Hot Gadget Hacks Posts
News: The Magic of Magic Leap's Hardware — Here's What We Know
It finally happened! In a world of "go big or go home," Magic Leap has finally done something other than tease us with vague promises and rendered video concepts. Although, other than actually showing us what the developer's kit will look like, it seems little more than a slightly different kind of a tease. To demystify this new product, we here at Next Reality decided to put together what we know about the hardware.
Apple AR: With These Holiday Apps, You Can Build Snowmen, Beat Up Elves, or Spin Driedels in AR
No matter what your holiday preference, you're probably aware that Christmas is now just days away. By now, you've already decked your halls with boughs of holly (either physically or virtually), thanks to our last holiday app roundup.
News: New December Security Updates Arrive for the Samsung Galaxy S8, S8+ & Note 5
If you own the Galaxy S8, S8+, or Note 5, be on the lookout for a new security update. These Samsung devices are the latest to receive the December security update to patch issues from both Samsung and Android.
Apple AR: ARKit Update for Pokémon Go Makes Monsters Bigger & Smarter
If you ever thought the Snorlax in Pokémon Go should be taller, and you have an iPhone compatible with ARKit, get ready to look up.
How To: Get Android Oreo's Notification Shade on Any Phone — No Root Needed
One of the biggest gripes we always hear about is the changes OEMs make to Android's notification shade. Icon styling and home screen layouts can be fixed with custom launchers like Nova and Action, but we're stuck with the tacky Quick Settings theme our phones came with. Today, we no longer have to envy Pixel 2 owners, as a new app will give you that clean stock Android look on any phone.
News: Price, Pre-Order & Ship Date for Magic Leap One Creator Edition
With the big reveal of the Magic Leap One: Creator Edition in December 2017, and now the update on Feb. 13, 2018, we no longer have to speculate as to what the augmented reality headset will look like or when (in general) it will be available.
News: From Immersive Comics to Interactive Music, Here's What You Can Expect to Do with Magic Leap One
The year is 2018. You just received your own Magic Leap One: Creator Edition. What now? Rewinding back to today, we know of one specific app that will be available for Magic Leap's device, along with two others that could be tagged as highly likely. Paired with Magic Leap's own experiments and demonstrations, we can get a sense of what the playground for this new toy will offer.
News: Essential Releases Oreo Beta 2 Update
Back in November, Essential opened the Android Oreo Beta Program for all users of their PH-1 flagship. We even wrote up a full guide on how to install the beta, if you're interested. They followed the Oreo beta with a Reddit AMA, where they mentioned the second beta software would arrive very soon. That update has just gone live, so you can grab it right now in a few easy steps.
News: Magic Leap One Likely Has Larger Field of View Than HoloLens, but Not by Much
While the public now knows much more about the Magic Leap One: Creator Edition today than it did yesterday, there's still a quite a bit that's unknown. One of the most significant questions — with any mixed reality product — is the field of view. How much of what we see through these glasses will contain the computer's virtual creations?
News: After Years of Being Teased, Here's How the World Is Reacting to the Magic Leap One Reveal
The knee-jerk reactions to Magic Leap's long-awaited augmented reality device, the Magic Leap One: Creator Edition, range from pent-up joy to side-eyed skepticism. That's what happens when you launch the hype train several years before even delivering even a tiny peek at the product.
News: After Years of Mystery & Nearly $2 Billion Invested, Magic Leap Finally Reveals 'Creator Edition' Headset
It finally happened. Magic Leap has given the world its first glimpse at its debut device, the Magic Leap One Creator Edition.
How To: The Next Big Thing in Smartphone Cameras Is Machine Learning — & It's Already Here
As smartphones become more accessible, billions of people have come to depend on their features for daily life. One of the most important aspects these days is the camera. OEMs have been working for years to improve camera quality, and they seem to have finally figured it out — the best way to achieve DSLR-quality photos wasn't just with better sensors, but with better intelligence.
Rumor Roundup: Everything You Need to Know About the Sony Xperia XZ2
The Sony Xperia XZ Premium brought 4K HDR to a Sony flagship along with some competitive internals, while the Xz1 brought some powerful specs in a more midrange, traditional form factor. While it only makes sense to be excited about what's coming next, Sony has yet to show us the XZ2. For now, we need to stick to the rumor mill. Thankfully, the rumor mill is a fun place to be.
News: Bitcoin Cash Is Now Available on Coinbase
Bitcoin Cash (BCH) has officially arrived on Coinbase, which means you can now easily buy, sell, send, and receive the digital currency without having to manually set up a wallet or trade on an exchange like Poloniex. This addition has boosted the price of BCH, which is currently trading at around $3,400 a coin.
News: Vuzix & CyberTimez Give Gift of Sight to High School Student via AR Smartglasses
Augmented reality hardware maker Vuzix came to the rescue of a vision-impaired student in Pennsylvania today by delivering a pair of Vuzix M300 Smart Glasses to enhance her eyesight.
Coinbase 101: Fees & Fine Print You Need to Know Before Trading Bitcoins & Other Cryptocurrencies
Coinbase is the primary go-to for many users when it comes to investing in Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), Ripple (XRP), and more, due to its user-friendly interface. But before you join them, know that the ease of use comes with a price. Coinbase charges fees for each transaction, and your bank might even add charges on top of that. Plus, there is some fine print to be aware of.
News: iOS 11.2.5 Beta 2 Released with Bug Fixes & Improvements
Apple has released the second beta for iOS version 11.2.5 for developers on Dec. 19. The update comes six days after the release of the first 11.2.5 beta which updated the Music app to include a persistent "play bar" at the bottom of the window, along with some bug fixes. Public beta testers received the update on Dec. 20.
News: Mobile Apps Come Full Circle — AR Fart Machines Have Arrived
It's long past time to face the facts: farts are funny. The first fart joke dates back nearly 4,000 years to the ancient Sumerian people. References to flatulence were also found in ancient Greece within the works of Aristophanes. (More like Aristo-fannies, am I right?) A standard in practical jokes, the whoopie cushion debuted way back during the time of the Roman Empire.
News: There's a Simple Solution to Getting Older iPhones Running Fast Again
Technology ages rapidly. We're conditioned to refresh our iPhones every one or two years, and why wouldn't we? New iPhones are fast, and our old ones inevitably slow down, sometimes to an unusable degree. However, it turns out, there's something we can do about that, and it doesn't involve buying a new iPhone at all.
News: The Differences Between the Galaxy S8 & Galaxy Note 8 Oreo Updates
Both the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy Note 8 have Oreo beta software available in the wild at this point. We devoted a number of articles to covering what's new in Oreo and went into detail about the bugs and hiccups on both the S8 and the Note 8. Still, many people are left wondering — what's the difference between the Oreo builds on these two phones?
News: First Footage of Magic Leap's Music App with Sigur Rós Revealed
On Monday morning, secretive augmented reality startup Magic Leap revealed a collaboration with Icelandic music group Sigur Rós. But the story detailing the app didn't reveal anything more than a still image of the interactive Tónandi app, leaving most of us to use to our imaginations in terms of visualizing how it worked.
News: Announcement, Release & Preorder Dates for the Samsung Galaxy S9 & S9+
Samsung's Galaxy S8 and S8+ are excellent smartphones that wowed critics and consumers alike. So, it's only natural that Samsung's followup, the Galaxy S9 and S9+, would garner significant anticipation. While we don't know everything about these devices quite yet, we do have guesses to some key points of interest, including when the device will be announced and even released.
News: Magic Leap Previews New Way to Experience Music with Sigur Rós App
Last week, Magic Leap CEO Rony Abovitz teased his Twitter followers with some "fun and cool stuff" to share in the coming days. On Monday, he made good on that promise, sort of.
News: Fake 'Cuphead' App Shows iOS Is Also Vulnerable to One of Android's Biggest Gaming Downfalls
Cuphead may have taken the indie gaming scene by storm, but its "introduction" to the iOS App Store is what everyone in the smartphone world is talking about. There is no official Cuphead game available for iPhone, and that's what is so surprising — a fake version was approved and released for iOS devices, and at this scale, incidents like this just don't happen for Apple.
News: If You Can't Open Your iPhone's Photos on a PC, Try This App
Apple's codec for photos and videos in iOS 11, HEVC (High-Efficiency Video Coding), as well as the container, HEIF (High-Efficiency Image File Format), result in a reduction in size for pictures and movies without sacrificing quality. Seems like a win-win situation, but Windows-users can't open the .heic extension that these files use. In order to open HEIC files on a Microsoft Windows PC, you'll have to turn to third-party apps and tools. One of these tools, CopyTrans HEIC for Windows, essen...
News: Honda Thaws Our Cold Hearts with Augmented Reality Get Well Cards for Hospitalized Children
Augmented reality has given companies worldwide great powers for innovating business practices and engaging customers, but on Monday, Honda demonstrated that with great power, also comes great social responsibility.
Dev Report: Tango Is Dead, ARCore Preview 2 Is Here with No Change to the Device List
In a highly exciting but ultimately disappointing turn of events, Google released the ARCore Preview 2 today. While the new preview does bring with it new versions of the application programming interface (API) for the C language, pause and resume functionality, as well as increased accuracy, one thing it seems to be missing is a bigger compatibility list.
Galaxy Oreo Update: Samsung Adds Screenshot Labeling Feature in Android 8.0
Samsung has kept us busy with their Android 8.0 Oreo beta testing program for the Galaxy S8, and most recently, the Galaxy Note 8. As the beta continues to receive new updates, stability has improved continuously, and new features keep on creeping in for both devices.
Market Reality: Apple Funds Its AR Device Production Future, the Snapchat vs. Facebook War Heats Up & Airbnb Goes AR
With an eye toward future iPhone X-focused augmented reality functions, Apple's new investment in one of its components vendors will increase production capacity for the technology behind its TrueDepth camera, but could also apply to its future AR ambitions.
Pocket Camp 101: Making the Most of Other Players in Animal Crossing
As the first Animal Crossing game on mobile devices, it's clear that Nintendo had a more social experience in mind for Pocket Camp, and I'm not talking about all the animal friends you can make. You can add other players to your list of human friends, and they're incredibly useful for a wide array of tasks.
Pocket Camp 101: How to Make Human Friends in Animal Crossing
While Animal Crossing's emphasis has always been on making friends with the animals that populate your world, each subsequent game following its initial release has stressed relationships with human players more and more. In Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp, making human friends is a crucial part of the process with the inclusion of market boxes, Shovelstrike Quarry, and giving "kudos."
News: Apple's Phil Schiller Hints at Future Smartglasses by Framing Augmented Reality as Sci-Fi
Whenever you attend or remotely watch a major Apple event, you're likely to see Phil Schiller, the company's senior vice president of worldwide marketing, unveiling a brand new product on stage. Outside of an official event, Schiller is the second most likely person (after Apple's CEO Tim Cook) you'll find delivering a rare tidbit of new Apple info or perspective to the public.
Firefox Mobile 101: How to Change Your Search Engine in One Tap
Besides its extensive collections of add-ons for Android, Firefox's mobile browser apps have many built-in features that you won't see in other mobile browsers. One feature in particular, available for both Android and iOS versions, makes it easy to switch back and forth between search engines for any query.
Apple AR: Make Song Lyrics Flow Right Out of Your Speakers with This iPhone Augmented Reality App
So you want to do Kendrick Lamar's "HUMBLE." in Animoji Karaoke, but you need the lyrics. Well, now you can see those rhymes spit out in augmented reality.
Apple Pay Cash 101: How to Quickly Pay Someone Who Requests Money
With Apple Pay Cash, you can easily and securely pay your contacts directly in your iPhone's Messages app. While you can always use the normal method of paying someone with Apple Pay Cash, there's actually a faster way, as long as your contact asks you for money in an iMessage.
News: Top 5 Features Missing from Samsung's Android Oreo Update
At this point, we've seen Samsung's vision for Android Oreo on both the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy Note 8. Just last month, Samsung opened its Oreo Beta Program for the S8 to the public. A few days ago, we obtained and detailed a leaked beta build of Oreo for the Note 8. While both of these updates have some compelling new features, there are always tweaks we hoped to see that didn't make the cut.
News: The Razer Is Now the Best Gaming Phone You Can Buy
When it comes to mobile gaming, you have a lot of fantastic options. Most flagship devices on the market, such as the Galaxy Note 8, iPhone 8 Plus, or OnePlus 5T, are perfectly capable of giving you an excellent, immersive experience. If you're looking for the ultimate way to experience Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp or something with more action like Into the Dead 2, the Razer Phone is the winner.
News: Snapchat Claps Back at Facebook by Letting Users Create Custom AR Lenses with Lens Studio
On Thursday, Snapchat opened up its walled garden of World Lenses to the masses of creators with the launch of Lens Studio.
News: iOS 11.2.5 Beta Released with Bug Fixes & Small Music Update
After a month of working out the kinks in iOS 11.2, Apple pushed out the update to everyone on Dec. 2. Well, over a week later and just hours after a quick iOS 11.2.1 update on Dec. 13, they began beta testing the next big update, iOS 11.2.5, with registered developers. The following day, Dec. 14, it also became available to public beta testers to try out.
Apple AR: Fruit Ninja Makers Aim for Viral AR Gaming Hit with Siege Breakers
Rovio created one of the first mobile gaming hit franchises with Angry Birds, so perhaps it is surprising that, aside from a promotional mini-game developed with Zappar, the company has yet to adapt the game to augmented reality via ARKit.