A Different slant on Technologies - Musings by Wfa31

iPhone 6S and 6S Plus announced: 3D Touch, 12-megapixel rear camera, rose gold finish, available September 25th for $199

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 10 Sep 2015 09:40:00 +0000

Apple is introducing the iPhone 6S, an updated version of its flagship smartphone with an identical design and a bundle of new features. Chief among them is a pressure-sensitive display, enabling a feature that Apple calls 3D Touch. 3D Touch allows you to press down on the iPhone's screen to pull up new menus, activate shortcuts, and generally interact with the device in new ways. Apple's Taptic Engine is also built into the phone to provide feedback. The features will also appear in the new iPhone 6S Plus.

While the iPhone 6S maintains the same design and 4.7-inch display size as the iPhone 6, it's being offered in a new color: rose gold. There had been some earlier talk that Apple might offer the phone in pink, and it's easy to see why there was some confusion — rose gold can look very pink in the right light. The phone is also built out of several new materials. It's using a new aluminum, which Apple says is its own custom alloy. And its display is now covered with a new glass, the same Ion-X that's used on the Apple Watch Sport. You can bet that these changes are, at least in part, designed to make the phone less prone to bending.

3D Touch enables two new ways to interact with the iPhone, which Apple is calling "peek" and "pop." Peek allows you to press on app icons and other buttons to pull up shortcuts directly into specific features. Pressing on the Camera app, for instance, offers the option to jump right into taking a selfie. Pressing on the Facebook app gives you the option of updating your status, taking a photo, checking in, or starting a search. Pop allows you to pull up overlays of photos and videos without actually having them take over the screen; once you move away, you'll be right back to where you were before.

The iPhone 6S is also running on a new 64-bit processor, Apple's A9. As usual, Apple isn't giving the nitty gritty details of the processor, but it says that it's going to be 70 percent faster at CPU tasks and 90 faster at GPU tasks, in both cases over the iPhone 6's A8 processor.

So, what has changed from the previews iPhone? Everything! Well? Not really in terms of design, since the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus still housing the same design as their predecessors, except for one detail: they are now available in a pink color, anodized aluminum. A history of tastes and colors ... However, this box contains a screen Force Touch, which takes the trade name of 3D Touch, which allows you to click gently or more strongly on elements. The advantage: a long press on the icon of an application (at least those that are compatible, like Facebook, Instagram, WeChat, Dropbox or Apple applications), can access a drop-down menu that refers directly to specific features, all without leaving the host panels. This corresponds perfectly to Force Touch proposed by Huawei, but marketed under the trade name chosen by Apple to differentiate, as usual, from its competitors.

Apple is putting a 12-megapixel rear camera in the new iPhone. This is the first time that Apple has bumped its camera's megapixel count since the iPhone 4S in 2011. It's long held that it wasn't worth adding pixels because it would lead to noisier images, but Apple claims that it's now managed to make the change without doing that. The camera is also now capable of recording 4K video, and it's supposed to have an improved autofocus in all cases. It also says that the camera has an improved autofocus. One thing that hasn't changed? The lens still protrudes from the back of the phone.
"5MP front camera and a flash for selfies"

The front camera is getting a change, too. It's now a 5-megapixel camera, and Apple has figured out a neat way of giving it a flash: the phone's display just lights up really bright — apparently up to three times brighter than it usually would. It'll also customize the color that it flashes to match the ambient lighting of the environment a photo is being taken in.

You're also going to be taking a lot more videos with this new phone. Apple is introducing a feature called "live photos," which will capture a short clip of video alongside every photo that you take. You can turn the feature off, but it's on by default, capturing a second and a half to both sides of every photo. A 12 megapixel image is still captured right in the middle. It's a pretty neat idea — even if HTC and others tried features like this years ago — but there's one reason to be worried about it: storage. All that video is going to take up a lot of space, regardless of how "space efficient" Apple claims they'll be.

"A pricing plan is, strangely enough, among the most interesting announcements"

Apple is also demonstrating new animated wallpapers on the phone — those may be part of iOS 9 in general, however.

The iPhone 6S is also supposed to be getting faster wireless speeds over both Wi-Fi and LTE. Apple says that Wi-Fi should be twice as fast, and LTE is improving with the addition of more bands, now up to 23. Touch ID is also supposed to be improved on this model of the iPhone. Apple didn't go into a lot of detail there, but presumably it'll be faster or more accurate than the sensor on the iPhone 5S and iPhone 6.

The new iPhone will be available starting at $199 on a two-year contract, starting at 16GB of storage and going up to 64GB and 128GB for $100 more per tier. But most carriers are moving away from two-year contracts and over to payment plans now, so Apple is offering some of those, too. The 6S will be available for $27 per month. But there's another more interesting payment plan: for $32 per month, you can lease an iPhone and then return it for a new model every single year. It also includes the AppleCare+ warranty from Apple. Preorders begin September 12th, with sales beginning September 25th.

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Uber and the agony of ending cars ownership - How does it really looks like as a business plan for drivers?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 20 Jul 2015 19:41:00 +0000

What is Uber in a nutshell?

Uber is your private driver in more than 40 countries. Request a ride using the app and get picked up within minutes.

Where it came from?

Uber Technologies Inc. is an American international transportation network company headquartered in San Francisco, California. It develops, markets and operates the Uber mobile app, which allows consumers with smartphones to submit a trip request which is then routed to Uber drivers who use their own cars. As of May 28, 2015, the service was available in 58 countries and 300 cities worldwide. Since Uber's launch, several other companies have emulated its business model, a trend that has come to be referred to as "Uberification".

Regardless of the company's massive success, there is still some downsides in the service.

Uber should be suspended in California and fined $7.3 million, judge says

Uber — plagued by problems with regulators, drivers and taxi unions around the world — took a big blow in its home state Wednesday when an administrative judge recommended that the ride-sharing giant be fined $7.3 million and be suspended from operating in California.

Have you ever think about making it your day to day job? Well some did!

Here's how much you could make as an Uber or Lyft driver in 20 major US cities

While there's a huge disparity between how much ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft say their drivers can make and how much drivers say they're making, we should arrive at a more accurate picture by looking at the data.

Thanks to SherpaShare, a financial-analytics site that allows drivers who work for on-demand companies to track their earnings, that picture just became clearer.

According to Uber, in 2014 the median wage for an UberX driver working at least 40 hours a week in New York City averaged to about $43 an hour. A more recent report from Uber, however, put that number closer to $30 an hour.

By aggregating data from more than a million drivers tracking their trips between January and May 2015, SherpaShare was able to average the price per trip in 20 major US cities.

While SherpaShare didn't reveal the average number of trips per hour drivers could make, we now know that the average price for a New York City Uber or Lyft driver is close to $29.

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Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata is dead at 55

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 13 Jul 2015 17:16:00 +0000

Nintendo has announced that its president and CEO, Satoru Iwata, died on Saturday. He was 55, and the cause of death was stated as a bile duct growth. Iwata took some time off for health reasons last year and had surgery to remove a tumor, returning later in the year.

Iwata took over as president from longtime boss Hiroshi Yamauchi in 2002, and led the company to huge success with the Nintendo DS and Wii consoles. He formerly worked as a programmer at Nintendo affiliate HAL, contributing to games like EarthBound, Balloon Fight, and the Kirby series.

Many in the Nintendo community are sharing Satoru Iwata memories this morning, including Legendary Game Designer/Senior Managing Director Shigeru Miyamoto and Earthbound developer Shigesato Itoi.

IWATA LED NINTENDO TO HUGE SUCCESS

Aside from his executive role, Iwata was a very well-known figure to Nintendo followers from his appearances in the company's Nintendo Direct broadcasts and his "Iwata Asks" series of interviews with developers. With the Wii U failing to perform on the level of its predecessor, Iwata recently announced new initiatives for the company including a move into mobile gaming and a mysterious "Quality of Life" program.

Nintendo hasn't announced a successor, but has noted that Genyo Takeda and Shigeru Miyamoto will remain as decision-making representative directors of the company. "I am surprised at this sudden news and overcome with sadness," Miyamoto told The Wall Street Journal. Although Iwata's health issues were well-publicized, his death comes as a major shock given his recent return to the spotlight. He did not, however, attend the E3 conference last month, explaining that Nintendo didn't have any new hardware to announce and that the company had an investors meeting the following week.

How's Y Combinator's seed programme, aims to evolve the series of funding

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 10 Jul 2015 16:16:00 +0000

There’s been a lot of talk in venture circles lately about “signaling risk” and seed-stage investments. The gist: When earlier backers are high-profile venture firms, and these firms decide not to participate in a startup’s next round, it hurts the company’s ability to raise a Series A round.

Although this concern isn’t exactly new, recent numbers published by the firm CB Insights suggest that the issue is worth revisiting. According CB Insights’s findings, while 35 percent of all venture-backed, seed-funded companies go on to raise a Series A, a company that counts a respected venture firm among its seed backers has a 51 percent chance of raising a Series A if that firm participates in the round.

That’s the good news. The bad: If the venture firm decides not participate in the startup’s Series A, the company’s chances of closing its Series A round drop to 27 percent.

The study made us think about Y Combinator, the popular accelerator program, and its plan for the future. Right now, Y Combinator has the best of both worlds. It can make seed-stage investments at scale, for sizable stakes in startups, and not worry in the least about signaling risk: no one expects it to pour more of its capital into follow-on rounds. Its very model is premised on finding and funneling smart companies to other Series A, B, and C investors.

Recently, however, some have speculated that Y Combinator is heading into a future where it is both seed and growth-stage investor. According to a March report from Business Insider, the outfit might raise “several billion dollars” to make later-stage investments in those of its companies that start hot and stay hot (see Airbnb). A source to The Information estimates that the Y Combinator Continuity Fund (as it is listed in an SEC filing) will be closer to $1 billion in size.

Maybe Y Combinator has to go later stage. Maybe it’s too hard to support the organization at its current size without owning more of its home runs, including Airbnb (valued at $24 billion currently) and Twitch, which sold to Amazon last year for $970 million in cash.

Still, if Y Combinator uses its war chest to cherry pick deals from its portfolio or graduates or even if it skips a few stages to invest in a more limited number of “very, very late stage” deals, as TechCrunch sources have suggested might happen, it could create huge signaling risk for the many startups it funds. (It’s possible that Y Combinator could follow on in every one of the venture-backed rounds of its portfolio companies, but the moment it doesn’t . . .)

Y Combinator’s big fund could have other consequences. Until now, Y Combinator hasn’t had to displace other investors to earn a place on a company’s cap table, but if it wants to become a growth investor and take significant ownership of particular companies, it will need to win competitive deals against other firms that want to invest. And Y Combinator may find that many of the investors it counts as friends won’t be so friendly when they’re going head-to-head over deals.

Investing in later-stage companies is also a different skill set than mentoring seed-stage companies. Although Y Combinator will undoubtedly hire partners who have experience with later-stage deals, Y Combinator’s DNA is helping a clutch of people who’ve founded a company in their garage (or dorm room). That’s not to say the firm can’t do both, but presumably it will take time to get right and it would seem to spread the firm thin, no matter how many people are involved.

The Information recently suggested if Y Combinator goes later stage, the “only shot” that VCs will have at competing with it will be to “go earlier and earlier themselves.”

Maybe, though we imagine that top funds don’t need to sweat it just yet. Entrepreneurs will continue to want other, experienced voices at the table, especially if those voices are coming from top firms like Sequoia.

The Information also suggested that Y Combinator might be more willing to fund “moonshots” than other firms. We love that idea, though it does bring to mind Kleiner Perkins, which was at the top of its game when it decided to pursue some moonshots of its own in clean energy. As industry watchers know, that didn’t go so well.

We give Y Combinator credit for thinking about its next moves. We admire how much it has changed in the last 17 months under the leadership of Sam Altman. We just hope it doesn’t lose sight of its core mission.

It does seem to have things awfully good right now.

Samsung unpacks Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge at MWC 2015

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 01 Mar 2015 19:16:00 +0000

The Samsung Unpacked event at the MWC 2015 is all about the next generation of Galaxy smartphones - the Galaxy S6 and the Galaxy S6 edge. Samsung seems to be pleased with the limited edition Galaxy Note Edge market success and will be keeping the "edged" devices around.

Samsung Galaxy S6 duo have been in the rumor mill for quite some time and we already knew pretty much everything there is to know. The devices are now official and we can clear up every tiny detail.

The new Galaxy S6 series is a departure from the previous series, switching from an all-plastic shell to a dual-glass design enhanced with a metal frame. The new combination of materials works great indeed and the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge are arguably, the most beautiful Galaxy smartphones to date. We’re sure, many will forgive the camera hump on the back for sure. This time around the Galaxy S6 isn't dust and water proof though.

Samsung Galaxy S6 packs a 5.1-inch Super AMOLED screen with Quad HD resolution resulting into the amazing 577 ppi density. It is protected by the latest Corning Gorilla Glass 4. The hardware Home key once again doubles as fingerprint sensor and supports the new Samsung Pay service.

Samsung's mobile payments service is coming this summer

Samsung Pay relies on NFC and Magnetic Secure Transmission (MST) for mobile payments. It has already been certified by Visa, MasterCard, and Samsung is employing key partners worldwide to participate in the service, including American Express, Bank of America, Citi, JPMorgan Chase, and U.S. Bank.

It's been just a couple of weeks since Samsung acquired mobile payments company LoopPay, but it's already to announce the payment service based on LoopPay's tech: Samsung Pay. The service works with NFC (like Apply Pay and Google Wallet) and a new(ish) tech called Magnetic Secure Transmission (MST). It's the latter of the two options that has people excited, so let's take a minute to explain what exactly it is.

MST is the reason Samsung bought LoopPay in the first place. It's a super-clever tech that tricks old-school payment terminals (i.e. most terminals that don't accept NFC) into thinking they've had a card swiped in them. Using your Galaxy S6 or S6 edge, you'll be able to swipe up from the lower bezel to open the Samsung Pay app, select which card to use, and then authenticate with your fingerprint. After that's done, you just tap the phone next to the payment terminal's card reader, and voila, it generates a signal that looks to the reader like a swipe.

Unlike the Galaxy Note Edge, the Samsung Galaxy S6 edge has the display glass bent on both sides of the phone. While the curve isn't as impressive as on the Note Edge, being bent on both sides makes it feel like an entirely different device. The 5.1" Super AMOLED display also utilizes at Quad HD resolution of 2,560 x 1,440 pixels. It is protected by a curved Corning Gorilla Glass 4, too.

The rumors turned right and Samsung chose not to opt for the Snapdragon 810 chip, probably due to the overhearing issues. So, the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge are powered by the company's Exynos 7420, built on a 14nm process and thus more energy-efficient and producing less heat compared to 20nm Snapdragon 810.

The Exynos 7420 chip offers much similar processor to the Snapdragon 810 - an octa-core 64-bit CPU with four Cortex-A57 cores ticking at 2.1GHz and four Cortex-A53 clocked at 1.5GHz. The Exynos 7420 chip uses a Mali-T760 GPU and comes bundled with 3GB LPDDR4 of RAM. The new generation of RAM has already premiered on the LG G Flex2 and we expect the 2015 flagships to feature LPDDR4 RAM chips.

Samsung Galaxy S6 duo comes with a new ISOCELL camera sensor with 16MP resolution. The camera is enhanced with optical image stabilization, phase detection autofocus and has a single-LED flash. Quite expectedly, 4K video recording is supported. The front camera is 5MP, capable of 1080p video capturing.

The new Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge feature 32GB / 64GB / 128GB storage, expandable via a microSD slot. The storage is of the new UFS 2.0 variety, which uses "Command Queue" tech used in SSDs for accelerating the speed of command execution. The end-result is 19,000 input/output operations (IOPS) per second for random reading – that’s 2.7x faster than the performance of the eMMC 5.0 memory found in the previous crop of flagships.

The all-round connectivity package includes LTE Cat.6, Wi-Fi ac, Bluetooth 4.1, NFC, GPS with GLONASS and Beidou, IR blaster and FM radio. The Galaxy S6 is powered by a 2,550 mAh battery, while the Galaxy S6 egde has a 2,600 mAh unit.

Finally, the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge run on Android 5.0 Lollipop enhanced with the latest TouchWiz UI with Material design and cleaner interface. The TouchWiz on the Galaxy S6 Edge offers various features and apps working on the edges of the display, including a newer and better version of the Quick Glance info for the lockscreen.

This time around Samsung has partnered with Microsoft, instead of Dropbox, and will be offering 115GB OneDrive storage for 2 years to each Galaxy S6 user.

Samsung Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge will launch this spring (quite possibly this very month) in Charcoal Black, Copper Gold, Electric Blue, and Shimmery White. The pricing is yet to be detailed.

Meanwhile you may want to check our detail hands-on articles on the Samsung Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge right here.

HTC One M9 unveiled with 20 MP camera, Sense 7, and blazing Snapdragon 810

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 01 Mar 2015 19:08:00 +0000

HTC has officially unveiled it's HTC One M9 which is the official name of the next One flagship. Contrary to previous rumors, the new One M9 was announced alone at the MWC and there is no Plus flavor, at least for now. HTC One M9 comes with refined design with less part count, dual anodization, and scratch-resistant coating and sapphire glass on the camera lens. While it looks a lot like the One (M8), the new One M9 design is more minimalistic and the smartphone is lighter and smaller. It has a single-part front bezel, new placement for the Power/Lock key, an improved volume rocker, and brand new color options.

The One M9 is not dust and waterproof, but the company promises IP69-certified cases for the One M9. The One M9 will be available in new paintjobs - there is a Silver model with Rose Gold accent (on the frame), Gun Metal Gray, completely Gold version and Pink model with Gold accent on the frame.

HTC One M9 packs a 5-inch 1080p display - the same unit from One (M8) - Super LCD3 - with minor improvements on the technology and color rendering. The highlight of the front are the traditional BoomSound stereo speakers, now improved further by Dolby Sound technology. The One M9 is powered by the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 platform - an octa-core 64-bit processor with four Cortex-A57 cores at 2.0GHz and four Cortex-A53 working at 1.5GHz. The new Adreno 430 is responsible for the graphics, while the 3GB RAM will help with the multi-tasking.

The rest of the specs include 32GB expandable storage and rich connectivity package with LTE Cat.6 or Cat.9 (various by region) with support for 21 LTE bands, wired and wireless TV-out, GPS + GLONASS, Bluetooth 4.1, NFC and Wi-Fi ac. HTC One M9 comes with non-replaceable 2,840 mAh battery. Fast charging is supported by default, but the charger within the retail package is not a "fast charger".

Here we arrive at the best upgrade that the One M9 features, compared to its predecessor. Finally breaking away with the low-res UltraPixel shenanigans, HTC moved the 4 MP shooter to the front of the One M9 flagship, and equipped the main camera with a hearty 20 MP sensor, just like in Sony, Meizu, and some other phones. This is the highest resolution that the Android kingdom currently offers, and so far these resolute sensors have mostly been built into Sony phones, as Sony is the one supplying the vast majority of sensors for mobile cameras, including the 20 MP endeavors.

HTC has dropped the dual-camera tech in favor of a Toshiba-made 20MP sensor with a 1/2.3" sensor size. HTC One M9 comes with a 20MP BSI camera on the back with F/2.2 aperture and dual-LED dual-tone flash. The maximum shooting resolution is 5376 x 3752 px – that’s 10:7 aspect ratio. RAW capture is supported, as is 4K video recording.

Unfortunately, the camera doesn't support optical image stabilization, but on a positive note there is a sapphire glass to protect the lens from scratches. The front selfie camera uses a 4MP UltraPixel sensor, quite similar to the one embedded on the backs of HTC One (M7) and One (M8), but without auto focus. HTC has developed new cooler effects for the rear camera and promises a brand new Zoe apps for Android and iOS.

HTC One M9 runs on Android 5.0 Lollipop enhanced with the new HTC Sense 7 UI. HTC Blinkfeed is a major part of the new Sense and now content from the aggregator will be displayed on the lockscreen as well. The updated service also uses location specific suggestions, thanks to a new partnership with Yelp, and will be able to gives you various tips for nearby restaurants.

The entire concept of HTC Sense has changed and now the launcher supports themes, which will be able to change its looks completely - backgrounds, colors, icons, even the keyboard. There will be a theme generator, which will support automatic theme generation by inputting just a single image. Another cool feature of the new HTC Sense 7 is the option to customize the navigation bar - you will be able to change the keyboard layout and put additional shortcuts of virtually anything. Finally, Sense 7 supports BoomSound connect - it allows the phone to combine its internal speakers with external ones for surround playback.

Finally, availability: The pricing is yet to be announced, but the HTC One M9 is expected to launch in March.

Join us! as we unveiling the next galaxy today at the Unpacked 2015

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 01 Mar 2015 17:41:00 +0000

The moment we heard that Samsung was throwing a "Galaxy Unpacked" event at Mobile World Congress, we knew it had to be launching the Galaxy S6. And, according to the many leaks that are already circulating on the internet, we're probably right. Still, it's always worth attending the actual event itself -- Samsung's been known to offer up a surprise or two and besides, the company sometimes puts up quite an entertaining show. So join us, won't you, for our liveblog starting right here at 12:30pm ET.

Stay Tuned!

Apple was reportedly aiming for 19 hours of active and passive use

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 22 Jan 2015 21:53:00 +0000

Here's How Long The Apple Watch's Battery Will Last

Apple has said that its forthcoming Apple Watch will need to recharge daily, but we're getting a better idea of just how long its battery will last thanks to a report by 9to5Mac's Mark Gurman.

Gurman's sources say the Apple Watch will be powered by an S1 chip that's similar to what Apple uses in current iPod Touch models.

As of 2014, Apple was reportedly aiming for 2.5 to 4 hours of active application use with 19 hours of active/passive use, plus 3 days of pure standby time and four days if the watch was sleeping. That's somewhat in line with early rumors, which suggested Apple was targeting a three to five day battery life for the device. While Apple was aiming for three to four days of standby time, two to three days, and while it's aiming for 19 hours of mixed usage, it "may not hit that number in the first generation version."

Apple has reportedly targeted the Apple Watch to have 2.5 to 4 hours of active use and around 19 hours of passive use.

That should allow the battery to last 2.5 hours while playing games, but closer 3.5 hours while using standard apps. When used in fitness-tracking mode, it should last about 4 hours.

Left in sleeping mode, the battery should last 2 to 3 days, Gurman reports.

For comparison, Samsung's Gear 2 smartwatch lasts 2 to 3 days with normal use. Motorola's Moto 360 will last about half a day under heavy use, according to Lifehacker UK.

One of the biggest demands on the Apple Watch's battery is its display. Apple has reportedly designed the watch to be able to display a digital clock face for about three hours, though it doesn't expect users will want to do that.

The Apple Watch will turn its display off when its not being used actively or receiving notifications.

Battery life seems to be part of the reason Apple delayed the Apple Watch from late 2014 to early 2015.

We'll have to wait and see if that delay made the watch better for prospective buyers.

Google said to be in talks to invest in SpaceX at $10B valuation

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 20 Jan 2015 20:39:00 +0000

SpaceX has gone where most startups never have: To space. And it looks like Google may well want in on the excitement.

According to a report this morning from The Information (subscription required), Google is close to putting a substantial investment into Elon Musk’s rocket company at a valuation above $10 billion. The report cited several people close to the talks as its source.

“The purpose of a deal, which is still in the works,” The Information wrote, “is to support the development of SpaceX satellites that could beam low-cost Internet around the globe to billions who don’t have it.”

That plan jibes with a concept Musk unveiled on Friday: plans to deploy satellites that could connect millions of people around the world with a low-cost Internet.

Google, of course, has pursued initiatives of its own to bring Internet connectivity to people in under-served areas. Its Project Loon concept was designed to connect people via a system of balloons. Facebook, too, is working on a solution to the problem: On the one hand, it has backed Internet.org, a non-profit consortium that is building out connectivity infrastructure in the developing world. And on the other, Facebook’s Connectivity Lab is working on huge drones that could one day beam Internet service into areas that need it.

Google didn’t immediately respond to a VentureBeat request for comment. SpaceX said it had no comment.

SpaceX, of course, has been working on rockets designed to take satellites into space. Already, it has delivered a number of payloads to the International Space Station. Earlier this month, a SpaceX Dragon arrived at the Space Station. It was the fifth of 12 such missions under a $1.6 billion NASA contract.

That successful mission was marred — to a certain extent — by the crash, and explosion, of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket as it attempted to land on a platform at sea.

For Google, which has a market capitalization of $344.66 billion, an investment in the privately-held SpaceX could well provide it access to the technology — satellites, rockets, launch systems, and much more — that could help it further its mission to spread Internet connectivity around the world.

Follow our coverage of the CES 2015 and anything of the Technology World one by one only on our social media.

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Lizard Squad's LizardStresser hacked and customer details made public

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 20 Jan 2015 20:20:00 +0000

Hacking group Lizard Squad made a name for itself with high-profile attacks on Sony and Microsoft’s online gaming networks. Now the group appears to have been hacked itself, as it tried to profit from its fame by selling a service to take other websites down.

The group unveiled LizardStresser at the end of 2014, after its Christmas attacks on PlayStation Network and Xbox Live which took both offline over the holiday period.

It charged between $6 and $500 in the bitcoin cryptocurrency to help people launch distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks on any website or internet service they chose.

Since then, online security researcher Brian Krebs has claimed that the service was using a network of “hacked home routers” to launch its attacks. Now he says that the site’s security was less than effective at protecting its own customers’ private information.

“A copy of the LizardStresser customer database obtained by KrebsOnSecurity shows that it attracted more than 14,241 registered users, but only a few hundred appear to have funded accounts at the service,” wrote Krebs in a blog post claiming that LizardStresser had been hacked.

“Interestingly, all registered usernames and passwords were stored in plain text. Also, the database indicates that customers of the service deposited more than USD $11,000 worth of bitcoins to pay for attacks on thousands of Internet addresses and Web sites (including this one).”

The news follows several arrests made as police investigate the original PlayStation Network and Xbox Live attacks.

On 31 December, a 22 year-old man from Twickenham was arrested by the South East Regional Organised Crime Unit (SEROCU) on suspicion of fraud by false representation and Computer Misuse Act offences, before being released on bail until 10 March.

Then, on 16 January, an 18 year-old man was arrested in Southport on suspicion of unauthorised access to computer material, unauthorised access with intent to commit further offences, and threats to kill.

The latter refer to incidents of “swatting” where US police were called out to what they believed was a major incident after what SEROCU described as “hoax calls via Skype”. The 18 year-old man has also been released on bail.

Follow our coverage of the CES 2015 and anything of the Technology World one by one only on our social media.

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The NSA knew North Korea hacked Sony because it hacked North Korea first

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 20 Jan 2015 19:58:00 +0000

The US government recently took the rare step of directly blaming North Korea for the crippling hack of Sony in retaliation for its satire film, The Interview. But how could it be so sure in the face of doubters, who said another hacking group disguised as North Korea, or a malcontent insider were to blame? According to a new pile of Edward Snowden documents revealed by der Spiegel and other publications, it's simple: the US government inserted backdoor software into North Korea's computer systems years before the hack even happened.

The NSA used South Korea's established inroads to install malware on North Korean networks, which was able to provide enough evidence to pinpoint the nation as the source of the Sony hack, according to anonymous government officials. This leads to the question, if the NSA had enough intel, why wasn't it able to advise Sony of the attack ahead of time? Administration officials said that the "spear-phishing" attacks -- which entice e-mail users to download infected files -- didn't look out of the ordinary or raise any alarms. But those attacks allowed the hackers to steal a key system admin's credentials, which they used to carefully infiltrate the system, search out key files and eventually destroy or leak them.

Though the NSA's backdoor "beacons" in North Korea's systems didn't help it see the hack coming, they were instrumental in building a case against the nation afterwards. The evidence convinced President Obama to quickly accuse Kim Jong-Un's of orchestrating the hack -- the first time the US has made such a charge, according to the New York Times.

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VIA: The New York Times

SOURCE: Der Spiegel

Samsung Galaxy S6 to Feature a Glass Back Panel Instead of A Full Metal Uni-body

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 20 Jan 2015 19:27:00 +0000

There have been countless rumors, leaks and reports suggesting that Samsung’s efforts are concentrated on making the Galaxy S6 stand out from the previously launched smartphones in the series. Codenamed “Project Zero”, the SGS6 is supposed to be built from the ground up as a brand new flagship, and one of the areas where the Galaxy S6 is supposed to truly evolve is design.

Building the Galaxy S6 from the ground up has been Samsung's strategy all along following criticism of the lineup's lack of premium feel. A metal unibody was one way to go, and seemed confirmed by leaked images and supposed insider quotes.

A month before the expected unveiling of the flagship at MWC in Barcelona, however, an unnamed "Samsung Electronics official" has shattered those rumors. The phone will, indeed, come in regular and dual edge flavors, but they will both feature a glass back panel.

The company's decision is likely driven by a desire to differentiate the Galaxy lineup from the A-series with their metal frames and plastic backs. The source also confirms what we suspected would be a non-removable battery.

It's a bold move on both fronts, which will undoubtedly spark raging comments from both fans and critics of the brand. The user-replaceable battery has been the reason many power users have swayed towards the Galaxy series for instant 100% charge on the go. And with Sony and Apple having used glass backs in the past, Samsung's choice of material will provide a field day for the brand's haters.

However, none of this is truly supported by any material evidence, and care should be taken not to jump to conclusions. Mobile World Congress, where everything will probably become official, is not all that far ahead.

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New Snowden Docs Indicate Scope of NSA Preparations for Cyberwarfare, proves to be ready to turning the tables on hackers

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 20 Jan 2015 19:00:00 +0000

The US government recently took the rare step of directly blaming North Korea for the crippling hack of Sony in retaliation for its satire film, The Interview.

How confident is the National Security Agency about its ability to wage cyberwarfare? Enough so that it's bragging about it. A new round of Edward Snowden leaks published by Der Spiegel reveal that the institution has not only been gearing up for a future of digital battles (it asked for $1 billion to improve its cyberattacks back in 2013), but boasts about what it can already do. For example, it touts that it can "drink your milkshake" (There Will Be Blood style) if you dare attack American government computers. When China hacked the Department of Defense in 2009, the NSA not only pinpointed the source of attack, but broke into China's intelligence network and monitored the country's spying efforts. This "fourth party collection," as the NSA calls it, lets the agency find out what's happening without doing all the hard work.

The NSA also makes it a point to use the tools and methods of their attackers against them, and to develop its own attacks against critical systems (like energy grids) in case they're needed. Its agents aren't all that worried about getting caught, either. They regularly cover their tracks, such as by placing data on the servers of "scapegoat" targets to throw people off the scent.

It's not surprising that the NSA would turn the tables on its foes. However, it's willing to use "fourth party" techniques on any country that isn't part of the Five Eyes Alliance (Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK and the US), including its allies. And there's a concern that the US is shifting too much of its attention toward offensive capabilities, rather than focusing on defense -- it's hard to claim the moral high ground in cyberwarfare when you're willing and able to inflict serious damage.

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VIA: Christopher Soghoian (Twitter)

SOURCE: Der Spiegel

Uber CEO Travis Kalanick wants to create 50,000 jobs this year in the EU

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 19 Jan 2015 21:19:00 +0000

In a bid to repair a fractured relationship with European regulators, Uber chief executive Travis Kalanick said today his company intends to add 50,000 jobs in the region and get 400,000 cars off the road.

Such growth could give a badly needed jolt to a sluggish European economy. But to do that, he said, governments across Europe need to rethink regulations that are hampering the expansion plans of the San Francisco-based ride-sharing service.

Kalanick made his remarks today at the Digital Life Design Conference in Munich, Germany. He was making one of his biggest public appearances on stage since Uber was battered by a series of public-relations nightmares late last year. Those missteps included an executive talking about campaigns to discredit journalists, questions about how Uber handles the privacy of users, and accusations that a driver in India raped a passenger.

All of these were piled on top of a spectacular number of regulatory confrontations Uber faces around the globe. Indeed, Kalanick was speaking in one of several European countries that are trying to ban Uber.

Still, in a talk that was followed by a Q&A session, Kalanick said he wanted to establish a new partnership with European cities. And he trotted out a series of stats about jobs the company has created in places like Paris, where the company also faces a series of regulatory headaches.

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Three men tunnel into Beijing warehouse, make off with $300,000 worth of iPhones

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 19 Jan 2015 21:06:00 +0000

Three men tunned into a warehouse in Beijing and stole 240 iPhone 6 units worth $300,000. The men have since then been arrested.

The men — one of whom was previously employed by the company as a driver — used money gleaned from the devices' sale to gamble and purchase cars and gold, according to state-owned news agency Xinhua. The phones' serial numbers were used to track down the thieves, though it remains unclear what role they played.

Apple is widely expected to announce record sales for the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus in China later this month. Devices are still difficult to come by months after their release, though lead times are now measured in days, rather than weeks.

The men, one of whom worked as a driver for the warehouse owned by a Chinese logistic firm, dug a 20-inch hole through the building’s wall.

The thieves then went about spending the money from selling the phones on gambling, cars, and gold. The police tracked down the serial numbers of the stolen phones, which led to their capture.

Earlier this week a man was caught smuggling 95 iPhone 6 units by taping them to his body.

The man was arrested, and I kid you not, after the authorities found him walking with a weird posture at a checkpoint in Shenzhen.

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Samsung Galaxy Note 4 S-LTE will be released as early this week, the first phone with 450 Mbps data speeds

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 19 Jan 2015 20:42:00 +0000

Samsung 'Galaxy Note 4S-LET' and LG 'G Flex 2' fight for pride over performance.
The telecommunication and cell phone industry began to compete with one another in 3-band Carrier Aggregation (CA) marketing. With the LG G Flex 2 scheduled to be released on January 30, the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 S-LTE is forecast to be launched earlier than that. Manufacturers are forecast to fight for pride over the performance of terminals and mobile carriers are expected to fiercely compete with one another in marketing to attract customers.

Samsung is set to launch the Galaxy Note 4 S-LTE in a low-profile announcement later this week. The first phone to support Cat. 9 LTE for theoretical download speeds of up to 450Mbps will however be available only in its home market.

The phone was initially said to pack the mighty Snapdragon 810 chipset, but industry insiders report that Samsung has chosen the safe side and gone for the home-brewed Exynos 5433. This will allow the manufacturer to beat to market the other current LTE Cat. 9 enabled device, the curved LG G Flex2.

The possibility for such high transfer speeds has been opened by a technology dubbed Carrier Aggregation. By combining three bands of (20+10+10)MHz in the 2100MHz spectrum, carrier SK Telecom enables downlink speeds of up to 300Mbps. Utilizing (20+20+20)MHz bands brings the theoretical transfer speed up to 450Mbps.

The source however claims that while upcoming user devices will support the technology, the real bottleneck of the system is the lack of nationwide availability of base stations supporting it.

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CES 2015: QDots or nanocrystals, quantum dots is the futur of TV

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 09 Jan 2015 20:54:00 +0000

If you’ve been paying attention to the market for TVs over the last few months, and especially during CES this week, you’ve been hearing a lot about 4K and 8K. But the real action today, and going forward, is in quantum dots.

Known alternately as QDots or nanocrystals, quantum dots are the foundation behind what is expected to be one of the biggest sea changes in the television market over the next few years.

A lighting technology that has been around since the 1990s, quantum dots have only recently started to gain currency with TV makers. But they may soon be the hottest thing in the high-end TV market given that they offer lower costs, higher energy efficiency, and better colors than competing technologies, experts say.

As 4K sets have come down in price, dropping below $1,000 in some cases after costing at least $4,000 just a couple years ago, and manufacturers have jammed just about as many pixels into displays as they can, consumers want the next great thing, and they’re willing to pay for it.

“TV manufacturers need something else to differentiate on the high end,” said Paul Gagnan, an industry analyst with Display Search. “The focus right now is on producing better pixels, not just more pixels. I can see that the improved color movement has legs…. You’re going to see more products, so this is not just a short-term thing.”

Taking off at CES
This week at CES, China’s TCL announced a 55-inch quantum dot-powered TV, and monitor makers Philips and AOC have said they will begin shipping 27-inch quantum dot displays within 60 days. In the coming months, major TV makers like Samsung, LG, and others will be adopting the technology in premium models.

A quantum dot is a nano material, essentially a semiconductor material, with special properties, explained John Volkmann, the chief marketing officer for QD Vision, one of the leading developers of the technology. It was designed to do a highly efficient job of breaking down light, and producing colors that are “very true to the spectrum.”

Among TV aficionados, OLED (organic light-emitting diode) has been seen as the highest-quality technology on the market. But according to Volkmann, quantum dots are a much cheaper, even higher-quality alternative.

At the moment, there are several different approaches to integrating quantum dots into displays. One, used by companies like LG, Samsung, and 3M, is to spread the dots on thin film, which is then added to the stack of films beneath a display. The other is a thin tube coated with quantum dots that’s used in edge-lit LCD backlit configurations, Gagnan explained.

Gagnan said the tube approach — which is from QD Vision — is less expensive, because it uses fewer dots. But not every manufacturer is set up to use tubes. In both cases, however, an advantage over OLED is that existing manufacturing facilities can easily incorporate quantum dots.

Essentially, quantum dots are said to be a better back-lighting technology than what has been used in standard LED-lit liquid crystal display TVs, allowing manufacturers to continue using the same factories as they move to quantum dots.

By comparison, Volkmann said, OLED requires dedicated factories.

How do they work?
Quantum dots are meant to provide a more efficient way to light the pixels in the LCD display.

In a standard LCD TV, a white light shines through a color filter, generating a picture by blending red, green, and blue lights and projecting them onto pixels. That approach, however, has its limitations. “Today’s TVs use LEDs to provide the ‘white backlight,” according to Digital Trends, “but here’s the problem with this setup: LEDs suck at producing white light.”

Gagnan agrees. “LED chips that produce white light are not sufficient to produce all the colors,” he said. “Manufacturers need a way to bump that up.”

Enter quantum dots.

The technology is meant to amp up the power of the white light generated by LEDs. “When you illuminate them with a blue LED, they emit full-spectrum light,” Gagnan said.

The idea is that the color produced by shining light through them changes depending on the atomic-sized dots’ width. “Since the size of a quantum dot can now be precisely controlled,” wrote Digital Trends, “the resulting light they put out can be dialed in just as precisely.”

There are, of course, multiple ways to boost the quality of a TV picture’s color, though at varying degrees of improvement. Other methods, explained Gagnan, are to increase the thickness of the color filter in an LCD or to use a special LED chip with a coating of red or green phosphorus. Both of those are cheaper solutions than quantum dots, and are likely to be seen in entry-level TVs. But because quantum dots are better, Gagnan said, they will be the option of choice in premium sets.

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AI: Artificial intelligence is real now and it’s just getting started

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 09 Jan 2015 20:49:00 +0000

Artificial intelligence is already very real. Not conscious machines, omnipotent machines or even reasoning machines (yet), but statistical machines that automate and increasingly can outperform humans at certain pattern-recognition tasks. Computer vision, language understanding, anomaly detection and other fields have made immense advances in the past few years.

All this work will be the stepping stones for future AI systems that, decades from now, might perform feats we’ve only imagined computers could perform. There are brain-inspired neurosynaptic microchips under development, and quantum artificial intelligence might only be a decade away. Some experts predict general artificial intelligence — perhaps even artificial superintelligence — will happen easily within this century.

The effects that AI is having and will have on business, the economy and, most importantly, humanity certainly merit consideration. It’s a discussion we’ll have at our Structure Data conference, which takes place March 18 and 19 in New York, and includes some of the top AI and machine learning researchers, practitioners and thinkers. Confirmed speakers so far include:

Ron Brachman, Yahoo
Rob Fergus, Facebook Artificial Intelligence Research
Ahna Girshick, Enlitic
Jeff Hawkins, Numenta
Steven Horng, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School
Anthony Lewis, Qualcomm
Gary Marcus, New York University
Dharmendra Modha, IBM Research
Naveen Rao, Nervana Systems
Ashutosh Saxena, Stanford University
Julie Shah, Massachussetts Institute of Technology
Davide Venturelli, NASA Quantum Artificial Intelligence Laboratory
Brian Whitman, Spotify
Dan Zigmond, Hampton Creek

We plan to confirm additional speakers in the next couple weeks. We’ll delve even further into the topic of AI in all its facets at the inaugural Structure Intelligence conference. That’s currently scheduled to take place in San Francisco in September, and more details will be available soon.

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CES 2015: Here’s how iBeacons can fit into the mobile customer’s buying journey

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 09 Jan 2015 20:43:00 +0000

Amsterdam-based Mobile Bridge is today offering a complete vision of how store-based iBeacons can be integrated into a mobile marketing platform.

The company’s platform, which only emerged from stealth in June at the MobileBeat conference, offers a suite of integrated functions that can be added as a layer on top of any existing or new native or hybrid mobile app — such as messaging, loyalty cards, polls, or mini-games. Mobile Bridge is also integrated with a variety of enterprise systems, such as customer relationship management and e-commerce.

The new capability, part of today’s Mobile Bridge platform relaunch, enlarges a previous, bare-bones iBeacon function that the company had offered.

“Now, we can personalize the content” based not only on where you’re standing in a store, CEO Eyal Oster told VentureBeat, but on your personal history with the store.

As an example, he suggested imagining that you are a customer who is known to a brick-and-mortar store’s CRM because you bought a video game console a few weeks ago. Additionally, the store’s point-of-sale (POS) system is connected to Mobile Bridge.

“We know it’s your birthday,” Oster added. The platform pushes a message to you through the store app, offering the birthday gift of a discount coupon for a video game if you play a simple scratchcard mobile game.

After you play the scratchcard game, you get awarded a 30 percent off coupon that you save into your in-app wallet, ready for redemption.

We talked to 230 developers and studied 1.8M apps to find the best app analytics solutions.

A few days later, when you visit the store where you bought the console, the store app on your phone receives a location-specifying signal from a ceiling-mounted iBeacon in the games section. Via cellular network or the store’s Wi-Fi, the app relays the info to Mobile Bridge that you’re standing in that store’s games section. The platform returns an on-screen reminder of the discount coupon.

You succumb, and finally buy a new game at a discount.

Beacons are small electronic devices that retailers mount on the ceilings or walls of a store. By locally broadcasting small packets of uniquely ID’d data, they can let an app on a customer’s phone know exactly where the customer is standing in the store. The location data is then sent to the app’s server, which sends back geo-specific sale info, coupons, or other data via cellular network or a store’s Wi-Fi.

Step by step, iBeacons — Apple’s version of beacon technology — are becoming integrated into every customer-facing platform. Mobile Bridge’s implementation shows how beacons are becoming a fully functioning component of a customer’s mobile journey.

Oster told us that, while competitors like AppBoy “have the [mobile marketing] automation part down nicely,” Mobile Bridge is “more integrated into the enterprise” with communication into POS, CRM, and other systems.

He also said that his company’s platform enables a user to “actually manage the content” through one of dozens of deployable games included in the platform, a suite of message-creation tools, and other resources.

Founded in 2012, Mobile Bridge’s name is not yet widely known, largely because it offers its platform as a white label to marketing firms like Digitas, as well as to system integrators and value-added resellers. They, in turn, have been offering the platform to their clients, including Pirelli Tires, Nestle, and distributor Ingram Micro.

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ComScore: Facebook Messenger soars in usage at expense of Facebook’s core app

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 09 Jan 2015 20:28:00 +0000

Facebook’s unbundling of its Messenger tool into a stand-alone app was a spectacularly successful move for the social media company — except for overall usage of Facebook’s flagship app.

That’s one of the main takeaways from the ComScore mobile app data report for November, 2014, released today.

According to the report, Facebook’s app was the top app (by percent of overall reach) in November, at 69 percent. Its Messenger app came in fifth, with a reach of 43.1 percent. A year ago, those numbers stood at 76.2 percent and 22.1 percent, respectively.

Of course, it’s no accident that Messenger use grew so quickly: Facebook split Messenger off in August, forcing people who wanted to chat with their friends from their phones to use the stand-alone app.

The new ComScore data makes it clear that Facebook’s users consider mobile messaging a vital feature, and were willing to do what it took to keep on doing so, despite significant public hand-wringing at the time at being forced to use a new tool. By November, Facebook said at the time, half a billion people had migrated to the app.

Facebook was a big winner in the report, with Instagram coming in ninth, with a reach of 30.7 percent. Google had six of the top 15 apps, including second-place Google Play, third-place Google Search, and fourth-place YouTube, while Twitter’s mobile app lagged behind, in eleventh place, with just 21.3 percent reach.

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SpaceX Could be Cleared for Military Air Force Rocket Deals by Mid-2015

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 09 Jan 2015 13:47:00 +0000

By mid-2015, SpaceX might finally be able to compete for some of the 36 or so rocket launches the US Air Force is planning, according to The Wall Street Journal. If you recall, the Elon Musk-helmed company sued the Air Force last year, after the military branch awarded a nearly exclusive contract worth $11 billion to United Launch Alliance. ULA, which Musk criticized for using Russian engines from the 90's on its rockets, is a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed Martin.

"The U.S. Air Force said on Wednesday that it expects to clear Elon Musk’s space venture to compete for Pentagon satellite launches by mid-2015, six months later than previously planned."

The SpaceX founder then publicly pinpointed bribery as the reason why his company wasn't even given the right or the chance to bid on the contract: "V[ery] likely AF official [Roger] Correll was told by ULA/Rocketdyne that a rich VP job was his if he gave them a sole source contract," he wrote on Twitter. He also revealed that Correll tried to take a job at SpaceX, but the company declined.

After Musk filed the lawsuit, another Air Force official, General William Shelton, came forward to say that military was working to certify SpaceX and give it the power to bid for a handful of the launches. The review process was supposed to be done by the end of 2014, but as we've mentioned earlier, it'll take the Pentagon around six more months to come up with an answer. The Air Force didn't give a reason for the delay, though it has announced that the commercial space company already met over 80 percent of the requirements. Since the ULA reportedly landed the hefty contract due to a high launch success rate, we'll bet the military will keep an eye on SpaceX's test flight on Friday. The company will attempt to land its rocket on a barge during the test, a technique that could save the Pentagon loads of money in the future.

Apple Watch launch expected in March, retail training set for mid-February

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 07 Jan 2015 18:19:00 +0000

Apple is on track to launch the Apple Watch by the end of March this year, and retail training is set to start next month, according to a new report. The company had earlier only said that device would launch in early 2015.

As per the report, the tech giant is currently wrapping up work on the smartwatch software, and it is now busy with other things like testing the device’s battery and improving the inductive charging mechanism.

The Cupertino-based company is also planning on familiarizing Apple Retail Store employees with the new product through training programs that are scheduled to be held from February 9-16 at Apple offices in either Cupertino, California, or Austin, Texas.

The report, however, notes that the current plans are not set in stone, and "unexpected delays in software development and manufacturing" could force the company to delay the launch even further.

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CES 2015: Intel’s 5th Gen Core processors are finally, really here! named The Broadwell

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 07 Jan 2015 17:08:00 +0000

The biggest day of CES is the day before CES. Come to think of it, the day before that (Sunday) is pretty big too. But Monday is press conference day, the day some of the industry’s biggest and most important companies get on stage and launch somewhere between five and 5,000 new products...

The Broadwell codename has been on Intel's lips for many months now. The big chipmaker's move to 14nm production has proven bumpy and delayed the anticipated launch of its latest processor family, but today all those delays come to an end and the 5th generation of Core processors are ready to roll out in actual computers you can buy.

POWER CONSUMPTION KEEPS DROPPING, POWER PRODUCTION KEEPS INCREASING

Promising battery life improvements between 20 and 30 percent relative to current Haswell chips, the typical 15W Broadwell CPU will last an average of 90 minutes longer than its predecessor when playing back video. The first members of the Broadwell family were announced last year under the Core M brand, but Intel's Kirk Skaugen describes them as geared specifically to address the category of 2-in-1 devices: ones that are neither tablets nor laptops, but a unique combination of the two.

Today, Intel is adding 14 new processors under its Core i3, i5, and i7 designations while also expanding its Pentium and Celeron ranges with new models as well. This is the first time in the company's history that it's refreshing every segment of its consumer CPU lineup at the same time. Frankly, even the already announced Core M devices haven't shipped out in massive volumes, so Broadwell's day zero is really and truly today.

So what should we expect from Intel's new chips? All the usual improvements are present. The die size has shrunken by 37 percent, but it now fits 35 percent more transistors, for a total of 1.3 billion. According to Intel, 3D graphics rendering has improved by as much as 22 percent, while performance in its traditional strength of video encoding has leapt up by 50 percent. The graphics portion of the chip has gotten a boost and Intel's WiDi wireless streaming option can now stream full 4K video.

STAY TUNED TO CES, THE BEST IS YET TO COME

More important than any of the spec bumps, however, are the machines that these new Broadwell chips are making possible. I saw a selection of them in a preview hosted by Intel on Sunday and there are a couple that will be introduced later this week that are truly impressive. Taken together with the Transformer Book Chi and Ativ Book 9 already announced by Asus and Samsung, respectively, this batch of new computers is set to revitalize the laptop market in a big way. And yes, despite the comprehensive nature of Intel's upgrades with Broadwell, the focus remains strongly on power efficiency and ensuring maximum mobility. This is not the next big thing for desktop gamers, although Intel still sees plenty of potential to find willing upgraders, citing a captive market of over 600 million PCs that haven't been upgraded in the past four years or more.

Intel anticipates laptops, 2-in-1s, tablets, convertibles, and a number of power-sipping desktop PCs with Broadwell inside to start making their way into retail channels very soon. The company has been shipping its 5th Gen Core chips out in volume for a few months now and its hardware partners are ready to finally release their long-promised next-gen machines. The wait has been long, but on the evidence of the new computers arriving at CES, it looks to have been worth it.

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VIA: Motors Academy, Akibatech , DSM-Tech

CES 2015: Sensoria a fitness tracking socks that track your run

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 07 Jan 2015 16:45:00 +0000

Follow our coverage of the CES 2015 and anything of the Technology World one by one only on our social media.

For more, head to our Facebook page and throw us a like or follow us on Twitter or add us to your circle in Google + and also follow us on Instagram, so that you won’t miss out any breaking news.

Be the first to hear about exciting and great projects in the works

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SOURCE : @DSM_CORP

VIA: Motors Academy, Akibatech , DSM-Tech

DSM Technologies is live from CES 2015

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 06 Jan 2015 21:15:00 +0000

As promised the DSM Technologies is back. Like each and every year we start with one of the biggest tech event in north america, location Las Vegas, NV for the 2015 CES.

The team's slowly making its way to Las Vegas for the 2015 edition of the Consumer Electronic Show. Samsung's massive banner is already boasting that the next big thing is here, though, with the official start of the event still a few days off, only time will tell.

The biggest day of CES is the day before CES. Come to think of it, the day before that (Sunday) is pretty big too. But Monday is press conference day, the day some of the industry’s biggest and most important companies get on stage and launch somewhere between five and 5,000 new products. (Some of them will be washing machines.) If you’re excited about the future of technology and the gadget industry, there’s no bigger day than CES Day Zero.

That day is yesterday. Monday, January 5th, 2015. Was live all over Las Vegas, following every event, every announcement, every time Michael Bay melts down during a Samsung event because he forgot his lines and should probably stick to directing. For the biggest events, we’ll be on the scene liveblogging, bringing you everything in real time as it happens.

Follow our coverage of the CES 2015 and anything of the Technology World one by one only on our social media.

For more, head to our Facebook page and throw us a like or follow us on Twitter or add us to your circle in Google + and also follow us on Instagram, so that you won’t miss out any breaking news.

Be the first to hear about exciting and great projects in the works

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Dynamic-Design/430509697084043?hc_location=timeline

SOURCE : @DSM_CORP

VIA: Motors Academy, Akibatech , DSM-Tech