apps

Logitech Leans on Phone Apps to Smarten Up Latest Harmony Remotes

Paul Lilly — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 20:02:29 +0000

The new Harmony remotes are compatible with more than 225,000 home entertainment devices.

Logitech today expanded its universal remote control lineup by introducing the Logitech Harmony Ultimate and Logitech Harmony Smart Control, both of which feature the peripheral maker's Harmony Hub, a puck shaped device that turns RF signals from the remote into IR and Bluetooth commands for your home theater devices. In doing so, users needn't worry about having a clear of line of site to their components and can even hide their AV gear behind cabinet doors.

The included Hub also supports Logitech's Harmony Smartphone App to turn your iPhone or Android device into a universal remote control. With it, you can control up to eight devices from anywhere in your home.

Logitech's Smartphone App is really the main selling point of the Logitech Smart Control, though for those times when your phone isn't handy or is other indisposed, it also comes with a simple remote to change channels, adjust the volume, and switch to favorite activities.

The Logitech Harmony Ultimate has a 2.4-inch touchscreen that responds to touch and swipe commands. It can control up to 15 devices, and new to this generation remote is the ability to program Philips Hue lighting systems and vibration feedback so you know your touch commands were received.

If you're new to Logitech's Harmony line, one of the neat things about these remotes is the ability to program activities so that navigating a mess a complicated gear becomes so easy even a Mac user could do it (hey-oh!). For example, hitting the "Watch Blu-ray" activity could be programmed to turn on your TV, turn on your surround sound receiver, turn on your PlayStation 3 console, and switch the input on your receiver to the PS3, in any order you dictate.

The Logitech Harmony Ultimate will be available this month for $350 MSRP and the Logitech Harmony Smart Control next month for $130.

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Rumor: Microsoft to Update Some First-Party Windows 8 Apps This Month

Pulkit Chandna — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 15:08:37 +0000

Windows 8 users may not have to wait until “Blue” for much-needed improvements to core apps

Tami Reller, the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Marketing Officer of Windows at Microsoft, last month admitted in an interview with ZDNet’s Mary Jo Foley that first-party Windows 8 apps are far from perfect in their current state. Now the veteran scribe is reporting that updates to first-party apps bundled with Windows 8 might be available much earlier than previously believed.

According to the noted Microsoft watcher, she has been told by a very credible source that Microsoft is currently prepping updates to certain first-party Windows 8 and Windows RT apps. Noting that the said contact has a habit of being “dead-on” about Windows Blue, Foley wrote in a blog post Wednesday that updates to Windows Mail, Calendar, Music, and Games apps might be available as early as this month, and not as part of the larger Windows Blue update as is widely believed now.

Microsoft is currently said to be “dogfooding” the apps in question. Another app reportedly being trialed at the company is an updated version of the Outlook for Windows RT app, but Foley’s contacts have yet to provide her with a set time frame for its release. This is apparently on account of some sort of battery-related issues with the app.

BlueStacks Android App Player Now Compatible with Windows 8

Pulkit Chandna — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 13:55:14 +0000

BlueStacks wants you to get your Android apps back on Windows 8

At last month’s Consumer Electronics Show, Android virtualization startup BlueStacks announced that its “App Player” software, which lets people enjoy Android apps on their PCs, was coming to Microsoft’s latest desktop operating system. It promptly delivered on that promise earlier this week when it released a new version of its free-to-download tool.

Announcing Windows 8 compatibility, BlueStacks said that the latest version of its App Player software “fills the widening Windows 8 app gap”, thereby allowing users to make the most of their Windows 8 devices. The software, which the company claims has passed the 5 million download mark across Mac and PC (OEM installations not included), does this by enabling access to hundreds of thousands of Android apps on Windows 8 devices like the recently released Microsoft Surface Pro.

The integration is rather seamless, with the Android apps you download appearing as tiles on the Windows 8 start screen. The App Player itself is available for download from the newly launched site GetYourAppsBack.com.

“We’ve had our users asking for a Win8 version for a long time,” said BlueStacks CEO Rosen Sharma said in a press release Tuesday. “Now that it’s finally available on our website we’re looking forward to getting feedback and building on the experience. The number of mobile apps being written overall is expanding exponentially and Microsoft has not added apps to the handful it has. Our goal is to get people more value out of their Surface Pro and Win8 devices.”

Microsoft Published 75,000 Windows Phone Apps in 2012

Paul Lilly — Thu, 27 Dec 2012 16:47:25 +0000

Whether or not Windows Phone can compete with Android and iOS will depend on apps.

As 2012 comes to an end, Microsoft finds itself in a reflective mood, looking back at what it's accomplished in the past year and what its plans are for 2013. One of Microsoft's biggest areas of focus in 2012 has been mobile, and towards that end, the Redmond outfit published 75,000 new Windows Phone apps and games to effectively more than double the catalog size, and over 300,000 app updates.

"Windows Phone customers now download, buy, and use more apps than at any time since we first launched Windows Phone 7 two years ago," Microsoft said in a blog post. "On average Windows Phone users have downloaded 54 apps each to personalize their phone experience around the people and information they care about most."

That's a mighty positive spin for a platform that trails far behind Android and iOS in user adoption and app count, but it also suggests that Windows Phone is anything but a passing fancy for Microsoft.

Looking ahead to 2013, Microsoft believes there's plenty of reasons why developers should take note of Windows Phone. Chief among them is that developer revenue month-over-month jumped 40 percent in the 30 days since releasing the SDK for Windows Phone 8.

"We exit 2012 with a new foundation firmly in place, a huge expansion in developer opportunity, and a great new product in Windows Phone 8, which is receiving acclaim by both industry and consumers," Microsoft added. "There has never been a better time to develop for Windows Phone."

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NVIDIA TegraZone Comes to Windows RT, Brings Tegra 3-optimized Gaming Goodness

Pulkit Chandna — Thu, 27 Dec 2012 12:22:18 +0000

After Android success, NVIDIA now hopes its TegraZone app will make a splash on Windows RT

Having its Tegra 3 SoC chosen for two platform-defining tablets, the Google Nexus 7 and the Microsoft Surface RT, has got to be one of the highlights of NVIDIA's year. However, the company is not content merely with design wins. This is evident from its TegraZone initiative, a one-stop shop for Tegra-optimized games and outright exclusives. Till now restricted to Android, the TegraZone app is now available for the two-month-old Windows RT.

This should not come as a surprise to anyone, as back at the time of the Surface RT's launch in October NVIDIA had announced that it would "extend its popular TegraZone application to Windows RT to make it easy for gamers to identify the most compelling games for Tegra-powered Windows RT devices."

Available now from the Windows Store, the Windows RT TegraZone app currently offers Tegra 3-optimized versions of Judge Dredd vs Zombies, Pinball FX 2, Reckless Racing Ultimate, Riptide GP, Soulcraft, Space Ark, Sprinkle and Vendetta Online. According to NVIDIA, the TegraZone versions of these games contain a number of enhancements over the ones available from the Windows, including realistic physics, dynamic lighting and particle effects.

"NVIDIA offers one of the largest developer relations teams in the world – a dedicated support team of over 100 employees to help Windows RT and Android developers create games that take advantage of the ultra-efficient power of the quad-core Tegra 3 processor," the company wrote in a blog post announcing the TegraZone Windows RT app.

"With over 6 million downloads for Android devices, TegraZone is primed to make a splash on Windows RT."

Raspberry Pi Introduces App Store (with Games Too)

Paul Lilly — Mon, 17 Dec 2012 20:43:35 +0000

New Pi Store serves up games and other toppings to Raspberry Pi owners.

Well here's a surprise. The Raspberry Pi Foundation, makers of the low cost Raspberry Pi Model A ($25) and Model B ($35) mini PCs, today announced the Pi Store. You'll find all kinds of different apps in the Pi Store, even games, all capable of running the credit card-sized systems that sell for peanuts. The founders say it's a great place for "total beginners" to dive in and enjoy the "Raspberry Pi experience."

The store runs as an X application under Raspbian and includes 23 free titles at launch. Apps range in functionality from LibreOffice and Asterisk to gaming titles like Freeciv and OpenTTD. Users can download apps or upload their own creations for moderation and release.

"We hope that the Pi Store will provide young people with a way to share their creations with a wider audience, and maybe to a make a little pocket money along the way; as well as offering commercial developers an easy way to get their software seen by the Raspberry Pi community," the Raspberry Pi Foundation said in a blog post.

Users who upload apps can choose whether to make an app free or paid. Even if it's free, there's an opportunity to make a bit of coin via a tip jar mechanism.

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Best Holiday Apps to Gift

Paul Escallier — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 20:40:56 +0000

This holiday's best digital stocking stuffers

Just about everyone has a smartphone or tablet these days, so in addition to buying family/friends physical gifts, why not gift a few apps this holiday season? Ranging anywhere from $1 to $30, apps are like digital stocking stuffers, perfect as last minute purchases that won’t break your budget.

They’re particularly great for those who use iOS devices. In iTunes, you can gift an app, song, or album by clicking the arrow near the Buy button and selecting “Gift This App.”

Android has the next most populated app store, and in many regions, it’s also the most popular smartphone platform. Unfortunately, the Google Play Store doesn’t have a gifting feature, so apart from hacking your way into your recipient’s phone and buying an app for him (and slipping the money into his pocket while he isn’t looking), your best choice is to purchase some Google Play Gift Cards, available in $10, $25, and $50 values, and then tell them which apps they should buy.

If you’re having trouble thinking of some good apps to send off to your friends and family’s virtual stockings, we’ve put together a list of some of the more popular paid apps out there. If you have any gift suggestions of your own, make sure to let us know in the comments!

Google Rules Out Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 Apps, for Now

Pulkit Chandna — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 13:32:59 +0000

Lack of consumer interest is keeping Google from building Windows 8 and WP8 apps.

It probably does not matter a great deal to those hell bent on avoiding Windows 8 like the plague, but for those who have jumped on the Windows 8 bandwagon with alacrity, the lack of triple-A apps on the platform must be worrying. If you happen to be a Windows 8 early adopter waiting for things to improve, you are unlikely to find recent comments by Google’s Clay Bavor very comforting.

Currently, there are no Google apps for either Windows 8 or Windows Phone 8. But it is surely just a matter of time before that changes, right? Wrong! Google Apps product management director Clay Bavor, recently told V3 that the search giant has no plans of building Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 apps at the moment.

He didn’t stop there, though. He candidly told V3, "We are very careful about where we invest and will go where the users are but they are not on Windows Phone or Windows 8.”

"If that changes, we would invest there, of course,” he added.

In our opinion, it is still just a matter of time before Google is forced to build Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 apps. Because, sooner or later, Windows 8 will be on far too many PCs for Google or anyone else to overlook, even if it is a failure by Microsoft's lofty standards.

However, building Windows Phone 8 apps is an entirely different matter. Granted, porting apps between Windows 8 and its mobile cousin is not a difficult task by any means — both platforms have a lot in common — the question is, would Google want to do it? Well, it has every reason not to. After all, with Windows Phone 8 being a direct rival to Android, Google wouldn’t want to give it any importance until absolutely necessary.

Official Maximum PC App Now Available for Windows 8 and RT!

Paul Lilly — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 22:57:59 +0000

Read entire magazines with our official app for Windows 8/RT!

You can never have enough Maximum PC in your life, can you? Of course not! That's why we're thrilled to announce that the official Maximum PC app for Windows 8 and Windows RT is now available to download. No, our awesome app won't replace the Start menu that Microsoft cruelly took away, but it will deliver all the grit and goodness of Maximum PC right on your desktop, notebook, or tablet.

You can use our app to view all pages in high resolution or read text-only articles if you prefer.

The app itself is free to download. Once installed, you can purchase individual magazines or an annual subscription.

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Android Guide (Version 4.2)

Paul Escallier — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 00:30:11 +0000

What's new in Jelly Bean 4.2, best Android apps, and Android battery saving tips

With the recent release of Android version 4.2 (codename: Jelly Bean)and a handful of new Nexus devices (See: Nexus 4, Nexus 7, and Nexus 10), we figured it was time we updated our Android Guide. This time around, we’ve got some useful tips for getting the most out of the newly added features in the latest Jelly Bean update, a few general tricks for all of the Android users out there, and a list of great apps that are worth checking out.

What’s New in Android 4.2

As suggested by the fact that it keeps the Jelly Bean title, Android 4.2 isn’t a major overhaul like we saw going from Froyo to Gingerbread to Ice Cream Sandwich. Rather than making any significant changes to the Android core, 4.2 brings several new features.

Multiple User Accounts for Tablets – Similar to a PC, Android 4.2 tablets allow you to create individualized user accounts. User accounts are managed in Settings>Users. Switching between users is done via the lock screen, and each user gets an individual lock screen which they can configure with a password or pattern for extra security.

Gesture Typing – The default keyboard in Android 4.2 now features Gesture Typing, which is essentially the same thing as Swype. It is enabled by default, but can easily go unnoticed until you accidentally slide your finger across the keys. Surprisingly, it even works with two fingers at the same time, though it can take some practice to get the coordination down.

Photo Sphere – Even though it’s fairly gimmicky, the Photo Sphere camera mode is an interesting new feature. Getting a good Photo Sphere result can be a bit tricky, though. The feature works best for scenes where all objects are far away, to help avoid the parallax effect. Keeping the device in a single location while rotating it, rather than using a panning motion, can also help negate the undesirable effect.

Activating Developer Options – Unlike previous versions of Android, 4.2 has hidden the Developer Options, opting for a rather obscure method of unlocking them. To regain access to your Developer Options, go to Settings>About Phone and scroll to the bottom of the menu. Start tapping on the “Build number” entry. After several taps, the Developer Options menu will return in the Settings.

Lock Screen Widgets – With Android 4.2, you can now add widgets to your lock screen. Sliding from the left or right edges of the display will take you to tiles that can be customized with widgets. Currently, only a small handful of pre-loaded lock screen widgets exist, but it shouldn’t be long before developers start bundling them with their apps.

Added Security – Malware is becoming more of an issue for mobile devices, and Android is one of the more heavily targeted platforms. Google actively scans its apps in the Play Store for malicious content; however, when installing apps from outside sources, you're still at risk – that is, until Android 4.2. Under Settings>Security, there is now a "Verify Apps" option which is enabled by default. This will allow any side loaded apps to be scanned prior to their installation. Other new layers of security include a Premium SMS filter that will prompt you with a confirmation dialog any time an SMS is sent to a known premium number.

Click the next page for general Android tips and tricks.

General Android Tips and Tricks

Since Android 4.2 is only available on a small number of Nexus devices so far, we didn’t think this guide would be too terribly useful if we only stuck to 4.2 specific features. We also have some tips that should apply to just about any current Android device.

Swapping Keyboards – Not everyone is content with the default keyboard that comes with their Android. Fortunately, there are plenty of great alternatives in the Google Play Store (check out our recommended keyboard apps below). Once a keyboard app is installed, you can typically configure it under Settings>Language & Input, and on some versions of Android, this is where you’ll find the options to enable it as well. If you can’t enable new keyboard from the Language & Input menu, you’ll need to long press on any text box and chose the Select Input Method option from the resulting pop-up menu.

Android Beam – NFC enabled devices running Ice Cream Sandwich or later have the ability to use Android Beam to share data. The options for enabling Android beam are in Settings>More. To use it, simply open up the content you wish to share, and then touch the backs of the devices together. You’ll be prompted with an option that says “Touch to Beam.” What happens from here will vary depending on content. Generally, the transfer is handled automatically via Bluetooth, so you’ll need to stay within range until the beam is complete.

Android Screenshot – It used to be that taking a screenshot required rooting your phone and installing special apps. Now, most Android devices come with this feature built in. The method for triggering a screenshot will vary from model to model, but the default for vanilla Android devices is to hold the Volume Down and Power buttons at the same time.

Managing Data Usage – Overages can get expensive, but starting with Ice Cream Sandwich, Android has a built-in feature to help manage your data consumption. Under Settings>Data Usage you can monitor your data use, set a warning threshold, and even configure a maximum limit to help prevent overages. It’ll also tell you which apps are the biggest data gobblers.

Personalizing Voice Recognition – Ever since its inclusion in Android 2.2, Google’s Voice Recognition has been improving considerably with every update. As of Ice Cream Sandwich, the built-in voice recognition is actually a viable alternative to typing, but if you’ve got a mouth like a sailor, you might find it doesn’t understand you very well. Under Settings>Language & Input you’ll find options for “Google Voice Typing” and/or “Voice Search” which will let you not only allow offensive words, but also improve accuracy by giving Google permission to collect some information on your speech patterns.

Respond to Calls with a Text – When you get a phone call, you can’t always answer, but as of Gingerbread, you can provide the caller with some instant feedback. Rather than sliding left or right to answer or ignore the call, you can slide upwards to launch a menu with a few canned responses and the option to compose your own message.

Click the next page for tips on improving Android battery life

Improving Android Battery Life

Performance is always a desirable feature in any computing device, but a smartphone that can’t last a full day on a single charge loses a lot of its appeal. Android manufacturers in particular, are guilty of pushing the performance limit at the cost of battery life. Under ideal conditions, most Android phones are designed make it a full day even with relatively heavy usage, but that doesn’t always relate to the real world. We have a few battery saving tips that will hopefully give you the freedom to leave your charger at home.

The usual tricks include things like turning off background data and ditching Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and GPS. Rather than reduce your phone’s usefulness, we’ll be focusing on the tricks that leave functionality largely unimpaired.

Training the Battery – Lithium-Ion cells may not have a charge memory in the same sense as old NiCd batteries, but they do have charging circuitry that is used to keep track of maximum capacities. The simple act of training a new battery can make a considerable difference. To do this, allow the device to run down the battery to the point that it starts warning you to connect the charger (around 5%-10%). Then, allow it to charge, undisturbed, until full. This can be repeated once more for good measure, and it’s a good idea to run through the cycle every month or two.

Don’t Use Automated Task Killers – When Android was still in its infancy, automated task killers helped deal with the battery drain of multitasking. Since Gingerbread, though, Android’s resource management has been significantly improved, to the point that automated task killers cause a negative impact on battery life. This is because the task killers are repeatedly killing apps that are just immediately starting back up again. Manual task killers are still fine for taking care of rogue apps and clearing up system recourses when you need to eke out a bit more performance, but steer clear of the automated ones.

Using Dark Backgrounds (for OLED displays) – A lot of Android devices have OLED (or AMOLED) displays. Compared to the more traditional LCD displays, OLEDs use about twice as much power when displaying a white screen; however, when showing a black screen, the power draw is practically zero. Using dark themes and backgrounds can cut down on the screen’s power consumption considerably. LCD display power use is relatively constant regardless of what the screen is showing (primarily dependent on the brightness of the backlight).

Increase the Screen Timeout – While it may be a bit counterintuitive, increasing the time it takes before your screen turns itself off can actually help your battery life. Most people are pretty good at manually turning off their phone’s screen before sliding it into their pocket, so having a short delay will only cause the screen to turn off while you’re still in the middle of something. If you find yourself constantly turning your screen back on, consider upping the screen timeout a bit (found in Settings>Display).

Turn off Android 4G – Yeah, we said we wouldn’t sacrifice functionality for battery life, but 4G data can be a real killer. Under most circumstances, such as basic web browsing, checking e-mail, and even streaming music, 4G speeds are just overkill. Instead, grab a 4G toggle widget from Google Play and throw it on your home screen so that it’s easy to turn on 4G when you need it, for things like gaming and video streaming.

Keep an Eye on Your Battery Stats – Ever since Gingerbread, Android has had an amazingly useful battery stats menu. You can find it under Settings>Battery. It gives you a graph of your battery’s charge throughout the day plus a list of apps sorted by their power drain. If you’re ever experiencing unusually poor battery life, this is the place to look to find the culprit.

Using Automated Apps to Manage Your Settings – There are plenty of features you can disable to help save battery life, but the majority of them are features you’ll probably want at some point throughout the day. Using an automation app, these settings can be enabled only as you need them, and then disabled when you’re done. Tasker is definitely one of the best apps for this (more information on it is available in the Application section below).

Uninstall Unused Apps – Not all apps will continue to run in the background, but as you accumulate more and more apps, it’s likely that you’re picking up a few background processes along the way. Even if you don’t use the apps anymore, their background activity can negatively impact battery life.

Dunkin' Donuts Dips into Mobile App Payments

Paul Lilly — Fri, 17 Aug 2012 14:08:23 +0000

If there's a better way to wipe off the morning grogginess than by washing down sugary treats with a strong cup of joe, we haven't found it yet. In the meantime, we consider coffee and baked goods a perfectly acceptable way to start off the day, and if you're a fan of Dunkin' Donuts, you don't even need to fumble through your wallet for loose bills now that the chain accepts mobile payments.

Dunkin' Donuts is the latest of a growing number of establishments that allow patrons to pay for goods and services with their smartphone, tablet, or other mobile device. Similar to the Starbucks app, coffee (and donut) lovers can pre-load funds into the mobile app, lookup menu items, see nutritional information, and more. You can also send virtual gift cards in increments of $2 to $100 to be delivered via text message, email, or through Facebook.

The app is available on Android (Google Play) and iOS (iTunes) and supports American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa, and PayPal. Buckazoids are not accepted at this time.

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Google Play Store to Bid Adobe Flash Player Farewell

Paul Lilly — Wed, 15 Aug 2012 13:39:53 +0000

Time is running out if you're a fan of Adobe's Flash Player plugin for Android and haven't yet downloaded it. On August 15 (tomorrow), Adobe will yank its plugin from Google Play as a readily available download, and only devices that already have Flash Player installed will see any future updates. The move is intended to avoid any compatibility conflicts with Google's Jelly Bean build (Android 4.1).

"Devices that don’t have the Flash Player provided by the manufacturer typically are uncertified, meaning the manufacturer has not completed the certification testing requirements. In many cases users of uncertified devices have been able to download the Flash Player from the Google Play Store, and in most cases it worked. However, with Android 4.1 this is no longer going to be the case, as we have not continued developing and testing Flash Player for this new version of Android and its available browser options. There will be no certified implementations of Flash Player for Android 4.1," Adobe explained in a blog post.

Adobe is slowing its effort to support the Flash platform on mobile devices, having essentially conceded defeat to HTML5 and focusing future efforts on its Adobe AIR runtime.

After August 15th comes and goes, if you still want to install Flash Player on your Android device (or if you're a developer that needs access to it), they'll remain available in Adobe's Flash Player archive.

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Only Windows Phone 8 Will Receive In-app Purchase Support, Microsoft Says

Paul Lilly — Tue, 07 Aug 2012 13:58:28 +0000

The good news for Windows Phone developers is that support for in-app purchases is being added to your platform of choice, helping to level the playing field with Android and iOS. Unfortunately, the same courtesy isn't being extended to Windows Phone 7.8, a move that will leave existing WP users and developers in the cold, provided they're interested in the whole upsell business to begin with.

Microsoft confirmed the in-app roll out on its Windows Phone Dev Center page, noting that "you can only add in-app products to Windows Phone 8 apps." Developers who choose to implement in-app purchases to their apps are asked to provide the "fundamentals of your in-app product -- alias, price, type, and language(s)."

Why not invite Windows Phone 7.8 users and developers to the in-app purchase party? The Verge points out Microsoft is introducing its Wallet Hub feature in Windows Phone 8, which will be the one and only way Redmond supports in-app purchases, among other features.

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Zynga's Cash Crops Appear to be Drying Up, Investors Head to Greener Pastures

Paul Lilly — Thu, 26 Jul 2012 14:26:18 +0000

Shares of Zynga plummeted 40 percent to $3.03 in after market trading after the social game developer reported a net loss for its second quarter ended June 30, 2012. Zynga tried to put a positive spin on the fact that its Q2 revenue of $332 million represents a 19 percent year-over-year increase and that its six months year-to-date revenue of $653 million is a 25 percent year-over-year increase, but the numbers still added up to a $22.8 million net loss for the quarter, and a $108.1 million net loss for the six month period.

In a conference call with analysts, John Schappert, chief operating officer for Zynga, was critical of changes Facebook made last quarter.

"Facebook made a number of changes in the quarter. These changes favored new games. Our users did not remain as engaged and did not come back as often," Shcappert explained, according to The New York Times.

That's concerning, but the biggest red flag for investors is the fact that Zynga sharply cut its forecast for its bookings (leftover revenue after paying Facebook) to as low as $1.15 billion, down from a previous projection of $1.47 billion.

More details are included in the full report (PDF).

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Hulu Plus App Adds Support For 7 New Android Tablets

Brad Chacos — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 17:11:09 +0000

Universal compatibility is a strong selling point in today's always-connected world; one of the reasons Netflix has spanked its competition (thus far, at least) is because it supports virtually everything out there, with over 800 compatible devices. Hulu Plus isn't quite as entrenched, but it's making good inroads thanks to newfound support for several top Android tablets.

The Play Store-flavored Hulu Plus app previously supported only the Nook Tablet, the Kindle Fire, the HTC Flyer and Vizio's 8-inch slate. This most recent update added compatibility for the Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime, Asus Eee Pad Transformer, Motorola Xoom, Motorola XYBoard 10.1, Toshiba Thrive, Acer Iconia A500 and LG G-Slate -- many of the major Android tablet players -- and tossed in a redesigned UI, too.

"We’ve improved the user experience with horizontal “trays” so you can naturally swipe while browsing through TV shows and movies," Rajiv Makhijani and Zachary Pinter wrote on the Hulu Blog. "The pages feature large thumbnails with beautiful visuals to show off your Android tablet’s graphical prowess." Holding your finger on a show's image will launch the latest episode, or the oldest unwatched episode if you've already begun sloughing through a series.

Check out the Hulu Plus app on Google Play if you're a subscriber with one of the aforementioned slates. Netflix brought Android tablets into the fold back in October.