Some Early Crash Statistics on Self-Driving Cars
Posted: June 19, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Delphi, Google, iBall, Microsoft, PC on a stick, Self Driving Cars 1 Comment
The California DMV has released brief details about 6 accidents involving self-driving cars. 9to5google.com says 5 of the 6 were Google’s, and one was from Delphi. In 100% of those crashes, the OTHER driver was at fault…not the self-driving car! No injuries occurred in any of them. This lends creedance to the thought that once all vehicles are self-driving, accident rates will plummet.
Microsoft has unveiled a $140 PC on a stick. The USB drive-sized PC runs Windows 8.1, and has an Intel Atom quad core processor with 2 gigs of ram and 32 gigs of storage. It can connect to TVs and monitors via HDMI, has a mini-usb port, and has Bluetooth. The PC on a stick is made by iBall, and goes on sale in India next month. No word on upgradability to Windows 10, or when it might be released in the US.
What May Be Coming in Apple Watch 2
Posted: June 18, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Apple, Apple Watch 2.0, Batteries, Face Time, Lithium-Ion, Longer Life, Safer, WiFi Leave a commentWith a second generation refresh of the Apple Watch expected out next year, 9to5mac.com says multiple sources are touting some features we will probably see on v. 2.0. Among those are a Face Time video camera built into the top bezel, and a new WiFi system for more iPhone independence. Insiders say you may be able to do most basic communication over WiFi without going through your iPhone. One thing not expected is more battery life. Apparently, Apple says most customers are happy with what the device now has. Did we mention they plan additional pricey premium models starting at over $1000?
On the subject of batteries, some researchers at Stanford have come up with a way to make lithium-ion batteries safer. As has been known, they can overheat and catch fire sometimes. Engadget.com reports the researchers have developed a chemical layer over the lithium anodes that prevents the finger like dendrites from growing out and shorting the battery. The barrier utilizes a mixture lithium nitrate and lithium polysulfide, for you chemistry nerds. A nice side effect is longer life. The treated batteries hold 99% efficiency for over 300 charges, compared with 150 cycles without. The breakthrough could lead to electric vehicles that could go days without a recharge.
Samsung May Be Going Extra Thin in Addition to Extra Large
Posted: June 17, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Amazon, Costco, Crowd sourcing, Galaxy A8, Galaxy S6 Edge Plus, iPhone 6, Kroger, Lyft, On My Way, Phablet, Samsung, Smart & Final, Uber Leave a commentWe had just reported on the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge Plus, an upcoming smartphone/phablet with a whopping 5.7 inch screen, and now it appears that the phone giant is prepping a model that’s much thinner than an iPhone 6. According to bgr.com, the Galaxy A8 is a full millimeter thinner than the iPhone 6 at just 5.9 millimeters. This svelte thinness is in spite of the phone having a 5.7 inch display like the anticipated S6 Edge Plus! No release schedule for this skinny whopper, and sources say it might even be exclusively for the Asian market.
Amazon is looking at crowd sourcing for deliveries. Forbes.com reports that their On My Way program may use individuals to deliver packages, something like an Uber or Lyft for package delivery. Amazon’s shipping costs grew 31% last year, and this would be a way for them to keep a lid on delivery costs. If they do roll the service out, it may be limited to smaller, more inexpensive items…and not larger or more expensive ones that require insuring. Smart & Final has partnered with Instacart to make local deliveries for a while, and last month Costco and Kroger joined them in doing so.
Starbucks Order & Pay Mobile Ordering Now in 25 States
Posted: June 16, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Android, Driving app, iOS, Mobile ordering, Order & Pay, Range Rover, Self Driving Cars, Starbucks Leave a commentIf you’re wide awake, there’s a good chance caffeine is involved. Good news for coffeeholics…Starbucks expects mobile ordering to be complete nationwide this year…and according to geekwire.com, has 4000 cafes live today. The Order & Pay service is available in 25 states…amazingly, California is not one of those! This amounts to about half of Starbucks stores. You should know they don’t have plans to include the ones in grocery stores and airports. Coffee drinkers are embracing the service…19% of all US Starbucks transactions are now done from the app. Order & Pay is iOS only right now, but they will add Android users later this year.
There’s a lot of activity moving us towards self-driving cars, but you might remember the James Bond movie where Bond drives a BMW with his smartphone. Techcrunch.com reports that Range Rover has a prototype Sport model that can actually be driven from an app! It’s not intended for fast getaways from foreign spies…the speed is limited to 4 mph, and the phone has to be within 10 feet of the vehicle. Rover sees it as a possible help for tight parking spaces or for treacherous terrain. No word on its availability to the public, but Rover is working on making it use voice commands, and also keeping it super secure…so crooks can’t just hack and drive away your SUV from a distance!
Find in iOS 9 Beta Points to Larger iPad
Posted: June 15, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Bookmark manager, Chrome, Google, iOS 9, iPad Pro, Larger keyboard, Lyft, San Francisco, security, Uber Leave a commentA developer running the beta of iOS 9 has found a hidden, larger keyboard layout in the system, according to theverge.com. The scaled up keyboard isn’t a dramatic departure from the present one, but does add a narrow top row of symbols keys, adds a redo key, a tab key, and a caps lock key. A widely rumored 12 inch plus iPad dubbed the ‘Pro’ is expected out later this year.
Engadget.com reports that Google has killed off the widely disliked bookmark manager, and reverted to the previous version. The cluttered, slower version can still be downloaded as an extension from the Chrome Web Store for those who really want it.
A security researcher was able to hack a page on Uber’s website, with a humorous result. Businessinsider.com says Uber’s micro-site on their website with a petition to get San Francisco to allow them to operate on Market Street had the flaw. The hacker was able to just key in ‘zipcode,’ instead of numbers. Being a security researcher, he didn’t dump malware code or steal information…he uploaded an ad for arch rival Lyft to Uber’s site!
Samsung’s (Even) Bigger Galaxy S6 Edge Plus
Posted: June 12, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 140 Character limit, Android, DM, Galaxy S6 Edge Plus, Samsung, Twitter Leave a commentSamsung is apparently subscribing to the philosophy ‘go big or go home.’ Previously, we reported they were working on a Galaxy S6 Edge Plus, which would sport a 5.5 inch screen. According to bgr.com, which picked up a report from usually reliable SamMobile, that screen size will be a 5.7 inch dual edge display. It looks to drop third quarter, and will have a hexa-core Snapdragon 808 processor running Android 5.1.1.
While we’re talking bigger, the big news at Twitter has been that CEO Dick Costolo is resigning, but another big announcement you might be more interested in flew under the radar. Appleinsider.com says Twitter will be raising the 140 character limit in direct messages to 10,000 some time in July. The down side is with last April’s change to allow messages from people you don’t follow, now more spam direct messages may be popping up with other peoples’ DMs you get on Twitter.
The ‘Small’ Tesla Model 3 May Have Serious Cruising Range
Posted: June 11, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Apple, Cruising Range, Foxconn, India, Model 3, Model S, Tesla Leave a commentSometimes you see something you know will be a game changer. While a lot of eyeballs have been on Apple’s WWDC this week, Elon Musk spoke at the Edison Electric Institute get together in New Orleans. According to bgr.com, Musk let it drop that the compact Model 3, which is 20% smaller than the pricey Model S, Will have a driving range of at least 250 miles. If Tesla holds to the $35,000 price point on the smaller car, they won’t be able to build these things fast enough, and other car makers will breathlessly be trying to play catch up. The Model 3 will be rolled out next March, and should be launching in late 2017.
On the subject of the aforementioned Apple, major supplier Foxconn is reportedly in talks to open a factory in India. Reuters says this would allow them to avoid the wage inflation in China, and in addition help them keep Apple business in a market Apple wants to develop. Foxconn is shooting for developing 10-12 facilities in India, between factories and data centers…all by 2020.
Google Now Takes a Leap Forward & More on Microsoft’s Surface Hub
Posted: June 10, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Google, Google Now, Microsoft, Surface Hub Leave a commentAs things move further towards software and assistants that actually work, bgr.com reports that Google Now can answer a new set of questions without the user including place names or addresses. If you’re standing in front of a restaurant, you can ask ‘when does this restaurant open,’ and Google Now will answer based on your location. If you’re next to a monument, you might query ‘when was this built,’ and it will tell you. A spooky cool new feature just announced by Google at an event in Paris.
We now have more information about Microsoft’s Surface Hubs. The 55 and 84 inch hub displays first shown in January will be out in September. Primarily intended for business conference rooms, they are a cool $6999 for the 55 inch model and $19,999 for the king sized 84 inch screen. Both feature 100 points of multitouch, 3 simultaneous pen inputs, dual hi res cameras, and microphones that reduce background noise during conference calls. They run a slimmed down version of Windows 10. Preorders open up July 1st.
A Killer App for Apple Pay & Better Battery Life
Posted: June 9, 2015 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Android M, Apple, Apple Pay, Battery life, Card Reader, iOS 9, NFC, Square Leave a commentWe’ve noted that while Apple says they hope to have half the top 100 retailers signed up for their iPhone based payment system by year’s end, they’re a long way away. Something shown at WWDC may be the proverbial killer app to energize the system. TechCrunch.com points out that Apple announced a new partnership with Square. Square will make a new card reader for small businesses that will take Apple Pay by NFC, or the regular old credit card swipe.
Something long clamored for by users is better battery life. iOS 9 rolls out improvements that will give an extra hour of use without doing anything differently. In addition, cnet.com reports there’s a new low power mode that Apple claims will net you an additional 3 hours of battery life on iPhones and iPads. It turns off processes under the hood, and Apple claims it won’t restrict your usage as much as the Android low power mode does. That said, Google is expected to give users more battery savings in the upcoming Android M.
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