Technology - Google News

Amazon Reveals New Alexa-Compatible Echo Speakers, Subwoofer, Amplifiers, Microwave, Wall Clock, and More
8 things you'll want to try first with your iPhone XS
Google to lawmakers: Yep, Gmail data is still open to app developers

Amazon Reveals New Alexa-Compatible Echo Speakers, Subwoofer, Amplifiers, Microwave, Wall Clock, and More

Posted: 20 Sep 2018 11:56 AM PDT

Amazon held a big hardware event today at The Seattle Spheres, located at Amazon's headquarters campus in Washington state. The event was notable for Amazon, with senior vice president of Amazon Devices Dave Limp stating that it marked the largest number of devices and features that Amazon has ever debuted in one day.

The first product unveiling was a new and upgraded Echo Dot, which includes a brand new mic array for better performance. The company says the driver is much larger -- increasing from 1.1" to a 1.6" driver -- resulting in more powerful sound with lower distortion, enhanced bass reproduction, and increased overall max volume.

Echo Dot
Through all of the upgrades, Echo Dot's footprint still hasn't increased and the price will remain at $49.99, just like previous generations. The new Echo Dot ships in October, and pre-orders go up today.

There's also a new mainline Echo device, the new Echo Plus. This generation has more powerful sound with stronger bass and clearer playback. There's a new equalizer feature that lets you use your voice to adjust the bass and treble through Alexa, a built-in smart home hub so you can set up devices by stating "Alexa, discover my devices," and an integrated temperature sensor so you can trigger routines based on how cool or hot the room is.

Image via The Verge
Echo Plus will cost $149.99 and is up for pre-order today before its October launch.

A new Echo Show has been completely redesigned with a larger screen, included smart home hub, and improved sound quality. There are dual, side-firing 2" Neodymium drivers, a passive bass radiator and Dolby processing for stereo sound; a 10-inch HD display that's twice the display area of the original Echo Show; and an 8-mic array. The new Echo Show will cost $229.99, and can be pre-ordered today to arrive next month.

Echo Show
Next, the company announced the Echo Input, which is the first Echo device without a speaker. Echo Input adds Alexa voice controls to another Bluetooth speaker via a 3.5mm audio cable or Bluetooth. The device has a four-microphone array, support Alexa commands, and is just 12.5mm tall. Echo Input will launch later this year for $34.99.

Echo Sub
Amazon also revealed the Echo Sub (via The Verge), which is aimed at adding deep bass to an existing Echo device ecosystem through stereo pairing. The 100W subwoofer can be paired with two compatible Echo devices (to get a 2.1 stereo system) and will be controlled via the Alexa mobile app or your voice. Echo Sub is up for pre-order today and will ship later this month for $129.99.

To add even more controls to an Amazon ecosystem, the Echo Link is designed to connect to a receiver or amplifier and includes multiple digital and analog inputs and outputs. This ensures compatibility with existing stereo equipment, allowing you to control music selection, volume, and multi-room playback on your stereo with your Echo or the Alexa app. Echo Link costs $199.99 and will launch later in the year.

Echo Link
Amazon debuted another stereo amplifier called the Echo Link Amp, and this one has a built-in 60W 2-channel amplifier, multiple digital and analog inputs and outputs for connectivity with existing equipment, and the expected music playback controls. The Echo Link Amp will cost $299.99 and also launches later this year. It's important to note that neither the Echo Link or Echo Link Amp include onboard microphones for Alexa controls, since they're designed to connect to other Echo speakers for that functionality.

Amazon Smart Plug
The company revealed its first foray into the smart plug category with the Amazon Smart Plug, which is the first device to ship with Amazon's new Wi-Fi Simple Setup feature that was also announced today. Like existing smart plugs, you can use the Amazon Smart Plug to turn older devices (with basic on/off settings) into smart home gadgets that can be controlled from your smartphone or through a smart assistant. Amazon's option will be $24.99 and is up for pre-order today ahead of an October launch.

AmazonBasics Microwave
Expanding further into smart home appliances, Amazon revealed the AmazonBasics Microwave, which includes dozens of quick-cook voice presets so that you can cook food by talking to Alexa. There's a built-in Ask Alexa button, so that you can press it and give a cooking command like "two minutes and 30 seconds on medium" to start the microwave. The AmazonBasics Microwave will cost $59.99 and launch later in the year.

Echo Wall Clock
Amazon has also now placed Alexa in a wall clock with the Echo Wall Clock, which performs all of the expected Alexa and Echo tasks, while also telling the time. The Echo Wall Clock costs $29.99 and will ship later this year.

For the vehicle market, Amazon revealed the Echo Auto, a small device that has an eight-microphone array that can pick up Alexa commands through noisy car environments. Echo Auto isn't a full infotainment system in itself, but instead acts as a sort of dongle that you can plug into an existing system to gain Alexa skills in your car.

Image via TechCrunch
Amazon announced as many as 70 total devices, updates, and features today, so we've quickly rounded up some of these below:

New Ring Stick Up Cam with wired and battery options. Wired version is available for pre-order today for $179.99, battery version coming in December
Alexa is becoming more opinionated and personal, with improved short term memory
Routines for Kids: Alexa Routines that let parents easily build Routines for their family, like "Alexa, good night" so Alexa will turn off lights, start sleep sounds, etc.
Alexa Multi-Room Music will let you sync your Amazon Music across speakers from multiple device makers
New Alexa music controls: now you can say "Alexa, I want to follow Imagine Dragons" and the assistant will alert you when they have a new album
Local voice control for smart home devices: cloud-based NLU and ASR are now local to the Echo Plus, so you can still control your smart home devices when the internet is down
Wi-Fi Simple Setup for super simple Wi-Fi setup on new devices
Broadcasting capabilities on Echo, Fire TV, and Alexa app later this year
Alexa now has "hunches," so if you say "Alexa, good night" but your front door is still unlocked, Alexa will warn you
New v4 smart home API and Alexa Connect Kit entering public preview today, lets developers make any device work with Alexa
Alexa Guard helps you protect your home when you're away, with smart alerts, audio clips, and more, using Echo devices to listen and watch your house
Away Lighting to intelligently turn smart lights on and off in natural patterns when you're away
Doorbell support and doorbell chime announcements coming to Echo Show and Echo Spot
Alexa can give step-by-step cooking instructions
Fire TV Recast: new companion DVR to watch and record free OTA programming to any Fire TV or Echo Show

If you're interested, all of the products up for pre-order today should begin appearing on Amazon's Echo and Alexa page soon.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

8 things you'll want to try first with your iPhone XS

Posted: 21 Sep 2018 06:34 AM PDT

A few million Apple customers are likely to be unboxing their brand-new iPhone XS and iPhone XS Mac devices today, so what do they need to know?

But I didn’t get a new iPhone

You don’t need to actually have a new iPhone XS to get a sense of what they are like – Apple has published a little microsite in which you can toy with an interactive 3D model to get a sense of them. You can also compare the sizes of the new devices with those of the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus. You must be using mobile versions of the Chrome or Safari browsers for this to work.

Without further ado:

Motion sense

I’ll assume most new iPhone purchasers remembered to back-up their old devices and figured out how easy it is to just hold your new iPhone beside your old one and use QuickStart to transfer all your stuff, but once you’ve created your Face ID you must spend time getting to know the new gestures.

Here are the top five gestures to get you started:

Get to Home screen: Swipe up the home bar
Notifications: Swipe down from top of the screen
Control Center: Swipe down from top right of the screen
Siri: Press and hold the side button
App Switcher: Swipe left or right on Home bar.

A more complete guide is available here.

Top class images

With at least 64GB of space and iCloud backup you may want to make sure any images you take are as high-resolution as possible but may also want to make sure they don’t take up all your space. That’s why you should open Settings>Camera>Formats and select High Efficiency. In future images and videos saved in this format will take around half as much space – so you can get busy taking images, changing dynamic depth of field and creating your very own Memoji:

Open Messages and open a new or existing conversation
Open the App Drawer and select the Animoji icon
Swipe all the way to the right until you find ‘New Memoji’ and tap plus
You will then be able to create your very own avatar, customizing a huge array of facial features. Tap Done when you are done and this personal ‘you’ will join the default Animoji’s in the drawer.
You’ll probably want to try Portrait Lighting: Choose something to photograph, launch the Camera, select Portrait and then swipe through the different portrait modes to see what this can do.

Someone already shot a movie with an iPhone XS, by the way.

Take your Dual-SIM for a ride

One of the most exciting new features is the new Dual-SIM support in the iPhone XS range. Scheduled to be enabled by a software update this fall, you may want to try this out by opening a PAYG account with another network (unless your iPhone is locked, in which case you’ll need to use the same one).

In the U.S., AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizonand (soon), Sprint will support the feature. You will also be able to use this feature internationally with GigSky, and this will become even more efficient once GigSky launches an accompanying app this fall.

[Also read: 8 things you’ll want to try first with your iPhone X]

Build a Shortcut

You will need to spend a little time learning to create them, but Siri Shortcuts will transform your productivity.

Once you get your new iPhone you should download the Shortcuts app from the App Store and take a look at the Shortcuts available inside the app.

Siri will recommend new Shortcuts to you, but the app also lets you build your own -- including creating shortcuts using third-party apps that have been updated for the feature.

While learning how to use these is effectively a feature in itself, here is a quick and easy Shortcut you can build right now that I hope comes in a little useful but also helps you understand how Siri Shortcuts work:

Open the Shortcuts app and tap Create Shortcut
Now search for and add Set Wi-Fi and Set Bluetooth
Turn these both to ‘off’
Tap the Settings button and call this Shortcut ‘Close networks’
Tap the Add to Siri button and record a phrase, such as “Close networks”.

That’s it, now whenever you need to switch off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth for any reason you can just summon Siri and say “Close networks” and you’re done.

You can also create a similar sequence called “Open networks”.

Try wireless charging

Sure, you can go and explore Amazon for wireless chargers, or purchase a system from the Apple Store, but the best and cheapest way to get a feel for how effective wireless charging can be with your iPhone has to be to visit your local Apple Store and place your device on one of the mats there.

They’ll probably even let you use Wi-Fi and perhaps one of the resident experts will explain why you can’t get a telephone dialler as a Control Center widget.

Learn to use Reachability

If you are using an iPhone XS Max you will absolutely want to learn to use Reachability. This is an iOS feature that has been around for some time that makes a real difference when you use this model iPhone as it makes it easier to get around all that screen real estate using just your thumb.

Enable Reachability in Settings>General>Accessibilityin the Interaction section.
To use this feature while in an app just swipe down on the gesture bar at the bottom of the screen.
The top of the display will move down the screen and be a little easier to reach. Swipe up on the gesture bar to return to normal mode.

Try not to get it wet

Apple says the iPhone XS will survive being immersed in two meters of water for 30-minutes. This isn’t something most people would really want to test, but at least one reviewer has done so. “Testing it in the bath was nerve-racking but it passed the test (though you can’t text while it’s submerged),” they wrote.

Play a game

Both new iPhones feature 458ppi Super Retina HD displays. Driven by high-performance 7-nanometer processors they have so much power you’ll want to put both the screens and processors to the test.

Apple demonstrated a game called Elder Scrolls Blades during its announcement of the new devices but this isn’t yet available, so you may want to try installing Warhammer AoS: Realm War on your new iPhone to get a sense of the combination of AR, powerful processors and a stunning screen promises you for gaming and cinematic experiences. Why not? It’s a new iPhone – you can get back to enterprise productivity later on.

Google+? If you use social media and happen to be a Google+ user, why not join AppleHolic's Kool Aid Corner community and get involved with the conversation as we pursue the spirit of the New Model Apple?

Got a story? Please drop me a line via Twitter and let me know. I'd like it if you chose to follow me on Twitter so I can let you know about new articles I publish and reports I find.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

Google to lawmakers: Yep, Gmail data is still open to app developers

Posted: 21 Sep 2018 05:28 AM PDT

Featured stories

Google has responded to questions from senior Republican senators about how it monitors and controls app developers' access to Gmail content.

The Republican Senate Commerce Committee chairman fired off a letter to Google in July after being alarmed by a report that it is common for employees of third-party app developers to access Gmail content.

The revelation prompted concerns about whether Google is adequately monitoring misuse of Gmail user data to ensure its users aren't exposed in the same way Facebook's lack of developer oversight allowed political consultancy Cambridge Analytica to acquire millions of Facebook users' data through a third-party app developer.

"Though no allegations of misuse of personal email data akin to the Cambridge Analytica case have surfaced, the reported lack of oversight from Google to ensure that Gmail data is properly safeguarded is a cause for concern," they wrote.

The senators asked whether Google was aware of "any instances of an app developer sharing Gmail user data with a third party for any purpose".

Susan Molinari, vice president of Google's America public policy and government affairs, said the company's developer policies allow for this type of sharing.

"Developers may share data with third parties so long as they are transparent with the users about how they are using the data," Molinari wrote.

Molinari said developers must gain consent from the user to access their data and must have a privacy policy if they intend on accessing sensitive data detailing how the app interacts with the data. Developers also need to tell users if the app changes how it uses the data.

The senators wanted more answers about Google's claim that it reviews and enforces each app's compliance with its policies.

Molinari replied that following an approval under Google's manual developer verification process, it uses machine learning to monitor approved apps.

"If we detect significant changes in the behavior of the app after it has been approved, we will once again manually review the app," she wrote.

If an app is found to have violated Google's terms, it will display an 'unverified app' warning on it.

These days, Google displays an 'unverified app' warning for all apps that haven't been verified --- a change it introduce after someone last year tricked millions of Gmail users into granting access to a bogus Google Docs apps.

Molinari reiterated Google's comments in a July blogpost that its employees can read Gmail users' email content but that it restricts access to cases where a user has given consent, or when it needs to inspect content to investigate a bug or abuse.

She also said Google restricts this type of access to a "very limited number of individuals", requires documentation of when access is granted, and routinely audits access.

A Senate Commerce hearing next Wednesday is expected to be attended by privacy officials from Google, Apple, Twitter, AT&T and Charter Communications.