Latest news

Instagram, one of the most popular mobile apps of all-time, has still not made its way to Windows Phone 8.

A French developer has created a fully featured version of the app, dubbed 6tag, which includes the original filters found in Instagram, the ability to upload videos, and the popular linear/radial blur effects. Additionally, the developer added support for sharing to Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, Tumblr, VK, and Foursquare.

While the app is free to download now, it is important to know that Facebook has not signed off on the app, and it will stop working if Facebook updates their APIs. Facebook recently altered their policies and deleted and blocked photos uploaded from third-party apps.

Facebook has said it remains "focused on building the best Instagram experience possible for people using iOS and Android devices," but it does want an app on every platform eventually.

Apple is expected to announce two new iPhones at a press event on September 10th, the new flagship iPhone 5S and the the cheaper, plastic iPhone "5C."

The 5C will keep most of the specs of the current model iPhone 5, but will be slightly more affordable due to its plastic casing.

Pictures have been aplenty of the rumored device, and tech site Apple Daily has plenty more.

See a couple here:

Following a similar move made by Gamestop last week, Amazon has said today that they will have their own trade-in offer for Xbox 360 gamers looking to move up to the Xbox One.

For $10, you will be able to trade-in your 360 version of a few games for the Xbox One version.

A few of these games include the new Call of Duty: Ghosts, Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag, FIFA 14, Battlefield 4, NBA 2K14, Watch Dogs, Madden NFL 25 and Need for Speed Rivals.

You ship the game back and you receive a $25 bonus credit on top of the game's $25 trade-in value. New Xbox One games cost $60.

Amazon notes, however, that you can only use this promotion just once.

According to a new report, Google has been holding talks with the NFL about buying the rights to "Sunday Ticket," which allows broadcasts of all out-of-town games.

The search giant would then broadcast the games via YouTube, which would be game changing in the industry.

DirecTV is the current owner of the Sunday Ticket package, but their deal with the NFL expires in 2014. That deal costs the satellite provider $1 billion per year and is a big driver of their subscriber growth.

The new deal will cost Google (or another company) a lot more than $1 billion. Recent TV deals with CBS, Fox and NBC were all 50 percent higher than previous deals, suggesting the new Sunday Ticket package could cost as much as $1.5 billion.

Netflix has announced it has signed an exclusive first-run deal with independent studio Weinstein Co. beginning in 2016.

The company had recently signed a similar agreement with blockbuster maker Disney, allowing Netflix to stream Pixar, Marvel and Disney Animation movies before others in the pay TV window.

Netflix's new deal covers Weinstein and Dimension Films movies, and neither company disclosed the financial terms.

Showtime had secured the deal in 2009, but it ends in 2016 when Netflix's deal will immediately go into effect.

Harvey Weinstein, co-founder of the studio, added: "Together, we are discussing ways to reinvent the pay TV experience so that the audience can get even more for their money. Their enthusiasm for movies of all kinds was the big factor in our choosing Netflix. Netflix is the most significant new force in the entertainment industry."

Sony used their Gamescom press conference today to drop the price of their Wi-Fi PlayStation Vita to $199 in the U.S. and €199 in Europe.

The price drop is significant as the current prices are $249/€249. Additionally, the company says there will be "significant reductions in the price of PS Vita memory cards" in the near future.

Gamers (and industry watchers) have been begging for Sony to drop the price, especially as the system has struggled to meet even lowered expectations for sales. Last year, the company said it was still "too early" for a price cut.

Sony reduced the price of the console in Japan by at least 20 percent in February.

It is unclear whether the 3G models will see a similar price drop.

Sony has announced the release date for the PlayStation 4 across the globe.

In the U.S. and Canada, the $399 console will go on sale November 15th, with Latin America and Europe getting the console two weeks later the 29th.

The company will launch in 32 nations before the holiday season, and the company confirmed it already has 1 million pre-orders for the console.

Countries seeing the console on the 29th are Australia, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama and Peru.

Sony says 15 titles will launch with the console (physical and digital), with another 18 to be available by the end of the year. In total, the company says 180 games are in development for the PS4.

Two months ago, Google purchased Israeli startup Waze for over $1 billion.

The service, which offered high-end mapping with social/real-time updates, has now been integrated (in part) with Google's market leading Maps app.

Google says they have added real-time incident reports to Maps, sourced from the Waze community. This includes accidents, construction zones, road closures and more, in the United States, UK, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, France, Germany, Mexico, Panama, Peru, and Switzerland will have access to the data.

Says Google:

No one likes getting stuck in traffic. That's why the Waze and Google Maps teams are working together to harness the power of Google technology and the passion of the Waze community to make it easier to navigate your daily life.

Users of Google Maps for Mobile will now benefit from real time incident reports from Waze users. This means when Wazers report accidents, construction, road closures and more on Waze, the updates will also appear on the Google Maps app for Android and iOS in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, France, Germany, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Switzerland, UK and the US.

Microsoft has confirmed the launch lineup for the upcoming Xbox One console.

As expected, there are a number of blockbusters including hits that require Kinect.

Full list:

Assassin's Creed IV Black Flag (Ubisoft, Ubisoft)
Battlefield 4 (DICE, Electronic Arts)
Call of Duty: Ghosts (Infinity Ward, Activision)
Crimson Dragon (Grounding/Land Ho!, Microsoft Studios)
Dead Rising 3 (Capcom Vancouver, Microsoft)
FIFA 14 (EA Sports, Electronic Arts)
Fighter Within (AMA Ltd., Ubisoft)
Forza Motorsport 5 (Turn 10 Studios, Microsoft Studios)
Just Dance 2014 (Ubisoft Paris, Ubisoft)
Killer Instinct (Double Helix, Microsoft Studios)
LEGO Marvel Super Heroes (TT Games, Warner Bros. Interactive)
Lococycle (Twisted Pixel, Microsoft Studios)
Madden NFL 25 (EA Sports, Electronic Arts)
NBA 2K14 (Visual Concepts, 2K Sports)
NBA LIVE 14 (EA Sports, Electronic Arts)
Need for Speed: Rivals (Ghost Games, Electronic Arts)
Peggle 2 (Popcap, Electronic Arts)
Powerstar Golf (Zoe Mode, Microsoft Studios)
Ryse: Son of Rome (Crytek, Microsoft Studios)
Skylanders: Swap Force (Vicarious Visions, Activision)
Watch Dogs (Ubisoft Montreal, Ubisoft)
Zoo Tycoon (Frontier Developments Ltd., Microsoft Studios)
Zumba Fitness: World Party (Zoë Mode, Majesco)

Mozilla is planning to launch a touch-ready version of its Firefox browser for Windows 8 by the end of the year, nearly a year after the operating system launched.

The browser, dubbed "Preview Release," will be part of Firefox 26, set to ship on December 10th.

Updates to the browser will continue until final release, adds Mozilla. In time for Firefox 26, Mozilla will merge their Aurora and Beta channel builds, set for release on September 16th and then October 28th. Each release will allow for consumer feedback and then bug updates.

Mozilla began work on the "Modern" user interface in September of last year, but only ever released a rough preview. The company, at the time, said a final release could be ready as early as January 2013 but then delayed that until "Fall 2013."

Google has had a "Modern" version of Chrome since June of last year, and obviously so has Microsoft. Mozilla says the new app will help them remain competitive.

Sony has confirmed it will reveal "release plans" for the PlayStation 4 at this week's Gamescom 2013 event.

Additionally, the company will reveal more details about the upcoming console and updates for the PS3 and PS Vita, as well.

The event is from the 21st to the 25th, but Sony's PlayStation event will be on the 20th at 1PM EDT.

Sony reiterated that the presentation will showcase "the future of all things PlayStation" and be "packed with news."

In 2011, smartphone maker HTC purchased 50 percent of Beats Audio for $300 million. Beats is now looking to get completely out of that deal.

Beats makes headphones and audio software for mobile and desktop devices.

The WSJ reported that Beats is looking to get out of their partnership, which is down to 25 percent since Beats bought back half of what they sold earlier this year for $150 million.

Sources claim Beats is now "looking to bring in a new investor to provide fresh funds for growth."

Beats has seen great success over the last three years, while HTC has floundered. Beats is said to have revenue near $1 billion, and a 59 percent market share in the U.S. premium headphone market. HTC has had nearly two years of falling revenue and profits.

Even more sources are now claiming that Nokia's 6-inch Windows Phone is coming soon.

Codenamed "Bandit," the device will have a 1080p display and a quad-core Snapdragon processor.

Additionally, the phone will have a 20MP camera that will force the device to a have a small hump (just like the Lumia 925).

Sources say the Bandit is "thin and lightweight, and includes a polycarbonate body."

The device should be the first of many 1080p devices, which Microsoft is soon to increase support for.

AT&T has announced today that the HTC One Mini will be reaching the carrier on August 23rd, exclusively.

The phone will sell for $100 with two-year contract.

"Our customers loved the HTC One, so we are excited to offer this slimmer, more compact version," said Jeff Bradley, SVP of Devices, AT&T. "We're proud to continue to offer our customers so many choices with a broad smartphone portfolio all on the nation's fastest and most reliable 4G LTE network."

Jason Mackenzie, President of North America, HTC, added: "The HTC One mini is pocket-friendly but packed with large experiences – an HD screen, our breakthrough UltraPixel camera, a home screen with customized feeds from news networks to social networks including Instagram, and huge sound from its front-facing stereo speakers."

Despite looking the same as the HTC One, the device has lower-end specs including a 4.3-inch Super LCD 2 HD 720p display, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 dual-core 1.4 GHz processor, and the same UltraPixel camera.

Barnes & Noble has dumped the price of its front-lit e-reader to $99, marking the first time such a reader has dipped under that price point.

By comparison, Amazon's Kindle Paperwhite still sells for $119 (with ads) and the Kobo Glo starts at $129.99.

Most likely, the company is clearing out excess inventory to unveil a second-generation model this fall.

Barnes & Noble recently announced they would be discontinuing their own tablets, instead licensing the Nook operating system, while continuing to manufacture e-readers.