How To Restore Tap To Tweet & Tap To Post Widget In iOS 8 Notification Center

13 November 2014 11:13 PM
TapToShare By Nonthawat Srichad

TapToShare By Nonthawat Srichad

iOS 5 and iOS 6 introduced some social integration features which, among other things, allowed users to quickly post tweets to Twitter and status updates to your Facebook right from the Notification Center using a simple tap. It was a convenient, effective way for users to get their 2 cents in without too much hassle.

However, with iOS 8 this it’s not longer a feature. But with Apple having given third-party developers a license to develop third-party Notification Center widgets – something only previously available via jailbreak – the NC can now be filled up with useful shortcuts and functions, and one developer has naturally seized the opportunity to re-introduced those sorely-missed functions.

Called TapToShare (By Nonthawat Srichad) on the App Store, the widget nestles itself into the Notification Center, and as you’ll see from the screenshot, it looks comfortably native enough. Then again, given that these buttons were once a part of the stock repertoire, this shouldn’t be too surprising, and if you’re an avid online socialite, then you’ll surely be pleased to have them back.

Once installed, you can readily pull down the Notification Center blind and use the Tap to Tweet for those casual, short utterances on The Twitters, and should you feel the need to divulge your most intimate thoughts on one extraneous topic or another, then you’ll probably want to consult the Tap to Post option. But remember, it won’t bring the Share Sheet up in the Notification Center, instead, it will launch the app from where you can tweet or Facebook away. A small compromise, but a worthwhile one.

We’ve tested it on an iPhone 4s, iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus already and as well as confirming that it works as advertised, we’re very much enjoying our reunion with these tap-to buttons.

Download it, give it a whirl, and as ever, be sure to post your thoughts in the comment section below.

Download TapToShare (By Nonthawat Srichad) for iPhone on the App Store – It’s completely free of charge.

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Nexus 6 UK price confirmed and it’s cheaper than the iPhone 6 Plus

7 November 2014 4:54 PM
Motorola, Nexus 6

Motorola, Nexus 6

We’ve already seen a US price (from $649) for the Nexus 6, so we weren’t exactly hopeful for a low cost smartphone here in the UK, and now that’s become a reality with Google posting a price on the Play store.

The 32GB Nexus 6 will set you back £499, while those of you fancying more internal storage will need to stump up £549 for the 64GB model.

While these prices aren’t nearly as attractive as previous Nexus models, it does mean the Nexus 6 is still considerably cheaper than possibly its closest rival, the iPhone 6 Plus.

Apple’s 5.5-inch monster device starts at £619 for just 16GB of internal storage, while the 64GB version is £699.

The Motorola-made handset gives you a 5.96-inch QHD (2560 x 1440) display, 2.7GHz Snapdragon 805 processor, 13MP rear camera, 2MP front-facing snapper and Android 5.0 Lollipop.

Hold your horses! Because you can’t actually buy the Nexus 6 from Google Play just yet – in fact, it’s not even available for pre-order – with the site simply saying “coming soon”.

Previous reports have pointed towards a November 18 pre-order date in the UK for the Nexus 6, while those in the US have been able to pre-order since October 23 – although Google’s now out of its initial inventory.

WhatsApp is testing a ‘message read’ with blue double tick

6 November 2014 10:22 AM
WhatsApp FAQs

WhatsApp finally tells you when your messages have been read

WhatsApp will now finally tell you when your messages have been read. WhatsApp messages have always been accompanied by ticks to show sent and delivered messages, but they have also been the source of some confusion.

Now the company is experimenting with a third version: the blue double-check that represents a message has been read, listened to or viewed. The confusion around the ticks is long standing. People often believe one tick means ‘delivered‘, and two ticks means ‘read‘. However, one tick actually means ‘sent‘, and two means ‘delivered‘, not read. The double blue ticks would mean ‘read‘.

You can already see on Facebook Messenger when a message has been seen, and this is WhatsApp’s version. However, it may upset some users that don’t want to mark messages as read. You have the option of turning off the ‘last seen’ timestamp on WhatsApp, giving you some privacy.

The social pressure to reply to a message might be greater if someone knows if you have actually read a message or not, making some people uncomfortable. It remains to be seen what will happen with the blue double tick – perhaps it will be optional, or maybe tests won’t lead WhatsApp to roll out the feature.

The double blue check marks have been rolled out to WhatsApp without the need to update the app. WhatsApp has added information about them to its FAQ section, confirming that two blue ticks does mean your message has been read. In a group message, you’ll see the blue ticks when all members have read the message.

You cannot turn this feature off.

WhatsApp: [Updated] Facebook Buys WhatsApp for $18 Billion

PS4 Update 2.0 – Available Tomorrow

27 October 2014 12:44 AM

Sony has confirmed via Twitter that the PlayStation 4’s next significant firmware update – version 2.0, will be made available tomorrow on October 28.


The update, which Sony has codenamed ‘Masamune’, will contain a host of new features, including theme support, enhancements to live broadcasting (which includes dedicated app support for YouTube and the ability to upload your gameplay footage directly to it), improved voice commands, and a USB music player that will allow us to insert a USB stick loaded with music into our PS4 and play our own music in the background while playing a game.

Masamune will also bring with it the long-awaited Share Play feature. Share Play “will create an online local co-op experience by allowing you to invite a friend to join your game—even when they don’t own a copy of it.” You’ll be able to play alongside a friend, or even invite them to temporarily take over the controls of the game you’re currently playing, “as if you were together in the same room.”

Sony first outlined PS4’s 2.0 firmware at Gamescom in August but, until now, Sony had not confirmed when it would be made available.

“Timing will be confirmed when there’s no chance of it changing,” responded SCEA director of product planning & software innovation Scott McCarthy in a comment to a reader on the PlayStation Blog last week.

Are you looking forward to the v2.0 update? Let us know in the comments below.

Have you got what it takes to Go Sober for October?

12 September 2014 1:55 PM
Going Sober for October

Going Sober for October

Britons spend a year of their lives hungover. Time for a sober October? Taking a month off the booze can have many potential benefits. Just imagine what you could achieve without a hangover. Do something amazing for people with cancer – Go 31 days with no lager, no wine… not even a shandy, all to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support’s vital work.

By having 31 gloriously hangover-free days you’ll not only be raising lots of money to help people with cancer, you’ll also be doing oodles of good for your own health. Together with a few small improvements to your diet and exercise routine you could expect to experience a range of the following:

  • Increased energy levels, higher productivity
  • Clearer head
  • No more hangovers
  • Sleeping better / snoring less
  • Weight loss
  • Clearer skin
  • Healthier bank balance / Save money
  • Sense of achievement
  • Fresh approach to alcohol consumption
  • Generally feel healthier
  • Doing something positive for a good cause

How can someone get involved?
Everything is managed through the Go Sober website. From here you can Sign Up, make and receive donations, run your own profile page, create a team, go ‘Head-to–Head’ with a mate or colleague, create a Designated Dryver event, see your national ranking, update your status and much more.

Although some people have quizzed the campaign saying “suggesting drinkers go cold turkey for a month could actually do more harm than good” – let us know what you think down in the comments.