Body scanners are coming to your gym
Sure, you may feel like you’re in better shape after a trip to the gym, but how do you quantify it besides stepping on a scale or breaking out calipers? Australian outfit mPort thinks it can do better. It’s rolling out 3D body scanners at LA Fitness gyms and shopping malls across the US, giving you a more detailed look at your fitness. Effectively, they’re infrared photo booths. Step inside (and strip down to your skivvies) and you’ll get a virtual representation that gives clues to basics like your body mass index as well as harder-to-pinpoint factors like your body fat composition and hip-to-waist ratio. If you’re improving your physique, you’ll have concrete proof of it.
The service is free if you just want basic scans after every workout. You only have to subscribe ($5 per month or $40 per year) if you want advanced data.
The technology will mainly appeal to dedicated gym rats, but mPort tells TechCrunch that the data could also be useful when shopping for well-fitted clothes, especially if you need something custom-tailored. It adds that the scans are particularly helpful for self-conscious newcomers — you can get an analysis of your body in a private space, without the need for measurements from a trainer. The machines could get the ball rolling on regular gym exercise for people who’d otherwise be tempted to stay at home.
Via: TechCrunch
Source: mPort
Aetna to Provide Apple Watch to 50,000 Employees, Subsidize Cost for Customers
Insurance company Aetna today announced a major health initiative centered on the iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch, which will see Aetna subsidizing the cost of the Apple Watch for both large employers and individual customers.
Starting this fall during open enrollment season, Aetna will subsidize “a signficant portion” of the Apple Watch cost and will offer monthly payroll deductions to cover the remaining cost.
Aetna also plans to provide Apple Watches at no cost to all of its nearly 50,000 employees as part of a wellness reimbursement program to encourage them to live healthier lives.
“We are thrilled that Aetna will be helping their members and employees take greater control of their health using Apple Watch,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “Aetna’s new initiatives will be a powerful force toward creating better customer experiences in health care, and we look forward to working with Aetna to make them successful.”
Aetna plans to develop several iOS health initiatives with “support” from Apple, debuting “deeply integrated” health apps for the iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch that will be available to all Aetna customers.
According to Aetna, these apps will “simplify the healthcare process” with features like care management to guide customers through a new diagnosis or a medication, medication reminders and tools for easy refills, quick contact with doctors, integration with Apple Wallet for paying bills and checking deductibles, and tools to help Aetna members get the most out of their insurance benefits.
Aetna’s health-related apps will be available starting in early 2017, but the Apple Watch initiative will begin in 2016. Aetna has not detailed how much of the cost will be subsidized or which Apple Watch models will be available to subscribers.
Related Roundups: Apple Watch Series 2, watchOS 3
Tag: Aetna
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dodocool Solar charger with a built-in 10000mAh battery pack (review)
According to NASA, the Sun generates 386 billion megawatts of energy which is released as light and heat. The most powerful nuclear power plant in the US produces a meager 3,937 megawatts, where one megawatt powers about 1,000 homes. The point is the sun is a great source of free and powerful green energy. Not even nuclear power compares to the energy we fail to harness from the sun every single day.
Harnessing the Sun’s natural energy has become more mainstream and solar panels are now lightweight and efficient enough to power mobile devices. I’ve been using the dodocool Solar charger with a built-in 10000mAh battery pack and think it’s a solid option for those who sometimes need an alternative to wall outlets.
Build and Usage
The dodocool solar charger is mostly made of a durable ballistic nylon that folds up into a binder sized package. It has two solar panels that manage to draw in 12W of power with full sunlight and outputs the power in the form of dual USB ports at 2.1A (total). This solar charger from dodocool is one of a few with an actual built-in power bank, as many others that cost the same price or more simply have the charging panels with USB out ports.
Solar panel technology does not convert all of the sun’s power into electricity, and the dodocool charger converts it at 22% efficiency. That’s generally the norm even for home solar panels. 2.1A is certainly not enough power to charge Android devices at Quick Charge speeds, but it is fast enough to charge the entire battery bank in a full day of sunlight. Similar to home panels, if there are clouds or shade, the panels will not convert the sun’s power into electricity.
The dodocool solar charger is significantly better than those without power banks mainly because you do not need to leave your portable devices in full sunlight to charge. Leaving your smartphone, especially metal ones like those from HTC or Apple can turn your devices to scolding hot temperatures. That’s not good for your hands and it is definitely not good for the internal components.
With a kickstand built into the back, the dodocool solar charger can easily be left in direct sunlight without having to monitor it. There is also a cable that can be adjusted to stand the charger at an optimal angle.
On the corners of the charging panels are metal holes which can be used to attached to the rear side of backpacks. That’s a thoughtful design for those who love to hike or backpack in the back country where solar power is the only option.
The power bank is rated at 10000mAh which is enough power to charge most smartphone 2-3 times on a single charge. My Samsung Galaxy Note 7 took about an hour to charge from 5%-50% which three quarters of the power remaining. It’s not Quick Charge speed, but it is still fast enough to be highly functional.
You never know when you might run out of power, and having the sun as a viable option for mobile devices is one that wasn’t available to me just five years ago.
I live in San Diego where sun is plentiful, so consider your climate before purchasing a portable solar charger. If you live in northern climates that see more clouds than sun, it might not be a viable option of power for you.
Summary
What’s extremely nice about the dodocool Solar charger is the integrated 10000mAh power bank. The built-in battery allows users to store solar energy without having to leave devices directly in the sun to fry. It’s a great option for those who love the back country, or for those who want a source of back up power in case of power outages. Right now it is priced at $48.44 at Amazon with discount code 25ZW7E5F and is very affordable compared to the competition.
I leave my solar charger on my patio during the day to recharge, and then charge my smartphone and wireless headphones with it at night. It’s not a huge impact on energy consumption, but it is a good place to start. I will also be dragging it along on my annual camping trips as well to power my wireless speaker and other mobile devices.
Check out the dodocool Solar Charger with a built-in 10000mAh power bank at Amazon. Use discount code 25ZW7E5F at checkout to drop the price to $48.44 from $56.99
Dodocool fast wireless charger: Solid performer for a reasonable price (review)
Call of Duty: Heroes (review)
Not Super. But a Hero, nonetheless.
Lately game publishers have been eager to spin off their popular console and PC titles onto mobile platforms, in order to broaden their audience and cash in on the popularity of some big name games. Call of Duty: Heroes is a perfect example of this push towards market expansion and big name proliferation.
Created by newcomers Faceroll Games, Call of Duty: Heroes sets players on a path of resource gathering, troop and operations management, and leader of the heroes, as a commander of a military base. As missions are completed, the player is rewarded with fuel and money which brings more items, heroes, and resources to expand. The overall mission structure is fairly strong and the base mechanics work well, as long as you can avoid the occasional network issues.
Being a free-to-play game, you will come across the “pay-to-advance” system that is unfortunately found in many games. Each building you create or troop you train takes time, and in order to skip the wait, you can spend the in game currency, Celerium. However players also have the option to watch video advertisements in order to acquire more Celerium.
Occasionally you’ll attack bases from a first-person mode
Overall, the base-building and supply gather system can be quite addictive. This is a tactical, real-time strategy game interspersed with short mini-game action sequences. Troops and buildings are discernible from the bland backgrounds and the sounds and music are good, but not quite what we normally expect from a Call of Duty game.
Controlling heroes is where the game gets a little more in depth and consequently a little more entertaining. All heroes are callbacks from the mainline Call of Duty games and fun to watch when they’re out strutting their stuff. Each hero has the ability to go on ‘Killstreaks’ as they progress through their own missions. This is a nice changeup to the otherwise bland mechanics found in basic troops.
Captain Price makes a return as a “Hero”
As you complete missions you’ll open up new play styles including a PvP mode that lets you play online against others and a survival mode that pits you against waves of enemy forces. Upgrade quickly and effectively and you’ll soon find yourself on the next mission – or make a mistake in allocating resources and you may find yourself scrambling for the appropriate weapons and troops to take down your enemy.
Call of Duty: Heroes doesn’t bring anything new or amazing to the table, but its overall polish, variety and unique callbacks within the franchise, make for a solid game. Any fan of military action or strategy games -or Call of Duty fans in general – will find a solid amount of entertainment and gameplay here. Heroes is a back-pocket call to duty that’s worthy of recruitment.
Check out Call of Duty:Heroes at the Google Play Store.
Best Minimalist Cases for Samsung Galaxy Note 7
Show off the sleek design of your Samsung Galaxy Note 7 with these minimalist cases.
If you’re the type who shies away from putting a case on your phone because you don’t like all that added bulk in your pocket, then you need to consider a minimalist case. They offer protection from scratches and scuffs while keeping the overall look and feel of your phone intact.
Without further ado, let’s dive in and look at the best minimalist options for your Galaxy Note 7.
- Samsung Note 7 Clear Protective Cover
- CUVR Carbon Fibre Ultra-Light PC Case
- Spigen Slim and Soft Liquid Crystal
- CaliCase Premium Ultra Thin Case
- Spigen Galaxy Note 7 Thin Fit Case
Samsung Galaxy Note 7 Clear Protective Cover
Let’s start with a minimalist case offered by Samsung themselves. Offering basic protection for your Note 7, this slim and clear case is an ideal option for showcasing your phone’s beautiful design. This case also features harder plastic around the corners to help protect against drops.
And since it’s made by the same company that makes the phone, rest assured that this case is precisely designed to stay snug to your phone while keeping all your ports, speakers and the S Pen perfectly accessible.
See at Samsung
CUVR Carbon Fibre Ultra-Light PC Case
Ultra-light with a slick carbon fibre look along the back plate, this case brings its own stylish touches to your phone while barely adding any bulk to the Note 7. This is a two-piece case, with a tough polycarbonate bumper — available in either rose gold or grey — and a shell that features the carbon fibre pattern on the exterior and soft TPU material on the inside to help with shock absorption from drops.
Of course you’ll have full access to all your ports and the S-Pen, and the CUVR case also fully supports wireless charging. It’s all backed by a one-year warranty with a 30-day return policy if you’re not immediately satisfied with your purchase.
See at Amazon
Spigen Slim & Soft Liquid Crystal
The first of two minimalist Spigen cases to make this list, the Slim & Soft Liquid Crystal is a pliable TPU case that offers solid protection against scratches and scuffs from drops while remaining virtually invisible once installed. This case is about as minimalist as they come, offering about a millimeter of raised lip around the camera on the back, and roughly the same for the lip around the display. If you’re bothered by the sight of fingerprints you’ll want to look elsewhere, as the glossy finish is a magnet for them.
See at Amazon
CaliCase Premium Ultra Thin Case
The CaliCase Premium is the perfect case for those looking for a paper thin option. Featuring a thickness of just 0.35mm, you’re really not going to get much real protection from a serious drop, but it will help prevent your phone from getting scratched and scuffed. It’s made of polypropylene and adds virtually no bulk to your phone, with a matte finish that won’t show fingerprints or dirt and cutouts for the S Pen, ports, buttons and speakers.
It’s available in clear white, clear black and solid black, so you can opt for the style that suits you best.
See at Amazon
Spigen Galaxy Note 7 Thin Fit Case
The Thin Fit case by Spigen offers a stylish, sturdy shell for your Note 7 — and that’s about it. The buttons are left fully exposed on the sides and there are cutout on the bottom for the S Pen, ports and speakers.
There are breaks in the plastic around the corners so it’s easy to slip on and off, but this also means that there’s less protection for drops on the corners. That just the sort of compromise you need to be comfortable making when you’re in the market for a minimalist case.
See at Amazon
Did we miss anything?
Are there any minimalist cases for the Note 7 that should be on this list? Let us know in the comments!
Samsung Galaxy Note 7
- Galaxy Note 7 recall: Everything you need to know
- Samsung Galaxy Note 7 review
- The latest Galaxy Note 7 news!
- Here are all four Note 7 colors
- Complete Galaxy Note 7 specs
- Join the Note 7 discussion in the forums!
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Honor 8 Second Opinion: A great phone with a few quirks
With Honor not being a huge player in the U.S., the Honor 8 may not be on your radar, but it should be.
Honor is moving towards a larger presence in the states, and the Honor 8 is a great product. Bringing to market a powerful phone that has specs people crave, with awesome build quality, makes the phone quite attractive to many. Over the past two years the budget space has become a whole lot more competitive, with great offerings coming from OnePlus, ZTE, Alcatel and other players.
If you are in the market for a new phone but don’t want a monthly payment, or don’t think that any phone is worth $800 or more, the Honor 8 offers you a great way to get that premium experience without the price tag. For all the things that Honor did great with it, there are a number of things that could stand to change as well, so let’s take a look at some of them.
For the past two weeks, my T-Mobile SIM card has been in the Honor 8, and it may stay in for longer. Here’s why.
Hardware
It seems like we’ve hit peak hardware design on mobile phones. Over the past few years, things have started looking increasingly similar, and those who are trying new things are getting ridiculed for it. Honor goes with a tried and true design on the Honor 8, but does it in a clean and classy way. The front of the phone is a single glass panel that doesn’t have much of bezel on the top or bottom. At the top you’ve got a LED in the speaker grill, the front-facing camera, and a proximity sensor. Honor has placed its logo down at the bottom, which takes away from the clean look a bit.
It seems like we’ve hit peak hardware design on mobile phones.
Around the back, you’ve got the dual camera set up at the top, with the fingerprint sensor below that. There is another Honor branding at the bottom of the phone with a bit more text, but that is far less noticeable than the one around the front. It is also a glass back, which can be slippery and needs to be treated with care. The left side of the phone has the SIM and SD card tray, and around the right side you’ve got a volume rocker at the top and the power button beneath that.
In the hand, the Honor 8 feels as good as it looks. It can be slippery, and the glass back is likely to get some scratches over time, but that doesn’t take away from it. Honor has gone with USB-C for the charging port down at the bottom, and next to that is the headphone jack.
Software
If you aren’t familiar with Huawei and Honor’s EMUI, you are in for quite an experience with this one. For all the things that it does well, there are an equal number of things that are enough to drive you nuts. Since you are buying an unlocked phone here, you don’t have to worry about it being bogged down by carrier bloat, though there are a few apps that you will likely want to remove. Luckily, removing them is as easy as heading into Google Play and uninstalling them, or going to the app manager to do the same.
In the hand, the Honor 8 feels as good as it looks.
EMUI 4.1 definitely feels pretty polished but also lacking some basic Android functionality that you may be used to. One of the biggest qualms that I have with it is the lack of ability to act on your notifications from the lock screen. You can see the notifications, and swipe to launch the corresponding app, but that is it. You can’t delete your emails or quickly reply to a text message from your lock screen. You have to unlock the phone, then head into the app and do what you need to do. Sure, it’s part of the way that EMUI works at a core level, but it quickly becomes frustrating, especially if this isn’t your first Android phone.
Navigating the OS is fast, and fluid. There is no app drawer, so all of your app icons sit on the home screens. You can organize them into folders but you can’t take them off the home screen and put them in the app drawer. Of course, you could always download a third-party launcher like Nova or Action 3, but Honor even somewhat buries the setting to switch which of them is your default.
For all the things Honor’s software does well, there are an equal number of things that are enough to drive you nuts.
With EMUI, you aren’t stuck with the icons and other UI elements, as they can be easily themed. While discovery on the themes lacks, you can download a few from Google Play (with Stockify being a personal favorite) and some forums offer others as well. The problem with downloading them from forums is that you are manually hunting down updates for it each time, the themes won’t automatically update or even notify you there is a new version.
Honor has already committed to bringing Android Nougat to the phone, along with EMUI 5.0, which is said to improve some of the features that people don’t care for in current versions of the OS.
Camera
I am by no means an excellent photographer, but having a camera that works well definitely helps. The Honor 8 camera is an excellent one and offers the ability to shoot in auto or head into Pro mode for even more control. On the rear, you’ve got a 12MP dual-camera set up, which has one of them giving the phone a color image and the other monochrome. You don’t need to handle them separately or worry about them, they do what they need to do behind the scenes.
Once you launch the camera you can swipe to the left or right to reveal more options if you don’t want to just point and shoot. Swiping towards the left will bring up a menu to adjust the size of the image, add a grid, location services, etc. A swipe in the opposite direction brings up the other modes so you can switch from Auto to Pro or HDR and pano. The camera is very easy to use, and with little effort, you should be able to capture some images that you are extremely happy with.
The camera on the Honor 8 is something you’d expect to find on a more expensive phone, but it has a few quirks as well. The f/2.2 lens is a little on the slow side, and you won’t get OIS here either. At times, the camera can have trouble picking a focal spot, but that wasn’t overly frequent. You won’t be replacing your DSLR by carrying this around, but you will be able to take some pictures that you can certainly be proud of. The more time you spend playing with the Pro settings, the better the pictures can get.
Around the front, Honor has placed an 8MP camera that does a great job of taking those stunning selfies, as long as you turn the beauty mode that it defaults to off. The beauty mode overcompensates and makes your skin look photoshopped and extremely unnatural. It has a feature that allows it to take a picture when it recognizes a smile, which is a small but useful feature.
Battery Life
Battery life is always subjective, and it will vary for everyone. For having a 3000mAh battery built-in, odds are that it will leave you impressed at the end of the day. There hasn’t been a day that I haven’t made it ’til bedtime with power left, and that includes heavy Pokémon Go usage, email, social networking, texting and more throughout the day. There are a number of battery saving features that are built into EMUI, but some of them can be a pain.
Once you take some time to sort the apps that you want to exclude from the battery saving features, the operation of it is super smooth and odds are that you will be able to make it through the day easily. If you are just someone who can eat through battery life like no other, the built-in fast charging will quickly become your best friend.
Overall
Honor does a pretty great job here of meshing premium hardware and usable software with a great camera, all without breaking the bank. At $400, it’s hard to say that this phone isn’t worth checking out. Sure, there are some quirks, but you will experience that with phones in every price range. The pros definitely outweigh the cons here. Being an unlocked phone, you just toss your existing SIM card in the phone and you are good to go.
Be ready to spend some time adjusting from the experience you are used to using to the one that Huawei and Honor have envisioned with EMUI. Give it a few days, learn the ins and outs, and odds are that you will come away from it extremely happy with your purchase.
See at Honor
Google and Udacity now have a VR Developer Nanodegree!
Get a crash course in VR development.
Google’s relationship with Udacity over the last year has led to several fantastic Android developer Nanodegree programs, and today the two companies have announced a new direction for their partnership. Anyone looking to get a quick, meaningful education in the world of VR development can sign up for the new Virtual Reality Developer Nanodegree program available starting today. According to Google and Udacity, the Nanodegree focuses on:
- Mobile phone-based VR and Desktop VR
- Game engines
- VR design and user interaction
- 360 media including immersive imagery, 360 video and spatial sound
- Performance and ergonomics
- VR platforms, including HTC Vive, Google Cardboard (Android + iOS), Daydream and Oculus Rift
This is a highly anticipated continuation of the focus on VR seen at Google I/O this past year. Google’s efforts in VR extend well beyond enabling developers to support Google Cardboard and Daydream thanks to support from Unity 3D and others. With the overall goal of making it possible for developers to make a single VR experience available on multiple platforms, it’s clear there’s a lot happening to ensure Google’s Daydream platform has plenty of quality support when it is released.
With Google’s VR SDK already available and this Nanodegree empowering new developers, there are surely high hopes for Daydream. The timing of this release may mean Daydream isn’t going to be available alongside the launch of Google’s new Pixel phones, but we’ll have plenty of details on that front after the launch event on October 4. Until then, break out the virtual textbooks and build something cool for VR!
Sign up for the VR Developer Nanodegree at Udacity!
BMW partners with a Formula E racing team
BMW has already dabbled in Formula E between an i3 medical car and an i8 safety car, but it’s ready to commit to the electric racing league in a much bigger way. The German brand has unveiled plans to “cooperate closely” with the Andretti Formula E team over two seasons. It’s primarily promising engineering and resource sharing, but BMW has greater ambitions: it’s studying the methodology of the league to consider the possibility of “works involvement” (that is, direct operation of a team) in the 2018-2019 season.
Naturally, this isn’t just about getting the BMW roundel in front of more eyeballs. The company hopes that its racing and standard production groups will learn a thing or two from each other, shaping its long-term plans. It’s not hard to see what could happen from there — BMW could learn more about developing high-performance EVs and expand its eco-friendly lineup beyond a couple of niche models. Think of this team-up as a hint at the automaker’s long-term future.
Via: The Verge
Source: BMW
AIVAnet 