5 things to know about Google’s VR – CNET
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True virtual reality — not just Cardboard — might be a part of your next Android phone. Android VR — officially called Daydream — is now a thing, and it’s coming later this year alongside the release of Android N.
Google’s VR aspirations are very similar to what Samsung is already doing with its Gear VR headset. You’ll use a compatible phone as the “brain” of the headset and travel to far away lands to slay dragons, or flip pancakes in the middle of a forest. (At least, that’s what Google demoed at Google I/O.)
Here are six things you need to know about Google’s new VR platform.
1. It’s called Daydream
Google is calling Android N’s VR feature and platform “Daydream.” That’s not to be confused with the Daydream moniker Google gave the Android screensaver feature it introduced a few years back.
Daydream is built directly into Android N, so you won’t need to install an additional app on your device. Once a phone is placed into a Daydream headset, “VR mode” automatically activates, turning your phone into the brains of Daydream.
Once your phone is locked in and your headset is on, you can move your head and look around the Daydream home app launcher. Daydream lets you access previously installed apps apps or games, as well as visit the Play Store to find new apps.
2. Here’s what you’ll need
In order to use Daydream you’ll need:
- A compatible phone that runs Android N. None are available just yet, but Google’s flasghip Nexus phone and LG’s phones will be among the first to support it.
- A compatible Daydream headset. Google shared its hardware guidelines at Google I/O today, so the headsets aren’t yet available.
- A Daydream controller. This is something you’ll end up purchasing with your Daydream headset.
Google will release its own Daydream headset controller for the Nexus 6P, which should be available later this year. In addition to Google’s headset, the company is providing its hardware partners with design guidelines for the headset and controller. Each manufacturer can then use the reference design to create its own headset and controller.
Google will require each headset to come with a Daydream controller.
3. The hardware requirements are strict
Unlike the broad freedom Android hardware partners have when it comes to building an Android phone or tablet, Google will enforce strict requirements on device makers when it comes to Daydream compatible phones.
There’s no word on just exactly what those requirements are, but the Android developer website states that the Nexus 6P running Android N motion-to-photon latency of under 20 milliseconds, the “speed necessary to establish immersion for the user to feel like they are actually in another place.” It will also help cut down on motion sickness, so it’s safe to say this is likely one of the benchmarks Google will set for Daydream devices.
As reported by CNET’s Sean Hollister, if a device doesn’t meet Google’s performance requirements, the VR app won’t open when the phone is placed in the headset.
According to Google, Samsung, HTC, ZTE, Huawei, Xiaomi, Alcatel, Asus, LG, and HTC have all committed to building Daydream ready phones.
4. Google already has app partners
Google’s own YouTube, Street View, Play Movies, Play Store, and Google Photos will each have a VR app. Outside of Google, companies like CNN, MLB, NBA, Hulu, Netflix and the Wall Street Journal are all listed as app partners by Google.
5. And then there’s the cost
Google wasn’t forthcoming with price, but the company did tell CNET it expects headsets to be priced similarly to Samsung’s Gear VR kit, totaling $800 for a Galaxy S7 ($700) and Gear VR headset ($100).
There’s still plenty more to learn about Android N’s Daydream implementation. Google is holding a session at its developer event on Thursday dedicated to all things Android VR, and we’ll be there listening for any new information.
Xiaomi Mi Box Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET
You still can’t buy Xiaomi phones at retailers in the US, but you’ll soon be able to buy its streaming video box.
The China-based electronics giant is using Google’s I/O developers conference to highlight its Mi Box, a new Android TV-powered 4K set-top box. While official pricing and release date have yet to be announced, the Mi Box — not to be confused with a different model available in China (and via Amazon) — will be available in “other global markets” in addition to the US.
More on Google I/O 2016
- Everything announced at this year’s I/O
- Google’s CEO sums up his AI vision
- All the news from Google I/O 2016
The Mi Box’s announcement comes as Android TV is getting a makeover, with a bevy of new apps, including Watch ESPN, Comedy Central and Spotify. But Xiaomi will have competition in the form of the more-established (and just updated) Nvidia Shield. Sony TVs also run the Android TV operating system.
The Xiaomi Mi Box supports 4K UHD content, as well as the latest HDR standards. Other popular apps, like Netflix, Vudu and Hulu will be available for download, and the Mi Box can mirror your phone or tablet’s screen with its built-in Google Cast option.
Included with the Mi Box is a Bluetooth remote control with voice search capabilities.
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More specifications on the Xiaomi Mi Box include:
- Quad-core ARM Cortex-A53 CPU
- Mali 450 GPU
- 2GB of RAM
- 8GB of internal storage
- USB port
- HDMI 2.0a
- Dolby Digital Plus
- DTS Surround Sound
Google’s extra-secure Allo chat uses familiar encryption tech
Does the extra-private messaging in Google’s Allo seem familiar? Your eyes don’t deceive you — you really have seen it before. Open Whisper Systems has confirmed that Allo uses its Signal protocol for end-to-end encryption when you’re in Incognito Mode. Yes, that means that Google and Facebook-owned WhatsApp are sharing the same underlying security technology. Not that there’s much reason to complain. The protocol is strong enough that privacy advocates like Edward Snowden approve, and its open source nature can make it relatively ubiquitous.
Source: Open Whisper Systems
Facebook launches interactive map for Live Video
Facebook’s Live Video feature just got global thanks to an interactive map that’s rolling out on the site. If you’re looking for a stream from a random stranger you can either choose one from one of the highly ranked clips on the left side of the page, or click on one of the blue dots from everyone else on the digital globe.
To access the interactive map, a new “Live Video” app is available on the left navigation bar in your Facebook timeline. In addition to showing where a stream is originating, when you click on a video, it also shows where it’s being viewed.
The interactive map should help fans of live videos find new broadcasters. Before today, the only way to know if an account is live streaming is by following that person or brand and waiting for a notification. Facebook has been pushing Live Video aggressively lately. At its F8 developer conference it announced an open API so developers could add the feature to their cameras.
Source: Facebook
Samsung Pay now works with your loyalty cards in the US
Samsung Pay can substitute for your credit and debit cards, but those probably aren’t the only hunks of plastic you’re looking to replace. What about the points program card for the grocery store, or the discount card for the pharmacy? Relax. Samsung Pay now supports loyalty and membership cards in the US, so you can make the most of those price drops and freebies without bulking up your wallet.
The service is a bit late to the party, since both Android Pay and Apple Pay have supported loyalty cards for a while. However, it’s potentially more useful due to Samsung Pay’s more universal terminal support. After all, it’s not as likely that you’ll run into a store that both supports NFC payments and loyalty cards — as long as you have a compatible Samsung phone, you can shop in most places knowing that all of your cards should work.
Source: Samsung
Google I/O schedule leaks info on Android apps for Chrome OS
It wasn’t mentioned during today’s keynote, but we’re pretty sure you will hear about Google getting Android apps and the Play Store running on Chrome OS tomorrow. Confirmation has come through a (since updated) I/O calendar entry pointed out by 9to5Google, which said “Today we announced that we’re adding the best mobile app experiences in the world, Android apps and the Google Play store, to the best browser in the world, Chrome!” Momentum for the change has been picking up since last year, and some users have been seeing an option to enable the Play Store for a while. While we wait for more details, any developers at I/O have an incentive to arrive early: the first 50 are promised a free Chromebook for their trouble.
Source: 9to5Google, Google I/O Schedule
Netflix launches Fast.com, a dead-simple speed test
For obvious reasons, Netflix is obsessed with the speed and quality of your internet connection. To help keep you up to date on how your connection is doing, it’s launched Fast.com, a trademarked webpage that simply loads and runs a speed test, no user intervention necessary. While it also links to speedtest.net to help those looking for more details and control, Fast.com is pared down with no ads, no plugins, no configuration and not even an option to check upload speeds.
Netflix probably has all the data it can handle on broadband connections worldwide, but opening its own speedtest site shouldn’t hurt. VP David Fullagar says the test will work on mobile or broadband anywhere in the world, so no matter what, it can go in your toolkit as an easy check when things are loading slower than you think they should.
Source: Fast.com, Netflix Blog
Tesla is selling $2 billion in stock to make the Model 3
When Tesla talked about its earnings in early May, one big question came up: just how will the company afford to make hundreds of thousands of Model 3s (over 373,000, at last count)? By raising a ton of investment money, that’s how. Tesla has announced that it’s selling a total of $2 billion in stock, about $600 million of it from Elon Musk himself, to pay for its expansion plans. It had to move up its goal of 500,000 electric vehicles per year to 2018 in response to Model 3 deposits, and that means having a “good buffer of cash” (as Musk said during the earnings call) to keep things humming.
It wasn’t too hard to see this coming. Tesla acknowledged that it underestimated Model 3 demand by a wide margin, and there was no way that it could maintain its existing production plans (which had the battery-making Gigafactory in full swing by 2020) while keeping many of those customers happy. The big question is whether or not this influx of cash will be enough by itself. Musk suggested that there might be a need for debt, and further fundraising is all the more likely if demand for the mainstream EV keeps up.
Source: Bloomberg
Harvard engineers designed a ‘soft wearable robot’
A team of engineers from Harvard University’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering have moved one step closer to a consumer version of a soft, assistive exosuit that could help patients with lower limb disabilities walk again. The Wyss Institute announced today that the university is collaborating with ReWalk Robotics to bring its wearable robotic suit to market.
The soft exosuit was designed by Dr. Conor Walsh, who also happens to be the founder of the Harvard Biodesign Lab, along with a team of roboticists, mechanical and biomechanical engineers, software engineers and apparel designers. What really makes the Wyss exosuit stand out from other exoskeletons and robotic suits, is its form-fitting and fabric-based design. Instead of a heavy, rigid frame, the exosuit uses small but powerful actuators tucked in the belt to assist the wearer’s legs in a more natural way. While the setup might not be powerful enough to fight off Xenomorphs, it is a much more elegant solution for stroke, MS and elderly patients who still have partial mobility, but need additional assistance.
“Ultimately this agreement paves the way for this technology to make its way to patients,” Walsh said of his teams partnership with ReWalk. According to Harvard, the exosuit’s development has already had a lasting impact beyond those medical applications as well. As the announcement puts it, the team’s work has “been the catalyst for entirely new forms of functional textiles, flexible power systems and control strategies that integrate the suit and its wearer in ways that mimic the natural biomechanics of the human musculoskeletal system.”
Google goes after WhatsApp with Allo, a super-smart chat app
Allo is a smart chat app that’s designed to give you plenty of options when it comes to chatting to your friends. Google introduced the new app at Google I/O 2016.
Rather than just giving you a straight down the line messaging app, Allo has been designed to make chat more fun and interactive. It’s based on your phone number – like WhatsApp – and it seems to be going after all the popular chat apps, with emoji, stickers and plenty of features.
One of the hot features is whisper or shout. This will let you slide up or down on the send button to change the size of your reply, meaning there’s no need to write in caps all the time when you’re angry.
Allo will incorporate Google Assistant, allowing a huge range of smart functions too. That will range from the ability to have suggestions for dinner locations and make reservations, as well as being able to recognise images and suggest smart replies.
That means that Allo should be a much smarter approach to messaging, removing the need to constantly leave the app to find information. You’ll be able to search from within Allo, as well as make those reservations through services like OpenTable.
Taking this further, Google Assistant can have conversations within Allo, giving you loads of interactive options, like finding videos or playing games.
When it comes to privacy, Allo will offer an incognito mode like Chrome does. You’ll get discrete notifications, end-to-end encryption, as well as the ability set time limitations on your messages, as well as completely remove them once you’re done.
Google also announced Dou, a companion video app for Allo. Duo and Allo will be available in the summer for Android and iOS.
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