Zolt’s tiny laptop charger starts shipping on November 17
After debuting at CES earlier this year, Zolt is finally gearing up to start shipping its tiny laptop charger on November 17. To refresh, Zolt is a 70-watt charger that’s significantly smaller and lighter than traditional laptop power bricks, and it can also charge tablets and smartphones over two USB ports. It seems ideal for today’s laptops and hybrid devices, which are getting continuously thinner, while their power adapters don’t change much. You can preorder a Zolt for $100 starting today on the company’s site, though you’ll have to wait until the company starts clearing out its existing preorder queue until you get yours. It’ll ship with a variety of tips for most laptops, but be prepared to shell out an additional $20 for Apple laptop tips. (Given that a replacement MacBook Air charger costs $80, Zolt still seems like a better deal.) Slideshow-338499
Source: Zolt
FreedomPop is building a ‘WiFi-first’ smartphone with Intel
Budget carrier FeedomPop has signed a deal with Intel that will see it introduce a “WiFi-first” smartphone next year. The phone will use Intel’s low-cost “SoFIA” Atom x3 processors and leverage WiFi hotspots wherever possible instead of mobile data, even for things like texting and calling. The phone will “seamlessly” switch between WiFi and cellular networks with no discernible difference to the user, and when it does connect to cellular it’ll apparently be free. FreedomPop already offers a similar service — its big selling point is that calls and texts are sent via mobile data or WiFi rather than traditional means — but this will be the first phone purpose-built for its virtual network.
Source: FreedomPop
Grove grows your veggies indoors using LED lights and fish poop
The Grove Ecosystem is for people who want to grow veggies and herbs indoors, as well as take care of some pet fish at the same time. Its setup and name should give you a clue on how it works: it uses aquaponics to nourish your produce. In other words, anything you plant relies on nutrients from processed fish poop and other wastes to grow. To induce photosynthesis, the cabinet-like structure also has LED lights that mimic the sun. Plus, it connects via WiFi to its accompanying app, which tracks its energy consumption, microbe levels and each component’s condition.
Source: Grove Ecosystem
Apple Patents Switch-Less Force Touch Keyboard, Could Lead to Thinner Macs
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on Tuesday granted Apple a patent for a low-travel keyboard design with Force Touch-like sensors that measure the pressure placed on a key when a user presses or rests a finger on it.
As summarized by AppleInsider, the exhaustive patent filing details how the keyboard would have a switch-less QWERTY input mechanism, rather than mechanical switches, allowing for less key travel and potentially thinner Mac keyboards.
Apple’s current MacBook and Mac accessory lineups employ modified scissor switches, or butterfly switches on the 12-inch Retina MacBook, nestled within hollow key caps. Today’s patent mirrors the aesthetic of existing designs, but deviates from established technology by replacing mechanical switches for a stack of sensors, actuators and supporting circuitry.
Theoretically the system operates akin to Apple’s Force Touch trackpads, but on a much larger scale; one force sensor package for each keyboard key. Force sensors configured to measure downward pressure are integrated beneath the keyboard’s key caps, while integrated actuators — part of the key stack — generate haptic feedback.
The patent filing does not guarantee that Apple will release a Force Touch keyboard, but a pressure-sensitive keyboard is plausible alongside the Magic Trackpad and Force Touch trackpads on MacBooks.
Apple’s new Retina MacBook has been criticized by some over its all-new butterfly mechanism keyboard, which has low key travel, so whether Apple implements this new keyboard design into the rest of its MacBook lineup remains to be seen.
Apple was granted U.S. Patent No. 9,178,509, and credits Jeffrey T. Bernstein as its inventor.
Tags: Force Touch, patents, keyboard, USPTO
Buyer’s Guide: MacBook Air (Caution), Retina MacBook Pro (Caution), MacBook (Neutral)
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Sam’s Club Announces Holiday Savings Event With iPhone 6s and iPad Air 2 Deals
Sam’s Club today announced its “Lowest Prices of the Season” event, starting in retail locations around the country at 7 A.M. on Saturday, November 14. The company promises that the event will feature deals on “the most sought-after tech, toys and home décor for the holiday season,” which includes the iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, and iPad Air 2.
“We’re excited to kick off holiday shopping for our members with our lowest prices of the season event on Saturday, Nov. 14. Our shoppers can feel confident they are getting a great deal on many top gifts, and early enough to plan the rest of their holiday budget,” said Rosalind Brewer, president and CEO of Sam’s Club.
“In addition to several savings events, every week, Sam’s Club is rotating new items onto its shelves to help shoppers surprise and delight everyone on their lists. This year we are confident we’re giving our members new ways to save and discover the value of being a member.”
Users who opt-in for Apple’s iPhone 6s or 6s Plus during the event will get a $200 Sam’s Club gift card when activating the phone on any Verizon, Sprint, or AT&T installment plan. The event will also allow customers the option of 2-year plans for Verizon, Sprint, and U.S. Cellular users starting at $99 (16GB for 6s) and $199 (16GB for 6s Plus), but they won’t be eligible for the $200 gift card.
The iPad Air 2 is going on sale as well, with the 64GB and 128GB (available online only) versions marked as $150 off during the event. Sam’s Club is also offering users a slight discount on a packaging of four $25 iTunes gift cards, normally retailing for $100 and going for $79.47 during the event.
Customers who choose to shop exclusively online can get a head start on the Sam’s Club sales on November 14, with all the discount prices opening up to users at 12:01 on Saturday morning and most items shipping free in the United States. The retailer also has a few deals on 4K Smart TVs, the Samsung Galaxy S6 and Note5, and various other jewelry and kids’ toys.
In addition to the Lowest Prices of the Season event, Sam’s Club will host a Pre-Black Friday Event on Saturday, November 21 through Wednesday, November 25, focusing on savings on “top brands and Thanksgiving meal essentials.” While it didn’t provide specific sale details just yet, the company noted that Black Friday deals will begin online at 12:01 AM on Thanksgiving Day and start in retail locations Friday, November 27 at 7 AM. Cyber Week specials will follow on Monday, November 30 through December 6.
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Inbox by Gmail’s new Smart Reply function will compose quick and concise replies for you
Replying to emails can be tiresome at times, taking up valuable time when you have other, more important tasks to complete. It seems Google is aware of this particular plight though, because the Gmail team has just announce a new feature called Smart Reply for Inbox by Google users that will provide a choice of short replies when browsing through your emails.
Smart Reply is, as the name implies, smart. It will generate up to three responses that it deems is appropriate for a specific email. As you can see in the GIF above, Smart Reply comes up with three options to choose from, short, concise and relevant to the question posed in the email. It would appear especially useful for those email conversations that don’t require elaborate etiquette. Of course, just because there’s an applicable choice, doesn’t mean you can’t add more detail to it, as the GIF below illustrates quite nicely. I can imagine the Smart Reply feature proving to be quite useful
The Smart Reply function is an example of how machine learning can be useful in our everyday lives. The update should available from the Google Play Store sometime this week, so keep an eye out for it.
Source: Gmail Blog
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New reports say Samsung shutting down digital camera business
New reports coming out of South Korea indicate Samsung is in the process of shutting down their digital camera line of business. The move appears to include both the portions of the business unit that produce products like the Samsung NX1 smart camera as well as the parts that produce sensors like the APS-C hybrid sensor used in the Samsung NX500. Sources indicate the personnel are being moved to other divisions like medical devices or the smartphone division.
Some have noted that Samsung’s sensors, like the one used in the NX500, are considered some of the better image quality sensors on the market, so the loss is not good news for photographers. However, with some of the personnel moving over to the smartphone division, that business unit may benefit from their expertise with cameras, which seem to be one of the big selling points for smartphone manufacturers in mature markets.
Do you see this as a good strategic move for Samsung?
source: Asia Economic
via: SamMobile
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Google shutters plans for standalone retail store in NYC
After investing over a year of effort and $6 million for renovations, Google appears to have abandoned plans to open their first standalone retail store, which was to be located in New York City. Located at 131 Greene Street in the SoHo district, the location is a 5,442 square foot space that is now being marketed for subleasing for $2.25 million annually.
When word first surfaced regarding Google’s plans to open a retail store, many saw it as part of a strategy to match Apple, and to a lesser extent Microsoft, in having a standalone retail presence. The store reportedly would carry products like Chromebook laptops, Google’s own Nexus line of mobile devices, and other hardware that has typically been sold through the online Google Play Store.
Google has not provided any comment regarding why they are now trying to rent the space and not pursuing their own retail location. However, earlier this year Google opened a “store within a store” in London with plans to open more, albeit limited to the U.K. market. Potentially those have proven successful enough that Google has decided to go that route rather than investing in additional brick-and-mortar locations. Samsung has employed a similar strategy opening Samsung Experience Shops inside of Best Buy stores.
source: Crain’s New York Business
via: The Verge
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New Android vulnerability puts 100 million devices at risk
Android has another vulnerability, this time through Play Store applications. The vulnerability comes from Baidu, China’s Google, and has risked over 100 million Android devices to hackers.
The new malicious virus has already found its way into over 14,000 Android applications. Four thousand in which were created by Baidu. Most dangerously, anyone accessing the Android SDK to develop an app can unintentionally swallow up the virus within their app. This is because the SDK allows apps to open an HTTP server connection that is unsecured thus allowing it to run commands on your device. These can include but are not limited to, installing malicious virus software and stealing information. For those of you who are rooted, the scenario is even worse because you won’t be notified when an unsecure app installs. Baidu has temporarily helped fix the problem, but is yet to completely resolve it. We’ll keep you updated when we hear more.
Source: Trend Micro
Via: Engadget
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Nomad’s ‘Wallet for iPhone’ Provides iPhone 6s With Full Charge on the Go
Nomad today announced a new product, the “Wallet for iPhone,” which hides a small rechargeable battery cell within a traditional billfold wallet. The 2,400 mAh lithium-ion battery is housed in the hinge of the Wallet and promises to provide a full charge to an iPhone 6s. Owners of an iPhone 6 Plus or iPhone 6s Plus will probably only see half the charge of their phone restored due to the smaller battery size of the wallet.
We went to the absolute extreme of lithium-ion battery tech and ultra compact circuit boards to make this an ultra high density battery system. We used an advanced SoC (system on chip) microprocessor and 01005 grade components which allow us to pack a huge 2400mAh battery providing a full charge for your iPhone 6s.
The company claims that the Wallet is no thicker than the average billfold wallet, even when counting the increased weight of a wallet full of credit cards and cash. The normal functions of the wallet allow it to hold six business or credit cards total. Specifically, Nomad gives its dimensions as 25 mm max thickness, 85 mm wide, 125 mm long, which it calls “thinner than most men’s billfolds.”
When users want to charge their iPhone, an integrated 3.5 inch Lightning cable is simply removed and plugged into the device to begin refilling its charge. The Wallet will function with any iPhone supporting a Lightning port, and promises one 100% charge to each device on a full battery. The Wallet itself is recharged via micro USB cable — taking up to two full hours from an empty battery — and four LED lights on its underside show a visual representation of its charge level.
Nomad’s Wallet can be pre-ordered now for $79.99 with a shipping date of November 15, with orders placed from that date on being charged the full retail price of $99.99
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