Oculus’s cinema app could be one of the most compelling parts of virtual reality. Oculus Virtual reality can transport you to distant space to participate in an epic starship battle, or it can drop you in the ocean, with sharks swimming all around. But its biggest act yet may be showing you a plain old …

Developers check out 3D modeling software from Unity, a platform for creating games and interactive 3D training simulations and medical, architectural, and modeling visualizations, on the Web, iOS, Android, and consoles. James Martin/CNET When World of Warcraft maker Blizzard set out to make a card game that worked on computers and mobile devices, it used tools made by Unity to …

Facebook’s new ad technology works with outside app developers. Facebook / Shazam The next time you see an advertisement in Shazam, it might be coming from Facebook. The social networking company has expanded its advertising technology to allow app makers to insert ads from its network into their programs. The goal, the company says, is to help app developers by …

Both smartphone and tablet usage are at all-time highs, but new data shows the tablet is still king among app spenders. In new research from Frank N. Magid Associates, smartphone use has hit a record high in the US, counting 71 percent of the population this year — up 10 percentage points from last year and up 40 points since …

Now playing: Watch this: Google’s latest TV effort ties in smartphone, tablet… 5:41 Google unveiled a new television set-top box initiative Wednesday, called Android TV, as part of its latest effort to become a central hub of entertainment for its customers. The Mountain View, Calif., search giant said it has developed software that helps smartphones and tablets interact with a …

Google sees an opportunity with fitness and, like Apple before it, the company is building a service to help the growing list of wearable devices talk to one another. Dubbed Google Fit, Google said its new platform will help users keep track of their fitness goals across various platforms and wearables. “Fit takes away the complexity of handling multiple sources,” …

Google kicks off its developer conference Wednesday in San Francisco. James Martin/CNET Google, after failing to score a hit with its prior TV projects, hasn’t given up on the living room just yet. The Mountain View, Calif., company is working with partners to produce several television set-top boxes that run its Android software, people familiar with the matter said. The …

Slingshot is Facebook’s latest take on the ephemeral app. Facebook Facebook is trying once again to catch Snapchat’s wave. The social-networking behemoth is launching on Tuesday a new app called Slingshot that allows people to share short-lived photos and videos with one another. This concept, which caught fire through competitors like Snapchat, encourages people to share less carefully edited photos …