Colorado city OKs broadband plan despite opposition from internet providers

Voters in Fort Collins, Colorado have approved a proposal for a citywide municipal broadband service. When unofficial returns came in during the early hours of this morning, the measure was seen to pass with a 57.15 percent share of the vote.

Fort Collins is proposing the construction of a fiber optic network that will provide the entire city and the area it’s likely to expand into over the coming years with gigabit-per-second upload and download speeds. Pricing estimates for residential customers stand at $70 per month for 1gbps, and $50 per month for 50mbps.

The proposal offers some flexibility in terms of how Fort Collins might go about establishing the network. The council will be able to set up its own dedicated utility company, but there’s also scope for a partnership with an existing organization. Later this month, a session will be held to establish the next steps that need to be taken.

Not everyone is enthused about the idea of the city council fostering municipal broadband. A group known as Priorities First Fort Collins spent $451,564 on its campaign to oppose the idea – by contrast the Fort Collins Broadband Committee only reported spending $9,250 on its campaign to support the proposal.

““I was very encouraged with the passage today, and particularly with the headwinds of incumbents trying to misinform the electorate,” commented Mayor Wade Troxell, according to a report from The Coloradoan. “And also, I was very disappointed in the [Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce] playing an active role in misinformation.”

It should come as no surprise that internet service providers played a key role in what Troxell characterized as a “misinformation” campaign. CenturyLink is a member of the Chamber of Commerce, and Comcast contributed funds to the campaign run by Priorities First, according to a report from Ars Technica.

On the face of it, making broadband available to all residents seems like a no-brainer, but it’s the idea of pitting the government against private providers that some can’t agree with. There are concerns that putting these powers in the hands of the council will make it more difficult for commercial companies to compete, which could ultimately result in higher prices.

Editors’ Recommendations

• The Virtual Singapore project aims to digitize an entire city
• Dubai is building a huge ‘Mars city’ so we can practice living on the red planet
• Netflix movie ‘The Pope’ will chronicle the transition from Benedict to Francis
• Paris implements its third annual day without cars
• Following earthquake, wireless carriers offer free calling from U.S. to Mexico

Google Assistant now lets you subscribe daily to news briefings, weather, facts, and more

Google has welcomed a new feature to its list of capabilities for Google Assistant. To help bring users more information on a daily basis, you can now subscribe to receive a variety of updates.

Released last year, Google Allo is a smart messaging app that’s synced to your Google account. With Allo you can not only send text messages, but you can also get creative by sending doodles, stickers, and emojis.

Allo also includes Google Assistant, which provides you with information such as restaurant suggestions and directions along with the option to participate in one-on-one chats. With Allo’s subscription feature, Assistant sends you daily content such as the weather, fun facts, other information.

Now, users can receive the same updates to their phones using only the Google Assistant app. You can do so by saying — or typing — commands such as “send me a fun fact everyday,” and Assistant will then ask what time you’d like it sent each day. You’ll then be able to tap on a specific time slot and will receive the update each day.

Other than the weather and fun facts, you can subscribe to poems, quotes, funny videos, and mindfulness tips as well. If you’d like, there’s also the option to have the subscriptions sent multiple times each day.

Another way to set up the subscriptions is to ask questions such as “What’s the weather?” followed by, “Send daily.” This will then bring you to specific times to choose from. Assistant will then reply with a message confirming you’ll be sent a weather update each day at your preferred time.

Underneath, you’ll also see an option to “Cancel the subscription” which Assistant will confirm as well. The other option is to “Show active subscriptions,” which gives you a carousel of alerts that are set along with the time they’re scheduled to go off.

You can tap on any of the active subscriptions to either cancel it or edit the time. When an active alert goes off, you’ll receive a notification via the Google app and tapping on it will open Assistant. Your command will then load and provide you with the correct information.

The new feature is now available to use for both Android and iOS. While the subscription options are scarce at the moment, Google will hopefully expand the list in the future.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Allo for web brings Google Assistant to Chrome
• Everything you need to know about Google Assistant
• What is Google Assistant? Here’s the guide you need to get started
• Look out, Alexa — Google Assistant is new and improved and ready to go
• Here’s how to use Google’s Allo chat app on your desktop

Album+ with offline A.I. is Google Photos for the cloud naysayers

Artificial intelligence simplifies things like finding the best shot or deleting duplicated photos to save space on your phone — but machine learning also requires so much space, that these programs are largely cloud-based. That’s changing as A.I. programs get smaller and hardware gets larger and now, for iOS users, there’s an A.I. photo program that can run entirely offline. Album+ is an app by developer Polarr that encompasses a number of features that already exist in apps like Google Photos, but brings them offline.

Using A.I. and computer vision, Album+ can recognize people and objects in your photos, making it easy to search for a specific photo. That same search tool also works with documents and snapshots of receipts.

And if you don’t know exactly what photo you’re looking for but want to find a great shot to share, Album+ will also automatically curate an album of your best shots, or at least what the app thinks are your best shots. A “Discover” option allows you to see what you photograph most by looking at collections created around specific themes or objects.

When those photos start to hog space on the smartphone, Album+ has a feature to automatically detect the worst photos for deletion, along with finding images that are duplicated.

Along with organizing photos, Album+ managed to fit in photo-editing A.I. without the cloud, too. The developer says that the app can automatically enhance all the photos using A.I., along with offering over 100 different filters. Users can also save time by batch editing multiple photos at once.

Album+ doesn’t do anything that hasn’t been done before — Google Photos has a number of the same tools to search through your photos and automatically categorize them, while apps like EyeEm and The Roll can look through the camera roll to find the best shots. But what Album+ has that’s tougher to find on the App Store is an A.I. system that exists entirely off the cloud. The on-device software is designed to ensure greater security, the company says.

Album+, designed by the same team behind Polarr Photo Editor, is free to download from the App Store, but accessing the full features requires an in-app purchase with a $1.99 monthly subscription or a $12.99 annual option.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Pixelmator Pro brings simple, single-window interface to advanced photo edits
• Photoshop 2018 now supports 360-degree photos, adds new design tools
• Serif boosts its Photoshop competitor, Affinity Photo, with new update
• Snapseed gets a new look, new filters, and faster performance
• Now you can edit 360 photos in Photoshop … here’s how

U.S. approves plans to release weaponized mosquitoes — for your own good

You know those Mega Shark vs. Crocosaurus-type movies where the government decides to solve the problem of one rampaging animal by releasing another into the wild to fight it? Well, that pretty much just happened — except that this time the newly released creatures are genetically-engineered killer mosquitoes.

Announced this week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency officially signed off on an unorthodox plan to use lab-grown mosquitoes, developed by the Kentucky-based biotech company MosquitoMate, as insect assassins to hunt down disease-carrying wild mosquitoes. It’s part of a project called “Adam,” in which male mosquitoes (the ones that don’t bite, since male mosquitoes feed only on flower nectar) are used as vehicles to deliver a potent mosquito insecticide, thereby reducing mosquito populations.

“MosquitoMate has developed a novel mosquito control tool for the Asian Tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus, which we call ZAP,” Corey Brelsfoard, team leader for the Adam project, told Digital Trends. “ZAP mosquitoes are a non-biting, male Aedes albopictus mosquitoes that carry a bacterium named Wolbachia. Wolbachia is common throughout insects worldwide, with scientists estimating that over half of all insects naturally carry the infection. When ZAP males are released and mate with naturally occurring Asian Tiger mosquito females, the resulting eggs do not hatch, decreasing the number of the biting mosquito population and potentially impacting disease transmission.”

MosquitoMate’s early laboratory experimental work started as early as 2004 at the University of Kentucky. The company was then spun off in 2010 and has taken an additional seven years to gain its current EPA approved status. The lab-grown mosquitoes will first be deployed close to home in Lexington, Kentucky, although the EPA has given the greenlight for a total of 20 states — provided that the company registers with each individual state prior to releasing its buzzing cargo.

“MosquitoMate has performed field trials using the ZAP technology in Kentucky, California, and New York,” Brelsfoard said. “MosquitoMate has also performed field trials using similar technology targeting the Yellow Fever mosquito, Aedes aegypti, in California and Florida.”

Now we just need to wait and see if it can showcase the same levels of success on the big stage.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Grub’s up — startup thinks the next great sustainable food is … fly larvae?
• Got a stomach bug? UC San Diego’s tiny injectable nanbots may be able to help
• Aerial-to-aquatic RoboBee can dive into water, swim, and launch itself back out
• AI being used to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease early by reviewing brain scans
• This chip will reveal to doctors exactly where smart pills are in the human body

Anker’s 6-port USB wall charger offers 60W of output for just $20

Charge six devices at once!

Is this deal for me?

There’s nothing worse than needing to charge up a bunch of devices at the same time and having to swap cables between devices to try and get them some extra power. There are lots of different solutions that charge multiple devices, but not all of them are equal.

Anker is currently selling its 6-port 60W USB Wall Charger for just $19.59 at Amazon when you use the coupon code NEWP2123 during checkout. Each port is capable of charging at up to 2.4A, and plugging in more than one device doesn’t slow things down.

If you have a new iPhone 8 or iPhone X, or a newer Android device, you’ll be able to get quicker charging speeds, though this won’t support Qualcomm’s Quick Charge.

TL;DR

• What makes this deal worth considering? – Odds are you have a lot of gadgets around the house, and they tend to need to be charged at the same time. This allows you to charge six of your favorite devices at the same time, and with 60 watts of power output, you won’t be charging them forever.
• Things to know before you buy! – You’ll need to add your own USB cables to this, which is better because you can then charge using all different cables at the same time. The unit is backed by an 18-month warranty.

See at Amazon

Horizon Zero Dawn: The Frozen Wilds — Should you buy it?

Dive once more into the chilly breach!

Way back in February, Guerrilla Games and Sony released what will most certainly end up being in my top 5 games of the year. Horizon Zero Dawn is a gorgeous and engaging game with great characters and an interesting story. When I heard that there was an expansion forthcoming, my digital salivary glands went into overdrive.

Now that I have spent the last 10 hours with that expansion, The Frozen Wilds, let’s take a brief look at all the new things this expansion has to offer and what exactly you’re going to get for your $19.99

See at PlayStation Store

Let’s get it started!

The Frozen Wilds patches into the core game of Zero Dawn relatively seamlessly and you can engage with the content whether you have completed the main storyline or not. That being said, it has been recommended that you don’t take off into the great white north until you are at least level 30.

I started at level 35 and I can confirm that that is some sound advice. Things are a bit tougher this go-around. As far as traveling to the new world goes, you don’t have to take a boat and a load-screen to an island where the expansion lives. All you have to do is navigate your way to the new chunk of the map.

The where of ‘The Frozen Wilds’

Apparently, there is a sanctioned quest to get you started with Frozen Wilds that can be picked up at the Daytower Fort but it is ostensibly just a method of dropping a waypoint for you. If you want to go that route just hit the Daytower and look for a gentleman named Ohtur.

If you prefer to go your own way, just head to the northeast corner of the map where the Grave Hoard quest took place. Once there, you simply scale the wall and you are in The Frozen Wilds. Just as the name might suggest, boy, are these wilds frozen. It’s a beautiful break from the largely arid visuals of the core game and I would guess that it adds an additional 15% of territory to explore.

If you can’t seem to find Ohtur, and don’t see the yellow climbing wall, then you may need to restart your console in order for the expansion to become fully available. If you open your map you ought to see an entirely new area at the far NorthEast of the map, fully fogged over. You’ll also see a new campfire directly north of the Gravehoard.

The who of what’s new

Any good map expansion should have a population and The Frozen Wilds sees its new area peopled by the Banuk. As one might expect from a tribe living a hard life on the edge of the world, the Banuk are an insular people who will take some convincing when it comes to accepting Aloy as an equal.

However, the Banuk are in the midst of a problem that only you can solve. It seems that the mountain upon which they worship and the local machines have been infected by a daemon which makes them more terrifying and difficult to take down. It’s up to you to prove your mettle and save the tribe. Of course, you’ll also run into other Outsiders, like Carja and Oseram, during the course of your adventures.

So what else is new?

There are plenty of other little things scattered throughout the Frozen Wilds which add to the experience, the play time, and in turn, the bang for your buck. There is a whole new Traveler skill tree to drop points into which will provide you with aid in this new portion of the world. Aside from three new machines to battle, there is the addition of the small towers scattered across the map that provide buffs for said machines and essentially serve as a sort of area capture mechanic.

There are a few puzzles that provided the only frustration for me, not in that they were difficult but that I felt they slowed the flow of the story. Throughout the map, you can find plenty of new data points which just enrich the existing story even further. In addition, there are some all-new collectibles to add color and give completionists a new goal to go after. Finally, there’s a new regional currency in the Frozen Wilds which you can acquire and use to purchase all kinds of new gear.

Is it worth it?

For twenty bucks and a 10-hour expansion of an already fantastic game, I would say that The Frozen Wilds is absolutely worth your time and money. If you played the core game and you loved it the way I did, I have no doubt that you will enjoy your time in The Frozen Wilds. It may not be the biggest expansion ever offered but it fits so well into the existing game that it absolutely serves to deepen a world that I already love being in.

See at PlayStation Store

Why are we reviewing PlayStation 4 games on Android Central? Let us explain.

PlayStation 4

• PS4 vs. PS4 Slim vs. PS4 Pro: Which should you buy?
• PlayStation VR Review
• Playing PS4 games through your phone is awesome

Amazon

Pokémon Go developer announces Harry Potter: Wizards Unite

Time to dust off your wands.

If you owned a smartphone in the summer of 2016, chances are you were sucked into Pokémon Go for some amount of time. Developer Niantic captured the attention and hearts of players all around the world with last year’s smash hit, and today, the company has announced its follow-up project – Harry Potter: Wizards Unite.

Niantic is partnering with Warner Brothers Interactive Entertainment and the development team at WB Games San Francisco to make the game possible, and while specifics on it are still scarce, Harry Potter: Wizards Unite will let players turn their regular world into J.K. Rolling’s Wizarding World through the AR tech that Niantic used to power Pokémon Go and Ingress before it.

In its announcement post for the game on its blog, Niantic says that players will be able to “learn spells, explore their real world neighborhoods and cities to discover & fight legendary beasts and team up with others to take down powerful enemies.” A lot of the elements found within Pokémon Go will be present in Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, but Niantic assures that new tech and gameplay mechanics will be here it as well.

There’s no estimated release for Harry Potter: Wizards Unite for the time being, but Niantic says to keep an eye on its social channels for future updates as we inch closer and closer to the day when you can team up with your buddies to bring down a giant, blue troll.

Pokémon Go: A beginner’s guide

Deal: Samsung Gear Sport and Fit2 Pro both already $30 off

Now just $269 and $169!

With Thanksgiving right around the corner for our readers in the United States, we’ll have to workout extra hard to burn off turkey and pumpkin pie before we know it. Thankfully, Samsung is thinking one step ahead and discounting its two latest wearables in preparation for our oversized feast.

Gear Sport (left), Gear Fit2 Pro (right)

Currently, both Amazon and Best Buy have the Gear Sport and Gear Fit2 Pro listed for $30 lower than their regular asking price. This puts the Gear Sport at just $269 and the Fit2 Pro at $169, making them two of the best deals available if you’re in the market for a new smartwatch or fitness tracker.

Andrew praised the Gear Sport as being Samsung’s best smartwatch to-date in his full review, and after spending some time with the gadget myself, I determined that it was the best alternative for those that haven’t been impressed with recent Android Wear offerings. Daniel also just published his review for the Fit2 Pro, saying that “the screen is out-of-this-world good, and the tracking is fantastic for those who’d rather be reinforced with kind messages and automatic number crunching than to-the-millimeter perfection.”

Best Buy’s pricing should remain through this coming Saturday, November 11, as part of its early Black Friday sale, but there’s no word as to how long you’ll be able to pick the wearables up at this lower price from Amazon. As such, we recommend acting on this deal sooner rather than later to ensure you don’t miss out!

See at Amazon

Samsung’s launching a Galaxy S8 in Burgundy Red, and it looks amazing

Sadly, it’s currently only available in South Korea 😞

In recent years, we’ve seen manufacturers get more and more adventurous when it comes to colors that phones are sold in. The Nextbit Robin debuted in a stunning white and mint combo, Google’s Really Blue Pixel last year was a joy to look at, and HTC’s still impressive Solar Red U11 just might be one of the most eye-catching handsets ever made.

We’ve seen Samsung adventure with new colors, with some of the most notable being Coral and Deep Sea Blue on the Galaxy S8 and Note 8, respectively.

Just in time for the fall season, Samsung has announced a new color for the former of those two devices. It’s called Burgundy Red, and it’s easily one of Samsung’s best color options yet.

The back, frame, and buttons of the Burgundy Red Galaxy S8 feature a very bright and powerful red hue, and the overall aesthetic really is something special. “It’s no Solar Red U11” as our own Hayato Huseman points out, but I don’t care. I still think it looks great and I’d like to buy five of them right now.

Unfortunately, for the time being, you’ll only be able to buy the Galaxy S8 in Burgundy Red if you’re in South Korea. Samsung hasn’t indicated if the new color will be making its way to other markets, but with the Deep Sea Blue Note 8 recently launching in the U.S., we wouldn’t totally count against that happening just yet.

Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8+

• Galaxy S8 and S8+ review!
• Galaxy S8 and S8+ specs
• Everything you need to know about the Galaxy S8’s cameras
• Get to know Samsung Bixby
• Join our Galaxy S8 forums

Verizon
AT&T
T-Mobile
Sprint
Unlocked

PlayStation’s redesigned phone app focuses on socializing

If you’ve ever used the PlayStation App on your phone, you know how dodgy it has been since launch. Never mind the dated looks — its interface was a hodgepodge that was never particularly helpful in any one area. At last, though, it’s getting a makeover. Sony has released an overhauled PlayStation App for Android and iOS that not only drags the look into the modern era, but borrows more than a few cues from social networking apps. It’s dominated by a Facebook-style “what’s new” feed that puts your friends’ PS4 activity front and center, and clearly does much more to encourage comments and sharing. Even profiles have a more social look, and you get quicker access to your friends list and notifications.

Virtually everything else is tucked into a tray that opens through the conspicuous PlayStation button, although that doesn’t necessarily mean these features are harder to use. The new section includes faster access to common tasks like redeeming PlayStation Store codes or checking out PlayStation Plus offerings.

There is a big gotcha, however: Sony has stripped out two features. You can no longer access Live From PlayStation streams from within the app, so you’ll have to either watch on your PS4 or search for streams on Twitch. Also, Second Screen features (including gameplay and typing) are now tucked into a separate app. Clearly, Sony thought its app was getting to be unwieldy.

It’s not perfect even if you don’t mind those omissions. You’re still visiting a website when you tap the PlayStation Store. Sony is promising “more improvements,” however. And more importantly, the revamp is evidence that Sony isn’t letting the central PlayStation App languish while Messages and other narrow-purpose programs get all the attention.

Source: PlayStation Blog