While Apple reportedly has "hundreds" of employees working to build the fabled "Apple Car," the company is also busy integrating its Beats acquisition into iTunes. We may not have to wait too long to see fruits of that union, but before we do, Apple is acquiring talent to ensure the launch gets off to a good start. The UK's biggest radio DJ, Zane Lowe, today confirmed that after 12 years at the BBC's Radio 1 station, he's abandoning Britain for the sunnier skies of Cupertino.
A new Foursquare update completely eliminates the need to make an account, letting anyone use it to find a decent place to eat or somewhere to spend time without having to log in or even to create an account. And you know what? It makes perfect sense, since Swarm has taken over its check-in capabilities anyway. According to Foursquare product manager Jonathan Crowley, the only reason it took time to nix that requirement is because it wasn't easy changing the app's framework. If you think back to the time you've registered, you'll recall that signing up for Foursquare is quite tedious: it doesn't only ask you to choose "tastes" (types of food and places) you like, it also wants you to link your other social media accounts. Now, both the iOS and Android app can just recommend establishments based on location, making them more akin to local directory services such as Yelp. The good news is that you can still add your preferences (without having to log in) later on if you want more personalized results.
Many computer vision projects struggle to mimic what people can achieve, but Microsoft Research thinks that its technology might have already trumped humanity... to a degree, that is. The company has published results showing that its neural network technology made fewer mistakes recognizing objects than humans in an ImageNet challenge, slipping on 4.94 percent of pictures versus 5.1 percent for humans. One of the keys was a "parametric rectified linear unit" function (try saying that three times fast) that improves accuracy without any real hit to processing performance.
Think that downloadable game content is normally a waste? Sony will soon give you a good reason to splurge on those virtual goods. It's launching PlayStation Heroes, a PlayStation 4 app that encourages you to contribute to charities like Make-A-Wish, the USO and the V Foundation for Cancer Research. Pay between $1 and $15 to buy a dynamic game theme (or $20 for a four-theme bundle) and you'll not only donate to a good cause, but get one or more chances at playing games with a superstar. In March, you could win a shot at partnering with snowboarder Shaun White in Destiny; other celebs in future months will range from Snoop Dogg to Dodgers center fielder Yasiel Puig. Heroes won't go live until February 24th, but you can pre-order the app now to get ready.
In this Weekends with Engadget, we explain how photos can fade in the internet age, help you select the perfect connected sex toy for your Valentine and contemplate the best way to buy sneakers. All this and more -- just read on past the break.
It's no secret that hackers see banks as prime targets, but one band of digital thieves is conducting heists on a truly grand scale. Security researchers at Kaspersky have published details of malware attacks that have stolen at least $300 million from financial institutions in 30 countries. The crooks not only trick bank employees into installing a virus (Carbanak) through spoofed email, but spy on staff in order to mimic their behavior and prevent any telltale signs that money is falling into the wrong hands. Many of the attacks focus on shuffling money to outside accounts, although some will send paper cash to ATMs monitored by criminals.
On April 20th, 2015, Helpouts will follow Reader, Latitude, Schemer and many other services to wherever old Mountain View products retire. Google launched Helpouts less than two years ago as a service where anyone can ask (or pay) for advice or lessons from experts in their fields through a Hangouts session. Subjects include photography, languages, speech, math, science, art, among many other topics -- you can even use it to seek medical advice. Unfortunately, Helpouts never became popular enough even after the mobile apps were released later on. In its announcement earlier, Google said it's sunsetting the service because it "hasn't grown at the pace [the company] had expected."
When FXX started streaming The Simpsons, it committed a cardinal sin in the eyes of fans: it showed older episodes in widescreen, guaranteeing that you'd miss visual gags meant for 4:3 TV. Thankfully, the network has learned the error of its ways. Show runner Al Jean has revealed that Simpsons World is now streaming the series' first seven seasons in their original aspect ratio, making sure that you won't miss a single bit of the monorail musical or Bart's big spring break. The remaining 4:3 seasons are coming "soon," Jean says. The ratio switch isn't going to make you forget the less-than-stellar quality of more recent episodes, but it will at least let you properly relive The Simpsons' glory days.
by
Billy Steele
@wmsteele
18 hours ago
Visitors to the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC, will soon have a chance to see those items Neil Armstrong kept from the Apollo 11 moon landing. This week's news about Armstrong's memorabilia got us thinking: What are some the other notable bits of tech NASA used to document space exploration? Well, the full list is a bit daunting, as the agency has been hard at work for decades. However, we've compiled a collection of the highlights, from the first US spacecraft to transmit close-up photographs of the moon's surface to X-ray telescopes used to capture cosmic explosions. We even tossed in a selfie for good measure.
Ever had the feeling that certain phone operating systems are more likely to crash your apps than others? It's not just you. Crittercism has posted its latest breakdown of crash reports from about 20,000 apps, and it's clear that certain operating systems aren't as friendly as others. On Android, Ice Cream Sandwich (4.0) is most likely to wreck your day; KitKat (4.4) is close behind, while Lollipop's early reputation for glitches apparently doesn't affect apps. With Apple devices, however, the tables turn. While iOS' app crash rate is lower overall, iOS 8 is a bit more problematic than its predecessor. That's not surprising given that Apple hasn't had as much time to tackle issues in 8, but you may feel better if you're still holding on to 7.
Traditional photographs inevitably incur some physical wear and tear, while their digital counterparts are seemingly immune to such damage. When repeatedly shared over social channels, though, digit...
Scribd's monthly subscription includes unlimited access to its library of audio and e-books, and as of today, you can add comics to that list. The service announced that it added over 10,000 comic b...
