Google celebrates the Fourth of July with four free months of Google Play Music
Google is currently running a special offer for its subscription Google Play Music service. When you sign up for the service as a new subscriber, you’ll be able to get your first four months for free, paying $9.99 after the trial is over.
All you need to do is head over to Google Play and sign up for the service. Note that when you sign up for a Google Play Music subscription, you’ll also get access to YouTube Red, which offers all existing YouTube content, as well as exclusive videos, without ads.
The offer is only available this weekend to celebrate the Fourth of July, so you’ll want to act fast to get that extended trial period.
Adidas gets creative with shoes made from recycled ocean plastic
There’s a strong momentum behind the Adidas brand right now. That’s largely due to the increasing popularity of the company’s running and lifestyle products, with Kanye West’s Yeezy line being chief among them. Still, amid its flourishing business, Adidas is spending resources on experimental designs that probably won’t have mass-market appeal. Case in point: the sneaker collaboration with Parley, which was done in honor of World Oceans Day last month.
As a running shoe, the Adidas x Parley isn’t your average silhouette. That’s because it features an upper made from recycled ocean waste — specifically, Parley Ocean Plastic. It also incorporates illegal deep-sea gill nets retrieved by the nonprofit Sea Shepherd, whose mission is to protect sea life in the Southern Ocean. The midsole, meanwhile, makes use of Adidas’ flagship Ultra Boost technology, which gives it a familiar look and comfortable feel, despite its unusual materials.
While the Adidas x Parley is a limited-edition shoe, the company says the idea is to turn ocean plastic into technical yarn fiber for other future products. Until then, only 50 pairs of Adidas x Parley will be made; to get one, you have to enter a contest on social media, wherein you upload a video to Instagram and describe how you plan to support Parley’s Ocean Plastic program.
This isn’t the first time the two organizations have worked together. Last year, Adidas revealed another design in collaboration with Parley, although that sneaker’s main detail was a 3D-printed midsole, also created from ocean plastic waste.
Unsurprisingly, thanks to its unusual appearance, the Adidas x Parley turns some heads on the streets. During my photo shoot with the sneaker, almost a dozen bystanders came over and asked, “What kind of shoes are those?” After I replied, sharing details of the materials used to create them, most people wanted to know when they can buy them.
Unfortunately, I had to be the bearer of bad news: The shoes probably won’t be sold at Foot Locker anytime soon.
FBI talks to Hillary Clinton about her private email server
It’s no secret that Hillary Clinton broke rules with her private email server. However, the FBI still wants to know whether or not she played fast and loose with classified messages… and it just got a first-hand account of events. Clinton’s staff have confirmed that the presidential candidate voluntarily submitted to a 3.5-hour FBI interview over her email use on July 2nd. Her team isn’t detailing the exact questions due to “respect for the investigative process,” but it’s safe to say that law enforcement was wondering if Clinton took sufficient steps to protect top secret email.
Whether or not the interview changes things is another matter. Clinton’s staff have already testified, and there’s no certainty that the politician will have said anything new. A voluntary talk may be as much about shaping public perception (demonstrating that Clinton is cooperative) as clearing the air. Still, don’t be surprised if this discussion ultimately helps the FBI’s investigation — if just because it puts some statements on the record.
Source: CNBC
Amazon locks in the exclusive on streaming PBS Kids shows (sort-of)
Amazon this week announced that it and PBS “they have entered into a multi-year agreement that makes Amazon Prime Video the exclusive premium subscription streaming home for a broad collection of PBS KIDS series.” That’s a bummer for folks who had been watching via Netflix and Hulu, and a boon for Amazon, which is (of course) pushing for the entire world to sign up for Amazon Prime. So if you have Prime, you’ll still get all the Daniel Tiger you want, for free.
There are a couple catches here, though.
PBS Kids on Amazon Prime Video.
The first is that getting Amazon’s video app on Android is still a bit of a pain, since it’s not offered directly through Google Play. You’ll need to go to http://amazon.com/getandroidvideo and then sideload the Amazon Underground app, and sign in manually. That app will then start to download Amazon’s video player, which you’ll then have to sideload. It’s a ridiculous multiple-step process.
The other catch is that this is pretty unnecessary. The PBS Kids Video app (you can download it here) still has its own shows, supports Google’s Chromecast, is a lot easier to use (your kids can handle it, but don’t even think about sticking them in front of the Amazon app) and really is the way to go for this sort of thing.
So it’s exclusive, sort of, and is kind of a pain to use. Choose wisely.
Amazon Prime
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Chrome gets native Google Cast support built in, no extension required
Google is rolling out some changes to Casting in the desktop version Chrome with the latest release, 51. While you could previously cast from the browser using the Google Cast toolbar icon, this will no longer be necessary going forward.
From Google:
Google Cast functionality is now built in as part of the Chrome browser itself, so you no longer need to install the Google Cast toolbar icon in order to use your Google Cast device from Chrome.
If you previously installed the Google Cast toolbar icon, there’s no need to remove it. The toolbar icon will continue to provide quick access to Google Cast functionality.
Google Cast functionality will be available through Chrome’s Tools menu in the upper right corner of the browser window, in the same section as functions like Print and Find. Additionally, you can right-click a page’s tab to get an option to cast.
Chrome 51 also lets you cast to a Hangout. This allows you to mirror the contents of any tab to a Hangout.
This new functionality is rolling out to Chrome for desktops now, though it could be a little while before you can use it yourself.
How to use LG Bridge with your LG phone
How do I use LG Bridge with my LG phone?
LG Bridge is software available for Windows PC or Mac OS that lets you backup, restore, and update your LG phone, and transfer files wirelessly between computer and LG phone. It’s easy to set up and easy to use. Here’s all you need to know about using LG Bridge with your LG phone.
- How to download and install LG Bridge on your computer
- How to back up your LG phone using LG Bridge
- How to restore your LG phone using LG Bridge
- How to wirelessly transfer files between your LG Phone and computer using LG Bridge
How to download and install LG Bridge on your computer
The following steps will get you and your computer prepared for everything LG Bridge has to offer, including backups, restorations, file transfers, and software updates.
Navigate to the LG Bridge help page from your computer’s web browser.
Click the download link beside either Windows PC or Mac OS depending on what you use. In this case we chose Windows PC. The file will download.
Click LGBridge_Setup.exe in your web browser’s download bar.
Click Next.
Click the checkbox beside I agree to all of the terms below.
Click Next.
Click Install.
Click Next when the install is complete.
Click Finish.
Launch LG Bridge from your desktop or Start menu.
Click LG AirDrive in the top menu.
Click Sign in with Google or Sign in with a different account if you don’t have a Google account. In this case we chose to sign in with Google.
Type your email address.
Click Next.
Type your password.
Click Sign in.
Click Allow.
Set your birth date.
Click Save.
Click the circle beside Terms of Use so that a checkmark appears.
Click Agree.
Click OK.
How to back up your LG phone using LG Bridge
Connect your LG phone to your computer with a USB cable.
On your phone, swipe down from the top of the home screen.
Tap the USB notification.
Tap File transfer.
Tap Just once.
On your computer launch LG Bridge from your desktop or Start menu. Your phone will connect to your computer through LG Bridge.
Click LG Backup in the top menu of the LG Bridge window.
Click Back up.
Click the checkboxes beside anything you want to back up.
Click Start when you are ready to back up your phone.
Click OK. Your phone will begin the back up process.
How to restore your LG phone using LG Bridge
Connect your LG phone to your computer with a USB cable.
On your phone, swipe down from the top of the home screen.
Tap the USB notification.
Tap File transfer.
Tap Just once.
On your computer launch LG Bridge from your desktop or Start menu. Your phone will connect automatically to your computer through LG Bridge.
Click LG Backup in the top menu of the LG Bridge window.
Click Restore.
Click the backup that you’d like use to restore your phone.
Click Next. Your files will be prepared for a restoration.
Click Start.
Click OK. Your files will be restored.
How to update your LG phone’s software using LG Bridge
Connect your LG phone to your computer with a USB cable.
On your phone, swipe down from the top of the home screen.
Tap the USB notification.
Tap File transfer.
Tap Just once. Your phone will connect to your computer through LG Bridge.
On your computer launch LG Bridge from your desktop or Start menu. Your phone will connect automatically to your computer through LG Bridge.
Click Software update in the top menu of the LG Bridge window.
Click Software update. LG Bridge will automatically check the software version of your phone.
Our phone is up to date so we unfortunately can’t show you any further steps. If your phone is out of date, just follow the on-screen steps to update your software.
How to wirelessly transfer files between your LG Phone and computer using LG Bridge
Make sure LG Bridge is running on your computer before beginning these steps. Also note that LG AirDrive, the feature that lets you transfer files wirelessly, isn’t available on all LG phones and cannot be downloaded.
On your LG phone tap the Settings icon on your home screen or in the app drawer.
Tap the Networks tab.
Tap Share & connect.
Swipe up in the Share & connect menu.
Tap LG AirDrive.
Tap Sign in.
Tap Sign in with Google or Sign in with another account depending on what you signed in with in LG Bridge on your computer. In this case we sign in with Google.
Tap Allow.
Tap your account or Add account if your account is not listed. In this case we chose Add account.
Enter your email address.
Tap Next.
Type your password.
Tap Next.
Tap Accept.
On your computer click LG AirDrive in the top menu of the LG Bridge window.
Click Connect. Your computer will search for your phone and will connect automatically.
Click View files. A new window will open.
Double-click Internal storage.
You can now drag and drop files between your computer and your phone.
Your connections
What do you use to back up, restore, and update your LG phone? Will you use LG Bridge now that it’s been explained here? Let us know in the comments section below!
Six technologies changing the future of food
By Cat DiStasio
Food production, processing and transportation account for a tremendous amount of greenhouse gas emissions, and enormous amounts of food are wasted each year in some parts of the world while other regions suffer from shortages. Fortunately, agricultural engineers and scientists are working hard to increase food production, create cleaner agricultural processes and develop greener packaging. With technological advancements, it may be possible to sharply reduce carbon emissions from the agriculture and food industries while simultaneously addressing food supply issues.
Withings Body Cardio: A stylish scale for fussy health nuts
A scale is an odd thing to review. For one thing, it’s one of the few gadgets you have to be completely naked to test. It also sends you down a rabbit hole of fitness tech, with too many apps and too many connected devices that do too many things. The Withings Body Cardio scale is emblematic of that, giving you your heart rate, body-fat ratio, bone mass, water mass, the weather (!) and something you never knew you needed called the “pulse wave velocity.” Oh, and your weight.
However, Withings, now part of Nokia, aimed to make the Body Cardio as simple and elegant as possible in terms of both design and ease of use. And for the most part, the French company succeeded. Once the scale is set up, you just have to stand on it to get all that data, and it’ll look great in your bathroom or anywhere else. The petit problème is the $180 price tag, which makes it one of the most expensive scales on the market.
Designed by French partner Eliumstudio, the Body Cardio measures 13 by 13 inches and just 0.7 inches (18mm) thick, with a much more refined design than the company’s previous high-end model. The reason it’s that lean is that it doesn’t have any feet, which helps it work on just about any surface, including carpet. The tempered glass and aluminum body has a clean, dare I say Apple-like design, and the black or white models should blend in with most bathrooms. With a built-in rechargeable battery that goes nearly a year on a single charge, you don’t have to buy AA or AAA cells.
I set up the scale and Withings Health Mate app in about a half hour, but not without some fiddling and an aborted attempt. During installation, it also installs the MyFitnessPal partner app. Not counted in that time is getting both Withings and MyFitnessPal to play well with Google Fit. Doing so enabled me to send exercise data from my Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge (and LG R watch) to Withings and import my weight, body fat other vitals into Google’s ecosystem. It also works with Apple’s Health app.
Once the setup is over, using it is simple: Just stand on the scale. Depending on your preferences, it gives you your weight, fat mass, total body water, bone mass, muscle mass, heart rate and the weather forecast (that’s pretty handy in the morning, actually). The more data you want, the longer the weighing sessions take. As for the vaunted “pulse wave velocity,” you have to stand on the scale five times before you get your first measurement, and it only shows the figure on the Withings app.
So what is pulse wave velocity? It’s the speed that your blood flows through your arteries, and supposedly a good indicator of your cardiovascular health. If the velocity is slow and regular, it means your arteries are flexible, and when they’re stiff and unhealthy, the speeds will be higher. The scale calculates PWV by measuring when blood is first ejected from your heart. The electrodes measure when it arrives at your feet and, knowing your height, can calculate the pulse speed. (You can’t turn the electrodes off, so the scale shouldn’t be used by pregnant women or folks with pacemakers.)
Withings tested the PWV against instruments used by cardiologists and found a “good correlation.” It’s not meant for clinical use, of course, as the FDA merely classifies it as a “wellness device.” Nevertheless, a high PWV could provoke some folks to see a doctor and possibly nip a serious issue in the bud.
The Body Cardio is a very accurate scale (it even takes the gravity at your location into account) and pegged my weight to within 0.2 pounds nearly every time. The bone, fat and water composition measurements were also consistent. Consistency is good, but bear in mind that impedance scales are notoriously inaccurate at gauging body fat.
My heart rate varied a lot, going from 55 bpm during one measurement up to 100 bpm in another. If I was extra careful to keep my feet in exactly the same spot on the scale, the range tightened up a bit, but still varied as much as 15 bpm. Withings told me that it’s normal for that measurement to vary because just standing up can make your heart rate jump considerably. However, after checking my pulse with my finger and a stopwatch, it’s clear that the device often misread it.
The pulse wave velocity measurement is taken independently of your heart rate and gave me consistent readings between 7.2 and 7.9, which is supposedly normal, though not optimal. Withings doesn’t give a lot of information about how to improve that, other than obvious things like exercising more and eating better.
However, the company’s researchers and doctors will study (anonymous) user data, compare it with other health factors, like activity level and diet, and eventually use those statistics to help users improve their health. Of course, Withings was recently purchased by Nokia and put in charge of its health division to compete against Apple, Google and other companies. So the Body Cardio will no doubt help it conduct research on cardiovascular fitness and other health factors.
The Withings app connects to the Body Cardio via Bluetooth, and if you connect the scale to your WiFi network, it will upload the data sans phone. You can then track and graph your progress to a T, either on your phone or a computer. If you also use MyFitnessPal and Google Fit or Apple Health, and a handset, fitness tracker or smartwatch, you can compare how exercise and diet affect your weight, BMI, pulse wave velocity, et cetera.
All that data is cool, but I prefer to just watch what I eat, exercise regularly and then weigh myself once a week to see if it’s working. And while the scale was consistent with most measurements, it often misread my heart rate (many smartwatches and trackers also fail in that are). I’d be more tempted by Withings’ Body scale, which launched along with the Body Cardio. It’s similarly sleek and gives you all the same data, bar the pulse wave velocity and heart rate, for $130.
If you’re not one to quibble over $50, the Body Cardio easily looks like it’s worth $180 thanks to the elegant, low profile design. And it delivers more health data than any other scale — which should put it high on the list for committed fitness junkies.
FirstBuild Prisma Cold Brew coffee maker First Take Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET
If you love coffee in its many delicious forms, then you’ve probably had the pleasure of drinking cold brew. This concentrated java drink is known for its sweetness, lack of bitterness and rich flavor. Making cold-brew coffee though takes a lot of time, at least 12 hours using traditional methods. Not so if you use the $299 Prisma Cold Brew Coffee Maker which its designers promise can whip up a carafe of the stuff in just ten minutes flat.
The Prisma was dreamed up by the engineers at GE’s FirstBuild Microfactory, the same group who brought to life the unique Paragon Induction Cooktop and Opal Nugget Ice appliances. According to FirstBuild, the Prisma is another example of its unconventional design and smart applied science providing real-world solutions consumers clamor for.
Get cold-brewed java fast with the Prisma…
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Fancy drip facade
At first glance, the Prisma looks very much like a standard home drip coffee brewer, admittedly an expensive one judging by the premium copper and glass materials in its chassis. Keep in mind, the Prisma units I looked at in person were a series of engineering prototypes, some functional and some not. That said, FirstBuild explained that what I saw is very close cosmetically to what customers will likely be able to purchase.
The Prisma almost looks like a fancy drip brewer.
Tyler Lizenby/CNET
The machine has a tall, hourglass shape with a flat top, and a wide upper body which tapers inward at its center then widens back out again toward the bottom. Up top under its flat lid is the main brewing chamber, which contains a metal retainer. At first I incorrectly thought the retainer was a regular filter basket — the sort you find in conventional drip coffee devices.
The bottomless retainer drum holds the paper filter in place.
Brian Bennett/CNET
In fact the retainer is really a bottomless drum perforated with large holes and is meant to stabilize paper filters (which you place under the retainer) within the brewing chamber. To make a batch of cold brew, put coffee grounds and water into the chamber, close the lid, then press a circular button on the Prisma’s base. Ringed by a color-shifting LED, the button will also glow in varying hues depending on the Prisma’s status (actively brewing, standby, etc.).
The button glows in different colors.
Tyler Lizenby/CNET
Cold-brewed via vacuum
There are many methods to make cold brew coffee but most involve immersing coarsely ground coffee beans in room temperature or chilled water. Compared with hot brewing, this style of steeping is low energy so is much slower. Instead of the four to six minutes a drip machine uses to makes pots of fresh joe, basic cold brew requires at least 12 hours to concoct. There are other techniques to speed up the process such as brewing your coffee in a pressurized vessel, for example a kitchen whipping siphon, which you place in the fridge.
The Prisma Cold Brew takes completely different approach. This appliance uses a vacuum pump inside its base to degasify water within the brewing chamber. FirstBuild engineers say the treatment greatly increases the solubility of coffee compounds in the Prisma’s water tank, or rather the efficiency of its water supply as a solvent. Apparently this is precisely how the contraption can produce cold-brewed coffee in a fraction of the time simple steeping requires. Another factor aiding the Prisma’s ability to extract coffee is that it’s made to brew finely ground beans. A smaller grind increases the surface area of the coffee grounds, which further ups its solubility in water.
Cold brew is collected in a snazzy glass carafe.
Tyler Lizenby/CNET
As for how the Prisma’s cold-brew quality stands up in real life, I’ll withhold judgment until I get my hands on the final version. I can say that what I tasted in person at the FirstBuild facility wasn’t bad, especially knowing it was made in an amazingly brief ten minutes. Still, the coffee used to prep these drinks was lighter roasts. I prefer to make my cold brew from darkly roasted beans, which tend to have more earthy, chocolate notes.
Home cold-brew addicts looking to score a Prisma Cold Brew Coffee Maker for themselves will have to be patient. While FirstBuild will launch a crowd-sourced funding campaign through Indiegogo in July 2016, the product isn’t expected to reach ordinary shoppers until the summer of 2017.
More facts about the Prisma Cold Brew coffee maker
- Makes five 5-ounce cups (750 ml) at a time
- Able to brew in a range of water-to-coffee ratios
- Will have Wi-Fi and its own mobile app
- Includes a premium glass carafe
iPad Mini 4 review – CNET
The Good Compact size, vivid display, works with split-screen apps in iOS 9. Basically, a shrunken-down iPad Air 2. Perfect hand feel for vacations.
The Bad Price is high for an 8-inch tablet. Slower graphics mean some apps and games don’t feel as zippy. Small screen makes for cramped typing and multitasking.
The Bottom Line Unless you’re absolutely in love with the iPad Mini 4’s smaller size, opt for the faster, larger, identically priced, and still pretty portable iPad Air 2.
The iPad Mini 4 is a tinier, slightly less powerful iPad Air 2. That’s basically all you need to know about this tablet, the 7.9-inch screen model which has been available since October 2015. I started sitting down the Mini 4 again, carrying it around every day in my bag, reading books — even using it to do work. This, after using Apple’s 9.7-inch iPad Pro as my general new go-to tablet. I even wrote this review on it. Which…wasn’t fun.
In a world of larger phones and more-capable hybrid laptops and tablets, the iPad Mini feels less relevant than it used to. And while it’s the best of Apple’s small iPads, with a still-really-nice design, it’s not the tablet I’d choose to carry around anymore. And Apple’s iPad pricing no longer favors it.
Since I first reviewed it last year, Apple has adjusted the pricing in its iPad line, pitting the iPad Air 2 as an identically priced alternative. And with that value change in mind, I wanted to ask the question: Is the Mini 4 a tablet you should still consider?
To that end, here’s what you should know.
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iPad Mini 4 next to the Air 2.
Sarah Tew/CNET
It’s the more powerful, better featured of Apple’s two Mini iPads. Compared to 2014’s iPad Mini 2, the Mini 4 has a better screen, better camera, faster processor and a Touch ID fingerprint sensor. (According to Apple, the 4’s CPU is 1.3 times faster, and its graphics performance is 1.6 times faster than those of the Mini 2.) It can also handle split-screen apps, which can come in handy for checking email or Twitter while working. It’s not my favorite iPad. But if you want something small, this is the best option.
It’s slower than the iPad Air 2. The iPad Mini 4 has nearly the same specs as the larger Air 2 — except for its graphics processor, which is more than one-third slower. You can feel it when playing some games (the frame rate is a little slower on some titles), and even when switching apps. Things that feel a little more buttery-smooth on the Air 2 don’t always feel as zippy here. And while it has 2GB of RAM, multitasking doesn’t feel as snappy or responsive as it should for a year-old tablet. It’s a good tablet. It’s not a great one.
The battery life’s not quite as good as the other Mini. Apple has two iPad Minis, but if you care about the longest battery life, get the Mini 2. Apple claims 10 hours across all its iPads, but the actual results on our video-playback tests in airplane mode show some differences. The Mini 4 lasted 9 hours 34 minutes. The Mini 2 lasted 11 hours, 20 minutes.
AIVAnet 