Google’s latest Daydream VR series puts you in Kendall Jenner’s closet

The latest Google Daydream series will give you a VR look into the closets of supermodels like Kendall Jenner and Cindy Crawford. The series — aptly called Supermodel Closets — was made in partnership with Vogue and Condé Nast Entertainment as a build up to the publication’s famed September issue and 125th anniversary.

Supermodel Closets is one of the first projects to make use of Google’s newest Jump camera — the Yi Halo — which allows for 360 degree views and 4K images. Google notes that the cameras were even able to give great views in tight closet spaces, but these closets are larger than most Manhattan apartments. So, I’m not sure that’s a terribly informative measure.

The first episode, which is out now, features Kendall Jenner and not one, but two of her closets. She starts her tour in the more traditional closet, which is packed to the brim with clothes, shoes, bags and a few sets of the matching pajamas her family wears on Christmas. The second room is described as a fitting room and has even more clothing and accessories as well as some of her quirkier pieces.

Other Daydream productions have followed up-and-coming baseball pros and the NFL. Jenner’s episode is out today on YouTube and more will air over the coming weeks.

Via: TechCrunch

Source: Google

MoviePass’ $9.95 ‘unlimited’ deal is one movie a day

Going to the movies isn’t cheap and MoviePass wants to fix that. The company has just announced a $9.95 no contract subscription plan that’ll grant subscribers access to one movie per day in a theater without blackouts. Previously, users were limited to two movies per month for $15, and in Los Angeles and New York, that price bumped to $21. As Variety notes, this won’t apply to 3D or IMAX screenings. But how it’ll actually play out and what any other restrictions might entail aren’t clear at the moment.

MoviePass currently works with 91 percent of theaters across the country, including AMC, Cinemark and Regal along with independent chains. So, there’s a good chance your favorite multiplex is on board.

Sure, the summer blockbuster season is winding down, but we still have Blade Runner 2049, the It remake, The Last Jedi, Thor: Ragnarok and Justice League to look forward to. Even if your local theater only charges $12 a ticket, you’re getting a deal if you only see one of the above. The savings only add up the more movies you go see.

If you’re interested, signing up might be difficult today. I downloaded the app on iOS and got multiple error messages at every step of the sign-up process. MoviePass’ website is extremely slow to load as well, so this could mean the servers are getting crushed by folks who want in on the service. After a few tries though, I was able to sign up for my free trial on desktop.

CEO and Netflix cofounder Mitch Lowe says this new subscription service was the direct result of being bought by Helios and Matheson Analytics. “This is about getting funded in order to launch our new price point,” he told Variety.

We’ll have to wait and see how viable this is considering that when the company was much smaller and charging $20 a month, it had a hard time keeping the lights on.

Apple and Other Companies File Brief Arguing Against ‘Rigid Analog-Era’ Fourth Amendment Rules

Apple, Twitter, Snap, Facebook, Microsoft, and a collection of other technology companies have filed a legal brief this week, aimed at the Fourth Amendment and its “rigid analog-era” protections that lag behind protecting users in the modern age (via Reuters).

The brief was filed in regards to the case Carpenter v. United States, which is a Supreme Court case focusing on the warrantless search and seizure of historical smartphone records, and whether or not such data collection by the government is prohibited by the Fourth Amendment’s protection against unreasonable search and seizures.

Carpenter v. United States specifically ties to smartphone data held by a third party — or any company that has access and can store personal user data — and includes information revealing the “location and movements” of the user over 127 days.

With the new filing, which is in support of neither party, the companies state that customers should not be “forced to relinquish Fourth Amendment protections” against intrusion by the government, simply because they choose to use modern technology.

“To resolve this case, the Court should forgo reliance on outmoded rules that make little sense when applied in the digital context. In particular, the third-party doctrine and the content/non-content distinction should not operate to categorically foreclose Fourth Amendment protection; instead, Fourth Amendment law should favor a more flexible approach that assess reasonable expectations of privacy in light of new and evolving technologies and the highly sensitive data they implicate.”

Other companies included in the brief included Airbnb, Google, and Dropbox. The case in question dates back to 2011, when Timothy Carpenter was convicted on robbery charges after investigators uncovered smartphone data with his past location information without a warrant. The Supreme Court agreed to review the case in June 2017, and it’s now on the Court’s term docket for October 2017.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Tag: Supreme Court
Discuss this article in our forums

Twelve South Debuts ‘Curve’ Stand for Apple Notebooks

Twelve South today announced the launch of the Curve, a new stand based on a simple, classic design.

Described as an “elegant” stand that’s designed to complement the lines of an Apple notebook while elevating it to an ideal angle, Curve comes in a matte black aluminum that matches well with the Space Gray MacBook models.

Curve elevates the screen by 6.5 inches while keeping 70 percent of the base of the MacBook exposed through its open bottom, which allows for better cooling.

According to Twelve South, the Curve is based on the iCurve, the first stand ever designed by Twelve South co-founder Andrew Green back in 2003. The new design is also meant to pay tribute to Apple Park, Apple’s new campus that houses a ring-shaped main building.

I knew someday I wanted to refresh the classic design for the modern Mac universe. In thinking about bringing it back to market, I visualized Curve as a thin metal ribbon – kind of like a Möbius strip. Utilizing aluminum with a matte black finish, Curve is a fresh remix of the original classic that looks simply stunning, especially when supporting the new Space Grey MacBooks.

Curve weighs in at 1.43 pounds and is a desktop accessory that’s designed to work with the latest MacBook and MacBook Pro models.

Curve can be purchased from the Twelve South website for $49.99. It’s also available from some Best Buy retail locations.

Tag: Twelve South
Discuss this article in our forums

Instagram Updated With Better Comment Organization

Popular Facebook-owned image sharing site Instagram is today being updated with comment threads, a small but long-awaited feature that will bring better organized comments for the first time.

With comment threads, comments on Instagram will more closely resemble comments on Facebook, with replies clearly listed under top-level comments. Prior to comment threading, all comments, even those that were replies to existing comments, were listed in one general thread with no organization.

Comment threads help you keep track of conversations and make it easy to respond to a specific thread. This update will make your feed an even better place to share interests, get inspired and connect with others.

Now, when you hit reply underneath any comment, your response will automatically be grouped right underneath it in a thread.

Instagram says these updates are part of Instagram version 24, available from the App Store today.

Instagram can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]

Tag: Instagram
Discuss this article in our forums

Hard Disk Drives: How Do They Work?

With today’s way of life being heavily tied to having access to digital information, it is important to know where all that data goes when you use a computer. While many people know about hard disk drives as data storage, many don’t understand how they actually work. Today, we take a closer look at the inner workings of hard disk drives.

While hard disk drives are available in different sizes, they all feature three key components:

• The platters – Disc-shaped alloys coated with magnetic particles which are divided into countless tiny sectors
• The arm – A thin part that contains the read-write head, responsible for writing and retrieving information.
• The motor – A small electric motor that spins the platter at very high speeds.

How Data Is Stored and Retrieved

When a computer is writing data into the hard drive, the information is written as “bits,” which are technically a sequence of 1s and 0s translated into a physical form by the arm’s write head. It does so by changing the orientation of the particles on the platter’s magnetic surface. Eight bits form a single byte’s worth of data. The bits are arranged in concentric circles called tracks, which are further divided into smaller sectors.

In the past, creating more data storage required manufacturing bigger platters since there could only be a limited amount of sectors in a platter. However, increasing the platter size would have made the hard disk drives too bulky to fit inside a typical laptop or computer case. The development of multi-platter disk drives made it possible for users to have higher-capacity disk drives without them being too bulky. Today’s typical hard disk drives usually have around two to four platters.

When retrieving data, the arm’s read head simply checks the orientation of  the magnetic particles and translates the information based on what it scanned. The faster the platters spin, the more bits pass under the arm’s read-write head that get processed.

Because data may be too much to be contained in a single sector, it’s possible for a file to have its data distributed among multiple sectors and even throughout multiple platters. When you access that file, a series of precise actuators maneuver the arm to seek out which parts of the platter have the necessary data. Most hard disk drives available today can process 150 Megabytes (1 million bytes) per second, although there are high-end versions that can process data twice as fast.

Manufacturing the Hard Disk Drives

Hard disk drive manufacturers rely on automated machinery to manufacture hard drives starting from cutting out the alloy metal that will eventually become the platters. Because hard disk platters have to be smooth enough before the magnetic coating can be applied, the alloy has to be ground and coated to achieve a flat surface.

Fabricating and assembling the hard disk drive components require a high degree of precision. For example, the platters are assembled by mechanical arms and linear stages that are programmed to move and stop with only a few microns’ margin of error. This ensures that the cut-out aluminum disc platters have perfectly flat surfaces ideal for the magnetic coating used to store the data.

Aside from employing high precision, automating the assembly process also helps prevent the risk of defects caused by contamination. Even the smallest bit of dust can cause major damage to a hard disk drive. Manual assembly would likely introduce impurities every time workers stepped inside an assembly room, so it is not an ideal method. Furthermore, automated assembly is a lot faster than manual assembly – a very important factor especially since there is always a huge demand for new hard disk drives.

Thanks to constant developments in computer hardware technologies, hard disk drives tend to get smaller while their capacities grow bigger. Tomorrow’s hard disk drives will be able to store data many times more than today’s highest-capacity drives, all while being ultra-compact and several times faster to keep up with the ever-growing demand for more information.

10 MARKETING LESSONS FROM APPLE [INFOGRAPHIC]

No cables, no hassle: Wi-Charge’s in-room wireless charging is coming next year

Today, we still rely on wired charging for our phones, tablets, and laptops. Wi-Charge is working on a long-range wireless charging system that will send power to your device wherever it is in the room, no cords or careful placement on a charging mat needed. Excitingly, the company has taken a crucial step toward making that future a reality.

Wi-Charge has received approval from the Food and Drug Administration for its wireless charging technology, which means it’s safe to use and much closer to going on sale. Digital Trends spoke to Wi-Charge about the importance of the FDA getting onboard, and how the system will work when it’s released.

“Without FDA approval, we couldn’t sell products in the United States,” explained Ori Mor, Wi-Charge’s co-founder and vice president of research and development. “Now we’re in the clear and ready to engage the market.”

Several companies have attacked the challenge of wireless charging systems, but Wi-Charge works differently then it’s competitors, which is why the FDA needed to certify the technology and not, as you may have thought more likely, the Federal Communications Commission.

Anything transmitted over the air has to comply with safety and commercial regulations. Most of the time it’s radio frequency waves for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, for which the FCC needs to be involved; Wi-Charge uses infrared beams to deliver power.

“In the United States, for historical reasons, the relevant entity for infrared device approval is the FDA and not the FCC,” Mor said. “Technically the FCC also has to approve Wi-Charge, but because we’re using infrared, it’s not a challenge for us to get FCC approval — because technically Wi-Charge isn’t under the domain of the FCC.”

Wi-Charge’s technology will be available in commercial public spaces.

Some of Wi-Charge’s competitors, including Energous and Ossia, must strive for the FCC’s approval because they use radio waves, not infrared.

“Compared to standard Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, these systems use a lot of power, and for this reason it’s challenging for these devices to meet the FCC’s requirements, both for safety and compatibility with other products,” Mor said. “For them, getting FCC approval is a huge obstacle.”

Energous, for example, has so far only received FCC approval for wireless charging using a pad.

Wi-Charge has been demonstrating its technology for years, progressively increasing the power delivered and reducing the cost of the hardware.

“The speed of charging and range have been improved, but are roughly the same as before. Range can reach up to 10 meters indoors, and power is up to three to four watts per device. The speed of charging is slower than cable charging, but since the charging happens in the background without you even knowing, there’s no need for fast charging.”

The technology operates in what’s called line-of-sight, so there’s no need to place a Wi-Charge compatible device on or near a special pad, it just needs to be out of your pocket or drawer and visible to the transmitter. At first, Wi-Charge will rely on dongles or special cases attached to your device to receive a charge, which comes from charging stations that double as lamps. In the future, Wi-Charge wants light fixtures in buildings to have the system already installed. Similarly, Wi-Charge receivers will be fitted inside devices, so no external parts will be needed to charge wirelessly.

“We are already in discussions with carriers and service providers regarding deployment of transmitters in public spaces in multiple geographies. Naturally, we can’t elaborate on the agreements but we can say these are ‘tier one’ players.”

When asked about how long it would be before receivers were embedded in hardware, Mor called the dongles a “short phase” in the product’s life and added that the company is in talks with manufacturers already.

Initially, Wi-Charge’s technology will be available in commercial public spaces, and the first examples will arrive during the first six months of 2018. The company wouldn’t discuss its plans for launching a Wi-Charge product for the home, so any dreams of wirelessly charging your phone inside your house may have to wait. But given how awkward it is to carry charging bricks and cables around, let alone finding a spare power socket in a crowded shopping mall or busy coffee shop, we’d argue that public wireless charging is considerably more helpful anyway.

Just as we now take wireless internet connections for granted, there may come a time when we take wireless charging systems for granted too. The future just got a little more convenient, huh?

No cables, no hassle: Wi-Charge’s in-room wireless charging is coming next year

Today, we still rely on wired charging for our phones, tablets, and laptops. Wi-Charge is working on a long-range wireless charging system that will send power to your device wherever it is in the room, no cords or careful placement on a charging mat needed. Excitingly, the company has taken a crucial step toward making that future a reality.

Wi-Charge has received approval from the Food and Drug Administration for its wireless charging technology, which means it’s safe to use and much closer to going on sale. Digital Trends spoke to Wi-Charge about the importance of the FDA getting onboard, and how the system will work when it’s released.

“Without FDA approval, we couldn’t sell products in the United States,” explained Ori Mor, Wi-Charge’s co-founder and vice president of research and development. “Now we’re in the clear and ready to engage the market.”

Several companies have attacked the challenge of wireless charging systems, but Wi-Charge works differently then it’s competitors, which is why the FDA needed to certify the technology and not, as you may have thought more likely, the Federal Communications Commission.

Anything transmitted over the air has to comply with safety and commercial regulations. Most of the time it’s radio frequency waves for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, for which the FCC needs to be involved; Wi-Charge uses infrared beams to deliver power.

“In the United States, for historical reasons, the relevant entity for infrared device approval is the FDA and not the FCC,” Mor said. “Technically the FCC also has to approve Wi-Charge, but because we’re using infrared, it’s not a challenge for us to get FCC approval — because technically Wi-Charge isn’t under the domain of the FCC.”

Wi-Charge’s technology will be available in commercial public spaces.

Some of Wi-Charge’s competitors, including Energous and Ossia, must strive for the FCC’s approval because they use radio waves, not infrared.

“Compared to standard Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, these systems use a lot of power, and for this reason it’s challenging for these devices to meet the FCC’s requirements, both for safety and compatibility with other products,” Mor said. “For them, getting FCC approval is a huge obstacle.”

Energous, for example, has so far only received FCC approval for wireless charging using a pad.

Wi-Charge has been demonstrating its technology for years, progressively increasing the power delivered and reducing the cost of the hardware.

“The speed of charging and range have been improved, but are roughly the same as before. Range can reach up to 10 meters indoors, and power is up to three to four watts per device. The speed of charging is slower than cable charging, but since the charging happens in the background without you even knowing, there’s no need for fast charging.”

The technology operates in what’s called line-of-sight, so there’s no need to place a Wi-Charge compatible device on or near a special pad, it just needs to be out of your pocket or drawer and visible to the transmitter. At first, Wi-Charge will rely on dongles or special cases attached to your device to receive a charge, which comes from charging stations that double as lamps. In the future, Wi-Charge wants light fixtures in buildings to have the system already installed. Similarly, Wi-Charge receivers will be fitted inside devices, so no external parts will be needed to charge wirelessly.

“We are already in discussions with carriers and service providers regarding deployment of transmitters in public spaces in multiple geographies. Naturally, we can’t elaborate on the agreements but we can say these are ‘tier one’ players.”

When asked about how long it would be before receivers were embedded in hardware, Mor called the dongles a “short phase” in the product’s life and added that the company is in talks with manufacturers already.

Initially, Wi-Charge’s technology will be available in commercial public spaces, and the first examples will arrive during the first six months of 2018. The company wouldn’t discuss its plans for launching a Wi-Charge product for the home, so any dreams of wirelessly charging your phone inside your house may have to wait. But given how awkward it is to carry charging bricks and cables around, let alone finding a spare power socket in a crowded shopping mall or busy coffee shop, we’d argue that public wireless charging is considerably more helpful anyway.

Just as we now take wireless internet connections for granted, there may come a time when we take wireless charging systems for granted too. The future just got a little more convenient, huh?

FrontRow is a wearable camera that lets you live in the moment, and capture it

Why it matters to you

Staring at a screen when trying to capture an event pulls you out of the moment. FrontRow wants to change that.

Smartphones have allowed us to easily capture intimate and memorable moments, such as a baby’s first steps or a graduation ceremony. But too often we’re looking through the smartphone, rather than simply being present. Ubiquiti Labs‘ FrontRow is a wearable camera that wants to help by capturing and sharing the moment, so you can stay in the moment hands-free.

The FrontRow looks like a pocket watch, except instead of a watch face there’s a 2-inch circular display. There are two cameras, one on the back with the display, and one on the front. On the side, you’ll find a power button, and a media button that lets you start and stop recording.

The premise is simple: When you are about to engage is an activity you want recorded, like a kayak ride, tap the media button and FrontRow will begin recording. You can take photographs, too. The primary camera, on the other side of the display, features a 140-degree lens, allowing you to capture more in a frame. The microphone array captures sound, and a speaker lets you play content back with audio.

Running Android, the touchscreen display lets you access a handful of supported live-streaming apps, such as Facebook Live, YouTube Live, and Twitter. You can directly hop into these apps to start a live-stream without needing to pull out your phone.

But FrontRow’s highlight feature is Story Mode, which is somewhat like the time lapse feature on an iPhone, except a little smarter.

Story Mode “autonomously captures” a handful of images every few seconds when you’re on the move. The company said the mode is optimized for the first-person perspective, and the end-result is a collection of images that tell a story of the event or your day.

The wearable will stay on standby mode for 48 hours, but Ubiquiti Labs claims it can last for two hours in live-streaming mode, and 16 hours in Story Mode. There’s a USB Type-C port on the FrontRow, which is used to charge it. Thanks to fast-charging technology, the company said it will recharge in about 20 minutes.

The FrontRow hangs around your neck, but the company will be offering a car window mount and a flexible coil mount in the future. While the design is stylish, the FrontRow still looks very much like a tech gadget — the camera gives it away. The idea isn’t entirely new either; wearable cameras are a growing trend, though FrontRow’s implementation certainly is unique.

It’s available for purchase on FrontRow.com and Amazon for $400, and the companion app is supported on iOS and Android.