Google’s gigabit Webpass internet is expanding to Seattle and Denver

Why it matters to you

Google is bringing superfast Webpass internet to Seattle and Denver, where customers should see download and upload speeds of up to a gigabit.

Google Fiber, Google’s eponymous high-speed internet service, is expanding its wireline reach. On Wednesday, the search giant’s Webpass subsidiary published a job listing that makes passing reference to an unannounced “Seattle market.”  It’s for a general manger who’d be “directly responsible for the growth of […] local telecom network and revenue,” and who’d oversee construction and installation schedules.

In a related development, Webpass announced that it would expand to select residential markets in Denver. “[Customers whose] buildings are wired with Ethernet will be able to contact Webpass and sign up for superfast internet service,” a company spokesperson said in a statement.

More: Out with infrastructure? Google Fiber may become entirely wireless in the future

Webpass offers unlimited downloads and uploads at speeds of up to 1Gbps for $60 a month in Boston, Miami, Oakland, Sand Diego, San Francisco. Access, the Google parent company responsible for Google Fiber, purchased it in October.

Unlike Google Fiber, Webpass doesn’t rely on fiber wire to deliver high-speed internet. Instead, it employs millimeter wave technology that beams high-frequency waves from powerful base stations to receivers mounted on the tops of buildings. It isn’t perfect — the signals are subject to atmospheric interference, network congestion, and the number of subscribers using the connection at any given time — but it’s often cheaper to deploy in particularly dense urban environments.

And it’s unlikely to face the sorts of legal challenges triggered by Google’s fiber efforts. AT&T, Charter, and Comcast have sued to stop city ordinances in Nashville and Louisville that would make it easier for Google to access utility polls.

More: Google Fiber, AT&T fiber turn Kentucky city into a gigabit battleground

Google Fiber has been in limbo, recently, pending a shift in expansion strategy. Alphabet, Google’s parent company, reduced the Access team’s staff and “paused” fiber rollouts in 10 cities. Currently, Google services nine metro areas, including Atlanta, Austin, Charlotte, Kansas City (in Missouri and Kansas), Nashville, Salt Lake City, and Provo, Utah. It’s scheduled to launch in Irvine, California; San Antonio, Texas; Louisville, Kentucky; and Huntsville, Alabama, in the coming months.

“We have refined our plan going forward to achieve these objectives,” Barrett wrote in a blog post announcing the layoffs. “It entails us making changes to focus our business and product strategy. Importantly, the plan enhances our focus on new technology and deployment methods to make superfast internet more abundant than it is today.”

At an Alphabet shareholder’s meeting earlier this year, chairman Eric Schmidt unveiled plans to test wireless gigabit internet service that wouldn’t require “[digging] up your garden.” In October 2016, Google gained approval from the United States Federal Communications Commission to begin testing “experimental transmitters” in as many as 24 metropolitan areas throughout the country.

Apple ResearchKit epilepsy study provides insight on seizure triggers

Why it matters to you

Apple is making it a point to research patients across a range of illnesses — research that could one day help save your life.

Apple has been playing a bigger role in conducting medical research through the sensors in its iPhone and Apple Watch, and one of the bigger of its studies has just concluded. The study was conducted over the past 10 months, and tracked epilepsy patients’ seizures, gaining invaluable insight into what triggers those seizures.

The way it worked is that when patients felt that a seizure could be coming on, they opened up the app and told the Apple Watch to record both heart rate data and accelerometer data from the Apple Watch. It also tracked gyroscope data from the iPhone for 10 minutes. During that 10 minutes, users were also prompted to test for reflex and awareness, and after the seizure had ended, patients filled out a survey about the type of seizure, loss of awareness, and what they think could have triggered the seizure.

More: Almost 80 percent of Apple devices are on iOS 10, latest figures reveal

In total almost 1,500 seizures were recorded, and the data collected could seriously help in the treatment of epilepsy patients. For example, stress was linked to a hefty 37 percent of the seizures, while sleep deprivation accounted for 18 percent. Menstruation was linked to 12 percent of the seizures, and other seizures were linked to diet and missed medications. Interestingly, despite conventional wisdom suggesting otherwise, it did not seem as though triggers and type of seizure were linked.

“The data collected will help researchers better understand epilepsy, while helping people with epilepsy keep a more complete history of their seizures,” said Gregory Krauss, MD, the author of the study, in a press release. “The app also provides helpful tracking of seizures, prescription medication use and drug side effects —activities that are important in helping people manage their condition.”

So what’s the goal? Beyond simply gaining more knowledge on epilepsy, Krauss says that eventually the team would like to develop a wearable that can predict seizures, which could both help save peoples lives and help epilepsy patients gain more freedom.

The study started in September 2015 and 598 people with epilepsy were a part of it.

LG’s K Series budget phones run Android 7.0 Nougat

LG revealed five of its upcoming smartphones in December before CES 2017 even began. But now that the show is about to kick off, we’ve managed to get some hands-on time with the budget devices at the massive annual technology show in Las Vegas.

Don’t expect these phones to be replacements for the LG G5 or V20. LG has four K Series phones, and a brand new Stylus smartphone, all of which are strong midrange devices suitable for all. The K Series, which launched in 2016, includes the K3, K4, K8, and K10. The 2017 variants slightly improve on the older models, adding features such as fingerprint sensors and larger megapixel sensors.

What’s neat is that they all run the latest version of Android — 7.0 Nougat. That’s hard to find in a budget phone these days. Prices haven’t been announced yet, and LG is expecting to launch the K Series in spring 2017.

LG K10

The LG K10 is the top new K Series phone from LG. It has a 5.3-inch IPS screen with a 1,280 x 720 pixel resolution, and is powered by a MediaTek MT6570 octa-core processor with 2GB of RAM. The screen is covered in a curved 2.5D glass panel, the phone’s chassis is made from metal, and a fingerprint sensor is on the back — all great features separating the K10 from many other midrange phones currently available.

The device felt lightweight, but its brushed back wasn’t appealing as it was prone to show fingerprints (at least for the gray model). It did also seem as though the device endured its fair share of scratches on the sides, which reiterates the fact that these are budget devices that aren’t made of the highest-quality materials.

Still, the software experience is more or less the same as what you will find in the LG G5 or the V20. The fact that the K Series will run Nougat out of the box is important as the Android version update is still slowly trickling to flagship devices from other manufacturers. We didn’t run into any hiccups in our brief time using the device. Apps opened quickly enough, and the experience felt smooth.

More: When is your phone getting Android 7.0 Nougat? We asked every major manufacturer

LG has taken a 13-megapixel camera, once fitted to its high-end G Series phones, and put it on the back of the K10, with a 120-degree selfie cam with five megapixels around the front. The 2,800mAh removable battery sounds small, but it doesn’t have to drive a massive, high-resolution screen. There are three colors available — black, titan, and gold — plus space for a MicroSD card to boost the 32GB of onboard storage.

The K10’s first destination is India, where the phone is available for 15,000 rupees ($220). Due to Indian government standards, the K10 comes equipped with a “Panic” button that directly connects to India’s SOS 112 emergency calling service. Phone owners will need to either press the power button three times or press the SOS option in the menu to get connected with the service.

LG K8

The K8 is a little smaller than the K10. It has a 5-inch IPS screen with the same 1,280 x 720 pixel resolution, as well as a smaller 1.4GHz quad-core MediaTek processor with only 1.5GB of RAM. You only get 16GB of internal storage, and the battery has a 2,500mAh capacity. The cameras have higher megapixel counts than the current K8, with 13 megapixels on the rear and five megapixels on the front. LG has given K8 owners the choice of either silver, titan, dark blue, or gold color schemes.

The K8, like the K10, also felt lightweight, but it certainly does feel like a budget phone.

LG K4 and K3

These two are entry-level smartphones, and sadly, LG has installed Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow instead of 7.0 Nougat found on the K10 and K8. The K3 has a 4.5-inch, 854 x 480 pixel screen, a 5-megapixel rear camera, a 2-megapixel front camera, and a 2,100mAh removable battery. The processor is a 1.1GHz quad-core MediaTek chip with 1GB of RAM, and there’s 8GB of internal storage with a MicroSD card slot.

The K4, pictured above, is the best-looking device in the K Series. It improves on last year’s model slightly with a 5-inch screen, which retains the 854 x 480 pixel resolution, plus a pair of 5-megapixel cameras. It has the same 1.1GHz MediaTek chip that is powering the K4, and a single gigabyte of RAM. The battery has a 2,500mAh capacity, there’s 8GB of storage space, a MicroSD card slot, and like the K3, 4G LTE connectivity.

LG didn’t have the K3 available but it was clear the display was sub par on the K4 due to the use of such a low resolution on a 5-inch screen. It may look better on the K3 with its 4.5-inch display.

More: LG G6 news and rumors

We may know enough about the phones, but LG is keeping prices and release dates under wraps for now. Expect the K Series to launch in the spring, and since last year’s K10 cost around $180, we expect this year’s lineup to stay within that sub-$200 range.

Updated on 02-22-2017 by Williams Pelegrin: Added information regarding the K10’s launch in India.

No, Project Fi will not destroy your Google Voice account (update: that was then, this is now)

Changes in the Google Voice app have some worried that Project Fi will lose features.

This article was updated in February, 2017 with new information about both Project Fi and Google Voice.

In January 2017, Google Voice was given the big update many of us using it had been waiting for. A rich user interface with things like threaded messaging and MMS for everyone, as well as a new web interface all worked to make using Google Voice easier. But for some, namely Project Fi users, it put an end to being able to use the app the way we had been using it. And to add a little salt to the wound, we’ve all been hearing about how Hangouts — the only option for Fi subscribers to use more than one phone — is moving away to become some strange corporate enterprise thing.

If Hangouts morphs into something else, what happens to Fi users who need Google Voice features?

A Project Fi subscriber can no longer have a traditional Google Voice account. Both systems share the same infrastructure, so tying more than one number to the same account isn’t possible. Your Project Fi phone number is your Google Voice number and vice versa. Before the update, users with a Project Fi-issued phone number were able to install the Google Voice app on a different phone or a tablet so sending and receiving SMS was available using the Fi number and calls would come in or could be made using the Fi number.

This update takes that option away, leaving Hangouts as the only method to use one number across different devices. And Hangouts is going away, at least as we know it today.

We reached out to Project Fi and heard the same well-intentioned line everyone eventually received; nothing to announce, Google understands the situation, pair of aces in the wrong places and all that. But there is light at the end of the tunnel when we veer away from the official word and look to the unconfirmed but reliable sources.

Google is said to be adding the functionality Project Fi users currently have via Hangouts into the new Google Voice. That could mean a merging of Fi and Google Voice, additional features in the Project Fi app for devices with a different SIM card and phone number, or a fix for Google accounts associated with a Fi account so that they can access the Google Voice app and its features using a Fi number.

Google’s messaging strategy is an unknown and can be confusing. Still, we expect they have some plan in mind for folks paying them to use Project Fi. Google Voice has been a favorite for many since it was Grand Central and is still a great way to have a second number or use the same number everywhere. We hope it stays that way.

The original text of the article follows below.

News that Google was finally pushing Project Fi invites to a handful of people led to a whole lot of users asking those lucky enough to get in on the action what the experience was like. In doing so, a screenshot appeared that suggested using Project Fi meant destroying your Google Voice account. The dialogue box from the screenshot explains you can either bring your Google Voice number over to Project Fi, or you can use a different number with a caveat explaining your current Voice number will be released if you go with a different number.

If all you know about Project Fi and Google Voice comes from that one screenshot, there’d be plenty of reason to be concerned. Fortunately, after a quick chat with the folks at Google, we know things aren’t nearly as dire as they seem.

Project Fi uses the same infrastructure as Google Voice, and all of those features follow with you from Google Voice to Project Fi.

The first thing you need to know about Project Fi is how the system is built to function. Fi operates on a special hybrid network that allows users to move seamlessly between Wifi, T-Mobile, and Sprint networks, with unique pricing that lets you pay for what you use and not a penny more. The service also lets you use your Fi number on devices that aren’t connected to the Fi network. You can use your Fi number to make calls, send SMS, and access call forwarding and voicemail transcripts on anything running Google Hangouts, including your desktop.

Sound familiar? That’s because Project Fi uses the same infrastructure as Google Voice, and all of those features follow with you from Google Voice to Project Fi.

Google Voice isn’t being destroyed by this new service, it’s growing up and becoming Project Fi. You have the same features that work the same way, with the added bonus of being able to use the Project Fi mobile carrier service if you choose. Remember, Project Fi is month to month, so you can jump on and off the service as you please. More importantly, Google has confirmed users who stop using Fi will be able to continue using the Google Voice features in Hangouts, only now it’ll be called Project Fi when setting it up on new devices. If you want access to your old Google Voice information, like call history and old voicemail, there’s a button to do exactly that inside the Project Fi web interface.

So relax, Google isn’t taking Voice from you. If anything, Google is doing what folks have been begging them to do for well over a year now by bringing Voice into the modern era and tacking new features onto it. If you’re only casually interested in Fi and don’t want to move your Voice account over, you can use another Gmail account and get a fresh number generated. Otherwise, sit back and enjoy the ride.

You can now register for Google I/O 2017!

Registration for Google’s developer conference is now open!

Last year, Google Allo, Duo, Assistant and Home were announced at Google I/O 2016, and that was just at the keynote. The annual developer conference is full of interesting pieces of news, but the real reason it exists is for developers to learn how to build great apps and experience for the Android and Chrome platforms.

This year, with rumors swirling about Andromeda, Fuschia, and whatever else Google has in store for the future of Android, Google I/O is sure to be an excellent time.

And now it’s officially open for registration! As with last year, the conference is in May — May 17-19, to be specific — at Shoreline Amphitheater in Mountain View, California, home of Google’s own campus (in fact, the Amphitheater is just a few miles away). Registration is open from today, February 22, until February 27 at 5PM PST.

As with previous years, too, the draw is random, so it doesn’t matter when you apply in the process; Google will begin picking people as of February 28. This year, though, the price of a general admission ticket has risen to $1,150, up from $900 in 2016. Academic tickets are still relatively reasonable at $375.

If you’re applying to attend Google I/O, let us know — and good luck! We’ll see you there.

Register for Google I/O 2017

Here’s every bit of the LG G6 prior to the announcement

Well, there it is. After leak upon leak, there is now very little left to learn about the LG G6.

Thanks to prolific leaker, Evan Blass, you now know exactly what the LG G6 will look like. As predicted, it’s got tiny bezels, two cameras, presumably of different focal lengths, and a fingerprint sensor on the back. That’s what we can see in this render.

Aside from that, we’ve learned that the phone will have a 2:1/18:9 aspect ratio, along with waterproofing, (unfortunately) a Snapdragon 821 processor, and perhaps a larger battery than the 2800mAh cell on the G5 because… drum roll please it’s sealed in.

Now that the full picture of the LG G6 is coming into focus, are you more or less excited than before? And what would it take for you to pick one up over a Galaxy S8, which is presumably coming just a month later with a considerable faster processor and similarly slim bezels.

LG G6

• LG G6 rumor roundup
• LG forums
• All the LG G6 news
• What the LG G6 needs to succeed

This is what the Huawei P10 flagship phone will look like in full black

Huawei is getting ready to show off a new phone, and thanks to a new leak, we know how it will look in full (and in black).

Evan Blass, who has a good track record when it comes to leaking mobile news via his Twitter handle @evleaks, has posted a new render of the upcoming Huawei P10, and it’s one of the clearest looks we’ve seen of the device yet. The renders reveal the frontside, backside, dual rear-facing cameras, red power button on the side, and more in brilliant detail. Keep in mind the P10 is rumoured to be the “most expensive ‘P device’ ever”.

• Mobile World Congress 2017: Nokia, Sony, Huawei, and more

Huawei tends to announce its “P” flagship in April, and its Mate series in the latter half of the year, but the company has already teased that it will use Mobile World Congress 2017 in Barcelona for the Huawei P10, as well as the Huawei Watch 2. None of the specifications have been confirmed by Huawei, but according to reports, it will feature a 5.2-inch QHD display, Kirin 960 processor, and 4GB RAM.

It might also have 32GB and 64GB storage options, and EMUI 5.0 overlaid on Android Nougat. Check out Pocket-lint’s rumour round-up to see what else it is expected to feature. Pocket-lint will be live at MWC 2017 to bring you the confirmed specs once they’re revealed.

Huawei P10. pic.twitter.com/7UNx2w5blW

— Evan Blass (@evleaks) February 22, 2017

Lawmaker: Chile and Texas don’t share a flag, y’all

The current roster of emojis includes many national flags, but not state-specific ones. So, left with few other options, people have taken to using the Chilean flag emoji (🇨🇱) to signify Texas pride. This makes sense considering how much the two flags look alike, but one Texas lawmaker has had enough.

Reuters reports that on February 16, State Representative Tom Oliverson filed a resolution that asks Texans to lay off using the emoji when talking about their home state. The legislation is polite, but calls on lawmakers “to reject the notion that the Chilean flag, although it is a nice flag, can in any way compare to or be substituted for the official state flag of Texas and urge all Texans not to use the Republic of Chile flag emoji in digital forums when referring to the Lone Star Flag of the great State of Texas.”

The language of the resolution doesn’t propose an enforceable law. Instead it’s more of a lighthearted plea for tweeters to stop mixing up the two flags. Oliverson doesn’t seem to be taking the legislation too seriously either, telling Reuters he “designed it be educational, kind of like a public service announcement.”

In emoji form, the Chilean flag looks a lot like The Lone Star Flag, but they’re not identical. The biggest difference is that while Chile’s flag has a blue square in the top left corner containing a white star, Texas’ has a blue bar on the left side with a white star in the middle. The flags are even similar in name — Chile’s flag is known in Spanish as “La Estrella Solitaria,” or “The Lone Star.”

This amusing resolution is further proof that, as we suspected, emojis are taking over the world. They’re getting their own movie, helping us order tacos and being incorporated into the bible. They’re beyond our control and language is dead.

Images: Mark Scott Johnson via Flickr (Chile flags, lead); Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons (Chile flag and Texas flag graphics)

Source: Reuters, LegiScan

‘Overwatch’ streamer destroys his in-game imposter

Brian St. James is called Kephrii in the competitive Overwatch scene, and he’s known as the highest ranked Widowmaker player in the world. He recently ran into a hacker impersonating his gamer tag and using cheats, but instead of getting mad, the real Kephrii got even. While streaming the match on YouTube, St. James showed off his skills by consistently killing the fake Kephrii, who played Widowmaker, then Tracer (two different character classes), on the opposing team.

In the recorded video, full of expletives and a fair amount of braggadocio, St. James talks to his teammates, asking for shields and calling out the enemy location. In between the two game rounds, the real Kephrii lets his teammates know what’s up. “Guys, he’s cheating,” says St. James. “I told you this; that Kephrii is cheating, he’s aim-botting.” The hacker is pulling off impossible shots with the help of aiming software on his gaming PC.

The combination of impersonation and facing a cheat has got to be maddening, and you can hear it in the terse way St. James responds to the threat. Both players get their shots in, though St. James seems to dominate the contest. In the final call, the real Kephrii gets the nod for best play of the game for his 5-player kill streak. “Can’t even be me with hacks bud,” he types into the chat window.

Via: Kotaku

Source: YouTube

‘Mass Effect’ gets raunchy in its new Cards Against Humanity pack

If your favorite part about Mass Effect is making jokes about the game’s wide-array of sexual paring options, you can skip Andromeda — Cards Against Humanity has announced a limited run Mass Effect expansion. Well, expansion is a bit of an overstatement. The terrible person’s favorite card game is selling 14 Mass Effect themed cards for $1 — and yes, most of them are poking fun at the series history of letting the player hook up with pretty much everyone.

That’s partially BioWare’s fault. According to Cards Agasinst Humanity’s Trin Garritano, the Mass Effect writing staff overwhelmingly favored cards with sex jokes. “We had to push through a few non-sex cards just to widen the appeal of the deck,” he told Polygon. “It was an incredible problem to have and I am still absolutely ticked by this.” Sounds about right. The new pack is available today, and will sell until stock runs out. Oh, and don’t worry about the expansion pack having Andromeda spoilers — apparently, Bioware wouldn’t let the CAH staff play it. Bummer.

Source: Cards Against Humanity