• Amazon writes off $170m on unsold Fire Phones http://bit.ly/1wlFHyW Buyers not keen on eye-tracking cameras and poor reviews mean that online retailer is left with huge overhang of unsold phones • Android Wear Update Adds Offline Music, Bluetooth Headphone And GPS Support http://tcrn.ch/1taQFDH Android Wear is getting its first big update, with features that make smartwatches using Google’s wearable operating system more standalone devices, including music syncing and GPS location support. That means if you leave your watch at home while you go out for a jog, you’ve still got access to sweet jams, and your watch can still tell you where you are, and how to get home. • Don’t toss that old Android: Turn it into a Chromecast receiver! With the right cable you can connect and Android device to an HDTV. Add in Cast Receiver software and your Android can act like a Chromecast for many different apps and for screensharing. Software • Amazon Quietly Launches A Functional App Store Within Its Main Android Application http://tcrn.ch/1wlFrQt Until recently, if you wanted to install an application from Amazon’s own Appstore onto your Android device, you would have to install the Amazon Appstore app separately. And this is a bit of a hassle, since you can’t exactly just download the app from Google Play. But last month, Amazon quietly rolled out a new feature within its main Amazon application on Android which now includes a fully-functional Appstore that’s accessible directly through the Amazon app’s “Shop by Department” section. • Microsoft attempts to improve Android with new 'Garage' apps http://bit.ly/1taRIU5 That experimentation begins with Next Lock Screen, Microsoft’s take at a better Android lock screen. It’s available in the Google Play Store for free today, and it’s largely designed to stick to Microsoft’s new guiding principles, which focus on productivity. A second Android app, Journeys & Notes, is designed as a way to keep a log of travel history. It’s similar to Foursquare in the sense that you can access tips from fellow travelers who have traveled the same route as you. It’s really designed to be a new social app that’s like leaving a trail of digital memories along your travel route. Discussion • ‘Crypto wars’ return to Congress (Auto-play video) http://bit.ly/1taRVqq Comey is asking that Congress update the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA), a 1994 law that required telephone companies to make it possible for federal officials to wiretap their users' phone calls. Many new mobile applications and other modern devices aren’t included under the law, however, making it difficult if not impossible for police to get a suspect’s records — even with a warrant. Coming up Friday on Google Plus Week • CVS follows Rite-Aid, shuts off Apple Pay http://usat.ly/1taSD7f The issue appears to be a conflict between Apple Pay and a mobile payment system called CurrentC that is being developed by a retailer-owned mobile technology outfit called Merchant Customer Exchange (MCX). Unlike Apple Pay, CurrentC does not use an NFC chip, but instead generates a QR code that is displayed on the merchant's checkout terminal. Customers who have already linked their bank accounts to the CurrentC system scan the QR code from the terminal and the transaction is completed.

• published: 27 Oct 2014
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