast approaching, you're probably wondering how to keep track of your country (unless that country is the USA). While there are a ton of apps that do just that, there's one that stands above the rest if you're looking for World Cup coverage — and it's not ESPN, Yahoo, or CBS.
How To: 3 New Ways to Save Snapchats Without Getting Caught on Android
When Snapchat first hit it big, people just assumed it'd be used for seedy activities. And while that's not completely true, it's definitely true sometimes. For those moments when you need to take a sneaky screenshot that doesn't notify the sender, Android has plenty of ways to keep your cover from being blown — no root needed.
News: $150 Never Got You So Much — Alcatel Announces the 3V for the US
To quote MKBHD, cheap phones are getting good. Each year we are seeing manufacturers start to offer more for much less. This not only translates to cheaper flagship phones, but better budget phones. The latest example of this is the Alcatel 3V, which is redefining what you can get at $150.
Instagram 101: Turn Off Stories from Brands & Followed Hashtags
Instagram integrated Stories back in 2016, and it flew right by Snapchat as a whole, becoming a bigger success itself than the whole entire Snapchat app. Still, the constant bombardment of information can be tiring in Instagram, so much so that you may want to mediate what Stories are shown to you. Fortunately, there's a way to do just that — without unfollowing accounts or hashtags.
How To: Create Your Own Search Engine for More Privacy & Zero Trust Issues
While there are a variety of privacy-focused search engines available like StartPage and DuckDuckGo, nothing can offer the complete trust offered by creating one's own search engine. For complete trust and security, Searx can be used as free metasearch engine which can be hosted locally and index results from over 70 different search engines.
News: ARCore Closes Gap with ARKit via Image Recognition from Viro Media
Upon Google's release of ARCore in February, the platform wasn't only playing catch-up with Apple and ARKit in terms of downloads, but it also lagged in capabilities, as Apple already had vertical surface recognition and image recognition on the way with ARKit 1.5 for a March release.
Chrome 101: How to Set Your Privacy & Choose Which Data to Share with Google
Chrome is the browser of choice for millions of iPhone and Android users, largely thanks to its user-friendly interface and native Google support. But with concerns over sharing private information with massive companies growing, many people are starting to want a little less Google integration in Chrome.
News: What You Need to Know About ZTE's Ongoing Battle with the US Government
| Update: ZTE's issues with the US government have finally been resolved. Check out the details below.
How To: You Can Play Harry Potter Hogwarts Mystery on Your iPhone Right Now — Here's How
Mobile gamers who grew up on J.K. Rowling's fantasy epic have yet another reason to rejoice, as Jam City's Harry Potter: Hogwart Mystery is slated to touch down on both iOS and Android on April 25. But if you can't bear the wait, there's a little hack you can do to give the game a try right now.
News: Vuzix Seeks $80 Million in Defamation Lawsuit Over Unflattering Blade Smartglasses Report
Augmented reality device maker Vuzix has filed a defamation lawsuit asking for $80 million in punitive damages, money damages, and interest against a short seller who has publicly claimed that the Amazon Alexa functionality of the company's Blade smartglasses is fraudulent.
iOS Security: How to Keep Private Messages on Your iPhone's Lock Screen for Your Eyes Only
When you leave your iPhone on a table or anywhere within somebody else's eyeshot, a private message may pop up on your lock screen that could be read by anyone who sees it. But there's a way to keep others from reading your possibly sensitive text messages and emails without giving up the convenience of lock screen notifications entirely.
News: New Magic Leap Images Appear as Saudi Prince Gets Demo from CEO Rony Abovitz
It turns out that the government of Saudi Arabia has managed to do something last month's Game Developers Conference couldn't — give us a few new glimpses of the Magic Leap One being worn by someone other than Shaq.
News: Why It's Worth Giving Gboard Permission to Record What You Type — Even in the Online Privacy Age
With Gboard, Google created a keyboard with more functionality than just inputting words. The app includes features such as GIF search and live text translation, but it gets even better when you let it learn more about you. With this data, Gboard grows from a good keyboard to one that can complete your sentences.
How To: Play Netmarble's Firstborn Kingdom Come on Your iPhone Right Now
Netmarble has released a new MMORTS game called Firstborn: Kingdom Come to go up against competing games like Lords Mobile. Unfortunately, the game seems to be stuck in development as a soft launch in select countries, limiting its exposure to gamers worldwide. But don't let this hiccup deter you — we've found a simple workaround to play the game on your iPhone right now.
How To: Increase Performance for Individual Apps on Your Galaxy S9
Samsung's Galaxy S9 is a powerhouse, driven by the Snapdragon 845. Still, this SoC lags behind the A11 Bionic chip that's inside the iPhone X — meaning you'll need a few tricks in order to squeeze out some extra performance from your phone. Fortunately, there's an app made by Samsung that will help you do just that.
How To: Google Assistant Doesn't Work with Your Account? Here's What to Do
If your virtual assistant can't assist you, what's the point? Anyone who has ever failed to activate Google Assistant knows the frustration that error screen can be. But there are solutions for this problem — "The Google Assistant isn't available for this account" is one message you can actually avoid.
How To: Speed Up Transitions & Animations on Your Galaxy S9
Samsung just launched their Galaxy S9 flagship, with preorders shipping in the US already. The Galaxy S9 is an amazing smartphone, with a number of advanced features. Despite this, over time your S9 or S9+ may slow down a bit more than you would like. Thankfully, there is a longstanding trick in the Android community that can speed things up a bit.
News: BlackBerry Introduces the KEY2 — a Worthy Successor to the Iconic KEYone
BlackBerry has formally unveiled its latest flagship, the KEY2, during an exclusive event in New York. The Android-powered KEY2 retains its distinctive BlackBerry aesthetics with a physical QWERTY keyboard. Here's all the juicy details regarding Blackberry's followup to the venerable KEYone.
How To: Add Time & Location Stickers to Media Files on WhatsApp for More Context
For quite some time, popular messaging apps like Snapchat have had features that let you place stickers on photos and videos to add time and location-based information. To catch up, WhatsApp has now added the same functionality to its messaging platform in an effort to remain among the most well-rounded messaging apps available.
News: Here's What Magic Leap's Screens Feature Might Look Like
During the unveiling of its content partnership with the NBA, Magic Leap CEO Rony Abovitz, with an assist from former player/current pitchman Shaquille O'Neal, described at least one of the ways fans would be able to experience sports using the augmented reality device.
How To: 4 Ways to Hide All Traces of Your Messages Using Signal Private Messenger
Messaging apps can be a double-edged sword. Not only do they let you interact with other people, but they also let you go back and reminisce on past exchanges. However, that same archive can be used against you in certain situations. Luckily, Signal can be manipulated to remove any record of past messages.
Safari 101: How to Close All Your Open Tabs at the Same Time
If you're like me, your iPhone has way too many Safari tabs open. Links from other applications open up new tabs automatically, it's too easy to open up new tabs to search, and sometimes you're skittish about closing pages you don't want to forget about. This all creates a massive mess that requires cleaning house, and there's an easy trick to doing just that.
News: FaceCake Uses Snapchat-Like Camera Effects to Let You Try on Earrings Instead of Masks & Rainbows
Although it sounds like a foodie's take on Facebook, what Calabasas, California-based FaceCake actually offers is more about augmented reality fashion marketing rather than food selfies.
How To: This Mod Gives You Custom Icon Packs & More on the Pixel Launcher
Google's launchers are some of the most polished home screen apps out there, but they lack the ability to customize. With the old Google Now Launcher, we had Xposed GEL Settings to add options for tweaking the layout, but that project was abandoned when the Pixel Launcher came out. Now, a new root mod will give us some key customization settings for Google's latest launcher.
Outlook 101: How to Connect Third-Party Apps to Your Calendar
If you've read our list of the best email clients for iOS, you'll know Apple's Mail app doesn't cut it when it comes to third-party integration. If you want to use some of your favorite apps directly in your mail client's calendar, go with Outlook.
Market Reality: Vuzix Pairs with Amazon Alexa at CES, Bill Gates Pushes AR, DAQRI Founder Gets Personal
The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is the first big tech event of 2018. This year, if the early news is any indication, augmented reality could be the big star of the show.
Market Reality: Magic Leap One Says Hello, Google Tango Waves Goodbye & Honda Uses AR for CSR
Everything that has a beginning has an end. This week marked the end of the long wait for the reveal of Magic Leap's first product and the beginning of the wait for more substantive details. Likewise, Google Tango will meet its end in March 2018, when ARCore will officially begin its public rollout.
Instagram 101: How to Share Directly to WhatsApp on Android or iPhone
WhatsApp is a great app to keep in touch with friends and family across phone brands and countries, but sharing a post on Instagram hasn't always been as easy as it should have been considering Facebook owns both companies. Now, whether you have Android or iOS, all it takes is a few taps.
Apple AR: Wipe Your Room Clean & Fill It with New Furniture in Pottery Barn's New AR App
With the advent of ARKit, apps that can place virtual furniture in a real room have become nearly a universal practice for furniture retailers, with Pottery Barn being the latest to join the fray.