YotaPhone 2 won’t be coming to the US due to manufacturing delays
Bad news for anyone wanting to pick up a YotaPhone 2 in the US when it releases; the North American launch of the e-ink smartphone has been cancelled due to manufacturing issues and delays.
After scrounging up around $300,000 in a fundraising campaign, Yota Devices claims that there are problems with the manufacturing process that would keep the phone from being released before 2016, which interferes with some of their other device plans. Since backers had to put down $500 to be guaranteed a phone at launch, the company is offering either an international unlocked version (which lacks support for LTE on carriers in the US) or a refund, although they haven’t figured out how to process the refunds just yet.
While it’s a bit of an inconvenience for any backers of the YotaPhone 2, at least everything is up in the air and transparent. That’s a better outcome that some of the other crowdfunding campaigns we’ve seen, especially in the smartphone market.
Anybody else disappointed that the YotaPhone won’t be seeing a US release?
source: The Verge
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T-Mobile’s Un-carrier campaign massively successful, reports double-digit revenue growth for Q2 2015
Since John Legere took over as CEO of the floundering T-Mobile in 2012, incredible strides have been made in resurrecting the magenta mobile carrier. Unless you live under a rock or don’t really pay attention to tech news, you probably have heard of the widely discussed “Un-carrier” campaign launched by Legere that has breathed new life into T-Mobile and jumpstarted new life into the mobile industry by prompting other mobile carriers to change their policies in response to their caped crusading competitor.
Just how successful has the Un-carrier campaign been for T-Mobile? Well Q2 2015 reports are in and the answer is outstanding.
T-Mobile has reported a 14% revenue growth and 25% adjusted EBITDA since last year’s Q2 2014. Additionally, the carrier reports that for the 9th consecutive quarter, T-Mobile has acquired over 1 million new net customer additions (2.1 million this quarter to be precise).
“While the carriers continue to use gimmicks to confuse consumers, T-Mobile continues to listen to customers and respond with moves that blow them away,” Legere had to say in the company press release. “On top of adding 2.1 million new customers in the second quarter, we delivered 14% year-over-year revenue growth and 25% year-over-year Adjusted EBITDA growth. Overall, I think our results speak for themselves.”
This growth means that T-Mobile now has a total of 58.9 million customers.
Source: T-Mobile
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EE introduces new “micro” plans Euro Pass and Euro Data Pass for travelers
U.K. wireless carrier EE has announced a couple new options launching today designed to make it easier for their customers traveling throughout Europe to make calls, text others, and tap into data if necessary. The new plans, called Euro Pass and Euro Data Pass borrow concepts of micropayments so that users can pay for the services on a daily basis, and only for days that they actually use the services, rather than having to buy a whole month-long block.
The Euro Pass product is intended for customers on EE Pay Monthly, SIM Only and small business acounts and provides unlimited calls and texts, and a block of 100MB of 4G data access for £4 per day ($6.26 USD). EE customers who are on 4GEE Extra plan already have unlimited calls and texts throughout 39 Europe Zone locations, so the Euro Data Pass was designed to give them a 100MB block of data on a daily basis for £3 per day ($4.69 USD). For both plans, if a user exceeds the 100MB data block, they will receive an additional 400MB at no extra cost, but it will be at a non-4G speed. All use by consumers when traveling and using these plans will not count against their normal plan limitations when back home.
EE says users can add the plans on the fly at any time, including once they are already outside of the U.K. EE users can just send a text message to trigger the addition of one of the new plans.
source: EE
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Cricket Wireless adds unlimited texting and calling from Canada, Mexico
Cricket Wireless on Friday announced it has enhanced the international calling and messaging plan for subscribers. Beginning in August, customers will be able to make unlimited calls and send SMS messages when traveling to Canada or Mexico. Cricket subscribers can currently make calls to those two countries, however this opens up the door for calling back home.
The new “roundtrip” feature will be offered for Smart ($50 per month) and Pro ($60 per month) plans at no additional cost. The feature starts on August 2 for Mexico, however Canada won’t see the capability until later in the month.
The post Cricket Wireless adds unlimited texting and calling from Canada, Mexico appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Defense of Greece TD: Worth it? [App Review]
Tower-defense games: love them or hate them, you’ve got to admit that they provide a lengthy challenge that can be played anywhere. First Games Interactive has created one based on the Ancient Greeks defending against the hordes of Romans. Read on to see if it’s worth downloading.
Setup
On the opening screen, you’re greeted by a Greek engineer and his assistant. They explain the basic story behind the game: the Greeks are being attacked by Romans and have to defend. You’re taken through a tutorial on all the different towers and the physics behind everything. It was very thorough and I had no doubts when I started playing by myself. You can obviously turn off the music and sound. There is no option to connect to Google Play Games, which may not be a big deal, but there is no saving your progress or improving your Google profile score. Otherwise, you’ll have no struggle beginning to play.
Gameplay
If you don’t know what a tower-defense game is, think of it as a bunch of enemies who are following a path. In-between these paths are your defenses, called ‘towers’ that use their dedicated powers to fight back against the incoming hoards. I’m not sure whether it was due to the fact that I hadn’t played the game for long past the tutorial, but there were only 4 towers available – a rather disappointing amount. Perhaps advancing further into the game reveals more weapons. (UPDATE: More are unlocked as you advance) Lag was not present and there were no annoying adverts – only the type that occasionally pops up when you finish a level. If you’re seeking pleasurable gaming experiences, look no further.
Is it for me?
Unless you have something against TD games, it’s a decent try. Unfortunately, there’s also probably a better tower defense out there. But go ahead and try it!
What we liked:
- Thorough tutorial
- Storyline
- Graphics
And not so much:
Too few defenses(UPDATE: More are unlocked as you advance)- User Interface
Let me put it like this: It’s a good game, but there’s better tower defenses out there. There’s nothing really wrong with it, but it doesn’t seem to have anything unique that other games don’t.
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Force Touch Panels Enter Mass Production Ahead of ‘iPhone 6s’ Launch
As the launch of the so-called “iPhone 6s” and “iPhone 6s Plus” inches closer, suppliers have begun shipping Force Touch panels for the next-generation smartphones, according to DigiTimes. The report claims that Apple’s supply chain partners started shipping Force Touch panels in limited quantities in June before ramping up production of the pressure-sensitive modules in July.
Taipei Times vaguely reported that Apple’s touch panel supplier TPK expects widespread adoption of pressure sensors, presumably for Force Touch, later this year. Force Touch, an existing Apple Watch and MacBook feature, is a pressure-sensitive technology that will enable future iPhones to distinguish between a light tap and deep press and complete different actions accordingly.
Taiwan-based website DigiTimes has a mixed track record at reporting on Apple’s upcoming product plans, but its sources within the upstream supply chain have proven reliable in the past. Apple has also announced new iPhones in September or October since the iPhone 4s, so suppliers ramping up Force Touch production is to be expected with less than two months to go.
The “iPhone 6s” and “iPhone 6s Plus” are rumored to feature the same 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch screen sizes, an A9 processor with 2GB of RAM, Force Touch, a faster Qualcomm LTE chip, an improved 12-megapixel rear-facing camera and 7000 Series aluminum. The overall design of the smartphones will likely be nearly identical to the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.
Uber is betting $1 billion to expand in India
Uber has big plans for India — specifically, $1 billion worth. The taxi-hailing company announced last night that it would make the investment to expand its ridership in India to 1 million rides per day by 2016. Currently, estimates put Uber at around 200,00 daily rides in India, according to the Financial Times. Just like it has in the US and other markets, the company likely aims to use the funding to entice both drivers and riders to join its service. It also helps Uber compete against local competition — in India’s case, that’s Ola, which has already raised $400 million on its own. Uber’s Indian investment is on par with the $1 billion it plans to spend in China this year. Uber has also had to deal with controversy in India: A sexual assault by a driver last year led to New Delhi temporarily banning the service, forcing Uber to launch a panic button allowing riders to get help from local authorities.
[Photo credit: AP Photo/Saurabh Das]
Filed under: Transportation
Source: Financial Times
Sharp abandons TVs in the US, hands keys to China’s Hisense
Sharp’s financial problems have forced it to leave the LCD TV business in North America. Chinese TV maker Hisense has paid a mere $23.7 million for the company’s Mexican factory and the right to use the Sharp brand in North and South America. Sharp lost 34 billion yen ($274 million) last quarter and $13.4 billion over the last four years, according to Bloomberg. Though the Japanese company recently received a $1.8 billion bailout, president Kozo Takahashi said “we have to consider all options, including a spinoff of the LCD business. The LCD market is changing very rapidly.”
Hisense is an up-and-coming player in the HDTV business that is known for its inexpensive 4K models, along with other China-based companies like TCL and Xiaomi. It doesn’t enjoy much brand recognition over here, however, which is where Sharp comes in. “The acquisition (of Sharp’s brand) will help Hisense gain an upper hand in both North and South America,” according to the company. That said, Sharp’s Aquos TV lineup has struggled in the US against not only established rivals like Samsung and LG, but also newcomers like California-based Vizio. Sharp does have its fans, though, so it’ll be interesting to see what a value brand like Hisense does with it.
[Image credit: AFP/Getty Images]
Filed under: Home Entertainment
Via: CNET
Source: Hisense
Space drones will collect samples from planets and asteroids
While Curiosity’s doing a great job on the red planet, there are still areas it can’t go to, such as steep cliffs/hills and locations hidden by permanent shadows. That’s why the engineers at NASA Kennedy Space Center’s Swamp Works laboratory are developing drones that can withstand harsh conditions on other planets and navigate extraterrestrial terrain. These machines, collectively called “Extreme Access Flyers,” will be gathering samples from places rovers can’t access. They’ll have rotors much larger than the ones you see on regular quadcopters and will use cold-gas jets to lift off and maneuver themselves. They need those, because Mars has a thin atmosphere and the other two target locations — asteroids and the moon — have no air. In addition, they’ll have to be able to fly autonomously, since there’s no GPS out there and they’ll be too far from Earth to be controlled by a ground team.
The engineers have already created three different prototypes for testing: a quadcopter five feet across, a functional palm-sized version of the first one used to test software, and a completely different model meant for asteroids kept inside a gimbal device, as you can see in the video below. The developers haven’t decided on how the drones will collect samples yet, but they believe the machines can carry one tool and collect around seven grams of sample, whether liquid or solid, at a time. They also think the drones can be used here on Earth to explore volcanic areas and to collect highly toxic materials.
Filed under: Robots
Source: NASA
Philae delivered crucial comet data despite its bumpy landing
Philae had a bumpy landing on the 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko comet last November, but that didn’t stop it from relaying some important data back to Earth. Papers published in the journal Science reveal how scientists, using the data collected by Philae’s onboard instruments, have been able to identify the internal structure of the comet, its daily fluctuations in temperature and organic compounds that could help support life.
The MUPUS sensors which hammered into Abydos — the name given to Philae’s final resting place — has revealed that the lander is sitting on a thin layer of dust less than 3cm thick and a compacted mixture of ice and dust below. The CONSERT radar, meanwhile — which fired radio waves through the nucleus to Rosetta — has given a detailed picture of the dust and ice located in the comet’s center. Using MUPUS’ thermal sensor, scientists have also discovered that the temperature on the comet shifts between -292 degrees Fahrenheit (-180 Celsius) and -229 degrees Fahrenheit (-145 Celsius) during the day.
These findings alone would be cause for celebration, but they’re only the tip of what’s been published in Science. Using Philae’s ROLIS and CIVA camera systems, researchers have been taking a closer look at the surface of the comet. Before touching down at Agilkia — the name given to the spacecraft’s first and brief landing point — ROLIS observed a vastly uneven surface comprised of meter-long boulders and dusty regolith measuring up to 2 meters deep. One of the largest shards is five meters high and has a tail of debris on one side, revealing how parts of the comet move while it’s hurtling through space.
A photo shot by CIVA of the Abydos landing site. Credit: ESA/Rosetta/Philae/CIVA
Philae was also able to collect gas and dust samples that kicked up during and after its double-bounce landing. The data collected by several onboard instruments have revealed 16 organic compounds — four of which have never been detected on a comet before. The gases that entered the top-mounted tubes included components of coma gases and carbon-bearing organic compounds such as formaldehyde. These can contribute to the creation of amino acids, nucleobases and sugars, including ribose — which can be found in DNA molecules. It’s early days, but these findings do provide some clues as to how comets and the early Solar System could have transported crucial building blocks for life. Even if the Philae lander never wakes up again, scientists can probably call that a job well done.
[Lead Image Credit: ESA/ATG medialab]
Filed under: Science
Source: European Space Agency, Science
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