Samsung teases new Gear S3 smartwatch in IFA event invite
Samsung is set to unveil its latest smartwatch at IFA, the Gear S3.
Samsung has made it pretty obvious what it is going to announce during its IFA conference on September 1st in Berlin: a new Gear S smartwatch.
After announcing the Galaxy Note 7 earlier this month, the company is turning its attention to refreshing its wearables line — among other things — for the notable German trade show, which happens at the beginning of September each year. That the company would do such a thing should come as no surprise: it revealed the Gear S2 during IFA last year, which turned out to be one of our favorite announcements at the show.
In his review, Android Martonik said that the Gear S2 did a lot right, and was Samsung’s best smartwatch to date:
With the Gear S2 it finally has a lot of things right — the watch looks nice, has a good screen, is built well and is now a proper size for most wrists. The Tizen-based operating system doesn’t have as many restrictions as before and now works properly with non-Samsung phones, which is huge. Unfortunately the software still feels a little rough around the edges, and tries to do far too much considering the screen size it has to work with.
Hopefully Samsung can fix some of those lingering issues with the software this year, and get some more developer partners on board. It’s also unclear whether the company will, as it did last year, reveal two separate versions of the watch.
We’ll be at IFA covering all the announcements as well, so stay tuned for more!
Find your phone: the ultimate guide to Android Device Manager
Android Device Manager is a great utility that lets you track your phone remotely.
Chances are you’ve heard of Android Device Manager. The service lets you remotely track, lock, and erase the data on a lost or stolen phone. It’s one of those services that you wish you’d never have to use, but you should set it up just in case. It never hurts to be prepared.
Here’s what you need to know about Android Device Manager, and how you can set it up on your phone.
- Will my phone work with Android Device Manager?
- How to install Android Device Manager
- How to sign in to Android Device Manager
- How to confirm your phone is discoverable with Android Device Manager
- How to locate over the internet
- How to ring your phone with Android Device Manager
- How to lock your phone with Android Device Manager
- How to erase your lost phone’s data remotely
Will my phone work with Android Device Manager?
Before we show you how to get started installing and setting up this amazing utility, it’s important to know whether your phone will work with it. Android Device Manager is made by Google, so it is compatible with a wide number of Android devices. It is built for phones running Android 2.3 Gingerbread or later, which, according to the latest numbers, comprises roughly 99.9% of devices running the Google Play Store. In other words, your phone should work with Android Device Manager.
How to install Android Device Manager
This is the easy bit. Just head to the Play Store and search for Android Device Manager to download the app. We’ll break it down for you:
Open Play Store from your home screen or app drawer.
Search for Android Device Manager.
Tap the three dots next to the first search result and select Install.
How to sign in to Android Device Manager
After installation, you’ll need to sign in to Android Device Manager from your Google account. If you’re signed into more than one account on your phone, you get a drop-down menu from which you can select the account you want to associate with the phone.
Open Device Manager from your home screen or app drawer.
Tap the Accept button to sign in to your Google account.
Select your Google account and enter your password.
Tap on the big blue Sign in button.
How to confirm your phone is discoverable with Android Device Manager
Once you’re signed in to Android Device Manager, you’ll see a map with your current location as well as the make and model of your phone, and three options — Ring, Lock, and Erase. If you’ve signed into more than one phone, you can select a particular device by tapping the drop-down list at the bottom of the screen.
Open Device Manager from your home screen or app drawer.
Select your phone from the drop-down list.
Check if your phone is discoverable.
If you’re not able to find your phone or if it says that the device is unavailable, it is likely that the location services are disabled. Android Device Manager relies on GPS to track your phone, so now would be a good time to enable location services.
Open Settings from your home screen or app drawer.
Tap Location.
Toggle Enable location services.
How to locate your phone over the internet
If you’ve lost your phone, you can remotely locate it through the Android Device Manager website. You’ll need to sign in to the Google account that was used to set up Android Device Manager. It takes a few seconds, but the service should be able to track your phone. Alternatively, you can also do a Google search for “find my phone” to locate your handset.
Head to the Android Device Manager website.
Sign in to your Google account.
Check if your device is visible.
How to ring your phone with Android Device Manager
The best part about Android Device Manager is that it is easily accessible. If you need to locate your phone, just head to the website or log in to the service from another phone. Once you sign in to Android Device Manager and locate your device, you have three options. The first is Ring, which rings your phone continuously at full volume for five minutes even if you turned the ringer off. Once you find your phone, you can hit the power button to stop the ringing.
Locate your phone on Android Device Manager.
Tap Ring.
Tap Ring on the pop-up window.
Question furniture choices after phone gets lodged in the couch for the hundredth time.
How to lock your phone with Android Device Manager
There’s also a Lock option that lets you set a new password to unlock the phone. You can also display a message over the lock screen and add a button to call back your number so that anyone that comes across your phone can easily get in touch with you.
Locate your phone on Android Device Manager.
Tap Lock.
Set a password.
Enter a message and phone number to display on the lock screen.
How to erase your lost phone’s data remotely
If you’re certain that you’re not going to see your phone again, there is the nuclear option of erasing the data remotely. Selecting the Erase option deletes all the data on your phone. The service also deletes data from a connected SD card, but there is a chance that it may not be able to, based on the manufacturer and Android platform version. Even if your phone is switched off when you send the Erase command, the factory reset process will be initiated as soon as it goes online.
Locate your phone on Android Device Manager.
Tap Erase.
Confirm deletion of data by clicking Erase on the pop-up window.
Are you prepared if your phone goes missing?
How has your experience been with Android Device Manager? Have you successfully used it to recover a lost phone? Let us know in the comments.
Virgin Media TiVo customers get major platform update and new features
Virgin Media has unveiled a new set-top box over the last couple of days, the Virgin Media V6 box powered by TiVo. We’re still awaiting details on what it has to offer but, in the meantime, users of existing boxes are to get new features from today too.
An update is rolling out to all Virgin Media TiVo boxes from today and continuing over the next two weeks. It refreshes the user experience somewhat and adds several key new features and refinements to make the current box better.
The aim of the UI update is to help customers reach the content they want in fewer clicks. It is also more visual, with more images throughout.
One of the major new features is Series Link+. When you Series Link+ a programme in future, the box will not only series link the series but automatically hunt for additional episodes across catch-up and on demand services, including Netflix, and highlight them in the same folder as the specific recordings.
- All-new 4K Virgin Media V6 TiVo box revealed, coming soon to rival Sky Q
Smart Search now looks for shows after just selecting one letter. It can now be found in on demand and catch-up menus at the top of the screen.
You can now continue to watch programmes from where you left off in on demand content as well as recordings. You can also bookmark ant programme on TV, on demand or on Netflix. They will then get their own dedicated folder in My Shows, so you can find them again easily.
You may well have the update already, but if not it is planned to reach everyone in the next 14 days.
ICYMI: Studying the 1700’s clouds for pollution clues
Today on In Case You Missed It: Scientists at CERN constructed a large chamber to replicate the cloud environment before the world’s Industrial Revolution got its start after 1750. The thought had been that there were far fewer clouds on Earth then, but already results are pointing to a different reality that could help guide present day modeling of global climate change.
If you want to take a peek at the continent colonizing study showing we were taught lies in history class, that’s here. The toaster of your five-year-old’s dreams? That’s here. As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
The Engadget Podcast returns!
In 2014 we said the Engadget Podcast was going on hiatus to “retool.” Well, we haven’t been sitting on our laurels. Over the last two years we’ve rethought our editorial mission, completely redesigned the website and, now, we’re launching a new and improved podcast.
If you’re looking for the Engadget podcast – we’re currently taking a break to re-tool it and make it more awesome for you. Stay tuned!
— Engadget (@engadget) June 27, 2014
This isn’t simply the old Engadget Podcast with a shiny new logo, no. We’re approaching it in a whole new way, and it will continue to evolve as we hear from you, our loyal listeners, readers and viewers. At its heart this is still a show about tech news, but one that is fast paced, informative and, most importantly, fun. You’ll hear editors debate the news of the week, get a peek inside the machine that is Engadget and enjoy deep dives on the stories that have changed our world (for better or worse).
We’re also making sure that you can enjoy the show in as many ways as possible. We’ve got a beautiful landing page where you’ll find every episode in audio or video format, plus a text transcription for the hearing impaired. You can watch us on YouTube, Facebook Live, listen on SoundCloud or subscribe through your podcast service of choice. You’ll currently find the show on iTunes, Google Play Music, Stitcher and Pocket Casts.
In Episode One: Your Racist Friend, editors Cherlynn Low, Devindra Hardawar and Nathan Ingraham join host Terrence O’Brien to debate iPhone rumors, explore the perks of renting gadgets, and express their utter exasperation at Snapchat’s racist filters.
Relevant links:
- Bloomberg: iPhone 7 gets new home button, drops headphone port
- HP Chromebook 13 review: a great laptop that doesn’t come cheap
- Why the Olympics need GIFs
- Yes, ‘No Man’s Sky’ has a few issues
- Snapchat’s racist yellowface filter lands it in hot water
- Snapchat’s 420 Bob Marley filter is just digital blackface
You can check out every episode on The Engadget Podcast page in audio, video and text form for the hearing impaired.
Watch on YouTube
Subscribe on Google Play Music
Subscribe on iTunes
Subscribe on Stitcher
Subscribe on Pocket Casts
Minecraft launches on the Oculus Rift next week
If you own an Oculus Rift and are eager to play Minecraft on it, we now know roughly when it’s coming. Mojang developer Tommaso Checchi tweeted that it’ll arrive to the Windows 10 Beta edition (version 0.15.6) sometime next week. We tried the highly anticipated VR version in March, and enjoyed exploring the blocky worlds in immersive, 360-degree 3D. Minecraft is one of the most highly-anticipated Oculus Rift titles, though the ultimate version might eventually be on Microsoft’s AR Hololens.
Microsoft-owned developer Mojang currently lets you download the Windows 10 beta version for free, provided you own Minecraft for PC or Mac. You just need to hit the website and enter your credentials to get access. We presume it will remain free for registered owners once Oculus support arrives, though Microsoft hasn’t confirmed that.
PSA: unsurprisingly, promised dates change 🙂
We said that Rift support would be in 0.15.6, but it will be out next week instead!— Tommaso Checchi (@_tomcc) August 11, 2016
Minecraft creator “Notch” Persson first floated the idea of on Oculus Rift version nearly four years ago to the day. However, he canceled the project after Facebook bought Oculus, saying “Facebook creeps me out.” Luckily, Microsoft put the project back on track after it bought Mojang for $2.5 billion. All that turmoil is now in the past, and you’ll be able to grab the title (in beta) by August 19th at the latest.
Via: Gizmodo
Source: Tommasso Checchi (Twitter)
Seth Rogen is developing a sitcom about the Singularity
If you’ve never heard of The Singularity, it’s the concept made famous by Ray Kurzweil that society’s going to be up-ended by the rise of AI. Give it a few years and it might be more well-known as a sitcom created by Seth Rogen and his writing/producing partner Evan Goldberg. Rogen told the Nerdist podcast (as reported by Slashfilm) that they’re currently working on a script with a view to shooting a half-hour pilot for FX in 2017.
The Singularity is a catch-all term for what happens when the worlds of computing and biology reach their apex. When machines are smart enough to create their own replacements and the costs of doing so fall, the computing power on offer will increase exponentially. It won’t be long until we’re all equipped with Jake 2.0-style nanobots and existing in a shared consciousness that makes us all geniuses. Or something along those lines.
The Singularity also explains that these technological changes will come slowly at first, and then all in one big rush. If you want proof of this, imagine how you 10 or 15 years ago would have reacted to the notions of Uber and Pokémon Go. Of course, the concept of a human struggling to keep up with the changing pace of society at its technological apex is a rich vein for comedy. Just ask Phillip J. Fry.
Source: Slashfilm, Nerdist
iPad and Aviation Apps Helping to Decrease Private Plane Crash Fatalities
Crashes, and subsequent fatalities, of small private planes have “fallen to the lowest levels in decades” thanks to mobile devices that give pilots “much better weather information” than a few years ago, along with other benefits. These devices mainly include Apple’s iPad lineup and, in 2015, helped contribute to the lowest rate of fatal crashes ever recorded by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration: 1.03 fatal accidents per 100,000 flight hours (via Bloomberg).
As pointed out by John Hansman, an astronautics and aeronautics professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the data should be “approached with care,” due to the fact that there is far less information and data available on general aviation as opposed to commercial flights. Private airplane flights per year have also decreased, which would help lessen the overall chance for accidents in the first place. Still, the new data collected “jibes with broad new efforts to improve safety in that arena,” according to Hansman.
“It’s encouraging,” said Hansman, who has studied private-aircraft safety data. “There are reasons to think it might be accurate. There’s a lot of things happening in the system that are slowly making it better.”
In reaction to these accidents, the FAA and the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board moved to bolster each private aircraft pilot’s safety levels, leading to the official approval of “weather and other programs for mobile devices.” To improve the regulation of these aircrafts, the two administrations also approved ways to make it easier to add safety equipment to planes, including devices that warn of engine failure and the impending loss of control of the plane.
Related Roundups: iPad Air 2, iPad mini 4 (2015), iPad Pro
Buyer’s Guide: 9.7″ iPad Pro (Neutral), iPad Mini (Don’t Buy), 12.9″ iPad Pro (Neutral)
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T-Mobile drops the HTC 10 after less than three months
HTC just can’t catch a break. The company’s smartphone sales are down, fuelling consecutive quarterly losses. To bounce back, HTC needs its latest flagship, the HTC 10, to pick up steam — and fast. But that’s unlikely to happen now that T-Mobile, one of the biggest carriers in the US, has quietly dropped the Android handset. It’s not clear exactly when the smartphone disappeared from store shelves, but a Reddit post has it pegged at July 21st. That’s only two months since the phone went on sale at the so-called “un-carrier.” The more worrying part is that barely anyone seemed to notice.
The HTC 10 is a phone the company can be proud of. The aluminium shell (one we’ve grown fond of since the M7) is supported with a fairly clean Android experience and some decent hardware under the hood. The camera is greatly improved too, although it doesn’t offer quite the same picture quality as the Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge. Still, it’s a phone that stands shoulder to shoulder with the LG G5 and other Android flagships. But, it would seem, a solid all-rounder just isn’t enough. Especially when OnePlus has a similar offering for almost a third cheaper.
Look hard enough and you might find a HTC 10 gathering dust in a T-Mobile store. These “limited quantities” are just that, however, and won’t be replenished in the weeks or months ahead. It’s a blow for the Taiwanese manufacturer — to survive, it’ll need to bank on sales coming from other carriers and countries. Otherwise, there’s always the next phone (maybe a new One A9?) provided HTC has the financial reserves to make it.
Via: Reddit, Android Police
SpaceX to start testing the engine that will take it to Mars
SpaceX has recently inched closer to realizing its head honcho’s — that’s Elon Musk, but you already know that — ambitious Mars plans. It has sent its next-generation rocket engine, the one it’s developing for the rocket that will ferry a spacecraft to the red planet, to its McGregor, Texas facility for testing. Company president Gwynne Shotwell made that revelation during the Small Satellite Conference in Utah. A spokesperson also confirmed to Ars Technica that the engine is being prepped for testing in the Lone Star State.
SpaceX hasn’t revealed much about the engine yet. We know, however, that it’s called “Raptor,” and that it will power Falcon Heavy’s successor, the reusable rocket SpaceX is building for its Mars Colonial Transporter project. Musk once said at a Reddit AMA that it’s capable of producing 500,000 pounds of thrust at liftoff. That makes it thrice as powerful as the engines its Falcon 9 and Heavy rockets use and puts it on par with the Space Shuttle engine.
The CEO expects his Raptor-powered rocket to be able to lift off with a spacecraft that’s 100 times the size of an SUV and carry up to 100 tons of cargo. It’s important for manned missions bound for Mars to be able to carry huge amounts of supplies, since spacefarers on board face a long journey ahead of them.
SpaceX’s goal is to launch its first manned flight to Mars as soon as 2024, and this latest development means that timeframe could be viable. According to Ars, rocket engine development can take up to seven years, and full-scale testing typically happens towards the end of its development. It’s still unclear what kind of tests the company will do in Texas, though — we’ll just have to wait for the update Shotwell promised to reveal in the next few months.
RT @jeff_foust: Shotwell: shipped Raptor engine last night to test site; hope to have updates in next few months. #smallsat
— Ron Atkins (@Stratocumulus) August 9, 2016
Via: PopSci
Source: Ars Technica
