Weekly Rewind: The best of MWC, Samsung’s latest scandal, and a tattling teddy bear
A lot can happen in a week when it comes to tech. The constant onslaught of news makes it nigh impossible for mere mortals with real lives to keep track of everything. That’s why we’ve compiled a quick and dirty list of this week’s top 10 tech stories, from what happened at Mobile World Congress 2017 to custom solar panel skins — it’s all here.
Digital Trends Top Tech of MWC 2017 Award Winners
Though it’s a beautiful place to visit, it’s not easy to get to Spain in late winter, and attending MWC is more expensive than buying a new iPhone. Well, we’re here to help. Our crack team of mobilers, led by DT Mobile Editor Malarie Gokey, has scoured the halls of the Fira Gran Via. If you just want to know what the hottest stuff is, we’ve got it for you. We’ve compiled a list consisting of our favorite phone, tablet, gadget, wearable, accessory, and piece of emerging tech at the show.
Read the full story here.
Following probe, Samsung Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong indicted on bribery charges
The verdict is in, and it’s another blow to Samsung. After a months-long investigation into the role Samsung and its heir apparent Lee Jae-yong played in a political scandal that has rocked South Korea, prosecutors have announced that the Samsung executive will be indicted. He faces charges of bribery, embezzlement, perjury, hiding assets abroad, and concealing profit gained from criminal acts. If found guilty, Jae-yong could face years in prison.
Read the full story here.
Volvo Trucks previews a heavy-duty model that’s up to 30 percent more efficient
Volvo Trucks — a company completely independent of Volvo Cars — has introduced an experimental heavy-duty truck powered by a hybrid drivetrain. The prototype showcases realistic, close-to-production ways to begin weening the long-haul transport industry off of fossil fuels. Called simply Concept Truck, the model is an update of a prototype originally introduced in May of last year.
Read the full story here.
Why the future looks bright for Li-Fi, internet that travels through light
Internet access is fast becoming a basic human right, but there are problems with our current delivery systems. As we connect more and more devices to the internet, a spectrum crunch is increasingly inevitable. Li-Fi, which allows us to access the internet via light rather than the radio frequencies that Wi-Fi relies upon, could open up a lot of bandwidth. This year at MWC in Barcelona, we sat down again with PureLi-Fi COO Harald Burchardt to find out how far the team has come in the last 12 months.
Read the full story here.
Connected CloudPets teddy bears blab on owners, leak 2 million voice recordings
Remember when the worst thing that could happen to your doll was it losing an eye? How times have changed. In the latest toy scandal, it would appear that a connected teddy bear leaked the voice recordings of more than 2 million children and parents, along with email addresses and password information associated with more than 800,000 accounts.
Read the full story here.
Will everyone please shut up about 5G?
If we’ve learned anything from Mobile World Congress 2017, it’s that 5G is just around the corner and it’s going to revolutionize our smartphone experience. We’ll be able to download libraries of 4K High Dynamic Range movies in less than a second, upload our entire camera rolls to Facebook in the blink of an eye, stream incredible live VR events in real time, and hell, maybe even download a car. But the dawn of 5G, a standard that still has no agreed definition, is almost certainly at least three years away.
Read the full story here.
This machine pulverizes glass bottles, turns them into fine-grain sand in just 5 seconds
How do you dispose of a bottle of beer once you’re done drinking it? You crush it into fine-grain sand, right? Well, thanks to a smart new promotion created by New Zealand brewers DB Breweries — working alongside the ad agency Colenso BBDO New Zealand — it’s possible to do exactly that. “Two thirds of the world’s beaches are retreating as people across the world use non-renewable beach sand for construction, roading and other uses,” Simon Smith, brand PR and digital manager for DB Breweries, told Digital Trends.
Read the full story here.
Absurd dating show ‘Game of Clones’ lets contestants design their ideal partner
What happens when you take the latest in avatar-building technology, cross it with lusty singletons, and add a pinch of Vertigo for good measure? Probably something like Game of Clones, an oddball, surprisingly techie new United Kingdom dating game show, which asks its participants to design their ideal partner, and then tracks down enough of them to fill a room. “I pitched this as, ‘If Alfred Hitchcock had made a dating show, it would look like this,” David Flynn told Digital Trends.
Read the full story here.
Netflix teaser for ‘War Machine’ features Brad Pitt as a high-ranking general
Netflix grabbed our attention in 2015 when it paid $30 million for the rights to the upcoming Brad Pitt film War Machine, and we’re finally getting closer to seeing if the investment was a good one. The film is due out this spring, and the streamer released the first teaser on Wednesday. Billed as “an absurdist war story for our times,” the film is inspired by journalist Michael Hastings’ 2012 nonfiction book The Operators. Written and directed by David Michod, the movie fictionalizes real-life events, resulting in sharp satire.
Read the full story here.
Solar Skins could help aesthetics-conscious homeowners go green
If you find that solar panels break the lines of your home’s aesthetic, or feel that covering your roof in solar cells is a waste of advertising space, Sistine Solar’s new solar skins could be what you’re looking for. They let you make your rooftop panels look like whatever you want, without much impact on efficiency. Winner of the 2013 MIT Clean Energy Prize, Sistine Solar’s design is a relatively simple one: placing a thin, printable layer within the panel itself. That lets owners match their panels to their roof, or go for a custom color scheme altogether.
Read the full story here.
Weekly Rewind: The best of MWC, Samsung’s latest scandal, and a tattling teddy bear
A lot can happen in a week when it comes to tech. The constant onslaught of news makes it nigh impossible for mere mortals with real lives to keep track of everything. That’s why we’ve compiled a quick and dirty list of this week’s top 10 tech stories, from what happened at Mobile World Congress 2017 to custom solar panel skins — it’s all here.
Digital Trends Top Tech of MWC 2017 Award Winners
Though it’s a beautiful place to visit, it’s not easy to get to Spain in late winter, and attending MWC is more expensive than buying a new iPhone. Well, we’re here to help. Our crack team of mobilers, led by DT Mobile Editor Malarie Gokey, has scoured the halls of the Fira Gran Via. If you just want to know what the hottest stuff is, we’ve got it for you. We’ve compiled a list consisting of our favorite phone, tablet, gadget, wearable, accessory, and piece of emerging tech at the show.
Read the full story here.
Following probe, Samsung Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong indicted on bribery charges
The verdict is in, and it’s another blow to Samsung. After a months-long investigation into the role Samsung and its heir apparent Lee Jae-yong played in a political scandal that has rocked South Korea, prosecutors have announced that the Samsung executive will be indicted. He faces charges of bribery, embezzlement, perjury, hiding assets abroad, and concealing profit gained from criminal acts. If found guilty, Jae-yong could face years in prison.
Read the full story here.
Volvo Trucks previews a heavy-duty model that’s up to 30 percent more efficient
Volvo Trucks — a company completely independent of Volvo Cars — has introduced an experimental heavy-duty truck powered by a hybrid drivetrain. The prototype showcases realistic, close-to-production ways to begin weening the long-haul transport industry off of fossil fuels. Called simply Concept Truck, the model is an update of a prototype originally introduced in May of last year.
Read the full story here.
Why the future looks bright for Li-Fi, internet that travels through light
Internet access is fast becoming a basic human right, but there are problems with our current delivery systems. As we connect more and more devices to the internet, a spectrum crunch is increasingly inevitable. Li-Fi, which allows us to access the internet via light rather than the radio frequencies that Wi-Fi relies upon, could open up a lot of bandwidth. This year at MWC in Barcelona, we sat down again with PureLi-Fi COO Harald Burchardt to find out how far the team has come in the last 12 months.
Read the full story here.
Connected CloudPets teddy bears blab on owners, leak 2 million voice recordings
Remember when the worst thing that could happen to your doll was it losing an eye? How times have changed. In the latest toy scandal, it would appear that a connected teddy bear leaked the voice recordings of more than 2 million children and parents, along with email addresses and password information associated with more than 800,000 accounts.
Read the full story here.
Will everyone please shut up about 5G?
If we’ve learned anything from Mobile World Congress 2017, it’s that 5G is just around the corner and it’s going to revolutionize our smartphone experience. We’ll be able to download libraries of 4K High Dynamic Range movies in less than a second, upload our entire camera rolls to Facebook in the blink of an eye, stream incredible live VR events in real time, and hell, maybe even download a car. But the dawn of 5G, a standard that still has no agreed definition, is almost certainly at least three years away.
Read the full story here.
This machine pulverizes glass bottles, turns them into fine-grain sand in just 5 seconds
How do you dispose of a bottle of beer once you’re done drinking it? You crush it into fine-grain sand, right? Well, thanks to a smart new promotion created by New Zealand brewers DB Breweries — working alongside the ad agency Colenso BBDO New Zealand — it’s possible to do exactly that. “Two thirds of the world’s beaches are retreating as people across the world use non-renewable beach sand for construction, roading and other uses,” Simon Smith, brand PR and digital manager for DB Breweries, told Digital Trends.
Read the full story here.
Absurd dating show ‘Game of Clones’ lets contestants design their ideal partner
What happens when you take the latest in avatar-building technology, cross it with lusty singletons, and add a pinch of Vertigo for good measure? Probably something like Game of Clones, an oddball, surprisingly techie new United Kingdom dating game show, which asks its participants to design their ideal partner, and then tracks down enough of them to fill a room. “I pitched this as, ‘If Alfred Hitchcock had made a dating show, it would look like this,” David Flynn told Digital Trends.
Read the full story here.
Netflix teaser for ‘War Machine’ features Brad Pitt as a high-ranking general
Netflix grabbed our attention in 2015 when it paid $30 million for the rights to the upcoming Brad Pitt film War Machine, and we’re finally getting closer to seeing if the investment was a good one. The film is due out this spring, and the streamer released the first teaser on Wednesday. Billed as “an absurdist war story for our times,” the film is inspired by journalist Michael Hastings’ 2012 nonfiction book The Operators. Written and directed by David Michod, the movie fictionalizes real-life events, resulting in sharp satire.
Read the full story here.
Solar Skins could help aesthetics-conscious homeowners go green
If you find that solar panels break the lines of your home’s aesthetic, or feel that covering your roof in solar cells is a waste of advertising space, Sistine Solar’s new solar skins could be what you’re looking for. They let you make your rooftop panels look like whatever you want, without much impact on efficiency. Winner of the 2013 MIT Clean Energy Prize, Sistine Solar’s design is a relatively simple one: placing a thin, printable layer within the panel itself. That lets owners match their panels to their roof, or go for a custom color scheme altogether.
Read the full story here.
Weekly Rewind: The best of MWC, Samsung’s latest scandal, and a tattling teddy bear
A lot can happen in a week when it comes to tech. The constant onslaught of news makes it nigh impossible for mere mortals with real lives to keep track of everything. That’s why we’ve compiled a quick and dirty list of this week’s top 10 tech stories, from what happened at Mobile World Congress 2017 to custom solar panel skins — it’s all here.
Digital Trends Top Tech of MWC 2017 Award Winners
Though it’s a beautiful place to visit, it’s not easy to get to Spain in late winter, and attending MWC is more expensive than buying a new iPhone. Well, we’re here to help. Our crack team of mobilers, led by DT Mobile Editor Malarie Gokey, has scoured the halls of the Fira Gran Via. If you just want to know what the hottest stuff is, we’ve got it for you. We’ve compiled a list consisting of our favorite phone, tablet, gadget, wearable, accessory, and piece of emerging tech at the show.
Read the full story here.
Following probe, Samsung Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong indicted on bribery charges
The verdict is in, and it’s another blow to Samsung. After a months-long investigation into the role Samsung and its heir apparent Lee Jae-yong played in a political scandal that has rocked South Korea, prosecutors have announced that the Samsung executive will be indicted. He faces charges of bribery, embezzlement, perjury, hiding assets abroad, and concealing profit gained from criminal acts. If found guilty, Jae-yong could face years in prison.
Read the full story here.
Volvo Trucks previews a heavy-duty model that’s up to 30 percent more efficient
Volvo Trucks — a company completely independent of Volvo Cars — has introduced an experimental heavy-duty truck powered by a hybrid drivetrain. The prototype showcases realistic, close-to-production ways to begin weening the long-haul transport industry off of fossil fuels. Called simply Concept Truck, the model is an update of a prototype originally introduced in May of last year.
Read the full story here.
Why the future looks bright for Li-Fi, internet that travels through light
Internet access is fast becoming a basic human right, but there are problems with our current delivery systems. As we connect more and more devices to the internet, a spectrum crunch is increasingly inevitable. Li-Fi, which allows us to access the internet via light rather than the radio frequencies that Wi-Fi relies upon, could open up a lot of bandwidth. This year at MWC in Barcelona, we sat down again with PureLi-Fi COO Harald Burchardt to find out how far the team has come in the last 12 months.
Read the full story here.
Connected CloudPets teddy bears blab on owners, leak 2 million voice recordings
Remember when the worst thing that could happen to your doll was it losing an eye? How times have changed. In the latest toy scandal, it would appear that a connected teddy bear leaked the voice recordings of more than 2 million children and parents, along with email addresses and password information associated with more than 800,000 accounts.
Read the full story here.
Will everyone please shut up about 5G?
If we’ve learned anything from Mobile World Congress 2017, it’s that 5G is just around the corner and it’s going to revolutionize our smartphone experience. We’ll be able to download libraries of 4K High Dynamic Range movies in less than a second, upload our entire camera rolls to Facebook in the blink of an eye, stream incredible live VR events in real time, and hell, maybe even download a car. But the dawn of 5G, a standard that still has no agreed definition, is almost certainly at least three years away.
Read the full story here.
This machine pulverizes glass bottles, turns them into fine-grain sand in just 5 seconds
How do you dispose of a bottle of beer once you’re done drinking it? You crush it into fine-grain sand, right? Well, thanks to a smart new promotion created by New Zealand brewers DB Breweries — working alongside the ad agency Colenso BBDO New Zealand — it’s possible to do exactly that. “Two thirds of the world’s beaches are retreating as people across the world use non-renewable beach sand for construction, roading and other uses,” Simon Smith, brand PR and digital manager for DB Breweries, told Digital Trends.
Read the full story here.
Absurd dating show ‘Game of Clones’ lets contestants design their ideal partner
What happens when you take the latest in avatar-building technology, cross it with lusty singletons, and add a pinch of Vertigo for good measure? Probably something like Game of Clones, an oddball, surprisingly techie new United Kingdom dating game show, which asks its participants to design their ideal partner, and then tracks down enough of them to fill a room. “I pitched this as, ‘If Alfred Hitchcock had made a dating show, it would look like this,” David Flynn told Digital Trends.
Read the full story here.
Netflix teaser for ‘War Machine’ features Brad Pitt as a high-ranking general
Netflix grabbed our attention in 2015 when it paid $30 million for the rights to the upcoming Brad Pitt film War Machine, and we’re finally getting closer to seeing if the investment was a good one. The film is due out this spring, and the streamer released the first teaser on Wednesday. Billed as “an absurdist war story for our times,” the film is inspired by journalist Michael Hastings’ 2012 nonfiction book The Operators. Written and directed by David Michod, the movie fictionalizes real-life events, resulting in sharp satire.
Read the full story here.
Solar Skins could help aesthetics-conscious homeowners go green
If you find that solar panels break the lines of your home’s aesthetic, or feel that covering your roof in solar cells is a waste of advertising space, Sistine Solar’s new solar skins could be what you’re looking for. They let you make your rooftop panels look like whatever you want, without much impact on efficiency. Winner of the 2013 MIT Clean Energy Prize, Sistine Solar’s design is a relatively simple one: placing a thin, printable layer within the panel itself. That lets owners match their panels to their roof, or go for a custom color scheme altogether.
Read the full story here.
FCC waiver helps Jewish community centers ID bomb threats
Following a string of more nearly 70 anonymous bomb threats made to Jewish community centers in 27 states since the start of the year, the Federal Communications Commission issued an emergency order on Friday. The order, which takes effect immediately, waives the telecommunications restriction that prevents phone carriers from sharing the calling party number (CPN) with the call’s recipient.
“In this Order,” the rule change reads “we grant to Jewish Community Centers (JCCs)1 and any carriers that serve JCCs an emergency waiver of section 64.1601(b) of the Commission’s rules, which prohibits terminating carriers from passing the calling party number (CPN) to the called party where a privacy request has been made by the caller.” This change only affects Jewish community centers and will enable federal investigators to more easily track down whoever is making the calls. What’s more, though the order is currently temporary, the FCC is seeking commentary as to whether it should make the rule permanent.
The privacy rules stem from a 1994 decision by the FCC to require that carriers using Signaling System 7 (SS7) transmit the caller’s CPN to the connecting carrier on interstate calls. The FCC determined that “requiring CPN transmission would bring consumers more rapid and efficient service and encourage the introduction of new technologies and services to the public.”
The FCC also recognized that unrestricted transmission of CPNs would infringe on American’s privacy. As such, dialling *67 won’t return the phone number of a user who has requested a private line from the carrier. There are exceptions, however. “To the extent that CPN-based services are used to deliver emergency services,” the FCC determined, “we find that privacy requirements for CPN-based services should not apply to delivery of the CPN to a public agency’s emergency line, a poison control line, or in conjunction with 911 emergency services.”
This decision to waive the restrictions comes after Senate minority leader Charles Schumer of New York sent a letter to FCC chair Ajit Pai on Tuesday expressing concern about the threatening calls. The Senator also pointed out that the FCC has similarly waived that rule in the past.
Source: FCC
US suspends ‘premium processing’ for H-1B visas
In a move that could restrict access to foreign engineers, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced tonight that it will “temporarily suspend premium processing for all H-1B petitions.” In a statement, the department said this suspension “may” last six months, and pitched it as an administrative move to speed up all applications. The suspension takes effect April 3rd (the day applications open) nixing a $1,225 option that allowed highly skilled workers to find out if their application for an H-1B visa is approved in as little as a month.
According to a USCIS report, in 2014 about 65 percent of the applications were for computer-related jobs. Because of an 85,000 annual cap on the number of visas awarded, which results in a lottery and delays after applications pass the limit in under a week. Even for workers inside the US, changing jobs or traveling outside the country could be affected while they wait to find out the result.
Financial Times quotes a lawyer saying that “close to 100 percent” of applications from companies like Microsoft utilize the option. Without it, the wait for a decision could linger for months into August or September.
Previously, Donald Trump has claimed he will “end forever” the use of H-1Bs for cheaper labor, and his advisor has suggested an issue with the number of Asian CEOs in Silicon Valley, increasing tension over the program. While Mark Zuckerberg’s tech lobbying group FWD.us has sought to expand the program, US senator Dick Durbin (D-Illinois), sent a letter this morning asking Trump to deliver on his campaign promise to crack down on H-1B visas.
Whatever the actual impact, the USCIS reasoning for suspending the program is interesting — back in 2001 when it was introduced, INS officials said it was needed to help clear the backlog of pending foreign high-tech worker visas. Now officials claim it’s being suspended for the same reason.
President Trump promised the American people he would put American workers first. It’s time he made good on that promise pic.twitter.com/U9CdnkD57U
— Senator Dick Durbin (@SenatorDurbin) March 3, 2017
2/5 Only 65K avail to employees w/o advanced degrees, 20K for advanced. Visas open up beginning of April each year (next is 4/3/17).
— Matt Cameron 🗽 (@matt_cam) March 4, 2017
Source: USCIS, Federal Register
Nautical horror game ‘Sunless Sea’ heads to iPad
Aquatic RPG Sunless Sea has been a big win for British indie developer Failbetter Games. The well-reviewed game has sold half a million copies since its 2015 PC release, and soon, iPad users will be able to get in on the Victorian Gothic adventure. Not long after sequel Sunless Skies very quickly exceeded its Kickstarter funding goal, Failbetter Games announced that Sunless Sea is headed to iPad on March 23rd.
In a statement, the developer said it’s bringing the game to iOS with help from porting specialists BlitWorks, which previously worked on mobile adaptations of Bastion, Invisible, Inc. and other titles. The iPad version is a direct port of the PC game and includes all updates and additional content. Well, almost all, since October’s “Zubmariner” extension won’t be included. While that’s a bummer, the port will include critical updates like “Steel,” which replaced the game’s turn-based battles with a real-time combat system. That’s big, since the sluggish fighting pace was one of few criticisms Joystiq cited in its review of Sunless Sea’s Steam Early Access release.
Failbetter Games has yet to reveal the app’s price. For reference, though, the game currently retails on Steam for $19. That would be pricey for an iPad game, but the BlitWorks-assisted adaptations mentioned earlier currently go for $5 each on the App Store, so perhaps that’s closer to the truth.
Microsoft reduced Windows update sizes by 35 percent
Fans of Windows and snappy downloads will be relieved to learn that Microsoft’s Unified Update Platform, which has been rolling out to Windows Insiders since November, will be available to all retail users starting with the release of the Creators Update coming later this spring. In addition to those very handy snooze and schedule features, the UUP significantly shrinks the size of future updates by saving users the trouble of downloading an entire build of their operating system.
That feature is called differential download packages, which is a technical term for “only downloads what you need.” A differential download looks at the files already on your system and uses them to rebuild the new OS version from there. It sounds simple, but as Microsoft’s Laura Butler points out, it’s no easy task given the decades of legacy code and patches. For a major release like the Creators Update, you’ll still need to download a full build, but the next feature update after that should be significantly smaller — about 35 percent smaller on average, according to Microsoft’s Director of Program Management Bill Karagounis. For Windows Insiders those downloads should be even smaller, but it’s a bit of a trade-off since those systems get hit with more frequent updates.
Source: Windows Blog
Sticker company warns against skinning the Nintendo Switch
Given the portability of the Nintendo Switch, owners may be tempted to personalize theirs. The only problem is that according to dbrand, a company that makes covers for devices like phones and laptops, the system and its controllers don’t react well to vinyl wraps. As described in a Reddit post and a series of tweets, the company indicates that it tested a few options with a pre-release console and a retail model, and found that its screen-printed coating has peeling issues.
@dbrand After removing the skin, it was obvious that the coating on the JoyCons do not play well with any kind of adhesive… (4/6) pic.twitter.com/m8kDluuTOX
— dbrand (@dbrand) March 3, 2017
As such, it’s refunding customers who had pre-ordered Switch skins, and warns people that “both the JoyCons and the Console are not compatible with vinyl wraps or any adhesive-backed skin of any kind.” What’s particularly interesting is that Nintendo itself sells at least one special edition skin, and it’s unclear whether that one will cause any issues.
Interestingly, an early leak of officially licensed accessories from third-party manufacturer Hori included a skin, however now that the Switch has launched it isn’t selling one. We’ve contacted both Nintendo and Hori for more information, but for now, those fortunate enough to have their launch console in hand should be careful with it.
WARNING: Do *not* skin your Nintendo Switch! from NintendoSwitch
Source: r/NintendoSwitch (Reddit), dbrand (Twitter)
Google dominates K-12 education in the U.S. as Apple falls to third place
Why it matters to you
Your child is most likely to be using a Google Chromebook in the classroom lately, and least likely to use a Mac.
It wasn’t that long ago that Apple was in first place in the United States education market, which the company had long pursued at least in part to expose students to Macs and increase the chances that they would continue to use Apple products later in life. Most recently, the iPad had a staggering share in education, as much as 94 percent of all tablets sold in education by some accounts.
Now, that’s all changing. Between Microsoft’s efforts to target the educational market, and Google’s Chromebook initiative offering the lowest cost of entry, Apple has dropped to third place in the market, according to Futuresource Consulting.
More: Get smart: The 25 best educational apps for iPhone and Android
Futuresource looked at mobile PC sales in the U.S. K-12 sector, which achieved 18-percent year-over-year growth in 2016 with 12.6 million units sold. The biggest story is Google’s Chromebook, which grabbed 58 percent of the market in 2016. That’s an increase from 50 percent in 2015, based on affordability, G Suite productivity tools, lower device management costs, and other factors. On a worldwide basis, Chromebook’s penetration is significantly lower, at only 6 percent in 2016.
Futuresoft Consulting
Apple, on the other hand, saw its share of the market fall to 19 percent between iOS and MacOS devices. That’s down from 34 percent in 2014, and 25 percent in 2015. Globally, Apple’s share was at 11 percent in 2016, which is actually a slight increase from 2015’s share of 10 percent. Apple isn’t standing still, however, with a number of initiatives, including its Classroom app and education focus in iOS 9.3 leading the company’s efforts to turn things around.
For Microsoft’s part, its various education-focused programs, including Microsoft Classroom, School Data Sync, and low-cost Windows 10 machines aimed squarely at Chromebook, have allowed the company to maintain its second-place position at 22 percent of the market in 2016. Worldwide, Microsoft is dominant in K-12 education, at 65 percent of the market. Newer initiatives, such as the rumored Windows 10 Cloud edition and Microsoft’s rollout of InTune for Education to help combat Google’s Management Console, are aimed at building the company’s share of education going forward.
According to Futuresoft, the future of the education market is murky. “Microsoft has made huge strides in developing its education ecosystem offering in the past year, with major announcements on both the devices and platform side. To date, however, these developments have not stopped Google’s momentum within the U.S. K-12 market. Microsoft continues to face challenges to win back end-user mindshare.”
The future of the education market will include expanding use of 2-in-1 devices, where Microsoft’s Windows 10 is a particularly strong player. Whether Apple, Microsoft, or Google will dominate is unclear, but one thing is obvious: The education market is important to each of the companies, and they’re going to be fighting tooth and nail for their share of the business.
3D-printed adapters convert old cameras to the widely available 35mm format
Why it matters to you
Traditional film photography can still benefit from new tech — just look at this 3D-printed adapter for 35mm film by Camerahack
Film photography is making a comeback, and while the vintage tech may be easy to find, the film often isn’t — but that’s where modern tech comes in. Camerahack this week shared a 3D-printed adapter that allows 126 film cameras to use the easy-to-find 35mm format.
Camerahack is a personal project by a photographer that decided to build an adapter for his Kodak folding camera that no longer had available film. Since that first adapter, Camerahack now has six different adapters converting cameras with hard to find films into the standard (and still mass produced) 35mm.
More: After refurbishing 10,000 Polaroids, Mint celebrates with sleek new SLR670-S
The Fakmatic 135 to 126 film adapter fits most 126 film camera — including the popular Instamatic — and adapts the camera to 35mm. Because of the camera’s design, the adapter creates square images on the film, and the film has to be re-spooled. But for photographers that want to re-unite with a camera from their past, the adapter makes it possible.
The 3D-printed adapter uses a shell, a new spool and a lid to accommodate the film into 126 cameras. Because of the way the film winds inside the adapter, Camerahack says that a 24 image roll will fit about 16 to 20 images. After each photo, a “black” exposure, or a shot with the lens covered, prevents the images from overlapping.
More: Film Objektiv wants you to rent a film camera for your next photo project
Since Camerahack is a personal project and not a company, there are no warranties on the adapters and the hack takes a bit more than simply starting with a 35mm camera. But for photographers that want to shoot with a camera from their childhood, or want to put a collectable to use, a simple adapter could be a solution.
The 126 to 35mm film adapter sells for 22.50 euros (about $24), and also ships outside Europe, including the United States.
AIVAnet 