Tesla Rethinks ‘Autopilot’ Definition in China After Beijing Crash

Tesla has removed the word “autopilot” from its China website after a driver in Beijing who crashed while the mode was active complained that the company had misled them about its capability (via Reuters).

The accident happened on a commuter highway when the car failed to avoid a vehicle parked on the left side and partially in the roadway, damaging both cars but causing no injuries.

Tesla Model S all-electric five-door, luxury liftback (Image: Tesla Motors)
It is the first incident of its kind in China, but follows a fatal crash in Florida earlier this year and highlights a lack of clarity surrounding how automated driving features work.

References to autopilot and the term “zidong jiashi”, which also translates as “self-driving”, were taken off the company’s web page for the Model S sedan by late Sunday, according to a comparison with an archived version of the page. The references have been replaced by a phrase that translates as ‘self-assisted driving’.

In an emailed statement to Reuters, a spokeswoman for the company said:

At Tesla we are continuously making improvements, including to translations. We’ve been in the process of addressing any discrepancies across languages for many weeks. Timing had nothing to do with current events or articles.

In response to the crash, Tesla China staff have reportedly undergone training to re-emphasize that car salespeople must always keep two hands on the wheel when demonstrating the autopilot function.

Other Tesla drivers interviewed by Reuters said China sales staff took their hands off the wheel while demonstrating the function. Under Chinese law, drivers are required to keep two hands on the wheel at all times.

The spokeswoman for Tesla said that the system was not self-driving but merely assistive and that drivers were responsible for always maintaining control of the vehicle. On the Tesla U.S. website, autopilot in the Model S is described as allowing the car “to steer within a lane, change lanes with the simple tap of a turn signal, and manage speed by using active, traffic-aware cruise control”.

Digital control of motors, brakes, and steering helps avoid collisions from the front and sides, and prevents the car from wandering off the road. Autopilot also enables your car to scan for a parking space and parallel park on command. And our new Summon feature lets you “call” your car from your phone so it can come greet you at the front door in the morning.

U.S. regulators have yet to issue written regulations for autonomous vehicles, but Apple – heavily rumored to be working on a car project – has already met with California DMV officials regarding self-driving car laws within the state.

Multiple reports indicate that Apple is exploring the functionality with the possibility of including it in a later iteration of its vehicle project, which is said to be overseen by former longtime executive Bob Mansfield, who last served as Senior Vice President of Technologies at the company.

Apple has reportedly recruited hundreds of engineers from the likes of Tesla, Ford, GM, and elsewhere to work on the so-called Apple Car, codenamed “Project Titan” internally, despite CEO Tim Cook’s recent refusal to be drawn on the subject. The electric vehicle could be street-ready between 2019 and 2021 according to various reports, with R&D based in Sunnyvale, California.

Related Roundup: Apple Car
Tag: Tesla
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Microsoft Office Apps Update Brings Drawing Support to iPhone

Microsoft today updated its suite of Office apps designed for the iPhone, adding finger-drawing support to Word, Excel, and Powerpoint.

In January, the company added inking support to its productivity suite for the iPad Pro to take advantage of the Apple Pencil, but now iPhone users can also make use of the feature using their digits.

A new Draw tab can be found in each of the three apps. The drawing tools in this tab allow iPhone owners to use a stylus or finger to write, draw, highlight, and annotate various Microsoft Office documents.

The thickness and color of the pen can be changed, while hand-drawn shapes can also be transformed into customized shapes. Excel users can annotate over cells, while those who use PowerPoint can draw freeform over slides.

Microsoft Word [Direct Link], Microsoft Excel [Direct Link], and Microsoft PowerPoint [Direct Link] are all available for iPhone on the App Store. While the apps are free to download, users need a qualifying Office 365 subscription to create and edit documents.

Tag: Office 365
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Bang & Olufsen A1 review: Bluetooth speaker bliss

It’s not often a Bluetooth speaker has its designer’s name tucked away within its specification. But then the Bang & Olufsen BeoPlay A1 is no ordinary Bluetooth speaker; an example of the kind of sound quality that can be achieved at this small scale.

Thing is, its price point is far from ordinary too: at £199 it’s a considerable chunk of cash to be chucking at a portable speaker. The obvious question, then, is whether it’s worth the investment?

B&O A1 BeoPlay review: Design

Bang & Olufsen is well known for its design. The Danish company walks the line between understated and outlandish, falling into the former camp for the A1 (it is designed by Cecilie Manz – a well-known industrial designer).

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Its circular base gives it a nautical, port-hole kind of appearance – especially once it’s been hung from the wall via its tied leather strap.

Up top is an aluminium grille, complete with arrangement of fine holes to disperse sound; beneath which is a polymer base with hidden soft-touch buttons to hold everything together. The two parts are well connected, although they look somewhat separate from one another. Rested on a tabletop and it’s not necessarily B&O’s finest work, especially compared to some of its high-end speakers.

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Operability is great. A USB Type-C port ensures quick charging of the 2,200mAh on-board battery, which can last for up to a day at a time. We’ve easily been getting two working days at a time when set to a reasonable volume.

There’s app connectivity with the B&O BeoPlay, but connectivity isn’t as complex as some larger dedicated speakers. There’s no Airplay, or WiFi, for example – although it is possible to pair two of the speakers into a stereo pair, if you have a lot of spare cash to buy two of them.

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Design shortcomings are more comparisons to the competition rather than major failings: the B&O lacks waterproofing like the Ultimate Ears UE Boom, for example, while its sound can’t project in as full a 360-degree arrangement either.

B&O A1 BeoPlay review: Sound

But just because it can’t fire sound out in all directions really doesn’t matter – it’s not like you’ll mount it backwards and hope it sounds at its best. Indeed, when you first hear the BeoPlay A1 you’ll be surprised that sound this good can come from something so small.

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The real standout point for the A1 is just how significant its bass response is from a speaker of this size. It’s taut and can manage frequencies as low as 60Hz, which is plenty base enough. Having caught-up with DJ Friction’s D&B show on Radio 1, it did a grand job of firing out basslines like a speaker far larger would. That’s down to an “aluminium core sub-woofer, powerful magnetic system and amps,” says B&O.

Not that it’s all bass – the BeoPlay A1 is really well balanced with its delivery of all kinds of music, from ensuring mid-range vocals cut through, to sparkly high-end percussion. It’s not overly sharp nor resonant, just a real exemplary speaker for how good sound quality can be at this scale.

Verdict

It might be small, but the B&O BeoPlay A1’s big sound makes it standout in the portable Bluetooth speaker market. We may have baulked at its £199 price tag at first, but given how good it sounds, we think it’s worth every penny.

Sure, there’s no WiFi, AirPlay, waterproofing or 360-degree design like some of its competitors, but the solid battery, build quality, extra drive of bass and sheer audio clarity give this Bang & Olufsen the upper hand when it comes to sound quality. The BeoPlay A1 is well worth saving up for.

Incredible HTC Nexus Sailfish pic leak shows Google phone in all its glory

Fresh images have been posted online, seemingly showing off one of the next HTC-made Nexus phones in the flesh.

Android Police posted images of “Sailfish”, which is expected to be launched alongside a similar HTC phone currently code-named “Marlin”.  

As we’ve seen in previous render leaks, it’s a mostly solid metal build, but with a large glass panel on the top third, where the fingerprint sensor and camera system lives. And, although there’s no HTC logo to be seen anywhere, there’s certainly something very HTC-like about the phone. 

• Is this what Google’s Marlin and Sailfish Nexus phones will look like?
• Next Nexus (2016): Release date, rumours and everything you need to know

The corners are nicely rounded, while the chassis looks to be hewn from a single block of aluminium, rather than a slim metal frame. 

Like most metal phones, there’s an antenna band running along the bottom of the phone, and it appears there are antenna “gaps” on the top portion as well, mostly hidden by the large glass panel. 

Android Police

Rather than be gently curved like a lot of phones, the edges of the device appear to be mostly flat, with some angled chamfers on the top and the bottom, similar to the HTC 10. 

According to Android Police, both of the new Nexus phones will look the same and feature mostly the same specifications. The only difference – according to the blog’s claims – are the screen size, device dimensions and battery capacity. In essence, Marlin is just a bigger version of Sailfish. The latter of which is expected to have a five inch screen. 

Interestingly, another picture leaked on Twitter seems to confirm that the images AP got their hands on are legitimate, and show what looks like part of a lifestyle photo shoot. 

The 2016 HTC Nexus looks like a cross between the Nexus 4 & iPhone with glass and fingerprint scanner on the back. pic.twitter.com/7pm9fhszki

— nexus (@usbfl) August 14, 2016

While we’re calling these phones Nexus, it’s possible that Google is moving away from that brand name. Previous renders suggested the phones will have one simple brand logo, and that will be a single “G”. No HTC or Nexus branding, anywhere.

That’s interesting because it suggests that – like its Chromebook and Tablet businesses – Google wants to have more control over hardware, and is using a manufacturer as a contractor to build its phones, rather than a partner who gets to share the limelight.

We don’t know exactly when the Nexus phones will arrive, but rumours suggest we should see a launch at some point in September.

2016 Nexus: First live photos leak as Nougat release approaches

First live photos of smaller 5-inch Nexus reveal metal design with large glass section on the back.

This year’s Google-designed (and likely HTC-built) Nexus phones might not be arriving alongside Android 7.0 Nougat, but it’s looking like we won’t have to wait too much longer to wait for the new handsets to arrive. Shots surfacing on Android Police today claim to reveal (in heavily cropped form) the smaller of the two phones, known by its codename “Sailfish.”

The 5-inch model (as opposed to the larger 5.5-inch “Marlin”) sports an angular, chamfered metal design with a rear-mounted fingerprint scanner and a large glass section on the back. As expected, there’s virtually no branding around the front, and the unit shown in these pictures — presumably a testing device — lacks any visible branding on the back as well. (Android Police reports that the final hardware will be branded with Google’s “G” logo, fuelling recent speculation around the future of the Nexus brand.)

Aside from being an eye-catching design feature, the glass window on the back could serve as a larger target area for NFC — making Android Pay payments easier, among other things.

The images are broadly in line with shots that surfaced on Twitter recently showing a similar glass-backed design amid copious amounts of digital zoom.

The 2016 HTC Nexus looks like a cross between the Nexus 4 & iPhone with glass and fingerprint scanner on the back. pic.twitter.com/7pm9fhszki

— nexus (@usbfl) August 14, 2016

That same account also claims there’s a plastic Nexus on the way, however AC understands that both models on the cards this year are metal, and that any plastic model doing the rounds is likely some kind of dummy chassis.

Aside from shots of what appears to be a relatively standard smartphone chassis — aside from that big glass window on the back — the most interesting nugget to come from this spate of Nexus rumors has to do with the Nexus monicker itself, and how this year’s “Google” phones will differ from previous Nexuses in terms of design and branding.

Will this year’s ‘Nexus’ phones actually be Nexus phones?

The source of this most recent leak has already shown images of a redesigned Settings app, with updated colors and a new “Support” tab. Weeks earlier, a redesigned “Nexus Launcher” believed to be from one of the new Google phones, also leaked out. Add that to reports that Google is redesigning Android’s soft keys again, with colorful accents which animate to reveal Now on Tap, and you’ve got a highly differentiated UI that’s a far cry from the “stock” Nougat we currently know.

AC understands that these images are indeed an accurate representation of the UI that’ll appear on the upcoming HTC-built, Google-branded handsets. That being the case, perhaps it makes sense that the LG V20, not any new Nexus device, will be the first phone with Android 7.0. Just because Nougat is done, doesn’t necessarily mean the extra Google software on these “Nexus” phones is complete.

Android 7.0 Nougat is expected to arrive later this month. Given that the LG V20 will launch as the “first” Nougat phone on Sept 6, we’re probably looking at mid-to-late September before any new Google phones hit store shelves.

MORE: What LG having the first new phone with Nougat means for the Nexus program

Final Fantasy fans look away, FF15 delayed

You’ve been waiting for 10 years for Final Fantasy XV (FF15) but we’re afraid you’ll have to wait a little longer as the game has been put back in order to “deliver the iconic Final Fantasy experience”.

Expected to release in around six week’s time, on 30 September, the RPG will now not arrive until 29 November.

That will be massively disappointing to franchise fans and gamers who have been awaiting it with baited breath, although it can also be seen as a positive indication of its size and depth.

Square Enix claims that the delay allows the development team more time to conduct quality testing and add further polish. It could mean the game is so huge the in-house testing period has taken longer than expected.

• Final Fantasy XV: Everything you need to know
• This is what it would look like if Star Wars and Final Fantasy collided

Game director Hajime Tabata apologised for the delay but revealed that a strive for perfection was behind the move: ““From the moment we joined this project, our vision was to create a level of freedom and realism previously unseen in the series. Regrettably, we need a little bit more time to deliver on this vision,” he said.

“I wish to personally apologise for the additional wait. As a team, we want Final Fantasy XV to achieve a level of perfection that our fans deserve. We kindly ask for your understanding.”

Huawei Mate 9 tipped for IFA 2016 after pics and specs leak

There have been a couple of Huawei Mate 9 rumours floating around in the last few months, but nothing as significant as the latest.

A couple of pics have been posted on Chinese forum site Weibo that are of the alleged casing for the forthcoming flagship smartphone. In addition, some of the specifications were listed alongside them.

If true, the Huawei Mate 9 will have a 5.9-inch screen with a Full HD resolution. It is again said to have the Kirin 960 processor, something touted since April and the launch of the firm’s P9 series of phones. And there will be options for 4GB and 6GB of RAM, much like the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 which is likely to feature the latter in China.

• Huawei Mate 9 could have a 20MP dual camera and blow P9 out of the water

The only newly leaked specification that doesn’t resonate so well is that it will come with a 16-megapixel camera on the rear. All previous leaks claim it will either have a 12-megapixel snapper or a mammoth 20-megapixel sensor, topping the dual cameras on the P9.

Still, the casing looks nice and consistent with the company’s design trend, so could well be the real deal.

There is no word of a release date but with IFA 2016 only a few weeks away, we have a good feeling it could make an appearance there, in Berlin.

Air Force boosts drone pilot bonuses to keep up with demand

It’s no secret that the US Air Force is doing everything it can to recruit and keep drone pilots, and now it’s resorting to a very direct solution: cold, hard cash. The military branch is offering $10,000 more per year in bonuses to those pilots who renew their active duty commitment for 5 years. They were already getting a hefty $25,000 extra per year, but this is a huge incentive — if a pilot is active for the full term, that’s a total of $175,000 above and beyond their usual pay.

It’s a lot to offer, but it may be necessary. The USAF is increasingly relying on drones as part of its operations, and its training has suffered in recent years due to stretched resources. While the Air Force is doubling the number of pilots it produces between its 2015 and 2017 fiscal years, it’s not going to take any chances with losing those crews that are already here. That’s especially true when airlines are aggressively luring pilots with the promises of greater pay. It’s too soon to say if larger bonuses will work, but the odds are that there will be at least some drone operators who’ll stay on when they would have otherwise bowed out.

Via: Defense One

Source: Department of Defense