Views from the top: here are 16 of the best drone photos on the web

Drone costs have dropped substantially over the past few years, and during this span we’ve seen the technology increase exponentially. While early designs were more of a backyard novelty than anything else, the latest drones are loaded with advanced cameras and stabilization technology that allows for more practical functionality.

This pivot toward drone-based, aerial imaging is changing the field of photography as we know it. From the choicest views of World Heritage Sites to close-up glimpses of volcanic eruptions, here are 16 of our favorites drone photos from around the web.

OnePlus 5 teaser reveals four color variants, including a unicorn option

The OnePlus 5 could be available in black, unicorn, red, and gold color options at launch.

As we get closer to the launch of the OnePlus 5, the company is teasing additional details about its upcoming flagship. The latest tweet suggests the phone will be offered in four color options, including a multicolored unicorn hue:

What 5hould the color of your next phone be? 😉 pic.twitter.com/5FevP1VSq5

— OnePlus (@oneplus) May 22, 2017

The color options — unicorn and red in particular — will undoubtedly differentiate the OnePlus 5, and it’ll be interesting to see how the company handles the rollout. That’s if it actually intends to manufacture a handset that will perfectly complement your favorite beverage.

What we do know for certain is that the OnePlus 5 will feature camera(s) tuned by DxO, and that an unveil is slated for sometime next month. From earlier leaks, it’s evident that the phone will have dual rear cameras at the back, and OnePlus is allegedly considering switching up the display resolution to QHD.

Over the weekend, OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei tweeted a cryptic reply to a question posed to him about the headphone jack:

Why did the headphone jack cross the road? https://t.co/8sSXI8zB8y

— Carl Pei (@getpeid) May 19, 2017

The tweet was in response to a leaked render that revealed a OnePlus 5 unit without a 3.5mm jack at the bottom. Based on Pei’s remarks, it’s likely OnePlus moved the jack up top. Overall, it looks like the OnePlus 5 will be a significant upgrade from its predecessor, and that could lead to a corresponding hike in price.

We’ll know more about the handset in the coming weeks, but in the meantime, what color variant are you inclining toward?

How to enable iris scanning and face unlock on the Galaxy S8

How do I unlock the Galaxy S8 with my face?

The Galaxy Note 7 (RIP) was the first Samsung device with biometric unlock, but along with iris scanning, the Galaxy S8 brings back an old trick: face unlock. Both are fast and secure, and make up for the awkward placement of the fingerprint sensor. Here’s how to use them to unlock your phone.

Biometrics on the Galaxy S8 explained

How to enable iris unlock on the Galaxy S8

From the home screen, swipe down on the notification shade.
Tap the settings icon (cog shape).

Scroll down and tap on Lock screen and security.

Tap on Iris scanner.
Enter your password, PIN or pattern.

Tap Register irises.

Agree to the disclaimer.
Tap continue.
Look at the front-facing camera to register irises.
Tap Turn on if Face unlock is already enabled.
(Optional) Enable Iris unlock when screen turns on to speed up unlock process.
(Optional) Enable Samsung account to use iris to unlock Samsung account.

How to change the screen mask you see when unlocking the phone

Samsung has included a number of interesting (and a few child-friendly) masks that you can use to spruce up the iris unlocking feature. Here’s how to change to one of them from the default.

From the home screen, swipe down on the notification shade.
Tap the settings icon (cog shape).

Scroll down and tap on Lock screen and security.

Tap on Iris scanner.
Enter your password, PIN or pattern.
Tap Preview screen mask.
Select new mask pattern.

How to enable Face unlock on the Galaxy S8

From the home screen, swipe down on the notification shade.
Tap the settings icon (cog shape).

Scroll down and tap on Lock screen and security.

Tap on Face recognition.
Enter your password, PIN or pattern.

Tap Register your face.

Tap continue.
Look at front-facing camera to register face.
Tap Turn on if iris scanner is already enabled.
(Optional) Enable Face unlock when screen turns on to speed up unlock process.

That’s it! But there are a few things to keep in mind.

How to improve your iris scanning or face unlock experience

Even though the iris scanner and face unlock on the Galaxy S8 are fast and secure, there are ways to improve the experience.

• When registering irises, take off glasses or remove contacts. This makes it easier for the system to see the real you. You know, inside.
• Make sure your eyes are open fully — if you’re in the sun, move to a shady area so you don’t have to squint.
• Don’t try to unlock with your iris in direct sunlight. If you’re going to be outdoors for a long period of time, switch over to face unlock, which is faster in good lighting conditions.
• Don’t try to use face unlock in low-light situations. If you’re going to be indoors for a long period of time, switch over to iris scanning.
• This seems obvious, but don’t smudge up the front-facing camera or any of the front sensors.
• If you’re getting a lot of failures on either iris scanning or face unlock, remove the registered data, move to a better-lit area (indoors, with good light) and try again.

That’s it! Hopefully your biometric unlocking experience is great, but if it’s not, there’s always the rear fingerprint sensor to fall back on. You have set that up already, haven’t you?

Moto G5S leak shows off all-metallic chassis and three color options

Motorola is getting ready to launch an upgraded variant of the Moto G5.

Motorola’s leaked roadmap for 2017 revealed the existence of a Moto G5 variant dubbed the G5S, and we’re now getting a first look at the device courtesy of Android Authority. The publication got a hold of press renders of the upcoming phone from a “trusted source familiar with Lenovo’s plans,” showing off the color options on offer.

The Moto G5S is identical to the standard variant from the front, and the main difference at the back is a dimple at the center that houses the Batwing logo. The phone will be available in grey, gold, and blue, and unlike the Moto G5 and G5 Plus — which have a metal back and plastic sides — the phone will be entirely crafted out of metal. As such, the phone features antenna lines at the back.

The Moto G5S is said to offer a 5.2-inch Full HD display, with the G5S Plus expected to feature a 5.5-inch Full HD screen. There’s no information on pricing, but it will undoubtedly be more than that of the Moto G5.

Motorola is planning to release nine new phones this year: the Moto C series already made its debut, and the Moto Z2 Play is slated for a launch on June 8. The Moto E4 and E4 Plus are also expected to be announced sometime in the summer.

LeEco is set to lay off over 85% of its U.S. workforce

LeEco is getting ready to lay off a majority of its U.S. workforce following exec reshuffle.

LeEco’s debut in the U.S. didn’t go according to plan, and it looks like the company is gearing up for a round of massive layoffs. Earlier this week, LeEco founder Jia Yueting announced he would step down as CEO of Leshi Internet Information & Technology Corp Beijing, the company’s publicly listed unit.

Anonymous sources confirmed to CNBC that the Chinese company will lay off over 85% of its U.S. workforce at townhall meetings scheduled at its offices across the country:

Two people told CNBC the company is planning massive layoffs in the U.S., with one source saying that only 60 employees will be left after the cut. The company’s current headcount in the U.S. is over 500, according to this person.

CNBC obtained an email calling employees together for a Town Hall Meeting that will occur in three of the company’s U.S. locations, including San Diego, Santa Monica and San Jose, at 10 a.m. PST. The email asks employees to attend unless they’re off for the day, in which case they’re asked to call in.

According to the publication, LeEco will turn its attention to getting “Chinese-American consumers to watch LeEco’s Chinese content library” in the U.S. As for Yueting, he’ll continue to be the chairman and CEO of LeEco, but Leshi will be run by former Lenovo executive Liang Jun. Yueting said that the restructuring will improve “the listed company’s performance,” freeing up his resources to focus on “governance, strategic planning and core product innovation” of LeEco.

Most of LeEco’s troubles stemmed from its expansion to the U.S. The resulting cash crunch has led to a series of layoffs in global markets including India, and delayed payments to staff in the U.S.. The company picked up a $2.4 billion investment at the start of the year, but its bid to acquire Vizio fell through.

Tracking your pet with TrackR creates a false sense of security

Using a TrackR device to keep tabs on your pet works, although it’s not as convenient and easy as you may expect it to be.

It’s spring time, which means we’re all itching to get outside and enjoy the warm sun — and that goes double for your pets. Whether you try to keep close tabs on your pet or keep them fenced in your backyard, there’s always a risk that your furry friend might make a break for it and go for a wander around the neighborhood.

Few moments are more nerve-wracking as when you realize your pet is lost.

Few moments are more nerve-wracking as when you realize your pet is lost. It was the fear of that moment that inspired me to test out using the TrackR Bravo as a means of keep tabs on my feisty feline — and assist me in tracking her down if she manages to get out.

TrackR produces a line of small and simple-to-use tracking devices that use Bluetooth and your smartphone using the TrackR app. It’s slim enough to be tossed in a wallet or added to a keychain so that you can track down those vital items if you misplace them in your home.

What I found is that the TrackR technology certainly works for tracking pets, but not quite at the level was hoping it would.

Great in theory, flawed in practice

Setting up the TrackR in the Android app is easy. You’re able to add and manage multiple trackers with labels for different items you may want to track — including pets!

So I went in, set up my tracker for my cat Shelley and then attached it to her harness. Given the slim size of the tracker, she barely noticed it was there which is great. It really does just look like any other dog tag, so we were off to a great start.

The TrackR Bravo’s size makes it ideal for adding it to your pet’s collar.

Once I was all set up, it was time to run my first tests. I threw the cat outside — and by that I mean I opened the back door as she darted between my legs — and went back to my office to work, with the TrackR app open at my side. From my window, I could still see my cat exploring the backyard, and could also see her location on my phone.

I did this same thing for a few days before it finally happened: I looked outside and Shelley was nowhere to be found. “Great,” I thought, “now is the perfect time to really test the TrackR app.”

So I loaded it up and… the cat and TrackR were out of range of my phone’s Bluetooth radio. I was able to see her last tracked location, which was in my backyard about five minutes before I noticed she was missing, so I knew she couldn’t have gone far. And lo and behold, when I opened the back gate, there she was waiting to be let back into the back yard. I found it took a bit of time for the app to reconnect with the TrackR again.

In the tracker settings, you’re able to turn on features like “Device Separation Alert”, which will have the TrackR alarm ring if you leave it behind — or in this case, when it walks out of range from your phone. But due to warnings of false alerts and increased battery consumption I left that feature off as it didn’t seem like it would be effective for my needs.

Ideally, I was hoping the pet settings would include a feature that let me set an acceptable location range for the tracker, and if the app detects the TrackR has left that outlined parameters I get a warning alerting me that my cat is trying to make a break for it. Unfortunately, it seems like the pet icon is nothing more than a label, and the app treats a TrackR Bravo attached to your pet’s collar the same way it would a set of keys.

It’s better if we work together!

TrackR sporting some battle scars after Shelley’s great escape.

All told, using the TrackR on my pet didn’t work the way I expected it would, though my expectations were probably set a little too high going in. It does give me some added peace of mind, though, that if she does get out and lost I’ve got some technology to help track her down, and for that reason, I’m going to keep it on her collar going forward.

The crowdsourcing feature has the potential to be really useful — as long as TrackR beats out the competition.

This actually brings me to a key feature built into TrackR that will be really helpful if you plan to use their technology to track your pets — crowdsourcing. Like competitor Tile, TrackR relies on its users to create a sort of network of devices around your city or area to help pinpoint the location of its trackers. So let’s say your dog runs away, but your neighbor down the block has the TrackR app on his or her phone. In theory, their phone will recognize your dog’s TrackR and update its last known whereabouts in your app.

To this end, if you’re planning on using a TrackR device to track your pet, your best bet may be to try and coordinate with other pet owners in your neighborhood to get them in on the plan with their own TrackRs, or at the very least have the app running on their phone. The more devices running the TrackR app, the better the odds of getting updated pings if your pet gets loose.

Beyond that, if you don’t want your cat or dog to run away, common sense pet ownership still reigns supreme. Tie your cat up with a harness if you want to give them some unsupervised time outside, or better yet keep an eye on them yourself and enjoy some quality time outside.

See at Amazon

New Microsoft Surface Pro confirmed, rethought from the ground up

As leaked last week, Microsoft has announced a new Surface Pro during its #MicrosoftEvent in Shanghai, China.

Alongside the confirmation that the Surface Laptop and Surface Studio will be heading to the country on 15 June, Microsoft revealed that an all-new version of the Surface Pro is on its way.

Although it looks similar to former Pro devices, it has been “rethought” and is the lightest Surface Pro “ever created”.

It has a 12.3-inch display with a 3:2 aspect ratio and 267ppi pixel density. Battery life is claimed to last up to 13.5 hours

A new Surface Pen stylus will come with the Surface Pro. Microsoft claims that it is the “fastest digital pen on the planet”, with the device offering 4,096 levels of pressure and 21ms latency.

Microsoft’s official @Surface Twitter account has also posted a video of the new Surface Pro, which you can view below:

Upgraded, versatile, and exceptionally powerful, with iconic Surface design. Meet the new Microsoft #SurfacePro. #MicrosoftEvent pic.twitter.com/o1RQjzlySE

— Microsoft Surface (@surface) May 23, 2017

Developing…

Amazon UK takes on Sky with TV Channel add-ons for Prime Video

In its bid to become the cord-cutting service of choice, Amazon UK has confirmed it’s bringing Channel add-ons to the UK. The service allows Prime subscribers to bolt subscriptions from various UK TV services onto their account, without the need for a bundle or a restrictive contract. Prices range from between £1.49 to £9.49, with notable streaming platforms including Discovery, Eurosport Player, ITV Hub+, hayu and BFI Player all available at launch.

Amazon Channels first debuted in the US in December 2015 with the launch of the Streaming Partners Program. US subscribers have a high-quality selection of bolt-ons to choose from — including HBO, SHOWTIME, STARZ, Cinemax and PBS KIDS — but what the UK offering lacks in quality, it delivers on diversity. There are workout channels for Acacia TV and BeFit UK; foreign films from Fandor and Filmbox; and Heera, Amazon’s curated Bollywood channel.

While Netflix doesn’t allow third-party services to integrate with its platform, Sky has built its TV empire around bundles. Typically, a Sky customer needs to subscribe to a package of channels in order to get access to the one they’re after, be it sport, entertainment or movies. Amazon does the opposite: it presents a variety of add-on subscriptions, allowing Prime members to pick and choose the most relevant channels and pay for them only.

Source: Amazon Channels

The Morning After: Tuesday, May 23rd 2017

The newest TV technology is a stretchable OLED display, a patent troll lawyer meets karma, and this week we’re talking about Tomorrow. No, not Wednesday, the conceptual one.

It bends both ways.
Samsung’s extra-stretchable display can survive dents

Samsung’s Display arm has a few new prototypes to show off this week, including a “stretchable” 9.1-inch OLED screen that can bend in either direction. If the tech comes to market, it could make for extremely durable screens on your phone, car or watch.

Only when it’s ready.
‘Red Dead Redemption 2’ is delayed until 2018

Rockstar Games announced that we won’t get our first current-gen taste of its old-west franchise this year, as Red Dead Redemption 2 has been pushed back until next spring. The company says that: “This outlaw epic set across the vast and unforgiving American heartland will be the first Rockstar game created from the ground up for the latest generation of console hardware, and some extra time is necessary to ensure that we can deliver the best experience possible for our fans.”

Why not?
HP debuts a tablet for artists at Cannes for some reason

Usually, movies make their debut at Cannes, but HP has decided the event is a perfect place to show off its new tablet and a few Envy laptops. The tablet is the Spectre x2, a Surface Pro-like slate with an Ink-certified stylus and detachable full-size keyboard. It has HP’s fast-charging tech, a battery that can last up to eight hours and enough horsepower to support two 4K external monitors — expect to see it next month with a price tag starting at $1,599.

Both the GS8 and full-sized Galaxy S8+ made the cut.

New in our buyer’s guide: The Galaxy S8 and Gear VR controller

Our latest buyer’s guide update adds Samsung’s Galaxy S8 and S8+, as well as the company’s Gear VR controller. Rounding out the additions, we’ve added BlueAnt’s Pump Zone wireless exercise headphones, which are worth their (sharply reduced) asking price.

Interesting.
Valve quietly hired the team behind ‘Kerbal Space Program’

Kerbal Space Program developer Squad is one of the darlings of Steam’s early access program, and as it turns out, Valve snapped up the team a few months ago. There’s no word on what they’re working on, but the move could indicate a deeper commitment to game development.

Let’s talk about the future.
Welcome to Tomorrow, the home of stuff that hasn’t happened yet

We’re adding a new section to Engadget, one that executive editor Dana Wollman says will focus on “the products, technologies ideas and people that will drastically change the way we live.” We have over a dozen stories going up this week, covering topics like sex, warfare, video games, big data, solar energy, space, robotics, fashion, media and transportation.

When everyone has the power to destroy the world, no one does.
Nuclear warfare and the technology of peace

“This is what peace looks like in an atomic world: stability balanced on the back of a constant threat. While terrifying in its own way, the idea of mutually assured destruction has effectively halted all world war.”

But wait, there’s more…

• Copyright troll lawyer is finally disbarred for fraud
• ‘Far Cry 5’ is set in the US
• Supreme Court shuts down location loophole for patent suits
• What’s on TV: ‘War Machine,’ ‘Get Out,’ and ‘Beat Shazam’

Singapore’s RoboCop car has its own intruder-chasing drone

If RoboCop has a gun in his thigh, this robotic security car from Singapore has a drone that it can send after intruders. Singaporean startup Otsaw Digital has created a 176-pound golf-cart-sized automated vehicle called O-R3 that companies can use for security. It has 3D LIDAR sensors and GPS, along with other instruments that it uses to spot unattended bags and to differentiate between employees and intruders. If it spots a bag that remains unattended for five minutes, for instance, it raises an alarm and marks it for further investigation in case it’s something dangerous.

It can differentiate the people security personnel mark as employees from unknown individuals. If it determines that a person is an intruder, it will send a drone after him up to around 328 feet away. Otsaw chief Ling Ting Ming explains that the drone can be especially useful if there are obstacles blocking the vehicle’s way, since it can provide an aerial view of the area to expose potential hiding places.

Singapore expects robots to play a big role in its bid to become the world’s first smart city, and it sounds like Otsaw’s O-R3 fits its government’s vision perfectly. Clients will be able to rent one for $10,000 a month, which is slightly less than what establishments in the country are paying four security guards. While it can take over the low-level tasks, such as patrolling areas, from humans, though, Ling believes the machine can’t completely replace flesh-and-blood workers. O-R3, he says, can complement human security personnel hired for jobs that require a higher level of skills.

You can watch O-R3 in action below. To note, it’s the outdoor version of the machine. The company is also working on a smaller indoor version with no lasers and drones, and which will likely cost less.

Via: Mashable

Source: Otsaw Robotics