Fitbit’s new health care platform sets out to improve wellness in the workplace

Fitbit is known for its selection of fitness wearables and apps that help a wide range of individuals to stay on top of their health game. But with its new platform called Fitbit Care, it’s now zoning in on health care plans and employers.

To encourage preventive care and improve disease management, Fitbit is leveraging its wearable health-tracking devices to help people get healthy. The debut of Fitbit Care follows the company’s February 2018 acquisition of Twine Health, which uses health coaching in the workplace to help people achieve better health and attempts to lower health care costs for employers.

To take advantage of Fitbit Care, users will have to download the Fitbit Plus app. In order to gain access, you will have to be enrolled through your employer, health system, or health plan before downloading it — meaning, it’s not available to the general public.

Fitbit’s wearables will work with the new platform in the same way they always have, by tracking users’ activity, heart rate, sleep, and additional metrics like female health tracking — a feature that was announced for the Fitbit Versa. With user consent, the health data will be given to care teams in an effort to provide more personalized fitness recommendations.

Users will also have access to a health coach and care teams who will create, and participate in, customized care plans. Participants that already work with an established care team will be able to maintain their existing service through the plan. They can maintain a connection with their coach by scheduling in-person meetings, phone calls, and more, to make sure they’re achieving their health goals.

Fitbit Plus enables employees to use the app to communicate with their care team and health coach, who will then provide them with guidance whenever needed. The app also has the ability to support health metrics like blood glucose, blood pressure, and other data from third-party connected devices. Users will be able to see and track important health data through the app as well.

Like the main Fitbit App, Fitbit Care also provides users with social support tools. This includes connecting with groups via Fitbit’s social feed and accessing guided workouts. Employers can also use it to provide support for participating staff members —  like sending messages of encouragement or forming groups that will help keep employees motivated.

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An A.I. is designing retro video games — and they’re surprisingly good

Google DeepMind demonstrated a few years back that artificial intelligence (A.I.) could learn to play retro video games better than the majority of human players, without requiring any instruction as to how they should accomplish the feat. Now, researchers from Georgia Tech have taken the next logical leap by demonstrating how A.I. can be used to create brand-new video games after being shown hours of classic 8-bit gaming action for “inspiration.”

The results? New titles like “Killer Bounce” and “Death Walls,” which look like they could have stepped directly out of some grungy 1980s video arcade, designed by machines way more sophisticated than any 1980s computer scientist could have imagined.

“Our system operates in several stages,” Mark Riedl, associate professor of Interactive Computing at Georgia Tech, told Digital Trends. “First, we take video of several games being played. In this case, the games are Super Mario Bros., Kirby, and Mega Man. Our system learns models of the level design and game mechanics [and] rules for each game. The machine learning algorithms we use are probabilistic graphical models for learning level design, and a form of causal inference for learning game mechanics.”

Had these models been used to generate new games, Riedl said the resulting games would have looked just like the ones that inspired them. (This has been the basis for previous work by the team.) Instead, their algorithm carries out something called “conceptual expansion,” which infers the existence of models for games that do not exist, but potentially could, based on what is learned from the input game video. The A.I. then generates games that fall into the overall hypothetical game models — bearing enough resemblance to other titles’ game mechanics to be familiar, but not exact copies.

For instance, in the game Death Bounce, the system has learned that some objects disappear when hit from above, and applies this concept to the ground instead of enemies. In the fame Killer Walls, the A.I. creates an enemy wall based on a combination of its understanding of enemies and wall obstacles.

Ultimately, what interests Riedl and Ph.D. student Matthew Guzdial is the question of whether machines can play a role in carrying out creative acts, such as designing video games. “Games are really complex and really hard to make, even for experts, so the ability of an algorithm to create interesting, working games is a notable achievement,” Riedl said.

A paper describing the work is available to read here.

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An A.I. is designing retro video games — and they’re surprisingly good

Google DeepMind demonstrated a few years back that artificial intelligence (A.I.) could learn to play retro video games better than the majority of human players, without requiring any instruction as to how they should accomplish the feat. Now, researchers from Georgia Tech have taken the next logical leap by demonstrating how A.I. can be used to create brand-new video games after being shown hours of classic 8-bit gaming action for “inspiration.”

The results? New titles like “Killer Bounce” and “Death Walls,” which look like they could have stepped directly out of some grungy 1980s video arcade, designed by machines way more sophisticated than any 1980s computer scientist could have imagined.

“Our system operates in several stages,” Mark Riedl, associate professor of Interactive Computing at Georgia Tech, told Digital Trends. “First, we take video of several games being played. In this case, the games are Super Mario Bros., Kirby, and Mega Man. Our system learns models of the level design and game mechanics [and] rules for each game. The machine learning algorithms we use are probabilistic graphical models for learning level design, and a form of causal inference for learning game mechanics.”

Had these models been used to generate new games, Riedl said the resulting games would have looked just like the ones that inspired them. (This has been the basis for previous work by the team.) Instead, their algorithm carries out something called “conceptual expansion,” which infers the existence of models for games that do not exist, but potentially could, based on what is learned from the input game video. The A.I. then generates games that fall into the overall hypothetical game models — bearing enough resemblance to other titles’ game mechanics to be familiar, but not exact copies.

For instance, in the game Death Bounce, the system has learned that some objects disappear when hit from above, and applies this concept to the ground instead of enemies. In the fame Killer Walls, the A.I. creates an enemy wall based on a combination of its understanding of enemies and wall obstacles.

Ultimately, what interests Riedl and Ph.D. student Matthew Guzdial is the question of whether machines can play a role in carrying out creative acts, such as designing video games. “Games are really complex and really hard to make, even for experts, so the ability of an algorithm to create interesting, working games is a notable achievement,” Riedl said.

A paper describing the work is available to read here.

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Customer data is compromised as hackers crack Newegg’s security

Chris Potter/Flickr

Technology fans have hailed Newegg as the ultimate online electronics retailer, but with a recent security breach, customers might be paying more than they thought. A report from the security firm RISKIQ reported that Newegg is one of a few companies to be hit by a bit of malicious code from the hacking group Magecart. Shoppers who purchased from the online retailer might find their data compromised.

According to the report, Magecart was able to gain access to Newegg’s payment system; there, they installed malicious code into the company’s payment system to intercept confidential customer data. Whether shopping from a desktop or mobile browser or using Newegg’s iOS or Android apps, it is possible your credit card information may have been pinched.

RiskIQ notes that the malicious software infected Newegg’s systems and had been running since August 14; it was removed over a month later, on September 18. If you purchased from the electronics retailer between those dates, it is essential to keep an eye on your credit cards for any fraudulent activity. Newegg has sent a notice to their customers, but it is unclear exactly how many individuals were affected by the malicious attack.

Newegg’s email response to customers noted that their systems were indeed “injected with malware,” and that the company is currently investigating the incident. The company notes that the email was sent to users whose accounts they felt were “at risk” — most likely those who made purchases between the dates noted above. Newegg has announced that it will publish an FAQ by Friday that addresses concerns and questions customers may have about the incident.

Security Experts at Volexity have investigated the Magecart attack, showcasing that the process was carried out by injecting malicious javascript into the source code of the retailer’s website. ClearSky notes that access to such systems is typically gained by exploiting vulnerabilities in various web hosting platforms.

Newegg isn’t the only company to find itself targeted by the notorious hacking group. Earlier this year, Magecart was behind hacking both British Airways and Ticketmaster’s systems to steal customer credit data. In the first case, it was reported that the British Airways incident affected over 380,000 card transactions.

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Report: Amazon might open 3,000 cashier-free Amazon Go stores by 2021

Amazon is having quite a week, and it’s making other companies so nervous that it’s starting to rattle the stock market. After shaking up a whole bunch of ecommerce sites with a test of a new visual-based shopping service, Amazon Scout, Bloomberg is reporting that Jeff Bezos’ growing empire of brick-and-mortar stores could be joined by up to 3,000 cashier-less Amazon Go Stores by 2021.

This move would be both astonishing in its effects on communities and potentially a neutron bomb to everything from existing convenience chains like 7-Eleven to quick-service food stores like Subway and even entrepreneur-owned restaurants and taco trucks.

Bloomberg reports that Amazon’s head honcho, Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos, sees eliminating meal-time logjams in busy cities as the best way for the company to reinvent the brick-and-mortar shopping experience.

Remember, Amazon already has nearly 500 new Whole Foods locations it can use as test platforms for new point-of-sale experiments, as well as one functioning Amazon Go store already operating near its HQ in Seattle. And now the firm has announced plans for upcoming sites in an additional store in Seattle and new ones in Chicago, New York and San Francisco.

The company also operates about 20 bookstores around the U.S. but Amazon Go would represent the most ambitious launch of an Amazon brand to date. Add onto all those factors the data the company generates through Amazon Prime memberships and Bezos’ personal fortune and influence, and the idea of a virtual coup against the status quo is not that unthinkable.

One major hurdle is reported to be the cost of setting up shop. The first Amazon Go in downtown Seattle is said to have cost millions to build, stock and put into operation, and company has yet to nail down the final concept. The question is whether to open up a convenience store that sells fresh foods and a limited grocery selection, like a gas station or convenience store — or, to frame Amazon Go as a place to pick up a quick bite to eat, known as a quick service restaurant (QSR) in the industry, or to go more high-end with stores like New York’s Pret a Manger, successfully ported to urban centers in the U.S.

What’s likely to stay constant is Bezos’ bold vision for a cashless world. In the current Amazon Go model (which we said feels like a heist), shoppers use a smartphone app to enter the store, grab what they want, and stroll out. Sensors, high-technology cameras, and more than likely some advanced analytic programs detect who the shoppers are and what they take and bill them; no checkout lines. However, initial reports indicated the technology hit a few snags at first.

Bloomberg postulates that the expansion could put Amazon back into an investment cycle, raising funds to bet money on Bezos’ commitment to long-term success. The media outlet cites the example of Amazon Web Services, the fast-growing computer cloud business that lost money for years.

Opening 3,000 stores of any model would put Amazon head to head with some of the largest brands in the world. By comparison, Kroger operates about 2,500 stores under a variety of brands that generate sales of over $100 billion. There are a little over 3,500 Walmart locations but they’re mostly located in suburbs, away from the dense urban areas and affluent customers that Amazon is targeting with Amazon Go. And there’s a pretty big drop-off as you go down the list, with Albertsons clocking in with 2,400 stores but only generating about $60 billion.

In terms of near-future development, Amazon is considering opening another 10 locations by the end of this year and about 50 locations in major metro areas in 2019. We’ll continue to monitor the story and let you know if an Amazon Go store is likely to end up in your neighborhood anytime soon.

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Winamp media player might be back from the dead, with Windows 10 support

The mention of Winamp brings with it waves of nostalgia for those who remember using the media player back when it was one of the premier music and video alternatives to both Apple’s iTunes and Windows’ Media Player. After its most recent release in 2013, it was assumed that the project might have died off after being acquired by Radionomy in 2014, but a new leaked version of the software found online points to a possible resurrection.

Initially developed by Nullsoft in 1997, Winamp found itself in the hands of AOL by 1999 before being sold to Radionomy 15 years later. After the company’s acquisition of the media player, the Winamp website announced that the software would be returning soon with updates, but with no visible progression and a decade and a half with no updates, the community began mourning the possible loss of the player.

While still available to download, the player has been out of date and incompatible with certain modern operating systems, most notably Windows 10. Newly leaked changelogs note that the new software iteration, version 5.8, is set to deliver compatibility with Microsoft’s latest operating systems, in addition to new improvements and bug fixes.

Winamp 5.8 offers support for Windows Audio, bringing full compatibility to both Windows 8.1 and Windows 10 operating systems. Numerous bugs have also been squashed including memory leaks, the player crashing with specific MP3 ID3v2 tags, and long loading times. The company has also taken the time to update or replace the media player’s various audio decoders.

Potentially most notable is the changelog stating that all Pro functionality within the player has been removed and that “Winamp is now 100-percent freeware again.” This marks the return of the media player from a freemium model that was introduced in 2002 by AOL.

While the leaked bit of software is now available on the internet via an anonymous source, we won’t be linking to it as it has been failing safety checks by virus scanning solutions; this could simply be the result of an incomplete software build or evidence of something more malicious. Radionomy hasn’t made any announcement about Winamp, and we recommend waiting for an official release before downloading any unknown software.

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Apple Highlights Apple Watch Series 4 Reviews

Reviews for the new Apple Watch Series 4 models went live this morning ahead of Friday’s launch, and in a new press release, Apple has highlighted reviews from several members of the media who were able to spend some hands on time with the new Apple Watches.

Apple shared key review passages from a variety websites focused on tech, health, fitness, fashion, and lifestyle, including The New York Times, Women’s Health, USA Today, Hodinkee, Men’s Journal, TechCrunch, Vogue, Refinery29, The Independent, Wareable, MobileSyrup, Best Health, The Straits Times, and Vogue Australia.

Women’s Health, for example, said features in the Series 4 make it a powerful device for overall well being that could save your life one day.

“The new Apple Watch health and fitness features make it a powerful device for your overall well-being. That’s because game-changing bells and whistles have elevated the Apple Watch Series 4 from an investment-worthy health accessory to a sleek and beautiful device that actually might save your life.”

The New York Times said the new model, which can take an ECG reading, is “one of the most significant developments in wearable gadgets in years,” while The Independent said the speed improvements and new health features are noticeable “at every level.”

“The design is just gorgeous and the bright, vivid display with its narrow, curved bezels, looks sensational. The uptick in performance power is noticeable at every level and the increased health qualities and fitness monitoring are hugely welcome. If you’ve held back from getting an Apple Watch because you thought it wasn’t quite there yet, well, it is now.”

Apple, of course, only focused on pulling out positive commentary on the Apple Watch Series 4 models, but reviews for the device were largely positive. Some reviewers didn’t think it offered enough to entice Series 3 owners to upgrade, but said that it’s more than worthwhile for anyone upgrading from an earlier Apple Watch model.

Anyone who has been considering holding out on purchasing an Apple Watch due to a lack of features or slow performance should also consider checking out the Apple Watch Series 4, according to reviewers, because it is faster, more efficient, and more feature rich than previous models.

Apple’s full list of review selections can be seen in the article shared via Apple Newsroom, and more reviews can be found in our review roundup, shared this morning.

The Apple Watch Series 4 will be available starting this Friday, September 21. Customers who pre-ordered a device last week will begin receiving their orders on that day, and those who were not able to secure a pre-order may be able to purchase an Apple Watch from a retail store on launch day.

At this point in time, new Apple Watch Series 4 orders will not begin shipping out until October.

Related Roundups: Apple Watch, watchOS 5Buyer’s Guide: Apple Watch (Buy Now)
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How to Use the Siri Raise to Speak Feature in watchOS 5

Apple’s watchOS 5 update includes a new Siri feature that eliminates the need to say “Hey Siri” or push the Digital Crown to activate the personal assistant.

Instead, you can raise your wrist and speak right to Siri, with the Apple Watch able to detect your movements and your desire to relay a Siri command. It’s simple to enable, and it works well once you know a few tricks.

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Enabling Raise to Speak

Open the Settings app.
Choose “General.”
Scroll down to “Siri” and Tap it.
Make sure “Raise to Speak” is toggled on.
You can leave “Hey Siri” enabled right alongside “Raise to Speak,” and use whichever Siri activation method is most convenient.

Using Raise to Speak

Using Raise to Speak is as simple as raising up your wrist and speaking into your Apple Watch.

Lift your wrist as you would to view the time or do any other Apple Watch activity, and then speak a command. Most people will find that they need to bring the watch a little closer to their face than they would just to view it, so if you can’t get Raise to Speak to work, hold your wrist closer to your mouth.

Raise to Speak is a slightly different gesture than just raising your arm to look at the time, and the Apple Watch can tell the difference in intent.

Raise to Speak Tips

• Raise to Speak needs to be fairly close to your face to interpret a Siri voice command, which prevents it from automatically activating for the most part. If it’s not working, bring your wrist closer to the speaker of the Apple Watch before trying a command.
• Raise to Speak works both at the watch face and when an app is open. It does need to be activated with the wrist raising gesture, though.
• You need to speak at a normal speaking volume for the watch to detect a Raise to Speak command. Whispering will not work.
• Because Raise to Speak seems to rely on proximity to the Apple Watch’s speaker, Siri is not going to trigger when other people are speaking.

Other Siri Options

In the Siri section of the Settings app, accessible by following the steps above, you can also choose your Voice Feedback settings for whenever Siri is activated if you have an Apple Watch Series 3.

This isn’t a new setting, but it’s worth revisiting alongside Raise to Speak. You can choose to set Voice Feedback (aka vocal replies) to “Always On,” “Control With Silent Mode,” which will silence Siri if Silent Mode is turned on, or Headphones Only, which will cause Siri to provide vocal replies if you’re wearing AirPods or other Bluetooth enabled headphones.

You can also set Siri’s voice volume in the same section of the Settings app by tapping the volume icons or using the Digital Crown. This sets Siri’s overall response volume when the personal assistant responds to queries aloud.

Raise to Speak is a useful feature on Apple Watch for everyone, but especially for HomePod owners. If you want to activate Siri on your watch, you can now do so without accidentally triggering a HomePod that might be in the room with the “Hey Siri” command.

Related Roundups: Apple Watch, watchOS 5Buyer’s Guide: Apple Watch (Buy Now)
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Apple Music App for Android Gains Android Auto Support, Search by Lyrics and More

Following the release of iOS 12, which brought a few new Apple Music features, Apple has updated its Apple Music app for Android to introduce feature parity.

Today’s update brings support for searching by lyrics, an iOS 12 feature that’s designed to let you locate songs and artists using song lyrics rather than a song name.

To use the feature, all you need to do is type in a sentence from the lyrics of a particular song and Apple Music will try to find it. This doesn’t work with all songs, but it does work with those that offer lyrics in the Apple Music app.

Apple Music for Android is also gaining the new Artist Pages that were introduced in iOS 12, allowing an artist’s music to be played with a single tap, and there’s support for the Friends Mix.

Friends Mix is a playlist of songs gathered from the people that you’re following on Apple Music. Android users can also discover new music through the inclusion of a new Top 100 list that offers up the daily top 100 songs from countries around the world.

After installing the 2.6.0 update, Android users will also be able to use Apple Music with Android Auto for the first time thanks to new Android Auto support.

Android users can download the Apple Music app from the Google Play store.

Tags: Android, Apple Music
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How to Use iOS 12’s New Do Not Disturb Options

In iOS 12, Apple has given users the tools to cut down on disturbances to get more time away from their devices if desired, and one of these new tools is an expanded set of Do Not Disturb options.

Thanks to these changes, there are more convenient options for using Do Not Disturb in iOS 12, and it’s also a lot smarter.

How to Get to the New Do Not Disturb Options

Your Do Not Disturb options in the Settings app are largely the same, with the new Do Not Disturb features housed in Control Center.

Open Control Center, through a right-side swipe downwards on the screen of an iPhone X or iPad or by swiping upwards from the Home button on other devices.
3D Touch or long press on the Control Center icon that looks like a moon, which is the icon for Do Not Disturb.
A 3D Touch or a long press brings up all of the Do Not Disturb options, which can be selected with a tap.
Do Not Disturb is a default widget within the Control Center and it’s always available, so it’s not an option that needs to be enabled through the Control Center customization options.

All of the Ways You Can Use Do Not Disturb in iOS 12

There are multiple new limited-time settings for Do Not Disturb in the Control Center, which automatically turn off after the specified time elapses.

• For one hour
• Until this evening (or afternoon/morning depending on the time – it’s generally a few hours)
• Until I leave this location
• Until this event ends (if you have a timed event set in your calendar)
• A single tap on the icon without selecting an option turns on Do Not Disturb until you tap it again.

Not all of these options will be visible at all times. If you’re not in a set location or you don’t have any events scheduled, these two options won’t appear. The first two, allowing you to set Do Not Disturb for an hour or until the evening/afternoon/morning are always available.

Underneath these options, there’s a “Schedule” button (see screenshot at top) that will open up the Settings app so you can set a specific time period for when you want Do Not Disturb to turn on. This is also where you can turn on Do Not Disturb at Bedtime, a feature that prevents notifications from displaying on the iPhone’s display at night.

Check out our Do Not Disturb at Bedtime how to for more details on this feature.

Managing Do Not Disturb Settings

Your general Do Not Disturb settings are available in the Settings app, which can be accessed by going to Settings > Do Not Disturb or through the above mentioned “Schedule” section of the No Not Disturb Control Center widget.

Most of these settings aren’t new, but we thought it would be useful to offer a quick primer on Do Not Disturb’s other settings alongside what’s new in iOS 12.

In the Settings app, you can enable or disable Do Not Disturb, set a specific time for Do Not Disturb to turn on and off, or enable Bedtime Mode.

You can also choose whether Do Not Disturb should mute calls and notifications only while the iPhone is locked or at all times, and there are options to select whether calls from certain people should bypass your Do Not Disturb settings. This section is also where you’ll find your Do Not Disturb While Driving options.

Related Roundup: iOS 12
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