connectivity

Honda integrating Facebook, Yelp in new Accord and Crosstour

At this year's CES, Harman International's Aha announced a partnership with Honda. Today Honda hosted a conference showing how that partnership would play out with a new service called HondaLink. This new connected service will let drivers listen to a variety of Internet-based stations, featuring everything from Slacker radio to Yelp listings of nearby restaurants.… Read more

Amazon unveils Game Connect, adds new free-to-play games

Amazon today announced the launch of Game Connect, a new platform that provides users with games and digital delivery to their game accounts.

According to Amazon, Game Connect has helped usher in a rash of free-to-play and massively multiplayer online digital games that can be secured directly from the company's online-retail site. However, the main focus of the platform is the digital distribution it provides between Amazon.com and a user's game account.

With Game Connect, Amazon customers can purchase virtual goods for their titles on Amazon.com; then have them sent directly to a person's individual … Read more

Google+ for iOS

Google+ for iOS is a clean and intuitive mobile app that has all of the powers of its desktop counterpart, save for the games and a few other minor features. The latest version brings Events and Hangouts to the iPhone, while the iPad gets Hangouts as well as a stunning, tiled Home screen that's optimized for the larger screen.

Home What used to be called Stream is now simply your Google+ Home screen. This is the lifeblood of Google+. With the little drop-down at the top, you can choose to show feeds from All Circles, Nearby, What's Hot (… Read more

Get a mediocre puzzle game with Angry Birds Connect

First things first: If you're a fan of Angry Birds, don't get excited about Angry Birds Connect. This game has virtually nothing to do with the original Angry Birds, and we feel pretty certain that the creators of Angry Birds Connect simply ripped off the characters from Angry Birds and inserted them into what is otherwise a fairly generic puzzle game.

Angry Birds Connect reminds us a little bit of that old Windows tile puzzle, Taipei. The tiles aren't stacked as they are in Taipei, but are simply arranged in a hexagon-shaped grid; each has the face … Read more

Google+ is sleeker, optimized for tablets

Gone is the dashboard of icons that once greeted you upon opening Google+ for Android. Now, you can zip around the app with a sliding navigation ribbon on the left of the screen. This gives you easier access to your Stream, Profile, Messenger, Hangout, Photos, and Circles. As a whole, the app is easy to use and just as intuitive as its desktop counterpart.

Home What used to be called Stream is now simply your Google+ Home screen. This is the lifeblood of Google+. With the little drop-down at the top, you can choose to show feeds from All Circles, … Read more

Add apps to Foursquare for more info at check-in

Foursquare has added a new feature to its app and Web site called Connected Apps. Basically, it's a showcase of apps that got a head-start on using the Foursquare API. In the choices you'll see apps such as: The Weather Channel, Instagram, and Eat This, Not That!

When you check in to a location, you'll see the Connected Apps information right below Foursquare tips from other users. Ready to add some to your Foursquare and check them out? Here's how:

Mobile apps (Android and iOS):

Step 1: Open the Foursquare app and head to the Me … Read more

Cisco woos developers, adds 802.11ac support as Connect Cloud goes live

Two months after the launch of a new line of Smart Wi-Fi routers, the EA series, Cisco finally announced today that the Cisco Connect Cloud for the new routers is now live.

Cisco Connect Cloud is a software platform for Linksys Smart Wi-Fi routers -- currently comprising the Linksys EA2700, EA3500, and EA4500 -- intended to change the way consumers interact with their connected personal entertainment devices and home appliances, all via the Internet. For example, instead of the Cisco Connect Express mobile app, which works only within a local network, users can now opt for the Internet-based Cisco Connect Cloud mobile app, or just log in at the Cisco Connect Cloud portal, and be in complete control of their home network, no matter where they are.

There's a lot more to this, however. For the first time Cisco is allowing, and encouraging, independent developers to create mobile apps for its home network routers, specifically those in the Linksys Smart Wi-Fi Router family. According to Cisco, available immediately are six other iOS apps developed by third parties for the EA series, including Twonky Video and IP Camera Viewer.… Read more

Small screens have a big future in the home

As consumers move to the Web for convenient anytime/anywhere access to the content they want, connectivity will play a larger role in TV viewing. The marriage of the Internet to the TV screen seems perfectly timed in this respect, with services such as Netflix, Hulu, and Pandora almost standard on most connected sets.

With nearly two in three displays 50 inches and larger being Internet-connectable, according to The NPD Group's Retail Tracking Service, the feature is approaching ubiquity on large screens.

As a way to easily deliver more content, the Web seems like a natural fit for primary displays in the home that tend to have larger screens. But as the installed base of streaming video and other apps continues to grow and become a larger part of the everyday user's consumption routine, demand for access to them across the household is also likely to increase, giving rise to a new market for smaller connected-TV screens suited for secondary rooms in the home.

… Read more

Use OpenGarden to share connectivity from your Android via Bluetooth

If you're looking for a way to share Internet connectivity from one of your Android devices to another tablet or laptop, this guide can help you. Open Garden is an app that will broadcast your Internet signal to devices around you via Bluetooth, in hopes of creating a seamless mesh network. The idea behind the app is to make the connection process easier so you can spend more time being productive or surfing the Web. Here's how to get connected:

Install Open Garden on your mobile device that has a connection to the Internet. This would … Read more