How To Buy Bitcoin From iPhone Or Android Device The Easy Way

Barely a day goes by right now without someone bringing up the subject of Bitcoin, and with values hitting all-new highs of late, it is easy to understand why so many people are asking about the cryptocurrency.

While Bitcoin is so popular and, importantly, so valuable, there will always be people looking to get in on the ground floor and see what all the fuss is about. Thankfully, that is fairly easy to do, and it can all be done from your smartphone.

Whether you are using an iPhone or an Android device, Coinbase is an app and service that will make it as easy as possible to get started with Bitcoin. Whether you are dipping your toe in or taking things to the next level, Coinbase should have what you need. Here’s what you need to do.

Step 1: Open Safari or Chrome and sign up for Coinbase using the link here. Verify your identity. Yes, we know Bitcoin is supposed to be all private and such, but if you want an easy way in, this is the price you pay. The process will differ depending on your country of origin, too.

Step 2: Download the Coinbase app from either the App Store or Play Store.

Step 3: Once all verified, you will need to connect your bank account to Coinbase. Again, the process will be different depending on where you live, but if you’d prefer to use a credit card or debit card, you can – just be aware the limits may be lower.

Step 4: Buy your first Bitcoin. It may take a little while for your identity to be confirmed, but once that has happened, going to the Coinbase home screen will show you the current price. Tapping the Buy button leads to entering the amount of Bitcoin you want to buy. Now just select the wallet you want the Bitcoins dumped into and away you go.

Step 5: This is an optional step, but if you want to sell Bitcoin, then simply tap on Sell from the Coinbase home screen. You’ll need a bank account connected in order to withdraw your cash, but once you tell the app how much you want to sell, you’re all done.

Just remember folks, Bitcoin can go down in value as well as up; there really is no such thing as a free lunch.

How To Install / Flash Android 4.0.3 ICS On Unlocked Galaxy S II i9100

Having only seen the light of day through the Galaxy Nexus initially, Google’s release of Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich was beginning to become an easy target of flak from the tech world. The Big G’s latest – and supposedly greatest – mobile OS had only reached a miserly 1% of the total Android population at the turn of the year, and rivals Apple must have been chuckling at Google’s abject display in how not to announce and release a firmware update.

In Google’s defense, however, Ice Cream Sandwich seems to be picking up some much-needed momentum – just in time for summer, no less. The official ROMs have been arriving thick and fast, usually a couple of weeks prior to the official OTA updates. Today, those running the UK and Australia region devices of Samsung’s flagship Galaxy S II device can now flash / install the updated and official Ice Cream Sandwich (4.0.3) ROM.

If you wish to finally shake off the Gingerbread moniker from your UK / Australia Samsung Galaxy S II, then please heed the steps in the following tutorial carefully.

DISCLAIMER: Redmond Pie will not be held responsible if you lose data or your device gets damaged in the following of this guide. Proceed at your own risk.

Step 1: Download the .zip specific to your particular device. Version I9100XWLP7 should be selected by those running a UK and Ireland purchased device, while those in Australia running on the Optus network should opt for build I9100XWLP8.

Step 2: Next, you’ll need to open Odin, which is included with the firmware file.

Step 3: Enable ‘USB Debugging‘ on your Galaxy S II by heading over to  Settings > Applications > Development.

Step 4: Put your device in Recovery Mode by selecting Home + Volume up + Power.

Step 5:  Next, select wipe data / factory reset. Then, in advanced, select wipe cache.

Step 6: Remove your battery from your device, then put it back in.

Step 7: Put your device into Download Mode by pressing Power + Volume down + Homesimultaneously.

Step 8: In Odin, click PDA, then navigate to the extracted folder containing the downloaded Ice Cream Sandwich files and locate the file with the .tar.md5 extension.

Step 9: Then finally, click Start to begin the process.

And that – as they say – is that. Your painless, simple steps to unofficially running the official ICS ROM for your device!

 

Source: RedmondPie(DOT)com

Notification Toggle For Android Lets You Add System Toggles And App Shortcuts In The Pull-Down Notifications Bar

Android users are very proud of their notification area. It is one of the features that they have long lauded over iPhone owners as the biggest advantage of Google’s smartphone OS over that of Apple’s. iOS 5′s Notification Center has gone some way towards redressing the balance somewhat, but one thing is still missing.

That thing is customizability. Nobody in their right mind can argue that iOS offers more on the customizability front, which is why this app would never find its way onto the App Store.

Notification Toggle takes Android’s notification shade and makes it even more useful than it already was. Not content with being told when your emails have turned up, you can now make the most of all that space by adding icons that will give you super quick access to a range of apps and features.

Want to be able to launch your camera app as quickly as possible? Need to be able to turn Wi-Fi on and off with a the flick of a button? Notification Toggle will let you add buttons for just such an occasion, with over twenty features and apps to choose from.

If you’ve got some system toggles that need to be accessed regularly, perhaps you need to turn 4G on and off, then Notification Toggle may well be something that will fit the bill for you.  Screen brightness settings? No problem.

The best part? Notification Toggle won’t cost you a penny.

While Notification Toggle certainly is not the first app to bring buttons to the notification shade in Android, it does appear to be one of the best reviewed options. A quick glance at the reviews on the app’s Google Play page shows that currently garners 4.5 stars out of 5, from over 1,700 scores. With Android app downloaders notoriously difficult to please, and with plenty of choice out there, we would certainly say that Notification Toggle seems to be the choice of many.

If you have a favorite app that offers similar functionality to Notification Toggle, then be sure to let us know on Facebook. Adding buttons and shortcuts to Android’s notification system is one of the most useful additions to the stock Android OS that we can think of, and if you know of a better alternative to the ones we already know about then we would love to hear about them.

Download Notification Toggle for Android [Google Play link]

Samsung Sends Out Press Invite For Samsung Galaxy S III, Will Be Unveiled On May 3rd In London

After months of speculation as to when Samsung would unveil its much sought-after Galaxy S III smartphone, press invites have now been sent out for the May 3 event in London, UK.

In an overt attempt to draw additional interest (if it was ever required), the device isn’t explicitly named for the ceremony referred to as “Samsung Mobile Unpacked” in which those invited can “Come and meet the next Galaxy.”

The event will commence from 7pm BST (2pm ET), and will undoubtedly sap much of the media’s attention. Beside the potential of Apple releasing a new iPhone this year, the Samsung Galaxy S III is easily the most wanted phone in the gadgetsphere, and with such an almighty repertoire of specs, it’s not too difficult to see why.

From what we’ve gathered hitherto, the device will include a 1.5GHz quad-core Samsung Exynos processor, a 2-megapixel front facing camera for video calling, with the main camera boasting 8 megapixels. While we expect 4G LTE connectivity, it remains to be seen whether the ceramic casing – heavily tipped by a variety of sources – will finish of the device. Android devices in general have been criticized for their cheap outer materials, so a ceramic outer would make the device feel a lot more sturdy, while also adding a touch of class. Meanwhile, the screen is purported to be a  4.6-4.8-inch Super AMOLED Plus 1280 x 720 display – the same resolution as seen on the Google Galaxy Nexus. But, at one point we even heard that the Galaxy S III might pack in a 1920 x 1080 res display, but we somewhat doubt that would happen.

With Samsung being huge sponsors of the London Olympic Games, it was always presumed England would be the location for the announcement of the device. Whilst we can understand why the Koran LCD specialist has followed Apple’s example in meticulously transporting disguised prototypes, we don’t expect the device to mimic Apple’s “New iPad” trend by not properly naming it. We’ve presumed the device will be called the Galaxy S III, and if Samsung wants consumers to identify with it as the sequel to its Galaxy S II – the most popular Android device to date – then changing its name would certainly confuse consumers.

Then again, stranger things have happened, so I guess we’ll have to wait and see what Samsung has planned come May 3rd.

We can’t wait, can you? 😉

Tweaked Google Play Store App v3.5.16 For Android Removes Country Restrictions

Although Google and Apple’s respective online app stores make it easy for smartphone and tablet users to find exciting games, tricky puzzles, and productive task-managers, country restrictions can be of extreme annoyance.

If you have an Android, it wouldn’t be outlandish of you to presume your device hones the ability do run any app gracing the Play Store. Not so; because as well as issues with compatibility – some apps are only compatible with Ice Cream Sandwich, or Gingerbread – there comes a time for nearly every Droid user where, in trying to install an app, you’ll find it just won’t happen if you don’t live in a supported country.

Let’s not beat around the bush, this issue will seldom arise for those residing in the United States – if at all. But there are many apps out there that, as a rule, will not work for those outside of an allotted area – even if there is no restriction to the app itself.

Whenever there’s an issue to be solved – at least from an Android perspective – the talented brains gracing the XDA Developers forums are usually on hand with the antidote. On this occasion, it comes in the form of Senior Member Deeco7, who’s put together a modified Google Play Store .APK, rendering those annoying country restrictions as a thing of the past. Once installed, you’ll be able to download whatever you want from Google’s recently-renamed mobile app hub – providing, of course, that your device is compatible.

We’ve put together a little step by step tutorial if you feel like trying out the modded .APK files.

DISCLAIMER: Proceed with caution and at your own risk. Redmond Pie is not to be held responsible for any loss of data or any damage to your phone as a result of you following this tutorial.

Step 1: Download the modded .APK file from the original thread over at XDA.

Step 2: Connect your device to your computer.

Step 3: Place the .APK on your device, but don’t use adb install; it won’t work since the Play Store file will already exist.

Step 4: Open the .APK with a file explorer of your choosing, and install. When prompted as to whether you wish to replace the current Play Store app, you’ll want to select “Yes”.

Step 5: After a short install process, that’s it. Your new, modded unrestricted Play Store app will be in full flow.

How Often And Where Are Most Smartphones Lost [INFOGRAPHIC]

We’ve all been there. You reach to your pocket, expecting to find your smartphone, and are soon overcome by blind panic when, after consulting your remaining pockets, the notion that your device is lost begins to set in.

Fortunately, ninety-nine percent of the time, it’s a false alarm, and the precious device is located safe and sound (often in a place you already thought you’d checked). Every minute of every day, however, others aren’t so lucky, and from restaurants to gas stations, thousands of people are losing their prized devices.

An interesting infographic compiled by BackgroundCheck.org shows the trends of the lost devices worldwide, and specifically among American citizens, based on the research of Lookout Mobile Security. It found the total value of daily lost devices to be in excess of a staggering $7 million, although that number doubled over the new year celebration period.

Special events and festivals – as you might expect – turn up a lot of unrecoverable devices, with 30% more phones lost in Cologne carnival than on a normal day.

The specific locations in which devices are lost certainly makes for interesting reading. In Chicago, for example, coffee shops are the hotspots for losing phones, along with San Francisco. Interestingly, bars and clubs – both places one would presume high cellphone loss – don’t make the charts. It could just be that people don’t lose their devices as much in these areas, but considering even Apple itself has lost prototype devices in San Fran bars, we highly doubt this to be the case.

Those in Seattle are most likely to come away from a fast food joint minus their pocket partner, while those in Philadelphia run a fairly high risk of coming away from Church without their phone. As is the case in Chicago, the place of prayer ranks as the third most common place to lose a phone.

Besides being largely expensive devices to replace, there’s also the implication of private data and information being lost, and privacy invaded by others.

To conclude this sermon, the best thing to do is make sure your device is locked with a secure password / passcode, and make sure you back everything up, covering your back should the unthinkable occur.

(via Mashable)