NASA explains why you won’t get a drone delivery anytime soon
Delivery drones are great at exactly one job right now: generating buzz. However, NASA has told the New York Times that actual widget-shipping drones from Amazon or Google are still far in the future. And the space agency should know: it has taken on the task of developing an “air traffic control” (ATC) system for drones flying below 400 feet. Such a system would be run by computers without human aid, and take into account weather, air traffic, geographic obstacles and other factors. The space agency is quite familiar with existing air traffic issues, as it has been advising the FAA on the NextGen system for “real” planes. Armed with that know-how, it sees a number of problems for UAV couriers.
For one, a decent gust could easily push a drone into a building and crash it, so tracking weather would be a must, adding a layer of complexity. Maintaining separation between low-flying drones and obstacles and manned air traffic would also be tricky, especially in urban areas. Though Google and other companies have proposed obstacle avoidance systems for drones, we haven’t seen any plans to tie it into the ATC system. And drones would have to fly within the existing system in order to avoid no-fly zones, airports and other classified airspace. Finally, there’s the acceptance issue. As one researcher put it, they’ll need to operate in the “presence of a grandma doing landscaping and kids playing soccer” — meaning noise and safety will be strong factors. The FAA will also have to be sure they can’t be commandeered by “rogue elements” for illicit or dangerous purposes.
On the other hand, NASA is optimistic about commercial drones in lightly populated areas. It sees drones doing crop or pipeline inspections, two jobs that have already been partially authorized by the FAA. However, NASA thinks it’ll take at least five years before remote deliveries over sparsely populated areas happen. And deliveries to densely populated areas — necessary to make such services economically viable — are much farther in the future. So enjoy the drone-and-pony shows for now, but don’t count on getting a Blu-ray disk dropped on your doorstep in the near future.
Filed under: Robots, Transportation
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Amazon’s war on e-books, LG’s G Watch R and other stories you might’ve missed
This week, we reviewed the HTC One for Windows, investigated Amazon’s controversial e-book-pricing model, played around with Hyperlapse, learned about LG’s G Watch R and more! Read on for Engadget’s news highlights from the last seven days. Oh, and be sure to subscribe to our Flipboard magazine!
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Which cheap tablets are worth buying?
A few years ago, tablets were poised to replace laptops as the computing device of choice. That never happened, as we’ve largely stuck with laptops and phones as our daily drivers, with tablets relegated to a secondary role. If you don’t use a tablet that much, it certainly seems wise to avoid dropping a lot of cash on one. But a lower price often means compromises, and too many compromises means you won’t be using the tablet at all. To figure out how many corners you can cut when it comes to purchasing a sub-$200 tablet, we’ve gathered opinions from across the web, from our own reviews to the opinions of other trusted critics. Which cheap tablets balance performance and price to still deliver a good experience? When is it worth spending just a little bit more money? And which deals are too good to be true?
Filed under: Tablets, ASUS, Amazon, Dell, Acer
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Amazon will stream in 4K starting this October
Earlier this year, Amazon said that its 2014 original series lineup would be shot and eventually streamed in 4K to Samsung UltraHD TVs, and now we know when — sometime this October. It was Samsung that actually revealed the date, revealing it would support Amazon’s Prime Instant Video UHD streaming on most Samsung 4K TVs. There’s no word if Amazon’s 4K service will hit other manufacturer’s UltraHD models, but Samsung noted it has also expanded 4K content in Europe to Netflix, Wuaki.tv, Chili and Maxdome. Like Sony, Samsung has other plans to make sure you’re not wasting all those pixels, as well. It recently did a live 4K stream of a Placido Domingo opera in Europe and released a 500GB drive with 40 recent 4K movies and documentaries.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD, Samsung, Amazon
Source: Samsung
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Cyanogen and a startup made up of veterans from Google, Amazon and HTC are building ‘something really cool’
Is your Tuesday evening missing a sense of ambiguous mystery? We’ve got something for you: Cyanogen and a start-up named Nextbit are working on “something really cool” for mobile devices, but won’t say a word about what it actually is. Nextbit has been around for awhile, but its goals are nebulous at best. “The future of mobile is just getting started,” its website reads. “We’re building the groundbreaking technology that will take it to the next level.” Cyanogen’s partnership with the company was only just announced today, and it brings precious little information to the table — offering only a survey suggesting that testers for the mysterious project may need to wipe their device (preferably a Nexus 5 or Nexus 7) to participate.
Still, the partnership shows that Nextbit is finally gaining traction, and whatever it’s working on may become public soon. The company is expanding its talent base, too — remember that undetermined project HTC’s Scott Croyle left the company for? This is it. Croyle didn’t say what he’s going to be doing at Nextbit, but at HTC he was responsible for designing all of the firm’s flagship smartphones. So, what’s going on at Cyanogen and Nextbit? You tell us: the comments await.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, HTC, Google, Amazon
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Back to School 2014: The 10 best tablets
By design, tablets are less about work and more about play — though you’ll find some notable exceptions in our roundup of top slates for the back-to-school season. Among them are Microsoft’s Surface Pro 3, which features a keyboard case that makes typing on the go bearable, and the ASUS Transformer Book, which also gives you hardware keys via a bundled dock. Of course, there are still plenty of slates made for enjoying your downtime. Click through the gallery below to see them all, and don’t forget to check out the rest of our guide!
Filed under: Apple, Sony, Microsoft, Nokia, ASUS, Google, Amazon, Acer
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Amazon confirms purchase of Twitch.TV to the tune of $970 Million
Earlier in the day there were rumors and internet banter that Amazon was going to be buying Twitch.TV. Originally it had been rumored that Google was in negotiation to pick up the game streaming service and word that Amazon might be doing so ruffled some feathers. Later in the afternoon Amazon pushed out the official press release that confirmed the chatter that Amazon was indeed picking up Twitch.TV. The deal put a cool $970 million cash on the table to seal the deal. (figuratively of course. However, I’d love to see a truck show up with all that cash during a negotiation and see what happens.)
“Broadcasting and watching gameplay is a global phenomenon and Twitch has built a platform that brings together tens of millions of people who watch billions of minutes of games each month – from The International, to breaking the world record for Mario, to gaming conferences like E3. And, amazingly, Twitch is only three years old,” said Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.com. “Like Twitch, we obsess over customers and like to think differently, and we look forward to learning from them and helping them move even faster to build new services for the gaming community.”
“Amazon and Twitch optimize for our customers first and are both believers in the future of gaming,” said Twitch CEO Emmett Shear. “Being part of Amazon will let us do even more for our community. We will be able to create tools and services faster than we could have independently. This change will mean great things for our community, and will let us bring Twitch to even more people around the world.”
Amazon picking up Twitch does make some sense though. While streaming games is a big part of the service, it is also a solid place for watching video game videos, watching gaming competitions and plenty of other things all game related. Lewis Ward, IDC’s consumer market director, seems to think that the purchase is a good match. Amazon has been looking for ways to make the Amazon Kindle Fire and Fire Phone a bit more appealing and Twitch has been itching to get into the mobile gaming arena. The pair could potentially bring a mash-up of services that will be Amazon packed. Think about the Fire TV for instance, it has a gaming controller. While it is no PS4, XBox One or PC, there is potential for people to game together, broadcast and share their achievements.
To top off another thought, there has been another rumor floating around that Amazon is gearing up for an Ad network launch similar to Google AdSense. With Twitch.TV under its belt, all the gaming videos and feeds can be interlaced with Amazon ad network ads and links, giving Amazon a game centric YouTube of sorts that will generate revenue for both Amazon and for affiliates.
SEATTLE–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Aug. 25, 2014– Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) today announced that it has reached an agreement to acquire Twitch Interactive, Inc., the leading live video platform for gamers. In July, more than 55 million unique visitors viewed more than 15 billion minutes of content on Twitch produced by more than 1 million broadcasters, including individual gamers, pro players, publishers, developers, media outlets, conventions and stadium-filling esports organizations.
“Broadcasting and watching gameplay is a global phenomenon and Twitch has built a platform that brings together tens of millions of people who watch billions of minutes of games each month – from The International, to breaking the world record for Mario, to gaming conferences like E3. And, amazingly, Twitch is only three years old,” said Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO ofAmazon.com. “Like Twitch, we obsess over customers and like to think differently, and we look forward to learning from them and helping them move even faster to build new services for the gaming community.”
“Amazon and Twitch optimize for our customers first and are both believers in the future of gaming,” said Twitch CEO Emmett Shear. “Being part of Amazon will let us do even more for our community. We will be able to create tools and services faster than we could have independently. This change will mean great things for our community, and will let us bring Twitch to even more people around the world.”
Twitch launched in June 2011 to focus exclusively on live video for gamers. Under the terms of the agreement, which has been approved by Twitch’s shareholders, Amazon will acquire all of the outstanding shares of Twitch for approximately $970 million in cash, as adjusted for the assumption of options and other items. Subject to customary closing conditions, the acquisition is expected to close in the second half of 2014.
About Amazon.com
Amazon opened on the World Wide Web in July 1995. The company is guided by three principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for invention, and long-term thinking. Customer reviews, 1-Click shopping, personalized recommendations, Prime, Fulfillment by Amazon, AWS, Kindle Direct Publishing, Kindle, Fire phone, Fire tablets, and Fire TV are some of the products and services pioneered by Amazon.
About Twitch
Twitch is the leading live video platform and community for gamers where more than 55 million have gathered to broadcast, watch and talk about video games. Twitch’s video platform is the backbone of both live and on-demand distribution for the entire video game ecosystem. This includes game developers, publishers, media outlets, events, user generated content and the entire esports scene. In February 2014, The Wall Street Journal ranked Twitch as the 4th largest website in terms of peak internet traffic in the U.S., fortifying the brand as an entertainment industry leader and the epicenter of social video for gamers. For more information, visit: www.twitch.tv
Forward-Looking Statements
This announcement contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Actual results may differ significantly from management’s expectations. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that include, among others, risks related to competition, management of growth, new products, services and technologies, potential fluctuations in operating results, international expansion, outcomes of legal proceedings and claims, fulfillment and data center optimization, seasonality, commercial agreements, acquisitions and strategic transactions, foreign exchange rates, system interruption, inventory, government regulation and taxation, payments and fraud. More information about factors that potentially could affect Amazon.com’s financial results is included in Amazon.com’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent filings.
Source: Amazon Press page Also: Adweek
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Engadget Daily: Amazon’s war on e-books, Ralph Lauren’s smart shirt and more!
Today, we break down Amazon’s controversial e-book-pricing model, learn about Ralph Lauren’s smart shirt for athletes, anticipate LG’s round-faced G Watch R and more! Read on for Engadget’s news highlights from the last 24 hours.
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Amazon buying Twitch, expanding video empire to live streaming
It’s official: after plenty of rumors about both Google and Amazon buying massively popular video streaming service Twitch, Amazon announced it as official this afternoon. Amazon is buying Twitch for $970 million in cash, though it’s yet to go through government approval. Amazon head Jeff Bezos is pretty excited about the deal and, apparently, about gaming:
“Broadcasting and watching gameplay is a global phenomenon and Twitch has built a platform that brings together tens of millions of people who watch billions of minutes of games each month – from The International, to breaking the world record for Mario, to gaming conferences like E3. And, amazingly, Twitch is only three years old.”
Yes, the head of Amazon did just shout out Valve’s annual “The International” game tournament. Sure. Anyway, Twitch released its own statement about the deal. In it, CEO Emmett Shear thanks the Twitch community for believing in his company. He also details why he and his executive team chose Amazon:
“We chose Amazon because they believe in our community, they share our values and long-term vision, and they want to help us get there faster. We’re keeping most everything the same: our office, our employees, our brand, and most importantly our independence. But with Amazon’s support we’ll have the resources to bring you an even better Twitch.”
Earlier this year, reports from a variety of publications cited ongoing talks between Twitch and YouTube-owner Google about an acquisition. VentureBeat even went as far as to “confirm” the deal; reports surfaced this morning about the Amazon deal, which Bezos and co. confirmed this afternoon.
Today’s news isn’t Amazon’s first foray into gaming. The company previously purchased game dev studio Double Helix and hired up a sizable staff of game industry veterans to operate what’s now known as “Amazon Game Studios.” Heck, Amazon released a gamepad with its Fire TV set-top box and launched one of its own games (Sev Zero) alongside the box.
Twitch is the most widely-used live game streaming service, besting competitors like Ustream and even the mighty YouTube. The service, previously known as Justin.tv, primarily hosts livestreams of gaming content, though it’s also used for live events and other broadcast functions. The service is built into both the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, though it originally gained popularity with the PC gaming crowd. As of late, it’s become the go-to service for livestreamed gaming events, from the aforementioned annual Valve tournament to the major press conferences at the game industry’s annual trade show, E3.
Filed under: Gaming, Internet, Software, Amazon
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Amazon reportedly ready to snatch Twitch away from Google
Remember that rumored $1 billion deal Google worked out to purchase the internet’s most popular game-streaming service? Amazon may be taking it over. According to The Information, folks close to the deal say that Twitch and Amazon are in late stage talks for a $1 billion acquisition. Why the change in buyer? It’s not clear (or confirmed), though it might be a response to concerns that joining Google could stifle innovation or competition. Either way, neither company is talking about the rumor right now, though one person involved suggested that the deal could be formerly announced soon.
Filed under: Gaming, Google, Amazon
Source: The Information
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