Facebook improves News Feed for challenging connections
As first world markets have become saturated with smartphones, the market has started to move on to emerging markets. One of the challenges in those places is the lack of high speed connections, like 4G LTE, that many of us may take for granted. In some areas of the world, users may even be limited to 2G speeds. With more users located in regions with challenging communication infrastructures and slower speeds, app developers have to start taking that into account and optimize their apps for these challenges. Facebook has shared some of the steps they are taking to help users access their News Feed even if they are on a slow connection.
One step that Facebook is taking is the development of an open-source Network Connection Class that helps them determine they type of network a user is utilizing what speeds they are able to achieve. Using that information, Facebook does a better job of fetching stories and photos that may be lower down in the News Feed while a user is still reading something else. This makes the experience flow more smoothly as content is available to load when a user starts scrolling again. That same connection speed information may also result in the News Feed leaning more heavily on status updates and links and pulling back on posts that include videos.
Facebook’s engineers indicate the items to be downloaded on the News Feed now get prioritized more aggressively. One priority is to go ahead and download a story that a user is actually looking at rather than trying to load items further down in the stream. Another step Facebook took is to show stories from a previous session when no connection is present or the connection is particularly poor. They indicated user feedback showed users would rather have something to look at, even if it was old, rather than a blank News Feed.
source: Facebook
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Wall Street communications platform Symphony gets investment from Google
Symphony Communication Services is a messaging company that provides news, information, and enables chat messages, mostly for Wall Street traders. The service is an alternative to longtime stalwart Bloomberg LP and has the backing of major Wall Street banks and investment houses like Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Morgan Stanley and BlackRock Inc. New reports indicate Google has decided to participate in a new round of funding for Symphony, which places the value of the company at around $650 million. Google’s participation will represent the first company from outside of Wall Street to get involved.
At one time Symphony was hoping to raise $1 billion. However, the company attracted the attention of regulators who were concerned with record-keeping issues. Eventually Symphony worked out a deal with New York regulators that outlines how the company will keep records in a manner than helps “ensure the banks’ responsible use” of the Symphony platform. Unfortunately for Symphony, it appears the attention they received may have hurt their market value.
In addition to the basic chat function, Symphony will provide news content from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal. They also have a partnership in place with S&P Capital IQ and Selerity. The Symphony service officially launched on September 15th. Symphony costs $15 per user per month for firms with 50 or more users and is free for individual use.
source: The Wall Street Journal
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Microsoft’s Display Dock turns your Windows phone into a mini PC
When Microsoft talked about Windows 10’s universal apps enabling experiences you couldn’t get on other platforms, it wasn’t joking around. The company has revealed a Display Dock that turns Windows 10 phones into makeshift computers — shades of Motorola Atrix, anyone? The add-on lets you plug in a conventional 1080p monitor (DisplayPort or HDMI) and up to three USB peripherals to run universal apps at desktop sizes, alongside a desktop-like taskbar and task switching. There’s no mention of pricing just yet, but it’s bound to cost a lot less than the Lumia 950 and other compatible phones.
Get all the news from today’s Microsoft event right here.
Microsoft announces Surface Pro 4
In the span of a few years, Microsoft’s Surface has gone from a genuine surprise, to a big disappointment, to a solid hybrid tablet (thanks to the Surface Pro 3, and to a lesser extent the Surface 3). Now, we have the Surface Pro 4, which comes just in time to go toe-to-toe with plenty of other Surface-like competitors, including Apple’s new iPad Pro, Lenovo’s Miix 700, and Dell’s rumored new XPS 12. It looks pretty similar to last year’s model but is thinner at 8.4 mm and sports a larger 12.3-inch display, but the revamped specs and the fact that it was built specifically for Windows 10 might make it a much bigger draw than past Surfaces.
The new display uses something Microsoft called PixelGlass technology with the thinnest optical stack on a screen that pushes over 5 million pixels with over 267-ppi and supports 1024 levels of pressure with the new pen that attaches magnetically to the new Surface that now has an eraser. The Surface itself has 16GB of RAM and an impressive 1TB of storage. A 6th generation Core i7 Intel processor runs the entire thing.
The tablet/laptop is 30-percent faster than the Surface Pro 3 and according to Microsoft, 50-percent faster than the MacBook Air. “We want to make the most productive devices on the planet,” said Microsoft’s Panos Panay.
Like the Surface itself, the Type Cover is thinner and lighter. The trackpad is 40-percent larger and the keyboard has been upgraded with more space between the keys and better travel at 1.3mm. A lot for a cover this thin. The new Type Cover also works with the Surface Pro 3.
With Microsoft Hello the front-facing camera can log you in to the computer with your face and other biometric input including the fingerprint scanner found on the keyboard.
A new dock is also available with four USB 3.0 ports, two 4k display ports and ethernet and like the new Type Cover will work with the Surface Pro 3.
The Surface Pro 4 starts at $899 with preorders starting October 7. It will be available on October 26.
Get all the news from today’s Microsoft event right here.
Microsoft’s Surface Pro 4 type cover has ‘laptop class’ feel
Microsoft has completely remade its Surface 4 Pro type cover, adding better type feel, a fingerprint sensor, a larger trackpad and more. For starters, the company gave its Surface Pro 3 users some love by making the new keyboard compatible with the older model. It’s also the thinnest and lightest yet, and since the Surface Pro 4 itself shrunk from 9.1 to 8.4mm, the whole package is much smaller. The keys are also quieter, have more space between them and a better feel, which may finally make it a viable option for folks who couldn’t handle the Surface Pro 3’s slightly mushy keyboard.
As for the trackpad, Microsoft said its its “highest precision glass trackpad” ever is 40 percent larger than the last model and features 5-point multitouch. There’s also an optional fingerprint sensor that will only be available in the US. Along with the improvements in the Surface Pro 4 itself, it all sounds pretty nice for an $899 starting price, but we’ll make the final call when we can try it for ourselves. Pre-orders open tomorrow and the Surface Pro 4 will start shipping on October 26th.
Get all the news from today’s Microsoft event right here.
Microsoft’s Surface Book is its first (and ‘ultimate’) laptop
And then Microsoft dropped a bombshell on stage. “What if you wanted a Surface… But you wanted a laptop Surface, something with a bigger screen, something with the perfect typing experience of a laptop,” Microsoft’s Panos Panay said on at its Windows 10 devices event. “We made the ultimate laptop; we made Surface Book.” That’s right, it’s Microsoft’s first in-house laptop — with a 227 DPI 13.5-inch display, a 6th generation Intel Core processor, 16GB GDDR5 RAM, 1TB of onboard storage and a 12-hour battery life. Microsoft is calling it the “ultimate” laptop …but just like every other Surface in the product line, it’s still a detachable, convertible PC.
In a surprising, on stage moment, Panay plucked the Surface Book’s screen off of its keyboard. Yes, this Surface is still a Surface, but its bottom half is more than a fancy key board cover — it houses a discreet NVIDIA GTX GPU and other components that, according to Microsoft, make it twice as fast as the MacBook Pro. That’s a bold claim, and while Microsoft didn’t exactly back it up with stats, watching Panay play Gears of War from the Surface Book on stage and then immediately edit footage from the game in Adobe Premiere on stage poses a pretty strong argument.
Naturally, the tablet will pop back onto the book’s “dynamic fulcrum” hinge in either direction, though the hinge itself doesn’t appear to bend all the way backwards. It also supports the Microsoft Surface Pen and the Surface Pro dock. It’s easily the most surprising, intriguing device Microsoft has put out in awhile — with a sleek looking design, a fascinating, weird hinge and a lot of versatility. Pre-orders start tomorrow, October 7th and the product will hit stores on October 26th, starting at $1,499. Is it worth it? We’ll let you know as soon as we get our hands on it.
Microsoft has a docking station for your Surface Pro tablet
Microsoft isn’t just unveiling a phone dock today — it has a dock for your computers, too. The tech giant’s new docking station gives the Surface Pro 3, Pro 4 and Surface Book the kind of connectivity you’d expect from a desktop. There are two 4K-capable DisplayPort outputs, four USB 3.0 ports, and an Ethernet jack for your wired internet link. Microsoft hasn’t disclosed pricing for the station so far, but it should be inexpensive enough that you can forget about buying a second PC.
Get all the news from today’s Microsoft event right here.
Artists rejoice: The Surface Pro 4’s stylus has 1,024 touch levels
At the big Windows 10 devices event today, Microsoft’s Panos Panay said that 53 percent of Surface Pro 3 owners use the device’s stylus. So, when it came to building the improved Surface Pro 4, it made sense to improve the writing and doodling experience, too. Most importantly, the new “Surface Pen” has 1,024 degrees of pressure sensitivity, four times that of the Surface Pro 3, and an “all-year” battery life, which is something of a double-edged sword since you can’t actually recharge it. The Surface Pen also has a tail eraser for manual undoing, and a selection of interchangeable tips for different tasks that change how the Pen feels and responds.
And to make it all work, Microsoft outfitted the Surface Pro 4 with a new, in-house co-processor known as the G5, which handles the display/stylus interaction. The button on the Surface Pen can still be used to quick-launch OneNote, and now Cortana as well. Best of all, though, the stylus comes in five colors and magnetically attaches to the side of the Surface Pro 4, so you might notice you’ve misplaced it that much sooner.
Get all the news from today’s Microsoft event right here.
Here’s our first look at the Surface Book, Microsoft’s answer to the MacBook Pro
Wow. Microsoft finally did it. After years or rumors and speculation the company finally unveiled its very own laptop. Not a tablet that could replace a laptop (though there’s that too), but a bona fide laptop, with an attached keyboard. Well, almost. The Surface Book at first glance looks like a traditional clamshell notebook with a touchscreen. In fact, though, it’s more like a lovechild between the Surface and Lenovo’s Yoga line. Which is to say, it has a removable display that supports pen input but, when attached, it can also flip back 360 degrees into tablet mode. Oh, and on the inside, it has enough horsepower to take on the MacBook Pro. I just got my first look here at Microsoft’s “Windows 10 Devices” keynote in New York City. Here are some hands-on photos for now — I’ll update this post soon with impressions.Developing…
[Deal] Get an Aukey Quick Charge 2.0 car adapter for just $5.99 from Amazon
Amazon is running a deal on a Qualcomm-certified Aukey Quick Charge 2.0 car adapter for just $5.99. The sale price sits at $12.99, but a coupon will bring it down to the aforementioned $5.99.
While Quick Charge 2.0 adapter were never too pricey in the first place, they’re only going to get cheaper from here on out as manufacturers begin to take advantage of the Snapdragon 820 chipset and its Quick Charge 3.0 capabilities.
To get the deal on the Aukey car adapter, just add it to cart. During checkout, apply the promo code 2P77G62C, and you’ll get the advertised $5.99 sale price. And if you happen to have Amazon Prime, you get to take advantage of free two-day shipping as well.
Anyone plan on picking one up?
[Amazon]
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