Tech News Today for March 29, 2017
Tech News for Wednesday March 29, 2017
Samsung held its big flagship event to unveil new hardware this morning. First, the eagerly anticipated Galaxy S8 with a 5.8” display and the S8+ with a 6.2” display. Scratch that -- INFINITY display as Samsung put it, which is basically new marketing around what it used to call its Edge display. The home button is moved behind the front display, similar in ways to Apple’s 3D touch. The phone’s design is rounded and curved throughout, with an improved front facing camera, iris scanning and facial recognition, and the company’s new 10 nanometer processor for better efficiency and power in a smaller space. Read more at theverge.com.
Other announcements from the event include the Samsung Dex that docks the device for a desktop environment using an attached monitor, keyboard and mouse. Read more at engadget.com.
Rounding up the announcements, Samsung showed off its Samsung Connect home router that includes support for Smart Things IoT devices out of the box. Samsung also updated its Gear 360 spherical camera to support 4K resolution and live streaming support. Finally, the Gear VR has been updated to include a new motion controller ala Daydream View, but it costs a steeper $129 thanks to the new added hardware. Read more at cnet.com.
Get ready for Windows 10 Creators Update. You can't get it now, but you can get it soon and we're pretty sure we know the date -- April 11. If you have an Xbox, you're in luck because Xbox Windows 10 Creators update is out now. That update includes many useful features, including easy ways to stream your gameplay and a tool called co-pilot which helps you teach non-gamers how to play certain games. Windows Insiders who've already gotten their hands on the update say its not very creative despite the name. Read more at zdnet.com.
Mobile analytics firm App Annie is projecting that Android will lead in-app based revenue this year, which would be the first time Google’s mobile OS would surpass Apple’s lead. However, that includes revenue from all app stores and not just Google’s official Google Play store. Third party stores include those by Xiaomi, Huawei, Baidu and Tencent among others, which is to say that this is still a big milestone for Android as a whole, but not as much for Google itself. Read more at techcrunch.com.
Tesla has released an update to Autopilot 2.0 that improves the car's semi-autonomous driving features, but don't fall asleep at the wheel just yet. You can now use the autosteer feature at up to 80 miles per hour. Previously it was limited to 55 miles per hour. Read more at electrek.co.
Google has a rich history when it comes to open source. After all, many of Google’s biggest efforts like Chrome OS and Android are based on Linux. Google just launched a new site that brings all of its many open source initiatives under one roof. Google Open Source, at opensource.google.com, shows the companies dedication to Open Source by showcasing projects like Chromium, Android and TensorFlow just to name a few. Google says its goal is to help its users “find interesting open source”. Read more at zdnet.com.
Uber competitor Lyft thinks the future of ride sharing is ACTUAL ride-sharing. The company just announced a new shuttle service which plans to disrupt public transportation. Lyft Line is a ride sharing app for commuters that operates along a set route with specific pickup and drop-off points. You know, like a bus that you're not organized or on time enough to ride so you call an Uber. Read more at theverge.com.
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