Japanese spacecraft lifts off with ISS supplies on board
The ISS crew won’t have to worry about running out of supplies this holiday season. Japan’s space agency loaded its ship called Kounotori 6 with 4.5 tons of food, water, spare parts and experimental hardware before sending it off to the ISS on top of an H-IIB rocket. Over a week ago, the Russian spacecraft that was supposed to ferry everything astronauts need to the orbiting lab burned up a few minutes into its journey. It’s still unclear why the spacecraft disintegrated, but it apparently has something to do with the Soyuz rocket’s third stage.
While the crew was never exactly in danger of running out of food and water, the cargo includes some very important parts: six new lithium-ion batteries and adapter plates for the station’s solar arrays. The astronauts are scheduled to do a series of spacewalks, starting in January, to replace the arrays’ old nickel-hydrogen batteries. Kounotori (or “white stork”) 6 will reach the ISS on December 13th, and as alway, will be caught and reeled in by the station’s robotic Canadarm2.
Source: NASA
Facebook fixes faulty Live reactions count and other metrics
Facebook has kept its promise to be more transparent after it discovered that its system has been embellishing video views and ad data. The social network has admitted to (and fixed) a few more faulty metrics, starting with Live video reactions. You know those reaction emojis that flow across your screen while you’re watching Facebook Live? Well, you can “react” as many times as you want during the broadcast, but the website’s counter should only count your first to determine the total number of “Reactions from Shares of Post.”
Since this is all about faulty metrics, you can probably guess what happened: Facebook counted users’ extra reactions under the section, when it’s supposed to count unique reactions only. Now that the issue’s been fixed, broadcasters can expect to see their “Reactions from Shares of Post” count fall by about 25 percent. On the other hand, they should see their “Reactions on Post” count (the metric that measures all reactions, not just unique ones) swell by around 500 percent.
Facebook also found that there’s a discrepancy in the number of Shares, based on where you’re looking. For instance, a web page’s Shares total on the FB app might be bigger or smaller than the number of Shares you’ll see when you copy-paste the same URL into the app’s search bar. The company still doesn’t know what’s causing the problem, but it vowed to look for a resolution. Finally, the social network has included something in the update that’s not exactly about faulty data: it has improved its estimated reach tool to give advertisers a better idea of their campaign’s potential.
Via: TechCrunch
Source: Facebook
A new, compromise-friendly Airbnb makes nice with New Orleans
We knew Airbnb was working with more accommodating policies as it tries to improve relationships with the cities that don’t love it, but it turns out the company really is willing to make some tough concessions. Case in point: New Orleans. Recently, the city and the company brokered a deal in which Airbnb would provide the municipal government with the names and addresses of hosts, as well as agreeing that hosts would have to register with the city and obtain permits.
That, for lack of a more elegant phrase, is a big deal.
The list of concessions doesn’t stop there, either. Airbnb also agreed not to list short-term rentals in the famous French Quarter, which was a tip of the hat to local hotel industry there according to the New York Times. (At time of writing, there are still loads of listings in the Big Easy’s most famous corner, so prospective travelers might want to move fast.) What’s more, Airbnb capped the number of days a host can rent out their entire house, and has agreed to collect hotel taxes on short-term stays. Not long ago, Airbnb would’ve balked at most (if not all) of these conditions, but those days are clearly over — the New Orleans City Council has already passed these rules.
Word of Airbnb’s newfound friendliness came on the heels of a notable settlement with the state of New York. If you’ll recall, the company sued the state after governor Andrew Cuomo made it illegal to rent a space in buildings for less than 30 days without the tenant being there. New York state has effectively washed its hands of the situation, leaving the tough job of enforcing that law up to New York City. Airbnb and city officials are already said to be working things out.
Meanwhile, the irony of Airbnb’s new approach gets richer as you head out west — Airbnb sued San Francisco over a law that required hosts to register with the local government before listing their homes. Airbnb’s suddenly OK with that in New Orleans, and it’s likely this legal battle (and others like it) will disappear. That said, if you’re waiting to see when Airbnb stops making headlines for pissing off cities, you shouldn’t hold your breath.
Via: The Daily Dot
Source: New York Times
NVIDIA is testing its driverless car tech in California
You might see a car with a familiar logo driving around if you’re in California. The state’s DMV has added NVIDIA to the list of companies that can test their self-driving technologies on its roads, and according to The Verge, it wasted no time to get the ball rolling. While NVIDIA isn’t exactly an auto company, it designed processors for self-driving vehicles and put its own test car together, so it can take its autonomous technologies for a spin when needed. Back in September, it also announced that it’s working with Baidu to create an AI platform for driverless cars.
Automakers serious about their self-driving aspirations typically head to California for testing. Just recently, the state granted two little-known automakers (Wheego and Valeo) permission to do test drives on its roads, but its complete list includes bigger names, including Google, Honda, Ford, Mercedes, BMW and NVIDIA’s partner Baidu. You can watch NVIDIA’s AI test car named BB8 learn from a human driver in the video below:
Via: The Verge
Source: DMV
Twitter says no to law enforcement protest policing tool
Twitter has cut off access for a tool that law enforcement was using to monitor the social network for protest-specific keywords. Those included “Mikebrown,” “Blacklivesmatter” and “imunarmed” according to documents obtained by The Daily Dot. Media Sonar has been selling social media surveillance software to police departments for thousands of dollars. Twitter, for its part, cut off the firm’s API keys in October and has vowed to terminate Media Sonar’s attempts at making more.
Remember, using Twitter’s data feed for spying and surveillance is a violation of the service’s developer agreement. With the list of keywords, the Northern California chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union’s evidence suggests that Media Sonar was selling itself as a way to monitor African Americans specifically. One column groups keywords together under a heading named “Mike Brown Related.” Mike Brown was the unarmed black teenager shot by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri in 2014.
Further documents (PDF) show that the firm pitches itself as a way to “avoid the warrant process when identifying social media accounts for particular individuals.”
What’s more, the company apparently directed law enforcement officials to not mention the Media Sonar by name in court, instead using “proprietary search engine” or “internet tools” when pressed for information under oath. It’s a far cry from issuing cyanide capsules to its customers, but still pretty telling of the company’s intent to keep its secrets safe.
This isn’t the first time Twitter has done this, and it likely won’t be the last organization to mine social media data for policing. This fall, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter cut off access to tracking systems from Geofeedia. We’ve reached out to Twitter for more information and will update this post should it arrive.
Source: The Daily Dot
Bose Hearphones make it easy to talk in noisy places
Bose’s new earbuds don’t block the outside world while you rock out to your favorite tunes. Instead, they give you the ability to focus on specific sounds, such as the voice of the person you’re talking to, and tune out what you consider ambient noise. The audio equipment maker has launched a website for the “Hearphones,” a pair of earbuds with directional microphones that gives you way to both amplify and reduce real world sounds. Say, you’re in a bar with a band playing on stage — you can adjust the Hearphones to focus on what your date is saying and to keep the music in the background.
As noticed by some users on Hacker News and on Reddit a couple of weeks ago, the Hearphones look like Bose’s QuietControl 30 with the capabilities of Doppler Labs’ Here One earbuds. The Here One buds can also block ambient noise by using the smart active listening tech their creator developed. They’ll cost you $299 when they drop in February 2017. Unfortunately, Bose hasn’t revealed how much the Hearphones will be sold for and when they’ll be available. The company uploaded the pair’s accompanying iOS app on iTunes last month, though, and even submitted a user manual to the FCC. You can at least read up on how they work while waiting for their official pricing.
Via: Hacker News
Source: Bose
Microsoft thinks people want ultra-portable headaches
Microsoft wants to hold on to the only thing they have left — desktop apps — in a mobile market where nobody wants them.
A while back I mentioned that having a third company make a big splash in mobile was sorely needed. Apple and Google holding all the chips isn’t good for anyone except Apple and Google. It was clear then, and still is now, that only one company can afford to keep trying — Microsoft. But their latest news about putting Windows 10 on ARM-powered tablets and convertibles, and rumored to come to phones, is just another way to spend money building things people probably won’t want to buy.
To be fair, they have to do something. Intel is done building low-power (and low-performing) chips designed for always-on mobile things. The future will move away from the desktop model we currently have (Steve jobs’ computer equals truck analogy will come true, just much later than he thought) and Microsoft’s history of trying to reinvent themselves in mobile has been less than spectacular. Windows as it exists on a phone or tablet, as well as Continuum, are ideas nobody asked for. I don’t have an answer and don’t claim to have ever had any. Luckily, guiding Microsoft’s mobile ambitions isn’t my job. Critiquing them while unable to do any better is. But I do have a pretty good idea of what the consumer buying public-at-large is spending their dollars on, and more of the same from Windows on a small touch device doesn’t fit in with it.
This was a bad idea in 2011 and it’s a bad idea now.
If people really were jonesing to run full blown desktop Adobe photoshop on a touch screen tablet, Adobe would be making it for the iPad (and iPad sales wouldn’t be shrinking.) Adding a detachable keyboard and calling a 10-inch tablet something besides a tablet doesn’t change that. Shrinking the experience down to 6 or 7 inches and telling people they can use a keyboard, mouse and HDMI cable certainly doesn’t improve anything. Having a very expensive and very nice slim laptop with a great input pen that can run Photoshop the way it was intended makes sense and people who need Photoshop at that level surely appreciate the experience on the new Surface the same way they do on the new MacBook. The same goes for Turbo Tax and Quicken, Microsoft Access 2016, AutoCad and any of the other crazy things that have been touted as something people want to do and make the new new Windows portables the best ever. (I stopped reading comments and Tweets when someone said Visual Studio.)
The Codeweavers app lets you run Photoshop on an ASUS Zenfone if you want to — and nobody wants to.
Right about now, half of the people reading this disagree and are ready to express that in the comments. I get it, but people who visit tech blogs on weekends are hardly a representation of the average consumer. Folks still buying tablets as well as people buying phones are looking for something more simple than the computer they left at the office Friday at quitting time. Instead of Steam and Civ 6, they want Temple Run with Mario when it comes to something small they hold in their hands. The same goes for Photoshop — the experience for iOS and Android is good but it can get a little complicated. Yet it’s miles away from what you would see on Windows 10. People are buying devices that are cheap and easy to use. Apple and Google see this and are trying to make things even more simple. The things that tech-savvy folks think of as dumbing down are the very same things that let people not worry about how to do things and instead, they can just do them.
I don’t know what Microsoft should do to prepare for the end of the desktop cash cow. But I know what isn’t likely to sell.
I’m not saying this is a good thing, but it is a thing. I don’t want to see OS X turn into MacOS (for example) but Apple isn’t making products that Jerry wants to buy; they are making products that most people want to buy. Marshmallow did some things better than Nougat does for this power-user nerd. Microsoft hanging on to their legacy of desktop software to drive a new mobile strategy may be cool to some of us, but I think an iPad or Chromebook is going to be a better choice for most people because they are simple and do all the things most people want.
Paris cinema chain lets you pay to test-drive VR headsets
The tech industry is banking on VR, but most folks have never even tested a headset like the Oculus Rift, let alone plunked down $500-plus to buy one. In France, at least, it’s about to become easier to try them out, thanks to a Paris movie theater chain called MK2. It’s launched a virtual reality experience featuring the latest games and videos on the Rift, Sony’s PlayStation VR and the HTC Vive. At $25 for 40 minutes, you can play games like The Climb and Star Wars Battlefront: Mission X-Wing VR, watch VR films, or fly over Manhattan in the Birdly motion sim.
“MK2 VR is the first facility in France dedicated to the best VR experiences in films, documentaries, video games and even flying motion sims,” said GM Elisha Karmitz. The company is piloting the idea at a 3,000-square-foot space located at MK2’s flagship cinema in the southeast of Paris and granted me a visit before today’s opening.
The company is trying to balance the cutting-edge technology with accessibility and chic decor. The wood, glass and metal VR space housing the 12 VR “pods” is cozy, but appears bigger thanks to large windows and a high ceiling. While waiting your turn, you can buy drinks in a tent-covered tiki-style bar that was still under construction when I visited.
The pods are arranged around a circular station with various games and headsets hung by cables that make them easy to don and safely limit your motion. Some titles require you to stand and others are better seated, and there’s also the Birdly flying motion sim and pair of Holodia rowing trainers set up for racing.
MK2 will have plenty of staff on hand to help customers at the stations. “It’s really important that we bring the VR experience to people who don’t know VR,” Karmitz said. “So there will be approximately one employee for every three consumers, who will help them put on the headset and launch the experience.” There are also tech staff on hand to handle the headsets and MSI computers, equipped with NVIDIA GeForce 1080 cards and Intel Core i7-6700K CPUs.
For the Oculus Rift, you can try Homebound Joyride, an exclusive, faster-moving version of the standalone VR title, as well as The Climb, a rock-climbing game that uses the just-released Oculus Touch controllers. Newcomers can watch Introduction to VR, a 360-degree, 3D video for Oculus Rift produced by MK2 in collaboration with Parisian VR studio Félix & Paul.
HTC Vive fans can check out the Birdly and Holofit motion sims, Space Pirate Trainer shooting arcade, and The Walk, a title that puts you on a vertigo-inducing gangplank nearly 1,000 feet over the streets of Manhattan.
On the Playstation VR, meanwhile, you can experience a simulated dive and shark attack in Ocean Descent VR, try Star Wars Battlefront Rogue One: Mission X-Wing VR, or play Ubisoft’s Eagle Flight — another flying game, this one set appropriately in Paris. From December 9th to 31st, MK2 VR will offer an exclusive Assassin’s Creed VR experience for PS VR from the long-awaited Michael Fassbender film, set to arrive on December 21st.
The Birdly flying VR motion sim on HTC Vive at the MK2 VR grand opening (image credit: MK2/©HLenie)
While I was there, I checked out Birdly, an HTC Vive motion sim that that you can lie down on and control by tilting two paddles back and forth. It lifts, pitches and tilts to match the headset motion which creates some strong sensations, especially the first time you dive directly toward the ground. I also tried out The Climb on Oculus Rift, a rock-climbing game that takes advantage of the Touch controllers and will also test your fear of heights.
Finally, I tested Star Wars Battlefront Rogue One: X-Wing VR Mission, a brand-new Playstation VR title. With the ability to look around the highly detailed cockpit and the galaxy, it’s one of the best flight combat sims I’ve ever tried.
The experience runs €12 for 20 minutes, or €20 (around $25) for 40 minutes, and you’re free to check out any games or sims you want. While that might seem like a lot compared to a movie, my experience shows that it’s a cheap way to try out all three headsets, back to back, if you’re still trying to figure out which to buy.
Meanwhile, if you already own a headset it’s a great way to test games before spending up to $700 to buy one. MK2 has managed to score some exclusive deals with publishers, getting titles as soon as they’re released, as well as special versions that condense the action.
Karmitz also thinks the experience will make for a fun night out for a group of friends, especially with the option to loosen up with a few drinks before jumping into the games. Additionally, the company is pitching it as a corporate-bonding experience and will rent out the space for private groups.
MK2 VR is piloting the experience at one Paris theater but hopes to expand to others if it works out. Their execution looks solid, but since it’s one of the first such VR spaces out there, it’s hard to say whether it’ll succeed financially. The concept makes a lot of sense, though. Considering how expensive console and PC-based VRs are, most people are going to want to try before they buy. And, as is the way in Paris, why not do it while partying with your friends?
Inside Adidas’ new tech-infused store in New York City
Not to be outdone by Nike, Adidas has also opened up a new flagship store in New York City. And, just like its rival, the German company packed the space with loads of technology. Inside the four-story, 45,000-square-foot space, located on the corner of 5th Avenue and 46th Street, you’ll find a virtual reality experience and a wearable system designed to help you find the best running shoe. Let’s take a look at what other tech Adidas is featuring at its biggest retail store yet.
Russell’s Favorite Tech of 2016
2016 Russell’s Favorite Tech
Everyone at Android Central spends just about every waking moment with mobile tech. Our goal is simple: use as much as we can, find out what works the best, and share with you the gear that rises above the rest. This has been a weird year for mobile tech, with no shortage of stand out gadgets for everyone to enjoy.
Whether you’re looking to buy for someone else or just get the best of the best for yourself, these are my personal favorites of 2016. It starts with a phone and a tablet, but continues on to everything I connect to it throughout any given day. Read on and see what I’ve enjoyed in 2016.
Google Pixel XL
I fully expected this spot to be reserved for the Samsung Galaxy Note 7, but when that became impossible I moved on to Google’s Pixel XL. This is without a doubt the best Android phone you can buy today. The camera is exceptional, the battery life is great, and Google’s incredibly smooth and lightning fast interface is wonderful. There’s no trade-offs, no reasons to settle like we’d seen in the past with the less expensive Nexus phones, and as long as Google keeps improving on this experience it’s difficult to imagine moving away from this phone anytime soon.
From $769 Buy Now
Lenovo Yoga Book
When I use an Android tablet, I’m usually either looking up recipes and watching Netflix in the kitchen, or I’m playing a game that is more comfortable on a larger screen. I’ve tried writing on so many Android tablets with attachable keyboards in the past, and for the most part there’s been little reason to use anything but my laptop. Lenovo’s Yoga Book is not only surprisingly comfortable to type on, it’s also crazy light and ridiculously thin. I can take it anywhere, and most of the time that’s exactly what I do. It may not be the best bang for your buck especially for those who would be more comfortable with a Chromebook, but access to all of my Android apps means I’m not reaching for my phone when I’m working and that’s a big deal for me.
From $499 Buy Now
Sennheiser HD 598 Cs
Put a keyboard in front of me and headphones on my head and I’m likely to disappear for hours. Music focuses me, and good headphones make sure I’m not so easily distracted. I’m not usually super picky about headphones, but these Sennheisers let me hear parts of my favorite songs I genuinely had never heard before. The build quality is great, but just about as far from portable as you can get. These aren’t cheap headphones, but they’re going to be my recommendation to anyone that likes music in their ears while they work behind a desk.
From $119 Buy Now
Moto Surround Earbuds
When I’m mowing the lawn, out playing Pokémon Go with my family, or just in the kitchen and don’t want everyone to hear the episode of Archer I’m watching, I reach for Moto Surround earbuds. The sounds is decent for Bluetooth, the battery is fantastic, and they’re comfortable around my neck. These earbuds aren’t particularly expensive, but my set is never far from me.
From $45 Buy Now
Ricoh Theta S
The camera on my Pixel XL is awesome, but I occasionally enjoy capturing more of the work around me. I’m also a big VR nerd, so 360-degree video is something fun to play with. If you’re looking to give this kind of photography a shot, the Ricoh Theta S is the camera to buy. It’s the most straightforward, the app isn’t complicated, and there’s a lot of flexibility when it comes to taking a photo remotely. Setting the Theta up somewhere and using the app to take a shot so you aren’t in it is a lot of fun!
From $335 Buy Now
Anova Immersion Circulator
I’m a fan of playing around in the kitchen, and some of my favorite kinds of cooking usually involve low and slow techniques with fun flavors. I can’t always bust out the smoker or toss things in the crock pot, so I figured I’d give sous vide cooking a shot. Anova makes a great starter kit that is easy to use, and offers an app full of recipes and guidelines for cooking. It also lets me control the temperature and timer remotely, so I can set something to cook for hours and be able to check in on it no matter what I am doing.
From $149 Buy Now
Philips Hue bulbs
Just about every light in my house is a Hue bulb now. It has taken me a while, but I wouldn’t be happier with being able to control my lights from anywhere. It’s fun to play with the colors when the family is watching a movie in the living room, convenient to say something and have my Echo kill the lights as I climb into bed, and the bulbs themselves just plain look nice. If you’re considering smart lights, Hue is likely going to be my recommendation for a long time.
From $199 Buy Now
Amazon Echo Dot
Google is doing a lot of cool things with Home, but Amazon’s Echo Dot is my favorite right now. They’re cheap enough that I can justify having several throughout the house, and Alexa does more for me right now. Recipe steps are a voice command away, being able to connect a Dot to a more capable speaker to stream music is nice, and these little pucks disappear into the room you set them up in. It’s a more convenient solution for me, and probably will be for the next year.
From $50 Buy Now
Neato Botvac Connected
Robot Vacuums aren’t going to replace my full upright Dyson anytime soon, but having one means I need to do a full cleaning a little less frequently. Neato’s BotVac Connected sputtering around the house every other day is great, and being able to connect my phone to the robot meant when family messaged me and said they’ll be by in an hour I could remotely sent it off to make the house look a little more presentable.
From $499 Buy Now
HTC Vive
Yeah, we’re going to talk about virtual reality for a minute. Of all the VR headsets I have used over the last year, which is to say basically all of them, HTC’s Vive keeps calling me back. Being able to walk around in my office and have those steps count in VR is incredible, and there are so many apps and games available I’m unlikely to ever run out of things to do. Also, weirdly, Vive is the only VR platform that gives me notifications from my phone that I can actually do something with. Vive is the most feature complete VR system out there, and it’s ridiculously fun to share with friends.
From $799 Buy Now
AIVAnet 