Apple TV’s Universal Search Adds Support for NBC

The universal search functionality on the latest Apple TV recently saw NBC added to the list of content providers included in results in the United States. The addition is part of an ongoing expansion that most recently saw CBS added last month.

Universal search on the Apple TV allows users to search for content using Siri or text entry and see a list of providers offering a given movie or TV show. For providers that offer only certain seasons of a show, those limitations are reflected on the results screen.

With the addition of NBC, apps for all four major U.S. networks are now included in universal search, as well as iTunes, Netflix, Hulu, HBO, Disney’s suite of TV channels, Showtime, PBS, Starz, Nat Geo, and FX. In most other countries, only iTunes content is currently supported, while Netflix is also supported in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

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Pebble 2, Time 2, and Pebble Core Launch on Kickstarter

Pebble today launched a Kickstarter campaign for two new fitness-focused smartwatches, and an all-new cellular-connected wearable.

Pebble 2, the first major upgrade to the original Pebble smartwatch, features new built-in sleep, step, and heart rate tracking functionality alongside existing phone, text, and information notification capabilities.

The iOS- and Android-compatible smartwatch retains an always-on high contrast black and white display that is readable both indoors and outdoors. The watch also features an anti-scratch lens coating, built-in microphone, up to weeklong battery life, and water resistance up to 30 meters.

Pebble 2 is compatible with over 13,000 existing apps and watchfaces, and runs an updated version of its Timeline operating system that enables customizable one-click actions that, for example, make it easier to send a text message, call an Uber, or check your calendar right from your wrist.

Time 2 is Pebble’s premium smartwatch featuring a stainless steel design, built-in heart rate monitor and microphone, and color e-paper display that is more than 50 percent larger than its predecessor and has up to 80 percent more pixels to see twice the text. The battery lasts up to 10 days on a single charge.

Time 2 adopts many other Pebble 2 features and is compatible with iOS and Android.

Pebble Core is an all-new Android-based lightweight, cellular-connected clip that allows runners to leave their smartphones behind, yet still conveniently stream music from Spotify, track their pace, distance, and location with GPS, record voice notes, and even send an emergency SOS if needed.

Pebble Core supports both Wi-Fi and 3G cellular networks using a micro-SIM card, while both Bluetooth and wired headphones can be connected. The wearable provides up to 5 days of battery life based on 45 minute workouts and can be charged using the included USB cable or an add-on wireless charging pad.

Pebble 2 starts at $99 on Kickstarter in flame, aqua, black, white, and lime and begins shipping in September 2016, while Time 2 starts at $169 in black, gold, and silver and is slated to ship in November 2016. Pebble Core starts at $69 in black-red and begins shipping in January 2017.

Pebble has already well exceeded its $1 million fundraising goal, with limited early bird and regular pledge tiers still available on Kickstarter. The Pebble 2, Time 2, and Core will each cost $30 extra at full retail price once the crowdfunding campaign is completed at the end of June.

Pebble also introduced Pebble Core for Hackers and new Pebble Health tools and features.

Pebble’s existing smartwatch lineup includes the Pebble Classic, Pebble Steel, Pebble Time, Pebble Time Steel, and Pebble Time Round.

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Ultimate Ears UE Roll 2: Rock ‘n’ roll reprisal

The UE Roll, the discus-shaped rugged Bluetooth speaker, is back for round two.

The UE Roll 2 takes the same dinky shape as the original waterproof speaker, but crams in 15 per cent more sound and better wireless range to 100-feet, according to the company. All without changing the exterior design.

It comes with some jazzy design options, too, just as you can see from our hands-on pictures of the speaker which we were sent ahead of the official announcement. Don’t worry, though, there are simpler colourways too.

Core to the UE Roll 2’s design is a bungee cord loop, which is neatly tucked away underneath. This can be used to attach to various objects for a tight fit, plus it’s rugged enough to stretch out considerably. So whether you want to loop it around a bike frame, a lamp-post or a chair leg, you can get creative.

The UE Roll 2 is waterproof (IPX7 certified) and every product comes complete with the UE Floatie – a rubber ring-like inflatable that can join the in the pool to act as the Roll 2’s floating stand – which was a separate accessory for the original product. Bonus.

Available this very month, the UE Roll 2 will be priced £79. Which is less cash than the original was at launch, despite the extra sound, range and Floatie included.

Breathing batteries can make smartphones last all week on a charge

Another day, another battery breakthrough. This time it’s lithium-air batteries that have had an advancement which could mean cells that last five times longer than current ones.

Dr Kyeongjae Cho and his team at Dallas University have discovered a new catalyst for lithium-air batteries that can enhance capacity, theoretically, up to ten times. Until now researchers had been hitting a wall, which Cho hopes can now be circumnavigated to help progress in lithium-air battery developments.

The result should be batteries that will work in smartphones and cars, giving a far greater life and range. An electric car should be able to manage a 400-mile range while a smartphone could last a solid week, on a single charge.

The lithium-air batteries effectively breath oxygen to power the chemical reactions. This means they don’t need to store an oxidiser like current lithium-ion batteries do. That means more room for a greater energy density, theoretically 10 times that of lithium-ion, and comparable to gasoline.

These lithium-air batteries, requiring less materials, would not only be one fifth of the weight of current batteries but would also be one fifth of the cost to produce.

Thanks to the newly developed catalyst, dimethylphenazine, the batteries should have a higher stability and voltage efficiency now.

The downside? This is a research breakthrough meaning it could still be a good five to ten years before we start to see these batteries in our gadgets and vehicles.

“This is a major step,” Cho said. “Hopefully it will revitalise the interest in lithium-air battery research, creating momentum that can make this practical, rather than just an academic research study.”

READ: Future batteries, coming soon

Sony Cyber-shot RX1R II review: Full-frame fun and foibles

When it first launched at the end of 2012, the Sony Cyber-shot RX1 was a camera like no other. Its full-frame sensor and fixed 35mm lens made it a distinctive shooter for the high-end market. Sure, it had its imperfections, but that large sensor gave it inevitable qualities that helped it stand out compared to, say, the Fujifilm X100.

Since, there have been launches such as the Leica Q to give Sony more than a little to think about. Having already put out an “R” model – an RX1 minus an optical low-pass filter (OLPF) – the Japanese company’s supposed comeback king, the RX1R II, relies heavily on a bump in resolution. Some 42-megapixels of it. Add a built-in pop-up viewfinder and the Mark II is a camera with few comparisons.

But does a bigger resolution mean it’s best in class? Or has the RX1R Mark II held onto some of the bad habits of the earlier models? We’ve been using one for a week to get a taste of just what it can do.

Sony RX1R II review: Design

There’s a growing trend for fixed-lens cameras, the RX1R II joining the “no zoom” fray with, well, the very same lens as its predecessors: a 35mm f/2.0 Zeiss optic. That’s a mid-wide focal length, a classic choice for street photographers, complete with aperture control ring and manual focus ring that are great to use.

It’s a fairly chunky wedge of a camera too, that all-metal build bringing its weight to just over half a kilo. That might sound heavy, but in camera talk that’s code for quality and reassurance: it’s built to last. Except, perhaps, for the rear screen coating which we somehow managed to put some marks on during a drive (it was in a bag with another camera – but no Gorilla Glass like coating on cameras, as there is on phones, is a modern day oddity).

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The screen is one of the major talking points of the RX1R II, as this 3-inch panel is mounted on a tilt-angle bracket so it can be used 45-degrees downward for overhead work or to as much as 109-degrees upwards for waist-level shooting. And we’ve so often used it for waist-level snapping, for low-lying subjects without losing the background and skyline. Still no touchscreen controls, or even the option for them, seems a bit in the past though.

From one screen to another, one that you probably can’t spot: a major feature of the RX1R II is that there’s now a pop-up 2.56m-dot, 0.39-inch electronic viewfinder included in the build, hidden from view until you crank down on the “Finder” switch to the left side of the LCD screen. It pops up into position, although – in a similar fashion to the RX100 III and IV models – you’ll need to push that screen inward and downwards to stow it. It’s a little miracle that such a panel is hidden, giving you the choice to use it as and when. Our only gripe with it is the diopter adjustment to the left side, which is fiddly to use and poorly placed because it gets “reset” if you need to utilise it in any adjustment format.

Otherwise the RX1R II is fundamentally similar to its predecessor models, including mode and exposure compensation dials up top, thumbwheel and rotational d-pad to the rear, and generally compact-like controls. Still no dial lock or “zeroed” light on the exposure compensation dial, though, which is a shame. The more apparent difference in the Mark II model is the addition of a fully continuous autofocus (“C”) option to the front selection dial, which is positioned to the lower corner of the camera.

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Sony RX1R II review: A lens to love?

The Cyber-shot RX1R II’s lens has all the hallmarks of top glass, that blue Zeiss logo to the side being one giveaway. This is the kind of stock reserved for the most capable of Sony pro lenses.

As we’ve mentioned there’s an aperture control ring, which reassuringly clicks between third-stops, from f/2.0 all the way down to f/22.

Beyond this ring there are two additional ones: a macro ring which switches the lens’ focus range from the 24cm-from-lens starting range down to a 14cm (at closest) “macro” focus; and a manual focus ring that’s positioned perfectly towards the front of the lens and rotates in a buttery smooth fashion.

It’s great to have such a wide aperture for depth of field control, especially with a full-frame sensor to match, but it’s not always ideal to use it wide-open. At f/2.0 the blurred background bokeh is wonderful, but the in-focus area is slight, which can be great but can also be limiting.

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Sony Cyber-shot RX1R Mark II review – sample image at ISO 500

Additionally there’s no built-in neutral density (ND) filter, which would be really useful when shooting in bright conditions with the aperture open. Sure, you can add a physical one onto the 49mm threat at the front of the lens, but that’s an additional cost and a slower process to realise.

So there’s heaps of good about the Sony lens and the images it can aid in rendering, but there’s also an outsider to consider here: the Leica Q, with its 28mm f/1.7 lens. The German-made competitor handles flare exceptionally well, while distortion is minimal. That’s one thing about even the Sony’s 35mm: it is prone to a touch of barrel distortion.

Sony RX1R II review: Performance

When we looked at the original RX1 camera its autofocus speed was reasonable but not ground-breaking. The RX1R II is faster than that but, again, in the context of the wider world of cameras it’s still not lightning fast. And given its £2,599 price tag it should be.

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Sony Cyber-shot RX1R Mark II review – sample image at ISO 400, -1.7EV

But that’s not to gloss over the changes on board. The Mark II model introduces a phase-detection autofocus system, something the previous two RX1 models lacked (using contrast-detection only). That’s where the added bump in speed comes from, and while it’s not at DSLR levels, it’s certainly fast enough.

Perhaps most importantly it’s a reliable focus system. We used the camera exclusively to shoot at the CES Asia show, snapping the latest gadgets and cars, where it proved itself admirably. The ability to focus with accuracy – whether using the macro or normal lens position – was key in such scenarios; even some compact system cameras (we’ve been using the Olympus Pen-F) can get confused with light reflections that the Sony didn’t struggle with.

That 35mm lens works well for arm’s length shooting, while being wide-angle enough to fit in broader scenes, almost irrelevant of lighting situations – the autofocus system is capable of catching subjects even in very low-light conditions. That, in part, is the bonus of a bright lens, which can let loads of light in for the autofocus system to utilise.

As we mentioned there’s the addition of a continuous autofocus “C” position to the front of the camera, pushing the camera’s improved ability to capture moving subjects. It’s an improvement compared to the earlier RX1, as we did successfully shoot cheetahs in Africa moving at a walking pace, but it’s not the RX1R II’s premier function. If you want to shoot a bird in flight or some such subject then you’ll want to look elsewhere really, plus 35mm is fairly wide-angle for such shots.

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It’s more the manual end of things where the camera works particularly well. It’s possible to switch on a MF Assist option from within the menus which magnifies the focus area to 100 per cent size, but, and integrally, there’s a focus peaking option that “paints” the in-focus area with a colour to verify. And that super-smooth manual focus ring is very precise and adjusts in just the right amounts per rotation, something some other analogue-to-digital lenses can’t manage.

The biggest problem we’ve found with the RX1R II in the performance stakes is just how paltry its battery life is. It’s poor, but no surprise given the 1,240mAh capacity (some flagship phones are triple that these days). We really don’t understand why Sony hasn’t opted for a larger and more capacious cell, as there’s seemingly room for it in a body of this scale. There’s no dedicated charger in the box either, instead the camera plugs in via microUSB – which sounds useful, but it’s slow, hard to tell whether the battery has been fully replenished, and makes using multiple batteries a right pain (we were lucky enough to have two – believe us you’ll need more than one).

Sony RX1R II review: Image quality

And so on to the big kahuna: image quality. It’s the area where the Mark II model steps things up considerably, because it’s got the same 42-megapixel full-frame sensor as you’ll find in the A7R II SLT (which is like an SLR, only with a translucent mirror, hence the acronym).

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Sony Cyber-shot RX1R Mark II review – sample image at ISO 100

In addition to using the RX1R II to shoot a tech show in China, we’ve also been snapping with it in the deserts of Namibia, and back home in the UK. The primary thing that we’ve noticed is just how well set for post-shooting crops this camera is. We’ve had subjects not fill much of the frame brought into perfect positioning with some clever cropping – and without impacting on the perceivable quality. Think about it: 42-megapixels is huge; it’s one of the reasons this camera demands its sky-high price tag.

But 42-megapixels isn’t particularly well-matched for shaky hands or slow shutter speeds, as it will pronounce softness. Not that we’ve found this to be a particular issue: frames are sharp, with only some optical fall-off towards the edges. Interestingly there’s a low-pass filter that can be toggled on or off to aid with sharpness – but the difference in results is slight to our eyes. How this works is perhaps most interesting of all: there’s a liquid crystal layer in the RX1R II’s low-pass filter that will only cause light to diffuse when electronically stimulated, otherwise light passes directly through. Clever.

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Sony Cyber-shot RX1R Mark II review – sample image at ISO 1600

But anyway, back to the actual images. There are a couple of oddities to call out. Colour, for starters, is sometimes off when using auto white balance (AWB), with the odd unexpected cool cast. We’ve had to spend a fair bit of time warming up some images that were too cyan, presumably as a result of indoor lighting. Distortion is the other point, which, despite an in-camera correction option, can be noticeable – we’ve had to add lens correction in Photoshop to some images.

If you’re expecting a 42-megapixel camera to be a low-light king then you might need to think again too. Saying that, we’ve been hugely impressed with just how much detail is held higher up the ISO range. We’ve shot at ISO 1600 and found no hugely adverse image noise to show. Push a stop beyond that, however, and you’ll start to spot how gradients aren’t nearly as smooth, with a mottled pattern to them. Actual colour noise is largely absent, though, and what is visible is slight and tends to be “hidden” because of the sheer resolution and scale of images. From ISO 6400 and above it’s a bit of an issue though, as our shot of the Shanghai TV tower shows.

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Sony Cyber-shot RX1R Mark II review – sample image at ISO 2500 f/2.8

What really sells the images is the pairing of this sensor with that lens. The potential for sumptuous, melty-like bokeh is great, or stop down for broader depth of field. It puts you in control. It also puts huge, great quality imaging potential in the palm of your hand – quality that’s a step beyond the 2012 original camera, in spite of the massive resolution bump, and minus the visible chromatic aberrations that we found present in the original too (must be updated processing at work here).

Verdict

At first glance the RX1R II might not seem that different to the original model. But there’s plenty new here: the ingenious little pop-up electronic viewfinder, the new tilt-angle screen mechanism and, of course, that sensor with huge 42-megapixel resolution. Oh, and the larger price: at £2,599 the Mark II is hugely expensive; although it’s cheaper than an RX1R with an added viewfinder accessory, we suppose.

Again, however, the camera isn’t quite perfection. The autofocus system, while new and laden with phase-detection points, still can’t outsmart a decent (and cheaper) compact system. There’s no touchscreen mechanism either, which feels limiting – especially when using the camera for waist-level or video operation. Oh, and the battery life is pretty awful (and no charger in the box is irksome).

Still, the RX1R Mark II gets lots right. Its build quality is second to none, its resulting images are huge and of great quality, that 35mm f/2.0 Zeiss lens offers heaps of control and potential, and it’s a camera with few to contest it. Problem is, for £300 more and you could own a Leica Q (if you can stand signing-up to the wait list anyway) or even snap up an A7R II SLT (without the lens).

Just as we felt of the original camera, we have a lot for the RX1R II. It feels special, it’s been a blast to use, but it doesn’t feel quite at the top of its game – well, not at this considerable price point anyway.

Samsung Galaxy S7 Active official specs leak: 4000mAh battery and more

The Samsung Galaxy S7 Active might not be official yet but that’s not stopped plenty of leaks already revealing the look and now the specs of the handset.

A complete spec sheet has been shown to Evan Blass at Venture Beat, it’s claimed to be an official list that reveals everything we can expect. The handset, like the S6 Active, will be an AT&T release.

The spec sheet reveals the Samsung Galaxy S7 Active will be a 5.1-inch AMOLED screened smartphone with 1440 x2560 resolution, just like the Galaxy S7. Unlike that, this one will run on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor but will have a hefty 4GB of RAM and 32GB storage.

The S7 Active should be a real goer thanks to a hefty 4000mAh battery that will keep the Android 6.0 Marshmallow OS ticking along nicely. The camera isen’t quite S7 level with a 12-megapixel rear shooter rather than the S7’s 16-megapixel offering.

When it comes to toughness the S7 Active features a 9.9mm thick build and weighs in at 185g. That extra width and weight means it should be able to withstand water submersion, like the S7 can, but also take a good knock too.

The Samsung Galaxy S7 Active is expected to be released on 10 June.

READ: Samsung Galaxy S7 review: The unsung hero?