Motorola hosting #hellomotoworld in NYC on July 25

Motorola will announce a number of new products at a press event on July 25.

In what is probably the least surprising event announcement of the summer given all the recent leaks, Motorola is hosting a press event in New York on July 25 to shine a light on some of its latest products.

Dubbed #hellomotoworld — Motorola really likes its hashtagged event names, doesn’t it? — the event should be the place the company announces what is believed to be its 2017 flagship, the Moto Z2 Force, along with a number of new Moto Mods that were, for some reason, pre-announced at an event in Ghana last week. Also possibly on the docket is the Moto X4 which, along with the Moto Z2 Force, may sport a dual camera setup among other niceties like IP68 water resistance and more.

At the beginning of June, Motorola announced the Moto Z2 Play and three new Moto Mods for the Z series, along with additional information about a GamePad Mods that would be available towards the end of the summer. Well, the heady days of summer are here, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to get a firmer release date for that highly-anticipated Mod alongside the Moto Z2 Force.

We’ll know lots more in the coming weeks, so stay tuned.

Moto Z2 Play Review: Bad sequel, better smartphone

Last year’s Moto Z Play was a smartphone with legendary battery life that didn’t break the bank. So, for the sequel, Motorola decided to shrink the battery … and bump up the price. Because … capitalism?

I was as irritated as anyone to see Motorola make that choice, since I really admired the original Z Play’s unique package of affordability and endurance. But what surprised me is that, even despite its shrunken battery (and my accompanying consternation) the Motorola Z2 Play is still a really good phone. Even more surprising: it’s also a pretty good deal — as long as you get it from Verizon.

Curiosity piqued? Click on through to MrMobile’s Moto Z2 Play Review! Then be sure to follow it up with Android Central’s Moto Z2 Play review for the deeper dive, and if you want the full take on all the new Moto Mods coming down the pike … we’ve got that too.

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Healbe’s GoBe 2 calorie tracker teases the future of wearables

Shortly before Apple’s most recent developer conference, rumors began to circulate about the next generation of its watch. Sources suggested that the device would demonstrate a form of noninvasive glucose monitoring — a way to check blood sugar levels without breaching the skin. If possible, the Apple Watch Series 3 would become an essential product for 29 million American diabetics, overnight. It came to nothing, of course, but people are still wondering if there’s a way for smartwatches to sniff our blood and tell us their findings. Thing is, there’s already a watch that professes to do a similar task: the controversial Healbe GoBe.

In order to see what the future of medical wearables could be like, I’ve spent the past few weeks with the new GoBe 2 strapped to my wrist. The device was soft-launched to a group of pre-order customers a few months ago, with more going on sale at some point this fall. If the name tickles a synapse at the back of your brain, it’s because Healbe burst onto the scene in 2014. The company launched an Indiegogo campaign to build a watch that could track how many calories you’d eaten each day. Not your blood sugar, but close enough.

Imagine it: You’d never have to think about logging your calorie intake again; your watch would do it all for you. The claim was ridiculous, but the company managed to secure more than $1 million in backing. Medical professionals and journalists weighed in, saying that the idea was about as feasible as capturing a unicorn fart. Thanks to sites like PandoDaily, the name Healbe became synonymous with companies that tried to sell you a dream and run off with your cash.

A post shared by Healbe (@healbe) on Apr 11, 2017 at 2:37am PDT

The device finally launched a year later, with its signature tracking feature kinda sorta working, but not very well. When we reviewed it, we felt that the watch had too many rough edges to justify people buying it, despite its vastly superior sleep and fitness tracking features. Perhaps the company rushed its first release in response to public pressure, which ostensibly explains why it failed. Now, Healbe believes that its second-generation device is finally ready for prime time and able to do what was promised.

As for the science, Healbe claims that it uses a piezoelectric impedance sensor to push high- and low-frequency signals through your wrist. Shortly after eating, the cells in your bloodstream begin releasing water as they absorb the new glucose. The device, so the company says, can use the impedance signals to look at the size and shape of the cells, and track the change in water. From there, it’s just a case of using fancy math to calculate the amount of food you’ve noshed in a sitting.

One thing that Healbe’s representatives went to great pains to explain is that the human body isn’t as simple as you may expect. The initial pitch mistakenly hinted that, at some point after you’d eaten a sandwich, the watch would simply ping and tell you that you’d consumed 233 calories. But most meals take between four and six hours to digest as the slurry of chewed food churns through our bodies. Rather than looking at the micro, I was told, I needed to see the GoBe 2 as a way of understanding the macro.

The device itself is a little more elegant than its predecessor, although that’s not saying much. It still just fits under a shirt sleeve, although you’ll be unable to pretend it’s anything but a clunky-looking wearable. The new model’s case is all black, and gone is the top layer of metal that demarcated the display in the first generation. A single button activates the display and cycles through the various screens, from telling the time to measuring your calorie balance.

Most of the interesting bits are contained within its companion app, which elegantly shows off your vital statistics. It’s broken down into five subsections: “Energy Balance,” Hydration, Heart Rate, Sleep and Stress. The first one combines activity tracking and calorie monitoring to provide you with a single figure, showing whether you’re in calorie credit or deficit each day. It’s calculated by subtracting the activity you’ve completed against the food you’ve consumed, so, depending on how good you’ve been, it’ll be a plus or minus figure.

The Healbe GoBe 2 Dashboard

Daniel Cooper

As for the calorie counting itself, you get a series of figures breaking down the calories taken in, and how many are fat, carbs and protein. A graph then shows you absorption over the past day, running from midnight to midnight. It’s good to note that you’ll see spikes in calorie burn in the small hours of the morning too, as your body works through the day’s food.

Unlike the first-generation GoBe, you don’t need to tell the device when you’re going to eat; it does it all automatically. So looking at the graph for an average day, there’s a lot of burning as I sleep, and then a big spike shortly after I eat breakfast. Then the graph spikes shrink through the morning before shooting back up again at lunchtime, and so forth. While I wasn’t expecting a constant and precise record of my consumption, I found the tracking to be pretty close to my handwritten notes.

Hydration is another issue, and the watch is obsessed with ensuring that I get enough fluids, even though I thought I was a good drinker. It will often buzz at me, instructing me to take on more water, even if I’m on the cusp of falling asleep — at least until I’d set its reminder window to remind me to drink only during daylight hours. After all, at one point I was full to bursting after I chain-drank the better part of three liters of green tea, and I was still being advised that I needed to drink more.

Similarly, the sleep tracking is some of the most accurate I’ve seen, outlining periods of REM sleep, stress and anxiety through the night. Similarly, it’s the first “stress”-counting wearable that has actually worked, vibrating with the warning “Emotion” during a particularly fractious conversation with my other half. It all adds up to a device that actually kinda does what was promised, which is probably the biggest surprise of all of this.

The questions that linger are simple: whether Apple will adopt a technology like this in a future version of its watch, and if it can be tweaked to calculate blood sugar. On the first point, the biggest obstacle to its use would be the GoBe’s atrocious battery life — it lasts 24 hours between charges. The Watch itself has an even shorter lifespan, and it would take a radical redesign to make it practical.

As for whether the technology could be used to track blood sugar levels, that will come down to how well the algorithms can be tweaked. If Healbe’s Flow technology is legitimate, and it does turn out to be capable of tracking food consumption, then it’s entirely plausible and possible. Although Apple will be held to a vastly higher standard than Healbe, especially given the latter company’s lack of credibility.

Testing this device, I expected very little from it, believing that its signature feature was simply too impossible to work. But the Healbe GoBe 2 is a very good health and fitness tracker, offering insights and proactive advice that I appreciate in a wearable device. It offers lifestyle metrics that other companies would dream of being able to offer, and reading my stats has become a mild obsession. As a consequence, the company has earned a second chance at a first impression.

Source: Healbe

You can now tip your Uber driver in select cities

Uber has been trying to win back the hearts and minds of its drivers and riders lately. With board members resigning, the CEO stepping down, and apology emails to drivers in NYC, the beleaguered ride-sharing company needs a couple of wins. Last month, the company promised some changes to make driving for Uber better, including tipping. Today, Uber is taking the feature live in 121 different cities in the US and Canada.

Previously, riders who wanted to tip their drivers had to do so separately from the Uber app, with cash or other form of electronic payment. Now passengers will see a new screen after a ride is completed, letting you tip your driver whenever is convenient for you, similar to how you rate drivers. The tip is private, as it will be associated with the trip, not your name, and won’t be assessed a service fee. Drivers will need to download the latest Uber Driver app and then enable the Accept Tips system from there. They’ll also be able to track tips and cash them out to their debit card with Uber’s Instant Pay system.

Uber sent us a current list of cities with the new tipping feature, below. Tips should roll out to every US and Canadian city by the end of July.

• Adirondack, NY
• Albany, NY
• Amarillo, TX
• Anchorage, AK
• Ann Arbor, MI
• Augusta, GA
• Bakersfield, CA
• Baton Rouge, LA
• Beaumont, TX
• Bellingham, WA
• Bloomington, IN
• Boise, ID
• Boston, MA
• Bowling Green, KY
• Bozeman/Butte, MT
• Buffalo, NY
• Burlington, VT
• Calgary (CAN)
• Carbondale, CO
• Charleston, SC
• Cleveland, OH
• Coastal Georgia
• Coeur d’Alene, ID
• Columbia, SC
• Columbia, MO
• Corpus Christi, TX
• Dayton, OH
• Delaware
• Dubuque, IA
• Duluth, MN
• Eastern Idaho
• Eastern North Carolina
• Eastern Washington
• Eau Claire, WI
• Edmonton (CAN)
• El Paso, TX
• Erie, PA
• Fayetteville, AR
• Fayetteville, NC
• Flagstaff, AZ
• Fort Collins, CO
• Fort Myers-Naples, FL
• Gallup, NM
• Grand Forks, ND
• Greater Maine
• Greater Williamsport
• Hampton Roads, VA
• Harrisburg, PA
• Hattiesburg, MS
• Honolulu, HI
• Inland Empire, CA
• Jackson, MS
• Kalispell, MT
• Kauai, HI
• Kingston, NY
• Knoxville, TN
• Lafayette, LA
• Lansing, MI
• Laredo, TX
• Las Cruces, NM
• Lawrence, KS
• Lehigh Valley, PA
• Little Rock, AK
• London (CAN)
• Los Angeles, CA
• Louisville, KY
• Madison, WI
• Manhattan, KS
• Maui, HI
• Milwaukee, WI
• Missoula, MT
• Montgomery, AL
• Myrtle Beach, SC
• New Hampshire
• New Orleans, LA
• New York City/New Jersey/NYC Suburbs/New Jersey (Shore)/Hamptons/Upstate NY
• Ocala, FL
• Olympia, WA
• Omaha, NE
• Orange County, CA
• Outer Banks, NC
• Peninsula and SW WA
• Philadelphia, PA
• Piedmont Triad, NC
• Portland, OR
• Quad Cities, IA
• Rhode Island, RI
• Rochester, NY
• Rochester, MN
• San Francisco, CA
• San Luis Obispo, CA
• Santa Fe, NM
• Savannah-Hilton Head, GA
• Sioux City, IA
• South Bend, IN
• Southern Utah
• Springfield, IL
• Springfield, MO
• St Cloud, MN
• State College, PA
• Syracuse, NYC
• Tacoma, WA
• Tampa Bay, FL
• Terre Haute, IN
• Toledo, OH
• Toronto (CAN)
• Tri-Cities, WA
• Tucson, AZ
• Tulsa, OK
• Vancouver, WA
• Ventura, CA
• West Lafayette, IN
• Western Arizona
• Wichita, KS
• Wichita Falls, TX
• Wilkes-Barre Scranton, PA
• Wilmington, NC
• Windsor (CAN)
• York-Gettysburg, NY
• Youngstown, OH
• Yuma, AZ

Source: Uber

Baidu’s latest autonomous car road test may have been illegal

China’s largest search engine provider, Baidu, has gotten itself into some trouble. The company has been developing self-driving vehicles and during a conference this week, it aired a live video chat of its product in action. During the video chat, Baidu’s CEO Robin Li sat in a self-driving car as it navigated its way through Beijing traffic. But the police weren’t too thrilled with the stunt and said they were investigating whether any laws were broken.

In 2015, Baidu completed a full autonomous test of its self-driving car on mixed roads. Last year it began testing its vehicles on public roads in Wuzhen, China and was granted a permit to conduct tests in California. But in July of last year, Chinese authorities banned self-driving cars from the country’s highways until regulations on the vehicles were put in place. However, those regulations still haven’t been set and from the video of Li’s ride, it looks like he was on a highway.

But aside from whether Baidu was in violation of autonomous vehicle testing rules, the car’s traffic maneuvers didn’t seem incredibly safe. In the video, which you can watch here, you can see the car move into a new lane even though there’s a car very close behind it. And at one point the car begins to change lanes while another car is right next to it.

Li appears to be very calm throughout the ride, but it looks like the car’s driving system may need some more work. Baidu wants to get its self-driving cars on the road by 2019. Maybe by then they’ll be a little safer.

Via: Reuters

Source: Engadget Chinese

Samsung’s Smart TVs stream your Steam games with no extra hardware

You can now play PC games on your 4K Samsung Smart TV without having to buy a Steam Link device. Instead, just install the Steam Link app from the Samsung App Store and you’re good to go.

The beta version of the app supports 1080p video at 60fps, with 4K streaming support promised in the future. You can play your games using a Steam Controller (although PC Gamer also managed to hook up a Xbox 360 pad). Valve is promising compatibility for additional controllers soon.

Be aware that if you’re planning to stream powerful PC titles, it’s essential you use a wired or high-quality network (at least 5GHZ, according to Valve). And, as we noted in our Steam Link review, streaming quality will also improve depending on how powerful your gaming rig is. However, you may still encounter some niggles while using the Steam Link app — it is in beta after all. Valve expects any issues to be smoothed out by the time it’s officially released.

Valve announced its partnership with Samsung at its Steam Dev Days conference in October. The app was then quietly rolled out in the US last month, with a global release planned for later this summer. But if you’re still unsure about forking out for a Samsung 4K TV, you can just grab the regular Steam Link on the cheap for $50.

Via: Liliputing

Source: Steam

Sony streams PS4 games on PlayStation Now for the first time

Sony’s game-streaming service, PlayStation Now, is getting a huge boost today thanks to the addition of 20 PS4 titles. The company announced that, for the first time, subscribers can use its offering to play games like God of War III Remastered, Killzone Shadow Fall, Saints Row IV: Re-Elected, Resogun, Ultimate Street Fighter IV and WWE 2K16, to mention a few. With the newly included PlayStation 4 games, Sony’s PS Now digital library has reached more than 500 total. That means if you have a PS4 or Windows PC, now may be a good time to sign up for that seven-day trial and see if the service is worth it.

Source: Sony

iFixit kit helps with that tricky Retina MacBook Pro battery swap

Gadget repairability is an ongoing issue, one that iFixit has taken on by providing spare parts and manuals for those who want to fix their gear. The company is now offering battery replacement kits for MacBook Pros with Retina Display.

The kits are available for ten different versions of the model released between 2012 and 2015. And they make it possible to remove and replace the laptop’s battery, which Apple glues into place. To get around the glue problem, iFixit developed a chemical solvent that can dissolve it and the kit comes with a syringe to use for application. Other tools provided in the kits include various screwdrivers, tweezers and spudgers. Depending on the MacBook model, the battery replacement could require between 32 and 73 steps to complete and could take between 20 minutes and three hours.

It’s becoming very clear that the inability to repair our gadgets is a major environmental issue. To highlight that and the role tech companies play, Greenpeace and iFixit recently teamed up to rate the repairability of various phones, tablet and laptops. Apple didn’t rank so well. Earlier this year, five states introduced “right to repair” bills that made it easier and legal for third-party vendors to repair gadgets.

The iFixit Retina MacBook Pro battery replacement kits are available now and cost $90 – $110.

Via: The Verge

Source: iFixit

T-Mobile’s unlimited data plan loses edge after $5 price hike

The cost of T-Mobile’s One Plus unlimited data plan just went up $5. The add-on to the company’s basic unlimited plan is now $10 per month bringing the total monthly cost for a single line to $80.

Springing for the One Plus plan rather than the regular package gets customers unlimited HD video play and mobile hotspot access — both of which are limited with the basic plan. One Plus also comes with unlimited Gogo inflight WiFi and faster international data speeds.

T-Mobile has tweaked its unlimited data service a few times in order to stay competitive with rivals like Verizon and AT&T. After Verizon debuted its new unlimited plan earlier this year, T-Mobile moved its One Plus-exclusive HD video streaming and LTE hotspot tethering back to its basic plan, but that offer was short-lived. Similarly, when AT&T announced it was adding 10GB of tethering data to its unlimited plan, T-Mobile hit back with a buy two lines get one free promo.

The new price point still keeps T-Mobile fairly competitive. It’s now on par with Verizon’s single line cost and AT&T’s is a little pricier at $90 per month. Sprint’s plan currently starts at $50 per month. However, Verizon’s, AT&T’s and Sprint’s monthly prices don’t include added taxes or fees while T-Mobile’s does. T-Mobile customers already subscribed to the One Plus unlimited plan will still only have to pay $5 for the add-on; the higher price is for new customers only.

Via: The Verge

Source: T-Mobile

‘The Third Thumb’ is for all the times two just aren’t enough

How many times have you wished for a third hand while trying to carry too many things? Well, you can’t have that yet because it’s not a thing (at least not an available thing), but maybe you can get yourself another thumb, which is almost as good. Dani Clode, a graduate student at the Royal College of Art in London, created The Third Thumb, a 3D-printed prosthetic that straps onto your hand.

The thumb is motorized and connected by cables to a bracelet. Pressure sensors underneath the wearer’s feet connect to the thumb’s motors via bluetooth. So, working the extra digit just requires you to press down with your foot. Clode said that she linked the thumb to foot controls because with actions like driving, using a sewing machine or playing piano, we already have practice completing tasks that require hands and feet to work together.

Clode says the project is meant to explore how we can add capabilities to our bodies with prosthetics. “The origin of the word ‘prosthesis’ meant ‘to add, put onto’, so not to fix or replace, but to extend,” Clode said to Dezeen, “The Third Thumb is inspired by this word origin, exploring human augmentation and aiming to reframe prosthetics as extensions of the body.”

In the video of The Third Thumb, which is just a prototype, people use the extra digit while playing cards, carrying wine glasses, cracking eggs and even playing guitar. Overall, extra appendages feel like a move towards Orphan Black’s “Neolution”, but The Third Thumb seems much less permanent and way less creepy.

Via: The Verge

Source: Dezeen