Philips Launches Brighter, Expandable ‘Hue Lightstrip Plus’
Philips today expanded its Hue lighting lineup with the launch of the Philips Hue Lightstrip Plus, which adds new white lighting options to the colorful mood lighting introduced with the original Philips Hue Lightstrip.
Like the first LightStrip, the new Lightstrip Plus is a two-meter LED-studded adhesive-backed strip that can be used behind televisions, under desks, and more, as mood lighting within the home. The new Lightstrip Plus is an enhanced version of the Lightstrip, adding brighter, tunable white light in addition to the 16 million color options of the original.
As an indirect source of light, Philips Hue Lightstrip Plus can be placed anywhere in the home to complement and enrich existing Philips Hue lights, delivering a uniformed color. Self-adhesive and easy to install, place along the bottom of a hallway choosing a beautiful shade of white light to create a sense of spaciousness; run along coving high up the walls of a room to wash the entire space with light instantly transforming its look and feel; or line along shelves and cabinets to add a stylish touch of ambience to match a mood or moment.
The Lightstrip Plus measures in at 1,600 lumens, and the new version allows multiple strips to be chained together to reach a length of up to 10 meters. As with the first version, the Lightstrip Plus can be cut and bent as needed to fit into any space, and it can be controlled alongside other Hue lights with the Hue app.
The Philips Hue Lightstrip Plus will be available for purchase in North America starting in October. It is priced at $89.95 for a two meter strip, with one meter extension strips available for $29.95.
How to Move Your Data From Android to iOS
In just a couple of weeks, Apple is going to make it ridiculously easy for Android users to switch to iOS with an upcoming app alongside iOS 9 called “Move to iOS.” It will give Android users the ability to wirelessly migrate contacts, message history, photos and videos, web browser saves, mail, calendars, and more. Until then, we have to do these things manually.
Luckily, it isn’t difficult to switch from Android to iOS. It just takes a few extra steps to get all of the data you want from one device to the other. We’ve got a guide for helping you transition from Android to iOS as simply as possible.
Before following any of the instructions below, be sure to back up your Android device to ensure that you don’t lose any important data in the event that something goes wrong during the migration process.
Transferring Contacts, Mail, and Calendars
Luckily, Google makes it incredibly simple for you to sync your email, calendar, and contact information across practically any device. So, if you’ve been on Android for long enough, chances are most of your data is easily available to sync on iOS.
- Open the Settings app and tap Mail, Contacts, Calendar from the list of available options.
- Tap “Add Account.” Then select Google from the list of available options.
- Enter the required information, including your email address, password, and description.
- When prompted, toggle the Contacts and Calendars switch to the on position.
CBS Sports to Stream Super Bowl 50, Other NFL Games Free on Apple TV
CBS Sports this week announced it will expand its streaming NFL coverage on the Apple TV, with plans to stream two regular season games, four playoff games, and Super Bowl 50.
The games will be available on laptops, computers, and tablets via CBSSports.com, in addition to being available on connected television devices like the Apple TV, Roku, Xbox One, and Chromecast. Games will be streamed live and will be free to watch, with no cable authentication required.
New York Jets vs. Miami Dolphins in London will be the first regular live game streamed for free, and it will be broadcast on October 4 at 9:30 a.m. Eastern Time. The second regular season game CBS will show is the Carolina vs. Dallas on November 26 at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time. AFC playoff coverage will also be streamed, including Wild Card, Divisional, and Championship games.
“We’re very excited to offer more NFL ON CBS streaming coverage across more digital platforms than ever before,” said Jeffrey Gerttula, Senior Vice President and General Manager of CBS Sports Digital. “All NFL fans will have access through their computers, tablets and now Connected TVs to two regular season games for the first time in addition to all of the AFC playoff action, culminating with a truly historic Super Bowl.”
While CBS will be streaming NFL games to connected television devices, computers, and tablets, most iPhones will not be able to be used to stream CBS NFL content due to contractual agreements with Verizon. Verizon iPhone owners will have access to streaming content through the NFL Mobile app.
CBS’s plan to stream additional NFL games comes just days after the NFL introduced a new Game Pass subscription plan available on the Apple TV, which lets users watch live preseason games and standard season games on-demand after they’ve aired on broadcast television.
‘iPhone 6s’ Measures Slightly Thicker and Larger Than iPhone 6
For months, rumors have indicated the upcoming “iPhone 6s” may be slightly thicker and larger than its predecessor, likely due to several factors including a change in the aluminum being used for the shell, thickening of weak spots in the case to help address concerns over bending, and new support for Force Touch functionality in the display. The size increase is expected to be only a fraction of a millimeter in each dimension, making it virtually unnoticeable to users and allowing most iPhone 6 accessories to continue to work with the iPhone 6s.
MacRumors has now received several photos showing an iPhone 6s assembled from parts, allowing full measurements of the device to be taken. Of most interest has been the thickness of the device, and photos show the iPhone 6s measuring 7.08 mm thick compared to Apple’s official measurement of 6.9 mm on the iPhone 6. This is in line with previous rumors claiming that each of the new models will be roughly 0.2 mm thicker than the current iPhones, with the iPhone 6s Plus moving to 7.3 mm thick from 7.1 mm.
The new photos also reveal slight increases for the height and width of the iPhone 6s, with the device measuring 138.19 mm tall and 67.68 mm wide, compared to 138.1 mm and 67.0 mm for the corresponding measurements on the iPhone 6. Since the height and width of the device are determined solely by the rear shell, we can also compare these measurements to those taken by Unbox Therapy last month. Those measurements came in at 138.26 mm tall and 67.16 mm wide.
KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo had predicted as early as mid-June that the iPhone 6s could be roughly 0.15 mm taller and wider and 0.2 mm thicker than the iPhone 6, and while there is some variability in measurements likely due in large part to the relatively low quality digital calipers being used for measurements, they do suggest there may indeed be a slight increase in each dimension.
On a percentage basis, the thickness would see the biggest increase of nearly 3 percent, matching the iPhone 6 Plus thickness. That increase could be enough to prevent some tight-fitting iPhone 6 cases from fitting the 6s, but many cases should have enough wiggle room to accommodate the new models.
Case makers such as Spigen are already announcing cases designed specifically for the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, suggesting they are confident in rumors and leaks pointing toward slight size changes, and making early announcements of cases specific to the new models gives the company some additional marketing buzz headed into the release.
Apple will introduce the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus at a media event scheduled for next Wednesday, September 9, an event that is becoming increasingly jam-packed amid reports of unveilings of a new Apple TV, the long-rumored iPad Pro, and a thinner iPad mini 4. Apple Watch tidbits such as new Sport Band color options and final looks at iOS 9 and watchOS 2 before their public launches are also likely to be included.
The Weeknd, The Chemical Brothers, and Take That to Perform at Apple Music Festival
Apple today used Beats 1 radio to announce additional acts for its upcoming Apple Music Festival, confirming The Weeknd, The Chemical Brothers, Take That, James Bay, and Leon Bridges will all perform in London later this month during the 10-day event.
#AppleMusicFestival announcements continue!
Welcome @theweeknd, @ChemBros & @takethat.
More info coming soon. pic.twitter.com/vnx8dGbnNh
— Apple Music (@AppleMusic) September 2, 2015
http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
This year’s Apple Music Festival, first announced in mid-August, is replacing Apple’s annual iTunes Festival. Like the iTunes Festival, the Apple Music Festival is a free concert series that will see different artists performing each night, but the 2015 event will last for just 10 days instead of the previous 30 days.
It will run from September 19 to September 28 and along with the acts announced today, Pharrell, One Direction, Little Mix, Disclosure, and Florence + the Machine will perform. The full lineup of acts will be posted on the dedicated Apple Music Festival website.
Each live performance will be broadcast across the world and will be available both live and on-demand via Apple Music. UK residents can apply to win tickets to the Apple Music Festival on Apple Music and through various media partners.
Ahead of the festival’s kickoff, Apple is expected to announce additional performances.
New Apple TV reportedly starts at $149, packs universal search
No, the torrent of rumors surrounding the next Apple TV hasn’t ended yet. Sources for both 9to5Mac and BuzzFeed News now believe that the media hub will start at $149 — still much higher than Apple TV boxes from recent memory, but better than the $199 mentioned in the past. Whether or not that’s your only option is up in the air, though. Apple has reportedly “considered” a two-tier lineup with both a base 8GB model and a 16GB option for those who want to run more apps. It may just as easily offer a lone 16GB version at that price, though, so don’t count on anything just yet.
Both leaks also suggest that one of the biggest additions may be the previously hinted-at universal search. As with many rival devices, a single search (including through Siri voice recognition) will pull up content from a host of services, not just those from Apple or whichever app you’re using. To put it mildly, that’s a big deal. While the Apple TV has long been friendly to competing media services, universal search would give them even better treatment — you’d know at a glance whether or not you can save some money by watching that movie on Netflix instead of iTunes.
These latest scoops otherwise tend to back up claims that we’ve heard before. The set-top is expected to use a dual-core A8 processor (much better than the single-core A5 from today), and won’t play 4K video. That’s a bummer given the price, but the rumors suggest that Apple is less interested in competing on specs and more on hard-to-quantify features like app support and an intelligent interface. If the murmurs are accurate, you’ll get the full skinny on September 9th.
Filed under:
Home Entertainment, HD, Apple
Source:
9to5Mac, BuzzFeed News
Tags: apple, appletv, hdpostcross, set-topbox, siri, universalsearch
Video Review: The Solpro Helios Smart Battery Pack Charges Your iPhone Using the Sun
For our latest video review, we went hands-on with the Solpro Helios Smart, a solar-powered battery pack that can recharge using three built-in solar panels.
It sports a 5,000mAh battery that can charge an iPhone 6 from dead to full twice over, and when the battery is exhausted, it can be charged through an included micro-USB cable or by opening its solar panels and sticking it in the bright sun.
We liked the size of the Solpro Helios. It’s about the size of an iPhone but slightly thicker, which means it’s small enough to stick in a pocket or a backpack when on the go. It can charge an iPhone or an iPad with dedicated ports, and there are some built-in LED indicators that let you know the battery level and whether its solar panels are working.
In our testing, it took about six hours for the Solpro Helios to recharge in the sun after it was drained, but the amount of power you’re getting is going to vary a lot based on location and the brightness of the sun.
It’s not the fastest charger, nor the cheapest, but the Solpro Helios definitely works and it can be handy when you’re in an area where traditional power is unavailable.
Solpro’s Helios Smart Solar Battery Pack is available from the Solpro website or Amazon.com for $119. It comes in white, orange, and black.
How to Get the Best Resale Price for Your iPhone 6, 6 Plus or 5s
With the “iPhone 6s” and “iPhone 6s Plus” expected to be announced at Apple’s September 9th media event, and released a few weeks later, now is the time for prospective upgraders to begin exploring trade-in and resale options for their current iPhone or Android-based smartphone.
Getting the best value for your iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 5s or other current smartphone can help offset a significant portion of your next iPhone purchase, but resale and trade-in prices will drop significantly between now and the launch of new iPhones, so it is best to move fast.
MacRumors compared iPhone trade-in prices from various services using a 16GB iPhone 6 from AT&T as a baseline.
Trade-In Programs
Gazelle announced today that it is offering a Best Price Guarantee on iPhone 6, 6 Plus and 5s trade-ins until September 9th, promising to beat the trade-in values offered by Apple and carriers AT&T, Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile.
Gazelle’s Best Price Guarantee covers all storage sizes and colors and includes a 30-day grace period, meaning that you can lock in your trade-in price now and wait until you have your new iPhone before sending in your current one.
Average Price (16GB/AT&T): $301 (iPhone 6), $326 (iPhone 6 Plus), $166 (iPhone 5s)
Payment Method: Check by Mail, Amazon Gift Card, PayPal or Charitable Donation
Resale Method: Ship iPhone to Gazelle (Free)
NextWorth offers a similar trade-in service as Gazelle for the iPhone 4 through iPhone 6 Plus. NextWorth quotes are valid for 30 days, allowing you to lock in a trade-in price on your current iPhone and ship it after receiving your new iPhone.
NextWorth offers higher prices on average for the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus than Gazelle, with trade-in values up to $480, although it depends on the specific model and condition of the smartphone. Completing a checklist about the condition of the smartphone is required.
Average Price (16GB/AT&T): $320 (iPhone 6), $360 (iPhone 6 Plus), $160 (iPhone 5s)
Payment Method: Check by Mail, Discover Prepaid Card, PayPal or Target Gift Card
Payment Process: Ship iPhone to NextWorth (Free)
Amazon runs a trade-in store where you can search for the iPhone model that you want to trade in and receive a price quote. After answering a few questions about the condition of the smartphone and entering your shipping address, you can print off a shipping label to mail the iPhone for free in exchange for an Amazon Gift Card.
Average Price (16GB/AT&T): $360 (iPhone 6), $389 (iPhone 6 Plus), $175 (iPhone 5s)
Payment Method: Amazon Gift Card
Payment Process: Ship iPhone to Amazon (Free) Read more 
Apple Likely to Introduce iPad Pro and iPad Mini 4 at September 9 Event
Along with unveiling the next-generation iPhones, the revamped Apple TV, and new Apple Watch Sport bands at its September 9 event, Apple is also likely planning to introduce the updated iPad mini 4 and the much-anticipated larger-screened iPad Pro, reports 9to5Mac.
While the event will see the debut of the 12.9-inch tablet, Apple does not plan to ship it until November, following late October pre-orders. A September introduction for new iPads is not in line with Apple’s past iPad updates, which have come in October for several years running, but Apple may be introducing the iPad Pro several months early in order to give developers time to create apps for the new device.
Apple also plans to introduce the iPad mini 4, a significant update that brings the 7.9-inch tablet in line with the existing iPad Air 2. It appears the 9.7-inch iPad Air 2 may not be updated in 2015, with Apple instead focusing its attention on the iPad Pro and the iPad mini 4 and pushing the iPad Air 2 update back to 2016.
New Macs are also not expected to be included at Apple’s September event, and with the iPads being debuted this month instead of next month, it’s unclear if we will see two fall Apple events in 2015 as we have in past years.
Today’s report warns that while Apple’s plan is to unveil the iPad Pro at the September 9 event, the company could choose to delay its introduction until October.
In addition to a larger 12.9-inch display, the iPad Pro is expected to include an A9 processor, 2GB of RAM, a Force Touch-enabled stylus, and perhaps USB 3.0 ports that will support peripheral devices. The tablet will run iOS 9.1, an update to iOS 9 that will debut in November when the iPad Pro launches.
Apple to Debut New Apple Watch Sport Bands at September 9 Event
At its upcoming iPhone-centric event on September 9, Apple will debut new Apple Watch Sport bands in a variety of new colors, MacRumors can confirm. News of the new bands was shared by 9to5Mac this morning, and we’ve also been hearing similar rumors about Apple’s plans to introduce additional band options.
It is not clear what colors Apple is planning to introduce, but it’s possible the company will focus on darker colors to complement the neon-like shades of the existing Apple Watch Sport bands, which come in bright pink, green, and blue, along with black and white.
Apple has already produced Sport Bands in additional colors, which were initially shown off by Jony Ive at the Milan Design Week in April shortly before the Apple Watch launched. At that event, he displayed a selection of bands in red, orange, yellow, blue, and several nude shades.
Image via Umberta Gnutti Beretta
Apple has also provided several celebrities with custom Apple Watch Sport bands in unique colors. Former professional rugby player Will Carling received a red Apple Watch Sport band, while director J.J. Abrams was given a custom navy blue Sport band.
Along with introducing new Apple Watch bands, iPhones, and the revamped Apple TV, Apple may also announce sales of the Apple Watch in additional countries, including Austria, Denmark, and India. We’ll also hear more about watchOS 2 at Apple’s iPhone event, with Apple providing a launch date for the new operating system update.
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