Samsung NVMe SSD 960 EVO Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET

The new Samsung SSD 960 Evo

Dong Ngo/CNET

The Samsung SSD 850 Evo is one of the most popular solid-state drives (SSDs) on the market, and now there’s a much faster upgrade for it, the 960 Evo that Samsung announced to day. But this new drive can’t literally take the place of its predecessor. It’s available only in the new M.2 design, and not the traditional 2.5-inch SATA design.

M.2 is a new interface that uses the PCI Express standard, one that was once reserved only for video cards, to connect to a computer’s main board. This interface allows for much higher bandwidth (currently up to 32Gb/s or 4,000MB/s) compared to that of the existing SATA, which caps at just 6Gbps. That said, M.2 is a new upcoming interface standard that’s expected to replace SATA completely in the future. The fact Samsung doesn’t offer an SATA version of the 960 Evo is a clear indication of this trend. To use an M.2 drive, your computer needs to have an M.2 slot or, for desktops, you will need a PCIe adapter.

Samsung says the new 960 Evo has a top read copy speed of up to 3,200MB/s and a write speed of up to 1,900MB/s. Its random access performance is upward of 380,000 IOPS, making it one of the fastest SSDs on the market.

It shares similar features as the older brother, however. The new drive, too, uses Samsungs 3D VNAND flash memory and also supports TurboWrite, a technique that uses a small amount of of high performance SLC flash memory as buffer to significantly increase write speed. It has a new five-core controller, four of which manage the NAND performance, with the last core dedicated to optimizing the communication between the host computer and controller. Like previous Samsung SSDs, the new drive also supports hardware encryption.

The new Samsung SSD 960 Evo is available in 250GB, 500GB and 1TB capacities at the MSRP of $129, $249 and $479. Pricing for the UK and Australia is not available at this time but those prices converted come out to £63/AU$171, £200/AU$330 and £385/AU$634, respectively.

Samsung SSD 850 Evo solid-state drive is a keeper

CNET editor Dong Ngo did a magic trick with the all new and excellent Samsung SSD 850 Evo. The kind of tricks that none of us can do!

by Dong Ngo

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DJI Phantom 4 Pro Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET

DJI Phantom 4 Pro

DJI

With the Phantom 4 Pro, DJI takes a big step toward having a crashproof camera drone.

Up till now, obstacle avoidance systems on camera drones, including the Phantom 4’s, only really helped prevent head-on collisions. Fly backward or sideways toward a building, tree, car or person and you are on your own to stop a crash.

The Phantom 4 Pro has both front and rear visual sensors that can detect obstacles up to 98 feet or 30 meters away. Sensors on its belly can help avoid landing on uneven ground or water, while infrared sensing systems on both sides allows the drone to figure out where it is within a space, recognizing obstacles up to 23 feet or 7 meters away. The top of the drone is the only side left unprotected.

The Phantom 4 Pro has cameras on back to prevent rear collisions.

DJI

The camera has a 1-inch 20-megapixel sensor with 11.6 stops of dynamic range, aperture control (f2.8-f11) and a mechanical shutter. The latter will help with motion artifacts like Jell-O effect, skewed lines and warped-looking propellers, while the larger image sensor should significantly improve image quality. The camera also boasts a maximum resolution of 4K at 60 frames per second with a very high bit rate of 100Mbps.

Also, with the Pro, you’ll have the option to end the need for a mobile device to see what you’re shooting. DJI will offer a Pro Plus version with a superbright display attached its controller. With the new remote, you’ll also be able to flip your radio frequency between 2.4GHz and 5.8GHz and it has built-in GPS, an SD card slot and a mini-HDMI port.

The Phantom 4 Pro is available with a controller with an attached touchscreen.

DJI

DJI added a couple new flight modes made possible by the obstacle avoidance. One increases the system’s accuracy so it can fly through narrow environments such as through doorways or windows. ActiveTrack, the drone’s subject tracking mode, can now handle following a subject’s profile by flying sideways or backward in Spotlight mode. And its TapFly mode, which lets you tap a location on screen to automatically fly to, will now work backward and you can rotate the drone or tilt the camera without changing its path.

The drone also has an enhanced Return-to-Home mode that will guide it home from up to 984 feet away (300 meters) and avoid obstacles along the way. Also, DJI says within a minute of the Pro losing its GPS signal, it will automatically return to the last connected position and hover as it waits for your next command.

The DJI Phantom 4 Pro will start shipping this month and can be ordered now for $1,500 with a standard controller or with the high-luminance display controller for $1,800.

DJI Inspire 2 Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET

DJI Inspire 2

DJI

DJI’s ready-to-fly professional camera drone, the Inspire 1, has for the most part gone unchallenged since it launched two years ago. Compared to the company’s Phantom line and new Mavic Pro, though, its tech is showing its age. That changes now.

The Inspire 2 looks essentially the same as the first-gen model, but this time it’s made from magnesium-aluminum alloy, which DJI says increases stiffness while reducing weight. You might have noticed in the picture above that it has dual sensors in front for obstacle avoidance (there’s a set on the bottom as well), but it also has infrared sensors on top of the aircraft to help keep you from crashing when flying in enclosed spaces.

Dual batteries provide up to 27 minutes of flight time as well as redundancy just in case one of the batteries fails in flight. The battery system is also self-heating, so you won’t lose performance even in temperatures down to -4 degrees Fahrenheit. And with optional high-altitude propellers, you’ll be able to fly it up to 16,404 feet above sea level (5 km).

The Inspire 2 features interchangeable cameras.

DJI

Like the original, the Inspire 2 has an interchangeable camera mount so you can swap cameras for your needs. With the launch, DJI introduced the Zenmuse X4S and X5S cameras. The former features a 1-inch 20-megapixel sensor with an f2.8 24mm lens (35mm equivalent) and a mechanical shutter. The latter is an interchangeable lens camera with a 20-megapixel micro four thirds sensor.

One of the key benefits of the Inspire is the capability to have both a pilot and a camera operator work simultaneously with separate master and slave controllers. On the Inspire 1 this requires the pilot to navigate using the live video from the camera, which might not always be pointed forward. The Inspire 2 adds a second first-person-view camera giving the pilot the best view for flying, while allowing the camera operator to set the ideal shot.

DJI

Other important features include:

• New CineCore 2.0 embedded image processing system
• Captures 5.2K-resolution video at 4.2Gbps for Adobe CinemaDNG raw videos
• Supported formats include Adobe CinemaDNG, Apple ProRes 422 HQ (5.2K, 4K) and ProRes 4444 XQ (4K), H.264 and H.265
• Records 4K-resolution video in H.264 and H.265 with a bit rate up to 100Mbps
• Streams video at broadcast standards of 1080i50/720p60
• New propulsion system reaches 50 mph (kph) in 4 seconds
• Top speed of 67 mph (108 kph)
• Ascends at up to 23 feet per second (7 m/s) and descends at up to 30 feet per second (9 m/s)
• New master and slave controller range extends to 328 feet and users can switch between 2.4 GHz and 5.8 GHz frequencies
• Optional DJI Crystalsky high-brightness IPS monitors available in 5.5-inch and 7.85-inch sizes which reduce video transmission latency and have dual microSD Card slots for backups, transfers and playback.

The DJI Inspire 2 is $3,000 and starts shipping in January (approximately AU$4,000 and £2,400). You can also pick it up as a combo with the Zenmuse X5S, CinemaDNG and Apple ProRes license key for $6,200, but DJI will lop $200 off if you order before January 1, 2017, and it will ship in December.

Netgear Arlo Go Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET

Netgear’s $450 Arlo Go Mobile HD Security Camera relies on 3G and LTE networks when you’re sans Wi-Fi.

Netgear

If you’d like to monitor a cabin, a campsite — any remote location — that doesn’t get a reliable Wi-Fi connection, Netgear might have the product for you. The networking company’s line of DIY home security devices is expanding today with the launch of the $450 US-only Arlo Go Mobile HD Security Camera.

Arlo Go, which is expected to hit stores in the United States in early 2017, isn’t much of a design departure from the original Arlo cams or the next-gen Arlo Pro cams. Coated in the same weatherproofed indoor/outdoor white plastic finish, Arlo Go also has a lot of the same features as its predecessors.

Here’s a list of the basics:

• HD resolution: Arlo Go has 720p 24/7 high-definition live streaming

  

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• Alerts — when Arlo Go detects either motion or sound, you should get an alert or an email
• Battery-powered: Like Arlo Pro, Arlo Go uses rechargeable batteries
• Two-way talk: A built-in mic and speaker should let app users intercom with anyone near the camera
• Cloud storage: Netgear saves 7 days of event-based clips for free (other options are available for a fee)
• Local storage: An included microSD card slot allows for backup recording
• Night vision: Even in low-light conditions, you should still be able to monitor clearly

But Arlo Go diverges from Netgear’s other offerings via compatibility with AT&T’s 3G and LTE wireless networks. In theory, then, you should have mobile access “anywhere in the AT&T nationwide coverage area,” or so Netgear’s official press release claims. Of course, data plans are available as an add-on feature, so you’ll have to pay for a subscription to use this option.

Note: Arlo Go doesn’t work over Wi-Fi at all, so you need to be sure you want to go exclusively with a cellular plan before you buy.

Cameras, cameras everywhere:

• This 4G LTE security camera can survive a Wi-Fi outage
• Netgear’s Arlo Pro camera gives rechargeable batteries a go
• Netgear’s Arlo defies typical security camera limitations
• Netgear’s reliable Arlo Q camera simplifies DIY home security
• Flir FX can go anywhere you go

I’m intrigued by this product, but Netgear certainly isn’t the first company to announce a mobile-enabled product. Startup Canary, makers of the Canary Smart Home Security Device, introduced the Canary Flex back in September. A $199 indoor/outdoor Wi-Fi camera that’s also compatible with an optional Verizon cellular LTE mount, Canary Flex seems to offer roughly the same functionality for less money up front.

As with every product we cover, we’ll just have to get a couple of review units in to compare Arlo Go and Canary Flex side-by-side and see for ourselves. Loyalty to either AT&T or Verizon might help a lot of customers make this decision easily, though.

In the meantime, have a look at some other outdoor security cameras we’ve written about.

19 outdoor cameras that take home security…
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Vinci Smart Hearable Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET

The Vinci Smart Hearable.

Josh Miller/CNET

No, you can’t see it while you’re wearing them. Yes, it looks really dumb.

But how many headphones let you ask Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant to play your favorite song?

How many can measure your heart rate, and adjust your tunes accordingly? Or play music from Spotify or SoundCloud over a built-in cellular connection?

Or offer 16GB of on-board storage, so you don’t need to carry your phone to have your MP3s and FLACs?

And how many gimmicky headphones actually sound good?

A built-in 3G cellular radio is compatible with AT&T and T-Mobile in the US.

Josh Miller/CNET

This is the Vinci Smart Hearable. It’s a Kickstarter project with some pretty lofty goals: The creators want to use its MediaTek processor and sensors to anticipate the music you’ll want to hear, let you ask for all sorts of things with your voice, take hands-free calls and even read your text messages aloud.

They also want to use the Vinci’s twin microphones to create binaural 3D audio recordings, so you can close your eyes, spin in a circle, and aurally feel just like you’re in a place you’ve been before.

With a proximity sensor, they’ll automatically pause the music when you take them off your head, and resume when you put them on.

Josh Miller/CNET

But again, those are all fairly lofty goals. Presently, the Vinci 1.0 is just a pair of flashy headphones that actually sound pretty damn good, with a remarkable amount of bass — but also a little too much clamping force (ouch they’re tight) and far too little battery life (I used them for 2 hours and they were dead the next day).

The touchscreen really does work to summon Alexa and ask for songs, as well as play, pause, skip (swipe) and favorite songs (double-tap). But most of the time it’s just turning you into a big walking music visualizer while constantly draining the battery. Lots of features, like wirelessly pairing to my phone, were MIA — though there’s a physical headphone jack as well.

That’s version 1.0. The company says V1.5, the one that’ll tentatively start shipping to Kickstarter backers in March, should offer 7 hours of continuous playback even with the screen on and a more comfortable fit, plus a whole list of features you can find at the company’s Kickstarter page. They’re offering the first few hundred units for just $99 a pop (about £80 or AU$130).

Personally, I’d wait. Based on my experience, there’s an awful lot Vinci needs to add and fix, so a March release date seems ambitious at best. (I wouldn’t be surprised if Vinci ships without many of the fancier features it’s promising. And bear in mind the data may not work if you’re not in the US.)

But I’ve gotta be honest: Even $200, the suggested retail price, is downright reasonable for a pair of great-sounding wireless headphones. If Vinci can fit a personal assistant, fitness tracker and a few more smarts inside, I might just have to buy one.