Welcome to BitStream, our new morning roundup that feeds you all the news tidbits (and rumours) you missed in the last 24 hours.
User revolt!
Snapchat updated their ephemeral messaging app, bringing a new feature called Discover, a way for unruly teens to find (sponsored) content on the web. But in the process, they removed the app’s Best Friends feature and Snapchat’s legion of youths got seriously pissed off.
So what is the Big Deal? Well, Best Friends let you see who was snapping with whom the most, so you could see if bae’s best SnapFriends were sketchy. Not. Any. More. And according to Twitter, it’s Christmas come late for all those “cheaters” and “hoes” out there.
You can’t see best friends on snapchat anymore.. It’s like an early Christmas present for all the cheaters out there #ohdear
— Jack Eagles (@Jackk321) January 27, 2015
These hoes must be happy af that snapchat don’t have best friends no more
Luckily, CEO Evan Spiegel took literally seven minutes to cave and give users all the stalking powers they were desperately craving.
We’ll bring back BFs soon. A few higher-profile friends wanted to keep their usernames private – we’ll come up with a better way to do that.
— Evan Spiegel (@evanspiegel) January 27, 2015
Crisis averted. [ BuzzFeed]
Google Fiber expands to even more people (that you will envy)
I’m totally not jealous of people currently living in the Atlanta, Charlotte, Raleigh-Durham, and Nashville areas who are about to get Google Fiber. I mean, what do you really need 1Gbps internet speeds for anyway. What’s that? My 10Mbps internet just cut out for second. Additionally, not upset that Google is also looking for ways to bring fibre to Phoenix, Portland, Salt Lake City, San Antonia and San Jose. Not at all bitter that it seems Bozeman, Montana, will get Fiber before I do.
If you happen to live in these areas, then I’m truly happy for you. This is 100 per cent genuine. Yep…. Have a great day! [CNET]
Apple makes bank
Apple had its quarterly earnings call yesterday, and with stupid strong iPhone sales as well as a swelling of sales in China, Apple completely crushed expectations and sold 74.1 million iPhones. All of that comes out to about $US18 billion in profit and $US74.6 billion in revenue (with a “b”).
Misfit’s Flash fitness tracker is now waaaaay better
Have you seen Misfit’s neat Flash fitness tracker? It’s like a little hockey puck on your wrist that passively counts your steps and REM cycles. Now it can do much more, like controlling Spotify, Nest integration (!), IFTTT tie-ins, and yes, you can YO with it if you want. All pretty impressive for that teeny $US50 tracker. [ Misfit]
Rumourtown
- Ever look at the bottom of the HTC One (M8) screen? That stupid HTC logo that serves no purpose at all is absolutely maddening, but hopefully, this superfluous piece of design is going bye bye. [Cult of Android]
- Sony is supposedly ready to dump a thousand jobs from its mobile division, which is a real bummer because they make great phones. But most of the world seems to disagree. [Android Central]
- A bunch of Apple patents for iDevice game controls cropped up and they kind of look terrible. [Apple Insider]
- The Wall Street Journal says Huawei is fed up with the low-end game and wants to make expensive smartphones. No one tell them how many iPhones Apple just sold. [WSJ]
Your Apps, Updated
- Apple pushed out update 10.10.2 for Mac OS X, mainly addressing a bunch of security issues detailed by Google’s Project Zero. You’re gonna want this update, for sure. [Mac Rumours]
- Speaking of Apple updates, you can now download the new iOS that updates iOS to require less space when you update iOS. [Ars Technica]
- HipChat joins Facebook at Work and the fast-growing Slack as a business chat alternative with HipChat Server. Man, good luck with that competition. [The Next Web]
Bucket of random
- Having a flip phone today, in certain circles, could be laughable offence…but LG’s new Ice Cream Smart are for those who still miss cellular origami. [GSM Arena]
- Lyft ditches its tattered, old fuzzy-stache for a new “glowstache” that delivers a new “illuminated in-car experience”. You know, if that’s something you want. [Lyft]
- The WWE Network needed one million subscribers to stay profitable, and now it has them. But is that data even real, man? No.. unlike wrestling, this is probably real. [WWE]
What You May Have Missed on Gizmodo
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We’ve Officially Entered a New Age For Mega-Airports