Google celebrates the Fourth of July with four free months of Google Play Music
Google is currently running a special offer for its subscription Google Play Music service. When you sign up for the service as a new subscriber, you’ll be able to get your first four months for free, paying $9.99 after the trial is over.
All you need to do is head over to Google Play and sign up for the service. Note that when you sign up for a Google Play Music subscription, you’ll also get access to YouTube Red, which offers all existing YouTube content, as well as exclusive videos, without ads.
The offer is only available this weekend to celebrate the Fourth of July, so you’ll want to act fast to get that extended trial period.
Adidas gets creative with shoes made from recycled ocean plastic
There’s a strong momentum behind the Adidas brand right now. That’s largely due to the increasing popularity of the company’s running and lifestyle products, with Kanye West’s Yeezy line being chief among them. Still, amid its flourishing business, Adidas is spending resources on experimental designs that probably won’t have mass-market appeal. Case in point: the sneaker collaboration with Parley, which was done in honor of World Oceans Day last month.
As a running shoe, the Adidas x Parley isn’t your average silhouette. That’s because it features an upper made from recycled ocean waste — specifically, Parley Ocean Plastic. It also incorporates illegal deep-sea gill nets retrieved by the nonprofit Sea Shepherd, whose mission is to protect sea life in the Southern Ocean. The midsole, meanwhile, makes use of Adidas’ flagship Ultra Boost technology, which gives it a familiar look and comfortable feel, despite its unusual materials.
While the Adidas x Parley is a limited-edition shoe, the company says the idea is to turn ocean plastic into technical yarn fiber for other future products. Until then, only 50 pairs of Adidas x Parley will be made; to get one, you have to enter a contest on social media, wherein you upload a video to Instagram and describe how you plan to support Parley’s Ocean Plastic program.
This isn’t the first time the two organizations have worked together. Last year, Adidas revealed another design in collaboration with Parley, although that sneaker’s main detail was a 3D-printed midsole, also created from ocean plastic waste.
Unsurprisingly, thanks to its unusual appearance, the Adidas x Parley turns some heads on the streets. During my photo shoot with the sneaker, almost a dozen bystanders came over and asked, “What kind of shoes are those?” After I replied, sharing details of the materials used to create them, most people wanted to know when they can buy them.
Unfortunately, I had to be the bearer of bad news: The shoes probably won’t be sold at Foot Locker anytime soon.
FBI talks to Hillary Clinton about her private email server
It’s no secret that Hillary Clinton broke rules with her private email server. However, the FBI still wants to know whether or not she played fast and loose with classified messages… and it just got a first-hand account of events. Clinton’s staff have confirmed that the presidential candidate voluntarily submitted to a 3.5-hour FBI interview over her email use on July 2nd. Her team isn’t detailing the exact questions due to “respect for the investigative process,” but it’s safe to say that law enforcement was wondering if Clinton took sufficient steps to protect top secret email.
Whether or not the interview changes things is another matter. Clinton’s staff have already testified, and there’s no certainty that the politician will have said anything new. A voluntary talk may be as much about shaping public perception (demonstrating that Clinton is cooperative) as clearing the air. Still, don’t be surprised if this discussion ultimately helps the FBI’s investigation — if just because it puts some statements on the record.
Source: CNBC
Amazon locks in the exclusive on streaming PBS Kids shows (sort-of)
Amazon this week announced that it and PBS “they have entered into a multi-year agreement that makes Amazon Prime Video the exclusive premium subscription streaming home for a broad collection of PBS KIDS series.” That’s a bummer for folks who had been watching via Netflix and Hulu, and a boon for Amazon, which is (of course) pushing for the entire world to sign up for Amazon Prime. So if you have Prime, you’ll still get all the Daniel Tiger you want, for free.
There are a couple catches here, though.
PBS Kids on Amazon Prime Video.
The first is that getting Amazon’s video app on Android is still a bit of a pain, since it’s not offered directly through Google Play. You’ll need to go to http://amazon.com/getandroidvideo and then sideload the Amazon Underground app, and sign in manually. That app will then start to download Amazon’s video player, which you’ll then have to sideload. It’s a ridiculous multiple-step process.
The other catch is that this is pretty unnecessary. The PBS Kids Video app (you can download it here) still has its own shows, supports Google’s Chromecast, is a lot easier to use (your kids can handle it, but don’t even think about sticking them in front of the Amazon app) and really is the way to go for this sort of thing.
So it’s exclusive, sort of, and is kind of a pain to use. Choose wisely.
Amazon Prime
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Chrome gets native Google Cast support built in, no extension required
Google is rolling out some changes to Casting in the desktop version Chrome with the latest release, 51. While you could previously cast from the browser using the Google Cast toolbar icon, this will no longer be necessary going forward.
From Google:
Google Cast functionality is now built in as part of the Chrome browser itself, so you no longer need to install the Google Cast toolbar icon in order to use your Google Cast device from Chrome.
If you previously installed the Google Cast toolbar icon, there’s no need to remove it. The toolbar icon will continue to provide quick access to Google Cast functionality.
Google Cast functionality will be available through Chrome’s Tools menu in the upper right corner of the browser window, in the same section as functions like Print and Find. Additionally, you can right-click a page’s tab to get an option to cast.
Chrome 51 also lets you cast to a Hangout. This allows you to mirror the contents of any tab to a Hangout.
This new functionality is rolling out to Chrome for desktops now, though it could be a little while before you can use it yourself.
How to use LG Bridge with your LG phone
How do I use LG Bridge with my LG phone?
LG Bridge is software available for Windows PC or Mac OS that lets you backup, restore, and update your LG phone, and transfer files wirelessly between computer and LG phone. It’s easy to set up and easy to use. Here’s all you need to know about using LG Bridge with your LG phone.
- How to download and install LG Bridge on your computer
- How to back up your LG phone using LG Bridge
- How to restore your LG phone using LG Bridge
- How to wirelessly transfer files between your LG Phone and computer using LG Bridge
How to download and install LG Bridge on your computer
The following steps will get you and your computer prepared for everything LG Bridge has to offer, including backups, restorations, file transfers, and software updates.
Navigate to the LG Bridge help page from your computer’s web browser.
Click the download link beside either Windows PC or Mac OS depending on what you use. In this case we chose Windows PC. The file will download.
Click LGBridge_Setup.exe in your web browser’s download bar.
Click Next.
Click the checkbox beside I agree to all of the terms below.
Click Next.
Click Install.
Click Next when the install is complete.
Click Finish.
Launch LG Bridge from your desktop or Start menu.
Click LG AirDrive in the top menu.
Click Sign in with Google or Sign in with a different account if you don’t have a Google account. In this case we chose to sign in with Google.
Type your email address.
Click Next.
Type your password.
Click Sign in.
Click Allow.
Set your birth date.
Click Save.
Click the circle beside Terms of Use so that a checkmark appears.
Click Agree.
Click OK.
How to back up your LG phone using LG Bridge
Connect your LG phone to your computer with a USB cable.
On your phone, swipe down from the top of the home screen.
Tap the USB notification.
Tap File transfer.
Tap Just once.
On your computer launch LG Bridge from your desktop or Start menu. Your phone will connect to your computer through LG Bridge.
Click LG Backup in the top menu of the LG Bridge window.
Click Back up.
Click the checkboxes beside anything you want to back up.
Click Start when you are ready to back up your phone.
Click OK. Your phone will begin the back up process.
How to restore your LG phone using LG Bridge
Connect your LG phone to your computer with a USB cable.
On your phone, swipe down from the top of the home screen.
Tap the USB notification.
Tap File transfer.
Tap Just once.
On your computer launch LG Bridge from your desktop or Start menu. Your phone will connect automatically to your computer through LG Bridge.
Click LG Backup in the top menu of the LG Bridge window.
Click Restore.
Click the backup that you’d like use to restore your phone.
Click Next. Your files will be prepared for a restoration.
Click Start.
Click OK. Your files will be restored.
How to update your LG phone’s software using LG Bridge
Connect your LG phone to your computer with a USB cable.
On your phone, swipe down from the top of the home screen.
Tap the USB notification.
Tap File transfer.
Tap Just once. Your phone will connect to your computer through LG Bridge.
On your computer launch LG Bridge from your desktop or Start menu. Your phone will connect automatically to your computer through LG Bridge.
Click Software update in the top menu of the LG Bridge window.
Click Software update. LG Bridge will automatically check the software version of your phone.
Our phone is up to date so we unfortunately can’t show you any further steps. If your phone is out of date, just follow the on-screen steps to update your software.
How to wirelessly transfer files between your LG Phone and computer using LG Bridge
Make sure LG Bridge is running on your computer before beginning these steps. Also note that LG AirDrive, the feature that lets you transfer files wirelessly, isn’t available on all LG phones and cannot be downloaded.
On your LG phone tap the Settings icon on your home screen or in the app drawer.
Tap the Networks tab.
Tap Share & connect.
Swipe up in the Share & connect menu.
Tap LG AirDrive.
Tap Sign in.
Tap Sign in with Google or Sign in with another account depending on what you signed in with in LG Bridge on your computer. In this case we sign in with Google.
Tap Allow.
Tap your account or Add account if your account is not listed. In this case we chose Add account.
Enter your email address.
Tap Next.
Type your password.
Tap Next.
Tap Accept.
On your computer click LG AirDrive in the top menu of the LG Bridge window.
Click Connect. Your computer will search for your phone and will connect automatically.
Click View files. A new window will open.
Double-click Internal storage.
You can now drag and drop files between your computer and your phone.
Your connections
What do you use to back up, restore, and update your LG phone? Will you use LG Bridge now that it’s been explained here? Let us know in the comments section below!
Six technologies changing the future of food
By Cat DiStasio
Food production, processing and transportation account for a tremendous amount of greenhouse gas emissions, and enormous amounts of food are wasted each year in some parts of the world while other regions suffer from shortages. Fortunately, agricultural engineers and scientists are working hard to increase food production, create cleaner agricultural processes and develop greener packaging. With technological advancements, it may be possible to sharply reduce carbon emissions from the agriculture and food industries while simultaneously addressing food supply issues.
Withings Body Cardio: A stylish scale for fussy health nuts
A scale is an odd thing to review. For one thing, it’s one of the few gadgets you have to be completely naked to test. It also sends you down a rabbit hole of fitness tech, with too many apps and too many connected devices that do too many things. The Withings Body Cardio scale is emblematic of that, giving you your heart rate, body-fat ratio, bone mass, water mass, the weather (!) and something you never knew you needed called the “pulse wave velocity.” Oh, and your weight.
However, Withings, now part of Nokia, aimed to make the Body Cardio as simple and elegant as possible in terms of both design and ease of use. And for the most part, the French company succeeded. Once the scale is set up, you just have to stand on it to get all that data, and it’ll look great in your bathroom or anywhere else. The petit problème is the $180 price tag, which makes it one of the most expensive scales on the market.
Designed by French partner Eliumstudio, the Body Cardio measures 13 by 13 inches and just 0.7 inches (18mm) thick, with a much more refined design than the company’s previous high-end model. The reason it’s that lean is that it doesn’t have any feet, which helps it work on just about any surface, including carpet. The tempered glass and aluminum body has a clean, dare I say Apple-like design, and the black or white models should blend in with most bathrooms. With a built-in rechargeable battery that goes nearly a year on a single charge, you don’t have to buy AA or AAA cells.
I set up the scale and Withings Health Mate app in about a half hour, but not without some fiddling and an aborted attempt. During installation, it also installs the MyFitnessPal partner app. Not counted in that time is getting both Withings and MyFitnessPal to play well with Google Fit. Doing so enabled me to send exercise data from my Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge (and LG R watch) to Withings and import my weight, body fat other vitals into Google’s ecosystem. It also works with Apple’s Health app.
Once the setup is over, using it is simple: Just stand on the scale. Depending on your preferences, it gives you your weight, fat mass, total body water, bone mass, muscle mass, heart rate and the weather forecast (that’s pretty handy in the morning, actually). The more data you want, the longer the weighing sessions take. As for the vaunted “pulse wave velocity,” you have to stand on the scale five times before you get your first measurement, and it only shows the figure on the Withings app.
So what is pulse wave velocity? It’s the speed that your blood flows through your arteries, and supposedly a good indicator of your cardiovascular health. If the velocity is slow and regular, it means your arteries are flexible, and when they’re stiff and unhealthy, the speeds will be higher. The scale calculates PWV by measuring when blood is first ejected from your heart. The electrodes measure when it arrives at your feet and, knowing your height, can calculate the pulse speed. (You can’t turn the electrodes off, so the scale shouldn’t be used by pregnant women or folks with pacemakers.)
Withings tested the PWV against instruments used by cardiologists and found a “good correlation.” It’s not meant for clinical use, of course, as the FDA merely classifies it as a “wellness device.” Nevertheless, a high PWV could provoke some folks to see a doctor and possibly nip a serious issue in the bud.
The Body Cardio is a very accurate scale (it even takes the gravity at your location into account) and pegged my weight to within 0.2 pounds nearly every time. The bone, fat and water composition measurements were also consistent. Consistency is good, but bear in mind that impedance scales are notoriously inaccurate at gauging body fat.
My heart rate varied a lot, going from 55 bpm during one measurement up to 100 bpm in another. If I was extra careful to keep my feet in exactly the same spot on the scale, the range tightened up a bit, but still varied as much as 15 bpm. Withings told me that it’s normal for that measurement to vary because just standing up can make your heart rate jump considerably. However, after checking my pulse with my finger and a stopwatch, it’s clear that the device often misread it.
The pulse wave velocity measurement is taken independently of your heart rate and gave me consistent readings between 7.2 and 7.9, which is supposedly normal, though not optimal. Withings doesn’t give a lot of information about how to improve that, other than obvious things like exercising more and eating better.
However, the company’s researchers and doctors will study (anonymous) user data, compare it with other health factors, like activity level and diet, and eventually use those statistics to help users improve their health. Of course, Withings was recently purchased by Nokia and put in charge of its health division to compete against Apple, Google and other companies. So the Body Cardio will no doubt help it conduct research on cardiovascular fitness and other health factors.
The Withings app connects to the Body Cardio via Bluetooth, and if you connect the scale to your WiFi network, it will upload the data sans phone. You can then track and graph your progress to a T, either on your phone or a computer. If you also use MyFitnessPal and Google Fit or Apple Health, and a handset, fitness tracker or smartwatch, you can compare how exercise and diet affect your weight, BMI, pulse wave velocity, et cetera.
All that data is cool, but I prefer to just watch what I eat, exercise regularly and then weigh myself once a week to see if it’s working. And while the scale was consistent with most measurements, it often misread my heart rate (many smartwatches and trackers also fail in that are). I’d be more tempted by Withings’ Body scale, which launched along with the Body Cardio. It’s similarly sleek and gives you all the same data, bar the pulse wave velocity and heart rate, for $130.
If you’re not one to quibble over $50, the Body Cardio easily looks like it’s worth $180 thanks to the elegant, low profile design. And it delivers more health data than any other scale — which should put it high on the list for committed fitness junkies.
How to back up your music files to your computer or online storage
How do I transfer music from my Android phone to my computer?
If you have all your beloved music on your Android phone, then it’s probably a good idea to back it up, especially if you plan on buying a new phone. You can choose to back up your music to a computer or you can back it up to the cloud so that you can access it from virtually any device (pun intended).
We have a few apps that we like to use to make backing up music easier. Here’s how to back up your music (just in case).
How to back up your music files to online storage
Backing up your music to the cloud is the first logical step if you want to make sure that if your phone craps out, your music doesn’t go down the toilet with it. There are two awesome apps you can use that your music files can follow you wherever you go.
Google Drive
Google Drive is where it’s at when it comes to file storage. You get 15GB of free storage space! Depending on file sizes, 15GB is nearly 4,000 songs. Just like Dropbox, Google Drive is ubiquitous; if you have a device with an internet connection, you can access your Google Drive, thanks to the cloud. If you have a Gmail account, then you have Google Drive.
You can listen to the music you upload right in Google Drive or you can download it for offline listening and you bet your sweet patoot that you can share anything and everything via a link to that file or folder, even with non-Google users (the heathens!).
If your Android phone didn’t come with Google Drive, it’s a free download on the Google Play Store.
To set it up, you just sign in with your Gmail address and password. From there, you just tap the big ol’ + button to upload files or folders. To upload music, just choose Audio from the list of options. You can upload as many songs as you’d like (or your 15GB limit will allow). If your Google Drive starts to fill up, just download files to your computer and transfer them to an external hard drive, if that’s your fancy.
To access Google Drive on your computer, just hit up drive.google.com and sign in. You’ll walked through a simple setup process and then you’ll be ready to go. Google Drive is seamless, so you can enjoy your favorite music on just about any device.
Dropbox
A basic Dropbox account is free and comes with 2GB of storage. All you need to sign up is an email address and a pocket full of dreams (pocket full of dreams is optional). Visit Dropbox.com, enter your name, email and a password and you’re on your way.
2GB isn’t exactly a ton of storage, so you may want to download music to your computer as you transfer more into your Dropbox folder.
Here’s how to intstall Dropbox on your computer:
Launch your web browser on your computer.
Navigate to Dropbox.com.
Click create an account.
Enter your first name, last name, and email address into the fields. You can also choose to Sign up with Google.
Click the checkbox to agree to the terms and conditions.
Click Create an account.
Click the Free Download button to install Dropbox on your computer.
Next, you’ll want to install and set up Dropbox on your Android phone if it isn’t already. Here’s how:
Download the Dropbox app from the Google Play Store.
Launch Dropbox from your home screen or the app drawer.
Tap Sign in.
Enter your email address and password.
Tap Sign in.
You can tap Not Now through the “Set up Dropbox on your computer” stuff, since you’ve already done that.
Now when you want to upload files, create folders, take photos to upload, and a lot more, you just press the big + button. To add your music to your Dropbox folder, just select Audio from the list of options that pops up.
Once your music is in the cloud, you’ll be able to access it from any device that has Dropbox on it and, even better, you’ll be able to share it all with friends, even those without Dropbox! They’ll simply receive a link and will have full access to the music you’ve shared.
Dropbox isn’t just for music; you can upload video, photos, text files, and just about everything in between. It certainly beats the hell out of having to connect a USB cable from your computer to your phone and you can easily make files available offline by downloading them from your Dropbox folder.
Android File Transfer
If you’re a Mac user and a cloud hater, you have a somewhat easier solution when it comes to getting music from your Android phone onto your computer: Android File Transfer. It’s not the greatest app in the world, but it gets the job done.
There isn’t much to the setup process; you just download it, install it, and that’s it. When you connect your Android phone to your Mac via USB, Android File Transfer will open automatically. You may have to tap Allow on your phone before you’re able to access its contents on your Mac.
Once you do have access, you’ll be able to access all of the files that are stored on your Android phone, as well as any that are stored on your microSD card, if you use one. From there, you can just drag and drop music at will into folders on your computer . The best part is that you can drag out entire folders, instead of having to tap, hold, and select all, like you do on your phone.
One caveat: do not try to move too much music at once. One of the reasons Android File Transfer isn’t so great is that it seems to just crap out if you overload it. When transferring music, do so in smaller batches under 1GB. Otherwise, you might get halfway through transferring a batch and it’ll just stop and you’ll have to dig around and figure out exactly where it stopped and where to start again.
It may be a bit of a pain in the hiney, but if you want music from your Android phone on your Mac and you refuse to use a cloud-based service, then it’s the only way.
Windows users have it even easier
If you’re using a computer running Microsoft Windows (version 7 or later) all you need to do is plug in your phone to a USB port using the supplied cable. A regular Windows Explorer window will open with your phone’s contents right there for the taking.
The bottom line
Using a cloud-based service to transfer music from your Android phone to your computer is definitely the best practice since you can access your music from just about any device with an internet connection and you can download your tunes for offline listening.
The sharing feature is also a great reason to use Google Drive or Dropbox since most songs are too large to email normally and the folks you share with can choose to download the music you send or play it right there in the Google Drive or Dropbox link.
If you’re tinfoil and fear the cloud and have a Mac, then use Android File Transfer. But only if you have to.
Get a refurbished UE Boom Bluetooth speaker from Amazon for just $57
If you’re in the market for a portable Bluetooth speaker, you should check out Amazon’s latest deal on the Logitech UE Boom. For a limited time, you can get a refurbished speaker in black for $56.94.
The UE Boom from Logitech offers up to 15 hours of music playback over Bluetooth through its 360-degree speaker. The model on sale is Logitech Certified Refurbished, and as such comes with a 90-day warranty. The speaker will ship on July 7, 2016.
See at Amazon
