Pebble’s new Core pocket computer will ship with Alexa voice integration

Pebble’s new Core pocket computer will ship with Alexa voice integration

Pebble

Sure Pebble put its best forward when it launched not one but three new products the other week, but a startup’s got to stagger a little bit of news to keep us interested ahead of launch (though judging by its current tally of $9.7 million on Kickstarter, the company is doing just fine in the buzz department, thank you very much).

Today’s news entails the Pebble Core, the real dark horse of group product launch. The little runner-focused keychain computer will be getting Amazon Alexa integration when it starts shipping to backers early next year. This move, Pebble is quick to point out, makes the Core the “first fully-mobile wearable” to officially get the Amazon voice functionality.

Among the host of voice-related features are the ability to play music by way of Amazon Prime Music and iHeartRadio, headline news reading, Pebble Health summaries, weather and traffic updates, Amazon shopping and smart home device control. Really, the stuff you might otherwise be doing on a screen. And, naturally, as Alexa functionality increases, so too will its usefulness on the Core.

Pebble’s also using the opportunity to remind potential developers that the Core’s “infinitely hackable platform” is open, as well. No doubt the company is hoping such hacking opportunities will lead to even more functionality ahead of the product’s 2017 launch.

source: thecrunch

Build Windows Holographic devices with wider fields of view

Microsoft says partners can build Windows Holographic devices with wider fields of view.

At its Computex Taipei keynote today, Microsoft announced sweeping plans to build off its HoloLens experiment by creating a fully fledged Windows Holographic platform for hardware partners. The platform is aimed at VR and AR headset makers; Microsoft demonstrated an HTC Vive working in tandem with a HoloLens on stage. After the presentation, Windows chief Terry Myerson and OEMs VP Nick Parker took questions on the initiative in a meeting with reporters.

"The framework with which we're approaching this... we have a Microsoft HoloLens device where we're going to push hard on what's possible with Microsoft HoloLens," Myerson said, when asked about about a timeframe for HoloLens technology becoming more accessible. "And the current price point of HoloLens is $3,000. What we're announcing today is the opportunity to work with our partners that have their own vision for different price points, different form factors and other ways to use the same platform."

A hot new smartphone brand might finally be coming to America

A hot new smartphone brand might finally be coming to America

Xiaomi

Xiaomi certainly wasn’t the first smartphone company to unashamedly copy Apple, but it likely did the most thorough job of it following the company’s launch back in 2010. At one point, the Chinese smartphone startup even had a man in a black mock turtleneck and jeans unveil a new smartphone on stage as a press conference. The tech media pointed and laughed, but Xiaomi laughed all the way to the bank — the company’s valuation climbed to as high as $46 billion in late 2015, and it has enjoyed faster growth than any other smartphone maker in recent years.

Asustek introduces Zenbo

Asustek introduces Zenbo, its smart home manager

Asustek Computer Inc chairman Jonney Shih introduces Zenbo, the “smart little companion,” during a news conference yesterday ahead of the Computex trade show in Taipei.

Asustek Computer Inc (華碩) yesterday introduced its first voice-controlled home robot as a “smart home manager,” officially tapping into the robotic sector.
“Our ambition is to enable robotic computing for every household,” Asustek chairman Jonney Shih (施崇棠) told a news conference in Taipei.
Zenbo, which is described as a “less-cute, real-world version of Star Wars’ BB-8 droid” by tech news site the Verge, can function as a kitchen assistant, security guard, companion for seniors or children, and a photographer.
Shih called on global hardware and software developers to join Asustek’s “developers’ program” to help create applications and content for Zenbo.

“Together we can make Zenbo the best and most practical robot for every household. Together we can work on the next chapter of proactive computing,” Shih said.
Compared with SoftBank Corp’s service humanoid robot Pepper, which is priced at ￥198,000 (US$1,782), Asustek’s home robot is “shorter” and cheaper at US$599.
No release date has been announced.
Asustek chief executive officer Jerry Shen (沈振來) told reporters on the sidelines of the event that Zenbo might not hit the market before the end of the year, as there is “still work to do and some adjustments to make.”
No other information regarding the specifications or manufacturing details of Zenbo were revealed, as Shih declined to take questions from reporters after the news event.
In addition to the introduction of Zenbo, Asustek launched three new models of its third-generation ZenFoen — the ZenFone 3, ZenFone 3 Deluxe and Zenfone 3 Ultra.
The three new models are mainly powered by Qualcomm Inc’s processor, as Asustek has gradually increased adoption of chips by Qualcomm, instead of Intel’s.
The change follows Intel’s withdrawal of its subsidy plan in the first half of last year.
The 5.5-inch ZenFone 3 starts from US$249, a similar price range to the ZenFone 2.
The higher-end 5.7-inch ZenFone 3 Deluxe and 6.8-inch ZenFone 3 Ultra are priced from US$479, a move that indicates Asustek’s attempt to increase the average sale price of its ZenFone.

Shen this month told investors that the company expects its smartphone shipment momentum to pick up significantly in the second half of this year, after the launch of the ZenFone 3 series.
Asustek aims to ship a total of 25 million smartphones this year, up 25 percent from last year’s 20 million, the company said.

source: www.taipeitimes.com

Computex 2016: Acer arrives with 5,000mAh handset, laptops, and 'Internet of Beings' products

Computex 2016: Acer arrives with 5,000mAh handset, laptops, and 'Internet of Beings' products

Prior to the start of Computex 2016, Acer has launched its new product range, including a number of IoT devices, laptops, notebooks, monitors, and a new cheap phone with a massive battery.

Taiwanese hardware manufacturer Acer has taken the wraps off a number of products that it will be showcasing at Computex 2016.

Image: Acer)

Leading the way is the Liquid Zest Plus, a 5.5-inch smartphone running Android Marshmallow packing a 5,000mAh battery that the company says is worth up to three days' usage without recharging. The handset also has fast-charging ability to regain 50 percent of its charge in less than an hour.

The Liquid Zest Plus will be available in North America and EMEA in July, with prices starting at $199 and €199, respectively.

On the small business front, the company announced two TravelMate P2 notebooks aimed at the sector.

Available in 14-inch and 15.6-inch sizes, the notebooks pack a Skylake-based Intel processor, can have up to 32GB of memory, and use Nvidia GeForce 940M discrete graphics. New for the P2 series, the notebook will ship with Windows 10, and while storage was not mentioned, the P2s traditionally use spinning rust drives.

The TravelMate P2 series will hit Europe and China in August, with pricing from €429 and ¥3,999, respectively, while North America is slated for the fourth quarter from $599.

HP has a backpack PC for tether-free VR in the works under the Omen X brand.

The experiment has finished HP has a backpack PC for tether-free VR in the works under the Omen X brand.

Backpack PC

After announcing its new lineup of Omen gaming products earlier this week, HP is now teasing a prototype “Omen X” desktop that customers can wear on their back. Why? For mobile virtual reality, of course. This new trend seemingly began with Zotac and was countered by MSI’s backpack VR solution, which is set to make its debut next week during Computex in Taipei.

Unfortunately, because HP is toying around with a prototype, we don’t have any hard facts to present. Instead, the company teased the press with a PowerPoint presentation and several photos. However, what we can say is that this device won’t be stuffed into a backpack, but will come with straps so that it can be worn on the user’s back. Right now, it’s simply a development kit called the Omen X VR PC Pack.

According to the HP slides, the Omen brand targets the performance gamer with an emphasis on delivering maximum gaming performance per dollar. The Omen X brand is targeted at the enthusiast gamer, with products that are overbuilt and overengineered to deliver innovation in the gaming space. The new HP VR PC Pack hardware seems to do just that.

HP Omen X VR PC PackBased on a brief overview provided to Digital Trends by HP, this developer kit includes two USB Type-A ports, two USB 3.1 Type-C ports, one HDMI port, one audio combo jack, one DC output jack for headphone power, two battery DC input jacks, and one DC input jack for connecting the desktop to a wall outlet. The hardware is housed inside a rounded back chassis with a checkered triangular pattern on the side facing away from the user’s back. It’s also decorated with red trimming and sports the company’s Omen logo and branding.


HP doesn’t say what headsets will be compatible with the backpack PC, but it should work just fine for the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift. The latter solution requires an HDMI port and two USB 3.0 ports at the least, whereas the HTC Vive requires an HDMI port and a single USB 2.0 port or greater. We presume HP is using the HDMI 1.3 protocol in its development kit.

Note that Facebook/Oculus VR doesn’t list HP as an Oculus Rift-ready desktop vendor, whereas HTC lists the HP Envy Phoenix as a solution optimized for the HTC Vive experience. Also note that Oculus VR actually recommends desktops with three USB 3.0 ports and a USB 2.0 port, along with HDMI output, meaning Oculus Rift owners might not achieve the optimum experience when using the Omen X backpack PC. The HTC Vive seems to be the target headset.

Unfortunately, no matter how much we begged, HP would not cough up the hardware specifications for the current developer kit. However, the company did admit that the current model supports the latest quad-core Core i5/i7 H processors from Intel, M.2 SSDs with up to 512GB of capacity, and up to 32GB of DDR4 memory.

This dev kit also sports a battery belt that connects directly to the backpack PC. Each of the two supplied high-output rechargeable batteries only lasts for an hour in their present form, and can be hot-swapped when one gets too low on juice. The battery belt not only serves to juice up the backpack, but to counterbalance the computer so that it’s not pulling users to the floor. HP uses high-output batteries so that the CPU and GPU can run at full wattage.

But get this: HP isn’t simply throwing a PC on your back and sending you on your way. The Omen X VR PC Pack is lightweight (the target max weight is 10 pounds), and includes a dual-fan rear-venting solution so that the heated components aren’t making your back sweat. Now that’s neat.

The Omen X VR PC Pack is essentially a desktop on your back, meaning owners can take the straps off, place it on a table, hook up a display and peripherals, and use it like any other Windows-based PC. When users are ready to play again, just remove the cables, attach the headset and straps, and they’re ready to jump into the virtual playground again.

Given this model is indeed a developer kit, HP has no idea when a final product will be shipped to consumers. However, a representative told Digital Trends that the company will begin showing the VR backpack in demos within the next month. We’re betting it will make an appearance at E3-2016 in June.

Until then, the company is soliciting product requests from developers and independent software vendors to receive the kit, and to work with HP on the future of this cool, new product. Maybe that means we’ll see a final product later this year. Or maybe not. We shall see.

source: www.digitaltrends.com

Google to Boost Mobile Web Speed on Apple Devices

Google to Boost Mobile Web Speed on Apple Devices.

Google’s big plan to speed up mobile websites is picking up on Apple mobile devices.

The Google iOS app for devices like the iPhone and iPad now supports the search giant’s Accelerated Mobile Pages project, created to increase the loading times of news articles on the Internet.

Now when users search for news from their Apple AAPL -0.16% devices using the Google GOOG 1.18% app, they should see streamlined news articles from media companies like The Washington Post that chose to participate in Google’s web project.
The AMP project is a Google-led initiative to standardize the software code behind each news article on the mobile web. AMP was designed to remove years of accumulated software code that has built up on online publishers’ websites.

This extraneous code, which often comes from tracking cookies or other software features publishers have added over the years, can cause news articles to load at a snail’s pace.

As of Friday, iOS users should see a lightning bolt graphic and the letters “AMP” next to news articles from participating publishers in the “Top Stories” section of their search results in the Google app.

Because Google’s search engine rewards online publishers whose websites are fast with higher search rankings, there’s a possibility that publishers who choose not to implement Google’s AMP project could see their own websites fall down the rankings.

In December, Google executives explained at a press event that website speed is just one of many factors Google uses to determine its search rankings.

“The way we think about it is, speed is one of those critical ranking factors, not the only one that you need, and AMP says to us, basically, ‘I’m consistently fast,’” said Galfi at the time.

Last week at Google’s annual developer conference, the search giant detailed more of its AMP project as well as its sister-initiative known as the Progressive Web App (PWA). 

Whereas AMP only cleans up the code of news articles, the PWA takes it a step further and streamlines the code of an entire website. It also while make it easier for mobile websites to have app-like features like notifications and online payment services. Both Apple and Facebook also have their own projects to make it easier to read news articles on mobile devices. The iPhone maker has its Apple News app, while the social network has its Instant Articles program in which news articles can load more quickly within the Facebook app.

source: www.fortune.com