Software : Qualcomm wants devs to 'blow-you-away' with Snapdragon SDK for Android

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Qualcomm wants devs to 'blow-you-away' with Snapdragon SDK for Android Posted: Qualcomm has announced a new developer kit that will give software makers advance access to features of its Snapdragon processors. The SDKs are only available to developers in preview form at the moment, but the final version should be coming in the following months, using APIs to give them access to the next-gen tech. Currently only supporting devices with the high-end Snapdragon S4 8960 processors, Qualcomm hopes to bring it to a range of cheaper chip-types in the future too. Eyes wide shut Features that devs can make advance use of include camera tricks like facial processing and burst capture. Qualcomm says the APIs are so powerful that it can "see what degree people's eyes are open and what way they're looking". The SDK also hopes to encourage innovation, particularly in user interfaces by making use of sensor gestures and indoor location pinpointing. Liat Ben-Zur, Qualcomm's senior director of software, strategy and business development, explained to TechRadar what the platform will mean in terms of mobile innovation and user experiences. "The whole idea is to help expose the power that sits inside this chip for developers to take advantage of," she said, indicating that this would result in "the next generation of user experiences". Innovation The Qualcomm director said that manufacturers are no longer the sole drivers of technological innovation; increasingly, developers are powering the major breakthroughs in mobile computing. "The world has changed and a lot of the innovation is happening on the developers' side," she said. "And those blow-you-away user experiences are what OEM's want to showcase." Ben-Zur also stated that fragmentation in the Android ecosystem remains a sensitive area for the chip giant but iterated that the new SDK "absolutely does not" contribute to any cracks within the platform. "We're adding more capabilities and more APIs - developers can easily check within the code if a device has the capabilities."

Dedicated Apple Podcasts app launched for iOS Posted: A couple of weeks ago, we heard rumblings that Apple was planning to launch a dedicated app for audio and video podcasts and, lo-and-behold, here it is. Reports had suggested that Podcasts would be freed from iTunes in iOS 6, but Cupertino has decided to pull the trigger with immediate effect by making the Podcasts app available from the App Store today. The free app for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch allows users to browse and search for podcasts, which can then be streamed, downloaded or subscribed to directly. Browsing the catalogue will take you to an iTunes Store-esque page where you can search for exactly what you want and also take your pick from the charts. Suspect Stations interface The dedicated listening interface looks a little bit like an old-fashioned tapedeck, and definitely looks better on the iPhone than it does the iPad. There's also a Stations section, which collates popular podcasts and genres and features a host of categories and sub-categories which can be perused, somewhat awkwardly, using a slide-wheel. The new app should give both audio and video podcasts a little more visibility as they'd become lost in the shuffle within the content-rich iTunes app.

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