Google Releases ‘Featured Photos’ Screensaver for Mac
Google has released a free Mac screensaver that showcases popular high-quality photos shared and liked by Google+ users.
The company regularly showcases Google+ photography on idle Pixel phone screens as well as on TVs and monitors connected to its Chromecast and Google Fiber products. Called Featured Photos, the free screensaver download announced yesterday brings the same eye-catching photography to the Mac.
From striking skylines to captivating vistas, talented photographers share beautiful, eye catching work on Google+ every day. To bring these photos to a wider audience, we’ve long showcased a selection of them on TVs and monitors around the world via Google Fiber and millions of Chromecast devices.
Now, we’re pleased to be able to make these beautiful photos by our members even more accessible by bringing them to your computers and [Android] phones.
Photos are selected based on set criteria, so there are no pictures featuring people, text, or watermarks, and all photos are landscape orientation with a minimum 1080p resolution. Each photo is attributed to its owner via a Google+ profile link in the corner of the screen. Users with multiple screen set-ups see a different photo on each screen.
You can download the screensaver here.
Tag: Google
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Amazon to Crack Down on Counterfeit Goods Sold on its Marketplace
Amazon has acknowledged a worsening counterfeit problem on its site and says it has made fighting the fake products a “major goal” for next year (via The Verge).
Last month Apple filed a lawsuit against Mobile Star LLC which it accused of infringing upon its trademarks and copyrights by selling counterfeit power adapters and cables on Amazon. Apple claimed the fake products posed a risk to life, and said it had found that almost 90 percent of so-called genuine Apple products and accessories it purchased from Amazon over the last nine months were actually counterfeit.
Following the lawsuit, Amazon said it had “zero tolerance for the sale of counterfeits” on its website and said it was working closely with manufacturers and brands to aggressively pursue the wrongdoers.
Bloomberg reports that Amazon now says it plans to create a registry to prevent fakes and wants legitimate brands to register even if they don’t plan on selling products on the site. Merchants then have to obtain official brand permission before they can sell goods from the company.
Amazon has reportedly been experimenting with Nike and other brands to build the registry, but the company says it will target more brands in 2017 in an attempt to get them to sell their products on Amazon’s marketplace. According to the report, Amazon tried to get the NFL and MLB to sell merchandise through its online marketplace, but the negotiations stalled because of a perceived lack of control over existing fake goods.
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Fotokite Phi Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET
Meet the final Fotokite Phi.
Fotokite
Most camera drones rely on GPS and a system of sensors to make them easier and safer to fly. The Fotokite Phi just uses a string.
That’s an oversimplification, but not by much. The Phi is tethered by either an 8- or 30-meter leash (26 or 100 feet) connected to a reel. The leash reel has its own processor and sensors letting you control the Phi by pressing and holding a button and moving the leash in the direction you want it to go. There’s no fear of it flying away from you or drifting into something or someone, and there are no complicated controls to learn.
The design struck a chord with crowdfunders, racking up $413,495 from backers on Indiegogo back in September of last year. It was originally expected to ship early this year, but sourcing and production issues delayed that until now. The Phi is available for a limited time at a price of $249 and, as best as I can tell from the brief time I spent with it, it is everything Fotokite promised.
Phi’s folding design makes travel easy.
Fotokite
Made to be ultraportable, the Phi folds down and fits entirely inside a tube roughly the size of a whisky bottle and with a GoPro camera and battery it weighs just 400 grams (14 ounces). To get it ready to fly, you fold down the arms and twist a lock on top. It currently works with the Hero3/3+, Hero4 and Hero5 Session cameras and you can start and stop video and snap photos straight from the reel.
Holding the quad from the bottom, you give it a quick twist with your wrist (similar to twisting in a light bulb) and the props spin up. Then you simply let go and let out some leash. The Phi responds to tension from the line, so all it takes to raise and lower or rotate it into position is rolling or twisting your hand in the direction you want it to go.
Fotokite
Flight time from its removable, rechargeable battery is about 13 minutes. Although you do get a warning when battery life is running low, the Phi will quickly land itself before the battery is completely drained. The same happens if the tether is cut, so you never have to worry about it flying off on its own. Its propellers are softer and spin at a lower speed than other drones, too, which adds to its safety.
The Fotokite Phi might not have the range and capabilities of a typical radio-controlled quadcopter, but my guess is you’ll be able to fly it in more places, particularly where a typical drone might not be allowed. And if you already have a GoPro camera, the investment is pretty low.
The Fotokite Phi is a flying camera on a string
You’ll never let go of this GoPro camera-ready foldable quadcopter while you’re capturing photos and videos.
by Joshua Goldman
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Winter is coming to Forza Horizon 3 on 13 December
Turn 10 Studios has confirmed and announced details of the first expansion pack coming to Forza Horizon 3. It’s called Blizzard Mountain and will feature snow and ice for the first time in a Forza racing game.
- Forza Horizon 3 review: Bigger, brasher, and better-looking than ever
The 50 new events and challenges will be based on and around a mountainous setting where you can compete in eight new cars to become King of the Mountain.
King of the Mountain will be a new campaign mode and will see you compete in new race types including Hill Climb, Descent and Blizzard. Full details of these race types has yet to be revealed.
There will also be additional Blueprint, Rivals and Bucket List events to complete.
As well as wanting to keep your heart pulsing by competing in races, this is a Forza Horizon game after all, so Turn 10 Studios wants you to have some fun as well. That’s why Blizzard Mountain will also introduce a new extreme sports snow park and a huge frozen lake, so you can make big jumps and long drifts.
There’s seven new cars as part of the pack and a new Barn Find, although you’ll have to wait to get the DLC to find out what it is. The new cars include the 2016 Ford Gymkhana 9 Focus RS RX, which is 10-inches wider than the standard Focus RS, has double the horsepower and will be able to shoot you around the mountain paths with no trouble.
You’re not limited to the new cars though, if you want to use any cars in your current garage you can, as you’ll be given the option of fitting snow tyres.
- Xbox One S review: Best console and 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray player out there
Blizzard Mountain will arrive on 13 December and is part of the $34.99 Horizon 3 Expansion Pass. Ultimate Edition owners will still need to pay for it, but they’ll get a $10 discount. It’s been confirmed the Blizzard Mountain DLC will be available to buy separately but pricing has yet to be revealed.
‘Forza Horizon 3’ weather forecast: snow and blizzards
While the Forza games have dabbled with inclement weather before (rain was the big feature of Horizon 2 expansion “Storm Island” and to the consternation of some, Motorsport 6), snow in driving games as a whole has been mostly avoided. After all, why would you want to struggle maneuvering a car through what feels like wet concrete? Folks who download Horizon 3’s “Blizzard Mountain” expansion starting December 13th will find out.
The pack features some 50 new events and challenges like hill climbs and descents in addition to fresh areas including an “extreme sports snow park.” That’s in addition to a handful of new rides geared toward the snowy conditions on offer, according to Xbox Wire. Standalone pricing hasn’t been announced, but if you pony up for the game’s $35 season pass it’s included that way. The salt in the wound here is that Microsoft found a way to charge for even more DLC in addition to the $100 “Ultimate Edition” of the game. However, if it’s any consolation, there’s a $10 discount for anyone who purchases the Ultimate Edition and this first expansion before year’s end.
If the promise of virtually whipping donuts with a ’65 Ford F-100 Flareside on a frozen lake sounds like your type of party, though, I can’t say I blame you for wanting to check it out. After all, there are only so many times you can play through Grand Theft Auto V’s snowy intro before it gets old.
Source: Xbox Wire
Ofcom will force BT to legally separate from Openreach
Ofcom, the UK’s communications regulator, announced today that it will force the legal separation of BT and its broadband infrastructure business Openreach after the company voluntarily failed to address “competition concerns.” The action comes after the provider was told it must spin Openreach off into a separate company in a bid to “deliver better outcomes for phone and broadband users.”
When Ofcom made its first ruling in July, it told BT that Openreach must become a “legally separate company” within the BT Group, with its own board and directors who are not affiliated with BT. It argued that because BT runs the nation’s broadband network and also operates its own retail business, it was incentivised to promote its own interests when making new network investments. A standalone Openreach would have “a duty to treat all of its customers equally,” Ofcom said in a statement.
BT submitted fresh plans but Ofcom said they had “so far failed to offer proposals that would adequately address our concerns,” citing issues around the transfer of employees and company assets, and the amount of influence BT Group executives would have over Openreach. As a result, the watchdog will now notify the European Commission of its intention to force the legal — not structural, which would be more intrusive and costly — separation of the two companies.
In what appeared to be a preemptive move, BT confirmed the appointment of Mike McTighe as the first Openreach chairman late last night. McTighe certainly has plenty of experience: he served on Ofcom’s board between 2007 and 2015. The telecoms giant agreed to form an independent board in July but hadn’t made enough progress in other areas to appease the regulator.
BT says as much in its statement: “We put forward proposals in July that we believe are fair and sustainable, and that meet Ofcom’s objectives without disproportionate costs. We are implementing these proposals, and have just appointed Mike McTighe to be the first chairman of Openreach. We are in discussions with Ofcom on two outstanding issues, the reporting line of the Openreach CEO and the form of legal incorporation.”
“We will continue to work with Ofcom to reach a voluntary settlement that is good for customers, shareholders, employees, pensioners and investment in the UK’s digital future”
Ofcom said it will submit its consultation to the Commission early next year. “We then intend to proceed quickly to submit a detailed plan to the Commission and, subject to its decision, implement the reforms of Openreach so the UK can benefit as soon as possible,” it added.
Source: Ofcom
Nanotubes can turn water solid when it should be boiling
Scientists have long known that under the right conditions, small amounts of water can be coaxed into changing its boiling or freezing point. A pot of water takes less energy to boil on the top of Mount Everest, for instance, and liquid under pressure takes a little more heat to convert into steam. A group of researchers at MIT has recently taken this effect a step further — observing that water in nanotubes can actually freeze into a solid at temperatures well beyond its natural boiling point.
“If you confine a fluid to a nanocavity, you can actually distort its phase behavior,” explains MIT’s Michael Strano. In the research group’s naontube test environment, water solidified at temperatures north of 222 °F (105 °C). Researchers expected the liquid’s freezing and boiling tempratures to shift, but not by such a wide degree. “The effect is much greater than anyone had anticipated.” Stano said “All bets are off when you get really small.”
The group was used a technique called vibrational spectroscopy to confirm that the nanotube confined water shifted to a “stiff phase,” but researchers are hesitant to say the solid water is frozen. “It’s not necessarily ice,” Strano says, “but it’s an ice-like phase.” Terminology aside, the phenomenon could be used to create highly conductive “stable water wires.” Sounds futuristic. Ready to hear more? You can find the research group’s findings at the source link below.
Source: Nature, MIT
Moto M with metal chassis and 4GB RAM coming soon to India
Moto M is a metallic Moto G4 with a few design tweaks.
Lenovo unveiled the Moto M earlier this month in China, and the company is all set to bring the device to India soon. A tweet posted by Motorola India suggests we’ll see the phone make its debut in the market sometime next month.
Something different is coming your way. Stay tuned to know more. #ComingSoon pic.twitter.com/nmqT9p6FO5
— Moto India (@Moto_IND) November 28, 2016
To recap, the Moto M offers a 5.5-inch Full HD panel, 4GB of RAM, 32GB storage, microSD slot, dual-SIM connectivity, 16MP camera, 8MP front shooter, 4G with VoLTE, NFC, and a 3050mAh battery. The Chinese variant is powered by a 2.2GHz MediaTek Helio P15 SoC, and will likely feature a Snapdragon SoC.
The phone itself looks like a Moto G4 Plus with a metal body and a welcome design change: the fingerprint sensor is now located at the back. Lenovo didn’t release the Moto G4 variant with 4GB of RAM in India, so the Moto M can slot in as an upgrade to the Moto G4 Plus with 3GB RAM and 32GB storage. The Moto M retails for the equivalent of $295 in China (¥1999), so it is possible we’ll see a sub-₹20,000 pricing for the Indian market.
Cyanogen Inc. may close Seattle headquarters, more layoffs expected
Cyanogen Inc. could shutter headquarters before the end of the year
Cyanogen Inc. revealed last month that it would undertaking an executive reshuffle and change its strategy with Cyanogen OS. Instead of selling it as a standalone platform, Cyanogen rolled out what it called the “Cyanogen Modular OS program,” giving handset manufacturers the ability to selectively choose individual portions of the OS.
It now looks like the company is now preparing for another round of layoffs — its second this year — and a possible closure of its Seattle headquarters. That’s according to Android Police, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter.
There’s no mention of how many positions are affected, but it looks like a few employees are being offered the option to relocate to Cyanogen’s Palo Alto office. The report also claims that Cyanogen cofounder Steve Kondik’s future at the company is unknown. Last month’s reshuffle saw Kondik lose his seat at the board and transition from CTO to “Chief Science Officer.” We should be hearing more from the company in the coming days.
The move won’t hamper the development of the community-driven CyanogenMod, which is independent of Cyanogen Inc.
Android 7.0 Nougat update now rolling out to T-Mobile’s LG G5
Nougat OTA is now rolling out to T-Mobile LG G5.
T-mobile’s variant of the LG G5 is now picking up the Android 7.0 Nougat update. The update weighs in at 1.2GB, and includes the November 1 security patch.
The update includes split-screen mode, improvements to Doze, and all the custom tweaks LG introduced in the V20. Overall, the UI is flatter and more subdued when compared to earlier iterations. If you’re rocking a T-Mobile variant of the LG G5, it’s time to dive into the settings to see if the update is available.
Android Nougat
- Android 7.0 Nougat: Everything you need to know
- Will my phone get Android Nougat?
- Google Pixel + Pixel XL review
- All Android Nougat news
- How to manually update your Nexus or Pixel
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LG G5
- LG G5 review
- LG 360 CAM review
- LG G5 complete specs
- LG’s G5 Friends modules are a neat idea, but they won’t matter
- LG G5 Hi-Fi Plus w/ B&O
- Join the LG G5 discussion
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