Do you have the need for speed, but would rather not dole out the cash to get it? We get it - cars are expensive, and why pay for a game when you don’t have to? We’ve combed through Google Play for some of the best-looking white-knuckled racing games on Android that are completely free, barring the odd prompt for in-app purchases. These freemium racing games are all really good and offer a little something for everyone.

Pull on up to the starting line, and check out these outstanding free racing games for Android.

read more

Whether you’re crunching big data or tracking your family budget, you don’t want to waste time waiting for files to load or re-doing edits that were lost because your Internet connection dropped. You can now get more done by switching to the new version of Google Sheets. It’s faster, supports larger spreadsheets, has a number of new features, and works offline.
Bigger, faster spreadsheets
The new Sheets supports millions of cells and kicks many of the old size and complexity limits to the curb. Scrolling, loading and calculation are all snappier, even in more complex spreadsheets.

New features based on your feedback and requests 
Filter views is a new feature unique to Google Sheets that lets you quickly name, save and share different views of your data. This comes in handy when you’re collaborating so you can sort a spreadsheet without affecting how others see it.
Whether you’re new to formulas or a whiz at running complex functions, it’s now easier to set up and perform calculations. New function help and examples guide you as you type, and error highlighting and coloring make it easy to spot and fix mistakes.
As another time-saving improvement, text now automatically flows into empty adjacent cells—no manual merge needed.
With the improved conditional formatting, you can add rules to change the colors and styles of cells in your spreadsheet based on custom formulas.

No Internet connection? Work offline with Chrome 
You shouldn’t have to think about whether you have a WiFi connection when you want to work. So just like Google Docs and Slides, you can now make edits to Sheets offline. When you reconnect to the Internet, your edits will automatically sync. If you've edited Docs or Slides offline in the past, then you’re already set up to edit Sheets offline. If not, follow these one-time instructions for setting up offline in Chrome.

Ready to try it out? 
Turn on the new Sheets by checking the “Try the new Google Sheets” box in Google Drive settings. From then on, all new spreadsheets you create will work offline and include these new features. We’ll be adding a small list of missing features in the coming months, so if you rely on any of them, you may want to wait a little longer before opting in.

We hope you enjoy these and the many other updates that come along with the new Google Sheets, including colored sheet tabs, custom number formatting, paste transpose and more. Let us know what you think on our Google+ page!

Posted by Zach Lloyd, Software Engineer

Microsoft would greatly appreciate it if you could knock off that Gmailing business and move to its Outlook.com email service. I refuse to, and so do more people than Microsoft prefers, so the company today released a new tool that will make it easier for Gmail users to jump ship.

The Outlook.com switching tool is designed to make changing inbox homes more seamless and less an exercise in re-tagging. It will propagate over the next few weeks to all 400 million-plus Outlook.com users — as well as current Gmail users who have yet to make the move — a simple path to a new email home.

The tool, which you can find directions for here, will hold your hand when changing teams, though expect to wait a bit as it could be a while for your email to slip over. The transition will bring over your most recent email more quickly than the rest. But, you should be sorted in short order. The new tool will land over the next few weeks. If you don’t have it now, sit tight.

The company has research indicating that people are more willing to change email providers if the friction betwixt the two is minimized. That’s logical. So, as Microsoft wants to knock Gmail off its tech throne (name a technology leader who swears by Outlook.com over Gmail), it is working to lower the delta between leaving Google and dropping into its own product.

Outlook.com is a worthy tool that is far superior to its Hotmail predecessor. Buckled with functionally unlimited storage, Outlook.com grew quickly organically, and then benefited from the end of Hotmail itself.

Top Image Credit: Flickr

You don't have to spend a lot of money to get great sound. High end, pricey headphones definitely have their place, but if you know what to look for and shop smart, you can get surprisingly good audio for around $20. Here's what to look for, and some suggestions to get you started.

Choosing the right pair of headphones can be tricky, and is definitely a matter of personal taste (no matter how many comments, forums, and Amazon reviews try to tell you otherwise), but there are some commonalities that can give you great sound on a budget.

To get you started, we've discussed some great headphones, some great in-ear models, even some solid headphones designed for exercise, and noise cancelling models for the office. Now let's look at some budget friendly models you won't feel bad about tossing in your bag as you run to catch a train, or manhandling while you're doing yardwork or cleaning around the house.

What You're Getting and What You're Giving Up

You can get great sound on a budget. Will it be the same as expensive, super-high-end headphones? Likely not. Is it good enough for most people, especially if you're listening to a lossy mp3 or middling-quality internet stream on your phone or PC? Absolutely. There's a time and place for expensive headphones, and it's usually in quiet environments with lossless audio where fidelity is important. For every other time, on the go, when you're traveling and you want good sound but don't want to feel terrible if your headphones are lost or broken, or if you're on a budget, more affordable headphones are better buys.

We're not here to settle the debate over high-end versus low-end audio, but we will tackle a few important points. First, buying affordable headphones will require some compromises. None of the models we tested had that broad, beautiful soundstage that make everything sound almost live and real. By going budget, you're giving up the kind of high fidelity sound, frequency range, and rich, clear mids and highs that mimic live performances or studio quality.

In return, the best models grant you deep, rich bass (which can be a good or a bad thing, we'll get to that), portability, decent mids and solid highs (if at times a little bright). Bottom line though—you're not going to get an experience that matches hundred dollar-plus headphones, but a pair of Hamiltons can certainly buy sound quality that matches or surpasses headphones two or three times as expensive.

The Best In-Ear Monitors and Earbuds for Under $20

Monoprice 9927 Enhanced Bass Hi-Fi Noise Isolating Earphones ($7 direct): You didn't think we would kick off this list without mentioning these, did you? The 9927s have quite the cult following, and while a lot of professional reviewers are mixed on them, I loved them for their rich, full bass response and clarity through the midrange. Whether I was listening to electronic, classical, or jazz, I found they offered rich and full sound that's often tough to get in a pair of in-ear headphones. Part of that has to do with their massive external drivers, which can lead to an uncomfortable fit depending on your ears, but the price-to-performance ratio is solid. Some people have said the treble is too high—I didn't find that at all. I did, however, find that the bass can be overwhelming sometimes, and how comfortable you are wearing them for long periods depends on your ears. We've featured them before. You love them. Buy a pair.

RHA MA-150 ($12 on Amazon): While technically RHA has moved on from the MA-150s, they're still widely available, and they're some of the most crisp, clear, rich headphones that you can get for the money. I found them a bit less bass heavy than the Monoprice models, while the mids and highs were remarkably clear. Don't misunderstand me though—they pack a serious low-end punch, which again is great for electronic, but if you're an acoustic or metal fan, there's a lot here to like as well. The bass can be a little distracting though; and if you listen closely they can leave the mids and highs a little muddled. The 150s offered rich and deep sound in a small and comfortable package. I wasn't expecting much when I tried these on, especially as I'd had the opportunity to try RHA's higher-end models a few months back, but I was so blown away I actually emailed my contact to ask how they managed to make cheaper headphones sound better than their more expensive models. Don't just take my word for it though, PCMag rated them highly (and I've seen their headphone testing facilities) and even the New York Times had good things to say as well.

Panasonic RP-TCM125-K ($18 direct, or $20 on Amazon): The Panasonic RP-TCM125-Ks are The Wirecutter's pick for best sub-$30 earphones, so I had to try them out myself. They're spot on with their recommendation here, with a few caveats: If you need headphones with a microphone and you're sticking to this price point, these are a stellar option. They offer well balanced sound and even frequency response that makes all of your music sound smooth without any part of it being muddled by anything else. At the same time, that even response may turn off people who really like powerful bass or strong highs. They're a comfortable fit, and come with additional ear tips if you need them. They're not perfect though—I like a little more punch, but I felt that the tradeoff for even, clear sound was that everything sounded more boring than I was used to (which could be personal preference). That said, if you want good headphones not just for listening but also for talking, you can't do much better.

Koss KSC75 Ear Clip Headphones ($20 direct, $10 on Amazon): The Koss KSC75s are perfect for someone who doesn't like in-ear headphones (or has a hard time getting a good fit) but doesn't want to give up their convenience for a pair of full, over-the-head supra-aural or circumaural cans. I loved this combination—they clip snugly around the backs of your ears, and the pads rest on-ear. I could see those pads getting tough to wear over long periods, but they're very modder-friendly in that department. Sound-wise, I found them a little underpowered and soft, but when I connected them to an amp, they really, really shined. That isn't to say you won't have a good experience—they have a wide frequency response and offer great sound. However, they're definitely open-backed, so your neighbors may hear more than other in-ear models, and because they're on-ear, they won't block out as much external noise. That said, they sound good, they're cheap, and they're perfect for people who want portability but not necessarily something jammed in their ear.

If you have a little more to spend...

If you have a little more to spend on headphones than $20, you have plenty of great in-ear and portable models that are just over the $20 price point.

Sennheiser CX 300 Mk-II ($48 direct, $35 on Amazon): An extra $15 bucks gets you a pair of Sennheiser in-ear headphones that offer great build quality, excellent clear and crisp sound, surprising soundstage for such a small set, and satisfying—although not overwhelmingly boomy—bass response. I really liked the CX 300s (although not as much as their pricier big brothers, the CX 400 Mk IIs, but they're over $50), and when I first tested them they were much closer to $20 than they are now. Chalk it up to holiday price inflation or what, but if these were still $20, they'd be in the category above. They're light, noise isolating, and while they're not the most powerful earbuds I've listened to, they are some of the most clear. Don't take my word for it though, they're well liked at Engadget, over at PCMag, and at CNET.

Klipsch Image S4i-II ($40 on Amazon): Double your dollars, and you can grab the Klipsch S4i-IIs, the successor of one of your favorite in-ear headphones that also packs volume controls and an in-line microphone. Here's the deal with these—when they were new, they were over $80. They're a little old, but since you can pick them up for half-price, they're a decent bang for the buck. The build quality is solid, the separated tip-and-driver design is comfortable, they have great noise isolation, and most importantly they sound good. Some of the others above will match it beat for beat when it comes to clarity and bass response, but your extra dollars here go towards a better build that will hopefully last you longer. The in-line controls were a little spotty on my Android device, but Klipsch only markets them to iPhone users anyway, so keep that in mind if you buy. For more, check out CNET's review.

The Best Over-Ear Headphones for Under $20

If full, on-ear and over-ear headphones are more your style, $20 still nets you a great selection of quality audio gear. These models deliver great sound, whether you wear them on the go or at your desk listening to music on your PC.

Monoprice 8323 Premium Hi-Fi DJ Style Over-the-Ear Pro Headphone ($20 direct): The 8323s are a brilliant example of great sound and comfort on a budget. They're built pretty well (barring the pleather earpads), and they sport a long, strong, detachable cable. I was a little put off by the wide fit of the headband and the plastic earpads at first (all of which are easily modded), but that faded pretty quickly when I started listening to music. They deliver way better sound than you would expect in a $20 closed-back set of headphones. They're DJ-style, so the individual cups are adjustable, and the whole thing collapses nicely for storage or portability. The bass is strong but not too boomy, the mids are good but a tad muddled, and the highs are crisp. They're well balanced, but the drivers still deliver enough power to really make you feel what you're listening to at any volume. Hook them up to a solid DAC (digital to analog converter, a topic we've discussed and have recommendations for) for a real treat. For more, check out this Head-Fi review and CNET's glowing review.

Sennheiser HD 201 ($24 direct, $20 on Amazon): I'll be blunt about the HD 201s. They don't sound like $20 headphones. If I didn't know they were $20 before I put them on, I would have assumed they were $50, and the sound is balanced like a pricier pair of headphones. They're well built to boot, sturdy and comfortable to wear—unlike a lot of headphones in this category, they don't feel like a little twist will crack or break them. They're over-ear, closed back models too, so they do a decent job at isolating outside noise so you can focus on your music. I found them a bit underpowered, and not as bassy as I would like, but if your favorite tunes aren't bass heavy, it's not a big deal. They're crisp and clear, but definitely not loud. For more, check out CNET's review, or Head-Fi's review of the 201s. If you have room to stretch, step up to the $33 HD 202s or the $38 HD 203s. The 202s and 203s each sport a more stylish look, if you care about that kind of thing. Audio-wise though, each step up will earn you better sound. Sennheiser's bang for the buck here is remarkable.

Panasonic RP-HX40-K ($18 on Amazon): If you're really on a budget, these Panasonics will deliver solid sound in a pretty small package, at around $18, less if you shop around. Part of this is because they're on their way out—I think Panasonic is either finished manufacturing them, or about to discontinue them, so while they're easily available now at multiple online retailers, this time next year they may not be. Surprisingly though, they're some solid sound—definitely on par with the others here—and they include an in-line microphone for taking calls. That means if you prefer full headphones but don't want to give up the convenience of actually listening and answering on your phone, they're worth a look. Here's the catch—they're really flimsy, and don't feel like they'll take a ton of punishment. One sharp twist and they feel like they'll break. The soft fabric on the earpads is thin as well, so they wouldn't be comfortable for long periods. They're also a little snug fit-wise, which may or may not be a bad thing for you.

Koss Porta Pros ($50 direct, $25 on Amazon): The Koss Porta Pros are pretty legendary, and have a long and storied history that goes back to their introduction, 25 years ago. That's why we're cheating a little bit and adding five bucks to the bottom line to mention them here (as opposed to below). They have a well-deserved following, and are highly regarded as solid bang-for-your-buck headphones. I actually owned a pair of Porta Pros a long time ago, and it was nostalgic to try them again, only to find that they sound even better, today. They're still beautifully balanced with rich bass and striking highs, and soundstage unlike anything else in the category. They're well built and sturdy, and while they're semi-open backed, leakage isn't terrible at moderate volumes. They're comfortable to wear (although I imagine people with long hair may hate the collapsible band), and even though they definitely have that 80s headphone look about them, they sound terrific regardless of the type of music you put through them. Even if you buy another pair of headphones, these are worth having around.

If you have a little more to spend....

JVC HAS400B ($40 direct, $28 on Amazon): These headphones sound surprisingly good. They're really well built over-ear, closed back headphones that sport solid sound in a small, collapsible package. They're made from firm plastic, not the flimsy stuff. They're also pretty powerful and clear at low and high volumes. I found them a little bright (aka, louder in the mids and highs than the bass) but just like bassy headphones, it's probably not an issue for you if the music you listen to is acoustic-heavy or aggressive in the high frequencies. Their bass, while lower in volume, was pretty solid and natural. They're comfortable to wear for long periods, and while the earcups have that plastic-y feel, you can replace them with fabric pretty easily if you choose. Second, JVC touts its use of carbon nanotubes in these headphones, and while they may be carbon in there somewhere, or maybe the drivers were manufactured using technology associated with carbon nanotubes, just know that this is marketing at play (although I admit it sounds pretty cool.) If you can grab a pair at this price or even cheaper, they're a great buy.

Superlux HD 681 ($30 on Amazon): The HD 681s may not win many awards for portability, but if you love this style of old, can-style headphones and you also want sound you'd normally get from a $50-$60 pair, look no further. These are clearly designed to appeal to audiophiles, specifically audiophiles on a budget. The sound is crafted to be even, clear, and balanced, with restrained bass response and even highs. If you like driving music, or your favorite genres are really loud, you might be disappointed with them, but I was impressed by exactly how balanced these headphones really were. Electronic and hip hop tracks I knew were ridiculously bassy evened out a ton (which could be a good or a bad thing), and gentler music like classical and instrumental jazz were almost silky smooth. Not everyone will like the design, but they were certainly comfortable to wear, sport a self-adjusting headband, and while CNET praised them, they think they're ugly. That's a matter of taste, as these Head-Fi reviewers indicate. One thing to note however; the HD 681s look closed, but they're actually open backed—you'll definitely get sound leakage from them, and they're not for noisy environments. They do sound great though for 30 bucks.

If you really have a bit more to spend and you want a solid return on your investment, the Grado Labs SR60i ($80 on Amazon) and the SR80is ($100 on Amazon) are absolutely incredible for the price. The Audio Technica ATH-M50s (~$100 on Amazon) have also earned high praise from multiple corners of the web, and while I liked them the last time I tried them, I didn't get to test them for very long in a controlled environment. Besides, we're talking low-end, budget headphones here, so I don't want to go too far with this, but just note that all three of these are mentioned in our best headphones roundup, for damned good reason.

Further Reading and More Options

These are just some of the models we tried (and the only ones we loved), but they're by no means the only sub-$20 headphones available. There are others we didn't get to test, and more still hit the market regularly. Many are terrible, but there are diamonds in the rough out there. Read reviews and first-hand impressions, and take the advice of reviewers you trust. Don't throw your money away just because they're cheap. Check out the return policy of the retailer you're buying from, and if the ones you get sound like crap, send them back or exchange them for another pair. If you can try them before you buy, that's best. Finally, remember: the only person's ears who matter are yours.

Check out some of these reviews and roundups if you're looking for more suggestions and reviews:

• Headphones at The Wirecutter (Specifically their guide to in-ear headphones under $30)
• Head-Fi, specifically their Help and Recommendations forums
• HeadRoom, specifically their best cheap headphone guide
• PCMag's Headphone Hub
• CNET's Headphone Reviews

Photos by shlala, Dan, and Josh Semans.

Spotify is great. Despite that fact that many of us abandoned it for Google Music All Access when that was announced, Spotify is still one of the best streaming music services available today. And it just got a lot better (and cheaper).

At a press conference today, Spotify founder Daniel Ek announced that service would basically start offering free streaming to mobile phones and tablets. The model will be different for each device category, but the general gist is the same – stream music, and pay nothing for it.

• Spotify App Updates With Radio Support For Mobile Users, Free Radio For All Users
• Review: Spotify For Android (US) - Is It The Music Streaming Service You've Been Waiting For?
• Rdio Brings Free Personalized Radio To Mobile App
• PSA: Today's The Last Day To Take Advantage Of Google Music All Access For $7.99 Per Month

Spotify Will Now Stream Free On Android Phones And Tablets (With A Couple Of Minor Stipulations) was written by the awesome team at Android Police.

New Nexus-branded Qi charger selling for £34.99

Alongside that new white Nexus 7, UK buyers can today pick up the official Nexus wireless charger, priced at £34.99 and shipping in 1-2 business days. It operates using the Qi (pronounced "chee") wireless charging standard and is designed to work with the Nexus 4, Nexus 7 (2013) and Nexus 5 — though if you've got other Qi-supporting gadgets they should work too.

Here's what our own Phil Nickinson had to say after a brief time with the inductive charging plate —

read more

In recent years Google has been heavily criticized by media industry trade groups for facilitating online piracy.

Both the MPAA and RIAA have made repeated calls to the company to step up its anti-piracy efforts, and prevent users from accessing so-called “rogue” sites.

Thus far Google has refused to voluntarily remove results for entire domains from its search index, but in the Chrome Store it has now targeted several torrent-related browser extensions.

In recent weeks Google banned search tools linked to The Pirate Bay, KickassTorrents, Torlock, and several other torrent portals. According to emails sent to the developers, these extensions “encourage, facilitate or enable” copyright infringement.

“We don’t allow products or services that violate third-party terms of service, or products or services that encourage, facilitate, or enable the unauthorized access, download, or streaming of copyrighted content or media,” Google writes.

One of the sites that had its Chrome extension removed is Torlock. The extension in question allowed users to add a search box to the Chrome browser as a shortcut to search for torrents on the Torlock website. The search box was not any different from any others, and was not actively encouraging or enabling infringements.

When users searched for “Linux” for example, it would redirect them to a search page on the Torlock site that showed results for “Linux.”

TorrentFreak reached out to Jack, the owner of Torlock, who says he can’t comprehend why his extension was removed.

“I have no idea why Google would state that our Chrome extension was in violation as no evidence was given, just a generic response with the usual legal jargon. This is really a sad day for web freedom as Google has now taken the stance of guilty until proven innocent,” Jack tells us.

The decision to ban these torrent-related extensions is peculiar, since they do not encourage piracy any more than Google’s own search box. According to Torlock’s owner, Google would also have to remove its own search bar through which the exact same content can be found, and much more.

“Correct me if I am wrong but doesn’t Google’s own search bar on their front page do exactly the same thing they are accusing us of? All you have to do is know a name of copyrighted content and Google it and you can have it downloaded and on your TV in seconds,” Jack says.

“We hope Google realizes that they are in fact the biggest torrent indexer in the world,” he adds.

While something can be said for the argument that certain torrent sites are encouraging or facilitating copyright infringement, an extension that merely adds a search box doesn’t immediately fit this description.

Google’s actions suggest that the company sees the torrent sites in question as “infringing,” a decision it has thus far avoided making in regards to its search results.

According to Torlock’s owner, Google’s actions set a dangerous precedent and he hopes the company will realize this.

“Torrent sites are legal in most countries around the world, the fact that they are dictating what the user can and cannot see is something that should sound the alarm bells,” Jack says.

TorrentFreak reached out to Google for a comment but we have yet to receive a response from the company.

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing and VPN services.

The 10 worst-reviewed movies of 2013

Uruguay this week became the first country to legalize the cultivation, sale, and consumption of marijuana as part of a controversial plan to combat drug trafficking and cartels. As BBC News reports, the legislation was passed in the Senate late Tuesday after nearly 12 hours of debate. Uruguay's lower house passed the bill earlier this year, and President José Mujica — an outspoken supporter of the legislation — is expected to sign it into law.

Under the law, Uruguayans over the age of 18 will be able to purchase up to 40 grams (1.4 ounces) of marijuana per month, while licensed growers will be limited to six plants per household. It's not clear when the law will go into force, though the country's drug control agency has until...

Continue reading…

The National Library of Norway is digitizing all the books in its collection, processing the text to make it searchable, and making them available to read online.

It's similar to the mass digitization efforts in the UK and Finland, but Norway has taken the extra step of making agreements with many publishers to allow anyone with a Norway IP address to access copyrighted material.

The library owns equipment for scanning and text structure analysis of the books. It's also adding metadata and storing the files in a database for easy retrieval.

Continue reading…

4.3-inch mid-range phone turns into a 7-inch mid-range tablet

As widely anticipated, ASUS has today announced the latest addition to its Padfone line of convertible Android devices, the Padfone Mini. Like other Padfone products, the Padfone Mini comes in two parts — a 4.3-inch phone and a 7-inch tablet dock — meaning you can slot the former into the latter. This lets you use a single data plan for both tablet and phone mode, and charge the phone while it's docked in the tablet.

Unlike previous Padfones, the Padfone Mini is aimed squarely at the mid-range market. It's got a quad-core 1.4GHz Snapdragon 400 CPU with 1GB of RAM and a qHD (960x540) display on the phone, which expands to 1280x800 on the tablet. There's microSD expandability in addition to the 16GB of built-in storage, as well as a 1500mAh battery in the phone and a 2200mAh bank in the tablet. For your imaging needs there's an 8-megapixel camera with burst mode and ASUS' PixelMaster tech for boosting brightness in dark scenes.

And on the software side, the Padfone Mini runs Android 4.3 Jelly Bean and ASUS' own software customizations.

So the specs aren't earth-shattering, but given the price point of NT$11,990 ($405) that's not entirely surprising. The Padfone Mini is due to go on sale in China, Russia, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore and Indonesia, according to Engdget, with no word on any Western release plans.

Source: Engadget

Spotify has reportedly signed an exclusive deal that will bring Led Zeppelin's back catalogue to the streaming service. The New York TImes reports the deal will be announced at an event today, where it's believed Spotify will also unveil its plans for an extended free music service for mobile users.

Led Zeppelin is one of a number of prestigious groups to withhold their music from streaming services, having only agreed to let Apple sell their albums through iTunes in 2007. Others missing include The Beatles, AC/DC, and Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke, who publicly pulled his music from the service calling it "unfair to new artists." Spotify's event is scheduled to take place this morning in New York City, so we shouldn't have long to...

Continue reading…

SugarSync, a gladiator in the long, hard battle that is hosted cloud storage, has decided to go mercenary. The company announced today that they will offer a “paid-only” service model, doing away with their free storage tiers. Current customers can still access their files and will be offered considerable discounts on the service – up to 75% in some cases.

“We have decided to no longer offer free storage forever,” said CEO Mike Grossman. “SugarSync is unlike other companies in the space because we do a lot more than just offer basic file storage. Instead, we offer a premium service that provides prosumers and small businesses with unprecedented control and flexibility over their data through our unique multisync capabilities.”

That basically means they want more business clients. Competitors like Box and Dropbox – not to mention Google Drive – are clearly taking the oxygen out of the casual cloud market, which is why SugarSync is, in a way, pivoting.

Free accounts will close on February 8, 2014 while users can still sign up for a 90-day 5GB trial or a 30-day trial with up to 60GB of storage. However, instead of letting you keep your free storage, SugarSync will attempt to monetize customers as soon as possible.

“There are many companies in this space that are giving away free storage, however, most of these companies will not be viable. We are already in a solid financial position and this shift will further strengthen our business,” said Grossman. In a world where dozens of gigabytes for free is now the norm, this is definitely an interesting maneuver by a major player.

Slight UI revamp to for the stable release

Twitter has updated their mobile app this afternoon, and updaters will find two sizeable changes. The first is a shot at other messaging services — photos in direct messages. Twitter has long been a popular social network, but their direct messaging options are sparse compared to alternatives. The inclusion of photos will help here, and may lure more people to use Twitter for messaging that other services.

The second change is the timeline navigation and alerts. Swiping to the left or right will move you between your stream, the Discovery section where you'll find trends and tailored content, and the Activity timeline to see what your friends are doing and who they are doing it with. The badges at the top have been changed, making unread tweets and messages more prominent, with an ability to turn on notifications for a single user by starring their profile. 

The new version is in Google Play now, waiting for you to go update. 

Source: Twitter

Search, browse and share stock photos from your phone

One of the most popular stock photo and video services, Shutterstock, has released its own app into the Play Store after being available for some time on iOS. The Shutterstock mobile app lets you search, browse and view stock photography from its vast catalog, and then curate and share sets of photos with lightboxes.

And naturally if you choose to sign in with your Shutterstock account (you can browse for free regardless), your activity will be synced from mobile devices over to the web when you need to reference and image or make a purchase.

As the year winds down, here's a look at our favorite gadgets from the 1990s. It wasn't necessarily pretty, and we've come a long way, but at the time we loved them so much. Gadgets like:

Continue reading...

The Daily Show presents President Obama's barefaced lies about NSA surveillance. The lesson: if the President says the NSA is not doing it, then the NSA is doing it.

The CBC is reporting on a four-page, top-secret, "hyper-sensitive" Snowden leak that shows that the Communications Security Establishment Canada was used as a kind of innocent-faced bagman by the NSA, going to places where the Americans were not well-liked or trusted in order to install surveillance stations for the NSA's use. Canada established spy-posts in "approximately 20 countries" for the NSA, as well as "transnational targets." The CBC quotes an expert who predicts that the revelation will undermine Canada's diplomatic standing and relations around the world (duh), and who speculates that the Prime Minister himself may have signed off on the arrangement.

The briefing notes make it clear that Canada plays a very robust role in intelligence-gathering around the world in a way that has won respect from its American equivalents.

Wesley Wark, a Canadian security and intelligence expert at the University of Ottawa, says the document makes it clear Canada can take advantage of its relatively benign image internationally to covertly amass a vast amount of information abroad.

"I think we still trade on a degree of an international brand as an innocent partner in the international sphere," Wark said. "There's not that much known about Canadian intelligence.

"In that sense, Canadian operations might escape at least the same degree of notice and surveillance that the operations of the U.S. or Britain in foreign states would be bound to attract."

Snowden document shows Canada set up spy posts for NSA [Greg Weston, Glenn Greenwald and Ryan Gallagher/CBC News]

(via /.)

Google's media streaming dongle Chromecast is getting more useful just in time for the holidays. Today Google announced that it is supporting 10 new apps for the Chromecast including VEVO, Red Bull.TV, Songza, PostTV, Viki, Revision 3, BeyondPod, Plex, Avia and RealPlayer Cloud.

This is the largest collection of new apps that Chromecast has announced to date since its launch in July this year. Before today's announcement Chromecast only supported a subset of premium apps including Netflix, Hulu Plus, HBO GO, Pandora, YouTube, Google Play Movies and TV and Google Play Music. The new apps brings Chromecast's total number of streaming apps up to 17.

The biggest addition may be that of Plex, an app that lets you stream your own personal media (stored locally on a device or online). The ability to stream personal media has been a big request from Chromecast users since Google launched the device. Vevo said in a press release that it has been working with Google for several months to bring its music video streaming service to the app. 

Mozilla launched the latest version of its Firefox browser for Android and desktop today. While the desktop version gets its fair share of minor updates and now sets all plug-ins with the exception of recent Flash versions as “click to play,” the Android version is getting some time in the spotlight.

Firefox for Android now features a brand-new homescreen that aims to provide users with easier access to the sites they visit most often, browsing history and bookmarks, as well as Firefox’s Reading List feature for distraction-free reading.

This new homescreen, Mozilla says, is meant to “give you a streamlined and speedier browsing experience on-the-go, when you need it most.” It made its first appearance in the beta channel in late October and the feedback must have been god, because Mozilla graduated it to the stable channel pretty quickly. It’s available in both the phone and tablet interface.

With this update, Firefox also now gives its mobile users the option to choose Bing and Yahoo for search. Until now, mobile Firefox users had to use Google (which still provides the Mozilla Foundation with the vast majority of its income). It’s unclear if Mozilla has struck any deals with Yahoo or Microsoft for a similar profit-sharing agreement.

On the desktop side, things aren’t quite as interesting. Plug-ins are now all ‘click to play,’ with the exception of Flash, and users who are still on Windows XP get support for MP3 decoding (which means Firefox now supports this on every version of Windows).

The new versions for mobile and desktop also sport the usual tweaks to Firefox’s developer tools and a slew of bug fixes. You can find a detailed rundown of those here.

Microsoft’s Socl social network is expanding to mobile devices this week. After originally launching in late 2011, Microsoft’s Socl experiment has been confined to a browser over the past couple of years. New iOS, Android, and Windows Phone apps aim to change that somewhat, with touch-friendly controls for smartphones and a focus on the top mobile operating systems. Each app supports collages, sharing, notifications, and the ability to upload photos and content to the service.

Continue reading…

The beast is here at last

After the teases and viral pics, leaked footage and Comic-Con reactions, the new, Gareth Edwards-spawned version of Godzilla is finally ready to make his grand entrance in the shape of a trailer. Take a gander, but watch out for flying debris… 

That said, when the big guy (assuming it is a guy this time) does make his appearance, he still prefers to stay cloaked in smoke and debris, so we’ll have to wait until release to see him in all his glory.

The movie itself looks appropriately huge in scope, with troopers leaping through smoke-choked skies towards the marauding monstoid and the rest of the cast giving the human scale. This opening footage of the troopers (set to music that sounds suspiciously like the Gyorgy Ligeti track used in 2001: A Space Odyssey) is quite beautiful, while most of the rest of this peek is taken from what was shown at Comic-Con in the summer.

Monsters Man Edwards is the director that Warner Bros. and Legendary have charged with this new stab at bringing the massive beast to Western audiences and scouring our collective memories of the Roland Emmerich take at the same time. "To me, he's like a force of nature, like the wrath of God or vengeance for the way we've behaved," Edwards tells USA Today. “I want it to be epic. I want to get the hairs on the back of your neck up.” {Godzilla pics}

To react to the huge central figure, Edwards has gathered a cast that includes Bryan Cranston, David Strathairn, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Elizabeth Olsen. He’s also been handed a much heftier budget than his breakthrough first film. "It's the closest thing to being a god as I think there is in terms of a job you could have," he tells the paper. "You picture something one day and draw it, and the next day, it's physical and right there in front of you no matter how insane."

Godzilla stomps into UK cinemas on May 16. 

Johnny Cash's legendary discography stretches far and wide, but it turns out there's still music from the country icon that the world has never heard. Out Among the Stars is a 12-track album that Cash recorded between 1981 and 1984 with producer Billy Sherill. Sherill, who himself is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, was president of CBS Records Nashville when he was paired with Cash. More importantly, he was a huge advocate of the "countrypolitan" style that peppered pop elements into country music to make the genre more digestible for a mainstream audience.

A hidden gem from Cash's archives

Speaking to the Associated Press, John Carter Cash said, "It was the 'Urban Cowboy' phase. It was pop country, and dad was not that."...

Continue reading…

LG's Nexus 5 smartphone made quite the splash, and now the Korean electronics manufacturer is back for more. For the same $349 you'd spend on the phone, you can now buy the LG G Pad 8.3 Google Play Edition tablet. As you'd expect from the name, it's a tablet with stock Android 4.4, serving up KitKat on a 8.3-inch 1920 x 1200 Full HD IPS display with rather thin bezels. That "8.3" number doesn't just refer to the screen size, though, but also the fact that the tablet is just 8.3mm thick.

The whole kit is powered by a quad-core 1.7GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 system-on-chip, and comes with 2GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage, NFC and Bluetooth 4.0, dual-band 802.11 a/b/g/n Wi-Fi, and dual cameras. With a 4600mAh battery inside, it weighs...

Continue reading…

At the Cultural Institute we’ve been taking a break from our holiday shopping to feast our eyes on a different kind of gift—the gift of ingenious art that plays tricks on our eyes.

Called Trompe l'oeil, which means “fool the eye” in French, these techniques require complete control over every detail of size, color, light and gradation of color so that a two-dimensional work appears to be three-dimensional. You can see several examples amongst the new content being launched by 34 global partners today on the Cultural Institute and across our entire collection of more than 57,000 artworks.

Trompe l'oeil has been used on things as large as a ceiling—like this fresco at the National Archaeological Museum of Ferrara which uses clever architectural form to momentarily confuse:

And as small as a vase:

Sometimes the trickery lies in the deft organization of the elements in the picture, like this one. Can you find the secret image lurking within this seemingly innocent painting of a young man and woman?

Other new works exhibit a similar visual trickery. This relic from the Qing dynasty comes from the National Palace Museum of Taiwan—does the cabbage look good enough to eat?

Or take a look at the Musée d’Orsay’s exhibition of its unusual history, and then compare the details of the former station to the indoor Street View imagery of today's modern museum:
From Trompe l'oeil to archaeological artifacts, royal portraits and famous scientists, there’s a lot to discover in the latest collection, which comes from all over the world. Enjoyed the visual trickery? See what else can you spot and tell us your favorite examples on our Google+ page.

Posted by Simon Rein, Program Manager, Cultural Institute

The shockingly weak sales of LG's flagship G2 smartphone have wider industry implications. The company moved only 2.3 million units of its flagship model during its launch quarter, missing its already lowballed 3 million unit target by more than 20%. The context here is that Samsung shipped 10 million units of its latest Galaxy S model in just one month, vaulting to 20 million units in two months. Samsung is now in the position where it is outselling what was once its close rival by more than 10 to one during their respective flagship smartphone launch quarters.

Continue reading...

A few hours ago Pirate Bay users were shocked to discover that their favorite torrent site was no longer loading.

Without warning the nameservers were removed from thepiratebay.sx domain, making it impossible to load the site in places where DNS entries were not cached.

TorrentFreak reached out to The Pirate Bay team who informed us that the .SX registry appears to have seized the domain overnight.

The Pirate Bay website itself remains online, however, as the site’s operators quickly relocated to thepiratebay.ac, which uses Ascension Island’s ccTLD.

It’s seems possible that the domain seizure is connected to pressure applied by Dutch anti-piracy group BREIN, which represents a variety of copyright holders.

Last month BREIN sent a letter to the contact email address for The Pirate Bay’s domain, which is registered to site co-founder Fredrik Neij. In their letter BREIN pointed out that the site infringes on the rights of copyright holders worldwide.

The group added that the .SX domain is controlled by the Dutch part of Sint Maarten, suggesting that BREIN has jurisdiction over it.

“We expressly point out that by registering domain names and using these and/or allowing these to be used by The Pirate Bay, you infringe on the rights of Rights Owners. Therefore, the Rights Owners hold you liable for the damages that they have suffered and will suffer from your actions,” the letter read.

Citing previous court orders the anti-piracy group demanded that Neij cease and desist from operating the site and using thepiratebay.sx or any other domain to make the Pirate Bay website available.

The letter set an ultimatum of 22 November and threatened a 25,000 euro per day fine if the site remained online. At the moment it is unclear whether a new court order has been issued and to what extent BREIN is involved in the domain seizure.

TorrentFreak reached out to both the .SX registry and BREIN and we will update this article when we receive responses.

The Pirate Bay, meanwhile, continues to be accessible through the new .AC domain, although only briefly since the ccTLD is UK controlled.

“The AC domain is directly connected to the UK, so it’s just a quick stop there,” a Pirate Bay insider told us. After solving some technical issues the infamous torrent site plans to move to the Peruvian .PE ccTLD.

ThePirateBay.pe will be the fifth domain name for The Pirate Bay in 2013.

Fearing a domain seizure by the Swedish authorities The Pirate Bay quickly switched to a Greenland-based domain in April, later hopping to Iceland, and eventually landing .SX domains as other problems became apparent.

The Pirate Bay hopes for a longer stay at the PE domain, but the site’s operators still have a few dozen domain names backed up if required.

Update: As expected, BREIN now takes credit for the decision of the SX registry to seize Pirate Bay’s domain name.

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing and VPN services.

Whether you love or hate Windows 8, 2013 was still a great year for Windows tips, downloads, and guides. Here were our most popular Windows posts this year.

This year we downgraded Windows 8 to Windows 7, ran through the best underhyped Windows apps, changed our antivirus pick, and did a clean install without losing our files.

Downgrade Your New Windows 8 Computer to Windows 7 for Free

If you aren't a fan of Windows 8 but want a new laptop that comes with Windows 8 preinstalled, you'll be happy to know you can actually downgrade it to Windows 7 without having to reformat. Here's how.

Top 10 Underhyped Windows Apps

Some apps are essential, and everyone who's anyone knows to have them on their computer. Some apps, however, are fantastic, yet fly under the radar. Today, we look at our top 10 underhyped apps on Windows.

How to Migrate to a Solid-State Drive Without Reinstalling Windows

Installing a solid-state drive is one of the best upgrades you can make to your computer, but migrating your Windows installation to a small drive can be tricky, because your data won't necessarily all fit on the drive. Here's how to install an SSD without reinstalling Windows from scratch.

The Best Antivirus App for Windows

Windows has more antivirus programs than we can count, and none of them are quite perfect. Right now, we recommend Avast Free Antivirus for the best balance between protection, ease of use, and cost.

Mac vs. Windows: Your Best Arguments

The war between Mac and Windows devotees has been raging for decades, and last week we asked you to weigh in. Today we're taking a look at the best arguments on both sides to offer a clear picture of why you might choose one platform over another.

Lifehacker Pack for Windows 2013: Our List of the Best Windows Apps

Windows has more great programs than we can count, but some are essential to just about every PC setup. In our fifth annual Lifehacker Pack for Windows, we're highlighting the must-have downloads for better productivity, communication, media management, and more.

How to Do a Clean Install of Windows Without Losing Your Files, Settings, and Tweaks

There's nothing like a fresh install of Windows to clear your mind, but it comes at a cost: you have to set everything up again, just the way you like it. Here's how to reinstall Windows, migrate your important settings, and leave the clutter behind.

How to Break Into a Windows PC (and Prevent It from Happening to You)

If you're trying to break into a Windows computer—whether you've forgotten your password or are hatching a more sinister plan—you have quite a few options. Here's how to do it, and how to keep your own computer protected.

All the New Stuff in Windows 8.1

Windows 8.1 is available as a free download today, bringing new features for both the tiled Modern UI and the traditional desktop. Here's everything you'll find in the newest version of Windows.

How to Do a Clean Install of Windows 8 with an Upgrade Disc

Sometimes, you just need to do a clean install. Unfortunately, the Windows 8 Upgrade doesn't always allow for that, throwing you an error when you try to activate after a clean install. Reader uncommoner shows us a workaround for this issue.

Recover Tons of Wasted Disk Space with the New Windows Update Cleanup

Windows: Microsoft has released a Windows 7 update that adds a new option in the Disk Cleanup tool called Windows Update Cleanup. With it, you can free up several gigabytes of hard drive space from the bloated Windows Updates folder.

Top 10 Tips, Features, and Projects Every Windows User Should Try

Windows hasn't changed a ton in the past few years (at least, the desktop hasn't) but there's always a dark corner to explore, tweak, and improve. Here are 10 things every Windows users should do with their system.

What Is "Defragging," and Do I Need to Do It to My Computer?

Dear Lifehacker,
I hear people talk about "defragging" their computers all the time as a way to make it faster, but I'm not really sure what that means. What does defragging do and is it something I need to do to my computer? How often?

How to Get Rid of a Virus (Even When Your Computer Won't Boot)

So you've contracted a virus that's taken over your computer, and you can't even boot up to try and troubleshoot the problem. The solution: Create a rescue CD, boot into a safe environment, and rid your PC of any nefarious software while it sleeps. Here's how to do it with minimal effort.

Is Windows Phone Ready to Replace My iPhone or Android?

Dear Lifehacker,
You guys write a lot about Android and iOS, but what about Windows Phone? I'm in the market for a new smartphone, and I'm open to branching out, but I'm afraid I'll miss some of my favorite apps or features. What should I look out for? I need advice!

LightZone Is a Free, Awesome Photo Editor and Alternative to Lightroom

Windows/Mac/Linux: Adobe Lightroom might be the professional photographer's photo management tool of choice, but you can save $149 and download free and open source LightZone instead.

The Best Windows 8 Apps You Can Run on Your Desktop

Even if you bypass Windows 8's "modern" UI entirely using a tool like Start8 or Classic Shell, there are some great apps available for it. Thanks to ModernMix, an app that lets you run full-screen Windows apps in regular windows, you can get the best of both worlds: useful applications in normal desktop windows.

So there you have it. It has been a great year of Windows tips and guides. Whether your favorite of the year made the list or not, we'd love to hear about your favorite Windows trick or download this year. And if you're still hungry for Windows, take a gander at the most popular Windows posts from 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, and 2008.

RealClear: Oscar-nominated actress Eleanor Parker, best known today for her role as the Baroness, the lady friend of Captain Von Trapp who loses out to Julie Andrews' Maria in 1966 film "The Sound of Music," died Monday morning due to complications from pneumonia at a medical facility near Palm Springs, Calif. She was 91.

Eighteen months ago, Qualcomm SVP Rob Chandhok succinctly explained why the internet of things was failing. Instead of working together, manufacturers designed their smart televisions and appliances to only communicate with their own proprietary applications. Instead of building an ecosystem of devices that could talk to one another, they only built for themselves. Is a smart light bulb really "smart" if you need a special switch, too?

Now, Qualcomm believes it can tackle that problem — with a little help. Today, the Linux Foundation has announced the formation of the AllSeen Alliance, a new consortium dedicated to building and maintaining an open-source framework that lets devices of all shapes and sizes seamlessly communicate with...

Continue reading…