How to connect PlayStation VR to your PC

How do I connect my PSVR to my PC?

Sony’s entry into the virtual reality world has so far been a hit — their head-mounted display is as comfortable as they get, and the library of quality games continues to grow. For some of you, however, PlayStation VR games might not be enough. Thanks to some clever programming by the developers at Odd Sheep Games, you can actually connect your PSVR to your PC. Trinus PSVR is a piece of software that handles all the communication between your PC and PSVR that would normally never happen.

Why would you want to connect your PSVR to anything other than a PS4? If you have a library of Steam games on your PC, whether VR or not, you can play them with Trinus PSVR. If you’d like to watch movies or TV in VR, you can also do so through the PSVR head-mounted display.

If this is something you’ve always wanted to do, we’re here to show you how to get it all set up.

Read more at VRHeads!

Moto E4 Plus vs. Moto G5 Plus: Battery vs. everything else

When it comes to budget phones, Motorola takes the cake. But what happens when it’s Moto vs. Moto?

You’d be forgiven for not fully understanding Motorola’s release strategy in the U.S., since it not only differs to many other parts of the world, but the carriers play a role here that they often don’t in other markets.

That brings us to the Moto E4 Plus, which recently launched at carriers like Verizon, Sprint and Ting, and unlocked through various retailers like Amazon, Best Buy and others.

At first glance, the Moto E4 Plus wouldn’t seem to give the more-expensive Moto G5 Plus a run for its money, but that’s what’s so interesting about this phone: it does. They look alike and even share the same metal-and-plastic materials (though the G5 uses more metal overall), but where the ‘G’ stands for “grown up” the ‘E’ stands for “everlasting” (OK, that’s not a great equivocation, but you get the idea).

So which should you buy? And why? Let’s take a look.

First, the specs

Hardware and design

OK, so the main takeaway from the spec sheet is that the Moto E4 Plus is taller and heavier, with a larger, lower-resolution screen and a much larger battery. There’s something to be said for the compromise: Motorola already has a Moto E4, which at 5 inches is much more pocketable and, starting at little as $129.99, much more affordable. Instead, the Moto E4 Plus goes all-in on longevity, outfitting its meager specs with a massive 5000mAh cell that should last two days or longer. We’ve seen other companies attempt this strategy, but the “budget-specs-big-battery” maneuver hasn’t yet taken off in the States like it has in parts of Asia.

Internally, the Moto E4 Plus doesn’t quite compete with the G5 Plus: its Snapdragon 427 chip is a quad-core part built on an aging, relatively inefficient 28nm process; the G5 Plus’s Snapdragon 625 is a proven performer, both in terms of speed, reliability and battery life. Of course, the G5 Plus’s 3000mAh battery is some 40% smaller than the E4 Plus’s, but our battery results prove that average use isn’t a world apart between them.

Design-wise, these two are basically the same phone — which is just fine, because they look more expensive than they are.

Two other important differences need to be highlighted: the Moto G5 Plus’s 1080p IPS panel is heads and tails better than the E4 Plus’s, which is both larger in size, lower in resolution and of demonstrably poorer quality. The IPS panel is much brighter, making it easier to use in direct sunlight, and its touch responsiveness just makes everything a little nicer.

From a design perspective, these phones could not look more similar. They’re both solid, made from a combination of metal and plastic, and while the Moto E4 Plus’s rear casing comes off, it’s just for show — there’s no removable battery here. With nondescript fronts, a speaker/earpiece combination above the screen and a very capable rounded fingerprint sensor below, the Moto G5 Plus looks like Mini Me next to the E4 Plus. Around back, they share rounded sides and a circular camera module, but the Moto E4’s smaller sensor is flush with the body whereas the G5’s sticks out a little.

You’d be forgiven for thinking, judging from its extra weight, that the Moto E4 Plus was thicker than its G5 counterpart, but it’s not: there’s 1.5mm between them, with the E4 using its extra vertical space to accommodate the much larger battery. Neither are thin phones, at between 9.55 and 9.7mm, but the E4 Plus’s 181 grams is hefty; I feel it weighing me down when left idle in my pocket.

Here’s one potential hardware issue for headphone sticklers: the 3.5mm jack is on the top of the Moto E4 Plus, which I dislike very much. I prefer to be able to put a phone in my pocket face down so that when I remove it, cord and all, I don’t have to fumble with the phone to get it into the right orientation. But hey, at least both phones have headphone jacks. Et tu, Moto Z2 Force?

Finally, both phones charge via Micro-USB, which sucks. Motorola continues to justify this by saying that legacy customers want to continue being able to use their existing cables, but come on, Motorola. Every company from Huawei to ZTE to TCL has moved its budget line over the new USB-C charging solution, and the short-term pain is worth the long-term gain.

Software

Identical. Well, almost.

To the untrained eye, all Motorola software looks the same, from the $70 Moto E4 to the $720 Moto Z2 Force. But there are details, important ones, that need to be clarified.

From a software perspective, the Moto G5 Plus can do pretty much everything a flagship Motorola device can, from twisting one’s wrist to open the camera app to flipping the phone onto its front to silence a call. It doesn’t have the always-listening voice commands that the Z line benefits from, but the core features are here, including the excellent, improved Moto Display. But it runs Android 7.0, which keeps it from the subtle improvements found in Motorola’s version of Android 7.1.1 that ships on the Moto E4 Plus, namely adjusting the color temperature of the screen at night to improve sleep quality.

The Moto E4 Plus, even though it ships with Android 7.1.1, doesn’t have the same sensors as the more-expensive G5 Plus, so that twist-to-open gesture — yeah, that’s not here. Neither is the flip-to-silence, chop-chop-to-flashlight, or any number of interesting gestures that come standard on the higher-end models.

Both units have Motorola’s nascent One Button Nav feature, which eschews on-screen buttons for home button gestures. I’ve already made my feelings about the reliability of the space-saving solution in other reviews, but I’ll reiterate it here: it’s not great. It’s far too easy to go home, accessed by tapping the home button, when you meant to go back, accessed by swiping left on the same button. The margin of error is too great, and the results too frustrating, for me to use One Button Nav for more than a few minutes, but I’m only one person — I’ve heard from people that love it. If that’s the case, it’s here for you to love.

Cameras

There is no question that one of the Moto G5 Plus’s redeeming features is its excellent 12MP camera. While it’s not perfect, it’s pretty much unbeatable for the price. The excellent, high-quality Sony sensor with accurate colors; the sharp f/1.7 lens with real bokeh; the simple-but-usable Pro mode — there isn’t much to complain about here. Sure, low-light performance isn’t comparable to phones twice or three times its price, but for $230, you’re getting an unassailable weapon in the fight against bad smartphone photos. And, though you probably don’t want to, it can shoot 4K video at 30fps.

Moto G5 Plus (left) | Moto E4 Plus (right)

The Moto E4 Plus, on the other hand, has a very mediocre, blah camera. Photos look like they’re digitally processed; colors look flat and boring; and low-light quality is practically non-existent. You’re getting what you pay for here. Sure, there are technically more megapixels in the E4 Plus’s sensor, but that doesn’t mean much when the details captured are so vague.

Where the Moto E4 Plus shines — literally — is the front-facing camera. It has a flash to illuminate even the most ashen of faces. Both phones have 5MP front shooters, but selfie lovers may want to go with the cheaper option.

Battery life

This one isn’t really a contest, but we’ll play along. The Moto G5 Plus has a 3000mAh battery, a 1080p display, and a very efficient octa-core chip; the Moto E4 Plus has a 5000mAh battery, a 720p display and a less efficient quad-core chip. The latter trounces the former by almost half a day, but that shouldn’t surprise you.

While I was able to get just over a day of use from the G5 Plus, I used the E4 Plus as a daily driver for just over a week and never dipped below 40% by the end of the night, and more common was above 50% left in the tank.

If battery life is your chief concern — and these days that includes most people — the Moto E4, warts and all, is likely your best bet. It’s just a phenomenal workhorse of a budget phone, and one that I would recommend to anyone looking for a no-frills handset.

Connectivity

The two phones can each connect to mobile networks at a theoretical speed of 300Mbps down and 150Mbps up, and both are theoretically compatible with Sprint and Verizon in the U.S., as well as the easier-to-assume AT&T and T-Mobile. Some early buyers of the Moto E4 Plus have noted, however, that it’s not possible to activate the phone on Sprint just yet, though that issue should hopefully get resolved soon.

Bringing it home, only the Moto G5 Plus supports dual-band Wi-Fi (2.4GHz and 5GHz), which is a big advantage for anyone who doesn’t have a big data bucket and plans to offload a lot of wireless traffic to home Wi-Fi. And while neither phone supports NFC in the U.S., the Moto G5 Plus has the slightest advantage with Bluetooth 4.2 over the E4’s Bluetooth 4.1, though real-world differences should be minor.

Which should you buy? Moto G5 Plus

Look, at the end of the day, the Moto G5 Plus is a much better phone than the E4 Plus, especially when both are as closely matched, spec-wise, as possible. On Amazon, the Moto 2GB RAM/32GB storage Moto E4 Plus costs $199.99; the equivalent Moto G5 Plus is $229.99, and you get a lot for that extra few bucks, including a faster processor, improved screen, and vastly better camera.

See Moto G5 Plus at Amazon

On the other hand, the Moto E4 Plus is a battery champion, and if you don’t need 32GB of storage, it begins at $179.99 — or $159.99 if you don’t mind Amazon’s lock screen ads. I’d still argue that the Moto G5 Plus is a better decision since it’s a more well-rounded phone, but you can’t beat the E4 Plus for longevity.

See Moto E4 Plus at Amazon

What do you think? Which phone would you buy between these two? Let us know in the comments below!

Nielsen ratings give credit for Facebook, YouTube and Hulu views

Media ratings giant Nielsen announced today that publishers will now get credit for digital video content aired on Facebook, Hulu and YouTube. “Through capturing this audience, Nielsen is providing publishers, agencies and advertisers with a better picture of today’s media consumption, with comparable metrics,” said Nielsen’s president of product leadership, Megan Clarken, in a statement.

Nielsen launched its Digital Content Ratings metric last September and it measures audiences utilizing desktop and mobile devices to consume a range of digital content including text like Facebook Instant Articles and videos on YouTube. Today’s announcement means that publishers will now get credit for the metrics Nielsen has been tracking. This includes content like TV clips aired on YouTube and short-form videos posted on Facebook. In regards to Hulu, Nielsen says that the platform will provide “select media partners” with credit for episodes of currently running series that air on Hulu. Those select media partners haven’t been announced yet, but it wouldn’t be surprising if they’re Hulu stakeholders like NBC Universal and Disney.

In a statement, Nielsen said, “Now, both TV and digital clients enabled for Digital Content Ratings will be able to display viewership of their content across all platforms, including these key digital distributors. This will allow publishers to better showcase the various ways people watch their digital content, as well as provide agencies and advertisers with valuable data for more informed decision making.”

Recently, Nielsen added both Hulu’s and YouTube’s live TV services to its traditional TV ratings and last year, it began breaking down viewership data by device. Those moves along with today’s announcement represent the company’s necessary shift in metrics to account for the changing ways people are seeking out and viewing content.

Source: Nielsen

Smart locks rendered dumb by automatic update fail

Making dumb things smart can have its benefits, but adding complexity to once-simple devices can also lead to unforeseen problems. It’s a lesson smart lock maker LockState is all too aware of, after a clumsily delivered automatic update bricked hundreds of the gizmos, rendering their fancier features like remote locking and unlocking unusable.

As Threatpost explains, LockState pushed an OTA update to its 6000i series smart locks earlier this month that was intended for its 7000i models. This didn’t sit well with first-gen 6000i locks, which were subsequently unable to reconnect to the company’s web service. This connection is essential for all the smarter features, which include remote access, managing codes for keypad entry and status alerts.

Breaking that link also made “a remote fix impossible,” which is the worse part. In a statement to affected customers, LockState is offering two inconvenient paths to resolution. Either send a part of the lock off for repair, which can take up to a week to come back, or wait two weeks or more for the delivery of a replacement lock. The only upside is owners get one free year of access to all those connected services for their trouble.

Roughly 500 locks have been dumbed down by the failed update, according to the company, and it’s not the end of the world if you have the old-fashioned key to hand. It’s a tad more frustrating for business owners and Airbnb hosts, however, which may rely heavily on remote access and temporary keypad codes. LockState is actually one of Airbnb’s partners for its Host Assist program, which features recommended suppliers and services that are supposed to make the whole renting process easier. Around 200 hosts that have purchased LockState’s wares are thought to have been affected, the company said.

As more and more devices are becoming WiFi-enabled, smart versions of their former selves, so do the cries of warning around unsecured internet of things things grow louder. These are legitimate worries, of course — you don’t want a hacker unlocking your door remotely, after all — but there’s little you can do when the bricking of hardware is an inside job.

Via: Gizmodo

Source: LockState

Tech companies want user data protected from warrantless searches

Late last night, a bevy of tech companies — including Apple, Google, Verizon, Twitter and Facebook — filed a friend-of-the-court brief with the US Supreme Court in the case of Carpenter v. United States. Their specific interest is in protecting personal user data from unreasonable searches and seizures by law enforcement.

In the case Carpenter v. United States, the ACLU is defending Timothy Carpenter, who was arrested in 2011 and convicted of committing a robbery in Detroit. Police in the investigation were able to obtain months’ worth of location data from cell phone companies on the suspects in the case without a warrant. This is a normal occurrence in the course of a police investigation. Carpenter was able to appeal his case, but the appellate court ruled that the Fourth Amendment doesn’t protect this kind of data and no warrant was required. Now the case will be heard by the Supreme Court.

Tech companies have a specific interest in making sure this kind of personal data is protected by the Constitution (the Fourth Amendment protects citizens from unreasonable searches and seizures without probable cause) because their companies rely on user trust. Their customers must trust them to keep this kind of confidential information private. Given “people’s participation in today’s digital world,” the old, rigid rules “should yield to a more nuanced understanding of reasonable expectations of privacy,” according to the brief.

This is an important case when it comes to the extent of our privacy rights in the digital age. We entrust all kinds of personal data to third-party providers and social networks; “the government needs a good reason to get its hand on it,” as ACLU attorney Nathan Freed Wessler said. These laws and precedents haven’t yet caught up to the current digital age, and it’s important that they do when the Supreme Court hears this case in the fall.

Source: ACLU (1), ACLU (2)

Google sees a future in wearable-free health monitoring

Google and its Alphabet parent haven’t been shy about their interest in digital health, and now they’re taking that curiosity in an unusual but potentially very helpful direction. GeekWire reports that Google has acquired Senosis Health, a Seattle-area startup whose focus was on turning smartphones into health monitoring tools. Its apps used a phone’s built-in sensors to perform checkups that would normally require a dedicated sensor: HemaApp checks your blood’s hemoglobin count using your phone’s camera, for example, while SpiroSmart uses the microphone to measure your lung functions.

It’s not clear how much Google paid, or what the specific aims will be. However, Senosis isn’t joining Alphabet’s Verily team or moving shop to Mountain View. However, an insider speaking to GeekWire claims that staff will remain in Seattle and form the “backbone” of a digital health team. This is the start of something larger, then, and not just a bid to augment existing efforts.

Given Senosis’ focus, it’s not hard to see where this could go. It won’t be surprising if Google builds on these apps to track all kinds of health indicators using your phone, whether it’s through dedicated apps or features baked into Android. You’d have a better sense of when you need to talk to a doctor and when you’re well enough to stay home.

Via: The Verge

Source: GeekWire

Kano’s latest DIY kit turns motion into code

DIY computer company Kano has released another brightly-coloured addition to its learn-to-code arsenal: a motion sensor kit. The standalone product comes with the Kano App to teach would-be coders how to translate movement into data which can be applied to games, apps and music.

The kit, which is available for $30/£30, includes a USB motion sensor which can connect to any Windows or Mac computer — or the original Kano Computer kit — and comes with an easy-to-follow storybook featuring beginner’s coding challenges. Learn to code a hand-controlled version of the classic game Pong, for example, or make noise and mix tunes by “scratching” a DJ turntable.

The challenges are, of course, pretty basic; Kano’s entire ethos revolves around making coding as accessible and straightforward as possible. But the principal is exciting. Motion sensors are invisibly embedded in cars, phones and machinery, and for many how they actually work remains a bit of a mystery. The Motion Sensor kit makes the concept tangible.

Plus, it can be plugged into other Kano kits and made to do cool new things beyond the basic introductory tutorials. Hook it up to the Pixel light board, for instance, and you could code it to light up whenever someone walks into a room, or plug it into the Kano Camera and program it to take a photo whenever it detects movement. As Kano is keen to demonstrate to curious new coders of all ages, there are no limitations.

Source: Kano

Target’s Prime Pantry competitor expands to Denver and Dallas

Amazon may have introduced Instant Pickup today, but Target has news of its own. Yesterday, we reported that Target had purchased Grand Junction, a same-day delivery company. Now, the company has announced that its next-day delivery service, Target Restock, is expanding to Denver and Dallas.

This service, which is an Amazon Prime Pantry competitor, allows you to visit Target Restock and choose from over 15,000 essential items. You can add up to 45 lbs of merchandise to your order (roughly the size of a shopping cart, according to Target). If you order by 2:00 PM local time, Monday through Friday, your items will be delivered to you the next day for $4.99 (including Saturday delivery).

Initially, Restock was a test program confined to the Minneapolis area only, and it only was open to Target REDcard members. It’s now open to anyone who lives within the metro areas that Restock is offered. Additionally, Target has expanded the items available to include such essentials as baby food and school supplies.

Target’s Restock service is $1 less than Amazon’s Prime Pantry, and the items will arrive more quickly. It remains to be seen whether this will attract Amazon loyalists back to the brick-and-mortar retail giant, but this seems like a great new feature to keep Target competitive.

Source: Target

Uber agrees to 20 years of user privacy audits in FTC settlement

Uber has come under fire more than once for failing to protect privacy, and now it’s facing the consequences. The ridesharing outfit has settled with the US’ Federal Trade Commission over allegations that it not only didn’t adequately safeguard data, but misrepresented how secure that info really was. Uber didn’t monitor staff access to personal info as closely as it said it did, the FTC says, and it also gave a false impression of how secure that info was when stored on third-party servers. Instead, employees needed just a single key to get full access to data, and it stored some information (including customer locations) online in plain text. It even ditched an automated staff monitoring tool after less than a year.

There’s no mention of a fine in the settlement, but that doesn’t mean Uber is off the hook. In addition to being barred from misrepresenting privacy and security, it’ll have to implement a “comprehensive privacy program” and undergo third-party privacy audits every 2 years for the next 20 years. That’s par for the course as far as FTC settlements go, but it’s a long time in Uber terms — the company may have fulfilled its driverless car ambitions by the time the audits are over.

In a statement, Uber tells us that it welcomes the end of the investigation and sees this as an “opportunity” to prove that it has turned a corner. You can read the full statement below.

The settlement comes right as Uber is in the midst of trying to fix a toxic corporate culture that many blame for Uber’s lax approach to privacy. Uber recently ousted CEO Travis Kalanick, who was frequently blamed for the company’s tendency to test (and sometimes break) legal boundaries. Other executives accused of dodgy behavior have also left the company. The FTC-mandated reforms could still be helpful, but Uber may be better prepared to implement them than it was just months earlier.

“We are pleased to bring the FTC’s investigation to a close. The complaint involved practices that date as far back as 2014. We’ve significantly strengthened our privacy and data security practices since then and will continue to invest heavily in these programs. In 2015, we hired our first Chief Security Officer and now employ hundreds of trained professionals dedicated to protecting user information. This settlement provides an opportunity to work with the FTC to further verify that our programs protect user privacy and personal information.”

Via: CNBC

Source: FTC

Stream Sling TV on the web from the comforts of Chrome

Today, the popular live TV streaming service Sling announced a new browser-based player for Google Chrome. The feature is in beta but it’s available to all current Sling users.

Sling touts the fact that users don’t have to download any sort of app onto their computer, nor do they have to install plug-ins for their browser. It can be incredibly frustrating when you just want to watch something you pay for, yet have to jump through hoops to actually get it to work, so this is welcome news for anyone interested in using this feature. Currently, the beta viewer includes “My TV” and “Continue Watching,” along with access to account settings and parental controls. The company plans to continue developing features for the browser version of its viewer, including a cloud DVR and grid guide.

To watch Sling in Chrome, you must have a current Sling TV plan and the latest version of Google Chrome. It’s only currently supported on Windows and Mac OS devices. New users who sign up for Sling TV will also have access to the Chrome beta. Sling is available across a variety of platforms; it’s nice to see a company that is trying to make it as easy as possible for paying customers to use their services.

Source: Business Wire