We spent a lot of hands-on time with the Fitbit fitness trackers and application this year and came away liking the devices. One of things that a lot of people don’t like about Fitbit is the fact that the activity tracking bracelet doesn’t work with every Android device out there. One of the very popular new smartphones that Fitbit wasn’t compatible with is the new Samsung Galaxy S 4.

That has now changed with Fitbit announcing this week that its device now supports Bluetooth 4.0 on the Galaxy S 4 smartphone. If you’re unfamiliar with the Fitbit devices, they are wearable bracelets that send all sorts of information about you and how much you exercise to the application that runs on your smartphone.

The company has added Bluetooth 4.0 sync support for the device and notes that adding support required custom development. In fact, Fitbit says that right now every Bluetooth 4.0 device requires custom development, which explains why the Fitbit bracelets don’t work with all Bluetooth 4.0 devices on the market right now.

The company says that custom development is required because phones supporting Bluetooth 4.0 hardware don’t have the software needed for support third-party apps. Custom development is needed for the Fitbit application to access the Bluetooth hardware.

The good news is that Google has announced it will be standardizing support for Bluetooth 4.0 in a future version on the Android operating system. Fitbit says that once that standard supported is added, it will be an easy task to add support for new devices.

SOURCE: Slashgear

Kabam announced back in April that it would be producing a new mobile video game based on the film Fast Furious 6. The game is called Fast Furious 6: The Game and this week it has launched on the iOS platform. We already knew the game was coming for Apple fans and Android fans alike.

The company has offered no additional details on exactly when the game will launch on the Android platform, but it did offer up a new screenshot that shows graphics on the game will be very impressive. Along with that screenshot come details on the game including that it will be a free to play racing title.

The company promises that the app will have console quality graphics and a unique take on street racing games. The game is based on a storyline that runs parallel to the plot of the feature film. In the game players will race alongside characters from the new film as they drag race and drift through street races and various heists.

The game will allow players to customize cars with decals and custom paint jobs. There’ll also be a number of vehicles that players can acquire from manufacturers including BMW, Honda, Dodge, and Ford.

The game is free to play, but that likely means that it will be supported by in game purchases. You can check out the trailer for the game below and keep an eye on Google Play in the coming days for the game to launch.

SOURCE: Kabam

When it comes to mobile gaming, the vast majority of gamers aren’t choosing a dedicated mobile gaming console, they are using smartphones and tablets. It’s also no surprise when you step back and consider that the Android ecosystem is by far large the most popular out there that a huge number of mobile gamers are gaming on Android devices.

A new report has been published by App Annie that shows mobile devices such as Android and iOS gadgets are decimating traditional handheld gaming consoles when it comes to sales. The report shows that sales of iOS games have already passed sales of games on traditional portable consoles such as the Nintendo 3DS and PS Vita.

The report also shows that sales of games via Google Play are expected to surpass game sales on those portable consoles within the next few months. Spending on game software for traditional portable consoles has declined significantly between Q4 2012 and Q1 of 2013, the market is booming for mobile devices.

Another interesting tidbit about the figures when it comes to revenue generated is that ad revenue isn’t considered in the numbers. Considering how many games use the freemium model supporting in app purchases, the gap between money made on mobile platforms and on traditional handheld gaming platforms is likely even larger than it looks.

While neither the PS Vita or the Nintendo 3DS have proven as popular as their predecessors, the money made for Nintendo’s incredibly popular DS and DSi consoles is also on the decline. Not everything is rosy in the mobile gaming environment though, some developers are seeing piracy rates for Android games as high as 95%.

SOURCE: SlashGear

Earlier this week the team from NVIDIA officially announced their new Project SHIELD gaming device would go up for sale in June. We confirmed on Tuesday morning that SHIELD would be available for pre-order starting on May 20th for $349, but today we have even better news. Thanks to a big demand and social buzz, they’ve moved the date up to today.

All you diehard gamers will be happy to know that NVIDIA and plenty of game developers are extremely excited about the quad-core Tegra 4 powered gaming device. So much in fact, that all their partners have agreed to push up the pre-order date by a few days. Starting today, May 17th, the NVIDIA SHIELD game console is available for reservation from multiple different outlets.

Sadly SHIELD still isn’t quite available yet, and we don’t have an exact date as to when it will ship. NVIDIA confirmed early June was their goal, and things are moving along nicely if they are already moving up the pre-order date. In a blog post this morning, NVIDIA confirmed that Newegg, Gamestop, Canada Computers, and themselves all have opened up pre-orders for buyers today, and Microcenter will join them soon.

“SHIELD is a brand new kind of gaming portable and we’re thrilled to be one of the few retailers who will be carrying it.” – Newegg

In the video above you get a quick look at NVIDIA’s SHIELD gaming device, and we have tons of additional coverage from the timeline below for those interested. This is more than just a gaming device. It’s a full-fledged game-console. Being able to play Android games, and then use NVIDIA’s upcoming Geforce experience for full PC games, including those from Steam, is what makes it quite the product.

For now it remains to be seen just how successful SHIELD will be, but we have a feeling gamers will love it. Having additional time with it here at Google I/O in the final form, it’s quite fun and we think many will enjoy the experience. Get it today from the various partner links provided by NVIDIA for just $349.

SOURCE: NVIDIA Blog

Samsung GALAXY S 4 sales are expected to cross the 10 million mark within the week. Assuming things play out as Samsung is expecting, this would have the GALAXY S 4 taking the fastest sales honor away from the Galaxy S III. The talk of GALAXY S 4 sales is coming by way of Samsung CEO JK Shin who had been speaking at an industry event in Seoul.

The Galaxy S III took 50 days to reach 10 million so if GALAXY S 4 sales topped 10 million next week, that would be roughly 20 days quicker. Needless to say, we are fairly certain Samsung will provide some sort of announcement after the milestone has been reached. In the meantime, JK Shin has said;

“Samsung spent 50 days to pass the 10 million sales mark for the S3. The S4 will be Samsung’s first ’10 million seller’ device less than a month after its official debut,”

Looking back, Samsung began selling the GALAXY S 4 in Korea on April 26 and since that point, the handset has come available in 60 different countries. Aside from waiting for the current sales figures to crest 10 million, the GALAXY S 4 has been getting more than a fair amount of attention lately. The handset recently became the first smartphone to achieve the TCO Certification and the folks at Fitbit have also enabled syncing over Bluetooth.

Otherwise, we did see somewhat of a GALAXY S 4 related surprise coming out of Google I/O this year. There was a Google Edition GALAXY S 4 announced that will arrive running a vanilla Android installation. This particular model isn’t going to be available until June 26th, however it will be arriving unlocked. The hardware specs for the Google Edition GALAXY S 4 remain the same as the regular model, however the handset will get updates in a manner similar to the Nexus line of devices.

Aside from talk of the GALAXY S 4, Shin also commented briefly on the Galaxy Note III. In speaking about a flexible display, Shin said “more time will be needed” and that for now, the Note III will be launching with a 5.9-inch OLED display and that the handset will be unveiled during IFA 2013.

VIA: TNW

SOURCE: Korea Times

Field Trip is an app that is designed to help you find interesting things that are happening in the real world. As the name would imply, it should be good for those taking a trip as the discovery could point you towards things that you may have missed otherwise. The app runs in the background on your phone and provides alerts when you are near something that may be of interest. With that in mind, it looks like a recent update will make Field Trip a bit more useful for the world traveler.

The update is already available in the Google Play Store and brings the app up to version 1.09. More important though, the update brings the supported languages up to over 30 and the supported countries up to over 80. This update also added the ability to automatically translate any cards that are not in your native language. Again, a new addition that should be good for those traveling the world.

Otherwise, the one other addition that arrived with this latest update is a new zoomed-out mode. The changelog describes this as being a ” zoomed-out view of map that aggregates cards to make discovering sights and stories easier.” Update aside, the Field Trip app is free of charge and remains available for devices running Android 2.3 or later.

The Field Trip app comes by way of the NianticLabs, which is a name that may sound familiar to some — they are the same group that is responsible for Ingress. Similar to Field Trip, Ingress is also available for free and for devices with Android 2.3 or later. While Field Trip is for discovery and Ingress is a game, there is a connection aside from being from the same developer.

You see, Ingress players may also want to install Field Trip as that can be used to help you discover portals. Basically, the Ingress portals will be shown in Field Trip just like any other item that you may be alerted to. With that, while both apps are available in the Google Play Store, Ingress is still only available in a closed beta form and an invite is required.

SOURCE: Google Play Store

The GALAXY S 4 was discovered to be incompatible with the current line of NFC TecTile tags a few weeks earlier. At that time Samsung let it be known that a next-generation TecTile was coming and well, as of today they have come available for sale. The newly updated tags have been dubbed TecTiles 2 and they are currently available with Samsung.

The Samsung TecTiles 2 come in packs of five and are priced at $14.99. Aside from being available with Samsung, the tags are also going to be available with other retailers beginning in June. Samsung hasn’t offered a specific list of retailers, however they have been available with Amazon in the past.

These new tags will work with the GALAXY S 4, however they are also compatible with “all Samsung NFC-enabled Android smartphones.” Similar to the original tags, these work in conjunction with the Samsung TecTile app found in the Google Play Store. The app is free to download and free to use and allows the user to program (and re-program) the tags.

Usage will likely vary from person to person, however some of the suggested use cases include setting adjustments, making phone calls, launching applications and getting social with check-ins or status updates. The TecTile app is fairly simple to use and walks you through the process fairly well.

Current TecTile users may also want to grab the latest update for the mobile app. Samsung rolled-out an app update back on May 15th which expanded the list of settings that can be adjusted. Again, the use cases are wide and limited mostly to a persons imagination. Some ways that we are using them are on a bedside tablet to set an alarm and silence the phone for the night and also to turn on Bluetooth and launch a music app when getting in a car.

SOURCE: Samsung

Sony has officially launched another Xperia branded handset for those in the US market. This latest addition is the Sony Xperia L and similar to other recent releases, this one has arrived unlocked and is being sold on a no-contract basis. The Xperia L sports a 4.3-inch display with a screen resolution of 854 x 480 and is running Android 4.1 Jelly Bean.

Otherwise, the specs are not what we would describe as being high-end, however the handset does have a price that matches. The Xperia L has 8GB of internal storage along with a microSD card slot and is powered by a dual-core 1GHz Qualcomm MSM8230 processor with 1GB of RAM.

Those making a purchase can also expect to find the usual array of features including WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS, NFC and a 3.5mm headphone jack. The Xperia L has a front-facing camera along with an 8 megapixel rear-facing camera. Sony touts the Xperia L as being a “camera lovers’ phone” which seems to be another way of saying the handset has the ExmorRS for Mobile image sensor.

The other bit worth mentioning is the colors — the Xperia L is available in black, white or red. Sony has the Xperia L priced at $349.99 and at present, the store listing is showing an estimated shipping date of May 23rd. Additionally, as we often seen with Sony Store orders, those ordering the Xperia L will get free ground shipping.

Looking back and we have also seen the Xperia Z and Xperia ZL come available for those in the US. Both of those handsets are also selling unlocked and they are each priced at $629.99. Finally, as per what seems standard for unlocked Sony handsets here in the US, the Xperia L has network support for HSPA+ on the 850, 1900, 1700, 2100 MHz bands.

SOURCE: Sony

HTC had been having component shortage issues with the One smartphone, however it looks like those are currently in the process of being resolved. In an effort to try and put those issues in the past, HTC is now expected to begin ramping up production. In fact, Jack Tong, president of HTC North Asia has said production will be increasing this month and then again in June.

The comments have arrived by way of a recent Focus Taiwan report and Tong has said the “capacity is expected to rise significantly starting from mid-May.” The manufacturing process is expected to double in May (as compared to the month of April) and then increase again in June.

Further comments from Tong show the production bump as being a response to “strong demand” with a mention about HTC is “optimistic” when it comes their “high-end sales during April and June.” The increase in production could help HTC however they still have a long road ahead.

Looking back to the first quarter results and revenue was still down. That report had revenue at $1.45 billion and with a drop in sales that hovered around 50 percent (as compared to the same quarter in the previous year). The HTC One is obviously a big deal for HTC at this point, however they still have other handsets to push and market.

Another recent release was the HTC First, which some may recognize as the Facebook phone. The First is running the Facebook Home launcher and is available with ATT. The First is not sporting high-end specs, however there are some perks. For one, you can turn off Facebook Home and have a relatively clean Android experience. Of course, a recent price drop by ATT did cause some speculation in terms of the current level of success for the HTC First.

VIA: ZDNet

It looks like a few game updates have arrived just in time for the weekend. The games include Angry Birds Seasons from Rovio Mobile and Pudding Monsters from ZeptoLab. Both of the updates are already available in the Google Play Store and they are each adding quite a few new levels.

The Seasons update is Abra-Ca-Bacon with 36 new levels and the Pudding Monsters update is Sky View which is bringing 25 new levels of game play. Both of the games are available for free, however there is an HD version of Pudding Monsters available for $0.99. Pricing aside though, lets take a deeper look at each of these updates.

Beginning first with Angry Birds Seasons. Aside from the 36 new levels, which Rovio happens to be touting as magical, this update also includes portals and a new power-up. The portals will bring new gameplay an as the name would imply, they will allow the user to “magically” transport within the level they are playing. Those looking for the new power-up should be on the lookout for the exploding magic box called AllakaBAM.

Shifting over to Pudding Monsters and those playing will find an update that brings the gameplay to the outdoors. Well, the virtual outdoors anyway. The Sky View update will have you climbing mountains and you will also be able to move those mountains with the new Mr. Powerlifter Monster. Those mountains can also be split (in an effort to collect more stars) using cones.

All said and done, two decent sized updates. Otherwise, as many will already realize, each of these developers have other titles available. In the case of Rovio Mobile, they have quite a few versions of Angry Birds with a recent release being the social-minded Friends. ZeptoLab on the other hand has Cut The Rope, which recently had a new additional called Time Travel.

SOURCE: Angry Birds Seasons and Pudding Monsters