New MacBook Airs!

A quiet refresh of MacBook Airs were released yesterday. They have new processors and, most notably, they are $100 less for each model. Be sure to grab one if you need one! Also, a Retina Display MacBook Air is expected to be "in the works" currently. Stay tuned!

If only there was an iPhone G3...

For those who remember the days when the standard for computing were the Macintosh G3 computers, this post is for you! What if there was an iPhone G3? What would it look like? Absolutely gorgeous. Take a look at these renderings.

Mac Pro Daisy Chain Challenge

Macworld tried to see how many devices a Mac Pro can be connected to at once. One thing to note is that you can "daisy chain" six Thunderbolt devices to one Thunderbolt port. There are six Thunderbolt ports, which makes thirty-six potential devices. Added that to 15 USB devices and 2 FireWire devices. That's forty-two devices. Fun fact: the drive space capacity added up to 100.63 TB. One TB (Terabyte) is equal to 1024 GB (Gigabytes). One gigabyte is equal to 1024 MB (Megabytes). You can do a lot with a gigabyte (hopefully), so 100 terabytes. Wow.

Image Credit: MacRumors

Preview and Signatures

Did you know that you can use Preview to add your signature to any PDF? Simply, open Preview and a document within Preview. After that, go to preferences (Preview > Preferences) and click Signatures. Then, add a signature using your camera. Next, click the marker icon on the PDF's window and find the drop-down menu with the "sig" icon. It should have your signatures. Select one and drag where you want your signature. I hope this helps!

What iOS 8 Could Look Like...

TechRadar has created a video featuring popular rumors of iOS 8. Highlights include Healthbook, integrated-Shazam, and iWatch sync. Check it out!

2048

If you like Candy Crush Saga, then you'll LOVE 2048! It's a great game to relax the mind and pass some time. Combine the equal numbers and create the 2048 tile. Try this game out! It's free and fun! 2048 is available from the Apple App Store for free [Direct Link] and Google Play Store [Direct Link].

Mac OS 10.10: What do you like better? Yosemite or Mammoth?

According to Consomac's investigations on trademarks from Apple, Apple may be considering naming some of the next versions of OS X some of the following names:

• Yosemite
• Redwood
• Mammoth
• California
• Big Sur
• Pacific

This new trend of California landmarks started when Craig Federighi announced that they had "an extreme shortage of cats." The latest version of OS X (10.9) is known as Mavericks, which is known for its massive waves.

iPhone 6 Compared to Other Smartphones (Mockup)

A member of the MacRumors forum, deuxani, has created what a 4.7" iPhone would look like compared to Android smartphones. 4.7" is the expected screen size of the next iPhones and this looks very good for people (including me) who want a larger screen. It should be noted that there is a small portion of the Android phone's touch screen dedicated as a "digital" home button (along with other buttons) which isn't used as much else. You'll see what I mean.

Apple Debuts "Powerful" TV Ad for iPhone

Today, Apple has released a new ad for the iPhone. It shows off of many people use the iPhone. These uses range from music making to rocket launching. Check out the video below!

Apple Honors Earth Day: 2014

As mentioned, Apple will honor Earth Day (April 22; tomorrow) by coloring their logo green. It appears that the leaf will be changed to green in honor of the day at Apple Retail Stores. In addition, employees will wear special t-shirts for the occasion.

Apple has also created a marketing campaign called "Better." It's about how Apple's data centers are environmentally friendly.

Image Credit: znnina of Instagram
Nanjing Apple Store in Shanghai

Original Apple TVs Losing Functionality

The original Apple TV seems to not be able to connect to the iTunes store. Apple Forum poster georgevargas describes his issue in this message:

"As of last night I had full access to the iTunes Store. Since this morning I was getting an Itunes Store Not Available message, and after unplugging the AppleTv the iTunes Store access completly disappeared except for movie trailers."

Apple has confirmed that Heartbleed is not the cause of the bug, however they didn't tell us what the actual issue is. Are they dropping support and services for this Apple TV? If that's true, the bright side is that newer Apple TVs are in HD and only cost $99 (HDMI cable not included). The original Apple TV was released in 2007, so it would make sense to drop support for a 7-year-old piece of hardware.

Article Credit to MacRumors

Thanks for the Google Glass!

I'd just like to thank my grandparents for being so genorous to give Google Glass to me as an early birthday present. Thanks Baachan and Jiichan! Also, I intend to do a review on this. More to come…

Apple Will Honor Earth Day This Year

April 22nd, Apple will be celebrating Earth Day. Earth Day is a day typically celebrated by planting a tree and doing "green" things. Every Apple Retail store will have a green logo and employees will wear t-shirts in honor of the occasion. The last time Apple celebrated Earth Day, it was 2006. They created a free computer take back program.

Run in Low Resolution on MacBook Pro with Retina Display

Have you ever wanted to waste the Retina Display that you paid extra for? Of course you do! To do so, you can pick an app (a Retina Display enabled one) and "get info" on it. To do this, control-click on the app in Finder, and click "Get Info". Then, check the box that says "Open in Low Resolution". This really does nothing that helps. I suppose it could make your Mac run slightly faster, but not by much. It just makes your apps look awful.

Integrated Shazam App in iOS 8?

Apple may be working on a way to quickly identify songs with the popular company, Shazam, who already makes a similar app. According to Bloomberg, this service would be used with Siri as one of the ways. If this is the primary way of accessing the feature, it may be likely that iPad 2 will not be compatible with iOS 8. This is because iPad 2 is not compatible with Siri.

Image Credit: MacRumors

Heartbleed: #InternetApocalypse

Heartbleed is a new exploit in the internet developed by people who just really hate sunshine and all things good. Basically, this exploit allows people to get passwords and other private information on over half-a-million sites that were thought to be up-to-code on their security stuff. Some affected (and popular) websites include (but not limited to) Amazon, Bitbucket, GitHub, IFTTT, Mojang (a.k.a. Minecraft), Reddit, SoundCloud, Tumblr, Wikipedia, and Wunderlist. If you have accounts on any of these sites, I really do recommend that you change your password immediately! Also, Google for some sites that may be affected.

Google Glass Explorers Being Accepted Tomorrow at 6am (PDT)

Tomorrow, April 15th, you can become a Google Glass Explorer. Note that a Glass Explorer is a beta tester and not an actual final product. That said, you must also be 18 years old, live within the US, and be willing to fork over $1,500. Google Glass is a device that you wear on your head. The display is a prism that is slightly translucent and can show information quickly. Google Glass also takes voice commands.

Yes, that's what I look like wearing Google Glass.

NDS4iOS Launches For iOS

Right after the major update to the GBA (GameBoy Advance) emulator, GBA4iOS, a new Nintendo DS emulator is now available for download. With consistency to its predecessor's name, it's dubbed NDS4iOS. This emulator has a similar layout to GBA4iOS. To install, follow this link on your iOS device (iOS 5.1.1 or later), tap the download button (the non-jailbroken one; assuming that your device isn't jailbroken), set the time to February 8th, 2014 or before (Settings > General > Date & Time > Turn off "Set Automatically"), open the app, and change back the time! I know that it's lengthy, but it's the only way to do it unless you jailbreak your iPhone. If the app crashes repeatedly, change back the time to February 8th, 2014 or before, open the app, and change back the time.

Image Credit: MacRumors

My First Android App!

I figured because I know some Java coding, I could make a quick app to see what it's like to be a developer on Google Play. I made a little app that lets you make a service bell sound. Basically, when you have very bad customer service or what to add a bell to your bike, just take out your phone, open the app, and tap the 8-bit bell! Instant bell anywhere! It's called Service Bell! Service Bell is available from the Google Play store for free [Direct Link]! Every download helps! Don't worry, this won't be my only Android app! Stay tuned!

Bloom.fm iAd Blocked by Apple

Apple has blocked an iAd, a special type of advertisement for iOS devices, for a competitor to Apple's iTunes Radio in the UK. Bloom.fm is a service that allows free music streaming (of a limited selection) for 1£ a month. While iTunes Radio isn't available in the UK yet, but is coming in early 2014. Bloom.fm says that they understand why Apple would "want to protect their business." Bloom.fm is only available in the UK.

iTunes Going HD?

Not as many people download music from digital stores anymore with the large rise of apps. Apple is expected to redesign its iTunes Music Store and add high resolution audio (24-bit). It would be nice to see something like this, however not many people would notice a difference unless they were wearing Beats headphones or were Skrillex. All that aside, 24-bit downloads are much better than the 16-bit downloads that Apple currently sells.

Windows XP is Officially Unsupported!

After twelve years of maintenance and patching, Windows XP is unsupported. This means there will be no security patches and no help topics updated. Standard stuff. The bad news is that this is a quality and popular OS. About 80% of ATMs use XP. That could be a scary thought. 

Feedly

Feedly is a great way to stay up to date with all of your favorite blogs! Just setup an account and add your favorite blogs! It shows a great layout of featured articles. You can even share articles to many different services such as Evernote, Readability, OneNote, Instapaper, Pocket, Google+, and more!

To get Tech Talk 4 Geeks on Feedly, search with this link:

feed://techtalk4geeks.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default

WWDC Lottery Ends and Winners are Selected

Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) will be held this year from June 2-6. At this event, developers learn great uses of their programming skills. Apple has selected winners from their lottery system that they've announced. Winners will be able to purchase tickets for $1599. Also, anyone can watch the videos and keynote online for free.

World's Largest Game of Tetris!

This weekend, the world's largest game of Tetris was played on a Philadelphia skyscraper. Just yesterday, the world's largest arcade display hooked up a controller and got itself a good cartridge of Tetris (or at least some epic code just for the event).

"People will think of this as a game, but I think of this as a public ornament.. Technology has sort of made us isolated from each other. I want us to be with each other, and play with each other." 

 - Frank Lee

Android TV: Coming Soon to a TV Near You!

Apparently, Google has plans to sell an "Android TV." While not much is known about it, Android TV would be expected to be a simple competitor to the Apple TV and Roku. Also, this plan wouldn't affect Chromecast. The Verge has obtained a paper about said Android TV.

"Android TV is an entertainment interface, not a computing platform." 

Nest Stops Selling Protect!

Nest has stopped selling their smoke and carbon monoxide alarm due to tests showing that emergency alerts could unintentionally be silenced because of it's flagship feature, "Nest Wave." Nest CEO, Tony Fadell, wrote a letter on the issue.

To the Nest community: 

Since introducing the Nest Protect: Smoke + Carbon Monoxide alarm, we've heard touching stories from many of you about how we've helped keep you and your families safe. I consider your safety a huge part of my job and it’s something I think about and take pride in every day. At Nest, we conduct regular, rigorous tests to ensure that our products are the highest quality. During recent laboratory testing of the Nest Protect smoke alarm, we observed a unique combination of circumstances that caused us to question whether the Nest Wave (a feature that enables you to turn off your alarm with a wave of the hand) could be unintentionally activated. This could delay an alarm going off if there was a real fire. We identified this problem ourselves and are not aware of any customers who have experienced this, but the fact that it could even potentially happen is extremely important to me and I want to address it immediately.We feel that the best and safest thing to do is to immediately disable the Nest Wave feature to resolve the issue and remove any safety concerns. While we fix Nest Wave, we have also halted sales of all new Nest Protect alarms to ensure no one buys an alarm that needs an immediate update.

- Tony Fadell

Nest CEO

Nests should be back on store selves in 2-3 months.

WWDC 2014 Ticket Lottery

Apple announced yesterday that their WWDC (World Wide Developers Conference) will be held June 2-6 and that it will be at the Moscone West convention center in San Francisco. Every year at this event, Apple announces a new version of iOS and Mavericks, along with some previews of what they have in store. Based on the official image below, I would want to start a rumor that there may be resizable icons in iOS 8 or may announce a larger iPhone this year. What do you think? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

Amazon Fire TV

Today, Amazon announced their competitor to the Apple TV, Roku, and Chromecast. Fire TV! Other than the whole HD movies and TV shows idea, games seem to be the big deal for the Fire TV. Although it needs a separate controller, Fire TV is a gaming console with games like Minecraft (Pocket Edition), Asphalt 8, and The Walking Dead. It even has a competitor feature to Apple TV's AirPlay (even the mirroring). To learn more about Fire TV, check out the official site. Fire TV is available now for $99 from Amazon.

Google April Fools' Day 2014!

Today, Google continued their tradition of creating jokes for April Fools' Day with some products that the public wouldn't mind seeing.

Google Maps Pokémon Challenge:

Probably one of the most popular (and my personal favorite) April Fools' jokes by Google this year is the Google Maps Pokémon Challenge. Check out this video to learn more.

(P.S. I've personally caught 27 Pokémon. How many have you caught?)

Google Shelfie:

Google announced that Gmail is 10 years old today (which is true). In honor of this, they've made sharable selfies. It's sort of a joke. The idea is that you can view your face while writing emails and stuff. 

Emoji Translation:

Need I say more?

While I'd love to mention every single joke Google made this year, I can't. But if you'd like to see more, be sure to Google it! Happy April Fools' Day!