Inhabitat’s Week in Green: 3D-printed suites and a new Prius
Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week’s most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us — it’s the Week in Green.
Researchers at the University of Michigan are making waves in solar panels — literally. It turns out that their undulating photovoltaic strips can collect up to 30 percent more energy than flat arrays. In other energy news, China and Pakistan just announced plans to build the world’s largest solar farm in the Punjabi desert, and Aspen, Colorado, just became the third city in the US to be powered entirely by renewable energy. Heads up students — we’re giving away three solar energy-generating Voltaic backpacks and you can win one here. Voltaic also just launched a new solar-powered light that shines for 30-plus hours on a single charge. And designer Pauline van Dongen debuted a solar parka that keeps you charged when you journey off the grid.
The Toyota Prius is the world’s best-selling hybrid — and this past week we caught a first look at its successor. The all-new fourth-generation Prius features sportier looks, pumped-up specs and 10 percent better gas mileage. Meanwhile, Nissan just upgraded the Leaf electric vehicle with a new battery that allows it to drive 107 miles on a single charge. Russia just announced a major commitment to green vehicles: By November 2016 every gas station in the country must install an EV charger. Everyone knows that gasoline-powered vehicles produce toxic emissions and smog, but a picture’s worth a thousand words: You won’t believe what Beijing looked like before and after the city pulled many of its 5 million registered cars off the road. And in the craziest transportation story of the week, a team of architects proposed transforming London’s Underground into a gigantic moving walkway.
3D-printing technology continues to shake up the field of architecture — last week a hotel in the Philippines unveiled the world’s first 3D-printed suite. It took just five days to create the suite, which comes complete with a printed concrete whirlpool. Air-purifying buildings sound like science fiction, but one just became fact in the Netherlands. Designer Daan Roosegaarde has created a tower that can purify 30,000 cubic meters of air in a single hour. Could humans inhabit Mars in the near future? Elon Musk thinks we can — and this week he proposed dropping nukes on the red planet to prepare it for terraforming.
Filed under:
Misc, Household, Transportation, Science
Tags: 3d printing, EcoFriendly, green, inhabitat, InhabitatsWeekInGreen, Prius, smog, solar, Toyota
Renders reveal Xiaomi Mi Note 2 dual cameras, thin bezels, fingerprint scanner
Xiaomi is getting ready to reveal some new devices and one of them has surfaced in some new renders posted by Weibo user @KJuma. The images are reportedly for the Xiaomi Mi Note 2 smartphone. The renders show a device with very thin bezels and what is likely a fingerprint scanner on the front and around back a dual camera setup.
According to rumors, the physical home button shown in the renders will house a fingerprint scanner that is of the newer touch variety. The dual camera setup on the back of the device will be a whopping 23MP unit, while the front-facing camera is supposedly a 12MP unit.
Other sources say the Xiaomi Mi Note 2 will be powered by a Snapdragon 820 chip, 4GB of RAM, and with have either 32GB or 64GB of internal storage. The display is reportedly a 5.7-inch Quad HD screen. To power all of this, the Mi Note 2 will come with a 3,500 mAh battery.
source: @KJuma (Weibo)
via: VR-Zone
Come comment on this article: Renders reveal Xiaomi Mi Note 2 dual cameras, thin bezels, fingerprint scanner
Android Authority this week – September 13, 2015
The world of Android never stands still, so after a brief post-IFA respite, this week brought us exciting reports about the Moto X Force, the first real look at the Android-powered Nokia C1, and more images of the Nexus 5X; Apple announced a very tame upgrade to Android’s biggest rival; we heard the first enticing rumors about the Galaxy S7; and Google finally launched Android Pay.
Inside AA HQ
All the big news happened the week before, but Josh, Lanh, and Nirave actually stayed in Berlin until Wednesday, continuing to bring you coverage from Europe’s biggest tech event. One of the last things they did at the show was hand out the Android Authority Best of IFA awards for the five most impressive products launched at IFA. See the award winners here.
Now that IFA is behind us, we’re all looking forward to the next big event of this autumn. Google will unveil the next Nexus devices at the end of September, and just like every other Android fan, we’re very excited to see them in action. Until then, we have a bunch of hot devices in our labs, including the Moto X Style and the Mate S – reviews are coming soon, so stay tuned.
OnePlus has a hit a snag or two in bringing the OnePlus 2 to market, but you won’t have to deal with all that invite hassle, provided you’re lucky enough! Check out our international giveaway for a shot at winning a brand new OnePlus 2!
The stuff you shouldn’t miss
- Review: Bailey puts the Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 up for testing
- Hands-on: May the force be with you! We go hands-on with the Huawei Mate S
- Hands-on: Is the Huawei Watch still worth your attention, six months after its announcement?
- Opinion: Andrew looks at the strategies of the major Android OEMs: who’s winning and who’s losing?
- Feature: Xiaomi: it’s time you learned more about the Chinese company taking over most markets that it enters
- Unboxing: Moto X Style or X Pure: whatever you call it, it’s a hell of a device
Top news of the week
Moto is out in Force
The true Nokia Android is coming
All about Nexus 5X
- (Update: new image) LG Nexus 5X shows up in clearest image yet
- You can get a good idea of what the Nexus 5X looks like from these case renders
New iPhones: lots of yawns and a few cool features
- By the numbers: iPhone 6S vs the Android competition
- iPhone 6S and 6S Plus announced: what you need to know about Apple’s latest
Galaxy S7: the rumor mill is working
Android Pay is here
- New Google Wallet app launched, may signal the impending Android Pay release
- Google officially rolling out Android Pay starting today (Update: Grab the APK now)
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Nexus Protect getting mentioned around the Google Store; is it a form of extended warranty?
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When it comes to extended device warranty, Apple pretty much has everyone beat – for better or worse. However, it looks like Google might have some tricks up its own sleeves as the name Nexus Protect has started to be thrown around. According to Android Police, Nexus Protect can be found in several parts of the page source of the Google Store, and suggests that it’s some kind of extended warranty, the kind that gets you a free screen replacement or something of that nature. There also appear to be some weird restrictions, such as buying multiple devices requires all devices to have Nexus Protect, otherwise none will get it – the only thing I can think of this stopping is people who buy multiple devices at launch with the idea of selling them off.
Even though the service is called Nexus Protect, it also appears that it will be available for every device on the Google Store, including Android Wear, Android TV and Chromebook, though that’s just speculation based on the source code at this time. If Nexus Protect turns out to be an actual thing – and Google’s rumoured event on September 29th seems like a good time to announce it – Nexus devices could become just that little bit more attractive to prospective buyers.
What do you think about a Nexus Protect warranty? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Source: Android Police
The post Nexus Protect getting mentioned around the Google Store; is it a form of extended warranty? appeared first on AndroidSPIN.
The Verizon Moto X (1st gen) has started its soak test for Android Lollipop, finally
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More often than not, Verizon tends to be on the receiving end of jokes about late updates, though it’s not exactly doing itself any favours. The Verizon Moto X (1st gen) has started its soak test for Android Lollipop, which is probably cause for celebration for owners of the device, but once again makes Verizon a laughing stock when it comes to updates, especially considering how early Motorola has always made its updates available. Users have reported that they have been receiving two updates, one to prime their device, and the second being the full 712MB Android 5.1 update for the device.
As a rule of thumb, once the soak test has completed successfully, it usually takes a week or two for the update to roll out to the wider community, so even though you’ve waited until now, you’ll have to be patient for just a little bit longer.
What do you think about the Verizon Moto X (1st gen) getting its update now? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Source: Droid-life
The post The Verizon Moto X (1st gen) has started its soak test for Android Lollipop, finally appeared first on AndroidSPIN.
New OPPO R7s shows up in TENAA for certification
A new device from OPPO has surfaced in the TENAA, China’s version of the FCC, database revealing a new smartphone joining the R7 family, which is currently made up of the OPPO R7 and OPPO R7 Plus. This latest device, the OPPO R7s, appears to be very similar to the other devices from the specs, but in terms of size falls in between the two.
According to the TENAA information, the R7s will be equipped with a 5.5-inch AMOLED display, midway between the 5-inch screen of the R7 and the 6-inch screen of the R7 Plus. Otherwise, the hardware is similar with all three phones equipped with a Snapdragon 615 processor and 3 GB of RAM. The R7s joins its bigger brother with 32 GB of internal storage. The R7s also gets a 13MP rear-facing camera, but it is not clear which focusing system it may be equipped with.
One area that is unclear is what size battery the R7s may carry. The R7s will reportedly weigh 200g more than the R7 Plus, which has a 4100 mAh battery, despite being smaller in size. It is possible the TENAA listing is incorrect on the weight, so we will have to wait for more information to be released by OPPO.
There are actually two variants of the device passing through TENAA, so we will have to wait to see which wireless carriers are supported along with market availability and pricing.
source: TENAA (source 1) (source 2)
via: HDBlog.it Android
Come comment on this article: New OPPO R7s shows up in TENAA for certification
Court approves settlement over Curt Schilling’s failed game studio
The longstanding battle for compensation following the death of Curt Schilling’s state-backed game studio, 38 Studios, is one step closer to winding down. A Rhode Island Superior Court judge has approved a $12.5 million partial settlement with four of the defendants in the case, helping recoup some of the $75 million poured into the failed Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning creator. This definitely isn’t the end — Schilling is still fighting the lawsuit, for one thing. Between this and an earlier $4.4 million settlement, though, the tide appears to be turning against the former baseball star.
[Image credit: Tony Avelar/Bloomberg via Getty Images]
Filed under:
Gaming
Source:
IGN, Fox Sports
Tags: 38studios, curtschilling, gaming, kingdomsofamalur, kingdomsofamalurreckoning, rhodeisland, settlement, videogames
OnePlus 2 International Giveaway
Welcome to the Sunday Giveaway, the place where we giveaway a new Android phone or tablet each and every Sunday.
A big congratulations to last week’s winner of the Xperia Z5 giveaway: Igor S. from Russia.
This week we are giving away the OnePlus 2!
Join Now!
OnePlus 2 International Giveaway!
https://js.gleam.io/e.js
More Giveaways this month:
Winners Gallery
Winners Gallery on Google+
Terms & Conditions
- The giveaway is an international giveaway (Except when we can not ship to your Country.)
- If we can not ship to your country, you will be compensated with an online gift card of equal MSRP value to the prize.
- We are not responsible for lost shipments.
- You must be age of majority in your Country of residence.
- We are not responsible for any duties, import taxes that you may incur.
- Only 1 entry per person, do not enter multiple email addresses. We will verify all winners and if we detect multiple email addresses by the same person you will not be eligible to win.
- We reserve all rights to make any changes to this giveaway.
- This giveaway is operated by Android Authority.
- The prize will ship when it is available to purchase.
1byone Universal car phone mount(review)
1byone is a company based in China who makes a litany of products ranging from home security systems to TV antennas all the way to mobile accessories. They are quickly building a reputation as a company who makes high quality products as evidenced by their product reviews on Amazon.com. Sure they’re spelling on their product descriptions isn’t always up to par, but don’t let that deter you from trying out their products. They are a young company and are working out small kinks. 1byone sent me a universal magnetic mount stand to use in my truck and it certainly exceeded my expectations.
Let me explain in my review.
Design and Usage
The 1byone Universal Windshield Dashboard Car Mount is one of four mounts that they offer through Amazon.com and their website. The mount itself is made from very durable plastic with a suction cup mount on the bottom and an arm with a powerful magnet. 1byone provides two metal plates, one with a sticky gel pad that sticks to your device with a circular plate(about the size of a half dollar coin), and the other is a rectangular plate(about half the size of a standard credit card) that you can insert in between your case and phone.
Nothing is permanently stuck to your device or automobile, meaning you can adjust the positioning of the mount anytime you want or you can move it to another vehicle if need be. The gel pad is reusable if you decide to pull it off and want to put it on another phone or tablet. All you need to do is rinse it with water and it is as good as new once it dries.
Because I don’t use cases on any of my devices, the circular gel pad was the option for me to use(for the sake of this review I took pictures of the stand on my desk because getting good pictures in my truck wasn’t working out for me). I stuck the gel pad on my Amazon Fire phone which has a glass back, and the pad almost felt permanent because it was so sticky.
I attached the suction cup to the inside of my windshield and flipped the latch on the bottom of the mount to fix the mount. Once the mount was in place, and the metal plate stuck to my phone, I simply put my phone close to the magnet and it grabbed on. The magnet rotates and bends which allowed me to see my phone perfectly with a couple adjustments.
I have used other mounts which require some adjustments of arms to hold the device in place, but never used a magnetic mount. It was so much easier to use than those other mounts with adjustable arms as magnets make placement much simpler. I didn’t necessarily like the metal pad on the back on my phone as it stuck up from my phone about 2mm.
I didn’t use the metal plate inside of a phone case, but I can see that being a perfect solution to the circular disk on the back of my device. Providing both options, a metal plate and circular disk was a well thought out solution by 1byone.
After two solid weeks of daily use in the recent San Diego heat wave, and on a camping trip, the 1byone Universal car mount performed flawlessly. Mounts are nothing to get excited about, but this is going to stay in my truck and help keep my phone visible while being hands-free.
What I liked
- Price at $11.99
- Solid construction
- Compact size
- Strong suction cup and magnet
- Ability to rotate my device 360 degrees
- Reusable mounting system
- Ease-of-use
What I didn’t like
- Circular disk protruded from my device 2mm giving it an awkward feel
Summary
1byone is an upcoming company and makes high-quality products. The Universal Magnetic Mount Stand is not only cheap in price, but well thought out and well built. At $11.99 you won’t find a better mounting system and I recommend this to you if you use your phone for music, maps, and phone calls while in your automobile. Check it out on Amazon.com or at 1byone.
The post 1byone Universal car phone mount(review) appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Washington state fines a crowdfunding project for stiffing backers
Regulators have already started clamping down on crowdfunding fraud, but they’re now getting those project creators to pay up when they leave backers hanging. Washington state has ordered Ed Polchlopek III to pay a total of $54,841 in fines and restitution after he dropped his Kickstarter project, Asylum Playing Cards, without offering refunds. That’s a hefty payout when the entire project raised just $25,146, only a small amount of which ($668) came from Washington-based contributors. Clearly, the state is as much interested in sending a message as compensating those who were left high and dry.
The punishment didn’t garner much attention when the state dished it out in July, so it’s hard to say that this legal action will serve as a deterrent in the near term. However, it does lay the groundwork for future penalties that could alter the crowdfunding landscape. We’ve sadly seen numerous instances where projects not only failed, but left supporters in the lurch. If enough of these fraudsters are forced to pay up, you may encounter fewer sketchy funding drives in the future.
[Image credit: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg via Getty Images]
Filed under:
Internet
Via:
Polygon
Source:
Washington State Attorney General
Tags: crowdfunding, fraud, government, internet, kickstarter, washington
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