You can now get the Google Pixel in ‘Really Blue’ colour finish, pre-order yours now

Google has announced the Pixel and Pixel XL will be available in the ‘Really Blue’ colour finish announced last Autumn, exclusively on EE through Carphone Warehouse. It joins the current Quite Black and Very Silver colours options.

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You can pre-order one now, and it will be in stores from the 24 February. EE has set-up two exclusive pay monthly deals for the phones:

• Pixel 32GB – free @ £45.00/month for unltd mins/ texts, 7GB of data, free Daydream VR headset and 10 BAFTA winning movies from the Google Play Store
• Pixel XL 32GB: free @ 50.99/month for unltd mins/texts, 7GB of data, free Daydream VR headset and 10 BAFTA winning movies from the Google Play Store

Carphone Warehouse has said it will announce its own SIM-free pricing soon, although it’s likely to cost the same as the black and silver options already available: £599 for Pixel and £719 for Pixel XL

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Rachael Roberts, Industrial Designer at Google commented: “Launching just in time for London Fashion Week, Pixel “Really Blue” is the bold and youthful sibling to the Quite Black and Very Silver colours. Our goal for Pixel was to create a simple and smart design in a beautifully crafted case and we hope “Really Blue” will appeal to the fun and stylish fashionistas among us.”

VR headset attachment promises to manage stress and sleep

Some VR experiences could be relaxing on their own, but there’s a VR accessory that was designed to make sure you get some well-deserved R&R. That accessory, which attaches to a VR headset’s strap, is called Kortex created by medical device maker Fisher Wallace. The company says it stimulates your brain into producing more endorphins, serotonin for mood balance and melatonin for healthy sleep, while also lowering the stress hormone cortisol.

Kortex works by stimulating your brain using low doses (max of 2mA) of pulsed alternating currents. According to the Indiegogo campaign page Fisher Wallace set up for the product, some people might feel “mild tingling” at the electrode sites, but most don’t.

The accessory works with the Samsung Gear VR, the Google Daydream VR and the ZEISS VR ONE Plus. However, it apparently works on its own, as well. There’s one big plus if you do use it with a VR headset, though: Each Kortex comes with a free copy of ustwo’s (the developer of Monument Valley) first-person game Land’s End.

You can get a unit if you back the campaign and pledge at least $299. Don’t expect it to be shipped overnight, though, since it’s estimated release date isn’t until July 2017.

Source: Indiegogo

Google’s ‘really blue’ Pixel and Pixel XL come to the UK

When Google announced the Pixel and Pixel XL, it showed off three colors: silver, black and “really blue.” Only two of those made it to the UK, however, with the third and whackiest option remaining a US exclusive. Well, not anymore. The blue Pixel is available for pre-order today through EE and Carphone Warehouse “until stocks last.” Yeah, it’s being described as a “limited edition,” so like the regular Pixel we’re not expecting much in the way of stock. It’s available in both the 5-inch X and 5.5-inch XL varieties, although you’re stuck with 32GB of storage (no 128GB option, boo.) Google says the phone will come to stores on February 24th, so even if you miss the pre-order blast, there’s still a chance of picking one up.

Google has had tremendous problems building and shipping its flagship phone. Glance at the company’s online store and you’ll notice that most, if not all configurations are still listed as “out of stock.” That’s a shame, because it’s a stellar phone that Android enthusiasts are clearly clamouring for. At launch, Google tried to sell the idea that now, with the Nexus name on the back burner, it was getting serious about hardware. There would be marketing. Carrier deals. But the big push has floundered on Google’s inability to manufacture handsets. Here’s hoping it can rectify that soon.

We loved the Really Blue Pixel, Phone by Google at its launch in October, and guess what? You can pre-order it now!https://t.co/JSplIwOqxi pic.twitter.com/vFQkUXh1JQ

— EE (@EE) February 17, 2017

Source: EE, Carphone Warehouse

Apple to Start Assembling iPhone SE Handsets in India in the Coming Months

Apple is to set to begin ramping up assembly of the iPhone SE at its Bangalore manufacturing plant in India in the coming months, sources said on Friday (via Reuters).

Last month, Apple agreed a deal with the Indian government to commence manufacturing operations in the Karnataka-based facility, with Taiwanese manufacturing partner Wistron reportedly winning the contract to set up the plant and focus on assembling Apple’s phones.

That groundwork now appears to have paid off, with Wistron almost ready to begin assembling the lower-priced iPhone SE model and kick-start Apple’s local production in India, home to the world’s fastest growing major mobile market.

Recently, Apple has been in talks with the Indian federal government in relation to possible tax concessions if it agreed to manufacture its phones locally. However, industry sources with knowledge of the matter say the initial manufacturing of the iPhone SE is not contingent on any such concessions.

The Economic Times reported on Friday that Apple planned to initially assemble 300,000 to 400,000 iPhone SE handsets in India, but an industry source told Reuters the numbers would be substantially lower to begin with. The source also said it’s too early to say what other iPhone models would be assembled at the Bengalore plant.

The move comes as Apple looks to offset slowing growth in China by boosting its share of the Indian mobile market, which is currently dominated by handsets far cheaper than iPhones. Samsung, Xiaomi, Vivo, and other players command the market there, where most phones are sold priced below 15,000 rupees ($225). The iPhone SE goes for $424 on Amazon.com’s India site, by comparison.

Related Roundup: iPhone SE
Tag: India
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Samsung Chief Arrested on Bribery Charges in Corruption Scandal

Samsung chief Jay Y Lee has been arrested over his alleged role in an influence-peddling scandal that reaches to the highest levels of the South Korean government, it was reported on Friday.

Reuters said the 48-year-old vice-chairman and heir-apparent of Samsung was taken into custody at the Seoul Detention Center on Friday morning, after waiting there overnight for the decision.

Image via Reuters
South Korea’s special prosecutor’s office accuses Lee of bribing a close friend of President Park Geun-hye – who is currently facing impeachment over the scandal – in order to win favors related to leadership succession at Samsung Group. Lee now faces charges including bribery, embezzlement, hiding assets overseas, and perjury. Both Geun-hye and Lee have denied wrongdoing in the case.

Prosecutors have up to 10 days to indict Lee, but they can seek an extension. After indictment, a court must then make its first ruling within three months. Currently there’s no word on whether lawyers representing Lee will contest the arrest or seek bail.

Shares in Samsung ended Friday down 0.42 percent, in line with a flat wider market. Ratings agencies say they don’t expect any impact on the company’s credit ratings, claiming Lee’s arrest will accelerate improvements in corporate transparency and governance.

Meanwhile, Lee’s arrest is not expected to hamper day-to-day operations at Samsung’s divisions, which are run by professional managers. That said, the conglomerate is currently going through a restructuring to clear a succession path for Lee to assume control after his father suffered a heart attack in 2014, suggesting strategic decision-making on the issue could be affected.

Lee’s detention comes as Samsung tries to resuscitate its Galaxy brand following last year’s Note7 debacle, in which the handsets were prone to setting on fire whilst charging. The company is hoping that its Galaxy S8, expected to launch in April, will bring the brand back on course in a crucial year when Apple is expected to announce a “tenth anniversary” iPhone 8, for which Samsung will also provide 160 million OLED display panels.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Tag: Samsung
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HTC leaves ‘ultra competitive’ entry-level smartphone market to focus on turning a profit

Expect only mid-range and high-end flagships from HTC moving forward.

HTC is hoping that less is more when it comes to smartphone offerings. Chia-Lin Chang, President of HTC’s Smartphone and Connected Device divisions, says the Taiwanese company will stop chasing high sales numbers in the entry-level smartphone markets and instead focus on designing and selling highly profitable devices.

This news comes from HTC’s quarterly conference call with investors, wherein the company announced a fourth straight quarter posting an operating loss. When asked how the company plans to shift its strategies for 2017, Chang responded in part by saying “We are going to get out of the entry level part, which I think is ultra competitive and we’re not necessarily going to benefit from a profitability perspective here. To us, profitability on the smartphone is going to be quite important.”

Chang continued by saying the company plans to focus on mid-range to high-end products moving forward, stating the company is planning to release only seven “key SKU” (stock-keeping units) in 2017.

The strategy does make sense, given how crowded the budget phone space has become —especially in the competitive overseas markets of China and India. Instead of chasing high sales figures with cheaper devices, the plan will be to focus on mid-range devices and premium flagships with higher profit margins — such as the forthcoming HTC U Ultra and U Play.

Only time will tell if this new strategy will lift HTC’s smartphone division out of the red, but at least we’re sure to see the top tier of smartphones from HTC moving forward.

T-Mobile rolling out Nougat update to Galaxy S7 and S7 edge, starting with beta users

Final Nougat build going out to beta testers on T-Mobile Galaxy S7 and S7 edge.

T-Mobile has started rolling out the stable Nougat release to the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge, with those enrolled in the Galaxy Beta Program receiving the update first. As the update is now hitting those that are already running beta versions of Nougat, it weighs in at 117MB. It also includes the February security patch.

The changelog for the update lists several improvements, as well as usability fixes. T-Mobile’s support page doesn’t mention the update yet, but with the OTA going out to beta users, a full-fledged update won’t be far behind.

Galaxy S7 Nougat update: Top 10 features to know

Thanks for the tip Darryl Owens!

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Twitter kills notifications from threads of people you blocked

Twitter is ramping up its anti-abuse measures lately. After making abusive accounts invisible to anyone who don’t follow them, the microblogging website has announced that you’ll no longer be notified of replies to conversations started by people you’ve blocked or muted. The only notifications you’ll get from those threads, even if you’re repeatedly @mentioned, are from people you personally follow. Twitter’s Safety account revealed the new feature on the platform, saying that it’s a decision made after receiving “consistent feedback from the safety community.”

Over the past few weeks, Twitter showed that it has finally begun taking complaints about rampant abuse on its website much more seriously. Besides making abusive accounts invisible to most users, it now filters out offensive replies to tweets, as well. Ed Ho, Twitter’s VP of engineering, promised to roll out “a number of product changes” addressing abuse on the website. We can probably expect more changes in the future if the company truly wants to squash online abuse.

Now, you won’t be notified about replies to conversations started by people you’ve blocked/muted, unless replies are from people you follow.

— Twitter Safety (@TwitterSafety) February 16, 2017

Source: Twitter Safety

Scientists are building an army of tiny cancer-fighting robots

Scientists have worked for years to incorporate robotics into delicate medical procedures. They’ve given us tiny devices that can inject drugs into a person’s eye or bend to operate on hard-to-reach areas. Now, they’ve come up with a way to potentially fight cancer using a magnetized swarm of microscopic robots.

Researchers at Phillips Innovative Technologies in Hamburg, Germany have created a way to manipulate each robot in a swarm individually and assign them specific tasks using magnetic fields. The scientists presented their findings on Feb. 15th in the Journal Science Robotics.

Previously, it was difficult to precisely control the microscopic devices because they would all behave the same way when controlled by the same magnetic field. “Our method may enable complex manipulations inside the human body,” study lead author Jürgen Rahmer told Live Science.

Scientists now want to use the robotic swarm to deliver cancer-killing radioactive “seeds” specifically to tumors within the body. Treating cancer this way could spare healthy tissue and reduce harmful side effects. It could also be used to create medical implants that change over time as a person heals, researchers said.

Via: Live Science

Source: Journal Science Robotics

‘Hearthstone’ will release three full expansions in 2017

Blizzard is shaking up its Warcraft-themed digital card game, Hearthstone, with a slew of changes coming this year. Unlike its prior habit of alternating smaller Adventure releases with larger Expansions, 2017 will see three of the latter full-size sets added to the game. But they’re also taking away half a dozen cards from the competitive Standard format, including fan favorites Ragnaros the Firelord and Sylvanas. Welcome to the Year of the Mammoth.

A year ago, Blizzard faced the possibility that their upcoming content additions would fail to edge out existing cards that were dominating the meta. So the studio made a fateful decision to split Hearthstone’s main play into two modes: Standard, with the original cards plus the last year of Expansions, and Wild, which would include every card ever printed. The first addition of 2016, last April’s Whispers Of The Old Gods, added 130-odd new cards to every format while retiring 163 out of Standard.

Hence, the first Expansion planned for this year will knock out cards from 2015’s Blackrock Mountain, The Grand Tournament and League of Explorers. But that’s not all. Turns out Blizzard hasn’t been happy with a few cards from the original Classic set that was long thought immune from retirement. Six of them will be placed in the “Hall of Fame,” a de facto ban from Standard mode, because they were all dominant in their mana slot or deck choice. Seasoned players will lament the loss of these auto-includes, but new and casual players will rejoice at never having to face the tiresome Hall of Fame’d legendary cards they never got access to. Silver lining: If you had any of the six, Blizzard will award you its full dust cost without the need to disenchant it as a mea culpa.

On the plus side, assuming each of this year’s Expansions are as large as their 130-odd card predecessors, we should see twice as many cards added to the game in The Year Of The Mammoth as we did in 2016. Obviously, that’s a huge jump in content, but some might mourn the loss of the single-player Adventures. Fear not! Blizzard is going to augment its new Expansions, starting with the second one of the year, with optional single-player thematic storytelling and fun challenges. And to keep Wild in the loop, the studio is planning a revival of its hardcore Heroic Tavern Brawl specifically for the all-card format as well as work with third parties to host dedicated Wild tournaments.

So when does the fun start, and the first Expansion launch to kick off Year of the Mammoth?? Well, we don’t know.

Blizzard is notoriously coy with stating release dates; Aside from stating it will appear in Q2, they probably won’t announce it until a month or so ahead of launch. But canny fans uncovered clues last week suggesting the first Expansion could be a dinosaur-themed romp called The Lost Secrets of Un’Goro. We’ll probably find out leading up to April, since that’s the month Whispers of the Old Gods was released last year and League of Explorers launched in 2015.

Once the cat’s out of the bag, you can expect Blizzard to be sounding the trumpets to get players back in the saddle. Per their post, the studio promises daily rewards simply for logging in, including card-crafting dust, gold and Expansion packs with other unnamed perks. Plus, the next hero (read: Alternate portrait, with no in-game effects) will be a gleeful Easter Egg for Warcraft veterans as Maiev Shadowsong arrives for the Rogue class. That sums up all the great things ahead for Hearthstone in 2017 — see you on the board, card fanatics.

Via: Polygon

Source: Hearthstone blog