Facebook has unveiled its Home suite of apps and home screen replacement for Android phones. Engadget reviews the new UI featured on the HTC First smartphone. Home essentially serves as a skinned version of Android OS that offers deeper Facebook integration than the social network’s normal app. It behaves as the phone’s launcher, so instead of a regular lock screen, users will see the Cover Feed, which emphasizes updates from people instead of apps. Continue reading Facebook Home Replaces App Icons with Social Launcher

Facebook’s newly unveiled Home is the social networking giant’s attempt at making the transition to mobile. Home is not the long-rumored Facebook Phone, but a suite of apps that turns any phone into a Facebook device. Even with the lock screen on, users can see photo streams and friends’ activities, as Home puts people front and center. Updates also appear on the home screen. Home places an emphasis on Facebook as a primary communication tool.  Continue reading Mobile: Mark Zuckerberg Talks Facebook Home with Wired

Led by the popular photo-sharing app Snapchat, a number of startups are challenging the belief that everything one posts online is destined to be online for eternity. Even social networking giant Facebook recently released a Snapchat-like feature called Poke, which enables users to send notes, pictures and videos to their friends that dissappear after an allotted amount of time. Continue reading Snapchat and Fleeting Messaging Apps Grow in Popularity

California Assemblymember Bonnie Lowenthal (D-Long Beach) has introduced AB 1291, an update to California law that intends to broaden the definition of personal data and make information more accessible to consumers. The “Right to Know Act” would force businesses to inform customers what data is being used and where it is being shared on the Web. The bill comes after increased lobbying efforts from privacy groups. Continue reading Proposed Bill Gives Consumers Access to Personal Data Info

According to the Wall Street Journal, there is no doubt that the smartphone is the current, dominant computing device. Just consider the numbers: Nearly 700 million smartphones were shipped worldwide last year, according to Strategy Analytics. That’s nearly twice as many PC shipments. And it was only a few years ago that PCs were atop that statistic. Now people are using smartphones for a wide variety of functions. Continue reading Tech Giants Battle to Control Evolving Mobile Experience

Twitter hosted an invite-only, closed-to-press developer event this week. According to angel investor Dave McClure, founder of business incubator 500 Startups, Twitter is expanding its Card options for developers to help build features for its site and apps. The Cards will allow developers to display photo galleries, media players and deep-links to apps within an individual tweet. Flickr, Path and Foursquare expressed their support at the event. Continue reading Twitter Cards Enable Developers to Display Media Content

Twitter released an updated version of its free Vine app last week that provides users with mobile-to-Web capabilities and allows them to embed Vine looping videos into social tools such as tweets and Facebook updates. Before the Version 1.0.7 update, users had to rely on third party tools like Vineit, which could only grab the videos via a desktop browser. Now the process is possible through the app and via mobile devices. Continue reading Vine App Update Includes Ability to Embed Looping Videos

In addition to using the major social networks to create personal profiles, build networks of friends and other connections, share photos, videos and music, many tech-savvy young people are turning to smartphone-based messaging apps for these functions. Popular apps such as Kik, Whatsapp, KakaoTalk, LINE and WeChat are growing in popularity throughout the U.S., Europe and Asia. Continue reading Will Mobile Messaging Apps Replace Our Social Networks?

Facebook is scheduled to host an event called “Come See Our New Home On Android” on April 4 at its headquarters in Menlo Park. TechCrunch suggests the event may include the long predicted Facebook Phone. Sources say the event will showcase a modified version of the Android operating system with native Facebook functionality on the home screen. Additionally, it may live on an HTC handset. Continue reading Will Facebook Event This Week Include a Facebook Phone?

The San Francisco 49ers are set to open a new stadium for the 2014 NFL season. When the Santa Clara Stadium opens, it will feature the best publicly accessible Wi-Fi network of any sports facility in the country. Every single one of the potential 68,500 fans will be able to connect to the wireless network at the same time, with no limits on uploads or downloads. Until now, such a feat was thought to be impossible. Continue reading New 49ers Stadium to Boast Simultaneous Wi-Fi for All

A fast-growing variety of free messaging apps — including WhatsApp, WeChat, Line and KakaoTalk — are now commonly used by hundreds of millions of people around the world. The apps are causing concern for an array of tech companies since communication via free messaging does not benefit mobile carriers or phone makers financially. Use of the messaging apps can also reduce time spent on conversational channels such as social networks. Continue reading Free Messaging Apps Impact Facebook and Mobile Carriers

Alex ‘Sandy’ Pentland is one of the world’s most-cited computer scientists and was also named one of the world’s seven most powerful data scientists by Forbes. As a pioneer in Big Data, he discusses his distinctive view of the field, revealing his belief in the power of Big Data to inform about people’s behavior rather than just about their beliefs. Pentland is also interested in how that concept relates to business. Continue reading Big Data Pioneer Excited About Reinventing Human Society

News that Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is reportedly in the process of co-organizing a political advocacy group made up of top leaders in technology is expected to be announced in the coming weeks. The group would push for federal legislation on issues like immigration and education, according to sources familiar with the matter. Zuckerberg plans to raise $50 million to launch the group with his former Harvard roommate Joe Green. Continue reading Facebook CEO Plans to Launch Political Advocacy Group

A recent study by collaborative media platform Wikia, in association with market researcher Ipsos MediaCT, indicates that YouTube is among the most popular sites for the younger generation, known as “Generation Z.” The study surveyed 1,203 13-to-18-year-old participants about their Internet and social media habits. Not surprisingly, the findings also point out an increase in use of mobile devices throughout the day by the same age group. Continue reading Study Shows Teens More Connected, Shift in Social Habits

About 10 years ago, a battle for control of the living room experience began to play out between various consumer electronics companies. That battle has since given way to a full-blown war for the consumer involving tech giants like Google, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Facebook, Samsung and LG. According to P.J. McNealy, founder of Digital World Research, the key to winning is control of the user interface on connected screens. Continue reading CE Companies Should Focus on Compelling User Interface