Android N Nougat: How to enable and use split-screen mode
While some Android phones have had split screen multitasking for a while, Android N, or Nougat, is the first to have it built in to the OS. Once Android 7.0 Nougat starts its rollout, every phone with the software installed will be able to take advantage, providing they don’t have severely underpowered processors or stingy amounts of RAM.
If you’re reading the web, and want to shoot someone a text quickly with something you’ve seen, or checking Google Maps for an address you’ve been sent in an email, split-screen could be coming to your rescue very soon. This is how you use it.
How to use Android N split-screen: From an app
There are two ways to launch the split-screen mode when you’re looking at an app in full screen. The first way is by just pressing and holding and the recent apps button.
This pushes your app to the top half of the screen and opens up a recent apps selector in the bottom half. Presuming you’ve not removed the app you’re looking for you simply scroll through the cards on that bottom half of the screen and select your second app.
If the app you want isn’t in the recent apps screen, hit the home button and then choose any app from your home screen or the app drawer as normal. While you’re looking, it pushes the split-screen mode off-screen completely, leaving you with an unobstructed view of your phone.
The second way to launch it requires digging in to settings a little. And it may depend on the phone you have.
Go to Settings > About Phone and repeatedly tap on “Build number” until it says Developer options are enabled. Then, swipe down from the top of your screen, press and hold the settings cog at the top of the notification shade until you get note saying System UI Tuner is added to your settings.
Now when you head to the settings menu you’ll find System UI Tuner right next to the Developer options. Go in to the settings, dismiss the pop-up message that comes on screen and choose “other”. Tap the “Enable split-screen swipe-up gesture” toggle to the on position.
Once enabled, any time you’re in an app, you can swipe up from the recent apps button and it’ll smoothly transition to the split-screen.
How to use Android Nougat split-screen: From the recent apps screen
As well as launching from any app, you can launch the split-screen mode from the recent apps screen. All you have to do it drag and drop the desired app from the cards on to the top portion of the screen.
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How to use Android Nougat split-screen: Move the split position
By default, Android N split-screen sets the split position right in the middle of the display. Moving it, as you can imagine, is as simple as just dragging it to wherever you want it.
How to: Deactivate Android Nougat split-screen
To deactivate split screen mode, you just press and hold the split screen icon in the bottom right hand corner of your screen.
That’s pretty much it. As of right now, Android N is in beta mode, and isn’t likely to hit your phone until later this year. If you have a Nexus phone, you’ll get it before most. More than likely by October time.
To find out when Nougat is likely to arrive on your phone, check out our guide. And for everything else, be sure to read up on everything we know about Android 7.0 so far.
Uber takes legal action against TfL over new taxi rules
It’s safe to say that Uber isn’t particularly happy with the changes to London’s private hire regulations. The Transport for London (TfL) board approved new measures earlier this year, but only recently did the authority publish the finer details, which paint them as more stringent than first thought. Last week, Uber kicked up a fuss over what it deemed to be a threat to “the livelihood of thousands of drivers,” also asking users to lobby London’s Mayor to revisit the new regulations. This conflict has taken a much more serious turn today, however, with Uber launching formal legal action against the transport authority.
“This legal action is very much a last resort. We’re particularly disappointed that, after a lengthy consultation process with Transport for London, the goalposts have moved at the last minute and new rules are now being introduced that will be bad for both drivers and tech companies like Uber,” General Manager of Uber London Tom Elvidge said in a statement.
Uber has taken particular issue with a new English language test any driver originating from a primarily non-English-speaking country will have to pass in order to apply for or renew a private hire licence. The updated regulations provided for a demonstration of “a certain standard of English,” but as it has turned out, this means passing a two-hour, B1-level exam complete with essay questions. Uber argues this goes way beyond what is necessary and will impact the number of private hire drivers on the road, who already have to go through a “rigorous and costly process” to obtain a licence. According to the ride-hailing service, this requirement contravenes the Equality Act.
TfL, however, believes it’s necessary for drivers to have a level of English that allows them to discuss fares, routes and safety information, as well as be able to read and understand material the authority sends their way.
The new measures require every private hire driver to have year-round commercial insurance. TfL says this is to guarantee drivers have the appropriate insurance in place whenever they are using their vehicle for work. Uber contends this is unfair to seasonal and part-time drivers who fit shifts in when they can — the expense of year-round insurance leaving them out of pocket or putting them off driving altogether.
Uber also isn’t happy with having to notify TfL before making changes to its “operating model.” For the ride-hailing outfit, this means it can’t add new services or features to its app without running them by the authority first. TfL says this is to ensure changes don’t diminish passenger safety and meet legislative requirements, while Uber claims it stifles innovation.
Though Uber allows users to call and message drivers, as well as seek additional support through its app, new guidance states passengers must be able to talk to someone other than the driver based in a call centre in London. Uber isn’t keen on the idea of establishing a round-the-clock call centre in the capital to meet these requirements, also arguing black cabs aren’t subject to any such rule. TfL, however, considers centralised support “an important safety requirement.”
In response to Uber’s belief the rules are unlawful, a TfL spokesperson said the authority “will be robustly defending the legal proceedings brought by them in relation to the changes to private hire regulations. These have been introduced to enhance public safety when using private hire services and we are determined to create a vibrant taxi and private hire market with space for all providers to flourish.”
It’s now up to the courts to decide, of course, but Addison Lee has already made it clear that Uber doesn’t speak on behalf of the entire private hire industry. When Uber began its lobbying efforts last week, the CEO of Addy Lee penned a letter to London Mayor Sadiq Khan saying his company fully supported the updated regulations. He also indirectly accused Uber of attempting to “water down” the rules, specifically the commercial insurance requirements.
Being both a more traditional and high-end private hire service, though, it’s likely Addison Lee already has internal English language and insurance requirements that mean the regulations are of no consequence to them. Whether all private hire operators feel the same is a different matter.
[Inline image credits: Alamy & Addison Lee]
Via: Bloomberg
Fitbit’s new Charge 2 and Flex 2 wearables leak
Fitbit’s Charge and Flex sports trackers are two and three years old, respectively, so a recent trademark listing stoked rumors that new models would come soon. We can now see what the Flex 2 and Charge 2 probably look like, thanks to a leak from TechnoBuffalo. The smartwatch-like Charge 2 has a bigger screen and interchangeable bands in blue, violet and black. It also comes with a PurePulse heart rate monitor, and as before, it supports smartphone notifications and multi-sport tracking, according to the listing below.
The Flex 2, meanwhile has re-oriented the indicator lights and is listed as “swim-proof” (below), where it was only splash- and rain-proof before. Previous features, like sleep tracking and all-day battery life, remain intact.
The wearable company has famously battled skin rash issues with its trackers, but has taken measures to eliminate those and still holds a slim lead in the fitness wearable market. Given the earlier trademark leak and images (if accurate), we’d assume the product will be arriving soon.
Source: TechnoBuffalo
Kobo’s new Aura One e-reader is big and waterproof
Whether you read before bed, in the bathtub, during your commute or at the beach, Kobo wants to be there for you. The e-reader maker just released the $229 Aura One, a 7.8-inch waterproof slate that features a colored backlight for better nighttime reading. I’ve been trying to find time to read with an Aura One for the past week, and I have to admit the tub and bedtime friendliness of the device are huge benefits.
The Aura One meets the IPX8 waterproofing standard, meaning it can be submerged in up to 2 meters of water for up to 60 minutes. It held up under the running water of my shower, although the screen became a tad finicky when wet, flipping pages even without me touching it. If you’re reading in a bathtub (not under running water) or by the pool or beach like most bookworms, you probably won’t find the water to be a huge interference, and you can easily wipe it dry after a dip. Also, the grippy back has a textured finish that made the One feel sturdier and easier to hold onto when wet.
In addition, the company built in a front light system that uses RGB bulbs instead of just white ones. This is supposed to make e-reading before bed less detrimental to your sleep patterns. Researchers have found that blue light suppresses the production of the sleep hormone melatonin more than any other light, so staring at an artificially lit screen at night can make falling asleep more difficult. Also, according to Kobo, warmer-colored lights can signal to your brain that it’s the end of the day, so it can start preparing your body for slumber.
With the Aura One’s software, you can select the exact color temperature you prefer from a scale of blue to red. You can also program your typical bedtime, and the e-reader will automatically change the front light color gradually throughout the day so that by the time you’re reading at night, your e-book is lit by a warm orange glow. Those who have used Apple’s Night Shift mode in iOS 9.3 and up will find this familiar — it’s basically the same feature.
Because I was born and raised in modern times when electricity was plentiful, I wasn’t used to reading by candlelight, which is what the orange light here is meant to mimic. But the Aura One’s more reddish tone definitely felt better for my eyes compared to my iPhone’s screen in the dark, which often felt as if it was burning my retinas off.
Another piece of good news for my eyes is the Aura One’s generous 7.8-inch footprint. The larger screen allows for bigger words that are more comfortable to read than on my relatively tiny Kindle (second-gen). Its sharp 1,872 x 1,404 resolution gives it the same 300 pixels-per-inch screen density as the Kindle Oasis, which has a 6-inch panel. And despite the larger display, the 230-gram One did not feel too heavy, as I held it up for 15 minutes before passing out.
Of all the new features of the Aura One, though, I’m most excited by a less obvious addition. Last year, Kobo’s parent company, Rakuten, bought audiobook and e-book company Overdrive, which Kobo said is the largest provider of e-books to public libraries. The Overdrive integration means that when you’re looking for books to buy in Kobo, and you have a library card, you could choose to borrow the book instead. That’s fantastic news for Scrooges like me with a library membership.
At $229, the Aura One undercuts its closest competitor, the Amazon Kindle Oasis, by about $60. But not everyone wants a larger e-reader, and those who want a thinner, lighter slate will still prefer the Oasis. Amazon has some nighttime reading tech of its own, including a “blue shade” mode in its Fire tablets, which blocks blue light and lets you read by red or yellow light. Its Paperwhite e-readers also have a so-called night mode that inverts the color scheme to white text on black, which is easier on the eyes. Also, while Kobo has more than 5 million titles in its store globally, Amazon carries 4.6 million books in the US alone. For those who read a lot before bed, though, and don’t want to worry about getting their device wet, the Aura One looks to be a solid option.
Konami strikes out on its own for ‘Metal Gear Survive’
Thought you’d heard the last from the Metal Gear franchise? Despite creator Hideo Kojima’s departure from Konami to form his own studio, Kojima Productions, Konami has been hard at work on its own entry into the long-running series: Metal Gear Survive.
Metal Gear Survive is slotted right after the ending of Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes, exploring an alternate timeline caused by “unexplained wormholes” that start forming in the sky. As a result, players find themselves in an unfamiliar land where droves of what look like zombies are roaming around.
The trailer gives off a distinct Resident Evil vibe, offering stealth and co-op mechanics with 4-player online co-op, a variety of weapons and an assortment of creatures to tackle together.
Metal Gear Survive is slated for 2017 on PC, Xbox One and PS4. We’re at Gamescom and will bring you more on the game as soon as we learn more about it. For now, you can check it out for yourself via the video below.
We’re live all week from Cologne, Germany for Gamescom 2016. Click here to catch up on all the news from the show.
Facebook opens up Messenger to ad bots
Right now, Facebook lets Messenger bots from brands like Expedia and HP help you make a purchase, but they can’t try to sell you a new product. However, a policy change means those automated assistants will soon be able to send subscription messages, ads and promotions for services like makeup consultations. If you’re worried about spam, Facebook emphasized that the user is in control. “All conversations between businesses and people must be initiated by the person receiving the messages, who can then mute or block the business at any time,” wrote Product Manager Seth Rosenberg.
When you initiate a request via Messenger, the business has 24 hours to respond. However, replying back via an “eligible action” (like typing “learn more” or “make appointment”), resets the clock. Those who subscribe to a company’s Messenger feed, by comparison, will get messages unprompted and more regularly, but no promotional content is allowed. If subscribers reply to a message, however, it will switch into standard messaging mode, meaning ads and promos are fair game.
Existing companies using the service have three months to comply to the new rules for standard messaging, which are now in effect. For firms who want to start, Facebook promises to review new bots within five days.
The new subscription options are starting in beta for companies involved in news, productivity and personal trackers (bots used for fitness, health wellness and finance). Any interested organizations have six months to tell Facebook how, exactly, they plan to use it — presumably, Facebook doesn’t want the experience to be too spammy.
The service is a crafty way for Facebook to monetize its 1 billion monthly Messenger users, since it keeps folks in control of promotions. There are reportedly 18,000 bots on the service, and 23,000 companies using Facebook’s own “Wit.ai” deep learning tech that enables natural language recognition.
Via: Venture Beat
Source: Facebook
BBC picks new weather partner after 93 years with the Met Office
Although it’s been almost a year since the BBC announced its 93-year partnership with the Met Office was coming to an end, the broadcaster didn’t have replacement lined up at the time. During those months, it has considered bids from various new providers and ran what it calls “an open competition” to select a supplier who would appease licence payers by delivering high-quality services while keeping costs low. Today, the BBC confirmed that Netherlands-based Meteogroup was able to meet those requirements, allowing it to take over from the Met Office from spring 2017.
According to Nigel Charters, Project Director of BBC Weather re-procurement (that’s a real thing), the deal will save the BBC “millions of pounds over the next seven or so years.” At a time where the Beeb is cutting all it can to reduce its budget, the agreement will please the corporation’s bean counters.
MeteoGroup is already the UK’s largest private sector weather business and provides weather services for both Channel 4 and Sky. Its meteorological data will be fed into the BBC’s TV broadcasts and mobile app, which will require an upgrade to show “even more science and forecasting detail.”
Via: BBC News
Source: About The BBC Blog
Intel Touts USB-C as Future of Digital Audio as Apple Set to Ditch Headphone Jack
While the consensus is that Apple will remove the 3.5mm headphone jack on new iPhones unveiled next month, in favor of an all-in-one Lightning connector for audio output, charging, and accessory connectivity, Intel continues to position USB-C as the open standard of the future for digital audio.
At IDF 2016 this week, CNET reports that Intel architect Brad Saunders addressed the USB Type-C Digital Audio specification due this quarter, noting that its improved power management for USB headphones and other new features “will really make USB Type-C the right connector for audio.”
Apple has adopted USB-C on the 12-inch MacBook, but new iPhones are expected to retain the proprietary Lightning connector in lieu of the open standard. USB-C, meanwhile, continues to see wider adoption in popular Android-based smartphones like Google’s Nexus 6P and Samsung’s Galaxy Note 7.
Apple has equipped its mobile devices with proprietary connectors for over a decade, including the 30-pin dock connector used for iPhone, iPad, and iPod models between 2003 and 2012. Apple’s notebooks, beyond the 12-inch MacBook, are also equipped with a proprietary MagSafe connector for charging.
For that reason, it is likely that Apple will continue to favor Lightning over USB-C for at least the foreseeable future.
Tags: Intel, USB-C
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NASA’s $1 million robotics contest will prep Valkyrie for Mars
NASA has formally opened registration for its Space Robotics Challenge, and to win a cut of the $1 million prize purse, researchers have to help prep Valkyrie for Mars. Also known as Robonaut 5 (R5), Valkyrie is the six-foot-tall, 290-pound humanoid robot the agency developed for deep space missions. It could be sent ahead of astronauts to prepare their habitats and make sure their final destination is safe to live in, or even to places too harsh for the human body. Participating teams will have to program a virtual R5 to complete a series of tasks that the robot will likely have to deal with after a dust storm wreaks havoc on Mars.
They’ll have to find a way to make the virtual robot successfully align a communications dish, repair a solar array and fix a habitat leak. Thankfully, Valkyrie doesn’t need food, so they won’t need to make it plant potatoes in the simulation. What they do need to figure out, though, is how the robot can accomplish all those with the added trouble of a communication delay between Earth and the red planet. Hey, the dust storm was supposed to have knocked out the communications dish, after all.
The agency has been planning this contest since 2015 and even sent two Valkyries to MIT and Northeastern University in Boston to get them ready for the competition. Interested research teams can register until September 16th, since the two-month-long qualifying rounds will begin three days later. The finalists that will be announced in December will demonstrate their simulation in June next year. NASA says whatever technologies the teams develop will be transferable, which means actual Valkyries and even their predecessors can use them.
Source: NASA
‘Mr. Robot’ has its own official mobile game
If you’re looking for some extra Mr. Robot while the second season plays out, then there’s now a mobile game to keep you entertained. Mr. Robot: 1.51exfiltratiOn is available for iOS and Android, and is packaged up like a fictional corporate messenger platform for the fictional E.Corp. Once inside, players will begin communicating with colleagues and hunt for data that can uncover the evils that lurk at the company’s heart.
The title is being published by Telltale Games, but was actually developed by Night School Studio, the creators of indie adventure Oxenfree. That title was roundly praised by our Jess Conditt earlier this year and the game’s soundtrack was released on vinyl a few months later. With a critically-acclaimed developer and a similarly-beloved publisher, snapping this up for $2.99 on the App Store or Google Play seems like a no-brainer.
We’re live all week from Cologne, Germany for Gamescom 2016. Click here to catch up on all the news from the show.
Source: App Store, Google Play
