Author: Jim O Brien/CEO

CEO and expert in transport and Mobile tech. A fan 20 years, mobile consultant, Nokia Mobile expert, Former Nokia/Microsoft VIP,Multiple forum tech supporter with worldwide top ranking,Working in the background on mobile technology, Weekly radio show, Featured on the RTE consumer show, Cavan TV and on TRT WORLD. Award winning Technology reviewer and blogger. Security and logisitcs Professional.

Face Swap Live – A new fun app that swaps faces on iOS. #Apps

Most of us like to try out new apps and see whats new in the world of apps and daily we see something different and unique.From then on we see several attempts to copy these apps one at a time with some offering more or claiming to do so,true it is that there is some out there better than the first instalment but often the case they lack the same features too..

A new app called Face Swap Live is one such app which is quite cool and fun,sadly just on iOS for now and hopefully there will be an Android and Windows Phone option later on,this app is fun..

This app is not like others that use static photos to make small videos,we have seen this done several times,this app is different and uses your phones own camera and the fun begins..

To use the app…

1. Position: Don’t tilt or rotate your head, or move around too quickly.
( Make sure both faces are angled in the same way for better results )
2. Good lighting: Make sure your faces are not too dark, also avoid very bright lights coming from behind.
3. Brush back any hair that might be around your eyes.
4. Remove glasses if possible; large beards can also cause some shaking.

Face Swap Live lets you switch faces with a friend or a photo in real-time. Record videos or photos of yourself swapping faces with a celebrity, friend or any fun picture from the internet or your phone. Unlike other apps that only can use static photos, this app switches faces live right from your camera’s video feed. Ever wanted to see your talking face on Marilyn Monroe’s photo. Be amazed putting your moving mouth onto a pic of your favorite pet.

Download on iOS

 

BlackBerry Passport Silver edition unboxing. #BlackBerry #Passport

The BlackBerry Passport was released last year and there was much talk about it,myself included found it rather an odd design and I gave it a scoff,This was one a few devices scoffed last year and some recommended ignoring a few devices which is just bad form and mainly trying to make a point,dont scoff something until you actually have held or used the product people…The older passport was one such device that had an interest in and I actually used it for longer that expected as a daily driver,typically I use two/three devices a day which is becoming rather cumbersome…

There is just mainly cosmetic changes to the silver edition and make it a worthy update which makes it more solid and pleasing to hold,the corners for example on the Original Passport where sharp,this is not the case here and the same applies to the surrounding housing which is chamfered and feels much better than the old.

Take a look at the image gallery and unboxing below and if you have any questions fire away….

You can see the Original Passport Unboxing HERE and our review of the same device HERE

Diet Scanners soon to be fitted to smartphones. #Food #Diet #Health #SCiO

Diet Scanners could soon be a standard on our smartphones and there is such a scanner now in development,this would be a welcome move and help us maintain an even healthier lifestyle with the ability to actually scan food items there and then..Sure there is plenty of apps around today to guide us on food but this would be a new step yielding real-time results. Currently it’s a standalone product..It works via a spectrometer and sends info to its cloud and then back to your device,the buck does not stop here with just health though the possibilities are endless and any object can be scanned..

Sky reports

The current model is able to pinpoint properties such as the sugar content in an individual piece of fruit, the percentage of fat in a particular cheese, or identify whether a drug is counterfeit or an illegal substance.

After a successful Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign in 2014 and numerous demonstrations at technology conferences around the world, the SCiO scanner has become one of the most talked about new technologies of 2015.

Read more over at source link below..

Source Via

Augmented reality hits Android Wear via Tilt. #Tilt #AR #Mobile

This is something rather new and perhaps a sign of whats to come and in its early stages looks quite cool,its a new Augmented reality game called Tilt which allows you to use your mobile phone and smartwatch to play a game on,this we came across last night..

The game does not have intensive graphics and looks retro but the idea is quite cool which allows you to move your wrist or device to play the game via its camera,the game itself is simple and you move the ball around by moving your device..

https://twitter.com/jimboireland/status/682301046614585345

The game is in its early stages and feedback is required to improve the game,Certainly looks interesting although one thing I noted was my device heated up rather quickly when trying it out..On testing I was using my Moto 360 and BlackBerry Priv.

Download TILT 

Twitter for Mac gets a new look and features check it out. #Twitter #Social

Twitter has been busy lately rolling out new features and one key area was fighting abuse or trolls,Twitters native BLOCK feature is pretty useless and anyone can still see tweets from those who are blocked,You can be either sent links,see re-tweets,logout or just use another client which lacks functionality one such as echofone for example and you will see what I mean,this has been long known and if Twitter was to actually work on a decent block feature it would solve many issues…

Twitter has now given new looks to the Mac app which is good to see,however the official app on Android and Windows needs work, The official app on Android is a mess and especially when you get the latest droid the app fails to work,fails to allow you to set your preferences and notifications do not work,they do show an icon of your mentions be it 3/5/100 on your mention tab which is pointless when you are not notified plus you cant see who has quoted you either..COME ON LADS…..

Anyway onto the Mac app what is new…

• Inline video playback – You’ll see videos play directly in your feed.
• GIFs support – See animations without leaving your timeline.
• Group Direct Messages – Create and receive private notes with up to 50 people.
• Mute – Silence specific accounts so you no longer see them in your feed.
• Today Center Widget – Get your Twitter Highlights right on your desktop.
• Dark Theme – Now you can see the world in black or white.
• Updated design – Get the latest improvements to icons, buttons, and interactions.
• Quote Tweet – Add your two cents to any Retweet.

Download on Mac 

Source

Microsoft does it again..Launches an app on iOS. #MicrosoftSelfie.

Microsoft is on a roll of late….Launching apps for other platforms that is and not committing itself to close the huge app gap that continues to grow and leaving fans in hope that universal apps will save the day,Today they release another app on iOS which is making me wonder what exactly is going on in Microsoft…

The app is self explanatory anyway and here is what it says in the description…

Microsoft Selfie is a selfie and portrait enhancement application. The app takes age, gender, skin tone, lighting, and many other variables into account, applies different models automatically and finishes enhancement with just a single click. Users can transform average photos into more presentable portraits in seconds. Key features of this application are noise reduction, intelligent enhancement, automatic exposure and color theme.

Download on iOS   Source – WMPU

 

Viber messaging app takes on Snapchat with Viber Wink. #Viber

Popular app Viber has launched a new standalone app called Viber Wink which enables users to send messages that will dissappear, however you must be using the official Viber app itself too and you can send the wink within the Viber app..This is a nice addition to the app which already allows you make calls,videos and send messages of all sorts.

 

 

The app is simple to use and all that is needed to do is set a time limit,these limits are from 1 second to either 10 seconds or NO time-limit. You can also add text to the image or video in a similar way that is done on Snapchat and any pics you take with the camera within the app can be saved to your gallery..

Viber Wink is only available on Android and iOS for now and no word on Windows Phone yet which is to be expected.

 

 

 

Nokia Lumia 830 Gold edition unboxing and comparison. #Lumia

The Nokai Lumia 830 special edition has landed and there is nothing new about this device apart from that its hard to get and that the external colour is all thats changed,everything else has remained the same internally including its optics and,the packaging also has nothing extra either.So here is just a quick unboxing and comparison of the original 830 vs its Gold brother which looks rather well….

Below is a video and the we have some side by side images of both devices.Any questions just fire away…

 

OsmAnd+ Maps & Navigation now just 10 cent. #Maps #Navigtion

If you need or use maps this app has been reduced to just 10cent for the paid version which is a good price considered the original cost would set you back €6.49 with full support,Our preference of mapping alternatives is HERE maps which is FREE all the time and offers offline navigation,this requires you download maps prior your trip so you can also plan in advance,we do also like to test out the competition and see what the alternatives have to offer..

Some features include

Navigation
• Works online (fast) or offline (no roaming charges when you are abroad)
• Turn-by-turn voice guidance (recorded and synthesized voices)
• Optional lane guidance, street name display, and estimated time of arrival
• Supports intermediate points on your itinerary
• Automatic re-routing whenever you deviate from the route
• Search for places by address, by type (e.g.: restaurant, hotel, gas station, museum), or by geographical coordinates

Map Viewing
• Display your position and orientation
• Optionally align the picture according to compass or your direction of motion
• Save your most important places as Favorites
• Display POIs (point of interests) around you
• Display specialized online tiles, satellite view (from Bing), different overlays like touring/navigation GPX tracks and additional layers with customizable transparency
• Optionally display place names in English, local, or phonetic spelling

Safety Features
• Optional automated day/night view switching
• Optional speed limit display, with reminder if you exceed it
• Optional speed-dependent zooming
• Share your location so that your friends can find you

Bicycle and Pedestrian Features
• Viewing foot, hiking, and bike paths, great for outdoor activities
• Special routing and display modes for bike and pedestrian
• Optional public transport stops (bus, tram, train) including line names
• Optional trip recording to local GPX file or online service
• Optional speed and altitude display
• Display of contour lines and hill-shading (via additional plugin)

Download FREE version Android /  Download Paid Version 10 cent Android / iOS