Alienware’s control hub redesign folds in your game library

It’s “New year, new me” for Dell’s Alienware Command Center. The software control hub that comes preinstalled in Alienware computers now has a unified gaming library that pulls all your titles regardless of source, so you can see them all in one place. You can also set profiles for specific games, tailoring your system’s thermals, power management, overclocking, lighting and peripheral controls to your favorite first person shooter or RPG. Those who have been curious about overclocking but worried about breaking their computers can also experiment with the redesigned tool that lets you toy with clock speeds and voltage. Before you can save your custom overclocking profiles, Alienware’s system will test your settings and won’t let you use your new setups unless they’re safe.

Dell also updated the Area 51 desktop slightly by removing a USB port from the front as well as using LEDs that can now show up to 16.8 million colors. You can also use the revamped Alienware Command Center to set the lighting effects not just for your tower, but for your attached mouse and keyboard, should they have lights as well.

The redesign also lets you pick between a light or dark color scheme – the latter of which should be popular with those who like gaming in the dark. The new Command Center will be available this month at no extra cost.

Dell also unveiled a version of its Inspiron gaming desktop, which is available for $799 starting today. It’ll be equipped with eighth-generation Intel processors, and you now get the option of NVIDIA’s GTX 1050 Ti, 1060 or 1080 graphics chips in addition to the AMD configurations that were available before. This is a modest set of updates for Dell’s gaming products this year, but 2018’s only just beginning and we expect to see more soon.

Click here to catch up on the latest news from CES 2018.

Pioneer’s autonomous driving tech includes LiDAR and driver monitors

Pioneer is well-known for its audio devices, but at CES, it’s showing off some of its other, and maybe less expected, tech. The company has been working on Level 3 and Level 4 autonomous driving technology — or conditional and high automation, respectively, meaning the driver still has to be prepared to take over from the automated system at some point — entering an already very populated field while making sure to bring along some of the entertainment products its already known for.

With the demonstration of its Advanced UX Cockpit — Pioneer’s Level 3 autonomous driving system concept — Pioneer displays three features it says will be important as self-driving vehicles enter the market. The first is its Driver Monitoring System, which will keep track of a driver’s attentiveness through a facial recognition camera, heart rate monitor, steering wheel sensor, seat sensor and seat vibration feature. Pioneer’s Sensory UI, on the other hand, will help prepare a driver to take over for the automated system by using features aimed a stimulating their senses. A driver display and dash LED will provide visual stimulation, seat vibration and active feely — a feature that changes the shape of the steering wheel padding — will provide touch information and a fragrance UI will offer a bit of aroma to help the transition from passenger to driver. Lastly, entertainment will be key when drivers have less driving to do. In that regard, Pioneer is also demonstrating a multimedia display, a sound and aroma generator and automated seat position control.

Pioneer is also developing four types of LiDAR and is working on LiDAR systems that are more compact and low-cost. Additionally, by combining digital signal processing and prior object recognition, Pioneer aims to create LiDAR that is better than conventional LiDAR at detecting faraway objects, dark objects and objects among snow and rainfall.

Further, Pioneer’s Head-Up Display aims to convey information to drivers with quality images featuring higher contrast, extended color gamut, better brightness and minimized distortion. And Pioneer has partnered with Here in its efforts to create a global standard for mapping data.

Pioneer might not be a company you expected to jump into the autonomous driving scene, but with nearly every automaker and transportation company aiming to get their own versions of self-driving vehicles on the road in the next few years, these sorts of accessories are probably a smart direction in which to move.

Click here to catch up on the latest news from CES 2018.

Dell’s new Mobile Connect software puts your phone on your PC

Having to look at your phone while you’re in the middle of writing an important report can be incredibly distracting. You pick it up to see who texted, and end up browsing the 300 other alerts that accumulated. There’s tools that lets you receive your text and call alerts on your Macs or PC, but it’s mostly limited to Apple and Samsung devices. The rest of us don’t have a good catch-all solution yet. Dell hopes to change that with its new Mobile Connect software, which will come preinstalled in all new XPS, Inspiron, Alienware and Vostro laptops in 2018.

The new system uses a proprietary blend of Bluetooth and WiFi to let you control your smartphone from your laptop, so you can answer texts, make and receive calls and run full apps on your PC. But, as expected, functionality is limited on iPhone — you can only receive and start calls and messages — apps are limited to Android, which will even show a mirror of your phone.

During a recent demo, I watched as a text sent to an Android phone arrived on both the handset and the connected XPS 13. I could reply from the laptop, or even pull up contacts to message or call. If you initiated a phone call from your laptop, you’d be using the PC’s microphone and speakers for your conversation. On iPhones, you’ll be able to see and reply to incoming calls and messages, but receiving alerts from other apps like Facebook and Whatsapp is limited to Android.

Since the iPhone compatibility won’t be ready until the end of January, I wasn’t able to verify how well it works. But based on what I’ve seen so far, Dell’s Mobile Connect software is a powerful and useful way to keep up with your smartphone notifications as you work on your PC. While other companies have made similar software in the past (Samsung Sidesync, anyone?), none have offered as many features and as much cross-platform compatibility. Mobile Connect could end up being a feature that draws people to Dell laptops in the future, that is, until other companies start offering something as capable.

Click here to catch up on the latest news from CES 2018.

If Trump reveals private info, Twitter could take action

It’s clear by now that President Trump isn’t held to the same standards as everyone else on Twitter — or at least, the standards to which Twitter claims to hold everyone else. But now, in an interview with the BBC, Twitter’s VP in Europe Bruce Daisley clarifies what Trump could do that would actually prompt the service to take action: reveal someone’s personal information.

“If someone tweets private information — if someone tweets someone’s private address, phone number — then there are no-go areas where we don’t permit that,” Daisley said in the BBC Radio interview with Emma Barnett. This isn’t the only area in which Twitter would take action, but just an example that Daisley picked. Daisley also clarified that the service wouldn’t necessarily ban Trump from Twitter over such an action. “We would caution him to remove that tweet for sure,” but it’s unclear what further steps would be taken.

Twitter has fallen all over itself trying to explain why Trump’s tweets are allowed to violate its terms of service. His tweets are considered “newsworthy,” so even if they contain a threat, the service won’t suspend or ban the president. That goes for other world leaders as well.

Users of the service have been raising more and more question as to why Trump’s belligerent behavior is allowed to continue on Twitter, especially as he threatens North Korea with nuclear war. “Blocking a world leader from Twitter or removing their controversial Tweets, would hide important information people should be able to see and debate,” the service said this week. It’s unclear whether Trump will actually ever cross this line, but if he does, let’s hope that Twitter actually sticks to its rules and does something about it.

Via: The Verge

Source: BBC Radio

Facebook’s video chat device could be released this year

Facebook has long been rumored to be working on a video chat device to leapfrog the smart speaker competition. Now, apparently, financial website Cheddar has sources that say that the $499 device, named “Portal,” will be announced in May with a planned release for late 2018.

Cheddar‘s sources say that Facebook’s first consumer device will be positioned as a way for family and friends to stay in touch with video chat and various social features. Similar to Amazon’s Echo Show, Facebook’s Portal will likely use voice commands, but will also include facial recognition to identify users via a wide-angle lens on the front of the device. Cheddar reports that Portal will be able to connect to streaming services like Netflix or Spotify.

Cheddar also notes that Portal will be sold via pop-up stores and online, and that Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg himself told employees that changing user behavior, not profit, is the goal of this still rumored device. We’ve reached out to Facebook for comment and will update this post if we hear back.

Source: Cheddar

Apple Store in Zurich Evacuated Following Incident With Overheated iPhone Battery

The Apple retail store located on Bahnhofstrasse in Zurich, Switzerland was evacuated on Tuesday following a situation with an overheated iPhone battery and its injury of a repair worker (via Reuters and Swissinfo.ch). Zurich police said that the incident happened as the worker was removing the battery from the iPhone, subsequently overheating and “slightly” burning his hand.

It wasn’t confirmed which iPhone was the source of the incident, but afterwards smoke began building up within the store, leading to the temporary evacuation of around 50 customers and employees from the premises. In addition to the repair worker, seven other people required medical attention but none were hospitalized.

The police mentioned that Apple staff responded quickly to the overheated battery by sprinkling quartz sand over it and containing the smoke as fast as possible.

“At the same time, there was a slight build-up of smoke, which led to around 50 customers and employees having to leave the business temporarily,” a police statement said.

“The staff responded well and correctly. It sprinkled quartz sand over the overheated battery so that the smoke could be contained and sucked out after switching on the ventilation.”

According to the police statement, forensic specialists are now examining what caused the incident in the first place, so no explanation was given at the time of writing. Apple has yet to comment on the situation.

Related Roundup: Apple StoresTag: Zurich
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CES 2018: Misfit Announces New ‘Misfit Path’ Hybrid Smart Watch

Misfit, known for its line of affordable fitness tracking devices and smart watches, today announced the launch of the Misfit Path, its latest smart watch.

The Misfit Path is Misfit’s smallest smart watch yet, allowing it to look much like a traditional analog watch while also providing smart features.

Misfit has designed the Path with a stainless steel case that has a matte finish, and it comes in four colors: Stainless Steel, Rose Tone, Gold Tone, and Stainless Steel with Gold Tone Accent. Each watch also features a silicone sport strap in matching colors.

Like all of Misfit’s smart watches, the Path tracks health metrics like steps, calories burned, distance traveled, and sleep duration using its built-in 3-axis accelerometer. It is not as advanced as devices like the Apple Watch as it has no heart rate monitoring function.

It does have smart watch functionality, though, alerting users to incoming calls, texts, and emails through an iOS app. Path also includes a smart button that serves as a remote control, allowing users to do things like ring their iPhones, control smart devices, snap pictures, and more.

Path is swimproof and water resistant up to 50 meters, and it does not need charging because it uses a standard watch battery that lasts for six months before needing to be replaced.

Path is priced starting at $150 and it will be available from the Misfit website starting in the spring of 2018.

Tags: Misfit, CES 2018
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CES 2018: Satechi Debuts New Dual Charging Station for iPhone and Apple Watch

At this year’s Consumer Electronics Show, Satechi is launching a new Smart Dual Charging Station designed to charge both the iPhone and the Apple Watch at once.

Made from silver or space gray aluminum, the Charging Station features two separate docks — one that accommodates a Lightning cable to charge the iPhone and a second one that houses an Apple Watch charging puck to charge an Apple Watch.

Unlike some docks on the market, Satchi’s option does not come with built-in cords, so you will need to supply your own cables. Cables are designed to wrap around the base of the Charging Station inserts to hide any excess. Satechi says that its dock distributes a total of 15W of power, providing fast yet safe charging capabilities.

Satechi’s Smart Dual Charging Stand will be available for $64.99 starting in the spring of 2018.

Tags: Satechi, CES 2018
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Apple Seeds Fourth Beta of iOS 11.2.5 to Developers

Apple today seeded the fourth beta of an upcoming iOS 11.2.5 update to developers, one week after seeding the third beta and almost a month week after releasing iOS 11.2.1, an update that introduced a fix for a HomeKit vulnerability.

Registered developers can download the iOS 11.2.5 beta from Apple’s Developer Center or over-the-air once the proper configuration profile has been installed from the Developer Center.

iOS 11.2.5 introduces a new feature that allows Siri to play daily news podcasts when queried about the current news. Siri will offer up news from The Washington Post by default, but you can also choose to switch to Fox News, CNN, or NPR.

The new audio news feature, which appears to have been developed for use with Apple’s upcoming HomePod speaker, is invoked when using Hey Siri or asking Siri about the news when using CarPlay or with headphones connected – essentially any situation where you’re not looking at the display of an iOS device. If you activate Siri using the side button or Home button of a device, standard Apple news headlines are provided instead of the audio-based news highlights.

It’s not clear what other new features, if any, will be included in the iOS 11.2.5 beta. We didn’t discover other noticeable outward-facing changes in the first three iOS 11.2.5 betas, so it’s possible this update focuses mainly on bug fixes and security improvements aside from the Siri news update.

If that’s the case, we may not know the extent of what’s in the update until it sees a public release.

Apple is supposed to be releasing an iCloud Messages feature that was pulled from the iOS 11 release, but there has been no indication of when we can expect iCloud Messages to be reintroduced. Should new features be discovered in the fourth beta of iOS 11.2.5, we’ll update this post.

Related Roundup: iOS 11
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Apple Seeds Fourth Beta of watchOS 4.2.2 to Developers

Apple today seeded the fourth beta of an upcoming watchOS 4.2.2 update to developers, one week after seeding the third beta and more than a month after releasing watchOS 4.2, an update that introduced support for Apple Pay Cash.

Once the proper configuration profile has been installed from the Apple Developer Center, the new watchOS beta can be downloaded through the dedicated Apple Watch app on the iPhone by going to General –> Software update.

To install the update, the Apple Watch needs to have at least 50 percent battery, it must be placed on the charger, and it has to be in range of the iPhone.

We don’t yet know what features or improvements might be included in the watchOS 4.2.2 update, as no outward-facing changes were discovered in the first three betas.

It’s possible this update focuses mainly on bug fixes, and if that’s the case, we won’t know the extent of the changes until it sees a public release complete with release notes. Should new features be discovered in the fourth watchOS 4.2.2 beta, we’ll update this post.

Related Roundups: Apple Watch, watchOS 4Buyer’s Guide: Apple Watch (Buy Now)
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