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Rumor: Apple buying Renesas SP Drivers to improve iPhone battery life and image sharpness

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

The Japanese business site Nikkei is reporting that Apple is in discussions with chipmaker Renesas Electronics concerning taking over their division that builds mobile display chips, Renesas SP Drivers.

The deal should enable Tim Cook & Co. to bring another technological piece under their roof and help Apple's engineers "improve image sharpness and battery life" on iPhones.

Renesas Electronics is included on the official list of Apple's suppliers. Apple is known for investing in its partners and suppliers when it makes sense. For instance, the company holds a ten percent stake in UK's fabless semiconductor maker Imagination Technologies which provides blueprints for GPUs used in iOS devices...

Razer’s Kazuyo iOS controller redesigned for slimness, has fully remappable buttons

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated May 9, 2017

I'm sorry if this thought sounds a little depressing, but there's no two ways about the fact that the first batch of iOS controllers leaves a lot to be desired. The iPhone controllers from Logitech, Stratus Moga and others have all received poor reviews, with critics slamming their high price tag, less than stellar build quality and lacking features.

Razer, a privately-held American accessory maker that specializes in high-performance hardware specifically marketed to gamers, is thinking differently when it comes to its own iOS 7 controller, the Kazuyo.

We previously highlighted this 'Made for iPhone' (MFi) controller and now new details surfaced Tuesday helping paint a better picture of the upcoming accessory...

New Comedy Central app puts all shows in one place

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2018

Comedy Central has several free apps in the App Store, each dedicated to its own show, like The Daily Show Headlines, The Colbert Report and Tosh 2.0, to name a few.

In the commendable effort to reduce user confusion and increase engagement, the comedy channel owned by MTV Networks Entertainment Group has released a new iOS app simply named Comedy Central that consolidates all their shows into one place.

The dedicated streaming app is now available to download free of charge in the App Store. Wait, you haven't heard the coolest thing: you can stream episodes of select shows free of charge, no cable subscription required whatsoever, with some caveats...

BBM updated with stickers, large file transfers and image sharing in multi-person chats

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 1, 2014

The Canadian smartphone maker BlackBerry is launching a new version of its BBM instant messaging software for iOS, Android and BlackBerry.

As previously reported, this BBM edition enables popular stickers and includes a couple feature additions, such as the ability to share images with multiple parties in multi-person chats and send larger files to others.

Various sticker packs can be purchased from the new BBM Shop, with some stickers like the legacy BBM emoticons offered free of charge. It's interesting that BlackBerry partnered with brands on themed sticker packs like CosCat, Gilbert’s Tales, Bubble Bot and many more.

The new BBM 2.1 will be launching in the App Store later today...

LaCie Fuel now offers 2TB of wireless storage for your Mac and iOS devices

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

LaCie, a Seagate Technology brand that makes premium storage solutions and accessories, has refreshed its Fuel external wireless hard drive with an expanded capacity of two terabytes.

That's double the storage of the previous Fuel and LaCie claims the updated product now offers "more storage than any 2.5-inch wireless hard drive on the market."

It uses Seagate's free Media app to make available your files to Apple devices over a Wi-Fi network.

The Fuel also includes a built-in ten-hour battery and plays nice with AirPlay so you can mirror content on your big screen TV through the Apple TV.

The full reveal is after the jump...

This Friday, EA’s Origin distribution platform will finally go all-digital

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated May 17, 2018

Super publisher Electronic Arts is finally bidding a fond farewell to optical media as its Origin platform is going all-digital this coming Friday, April 4.

For those unfamiliar with Origin (formerly EA Download Manager), it's a digital distribution software that lets players purchase DRM-enabled games for desktop and mobile and download them to their system using the Origin client.

Origin for Mac has been available since February of last year and now the Origin game store will be entirely digital downloads for PC and Mac, the publisher announced...

Apple to announce second quarter earnings on April 23

Cody Lee ∙ April 1, 2014

Folks wondering how Apple did during its quiet second quarter will have their answer in just a few short weeks. The Cupertino company has updated its Investor Relations page to note that it will be releasing its financial results for Q2 2014 on April 23rd.

There were no new products announced during the 3-month period, but Apple did make some changes to its device lineup. In March, the company launched a new 8GB version of its iPhone 5c in certain countries, and reintroduced its 4th generation iPad...

Production of 4.7-inch iPhone 6 screens to start in May, 5.5-inch model delayed

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 17, 2018

Production on screens for the 4.7-inch version of Apple's next iPhone could start as early as May, according to a new report from Reuters. Citing supply chain sources, the outlet says that Japan Display and other manufacturers are readying their facilities and could begin churning out panels next month.

Unfortunately, for those looking forward to the oft-rumored 5.5-inch model, it sounds like production issues have forced Apple to delay the handset. Reuters says that manufacturers are running into difficulties with in-cell technology, and the larger displays may not go into production for several months...

Apple launches TD-LTE capable iPad Air and iPad mini with Retina display in China

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated April 14, 2018

Do you remember these two new iPad models that were discovered following the recent release of iOS 7.1? At the time, we speculated that these were likely releases for future versions of the iPad in China – and we were right.

Apple just announced the launch of TD-LTE iPad Air and iPad mini with Retina display models, bringing high-speed performances to its customers in China...

TriBlaster review: step back in time with this retro arcade game

Lory Gil ∙ March 31, 2014

I can almost still smell the scent of stale popcorn and feel the sticky joystick in my hand when I play certain retro style games. At the risk of outing my age, when I was a kid, there was no such thing as home consoles. If you wanted to play a video game, you had to go to an arcade.

TriBlaster is an updated version of one of the best vector graphic 3D games of the 1980s, Tempest. Instead of a boring old fixed view, this game offers a multitude of angles to confuse and amuse you…

Help Clarc rescue his robot friends in this action puzzle adventure

Lory Gil ∙ Updated October 13, 2018

Put “drunk” and “robots” in the same sentence and you’ve won me over already. That’s what the witty developers at Golden Tricycle did when they described their newest submission to the App Store.

CLARC is a grid-based action puzzle that uses spatial reasoning as a mechanism for moving from one location to the next. Where do the drunk robots come in? Well, if it weren’t for those alcohol-swilling androids, CLARC wouldn’t have had to clean up after them…

Rdio update makes album headers prettier, brings out Chromecast support

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2018

Google's Chromecast is picking up some noteworthy support from third-party software makers. The latest example: the popular Internet radio service Rdio has just pushed a new update today bringing support for Google's inexpensive $35 HDMI dongle.

The new Rdio version 2.5.8 also includes various user interface improvements, minor bug fixes and prettified album headers.

The update is now live in the App Store...