Intel’s new chips are for smart cars and the Internet of Things
Intel has been investing in IoT for years, playing catch up to compete with companies like Qualcomm that got to the market early and saturated it with their chipsets. But a declining PC market pushed them to make more drastic moves, cutting 12,000 jobs back in April to refocus on IoT and data centers, which made up 40 percent of their revenue last year. Continuing that commitment, today Intel announced two new Atom processor lines: the E3900 series for connected devices and wearables along with the A3900 for smart auto apps.
The E3900 will be Intel’s IoT workhorse for applications in multiple industries, prioritizing which processes to perform itself and which to push to the data center, a strategy known as fog computing. The chip series will have quad core processors running up to 2.5 ghz that will be able to manage graphics on three screens at once. The A3900 series, on the other hand, is dedicated to automotive experiences, from in-car infotainment to digital instrument clusters to advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS). That processor line won’t be available until Q1 2017.
Intel’s already working with IoT device creators and software vendors like Delphi, FAW, Neusoft and Hikvision, according to their press release. The new processors are clearly intended to be versatile enough for a broad range of industries, but the company’s also growing its product library, and likely its client base, with acquisitions. They bought Movidius back in September, and just yesterday the high-end chipmaker announced that their processors would power Hikvision’s upcoming line of AI-equipped security cameras.
Source: Intel blog
Apple Pay transactions surge by 500 percent
Mobile payments are all the rage among tech companies, but how successful have they been, really? Quite successful, if you ask Apple. While discussing its latest earnings, the Cupertino firm revealed that Apple Pay purchases were up 500 percent year-over-year in the third quarter. In fact, there were more transactions this September than in all of Apple’s fiscal 2015 — not bad for a tap-to-pay service that’s still unavailable in many parts of the world, not to mention many stores. Apple didn’t say what prompted the spike, but there are a handful of factors beyond any increases in popularity.
One major component: regional expansion. The launch of Apple Pay in China may have played the biggest role, but there was also a steady stream of expansions to key markets like Australia, Canada and swaths of Asia and Europe. Also, there were simply more people with Apple Pay-capable devices. You had to buy one of two high-end iPhones (the 6 and 6 Plus) to use Apple Pay throughout most of fiscal 2015, but the service was an option across all of Apple’s phone lineup by the time the iPhone SE arrived in March of this year. That’s also excluding those people who may have an iPhone 5 or 5s and are using an Apple Watch for their payments.
Whatever is involved, it’s likely that Apple Pay will see continued growth for at least a while. The payment system reached both Japan (as of iOS 10.1) and Russia in October, and there’s still room for both more countries as well as additional cards and stores in existing regions.
The question is whether or not Apple still has a lead in this fledgling industry. The company hasn’t divulged its latest transaction numbers, you see. Samsung was quick to boast about having 100 million transactions for its own service in August, but the lack of context makes it difficult to say whether it’s catching up (Apple is estimated to have racked up $10.9 billion in purchases in 2015) or trailing behind. About the only certainty is that Google’s Android Pay will need to grow faster if it’s going to latch on. It only just reached the UK in May, and card support isn’t as broad as you get with its rivals.
Delta’s RFID luggage tracking system now includes a map view
Delta’s new RFID luggage tags rolled out earlier this year, making it harder for at least one airline to lose your bags. Now, just in time for the holiday travel rush, Delta has already upgraded their baggage tracking system to include a up-to-the-minute map view of a bag’s journey.
84 of Delta’s largest destinations in the US already have RFID tracking installed and the airline says all domestic stations will now be able update the “first-of-its-kind” map view in its Fly Delta mobile app. Because the tracking is based on RFID tags and scanner checkpoints placed throughout each airport, travelers won’t actually see the bag’s exact location, but they will get a map pin for each checkpoint the bag has passed, plus the last time it was tagged by the system. Tapping each pin will bring up even more information about each location the bag has passed. While it is not exactly a realtime GPS view, it’s still a big improvement over the old system: staring out the window, watching the baggage handlers and wondering if your bag made that tight connection.
According to Delta, push notifications for luggage will also be coming to the app later this year, so users won’t even need to open it to check on their bag’s status. The Fly Delta app is currently available for iOS and Android.
Source: Delta News Hub
Facebook teases an app that makes live video look like fine art
In an interview at WSJD Live, Facebook’s Chief Product Officer Chris Cox showed off an interesting AI-powered app that makes live video look like the work of famous artists like Monet or Van Gogh. Cox called it a “style transfer” app, that essentially transfers the style of a particular painter to any moving image. From the on-stage demo, it looks a lot like Prisma, an app that adds art filters to your photos and videos. But while you have to wait several seconds for Prisma to work, the demo filter was applied live on camera through augmented reality.
Indeed, as Cox moved the phone around the room, the Van Gogh filter was applied in real-time in the app. “We’re making the camera a really nice creative tool, and that’s the kind of thing we’re very invested in right now,” he said. The filters are still in the prototype stages, and he wouldn’t say if these filters would just be for Facebook Live, but it does look like that’s the direction the company is heading. According to Cox, 70 percent of all global internet traffic will be video in the next few years. “We’re going from the voice call to the video call,” he said.
At the same time, Cox and Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg wanted to emphasize that Facebook is a tech company, not a media company. Cox says that media is about stories, while tech is about products. At the same time though, Facebook does have content policies that are constantly evolving. For example, at first its algorithm banned the iconic “napalm girl” photo because it depicts child nudity. But it decided to allow it due to its historical significance and for the benefit of “newsworthiness.” The same goes to the live video of the Falcon Heights shooting; Facebook’s system automatically removed it, but the company then reinstated it.
“I think the really big question is how do we make sure that people have free expression on Facebook,” said Sandberg, adding that someone’s free expression can be another person’s hate. She admits that the company is still evolving its policies and is seeking advice from the likes of publishers and law enforcement. “We’re proud of the role we play in helping people witness,” said Sandberg.
AT&T’s streaming DirecTV service will cost $35 a month
It’s been just a few days since AT&T announced that it would be buying Time Warner for $85.4 billion. Now Time Warner CEO Jeffrey L. Bewkes and AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson are on stage at WSJD Live to talk a little more about their plans going forward. In particular, Stephenson announced that AT&T is going to release a new OTT offering called DirecTV Now for $35 a month. It’ll be an “all-in” service with 100 channels, and it’s coming by the end of this November.
“This deal was about one thing: how can we change the ecosystem?” said Stephenson, adding that it wasn’t about preserving the status quo. “I don’t think you can characterize it as defensive.”
“We’ve done video on-demand at HBO,” said Bewkes. “We knew people wanted it for every channel […] You should be able to get any network you want on demand.” He goes on to say that every TV channel should be as on-demand as HBO Now. Indeed, AT&T even wants Time Warner to break up channel bundles into a la carte offerings, which is relatively unheard of with most cable companies.
As for whether the merger will actually go through regulators, Stephenson was quite confident. He said that unlike their failed deal with T-Mobile, this isn’t nearly as high-risk. This is despite the backlash it’s received from both politicians and Wall Street, with everyone from Senator Al Franken to presidential candidate Donald Trump expressing their displeasure about the buyout.
Of course, Stephenson says that the deal is actually beneficial to consumers, saying that it’s now able to offer lower prices, such as the $35 streaming service. Plus he said that the market won’t really change. “When we wake up after this deal is approved, the wireless market will look exactly the same as it does today, and the media market will look exactly the same as it does today.” Time Warner, he said, will be run as a separate wholly owned subsidiary.
As for net neutrality concerns, Stephenson said that it’s no longer an issue. “You guys from Google, you won. It’s done. You don’t have to worry about net neutrality anymore.” He also says that there’s no real need to protect OTT competition, adding that “Netflix is probably going to be OK.”
tephenson also said that 1-gigabit 5G wireless service will be deployed in 2018. He said it’ll significantly accelerate media consumption on mobile, and will turn AT&T into a nationwide platform of video delivery.
In the end, the deal was about creating a nationwide competitor to cable. “I border on the evangelical about it,” said Stephenson. “This is the most exciting thing I’ve been a part of in a long time.”
Xiaomi’s Mi MIX is all about its gorgeous edge-to-edge display
We’re used to surprise announcements at Xiaomi events, but this time, it’s a rather special one. After showing off the Mi Note 2, the company unveiled the Mi MIX “concept phone” — one that’s headlining with a cool 6.4-inch, edge-to-edge 1080p LCD (even at the top two round corners, and without using the old optical illusion trick). The high-end device also features a glossy full ceramic body and buttons, with no earpiece or proximity sensor, allowing for a cleaner look on the device’s top edge. And, naturally, as flagship phone it has flagship specs. For a moment there, we were wondering why Xiaomi would spend so much time talking about a concept phone, but then, as a final surprise, we learned it’s something people will actually be able to buy.
According to Global VP Hugo Barra, the Mi MIX was kept under wraps before launch, to the point where CEO Lei Jun didn’t even use the relevant slides during rehearsal. It’s no wonder, then, that were no leaks about the device. The closest I got was a rumor — which turned out to be false — about Xiaomi launching two versions of the Mi Note 2: one curved and one flat.
Xiaomi’s collaboration with famed French designer Philippe Starck on the Mi MIX was another surprise. Barra said the project started in 2014, with Starck’s main contribution being that he helped set the high-level direction for the team. Later on, he was heavily involved in guiding the device’s look and feel. While sharing the stage with Lei, Starck took the opportunity to express his fondness of the ceramic edition Mi 5, which was Xiaomi’s first attempt at using this fancy-looking material. By comparison, the ceramic edition Mi 5 was apparently more difficult to manufacture than the Mi MIX, due to the body’s 3D curve.
Going back to the Mi MIX, you’ll see that the earpiece and infrared proximity sensor have been removed from the top to make way for the edge-to-edge display. It’s so expansive, in fact, that it occupies a whopping 91.3 percent of the available surface space. These features are replaced by a cantilever piezoelectric actuator behind the glass to produce both audible sound for phone calls. There’s also ultrasound for proximity sensing — a first for smartphones. The latter is powered by Elliptic Labs’ cunningly-named “Inner Beauty” software solution (because it contributes to the device’s outer beauty, get it?), but as simple as it sounds, this Norwegian startup has been working on this technology with Xiaomi since the end of 2014.
“Qualcomm tried to do this but they pulled out of this market,” Elliptic Labs CEO Laila Danielsen told Engadget. “We know that many other smartphone manufacturers have been trying to do that, but they’re not able to because it’s really difficult,” she added, referring to how you’d need a sophisticated algorithm to address the distortion when the signal travels through glass.
Danielsen believes that a Norwegian company like hers is more likely to succeed in this field thanks to the local expertise on ultrasound technology, which is used in the region for fishing, healthcare and seismic analysis. Now, with the launch of the Mi MIX, Elliptic Labs is apparently already 16 to 18 months ahead of the competition as it has the automatic testing tools plus scalability. Its next goal: to bring ultrasonic gesture control to smartphones as well.
The rest of the Mi MIX is just as impressive. This Android phone features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 chipset clocked at 2.35GHz, along with either 4GB or 6GB of LPDDR4 RAM, 128GB or 256GB of UFS 2.0 storage, a massive 4,400mAh battery with Quick Charge 3.0 support, a fingerprint reader, NFC, HD audio playback, a 16-megapixel main camera and a tiny custom-made 5-megapixel selfie camera (the module is half the size of conventional ones). Like the Mi Note 2, the Mi MIX also supports LTE Cat 11 with download speeds of up to 600Mbps using tri-carrier aggregation.
Combining these great specs with such an ambitious design, it’s only fair for Barra to call this phone the “Formula One” product from Xiaomi. Still, there’s no doubt that the Chinese company will also continue to serve the mainstream market — after all, it does have some catching up to do if it wants to gain Chinese marketshare. Even so, devices like the Mi MIX feel refreshing at a time when the market for phones — and the rate of innovation, for that matter — is otherwise slowing.
The Mi MIX will be available in China on November 4th. The base model costs 3,499 yuan (around $516), while the top-end model — which sports 18-karat gold rims around the main camera and fingerprint reader — is priced at 3,999 yuan, or about $590. These cost a good deal more than what Xiaomi usually asks for, but given the unique design and specs, the price is still reasonable compared to other phones, and will probably indeed sell well in a country where Xiaomi has already won many fans.
Apple’s iPhone sales keep falling
Apple just announced financial results for its Q4 2016, and it marks the third straight quarter of declining revenues. The company pulled in revenues of $46.9 billion, down about 9 percent from one year ago. As for its key products, each was down as well. Apple sold 45.5 million iPhones, 9.3 million iPads and 4.9 million Macs in the quarter — that’s a year-over-year decline of 5.2 percent for iPhones, 6 percent for iPads and a whopping 14 percent for the Mac. Not a huge surprise, given that Apple has only updated one single computer out of its lineup for all of 2016. (That should change on Thursday, though.)
Apple still isn’t saying how well the Apple Watch is selling, but it’s clear that the popularity of the original lineup had run its course — Apple’s “other products” category (which includes the Watch, Beats hardware, the iPod lineup and other relatively small products) has flattened out in terms of revenue. The company pulled in $2.2 billion in revenue for other products this quarter, down 21 percent from a year ago.
However, with a new Watch out in the wild and the holiday quarter coming, this number should increase significantly when Apple reports earnings three months from now — in the holiday quarter last year, the other services category pulled in $4.4 billion in revenue.
Indeed, this quarter sees Apple in a bit of a holding pattern — the new iPhone and Apple Watch were barely on sale during this period, and the Mac lineup has obviously not been updated yet. But the dual impact of a whole new lineup of products in just about all of Apple’s product categories and the holidays should mean a strong quarter for the company. The question is whether it’ll be enough for Apple to grow its revenue after three consecutive down quarters.
Those three quarters of decline also means this is the first fiscal year in which Apple will not grow its annual revenue — the first time that’s been the case since 2001. For those who don’t remember 2001, that’s when Apple first launched the iPod.
However, Apple’s services business (which encompasses revenue from things like the iTunes Store and Apple Music) remains a bright spot. CEO Tim Cook has spoken positively of it for several quarters now, and once again services revenue grew — $6.3 billion in services revenue this quarter marked a 23.5 percent increase over a year ago. Now doubt the growth of Apple Music contributed to that. Indeed, services remains Apple’s second biggest product category behind the iPhone for yet another quarter.
Apple is holding its traditional conference call with industry analysts at 5PM ET, and we’ll be listening in to update this post with anything CEO Tim Cook chooses to address.
Source: Apple
What to expect from Apple’s ‘Hello Again’ event
Apple is sneaking in one more big product unveiling before 2016 comes to a close, and expectations for new Macs are running high. And how couldn’t they be? Aside from last year’s iMacs and the 12-inch MacBook, Cupertino’s computer lineup has gone largely untouched since 2015 — and there are numerous systems that have remained the same for even longer. But which Macs are going to get an upgrade on Oct. 27th? And is there a chance that other devices will get their moment in the sun? We’ve rounded up some of the more credible rumors to give you a sense of what’s likely in store.
Redesigned MacBook Pro
If there’s anything that could be considered a lock for the “Hello Again” event, it’s a refreshed MacBook Pro lineup. Apple hasn’t made any significant changes there since mid-2015, and some elements have stuck around for ages. The 15-inch models are still using the fourth-generation Core i7 chips they got back in 2014, for example, while the basic designs of both the 13- and 15-inch systems have remained largely the same since they were introduced in 2012. Even if you discount the rumors, it’s safe to say the MacBook Pro is long overdue for a makeover.
Thankfully, it sounds like you’re going to get just that. Numerous scoops (supported by a case leak from Cult of Mac) suggest that the new Pros are coming this fall, and will center around an OLED touch strip above the keyboard that adapts to the context of whatever you’re doing. You’d get media playback controls if music is playing, or app-specific shortcuts for tasks like video editing or web browsing. Also, Apple might introduce a fingerprint-reading power button that streamlines your sign-ins and online purchases through Apple Pay.
Those same leaks also hint that the MacBook Pros’ ports will be a mixed bag. Instead of the usual variety of connections, you’d get USB-C ports (with Thunderbolt 3 for some high-speed peripherals), a headphone jack … and that’s about it. You might need adapters for video output, SD card readers and other hookups that might have had native connections before. It could be an inconvenience, at least in the short term when USB-C peripherals are rare, but it would give you a more flexible computer in the long run. You wouldn’t have to buy a 15-inch system (or a hub) just to get more than two USB ports or worry about where you plug in an external display.
What’s powering these laptops is a tougher call. Intel did just introduce its first seventh-generation Core (aka Kaby Lake) processors, but the current versions are lower-power chips designed for ultraportables, not mobile workhorses like the MacBook Pro. Unless Apple can score higher-power parts, you may have to “settle” for sixth-gen Core CPUs. You could get improved battery life, though, and there are hints you’ll be able to configure it with up to a 2TB solid-state drive.
The graphics on the 15-inch model would definitely get a boost too. Rumors have it sporting AMD Polaris-based video that would help with creative work and the occasional round of gaming. Just don’t expect a 4K display, because the tidbits we’ve seen suggest that you’ll get the same screen resolutions (2,560 x 1,440 and 2,880 x 1,800) that you have now.
Whatever mystery is left comes down to the pricing. Will these systems carry any kind of premium over their ancestors? And will the base models have enough horsepower and storage to keep you satisfied? Barring last-minute revelations, that may have to wait until event day.
A 13-inch MacBook … or is it a new MacBook Air?
It’s when you consider other possible Mac introductions that things get tricky. There have been conflicting reports as to how Apple will tweak its lower-cost laptops, and both sides can make a persuasive case.
One rumor from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman (who has a solid track record for Apple scoops) has Apple releasing an upgraded 13-inch MacBook Air with USB-C ports. It’s not certain what else would be improved. A higher-quality display, perhaps? The current batch of seventh-generation Core processors would work in a new Air, at least, so performance could easily take a step forward. And like it or not, Apple may have to keep the Air current simply because it’s the only MacBook you can buy at a sub-$1,000 price point. Don’t expect the 11-inch Air to survive, as it’s supposedly being cut (it feels a bit redundant now, thanks to the 12-inch MacBook).
However, a conflicting prediction from KGI analyst Ming-Chi Kuo (who also has a good record) has Apple passing over the Air in favor of something else: a 13-inch version of the MacBook first launched in 2015. Little is known about what that would entail besides a likely Retina display, but a larger frame could allow for a beefier processor (not just one of Intel’s lowest-power Core chips), as well as additional ports. More than one USB-C socket, please! The question is, where this would fit in the lineup? Unless the 12-inch version becomes more affordable, a 13-inch MacBook could be priced well into MacBook Pro territory.
We wouldn’t rule either portable out at this stage, but history would suggest that the second option is more likely. Once Apple introduces a new Mac design at the heart of its lineup, it rarely revisits the old hardware. This is the company that’s still selling a four-year-old MacBook Pro to optical drive diehards, remember. Combine that with the Air’s aging circa-2010 chassis and it’s easy to see why Apple would want to move on.
Wild cards: New iPads, more Macs
What else could appear on Oct. 27th? You might not want to get your hopes up for new desktops. When seventh-generation desktop Core processors aren’t due to appear until 2017, an iMac revamp seems unlikely. Ditto the Mac Pro, which would depend on new Xeon E5 models. A fabled 5K stand-alone display may have to wait until the new year as well, according to rumors. About the only Mac desktop that could qualify for a near-term upgrade is the Mac mini, and any update (we’re not expecting one) could easily be limited to a low-key press release.
If anything beyond MacBooks appears onstage, it’s more likely to be iPads. The 12.9-inch iPad Pro is approaching the first anniversary of its ship date, and it’s looking long in the tooth compared to the 9.7-inch model. We’re skeptical of purported A10X benchmarks, but Macotakara (which is sometimes accurate, but not always) hears that a 12.9-inch refresh is in the cards with the 12-megapixel rear camera and TrueTone display of its smaller sibling. The site even talks about a 7.9-inch iPad Pro with many of the features from larger models. Let’s also not forget that the iPad Air 2 is marking its second birthday. It’s old enough that Apple may see fit to either replace it or give it the ax, although there haven’t been any rumors so far.
Image credits: Martin Hajek; AP Photo/Eric Risberg; AOL
Bixi adds gesture controls to iOS and Android devices
We can think of more than one situation when you wouldn’t want to touch your phone because of what’s on your hands. Imagine needing to quickly consult a recipe on your tablet when your fingers are covered in sticky, tech-unfriendly dough. That’s where a device like Bixi comes in, since it brings wireless gesture controls to your iOS and Android devices. Bixi is a little puck that uses time of flight sensors to monitor the movement of your hand in the 25 centimeters or so of air above it.
It’s not just for on-screen tasks, either, since Bixi can also be used to interact with plenty of smart home apps via your smartphone. For instance, raising and lowering your hand can alter the brightness of your Hue bulbs while swiping left and right changes the song on Spotify. The device can interact with a whole host of name-brand tech, including Apple TV, Sonos, Nest and can even control PowerPoint presentations.
The company is also pledging to expand Bixi’s capabilities across 2017, including adding turn-by-turn navigation for cyclists. LEDs, arranged in an X shape, will light up to indicate left or right when you’re approaching a nearby turn. At the same time, you’ll be able to use the gesture controls to control your smartphone or even a GoPro, should you own one. Bixi should sip at its battery to give you up to two months of use at a time, although that claim depends on how frequently you reach for it.
Like all gadgets these days, Bixi is launching on Kickstarter, with early birds able to pick up one of the devices for $69. Latecomers, meanwhile, will have to pay the full retail price of $79, and all should receive their gear by March 2017.
Source: Kickstarter
WhatsApp is rolling out video calls on Android
Whatsapp, the $19 billion app used by over a billion folks, may finally be ready to support video calls. As Android Police noticed, the feature now works for some Android users, even without an update. However, anyone can try it by installing the latest beta (2.16.318), which is up on APK Mirror. If you do so, you’ll notice a camera icon next to your contacts and will be able to place video calls provided your friends have the feature, too.
Hopefully it will stick this time. A Whatsapp beta from May had video calling enabled, but the company pulled it shortly afterwards. The feature is becoming more common with chat apps — parent company Facebook’s Messenger app has supported it for over a year on mobile. Other popular apps, however, like Telegram and Signal, lack video calling for now.
The feature wasn’t turned on for me in the latest release, but I was able to use it by installing the APK beta. After my colleague Nick installed it too, I was able to place a video call between France and the UK. Both sound and video quality were excellent, though both of us were on WiFi with fast (1 Gbps and 60 Mbps) connections.
It’s good news for folks who can spare the data, but Whatsapp users in the developing world will probably stick with text unless they can get a solid connection. Even then, the most popular way to use video in many countries is to send short video clips back and forth, as the NY Times recently observed.
Via: Android Police
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