Engadget Podcast Ep 21: Ooh Las Vegas

Associate editor Billy Steele, senior editor Nicole Lee and deputy managing editor James Trew join host Terrence O’Brien to talk about the early trends emerging from CES. It’s only the first day of the show, but there’s already been plenty of announcements, press conferences and lots of lost sleep. One of the most immediate things you’ll notice on the show floor is that everything has voice control this year, even garbage cans. And tons of companies are rushing to integrate Alexa into cars, washing machines and refrigerators. The panel will also talk about the best and worst things they’ve seen so far.

Relevant links:

• Dish brings Alexa and multi-room music to Hopper DVRs
• Whirlpool brings Alexa to its next generation of appliances
• Car makers can let Alexa ride shotgun later this year
• Huawei is bringing Amazon’s Alexa to the Mate 9
• Ford vehicles will soon have Amazon Alexa on board
• Amazon Alexa now lives inside a dancing robot
• Amazon’s Alexa assistant is coming to LG refrigerators

You can check out every episode on The Engadget Podcast page in audio, video and text form for the hearing impaired.

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Panasonic’s companion robot is a cute projector trapped in an egg

Have you ever wanted to talk to a projector? No? Well, Panasonic wants to change that. It’s showing off a proof-of-concept desktop companion robot here at CES that can respond to commands to project images and videos on a wall or your desk.

The robot doesn’t have a name, and it’s really just at CES so Panasonic can get some feedback on whether this is something people want. As for the feature set, it’s a connected device with speech recognition that Panasonic hopes will perform many of the functions that Amazon’s Echo or Google’s Home speakers can. You can ask it questions, engage in inane conversation and so on.

Of course, Echo and Home don’t have a projector or wheels, and neither is particularly cute. Panasonic’s robot has an almost child-like voice, and anthropomorphized movements to convey some level of emotion. It’s able to wheel around on your desk, and can project video from source like YouTube and Netflix on your wall or really any flat surface.

There’s no route to market for the ‘bot, and it seemed like it was barely held together. It also crashed a few times during the demonstration, at one point projecting a terminal screen with errors on the wall behind it. But still, cute!

Click here to catch up on the latest news from CES 2017.

Panasonic’s Lumix GH5 is even bulkier in person

Panasonic’s long-awaited Micro Four Thirds camera, the GH5, is already being shown off at CES 2017. Like its predecessor the GH4, this new flagship is much bulkier than most mirrorless shooters. That’s not a bad thing by any means, it was just one of the first things I noticed when I picked it up. If you’re familiar with the previous model, you’ll feel right at home with the button placement on the GH5. It’s on the inside where most changes are, starting with the new 20.3-megapixel Live MOS sensor (no low-pass filter) and Venus Engine image processor.

These upgrades pave the way for 60-fps 4K video and 6K photo burst mode at 30 fps, two of the features camera buffs are most excited about. Unfortunately, Panasonic didn’t let us take any sample images with the GH5 that was on the show floor, but we’ll have some for you before it hits stores in March for $2,000. Until then, you can check out what it looks like outside the basic press shots.

Click here to catch up on the latest news from CES 2017.

Nissan’s SAM uses humans as a backup for self-driving tech

Nissan has big plans for self-driving cars, with as many as 10 autonomous-capable models due by 2020 (including the next Leaf), but according to CEO Carlos Ghosn, the tech can’t cover every situation. To fill that gap, Nissan’s solution is the Seamless Autonomous Mobility system (SAM). If the car’s sensors and cameras detect an unexpected situation that is beyond what it has been programmed for (like a policeman directing traffic via hand signals), it will come to a stop and request help from a remote command center.

Like NBA or NFL refs making a call on a replay, a mobility manager observes the data and images provided by the car, then decides on the appropriate action and draws a safe path for the car to follow. After that, it’s released to resume self-driving, and the idea is that with enough incidents, autonomous systems can eventually learn how to handle the unexpected on their own.

As Ghosn said tonight at a roundtable event with reports “no matter how powerful it is, we always find a case where the car will be stuck. That’s what we’re learning from NASA.” That’s right, Nissan got the idea from NASA, where its Visual Environment for Remote Virtual Exploration (VERVE) software operates in a similar way.

The way Nissan sees it, SAM is for all cars, not just the ones it makes, so as Nissan Research Center director (and former NASA scientist) Maarten Sierhuis puts it “Our goal is to change the transportation infrastructure…What we are doing at Nissan is finding a way so that we can have this future transportation system not in 20 years or more, but now.”

Source: Nissan

Penthouse’s CEO thinks VR porn should be a carnival of sex

Penthouse is one of the most recognizable brands in the adult industry, having been around for over 50 years. And while new owner and CEO Kelly Holland is reverential of Penthouse’s illustrious past — she’s investing heavily in its print magazine — she’s very much focused on the future. You probably won’t be surprised to hear that she’s a big believer in the potential of VR, or that she’s unimpressed by much of what her competitors are making.

Instagram photos now look better on iPhone 7 and 7 Plus

When Apple announced that it’s latest iPhone would snap brighter, more vivid pictures with its “wide color capture” feature, Instagram was quick to promise an updated app to support that expanded color gamut. Turns out, they were half right: today Instagram co-founder and CTO Mike Krieger announced that Instagram users on iPhone 7 and 7 plus can now take full advantage of their phone’s new camera — and they don’t even need to update the app.

According to a short statement on Krieger’s Twitter, Instagram’s support for wide color capture has been rolled out to almost all users, noting that the feature has slowly been trickling onto user’s phones since the app’s last update. Users of Apple Live Photos will find that those import seamlessly now too — converting into Boomerang photos via Instagram Stories. Small updates, to be sure, but a definite boon for iPhone users. After all, who doesn’t like more vivid photos?

Via: TechCrunch

Source: Twitter

Apple’s Iconic Fifth Avenue Store Moving to Temporary Location on January 20 During Renovations

In June 2015 it was reported that Apple would renovate its iconic Fifth Avenue retail store, temporarily relocating its operations to the vacated FAO Schwarz toy store in the General Motors Building. A MacRumors reader spotted a new sign in front of the iconic store that reveals the relocation will happen on January 20.

FAO Schwarz vacated its location in the General Motors Building in July 2015 due to the rising cost of rent. The space is just a couple feet away from the iconic glass cube, making the relocation largely seamless for frequent customers of the Fifth Avenue store.

Apple’s Fifth Avenue store and the former FAO Schwarz space, far right (Flickr)
While the extent of the renovations at the Fifth Avenue store are unknown, the company has been expanding or relocating a number of its older stores to accommodate increased foot traffic. The Fifth Avenue location was last renovated in 2011, when larger, more seamless panes of glass were installed. The renovation was completed in November 2011.

Related Roundup: Apple Stores
Tags: FAO Schwarz, Fifth Avenue, New York City
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Casio WSD-F20 preview: Rugged outdoor smartwatch shows Android Wear can be great

This hulk of a watch is the Casio WSD-F20: a rugged, outdoor smarwatch with heaps of fitness features. Compared to its F10 predecessor it adds GPS tracking with mapping, so it might be seen as a small-time upgrade but a great first purchase (if you can get over its hulking size).

The new WSD-F20 makes a few cosmetic changes compared to the original version, but still sticks to the big brash styling, leaving you in no doubt just how much abuse this watch can take. The strap is rubbery in feel and can’t be removed – but then we can’t imagine this watch with a leather strap either, it just wouldn’t look right.

Pocket-lint

What’s really interesting about the WSD-F20 is its use of Android Wear 2.0. We’re typically not big fans of the operating system, but Casio has actually enhanced it with its own additions that ensure the fitness features are quick and easy to access, while the benefit of Google Assistant, Music and third-party apps is also available.

Of those dedicated Casio features, you can access dedicated screens displaying tides, sunrise/set, barometer data, altitude and compass. They’re well arranged, easy to see on that large screen – which has a 320 x 300 pixel resolution.

In addition to GPS tracking with maps you can add specific points of interest for future reference. And it’s not just limited to serious hikers, there’s also a fishing mode that offers information based on GPS and air pressure to suggest where the best catch is likely to come from.

Pocket-lint

Plus if you go overboard it won’t be a problem: the WSD-F20 is waterproof to 50-metres. And there’s no faff when recharging, as the exposed magnetic port is also water-resistant and easy to use.

To avoid the weight of Android Wear’s battery draining potential, the F20 also offers a low-power LCD screen behind its higher resolution one. This can be activated by covering the watch entirely with the palm of a hand – the dual layer technology reveals the second, simplified screen as a result. Great for prolonging battery life, especially if you’re lost in the forest.

Pocket-lint

Various digital watch faces are available, as is the case with any Android Wear watch, but Casio has implemented a press-and-hold sub-menu on the front to quickly toggle between its various measuring devices – including altimeter, barometer, but also including calendar/planner – for a second display of dials. A great idea, but the length of the press-and-hold is a bit fiddly to get right – press for too long and it’ll kick-in a different function.

If you’re looking for a hulking outdoors smartwatch then Casio has got a lot right here. It poses a lot of questions for the likes of the Garmin Fenix 5X, a watch announced on the same day at CES and of roughly the same scale as the Casio. Looks like both companies have a fight on their hands.

Pocket-lint

The exact price is still to come from Casio, but we’re expecting the WSD-F20 to be available from 21 April 2017. No word on whether it will be available in the UK just yet. Fingers crossed it will be!

B&O’s Beoplay M5 wireless speaker has a lot of competition

Bang and Olufsen revealed its pricey Beoplay A6 wireless speaker back in 2015. Here at CES, the company has a new model that also handles multiroom audio. The Beoplay M5 projects that trademark B&O sound 360 degrees from a device that’s designed to be a showpiece rather than extra clutter. Just like the A6, wool speaker covers are interchangeable so you will have options for what looks best in your home.

In addition to multiroom audio, the Beoplay M5 features both Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity. That means Chromecast, AirPlay, Spotify Connect and the company’s own Beolink are in play here. Another feature that’s carried over from the A6 is dedicated sound settings for the location you place the speaker. Those changes are also handled by the B&O app. The M5 can be linked with the Beoplay A6 and Beoplay A9 to put tunes in more than one room. Like a number of speakers we’re seeing this week, the latest Beoplay model also works with Google Home.

To control music, you press down on the M5’s aluminum top to play/pause and rotate it to adjust the volume. The spinning motion is only about 15 degrees, then the top comes back to its original position. If you have an M5 that’s not in use, pressing down on the top will alert it to join the other Beoplay speakers in your home that are currently in use. The speaker doesn’t do true stereo when you pair two of them together, but the idea here is to put devices in different rooms, not to link them for a single more robust setup.

B&O calls that omnidirectional sound True360 and the M5 also uses the company’s ambient tech to provide a simulated surround sound experience. The compact speaker’s acoustics are capable of both beam direction and beam width control thanks to a new version of the technology from Bang and Olufsen’s luxury BeoLab 90. This new M5 can also stream music up to 96KHz/24bit lossless, if you’re into that sort of thing.

We got a demo of the device and it’s no surprise that the speaker sounds really good. Sound quality is usually a safe bet when it comes to B&O gear and that’s certainly the case here. The M5 has a respectable amount of bass that’s pushed out along the bottom of the unit and punchy highs that make for a warm well-rounded sound. The controls up top are super simple, which makes a rather enjoyable overall experience of interacting with it.

Design is also something B&O does well and it maintains that reputation with the M5. The cylinder does indeed provide a piece of decor rather than a speaker that looks like a speaker. It’s much more compact that the Beoplay A6 and for that reason I could see it becoming a staple on a shelf or end table around my house more so than that larger model. The best part? B&O announced the M5 today and it’s available today. That’s almost unheard of for products introduced at CES. In terms of pricing, the speaker will set you back $599 (€599/£529) and comes in black and silver color options. Those swappable wool covers in a range of colors will be available at a later date.

Click here to catch up on the latest news from CES 2017.

Source: B&O Play

FBI says DNC wouldn’t give it direct access to hacked servers

The FBI has spent months trying to persuade people that Russia was behind the DNC hack, but we’re now learning that it didn’t get much help from the DNC itself. The bureau tells Buzzfeed News that the Democrats’ organization reportedly “rebuffed” multiple requests for physical access to the hacked servers, forcing investigators to depend on the findings of the third-party security firm CrowdStrike (which the DNC contacted after the hack). The FBI would have tackled the breach earlier if the DNC hadn’t “inhibited” the investigation, according to its statement.

The claims directly contradict earlier claims from the DNC, which maintained that the FBI had never asked for access. The DNC says it handed over CrowdStrike info “without any limits,” but that’s not very reassuring when the Committee wouldn’t let FBI agents skip the middleman. It doesn’t look good even if there were innocuous reasons.

Does the FBI need direct access to the servers to scrutinize the information? Not necessarily.

As The Verge observes after consulting with security firms, this arrangement is still business as usual for interactions with law enforcement: private firms conduct the initial study and clear the security threat, while official investigators focus on the actions they should take as a result. And so long as CrowdStrike can supply the raw server data, the FBI doesn’t need in-person access to double-check conclusions. Moreover, the FBI was already suspicious of Russian involvement well before CrowdStrike got involved, and had access to information that a private company wouldn’t see.

This isn’t to let the FBI off the hook. It still has to trust that CrowdStrike is both accurate and divulging everything it can. Also, the bureau’s most recent report on the hack include mistakes (such as listing “malicious” internet addresses that include Tor exit nodes, which doesn’t really say anything). And while multiple intelligence agencies are pointing the finger at Russia, there’s no publicly available smoking gun that will sway you if you’re skeptical. One thing’s for sure: the he-said-she-said between the FBI and DNC will have to be addressed if both sides are going to remove doubt that Russia was to blame.

LATEST: FBI says they asked DNC for servers, and DNC refused, “inhibited” the investigation. pic.twitter.com/AfkAPlJsYZ

— Ali Watkins (@AliWatkins) January 5, 2017

Source: BuzzFeed News, The Verge, Ali Watkins (Twitter)