Not happy with Skype? Microsoft has some improvements in the works. In an interview with The Verge, Skype product manager Jeff Kunins said that Microsoft is now testing several updates to the VoIP service that will sync your unread and read messages across multiple devices. But notifications will pop up only on the active device, …

Now playing: Watch this: T-Mobile’s entry-level Alcatel One Touch Fierce handset 1:30 Related stories Read the Alcatel One Touch Fierce review Check out pros and cons of the One Touch Evolve After a month at T-Mobile’s Alcatel’s One Touch Fierce and One Touch Evolve also went on sale with T-Mobile-owned MetroPCS on Monday. The prepaid Android phones come in at …

Samsung’s latest addition to its ever-growing brood is the new Galaxy Grand 2 — a big-screened blower aimed at travellers on a budget. With a 5.25-inch HD screen and mid-range specs, it’s a follow-up to last year’s Grand Duos, which hit UK phone shops with a £300 price tag. I’d expect the Grand 2 to be similarly priced, but Samsung …

Samsung has introduced yet another large-screen smartphone. Unveiled on Monday, Samsung’s Galaxy Grand 2 sports a 5.25-inch, 1,280×720 display with a 16:9 aspect ratio, which the company touts as ideal for watching movies, playing games, and reading books. A Multi Window feature lets you use the large screen to run two apps side by side. Related posts Best Samsung Galaxy …

I ain’t sayin’ she’s a gold digger, but she seems awfully fond of the gold HTC One announced today. Which is lucky, because it costs less than the gold-plated, £2,750 version. The One joins the new iPhone 5S with a new gold-coloured finish to its all-metal case, on sale from Phones 4u, Carphone Warehouse and Vodafone before Christmas. It’s not …

Wireless carriers in China next month will begin offering 4G LTE service, a potential boon to Apple, which is hoping to gain ground on Samsung’s lead in the country. The speedier wireless network will debut in China on December 18, according to a report Monday in Xinhua, China’s official state news agency. China Mobile, the world’s largest wireless carrier with …

Samsung will update its flagship 2013 phones, the Galaxy S4 and Note 3, to the tastiest new Android 4.4 KitKat software in January, according to a leaked Samsung R&D document obtained by Indian site iTechAddict. The schedule claims last year’s top-notch mobiles, the S3 and Note 2, will have to wait until March or April for the bump to KitKat. …

ZTE appears to be looking to drop the price of smartwatches by making its own low-cost version of the wearable gadget. The Chinese tech company plans to unveil a smartwatch in the beginning of next year, according to The Wall Street Journal. This gadget will be similar to other smartwatches already on the market, like Samsung’s Galaxy Gear, but designed …

HTC is apparently getting into the gold-colored game with a new One smartphone. Finland-based retailer Gigantti on Monday started selling a gold-colored HTC One, featuring a 4.7-inch display and 1.7GHz quad-core processor. The handset comes with the same design as previous HTC One models, but boasts the long-rumored gold finish. HTC already sells versions in silver, black, blue, and red. …

Related stories: The complete guide to using SwiftKey on Android Samsung Galaxy S4 keyboard powered by SwiftKey Get the KitKat keyboard for Android 4.0 and up SwiftKey, the popular alternative keyboard for Android, released their 4.3 update earlier this month. It introduced custom layouts and combined the phone and tablet versions into a single app. Today’s minor update to 4.3.1 …

Microsoft is reportedly trying out potential new names for SkyDrive after losing a legal battle with Sky, with possible candidates rumoured to include NewDrive, BingDrive and FetchDrive. Windows blogger Paul Thurrott claims the SkyDrive’s new name is NewDrive. LiveSide has reported that the URL www.newdrive.com pointed to SkyDrive, but the link is now dead. Before we get too excited, Microsoft …

William Kentridge‘s “The Refusal of Time” (2012) creates its own environment through the ever-morphing, large-format videos depicting the collision of technology, social upheaval, and industry. The five videos display a series of scenes, texts, shifting diagrams and papers, and laborers shown in silhouette marching across the screens. Music and voices come from eight speakers — four large JBL studio monitors …

If there were any doubts that Intel wants to embrace Android as a Windows equal, they were erased this week. Speaking at the chipmaker’s investor meeting on Thursday, Kirk Skaugen, general manager of the PC Client Group at Intel, said the following: The reality is for the last decade we’ve been essentially 100 percent Microsoft on the client [but] we’re …

I’m a big fan of music documentaries, but “The Wrecking Crew: The Untold Story of Rock & Roll Heroes” is easily the best I’ve seen in years. The band was made up of LA studio pros who would show up for a 3- or 4-hour session, and produce hit after hit. Their biggest successes came in the 1960s and 1970s, …

I go way back with NAD amplifiers; I sold dozens of NAD’s 3020 amps in the late 1970s and early 1980s when I was working as a high-end audio salesman. The 3020 lacked the visual pizzazz of the Sony, Onkyo, Pioneer, and Yamaha amps of the time, but the 3020 was hailed by critics and consumers as the best-sounding budget …