Motorola Testing Next Gen Moto 360 ‘Smelt’

Motorola is testing a possible successor to the Moto 360 smart watch. 9to5google.com says it’s code named Smelt (the present watch was ‘Minnow’.) The prototype is running Android 5.1, and has 360×360 screen resolution. The prototype looks to have a different case, and is rumored to be released in September.

Thenextweb.com reports that Microsoft has announced updates to the Skype and Skype Qik apps. Both get a new layout, 8 new video effects, support for 12 new languages, and most importantly…more emoji!

Sad news for netizens…the internet doesn’t make you smarter, you only think it does! According to arstechnica.com, research from Yale published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology shows that we are blurring the boundary between our own internal knowledge, and material easily looked up with search engines. Transactive memory was already known when people share information and memories between roommates, family, and the like…now we can add the computer to the equation.


Fire Sale on Amazon Fire Phones

Yep, there’s a fire sale on Amazon Fire phones. Already 99 cents with a 2 year AT&T contract, geekwire.com says now you can buy an unlocked one for $199, down from $649 when it came out. How long before they have to promise that Bezos will deliver yours in person?

Sony may roll out an e-paper smart watch next year. Gigaom.com reports that in addition to the face, the entire band will be an e-paper display. Taking a page from Apple’s playbook, Sony will try for style.

Microsoft has just launched Clearflow for its Bing Maps. Engadget.com says they use Nokia’s Navteq system, but use live data from main roads to essentially guess traffic on unreported routes. Good luck!