LG V30’s camera has the lowest f-stop in a smartphone

After focusing on audio for the V20, LG decided to shift its successor’s selling point to something else: its camera. We still have a few weeks before V30’s launch, but the phonemaker has followed up a leak of its hands-on footage with the revelation that the device will have the largest aperture on a smartphone yet. LG has incorporated an f/1.6 lens into the phone’s dual camera — as you might know, the lower the f value, the bigger the aperture is and the more the light gets in. An f/1.6 lens lets 25 percent more light in than an f/1.8 lens, for instance.

V30’s aperture is complemented by the camera’s glass lens that can reproduce colors better than plastic lenses can. LG says the phone’s camera is just better than its predecessors’ overall — it even reduces edge distortion for wide angle shots like landscape images and (ahem) “groufies” despite being slimmer.

“LG boasts an unrivaled heritage in smartphone photography,” the Korean electronics maker said, “and our decision to adopt glass in the V30 camera is specifically because this has traditionally been the realm of DSLRs. For the users for whom the V series was designed, this kind of innovation is significant.” We’ll know for sure how good the phone’s image quality truly is after it launches on August 31st.

Source: LG

Uber’s in-app chat is for people who really don’t want to talk

Uber hit a whopping 5 billion rides in May, up from 2 billion rides a year ago. That equals an unquantifiable amount of passenger-driver interactions. Therefore, it’s odd that reaching out to your Uber chauffeur has always been such a cumbersome process. The only option you had was to send a text to the driver’s number, which can feel a bit too intimate for someone you don’t know. To solve all that, Uber is launching a new in-app chat function — making it easier than ever to hit up your caddie with updates.

With the most recent version of the app installed, just head into the Uber feed, tap “contact,” and then hit “chat.” This way, you can send your driver useful info — like your exact location — without ever having to leave the app. Or, you could just troll them with emojis, it’s entirely up to you. And, of course, it’s great for those of you who aren’t fond of having one-to-one conversations during the ride.

On the other end, drivers will have the messages read aloud to them, so as not to distract them from the road. They can then respond with a simple thumbs up. Like most chat apps, Uber will tell you when your message is delivered, and read. It’s still unclear whether you’ll be able to carry on messaging after your ride ends. But, that would cause way too many privacy hurdles for it to work.

The feature is the latest in a string of app updates, which may be aimed at diverting the attention from its management foibles. In-app chat starts rolling out globally over the coming weeks.

The weird and wonderful world of soccer transfers on Twitter

Football. Soccer. Calcio. Futbol. Fußball. Whatever you call it, the world’s favourite game continues to grow in terms of players, viewership and, of course, money. Just last week, Brazilian forward Neymar sealed a whopping €222 million ($263 million) move to France after Paris St Germain triggered the former Barcelona player’s release clause. With so much cash at their disposal, teams are coming up with more and more elaborate ways to broadcast news of their new signing. Take Premier League strugglers Watford, who decided to use the popular Football Manager video game to announce their new record signing.

🌧️ | It’s a grey day at #watfordfc. Perfect for a spot of @FootballManager… pic.twitter.com/okMzXRaZsN

— Watford FC (@WatfordFC) August 9, 2017

Yesterday, the club tweeted a short 30 second video that showed in-game footage of Football Manager. That’s pretty notable in it’s own right, but Watford loses a couple of style points because it’s sponsored by the very same brand (courtesy of Sega and Sports Interactive). Once a saved game is loaded, the video announces a new player is set to sign for Watford and then discloses his position, his nationality and his stats, before finishing with a dreadfully painful monologue from Andre Gray, the team’s new £18.5 million attacker.

The truth is that Watford is just the latest in a long line of teams hoping to achieve social media virality. Spanish team Sevilla staged a fake kidnapping to announce the return of former Manchester City player Jesus Navas. Bold, considering the player was a free agent and hadn’t scored in over 100 games.

#ComeToBeşiktaş ⚡ pic.twitter.com/x2o2xmsc2R

— Beşiktaş JK (@Besiktas) August 2, 2017

Turkish champions Beşiktaş announced one of its big-name transfers with perhaps the most meme-worthy football video of 2017. For the unveiling of Spanish striker Alvaro Negredo, the club enlisted the help of Portuguese players Pepe and Ricardo Quaresma and overlaid some trashy techno. The results were hilarious.

🎮⚽️… 🆕🔶🔴❗️#ASRoma pic.twitter.com/mjgBrwduHV

— AS Roma (@OfficialASRoma) June 30, 2017

Italian title chasers AS Roma took to FIFA 17, while English teams Liverpool and Aston Villa shared news of their summer signings with help from Twitter and WhatsApp. Some are good, some are very bad, but it seems nothing will stop social media teams from all over the globe from trying to one-up their footballing counterparts.

👋 pic.twitter.com/07r2UAKRdX

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) June 22, 2017

📱✍️ pic.twitter.com/G2DxMQhAv6

— Aston Villa FC (@AVFCOfficial) July 3, 2017

FCC wants mobile data to count as broadband internet

The FCC under Chairman Ajit Pai is signaling new broadband policy changes that can only be described as friendly to ISPs and hostile to consumers. In a “Notice of Inquiry,” a public comment step often taken ahead of rule changes, the commission proposes that both fixed and mobile can be counted as broadband under Section 706 of its rules. That differs from the current standard, developed under Tom Wheeler, that requires timely deployment of both wired and wireless networks in the US.

On top of that, the FCC has suggested that if mobile networks are providing this “broadband,” all one needs is 10Mbps download and 1Mbps upload speeds. That’s less than half of the 25Mbps down and 3Mbps up speeds currently required to fit the definition of home broadband. At the same time, the Notice of Inquiry proposes to leave home speeds at the current level.

The FCC says the “statutory language” gives it the right to scoop mobile and land transmission into one broadband basket. Section 706, it says, defines advanced telecommunications tech “as high-speed, switched, broadband that enables users to original and receive high-quality voice, data, graphics and video telecommunications … without regard to any transmission media or technology.”

Noting that 13 percent of Americas rely solely on smartphones for internet access, “we seek comment on whether we should evaluate the deployment of fixed and mobile broadband as separate and distinct ways to achieve advanced telecommunications capability.”

We seek comment on whether to deem an area as ‘served’ if mobile or fixed service is available. I am skeptical of this line of inquiry. Consumers who are mobile only often find themselves in such a position, not by choice but because they cannot afford a fixed connection.

Letting carriers like AT&T and Engadget’s parent Verizon install mobile networks and call it a day for broadband would certainly save them money. Most need to install mobile networks anyway, and building them out is cheaper than installing, say, a fiber-optic network in a rural town.

Yet, mobile networks often don’t suit the needs of consumers and businesses because of highly variable speeds, data caps, lack of free tethering and other issues. And if the FCC eliminates current net neutrality rules as it wants, it could further curtail consumer access to data-hungry services like Netflix and YouTube.

Tom Wheeler’s FCC changed broadband requirements to the 25Mbps/3Mbps standard from 4 Mbps/1Mbps upload/download speeds back in 2015. One reason for that was the humiliating fact that the US ranked 25th out of 39 developed countries in internet speeds at the time. Since the new standard was put in place, data rates have increased markedly, and America is now ranked 10th in the world for broadband internet — though that strongly depends on which state you live in.

The FCC’s Democrat Commissioner Mignon Clyburn doesn’t agree with gist of the Notice of Inquiry. “We seek comment on whether to deem an area as ‘served’ if mobile or fixed service is available,” she wrote in a concurring statement. “I am skeptical of this line of inquiry. Consumers who are mobile only often find themselves in such a position, not by choice but because they cannot afford a fixed connection.”

She adds that the US should also be pushing faster internet speeds, not keeping the standard the same. “High-definition video conferencing is squarely within the rubric of ‘originating and receiving high-quality video telecommunications,’ ” she writes, “yet the 25/3 Mbps standard we propose would not even allow for a single stream of 1080p video conferencing, much less 4K video conferencing.”

The Notice of Inquiry calls for public comments at this link until September 7th, with reply comments due by September 22nd. So far, the commission has done a lousy job of handling comments about net neutrality, with intermittent or no access during an eight-hour period on May 7th, 2017. That was either due to a DDoS attack or, as some security professionals think, just a bad commenting system. Anyway, even if lots of folks express their disapproval, the FCC doesn’t really care.

Via: Ars Technica

Source: FCC

iPhone 8 Virtual Home Button Can Likely Resize and Hide Completely As Needed

Yesterday, HomePod firmware revealed that the iPhone 8’s facial recognition software will seemingly support Apple Pay, multiple facial profiles, and third-party apps. Now, as the uncovering of Apple secrets within HomePod firmware continues apace, developer Steven Troughton-Smith has revealed details on Twitter about the iPhone 8’s virtual home button, stating that it “resizes” as needed to fit certain tasks on the smartphone.

Specifically, Troughton-Smith described a “periphery” area of the system user interface that expands/minimizes and shows/hides the iPhone 8’s virtual home button as it’s needed. There will be tab bars that extend under this periphery area, and no evidence was discovered of an ability for this part of the UI to change color. According to Troughton-Smith, this means that the indicator Apple is building for the virtual home button area “will have to contrast well” with any background and colors displayed on the rest of the display.

Proposed iPhone 8 “function area” by Ming-Chi Kuo
There was also no evidence found that suggests any piece of app UI will be part of the home button area in any form, meaning Apple plans to keep the bottom home button piece of UI clean and uniform whenever it’s brought up. Troughton-Smith did mention that whenever a user plays a fullscreen video, the content will hide the home button controls.

We know some facts re iPhone 8 home button area:

• it resizes
• indicator can be hidden
• no API to change color
• tab bars extend under it

— Steve T-S (@stroughtonsmith) August 10, 2017

The idea of a virtual “function area” on the iPhone 8 was detailed earlier this year in a report written by KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who stated the the 5.8-inch screen on the device would have a 5.15-inch usable display. The remaining area of the screen would be reserved for an area of virtual buttons, including a home button, but Kuo’s report never hinted that the function area might resize or be “hidden” completely whenever the UI allows it, as Troughton-Smith has discovered.

In addition, Troughton-Smith tweeted out the metrics for the upper status bar on the iPhone 8. The code further confirmed previous HomePod firmware findings that related to a “split” status bar on the device, with what’s expected to be camera and sensor hardware sitting between two virtual pieces of UI. Designer Olivier Charavel has already used the metrics to create a mockup of what this status bar should look like on the real iPhone 8, including connection strength and a battery indicator.

Image via @charavel
Previously, Troughton-Smith said the new status bar seemed “more complex and powerful” in its design, and even said that it could be “interactive” in some way.

In regards to the iPhone 8’s bottom area and virtual home button findings, Troughton-Smith tweeted that, “all of these things are supported by API evidence, so this is the clearest picture of its functionality we have to work from.” HomePod firmware is building up a good indicator of what we can expect from the iPhone 8 when Apple announces the device next month, including advanced facial recognition features likely replacing Touch ID completely, 4K video recording, “SmartCamera” functionality, and more.

Related Roundup: iPhone 8
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Apple Urged to Implement Feature That Sends an iPhone’s Precise Location to Responders in Emergencies

EENA, short for the European Emergency Number Association, has called on Apple to integrate a solution called Advanced Mobile Location into iOS to improve the safety of iPhone users in emergency situations.

Advanced Mobile Location recognizes when an emergency call is made and, if not already activated, activates a smartphone’s GPS or Wi-Fi to collect the caller’s precise location information. The handset then sends an automatic SMS to the emergency services with the caller’s location, before turning the GPS off again.

For months, EENA said it has tried to establish contact with Apple to work on a solution that automatically provides accurate location derived from iPhones to emergency services and rescuers, but with no result so far.

Advanced Mobile Location is allegedly up to 4,000 times more accurate than current emergency systems, which rely on cell tower location with a radius of up to several miles, or assisted GPS, which can fail indoors. EENA lists several real scenarios where AML’s location accuracy was less than 12 meters.

Last year, Google implemented a new AML-based solution called Emergency Location Service into Google Play services that automatically works on Android smartphones running its Gingerbread operating system or newer.

AML must also be supported by carriers. EENA said the service is fully operational in several European countries, including the United Kingdom, Estonia, Lithuania, Austria, Iceland, and New Zealand, on all mobile networks.

In terms of privacy, Google said it never sees or handles the precise location obtained by its Emergency Location Service feature. Instead, the location is sent from the smartphone to emergency services only when a user explicitly places an emergency call, either directly or through their mobile network.

EENA said AML has saved many lives by more accurately pinpointing a person’s position. Accordingly, several minutes of time can be saved, according to the European Telecommunications Standards Institute:

Ambulance Service measurements show that, on average, 30 seconds per call can be saved if a precise location is automatically provided, and several minutes can be saved where callers are unable to verbally describe their location due to stress, injury, language or simple unfamiliarity with an area.

EENA said it recognizes the efforts of Apple to improve the safety of its customers. It acknowledged the SOS functionality of the Apple Watch, which can automatically send the location of a caller to a specified contact. However, it believes the location should be sent to emergency services and rescuers as well.

Apple certainly cares about the safety of its customers. It doesn’t appear to have publicly provided a reason against supporting AML.

Via: The Next Web
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Chinese Developers File Antitrust Complaint Against Apple for ‘Monopolistic Behavior’

A group of 28 developers in China have enlisted a local law firm to file a complaint against Apple in a case alleging that the company engaged in “monopolistic behavior” during some of the actions it has taken to regulate the App Store in China (via The Wall Street Journal).

Lin Wei, an attorney with Dare & Sure Law Firm, filed the complaint this week and targeted Apple for removing apps from the App Store “without detailed explanation and charging excessive fees for in-app purchases.” Wei said that Dare & Sure has spoken to different enterprises and received a “very strong response” from each, related to potential antitrust violations with Apple’s App Store localization processes.

The complaint accuses Apple of engaging in monopolistic behavior by removing apps from the App Store without detailed explanation and charging excessive fees for in-app purchases. The complaint also alleges Apple doesn’t give details on why apps are removed and puts local developers at a disadvantage by not responding to queries in Chinese.

“There is a lack of transparency in the App Store operation,” Mr. Lin said. “At this stage, we think complaining to the Chinese regulators to get them involved is most ideal.”

According to Reuters, the case dates back to April of this year, when Dare & Sure invited developers to join and ended up with the 28 in question who are now part of the official complaint made this week. The law firm filed the complaint with two organizations that handle antitrust matters: China’s State Administration for Industry and Commerce and the National Development and Reform Commission.

The details of what developers and which apps are involved in the complaint were not given, although an Apple spokeswoman mentioned in a brief comment to Reuters that app publishing remains consistent across all countries. There are some exceptions, however, when local laws force Apple to change its policies, most recently when the company pulled the majority of virtual private network apps from the App Store in China because of strict regulations in the country that require VPN apps to be authorized by the government.

In addition, the Apple spokeswoman said that the company is currently working on expanding its local developer relations team to help bolster app development in the country. Apple has faced issues in the past within China, particularly related to controversial content it has sold on the iTunes and iBooks storefronts, but earlier this year Apple CEO Tim Cook reiterated on the company’s plans to continue investing in the country, telling local media, “We’re here to stay.”

Tag: China
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Vivaldi stamps a new logo on its web browser, packs in in fresh enhancements

Why it matters to you

If you’re looking for a web browser not issued by Mozilla, Google, or Microsoft, Vivaldi offers a new version targeting power users.

The latest release of the Vivaldi web browser, version 1.11, is now available to download. The update brings an improved Reader Mode, an adjustable Mouse Gesture sensitivity, and means for quickly switching off animated GIFs. The company has a sparkly new logo, too, but it won’t have anything to do with your browsing experience save for enhancing the software’s overall look.

The company behind the web browser, Vivaldi Technologies, was founded by the former co-founder and CEO of Opera Software, another browser developer. He set out to create a feature-rich solution for an audience that moved away from the Opera browser once it shifted layout engines, thus removing many features power users loved about it.

That’s where Vivaldi comes in. Consider it as the successor to Opera 12, which was the last version of the Opera browser before the engine was changed and features were dropped. The first release of the Vivaldi web browser arrived in January of 2015 as a technical preview to address a community-driven need for a feature-packed solution. The browser’s name stems from Italian Baroque composer Antonio Lucio Vivaldi.

One of the popular features thrown into the Vivaldi mix is a “Reader Mode” that strips away all the distracting items on web pages, providing a clean, book-like reading experience. With the release of version 1.11, this feature now includes settings that can be adjusted without leaving the page. Options to customize the reading experience appear at the top of the page, including font size, font type, column width, and line height. Users can switch between light and dark backgrounds too.

“Vivaldi’s custom themes add another dimension to the improved Reader Mode,” the company says. “Users can choose their custom theme and apply it to the Reader Mode. Custom themes in Vivaldi have programmatic support to enforce minimal contrast, which makes the browser more comfortable for people with visual impairments.”

As for deactivating animated GIF images, this feature can be accessed by clicking on the “Toggle Images” button on the Status Bar located at the bottom of the browser. Prior to the update, this button pulled up a menu for turning image loads on and off, or allowing the browser to pull images from the local cache. Now there’s a “Load Animations” section with three options: Always, Once, and Never.

Finally, the company expanded its mouse gesture capability. This feature can be accessed by clicking on the “Settings” icon on the side panel, and choosing “Mouse” in the resulting list. With “Allow Gestures” activated, users can add commands like reloading a page, closing a tab, rewinding the browser history, and more. Now this section includes the ability to set the stroke length for gesture recognition, measuring between five and 100 pixels in size.

Other accessibility features highlighted by the new release include setting the zoom level on a per-tab basis, keyboard shortcuts, quick commands, and what the company calls “spatial navigation.” This describes a shorter input time when navigating to content.

Dangerous driver caught doing 60 mph with a smartphone in each hand

Why it matters to you

Using one phone while driving is stupid. Using two is downright dangerous, and the police are watching.

Driving while holding and using a mobile phone is dangerous, stupid, and in the vast majority of places, illegal. However, people still do it, and in the U.K. a particularly keen phone user was caught on camera using not one, but two phones while driving. He wasn’t juggling one phone with the other, but was holding a phone in each hand, leaving a total of no hands available for steering the car. He was also traveling at 60 mph.

It’s hard to believe someone would do something so dangerous; but the news comes from a very reliable source — the local police force that caught the maniac driver. Surrey Police posted a photo on its Twitter account, taken with a police camera through the driver’s side window of the vehicle. The driver has a phone in his left hand and another in his right, and no hands on the wheel.

At first, it’s not possible to tell if the car is moving. In a reply to the tweet one person asks, “Was he on the move when you took that?” The police tweet back, “Oh yes, 60mph.” The car in question isn’t a Tesla, so there’s no autopilot mode in control here, and even then the driver would still need both hands on the wheel. In fact, it’s clear nobody is in control of the vehicle at all. Thankfully, the police stopped the driver, who received a fine of 200 British pounds ($260), and six points on his driving license. In the U.K., you’re banned from driving when you reach 12 points.

Amazingly, it’s not the first time the police have dealt with a “look ma, no hands” situation. Previously, another driver was stopped for sending a text message on a phone in one hand, and having an iPad tablet in the other.

The incident was caught as part of Operation Tramline, a local effort to take on bad driving habits. Interestingly, the police aren’t using a marked car for the job, but a large heavy goods vehicle, which gives the officers a unique viewpoint into vehicles traveling alongside them. It’s how the photograph here was captured. In January alone, 572 vehicles were stopped in the operation along several main motorways around the London area.

We doubt you’re considering doing the same in your car, because you’re aware of the many hands-free options available.

Sky Q’s Dolby Atmos support arrives for new Premier League season

When Sky surprised subscribers with the launch of its new Devialet-made surround sound speaker late last month, it also dropped in news that Sky Q customers would soon enjoy enhanced sound courtesy of Dolby Atmos. At the time, the company remained coy, teasing a “summer” launch, but with the new Premier League season imminent, Sky today confirmed that Dolby’s surround sound standard will now be ready for when Arsenal host Leicester tomorrow night.

Of course, the news will only be welcome to Sky Sports subscribers with Dolby Atmos-compatible speakers. Via the new Premier League channel, viewers will enjoy high-quality Ultra HD broadcasts of 124 live matches that now come with immersive 3D audio. It’s a significant announcement, but Sky does come late to the party. BT Sport was first to introduce both Ultra HD and Dolby Atmos broadcasts, although its share of Premier League matches is significantly lower than its rival (currently standing at 42).

If fans happen to miss the start of a game, Sky has also announced that its Watch From Start option will be available on the red button, offering the chance to watch from kick-off and skip to the key moments highlighted in the progress bar. Great news for football nuts, but not for those who might share a house with them.