2016
Latest
500 of NYC's free WiFi kiosks will be installed by July
LinkNYC's ambitious plan to convert some 7,500 Gotham payphones into kiosks featuring free domestic phone calls, USB charging points, gigabit WiFi and tablet-based internet access is well under way. But if you're having trouble finding them so far (it's only been about a week since installations started) that's understandable. The company promises that some 510 of them will be up and running in beta phase across two sections of Manhattan, the South Bronx, Jamaica Queens, Staten Island and Flatbush Ave in Brooklyn by this July.
Engadget is live from CES 2016!
As much as we may have wanted to spend the week after New Year's recovering from our bacchanalian excesses on the holiday, there is work to be done. The Engadget team has assembled in Las Vegas for the Consumer Electronics Show 2016, the biggest event in the technology world's annual calendar. The show may not be as hot-to-trot as it has been in previous years, but it'll still turn up something worth checking out. For instance, it could reveal a new fork that teaches you to eat slower, or a device that'll revolutionize the way you watch tv. Alternatively, it could show us a lamp that looks like a disembodied hand grabbing a plastic bag full of lightbulbs, because that's a thing. We don't yet know what this year's show will bring, but the only way that any of us will know is if you keep your eyeballs pointed straight at this very website.
Netflix can help your kids ring in the New Year a bit early
While you're busy putting on a fancy dress or a shirt and tie for tonight's festivities, millions of parents around the world have to figure out how to trick their kids into going to bed at a decent hour on New Year's Eve so they can do the same. Netflix has a way to help. Available to watch right this instant, the streaming video juggernaut has a series of programming choices hosted by the likes of Inspector Gadget and the Care Bears to help the little ones ring in 2016 a few hours early. According to a survey Netflix administered earlier this month, some 97 percent of parents across the globe have at least one kid under 12 that they'll be celebrating with, MarketWatch says. And of those 9,000 parents polled, about half of them will have their kid-friendly celebrations domestically, in Australia and the United Kingdom over and done by 9 PM.
'Star Fox Zero' barrel rolls into next year
Longtime Nintendo fans are used to delays, but that won't make the news of Star Fox Zero not releasing this year any easier to swallow. Legendary game designer Shigeru Miyamoto took to Facebook to announce the delay (embedded below), saying that the Wii U game's technically ready to hit the initially promised November release, but the company is putting it back in the oven to sand off rough edges on level design and to perfect the tone of its cutscenes. Oh, and Nintendo is also putting more time toward working on the "unprecedented discovery" innate to Zero's unique two-screen control scheme. Miyamoto says that the game isn't far off though and that his team is shooting for a release in the first quarter of next year.
'Dark Souls 3' is coming for your patience next April
Don't have a PlayStation 4 and Bloodborne but still want in on some punishing action by way of the folks at From Software? Good because Dark Souls 3 hits PC, PS4 and Xbox One next April -- right in line with the "early 2016" window we were teased with during E3 this year. And for those who need something to do between now and then, perhaps the recently announced "The Old Hunters" expansion for Bloodborne will whet your whistle come its November 24th release date. Here's to hoping you're suitably prepared to die evade peril by then.
Fox officially plans 'Minority Report' TV show for this fall
It's official: Fox will bring back Minority Report later this year. Steven Spielberg directed the 2002 movie, and his company Amblin TV is behind the new TV series, set 10 years after the end of "pre-crime" in Washington D.C. The plot details available tell us it will pair up a now-released pre-cog (Stark Sands) trying to figure out his future before teaming up with a detective (Meagan Good) who helps him find a purpose for his ability to see the future. Of course, Minority Report was notable for technological visions of the future that went well beyond just pre-cognition, and we'll have to see how much of that sticks around on a TV budget -- Almost Human's armor-clad Ford Fusions didn't quite scream "future" to us and Fox is famous for its quick trigger finger on cancelling sci-fi shows, so there's always some risk.
Oculus Rift goes mainstream early 2016
Quarter one 2016. It's the answer to a question we've asked basically every time we've spoken with Oculus VR since 2012: "When does the consumer version of the Rift come out?" Aside from that revelation, we're also getting our first look at the final design of the headset, but that's it! No word on price or launch games, experiences or Facebook apps, either. Come to think of it, "no" probably fits as an answer to any other question you might have at this point. Oculus teased that it'll have more to share soon, specifically hinting at June's Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), but for now we'll just have to make do with these morsels. If Sony hoped to have early 2016 to itself in terms of VR for the masses with Project Morpheus, those dreams have effectively been dashed.
Anaheim Convention Center expansion will be ready for BlizzCon 2016
So far, Blizzard has kept BlizzCon close to home at the Anaheim Convention Center, even as the number of people wanting to attend has skyrocketed. But there's a chance BlizzCon could get a little bigger in the future, since the Anaheim Convention Center is about to start on a new expansion, adding an extra 200,000 square feet -- bringing the total size of the convention center to 1.8 million square feet -- set to open by fall 2016. The addition will sit on Katella Avenue and match with the towering glass structure of the rest of the convention center (and you can check out concept art on the OC Register for a sneak peek). This should make the new space available just in time for BlizzCon 2016 ... not that Blizzard has announced BlizzCon 2016 (or BlizzCon 2015 or BlizzCon 2014) yet, but we can hope.
Netflix adds The Weinstein Company to its 2016 pay-TV exclusivity roster
2016 is shaping up to be huge for Netflix. That's when the streaming juggernaut's Disney deal starts bearing fruit and it also marks the start of a multi-year pay-TV exclusivity agreement with The Weinstein Company (TWC). This means the first stop for TWC's flicks after home video will no longer be Showtime, but (almost) everybody's favorite place to watch movies instantly instead. While the studio has a pretty impressive back catalog -- Django Unchained, Silver Linings Playbook, The Road and ... Scary Movie 5 -- it isn't in the class of, say, Universal or Fox in terms of sheer blockbusters. With the rate 'flix is signing contracts though, who knows what could happen within the next three years.
30 million NFC-equipped phones shipped in 2011, could reach 700 million by 2016
Those working on life-changing uses for NFC in phones will now find it even harder to explain why life still hasn't changed. According to Berg Insight, annual global sales of NFC-equipped handsets increased ten-fold to reach 30 million units in 2011 and are forecast to grow to 700 million units by 2016. The analysts attribute this rise to general smartphone adoption rather than to demand for NFC as such, which makes sense from where we're sitting. Aside from a few proximity-based apps, Google Wallet and some other handbag-spurning payment schemes, there's still no overwhelming reason to gear up. GPS and WLAN, on the other hand, remain must-haves, and the PR below looks at their prevalence too.
Elop: Symbian will continue getting updates until 2016, at least
How much does it take to convince Symbian users their OS is doomed? Just the one slide you see above. Now it seems Nokia CEO Stephen Elop is attempting damage control. In an interview with Nokia Conversations, Elop attempted to placate his shareholders and customers by stating that the OS's last update will take place somewhere around 2016 at the earliest. He isn't switching the focus away from Windows Phone as his company's bright new future, but he does want to assuage folks who sunk money into Symbian that their investment isn't just going down the drain. Stating there is "a long history still to be paved for Symbian in the future," Elop didn't volunteer any additional details on update strategy or how much longer new Symbian phones will be sold. We're a bit surprised at the length of this extension of relevancy; we can't help but feel as though it's all because Nokia's breakup with Symbian was too emotional and they're both trying to stay friends. Or perhaps four years is just how long the company thinks it will take to sell all of the remaining 150 million units it originally planned to push. Either way, check out the full video after the break and let us know what you think below. [Thanks, Chris]
ESPN to bid on 2014, 2016 Olympics -- promises no West Coast tape delay
It's certainly strange that with several networks, online video, on demand, cellphone and any other way NBC has provided to view the Beijing Olympic Games, U.S. HDTVs had to wait 13 hours to show Usain Bolt make history in the 100m dash -- and another three hours to catch it on PST. For those frustrated by NBC's arrogant mishandling of its broadcast rights, there exists one slim ray of hope (other than living somewhere lucky enough to get Canadian television so you can actually see the events before reading about them in the paper or on NBC's own website), ESPN. That's right, with Brett Favre finally on an NFL roster, the sports giant has apparently found enough free time to consider taking a run at broadcast rights for the 2014 Winter Games and 2016 Summer Games. While we don't yet know where they'll be, if ESPN gets the Games, VP of content John Skipper pinky swore that it would "never" put an event on tape delay, calling it a disservice to sports fans. Our support for this plan goes without saying, and since it's already too late to give them this year's broadcast rights, our only remaining issue is finding out what it takes to get John Skipper on the '08 presidential ballot.
