Technology: YouTube offline video playback now on mobile

YouTube Philippines has launched a new offline feature on December 11, which will allow all users to watch videos even when they’re not connected to the Internet for 48 hours.

To choose a video for later viewing, simply tap on the offline icon.

“We want to make sure we are making YouTube as enjoyable as possible for our growing base of mobile users in the Philippines,” said John Harding, Vice President of Engineering at YouTube. “By launching a new offline feature for YouTube today, we hope to help people move past the challenges of data connection, speed and cost to enjoy a smooth, buffer-free version of YouTube.”

“By making these popular videos available for temporary offline viewing, our partners will help fans connect more easily with their favorite content, while also helping bring more viewers to their videos. We hope to keep finding better ways to make video content more affordable and accessible in the Philippines,” said Ryan Morales, Country Marketing Manager for Google Philippines.

Tech: iPhone 6 and 6 Plus hit Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, and Singapore on September 19

The new iPhone 6 is larger as expected – and it comes in two variants, the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 and the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus. They both launch in selected countries on September 19. But in Asia-Pacific, only Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, and Singapore get the two new devices during the first wave of launches, Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) confirmed this morning.

In all those eligible countries, iPhone 6 and 6 Plus pre-orders commence on September 12.

Surprisingly, mainland China is out of luck this time. Last year the nation’s shoppers were included in the first round of launches. 

China’s omission from the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus debut looks to be good news for gadget importers who can charge a premium for smuggling the devices in from Hong Kong, thereby avoiding tax at the border.

Here are the official, unlocked prices for the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus in Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, and Singapore:

• Australia - iPhone 6 starts from A$869 while the iPhone 6 Plus begins at A$999.
• Hong Kong - iPhone 6 starts from HK$5,588 while the iPhone 6 Plus begins at HK$6,388.
• Japan - iPhone 6 starts from JPY 67,800 while the iPhone 6 Plus begins at JPY 79,800.
• Singapore - iPhone 6 starts from S$988 while the iPhone 6 Plus begins at S$1,148.

SKK Marian V1 quad-core smartphone is named after Marian Rivera drop its price

In connection with SKK Mobile's blowout sale, the Marian V1 will drop its price from PhP 4,599 to PhP 3,699. The blowout sale is happening from August 2 to 3, 2014.

It has been a common practice among local and new mobile device players to pick local celebrities as product endorsers. However, SKK Mobile is seemingly attempting to start a new trend by introducing a new smartphone model that is named after its brand ambassador. Meet SKK Mobile’s Marian V1, the namesake of celebrity and GMA 7’s “Primetime Queen” Marian Rivera.

Relying on the poster released by SKK Mobile on its official Facebook fan page, some of the key specifications which the Marian V1 has include a 5-inch IPS display with 854 x 480 screen resolution, 1.3GHz quad-core processor, 512MB RAM, and 4GB internal storage. Running on Android 4.2.2 (Jelly Bean) OS, the Marian V1 also features an 8-megapixel main camera with flash and a front-facing camera, and supports 3G, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and dual-SIM function.

Assuming that such a naming strategy would turn out to be successful, do not be surprised to see upcoming smartphone models with names like Kim (Kim Chiu + Cherry Mobile), Daniel (Daniel Padilla + MyPhone), and Vice (Vice Ganda + Starmobile).