Apple wireless charging patent describes ability to prioritize devices

Two patent applications published today by the US Patent and Trademark Office give us a peek into what kind of mobile device charging options Apple may be giving us in the future. As VentureBeat reports, the two applications were both filed in June though neither have been approved yet.

Patently Apple notes that the two patents describe wireless charging methods, the ability to charge multiple devices at once, an option to choose which devices are charged first and under what circumstances, and the possibility of tucking wireless charging equipment inside other structures, such as furniture or vehicles.

The latest iPhone models — the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X — are all equipped with wireless charging capabilities and Apple teased its multi-device wireless charging AirPower system in September. Apple has been looking into developing wireless charging technology for quite some time and this year, along with bringing Qi compatibility to the newest iPhones, it also acquired wireless charging company PowerbyProxi. Earlier this week, Energous announced that its wireless WattUp Mid Field charging system, which doesn’t require contact and can charge devices up to three feet away, was just approved by the FCC. And though it certainly doesn’t mean Apple’s latest patent applications are in any way connected to WattUp technology, Apple has been suspected of working with Energous since 2014.

Though we shouldn’t put too much stock in patent applications, the future of contact-free wireless charging is looking pretty bright and it really seems like this sort of technology is right around the corner.

Via: Patently Apple

No batteries. No wires. No friction. These bike lights are powered by physics

When it comes to lights, cyclists typically have one of two options: Either a battery-powered light which needs replacing every so often or a dynamo-powered light which uses the spinning of your bike’s wheels to generate power, but which cause friction that can slow you down. A new Kickstarter campaign seems to offer a perfect third solution, however: Smart brake lights that work courtesy of a completely contactless dynamo-powered battery. The promise? Endless light without resistance — via so-called eddy currents, loops of electrical current induced within conductors thanks to a changing magnetic field.

To fit them, simply exchange your regular brake pads with the new brake lights. No batteries or cables required!

“When faced with Magnic Light for the first time, many believe that this is either a fake or a perpetual motion generator,” inventor Dirk Strothmann told Digital Trends. “Both aren’t true, but the underlying eddy current technology is so fascinating because the magnetic fields only appear when there is motion — in our case the rotating rim. By hiding a rotating magnet wheel inside a black box, the perpetual motion illusion is perfect. But in our case, this is more than a magic trick because this concept has several advantages over standard dynamos: an air gap between wheel and generator means no problems with dirt, rain or snow, and an encapsulated unit without external cables is better protected and feels like a battery light that is never empty.”

In addition to excellent illumination, Strothmann has also created smart versions of the brake lights which offer a turn signal that’s triggered via a quick double pump of the brake handle, alongside smartphone-controlled navigation signals and sensor-free speed tracking.

Strothmann is no stranger to Kickstarter. He has two successful Kickstarter campaigns he has delivered in the past, which means that people willing to stump up some pre-order cash aren’t doing so on an unproven entity. If you would like to get hold of some of his new lights, you can currently place an order on Kickstarter, where he is selling a set of both the smart new rear lights and also front lights for 99 euros (around $118). Other price options are also available — including a basic set of front and rear lights for a frankly ridiculous $1.20 (!!) for the first 1,000 people to sign up. Shipping is set to take place in November 2018.

Editors’ Recommendations

• PAL is your new nighttime friend — a lantern, headlamp, and bike light in one
• Google helped create an energy-harvesting walkway that’s on show in Berlin
• How to create spooky Halloween effects with smart home lighting and sound
• Stay safer, bike brighter with the See Sense Ace, an A.I. cycling light
• From candles to LEDs, a quick look at Christmas lights’ past

How ‘Coco VR’ convinced Pixar to put its pixels (and pride) into virtual reality

Pixar is one of the few studios that creates movies that truly appeal to the young and old alike. Its latest effort, Coco, is no different, telling the heartwarming story of budding musician Miguel Rivera against the visually stunning backdrop of the Dia de los Muertos.

In the movie, Rivera finds himself transported to the land of the dead for his adventure. Coco VR allows Oculus Rift owners to do the same, crossing over from the land of the living by putting on their headset.

This is the first time that Pixar has dabbled in VR — and it may well have changed how the company approaches the filmmaking process altogether.

Virtual experiment

Marc Sondheimer is an Academy Award-winning producer at Pixar, who has worked on a number of beloved projects over the last sixteen years. Coco VR, however, offered up a novel challenge.

“It was new and different for me, and for most people here at Pixar since we hadn’t done anything in that space before,” he said when he spoke to Digital Trends earlier this month. “If we had known what we know now, it probably wouldn’t have happened. We just jumped in head first.”

Marc Sondheimer (Photo: John Shearer/Getty Images)

That comment shouldn’t indicate any regrets about how the project turned out — it simply illustrates the fact that Coco VR turned out to be much more ambitious than expected. The number of activities on offer and the level of interactivity involved are far beyond what was initially conceived.

Initially, Pixar was unsure whether to create a smaller VR experiment in support of last year’s Cars 3, or something slightly larger to coincide with Coco. “For a couple of months we talking about different ideas, what we could achieve and what we couldn’t achieve,” explained Sondheimer. “We really felt that Coco was the right property to use, because visually it’s so appealing and stunning, and it’s an imaginary world that we thought would lend itself well to people immersing themselves.”

One of the biggest questions early in the development process was how much of a narrative component should be included. Pixar sought guidance from both partners Magnopus and Oculus, given their personnel’s experience working with the technology.

“Frankly, we weren’t sure how much to lean into the narrative piece, versus choosing an adventure or making it more like a game,” reflected Sondheimer. “That was kind of unknown or uncertain; what’s entertaining in virtual reality, or how to tell a good story.”

VR for Everyone

Much like the majority of Pixar’s back catalogue, Coco is a movie that’s be enjoyed by adults and children alike, and both sections of the audience will find something to appreciate in its VR companion. An immersive concept art gallery offers a very different experience to the opportunity to star in a musical celebration of Dia de los Muertos — but since Coco VR is self-guided, users can pick and choose the activities that appeal to them.

“Our goal was to provide a choice of thing to do, and to give the visitor agency over which parts they want to concentrate on and which areas of the universe they’re most interested in,” explained Alex Henning, co-founder of Magnopus, the VR specialist that collaborated with Pixar to create Coco VR, speaking to Digital Trends.

“We look at all of these projects as an opportunity — and really a responsibility — to push this immersive medium forward.”

Much has been said about the cost of entry associated with VR, even though headset prices are falling. Magnopus wanted to create an experience that adult Pixar fans and VR enthusiasts could enjoy, but it was also important that children who got caught up in the world of Coco would be able to explore Coco VR.

To ensure that this was the case, Disney and Oculus took a proactive approach. Coco VR was playable in Disney stores, AMC theaters, at the film’s premiere, and at various Dia de los Muertos events. “I was thrilled that a broader audience was going to get to experience it,” said Henning. “Not just people who happened to own a gaming PC and the other hardware.”

Magnopus is committed to pushing the boundaries of VR, both in terms of what’s possible using the technology and how broad the audience for this content is. Henning anticipates a future where everyone — from young children to his parents’ generation — are excited about putting on a headset and stepping into a virtual world.

Pixar’s movies have a broad appeal, so Coco VR might convince someone who’s unfamiliar with the technology to try it out for themselves. Of course, that means that the experience has to be stellar to ensure that those newcomers aren’t put off.

The Benefit of Experience

Henning and fellow co-founders Rodrigo Teixeira and Ben Grossmann were inspired to establish Magnopus based on their experience in the film industry, and an expectation that new technology was set to change the entertainment landscape. Virtual reality stood out because it seemed to diverge from the information overload of modern society, offering up something closer to the experiential memories of their respective childhoods.

Despite the fact that Coco VR is the first VR adaptation of a Pixar property, the studio’s strong track record means that it has to meet some exacting standards — both in terms of the fan base and the creative forces behind the movie.

The company garnered plenty of praise when Mission: ISS — a simulation of life aboard the International Space Station developed in collaboration with NASA, the ESA, and the CSA – was released in March 2017. In October 2017, Blade Runner 2049: Memory Lab gave fans the opportunity to step into the world of the cyberpunk sequel.

Memory Lab is broadly similar to Coco VR, in that both experiences are intended to expand upon their source material. For Henning, focusing on the world of the source material is crucial for this kind of project.

“You’re serving a lot of masters simultaneously, right?” he said. “On the one hand you’ve got a primary focus with these pieces that are movie tie-ins, which is to promote the movie itself. But for us, we look at all of these projects as an opportunity — and really a responsibility — to push this immersive medium forward.”

Henning explained that Magnopus feels the need to cover new ground with each project, whether it’s building upon work that’s been done by other studios working with VR or establishing entirely new techniques. He points to the holographic capture process used in Memory Lab and the novel social mechanics that are present in Coco VR.

“You’re always looking for like, ‘what is a thing we could try here that might unlock some greater potential,’” added Henning.

Stepping into the Scene

Coco VR was an opportunity for Pixar to work with a new medium. For a studio that helped bring computer animation to the mainstream in the 1990s, that’s an exciting prospect. What’s more, the process is set to have an impact on the company’s upcoming slate of films — albeit perhaps not in the way you might expect.

In June 2018, Pixar will release Incredibles 2, its next feature. There’s no word on whether or not it will be accompanied by an experience along the lines of Coco VR — but even if the studio never releases content of this kind again, there should be no doubt as to the impact the project had on its development process.

“We’re using some techniques that we developed for Coco VR in Toy Story 4,” said Sondheimer. The upcoming sequel will join the ranks of one of the most critically acclaimed and financially successful series of all time, so you can bet that Pixar must be on board with VR if the technology is to contribute to its production.

Fans shouldn’t necessarily expect to be donning their headset to go to infinity and beyond, though. While a VR companion is definitely possible, Pixar seems to be particularly excited about how the technology might be used behind the scenes.

“As we were building the experience, we were actually collaborating inside of VR, together,” said Henning. “You would have Pixar’s creatives and project leads walking around as skeletons with our creatives and project leads, all together, actually in the experience — them in Emeryville and us in Los Angeles — exploring the space together and making decisions natively in the medium, as opposed to just doing a video conference or a phone call.”

Alex Henning (Photo: John Shearer/Getty Images)

As you can imagine, being able to physically inhabit a virtual space rather than just view it as a collection of 3D models has a certain appeal for a studio that specializes in computer animation. VR could help Pixar adapt practices from live-action filmmaking that were previously unattainable.

“We model it, then we drop the filmmakers in those spaces to get a feel for scale, design, and to start finding some of their camera shots that they might want to achieve,” said Sondheimer. “That’s new, for us, but it’s also very exciting, for sure.”

The future of filmmaking

Sondheimer describes the studio’s exposure to this kind of technology as being “completely unexpected, but extremely valuable.” There was no preconception that the social, multi-user aspects of Coco VR could factor into the creation of future film projects. However, it’s impact on the team’s ability to collaborate with one another and get on the same page.

“I know that it’s something that they’re using now in our filmmaking — you get a production designer, a director, and the head of our camera department all in, doing a walkthrough of a space together, virtually,” added Sondheimer. “Coco VR unlocked that door, at least in three dimensions.”

It’s easy to pigeonhole VR as a new type of entertainment, something that blurs the lines between movie and video game without every really belonging to either category. However, we’re seeing the technology used for practical purposes more and more. “I think it’s a tool,” said Sondheimer. “I think it’s a great tool for filmmaking.”

Pixar set out to make an entertaining experience, and ended up discovering a new way to leverage technology to benefit its filmmaking process. This is part of a broader trend that spans both VR and augmented reality – whether it’s diagnosing concussions or tracking tools on a job site, these headsets have a place in the world of work.

On the surface, wearing a headset might seem isolating, but Pixar discovered how a shared virtual space can help people tackle a project together. In time, we might see all kinds of industries use social VR to foster communication and collaboration in the workplace.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Explore the land of the dead in Pixar’s virtual reality experience, ‘Coco VR’
• Pixar Plans to Use Techniques Learned from Coco VR for Toy Story 4
• Headsets are just the beginning. How to make a VR rig for all your senses
• Everything we know about the Oculus Go virtual reality headset
• ‘Top Gun 3D’ to be first movie shown in Paramount’s Virtual Reality cinema

Amazon is blowing out prices on the original Surface Book, starts at $790

If you just love Microsoft’s innovative notebook-first 2-in-1, the Surface Book, then you’re probably eyeing the newest member. The Surface Book 2 ups the performance in a big way, while also upping the machine itself with a new 15-inch model. However, as with the original, the Surface Book 2’s pricing is also up — in the stratosphere, that is. Which is what makes Amazon’s blow-out prices on the original model so attractive.

The discounts start with the entry-level Surface Book, at $790 for a Core i5-6300U CPU, 8GB of RAM, a 128GB solid-state drive (SSD), and integrated Intel HD 520 graphics that is down 47 percent from the original $1,500 retail price. Other options include:

• Core i5, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD, integrated graphics: $945
• Core i5, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD, discrete Nvidia GPU (Microsoft’s custom version of the GeForce 940M): $970
• Core i7-6600U, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD, discrete graphics: $1,150
• Core i7, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, integrated graphics: $1,625
• Core i7, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD, discrete graphics: $2,719

We liked the original Surface Book quite a bit, noting its good performance and great battery life. Of course, Surface displays are also excellent and the original model uses the same panel as the current Surface Book 2. That means you get outstanding brightness and contrast, solid color gamut support, and touch and Surface Pen support.

If your wallet is a little fatter, then you can always consider the Surface Book 2. That machine brings the line up to speed with up to the latest Intel eighth-generation quad-core Core processors, a choice of Nvidia GTX 105o or 1060 GPUs, and a number of other enhancements. But the pricing also starts at $1,500 for the 13-inch model with a seventh-generation Intel Core i5 CPU, 8GB of RAM, and a 256GB SSD, and ramps up to $3,200 for the 15-inch model with the eighth-gen Intel Core i7, 16GB of RAM, and a 1TB SSD.

You’re giving up some power by going with the earlier model, but such things are relative. The original Surface Book will run today’s productivity apps just fine, while providing the same hybrid detachable tablet and clamshell notebook experience. And, unlike the Surface Book 2, a Surface Pen is included.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Is the Surface Book 2 a worthy sequel to the original? Here’s how it compares
• Battle of the 15-inch 2-in-1s: HP Spectre x360 vs. Microsoft Surface Book 2
• Microsoft Surface Book 2 15-inch Review
• Microsoft takes on Apple’s prestige: Surface Book 2 15-inch vs. MacBook Pro 15
• Microsoft Surface Pro (2017) review

LastPass fixes fingerprint security flaw in its Authenticator app

Password manager LastPass has an extra layer of protection for its Authenticator app, in the form of a fingerprint and/or PIN that ostensibly keeps people out of your passwords if they find your phone unlocked. Last week, a developer posted that he’d been able to bypass this security feature on the Android version of the app. As of right now, though, LastPass users can download an update to the app that fixes the issue and adds a one-time code when the fingerprint/PIN feature is first enabled.

This isn’t the first time LastPass has had to fix critical security flaws. In March of this year, the company had to fix some server-side issues and update its extensions. If you use LastPass on Android now, though, you’ll want to update your app to the latest version. If your phone was stolen or lost and you need to re-enable the multi-factor authentication feature, LastPass has a list of recommended steps.

Ultimately, this exploit helped clue the company in that its response process needs an overhaul, as well. The original developer was unable to successfully notify the company about the exploit, which is why he used Medium. LastPass has since revamped its procedures for reporting issues like this. “At LastPass, investigating and responding to security reports – and customer concerns in general – is our highest priority and we strive to always improve our internal processes,” said the company in a statement.

Source: LastPass, Google Play

NASA lends a hand to new American Girl doll with Mars aspirations

While the American Girl brand is well-known for teaching the past through dolls with fictional ties to important events, its latest aims to inspire youths to make history themselves. On the first day of 2018, the next American Girl will hit stores: 11-year-old Luciana Vega, who aspires to be the first person to reach Mars.

American Girl worked with NASA and a panel of scientists and astronauts to make Luciana’s story (and gear, like a Mars habitat and flight suit) as realistic as possible. They also contributed to an accompanying STEM-based educational program providing space simulations and quizzes in an American Girl app and educational website. The company is also partnering with Space Camp to provide a Luciana-themed program, which launches next summer.

“It is so important to find exciting new ways to inspire our next generation of space explorers,” Megan McArthur, NASA astronaut who serves on the project’s advisory board, said in a NASA blog post. “I always want to encourage girls and boys to pursue their dreams, no matter how big, and I think it helps to show how those dreams can become reality for any kid.”

To celebrate the doll’s release, American Girl is hosting launch events on January 1st at its retail locations featuring science demonstrations, spacecraft and some swag for the kids to take home. Lest you think American Girl’s doll dreaming of a future in the stars is out of left field, space-aspiring heroine toys have been on the rise. Lego released a much-anticipated set with a quartet of famous astronauts and scientists (including Sally Ride and Mae Jemison) earlier this year, but Barbie added Mars Explorer to its line of career options way back in 2013.

Source: NASA

FCC extends waiver for video game accessibility for the last time

The idea behind 2010’s 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA) is to make sure that federal accessibility laws created in the ’80s and ’90s were updated to include new digital and communications technologies. The part of the Act pertaining to video games and advanced communications services (think gaming chat and the user interfaces around gamer communications) has been given a year’s waiver. As reported by Gamasutra, this is the third and final time games will be exempted from accessibility requirements. The new deadline is set for January 1st, 2019.

FCC grants games industry a final waiver, legal compliance date for in-game communication functionality (and means to navigate to & operate it) to be accessible to gamers with disabilities now set for one year’s time: games released on or after January 1st 2019 #gamedev #indiedev pic.twitter.com/AfzHQMHxLS

— Ian Hamilton (@ianhamilton_) December 27, 2017

The first multi-year waiver in 2012 was for “consoles, distribution platforms and software,” but the second one-year waiver was defined more narrowly for video game software only, and will expire on December 31st of this year. According to the FCC document itself, the Electronic Software Association (ESA) asked for the extension on behalf of its member developers. The FCC notes that while advocacy groups and commenters on the matter want accessibility in video game software, no one has actively opposed the extension itself.

The FCC says that it decided to grant the waiver for three reasons. One, video games are sufficiently similar in this regard to communications that they can be considered as a class unto themselves. Two, games are primarily made for the purpose of gameplay itself, not communications. Finally, the FCC allows that extending the waiver so that developers can find ways to make them more accessible is in the public interest. In addition, the FCC realizes that accessibility is already becoming ubiquitous, like with the text-to-speech capabilities built into Microsoft’s development kit and the accessibility features inherent in Nintendo’s smartphone companion app for Splatoon.

Via: Gamasutra

Source: FCC

Netflix’s ‘Bright’ nabs 11 million viewers in its first three days

It turns out betting on Will Smith paid off for Netflix. The company’s first blockbuster film, Bright, garnered 11 million streaming viewers in the U.S. over its first three days, according to Nielsen figures reported by Variety. To put that in perspective, Nielsen found that 15.8 million people watched Stranger Things 2 over the same period of time, and The Crown’s second season premiere saw three million viewers.

While Bright was widely reviled by critics, Netflix has reportedly already greenlit a sequel. As I argued yesterday, the hype behind the film matters more to the company than its quality. (Notably, Bright’s Rotten Tomatoe’s score now sits at 26 percent, while its audience score is a rosy 89 percent.)

Since these figures don’t come directly from Netflix (which doesn’t release any streaming stats), they may not be entirely accurate. Nielsen’s tracking methodology doesn’t include mobile gadgets and computers — it’s solely tracking what people are viewing on TVs. And of course, it’s only limited to U.S. viewers for now. For now though, Nielsen’s stats are a useful way to compare how audiences are responding to Netflix’s offerings.

The big takeaway? Netflix likely knew that its viewers would respond well to Bright well before its debut. That would explain why it was so quick to order a sequel. Unfortunately, the company likely won’t ever open up about the metrics that guides those decisions. We can expect to see more big bets from Netflix next year, though, as the company plans to spend $8 billion on original films and shows.

Via: Variety

Apple to Offer $29 iPhone Battery Replacements, More Battery Health Info in iOS

Apple this afternoon addressed customer concerns about an ongoing controversy over power management features in older iPhones, pledging to introduce more detailed information about battery health and reducing the price of battery replacements for all of 2018.

In a letter explaining its policies, Apple apologizes for the misinformation that’s been spread and says that it would never “intentionally shorten the life of any Apple product, or degrade the user experience to drive customer upgrades.”

At issue is a power management feature that was initially introduced in iOS 10.2.1 in the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6s, which was implemented to prevent unexpected shutdowns due to high power draw peaks. Apple’s lack of clarity about the feature has led to a number of lawsuits being filed in recent days claiming that Apple is purposefully slowing down older iPhones.

Apple explains the situation and the aging of batteries both in the letter and in a new support document.

A chemically aged battery also becomes less capable of delivering peak energy loads, especially in a low state of charge, which may result in a device unexpectedly shutting itself down in some situations.

To help customers learn more about iPhone’s rechargeable battery and the factors affecting its performance, we’ve posted a new support article, iPhone Battery and Performance.

It should go without saying that we think sudden, unexpected shutdowns are unacceptable. We don’t want any of our users to lose a call, miss taking a picture or have any other part of their iPhone experience interrupted if we can avoid it.

These power management features are implemented in the iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone 7, and iPhone 7 Plus, and will be added to future iPhones as required. They kick in when the battery begins to degrade and can be fixed with a new battery.

Apple says it began to receive feedback this fall from customers who were seeing slower speeds, which it initially thought might be due to software updates and minor bugs in iOS 11, but it now believes the continued chemical aging of the batteries in older devices is at fault.

To allay customer concerns and address recent customer feedback, Apple says it will implement several changes.

– The price for out-of-warranty iPhone battery replacements is being dropped from $79 to $29, starting in late January and lasting through December 2018. Apple plans to provide more information on the price drop in the near future, but it will apply to anyone with an iPhone 6 or later whose battery needs to be replaced.

– In early 2018, an iOS update will introduce new features to give users more visibility into the health of their iPhone’s battery, so they can clearly see whether the state of the battery is affecting performance.

Apple says its team is also always working on ways to make the user experience better, including how performance is managed to avoid unexpected shutdowns as batteries age.
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Relive your top Snapchats of the year with a Story for all of 2017

Self-deleting 24 hour Stories not enough? Snapchat will now let you create a Story just for 2017.  The feature allows users to create a Stories-like reel of their top public Snaps from the year.

While Facebook creates a video of the top memories, Snapchat’s variation of the tool more closely resembles Snapchat Stories. Accessible by clicking the Memories and looking in the “all” tab, the feature called “Your 2017 Story” puts those images into a Stories-like reel. Users have the option to edit what photos are included, and can then share the 2017 Stories inside their own Stories for the day or send to a friend.

The tool doesn’t resurrect those self-deleting Stories, but rather takes shots that were saved inside Snapchat over the past year.

Creating a tool to look back at the year isn’t something new — Facebook has done this for several years and now even does holiday memories and looks back at the end of the month. Snapchat’s variation will look familiar to anyone that has used the platform before since the tool just turns those shots into the Stories format for sharing.

The feature comes shortly after Snapchat launched a major redesign aiming to make the platform easier to use while also separating out actual friends from public accounts you follow.

For Snap Inc., its own 2017 Story might include a list of the updates the platform launched this year. Computer vision now helps users find appropriate filters faster, the search tool was simplified and Snaps no longer need to be sent with a time limit. A new computer program also makes it possible to DIY your own augmented reality world lenses.

2017 wasn’t all positives for the platform, however. While the move to the New York Stock Exchange got off to an impressive start, the latest results weren’t so stellar, prompting the program to launch that redesign. The company’s Spectacles also reportedly had large numbers of unsold glasses. The company is currently working to try to attract more users, with the latest official count hitting 178 million in November. Another focus for the company is on augmented reality as the company works to expand that puppy dog face mask to more uses, including sponsored lenses.

Editors’ Recommendations

• YouTube joins the party by launching its own version of Snapchat Stories
• Snapchat’s risky redesign could debut in early December, anonymous source says
• Could Snapchat finally get a web browser version? Leak suggests the possibility
• Sponsored Snapchat World Lenses bring brand characters to augmented reality
• DIY your own Snapchat World Lenses with new (and free) Lens Studio