Amazon Echo can finally track your Amazon packages
Alexa, the digital assistant that powers the Amazon Echo, Dot and Tap, has finally gained the ability to track your Amazon orders. It’s been an odd omission considering the great many things that Alexa can already do, but it’s better late than never.
As reported by ReadWrite, you can now simply query Alexa with phrases like “where’s my package” or “where’s my stuff,” and the digital assistant will provide you with an update.
It’s important to note, however, that the skill is limited to orders directly from Amazon. Sadly, if you purchased something from a third-party seller, Alexa won’t offer up any details on its whereabouts.
Have you given the Alexa’s new skills a shot yet? If so, let us know what you think in the comments below!
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An ode to the HTC 10’s SIM card tray
I love the SIM card tray on the HTC 10. Enough that I wrote a Haiku about it.
My SIM card is old
It falls out of most trays
Thank you HTC
A lot of words have been written about the way the HTC 10 is built and designed. Most of them are very positive words. It’s not the right phone for everyone, and there are some things I wish were different, but the SIM card tray is not one of those things.
I change phones a lot, and my poor T-Mobile SIM has seen better days. The corners are worn and it is just not the same size it was when I first got it. That happens when you take a tiny piece of plastic and push it in and out of metal things too often. I need to get a new one, but that means going to a T-Mobile store or calling them to get things switched over, and ain’t nobody got time for that. At least I ain’t got time for that.
Because the card is worn and misshapen, it hates to stay put in one of those SIM card trays that is only an oddly shaped little frame. I see your little cut off corner, trying to make me think that you will hold my card in place just the right way, then silently mocking my failure. Since most phones don’t have a back cover that comes off, those wonky little trays are the norm. Some of them are even plastic and get wiggly. When I put in my SIM, I need to get things just right, then try to defy gravity and slide the little tray in without the card falling through, or use a bit of tape on the back and pray it doesn’t come off and get stuck in the slot. Anything to not have to visit or call T-Mobile, because I’m stupid or lazy. Or both. The struggle is real.
This is one of those little things you don’t think about — until you have to.
That’s why when I first cracked open the HTC 10, I got all excited over the SIM card tray. Sure, my coworkers made fun of me and didn’t really expect me to care this much or (especially) to write about it, yet here we are. This isn’t the first time they have all ganged up on me with taunts and sneers, and it won’t be the last. It’s not my fault that they can’t appreciate the finer things in life.
The HTC 10’s SIM card tray is not a hollow metal frame — it has a real tray with a back and everything! All I had to do was put it in right side up and slide it home. I want to imagine that a design team spent hours and hours making sure the SIM tray was elegant and made from exotic materials by old world craftsmen. Since nobody from HTC claims they didn’t, that’s what I’m going with. As long as I don’t ask, I can live out my SIM card tray fantasy and nobody can take that away from me. In the words of the immortal bard, Can one desire too much of a good thing?
Anyway, someone had to mention the fine craftsmanship and fatherly love the HTC design team put into the SIM card tray. It lets me know that they pay attention to detail, unlike the iPhone and its horrid little backless SIM tray. If a company can’t pay attention to how the SIM tray is built, where else have they made bad decisions and used shortcuts? Should I trust them with my fingerprint or my credit card?
I think not.
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Samsung Galaxy Note 6 may be due for a mid-August release in the U.S.
If you opted to skip the launch of the Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 edge in favor of the next entry in the Note line, it sounds like you may get your chance in mid-August. That’s according to noted leaker Evan Blass, who says the Galaxy Note 6 is due for a U.S. release the week of August 15.
Samsung Galaxy Note 6 US release scheduled for week of August 15th.
— Evan Blass (@evleaks) May 11, 2016
Unfortunately, we haven’t yet seen any notable leaks concerning specs to expect from the Galaxy Note 6. As far as features are concerned, however, a recent rumor claims that we may see a BlackBerry Hub-like experience called Samsung Focus debut on the Galaxy Note 6. While there’s little else to go off of right now, rumors will likely start heating up as we edge closer to August.
Instagram doesn’t look the same anymore – see the new design now
Out with the old and in with the new.
Instagram and its sibling apps have received new app icons. The photo-sharing app’s brown, dated square now appears flat and colourful. And Hyperlapse, Boomberang, and Layout have been given similar-looking icons too, linking all four apps together. But there’s more: both the Instagram mobile app and web app are sporting new interface changes, including a white top bar and black buttons instead of blue ones.
In a blog post, the Instagram team said the new app icon represents “a simpler camera and the rainbow lives on in gradient form,” while the updated look reflects “how vibrant and diverse” users’ storytelling has become. The team also believes the new black-and-white design in Instagram is simpler and puts more focus on photos and videos without changing how users navigate.
Instagram is now 5 years old, and this icon redesign is the first it’s ever had since launch. The new colour scheme inside the app however is just the latest update in a series of interface tweaks in recent years. For instance, last summer, Instagram retooled Search and Explore, and it subtly adjusted the size and shape of photos as well as how they appear throughout the app.
Check out the video below to learn more about Instagram’s new look.
Republic Wireless gets serious about its phone selection
Republic Wireless’ promise of extra-affordable cellular service has usually come with a big catch: the phone selection. Outside of the occasional gem, you’ve had to settle for browsing a tiny collection of so-so budget devices. That won’t be a problem after this summer, though. Republic has announced that it’s adding seven more phones to its roster this July, and most of them are reasonably up to date, high-end models you’d likely be happy to have. The Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge are in the mix, as is Google’s current Nexus line and the Moto X Pure Edition — you can even get last year’s Galaxy S6 if you’re striking a balance between cost and cutting-edge. The prices are generally on par with what you find elsewhere, such as $699 for the Galaxy S7.
The provider wants to spice up its plans, too. In step with its move to a more standard GSM phone network, it’s introducing a $20 per month plan that bundles unlimited talk and texting with 1GB of data at LTE speeds ($5 less than before). It’s still not ideal for everyone (you can’t bring your own phone, for example), but the combination of good phones with better rates might just reel you in if you’re more concerned with cost than absolute flexibility.
Source: Republic Wireless
Hyperloop One shows off its high-speed propulsion system
North of Las Vegas in the Nevada desert, Hyperloop One is taking a gamble. Specifically, a gamble that flew along a test track and ended in a spray of sand and applause. The company has been working on creating a propulsion system and pods based on a mass-transportation white paper by Tesla CEO Elon Musk. Today it tested one of those systems, with co-founder Shervin Peshvar calling it the company’s “Kitty Hawk preview.”
Slow-mo of HyperloopOne test
A video posted by Roberto Baldwin (@strngwys) on May 11, 2016 at 11:15am PDT
The sled accelerated with a force of approximately 2.5 Gs before ending its short run in a sand pit. The next public test should be less dusty. CTO Brogan BamBrogan said that Hyperloop One is hoping to have a quarter-mile full-scale track within a series of tubes by the end of 2016.
Today’s test focused strictly on the propulsion system. Hyperloop’s senior vice president of engineering, Josh Giegel, compared the relationship between the sled’s motor and track to two magnets repelling one another. As the 1,500 pound luge took off from the beginning of the track, a series of magnets (called stators) were switched on to push the luge faster and faster, accelerating it from zero to 60 in 1.1 seconds with the ability to get up to 400 miles per hour.
What didn’t happen today was a test of the levitation system. Giegel said that Hyperloop One is currently assessing a passive levitation solution at its Los Angeles office. Further tests involving both systems will happen later this year.
While today’s test was indeed impressive, the finished product is expected to hit over 700 miles per hour.
Sunrise shuts down its calendar app on August 31st
If you guessed that Sunrise’s calendar app wasn’t long for this world after Microsoft bought the company… well, you guessed correctly. Sunrise has revealed that it’s phasing out its fan-favorite software. The app itself will vanish from digital stores over the next few days, and it’ll stop working entirely on August 31st. Like it or not, you can’t keep it around for the sake of familiarity — you’ll either have to switch to Outlook (which has some of Sunrise’s DNA) or find an alternative.
The team describes the cutoff as a practical move. Simply speaking, it can’t support the Sunrise app going forward. There won’t be any more bug fixes or feature additions, and the developers would rather move on than give you a sub-par experience. That’s understandable, but there’s also no doubt that some fans will be miffed. Outlook just isn’t the same as Sunrise, and there will be some who’d rather try something entirely different when their old standby isn’t available.
Source: Sunrise Blog
Facebook opens up its anti-hacker training tool
Companies frequently like to teach the virtues of online security through Capture the Flag competitions, where you’re encouraged to both create hacks and protect against them. Developing those competitions isn’t always easy. However, Facebook is giving trainers an upper hand: it’s open sourcing the code for its own CTF platform, letting anyone host a similar cybersecurity challenge or build on what Facebook has learned. The move should be particularly useful for companies and schools that want to demonstrate the importance of closing security holes and otherwise running a tight ship — you can’t afford sloppy code if you want to win.
It’s no surprise that Facebook would do this when it has a habit of open sourcing anything that isn’t a vital company secret, but it’s still welcome. Also, it’s a very pragmatic move for the company. The more people are participating in CTF games, the more the industry is well-versed in practical security. That, in turn, could both reduce the number of vulnerabilities that affect Facebook as well as let it hire from a more knowledgeable pool of security gurus.
Via: VentureBeat
Source: GitHub
Nikola Motor Company wants to be the Tesla of trucking
A new entrant to the electric vehicle industry called Nikola Motor Company is unabashedly riding the wave of the future in Tesla’s wake. Although the company may have copped their name from Elon Musk’s inspiration, Nikola is taking a slightly different course with their two planned electric vehicles: a 2,000-horsepower semi-truck and a four-seater, open-frame 4×4.
The former is creatively named the Nikola One and while it’s not the first electric shipping truck, the company claims it can get 800-1,200 miles of range from a 320 kWh battery that never has to be plugged in. That feat of engineering comes courtesy of a “sophisticated, hi-tech natural gas turbine” that charges the battery while the truck is on the road. To support all these electric-CNG hybrid trucks, Nikola plans to build their own network of 50 CNG stations across the country. On the smaller side, the Nikola Zero is a 520-horsepower off-roader that the company says will get 100-150 miles of range from a 50 kWh battery.
But neither vehicle has made it past the drawing board stage at this point, and there are no concepts built aside from some 3D-rendered models on the company’s website. The company will, however, gladly take your money for a surprisingly reasonable pre-order price of $1,500 and $750, respectively. As CNET’s Road/show points out, with final sticker prices of $375,000 for the semi-truck and $42,000 for the 4×4, it doesn’t seem likely that this pre-order plan will drive enough capital to actually build these things in the real world. That’s OK, though, even the company’s prolific namesake was sometimes prone to vaporware.
Open data reveals dodgy NYPD parking ticket practices
Open data policies in government don’t just exist for the sake of convenience — sometimes, they can reveal serious structural problems. I Quant NY’s Ben Wellington took advantage of both New York City’s open data and Google Maps to determine that the NYPD was issuing thousands of tickets on streets where parking is legal. While you’re allowed to park next to a pedestrian ramp as long as there’s no crosswalk, the police issued five or more tickets in 1,966 of these spots over the past 2.5 years. That’s over $1.7 million per year in fines against people who were obeying the law.
The good news? The open data really did lead to change. Wellington’s discoveries prompted the NYPD to investigate its practices, and it learned that only traffic agents got full training on the pedestrian ramp rule. Patrol officers didn’t — and to no one’s surprise, they were the ones writing most of the bad tickets. The force is now making sure that all officers understand the parking law, and it’s implementing a digital tracking system to catch these problems before they get out of hand. There’s no guarantee that other cities will be quite so willing to expose their inner workings, but this kind of data-driven progress suggests that they should.
Source: I Quant NY (Tumblr)
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