Parrot makes first play for commercial drone market

The French dronemaker Parrot is following up on its plans to shift away from consumer drones with a new Pro line rebranding a couple of its existing UAVs for commercial use. The company has refreshed its fixed-wing Disco model for aerial surveillance of farms and agricultural setups, while it’s repurposed its quadcopter Bebop drone to capture building footage for later 3D modeling.

The Parrot Professional line, as the company calls it, is the culmination of its moves toward courting the commercial sector. The drone maker had long been known for its popular consumer-facing AR.Drone that debuted in 2010, but in lieu of losing its market dominance to DJI, had started introducing prosumer features like FPV video goggles and “follow me” modes. Then it laid off a third of its drone production workforce in January.

The Pro line of drones offer entry-level “end to end” solutions for consumer needs — prefab setups of its drones specced to address a work case. The Disco-Pro AG has multispectral sensors and mapping software to survey land. The Bebop gets two preset Pro models: the Thermal examines heat and radiometry for roofers, plumbers and firefighters, while the 3D Modeling focuses on capturing external geometry.

Source: Parrot

MIT’s mechanical actuators bend and ‘breathe’ as they heat up

Researchers from MIT and other institutions have developed a new type of actuator — a mechanical component relying on movement — that works in extremely hot environments. Their newly-developed material could be used in, say, maintenance robots working in nuclear reactors. To achieve this temperature pliability, the scientists’ new system uses oxide systems like those used in rechargeable batteries: As ions move in and out, they expand and contract. Similarly, the researchers’ material bends with the flow of oxygen in and out.

Their findings, which will appear in this week’s issue of Nature Materials, reveal that their material can endure temperatures up to 500 degrees Celsius. This would be enough for mechanical actuators to endure the brutally high heat within jet or spacecraft engines, which is currently too extreme for components that rely on electrical stimulation to expand and contract.

Via: MIT News

Source: “Dynamic chemical expansion of thin-film non-stoichiometric oxides at extreme temperatures”

Amazon to Unveil New Echo Speaker With Touchscreen as Soon as Tomorrow

Amazon is planning to update its Amazon Echo line with a new speaker that includes a screen and video calling capabilities, reports The Wall Street Journal.

The upcoming speaker will feature a 7-inch touchscreen, used to make internet-based video/telephone calls and display visual results for spoken queries. Camera functionality could also be included, mirroring the capabilities of the recently introduced Echo Look.

Amazon’s existing Echo speaker

The new Echo screen device will likely support some of the same functionality as the Echo Look, which will enable consumers to take videos and photos of their outfits and compare them via algorithms, according to one of the people. It is unclear why Amazon is launching the two devices so close together or how the market segments they target may differ.

Amazon may be planning to unveil the speaker, which has been in beta testing for a few months, as early as tomorrow, Tuesday, May 9.

Amazon’s existing Echo device is currently priced at $150, but it normally sells for $180. The new speaker is expected to be sold for over $200, due to the included display.

Along with the new speaker, Amazon is also said to be planning to roll out telephone services to existing Echo devices over the next few weeks. To begin with, intercom functionality may be available, allowing two Echo devices to communicate with one another.

The imminent launch of an Amazon Echo device with a display comes as Apple is rumored to be nearing the final stages of development on its own Siri-based speaker, which would compete with the Echo and the Google Home.

Rumors have not suggested Apple’s upcoming device will include a display, but Apple marketing chief Phil Schiller recently made some comments suggesting voice-activated smart speakers would be better with screens.

According to Schiller, a voice assistant without a screen doesn’t “suit many situations,” especially when it comes to social networking services, photos, and games.

I have yet to see any voice-only games that, for me, are nearly as fun as the one that I play on my screen. And so I think voice assistants are incredibly powerful, their intelligence is going to grow, they’re gonna do more for us, but the role of the screen is gonna remain very important to all of this.

Amazon’s new Echo product will be the first of the in-home smart speakers that includes a display. Apple’s own device, which is said to include Siri integration and “excellent acoustics performance,” reportedly has an “over 50 percent chance” of debuting at the Worldwide Developers Conference in June.

Related Roundup: Siri Smart Speaker
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Gear Up: Bezalel has your back with charging accessories

In today’s world of tech, you can’t turn a virtual corner on the internet without running into some new gadget, charger, cable, or something related to our ever expanding mobile lives. Amidst the struggle of accessory companies trying to make a name for themselves, Bezalel is working hard to carve out their little piece.

To be perfectly honest, I had never heard of Bezalel until I was offered the opportunity to review some of its items. We were lucky enough to receive three of the items that Bezalel offers and, as usual, have taken the time to try them out so you don’t have to. I have to say, the company’s clever use of magnets in its products may be what sets it apart from other device accessories.

Finally, Bezalel has been gracious enough to offer our readers a 20% discount on all of these items using the codes next to the prices.

Ok, no more messing around. Let’s get to it.

PrevNext

1. Prelude Portable Wireless Charger

Yes, you read that correctly. That says portable and wireless. This new toy is packing a 7000 mAh battery and an internal Qi wireless charger for any enabled devices. This device is pretty simplistic as are most portable chargers. The front sports a USB port, a power button and some LED’s to represent how much battery is remaining. The only other function piece on the Prelude is the USB type-C pot on the left side of the device which is used to charge it up.

Stylistically, There isn’t much going on here. Not to say that the Prelude is an ugly device, it’s just very simple. Gloss black, rounded corners and a white label on the top. There is, however, one thing about the body of this device that could easily go unnoticed, there are magnets in the top of the body that are designed to align your device for optimal charging.

Functionally it is very straightforward. To start charging, simply place your Qi device on top of the charger and press the power button. Alternatively, you can plug a device into the USB port on the front and charge away. Just for kicks, I tried charging two devices at a time and yes, it works.

My only complaint with the Prelude is that it does not seem to work through the UAG case on my Galaxy S7. Granted, the UAG cases are relatively thick but, it is a little frustrating to have to have to remove the case but, I get it, power management and all.

You can purchase a Prelude portable wireless charger for $79.99 (use code BZAG20 for 20% off)

2. Futura X Wireless Charger

Item number two is a wireless charger. Out of the box, we see a classy wireless charging pad that may not strike you as anything special. Again we see a black plastic top with white labeling. The underside is clad in matte textured metal with rubberized feet to help from sliding around on slick surfaces.

What again sets this product apart from a good amount of other wireless charging pads are the magnets that are placed inside. Yes, again we see Bezalel using magnets to align your device for optimal charging.

During my experience with the Futura X, I did run into one instance of my phone not charging completely overnight. It seems that the magnets were not working because of the UAG case I have on my phone.

You can pick up the Futura X wireless charger for $49.99 (use code BZAG20 for 20% off)

3. Futura X Stand

Stand Sitting Solo

Stand with Futura X charger

The last item we’re reviewing is the stand. Upon first inspection, it is very nice looking. Picking it up you can tell that there is some weight to this. No worries about tipping over when your phone hits it, even if you use some huge phablet like the Huawei Mate 9. The rubberized bottom keeps it from sliding around and the metal back with matte finish completes the classy look of this stand.

I have to tell you, it was not blatantly apparent how useful this device was when I initially opened it. In fact, it wasn’t until I was going to write this piece that I took a look at the website and figured out that this is really an accessory for the Futura X wireless charger. So, the question you need to ask yourself would be, is it worth an extra $20 to charge your phone in an upright position as opposed to laying down?

The stand again uses magnets to attach itself to the Futura X. The stand comes with an adapter and a magnetic clip which makes hiding cables a lot easier, for those of us that have CDO (that is OCD arranged alphabetically). While this is a cool concept, you can pick up an upright wireless charger for less than the price of this stand. However, they may not be as stylish or use magnets for good alignment.

Pick up a Futura X Stand at the Bezalel website for $20 (use code BZAG20 for 20% off)

Best Buy Discounts Apple Watch Series 2 by $70, Drops iPad Pro Price by $100

In celebration of Mother’s Day, which takes place on Sunday, May 14, Best Buy is having a major sale and dropping the price on the iPhone 7, Apple Watch Series 2, 9.7-inch iPad Pro, MacBook Pro, and more.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Best Buy and may earn commissions on purchases made through these links.

All of Best Buy’s Apple Watch Series 2 models are available at a $70 discount, dropping the price on the entry-level 38mm models to $299 and 42mm models to $329.

All 9.7-inch iPad Pro models are also available at a discount, with Best Buy dropping the price by $100. For the entry-level 32GB 9.7-inch iPad Pro, that lowers the price to $499.99.

When purchasing and activating an iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus on a monthly installment plan through Sprint, AT&T, and Verizon, customers can save up to $300.

Apple’s latest MacBook Pro models (the 13-inch version without a Touch Bar) are available from Best Buy for $100 off, dropping the price from $1,499 to $1,399. Both Silver and Space Gray models are discounted.

Best Buy is also discounting the MacBook Air by $200, dropping the price on the entry-level 13-inch model with 8GB RAM and 128GB storage from $999.99 to $799.99.

Best Buy’s discounted prices will be available through the end of the week, with the deals set to end on May 13.
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Nvidia shows off VRWorks development kits for immersive audio, 360-degree video

Why it matters to you

These two new SDKs from Nvidia will help content creators produce aurally immersive virtual reality experiences and live-stream 360-degree video in 4K.

Nvidia has detailed two new additions to its VRWorks software development kit (SDK) at the GPU Technology Conference 2017 in San Jose, California. The company has released its VRWorks Audio SDK, as well as its VRWorks 360 Video SDK, both of which should help developers create more immersive virtual reality content.

There are already methods of creating VR experiences that accurately simulate the position of audio sources in relation to the user. However, these methods don’t tend to take into account the physical properties of the environment, which can cause various different kinds of aural distortion.

The VRWorks Audio SDK models things like reflection, refraction, and diffraction, according to a blog post published by Nvidia earlier today. The SDK tracks the path of audio in real time, without utilizing a pre-baked version of the scene, instead building an acoustic model of the scene and updating it on the fly.

Meanwhile, the VRWorks 360 Video SDK helps facilitate 360-degree video capture at a 4K resolution, along with stitching and streaming, all in real time. This should make high-quality 360-degree video a very attainable project for scores of VR developers, assuming that they have a compatible camera to capture the footage.

Live-streaming this kind of video could be a game changer, if Nvidia’s real-time stitching technology works as advertised. At the GTC event, the company is previewing an upcoming version of its VRWorks 360 Video SDK that’s capable of real-time stitching in stereo. According to Nvidia’s marketing materials, two Quadro P6000 GPUs can be used to stitch a total of eight 4K cameras in stereo, with ZCAM’s V1 Pro VR camera being used to demonstrate these capabilities.

Nvidia will be showing off both features at GTC, until the event concludes on May 11. Developers can start getting to grips with the new VRWorks functionality right now by downloading the SDKs from the company’s website.

Citymapper is launching a real-world public transportation service

Why it matters to you

Citymapper has plenty of information on public transportation systems around the world, and now, it wants to improve them by launching a bus and bus route of its own.

Why just help people find their way around town when you can get them around town, too? That appears to be the question Citymapper is answering now that the app, which helps users navigate various cities’ public transportation systems, is launching a bus line of its own in London. That’s right — this app is going live IRL.

On May 9, Citymapper is debuting what it calls the Citymapper Smart Bus, which will run on an “experimental popup route” named CMX1. Passengers will be able to take the bus from Southwark, which is near the app’s headquarters, to Blackfriars, then head west to Waterloo, before heading back along the south bank. And although Citymapper isn’t building its own bus stops for the route, it is taking you on its own bus — one that probably looks a bit different from what British commuters are accustomed to.

The Smartbus will be rather small, seating just 30 people, and will feature USB charging ports, large displays to tell passengers when to get off, and a tablet interface to help the driver stay abreast of real-time traffic news, passenger numbers, and the distance between vehicles.

As Citymapper noted in a blog post introducing its new bus, “This bus is wired. It’s got tracking software for real-time integration with the app, passenger counting, and a driver app.” The company claims to have “built software for everything, including real-time operational control to driver management to scheduling systems,” and added, “We’re reinventing how to think about all of these in the real-time world. We’ve taken systems that haven’t traditionally talked to each other and integrated them.”

So why is Citymapper embarking on this wild(ly creative) journey? Given that the chief purpose of the app is to help users get around town, Citymapper has quite a bit of insight as to what the obstacles are when it comes to getting from point A to point B. And the company thinks it can improve on that process. In short, Citymapper said, “We found we can figure out how to improve existing routes in all of our cities. We can also identify new and better routes.”

The pilot program in London appears to just be the start to the app’s hopes of improving transportation everywhere. So who knows? You may soon see a Smartbus in a city near you.

Wi-Fi radiation can be used to see through walls like they’re made of glass

Why it matters to you

Using Wi-Fi radiation to create holographic maps could be used for everything from finding lost objects in buildings to search-and-rescue missions.

Do you remember that scene at the end of 2008’s The Dark Knight, where Batman finds The Joker by tapping into Gotham’s cellphone network to create a three-dimensional map of the city?

Jump forward a decade, and researchers at Germany’s Technical University of Munich have come up with a similar method of creating a holographic map of the inside of buildings using the microwave radiation of Wi-Fi signals as they bounce off people and objects.

“Our work uses the stray radiation from devices like routers or phones to generate a three-dimensional picture of the surroundings,” Philipp Holl, an undergraduate student who worked on the project, told Digital Trends. “Basically, each device acts as a light bulb of different color and lights up its environment. Due to the longer wavelength of microwave radiation compared to the visible spectrum, the Wi-Fi signals can pass through many materials, making walls appear transparent, almost like glass.”

While there have been previous projects that used stray Wi-Fi radiation for motion detection, or even coarse 2D imaging, Holl said that the team at the Technical University of Munich are the first to use it to obtain a full three-dimensional picture.

“This technique could be used for centimeter-precise indoor tracking of tagged objects or tools in a smart factory,” he continued. “It could also be used to create 3D scans of buildings or structures. Imagine, for example, a drone or a truck carrying an array of antennas to quickly map out a large area. Such scans could be used to improve tracking precision with simpler setups or to find optimal locations for placing transmitting devices like routers to maximize signal coverage.”

A similar setup may also be utilized as a search and rescue tool for finding people buried by avalanches or earthquakes. All that would be needed to find them would be for a trapped person to have their phone switched on.

At present, the team has performed scans of easy-to-see structures, such as the aluminum cross pictured above, as a way of testing this technology. Now, they want to further put it through its paces by creating holographic images of real buildings to find out which materials are easy to see through, and which might cause problems.

In other words, keep watching this space. And we mean that both literally and figuratively.

WeChat is the latest app banned in Russia for refusing to hand over data

Why it matters to you

The Russian government’s continued crackdown on social media services is denying its citizens a voice on global platforms.

WeChat, a popular mobile messaging and money transfer service in China, has become the latest social app blocked in Russia, according to the Hong Kong Free Press. Roskomnadzor, the Russian government’s media supervision body, reportedly shut down the app for allowing the transmission of citizens’ personal information without the state’s consent. It is Russian law that such data must be kept within the country’s borders for a limited time and provided to law enforcement if necessary.

WeChat reportedly boasts nearly 900 million users in China, the home of the app’s developer, Tencent. A representative from Tencent apologized for the outage on the company’s website and added the following statement:

“Russian regulations say online service providers have to register with the government, but WeChat doesn’t have the same understanding [of the rules].”

According to a government official, Tencent “did not provide its contact information for the register of information distribution organizations,” leading to the ban. Roskomnadzor reportedly requested that Apple and Google take WeChat down and while awaiting a response, compelled national telecommunications providers to block the app themselves.

WeChat’s trouble in the region follows bans of BlackBerry Messenger and Line last week, similar messaging apps that were cited by Roskomnadzor for the same offenses. But the highest-profile victim of the government’s data regulations would have to be professional social network LinkedIn, which was shut down in the country in November. A year earlier, the executive body threatened to ban Facebook and Twitter for failing to hand over information on Russian users.

According to LinkedIn, the company’s attempts to discuss the issue with Roskomnadzor at the time were repeatedly denied. The federal body reportedly argued that LinkedIn’s lack of physical or managerial presence in Russia contributed to the lack of communication between the sides.

Roskomnadzor was established in its current incarnation in 2008. The law that has resulted in internet-based apps and services being blocked was passed in 2014.

Following the LinkedIn debacle, Maria Olson, a spokesperson for the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, tweeted the U.S. was “concerned” by Russia’s decision, saying it established a “troubling precedent to shut down any site with Russia user data.” Over six months later, that precedent appears to have been firmly established.

Waze will now let you record your own voice to give yourself directions

Why it matters to you

Don’t stand for the robotic voices of navigation apps. Record yourself giving those instructions instead with Waze.

Who better to take directions from than … well, you? If you have difficulty trusting a robotic voice when it comes to navigating your way about town, Waze has good news for you. Thanks to a new update to the Google-owned navigation app, you can now replace that droning computerized voice with that of your own melodious cadences. So go ahead — record yourself giving yourself instructions. You might enjoy it.

Of course, Waze is no stranger to bringing varied voices to its app. T-Pain and Mr. T have both lent their voices to the cause, as Waze continues to make its navigation services more of a social, trendy experience. But as much fun as it may be to have T-Pain’s autotuned voice tell you to make a left at the next stoplight, there may be something satisfying about hearing your own voice in such an authoritative manner. After all, aren’t we all looking for some omnipotence somewhere in our lives?

To take advantage of the new feature, head over to your Waze app and find the settings panel. Then, navigate to “Sound and Voice,” and start recording basic navigation phrases. Because you’re in charge of the recording, you can have just about anyone serve as your voice of choice. That said, if you want your significant other telling you what to do, or your kids, or your friendly neighbor, those are all viable options, too. Keep in mind though that when you create a custom voice, you won’t be able to get full street name prompts as you would with a built-in voice, but that’s a small price to pay.

So if you’re looking to add some fun to your morning commute or your upcoming road trip, this may just be the Waze update you’ve been waiting for.