Apple Seeds Fourth macOS Sierra 10.12.1 Beta to Developers and Public Beta Testers

Apple today seeded the fourth beta of an upcoming macOS Sierra update to developers and public beta testers for testing purposes, one week after seeding the third beta and three weeks after releasing the new macOS Sierra operating system to the public.

macOS Sierra 10.12.1 beta 4 can be downloaded from the Apple Developer Center or through the Software update mechanism in the Mac App Store for those who already have an earlier 10.12.1 beta installed.

macOS Sierra 10.12.1 appears to focus on bug fixes and under-the-hood performance improvements to address issues that have been found since the operating system’s release, and it’s also likely adding features designed for next-generation MacBook Pro models set to be released later this year.

Few outward-facing changes were discovered in the first three betas, but it does include Photos support for the new iPhone 7 Plus Portrait feature introduced with iOS 10.1. New features discovered in the fourth 10.12.1 beta will be listed below.

macOS Sierra is a significant update that brings features like Siri support, a new storage optimization option, cross device copy paste, auto unlocking with the Apple Watch, and more. For full details on macOS Sierra, make sure to check out our roundup.

Related Roundup: macOS Sierra
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Chronos hands-on: The cure for the common wristwatch

I’m Michael Fisher, and I’m a smartwatch superfan. Sure, they’re imperfect, but in my view they’re also incredibly underrated; I love being able to glance at my wrist to see why my smartphone just buzzed from the bottom of a bag, or use my watch to ping the same phone when I lose it in the couch cushions.

The thing is: not all smartwatches are stylish, and keeping up with the biennial upgrade cycle isn’t everyone’s thing. Plus, there are plenty of beautiful timepieces out there already, some of them carrying sentimental value. What if you could imbue one of those with some modern smartwatch features, instead of springing for an entirely new accessory?

That’s the question Chronos hopes to answer with its tiny disc of the same name, and it’s unlike any wearable I’ve used before. Join me for a hands-on tour of Chronos: the cure for the common wristwatch.

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Go Time! Episode 13: Valor Takeover

It’s time for Episode 13 of Go Time!

Valor takes over the podcast when Jen is joined by Georgia and Rene from iMore. We talk about the fourth migration and how that has changed nest locations, and in the process the routines that some players have for finding specific Pokemon. We also discuss the Nearby feature and how effective it is, which Pokemon you would buy pajamas for, and plenty more.

Join us again next time for all of the fun in the Pokemon world!

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Best Clear Cases for Google Pixel

What is the best clear case for the Google Pixel? There are a bunch, so let’s take a look at some of them!

Want to show off your new Google Pixel but worried about it getting scratched up during daily use? A clear case is a great way to be able to let everyone see your shiny new phone, but most of the time they won’t add a ton of protection to the phone. Some of them can add some extra grip, others are made from scratch-resistant materials, and most of them are pretty flexible and made to last for a long time.

There are a bunch of options available when it comes to clear cases for the Google Pixel, and here are some of the best.

Sparin 2 Pack

Sparin does things a bit different with most of its cases and actually includes two cases with each order, so if the first one ends up getting dingy you can swap a brand new one on. The cases are made from a scratch resistant TPU material that won’t add a bunch of bulk to the phone but still adds a thin layer of protection.

It offers protection to the back and four sides with its air cushioned corners to help it during a fall. You can grab the two-pack for around $6 at Amazon, which is an absolute steal.

See at Amazon

Tauri Ultra Slim

Tauri’s ultra slim case for the Google Pixel is a bit more of what you would expect from a clear case than the others. It offers a very thin layer of protection to the phone, and will protect from scratches and dings, but won’t likely provide any additional protection during a fall. Being super thin, odds are that you won’t even realize the case is on your phone though, which is great. It is made from scratch resistant materials and has a textured interior to prevent air bubbles.

You’ll have precision cutouts to allow for easy access to the buttons, ports and fingerprint sensor on your Pixel. Coming it at just under $10, this is a great option if you just want something very thin.

See at Amazon

LK Ultra

LK makes one of the slimmest options for the Google Pixel, so if you want something you will hardly notice this is the one. Being made from a high-quality TPU material, the case will also scratch resistant, shatterproof and should help in the event of a fall. With its anti-slip design this case also makes holding your Google Pixel a bit easier, and the front has raised edges so that when you put it face down the screen won’t touch the surface.

Its unique design allows for easy access to all the buttons and ports without interfering with the use, and the camera lens cutout protections it from scratches and lets your flash work properly. You can pick one up for just under $10 at Amazon and it is set to begin shipping on October 17.

See at Amazon

DGlte TPU Gel

If you are looking for a clear case that adds a bit more protection than some of the others, DGlte’s TPU Gel case is the way to go. The additional protection on the corners of the phone will help provide additional protection in the event of a fall. It provides great protection thanks to being made from materials that are high quality, and it has precision cutouts for your ports, the camera and more.

It has a soft and comfortable touch to it, which helps make holding the phone even more comfortable. This is a great way to protect your phone while still showing it off, and you can pick one up for just $8 now.

See at Amazon

Pleson Ultra Thin

Pleson has been making phone cases for ages, and it offers some great options when it comes to thin and clear ones. The ultra-thin transparent TPU material is flexible yet protective. With its precision cutouts, it is super easy to put on and take off, so you can swap it out with something that adds more protection if you need it at any time. The case has raised edges on the front so if you place the phone face down the screen will be raised off the surface and it won’t scratch.

The TPU material will stay fingerprint-free and you won’t see any bubbles on the back glass thanks to a dotted pattern on the inside of the case. At under $10, this is a great option that provides protection and keeps the bulk to a minimum.

See at Amazon

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ICYMI: The ESA’s mission to Mars launches next week

Today on In Case You Missed It: The European Space Agency and Russia are joining up to launch their ExoMars project next week, which will look for traces of extraterrestrial life on the red planet. Meanwhile, a newer kind of wind energy harvester is being installed in Paris, where leaves on a fake tree can capture energy in breezy conditions.

The Red Bull video showing skydivers swinging in between two hot air balloons should get heart rates going, and the Disney robot is today’s dose of squee, because even machines can look adorable to us.

As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.

Cassia Hub handles multi-room audio with any Bluetooth speakers

We first met the Cassia Hub back at CES, a device that offered the similar connectivity to a WiFi router but for Bluetooth. Now the company is announcing a new feature that will allow owners of that Bluetooth “router” a way to connect their wireless speakers for multi-room audio. The new tool is called BlueStream and it works with any Bluetooth speakers alongside the company’s Hub.

Once your speakers are connected to Cassia’s Hub, you can stream music from the likes of Apple Music, Spotify and other sources just like you would to a single wireless unit, only now the audio is sent to multiple devices. Instead of connecting to one of the speakers, you link your phone, tablet or even an Amazon Echo to the Hub to play tunes.

The BlueStream feature will be available as a firmware update to existing Cassia Hub owners. If you haven’t nabbed one yet, the Bluetooth device will set you back $150. And if you require speakers to make use of that new tool, Cassia has a 360-degree model for $80.

President Obama outlines vision for sending humans to Mars

This morning, CNN published a piece by President Barack Obama in which he outlines plans to get human to Mars in the 2030s. It gives a bit more detail to desires expressed by the president for years now — he first mentioned the 2030 timeframe back in 2010. “We have set a clear goal vital to the next chapter of America’s story in space: sending humans to Mars by the 2030s and returning them safely to Earth, with the ultimate ambition to one day remain there for an extended time,” President Obama writes today. But he’s sharing more details on how that’ll

But he’s sharing more details on how that’ll happen, including close partnership with private space firms. “Getting to Mars will require continued cooperation between government and private innovators, and we’re already well on our way,” President Obama writes. “Within the next two years, private companies will for the first time send astronauts to the International Space Station.”

Specifically, NASA and the White House today are announcing that it is ready to provide private, commercial space companies with the opportunity to add modules and capabilities to the International Space Station. The ISS’s formal mission ends in 2020 and NASA is now looking at how it’ll be used going forward — one option is to let commercial space companies use it as a jumping-off point in preparation for other space stations in Low Earth Orbit.

This idea came out of a recent request from NASA asking private space companies how they might use an available docking port on the ISS. “The private sector responded enthusiastically, and those responses indicated a strong desire by U.S. companies to attach a commercial module to the ISS that could meet the needs of NASA as well as those of private entrepreneurs,” writes NASA.

The other detail touched upon by President Obama, the White House and NASA relates to building habitation systems (“habs”) for deep space travel. “I’m excited to announce that we are working with our commercial partners to build new habitats that can sustain and transport astronauts on long-duration missions in deep space,” the president says. “These missions will teach us how humans can live far from Earth — something we’ll need for the long journey to Mars.”

This is an initiative that’s been under way for some time — in 2014, NASA put out a request for hab concept studies. In the years since, seven companies received awards to start developing their habs. That project, known as NextSTEP, recently moved into phase two, with six companies being selected to develop and produce their prototypes for deep space hab modules.

Beyond more Low Earth Atmosphere space stations and deep space habs (both of which will be produced in concert with private companies), NASA shared more details on what’ll happen between now and the 2030s to get us to Mars. In the next decade, NASA expects to enter a “proving ground” phase to demonstrate the ability to sustain astronauts days or weeks away from Earth rather than hours. NASA says it’ll be testing technology in the “cis-lunar” space, or the area between the Earth and the moon.

One of those experiments is NASA’s Asteroid Redirect Mission. It’ll involve sending a robotic spacecraft out to a nearby asteroid to do testing; the spacecraft will then return to an orbiter around the moon with a boulder from the asteroid for astronauts to study.

Much of what was said today by President Obama, NASA and the White House reiterates earlier commitments, and there’s obviously a lot that needs to be done before this timeline becomes a reality. When dealing with getting humans much further away from Earth than they have ever been, there’s a lot to go wrong and a lot that we still need to learn. But it’s obviously a huge topic in the space community; Elon Musk’s SpaceX just went into detail on its own plans to get to Mars — if companies like SpaceX and NASA work together, we just might have a shot of doing it on President Obama’s timeline.

Source: The White House, CNN

Netatmo’s HomeKit-Enabled ‘Healthy Home Coach’ Tracks Air Quality and More

Accessory manufacturer Netatmo has launched its home monitoring system, called the “Healthy Home Coach,” which connects to a smartphone app to inform users of their home’s air quality, humidity, temperature, and noise level (via Engadget). As a plus, users of the company’s smart indoor climate monitor will be able to integrate the system with Apple’s HomeKit and use Siri to interact with the Netatmo device.

Netatmo designed the Healthy Home Coach with the same aesthetic of its security and weather devices, but with the specific goal of elevating the well-being and user awareness of a home’s healthy environment. The company says that the device allows users to discover the precise noise level for sound sleeping, and guides them in adjusting a humidifier to hit the target humidity levels for someone with asthma.

The Healthy Home Coach can also tip users and tell them when to adjust the ventilation of a room to balance out air quality — for better concentration, according to Netatmo — and warn them when their home’s temperature isn’t at the right level. The device’s connected iOS app pushes out these notifications and tells users when the air quality, temperature, humidity, or noise level is acting out of their pre-set parameters, so they can subsequently address the warning before it becomes a problem.

HomeKit integration isn’t divulged with many specifics, but Netatmo says that users can “ask Siri how healthy your home is,” and receive an audible diagnosis from the Healthy Home Coach’s various information readouts.

Anyone interested can purchase Netatmo’s Healthy Home Coach from the company’s website for $99.99. Although the range of the system isn’t given, Netatmo says that it is “easily expandable,” so additional monitors can be added into other rooms of a home where only one device can’t reach.

Tags: HomeKit, Netatmo
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