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9
Aug

How to factory reset your Android Wear watch


android-wear-reset.jpg?itok=mwqa6Zgw

Resetting your Android Wear watch is as simple as a swipe and a tap.

The time has finally come to factory reset your Android Wear watch. Whether you’ve picked up a new phone that you need to pair your watch with, or you’ve decided to wipe your data before selling, you’ll have to do a factory reset. Thankfully this process is extremely easy, and we’re here to walk you right through it.

How to reset your Android Wear device

Swipe down from the top of the watch face screen.
Tap on the Settings icon (little gear symbol).
Scroll down. Tap Unpair with phone.
Tap the check mark to confirm.

android-wear-factory-rest.jpg?itok=z2yay

The phone will now factory reset itself over the next few minutes and be ready to pair with another watch!

That’s all that you need to do in order to factory reset your Android Wear watch. It actually is as simple as a swipe and a few short taps.

9
Aug

Be the very best with these custom Pokémon Go themes for Android


pokemon-go-theme-hero-trio3.jpg?itok=FLf

‘I wanna theme the very best, like no one ever was…’

It’s likely you care more about catching that Dratini the next street over than giving your home screen some team pride, but that’s OK! I have scoured the internet to come up with wonderful themes for each of the teams in Pokémon Go, so that you can show your pride each time you unlock your phone to check if your gym is still standing.

Note: While these music widgets are already configured for your convenience, if you like them you should really consider downloading Material Music Komponent, the component on which they’re based. It’s free, and it’s awesome.

Team Instinct

instinct-theme-hero2.jpg?itok=4Lr7q19-

Instinct is a resilient little team that has an awesome leader and some spunky members. If you’re ready to show your friends and family that “there is no shelter from the storm!”, we have a nice angular theme for you! And here’s what it needs:

  • KWGT Pro ($3.50)
  • 1Weather (Free)
  • Golden Icons (Free)
  • Team Instinct Wallpaper by malexer Note: if you like this theme but root for another team, here are the Team Valor and Team Mystic wallpapers. Simply use Whicons instead of Golden Icons.
  • Team Instinct-tinted Material Music Komponent Preset
  • File manager app such as Solid Explorer to move KWGT presets to Kustom/KWGT folder in device storage.
  • A home screen launcher that supports icon packs, individual custom icons, and a 8×6 home screen grid. The ability to re-color folders and drawers is a bonus, but not required. These instruction were written for Nova Launcher but the theme could easily be enacted on Action Launcher, Apex Launcher or dozens of other capable launchers out there.

instinct-theme-wallpaper-set.jpg?itok=Gp

Download the Team Instinct Wallpaper by malexer by clicking the download button on the page, long-pressing the image, and selecting Save as….
Long-press on your home screen and set a new Wallpaper.
Tap Set image and navigate to your saved Team Instinct wallpaper.
Make sure the image is centered and Set wallpaper.
In Nova Settings, open Look & feel,
Set Golden Icons as your Icon theme.
Return to the main Nova Settings menu and open Folders.

Set Background to a custom color by selecting the three dot option in the fifth row fifth column of the color picker. Set the color to #c4183038.

instinct-theme-nova-settings-colors.jpg?

Go back to the main Nova Settings menu and open Desktop.
Set the Page indicator color to Gold (fifth row, first column).
Go back to the main Nova Settings menu and open App & widget drawer.
Set Background to a custom color by selecting the three dot option in the fifth row fourth column of the color picker. Set the color to #c4183038.
Return to home screen and long-press a blank space on the home screen.
Select Widgets.
Scroll to 1Weather.

Press and drag the 1Weather Compact Widget 4×1 to the bottom row of the home screen.

instinct-theme-1weather-widget.jpg?itok=

In the widget configuration screen, change Background to Dark; the Background opacity to 0%; Accent to Gold (fifth row, second column)
Confirm the configuration by selecting Done in the top-left corner.
Long-press and Resize the configured widget to fit the entire bottom row of your screen.
Download Team Instinct-tinted Material Music Komponent Preset and copy them into Kustom/widgets in your file manager. (Note: If you don’t see the Kustom folder in your internal storage, it’ll show up once you install KWGT and open the program once.)
Return to home screen and long-press a blank space on the home screen. Select Widgets.
Scroll to KWGT. Press and drag a 2×2 KWGT widget to the top of your home screen.

Long-press and Resize the widget to fit the entire top two rows of your screen.

instinct-theme--music-widget.jpg?itok=HN

Tap the widget to configure it. Swipe over to the Exported preset section and select Instinct-music-widget.
Save the widget. If the widget doesn’t quite reach the side edges of the widget, tap the Layer tab and increase the scale until the komponent fits the widget as desired. 100% is the scaling that normally works best for me.
Save the widget again and return to the home screen.
Long-press your app drawer icon and Edit it.

Tap the icon to edit it and select Golden Icons as the source of your new icon.

instinct-theme-app-drawer-set.jpg?itok=k

Scroll down to P for Pokémon and select the Pikachu icon (should be right next to the Pokémon Go icon).
Confirm your new icon by selecting Done.

Team Valor

valor-theme-hero2.jpg?itok=bRQukC-l

Valor is an intense team that believes in a Pokémon’s strength and enhancing it through training and battle. But Valor is also a team that has faith in its Pokémon and even mentions their warm-heartedness in its mission statement.

  • Team Valor Wallpaper by ClairaAkami Note: If you like this theme but root for another team, here are the Team Instinct and Team Mystic wallpapers.
  • Team Valor-tinted Material Music Komponent
  • KWGT Pro ($3.50)
  • 1Weather (Free)
  • Whicons (Free)
  • File manager app such as Solid Explorer to move KWGT presets to Kustom/KWGT folder in device storage
  • A home screen launcher that supports icon packs, individual custom icons, and re-sizeable home screen grids.

valor-theme-wallpaper-set.jpg?itok=En7WA

Download the Team Valor Wallpaper by ClairaAkami by clicking the version for phones link in the description, long-pressing the image, and selecting Save as….
Long-press on your home screen and set a new Wallpaper.
Tap Set image and navigate to your saved Team Valor wallpaper.
Make sure the image is centered and Set wallpaper.
In Nova Settings, open Look & feel, the set Whicons as your Icon theme.
Go back to the main Nova Settings menu and open Folders.

Set Background to a custom color by selecting the three dot option in the fifth row fourth column of the color picker. Set the color to #c4920000.

valor-theme-nova-settings-colors.jpg?ito

Go back to the main Nova Settings menu and open Desktop.
Set the Page indicator color to the first Red in Recent (a solid version of the color we just used in Folders).
Go back to the main Nova Settings menu and open App & widget drawer
Set Background to a custom color by selecting the three dot option in the fifth row fifth column of the color picker. Set the color to #c4920000.
Return to home screen and long-press a blank space on the home screen. Select Widgets.

Scroll to 1Weather. Press and drag the 1Weather Compact Widget 4×1 to the top row of the home screen.

valor-theme-1weather-widget.jpg?itok=6Wb

In the widget configuration screen that pops up, change the Background to Dark the Background opacity to 0%, and the Accent to White.
Confirm the configuration by selecting Done in the top-left corner. Long-press and Resize the configured widget to fit the entire top row of your screen.
Download Team Valor-tinted Material Music Komponent and copy them into Kustom/widgets in your file manager. (Note: if you don’t see the Kustom folder in your internal storage, it’ll show up once you install KWGT and open the program once.)
Return to home screen and long-press a blank space on the home screen. Select Widgets.

Scroll to KWGT. Press and drag a 2×2 KWGT widget to the bottom of your home screen. Long-press* and Resize the widget to fit the bottom row of your screen.

valor-theme-music-widget.jpg?itok=9wMBAk

Tap the widget to configure it. Swipe over to the Exported preset section and select Valor-music-widget.
Save the widget. If the widget doesn’t quite reach the side edges of the widget, tap the Layer tab and increase the scale until the komponent fits the widget as desired. 100% is the scaling that normally works best for me.
Save the widget again and return to the home screen.
Long-press your app drawer icon and Edit it.

Tap the icon to edit it and select Whicons as the source of your new icon.

valor-theme-app-drawer-set.jpg?itok=Ingm

Scroll down to P for Pokémon and select the Pokéball icon.
Confirm your new icon by selecting Done.

Team Mystic

mystic-theme-hero.jpg?itok=iUXfR7-X

Mystic is the team that believes in wisdom over passion and that cooler heads will prevail.

  • Team Mystic Wallpaper by Dynamicz34 Note: if you like this theme but root for another team, here are the Team Instinct and Team Valor wallpapers.
  • Team Mystic-tinted Material Music Komponent Preset
  • KWGT Pro ($3.50)
  • 1Weather (Free)
  • Whicons (Free)
  • File manager app such as Solid Explorer to move KWGT presets to Kustom/KWGT folder in device storage
  • A home screen launcher that supports icon packs, individual custom icons, and re-sizeable home screen grids.

mystic-theme-wallpaper-set.jpg?itok=zk1s

Download the Team Mystic Wallpaper by Dynamicz34 by clicking the download button on the page, long-pressing the image, and selecting Save as….
Long-press on your home screen and set a new Wallpaper.
Tap Set image and navigate to your saved Team Mystic wallpaper.
Zoom in slightly, keeping the logo centered while moving it down slightly to make more space for our music widget, and Set wallpaper.
In Nova Settings, open Look & feel, the set Whicons as your Icon theme.
Go back to the main Nova Settings menu and open Folders.

Set Background to Bright Blue (third row, fourth column).

mystic-theme-nova-settings-colors.jpg?it

Go back to the main Nova Settings menu and open Desktop.
Set the Page indicator color to Bright Blue (third row, fourth column)
Go back to the main Nova Settings menu and open App & widget drawer
Set Background to Bright Blue (third row, fourth column).
Return to home screen and long-press a blank space on the home screen. Select Widgets.

Scroll to 1Weather. Press and drag the 1Weather Compact Widget 4×1 to the bottom row of the home screen.

mystic-theme-1weather-widget.jpg?itok=V9

In the widget configuration screen that pops up, change the Background to Dark the Background opacity to 0%, and the Accent to White.
Confirm the configuration by selecting Done in the top-left corner. Long-press and Resize the configured widget to fit the entire bottom row of your screen.
Download Team Mystic-tinted Material Music Komponent Preset and copy them into Kustom/widgets in your file manager. Note: if you don’t see the Kustom folder in your internal storage, it’ll show up once you install KWGT and open the program once.
Return to home screen and long-press a blank space on the home screen. Select Widgets.

Scroll to KWGT. Press and drag a 2×2 KWGT widget to the top of your home screen. Long-press and Resize the widget to fit the top two rows of your screen.

msytic-theme-music-widget.jpg?itok=Rxbi6

Tap the widget to configure it. Swipe over to the Exported preset section and select Mystic-music-widget.
Save the widget. If the widget doesn’t quite reach the side edges of the widget, tap the Layer tab and increase the scale until the komponent fits the widget as desired. 100% is the scaling that normally works best for me.
Save the widget again and return to the home screen.
Long-press your app drawer icon and Edit it.

Tap the icon to edit it and select Whicons as the source of your new icon.

mystic-theme-app-drawer-set.jpg?itok=1WL

Scroll down to S and select the Snowflake icon.
Confirm your new icon by selecting Done.

Team Harmony/The Lugia Alliance

harmony-theme-hero-metal2.jpg?itok=nVeLq

Out of the intense fighting amongst some existing Pokémon members a fourth team arose — not aiming for gym domination but rather unity and peace. They take their emblem and one of their names from the Legendary Pokémon who helped bring balance when Articuno, Zapdos and Moltres clashed on the Orange Islands: Lugia.

Here is a theme to honor these peaceful trainers and their mission of unity.

  • Team Harmony wallpaper by Katlyon
  • Team Harmony emblem icon
  • Team Harmony-tinted Material Music Komponent-based KWGT preset
  • KWGT Pro ($3.50)
  • 1Weather (Free)
  • Whicons (Free)
  • File manager app such as Solid Explorer to move KWGT presets to Kustom/KWGT folder in device storage
  • A home screen launcher that supports icon packs, individual custom icons, and re-sizeable home screen grids.

harmony-theme-wallpaper-set.jpg?itok=axd

Download the Team Harmony wallpaper by Katlyon by long-pressing the image and selecting Save as….
Long-press on your home screen and set a new Wallpaper.
Tap Set image and navigate to your saved Team Harmony wallpaper.
Zoom in slightly, keeping the logo centered while moving it down slightly to make more space for our music widget, and Set wallpaper.
In Nova Settings, open Look & feel, the set Whicons as your Icon theme.
Go back to the main Nova Settings menu and open Folders.

Set Background to Royal Purple (second row, fourth column)

harmony-theme-nova-settings-colors.jpg?i

Go back to the main Nova Settings menu and open Desktop.
Set the Page indicator color to Royal Purple (second row, fourth column).
Go back to the main Nova Settings menu and open App & widget drawer
Set Background to Royal Purple (second row, fourth column).
Return to home screen and long-press a blank space on the home screen. Select Widgets.

Scroll to 1Weather. Press and drag the 1Weather Compact Widget 4×1 to the top row of the home screen.

harmony-theme-1weather-widget.jpg?itok=G

In the widget configuration screen that pops up, change the Background to Dark the Background opacity to 0%, and the Accent to Light Blue (third row, first column)
Confirm the configuration by selecting Done in the top-left corner. Long-press and Resize the configured widget to fit the entire top row of your screen.
Download Team Harmony-tinted Material Music Komponent-based KWGT Preset and copy them into Kustom/widgets in your file manager. Note: if you don’t see the Kustom folder in your internal storage, it’ll show up once you install KWGT and open the program once.
Return to home screen and long-press a blank space on the home screen. Select Widgets.

Scroll to KWGT. Press and drag a 2×2 KWGT widget to the bottom of your home screen. Long-press and Resize the widget to fit the bottom row of your screen.

harmony-theme-music-widget.jpg?itok=ANZA

Tap the widget to configure it. Swipe over to the Exported preset section and select Harmony-music-widget.
Save the widget. If the widget doesn’t quite reach the side edges of the widget, tap the Layer tab and increase the scale until the komponent fits the widget as desired. 100% is the scaling that normally works best for me.
Save the widget again and return to the home screen.
Download the Team Harmony emblem icon.

Long-press your app drawer icon and Edit it.

harmony-theme-app-drawer-set.jpg?itok=D8

Tap the icon to edit it and select Documents as your source.
Navigate to your saved Team Harmony icon. Make sure the con preview box covers the entire icon before confirming it by tapping Done
Confirm your changes by tapping Done again.

pokemon-go-themes-harmony-mug.jpg?itok=f

So, are you as Mystic as Blanche? As Instinctive as Spark? As fiery as Candela? Or do you prefer the peace of the Lugia Alliance? Sing out in the comments, and tell us what Pokémon home screen you’re rocking while you’re out looking for good places to hunt!

9
Aug

No flat bezel Samsung Galaxy S8 for 2017, tipped to have Edge screen only


Samsung could well ditch flat bezel phones for its premium line-up in future.  A report suggests that the Samsung Galaxy S8 will come with an Edge variant only, with a flat sceen version no longer deemed necessary.

The Korea Herald claims that the curved screen previously had issues with production yields, prompting higher prices for the Samsung Galaxy S6 and S7 Edge models and therefore needing standard, flat-screen variants for those on a slightly tighter budget.

However, Samsung is now said to have cracked the issue and production yields of its curbed AMOLED screens are higher. That means it can price a Samsung Galaxy S8 with an Edge display more competitively, therefore reducing the need for another model.

Evidence of this can be seen with the launch of the Galaxy Note 7, which has an Edge display. Last year, the Note 5 had a flat-screen, while the firm also released a similar-sized Galaxy S7 Edge+ device for those wanting curves.

  • Samsung Galaxy S8 leaks: Dual cameras and 4K screen incoming
  • Samsung Galaxy S8: What we want to see and what’s the story so far?
  • This is the Samsung Smart Glow ring you could see on Galaxy S8

In addition, the Note 7 has the technology but without the name, suggesting the same for the Samsung Galaxy S8.

When Pocket-lint met with Samsung UK’s senior VP of mobile, Conor Pierce, at the launch of the Note 7, he met our suggestion of an Edge-only next generation device with “no comment”.

Of course, it is early days. The Samsung Galaxy S7 was released in March this year and there is no indication that its replacement will come any sooner than spring 2017. Especially with the Note 7 being so critically acclaimed in very recent times.

9
Aug

50 different planets from No Man’s Sky revealed, only 18 quintillion yet to go


No Man’s Sky is one of the most hyped games in console history was finally hit game stores in the US today, 9 August. It will also be released in the UK tomorrow and we expect PS4 and PC gamers will be shut in a darkened room for the best part of the next fortnight in order to savour some of its talents.

However, even before you start you can see some of the delights. Hello Games claims that there are a possible 18 quintillion planets scattered throughout its vast playing field, and because they are procedurally generated, each is totally unique. What’s more, you can visit each and every one of them – if you have 585 billion actual years to spare, that is.

To save you some of the time, Eurogamer has posted a video of 50 of them. It gives you an idea of how visually diverse they can be and the graphical nuances the game’s colour palette affords.

The game site has been clever in how it has put together the compilation too. It would probably take many, many hours of play in order to visit 50 distinctly different locations. But when the game starts it plonks the player on a brand new planet each time, so Eurogamer has literally started a new game for each clip. It’s a clever way of showing variety without the leg work.

So sit back and enjoy visiting 50 of the games’ planets. After all, you are statistically highly unlikely to see any of them for real.

9
Aug

Nexus Sailfish vs Nexus 5X: What’s the rumoured difference?


Google is set to launch a couple of Nexus devices before the end of 2016, both of which are reported to be made by HTC and both of which will be the poster boys for Android Nougat.

The two devices have been codenamed Sailfish and Marlin and they have already seen several leaks regarding their specs grace the internet. 

This is how the Nexus Sailfish compares to the Nexus 5X, based on the speculation.

Nexus Sailfish vs Nexus 5X: Design

The Nexus 5X is a small and compact device that has a polycarbonate rear available in three colour options. It measures 147 x 72.6 x 7.9mm and weighs just 136g. There is a fingerprint sensor on the rear, USB Type-C for charging and it is made by LG.

There haven’t been a great deal of rumours surrounding the Nexus Sailfish’s design as yet, though it has been claimed it will be the smaller of the two reported devices and made by HTC.

We’d also expect it to be the less premium of the two devices if last year is anything to go by, but a fingerprint sensor and USB Type-C are both likely again.

If Marlin, the larger rumoured handset, features an all metal build like the HTC 10, we’d wouldn’t be surprised to see the Sailfish adopt cheaper materials, perhaps following in the path of the HTC Desire range.

Nexus Sailfish vs Nexus 5X: Display

The Nexus 5X has a 5.2-inch display that features a Full HD resolution for a pixel density of 423ppi. It is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 3.

The Nexus Sailfish is rumoured to be coming with a slightly smaller 5-inch display that is also said to offer a 1920 x 1080 resolution for a pixel density of 440ppi.

If this is the case, the Sailfish should offer a sharper image thanks to the increase in pixels per inch, though the difference won’t be noticeable to the human eye. We’d expect Gorilla Glass 3 again, if not perhaps Gorilla Glass 4.

Nexus Sailfish vs Nexus 5X: Camera

The Nexus 5X has a 12.3-megapixel rear camera, coupled with a 5-megapixel front camera. Both have an aperture of f/2.0 and the rear camera comes with IR laser-assisted auto-focus, along with a dual flash.

Unlike the Nexus Marlin, the spec leak for the Nexus Sailfish didn’t reveal what camera could be on board the new device. That said, last year, the Nexus 6P and the Nexus 5X had the same camera capabilities on the rear so perhaps the same will be the case for the Sailfish and Marlin.

The Marlin is rumoured to come with a 12-megapixel rear camera and 8-megapixel front camera, which is the same as the Nexus 6P in terms of resolution. Whether the Sailfish will see an increase from 5-megapixels is unclear, but a 12-megapixel rear camera feels like a good bet at the moment.

Nexus Sailfish vs Nexus 5X: Hardware

The Nexus 5X has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 processor, supported by 2GB of RAM and either 16GB or 32GB of internal storage. There is a 2700mAh battery running the show, charged via USB Type-C as we mentioned previously.

The Nexus Sailfish is thought to be coming with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor, 4GB of RAM and 32GB of storage. It has been claimed the battery will increase to 2770mAh and USB Type-C will once again be on board.

Nexus doesn’t do microSD support within its devices so don’t expect that to change for the Sailfish.

Nexus Sailfish vs Nexus 5X: Software

The Nexus 5X launched on Android Marshmallow, while the Nexus Sailfish will arrive on Android Nougat.

Nexus devices offer a vanilla Android experience meaning there is no bloatware and are updated to the latest software almost immediately after its release.

We know quite a bit about Android Nougat already thanks to the public betas, although here have been a couple of other rumours surrounding Sailfish and Marlin’s software. Reports suggest we might see a new launcher and a new gesture for opening notifications with the fingerprint sensor.

Either way though, the Nexus 5X and Nexus Sailfish will no doubt offer a very similar software experience, if not identical.

Nexus Sailfish vs Nexus 5X: Conclusion

Based on the speculation, it looks like the Nexus Sailfish will be a little smaller than the Nexus 5X, but improve on its hardware and performance, including a faster processor and larger battery.

We know the Nexus Sailfish will launch with Android Nougat and it will arrive before the end of the year but everything else is still up in the air.

We will continue to update this features as more leaks and information appears so keep your eye out.

9
Aug

Pokemon Go: Sightings and nearby will super-charge maps and help you find Pokemon


The nearby system in Pokemon Go hasn’t really worked properly since launch, but everything could be about to change as Niantic Labs looks to super-charge Pokemon Go’s maps.

In a recent app update, some changes came to the Pokemon Go nearby system. For the majority of players, this is as simple as adding some grass to the backgrounds of those nearby Pokemon. Except now it’s called Sightings instead.

However, the more exciting side of this update is that it’s reported that some players are getting a tracking system with a revamped Nearby system, as seen in a set of shared screenshots.

Now it seems that location tracking in Pokemon Go is going offer a Nearby system that’s based around Poke Stops and a Sightings system for general Pokemon in the area. It’s the former part that’s newly refurbished.

Jackson Palmer @ummjackson

As revealed by Jackson Palmer on Twitter, it seems that some players have this new mapping system and some don’t. We’ve tested a number of apps and not found this feature, so we suspect it’s a limited roll-out test.

The new system ties into Poke Stops to reveal the Pokemon that have been spotted nearby, allowing to you see where you actually have to go, rather than it being fairly random as it has been up till now.

Jackson Palmer @ummjackson

This also introduces a top-down view, accessed via the Nearby tab, that will show you where you’d have to go on a 2D map. The new system also adds more detail to the 3D map so you can walk in the right direction.

There’s no telling when this might become more universal, but it certainly looks like it’s going to make it much easier to head out and find the Pokemon you’re looking for.

We’ve heard nothing about this through official channels yet, but Palmer has also shared a video of it in action. Whether it’s official or not, it certainly looks like an update we’d all like to get.

.@PokemonGoApp / @PokeVisionGo / @YangCLiu HERE IS A VIDEO FOR THOSE ASKING. 🙂 pic.twitter.com/wivcskufdV

— Jackson Palmer (@ummjackson) August 9, 2016

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9
Aug

Google will power Stanford’s genomics service


Stanford aims to make genetic testing a normal part of patient care, and it’s teaming up with Google to make that happen. The university’s School of Medicine will launch Clinical Genomics Service this fall, which is powered by Google Genomics that stores DNA data in the cloud. DNA sequencing is built into the system — doctors that request for it will get a large amount of data back. They can then use Google Cloud to analyze the data they get and compare it against other information in the system to find any anomaly that might be responsible for a patient’s condition. It could improve how doctors treat different cancers and help decipher illnesses that are especially hard to diagnose and treat correctly.

Lloyd Minor, Stanford’s School of Medicine dean, said:

“In the past few years, the amount of available data about health care has exploded. While researchers are learning to integrate this big data, putting it to work for individual patients, in real time, is a huge challenge. Our collaboration with Google will help us to meet this challenge.”

While Stanford is storing all the DNA data it gets on the Google Cloud Platform, only the university will have access to it. Further, the system will encrypt patient information and keep it within servers in the United States for extra security.

Via: Fast Company

9
Aug

Vodafone scraps line rental charges for fibre broadband


Let’s face it: signing up for an internet connection is a lot harder than it needs to be. Things like installation fees and additional monthly charges can often push the cost higher than originally advertised. That’s unless you’re Vodafone, which has today announced it’s abolishing line rental charges for its fibre broadband altogether in what it calls an “industry first.”

The change means that Vodafone’s cheapest fibre broadband package, Vodafone Unlimited Fibre 38, is now just £25 a month (£22 if you’re an existing customer) or £28 a month for 76Mbps. While line rental charges are definitely going away, subscribers will still be expected to pay a £49 one-off installation fee.

Vodafone fully returned to the broadband market almost a year ago to the day. It’s allowed the provider to compete with its quad-play rivals — including TalkTalk, which started bundling line rental and broadband costs into one earlier this year — but its delayed re-entry has left the company with a lot of catching up to do. Scrapping line rental will give it an edge, but it will likely only be a matter of time until the competition begins employing the same tactic.

Via: Vodafone Blog

Source: Vodafone

9
Aug

One man is cycling the length of Britain in VR


Exercise bikes can be a little boring. Even with some music or mindless TV in the background, it’s a mind-numbing workout. Pedalling, pedalling, pedalling. Not for Aaron Puzey. The Brit has developed an app for Samsung’s Gear VR headset which shows a variety of Street View panoramas while he rides. Using a Bluetooth cadence sensor, which tracks how fast he’s cycling, the app is able to warp and switch out the photographs to give the feeling that he’s actually travelling. His goal? To ride the length of Britain, from Land’s End in Cornwall to John O’Groats in Scotland.

Puzey started his journey in May and is currently just North of Manchester. He films each ride, commenting on the scenery and explaining the next place on his pre-planned route. The frame is cut into three parts — a shot of his living room, the view inside the VR headset, and a basic map of Britain. Sure, the concept is a little silly — and the Street View transitions are jarring — but the project is a novel way of blending exercise, geography and exploration. It’s given Puzey a goal to strive for, and along the way he’s been able to soak up the UK’s natural splendour, albeit in a crude form.

Of course, it’s no substitute for riding outdoors. Battling up a steep hill, then descending through a brisk breeze — those sensations are hard to beat. Still, it’s an impressive achievement, and one that’s probably cheaper than the commercial VR cycling experiences we’ve seen so far.

Source: Upload VR

9
Aug

NASA publishes a thousand photos of Mars


NASA releasing high-res photos of the Martian surface is nothing unusual: the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter’s HiRise camera has been capturing the planet on cam since 2005. This latest image dump, however, is particularly huge: it consists of over a thousand images that can familiarize you with the red planet’s many craters, impact sites, dunes, mountains, ice caps and other features. Alfred McEwen, director of the Planetary Image Research Laboratory, told Popular Science that the satellite was able to take tons of pictures and send them back quickly thanks to a couple of factors.

See, every 26 months, Mars and the sun are on the opposites sides of the Earth, giving MRO a strong, unobstructed connection to its ground team for a few weeks. That allows the satellite to beam a hefty amount of data back home. It just so happened that this event, which occurred in May this year, coincided with the period wherein the sun shines directly on the Martian equator. Since that lights the planet up from north to south pole, it gives HiRise a better view of our neighbor than usual. NASA will use all the photos MRO takes to find the best landing sites for future missions, such as the InSight lander.

The rather haunting image above features the steep slopes of the Hebes Chasma, while the one below shows a dune field in the North Pole called the Kolhar. These are but two of the many, many images HiRise sent back, though. If you want to look through every single one of them, check them out on HiRise’s official website.

[Image credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona]

Via: PopSci

Source: HiRise