Creative Technology's Sound Blaster X7 is designed to be a powerful
amplifier in a compact box. The device is slated to cost $400.
The Sound Blaster X7 is a powerful amplifier in a compact design.
Sometimes things are made to be extreme. Case in point: the Sound Blaster X7 amplifier from Creative Technology.
Created
to be the "biggest, baddest, boldest Sound Blaster ever," the new
device is an ultra-high-end external Sound Blaster with a 24-bit/192kHz
high-resolution 127dB digital-to-analog converter (DAC) and 100W-capable
audio amplifier combined in a compact box that's not bigger than most
computer desk speakers.
The amplifier can take audio from virtually any the popular sources, including:
Digital High-Speed USB 2.0 connectivity to a computer.
Digital USB Host connectivity to select iOS/Android models for direct high-quality, lossless audio streaming.
Optical S/PDIF-Input connectivity to televisions and gaming consoles.
Wireless Bluetooth 4.1 and Near Field Communication (NFC) technology with one-touch Bluetooth pairing.
It
also features an RCA Line-In (Right and Left) option for analog
connectivity to other various audio sources and a 3.5mm Mic-in.
This basically mean you can use the X7 with any device, be it a computer, smartphone, tablet
(including an iDevice with a Lightinng connector) or even an HDTV, via a
wire or wireless connection. After that, when coupled with capable
speakers, the amplifier promises to deliver extremely clear and powerful
high-resolution audio for games, music and movies.
For outputs,
the X7 has gold-plated two-way binding post terminal connectors for
passive bookshelf and tower speakers, 5.1 analog connectivity
for surround sound, optical S/PDIF-Output connectivity, a 1/4-inch
(6.3mm) headphone out and an 1/8-inch (3.5mm) headphone out.
The X7 supports all popular audio inputs and outputs and has an a built-in advanced amplifier.
Among
the X7's other features, you can control it via multiple platforms,
including PC, Mac, iOS or Android, using the Sound Blaster X7 Control
Panel software (for computers) and the Sound Blaster Central mobile app
(for mobile devices). Both desktop and mobile applicaitons give full
access to customizing the X7's settings.
The Sound Blaster X7 is
not cheap, unfortunately, costing $400. But if you're an audiophile who
wants to get the best out of your sound system or just want to impress
your friends, it's time to save up since the X7 will be available for
purchase in December.
Google Chrome lets you sync your bookmarks and extensions so you don't
have to add or transfer them to your other computers. Follow these three
quick steps for enabling sync on Google Chrome.
Having multiple computers can be great when one of
them is a laptop for mobile computing and another stays at home for the
family. Fortunately, Google Chrome lets you sync your bookmarks and
extensions so you don't have to add or transfer them to your other
computers. So how can you turn on this feature? Follow these three quick
steps for enabling sync on Google Chrome.
Chrome menu.
Step 1: Open the hamburger menu in your Chrome browser (the three lines in the upper right-hand corner) and choose Settings.
Start sync setup.
Step 2: In the new tab that opens, click the Sign in to Chrome button near the top and sign-in to your account.
Choose the features you want to sync.
Step 3: You
can choose which settings you want to sync or "Sync everything."
Additionally, you will need to add a passphrase for encryption.
(Optional) Step 4: Enable syncing in Google Chrome on your other devices, such as computers, phones, or tablets. The features you chose to sync should appear shortly.
Now
you don't need to transfer your bookmarks, re-download your extensions,
or struggle to remember your passwords -- Chrome brings them along for
you.
Intel "Make it Wearable" finalist Team Babybe created a wearable that
lets preemies or other babies in incubators feel their parents'
heartbeat while separated.
The day my son was born was one of the happiest days of my
life. It was also one of the scariest, as just minutes after he was
born, baby and I were rushed to the NICU (the neonatal intensive care
unit, for the uninitiated) to address some respiratory issues that came
up during the birthing process. The NICU is a scary place, and one of
the more challenging aspects of the first few days is how much time your
baby spends in the incubator, away from the human touch both you and
your little one crave.
Team Babybe, a recently announced finalist in Intel's Make it Wearable
challenge, has come up with a prototype mattress that helps bring back
some of that closeness. The mattress is built to feel just like real
human skin, and a teddy-bear-size sensor is worn on the parent's chest
to detect his or her heartbeat and breathing patterns. Information from
the sensor is sent to a control module, which transmits that information
to a pneumatic pump in the mattress that makes the mattress move so the
baby can actually feel the parent's heartbeat and when he or she takes a
breath.
Babybe could help get premature babies out of the
incubator faster than the standard model, its creators claim. And even
just one day, or one hour, of incubator-free time could make a world of
difference in a family's life. The best part of our NICU stay was when
we could finally hold our son after he transitioned out of the incubator
and into the standard bassinet. We were just overwhelmed with a sense
of relief that our child had gotten through the worst of it.
Once
the clinical trials are completed, the team wants to see Babybe in every
hospital in every NICU around the world. If the device pans out, they
could be on their way to achieving that lofty goal.
The winner of Intel's Make It Wearable challenge will be announced on November 3.
Once you've loaded music onto your watch, you need to pair a Bluetooth headset to it for playback.
Transferring music from your Android device to your Android Wear watch is a simple process, as we pointed out earlier. But once you get music on the watch, you'll need to have a Bluetooth headset, speaker or headphones paired to the watch.
Pairing another Bluetooth device with your watch is easy, taking just a few minutes of your time and little tech know-how.
Top row: Settings on Android Wear to add a Bluetooth device. Bottom row: Playback controls and music selection.
Before you begin on your watch, put the Bluetooth headphones into pairing mode.
Once that's done, launch Settings on your watch.
Find and tap on Bluetooth Devices from the Settings menu.
Your watch will begin looking for available devices. When your device's name is present, tap on it and follow any necessary prompts to complete the pairing process.
Now
when you want to listen to music, you can launch the Play Music app on
your watch by saying "Start Play Music" or navigating to it through the
watch's menu. You can then select and control playback of the music
stored directly on your watch.
Want to stay focused when reading about a topic on Wikipedia, but your
curiosity is piqued by the links in the text? Check out this Chrome
extension to stay on track.
Visiting Wikipedia to look up information on one topic generally
means reading up on several others. The links within the text body are
meant to be useful, but can sometimes turn into a huge time sink.
Web comic xkcd illustrates
this situation perfectly in "The Problem with Wikipedia." Sometimes,
it's just too tempting to click those links to learn about something
else.
If you want to stay focused when you're checking out a specific topic, Lifehacker recommends
using WikiTweaks for your Chrome browser. WikiTweaks adjusts the
formatting of each entry on Wikipedia and adds pop-up summaries of those
tempting links, keeping you on the right page.
To get started, install a copy of WikiTweaks for your Google Chrome browser.
A summary pops up for the link
Head
to a topic on Wikipedia. This example will work with panna cotta. As
you can see, there are lots of links within the text to tell you about
other topics such as: Italian, simmering and even gelatin. Just mouse
over one of the links and a small summary will appear. This summary has
been pulled from the first paragraph of the Wikipedia entry for that
topic.
WikiTweaks button has a recent Wikipedia history.
Another
difference you may notice is the formatting of the entire Wikipedia
page. Now there is less space in the left and right margins, which makes
more use of your screen real estate. Lastly, if you click the
WikiTweaks button, you'll see a list of recently viewed Wikipedia
entries.
This extension makes Wikipedia more user-friendly by
helping you find out what a linked word refers to, without losing track
of what you went to the site for in the first place.
Give it a try and leave your thoughts in the comments.
The HD display will likely find a home in future flagship models, such as next year's G3 successor.
LG's latest creation, the 5.3-inch Neo Edge display.
LG
The
face of next year's LG flagship smartphone could incorporate a bezel so
slim it's barely there at all. The hardware-maker is showing off its latest creation,
a 1080p HD 5.3-inch display with a .7mm (0.027-inch) border. Yes, the
same thickness of a stick of lead from a mechanical pencil.
Citing a breakthrough
they term Neo Edge technology, LG's new panel employs an adhesive layer
that doesn't require a plastic frame around the edge. As icing on the
cake, the display is also water-resistant and dust-proof.
It's not clear as to how soon we'll see one of the fancy new screens in a device, but I suspect the G3 successor would be among the first.
To be clear, LG is not the first to create an ultrathin bezel for its smartphone screens. The Sharp Aquos Crystal,
already on the market, features a 5-inch 720p display with a supserslim
screen design. LG's new hotness, though, is both larger and boasts a
higher resolution than Sharp's. LG also claims its display is the
"world's thinnest" -- for now.
Whereas the last few years saw smartphones getting
larger, the next generation of nearly bezel-free phone designs could
shrink the overall footprint of even large-screen phones, by trimming
the material around the edges. With CES only a few months away, we could soon see similar announcements from other hardware makers as well.
The company says that it will unveil its first products at CES in
January that will "transform energy distribution and management in the
world's cities."
Gogoro co-founder and CEO Horace Luke.
Gogoro,
a company co-founded in 2011 by two HTC execs with the chairwoman's
blessing, has yet to launch a product but has now raised $150 million.
Gogoro, which is working on energy networks for "smart cities," announced Thursday
that it is "finalizing" a $100 million Series B round of funding.
Gogoro didn't say which companies joined the round, but the company's
statement included a comment from Panasonic, which is a strategic
partner.
Yoshihiko Yamada, executive vice president of Panasonic,
said that Gogoro is "committed to reshaping the way major urban areas
utilize energy, and its compelling vision of transformation has great
potential for smart cities."
Horace Luke and Matt Taylor
co-founded the company. Luke, who served as HTC's chief innovation
officer, is CEO of Gogoro. Taylor was HTC's chief technologist. The
company previously raised $50 million in a Series A round led by their
former boss and current HTC Chairwoman Cher Wang.
Taiwan-based
Gogoro's focus is mobile connectivity and data analytics to affect
energy distribution and management. In its statement Thursday, Gogoro
said that it's participating in the creation of "a more intelligent and
adaptive energy network for consumers."
Conspicuously missing from the announcement was an actual
product launch. Gogoro said it plans to unveil products at the massive
Consumer Electronics Show in January.
The 3G-enabled smartwatch will be available from a wide range of carriers and let you place and receive calls while on-the-go.
The Gear S wearable will launch next week in the US, Samsung has confirmed.
Samsung
Samsung's
Gear S smartwatch, which lets you to make calls, receive notifications
and check emails when not tethered to a smartphone, is heading to US
store shelves next week.
Samsung on Thursday said the Gear S will
be available in the US starting on November 7. The smartwatch will be
available in both black and white, and all four major carriers --
AT&T, Sprint, Verizon Wireless and T-Mobile -- will carry it in
store. The Gear S will also be available at Samsung Experience Shops
found in Best Buy stores.
Unveiled in August, Samsung's Gear S features a 2-inch curved Super AMOLED screen and runs the Tizen mobile operating system, Samsung's alternative to Google's Android
mobile OS. The smartwatch also has a 1GHz dual-core processor and
features Samsung's S Health fitness app, as well as Nike+ Running.
The smartwatch is the
first in Samsung's lineup to include a 3G cellular radio, meaning it can
connect to a carrier to send and receive calls without needing a phone
nearby. That ability stands in stark contrast to just about every other
wearable on the market. The Apple Watch,
for example, needs to stay paired and connected to an iPhone for many
of its features to work. Smartwatches from LG, Motorola and others are
also meant to be paired with a phone.
AT&T will offer the Samsung Gear S starting next week
for $200 with a two-year contract. Sprint is making the device
available for no money down and 24 monthly payments of $16 through its
Easy Pay system. T-Mobile is offering a similar deal by allowing
customers to pick up the device for no money down and pay $14.58 per
month over a two-year period. Verizon has yet to announce its pricing.
Google's lead security engineer on Android thinks you shouldn't have to be a tech whiz to keep your phone secure.
With Android 5.0 Lollipop, Google says, security will be set automatically.
The
head of Google's Android mobile software security team has a little
secret: Although he lives in urban San Francisco, "most days" he doesn't
lock the front door to his house.
And he's not worried about it.
While it's not clear whether Adrian Ludwig is arrogant, trusts his
neighbors too much, or just has a really good insurance policy, his
message is that he doesn't think about securing his home when he's not
there.
Now Ludwig, the man with the unlocked door, wants you to feel just as safe using your mobile phone and "not think" about Android security, either.
Google
is about to release the latest version of its Android mobile operating
system with several major security improvements that Ludwig says will help keep user's data safer, even as Android expands from phones and tablets into cars, watches, and other devices.
With its newest release, Android 5.0 Lollipop, Google is changing the way Android security works. This time around, the company said, security will be set automatically.
"I don't think it's realistic that the average person
should care about security," Ludwig said in a conference call with
reporters during which he highlighted what he considered to be the most
important new and updated security features in Lollipop.
The move
signifies a change among top smartphone makers from merely offering
security features to mandating their use, and at the same time, making
them easier to use. With Android powering more than 80 percent of the
world's smartphones, it's no longer reasonable to build technology
merely for the tech crowd. So Google is taking the approach of rivals
such as Apple: Automatically turn on key security features, so customers
don't even need to know.
"When it comes to security, we're not
designing a single device, or millions of similar devices," Ludwig said
of Google's approach. "We're building a service which helps users be
secure despite the myriad of different ways that Android might come into
play."
Another reason for Google's new take on security is theft. Ludwig said theft and loss
are the No. 1 security problem facing smartphone owners today, and it's
hard to imagine that they'd disagree. Three million Americans had their
smartphones stolen in 2013, almost double the number from the previous
year, according to Consumer Reports. Lookout Mobile Security reported
phones have been stolen in the US from one in 10 smartphone owners.
Enter the 'kill switch'
Google
has three answers to this problem: the lock screen, keeping people from
accessing data; encrypting devices to keep all but the most persistent
hackers from breaking in; and device manager, which can help to find or
remotely wipe a lost device.
Device manager also
includes a new feature: a "kill switch" to disable stolen phones.
Officially called Factory Reset Protection, it requires the owner's
Google password to wipe the phone's data and leave it inoperable. Apple
introduced a similar feature for its iPhones and iPads last year, but
only turned it on by default in September when it released iOS 8.
Lollipop users still have to activate the feature on their devices
manually themselves -- for now.
A new California law
mandates that all new smartphones sold within the state turn on the
kill switch by default by July 1, 2015, and Google has given no
indication that it won't comply with the law. When asked why Google
doesn't just activate it now, Ludwig claimed that it's Android
engineering policy to slowly introduce new security features to Android
users for testing purposes.
"Often the case when we're building
security features is to provide the opportunity for users to interact
with the feature before it's on by default," he said.
While the kill switch may make lawmakers happy, encryption has the opposite effect. FBI director James Comey has railed against moves by Apple and Google to encrypt user data by default on smartphones, even as privacy advocates and technologists hail the change.
While
Android has offered opt-in encryption for the past three years,
Lollipop encrypts all of a user's smartphone data by default. Ludwig
said even as an option, enterprise Android customers have mandated
device encryption, and so "millions" of people already are using it.
However,
he acknowledged that users who upgrade older Android devices to
Lollipop still must activate device encryption on their own, in apparent
contrast to iOS 8 which encrypts data on all devices running it, new and old.
Apple did not respond to a request for comment.
Where
encryption protects the phone at a deep, operating system-level, Ludwig
said the lock screen protects it from the moment users want to use the
phone. Lock screen improvements in Lollipop unlock phones and tablets
with a second Android device, such as a smartwatch or a car
entertainment system, and improvements to facial recognition technology
have made Android's older Face Lock tool more effective and easier to
use.
Free, easy to use and loaded with smart features, this iOS app is a great choice for podcast fans.
Instacast 5 takes an already good podcast manager and makes it even better.
Apple's
Podcasts app has a long and varied history of, well, sucking. First the
company wrestled podcast management out of the Music app, which nobody
wanted. Then it created arguably the worst app in its history.
Now, adding insult to injury, you can't even delete Podcasts -- it's
baked into iOS. (So are a bunch of other apps that should be optional,
but that's a rant for another day.)
The only silver lining is that
alternatives exist. Lots of them, in fact, and as someone who loves his
podcasts, you can bet I've tried most.
Until recently, my preferred podcast manager was newcomer Overcast, which came from the developer of Instapaper. It's a great tool, no doubt about it, but I've discovered I like Instacast 5 (no relation) a little better.
For starters, Instacast has a native iPad
version; Overcast remains iPhone-only. And thanks to Instacast Cloud,
all your subscriptions, bookmarks, favorites and the like are synced
between devices. I can start listening to a podcast in the car and then continue it on my iPad when I get home.
What's
more, Overcast seems to have an odd limitation: It won't stream
podcasts; it insists on downloading them. (If there's a setting to
override this, I haven't found it.) With Instacast, I can stream an
episode on-demand, no need to download it first.
My big complaint with most podcast managers: unintuitive
interface. Don't cram together a bunch of icons that make no sense.
Instacast is about as simple as they come, from the pop-out side menu to
the Add button that lets you browse and search the podcast catalog.
Best
of all, your personal podcast list just makes sense. Each show displays
the total number of available episodes and the number of new/unplayed
ones in your library. And when you tap through to any show, it's easy to
see at a glance which episodes are new. You'd be surprised how many
podcast apps fail to get this right.
Other features include choice
of playback speed, a sleep timer, bookmarks, detailed show notes and
show-specific subscription options. I was initially bummed to see that
Instacast appears to lack a quick-skip option, but in fact a single tap
of either the reverse or fast-forward icon jumps you backward or forward
30 seconds. And you can adjust the skip intervals for both. (Here's a full rundown of what's new in this version.)
Instacast
is not only free, but also ad-free. There are two very optional in-app
purchases: a night mode (toggled via a quick device shake!) and
full-text search, each 99 cents.
Even without those add-ons,
Instacast is a great podcast manager and my new top pick. If you've
found something similar you like better, hit the comments and tell me
what and why.
Apple's fingerprint sensor has been around since last year's iPhone 5S,
but owners of the latest devices may benefit from a helping hand on how
to set up and enable the feature.
Apple's
Touch ID protects your iPhone or iPad by allowing access only through
your fingerprint. For those of you with the latest iPhone or iPad,
here's how you set up, enable and disable the feature.
Introduced with the iPhone 5S,
Touch ID requires you to register your fingerprint by pressing the Home
button several times. Once the feature is activated, you then need to
press the Home button anytime you wish to unlock your device.
Now with Apple's Apple Pay
feature, you need Touch ID enabled if you want to buy something using
the new mobile payment system. The feature can also come into play if
you wish to buy something through the iTunes or App Store.
Touch
ID is built into the iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, the iPad Air 2, and the
iPad Mini 3. With the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, you can buy items at
supported retailers in the real world as the two phones are equipped
with the necessary NFC (near-field communication) technology. With the
new iPad Air and iPad Mini, you're restricted to online purchases, such
as those at iTunes and the App Store, as these devices lack the NFC
hardware.
Okay, let's look at how you can set up Touch ID, how to turn it on when you need it, and turn it off when you don't.
On your iPhone or iPad, tap the Settings icon.
Scroll down the screen and tap the setting for Touch ID & Passcode.
Tap
the setting to Add a Fingerprint. At the next screen, place your finger
on the Home button. The next screen will ask you to repeatedly lift and
rest your finger on the Home button as it reads your print. The final
screen will capture the edges of your fingerprint, so tap the Continue
link and again keep tapping on the Home button.
After your
fingerprint has been registered, the next screen will tell you that
Touch ID is ready. Tap the Continue button to proceed.
Touch
ID requires that you set up a passcode to serve as an alternative
security method just in case your fingerprint is ever unable to access
your phone.
Enter a 4-digit passcode and then enter it again to confirm it. Both Touch ID and your passcode are now set up.
You
see that Finger 1 is listed in the Fingerprints section. You can add
more fingerprints if you wish. For example, you may want to register
your thumb and your forefinger on your dominant hand as well as both on
your other hand.
Simply tap the Add a Fingerprint setting and repeat the same steps as above.
The next step is to enable Touch ID for any one of three functions -- iPhone Unlock, Apple Pay, and/or iTunes and App Store.
At
the top of the Touch ID & Passcode screen, turn on the functions
that you wish to protect with Touch ID. Enabling iPhone Unlock will
require you to use Touch ID to access your iPhone anytime it goes into
sleep mode. Enabling Apple Pay will allow you to confirm purchases using
the mobile payment system. And enabling iTunes & App Store lets you
make a purchase through Apple's mobile stores without requiring your
Apple account password.
That's the process for enabling
Touch ID. However, there may be times when you wish to turn it off. For
example, I keep iPhone Unlock enabled when I'm out and about with my
iPhone 6. But if I'm at home, I don't want to constantly have to tap the
home button with my finger or enter my passcode every time my iPhone
goes to sleep and I need to wake it up. So in this case I disable both.
Here's how:
To disable iPhone Unlock, simply return to the
Touch ID & Passcode screen and turn off that setting. You can leave
Apple Pay and iTunes & App Store enabled if you wish.
To
disable the passcode, scroll down the screen and tap the setting to Turn
Passcode off. You'll be prompted for your passcode. Enter the code, and
the passcode requirement is now turned off.
As another
option when iPhone Unlock is turned off, you can leave the passcode
enabled but simply adjust the length of time when it's required.
For
the Require Passcode setting, tap the option that says Immediately. You
can now change the time to 1 minute, 5 minutes, 15 minutes, or an hour.
So for example, if you change the time to 1 hour, even if your iPhone
goes into sleep mode after a couple of minutes, you won't be required to
enter the code until after an hour has passed.
For me, the
biggest hassle with Touch ID and the passcode is turning them on and off
anytime I go out and then come back home. I wish Apple had a quicker
and more accessible way of turning the security on and off. For example,
having such an option in the Control Center would certainly shave off
some of the time and hassle.
Emerging markets are seeing huge growth in mid- and lower-tier
smartphones. ARM seeks to catch some of that trend with its new line of
Mali graphics-chip designs.
CEO Simon Segars wants ARM to grow in mobile graphics.
ARM
These
days, even cheap smartphones and tablets need to handle complex
graphics, with people using the devices for mobile gaming and
high-resolution video.
ARM, which designs the computing chips
in nearly every smartphone, hopes to seize on that trend, introducing
Monday a new suite of its Mali graphics-chip designs aimed at the low-
and mid-tier mobile markets. The Cambridge, UK-based company unveiled
three new graphics chips, a video processor and a display processor,
which it hopes to sell to the mobile, automotive and digital TV
segments. The new line will update its current mid-range mobile
offerings and complement its graphics designs in the high-end and very
low-end.
"The capabilities of these devices are ratcheting up
each year," said Steve Steele, an ARM senior product manager. "You can
see a mid-tier device doing what a super-premium product did two years
ago."
Since introducing its Mali graphics designs in 2006, ARM
has been able to quickly grow the business, with 400 million graphics
processing units selling in 2013, up from 150 million the year before.
Mali chip designs are now used by electronics giant Samsung and
Taiwanese chip maker MediaTek, and are in most tablets powered by Google's Android
operating system. The new suite of GPUs and processors could help the
company better compete against Qualcomm's Adreno chips, which have a
leading position in mobile graphics, and Imagination's PowerVR
technology, which is used in Apple's iPhones.
The new offerings could also be a way for ARM to try
capturing the rapid growth of mobile devices in emerging markets, where
low- and mid-tier phones and tablets are the top sellers. For 2014,
market researcher IDC predicted smartphone sales in emerging markets will surge 32 percent, while mature markets will grow by only 5 percent.
On Monday, ARM unveiled the Mali-T860, Mali-T830 and Mali-T820
graphics chips. The T860 will focus on the higher reaches of the
mid-tier market, supporting high-resolution 4K video and offering
improved energy efficiency from its past designs. The T830 and T820 will
provide faster performance than past comparable ARM graphics chips.
"From a strategic standpoint going forward," Canaccord Genuity analyst
Matthew Ramsay said, "[Mali] becomes a more important part of the
business," since GPUs -- once solely used for generating graphics -- are
increasingly being utilized for computing and calculation in devices.
As part of the announcement, ARM also unveiled a new video
processor, the Mali-V550, and display processor, the Mali-DP550. The
announcement was the first time ARM has unveiled a whole suite of
graphics technologies at once. ARM executive Steele said that's because
the company did more to integrate the technologies of the new GPUs and
two processors than in past generations, which should allow ARM's
customers to develop new devices faster than before.
The new Mali technology should appear in electronics starting in late 2015 and early 2016.
Sony delivers a major update to the PlayStation 4, with enhancements
like new voice commands, sharing options, customized background and
live-streaming settings.
Sony's new PS4 update adds new voice commands and much more
Sony PlayStation 4 owners should get set for a major update. Due out
on Tuesday, version 2.0 of the game console's software carries with it a
variety of new features, improvements and other surprises.
In a blog posted on Monday, Sony promoted the update as the biggest one yet for its popular console.
"This
update adds unique, forward-looking features like Share Play, and
addresses some of the most highly requested features from the community
including YouTube integration, USB music player, ability to find
players you may know, sorting options for PS4′s game library, and
themes that change the look of your home screen," Sony said. "This is
the biggest update we've delivered to date for PS4."
So just what will PS4 owners find in the new update?
You'll be able to access a series of new voice commands to talk to
your PS4. Simply say "PlayStation" to activate voice commands and then
"All Commands" to see a list of all the commands you can direct at the
console. You can talk to the PS4 via the included wired headset, a
different but compatible headset or a PS4 camera.
In the past, you could export and share video clips of
your gameplay via Facebook. But with the latest update, you can also
share them on YouTube. On the console's upload page, you'll see the new
option for YouTube. Simply enter a title and description, trim the clip
if you wish to shorten it, and then upload your video.
Sony has
also beefed up live streaming, which lets you watch active games as
they're being played. You can now tap into a new category called
Featured, which displays streams from your friends. A Games list lets
you sort and watch streams from specific game titles. You can add
specific streams to a Favorites list and toggle between watching live
and archived streams.
Want to broadcast
your own gameplay via your own channel? Sony now lets you add a custom
message for your viewers and tweak the appearance of your videos through
the camera video settings.
Sony has tweaked the party and
invitation screens to move the main menu and repaint the interface with a
cleaner look. You can change the background color of your PS4 screen or
even add custom themes available through the PlayStation Store. You can
also play music through the PS4 via USB. Insert a USB stick with audio
files into your console, and you'll be able to play the tunes through
the Music Player app.
You can read about other features in the new update via the blog. In its blog, Sony also took the opportunity to tout sales of its PS4.
"This has been an amazing first year for PS4 so far, with more than 10
million units sold and a robust set of new features already added
including SHAREfactory, automatic pre-download, and more," Sony said.
The PlayStation 4 has certainly been outshining Microsoft's Xbox One
in sales since the two consoles hit the market almost a year ago.
Analysis compiled and published last Friday by blog site Ars Technica
showed that global PS4 sales have been at least 40 percent better than those of the Xbox One. In an attempt to lure in more buyers, Microsoft announced on Monday that it would lower the price of the Xbox One by $50 over the holidays.
Whether that strategy will work help remains to be seen. Microsoft has been offering free games and other incentives in order to pump up demand for its console. But in September, the PS4 again beat the Xbox One in sales, according to NPD figures cited by GameSpot.
The iTunes Store raked in more revenue overall in fiscal 2014 than in
the previous year, but digital music sales have declined, according to
Apple's annual report filed with the SEC.
iTunes music sales took a dip over the past 12 months, according to Apple's latest regulatory filing.
In an 88-page annual report, filed Monday with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Apple said the iTunes
Store overall raked in more revenue in fiscal year 2014 -- which ended
September 27 -- than in fiscal year 2013, but noted that music sales
have fallen.
"The iTunes Store generated a total of $10.2 billion
in net sales during 2014 compared to $9.3 billion during 2013," Apple
said. "Growth in net sales from the iTunes Store was driven by increases
in revenue from app sales reflecting continued growth in the installed
base of iOS devices and the expanded offerings of iOS Apps and related
in-App purchases. This was partially offset by a decline in sales of
digital music."
Apple didn't reveal specifics on how much digital
music sales have declined. But on Friday, the Wall Street Journal cited
"people familiar with the matter" who said that music sales at the iTunes Store have dropped 13 to 14 percent
since January 1. The Journal pinned the blame on growing competition
from cheap music, such as free videos and $10-per-month unlimited
subscription plans.
In its regulatory filing, Apple also acknowledged competition from such rival services.
"The Company's digital content services have faced
significant competition from other companies promoting their own digital
music and content products and services, including those offering free
peer-to-peer music and video services," Apple said in its filing.
In
other words, why pay for digital albums and songs when you can listen
to them for free or on the cheap through such services as Pandora and
Spotify?
In its favor, Apple touted the integration of its various products and services, "including the hardware (iPhone, iPad,
Mac and iPod), software (iOS, OS X and iTunes), online services and
distribution of digital content and applications (iTunes Store, App
Store, iBooks Store and Mac
App Store)." But the company said its competitors "have substantial
resources and may be able to provide such products and services at
little or no profit or even at a loss to compete with the Company's
offerings."
Apple is far from alone.
A drop in digital music
sales is hitting the industry as a whole. On Monday, The Guardian cited
one example of mobile app Shazam, which has witnessed the number of songs purchased drop from 1 million in March 2013 to 400,000 this past September. The Guardian also cited an August report from Midia Research, which found in a nutshell that streaming users are buying fewer digital albums.
One weapon that Apple is likely to use to try to beat back the competition is Beats. Some industry watchers wondered why Apple would pay $3 billion for Beats when the deal was announced in May.
But the Journal suggests that Apple plans to rebuild Beats Music and
integrate it with iTunes next year to offer a stronger streaming
service. Apple took its first stab at a streaming music service last
year with the debut of iTunes Radio.
The sci-fi-looking camera can capture panoramic photos in a single shot
as well as video that can be endlessly manipulated with your fingertips
on your iOS or Android device.
Ricoh
Ricoh's Theta
is a slim stick of a camera that, with a single press of its shutter
release, captures the entire scene around you -- top to bottom -- in one
shot, creating fully spherical images using its proprietary ultra-small
twin-lens optical system.
The shots, which can be viewed and played with on a Windows or Mac computer, or iOS or Android
devices, are pretty awesome all things considered, but whenever I
showed the Theta to someone the inevitable question was, "Does it shoot
video?" It didn't, but now it does.
The new second-generation
Ricoh Theta M15 is capable of capturing spherical videos up to three
minutes long that Ricoh says have no stitch lines when processed with
its video-creation tool that's part of the Theta's Windows or Mac
application.
Like its photos, the Theta's image size, shape and
composition can be changed simply by pushing it around with your
fingers on a touchscreen or with your mouse. You'll also be able to
share up to six seconds of video using Ricoh's dedicated site, which can then be pushed out to Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr.
Ricoh is also opening up its API and providing a SDK so others can develop apps for the camera.
The Ricoh Theta M15
arrives in November for about $300 in the US ($100 less than the
original) and around £270 in the UK. Australian pricing wasn't
announced, but it converts to roughly AU$338.
