Engadget Daily: US Postal Service hacked, Obama on net neutrality and more!
If it wasn’t already apparent, the battle for net neutrality is far from over. Today, President Obama released a YouTube video promoting a free internet and the reception was, well, mixed. That’s not all we have on deck though — read on for Engadget’s news highlights from the last 24 hours, including the US Postal Service’s data breach, a sandbox that make music, and a rocket-powered bike that puts a Ferrari to shame.
Filed under: Internet
What’s on your HDTV: ‘Halo’, Chelsea Peretti, NASCAR, ‘UHF’
Ten years ago Halo 2 debuted on the Xbox and opened a new chapter in multiplayer shooters. Now, the Master Chief Collection arrives on Xbox One rocking a thoroughly revamped version of the game, plus versions of the others in the series. You probably already have your copy preloaded (including day one patch) or are waiting in line, so what else is going on this week? Weird Al’s UHF arrives on Blu-ray, The Blacklist closes out its run for the fall, and ESPN’s 30 for 30 series takes a look at the life of Randy Moss. Netflix has a new comedy special featuring Chelsea Peretti, and the NASCAR season is wrapping up with just enough time for another pit-lane fight. Hit the gallery or just look after the break to check out each day’s highlights, including trailers and let us know what you think (or what we missed).
Blu-ray, Streaming movies & Games
- How to Train Your Dragon 2 (3D)
- Batman: The Complete Series
- Star Wars: The Clone Wars: The Lost Missions
- Lets Be Cops
- Jersey Boys
- True Blood (S7)
- UHF
- White Lightning
- Demons
- Demons 2
- Halo: The Master Chief Collection (Xbox One)
- Assassin’s Creed Unity (PC, PS4, Xbox One)
- Assassin’s Creed Rogue (Xbox 360, PS3, PC)
- Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham (PC, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Wii U, PS3, PS4)
Monday
- Monday Night Football: Panthers/Eagles, ESPN, 8:15PM
- The Originals, CW, 8PM
- 2 Broke Girls, CBS, 8PM
- Gotham, Fox, 8PM
- The Voice, NBC, 8PM
- Dancing with the Stars, ABC, 8PM
- WWE Raw, USA, 8PM
- The Millers, CBS, 8:30PM
- The Last Patrol (special presentation), HBO, 9PM
- Growing Up Gotti: 10 Years Later, A&E, 9PM
- American Dad, TBS, 9PM
- Jane the Virgin, CW, 9PM
- Star Wars Rebels, Disney XD, 9PM
- Scorpion, CBS, 9PM
- Sleepy Hollow, Fox, 9PM
- Anger Management, FX, 10 & 10:30PM
- Independent Lens, PBS, 10PM
- Are You The One?, MTV, 10PM
- Castle, ABC, 10PM
- NCIS: LA, CBS, 10PM
- The Blacklist (fall finale), NBC, 10PM
- Mike Tyson Mysteries, Adult Swim, 10:30PM
Tuesday
- The Concert for Valor, HBO, 7PM
- 30 for 30: Rand University, ESPN, 8PM
- NCIS, CBS, 8PM
- The Flash, CW 8PM
- Finding Your Roots, PBS, 8PM
- Selfie, ABC, 8PM
- The Voice, NBC, 8PM
- Uncle, DirecTV 101, 8:30PM
- New Girl, Fox, 9PM
- Supernatural, CW, 9PM
- Overhaulin, Velocity, 9PM
- Navy Seals – Their Untold Story, PBS, 9PM
- Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., ABC, 9PM
- NCIS: New Orleans, CBS, 9PM
- Marry Me, NBC, 9PM
- Inside the NFL, Showtime, 9PM
- The Mindy Project, Fox, 9:30PM
- Awkward, MTV, 10PM
- Person of Interest, CBS, 10PM
- Chicago Fire, NBC, 10PM
- Forever, ABC, 10PM
- Sons of Anarchy, FX, 10PM
- Tosh.0, Comedy Central, 10PM
- Benched, USA, 10:30PM
- Brickleberry, Comedy Central, 10:30PM
- Faking It, MTV, 10:30PM
- The Listener, Ion, 11PM
- Happyland, MTV, 11PM
Wednesday
- Dwight Howard: In the Moment, Epix, 8PM
- Arrow, CW, 8PM
- The Middle, ABC, 8PM
- Survivor, CBS, 8PM
- The Voice, NBC, 8PM
- The Goldbergs, ABC, 8:30PM
- The 100, CW, PM
- Nova, PBS, 9PM
- Criminal Minds, CBS, 9PM
- Law & Order: SVU, NBC, 9PM
- Modern Family, ABC, 9PM
- Kingdom, DirecTV 101, 9PM
- Red Band Society, Fox, 9PM
- Black-ish, ABC, 9:30PM
- NFL Turning Point, NBC Sports Network, 10PM
- American Horror Story, FX, 10PM
- Stalker, CBS, 10PM
- Nashville, ABC, 10PM
- South Park, Comedy Central, 10PM
- Chicago PD, NBC, 10PM
- The League, FXX, 10PM
- How We Got to Now (season finale), PBS, 10PM
- Key & Peele, Comedy Central, 10:30PM
- Ali G: Rezurection, FXX, 10:30PM
- Web Therapy, Showtime, 11PM
- The Almighty Johnsons, Syfy, 11PM
Thursday
- The Vampire Diaries, CW, 8PM
- Grey’s Anatomy, ABC, 8PM
- The Biggest Loser, NBC, 8PM
- Bones, Fox, 8PM
- The Big Bang Theory, CBS, 8PM
- Bills/Dolphins football, NFL Network, 8:25PM
- Mom, CBS, 8:30PM
- Two and a Half Men, CBS, 9PM
- Bad Judge, NBC, 9PM
- Gracepoint, Fox, 9PM
- Reign, CW, 9PM
- Scandal, ABC, 9PM
- The McCarthys, CBS, 9:30PM
- A to Z, NBC, 9:30PM
- Elementary, CBS, 10PM
- Parenthood, NBC, 10PM
- How to Get Away With Murder, ABC, 10PM
- Slednecks, MTV, 10PM
- Vanderbilt MDs, USA, 11PM
- The Eric Andre Show, Cartoon Network, 12:15AM
Friday
- Chelsea Peretti: One of the Greats, Netflix, 3AM
- Haven, Syfy, 7PM
- The Hollywood Film Awards, CBS, 8PM
- WWE SmackDown, Syfy, 8PM
- Last Man Standing, ABC, 8PM
- Cristela, ABC, 8:30PM
- Grimm, NBC, 9PM
- Shark Tank, ABC, 9PM
- Hawaii Five-0, CBS, 9PM
- A Football Life: The Perfect Backfield, NFL Network, 9PM
- Constantine, NBC, 10PM
- Blue Bloods, CBS, 10PM
- Real Time with Bill Maher, HBO, 10PM
- Z Nation, Syfy, 10PM
- Comedy Bang! Bang!, IFC, 11PM
- Foo Fighters: Sonic Highways, HBO, 11PM
- Sebastian Maniscalco: Aren’t Aren’t You Embarassed?, Showtime, 11PM
- Gabriel Iglesias presents Stand-Up Revolution, Comedy Central, 11:59PM
- Nissan GT Academy, Spike TV, 11:30PM
Saturday
- Northpole, Hallmark, 8PM
- Aaliyah: The Princes of R&B, Lifetime, 8PM
- Atlantis (season premiere), BBC America, 9PM
- Hell on Wheels, AMC, 9PM
- The Transporter: The Series, TNT, 9 & 10PM
- The Missing (series premiere), Starz, 9PM
- Doctor Who, BBC America, 9PM
- The Chair, Starz, 10PM
- Black Dynamite, Cartoon Network, 10:30PM
- Saturday Night Live: Woody Harrelson / Kendrick Lamar, NBC, NBC, 11:30PM
Sunday
- NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship Round @ Miami, ESPN, 3PM
- 60 Minutes, CBS, 7PM
- The Simpsons, Fox, 8PM
- Once Upon A Time, ABC, 8 & 9PM
- The Paradise (season finale), PBS, 8PM
- Madam Secretary, CBS, 8PM
- Patriots/Colts football, NBC, 8:20PM
- Brooklyn Nine-nine, Fox, 8:30PM
- The Newsroom, HBO, 9PM
- Jeff Dunham: All Over the Map, Comedy Central, 9PM
- The Walking Dead, AMC, 9PM
- Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown, CNN, 9PM
- Homeland, Showtime, 9PM
- Worricker: Salting the Battlefield (finale), PBS, 9PM
- Resurrection, ABC, 9PM
- The Good Wife, CBS, 9PM
- Family Guy, Fox, 9PM
- Mulaney, Fox, 9:30PM
- The Comeback, HBO, 10PM
- Talking Dead, AMC, 10PM
- The Affair, Showtime, 10PM
- Tethered, Discovery, 10PM
- CSI, CBS, 10PM
- Revenge, ABC, 10PM
- Comic Book Men, AMC, 11:59PM
Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD
Project Ara to offer blood oxygen level tracking module
One thing is clear about the Google Project Ara that it is the future of smartphones. As Noah says that it will be the ‘next big thing‘, I will agree with him on that. Project Ara is still in the developmental stages, and Google has decided to talk more about it during a conference on January 14 2015. During the Engadget Engage Conference, more details about the Project Ara surface when Paul Eremenko, head of Google’s Project Ara, talked about health care technology.
He had the prototype version of Ara with him, and when he attached a module to the phone; the phone now had a prototype pulse oximeter as well. Pulse Oximeter measures oxygen content in the blood, and in past we have seen phones like the Samsung Galaxy S5 with a heart rate monitor. Project Ara can be molded according to a person’s health priorities, but with other phones, a user has very limited options.
This Vine below is just a treat for the eyes.
https://vine.co/v/OeI9MjDm10w/embed/simple
We will learn a lot more about it in 2015. As we are getting closer to the release date, do you think Project Ara is really the “future of smartphones”? Let me know what you think in the comment box below.
Source: Engadget
The post Project Ara to offer blood oxygen level tracking module appeared first on AndroidGuys.
NEC wants you to spot counterfeits using your phone’s camera
Want to find out whether or not something at the street market is a fake? In the future, you might only have to snap a photo with your smartphone. NEC has developed “object fingerprint” technology that compares the tiniest details of an object (such as the metal or plastic grain) with images in a cloud database; if something doesn’t look quite right in that cut-rate handbag, you’ll know right away. It’s useful beyond piracy, too. You could trace the origins of legitimate items, or make sure that repair crews are using the right parts.
The technology isn’t perfect. You’ll need a macro lens (including one that NEC plans to release) to get the necessary high-detail shots. The Japanese firm also hasn’t said whether or not you’ll have easy access to its anti-counterfeit tool, although that partly depends on its negotiation skills; it’s hoping to partner with other companies to make the phone-based scanner a reality by March 2016. If all goes well, though, you’ll always have a way to spot black market goods.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile
Via: PCWorld
Source: NEC (translated)
Google now runs an airfield after signing a 60-year NASA lease
It’s official: following months of negotiations, Google now has an airfield to call its own. The company’s Planetary Ventures wing has signed a lease with NASA that lets it manage Moffett Federal Airfield, including three hangars, two runways and even a golf course. The 60-year (!) deal will have the internet giant shell out $6.3 million per year in upkeep, and a total of $1.16 billion in rent. Don’t worry that Google will run roughshod over Moffett’s historical significance. The agreement also has the company pledging $200 million to both restore the hangars and create a previously promised educational building that illustrates the airfield’s role in Silicon Valley’s past. Google hasn’t said exactly what it plans to do with the new turf, but the odds are that it’ll be used for much more than executives’ private jets. Don’t be shocked if you see some internet balloons floating over Mountain View in the years ahead.
[Image credit: Erik Charlton, Flickr]
Filed under: Transportation, Google
Source: NASA
Google Voice finally lets you send MMS messages through Verizon
Filed under: Cellphones, Internet, Mobile, Google
Source: Dylan Salisbury (Google+)
Apple Seeds Second Beta of OS X Yosemite 10.10.1 to Developers [Mac Blog]
Apple today seeded build 14B23 of OS X 10.10.1 to developers, one week after seeding the first OS X 10.10.1 beta, build 14B17, and nearly a month after first releasing OS X Yosemite to the public.
The new beta is available through the Software Update mechanism in the Mac App Store and through the Mac Dev Center.
While it is unclear what improvements the first update to OS X Yosemite will bring, there are several bugs in the operating system including a major Wi-Fi issue that has caused connection problems for a number of users.
Apple is asking developers to focus on Wi-Fi, Exchange accounts in Mail, and the Notification Center.
WSJ Posts Full Video of Tim Cook Discussing Apple Pay, Apple Watch, and More
In late October, Apple CEO Tim Cook took the stage at the WSJ.D conference in Laguna Beach, California, where he commented on an array of topics including the Apple Watch, Apple Pay, Apple TV, the discontinuation of the iPod classic, and more.
http://video-api.wsj.com/api-video/player/iframe.html?guid=C48FC1F0-8E23-4592-8D9A-D08CD70E438F
While we covered the content of interview at the time, The Wall Street Journal has today posted the full 30 minute video of Tim Cook’s appearance at the conference, which is well worth watching in its entirety.
Some highlights of the video include an explanation of why the iPod classic was discontinued (it’s impossible to get the parts), the impressive early success of Apple Pay, Cook’s thoughts on the Mac and iPad, and some details on the Apple Watch, including hints on the device’s battery life. “You’re going to wind up charging it daily,” said Cook.
NVIDIA Shield Tablet: Tailor made for gamers
With mobile gaming now an increasingly lucrative market sector, it stands to reason that developers and designers should be competing to create compatible devices. Just as the iOS 8 has been equipped with an improved graphical engine to enhance the quality of mobile titles, for example, so too Android devices have provided users with access to a more diverse array of games. The only issue is that mobile platforms have not always delivered a realistic or immersive gaming experience, thanks largely to the cumbersome nature of touchscreen controls and their perceived lack of responsiveness.
While previous mobile handsets and tablets may have failed to deliver a console-like experience, however, the NVIDIA Shield Tablet has been designed to correct this flaw. Although it is not strictly the first dedicating gaming tablet, it has emerged as the most capable and is now recognized as a device that can deliver an outstanding overall experience to users. So while it may be argued that the NVIDIA Shield lacks some of the features that make an Android tablet so appealing, its focus on gaming is sure to win over enthusiasts in the U.S., Europe and the United Kingdom.
At the heart of its appeal is an eight-inch, 1920 x 1080 LCD display that has been designed primarily for high definition gaming. Regardless of whether you are playing the latest installment of the FIFA series or indulging in roulette casino games at the popular Caesars Casino, this provides an outstanding visual experience and one that engages participants on a far deeper level. You can also alter the contrast and brightness of the display to optimise the graphics for each individual game, and this is a huge benefit if you are to tailor your gaming experience independently.
As gaming tablets go, the NVIDIA Shield is certainly a strong market leader. So regardless of your preferred choice of game or genre, it is a product that you should consider purchasing at some point in the future.
The post NVIDIA Shield Tablet: Tailor made for gamers appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Android Lollipop was years in the making
With a complete UI overhaul, enhanced functions, and a new runtime, Lollipop is the biggest Android update ever. Android’s Vice President of Engineering Hiroshi Lockheimer sat down with Business Insider to talk about how Google came up with such an amazing update.
The early roots of Material Design actually started around the same time as the Gingerbread and Honeycomb updates. That was three years ago, so it’s obvious that Google took their time to make it right.
Hiroshi said they didn’t plan for the Lollipop update to be so big. Material Design was a big chunk of it, but the fact that they added the ART runtime and 64-bit compatibility contributed significantly. The Android L Developer Preview was also the first time Google offered something like it. They knew they needed to give developers time to get their apps up to speed for the actual release, which I think paid huge dividends. Even those that don’t have Lollipop, will feel like they do right from the start.
Hiroshi also mentioned that Lollipop is the first major update that was done totally under Sundar Pichai. KitKat began with Andy Rubin and ended with Sundar. he also said that although a billion users enjoy Android daily, they still act and and feel like a startup. They do that by choice because it’s their “way of staying nimble and doing things quickly.”
He also touched on Nexus devices, and said that in no way are they meant to compete with the likes of HTC, Samsung, LG, and others. He said, “The main reason we do Nexus is to show, internally, for ourselves, without doing it in the abstract. That’s the worst kind of software to build — you kind of throw some software over the fence and hope someone ships it.” The fact that customers like to buy them is great, but it’s a win win when customers by any Android device.
There’s a lot more so check out the source link.
source: Business Insider
Come comment on this article: Android Lollipop was years in the making
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