Android without a microSD slot

If you own an Android without a microSD slot, don't fret! Here's how you can add extra storage: http://cnet.co/18WbEjB

Review: 'NBA 2K14' fit for a King

Video game publisher 2K's longrunning pro basketball game has paid homage to Air Jordan, Larry Legend and Magic. This year, it's all about the King.

Miami Heat superstar LeBron James becomes the focal point of NBA 2K14 with a clever game mode charting his path to legendary status. As for NBA 2K14 as a whole, it maintains a consistent level of quality on display during previous seasons.

The NBA 2K series has slowly transformed into one of the sports genre's top video game franchises, with an impressive level of depth to its controls and authentic player animations that capture movement with high accuracy.

Developers have also come up with some smart ways to leverage their cover stars, such as NBA 2K11, which maximized the role of Michael Jordan with a Jordan Challenge revisiting some of his best games.

NBA 2K14 uses cover star James to create Path to Greatness. When starting, players choose one of two options: Heat Dynasty or Fantastic Journey. In Heat Dynasty, James stays in Miami and works on a South Beach dynasty. Fantastic Journey has James testing the free agent market. Both modes require players to secure as many championship rings for James as possible.

Instead of playing through multiple seasons, players will drop into critical games through James' quest. For example, in my run through Fantastic Journey, James played against the Lakers in an MVP battle with Kobe Bryant, followed by a Game 7 in the NBA Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder (LeBron would jump to the New York Knicks next season).

Players earn points after each game based on the final score, LeBron's stats and other details, with players earning a max of three stars. Overall, it's an entertaining concept, largely due to James. Like his real-world persona, digital LeBron is unstoppable.

The other big change is the continued refinement of the Pro Stick, used to dribble and shoot. Previous releases allowed for control of shooting and dribbling one on stick by using a modifier. So, the right stick would allow players to perform crossover or behind-the-back dribbles until you hold down the left trigger to use that same stick to shoot jumpers or pull off dunks.

This year, developers have seamlessly integrated the two mechanics with no modifier. Players tap the right stick for dribble moves, and hold the stick in the preferred direction to shoot. Surprisingly, it works well, but still needs a little tweaking. There were moments where I'd want to pump fake on a shot and ended up shooting anyway, or I would want to execute a layup and perform a dribble move instead. It's not common, but might happen periodically.

For players new to NBA 2K14, the simplicity is welcome. However, if you're a veteran player, and loved the ability to have more control over your shots or dunks, you might find yourself frustrated.

Other on-court options include a pass modifier for players wanting to execute bounce passes or move the ball in different ways, and a Smart Play button to easily run half-court plays. Several game modes remain, including The Association for running franchises and MyPlayer for those who want to focus on creating their own superstar.

NBA 2K14 is a solid hoops package, although it seems adjustments this season are subtle compared to what developers introduced in earlier games. However, NBA 2Kremains one of the better sports video games around.

Publisher: 2K

Developer: 2K Sports

Platform(s): PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360

Price: $59.99

Rating: E for Everyone

Release Date: Oct. 1

Score: 3.5 stars (out of 4)

Downtown Plano restaurant damaged by early morning fire

Plano,Texas -

Fire damaged a popular Italian restaurant in historic downtown Plano early Sunday morning.  The fire at Zanata's was first reported about 6:50 a.m. by a Plano Police Officer in the area. Plano fire officials say they were on scene by 7:00 a.m.; the fire was under control less than two hours later.

The Plano Chamber of Commerce posted on its website; "We are sorry to hear of the overnight fire at Zanata Plano in historic Downtown Plano. We hope the damage is not too extensive and that you will be back open serving your amazing menu soon!"

There's no word on the extent of the damage. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Read more: http://www.myfoxdfw.com/story/23679228/downtown-plano-restaurant-damaged-by-early-morning-fire#ixzz2he080FnO

5-alarm fire rips through Grapevine apartment complex

GRAPEVINE, Texas -

Fire crews from multiple departments have a 5-alarm fire under control at the Enclave Apartment complex in Grapevine. It's located across the street from the Grapevine Mills Mall. 

The first call went out at 8:45 p.m. and rose to 5-alarms at around 9:30 p.m. Saturday evening. 

About 75 firefighters and 20 engine companies responded to the scene. 

The apartment complex was under construction at the time of the fire and did not have anything in place to stop the flames. As a result, the fire spread very quickly through two buildings. Those buildings are a total loss. 

A third building suffered partial damage. 

The Grapevine Fire Department said no one was hurt and there were no occupants in the buildings. 

A cause of the fire hasn't been determined.

Read more: http://www.myfoxdfw.com/story/23677813/5-alarm-fire-rips-through-grapevine-apartment-complex#ixzz2hdze6wkK

with video

How to help iOS 7 run faster on an older iPhone

There are steps you can take to try to ease an older iPhone's burden in the new iOS 7 operating system. One idea: If you haven't stepped up, hold off for now on the upgrade.

Q: Ever since I downloaded iOS 7 onto my iPhone 4, typing has become very slow. Any solutions coming out for that?

A: First off, you'll have to forget about reinstalling iOS 6. Whatever you might think of iOS 7, reverting to its predecessor vanished as an option days after 7's debut last month, when Apple stopped digitally signing older versions.

What you can do, however, is try to ease an older iPhone's burden in the new operating system. Apple already turns off most of iOS 7's visual effects on the iPhone 4 to compensate for its reduced graphics power, but you can also try another frequently suggested remedy, stopping iOS 7 from checking for new data on behalf of third-party apps.

To do that, open the Settings app, select "General", tap "Background App Refresh" in the right-hand pane, and touch the switch atop that category.

Leaving enough storage space free is also a good idea. The Settings app will show which apps have eaten up the most space: Open it, select General and tap Usage.

But with a slowdown as severe as the one this reader reports, those intermediate steps might not be enough. Instead, try the traditional computing remedy of reinstalling everything from scratch. Connect the iPhone to a computer running iTunes, do an encrypted backup there, then restore the phone to factory settings; when that completes, you can restore your apps and data from the backup.

Adam Engst, editor of the long-running Mac newsletter TidBITS, suggested a last resort: a clean install of the core system software without any of your add-ons. To do that, you'd do a system restore but hold off on bringing back any old data.

If reading all this has you leery about going ahead with an iOS 7 upgrade on an iPhone 4 — well, maybe you should be. The iPhone 4, which debuted in the summer of 2010 and runs on a relatively slow A4 processor, is the oldest device iOS 7 supports.

Ars Technica's Andrew Cunningham went to the trouble of timing a variety of common tasks on an iPhone 4 before and after upgrading to iOS 7. The results: "Everything is slower in iOS 7, usually by one to one-half second or so but sometimes by more."

Such iOS 7 additions as Control Center, which lets you change such common settings as airplane mode by swiping up from the bottom of the screen, make this a useful upgrade overall. But if I had an iPhone 4, I would hold off on installing 7 and watch to see whether upcoming iOS releases improve 7's responsiveness on older hardware.

The iPad 2, the next-oldest device to get iOS 7 support, is a good nine months newer than the iPhone 4 and runs on the faster A5 chip that later landed in the iPhone 4S and the fifth-generation iPod touch. You should be fine putting iOS 7 on that.

Meanwhile, many Android users never will get the chance to make this decision: Manufacturers and carriers never got around to shipping Google's updates, leaving them stuck with obsolete versions of that operating system.

(A friend thought he'd lucked out when Verizon Wireless and HTC delivered the 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich version of Android for his HTC ThunderBolt. But the experience of "ICS" on this already-flawed phone was as bad as our iPhone 4-using reader's introduction to iOS 7. A factory reset to the phone didn't speed up things much; he eventually gave up and bought a Galaxy S4.)

Tip: The App Store's "Near Me" category can lend some local flavor

A less-heralded iOS 7 feature offers a little extra help to users away from home: A "Near Me" list of apps that are popular among users around your current location. Select that, and you can get a quick summary of the iOS programs locals use to read the news, cope with traffic, find restaurants and bars, navigate public transit, explore museums and so on.

It's considerably more efficient than typing in App Store searches like, say, "Washington DC transit." And in densely populated neighborhoods, it can yield interesting insights about things like what languages people speak and where they shop.

Topless Rebecca Romijn Models the "Hand Bra" in Honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Topless Rebecca Romijn Models the "Hand Bra" in Honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month--Watch Now! http://eonli.ne/19gWDcX