From Engadget: OnStar’s Family Link tracking package launching in mid-April

Image
Looks like OnStar’s finally ready to go live with the Family Link programit was talking up last summer. The service, which lets family members track vehicles for the low, low price of $3.99 (on top of an existing OnStar package), is set to begin a phased rollout next month. Family Link revolves around two primary, similarly named features: Vehicle Locate and Vehicle Location Alert. The first lets concerned relatives view the vehicle’s location on a map and the second sends an alert at a chosen interval, letting the vehicle’s location be known via text or email. The initial roll out will be open to select subscribers in April, with more invitations hitting in June and a more complete rollout later in the year.We went hands-on with the service at an OnStar demo in New York City, tracking vehicles in both New Jersey and Detroit. Family Link was able to locate a connected truck in Detroit in a mere five seconds, zeroing in on the vehicle’s precise location at OnStar HQ in Michigan (note: we had tracked another vehicle in New Jersey a few minutes before — that time with a roughly 20 second delay). It’s not designed for constant tracking — you won’t see the car icon moving down the map as you drive — but it appears to be an excellent solution for keeping tabs on your kids as they drive OnStar-equipped vehicles. We also took a look at those handy text vehicle location alerts, that OnStar will push directly to any mobile device or email address at user-selected intervals. Jump past the break to see our hands-on with both Family Link components.

Zach Honig contributed to this report.

Continue reading OnStar’s Family Link tracking package launching in mid-April (updated: hands-on)

 

from Engadget

From Engadget: BlueStacks App Player hits beta, supports ARM-written Android apps on x86-based Windows (video)

Image
We’ve been eagerly anticipating the full-on release of BlueStacks’ App Player, so imagine our excitement, now that the software has officially made the leap from its brief alpha stage to “beta-1” status. If you’ll recall, the App Player can virtually run over 450k Android apps on Windows XP, Vista and 7, all without developers needing to tweak their respective coding. Notably, this latest build has a host of updates including LayerCake, allowing x86-based machines run apps written for ARM — and with hardware graphics acceleration, no less. Other notable goodies from the beta build include official localization in 10 countries, mock accelerometer support (arrow keys), an updated UI and Direct AppStore Access. If the mere thought of running Android Angry Birds on Windows has your interests piqued, you’ll find further details about BlueStacks in the full press release and video overview past the break.

Continue reading BlueStacks App Player hits beta, supports ARM-written Android apps on x86-based Windows (video)

 

from Engadget

From Geeks are Sexy Technology News: 100T Non-Destructive Magnetic Field Achieved

Human achievement point!

Scientists at the Los Alamos National Laboratory campus of the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory have successfully produced the world’s first 100 Tesla non-destructive magnetic field. The achievement was decades in the making, involving a diverse team of scientists and engineers. The 100 Tesla mark was reached at approximately 3:30 p.m. on March 22, 2012.

[Via]

from Geeks are Sexy Technology News

From Droid Life: Google Discusses Google Voice Integration with Other Carriers Beyond Sprint

When Sprint announced that they had formed some sort of partnership with Google to allow easy Google Voice setup on their phones, I was jealous. Google Voice is easily one of my favorite apps, something I have mentioned a handful of times now. But with Sprint’s partnership, Google has given their customers an MMS option that normal GV users do not have access to. As most GV users know, the only real downside to the service is the fact that picture and video messages (MMS) cannot be sent or received. Sprint users can though, in a round about way through their email.

So when we heard today’s news that Google is in talks with other carriers to offer a similar partnership, we couldn’t help but get a little excited. Well, not too excited. As you may recall, Google said that they were in talks with other carriers back in October to allow for MMS-to-email forwarding, only we have yet to see the service work on any other device besides one that is connected to Sprint.

The SMS and MMS game is nothing but pure profit for carriers, and Google Voice is something that could serve to cut those down dramatically. I’m not saying that I don’t believe that we will have GV on a variety of other carriers with MMS support in the near future, but it would surprise me a bit. So cross some toes and hope that Google and others can come to agreement. In the mean time, thank Buddha that carriers haven’t chosen to block the service like they have done with Google Wallet.

Via:  CNET, Phandroid

from Droid Life