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- Updated: iPhone 6S release date, news and features
- Silent Circle packs the upgrades into ultra-secure Blackphone 2
- This Nexus 6P specs leak tells all about Google's new Android phone
- In Depth: Halo 5 multiplayer is anything but spartan
- JB Hi-Fi shutting the book on ebooks
- Updated: Supermoon lunar eclipse: how to see the rare blood moon tonight
- Wikimedia founder sees another 1 billion phone users in the next 5 years
- New iPhones survive an hour underwater in waterproofing test
- Running Man of Tech: How much would you pay to make your Apple Watch look like this?
- Buying guide: 10 of the best desktop PCs you can buy in 2015
- YouTube's premium subscription service is almost ready to go
- 101 expert tips
- Facebook wants to get you and your friends blogging again
- Hands-on review: Updated: Samsung Gear VR (S6)
- Hands-on review: Updated: Oculus Rift
- UK spies reportedly saw everything you did on the internet
- iOS Tips: How to access iCloud files with iOS 9
- 7 ways Apple CarPlay and Android Auto can save you from yourself
| Updated: iPhone 6S release date, news and features Posted: 28 Sep 2015 01:15 AM PDT  iPhone 6S release date, concept and designiPhone 6S is how Apple intends to spell success this year, even though the phone's design doesn't look all that different and it isn't really called the iPhone 7 after all. With the new iPhone, it's what's on the inside that counts, as a teacher resembling Apple CEO Tim Cook may have once told you. The same applies to the nearly identical iPhone 6S Plus, too. Update: Our final iPhone 6S review put Apple's new phone to the early test. Read how it fared, or conti continue to read about all its features below. The most important iPhone 6S news is that you're in for a significant specs upgrade, with a faster performing phone, a novel 3D Touch screen and a much superior 12MP camera. Is there enough here for an upgrade? Now that it's out in stores, let's break down all of the details, from the iPhone 6S price, to the design, to camera and, and finally, the battery life. See the iPhone 6S in action in our first look video: YouTube : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHlVqbLL69IiPhone 6S release dateThe official iPhone 6S release date was last Friday, September 25 in a dozen countries, including the US, UK and Australia. Pre-orders began more than a week earlier on Saturday, September 12. There was strong demand of the "rose gold" iPhone 6S from the moment Cook revealed that new pale pink color during the iPhone press conference at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco.
Interestingly, Apple let fans line up in front of its Apple Stores on launch day, unlike the more tame Apple Watch release date, but it let in-store pickup reservation holders go first, in our line experiences. That means, no matter how long people physically waited in line for the launch, being online was the best way to score the rose gold iPhone on day one. iPhone 6S priceApple answered all of the new iPhone rumors during its live event earlier this month, including the all-important question: how much does iPhone 6S cost?
"Any iPhone you want is pretty affordable," according to Apple, which of course means it's just as expensive. Apple never uses soft adjectives like "pretty" when words like "definitely" and "unquestionably" exist. It's thoroughly unapologetic about that. The iPhone 6S price starts at $649 in the US, £539 in the UK and AU$1,079 in Australia. That's the same price as last year's iPhone 6 in the US and UK. It'll be $199 in the US on a two-year contract. That's for the entry-level configuration, which again starts at a paltry 16GB. The iPhone 6S in a more accommodating 64GB is $749 (£619, AU$1,229) and 128GB is ($849, £699, AU$1,379). Once again, there's no 32GB iPhone when almost every Android this year began with that storage size.
There's no price change, but a revision is being made to the how US consumers go about buying the new iPhone. Instead of "starting at $199," it'll cost around $27 or more a month from carriers. Apple had to pivot to also mention this monthly device payment plans being offered by Verizon, AT&T, Sprint T-Mobile and others. Apple also introduced an "iPhone Upgrade Program" of its own that starts at $32 a month, includes a new unlocked iPhone every year for $0 and throws in its AppleCare+ protection. You end up spending $384 on the phone over 12 months and trade-in the working iPhone for the next one. iPhone 6S: it won't bendApple attacked last year's iPhone 6 Bendgate problems head on, almost exactly like it addressed iPhone 4 AntennaGate flaws when the iPhone 4S was announced. iPhone 6S features more durability thanks to less pliable 7000-series aluminum. This is an entirely new aluminum," said executive Phil Schiller, noting it's "the same alloys used in the aerospace industry."
Apple didn't go into the science of it, but it likely has corrosion-prone zinc compounds and a thicker anodization coating that prevents said corrosion, as we've seen in this alleged bend test. Your ultra-thin phone may be safe in your back pocket again, although I still wouldn't suggest tempting fate of a dented frame without an iPhone 6S case first. There's good news for anyone who has smashed a phone screen. Schiller talked up the iPhone 6S glass being "the strongest in the industry, made with a dual ion exchange process." iPhone 6S rose gold color and dimensionsThe popular new rose gold iPhone 6S color is here, too, and it matches the pale pink tones of the more expensive rose gold Apple Watch. This metal case, however, is still made of aluminum.  The rose gold iPhone 6S joins existing colors of gold, space gray and silver, and now the new iPhones are the only way to get gold. The popular color has been discontinued in older models. Other than that, the iPhone 6S looks exactly the same as last year's iPhone 6 on the outside, at least with the naked eye. It's hard to tell, but the dimensions are bigger by a few fractions of a millimeter. It's 0.2mm thicker and 0.1mm wider and 0.2mm taller. There's still an iPhone 6S camera bump, I'm afraid. 3D Touch
Apple executive Craig Federighi gave the first live demo of 3D Touch, and it works a lot like Force Touch on the Apple Watch or new MacBook trackpad. It's like a "right click" for the iPhone 6S, and it results in a context sensitive pop-up window in front of translucent backgrounds every time you apply a little bit of pressure on the screen. In the Mail app, for example, you never really need to navigate away from the inbox to read or reply to your messages. "Take action on apps without even having to open them," explained Federighi. From the home screen, he was able to make calls to favorites, view directions from an address given to him in iMessages and take "emergency selfies" right from the front facing camera, all without opening the usual app menus. 3D Touch is also going to change playing games on iPhone 6S going forward, with new developers taking advantage of the new multi-touch technology in their interactive apps. Since games are among the No. 1 apps in the Apple App Store, they may put 3D Touch to use the best. New iPhone 6S cameraAt long last, there's going to be a much-improved iPhone 6S camera, and Apple showed off the accurate skin tones and incredible depth of field possible. This is thanks to photos taken with the new 12MP camera sensor.
Everything from beautifully detailed close-up macro shots, to sweeping panoramic photos without visible stitching lines could rival the Samsung Galaxy S6 and Galaxy Note 5. Both new iPhones are have the same focus pixels-filled sensor, but only the bigger iPhone 6S Plus has optical image stabilization for photos and video again. Videos are shot in 4K, with 8 million pixels via the rear camera. The front-facing camera will now be 5MP, and a TrueTone flash is simulated thanks to the Retina display that lights up the screen three times brighter than normal. This "Retina Flash" is ideal for lighting up darkened selfie environments.
Apple claims to have invented an "entirely new technology" with Live Photos, which are short bursts of moving pictures and sound. At first, it seemed ridiculous, as if it was claiming to have invented video or high-resolution GIFs. But Live Photos are automatically turned on for the iSight camera, capturing 1.5 seconds before and 1.5 second after you press the shutter button. Pressing down on the 3D Touch screen brings them to life, or even swiping through your photo gallery shows a little bit of movement for a really neat effect. It's like Burst Photos, but put to better use. Don't worry, Apple says that Live Photos won't take up too much space. That's a wise move for anyone brave enough to buy the space-limited 16GB new iPhone. Faster than everApple claims that Wi-Fi is twice as fast when using the new iPhone 6S. That means the slowdown on your phone's connection at home and at work can properly be blamed on your ISP. More importantly, the iPhone 6S specs include the all-new A9 processor with with embedded M9 motion coprocessor. It's not as speedy as the iPad Pro A9X chip, but it'll be plenty fast for a new phone.
Apple's System-on-a-Chip is snappier than ever, with a CPU that's 70% faster than the iPhone 6, and the GPU sees on 90% performance boost. The co processor has better activity tracking and it enables you to issue "Hey Siri" commands at any time. Previously, your iPhone had to be plugged in to take advantage of this always-listening virtual assistant mode. The iPhone 6S is confirmed to have 2GB of RAM. It's a key spec that translates into letting you have more apps and tasks open at once. Since the iPhone 5, we've been dealing with just 1GB of RAM. Apple only likes to go so deeply into its iPhone specs, or maybe it's that the new phone might look bad on paper next to 4GB Android handsets. Either way, it's a much-needed upgrade. Battery lifeLike the iPhone 6S price and the overall look, there's no difference in the "all-day" battery life for the new 4.7-inch phone, according to Apple at least. It has the same 14 hours of talk time and 11 hours of continuous HD video playback.
That doesn't mean the battery capacity is the same size, however. Those are two different specs, as an Apple promo video clearly labels, and subsequent teardowns have confirmed, the iPhone 6S battery is 1,715mAh instead of last year's 1,810mAh. How does it maintain the same charge duration without the same battery size? Hardware changes, and also iOS 9 software tweaks are extending battery life across the board for iPhones. Should you buy an iPhone 6S?With the exception of the new rose gold color, this looks and feels like a hard-to-read S upgrade, as we say in our iPhone 6S review. But it does pack in powerful enough specs to consider running out and purchasing.
The new 12MP camera is important for anyone who takes iPhone photos every day (read: everyone) and the 5MP front-facing camera's Retina Flash is ideal for anyone who only takes selfies (narcissists). It's the most important app to phone users these days, and therefore the biggest upgrade. 4K videos and Live Photos may be fun to play around with, even if they're not revolutionary, and the jury is still out on 3D Touch. Right now, it's a nifty menu shortcut convenience taken from the Apple Watch. The aluminum 7000 build quality, Apple A9 processor and faster Wi-Fi and Touch ID sensor make this a speedier and stronger phone upgrade next to the iPhone 6, especially if you're ready to move on from that two-year old iPhone 5S.
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| Silent Circle packs the upgrades into ultra-secure Blackphone 2 Posted: 28 Sep 2015 01:00 AM PDT  Anyone that liked the anti-NSA Blackphone unveiled last year will be happy to know that today marks the release of its successor, the aptly named Blackphone 2. Silent Circle has delivered yet another privacy promising smartphone that incorporates a upgraded set of features plus the ability to use Google Services including Play Store and support for Android for Work. Under the hood the smartphone packs a larger 5.5-inch Gorilla Glass encased display, a Qualcomm Snapdragon octa-core chip, 3GB of RAM, 32GB of storage that is expandable using the microSD card slot, and a 13-megapixel camera. Privacy-wise, the Blackphone 2 offers full device encryption as default, which is provided by the Android-based Silent OS that runs the show. A big part of this is the Security Centre that allows the user to manage the privacy and security settings of individual apps in one place and fine-tune any conditions accordingly. 'Spaces', another facet of the Silent OS, allows users to make a clear distinction between their business data, personal information and social apps on one device. It also comes pre-loaded with Silent Circle's much vaunted Silent Phone app that provides encrypted and secure voice calls, conference calling, video conferencing, secure text and file transfers in one place. Enterprise Privacy PlatformSilent Circle is releasing the Blackphone 2 as the first key element of its Enterprise Privacy Platform (EPP) that was first detailed at the Mobile World Congress 2015 in March. EPP comprises a cloud-based combination of software, services and devices that use existing internet connections to make sure privacy is paramount at every level of the enterprise. The EPP is build from ZRTP (Z and Real-Time Transport Protocol), thus adding yet another later of security, and the software part includes PrivatOS, Silent Suite and Silent Meeting while services bundled are Silent Store, Silent World and Silent Manager. The Blackphone 2 is available to buy right now and comes with a RRP of $799 (around £525, or AU$1,138).  |
| This Nexus 6P specs leak tells all about Google's new Android phone Posted: 28 Sep 2015 12:34 AM PDT  Google is poised to make a pair of big phone announcements on Tuesday, including that of the big Nexus 6P, so why not have a big leak one day beforehand? That's exactly what we're seeing from a set of surprise-spoiling promotional slides, which spell out what to expect from September 29's press conference, according to Android Police. It backs up prior Nexus 6P specs rumors, nearly confirming a 5.7-inch WQHD AMOLED display, metal unibody design, Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 v2.1 processor and 3GB of RAM. The official dimensions are supposed to be 159.4 x 77.8 x 7.3mm, which makes it smaller than the Nexus 6 2014, and it thankfully has a smaller rear camera bump compared to prototype leaks we've seen.
Even with dimensions that are easier to grasp compared to last year's 6-inch juggernaut, it'll have a bigger 3,450mAh battery and be harder to break with Gorilla Glass 4 protecting the screen. Aluminum, Graphite, Frost and the Japan-exclusive Gold are among the color choices, with options for 32GB, 64GB and 128GB of storage. Notice, no 16GB option, Apple. Nexus 6P camera with bigger micronsThe rear Nexus 6P camera is tipped to be 12.3MP with an f/2.0 aperture and, most importantly, a sensor that captures 1.55μ pixels. This increase in micros will translate into better low-light photos.
This actually-promising Nexus camera is like the HTC One M8 and its "ultrapixels." It may have fewer megapixels, but it'll capture more light and therefore produce better pictures. By comparison, the new iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus, both at 12MP, are back down to 1.22µ pixels after briefly flirting with 1.5µ pixels on the 8MP iPhone 6 camera. It's all a balancing act. The lauded Galaxy Note 5 and Galaxy S6 camera pushes its photos to 16MP, but both Samsung phones have 1.12µ. The same goes for the LG G4. Nexus 6P is betting heavily on microns instead.
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| In Depth: Halo 5 multiplayer is anything but spartan Posted: 28 Sep 2015 12:01 AM PDT  Halo 5 multiplayerAs a one time Halo mega fan will tell you: Halo lives and dies by its multiplayer, its life after the reliably epic campaign is cleared on at least Heroic difficulty. Knowing this, it was quite a shock to learn earlier this year that Halo 5: Guardians – due out on Xbox One on October 27 – will not support split screen cooperative campaign play. Sure, it's a bummer to think that I won't be able to relive my foundational memories of the Halo series in this shiny new iteration. But after seeing it first hand, what developer 343 Industries has created in focusing on 100% online multiplayer is remarkable. Frankly, one new approach to online play made for the best time I've had playing Halo online since Invasion in Halo: Reach. Welcome to Warzone, the brand new player-versus-player-versus-environment-versus-player game mode that can be described as Halo's response to the League of Legends craze. Whether you're (somehow) new to the Halo series or haven't dove in since, say, Halo: Combat Evolved, this is probably where you'll live online when Halo 5 lands, and that's totally OK. In fact, I already prefer it.
Pillaging for pointsWarzone is all about the points, more specifically amassing match points at all costs while earning and spending your own requisition (or REQ) points to fund the coolest ways to – you guessed it – rake in more match points. The first 12-player team in this frantic 24-player game to collect 1,000 points wins. Match points are collected in several ways, letting players contribute to their team's success however fits them best. Downing enemy players and capturing strategic bases that bring players closer to accessing the enemy team's core in its home base is one way to earn points. Laying the hammer down on invasions of computer-controlled Covenant (fleshy aliens) and Promethean (robotic aliens) forces earns your team points, too. One Warzone map on which I played, titled "Raid on Apex 7," was fondly reminiscent of the beachhead scene in the original Halo: Combat Evolved campaign. As Covenant dropships and shocktroopers battered the shores, squads of Spartans descended upon the Spire control point, shooting wildly at one another. (I'm told that, within the Halo lore, that Warzone is a training simulation, if that matters at all to you.)
During my time trying out the mode at a recent press event, these two point-pillaging methods intersected on an almost predictable, but nevertheless reliably awesome, basis. Unless you're preparing a customized (but still slow as molasses) Scorpion tank for some replay-worthy displays of point collecting, you're never not in the action. Through this REQ system, which is the heart of the game's microtransaction hook, players can access increasingly powerful weapons, armor upgrades, vehicles and power-ups as a Warzone match plays out depending on the team's performance. Players spend these points on REQ cards containing said improvements, which are either earned through consistent play or purchased outright through packs. A persistent level-up system, unlocked partially through opening REQ card packs, allows you to access new and better items in future Warzone matches. During matches, what you're able to requisition depends on your team's per-game REQ level, which increases over the course of a match – faster if your team is hot.
For instance, if I just pulled off a kill streak, I could call in either two new weapons and an overshield for two to three points a piece or a deadly Mantis rocket-firing robot for seven points. The meter then refills – again – based on performance. Kill shots in the cloudAs Halo 5: Guardians executive producer Chris Lee tells me, Warzone simply wouldn't be possible without Microsoft's army of powerful cloud computing servers. It's the firm's Xbox Live Cloud Compute array of servers that powers all of the artificially intelligent enemies within Warzone, for one.
"I think Warzone is the most ambitious thing that we've done," Lee says. "It was pulling in all of the elements of the sandbox together and it's a really unique challenge. To have those enemy AI, we need those dedicated servers to run the AI. We brought in all of these vehicles and variations on them, so you don't have one version of the Scorpion tank, you have the Oni Scorpion tank [too]." "So, we have all of this player customization coming into a single mode," Lee explains. "And we did that while making it the biggest multiplayer map size that we've ever had – three to four times bigger than anything we've ever done before. We really had to re-write major parts of the game engine and things like that just to make that game mode possible. I think that's the experiential place where you can see us pushing the boundaries in all directions the most."
What the technical achievements translate to is an online experience that somehow facilitates both frenetic, squad-based play that rewards communication and teamwork meanwhile offering up less experienced or skilled players fun ways to contribute. For me, that means firing up the nearest vehicle I can find and causing as much damage as possible before I bite it. Everything has its placeBy no means does this mean that Halo 5 has lost the series's competitive edge. "We also have a meta level over multiplayer, we have Arena," Lee says, "which contrasts with Warzone and was built from the ground up to go back to the roots of Halo, the legacy of Halo – ultra-competitive. It's all about fair starts, the even playing field with the starting weapons, symmetrical maps. It's built from the ground up for e-sports and competitions as well."
"That mode lets us engage fans who really want that traditional Arena experience," Lee says, briefly interrupted by cheers in the play area, "to put it in its own place. So, you can go and enjoy that or try Warzone – you have a lot of different options. We want to recognize and engage those gamers that want that competitive experience, we're not trying to solve that with Warzone." Arena is essentially the Halo experience that veterans of the series are likely salivating for, only more balanced this time around than possibly ever. Every stage that I was able to play on, in the standard deathmatch-style Slayer mode in Arena, had specific "power weapons" that only appeared in choice areas on a very announced timer. Touches like this give traditional Arena play a much more classic, American Gladiators feel that first-person shooters of the late '90s and early aughts – Quake, Unreal Tournament, even Halo – embodied so well. Now, coupled with baked-in rewind and replay tools in the game's Live Spectate Mode, not to mention Twitch access through the Halo Channel, Halo 5 appears well-equipped for the live streaming revolution we gamers have found ourselves in.
Sure, Arena is designed at heart for the competitive – dare I say the word "e-sports" was thrown around a lot as I talked to folks that day – Halo player. But even that mode has some clever tools in place to keep things accessible, namely smarter matchmaking than before. According to Lee, Halo 5's competitive skill rating system is its improved means of determining your skill within Arena. The score is publicly visible and core to how you experience the mode. "[Competitive skill rating] helps us understand how skilled you are at the game and puts you in matches that are competitive for you," Lee explains. "We're trying to the eliminate the huge skill disparity in matches and having people go in and play someone that's way out of their league – out of their skill bracket."
This is my least favorite part of first-person shooters: you jump into a match, and within seconds a Halo pro no-scopes you from across the map. Lee assures me that this scenario is something the team had in mind in divising its new matchmaking system. There are seven tiers for the combat skill rating system: bronze, iron, gold, platinum, diamond, onyx and Champion. You qualify over the course of 10 matches, Lee says. The system detects your skill and gives you your starting position in your skill bands. After that, you're told what skill you rank you fall into. All of this is 100% visible to players, and exists on a per-playlist basis. If you're really sharp at capture the flag, your rating for that mode might be iron versus your poor Slayer score of bronze.
"It's really all about defining that skill value," Lee says, and he means it. "For the highest tier of skill, the Champions, we will take the top 200 players in the community. They'll be flagged as Champions. In addition to their Champion badge, like the other skill ratings, they will have a discrete skill number." "You'll actually be able to see, if I'm at 25," Lee explains, "how much more skilled is the 24th player and how much less skilled is the 26th player." Halo 5 plays harderBased on my chat with Lee, it's clear that 343 wants Halo 5 to succeed well beyond that first few months into and following the holidays. Naturally, multiplayer is key to that longevity, and not only does Halo 5 have it in spades, it's some of the best online shooter play I've enjoyed since the crazy robotics of Titanfall.
Warzone's frenetic, massive battle scenes with Banshees roaring overhead, lasers and mortar fire are already calling to me. And Arena's laser focus on straight up competitive (but accessible) play looks well-positioned to keep the diehards intrigued for some time. Halo 5's campaign, which I was able to test as well, delivers some seriously set piece sci-fi moments – rocketing through an airlock from dead space into an alien ship? Check. But those will inevitably get stale. It's up to the explosive rounds of Warzone or crack shot kills of Arena to keep the players coming. And Halo 5 looks better set than any before it to deliver that and then some.  |
| JB Hi-Fi shutting the book on ebooks Posted: 27 Sep 2015 07:57 PM PDT  JB Hi-Fi's experiment in ebook publishing has officially come to a close, a little under two and a half years after it launched. The retailer has confirmed that from September 30, customers of the JB Hi-Fi Now ebook store will no longer be able to read or download ebooks purchased through the store. The good news is that international ebook powerhouse Kobo has stepped up, and customers will be able to transfer their JB Hi-Fi library to Kobo free of charge. This isn't the first time Kobo has picked up where a smaller player left off, having acquired Sony's ebook store last year. Reading between the linesAffected JB Hi-Fi customers should have received an email from September 15 with a unique code and instructions on how to transfer their library to the Kobo store. JB Hi-Fi does warn that there will be a small number of books not available to transfer, and users will be informed of this during the transfer process. Also unfortunate is that any bookmarks or highlights made in the JB Hi-Fi app won't migrate over to Kobo.
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| Updated: Supermoon lunar eclipse: how to see the rare blood moon tonight Posted: 27 Sep 2015 04:51 PM PDT  Update: The supermoon lunar eclipse is tonight! Read on for full details. A supermoon lunar eclipse is taking place Sunday night/Monday morning, and if you miss your chance to see it you'll have to wait until 2033 for the next one. Here are the important details: at 5:11pm PT/8:11pm ET on September 27 (1:11am GMT September 28), a shadow will begin to cast over the floating orb. By 10:11pm ET, a total eclipse will have begun, and it will peak at 10:47pm ET. The eclipse is expected to last 1 hour and 11 minutes. Under clear skies, people in North America, South America, Europe, Africa and parts of West Asia and the eastern Pacific will be able to see the moon as it's overtaken by the Earth's shadow. The event is so rare, the last supermoon lunar eclipse took place in 1982, according to NASA. There have only been five supermoon lunar eclipses since 1900. What is a supermoon lunar eclipse?It's pretty phenomenal that a lunar eclipse is taking place in conjunction with a supermoon. To achieve supermoon status, you need a full moon. Done. Now, as the moon makes its closest approach to the Earth (the moon's orbit is elliptical), it will look up to 14% larger in diameter than normal. On Sunday/early Monday, the supermoon will be behind the Earth, passing into its shadow. The moon typically reflects sunlight, which results in its usual white glow, but during the eclipse, sunlight will only make it to the moon indirectly through the Earth's atmosphere. Every color except red will be filtered out, resulting in the "blood moon" color we recognize during lunar eclipses. If skies are still light or cloudy where you live, or you're stuck inside, NASA is live streaming the eclipse starting at 8pm ET until 11:30pm ET. There will also be a feed coming in from the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles, Adler Planetarium in Chicago, Ferbank Observatory in Atlanta and other locations. And in a sign NASA has taken its social media game to a whole new level, a NASA solar physicist will talk about the eclipse and answer questions submitted through Twitter using the hashtag #askNASA.  |
| Wikimedia founder sees another 1 billion phone users in the next 5 years Posted: 27 Sep 2015 10:45 AM PDT  Jimmy Wales greatest life's work has been creating a free, online encyclopedia for everyone, and so it was a bit surprising to see Wikipedia founder to launch a phone network earlier this summer. On stage at the Social Good Summit in New York, Jimmy Wales explained it was created in a hope to connect the world and help further important causes. Like other carriers, The People's Operator is an MVNO network that offers prepaid and post-paid cell phone plans and mobile internet contract. However, as an added wrinkle 10% of all customer's bill goes towards a charity of their choice. Wales explained that most carriers will take this 10% of their revenue to create flashy commercials and giant billboards, The People's Carrier's goals are to help more people around the world. "It's not going to change the world in any sort of fundamental way," Wales expounded. "But I'm hoping to raise billions of dollars for good causes." The next waveFurthermore, Wales highlighted how a $40 Android phone with the same capabilities of the first iPhone coming to market will have huge technological implications for developing worlds in the next few years. "The next one billion people are about to come online in the next five years and this is going to empower a huge number of people," he explained. Using the Arab Spring that occurred a few years ago as a key example, Wales said technology will be instrumental for the "rise of social activism from [groups] who previously didn't have a way to organize of research the facts."  |
| New iPhones survive an hour underwater in waterproofing test Posted: 27 Sep 2015 09:37 AM PDT  One spec Apple hasn't mentioned while promoting the iPhone 6S and the iPhone 6S Plus is the water resistance rating of the handsets. Brave YouTuber Zach Straley has run a dunking test so you don't have to. YouTube : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_HbztTpL08In a video posted online on Friday both of the 2015 iPhones spend an hour underwater with no adverse effects. The camera, 3D Touch, the Home button and everything else still appear to work just fine. Straley later confirmed on Twitter that the Lightning port and the headphone socket are still operating as normal as well. It appears the two handsets are more waterproof than anyone realised. Don't try this at homeOf course without any official word from Apple we can't recommend you try this at home - just because these handsets still work doesn't mean yours are going to. You dunk your own phone at your own risk. This could be the first evidence of the waterproofing technology Apple patented back in March: it uses a thin hydrophobic coating to keep all of the internal circuitry working as normal. It's hard to know for sure until the manufacturer confirms or denies it. The Apple Watch has also been shown standing up to water surprisingly well. It seems Apple's 2015 gadgets are designed to resist a decent amount of splashing and submerging, even if the company isn't shouting about it.  |
| Running Man of Tech: How much would you pay to make your Apple Watch look like this? Posted: 27 Sep 2015 02:00 AM PDT -470-75.JPG) To save or to show off?It's a conundrum: you spend oodles on fancy gadgetry then you panic it's going to break the whole time. It's why iPhones are locked away in soulless case prisons, obscuring their smooth metal chassis. It's frustrating that we have to make this choice: we spend so much on tech then we have to decide whether to celebrate its beautiful design or play safe and hide it away. You'd think that things that aren't being tossed around would be safe, but the Apple Watch has been given the same treatment our smartphones are subjected to, namely being surrounded by rubber and plastic in the hope of keeping it safe from our own idiocy.
I've been trying out the Griffin Survivor Tactical Tough Case for the Apple Watch, designed to keep your expensive digi-timepiece safe. Coming in at £25 / $30 / around AUS$40 it's another slightly high expense on top of the hundreds you've already shelled out for the Watch itself, but obviously gives you that peace of mind. The interesting thing is that this isn't really a case, but a cover. I'd expected that I'd need to take the strap off and encase the Watch in its new rugged bed, but it just slots right on top.
There are holes for the microphone etc, the screen protector is flush with the actual display of the Watch itself and there are rubber sections to let you press the side button and the Digital Crown. The Crown is actually partly covered by the case, with only the rear of the dial free for spinning - it feels a bit like a sportscar wheel, which for some reason appealed.
OK, so it fits well - but how good is it for actual sport? Well, I wasn't planning any rock climbing or kayaking, so it was hard to test the cover fully - but I'd actually be worried about doing such a thing. Firstly, despite the 'sport' version of the Apple Watch coming in an aluminium case and ion-x glass (apparently to make it a bit more durable) I've no intention of taking this thing out and about if I'm going to tackle an assault course. There are no good apps for triathlon, raquet sports or other more extreme pastimes either, so it's just basically using the heart rate monitor to keep an eye on your calorie burn. With that in mind, it's hard to see why I'd want to cover the Watch for activities that could scuff its exterior.
OK, there might be some scenarios where you'll be doing some DIY or tending to a rock collection, and in those cases the Griffin cover might come in handy. Well, except for the fact it pops off with slight upward pressure - anything getting caught below the Watch can make it fall off. The other extreme option is to have it on all the time, using the same theory as smartphone cases to keep your new timekeeping pride and joy safe. Except, well, if you're going to do that you might as well stick with a dedicated fitness watch. Many of them have similar chunky frames and can do all the same tracking and notifications - plus if you want to head off to go white water rafting they won't skip a beat. Maybe if the Griffin case gave proper water protection, or at least kept all the metal covered, this would be an easier sell - but this doesn't feel in the same league as the brand's other rugged products which would pretty much ensure your smartphone was the only thing to survive the apocalypse. The best moment came when someone asked which smartwatch I was wearing and I showed them I was just protecting the Apple Watch. They looked at me like I was a bit mad. Hurry up, developers!I fully expected this column to be all about my experiences with watchOS 2 from Apple, the new platform that enables the Apple Watch to run native apps. This is a big move forward as it means you can free yourself from your phone on a run. Download some music and podcasts, pair some Bluetooth headphones and load up Strava, Nike+ or Endomondo and you'll be away. Except despite the new OS being available for a week or so, there's still no sign of the expected slew of app upgrades, meaning I'm still stuck with the Watch Workout app, which is frightfully basic, or keeping my phone in my pocket when I want to go for a quick trot.
(As I'm writing this, Runtastic's free app has finally been upgraded to do this, and make use of the heart rate monitor, but that's the only one I've seen so far). Due to the fact the Watch's heart rate monitor is still rather erratic, I'm not a fan of using the timepiece for running anyway (although I can pair a chest strap, which really helps matters. It's just dedicated sports watches can do the same thing and are miles more efficient). But I still believe Apple (or another brand that makes a popular smartwatch) can rip huge market share from brands like Garmin, Polar or TomTom. The sheer variety of apps, from running to workout to sleep tracking, will always eclipse the built in options, and when smartwatch hardware gets the same sensors to work with, it'll be hard to see who will stick with the more dedicated devices. Maybe it's a case of future smartwatches being rugged enough. Maybe they'll need encasing to make sure they're strong enough to withstand the rigours of sport. Oh, right...  |
| Buying guide: 10 of the best desktop PCs you can buy in 2015 Posted: 27 Sep 2015 01:40 AM PDT  IntroductionDesktop PCs are the most versatile category of computing hardware. Unlike laptops or tablets, they aren't limited by portability and battery life requirements. A desktop PC can be crammed with more storage, a better processor, more memory and a graphics card that really is capable of playing modern games well. It's also a very diverse category. These machines come in all shapes and sizes and can be used in many different ways. The beautiful, compact simplicity of all-in-one computers is undeniably attractive. With the components, speakers and display built into a single unit, few cables are left trailing around your desk, perfect if you like to keep your workspace neat and tidy. Small PCs and inexpensive micro media machines are a popular choice as well. There are small desktop PCs that are intended to be used in the living room, designed to look attractive and provide a quick way to access all sorts of digital media. You can hook one up to a surround sound system and your main TV, to enjoy Netflix or your own media files with software such as Plex. And, of course, the traditional desktop tower keeps trucking on. Whether you leave it on your desk or underneath it, this form factor gives you the freedom to choose whatever components and specification you like, from an inexpensive family computer that can be used for office tasks such as word processing and spreadsheets, to a powerful video editing workstation, with a top-end processor and graphics card. Prices vary depending on the configuration, from less than £200 (around $303 or AUS$432) for an entry-level family desktop computer, to four figures for a desktop with a powerful video card suitable for demanding gaming. And with the exception of our Apple examples, any of the PCs in this list come with Windows 10 as standard. We've listed 10 of the best, ordered by price and spec starting with the most expensive and powerful machines first.
1. Apple iMac with 5K Retina displayA stylish all-in-one with a stunning screen CPU: Intel Core i5-4260U | Graphics: Intel Iris Graphics 5100 | RAM: 4GB - 16GB | Storage: 500GB HDD | Communication: Wireless: 802.11ac, Bluetooth 4.0 | Dimensions (WxDxH): 196 x 196 x 36mm Bright IPS screen Few wires or cables Almost impossible to upgrade after purchase OS X a learning process for Windows users As we already mentioned, the unique selling point of all-in-ones is their simplicity, and that's partly what makes the iMac so appealing. A built-in screen and speakers, 802.11ac wireless networking and a wireless keyboard and mouse means you only need a power cable to get up and running. There's quite a range of iMacs, starting at £899 (around $1,365 or AUS$1,943) for an entry-level 21.9-inch model with a dual-core processor that's okay for basic tasks, up to 27-inch iMacs with quad-core processors, and even a 5K display. Even on the low-end model, the IPS display is bright and vivid, with a clever design where the edges of the aluminium chassis are thinner than many standalone monitors. And as standard, the iMac runs OS X, although it's very easy to install Windows alongside if you want to continue using your existing Windows software. Read the full review: Apple iMac
2. Apple Mac miniThe cheapest way you can go Mac CPU: Intel Core i5-4260U | Graphics: Intel Iris Graphics 5100 | RAM: 4GB | Storage: 500GB hard disk | Communication: Wireless: 802.11ac, Bluetooth 4.0 | Dimensions (WxDxH): 196 x 196 x 36mm Apple's most affordable Macintosh Internal power supply means no additional power brick Very few expansion options after purchase Upgrades get expensive If you fancy making the switch to an Apple computer without paying the high prices of some of the iMac and MacBook products, the Mac mini is definitely the best option. It's fairly affordable, and reasonably powerful too. It also looks really good. Apple favours aluminium materials and minimalist design in all its modern devices, and the Mac mini is perhaps the finest example – plus it's astonishingly small. The base specification is more than good enough for general use, OS X will run just fine, and you can use Windows on it too. Apple now makes it quite hard to upgrade the Mac mini though, so if you want to boost the specification, it's wise to do so when you make the purchase. A Fusion Drive (the inclusion of an SSD) and a memory upgrade to 8GB would be our choice, but this does increase the mini's overall cost. Read the full review: Apple Mac mini
3. Acer Revo One RL85A compact media PC with plenty of storage CPU: Intel Celeron 2957 | Graphics: Intel HD Graphics | RAM: 4GB | Storage: 2TB hard disk | Communication: 802.11n, Bluetooth 4.0 | Dimensions (WxDxH): 107 x 107 x 220mm Small, sleek, smart design Plenty of storage Affordable Fairly weedy performance External power adaptor Lacks faster 802.11ac wireless As it's a media PC that will take centre-stage in a living room rather than being hidden under a desk, the 22cm-high Revo One comes with a remote control and carries a striking white pod-like design. It packs quite a lot of storage – this configuration has a single 2TB disk, with internal space to add a second hard disk, or an SSD. There are plenty of ports too, with two USB 3 and two USB 2 ports, HDMI and a DisplayPort. Celeron processors are hardly supercomputing material, and we wouldn't play the latest games on the Intel graphics inside the Revo One, but it'll certainly be fine for office software and HD video playback. And with built-in wireless networking, you'll be able to place it anywhere you like, wherever your TV or display is, and not have to worry about trailing cables to your router. Read the full review: Acer Revo One RL85
4. HP Pavilion MiniThe Windows-toting answer to a Mac Mini CPU: 1.9GHz Intel Core i3-40255U | RAM: 4GB 1600MHz DDR3 SDRAM | Storage: 1TB 5,400rpm HDD Nice design Small footprint Limited upgrade potential Excess bloatware If you're looking for a mini computer to look smart in the office, sit surreptitiously under your TV or meet the compact requirements of a kid's homework needs, then the HP Pavilion Mini is a smart contender. While the base specification may not meet the requirements of gamers (who will want to consider the Maingear Spark or Alienware Alpha), or more intensive tasks, the higher-end model more than meets the needs of those looking for a home entertainment computer, and it's priced favourably against the Acer Revo RL85. The mid-range specification of the model we reviewed compares favourably against similarly priced but less powerful competitors like the Intel NUC, and the good looks make it a smart Windows alternative to the Mac Mini. Read the full review: HP Pavilion Mini
5. Dell Inspiron 3000A slim mini-tower which is a decent performer CPU: Intel Core i3-4170 | Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 5000 | RAM: 8GB | Storage: 1TB hard disk | Communication: Dell Wireless-N 1705, Bluetooth 4.0 | Dimensions (WxDxH): 178 x 388 x 431mm Slim tower design High-end Core i5 model is surprisingly powerful No SSD upgrade option Core i3 only dual-core Dell's Inspiron desktop computers aren't quite as small as a PC like the Acer Revo One, but they still come in a mini-tower, and therefore won't take up too much space either on a desk or underneath it. With a black design and a silver trim, Dell has gone to some length to make this standard PC chassis look quite sleek and a bit more exciting than a mere black box. As standard, it has a dual-core Intel Core i3 processor rather than a Celeron, and 8GB of memory – so it's a lot more powerful than the Revo One. For an extra bit of cash, you can upgrade the processor to a quad-core Intel Core i5-4460 and the graphics card to a discrete Nvidia GeForce GT705, for a decent all-round performance boost. Dell also sells complete packages with a bundled 23-inch S2340L display. Read the full review: Dell Inspiron 3000
6. HP 260 G1The tiny computer that can CPU: Intel Celeron 2957U | RAM: 2GB to 16GB 1600MHz DDR3 SDRAM | Storage: 32GB M.2 SSD Two memory slots DisplayPort and VGA No Wi-Fi or Bluetooth Storage capacity The HP 260 G1 is a great all-rounder product which is perfect for light tasks either in an office environment or in the home. Because it is part of HP's business range, it comes with better-than-average support – that's next business day service for parts and labour as well as free 24x7 telephone support. We also appreciate the presence of DisplayPort and VGA which allows the box to cover a wider spectrum of displays, even if that requires adaptors. There's a lot to like about the HP 260 G1; true, it is not perfect and of course given the price, there have been concessions made. However, none of them are deal breakers and once prospective buyers understand that they are not buying a more expensive computer, but one that costs less than most smartphones, this little bundle of joy will make for a lot of happy owners. Read the full review: HP 260 G1
7. Asus K31ADEA compact desktop machine for everyday computing CPU: Intel Core i3-4170 | Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 5000 | RAM: 4GB | Storage: 1TB hard disk | Communication: 802.11ac | Dimensions (WxDxH): 180 x 350 x 390mm CPU Turbo mode of 3.7GHz Blu-ray drives available No SSD option Only 4GB of memory Asus states its K31 desktop tower PCs are 'all you need for daily computing', an assessment we'd agree with given the versatile nature of the specification. The metallic-looking tower of the K31ADE is another mini-desktop case, smaller than most mid-sized PCs. Like the Dell Inspiron 3000, this model uses a dual-core Intel Core i3 processor, with 4GB of memory. Upgrades are available though, with Intel Core i5 and Core i7 processors, a range of Nvidia GeForce and AMD Radeon graphics cards and even 10Gb/sec USB 3.1 on some models. Read the full review: Asus K31ADE
8. Lenovo IdeaCentre Q190A micro PC which you can mount on the back of your display CPU: Intel Celeron 1017U | Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 3000 | RAM: 4GB | Storage: 500GB hard disk | Communication: 802.11n wireless | Dimensions (WxDxH): 22 x 192 x 155mm Versatile design Enough memory Sluggish CPU Low graphics performance We're always referring to PCs that are "good enough" for general computing tasks, which means the most common uses for a modern computer that the average person needs. That means web browsing, email, social media including Facebook, watching YouTube, and editing documents for school or work. None of those examples need large amounts of memory, storage, or a powerful graphics card, so if that's all you want a computer for, you don't need to spend too much money. In this case, Lenovo's IdeaCentre Q190 should be just fine. As the least expensive computer in this list, the Q190 is a micro PC that comes with a stand for vertical mounting, or it can be attached to the back of a display. Sure, its 1.6GHz dual-core Celeron 1017U processor really isn't capable of much more than the aforementioned general computing tasks, but if you're on a slim budget, it's enough to get by. Besides, if you like this small form factor but still want something slightly more powerful, upgrades with faster Pentium and Core i3 processors are available.
9. LG ChromebaseAn easy to use and excellent value all-in-one CPU: Intel Celeron 2955U | Graphics: Intel HD Graphics | RAM: 2GB | Storage: 16GB flash | Wireless: 802.11n | Dimensions (WxDxH): 528 x 43 x 320mm Astonishing value for an all-in-one PC Simple to use Limited to Chrome apps Annoying keyboard Chrome OS is a decent alternative to Windows on laptops, but there's no reason why it can't be used in a desktop computer in the same way. LG has had that very idea when making the Chromebase, an all-in-one PC that runs Google's desktop OS. Being an all-in-one, it carries the same benefits as Apple's far more expensive iMac – no need for cables everywhere, the speakers are built into the display, and it's all very straightforward. And actually, some of the hardware is really quite smart. You get an IPS screen, which looks really good. Of course, Chrome OS has some downsides. You can't run Windows software, so that means no Microsoft Office for example. Chrome OS is intentionally designed to work with files stored in the cloud rather than locally, and has equivalents of Microsoft's software which run in a browser rather than from the computer. It takes some getting used to, but it does work, and works well. Once again, for basic use, this type of setup will prove to work well, although it may take some time to get used to. Read the full review: LG Chromebase
10. Lenovo ThinkCenter E50The desktop PC that thinks it is a laptop CPU: Pentium J2900 Bay Trail | RAM: 4GB to 8GB 1600MHz DDR3 SDRAM | Storage: 3.5-inch Western Digital 500GB 5400RPM hard disk drive Laptop power supply Legacy ports Single memory slot One USB 3.0 port The Lenovo E50 is a nice little desktop computer that doesn't cut a lot of corners. It sets the bar high for entry-level desktops as a sturdy, reliable, affordable workstation. Sure, you can buy a second-hand machine for less, but the E50 gives you peace of mind; what's more you can upgrade the existing warranty to five years for not a lot of dough. Lenovo has clearly taken a lot of time to design this desktop to make sure that it fits in a particular budget. The price might be its biggest lure, but not much was taken away in terms of the machine's components. It even comes with a decent keyboard and mouse and a copy of Windows 8.1, depending on where you get it from. Read the full review: Lenovo ThinkCenter E50  |
| YouTube's premium subscription service is almost ready to go Posted: 26 Sep 2015 05:58 AM PDT  Take a browse through the TechRadar archives (something we like to do every weekend) and it won't be long before you find an article discussing YouTube's plans for a subscription option. It's something that's been in the pipeline for a long, long time. Now it seems that the time is right for a full-scale launch: Re/code reports that "content owners" (the YouTube professionals) have been told by Google to prepare for an "ads-free version" of YouTube, "available to fans for a monthly fee". There's no mention of a date but industry insiders say the end of October is a safe bet. We may well hear more about the new premium subscription plan at the Nexus event on Tuesday. In it for the moneyIf reports are to be believed, this new ads-free option will be rolled into YouTube Music Key which is already part of Google Play All Access. In other words, sign up for one and you get the others thrown in for your US$9.99 (or £9.99) per month. YouTube Music Key removes ads from music videos and lets you play them in the background on mobile devices. It sounds like this new option would remove all advertising from the site completely. It may feel like YouTube is peppered with ads but the portal doesn't actually make much money for Google, despite its immense popularity. Google itself would probably be fine with that - the company isn't short of cash - but it's under pressure from publishers to increase revenue.  |
| Posted: 26 Sep 2015 02:49 AM PDT  Anthony Rose, iPlayer creator and CEO of 6Tribes
To beat Twitter's 140 character limit, send the first part of your tweet, then reply to your own tweet with the rest. Twitter will display the tweet and the reply as a threaded conversation. John McFarlane, CEO of Sonos
Wake up to music! This was a life changer for me, setting the alarm on my kids' Sonos so that it wakes them up with their favourite songs. It means they are happy and easier to manage in the morning. Marc Chacksfield, Content Team Lead, techradar
If you have an Android phone, then save space on your internal memory by heading to the Move to SD card option in the Application Manager section of Settings. Click on any app and you will see a "Move to SD card" option. On Android 5.0 Lollipop, select Apps from the Settings screen and then tap on the three dots in the top right-hand corner and select "Preferred Installation Location" and choose "Removable SD card", and it will free up internal memory. Rod Jones, Car insurance expert at uSwitch.com
Technology can be used to help cut the cost of car insurance. Installing a dashcam can save both time and money in the event of a disputed claim. AXA and Swiftcover even offer discounts for motorists willing to have a dashcam installed in their car. Taking out a telematics or black box insurance policy which monitors your driving style and subsequently lowers or raises your premium can also be an innovative way to lower your premium. Dee Kaul, Director of Terminals, Vodafone UK
Forgot your mobile number? Just dial *#100# for a quick way to find out. Kane Fulton, Computing Editor, techradar
You can speed up OS X Yosemite by disabling transparency effects. Go to Settings, then Accessibility, and click 'Reduce transparency'. Mike Cowen, Mobile payments expert at MasterCard
If you get an unexpected message relating to mobile payments (such as "here's your activation code to register your card for Apple Pay or Samsung Pay) tell your bank immediately. It may mean that somebody else is trying to register using your card number. Richard Huddy, AMD Chief Gaming Scientist
For every browser I know, holding down the "CTRL" and "+", and "CRTL" and "-" keys on your keyboard magnifies or shrinks the browser contents. Great for fiddly web sites that use text which is too small for my aging eyes, and also handy for small but high-res displays when you want to cram more in. Mike Fairman, CEO of giffgaff
Don't pay for expensive IP home surveillance cameras - use an old smartphone and an app likeManything instead. Patrick Goss, Global Editor-in-Chief, techradar
If your phone has stopped charging unless you wiggle the cable then before you rush out to buy a replacement, try turning the phone off and gently exploring the charging port on your device with the end of a paperclip - you'll be shocked and amazed by the amount of fluff you dig out and it might just fix the problem. Gemma Morris, Presenter, Swipe, Sky News
When your wireless speaker's run out of battery and you've no time to recharge – use your window-sill acoustics to amplify music from your mobile instead. Push your handset to the back of your bathroom window and you can even hear it over the sound of your shower. Jen Andersson, PR Manager Northern Europe, Nvidia
NVIDIA GeForce Experience makes it easy to share your awesome gameplay. Just hit 'Alt+Z' and up pops the Share overlay menu to easily upload directly to YouTube and Twitch. You can even get a friend to join your game if you get stuck on a tough level or want to play in co-op mode. Chris Tooley, CEO of Lycamobile
Save money calling your closest friends and family by checking out the providers that offer free network-to-network calls without any catches and sign everyone up! All plans and tariffs – with the exception of pay-as-you-go plans – benefit from free calls to any mobile user on the same provider's network. Kay-Kay Clapp, Community manager, iFixit
Anyone who has done electronics repair knows how irritating lost screws can be. Using an egg-crate, or an iFixit Magnetic Project Mat, makes it easy to keep track and organize all those small parts and screws. Matt Hanson, How To Editor, techradar
If Windows is taking a while to boot up you can speed it up by limiting the number of programs that open in the background as it boots. To do this open up the Task Manager (hold down "Ctrl", "Alt" and "Del" keys on your keyboard), and click the "Start-up" tab. Disable any programs or services you don't want loading at startup by selecting them and clicking "Disable". For more choices on what to load at startup type "msconfig" into Windows 8 and Windows 10's search, or type it into Windows 7's Run text box, and click on the "Startup" tab. David Emm, Security Researcher at Kaspersky
Don't be frozen into a state of privacy paralysis around how best to protect your privacy online. Instead - complement your security software by: patching your operating system and applications whenever updates become available, setting strong and unique passwords, avoiding files from untrusted sources and sharing personal information with care. Ilya Zakharov, QA Manager, Rebellion
Listen to your Operating System using the System Tray and Task Manager! Systray was introduced as early as Windows 95 but is very commonly overlooked by most users (that's the bottom-right section of your task bar). Regardless of the hardware (and especially when gaming!) you should always be aware of what's draining your computing power. More and more applications nowadays try to linger in the background, each and every one of them taking up their share of your memory and CPU. Always try to keep your Systray as clutter-free as possible and only keep the essentials that you want and need in the background. Ewan Taylor-Gibson, Broadband expert at uSwitch.com
If you are unhappy with the broadband speeds provided by your supplier, you can use uSwitch.com's speed test tool to find a better deal. The tool reveals what broadband providers are available at your postcode, the different speeds on the surrounding streets and the best broadband deals. Stephane Verdy, Product Manager at Canonical
You can customise your Ubuntu desktop and make it our own by adjusting UI settings to your liking. From the 'Appearance' section of the 'System Settings' app, you can change the desktop wallpaper, change the theme, adjust the size of the Unity launcher, and more. From the 'Displays' section of the 'System Settings' app, you can change the UI scale - very useful if you use a HiDPI display. James Peckham, Phones Writer, techradar
You can now use WhatsApp for calling friends to save using up those precious minutes. Just hit the phone logo at the top of a conversation to chat over your Wi-Fi or mobile internet connection. Nick Nguyen, VP Firefox Product
If you are interested to see which third party sites are interacting with the sites you visit on the web there is a Firefox add-on called Lightbeam. It uses interactive visualizations to reveal the full depth of the Web today, including parts that are not obvious to the average user. The visualization grows with every site you visit and every request made from your browser. You can download and enable Lightbeam from the Add-Ons menu in Firefox. Chris Wray, Product Specialist, Yamaha AV
It's great to use apps - we love them and so does everyone else! But what if your TV, soundbar, Blu-ray player, satellite box and streaming box all have different apps? It's a pain to use and flip between them, so instead go old school and get a physical universal programmable remote. You can pick up a macro-able one that is programmable via USB with an on screen user interface for around £30 and you'll never look back. Best part is if you do it right, the whole family can use it easily and it means less headaches and tech support questions. Dave Kai-Piper, Professional fashion photographer
I always use spot metering for my fashion photography, as the wide range of tones means that other modes aren't suitable. You need to expose for the most interesting part of the shot. The clothes must look right – it's not a problem if faces look to dark or too light. Damon Muzny, Dell Corporate Communications
Did you know that when you first get a laptop, it's battery isn't optimized? It takes a number of cycles of charging and discharging for the battery to reach optimal longevity. Don't judge battery life on first go round. Also, keeping your laptop constantly plugged, when you pull it off the charger, it won't necessarily be at 100% because of smart charging protocols. To get a full charge, run your battery all the way down to 3%, right when it's ready to die, then charge it and it will come back to 100%. This will also make the battery last longer for the life of the product. Chris Hoffman, Managing Editor, MacLife
To make the Mac OS X Finder open each folder in a new window — like it used to in the old days of the Mac — open any folder, then press Command + Option + T (or go up to View and choose Hide Toolbar). Now when you double-click a folder, it will open in a new window. Robbie Fowler, ex-Liverpool Footballer
Don't drop your phone! Henry Holland, Fashion Designer
If you don't like how fitness trackers look, don't be afraid to customise them. I've spoken to quite a few friends who work in the fashion industry, I'm not going to mention any names, who do use various wristbands, but they customise them by buying pieces of jewellery from other brands they do find desirable, then pull out the sensors from the fitness tracker and combine it to wear them in a more inconspicuous manner. Gareth Beavis, Phones & Tablets Editor
Swiping the icon from a notification on your iPhone's lock screen will take you directly to the app - #savedyouatapp Spencer Hart, Lifestyle Technology Writer, techradar
Don't buy a fitness tracker and expect it to change your life. It's up to you to make changes based on the information it provides. Lionel Paris, Director Product Marketing, Netgear
Whatever type of line you have at home (DSL or cable) you will need to consider the placement of your Wi-Fi router, as it won't be optimal by default. For DSL, you will need to place your Wi-Fi modem router close to your phone socket and for cable you will need to place your Wi-Fi router close to your cable modem. However, if you have multiple phone sockets in your house, it's worth trying to move your Wi-Fi equipment to a different socket to see if the Wi-Fi coverage is stronger. Places to avoid placing your router include, inside a cupboard, next to A/V and electrical cables, under the staircase, in your garage and in the attic. Steve Poole, character and celebrity photographer
A simple fold-up reflector is such a useful accessory, especially if you're shooting in natural light. Window light is amazing; you can achieve so many different effects just by changing the distance and position, and a reflector can help you control the light, balance it and direct it where you want. Michelle Fitzsimmons, Managing Editor, techradar
One of the biggest additions I made to my arsenal is an external hard drive to export files from my laptop. It lets me free up space but keep files saved elsewhere (especially good if my laptop were to crash!). I try to do a backup every 3-5 months to make sure my laptop has enough space and keep things like photos and Word files and PDFs stored elsewhere. There's always a nice boost in laptop performance when I make the file migration, too. Tuan Nguyen, Editor in Chief, Maximum PC
The best way to get a massive speed bump from your PC is to replace your HDD with an SSD. SSDs are resistant to shock and have no moving parts, use significantly less power, generate no noise, and are 5 to 10 times faster than even the fastest HDDs. Alastair Jennings, Imaging Lab Manager, Future
It might seem like common sense but before you leave for a photo shoot, make sure you pack a spare battery and ensure your memory cards are clear of data. Dave Meredith, Head of TV products, Sky+
Pressing the Play button will take you straight to your Planner, or the last place in the catalogue that you watched a show or movie on demand from. Rod Lawton, Camera Editor, techradar
If your camera's not working as you expect and you can't remember what you changed, you can reset it to the factory defaults – but often you have to do this with two menu commands not one:
Luke Bradley-Jones, Director of TV Products, Sky
In the Sky+ app for Android (and also available for iOS) check out the Camera icon. It lets you view your latest albums from your phone on your TV. Just make sure your device is connected to the home Wi-Fi along with your Sky+HD Box. Andy Davey, Senior Engineer, Cisco
Allow twice as much time as you think you'll need to do something whenever a computer is involved. Neil Mohr, Editor, Linux Format
No matter if you use Windows, Mac OS X or Linux, keeping a spare rescue CD or USB stick can save your bacon when lightning strikes, such as a drive failing. As Linux is free and open anyone can download and use it, one of the best rescue tools is Knoppix, which provides a full OS with office tools, web browser, graphical tools and rescue tools. So if your main drive should fail, it means you can keep working or try to rescue your files. Sagar Uttamsingh, Global Supply Planner, Nest
I send iMessages SMS via Mac OS X - Since I spend more time on my Macbook Pro than I do with my iPhone, texting on the computer is convenient and way faster than typing on the phone. Sarah Giblin, Creator of RiutBag
Make sure your tech is safe when you put it in a rucksack. The idea of protecting tech in your rucksack simply actually led me to create the RiutBag! All the zips against your back gives you peace of mind that your laptop, camera and other valuables are truly safe in any city. User feedback from the first model evolved the design for fast unload and well padded reload of your laptop on the go. Linda Irvin, Product Manager UK at Sennheiser
Everyone like their rhythms delivered differently. To suit your taste in bass some headphones now allow you to fully customise how powerful the deep end of sound should be. Beat that. Alexandru Voica, Imagination Technologies
Will a smartphone camera with more megapixels produce better images? Not always. The megapixel number is relevant but features like Optical Image Stabilization (OIS) and advanced HDR (High-Dynamic Range) are also extremely important. In addition, a larger aperture size (e.g. f1.9) also lets the sensor take in more light and allow the camera to take higher quality photos and videos in low light even with the same number of megapixels. A larger aperture also means a shallower depth of field so you can take better out of focus shots. Vicky Hewlitt, Associate Director, Pure
Heard about a new digital radio station but it's not appearing on your radio at home? First of all, check if you can get the new station in your area by going to the station postcode checker - and then if it is available, simply autotune your digital radio and it will find the new station. Italo Vignoli, Board member, The Document Foundation
Using a standard document format such as ODF, chosen by the UK Government over Microsoft OOXML,means you can not only reduce to close to zero interoperability problems (i.e. documents do not change when opened by a different PC) with the associated costs, but it also eliminates the dependence from a single vendor as the document format is controlled by a neutral and independent organization. Tim Erlin, Director of Security at Tripwire
Consumers should make sure that they're receiving updates only from their smartphone manufacturer, such as Apple. You should also be sure to install security updates when they're available. It's always safer to disable features you're not currently using, like WiFi and Bluetooth and also make sure your important data is backed up, so that you can recover if your device is compromised. Tom Lyon, Energy expert at uSwitch.com
If you're confused by baffling energy bills, download uSwitch's new 'Compare, Switch, Save' iPhone app and scan the QR code on your bill to get an instant, personalised comparison table and switch to the best deal on the market. Download the iPhone app from iTunes. Cameron Faulkner, Assistant Editor techradar
The 'Disk Utility' tool built into every Mac can solve most performance issues with your computer. Don't pay for a computer repair until you try it. Jamie Carter, Home Entertainment expert
For those who work at anti-social times, or across time-zones, the Boomerang plugin for Gmail is a virtual presence gem. Boomerang has a simple premise; write an email, then determine exactly what time it will be sent, so someone can receive my email at 9am despite it being many hours (or even days, weeks or months) after I wrote it. It stores email on a cloud server until it's time to send it. I use Boomerang to appear to work to clients' schedules when, in fact, I'm doing the exact opposite. Desire Athow, Editor techradar Pro
Decreasing the screen brightness on your laptop by 50% can boost your battery life by up to 10%, ideal if you want to squeeze that extra bit of juice out of it on an extended journey. Jack Rieger, Senior Product Manager at Epson
Sick of getting waxed at FIFA? Turn your TV's Game Mode on. It will speed up the time between when you press a button and when the game responds. Mike Kujansuu, TechSmith Product Marketing Manager
Use the Coach's Eye app to improve your sporting performance via your mobile device. To really hone technique use the split screen comparison feature which allows two videos to be reviewed side-by-side and annotated. You can review your last performance with your personal best, with your friend's performance, or even with a professional athlete's by importing their video. Andrew Thomas, Ubuntu for smartphones manager
On Ubuntu install the Unity Tweak Tool to re-enable multi desktops. Hugh Langley, Associate Editor, techradar
Spotify publishes everything you're listening to to your followers. Don't want it to? You can suspend the feature by going into Settings, Social, then clicking the Private Session button. Jeremy Nicholds, Director of Mobile at Visa
The iOS 9 update makes using your Visa card in Apple Pay even faster when you take the Tube. Enable "double-click home button" in Wallet settings and you can simply double-click the home button when your phone is locked and you're ready to tap-and-go straight through the gate using your default card. Dave Slocombe, Trainline
When using the Trainline app on iPad, use the new multitasking feature in iOS 9 by sliding in a new window from the side of the screen. You can then use other apps at the same time as you book your ticket, like Mail, Maps, Calendar, or Twitter. Or you could just watch Strictly Come Dancing. Kate Hopewell-Smith, wedding and portrait photographer
At weddings you need to create a pro look to your pictures, and get shots that look different to those taken by guests on compact cameras and phones if you are going to charge for your work. My first step for this is to use a fast lens, and preferably a prime lens, for all shots to restrict the depth of field. Chinmoy Lad, PR Specilist at DJI and Travel Writer
For the best aerial photography shots, fly at the right height to frame the photo, not too high just because you can! Salwa Azar, Social Media Editor, techradar
Facebook feed too cluttered? Go through your friends list and unfollow, rather than unfriend, people you might still want to talk to sometime. Ben Brain, Editor, Digital Camera Magazine
Switch your camera to manual. Exposure is much simpler than most people think, and the sooner you learn the basics of shutter speeds and lens apertures, the quicker your pictures will improve. Sean Radd, CEO of Tinder
Be thoughtful and authentic when creating your Tinder profile! Tinder is super simple and easy to use, but don't forget that your profile can tell potential matches a lot about you. Make sure to feature photos that highlight your personality and hobbies. We've found that not including a bio has proven to be a huge reason for users to 'swipe left.' Dave James, Home Entertainment Editor, techradar
You're unlikely to be streaming in the highest quality by default in Spotify or Tidal - jump into the settings page and go for broke on your home network. Perhaps be a little less excitable when on mobile though, eh? Mateo Meier, Artmotion CEO
When it comes to data hosting, smaller is almost always more secure. Due to the size of their customer bases, large hosting providers are far more likely to be targeted by hackers and – increasingly – pressured by government intelligence agencies. To keep their data safe, businesses should opt for smaller, independent providers, preferably outside of the jurisdiction of government snoops. Ross Woodhall, Professional extreme sports photographer
Bright white snow makes your camera's built-in meter pretty useless. I use an old handheld meter to measure the light falling on the subject (an 'incident' reading), rather than the light reflected from it, then transfer the manual exposure settings to the camera. Gidon Katz, Director, NOW TV
Find the best plugs in your house for a powerline Wi-Fi extension as different sockets show huge variability in performance. Graham Barlow, Editor-in-Chief Tech Brands
The charmingly named PC Decrapifier is a great tool for removing the hordes of useless programs that are probably clogging up your PC right now. Download it and remove an army of crap from your PC today! Dave Gibbs, Director of Sky Sports digital media
Create your own slow motion replays when watching the latest game on Sky+. Press the rewind button until you reach the point you want to replay, then press and hold down the play button for at least two seconds to watch your programme in slow motion. To return to normal speed, simply press the play again. Alan Dexter, Editor, Maximum PC
Build your next PC. You'll save cash and learn loads piecing the machine together yourself. It isn't anywhere near as difficult as you might think either - everything it standardised to make sure components all works together these days. Use a tool such as the PC Part Picker website to help you. Matthew King, Video Producer, Technology
Filming a phone or tablet device? Follow these steps:
Joe Odukoya, Devices product manager, Ubuntu
When you switch your Ubuntu phone on or when the screen awakes from sleep, you'll see the personalised Ubuntu welcome screen. This is a picture built from the data collected as you use your phone – the number of text messages you send, calls you make and so on. The more you use your phone, the more it changes - and it's always unique to you. A double-tap on the centre circle will change the information displayed. Kevin Nixon, Professional music photographer
My starting point with gigs is to set a shutter speed of 1/125sec or faster, an aperture of f/4 or faster and an ISO of around 1600. With this, you will be in the right ballpark for exposure. Linda Kozlowski, COO, Evernote
Evernote Web Clipper is magic. I constantly see articles online that I want to save for research or a project idea. I can easily save a clean version to Evernote with Web Clipper's simplified view and find it later on whatever device I am working on. No more folders of random printouts or useless bookmark lists with no context. Max Earey, Professional automotive photographer
I never use wide-angle lenses when shooting cars for clients. They make the car look unnatural and the manufacturers don't like that – the perspective distortion of wide-angle lenses would be unacceptable. Tom Mackie, Professional travel photographer
A polarizing filter is a must-have accessory for the architectural photographer. It can be used to eliminate, or at least minimize, reflections from windows – but by cutting out reflections from other surfaces it can intensify the depth of colour in a structure. It is also handy for making blue skies even bluer! Colin McQuade, Sky
Check out the website: https://haveibeenpwned.com - it will tell you if your email address has been compromised. Online safety and security are paramount. Make sure you routinely change your password. And, never, ever email it to yourself. Christian Hall, Editor, MacFormat
In Notification Center in OS X Yosemite you can choose Do Not Disturb from the settings to set the hours between which you don't want to be interrupted by on-screen notifications. You can also mute them in certain circumstances, such as when you're on a phone call or giving a presentation. John McCann, Phones & Tablets Deputy Editor
Sick of auto-play videos on Facebook? Go to Settings > Video and change "Auto-play Videos" to "Off" - On the mobile app? Go to Menu > App Settings and change "Videos play automatically" to "off". Nick Broughall, Managing Editor, Tech
If a website's search function is a bit rubbish, simply use Google. Enter your search term then add the modifier site:www.thesiteyouwanttosearch.com. Angela Nicholson, Head of Cameras Testing, Future
Whenever you put a memory card in a camera, format it using the option in the menu as this deletes any existing images and organises the filing structure to suit the camera. Juan Martinez, Senior Editor, techradar Pro
If you're unsure of an image's origin, you can drag it into Google Images, and the search engine will pull up all known instances of the image's use. Adam Burton, Professional landscape photographer
A tripod lets you use low ISOs for best quality in landscape photography and you can use long exposures to blur moving water. More than that, though, a tripod keeps your camera in the same position while you change lenses, add filters, adjust the settings and clear rubbish from the scene. Hayley Ross, portfolio manager at Three UK
There's a myth on iPhones that its best to close down your apps that are running in the background as this will save power. Actually leaving it open is more power efficient as they don't use power when they are idle in the background and will use more power when you re-launch them from scratch! Jason Ingram, professional food and garden photographer
Typically with food photography, one area will be sharp while others have varying degrees of blur. You need to focus on the right point very precisely. You can't trust autofocus. Dougie Wallace, street photographer and author
The advantage of using a prime lens is that you quickly get a feel for where you need to stand and how close to get to your subjects even without putting the camera to your eye. With zooms it's not so simple. You don't get that same instinct for where you need to stand and how close or far away you need to be. Michael Sidejas, ScanSnap Scanners at Fujitsu
When buying a scanner, pick one that comes with OCR software that makes the contents of your PDF files searchable because the more you scan and organize, the bigger your digital archive will become and the more you'll need to rely on search to find that important document later. Andrew Ferguson, Editor of thinkbroadband.com
Check to see if your service provider has a more up-to-date product—If you've been with the same supplier for many years, it's likely that they have better deals and faster services available and often all you have to do is just ask. Beware however that you may enter into a new 12 month or longer contract. Amit Rullay, UK Marketing Manager for TP Vision
When buying always ask for a demo of your potential new TV with a wide range of content and sources – not just the latest animated Blu-ray movie. Watch live TV with a close-up of people's faces to make sure their skin looks real and not plasticine and watch some fast moving live sport if possible; look out for blurring, smears and juddering action (football or snooker are the hardest things for a TV to recreate). Tony Johnson, Griffin Technology
Find you're always grappling with your charger trying to slot the USB end in the right way? Griffin Technology have invented a Premium Lightning Cable, which works whichever way you put it in! You can also wait for USB Type-C devices to become more prevalent, as those cables can also be plugged in any way around. Gerald Lynch, Gizmodo UK Editor
Always sell annual games (like Fifa or WWE) a month before the new one comes out. That way, you get maximum playtime, and maximum credit to put towards the newer version before the retailers start cutting the value of last year's title. Eddy Piedra, Origin PC, Marketing Manager
Cable management for any PC is extremely important, not just for looks, but primarily to allow optimal air-flow throughout the chassis. To ensure that cable management is done properly, we highly recommend using zip ties to easily tie up any unused or lose cables. Matt Swider, Editor, Mobile, techradar
Download to text expander like the aptly named TextExpander to create marcos. These save me time whenever I type out speicla short codes codes that expand into more complicated phrases words, phrases or URLs Ttat I use repeatedly. Tong Choi, Manager at Toshiba
Pressing the Windows + X keys on your keyboard is a great shortcut for quick access to Windows utilities. And extra tip is to delete Restore points if you know you don't need them to create more available storage space. Grant Castle, VP, Engineering, T-Mobile
To stretch your smartphone data bucket, get more bang for your buck by watching Standard Definition (360p) video. The quality is very good for a smartphone and you can watch 3-5 times as many hours of video compared to high-def. Not only will this save your data bucket but will also improve your device's battery life. Win-Win! Ruben Mookerjee, GM Peripherals, Razer
In the smart new Edge web browser in Windows 10, Microsoft have worked hard to stop you setting the default search engine to anything except Bing. Here's how you switch to Google: first type www.google.com in the address bar, and ONLY THEN open the Edge browser menu (three dots). Click through to Settings > Advanced Settings > Search in Address bar with >, Add New > Add Search Provider where you should now see Google as a selectable option. Jay Marine, Vice President Amazon Instant Video
Hooked into a gripping TV or movie plotline and about to board a train, plane, automobile or simply heading out of Wi-Fi or 4G range? Amazon Prime members with iOS and Android devices, including the new Fire tablets, can now download thousands of movies and TV episodes available in Prime Video to watch on the go through the Amazon Video app. Just browse for your favourite show or film in app, from battle epics like Vikings to Emmy award winning Transparent, select your season and tap the download button next to your episode of choice – you can queue up a whole season too so you don't have to download one at a time. When the download is complete it will appear in your "on device" library and you can view your favourite movies and TV shows regardless of Wi-Fi or 4G connection. We're proud to be the only subscription streaming service that enables downloading titles for on-the-go viewing. Mark Kraynak, Chief Product Officer, Imperva
The single most important and easy thing a consumer can do for their own personal security is to use a password manager and set it up to have unique and relatively strong passwords for each site. I don't even know what 99% of my passwords are. Joe Osborne, Senior Editor, techradar
Never install a major operating system update the day it launches and it expect it to be 100% bug free. Unless you're dying for new fonts or often extraneous exclusive apps, you're better off waiting for that inevitable "X.0.1" update and avoiding the hassle. It's worth the wait. Gert-Jan Schenk VP for EMEA, Lookout
A rule of thumb for apps: if you can't quickly read and understand the privacy policy of a mobile app, then don't download. A flashlight mobile app has no business accessing your calendar information or contacts. With all the mobile apps we download, people often overlook these potentially harmful privacy violations. Remo Gerber, UK CEO of Gett Taxis
Don't "over app" it. Some people have so many apps they never find the right one. Organise your apps into categories, for example travel, finance, lifestyle, journals. Jita Mitra, Video Producer, techradar
Create filters in your Gmail so that your inbox doesn't need organising. Emails can go directly into folders you've created so that you can check different categories (labels) when it suits you. Susan Bennett, Original voice of Siri (US)
Try not to hit the wrong button.  |
| Facebook wants to get you and your friends blogging again Posted: 26 Sep 2015 01:13 AM PDT  Facebook had previously hinted at some changes for its oft-ignored Notes tool, and now those changes are rolling out across the site and mobile apps. Essentially, your Notes now look like Medium-esque blog posts. "Notes are now an even better way to write a longer post and share with anyone - whether it's a small group of friends or everyone on Facebook," writes Facebook User Interface Engineer Isaac Salier-Hellendag. Users get more stylish font formatting options as well as the opportunity to add a large cover photo at the top of the post. Photos, headers and lists can all be included too. Let the blogging beginThe feature is rolling out to everyone on the network right now and you can check if your account has received the upgrade yet by logging in and heading to www.facebook.com/notes. For those of you with long memories, it's something of a retro turn for social media: at the start of the 2000s, blogs were the original profiles, made popular by networks such as LiveJournal and Blogger. If you're stuck for inspiration, Facebook suggests recapping your summer holiday, voicing your opinion on something in the news or sharing a recipe with your friends.  |
| Hands-on review: Updated: Samsung Gear VR (S6) Posted: 25 Sep 2015 11:33 PM PDT  Oculus started off it's developer conference by announcing a brand new Samsung Gear VR headset that will fit both the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge along with the Note 5 and S6 Edge+. This version of Gear VR will be the finalized consumer version and will be out November 2015 for only $99 (about £65, AU$140). Netflix is also a new feature that will be available when the new Gear VR comes out, along with several other streaming services that allow you to watch with friends. If you've been using the S6 Gear VR, these features will be available to you as well.
Original hands on below... If you're willing to plop down $199 (£199, about AU$251) and live in the States, you can now pick up the new Gear VR headset from both Samsung and Best Buy online, and in stores May 15. Global availability has yet to be announced. Samsung's relaunch of the Gear VR so soon after the last model is odd. Everyone expected it to be a simple case of sticking your new Galaxy S6 in the same port and it would work just fine. It's hard to work out whether anyone would be annoyed about Samsung bringing out another model so soon after the last one. It's always irritating when a company does that, but in this instance it feels like getting angry about a brand making a new case for its new phone, rather than using the one from last year. It's a very expensive case, admittedly, coming at nearly £199 (around $300 / AU$400) if it follows the same pricing strategy as 2014's Gear VR.
But it's designed for the new phones – the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge – and there will be very, very few people that bought the Gear VR for the Note 4 and were looking to get the next model so soon after. DesignIf you've seen the Note 4 Gear VR version, you've seen this one too. It's precisely the same, except for the fact it's a little bit smaller (less phone to chuck in there) and a little lighter – plus the straps have been modified to provide a more comfortable fit.
The side panels are still present and correct for navigation and moving through the interface, so a judicious amount of swiping and tapping helps you navigate through the myriad Samsung options and menus in the Milk VR app.
They are also slightly shrunken though, with very little loss in usability it seems – that wasn't a hard mark to hit, as they weren't that accurate on the Gear VR anyway. I still found the device slightly uncomfortable to wear, as the lenses are slightly too close to your eyes – anyone with lovely and attractive long eye lashes will find they crush against them and distort the image. The focus jog wheel on the top of the new Gear VR is a little stiff, but I get the feeling that this would actually help lock in the clarity of what you're watching without constantly moving around and adding the fuzz. A new virtual worldI only had a limited time with the new Gear VR, so there were a couple of things that I wanted to try out. I firstly had another look a the 360 film of a circus (slightly different to the one used on the Samsung Galaxy Note 4) to work out if the picture was any more clear, as the previous model was cool, but had very clear pixellation thanks to blowing up the image.
It is still slightly fuzzy though, which is a slight shame. I was hoping the improved 577ppi of the smaller screen on the Galaxy S6, while still offering the same QHD resolution, would have made it better. However, I still think it's excellent for watching videos, and something I'm keen to do more of. It does need to be a slightly less chunky design, but the overall use was good as a home entertainment device.
Because being able to look up at a volcano, or look down at the canyon, was brilliant. It's so simple, but combined with the Bluetooth gaming controller I can see this being a real reason for developers to get on board. Early verdictThere's not much new on the Gear VR (S6 edition). It's the same thing that's been through a slight bodyform, making it 15% lighter and with more ergonomic straps. The lower pixilation wasn't apparent during my time with it, but playing in the immersive world with the gaming controller was a new one for me – and I loved it. Is it perfect? No. But VR is one of those things that seems like it's becoming a real trend – and it's one of those times that you feel like it's just astoundingly awesome that I hope Samsung (and others) manage to push the message on properly.  |
| Hands-on review: Updated: Oculus Rift Posted: 25 Sep 2015 09:39 PM PDT  Oculus Connect 2 hands onThe second Oculus Connect 2 conference in Los Angeles didn't have as much to reveal about Oculus Rift in terms of pricing and official release date, however that doesn't mean the company has been idly sitting by. In addition to perfecting the VR hardware, there's been a huge focus on pushing out content for the head mounted display. The official addition of 360-degree videos to Facebook timeline means there will be more to watch. Oculus also announced that Minecraft is heading to virtual reality on both the Rift and Samsung Gear VR, along with a slew of arcade games.
Various studios have been diligently developing games to use with the Oculus Touch controllers since they were revealed in June. While not available at E3, Connect 2 had eight games for everyone to try out. FPS lovers, meet Oculus Touch
The last time I used Oculus Rift and the Touch controllers, only Toybox was available to mess around with in the virtual space. Though still rough, it was an impressive experience. During Oculus Connect 2, there were eight games to choose from but sadly, demo time only allowed two play throughs. I wasn't able to upload many photos because most of them were blurry messes. The games I played had me moving around too much for the demo giver to take a solid picture. While it's unfortunate there aren't more pictures of me looking silly, it should tell you just how fun the games are. In comparison to Toybox which was basically a teaser of Touch's abilities, these games were action packed and very well made - though still not exactly ready. YouTube : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySl4tErSYaAThe first one I played was Dead & Buried which was developed by the Oculus Studio Team. It's a wild west shooting gallery that progressively gets more difficult as you go. After pulling a lever on the right with your Oculus Touch hand, a cowboy ghost pops up to give a tutorial. A six shooter then appears holstered on your right hip. I had a hard time unholstering it because the controller wouldn't register what I was trying to grab. The further I turned to look with the Rift, the further away the gun appeared. I felt like a dog chasing its tail in circles, unable to catch it. After this awkward moment passed and I finally made contact with the gun, the rest of the game went pretty smoothly. You end up with two guns - both six shooters that need to be reloaded by flicking your wrist to empty the chambers, then flicking back again for bullets. There are stationary targets and moving targets to shoot with the last bit of the demo providing a speeding train with targets to shoot at. Though super fun, playing Dead & Buried felt like a warm up for Epic Games' first person shooter, Bullet Train. Apparently the "it" demo to try, I was eager to see what the buzz was all about. This game is the reason there are no good pictures of me with the Touch controller - it was far too fast paced for me to really stand still.
Though you're playing as an invincible character where the bullets don't harm you, the large amount of baddies coming for you is alarming, and exciting. Epic cleverly added the ability to teleport by pressing the X button on the left Touch controller, allowing you to move around. The locations are designated spots next to different guns - shotguns, pistols, assault rifles, grenades. I'm not sure if you'l be able to teleport more freely in the rest of the game or if set destinations are all you've got. I'm hoping it's the former option; the latter makes sense since it was a "training" session in the game but if you can't move around freely, then it feels a bit too limiting. The auto aim is pretty helpful while you're getting used to the Touch controllers. It's especially cool since you can pluck bullets and missiles from the air to throw back at enemies. Here's the video of Bullet Train Oculus released at Connect 2. YouTube : https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=59&v=su1w54WA3tEOculus is for artists too
Medium is the new art-focused, sculpting tool that Oculus will ship with Touch when it launches next year. CEO Brenden Iribe said every platform needs its own Paint app during the keynote, but he didn't say Medium is Paint on steroids. This is the video Oculus released for the program. YouTube : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IreEK-abHioI wasn't really sure what to expect during my demo so I was pleasantly surprised at how intuitive and fun it is to sculpt with Medium. The program is still being developed but there were plenty of tools to use. You start with a block of "clay" that can either be a cube or a sphere. From there, you can shape it, take out or add in pieces, smooth it and paint with a large palette of colors. Then you're done, you're able to take a screenshot of your masterpiece. Due to the time constraint (and I guess my lack of artistic talent), mine turned out to be a weird blob.
What Oculus didn't mention during its keynote is that Medium is a social experience. Two people can hang out and build something together - at least that's what I was told during my demo. This was similar to my Toybox experience where two people with Rifts could hang out in VR together. With Medium though, you can create something amazing with another person, reinforcing another concept Oculus is trying to emphasize: that virtual reality doesn't have to be a solo endeavor. Early verdictThe upcoming gaming titles prove that virtual reality is the perfect haven for gaming, Medium shows that VR can be more than gaming and increasing creation of videos and films allow even more accessibility. Essentially, Oculus and many other companies are prepping the space as much as they can before the headset launches which is exactly what needs to happen. Nate Mitchell, VP of Product at Oculus, told me that "there's still time" before the Rift launches in Q1, and in that time Oculus will continue to tinker away on the hardware making sure it's ready. He couldn't specify what is still being worked on, but he's confident it will be delivered on time. I have to say, as much as I want my own Oculus Rift right now, I genuinely appreciate the time and effort Oculus has put into its headset. Every time I use the Rift and Touch controllers, it makes me even more excited for virtual reality. It's apparent there are still bugs to be squashed in the games and the comfort level could be upped for glasses-wearers like me but I'm like Mitchell, I feel like the team will be prepared to deliver come 2016. E3 2015 hands onOculus revealed a consumer release date for Q1 in 2016 but kept its lips zipped on specs and official pricing for the Rift during its big pre-E3 event. The company still doesn't seem ready to release the info just yet but it was sure ready to show off the headset. After using Oculus Rift Crescent Bay, I made a series of mental notes to check off when I tried the consumer Rift: Will it actually be lighter? Will my glasses fit comfortably? Will the latency improve? After using the new HMD at E3 2015, I can enthusiastically say yes to all of it, and more. Light as a featherAs the demo-giver handed me the Rift, I could barely contain my excitement because it was so incredibly light. Crescent Bay was far too heavy and wouldn't be comfortable wearing it for hours while turning your head around to look at stuff.
With weight seemingly fixed - I say seemingly because I still have yet to use the new headset for an extended amount of time - I moved on to the facial plate. Previously, it would always be a struggle to fit the Rift on my face because of my glasses. The latest Rift was much less of a struggle and was very easily adjusted to accommodate the large frames. The demo-giver fine-tuned the velcro straps for me on the sides though doing it on my own would have been a fairly simple process. The material wrapped around the Oculus Rift was also soft and sleek looking, which is a far cry from the chunky plastic. The head straps on the back look slightly different as well, and fit snugly.
As previously seen on Crescent Bay, the new headset has a pair of headphones attached to the sides that slip over your ears. However, Oculus says they'll be removable so you have the option to use your own headphones. The built-in audio itself doesn't sound too shabby and features 360 degree spatial audio experience. As with the Oculus Rift's previous iterations, a constellation tracking system will determine your position in space while you're wearing the headset.
There's also a new sensor for desktops that users can simply plug into the back of their computers. This sensor should start working in tandem with the constellation tracking right from the get go. The sensor will be able to recognize the head motions of users whether they're in a either a seated and standing experiences as well. Starter pack of gamesThere were so many more VR games to choose from at this E3 compared to previous years but I was only allowed to pick two. Football, baseball, basketball and hockey simulator are the options you get from VR Sports Challenge but the demo on hand was hockey. I was immediately thrown into the game as a goalie after a quick screen showing button commands on the Xbox One controller. A grizzled hockey player gave me a pep talk and was far more detailed looking than I expected. As he skated away, there was no lag at all. The amazing lack of lag applied to the rest of the hockey team quickly gliding around the rink. The gameplay consisted of turning my head to keep track of the hockey puck. The latency remained stellar as I swiveled around to make sure the opposing team wouldn't score. The game required a press of the left or right bumper on the controller, timed to block the shot. Once your team gets closer to the other side of the rink, you take control of the player with the puck automatically. The game slows down to let you turn your head to find an open spot to score a point.
VR Sports was a simple game with mechanics that were easy to grasp, though at times it felt like I was just hanging out in the crease watching the action happen. However it still felt like an immersive virtual reality especially when the puck came straight at my face. I had the urge to move back and protect my face while yelling - until I remembered it was fake. Because of these intense moments, I'd say Sanzaru Games did a great job and I'm excited to see what the other sports games are like. I also decided to try out EVE: Valkyrie even though I've played it before. It was never a good experience because the Oculus was heavy and pressed so close to eyeballs, that I always developed a headache afterwards. It was a bit different with the new Oculus Rift strapped on. This time, I was actually able to see everything clearly and it felt like I was in space shooting fools down while spinning and zooming around. I still felt woozy afterwards, but it wasn't that bad because my glasses didn't fog up randomly and the lenses were at a comfortable distance from my face. The magic touchOculus Touch is delightful. From my earlier experiences with Rift, to Crescent Bay, I had always wanted Project Morpheus-level interaction and now, finally, Oculus Touch has fulfilled the final requirement for total immersion.
Now, that doesn't mean Touch is perfect, but it's far more impressive than I expected. During the pre-E3 conference, Oculus VP Nate Mitchell told me it won't be ready to ship with the headset in Q1 but it should be out soon after - and I believe it. I honestly thought the peripheral demo would only show me I could move things around or swat at blocks - rudimentary hand tracking at best. I was completely wrong.
Apparently, the Oculus team has been working hard on developing the Half-Moon prototypes to do much more. In the aptly named Toy Box demo, I was not only able to pick up objects, I could shoot guns, slingshots, punch objects, pull heads off robots, and light sparklers on fire with a lighter. It doesn't sound like much but the Touch controllers barely lost tracking and consistently obeyed each grabby command. I did freeze and lose tracking three times, but it quickly corrected itself and resumed being a weird disembodied hand. The physics were also wonky at times. I placed a ping pong paddle down and it ended up pushing everything else off the table once. However, using one finger in the zero gravity mode to push a block in space made it gently float away. Again, these are all things that are fixable and should change exponentially by next year.
Each controller was lightweight and required a wrist lanyard similar to a Wiimote. It was a little confusing at first acclimating to the different buttons and triggers but after a few minutes, it became clear where each finger needed to go to pick something up. Essentially, if you're a good multitasker, it shouldn't be a problem to figure out. Gamers are probably used to this anyway. The Touch controllers are cable-free and contain natural-feeling haptic feedback. An analog stick, two buttons and an analog trigger - which is capacitative to touch - round out the two controllers. Each time I wanted to grab an object, the haptics would kick in to let me know it was OK to press the trigger to pick up the object. The quick vibration wasn't always necessary but was a nice indication that the controller "made contact" with something. VR isn't as solitary as you thinkThe person leading me through the demo was in another room while a disembodied head a set of disembodied hands were in the VR world with me. Every time he talked, the mouth area of the head would glow, and I'm assuming that's what I looked like too. This probably won't be the final look of the avatars, but I was still impressed by the quality and capabilities.
For most of my experience, the demo-giver was virtually in front of me passing me items or instructing me on what to pick up. One portion however, moved him "next" to me - the avatar visually shifted to my right while with the 360 degree audio emitted primarily from my right side, giving the sense that he was literally standing next to me at a shooting gallery. It was completely surreal and threw me off because I wasn't expected that level of immersion and interaction with another person in a VR world. Early verdictThe consumer Oculus Rift is in short, well worth the wait. I don't think the masses will take to it right away considering it's going to be expensive all around and many people don't have PC rigs set up. Then there's the waves of people who will likely face waves of nausea despite the near perfect latency. This is the most obvious problem but seems like a hurdle the team is getting closer to fixing. Games are also increasingly being developed directly for VR meaning there will be plenty of content trickling out. Whether they'll be any good is another area that will continually be improved through trial and error. The Oculus Touch controllers are the icing on the VR cake. I've used various peripherals before, but the software and hardware always felt a bit off, or simply weren't ready. The Touch is something I can see truly immersing you in the VR world, and it's only a prototype. I'm genuinely excited to see how much better the next iteration will be. The company has come a long, long way from the days of the barf-inducing DK1 so it has a lot to be proud of with the impending release of the consumer Rift build. But as creator Palmer Luckey stated during the Oculus conference, "this is only the beginning" and I can't wait to see what happens next. Hands on at CES 2015 and GDC 2015Update May 2015: We have a consumer Rift release date! Sort of. Oculus revealed it plans to start shipping the Rift to the general public in early 2016. It also teased what Rift will look like when it starts arriving for customers. Pre-orders open up later this year, though we still don't have a price for the VR viewer yet. Even more details are due in the coming weeks, so stay tuned to this space for more on Oculus Rift.
Hands on review continued below ... Oculus didn't announce a new SDK or final build of the Rift during GDC 2015, but there was a new demo on the show floor that we tried out. Still focusing on immersive experiences, the Rift took us into a scene from The Hobbit where Bilbo meets the fearsome Smaug for the first time. Except you're Bilbo. With the dragon still hidden underneath the piles of gold, you can take the opportunity to get closer to the shiny trinkets all around you, like a conveniently placed helmet on a treasure chest nearby. Of course prodding it means you're just crazily poking the air in real life. Then all of sudden, Smaug starts shifting causing rivulets of gold to fall towards you. At this point, not only are the VR visuals stunning making you want to greedily pocket the goods, but the sound of the clinking coins coming at you with 360 degree audio is starting to make you think twice about sneaking into a dragon's chamber - especially when Benedict Cumberbatch/Smaug starts telling you he can smell you. The quick demo ends with you getting fried in a fiery inferno of dragon breath. The flames burst up from all directions making you really feel the heat and then the scene goes black. Morbid. But so deliciously fun. It's not the awesome shoot out we experienced with Move controllers and Sony's Project Morpheus but if watching movies on the Oculus will be anything like this in the future, count us in. Update CES 2015: We went hands on with the Oculus Rift Crescent Bay prototype during CES 2015, however the demo was the same one revealed during Oculus Connect. The company has also continued to remain mum on the spec details of the latest audio equipped HMD. Though the audio itself has a few new things under the hood. Specifically, a new Oculus Audio SDK will be part of the CV1 package. This means devs will be able to incorporate 3D positional audio for an even deeper immersive experience. The same SDK will be available for the Samsung Gear VR, another virtual reality venture Oculus is part of. We've included a few photos of the CES experience and an interview with Oculus's Head of Mobile, Max Cohen where he explains the significance of adding sound to VR. YouTube : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvDb0C5pGYI#t=30
Update November 12 2014: There has been a recent 0.4.3 release of the Oculus PC SDK, which features Linux support, a number of performance and stability improvements and support for developing Rift content with Unity Free. Another PC update will be released this month, perhaps to coincide with the impending release date of the head mounted display. Hands on Oculus Connect 2014Oculus held its first ever Oculus Connect virtual reality conference in Hollywood on September 20, and the growing company used the opportunity to show off its newest Oculus Rift prototype: Crescent Bay. The lighter, more comfortable Crescent Bay Rift prototype has beefed-up specs and, for the first time, integrated headphones designed by the engineers at Oculus VR. But unlike with past prototypes like DK2 or "Crystal Cove," Oculus is being less than upfront about Crescent Bay's specifications. They bumped the last headset up to 1080p, and Crescent Bay certainly appears to have an even higher resolution, but the company won't confirm as much. That's because they want to focus on the Oculus Rift as a full package rather than as a simple amalgamation of its various components, all of which will no doubt change by the time the consumer version Rift - CV1, as the company refers to it - is finally ready.
"It's the combination of the resolution with the optics, with the mechanical engineering and industrial design of this thing, that allow for it to look like it's a higher resolution, even though it may or may not be," Oculus Vice President of Product Nate Mitchell told TechRadar. "The synergy of all the components together is what takes it up a notch." What Oculus instead focused on with the Crescent Bay demos it showed off at Oculus Connect was the level of "presence" the Rift can make users feel under optimal conditions and with content designed specifically to be as immersive as possible. Down with the BayWhereas every past official Oculus Rift demo took place with users seated, this time the company had journalists and other Oculus Connect attendees standing up and walking around with the headset strapped to their faces. In interviews afterward, Mitchell and Oculus VR founder Palmer Luckey emphasized that the stand-up Rift experience is not the experience that they're stressing for consumers, but was simply meant in this case to crank up the immersion as high as possible. Mitchell called this demo "conceptual," and Luckey said "the Oculus Rift is a seated experience. It's very dangerous to stand up."
As true as that may be - you probably shouldn't try walking blindly around your home while the Oculus Rift is tricking your brain into thinking you're on a different planet or in a submarine - the stand-up experience demonstrated with Crescent Bay at Oculus Connect was undoubtedly the most immersive and impressive virtual reality demo ever. The experience consisted of about a dozen demos developed by Oculus's new internal content team. Luckey said these demos are the cream of the crop as far as what Oculus has developed, and many more experiences were scrapped or sidelined. Over several minutes they showed off a variety of potential Rift applications, eliciting a number of very different responses. The demosThe Crescent Bay demos took place in a highly controlled environment: a small, empty room with four plain, grey walls. A camera - larger than the one used with Crystal Cove - was mounted on the wall, tracking users' positions as they walked around a small, black mat on the ground. By tracking the Crescent Bay prototype's white-studded surface (these nubs are now located all around the headset, including on the back of the strap) this camera can accurately understand your position in the room, allowing you to walk around freely in virtual space. Not to get too dramatic, but it really is a mind-blowing experience. The demos themselves consisted of several non-interactive environments, from a creaking submarine chamber to a sunny museum in which a life-sized (looked that way at least) T-Rex sniffs around and ultimately steps directly over you.
These short experiences lasted less than a minute each. One highlight took place at the top of a skyscraper in a steampunk, BioShock-inspired city. Standing up in that grey room, you could walk to the edge of the virtual roof and look down hundreds of feet to the traffic below. And as with the T-Rex's roar, the Crescent Bay Rift's attached headphones - technically stereo, but with simulated surround sound - made the experience seem all the more real with traffic noises, hissing wind and more. That demo called to mind the Game of Thrones "Ascend the Wall" Oculus Rift experience designed by visual effects firm Framestore. Used by HBO at promotional events like the premiere of Game of Thrones' fourth season, Ascend the Wall put users inside an actual metal cage - replicating the elevator from the series - that rumbled and blew cold air at them as they virtually ascended to the top of the show's fictional 800-foot-high Wall. The more points of feedback these demos are able to simulate, the more "presence" users feel, Oculus contends. These feedback points range from that feeling of cold air being blown in your face - which is not very practical - to ambient sound, which is practical - to something as simple as standing up, which is not ideal for every situation but nevertheless ramps things up considerably. "You stand up, and suddenly your balance kicks in, and you're like, 'woah!' and you feel your weight shift subconsciously," Mitchell explained to us after the demo. "When you stand up suddenly [your subconscious] is totally engaged."
All of these demos showed off the ways that standing up can enhance virtual reality. For example, within environments that appear small, like a tiny cartoon city or a sci-fi terrain map that could be used for a strategy game, walking around makes you feel like you're playing an Ender's Game-like simulation. But one of the most fun demos involved simply standing and facing a curious alien on a distant planet. As the user bends down and moves around to better examine the alien, it does the same to the user, clucking in a strange tongue. You actually get the sense that it's talking to you, and it's easy to see how this type of interaction could be used to make video games better. Yet another demo had you staring into a mirror, with your head represented by a floating mask. No matter how hard I tried or how fast I moved, I couldn't detect a shred of latency as the mask in the mirror reflected my every movement. Again, the grey room in which this took place was a more controlled environment than most people's homes, but it was nevertheless impressive. Early verdictThe final experience - and the most game-like - showed off exactly how cool an Unreal Engine 4 Oculus Rift game might be. Futuristic soldiers shot at a hulking robot as it fired right back, explosions sending cars flying in slow motion as the point of view crept slowly down the street toward the machine. It felt natural to physically dance around, dodging incoming bullets and ducking under flipping vehicles, no matter how ridiculous I might have looked to onlookers who couldn't see what I was seeing. This could legitimately be the future of gaming - if Oculus can figure out the input problem. Although many Oculus Rift demos have used an Xbox 360 controller, there's still no standard input device for Rift games. Like Crescent Bay's integrated audio, though, this is a problem Oculus is actively working on. "There's a very real possibility that we would have come to the conclusion that audio is something we were going to leave to third parties," Luckey told us at the conference. "We came to the conclusion that we had to do it ourselves, and we had to do a good job, because it was so important to get right. I think input is in that camp." That's just one of the problems Oculus needs to solve before the Rift is ready for consumers, and given that Crescent Bay is just the latest of many prototypes it's unclear when it will be. But when Oculus Rift CV1 is ready, it has the potential to change entertainment forever. Reporting by Michael Rougeau Hands on at Comic-Con and GDC 2014Update: Oculus Rift Dev Kit 2 is on its way to game makers and it's being used for by movie studios. We revised our hands-on review and added facts about its Galaxy Note 3 screen and Mac support. Hands on impressions by Matt Swider and Alex Roth As Oculus Rift Dev Kit 2 starts shipping to pre-order customers, we got more face time with the virtual reality headset at PAX Prime and Comic-Con. Codenamed Crystal Cove, the updated Oculus Rift DK2 costs $350 (about £207, AU$373). That's $50 (about £30, AU$53) more than the first-generation developer kit. However, the improved specs make it well worth the price bump if you're a developer with a passion for cutting-edge technology and the patience for beta hardware. The face-worn display outfits developers with an HD screen that's 1080p or 960 x 1080 per eye. It finally meets our next-generation gaming needs. Believe it or not, the Oculus Rift DK2 display actually uses the 5.7-inch Super AMOLED panel from the Samsung Galaxy Note 3. Behind its rubber casing is same exact front panel, "Samsung" logo and all. YouTube : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hyeUkB44IMThis makes sense. Oculus was rumored to be working with Samsung on the South Korean electronics giant's own virtual reality headset. Whether or not that pans out remains to be seen. Despite both the physical and theorized Samsung ties, Mac compatibility has been added to the Oculus Rift DK2, making good on the start-up company's promise to support Apple machines. All five OS X game developers are rejoicing right now. Oculus Rift DK2 drops the first interation's control box in favor of integrating the guts into the headset itself. Only a single cable - HDMI and USB woven together - dangls from your face. The new kit also comes with a motion-tracking camera, which allows for greater movement within the world of the Rift. It looks a bit like a webcam, and a lot like a PlayStation Eye camera from the PS3 days. It features a blue "on" light and an Oculus logo, but its true power isn't visible to the naked eye. It uses forty infrared LEDs on the headset to track your head movements and integrate them into the game. These LEDs were visible on the version we tried at CES 2014, but not anymore.
In the demos we saw at GDC 2014, this meant players could lean in for a closer look at in-game objects and characters. These were the same demos we saw at CES, with the exception of a new one by Epic Games, which integrated the player into the game a unique way. The game was a one on one battle between two sword and shield wielding avatars. It takes place in a living room, where players can see representations of themselves seated in the room, controller in hand. To keep an eye on the fight we had to swivel our head and crane our neck.
The Rift was a surreal experience as always; when our opponent turned his head or leaned forward it gave his neck a stretched, snake-like appearance. And when one of the battling avatars leapt up onto your lap, you half expect to feel his little feet on your legs.
If you've used the previous Rift, know that Crystal Cove is a night and day difference. The higher resolution makes all the difference in the world; it's like going from Skyrim on a four-year-old PC to one from last year.
Note that we say last year; the Oculus Rift still isn't sporting visuals that you could call next gen. There are still jaggedly rendered objects, but the immersive nature of the experience trumps graphics any day, and is one you need to see to believe.
Movies come to Oculus Rift at Comic-Con Comic-Con 2014 provided a different sort of experience - with entertainment at the forefront - and maybe one we can expect more of now that Facebook owns Oculus VR. Both Twenty Century Fox and Warner Bros. were backing new Oculus Rift Dev Kit 2 units at the cosplay-filled San Diego convention with demos for their X-Men and Into the Storm films. The X-Men Cerebro Experience provided the more surreal experience as attendees slipped into the wheelchair and saw through the eyes of mutant leader Professor Charles Xavier. He, fittingly, donned the just-as-snug brain amplifying mutant detector Cerebro on his own head. The concept involved seeking the shapeshifting mutant Mystique by looking 360 degrees in any direction. She was hiding in a Comic-Con crowd that was fictitious and barren - it would have been cooler if it used augmented reality here. The actual hunt was automated and fairly boring, but Professor X's replica wheelchair at the Fox booth provided developers with the opportunity to predict the location of our limbs and torso. It accurately overlayed his body onto our own. Obviously, this demo didn't call for much movement and that worked to the movie studio's advantage. It could easily trick your mind into thinking that the Professor's subtle finger tap on the armrest was your own with a "Wait, I didn't just do that!"
 Into the Storm upped the energy level with simulated tornado winds inside a small glass both built by Warner Bros. Through the first-person perspective, we saw three characters hunker down behind a gated sewer entrance, truck-sized debris smash against its ironclad bars and pipes burst with gushing water. It didn't have the advantage of a stationary wheelchair-bound character to map our bodies and there was no interaction whatsoever, but Warner Bros did aptly demo its new disaster movie with this terrifying scene recreation. It also messed up our hair. Both X-Men Cerebro Experience and Into the Storm also gave us insight into how big-name movie studios intend to use Oculus Rift to invent new ways of enjoying theatrical experiences. Video games were just the beginning. Hands on CES 2014Oculus Rift gets more impressive every time we see it, and the futuristic virtual reality headset's appearance at CES 2014 was definitely no exception. Since E3 2013 Oculus VR has gained impressive talent and raised an extra $75 million in funding, and the result is the Oculus Rift Crystal Cove prototype (named for a state park in southern California). It's significantly easier on the eyes than older versions of the headset and, by extension, closer than ever to the Rift's final, fully functional, consumer-facing form. The two game demos Oculus co-founder Nate Mitchell showed us in a private meeting room at CES were designed to showcase two new features: positional head-tracking and low persistence, both of which help make the virtual reality experience more immersive and address some users' complaints with the headset, including motion blur-induced nausea.
The head-tracking is the most obvious improvement. The new white studs on the Oculus Crystal Cove prototype's face are indicators that communicate your head's position to a new external camera, mounted near your monitor. As a result the full movements of your upper body, not just the sideways and up/down movements of your head, are detected and translated to the game world. That means you can lean forward while playing CCP Games' extremely impressive 3D space-shooting game EVE: Valkyrie, bringing your in-game face closer to your space ship's various monitors and switches so you can better read their warnings and instructions. Since the very first demo Oculus Rift has inserted players into virtual worlds, and with this addition it's a more immersive experience than ever. Get low, low, low, lowSecond and more subtle is the low persistence, which makes the Oculus Rift's somewhat notorious motion blur a thing of the past. Now the graphics remain more clear and sharp even when you move your head around rapidly. There's still a tiny amount of blurring, but it's a massive improvement over the previous version of Oculus Rift. To prove it Mitchell turned low persistence off and then on as we moved around, and although the image became darker with it on, it almost totally alleviated what was previously one of the Rift's biggest issues.
The tech behind the low persistence is somewhat complex, but Mitchell explained the gist of it. Essentially the new "Crystal Cove" Oculus Rift's OLED display has zero latency, so it takes the pixels no time at all to change color. Even then, Mitchell said, there was some blurring, but Oculus alleviated it even further by programming the pixels to consistently but imperceptibly flicker on and off, only turning on when they have "good" data to display. That new OLED display is also full HD 1080p, just like the prototype Oculus showed off behind closed doors at E3 2013. That of course helps as well. Wizard ChessWe played EVE: Valkyrie at E3 2013 as well, though on the older, lower-resolution Oculus Rift. In 1080p, and with minimal motion blur and the new positional head-tracking, it was even more immersive now than it was back then - and that's saying something, because even that first time it was totally mind-blowing. Piloting a space ship with an Xbox 360 controller while you look around the cockpit and target enemies with the motions of your head is one of the most impressive gaming experiences ever created. It feels like the first time you played Super Mario 64, or Halo, or Wolfenstein - completely fresh and like it has the potential to change the world of gaming. And right now it's only a demo.
The other software Oculus had at CES was a very basic defense game built by Epic Games in Unreal Engine 4. It's an evolution of one of the original Oculus Rift demos Oculus showed around - the one where users simply walked or floated around several beautiful but interaction-light Unreal Engine 4 environments, including a snowy mountain and the lava-filled lair of a scary-looking demon lord. Now, that demon sits on his throne across from you, the player, he being your apparent opponent. Around you is his cavernous, fiery lair, and before you is something like a 3D board game with moving pieces. He sends tiny dwarves marching inexorably toward your goal, and you press buttons on the Xbox 360 controller to fire arrows, cannonballs and flamethrowers at them.
There are two views: one overhead and one from closer to the game's level, almost like you're leaning down toward it to put on your thinking cap. And thanks to that positional head-tracking you can actually lean forward to peer into the game and examine the little dwarves up close. You can look into their faces as they're pinned with arrows and crisped with fire. The experience of playing a game inside a game world is not unique to Oculus Rift. This little game, though still very basic, could conceivably be a mini-game within some epic, sprawling RPG. But like with everything else, playing it on Oculus Rift makes you feel like you're really there. Early VerdictMitchell said the camera that enables the positional tracking may be only a temporary solution. But whatever Oculus settles on to make sure the final version of Oculus Rift features full six-point head-tracking will be included with the unit, whether that means bundling a camera in or something else. There's still no projected release date or final pricing for the consumer product that the Oculus Rift Crystal Cove prototype will eventually become, despite rumors of a Christmas 2014 goal that Mitchell would neither confirm nor deny. And the conspicuous indicator lights on the Crystal Cove's front aren't final either, Mitchell revealed, even if they do look kind of cool. Mitchell and his colleagues at Oculus VR seem to think the Rift still has a long way to go. That may very well be true, but the fact is the Oculus Rift is the coolest product in the world right now, and it gets better every time we see it. Alex Roth and Matt Swider also contributed to these hands-on previews Earlier previewsUpdate: It's E3 2013, and it's been several months since TechRadar last saw Oculus Rift. The virtual reality headset has undergone two major changes since January: a new prototype now comes with full HD 1080p visuals, and it's now got something resembling an actual video game.
We went hands on at the show to check out what's new with Oculus Rift, and we came away extremely impressed. Catching snowflakesOculus VR is now using Epic's Unreal Engine 4 to demo its Rift headset. Specifically, the company is showing players the lava and snow demo that debuted in videos in late March. Wearing the standard-definition headset (similar to the one we saw at CES, but with an extra top strap for added comfort), we felt like we should be able to catch a snowflake with an open mouth when we looked up at the virtual sky. It's that real-looking, and when we put on the brand new prototype HD Oculus Rift that sensation was only heightened. Oculus Rift is incredibly immersive, and part of that is thanks to its true stereoscopic 3D. The two screens inside the goggles become extensions of your own eyeballs, and your brain quickly adapts to the point that you'll raise your arm and expect to see them in the game world. You can truly sense the world's depth, and despite knowing it's an illusion it feels very real.
We didn't experience any nausea, but we only used it for a few minutes. We did get a touch of vertigo as we looked down from the top of a virtual mountain, though. The consumer version of Oculus Rift, which Oculus VR Vice President of Product Nate Mitchell said is coming in "months and not years," will likely come in HD like the prototype we saw at E3. As you can imagine it's absolutely a superior experience. Mitchell was hesitant to divulge too many specifics, though, mostly because they're always subject to change. "We want to continue to improve the hardware," he said. "Display technology keeps getting better. Sensor technology keeps getting better. We're adding new features and things like that, a lot of which we haven't announced." He said they want to keep the price point around $300 (about UK£191, AU$312), though. FutTv : gkBi1Kyu99L9dTo infinity (and beyond)The other big development in the world of Oculus Rift came not from Oculus VR itself, but from EVE Online developers CCP Games. The first development kits for the headset went out a few months ago, and in that time CCP built an impressive demo that they showed off at E3 this week. In it players fly a spaceship using an Xbox 360 controller while the Oculus Rift tracks their head movements. This works incredibly well because just like when you're controlling a vehicle in real life, you can look around and move independently. The multiplayer demo - which unfortunately is just that, a tech demo - allowed multiple players to fly around in a large outer space environment while shooting lasers and missiles at one another. We could shoot lasers straight forward while targeting other players above and to the sides of our ship by simply moving our head and visually targeting them.
The sense of space in this demo (no pun intended) was simply astounding. Tilting our head down, we could see our knees in the game; we found ourselves moving our arms and expecting our in-game avatar's arms to move as well. That sensation caused some dissonance as our brain tried to differentiate the virtual body it was seeing from the body it's attached to. That could be solved with a Kinect-style sensor that tracked your arm movements used in tandem with Oculus Rift, though Mitchell said they don't have plans for anything like that. The dev kits are out there, though, and it's not impossible. In fact, it seems we're just beginning to explore the possibilities of Oculus Rift, and if what we've seen so far is any indication then it's time to get very, very excited for what's in store. Original article: Oculus Rift made headlines last year for its wildly successful Kickstarter project. The enterprise to create a commercially viable virtual reality headset raised $2,437,429, and at the pre-CES 2013 Digital Experience event, TechRadar got to experience Oculus Rift eyeball-to-eyeball. The VR headset has been through several iterations, but the one we saw at CES was the most refined. It isn't perfect (and as we found out, it might not ever be perfect for some players) but it's undoubtedly superior to any previous attempts at a virtual reality display.
Instead of a clunky skull-encompassing helmet, Occulus Rift is more like a set of ski goggles, with room inside for small eyeglasses if you wear them. Inside are two lenses, which each feed a separate 640 x 800 image to your eyeballs. Combined, they form a unified 1280 x 800 image. Motion tracking means it responds to your head movements, as though you're looking around an actual 3D environment. Oculus VR (the company behind Rift) showed off its remarkable new kit with the Epic Citadel demo - a standard video game input (in this case, from Xbox 360) in first-person view. This plunged us into a medieval marketplace populated by humble townsfolk and knights in armour, with snow softly settling around us. Wear it wellThe first time we moved was rather perplexing and disorienting. It's almost like walking for the very first time. However, the visuals seem extremely fluid and natural. And in less than a minute, we felt that Oculus Rift really could be the new face of playing games. Unfortunately, not long after that TechRadar's motion-sickness susceptible reviewer began to feel something else. He was only able to tolerate ten minutes before nausea spoiled the party.
The time it takes for sickness to kick in appears to depend on the game's frame rate, camera system and other factors that have yet to be isolated. But surprisingly, while Oculus VR's representatives say this initial reaction is common among first-timers, they also report that most (though not all) players subsequently become accustomed to the experience. Early verdictThere is still no target release date for the final product, let alone price. At CES, two versions were shown: the somewhat rough prototype, which is covered by black tape; and the developer kit, which looks far more polished. But whenever it appears, Oculus Rift seems set to mark a big shift in gaming. Clearly, though, there's work to do if the headset is to fulfill its potential - we can't see it becoming truly popular if it gets a reputation for making players sick.  |
| UK spies reportedly saw everything you did on the internet Posted: 25 Sep 2015 04:44 PM PDT  Leaked documents from Edward Snowden has revealed a number of surveillance programs conducted by the United Kingdom's Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), including a program to spy on every individual's internet browsing habits. According to the documents that were obtained by publication The Intercept, the purpose of the surveillance operation called Karma Police, was to "build a web-browsing profile for every visible user on the Internet." This included every user across the globe, with data collected including user visits to social media and news sites, searches and even porn. Some of the websites that were 'listened in on' were Yahoo, Google, Reuters, Hotmail, YouTube, Facebook, Reddit, WordPress, Amazon, as well as sites operated by CNN, BBC, and the UK's Channel 4. And yes, even PornHub. The leaked documents can be viewed on The Interceptor's website. Surveillance detailedDetailing the program, the publication says the program included building profiles based on a person's web browsing history, as well as analyzing instant messenger communications, emails, Skype calls, text messages, cell phone locations, and social media interactions and keeping tabs on suspicious Google Search and Maps use. Some documents also reveal that the program also collected data on broadcast and internet radio and who was accessing it, especially 'Islamic Radio Stations'. Analyses of the data was conducted "to assess the Islamic radicalization risk". According to The Intercept, the program has been running for more than 5 years, and the data collection has increased every year, stating that by 2012, 50 billion metadata records were being collected every day, with plans to double the capacity. It's been suggested from the documents that due to the sheer amount of data being collected, the data is only stored for up to six months, and any suspicious persons are reported to MI5.  |
| iOS Tips: How to access iCloud files with iOS 9 Posted: 25 Sep 2015 03:20 PM PDT  If you've got an Apple, Mac, or iOS tech question, we have the answer. This time the question comes from a reader who wants to know how to use his iOS device to access the files he's placed in iCloud drive. This used to be quite a headache, but thanks to the recently released iOS 9 it's no problem. Read on to see how it's done. QuestionI added a folder in iCloud on my Mac and I placed a file in the folder. How can I see and open the file on my iOS devices? AnswerWith iOS 9, Apple has included a new app inside of iOS that lets you easily access your saved documents, folders and files inside of iCloud Drive. Whenever you save a file to iCloud Drive on your Mac, it will synchronize with your other Macs and iOS devices, and the iCloud servers and be available on all of your devices nearly immediately. To access the files, all you have to do is use the iCloud Drive app, but it's somewhat hidden. To enable the iCloud Drive app on your iOS device: 1. Open Settings. 2. Navigate to iCloud > iCloud Drive. 3. Enable the option for "Show on Home Screen."
When you enable this option, a new iCloud Drive app will appear on your home screen that allows you to peruse the various folders of content in your iCloud Drive, download files, and open them with compatible apps right from within iOS for editing and saving.
Got an Apple tech question? Email ask@maclife.com.  |
| 7 ways Apple CarPlay and Android Auto can save you from yourself Posted: 25 Sep 2015 02:29 PM PDT  Introduction
Since several states have deemed it illegal to use a mobile phone while driving, automakers and electronics companies have tried to find ways to make it easier for us to still use our smartphones in our cars. From the suction cup on the windshield to a small auxiliary screen mounted on the dash, there have been countless attempts to help us keep two hands on the wheel. Now comes the biggest push yet to fully integrate our smartphones with our cars – Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Both systems now fully integrate our smartphones with our car's infotainment system, making it easy to control many of our phone's functions via a large LCD screen in the middle of the dash. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto will definitely help keep our hands on the steering wheel and eyes more on the road ahead. Here are seven ways that Apple CarPlay and Android Auto will make driving safer. Your phone is on lockdown
Even if you get tempted to look at your phone, there won't be any point. Once you plug your smartphone into the USB port in your car, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto take over your phone's screen. So, the only way you can access your phone is by using the voice controls or the information on the screen. You could always just unplug your phone, but why do that when everything you need is within shouting – or speaking – distance? Make phone calls with ease
No need to scroll through your phone while you're on the road to find a friend's number. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto have access to your full contact list via your voice or by using the touchscreen in the center of your dashboard. You can even listen to your voicemail or return that missed call from your mom. Apple and Google Maps are now hands-free
Before Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, if you wanted to use Apple or Google Maps for directions, you had to stare at your phone's likely tiny screen for directions. Obviously, this wasn't very safe and was the one of the easiest ways for you to get pulled over or worse. You can now access both mapping systems on your car's infotainment screen, which will help you keep your eyes closer to where it matters – on the road. Better yet, both Siri and Google Now will dictate every turn to you through your car's speaker system. Find all your music by just asking for it
Trying to find a song in your music library probably ranks pretty high in the number of things that you are doing with your phone while driving – right beside "looking for a phone number" and "texting". Now, you can access all your music without even having to touch your phone. Simply ask Siri for a song, and Apple CarPlay will automatically cue it up on your car's audio system. You can also access Spotify or Pandora. (Google Now can do the same through Android Auto.) No more pawing at a screen with your other paw on the wheel. Give your thumb a break
No need to grab your phone to send a text to a friend that you're late for dinner because now you can simply send, listen to and reply to text messages with your voice. Apple CarPlay will also play audio messages back to you, as will Android Auto. Dangerous road system ahead?
Android Auto can offer suggestions for alternate routes to your destination as traffic conditions change along your current route. This is something that many older navigation systems can't hold a candle to yet. Apple Maps can also provide you with current traffic, too. But whether it's as up-to-date as Google Maps is another story. Make lists on the go without lifting a finger
Ever think of something that you wanted to write down while you were driving? It almost goes without saying that it would be dangerous to search for a pen and paper or tap it into your smartphone while you're driving. Apple CarPlay allows you to make lists and set up reminders by talking to the system through Siri. Meanwhile, Android Auto does the same through Google Now. You can even set said reminders to go off at certain times by dictating commands like, "Hey Siri, remind me to pick up milk on the way home today?"  |
The next-generation of multi-touch has launched, and it's indeed called 3D Touch, confirming all of the rumors in the lead up to Apple's press conference.
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