Bang & Olufsen’s modular speakers double as wall art

There hasn’t been a shortage of attempts at modular speakers, but how many of them would you be willing to place at the center of your living room decor? Not many, we’d wager. Bang & Olufsen, however, thinks it can do better. It’s introducing a wall-mounted speaker system, BeoSound Shape, that’s designed to be as artistic as it is functional. You can scale your system to the exact size and pattern you want, including color — a range of fabric options lets you be as flamboyant or subdued as you like. You need at least six modules, but B&O is promising that you can have a “practically unlimited” number of them if it suits your fancy.

You’re not giving up much functionality, either. One of the tiles includes a BeoSound Core hub that allows for AirPlay, Bluetooth and Chromecast streaming, and you can tie it into a multi-room B&O setup. The Danish firm is also promising that its mixing algorithm will produce a “crisp and precise” sound meant for your wall, and you’ll even get an online design tool that suggests ideal layouts.

As with most of B&O’s speakers, that combination of chic and cleverness will be expensive. When BeoSound Shape hits stores in August, a “standard setup” will cost about £3,400 ($4,245)… and it’s reasonable to presume that a large array will carry an even higher price tag. If you don’t want conventional speakers hogging your living room floor and want something that feels perfectly at home, though, this could be your best bet.

Source: Bang & Olufsen

YouTube pushes harder to tag videos ‘too offensive’ for ads

Weeks ago, an investigation by the Times revealed that plenty of mundane advertisements were unknowingly presented alongside extremist videos on YouTube, sparking outrage and a few companies to withdraw from the ad program. Google quickly vowed to take “a tougher stance” and “remove ads more effectively” from offensive content. But that didn’t stem the exodus quickly enough. Now, the search titan is reportedly allowing external firms to vet whether advertisement quality standards have been met.

Partners like comScore, Inc. and Integral Ad Science, Inc. will be allowed to monitor YouTube advertisements on a new “brand safety” reporting channel, a Google spokesperson told Bloomberg. It’s also expanding its definitions of offensive content: Whereas it previously included material attacking people based on race, religion and gender, it’s added a filter for “dangerous and derogatory content.” These include promoting negative stereotypes about certain groups and Holocaust deniers.

The toxic YouTube content mentioned in media reports only accounted for about one thousandth of one percent of total ads shown, Google Chief Business Officer Philipp Schindler told Bloomberg. Now that one billion hours of video are watched on the platform every day, that microscopic ratio adds up, but it’s also a lot of content. To that end, the search giant added machine learning tools to its efforts, which has helped flag five times as much offensive content to isolate than before.

Source: Bloomberg

Seven corporate rebrand attempts even worse than ‘Oath’

Now that the Verizon-AOL-Yahoo! merger is finally nearing its completion, AOL CEO Tim Armstrong took to social media on Monday to unveil the combined organization’s new name: Oath. No, seriously. They’re calling it Oath. Yeah, like the promise. No, I don’t know why either, but that distant rumbling you hear? That’s the sound of the revamped moniker being ruthlessly dragged through Twitter by innumerable hot takes.

Yet for as unappealing and clunky as it is to call a company “Oath” — ugh, like listening to Donald Duck try to order breakfast — this isn’t quite the worst rebranding failure in the modern history of corporate marketing. Here are seven attempts to reinvent a corporate identity that have done more harm than good.

Ottm Watchbands: Unique artworks with a renewable source. (Review)

Ottm Watchbands started as a little IndieGoGo project with a relatively modest goal of $10,000 to make unique, wooden watchbands for smartwatches. It ended up raising three times that – a success by all metrics. Mark Adams – Ottm’s founder – oversaw production personally, living in China for three (freaking) months to make sure everything was perfect. The result is something pretty damned beautiful. Each band is unique, and comes in three different woods: Canadian Maple, Gabonese Zebrawood, and Indonesian Sandalwood. In addition, Ottm Watchbands also come in two form factors – Apple Watch and Pebble/Wear.

I had the pleasure of giving Ottm’s Gabonese Zebrawood a spin on my Moto 360 (2016), and at first blush, I was very impressed. The entire band is made of premium, precision cut hardwood links, with the exception of the standard, stainless clasp. The striped (get it? Zebrawood?), well-stained wood strikes a dashing figure alongside the dark aluminum of the 360, and the smooth finish it utterly flawless. I’ve always had trouble with watchbands out of the box, finding that most are too short for my fat-kid wrists, but Ottm’s came with plenty of length right out of the box (with two extra links, to boot!).

Fun-Fact: Quick-change springs are the bee’s knees. With no tools required, and less than a minute to completely change bands, it really blows traditional spring-pins out of the water.

A tool is included in the package to add or remove links – and while I was able to adjust the length without too much trouble by hand, I’m wary of having to use any kind of force on the wooden links. Which brings me to my next topic – just how sturdy is the Ottm wood? Will it stand up to the daily wear and tear of an office job? How about a more physically demanding one? Despite the lightweight nature of the band, I got the feeling that it can stand up to some punishment. As I wear it daily, I’ll let you all know if I run into any breakage – so far, I’m impressed.

I have exactly one item on my wishlist: I’d love to see a Build Your Own tool on Ottm’s website, where we can choose our wood, choose our form factor and finally, choose the color of the clasp on the band – as it stands, the band on the Zebrawood band is stainless, while my Moto 360 is black/gunmetal. It still looks great, and it’s a tiny gripe, but hey. Nothing’s perfect.

Ottm’s Watches can be purchased either from the source itself, or from Amazon. It should be noted that buying directly from Ottm also ensures that a tree will be planted for each order placed – I’m not sure if that’s the case with Amazon.

Either way, the bands cost between $29.99 and $49.99, depending on the wood and style chosen.

PlayStation classic ‘Jak and Daxter’ will be re-released on PS4

Sony isn’t slowing down in its quest to bring seemingly every classic PlayStation series to the PS4. The gaming giant has revealed that Naughty Dog’s PS2-era Jak and Daxter games (The Precursor Legacy, Jak II, Jak 3 and Jak X: Combat Racing) will be available on the PS4 as a download later in 2017. Don’t get your hopes up for a Crash Bandicoot-style makeover, though. They’ll be rendered at 1080p and support modern features like Remote Play and trophies, but they won’t receive graphical overhauls or any new features. If you want to duke it out with a friend in Jak X, you’ll have to share a TV.

The relatively modest conversion effort isn’t surprising. Naughty Dog has its hands full with The Last of Us Part II and, to a lesser extent, Uncharted: The Lost Legacy. And while third parties can certainly handle remasters (Vicarious Visions is largely responsible for the Crash re-do), overhauling four games is no mean feat. Look at it this way, though: if you’ve lost your PS2 to the ravages of time, you won’t have to completely forego Jak as well.

Source: PlayStation Blog

Great deal! These are our 3 favorite Amazon tech bargains today

Amazon’s Goldbox deals of the day feature some excellent computing devices and accessories, including a Fire Tablet equipped with Alexa, an Acer 2-in-1 laptop, and an advanced whole house Wi-Fi system. Enjoy savings of up to $200 off and 27 percent discounts. Read on to check out the best Amazon tech deals of the day.

More: Save Up To $80 On These Name-Brand Headphones With Our Deal Roundup

Fire HD 8 Tablet with Alexa

The Fire HD 8 Tablet with Alexa is the more compact and portable version of Amazon Fire HD tablets and is currently marked down 22 percent on Amazon for a limited time. The tablet was engineered for entertainment, complete with a 1.3 GHz quad-core processor and Dolby Audio. This model has 16 GB internal storage plus a microSD slot for up to 200 GB of expandable storage. It also has 12 hours of battery life and two times the storage and 50 percent more RAM than previous versions for an enhanced performance.

The tablet features a widescreen 1280-by-800 HD display with more than 1 million pixels (189 ppi) for a bright, vivid picture. Enjoy crisp, clear HD resolution, with less glare and more brightness thanks to a stunning 8-inch IPS (in-plane-switching) LCD display. The tablet has a 2MP rear-facing camera for taking photos or shooting 720p video and a front-facing VGA camera is ideal for video chatting. The Fire HD is designed to be durable, and in fact is twice as durable than iPad Mini 4. Lastly, with Alexa capabilities built in, you can not only stay entertained and informed, you can also make everyday tasks easier and control your smart home from the device.

The Fire HD 8 Tablet With Alexa normally retails for $90 but is currently discounted to $70 on Amazon, providing a $20 or 22 percent discount.

Buy it now from:

Amazon

Acer Switch Alpha 12 2-in-1, 12-inch QHD Touch Laptop

This Acer Switch Alpha 12 2-in-1, 12-Inch QHD Touch Laptop is a slim, lightweight, and flexible laptop that offers plenty of versatility as it easily transforms from a tablet to a laptop. The built-in fan-less liquid loop cooling system is the world’s first to support the high-performance sixth-gen Intel Core processors in a 2-in-1 device that keeps the system both cool and quiet. Another innovative feature is the Type-C port that transfers data quickly, streams high-resolution video to premium displays without a hitch, and allows you to recharge external devices such as your smartphones.

On the specs end, this 2-in 1 laptop has an Intel Core i7-6500U processor 2.5GHz with Turbo Boost technology up to 3.1GHz, 8GB of LPDDR3 of onboard memory, an integrated Intel HD graphics 520 card, and the Acer TrueHarmony high-performance sound system with two built-in front-facing speakers. The screen is also impressive as it is a 12-inch QHD display with 2160-by-1440 resolution, high-brightness, LED-backlit IPS technology, and an integrated 10-point multi-touch screen. 

The Acer Switch Alpha 12 2-in-1 12-Inch QHD Touch Laptop normally retails for $1,000 but is currently discounted to $800 on Amazon, giving you a savings of $200 or 20 percent.

Buy it now from:

Amazon

Luma Whole Home Wi-Fi System

The Luma Whole Home Wi-Fi System gives you a whole new level of in-home wireless. The system delivers ultra-fast Wi-Fi to every square inch of your house without any dead zones or buffering. Get peace of mind with all-day, every-day built-in security monitoring that automatically scans and neutralizes any virus or malware, keeping your devices safe. The smart device allows for smarter parenting as well. Easily set a user rating (G, PG, or PG-13) for each person on your network, to easily and effectively limit all the inappropriate material children might stumble upon.

Sync the system with the compatible Luma app to get even more control. You can pause the internet, prioritize devices, grant guest access, and remove unwanted devices from your smartphone. The Luma system has built-in Alexa capabilities allowing you to go hands-free and simply speak commands. This offer comes with three individual Luma Wi-Fi devices, enough to cover 2,000 to 3,000 square feet, as they replace your existing router and extenders.

The Luma Whole Home Wi-Fi System normally retails for $400 but is currently marked down to $292 on Amazon, providing a $107 or 27 percent discount.

Buy it now from:

Amazon

AMD’s Ryzen 5 1400 CPU takes on Intel’s Core i5-7400 in new gaming video

Why it matters to you

Here’s your first opportunity to compare AMD’s newest Ryzen 5 CPU against Intel’s Core i5-7400 across a range of gaming titles.

AMD’s new Zen architecture and Ryzen line of CPUs has been a real shot in the company’s arm when it comes to its competitive standing with Intel. The Ryzen 7 series of processors has demonstrated strong performance wherever multiple cores are a benefit and competitive gaming performance given the price.

The Ryzen 5 series hasn’t yet hit the streets, and so there’s not much hard data on how it will perform compared to Intel’s Core i5 CPUs. However, one intrepid reviewer managed to get a Ryzen 5 1400 running in a system and provided a video overview of its performance, as Hexus reports.

More: AMD presses its advantage with affordable Ryzen 5 processors, available April 11

Santiago Santiago was the reviewer, and he compared the Ryzen 5 1400 both stock and overclocked to 3.8GHz to the Intel Core i5-7400 and Intel Pentium G4560. That equates to the Ryzen 5’s four cores and eight threads going up against the Core i5’s four cores and four threads and the Pentium’s two cores and four threads.

Note that the performance comparison was limited somewhat by the pre-release nature of the Ryzen 5 and the lack of updated firmware. The processor gets hot as is, and apparently that limited the ability to overclock. RAM was also running at a relatively slow speed.

Nevertheless, the video does provides a tantalizing glimpse at the Ryzen 5’s performance, and Santiago ran a number of games to compare performance across the AMD and Intel chips. Santiago was kind enough to provide a list of the games and where the coverage begins in the video in his description:

• Battlefield 1 (01:18)
• Fallout 4 (04:04)
• GTA 5 (04:51)
• Hitman (06:49)
• Just Cause (07:39)
• Assassin’s Creed (08:06)
• The Witcher 3 (08:57)
• Rise of the Tomb Raider (10:02)

After providing a brief introduction, Santiago went straight to clips from the games in a split-screen mode showing relative performance. Results were mixed depending on the game, where in some cases the overclocked Ryzen 5 exceeded the Intel Core i5’s performance, in some cases matched it, and in yet some other cases fell short.

On paper, Ryzen 5 should perform as well as or better than the comparably priced Intel Core i5 processors. Ryzen 5 offers double the threads of Intel’s Core i5-7400, and offers a faster maximum clock speed. The Intel equivalent is also slightly more expensive.

According to Santiago’s testing, the Ryzen 5 is competitive against Intel’s CPUs, and there’s still room for improvement as AMD brings the chips to market. If you’re considering AMD’s newest midrange chips instead of Intel’s, then the video should be something of an eye opener in helping you establish your plans. Ryzen 5 is expected to be released sometime in the current quarter.

Swiss hospitals are using drones to shuttle around medical samples

Why it matters to you

Drone deliveries aren’t just about Amazon packages. This pilot scheme is using them to shuttle lab samples between two hospitals in Switzerland.

We’re still a way off from the kind of Amazon Prime Air drone delivery service Jeff Bezos dreams about. But while you won’t be getting your new Game of Thrones boxset dropped from the sky any time soon, there’s a good chance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) delivery could save your life in the very near future. If you get sick and happen to live in Switzerland, that is.

That’s because Swiss Post has joined forces with drone logistics company Matternet to move lab samples between two hospitals in the city of Lugano, in southern Switzerland. The scheme has received the blessing of the Swiss Federal Office for Civil Aviation, and trials have been underway since the middle of last month — with around 70 autonomous flights racked up so far.

More: Swiss Post to test robots to deliver parcels, maybe even chocolate?

The drones are capable of carrying loads of up to 4.4 pounds for a distance of 12 miles at a top speed of 22 miles per hour. No, that’s not faster than a speeding car, but it does come with some major advantages.

“A big advantage is that it helps avoid traffic jams,” Nathalie Dérobert Fellay, a spokesperson for Swiss Post, told Digital Trends. “Instead of having transportation on the road, where you may be stuck in traffic for a long period of time, transportation by drone is significantly faster. It’s also better for the patient because we can run it 24 hours a day.”

At present, the project is still in its trial stages, with this first spate of testing concluding tomorrow. After that, there will be another testing phase in the middle of year, before the drone medical sample delivery service rolls out for good in 2018. Using the system, staff can load samples into the drone and then launch it into the air via a mobile app, after which it flies via a predefined route to its destination.

“This use of drones won’t extend beyond a niche market for the foreseeable future,” Dérobert Fellay said, concerning a larger scale rollout of drone delivery systems. “We think they will complement traditional parcel delivery, but not replace it.”

It certainly seems to work well in use-cases like this, however!

Here’s how to transform plastic bottles into strong, versatile string

Why it matters to you

A method for turning old plastic bottles into strong plastic string should come in handy when the zombie apocalypse arrives.

Do you own a small block of wood and a knife? Looking for something MacGyver-esque to do with all those plastic bottles you’ve got piled up? Constantly find yourself short of string?

If the stars align in such a way that you answered “yes” to all three of the above questions, then you may be interested in a nifty “survival hack” demonstrated by YouTuber Grant Thomson in one of his latest videos. As the owner of the “King of Random” YouTube Channel, Thomson makes videos exploring a wide range of “life hacks, experiments, and random weekend projects.” In this particular video he teaches us how to make near endless supplies of strong plastic string using the most basic of tools.

The “hack” involves cutting a small block of wood and then sticking a knife into it to form a makeshift blade. Into this, Thomson then feeds a bottle, which — provided the blade is positioned correctly — cuts incredibly thin strips of bottle. Pulling the bottle then transforms it into string. Using just a few bottles, he ends up making more than 1,200 feet of string.

More: A DIY laser bazooka is the most terrifyingly awesome thing you’ll see today

That’s not his only similar hack, either. Inspired by his string-making success, Thomson then goes onto fashion the string into plastic ropes, using a previous contraption he had created.

“I’ve seen soda bottle string, but with my rope-making machine [that I] recently created, it made me wonder what would happen if I put the two together,” he told Digital Trends. “Many comments were asking me to combine several ropes as well, and this was the perfect opportunity to try that as well to see what would happen.”

As for practical applications … well, they’re pretty much what you would expect. “The practical applications for soda bottle rope are probably the same as anything you could use rope for I imagine,” he said. “If you got the strands thin enough, it would be even finer.”

Well, that takes care of one part of our zombie apocalypse survival kit. Now we just need someone who can tell us how to fashion discarded cable ties into a bludgeoning tool…

ZTE launches the Prestige 2 for Boost Mobile and Virgin Mobile customers

Why it matters to you

Need a cheap phone on a great carrier? You might want to consider ZTE’s Prestige 2.

Quality phones that don’t break the bank are hard to come by. Sure, you can shell out a couple of Benjamins for the Moto G5 Plus or ZTE Axon 7 mini, but if cheap, affordable smartphones that come in under the price a handful of movie tickets are a rare breed, indeed. Luckily, ZTE has a solution: The $80 Prestige 2.

“The original Prestige was immensely popular among consumers and we are excited about following up that device with the Prestige 2,” Lixin Cheng, chairman and CEO of ZTE USA, said in a statement. “We continue to provide affordable premium options across all pricing levels and this device is perfect for budget-conscious consumers who want value, but do not want to compromise on quality.”

More: ZTE scraps Kickstarter for Hawekeye, its crowdsourced smartphone

The Prestige 2 won’t break any records, but what you get for the money isn’t too shabby. It packs a 5-inch screen with a FWVGA (854 x 480 pixels) resolution, a 1.1GHz quad-core processor, 2GB of RAM, and 16GB of internal storage expandable up to 32GB with a MicroSD card. There is a twin pair of 5-megapixel shooters that handle photo-taking duties (one on the front and one on the back), and a 2,035mAh removable battery that supplies a day’s worth of power.

Unfortunately, you won’t find the Prestige 2 everywhere — it’s only available on Boost Mobile and Virgin Mobile. But don’t let that deter you — both carriers paired ZTE’s new handset with competitive plans.

Virgin Mobile’s offering two options: Data Love and Data Love Plus. Data Love starts at $35 a month for unlimited talk, text, and 5GB of 4G LTE data. The $45-a-month Data Love Plus, meanwhile, bumps data up to 10GB. Both plans include music streaming that doesn’t count against your plan, and both can be stretched further with optional data packs (1GB and 2GB for $5 and $10, respectively).

More: Faster than a bullet? ZTE is going full speed ahead with the Gigabit phone

On Boost, you get the choice of two plans: Unlimited Gigs and a 2GB data. The Unlimited Gigs option starts at $50 a month ($30 for each subsequent line) for unlimited talk, text, and data. The 2GB plan is $30 a month (with autopay enabled) for unlimited talk and text, and includes the option add an extra 1GB or 2GB of data for $5 or $10 a month, respectively.

Regardless of which Boost plan you choose, Boost Mobile subscribers with the ZTE Prestige 2 can roam in Mexico. Todo Mexico Plus is available with a monthly plan for $5 additional per month, and includes unlimited calls to Mexico and Canada and international texting. While traveling in Mexico, you get up to 8GB of data, unlimited calls to the U.S. and in Mexico, and unlimited international text.

The Prestige is available online and in select Best Buy stores starting today for $80.