Amazon kid-friendly tablets are on sale right now, starting from £69.99

Keep the little ones entertained with their very own tablet, specifically tailored to providing content to a younger audience.

Kids are massive fans of technology, providing them countless hours of entertainment. While handing the little ones your phone or personal tablet can be a way of keeping them occupied for an hour or two, it’s not the best solution. This is where Amazon’s Kid series of tablets come into play, offering a more restrictive experience in a more kid-friendly format.

For the next handful of days, you’ll be able to pick up the Fire 7 and Fire HD 8 tablets for £69.99 and £89.99, respectively.

As well as offering a two-year guarantee, Amazon packs a whole heap of features into these tablets, including parental controls, memory card storage expansion, and one year of Fire for Kids Unlimited. This unlocks content for the youngling, depending on their age and interests.

See Fire 7 at Amazon See Fire HD 8 at Amazon

‘Connected’ cars are hitting UK roads for the first time

Slowly, the UK government is realising its dream of making the nation a self-driving research hub. UK Autodrive, a publicly funded consortium that includes Jaguar Land Rover, Ford and TATA Motors, has announced a new set of trials in Coventry today. They will focus on self-driving cars and vehicles that can instantly share information with other motorists and city infrastructure. Researchers will be testing a signal, for instance, that can be sent out by the emergency services — ambulances, fire trucks and police cars — to nearby drivers, advising them when and where to move aside.

Other test features include a warning signal for intersections deemed too unsafe to cross, in-car information about accidents and traffic jams (negating the need for signs on bridges) and an alert system when a driver in front suddenly hits the brakes (the idea being that this can be hard to spot in rain and fog). UK Autodrive is also looking at connected traffic lights that could help self-driving vehicles optimise their speed, avoid red lights and reduce road congestion. The team’s autonomous vehicles are tied to a half-mile route in the city centre, while a second group focused entirely on “connected” features prowl a longer six-mile course.

The self-driving cars will have a backup driver in case of an emergency. The test routes are small, but it’s still rare for driverless vehicles to be out on public roads. Most are kept to test tracks or pedestrianised spaces. Milton Keynes, for instance, has been trialing the Lutz Pathfinder pod as a potential form of public transportation. A larger, four-person shuttle was tested at the Greenwich Peninsula, while a self-driving van delivered groceries in a quiet neighbourhood near Woolwich Arsenal station. There have been exceptions, however, such as the Nissan Leaf in east London.

The trials aren’t as glitzy as those being conducted by Waymo — the self-driving division of Alphabet — Uber or Tesla. But they add to an already broad package of self-driving research projects in the UK. If the results are positive, they could attract the attention and investment of Silicon Valley’s finest. That would give Britain a pivotal role in what many consider to be the next step-change in transportation. It could also serve the interests of Dyson, the British vacuum cleaner, hairdryer and hand dryer producer, which confirmed a couple of months ago that it’s building an electric car.

The Morning After: Friday, November 17th 2017

Friday is here — you made it. Over the last 24 hours, Tesla revealed a new prototype Roadster with a ridiculous spec sheet. Oh, and the company showed off its new all-electric big rig. Meanwhile, OnePlus announced its latest smartphone, the 5T, which looks much pricier than it is.

Surprise!
Tesla’s new Roadster will be the fastest production car ever – in 2020

At last night’s big Semi event, Elon Musk and Tesla had a special surprise, a prototype of the company’s next Roadster. A follow-up to its original EV, the new car is a four-seater with a removable roof, a 200kWh battery capable of going 620 miles, and incredible performance specs. With a claimed 0 – 60 MPH time of 1.9 seconds, 8.9 second quarter mile and top speed of over 250 MPH, Musk claims it will be the fastest production car ever. The only problem? It’s not coming out until 2020, and getting in line for a pre-order will cost $50k of the $200,000 base price, or $250,000 up front for a limited “Founders Edition” model.

Keep on truckin’.
Meet the Tesla Semi

Tesla also showed off its Semi, an all-electric big rig with a 500 mile range, plus Enhanced Autopilot technology. Inside, a pair of Model 3 displays inform the driver of what’s going on, while its four independent motors are powerful enough for a 0 – 60 time of 5 seconds when empty, and 20 seconds while hauling 80,000 pounds of cargo. It’s supposed to start production in 2019.

These are the AAA and indie games that are worth your money.
The best Nintendo Switch games

Nintendo’s hybrid console isn’t quite a year old, but it can already claim two of 2017’s best games in its line-up. Barring Mario and Link, what else is worth playing?

A stronger hinge and a stronger offering.
Surface Book 2 review: Microsoft gets closer to the ‘ultimate laptop’

The Surface Book 2 is one of the most powerful and well-designed Windows laptops on the market. And thanks to its improved hinge, it doesn’t feel any different than a traditional notebook. It’s the best MacBook Pro competitor we’ve seen yet. Check out our full review.

Spend a bit more, get more.
Hands-on: OnePlus 5T’s fancy screen and upgraded dual cameras cost $499

The OnePlus 5T is official — and it’s at once everything you expected and a bit more. The centerpiece, as you’ve no doubt guessed, is the 6-inch, 2,160 x 1,080 AMOLED display — and that sub-$500 price. The fingerprint reader is now on the back as a result of the taller screen, but it means a larger canvas for your apps and videos in a device that’s roughly the same size as its predecessor. Compared to the not-that-old OnePlus 5, we’re getting a device that looks decidedly more modern — we’ve already taken it for an early spin.

It will be one of the Extremely Large Telescope’s most interesting subjects.
Neighboring exoplanet could be one of the most habitable

A team of astronomers have discovered an Earth-like exoplanet that’s only 11 light-years away and is one of the most potentially habitable celestial bodies we’ve ever come across. Ross 128 b’s star doesn’t emit as much solar flare as the Proxima Centauri, so it’s not as exposed to deadly ultraviolet and X-ray radiation that destroy life. In addition, it could still have an atmosphere to support life, since its slow rotation and weak magnetic activity means its atmosphere isn’t likely to erode that quickly.

It could be the end for several popular add-ons Hollywood strikes back against illegal streaming Kodi add-ons

An anti-piracy alliance supported by many major US and UK movie studios, broadcasters and content providers has dealt a blow to the third-party Kodi add-on scene after it successfully forced a number of popular piracy-linked streaming tools offline. In what appears to be a coordinated crackdown, developers including jsergio123 and The_Alpha, who are responsible for the development and hosting of add-ons like urlresolver, metahandler, Bennu, DeathStreams and Sportie, confirmed that they will no longer maintain their Kodi creations and have immediately shut them down.

But wait, there’s more…

• Amazon Key flaw could let a courier disable your Cloud Cam
• China wants to build a nuclear-powered space shuttle by 2040
• MegaBots wants to crowdfund a tournament for 2018
• The best smart home and kitchen gadgets to give as gifts

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Netflix outbids Disney for superhero movie starring Daisy Ridley

There’s no shortage of superheroes on Netflix, yet it’s found room for a subversive spin on Hollywood’s favourite genre, courtesy of Josh Gad. The streaming giant outbid Disney to nab the film, dubbed Super-Normal, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The character-driven flick will also star Daisy Ridley (who’s back in the saddle as Rey for Star Wars: The Last Jedi) and Gad’s Beauty and the Beast co-star Luke Evans. The script comes from the writing duo behind animated hit Moana (another Disney connection), with Gad in the production chair alongside It producer Dan Lin — who’s also involved in Netflix’s Death Note.

Those hankering for super-charged Netflix action right away can fire up Marvel’s The Defenders (or the squad’s solo shows: Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Daredevil, and Iron Fist). The grimmer exploits of Marvel’s The Punisher also arrive today. While the dysfunctional adventures of Dark Horse Comics’ property The Umbrella Academy are in the pipeline. As if that wasn’t enough, there’s also Raising Dion: A show about a super-kid’s mom — because Netflix heroes don’t wear capes.

Via: The Hollywood Reporter

Spotify App Updated With Support for iPhone X Displays

Spotify updated its iOS app today with support for iPhone X, exactly two weeks since Apple’s latest smartphone launched. The update removes the letterboxing of Spotify’s interface on the iPhone X’s 5.8-inch OLED display, which should come as welcome news to heavy users of the app, allowing them to see more of track lists and search results on the screen, and more artwork when browsing albums and playlists.

“Stranger Things Mode” before (left) and after Spotify iPhone X update
The music streaming service is unusually late to the game on this front, with many top App Store apps already having updated their interfaces for the iPhone’s 1,125 × 2,436 resolution display, which results in roughly 20 percent additional vertical space for content compared to the 4.7-inch displays of the iPhone 6, 7, and 8.

Apple was naturally quick to publish human interface guidelines for developers coding iPhone X apps. The documentation explains the changes that need to be made to ensure apps make the most of the additional space. At the same time, the guidance warns developers away from encroaching on certain areas of the screen, including the rounded corners, sensor housing, and indicator for accessing the Home screen.

Spotify is a free download for iPhone and iPad available on the App Store. [Direct Link]

Related Roundup: iPhone XTag: SpotifyBuyer’s Guide: iPhone X (Buy Now)
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Brave’s browser makes it easy to donate money to YouTubers

Brave browser, which was created by Mozilla’s former CEO, offers a browsing experience quite different from what you’re used to. It blocks ads but will pay you for allowing replacement advertisements that are supposedly free from bloatware and malware. It also allows you to anonymously donate money to websites you like on a monthly basis. Now, its latest version also gives you a way to donate directly to YouTubers — not Google or the YouTube website — you like.

Previous versions of the browser wouldn’t let you add specific channels to your donation list, but now you can make sure your money goes where you want it to go — even if that YouTuber has less than 10,000 video views. If you’ll recall, the platform updated its Partner Program requirements to add that condition in order to keep spammers and reposters from taking advantage of the money-making system. Unfortunately, the move also affects smaller creators who’ve yet to reach the threshold.

To donate, you’ll need to have cryptocurrency (or add funds if you’ve ran out) in your Brave wallet. The browser will automatically detect channels of the videos you watch, even if they’re embedded on another website, and you can choose to add them to your monthly donation list. However, interested creators will first have to verify their channels to be able to collect. Once they’re done doing that, they can start collecting contributions, convert crypto to a currency they can use and then move their earnings to their bank accounts.

Via: CNET

Source: Brave

Comcast, Verizon, and Sony are also after Fox’s film and TV units

Talk of Disney eyeing Fox’s assets has ignited the interest of more media juggernauts. The new batch of contenders includes Comcast, Verizon, and Sony’s entertainment arm, according to The Wall Street Journal.

News emerged last week that Disney had held talks with 21st Century Fox to snap up most of its empire, which spans movie studios, its TV production business, entertainment channels (like FX and National Geographic) and international properties like Sky — whittling Fox down to a smaller-scale enterprise focused on news and sports. Its new suitors are reportedly chasing the same assets, although talks are in the early stages, according to WSJ’s sources.

It seems content is king in this case. Fox’s entertainment properties (including its Marvel roster, composed of X-Men and Deadpool) would bring Disney a step closer to completing its Marvel Studios collection. And, likely appeal to Sony as well (which saw Spider-Man: Homecoming single-handedly boost its movie division). Meanwhile, Comcast would stand to consume another movie studio (alongside Universal Pictures) and more programming for its Xfinity video streaming services — something Verizon and Disney are now in the market for too. For better or worse, media consolidation could end up the real victor.

Via: The Wall Street Journal

Virgin Hyperloop One might build networks in India

Virgin Hyperloop One is eyeing the possibility of building networks of high-speed tube transportation in India. The company, which recently rebranded to include “Virgin” in its name after Richard Branson’s investment, has started conducting studies with three Indian states to determine potential routes. Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh are looking to offer hyperloops as part of their public transit system in the future to give people a way to travel from their homes to India’s economic centers in a few minutes instead of a few hours.

Nick Earle, Hyperloop One’s SVP of Global Field Operations, said:

“Imagine the potential impact to people’s lives and commerce if travel between Mumbai, Bangaluru, Chennai, Visakhapatnam, and Amaravati could take place in under two hours. Hyperloop could change the face of India just as trains did during the Industrial Revolution.”

The company says hyperloop could reduce travel time from Pune to Mumbai to 14 minutes instead of the two-to-three hours people are used to. It could enable travel from Amaravati to Visakhapatnam or Bengaluru in 27 and 45 minutes, respectively. In the long run, hyperloop networks could boost India’s economy and people’s quality of life.

People from remote locations won’t have to move to big cities anymore, since they’ll be able to commute to work every day without train, bus or car rides taking up huge chunks of their time. They could hop on a pod and go from one city to the next for work, business or leisure. Hyperloop networks could also make airports more accessible and make India a more attractive place to visit, since tourists will have a quick way to get from one location to the next.

Of course, there’s always a possibility that nothing will come of the project. We’ll likely have to wait many, many years to see if these studies come to fruition, especially since the technology itself is still in its very early stages. If Virgin Hyperloop does build a transport system in India, it could compete with Hyperloop Transportation Technologies’ system. Hyperloop One’s rival company is also eyeing the country as one of its first locations and had struck a deal with the Andhra Pradesh Economic Development Board back in September to investigate potential routes.

Source: Virgin Hyperloop One

YEVO Companion App Review

Yevo’s app – companion to the newly released Yevo 1 truly wireless earbuds – is a bit of a conundrum. It’s a simple app, with singular purpose, that’s plagued by over-design and needly complexity.

Design

I’m going to keep this short; the seven (!) horizontal pages of functionality in the app – Yevo 1, Battery, Touch Settings, Balance, EQ, Bass Booster, and Audio Transparency – could easily be reduced to three tabs (Status, Settings, and Sound)or a vertical list of collapsible line items using the same categories. Beyond this easily-remedied-but-still-obnoxious design flaw, the Yevo Companion App looks fine; clean lines, high resolution images, and smooth performance throughout the app make it a well-crafted app – if poorly conceived. In sum; aesthetically pleasing, organizationally a mess.

1 of 7

Functionality

As mentioned above, there are a whoppin’ seven pages of settings to sift through in the Yevo app. They are as follows;

• Yevo 1: Literally just a screen that says Yevo 1. Also tells you if the device is connected. Utterly, utterly superfluous.
• Battery: Displays the current battery life, both as a percentage and as a numerical value. You can also turn the device off from this screen.
• Touch Settings: This section of the app is actually pretty interesting; from here you can remap the gesture controls of the touch sensor on the earpieces. This is a particularly unique feature because not many headsets – and certainly not many wireless earbuds – allow you to manipulate the functionality of the inputs, let alone via software. This screen uses a drag-and-drop interface to allow you customize the functions. With 8 different functions and 8 different gestures, you should have no trouble finding a configuration that fits your taste.
• Balance: Shift the intensity of the audio to the right or left earpiece. No other functions.
• EQ: This is the equalizer screen, where you can choose from six presets – Default, Electronic, Hip Hop, Acoustic, Pop/Rock, and R&B. It’s handy, but a Custom setting with sliders to customize the sound of your audio would be even better.
• Bass Booster: Enable or disable the Software Driven Bass Enhance. That’s it.
• Audio Transparency: This is a nifty feature – toggle and adjust Audio Transparency, or the amount of sound from the outside world you want to hear. This allows you to listen to music while at the same time still maintaining awareness of the world around you – which, as someone that prefers to put on a headset to escape said world, confounds me. But I’m sure someone less…isolationist would find it to be very useful!

While all of this is neat, and it’s nice to be able to tweak the settings of the earphones, the companion app simply doesn’t offer any truly must-have functionality. That said, though, it’s a pretty cool feeling to be able to make a headset truly yours – especially one as tiny as a pair of earbuds.

Get It

Available for free on the Google Play Store, the Yevo companion app is currently sitting at a rather disappointing 1.8 rating, albeit with only 8 reviews. A few of those users have complained about missing or useless functionality, and one even complained that the app made his left earpiece stop working.

For what it’s worth, both my headset and the app have worked perfectly for me – despite the design issues above.

Tesla unveils its vision of the future of trucking

At an event adjacent to SpaceX, the Tesla Semi (yes, that’s its name) electric truck was introduced with the same pomp and circumstance the company uses for all its automobile launches. The tall, slick big rig follows the Tesla minimalist design language. The only protrusions are the side mirrors and a sensor array that resembles tiny wings situated at the top rear on either side of the truck. It looks like the future. CEO Elon Musk says it’s “designed like a bullet.”

The Tesla Semi is exactly what you would expect from the company. An electric truck with a 500-mile range and a wealth of technology including Enhanced Autopilot. It also has a plethora of big rig-specific features like jackknifing prevention, sensors for blind-spot detection and data-logging for fleet management. But Tesla is no longer alone when it comes to electric vehicle announcements.

Daimler, Cummins, and Toyota (the latter via hydrogen fuel-cells) all have prototype trucks that rely on electrons instead of gasoline for power. Meanwhile, Volvo showed off a hybrid semi-truck earlier this year. Other than Toyota — which is already moving cargo in Los Angeles — these trucks probably won’t be on the road for a few years. Tesla announced that it’ll go into production in 2019.

Tesla is also setting its truck apart from rivals by promising a recharge rate of 400 miles in 30 minutes via its new Megachargers. The Tesla Semi will travel up to 500 miles between recharging stops. In contrast Daimler’s E-Fuso Vision One can cover up to 220 miles before it needs to stop. Musk said, “you can travel anywhere in the world via the Megachargers.” They will be powered by solar panels and like the Supercharger network, will be built by Tesla.

While passenger EVs are the main focus of most automakers, electrifying semi-trucks would go a long way to reducing pollution. According to the American Truck Association in 2014, trucks traveled 279.1 billion miles. In 2015, the EPA, noted that medium and heavy-duty trucks accounted for 23 percent of vehicle emissions.

The Semi will have Enhanced Autopilot (automatic emergency braking, automatic lane keeping and lane departure warning) like the rest of the current Tesla lineup. It also has jackknife protection, sensors and cameras meant to reduce blind spots. The trucks interior is large enough to stand in (I’m six-foot three inches tall and my head didn’t hit the ceiling. Like most big rigs, it has a set of steps on either side for easy entry and exit although these feel more like stairs than what’s found on traditional large trucks. It also has a centered driving position which makes it slightly odd in the trucking world.

Once behind the wheel, drivers will have two Model 3 displays on either side of the wheel with all the usual vehicle information that’s in a regular Tesla on the right side (speed, mileage, battery status, maps, climate control, music, etc) and truck-specific info on the left. Thanks to the displays, other than the usual levers for lights and wipers found on the steering wheel stalk, the cabin is sparse.

View from the cockpit pic.twitter.com/2kBupEXNM5

— Tesla (@Tesla) November 17, 2017

Oh also, the Semi has a zero to 60 of five seconds when empty and zero to 60 in 20 seconds when filled with 80,000 pounds of cargo. That’s incredibly fast for a big rig.

Also, Musk said Tesla will guarantee that the truck will not break down for a million miles. It’s even cheaper per mile in a convoy scenario. If two of the motors die, the other two will keep the truck on the road.

Tesla says that the truck is actually 25 cents less expensive than a diesel truck when you take into account insurance maintenance and other items. But no word on actual off-the-lot cost.

All of the interior room is thanks to Tesla moving the drivetrain to the rear of the Semi behind the cabin. Four Model 3 motors with a slightly modified gearing ratios than what’s found in the passenger car. Each of these is attached to their own wheel. Like other electric vehicles, there’s no need to shift gears. The driver just steps on the accelerator and goes. Although there’s very little chance the Semi will have Ludicrous mode.

What it does have is a way for truck drivers to deliver their goods in a slick, easier to drive vehicle. As long as we keep ordering stuff from Amazon and other online retailers, we’ll need big rigs. They’re an important part of our economy that’s typically overlooked. If Tesla can convince trucking companies that its offering is more cost effective because of the electric motors and connected fleet management capabilities than the traditional diesel vehicles on the road, that’s a win for Tesla. But more importantly, it’s a win for the environment.

Developing.

Source: Tesla Semi