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DRM claims a victim in the Internet of Things as Phillips Hue blocks competing smart light bulbs [feedly]
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DRM claims a victim in the Internet of Things as Phillips Hue blocks competing smart light bulbs
// pocketnow.com
Connected devices are everywhere in our lives these days, as your smartphone talks to your speakers, your car, your watch, your thermostat, and probably half a dozen other gadgets you use on a regular basis. When everything works together, that's great, but not all companies are so good at playing nicely with each other, and just as has been the case with far too many consumer electronics, DRM-related tech is showing ...
The post DRM claims a victim in the Internet of Things as Phillips Hue blocks competing smart light bulbs appeared first on Pocketnow.
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Monday, December 7, 2015
Add USB Charging Ports To Your Wall Outlets For $17 Each [feedly]
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Add USB Charging Ports To Your Wall Outlets For $17 Each
// Lifehacker
These days, you probably charge as many things over USB as you do over standard AC outlets, so it only makes sense to add some semi-permanent USB ports to your home.
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Wednesday, November 25, 2015
Monday, November 16, 2015
Google Glass team is working on a wearable that isn't glasses [feedly]
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Google Glass team is working on a wearable that isn't glasses
// The Verge
The division of Google responsible for wearable tech is experimenting with new designs, including one without a screen. According to a report today from The Information, the team behind Google Glass, a division now called Project Aura, has at least three new prototype gadgets, one of which would be a headset that relies only on audio. It's not stated how this would be different from headphones or a Bluetooth earpiece, but an audio-only device could still achieve Glass' original goal of hands-free computing.
Project Aura is Google's new wearable tech outfit started back in June to succeed the Glass division. Though the Google Glass initiative was originally part of the Google X "moonshots" lab, Aura was reportedly moved under Google proper with Nest Labs CEO Tony Fadell leading the development alongside famed designer Ivy Ross.
The audio-based wearable works through bone conduction
Google went on a hiring spree starting in August when Amazon laid off numerous engineers from its Lab126 hardware division, some of which were audio experts whose expertise is likely informing the new device. The Aura squad isn't ditching screens altogether. While the audio-focused gadget would be fashioned as a "sport" device, The Information reports, Google is working on two other devices with screens aimed at businesses that may need the head-mounted display. So while Glass as a product may be dead, it appears its original conceit isn't done yet.
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Thursday, November 12, 2015
What the hell is going on with LG Watch Urbane 2nd Edition LTE pricing? [feedly]
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What the hell is going on with LG Watch Urbane 2nd Edition LTE pricing?
// pocketnow.com
LG's latest smartwatch is about to have its retail debut, and it's making a lot of noise in doing so as it brings cellular connectivity to Android Wear. Maybe we shouldn't be at all surprised, but the presence of that cellular radio in the Watch Urbane 2nd Edition LTE brings carriers very much into the retail equation of this wearable, and that means what's turning out to be some incredibly confusing pricing.Overnight we told you about Verizon's plans for the ...
The post What the hell is going on with LG Watch Urbane 2nd Edition LTE pricing? appeared first on Pocketnow.
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Monday, November 9, 2015
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This tiny disc turns analog watches into smartwatches [feedly]
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This tiny disc turns analog watches into smartwatches
// The Verge
Watch enthusiasts may not want to exchange their timeless timepieces for short-lived smartwatches, but a new product can help give their analog pieces some of smartwatches' best tricks. The product, called Chronos, is a thin disc that sticks to the bottom of a watch and can vibrate and light up to alert you of notifications. Chronos does fitness tracking too, and it can also control a connected phone in basic ways, like declining calls or skipping ahead a track when listening to music.
Chronos does notifications and activity tracking
Chronos basically looks like a watch battery. It's just under 3mm thin, and there's a rubber surface on one side that forms a suction against the bottom of the watch it's connecting to. Putting a tiny flashing disc beneath a several hundred or several thousand dollar watch isn't necessarily the most elegant solution in the world, but it's a neat option for people who are interested in smartwatches but don't want to give up what they're currently wearing. The Chronos does add an appreciable thickness to the watch, setting it higher off of your wrist, but it isn't particularly noticeable when placed beneath a larger model.
The Chronos' main job is to alert wearers to incoming notifications. It doesn't vibrate for every notification, however, instead asking wearers to set up every app and every contact who they want to receive notifications from. Each can be set with different vibration patterns and different light colors. The lights can also be turned off, in case a person doesn't want their wrist flashing all the time, but Luke Fromowitz, Chronos' CTO, claims that this is actually something people are fond of, especially people with high-end watches. "They love it. They love the lights," he says. Apparently the lights make for a good conversation starter.
What the Chronos can do is obviously very limited — you can't read or reply to a text message, for instance — but it still gets at the core of modern smartwatches, which is enough to make it a passable substitute. The device works with both iOS and Android, and it's going up for preorder today for $99, with shipments starting in the spring.
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Wednesday, October 21, 2015
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Huawei Watch’s US launch could be getting closer as product page goes live [feedly]
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Huawei Watch's US launch could be getting closer as product page goes live
// Android Phone Fans
Huawei announced their premium-looking smart watch way back in March, but the company finally seems ready to bring it out. A new product page for the device has gone live on their website where you can sign up to be notified of its arrival. Its recent stop at the FCC also suggests we're close to a full launch.
The original expectation was that we'd see the watch in Q3, so while the wait has been quite long it hasn't been longer than we originally anticipated. Huawei's Android Wear watch gives us many reasons to take notice. It's arguably the best designed smart watch of its kind right now, and with some of the premium wrist strap options it could look just as nice with a snazzy suit as any luxurious watch would.
Oh, and it's going to look pretty damn sweet when you take it out of its packaging:
Beyond that, it's pretty much standard Android Wear affair when it comes to specs:
1.4-inch AMOLED display with 286ppi1.2GHz Qualcomm processor4GB of storage512MB of RAM300mAh battery
Bonus points for that display being fully and perfectly round. Be sure to take a look at our eyes-on with this thing from earlier in the year if you haven't already. Let's hope we hear some official launch details very soon.
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LG’s upcoming Android Wear watch could have highest resolution yet at 480 x 480 [feedly]
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LG's upcoming Android Wear watch could have highest resolution yet at 480 x 480
// Android Phone Fans
Android Wear smart watches have largely been the same in every area other than design, but LG could find themselves having the one differentiating feature that would make the entire industry take notice. New information received by Phandroid suggests the company is working on a new Android Wear watch codenamed "Nemo."
There isn't much to know about this smart watch at this time, but we do know that it will have the highest resolution display any Android Wear watch has ever had. That resolution is 480 x 480.
Doesn't sound insane by a smartphone's standards, but that's actually insane for smart watches. If we assume this watch has a circular 1.3-inch display size — which is what the LG Watch Urbane (pictured above) has — we would have a pixel density of around 340 to 400 ppi. This is compared to the Watch Urbane's 320 x 320 for around 240 ppi. That would make it pretty darn hard to find a pixel when the watch is up in your face.
Pixel density for smart watches might not seem like the most important spec to care about, but it should provide the sort of crispness that would make a well-designed watch face look like, well, an actual physical watch face. It should also virtually eliminate the possibility of having any readability issues no matter what sort of eyes you have. We'll be on the lookout for more info about this bad boy in the months to come.
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This year's Moto 360 smartwatch could come in two sizes [feedly]
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This year's Moto 360 smartwatch could come in two sizes
// The Verge
Motorola could be preparing to launch two new versions of the Moto 360 smartwatch if regulatory documents filed to Brazilian telecoms agency Anatel are to be believed. Documentation for two Motorola products with the model numbers "360S" and "360L" have been submitted to the agency, which examines and approves all radio-equipped products before they can be sold in Brazil. Similar documentation was filed for the original Moto 360 before it launched in September last year, and last week, leaked video of what appears to be a second-generation Moto 360 found its way online.
All this suggests that Motorola could be preparing to launch a successor to the Moto 360 and that the next-gen Android Wear device will be available in two sizes rather than one. This would make sense considering that Apple has gone down a similar path with the Apple Watch, and that, like many smartwatches, the original Moto 360 received criticism for being somewhat large and unwieldy.
A screenshot of regulatory documentation filed to Anatel for the "360S." (Anatel)
Unfortunately, the documentation submitted to Anatel doesn't offer much more in the way of details. Both the 360S and 360L are listed as having Bluetooth, Bluetooth LE, and Wi-Fi connectivity, with the S apparently featuring a battery capacity of 270mAh and the L offering 375mAh of power. These two battery listings would make sense if the S and L were different sizes, and the capacities also happen to fall neatly on either side of the original Moto 360's 320mAh battery. While we can't, of course, say for certain that we're seeing is a pair of as-yet-unreleased Motorola smartwatches here, we'll certainly be watching' for more news from the company in the coming weeks.
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Fossil introduces their first Android Wear smartwatch with Intel inside (and a flat tire display) [feedly]
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Fossil introduces their first Android Wear smartwatch with Intel inside (and a flat tire display)
// Android Phone Fans
The world of smartwatches is about to get a little more crowded with Fossil — a household name in mechanical watches — officially entering the fray. Live on stage during Intel's developer conference (IDF15), Fossil showed off 3 new wearables, one of which was an Android Wear-powered smartwatch powered by (of course), an Intel processor.
The design looks like an LG Watch Urbane mixed with a Motorola Moto 360 display, including the dreaded "flat tire" critics are always going on about. With every watch these days using a Snapdragon 410, we're interested to see what Intel brings to the table.
Unfortunately, pricing or any of the watch's other hardware specs weren't mentioned, but you can expect that it'll come in a variety of colors and watchbands when it officially arrives in time for the holidays.
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Google Brings Interactive Watch Faces and Translate to Android Wear [feedly]
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Google Brings Interactive Watch Faces and Translate to Android Wear
// Phone Scoop - Latest News
Google today announced an update to its Android Wear platform that makes it possible to interact directly with watch faces. The revised watch face code lets watch faces change their design to reveal new information, such as notifications, or launch a specific app. Google teamed up with a handful of developers, including Bit, Under Armour, and Together, which created the first set of interactive watch faces. Under Armour's watch face, for example, will let users see their step count, calories burned, and distance moved. The updated platform also includes Google Translate. Users can speak to their watch and see words translated into 44 different languages. Wearers can flip the smartwatch to show a friend, who responds in his or her own language. When the watch is flipped back toward the wearer, the response is translated back to the original language. The Android Wear update is being pushed out to Android Wear devices over the next few weeks. At the same time, Google released the necessary API for developers to use to create the new, active watch screens. It will be up to developers to add interactive functions to their watch faces.
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Android Wear: Stay connected with interactive watch faces [feedly]
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Android Wear: Stay connected with interactive watch faces
// Official Android Blog
Wearing a watch lets you tell time with just a glance. Android Wear has expanded this at-a-glance experience to other useful info like your next meeting, daily step count, or messages. Today, we're launching interactive watch faces, making it easier (and more fun) to stay connected, right from your wrist. Now, with just a tap, your watch face can change its design, reveal more information, or even launch a specific app.
Bits: Choose the info you want at a glance—from weather, to unread mail, to upcoming meetings. Want to know this afternoon's weather forecast? Just tap on the weather complication.
Under Armour: Stay motivated with fitness stats on your wrist. Tap the watch face to see your step count, calories burned, and distance.
Together: Android Wear's Together Watch Face lets two people stay close throughout the day by turning the entire watch face into a space for sharing. Once you've paired your watch face with a partner's, you'll be able to share things like photos and emoji, as well as your activities (like if you're working out, on the phone, or stuck in traffic).
Today's updates are rolling out to all Android Wear watches in the coming weeks. So pick your favorite watch face, or pair up with your favorite person, and start wearing what you want.
Posted by Flavio Lerda, Software Engineer, Android Wear
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Google Translate Launches for Android Wear, Supports 44 Languages [feedly]
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Google Translate Launches for Android Wear, Supports 44 Languages
// Droid Life: A Droid Community Blog
Thanks to the new Android Wear update announced this morning, set to roll out in the coming weeks, all smartwatch owners will find Google Translate preinstalled on devices, even if you don't have the app on your smartphone.
With this addition, users can speak a phrase into the watch, then receive instant translation in 1 of 44 supported languages. To use Google Translate, speak your phrase into the watch, then flick your wrist over for the other party to read. Then, they can reply in their native tongue, with the watch showing you just what they said with another flick of the wrist. And don't worry, the software can automatically detect which languages are being spoken, so no buttons need to be pressed during the conversation.
Since this is part of the Android Wear 1.3 update, don't expect to see it until you receive the official OTA, set to launch in the coming weeks.
Via: Google
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Google Translate Launches for Android Wear, Supports 44 Languages is a post from: Droid Life
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Android Wear watches can now translate entire conversations [feedly]
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Android Wear watches can now translate entire conversations
// The Verge
Google Translate has arrived on Android Wear. Alongside a big update to watch faces today, Android Wear has been given support for Google Translate. The app is supposed to make it easy for two people who speak different languages to converse with one another. It may seem awkward to do that through a watch, but Google has designed the app in a way that works with the watch's form: the wearer turns their wrist back and forth so that the watch faces themself and then the person they're speaking with; as the watch changes direction, it'll switch translation over to that person's language. At the very least, Google's GIF makes it seem neat:
Translate's conversation feature only works with 44 out of the 90 languages that Translate can translate between. But it is able to tell automatically which of the 44 is being used, which makes it pretty convenient. The Watch app requires an internet connection, though it doesn't have to be hooked up to a phone. Altogether, today's updates should make Android Wear a lot more useful — it's pretty good timing, too, since it'll be getting some new Apple Watch competition starting next month.
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Android Wear update enables LG G Watch R Wi-Fi, brings interactive watch faces [feedly]
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Android Wear update enables LG G Watch R Wi-Fi, brings interactive watch faces
// pocketnow.com
Back in May, Google launched a new version of Android Wear, one that would enable smartwatches to function in a smart way via Wi-Fi, without the need of a constant Bluetooth connection to your smartphone. The first watch to sport this feature was the LG Watch Urbane, but Google (and some OEMs) promised that Wi-Fi capabilities will be enabled on smartwatches already present in the market. The LG G Watch R (which is ...
The post Android Wear update enables LG G Watch R Wi-Fi, brings interactive watch faces appeared first on Pocketnow.
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Swatch plans multiple smartwatches, but they'll be simple [feedly]
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Swatch plans multiple smartwatches, but they'll be simple
// Engadget Mobile
Swatch has only just dipped its toes into the smartwatch waters, but it already has grand ambitions in the category. CEO Nick Hayek tells Tages-Anzeiger that next year's Touch Zero Two (due around the Rio Olympics in August) is just the start. There should be multiple smartwatches, and the company is also releasing NFC-equipped, payment-capable watches later this year. In other words, Swatch isn't treating these devices as exceptions or one-off experiments, like some other Swiss watchmakers.
Filed under: Wearables, Mobile
Via: Reuters
Source: Tages-Anzeiger (translated)
Tags: mobilepostcross, smartwatch, swatch, watch, wearable
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Saturday, August 15, 2015
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GM will bring Android Auto to Cadillac starting in 2016 cars [feedly]
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GM will bring Android Auto to Cadillac starting in 2016 cars
// Android Phone Fans
Android Auto is spreading to more and more devices, and another fleet of vehicles is confirmed to be in on the fun. GM has announced that Android Auto would head to their Cadillac cars starting with the 2016 run, which launches at some point this summer.
The upgrades will come as part of an enhanced CUE — or Cadillac User Experience — update that will feature new functionality and improved performance. Of course, you'll need to make sure you have a phone with Lollipop by the time the cars arrive as Android Auto is only available on Android 5.0 or higher.
[via GM]
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SmartThings’ next-generation hub will support Thread and the OIC — Samsung is pushing Tizen, not Android. Be careful. I will no longer be buying Samsung for that reason.
https://gigaom.com/2015/01/06/smartthings-next-generation-hub-will-support-thread-and-the-oic/