The New Storytelling App Galatea Brings Special Effects To Smartphone Fiction

collected by :John Smith

A just-launched new smartphone fiction app, Galatea, is betting it can do just that. ARTICLE CONTINUES AFTER ADVERTISEMENTThe app, out from writing social platform and publisher Inkitt, boasts an impressive range of special effects aimed at drawing readers deeper into a story. Sound effects, visual effects and even haptic feedback are all included, and the text itself is written with internet-era attention spans in mind, arriving one spare sentence at a time. If they want more, they'll pay with in-app purchases of points they can spend – 40 points cost $1.99, while 250 points cost $9.99. "A type of storytelling that would still involve the readers' visual imagination since that's the best part of books and would even enhance it.

DxOMark Now Tests Smartphone Selfie Cameras With New Scores

ShareDxOMark Image Labs tests and ranks cameras and smartphones — and now, front-facing cameras too. The Selfie scores are divided into subcategories for exposure, color, focus, texture, noise, artifacts, and flash. DxOMark's ranking system will remain separate for the existing mobile and the new Selfie category. DxOMark says the company decided to add a separate category for the front-facing cameras because of the different hardware typically used in the selfie cameras. DxOMark is known for hardware testing and lab analysis of cameras, for both stand-alone cameras and smartphones.

New SteelSeries Controller Tackles PC, VR and Smartphone Gaming

As it stated in SteelSeries today launched a new gaming controller, the Stratus Duo, boasting dual wireless standards for cross-platform compatibility across PC, virtual reality (VR) and more. Credit: SteelSeriesThe Stratus Duo features both Bluetooth 4.1 and 2.4GHz connections, which SteelSeries claims will allow for direct plug-and-play support with Windows, Android, Oculus Go and Samsung Gear VR over Bluetooth. For devices without Bluetooth, the included USB wireless adapter will enable use of the 2.4GHz connection. The SteelSeries Stratus Duo controller sells for $59.99 on the SteelSeries website. SteelSeries Stratus Duo Controller Specs

Army to Release New Recruiting Smartphone App

JUST IN: Army to Release New Smartphone App to Aid Recruitment (UPDATED)Photo: IstockThe Army has been struggling to meet its recruitment goals, but the service will soon release a new smartphone application to get at the problem, the chief of the Army Reserve said Jan. 29. The app has other interactive features for users such as group messaging, live polling and location sharing, according to an Army Reserve description of the technology. "I've been shamed by the private sector in terms of how far behind we may be," he said. Last year, the active duty Army, Army Reserve and National Guard all missed their recruiting goals. Updated: This story has been updated to include additional information and clarifications provided by Army Reserve Command about the Double Eagle App and other recruiting efforts.