All posts tagged: Unlocks

Your library card unlocks a free movie streaming service most people don’t know about

Your library card unlocks a free movie streaming service most people don’t know about

Published by skeptic

Kerry Wan/ZDNET Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google. ZDNET’s key takeaways Kanopy is a free streaming service with thousands of titles. All you need to sign up is a participating library card. You’re limited to 10 titles per month.  If you’re tired of ever-increasing streaming prices, there’s a good chance you have access to a free streaming service with a fairly impressive catalog of titles — all thanks to your local library. Kanopy is a streaming app that’s available for iOS, Android, Apple TV, Chromecast, and Roku devices.  Also: The 7 best free video streaming services: Watch TV and movies for free No charge, on-demand titles include popular movies like “The Wolf of Wall Street,” “The Truman Show,” and “Into the Wild,” classic films, PBS content, the Criterion Collection, the Great Courses, (which lets you stream over 18,000 lectures in history, science, philosophy, religion, literature, health, travel, and more) documentaries, world cinema, and more. There’s even a Kanopy Kids section and seasonal Halloween and Christmas selections that rotate out. The service adds new titles …

This Free App Unlocks AirPods Features on Android Devices

This Free App Unlocks AirPods Features on Android Devices

Published by skeptic

AirPods have always worked with Android phones, but with limited functionality and a less seamless listening experience. A new app called LibrePods is changing that. The free app unlocks features on Android that are typically reserved for Apple devices, including ear detection that pauses music when you remove an earbud, Head Gestures for answering calls, and Conversational Awareness that lowers volume while you’re talking. It also enables switching between noise control modes, checking accurate battery levels, and customizing accessibility settings. To make it all work, developer Kavish Devar reverse-engineered Apple’s proprietary protocols to make AirPods identify a connected Android device as an iPhone or iPad, which tricks them into sharing device status information normally locked to Apple’s ecosystem. There are some caveats, though. LibrePods currently requires a rooted Android phone with the Xposed framework installed, thanks to what Devar calls “a bug in the Android Bluetooth stack.” OnePlus and Oppo devices running ColorOS or OxygenOS 16 can use the app without rooting, however some features like Transparency mode customization still need root access. The app …