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Daily Roundup: April Fools' roundup, a tour of ThinkGeek's headquarters, and more!
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Xbox One SmartGlass handles matchmaking; Xbox Upload Studio revealed
Xbox SmartGlass will play an integral part of the Xbox One experience. Through the accompanying SmartGlass app, players can set up matches in the background while they play and compare stats. A demonstration of Xbox Upload Studio, a built-in DVR and broadcasting suite, was shown following a Killer Instinct match. Xbox Upload Studio automatically records and allows players to edit and share their recorded footage to all.
Xbox SmartGlass now available for Kindle Fire and Kindle HD
Xbox SmartGlass has migrated over to Amazon's Kindle Fire and Kindle Fire HD tablets. First generation Kindle Fires are out of luck since they're based on Android version 2.3 and the Xbox SmartGlass app requires Android 4.0 and higher.An update to Xbox SmartGlass little over a week ago made Microsoft's second-screen experience compatible with 7-inch and larger Android tablets. Xbox SmartGlass launched in November 2012, allowing Xbox 360 users to control videos and interact with SmartGlass-enabled apps and games using compatible smart phones and tablets. In addition to the Android app, Xbox SmartGlass is available for free on iOS devices and, of course, Windows 8 and Windows Phone.
NBA Game Time, ESPN apps team up with Xbox SmartGlass
SmartGlass functionality, get off the bench and get into the game! Both the NBA Game Time and ESPN apps on Xbox Live have added SmartGlass functionality to their playbooks for Xbox Live Gold subscribers. Sports metaphors.With SmartGlass, you can make selections and navigate options within each respective app with your smartphone or tablet. SmartGlass is available on iOS, Android and Windows 8 devices.There's also a new Sports Picks app that Microsoft has dropped onto Xbox Live, where you can make matchup selections across a variety of sports and compare them with friends on the leaderboards. Personally, we don't like to compete with our friends because, well, our friends usually win. Always win.
Xbox SmartGlass app now optimized for iPhone 5
The Xbox SmartGlass app was updated for iOS today. iPhone 5 users can finally interact with their Xbox 360 without suffering the pains of a squished interface on their iDoodad. Bugs have also been addressed in version 2.1 – we'd tell you which bugs were squashed but none are listed in the update notes.Xbox SmartGlass first launched on Windows 8 devices back in October. That lengthy half-day exclusivity ended with an Android version on October 26, followed by the iOS app's arrival in early November.
Xbox SmartGlass app turns your iOS device into a remote control
If you have an Xbox 360 and an iOS device, congratulations, Microsoft has offered you a free touchscreen remote control! Well, not literally, but the new Xbox SmartGlass app turns your iPad or iPhone into a do-it-all control center for your game console, and it's actually a pretty slick experience. Once you've connected your SmartGlass app to your console -- by syncing the devices via the Internet using a short code -- you can do pretty much everything using your iOS device that you would normally do with your controller, aside from playing games. You can compose messages, browse your achievements and launch apps such as Netflix with just a tap. But the most useful feature is linked with the recent addition of Internet Explorer to the Xbox dashboard. Using your phone as a virtual mouse, you can navigate web pages by moving your finger around on the screen. It works quite well and happens to be much more enjoyable than surfing your favorite sites using the Xbox controller. Unfortunately, since the app is connected to your Xbox over the Internet rather than using Bluetooth there is a noticeable lag between your input and the on-screen action. It's not a dramatic delay, but it's enough that you might end up overshooting a tab you were aiming for or scrolling further on a web page than you would have liked. There's also no way to turn on your console using the SmartGlass app, so if you're on the couch and want to browse the web on your TV, you're going to have to grab your controller anyway. This is perhaps the app's greatest weakness, since it's hard to argue that it's a good alternative to using your controller for non-gaming tasks when it can't even turn the console on. Still, it's a neat, free way to try out SmartGlass using your iPhone or iPad, and it elevates the Internet Explorer Xbox app to the realm of usability.
Xbox SmartGlass for iOS out now
Xbox SmartGlass is now available to the iOS crowd, following an October debut on Windows tablets and Android devices. The free app is compatible with devices running iOS 5.0 and higher – sorry, no native iPhone 5 support just yet, so you'll have to make do with the smaller formatting on your tall phone for now.The app itself replaces the current Xbox Companion for iOS, and allows you to interact with your Xbox 360 for supplemental controls and information across a variety of programs going forward. To start with, you'll be able to play DJ in Dance Central 3.
Xbox SmartGlass now available in Google Play, brings console integration to Android
Hot on the heels of the Dashboard update for the Xbox 360, Microsoft's SmartGlass integration is now a reality for Android 4.0 users. The companion app branches out from the earlier My Xbox Live app for Android and allows direct control of some console features from Google-powered gear. While Windows Phone users will find the tightest integration of all, the Android port still lets users steer through the Dashboard, input text, browse the web (with zooming), search for local content, and control media playback. Players can still chat with their friends and modify their Xbox profile if they're not planning to lurk around the system all day. The interface is strikingly similar to past releases (including Android) and still demands at least an 800 x 480 screen for admission -- sorry, Wildfire S fans. You'll find a full roster of features after the break, and can hit up Google Play at the source link below for your own remote. Jon Fingas contributed to this report.
Windows 8's stock apps get pictured, tease its final build
Microsoft might be wavering on the well established Metro moniker that it ascribes to its flat, live tile design aesthetic, but that doesn't make it any less pervasive in Windows 8's final build. Care to see? Impatient Windows fans have pilfered a handful of screenshots from Google and Windows Store previews, revealing what appears to be the final look for several of Windows 8's apps. Gumshoes at the Neowin forums uncovered fresh previews of the Photos, Mail, Messaging, People, Calendar Xbox music, Xbox video and Xbox SmartGlass applications. Liveside followed up on the forum's findings with a peek at the OS' baked in Bing integration. The camera interface's crop and video playback features make an appearance too, as do the operating system's legacy time wasters: Solitaire, Minesweeper and Mahjong -- slacking off never looked so good. Check them out for yourself in the gallery below, and agonize over how far away October 26th suddenly seems. %Gallery-161692%
