Which Microsoft Surface device is best for you? Surface Pro, Surface Laptop, Surface Book, or Surface Studio?

Microsoft has recently launched two new Surface machines and rounded out its Surface line to include four device families.

While each one has a touchscreen, only three of them are “mobile”, as one of them is an eye-catching all-in-one that sits on a desk. Also, one of them runs a sandboxed version of Windows known as Windows 10 S. Confused now? No worries. It’s actually really simple, and to prove it, we’ve compared every new Surface device spec by spec to give you a better idea of which one might be best for you.

• Microsoft Surface Pro event: What was launched and how to watch
• Microsoft Build 2017: All the announcements that matter
• Windows 10 Fall Creators Update: Everything you need to know

Quick summary

The Surface Pro is the cheapest Surface device overall. It’s a Windows 10 Pro PC that also offers a tablet experience, but it’s definitely not for people who need a workhorse PC or desire a conventional laptop. It offers a fan-less configuration and a longer battery life over its predecessor. However, before you get all excited and buy it now, keep in mind Microsoft said a 4G/LTE version will arrive by the end of the year.

The Surface Laptop is more expensive than the Surface Pro. It’s also Microsoft’s first Surface device that doesn’t fold into a tablet, though it does have a touchscreen display. It’s definitely not great business PC, as it runs sandboxed Windows 10 S, meaning you can only run apps in the Windows Store. But you can take advantage of the free upgrade to Windows 10 Pro, which we certainly recommend.

The Surface Book is a professional laptop, and like all other Surface devices, it has a touchscreen. What makes it standout, however, is its solid base and a discrete GPU option. It’s bigger and more expensive than the Surface Laptop, but it offers more in terms of performance. The i7 Surface Book (and some i5) configurations, for instance, give you a nice performance boost and up to a 16-hour battery.

The Surface Studio is the most expensive Surface device, and it’s primarily for creatives. It’s a gorgeous all-in-one Windows 10 PC with a Zero Gravity Hinge. With a light push, a creative can push it down to a tablet-like position and then use the included Surface Pen or even the optional Surface Dial to sketch. This device is the first of its kind. But it’s super pricey, and it’s not at all mobile, obviously.

Microsoft

Microsoft Surface Pro

• Dimensions: 10.81 x 6.81 x 0.53 inches ;768g weight
• Display: 12.3-inch PixelSense display; 2736 x 1824 resolution (267ppi)
• Connections: One USB 3.0, microSD reader, Mini DisplayPort, Cover port, Surface Connect, headphone
• Battery: Up to 13.5 hours
• Accessories: Type Cover (sold separately); Surface Pen (sold separately)
• Price: Starting at £799

The new Surface Pro looks just like its predecessor, the Surface Pro 4. Although it ditched the model number, it has the same dimensions and standout features as last year’s Surface Pro. There’s a kickstand, and it works with a detachable Type Cover and Surface Pen, but it also brings some impressive improvements, such as a longer battery life. You can also get the fan-less m3 and i5 models if you hated the fan noise of the Surface Pro 4, so long as you don’t require intensive processing power. Microsoft also said a 4G/LTE version will arrive by the end of the year.

• Microsoft Surface Pro (2017) vs Apple iPad Pro 12.9: What’s the difference?

The new Surface Pro is a Windows 10 Pro PC that also offers a tablet experience. It’s not for people who need a workhorse PC or desire a conventional laptop; it’s for people who want to be mobile and prefer to get done work on a tablet. In many ways, its main rival is the iPad Pro, which Apple has marketed as a tablet with some computer-like features. Before you choose this device, make sure you consider the level of computational power you need and whether you want a hybrid device – especially one only offering Wi-Fi connectivity at the moment.

Microsoft

Microsoft Surface Laptop

• Dimensions: 12.13 x 8.79 x 0.57 inches; 1,252g weight
• Display: 13.5-inch PixelSense display; 2256 x 1504 resolution (201ppi)
• Connections: One USB 3.0, Mini DisplayPort, Surface Connect, headphone
• Battery: Up to 14.5 hours
• Accessories: None
• Price: Starting at £979

The Surface Laptop is Microsoft’s first Surface device that doesn’t fold into a tablet. It basically serves as a reference design for a Windows 10 S-powered mobile PC. It has a bit of flair, offering up an Alcantara fabric keyboard and multiple colour choices. But if you’re considering this device, style options won’t matter too much. You value the ability to work on the go, and you don’t need tonnes of computer power. Make no mistake: this is not a business PC. It’s a cross between a MacBook Air and a Chromebook, but it runs sandboxed Windows.

• Microsoft Surface Pro (2017) vs Surface Laptop: What’s the difference?

The Surface Laptop weighs slightly less than the MacBook Air but has a battery life that’s 2.5 hours longer. It also supports biometric sign-in with Windows Hello facial recognition. Although it doesn’t transform into a tablet, it does have a full touchscreen that’s the same size as the Surface Book (though it has a lower resolution). We suspect students will want to try this machine, though if they do, we’d recommend taking advantage of the free upgrade to Windows 10 Pro. That way they can run a myriad of apps, not just ones in Windows Store.

Microsoft

Microsoft Surface Book

• Dimensions: 12.30 x 9.14 x 0.51 inches; 1,516g weight
• Display: 13.5-inch PixelSense display; 3000 x 2000 resolution (267ppi)
• Connections: Two USB 3.0, full-size reader, Mini DisplayPort, Surface Connect, headphone
• Battery: Up to 12 hours
• Accessories: Surface Pen (included)
• Price: Starting at £1,449

The Surface Book is a convertible device that functions as a professional laptop, thanks to its solid base and a discrete GPU option. It’s bigger than the Surface Laptop, but it offers more in the performance department, which makes sense considering the higher price tag. We also think the Surface Book competes with the MacBook Pro, but it comes with more unique features, such as a touch experience and a Surface Pen. The Surface Book is a high-powered, touchscreen laptop. Graphics professionals, in particular, could really use it for work.

• Microsoft Surface Pro (2017) vs Surface Book: What’s the difference?

The i7 Surface Book (and some i5) configurations, for instance, include a discrete Nvidia GPU, so you’ll get a performance boost that’s not available with onboard graphics. It also has a nice-sized battery, and the updated Performance Base ups the battery life even further from 12 to 16 hours. It weighs more than the MacBook Pro, though, coming in at 3.34 pounds (3.68 pounds with the Performance Base). If you can’t choose between these Surface devices, just evaluate your needs. This is the right machine if you need a mobile workhouse that’ll last all day.

Microsoft

Microsoft Surface Studio

• Dimensions: 25.1 x 17.3 x 0.5 inches; 21-pound weight
• Display: 28-inch PixelSense display; 4500 x 3000 resolution (192dpi)
• Connections: Four USB 3.0, full-size SD reader (SDXC), Mini DisplayPort, headphone
• Battery: Power cord with grip-release cable
• Accessories: Surface Pen (included); Surface Dial (sold separately)
• Price: Starting at £2,999

This is a desktop Windows 10 PC aimed at creative professionals who don’t care about price. Microsoft sought a niche crowd with the Surface Studio. While its OEM partners can pump out Windows 10 devices at great price points that’ll appeal to a mass market, Microsoft clearly thought it could be a bit eccentric and put out a device that won’t compete with OEMs but will score it some design points. Similar to the iMac, the Surface Studio is an upright, all-in-one PC. But it uniquely has a Zero Gravity Hinge that transforms it into Studio mode.

• Microsoft Surface Studio: A stunning PC that doubles as a drafting table

With a light push, a creative can push it down to a tablet-like position and then use the included Surface Pen or even the optional Surface Dial to sketch, colour, and mark-up on the screen. This device is the first of its kind. It’s like an iPad Pro and iMac all in one, but better. The only problem is the humongous price tag. We can’t imagine there isn’t too many people out there with the urge to spend so much, unless of course they’re really artsy and want a showstopper of a machine. If that’s not you, you’re better off considering another Surface device.

Apple ‘Neural Engine’ chip could power AI on iPhones

Apple’s focused on increasing the speed of every new mobile processor generation, most recently pairing its quad core A10 Fusion chips with its iPhone 7 and 7 Plus models last September. But to keep its devices competitive, Apple is building a secondary mobile processor dedicated to powering AI.

Sources told Bloomberg that Apple is developing the chips to participate in two key areas of artificial intelligence: Augmented reality and self-driving cars. The tech titan’s devices currently split AI tasks between two chips — the main processor and a GPU — but this new one, allegedly known internally as the Apple Neural Engine, has its own module dedicated to AI requests. Offloading those tasks should improve battery life, too.

Unfortunately, it’s unclear if the chip will come out this year. That puts Apple further behind Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon mobile chips, which already have a dedicated AI module, and Google’s Tensor Processing Units available in its Cloud Platform to do AI heavy lifting.

Apple announced it was deploying its own deep neural networks at last year’s WWDC, but that kind of machine learning happens on server racks, not mobile processors. Unlike the company’s differential privacy methods protecting data sent to Apple’s servers, the Neural Engine chip would let devices sift through data on their own, which would be faster and easier on the battery, just like the M7 processors did for motion back in 2013.

Source: Bloomberg

Skip Bed Bath & Beyond and 3D print these useful doodads at home

When 3D printing first arrived, enthusiasts imagined a future of desktop factories, where people wouldn’t need to drive out to a store to get things they needed anymore. Instead, they could just download pre-made designs from the internet and print them from the comfort of their own home.

Ladies and gentlemen, that day has come.

Modern 3D printers may not be in every household quite yet, but the internet is already filled with millions of ready-to-print objects. Name practically any household item you could ever need, and there’s likely a printable version of it online. Not all these things are worth the spool of plastic they’re printed from, but a few of our favorites are downright genius — and totally free to download and print, right now.

T-Rex shower head

Not all shower experiences are created equal. While this faucet may not play music, change colors, or save water, it is shaped like a Tyrannosaurus Rex skull. The choice is yours.

Customizable box

These individual boxes allow you to easily organize your workstation, or that messy junk drawer. Need we say more?

Hollow Draudi

This 3D-printed thingamajig may have zero functionality, but it’s still rather impressive to behold. Put this little number on your desk, or beside your 100-pound cast-iron turntable, and you’ll have hours of small talk potential.

Capsule planter

There are hundreds of 3D-printed flower pots to choose from, but this simple capsule design is one of our favorites.

Fidget spinner

Fidget spinners have become wildly popular, and this model uses a small bearing and individual cups to catch wind — like a zap from your air duster. You can watch a clip of this gadget in action here.

Balancing wine rack

This curio adds a welcome touch of aesthetic whimsy to the traditional wine rack. How does it stay standing? Magic. Also, physics.

Ten-way drink dispenser

So you need to dole out 10 drinks, but you only have the energy for a single pour? Look no further than this quaffer’s dream. Bottoms up.

Outlet protectors

These 3D printed outlet plugs are an easy way to prevent children from inserting objects into electric outlets. The risk of electrocution aside, there’s nothing like a short circuit snafu to bring down household morale.

Pen holder

Do you have an inordinate number of pens and no place to arrange them? This twisted curio allows you to reward your inner hoarder and save that introspective conversation for another day.

Bottle opener

A bottle opener is always a handy tool to have at your disposal. Simply clip this gadget onto your keychain and you’ll be ready when thirst strikes.

Garden hose flow controller

The next time your trusty garden hose nozzle breaks, remember to remain calm. Just 3D print a new one and you’ll be back to watering your juniper bushes in no time.

Drink coasters

Countertop rings can be unsightly. Thankfully, coasters exist to save us from this unspeakable tragedy.

Guitar wall mount

These 3D-printed mounts allow you to showcase your favorite guitars, or simply keep them organized along the wall.

Windshield scraper

During a sudden snowstorm, a windshield scraper can be a regular godsend. If you forgot to plan ahead for the season, simply print this tool before venturing outside.

Measuring cup set

Measuring cups are crucial for the exact science of baking, and this 3D-printed set is arguably one of the more useful items on our list.

Garlic press

Some recipes call for pressed garlic and, thankfully, this garlic press takes the grunt work out of the process.

Chip clip

So you failed to completely demolish that bag of Cool Ranch Doritos in one sitting, huh? We’ve all been there. Thankfully, this handy clip will keep your choice munchies fresh until you’re ready to give them another go.

Toothpaste tube squeezer

Dental hygiene is nothing to laugh at, and neither are micro-ounces of wasted toothpaste. That said, this small clip will help you squeeze every last drop from the tube.

TeslaBot is a new AI assistant from SmartCar for your Tesla Model S or X

Why it matters to you

Want to check if your Tesla’s doors are locked? Just ask a new Facebook bot to do it for you.

The car of the future can not only transport you from Point A to Point B, it can now converse with you, too. Well, sort of. Thanks to a new chatbot from SmartCar, you can now talk to your Tesla with TeslaBot. The virtual assistant is synced with your Tesla Model S or Tesla Model X by way of the car company’s open APIs, and mimics Tesla’s native app in many ways. But unlike the existing Tesla app, this new bot will let you interact with your car on a desktop, whether it’s a Mac or a PC. And if you’re on your phone, you can use your voice to control your vehicle as well.

You can actually glean quite a bit of information from TeslaBot. Once you’ve opened the chat, you can simply type things like “vehicle info,” and the bot will spit out your car model name as well as its VIN (vehicle identification number). If you type in “odometer,” the bot will tell you how many miles you’ve traveled in your Tesla, and if you inquire about the climate status, the bot will let you know what your car’s temperature is set to, and whether the system is currently on or off.

You can even order the bot to do things for you, like lock your car, vent your sunroof, and more. And according to SmartCar founder Sahas Katta, this is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what the company plans on doing. “We used a Machine Learning engine to train it to the thousands of ways people may ask something,” he told Electrek. “We’re excited to see what developers will build on the SmartCar platform in the future.”

Already, the bot can be pretty clever. Telling TeslaBot “I’m bored,” for example, will get you plenty of the type of amusing responses that you might expect from your dorky dad (much as we love him). And of course, as folks keep experimenting with the bot, it’s sure to reveal even more of its personality.

SmartCar is already working alongside Hyundai on the carmaker’s Ioniq platform, so we’ll soon be able to see what these bots can really do.

Smart algorithm lets autonomous drones fly faster without crashing

Why it matters to you

In order for autonomous drones to become more prevalent, they need to get better at dodging obstacles at high speeds.

We don’t think we are going out on a limb when we say that autonomous drones are going to be big. But, like the archetypal protagonist at the start of any hero’s quest, they need to learn a few things first.

One such challenge is how to fly quickly while managing to dodge obstacles. The reason this is hard for drones is because their cameras can only process images up to a certain speed since they have to do it frame by frame. Anything faster than 30 mph causes a bit of a headache.

That is where a new research project from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology comes into play. It builds on a technology called the Dynamic Vision Sensor (DVS), invented by researchers in Zurich. The DVS continuously visualizes scenes by looking for changes in brightness. This is similar to the way that the human brain senses visual information and means that it can work at short, microsecond intervals much faster than regular cameras.

The problem is the amount of processing time it requires due to the huge mass of data. By the time an obstacle has been detected and a control outputted, a drone would have already crashed.

MIT’s work represents a step forward. It is an algorithm that is able to isolate very specific changes in brightness, which has the effect of reducing complex scenes to their most essential elements.

“The DVS has had a lot of empirical successes,” lead author Prince Singh, a graduate student in MIT’s Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, told Digital Trends. “However, there [hasn’t previously been] a concrete algorithm that can process the sensor’s ambiguous data to, for instance, control a dynamic system such as a drone. My work addresses the control of any system that has a linearized representation by making sense of the DVS’s ambiguous data. This work unifies the empirical successes observed, and most importantly, one doesn’t need knowledge of the problem’s geometry, as was the case for works until now.”

Singh is currently presenting the work at the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers American Control Conference in Seattle. Next up, the plan is to publish a paper on the work. Hopefully, it won’t be too long after that before drones — and other autonomous robots — can take advantage of this high-speed breakthrough.

Apple may be working on an artificial intelligence processor for future devices

Why it matters to you

Apple is working on a chip designed specifically for artificial intelligence, which means your iPhone could soon learn a whole lot quicker than it already does.

Apple is looking to expand its horizons, and it seems as though those horizons could soon include more artificial intelligence. According to a report from Bloomberg, the company is working on a chip designed specifically for artificial intelligence.

The chip is reportedly known internally as Apple Neural Engine, and will essentially improve how devices like the iPhone handle tasks that might otherwise need human intelligence to work properly. In other words, your iPhone could soon learn a whole lot quicker than it already does.

Artificial intelligence is becoming increasingly important, but the likes of Amazon and Google seem to have gotten a head start on Apple. This new chip, however, could push Apple’s products onto the cutting edge of artificial intelligence technology — and could also power other new technologies, such as augmented reality and self-driving cars.

There’s no word yet on when the chip could be officially unveiled — but when it doe,s it will go up against other, similar products that companies have already unveiled. Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon chips, for example, do have a dedicated module specifically for artificial intelligence, while Google has the Tensor Processing Unit, which works in Google’s own data centers to power some of its new services with built-in artificial intelligence.

It’s possible aspects of Apple’s new AI chip could be discussed at its Worldwide Developers Conference, which is coming in early June. If not, the company may still talk about AI in general, especially considering how important the concept has become for large tech companies over the past few years. Apple will unveil iOS 11, its latest and greatest mobile operating system, at the show, along with a new version of macOS, its computer operating system.

We’ll have to wait and see if Apple does eventually unveil an AI-specific chip — but one thing is for sure: AI will continue to be a major focus for Apple and other tech companies for the foreseeable future.

Apple may be working on an artificial intelligence processor for future devices

Why it matters to you

Apple is working on a chip designed specifically for artificial intelligence, which means your iPhone could soon learn a whole lot quicker than it already does.

Apple is looking to expand its horizons, and it seems as though those horizons could soon include more artificial intelligence. According to a report from Bloomberg, the company is working on a chip designed specifically for artificial intelligence.

The chip is reportedly known internally as Apple Neural Engine, and will essentially improve how devices like the iPhone handle tasks that might otherwise need human intelligence to work properly. In other words, your iPhone could soon learn a whole lot quicker than it already does.

Artificial intelligence is becoming increasingly important, but the likes of Amazon and Google seem to have gotten a head start on Apple. This new chip, however, could push Apple’s products onto the cutting edge of artificial intelligence technology — and could also power other new technologies, such as augmented reality and self-driving cars.

There’s no word yet on when the chip could be officially unveiled — but when it doe,s it will go up against other, similar products that companies have already unveiled. Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon chips, for example, do have a dedicated module specifically for artificial intelligence, while Google has the Tensor Processing Unit, which works in Google’s own data centers to power some of its new services with built-in artificial intelligence.

It’s possible aspects of Apple’s new AI chip could be discussed at its Worldwide Developers Conference, which is coming in early June. If not, the company may still talk about AI in general, especially considering how important the concept has become for large tech companies over the past few years. Apple will unveil iOS 11, its latest and greatest mobile operating system, at the show, along with a new version of macOS, its computer operating system.

We’ll have to wait and see if Apple does eventually unveil an AI-specific chip — but one thing is for sure: AI will continue to be a major focus for Apple and other tech companies for the foreseeable future.

Weekly Rewind: ‘Game of Thrones’ is coming, ‘Twin Peaks’ returns, Bond’s best rides

A lot can happen in a week when it comes to tech. The constant onslaught of news makes it nigh impossible for mere mortals with real lives to keep track of everything. That’s why we’ve compiled a quick and dirty list of this week’s top 10 tech stories, from the best of James Bonds’ cars to the future of the Apple MacBook — it’s all here.

Apple joins the race to 5G, applies to test experimental technology

Just about every major mobile carrier in the United States is hard at work on 5G wireless technology in advance of its launch (hopefully) in a few years’ time. Meanwhile, device makers have to be sure their products will be ready for the network when that day comes. Apple is seeking permission to begin testing 5G technologies for that very purpose, according to a report from Business Insider.

Although 5G specifications have not been entirely hammered out yet, we know the FCC approved the 28GHz and 39GHz bands for commercial 5G use last year. These are the same ones mentioned by Apple in its testing application.

The 28GHz band, specifically, is meant for ground-to-space transmission, and Apple has reportedly hired engineers with experience developing satellites ahead of testing.

Read the full story here.

Sir Roger Moore, the longest-serving James Bond actor, has died

Roger Moore, the actor with the longest run as British superspy James Bond, has died at age 89. The news of Moore’s death was confirmed by his children — Deborah, Geoffrey, and Christian — in a statement posted on Twitter. The actor’s death was attributed to cancer, and his family indicated that he died Tuesday, May 23, in Switzerland.

 Born in South London in 1927, Moore was the oldest actor to take on the role of Ian Fleming’s famous secret agent. Already well-known to American television audiences due to his featured roles in the medieval adventure series Ivanhoe, the Western series Maverick (in which he replaced James Garner during the show’s fourth season), and the popular British series The Saint (which became a hit in syndication in the United States), Moore began his run as James Bond in 1973’s Live and Let Die at the age of 46.

Read the full story here.

The world’s largest floating solar power plant just went online in China

China has announced that the largest floating photovoltaic (PV) facility on earth has finally been completed and connected to the local power grid. Long reviled for its carbon emission record, this is the Chinese government’s latest achievement in its ongoing effort to lead the world in renewable energy adoption.

Located in the city of Huainan in the Anhui province, the 40-megawatt facility was created by PV inverter manufacturer Sungrow Power Supply Co. Ironically, the floating grid itself was constructed over a flooded former coal-mining region.

Read the full story here.

Would Apple dare kill the MacBook? Yeah, it might

What if Apple announced the Mac’s retirement? A huge swath of the company’s devotees would be furious … but is it truly an impossible scenario?

To many, the MacBook has long been the gold standard for luxury laptop computers. But as Apple’s business interests continue to change over time, the importance of the device’s established user base has become less and less relevant to the company.

Apple has enjoyed incredible success thanks to the iPhone and several other wildly popular products — and as a result, the company is poised to do whatever is deemed best for its long-term future. Few of its rivals would kill off such a cash cow, but Apple has no fear of making bold moves forward, even when it means leaving some of its fans behind.

Read the full story here.

10 of the most incredible vehicles James Bond has ever driven

Vodka martinis. Perfectly tailored suits. The Walther PPK pistol. There are countless examples of iconic imagery sprinkled throughout the James Bond saga, but perhaps none is more memorable than 007’s choice of transportation.

During his lengthy tenure at MI6, Mr. Bond and his adversaries have had the pleasure of driving a wide array of vehicles, ranging from stunning Aston Martins to weaponized submarines to combat aircraft. Then there were some have embraced the oft campy nature of the British spy films, and it is those automotive oddities that we’d like to focus on here.

Read the full story here.

B&O Play gets crafty with its newest product, a music-infused beer

Danish audio experts B&O Play, quirky fun-loving sister company to the more serious Bang & Olufsen, has revealed a new music product. It’s not a Bluetooth speaker, nor a pair of gorgeous headphones. It’s a beer. Not just any beer, but one infused with music played through the Beoplay A1 speaker. Don’t check your calendar, it really is the end of May, and not April 1.

Now that we’ve established this isn’t a joke (at least, we don’t think it is), here’s what you should know about what’s being called the Beobrew. B&O Play worked with craft brewery Mikkeller to investigate the effect music has on how beer tastes. We imagine a fair amount of beer was consumed before this question was asked in the first place. To find out, a Beoplay A1 speaker was connected to a classic third-generation iPod Nano, and submerged into a fermenting tank over the course of a two-week period.

Read the full story here.

‘Game of Thrones’ season 7 is coming! Here is everything we know so far

Being a Game of Thrones fan has required extra patience this year. After eschewing the usual production schedule to get the right weather to finally allow winter to come to Westeros, the show’s season 7 premiere was pushed back until summer. In the meantime, we’ve had to obsess over any and all pieces of information we can find.

The season is going to be a crazy one — even for Game of Thrones — as the stakes have never been higher now that the series finale just 13 episodes away. There are already interesting storylines in progress, from Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey) seating herself on the Iron Throne to Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) coming to make her claim on the crown on the backs of her dragons. The great game could play out in so many ways, and it is going to be fascinating to watch it develop. Prepare yourself with everything we know so far — but be warned that there are spoilers ahead.

Read the full story here.

World’s Smallest Garden lets you grow fresh herbs in the most cramped apartment

Want to eat more fresh ingredients? Wish you could spend the Memorial Day weekend tending your very own garden?

A new Kickstarter project may be able to help with both of these desires. Billing itself as the World’s Smallest Garden, it promises to bring the joy of gardening to your home — even if you live in a tiny, top-floor apartment where the closest thing to wild vegetation is the leftover stir-fry in your fridge.

The World’s Smallest Garden is a small cylindrical device you place in the top of a regular bottle, transforming it into a self-watering herb garden in seconds.

Read the full story here.

New ‘Twin Peaks’ episodes answer some ancient questions, pose many new ones

There is a certain humor in Twin Peaks devoting one of the first scenes of its revival to a man staring at a glass box, waiting for something, anything to appear in it. Like the audience, that man — Sam Colby (Ben Rosenfield) — stares at the box, unsure how long he must wait for something to happen. David Lynch, back in the director’s chair, takes his time with the scene, with long cuts back and forth between Sam and the box, the only sound a faint hum. The buzz of an intercom, piercing the silence, gives a greater jolt than most horror movies could hope to.

In the age of on-demand shows and binge watching, Lynch establishes that these new episodes of Twin Peaks will not provide quick satisfaction. These first two installments wander from place to place, story to story, briefly visiting old characters and introducing new ones. In New York, Sam maintains his vigil over the box. In South Dakota, police find the severed head of librarian Ruth Davenport in her bed, a scene that hearkens back to Lynch’s Mulholland Drive. And back in the town of Twin Peaks, Deputy Chief Hawk (Michael Horse) looks into a cold case: the disappearance of Special Agent Dale Cooper.

Read the full story here.

Weekly Rewind: ‘Game of Thrones’ is coming, ‘Twin Peaks’ returns, Bond’s best rides

A lot can happen in a week when it comes to tech. The constant onslaught of news makes it nigh impossible for mere mortals with real lives to keep track of everything. That’s why we’ve compiled a quick and dirty list of this week’s top 10 tech stories, from the best of James Bonds’ cars to the future of the Apple MacBook — it’s all here.

Apple joins the race to 5G, applies to test experimental technology

Just about every major mobile carrier in the United States is hard at work on 5G wireless technology in advance of its launch (hopefully) in a few years’ time. Meanwhile, device makers have to be sure their products will be ready for the network when that day comes. Apple is seeking permission to begin testing 5G technologies for that very purpose, according to a report from Business Insider.

Although 5G specifications have not been entirely hammered out yet, we know the FCC approved the 28GHz and 39GHz bands for commercial 5G use last year. These are the same ones mentioned by Apple in its testing application.

The 28GHz band, specifically, is meant for ground-to-space transmission, and Apple has reportedly hired engineers with experience developing satellites ahead of testing.

Read the full story here.

Sir Roger Moore, the longest-serving James Bond actor, has died

Roger Moore, the actor with the longest run as British superspy James Bond, has died at age 89. The news of Moore’s death was confirmed by his children — Deborah, Geoffrey, and Christian — in a statement posted on Twitter. The actor’s death was attributed to cancer, and his family indicated that he died Tuesday, May 23, in Switzerland.

 Born in South London in 1927, Moore was the oldest actor to take on the role of Ian Fleming’s famous secret agent. Already well-known to American television audiences due to his featured roles in the medieval adventure series Ivanhoe, the Western series Maverick (in which he replaced James Garner during the show’s fourth season), and the popular British series The Saint (which became a hit in syndication in the United States), Moore began his run as James Bond in 1973’s Live and Let Die at the age of 46.

Read the full story here.

The world’s largest floating solar power plant just went online in China

China has announced that the largest floating photovoltaic (PV) facility on earth has finally been completed and connected to the local power grid. Long reviled for its carbon emission record, this is the Chinese government’s latest achievement in its ongoing effort to lead the world in renewable energy adoption.

Located in the city of Huainan in the Anhui province, the 40-megawatt facility was created by PV inverter manufacturer Sungrow Power Supply Co. Ironically, the floating grid itself was constructed over a flooded former coal-mining region.

Read the full story here.

Would Apple dare kill the MacBook? Yeah, it might

What if Apple announced the Mac’s retirement? A huge swath of the company’s devotees would be furious … but is it truly an impossible scenario?

To many, the MacBook has long been the gold standard for luxury laptop computers. But as Apple’s business interests continue to change over time, the importance of the device’s established user base has become less and less relevant to the company.

Apple has enjoyed incredible success thanks to the iPhone and several other wildly popular products — and as a result, the company is poised to do whatever is deemed best for its long-term future. Few of its rivals would kill off such a cash cow, but Apple has no fear of making bold moves forward, even when it means leaving some of its fans behind.

Read the full story here.

10 of the most incredible vehicles James Bond has ever driven

Vodka martinis. Perfectly tailored suits. The Walther PPK pistol. There are countless examples of iconic imagery sprinkled throughout the James Bond saga, but perhaps none is more memorable than 007’s choice of transportation.

During his lengthy tenure at MI6, Mr. Bond and his adversaries have had the pleasure of driving a wide array of vehicles, ranging from stunning Aston Martins to weaponized submarines to combat aircraft. Then there were some have embraced the oft campy nature of the British spy films, and it is those automotive oddities that we’d like to focus on here.

Read the full story here.

B&O Play gets crafty with its newest product, a music-infused beer

Danish audio experts B&O Play, quirky fun-loving sister company to the more serious Bang & Olufsen, has revealed a new music product. It’s not a Bluetooth speaker, nor a pair of gorgeous headphones. It’s a beer. Not just any beer, but one infused with music played through the Beoplay A1 speaker. Don’t check your calendar, it really is the end of May, and not April 1.

Now that we’ve established this isn’t a joke (at least, we don’t think it is), here’s what you should know about what’s being called the Beobrew. B&O Play worked with craft brewery Mikkeller to investigate the effect music has on how beer tastes. We imagine a fair amount of beer was consumed before this question was asked in the first place. To find out, a Beoplay A1 speaker was connected to a classic third-generation iPod Nano, and submerged into a fermenting tank over the course of a two-week period.

Read the full story here.

‘Game of Thrones’ season 7 is coming! Here is everything we know so far

Being a Game of Thrones fan has required extra patience this year. After eschewing the usual production schedule to get the right weather to finally allow winter to come to Westeros, the show’s season 7 premiere was pushed back until summer. In the meantime, we’ve had to obsess over any and all pieces of information we can find.

The season is going to be a crazy one — even for Game of Thrones — as the stakes have never been higher now that the series finale just 13 episodes away. There are already interesting storylines in progress, from Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey) seating herself on the Iron Throne to Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) coming to make her claim on the crown on the backs of her dragons. The great game could play out in so many ways, and it is going to be fascinating to watch it develop. Prepare yourself with everything we know so far — but be warned that there are spoilers ahead.

Read the full story here.

World’s Smallest Garden lets you grow fresh herbs in the most cramped apartment

Want to eat more fresh ingredients? Wish you could spend the Memorial Day weekend tending your very own garden?

A new Kickstarter project may be able to help with both of these desires. Billing itself as the World’s Smallest Garden, it promises to bring the joy of gardening to your home — even if you live in a tiny, top-floor apartment where the closest thing to wild vegetation is the leftover stir-fry in your fridge.

The World’s Smallest Garden is a small cylindrical device you place in the top of a regular bottle, transforming it into a self-watering herb garden in seconds.

Read the full story here.

New ‘Twin Peaks’ episodes answer some ancient questions, pose many new ones

There is a certain humor in Twin Peaks devoting one of the first scenes of its revival to a man staring at a glass box, waiting for something, anything to appear in it. Like the audience, that man — Sam Colby (Ben Rosenfield) — stares at the box, unsure how long he must wait for something to happen. David Lynch, back in the director’s chair, takes his time with the scene, with long cuts back and forth between Sam and the box, the only sound a faint hum. The buzz of an intercom, piercing the silence, gives a greater jolt than most horror movies could hope to.

In the age of on-demand shows and binge watching, Lynch establishes that these new episodes of Twin Peaks will not provide quick satisfaction. These first two installments wander from place to place, story to story, briefly visiting old characters and introducing new ones. In New York, Sam maintains his vigil over the box. In South Dakota, police find the severed head of librarian Ruth Davenport in her bed, a scene that hearkens back to Lynch’s Mulholland Drive. And back in the town of Twin Peaks, Deputy Chief Hawk (Michael Horse) looks into a cold case: the disappearance of Special Agent Dale Cooper.

Read the full story here.

Weekly Rewind: ‘Game of Thrones’ is coming, ‘Twin Peaks’ returns, Bond’s best rides

A lot can happen in a week when it comes to tech. The constant onslaught of news makes it nigh impossible for mere mortals with real lives to keep track of everything. That’s why we’ve compiled a quick and dirty list of this week’s top 10 tech stories, from the best of James Bonds’ cars to the future of the Apple MacBook — it’s all here.

Apple joins the race to 5G, applies to test experimental technology

Just about every major mobile carrier in the United States is hard at work on 5G wireless technology in advance of its launch (hopefully) in a few years’ time. Meanwhile, device makers have to be sure their products will be ready for the network when that day comes. Apple is seeking permission to begin testing 5G technologies for that very purpose, according to a report from Business Insider.

Although 5G specifications have not been entirely hammered out yet, we know the FCC approved the 28GHz and 39GHz bands for commercial 5G use last year. These are the same ones mentioned by Apple in its testing application.

The 28GHz band, specifically, is meant for ground-to-space transmission, and Apple has reportedly hired engineers with experience developing satellites ahead of testing.

Read the full story here.

Sir Roger Moore, the longest-serving James Bond actor, has died

Roger Moore, the actor with the longest run as British superspy James Bond, has died at age 89. The news of Moore’s death was confirmed by his children — Deborah, Geoffrey, and Christian — in a statement posted on Twitter. The actor’s death was attributed to cancer, and his family indicated that he died Tuesday, May 23, in Switzerland.

 Born in South London in 1927, Moore was the oldest actor to take on the role of Ian Fleming’s famous secret agent. Already well-known to American television audiences due to his featured roles in the medieval adventure series Ivanhoe, the Western series Maverick (in which he replaced James Garner during the show’s fourth season), and the popular British series The Saint (which became a hit in syndication in the United States), Moore began his run as James Bond in 1973’s Live and Let Die at the age of 46.

Read the full story here.

The world’s largest floating solar power plant just went online in China

China has announced that the largest floating photovoltaic (PV) facility on earth has finally been completed and connected to the local power grid. Long reviled for its carbon emission record, this is the Chinese government’s latest achievement in its ongoing effort to lead the world in renewable energy adoption.

Located in the city of Huainan in the Anhui province, the 40-megawatt facility was created by PV inverter manufacturer Sungrow Power Supply Co. Ironically, the floating grid itself was constructed over a flooded former coal-mining region.

Read the full story here.

Would Apple dare kill the MacBook? Yeah, it might

What if Apple announced the Mac’s retirement? A huge swath of the company’s devotees would be furious … but is it truly an impossible scenario?

To many, the MacBook has long been the gold standard for luxury laptop computers. But as Apple’s business interests continue to change over time, the importance of the device’s established user base has become less and less relevant to the company.

Apple has enjoyed incredible success thanks to the iPhone and several other wildly popular products — and as a result, the company is poised to do whatever is deemed best for its long-term future. Few of its rivals would kill off such a cash cow, but Apple has no fear of making bold moves forward, even when it means leaving some of its fans behind.

Read the full story here.

10 of the most incredible vehicles James Bond has ever driven

Vodka martinis. Perfectly tailored suits. The Walther PPK pistol. There are countless examples of iconic imagery sprinkled throughout the James Bond saga, but perhaps none is more memorable than 007’s choice of transportation.

During his lengthy tenure at MI6, Mr. Bond and his adversaries have had the pleasure of driving a wide array of vehicles, ranging from stunning Aston Martins to weaponized submarines to combat aircraft. Then there were some have embraced the oft campy nature of the British spy films, and it is those automotive oddities that we’d like to focus on here.

Read the full story here.

B&O Play gets crafty with its newest product, a music-infused beer

Danish audio experts B&O Play, quirky fun-loving sister company to the more serious Bang & Olufsen, has revealed a new music product. It’s not a Bluetooth speaker, nor a pair of gorgeous headphones. It’s a beer. Not just any beer, but one infused with music played through the Beoplay A1 speaker. Don’t check your calendar, it really is the end of May, and not April 1.

Now that we’ve established this isn’t a joke (at least, we don’t think it is), here’s what you should know about what’s being called the Beobrew. B&O Play worked with craft brewery Mikkeller to investigate the effect music has on how beer tastes. We imagine a fair amount of beer was consumed before this question was asked in the first place. To find out, a Beoplay A1 speaker was connected to a classic third-generation iPod Nano, and submerged into a fermenting tank over the course of a two-week period.

Read the full story here.

‘Game of Thrones’ season 7 is coming! Here is everything we know so far

Being a Game of Thrones fan has required extra patience this year. After eschewing the usual production schedule to get the right weather to finally allow winter to come to Westeros, the show’s season 7 premiere was pushed back until summer. In the meantime, we’ve had to obsess over any and all pieces of information we can find.

The season is going to be a crazy one — even for Game of Thrones — as the stakes have never been higher now that the series finale just 13 episodes away. There are already interesting storylines in progress, from Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey) seating herself on the Iron Throne to Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) coming to make her claim on the crown on the backs of her dragons. The great game could play out in so many ways, and it is going to be fascinating to watch it develop. Prepare yourself with everything we know so far — but be warned that there are spoilers ahead.

Read the full story here.

World’s Smallest Garden lets you grow fresh herbs in the most cramped apartment

Want to eat more fresh ingredients? Wish you could spend the Memorial Day weekend tending your very own garden?

A new Kickstarter project may be able to help with both of these desires. Billing itself as the World’s Smallest Garden, it promises to bring the joy of gardening to your home — even if you live in a tiny, top-floor apartment where the closest thing to wild vegetation is the leftover stir-fry in your fridge.

The World’s Smallest Garden is a small cylindrical device you place in the top of a regular bottle, transforming it into a self-watering herb garden in seconds.

Read the full story here.

New ‘Twin Peaks’ episodes answer some ancient questions, pose many new ones

There is a certain humor in Twin Peaks devoting one of the first scenes of its revival to a man staring at a glass box, waiting for something, anything to appear in it. Like the audience, that man — Sam Colby (Ben Rosenfield) — stares at the box, unsure how long he must wait for something to happen. David Lynch, back in the director’s chair, takes his time with the scene, with long cuts back and forth between Sam and the box, the only sound a faint hum. The buzz of an intercom, piercing the silence, gives a greater jolt than most horror movies could hope to.

In the age of on-demand shows and binge watching, Lynch establishes that these new episodes of Twin Peaks will not provide quick satisfaction. These first two installments wander from place to place, story to story, briefly visiting old characters and introducing new ones. In New York, Sam maintains his vigil over the box. In South Dakota, police find the severed head of librarian Ruth Davenport in her bed, a scene that hearkens back to Lynch’s Mulholland Drive. And back in the town of Twin Peaks, Deputy Chief Hawk (Michael Horse) looks into a cold case: the disappearance of Special Agent Dale Cooper.

Read the full story here.