Roam the Valve HQ reception in VR and find the cake already
When the folks at Valve aren’t fiddling with Steam, updating popular first-party franchises or working on wacky projects, they like to have a little fun. Or, at least the team working on Valve’s Destinations VR title does. Destinations is a casual, multiplayer experience for exploring community-created worlds and playing simple games with friends. And now, as of the title’s most recent update, anyone with a Vive or Rift can feel what it’s like to venture inside the hallowed ground that is Valve HQ.
Alright, so it’s only a virtual representation of the Valve lobby and adjoining halls, but Gabe Newell himself welcomes you. Fancy that! Also, the level of detail goes as far as branded mousepads and other decor that nods to Valve’s various games. When you’re bored of spinning the iconic red ring rising from the reception floor, the latest Destinations update also includes a new “Arcade Toss” experience, public lobbies and updated tutorials. If you leave Valve HQ in a hurry, though, who knows what easter eggs you might miss out on. Cake, perhaps?
Via: UploadVR
Source: Steam
Daily brief: Android Weariness, Google Maps listens, and what the heck is LeEco?
What happened on September 29?
Do you use a smartwatch? I do, and there’s a higher-than-normal percent chance that you do, too, if you’re reading this. But do your friends and family members adorn Moto 360s, Gear S2s or Pebbles? Perhaps some wear an Apple Watch? The more likely answer is that they wear a Fitbit, if anything at all. I still know some folks who wear the same Casio calculator watch they graduated high school with 20 years ago. Man, I’m getting old.
With the new that Android Wear 2.0 is getting pushed to early 2017, it occurs to me that the smartwatch wave rose and fell more quickly than even tablets, settling into the steady pace of iteration we see today. It helped that companies already had a pretty good playbook to work from, but it also speaks to the fact that, being accessories, they don’t need to be overly complicated. But with Google bringing elements of the Play Store to Android Wear devices, it appears the company is readying itself for the swift proliferation of 3G and LTE-connected watches. Will they catch on? Will people even want to leave their phones at home?
I doubt it, but what do I know? I’m just a blogger.
Android Wear reboot has been delayed until next year
It was never realistic to expect Android Wear 2.0 to debut in 2016, given the state it was in back at Google I/O. But alongside the penultimate developer preview, which introduced a number of great new features to the next version of Google’s wearables platform, the company announced it was pushing back its public release until “early 2017.” Still worth the wait. More
Google Maps gets safer with new hands-free voice support
Using your phone in the car is a bad thing. We can all agree on that, right? But it’s inevitable sometimes, especially when navigating. Now, Google Maps has added “OK Google” support for those times you just need to know where the closest sushi joint is while on your way to visit grandma. More
Huawei Mate 9 launch event set for Nov. 3 in Munich
Expect a big screen, crazy specs (up to 6GB of RAM, 256GB of storage) from the new Huawei flagship, which should run a new, cleaner EMUI interface based on Android 7.0 Nougat. More
LeEco is jumping headfirst into to the U.S. next month
LeEco, the huge Chinese company that sells everything from TVs to smartphones to self-driving cars is throwing itself a housewarming party of sorts to celebrate its entry into the U.S. The company is holding an event on October 19 in San Francisco to show off its “ecosystem model that integrates platform, content, devices and applications for a truly connected experience.” OK, then. More
Google Apps for Work is now G Suite
Google has rebranded their business offerings with a new name — G Suite. Formerly known as Google Apps for Your Domain and then just Google Apps, the new handle still encompasses the same core applications many businesses use every day: Gmail, Docs, Drive, Calendar, Hangouts, and more. Google says the new name will help promote their original goal to help people work and innovate together.
LG V20 pre-orders begin October 17 in the U.S.
Mark Monday, October 17 on your calendar as the day the LG V20 goes up for pre-order in the States. While earlier reports indicated the phone would be available sooner, it seems more likely that the original shipping date of October 21 is accurate. Oh, well.
Samsung expects Korean Note 7 return rate to hit 80% by Oct. 1 restart date
According to Reuters, the company has restarted TV commercials for the beleaguered phone, and is offering 50% off repairs for Korean customers buying in the month of October. More
Sony Xperia XZ Dual coming to India Oct. 1
The dual-SIM version of a phone we’re already familiar with will be available in India in blue, black and grey. Sony promises a free Smartband Talk SWR30 for pre-order customers, as well as free paid app content.
Samsung says 1 million users around the world have Note 7 with safe battery
The news comes as Samsung looks to wrap up its global recall and recommence sales of the phone around the world. Reuters reports that the company also apologized to Chinese consumers for not adequately explaining that Note 7s sold in China were safe, as they used a battery from another supplier.
OnePlus 3 in Soft Gold coming to India Oct. 1
The phone will be sold exclusively on Amazon India for ₹27,999 ($420). More
Lyrics are coming to Spotify on Android
Starting with a rollout in Japan, lyrics support is coming to Spotify users on Android, after rolling out to desktop listeners earlier this year.
Rogers really, really wants you to buy a Moto Z from them
Rogers is giving away a Moto Insta-Share Projector with each pre-order of the Moto Z until October 4. Valued at $399 the pico projector is one of the more intriguing Moto Mods available for the Moto Z line — though the JBL SoundBoost speaker may have been more useful, just saying. More
Many Android Wear watches don’t work with the iPhone 7
It took nearly two weeks for anyone to notice.
Google decided not to release Android Wear 2.0 this autumn
Google has release the third preview of Android Wear 2.0 for developers and announced it is delaying the software’s official launch for consumers.
Earlier this month, reports claimed LG, Lenovo, and Huawei aren’t planning to release new Android Wear smartwatches in 2016, which seemed to imply they are in no hurry to put out new hardware, as consumer demand is reportedly not so demanding. Google was expected to unleash Android Wear 2.0 this autumn, but with no new smartwatches out to run it or even demo it, many wondered if that would affect the software’s launch.
The Mountain View, CA-based company has now confirmed the overhaul of its wearable OS won’t officially release for smartwatches until early 2017. To soften that blow however, Google revealed that the new third developer preview includes the Google Play Store, meaning the software will eventually let you download apps directly to your watch instead of queuing them on your phone.
So, with this Play Store integration, you’ll be able to download paid titles and beta tests, browse recommended apps, and search for specific apps. You’ll be able to download them without having to send them to your phone, too, as developers can now develop apps that live just on the watch.
Beyond the Play Store, Android Wear 2.0, which Google announced at I/O 2016 in May, is a major update that’ll bring a new user interface, widgets called “complications” for watch faces, a new keyboard for messaging, and more.
Google neglected to provide a specific 2017 release date for Android Wear 2.0.
- There won’t be any big new Android Wear smartwatches this year
Google’s ride-sharing platform is now live in San Francisco
Waze Rider, the ride-sharing version of the popular Google-owned navigation app, is now open to the general public in the Bay Area. After several months in private beta, the Wall Street Journal reports that Google is ready to open up its casual carpool competitor to Uber and Lyft.
There are some appreciable differences between Waze Rider and its more established rivals, however. For starters, Google only allows drivers and riders to take two trips per day. Drivers only make $0.54 per mile, so they’re only getting reimbursed for the mileage rather than turning a profit. While both of those features keep the service limited to commuters for now, they also skirt the regulations that Lyft and Uber are now subject to. According to the Journal, drivers only need to submit their general schedule and their home and work addresses to sign up. Google says it has no current plans to require background checks, proof of insurance or car photos because the platform is only meant to fill empty seats with riders heading the same way.
A Journal reporter who took a test ride from San Francisco to Oakland noted the app still had some bugs — namely that the driver couldn’t use Waze’s actual navigation service during the trip, but it was otherwise uneventful. That trip also paid out $6.30 to the driver and only cost the rider $3, which is a bargain compared to the estimated $23–30 cost for a rush hour Lyft or Uber.
Via: Wall Street Journal
Periscope’s website now organizes live videos into good old channels
Yup, Periscope is still a thing: Twitter’s live video streaming service just announced some new discovery features to make its web portal to the world more useful. Taking a page out of the aging but still successful broadcast TV playbook, Periscope is offering up sets of “curated channels.” Some are hashtag-driven, like #Music, #Food, #Art and #Travel — those will be updated whenever some goes live on Periscope.
Another set of channels will focus on current, planned events, like the presidential debates, and the last category of channels will be created as breaking news warrants. That’s for things like the recent protests in Charlotte, NC. Digging into the latter groups of channels will surface both live broadcasts as well as completed videos that you can replay. Scrolling over a video will start a preview that you can watch, and clicking it will launch the full recording.
This is all well and good, but Periscope remains a mobile-first app, so most people are probably still going to interact with the service on their phones. But if you’re the kind of person who wants to kick back and see what kind of crazy stuff people are chatting about at any given moment, Periscope’s redesigned website is as good a choice as any.
Source: Periscope
Google opens up its machine learning tricks to all
There may now be an easier way to implement advanced machine learning models in your projects. Google has opened up its Cloud Machine Learning to all businesses in a public beta, after a few months of testing it in private alpha. The tool makes it easier to train models at a much faster rate, and is integrated with the Google Cloud Platform. This has applications for businesses in areas such as customer support (learning how to automate responses to a variety of queries and complaints) or any kind of repetition-heavy task.
In a blog post, Google described how its customer Airbus Defense and Space used the tool to automate the detection and correction of satellite images that contain imperfections such as cloud formations. According to the blog, an Airbus employee said Google’s tool “enabled us to improve the accuracy and speed at which we analyze the images captured from our satellites. It solved a problem that has existed for decades.”
That speed and ease of use are what really stands out about Google’s algorithms. To facilitate adoption, the company also launched a Machine Learning Advanced Solutions Lab that gives companies access to a Google engineer to help solve complex problems. It also debuted a Cloud Start program for businesses to learn the basics of the public cloud and how to identify opportunities to implement machine learning.
Google is also introducing a certification program to teach people how to “design, train and deploy accurate machine learning models.” The curriculum will be taught by Googlers, and is based on internal education methods.
While this news may mean more to startups and other enterprise users, Google’s apparent efforts to mainstream machine learning will affect a far larger audience. The company also announced today that it will implement the advanced learning method in its popular Docs, Drive and Calendar services to make them more productive. It also isn’t the only tech titan to be trying to simplify artificial intelligence adoption. Facebook has already publicly shared its AI bot-building code, as well as its similarly smart image recognition tech.
Via: TechCrunch
Source: Google
The CW’s New Apple TV App Doesn’t Require a Cable Subscription to Watch
As promised last week, The CW network today released a new Apple TV app that allows all fourth-generation Apple TV owners to watch new episodes of shows on the network for free with no cable authentication or login required.
All of the shows on The CW, including Supergirl, The Flash, Jane The Virgin, Arrow, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, iZombie, Supernatural, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, The 100 Vampire Diaries, Reign, and The Originals are available to watch, with ads. Users simply need to download the app and click play on a show to watch, with no other hoops to jump through.
The CW’s iOS and Apple TV apps focus on only the newest episodes, with no archived content available from past seasons. Only five episodes from the most recent season are available to watch, but it’s all free and should be welcome news to cord cutters who are hoping other television networks might adopt similar policies.
On iOS devices, an update to the CW app introduces support for both AirPlay and Chromecast, allowing content from the iOS app to be streamed to a television set as an alternative to using the Apple TV app or as a way to watch The CW’s content on television sets without owning a fourth-generation Apple TV.
The CW can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]
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Fitbit Flex 2 review – CNET
The Good The Flex 2 is slim and swim-proof, can track basic fitness data and supports a variety of accessories, including pendants.
The Bad It lacks a display and the more advanced features of other Fitbit trackers. Lacks heart rate tracking. The LED lights can be confusing; battery life should be better.
The Bottom Line The Fitbit Flex 2 doesn’t have all of the bells and whistles of other trackers, but it’s finally swim-proof, and it does the basics and it does them well.
At last, there’s a Fitbit that’s swim-proof!
But in exchange for that long-overdue swim-friendliness, other features are lost. There’s no heart rate tracking, and it doesn’t have a display. Are you okay with that compromise?
The Flex 2 looks, in many ways, like the perfect slim tracker from Fitbit that we’d wanted for a while: It’s like Fitbit’s version of the Jawbone Up2. It’s $100 (£80, AU$130) and will begin shipping in early October. It comes with a rubber strap in both large and small sizes, but the beauty of the Flex 2 is its customization.
You can pop out the tracker and pop it into a different color wristband, a metal bangle or even a necklace. It’s the most versatile Fitbit, and much like the older Flex, it comes with a variety of fashion-branded accessories from Tory Burch and others. It’s an overdue upgrade, and the water resistance and swim racking on the Flex 2 might be reason enough to get it for some.
I do like the Flex 2. It’s the tracker to get if you want something that can be both discreet and stylish. It’s a sleeker tracker than the bulkier Fitbit Alta released earlier this year. It’s priced well. But yes, there are sacrifices to be made.
Swim-proof (finally!)
The Flex 2 is the first Fitbit you can wear in the shower and while swimming. It’s waterproof down to 50 meters (about 164 feet) and can be used in both fresh water and salt water. I love not having to take the tracker off when it’s time to shower, which also means I am less likely to forget it on my dresser.
Like the Charge 2, the Flex 2 can also automatically recognize and record workouts. This includes walking, running, biking, aerobic exercise and others. Due to the new swim-proof design, it’s also the only Fitbit that can track swimming. Now that Fitbits are effectively automatic trackers, it’s a little easier to swallow the fact that this doesn’t have a display.
View full gallery Sarah Tew/CNET
It’s all about accessories
The Flex 2 is 30 percent smaller than its predecessor, the Fitbit Flex. It’s slim and discreet, which is what appeals to me, and it could even be worn next to a traditional watch (if you have the wrist room). My only complaint is with the strap. It’s secure and never fell off my wrist, but you have to swap out the two-prong connector when switching to a new strap, which was actually pretty difficult.
Besides the two different-sized bands in the box, there are a variety of accessory straps in multiple colors and designs. There are rubber ones, leather ones, and gold and silver bangles and pendants. The accessories start at $15 (£10, AU$20) for rubber straps, all the way to $100 (£75, AU$130) for the gold bangle.
View full gallery
The Fitbit Flex 2 pod and necklace (left) and Misfit Shine pod and necklace (right)
Sarah Tew/CNET
A quick poll of my female colleagues found that these designs, mainly the pendant, were appealing, especially compared with the nearest fitness-accessory equivalent, the Misfit Shine necklace (pictured above). One colleague complained that the bangle was “lacking pizzazz” and another said the Fitbit pendant was a little “too long,” but both liked these options better than the rubber strap.
Everyone agreed that having these accessory options is a good thing. They help keep the Flex 2’s design fresh, and help it not feel like a fitness tracker. While some complained about them being too expensive, most agreed they would make nice gifts.
In addition to the bangles and pendants mentioned above, Fitbit said we can expect more luxurious bands from designers like Tory Burch and Vera Wang.
AIVAnet 