Everything you need to know about Google Assistant

Google Assistant is getting smarter than Google Now ever was. Not only does the service support more than one language, but it also will soon feature more robust third-party integration, meaning that it can help you control your entire digital life — not just your Google life.

Assistant is similar to Google Now in that it allows you to ask questions and get answers. Not only that, but the service goes beyond just the messaging Allo app — it’s also now featured in Google Home, Google’s answer to the Amazon Echo. And, of course, it’s also found in all kinds of Android smartphones that run Android Marshmallow or Nougat.

More: New Google Assistant app may let you type as well as talk

Google Assistant could be coming to the iPhone

Google Assistant is currently rolling out to all kinds of Android smartphones with Android Marshmallow and Nougat — but the digital assistant could be coming to Apple’s iOS as well. The news comes from Dutch blog Geekster, which recently interviewed Gummi Hafsteinsson, the product manager for Google Assistant. While Hafsteinsson didn’t directly say that an iOS version of Assistant was in the works, he certainly hinted at it.

“I do not think we have anything to announce at this point,” said Hafsteinsson in the interview. “But I think the general philosophy is that we would like to have the Assistant available to as many people as possible.”

It will certainly be interesting to see what an iOS version of Assistant looks like. Microsoft’s Cortana has been available on both Android and iOS for some time now, however the service has had a hard time gaining a large user base. Could Assistant be the digital assistant that gains popularity on an operating system other than its own? Only time will tell.

Google Assistant can now take screenshots

While you still can’t ask Google Assistant to take a screenshot, the feature to share one of the screen you’re on is now available. On Android devices that aren’t the Google Pixel, pressing and holding the home button brings up Screen Search, formerly called Now On Tap. Screen Search also has an option to take and share a screenshot.

This method is easier than the traditional method of holding down the volume down and power button to take a screenshot — it also cropped out the navigation buttons and status bar out of the image for you.

Since Google added the Assistant on the Pixel, Screen Search has been available, but the screenshot option wasn’t. Now, when you press and hold the home button and swipe up, you’ll see an option to “Share Screenshot.” This screenshot, like the method on non-Pixel devices, crops out the navigation and status bars.

It doesn’t seem to work on your home screen, so you’ll need to rely on the traditional screenshot method. Still, the addition is a solid option for people who want to take a cropped screenshot with one hand. It’s too bad you can’t ask the Assistant to take a screenshot yet.

Google Assistant is coming to Android TV

Assistant is set to be a part of the entire Google ecosystem, and that means on all kinds of Android-powered devices. While Assistant is already available on Android phones, it’s now coming to Android TV, too. And that’s not just with first-party apps either. According to Google, you’ll be able to make commands like “Play Stranger Things on Netflix,” or “Tell me about Jurassic Park.” You’ll even be able to control other areas of your smart home with commands like “Dim the lights” — perfect for when you want to watch a movie.

Don’t expect this to be the last place Assistant shows up either — the service will soon make it to Android Wear, likely through the Android Wear 2.0 update.

The first Android TV device to get Assistant is the new Nvidia Shield, but it will also come to other Android TV devices running Android 6.0 Marshmallow and Android 7.0 Nougat in coming months.

Google Assistant commemorates the holidays with seasonal responses

Google has gotten into the holiday spirit. It took the wraps off Santa’s Village, a collection of Christmas-themed games for iOS and Android devices, in early December. It hosted holiday-themed coding games for Computer Science Education Week. And now, it’s added holiday Easter eggs to the Google Assistant.

Here are the ones we’ve discovered so far:

• Google’s Santa Tracker, a long-running collaboration between the search giant and the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), has been integrated into the Assistant. Asking “Where’s Santa” or “Track Santa” provides Saint Nick’s latest coordinates.
• Asking the Google Assistant “tell me a Santa joke” or “Santa joke” plays a random Santa-themed joke narrated by “Santa.” Our favorite so far: A child asks Santa where the money in a snow bank’s kept.
• Google Assistant can “spin the dreidel.”

Google Assistant has a childhood

According to a report from Fast Company, Google wants to give Assistant a back story. The search giant has enlisted the help of Google Doodle head Ryan Germick, as well as ex-Pixar animator Emma Coats, to give Assistant a personality. There’s now a job listing for a creative writer that will work on the Assistant’s story.

“Content will include a range of interactions, such as dialogue and instructions and will be delivered through various Google products,” according to the listing, which requires applicants to be able to speak and write fluently in one of the following languages other than English:  French, Italian, Spanish (Spain), Spanish (Mexico), Japanese, Korean, Portuguese (Brazil), Russian, Hindi (India), Bahasa Indonesia. It’s clear Google is trying to bring Assistant to these countries first.

More: Google to show off new Pixel phones, Android and Chrome OS merger, on Oct. 4

Coats describes working on Assistant as working on a “character,” the same way she would over at Pixar. Part of that means giving Assistant a childhood, allowing users to relate to it as if it actually had a life. Not only that, but the team is experimenting with ways to build trust between the user and Assistant by making it seem vulnerable every now and then as if it needed the user.

This is not available yet in the Assistant in Allo. If you ask for its story, Assistant responds with, “I’m still on the very first chapter.”

Google Assistant will feature third-party integration with Actions by Google

“Think of the assistant — we think of it as a conversational assistant — we want users to have an ongoing two-way dialogue,” Google CEO Sundar Pichai said at I/O when the feature was first announced. Of course, part of offering an ongoing conversation is being able to carry on that conversation with other apps and products.

More: Say Allo! Google’s latest messaging app is here, and it’s smarter than iMessage

Google Assistant will soon feature more third-party integration through “Actions on Google.” These “actions” are basically ways for developers to build Google Assistant integration into their apps and services. That way, you can ask Assistant to order you an Uber or reserve a table via OpenTable.

Now that the Google Assistant Developer Platform has opened up, some of these integrations have now begun to go live. There’s now a new “Videos and Photos” section available in the Google Home app’s Assistant settings, which allows you to link your Netflix account and enable or disable a Google Photos integration. Android Police was the first to spot this addition, though the publication also noted that upon trial, entering Netflix credentials did not work, suggesting that the integration is still being worked on. All the same, it’s something to look forward to.

Julian Chokkattu/Digital Trends

Sometimes, when a user asks Google Assistant a question, the service will be able to simply respond with direct actions. Other times, however, conversations will need to take place — for example, if you ask Assistant to book a table at a restaurant through OpenTable, it will need to ask how many people in your party and what time you want the reservation.

You can already see the landing page for Actions on Google, but you can sign up for notifications on news and updates for the service.

Google Assistant has limited language support

The AI can currently respond in English, but it can also bring up translations from Google Translate.

More: Google Allo is now available in Hindi for users in one of its fastest-growing markets

Google has plans to expand to more languages. Recently, the company announced that Assistant in Allo can respond in Hindi and offer Smart Replies in the language as well. Smart Reply lets you quickly respond to messages with a tap, and the responses adapt to the way you talk the more you use Allo.

Article originally published in May 2016. Christian de Looper contributed to this report. Updated on 03-03-2017 by Christian de Looper: Added news that Assistant could be coming to iOS.

Everything you need to know about Google Assistant

Google Assistant is getting smarter than Google Now ever was. Not only does the service support more than one language, but it also will soon feature more robust third-party integration, meaning that it can help you control your entire digital life — not just your Google life.

Assistant is similar to Google Now in that it allows you to ask questions and get answers. Not only that, but the service goes beyond just the messaging Allo app — it’s also now featured in Google Home, Google’s answer to the Amazon Echo. And, of course, it’s also found in all kinds of Android smartphones that run Android Marshmallow or Nougat.

More: New Google Assistant app may let you type as well as talk

Google Assistant could be coming to the iPhone

Google Assistant is currently rolling out to all kinds of Android smartphones with Android Marshmallow and Nougat — but the digital assistant could be coming to Apple’s iOS as well. The news comes from Dutch blog Geekster, which recently interviewed Gummi Hafsteinsson, the product manager for Google Assistant. While Hafsteinsson didn’t directly say that an iOS version of Assistant was in the works, he certainly hinted at it.

“I do not think we have anything to announce at this point,” said Hafsteinsson in the interview. “But I think the general philosophy is that we would like to have the Assistant available to as many people as possible.”

It will certainly be interesting to see what an iOS version of Assistant looks like. Microsoft’s Cortana has been available on both Android and iOS for some time now, however the service has had a hard time gaining a large user base. Could Assistant be the digital assistant that gains popularity on an operating system other than its own? Only time will tell.

Google Assistant can now take screenshots

While you still can’t ask Google Assistant to take a screenshot, the feature to share one of the screen you’re on is now available. On Android devices that aren’t the Google Pixel, pressing and holding the home button brings up Screen Search, formerly called Now On Tap. Screen Search also has an option to take and share a screenshot.

This method is easier than the traditional method of holding down the volume down and power button to take a screenshot — it also cropped out the navigation buttons and status bar out of the image for you.

Since Google added the Assistant on the Pixel, Screen Search has been available, but the screenshot option wasn’t. Now, when you press and hold the home button and swipe up, you’ll see an option to “Share Screenshot.” This screenshot, like the method on non-Pixel devices, crops out the navigation and status bars.

It doesn’t seem to work on your home screen, so you’ll need to rely on the traditional screenshot method. Still, the addition is a solid option for people who want to take a cropped screenshot with one hand. It’s too bad you can’t ask the Assistant to take a screenshot yet.

Google Assistant is coming to Android TV

Assistant is set to be a part of the entire Google ecosystem, and that means on all kinds of Android-powered devices. While Assistant is already available on Android phones, it’s now coming to Android TV, too. And that’s not just with first-party apps either. According to Google, you’ll be able to make commands like “Play Stranger Things on Netflix,” or “Tell me about Jurassic Park.” You’ll even be able to control other areas of your smart home with commands like “Dim the lights” — perfect for when you want to watch a movie.

Don’t expect this to be the last place Assistant shows up either — the service will soon make it to Android Wear, likely through the Android Wear 2.0 update.

The first Android TV device to get Assistant is the new Nvidia Shield, but it will also come to other Android TV devices running Android 6.0 Marshmallow and Android 7.0 Nougat in coming months.

Google Assistant commemorates the holidays with seasonal responses

Google has gotten into the holiday spirit. It took the wraps off Santa’s Village, a collection of Christmas-themed games for iOS and Android devices, in early December. It hosted holiday-themed coding games for Computer Science Education Week. And now, it’s added holiday Easter eggs to the Google Assistant.

Here are the ones we’ve discovered so far:

• Google’s Santa Tracker, a long-running collaboration between the search giant and the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), has been integrated into the Assistant. Asking “Where’s Santa” or “Track Santa” provides Saint Nick’s latest coordinates.
• Asking the Google Assistant “tell me a Santa joke” or “Santa joke” plays a random Santa-themed joke narrated by “Santa.” Our favorite so far: A child asks Santa where the money in a snow bank’s kept.
• Google Assistant can “spin the dreidel.”

Google Assistant has a childhood

According to a report from Fast Company, Google wants to give Assistant a back story. The search giant has enlisted the help of Google Doodle head Ryan Germick, as well as ex-Pixar animator Emma Coats, to give Assistant a personality. There’s now a job listing for a creative writer that will work on the Assistant’s story.

“Content will include a range of interactions, such as dialogue and instructions and will be delivered through various Google products,” according to the listing, which requires applicants to be able to speak and write fluently in one of the following languages other than English:  French, Italian, Spanish (Spain), Spanish (Mexico), Japanese, Korean, Portuguese (Brazil), Russian, Hindi (India), Bahasa Indonesia. It’s clear Google is trying to bring Assistant to these countries first.

More: Google to show off new Pixel phones, Android and Chrome OS merger, on Oct. 4

Coats describes working on Assistant as working on a “character,” the same way she would over at Pixar. Part of that means giving Assistant a childhood, allowing users to relate to it as if it actually had a life. Not only that, but the team is experimenting with ways to build trust between the user and Assistant by making it seem vulnerable every now and then as if it needed the user.

This is not available yet in the Assistant in Allo. If you ask for its story, Assistant responds with, “I’m still on the very first chapter.”

Google Assistant will feature third-party integration with Actions by Google

“Think of the assistant — we think of it as a conversational assistant — we want users to have an ongoing two-way dialogue,” Google CEO Sundar Pichai said at I/O when the feature was first announced. Of course, part of offering an ongoing conversation is being able to carry on that conversation with other apps and products.

More: Say Allo! Google’s latest messaging app is here, and it’s smarter than iMessage

Google Assistant will soon feature more third-party integration through “Actions on Google.” These “actions” are basically ways for developers to build Google Assistant integration into their apps and services. That way, you can ask Assistant to order you an Uber or reserve a table via OpenTable.

Now that the Google Assistant Developer Platform has opened up, some of these integrations have now begun to go live. There’s now a new “Videos and Photos” section available in the Google Home app’s Assistant settings, which allows you to link your Netflix account and enable or disable a Google Photos integration. Android Police was the first to spot this addition, though the publication also noted that upon trial, entering Netflix credentials did not work, suggesting that the integration is still being worked on. All the same, it’s something to look forward to.

Julian Chokkattu/Digital Trends

Sometimes, when a user asks Google Assistant a question, the service will be able to simply respond with direct actions. Other times, however, conversations will need to take place — for example, if you ask Assistant to book a table at a restaurant through OpenTable, it will need to ask how many people in your party and what time you want the reservation.

You can already see the landing page for Actions on Google, but you can sign up for notifications on news and updates for the service.

Google Assistant has limited language support

The AI can currently respond in English, but it can also bring up translations from Google Translate.

More: Google Allo is now available in Hindi for users in one of its fastest-growing markets

Google has plans to expand to more languages. Recently, the company announced that Assistant in Allo can respond in Hindi and offer Smart Replies in the language as well. Smart Reply lets you quickly respond to messages with a tap, and the responses adapt to the way you talk the more you use Allo.

Article originally published in May 2016. Christian de Looper contributed to this report. Updated on 03-03-2017 by Christian de Looper: Added news that Assistant could be coming to iOS.

Plug the USG into your port before you plug in that new USB flash drive

Why it matters to you

You now have an option to help protect your PC against USB-based malware that is otherwise impossible to defeat.

A number of nasty methods exist to remotely exploit a device, for example, a router that is connected to the internet. There are even more ways to exploit a PC if the cybercriminal has physical access to it. But the most embarrassing, perhaps, is when you infect your own PC by plugging in a malware-infested USB flash drive.

That is probably not terribly fair — anyone can be tricked into plugging in such devices, given that they are designed to look just like any other flash drive. And there is little you can do to protect yourself against them, which is something a new hardware firewall called USG is intended to help prevent, Hackaday reports.

More: With BadUSB, hackers can make your USB devices turn against you

The reason malware-infected USB flash drives are so dangerous is that devices using attacks like BadUSB inject their malicious code directly into the USB driver software that enables a PC to connect to a USB device. The code is executed by the USB device’s own microprocessor, meaning there is no virus file being accessed on the PC that antivirus software can recognize and protect against.

The USG device created by engineer Robert Fisk sits in between the PC’s USB port and any device that is going to be plugged into it. The USG runs a virtualized operating system on an ARM processor with anti-malware software such as Anti Evil Maid installed on it that intercepts any attack and stops it from executing in the USB controller.

According to some sources, even factory-fresh USB flash drives can’t be assumed free of malware, backdoors, and other nefarious purposes, and so a device like the USG could one day be more than just a luxury of the paranoid. Fisk provides details on how to build your own USG device, along with information on how and why it works. He also sells a version that is more professional in appearance for $50, in case you don’t have the time or technical inclination to build your own.

Offer lets new T-Mobile customers snag a free iPhone 7, $100 iPhone 7 Plus

Why it matters to you

Those shopping for an iPhone 7 and a new plan can save hundreds with T-Mobile’s latest promotions.

T-Mobile’s aggressive marketing and promotion tactics have been paying dividends for the carrier, and its latest deal is one of its most compelling yet. Customers who port their number to T-Mobile are eligible for a free iPhone 7 or a 7 Plus for just $100, following trade-in of a qualifying device and a rebate, the company announced Friday.

Customers will need to sign up for T-Mobile’s recently improved One plan at a retail store, at which point they can receive their iPhone at a reduced down payment, with credit from their previous smartphone. After online registration, they’ll get a prepaid MasterCard in the mail within six to eight weeks, which can in turn be applied to the remaining cost of the 24-month finance agreement.

More: The Best Unlimited Data Plan: Verizon vs. T-Mobile vs. AT&T vs. Sprint

The offer is good for up to 12 iPhones — ideal for a family or small business looking to make a switch. It lasts until March 16.

If you are interested in snagging multiple iPhones at a greatly reduced cost, the promotion can be combined with the carrier’s other recent deals. Earlier this week, T-Mobile began allowing accounts with at least two lines to add another at no extra cost. The carrier was already handing out two lines for the monthly rate of $100, a discount from the typical $120. Put all of that together, and a new customer could potentially open three lines for $100 a month, saving $40, with free iPhones on every one.

The discounted iPhones are, not surprisingly, of the 64GB variety, and T-Mobile will offer the 128GB and 256GB models for an extra $100 and $200, respectively. Also, for the moment, T-Mobile has restricted eligible trade-ins to Apple and Samsung phones exclusively. Currently, all iPhone 6, 6S, and 7 devices, along with all variants of the Galaxy S7, including the S7 Active, are eligible for the deal. As this promotion requires instant trade-in, you’ll need to visit a brick-and-mortar location — online orders are not supported.

Finally, it’s important to note the free iPhone program is excluded from T-Mobile’s Carrier Freedom early termination fee reimbursement, which pays the penalty incurred by new customers who skip out on their current contract and port their existing number.

How trickle-down TV tech is bringing HDR brilliance to smartphones and tablets

Why it matters to you

The more our phones become like our TVs, the more likely they are to replace them entirely

The technology and innovation that makes the latest televisions produce such beautiful images is coming to our smartphones. TV tech has actually been seeping down to phones for a while, as displays that use similar panel technology get bigger, boast higher resolutions, and have lower power consumption. It hasn’t always been easy to immediately see the benefits of these features, but that’s not the case with the latest TV-influenced features now hitting the newest smartphones.

Treating the screen this way makes a lot of sense. It may not always be that big, but it’s probably the one you look at the most, and if it doesn’t look good or show much detail, it ruins the joy of owning and using a phone. At Mobile World Congress 2017, LG and Sony both brought the tech used to make their TV’s so good across to smartphones, and the good news is, you’re definitely going to see a difference.

HDR: Not just for cameras anymore

Until recently, High Dynamic Range (HDR) technology was something you probably associated with the camera on a smartphone; but the latest 4K Ultra HD TVs now support HDR mode — a move we feel has made the biggest difference in picture quality since the the advent of high-definition resolution. Now, HDR is being implemented in smartphone screens, starting with a new wave of devices emphasizing video performance announced at Mobile World Congress.

More: Read our first take review of the LG G6

Both Sony and LG have integrated HDR into their new phones: The G6 and the Xperia XZ Premium; but confusingly there are three different versions of HDR tech, with even more on the way. Just as it does with its televisions, LG supports both DolbyVision and HDR10 on the G6, while Sony appears to support HDR10 only at this time. Like varying and competing audio file formats, all the HDR formats ultimately have the same intent: To boost colors, increase detail, and improve contrast levels. How they go about accomplishing those tasks varies a great deal, but that’s a discussion for another article.

Andy Boxall/Digital Trends

Andy Boxall/Digital Trends

Andy Boxall/Digital Trends

Andy Boxall/Digital Trends

Smartphone owners are used to screens increasing in resolution, but improvements are sometimes hard to pinpoint. Not so with HDR. We visited Dolby at MWC to see how the G6 implemented DolbyVision, and compared it to both an LG OLED TV with DolbyVision, and with another G6 playing non-HDR content. The difference between the two phones was striking, with DolbyVision adding realism and verve not seen in the un-enhanced footage, which looked darker and muddier. What really surprised was how close the G6’s DolbyVision video looked to the same movie being played on the full-size LG OLED TV.

Growing library

However, DolbyVision and HDR isn’t applied to the Android interface or any old video you play. In the same way that a movie needs to have a surround sound audio track in order for you to hear real surround sound, a video needs to be encoded with DolbyVision or HDR10 in order for it to take advantage of an HDR screen. Dolby’s Torsten Fink told Digital Trends that currently, “There are 90 full-length movies available, and we are working with Amazon and Netflix to deliver the content to mobile devices. There is also more than 100 hours of original content from Netflix, such as Marco Polo, in DolbyVision.” This number will only grow over time, and Fink revealed that all the movies nominated for an Oscar at the 2017 Academy Awards were filmed in DolbyVision, proving the movie industry’s support for the technology.

More: HDR in TVs explained

The G6 has both DolbyVision and HDR10 onboard. We asked for an explanation of the differences, without getting caught up in the technical aspects, between the two. “From a consumer perspective, it’s not a consistent experience between devices with HDR10,” Fink told us. “When you have five different HDR10 devices next to each other, all the video will look different.” We should think of DolbyVision as a more feature rich version of the open-source HDR10 platform. “The underlying video format is the same and was developed by Dolby, but with lots of goodness added into DolbyVision.”

This brings a few interesting benefits, Fink explained: “Because we control the whole process from camera to display, we can insert information into the video that allows us to control the playback, so you get consistent colors and skin tones, plus we can control the backlight. By adaptively adjusting it throughout playback on the G6, DolbyVision content consumes 15 percent less power than standard dynamic range video.”

More: Read our first take review of the Sony XZ Premium here

DolbyVision is also 10 percent more efficient when it comes to bandwidth, which means the buffer time will be lower when streaming a compatible video to your phone. While these streaming files aren’t small, there’s no need to wait for mega-fast gigabit mobile internet connections to come along before enjoying them. “The top tier of the bitrate is 6Mbps,” Fink informed us, adding that Amazon and Netflix dynamically stream the file and adapt it based on network speed. If your connection is poor, the quality is reduced.

More phones to come

Watching DolbyVision back-to-back with the Full HD video on the G6, it’s impossible not to fall in love with the HDR effect. Isolate the DolbyVision video and it still shone. You certainly won’t watch an HDR video and wonder where the benefits are. The G6 is the first mobile device in the world to feature  both DolbyVision and HDR10 (the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 was the first to have just HDR10 support), but will it come to other phones? We put the question to Fink, who told us: “There are no specific hardware requirements, it’s all done in software. Fundamentally the technology can be deployed in a lot of different mobile devices, and we expect we will be in a position to do this pretty soon.”

Andy Boxall/Digital Trends

We also checked out Sony’s XZ Premium running alongside last year’s Xperia Z5 Premium. Both have the ability to play 4K resolution video files, but only the new XZ Premium has 4K HDR support. Sony backs the open-source HDR10 format. Like the G6, the improvement in the HDR image was obvious. It was brighter, more colorful, and had a wider viewing angle. How bright? We couldn’t take an effective still DSLR picture to illustrate the difference, as it upset the camera’s sensor. Samsung wasn’t going to be left out of the HDR fun either, and the new Galaxy Tab S3 and Galaxy Book both support HDR video. This means there’s a strong chance the Galaxy S8 will do the same.

Even though the screens on both these phones are smaller than your TV, the benefits of HDR video are considerable, and immediately recognisable.

Rational ratios

Introducing HDR technology wasn’t the only evidence manufacturers have noticed how popular using a mobile device for consuming video has become. LG is the first to use an 18:9 (or 2:1, depending on your preference) aspect ratio screen. This means it looks longer and thinner than most other screens. LG may be the first, but Samsung is also expected to follow with an 18:9 screen on the Galaxy S8.

Mobile devices are rapidly becoming our primary screen, rather than the second screen many consider them at the moment.

Why? Leaving aside the user interface advantages — the screen can be split into to squares, making it more suited to running two apps at the same time, for example — it’s a happy medium between the two most used modern video aspect ratios, 16:9 and 2.20:1. It’s not LG that says this, it’s cinematographer Vittorio Storaro, the man pushing for industry adoption of 18:9, which he calls Univisium. If you’ve watched Netflix’s Stranger Things, then you’ve already seen an 18:9 aspect ratio presentation.

Storaro talked about 18:9 during LG’s announcement of the G6. When asked how it will benefit anyone watching video on a smartphone, he said that, because the ratio is longer and narrower than more usual 16:9 or 21:9 screens, “watching a movie will be more immersive while holding the device. It eliminates the need for cropping, and lets audiences see films exactly as the filmmaker intended.” The longer term idea is to have all screens show the same content across all screens, without alterations.

Bring the noise

Perhaps surprisingly, neither Sony nor LG made much noise about the audio ability of their new phones. The G6 has Dolby Audio inside, but not Dolby Atmos, which has been used on several phones since 2015, but sound is only pushed out through a single speaker. Sony’s XZ Premium has stereo front speakers. Neither have the sonic capabilities to match their visual prowess, which is a shame. This is especially true for the G6, as LG has removed the new Quad DAC destined for South Korean G6 phones on versions set for release in the U.S. market.
More: The top tech trends from MWC 2017

Mobile devices are rapidly becoming our primary screen, rather than the second screen many consider them at the moment. By 2021, nearly 80 percent of mobile data traffic is expected to be video, so smartphone manufacturers want to be prepared for the growth.

Excitingly, 2017 looks set to be the year in which we can buy the first mobile devices that truly exploit the same visual tech treats that make us all want to splash out on a new big-screen TV.

‘Nano-warming’ tech could reduce the massive number of wasted transplant organs

Why it matters to you

More than 60 percent of possible transplant organs are wasted each year, but his new “nano-warming” process could help.

One of the major challenges with organ transplants plays out way before the organ ever comes within arm’s length of its eventual recipient.

That challenge is the small time window available between an organ being harvested, and it being irreversibly damaged through lack of oxygen. Due to challenges in the thawing process, it’s not possible to reliably freeze them, either. This results in the shocking statistic that 60 percent of the hearts and lungs donated for transplants each year are discarded.

That could change with an exciting new piece of research, however. Carried out by scientists at Carnegie Mellon University, Clemson University, and the University of Minnesota, working with the biotech company Tissue Testing Technologies, what investigators have invented is a new technique that can be applied to the “cryopreservation” process. What this does is to allow frozen organs to be quickly reheated in a way that doesn’t damage them.

“In our paper, our team [describes a] new ‘nano-warming’ technique,” co-author Navid Manuchehrabadi, a postdoctoral associate at the University of Minnesota, told Digital Trends. “Pig heart valves and blood vessels were infused with a cryoprotectant chemicals mixed with iron oxide nanoparticles, coated in silicon to make them biologically inert and keep them in the solution, and the samples were cooled in liquid nitrogen to -160 C (-256 F).”

More: Stripping pig organs of their cells could end transplant waiting lists

For the thawing process, the sample was then placed inside an electromagnetic coil, designed to produce an alternating magnetic field. As the magnetic field is flipped back and forth, the particles move around and rapidly and uniformly heated at rates of 100 to 200 degrees C per minute. This is between 10 and 100 times faster than previous methods.

“We were able to successfully wash away the iron oxide nanoparticles from the sample following the warming — although further safety testing would be required before the technique could be used in patients,” Manuchehrabadi continued.

Although it’s still early stages, this work could have a profound impact. According to recent estimates, if just half of all unused organs were successfully transplanted, transplant waiting lists could be eliminated completely in just a couple of years.

Manuchehrabadi said he is confident the work they have done so far is scalable, meaning that the team should be able to move from larger tissues to full organs — including larger ones like kidneys or liver — in the future.

Next the team will apply their discovery to rabbit kidneys, and are working with one of the world’s leading experts on organ vitrification to do so. “We will begin with small animal organs and gradually scale up to large animal and then human organs,” he concluded. “Designing a magnetic RF coil system large enough for major human organs is going to be a critical step for nano-warming of human sized organs.”

By request, Razer may have a Linux option for its Razer Blade gaming laptop

Why it matters to you

Linux fans who love Razer’s products should be thrilled that the company wants to support the operating system on its Razer Blade gaming laptop.

Razer founder and CEO Min-Liang Tan said on Thursday that the company is now looking to support Linux on the Razer Blade laptop. He said that support for the open-source operating system is one of the most common requests for the Razer Blade and that Razer is now looking into the possibility. He is now asking all Linux “enthusiasts” to provide their feedback, suggestions, and ideas in the new Linux Corner section of Razer Insider.

“We decided to lead a new forum section that is dedicated to Linux’s applications for gamers or other creators alike,” the company states in its introductory post. “The Linux Corner is a result of this where fans can now discuss their experience, provide feedback, and talk about everything related to Tux’s OS running on the Razer Blade.”

The virtual reality-ready Razer Blade laptop ships with a 64-bit version of Windows 10. But there is nothing stopping owners from formatting the solid-state drive and installing a Linux-based operating system such as Ubuntu or Valve Software’s SteamOS platform. However, until Razer’s recent interest in Linux, the company didn’t support Razer Blade laptops with Linux installed.

More: Is your Razer Blade’s fan too loud? Never fear, a fix is on the way

Some of the suggestions members have already made include porting Razer Synapse over to Linux, providing a Razer Blade with a dual-boot option (Windows/SteamOS), and even creating a special Razer-based Linux distribution. Many owners have taken the Linux plunge anyway, and are saying nothing but good things about their decision.

“Been using arch Linux on a Razer Blade Pro 2013 all these years,” one new member says. “It runs faster than windows, without any issues, and I play many Steam games without problems. Lately I started using Unreal Engine 4 on Linux for game development, and guess what, it runs perfect.”

The Razer Blade laptop targets PC gamers who want a slim but powerful solution for gaming on the go. But Tan says that this particular notebook family has become “the default coding machine for many.” That is definitely apparent in the new Linux Corner hub, as developers are also providing their feedback on the ideal Linux machine to fit their working needs.

For instance, one user suggests that Razer develop a direct competitor to the Dell XPS 13 Developer Edition laptop. The Linux-based Ubuntu 16.04 model starts at $1,000, with the base configuration consisting of an Intel Core i5-7200U processor, 8GB of LPDDR3 system memory, a 128GB solid-state drive, and a 13.3-inch screen with a 1,920 x 1,080 resolution. However, Razer’s update would be an improvement such as a larger screen, a discrete graphics chip, and M.2 NVMe-based storage.

The current Razer Blade laptop is rather impressive, packing Intel’s Core i7-7700HQ processor, Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 1060 discrete graphics chip, 16GB of DDR4 system memory (2,400MHz), and PCIe M.2 SSD storage capacities ranging from 256GB to 1TB. The 14-inch screen can be configured with 1,920 x 1,080 or 3,840 x 2,160 resolutions (16:9 aspect ratio). However, developers suggest that Razer move to a 3:2 display ratio on a Linux-based Razer Blade model.

Amazon’s next Echo is coming later this year

Soon you may be able to call your BFF from your couch without touching a phone.

Amazon is beta testing new hardware for its AI assistant Alexa, and is also working on adding voice call support that will allow us to make calls entirely with your voice.

As reported by Recode, several unnamed sources have revealed that along with allowing for voice-initiated calls, Amazon is also looking to add intercom functionality between Alexa-enabled devices in your home.

From the Recode article:

As of last month, the new hardware was in beta testing inside of Amazon. Sources say they expect an announcement in the coming months. An Amazon spokesperson declined to comment.”

This follows news reported by the Wall Street Journal last month that Amazon and Google were both looking to add voice call functionality to their respective smart speakers. It would seem that Amazon may be the first to reach that goal.

At this point, we don’t know the finer details of exactly how voice calling via Alexa will work — will you simply need to sync your current cell phone number to your speakers or get a dedicated home phone number? We’re also curious to know how it will work with multiple users who each have their own contact lists and whatnot. Either way, this new feature for Amazon’s smart speakers seems like it will essentially act as a futuristic twist on the landline phone — something we’ve collectively been replacing with our smartphones over the past decade and a half. Meanwhile the intercom functionality could be really cool, but would obviously require you to have multiple Amazon devices connected throughout your home.

We’ll have more details on this as the official announcements are released in the coming months.

What do you think? Is this a feature that you’ve been wanting from your Amazon Echo? Let us know in the comments!

Amazon Echo

• Amazon Echo review
• Echo Dot review
• Top Echo Tips & Tricks
• Tap, Echo or Dot: The ultimate Alexa question
• Amazon Echo vs. Google Home
• Get the latest Alexa news

Amazon

Amazon has an International Women’s Day surprise for Echo owners

The hardest working artificial woman on the planet has some things to teach you.

Everyone has a fairly decent understanding of the relationship between a human being and Amazon’s Alexa, even if only be watching the commercials that seem to air on every channel now. You wake Alexa up, ask a question about a particular topic, and Amazon’s massive network of data resources works to provide and answer. It seems simple now that we’ve had it for a while, but an impressive level of intelligence and engineering has gone into making all of this seamless.

In celebration of International Women’s Day, and to further recognize the women of our history that contributed in some incredible way to the world as we know it, starting March 8th Alexa is going to drop some lady knowledge on you.

Starting first thing on March 8th, saying “good morning” to Alexa will result in a reminder that International Women’s Day has arrived followed by your normal morning briefing. After this, if you ask Alexa “who inspires you?” you’ll get a brief history lesson starring a woman from our history. Alexa’s list includes:

• Heady Lamar
• Katherine G. Johnson
• Dorothy Vaughan
• Mary Jackson
• Ada Lovelace
• Simone Biles
• Grace Hopper
• Sally Ride
• Jane McGonigal
• Malala Youshafzai
• Serena Williams
• Jane Goodall
• Marie Curie
• Alexa Canady
• Melinda Gates

Each name will come with a brief anecdote or joke, with lots more information available by enabling the new Inspirational Women skill. It’ll offer detailed information for anyone who asks, including but not limited to the women listed above.

Amazon Echo

• Amazon Echo review
• Echo Dot review
• Top Echo Tips & Tricks
• Tap, Echo or Dot: The ultimate Alexa question
• Amazon Echo vs. Google Home
• Get the latest Alexa news

Amazon

Daimler recalls one million Mercedes after dozens catch fire

German automaker Daimler AG announced a major worldwide auto recall today, encompassing one million recent models of Mercedes-Benz vehicles that are at risk of catching fire due to a potentially faulty fuse. So far, 51 vehicle fires have be reported, but there have been no reported injuries or deaths.

According to Reuters, the recall affects over 300,000 newer model year vehicles in the United States alone, including the current 2017 model year. The majority of the fires — 30 of them to be exact — were reported in the US. As a Mercedes-Benz spokesman explained, new vehicles rolling off the production line and those already on dealers’ lots will be fixed before they’re sold. Although Daimler and Mercedes-Benz USA didn’t provide any insight as to which models are affected by the fire-prone fuse, the company has updated their recall site where owners can check their vehicle’s VIN number and says it will start notifying drivers in the US later this month. However, the fixes won’t actually begin until the necessary replacement parts arrive in July.

Via: Reuters

Source: Mercedes-Benz USA