11 surprises I learned about the Apple Watch

Sarah Tew/CNET

The Apple Watch is a mystery device: that's because it's still not on sale, and few people have worn it yet. I've been wearing Apple's upcoming watch for a week and a half, and even after writing a whole review, I'm still discovering surprises. The Apple Watch, being something extremely new, has quite a few little tricks up its sleeve. There are also a few things you still may not now. These were some of the most interesting revelations I found.

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There aren't any third party watch faces (for now)

Apple's 10 watch faces are beautiful, and incredibly designed...and there aren't any more to choose from. Unlike Pebble, Samsung Gears or Google's Android Wear watches, you can't find other watchfaces to download and install. Not yet, at least, and it hasn't been revealed when or how watchfaces might be sold.

Sarah Tew/CNET

"Power reserve" mode puts your Apple Watch into an odd coma

If your Apple Watch battery gets too low, Power Reserve is there to keep your watch in a pared-down watch mode that just tells the time, nothing else, and lasts for hours. But, if you want to deactivate Power Reserve, you need to reboot the watch: it takes over a minute for the watch to start up again and regain functions.

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You can pay for things without Apple Pay

QR codes: remember them? Thanks to Apple's Passbook app, you can easily add QR codes via your phone and use them on the Apple Watch. I put my Starbucks card into the watch and paid for drinks, no Apple Pay required. This could be a huge help at many places that don't accept Apple Pay, or to use for airline tickets or concerts.

Watch bands can be worn and swapped across Apple Watch models (of the same size)

A fancy band can be put on an Apple Watch Sport, if you wish: the easily swappable bands work across models, as long as you have the same-sized Apple Watch. 38mm and 42mm bands fit differently. Otherwise, you're set.

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You can't use your watch to start and stop calls on your iPhone

Wait, can this be true? It is, weirdly: you can make and answer calls on the Apple Watch, and then hand them off to your iPhone to continue the call there...but, you can't wear headphones connected to your phone, stick your phone in your pocket and use your watch to dial. I hope an update changes that.

Sarah Tew/CNET

Other wireless phone-charging accessories don't work with Apple Watch

The few I've tried -- including those using both major charging standards, Qi and A4WP (Alliance for Wireless Power) -- don't charge the Apple Watch. You need Apple's unique magnetic inductive charge cable, or an actual Apple Watch-ready accessory, as far as I can tell.

Siri is a great shortcut through the Apple Watch's many menus

I never thought Siri would be so useful. I usually use swiping, tapping and the digital crown on the side to find what I need, but pressing and holding the crown down for Siri (or raising the watch and saying, "hey, Siri") lets you launch apps, place calls, dictate messages, or find things you may find difficult to locate. Give it a try.

Sarah Tew/CNET

Some "taptic" sensations were too subtle for me, which made "Prominent Haptic" necessary

Apple's vibrational haptic sensations on Apple Watch are pretty subtle. Too subtle, maybe. I'm used to big buzzes from other smartwatches. Maybe my wrists are numb. I dialed up extra buzzing by clicking "Prominent Haptic" within the Apple Watch's sound and haptics settings, and it seems to do the trick.

You can take screenshots on the Apple Watch

Surprise! I accidentally pressed the Digital Crown and the button below it, and the screen flashed. I checked my iPhone's photo library, and there was a screenshot of the watch display. I didn't use screenshots in my review because it's more useful to see the watch and its display in a natural setting, but it'll come in handy in the future, I'm sure.

Sarah Tew/CNET

It saves a backup on your phone

If you ever unpair or reformat your Apple Watch, which wipes the data, you can restore it again using a local backup it makes on your phone. Your settings and apps get put back on again, and everything feels the same as when you last left it. I did this once, and it worked just fine.

You can pair an external Bluetooth health device to the Apple Watch

This has all sorts of potential. Apple told me you can pair an external Bluetooth heart rate monitor for an alternative to the onboard heart rate measurement in the watch itself, but could you also pair other types of devices in the future? That could make the watch a killer health and medical gadget.

Source: http://www.cnet.com/news/11-surprises-i-learned-about-the-apple-watch/

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Jaden Smith Steps Out in 'Girl Clothes'

By Alynda Wheat

@AlyndaWheat

04/11/2015 AT 10:20 AM EDT

Just last month, Jaden Smith said his wardrobe is inspired by superheroes and that "if somebody is just wearing something for the blogs, that's really sad because they're not living for themselves."

And his latest fashion statement is keeping true to that mantra: The 16-year-old actor-rapper stepped out in what appeared to be a women's black dress paired over denim shorts in Calabasas, California, and also shared photos of his outfits on social media.

Smith, the son of Jada and Will Smith, took to Twitter Thursday to shoot down restrictive style rules.

That Moment When Your Wearing A Dress With No Pants And You Swerve Way To Hard.

Jaden Smith (@officialjaden) April 9, 2015

Smith has been vocal about his sartorial independence. Earlier in the week, he told fans he went to Topshop "to buy some girl clothes, I mean 'clothes.' "

On Saturday, he shared photos of the long, striped number.

Smith has been flexible in fashion for some time, though, introducing gender-neutral tunics and skirts into his 2013 line of clothes for his own label, MSFTSrep. But his threads stretch well beyond ladies wear. He donned an Iron Man costume to hang out with friend Kylie Jenner in May 2013, then wore a pristine white Batman suit to attend the lavish Italian wedding of Jenner's sister Kim Kardashian and Kanye West last May.

Will Smith Gets 'Jiggy With It' on 'Letterman'

Source: http://www.people.com/article/jaden-smith-twitter-girl-clothes

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'Orange Is the New Black' Star Taylor Schilling Admits She Has Never Watched ...

Never seen the show?!

As the rest of us gear up for season three of Orange Is the New Black, Taylor Schilling -- the central star of the show -- is still getting around to watching it!

The 30-year-old actress admitted made the surprising admission to ET Canada in Toronto.

"I actually have not watched the show yet," Schilling said. "My plan going into shooting the next season is to make sure and watch 1, 2 and 3, so I have a lot of television watching to do."

NEWS: 11 Lessons Teresa Giudice Could Learn From 'Orange Is the New Black' Before Prison

Um, what.

We're gonna need awhile to wrap our heads around this.

Now, get all geared up for Orange Is the New Black's new season releasing on June 12 on Netflix by meeting Litchfield's newest inmate -- Ruby Rose!

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Source: http://www.etonline.com/tv/162605_orange_is_the_new_black_star_taylor_schilling_admits_she_has_never_watched_the_show/

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Princeton University Students Start Petition Over Announcement Of Big Sean As ...

[The] Undergraduate Student Government should stop promoting rape culture and misogyny by rescinding the offer to Big Sean to headline Lawnparties Spring '15, a petition to remove Big Sean from the event says.

Various students at Princeton University in New Jersey have expressed their disapproval over Detroit rapper Big Sean being enlisted as the main act for their annual Lawnparties event, according to reports on The Daily Princeton.

After student Duncan Hosie saw the Undergraduate Student Governments (USG) promotional video, which reportedly featured Big Sean repeating the phrase stupid a*s b***h, he got in contact with fellow student Rebecca Basaldua to start a petition against Seans involvement with the event.

After I saw that video, I started researching Big Seans language and I found language that was both misogynistic and homophobic, Hosie said. We wrote an op-ed piece that we published on Google Docs [on Sunday] and wanted to see the number of supporters. Right now, close to 500 people have signed.

The petition reads as follows:

USG Should stop promoting rape culture and misogyny by rescinding the offer to Big Sean to headline Lawnparties Spring '15. In the future, USG should strive to bring non-misogynistic acts to campus.

According to USGs social committee chairman Simon Wu, the board generates a list of five to ten names which are subsequently sent to an entertainment agent that connects USG with the artists in question.

We send them to the agent and then the agent will get back to us with prices and availability, and this is a process that happens about six or seven times before we can find somebody that works, Simon Wu said.

The Daily Princeton spoke with various students to get their reactions to the petition.

Although he believes it would be stupid to try and remove Big Sean this close to the event, Diego Negron-Reichard did say that the protests could help to reform the artist selection process.

I think its ridiculous to try to boycott Lawnparties at this stage, but [the petition] does open up the conversation for next years act and not bringing people that have a possibly harmful message, he said.

Posters have been hung around Princetons campus in protest of Big Seans selection.

A picture of one can be viewed below (via The Daily Princeton):

For additional Big Sean coverage, watch the following DX Daily:

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Source: http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.33346/title.princeton-university-students-start-petition-over-announcement-of-big-sean-as-lawnparties-main-act

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Troy Polamalu's extraordinary act for a Euless Trinity grad and his family

Sarah Hoffman/Staff PhotographerA car parked outside of Euless Trinity High School bears a painted tribute to three former football players at the school who were killed in a vehicle accident Monday, July 29, 2013 outside of Albuquerque, NM. One of those killed was Polo Manukainiu, a DL for the Texas A&M Aggies.

Pittsburgh Steelers safety Troy Polamalu, who announced his retirement Friday after 12 NFLseasons, never metPolo Manukainiu, thethe Trinity alumnus who died withtwo other Euless teenagers in a 2013 car accident.

Polamalu is from California and was aUSC Trojan.Manukainiu attendedTexas A&M, where he was a defensive lineman.

Polamalu is of Samoan descent, while Manukainiu isTongan (the two island nations are separated by about 550 miles of Pacific Ocean).

Even though the two didnt know each other, Polamalupaid for Manukainius funeral and more when he heard of the fatal accident,according to Bruce Feldman of Fox Sports.

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Source: http://highschoolsportsblog.dallasnews.com/2015/04/troy-polamalus-extraordinary-act-for-a-euless-trinity-grad-and-his-family.html/

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Cincinnati Reds links, 4/10/15: St. Louis Cardinals come to town

St. Louis comes to town for a weekend series.

The St. Louis soon-to-be-Reds are in Cincinnati as we speak, where tonight they'll begin game one of a three game weekend series, and there's not much in the game of baseball these days that does more to get the sugars up. Just in case that needed any added emphasis,check out Viva El Birdos' take on how the 2015 rotations of each respective team have been assembled, with the focus on the GM's in charge of making those calls. Looking at the decision to keep Carlos Martinez in the big league rotation reveals a pretty fascinating tale as is, since the Cardinals had no qualms about elevating him to their bullpen despite success as a young starter in the minors. That's a path the Reds have opted against with the likes of Robert Stephenson, Michael Lorenzen, and Raisel Iglesias (for now), and it does appear to reveal a pretty concrete strategy on which Walt Jocketty stands firm. That it comes in contrast with the decision to keep Jason Marquis as a member of the Reds' 2015 rotation makes me want a strong drink or five.

For more on the Cards coming to town,check the Enquirer's preview. SPOILER ALERT: The Reds have had their butts handed to them by St. Louis early and often of late.

Speaking of the Enquirer, C. Trent Rosecrans took a look at the hot start on display from Billy Hamilton in 2015 and exactly what that may mean for the Reds' lineup. I'll freely admit that the biggest worry I had for this Reds season (aside from health, obviously) was whether Hamilton would be able to cut it as a legitimate leadoff hitter, and so far he's done a complete 180 from the rough start he got off to in 2014. There's no denying he's a game changer when his talents and skills are working, and a bounce-back year offensively from him would do wonders to help this team's offense take off.

The Minor League seasons began last night, andthe Red Reporter Farmer's Only Bureau was all over it. While they'll be up into the wee hours of the morning covering each and every Reds affiliate this season (for their sanity, thank the dear lord High-A Bakersfield moved to Daytona and Eastern Time), here's another handy dandy resourceto help follow the top 30 prospects in the Reds' system. Thanks, MLB Pipeline, and holy stacked Daytona roster, Batman.

Here's a nifty read from ESPN SweetSpot's David Schoenfield, who does his best Shinky impersonationwhile looking back to when the Cincinnati Reds became the Cincinnati Redlegs.

Finally, our thoughts are with the family, friends, and endless number of people inspired by Lauren Hill, who passed away Friday morning after fighting an inoperable form of brain cancer. The Mount St. Joseph freshman was just 19 years old, yet the amount of time and effort she put in to raising both awareness and money to help fight cancer was enough to make people four times her age wonder what they've been doing with their lives. Rest in peace, Lauren.

Source: http://www.redreporter.com/2015/4/10/8383173/cincinnati-reds-st-louis-cardinals

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The 'True Detective' Teaser Looks Great. Can It Save Vince Vaughn's Career?

The first trailer for season 2 of HBOs True Detective hit today and it looks great. Its got the same moody atmosphere of the first season and new star Colin Farrell looks sad and coolin his hounddog mustache and brown jackets. But the person who really caught my eye in the trailer was Vince Vaughn.

When the comedian was cast in the new season, a collective groan went up from fans. Season 1 of True Detective was a weird, original, philosophical take on the police procedural. Told in multiple time frames, the 8-episode show told one complete story that dealt with a serial killer but turned out to be as much about the meaning of life and friendship as it was about figuring out who did it. It didnt really seem like Vince Vaughn material.

But fans were willing to trust creator Nic Pizzolatto and his seemingly unorthodox choice. From the trailer, it looks like Vaughn is playing against type as a rich (and probably evil) developer. The question now is whether the role will help revitalize Vaughns career.

Theres no question that True Detective helpedMcConaugheyturn his career aroundfrom a middling romantic comedy actor to the ranks of the most sought-after actors in Hollywood. The show came after his transformative, award-winning turn in the movie Dallas Buyers Club and just before his hit movie Interstellar which grossed $673 million at the global box office.

It remains to be seen if Vaughn can get the same kick from True Detective. At this point in his career, he desperately needs something to turn the tide. The actor burst on the scene in the 1996 movie Swingers. The indie only grossed $4.5 million at the box office but it became a cult hit thanks to the chemistry between Vaughn and actor/director Jon Favreau. Vaughn followed the movie up with a string of decently successful comedies including Dodgeball, Wedding Crashers and The Break-Up.

But over the last few years his films have been flopping right and left. This years Unfinished Business has grossed just $13.5 million at the global box office. Delivery Man earned $51 million. The Internship,which reunited Vaughn with his Wedding Crashers costar Owen Wilson, did a bit better, bringing in $93 million but with a $58 million budget, the film still didnt turn a profit. (Movies need to earn at least twice their production budget at the box office to earn out.)

Many big movies stars have made the transition to TV in the past few years and while some have seen big boosts in pay for their work (Kevin Spacey earned $16 million last year and landed on the FORBES Celebrity 100 for the first time thanks to House of Cards), few have revived their movie careers. Part of the reason for that is that TV is time consuming. People like Spacey and Kevin Bacon and James Spader dont have much time to do movies outside of their TV schedule. The limited schedule of True Detective could make a difference for Vaughn.

If Vaughn makes a big enough impression in next seasons True Detective, maybe h**l land a juicy TV role that can keep him gainfully employed or maybe h**l start a new career as a serious actor. Taking the role was definitely a smart move. Now lets see if it pays off.

Follow me on Twitter at DorothyPWrites.

Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/dorothypomerantz/2015/04/09/the-true-detective-teaser-looks-great-can-it-save-vince-vaughns-career/

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