Technology - Google News

Here comes Samsung's answer to the iPhone X
Former Google employee files lawsuit alleging the company fired him over pro-diversity posts
Apple preps new AirPods: One with hands-free Siri, one water-resistant

Here comes Samsung's answer to the iPhone X

Posted: 22 Feb 2018 05:00 AM PST

gs9-invite — The Galaxy S9 will be all about the camera.
Samsung

Apple wowed the world with its iPhone X. Now it's Samsung's turn.

The South Korean electronics giant on Sunday will unveil its latest phone, the Galaxy S9, at its Unpacked event at the Mobile World Congress trade show in Barcelona, Spain. Samsung's invitation for the launch featured the number nine -- for the name of the device -- as well as the teaser, "The Camera. Reimagined."

The Galaxy S series is Samsung's most important product line. If you own an Android phone, the odds are pretty high that it bears a Samsung logo. Last year, about one out of every five phones shipped across the world came from the company, according to IDC.

The stakes are considerably lower than last year's launch of the Galaxy S8, which was the comeback phone after the disastrous Galaxy Note 7 that had an unhealthy tendency to catch fire. But with Apple raising the stakes with its expanded family of iPhones -- especially with its redesigned iPhone X -- the pressure is still on for Samsung to impress with its latest flagship phone.

Now Playing:Watch this: Samsung Galaxy S9 could wow with camera features

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If you're planning to upgrade your device and you favor Android, you're probably going to consider the Galaxy S9. It's such a big launch, no other major handset makers are using MWC to introduce their latest flagship phones, for fear they'd be overshadowed.

Samsung is widely believed to keep the Galaxy S9's design essentially the same as last year's S8. The question is whether it will do enough with the new phone to get you to buy it, or if it's sufficient to hang on to your existing phone a little longer. After all, there remains the constant talk of a Samsung phone with a foldable screen.

"I don't think people are actually expecting a big leap" with the S9, Creative Strategies analyst Carolina Milanesi said. "They already had a lot of the features that the iPhone X added. What else can you expect from this?"

Samsung declined to comment ahead of its announcement.

Leaks galore

Are you looking for big shake-ups in design for the Galaxy S9? You've likely already seen them in the Galaxy S8.

This year will likely be more akin to an "S" year in iPhone terms. Think a jump more like the iPhone 7 to the iPhone 8, instead of the iPhone X. In other words, the same essential design but some new features and tweaks under the hood.

Galaxy S9 leaks have been plentiful. The Galaxy S9 is expected to use of Qualcomm's fast new Snapdragon 845 processor, which boosts the device's camera and security technology. Samsung may improve its face unlocking tool to rival Apple's Face ID, as well as sell new colors of the device, including a lilac purple model.

Then there's the camera, which appears to be Samsung's main focus with the device (no pun intended). The company is expected to include dual lenses on the Galaxy S line for the first time, enable superfast focus, enhance slow-motion, improve low-light capture and provide the ability to animate emojis, much like the iPhone X's "animojis."

For a Galaxy S8 user, those rumored changes likely aren't enough to get you to switch. But for Galaxy S7 or older device owners, an upgrade could be meaningful.

"A 2018 flagship smartphone is very significantly and visibly superior to a model released in 2015 or 2016 that consumers still commonly use in the greatest numbers," IHS Markit analyst Ian Fogg noted. Globally, the most used Samsung phones today are 2016's Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge, he said, followed by 2015's S6 and 2014's S5.

"It is these models consumers will compare a new Samsung Galaxy flagship smartphone against," Fogg said.

iPhone rivalry

Even though Samsung users will compare the S9 to older devices, they'll also be looking at how it stacks up to Apple's latest phones.

While the iPhone X included many new features that helped transform the device's design for the first time in three years, several already showed up in last year's Galaxy S8.

Take, for instance, the display. Apple removed its physical home button on the front of the device to stretch the screen across the entire front of the display. Samsung had already done that with the S8 and its "Infinity Display." Apple also integrated an OLED display for the first time with the iPhone X, allowing for a thinner screen that shows blacker blacks and more vibrant colors. Samsung has used OLED screens in its Galaxy S smartphones since the beginning of the line.

Now Playing:Watch this: Everything you can expect from the Samsung Galaxy S9

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Samsung even has its own flavor of unlocking phones via the user's face, though unlike Apple's Face ID, Samsung says its face unlock option isn't actually secure. If you want your Galaxy S8 to be ultra safe, you can opt for the iris scanner or fingerprint sensor to open the device.

It's a smart bet that these features -- and more -- will flow into the S9.

Whether it's enough of a return volley to Apple remains to be seen. One thing's for certain: Samsung will command all of the spotlight at the mobile industry's largest gathering.

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Mobile World Congress 2018

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Former Google employee files lawsuit alleging the company fired him over pro-diversity posts

Posted: 21 Feb 2018 04:39 PM PST

A former Google engineer is suing the company for discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and wrongful termination, according to court documents filed today. Tim Chevalier, a software developer and former site-reliability engineer at Google, claims that Google fired him when he responded with internal posts and memes to racist and sexist encounters within the company and the general response to the now-infamous James Damore memo. News of Chevalier's lawsuit was reported earlier today by Gizmodo.

Chevalier said in a statement to The Verge, "It is a cruel irony that Google attempted to justify firing me by claiming that my social networking posts showed bias against my harassers." Chevalier, who is also disabled and transgender, alleges that his internal posts that defended women of color and marginalized people led directly to his termination in November 2017. He had worked at Google for a little under two years.

Notably, Chevalier's posts had been quoted in Damore's lawsuit against Google — in which Damore sued the company for discrimination against conservative white men — as evidence Google permitted liberals to speak out at the company unpunished. Chevalier's lawsuit alleges that his firing is, in fact, a form of punishment. (Damore recently had a separate labor board complaint shot down by the US National Labor Relations Board, which stated in a guidance memo that Google was in the right to fire him.)

bonus trivia: Breitbart also devoted an entire post to Chevalier as an example of Google condoning violence (see again: Nazis, punching of) but the examples were on his personal accounts
— Nitasha Tiku (@nitashatiku) February 21, 2018

In a statement, Google spokesperson Gina Scigliano says Google was enforcing its policy against the promotion of harmful stereotypes. "An important part of our culture is lively debate. But like any workplace, that doesn't mean anything goes. All employees acknowledge our code of conduct and other workplace policies, under which promoting harmful stereotypes based on race or gender is prohibited" Scigliano says. "This is a very standard expectation that most employers have of their employees. The overwhelming majority of our employees communicate in a way that is consistent with our policies. But when an employee does not, it is something we must take seriously. We always make our decision without any regard to the employee's political views."

One of the internal memes Chevalier created was inspired by a black Google employee, who wrote in an internal Google Plus post that she was being asked to present her ID badge more often than her white co-workers. A Google employee allegedly responded to the post by noting that asking for ID was just part of the job, Gizmodoreported. Chevalier then made a privilege-denying dude meme using Google's internal meme generator with the caption, "I have opinions about forms of oppression that don't affect me."

In mid-September, Chevalier was called into a meeting by HR and told that a complaint had been made about another post in which he said he would not work with people who shared Damore's views, according to Gizmodo. In the same month, Chevalier's acting manager told him repeatedly he was engaging in too much "social activism," the suit alleges.

The lawsuit was filed in San Francisco County Superior Court and Chevalier is seeking damages for lost wages, emotional distress, punitive damages, and injunctive relief against those alleged harmful acts. One of Chevalier's attorneys, David Lowe, stated that Chevalier's termination was a result of Google failing to rein in its mostly unfiltered internal social networks. "Company social networking forums can be incredibly useful, but employers have an obligation to prevent them from becoming a cesspool of bullying and harassment," Lowe said in a press release.

Last August, Chevalier and 13 other Google employees were also targeted by alt-right trolls as part of a widespread backlash against Damore's firing. A 4chan-related Twitter account posted a screenshot of the employees' Twitter profiles, all of whom were of color, women, or trans men. These profiles then became targets of online harassment, some of which Chevalier details in his complaint.

Update at 7:45PM ET, 2/21: Added statement from Google.

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Apple preps new AirPods: One with hands-free Siri, one water-resistant

Posted: 22 Feb 2018 06:58 AM PST

One of the smallest members of Apple's product lineup may get a useful update this year. According to a Bloombergreport, Apple is working on new models of its AirPod wireless earbuds. One could debut later this year with an updated wireless chip and another with a water-resistant design may come out in 2019.

AirPods arrived in 2016 alongside the iPhone 7 as a solution to the smartphone's lack of headphone jack. The W1 chip inside the AirPods helps it connect almost immediately to a user's Apple products. According to the report, Apple is developing a new model with a new wireless chip that helps it better manage Bluetooth connections. It's unclear if this new chip will be a variation of the W2 chip, which debuted with the Apple Watch Series 3 last year, or an entirely new one.

This year's new model may also give users voice activation for Apple's virtual assistant Siri. Currently, users must tap the side of an AirPod before you can use voice commands. In the new AirPod models, summoning Siri would be hands-free, requiring only a voice command such as "Hey Siri" and no physical prompt.

Another AirPod model that's reportedly planned for a 2019 debut would feature a water-resistant design, built to withstand rain and splashes. It's unlikely that these AirPods would survive being submerged in water for long periods of time, but they could easily handle a sudden downpour or an unexpected dip.

AirPods have proven to be one of Apple's most successful products since launching nearly two years ago. Part of that is due to new iPhone owners wanting wireless earbuds, but it's also due to AirPods' ease of use and relatively affordable price. Thanks to the Apple-made W1 chip, AirPods connect seamlessly to iPhones, iPads, and Macs, and Apple made it fairly easy to switch between audio sources when using AirPods. While they aren't the cheapest wireless buds, the $159 AirPods are still affordable in the growing world of truly wireless audio wearables.

AirPods' success has undoubtably bolstered the overall success of Apple's "other products" segment, which includes the earbuds, Beats devices, the Apple Watch, Apple TV, and other accessories. That segment brought in over $5 billion in revenue in the first quarter of 2018, representing a 36 percent year-over-year increase. It pays for Apple to continue updating AirPods, however incrementally, because planned upgrades in Bluetooth connectivity and design should only improve the user experience. The introduction of new AirPods may also bring down the price of older models.

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