For the first time ever, most U.S. households use only wireless phones

Why it matters to you

Still using a landline? It appears you’re in the minority, as the move toward using wireless phones exclusively continues to accelerate.

While the phone has changed drastically over the past few decades, many people have insisted on holding on to their landlines. Now, however, it finally seems as though the humble landline is on its way to the grave.

According to a new report, most U.S. homes have done away with their landline service, and now only use cell phones to stay connected. The report was released by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and notes that a hefty 50.8 percent of U.S. households now only use cell phones.

Another 39.4 percent of households have both landlines and wireless phones, while just 6.5 percent of households only use landlines. Another 3.2 percent do not have a phone at all.

The report follows a survey of around 20,000 households, and it shows how much difference a decade can make. In 2007, only around 15 percent of U.S. households had a wireless phone.

The results were also broken down based on age. More than 70 percent of people between the ages of 25 and 34 use only a wireless phone, and households with children are more likely to do away with the landline than households with adults only. Another breakdown focused on whether or not the household was renting or owned the house — 71.5 percent of adults living in rented homes used only wireless phones, while 40.9 percent of adults in houses they owned used only wireless phones.

Income also made a significant difference. Adults who lived in poverty or near poverty were much more likely to use only wireless phones than adults who had a higher income.

It will certainly be interesting to see how these figures change over another decade. Will the landline be totally dead in 2027?

Check out the statistics for yourself here.

Lenovo Moto Tablet 2017 | News and rumors

Why it matters to you

Motorola pioneered the first Android tablet. Now, it might be on the verge of doing the same.

Motorola, the Lenovo-owned subsidiary responsible for some of the best — and most modular — budget smartphones around, might be turning its attention to tablets. Reports suggest the company is working on a large, premium device that packs innovative productivity software unlike any other.

There is not much to go on, yet, but here is what we know about Motorola’s 2017 tablet so far.

Software

The most innovative piece about Motorola’s upcoming table is the software, reportedly.

According to Android Police, it will ship with “productivity mode,”  a feature that lets you pin apps to the navigation bar and quickly switch between them without having to return to the home screen or Android’s multitasking menu. It appears to have a dedicated app drawer button on the navigation bar, like Google’s Chrome OS, and the ability to run two apps side by side. You can reportedly close apps by long-pressing on an icon and dragging it up, which Android Police speculates means that apps run in the background until explicitly closed.

There is a slim chance Motorola’s 2017 tablet runs Andromeda, the rumored Google operating system meant to bridge the gap between Android and Chrome OS. In September 2016, 9to5Google reported that two “major OEMs” were in the process of creating Andromeda devices and that the devices could launch as soon as the first half of 2017. Motorola could be one of them.

But as 9to5Google points out, the interface bears a resemblance to Lenovo’s current tablet software. The Yoga Book, for example, has identical navigation buttons.

Motorola has a history — albeit a brief one — of collaborating with Google on cutting-edge software. The firm’s Xoom tablet was the first to run Android 3.0 Honeycomb, the first version of Google’s Android operating system optimized for tablets.

Specs and screen

We do not know much about the tablet’s hardware, yet, but an Android Police source gave a little to go on.

It will reportedly measure between nine to 10 inches diagonally, and have a “premium look and feel.” At least one version will offer cellular connectivity. But the rest of the hardware remains shrouded in mystery — we do not know the screen’s resolution, the processor, or the storage configurations.

Name, price, and availability

The name, price, and release date of Motorola’s 2017 tablet are just as much a mystery as the rest of it. If it is running Google’s futuristic Andromeda, it might launch at the search giant’s I/O developer conference in May. On the other hand, if it ships with vanilla Android, it might be announced later in the year.

Whenever Motorola’s 2017 tablet launches, it will almost certainly be cheaper than the Xoom. It started at $600 — about the price of a 32GB iPad.

Make a cutesy video for your mom on Mother’s Day with Google Photos tool

Why it matters to you

Have you bought your mom a gift for Mother’s Day yet? Google Photos can help you create a cute video to show your mom.

Mother’s Day is right around the corner and if you have yet to think of a gift for your mom, Google wants to help. The company has launched a new feature in Google Photos that allows you to turn your photos with your mom into a cutesy little movie that you can show her.

Of course, that probably shouldn’t be your only gift.

The feature itself is pretty easy to use. Google Photos will give you a list of faces it recognizes, and you can choose one of your mother. You can then pick her children, including yourself and any siblings you have. You could also abuse the feature — it appears as though you could choose anyone to be your mother if you so choose.

“It automatically chooses the best photos of the mother and children, and sets it all to music to make a personalized movie,” Google Photos product manager Tim Novikoff wrote in a blog post. “People can make these movies for anyone they want, not just their own mom. I made one for Oana, to celebrate her being such a great mother to our daughter.”

Once you have chosen the different people to appear in the movie, the movie itself will pop up in the Google Photos Assistant tab. You will not be able to edit the images picked for the movie so, hopefully, it will turn out well.

The feature is especially helpful for those who use Google Photos actively — as there will be a bigger and hopefully better selection of images for Google Photos to choose from. You could, of course, upload your own images to the website solely to create this movie, too.

To make a Mother’s Day video for yourself, simply head to photos.google.com/mothersday and hit the “Get Started” button.

Now just $25 on Amazon, the Satechi wireless charging pad is sleek and fast

Modern wireless technology has opened up the door for all sorts of mobile device innovations, even for such mundane activities as charging your phone. First introduced in 2008, the Qi interface rewrote the book on chargers by allowing mobile devices to be powered up wirelessly via inductive charging.

There are now a myriad of affordable wireless charging docks available on the market for Qi-enabled phones, and one of our favorites is the Satechi wireless charging pad, which we featured near the top of our list of best wireless chargers. This sleek circular pad is just under four inches wide and less than one-third-of-an-inch thick, and its aluminum housing and metallic finish make it an attractive alternative to other chargers with uninspiring designs.

Satechi’s charging pad provides a 2A power output for quickly charging Qi-enabled Android and Windows devices, including Samsung, Nexus, LG, and HTC phones. Models with a fast-charge feature such as the Galaxy S7 will enjoy even snappier recharges, with a 40 percent boost over standard speeds. The dock can charge phones through their cases, and non-Qi devices can work with the pad via compatible charging cases or Qi receiver adapters.

A small blue LED light indicates when the charger is in use and a green light lets you know when charging is complete — just in case your phone’s display is turned off. A rubber cross on the charging pad keeps your device from sliding around on its smooth surface, while rubber feet on the bottom of the unit keep it secure on your desk or table.

Normally priced at $30, the Satechi wireless charging pad can now be yours for just $25 from Amazon after a 17 percent discount. The dock is currently available in four attractive color configurations: A gray aluminum housing with a black charging pad surface, silver-colored aluminum with a white surface, gold-colored aluminum with black, and rose gold-colored aluminum with white.

$25 on Amazon

Corsair Glaive RGB gaming mouse targets PC gamers with tight wallets

Why it matters to you

Here is a new mouse from Corsair for PC gamers who want a lot of features without breaking the bank.

After launching its “tenkeyless” K63 compact mechanical keyboard for PC gamers just weeks ago, Corsair introduced the Glaive RGB gaming mouse on Thursday, May 4 packing a 16,000 DPI optical sensor, interchangeable thumb grips, and Omron switches promising up to 50 million clicks. The peripheral also includes a dynamic, three-zone multi-color illumination system that’s customizable through the company’s Corsair Utility Engine software.

Here are the specs:

Sensor:
PixArt PMW3367 Optical
DPI:
100 to 16,000
Customizable DPI settings:
5
Lowest DPI settings step:
1
Left/right switches:
Omron
Switch life:
Up to 50 million clicks
Report rate:
125Hz/250Hz/500Hz/1,000Hz
Color zones:
Logo, side bar, and front
# of programmable buttons:
6
On-board profile storage:
Yes
Cable:
6-foot Braided Fiber
Dimensions:
4.95 x 3.60 x 1.75 inches
Weight:
0.26 pounds
Price:
$70

The six-button loadout consists of the standard left and right buttons, a clickable mouse wheel, and the DPI switch button highlighted by five rectangular LEDs residing to its left. There are two additional buttons mounted on the left side residing just above a textured thumb grip area. The device appears to ship with two additional thumb grips to meet every PC gamer’s playing style.

“When it comes to gaming mice, there is no one-size-fits-all,” the company said. “Glaive RGB combines a sweeping contoured shape with three interchangeable magnetic grips, allowing it to adapt in seconds for a customized fit. Choose between smooth curves, a rubberized grip or a wide thumb rest to find your peak comfort, with each grip sculpted to put Glaive RGB’s six programmable buttons within easy reach.”

Corsair actually teamed up with PixArt to create the PMW3367 optical sensor, so good luck finding the sensor’s actual specs on PixArt’s website. Corsair also uses the PMW3367 sensor in its Scimitar Pro RGB gaming mouse released in early January, a MMO-dedicated peripheral for $80 packing 12 buttons just in the thumb area alone. Like the Scimitar Pro RGB, Corsair’s new Glaive RGB offering is made available in two color options.

The new Glaive RGB mouse is powered by Corsair’s Cue software for creating profiles, customizing the lighting, and assigning macros to the buttons. Users can thus create a custom profile that will load when launching a specific game, and the mouse will revert back to the default profile once players close their game. As previously stated, all profiles are stored on the mouse itself.

The software also provides a surface calibration tuning utility enabling users to fine-tune the mouse tracking to their favorite surface. Four PTFE Teflon feet give the mouse enough height and traction for smooth movement across most playing surfaces.

Corsair’s new Glaive RGB gaming mouse is available now for $70, and seemingly goes after Razer’s equivalently priced Mamba Tournament Edition and DeathAdder Elite gaming mice. Both Aluminum (CH-9302111-NA) and Black (CH-9302011-NA) editions of the Glaive RGB cost the same through Corsair and its participating retailers.

After a long stint of iOS exclusivity, Socratic app is now available on Android

Why it matters to you

If mom and dad can’t help you with your homework, then maybe artificially intelligent Socratic app can.

The days when students have to flip through textbooks to find solutions to homework problems may soon be coming to an end. Rather, they’ll be taking pictures with their smartphones to feed problems into an artificially intelligent app if Socratic has its way.

Socratic is an education-focused startup, and what it offers is quite similar to Quora — a space where students can ask questions and receive answers from their peers or just about anyone. Of course, these questions are particular to specific subjects such as Science, Math, Social Sciences, and the Humanities. The company has had an app called Homework Genius in stealth mode for about a year, and it’s finally ready for the student masses.

Now renamed after the company, Socratic is an app that claims to help you with your homework thanks to the help of artificial intelligence. Simply snap a picture of your word problem, give the app a few seconds to analyze it, and you’ll then be reading all about the proper way to solve it.

The app doesn’t exactly offer answers, instead, you get an explainer that dives into the concept, problem, and teaches students how to solve it. The beta app involved teachers, students, and more than 150,000 users — and Socratic used it to collect “millions of photos of real homework questions” to make the AI engine more powerful.

The app is well-designed and slick, and results are presented in the form of vertical cards. The first is the explainer, and the rest will be anything else the AI can scrounge up about the problem — videos, definitions, and web results. Much of the “explainer” content has been developed by the Socratic community, and as the app has grown up and grown its user base, so too have the number of subjects it can help you with.

In early May, Socratic announced a number of changes that promise to make the app available to more than 1.5 billion people across the world — an Android app, the availability of six new languages, and a new experience for iPad.

Now, you can ask Socratic questions about math and science in English, Spanish, Indonesian, French, Portuguese, and German. “Over time, we’ll continue adding languages until we can help every student in the language they understand best,” the team promised. Moreover, Socratic has released a new version of the app for the iPad. After all, learning on a larger screen always seems to be preferable over a smaller screen, right? And of course, with Android availability, Socratic considerably expands its user base, as much of the world doesn’t operate on the iOS platform.

“We started Socratic because we believe that students everywhere deserve the best help when they’re learning,” the Socratic team wrote. “With an Android app and support for six of the world’s major languages, we’re a little bit closer to our goal.”

Download for iOS

Download for Android

Article originally published in July 2016. Updated on 05-04-2017 by Lulu Chang: Added news that Socratic is now available for Android. 

Cutting-edge 3D scanner will digitize you more realistically than ever before

Why it matters to you

A 3D scanner which can take 36 high-res images per second could lead to possible breakthroughs in medical rehab or security tech — or even just more fun gaming.

Chalk it up to a misspent youth watching movies like Tron and The Lawnmower Man if you want, but the concept of scanning real people into the digital world still seems excitingly futuristic.

Over the years, 3D scanners have gotten much better at creating the kinds of three-dimensional models of real-world objects needed to make this technology mainstream. However, this has usually been used for smaller inanimate objects and at disappointingly low resolutions. Germany-based Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering hopes to change that with a new device that promises to render people and objects in higher resolution, taking multiple three-dimensional images per second.

“We developed a high-resolution 3D scanner with a resolution of 1,000 by 1,000 pixels at 36 3D images per second,” Dr. Kevin Füchsel, Head of Department Strategy and Marketing for Fraunhofer Institute, told Digital Trends. “To avoid light irritations for humans, we developed an NIR [near-infrared spectroscopy] system, consisting of two near-infrared cameras, one camera for color information, and a specially developed NIR projector. One of the main challenges was to create images continuously without a break. Now we’re able to create the impression of a moving 3D color image in high-resolution to the viewer.”

Fraunhofer’s scanner doesn’t use lasers like a lot of 3D scanners but instead employs an invisible near-infrared pattern that is projected onto the object or person for scanning. This mesh of different points of measurement is then sent back to the cameras so that the information can be used to quickly construct a 3D digital image — a process that takes mere milliseconds.

That tech is similar to the way Microsoft’s Kinect device works but promises to be a lot more precise than the kind of infrared 3D scanners used in video games — with a moving resolution of 1 million pixels and some extra smart real-time data processing.

Video games sound like one possible application for the technology, but Füchsel said that the possible use-cases go way further.

“At the moment, we are focusing on three application scenarios,” he said. “In the field of medical rehabilitation try to develop a system which could indicate whether the patients perform exercises correctly or incorrectly. The second scenario will be in the field of human-machine interaction. Robots or highly autonomous systems would be able to detect gestures and facial expression and could respond to humans in a more natural way. Due to the irritation-free systems, our system also matches perfectly in the field of security technologies, especially biometric body characteristics.”

No price has been announced yet, but a demo unit is set to be shown off at the Stuttgart Control Trade Fair next week.

“Next steps will be the further miniaturization of the whole system,” Füchsel explained. “We are also looking forward to our real-life tests within this year, especially with our partners in the field of medical rehabilitation.”

Moto tablet could be on the way with new ‘Productivity Mode’

Might as well try something new.

Motorola hasn’t been in the tablet game since the ill-fated Motorola Xyboard, but leaked information provided to Android Police indicates a comeback may be in the works. According to their sources, Moto is working on a 9- to 10-inch tablet with a premium look and feel — unfortunately, no other details are available just yet.

The only extra information we have comes courtesy of this single photo of a new “Productivity Mode” in the settings, which closely mimics a similar feature found on Lenovo’s Android tablets — which gives weight to this being a Moto device. Basically it lets you pin often-used productivity apps to the otherwise-unused navigation bar space to be quickly reopened and managed in multi-window mode.

As so many other companies have completely dropped out of making tablets, Lenovo has stuck around in the market primarily with lower-end devices focused on media consumption and just a few models with a “productivity” focus. With Moto now under Lenovo leadership, it’s far less surprising that it would be working on a large tablet device.

Are you excited for the potential of a new Moto tablet? We’re basically willing to consider anything that may make the Android tablet space interesting again.

How to use the blue light filter on the Galaxy S8

In lieu of turning off our screens altogether, we’re focusing on limiting blue light.

There’s a big trend in consumer electronics relating to reducing the amount of blue light we’re exposed to at night, and Samsung does its part on the Galaxy S8 and S8+ with its “blue light filter.” The feature tints the screen to a reddish glow in an attempt to help you transition to sleeping at night, and it offers a few settings so you can make the effect as strong or weak as you like.

How to turn on and configure the blue light filter

Open the Settings on your phone.
Scroll down and tap on Display.
Tap on Blue light filter.

• You’ll see there are two main choices here: when to turn on the light filter, and what the opacity is.

Tap on Turn on now to see what the blue light filter looks like.
Using the Opacity slider at the top, adjust how strong the filter should be when it turns on. You can then turn off the blue light filter to adjust the other settings.
Choose whether you want to have the filter turned on from sunset to sunrise, or on a specific hourly schedule.

• Most people will prefer the ease of letting the filter turn on at your local sunset time and turn off at local sunrise.
• If you select Custom schedule, set the starting and ending hours manually.

The Blue light filter will now turn on automatically each day.

With a little bit of tweaking, the Galaxy S8’s blue light filter is a nice little tool that will help with your eye strain late at night and early in the morning. Best of all, once it’s set up it’ll just adjust automatically and you don’t have to do any other configuration.

Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8+

• Galaxy S8 and S8+ review!
• Galaxy S8 and S8+ specs
• Everything you need to know about the Galaxy S8’s cameras
• Get to know Samsung Bixby
• Join our Galaxy S8 forums

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Huawei Watch 2 arrives in the UK via Amazon

Online retail giant gets first dibs on Huawei’s latest wearable, two weeks ahead of other outlets.

More than two months after it first debuted at Mobile World Congress, the Huawei Watch 2 is now available to buy in the UK. Huawei’s latest wearable is sports-focused, with a wealth of workout tracking features built atop Android Wear 2.0. And there’s LTE option that’ll allow you to stay connected to your notifications even when you leave your phone at home. It’s built out of plastic, but that means it’s a good deal slimmer and lighter than the rival LG Watch Sport, with similar internals.

In any case, Amazon UK is now stocking the Huawei Watch 2 in both WiFi/Bluetooth and LTE flavors — £329 for the base model, and a further £50 to add 4G. Amazon has first dibs on the Watch 2 for a couple of weeks, as other retailers won’t be getting it until May 17.

And to sweeten the deal, Huawei’s throwing in a pair of free pair of Plantronics wireless headphones with purchases via Amazon while stocks last.

See Huawei Watch 2 at Amazon

Right now it appears only the black color option is available, and there’s currently no sign of the metal and leather-clad Huawei Watch 2 Classic — when that model launches, it’ll sell for £409.

More: Huawei Watch 2 review