New Moto X leaks reveal two phones, all-metal design, modular backplates

Lenovo-owned Motorola is embracing the all-metal look and modular trend.

HellomotoHK and Venture Beat’s Evan Blass have shared a bunch of leaked images that reveal Lenovo’s next Moto X will likely sport an aluminium body. This phone would be the fourth-generation Moto X. The previous generations mostly featured a combination of a metal frame and plastic body, meaning the next Moto X will be starkly different from its predecessors.

Keep in mind the Moto X line has long offered premium material options for backplates, including wood and leather. An all-metal casing however would make the new flagship contend with rival phones made by Apple, HTC, Samsung, and Huawei. Speaking of other metal phones, these leaked photos suggest next year’s Moto X will be shaped much like the Galaxy S6.

It’s hard to say if these leaks are credible; Blass has said two of the leaked images might actually show different devices. Blass also said these devices will be modular, allowing you to change the backplates. While HellomotoHK’s Moto X leaks appear to show one phone with a metallic body, Blass has now claimed they are two Moto X phones called Vertex and Vector Thin.

The phones have customisable bodies. Their backplates reportedly have 16 dots near the bottom that work as connection pins. These pins connect to six “amps” (modules). When you connect the phone’s pins to the amps, you get new features, such as stereo speakers, a battery pack, a camera grip with flash and optical zoom, a pico projector, and a rugged cover with wide angle lens.

In other words: the new Moto Xs will be a lot like the LG G5, which recently launched with modules. That phone however requires you to remove the battery every time you add a new module. Motorola’s new Moto X phones are different because their modules attach to the back instead.

As for specs, the 2016 Moto X phones are rumoured to feature Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 820 and 5.5-inch AMOLED displays (the Vertex has a full HD display, while Vector Thin has Quad HD resolution). Also, the Vector Thin might come with 32GB of storage and 3GB or 4GB RAM, and the Vertex could have 16GB of storage and 2GB RAM or 32GB of storage and 3GB RAM.

We will likely know more soon, as Lenovo should unveil the phones on 9 June.

Apple might be working on official HomeKit app for setting up accessories

It would be really cool if Apple launched a HomeKit app alongside iOS 10, and it looks like that might happen.

HomeKit is Apple’s framework for home automation. It was first announced at WWDC 2014. Manufacturers can implement HomeKit into their smart accessories so that accessories can be controlled by a single interface (Siri) and work with Apple’s devices. Under the current HomeKit system, you must download apps for each accessory and use their HomeKit interface to create rooms, scenes, and triggers.

Well, according to MacRumours, Apple is indeed working on a HomeKit app to replace all those third-party apps. The website spotted an Amazon review in which the reviewer claims to work for Apple’s marketing department. The reviewer said Apple is developing a standalone HomeKit app for the next version of iOS, and MacRumours was able to “verify” this source via the person’s LinkedIn profile, etc.

Here’s what the reviewer reportedly said:

“As I work in marketing for Apple, we test many Smart Home devices, especially for iOS HomeKit integration. […]

Some advice, there are many third party applications, most free, that offer more control and customization(s) with many Smart Home devices. ‘Yonomi’ is a free app that I often use,’Home’ is another which cost $14.99. Both offer support for many devices with more added daily (including Amazon ‘Echo’). The next version of iOS due this fall will have a standalone ‘HomeKit’ app as well.”

Many critics and reports, including this one by 9to5Mac, seem to think Apple will unveil a HomeKit app in iOS 10 that will give users the ability to use just one app in order setup their home with tonnes of smart accessories. A HomeKit app would be sort of like the Health app but for HomeKit devices rather than diet and fitness data. The idea is you’d use the HomeKit app to create rooms, scenes, and triggers.

If Apple is making a HomeKit app, it would likely unveil the app at WWDC 2016 in June (when it’s expected to debut iOS 10).

3D-printed wheelchair promises more comfortable rides

Wheelchairs are rarely as comfortable as you’d like. You either have to settle for a generic design or wait ages for a custom model that might still be a little awkward. However, London design firm Layer might have a better way: it’s unveiling Go, a prototype wheelchair that could be easier to live with. The design has manufacturers scanning your body so that they can 3D-print seats and footrests that match your exact dimensions. It’d be more comfortable, of course, but it’d also account for your weight and create an ideal center of gravity that reduces the chances of tipping over or sliding.

It’s too soon to say when you’ll see chairs like Go on the market. However, this is very much designed to become a practical product, not a theoretical exercise. Layer estimates that it’d take just two weeks to complete a custom wheelchair versus as many as eight through traditional methods. If Go or something likes it goes into service, tailor-made chairs could be relatively commonplace.

Via: Fast Company

Source: Layer Design

The Energy Department just started its own podcast

You normally don’t think of government agencies embracing podcasts — even if tight budgets aren’t a problem, creativity isn’t usually their top priority. The US Department of Energy wants to buck that trend, though. It just started up a podcast, Direct Current, that delves into energy technology, government initiatives and energy history. The first episode touches on the problems surrounding the “soft costs” of solar power, solar technology’s milestones and the history of the Energy Department itself.

The podcast flatters the Department and its goals, of course, but there’s a nice surprise: you might actually enjoy it. It’s slickly produced (there’s even an NPR spoof), touts capable hosts and strikes a careful balance between information and telling an accessible, engaging story. This is a real, concerted effort to create something entertaining, not just a dry attempt to prove that the government is relevant in the Serial era. Whether or not you like it, the podcast suggests that officials can do more to spread their messages than send out the occasional press release or social update.

Via: The Verge

Source: Energy.gov, iTunes

Watch Blue Origin’s third landing from the rocket’s point of view

Sure, you can watch reusable rocket landings from the ground as much as you want, but have you wondered what it’d be like if you were strapped to one of those rockets? Blue Origin sure has. Jeff Bezos’ spaceflight outfit has released a video showing its third landing from the booster rocket’s view (specifically, a vent), starting with the moment before it reenters the atmosphere. What’s surprising is how the change in perspective underscores the speed of the whole operation — you’re looking at a dramatic view of Earth in one moment, and the American desert the next. This sort of camera angle will eventually become run-of-the-mill, of course, but it’s worth watching while reusable rockets are still novelties.

Source: Blue Origin (YouTube)

Follow the money in this searchable Panama Papers database

Earlier today, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists released a database of 368,000 names tied to the Panama Papers leaks. According to the ICIJ, the database is “the largest ever release of information about offshore companies and the people behind them,” and it removes the secrecy from some 214,000 offshore entities.

The database is still “a fraction” of the over 11.5 million files hacked from Mossack Fonseca, a law firm headquartered in Panama and known as a problem solver for people looking to cover the money trails behind their companies, trusts or charitable foundations.

While the database is expansive, laypeople will probably have a hard time finding major political players among the names of everyone involved. UK Prime Minister David Cameron, for example, admitted to owning shares in his father’s offshore trust, but his name doesn’t show up in a search. Likewise, Russian President Vladimir Putin moved a whopping $2 billion through banks and shadow companies, but is only implicated through his associates. Instead of simply blasting named and private information out on the Internet, the consortium says they are keeping the bulk of the documents confidential so they can “apply the rigor of journalism.”

Regardless, the search tool does visualize the data, showing the direct connections between banks, corporations and their official owners. The portion of the data that has been made public can be searched here.

Apple Music is helping, not hurting Spotify

Apple Music arrived last June, offering a music-streaming alternative to the likes to Spotify, Google Play Music, Tidal and Rdio (RIP). The the 10 months since, you could reasonably assume that a big company with loyal users getting in the subscription game would put a dent in the top service’s subscriber numbers. Well, apparently it hasn’t. In fact, it seems the exact opposite is true. Speaking with Reuters, Spotify VP Jonathan Forster explained that having Apple in the game is “raising the profile of streaming.” He also noted that the company started adding users at a faster rate when Tim Cook & Co. joined the fray.

“Since Apple Music started, we’ve been growing quicker and adding more users than before,” Forster said. The Spotify vice president went on to explain that the streaming business “would be terrible” if competing companies were just swiping each others’ users or if there was some cap to the number of customers. “I don’t think that’s the case,” he said. Spotify announced in March that it has 30 million paying subscribers as well as a free ad-supported tier. The company continues to add around 10 million paying users a year.

Spotify isn’t getting complacent, either. Earlier today, the company announced new video projects that include a dozen music-focused original series. Video was something the streaming service already offered, as it announced the visual episodes along with podcasts almost a year ago. The upcoming slate of shows builds on that, continuing to bridge the divide between artist and listener with performances, documentaries, interviews and more.