Who would have thought the humble, analog pen would be the inspiration for Genius’ nifty new Pen Mouse?

Genius announced a new shape for its Pen Mouse today. The redesigned mouse now offers a better grip and a clip for enhanced portability. It features 2.4Ghz wireless technology that can turn many unusual surfaces into mousepads for computing in your location of choice. For instance, the Pen Mouse can still function on a user’s leg or palm. The company added that the familiar pen shape doesn’t place any strain on the user’s wrists, making it a great choice for people suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome or other similar problems. 

The Pen Mouse can be switched between 400, 800, and 1200 dpi for optimal sensitivity. The left-click function is achieved with a slight downward pressure, while buttons at the top of the mouse perform the right-click and scrolling features. While it can connect to computers with a Pico USB dongle, the Pen Mouse also runs wirelessly with a single AAA battery. The mouse has a sleep feature to conserve power when it isn’t in use. According to the company website, the product is only supported on select Microsoft operating systems, including Windows 7, Vista, and XP. Genius has set the suggested price for the redesigned Pen Mouse at $50. 

Many companies are pushing to revolutionize how we control and interact with our computers. In fact, these four products could take a traditional mouse out of the picture almost entirely. Eye-tracking technology is certainly the most futuristic option, but new designs, such as the Pen Mouse and other stylus products, could be a good intermediary step, changing our usual mode of computer navigation for something that’s still familiar from the days of pencil and paper. 

Streamlined face-to-face video calling is no longer stuck in the realm of science fiction courtesy of Apple’s video conferencing software. Learn how to use FaceTime whether you’re on iOS, an iPhone, an iPad, or an iPod.

Video conferencing seemed to be finally finding its footing when the late Steve Jobs first announced FaceTime at the 2010 World Wide Developers Conference. More than two years later, the feature is in full swing, allowing Mac users to make video calls over both Wi-Fi and cellular networks on a variety of Apple devices. The feature didn’t revolutionize the way we carry out phone calls, but serves as a handy alternative to Skype or Facebook Chat. Plus, it’s simple to set up, easy to use, and does all the basics.

Check your system requirements & what you need

FaceTime comes with a few stipulations. First off, the app can only be run on the following devices:

• iPhone 4 or later. 
• iPad 2 or later.
• Fourth-generation iPod touch or later
• Mac with Mac OS X v10.6.6 or later

Keep in mind FaceTime video calling availability depends on carrier policies and data charges may apply while using the app over your wireless network. You will also need the phone number or email address of the person you are trying to call in order to use FaceTime.

Open FaceTime

FaceTime is included with OS X Lion or later. Mac OS X v10.6 users can download FaceTime from the Mac App Store. There is no official FaceTime app for the iPhone as the Phone app has FaceTime functionality built in. 

Activate FaceTime

iPhones automatically register your phone number for Facetime upon activation, but you will need to enable FaceTime while using the iPad, iPod touch or Mac desktop app. To begin, enter a valid Apple ID and password or select Create New Account and fill out the necessary fields (i.e. name, email, location, etc.).

Choose the phone number and email addresses you want associated with your FaceTime account. Apple will automatically verify your account information afterward. If you’re using an iPhone, make sure to toggle FaceTime on under the FaceTime options in your phone’s main settings.

Make a call

There are several ways to make a standard FaceTime call depending on which FaceTime-enabled Apple device you’re using. If you are using an iPad, iPod touch, or the the FaceTime app for Mac, you’ll need to add a person as a contact using the FaceTime or Contacts app before you can place a call with them.

iPhone:

• Using Contacts: Tap the FaceTime icon in the bottom-right corner while viewing a contact to place a FaceTime call
• Using Phone: Tap the FaceTime icon during a phone call to invite the other party to a FaceTime call
• Using Messages: Tap the FaceTime icon at the top while viewing messages to place a FaceTime call

Developer 4J Studios has written a detailed explanation of what we can expect to find in Update 8 for the Xbox Live iteration of Minecraft, though we warn you that the list is decidedly underwhelming.

On December 10, we published a story detailing the contents of the then-upcoming Update 7 for 4J Studios’ Xbox Live version of beloved sandbox title Minecraft. That update was supposed to add animal breeding (among other new features) to the game, and when it was released on December 19 it did just that. That’s de rigueur for 4J Studios’ updates for Minecraft, and we expected this trend to continue with Update 8. Our piece on Update 7 specifically mentions that 4J Studios planned to include The End – an area that effectively serves as Minecraft’s final challenge – in the next update, but this morning the company issued a list of additions and changes included in the imminent Update 8, and neither The End nor any new content is included.

Have a look at the full list:

- Fix for random crash on Kick Player.
- Fix for a random crash on loading the tutorial.
- Fix for freeze when writing on a sign as an autosave starts.
- Fix for crash when attempting to enter an online enabled game session after losing connection to the Xbox LIVE service.
- Performance improvement for the Enchantment interface.
- Fix to display a message when monsters are nearby on trying to sleep in a bed.
- Fix for an issue causing blocks to reappear after being destroyed when the server is busy.
- Fix for Experience Orbs being invisible for a period of time when created.
- Fix to force a Nether Fortress, Blaze Spawner and Nether Wart to always be present in the Nether for a newly created world.
- Fix for autosave not working when the host has gone into an idle state.
- Fix to increase the spawn rate for Mooshrooms.
- Change to make Blazes drop Glowstone Dust as well as Blaze Rods.
- Fix to player experience level display in two player vertical splitscreen mode.
- Fix for Quick Move not being possible while holding something in the cursor.
- Fix for armor position on Bad Santa when sat down.
- Changed “Download Content” menu to “Minecraft Store”.
- New photo frames for avatar items in the Minecraft Store.
- Fix for Magma Cube hit boxes.
- Added an Awkward Potion to the Potions page in the Creative Menu.
- Fix to show the aura of enchanted items for other players in an online game.
- Fix for tools enchanted with Unbreaking occasionally repairing themselves.
- Changes to improve breeding – Love Mode status is now network synchronised, and animals react more correctly if spawn limits are reached when breeding.
- Fix for issue with “Take Half” in the Brewing Stand interface.
- Fix to allow the map to be displayed when the player has turned off Display Hand.
- Fix for potion effects being removed after using the Nether Portal.
- Fix to stop the item in hand being changed when traveling to/from the Nether.
- Fix for Compass not pointing to the original spawn point after having been in The Nether.
- Fix to allow players to be able to eat food even if they are not allowed to build and mine.
- Fix to allow client players to toggle Custom Skin Animation.
- Fix for player gamertag border color being wrong after a respawn/dimension change.
- Fix for issue in splitscreen where it was possible to craft items without a player having the resources required.
- Fix to remove the Love Mode tooltip when animals are unable to enter Love Mode.
- Change to moderator option description in the Host and Player Options.
- Fix for the submerged edge of the world emitting a faint light.
- Fix for lighting issue with mobs in water.
- Fix to stop food being removed when feeding animals in Creative Mode.
- Fix to stop Bones being removed when taming wolves in Creative Mode.
- Change to make baby wolves tame when born.
- Fix for Blaze Rods not being identified as fuel for a furnace.
- Fix for issue with sky lighting values making bedrock layer fully lit.

Though we’re as happy to see bug fixes as anyone else, it’s a bit disappointing that 4J Studios released this massive update without anything novel to show for it. The PC/Mac version of Minecraft still includes reams of content not seen in the Xbox Live game, and yet this update doesn’t close the gap between the two platforms. We contacted 4J Studios and received a polite apology along with news that The End would still be coming to the XBLA Minecraft, only that it had been delayed until Update 9. 4J Studios’ Twitter account claims that the developer hopes to have Update 8 available by the end of January, so barring catastrophe we expect to see Update 9 either toward the end of February or the beginning of March. We’ll bring you more on the status of Minecraft and its periodic updates as 4J Studios makes things public.

A new shot of the LG Nexus 4 has shown up on the net, first appearing by way of PhoneArena. The picture shows off the LG Nexus 4 decked out in a new white shell, with silver-trimming around the LED flash.

It’s hard to say where this comes from or what it means, but it certainly looks legit. Whether Google plans to launch the white version on Google Play soon or not remains a mystery for the moment.

As you can except, there will likely be nothing else different about the phone except for the new white look. So what do you think, would you like to get your hands on the LG Nexus 4 adorned in white or do you prefer the original black model? Let us know what you think in the comments below.