Despite hype, Nissan Leaf outsells Tesla Model S 2-to-1
All eyes continue to be on how quickly the Tesla Model S has been accepted by consumers, beating the expectations of critics who said it was too expensive and that the EV range would always be a hindrance in places other than California. But among other electric vehicles, how do its sales stack up?
According to Hybrid Cars, the Model S will pass the 100,000-sales mark in December and be this year’s top-selling plug-in vehicle. Consider that this large luxury sedan that just happens to be electric typically sells for north of the $100,000 mark. And consider, as they do, that about 60 percent or so have gone to American buyers and that means roughly 60,000 US buyers have picked up a Model S – that beats the sales of other large gas-powered luxury sedans. Tesla does not officially release monthly sales figures.
Despite the excellent year-to-date numbers, the Model S still hasn’t caught up to the other big names among electrics, the Chevrolet Volt and Nissan Leaf. And it’s estimated that if you factor in the first-generation Volt and its Opel, Vauxhall, and Holden derivatives, General Motors has sold just over 100,000 of its range-extender EV since it first went on sale in December 2010. Sales have been off significantly this year, mostly due to production stopping in spring to retool for the 2016 Volt that recently went on sale in some states.
But since the Nissan Leaf went on sale around the same time as the Volt, its maker has managed to move almost twice as many, or about 200,000 cars globally. This, even as the Leaf’s US sales were off more than 40 percent through November. Blame that on the Leaf’s age, the 2016 model’s noticeably longer range and that used Leafs are dirt cheap these days.
The bottom line is that while the Tesla Model S has been a hit as far as electric vehicles are concerned, it hasn’t caught up to the popularity of the Nissan Leaf yet. And with a second-generation Leaf due in the near future and the Tesla Model X possibly affecting Model S popularity, it’s too soon to see where that car’s momentum will stop.
[Image credit: Jim West / Alamy]
Source: Hybrid Cars
KeyMe saves a copy of your keys, so you never get locked out again
Ever been locked out of your house before? There’s an app for that. With KeyMe, you can store all your keys in their app and print them out at any time.
The way it works is you take your key off of your keychain and scan both sides into the app. The key design is then stored in their servers for you to print off whenever you need to make a copy. Now, if you are ever locked out of your house, just head over to the closest KeyMe kiosk and print off a new key. If you just want to make a copy, you can also print them from the app and have it shipped to you.
Losing your keys is a real pain, and an even bigger pain to have a new one made if you don’t have an old one to copy. KeyMe aims to make this a thing of the past. It even allows you to share you key design through email.
However, while this sounds good in theory, what is stopping you from scanning someone else’s keys and making a copy to their house, or the other way around? As far as I know, nothing. Although, KeyMe does make it a little difficult for potential criminals to scan your key because the app isn’t compatible with that many devices right now. For example, it doesn’t work with the brand new Nexus 6P.
Come comment on this article: KeyMe saves a copy of your keys, so you never get locked out again
Amazon is reportedly leasing jets to power shipping network
Amazon-branded trailers aren’t all the online retailer has planned to improve is shipping network. The Seattle Times reports that Jeff Bezos & Co. are in talks to lease a fleet of Boeing jets to handle the air cargo duties. As the company looks to avoid the headaches of using UPS and other carriers, it has already put a group of trailers on the road to carry loads to its distribution centers.
Amazon is reportedly looking to lease 20 Boeing 767s for the task. Doing so would give the company more control over delivery times, and potentially bypass cargo services of UPS, FedEx and the USPS. Of course, Amazon still relies on those outfits to get packages to your door, so it’s more likely the company is just looking to streamline the supply chain… for now. However, The Seattle Times also reports that the retailer could open up extra space on its jets to other companies, which would put it in direct competition with the likes of UPS, FedEx and others.
Source: The Seattle Times
Log into most any Linux system by hitting backspace 28 times
Security researchers have discovered a ludicrously simple way to hack into a number of Linux distributions: Just tap the backspace key 28 times in a row. A team from the Cybersecurity Group at Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV) in Spain found that doing so for builds utilizing the ubiquitous Grub2 bootloader — that’s to say just about all of them — immediately bypasses the lock screen, initiates the “Grub rescue shell” and grants the user access to the system for whatever nefarious .
The team found that the backspace trick triggers a memory error, which in turn launches the rescue shell. The bug isn’t a huge threat — I mean, a hacker would need physical access to your machine in order to exploit it — especially now that Ubuntu, Red Hat, and Debian all have released patches.
Source: Motherboard
Playdate: Giving away the Force
It’s been a long wait, but today’s the day: Star Wars is back in theaters. We’ve seen it. No, we’re not going to talk about it (well, not much. Spoilers, you know) — but we are celebrating its release by playing our favorite games from the series now-defunct expanded universe. We’re closing out our Star Wars week with games from the Dark Forces and Jedi Knight franchises, the Star Wars: Force Unleashed games as well as the past and present of Star Wars: Battlefront.
Want more? You got it: we’re also you a chance to win a Limited Edition Star Wars: Battlefront PlayStation 4 –just check out the contest widget below. As for the show? You can join in at 6PM Eastern / 3PM Pacific at Twitch.tv/Joystiq to nerd out with us. You also watch the show on the Engadget Gaming homepage, right here in this post or, as always, in our archives at a later date. And again, no spoilers, please.
http://player.twitch.tv/?channel=joystiq
- Entries are handled through the Rafflecopter widget above. Comments are no longer accepted as valid methods of entry. You may enter without any obligation to social media accounts, though we may offer them as opportunities for extra entries. Your email address is required so we can get in touch with you if you win, but it will not be given to third parties.
- Contest is open to all residents of the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and Canada (excluding Quebec), 18 or older! Sorry, we don’t make this rule (we hate excluding anyone), so direct your anger at our lawyers and contest laws if you have to be mad.
- Winners will be chosen randomly. One (1) Sony PlayStation 4 Limited Edition Star Wars Battlefront 500GB bundle.
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Google uses fingers to demonstrate variety in new ad
Google posted two new video advertisements that just like so many others, show off some of the best capabilities one gets with Android.
The first of the two focuses on Android Pay. It shows a revolutionary war soldier rushing to gather what he needs. He then runs up to the counter and pays using Android Pay in very little time with little effort. The major point of this ad is clearly how fast and simple Android Pay is to use no matter where you travel.
The second ad is called ‘Android: Fingerprints’ and follows Google’s long-stressed idea of ‘be together not the same.’ In the ad, a bunch of fingers take the role of people and spend time together through a variety of scenes and holidays. At the conclusion of the ad, the fingers all come together at the dinner table. All the fingers are different through means of clothing, face expression and hair style therefore going along with the theme of ‘be together not the same.’
Click here to view the embedded video.
Click here to view the embedded video.
Come comment on this article: Google uses fingers to demonstrate variety in new ad
Android competitor Sailfish receives investment, pulls out of ‘classic startup death spiral’
Finnish mobile operating system maker Jolla, the company behind Sailfish OS, has received the first portion of an investment that chairman Antii Saarnio said will provide some financial stability for the company.
Last month, Jolla temporarily let go about half its staff and file for debt restructuring after not closing a $10.6 million Series C financing round. The mobile OS maker is not disclosing the size of the Series C it just closed, nor is it revealing who the investors are, though Saarnio said it’s a group of investors.
“It’s a sizable investment what we are receiving but it also includes some other instruments which we are continuing to negotiate at the moment,” Saarnio said.
Saarnio told TechCrunch the company was cancelling the layoffs, but added many staffers had also resigned, so it remains unclear how many of them will be back with the company.
Saarnio said Jolla will focus on licensing the Sailfish OS to industrial customers, rather than general consumers. Additionally, the company is considering its options for its crowdfunded tablet. Most backers of the project have yet to receive their Jolla tablets because of ongoing delays to shipments.
Source: Jolla, TechCrunch
Come comment on this article: Android competitor Sailfish receives investment, pulls out of ‘classic startup death spiral’
Vine introducing new personalized ‘For You’ feature for content you’ll love
Vine, the six-second video platform, is going to be updated soon with a new ‘For You’ feature designed to bring personalized content from accounts that you do not follow.
In addition to Vines from all the accounts that you already follow, a section titled ‘For You’ will now be posted on the top of the app. Vine believes that there is a whole world of entertainment out there from creators that you don’t follow, but that you’d love to see.
This new feature is rolling out to iOS devices as we speak. There is no word, however, of when this new feature will begin to roll out to Android devices, but they have stated that it will be here before we know it.
What do you guys think? Are you excited for this feature, or would you rather your Vine feed just show the content from the accounts you follow?
Source: Vine
Come comment on this article: Vine introducing new personalized ‘For You’ feature for content you’ll love
NBC News partners with YouTube to present January’s Democratic presidential debate
This Saturday, ABC News will be hosting a debate featuring candidates from the Democratic Party seeking nomination to run for President of the United States. The debate will be broadcasted on ABC for millions to watch and decide whether Berrnie Sanders, Hillary Clinton, or Martin O’Malley are worth of their support. ABC News’ approach is more traditional, though the debate will also be streamed live on the network’s Watch ABC service. Next month, when NBC News hosts the Democratic presidential hopefuls, the reach will go much further than just a television network. Google and NBC News have announced that the debate will be streamed live on YouTube on January 17.
Before the first wave of primary voters enter booths, the world can watch this debate in Charleston, South Carolina, on the NBC News YouTube channel from 9-11PM ET. NBC News’ Lester Holt will moderate and questions from YouTube’s community are going to be tied into the debate.
The partnership makes extra sense for YouTube as millions have streamed both Democratic and Republican debates in 2015. While the Republican presidential debates have drawn exceptionally higher ratings on television and streaming services, CNN and CBS enjoyed a combined 5.5 million steams between just two debates for the Democratic Party.
Source: Google
Come comment on this article: NBC News partners with YouTube to present January’s Democratic presidential debate
LG appears to be working on a new smartphone with a curved display
A report from just a few days ago indicated that LG won’t launch a new iteration G Flex smartphone this year. Only days later, a leak comes in that LG is working on a new curved smartphone that curves at the top and bottom, but brings a twist.
The new smartphone LG is reportedly working on will not be linked to the company’s G Flex line. Apparently this will be a whole new device, perhaps even a totally new series. Unlike the G Flex series that has a slight curve from top to bottom, this handset’s screen is said to wrap around the top and bottom of the display.
The typical smartphone has evolved so much over the years and LG is clearly pushing something new. Unfortunately, that’s all the information we have received; hopefully the handset will see the light of its day.
Source: Evan Blass (Twitter)
Come comment on this article: LG appears to be working on a new smartphone with a curved display
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