Startup Aims to Make Existing Big Rigs Self-Driving; Twitter Excluding Links & Pix From 140 Character Limit
Posted: May 17, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 140 Character limit, Apple, Autonomous big rigs, Google, Otto, Retrofit, Semis, Tesla, Twitter Leave a commentFour ex-Googlers have launched Otto, a startup aimed at making big rigs autonomous. The San Francisco based company has drawn employees form Apple, Tesla, and Cruise Automation. Backchannel.com reports that they will aim to retrofit existing semis instead of trying to build new trucks from scratch. There are over 4 million big rigs on the highways. Otto has already installed their system on 3 big rigs. They claim to be able to do the retrofit for a ‘small fraction’ of the 100-300 grand it costs for a new big rig tractor cab.
In case you missed it, Twitter is getting ready to exclude pictures and links from the 140 character limit sometime in the next couple weeks. Thenextweb.com notes that links currently gobble up 23 characters out of that miserly 140. No official word from Twitter as yet.
Standalone Android VR Headset Coming; iPhone 7 Plus Will Have 2 Rear Cams; iTunes NOT Stopping Selling Downloads
Posted: May 12, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Apple, Cardboard, Dual Camera, Google, iPhone 7 Plus, iTunes, Rift, song downloads, Vive, VR Headset Leave a commentGoogle will reportedly announce a standalone Android VR headset at I/O next week. Techcrunch.com says the untethered headset will be less powerful than the Vive or Rift, and it’s expected to come in at well under the $300 price point. Needless to say, it will cost more than the 15 bucks for a cardboard headset, but you need an Android phone to use that anyway.
Early rumors had a premium version of Apple’s iPhone 7 Plus getting the dual rear camera setup, but according to Ming-Chi Kuo at KGI Securities, all the Plus phones will come with the high end camera. According to theverge.com, the bigger handset will also have 3 gigs of ram in order to handle the image processing for the new cam. There’s still conflicting information as to if the Plus, or all iPhone 7’s or none will have the Smart Connector like the iPad Pro.
Apple put out a rare statement late yesterday dispelling a rumor that they planned to stop selling downloads over iTunes. Appleinsider.com says one rumor had Apple dropping downloads in 2 years, and another in 3-4. Apple spokesman Tom Neumayr said ‘not true.’
Moto’s Modular Capable Flagships Coming; Foxconn to Build Big iPhone Plant in India
Posted: May 10, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Amps, Apple, Foxconn, India, iPhone, Modular backplates, Moto X, Motorola, Vector Thin, Vertex Leave a commentPictures leaked out a while back of Motorola’s 2 Moto X flagships with what looked like fairly large speaker holes on the metal back, and a protruding camera lens. According to venturebeat.com, there’s more to it than that. The Vertex and Vector Thin will accommodate modular backplates you can swap out that add functionality. There will be at least 6 at launch counting the plain cover. The others have: stereo speakers; a battery pack; a camera grip with flash and optical zoom; a pico projector; and a rugged cover with wide angle lens attachment. The camera lens will sit flush with the backplates…which Motorola calls Amps….attached. So far, no pricing on either the phones or the Amps.
The Economic Times of India says Foxconn is close to a deal to build a 10 billion dollar iPhone manufacturing plant there. 9to5mac.com reports it will sit on 1200 acres, and be up and running in about 18 months. This is only one of 10-12 manufacturing plants Foxconn hopes to open in India by 2020. Apple sales were up 56% year over year in India.
More iPhone 7 Rumors; Twitter Limits US Spy Agencies Access to Alert Tool
Posted: May 9, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Analytics, Apple, Dataminr, Dual lens camera, iPhone 7, law enforcement, Smart Connector, Spies, Twitter Leave a commentWith the iPhone 7 models due out in around 4 months, the rumors are breaking more frequently now…and contradicting each other. Bgr.com says a design leak obtained by French site NowhereElse shows the iPhone 7 as having identical height and width as the 6 and 6S. It doesn’t disclose whether or not the next model will be thinner, however, or if the headphone jack on the bottom stays or goes. There is no opening at the bottom for a Smart Connector like on the iPad Pro, which had been rumored, but the camera opening is larger…it may not be large enough for the dual lens camera…which is supposed to bow on the larger iPhone 7 Plus anyway, but perhaps to allow for a larger sensor. The cam opening is closer to the edge, too.
Twitter has blocked US law enforcement and spy agencies from using a data analytics service that processes tweets and messages in real time. According to cnet.com, the tools are from the private company Dataminr. Twitter hasn’t publicly confirmed or denied the change. Apparently the analytics gave authorities a 10 minutes lead over mainstream media outlets in covering and responding to the Brussels attacks. Spies being spies, it’s probably only a matter of time…and not much time….before they are able to restore their access to this type of info from Twitter, even without Twitter’s blessing or knowledge.
Apple Music Getting Much-Needed Makeover; Flexible Brighter e-Paper May Be Coming
Posted: May 4, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Amazon, Apple, Apple Music, Connect, e-paper, Graphene, Guangzhou OED Technologies, Kindle, WWDC 1 CommentApple will show a revamp of it’s Apple Music streaming service at WWDC in June, according to a Bloomberg report picked up by macrumors.com. The interface will allegedly be more intuitive and easier to use. The service has grown to more than 13 million subscribers in the past year, but has also taken considerable criticism on it’s clunkiness and artists have griped that the social aspect….Connect….has failed miserably.
A Chinese company has figured out a way to use graphene to make e-paper that’s brighter and more flexible that the present screen material. Geek.com reports that the company- Guangzhou OED Technologies- already markets e-paper displays under the O-paper brand. They are promising that production will start yet this year, so the next generation Kindles from Amazon in 2017 may be not only much more readable, but ‘bendy,’ or there could even possibly be a roll up e-paper device.
Google Self-Driving Tech in Chrysler Minivans Next Year; New iPhones We Can’t Live Without
Posted: May 3, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Apple, Chrysler, Google, hybrid, iPhone, Pacifica Minivans, Reality distortion field, Self Driving Cars, Steve Jobs, Tim Cook Leave a commentTech companies and car makers are moving at warp speed towards self-driving vehicles. Now, 9to5google.com has picked up a Bloomberg report that Google self-driving tech will be featured in 2017 Chrysler Pacifica hybrid minivans. The non-exclusive deal may be in place this week. The vans will have a 30 mile electric only range, have a gas V-6 that kicks in after that, and the battery can be recharged in 2 hours when plugged into 240 volts.
In an interview Monday, Apple’s Tim Cook teased that the next generation of iPhones will have features you ‘can’t live without, that you don’t even know you need today…’ So far, Wall Street is not impressed, and the stock is still down, but it does make one wonder if there’s One More Thing or maybe Two that Apple has kept under wraps so that KGI Securities and other usually reliable sources haven’t been able to get wind of. We’ll know in September whether it’s just Tim Cook channeling Steve Jobs’ legendary reality distortion field, or if Apple is really going to knock our socks off with some killer feature or features.
New Ultra Thin HP Chromebook; iPhone 7 ‘Pro’ Drawings Leaked
Posted: April 28, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Apple, Audio jack, Chromebook, Dual Camera, HP, Intel, iPhone 7, Smart Connector Leave a commentHP showed off it’s new 13 inch screen, ultra thin Chromebook today. It sports a QHD Display, has a slick all-metal case, and weighs in at 2.86 lbs. According to venturebeat.com, it’s packed with 16 gigs of memory, runs on an Intel Core M processor, and the battery should last 11.5 hours. It’s available now for pre-order, ships May 6th, and starts at $499.
Drawings and diagrams leaked show a 5.5 inch iPhone 7, and as rumored, there is no 3.5 mm audio jack, and it sports a dual camera. Bgr.com reports that the leak came from Macotakara, which leaked accurate diagrams of the iPad Pro. It does have a Smart Connector port on the back, and still has a single speaker. Surprisingly, it’s no thinner than the present model, and doesn’t have a larger battery…which had previously been given as the reason Apple wanted to drop the audio jack.
Apple Watch 2 May Have Own Cellular Connection; Tesla’s Distant Cheaper 4th Model
Posted: April 27, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Apple, Apple Watch 2.0, Elon Musk, iPhone, Model 3, Model 4, No tethering, Tesla Leave a commentThe Apple Watch version 2.0 may have its own cell connection, which would allow it to operate without constant tethering to an iPhone. Macrumors.com also picked up from the Wall St Journal that the updated Watch may sport a faster processor as well and will drop in the fall. It would require its own cellular number and data plan, but that’s something a lot of users would be happy to pay for to be able to use it while leaving the phone in a bag, car, or even at home.
There’s been a lot of buzz in the last month about Tesla’s Model 3, which they began taking pre-orders for and which will have a base price of 35 grand. Now, according to bgr.com, Elon Musk says he’s already thinking about a 4th model…and he says it will be even more affordable than the model 3. At a meeting in Norway, Musk said ‘…with something like the Model 3, it’s designed such that roughly half the people will be able to afford the car. Then, with fourth generation and smaller cars, we’ll ultimately be in the position where everyone will be able to afford the car.”
Wild iPhone 7 Rumors; Apple’s Watch Not Such a Flop, Play Store & Android Apps on Chromebooks
Posted: April 25, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Android, Apple, Apple Watch, Chrome OS, Chromebook, Dustproof, Google Play Store, Haptic feedback, iPhone 7, Waterproof Leave a commentWe’ve heard a lot about the ‘boring’ iPhone 7, which won’t change on the outside and won’t have a new, killer feature. Now comes a sketchy rumor out of China that it will have a flush, touch sensitive home button and waterproof, dustproof case. 9to5mac.com says Apple would use haptic feedback to make a flush, capacitive area act like the physical home button. A new, flat black case may join space gray and the golds for a new color choice that echoes of the old iPhones.
Speaking of old iPhones, another Apple product…the Apple Watch…has apparently sold twice as many units as the original iPhone did its first year. Bgr.com reports that a consensus of analysts is that Apple has pushed out between 12 and 13 million Apple Watches. That’s not only twice as many as the original iPhone sold in a year, it’s 61% of the global smartwatch market. Not bad for a flop.
Screen shots posted on Reddit Sunday indicate that the Google Play Store and millions of Android apps may be headed to the Chromebook and Chrome OS. According to cnet.com, arstechnica.com was able to replicate an option in settings on a second generation Chromebook Pixel that says ‘Enable Android apps to run on your Chromebook,’ which shows momentarily, then disappears. No response from Google, of course.
Facebook Considering Letting Users Monetize Posts; Apple Patents Folding Telephoto Lens for Smartphones
Posted: April 20, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Apple, Donations in posts, Facebook, iPhone 7 Plus, Monitization, Telephoto lens, Tip Jar Leave a commentFacebook is apparently thinking about letting users accept donations in posts…either to make money or for a charitable cause. According to thenextweb.com, a survey from the social media giant points to this. They are also looking at branded content and sharing earnings from ads on posts. For better or worse, you may be getting your Facebook ‘tip jar’ ready before long!
Apple has patented a super compact folding telephoto lens for mobile devices. Apple insider.com says it resembles a small letter ‘r,’ or a periscope, with part of the lens cluster at the bottom of the upright, and the rest at the end of the top curve….the upright is mirrored. Moving the secondary lens at the bottom up or down gets the telephoto effect, which is passed on to the image sensor. It’s unknown if this will end up in the two camera system touted in the iPhone 7 Plus for this fall, a later model, or like some Apple ideas…be filed away.
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