Technology - Google News

Paul Thurrott's Short Takes: January 4 - Petri.com
CES 2019 Is Coming—Here's What to Expect - Gizmodo
Leak shows a crazy new foldable smartphone that looks way better than Samsung’s Galaxy F - BGR

Paul Thurrott's Short Takes: January 4 - Petri.com

Posted: 04 Jan 2019 07:31 AM PST

Because I can already feel the mornings getting lighter, the first 2019 edition of Short Takes looks at Microsoft’s 2018, Microsoft’s 2019, Apple’s comeuppance moment, Spectre and Meltdown, and much more.

Microsoft’s biggest story of 2018

For the all the excitement around cloud computing, privacy, and “ethical AI,” I’m sorry to report that the software giant’s inability to reliably and successfully ship both of Windows 10’s 2018 Feature Updates is indeed my top Microsoft story of 2018. And this is very much ironic, since the Windows team was cast asunder in 2018, with Terry Myerson leaving the company, and Windows development being split between the adults in the Azure group and the kids in the Windows Experiences group. If you had asked me which of these two groups was the less reliable, the choice would have been obvious. And yet all the problems have been with core development and feedback triaging (i.e. the adults) while the Windows Experience guys have actually delivered high-quality fit-and-finish improvements. Yep. Welcome to Bizarro world. And let’s hope this situation is fixed in 2019.

“5 Things We Love About Microsoft’s Surface Go With LTE”

Well, we know it can’t be the performance, the battery life, or the tiny keyboard.

Looking ahead to Microsoft in 2019

While I’m not much on predictions—by which I mean I’m not very good at predictions—I do have some advice for Microsoft for 2019: Focus less on promoting AI, which is fundamentally untrusted by your customer base—and instead market how all of your products respect your customers’ privacy. In this age of fake news and Facebook transgressions, focusing on privacy isn’t just smart, it’s essential. And Microsoft should undergo a Trustworthy Computing Initiative-like program where it refuses to ship any product or service that isn’t infused with privacy controls from day one. This would be an amazing pivot for the company, and it fits nicely in the “happy happy joy joy” vibe that Satya Nadella’s Microsoft is known for. Everyone’s a winner! And everyone should have control of their own personal data.

“Microsoft working on project ‘Bali’ to give people control over data”

And so it begins.

Apple finally hits a wall

Our 401Ks may never recover, but Apple’s tough couple of months at the end of 2018 have turned into a full-on emergency during the first week of 2019. Apple CEO Tim Cook warned on Wednesday that the firm’s revenues for the current quarter will be $5-10 billion less than its original estimates thanks to lower-than-expected iPhone sales. That’s amazing on a number of levels, including the fact that Apple’s estimates are always conservative so that it can blow past them when it actually releases its financial results. As troubling, it’s inconceivable that Apple didn’t see this sales shortfall coming, which makes its previous estimates laughable and, for investors, of legal concern. Look, no one is saying that Apple or the iPhone is “doomed,” and the firm will post dazzling numbers at the end of January, I’m sure. But as any Microsoft fan can tell you, the dangers of having only a single hit product are very real. And where Microsoft had Office and Server to fall back on, Apple has … what? Apple Watch and some services, both of which rely on, wait for it, iPhone sales? Sorry, but that’s not a solid foundation for the present or the future.

“How Microsoft lost the web”

Hubris.

Happy birthday, Spectre and Meltdown!

This week also marked the one-year anniversary of Intel’s blockbuster disclosures about the Spectre and Meltdown CPU security flaws. Or, for purists, the 18-month anniversary of the time when Intel actually found out about the flaws and its then-CEO sold all of his shares in the firm because he knew it was such a disaster. Ah, good times. In the year since, Intel—and platform makers like Microsoft—have shipped innumerable patches to help reduce the vulnerabilities. And Intel, of course, has been working to evolve its future chipsets to be less vulnerable out of the gate. (So to have AMD, Qualcomm, and other CPU makers, all of which are vulnerable to these types of flaws.) It’s not clear that we’ll ever really be clear, but the performance issues caused by the fixes have been mostly non-disruptive, and they should disappear entirely as we move forward. Here’s to the second year!

“Microsoft Research finds Smart Speakers could image rooms with sound”

If only Microsoft made a smart speaker.

Microsoft enters 2019 as the world’s most valuable company

Last year, there was a lot of speculation about which of the big four tech firms—Apple, Amazon, Google, and Microsoft—would be the first to a $1 trillion market capitalization valuation. But Apple was always the favorite, and it did indeed hit this milestone in August 2018, becoming the first US company to ever do so. Since then, things have gotten dark. As noted above, Apple’s iPhone sales were much lower than expected in the final quarter of 2018. And it dragged down the stocks of the other big four tech firms with it as it flailed around, trying to find some way to entice upgraders. But then something interesting happened. Microsoft’s market cap surpassed that of Apple. And today, it is still the most valuable company in the world. Which makes far more sense than Apple, frankly, given Microsoft’s diverse family of product offerings and its more sustainable business model. Apple was always a flash in the pan. A big, unprecedented flash, to be sure. But one that was always going to head south in an ugly way. So I’m wondering now if strong and steady—i.e. Microsoft—will finally fin this race. 2019 will be an interesting year, for sure.

“3 Reasons Microsoft Is a Better Buy Than Apple”

iPhone, iPhone, and iPhone.

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CES 2019 Is Coming—Here's What to Expect - Gizmodo

Posted: 04 Jan 2019 06:18 AM PST

The glittery ball has dropped, New Year’s resolutions have been made, and that means it’s time for the world’s biggest tech companies, startups, journalists, and random celebrities to swarm upon Las Vegas for this year’s Consumer Electronics Show. It’s a weeklong showcase of every gadget you could ever dream of, spread out across a sprawling convention center and glitzy casinos. Robots, wacky VR headsets, smart mattresses, TVs, AI-powered appliances, self-driving vehicles, and even some zany concepts that will shape consumer tech in the years to come—this is where tech companies come to show the world what they’ve got in store.

At Gizmodo, we have a team of grizzled gadget bloggers ready to trawl the show floor to pick out the coolest gadgets of the bunch. But before we land in Vegas, here’s a look at the trends we’re expecting to see.

Voice assistants still rule the smart home

Expect Google Assistant to step up its game.

Last year, sleep tech and better Amazon integration were the focus of smart home improvements. This year, you can expect more of the same eye toward wellness and convenience, just with a slight tweak. In addition to Amazon Alexa, we’ll see a greater showing of devices that work with Google Assistant. And that extends to gadgets for every room in the house. We’re talking high tech baby monitors, doorbells, and smarter bathroom fixtures.

Wellness Tech That’s More Than Skin Deep

Fossil always brings an impressive wearable collection to CES

No joke, people are stressed. And while wearables like smartwatches and fitness trackers were thought to lead the wellness tech category, in recent years wellness has taken on a new tack at CES. In 2018, we a connected aromatherapy diffuser and a machine that could print you customized shampoo based on your hair makeup. This year, we’re expecting a little more when it comes to skin care. We saw some devices like a tiny UV tracker from L’Oreal last year, and in 2019 expect to see more personalization via tech that can scan your skin and recommend regimens based on your unique needs.

That said, don’t count wrist-based wearables out. Fossil always has a massive showing for their stylish Wear OS watches, and Omron will be there with their blood pressure smartwatch.

8K TVs Are Here Again, but Do They Have HDMI 2.1?

The Wall blinded us with it’s beauty at CES last year.

Dazzling TVs have always been a staple of CES and that’s not going to change in 2019. You can count all the players—LG, Samsung, Sony, TCL, Hisense, etc.—to roll out (some literally) their biggest, baddest 8K displays. Even if there isn’t much 8K content out there at the moment to justify them.

But now that you can actually buy 8K TVs (if your wallet is deep enough), the thing to keep an eye on is how many TV-makers will adopt HDMI 2.1. While most TVs currently use HDMI 2.0, 2.1 has a lot more bandwidth and can support frame rates up to 120fps and resolutions up to 10K. Not that anyone needs that just yet.

5G everywhere you look

In case you haven’t heard yet, 5G is coming. Carriers have already started setting up networks in small test areas, while manufacturers like Samsung, OnePlus, and Xiaomi have teased the idea of 5G capable phones in recent months. While any real smartphone announcement is more likely to come at Mobile World Congress in February, we’ll probably still see a lot of 5G related gizmos on the CES show floor. Expect to see 5G pop up in keynotes, especially in relation to smart cities, self-driving cars, and internet-of-things devices. We wouldn’t be surprised to see some 5G hotspots and routers either.

The Miscellaneous, Incremental, and Unexpected

While these are some of the bigger trends, there are even more incremental improvements we haven’t covered. Things like USB-C headphones, tweaks to self-driving car concepts, coding robots for kids, wireless charging, super-thin bezels for gaming PCs, bendy phone prototypes, and probably some more lackluster AR/VR headsets. And you can always count on CES for things that don’t always fit into larger categories—things like wonky scooters, robot strippers, extremely sad booths, bulletproof pantyhose, and maybe a power outage or two.

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Leak shows a crazy new foldable smartphone that looks way better than Samsung’s Galaxy F - BGR

Posted: 04 Jan 2019 06:05 AM PST

Samsung’s first foldable smartphone is by far the most talked about device with this new form factor, but Samsung isn’t going to be the only company launching foldable handsets this year. In fact, you can already buy one from an unknown smartphone vendor from China right now. Not to mention that Samsung’s biggest rivals, including Apple, Microsoft, Huawei, LG, and a variety of other China-based OEMs are all working on foldable handsets of their own. A new leak shows what appears to be Xiaomi’s first foldable phone, and it’s a device that might offer users a design that’s even more exciting than Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy F.

Samsung showed off the foldable phone prototype in early November, although the phone’s design was hidden in a bulky case. The handset, shown in the render above, features a primary display on the inside, as well as a secondary screen on the outside so that you can use the device when it’s folded closed.

Can't speak to the authenticity of this video or device, but it's allegedly made by Xiaomi, I'm told. Hot new phone, or gadget porn deepfake? pic.twitter.com/qwFogWiE2F

— Evan Blass (@evleaks) January 3, 2019

Xiaomi’s tablet, shown in the video above that Evan “@evleaks” Blass shared on Twitter, has a different design that features two hinges rather than one. Samsung’s phone folds in half like a wallet with the screen on the inside. Xiaomi’s supposed unnamed device, meanwhile, is made of three parts, with the screen on the outside and the left and right sides folding backward. The middle section, featuring curved edges when folded, remains active while the device is used in phone mode.

Blass says it’s unclear whether the device in the video is legitimate, and whether Xiaomi indeed made it. What is clear is that the device runs Android and that the language is set to Chinese. The video does suggest that the screen is quite responsive in tablet and smartphone mode, and there’s no lag whatsoever.

When it comes to user experience, we have high expectations from Samsung. Not only did the company unveil a new user interface for the upcoming phone, but Samsung has been working with Google to optimize Android for foldable screens. As for Xiaomi, even if the device in the video isn’t theirs, the Chinese smartphone maker is one of the Android vendors in the region that are expected to launch foldable phones this year, devices that should be even cheaper than Samsung’s Galaxy F.

That said, it’s unclear when all these foldable phones will hit stores. But with events like CES and MWC coming soon, we should expect announcements from smartphone makers soon enough.

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