Funding Nemo: Kickstarter underwater drone streams 4K footage from the deep

Looking for a way to make summer days spent at the beach a bit more memorable? Perhaps you should consider investing in your very own underwater drone that will let you explore the ocean depth without even having to get your feet wet. That’s where a newly launched Kickstarter campaign comes into play. Called Nemo, it’s an underwater drone that promises to make your next seafaring adventure a whole lot more exciting. And certainly more high-tech.

Created by Chinese startup Aquarobotman, Nemo is capable of descending to a maximum depth of 100 meters (328 feet) beneath the waves at a speed of 3.9 knots, and can be controlled from your iOS or Android mobile device. While it’s doing this, it can livestream 4K/30fps video footage, as well as snap high quality 16-megapixel stills. Using an eight-LED fill light rig, the undersea world will be illuminated with the power of 1,000 lumens for your viewing pleasure. You can even don VR goggles to enjoy the experience as if you were actually there.

“Nemo improves on other underwater drones by using a patented QAS-balance system with a four tandem thruster design that provides the most stable underwater video platform possible,” creator Peng Hou told Digital Trends. “The increased stability and control makes images and video more clear and in focus. All of the other underwater drones cannot compare to Nemo.”

In terms of battery life, you can reportedly expect three hours of power on a single 1.5-hour charge, with the ability to also easily swap out batteries if need be. While we’ll have to get our hands on a unit to know for sure, it certainly sounds like it could be a pretty impressive bit of kit.

As ever, we offer our usual warnings about the potential perils of pledging money to crowdfunding campaigns. However, if you are keen to dip your toe in the water (pun intended), you can head over to the campaign’s Kickstarter page to get involved. Prices for the Nemo drone start at $1,599, a purported $1,050 savings on the $2,599 proposed retail price. It comes with 2x batteries, tether cable, bag, and assorted other accessories. Shipping is set to take place in July 2018.

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Intel drones offer high-tech help to restore the Great Wall of China

Andre Distel/Getty Images

Tourists visiting the Great Wall of China are usually taken to one of the small number of restored sections, but many parts of the ancient structure are crumbling badly or have completely disappeared.

Working with the China Foundation for Cultural Heritage, Intel is using its drone and artificial intelligence (A.I.) technologies as part of conservation efforts to help rebuild the decrepit Jiankou section of the wall some 30 miles north of Beijing.

Intel is already enjoying success with a drone platform for entertainment shows, but the tech company is also keen to see how else it can deploy its aerial technology, with the China partnership an illustration of its broadening interest.

Much of the Great Wall’s Jiankou section is immersed in thick vegetation. Accessibility is challenging and potentially dangerous due to its location along a mountain ridge with steep drop-offs, so camera-equipped drones offer a safe way of approaching the structure to gauge its precise design and current condition.

“As one of the Seven Wonders of the World, the Great Wall has been exposed to weather erosion for thousands of years,” the foundation’s Li Xiaojie said in a release. “Some parts are on steep inclines, which pose a great challenge for daily maintenance. Our partnership with Intel has opened new avenues for preservation.”

Intel is deploying its Falcon 8+ drone system, together with its A.I. technologies, to remotely inspect and map the Jiankou section. The octocopter features a patented V-shaped design for unobstructed data capture and was built with inspection and close mapping tasks in mind.

During the coming months, several of Intel’s drones will fly close to sections of the wall to capture high-definition 3-D images, providing the conservation team with valuable data. This will be used to build a visual representation of the Great Wall to help the team identify particular spots in need of repair, and to better identify the precise nature of the required repairs.

“Using drones, we are able to inspect multiple aspects of the structure, including areas that are quite inaccessible,” Intel’s Anil Nanduri said in a release. Anil added that the tech company is keen to help with the preservation work of more world heritage sites in the months and years ahead.

Drones are being tried and tested in a growing range of industries, from movies and logistics to agriculture and health. Heritage conservation is just the latest sector to explore how the still relatively new technology can help with its work.

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Facebook’s new dark comedy show will star Catherine Zeta-Jones

Facebook might be busy winning the augmented reality war and dealing with the trail of destruction the Cambridge Analytica scandal left in its wake, but it hasn’t forgotten its original programming efforts. As part of its continued push to promote the Watch tab, the social network has ordered 10 one-hour episodes of a dark comedy entitled Queen America. It will star Catherine Zeta-Jones as Vicki Ellis, Tulsa, Oklahoma’s ruthless but most in-demand pageant coach, who now has to make sure an unpolished contender becomes a shoo-in for Miss America.

Facebook launched the dedicated Watch tab as a platform for TV shows back in 2017, with Mike Rowe (Dirty Jobs) headlining one of its first originals. Since then, the company hinted at the possibility of putting a news section within the tab, and earlier this year, it added a dramedy starring Elizabeth Olsen to its list of original shows. It’s worth noting that Queen America marks the first time Zeta-Jones is appearing in a TV series in the US. Facebook ordering full-length titles with familiar names attached to them shows that it’s seriously making an effort to develop the Watch tab until it’s a viable rival to YouTube and perhaps even streaming services like Netflix.

Source: Deadline

How to reset a Galaxy S9

Julian Chokkattu/Digital Trends

Is your Samsung Galaxy S9 encountering some problems, like frozen screens or unresponsive controls? You can try a reset to help fix the problem, but it’s important to know which reset option to use, and how to do it. Maybe you want to wipe your S9 before selling it. Let’s go over how to reset a Galaxy S9, which option you need, and how to do a reset when your phone isn’t even responding.

How to soft reset a Galaxy S9

A soft reset is designed to cut off power to the phone, briefly, as if the battery was taken out and then put back in (which is useful, since you can’t really take the battery out of a Galaxy S9). The soft reset is a handy way to give your S9 a metaphorical kick when it freezes, malfunctions, or stops responding in other ways. Best of all, this approach won’t delete any of your data, so when you restart your phone you should still have access to all your info.

Step 1: Look for the Volume down and Power buttons. If you’re new to the S9, the power button is located on the upper-middle right side of the phone. The volume keys are on the upper left side, right above the Bixby button (the button that summons the Samsung voice assistant).

Step 2: Press and hold the Volume down and Power buttons at the same time. Position your hands so you can firmly press down on both for about 10 seconds. When your phone goes blank and begins rebooting, you can release them.

Step 3: Wait until the S9 has fully rebooted. Sign back in if necessary, and check to make sure the phone is functioning — if you were in the middle of an email or conversation, you may need to restart it. Try going back to what you were doing when your phone froze. If the S9 freezes again, you may need to delete that app or take additional troubleshooting measures to figure out what’s going wrong.

How to hard reset (factory reset) a Galaxy S9

A hard reset will boot your S9 back to factory settings — the state that the phone was in when you first got it. Hard resets are rarely needed, but they can serve several purposes. Some hard resets are a last resort for a phone that has severe malware issues or data corruption. The process is also used to prepare the phone for resale, or if you want to give it away. We’re going to show you how to do this even if you can’t get your phone to respond at all.

Do not get a soft reset and a hard reset mixed up! A hard reset will remove all the data on your phone. That includes downloads, contacts, images, and everything else — with SIM and SD card data being the rare exception. This is a very permanent process.

Factory Reset Protection

If you are performing a hard reset to sell your S9 or give it away, you also need to make sure that your Google account is no longer linked with the phone. Factory Reset Protection is designed to prevent thieves from being able to use your phone and it requires you to enter your Google account details even after a factory reset. To remove it, before you begin the hard reset process:

Go to Settings > Cloud and accounts > Accounts > Google and then tap the Menu and select Remove account.

This will disconnect your Google account from the phone and allow someone else to successfully use it.

How to factory reset a Galaxy S9

If your Galaxy S9 is responsive, then it’s easy to factory reset it with the following steps:

Step 1: Go to Settings and scroll down to General management.

Step 2: Choose Back up and Restore and then Reset.

Step 3: Tap on Factory data reset, then scroll down and tap Reset, then Delete all.

Step 4: You Galaxy S9 will automatically delete all data, reset and reboot.

How to factory reset an unresponsive Galaxy S9

If your Galaxy S9 is frozen and you can’t get it to boot up to respond, then you can still try a factory reset with these steps:

Step 1: Find the Volume up key, and the Bixby button on your S9. The volume buttons are on the left side of your phone, and the Bixby button is just below them.

Step 2: Press and hold the Volume up and Bixby buttons at the same time. While keeping them pressed down, press and hold the Power button on the right side of the phone. With all three buttons now held together, your phone screen should go blank, and then an Android logo should appear. This is the sign to release the three buttons.

Step 3: The phone will now show an update screen. Wait patiently — sometimes this takes as long as a minute — until the screen switches to the Android system recovery menu. You can control this menu with the Volume up and Volume down buttons, and make a selection using the Power button.

Step 4: In the menu, scroll down until you find the option to wipe data/factory reset (it’s one of the blue options on the screen). Highlight this option, and then press the Power button to select it. You will get a big red warning about how this step cannot be undone. If you are sure, highlight Yes and select it, once again using the Volume and Power buttons. Your phone will now reboot to factory settings.

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Xiaomi buddies up with U.K. carrier Three to sell its phones in Europe

It looks like Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi could soon have a new market. The company only just announced its IPO on the the Hong Kong stock exchange, but now it’s officially partnering with United Kingdom carrier Three to sell its phones in the U.K.

We don’t know exactly when Xiaomi’s phones will start being sold by Three, but the companies have said that they’re “coming soon.” Xiaomi has been attempting to make its way into more markets of late — it started selling its devices in Spain in November. Not only that, but the new partnership is actually with Three’s parent company Hutchison and will result in Xiaomi’s phones also being sold in Austria, Denmark, Hong Kong, and Sweden, according to a report from The Guardian.

While Xiaomi may not be a well-known brand in the United States, it’s pretty huge in other markets. It’s actually the highest selling brand in India, and the fourth-highest selling smartphone brand globally. The company built a name for itself selling phones that look very similar to Apple’s devices, but at a much lower price point and running Android instead of iOS. Its recent phones have actually gotten some pretty good reviews — we very much liked the budget Xioami Mi A1, which offers Android One, and we found the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 to be an excellent purchase.

The news comes at a time when Chinese smartphone manufacturers have a strained relationship with the U.S. government. Stateside agencies have warned against using smartphones made by both Huawei and ZTE, and have even banned sales of these devices on U.S. military bases, arguing that they pose a risk to national security. What that means is that these companies are likely to double their efforts in other markets such as Europe and Asia.

Of course, just because Huawei and ZTE are facing challenges in the U.S., that doesn’t mean Xiaomi will as well. Reports published in March suggest that it intends to start selling its phones in the U.S. as soon as later this year — though only time will tell if it faces the same challenges as other Chinese manufacturers.

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New patents suggest Microsoft Band fitness tracker may still be on track

It looks like the apparently canceled Microsoft Band fitness tracker may not be so canceled after all. Microsoft has been awarded two new patents specifically related to health and fitness tracking, and the images in those patents look suspiciously like other iterations of the Microsoft Band.

Here’s a quick rundown of the new patents, and what they could mean for an upcoming fitness tracker, if Microsoft is working on one.

Ring-shaped skin sensor

This patent is a continuation of a patent that was filed by Microsoft in 2014, and describes the use of an electrically conductive skin sensor that could be used to measure things like stress levels and other metrics. According to the patent, two skin sensors may be used to ensure that there’s always contact with the skin — as depending on the shape of a wrist, it may be hard to maintain continuous contact with just one. The patent even indicates that the skin sensors may be “made large and knobby,” so that contact is always ensured.

Blood pressure estimation

It seems more and more like tracking blood pressure is the next major step for fitness tracking. Plenty of third-party devices work with the Apple Watch to detect blood pressure, but based on Microsoft’s patent, blood pressure could soon be tracked straight from a fitness tracker itself.

The patent highlights tech that can estimate blood pressure — so it may not necessarily be as accurate as some need. For the average consumer, however, who probably doesn’t often get their blood pressure checked, it could prove to be very helpful. The tech itself uses a number of metrics for the estimate, including the user’s medical history, time-varying elements, and other contextual data, as well as measurements of “radial pulse pressure” or “aortic pulse wave velocity,” both of which, the patent says, often parallel actual blood pressure.

Because the system may be heavily influenced by artificial intelligence, it may not always be totally accurate — so if this tech comes to light it’s possible Microsoft will warn against using it for medical purposes.

It’s important to note that just because Microsoft has been awarded these patents, that doesn’t mean that the company will end up using them — but it does mean that the company is still thinking about fitness tracking, and could at some point launch a new device.

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You can now finally purchase Dell’s refreshed XPS 15 laptop, starting at $999

After making its initial appearance at the beginning of April, Dell’s refreshed XPS 15 for 2018 is now available to purchase starting at $999. Technically, it’s the 9570 model now dubbed as the “new 15 inch” on Dell’s product page instead of the older 15-inch 9560 version. The fresher build sports eighth-generation Intel processors, discrete graphics on specific configurations, and a screen resolution up to 3,840 x 2,160 that’s perfect for a little PC gaming on the side. 

As usual, Dell provides a handful of starting points you can configure to please your wallet. You have two processor choice options — Intel’s Core i5-8300H or its Core i7-8750H – depending on your budget. You can also get a discrete Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti graphics chip starting with the $1,399 configuration, which provides better PC gaming than relying on integrated graphics. 

Naturally, the more you’re willing to pay, the more memory and storage you can cram into Dell’s clamshell laptop. The two cheaper models pack 8GB of DDR4 system memory clocked at 2,666MHz, which is equal to two 4GB sticks. The $1,499 model provides 16GB (2x 8GB), whereas the meaty $2,549 includes 32GB (2x 16GB). Meanwhile, there are a range of storage options for all four starting points spanning from a 256GB M.2 SSD to a 1TB 5,400RPM hard drive. You can even get a 1TB M.2 SSD in the $2,549 model. 

The new XPS 15 refresh sports a 15.6-inch IPS screen with a 400-nit brightness, support for 100 percent of the Adobe RGB color space, and either a 1,920 x 1,080 resolution, or the 3,840 x 2,160 resolution reserved for the highest-priced configuration. This screen is backed by a pair of two-watt Waves MaxxAudio Pro speakers, a 720p webcam, and dual array digital microphones. 

On the connectivity front, the port complement consists of two USB-A ports (5Gbps), one HDMI 2.0 port, one headphone/microphone combo jack, an SD card slot, and one Thunderbolt 3 port supporting up to 40Gbps data transfers (four PCI lanes). Wireless connectivity consists of Bluetooth 4.2 and Killer 1535 Wireless AC pushing 867Mbps (2×2). 

Powering all this hardware is a 56WHr battery in the $999 model, and a 97WHr battery in the remaining three models, with the GeForce GTX 1050 Ti discrete GPU. All four include a full-size, backlit chiclet keyboard and a precision touchpad with a seamless glass integrated button. We presume the models packed with Nvidia’s 1050 Ti chip will have a larger power supply given the GPU’s extra power requirement. 

Finally, the new Dell XPS 15 measures 14.06 inches x 9.27 inchess x 0.45 to 0.66 inches and weighs 4.5 pounds. According to Dell, it managed to cram a 15.6-inch display into a form factor that typically plays host to a 14-incxh screen. In other words, you get more display for your money and less of the surrounding, distracting frame. 

Here are your four starting points for the Dell XPS 9570: 

Core i5 / 8GB RAM / 1TB HDD: $999
Core i7 / GTX 1050 Ti / 8GB RAM / 256GB SSD: $1,399
Core i7 / GTX 1050 Ti / 16GB RAM / 256GB SSD: $1,499
Core i7 / GTX 1050 Ti / 32GB RAM / 1TB SSD: $2,549 

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You can now finally purchase Dell’s refreshed XPS 15 laptop, starting at $999

After making its initial appearance at the beginning of April, Dell’s refreshed XPS 15 for 2018 is now available to purchase starting at $999. Technically, it’s the 9570 model now dubbed as the “new 15 inch” on Dell’s product page instead of the older 15-inch 9560 version. The fresher build sports eighth-generation Intel processors, discrete graphics on specific configurations, and a screen resolution up to 3,840 x 2,160 that’s perfect for a little PC gaming on the side. 

As usual, Dell provides a handful of starting points you can configure to please your wallet. You have two processor choice options — Intel’s Core i5-8300H or its Core i7-8750H – depending on your budget. You can also get a discrete Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti graphics chip starting with the $1,399 configuration, which provides better PC gaming than relying on integrated graphics. 

Naturally, the more you’re willing to pay, the more memory and storage you can cram into Dell’s clamshell laptop. The two cheaper models pack 8GB of DDR4 system memory clocked at 2,666MHz, which is equal to two 4GB sticks. The $1,499 model provides 16GB (2x 8GB), whereas the meaty $2,549 includes 32GB (2x 16GB). Meanwhile, there are a range of storage options for all four starting points spanning from a 256GB M.2 SSD to a 1TB 5,400RPM hard drive. You can even get a 1TB M.2 SSD in the $2,549 model. 

The new XPS 15 refresh sports a 15.6-inch IPS screen with a 400-nit brightness, support for 100 percent of the Adobe RGB color space, and either a 1,920 x 1,080 resolution, or the 3,840 x 2,160 resolution reserved for the highest-priced configuration. This screen is backed by a pair of two-watt Waves MaxxAudio Pro speakers, a 720p webcam, and dual array digital microphones. 

On the connectivity front, the port complement consists of two USB-A ports (5Gbps), one HDMI 2.0 port, one headphone/microphone combo jack, an SD card slot, and one Thunderbolt 3 port supporting up to 40Gbps data transfers (four PCI lanes). Wireless connectivity consists of Bluetooth 4.2 and Killer 1535 Wireless AC pushing 867Mbps (2×2). 

Powering all this hardware is a 56WHr battery in the $999 model, and a 97WHr battery in the remaining three models, with the GeForce GTX 1050 Ti discrete GPU. All four include a full-size, backlit chiclet keyboard and a precision touchpad with a seamless glass integrated button. We presume the models packed with Nvidia’s 1050 Ti chip will have a larger power supply given the GPU’s extra power requirement. 

Finally, the new Dell XPS 15 measures 14.06 inches x 9.27 inchess x 0.45 to 0.66 inches and weighs 4.5 pounds. According to Dell, it managed to cram a 15.6-inch display into a form factor that typically plays host to a 14-incxh screen. In other words, you get more display for your money and less of the surrounding, distracting frame. 

Here are your four starting points for the Dell XPS 9570: 

Core i5 / 8GB RAM / 1TB HDD: $999
Core i7 / GTX 1050 Ti / 8GB RAM / 256GB SSD: $1,399
Core i7 / GTX 1050 Ti / 16GB RAM / 256GB SSD: $1,499
Core i7 / GTX 1050 Ti / 32GB RAM / 1TB SSD: $2,549 

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Intel reportedly gears up to patch 8 Spectre Next Generation CPU flaws

A report by C’T Magazine claims that eight new security flaws found in modern processors will be disclosed by Intel in the near future. Intel hasn’t directly addressed the vulnerabilities claimed in the report, but has confirmed the reservation of Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) numbers, which is part of the investigation and mitigation of possible issues. 

“Protecting our customers’ data and ensuring the security of our products are critical priorities for us,” Intel’s Leslie Culbertson said in a statement on Thursday, May 3. “We routinely work closely with customers, partners, other chipmakers and researchers to understand and mitigate any issues that are identified, and part of this process involves reserving blocks of CVE numbers. We believe strongly in the value of coordinated disclosure and will share additional details on any potential issues as we finalize mitigations. As a best practice, we continue to encourage everyone to keep their systems up to date.” 

According to the report, Meltdown and Spectre weren’t the last of the flaws discovered in modern processor designs. Several research teams have reportedly already disclosed eight new security flaws to Intel, all of which stem from the same design problem. The details regarding these eight flaws are unknown, but they are currently dubbed as Spectre Next Generation. 

Don’t let the Star Trek-like name fool you, each flaw will have its own CVE number just like Meltdown and Spectre. Thus, Intel will be required to provide eight different patches.

The Spectre Next Generation patches will supposedly be provided in two waves: The first in May and the second in August. Intel classifies four as “high risk,” so we should expect to see those mitigations this month, while the “medium” vulnerabilities may be fixed this summer.

The flaws are reportedly similar to the original Spectre exploits, save for one that poses a higher risk than Spectre Variant 1 and Variant 2. It could allow a hacker to launch malicious code in a virtual machine, which is a software emulation of a fully functional PC. They are typically used in corporate environments to reduce hardware costs, and run on high-powered data center servers.

Still, the exploit could allow the hacker to attack the host server through a virtual machine, giving the individual access to all the information stored in the server’s memory. That is a problem when servers are running multiple virtual machines simultaneously. 

“Passwords and secret keys for secure data transmission are highly sought-after targets on cloud systems and are acutely endangered by this gap,” the report states. “Intel’s Software Guard Extensions (SGX), which are designed to protect sensitive data on cloud servers, are also not Spectre-safe.” 

Intel isn’t the only CPU maker facing additional patches. The report says some ARM-based processors are also vulnerable to the Spectre Next Generation flaws, while researchers are currently investigating AMD’s processor family for similar vulnerabilities. 

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Latest IDC report shows decrease in global tablet shipments in 2018

According to the International Data Corporation (IDC), numbers for global tablet shipments have decreased. With an 11.7 percent year-over-year decline, the shipments reached 31.7 million whereas 35.8 million units were shipped during the same quarter in 2017.

In the report, IDC’s results measure the total tablet market which includes slate tablets as well as detachable tablets. Traditional slate tablet specifically shipped 26.8 million units, bringing its shipments down by 13.9 percent from 2017.

While the overall number of global tablet shipments saw a decrease, preliminary data shows that the Microsoft Surface and iPad Pro experienced more than 2.9 percent year-over-year growth. With Apple snagging the top spot for the most tablets shipped in the first quarter, Samsung took second place with Huawei in third.

IDC estimates that Apple shipped 9.1 million iPads — of those shipments, 1.8 million were iPad Pro tablets. This makes Apple the current leader in the detachable market. But its high numbers could be in part to the new 9.7-inch iPad the company released as part of its educational initiative, which launched right as the quarter was ending.

Meanwhile, Samsung’s shipments declined by 11.4 percent in comparison to last year. While it’s one of the only brands that offers premium Android tablets — such as its Tab S series — it could be tough for the company to keep its spot while running against companies like Apple and Microsoft.

Huawei, on the other hand, saw a 13 percent increase from last year which placed it back into the top three. While a majority of its shipments were from the Asia/Pacific region, it also saw substantial growth in Europe.

Within IDC’s list of the top five tablet companies, Lenovo and Amazon took fourth and fifth place, respectively. While Lenovo grew 1.8 percent since last year, it wasn’t enough to secure a spot as one of the top three companies.

As for Amazon, coming in last place is most likely tied to the fact that their tablets are more seasonal. During the first quarter, the company was instead focused on adding more features to its Alexa platform such as voice assistant for its Fire 7 and Fire HD 8 tablets.

But while the numbers of shipments are down, IDC points to Google’s entrance into the tablet world as a way to bring those numbers back up.

“Peak education buying season is approaching, and Chrome OS has resonated with administrators for its manageability where deployment is strong. Schools looking for that same environment but in tablet form — generally, students aren’t provisioned a device with a keyboard until older — could find favor with these new devices,” Linn Huang, IDC research director, said in a statement.

The company launched its first Chrome OS tablet — Acer Chromebook Tab 10 — back in March. While it doesn’t have a keyboard, it comes packaged with a Wacom-branded stylus.

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