Indian probe captures 3D image of vast Mars canyon
India’s space agency revealed new photos of a prominent canyon on Mars and showed that it’s getting a lot out of a cheap, experimental mission. Images from the nation’s Mars Orbital Mission, aka “Mangalyaan,” show part of the 62 mile wide and 317 mile long Ophir Chasma canyon. On top of the photo (below) taken from an altitude of 1,857 km (1,154 miles), the Indian Space Research Agency (ISRA) created a 3D render of the landmark (above, and bottom). The probe has already taken numerous thermal and full-color images and monitored the atmosphere and radiation levels on the red planet.
That’s not bad for the cheapest Mars mission ever at $73 million. On top of that, it was launched in 2013 mainly to test orbit maneuvers, navigation and other parameters for future interplanetary missions. Any extra science it gets is a bonus, as are photos of glamorous Mars landsmarks — and Ophir Chasma, which is part of the 3,100 mile long Valles Marineris canyon system featured on SpaceX’s travel posters, definitely qualifies.
[Image credits: Indian Space Research Organization]
Filed under:
Science
Via:
CNET
Source:
ISRA
Tags: IndianSpaceResearchAgency, ISRA, Mars, OphirChasma, Photo, VallesMarineris
Amazon Echo gets StubHub event info, further automates your home
Since its introduction, Amazon has continued to add new features to its voice-controlled speaker. Most recently, the online retailer tacked on StubHub integration for keeping tabs on local events. Once you set your city, you can ask the gadget’s virtual assistant Alexa to tell you what’s going on this weekend, for example. Adding to its home automation toolbox, Echo also plays nice with Cree connected light bulbs and gear from both Levitron and Lightify through the Wink hub. If those don’t excite you too much you can rest assured that more of the so-called Skills are certainly on the way for the speaker and its built-in helper.
Filed under:
Household, Portable Audio/Video
Source:
ZDNet
Tags: alex, amazon, amazonecho, cree, echo, homeautomation, leviton, lightify, speaker, stubhub, voicecontrol
Sprint plan gives you perpetual iPhone upgrades
Sprint isn’t going to let T-Mobile’s iPhone upgrade promo go unanswered. It’s launching iPhone Forever, a payment plan that lets you upgrade iPhones at any time without facing an up-front payment or a rate hike. So long as you’re willing to shell out $22 per month on top of your service plan ($15 if you take advantage of a pre-2016 promo rate), you can upgrade to the newest iPhone on a whim. This theoretically saves you a ton of cash if you always have to own Apple’s latest and greatest.
Whether or not it’s a deal depends on what you’re looking for both in the iPhone itself and your service. It’s fine if you don’t need more than the base iPhone, but that advantage disappears if you want a higher capacity or a larger screen. Also, the big savings over rival carriers hinge on heavy data usage. If you don’t need unlimited (or effectively unlimited) data, the price gap is going to shrink considerably. Still, this is a good deal if you both have good coverage and don’t plan to switch platforms — and it’s clear that Sprint’s beef with T-Mobile is paying dividends for customers of both providers.
Photo by Will Lipman.
Filed under:
Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile, Sprint
Source:
Sprint
Tags: carrier, iphone, iphoneforever, mobilepostcross, plans, smartphone, sprint, wireless
Elephone P8000 review
Elephone may not be the most well known Android smartphone manufacturer out there, but like its other Chinese OEM counterparts, the company churns out solid offerings that feature price points that are competitive and affordable. The flagship Elephone P7000 may have been released just a few months ago, but its successor is already available, bringing with a few improvements along the way. What does this device bring to the table? We find out, in this Elephone P8000 review!
Design
The Elephone P8000 retains a lot of the design elements of its predecessor, but that isn’t a bad thing in this case. The rear back panel comes with a carbon fiber texture that will remind you of the carbon fiber dbrand skin, and along with the metal band, the P8000 offers a surprisingly premium build that you wouldn’t expect from a device in this price range.
With its weight and thickness of 205 grams and 10.1 mm, the device feels very substantial and solid in the hand, but this extra heft is worth it, considering that it makes room for a large 4,000 mAh battery. The back cover is removable, giving you access to the dual SIM card slots and the microSD card slot. The back cover is quite thin though, and with relatively strong clips holding it in place, it can be very difficult to remove.
While at first glance it may appear as though the device has very thin bezels along the sides of the display, turning on the display shows that there is actually a black border around the screen, a design element that some users may not be a fan of. Below the display are three capacitive keys, with the dots being the back and recent apps keys, and the circle being the home button. The home button is illuminated, and depending on when you picked up the device, may also double as a notification LED.
We say depending on when you picked up the device, because the first batch of 5000 devices come without the notification LED feature. Elephone mentions that this was a compromise that had to be made initially to keep up with the demand. Users who face this problem are entitled to a discount with the next Elephone flagship, but other than that, there is nothing else that Elephone is offering by way of compensation.
Display
The Elephone comes with a 5.5-inch IPS LCD display, with a Full HD resolution, resulting in a pixel density of 401 ppi. The display looks fantastic, and features excellent color reproduction, neutral color temperatures, good viewing angles, and enough brightness to allow for comfortable outdoor visibility.
There are some issues with quality control though, which is quite worrying. For starters, there is no Gorilla Glass panel protecting the display, which is surprising given that it was found with its predecessor, the P7000. Further, there was a line of LCD bright spots on the right side of the display, a dead pixel near the bottom left corner, as well as a bit of dust trapped between the LCD and digitizer. While not every device will see these issues, the oversight in quality control before shipping is certainly alarming.
Performance
Under the hood, the Elephone P8000 packs an octa-core 64-bit MediaTek MT6753 processor, clocked at 1.3 GHz, and backed by the Mali-T720 GPU and 3 GB of RAM. This is the processing package seen with quite a few similar low-cost smartphones out of China, and the performance is quite good, given the price of the device. There were no issues with general day to day tasks, and multi-tasking is a breeze with 3 GB of RAM. Graphically-intensive gaming will result in dropped frames and slow loading times, however, but it can handle more casual games easily.
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Hardware
The P8000 comes with 16 GB of on-board storage, further expandable via microSD card by up to 64 GB. The device also packs a standard suite of connectivity options, and also comes with 4G LTE support in select markets. Network connectivity was a big issue however, with the device unable to connect to the T-Mobile network, and allowing only for 2G speeds on the AT&T network, and that too only when outdoors. Basically, the Elephone P8000 isn’t going to be a good option at all if you are in the US.
The single rear speaker unit of the P8000 is unfortunately disappointing, as it is not very clear and doesn’t get too loud either. It is good enough for basic use, but certainly isn’t going to meet the need when it comes to media consumption. Using headphones certainly allows for a far better audio experience, but even then, the maximum volume isn’t as loud as one would hope. This may just be a software issue however, and something that Elephone can fix in a future update.
The Elephone P8000 comes with a fingerprint reader on the back of the device, which can take some getting used to, as you can’t see the scanner to place your finger properly. It is a 360 degree sensor though, which means that it shouldn’t matter which angle you place the finger in, but in my experience, it didn’t work as well as it should. Accuracy was at around 70% even placing the finger perfectly, which is certainly disappointing. The same setup on the P7000 worked much better, so it is actually quite surprising to see this kind of performance this time around.
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One of the best features of the Elephone P8000 is the battery, with the device packing a large 4,000 mAh unit. The device lasted for as long as 25 hours with just over 5 hours of screen-on time, which is impressive by any standard. Granted, this was with mobile connectivity turned off because of the issues mentioned above, so your usage results may vary. In either case, users should be able to comfortably get a full day of use out of the device. An expected trade off here is the charge time though, with the device taking a little under 4 hours to charge fully.
Camera
The Elephone P8000 comes with a 13 MP rear camera with a LED flash and a 5 MP front-facing camera. As good as it sounds on paper, the camera unfortunately produces only average looking shots. Good images are possible, but the camera suffers from focus and exposure issues, which means that it can take a while to get a correct shot. Low-light performance is also poor, which is understandable. Overall, we’ve seen some better cameras with other devices in this price range.
Software
The Elephone P8000 runs Android 5.1 Lollipop out of the box, with the custom Elephone UI on top. As is seen with other custom user interfaces from Chinese OEMs, there isn’t an app drawer available, leaving users dependent on folders to keep things organized. A nice addition here though is the ability to swipe easily swipe between different folders to quickly find what you are looking for.
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There is a theme store, but changing to a different theme only affects the wallpaper and the system icons, and not much else. Everything else, like the Settings menu and other software aspects remain stock-like, which many enthusiasts will appreciate. However, gesture settings that were seen with its predecessor, like double tap to wake, are no longer available. Miravision does make its way over though, which lets you adjust the display colors to your liking.
Specifications
| Display | 5.5” Full HD IPS 1920 x 1080. |
| Processor | 1.3 GHz, octa-core MediaTek MTK6753 |
| GPU | ARM MALI-T720 |
| RAM | 3GB |
| Storage | 16GB, microSD card slot, up to 64GB |
| Camera | 13 Megapixel Rear Camera 5MP Front Camera |
| Battery | 4,000 mAh |
| Connectivity | GPS, microUSB 2.0, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth |
| Networks | GSM, 3G, 4G LTE |
| Software | Android 5.1 Lollipop |
| Dimensions | 155 x 76 x 10.1 mm 205 grams |
| SIM slots | Dual-SIM: SIM + Micro SIM |
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Pricing and final thoughts
The Elephone P8000 is available for just $170, with color options including white, silver, and gold. Of course, keep in mind that network connectivity is a big issue in the US, so it’s a good idea to buy this device only in other markets, after checking for compatibility first.
So there you have it for this in-depth look at the Elephone P8000! As impressive as this device looks on paper, there are a lot of issues that show up when it comes to real world performance. While the battery life is amazing, and the display, other than some quality control issues, is excellent, there are some glaring flaws that are hard to overlook. It’s a definite no go if you are in the US unless they can fix its network connectivity issues, but may still be a good option in other markets however, especially if you’re looking for an affordable device with excellent battery life.
Best Buy to Offer AppleCare and AppleCare+ Starting September 13
Best Buy will begin offering AppleCare and AppleCare+ extended warranty plans for the iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and other eligible Apple products across its U.S. stores starting September 13, according to an internal training video obtained by MacRumors. The news was first reported by 9to5Mac.
AppleCare and AppleCare+ purchased through Best Buy will include accidental damage coverage for the same service fees charged by Apple. The protection plans will also cover the accessories in the box and most other products on the same transaction, such as an Apple Display or AirPort Express purchased alongside an iMac.
Customers that purchase AppleCare or AppleCare+ can receive service at Best Buy or take their product directly to Apple. Best Buy will continue to offer revamped Geek Squad warranty plans for non-Apple products, including Geek Squad Protect & Support, Protect & Support Plus, 24/7 Support and Product Replacement.
Apple is expected to announce the next-generation “iPhone 6s” and “iPhone 6s Plus” within the first two weeks of September, with in-store availability usually occurring around one week later, so AppleCare and AppleCare+ should be available at Best Buy in time for the launch of those smartphones.
US military wants more lethal drone strikes
Despite doubts about the effectiveness of US drone airstrikes in war-torn nations, the Pentagon wants to dramatically increase them. An unnamed official told the WSJ that military commanders intend to bump the number of daily flights by 50 percent. UAVs like the MQ-9 Reaper would not only aid with surveillance in regions like the Ukraine, Middle East and the South China Sea, but also perform more targeted missile strikes. The Pentagon says it needs the surge in drone activity — the first since 2011 — to deal with new conflicts in Syria, Iraq, Yemen and elsewhere.
By 2019, the Army, Special Forces Command and contractors could be flying as many as 30 extra flights per day, on top of the 60 already flown by the Air Force. The Pentagon decided to include other military branches besides the Air Force, whose pilots are fatigued and overworked as it is. Though the emphasis of the expanded program is on surveillance, military commanders will reportedly increase strike capacities, too.
The strike program, which began with the Bush administration but accelerated under President Obama, is controversial. According to a report last year, 1,147 people were killed for 41 individuals targeted, a bystander casualty rate higher than previously thought. Despite that, military observers say they’re the least terrible option for fighting terrorist groups like al-Qaida. The plan still requires approval from Congress, but seems like a no-brainer given the low costs compared to other options.
[Image credit: Getty Images]
Filed under:
Transportation
Source:
WSJ
Tags: Airstrikes, Drones, DroneStrikes, military, MQ-9, Pentagon, Reaper
Samsung’s latest wireless headphones promise better-than-CD quality
Wireless headphones and flawless audio quality don’t usually mix (you’re usually compressing the sound signal to send it over the air), but Samsung thinks it can give this blend a shot. Its newly introduced Level On Wireless Pro headphones include “Ultra High Quality Audio” that supposedly delivers higher-than-CD fidelity whether or not you’re plugged in. That seems promising on the surface, but you may have a hard time hearing the difference unless you’re a music producer or otherwise meet some specific conditions. You’ll need a device that supports UHQA (such as the Galaxy Note 5 or Galaxy S6 Edge+), and you’ll need to shop at a service like Pono’s to get the right source material. These might sound no better than other headphones in typical conditions, even if you listen to lossless music from the likes of Tidal — that’s merely matching CD quality, not exceeding it.
Otherwise, you’re looking at much of the same experience that you’d get with the garden variety Level On Wireless. That means active noise cancelling, touch-sensitive controls and a “prestigious” design with extra-comfortable cushions — the only sacrifice is a dip in battery life from 11 hours to 10 when you’re using both Bluetooth and noise reduction. Samsung hasn’t said when the Pro model ships or how much it’ll cost, but it’s likely to carry a premium over the $250 of the regular cord-free version.
Filed under:
Home Entertainment, Peripherals, HD, Samsung
Source:
Samsung Tomorrow
Tags: audio, hdpostcross, headphones, levelon, levelonwirelesspro, samsung
(Deal) Become better at Project Management for only $79
Organizing your life, and becoming efficient in everything you do, can be a real task (pun intended). There are tons of guidelines everywhere, but what works for me, may not work for you. So in turn you have to be able to learn as much as you can about your work habits, and develop a plan tailored to yourself. It doesn’t matter whether this is in your personal life or work, it’s best to have some type of guidelines to follow.
Project Management can be a real pain, if you don’t really have an idea of what’s going on, or what you’re doing. If you’re running a team, this entails having everything coordinated and assigned to the correct people, while still meeting time constraints and anything else that may pop-up. Today’s deal aims to help teach you the ways of Project Management and become a better manager.
The deal we have for you today is actually a Project Management Certification Bundle. Within the bundle, there are six different courses, that are geared towards helping you become the best you can be at handling projects. The first course goes over the basics, and goes all the way up to taking a lesson that will give you the Project Management Professional certifications.
- Project Management Basics
- Project Management for Team Members
- Project Management for Business Professionals
- Project Management for Engineers
- Project Management for Experts
- Project Management Professional Prep
The best part about this deal is that you can get all six courses for only $79. If priced separately, these courses would run you almost $3,200, so at a savings of 97% you really can’t go wrong. This is just a minuscule price to pay to become certified in Project Management, and would go a long way at just about any job that you may come across in your career.
You can find this, and many other great tech bargains through our Deals Page. Backed by StackCommerce, there are daily promos, giveaways, freebies, and much more!
The post (Deal) Become better at Project Management for only $79 appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Xiaomi sells 800,000 Redmi Note 2 units in 12 hours
Xiaomi’s latest smartphone, the Redmi Note 2, went on sale in China this past weekend and hit new records, with the Chinese company managing to sell 800,000 units in just 12 hours after the handset went on sale. Xiaomi has a history of impressive flash sales and its latest smartphone continued the trend by setting a new record in China, which will no doubt help the company’s aims of keeping its top spot.
Xiaomi in video:
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The Redmi Note 2, which was announced last week, aims to continue Xiaomi’s philosophy of offering impressive specs at an often-unbeatable price tag and the Redmi Note 2 definitely fits the bill. A key reason for the high interest is the MediaTek Helio X10 chipset, which is used in handsets that other manufacturers charge up to four times’ more for, like the HTC One M9+. With the Redmi Note 2 starting at just $128, a next-gen processor certainly adds to the appeal.
The Redmi Note 2 also offers a 5.5-inch Full HD 1080p display with 2GB RAM, 16GB internal storage and a PowerVR G6200 GPU also making it onboard. On the back is a 13MP camera while a front facing 5MP snapper takes care of your selfie needs. Other notable specs include Wi-Fi ac, dual-SIM LTE (depending on which version you buy) and a 3,020 mAh battery while the software is taken care of by the new MIUI 7 OS, which is based on Android 5.1 Lollipop.
The Redmi Note 2 is available in three versions; the entry-level offers 16GB storage with one of the two SIM cards LTE-enabled and costs RMB 799 ($128). The next version offers the same but both SIM cards are LTE-enabled and will cost a fraction more at RMB 899 ($144). For those who need more than 16GB internal storage, the Redmi Note 2 Prime brings dual-SIM LTE and 32GB storage for RMB 999 ($160). Whichever version you buy, the specs are certainly a bargain on paper.
It’s unsurprising to see Xiaomi’s latest flash sale result in record sales number for its new handset and that’s only in China; the company has not confirmed global release plans but is likely to reveal more at its MIUI 7 global launch event on August 19 and we’ll bring you more on this as we have it.
What do you think of Xiaomi’s latest device and do you intend to buy the Redmi Note 2? Let us know in the comments below guys!
Galaxy ‘O’ is a new series of smartphones being developed by Samsung
Samsung may have only launched the Galaxy Note 5 and Galaxy S6 Edge+ last week, but that doesn’t mean the Korean handset maker will slow down in its shotgun approach to developing new smartphones. It seems that Samsung is busy working on a new range of devices under the Galaxy O moniker.
According to SamMobile’s source, Samsung is believed to be working on two handsets with model numbers SM-G550 and the SM-G600 that will launch under the Galaxy O brand name. Other than the handsets possibly launching as Galaxy O5 (SM-G550) and the Galaxy O7 (SM_G600), not much is known about the Galaxy O series of handsets. We will have to wait for more leaks to find out if the Galaxy O series will be aimed at the premium or budget segment.
As for Samsung’s promise to trim its smartphone lineup, well, that would appear to have been tossed aside. With its Galaxy A, Galaxy E, Galaxy J, Galaxy Note, Galaxy S, Galaxy Y, and now the Galaxy O range of smartphones, it would seem that Samsung is aiming to fill every possible niche in the market.
What do you think? Does Samsung really need to develop another new range of smartphones? Should it rather concentrate on giving its latest devices such as the Note 5 a global launch instead of just to the US and China? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Source: SamMobile
Come comment on this article: Galaxy ‘O’ is a new series of smartphones being developed by Samsung
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