HTC’s Vive Tracker and Deluxe Audio Strap cost $100 each

HTC launched a pair of desirable accessories for its Vive VR headset at CES 2017 in Las Vegas last month, and now we know when they’ll arrive and for how much. The Vive Tracker, a 3D tracking device that you can attach to your wrists or any objects you want to use in VR, will cost $100 (£100 in the UK) and arrive to developers only starting on March 27th. The Deluxe Audio Strap, which adds some much-needed comfort to the otherwise fabulous headset, will also cost $100 and £100 in the UK.

These new accessories are pretty important for HTC’s fledgling Vive division. While the Vive has reportedly logged decent sales, possibly better than Oculus, Sony recently revealed that it has sold nearly a million Playstation VR headsets, likely more than HTC and Oculus put together.

The main knock on the Vive headset (besides the whopping $800 price) is the lack of comfort. The Deluxe Audio Strap goes a long way to solving that issue thanks to its adjustable sizing dial, and it has built-in headphones to boot. It might irk some buyers to pay an extra $100 for the strap when they’ve already shelled out $800, though.

As for the Tracker (above), you can attach it to your legs and arms, making jumping, punching, ducking and crouching actions more realistic in fighting games. “You can now comfortably kick objects, see yourself crouching, and even lie prone with one-to-one accuracy in Island 359,” developer Steve Bowler told HTC.

It can also be added to a dummy gun-type device, making simulated in-game weapons work like the real ones. During CES, HTC also fixed one to a fire hose as part of a firefighter training game, showing the potential of the device for military, police and other types of simulations.

The Tracker goes on sale on March 27th for $100, but only for developers and with a vague “later in the year” timeline for end-users. That means it’ll take a while for the product to get into consumers’ hands, as companies must first integrate the device into their games and software. HTC said, however, that the tracker “is a key piece” of its Vive ecosystem and VR strategy, not just for gaming but areas like education, training and health and wellness.

Source: HTC

Huawei’s fancy Porsche Design smartwatch isn’t all that different

Huawei’s Watch 2 is getting a limited edition run, courtesy of Porsche Design. While we’ve already strapped on the company’s basic Android Wear sequel, the VIP version was behind glass in a corner of one of many Huawei booths here at MWC. (This company takes Mobile World Congress very seriously.) While there’s no price, Huawei’s last collaboration with Porsche Design on its Mate 9 smartphone resulted in a limited-run phone that was four times the price of the muggle version, which gives us some idea. (The standard Huawei Watch 2 will hit retail for roughly $350, so multiply that a few times.) However much it does eventually cost, you will get a thick leather strap with red stitching for that outlay, and a specially engraved ceramic chronograph bezel. Other than that, it still looks a whole lot like the original Watch 2, albeit made for Asia’s gui zu [one-percenters]. If Apple can do it, why not?

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

Streamer completes every NES game ever made

In May 2014, Piotr Delgado “The Mexican Runner” Kusielczuk wanted a new challenge. His Super Castlevania IV speed runs were leaving him burned out and he wanted to tackle something different for the entertainment of his Twitch followers. Friends suggested that instead of completing NES games as fast as possible, he should perhaps think about beating every game ever made for the platform. Starting with Whomp ‘Em on May 28th, 2014, Kusielczuk methodically completed all 714 titles, eventually completing the final world in his final game, Super Mario 3, yesterday.

In all, it took Kusielczuk 3,435 hours to finish the 714 games, which included all 679 titles released in North America and 35 PAL exclusives. Some were quickly completed, but for other games that didn’t have a dedicated “ending,” he continued playing until the game began looping or there was simply no other way to progress.

While Kusielczuk achievement will surely inspire copycats, the good news is that it will take other speedrunners and streamers around three years to reach the same milestone. However, the NES community has consistently shown that time is no obstacle, meaning we’ll likely report a new world record in late 2019/early 2020.

Via: Kotaku

Source: The Mexican Runner (Twitch)

MWC 2017: Samsung Focus on New Tablets in Absence of Galaxy S8

With reference to the upcoming Galaxy S8 at this year’s Mobile Wold Congress limited to a March 29 launch date confirmation, Samsung chose to put the focus on two new tablets, the Android-powered Galaxy Tab S3 and the Galaxy Book, which runs Windows 10.

Aiming to compete with the iPad Pro, the Tab S3 comes with a 9.7-inch HDR-ready Super AMOLED display running at 2,048 x 1,536 resolution. On the back is a 13 megapixel camera, while a 5 megapixel camera sits on the front, where a fingerprint sensor lives on the home button.

The new metal and glass-backed design is 6mm thick, and houses a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor, 4GB of RAM, 32GB of storage (expandable up to 256GB with a microSD), built-in LTE, and a 6,000 mAh battery with Fast Charging support using the USB-C port. A new Note7-like S Pen stylus is also included.

The Galaxy Book was Samsung’s other big announcement at MWC. The hybrid tablet-laptop, positioned as a Surface Pro competitor, comes in 10.6-inch and 12-inch versions, with 1,920 x 1,280 and 2,160 x 1,440 resolutions, respectively.

The 10.6-inch size features a 2.6GHz Intel Core m3 dual-core processor, 4GB of RAM, up to 128GB of storage, and has a 5 megapixel front-facing camera. The 12-inch Galaxy Book has a 3.1GHz Intel Core i5 dual-core processor, up to 8GB of RAM, and up to 256GB of storage, with a 13 megapixel camera on the back and a 5 megapixel one on the front.

Samsung has not yet announced any pricing information for the Tab S3 and Galaxy Book. Meanwhile, Apple is expected to launch new 12.9-inch iPads and a new flagship 10.5-inch model in March. The latter is said to have an edge-to-edge display on the same footprint as the current 9.7-inch iPad.

Tags: Samsung, MWC 2017
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Amazon and Netflix Celebrate First Oscar Wins For Streaming Services

Amazon and Netflix yesterday collected the first Academy Awards for streaming services, sharing four gold statuettes between them at this year’s Oscars.

Amazon Studios bagged a Best Actor trophy for Casey Affleck’s portrayal of a grieving man in “Manchester by the Sea”. Bought by Amazon for $10 million at the Sundance film festival, the movie also won Best Original Screenplay. It has earned $46.8 million at domestic theaters, and is set to appear later this year on Amazon’s Prime Video service.

Scene from “Manchester by the Sea”, courtesy K Period Media
Amazon also gained another accolade for Best Foreign Language Film with Iranian drama “The Salesman,” which the company distributed in the United States and Canada.

Netflix won Best Documentary in the short-subject category for 40-minute film “The White Helmets”, which followed volunteer rescue workers in war-torn Syria. The Netflix Original was directed by Orlando von Einsiedel.

According to one former Wall Street analyst, Apple’s first Academy Award is not too far away either. Venture capitalist and tech ponderer Gene Munster predicted on Friday that Apple will win an Oscar in five years.

“We think Apple will win an Oscar in the next five years,” Munster wrote in a research note issued by his company, Loup Ventures. “That’s how long it will take for Apple to scale its original content spend from less than $200 million today to $5-7 billion.”

According to Munster, Apple’s moves towards making original content to drive user engagement with its ecosystem will turn increasingly towards movies and TV series, as it aims to boost revenues to its Services division, which includes Apple Music and iTunes.

Apple has already unveiled plans to launch two unscripted series on Apple Music, “Planet of the Apps”, which shares a format similar to talent-based reality show The Voice and Shark Tank, and “Carpool Karaoke”, based on the popular James Corden segment from The Late Late Show. In addition, Apple is also working on “Vital Signs”, a dark semi-autobiographical drama starring Dr. Dre, which will also be used to promote Apple Music.

Tags: Netflix, Amazon Prime Video
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MWC 2017: Nokia Announces Withings Rebrand and Nokia 3310 Reboot

All Withings products will be rebranded under Nokia by the summer, according to Withings CEO Cédric Hutchings. The announcement was made on Sunday during Nokia’s event at Mobile World Congress 2017 in Barcelona, Spain.

Withings makes iOS-compatible smart connected home products as well as a range of health and fitness wearables. Nokia bought the French health tracking company last year for an estimated $192 million. The acquisition saw Withings’ 200 employees integrate into Nokia Technologies when the deal went through in June.

As well as the rebranding, the Withings CEO said the company would release a redesigned Health Mate app later this year that will bring an “improved user experience” and new data sharing features. Nokia is also set to launch a new Patient Care program similar to Apple’s Healthkit that will allow patients to share data medical doctors.

In related news, Nokia also announced a new modern variant of its original 3310 mobile phone, first launched back in September 2000. Made by HMD Global, which bought the right to make Nokia phones last year, the new version retains the same name – and even includes classic game Snake – but runs Nokia’s more advanced Series 30+ software. It also features a 2.4-inch QVGA display, a 2 megapixel camera, and a microSD slot.

The new 3310 supports Bluetooth and comes with Opera Mini installed for basic web surfing. Talk time is said to be 22 hours, but the big draw is likely to be the featurephone’s 31-day standby time.

The Nokia 3310 will be available in a number of candy colors and should arrive later in the spring for the price of $52.

Tags: Withings, Nokia, MWC 2017
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Hands-on: Lenovo’s new Tab 4 Android tablets

Here at MWC 2017 in Barcelona, Lenovo has just introduced their Tab 4 series of Android tablets. Apart from including the standard 8-inch and 10-inch iterations of the Tab 4, the company has also unveiled premium “Plus” editions of the tablets that bring more power, quality, and features to the table. What does the Lenovo Tab 4 series have to offer? Let’s find out!

Both the 8-inch and 10-inch iterations of the regular Tab 4 devices come with IPS LCD displays with a HD resolution, and are powered by quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processors, backed by 2 GB of RAM. The specs have received an upgrade when compared to their predecessors, but these tablets remain lower-end, and therefore, more affordable. Lenovo doesn’t skimp on features that add to its media-consumption capabilities though, with both coming with dual front-facing speaker setups with support for Dolby ATMOS features.

On the other hand, the Tab 4 Plus series tablets kick things up a notch, not only in terms of specifications and features, but also when it comes to design and build quality. Both the 8-inch and 10-inch Plus editions feature dual glass constructions, and are impressively sleek, with a thickness of 7.15 mm and 8.4 mm respectively.

Under the hood, the tablets come with 2 GHz octa-core processors and 4 GB of RAM, along with 32 GB of internal storage. Media consumption will be a joy on the IPS LCD displays with a Full HD resolution, and like its more affordable siblings, these tablets also feature dual front-facing speakers with Dolby ATMOS features. A fingerprint scanner and a USB Type-C port round out the upgrades that the Plus iterations bring to the table when compared to their lower-end counterparts.

Considering the fact that a tablet is often a device that is used by multiple members of the family, Lenovo has done their best to help in this regard. Users can easily set up separate profiles with their own settings and wallpapers, along with being able to have separate logins for social media apps like Facebook and Instagram, and in the case of the Plus editions, fingerprints can be set up accordingly. Pushing the concept further, Lenovo also has a couple of add-ons on offer to further enhance the “for the family” experience.

A “Kid’s Pack” is available for the Tab 4 series, which includes a shock-resistant bumper, a blue light filter, and a pair of colorful 3M stickers to keep the device safe from scratches. On the software side of things, you can also set up specific accounts for the kids, that features content that is specific to and curated for kids, the ability to set up a whitelist of websites, and even setup usage limits with on-times and down-times.

Keeping young adults and parents in mind, Lenovo has also unveiled a “Productivity Pack,” that is compatible with the 10-inch iterations of the Tab 4 tablets. This is essentially a Bluetooth keyboard that can also function as a protective sleeve or kickstand. On the software side, you get a built-in “productivity interface,” which includes a taskbar, instant app switching, multi-window support, as well as optimizations to allow keyboard and mouse usage.

The Lenovo Tab 4 8-inch and 10-inch will be priced starting at $109 and $149 respectively, with the color options including Slate Black and Polar White. On the other hand, the Plus iterations will be priced starting at $199 and $249 for the 8-inch and 10-inch versions respectively, and will be available in Sparking Black and Aurora White. All four tablets will be available globally from May this year.

What do you think about the latest series of tablets from Lenovo? Let us know in the comments section below, and stay tuned with Android Authority for more about the Lenovo Tab 4 series, as well as for more great coverage from MWC 2017!

Sony Xperia XA1 and XA1 Ultra hands-on!

While Sony fans enjoy the recent announcement of the company’s brand new flagship phones, the Xperia XZ Premium and XZs, they also used Mobile World Congress 2017 to unveil its successors to the Xperia XA line that were introduced last year. For those who aren’t able to afford the pricey cost of Sony’s flagships, the Xperia XA1 and XA1 Ultra should prove to be more cost effective – without sacrificing the charm with Sony’s designs. Focusing on beefy cameras, superior audio and visual technology, and near bezel-less displays, they’re certainly going to offer some bang for the buck.

The XA1 Ultra is on the complete other end of the spectrum with its gargantuan stature.

Following in traditional Sony design, the XA1 and XA1 Ultra are two very similar phones with their “flat” looks, but there’s obviously a huge size disparity. When it comes to being pocketable, the XA1 is one of the few high caliber phones in the market that can be handled with a single hand – allowing your thumb to easily encompass all corners without too much stretching. However, the Xperia XA1 Ultra is on the complete other end of the spectrum with its gargantuan stature.

Sure, Sony loves to tout the borderless designs with their edge-to-edge screen, but the compromise is seen in the space above and below the displays – where the huge bezels become eyesores for the phones. Despite that, we can’t deny that they look lovely, especially on the XA1 Ultra and its ginormous 6.0-inch 1080p display. It’s roomy to say the least, but unfortunately for the XA1, it’s stepped down to a 5.0-inch 720p screen.

Sony managed to slap 23MP 1/2.3-inch Exmor RS sensors into both phones

Moving onto the good stuff, Sony managed to slap 23MP 1/2.3-inch Exmor RS sensors into both phones, which are being pegged for their low light performance. They’re so confident about the performance of its news cameras, they’re promising stellar quality at ISO 6400. It’ll be intriguing to say the least, but we’ll save our reservations until we can snap some shots on our own and meticulously comb over the results. For the selfie lovers out there, they’ll gravitate towards the 16MP front-facing snapper that’s on the Xperia XA1 Ultra – with built-in optical image stabilization and an LED flash.

Specs-wise, they’re very similar if you look down the sheet, but there’s just a slight advantage with the XA1 Ultra – like its screen resolution, larger 2,700mAh battery, and front-facing camera. Everything else, however, are pretty much identical between the two. Take for example the processor, a 64-bit based octa-core MediaTek helio P20 processor, which handles all the basic stuff nicely from what we’ve seen so far. They’re both also running Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box, with Sony’s usual custom skin.

See also:

Android 7.0 Nougat review: an Android version for Android fans

October 21, 2016

Interestingly, none of Sony’s new phones sport fingerprint sensors

Sony has clearly bombarded us with a bunch of new devices, but are they any good? One striking item that’s missing in all of them, even with their “premium” nature, is that none of them have fingerprint sensors. Sure, we might see variants of them in other markets with fingerprint sensors, but it’s just a shame there are none whatsoever – it’s something we’ve come to expect today, including entry-level stuff. Overall, the strength of the new XA1 line seem to hinge mostly on their cameras, especially under low light conditions, which is an area where few phones excel in – so it’ll be intriguing to see how they fair.

In terms of release and pricing, Sony has announced that the XA1 will begin to go on sale on May 1, 2017 through retailers like Amazon, Best Buy, B&H, and much more, for the price of $299.99. That’s not too shabby when you think about it, but we’re curious to see where they place the XA1 Ultra later on in late spring. We’re hoping to see it under $500 at the very least, just because anything more than that, it’ll be competing against other giants in the premium space.

So, what are your thoughts on the Xperia XA1 and XA1 Ultra? Be sure to let us know what you think in the comments below.

Android Authority is on the show floor at MWC 2017, bringing you all the new news as it happens. Head here to check out all our MWC 2017 coverage!

Ricoh’s next camera can stream live broadcasts in 360

Ricoh makes one of the best, simple 360-degree cameras out there. It’s gradually added better picture quality, more video skills (and cheaper models) to its Theta series, but the company’s taking its tech in a different direction with a spherical video camera capable of live streaming 2K at 30fps. The stitching takes place in real-time and the product is unmistakably for creators and media types. This is the Ricoh R Developer kit, and you can preorder one now.

The camera outputs video through either HDMI or USB, and it’ll need constant AC power adapter to continuously livestream up to 24 hours of footage. The camera records onto a micro SD card to help reduce the size of the device, which is almost the same size as its Theta predecessors, although if you’re recording 2K spherical video, we’d advise a very high-capacity card.

Ricoh is launching the compact camera with a 24-hour broadcast from MWC in Barcelona, and says it’ll be offering a Hololens stream too, if you’re a rare Hololens owner. You can watch the 360-degree livestream here, while those tempted by the camera itself can preorder today: the camera is set to arrive this spring.

We took Lenovo’s 13-inch Yoga 720 for a whirl at Mobile World Congress — Here’s what we think

Lenovo announced a veritable trove of tablets and laptops at Mobile World Congress 2017. First up were the 13-inch and 15-inch Yoga 720, the newest laptops in the company’s convertible Yoga series. Next were the mid-range Flex 5 (Yoga 520) and the Miix 320 2-in-1 device, and lastly two tablets — the Tab 4 — designed for kids in mind.

We had a chance to check out a particularly promising machine, the 13-inch Yoga 720, at a preview event in Barcelona. We’ll have to spend more time with it to formulate a final opinion, but we came away generally impressed.

More: The best products of 2016: Computing

Lenovo’s 2-in-1 Yoga devices have historically featured a proprietary “watchband hinge,” and the 13-inch Yoga 720 is no different. Whether the screen’s oriented in a “V” shape, angled slightly upward, or tucked securely under the keyboard, it’s locked in place securely, but never so tightly that it’s difficult to adjust.

The 13-inch Yoga 720 is 13 percent light and 17 percent thinner than last year’s Yoga.

Lenovo says the 13-inch Yoga 720 is 13 percent light and 17 percent thinner than last year’s Yoga, and at 14.33mm and 2.9lbs, and it certainly feels like it. But perhaps the most striking thing about the Yoga 720 is its IPS screen, which boasts ultra-narrow bezels and a resolution of up to 4K Ultra HD (3,840 x 2,160). Its crisp and vibrant from most angles, if a little prone to glare. And the bezels nearly match the thinness of the Dell XPS 13’s Infinity Display, an impressive feat of engineering.

Despite its compactness, the Yoga 720 manages to pack plenty of ports and components into its petite frame. It has a Thunderbolt Type-C port, a USB 3.0 port, a microphone/headphone 3.5mm combo port, and supports Bluetooth 4.1 and Wi-Fi 802.11ac. There’s a 720p HD camera onboard, plus up to 512GB of SSD storage or a 1TB HHD. A fingerprint sensor sports Microsoft’s Windows Hello authentication in Windows 10, which lets you unlock your computer without having to enter a password. And stereo JBL speakers tuned with Dolby’s Audio Premium software supply the Yoga 720’s sound.

More: Lenovo Yoga 910 review

Lenovo didn’t skimp on any of the Yoga 720’s other hardware. The 2-in-1 is compatible with Lenovo’s PC stylus, the Active Pen, in Windows Ink and other programs that support capacitive drawing tools. But keyboard traditionalists needn’t be disappointed. The Yoga 720’s keys are responsive and spacious, and while they don’t have much travel, the keys’ rounded indentations make pecking out paragraphs more comfortable than might be expected.

The same can be said of the Yoga 720’s touchpad. It doesn’t measure as wide as, say, Apple’s new plus-sized MacBook Pro touchpad, but it’s a Precision Touchpad, meaning it means it can work with all of Windows 10’s touchpad features. It’s responsive to both single- and two-finger gestures and, like the touchpad on the Yoga 910, its tactile click buttons are satisfyingly springy to the touch.

The top-of-the-line Yoga 720 configuration boasts a 7th generation Intel Core i7 processor, integrated Intel 620 graphics (a discrete GeForce GTX 1050 in the 15-inch model), and 8GB of DDR4 RAM (16GB in the 15-inch), which is more than enough processing power to plow through basic tasks. In our brief time with the Yoga 720, Microsoft Word launched without stutter or hesitation, and webpages loaded almost instantly. We’ll have to run the Yoga 720 through its paces to find out how it compares to the competition, but our initial impressions are quite good.

More: Dell Inspiron 13 7000 2-in-1 (2016) review

Despite the Yoga 720’s high-end hardware, it’s a power-sipping champ. Lenovo estimates that the Full HD model’s battery will last nine hours on a charge, while the Ultra HD manages about eight hours.

The Yoga 13-inch ships in platinum silver, iron grey, and copper, and starts at $860. It’s expected to launch in several territories as soon as April.

Lenovo’s Yoga series may be considered the definitive 2-in-1, but that’s not to imply it doesn’t have competition. The LG Gram series and Dell’s XPS 13 best the Yoga 720 it in thinness, and the XPS 13 lasts several hours longer on a charge. The HP Spectre x360 and Acer Spin 7, meanwhile, are measurably more compact.

But the Yoga 720’s high-resolution screen and affordable price point are tough to beat. A great keyboard, responsive touchpad, and speedy processor are icing on the cake.

Highs

• Beautiful screen
• Comfortable keyboard
• Compact size
• Competitive price

Lows

• Modest battery life
• Not the lightest overall