Apple Expands Maps Transit Directions to Seattle, Washington

Apple today updated its Maps app to add Transit information in Seattle, allowing iOS users living in the city to incorporate public transportation options like the Link Light Rail, Monorail, buses, and more into Maps when seeking directions.

Transit directions within Maps became available with the launch of iOS 9, and while Apple offered directions in a limited number of cities to begin with, the availability of Transit directions has since expanded to encompass 16 cities around the world along with dozens of cities in China.

Apple’s iOS 9 Feature Availability page has not yet been updated with the addition of Seattle, but the information should be added in the near future. Including Seattle, Transit directions are now available in Austin, Texas; Baltimore, Maryland; Berlin, Germany; Boston, Massachusetts; Chicago, Illinois; London, England; Los Angeles, California; Mexico City, Mexico; Montreal and Toronto, Canada; New York City, New York; Philadelphia Pennsylvania; San Francisco, California, Sydney Australia; and Washington, DC.

Though also unlisted on the Feature Availability page, Transit directions were also added for Portland, Oregon last Monday.

Tags: Apple Maps, Transit
Discuss this article in our forums

Longtime Apple Board Member Bill Campbell Passes Away

Former Intuit chairman and Apple board member Bill Campbell has passed away following a prolonged battle with cancer, reports Re/code. Known as “The Coach” around Silicon Valley, Campbell was known for providing sage advice to the leaders of some of the Bay Area’s biggest companies, including Apple and Google. At one point, he was even assisting Apple and Google at the same time, something Steve Jobs wasn’t happy with. From a 2014 interview with Fortune:

“Steve would say, ‘If you’re helping them you’re hurting me.’ He would yell at me,” recalls Campbell, whose normal banter typically needs to be sanitized for most publications. ” I’d say, ‘I can’t do HTML, come on. I’m just coaching them on how to run their company better.’

A longtime friend of Steve Jobs, Campbell first joined Apple under John Sculley, where he took on the role of Apple’s Vice President of Marketing. After disagreements with Sculley, Campbell, who was a onetime coach of the Columbia Lions football team, he then founded Go Corporation, which was sold to AT&T.

From there, Campbell took on the role of CEO of Intuit and joined Apple’s board of directors when Steve Jobs returned to the company in 1997. Campbell remained on Apple’s board of directors for 17 years until his resignation in July of 2014.

Campbell was with Apple through all of its transitory periods, and following his retirement, he had kind words to share about Apple’s current direction under Tim Cook. “Apple is an institution now,” he said in the same Fortune inteview. “Tim’s done an amazing job of building bench strength within the organization. There’s a whole set of new and smart people who are taking over. You’re watching that company grow up.”
Discuss this article in our forums

How to watch the Boston Marathon – CNET

Boston Athletic Association

Runners and spectators from around the world will take to the streets in just a few hours for the Boston Marathon. The 26.2-mile course will take runners from Hopkinton, Massachusetts all the way to Boylston St. in Boston.

The 120th running of the historic race is scheduled to begin at 8:50 a.m. (5:50 a.m. PT), with the mobility impaired runners. The Elite women will go off at 9:32 a.m. ET (6:32 a.m. PT), followed by Elite men and the first wave of non-professional runners at 10 a.m (7 a.m. PT). You can view all of the official start times here.

Here are the different ways to tune in:

• The race will be broadcast live on the NBC Sports Network. Coverage is slated to begin at 8:30 a.m. ET.
• A live-stream will be available on the NBC Sports Live Extra website and app for Android and iOS devices. You will, however, be required to sign-in with a participating cable or satellite provider.
• Local coverage will be available to viewers in the Boston area beginning at 7 a.m. on WBZ-TV, the local CBS affiliate.
• There will also be a live-stream available for free on the Boston Athletic Association’s website. A special mobile stream (for iOS devices only) can be viewed by clicking here.

Want to follow along on social media? Use the hashtag #BostonMarathon.

How to watch every Marvel property in the perfect order – CNET

Enlarge Image

Marvel

You’ve probably seen most of Marvel’s films, but what about the TV shows?

If you’re like me, that is to say a continuity junkie, timelines are very important to you — but timelines in the world of comics and movies can be more than a little confusing. So to help you fill in the gaps before “Captain America: Civil War,” watch all the shows for fun, or even just try to impress your friends, we’ve created a timeline of Marvel’s Phase 1 and 2 properties in the perfect viewing order.

Editors’ Note, April 18, 2016: Below are updates reflecting new TV tidbits (“Luke Cage” news and “Infinity War” news already!) from Netflix, Disney and more. This piece was originally published April 30, 2015, and is updated periodically.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe, as it’s called, also sometimes includes connected properties such as comics or shorts. Here we’ve left out smaller properties and stuck to the big two: films on the left side, shows on the right.

“The Incredible Hulk” happened but it didn’t need to. (Click to enlarge.)
Marichrist Benitez/CNET

Every film listed on the left is a single-character movie, meaning each film revolves around the title character. Some feature additional heroes (for example, Black Widow and Nick Fury appear in “Captain America: Winter Soldier”), but the movie doesn’t usually delve into those characters’ backgrounds too deeply.

Also, note that “The Incredible Hulk” is still skippable (we even watched it recently just to confirm) and even William Hurt (“Thunderbolt” Ross himself) has admitted it. Speaking to IGN, Hurt said that “[Ross in ‘Civil War’] is different because it’s a different style. … And what they’ve done is they’ve taken a character who was the Ross from the older film and made a new version. This is a much newer Ross. A much different Ross.”

Ranking the Avengers films (pictures)

1 – 5 of 11

Next
Prev

You’ll also notice the Marvel “One-Shots” are missing from the graphic. These are brief videos initially created as standalone stories to provide backstory for characters or things seen in the movies; two of them would later become full-fledged shows.

Marvel One-Shots

There’s definitely some continuity strangeness when you have both movies and television show properties, and those listed on the graphic are no exception.

For even more MCU info, check out “Marvel vs. DC”

Season 1 of ” Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” saw the release of two Marvel movies and had to contend with incorporating those plots. Airing after the release of “Thor: The Dark World,” episode 8 of “S.H.I.E.L.D.” definitely takes place directly after those events. Later in the same season, episode 16 aired the same weekend as the release of “Captain America: Winter Solider,” and in a neat bit of continuity, the events portrayed on “S.H.I.E.L.D.” take place at almost the same time as the film.

Netflix’s “Daredevil” and “Jessica Jones” also have wibbly-wobbly timelines. Early in the series, the Battle of New York is referenced as The Incident, and it’s said that it occurred about two years prior. But because of the show’s lack of interaction with any big-screen Marvel characters, it could take place almost anywhere on the timeline between “Thor: A Dark World” and “Avengers: Age of Ultron.” In our timeline, we placed it concurrent with the second season of “S.H.I.E.L.D.” so as to stay closer to the time it was actually released.

Other properties not listed? Season two of “Daredevil” and “Agent Carter,” as well as the current season of “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” and announced but not-yet-begun TV shows, and any forward-looking movies. (Upcoming movies can be found in this mega-timeline for now.)

Enlarge Image

Marvel

As I mentioned before, the infographic above only represents Marvel’s first two phases of its Cinematic Universe. Late in 2014, Marvel announced that Phase 3 would introduce Doctor Strange, Black Panther and Captain Marvel.

This month we got our first look at a couple of new characters. First up, we finally saw Spidey in the final trailer for upcoming “Captain America: Civil War.” It was as awesome as we expected, but did raise some interesting questions.

With early reviews dropping last week ( including ours), “Civil War” is definitely not affected by the poor reviews of DC’s latest comic foray, “Batman v Superman.”

Speaking of Spidey, he got an official name! Well, his film did. Called, “Spider-Man: Homecoming” the rumor mill says the film is now courting Michael Keaton to play its villain. Just what villain he’d be playing is obviously unknown — the Vulture is an oft-named one, however. (Why’s he always a bird…man?)

Third, the trailer for “Doctor Strange” dropped during the company’s self-appointed #MarvelWeek — and it did not disappoint. The movie also stars Chiwetel Ejiofor, Rachel McAdams, Mads Mikkelsen and Tilda Swinton.

Fourth and finally, we got our first somewhat meaty piece of info about the huge “Avengers: Infinity War.” Directors Joe and Anthony Russo told ComicBook.com that both Thor and Star-Lord will be making an appearance in the character-packed two-part story. And in the midst of that talk, we got our first glint of info about next year’s Thor sequel.

Joe Russo told the site he’s excited to work with Thor since there’s “some really interesting stuff with ‘Ragnarok’and where he’s gonna be at the beginning of ‘Infinity War’ is gonna be a very interesting place and I think very profound.” Since these films are truly the pinnacle of every previous MCU movie, it will be extremely interesting to see how the Russos handle the tone as well as the majorly large cast.

Interested in what else is coming soon? Check out our latest timeline here.

How do I make cool GIFs like this?

Marvel/Netflix

The second season of “Daredevil” premiered starring Jon Berenthal as The Punisher, and featuring the much-talked-about Elektra Natchios, played by Elodie Yung (“G.I. Joe: Retaliation”).

Up next, though, is “Luke Cage.” Announced with a teaser at the end of “Daredevil” season 2, it briefly shows off Luke’s snark and, of course, his…well, thick skin. Check out the teaser here on Netflix.

Here are the other official upcoming Marvel-Netflix shows plus what we know.

• “Luke Cage”: September 30. Starring Mike Colter, with Rosario Dawson, Alfre Woodard, Theo Rossi and Sonia Braga.
• “Iron Fist”: Season 1 TBA. Recently, it was announced Finn Jones of “Game of Thrones” was cast as superhero and martial arts master Danny Rand.
• “The Defenders”: Miniseries TBA. So little is known about this property so far it’s crazy. Now that we have our main roles cast, things could very well get rolling.

Recently, Variety broke the news that Disney’s ABC Family, I mean, Freeform ordered “Marvel’s Cloak and Dagger” straight to series. While it’s unknown how or if this will fit within the current MCU, the possibility for crossover is high, since the duo have appeared in various other properties, including Civil War.

Enlarge Image

Kelsey McNeal/ABC

Do you remember that “S.H.I.E.L.D.” spin-off with Adrianne Palicki and Nick Blood starring as Bobbi Morse (aka Mockingbird) and Lance Hunter? The one that was ordered, then shelved, then maybe, kinda, sorta alive? Well, turns out, it’s back on at ABC. Deadline confirmed earlier this year that it will now enter production as “Marvel’s Most Wanted” and recently we got our first look at the logo. In addition, Oded Fehr (“Covert Affairs”) and Fernanda Andrade (“The Devil Inside”) have joined the cast.

Also in development at ABC is ” Damage Control,” a single-camera sitcom that will focus on the men and women who clean up after the Avengers and other superheroes destroy, say, an office building. No official word has been released about that show, but come on, a sitcom? About superhero insurance? I’d watch that.

Are those other ABC-Marvel mystery projects (yes, multiples) still moving forward? No way to know yet, unfortunately. (But pilot season is coming up…)

The growth of the Marvel universe is extraordinary (har-har), and as the comics giant introduces new fans to new characters (some people had no idea who Doctor Strange was a couple years ago) and partners with cable television and Netflix to expand even further, we could seem some pretty epic pairings, teams and characters come out of the woodwork.

So, be honest. Which characters would you want to see in Marvel’s not-yet-announced-but-certainly-inevitable Phase 4 on both the small and big screen?

How to scan and archive your old printed photos – CNET

Sharon Profis/CNET

Chances are you have a stack of photo albums collecting dust in a closet somewhere. Maybe they make for a fun coffee-table chat, but if you want to share your memories with friends and family online, or create a backup of your photos, where do you start?

There are several ways to go about digitizing your printed photo collection. Depending on how many photos you have and how DIY-eager you are, your choice will vary.

For the highest quality, use a scanner

In a dust-free environment, set up your scanning station. First, remove any dust or dirt from your prints with a microfiber cloth or alcohol-based cleaning wipe. Then, clean your scanner’s glass with these simple instructions.

It’s important that you thoroughly clean both the photos and scanner, as the scanner’s sensitive sensor will pick up even a speck of dust on the glass or on the photo.

Before you scan the photos, consider the way in which you’ll organize them. By date? By event? How will the files be named? The options are endless, but no matter which method you choose, choose a system before you scan, and organize your printed photos into stacks accordingly.

If you need some guidance, check out this guide to organizing your photos.

With that out of the way, you can begin scanning your photos. Because each printer manufacturer’s scanning software is different, I can’t offer step-by-step instructions, but here are some tips:

• Scan multiple photos at once. On an average-sized scanner bed, you should be able to scan four 4×6-inch photos at once, and crop them later. Some scanners even come with software that do this automatically for you. Use this method to cut down scanning time.
• Select a resolution of at least 300 dots per inch, and up to 600 dpi if you plan to order enlargements.
• Take advantage of editing options. Most scanning software will allow you to crop, adjust color, adjust brightness and remove red-eye.

If you want to store those photos in the cloud for anywhere access, here’s our guide to choosing an online storage service for photos.

Use your phone to scan photos

With a free app and a smartphone with a high-quality camera (such as the iPhone 6S or Samsung Galaxy S7), you can quickly scan your old photos, archive them and share your memories with friends online.

This won’t replicate the quality of the first method, but it’s good if you want to scan photos in a pinch or don’t own a scanner.

First, download and install Shoebox from Ancestry.com, a free app for iPhone and Android. Once you sign up, you can begin scanning your photos. But, before you do, here are some tips for prepping your assembly line:

• Dust off your photos with a microfiber cloth, or an alcohol-based cleaning wipe for really dirty prints.
• Find a well-lit area with lots of natural light and few shadows.
• Clean your phone’s camera lens with a microfiber cloth, or a cotton swab and a drop of isopropyl alcohol.

Now you’re ready to “scan” your photos with your phone. Launch Shoebox and hit the green camera button. Then, with the photo laying down, position your phone so that it’s parallel to the photo. Finally, tap to focus and hit the shutter button.

From there, crop the photo by dragging the crop lines. Then add extra information, like when the photo was taken, who’s in it, and a brief description. Finally, you can upload the photo to your account.

Repeat the process for the additional photos. All scanned photos will be saved to your camera roll and be made available online via your media gallery on Ancestry.com.

Now you can post the photos on Facebook or store them in your preferred photo storage site, such as Flickr or Dropbox.

Use a macro lens for film

According to an old (but still applicable) post on PetaPixel, you can do it at home using a dSLR camera outfitted with a macro lens. The process requires you to take a series of photos of the film, focusing on different sections of the film for each shot. After taking the proper number of shots, you then use software to combine the photos, creating a digital version of the film.

Now, we realize the number of readers who readily have access to such a setup is likely low, but this tip is still worth mentioning. The reason? Smartphone camera lenses from the likes of Olloclip and Photojojo. Each company offers a macro lens attachment for iOS or Android, which should be more than sufficient to duplicate this process. Granted, the photo quality of a smartphone isn’t going to be anywhere near that of a dSLR camera, but for most, it will suffice.

Let someone else scan your photos

If all of this sounds like one giant headache, consider outsourcing your photo scanning to a professional, paid service. For example, Scanmyphotos.com scans, crops, edits and archives your photos starting at $0.16 apiece, depending on the scan quality you choose. Alternatively, the company can send you a box that you fill up and it scans for a flat rate of $99. According to ScanMyPhotos, it typically holds 1,800 photos.

DigMyPics.com and ScanCafe.com are two other options worth comparing.

Editors’ note: This post was originally published on June 12, 2012, and has been updated to include new information.

9 useful Siri commands for your Apple TV – CNET

Forget swiping around on your remote — Siri on the fourth-generation Apple TV is the fastest way to get around.

Did I mention you can use Siri to input text, too? Goodbye, on-screen keyboard.

Most standard Siri commands for the iPhone work exactly the same with Apple TV. In addition, Apple TV has its own unique navigation commands.

‘Play the “Friends” episode with Robin Williams’

Rather than trying to remember which episode and season an actor made a guest appearance in, just ask Siri, or tell her to play the episode.

‘Play “Dexter” season 4, episode 1’

If you know where you left off in a particular TV show, you can quickly jump to a specific episode rather than thumbing through Netflix until you find the right one. Just say, “Play ‘Parks and Recreation’ season 6, episode 5,” and Siri will present you with the episode. You can view it in the iTunes store or stream through compatible sources like Netflix.

‘Jump forward 5 minutes’

If you forgot to pause a show or movie while you did something else, you don’t have to worry about slowly scrubbing back to find where you left off. You can quickly jump backward and forward by telling Siri. Say, “Jump forward 5 minutes,” “Skip back 7 minutes,” or “Rewind 9 minutes.”

‘Who stars in this?’

If you’re not sure who is playing a part in the movie or show you’re watching, just ask. While playing the movie or show, press and hold the Siri button and say, “Who stars in this?” Alternatively, you can ask Siri who played a particular role in a film or who directed.

‘What did he just say?’

When using this command, Siri will rewind whatever you’re watching several seconds and automatically enable closed captioning so you can finally understand those horrible and inaudible whispers in movies and TV shows. After a short while, closed captioning will turn itself off.

‘Reduce loud sounds’

Commercials are notoriously louder than the stuff you really care about. There are also quite a few films that dropped the ball on audio leveling. If this is the case with what you’re watching, just tell Siri to “reduce loud sounds.” This will enable its audio leveling feature and eliminate audio spikes.

Best games for Apple TV

1 – 5 of 11

Next
Prev

‘Play the live version of this song’

If you’re streaming Apple Music and want to hear the live version of a song, just tell Siri. While the song is playing, say, “Play the live version of this song.” If there’s one available, Siri will cue it up.

‘Find the YouTube app’

The App Store on Apple TV is very similar to the ones on iOS and Mac. It has categories, top charts, featured apps, your purchases or past downloads and a search function. But nothing will get you to the app you want to download faster than asking Siri — that is, if you know what you’re looking for. Just say, “Find the HBO app.” You can also be less specific, such as, “Find card games,” if you know what style of game or app you’re looking for but don’t have a specific one in mind.

‘Flip a coin’

If you can’t decide on where to eat for dinner or lost the dice to your favorite board game, Siri can help. Ask her to flip a coin or roll a die. You can also use Siri as a Magic 8-ball. Just say, “8-ball, should I buy a new car?”

Other useful Siri commands

If you use Siri on your iPhone or iPad, many of the commands you’re used to should work fine with Apple TV. You can check the weather, look up stock market information and follow your favorite sports team’s progress, all by asking Siri.

Obviously, you can’t navigate, take a selfie or schedule reminders. You also can’t search the Web, but don’t be afraid to experiment with other commands. You might be surprised at what Siri will come up with.

5 tips to get the most out of the LG G5’s camera – CNET

Enlarge Image

A multiview photo captured on the LG G5.

Jason Cipriani/CNET

LG’s new G5 is a smartphone unlike anything we’ve seen before. Its slide-out battery and available modules add extra features. One such feature is the Cam Plus module, which adds physical controls to the Camera app of the G5. While it’s fair to say most users won’t spring for the add-on, you can still push the G5’s camera for better performance using the tips below.

Zoom out, not in

Enlarge Image

Standard view compared to the G5’s wide-angle view.

Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/CNET

The LG G5 is equipped with two rear-facing camera lenses. The default lens is 75 degrees, and captures photos that will look similar to those of competing smartphone cameras. The second lens offers a 135-degree wide-angle camera, which means G5 owners can zoom out when taking a photo.

That means you no longer have to take a step back in order to fit a large group of people, or attempt to capture the entirety of the Empire State Building with the standard camera.

When taking a photo, you can switch to the new lens using two different methods. First is by tapping on the icon with three trees at the bottom of the screen. The other method is to use the familiar pinch-to-zoom on the G5’s display. Only instead of pinching to zoom in, you slide your fingers apart to zoom out.

Modes, modes and more modes

Enlarge Image

LG G5 camera modes.

Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/CNET

LG’s camera app has seven different shooting modes, each one applying different effects to your photos or videos. You can access the modes by tapping on the aptly titled Mode button.

Auto (the default), Popout, Multi-View, Snap, Panorama, Slo-mo and Time-lapse round out the list. Each time you launch one of the modes, a brief dialog will show up letting you know exactly what to expect from the respective mode.

For example, popout (pictured above) takes advantage of both lenses on the rear of the G5. The standard lens is used to take the photo of video, while the wide-angle lens captures the bigger picture and applies various effects such as blurring or a vignette. The end result is a fun photo or video that incorporates not only the focal point of what you want to capture, but adds some fun context.

Selfie time!

You can quickly switch to the front-facing camera with the swipe of a finger. After launching the camera app, swipe across the screen in any direction and the G5 will automatically switch to the front camera. You’ll also find a tool to adjust the beauty filter to fit your desired effect next to the shutter button when the front facing camera is active.

To switch back to the rear camera, swipe your finger across the screen again.

Say ‘Cheese’

You can quickly take a photo using only your voice on the G5. To enable voice control, tap on the Settings icon in the camera app, followed by the icon that consists of a face with the word “Off.”

Enabling the feature will provide you with a list of voice prompts you can use to capture a photo. Those words are: Smile, Whiskey, Cheese, Kimchi or LG.

The next time you want to take a photo, either from across the room or to eliminate a bit of shakiness, clearly say one of the key words and the camera will snap a photo for you.

Share with the quickness

Enlarge Image

Quick sharing in the G5 camera app.

Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/CNET

After taking a photo, the G5’s camera app makes it as easy as possible to quickly share your photo. You’ll notice once you press the shutter button, an app icon appears just above the thumbnail preview of the photo. Tapping on the app icon will instantly open the app, with a status or message composed and the photo attached.

The app icon changes based on the app you last used to share a photo with. Tapping on the arrow and selecting a different app will launch said app, attaching the last photo you took with the G5.

Manual labor

For those who are more comfortable with manual controls of a camera, you’ll feel right at home with the G5’s manual mode. When enabled, you can control nearly every aspect of the camera ranging from exposure and focal range, to shutter speed, ISO and white balance.

Perhaps most importantly, manual mode also allows you to capture photos in RAW format (with a copy of the photo also stored in JPEG, making it easier to share while on the go).

Enable manual mode by tapping on the three-dot icon followed by Manual.

CoWatch looks to bring the power of Alexa to your wrist

iMCO is currently seeking funds on Indiegogo for CoWatch, a smartwatch built on the company’s Chronological OS with Alexa integration. That’s right, the company has built Alexa into the operating system so that you can get answers to questions, hail an Uber and more with just your voice. Ex-veterans of the Android team at Google are responsible for building the Chronological OS, which has built-in activity tracking and various customization options.

As for the hardware, the CoWatch has a 400×400 Super AMOLED display which is said to be fracture-resistant, as well as a 1.2GHz processor and enough battery to get you through 32 hours of normal use. Early backers will be able to get their orders in for $159, and the company hopes to begin shipments in early-June. Following the campaign, you’ll be able to purchase the CoWatch from the company’s site for $279, so if you think you may be interested in purchasing one you should probably get in early.

Back at Indiegogo

Press release:

iMCO TO LAUNCH FIRST SMARTWATCH INTEGRATED WITH CRONOLOGICS OS AND THE AMAZON ALEXA VOICE SERVICE

iMCO’s CoWatch features luxury design, cloud connectivity, activity tracking, AMOLED hi-res screen and 32-hour battery life; now available for pre-order on Indiegogo

New York, NY – April 18, 2016 – iMCO, a global innovator in smart wearables and devices, announces the launch of the CoWatch, a smartwatch with a sleek design and unique connectivity. Powered by Cronologics OS, a revolutionary operating system built by GoogleTM and AndroidTM veterans, CoWatch is the smartwatch that values users’ time. Compatible with both iOSTM and AndroidTM users, CoWatch will be the first smartwatch to integrate with Alexa, Amazon’s cloud-based voice service.

“We’ve spent the past year developing the CoWatch and are extremely excited to introduce it to the North American market via Indiegogo,” said Danny Dong, Founder and CEO of iMCO. “Beginning with the-best-in-class hardware materials and elegant craftsmanship, the CoWatch is seamlessly integrated with the new Cronologics platform and Amazon Alexa voice service, to deliver the convenience and added functionality, yet to be seen in the wearable community.”

The CoWatch excels at offering:

• Intelligence – The first smartwatch to integrate with Alexa, Amazon’s cloud-based voice service, CoWatch will allow users to quickly access Alexa to answer questions, receive traffic and weather reports, order an Uber, control smart home devices and more, all with the power of their voice.
• Activity Tracking – Track user’s activity, monitor their heart rate to help them stay fit and healthy. Connectivity – Cloud connectivity lets users turn on their lights, check on their car, and interact with the
  devices, products, and services that matter most in their smart home.
• Customizable – Wearers can pick a band and customize their watch face. An upcoming SDK will enable developers to build their own watch faces and apps, as well.
• Convenience – The 400×400 pixel high-resolution, vivid, super-AMOLED display and fracture-resistant touch screen, combined with the wearable industry’s fastest mobile computing processor of 1.2GHz, caters to any mood, activities, and fashion choices, day or night.
• Battery Life – Up to 32 hours of normal use with an always-on screen.

True to the Cronologics philosophy, the CoWatch was designed as both a fashion accessory and smartwatch first, rather than a phone accessory. Built with a fracture-resistant round watch face, 400×400 pixel high-resolution, vivid AMOLED full-circle touch-screen display and stainless steel case coupled with a ceramic decoration ring, CoWatch is the perfect accessory for anyone’s style. Additionally, it is powered by an Ingenic dual-core 1.2GHz and 300MHz mobile processor created for smart wearables. Along with the 1GB memory and 8GB storage, the highest capacity in the smartwatch market, the CoWatch offers unmatched hardware performance to meet its unique software features.

Cronologics’ Co-Founder and CEO, Leor Stern noted, “The CoWatch seamlessly fits into customers’ lifestyles — both functionally and stylistically. By collaborating with iMCO, we were able to offer a highly- intuitive user experience for customers, built around a design-focused watch, regardless of the phone they carry in their pocket.”

Through the CoWatch Indiegogo campaign, backers will be able to pre-order the product before it officially hits the market at significantly discounted rates. First-tier backers participating in the pre-sale will have access to rates as low as $159 USD. Early supporters will also have access to special perks and accessories, including a variety of customizable watchband options. To view the CoWatch Indiegogo campaign and subscribe for updates, click here.

The first round of mass production is already underway, in advance of the campaign’s conclusion. Many critical stages in the production roadmap have already been completed, and product will begin shipping to backers in June 2016. Following the campaign, the CoWatch will be available through the company’s website, and retail partners for $279 USD.

Shazam finally syncs matched tracks across devices

Shazam has a lot more competition from Siri, Cortana and other services, but the music recognition service has tried to stay on top with Google Now integration, faster recognition and other new tricks. The company has just added a feature that seems indispensable, but somehow wasn’t available before: syncing across devices. As long as you’re logged in to your account, it remembers any songs you identify and lets you see them from the desktop, iOS or other devices.

Like before, you then have the option to listen to the song on Spotify or purchase it on Google Play or Amazon. As Android Police points out, up until now your account was only good for tracking artists you follow, but couldn’t saved identified tunes — a pretty serious omission. Now, it will be easier to keep track of your Shazam activity, especially when you switch to a new device.

Via: Android Police

Source: Shazam (Google Play)

It’s complicated: A film examines our relationship with social media

In a world of status updates, indie filmmaker Kerith Lemon categorizes her relationship with modern technology under the “It’s complicated” banner. And with good reason. Lemon, whose short film “A Social Life” casts a harsh light on our addictive entanglement with social media, has dipped a toe in almost every online networking platform. That involvement was mainly a requirement of her job at the time. Back in the early aughts, Lemon worked as an integrated-marketing specialist at Viacom, where she handled brand messaging for the likes of MTV, Nickelodeon and CBS Radio. “I jumped on all of them because I needed to know everything,” she says. “I’m not exaggerating when I say that I signed up for eHarmony for a pitch to see how it would work.”

Lemon, however, soon grew disillusioned with the world of marketing and in 2011 decamped to Los Angeles to pursue her true passion: filmmaking. There she worked as a freelance producer until she got a call from Oprah’s OWN network to help develop its digital video strategy. After two and a half years as a VP at OWN, Lemon grew tired of telling other people’s stories and turned to social media “as an escape from the day-to-day grind.”

“I would be sitting on opposite ends of the couch from my husband, checking email and social media, and I was like, ‘This is no way to live!’” says Lemon of her “aha” moment. “And it was almost simultaneously that all these articles started popping up, ironically, in my social feed about social media jealousy and Instagram envy. And I was like, ‘Shit! I have that.’ And I didn’t like it once it had a name … It’s not me. I’m not this person.”

That wake-up call was what prompted Lemon to depart OWN and begin work on a cathartic short film that would eventually result in “A Social Life,” which has since made the rounds at various indie festivals. I spoke with Lemon about social media FOMO, addiction and the fine line between our digital lives and the truth.

Is this short reflective of your personal experience? Does it mirror what you went through?

There’s a lot of things that I pulled from my own life in there. I’ve never written something like this before. I’ve written for other people. I’ve written for brands … There’s a lot of moments in the movie that are stolen from my life. The ending is completely exaggerated.

The power of the visual is super-interesting to me, and as we look at how that is distributed across the social media platforms, we’re really only providing tiny snapshots into our life. I mean, the idea of capturing our life in a photograph is not new. People have wanted to do this since the dawn of cameras. But now with social media, we can distribute that to far more people. When you take these single images out of context, you can post something with a very certain intention, and then somebody, the viewer on the other end, could perceive that with a completely different outcome. So that’s happened to me a lot.

The thing of her taking the picture of the wine bottle happened to me. I got three beautiful bottles of rosé, and they were the most beautiful colors. Pink. And the light was streaming through my apartment. I just thought it was a gorgeous photograph. I tend to use Instagram just for beautiful pictures. And I posted it and I even captioned it: “Cheaper than a plane ticket. I love France.” And people would write back and be like, “You’re in France? Where are you?” … It clearly wasn’t my intention. I wasn’t lying about being in France. I was trying to be ironic and funny … But it can happen so easily. I feel like a lot of the misperception happens on the part of the viewer and whatever you bring to viewing that photograph.

Going back to the rosé bottles and the misinterpretation of that image you put on Instagram: When I watched the short, I thought to myself, OK, it seems that you’re implying here that the majority of people’s social media lives are total bullshit. That they’re intentionally taking these photos and framing these experiences to mislead people, to build out this greater image of their life and make it more exciting. Do you agree with that?

I don’t think the majority of people do it with a really strong intention. I think that there’s a lot of subconscious that happens in our posts … I think that especially for career-oriented people like me, which is where I was coming to this from, if you start to think about your brand, you’re making choices about what photos you post and don’t post. That’s not to say that she wasn’t doing all those things. In my mind, the first half of the movie, she’s not living a lie. Every time she wanted to post a photo, she knew it contributed to her brand — so she was choosing carefully — but she intended to do all those things.

But by the time we get to the afternoon of her staying at home, now it’s becoming more manipulated, how small a fine line there is between truly living the life you post and being able to craft some other life online.

If you’re feeling down and out about being on social media all the time, you have to consider that this is only one photo from this person’s life. And they may not even be doing that thing in that minute you’re looking at it. But your brain, for whatever reason, looks at that picture and thinks that must be happening in the now. And then you feel depressed or envious or jealous that you’re not out there doing the same fun thing.

I did think it was interesting that there was this one scene where she’s sitting all alone on her couch and she uploads a photo of herself that’s clearly been taken in the past. And it looks as though this is happening in the moment, and there’s all that jealousy. And I think people do intentionally mislead others doing that stuff, no?

Oh, absolutely. But I also know that I post old selfies that were just great pictures of me and I thought, I wouldn’t mind getting a little love back on this. Because we take a lot of self-worth from the likes and a lot of validation from these posts that we put up. I think especially for women. Not to say that it doesn’t happen for men that way.

I think I interpreted the short differently from what I’m getting from you in terms of how I thought you were coming at it. From watching this short, I got a very pessimistic view of social media through your lens, but it seems as though you’re not as pessimistic about it.

I’m an optimist. At the end of the day — and this is the reason I left the ending very open-ended — everybody has their own complicated relationship with social media. And I wanted people to have their own opinion of what she maybe goes on to do after this. Because for some people, like me, what I need to do after being stuck in this social media loop is that I have to put my phone down and leave it. I will go get a coffee without my phone. It drives my husband bonkers.

But for other people, it’s about shutting down the app and opening up a book on their phone. Which is fine, too. But I just believe that we all need a balance. Like I said, we give social media too much credit and too much time from our lives.

Can we achieve a balance, considering that every other day there’s a new app coming to take over and draw people’s attention? Right now you have Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat. That’s already a handful of things for people to lose themselves in.

Oh yeah, for sure. As the kids say, “The struggle is real.” I think it’s possible, and that brings up a whole conversation that’s not included in my film. But it’s a conversation I’ve had with a lot of people after the festival screening: “What about our kids?” Every generation has their own complaint about something taking up too much time. Way back when, it was sitting in front of the radio for too long. And then it was that sitting in front of the television is going to kill you. And now it’s that holding a device in your hand is going to take your life early. That’s existed for a long time, but we can’t let this new generation grow up without understanding that they have to make choices for themselves and form their own boundaries. Parents ask me all the time, “What am I supposed to do about my kid?” Well, the answer is not to take away their phone.

Do you think that there’s any social media or digital backlash brewing?

I think so, just because it’s so ubiquitous. I think that there will be a segment of people who are able, possibly higher-income earners, who are going to choose to send their kids to school with no technology. It’s possible. And I think that it’s interesting that a lot of this conversation around the complicated relationship with technology is coming from the tech world itself … Mark Zuckerberg’s sister has that whole Dot Complicated platform which does podcasts all the time. Yeah, it’s about new technology, and she also is not saying we shouldn’t use it, but just again creating that awareness and thinking about how are we gonna have balance in our lives and not get lost in the interwebs.

Why do I think we’re persisting in this use if we know that even the companies know that it’s bad for us? Because it’s enjoyable.

Since you’re highlighting how addictive this behavior is on social media and the narcissism involved, and you’re so acutely aware of that, do you now reduce your involvement in the different platforms? And what are you actually even using?

The ones I check on a regular basis are Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. I think that shows my age. I have an account on Snapchat: I work with a lot of different creators, so I have that because I look at what they’re posting and see what they’re doing. But I probably will never Snapchat. I keep it kind of slim and simple … And I’m so much more conscious about what I post and share … Predominantly now, everything for me is kind of a brand piece. Facebook is kind of friends and family — where the wedding pictures went. Twitter and Instagram are definitely more brand outlets for me as a director and as a creator/storyteller.

We’re getting to the point where Apple and Amazon have specific settings for their devices to reduce the blue frequency [in LED screens], the wavelength, so that it doesn’t impair us as much and destroy our biorhythm so we can’t go to sleep at night. And yet we’re persisting with all of this …

Why do I think we’re persisting in this use if we know that even the companies know that it’s bad for us? Because it’s enjoyable. There’s so many studies out there that show how many endorphins we get from the scrolling action, which is crazy to me. That’s why all the sites moved to the long scroll, because you take joy from that motion and getting to see new exciting content.

I mean, it is addictive. Our bodies are physiologically being changed. I think it’s responsible, and I’m glad that the companies are doing that, but I think that it needs to be promoted in a greater way … We don’t really know what all this social media use is gonna do. We won’t know for some period of time. We won’t know what all this technology is gonna do to us for some time, because it’s all new.

This interview has been edited and condensed.

Image credits: “A Social Life,” directed by Kerith Lemon