Apple is placing greater emphasis than ever on battery technology to enable it's mobile devices to be charged via solar, inductive and motion-powered means, reports have claimed.

The New York Times claims the Cupertino-based company is working hard on building a 'smarter' battery for it's iOS devices and perhaps even the long awaited iWatch smartwatch.

Multiple ex-Apple executives told the paper that solar, in particular, continues to be a major focus for Apple engineers.

In terms of the iWatch, solar, inductive and motion charging would allow users to wear the device for longer periods without needing to charge so often.

Going inductive

The company is particularly concerned with inductive charging for the iWatch, which we've seen in the Google Nexus 4 and Nokia Lumia 920 in recent times.

Those handsets charge the device by placing the devices on a wireless plate, but Apple is working on tech that would allow the charging to take place wirelessly via electromagnetic fields.

The iWatch is expected to arrive at some point this year. Will Apple introduce some new battery tech? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

• The solution may be on the way, but are battery woes scuppering Apple's iWatch plans?

Source : techradar[dot]com

The rumoured red edition of the Google Nexus 5 appears to be a step closer to reality following the leak of an official-looking press render.

Following multiple blurry-cam and unboxing leaks over the last couple of weeks, that man @evleaks appears to have gotten hold of the best look yet.

The images shows the device with a red rear casing and earpiece, but the faceplate itself retains its black bezel.

The Red Nexus 5 has been tipped to launch on February 4, following the leak of an internal document from U.S. network Sprint.

Strong

The Nexus 5, crafted by LG and and also available in black and white, has been a big success for Google, continuing its growing hardware momentum.

It was Google's best-selling device of the last quarter with the company citing "very strong" sales in last week's earnings call.

It has proved an attractive option for smartphone because of its agreeable price-point compared to handsets like the Samsung Galaxy S4 and HTC One.

Nexus 5 has also proved popular among Android enthusiasts who value the raw version of the software and the immediate updates when Google refreshes the operating system.

• What else is on Google's agenda in 2014? Here's what do expect...

Source : techradar[dot]com

French mobile manufacturer Archos plans to throw its beret in to the Windows Phone arena.

CEO Loic Poirier said the company will launch a handset on Microsoft's gradually improving platform, joining its budget offerings on Android.

Nokia is currently earning a whopping 90 per cent of Windows Phone sales, with big hitters like LG, Samsung and HTC focusing all of their attentions on the Android operating system.

That means a potential opportunity for manufacturers a little lower on the totem pole, like Archos, outside of the densely populated Android market.

New breed rising

"We will launch a Windows Phone handset when the time is right," he told TrustedReviews before explaining its primary focus would remain with Android.

"Before anything else we are focussed on Google," he added.

Other manufacturers like Alcatel and ZTE are also planning to jump in on Windows Phone. Could we be seeing a new breed of handset makers rising on Windows Phone?

• Have you checked out Archos' latest range of budget Android tablets?

Source : techradar[dot]com

Later this year, iOS 8 could give new meaning to the phrase "an Apple a day keeps the doctor away," as the iPhone maker is reportedly focusing on health tracking technology.

Apple executives met with directors of the US Food and Drug Administration to discuss mobile medical applications last month, The New York Times discovered in the FDA's public calendar.

The talks involved high-level Apple employees, including Jeff Williams, senior vice president of operations, Bud Tribble, vice president of software technology, and Michael O'Reilly, a medical doctor in Apple's government affairs department.

The FDA meeting details haven't been disclosed, but combined with a report today about iOS 8, it suggests that Apple is going all-in with health monitoring in its next iOS update.

What is Healthbook?

Healthbook is supposed to be a pre-installed iOS 8 app that monitors and stores fitness metrics, according to unnamed sources who spoke to 9to5Mac.

It's interface is said to match Passbook, but instead of accumulating digital tickets and coupons, it calculates steps taken, calories burned, miles walked and weight loss.

These are pretty standard stat-tracking features that can be obtained from current wearables like the NikeFuel Band SE and Fitbit Force.

iWatch and Healthbook

The Healthbook report contains a "one more thing" style surprise when you factor in the unconfirmed iWatch, which is said to enhance this software with vital signs the iPhone is incapable of tracking.

Blood pressure, hydration levels, heart rate, and possibly glucose levels are additional metrics that could be introduced, according to 9to5Mac's sources.

We're not sure how wearable can keep track of hydration outside of a user manually logging every drink consumed, but when it comes to glucose levels, Google found a way in its smart lens prototype.

Logging medication information is said to initiate helpful pill-taking reminders at scheduled times, a feature that could tie into the existing iOS 7 Reminders app.

iPhone 5S was just the beginning

Apple's first foray into health monitoring came last year when it introduced iPhone 5S and its M7 coprocessor that could keep track of steps.

The company showed how Nike was integrating its Nike Fuel metric into the new phone and Fitbit has since expanded its app to use the M7 processor to log steps walked even without a Fitbit tracker.

It'll be interesting to see if Apple works with or against Nike in realizing its health monitoring ambitions. Apple CEO Tim Cook is still on the sneaker company's board and Apple snagged at least Nike employee last year.

Either way, this blip on Apple's radar last year could become the highlight of iOS 8 this fall if development of Healthbook gets into shape and joins the rumored iPhone 6 and iWatch in time.

Source : techradar[dot]com

Sony's updated its mobile PlayStation app for Android and iOS with a new feature to watch livestreams from PS4 gamers while on the go.

The new addition comes labeled as the "Live from PlayStation" section, letting users browse game streams from their devices. Actually watching livestreams, however, will kick the video over to open in separate applications.

Specifically Ustream feeds open in the service's own application, while Twitch.tv streams play through a mobile device browser.

Just below the video window there's also now added support video playback from PS Store notifications in the What's New pane. This list will propagate with live game sessions from friends to get to watching their streams faster.

PSN go

Along with the new live video support, the app fixes a niggling issue of waking up the main system every time users wanted to do something. Now the app allows mobile devices to queue up downloads or accept friend requests.

The PlayStation app was a new addition for Sony with this new line of consoles. With the new update, the PlayStation app is starting to catch up fast with the SmartGlass app Microsoft introduced during the Xbox 360 days.

The update is rolling to wide variety of devices around the world right now for both Android and iOS platforms.

Via SlashGear

• You're going to need a PS4 to go with that app, check out our review

Source : techradar[dot]com