Sphero’s new company wants to bring intelligent robots into your home

Sphero is mainly known for its connected toys, and, of course, Star Wars’ BB-8 Droid (which it also turned into a very popular gadget). But the company has also been working on grander plans all the while. Today, Sphero announced that it’s spinning off its advanced robotics division into a new company, Misty Robotics, which will be focused on bringing intelligent personal robots into homes and offices. Surprisingly, the company plans to release its first product next year, TechCrunch reports.

Misty Robotics isn’t offering many details about its plans yet — though you can glimpse a peek at one of its prototype devices in the above image. In a press release, the company says the robots will be “seen and treated as our friends, our teammates, and a part of our families.” It’s basically going for the full science-fiction approach, envisioning robots that’ll help us with a variety of tasks. Misty’s CEO, Tim Enwall, doesn’t think the world is ready for a truly personal robot yet. But he sees the firm playing a role in getting us there, starting with products targeted at hobbyists.

“Even the first-generation of product will embody the principles required for putting a robot in everyone’s home and office,” Enwall told TechCrunch. “It’s just that this first version will be targeted at innovators.”

Sphero is in a unique place to explore the future of robotics. It’s had plenty of hardware experience with its original smart ball, as well as projects like its new Spider-Man toy. Anki, another connected toy maker, is already dabbling in robotics with the adorable Cozmo — though that’s far from something that could actually help you at home. Based on Misty’s pitch, it sounds like it’s aiming for a better version of ASUS’s Zenbo, which is cute, but not exactly the robot assistant we’ve been waiting for.

Source: Misty Robotics

Kickstarter Gold brings back successful creators for new projects

Kickstarter is bringing back some of its VIPs for another round of crowdfunding. The new project, called Kickstarter Gold, is a return of over 65 creators who have new takes on past successful campaigns.

The crowdfunding site selected creators based on past success as well as their creativity and innovation. According to Kickstarter, repeat campaigners bring in a third of all successful project pledges. And Gold follows the company’s request earlier this year for more ambitious projects.

Some of the projects being offered by Kickstarter veterans include Star Trek-themed 3D-printing pens from 3Doodler, a new animated short on African-American achievement from Karyn Parsons and a tile game to help people learn Chinese from the maker of Chineasy. Also, the creator of the 2015 campaign to make a music album for cats will be Kickstarting a new album that can be enjoyed by both cats and their owners.

The new projects start rolling out today and will continue through the coming weeks. See all of the Kickstarter Gold projects here.

Source: Kickstarter

Samsung exclusives are the last thing Google Play Music needs

Back in April, Samsung used the launch of its excellent Galaxy S8 smartphone to make a small but important announcement about a partnership with Google. Google Play Music would be the default music player on all Samsung smartphones, and Google would develop “exclusive features” for the company’s devices. That’s good for Samsung and its customers — now the company isn’t wasting time building apps nobody wants that simply duplicate ones that Android already has. And it’s a win for Google, whose music service is now the default on this top-selling Android phone.

But we’re now seeing the first signs that deal is going to be a bummer for everyone else using Play Music. Some enterprising Reddit users noticed a new Samsung-exclusive feature called New Release Radio: a personalized station that surfaces new songs every day. It’s similar to Spotify’s extremely popular Discover Weekly playlist and Apple Music’s customized New Music Mix (also updated every Friday). But, at least to start, this station appears to be exclusive to Samsung users. (We’ve reached out to Samsung and Google for comment on this, but neither company has responded yet.)

Oddly, Samsung and Google still haven’t made an official announcement about it. But that didn’t stop Reddit from figuring out a workaround so that anyone could access this station; I’m listening to it right now on my iPad. But most average users won’t even know this station exists. And that’s a shame: This is exactly the kind of feature Google needs to add to stay competitive with Spotify and Apple.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Play Music: It’s a lot cleaner and simpler to navigate than Apple Music, and it lets me upload my own music library to live alongside the streaming catalog, something Spotify doesn’t offer on smartphones. I’ve also come to enjoy the vast swath of stations that Google features; they often help me find new tunes. But some of Play Music’s simplicity comes from the fact that Google doesn’t update it very often and it’s lacking some key features that Spotify and Apple include — most notably any form of social integration.

Google’s slower development cycle makes sense. Spotify’s entire business rests on the success of its music service, and Apple has made music a tentpole of its strategy for almost two decades now. But Google has a number of vastly more important initiatives that take precedence over music. That’s what makes this supposed Samsung exclusive so frustrating: It’s not often that we see genuinely useful new features hit Play Music. When one shows up that’s only meant for a small number of people, it’s damn frustrating.

Sadly, that’s not likely to change any time soon. Spotify and Apple’s subscriber bases are growing rapidly; it’s basically a two-horse race at this point. And Google has made it clear that it would offer exclusives to Samsung going forward. I’m just hoping that exclusive features like New Release Radio aren’t kept exclusive forever, because I’m sure many of them will be notable improvements to a solid service. But if new Play Music features are kept exclusive to Samsung owners — even if only temporarily — it’s going to be hard for me to recommend or use it anymore.

PayPal ‘instantly’ transfers money to your bank account

PayPal can be frustrating if you want to put funds in your bank account. It can take a day or more for transfers to go through, and that’s a problem when rival services like Zelle can promise speedier access to your money without needing a separate app. To that end, PayPal is rolling out an instant transfer option in the US. So long as you’re willing to accept a 25-cent transaction fee, your funds will hit your bank account within a few minutes, and no more than 30 minutes in the worst cases. If you withdraw money from PayPal before a shopping trip, it should be ready to use by the time you get to the store.

The service is initially available only to a handful of PayPal users as part of a beta, but it should eventually be available to all Americans with “eligible” MasterCard or Visa debit cards in the months ahead. And if you’re not in a rush, regular bank transfers will remain free.

The addition could help if you’ve been drifting toward alternatives like Zelle. You may be more likely to use PayPal if you know that you can always get your cash in a hurry. At the same time, it’s another way for PayPal to generate income. A 25-cent fee may not sound like much, but it could add up. The company racked up 1.7 billion transactions just in its latest quarter — if even a fraction of those users pay to speed things up, that could amount to tens of millions of dollars in revenue. You may not like giving up a tiny amount of your money just to get your money, but it would definitely help PayPal’s bottom line.

Source: PayPal

Tidal’s ‘On Air’ podcast network features five exclusive shows

Jay Z’s forthcoming album isn’t the only new content coming to Tidal this month. The streaming music site announced Tuesday that it is following the lead of Google Play, Deezer, and Spotify and now offering podcasts to its subscribers.

The company already has five acts lined up for what it’s dubbed, TIDAL On Air. Angie Martinez and Minya “Miss Info” Oh will co-host “In Real Life” where, each month, they discuss “music, motherhood and everything else that happens off the clock.” “Rap Radar” host Elliott Wilson is relaunching his influential podcast for Tidal with co-host Brian “B. Dot” Miller, which will air weekly.

Stefi Chacon is slated to interview the biggest names in Latin pop from Miami on her weekly podcast “En La Mira”. And for the comedy nerds, Cipha Sounds’ “The Guest Spot” will feature stand-up comics debating the topic du mois. Finally, legendary DJ Luis Jimenez has agreed to produce a number of specials for commemorative days like Hispanic Heritage Month and Colombian Independence Day for the service.

The first episodes of In Real Life, En La Mira and Rap Radar are all currently available for Tidal subscribers. The Guest Spot and Jimenez’s specials will become available once they air.

Spotify beats iTunes to the Windows Store

Microsoft promised back at Build that that a slew of big-name apps would reach the Windows Store, and it’s making good on that vow. Spotify has released a Windows Store version of its app in every country where its streaming music service is available. This isn’t a redesign, for better or worse — Spotify is really just porting its existing app over using Microsoft’s Centennial framework. The biggest immediate difference is that you’ll get updates through the Windows Store. This release is more important in what it represents for Microsoft’s long-term Windows plans than anything else.

As with iTunes (which is only slated to arrive sometime this year), the Spotify launch is really about ensuring that Windows 10 S users have access to must-have software that hasn’t been available in the Windows Store until now. You’re theoretically less likely to jump ship for Google’s Chrome OS if you know that you can get a comparable Windows 10 S PC with native desktop apps, not just web or Android apps. While there’s no guarantee Microsoft will succeed with this strategy, it was certainly going to face an uphill battle without Spotify’s support.

Source: Spotify News, Windows Store

Microsoft improves Office’s hands-free typing with Dictate

Microsoft has released a new app called Dictate. It’s an add-in for Word, Outlook and Powerpoint and uses Cortana’s speech-recognition technology to let you speak what you want to type.

The company is obviously not the first to work on dictation technology. Nuance’s Dragon software has been around for awhile and is available for both desktops and mobile devices. And, last year, Google added more features to its voice typing option in Docs.

Office has already supported voice-to-text typing, but Dictate brings along some new features. It supports more than 20 languages and has a number of commands that let you edit as you go. Simple statements like “new line,” “delete” and “stop dictation” let you manipulate the cursor and correct the text with your voice. Punctuation is also easily managed with voice control.

Another feature offered is real time translation. Just adjust some of the settings and Dictate will type a translation of what you speak. You could speak in Spanish and type in French, for example, and the 20 languages supported for dictation can be translated into over 60.

Right now, Dictate is available for 32- and 64-bit Office and Windows 8.1 is a minimum requirement. The download is free, but because it’s a Microsoft Garage project, it’s not clear what the future holds for the app.

Source: Microsoft

OnePlus Mocks Removal of Headphone Jack in iPhone 7 While Copying its Design for New OnePlus 5

OnePlus today introduced its new flagship device, the OnePlus 5. During the event where the new phone was announced, OnePlus threw some shade at Apple, mocking the removal of the headphone jack in the iPhone 7 and the iPhone 7 Plus.

“On the bottom, you’ll notice that we ditched the 3.5mm headphone jack. The elegance of the overall design is instantly heightened. And who needs a headphone jack anyway? That’s why Bluetooth exists, right?” deadpanned Diego Heinz, a designer at OnePlus. “Just kidding. Of course the OnePlus 5 has a headphone jack.”

Clip courtesy of iPhone Addict
Heinz goes on to pull up a tweet on the subject of headphone jacks, displaying a poll where 88 percent of 8,000 responders said they “like headphone jacks.”

Ahead of the launch of the OnePlus 5, there was a lot of discussion on whether OnePlus would follow in Apple’s footsteps and remove the headphone jack from the device. There were early design leaks and cases that featured no headphone jack, sparking speculation and leading to the on-stage joke.

This isn’t the first time an Apple competitor has mocked the company’s design decisions. When Samsung introduced the now-defunct Galaxy Note 7 in August of 2016, Samsung marketing VP Justin Denison made sure to point out the device’s headphone jack. “Want to know what else it comes with?” he asked. “An audio jack. I’m just saying.”

Unlike many of Apple’s design choices, the decision to eliminate the headphone jack from the iPhone 7 and the iPhone 7 Plus has not caught on with other smartphone manufacturers, likely due to the negative reaction from consumers. Though Apple has introduced wire-free AirPods and included Lightning-based EarPods along with the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, many iPhone customers continue mourn the loss of the headphone jack.

Though the OnePlus 5 still has a headphone jack, the company has adopted many other design elements from Apple, with curved edges, rounded rear antenna bands, a dual camera complete with Portrait Mode, and a “Slate Gray” or “Midnight Black” casing. In fact, The Verge called it “a slightly smaller iPhone 7 Plus that runs Android.”

The OnePlus 5, which is priced starting at $479 for 64GB of storage, features a 5.5-inch AMOLED display, a high-end Snapdragon 835 processor, up to 8GB RAM, fast charging, haptic feedback, a 16-megapixel wide-angle camera, a 20-megapixel telephoto camera, and a 16-megapixel front-facing camera.

Tag: OnePlus
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Uber App Gains Long-Desired Tipping Option

Uber today announced a new “180 Days of Change” initiative that’s designed to improve working conditions for its drivers and bolster its public image. As part of the upcoming changes, Uber plans to implement tipping, a feature that drivers have long desired.

Tipping is currently available in the Uber app in Seattle, Minneapolis, and Houston, with Uber pledging to add more cities over the next few weeks. Tips will be available to all U.S. drivers by the end of July, says the company.

For end users, when a ride is complete, there’s a new option alongside the star rating to add a tip of $1, $2, $5, or a custom amount. The new in-app tipping option is a huge change, as Uber has long resisted tipping with the excuse that it kept the service “hassle-free,” even as competitors like Lyft implemented tips for drivers.

Along with tipping, Uber also announced several other changes that are being implemented starting today. Driver Destination trips will count towards promotions and are available for all U.S. drivers, $2 has been added to the base fare for all teen account trips, drivers will earn a per minute fee for waiting over 2 minutes for riders, a cancellation fee will be implemented if a rider cancels after two minutes (it was 5 minutes), and there’s a new Driver Injury Protection insurance option offered by Aon.

Uber plans to announce and implement additional changes over the course of the next six months.

Tag: Uber
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Apple Adds Phobio as New Mac Trade-In Partner

Apple today updated its Mac recycling program to partner with a new company, replacing longtime partner PowerOn with Phobio, a company that promises a seamless device buyback program. Apple’s recycling program is designed to offer Apple users cash for their old devices by providing simple trade-in options.

Starting today, when you use Apple’s Renew and Recycling program to recycle a Mac desktop or notebook, Apple will now direct you to Phobio’s site where you can find your Mac by entering a serial number. After answering a couple of questions about condition, Phobio offers up a price estimate and lets users choose an Apple Store Gift Card, Paypal, or Virtual Visa Reward as a payment option.

According to a source that spoke to MacRumors about the partnership change, Apple opted to go with Phobio because the site offers higher trade-in values, is easier to navigate, and provides an option for cash payments alongside Apple Store Gift Cards, something that wasn’t available via PowerOn.

Based on our testing, Phobio and PowerOn offer similar trade-in values for many machines, with PowerOn offering a slight edge in value for newer Macs, while Phobio seems to have slightly better pricing for some older models.

Apple is only partnering with Phobio for Mac trade-ins at the current time. For PC trade-ins, Apple continues to work with PowerOn, and for iPad and iPhone trade-ins, Apple is still using longtime partner Brightstar.

Tags: reuse and recycling program, Apple trade-in, Apple environment, environment, Phobio
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