VSCO update simplifies how you capture, edit and browse photos
Last time we heard from VSCO, the company trotted out a separate photography app for GIFs. Turning its attention back to its flagship software for snapshots, the VSCO options for both Android and iOS are set to receive a substantial update to better balance creativity and discovery. First, a retooled gesture-based UI lets you easily flip back and forth between the photography editing tools and a feed of images from the folks you follow in the app. The overall look of the interface is simplified, too.
In addition to improved image capture and search functionality, there’s a new “Find My Friends” tool as well. You’ve likely seen something similar in other apps, especially those that integrate with Facebook. The feature basically allows you to find the people you know who are also taking pictures with the VSCO app. Social features were added to the app a few updates back, and the pending updates will only build on the discovery options. New versions of both the Android and iOS app are rolling out over the next couple of weeks, but for now, you can take a look at what’s on the way via the video below.
Source: VSCO
Build a criminal empire in new ‘GTA V Online’ expansion
For a game released in the fall of 2013, Grand Theft Auto V has enjoyed a long life. Most credit this to the regularly updated multiplayer, which has kept the game so popular that it was one of the top-selling games in January for the third consecutive year. Next week on June 7th, the game will see its latest content expansion, giving online players the keys to build their own crooked business kingdom on the streets of Los Santos.
From the title alone, “Further Adventures in Finance and Felony”, Rockstar’s preserving the game’s spirit of jovial carnage. Instead of just running jobs, you’ll create a business empire trafficking illicit goods and sabotage your rivals to get ahead. Some of the rewards seem a little tame for the player base (Do I really care about opening new offices in gleaming skyscrapers?), but there’s enough fancy cars and mayhem in the climb to the top. And really, whether it’s a C-130 cargo plane or a shiny new Learjet, GTA players will find ways to use them for joyously stupid stunts and post them online for our entertainment.
Source: Rockstar Games
FBI is building a tattoo tracking AI to identify criminals
AI-powered image recognition is all the rage these days, but it could have a sinister side too. Since 2014, the National Institute of Standards and Technology started working with the FBI to develop better automated tattoo recognition tech, according to a study by the Electronic Frontier Foundation. The idea here is to basically develop profiles of people based on their body art. The EFF says that because tattoos are a form of speech, “any attempt to identify, profile, sort or link people based on their ink raises significant First Amendment questions.”
There are supposedly some some serious ethical concerns at play here. For one, 15,000 images from inmates and folks who’ve been arrested were given to third parties to further test outside algorithms. Many of these tattoos apparently had personally identifying information in the frame along with the ink itself (think: names of loved ones, faces and birthdates). There’s the ethical morass of using prisoners as test subjects at play here, as well.
The trial run was based on 15,000 images (Tatt-C), but the next phase (Tatt-E) will be comprised of over 100,000 photos pulled from Florida, Michigan and Tennessee law enforcement and correctional facilities when it starts this summer. The EFF also says that the NIST has unfairly and inappropriately targeted religious groups as part of their study. Catholic symbology like a cross, Jesus wearing a crown of thorns or praying hands with a rosary are among examples of the religious tattoos under examination.
You might be asking what the difference is here between the algorithm for identifying people is and the books of tattoo photos law enforcement has collected over the years. Well, the gist of it is that the algorithm could be used to automatically associate criminals with a specific tattoo or tattoo pattern as a member of a gang, regardless of context. It might not be 100 percent accurate, but it could connect people (correctly or incorrectly) based on body art.
Unlike the results of a neural net counting calories in food or captioning a photo, if this algorithm gets something wrong it could have dire consequences for people. What’s more, tattoo removal is expensive. A person’s ink they got because they were drunk with coworkers in New York at 4 AM might not represent who they are and what they think currently. For a more famous example, think of Edward Norton’s character from American History X and his Nazi tattoos. Coming out of prison may have changed his extreme ideology, but that giant swastika on his chest was pretty indelible.
The EFF writes that after conversations with the NIST, the government research division will look further into the project, but didn’t say anything about delaying its massive second phase of research.
Source: NIST, EFF (1), (2)
Google’s self-driving cars now know when to honk
Google’s self-driving cars are not only getting smarter by the day, but they’re also getting a little bit more polite. According to the project’s latest monthly report, the self-driving car team has recently been teaching the car’s AI when and how to honk the horn and give the human drivers on the road a helpful heads up.
In order to train its honking algorithm, the team tested a variety of honk-worthy situations, like a car backing out of a blind driveway or a car headed the wrong way down a one-way street. At first, the car would play a little honk sound inside the vehicle so engineers could record whether there was a legitimate need for a honk and provide teaching feedback. Once they felt the AI was ready, they let it blare its horn to the world.
“Our goal is to teach our cars to honk like a patient, seasoned driver,” the team wrote in the report. “As we become more experienced honkers, we hope our cars will also be able to predict how other drivers respond to a beep in different situations.”
In related, noise-making news: Google also says they’ve essentially sound-designed the self-driving prototype’s “hum” so pedestrians and cyclists around the car can hear it coming. The sound even increases or decreases in pitch as the car speeds up or slows down. To create the basic sound, the team has tried adapting everything from Orca sounds to ambient art sculptures, but they apparently haven’t landed on a distinct “voice” for the vehicle yet. Anything to avoid the silent Prius effect.
Adidas brings its Yeezy reservation app to some European cities
It’s Yeezy Season yet again. Today, following weeks of speculation, Adidas made the release date for Kanye West’s new sneaker official: June 11th. In preparation for that, the company has updated its Confirmed app with a new look and, most importantly, expanded availability. The application, which lets iOS and Android users reserve Yeezys for in-store pick up, will work in Europe for the first time, starting with Berlin, Milan and London.
Additionally, there’s now support for more US regions, including Atlanta, Houston, Las Vegas, Long Island, Miami, North New Jersey, Orange County, Philadelphia and San Francisco. Previously the Confirmed app only worked in Chicago, Los Angeles and New York City. If you’re hoping to get a pair, this might be your best chance — assuming the app doesn’t crash under pressure, as it has for many people in the past.
Just make sure you’re ready to go once Adidas opens reservations (you’ll get a push notification), otherwise your best bet will be trying to buy the shoes from a reseller. And that won’t be cheap.
Source: Adidas Originals (Twitter)
Samsung Announces Gear IconX Wireless Earbuds and Gear Fit 2
Samsung today introduced the Gear IconX, a set of wireless earbuds that are similar in style to the Bragi Dash. The IconX earbuds have no wires to connect them to one another and no wire to plug them into a smartphone or other device, instead communicating wirelessly over Bluetooth.
Priced at $199.99, the IconX earbuds feature 4GB of internal storage to hold music and use hooks to securely fit into an ear. There are also built-in fitness sensors for monitoring movement and heart rate, with the data able to be synced to Samsung’s S Health app, and there’s a built-in voice coach feature. Touch gestures like tapping and swiping on the earbud are used for skipping tracks and changing the volume.
When not in use, the earbuds can be placed into a pill-shaped case which also serves as a backup battery, offering two full charges. The battery inside the IconX lasts for one and a half hours when streaming music or for three and a half hours when playing music stored on the earbuds themselves.
Samsung debuted the new earbuds at an event in New York and gave several tech sites a hands-on demo, giving us a first look at some early impressions. According to The Verge, IconX is “pretty good” at blocking outside noises, while TechCrunch points out Samsung is marketing the earbuds as a workout-only accessory given the “dismal” battery life.
Gizmodo thought the controls could be a “little unreliable” but thought the audio quality was impressive, and Engadget said it took a minute to get them secured properly in the ear, but once in place, they “didn’t feel like they were going anywhere.”
Samsung’s Gear IconX earbuds come as rumors suggest Apple is preparing to remove the headphone jack from its iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus devices, set to be released this fall. There have also been rumors indicating Apple is working on its own set of wireless Bluetooth earphones that would be sold alongside the iPhone 7 as a premium accessory with many of the same features in the IconX.
Samsung plans to debut the Gear IconX in blue, black, and white in the third quarter of 2016.
The company has also announced an updated waterproof Gear Fit 2 fitness tracker with a wider 1.5-inch curved Super AMOLED display, 4GB storage, GPS, a heart rate monitor, a barometer for measuring altitude, and features for automatically detecting exercise activities. The Gear Fit 2 will be available for pre-order starting tomorrow at select retailers and available in stores on June 10.
Tag: Samsung
Discuss this article in our forums
72 New Emoji Including Bacon, Shrug, Selfie and Face Palm Coming in Unicode 9
The Unicode Consortium recently approved 72 new emoji for inclusion in Unicode 9, set to be released on June 21. New emoji range from expanded smileys and people to new animals, food, and sports.
Notable smileys include rolling on the floor laughing, drooling face, and nauseated face, while the people/body category gains shrug, selfie, and face palm. New animal emoji include gorilla, fox face, deer, shark, and owl, and some of the new foods include avocado, potato, croissant, pancakes, salad, and bacon.
There are a line of new medals, objects like a scooter and a canoe, and emoji to represent boxing gloves, martial arts uniforms, wrestlers, fencing, juggling, and more. Emojipedia has shared mockups and a full list of upcoming emoji.
The emoji above serve as simple mockups and are not representative of what the actual emoji will look like on various devices, but Emojipedia has created them in the Apple style. Apple and Google’s designers will actually custom design emoji based on the Unicode Consortium’s guidelines for each character, crafting them to fit in with existing emoji.
Though the Unicode Consortium is releasing Unicode 9 on June 21, the new emoji will not be available on iOS and Mac devices until Apple implements support for them, which can sometimes take several months. Apple currently supports Unicode 8, which introduced emoji like taco, burrito, unicorn face, and popcorn, along with emoji skin tone modifiers.
With the release of Unicode 9 on the horizon, the Unicode Consortium has already begun considering candidates for Unicode 10, with dumpling, takeout box, fortune cookie, orange heart, sled, and more under consideration.
Tags: emoji, Unicode Consortium, Unicode 9
Discuss this article in our forums
Apple Releases iTunes 12.4.1 With Bug Fixes
Apple today released a minor 12.4.1 update to iTunes, introducing several bug fixes to address issues with VoiceOver and other features.
iTunes 12.4.1 can be downloaded immediately from the Software Update mechanism in the Mac App Store.
This update addresses a number of problems where iTunes doesn’t work as expected with VoiceOver. It also restores the option to Reset Plays and fixes the following issues:
– Up Next may have unexpectedly played songs added together in the incorrect order.
– iTunes was prevented from crossfading between songs.
iTunes 12.4.1 comes just over two weeks after the release of iTunes 12.4, an update that introduced a revamped interface designed to be simpler, with the reintroduction of a sidebar for easier navigation and a redesigned media picker. It also featured safeguards to protect users from an issue that could cause music stored in iTunes to be deleted.
Tag: iTunes
Discuss this article in our forums
Velocity Micro Raptor Z55 review – CNET
The Good The Raptor has a subtle, discreet black design that fades into the background. It offers excellent high-end performance and a separate front panel for connecting VR headsets.
The Bad It’s still a little plain-looking for such an expensive PC, and it takes up a ton of space. The front-mounted VR connection panel isn’t sturdy enough.
The Bottom Line The Velocity Micro Raptor Z55 is a VR-ready desktop with a very conservative look, but excellent performance and plenty of configuration options.
Visit manufacturer site for details.
For anyone looking to keep their virtual-reality obsession on the down low, a gamer-centric desktop such as the massive tank-like Acer Predator G6 or the small-but-bold Falcon Northwest Tiki isn’t going to fool anybody. That’s why I was pleased to see an excellent collection of high-end components packed into a very unassuming chassis in the Velocity Micro Raptor Z55.
The minimalist design of this VR-ready PC fades into the background, with a subtle black brushed-metal finish, no flashing lights or crazy angles, and fairly subtle branding. Its only concession to gaming chops are blue-lit fans on the side and back panels, each behind mesh grilles so they cast only a mellow blue glow, and a small Velocity Micro logo on at the bottom of the front panel.
View full gallery
Sarah Tew/CNET
Otherwise, the front faceplate of the tower is feature-free, except for an EVGA VR-ready panel, with one HDMI and two USB ports, allowing you to plug something like an HTC Vive headset into the front of the system, instead of snaking around to the back ports, which may be hard to get to. It’s a good idea in theory. But the EVGA panel, which comes bundled with the Nvidia GeForce GTX 980Ti graphics card included with this configuration, isn’t attached very firmly, and pulled right out of the front drive bay when I tried to use it. In both this system and the AVA Direct Avatar, I switched back to the rear ports right away.
This configuration, with the Nvidia GeForce 980Ti, an Intel Core i7 6700K CPU, and a 1TB HDD/256GB SSD storage combo is priced at $2,799 in the US, which works out to around £1,942 or AU$3,855. Prices and selection for custom PC configurations can vary quickly, and the new Nvidia GeForce 1080 series of cards already costs about the same to add as this very top-end 980Ti card.
Philips Hue White Ambiance Starter Kit review – CNET
The Good The Hue White Ambiance LEDs are reliable and fairly easy to set up and use. Hue’s wide compatibility with third-parties means that you’ll be able to use them with a variety of different platforms, including Nest, SmartThings, Alexa and Apple HomeKit.
The Bad Siri doesn’t recognize the white light spectrum yet, so you can’t ask her to change the tone of your lights without pre-programming a scene first. Also, the bulbs aren’t as bright as advertised.
The Bottom Line The White Ambiance LEDs fill in a gap in the Philips Hue family of smart bulbs, but they didn’t outperform color-tunable LEDs from Lifx and Stack. They’re really only worth it if you’re already committed to Hue, or to HomeKit.
Visit manufacturer site for details.
On one end of the smart bulb spectrum, you’ve got relatively inexpensive lights that don’t change colors. On the other end, you’ve got fancy lights that do. Philips Hue makes both, but for what seems like ages, they’ve been ignoring the middle ground: reasonably priced “color tunable” bulbs that don’t change colors, but instead, offer a full array of natural, white-light tones. In the meantime, competitors like Lifx, GE, Osram, and Stack have all beaten Philips to the punch.
The Philips Hue White Ambiance LEDs aim to change all of that. They won’t put out light in pink, purple, or green like other Hue bulbs, but they will shift color temperatures within that white-light spectrum: warm, candle-like tones at one end and cool, bluish-white daylight tones at the other. The cost per bulb? $30, with a two-bulb starter kit available for $130 (the White Ambiance LEDs aren’t available outside of the US just yet, but other Hue products are — those prices convert to roughly £20/AU$40 per bulb, or £90/AU$180 for the kit).
Philips Hue’s White Ambiance bulbs let you…
See full gallery
1 – 5 of 11
Next
Prev
For the extra cash, the starter kit comes with a handy wireless remote as well as the second-gen Hue Bridge, which brings Apple HomeKit support into the picture. That means you’ll be able to control the bulbs with Siri commands alongside other HomeKit-compatible smart home gadgets. And, if HomeKit isn’t your platform of choice, you’ve got a number of other Hue-compatible third parties to work with, including IFTTT, Wink, SmartThings, Nest, and Amazon’s Alexa.
That broad compatibility has always been one of Hue’s best selling points, but keep in mind that the competition has done a lot of catching up in the last year or so. And, as for brightness, almost all of them have flat-out passed Philips by. Specifically, I’d point to the sensor-powered Stack LED downlights and the Lifx White 800 LED as strong alternatives — and arguably better ones if you aren’t married to HomeKit.
The new version of the Hue app offers a refined look and a few new features, including easier controls for crafting automated lighting changes.
Screenshots by Ry Crist/CNET
What’s new with Hue?
Oh, you know, not too much. The new bulbs look like the old ones, and the new white light spectrum controls have actually been a feature of the full-color Hue bulbs since the very beginning. At $30 a piece, they’re essentially taking the place of the soft-white-only Philips Hue Lux bulbs, which were phased out last year.
There is a new Philips Hue app, available for both Android and iOS devices. It adds in new lighting scene presets for your bulbs, including white-spectrum-specific presets like “Concentrate” and “Relax.” It also borrows a page from the HomeKit playbook and lets you group bulbs by room. Aside from that, a lot of the differences are purely cosmetic — though to its credit, it is a better-looking app than before.
More than anything, the new app seems to be optimized around Hue’s integration with HomeKit. There’s an expanded section in the settings that’ll hand control of your bulbs and scenes over to Siri, complete with instructions on how to help Siri understand your lighting commands. When you want to add a new room in the app, it asks if you’d like to import a room from your HomeKit setup. You can run HomeKit-esque lighting “routines” for things like waking up and heading to bed. If last year’s debut of the second-gen Hue Bridge represented a marriage of sorts for Apple and Philips, then the new app reaffirms the vows.
View full gallery
Tyler Lizenby/CNET
Control your tone
You can change the color temperature of the Philips Hue White Ambiance LEDs with just a few taps in the app. Like in the old app, you’ll drag a little cursor to the specific tone that you want, though the new app omits the full RGB color spectrum with these white-light-only bulbs, and gives you a full-screen white-light spectrum, instead. Nice touch.
But a good smart lighting setup shouldn’t be too reliant on an app — ideally, you’ll be able to automate lighting changes that anticipate your needs, saving you the trouble of pulling your phone out of your pocket. To this end, Hue’s new timed routines are a good step in the right direction, especially the location-aware routines that track your phone to run automatically as you leave and come home.
Siri doesn’t have a vocabulary for the white light spectrum.
Screenshot by Ry Crist/CNET
It also helps that Hue’s LEDs are about as bullish on voice control as bulbs come. Aside from the integration with Siri, Philips Hue setups enjoy native support from Alexa, Amazon’s voice-controlled virtual assistant. Philips is wise to position itself at the front of the curve here — voice-activated lighting can quickly make app controls feel antiquated.
I’ve got just one qualm here: Siri doesn’t have a vocabulary for the white light spectrum. Ask her to set a bulb to “daylight,” or “soft white,” or “2,700 K,” and nothing will happen. She has no idea what those terms mean.
That’s a bit baffling, frankly. Philips Hue was an early and enthusiastic member of the HomeKit bandwagon, and that white light spectrum’s been there from the beginning. Maybe teaching Siri to recognize thousands of specific color temperatures is a bit much, but would it have been so hard to let her know what “daylight” means? The color tunability and the Siri compatibility are the two top selling points here — why is there a wall between them?
AIVAnet 