Vimeo now supports 360-degree video

Virtual reality hardware wouldn’t be anywhere without content to play on it — that’s why so many big video companies are putting resources towards immersive, 360-degree video playback. Facebook and YouTube have both supported 360 videos for a while now, even letting users livestream (provided they have the right gear, of course.) It may be a little late to the party, but Vimeo is also getting into the game. While there’s no livestreaming to be found yet, the platform now fully supports 360-degree video uploads and playback in a variety of ways.

From a playback perspective, 360-degree playback is now integrated into the website as well as the iOS and Android apps. You can watch video in either monoscopic or stereoscopic mode — the latter of which means you’ll be able to properly view this footage while wearing a VR headset. Not all headsets are supported today, however. For starters, Vimeo’s 360 video will work with Google Daydream, Samsung’s Gear VR and the Zeiss VR One. But support for the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive is coming soon.

Watching these videos is pretty straightforward. On the web, you can just click and drag anywhere in the video to look around; on a smartphone, you just swipe around the screen. You can also use your computer’s trackpad to pan around, and there’s also a helpful little compass that shows which way you’re “facing” in the 360-degree landscape — tapping or clicking that restores you to the default point of view, assuming the uploader enabled it.

Vimeo has a reputation of being a platform designed with “serious” video creators in mind, and it shows in how they’re rolling out 360 video controls to those uploading video. You can set exactly how wide of a field of view you want to see when the video starts and also adjust the position in 360-degree space so that viewers see what you want when the video starts up. All the same features you find when uploading standard videos are here, like detailed metadata fields and custom embed settings.

Creators who want to monetize their 360-degree creations will be happy to know that Vimeo is also offering a marketplace where customers can buy their videos. Vimeo On Demand lets uploaders in the “pro” and “business” tiers set whatever price and terms they want for their videos, including full purchase, rental, and subscription options.

Additionally, Vimeo will offer a 360-degree video school to help shooters find best practices for using the new format. And if you just want to find video to watch, the platform will be curating and sharing its favorite clips in a dedicated channel. If you want to see Vimeo’s take on 360-degree video, it’ll be available in the company’s apps and on the web today.

You can now use Apple Pay to donate to 22 UK charities

Apple has partnered with 22 UK charities to let iOS users pledge donations using Apple Pay. The feature, which rolled out in the US last November, operates inside the Safari browser and lets anyone with a supported iPhone, iPad or Apple Watch securely send money to their favourite organisation using only their fingerprint.

Participating organisations include: ActionAid UK, Alzheimer’s Society, Barnardo’s, British Heart Foundation, Cancer Research UK, Comic Relief, Concern Worldwide (UK), DEC, Marie Curie, Oxfam, (RED), The Royal British Legion, RNIB, RNLI, RSPB, RSPCA, Scope, Sightsavers, Unicef UK, VSO, WaterAid, and WWF-UK.

Although charities encourage donations via a number of avenues, some still pursue street collections. This has given risen to chuggers or charity muggers, people who stand in busy pedestrian areas with high-visibility jackets and try to get passers-by to part with their money. Apple Pay, on the other hand, is designed to be as frictionless as possible, ensuring those willing to pledge money aren’t put off by forms and having to remember their login.

We’re excited to let you know that when donating to our life-saving work, you can donate instantly with Apple Pay: https://t.co/0kEMYkjfSU pic.twitter.com/FvG0btziGV

— Cancer Research UK (@CR_UK) March 8, 2017

Source: Civil Society

805HP GT Concept hints at the future of Mercedes hybrids

If you’re Mercedes, how do you follow up the SLS AMG and AMG GT coupes? With this GT Concept, which, as exec Tobias Moers says, is Mercedes “giving a preview of our third completely independently developed sports car.” Like so many other current high-performance vehicles, it combines a 4.0L twin-turbo V8 engine with an electric motor and battery to produce a max of 805HP. More importantly, it could signal a halo model pushing the company’s hybrid aspirations in a manner similar to the BMW i8.

While the Mercedes-AMG GT Concept on display at the Geneva Motor Show is, of course, just a concept, Autoblog notes that its style looks nearly production-ready. If it comes to market, it will probably lose the fender-mounted “mirror cams,” and other cool bits like the “nano-active fiber technology” in its front and rear lights. A light cord shows off a futuristic idea for daytime running lights, while the other elements make it a “three-dimensional, multilayered, high-tech component.”

The Mercedes-AMG GT Concept. Geneva Motor Show. Get ready.

A post shared by Mercedes-Benz USA (@mbusa) on Mar 6, 2017 at 10:09am PST

As far as that impressive powertrain, this is no plug-in hybrid, with batteries that charge via brake recuperation or from the gasoline engine if the charge drops below a certain level. It has an all-wheel-drive system, with its electric motor driving the rear wheels directly. It also rocks the recently-announced “EQ” branding, seen here as EQ Power+, meant to represent the increased performance of hybrids. Everything adds up to a four-door “coupe” that can go 0-60MPH in under three seconds while remaining suitable for daily use — if you can ever buy one.

Source: Mercedes

Google’s first original podcast is ‘City Soundtracks’

Spotify isn’t the only one experimenting with original podcasts. Today, Google is announcing its first exclusive series for Play Music users called City Soundtracks. The concept is similar to the BBC’s Desert Island Discs, focusing on individual artists and the people, places and moments that have influenced their lives. The chatter will be punctuated with tracks, picked by the guest, which reflect their hometown and the stories they’ve chosen to tell. It’ll be hosted by Hrishikesh Hirway, the voice behind music podcast Song Exploder and the self-explanatory West Wing Weekly.

Three episodes have been produced, and it’s not clear if more are in the works. The first centers on Kelhani and her experiences growing up in Oakland. The second is an exploration of New Orleans, and the musical landmarks which ‘Queen of Bounce’ Big Freedia holds dear. The final episode revolves around Britt Daniel and Jim Eno, members of the rock band Spoon, as they discuss their favorite venues, recording and writing locations in Austin, Texas. Part playlist, part interview, they should appeal to the fans of each artist and also anyone interested in music culture.

Podcasts are an obvious way for companies like Google to tempt listeners across to their service. Music exclusives are another option — Apple Music and Tidal have had plenty — but it’s increasingly difficult to lock an artist to one platform. Spotify and others have therefore turned to ‘live lounge’ performances, podcasts and short-form video shows as a way to differentiate. Google is in an interesting position, however, because Play Music can be used as a streaming service, a music “locker” and a standalone podcast app — or a mixture of all three. City Soundtracks, then, isn’t a play for subscribers, but to simply get more people using the app.

The Nemesis System is huge in ‘Middle-earth: Shadow of War’

The standout feature of Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor was the Nemesis System. It added a layer of strategy to an otherwise standard action game, allowing players to see the strengths and weaknesses of specific Uruk soldiers before striding into battle. The Nemesis System was like a game of chess superimposed on top of a rich fantasy world, innovating on the genre and tapping into players’ desire to command an army, rather than simply run around Mordor as a doomed man possessed by the spirit of a vengeful Elf.

In Monolith’s Middle-earth: Shadow of War, the Nemesis System is bigger, badder and more robust. Not only will players be able to gather information on the enemy armies — staffed not only by Uruk anymore, but also by mountain trolls and other beasts true to JRR Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings universe — but they’ll also be able to view the strengths, weaknesses and personal history of their own armies.

Players once again follow the story of Talion, a Boromir-inspired character who teams up with Celebrimbor, one of the Elves who helped forge the rings of power. Talion and Celebrimbor share one body, infusing human flesh with supernatural powers like teleportation, quick sword strikes and other(worldly) bonuses.

In Lord of the Rings lore, the guardian of the Golden Woods, Galadriel, says that if she had the One Ring, its power would consume her — and instead of a Dark Lord, she would become a bright and powerful queen. This is how Celebrimbor approaches the war and the new ring of power that he wears in Talion’s body. Meanwhile, Talion is less interested in power, but still believes in the righteousness of his own cause.

In Shadow of War, the unlikely pair roam Mordor, collecting Uruks, trolls, mounts, dragons and other beasts for their army — some come willingly, while others are forced into service. The creatures are separated into tribes, each of which comes with its own benefits and cons. The Feral Tribe, for instance, is stocked with skilled hunters and trackers.

The Uruk and trolls may be on Talion’s side for the moment, but they’re still beasts of darkness, and this tension between good and evil is a constant thread running through Shadow of War.

“Even though they are followers, they’re all former enemies and you are kind of coercing them into it, so it’s a strange sort of relationship there,” Monolith VP Michael de Plater says. “You sort of love to hate your enemies and hate to love your followers. They all sort of blur into each other a bit.”

Shadow of War is an epic game that pushes at the limited boundaries laid out by Shadow of Mordor. De Plater worked on the first installment as well, and he says the team learned a lot from that development experience.

“Our ending was a bit abrupt last time because we kind of ran out of time,” he says. “That wasn’t quite what we wanted it to be. So this time we want to overcompensate in terms of having this absolutely epic finale and showdown with the Dark Lord, with the Witch King, with your army building up. Kind of over-correcting in the other direction.”

For example, in Shadow of War, players focus on defeating armies at a series of fortresses strewn around Mordor. A living 3D map of the world shows a handful of locations to take down, including the all-seeing eye of Sauron.

De Plater shows off one battle in the demo that has Talion strategize via the Nemesis System and then invade the fortress with his army. He has a spy in the enemy ranks and a few loyal followers to do his bidding, while one of the War Chiefs is Stormbringer, a former solider for the Bright Lord. Stormbringer is a jilted ex-ally who was left to die on the battlefield, so his fight with Talion (and Celebrimbor) is laced with personal strife.

And then Talion mounts a dragon and I forget about the rest of the demo. De Plater wasn’t kidding when he said this game is more epic.

Shadow of War works within the existing Lord of the Rings universe, paying homage to one of the most celebrated fantasy landscapes of our time while simultaneously expanding its reach.

“Going from the end of this story and kind of segueing from here into watching The Lord of the Rings, it’ll be really seamless and cool that we can simultaneously have these big, gigantic stakes in our story but kind of shed some new light on Lord of the Rings and make people look at things in sort of a new way,” de Plater says.

Shadow of War is due to hit PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC on August 22nd, with a Scorpio version already confirmed.

ICYMI: Roving robots measure health vitals

Today on In Case You Missed It: Belgian company BeWell has created an automated roving kiosk that assists doctors and nurses in admitting and testing patients. The robot kiosk, called the Wellpoint system, can measure a patients weight, pulse and pulse oximetry four minutes faster than a human can — and it will automatically update digital medical records once the tests have been performed. It can also guide patients through standard intake questions via a touchscreen interface, to help make admissions go faster. BeWell is looking into the possibilities of also connecting blood sugar monitors to the kiosk, to allow diabetic patients to share their testing data to the records.

Meanwhile, Brazilian doctors have found an unlikely aquatic ally in a common fish species, the tilapia, whose skin has been repurposed to treat burn victims. While animal skin is often used to treat burns, this marks the first time that a fish skin has been utilized for the purpose — and the trials have been quite successful so far. The skin is turned into an odorless bandage via a sterilization process, then applied directly to second and third-degree burns where it can remain throughout the healing period. Because the bandage doesn’t need to be changed as frequently, it reduces the risk of infection and cuts down on the healing time by preventing a loss of moisture and proteins from the wound. As the fish farms generally throw the skins out, it’s a sustainable, green solution as well.

As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.

Apple Pay Rolls Out Support for Charity Donations in the United Kingdom

Twenty-two United Kingdom-based charities now support donations through Apple Pay in apps and on the web, making it easier for interested patrons to give money to their favorite nonprofit organizations through Apple’s mobile wallet (via Civil Society).

The collection of UK charities have begun accepting Apple Pay beginning today, so users can begin donating with an Apple device, including on Touch ID-supported iPhones, iPads, and now the late 2016 MacBook Pro. More charities are expected to support Apple Pay down the line.

The full list of charities launching Apple Pay support in the UK includes: ActionAid UK, Alzheimer’s Society, Barnardo’s, British Heart Foundation, Cancer Research UK, Comic Relief, Concern Worldwide (UK), DEC, Marie Curie, Oxfam, (RED), The Royal British Legion, RNIB, RNLI, RSPB, RSPCA, Scope, Sightsavers, Unicef UK, VSO, WaterAid, and WWF-UK.

Catherine Cottrell, deputy director, fundraising, Unicef UK, said: “At Unicef UK we want to make giving as easy as possible. People are increasingly using mobiles and other digital devices to make payments so offering choice about how to donate is all the more important. Integrating Apple Pay makes donating both instant and effortless and secure for our supporters, and we hope that it will encourage more people to join us and share our mission to do whatever it takes, until every child is safe.”

Today’s announcement comes after Apple Pay was first accepted for charity donations within the United States last November, for organizations like UNICEF, charity:water, American Red Cross, World Wildlife Fund, and more. Before the introduction of Apple Pay in the donation process for charities, Apple’s rules prevented iOS apps from collecting funds through Apple Pay, preventing charities from installing donation buttons inside their apps.

Related Roundup: Apple Pay
Tag: United Kingdom
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Intel teams up with India’s Micromax to pre-install McAfee’s security app

McAfee Mobile Assistant is coming to tens of millions of Micromax phones.

At an event in New Delhi, India’s largest handset maker Micromax announced that it would pre-install the Intel-owned McAfee Mobile Assistant on all of its future phones. All handsets sold after April 2017 will have the security app pre-installed, and Micromax will deliver an OTA update to bring the app to older devices. Intel has already partnered with Lenovo in India to offer its security app, and today’s deal brings McAfee’s security suite to tens of millions of new phones.

Intel Security Group’s SVP Christopher Young was at the event to talk about the significance of the deal:

With smartphones becoming an integral part of our connected lives, it is important consumers realize threats that exist in the digital world and understand how to safeguard their valued data. Intel Security is focused on championing cybersecurity and we believe in protecting every device. Globally we have secured over 220 million users. The partnership with Micromax is another step forward in realizing our vision of being the #1 security partner of choice.

The partnership could turn out to be beneficial to Micromax customers. Indian users are generally unwilling to pay for content, opting instead to pirate apps and games. It isn’t hard to see then that the country often leads the global malware charts. But with digital wallets and fintech services gaining momentum, the malware situation is only going to get worse, leaving millions of devices vulnerable to attack. At least with McAfee’s security suite installed, there’s an added line of defense.

The Morning After: Wednesday, March 8th 2017

Good morning!

Wikileaks is at it again, this time going after the CIA. Flickr has learned a new trick, offering a Google Photos-like “similarity search” and we know the name of Star Trek’s next captain. But first things first — make sure you’ve entered our contest to win a Marantz SR7011 9.2 channel receiver, courtesy of Auro Technologies. We’ll wait.

Here we go againWikileaks ‘Vault 7’ claims to reveal the CIA’s hacking toolkit

Wikileaks has posted a cache of information that it says unmasks the Central Intelligence Agency’s “entire hacking capacity.” While there’s room for skepticism and many have noted what isn’t in there (like any confirmation the government has cracked the encryption on WhatsApp or Signal), there’s still a lot to digest. The documents claim the CIA instead is focused on compromising a target’s device to nab information before its encrypted by an app, and even has USB-delivered malware capable of turning a Samsung smart TV into a listening device.

Issa tubeHyperloop One offers a glimpse at its Nevada test site

So how do you test the future of transportation? If you’re Hyperloop One, you build a 1,640ft-long “DevLoop” in the Nevada desert. While its window to start testing is now just the first half of this year, even a picture of an empty tube is better than yet another pie-in-the-sky concept image.

Meet New GlennBlue Origin previews its next reusable rocket

Jeff Bezos’ rocket company has a new vehicle on the way. While Blue Origin showed off New Glenn’s capabilities with a slick animation, it also announced a deal with Eutelsat to launch a satellite in the 2021-2022 timeframe.

Does this count as snitching?Amazon hands over Alexa data for use in murder investigation

Recently, police asked Amazon for data from an Echo speaker, looking for evidence to use in a murder investigation. The company initially refused, citing protections including the First Amendment, but now it’s going to cooperate. That’s because the device’s owner, James Bates has given the OK, claiming he is innocent of all charges in the death of a man found in his hot tub.

But wait, there’s more…

• Nintendo wins a key case against a 3DS modchip seller
• Now Flickr has a neural network-powered ‘similarity search’ option
• Tech companies and game devs are gearing up for AR
• ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ will have Jason Isaacs as its captain

The Morning After is a new daily newsletter from Engadget designed to help you fight off FOMO. Who knows what you’ll miss if you don’t subscribe.

Apple says it’s already patched ‘many’ Wikileaks iOS exploits

Less than 24 hours ago, Wikileaks published a large cache of documents detailing top secret CIA operations conducted by its Center for Cyber Intelligence. Included in the 8,761 documents and files, referred to was Vault 7, are references to zero-day exploits that were reportedly being used to track and control iPhones but also Android phones and Samsung smart TVs.

While the authenticity of some of Wikileaks’ claims are still in question, Apple has confirmed that some of the threats towards its mobile operating system are very real. In a move to reassure customers, the company issued a statement noting that it has already taken steps to patch “many” of the 14 iOS vulnerabilities listed and is working to “rapidly address” the rest.

An Apple spokesperson told TechCrunch: “Apple is deeply committed to safeguarding our customers’ privacy and security. The technology built into today’s iPhone represents the best data security available to consumers, and we’re constantly working to keep it that way. Our products and software are designed to quickly get security updates into the hands of our customers, with nearly 80 percent of users running the latest version of our operating system. While our initial analysis indicates that many of the issues leaked today were already patched in the latest iOS, we will continue work to rapidly address any identified vulnerabilities. We always urge customers to download the latest iOS to make sure they have the most recent security updates.”

Apple hasn’t specified which exploits it has patched or when it expects the remainder to be fixed, but the statement does stress the importance of keeping your devices updated. Apple has reiterated time and again that it values the privacy of its customers, so it’s likely that upcoming software updates could be expedited to ensure iPhone and iPad users are protected.

Source: TechCrunch