Brave, an ad-free browser, raises $35 million through initial coin offering

Why it matters to you

Your ability to choose a browser that makes it easier to block ads just got $35 million better.

The browser wars continue unabated, with Google’s Chrome dominating the desktop, Mozilla Firefox maintaining a strong second place, and Microsoft Internet Explorer declining toward oblivion. Battling it out for relevancy are Microsoft’s new Edge browser and Apple’s Safari, with the Opera browser falling into the “Other” category.

That’s not stopping others from jumping into the fray, no matter how long the odds might appear. As a case in point, Mozilla’s former CEO and Javascript creator Brendan Eich is working to launch yet another browser, Brave, and he secured $35 million in new funding to help out with the effort.

As TechCrunch reports, it is not just the amount of funding itself that is interesting, however,  it is also the method Eich used to raise the money. Specifically, he embarked on an initial coin offering (ICO), meaning a fundraiser that operated by selling cryptocurrency. In Brave’s case, that meant creating its own version of coin, the Basic Attention Token (BAT) and then selling a billion units.

Taken together, the billion BAT are worth more than $35 million and there is another 500 million BAT squirreled away for growth and “BAT development.” The company does not have any plans current to sell any additional BAT.

Eich hopes to use the funding to help make internet advertising more attractive to advertisers, publishers, and users, by using blockchain technology to make the process more efficient. The end result will be a browser that is aimed at blocking most ads while nevertheless allowing publishers to make money from advertising. Essentially, the Brave browser lets users choose to block ads completely, allow privacy-respecting ads to get through, and enable ads that contribute directly to a site.

The benefit will be a browser that is significantly faster and also safer by eliminating “malvertising,” or harmful advertising, while nevertheless being better at allowing publishers to make money and stay in business. While Brave will face an uphill battle in the browser market, the injection of $35 million through its recent ICO along with the promise of combatting the scourge of disruptive web ads should certainly help it take on the industry’s current leaders.

Apple’s new Swift Playgrounds app can control Lego robots and Parrot drones

Why it matters to you

Kids with an interest in robotics will appreciate the new Apple Swift Playgrounds app, which integrates with platforms from Lego, Sphero, and more.

Apple’s Swift Playgrounds, a free iPad app the Cupertino, California-based company launched last year during its Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC), puts Apple’s Swift programming language in terms kids can understand: Games. Until now, its capabilities were relatively limited — kids could only publish basic apps for iOS. But on Thursday, Apple announced partnerships with Lego, Sphero, Parrot, and others that lets blossoming Swift students program drones, remote-controlled toys, and more.

The new Swift Playgrounds supports robots. Lots of robots. Lego Mindstorms Education EV3 will let kids move the motors and sensors on the creatures, vehicles, and machines, they create by connecting to individual modules via Bluetooth. Lego said it has designed 10 hours of lessons specifically for the new Playgrounds app.

Integration with Sphero’s Sprk+ platform will allow Swift dilettantes to roll, turn, accelerate, and change the color of Sphero’s remote-controlled balls — the new Playgrounds packs exercises that break the development process down step by step. And kids with Parrot’s Mambo, Airborne, and Rolling Spider drones can program them to perform takeoffs, landings, turns, and aerial maneuvers like flips.

Apple

Other newcomers to the Swift Playgrounds family include Ubtech’s Jimu Robot Meebot Kit, which walks, waves, and dances to Swift code, and Dash by Wonder Workshop, which provides a “hands-on” way for kids to learn Swift. Skoog, a tactile, music-playing cube, is also in tow.

“More than 1 million kids and adults from around the world are already using Swift Playgrounds to learn the fundamentals of coding with Swift in a fun and interactive way,” Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering, said in a statement. “Now they can instantly see the code they create and directly control their favorite robots, drones and instruments through Swift Playgrounds. It’s an incredibly exciting and powerful way to learn.”

Since the launch of Swift Playgrounds in 2016, Apple has collaborated with educators around the country to build Swift into computer science curriculums. Its efforts have been rewarded — the iPhone maker said more than 1 million unique users have joined the platform since its launch.

Apple

With the update, Apple is expanding Swift Playgrounds’s focus from software to hardware — and betting that kids will come along for the ride. To that end, it is taking pains to ensure the new integrations do not require any special hardware or peripherals. The new Swift Playgrounds is compatible with all iPad Air and iPad Pro models and iPad mini 2 and later running iOS 10 or later. And the newly supported robots are plug-and-play — as long as you have one around, you can start programming it immediately.

Swift Playgrounds version 1.5 will be available as a free download on the App Store beginning Monday.

Apple’s new Swift Playgrounds app can control Lego robots and Parrot drones

Why it matters to you

Kids with an interest in robotics will appreciate the new Apple Swift Playgrounds app, which integrates with platforms from Lego, Sphero, and more.

Apple’s Swift Playgrounds, a free iPad app the Cupertino, California-based company launched last year during its Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC), puts Apple’s Swift programming language in terms kids can understand: Games. Until now, its capabilities were relatively limited — kids could only publish basic apps for iOS. But on Thursday, Apple announced partnerships with Lego, Sphero, Parrot, and others that lets blossoming Swift students program drones, remote-controlled toys, and more.

The new Swift Playgrounds supports robots. Lots of robots. Lego Mindstorms Education EV3 will let kids move the motors and sensors on the creatures, vehicles, and machines, they create by connecting to individual modules via Bluetooth. Lego said it has designed 10 hours of lessons specifically for the new Playgrounds app.

Integration with Sphero’s Sprk+ platform will allow Swift dilettantes to roll, turn, accelerate, and change the color of Sphero’s remote-controlled balls — the new Playgrounds packs exercises that break the development process down step by step. And kids with Parrot’s Mambo, Airborne, and Rolling Spider drones can program them to perform takeoffs, landings, turns, and aerial maneuvers like flips.

Apple

Other newcomers to the Swift Playgrounds family include Ubtech’s Jimu Robot Meebot Kit, which walks, waves, and dances to Swift code, and Dash by Wonder Workshop, which provides a “hands-on” way for kids to learn Swift. Skoog, a tactile, music-playing cube, is also in tow.

“More than 1 million kids and adults from around the world are already using Swift Playgrounds to learn the fundamentals of coding with Swift in a fun and interactive way,” Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering, said in a statement. “Now they can instantly see the code they create and directly control their favorite robots, drones and instruments through Swift Playgrounds. It’s an incredibly exciting and powerful way to learn.”

Since the launch of Swift Playgrounds in 2016, Apple has collaborated with educators around the country to build Swift into computer science curriculums. Its efforts have been rewarded — the iPhone maker said more than 1 million unique users have joined the platform since its launch.

Apple

With the update, Apple is expanding Swift Playgrounds’s focus from software to hardware — and betting that kids will come along for the ride. To that end, it is taking pains to ensure the new integrations do not require any special hardware or peripherals. The new Swift Playgrounds is compatible with all iPad Air and iPad Pro models and iPad mini 2 and later running iOS 10 or later. And the newly supported robots are plug-and-play — as long as you have one around, you can start programming it immediately.

Swift Playgrounds version 1.5 will be available as a free download on the App Store beginning Monday.

Apple’s new Swift Playgrounds app can control Lego robots and Parrot drones

Why it matters to you

Kids with an interest in robotics will appreciate the new Apple Swift Playgrounds app, which integrates with platforms from Lego, Sphero, and more.

Apple’s Swift Playgrounds, a free iPad app the Cupertino, California-based company launched last year during its Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC), puts Apple’s Swift programming language in terms kids can understand: Games. Until now, its capabilities were relatively limited — kids could only publish basic apps for iOS. But on Thursday, Apple announced partnerships with Lego, Sphero, Parrot, and others that lets blossoming Swift students program drones, remote-controlled toys, and more.

The new Swift Playgrounds supports robots. Lots of robots. Lego Mindstorms Education EV3 will let kids move the motors and sensors on the creatures, vehicles, and machines, they create by connecting to individual modules via Bluetooth. Lego said it has designed 10 hours of lessons specifically for the new Playgrounds app.

Integration with Sphero’s Sprk+ platform will allow Swift dilettantes to roll, turn, accelerate, and change the color of Sphero’s remote-controlled balls — the new Playgrounds packs exercises that break the development process down step by step. And kids with Parrot’s Mambo, Airborne, and Rolling Spider drones can program them to perform takeoffs, landings, turns, and aerial maneuvers like flips.

Apple

Other newcomers to the Swift Playgrounds family include Ubtech’s Jimu Robot Meebot Kit, which walks, waves, and dances to Swift code, and Dash by Wonder Workshop, which provides a “hands-on” way for kids to learn Swift. Skoog, a tactile, music-playing cube, is also in tow.

“More than 1 million kids and adults from around the world are already using Swift Playgrounds to learn the fundamentals of coding with Swift in a fun and interactive way,” Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering, said in a statement. “Now they can instantly see the code they create and directly control their favorite robots, drones and instruments through Swift Playgrounds. It’s an incredibly exciting and powerful way to learn.”

Since the launch of Swift Playgrounds in 2016, Apple has collaborated with educators around the country to build Swift into computer science curriculums. Its efforts have been rewarded — the iPhone maker said more than 1 million unique users have joined the platform since its launch.

Apple

With the update, Apple is expanding Swift Playgrounds’s focus from software to hardware — and betting that kids will come along for the ride. To that end, it is taking pains to ensure the new integrations do not require any special hardware or peripherals. The new Swift Playgrounds is compatible with all iPad Air and iPad Pro models and iPad mini 2 and later running iOS 10 or later. And the newly supported robots are plug-and-play — as long as you have one around, you can start programming it immediately.

Swift Playgrounds version 1.5 will be available as a free download on the App Store beginning Monday.

Even adults may want LEGO’s upcoming ‘Boost’ coding/building kit for kids

Why it matters to you

Want to get your kids into the lucrative career of coding? A good starting place may be Lego’s upcoming $160 kit for building robots and more.

Budding builders of robots who are eager to get their hands on the Lego Boost Creative Toolbox can now pre-order the kit for $160 .

The coding kit will start shipping on August 1, and includes more than 840 Lego blocks, a Lego Move Hub, an interactive motor, a color/distance sensor, and a playmat. Users will be able build five multifunctional creations using this kit: a robot that moves and talks, a rover with four different tool attachments, a musical instrument, and more.

Lego’s upcoming coding kit pushes kids ages 7 to 12 to perform two tasks: build the device, and then program its instructions. To start, kids download the free Lego app to their tablet, and then select what they want to build. From there, the app will provide instructions on how to build the mode. After that, it’s coding time!

For the coding process, the app provides an easy-to-use interface that features a line of “blocks” residing at the bottom of the screen, each providing a simple command. These blocks are dragged and dropped into the main window to create a string of commands, telling the model what to do. These commands are sent from the tablet to the model via a Bluetooth Low Energy component located within the Move Hub on the just-built model.

In addition to Bluetooth, the Move Hub consists of a light, an internal tilt sensor, an activation button, and two encoded motors. The interactive motor is another encoded motor while the color/distance sensor detects color, motion, and distance. This sensor can serve as a light as well.

Here are the five devices you can build with Lego’s upcoming coding kit:

Vernie the Robot

• Moves and talks.
• Head activates a shoulder-mounted spring-loaded shooter.
• Stands over 10 inches tall.

M.T.R.4 (Multi-Tooled Rover 4)

• It’s a moving rover.
• Includes four different tool attachments, including a spring-loaded shooter.
• Measures 4.72 inches high x 9.05 inches long x 5.51 inches wide.

Guitar 4000

• Learn how to create and play a song.
• Includes pitch bend and sound effects.
• Measures 1.96  x 16.53 x 5.90 inches.

Frankie the Cat

• A meowing, moody, robotic pet.
• Moves its Lego-based tail.
• Requires feeding.
• Stands 6.70 inches tall.

AutoBuilder

• It’s an automated production line.
• Capable of producing miniature Lego models.
• Measures 10.62 x 7.48 x 6.29 inches.

In addition to coding, the free tablet app includes “an array of exciting activities” customized for each model. Lego says the included playmat is provided for specific activities, and the kit even includes a special Lego Boost poster for kids to tack onto their wall. Unfortunately, the $160 kit doesn’t ship with batteries, thus customers must check the product packaging for the battery type and quantity.

To grab Lego’s new coding kit for kids, head here.

Even adults may want LEGO’s upcoming ‘Boost’ coding/building kit for kids

Why it matters to you

Want to get your kids into the lucrative career of coding? A good starting place may be Lego’s upcoming $160 kit for building robots and more.

Budding builders of robots who are eager to get their hands on the Lego Boost Creative Toolbox can now pre-order the kit for $160 .

The coding kit will start shipping on August 1, and includes more than 840 Lego blocks, a Lego Move Hub, an interactive motor, a color/distance sensor, and a playmat. Users will be able build five multifunctional creations using this kit: a robot that moves and talks, a rover with four different tool attachments, a musical instrument, and more.

Lego’s upcoming coding kit pushes kids ages 7 to 12 to perform two tasks: build the device, and then program its instructions. To start, kids download the free Lego app to their tablet, and then select what they want to build. From there, the app will provide instructions on how to build the mode. After that, it’s coding time!

For the coding process, the app provides an easy-to-use interface that features a line of “blocks” residing at the bottom of the screen, each providing a simple command. These blocks are dragged and dropped into the main window to create a string of commands, telling the model what to do. These commands are sent from the tablet to the model via a Bluetooth Low Energy component located within the Move Hub on the just-built model.

In addition to Bluetooth, the Move Hub consists of a light, an internal tilt sensor, an activation button, and two encoded motors. The interactive motor is another encoded motor while the color/distance sensor detects color, motion, and distance. This sensor can serve as a light as well.

Here are the five devices you can build with Lego’s upcoming coding kit:

Vernie the Robot

• Moves and talks.
• Head activates a shoulder-mounted spring-loaded shooter.
• Stands over 10 inches tall.

M.T.R.4 (Multi-Tooled Rover 4)

• It’s a moving rover.
• Includes four different tool attachments, including a spring-loaded shooter.
• Measures 4.72 inches high x 9.05 inches long x 5.51 inches wide.

Guitar 4000

• Learn how to create and play a song.
• Includes pitch bend and sound effects.
• Measures 1.96  x 16.53 x 5.90 inches.

Frankie the Cat

• A meowing, moody, robotic pet.
• Moves its Lego-based tail.
• Requires feeding.
• Stands 6.70 inches tall.

AutoBuilder

• It’s an automated production line.
• Capable of producing miniature Lego models.
• Measures 10.62 x 7.48 x 6.29 inches.

In addition to coding, the free tablet app includes “an array of exciting activities” customized for each model. Lego says the included playmat is provided for specific activities, and the kit even includes a special Lego Boost poster for kids to tack onto their wall. Unfortunately, the $160 kit doesn’t ship with batteries, thus customers must check the product packaging for the battery type and quantity.

To grab Lego’s new coding kit for kids, head here.

Mobile Nations is looking for data analysts, growth hackers and more!

Come work with the coolest cats in town! And Kevin.

Ready to make the exciting next step in your career? Mobile Nations has been growing ever since 1999, and we’ve reached the point where we need to bring on some new awesome people to do some new awesome things. Are you a data expert or a deals fiend or an SEO guru? We might just have the job for you.

Mobile Nations Data & SEO Analyst

Us: The leading mobile technology news, editorial, and community network, always growing and exploring new opportunities. World traveler. Virgo.

You: An experienced expert in keyword analysis, search intent analysis, search engine optimization, and content analysis. Must love blogs.

Apply for this position

Mobile Nations Product Growth Hacker

Mobile Nations has been around since 1999, but we like to think that we’re nowhere near done growing. We’ve conquered the smartphone space and now we’re expanding into VR, deals, automotive, and more. Because we’re constantly evolving and improving our content and our sites and our processes, we want to bring on data, metrics, and testing expert to ensure we’re making the most of everything we do. Do you love A/B testing, bounce rates, and funnels? This gig’s for you!

Apply for this position

Mobile Nations Owned Media Manager

Fun tidbit: Mobile Nations’ internal ad and sponsorship units receive more than 400 million impressions every month. Direct sponsorship opportunities allow Mobile Nations to both generate the revenue needed for our operations and serve our readers better with more relevant and less painful ads. With an expanding focus on direct sponsorship campaigns, we want to bring on an expert in monetization and performance optimization to manage scheduling, management, prioritization, creatives, deployment, and reporting.

Apply for this position

In case you missed it we’re also looking for some word people over @ Thrifter:

Thrifter Freelance Writer

Do you love finding good deals? So do we! The newest site in the Mobile Nations family needs your help. Thrifter.com is looking for writers to contribute to our growing deals team with our mission: finding the best deals on the greatest products! It’s more than just mere deals — it’s about helping our readers live a smart and sensible and awesome life. We need proficient and prolific writers who can self-organize and self-motivate their way to finding the best deals on the planet. Is that you?

Apply for this position

Windows Mixed Reality: What is it, what headsets are available and when can you get it?

Over the past few years, we’ve seen an increase in the conversation around breaking content and experiences out from a device’s display, and into a new world of perception and interactivity.

Virtual reality is something that we are familiar with, thanks to devices like Google Cardboard at the very simple end of the scale, through to Oculus Rift and HTC Vive at the top of the experience.

Microsoft made a lot of noise around its holographic augmented reality system – HoloLens – before moving into a more mainstream position with a new wave of “mixed reality” devices.

But what is mixed reality and when can you get your hands on it?

What is mixed reality?

In some ways, the notion of “mixed reality” is a way to frame Microsoft’s VR arrangement in a different position to those already on the market. You can understand why: with devices like HTC Vive already needing a Windows PC to run, how is this any different?

Much of the mixed reality experience is the same as you’d expect from virtual reality in that you wear a headset, watch the screen in front of your eyes and have your movements tracked so you can move around the virtual world.

Where mixed reality wants to make a point of differentiation is in offering a system of front-mounted cameras that can give you either real world objects in your virtual world, or virtual objects in the real world. This is in essence a fusion of VR and AR (augmented reality).

The key difference to some of the mobile VR systems is that Windows Mixed Reality is designed to make you feel like you’re a participant in the action, rather than a spectator, as many basic VR experiences are on rails – you follow a path looking around in an entirely synthetic world.

What’s the difference between VR, MR and AR?

Just for clarification, here are some definitions of these three systems at a very basic level:

• Virtual reality (VR): An artificial world in which you interact with virtual objects.
• Augmented reality (AR): Virtual objects added to the real world, like Snapchat filters.
• Mixed reality (MR): Real objects added to a virtual world, or virtual objects added to the real world, or just virtual objects in a virtual world.

With these things in mind, you can very much see how the creation of the term “mixed reality” is a catch all, covering all bases and a range of opportunities for use.

Mixed reality is a term that’s gaining some traction. Where augmented reality sounds complicated, virtual reality has connotations that link back to older ideas from movies like Tron, The Lawnmower Man or Virtuosity.

Mixed reality on the other hand is all new, giving you a suggestion or the real and artificial worlds working in union, which gives Microsoft a stronger foundation to mount this latest assault.

How does Windows Mixed Reality work?

One of the founding principles of Microsoft’s system is that it’s designed to work in Windows 10, as part of Windows 10 and available to a wide range of Windows 10 users.

Microsoft has detailed that Mixed Reality is designed to break out of the constraints of mobile VR in which you’re static, or tracked VR in which your movements are monitored by cameras, but limited by the range of the play area in the case of HTC Vive, PS VR or Oculus Rift.

In many ways, Microsoft’s “inside-out tracking” is the point that’s different, keeping the movement tracking within the device. It’s the ability to provide six degrees of tracking from the headset in a Windows 10 environment that really dictates how Microsoft Mixed Reality works.

Microsoft is calling this “world scale”, a counter point to HTC’s “room scale” for the HTC Vive.

Microsoft is claiming that HoloLens is its first mixed reality headset and while that laid the foundations in many ways – it is self-contained, doing all the tracking and running the software too – the experience of HoloLens is closer to traditional augmented reality than virtual reality, because you’re looking through the visor at the real world.

• Microsoft HoloLens preview: An augmented vision that’s still very much in the future

None of Microsoft’s Mixed Reality systems have followed this lead yet, instead all offering a display like other VR headsets (or HMD head-mounted displays). The first two development devices are also tethered, connected via HDMI and USB, again like existing VR systems. They do, however, feature this “inside-out tracking”, which makes them a different proposition to those already on the market.

What these headsets can do is use the front-mounted cameras to recognise the room or objects in the room and add these to the virtual scene viewed through the headset, hence making an MR world.

This also extends to the controllers. Microsoft has announced Mixed Reality controllers which can be tracked by the headset too, again meaning there’s no need for other sensors.

Microsoft

What are the Windows Mixed Reality headset tech specs?

There are currently two Windows MR headsets available to developers and some of the tech specs for these have been published. The headsets coming from Acer and HP both offer similar specs, breaking down like this:

• Two 1440 x 1440 LCD panels
• Hinged front display
• 95-degree field of view
• 90Hz refresh rate
• 3.5 headphone socket for audio and microphone
• Single cable for HDMI and USB 3.0, 4-metres long
• Inside-out tracking
• Both will need connecting to a Windows 10 PC.

Of course, the headset is only part of the puzzle as you need to drive it and feed it with information. Microsoft has made recommendations for minimum specs for Mixed Reality, which again frames this as a mass market device, rather than something that’s going to be limited to those with a hardcore gaming machine:

• Intel Core i5 dual-core with hyperthreading
• Intel HD Graphics 620 or DX12 compatible GPU
• 8GB RAM
• HDMI 1.4, 2.0 or DisplayPort 1.3
• USB 3.0
• 100GB SSD
• Bluetooth 4.0

Based on these specs, you’d be able to use Microsoft Mixed Reality with plenty of normal laptops and older PCs, unlike the existing systems like HTC Vive and Oculus Rift, which have much more demanding tech specs. Currently, developers are being advised to have a more powerful PC driving the headset.

What is Mixed Reality like?

We’ve had the chance to sample the Acer Mixed Reality headset and first impressions are that the experience is very much as you expect from current VR devices.

The thing that really strikes home about the Windows MR system is that it involves almost no setup, it’s almost like an instant VR solution, plug and play if you like, with no messing around with cameras – which is a real bonus for users.

As for the software experience, our demo was Cliff House, a Microsoft demo where you can roam around and experience various Windows tools. It’s a functional demo rather than anything to get excited about, but we found that it didn’t make us nauseous and the ability to just flip the visor up and return to the normal world provides instant escape.

• Acer Windows Mixed Reality preview: Will this $300 headset bring VR to the masses?

What Mixed Reality headsets are available?

At the moment the only headsets available are HoloLens, Acer and HP headsets and these are all designed for developers. However, there’s already a full line-up of devices that have been announced from partners including those mentioned above as well as Asus, Dell and Lenovo.

Microsoft

Acer Windows mixed reality headset

As we’ve mentioned a couple of times, Acer has been quick off the mark to announce its dev kit for Mixed Reality, so we’ve already had the chance to take a look at what the company has to offer. The headset is currently on pre-order in the US and Canada, for developers only.

• Read more on Acer’s Mixed Reality headset

Microsoft

HP Windows Mixed Reality headset

HP like Acer has been quick off the mark, offering a headset that’s available for pre-order. It essentially offers the same hardware as the Acer and the only difference that’s called out in the tech specs is the double-padded headband for “all day comfort” – not that you’d wear it all day, because you’d probably do yourself an injury.

Microsoft

Asus Windows Mixed Reality headset

Asus looks to be taking a slightly different approach, with a front visor design that’s polygonal, so it looks super cool.

Microsoft

Dell Windows Mixed Reality headset

Dell’s headset takes a slightly different approach with a lighter build than the others that are being showcased. We know that it will have pads that can be moved around for better comfort, but it looks lighter and less bulky than some of the other options. It also reminds us a little bit of Eve from Wall-e for some reason.

Microsoft

Lenovo Windows Mixed Reality headset

Lenovo is reportedly targeting affordability with its headset according to Microsoft, and prototypes have already been shown off at CES 2017, although the device had no name at the time. The specs reported at the time sound the same as those we’ve listed here, with 1440 x 1440 pixel displays. Lenovo said it wouldn’t be making motion controllers, but we imagine that all will work with Microsoft’s version.

How much is a Mixed Reality headset going to cost?

HoloLens might have put the fear into some with its $3000 asking price for the development kit. However, Acer and HP have put a price on their MR headsets. These are both still developer editions, but priced at $299 and $329 respectively, they are hugely affordable.

We suspect that the price will drop slightly for consumer release so that Mixed Reality headsets become a realistic accessory, rather than a major buying decision like HTC Vive and Oculus Rift.

When will Windows Mixed Reality headsets be available?

The dev units are scheduled to be available in August 2017 and other consumer devices are due in stores before the holiday season, i.e., Christmas.

HP’s Cortana device will be a standalone speaker with AI built in

Following the lead of Amazon and Google, Microsoft is getting in on the connected AI speaker action with its own Cortana-powered devices.

First there was Harman Kardon with the Invoke, and now HP has announced it’s also looking at Cortana devices. Although HP’s first device hasn’t been fully unveiled, Microsoft showed off an HP speaker at Computex. A Microsoft spokesperson told Pocket-lint the HP speaker is a standalone device featuring the intelligence of Cortana, Microsoft’s version of an assistant, similar to Apple’s Siri and Amazon’s Alexa.

More specifically, we’re told the HP speaker has Cortana intelligence built-in and does not need to connect to a Windows 10 PC. But reports have claimed the assistant can connect to your Windows 10 PC, while “artist renders” suggested the device will look like Amazon’s Echo Dot. It definitely does not need to be connected to a Windows 10 PC to work, though, and in terms of design, nothing has been confirmed.

• Microsoft Cortana skills: Which are available now and how do they work?

When we asked for more information, a spokesperson for Microsoft said the company is excited about this partnership with HP but that it has “nothing else to share at this time”. It looks as though HP’s approach is to give you separate accessory just for Cortana interaction. Microsoft’s plan is to march into all areas with Cortana, much as Amazon is doing with Alexa and Google with Assistant.

It’ll be interesting to not only see how HP’s standalone Cortana device compares to existing smart speaker rivals, such as Google Home and Echo, but also the standalone Cortana speaker from Harman Kardon.

It feels like there’s a lot more to be revealed in this story.

• Microsoft unveils the Surface Laptop, a Windows 10 S device
• Microsoft will now release major Windows 10 updates twice a year
• Windows 10 S is a streamlined version of Windows for education 

Best of Computex 2017: The top 5 tech products on show

Pocket-lint has been scouring the show floor at Computex 2017 in order to find the very best products.

The Taipai-based show started on 30 May, and ever since then, we’ve been gleaning through the press conferences and more to determine what’s noteworthy. We managed to narrow it to five products – with a couple of them more overarching concepts than actual hardware. However, they’re design templates and processing chipsets that could change the way we perceive PCs and gaming laptops for years to come.

Here are our top five tech products at this year’s Computex.

Intel Core i9 X-Series

Intel

• Intel Core i9 X-Series is a hardcore gamer’s delight

Desktop processors aren’t exactly exciting. With each new one, you can expect more power and more efficiency. So, when a company comes along and introduces a new processor with an insane amount of horsepower, especially at a time when everyone is clamoring for more of it, you take notice. Intel’s Core i9 is the first consumer desktop processor to pack 18 cores and 36 threads into one piece of silicon.

That matters when consumers are streaming more 4K video and jumping into more virtual reality experiences than ever before. The more cores and threads there are in a single CPU, the more dedicated tasks it can handle simultaneously without compromising performance. Needless to say, a 18-core, 36-thread processor is a bit much for some people, but for others using intensive apps it’s a no-brainer.

A video editor, for instance, will want Intel’s $1,700 CPU. Or anyone who compiles code or runs VR experiences or live-streams games or tends to manage several interrelated tasks at once (think: streaming, recoding, broadcasting, chatting, etc — all simultaneously). Intel even upgraded its Turbo Boost in order to give a pick-up to the two top-performing cores for single-threaded or light-threaded workloads.

MSI GS63VR Stealth Pro

Pocket-lint

• Computex 2017: All the announcements that matter

If you want a powerful gaming laptop, you usually have to choose between thick, heavy machines with monster graphics cards or slim ones with lower-performing GPUs. In other words, hefty laptops tends to equal more power. However, MSI’s new laptop, the GS63VR Stealth Pro, makes it so we no longer have to compromise. It packs a Nvidia GTX 1070 graphics and a 15-inch HDR (120Hz, 3ms) display.

And it’s just 17.7mm thick and 4.2 pounds heavy. MSI said it’s slimmest laptop available with this GPU and display. While the late 2016 version of the MSI GS63VR had the same exact thickness and weight, it packed Nividia’s GTX 1060 GPU. The updated model also has MSI’s Cooler Boost Trinity technology with five different heat pipes and advanced “Whirlwind” fan blades to keep your system cool.

Other features include a non-mechanical SteelSeries keyboard with customisable backlighting and ESS Sabre audio MSI also has yet to announce detailed specifications or pricing for the laptop. However, we imagine it’ll be available with Intel 7th Generation and quad-core CPUs.

Asus Zenbook Pro UX550

Pocket-lint

• Asus Zenbook Pro UX550: Next-level machine with a 4K touchscreen

Asus’ Zenbook range has quite the following, thanks to its very competitive prices. At Computex, Asus announced the latest addition to the family: Zenbook Pro UX550. it’s is a revamp of the original Zenbook Pro, which launched a couple of years ago, and it looks like Asus has really gone to the next level in terms of battery life and portability. It’s slim, light, rocks some great specs, and is a bit of a looker.

Asus shaved almost 2mm off the earlier model, at 18.9mm, and the weight has dropped from 2.26kg to a mere 1.8kg. It still manages to squeeze in a 14-hour battery life and can charge to 60-per cent capacity in 49 minutes. The top-shelf model even runs on Intel’s H-series core i7 processor and boasts a Nvidia GTX 1050 Ti graphics card, up to 1TB of PCIe x4 SSD storage, and 16GB DDR4 RAM.

The display is another strong point with a 15.6-inch UHD 4K NanoEdge touchscreen with super slim 7.3mm bezels that give an 83-per cent screen-to-body ratio. There’s also a quad speaker set up by Harman Kardon, two USB-C Thunderbolt 3 ports, two USB 3.1 ports a full sized HDMI port, and a micro SD card reader, and a fingerprint scanner for Microsoft Hello. And it ships with Windows 10 Pro or Home.

Asus said it will start off at just over a £1,000 when it lands in July.

Nvidia Max-Q design

Nvidia

• Nvidia Max-Q could ensure your next gaming laptop has MacBook looks

Nvidia has unveiled Max-Q, a design approach that major gaming laptop manufacturers can adopt for a series of Nvidia card-packed notebooks. They will be powerful and designed with gaming firmly at the forefront, but they will also be MacBook-thin and useable as a great, travel anywhere, multipurpose laptops. Max-Q laptops will sport GeForce GTX 1080, 1070, or 1060 graphics processing.

They will be engineered with sophisticated thermal and electrical design in order to maintain a thin footprint yet keep cool and quite in operation. Nvidia’s proprietary WhisperMode technology will also ensure a Max-Q laptop runs quietly. Manufacturers signed on to produce Max-Q machines include Acer, Asus, Alienware, Gigabyte, Lenovo, and MSI. Expect them to appear on the market from 27 June.

Asus ROG Zephyrus

Pocket-lint

• Asus ROG Zephyrus: Slim gaming laptop with Nvidia’s latest architecture

Republic of Gamers’ (ROG) has unveiled an exceptionally impressive-looking gaming laptop at Computex: the Zephyrus. Essentially forget everything you think you know about the necessary form factor for a powerful and efficient gaming laptop, because the Zephyrus is packing a vast amount of power in a minuscule package. It’s just 17.9mm thin at the thickest point and 16.9mm at the thinnest.

The Zephyrus can run GeForce GTX 1080 without any overheating, thanks to an ingenious cooling system ROG calls Active Aerodynamic System. Essentially, there is a flap on the rear of the base that flips out as you open the lid, allowing for a clear airflow. Plus, heat escapes from the large perforated area above the keyboard. The lid is made of contoured steel and there’s a lovely diamond cut edge.

It also boasts a 15.6-inch IPA panel with a 1080p resolution, 7th-generation Core i7 Kaby Lake processor, up to 24GB of RAM, four M.2 PCI ports for super-fast SSD storage, multiple USB ports, including USB-C, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and an HDMI video output (no wired Ethernet, though). Unfortunately, it’s an expensive machine. It costs $2,699 in the US, which will set you back £2,600.