Stunning Instinct Concept car shows Peugeot’s vision of an autonomous driving future

Mobile World Congress is traditionally the trade show where many technology manufacturers announce their latest smartphones, tablets and wearables so when you introduce a concept car to that atmosphere, needless to say it stands out. Like, really stands out.

Peugeot obviously liked the idea of that though because it unveiled its Instinct Concept at the show, drawing some serious crowds, even if not quite as many as the new Nokia 3310.

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The Peugeot Instinct Concept car is a plug-in hybrid that features the Samsung Artik Cloud IoT platform, allowing it to sync with the user’s devices and learn their lifestyle and reconfiguration settings, including seat, interface and lighting preferences, as well as preferred driving mode and audio settings.

There are four driving modes comprising Drive Boost, Drive Relax, Autonomous Soft and Autonomous Sharp, meaning the driver can choose to drive themselves, or pick the car to drive for them.

A responsive i-Cockpit switches seamlessly between Drive and Autonomous modes, folding the steering wheel and toggle switch panel into the dashboard and the accelerator pedal into the pedal unit when either autonomous mode is selected.

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Switching modes takes place via the i-Device, which is positioned next to the 9.7-inch display in the centre console. This is also where the driver can take action where necessary, even when in the autonomous modes, such as overtaking a car in front.

The combination of the technology and the Samsung Artik Cloud platform means the car will know when you’ve been to the gym based on your smartwatch, for example, selecting the Autonomous Soft mode for a relaxing drive home. It could also synchronise with your diary in order to prompt you to set off for a meeting earlier based on the traffic and weather conditions.

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There is also a personal assistant built-into the Instinct Concept, allowing passengers to communicate with the car via voice, asking it to do anything from booking cinema tickets to buying something online.

The Peugeot Instinct Concept looks a little like an elongated Volkswagen Scirocco. It has an aerodynamic, sculpted body that has been designed for fuel efficiency, while the striking LED headlamps each have built-in cameras for scanning the road and communicating with the driving assistance systems.

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Inside, the cabin materials are soft to touch and tactile, while also delivering a very contemporary look. The seats are low and deep, while the floor is different and smooth to touch. Passengers can also adjust the seat base, seat back and headrest all separately, enabling them to choose a position that best suits them, including horizontal if they want to sleep. Obviously not a good idea when in one the Drive modes though.

Sadly, the Peugeot Instinct Concept isn’t available yet but it does offer a lovely look into what the autonomous driving future could provide.

• Best of MWC 2017: Samsung, LG, Sony, Huawei and more  

Google reveals the latest plans for its futuristic campus

Google’s plans for its futuristic Mountain View campus changed yet again when it swapped lands with LinkedIn last year. The tech titan has recently submitted its updated proposal to City of Mountain View, and its computer renders show us what Google’s new vision looks like. The canopy you see in the center of the image above will be located outside the existing Googleplex and will have the capability to regulate climate, air quality and sound indoors.

As 9to5Google said, the company also wants its campus to become a “destination for the local community,” so it envisions a place with lots of green spaces open not just to employees, but also to the public. It’s planning to build small parks throughout and a plaza with food stalls and the like. To make sure all the activity doesn’t distract Googlers, employee offices will be located on the second floor of the new building.

You can see the entirety of the big G’s plans in the documents (PDF) it submitted. Mountain View’s authorities will have to approve the proposal before construction begins. If and when it does, the company expects the new campus to be completed within 30 months.

Via: 9to5Google

Source: City of Mountain View

Netflix’s CEO plans on putting buffering to bed

It’s no secret that video streaming is king right now, and that the binge-watching craze Netflix helped establish is making other TV providers rethink how they offer content to customers. Here at Mobile World Congress, the service’s CEO Reed Hastings was on hand to discuss global expansion, the future of television and the challenges of dealing with data caps.

“Before you know it, the future we only dreamed of is here,” proclaimed the sizzle reel that introduced the Netflix chief executive here at MWC 2017. That present happens to include the streaming service winning an Oscar for the documentary The White Helmets. It also has the company working hard to improve the streaming experience for millions more viewers around the world now that the service has expanded to a number of new countries.

“10 or 20 years from now, all of the video you view is going to be on the internet,” Hastings explained. “One slice of that will be from Netflix.” That’s reasonably modest for a company that’s already pretty much the de facto name in streaming movies and TV.

Such success comes with a problem though. When you’re providing all of that content and cautious ISPs (with their own interests) you have to deal with buffering — especially on a mobile device. Netflix hasn’t been shy about giving users tools to improve the viewing experience while you’re on a phone or tablet, but Hastings says what we’ve seen so far is only the beginning. He’s also been quite open about criticism of weak net neutrality rules and ISP tolls. It’s a topic that’s even more an issue now that AT&T has it’s own television streaming service with DirecTV Now — plus the carrier and Verizon are zero-rating their services so that they don’t eat up customers’ monthly data allotments. This leaves Netflix to do what it can to improve the experience on its end.

“We’re invested heavily on many levels on the network servers and on the codec side so that the mobile experience is just instant,” he said. “That really changes your relationship with the service.”

Buffering is Netflix’s biggest buzz kill, so if that’s no longer a concern, the user experience dramatically improves. Unsurprisingly, the company head says the service is working hard to make buffering a thing of the past. “A number of companies are pioneering ways of offering services to consumers where it’s unlimited video data, but it’s limited speeds. That turns out to be very efficient on the networks so that the operator can offer unlimited viewing,” he explained.

Hastings says Netflix is investing in encoders that, even at lower bandwidth, still provide very good picture quality on a mobile device. He says that now — in some cases — the company is down to 300kbps and he’s hoping to go even lower.

“We’re getting more and more efficient at using operator’s bandwidth and in exchange what they’re trying to figure out for the whole industry is how can we offer unlimited video so that you can just enjoy it and not think about ‘am I going to hit the data cap,’” he said.

Late last year, Netflix began allowing users to download certain shows and movies for offline viewing. The much anticipated (yet unexpected) feature has made a big difference. Hastings conceded that there are certain places users really want to access Netflix when a connection just isn’t an option. This editor can attest to the usefulness of offline playback while on a cross-country flight or on a trek across the Atlantic.

“You are going to see most linear networks convert to binge viewing,” Hastings said. Of course, HBO and others have already done so which means you’re free to stream multiple episodes of the likes of Game of Thrones at your leisure. It will certainly be interesting to see if others adapt to the model, especially when users are able to watch entire season of Netflix originals over the course of a weekend before moving on to another selection on the service. Or at the very least, it’s a way to stop them moving on to another service. Hastings stopped short of committing to any immediate timelines, but for now, know that he’s working on helping you work through your watch list without breaking the (data) bank.

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

Ofcom forces BT to cut over two million monthly phone bills by £5

Healthy competition between the UK’s quad-play providers may have led to lower prices for all-in-one broadband, phone, TV and mobile packages, but some customers like to pick and choose individual providers for each job. For landline customers in particular, that decision could mean they’re paying a lot more than they actually need to. Ofcom, the UK’s communications regulator, believes that as many as two million people who are signed up to landline-only contracts with BT are getting a rough deal, so it’s put forward a plan to cut their monthly bills by at least £5 per month.

As part of an overall review of the market, Ofcom found that millions of customers — typically elderly or vulnerable people who stick with the same company for an easy life — are being unfairly lumped with the price hikes in line rental. Line rental prices have gone up by between 25 and 49 percent depending on the provider, even though the wholesale price for landline services has fallen by 26 percent in recent years.

Ofcom says it wants to “give customers with standalone landline contracts additional protection” by slashing their line rental by at least £5 per month, or £60 a year. The regulator adds that it wouldn’t affect landline services sold as part of a bundle, but would see landline-only customers pay a rate last seen in 2009.

“Line rental has been going up, even as providers’ costs come down. This hurts people who rely on their landline the most, and are less likely to shop around for a better deal. We think that’s unacceptable,” said Sharon White, Ofcom Chief Executive. “So we plan to cut BT’s charge for customers who take only a landline, to ensure that vulnerable customers get the value they deserve.”

To further safeguard customers, Ofcom also put forward a proposal that would prevent BT from raising the cost of line rental and landline call costs by more than inflation. It’s believed that regulation in this area will force competitors to reduce their prices too, making it fairer on all consumers.

BT responded to the review noting its special tariffs for vulnerable customers and recent line rental price freezes:

“We will respond to Ofcom’s consultation fully when we have considered the detail. We take our responsibilities in this area very seriously and, unlike other companies, have many customers on special tariffs for socially excluded or vulnerable customers, including BT Basic, which still costs just £5.10 a month for line rental and calls, and Home Phone Saver.

“Recently, we have frozen the cost of line rental for all of our customers who take a BT phone line. We have also been improving the service we provide and customers have benefitted from our multi-million pound investments in a faster fault repair service, the launch of our free nuisance calls prevention service BT Call Protect and bringing call centre work back from India to the UK.”

Ofcom is inviting public feedback on its proposals between now and May 9th.

Source: Ofcom

SoundCloud adds a new tier to its subscription service

SoundCloud Go is now a completely different offering after the company has revamped its music streaming service. The $10-per-month unlimited subscription still offers ad-free and offline access to over 150 million tracks, but it’s now called SoundCloud Go+. A cheaper $5-per-month tier is taking over its old name: the new SoundCloud Go is the same as the free tier at its core. It can only access 120 million tracks, not 150 million like its more expensive counterpart, but it has no ads and gives you the power to listen to music offline.

Alex Ljung, the company’s CEO, says the new tier gives them a chance to “unlock new revenue opportunities to further expand [their] creator-payout program.” The new Go is a full dollar more expensive for iOS ($6) than for web and Android, but you can go to the offering’s official website to avoid iTunes’ surcharge. And if ad-free offline listening isn’t important to you, you can always stick to the free tier, which isn’t going away despite the new option.

All the music you love. 3 ways to experience it. Introducing the new #SoundCloudGo. https://t.co/9yoyJSQbSr pic.twitter.com/TgemnvYNgv

— SoundCloud (@SoundCloud) February 28, 2017

Source: SoundCloud

YouTube Users Watch More Than 1 Billion Hours of Video a Day, Will Soon Outpace U.S. TV

Viewers around the world are watching more than 1 billion hours of YouTube videos every day, setting the online video service on the path to beat regular TV viewership, according to a report this week by The Wall Street Journal. The 1 billion hour milestone, which YouTube passed sometime late in 2016, is said to have been reached thanks to Google’s “aggressive embrace of artificial intelligence to recommend videos.”

Google started building and introducing the algorithms in 2012, and YouTube said that its 1 billion daily viewership hours represent a 10-fold increase in hours of video watched since 2012. In total, there are 400 hours of video uploaded to YouTube every minute, which equates to 65 years of video every day. To get through all of that content, YouTube’s algorithms give viewers a nudge of what to watch next on both desktop and mobile, growing the service’s numbers year-over-year.

“The corpus of content continues to get richer and richer by the minute, and machine-learning algorithms do a better and better job of surfacing the content that an individual user likes,” YouTube Chief Product Officer Neal Mohan said.

With 1 billion hours of YouTube videos being viewed daily, the company’s worldwide viewership will soon eclipse traditional American broadcast television numbers. According to Nielsen data, Americans watch around 1.25 billion hours of live and recorded TV every day. But, thanks to the rise of cord-cutting services, that number has been “steadily dropping in recent years.”

Because Google doesn’t disclose YouTube’s monetary performance, it’s unclear how much the company is profiting off of its growing popularity. A report from 2015 suggested that YouTube made around $4 billion in 2014 “and roughly broke even.” YouTube has begun initiating ways to profit more from its increasing viewership, including the launch of the premium, $9.99/month YouTube Red service, as well as reports that began last year of the company’s plan to debut its own streaming TV subscription service.

YouTube is also tweaking and learning what works best for its users. Earlier this month, the company confirmed that it’ll be doing way with unskippable 30-second advertisements in 2018 because it knows that it loses some viewers completely when such ads pop up in front of videos. In their place, it’s expected that shorter, but still unskippable 6-second “bumper ads” will become the norm.

For its online TV service, which was referred to as “one of the online video giant’s biggest priorities” when news of it broke last year, YouTube is predicted to introduce a skinny bundle with the four major U.S. networks and a few other popular cable channels, all for less than $35/month. At the time, YouTube’s efforts were compared to Apple’s attempts to launch a cord-cutting package, but plans for such a skinny bundle service from Apple have fallen apart due to media companies wanting more money than Apple wanted to charge for the service.

YouTube has also pushed out a small update to its iOS app today that will ensure all links to any YouTube video consistently open up within the YouTube app instead of in a browser window, like they sometimes did in the Safari or Chrome apps. YouTube is available to download for free on the iOS App Store. [Direct Link]

Tag: YouTube
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Pepper the friendly android is now rolling up and down the fashion runway

Why it matters to you

Watch out — your new co-worker may in fact be Pepper dressed up in your company’s uniform.

SoftBanks’ friendly humanoid robot, Pepper, has been showing up in an increasing number of locations since its launch in June, 2015.

The amiable bot has been spotted toiling away in phone stores, hospitals, train stations, and airports around the world, helping visitors with basic questions, as well as entertaining them with its range of talents that include singing, dancing, and telling jokes. SoftBank says that so far 2,000 different companies are using Pepper in their daily operations.

Keen to highlight Pepper’s usefulness in the workplace, SoftBank launched a contest to design various uniforms for the 120-centimeter-tall robot, the results of which were recently presented at a special gathering in Tokyo.

A video of the unusual fashion event shows the talented wheel-based robot dressed as a childcare assistant, an airport concierge, a Japanese inn worker, a clerk, a nurse, and a construction worker.

The 100,000-yen (about $900) prize for the best entry went to Kirara Kashiwase, designer of the airport concierge outfit, while the Special Jury Prize went to Kiyomi Saito, creator of the nurse’s uniform.

SoftBank Robotics’ Hasumi Kazutaka said that at first she thought it was a “crazy” idea to dress up a robot, “but then I realized how important it is to distinguish between Peppers with identical faces.” SoftBank intends to hold the contest on a regular basis.

According to Nippon.com, several Japanese firms are already designing clothes for the robot. Bonuni in western Japan, for example, has been making work uniforms for Pepper robots stationed at Nissan and branches of Mizuho Bank.

There’s even a Pepper fan club that’s been producing designs pretty much since the robot made its debut two years ago, and also sells necklaces, earrings, hairpieces, and stickers that act as makeup. Yes, it is as bizarre as it sounds.

More: Digital Trends meets Pepper, the adorable “human-shaped” robot

When the 198,000-yen (about $1,750) robot went on sale in Japan, the first batch sold out in just 60 seconds. SoftBank partnered with French robotics company Aldebaran SAS to develop Pepper, and has been working with tech manufacturing giant Foxconn to build it.

SoftBank chief Masayoshi Son suggested that alongside businesses, Pepper could also be employed as a friendly companion and entertainer in family homes, care homes, and other facilities.

Alcatel’s Plus 12 Windows 2-in-1 boasts a built-in 4G LTE Wi-Fi hot spot

Why it matters to you

Alcatel’s Plus 12 Windows 2-in-1 can help you and 15 colleagues set up a portable office.

Although the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2017 is mostly about the most mobile of devices — namely smartphones and wearables — that doesn’t meant that manufacturers of larger mobile devices like PCs are being left out. Whether it’s traditional notebooks or Windows 2-in-1s, PC vendors are taking advantage of the hype to introduce some new machines.

Alcatel is a well-known smartphone purveyor that makes a variety of mobile devices, and it announced its new Plus 12 machine at MWC 2017. It’s a new tablet-based 2-in-1 running Windows 10, with a detachable keyboard and a specific benefit: Integrated 4G LTE and a built-in Wi-Fi hot spot.

More: CES 2017 proves 2-in-1s are becoming the new normal

As far as Windows 10 tablets go, the Alcatel Plus 12 is a rather typical, if a bit low-end, machine. It sports a 12-inch Full HD IPS display (1920 x 1080 resolution) with 10-point multitouch. The tablet portion utilizes an Intel Celeron N3350 processor running at 1.1GHz with boost up to 2.4GHz, 4GB of LPDDR3 RAM, and 64GB storage made up of 32GB eMMC and embedded 32GB MicroSD storage.

Connectivity is provided by a USB Type-C connection, a micro-HDMI port, and a 3.5mm headset jack. MicroSD card support is also provided for external storage. Wireless connectivity comes by way of 802.11ac Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.2 support. A 5MP front camera supports videoconferencing.

Where the Plus 12 stands out is in the 4G LTE functionality built into the keyboard base, which can serve as a Wi-Fi hot spot for up to 15 other devices. The keyboard base has its own Cortex A7 processor and 128GB of LPDDR2 RAM to support the hot spot function and adds in a USB 3.0 connection and a SIM for the LTE connectivity. Windows Hello via fingerprint recognition and Windows Ink support is also on hand.

Alcatel senior vice president Vittorio Di Mauro pointed out the importance of mobile connected devices like the Plus 12, saying, “We are convinced that productive devices will be more and more connected to cellular networks. With the Plus 12, Alcatel has created the perfect office on the go. ”

The Plus 12’s tablet portion is a light 596 grams, and when the keyboard base is attached the entire machine weighs in at 990 grams. Alcatel has yet to provide pricing and availability information for the new Windows 10 detachable tablet device.

Meizu’s fast charging tech will fully charge your phone in just 20 minutes

Meizu’s fast charging tech is faster than anything else in the market today.

Meizu showed off its Super mCharge fast charging tech at Mobile World Congress, claiming that its solution will fully charge phones from zero to 100% in just 20 minutes. Meizu is relying on a 11V/5A charger to deliver an astounding 55W, and that charge is delivered via an “upgraded data cable” that can support up to 160W.

According to Meizu, Super mCharge uses charge pumps, utilizing “two groups of conversion circuits to directly output half of the voltage.” The technique increases the charging efficiency drastically, bringing it up from 9% to 98%. Meizu found that the battery temperature topped out at 102.2 degree Fahrenheit (39 degrees Celsius) while using the fast charging method, which should keep handsets from blowing up.

In extended testing, Meizu saw a 3000mAh battery retain over 80% of its original capacity after 800 charge and discharge cycles, allowing it to last over two years.

Meizu isn’t the first Chinese company to innovate when it comes to fast-charging technologies. OPPO demoed its Super VOOC technology — which fully charges a phone in just 15 minutes — last year at MWC, but the tech is yet to make its way into a phone.

Meizu hasn’t mentioned when it will bring its fast charging solution to its phones, but we’ll let you know once we hear more.

Android Pay deal lets you subscribe to The Washington Post for 8 weeks for just $1

Access award-winning journalism for just $1.

If you’re an Android Pay customer looking to access high-quality journalism, you’ll want to take a look at the latest promotion. For a limited time, you’ll be able to pick up an 8-week subscription to The Washington Post for just $1 when paying with Android Pay. After the promotional period runs out, a monthly subscription will run you $5.99, down from its usual cost of $9.99.

To avail the promotion, navigate to this link via Chrome on your phone. If you already have Android Pay set up, hit the “Subscribe Now” button. Otherwise, you can set up Android Pay and then come back to the subscription page.

The caveat here is that the deal is only valid if you’re a new subscriber. If you’ve previously subscribed to the publication, you won’t be eligible for the promotion.

See at The Washington Post