Lenovo trademarks Moto Z modular phone ahead of possible 9 June event
Lenovo might have more than a Project Tango phone to launch next month.
The company is holding a Tech World event on 9 June, and it’s expected to announced a consumer Project Tango-enabled smartphone at that event. But it appears as though Lenovo could have more up its sleeve. HelloMotoHK, which is reliable source of leaks, has posted another event invite that suggests Lenovo-owned Motorola will also unveil its next flagship on 9 June.
This invite has surfaced right as a “Moto Z” trademark passed the US Patent Office. DroidLife spotted the filing, seemingly confirming Motorola will introduce a Moto Z line. Although no other details were spotted, the trademark is good for not only phones but also accessories – especially battery chargers and adapters. Keep in mind the Moto Z is thought to work with modules.
VentureBeat’s Evan Blass has claimed Motorola will release two new flagship smartphones this year called the Moto Z Style and the Moto Z Play. Both Moto Z phones will come with attachable backplates that add functionality, meaning they’ll be modules. They’re thought to be called MotoMods and should include a Pico projector, stereo speakers, and camera grip with zoom lens.
These MotoMods will make the Moto Z a modular smartphone similar to the LG G5 Friends. Other specifications for the Moto Z are still sparse, but the Moto Z Style could feature a quad HD 5.5-inch display, SnapDragon 820, and 16-megapixel rear shooter, while the Moto Z Play could have the Snapdragon 625, 13-megapixel sensor, and a full HD screen.
We should know more in a couple weeks, when Lenovo makes things official.
DroidLife/USPTO
Polaroid’s first smart TVs pack 4K and Google Cast
When Google unveiled a wider range of TVs with Google Cast support, you might have done a double-take when you saw Polaroid’s name — what, the reborn camera maker? Yes, it’s true… and you may have a good reason to take notice. Polaroid has unveiled its first-ever smart TVs, and it’s clear that they offer some bang for the buck. Every model in the LED-lit range packs a 4K display, a 120Hz refresh rate, native HEVC decoding and Google Cast streaming, so you won’t have trouble either watching Ultra HD video or sharing a YouTube clip from your phone.
The big deal, as you might guess, is the cost. The initial lineup will launch at sizes between 43 and 65 inches at respective prices between $499 to $999, while a 75-incher due in the fall will still be semi-affordable at $1,899. We wouldn’t expect stellar image quality for the money, but these may well be more than enough if you’re just looking to stay current without crippling your bank account.
Source: Polaroid
Facebook Live adds nonstop, 24-hour video
As part of the social network’s wider push into live video, Facebook is expanding beyond on-the-ground journalism and in-car Star Wars toy reviews. TechCrunch reports Facebook Live will now also allow for 24-hour, nonstop streaming broadcasts.
The new feature is an upgrade from the 90-minute limit previously imposed on streams using Facebook’s Live API, but it comes with the drawback of not allowing for archiving or rewind streams to play back later. Which is unfortunate, considering the Facebook Live team just rolled out a feature to jump to the best bits based on reactions and comments. For now, however, the endless feeds seem to be mostly taking the place of the once-ubiquitous livecams like Explore.org’s Eagle Cam.
On top of the continuous streaming capability, Facebook also debuted a Live Video feature which TechCrunch calls “geogating” that allows producers to make a video available to users in a specific location — which could come in handy for sporting events with limited broadcasting rights. And speaking of sports-friendly features, Facebook recently rolled out multi-camera support and the ability to add on-screen graphics, so it’s only a matter of time before someone creates the first Facebook-only 24-hour live news channel.
ATM hacking spree nets thieves $12.7 million in two hours
Normally when your data is part of a haul from some security breach your most immediate worry is about how it can be used to steal your identity online. Well, sometimes that information is instrumental in physical heists. On May 15th, a team of hackers coordinated to withdraw $12.7 million from about 1,400 convenience store ATMs across Japan in under two hours.
Authorities think that around 100 people might have coordinated to pull off the theft in Tokyo and 16 prefectures. Based on transaction data from 14,000 convenience store ATMs, they believe hackers stole the data and turned it into 1,600 cloned credit cards. Then used each one to withdraw the daily maximum of 100,000 yen. Japanese authorities are working with their South African counterparts and INTERPOL to track down the culprits.
It’s not yet clear how the original thieves got the card data from the South African bank customers, though it could have easily been from ATM skimmers, camouflaged external readers that scan data strips as cards are inserted. Then that data can be sold on the black market and reprinted on counterfeit cards. Researchers have been trying to make forge-proof cards, but using smartphone apps to talk directly with ATMs might be a better option, since it bypasses potential skimmers entirely.
Via: Gizmodo
Source: The Mainichi
‘Romancing SaGa 2’ is out for mobile devices this week
Square Enix has been hard at work this year bringing titles we previously thought may never see the light of day in the west to mobile devices. The latest to join the ranks of mobile ports is Romancing SaGa 2, a port of the cult classic Super Famicom game from 1993.
While there have been rumblings and an official announcement indicating that Square Enix had planned to bring the venerable role-playing game to mobile devices, an official English trailer has just been released. There’s also a date to go along with it. You’ll be pleased to know, dear RPG fans, that you can pick it up as early as May 26th for both iOS and Android.
The enhanced port will include updated visuals, a New Game Plus feature, additional character classes, and even a gardening mini-game, as if there weren’t enough to do before. It’ll set you back $17.99, but it’s well worth investigating if you’re invested in the traditional JRPG scene, especially as it’s only just now receiving an English translation 23 years after it first debuted in Japan. Unfortunately, we won’t be receiving the Vita release Japanese consumers got, but hey — mobile is a start.
Via: Polygon
What’s on your HDTV: ‘Overwatch,’ ‘Chef’s Table’
Blizzard is finally ready with a fully new game. The servers just went live for Overwatch, and players enjoying its all-multiplayer action. Beyond that, Netflix is dropping season two of its critically acclaimed Chef’s Table series, as well as its second movie from Adam Sandler, The Do-over, and season two of Bloodlines. Look after the break to check out each day’s highlights, including trailers and let us know what you think (or what we missed).
Blu-ray & Games & Streaming
- Zoolander No.2
- The Player
- The Finest Hours
- How to be Single
- Risen (4K)
- Overwatch (PC, Xbox One, PS4)
- Downwell (PS4)
- Not a Hero (Xbox One)
- The Last Blade 2 (PS4)
- Dungeons 2 (PS4)
- Lumo (PC, PS4)
Monday
- Gotham (season finale), Fox, 8PM
- The Price is Right Primetime special, CBS, 8PM
- Roots, A&E, 8PM
- Reign, CW, 8PM
- WWE Raw, USA, 8PM
- American Dad, TBS, 8:30PM
- The Odd Couple, CBS, 9PM
- Whose Line is it Anyway (season premiere), CW, 9PM
- The Odd Couple (season finale), CBS, 9:30PM
- Blindspot (season finale), NBC, 10PM
- Hunters, Syfy, 10PM
- Turn, AMC, 10PM
Tuesday
- The Mindy Project, Hulu, 3AM
- The Flash (season finale), CW, 8PM
- Fresh Off the Boat (season finale), ABC, 8PM
- The Price is Right Primetime Special, CBS, 8PM
- The Life of Mary J. Blige, BET, 8PM
- Real O’Neals (season finale), ABC, 8:30PM
- Dancing with the Stars (season finale), ABC, 9PM
- Coupled, Fox, 9PM
- Containment, CW, 9PM
- Deadliest Catch, Discovery, 9PM
- America’s Greatest Makers (season finale), TBS, 9:30PM
- The Voice (season finale), NBC, 9PM
- Person of Interest, CBS, 10PM
- The Night Manager (series finale), AMC, 10PM
- Stitchers (season finale), Freeform, 10PM
- Awkward (series finale), MTV, 10PM
- First Impressions, USA, 10:30PM
Wednesday
- Chelsea, Netflix 3AM
- The Path (season finale), Hulu, 3AM
- Rosewood (season finale), Fox, 8PM
- Heartbeat, NBC, 8PM
- Arrow (season finale), CW, 8PM
- The Price is Right, CBS, 8PM
- Maron, IFC, 9PM
- Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders (season finale), CBS, 9PM
- Law & Order: SVU (season finale), NBC, 9PM
- Rogue (season finale), DirecTV, 9PM
- Supernatural (season finale), CW, 9PM
- Wayward Pines (season premiere), Fox, 9PM
- Royal Pains, USA, 10PM
- The Real World/Road Rules Challenge, MTV, 10PM
- The Americans, FX, 10PM
- The Last Panthers, Sundance, 10PM
- Nashville (season finale), ABC, 10PM
- Chicago PD (season finale), NBC, 10PM
Thursday
- Chelsea, Netflix, 3AM
- 500 Questions (season premiere), ABC, 8PM
- Strong, NBC, 8PM
- Bones, Fox, 8PM
- WWE SmackDown, USA, 8PM
- The Odd Couple, CBS, 8:30PM
- Stay Woke: The Black Lives Matter, BET, 9PM
- Live from Daryl’s House, MTV Live, 9PM
- American Grit, Fox, 9PM
- Red Nose Day, NBC, 9PM
- The Eighties (season finale), CNN, 9PM
- Alone, History, 9PM
- The Odd Couple, CBS, 9:30PM
- Archer, FX, 10PM
- Game of Silence, NBC, 10PM
- Rush Hour, CBS, 10PM
- The Real World, MTV, 10PM
- Orphan Black, BBC America, 10PM
Friday
- Bloodline (S2), Netflix, 3AM
- Chef’s Table (S2), Netflix, 3AM
- The Do-over, Netflix, 3AM
- Chelsea, Netflix, 3AM
- Eleauge, TBS, 10PM
- Vice, HBO, 10PM
Saturday
- Outlander, Starz, 9PM
Sunday
- Coca-Cola 600, Fox, 5:30PM
- The Carmichael Show (season finale), NBC, 8PM
- The Girlfriend Experience, Starz, 8PM
- American Ninja Warrior, NBC, 9PM
- Game of Thrones, HBO, 9PM
- Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown, CNN, 9PM
- House of Lies, Showtime, 9PM
- The Carmichael Show, NBC, 9PM
- Undercover Boss, CBS, 9PM
- Talking Preacher, AMC, 10:30PM
- Penny Dreadful, Showtime, 10PM
- Silicon Valley, HBO,10PM
- United Shades of America, CNN, 10PM
- Girls, HBO, 10PM
- Veep, HBO, 10:30PM
- Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, HBO, 11PM
(All times listed are ET)
Philips Announces New HomeKit-Compatible White Ambiance Hue Lighting Set
Philips today announced a new HomeKit-compatible Hue-branded lighting product, the Philips Hue White Ambiance. Like the standard Philips Hue lighting set, the White Ambiance ships with a HomeKit hub and bulbs, but it’s aimed at people who want adjustable white light without a multitude of color options.
The Wi-Fi-connected White Ambiance bulbs feature “every shade of white light,” from 6500k daylight to 2200k warm light, and they can be adjusted automatically throughout the day using light recipes, routines, and HomeKit scenes in the recently released Philips Hue app. The bulbs, rated at 800 lumens at 4000k, can also be controlled through HomeKit using Siri voice commands.
“We know how important white light is in the home; it is similar to natural day light and can help us to focus, feel more alert as well as wind down at night” says Sridhar Kumaraswamy, Business Leader Connected Home Systems at Philips Lighting. “With Philips Hue white ambiance, we are delivering a high quality connected light bulb that delivers the full spectrum of white light at the swipe of a finger, allowing consumers to fully benefit from the impact that white light can have on their wellbeing when at home.”
Philips’ White Ambiance Hue starter kit includes two Philips Hue white ambiance bulbs, a HomeKit-compatible bridge, and one wireless dimming switch that allows lights to be controlled from anywhere in the house without the need to open the iPhone app. The new Hue starter kit joins the standard kit that includes bulbs adjustable to any color or any shade of white and a simpler kit with white bulbs that are unable to be adjusted to different shades.
At $129.95 for the entire kit and $29.95 for a single bulb, the Philips Hue White Ambiance kit is more affordable than the standard Hue lighting kit, which is priced at $199 for the initial bridge and bulbs and $59.95 for individual bulbs. The White Ambiance starter kit is available from the Philips website starting today.
Tags: Philips, Philips Hue
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OLED Supplier Sees Fourfold Leap in Orders as Apple Gears Up for 2017 iPhone
As Apple gears up to introduce OLED displays in the 2017 iPhone, the impact is already being felt in the company’s supply chain. During a recent earnings call, Applied Materials, a company that creates equipment for making displays, reported a fourfold increase in orders.
According to Bloomberg, the growing demand for new display manufacturing equipment from Applied Materials serves as evidence that display makers are retooling their processes to produce OLED displays for Apple’s line of iPhones in 2017.
Edge-to-edge iPhone concept image via ConceptsiPhone
Applied Materials executives did not mention Apple by name during the earnings call, but CEO Gary Dickerson dropped some hints in a statement given to Bloomberg, pointing towards long term, sustainable growth and naming the “leader” of mobile products.
“It’s not a peak or a one-time event,” said Applied Materials Chief Executive Officer Gary Dickerson. “This is going to be sustainable growth. We all know who is the leader in terms of mobile products.”
Applied Materials says it takes as long as three quarters to build, deliver, and install its machines, so a ramp up in purchases now means display suppliers are preparing to make some major changes in the coming months.
There are a wealth of rumors suggesting Apple will debut OLED displays in the 2017 iPhone. Apple has already inked a deal with Samsung to secure 5.8-inch OLED displays for future iPhones, and the company may also be preparing to purchase displays from suppliers like AU Optronics, LG Display, and Sharp. Apple is the largest customer for Sharp, LG Display, and Samsung, and all three companies have ramped up display spending in recent months, according to Bloomberg.
An OLED display would eliminate the need for the backlighting that’s used in traditional LCDs, allowing Apple to cut down on the thickness and weight of the display used in the iPhone 7. OLED displays also offer better contrast ratio, truer colors, improved viewing angles, better power efficiency to maximize battery life, and a faster response time than an LCD for faster refresh rates.
While the 2017 iPhone is more than a year away, there have already been dozens of rumors about the device due to the significant changes Apple is planning to introduce. Some of the features rumored for the 2017 iPhone (perhaps called the “iPhone 8”) include wireless charging, an edge-to-edge bezel-free display with an integrated Touch ID fingerprint sensor, a glass body, and more advanced biometric features.
Related Roundup: iPhone 8 (2017)
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Will.i.am’s ‘i.am+ EPs’ Wireless Earphones Debut Exclusively at Apple Stores
i.am+, the company founded by musician will.i.am, recently announced the launch of its new i.am+ EPs, a set of premium Bluetooth earphones that are available exclusively from Apple retail stores and Apple.com.
Featuring a design inspired by the “iconic shape of vinyl records” and targeted at those interested in fashion, the EPs include circular ear pieces made of spun metal and are connected by a woven fabric cord. Because they connect to an iPhone via Bluetooth 2.0 and have a 30-foot range, there’s no cord to plug them into a headphone jack or Lightning port.
The EPs are available in black or gold, and when not being used for listening to music, they can be worn around the neck for quick access. When worn, the EPs click together using built-in magnets so they stay in place. There’s a built-in remote control for adjusting volume and there’s a microphone that can be used to make phone calls.
Packing plenty of style, the i.am+ EPs Bluetooth wireless headphones deliver superior surround sound and deep bass to truly represent the music on your iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch. The metallic discs clasp around your neck for all-day wear. Their lightweight, no-fuss form means no interruption to your music or flow. So easy, so fresh, they’ll quickly become an everyday essential to complement your wardrobe.
A microUSB port located on the remote charges the EPs, and the battery is rated to last up to eight hours before needing to be recharged.
The iam+ EPs are available immediately from Apple.com for $229.95. They are also available for purchase from a select number of brick and mortar Apple Stores.
Tags: Apple Stores, i.am+
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OnePlus 3 Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET
OnePlus is getting ready to launch its fourth smartphone, an exciting event for the young brand’s fervent followers. The OnePlus lineup (One, 2, X and now 3) is known for challenging larger, better-known competitors with hardware whose middle-to-high specs come in at much lower prices than your typical top-dollar superphone. For some, the OnePlus 3 will battle the iPhone SE, just-announced Motorola G4 phones, Nexus 6P, and maybe even the upmarket LG G5 or Samsung Galaxy S7.
Here are the most important things we know so far.
The OnePlus 3 could look like this.
Evan Blass/Twitter
The name’s a sure thing
OnePlus is already using the name OnePlus 3 on its public channels, so there’s no dangling question mark there.
The OnePlus 3 will launch over VR
Just like last year, OnePlus is going to announce its next phone in virtual reality. Specifically, in outer space, focusing on a futuristic OnePlus headquarters/space station called The Loop. In anticipation of this VR launch, the phonemaker is shipping 30,000 Loop VR headsets to fans for free — and at the time of writing, they’re already out of stock.
VR-watchers can buy it first
OnePlus also announced that people who watch the keynote in VR will get first dibs ordering the phone directly from the Loop headset. Everyone else will have to wait. OnePlus didn’t say for how long, but the company is (in)famous for hosting limited sales windows to both drum up excitement and control a more limited supply than competitors.
It’ll launch by June
In February, we found out first that OnePlus would reveal the OnePlus 3 by June, and so far, the timeline works out.
Getting one of these Loop VR headsets puts you at the front of the line for ordering the OnePlus 3 phone first.
OnePlus
It’ll look different than the OnePlus 2 and OnePlus X
If you’re worried that the OnePlus 3 will rehash 2015’s two models, pause your fretting. Co-founder Carl Pei told CNET in February that this forthcoming flagship will feature a “new design.”
According to an image posted by Evan Blass, now with Venture Beat — who has built a reputation for reliably breaking stories through his Twitter handle @evleaks — the OnePlus 3 looks like it has a silvery metal build and some detailing that’s reminiscent of the HTC 10.
You can see the signature OnePlus notifications slider along the phone’s left edge.
The OnePlus 3 could have an AMOLED screen and 3,000mAh battery
Blass’ tweet also claims that the OnePlus 3 will have a screen using AMOLED display technology (versus an LCD screen), a material that’s known for saving battery while boosting contrast (making blacks blacker). Rumors from around the Internet also point to a 3,000mAh battery and two versions of the phone: one with 32GB of internal storage and 4GB RAM and one with 64GB of storage and 6GB of RAM.
Other rumored specs
We don’t know any of this yet for sure (because these are rumors), but hardware could also include:
- 5-inch, 1080p display
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor
- Android 6.0 Marshmallow software
- 16-megapixel rear camera
- 8-megapixel front-facing camera
- NFC (for mobile payments)
Pricing
Since the OnePlus 2 came it at about $330 and £240 (which converts to roughly AU$460), we can guess that the OnePlus 3 will land in about the same bracket. I personally wouldn’t be surprised to see the price hike up a tad if it does wind up including more premium features, but undercutting the likes of Samsung and LG is too important to OnePlus’ sales strategy to really see costs climb.
It’ll sell in the US and other markets unlocked and shipping will be free
As co-founder Pei told CNET in February, the OnePlus 3 will arrive in the US and other markets as an unlocked phone and will be sold directly through OnePlus’ site. OnePlus has gotten flak for making phones hard to buy, which is why OnePlus is working on a “better buying process” that extends to credit card payments (not just PayPal), Pei told CNET. Like last year, the phone will ship to you for free.
More to come
We’ll update this as more facts come in, so check back! Meanwhile, be sure to brush up on our reviews of the OnePlus 2 and OnePlus X.
AIVAnet 