The ‘Your Future City’ showcase had devices and technology for the home, workplace and classroom, as well as large-scale projects for cities and the environment as a whole.

David Boundy from Intel Labs Europe, who was instrumental in arranging the showcase, believes that a city has to be about its users, which are its citizens. He explained that the products and systems on show at the event were not solutions, per se, but rather the technology that can enable us to achieve a more harmonious and sustainable society.

The exhibition was open to the public from 20 to 21 May, with several thousand visitors of all ages passing through, and the feedback from the general public on interacting with these new technologies will inform its future usage.

Digital showcase at the Mansion House (part 1 of 2) 

Digital showcase at the Mansion House (part 2 of 2) 

‘Your Future City’ was held in conjunction with the Open Innovation 2.0 conference and also housed a special Lego showcase called ‘Build the Change’. This interactive exhibit had already travelled to 10 European cities before it reached Dublin, asking the next generation to build their vision of the future. Photos of these imaginative creations are available on our Facebook page.

According to Engadget, preorders were cancelled after poor sales reports from the US proved less than encouraging.

A&T is understood to have slashed the cost of the HTC First device, launched alongside Facebook Home more than a month ago, from US$99.99 to just US$0.99 on contract.

In early April, EE announced it would be the exclusive UK carrier to sell the HTC First with access to 4G speeds five times faster than 3G speeds.

The news comes amid an extremely rocky spell for HTC. Delays in the launch of its flagship device, the HTC One, have hit the company hard, resulting in just a US$2.8m profit from Q1.

In addition, the company has been rocked in recent days by the news that its Asia CEO Lennard Hornik is departing the company.

But all is not lost.

Informed sources say the HTC One Mini, a lower-cost version of the HTC One with a 4.2-inch screen and 720p resolution, is rumoured to be arriving in Europe in about a month's time, which may well make up for the lack of any HTC First device.

The Presence app is free to download from the iTunes App Store and, since its European launch earlier this month, has seen encouraging take-up in Sweden, France, Spain, Denmark, the UK, Germany and the Netherlands.

Once downloaded to a spare iPhone, iPad or iPod, Presence transforms these devices into real-time Wi-Fi video cameras, for use as security cameras or monitoring devices.

The app can also be downloaded to iOS devices in use and this will enable alerts to be sent to users once motion is detected by the Presence camera. A range of camera devices can be connected to one active device and users can even conduct two-way video conversations using the app.

While rumours of a set-top box-style device were rampant ahead of last night’s Xbox One reveal, it was generally expected that Microsoft would unveil a next-generation games console. However, the Xbox One is being touted as an all-in-one entertainment system and focus at the event was on TV, not gaming.

To prove Xbox One’s sworn allegiance to television, YouTuber Darkbeatdk has compiled a supercut of all mentions of ‘TV’ and ‘television’ at the press event. He also throws in mentions of ‘sports’, most of which come from head of EA Sports, Andrew Wilson.

Gaming wasn’t completely ignored, though, and references to Call of Duty have also made the cut. However, one game – with added dogs – is simply not enough to satisfy the hardcore gaming community.

The video puts into sharp focus Microsoft’s new tack of targeting the general entertainment consumer over the more specified gamer market, but can it remain America’s No 1 games console with this approach?

Dare to Be Digital is an international computer game design competition organised and hosted by Scotland’s University of Abertay Dundee. The Digital Hub Development Agency co-ordinated the Irish leg of the competition, with support from the North-South Cooperation Unit at the Department of Education and Skills.

Simon McDonnell, Seán Gilleece, Nicola Disley, Ryan McCabe and Dmitrij Starcenko – all students at DkIT – formed the team Stone Hammer Games and their concept for the game Two Remaining Souls won the judges over.

The co-op action defence game is played by two players using iPhones. Though players are playing in the same world, they see it from completely different angles, with one player taking on a third-person action game and the other playing a tower defence game. Each player will be able to see the other’s actions in real-time.

Team Ireland

The Stone Hammer Games team will now have the opportunity to work on a prototype of Two Remaining Souls alongside top-class computer developers this summer. They will travel to Scotland early next month and spend nine weeks in Dundee developing and fine-tuning the game under the guidance of mentors from Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, Sega Europe, Lift London, Ruffian Games and Outplay Entertainment.

Games developed by the international teams will be exhibited at the ProtoPlay festival in Dundee for the general public and industry experts to try out and vote for their favourites. The three highest-scoring games will receive stg£2,500 in prize money and will compete for a BAFTA Ones to Watch Award at the BAFTA Video Games Awards.

The survey of 4,500 urban travellers in Brazil, France, Germany, South Korea, Spain, the UK and the US showed that about 90pc of respondents use public transportation on a regular basis, and they are willing to pay more for technology improvements.

The survey results also revealed that 52pc of respondents would be willing to pay at least 10pc more for travel if they were offered such technological enhancements, such as the ability to use a smartphone as a ticket while travelling, an app from transport providers, and/or a paperless travel option.

The attraction of paperless travel lies in time savings, as cited by 88pc of respondents.

Ninety-three per cent of respondents are interested in being able to purchase a single ticket for multiple modes of transportation. If a single ticket option were made available, 66pc of the travellers surveyed said they would use that option on a daily basis. In addition, 76pc of travellers believe a paperless system would encourage drivers to start using public transport.

“Consumer technology is driving a huge expectation for flexible travel – an expectation that transit agencies cannot afford to ignore,” said Philippe Guittat, global managing director of Accenture’s Transportation Practice.

“Travellers believe that price, technological change and consumer demand will drive the provision of paperless travel, and transport companies need to address developments in areas such as smartphone applications and social media strategy if they are to get ahead of the competition.”

Commuters image via Shutterstock

The one-day event is based on the BarCamp format, popularised in Silicon Valley. These user-generated conferences, also known as ‘unconferences’, are open and participatory workshop-based events where content is provided by the participants.

3D printing and fabrication will, of course, be a huge focus of this year’s 3Dcamp, but there will also be talks on Minecraft scripting, adaptive music, gesture-based interfaces, mobile gaming and even Bitcoin.

The keynote address will be provided by Dr Conor MacCormack, co-founder and CEO of Mcor Technologies, the Irish firm pioneering low-cost paper-based 3D printing that recently secured US$1m in funding and teamed up with office supplies giant Staples on a 3D printing Experience Centre in the Netherlands.

This year’s 3Dcamp takes place on Saturday, 25 May, from 9am to 6pm. While the event is free to attend, registration is required.

The Xbox One – named for Microsoft’s focus on the all-in-one experience – comes with an eight-core x86 processor, 5bn transistors, 8GB RAM, USB 3.0, Wi-Fi direct and a Blu-ray drive.

It will be available worldwide in time for the holiday season this year, competing directly with Sony’s PlayStation 4.

Design-wise, the entertainment system looks rather boxy and large and, if Microsoft considers the main console a ‘set-top box’, it’s hard to imagine a modern TV set this box could sit on top of.

The horizontal orientation was apparently necessary for the inclusion of a high-speed Blu-ray disc drive – something that has caused quite a stir among the PlayStation fans.

Kinect and control

Users can switch on the Xbox One by simply saying, “Xbox, on” and the voice control demonstrated throughout today’s event was seamless. Hand gestures were also demonstrated to show how quickly users can switch from watching TV, to gaming, to listening to music, to browsing the web.

With all this functionality on offer, Microsoft has incorporated a snap mode (which Windows 8 users will be familiar with) to allow users to do two things on-screen at once. This was demonstrated with a video call through Skype for Xbox One, which has been specially designed for the new system and will allow users to make group calls through their TVs.

^{The new Kinect sensor for Xbox One}

Control of the console hinges on the new 1080p Kinect sensor, which has been completely redesigned for increased precision and responsiveness. Microsoft claims it will work in almost all lighting conditions and that it can detect even a slight wrist rotation.

The new Kinect can also distinguish a single user’s voice and will load a home screen created just for them. The Xbox One keeps track of what’s trending among the Xbox community while also getting to know individual users in order to present them with options they will like.

The controller has also been improved with more than 40 technical and design innovations, including an updated directional pad, thumb stick, ergonomic fit and new vibrating impulse triggers.

New and old franchises

Head of Microsoft Studios, Phil Spencer, said today there will be 15 exclusive Xbox One titles released in its first year, and eight of these will be new franchises.

Eric Hirshberg, CEO of Activision Publishing, revealed footage from the upcoming Call of Duty: Ghosts which utilises a new next-generation engine. Some of the graphics unveiled at the event were photorealistic in quality and Oscar-winning writer-director Stephen Gaghan has even been called up for that added touch of master storytelling.

From EA, Madden NFL 25, FIFA 14, NBA Live 14 and EA Sports UFC will all be coming to Xbox One later this year. These games are supported by the new EA Sports Ignite engine, which allows for 10 times more animation detail.

Other games teased during today’s event include Forza Motorsport 5 from Turn 10 Studios and Quantum Break from Remedy Entertainment, but more details on Xbox One gaming are expected to be revealed at E3 next month.

Shared experiences

As far as gameplay goes, Xbox One comes with a dedicated gaming DVR, allowing players to edit and share gameplay footage with their friends. Sony also introduced similar features for the upcoming PlayStation 4, but the editing capability could be unique to the Xbox One.

^{Xbox One controller}

Xbox Live has also been optimised to improve the gaming experience and it was announced that 300,000 servers will be employed to power the network on Xbox One, compared to the 15,000 used to power it now.

Users will be able to install in segments and get on with the gaming side of things and updates will also be downloaded in the background.

Existing Xbox Live Gold memberships for Xbox 360 will carry over to Xbox One and users will be able to access their personal profiles, including games and entertainment, on any Xbox One.

Other Xbox Live improvements include the addition of living games that evolve as users play, expanded achievements and deeper SmartGlass integration.

The gamification of TV

But, if anyone was still holding onto the notion that Xbox is a games console first and foremost, that can be thrown out the window following tonight’s announcements. The Xbox ecosystem is now an entertainment hub, and the Xbox One epitomises that.

TV was a major focus of the proceedings and Microsoft is committed to bringing live TV from cable, telecommunications and satellite providers to the Xbox One in all markets through various solutions. While this will be available in the US at launch, the plan is to scale these services globally over time.

At launch, live TV support will require a receiver device with HDMI output that will be sold separately.

What’s interesting about a games-console-turned-entertainment-system is that Xbox is determined to blur the lines between all forms of entertainment. This was clear in the teaser for Quantum Break, a game from the makers of Max Payne that mixes TV drama with gameplay.

^{Home screen on Xbox One}

At another point, Nancy Tellem from Xbox Entertainment Studios was joined by Bonnie Ross from 343 Industries to reveal that Halo – the video-game franchise that has already spawned books, comics and a web series – will now be made into a TV series with the help of none other than director Steven Spielberg. Spielberg will serve as executive producer on the series, which will involve exclusive interactive Xbox One content created in partnership with Xbox Entertainment Studios and 343 Industries.

Xbox also revealed details of a multi-year partnership with the NFL that will make American football a more interactive viewing experience for Xbox One owners. Speakers today focused on how this will improve their Fantasy Football experience, but innovations involving Skype, SmartGlass and technology worn by players will also have a role to play.

Speaking with Siliconrepublic.com at the Open Innovation 2.0 conference at Dublin Castle, Rattner said the versatility of the next generation of PC devices will restore consumers’ faith in PCs in terms of performance versus standalone iOS and Android tablets.

Rattner said the world is at a very interesting point in the evolution of technology when you consider 5bn app downloads from the Apple App Store, 900m Android activations and the advent of a new generation of Windows 8 devices and apps, not to mention the arrival of new form factors like Google Glass.

“I like to say that if you can imagine it, we can build it. It really feels that way. I think designers, architects, engineers have such a vast array of technologies available to them that really new products and services ideas are more limited by our own ability to imagine them.

“That’s not to say teleportation is around the corner or similar exotic technologies, but things that rely on IT, I agree I think in the last few years its gone beyond this point of we can barely do this, more often than not we can do it and it’s just a matter of putting it together.”

Intel’s chip designers work to a philosophy espoused by Gordon Moore that the number of transistors on a chip double every 24 months. Rattner addresses whether in 2013 Moore’s Law is holding true as Intel moves to 22nm processors and beyond.

“I like to think that Moore’s Law has ended more than once or twice in my recollection. We built silicon gate MOS transistors for four decades and then in one instance we went to high grade metal gates and built them for a couple of generations and now we are talking about vertical Tri-Gate transistors so we’ve seen this rapid evolution in transistor architecture.

“Now, nobody declared the end of Moore’s Law when we stopped building silicon gates but in some sense Moore’s Law ended for silicon when gate oxides were getting too thin and Moore’s Law started for metal and now we are at vertical transistors.

“We are seeing lots of innovation and I like to kid some of our materials friends that they are once again rulers of the roost developing new materials and new processors with 3D transistors. We may get back to a stable point but right now we are seeing huge innovation at the fundamentals and that will ensure that Moore’s Law will continue for at least another decade. And I’m pretty comfortable with that.”

Rattner on the future of the PC

Open Innovation 2.0 - Interview with Justin Rattner of Intel 

The advent of modern tablet computing in 2010 with the arrival of the iPad from Apple in tandem with the rise of smartphones served to disrupt PC sales, resulting in reports from Gartner and GfK sounding the death knell for PCs and celebrating the triumph of mobile devices.

While acknowledging the rise of mobile devices – an area that Intel has a pretty healthy interest in, anyway – Rattner believes the PC market will return to growth as more powerful but lighter and more energy-efficient models based on Intel’s Haswell chip architecture enter the fray later this year.

“The PC itself is far from dead although lots of people have declared it dead so many times.

“I think what has happened and what Intel has addressed itself is bringing the PC into 21^st century.

“Phones and tablets were conceived of as internet dependent and their whole operating model depends on being connected to a high-speed wireless network. PCs have that connection but their roots go further back and what we are doing with the ultrabook and hybrids is bringing the PC up to the level of the other mobile devices that came to market with those features.

“I think you are going to see over the next year, particularly with the introduction of the Haswell processor, we can talk about ultrabooks with 10 hours of battery life and days and days of standby time. People will be examining the trade-offs. If I can have an ultrabook with a keyboard I can just pop off and now I have a high-performance tablet, would I really want to buy a standalone tablet?

“There’s a lot of innovation. Some of the new products just around the corner that I have seen for the holidays are really amazing and having people rethinking purchase decisions almost immediately.”

Europe as an innovation powerhouse

One of the things that has become clear as a result of the Open Innovation 2.0 conference is that Europe needs to get better and faster at translating research into viable products and services.

“The key thing in deriving value from innovation is to understand that it’s not enough to just to have great technology. Europe has always had great technology but it struggles with how to get that tech out of the lab and into the products and services and in particular how to do that I a timely and efficient way,” Rattner said.

“Here’s where I think open innovation can be a godsend for Europe: it takes all the mystery and politics out if it and gets it into the open.

“Particularly when engaging communities and societies in technology and science it is important to realise that they represent a pull for that technology and that helps societies like Europe to free those bonds and begin to see that tech flow to the market quickly and efficiently.

“Open innovation is a key model for Europe and hopefully a transformational one,” Rattner said.

More on Open Innovation 2.0:

Innovation Luminary Awards celebrate innovation leadership

Interview with Alexander Osterwalder of Business Model Canvas fame (video)

Interview with Mikko Huuskonen, Finnish government (video)

Interview with DG CONNECT's Bror Salmelin (video)

Intel’s Martin Curley: we will need two Earths to support human life (video)

SolarPrint and Intel demo energy harvesting device at innovation event

Innovation about execution, not just invention, says EIT’s Alexander von Gabain

Dr Stephen Hawking says world needs a more sustainable trajectory

Though a launch was held for the PlayStation 4 earlier this year in New York, the audience at the press event was not even granted a glimpse of the actual console. To date, the new DualShock 4 wireless controller is the only element of the new gaming system that has been made public.

That’s set to change on 10 June, however, when Sony will unveil its next-generation console ahead of the E3 gaming trade show in the Los Angeles Convention Centre. The event will start at 6pm PDT (2am IST).

With just over 24 hours to go until the unveiling of the new Xbox from Microsoft, Sony may be trying to take some of the spotlight away from America’s No 1 games console with the release of a PS4 teaser video today.

Those who want to keep on top of what’s planned for the PS4 event can sign up for updates at http://eu.playstation.com/PS4.

The SANDPiT project involved 40 transition-year students and nine adults aged in their in their 60s and 70s who worked together to co-design the apps.

The group showcased their innovations at Dundalk Institute of Technology (DKIT) on Friday.

The apps include an emotional well-being app, an inter-generational quiz app, a community security app, and a 'Don't Panic' app to get help for the elderly quickly following a fall.

The project was run by Louth VEC and the Casala applied research centre at DKIT. Casala's Dr Julie Doyle, who specialises in human computer interaction research, worked with the group during a series of workshops that were held over nine months.

The Louth students hail from Scoil Uí Mhuirí in Dunleer; St Oliver's Community College in Drogheda; O'Fiach College in Dundalk; and Bush Post Primary School in Cooley. They worked with the adults to develop the apps to prototype stage.

"We mixed up the generations on the teams and it was wonderful to see how they interacted," said Doyle.

She said that when older people are using apps, aspects such as contrast, colour and text size need particular attention.

"Our plan is to have the more relevant projects developed into fully fledged apps and a number of DKIT students will be working on this during the summer," added Doyle.

The project has also been shortlisted for an EU GoAct award for best practice in inter-generational learning.

Xbox 360: more than two years at the top

While we await details on the next-generation Xbox from Microsoft, due tomorrow, the company is keen to remind us that the current console is still top of the charts.

The Xbox 360 remained the No 1 games console in the US for the 28th consecutive month in April, according to figures from The NPD Group, accounting for 42pc of current-generation console sales that month, with 130,000 units sold.

The total retail spend on the Xbox platform in April (including hardware, software and accessories) reached US$20m, which was the most for any console in the US.

HP’s new Android and Windows 8 hybrids

HP has revealed two new transformer PCs for its x2 range, one running Google’s Android OS and the other with Microsoft’s Windows 8. The HP SlateBook x2 and Split x2 laptops come with a magnetic hinge that can be released to remove the display and use it as a standalone tablet.

^{HP SlateBook x2 (via HP Hewlett-Packard/Flickr)}

The 10.1-inch SlateBook x2 is the Android device, running Jelly Bean 4.2.2. It’s the first Android detachable device with Nvidia’s Tegra 4 mobile processor and users can get access to to Tegra 4-optimised games via the TegraZone app.

^{HP Split x2 (via HP Hewlett-Packard/Flickr)}

The Split x2 is a 13.3-inch Windows 8 device powered by the third-generation Intel Core processor family. Features include Beats Audio, optional hard drive and a 2MP TrueVision full-HD webcam.

Both the SlateBook x2 and the Split x2 feature a dual battery system, with one in the base and one in the slate, offering users more power no matter which form factor they opt for.

With no information yet on European release dates, what we do know is that the SlateBook and the Split will arrive in the US in August at US$479.99 and US$799.99, respectively.

Dell to ship thumb-sized PCs this summer

Project Ophelia from Dell, the thumb-sized PC introduced at CES at the start of this year, will reportedly start shipping to developers in July followed by availability through telecom operators in August with a price of about US$100.

The device is the size of a USB flash drive and can plug into a HDMI port to turn any compatible display into an Android-based computer.

^{Project Ophelia}

The device is expected to come with some form of Android Jelly Bean and will allow users to download and run apps on their display of choice. The device will also be Wi-Fi and Bluetooth-enabled and Dell is working on technology to optimise this device for the business market, PC World reports.

Stay informed – get daily updates on the latest happenings in technology directly to your inbox.

The digital showcase at the Mansion House is taking place to coincide with the Open Innovation 2.0 conference that will run at Dublin Castle next Monday and Tuesday.

At the event, more than 20 new innovations will be on display so that people can interact with these new technologies.

The showcase will be broken into zones covering innovations for the home, work, schools, city, environment and garden. Each zone will include demonstrations displaying the innovation taking place in Ireland and internationally.

One of the big attractions is set to be a LEGO workshop at the forecourt of the Mansion House so that people of all ages can build their vision of the Dublin of the future. These 'Build The Change' LEGO workshops have already taken places in 10 European cities.

There will also be a giant interactive social media wall to allow people view and interact with social media commentary on the event and share ideas on how Dublin can engage more with digital technology.

Lord Mayor of Dublin Mr Naoise Ó Muirí said that the event will allow people to experience how technology will affect them.

Some of the projects that will be on display will include the 'Behavioural Prediction' initiative that is being developed by Intel, ESB Networks, SAP and M2C.

The aim of the project is to predict a person's daily behaviour by analysing available data. There will be a demo showing how such predictions can be used to set a person's alarm clock, open and heat their car in the morning and set timings to switch on lights just before they arrive home in the evening.

Another demo that will be on display is CityWatch. Developed by Dublin City Council, Intel and Trinity College Dublin, the goal of the project is to allow citizens interact on issues such as making sure public services meet their needs and helping cities become more sustainable. It's all about using the power of the crowd to turn citizens into 'reporters' and to strive for a greener Dublin.

Other demonstrations will include a solution to predict which rooms are most frequently used in a home in order to heat or cool these rooms when needed and reduce energy bills.

There will also be an Irish developed solar-powered device on display. This device is targeted at teachers to allow them monitor temperatures and humidity levels in classrooms.

The showcase will kick off at 12pm on Monday, 20 May and will finish up on Tuesday afternoon at 5pm.

The Samsung Galaxy S4 is so far only available as a 16GB model in the UK and Ireland, but what’s actually available to users is significantly less than this. In fact, the feature-packed smartphone leaves users with about 9GB of storage.

Some S4 owners contacted the consumers affairs show Watchdog about the issue of ‘bloatware’ clogging up their storage capacity and Samsung responded it would review its customer communications on this issue. Samsung also pointed to the phone’s micro-SD slot that can expand storage up to 64GB. However, unlike previous Galaxy devices, apps can’t be stored to the micro SD, only files, like images and video.

Samsung has since said it is now looking into how it can make more storage available to S4 users. “We are reviewing the possibility to secure more memory space through further software optimisation,” a spokesperson told CNET UK.

Meanwhile, at Google I/O, the Android-maker announced a new version of the Galaxy S4 that will come with stock Android software. If leaving out Samsung’s TouchWiz UI frees up a significant amount of space for users, Google could have a highly competitive device on its hands.

Quick action buttons will appear next to certain messages in users’ inboxes, depending on their content. For example, an invite email will have an ‘RSVP’ button, or an order confirmation will have a ‘Track Package’ button.

These buttons will let users take action on an email without even opening it up.

Another common email being optimised by Gmail is the good old flight confirmation. When these emails are opened, flight information will be displayed across the top of the message, letting users know at a glance their departure and arrival times, terminal and gate details, and if there are delays that will affect them. This information bar also includes a link to flight check-in.

^{Gmail inbox with quick action buttons}

Much like Google Now tries to anticipate your searches based on information it knows about you, Gmail will use the information in your emails to predict the actions you might want or need to take. It’s about streamlining the email experience and could lessen the time it takes to manage your inbox and complete tasks.

Google Now has also been improved on, with more cards added and a desktop version created.

^{Email opened in Gmail with flight information}

Quick action buttons will roll out to Gmail users over the next few weeks and the Gmail team hopes to expand on their functionality going forward, inviting developers to create actions for their emails.

Google also announced that its Google Wallet payments service (available in the US only) will be integrated with Gmail, allowing users to pay others by email. Payments can be transferred by simply clicking ‘Attach Money’ in the email composer, just as you would to attach a document or a photo. These payments are free to bank accounts connected with Wallet while others will incur a small transaction fee.

^{Google Wallet integration with Gmail}

The new Google Maps interface demonstrated at I/O does away with the sidebar and makes all maps full-screen by default with additional information overlaid on the map view. The entire map is interactive, too, and updates as you use it.

For example, a search won’t bring up a list of places but instead will instantly label results on the map. Clicking on a location will then highlight the roads and routes most relevant.

This interactivity will become more sophisticated the more it learns about individual users, so in this way the new Google Maps will encourage users to engage more with Google’s services, rating locations and writing reviews.

The new Google Maps also better showcases the vast catalogue of imagery Google has from all over the world, from 360-degree panoramic Street View images, to integration with detailed 3D images from Google Earth (available only through WebGL-enabled browsers, like Chrome).

Though it was not announced when the new Google Maps will be made available to users, you can request an invite through a preview website.

TouchWiz is the front-end touch interface developed by Samsung that appears on its Android devices, just as HTC overlays its Android stock with HTC Sense. While some users are happy with the Samsung-made interface, die-hard Android fans prefer to run the operating system as was originally intended by its creators, which is what you get with Google’s range of Nexus hardware.

But, seeing as Samsung is the most popular Android smartphone provider in the world, it’s a smart move for Google to launch its own version of Samsung’s latest flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S4, with a stripped-out stock Android interface. This way, Google likely hopes to get its unadulterated Android experience into more hands.

Google’s version of the S4 will run Android 4.2 Jelly Bean and it has been promised that any updates to the system will be rolled out to users promptly.

A 16GB unlocked version of Google’s Galaxy S4 will cost US$649 on Google Play in selected markets. (Unfortunately, Ireland is not one of the markets where devices can be purchased through Google Play.)

As predicted, the announcement was made by series producer Kazunori Yamauchi during the Gran Turismo 15 Year Celebration Event at the Silverstone Circuit in the UK.

Gran Turismo 6 will carry over all the cars and tracks featured in Gran Turismo 5 while also making a number of additions, including the famous Silverstone Circuit. In total there will be 33 tracks and 71 different layouts plus 1,200 cars with the new game at launch.

A new compact game engine will make it easier to add downloadable content to GT6 and the makers have promised to make new cars and tracks, as well as thousands of custom parts and wheels, available on a continuous basis.

GT6 also claims to have an improved course-maker and even more true-to-life detail. Connectivity to other devices, such as smartphones and tablets, has also been expanded and the game will offer increased social and community functions.

It was also revealed at the event that, in 15 years, the Gran Turismo franchise has seen 70m sales, 10m of which come from 2010’s GT5.

Fans may be disappointed that the game will be arriving on PlayStation 3 instead of the upcoming PlayStation 4 console, but this development was reported earlier this year by Siliconrepublic.com following a round-table discussion with senior VP of SCEE’s Worldwide Studios Michael Denny.

Listen to ‘Clip from interview with Michael Denny, SVP, SCEE Worldwide Studios’ on Audioboo 

More news on Gran Turismo 6 will come at E3 and Gamescom later this year.

Prices for the new computer start at €879 for the 64GB configuration and €979 for the 128GB configuration.

Surface Pro, powered by an Intel Core i5 processor, is equivalent to a full-blown Windows 8 laptop that also boasts tablet capabilities.

Accessories for device include Touch Cover, a super-thin, spill-resistant cover with a pressure-sensitive keyboard that comes in a variety of colours, as well as a Type Cover, one of the thinnest mechanical keyboards available, HD AV and VGA adaptors, and the Wedge Touch Mouse Surface Edition.

The Surface Pro also comes with a Surface pen device that enables users to handwrite onto the screen.

The machine comes with an ultra-light durable casing and an integrated kickstand and cover that allow users to be productive anywhere, as well as a full-sized USB port and microSDXC card slot for adding additional storage and a 16:9 widescreen high-definition display.

“Surface Pro is a unique Windows 8 device which provides an amazing entertainment and business experience,” said Patrick Ward, Windows Business group lead at Microsoft.

The machine will be available to buy on Microsoft’s online store and at various Harvey Norman stores on 30 May.

The I-VOL database can be accessed through www.volunteer.ie and contains information on about 5,000 active volunteering opportunities nationwide.

Appropriately, for the week that’s in it, software engineer Simon Brown volunteered his time to develop the app especially for National Volunteering Week.

According to Volunteer Ireland, the agency and local volunteer centres have registered 34,107 volunteers who have contributed more than 1m hours of their time at a value to the economy of €22.7m.

The I-VOL app is available from the iTunes App Store and Google Play.

Volunteering image via imanolqs/Shutterstock

Despite having no formal training in the subject, Hornby created and produced three of the most popular engineering-based toys of the 20th century.

Seen as a toy visionary, Hornby first patented his Meccano construction set of re-usable metal strips, plates, angle girders, wheels, axles, gears, nuts and bolts in 1901, though at that time he called it Mechanics Made Easy.

He established Meccano Ltd in 1908, which went on to produce the die-cast miniature model cars and trucks that made up Dinky Toys in the Thirties. The company also produced the Hornby Railways model train sets.

Hornby’s birthday will be celebrated through a four-day festival in Liverpool, where he was born. The Hornby festival will include a play, a lecture at the Museum of Liverpool, and an exhibition dedicated to the toymaker, while elsewhere in England Frank Hornby Week was launched on Monday at Brighton Toy and Model Museum.

The infographic by Neomammalian Studios illustrates eight steps on how to rescue a phone from a fall in the toilet, and preventative measures to implement if a phone must accompany a user to the loo. For example, act quickly to fish the phone out of the toilet to prevent water from further infiltrating the phone, and invest in a waterproof case.

The infographic even highlights some water-resistant phones that are on the market today.

Smartphone in water image via Shutterstock

Live streaming of the event will be brought to you by Google Developers Live (GDL), which will turn the I/O 2013 homepage into a live-streaming hub from 5pm until 3am IST both today and tomorrow.

Streams won’t just cover the event keynotes but will offer four channels available for viewing on computers, tablets and phones. GDL has also promised exclusive interviews with the men and women behind the products announced, as well as sandbox walkthroughs, product unboxings and demos.

An I/O mobile app will feature updates from the GDL team in real-time, as will the Google Developers page on Google+. Users on either Google+ or Twitter can follow the event using the hashtag #io13.

Technical sessions from the two-day event will be recorded and posted to GDL’s website and the Google Developers YouTube channel.

Last year’s I/O event in June set the bar high with a dramatic unveiling of Project Glass that included a video showing users wearing the smart glasses while jumping out of a plane. We also got our first look at the Nexus 7 tablet and the lesser-spotted-since Nexus Q media hub, as well as the latest Android software and news of updates to a number of Google services.

I/O Extended events will also be happening at more than 400 sites in more than 90 countries. The Dublin event takes place at Google’s Dublin HQ on Barrow Street from 4.45pm to 8.30pm IST, and attendees will be treated to an early product reveal from I/O day two.

In a blog post, senior Microsoft communications marketing manager Brandon LeBlanc referred to a speech by Tami Reller, chief marketing officer and chief financial officer of Microsoft’s Windows division at today’s JP Morgan Technology Conference in Boston, where she said Microsoft’s goal is to create a richer experience with every Windows update.

“Today at the JP Morgan Technology, Media & Telecom Conference in Boston, Tami Reller shared with the audience that the update previously referred to as ‘Windows Blue’ will be called Windows 8.1 and will be a free update to Windows 8 for consumers through the Windows Store,” LeBlanc confirmed.

LeBlanc said Microsoft now has more than 70,000 apps in the Windows store, including Twitter, eBay, Neflix and games like Temple Run and Angry Birds Star Wars.

He said OEMs like Dell, Lenovo, Sony and Acer have stepped up to the plate with incredible and unique new form factors.

In recent weeks, Reller revealed that Windows 8 had sold 60m licences by the start of this year, just more than two months after its release in late October last year. Now, after a half-year on the market, the operating system has reached 100m licences, counting both new devices sold and upgrades, and there are 2,400 certified Windows 8 and Windows RT devices available on the market.

The evolution of the PC

“As PCs continue to evolve for this world of mobile computing, so does Windows 8,” LeBlanc said.

“Windows 8.1 is part of that and continues the journey we first began with Windows 8 last fall. Windows 8.1 will help us to deliver the next generation of PCs and tablets with our OEM partners and to deliver the experiences customers - both consumers and businesses alike - need and will just expect moving forward.

“Today, there are more devices – and choice – allowing you to pick the right Windows 8 device that meets your needs. Windows 8 provides a great experience for consuming and creating content, for both work and play and on the go. And you’ll immediately benefit from continual updates – whether it’s from app updates through the Windows Store, performance updates through Windows Update or the Windows 8.1 update later this year.

“We have much more to share about Windows 8.1 in the coming weeks. We will also be making a public preview of Windows 8.1 available starting on June 26, timed with the Build developer conference in San Francisco. The preview will be available for Windows 8 and Windows RT,” LeBlanc said.

At the time of writing, Apple had achieved 49.921bn downloads, according to a special odometer on its homepage, built to mark the amount of apps being sold on a continuous basis.

Apple points out the significance of the 50bn milestone by indicating it would take 1,600 years to count to 50bn, that 50bn steps would see a person circumnavigate the Earth 800 times and that 50bn bricks would build 12 different Great Walls of China.

Apple kickstarted the app revolution in 2008 as an update to iTunes, in turn turning the history of software as we knew it on its head.

The move, which came just a year after Apple launched the iPhone, transformed the very act of buying software; prior to this users could only download software to their desktops or install it by disk and software was only loaded to mobile devices via USB cables.

Today, the average Angry Birds or Temple Run fan with an internet connection can download an app to their device of choice in seconds for free or billed to their iTunes account.

The speed of growth in app downloads has been significant. As of January 2011, there were 10bn app downloads. By July 2011, this had risen to 15bn app downloads by 200m iOS users.

By January of this year, Apple confirmed that 40bn apps had been downloaded and confirmed 500m active user accounts.

At that point it said the Apple developer community had so far developed more than 775,000 apps for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch devices.

Breakout was developed as a single-player alternative to another immensely popular Atari game from the Seventies: Pong.

Apple’s co-founder Steve Wozniak worked on the prototype, allegedly staying up for four days straight to finish the job. However, his design was not used for the final product and Atari went with its own version instead.

Released in April 1976, fans of the classic game can revisit it by searching for ‘Atari Breakout’ on Google Image Search. In doing so, the images from the results page transform into colourful blocks and a user-controlled paddle at the bottom of the screen is used to bounce a ball off the blocks to destroy them. But don’t let that ball touch the bottom of the screen!

The Easter egg first popped up on our radar last night, as news of it spread across Twitter.

^{Screen shot of the Google Image Search Easter egg for Atari Breakout}

Special thanks to Adam Renardson (@ARenardson) for the tip

The Lumia 925’s reveal follows hot on the heels of the Lumia 928 announced for the US market last week. It features a 4.5-inch AMOLED WXGA display at a resolution of 1,280 x 768, which also comes with ClearBlack technology and claims to be Nokia’s brightest yet, readable at all angles and in direct sunlight.

For the first time in Nokia’s Lumia range, the 925 features an aluminium frame that incorporates the device’s antenna. While the metal edge provides increased robustness, Nokia hasn’t stepped cleanly away from polycarbonate casing, which appears on the rear in a choice of white, grey or black. A separate wireless charging cover (available in more vibrant colour options typical to the Lumia range) can be clipped to the back to avail of this technology.

Smart Camera

The 925’s 8.7MP camera with optical image stabilisation was the main focus of the presentation in London this morning. As well as announcing the arrival of Hipstamatic’s Windows Phone 8 app Oggl, Nokia revealed its new Smart Camera mode that lets users take 10 images from a single shot (at 5MP each) and edit these to create the best possible photo as often as they want.

Best Shot lets users pick the best of the 10 shots, while Change Faces lets them edit subject’s faces to produce the perfect group shot. Action Shot superimposes one image onto the other to capture movement in one image, Motion Focus creates motion blur in the background and sharpens the subject in the foreground, while Remove Moving Objects can edit out any stray objects that interrupted your shot.

^{Images demonstrating the Motion Focus (top) and Action Shot functions of Nokia’s Smart Camera on the Lumia 925}

Smart Camera will be made available to all Windows Phone 8 devices in the Lumia range through a firmware update later this year.

Arriving in June

Other features of the Lumia 925 include a super-sensitive touchscreen for use wearing gloves, 1.2MP front-facing wide-angle camera 2,000mAh battery, 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon processor, 1GB RAM, and 16GB internal memory.

While you’re not likely to be blown away by these specifications and a lot of its photographic innovations have been scooped by Samsung’s Galaxy S4, the Lumia 925 presents users with a much more affordable alternative for this level of functionality.

We know for definite that the device will launch with Vodafone in Europe, reaching the UK, Germany, Italy and Spain first in June, but a release date for Irish customers is yet to be announced.

The Lumia 925 will be priced around €469 before taxes and charges.

The images come from Chinese microblogging network Weibo posted by user PunkPanda, whom Engadget claims has a good track record when it comes to early glimpses of Samsung handsets.

The images show the device next its big brother, the Galaxy S4, as well as details such as the rear cover with the same texturised look as the flagship model.

The specifications suggested for the Galaxy S4 Mini are a 4.3-inch display with a resolution of 960 x 540, a dual-core 1.6GHz processor and an 8MP camera.

Like the Galaxy S III Mini, this lower-cost and lower-spec device would provide an alternative to users that covet the full-grown S4 but can’t afford or simply don’t want the high-end handset.

According to sources speaking to The Wall Street Journal, Samsung may also be preparing to release a ruggedised S4 equipped with dust and water resistance this July.

Each computer has been restored, tested and supplied with a new operating system and applications. Prices for desktop computers start at €120 and refurbished laptops start at €180.

Each computer comes with a six-month warranty and the Oxfam Ireland online store has divided the offerings up into three categories: those suitable for students (Surfer), families (Plus) or business users (Pro).

“It’s a win-win situation,” said Oxfam Ireland’s director of trading Trevor Anderson. “Customers get a high-quality desktop or laptop that they might not otherwise be able to afford, while recycling computers is environmentally friendly and diverts them away from local landfill.”

Sale of these computers will go towards helping Oxfam Ireland’s work in communities around the world, including its emergency response teams in Syria and long-term development projects and campaigns.

Ouya now launching on 25 June

Originally set for release to the general public on 4 June, Ouya, the US$99 hackable Android games console, will now hit retailers three weeks later on 25 June in order to ensure that there is plenty of stock available at launch.

The Kickstarter-funded console raised US$8.6m via the crowdfunding website last year, and devices for the project’s backers and those that pre-ordered in March have already shipped. Last week, Ouya raised US$15m in funding from Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Mayfield Fund, Nvidia and others, and it was announced that KPCB partner Bing Gordon will join the company’s board of directors.

Demand for the open-source software console has apparently already exceeded the team’s expectations and, as well as increasing the number of consoles ready for launch, the investment will go towards building Ouya’s development community. Anyone can publish games for the platform and they are all free to try. More than 120 games are playable now, coming from small-time indie developers to large studios like Square Enix, and more than 12,000 developers have registered with the platform.

HTC First ‘Facebook Phone’ drops to US$0.99

The HTC First, the smartphone that puts Facebook Home front and centre, started out at a reasonable US$99.99 in the US, but the price has been slashed to just US$0.99 with a two-year AT&T contract less than one month after its release.

The price drop is even more dramatic when you consider the cost of the phone contract-free was US$350.99 – that’s a 99.72pc discount on a close-to brand new model.

Low prices for smartphones on contract aren’t unusual, and plenty of operators offer devices for free in some cases. It’s just surprising to see such a dramatic price drop so soon after a device’s unveiling. Could this be a sign of trouble for the First?

Facebook doesn’t seem to think so and is determined to look on the bright side, with a spokesperson telling Mashable that it’s a good move by AT&T and Facebook Mobile has even promoted the offer on its page. Meanwhile, Facebook Home has reached 1m downloads and availability has extended to more Android devices.

Nokia’s compact and colourful on-the-go charger

The Universal Portable USB Charger DC-18 from Nokia is expected to be on sale in July for about €15, for which you get a rechargeable battery with a capacity of 1,720mAh that can be used to charge any smartphone (or other device) via micro-USB while on the go.

The compact and lightweight device measures less than 6cm squared with a retractable USB cord. The battery symbol on the front lights up when the USB cord is pulled out, indicating how much powers is left in the charger.

Available in a variety of colours to complement Nokia’s colourful Lumia and Asha line-ups, this handy, colourful device would be useful for almost any smartphone user (except iPhone, of course).

Flight passengers not switching off when told

A survey by the Airline Passenger Experience Association (APEX) and Consumer Electronics Association in the US found that 30pc of flight passengers have accidentally left a device on during take-off or landing. While 59pc of those surveyed said they always switch off fully, 21pc said they just switch to flight mode. And what’s the device most often left on accidentally? The smartphone.

It has often been debated whether switching off devices for take-off and landing is necessary and 40pc of passengers would like to use their devices during all phases of flight, the study revealed.

The results of this study have been submitted to the US Federal Aviation Administration, which is currently reviewing policies for the use of personal electronic devices during flights, and a Portable Electronic Devices Aviation Rulemaking Committee (PED ARC) will make recommendations on the expansion of their usage in-flight by July 2013.

Appy in your nappy

The TweetPee device from Huggies Brazil can be affixed to a baby’s nappy and tweet parents when it becomes wet. A sensor in the device detects increased humidity from the nappy and connects to an iPhone app, which not only alerts mammy or daddy that baby needs changing but also tracks baby’s toilet habits and tells parents how many nappies they have left and lets them order more online if they are running low.

The video below (in Portuguese) demonstrates the app and device in action, but so far TweetPee is just a concept and not available to tech-savvy parents just yet.

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