Samsung’s Galaxy S7 series is selling a lot better than the Galaxy S6 did

 It’s become increasing common to hear of Samsung’s mobile business struggling, but the early signs around its newest devices suggest that the company could turn the tide. Read More

Hands on with Reddit’s new smartphone app

 “Finally” is one of those words that gets overused in tech news stories, but I think it’s fair to say that it’s taken a pretty long time for Reddit to release its first official, native apps for iOS and Android. Until now, the company has made do with Alien Blue, which started out as a third-party app before being acquired by Reddit in 2014. But as Sarah Perez… Read More

Now’s your chance to try Signal’s desktop Chrome app

 The desktop version of Edward Snowden’s favored end-to-end messaging system, Signal, is now available to anyone who wants to check it out. Open Whisper Systems announced the desktop version back in December, but until today it was invite-only. Read More

Litsy is a book-focused social network that goes beyond reviews

 If you’re a book lover, Litsy might be the social app for you. The startup was founded by Todd Lawton and Jeff LeBlanc, who previously launched the book-themed clothing company Out of Print. Lawton told me the idea for Litsy came from connecting with Out of Print fans at events like book festivals and comic book conventions. “We realized that there’s a really passionate… Read More

Facebook will announce chatbot and live chat APIs at F8

 Chatbots could replace 1-800 numbers, and Facebook wants them on Messenger. But most businesses don’t have the resources or technical skills to build chatbots themselves.  That’s why Facebook is currently providing developers with API tools to build chatbots and Live Chat web plugins for business clients, according to multiple sources and a leaked deck Facebook shared with devs.… Read More

Rapchat makes me the rapper I always knew I was

 We covered Rapchat a little bit earlier this year, and I finally decided it was time to take it for a spin. I know I’ve got sweet rapping skills, and I know when it’s time to lay a sick beat and spit some fire, so that’s why I’m doing this in-depth review of Rapchat. Read More

Facebook pushes businesses to Messenger with new tools for Pages, including Snapchat-like scannable codes

 A day after people started noticing Facebook was now suggesting business to chat with while in Messenger, the social network officially announced a suite of tools and updates designed to help Facebook users better connect with the businesses using its platform. As part of these changes, businesses will now see their Facebook Page usernames being more heavily promoted across the site, and… Read More

Facebook adds video search to combat original content sharing decline

 Facebook is desperate to get you to watch original videos. They’re all over the feed, yesterday it launched a dedicated video browsing hub, and now it’s announcing a video search engine. It’s also baking Live videos into its Trends in search, and will show when there’s a Live video broadcasting related to one of its Trending Topics on the home page. Over the past few… Read More

Chatty fiction app Hooked gets an update where readers can write stories, too

 Fiction app Hooked launched last fall, aiming to reinvent fiction with short stories modeled on text message conversations. Next up: Letting readers write their own stories. That arrives today with the launch of Hooked 2.0. Any Hooked reader can now create characters and then write their story one message at a time. They can also include photos and videos. The idea of typing out a full story… Read More

Restaurant waitlisting app NoWait rolls out mobile payments

 Restaurant waitlisting service NoWait is known best by consumers for its mobile app that lets you virtually “get in line” at nearby restaurants like Chili’s and others, where formal reservations may not be accepted. This helps speed up the time it takes to grab a meal, as you don’t have to waste time waiting for a table to become available. Now the company is planning… Read More

Android squeezes iOS’ sales growth in China

 The latest smartphone sales data from Kantar Worldpanel suggests Apple had a tougher time shifting its devices over Chinese New Year than in prior years, with the market watcher noting no growth in marketshare for iOS over the three months ending February 2016 — the first time since August 2014 that Apple has not grown share in urban China, according to its data. Read More

Smartling acquires Jargon to help mobile developers ready their apps for international markets

 Smartling, the translation tech company, has acquired TechStars alumni Jargon on Crunchbase which makes tools for mobile developers who want to “localize” their apps for different international markets, and the devices and app stores that are relevant in each one. New York-based Smartling is known for its “translation management system” software, and marketplace of… Read More