Alcatel is shipping the OneTouch Idol 4S in a virtual reality headset
Alacatel is taking a unique approach in their packaging for the OneTouch Idol 4S that rivals Google’s Cardboard VR headset. The 4S is shipping in a hard plastic case that will double as a pair of virtual reality goggles, so anyone that owns the device can get a taste of the future with their brand new phone.
Considering the Idol 4S costs less than $400, that’s a pretty great deal for a phone that includes the VR set in the box as the box. Much cheaper than buying something like Samsung’s $200 Gear VR, although maybe not quite as price conscious as Google Cardboard.
That $400 will also net you a 5.5-inch device with a 1080p display, a Snapdragon 652 CPU with 3 GB of RAM, plus expandable storage and a 16 megapixel rear shooting camera. In a market where customers are always searching for the best value for their dollar, the Idol 4S makes a very strong case.
For anyone looking for a cheaper device, Alcatel will also be offering the Idol 4 for just $250 that takes a step back in the hardware department and VR reality accessories, but still offers a Snapdragon 617 and 2 GB of RAM. Both of these phones should release in May.
If nothing in the Idol line strikes your fancy, the company also has the Pop and Pixi lines, and Plus tablet devices in the pipeline.
The Pop line undercuts the Idol phones in price, sporting some lower-end hardware for more budget-friendly price tags. The Pop 4 is due out in March with a 5-inch 720p display, 1 GB of RAM with 8 GB of internal space, and an 8 megapixel camera. The Pop 4S is slated for May alongside the Idol line and will have a 5.5-inch 1080p display, 2 GB of RAM with 16 GB of internal space, and a 13 megapixel camera.
The Pixi line will come in several size options, ranging from 4 inches to 6 inches, bottoming out in price below $100. These will begin hitting shelves in April.
The Plus line is Alcatel’s tablet family of devices, with 8 and 10-inch tablets in the Pop brand. There will also be four Pixi branded tablets that stretch from 6 inches all the way up to 10 inches, but the 10-inch tablet will have LTE connectivity and a detachable keyboard, taking a swipe at convertible tablets and laptops.
No matter what size or price range you want a device in, Alcatel has you covered this year, for better or worse. Will these devices get updates 12 months from now? Probably not, considering they’ll be releasing seven phones and six tablets in the first half of 2016 alone. But hey, they’re cheap.
source: Venture Beat
Come comment on this article: Alcatel is shipping the OneTouch Idol 4S in a virtual reality headset
Google announces People API, moves further away from Google+
Google has announced a new People API for Android to help apps gather information from your contacts list, which is meant to eventually replace the current Contacts API and move away from using Google+ to glean connections about a user. This is an interesting move compared to Google’s direction just a few years ago when the company was bent on forcing everything through the social media portion of their services, and really shows that Google has changed focus from Google+ back to multiple services, like Photos and Hangouts.
The new API gives developers an easy way to grab contacts and all of their linked connections and profiles, if a user grants permission. This API seems a little more focused on streamlining things and keeping that info secure and private, which is never a bad thing.
If you’re interested in looking over the documentation for the API or implementing it yourself, you can follow the links below to Google’s developer site.
source: Android Developers
Come comment on this article: Google announces People API, moves further away from Google+
Hiker with head-mounted cameras taught drones to fly through forests
Researchers in Switzerland have developed a drone that can navigate forest trails in search of missing hikers. According to EPFL, around 1,000 people get lost in Swiss forests every year and often need to be rescued. Rather than enlisting a search party, which are limited by the number of warm bodies on hand, a fleet of drones could cover the main trails with ease. Unfortunately, while getting a drone to fly through dense wooded forests was reasonable enough, letting it navigate the territory on its own was another thing altogether.
The team decided to build a deep learning neural network that would be able to look at any image of a trail and establish where it led. In order to gather this images, it strapped a series of cameras to a hiker that wandered along the pathways. This footage was then run through a custom image classifier that could take a single frame and determine if the correct path was right, left or straight on. The idea being that, rather than tying up human operators, they could simply form their own search party and make their own way out. Naturally, we’re still a way away from this system being used out in the wild, but it’s a pretty exciting use for the technology.
Of course, should Skynet suddenly decide that it wants to hunt the most dangerous game of all, we won’t even be able to use the forests as natural cover.
Source: EPFL
LG’s touch-enabled cover is a top LG G5 companion
LG has shared more information on the LG G5’s official touch-enabled phone cover, set to compliment the flagship mobile by offering ‘ultimate convenience’.
The LG G5 accessory has been designed to flaunt the highly anticipated gadget’s curves, allowing users to take calls and control alarm settings without having to open the case at all.
LG’s case features a unique film with a glossy metallic finish, which apparently enhances the look of the LG G5 and makes it even prettier. Of course, what you think of the case’s appearance is down to personal taste, but LG is still very keen to show it off.
A number of other unofficial LG G5 cases have been spotted on the Amazon marketplace recently, backing claims that the smartphone will feature a unique rear camera setup with LED flash and dual-camera lenses.
Just yesterday, it was confirmed that the upcoming LG G5 will feature an always-on display, offering up notification information to users without them having to grab their smartphone.
In terms of specs, we’re yet to hear any official word on what will keep the LG G5 ticking. Late last year, a leak spotted on Reddit suggested that the LG G5 would drop with a 5.3-inch Quad HD display, 3 GB of Ram and a 16 megapixel camera and 8 megapixel camera on the back. The same source mentioned an 8 megapixel front-facing shooter and a Snapdragon 820 processor.
The touch-enabled phone cover looks like a nice match for the LG G5, which is expected to be unveiled for the world to see at MWC 2016 in Barcelona on February 21.
Our fingers are crossed that the LG G5 lives up to the hype.
Come comment on this article: LG’s touch-enabled cover is a top LG G5 companion
Microsoft and Acer build partnership to push Microsoft services
Microsoft and Acer have announced plans to expand their partnership in order to bring services such as Word, Excel and Outlook to more devices.
From the second half of 2016, the two groups will be working side by side in order to push Microsoft’s best-known apps to more Android smartphones and tablets.
Acer will be pre-installing Microsoft software including Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, OneDrive and Skype. The move will be impacting ‘select’ Android smartphones and tablets from Acer, according to a press release.
Speaking more about the move, ST Liew, president of Acer Smart Products Business Group, said:
“By integrating the Microsoft software suite, Acer customers will enjoy productivity on-the-go along with the familiar computing experience on their smartphones and tablets.”
According to a blog post by Nick Parker of Microsoft’s Original Equipment Manufacturer Division, the company now boasts 74 hardware partners in 25 countries.
Nick Psyhogeos, president of Microsoft Technology Licensing, said:
“We’re pleased that we have been able to enhance the already strong partnership that exists between Microsoft and Acer. Mutually beneficial and collaborative agreements such as this one promote innovation and lead to better products and experiences for consumers.”
Microsoft will undoubtedly be looking to further expand its relationship with other partners to push its products to even more screens in the future.
Come comment on this article: Microsoft and Acer build partnership to push Microsoft services
‘House of Cards’ S4 trailer shows it has some intrigue left
While Netflix has already dropped a couple of teasers for the next season of its flagship series, the official House of Cards season four trailer gives viewers their first extended look at some new footage. Poll results suggest that most of you (56 percent) are still riding with the Frank Underwood 2016 campaign, so take a peek and enjoy the final season produced under the guidance of show creator Beau Willimon. (Otherwise, you can also check out new trailers for Fuller House, Judd Apatow’s series Love and The Art of Organized Noize documentary that’s coming to Netflix March 22nd.)
Source: Netflix (YouTube)
Twitter should make harassment a priority, not algorithms
The rumors were true: Twitter confirmed today that it’s rolling out — horrors! — an algorithmic news feed. Essentially a version of its “While You Were Away feature,” the new timeline lets you see the “most important tweets” you’ve missed. Thankfully, as soon as you refresh the page, the standard chronological list of tweets will return and if you don’t like it, it’s pretty easy to deactivate in settings. Which is a good thing, considering it’s not a feature many users have asked for. In fact, many of Twitter’s recent endeavors have very little to do at all with what its users want.
You need only look at the #RIPTwitter outcry to see that users have had about enough with these changes. Many cried foul in response to the algorithmic timeline and several long-time users even threatened to leave the social network altogether. And for good reason. Twitter is not and should not be Facebook. While surfacing more “interesting” posts is acceptable on Facebook, the value of Twitter for me and many others is centered around real-time events. Twitter is for back-and-forth conversations and staying up to date with breaking news. It’s for tweet storms, earthquake tweets and beefs. If Facebook is for catching up with what your friends are up to, Twitter is for getting together in the internet equivalent of a watering hole.
EVERYONE: What I like about @Twitter is how it’s nothing like Fa
TWITTER: We’re gonna make it like Facebook!
— Brendan Maclean (@macleanbrendan) February 6, 2016
This isn’t the first time Twitter has threatened to undo the very things that make Twitter Twitter. The company faced backlash earlier this year when it suggested it would expand its character limit of 140 to 10,000, with many saying that this defeats the very purpose of a tweet. Though the change from fave-stars to like-hearts didn’t ignite as big a firestorm, the reaction there was hardly enthusiastic either.
The collective backlash goes beyond stubborn users unwilling to accept change. It’s that fundamental changes like these make its long-time users feel unwelcome and discarded; that the passions and interests of loyal users are being set aside in the pursuit of new ones. Many users, for example, really just want an edit function. But what’s worse is that these changes don’t even address Twitter’s most troubling issue, and it’s one which I think drives plenty of people away from Twitter: its problem with harassment.
TWITTER: how can we be better
USERS: get rid of abusive assholes
T: longer tweets, done
U: no get rid of a-
T: ok, an algorithmic feed it is— thomas the take engi (@dwdavison9318) February 6, 2016
Like an internet comments section gone wild, Twitter is a pretty toxic place for a lot of people. Feminist Frequency creator and host Anita Sarkeesian frequently gets hateful mentions, some of which have included rape and death threats. When comedian Alison Leiby tweeted a joke about having as much rights as a gun does, she too was met not just with insults, but rape threats. Separately, Gamergate critic and Canadian journalist Veerender Jubbal was advised by law enforcement to stay off Twitter following multiple threats against his life.
Twitter’s response to threats of this sort has so far been mostly reactionary. It’s up to you, the user, to block and report people who harass you. You can’t set up a filter or have it so that only people you follow can respond to your tweets. Worse, Twitter often doesn’t do anything when you do report abusers. Trusty Support, a parody Twitter account that’s critical of Twitter’s abuse policies, says that oftentimes all you get is a support email that Twitter is unable to take action because they “could not determine a clear violation” of the Twitter Rules. Sometimes, Twitter just tells you that the only way to avoid abuse is to make your account private.
Sharing anonymous stories of harassment on @Twitter & inaction by @Support. DM us to share. @Cartes @jack @safety pic.twitter.com/nrvAEMCNHy
— Trusty Support (@TrustySupport) February 10, 2016
To be fair, the company did announce a new safety council earlier this week. Among its members are GLAAD, the National Network to End Domestic Violence and, yes, Feminist Frequency. Sarkeesian recently visited Twitter to share her Twitter experience, both negative and positive, with employees. The idea behind the meeting and council is to see how the company can better address these safety and harassment concerns.
“It also enables us to provide Twitter with feedback on where their tools are meeting the challenges of addressing harassment and where they’re falling short,” Sarkeesian told Engadget.
Twitter’s harassment outcome is improving. I have documented, statistical proof it’s improving.
Engineering is TOTALLY DIFFERENT TEAM. 3/4
— Brianna Wu (@Spacekatgal) February 6, 2016
Additionally, game developer Brianna Wu has said that through her own work with Twitter, that the company’s harassment outcome is improving, and that it has very little to do with new features that Twitter is announcing.
Yet, it remains unclear exactly how the council will address the immediate harassment issues. It’s also generally not a good look when you’re introducing features that hardly anyone wants and yet you’re unable to resolve a very real and serious problem that has existed for years. It sounds as if the company is struggling to figure out what to do, when to many victims of abuse, even listening would be an improvement.
A couple of years ago, software engineer Danilo Campos made a few suggestions on what Twitter could do to combat the problem and they’re still relevant to this day. Twitter could make it so you can block accounts that are less than 30 days old, or to block accounts that have low follow counts, or to block users who have certain keywords in their @replies. Sure, these solutions aren’t perfect either, but they seem a lot better than the measures Twitter currently have in place.
.@twitter I would feel better about blocking abusive ppl if “block” meant my followers wouldn’t see their disgusting replies to my tweets.
— Lindsey (@CardsAgstHrsmt) February 8, 2016
Twitter, for its part, has said that it’s implementing these recent changes because it seems that users do seem to like them despite not saying so. For example, in the change from stars to hearts, Twitter’s SVP Kevin Weil has said that the platform now sees six percent more hearts than they saw with favorites. In recent tests with its algorithm feed, Twitter has told us that it has resulted in much higher engagement from users “across the board.”
Yet, in the chase for numbers and engagement metrics and user counts, it’s also important for Twitter to remember the people who got it to where it is today. In its most recent earnings release, Twitter reports that it actually lost users. Excluding SMS, the service looks to have lost two million users globally, with a one million user drop in the United States alone.
Twitter is attempting to rectify that. Going forward, the company has pledged to not only make Twitter easier to use, but also to make safety its top priority. For its sake, and for its users’ sake, I hope it succeeds.
Samsung Galaxy S7 edge press render leaks out thanks to @evleaks
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push();
At some point, you get the sense that Android smartphone manufacturers just accept that leaks are just a fact of life. That must be the case at Samsung right now as details of its flagship smartphones are being leaked out left, right and centre. A few days ago we got a look at the wallpapers that are going to come with the Samsung Galaxy S7 devices, and today (thanks to leaker @evleaks) we’re getting a Samsung Galaxy S7 edge press render that again confirms the design that Samsung is going with this year.
In case you haven’t seen anything about the Galaxy S7 or Galaxy S7 edge yet, just imagine the Galaxy S6 or Galaxy S6 edge, and round off the edges just a bit – and you’re pretty much all the way there. There are very little differences in the overall design for this year’s iteration, but you can bet that all the major changes are in the software – and it’s rumoured that Samsung has had some help making its software more efficient. Whatever these changes are, we’ll have to wait till Feb 21st when Samsung will be making their announcement at MWC 2016 – or you know, if we wait another day, we’ll probably get a few more details.
What do you think of the Samsung Galaxy S7 edge press render? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Source: Twitter via Android Authority
The post Samsung Galaxy S7 edge press render leaks out thanks to @evleaks appeared first on AndroidSPIN.
Facebook roasts board member’s attack on ‘anti-colonialism’
Venture capitalist (and Facebook board member) Marc Andreessen is known for being outspoken on tech issues, but he’s learning the hard way that he went one step too far. Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg has chastised Andreessen for claiming that India’s valuation of net neutrality (such as the rejection of Facebook’s Free Basics service) was part of an “anti-colonialism” mindset that had hindered the country “for decades” after it declared independence in 1947. Yes, the implication was that the country should harken back to the days of British colonial rule and accept outside influence. Not surprisingly, Zuck finds this idea “deeply unsettling” — whatever Facebook wants, it has to respect India’s culture, history and values.
For his part, Andreessen has deleted the offending Twitter post and apologized for writing it in the first place. He claims that he’s “100% in favor” of independence for any country. Even so, the incident isn’t exactly going to ease tensions between Facebook and India over Free Basics. While Facebook has gone some distance toward empathizing with India, this only reinforces views of Facebook as an outsider trying to impose its views.
I want to respond to Marc Andreessen’s comments about India yesterday. I found the comments deeply upsetting, and they…
Posted by Mark Zuckerberg on Wednesday, February 10, 2016
Source: Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook)
AIVAnet 