Lockheed Martin buys helicopter maker Sikorsky
Don’t look now, but Lockheed Martin just became an even larger aerospace powerhouse. The aircraft maker has acquired helicopter maker Sikorsky (best known for the UH-60 Blackhawk) for $9 billion. The two have already been partners on programs like the MH-60, but this gives Lockheed its very own rotary-wing team. If a customer wants something that flies, the company will have it covered. The buyout is poised to close by late 2015 or early 2016, provided everything goes smoothly.
The union might come at a stiff price, however. Lockheed says it’s conducting a “strategic review” of both its information systems group and a chunk of its missile division — tough times in the market have led Lockheed to believe that these segments would be better-off either spun out or sold to someone else. That puts the future of more than 17,000 workers in doubt, and that’s not including whatever jobs might be cut when the Sikorsky deal wraps up.
[Image credit: AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee]
Filed under: Transportation
Source: Lockheed Martin
Spotify’s Discover Weekly uses your habits to recommend new music
Spotify just added a load of new features with a recent update and now it’s looking to help you find new music. To do just that, a new tool called Discover Weekly builds a two-hour playlist of suggestions based on your listening habits and those of folks with similar preferences. What’s more, the collection of tunes — basically a mixtape — is refreshed every Monday so that you’re greeted with new material on the regular. In fact, my collection was updated early this morning. Spotify says the more you use it, the better it’ll get, adapting as your musical taste evolves. Soon, Discover Weekly with appear at the top of your saved playlists for easy access. And yes, you can save individual songs you like or share the whole lot with your pals.
I’ve had access to the tool for a few days, and based on the first set of tracks Spotify selected, I’m cautiously optimistic. Meek Mill, Run the Jewels, Of Monsters and Men and Miguel are getting the bulk of my attention these days, so the tool built my first playlist of songs from Caribou, Modest Mouse, Action Bronson, Flying Lotus and more. Understandably, this group of initial picks is a bit of a mixed bag — similar to my tastes — but I’m looking forward to seeing how the feature changes during weeks when I lean more towards one genre. In this morning’s update, for example, I received mostly hip-hop picks as my listening last week centered around that genre during workouts. You’ll be able to try it for yourself soon enough, as the curated playlist should appear across all of Spotify’s apps shortly.
Filed under: Portable Audio/Video, Internet, Software
Moto Hint gets price slashed down to $80
Motorola is having a bit of a fire sale right now. The Moto X 2014 is down to $299.99, the Moto 360
We aren’t sure if this is a sign that Motorola is planning to update all of these products, or if this is just part of a calculated sale to get some extra stock out of the warehouse. Regardless of that, the almost 50% price cut of the Moto Hint is a great deal for anyone looking for a new Bluetooth earpiece.
The Moto Hint was released last year and while you can use it with other devices, this works best when paired with the Moto X 2014. This is due to the fact that you can get all the information the comes through your phone, such as notifications, messages, and of course phone calls, through the Hint ear piece.
The biggest issue that the Moto Hint seems to have is its’ battery life. The Hint touts a battery life of only 3 hours, however the charging cradle will allow for up to two full charges of the Hint. But that doesn’t seem to have really hindered folks from giving the Hint some good reviews.
With the colossal price drop, are you now interested in picking up the Moto Hint? Do you already have one and want to tell us about it? Just drop a comment below and let us know your thoughts.
Source: Motorola
Via: Droid Life
The post Moto Hint gets price slashed down to $80 appeared first on AndroidGuys.
China’s Huawei is on track to ship 100 million smartphones in 2015 according to leaked memo
Huawei is certainly in the news a lot recently; from receiving a green light to manufacture and sell handsets in India, to allegedly producing a Nexus handset for Google as well as receiving more than 9 million pre-orders for its Honor 7 smartphone in China. Today we have news from Reuters that Huawei’s streak of good news is continuing with the report that it is ahead of schedule in meeting its shipping targets for 2015.
According to an internal memo by Huawei’s head of consumer business, Richard Yu, that ended up in the hands of Reuters, the Chinese company is ahead of schedule in its plans to sell 100 million smartphones this year. Huawei has shipped more than 10 million smartphones every month since May.
The target of shipping 100 million smartphones for 2015 is an increase on its 2014 target which was 80 million, although Huawei only managed to ship 75 million units for that period. This year though, a 30% increase in revenue has also been reported for the first half of 2015 to $28.3 billion.
Source: Reuters
Come comment on this article: China’s Huawei is on track to ship 100 million smartphones in 2015 according to leaked memo
Inateck 4-Port USB Car Charger review
Smartphones are capable of so much, from checking emails and messages to bank accounts and watching videos, whether we are at home or on the move. The more we use our smartphones and tablets, though, the quicker we need to recharge them. Many of us routinely use our handsets as navigation devices in the car and that quite often exhausts the battery in no time at all. But, just because you are in the car doesn’t mean you have to put up with disappointing battery life, especially if you have something like Inateck’s 4-port USB car charger to call upon.
In the box, you get the Inateck 4-port USB car charger, two handy MicroUSB charging cables, and a short instruction manual which we’ll deal with first. The manual advises that the charger should be unplugged when starting or stopping the car motor. This is something I forgot about entirely until it came time to write the review. Thankfully, no harm came to our Renault Clio nor to the car charger, but your mileage may vary. When it comes to safety recommendations, it is best to follow what the manufacturer says.
The charger has a plastic main body with the 4 USB ports encased in aluminium. Each USB slot is capable of outputting 2.4A, 9.6A in total. Once connected and drawing power, a tiny blue LED lights up indicating the charger is ready for use.
I found that some devices charged quicker than others, with the choice of cable having an impact on charging rates. For example, the third-party magnetic charging cable I use with my Sony Xperia Z3 Compact Tablet would only charge at a rate of .650A while its proprietary micro-USB cable went up to 1.2A. The two Inateck branded micro-USB charging cables included are 4ft long, each with a nifty little velcro tidy that keeps them, well, tidy. More importantly, the Sony tablet received a 1.2A charge when using the included cables.
At one point, while we were travelling, I hooked up an LG G3, Note 3, Galaxy S5 and my Sony Xperia Z3 Compact Tablet, all of which were topped up at a good rate. The image above shows my G3 while it was the only device plugged in while the one below shows the charger with all four ports occupied.
Things I liked:
- Four USB slots resulted in us arriving at our destination with fully charged devices, no more having to prioritize which device is more deserving of a charge.
- Peace of mind thanks to the built-in protection from overcharging and overheating. The built-in chip also intelligently detects the safest charging current for your device.
- Each USB slot is rated at 5V/ 2.4A.
- The charger is solidly constructed, plugging into the socket tightly. It also looks pretty smart.
Things I didn’t like:
- Having four USB slots means the charger is a little more obtrusive than usual for a car charger. This slight negative was balanced out when we used all four USB slots.
In conclusion, Inateck has done a good job with the design and features of its 4-port USB car charger. For the price, it’s a good item. If you are on a road trip with your kids in the back, using your phone for navigation, you can rest assured that the Inateck 4-port USB car charger will keep everyone’s device topped up; helping you avoid being asked if you are there yet.
The Inateck 4-port USB car charger is available from Amazon in the United States for $14.99 or in the United Kingdom for £15.99.
[Inateck]
Come comment on this article: Inateck 4-Port USB Car Charger review
LG unveils the Bello II with a quad-core processor, 1GB of RAM
LG has a last taken the wraps off its successor to last year’s Bello smartphone. The handset has been named the Bello II and will be up for grabs in Latin America and India later this month, after which it will head to Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States in time for Q3.
In terms of performance, the Bello II is a capable mid-range device, packing a 5-inch FWVGA display with a resolution of 854 x 480 pixels, a 1.3GHz quad-core processor, 1GB of RAM, 8GB of expandable internal memory, an 8-megapixel rear-facing camera and a 2,540 mAh battery.
As for the connectivity, the second generation Bello will have direct support for Wifi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, A-GPS and USB 2.0. It will run the latest build of Android 5.1.1 Lollipop skinned with LG’s custom user interface, which brings many exclusive features such as Gesture Shot and Selfie Flash to the device.
Unfortunately, we don’t have any information with regards to pricing at this stage, but we do know that the Bello II will be available in white, titan and gold colorways.
Source: LG
Come comment on this article: LG unveils the Bello II with a quad-core processor, 1GB of RAM
Tiny drone-friendly 4K camera lets you swap lenses
If you want to fly an interchangeable-lens camera on a DJI Phantom-sized drone, there’s a few options, including Blackmagic’s incoming 1080p Micro Cinema Camera. But if you needed 4K, you were out of luck — until now. A company called Z Camera has launched the E1, a Micro Four Thirds (MFT) interchangeable-lens camera small enough replace a GoPro in many cases. There is a catch, of course. Z Camera is a startup company and the camera is launching on Kickstarter, making any purchase a roll of the dice. However, it is fully funded and being produced in cooperation with Panasonic, which built the 4K sensor and is supplying the bundled 14mm f/2.5 lens.
It weighs more than twice a GoPro Hero 4 (about half a pound), but if equipped with a small enough lens, you could still hoist it with a mainstream drone like the DJI Phantom 3. The company claims the E1 will deliver a noise-free image up to 6,400 ISO, with 10-11 stops of dynamic range, and shoot widescreen 4K (4,096 x 2,160) at 24fps, UltraHD at 30fps, 1080p at 60fps and 720P at 120fps. It’ll also capture 16-megapixel RAW and JPEG stills.
A smartphone app (Android or iOS) lets you power it on and stream video via WiFi or Bluetooth 4.0. The camera supports continuous autofocus and manual focusing, though the company didn’t say if you can focus using the smartphone app. There’s also no mention of stabilization, meaning a decent gimbal is likely a must.
If you’re keen and brave, you can order one for $599 (body only) or $799 with the aforementioned 14mm f/2.5 Panasonic lens. Following the Kickstarter launch, it’ll cost $699 for the body only. As mentioned, Z Camera has gained nearly $150,000 in pledges, well over the $42,000 goal. That means you’re committed to buying one if you chip in, but assuming it ships and works as advertised, you’d definitely get more professional-looking drone footage.
Source: Kickstarter
Updated Yureka Plus announced with new camera and 1080p display
It has been less than eight months since Micromax launched its Cyanogen OS powered Yureka smartphone, which offered compelling mid-range hardware specifications at a competitive price. The company has now announced an updated version of the handset with improved specifications, known as the Yureka Plus.
Gone is the old 720p display, which has been updated to a Full HD (1080p) pixel count. This is a more suitable resolution for the large 5.5-inch screen, which results in an excellent 401 pixels per inch. The smartphone’s rear camera has also been updated. The resolution remains at 13 megapixels, but there’s a new Sony IMX214 image sensor with 5 element Largan Blue lens and f/2.2 architecture, which should produce better looking snaps. The 5 megapixel front facing camera is the same module as before.
The rest of the smartphone’s internal hardware remains unchanged from the previous launch. The Yureka Plus still comes with an octa-core Snapdragon 615 processor, 2GB of LPDDR3 RAM, 16GB of internal storage with a microSD card slot, dual-SIM support, category 4 LTE, a 2,500mAh battery and Cyanogen OS 12.
The Yureka Plus is already available for pre-registration through Amazon India, which started today, and will go on sale on the 24th of July at 12pm. The smartphone will retail with a price tag of just Rs. 9,999 (approximately $155) and is available in a moondust grey and white finish.
Sony seeking beta users for new Android concept software
Sony Mobile looks set to bring wholesale changes to its Xperia UI as part of a new initiative dubbed “Sony’s Android concept”. Judging by the language used in its website, the program is designed to offers users the “opportunity to trial a new concept Android software build for [the] Xperia Z3“.
The program is limited to users in Sweden and the website clearly states that it allows users to “Enjoy a new user experience” before adding that users will “receive a concept Sony Android software version, with a fresh take on the Sony user experience“. Naturally the company hasn’t revealed any details about the concept software (other than, you know, that it’s a concept build) but based on the website, it looks like Sony’s Xperia UI could get its first major overhaul in several generations.
Over the past few years, Sony’s software and hardware have both followed similar patterns with small incremental upgrades to hardware matched with small tweaks and revisions to refine the software experience. Despite being one of the most refined interfaces on Android, the Xperia UI doesn’t have all the bells and whistles found in its rival’s interfaces and as such, the new concept Android software could become the new Xperia UI.
Xperia Z3 range in video:
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Sony opening the pilot to a limited number of users in Sweden – where its R&D department is incidentally, although the workforce there is rapidly diminishing – suggests that the software is in beta stage (and not alpha) and this could be telling, given the many many rumours that Sony will introduce an entirely new handset at IFA 2015 in just over six weeks.
Given some users have suggested that Sony needs to re-evaluate its product strategy, the concept Android software could be the first step towards an entirely refined and redesigned smartphone experience. In most industries, change is a bad thing but mobile tech is the opposite and the lack of major changes in Sony’s hardware and software has been one of the biggest criticism leveraged against the company. Could the concept Android software be the answer to this?
Samsung’s next Galaxy Tab S should be a whole lot wider
Don’t look now, but Samsung’s widescreen Android tablets might be going the way of the Dodo. Tabletmonkeys claims to have leaked images of the Galaxy Tab S2, and the high-end slate appears to be adopting the same wide, iPad-like aspect ratio as the Galaxy Tab A. In fact, it might lose size and resolution compared to the original Tab S lineup — instead of 8.4- and 10.5-inch 2,560 x 1,600 displays, you’d be looking at 8- and 9.7-inch 2,048 x 1,536 panels. That wouldn’t be so hot for your widescreen videos, but it’d be better for web browsing and anything else that benefits from portrait mode viewing.
Not that they’d be taking steps backwards in any other respect. Both S2 models are reportedly wafer-thin at just over 0.2 inches thick, and they’d be the lightest in their respective classes at just under 0.6 pounds (for the 8-inch version) and 0.9 pounds (for the 9.7-inch device). Not surprisingly, you could also expect Galaxy S6-class guts that include an eight-core Exynos 7420 processor and 3GB of higher-performance memory. Curious? You might not have to wait much longer to give these tablets a shot, since they could be announced as soon as July 20th.
Filed under: Tablets, Mobile, Samsung
Via: SammyHub
Source: Tabletmonkeys
AIVAnet 