Facebook Launches New 'Riff' iOS App for Collaborative Videos [iOS Blog]

Facebook today launched a new app called Riff, which is designed to let people create collaborative videos with their friends by linking multiple videos surrounding a single topic.



After downloading the app, anyone can begin a Riff video by shooting a clip and giving it a topic. From there, your friends will get a notification to watch what's been uploaded already and an invite to add their own clips to the topic, building on the video. As the video is passed along and more people add to it, it gets longer and longer.



Video must be shot within the Riff app, as there are no uploading tools, and to encourage people to submit their own videos to contribute, there's no liking or commenting. Because some of the Riffs can get long, there are fast forwarding tools, and original Riff creators can moderate new clips to delete portions of the video if necessary.

Anyone can start by creating a video. All you have to do is give it a topic, like #AprilFools, then your friends can view it and choose to add their own clips on that topic. Once a friend adds a clip to your video, your friend's friends will also be shown the video in Riff and will be able to add to it. The potential pool of creative collaborators can grow exponentially from there, so a short video can become an inventive project between circles of friends that you can share to Facebook, or anywhere on the internet, at any time.

Facebook has an example video from Riff available on the new Riff website, created by the cast of An American in Paris on Broadway.



Riff is the latest app coming from Facebook's Creative Labs project, which has also produced apps like Paper , Groups , Rooms , Mentions and Slingshot . Of the apps that have been created by Facebook's Creative Labs, Paper, a news curation app with a magazine-style layout, has proven to be the most popular.



In an interview with TechCrunch, Riff's product manager Josh Miller said Riff was inspired by the videos that were shared during the Ice Bucket challenge, where thousands of people dumped buckets of ice water on their heads in support of ALS and then challenged friends to do the same.



Riff can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]

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Posted in 2015 at 11:45PM, April 01

Video: See what Windows 10 looks like running on an Android phone

Windows Phone hasn't been a serious contender in the mobile world for quite some time, but reports that arose last month indicated that Microsoft was going to be focusing on more than just Windows 10 in 2015. In fact, it looked like the software developer was about to declare war on Android.

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Posted in 2015 at 11:30PM, April 01

Early Benchmarks Put Retina MacBook CPU Performance in Range of 2011 MacBook Air

Though the Retina MacBook isn't officially launching until April 10, an early 64-bit Geekbench benchmark of the entry-level machine was spotted this afternoon, giving us our first glimpse at how the new ultra thin MacBook measures up to existing products in Apple's notebook line.



The 1.1GHz entry-level Retina MacBook with an Intel Core M-5Y31 processor was benchmarked twice, giving two single-core scores of 1924 and 2044, and multi-core scores of 4038 and 4475. Comparatively, the 2015 entry-level MacBook Air with a 1.6GHz Intel Core i5 processor has seen scores in the neighborhood of 2881 (single-core) and 5757 (multi-core), so it's a good bit faster than the new MacBook.





Performance wise, the Retina MacBook seems to be par with the higher-end 2011 MacBook Air with a 1.8GHz Core i7 processor, but graphics performance on the new MacBook, which Geekbench does not measure, should be superior to that machine.



Apple offers two additional processor upgrade options for the Retina MacBook, at 1.2GHz in the higher-end machine and at 1.3GHz as an optional build-to-order upgrade, both of which will see somewhat better performance results than the entry-level 1.1GHz processor.



The new Retina MacBook, which is Apple's thinnest and lightest notebook to date, will go on sale on April 10. Prices start at $1,299 for the 1.1GHz/8GB/256GB model and $1,599 for the 1.2GHz/8GB/512GB model.



(Thanks, David!)

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Posted in 2015 at 11:02PM, April 01

Popular calendar app Sunrise brilliantly trolls users with April Fools gag

Most April Fools Day gags are... bad, just really, really, really bad. However, popular calendar app Sunrise has come up with one that genuinely made us smile by poking fun at its new parent company.

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Posted in 2015 at 10:45PM, April 01

Chris Rock has started snapping selfies every time the cops pull him over

It's safe to say Chris Rock is getting tired of being pulled over by the police this year. Takepart reports that Rock has started snapping selfies every time police pull over his car, something that has already happened to him three times in 2015.

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Posted in 2015 at 09:30PM, April 01

OnePlus has already sold out of its brilliant April Fools joke

OnePlus on Wednesday announced a brand-new product that appeared to be just another April Fools prank from a tech company. However, the OnePlus DR-1 is not just a good-looking joke of a drone, but a real product. The company started taking preorders on its website for the device and they quickly sold out.

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Posted in 2015 at 09:05PM, April 01

Apple Looking for TV Networks to Bear Streaming Costs for Upcoming TV Service

For its upcoming streaming TV service, Apple is asking its content partners to take on the job of streaming television shows and movies to its customers, reports Re/code . Rather than hosting streaming content itself, Apple is requesting that its partners build out the necessary infrastructure and take on the related costs.

Apple is asking TV networks to handle the responsibility and cost of the streaming infrastructure associated with its Web video service, industry executives say. That issue is one of many unresolved questions about the proposed service, which Apple would like to launch next fall but can't until it lines up programming deals.

Negotiations for the streaming service are reportedly being conducted by iTunes chief Eddy Cue, who has told networks and potential partners that Apple wants to concentrate on software and hardware, areas where it excels, while leaving infrastructure concerns in the hands of people who are better suited to handle it.





According to Re/code, the request isn't unusual because content that users stream from existing Apple TV channels and iOS apps is handled by the networks that provide the content, through partnerships with content delivery networks like EdgeCast. Though streaming services aren't overly expensive, at approximately 5 cents per hour per stream, the idea of dealing with the demand of an Apple television service available to millions has "given executives pause."



In addition to leaving infrastructure concerns to those with more experience, a source that spoke to Re/code believes that it's also possible Apple is hoping that if programmers provide the streams, Internet providers like Comcast and Verizon will be less likely to "penalize Apple's service."



Apple is rumored to be working with several partners on its upcoming streaming service, including CBS, ABC, Fox, Discovery, Disney, and Viacom. It may include around 25 channels, and pricing is said to be in the range of $30 to $40. The streaming service may make its debut in June at the 2015 Worldwide Developers Conference ahead of a fall launch.

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Posted in 2015 at 08:53PM, April 01

Upcoming São Paulo Retail Store Gains Apple-Decorated Barricades as Opening Approaches [Mac Blog]

Over the course of the last several weeks, Apple has been hiring new employees for its upcoming Apple Store in São Paulo, Brazil, and as of this week, barriers decorated with Apple logos have gone up around the store, suggesting the store's official launch is growing closer.



Shared by Brazilian site Blog do iPhone [Google Translate], the barricades feature an Apple logo surrounded by dots in varying sizes in silver, gold, and space gray, the colors of the iPhone, the iPad, and the upcoming MacBook.





The words on the walls read "Apple Store Morumbi. Em Breve," which translates to "Coming soon," and another section reads "Entre nessa fessa," roughly translating to "Enter this party."



The São Paulo store is something of a big deal for Apple, because it's only the second store in the country and the first in the metropolis, which is Brazil's most populous city. The first Apple Store in Brazil was opened in Rio de Janeiro in February of 2014.





Apple has a bit of a tough time selling its products in Brazil because the prices are much higher than in other countries. Because of taxes and tariffs on imported goods, the entry level iPhone 6 is priced at R$ 3.499 in the country, equivalent to $1,100 in U.S. dollars, and $450 higher than the price in the United States.



Still, Brazil's first store opening in Rio was very popular, drawing more than 1,700 attendees, and the São Paulo store opening will likely garner even more attention due to the city's size. Last week, we got an early look into the São Paulo store, depicting a standard layout with no particularly impressive architectural flares.



When the Rio store opened, there were 20 days between the time when the barricades went up and launch took place, so if the São Paulo store follows a similar timeline, it could open in late April or early May.

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Posted in 2015 at 07:36PM, April 01

Watch: The first unboxing video of Apple’s gorgeous new MacBook

If you're anxious to get your hands on Apple's gorgeous new MacBook, you can now do so vicariously through a new unboxing video flagged by 9to5Mac on Wednesday.

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Posted in 2015 at 07:51PM, April 01