The Light Phone aims to be a simple solution to a serious problem

Why it matters to you

Finding yourself occupied by your smartphone far more than you’d like? One startup’s solution could help you enjoy life off the grid.

Many tech companies say they don’t develop products, they develop experiences. In a lot of cases, it’s a thinly veiled attempt at ascribing some higher philosophical or moral calling to the work they do. But for one startup based out of the Brooklyn Navy Yard in New York, it’s probably the most accurate way to describe what they’ve built.

The Light Phone is many things. It’s a second phone, designed to complement, rather than replace, your smartphone. It’s the size of a credit card, a nondescript slab of plastic with no discernible face, until its turned on. And it’s the only mobile phone in recent memory explicitly designed not to be used.

It’s a product best described in terms of what it can’t do, rather than what it can. The Light Phone doesn’t have a traditional “screen” — just a basic LED readout wide enough to show a number. It cannot send or receive text messages or emails, let alone snaps or tweets. Speaking of which, there’s no camera, nor are there any apps. It’s just a phone with nine slots for speed dials.

Light

The goal is freeing yourself from smartphone addiction, during those times when its most necessary. Light’s founders, Joe Hollier and Kaiwei Tang, have no presumptions their device could be your one-and-only; in fact, they explicitly discourage using the phone in that way. The philosophy is based around mindfulness, and not letting your attention on a hike or an outing with friends be stolen by the pressure of constant connectivity and a barrage of information. It’s an ethos they’ve appropriately termed “going light.”

“There’s this huge initial anxiety every time you go light” Hollier told Digital Trends. “You find yourself tapping your pockets, and you feel, dare I say, physically different — like you have a different air about yourself.”

It’s a product best described in terms of what it can’t do, rather than what it can.

Hollier says having that direct line of communication to everything and everyone always available affects us more than we realize.

“The value is not in the phone itself, but in that sort of jarring initial feeling. But it also sort of always transitions into this very relieving and relaxing place once you’re able to cross the wall of FOMO.”

Light launched its first crowdfunding effort on Kickstarter roughly two years ago. Since then, it has sold just shy of 10,000 phones all around the world — though there was some trepidation early on.

“We got very polarizing reactions [back in 2014]. We still get very polarizing reactions … A lot of the people we would pitch to come back in three months and six months, and even just in that experience with us, we’ve watched their opinion change.”

Light

It’s not surprising that the public would be warming up to the idea. Never before have there been as many articles, books, and research studies written on the relentless pressure to stay connected. The stress can be as debilitating as it is addictive. Sometimes we love our phones, sometimes we deliberately ignore them, but its dreadful to imagine going through an entire day without them.

A potential solution is to grab that old feature phone collecting dust in your drawer for those special occasions. But as carriers start scaling back their old 2G networks in favor of LTE and the next frontier of 5G, it’s quite possible your ancient Nokia or Motorola might wake up to a very different network than the one it left. We haven’t even touched on the struggle of maintaining your current number.

As remarkable as the Light Phone is for its lack of functionality, a surprising amount of work has been poured into making it a snap to carry around in your pocket in lieu of your smartphone. Hollier and Tang knew they’d have to make it a cinch to simply grab and go, rather than forcing users to fiddle with call forwarding settings, SIM cards, and the like.

To that end, they developed a cloud software platform to handle call routing. The Light Phone runs a simplified version of Android, so it’s uniquely able to handle some of the logistical work in tandem with the system the startup has developed.

If you live in the U.S., the Light Phone ships with its own SIM card, but can adopt the number of your primary phone. The SIM comes with a charge of $5 per month. For overseas customers, the process is not quite so seamless — the device arrives more or less as a typical unlocked phone, with no SIM card. That means users are required to purchase their own service, or perhaps buy a duplicate SIM if it’s allowed in their region.

As remarkable as it is for its lack of functionality, a surprising amount of work has been poured into making it a snap to carry around

But there’s the unavoidable issue of price. The Light Phone currently runs $150. The company has justified the cost, in part, as a way of slowing the pace of consumption and lessening the financial and physical toll it takes on the thousands of people along the production line. Virtuous as that may be, there’s no getting around the fact $150 is a lot to spend in this day and age on a phone that does so little, especially when devices like the Moto E4 offer practically everything for $130.

That’s not an argument steeped in a mindless desire for bells and whistles; on a limited budget, when you’re simply looking to get the most capable, useful handset for your hard-earned dollars, the Light Phone becomes a very difficult expense to explain.

But then you can’t really call what Light has made just another mobile phone. Nothing else comes close, in design, function, or purpose. Just about everyone who comes in contact with one knows it.

“It sort of seems like you’re selling this glorified Pet Rock,” Hollier says of most users’ general reaction. “But it’s a very powerful experience.”

The original American Princess Grace’s royal superyacht for sale

Why it matters to you

Stalca a real superyacht with an impressive history, impeccably restored and updated, and relatively inexpensive.

Academy Award-winning American actress Grace Kelly married Prince Ranier of Monaco in 1956, in what was widely referred to as the “Wedding of the Century.” In 1971, yacht builder Visch Holland constructed a 24-meter (78-foot, 8-inch) yacht named Stalca for the couple, who entertained extensively onboard during the 70s.

There have been other owners since the Prince and Princess, as well as several upfits and renovations, the most recent finishing just this year. Now yacht brokerage Bluewater has listed the royal superyacht for sale. The Stalca’s asking price is 1.5 million euros, nearly $1.8 million, Boat International reports.

If you’re a fan of the sleeker, newer, and faster yacht designs from Italian and Dutch ship builders, the Stalca won’t light you up. If your tastes run more to classic yachts with lots of teak and brass, however, here’s an opportunity to own a classic vessel that has been thoroughly updated without changing its original aesthetic. Plus, the Stalca comes with an unmatched history that will fascinate your guests.

Stalca’s name represents the first two letters of the Prince and Princess’s three children: Stéphanie, Albert, and Caroline. Stalca has a full displacement steel hull with a 19-foot, 5-inch beam, an aluminum superstructure, and a teak deck.

Two 300-horsepower Caterpillar D336TA turbocharged and after-cooled V8 engines power Stalca at a maximum 12 knots. At her 9-knot cruising speed, Stalca consumes  60 liters, or 15.85-gallons of fuel per hour. Fuel capacity is 2000 gallons, which gives a maximum potential cruising range of 1,136 nautical miles.

Stalca accommodates eight guests. She has a full-beam master stateroom and a full-beam VIP stateroom, both en-suite and two additional twin stateroom with a shared bathroom. Crew quarters and capacity is not listed.

The yacht’s engines and generators were replaced in 2009. A 2016/2017 refitting including extensive hull work, new paint, and new wiring and plumbing. Boat International describes the latest renovation as an almost full rebuilt.

Stalca is ready for personal use but can also be used for charters, with all required licenses and commercially compliant features.

If you’d like to own the yacht built for a princess, at a relatively low price in compared to most ships of Stalca’s size, here’s your chance.

Here are the ten best mobile accessories of IFA 2017

Why it matters to you

The right gadgets and accessories can protect your phone, add functionality, and make life just a little easier.

We scoured the show floor at IFA in Berlin this year and uncovered a veritable bounty of handy, innovative, and stylish accessories worth knowing about. Most of them are new to the market, or are coming soon. All of them offer something a little different or interesting. These are our picks for the best mobile accessories of IFA 2017.

If this doesn’t quench your thirst for accessories, then be sure to check out our best iPhone accessories, best iPad Pro accessories, or maybe our best Galaxy Note 8 accessories.

Anker PowerCore

Simon HIll/Digital Trends

The new portable battery pack from Anker has a whopping 20,100 mAh of power to charge up all of your devices. If you’re thinking it looks similar to previous releases, it’s worth us pointing out a couple of new features. First is the round power button that also houses a ring of LEDs to show you remaining power — this time there are eight LEDs instead of the usual four, so you get a better idea of how much power is left. Anker also listened to feedback regarding the smooth surface of the last version making it too easy to drop, so the designers have textured the outside of this power bank to make it grip to the back of your phone and your hand.

Cosmo and Power Bank Fusion ($15+)

Simon HIll/Digital Trends

We liked the clever silicone design of the Cosmo cable store. It’s a soft, silicone cable tidy that comes in a variety of colors and houses a 1 meter long USB to Micro USB, USB-C, or Lightning jack cable. Prices range from 15 euros to 25 euros. The Fusion Mini power bank is from the same manufacturer and has built in USB and Lightning cables that attach magnetically. It will set you back 40 euros (about $50). The company is currently seeking U.S. distribution.

Holdit Style Cables and Matching Power Bank

Simon HIll/Digital Trends

Cables are generally so dull that these fun, patterned cables really caught our eye. The Swedish company behind them is about to release a range of flat cables for Micro USB, Lightning, or USB-C ports. Because they’re flat, they resist the innate urge that every cable has to wrap themselves into a messy tangled ball. The fresh designs also match up with complementary power banks and cases for your phone, so you can sync your entire phone’s wardrobe. These should be available across Europe and Holdit is keen on moving into the U.S. next, so keep an eye on the Holdit website for more.

Holdit Leather Cables and Cases ($60)

Simon HIll/Digital Trends

In contrast to the funky designs for the flat cables, Holdit also has a premium leather range. We’ve never seen leather cables before, but they look and feel great. You can can get a range of brown, blue, or black leather cables with solid aluminum ends. They should be durable, but leather also ages gracefully and can look even better when weathered. The matching leather cases are for the iPhone or Samsung Galaxy range. They don’t sell in the U.S. yet, but when they do, you can expect to pay around $60 for a cable.

Buy from Holdit

Mophie Powerstation XXL ($130)

Simon HIll/Digital Trends

We generally like Mophie designs and this power bank immediately stood out. The exterior has a textured cloth material that’s easy to grip and comfortable to hold. The capacity measures 19,500 mAh and it supports USB-C and USB-A, so you could use it to charge laptops and tablets, as well as phones. It’s an exclusive in the Apple Store for the next three months, but after that you’ll be able to get one for $130.

Pipetto Origami Luxe iPad Case ($50)

Simon HIll/Digital Trends

The clever design of Pipetto’s origami iPad case allows you to fold back the cover and prop your tablet in landscape or portrait orientation for hands-free movie viewing, reading, or FaceTime calls. There are three varieties of this case from the London-based designer. The original has a soft-touch plastic finish and comes in loads of different colors. There’s also a PU version designed to feel like lambskin, and our pick is the Luxe range, which matches up with the iPad body color and has a kind of metallic finish and a transparent shell section.

Buy from Pipetto

Q2 Power Dock and Charge

Simon HIll/Digital Trends

This clever mobile accessory plugs directly into the wall outlet and provides a wee platform for your phone to sit on and charge. The Lightning, Micro USB, or USB-C jack is built in. When you’re done charging you can unplug, fold it up, and stick it in your pocket. It can also serve as a stand for your desk, to prop your up in portrait orientation. It also contains a 2,000 mAh battery — just enough to keep you going until the end of the day. The big U.S.P. for Q2 Power is safety, so the new Dock and Charge is rigorously tested and passes all the international safety standards. A U.S. version is in the works and will cost around $50 to $60. Find out more at the Q2 Power website.

Invoxia Roadie Tracker ($99)

Simon HIll/Digital Trends

This black, anodised aluminum GPS tracker uses low-power networks, so the battery can last up to 8 months between charges. You can attach it to whatever you want – a suitcase, handbag, or even a pet — with the leather strap. It doesn’t require a SIM card and it doesn’t use Bluetooth. It does use a combination of GPS and Wi-Fi networks, so you can track its location on your Android smartphone or iPhone via the app. It comes with a three-year subscription, and will cost about $10 a year after that.

Buy from Invoxia

Urban Armor Gear Exoskeleton ($50)

Simon HIll/Digital Trends

Since there’s no standard size for Android tablets, it can sometimes prove difficult to score a protective case that fits well. UAG set out ro solve this problem with a clever exoskeleton design that expands to hold any tablet. The corners are heavily reinforced, so it meets military drop test standards. You just pull the center apart, slot your tablet in, and it closes to grip it snugly. There’s also a handy kickstand that folds out of the back to prop your tablet in landscape view. The version we checked out is for 9 to 10.5 inch tablets, but they’re considering a 7 to 9 inch version. It will be on sale soon via the UAG website and at Walmart.

Ventev Wireless Chargestand ($60)

Simon HIll/Digital Trends

It can prove difficult to find the sweet spot for wireless charging, but Ventev thinks it has the solution. The Wireless Chargestand has a Qi charging pad that can be slotted into different positions in the aluminum frame. That means it will work with cases, and you can  place your phone in landscape or portrait position. The frame itself can also be turned around, so you can adjust the angle. But that’s not all, because you can also remove the pad and take it away with you as a portable wireless charger, although the cable attaches to a fairly hefty brick that plugs into your outlet.

Buy from Ventev

Best 360-Degree Cameras

• Best Overall
• Best runner-up
• Best value

Best overall

Samsung Gear 360

See at Amazon

Not only is Samsung’s latest 360-degree camera smaller, thinner, and lighter than its predecessor, but it’s also cheaper and faster! The Samsung Gear 360 is one of the easiest 360-degree cameras to use, making it possible for you to either quickly snap a photo with friends while holding it or remotely access the camera from an app loaded up with advanced features for capturing the best image.

Not only can you grab 15-megapixel spheres with lots of detail, but the video mode will capture in 4K at 30FPS with no problem. The bottom mount makes it easy to stick the camera on just about anything, and the unique microphone array in the camera makes capturing sound from every direction very easy.

Bottom line: For ease of use, $200 price tag, and sheer volume of camera features the Gear 360 is the best consumer 360-degree camera you can buy.

One more thing: This camera also works well with the iPhone!

Why the Samsung Gear 360 is the best

What it really comes down to with this camera is convenience and price. The Gear 360 software is noticeably easier to use than just about all of the other camera apps out there. You have quick access to more features, editing images and video is easier, and there’s a lot that can be done with exposure and white balance settings to make sure you get the perfect shot. Transferring images in large batches to your phone is easy as well and noticeably faster than most cameras.

As for price, the Gear 360 launched at nearly one third the price of the original 360-degree camera Samsung released last year. That’s a considerable markdown when you consider how expensive a lot of these cameras are, and even though this camera doesn’t have the highest megapixel count, the photos you get are fantastic.

Samsung’s motivation for making this camera easy to get and easier to use is simple: more people making videos that can be enjoyed inside the Samsung Gear VR headset is great for that ecosystem. To that end, the Gear 360 is one of the best 360-degree camera experiences you can get today.

Best runner-up

Ricoh Theta S

See at Amazon

Ricoh has been making the best 360-degree cameras longer than most, and for this experience it all comes down to the stitching. The physical design of this camera puts the two sensors very close together, which makes it so the Ricoh software can stitch the two pieces together into the closest thing to a flawless sphere you can get from a consumer camera today. It’s a fantastic camera, though its height makes using it for video when mounted to a moving surface a little less convenient.

Bottom line: This camera will give you some amazing pictures and is a lot of fun to use, but the $300 price tag makes it a little pricey.

Best Value

Insta360 Air

See at Amazon

It may not have the highest resolution or the most convenient software, but Insta360 has two incredible features with the Air camera. First, it’s the only USB-C 360-degree camera. This means it plugs directly into your phone with no need to ever worry about battery life or image transfer speeds. You just plug the camera in, flip your phone upside-down, and start shooting.

Second, this camera is the least expensive 360-degree camera worth buying by a long shot. The small profile and quick-launch software makes it convenient, but the $125 price tag really makes getting into 360-degree photography a lot more manageable for a lot of people.

Bottom line: If you want to give 360-degree photography a try, this is where you start.

Conclusion

There are a lot of great reasons to start exploring 360-degree photography. If you’re looking for the best camera to really dive in and start having fun, get the Gear 360 from Samsung. If you’re interested in the best sphere you can capture and love playing with settings to get the perfect shot, the Ricoh Theta S is what you want. If you’re mostly looking to play and don’t want to spend a bunch of money, get the Insta360 Air.

Best overall

Samsung Gear 360

See at Amazon

Not only is Samsung’s latest 360-degree camera smaller, thinner, and lighter than it’s predecessor, but it’s also cheaper and faster! The Samsung Gear 360 is one of the easiest 360-degree cameras to use, making it possible for you to either quickly snap a photo with friends while holding it or remotely accessing the camera from an app loaded up with advanced features for capturing the best image.

Not only can you grab 15MP spheres with lots of detail, but the video mode will capture in 4K at 30FPS with no problem. The bottom mount makes it easy to stick the camera on just about anything, and the unique microphone array in the camera makes capturing sound from every direction very easy.

Bottom line: For ease of use, $200 price tag, and sheer volume of camera features the Gear 360 is the best consumer 360-degree camera you can buy.

One more thing: This camera also works well on the iPhone!

Updated September 2017: The Samsung Gear 360 is still the best 360-degree camera you can buy.

Yes, the LG V30’s camera really does have an f/1.6 aperture

Let’s all take a deep breath.

Could the LG V30 be its best-ever flagship phone? There’s a good shout for it, and part of that comes down to its cameras. LG is making a big deal about the primary shooter in particular: a 16MP sensor with improved optics and an industry-leading f/1.6 aperture. With all of that focus on the camera, somewhere along the way a rumor has started that LG is lying about the aperture, claiming that it is actually f/1.7 — a number offered by other smartphones.

This just isn’t true.

As is so often the case, the first handful of phones to hit the hands of the press — and be on display at trade shows like IFA 2017 — have non-final pre-production software, and sometimes even pre-production hardware. That software often has bugs, and that’s precisely what we’re looking at here: camera software that is unintentionally reporting the wrong aperture in the EXIF data of the pictures.

An LG spokesperson has confirmed to Android Central that the V30’s main camera is, indeed, shooting at f/1.6 despite the software bug on some evaluation phones that shows otherwise. One of the LG V30s Android Central is currently using — a European unit — is actually properly displaying f/1.6 on photos as well.

This is what happens with pre-production software, folks.

Given the imaging-focused marketing approach around the V30, which specifically touts the uniqueness of the f/1.6 aperture, I don’t quite understand why LG would ever lie about something so blatantly. And so, of course, it isn’t lying about it at all. Carry on, folks — the V30’s camera has the hardware LG says it does, and now we can move on to evaluating its actual photo performance.

LG V30

• LG V30 hands-on!
• Full LG V30 specs
• LG V30 vs. G6 vs. GS8
• The V30 is the first phone to support 600MHz spectrum
• Join our LG V30 forums

Here is your long weekend comments thread!

Celebrate your three-day weekend and chat about it right here.

Labor Day marks the unofficial end of summer and is the last day you can wear your white shoes or seersucker suit without people pointing at your fashion faux pas. But it’s also a three-day weekend to celebrate the Great American Worker so it’s pretty awesome.

Many of us will be out doing something fun for Labor Day, while others will be enjoying the time to do absolutely nothing. Both are great ideas. My wife was volunteered to work Monday, so I’ll be here pecking away at a keyboard. A holiday weekend can’t stop the Android world. And there’s a lot of new stuff to talk about.

Hawt.

I’m digging that tiny Sony Xperia XZ1 Compact. Snapdragon 835 in a tiny body with a headphone jack. And it will probably ship with Android Oreo. I think that will be my next, though I’ll import a Twilight Pink model because Sony is stupid and won’t put a fingerprint sensor on the U.S. model. Sony isn’t going to sell any of their new phones in any serious numbers, but I know a few people who are stoked about them. Here is some Sony love for them.

A lot of other people are looking at the Note 8 because it’s the very best that Samsung has to offer right now. And love them or hate them, Samsung makes some really good stuff. I’m interested in the display because I reckon Samsung has once again refined the way they make them and it will be amazing. Samsung always wows me when it comes to their display tech and I want to witness a 1440 x 2960 screen on a phone. Would be a cool one to put under the microscope.

The V30 looks like LG’s best phone ever. I want to type some words about it here, but they all would just mean the same thing: the V30 looks to be LG’s best phone ever. I’m one of the few people who really liked the V10 and its rubbery body, but LG has slowly moved the V series towards looking like a “real” phone. I think this one is going to make money for LG, especially for people who are bigly into shooting video with their phone. I’m also close to a T-Mobile 600MHz market (coming soon!) and want to see if I can find a way to do some testing.

Take the space below to chat about the great new stuff we’ve seen or talk about anything else. It’s nice to relax a bit and just chat. And to all you folks who keep America working — whether it’s with a pencil, a keyboard, a wrench or whatever — happy Labor Day!

Trump’s pick for NASA’s new leader sparks mixed reactions

After weeks of rumors, the White House has officially picked a new NASA leader… and he’s already proving to be controversial. President Trump has announced his intention to nominate Rep. Jim Bridenstine, an Oklahoma Republican and former executive director of Tulsa’s Air and Space Museum, as the new permanent administrator following the exit of Charles Bolden in January. Some in the space industry are fond of him, but there are also vocal objections to his background — there are concerns he’ll politicize an agency that’s supposed to be interested solely in the pursuit of science.

Bridenstine has been a vocal proponent of the privatization of space, to the point where he introduced a bill (the American Space Renaissance Act) that would have created “minimal” and “certain” regulations to foster private participation in US space initiatives. It never became law (a revised bill is expected later in 2017) but his focus was clear: he wanted to rely more on commercial partners than government programs. He has also been an advocate of a permanent robotic presence on the Moon to harvest its resources (which could further the White House’s goals) and help drive down the costs of space flight. Private space companies are reportedly fond of him, and he could accelerate the already-growing role of the corporate crowd in space exploration.

The expected nominee will have to go through a Senate confirmation process to be accepted, however, and that’s where he could face serious resistance. Both Republican senator Marco Rubio and Democrat senator Bill Nelson have jointly criticized the Bridenstine pick as needlessly injecting politics into NASA, which is supposed to be devoted to the pursuit of science. His “political baggage” could hold NASA back by throwing in accusations of partisan bias, Rubio tells Politico, and he might not command respect from an organization that values its scientific mission.

That question of respect stems in part from Bridenstine’s lack of directly relevant experience. While he’s clearly enthusiastic about space and did lead a museum devoted to it, most of his non-political experience is as a combat and counter-drug pilot. That raises concerns that he might not value or understand science as well an ex-astronaut like Bolden. While he might jumpstart private spaceflight, he might also downplay important scientific studies (especially climate science) in the process.

Via: SpaceNews, Phys.org

Source: NASA