Bewegende beelden tonen instap Sony Xperia L3

Dankzij opgedoken CAD-tekeningen heeft @onleaks een filmpje van de aankomende Xperia L3 online gezet. Een instap Sony dus met dubbele camera en een vertrouwde plek voor de vingerafdrukscanner. In plaats van de achterkant zit die nu weer op z’n vertrouwde plek; de zijkant.

De beelden verschenen on een blog van Pricebaba die daarvoor een samenwerking met @onleaks aanging. De opvolger van de Xperia L2 krijgt vermoedelijk een 5,7 inch groot beeldscherm wat daarmee een fractie groter is dan z’n voorganger. Mogelijk is dit een gevolg van het wegbezuinigen van de schermranden boven en onder. Die lijken bij de L3 aanzienlijk kleiner geworden.

Achterop vinden we ditmaal een dubbele camera die net als de iPhone onder elkaar in de linkerbovenhoek geplaatst zijn. Welke resolutie(s) Sony toepast is nog even onduidelijk. Op de L2 werd nog gebruik gemaakt van een 13 megapixel camera dus denk iets in die richting. Bovenop het toestel vinden we een 3,5 millimeter audio-jack voor je eigen favoriete koptelefoon en aan de rechterzijkant vinden we de vingerafdrukscanner. Voor Sony is dat een vertrouwde plek al plaatsten ze hem de afgelopen modellen juist aan de achterkant. Onderop is ruimte gevonden voor een USB-C poort voor opladen. Of de Xperia L3 aan snelladen of draadloos laden doet weten we nog niet.

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Aankondiging Xperia L3

Sony kondigde de Xperia L2 aan in januari van 2018. Het ligt dus voor de hand dat deze L3 ook in januari wordt aangekondigd, mogelijk tijdens de CES-beurs in Las Vegas. Die start dinsdag 8 januari en loopt tot zaterdag 12 januari. Qua prijs denken wij aan 249 euro, voor dat bedrag kwam z’n voorganger op de markt. Verwacht voor deze prijs wel een telefoon van plastic en mogelijk met matige MediaTek-processor.

Philips Hue iOS App Updated With Siri Shortcuts Support

The Philips Hue app for iOS this week updated with support for Siri Shortcuts, allowing users to add their lights to a Shortcut to turn on scenes like “Movie Time.” Siri will also now learn when people are using their favorite scenes and suggest them for quick activation on the iOS lock screen, in Siri search, and on the Siri Apple Watch face (via 9to5Mac).

The Shortcuts app launched to the public within iOS 12 in September, allowing users to create multi-step shortcuts using first and third-party apps that can be activated by Siri voice command. Shortcuts are deeply customizable, and third party apps like the Hue app are able to develop quick actions for Siri that can be incorporated into Shortcuts recipes.

During the original announcement, the company explained how Hue shortcuts are compatible with other shortcuts, so you can have a whole “Dinner Time” setup that not only changes the lights, but also does things like turn on music and text family members that the food is ready.

The launch of Shortcuts for Hue lights comes after the company revealed new light fixtures last August, aimed at providing light for an entertainment area. These include the Hue Play (seen above) and Hue Signe lights. Philips Hue also now sells a range of outdoor lights, including an Outdoor Lightstrip, spotlight, and path light.

For the new Siri Shortcuts integration, Philips Hue version 3.6.0 is available to download now on the iOS App Store.

Tag: Philips Hue
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Plex Announces Free ‘Plex Web Shows’ Feature

Plex today announced that it is adding a new Plex Web Shows beta feature to the Plex service, allowing Plex users to watch web shows for free without a media server or a Plex subscription.

Plex Web Shows provides unlimited on-demand streaming of a curated selection of web shows on any device where Plex content can be accessed.

At launch, Plex plans to offer access to web shows across a range of interests, such as food, home and garden, science and tech, entertainment, and more. Web shows available at launch include Epic Meal Time, ASAPscience, Household Hacker, People are Awesome, and The Pet Collective, along with content from brands like GQ, Pitchfork, and Epicurious.

Plex already provides access to free content that includes news shows and podcasts, and the web shows will expand the content that cord cutters can get for free with no cable subscription.

According to Plex, Web Shows, like Plex News and Plex Podcasts, will get better through use, with the service able to offer up recommendations based on your interests and what you’ve previously watched.

The new Web Shows feature, the Plex News options, and the Plex Podcasts are available alongside personal media collections that Plex users can add to the Plex service.

Plex Web Shows are available on Plex starting today.

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Freewrite Traveler is a portable writing device for the easily distracted

If you’re a writer who tends to be easily distracted, the Freewrite Traveler may be just what you need.

The device is a better looking, more compact version of the Freewrite machine that launched a couple of years ago, and aims to divert you from your procrastination method of choice so that you can focus on the writing task in hand. At least, that’s the idea.

Created by New York-based Astrohaus, what the Traveler doesn’t feature is the reason you might want to get it. There’s no email, no social media, no games, no alerts or notifications, no video streaming, and no apps. There’s really little more than a keyboard, a display, and an internet connection so you can save your work to the cloud.

One of the main strengths of the Traveler over its predecessor is its lightweight, foldable, and altogether more portable design, hence its name. Tipping the scales at four pounds, the original Freewrite device was a hefty, bulky lump of a thing, while the Traveler weigh in at a more manageable 1.8 pounds. So now you can head to your favorite coffee shop to finally begin work on that amazing novel idea you’ve been talking about for so long, though if you’re a bit of a people-watcher, distractions other than those provided by the internet may prove a challenge. Oh, and best to chain your smartphone to the bottom of your bag, too.

The Traveler comes with an E ink display, a slim full-size keyboard with keys offering 2mm of travel, and four-week battery life. The device saves your work automatically at regular intervals to internal flash storage, and to a cloud service such as Dropbox or Google Drive when you’re connected to the internet.

Notably, the device supports Markdown syntax, enabling rich formatting in your documents such as headings, bullet points, and italics.

“The idea is that by separating the creative and the critical, we can work more effectively,” Astrohaus says. “Draft on Traveler and with seamless syncing to the cloud [you can] effortlessly transition to editing later on your computer. Once there you can still use your favorite editing programs like Scrivener, Final Draft, or Word.”

The Traveler is an Indiegogo campaign that’s already well past its $50,000 funding target — and it still has a month to go. The retail price is expected to be $599, though at the time of writing a few early-bird offers are still listed at $309. If all goes to plan, the Traveler will ship to backers in June 2019, with global availability slated for three months later.

As with any project of this nature, if you choose to back it then do so with the kind of caution you would apply to any other crowdfunding campaign. To find out more, check out the Traveler’s Indiegogo page.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Here are the 20 best travel apps for vacations and trips
• The MacBook’s keyboard sucks, so use this mechanical keyboard instead
• How to take travel photos with just your smartphone
• The best laptop backpacks for traveling
• Adobe Spark Page makes web design easy — here’s how to use it

Surface Pro 6 hands-on review

Research Center:

Microsoft Surface Pro 6

To you and me, the big change with the new Microsoft Surface Pro 6 — beyond the overhaul and upgrade of the components that power the system — is the finish. This one comes in a new matte black that looks professional and feels great. But don’t tell Ralf Groene that it’s “just a different color.”

Groene is head of Industrial Design with the Microsoft Devices group and the man most responsible for the look and feel of the products. At Microsoft’s big Surface launch event in New York City, he told me that black is more than just a color. It’s a whole new material, one that’s slightly thicker than the standard platinum finish – and that was a big problem.

“You can’t make it bigger than the last version,” he told me. Because obviously. Every new iteration of a product must be thinner, lighter, faster. You can’t grow the damn thing. So Groene’s team went back to the drawing board and shaved a few microns off the internals to facilitate the slightly thicker coating from the vapor-deposition process.

So it’s not just black. Don’t ever say that.

Jeremy Kaplan/Digital Trends

Beyond the black

The new coating feels great under the fingers, but beyond that, there’s little external change to the new Surface Pro 6. The Surface Pro has offered a compelling mix of tablet and laptop since day one, and having refined and polished what exactly that means over the years, Microsoft hit a winning balance with the Surface Pro last year. Don’t mess with perfection, in other words.

The new Pro 6 has the same detachable keyboard, the same pen, the same tablet functionality, and so on. I didn’t get a chance to check, but I suspect earlier keyboards would work with this newer product.

Microsoft hit a winning balance with the Surface Pro. Don’t mess with perfection, in other words.

It’s the internals that have changed. Last year’s Surface Pro was fast for a 2-in-1, but its seventh-generation Intel Core processors went out of date quickly. To fix that, Microsoft has upgraded to the eighth-generation chips.

That’s a big, big, big deal. Why? Because this is the generation that expanded quad-core to a wider swath of the lineup. The Surface Pro 6 is the first version of the Pro with a quad-core processor. Microsoft says that improves performance by 67 percent. That’s a bit of a loaded figure because it’ll only apply to heavily multi-threaded workloads, but you’re going to notice the difference in demanding applications.

Despite the upgrade in performance, Microsoft says battery life has also improved. The new version apparently nets up to 3.5 more hours of additional battery life compared to the prior Surface Pro generation. The Pro 6 is good for a whopping 14.5 hours.

Jeremy Kaplan/Digital Trends

Our past reviews have found that Surface devices don’t often meet Microsoft’s claims, but 14.5 hours is a long time. We guess you’ll see more like 10 or 11 hours in normal use, which is still more than enough for most people.

The new Surface is still a lot like the old Surface

While the performance grows, the feature set and connectivity is the same as before. There isn’t USB-C or Thunderbolt 3 on the device, despite what you may have hoped and prayed for. USB-C is a huge step forward for device manufacturers, and by skipping it, Microsoft has drawn a line in the sand.

Microsoft Surface Pro 6 Compared To

Lenovo Thinkpad T480s

Razer Blade Stealth (2018)

Dell XPS 15 Touch

Dell XPS 13 (2014)

HP EliteBook 820 G1

Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (2013)

Acer Aspire V5

Asus UL30A

Asus Eee 1008HA Seashell

Fujitsu LifeBook U820

Apple MacBook (2.4GHz, 2008)

Asus Eee PC 901

Apple MacBook Air (80GB)

Apple MacBook 2.0GHz

Sony VAIO C1MW PictureBook

That’s too bad. As time goes one, and these new connection standards become more common, the Surface’s lack is becoming a problem. It wasn’t a big deal two years ago. Today, it feels like a big oversight.

We can appreciate why Microsoft has taken an “if it’s not broke, don’t fix it” approach. The Surface Pro has long topped our list of the best 2-in-1 PCs. Yet we don’t think Microsoft should let itself get comfortable. Other devices, like the new HP Folio, are introducing radical new designs to unseat the Surface Pro.

It was good. It is good. It will be good.

The Surface Pro 6 brings forward the carefully honed design of earlier models and bumps the speed of the computer significantly.  It doesn’t try to revolutionize the Surface Pro’s now well-known look. It doesn’t need to. The 2-in-1 race is Microsoft’s to lose, and the company remains well ahead of the competition.

You can order the Surface Pro 6 today starting at $899. The product will be available starting Oct. 16.

Citizen’s going to make hybrid smartwatches using Fossil’s established tech

Watchmaker Citizen will begin producing hybrid smartwatches using technology from the Fossil Group. The two companies have announced a multifaceted partnership based around hybrid watches, an area where Citizen has yet to make a splash, but Fossil is already highly accomplished.

There are three parts to the agreement. Citizen will produce movements that use Fossil’s hybrid technology, which will be sold as a component or inside complete watches. It’s not clear whether Citizen will sell this hybrid movement to companies outside its own family, or which of its own brands will use it either. Additionally, the pair will continue to work together on future smartwatch technology.

A hybrid smartwatch, in case you’re not familiar with the phrase, is a Bluetooth connected watch without a touchscreen. This enables notifications and other vibration alerts on your wrist,  along with fitness tracking features, from a device that looks exactly like a traditional watch. Fossil was one of the first to embrace hybrid technology, and we’ve enjoyed using its watches ever since. It has worked to refine the companion app, a crucial part of hybrid watch ownership, which we also hope will find its way into Citizen’s future watches.

While we have not seen a Citizen-branded smartwatch, the company has utilized Bluetooth connectivity in watches since 2006, in a similar way to competitor Casio with its connected G Shock watches. Citizen owns Swiss watch brand Frédérique Constant, which launched a complex mechanical hybrid watch under its name this year, along with another from Alpina, both to considerable acclaim. While Fossil’s technology is unlikely to be adopted by Frédérique Constant for this reason, there is a possibility Citizen will release hybrid watches under the Bulova or Caravelle names in addition to its own.

Citizen released a business plan recently, which outlined its strategy for the year and a target to double sales revenue it collected in 2012. Two of its tasks to help achieve this are to develop new customers, and develop new products and new technologies. Citizen’s CEO Toshio Tokura  clearly recognizes the opportunity with smartwatches, and states the company is serious about its plans.

There’s no indication when we will see the first hybrid smartwatches from the Citizen and Fossil Group partnership.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Fossil adds Noonlight’s emergency feature to its latest lineup of smartwatches
• Techy and trendy? That’s the new Emporio Armani Connected smartwatch
• Here’s everything announced at Samsung Galaxy Unpacked
• Apple Watch Series 4: Here’s how and where to buy it
• Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 3100 chip will finally make Google’s Wear OS competitive

These are the most popular use cases for a Raspberry Pi

The Raspberry Pi is a computer and can do almost anything a larger (and more expensive) model can. What makes the Raspberry Pi so great is it’s open nature. There are project boards from many different companies, but the Raspberry Pi Foundation provides everything needed to make this board suitable for just about any application. This means you’ll find plenty of project kits that are fun and functional once built. Here are some of the best we’ve found to get started!

For the kids

Kano Computer Kit

A Kano Computer Kit includes everything needed for a child to build a working computer, then teach them how everything works — including basic programming. It’s built specifically for kids with easy to follow instructions and you get to sit back and enjoy watching them do it all. For a child with an interest in STEM, the Kano Computer Kit is the perfect introduction.

$105 at Amazon

Retro gaming

CanaKit Raspberry Pi 3 B+ Retro Gaming Kit

A Raspberry Pi does a great job emulating your favorite retro gaming console. CanaKit’s Retro Gaming kit comes with everything you need to build a system that will take you back or show you what all the fuss is about if you didn’t experience it first-hand.

$90 at Amazon

Google Assistant

Google AIY Voice Kit

Google and the Raspberry Pi foundation have an awesome kit that lets you build your own smart home assistant out of cardboard. In just a few hours you’ll have a Google Home-style box that you built yourself!

$10 at Amazon

A Smart Camera

Google AIY Vision Kit

Google and the Raspberry Pi foundation once again have used the power of cardboard to bring you this excellent kit. This time you can build a complete intelligent camera that can even use a neural network to recognize images and patterns. Best of all, you’ll have a lot of fun learning how it all works!

$115 at Amazon

The Raspberry Pi was built as a learning tool, and one of the best ways to learn is by doing. The Pi uses standard components that are supported by several different operating systems, ranging from pre-built images you copy to an SD card to software you compiled yourself. Because it’s so well supported, it’s great for any number of fun and exciting projects. Whether this is the first time you’ve built an electronic kit or you’re a well-seasoned veteran, the Raspberry Pi offers a great base to get started with.

Looking for something fun to do that isn’t that difficult? The Google AIY Voice Kit is 90 minutes of fun to put together and you’ll feel awesome saying “OK, Google!” to something you built from scratch.

Can the Samsung Wireless Charger Duo charge older Gear smartwatches?

Best answer: The Samsung Wireless Charger Duo can charge more than just the new Galaxy Watch. It can also be used with the Gear S3 Frontier, Gear S3 Classic and Gear Sport. It isn’t guaranteed to work with any earlier Gear smartwatches.

Amazon: Samsung Wireless Charger Duo ($115)

You can also charge the Gear S3 series and Gear Sport

Samsung’s new Wireless Charger Duo was designed with the latest Samsung phones and watches in mind, but it actually has backwards compatibility with the last generation of Samsung smartwatches as well. In addition to the new Galaxy Watch, you can also charge the last-generation Gear Sport, Gear S3 Frontier and Gear S3 Classic.

The Gear Sport and both Gear S3 models will work on the new charger just fine.

All three of these older watches use the same charging system as the new Galaxy Watch, called Qi wireless charging, and can be used on one another’s chargers interchangeably. That cross compatibility extends to non-standard accessories, like the Wireless Charger Duo.

The Gear S2 series — both the standard and Classic — smartwatches also utilized Qi charging, but Samsung doesn’t guarantee compatibility with those older watches on this new charger. The standard Gear S2, in particular, won’t fit on the charger properly because of its inflexible bands. You may have a shot at getting the Gear S2 Classic to work with certain bands, but we can’t say it will work for certain.

Our pick

Samsung Wireless Charger Duo

$115 at Amazon

A nice dual charger for the last two generations of Gear smartwatches.

The Wireless Charger Duo works with the new Galaxy Watch, but also the still-great Gear Sport, Gear S3 Frontier and Gear S3 Classic smartwatches. You should not expect to use it with any earlier Gear smartwatches.

UK Deal: Save £50 off all Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL models

A huge saving off Google’s RRP for the phone.

Currys PC World has taken £50 off of Google Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL models, bringing starting prices down to just £449.

The discount applies to all models of the Google flagship phones including different colours and capacity models. Supplies seem to be pretty good as of the time of writing with free click and collect available so you could have it in your hands today. Compared to the £629 RRP direct from Google or over £500 via third-party stores at Amazon, this is a great deal.

• Google Pixel 2, 64GB – £449 (Was £499)
• Google Pixel 2, 128GB – £549 (Was £599)
• Google Pixel 2 XL, 64GB – £499 (Was £549)
• Google Pixel 2 XL, 128GB – £599 (Was £649)

These phones are unlocked to any network so you can just pop your SIM straight in. Here at Android Central we put the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL through their paces at launch, so check out our full review for everything you need to know about these handsets.

Google has a media event scheduled in New York City next week where it is expected to announce new Pixel hardware and more.

For more UK deals coverage, be sure to keep an eye on Thrifter UK, sign up for the UK newsletter and follow the team on Twitter.

See at Currys PC World

Nokia 7.1 met dubbele Zeiss-camera laat volledige gezicht zien

HMD Global staat op het punt om de nieuwe Nokia 7.1 aan te kondigen. Het mid-range toestel draait Android One en krijgt achterop een dubbele camera met Zeiss-lens mee. Gelet op de overige specificaties moet hij ondanks dat alles wel scherp geprijsd zijn.

De Nokia 7.1 krijgt volgens een bericht op WinFuture een scherm mee met een diagonaal van 5,84 inch en bovenin een notch. De toegepaste resolutie bedraagt 2244 bij 1080 pixels waarmee de verhouding uitkomt op 19:9. Ondanks dat de Nokia 7.1 een zogenaamde middenklasser is krijgt het toestel achterop toch een dubbele camera mee met Zeiss-lens.

De Nokia 7,1 in al z’n glorie

De resolutie van die dubbele schieter komt uit op 12 en 5 megapixel waarmee hij vermoedelijk scherpte/diepte effecten aan foto’s kan toevoegen. Denk aan het onscherp maken van de achtergrond (bokeh). Voorop zit volgens hetzelfde bericht een 8 megapixel camera die samen met de luidspreker de ruimte in de notch bezet houden. Binnenin de 7.1 zit een Qualcomm Snapdragon 636-processor. Dat is een eveneens mid-range chipset bestaande uit acht cores op maximaal 1,8 GHz. De basisuitvoering komt met 3 GB aan werkgeheugen en 32 GB aan opslaggeheugen. Er schijnt ook een variant te zijn met 4 GB aan RAM en 64 GB aan opslag maar of beiden tegelijkertijd te koop zijn valt te bezien.

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Prijskaartje Nokia 7.1

De ingebouwde batterij kent een capaciteit van 3000 mAh wat in theorie genoeg moet zijn voor een volle dag gebruik. Vooral omdat Android One niet gepaard gaat met bloatware hebben we hier goede hoop op. Qua prijskaartje komt de Nokia 7.1 mogelijk uit op 350 euro voor de 32 GB versie en 400 euro voor de variant met 64 GB aan opslag. Een mogelijke aankondiging volgt 11 oktober. Dan heeft HMD Global een persevent staat waar naast deze 7.1 mogelijk ook de 7.1 Plus aangekondigd wordt.