iOS 10.0.2 update fixes bugs in headphones, Photos
Even if you’ve already updated to iOS 10, Apple has released its first official update for its mobile/TV operating system. Bugs that could shut down the Photos app when turning on iCloud Photo Library and disable app extensions have ben smushed, but folks with the iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus may want it for another reason.
Some users complained about the new Lightning-connected EarPods timing out, which would stop their in-line playback controls from working to adjust the volume, answer calls or use Siri. This update fixes the problem, making things just like they were when your phone had a headphone jack. Of course, you’re probably beta testing iOS 10.1 already, looking forward to new features instead of stable builds with bugfixes . Either way, the current update should be accessible via your Settings menu now.
Via: 9to5Mac, MacRumors
Source: Apple
Google Hangouts adds emoticon shortcuts for easy table-flipping
The latest version of Google Hangouts for Android adds something clever to your chatting experience: 20 new hidden emoticon shortcuts so you can properly express all those shruggie feelings and table-flipping rage moments. Less exciting than a quick way to add “deal with it” guy to your chat logs, the v13 update also adds an in-app browser for web links.
Regarding those emoticons, the lineup is pretty impressive: typing things like “/shrug”, “/facepalm” or “/tableflip” into the chatbox will automatically change to (╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻.
Here’s the full list of commands (and don’t forget the forward slash at the front):
- algebraic
- dealwithit
- disapprove
- facepalm
- flowerbeam
- happy
- lgtm
- lit
- octodisco
- puppyparty
- shame
- shrug
- success
- sunglasses
- tableback
- tableflip
- that
- this
- wizard
- yuno
Finally, if you really hate switching apps to open links in a chat, that in-app browser can be accessed by flipping the “Browr in Hangouts” button in the settings tab. According to Android Police, however, this option doesn’t show up on every Android device. Sorry, Nexus 5 owners, guess you’ll have to /dealwithit.
Via: The Next Web
Source: Android Police
Snapchat Announces ‘Spectacles,’ $130 Sunglasses That Record 10 Seconds of Video at a Time
Snapchat has announced its first hardware product, a one-size-fits-all pair of sunglasses called Spectacles that can record 10 seconds of video at a time, reports The Wall Street Journal. The glasses will cost $130 and launch this fall in three colors: teal, black and coral. Video will sync wirelessly to a paired iPhone or other smartphone.
Snap CEO Evan Spiegel in Spectacles, Photo by The WSJ
The glasses record when you tap a button near the hinge, and each tap records 10 seconds of video footage from its 115-degree-angle lens. The lens was designed to be wider than smartphone cameras, more closely mirroring the natural view of human eyes. The video is recorded in a circular format, as Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel argues that the square and rectangle form that photos and videos currently come in are a vestige of early photos being printed on paper.
Snapchat has been developing Spectacles for years, and Spiegel has been testing the device himself for a year. He tells The WSJ that one of the advantages of Spectacles is not having to hold a smartphone in front of your face because it’s “like a wall.” Re-watching first-person footage is like reliving a memory, Spiegel argues.
He remembers testing a prototype in early 2015 while hiking with his fiancée, supermodel Miranda Kerr. “It was our first vacation, and we went to Big Sur for a day or two. We were walking through the woods, stepping over logs, looking up at the beautiful trees. And when I got the footage back and watched it, I could see my own memory, through my own eyes—it was unbelievable. It’s one thing to see images of an experience you had, but it’s another thing to have an experience of the experience. It was the closest I’d ever come to feeling like I was there again.”
Spiegel refers to Spectacles as a “toy,” and that the best use of it would be to wear it at an outdoor concert or barbecue “for kicks.” The company is taking a slow approach to launch with limited distribution, similar to Google Glass. Spiegel says Snapchat wants to “figure out if it fits into people’s lives and seeing how they like it.” When asked why they made the product and decided to enter the hardware market, Spiegel said “because it’s fun.”
Snapchat has also changed its company name to Snap, Inc as it has expanded its portfolio past its Snapchat app, similar to how Apple changed its name from Apple Computer.
Spiegel thinks of the newly-dubbed Snap, Inc as a camera company rather than a social media company, The WSJ notes. He studied the early histories of Kodak and Polaroid and how they pitched portable cameras to the public. Spectacles gives Snap control of a physical camera, bypassing the smartphone cameras, like that of the iPhone, at the heart of Snapchat thus far. Spiegel hints to The WSJ that there could be “far-reaching implications” if Snap controlled the hardware its users take pictures and video with.
Tags: wearables, Snapchat, Snap
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Quick tip: Discreetly check the time on your Apple Watch Series 2 – CNET
Are you a proud owner the of the Apple Watch Series 2?
Try this: With the screen off, turn the Digital Crown towards the top of the display. Neat, right?
With the Series 2, Apple has added a feature called “Wake Screen on Crown Up.” As you just saw, you can turn the crown up to slowly wake the screen, to discreetly check the time in a movie theater or in a meeting. As you scroll down with the Digital Crown, the display’s brightness decreases.
You still have the option to raise your wrist to or tap on your watch’s display to wake the screen, of course.
You can disable the new feature in the Watch app on your iPhone, under General > Wake Screen > Wake Screen on Crown Up.
- For more Apple Watch tips, check out 11 new features in WatchOS 3
3 ways to find your lost phone using Alexa – CNET
The family of Alexa speakers is only getting smarter over time. The feature list is growing, as is the list of compatible smart home devices the Echo, Echo Dot and Tap can control.
Among one of its many tricks, Alexa can also help you locate a misplaced phone in more ways than one.
Of course, in most cases, you have to have misplaced your phone at home for this to work. The exception would be using an Amazon Tap on a public Wi-Fi network or using the Roger, Lexi or Lexa app from a tablet.
Here are three ways to locate your misplaced phone using Alexa.
TrackR
Last month, TrackR released a skill for Alexa which allows you to locate your lost phone.
To enable the skill, open the Amazon Alexa app from your Android or iOS device, navigate to Skills, search for TrackR and click Enable. Alternatively, you can ask the speaker to enable the skill by saying, “Alexa, enable TrackR” or “Alexa, enable Find My Phone.”
You also need to download the TrackR app onto your iPhone or Android smartphone. When you open the app and go through the initial setup, select Find Your Phone With Alexa and tap Start Setup.
Next, say, “Alexa, tell TrackR to find my phone.” This will initiate the setup process, where you will be given a 6-digit PIN by Alexa. Enter this into the app on your smartphone and tap Submit. Your phone should now be linked to the TrackR skill on Alexa.
To locate your phone at any time, say, “Alexa, tell TrackR to find my phone” or “Alexa, ask TrackR to ring my phone.”
If your phone doesn’t have all sounds muted, it will begin ringing and you should be able to locate it.
Have Alexa call your phone
Screenshot by Taylor Martin/CNET
An alternative to TrackR is asking Alexa to call your misplaced phone. In order for this to work, you will need an IFTTT account with the Alexa and Phone Call channels activated.
To connect the channels, go to ifttt.com, log in or sign up and click Channels at the top of the page. Search for Alexa, click on the channel and click Connect. Login to your Amazon account and confirm the connection. Then click Channels one more time and search Phone Call. Click on the channel icon and click Connect. Enter your phone number and click Send PIN. Answer the phone call and enter the PIN read to you. Click Connect.
Now it’s time to add the recipe. You can quickly add this recipe to your account or create one yourself using the steps below.
- At ifttt.com, click on your username in the upper right corner of the page to access the drop-down menu and select Create.
- Click This to begin.
- Under Choose Trigger Channel, search for Amazon Alexa. Click the Alexa channel to select it.
- For the Trigger, select Say a specific phrase. Type in a phrase like “lost phone” or “find my phone” and click Create Trigger.
- Click That to continue.
- Search for the Phone Call channel and select it.
- For the Action select Call my phone.
- You can set any message you’d like, but the main point here is making your phone ring.
- Click Create Action followed by Create Recipe to finalize the recipe.
Now, whenever you misplace your phone, just say, “Alexa, trigger find phone.” If your phone isn’t silenced, you should hear your phone ring. If vibrate is enabled, you may be able to locate it by the vibrations from the phone call.
However, if you happen use an Android phone, using the Android Device channel, you can first set your ringtone volume to 100 percent, then place a call.
To do this, you will need two IFTTT recipes with the same trigger phrase. First, you want to set the volume with this recipe. Then use the second recipe to place a call. The important part is that the trigger phrases are the same, so you only have to say the command once and both the ringtone volume will be set to 100 percent and the phone call will be placed.
Play a song from your Android phone
Similar to calling your phone, you can tell Alexa to play a song on your Android phone.
Using the same instructions above, you can create a recipe using the Android Device channel as the Action Channel and select Play music for the Action instead of placing a phone call. To add a premade recipe to your IFTTT account, just click here.
Unfortunately, there is no way to have IFTTT change the media playback volume on your Android device. Also, if your phone is connected to any Bluetooth speakers or headphones, it will play audio through those instead of its own speakers. The workaround to that is using yet another IFTTT recipe with the same trigger phrase.
Alcatel IDOL 4S review: Can it stay king in 2016?
When Alcatel released the IDOL 3 last year, I called it the best budget phone of 2015. This year, Alcatel has come out with its successor that is meant to improve upon the IDOL 3 in every way. Unlike last year, competition has gotten incredibly steep around budget flagships in 2016, and the IDOL 4S has to give everything its got to carry the title of Best Budget Flagship this year. Let’s see if it can claim the crown once again!
Design and Build
Last year, Alcatel took a more subtle approach to the design of the IDOL 3. It featured a plastic back and sides that felt and looked nice but didn’t create an overall sense of luxury or precision. For its 2016 flagship, Alcatel completely ditched the plastic and opted for a killer metal and glass design. With a glass back and metal sides, the IDOL 4S is a stunner that screams quality straight out of the box. The glass on front and back is slightly curved along the side making the phone comfortable to hold for pretty much anyone.
Let’s take a look around the 4S before we dive in. On the front is the 5.5″ display that we will talk more in depth about later along with the dual front-facing speakers and selfie camera. On the left side, you’ll find the power button and SIM card/MicroSD card slot. On the right are your volume controls along with an extra button Alcatel refers to as the Boom Key. On the bottom are the MicroUSB port for charging and a microphone. Finally up top, you have your 3.5mm headphone jack (thankfully) and another microphone. Flip the phone over and you’ll find the main camera along with a fingerprint scanner.
Overall, the IDOL 4S is lightyears ahead of the IDOL 3 in terms of style and design. The glass and metal build feels incredible to hold. However, I have a love-hate relationship with the glass back because it is a fingerprint magnet. It is one of the worst phones I have ever used in terms of how quickly it picks up fingerprints. In fact, I put a case on it almost immediately just because of how often I had to wipe off the back. Also, the glass back means that any accidental drops could end up shattering it along with your screen. And trust me, this phone is slippery. Accidental drops are bound to happen.
As beautiful as the IDOL 4S is, I must recommend that you at least get a skin or a case to keep from dropping it and cracking the glass. Thankfully, Alcatel is one step ahead and includes a case and screen protector in the box.
While the power button is still located annoyingly on the left side of the device, the IDOL 4S kept the double-tap to wake feature from the previous generation. But I doubt you’ll even be using that as the fingerprint scanner on the back with also turn on the phone when you go to scan your finger. In terms of speed and accuracy, the fingerprint scanner impressed me. It is not as fast as the latest from Apple and Samsung, but it is plenty fast for most people.
The only main complaint I have is that it is not set off from the back of the phone at all. This makes it hard to locate blindly and position your finger correctly, but after a while, I found that I got much more accurate.
Display
Alright, it is time for my favorite upgrade from the IDOL 3. This year, Alcatel ditched IPS for AMOLED and cranked the resolution up to 2K. All I can say is, nicely done! The increased resolution is great for gaming, video, and VR (more to come on that) and pairs nicely with the front-facing speakers.
Going for an AMOLED panel was the right choice as colors look clear and vibrant. Like the IDOL 3 before, the 4S has one of the brightest screens I have ever seen. I usually have to keep my screen at above half brightness, but I could easily turn the display on the IDOL 4S down to 30% with the same results. There is no need to worry about outdoor visibility with this display.
I would love to say that the display is perfect, but I found one major annoyance during my time using it. Even as someone who always makes sure to carry my phone is a separate pocket away from loose change and keys, the display on my IDOL 4S still picked up scratches. None are horribly obvious and cannot even be seen with the display on, but I was disappointed that the screen scratched so easily.
Performance
The IDOL 3 was a mid-ranged device that provided competitive performance at an incredible price, but that was in 2015. This year, the IDOL 4S got a price bump while other companies started focusing more on budget-friendly flagships. The 4S definitely has more competition this year so it better come with the performance to keep its high standing.
The IDOL 4S is running on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 with 3GB of RAM and an Adreno 510 GPU, and while the processor may not be an 800-series, it still packs quite a punch. For storage, you get 32GB of onboard memory along with a microSD card slot to add extra space when needed. Needless to say, the IDOL 4S is more than powerful enough to handle even your craziest of social media binges. I was impressed with how snappy the Snapdragon 652 was as I was able to fly through most apps without a single frame drop.
Asphalt 8 seems to be the de facto game for testing a phone’s gaming performance so that is the app I used. Ninety percent of the time, the IDOL 4S handled the game like a champ. However, there were a couple of times where I noticed a slight frame drop. I doubt that most would even notice it before it went back to normal, but there were definitely a couple of slow downs. The phone itself never seemed to get hot enough to throttle so I am assuming the hardware just wasn’t fast enough to fully handle the game. Most games will play wonderfully on the IDOL 4S, but graphically intensive games may have a couple of struggles.
Last year, this would not have been a big deal since the IDOL 3 sold for $250 and smoked basically every other phone in that price range. However, the IDOL 4S is priced at $399 which puts it right up there with phones like the OnePlus 3, which is running a Snapdragon 820.
Along with price, Alcatel heavily marketing the IDOL 4S on how well it performed with virtual reality, and while the preinstalled titles do play well, more graphically intense VR games will likely exhibit some stuttering. We will have a post coming out soon fully dedicated to VR on the IDOL 4S so keep your eyes out for that.
So what does this mean for performance on the 4S? Overall, it is incredibly fast and smooth in almost every situation. However at this price point, there are phones that beat it on the performance side.
Software
The IDOL 4S comes running a slightly skinned version of Android 6.0 Marshmallow (no word yet on a Nougat update). As far as most Android skins go, the one on the 4S is fairly minimal. It’s not as close to stock as something like the Moto G4, but it is nowhere near as intense as Samsung’s TouchWiz.
The IDOL 4S comes with a custom launcher, custom icons for basic apps, and Alcatel’s versions of stock apps like Contacts. There are some preloaded apps, but the majority of them can be uninstalled immediately from the phone.
Even with all the uninstallable apps removed, there are still several apps unique to the IDOL 4S that remain on the phone. These include VR apps and games, an equalizer app, an FM radio app, and some video editing and live streaming apps. While some of them are needed for VR applications, I still wish that they could be removed easily or uninstalled completely.
The custom launcher comes with a couple of neat tricks up its sleeve. The first is a parallax wallpaper effect that makes it seem like the icons are floating above the wallpaper. I am not a big fan of this effect, and it is easy to turn off from the wallpaper selector. If you are on the homescreen and push the Boom Key, there will be a visualization of the current weather in your location. While it is not particularly useful since the weather is also displayed on the homescreen widget, I cannot deny that it looks super cool, and I find myself pushing the Boom Key to trigger it all the time.
My single favorite feature from the IDOL 3 made a return on the 4S, and that is the Reversible UI. Basically, this allows the screen to rotate a full 360-degrees so that no matter what way you pick up the phone, it is always right side up. Unfortunately, I found this feature less useful now that there is a fingerprint scanner. When I hold the phone upside down and reach for the fingerprint scanner, I immediately realize that I am holding the phone wrong and flip it around.
The feature is still useful for quickly answering calls without having to spin the phone around, but I am sad to see my favorite feature become less useful.
Speakers
One of my favorite features on the IDOL lineup are the dual front-facing speakers, and the IDOL 4S does not disappoint in this area. The JBL-certified speakers pump out a loud sound that is crisp and clean regardless of the volume.
Being phone speakers, the low end does leave some to be desired, but I would challenge you to find a better sounding set of speakers on any smartphone especially in this price range. Whether you are playing a game, watching a video, or just listening to some music, the IDOL 4S speakers will do more for you than basically any other phone speaker out there.
When you lay the phone face down while playing something through the speakers, it will actually route the audio towards the back of the device so that volume and quality are not hindered.
When you are using the speakers, pressing the Boom Key activates one of the special experiences of the IDOL 4S. Alcatel claims that pressing it boosts the bass and volume of the music, and while I did notice a volume increase, an increase in audio quality is questionable. Some of my music sounded fuller when the Boom Key was activated, but other times it sounded too echo-y. It does help with some songs, but it was not something that I enabled every time I listened to music.
The best time to use the Boom Key is while gaming. When I played Asphalt 8, I pressed the Boom Key and the audio became much more immersive. It almost seemed like surround sound at times. While the Boom Key might not improve all the audio you listen to, it definitely increases the immersion while playing games.
Camera
The camera on past IDOL phones has always been pretty good but consistently left me wanting more. The IDOL 4S comes with a 16-megapixel f/2.0 main camera and an 8-megapixel front camera, and I can fully say that these are the best cameras on any IDOL to date.
Throughout my time with the 4S, I found the camera is quick to focus and takes detailed shots with good color reproduction as long as the lighting is good. Unfortunately, it looks like many of the pictures I took with the IDOL 4S suffered from oversharpening like the IDOL 3 before it. While the camera often exposes correctly, I found that it has a tendency to overexpose and highlights easily get blown out.
Thankfully, the IDOL 4S had a pretty solid HDR mode. Unfortunately, there is no option for AutoHDR, which means you need to switch it on and off as needed, which makes taking quick shots more difficult. There are a few Boom Key features within the camera app. You can press it to take a photo, or while taking a video, you can press it to immediately livestream through the preinstalled app TiZR.
If you are looking to record video with the IDOL 4S, you were probably happy to see that it supports 4K at 30fps; however, there is no OIS (optical image stabilization) on the cameras so videos come out looking shaky even with the electronic image stabilization. I think that leaving out OIS was a big mistake on Alcatel’s part.
Overall, the camera is the same story that it was with the IDOL 3. The camera is okay and capable of taking some good shots, but it still has problems that hold it back from being a truly great camera.
Battery
I was pleased with battery performance on last year’s IDOL 3, but I am full on impressed with what I was able to get out of the IDOL 4S. The phone is powered by a 3000mAh battery and comes equipped with QuickCharge technology for a quick fill up when you don’t have much time.
I am a fairly heavy smartphone user, and I manage to kill most phones before the day is done. My typical day includes streaming music and YouTube videos for about an hour each. I text and check social media consistently throughout the day, and I also have 3 email accounts that are constantly pulling down new emails. Other than that, I do browse the internet over WiFi and LTE along with some light gaming.
After putting the IDOL 4S through its paces on a daily basis, I found that I consistently got over five hours of screen-on-time with some days tending closer to five-and-a-half hours. For a phone with a 2K AMOLED display, I am extremely pleased with the battery performance. I still have to charge it every night, but at least I am making it to the end of the day now.
Conclusion
There is no hiding that the IDOL 4S is a wonderful phone and a huge improvement over last year’s IDOL 3. However, the price jump of $150 dollars has put the IDOL 4S against some incredible competition. Phones like the OnePlus 3 and Nexus 6P are available close to that price and each of them comes with a beefier processor, which provides even better performance.
So is it the best budget phone of 2016? Unfortunately, I am going to have to say no, but that is simply because the competition is extremely fierce in the budget arena now. I’d be hard pressed to name any phone as the best budget flagship. That being said, the IDOL 4S is one of the best budget phones of the year. It has great build quality, a stellar screen, loud speakers, and strong battery life. I would definitely recommend the IDOL 4S to any interested, and I doubt it will leave you unimpressed.
One thing that the IDOL 4S has going for it is the inclusion of a case, glass screen protector, and VR goggles when you purchase it. Head on over to Alcatel’s website or Amazon and pick up an IDOL 4S for yourself for only $399!
Lifx White 900 BR30 Wi-Fi LED Smart Bulb review – CNET
The Good The white-light floodlight from Lifx is bright, efficient, easy to use and compatible with Nest, IFTTT and Amazon’s Alexa.
The Bad Lifx bulbs don’t support Apple HomeKit, so you can’t control them with Siri commands. We also experienced occasional hiccups with the Wi-Fi connection.
The Bottom Line These are very good smart bulbs with a lot of tricks up their sleeves, and they cost half as much as Philips Hue’s floodlights. They’re the bulbs you want for smart overhead lighting.
Cloud-connected light bulbs are a terrific starting point for the smart home, but most of your options are A-shaped bulbs meant for use in lamps. That’s all well and good, but it isn’t terribly helpful if you’re living in a home filled with recessed lighting fixtures designed for BR30-shaped floodlights.
The good news is that you’ve got a couple of floodlight-shaped options, too. The best of the bunch? The Lifx White 900, a smart, Wi-Fi-enabled floodlight that lets you control things remotely through the Lifx app on your Android, iOS or Windows device. It won’t change colors like other Lifx bulbs, but it will change color temperatures on the white-light spectrum, which allows you to dial between a warm, golden glow and bright, bluish-white daylight tones. On top of that, it enjoys all of Lifx’ third-party integrations, which include IFTTT, the Nest Learning Thermostat and Amazon’s Alexa. The cost? Thirty bucks a pop (a little less than £25, or about AU$40).
That’s not inexpensive, but it is $20 less than Lifx’ own color-changing floodlight, and $30 less than the Philips Hue floodlight. It’s also just $10 more than bottom-tier smart floodlights from names like GE and TCP that don’t offer white-light spectrum controls or the depth of Lifx’ third-party connections. That, coupled with strong performance, puts the Lifx White 900 right in the smart-floodlight sweet spot.
Smarts aside, a connected light bulb has to start by being a good light bulb, especially if it’s asking you to spend $30 on it. The Lifx White 900 passes this first test with ease. Like the name suggests, it puts out plenty of light, with a claimed 950 lumens at peak settings. That’s a noticeable upgrade from the sort of 65W incandescent floodlight it seeks to replace — bulbs like that typically put out less than 700 lumens.
Here are all of the smart bulbs that work…
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The Lifx White 900 is noticeably brighter than the 65W incandescent floodlights it seeks to replace.
Tyler Lizenby/CNET
The White 900 has a power draw of just 12 watts, so you’re also getting a nice efficiency upgrade. How nice? In the US (energy rates will vary from region to region), a 12W bulb will add about $1.50 to your power bill each year, on average, which is far better than the $7 or $8 you’ll spend to use that 65W incandescent over the same period. Replace that incandescent with the Lifx White 900, and your new bulb will pay for itself in energy savings in less than five years, then keep on shining for decades to come thanks to a 22.8-year life expectancy.
iHeartRadio plays catch-up with on-demand music
Although it was born out of terrestrial radio, iHeartRadio has been working hard to go beyond just streaming FM stations to your phone or Apple TV. The company set its sights on streaming services like Spotify and Apple Music’s Beats Radio with last year’s introduction of personalized radio stations. Now, iHeartRadio is ready to announce two new on-demand subscription services of its own, coming in January 2017: iHeartRadio Plus and iHeartRadio All Access
All Access is the company’s shot at Spotify and Apple Music — a straightforward, on-demand streaming service reportedly priced at $10 per month to compete directly with the leading services. All Access will offer all the features you might expect from a streaming music service, along with iHeartRadio’s library of 30 million tracks and a few radio-oriented features like the ability to instantly save or replay songs from live stations and offline listening.
While it might seem like a late arrival to the on-demand streaming game, iHeartRadio already has 90 million registered users that CEO Bob Pittman thinks it can convert into paid subscribers. “There’s this huge piece of the population that does not spend money in any form on music,” Pittman told TechCrunch. “We think this is the kind of service that will begin to get them to spend on music.”
On the other hand, iHeartRadio Plus is a lower-priced service intended to bridge the gap between your existing on-demand music subscription and listening to terrestrial radio. If you’re the sort of person who still appreciates the human touch of a certain radio jockey or local radio station, Plus turns that into an on-demand experience so you can stream your favorite shows whenever you like.
Both services debut in January 2017 and, while there’s no official pricing yet, the New York Post reported All Access will come in at a $10 price point and Plus service will cost $5 per month.
Via: TechCrunch
Source: iHeartRadio
Oculus founder responds to ‘Nimble America’ political controversy
Last night The Daily Beast reported that Oculus founder Palmer Luckey is the “NimbleRichMan” behind a group of Donald Trump supporters pushing anti-Hillary Clinton memes, and now Luckey has responded. In a Facebook post claiming recent news stories don’t accurately reflect his views (and light on references to either shitposting or meme magic), the 24-year-old claimed his support of the Nimble America group consisted of a $10,000 donation because “because I thought the organization had fresh ideas,” and that he did not write the posts credited to the pseudonym or delete the account.
Facing claims by a number of developers (including Polytron, TomorrowTodayLabs and others) that they would not support the Oculus VR platform if he remained attached to it, Luckey apologized for the impact of his actions.
Developing…
Source: Facebook
Snapchat to release $130 camera-equipped Spectacles this fall
Yes, the Snapchat Spectacles are real, and company chief Evan Spiegel presented them to a small group of people today. According to The Wall Street Journal, Snapchat’s first wearable product comes armed with a camera that can record 10-second videos when you tap the button near the hinge. The results don’t look like typical videos shot with phones or action cams, though — not when it records circular footage that mimics our own vision. Apparently, Spiegel believes that the rectangular format is “an unnecessary vestige of printing photos on sheets of paper.” And since this is Snapchat we’re talking about, the glasses can sync with your phone wirelessly, making anything it takes easy to share.
Snapchat will release Spectacles this fall for $130, but only a limited number of pairs will be available for sale. The company wants to proceed slowly in order to get a feel of how people like it, and probably to see how well the initial stocks sell, before making more. Since he obviously doesn’t expect to make big bucks out of Spectacles from the get-go, WSJ asked Spiegel why he designed them. His answer? “Because it’s fun.” If other people find the glasses fun, as well — and, hey, unlike the Google Glass, these look like something anyone would wear — then you might have an easier time finding a pair in the future.
JUST IN: Snapchat to release first hardware product called “Spectacles” this fall; video-sharing sunglasses to be priced at $129.99 – DJ
— CNBC Now (@CNBCnow) September 24, 2016
Snapchat releases first hardware product, Spectacles https://t.co/LuY74KCorX 🔓
— Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) September 24, 2016
Source: The Wall Street Journal
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