iOS 11 Overtakes iOS 10, Now Installed on 47% of Devices

A little over three weeks after being released to the public, iOS 11 adoption has reached its 47 percent, successfully overtaking iOS 10, according to data collected by analytics company Mixpanel.

With iOS 11 installed on 47 percent of devices, iOS 10 is now installed on 46 percent of devices. 6.7 percent of devices also continue to run iOS 9 or earlier.

iOS 11 adoption has been much slower than iOS 10 adoption during the same timeframe last year. It took just two weeks for iOS 10 to overtake iOS 9, while iOS 11 was only installed on 38.5 percent of devices at the two week mark.

Adoption rates have been steadily increasing, though. At 24 hours, iOS 11 was installed on 10 percent of devices, and at one week, it was installed on 25 percent.

Apple has released three minor updates to iOS 11 so far to fix bugs and issues discovered since its launch. The most recent update, iOS 11.0.3, came out just yesterday.

The first major update to iOS 11, iOS 11.1, is in the works and that update may spur people running iOS 10 to upgrade to iOS 11. iOS 11.1 introduces new emoji characters, often popular with users, and it reintroduces a 3D Touch gesture that lets the App Switcher be accessed with one hand.

Related Roundup: iOS 11
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Review: QardioBase 2 Smart Scale Offers Major Improvements Over Original Model

Qardio, known for its line of iPhone-connected health-related products, recently unveiled its second-generation scale, the QardioBase 2 Smart Scale and Body Analyzer.

QardioBase 2 is designed for tracking your weight as you aim to hit fitness goals. It measures not only weight, but also tracks body mass index and body composition, including muscle, bone, fat, and water content in the body.

Design

QardioBase 2, as the name suggests, is Qardio’s second iPhone-connected smart scale. I reviewed the original QardioBase last year and was not impressed with the unstable design, but Qardio has made some significant improvements to its second-generation model and it’s a much better product.

Original QardioBase on left, QardioBase 2 on right
QardioBase 2 is a simple circle-shaped scale with a clean white glass top that has some simple accent lines on the front. There’s a silver Qardio logo button at the bottom and several hidden LEDs under the glass that allow the scale to display weight and other information.

I tested the white version of the QardioBase 2, but there’s also a black color option to choose. Both the white and the black versions have black bases with rubber feet to keep the scale secure on the floor.

The original QardioBase had the same circular design as the QardioBase 2, but it had an oddly tapered design that made it tilt and tip if you stepped on the edge of the scale. With QardioBase 2, there’s less of a taper and a slightly larger base overall, so it’s steady at all times no matter where you step.

Original QardioBase on left, QardioBase 2 on right
While the original QardioBase required batteries, the second version does not. It uses a rechargeable battery that lasts for about a year before it needs to be recharged, and it can be plugged in and charged with a microUSB cable using a port at the side. Scales can eat up batteries within just a couple of months, so not having to buy and swap out batteries is a major plus.

Port for charging the QardioBase 2
According to Qardio, the QardioBase 2 should be placed on a flat, hard surface for accurate measurements.

App and Features

When you step on the QardioBase 2, it lights up with a happy face via the LEDs, and a haptic buzz lets you know it’s recording your weight. It displays weight measurement, fat total, and your name with each weight recording, but the scale also relays additional information to the Qardio app over a Wi-Fi connection with each weighing.

QardioBase 2 keeps track of the following metrics: weight, body fat percentage, muscle mass, water content, bone, and BMI. It uses bioimpedance to measure body mass, sending a small signal through electrodes on the top of the scale into your feet. Body composition is calculated through the electrical impedance, weight, and data like height stored in the Qardio app.

The scale needs to come in contact with bare feet for body composition measurements. If you have socks or shoes on, it will only provide weight information. You also need to be still for a few seconds — it can’t take an accurate measurement with movement.

Qardio says its body composition calculations are estimates, with data intended for home use, but the company also told me that the majority of people will only see a single % digit discrepancy compared to a technique like hydrostatic weighing that uses water displacement for body composition analysis.

With the first QardioBase, I was skeptical about its accuracy because even its base weight measurements shifted every time I stepped on the scale, but that’s not the case with the QardioBase 2. I can step on the scale multiple times in a row and get the exact same weight measurement, and the measurements it’s giving me are identical to a standard non-smart scale.

I can say without a doubt that my weight measurements are accurate, but it’s more difficult to tell with the body composition measurements without a medical test for comparison. I weigh right around 100 pounds, and QardioBase 2 gives me body fat measurements of 23 percent, with bone at 4 percent, muscle at 14 percent, and water at somewhere around 50 percent depending on the time of day.

I don’t know how accurate those measurements are, especially the muscle number, but scales that use bioimpedance, like the QardioBase 2, are meant to track progress and body composition over time rather than offer up spot on single measurements.

So while there’s no way to tell if these measurements are right sans professional testing, I can see how they change over time with exercise and diet changes, and that’s really where the QardioBase 2 shines.

Someone aiming to lose weight, cut down on body fat, or gain muscle is going to be able to track changes in body composition over time and though the initial measurements may not be accurate, the degree of change is.

Qardio says body composition measurements are most accurate when taken at the same time and in the same conditions. Analysis can be inaccurate if a measurement is taken with a high alcohol level, high caffeine level, intense sports activity, dehydration, or after a heavy meal. Measurements can also be affected by body type, but even in these situations, tracking change remains reliable.

To estimate your body composition and BMI, the Qardio app needs your height and weight. You can also enter a weight goal and the app will display your progress alongside your most recent measurement.

In the History section of the app, all measurements over time are displayed, with daily, weekly, and monthly graphs for weight, BMI, and fat. There’s also a list of all measurements sorted by date and time and a calendar view that displays each day a weight measurement was taken. With Health integration, all of your measurements can also be added to the Health app.

Since Qardio recommends taking measurements at the same time each day, there’s an in-app option for setting a reminder for yourself.

The features that track body composition can be disabled through the Qardio app by turning on a Weight Only Mode, and Qardio recommends this for customers who have implanted electronic medical devices. There’s also a Pregnancy Mode and a Smart Feedback Mode along with the normal mode that displays weight and fat percentage with each measurement.

With Smart Feedback Mode, QardioBase 2 will display facial expressions like sad faces and happy faces to indicate your progression towards your ideal weight rather than your actual weight measurement, which is ideal if you’d rather be encouraged by a happy face instead of a number. Your weight and body composition information are still stored in the app for reference.

Pregnancy Mode is similar to Smart Feedback Mode and will display a smile instead of weight along with offering additional in-app tools for tracking weight change during pregnancy. With all modes, you can add notes each day to track lifestyle changes that might have had an impact on different measurements.

QardioBase 2 can be used with two users, but each person needs to create a Qardio account in the Qardio app to allow the scale to distinguish between users. QardioBase 2 seems to detect who is on the scale based on weight and body composition, and when someone who does not have an account steps on the scale, it displays weight but does not add the info to a user account.

When using the scale with multiple users, you need to tap on it with a foot to change accounts, which is a gesture that was a little finicky for me. It sometimes took more than one tap to change accounts, but it wasn’t a huge issue.

During my time testing the scale, it’s been entirely reliable in regard to connecting to my iPhone and transferring over data via Wi-Fi. After a measurement, it takes just a few seconds for it to be visible on my iPhone, and the Qardio app in general is simple to use with an intuitive interface that makes all my data visible at a quick glance.

Also, if you have other Qardio products, it’s all the same app, so you can view multiple metrics without needing to switch apps.

Bottom Line

You can get a quality scale for about $15 to $25 on Amazon, so $150 is a lot of extra money to shell out for iPhone connectivity and body composition measurements.

No one needs a smart scale, but for people who want to track weight loss or fitness gains, it can provide some extra motivation and a more tangible way to track progress over time using metrics beyond weight. There are also people out there who like to track a wide range of health data for an overall picture of body health, and the scale is great for that purpose since it uploads to the Health app.

Compared to the original QardioBase, QardioBase 2 is a huge step up in terms of design and accuracy. Qardio clearly took user feedback into account when developing the QardioBase 2, and it shows. The scale is sturdy and stable when I step on it, the weight measurements are consistent, setup is easy, and the app has all of the tracking features I want.

Small touches like haptic feedback to mark a measurement and the simple smiley face when stepping on the scale set QardioBase 2 apart from its competitors and make it well worth consideration if you’re in the market for a smart scale.

How to Buy

The QardioBase 2 can be purchased from the Qardio website or from Amazon.com for $150.

Note: Qardio provided MacRumors with a QardioBase 2 for the purpose of this review. No other compensation was received.

Tags: Qardio, QardioBase
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Best iOS app deals of the day! 6 paid iPhone apps for free for a limited time

Everyone likes Apple apps, but sometimes the best ones are a bit expensive. Now and then, developers put paid apps on sale for free for a limited time, but you have to snatch them up while you have the chance. Here are the latest and greatest iOS app deals available from the iOS App Store.

These apps normally cost money and this sale lasts for a limited time only. If you go to the App Store and it says the app costs money, that means the deal has expired and you will be charged. 

GRE Vocab Genius

Applying the latest in cognitive science techniques, this app helps you efficiently learn over 2,000 “dynamic flashcards” covering both vocabulary words and their roots.

Available on:

iOS

Time Manager

Time Manager is an easy way to keep track of your daily activities. All your tasks will be totaled and broken down into reports and graphs for you to see how well you’re spending your time.

Available on:

iOS

TranslateSafari

This app is a Safari extension that translates and speaks aloud the entire web page of the Safari app. A must-have app to translate and speak aloud web pages of Safari.

Available on:

iOS

iDigital Desk Clock

Set your phone up by your desk with this app and have access to everything from the time to the month to the current temperature. It’s a nostalgic use for your iPhone.

Available on:

iOS

Extreme Week Calendar

This app is the light version of the popular Extreme Agenda organizer app. It gives you a seven-day week view and an inline day view to add great features not found in the default calendar.

Available on:

iOS

Honest Weather

Are you sick of the weather? Did it ruin all your plans? Let honest weather tell you exactly how you may feel about the temperature in funny ways.

Available on:

iOS

Understand your body better via the QardioBase and MyFitnessPal

Why it matters to you

QardioBase and MyFitnessPal are teaming up to give you a more holistic sense of your health.

You only get one in this lifetime, so you ought to take care of it. We’re talking, of course, about your body, that all-important vehicle for everything you do. Here to help your body reach its full potential is a new partnership between fitness app MyFitnessPal and smart scale and body analyzer, QardioBase. Thanks to the new collaboration between the two companies, you’ll be able to not only track your diet, but better understand how it affects your weight and body composition.

We’ve long been fans of QardioBase smart scales, which present a friendlier approach to weight management. Indeed, the scale goes beyond showing you a number, also providing users with a more holistic picture of their health with data like body mass index, bone mass, water, and muscle percentage. And now, all of this information is being integrated into the MyFitnessPal platform, allowing health gurus to view all relevant information about their unique bodies in one place.

“We’re excited to partner with such a well respected brand and one that shares our mission of helping empower users to be healthy,” says Marco Peluso, CEO of Qardio. “This integration is another step in opening up our platform for more people around the world and makes it easy for them to stay on top of their health goals.”

Currently, MyFitnessPal allows its users to keep tabs on nutrition, calories, and fitness. But now that QardioBase data can be seamlessly integrated into the platform, users can also view a more robust dashboard of health information, giving them a comprehensive look at their overall health. Once the integration is initiated, all of a user’s future QardioBase measurements will be automatically sent to the MyFitnessPal app, giving immediate insights and helping them take action where needed.

“UA Connected Fitness is an open platform and this collaboration provides another opportunity to further integrate personal nutrition and activity with tracking technologies,” says Albert Lee, senior vice president of digital for Under Armour. “Partnering with Qardio will make it easier for users to keep track of their progress and help them on their road to a healthier lifestyle.”

The goal of this new collaboration is to help users achieve their weight goals faster than ever before by giving them detailed information on how diet affects weight and body composition as efficiently as possible. That way, you won’t have to wonder how that extra slice of pizza (or two) impacted your health. You’ll be able to see it immediately in one centralized location.

Blackberry settles all lawsuits with Blu, reaches a patent licensing deal

Why it matters to you

Blackberry and Blu’s licensing agreement is good news for affordable phone fans.

Blackberry and Florida-based phone maker Blu Products got into a nasty legal spat in October 2016, when the former accused the latter of infringing on its patents. But the two companies agreed to bury the hatchet on Thursday, October 12.

Blu said it would enter a patent licensing agreement with Blackberry, and Blackberry, in exchange, agreed to end all active litigation against it.

“We are very pleased to have reached this patent license agreement with Blu Products,” Jerald Gnuschke, senior director of intellectual property licensing at Blackberry, said in a statement. “The consummation of this agreement enables us to focus on further licensing opportunities in the mobile communications market.”

Blackberry’s initial complaint alleged that Blu, a manufacturer known for selling affordable smartphones, infringed on 15 of the Waterloo, Canada-based company’s patents revolving around processors, power management, enterprise software, operating systems, and cellular equipment. They covered things like a battery disconnection system, time-stamped messaging, and signal transmission methods, according to Ars Technica.

As a consequence of Blu’s infringement, Blackberry said the manufacturer “earned substantial revenue selling 2G, 3G, and LTE-compliant products that use Blackberry’s technology.” Furthermore, it claims that it offered Blu fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (FRAND) terms licensing terms, but that Blu ignored the offer.

“Despite efforts by Blackberry to negotiate, Blu [persisted] in importing, selling, and offering for sale a substantial volume of standard-compliant products that use Blackberry’s SEP technology without a license,” read one of the complaints.

The lawsuits followed on the heels of Blackberry’s first patent infringement litigation in August 2016, when it took Californian tech company Avaya to court. And they didn’t come as much of a surprise — during an earnings call last year, Blackberry CEO John Chen told investors that the company was entering “patent licensing mode.”

As of September 2016, Blackberry owned around 44,000 patents that are believed to be worth $2 billion to $3 billion.

Update: Added news that Blu has agreed to enter a patent licensing agreement with Blackberry.

Everything we know about the Project Santa Cruz headset from Oculus

If you own any PC-based VR headset today, you’ll know about the hassle that comes with keeping all of the required cables tidy. In October 2017, Oculus announced that its next-generation Rift headset, currently known as Project Santa Cruz, will cut the cords entirely. It removes the need for a high-end PC (or, rather, a PC entirely) by offering a stand-alone VR experience operated by the unit itself and nothing else. Here’s everything we know about Oculus Santa Cruz so far.

Cutting the cords

Project Santa Cruz was originally teased in 2016 with an early prototype. We took it for a spin last year and found it to be curiously comfortable for a headset that looked as if it was an Oculus Rift with some additional parts. In the year and change that has passed since we last saw Santa Cruz, it has ditched some of the excess parts around its bands (including the mobile phone attached to the back) in favor of a sleeker, more form-fitting design. Whether this translates to increased comfort remains to be seen.

PC-quality VR

Unlike the Oculus Go, which also cuts the cords to deliver a Gear VR-comparable experience, the Santa Cruz seeks to deliver PC-quality VR in a stand-alone package. While we haven’t seen anything in action using Santa Cruz up until now, the goal is to emulate high-end VR experiences without the need for cords or an external computer. The original prototype used processors that could be utilized in mobile phones, but the total package managed to deliver inside-out tracking — which is not currently available on mobile VR.

New Oculus Touch controllers

It’s not PC-quality VR without motion controllers, and Oculus has redesigned the Oculus Touch controllers specifically for the Santa Cruz. The controllers, which have wide rings atop their handles, use the infrared LEDs from the original Touch controllers. Four ultra-wide camera sensors in the headset allow for precise head and controller tracking and give the player a wide range of movements while using two controllers.

When can you experience PC quality VR without a PC?

Oculus has not set an official launch window for Project Santa Cruz. At Oculus Connect 4, the company said it will send Santa Cruz to developers in 2018. In other words, we’re definitely still a ways off.

Robot masseuse uses smart sensors to figure out which muscles to work on

Why it matters to you

A new smart robot masseuse is designed to give you the perfect massage every single time.

What better way to unwind following a busy day on the unemployment line — after having your job stolen by a machine, no less — than with a nice, soothing massage? And what better way to ensure that your massage is exactly how you always like it than by getting a robot to do it? That’s now possible, courtesy of a new robo-masseuse that just started work in Singapore.

Called Expert Manipulative Massage Automation — or Emma, for short — the robot specializes in back and knee massages. It is the third Emma model developed, but the first to be deployed in the real world. Emma works by using smart sensors to work out how stiff particular muscles and tendons are, and then figuring out how much pressure needs to be applied to that area.

“This is the first therapeutic massage robot in the market, actually working to give therapeutic massages to real patients at a pain-management clinic, such as those operated by traditional Chinese medicine physicians,” Albert Zhang, founder of the Singaporean startup AiTreat and inventor of Emma, told Digital Trends. “Patients who have tried Emma don’t find much difference between Emma and a human masseuse, because Emma’s soft silicon tips are heated and shaped similar to the human thumb and palm. It is also able to give a massage with consistent strength and accuracy, something which varies between human masseuses, who are also affected by fatigue.”

Despite our quip about replacing human masseuses, Emma’s inventor thinks that it will have a place working alongside humans — for now — since it can help to free up human experts to concentrate on other forms of treatments, such as neck and elbows massages. “One of the hardest challenges we faced was to replicate some of the massage techniques used by a professional masseuse in traditional Chinese medicine,” Zhang said. “Each masseuse has their own style of massage, and we had to program Emma to mimic them as best as she could — delivering enough strength to penetrate the muscles to relax them, but yet not too painful for the patient.”

At present, Emma is working at a health clinic in the Central Business District in Singapore. The clinic rents Emma for around $2,200 per month, which is similar to the average pay of a masseuse in Singapore. While that may seem a lot for a machine that can only carry out a fraction of what a human masseuse can do, it could be worth it if it means more patients come through the door.

Our biggest question in all this? When robots inevitably form the majority of the workforce, and wear themselves out accordingly, will robot-on-robot massages become a thing? After all, robots can have muscles, too.

Which Pixelbook Should you Buy?

Does anyone really need the upgraded Pixelbook (and its $500 cost)? ,intro

I’ve seen this discussion on the internet a lot more often than I would have imagined. People are thinking about buying a Pixelbook and trying to decide if they need to spend more to get one with those beefy specs; not something you expect to see when you’re talking about a $1,000 Chromebook.

It’s great to see interest in a product you want to buy yourself, but before we get into the reasons why anyone should spend more on an upgraded Pixelbook, I have to say that the Samsung Chromebook Plus is a much better purchase. It’s half the price and will do everything Chrome-related you ever wanted to do. It’s also really well-built and has a beautiful display, and there’s even a Pen. At least have a look at one before you decide, because it might be just what you wanted but leaves you with $500 to buy other things. I’m not saying the Pixelbook isn’t an amazing-looking piece of gear, but it’s worth your time to look at other amazing pieces of gear, too.

OK, now that’s out of the way. There are people who have looked at other Chromebooks and decided the Pixelbook is the one they want. Folks who have an older Chromebook Pixel might appreciate the attention to detail we assume the Pixelbook will have, or maybe you’re in love with the style and build. And of course, there will be more than a few people buying them because they want a high-end ultrabook they can install other operating systems on. We all have our reasons.

To answer the question, though, you have to know why you want a Pixelbook in the first place. What you plan to do with it makes a big difference — especially when the upgrade cost is also a huge difference.

If you want the best Chromebook money can buy and decided that the Pixelbook is going to be just that, you probably don’t need to buy anything but the base model. Using this Chromebook as a Chromebook with Chrome and Android apps, surfing the internet, writing or doing web development or any of the things a Chromebook does well without any headaches definitely doesn’t need a faster processor or more than 128 GB of storage space. Chrome is Chrome, and no matter which Chromebook it’s installed on you have the same features and options. And there are several Chromebooks under $300 that can do any or all of those things really well.

Chrome can’t do anything that will need more horsepower than the base model can deliver.

A base-model Pixelbook will have the same quality and deliver the same Chrome OS experience as the $500 upgrade models will. That’s the beauty of Chrome OS: it runs amazingly on low spec’d hardware. It’s a mobile operating system designed with a specific set of features and functions in mind, and when something gets added to the OS it has to be able to “just work” on the existing models. So it’s like the very opposite of Android. The $999 Google Pixelbook is about a ton of overkill on the hardware side, so you really don’t need to add another ton of hardware under the hood.

Folks interested in the higher priced models know why they are the exception. The idea that you can’t take advantage of even more horsepower goes out the window if you start installing a second (or third) OS to your new ultrabook. I’ve heard from people who plan to compile code and from folks who are interested in installing Steam, and yes, you are the target for the upgraded Pixelbooks.

Spending about $1,500 on a high-end ultrabook isn’t unheard of. And that’s what you would be getting if you spent that much — top-notch hardware specs, an amazing screen, a great keyboard and trackpad all in a slim and light package. If that’s what you’re looking for you’re not buying one because it runs Chrome. Because anything will run Chrome. Though you should consider that you can buy a laptop from Apple or Microsoft or Dell or HP or any number of other companies that won’t be difficult to configure with another OS, and the Pixelbook might prove to be a pain when it comes to doing it.

I’m not trying to talk anyone into doing anything, and how you spend your money is your decision. But I assume that people are asking because they want genuine feedback. And really, this is one of those things that if you have to ask the answer is no. If you just want an incredible Chromebook, the base model Pixelbook is the one for you. And even if you decide to take the plunge and start fiddling with the system, it’s more than enough to make for a good experience there, too. Leave the $500 upgrade costs to the people who already know they need it.

Chromebooks

• The best Chromebooks
• Should you buy a Chromebook?
• Google Play is coming to Chromebooks
• Acer Chromebook 14 review
• Join our Chromebook forums

Google Express partners with Target, Assistant shopping coming to phones

Shortly following the launch of Walmart, Google Express is now adding Target to its growing list of available stores.

Google has made some pretty big changes to Google Express over the past few months, including the abolishment of its membership fee and adding a lot of additional retailers to its lineup. Today, the company announced that Target will be joining the Express family and that users will soon be able to use the Google Assistant to shop on their phone.

Starting first with Target, Express users in the United States (minus Alaska and Hawaii) are now able to purchase items from the retailer right within the Google Express app and with their voice via Google Home. You can currently choose from a wide variety of goods, such as Home & Garden, Apparel, Electronics, Health & Beauty, and more, and Target will offer free two-day shipping on any orders over $35 or more.

In the future, Google Express will also allow customers to add their Target REDcard for 5-percent off purchases made with it, in addition to customized re-order recommendations based on past products you’ve purchased at the store.

Right alongside the Target announcement, Google also revealed that users will soon be able to order items on Express using the Google Assistant on their phone (including Android and iOS). You can already use the Assistant to shop for items with your voice on Google Home and Android TV, so adding this functionality to phones only makes sense. There’s currently no word as to exactly when this feature will launch, but our guess is that it’ll be sooner rather than later.

Walmart products are now available through Google Express and Home

LG V30 making its way to Canada on Oct 20

The LG V30 is coming to Canada in just over a week.

While the last of the U.S. carriers are set to start selling the LG V30 this week, Canadians eager to purchase the multimedia powerhouse phone will have to wait an extra week.

LG Canada says the phone will be released on October 20 at a number of carriers, including Rogers, Bell, TELUS, Fido, Koodo, and Freedom Mobile. Android Central has also learned that the phone will retail for $1100 outright, or around $400 on a 2-year term with partial financing.

Unlike in some other markets, Canadian carriers will only stock one color of the V30 — Cloud Silver.

Where to buy the LG V30

LG V30

• LG V30 review: The no-BS flagship
• Top LG V30 camera features
• Full LG V30 specs
• LG V30 vs. G6 vs. GS8
• The V30 is the first phone to support 600MHz spectrum
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