Apple’s Strict Bluetooth LE Security Requirements Slowing Rollout of HomeKit Accessories
While it has been more than a year since Apple launched HomeKit, a software framework for communicating with and controlling light bulbs, thermostats, door locks and other connected accessories in the home, only five HomeKit-approved products have been released to date: the Ecobee3, Elgato Eve, iHome iSP5 SmartPlug, Insteon Hub and Lutron Caseta Wireless Lighting Starter Kit.
The slow rollout of HomeKit-enabled hardware accessories is not because of a lack of interest in the platform, but rather Apple’s strict security protocols for Bluetooth LE (low energy) devices, according to Forbes. In particular, the strong level of encryption required to use the HomeKit protocol through Bluetooth LE has resulted in lag times that essentially render some accessories useless.
For example, a smartlock that makes its user wait 40 seconds before it opens is clearly inferior to a traditional lock. One of HomeKit’s selling point is that it provides a more reliable user experience, so these kinds of lag times will need to be sorted out before Apple can become a major platform for the smart home.
Elgato Eve smart home sensors for doors, windows and energy consumption
Chipmakers such as Broadcom and Marvell have reportedly been working to improve their Bluetooth LE chips to more effectively handle Apple’s level of encryption, an important step if the company wants to become a major player in the smart home. In the meantime, developers have either been focusing on Wi-Fi-based HomeKit hardware or working on temporary solutions to the problem.
For the time being, Elgato has found a workaround for these problems with Bluetooth LE. It’s tweaked the firmware and added additional on-chip memory to handle the heavy-duty encryption. Elgato was not anticipating having to go make these modifications initially, and now the company hopes to make a side business selling its tweaks to other device makers wanting to build HomeKit devices with Bluetooth LE.
HomeKit delays have also been attributed to “sparse and shifting” documentation and Apple’s tedious certification process for its “Made for iPhone/iPad/iPod” (MFi) program. HomeKit accessory makers are required to send multiple prototypes of their products to Apple for testing, and the process can be lengthy until Apple is satisfied.
Apple’s attention to detail and focus on security should prove worthwhile for customers, however, and the company has the size and reputation to enforce manufacturers to adopt those high standards. “This is one of those things that Apple does,” a source working on a HomeKit device told Forbes. “They force an issue. It’s like that here. Regular Bluetooth has an issue — it’s not secure.”
Sony is testing a ‘stripped back’ version of Android
If you’ve ever wished that Sony would ditch its custom Android interface in favor of Google’s ‘pure’ experience… well, you’ll want to book an impromptu Scandinavian vacation. Sony is launching a 500-person Swedish trial of Concept for Android, a “stripped back” take on Android 5.1 for the Xperia Z3 that looks and feels like the stock Google interface while including Sony’s more popular apps and features. If you’re fortunate to be part of this test run, you’ll both improve the software itself and shape Sony’s overall strategy — it’s moving toward development based on “real user input” that will hopefully lead to more meaningful upgrades. And don’t despair if you don’t get in right now. The company is promising trials for more areas and more devices if this catches on, so you may still get a sneak peek at Sony’s Android plans.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Sony
Source: Sony Mobile Blog
Twitter’s Flight developer conference returns on October 21
Twitter just announced its second annual Twitter Flight developer conference set for October 21st in San Francisco. Like every other conference of this nature, the event is meant to reach out to devs and get them up to speed on the company’s developer-focused products. Unlike other tech firms, this year’s shindig will be Twitter’s first big event with a yet-to-be-named CEO and/or Twitter cofounder Jack Dorsey taking the stage to share the social network’s news. The event will focus on the company’s mobile platform Fabric, its APIs for third parties and Gnip its enterprise platform. Of course with new(ish) leadership there’s also the chance that the company will use the opportunity to announce more consumer-facing products and changes to Twitter itself.
[Image Credit: Bloomberg via Getty Images]
Source: Twitter
Scientists implant teeny, tiny lasers into human cells
A few years back, a pair of researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital made human cells glow by impregnating them with a molecule that’s normally found in jellyfish called green fluorescent protein (GFP) and packing them into a resonant cavity that amplified the amount of light each cell produced. Now, according to a new study recently published in the journal Nano Letters, a team of scientists from the University of St Andrews have developed a means of making individual glowing cells also act as their own resonant cavities.
The St. Andrews team accomplished this by coaxing each cell to engulf a tiny plastic bubble (the green dot in the image above) that acts as a resonant cavity. Each bubble is precisely sized and imbued with fluorescent dye. When a laser hits the cell, it excites the dye which bounces around and amplifies inside the bubble, then fluoresces at a different wavelength. Interestingly, the color of the light that the cell emits depends on the size of the bubble. So far, the researchers have gotten cells to produce light at three different wavelengths. And while the team has only been able to get the method to work in petri dishes, they hope to further develop it into a means of tracking specific cells — say, tumor cells — for days, even weeks.
[Image Credit: top – Arbi Babakhanians, inline – M. SCHUBERT ET AL., NANOLETT (2015); ACS]
Filed under: Science
Via: Science Mag
Source: Nano Letters
Your mouse will soon work with your Xbox One
Beneath that shiny exterior, the Xbox One is, basically, a glorified gaming PC in a slightly smaller frame. As such, wouldn’t it be great if you could play RTS games on the machine with your keyboard and mouse? The hardware can already support the former, and if Microsoft’s Phil Spencer is to be believed, the latter is coming in the near future. The executive was asked on Twitter if it’d be possible to stream games from a Windows machine to the Xbox — in the opposite direction to how the company has set up its game streaming system. In response, he said that it’d require keyboard and mouse support for it to work, crucially adding “those aren’t far away.”
@Tak225Th Still finishing Xbox to Win10 streaming right now. I like the idea of Win10->Xbox One streaming but don’t have a plan yet.
– Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) July 21, 2015
@lgriao @PNF4LYFE @Tak225Th Yep, keyboard and mouse support for Xbox would need to be there for this to work, those aren’t far away.
– Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) July 21, 2015
@lgriao @PNF4LYFE @Tak225Th Mouse is what we’d need to add.
– Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) July 21, 2015
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has often spoke about bringing the disparate elements of the Windows businesses into a more cohesive single entity. When Windows 10 was announced, it was with the subtitle “one product family, one platform, one store,” and the move should help the gaming division tie in with its siblings. After all, with keyboard and mouse support, the console could support the majority of Windows 10 apps that are being crafted, and could even drive hardware sales. Hell, we’re perversely hoping that there’s a way that we can access a text editor so that we can write the news and play Halo at the same time. Yes, we know — we do need to get more.
Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals, Microsoft
Via: UberGizmo
Deal: Take 65% off MEElectronics Runaway Bluetooth headphones from Amazon (today only)
If you’re looking for a quality, inexpensive pair of Bluetooth headphones, Amazon has some great deals that may be worth your while. For today only, you can save 65% on select pairs of MEElectronics Bluetooth headphones in multiple different color options.
You can pick up the MEElectronics Air Fi Runaway Bluetooth headphones for just $34.99, which is a steep 65% discount. They have 40mm drivers and though a battery life isn’t specified, the company promises 12 hours of constant playback with a charging time of around 4 hours. You also have the option to connect a 3.5mm audio cable in case your headphones run out of battery. They also fold at the hinges and come with a traveling bag if you need to store them away for safe keeping. Additionally, they have playback and audio controls on the right ear cup so you won’t have to constantly take out your phone.
The Runaway headphones are available in Blue, Pink, Red, White, Black/Grey and Red/Black color options.
Since this discount is part of Amazon’s Deal of the Day, it only lasts until midnight tonight. If you’re interested in saving some cash on a pair of great headphones, head to the link below before it’s too late.
Huawei sales soar and revenues rise 89 percent in H1
Huawei has today posted detailed information about the performance of its Consumer Business Group during the first half of the year. In the six months to June 30, sales of Huawei smartphones rose 39 percent – compared with the same period last year – to 48.2 million, resulting in an 87 percent year-on-year increase in revenue to $7.23 billion.
Huawei in video:
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During the call, the company confirmed that smartphone shipments more than doubled in China which is quite surprising, given the the apparent slow-down in the world’s largest smartphone market that is affecting chief rivals Xiaomi and Samsung. Alongside large growth in its home market, Huawei has also posted robust growth in Europe, Africa and the Middle East.
In the European market, growth can be attributed to two key strategies; first, the company has focused on selling high-priced flagship smartphones and secondly, the company’s Honor brand bought a key online strategy to the European market. Huawei said its higher priced flagships were well received in Europe with particularly strong sales in Italy and Spain while the Honor brand continues to offer impressive flagship-level devices at an affordable price tag.
Huawei has been steadily growing as one of the world’s largest smartphone vendors but its other businesses – which focus on network infrastructure and enterprise business – have also grown. As a result, the company revealed earlier this week that overall group revenues in the first half of the year had risen 69 percent to $9.09 billion.
Richard Yu, CEO of Huawei Consumer BG, said:
“This incredible growth is a testament to our core business strategy to offer premium quality products, bringing our expected earnings for 2015 from USD 16 billion to USD 20 billion.
Such a remarkable and rapid growth in performance is a result of Huawei’s Consumer BG’s commitment to consumers’ needs and our core strategy of providing innovative hardware technology and software experience. With our consistent and huge investment in R&D, Huawei is set to become one of the key players in the long-run.”
With more devices – including the rumoured Huawei Nexus and Huawei Mate 8 – planned for later in the year, Huawei may continue this financial trend and report a stellar end to the year.
YouTube app for Android now shows vertical video in full screen
Believe it or not, there are still a few people out there who record vertical videos with their mobile devices. Sure, there might be a few exceptions to the rules (Snapchat, Periscope), but outside of a few applications that are built around vertically-recorded video content, there are very few reasons to record video not in landscape mode.
Thankfully, Google understands that there will always be some folks who record videos this way, which is why the most recent YouTube for Android update aims to help out with this problem. In version 10.28 of the application, which is rolling out now in the Google Play Store, you can finally view vertically-recorded videos in full screen. Previously, pressing the full screen button in the corner of a vertical video would result in the app switching to landscape mode, though it would still display the video in a vertical fashion, which really didn’t look good at all. Now that problem is fixed, making these videos a little more enjoyable to watch.
The update is now rolling out in the Play Store, so head to the link below if you’re interested in downloading the latest version.
WhatsApp updates bring notifications, data usage and interface changes
A series of five updates in 24 hours to the WhatsApp for Android application has bought a range of new features designed to improve experience and reduce data usage in voice calls. As noted by Android Police, one key feature bought by the new updates it the ability to add custom notification sounds to individual contacts and/or group conversations.
When you open a contact’s or group’s detail page, you’ll now see a new Notifications box, which will let you change the notification style and also mute notifications for a defined period of time – 8 hours, 1 week or 1 year – and also turn off notifications. The ability to customise notifications to this degree of detail was previously seen on the WhatsApp+ application – before users of WhatsApp+ found themselves temporarily banned from using WhatsApp that is – and also lets you set specific notification tones, vibration length, notification light, popup notification and customise WhatsApp call notifications.
The updates also bring the ability to mark a conversation as unread, at least within the app. WhatsApp gives you the ability to display a message as read but the mark as unread option will not change this, nor will it change the chronological position of the chat in the conversations window. That being said, it could be useful as a reminder to reply to a message at a later date.
The updates also bring a couple of interesting new options in the Settings menu. First, the app will now let you enable a low data usage option for WhatsApp voice calls, which is great for users who have a low data allowance or live in a developing country where data is not readily available. For an in-depth look at how much data WhatsApp Voice Calls actually use, check our in-depth top 10 voice chat data usage comparison.
Secondly, there’s also an option under network usage that indicates how much data has been used in backing up WhatsApp to Google Drive. What’s interesting is that the option doesn’t actually exist in WhatsApp anymore as it was previously added months ago but then removed. Could this be a sign that WhatsApp will soon support remote backups? One of the biggest problems for me personally is transferring WhatsApp to another phone and if you’ve ever lost a phone, you’ll know how frustrating it can be to lose your entire chat history (especially if you’ve not backed it up). With remote backups to Google Drive, these concerns could be a thing of the past.
The latest of the five updates has version number v2.12.194 and can be downloaded from APKMirror. The update should roll out to the Play Store in the coming days so keep an eye out for it and come back to let us know what you think of it (once you’ve got it) in the comments below!
The Vivo X5Pro makes its way to India for Rs 27,980
Chinese smartphone manufacturer Vivo is bringing its high-end X5Pro smartphone to India. Featuring some impressive specifications, a premium design and relatively low price point, we imagine this phone will do quite well in India.
The Vivo X5Pro comes with a 5.2-inch Super AMOLED display with 1920 x 1080 resolution, a 64-bit octa-core Snapdragon 615 processor, 2GB of RAM and an Adreno 405 GPU. It has 16GB of internal memory (expandable up to 128GB via microSD), dual-SIM card support, a non-removable 2450mAh battery, as well as 4G LTE connectivity. It also runs Vivo’s customized software overlay Funtouch OS atop Android 5.0 Lollipop.
This device is very slim, measuring only 6.44mm thin, and even promises a “Hi-Fi audio experience” with its custom Cirrus Logic DAC AK4375 audio chip. Moreover, the rear-facing 13MP camera with f/2.0 aperture comes with phase-detection auto-focus (PDAF) that should make for a quick focusing experience. The device also comes with an 8MP front-facing camera with f/2.4 aperture.
The X5Pro will be available across India beginning Saturday, August 15th for Rs. 27,980. Interested folks can pre-book the device now through vivoglobal.in from midnight tonight.
AIVAnet 