Lyft & Waymo Partner on Self-Drivers; EV Battery That Charges in 5 Min; 10.5 Inch iPad Pro at WWDC, Google Asst Coming to iOS
Posted: May 15, 2017 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 5 minute charging, Apple, Batteries, EV, Google, Google Assistant, I/O, iOS, iPad Pro, Lyft, Self Driving Cars, Siri, StoreDot, Supercharger, Tesla, Waymo Leave a commentLyft and Google’s Waymo will team up on self-driving cars, according to a report from the New York Times. The plan is to introduce a wide swath of people to them using fleet services. Waymo had already started a public pilot in Arizona where they will pick up people and families on demand. The Lyft deal will quickly help them to expand that, and explore not only demand modeling, but efficient routing as well. Meanwhile, a judge has banned a Uber employee, who was a former Google manager and is the subject of a lawsuit, from working with Lidar at all for the time being.
If this pans out to any degree, it will be a game changer for electric vehicles. StoreDot, and Israeli startup, has shown its new battery model for EVs at the CUBE Tech Fair in Berlin. Engadget.com reports that the battery can reach full charge in FIVE minutes, and run the car for 300 miles! Compare that to Tesla’s Supercharger, which takes two hours to fully charge a Tesla EV. StoreDot also claims their batteries are safer than litihum-ion. They use layers of nano materials and proprietary organic compounds not used in batteries before.
Apple will probably show a new 10.5 inch iPad Pro at WWDC next month. Theverge.com says KGI Securities, generally one of the most reliable sources, is reporting this. Ming-Chi Kuo, of KGI also says it’s 50-50 that Apple will launch their Siri powered speaker at WWDC.
Siri could be in for some ‘Siri-ous’ competition soon. Google may be rolling out Google Assistant on iOS, and could show it at I/O this week! It will debut first in the US, and apparently will be slightly different than the Android version. The voice controls will be the same, but it will used the chat style fro Allo. This is probably necessary since it will be a free standing app, and not a baked in extension that’s part of the Google platform.
Microsoft Win 10 Update & Microsoft Windows Story Remix; iPhone Facial Recognition & Release Timing
Posted: May 11, 2017 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 3D Facial recognition, Android, AR, iOS, iPhone 8, Iris Scanner, LG, Microsoft, Mixed reality, PCs, PrimeSense, VR, Windows 10, Windows Story Remix Leave a commentSome very cool things coming in the Windows 10 update later this year. According to businessinsider.com, Windows Story Remix will take your photos and videos and stitch them into a story, including a soundtrack and transitions. It seems to echo a similar function to Google Photos. Also, Win 10 will keep track of a timeline of your apps and sites, so you can go back to where you were…AND pick up on your PC, or your mobile device running iOS or Android. It’s a lot like Apple’s “Handoff”, but that only works between Macs, iPhones, and iPads. (Disclosure: I use Handoff, and it works great, but only on Apple devices.) The Microsoft version will work across platforms, which is very cool. Redmond is also working on a universal clipboard that will cut and past across platforms.
LG will supply Apple 3D facial recognition modules for the iPhone 8. Macrumors.com says LG already builds the dual lens cams for the iPhone 7 Plus, and will be building a $238 million dollar plant to crank out the 3D modules for Cupertino’s anniversary flagship phone. According to KGI Securities, the system runs tech from PrimeSense, which Apple bought 4 years ago, and can also do iris scanning, and a combination of augmented reality, virtual reality and mixed reality.
A number of reports have warned that the iPhone 8 will be out later in the Fall due to problems with the embedded fingerprint sensor under the screen. According to bgr.com, a reliable leaker has said hiring and training at Foxconn has started, and they will begin building iPhone 8 in August for a September launch.
More Cortana Driven Smart Speakers; Waymo Logs Millions of Miles; Apple Buys Sleep Tracker; iPhone 8 Leaked CAD Drawings
Posted: May 10, 2017 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Alaphabet, Alexa, Amazon Echo, Apple, Beddit, Cortana, Google, Harman Kardon, HP, iPhone 8, Microsoft, Self Driving Cars, Skype, Sleep tracker, Smart Speaker, Waymo Leave a commentEarlier this week, Harman Kardon unveiled Invoke, their Cortana powered Amazon Echo competitor. Now, techcrunch.com says HP is also jumping into the smart speaker market. Instead of following their rather successful Surface marketing effort of rolling their own, Microsoft seems to be using the formerly wildly successful PC model of licensing to numerous makers. The speakers will reportedly use Skype for calling. The Amazon Alexa device can take and make calls, and Apple’s is expected to as well.
Waymo, the self-driving car people from Alphabet/Google, says they have now logged 3 million miles on public roads. According to 9to5google.com, a million of those self-driven miles have been in the last 7 months! In March, Waymo greatly expanded their fleet with 500 Chrysler Pacifica minivans.
Apple has bought Beddit, a company that tracks sleep. According to business insider.com, they make a $150 sleep monitoring pad that goes between the sheets. The monitor tracks a person’s heart rate, awake time, and snoring, then the companion app calculates a ‘sleep score’ and can wake users at an ‘optimal’ time with a smart alarm. The page linked to the Watch App Store is gone from their website, but the app is still live there as of today.
Some CAD drawings have leaked out from a manufacturer of the upcoming iPhone 8. 9to5mac.com says that these show no fingerprint sensor on the back, but do depict the all glass front and back with stainless steel edges and the vertical dual cams on the back. The phone appears to be thicker than the current iPhone 7 and Plus. It’s still possible the 8 will have an ugly and clumsy fingerprint sensor on the back like the Samsung Galaxy S8, but we probably won’t know that until Fall.
Echo Show-Yep, It’s the Ugly Version; Preorders Live for Unlocked Galaxy S8 & Plus; T-Mobile to Carry T-Mobile Branded Phones
Posted: May 9, 2017 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Alcatel, Alexa, Amazon, Android, Blackberry, Echo Show, Galaxy S8, REVVL T1, Samsung, T-Mobile, TCL Leave a commentAmazon has unveiled the Echo Show. It has a 7 inch touch screen, a 5 MP camera, and dual 2 inch Dolby stereo speakers and 8 microphones. Techcrunch.com reports that it will sell for $230, and is available for preorder. The actual device will be released June 28th. Besides having Alexa tell you things or do things, the Show will allow her to ‘show you things.’ The Show can be used for video calling. The nicest description so far was from engadget.com: “Unusual, boxy retro style.” It’s available in black or white, so if either is your kitchen color scheme, you’re in luck!
How about preorders for a device that IS gorgeous? Samsung answers, as preorders are open for unlocked Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus models in the US. They should be available May 31st. Theverge.com says you can either order through Best Buy or samsung.com, and they start at $724.99 for 64 gigs on an unlocked S8 and $824.99 for the 64GB unlocked S8 Plus. Both can be ordered in Midnight Black.
T-Mobile is getting ready to launch its own line of Android phones. According to 9to5google.com, there will be 3 versions, with the first out the door to be the REVVL T1. Say that fast 3 times! All will be built for T-Mobile by TCL, the firm that makes BlackBerry and Alcatel phones. The T-Mobile handsets will be midrange smartphones, with the T1 sporting a 5.5 inch screen, 3000mAh battery, and running Android Nougat. It will have a 13MP rear camera with 5MP for the selfie cam. No release date or pricing has been announced.
Amazon Touchscreen Echo Leak; Smart Speaker Market Set to Double; Spray On Touchpads
Posted: May 8, 2017 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Alexa, Amazon, Apple, Echo, Electrick, Google, Spray-on, Touchpads, Touchscreen Leave a comment
As with all tech companies, Amazon plays with different versions of products. Thenextweb.com got its hands on a pic of one version for the upcoming Alexa powered touchscreen Echo, and the tech media collectively threw up. The wedge shaped gadget with a 7 inch screen has been universally panned. A prior leak had a short round tower with a smaller touchscreen angled on top. Let’s hope the previous leak is closer to what actually drops…probably later this month. It is said to be equipped to make video calls, and may have visual recognition, like the hapless Fire phone.
With a touchscreen Echo in the pipeline, the Google speaker finding homes, and Apple reported to be working on a high end smart speaker, 9to5mac.com has picked up a report from Reuters that says smart speaker use will double in the US this year. They are looking at 35.6 million. Amazon is expected to hold a little over 70% of the market.
Want a touchpad somewhere? Just spray it on! That’s the concept behind Electrick (with a ‘k’), a design from some brainy folks at Carnegie Mellon University. Techcrunch.com says it is mainly the brainchild of a PhD student named Yang Zhang, and it uses small electrodes attached to the edges of a painted surface. You can put a touchpad on wood, plastic, dry wall…reportedly even Play Doh and Jell-O. The tech is set to be demonstrated at a conference in Denver.
Facebook to Add 3000 Moderators Over Live Streaming of Crimes; Hulu Live TV Drops in App Stores
Posted: May 3, 2017 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Facebook, Hulu, Live Stream, Live TV app, Moderators Leave a commentFacebook is hiring 3,000 moderators to intercept deaths and crimes before they can stream live. Businessinsider.com says these moderators will be in addition to 4500 content reviewers that Facebook already employs around the world. They will also monitor hate speech and child exploitation according to a post by CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
The Hulu Live TV app is now available in beta in app stores. Techcrunch.com reports that it will be useable on Xbox One, Apple TV (4th generation), and Android mobile devices, as well as Chromecast. The old Hulu app won’t work with the live programming, but if you download the new one, it will still get your on demand content, too. It’s $39.95 a month for over 50 channels, and includes a cloud DVR feature. A premium version gets you Showtime, more DVR storage, and unlimited in-home screens.
Windows 10 S Laptop Guns for Chromebooks; 43 Inch LG Monitor Supports 4 Sources; Twitter Adds More Streams and Shows
Posted: May 2, 2017 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 4K, Apple, Bloomberg, Buzzfeed, Chromebook, Education, LG, Live Nation, Microsoft, Minecraft, Monitors, Office 365, Twitter, Video streams, Windows 10 S, WNBA Leave a commentMicrosoft has revealed its answer to Chrome OS. Windows 10 S is a ‘streamlined and secured’ version of Windows 10…translation….it’s sandboxed. That’s not the biggest part, though. Techcrunch.com reports that Microsoft has talked most major PC makers into making Windows 10 S machines. Base level ones will start at $189, and should be out this summer. Redmond expects school districts to snap up the laptops at that price point. They come with a one year free subscription to Minecraft: Education Edition, and Office 365 apps are free for both students and teachers.
As Apple announced they were getting out of the monitor business (then had a change of heart of sorts), other companies have jumped in with displays to take up the slack. Now, 9to5mac.com says LG has quietly unveiled a 42.5 inch 4K job that has 4 HDMI ports and supports up to 4 display feeds….for under $700! Four feeds, so you could keep a browser open, watch a game, PLAY a game, and have a window for actual work!
We heard yesterday that Twitter was building out a 24/7 streaming video service with Bloomberg. Now, they’ve announced live video plans with Live Nation, Buzzfeed, The WNBA, and almost a dozen partners. According to recode.net, the partners look so far to be heavy on sports, then news, with a little entertainment sprinkled in. It remains to be seen how much of the new content will materialize and when.
Apple Echo-Type Smart Speaker Coming; Galaxy S8 Random Reboots; Samsung Approved for Testing Self-Driving Cars in Korea
Posted: May 1, 2017 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Amazon Echo, Apple, Galaxy S8, Google, Hyundai, Korea, Random reboot, Samsung, SD card, self-driving car, Siri, Smart Speaker, WWDC Leave a commentThere are now two sources saying Apple will make a smart speaker like the Amazon Echo or Google’s speaker. Bgr.com reports that now KGI Securities says they will launch a ‘Siri Speaker’ at WWDC in June. No word on the cost (don’t think cheap), but it’s expected to hit stores and the web in the second half of the year. It will reportedly have 7 tweeters and a subwoofer, which should give it great sound. It will use some type of Beats tech and run a version of iOS.
Samsung’s Galaxy S8 had record preorders, but as it gets to peoples’ hands, there’s word that some are having random reboots. 9to5google.com reports there’s quite a thread about this on Samsung’s forums. It can happen when in use, or just sitting around. The phone does fully reboot, and it appears it may be related to an SD card issue, as removing the SD card seems to fix the problem until Samsung rolls out a software patch.
Speaking of Samsung…for those of you who thought they only made phones and TVs, etc, the Korean giant is now approved to test self-driving cars on roads in Korea. According to techcrunch.com, Hyundai has been at it for about a year now, so Samsung will be playing catch up to an extent. Samsung started as a trading company, and has interests in shipping, insurance, and more. The Korean approval allows for operating without steering wheels or pedals, which is also part of proposed new regulations in California and which Michigan already allows.
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GE Alexa Lamp Coming; Facebook Reaction Emoji Live for Comments
Posted: May 4, 2017 | Author: clarkreid | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Alexa, Comments, Facebook, GE, Lamp, Reactions Emoji | Leave a commentGE will apparently release its lamp with Alexa in September for $200. The futuristic lamp, which looks a lot like a Dyson bladeless table top fan that lights up, is available now on preorder for a discounted price of $160, according to theverge.com. Besides the obvious stuff you can ask any Alexa device, it has a few new tricks…like ask it the time, and it will place indicators where the hour and minute hands go. It also responds to requests for warmer or cooler light.
You’ve probably already been clicking or tapping and expecting them, and now Facebook has added reaction emoji to comments. Thenextweb.com reports that they have started showing up for desktop Facebook users. I just tried them out a little while ago…and no, no new ones have been added. So far, it hasn’t gone live on mobile devices. We truly are heading back to the time of ancient Egypt’s hieroglyphics.