Ray Willington
Opinions and content posted by HotHardware contributors are their own.
Recent posts
With cloud storage apps taking off and becoming more and more important in terms of managing our digital lives, Microsoft is making strides to keep SkyDrive up there with Box, Google Drive and Dropbox when it comes to overall functionality. A new post offered up by the company suggests that photos are the most common...
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For Netflix users, there's hardly a better way to stream content than on Microsoft's Xbox 360. The user interface is fluid, and the console itself is plenty powerful to churn through the HD streams. But Sony's PlayStation 3 offers a similarly excellent experience -- one that's getting better as of today. Netflix...
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When it comes to major technological anniversaries, we tend to focus on the big ones. 10 years, 25 years, 50 years, etc. But for some reason, Google just can't wait for the big 4-0 when it comes to Atari's legendary Breakout title. On the famed game's 37th birthday, Google has overhauled the image search results for Atari Breakout. For those...
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Samsung introduced the original Galaxy Tab in late 2010 and Samsung's line-up of Galaxy-branded products has simply exploded since then. Even for those who avidly follow consumer technology, it's getting tough to track. There's the Galaxy Tab line of tablets, the Galaxy S line of smartphones, and then there's the Galaxy...
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Not sure if you've noticed, but Spring is here. Which means that you have a crazy short amount of time before your beach body needs to be in tip-top shape. So let us introduce you to a new gadget designed to help you get there: Runtastic's new GPS watch + fitness monitor. One of the best-known names in the fitness app world has just launched...
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The concept of a mobile carrier is changing drastically. Last week, even AT&T dove into the prepaid arena with AIO Wireless, and T-Mobile USA is attempting to get rid of the conventional contract altogether. Now, there's another player: Zact. The company is billing itself as the industry's first "smart mobile...
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Truth be told, it's kind of astounding to think about how long Android has been around, yet there are very few syncing solutions on the market that have reached critical mass -- perhaps none at all. Backing up and syncing the iPhone is nearly instinctive; just plug it into iTunes and watch the magic happen. Most people tend to use their Android...
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Technology is a wonderful thing, particularly when it's used to advance the lives of those who would otherwise never be able to enjoy it. Over the years, much has been done to increase the joy in the lives of those who are visually impaired. Screen readers, Braille devices, and even apps have been designed to enable...
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Years ago, DRM was finally kicked out of the digital music scene. And consumers rejoiced heartily. But DRM is still a major, major factor across the entire spectrum of digital content -- be it UltraViolet for movies, or DRM filters embedded onto Blu-ray Discs, and most things in between. Now, the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), which is responsible...
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Does anyone remember Mobile ESPN? Believe it or not, ESPN was actually acting as an MVNO way back in 2006, sending specific sports-related alerts to users on flip-phones and dumb-phones, a year before the iPhone changed everything we know about the mobile arena. That venture didn't last too long, and as smartphones...
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Is the world really ready to shift from native apps to HTML5 Web apps? Probably not, at least not in North America, but developing nations may see it differently. That's the hope with Firefox OS, a web-based operating system that's (in theory) a lot more open. Of course, one needs only look at Microsoft's battle to...
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While DSLRs are still quite the rage, it's the interchangeable lens format that's seriously taking off. Olympus' Micro Four Thirds division has been one of the more popular ones, and the company's introducing the new PEN Lite E-PL6 line this week in order to advance that further. Scheduled to go on sale in June, this...
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These aren't easy times for Sharp. The company has been reeling for years now, and this isn't the first occasion where we've heard that Sharp may need to take drastic measures just to remain afloat. The latest report suggests that around 5,000 Sharp employees will soon be heading for the exits, with directors and...
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The RIAA isn't an entity that's looked fondly upon by many consumers, given that they've been pretty bent on making it difficult for consumers looking to purchase music legally in the digital age. Granted, we're (mostly) out of the DRM era, but those memories remain for many. Despite that, the RIAA is still an...
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The cloud storage wars are raging on, and while you may think that consolidation would occur, it doesn't really feel that way. Google, Apple and Microsoft are all in play, but so are smaller outfits like Dropbox and Box.net. The last of those has actually just made a major acquisition today by picking up Crocodoc. The company provides technology...
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Windows Phone is still struggling mightily to make meaningful gains in the U.S. market, and if there's one thing that'll help, it's getting more WP8 phones into more stores. And Walmart is a pretty meaingful store. Huawei isn't a major name in the U.S. arena, at least in terms of consumer devices, but the company is bringing its W1 to U.S....
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What do you do as a major, billion dollar corporation when your chief financial officer steps away? You find another one, preferably one you're familiar with. That's what Microsoft has done, after announcing during its Q3 2013 earnings report that existing CFO Peter Klein would be stepping away after June. So, Microsoft is filling his shoes...
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In the ever-changing world of streaming music, Slacker has made a name for itself. And that name is getting bigger. Since re-launching in February, the music service has revealed its latest audience growth figures, adding over six million new users in that span. Here are a few tidbits from the company. Since...
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Some pretty meaningful changes are afoot at one of the world's most innovative suppliers of flash storage, Fusion-io. Announced this week, the company's president and the co-founder both stepped aside, leaving big holes in a company that's struggling to get solid footing for growth. David Flynn is leaving his post at...
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It's official: Windows Blue is real, and it's coming soon. For weeks now, Windows 8.1 (Blue) has been rumored and talked about, and now Microsoft has confirmed that there is indeed a major version of Windows about to grace us. Julie Larson-Green, Corporate Vice President for Windows, has just announced that Microsoft's BUILD event will be...
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Microsoft is still playing a game of catch-up when it comes to providing users with top-tier apps that iOS and Android users have had access to for months, but it's more than just availability. It's about app quality, and Microsoft is trying to bolster that by working with its major partners. Foursquare is a huge app name, and while the company's...
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It's still pretty impressive to think that Nest makes only a thermostat, yet the design and engineering has garnered praise from all over. Soon, however, it looks as if Nest will move to the next level as a company. Today, it acquired MyEnergy, a company that will reportedly help Nest "help people understand and...
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