Google’s Pixel phones arrive with full-res photo and video storage
Google has announced that its new smartphones, dubbed Pixel, will come with unlimited cloud storage for full-resolution pictures and videos. That’s a big deal if you plan to take advantage of the devices’ 4K shooting capabilities, as well as the large files produced by the 12.3-megapixel camera. It’s worth noting that the company already offers something similar with Google Photos, but that only applies to high quality media, rather than full resolution.
Not surprisingly, Google took a quick jab at Apple during the announcement, showing a screenshot of the infamous “Storage Full” message you get on iOS when your iPhone has ran out of built-in space. Google’s intention, of course, is that you won’t have to worry about this if you pick up one of its two Pixel phones.
Click here to catch all the latest news from Google’s fall event.
Google’s Pixel has the ‘best smartphone camera’ ever
Google has revealed the specs for its new Pixel smartphone’s 12.3-megapixel rear camera and they’re pretty impressive. For starters, its 89 score from DXOMark makes it the “best smartphone camera” ever, the company says, and brings it close to a dedicated compact camera in terms of sharpness and color accuracy. The relatively large sensor and smallish megapixel count yields a 1.55-micron pixel size, meaning the camera will generally be quicker and better in low light, too.
It also has the shortest capture time than any smartphone Google has ever tested, meaning there’s next to no shutter lag when you’re taking action shots. Because it’s so fast, the HDR function is always on, improving overly-bright daylight scenes and shadows that are too dark. Google says it splits images into short, multiple exposures in order to align pixels, eliminate blur and improve dynamic range. Needling Apple, it added that it does all that without a camera hump. Once the images are captured, the smartphone can process them twice as fast as previous models, thanks to the fast Snapdragon 821 CPU and 4GB of RAM.
Google hasn’t forgotten about video, either. The Pixel can capture 4K video at 30fps, 1080p video at 120 fps and 720p at 240 fps. The company also showed an impressive video stabilization demo of someone walking (jerkily) down the street, with stabilization turned on and off. Suffice to say, the stabilized version was smooth, while the un-stabilized footage was basically unusable. Google said the camera samples the gyroscope 200 times per second, instantly compensating for shaking and rolling shutter, also known as the jello effect.
One can’t help but compare Google’s Pixel smartphone camera to the ones on the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus. In sum, the Pixel lacks the iPhone 7 Plus’s telephoto lens and depth-of-field “bokeh” capacity, but is faster and has better optics, if the DXOMark score is any indication. However, both iPhone 7 models pack faster f/1.8 lenses than the f/2.0 glass on the Pixel. We’ll need to get our hands on the Pixel to confirm that, of course.
Being native Google devices, Pixel smartphones will have Google Photos built in, of course, making it easier to back up and search for photos. Both the 5-inch Pixel and 5.5-inch Pixel XL go up for pre-order starting today, and will arrive to the US at Verizon first.
Click here to catch all the latest news from Google’s fall event.
Source: Google Store
Google $80 Daydream VR headset is soft and self-contained
Google unveiled its upcoming VR headset, dubbed the “Daydream View”, during its Made by Google event in San Francisco on Tuesday. The View looks nothing like similar VR rigs and, according to Google’s VR lead, Clay Bavor, that’s a good thing.
For one, the headset is crafted from fabric rather than hard plastic. Google worked with a number of clothing manufacturers to create the View’s fabric covering, which is available in three colors: Snow, Slate and Crimson. What’s more, its phone mounting system is fully self contained and, rather than place the headset’s controls on the headset itself or require clunky wands, the View utilizes a small Wii-like remote that stores away in the headset so you don’t lose it. The number of straps and clips needed to keep the device on your face have also been minimized. Best of all, you won’t need to take your glasses off to use it.
The new Pixel will be the first Daydream Ready phone on the market but Google announced that a number of other models from various manufacturers will be certified as well. When the headset does drop, Google will have plenty of content for it. The company revealed a Harry Potter VR experience that will be ready on launch day and is currently working to bring both Hulu and Netflix to the platform.
The company first announced its VR efforts in May at the I/O conference and has already built a robust developer program but it wasn’t until a Bloomberg article surfaced in August that speculation of the Daydream’s imminent release accelerated. Today, those rumors proved accurate. The View will be made available in November and will retail for just $80.
Click here to catch all the latest news from Google’s fall event.
Google Pixel tools help you switch from an iPhone
We’ve seen many attempts at helping you switch from one smartphone platform to another, but Google is kicking things up a notch with its Pixel smartphones. The lineup will include software to bring over contacts, media and messages from other phones, including iPhones. It’ll even bring over your iMessages, in case you’re worried that all those blue chat bubbles will disappear while moving to Android. To that end, Google bundles an adapter to help iPhone owners make the leap. These tools aren’t that necessary if you store a lot of your data in the cloud, but it’s evident that Google wants to remove as many pain points as possible — it wants Pixel to appeal to everyone.
Click here to catch all the latest news from Google’s fall event.
Chromecast Ultra brings 4K and HDR to Google’s streaming pucks
With the last Chromecast, Google managed to turn its inexpensive streaming device into something that was fast and genuinely useful. Now, as the rumors foretold, we’ve got a 4K/HDR upgrade in the Chromecast Ultra. It’s still a svelte puck like the earlier models, but it’s got a bit of a stealth bomber aesthetic. And at $69, it’s far more expensive than the current $35 Chromecast. Still, it comes in $10 less than Roku’s cheapest 4K player, and it’ll be useful for anyone who wants to quickly shoot high-res video to their new 4K TVs.
Google says Chromecast Ultra is 1.8x as fast as the last model, and it also includes Ethernet support through a dongle. Google Play Movies will also get 4K support soon to provide content to the new Chromecast, and it’ll offer HDR with the Dolby Vision standard.
Chromecast Ultra will be available in November, where it’s going to go head-to-head with Roku’s new players, Amazon’s 4K Fire TV devices and potentially a new Apple TV.
Click here to catch all the latest news from Google’s fall event.
A new ‘Harry Potter’ adventure will hit Google’s VR platform
One of the first pieces of content to launch on Google’s new Daydream mobile VR platform is simply magical. A VR experience built around Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, a new film in the Harry Potter universe premiering in November, is heading to Daydream. Google only teased the experience on-stage at its Made by Google event today, but it dropped one crucial piece of information: Players will be able to use the Daydream controller as a wand in the game.
The Daydream controller functions similarly to Nintendo’s Wii remote — it’s a slim, motion-tracking stick with a few buttons. Basically, it’s a great stand-in for an actual magical wand (just don’t tell Ollivander).
Daydream headsets cost $80 and start shipping in November. Google’s new Pixel phones, which are Daydream-ready, are available to pre-order today starting at $650.
Click here to catch all the latest news from Google’s fall event.
Google WiFi is a router that simplifies whole-home wireless
Those rumors of Google giving WiFi routers another shot? They’re true. Meet Google WiFi, a router designed entirely in-house… and with a few nice advantages over the OnHub line. Apart from being much smaller (no vase-like design here), its big trick is its ability to create an Eero-style mesh network. You only have to add additional units to your network to improve coverage — there’s a Network Assistant app that makes it easy to add more routers and improve your signal.
The companion software also lets you control the devices linked to the router, such as enabling or disabling their connections. You’ll have to wait until December to get Google WiFi (pre-orders start in November), but the pricing at least hits the sweet spot. Routers cost $129 each, and you can get a three-pack for $299 if you need to blanket your home.
Click here to catch all the latest news from Google’s fall event.
Source: Google WiFi
AI-powered voice-assistant Google Home costs $129
During its hardware-announcing extravaganza Google announced that its voice-powered assistant/Bluetooth speaker Google Home will cost $129 and will ship in November. It’s the stationary piece of Google’s AI plans to make the platform all about you. “The goal is to build a personal Google for each and every user,” CEO Sundar Pichai said.
Like the Amazon Alexa platform, the voice-activated Google Home assistant will control connected home devices. Right now it’ll work with Nest Thermostat, SmartThings, Philips and IFTTT. But it also acts as a Chromecast that can stream and be used to control other Google casting devices with your voice. Users can ask for YouTube videos and music. Netflix will soon support voice control so eventually you’ll be able to say, “Ok, Google. Watch Luke Cage on my TV” and it’ll launch Netflix and the show.
The assistant also supports music streaming from YouTube Music, Google Play Music, Spotify, Pandora, Tunein and IHeart Radio. Because it’s powered by Google’s powerful search engine you can ask for music using odd queries like, “play that Shakira song from Zootopia.”
That search power also makes query answers more robust. It’s like having the Google search bar talking to you in your home.
Plus it also accesses Google Assistant and your Google account for information about your daily schedule with a feature called My Day. It uses to share details about your day with you before you head out the door including weather, schedule and traffic.
If you happen to have more than one Google Home in your house, so you don’t inadvertently wake all of them up at once with “Ok, Google,” the company announced that the devices are context aware and that the device that hears your voice the best, will wake up.
From the smartphone to your house the company has a very clear goal according to “our vision for the Google Assistant is to be universal. To be there when you always need it to be.”
Developing
Click here to catch all the latest news from Google’s fall event.
Source: Google
Faraday Future unveils ‘world’s highest energy density’ EV battery
Faraday Future has partnered with LG Chem to build battery packs for Faraday’s upcoming FFZero1 supercar and other vehicles that use its new electric car platform. In a joint press release, the companies said they have produced “the world’s highest energy density for a production automotive battery.” Faraday Future and its products are still a mystery, but LG Chem is a well-known firm that’s supplying batteries for two important EVs set to arrive this year: the Chevy Bolt and Renault Zoe.
Tesla and Panasonic are the current car battery density champs, and Elon Musk’s company is the only one building cars with 60 kWh and larger batteries. As Electrek points out, Tesla managed the feat using cylindrical batteries, and Faraday Future recently tweeted out a picture of what looks like its own cylindrical battery.
There’s a new vehicle in LA 🌿👀🌿 pic.twitter.com/h21ZjCT3rg
— Everette Taylor (@Everette) August 22, 2016
Like Mercedes and Volkswagen, Faraday has developed an EV platform it wants to use with a number of different vehicles. Called the “Variable Platform Architecture” (VPA), it can be lengthened or shortened to support vehicles with different sizes, powertrains and battery configurations.
Faraday Future’s plans are still unknown. The only vehicle it has flaunted so far, the FFZero1 supercar, is clearly not a mass market EV. A Twitter user recently spotted a camouflaged crossover vehicle thought to be a Faraday’s Tesla Model X competitor, and the company is likely working on LeEco’s LeSee, too. LeEco, a Chinese consumer electronics giant, is reportedly funding Faraday and recently announced plans for a $1.8 billion EV plant in China. Faraday, meanwhile, is building its own $1 billion factory in Nevada and partnering with other automakers, including Aston Martin.
Faraday recently hired engineering talent away from Tesla and GM, according to reports, and was granted permission to test autonomous cars in California. It will be hard to take it too seriously until it unveils a mainstream electric car of some kind, but given that it has unveiled its new battery, that should be happening soon.
Via: Techcrunch
Source: Faraday Future
Ultimate Ears Adds Siri to UE Boom 2, Lets You Sync Over 50 Speakers at Once
Ultimate Ears today updated its iOS and Android apps with a feature called “Party Up” that lets users connect “more than 50” of its Bluetooth speakers at once (via TechCrunch). When synced together, every speaker can be simultaneously controlled from a single mobile device, with the music selection and volume synced together across every speaker. Additionally, the company’s UE Boom 2 speaker is gaining Siri integration with today’s update, making it “quicker, easier, and more convenient than ever to keep your party going.”
After updating the app, users can find the new setting by swiping right-to-left on the home screen. In this new Party Up section of the app, guest speakers will appear at the bottom of the screen, called the drawer, and all users have to do is drag and drop each speaker they want to sync up into the middle of the screen. Similarly, to remove a speaker from the party, drag and drop it back into the drawer.
PartyUp is an exclusive UE App feature that lets you wirelessly connect 50+ speakers and take your music where no other portable bluetooth speaker can go. Caves. Mountains. Lakes. Rooftops. You name it. So grab your speaker and your friend’s speakers, and take the party to a new level. Wherever. Whenever
With our brand new and improved UE App, growing the party has never been so easy and fun. Simply download the UE App to join and amplify your Party. So no matter how big your party gets, you can connect 50+ UE BOOM, UE BOOM 2 and UE MEGABOOM wireless speakers at the same time. #PartyUp
Ultimate Ears says the UE Boom, UE Boom 2, and UE Megaboom can all participate in the new Party Up feature, but the company’s smaller Bluetooth speakers – the UE Roll and UE Roll 2 – are not supported. In its tests, Ultimate Ears engineers have said to reach up to 140 connected UE speakers, although it’s not likely the company’s “50+” statistic is accounting for users to have that many speakers in one place simultaneously.
UE Boom and Megaboom users can try out the new Party Up mode today by downloading the update to the UE Boom iOS app on the App Store for free. [Direct Link]
Tags: Ultimate Ears, UE Boom 2
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