Technology - Google News

Google Fit can measure heart & respiratory rate using your phone’s cameras, starting on Pixel - 9to5Google
Logitech’s Brio, the holy grail of webcams, is $40 off right now - The Verge
How Apple's M1 MacBook changed my mind about the next iPad - CNET

Google Fit can measure heart & respiratory rate using your phone’s cameras, starting on Pixel - 9to5Google

Posted: 04 Feb 2021 08:00 AM PST

Google Health encompasses the various teams at Google working on helping people "live their healthiest life." The latest effort lets you measure your heart and respiratory rate using the Google Fit app and cameras on an Android phone.

To measure the number of breaths you take per minute, Google Fit is using your Android device's front-facing camera. The phone needs to be leaned on a "stable surface so that you can comfortably see yourself from the waist up." It needs to have a clear, unobstructed view of your head and upper torso.

Users are then taken to a fullscreen UI with a live feed marking your face and chest, while instructions above tell you to breathe normally and "Hold still" as a circular indicator notes progress. Once complete, "Your results" appear on the next screen, with the recently revamped Google Fit Home feed featuring a new card that shows average RPM over the course of the past week. A 'plus' button in the top-right corner lets you start another session.

Google is measuring your respiratory rate by detecting small changes on your chest. The company touts advances in computer vision that make it possible to "track tiny physical signals at the pixel level."

Meanwhile, measuring heart rate involves placing your finger on the rear-facing camera lens and applying light pressure. Flash is not needed, but it can be enabled to increase accuracy in dark environments. Once complete, users have to manually decide whether to save the vitals to Fit. Both these measurements take 30 seconds, with users advised to wait a few minutes after doing anything active. Neither requires an internet connection to work.

Google is tracking the "subtle changes in the color of your fingers" to approximate blood flow. The heart rate algorithms account for lighting, skin tone, age, and other factors. The Fit app explicitly tells users that:

"These results are not intended for medical purposes and should not be used to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease or medical condition."

That said, Google imagines Fit's camera-backed measurements as a useful way to "track and improve day-to-day wellness." The company has completed initial clinical studies to validate these features. It will start rolling out next month to Pixel owners that have the Fit app installed. Google plans to bring these capabilities to other Android devices in the future.

The announcement comes ahead of a Google Health event — appropriately named "The Checkup" — that starts in an hour. This Google Fit camera measuring feature is one of the group's most significant consumer-facing developments after the launch of the Google Health Studies app late last year.

FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.

Check out 9to5Google on YouTube for more news:

Let's block ads! (Why?)

Logitech’s Brio, the holy grail of webcams, is $40 off right now - The Verge

Posted: 04 Feb 2021 07:08 AM PST

Not long ago, Logitech's Brio webcam (along with almost any other kind of webcam made by reputable companies) was impossible to find. We're now at the point where you can get $40 off this 4K model through Lenovo, knocking it down to $160 instead of $200. It's still a big investment, but if you stream or just want to look your best in a meeting, this is one of the best choices out there to suit those needs.

Lenovo is currently the only site hosting this deal, so it may not last for long.

Xbox Series X / S owners can get $10 off one of Seagate's 1TB NVMe expansion cards at Newegg. Normally $220, it's $210 if you use the offer code EMCESEU56 at checkout. This device is useful for storing games that are made expressly for the new Xbox consoles, as it's just as fast as the SSD that's inside of each system. Note that using the code will require you to subscribe to Newegg's deals newsletter, if you don't already.

If you can't get enough TV deals, Best Buy is offering its great discount on Hisense's massive 85-inch 4K HDR TV again. Instead of its original $1,700 asking price, it's down to $1,000. This model ships with Android TV software built in, enabling you to watch most streaming services from the TV itself without the need for extra hardware, like a streaming device.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

How Apple's M1 MacBook changed my mind about the next iPad - CNET

Posted: 04 Feb 2021 04:00 AM PST

ipadpro-macbookm1-3 — The 12.9-inch iPad Pro, and the MacBook Air: they're becoming more alike than you think.
Scott Stein/CNET

It's been nearly five years since I wrote an impassioned story about how Macs and iPads need to merge. I've been thinking thoughts like that since...well, since the iPad emerged in 2010. It's 2021 now, and iPads and Macs are still two totally distinct Apple product lines. But the merge is well underway. It's just a series of very slow steps.

I've always thought of the iPad as the more likely path to the computer I'd prefer in an ideal future universe. But I've been using Apple's most recent M1 MacBook Air and it's changed my mind. The laptop, while unexciting in design, is utterly smooth and instant in function. It feels very near perfect. And even the entry-level, 8GB of RAM model I've tried seems like more than enough to handle just about anything I'd need.

The M1 Macs, using Apple's own chips, point to a future where the line between Macs and iPads gets very fuzzy indeed. It's likely that Apple will announce new versions of its iPad Pro sometime this spring, a year after the relatively minor changes in the 2020 version. What would I expect? What would I want? In a post-MacBook-M1 world, I've started thinking about the iPad very differently.

As we head towards a new iPad, here's how the MacBook M1 has already shifted my perspective. To distort a famous quote attributed to William Gibson, I see the same regarding Apple's future computers.

ipadpro-macbookm1-1 — With the Magic Keyboard on, the dimensions of the Air and the iPad Pro become pretty similar. And yet different.
Scott Stein/CNET

What is an iPad now that the Mac is also instant?

I use the MacBook more now, first of all. It's quick to start, doesn't slog down or blast any fans and its battery life wins over anything. The iPads had this advantage over Macs before, but now I start thinking... What else could an iPad do for me?

The MacBook is easier for Zoom meetings. I can prop it up without a case and the camera's in the right orientation. Also, I can run anything from Zoom theater performances to writing classes more easily. The iPad needs to acknowledge our new Zoom life and address both camera placement and the ease that browsers and programs can run side by side and not feel as walled off. On iPads, experiences still end up feeling too single-tasked for my needs. On a MacBook, I can connect a monitor and double my screens.

The iPad wins on portability... narrowly. With a keyboard case, the iPad Pro isn't nearly as light or thin as you'd think. The 12.9-inch iPad ends up feeling the same as a MacBook Air, but even more dense.

The iPad's natural strengths on display and touchscreen... how much further could they go?

The iPad does have a better display, a better camera and better-sounding speakers. It has Face ID, which I like more on a home tablet than on a phone. I prefer watching movies on it, even with its more squared-off aspect ratio. I also prefer games on an iPad. And, of course, touch and Pencil support on iPads is excellent. There are plenty of apps, documents I need to e-sign and photo editing projects I'd prefer to do on an iPad. MacBooks, without touchscreen or Pencil input, sometimes make me feel distanced from the experiences on my screen. Using a mouse or touchpad isn't always enough.

New iPad models are expected to use Mini LED technology for a possibly improved display. The iPad Pro display already looks great, but the OLED displays on iPhones still look better (if smaller).

iPadOS needs to morph into something similar to MacOS

Last year, the iPad added touchpad and mouse support which ended up making a big difference in how I use the iPad with a keyboard case. With a Magic Keyboard attached (or a Logitech case), everything finally starts feeling more laptop-like -- if I want it to.

iPadOS may never resemble the Mac, but it should keep evolving to meet Macs halfway. I want (and expect) better ways to flex out apps for multitasking and eventually true monitor support for second screens (iPads mostly mirror right now unless a particular app takes advantage of it).

iPads present apps more instantly and easily than Macs, meaning my kids can use them quickly. But iPads still don't have multiple modes or accounts so that kids can launch their own space... or, so I can customize my own workspace when I pop on to the same iPad.

But most of all, I want better ways to access saved files. The Files app is a start, but I still feel super-limited in how easily I can download and organize documents and videos and photos, bundling them and sharing them with others as needed.

If the next iPad Pro gets an M1 chip, why can't these things happen?

It seems likely that the next iPad Pro will have a processor that's the same as the recent MacBooks... or it'll get a new A-series chip that's so spiritually close it'll feel effectively the same. The iPad's processor has already been extremely powerful for years. Now that the new Macs have shown off what M1 chips are really capable of, why not have the iPad do more -- and handle more multitasking, too?

There's no reason why an iPad couldn't be my everyday computer. Apple just needs to take the rest of the training wheels off.

Let's block ads! (Why?)