Pepper the robot is ready to greet the great American public
Pepper’s resume is already packed with an impressive list of multinationals in both Japan and Asia, but now the robot is ready to meet and greet in English, specifically in San Francisco, where it’ll be working inside tech retailer b8ta’s flagship store. It’ll only be there a week, so it’s best to think of it as a kind of overseas work experience for the wee robot. The internship starts August 11th, and will involve Pepper greeting and guiding customers, presumably alongside awkward banter and robotic arm flourishes. The tech store says there will be special events and prize giveaways during the robot’s stay, with a special developers’ workshop for robot programmers of the future. That kicks off on the evening of August 16th. Hit up the store’s Facebook page for all the details — and see how the robot fared when we first met it on US soil after the break.
The Pokemon Go tracker isn’t useless, here’s why – CNET
Close
This $35 Nintendo gadget will help you catch Pokemon
Drag
Some Pokemon Go players are lamenting that now that there are no steps on the in-game tracker and PokeVision has been shut down, playing the game is like playing Marco Polo with no Polo.
Many other people say that playing the game just isn’t as fun as it used to be.
Wild Pokemon fans appear at San Diego Comic-Con…
1 – 5 of 12
Next
Prev
Enlarge Image
Time to move to a new location.
Screenshot by Alina Bradford/CNET
While Pokemon Go may seem like a slowly deflating balloon, don’t give up. Even though there aren’t steps on the in-game tracker, it is far from useless. You just need to know how to read it.
The next time you’re out Pokemon hunting, open up your tracker. The Pokemon closest to you will be listed as first on the tracker. As you walk, away from the Pokemon, it will drop down on the list. It’s kind-of like playing “Hot or Cold” as a kid. As the Pokemon move up on the list you’re getting “hotter” and as they move down you’re getting “colder.”
Let’s look at this in terms of the old tracking system. The Pokemon that are lower down on the list are likely to be three footsteps away, the ones in the middle are more likely to be two and those at the top are more likely to be one footstep away.
Someone told me this trick and I’ve been testing it out since the update. It seems to work great, as long as the servers are working well. Latency may throw off the tracker a bit at times.
Additionally, the tracker can let you know when to find new hunting spots. If you’re in a crappy spot, there won’t be many Pokemon on your tracker.
A word of warning: Do not tap on your tracker. This will rearrange the Pokemon and it will no longer show you accurate results.
Also note that the mini tracker that shows up when you are on the map is totally inaccurate. You have to open the tracker to get good results.
Get to know iOS 10’s new Music app – CNET
Close
iOS 10 Public Beta is available today: Here are the best things you can do with it
Drag
Last year, Apple Music launched alongside a redesigned Music app on iOS and, let’s just be honest, the app was horrible. It was difficult to navigate, confusing and lacked key features (Shuffle All, anyone?). Apple has improved the app here and there throughout the year, but with iOS 10 the Music app has been completely redone.
It’s going to take some getting used to, but a couple months into using iOS 10 and I think this version of the Music app more intuitive and far better than last year’s version.
Navigating your library is now easier
Enlarge Image
Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/CNET
When you first open the Music app, you’ll notice the “My Music” tab is no longer available. Instead, you will find your music collection in the Library tab, which consists of content stored on your device and in your Apple Music account (if you’re a subscriber).
You can quickly jump between categories and sections of your library by tapping on the large text buttons at the top of the screen, or scroll down to view music recently added to your account.
Tap on Edit in the top-right corner to add, remove, or rearrange music categories.
Perhaps most importantly, the option to view only the music stored on your device is no longer hidden through a series of menus; just tap on Downloaded Music.
For You is supposed to be smarter
Enlarge Image
Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/CNET
The For You tab also has a new look, and what has thus far appeared to be better music recommendations based on my listening habits and the songs or artists I have liked within the app.
Along the top is where recently played items are, with playlists curated based on the day of the week just below that. As you continue to scroll through this section, you’ll see your heavy rotation albums, artists, radio stations or playlists, and further recommendations based on your music profile.
Last but not least, Apple’s Connect service where artists can posts updates, music and videos is now located towards the bottom of the For You section. You know, if you’re into that sort of thing.
New is now under Browse
Enlarge Image
Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/CNET
Looking for this week’s latest albums? You’ll want to tap on the Browse tab.
Scroll through the thumbnail previews of albums at the top, or tap on one of the text buttons to view New Music, Curated Playlists, Top Charts and Genres.
Radio hasn’t changed all that much
You can still listen to Beats 1 radio on demand, or find older shows to listen to through the Radio tab. With the biggest change being you now need to tap on View All Stations to find featured stations outside of Beats 1, such as Classic Hip Hop or Dance.
A portable karaoke machine, of sorts
Enlarge Image
Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/CNET
When playing music you can continue to browse through your library or Apple Music and control playback using controls just above the tabs at the bottom of the screen.
Tapping on the bar where the controls are located will open the Now Playing screen, where you can pause, skip, add a song to your library or scroll down and view what’s Up Next.
Tap on the three-dot button to do tasks like add an item to a playlist, create a station based off the song, love or dislike a tune.
Another neat feature you will notice is the option to view Lyrics for whatever is currently playing. You can do so by scrolling down to the Up Next section, or by tapping on the three-dot button > Lyrics.
Currently, lyrics seems to be hit or miss as far as what songs it’s available for, but one can hope Apple will continue adding lyrics throughout the beta process.
The only thing missing now is a bouncing ball to keep you on track as you belt out the summer’s hottest hits to your friends during a night out.
Don’t forget to check the Settings app
Enlarge Image
Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/CNET
There are some key settings available in the Settings app surrounding Music. You can now choose whether or not the Music app will add a song to your library after adding a Playlist. For example, prior to iOS 10 you could find a playlist in Apple Music and add it to your account. Then, every song on that playlist was then added to your My Music tab automatically and without a giving you a choice. A good idea in theory, but in reality it did nothing more than clutter up your music library with random artists and songs that meant nothing outside of that playlist.
Furthermore, you can now have iOS 10 automatically download content you’ve added to your Library, even if you added it on another device. Meaning, using your iPad on iOS 10 you can add an album to your account, and not only will that album now show up in your Recently Added section on another device, but iOS 10 can download that album to your device(s) for offline playback without you having to do a thing.
And for those worried about such a feature taking up too much space on your device, you can now tell iOS 10 how much space you want downloaded music to take up. If you get close to that limit, iOS 10 will delete any music you haven’t listened to in a long time.
Pokémon Go expands south of the border to Central and South America
Niantic Labs has now expanded the reach of its hit augmented reality game Pokémon Go to the countries of Central and South America.
The news was revealed on the game’s official Facebook page:
Central and South America – Break out the sneakers and Poké Balls, and get ready to explore the world around you. We are excited to officially be putting Pokémon GO in the hands of our Latin American fans, visitors, and the Olympic athletes in Rio!
The AR adaptation of the popular game first launched in early July in Australia and New Zealand, and later expanded to the U.S. in mid-July, followed by a big European push at the end of that month. That expansion will continue, according to Niantic:
We have been working long hours to fix many other bugs and bring some exciting new features to Pokémon GO in the future. However, next up for us is the continued roll-out of Pokémon GO to more countries around the world.
Pokémon Go
- Join our Pokémon Go forums!
- How to deal with GPS errors in-game
- Which team should you choose?
- How to play without killing your battery
- The Ultimate Pokémon Go Game Guide!
- Listen to the Pokémon Go podcast!
New York governor legalizes daily fantasy sports
Daily fantasy sports leagues have seen serious ups and downs in the last few months as regulatory agencies grapple with whether risking money on their services constitutes gambling. New York state banned the popular sites DraftKings and FanDuel at least until a September appeal, but it seems they got an early reprieve. In June, legislators proposed to allow daily fantasy so long as they obeyed regulations and pay fees, which governor Cuomo just signed into law. As of today, it’s legal in NY.
Any league that wants to participate must register with the New York State Gaming Commission and abide by its rules. According to the bill, that includes a fee of 15 percent of gross revenue plus up to $50,000 more, which could rake in $5.5 million in revenue for the state according to a state senator who backed the legislation. Cuomo’s office now estimates that it could raise $4 million for education aid alone.
Putting these leagues under the Commission’s regulation also ensures some protections for consumers. These include introductory procedures for new players, identifying experienced ones, prohibition of minors, and perhaps most importantly, protection of deposited funds.
The key issue at stake was whether fantasy sports would be considered risk-based gambling akin to picking horses at the races and be subject to appropriate state laws. According to the legislation, it isn’t. First, the ability to select each member of your roster weights choice heavier than chance; and second, that they aren’t just wagers on the outcome of future sporting events.
Or, in the bill’s language: ” …the outcome of each contest is not dependent upon the performance of any one player or any one actual team. The outcome of any fantasy sports contest does not correspond to the outcome of any one sporting event. Instead, the outcome depends on how the performances of participants’ fantasy roster choices compare to the performance of others’ roster choices.”
Source: Governor’s Office, New York State
World’s largest game expo tightens security following violence
Germany has been hit by a string of mass violence as of late, and the effect of those tragedies is about to spill over to the gaming community. The organizers behind Gamescom, the world’s largest gaming trade show, have introduced tighter security measures that will definitely be noticeable if you make it out to Cologne for the event. They’re banning not only weapon replicas, but “weapon-like items” — like it or not, your Deadpool or Harley Quinn cosplay will have to go without armaments. Even exhibitors will have to label any vaguely threatening props to avoid raising alarm bells.
Gamescom is also calling on everyone, including exhibitors and the press, to avoid bringing any unnecessary bags to the show. The measures are there to avoid scaring not only sensitive guests, but Cologne residents who might not realize that you’re only depicting a Call of Duty soldier.
The stricter safeguards aren’t completely surprising, particularly in a country that’s already known for curbing depictions of violence inside video games. However, it shows that the game industry is still trying to walk a fine line between its dependence on violent content and respect for the dangers and effects of real-world violence.
Via: Gamasutra
Source: Gamescom
Pokemon Go player hit with £3700 roaming bill abroad: How to avoid that
A Japanese gymnast apparently didn’t think about getting an international data plan before catching all the Pokemon in Rio.
Kohei Uchimura, the reigning gold medalist and world champion, is addicted to Pokemon Go. (Listen – we all have our vices). He’s in Brazil preparing for the Rio Olympics, but when he’s not swinging on bars and rings, he’s scouring the countryside trying to catch ’em all. Unfortunately, however, that resulted in him getting slapped with a 500,000 yen (£3,700) bill in roaming charges.
Uchimura didn’t have a flat rate plan for overseas data usage. His teammate, Kenzo Shirai, told Phys.org that Uchimura “looked dead at the team meal” the same day he discovered how much his bit of fun had cost him. Don’t feel too bad for the athlete, however, as he managed to sweet-talk his phone company and got out of paying most of his bill. The final damage was just 3,000 yen (£20).
Uchimura said he “really lucked out”. Yeah, no kidding. But for those of you who don’t have such pull with your network, here’s some quick tips on how to avoid roaming charges but still get away with playing Pokemon Go while traveling abroad.
How can you avoid roaming charges abroad?
Get an international data plan
This one may sound pretty obvious, but it’s worth mentioning. Call your phone company and see if they offer an affordable fixed-rate plan that will let you consume lots of data while abroad. Simples. Check out Pocket-lint’s guide on which is the cheapest network for EU and abroad. You could even pick up a travel-only plan through companies like MTX Connect. It’s a mobile operator that provides data-only, pay-as-you-go plans for US travelers going to specific European countries. Simply request a free MTX SIM card for your unlocked tablet or smartphone, and a basic plan will cost you about 10 cents per megabyte, while a 1GB plan is available for $50 (£40).
Use an unlocked phone
Make sure your phone is unlocked so it can be used on any cellular network. Some phone companies, like AT&T in the US, will let you unlock your phone permanently once your contract expires, while other companies, like Verizon in the US, even sells some unlocked. Google Play also sells unlocked Android Phones, and so doesn’t Amazon, Best Buy, etc. Just browse around and see what you can find. Once you have an unlocked phone, get a lock SIM card when you reach your destination and use the phone on that local network. The SIM card and pre-paid rates will be cheaper than international roaming chargers. Check out Vodafone, too, as it sells SIM cards for data-use that work anywhere in its Europe Zone.
Rent a new phone
Rent a new phone that works in the country you’re visiting. It’s doesn’t have to be anything fancy. It just has to be able to download Pokemon Go (and don’t worry, you can download the app, then log into your Google Account, and all your achievements and hard work will be there, waiting for you). Companies like Cellular Abroad offer a range of phones you can rent for around $40 to $70 a week. Cellular Abroad specifically promises that its pay-as-you-go data rates are a “small fraction” of what the major carriers charge. The idea is that renting and paying-as-you-go should be way cheaper than racking up tonnes of international roaming charges from using your own device while abroad.
Stick to Wi-Fi
Here’s another obvious one: just turn off your cellular data. To remain connected, enable a Wi-Fi connection and only access the internet using hotspots in your destination.
What are some data-saving tips and tricks?
- Download all app updates and in-app purchases over Wi-Fi.
- Set a mobile data limit for yourself. On Android, go to Settings > Wireless & Networks > Data Usage > Data Usage Date Cycle > And select a date range. On iPhone, you’ll have to either ask your carrier to contact you or download a free data-tracking app. On iPhone, you can disable the app from using data altogether by going to Settings > Cellular > Cellular Data Usage.
- Avoid downloading/streaming videos, music, and media while playing.
- Close out of other open apps that may be sucking up data.
- Restrict background app data. On Android, go to Settings > Application or Apps > Pokemon Go > Data Usage > Restrict Background Data. On iPhone, you can stop apps from refreshing in the background by going to Settings > General > Background App Refresh> Pokemon Go.
- Disable notifications under your phone’s Settings app. Email and push notifications from various apps also eat into data.
READ MORE: Pokemon Go: How to stop your data usage from getting out of control
Does Pokemon Go use a lot of data?
No. According to The Wall Street Journal Verizon said that Pokemon Go, which has become one of the top downloads since it was released in the US last month, makes up less than 1 per cent of its overall network data traffic. A separate network analytics firm, called P3 communications, reportedly also determined the app only consumes between 5MB to 10MB of data per hour. If the game sucks at most 10MB per hour, you would have to play for about 7 hours a day for 30-days straight to consume a standard 2GB data plan, which costs $55 a month. CNET ran a test as well and found that, on the iPhone, Pokemon Go is a battery hog — but not a data one.
Tesla ramps up production to meet aggressive delivery goals
In Tesla’s second quarter earnings release (PDF), the company announced it had completed the design phase on the long-awaited Model 3 while also missing the mark on delivery numbers for current production models. Although CFO Jason Wheeler said on an accompanying conference call that Tesla is “clearly disappointed” about those deliveries, CEO Elon Musk was characteristically upbeat when talking about the future of his company as it launches part two of its Master Plan.
Despite the low delivery numbers, Tesla has ramped up production to 2,000 vehicles per week, cranking out a total of 14,402 vehicles in the second quarter for a 43 percent increase over the same period last year. (About two-thirds of those were Model S sedans, while the remaining 4,638 were Model X SUVs.) In total, Tesla has produced 18,345 electric vehicles through June. While still short of their goal to produce 20,000 cars in the first half of the year, Musk and company feel confident that the increase in production capacity will help them deliver another 50,000 vehicles by the end of 2016. As for the Model 3, Musk explained that vehicle’s planned production date of July 1st, 2017 will likely get pushed back slightly due to issues with suppliers, but not significantly.
Production notes aside, Musk also said he was looking forward to sharing what the company has planned for Autopilot and other autonomous systems. “Full autonomy is going to come a lot faster than anyone thinks it will. And what we’ve got coming is going to blow people’s minds,” Musk said. “I mean, it blows my mind.”
Wal-Mart is interested in acquiring discount retailer Jet.com
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is currently in talks to purchase online retailer Jet.com, if reports are to be believed.
The deal would offer venues for Wal-Mart to expand beyond its current set of e-commerce efforts including faster home delivery and various other augments that keep it competitive with retailers like Amazon, which Jet.com seemed poised to give a go at. Jet.com has been making attempts to outperform and underprice Amazon in its tenure of less than a year, so obviously being taken under Wal-Mart’s wing would be a boon.
There’s no definite value yet that Wal-Mart is offering up, but according to the source that shared the information to The Wall Street Journal, Jet could indeed be worth up to $3 billion. The unique retailer has been trying out different approaches to competing with Amazon that includes novel pricing software, and Wal-Mart would be adding that to its repertoire with the purchase, as well as a wide range of customer info and markets.
If the two retail giants do end up joining forces, it can only be a boon for both parties, especially if the Jet brand remains intact instead of the blending of both entities.
Source: WSJ
Relive the Galaxy Note 7 NYC launch event in 4 minutes!
It’s like you were really there.
It was hard not to see all of the Galaxy Note 7 news yesterday, but if you happened to miss out on our awesome liveblog or coverage from the New York City event, you’re in luck! We have an awesome video that recaps the whole thing in just 4 minutes.
So what’s it like to cram into the historic Hammerstein Ballroom with thousands of people to watch Samsung do another one of its huge presentations? Check out the video above to see for yourself!
Samsung Galaxy Note 7
- Samsung Galaxy Note 7 hands-on preview
- The latest Galaxy Note 7 news!
- Here are all four Note 7 colors
- Complete Galaxy Note 7 specs
- The Galaxy Note 7 uses USB-C
- Join the Note 7 discussion in the forums!
Verizon
AT&T
T-Mobile
Sprint
AIVAnet 