Latest news

According to hundreds of Twitter posts, Google Drive and its associated apps, such as Google Docs, are down, globally.

Google hasn't confirmed the outage yet, but its app status monitoring page confirms the outage:

#googledrive is down. *panic mode*

-- Eric Paré (@ericpare) October 27, 2014

Google Drive appears to be down? http://t.co/saynLW0w48 #newellfonda

-- Timothy A. Limbert (@limbert65) October 27, 2014

The dev team PanGu has announced the launch of an iOS 8.1 jailbreak app, although as of writing it is very limited.

iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad owners with iOS 8-8.1 can use the tool, but it is SSH only (and only for Windows owners) without the Cydia marketplace installed. The average consumer or casual hobbyist usually needs their jailbreaking to be automated and easy, so most will stay away from this early tool but it is an encouraging sign and hardcore fans will be using it soon.

Cydia developer saurik also noted on Reddit that the team is aware of the new exploit and is working to get the store available soon.

If you are an iPhone 6, 6 Plus, 5s, 5c, 5, 4s, iPad mini 2, 3, iPad (4th gen)/iPad Air/iPad Air 2, or last-gen iPod Touch owner with iOS 8 can try it here.

Xbox One owners now have the first full-length trailer for the upcoming live-action series "Halo: Nightfall" produced by Ridley Scott of "Alien" and "Blade Runner" fame.

Microsoft teased the series over the summer, but now we have some actual dialogue and a look at the main characters (and enemies).

The new series revolves around agent Jameson Locke who is leading an investigation into biological weapons that are targeting just humans. Halo fans will recognize Covenant soldiers and some popular weapons including the energy sword. Locke is also the protagonist in the upcoming Halo 5: Guardians.

Antsy fans will be able to stream the first episode of the series on November 10th, a day before the official release of Halo: The Master Chief Collection.

Earlier this week, Microsoft announced their latest quarterly earnings, showing an overall strong report.

Of note, the company's Surface revenue and Xbox sales grew significantly, both doubling year-over-year.

Surface revenue was up 127 percent YoY to $908 million for the fiscal Q1 2015, and Xbox console sales grew 102 percent to 2.4 million for the quarter. The Surface revenue increase should put to bed the rumors that Microsoft wants to shut down the tablets due to low sales.

"Customers are embracing our latest technologies from Surface Pro 3 and Office 365 to Azure and SQL Server," Microsoft COO Kevin Turner said in a statement. "Through great execution by our sales teams and our partners, we have been able to deliver our truly differentiated value to the marketplace."

Revenue in the Xbox division also increased by 58 percent as the Xbox One launched in 28 new nations throughout the world during the quarter. The Xbox One is clearly outmatched by the Sony PS4, which has outsold the console for 9 straight months, but the sales are still large and not expected to slow down anytime soon.

As an aside, Microsoft says they sold 9.3 million Lumia smartphones in the quarter, up just 5.6 percent YoY as the global smartphone race remains a two-horse race.

Spotify has unveiled a new "Spotify Family" plan that will allow up to four family members to share one account but keep their listening separate.

The whole family can now have their own recommendations, playlists and history and all listening habits separate from everyone else sharing the account.

Adds Spotify of the plan:

Premium for everyone. Everyone on the plan gets the full Spotify Premium experience. Listen offline. Play any song, anytime, on any device. No restrictions. No ads.

The more the merrier. Having a family can be expensive. But music doesn't have to be. With Spotify Family, you can add up to four family members to your account, and each additional user gets 50% off Spotify Premium.

No tantrums. No more fighting over what to listen to, and no more interruptions when someone else logs in and starts playing.

According to sources, Sony is preparing to slash its smartphone forecast once again, potentially a death knell for the company's turnaround efforts in the smartphone world.

If true, the company will slash its forecast from the current 43 million (for the year ended March 2015), and it will mark the third drop in the forecast since last April. The initial expectation was 50 million.

The company recently shocked investors and analysts by lowering its fiscal year earnings forecast to a loss of $2.14 billion, much higher than its original $400 million loss forecast.

Sony's latest forecast update is due to the company pulling its entry-level devices from emerging markets including China where they were complete flops. Besides being beat in the entry-level market by more popular and cheaper devices (like Xiaomi), the company cannot compete in the high-end, where Samsung and Apple continue with a duopoly.

The company confirmed Xperia devices will remain part of Sony's focus and turnaround efforts, but that they will only be high-end devices and that the company is no longer looking to take large global share, but just to stay relevant.

Apple reported their quarterly earnings today, crushing estimates in nearly all categories but especially in revenue and iPhone and Mac sales.

Thanks to the new launch of the iPhone 6 and the large iPhone 6 Plus, Apple had a strong quarter in which Apple CEO Tim Cook was even quoted as saying, "we're selling everything we make."

Overall, revenue increased to $42.12 billion, up 12 percent year-over-year, blowing out expectations of $39.85 billion. Profits were up to $8.5 billion, up 20 percent year-over-year, and also beating expectations. iPhone sales were up 16 percent year-over-year, to 39.3 million, and Macs were another big winner up 21 percent YoY to 5.52 million.

The iPad remained a drag, with sales falling 13 percent to 12.3 million as the tablet market has generally stagnated despite some innovations. iPods continued their long-standing phase out, but still saw 2.64 million in sales, down 24 percent YoY.

Likely the best news for Apple was the iPhone ASP (average selling price), which jumped to $602.92 from $561.06, suggesting a nice amount of sales of the iPhone 6 Plus, which carries a very large price tag that starts at $750.

Let's not forget that Apple also has $155 billion in cash, which by taken by itself would make the company one of the largest twenty tech companies in the world.

Activision has shown off the official launch trailer for the upcoming blockbuster smash "Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare," ahead of its global November 4th launch.

The game (via the launch post) "takes players to a future devastated by a global attack. Rising from the chaos is Atlas, a Private Military Corporation led by the cunning Jonathan Irons. With the most powerful military force in the world, Atlas has effectively become a superpower for hire. Playing as Jack Mitchell, suit up in an advanced exoskeleton and join a highly-trained unit committed to restoring order.

The exoskeleton carries over into Multiplayer, where an all-new movement system changes the way players traverse the terrain. Chain together boost actions like jump, dodge, and dash in a fast and fluid style of play. Equip all-new abilities and armaments in the revamped Create-a-Class. Earn additional weapons and gear through in-game Supply Drops, outfitting your operator in the deepest customization experience in franchise history."

In the trailer, you will also see your fair share of an evil but powerful looking Kevin Spacey.

Check out the trailer here:

Canonical founder Mark Shuttleworth has announced the new monkey-themed name for the latest Ubuntu build (15.04), dubbing the operating system 'Vivid Vervet.'

Now, if you are not a huge monkey fan and have never heard of the breed (trust me, I had not), Shuttleworth explains that the Vervet is 'upstart' and 'volant' in nature, just like the new update.

Reads the founder's ever loquacious blog post: "In my favourite places, the smartest thing around is a particular kind of monkey. Vexatious at times, volant and vogie at others, a vervet gets in anywhere and delights in teasing cats and dogs alike. As the upstart monkey in this business I can think of no better mascot. And so let's launch our vicenary cycle, our verist varlet, the Vivid Vervet!"

The latest Ubuntu is set for release in April 2015.

If you want an interested read (think V from V for Vendetta), read Shuttleworth's post here.

Activision's new blockbuster "Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare" is about ready to launch and if you are a PC gamer you will need a decent rig if you want to get in the game.

Via the Steam official game page, we now have a full list of required minimums for the PC version of the game:

OS: Windows 7 64-Bit / Windows 8 64-Bit / Windows 8.1 64-Bit
Processor: Intel® CoreTM i3-530 @ 2.93 GHz / AMD PhenomTM II X4 810 @ 2.80 GHz or better
Memory: 6 GB RAM
Graphics: NVIDIA® GeForce® GTS 450 @ 1GB / ATI® Radeon™ HD 5870 @ 1GB or better
DirectX: Version 11
Network: Broadband Internet connection
Hard Drive: 55 GB available space
Sound Card: DirectX-compatible

OnePlus' One device, the high-end $300 smartphone that has so far only been available to those with an invite from the company or from others that have purchased the phone, will soon go mainstream.

The company says pre-orders will begin next week, but with a major catch. Beginning on October 27th at 11am, the pre-order window will be only an hour long meaning you have a very short time to make sure your order gets in.

Says the company in their blog post: "We now have an exciting alternative to invites. With our pre-order system, you'll be able to place your order for the One and immediately be told the estimated shipping time. Starting today, for the seven days prior to pre-orders you will be able to arrange your shopping cart and save it just how you like it to ensure your checkout goes quickly and smoothly during the pre-orders hour. If you get an invite after submitting your pre-order, you can use it to skip the queue and get your device shipped right away."

In addition, the company will slash the prices of OnePlus One accessories during the one-hour sale, including the new JBL E1+ headphones at just $25.

Read more here.

According to multiple reports, Microsoft is preparing their fitness wearable device for release in the coming weeks.

The wearable will be a smartwatch that can also "passively track a wearer's heart rate and work across different mobile platforms."

Perhaps most importantly compared to current watches on the market, the Microsoft watch will offer battery life that should exceed two days with normal use. The top watches on the market, including the Moto 360, must be charged daily. In addition, the watch will sync with iOS, Android and Windows Phone, a huge boost for consumers that may have multiple devices with multiple operating systems. It also allows Microsoft to tap into a much bigger market of smartphone users, as Windows Phone remains a niche player.

Sadly, it is unclear what the company will sell the device for it, or what it will be named.

Source:
Forbes

343 Industries, the team behind the new 'Halo: The Master Chief Collection,' has said that the game uses all of the space of a Blu-ray disc and will require a massive patch just to be able to play.

On day one, the patch will be over 20GB and be required before you can play the title.

Says 343 Industries Executive Producer Dan Ayoub: "From the start, our philosophy has been to give Halo fans the best possible experience and not compromise the quality or features of the collection. The result is that Halo: The Master Chief Collection will take up almost all of the usable space of a single Blu-ray (45 GB), and we will also issue a content update at launch that is estimated to be 20 GB."

If you want to get ahead of the pack, and you've pre-ordered the game, you can get started on the download.

The game is set for release November 11th in the U.S. and the UK exclusively for the Xbox One.

Streaming music service Rdio has upgraded their entire library to 320kpbs AAC for premium subscribers, says the company, but free users will also get a quality boost.

The company had previously offered their library in just 96kbps MP3 as a default, but "Unlimited" $9.99 per month subscribers can choose between 64kbps, 96kbps, 192kbps and 320kbps in the settings now. Of course, the higher bitrate will require more data usage, so mobile users will have to keep that in mind. Free users can now use up to 192kbps.

In addition to the streaming, you can also choose the bitrate for offline listening downloads.

Rdio says the update is for all users, in all nations and is available now as a free update on the Web or via the iOS App Store or Google Play.

Nintendo has announced that their popular new blockbuster "Super Smash Bros." for 3DS sold over 705,000 units in just 48 hours of sale.

The gaming giant made the announcement of Friday, and there is a good chance the game is well over 1 million given that it was released two weeks ago. Nintendo also noted that 135,000 copies were sold completely digitally via the Nintendo eShop.

As is standard with hit games, SSB helped increase console sales, as well, with 3DS handheld sales increasing 55 percent month-over-month to just over 140,000.

Nintendo is expected to have another hit on their hands when the Wii U version hits on November 21st in North America and then in December for Japan and Europe.