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Aibo update lets you program your robot puppy's actions
Not happy with what Sony's reborn Aibo can do? You now have the power to make it do more. Sony has rolled out a 2.50 update for the robot dog that enables, among other things, a web-based interface for programming actions. Beginners can use a visual programming kit that uses blocks to create actions, while seasoned programmers can participate in a Developer Program. You can't modify the personalty of your Aibo, to be clear -- this is mainly for tricks and other activities Sony didn't envision itself.
Nreal's mixed reality glasses will cost $499 and ship this year
First unveiled at CES 2019, Nreal's Light mixed reality glasses are almost ready for their commercial debut. According to the Chinese startup behind the glasses, they'll cost $499 and a limited quantity will ship to customers sometime this year. They'll enter mass production in 2020, and starting today, developers can place orders for the $1,199 developer kit, which will ship in September. Nreal announced the news at the AWE 2019 conference.
NVIDIA's $99 Jetson Nano is an AI computer for DIY enthusiasts
Sophisticated AI generally isn't an option for homebrew devices when the mini computers can rarely handle much more than the basics. NVIDIA thinks it can do better -- it's unveiling an entry-level AI computer, the Jetson Nano, that's aimed at "developers, makers and enthusiasts." NVIDIA claims that the Nano's 128-core Maxwell-based GPU and quad-core ARM A57 processor can deliver 472 gigaflops of processing power for neural networks, high-res sensors and other robotics features while still consuming a miserly 5W. On the surface, at least, it could hit the sweet spot if you're looking to build your own robot or smart speaker.
PSA: Xbox One is not backwards compatible in dev mode
Enabling developer mode on your Xbox One can lead to bad news bears, so doing so is generally ill-advised. Dev mode also doesn't suddenly make your Xbox One backwards compatible, no matter what some picture you saw on the Internet tells you. An image that has been circulating around the Interwebz - which we've posted below the break - claims that by following six simple steps, your Xbox One will allow you to play Xbox 360 games. In reality, following these six simple steps is more likely to result in allowing your Xbox One to play the part of "paperweight" in your new one-man/woman play, "O! Technology." Should you follow the steps listed below, the Xbox One will get caught in an infinite boot cycle, thus rendering it inoperable.
Microsoft advises consumers against enabling dev mode on Xbox One
Though Microsoft has said every retail Xbox One can be used as a game development kit, the company is recommending against consumers enabling an early developer mode on their consoles through the settings menu. In a statement to Engadget, Microsoft says the sequence of buttons that unlocks additional menu options in retail consoles does not necessarily turn the Xbox One into a developer's console. "Changing the settings in this menu is only intended for developers for Xbox One, and this alone does not turn the console into a development kit. We strongly advise consumers against changing these settings as it could result in their Xbox One becoming unusable. Customers who have put their consoles into this developer setting can revert by restoring factory defaults under Settings / System, select Restore Factory Defaults." Microsoft has previously stated we'll see the first self-published Xbox One games, through the ID@Xbox program, sometime early next year. The ID@Xbox program will support any and all payment models available on Xbox One, including free-to-play, premium pricing and micro-transactions.
Jolla confirms first Sailfish OS demo on November 21st, device details by Christmas
Jolla had already mentioned that it would show its MeeGo-derived Sailfish OS in November, but the startup now has exact dates to mark on the calendar. Come November 21st and 22nd, we'll get a peek at Jolla's take on the open platform's interface, apps and SDK at the Slush conference in Helsinki. There won't be much hardware to see, however. Jolla plans to provide the first phone details and launch window before Christmas, which doesn't give much if any time for initial partners like D.Phone to get moving. We'd expect a more formal launch in the new year.
Oculus Rift developer kits go up for regular pre-order, catch VR procrastinators
Anyone who's been wanting to make a game for the Oculus Rift headset, but hemmed and hawed during the Kickstarter run, now has a second chance. Oculus has kicked off its own pre-order campaign that offers the VR developer kit at the same $300 that it cost for the more proactive among us, or $345 for those beyond US borders. As an added incentive, the first 1,000 who pull the trigger still get a copy of Doom 3: BFG Edition to show what the Oculus Rift can do. Twiddling your thumbs will have cost at least a month -- these new kits won't ship until January -- but the pre-order still means a head start over competing developers that haven't yet seen the virtual light.
Google TV 2.0 'Fishtank' developer kit revealed running Honeycomb and apps
As Google TV gears up for a Honeycomb-based v2.0, the team announced at the I/O event that developers could get access to "Fishtank" hardware for them to test their apps on and here it is, revealed by Geek.com. The hardware itself is a relatively nondescript box packing an Intel CE4100 processor (no ARM...yet) and a Logitech Revue wireless keyboard that connects wirelessly via a USB dongle, plus a few more ins and outs than retail boxes have including coax. The software is the real star with its Android 3.1 style blues and blacks in the new menus providing access to a list of running apps, logged in accounts and notifications. Things could change before the beta ends, but this report indicates a major issue between is how developers will get to display or interact with live TV. Being able to overlay data on a live feed, or at least have Dual View picture-in-picture is a big part of many developer's plans and so far Google has apparently not committed to making API access available. Bringing interactivity to broadcasts would be a major advantage for Google TV as a connected TV platform if it can pull it off, we'll see if it makes it into this summer's update or if it ends up on the waiting-for list alongside SageTV integration. [Thanks, @ohpleaseno]
Microsoft launches API Mapping tool to help devs point iPhone apps at WP7 libs
If you've spent much time coding in a development environment that has buttons, you know that Microsoft's tools are among the best. In the spirit of helping developers (developers, developers) find their way to its mobile platform of choice, the company has launched the API Mapping tool for iPhone. Basically, it's a utility that will look at the calls your iOS app's code is making and help you find a new home for them in .Net's ample libraries. Microsoft is also providing documentation to help with the porting and, we hear, asking really, really nicely that you consider Windows Phone for your next project.
Intel Thunderbolt dev kits coming this quarter, hopefully ushering in more 10Gbps-capable devices
Intel has just announced it will soon be making development kits available for its new Thunderbolt interconnect. The cable that can carry 10Gbps (in both directions!) has so far only seen itself installed in Apple's MacBook Pro computers, but storage and other peripheral manufacturers are starting to unveil their lightning-scorched offerings this week at NAB and this announcement is sure to give Thunderbolt an extra spur of momentum. What's going to be intriguing going forward is to see whether manufacturers take it up instead of USB 3.0 or install the DisplayPort lookalike alongside the latest and greatest from the USB camp. If you ask us, we can never have enough high-speed interconnects... how does SuperSpeed Thunderbolt sound?
Taking the Windows Phone 7 Series emulator for a test drive (video)
If you've been following the news about Microsoft's reinvention of its mobile presence, Windows Phone 7 Series, chances are you heard about how the company's developer-friendly emulator was... modified slightly by Dan Ardelean to expose a series of applications and hubs that you weren't supposed to see yet. Microsoft was quite gracious about it, indicating it basically expected this would happen and simply reminded everyone that these newly discovered apps are far from complete. With that in mind, let's take a look at the unlocked version of the OS, and we'll spell out for you exactly how you can do the same to see it for yourself.
Sony introduces a new PS3 dev kit for bargain shoppin' developers
While we're still waiting for our PS3 price drop, Sony has announced the release of a newer, cut-rate PlayStation dev kit. While the current Reference Tool is priced at a mere $10,250 and has all the personality of a Betamax VCR, this new guy is going for a jaw-droppin' $2,000 and shares the PS3 form factor -- not that you're buying these things for aesthetic purposes, but it's true! The company promises "enhanced technical support for developers, an optimized PS3 compiler (SNC PPU) to improve efficiency, and better documentation for PhyreEngine." Looks like Sony's hoping sales will benefit from the "flood" of new releases this move is sure to instigate. Unless, of course, this was one of the demands of the Sony France hostage debacle. Libération de la PlayStation!
Sony slashes PS3 dev kit cost by half
Sony's extending its PS3 birthday celebrations today with a hefty price cut on its PlayStation 3 "Reference Tool" (developer kit) to ease the barrier of entry for fledgling developers and the cheapskate majors. The kit now goes for the rock bottom price of $10,250, and Sony's promising more price cuts as more developers sign on board. In comparison, a Wii dev kit is somewhere in the ballpark of $2k, and while we're unclear what the actual 360 dev hardware runs for, the XNA "YouTube for games" Game Studio Express license is a mere $99. That said, we're liking this price cutting trend out of Sony, and can only hope it continues.[Via Joystiq]
OpenMoko Neo 1973 developer kits available July 9
End users still have a while to wait for a final, finished product -- October's the current estimate -- but developers looking to get cracking on OpenMoko's open-source handset need only wait a few more days. July 9 is the chosen date for pushing Neo 1973 dev kits out the door in two configurations: Neo Base for $300 and Neo Advanced for $450. Neo Base will include the first-gen handset plus garden variety accessories you'd expect to find in a retail package (headset, stylus, pouch, USB cable, and the like), while the Advanced package adds in some additional hardware for really ripping the phone to shreds and tricking it out. The goal is to make sure devs have a healthy catalog of apps ready by the time Joe Consumer gets his hands on one in a few months, at which point the hardware will be even better with the addition WiFi, 256MB of onboard Flash, two onboard accelerometers, and a faster core. We're countin' on ya, code heads![Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Wii developer kit shot in the wild, many Luigi-green with envy
While it's bad news that the Wii won't be region-free, we hope that these new snaps will lift your spirits. An anonymous tipster just sent us five photographs of the Wii developer kit, and we only have one thing to ask our friends at Nintendo: did ours fall off the back of a FedEx truck? Seriously though, we know that developer kits come in colors that the public never gets, but perhaps Nintendo could one day take a page out of Apple's playbook and charge a premium for this snazzy green -- it is, after all, the color of money. Make sure to check out the quartet of photos on the next page.
Final PlayStation 3 dev kit has arrived
Although the first PlayStation3 dev kits were nothing short of gigantic (similar to those PSP dev kits), it looks like Sony has released a "final" version -- one which doesn't exhale winds kin to a tropical storm and whine like a jet engine -- that's been tracked down and posterized. As expected, the juicy details here are few and far between, but at first glance it does seem to sport the obligatory optical Blu-ray drive, and on-hand reports stated that an alpha build of Full Auto 2 was among the data housed on the 80GB hard drive. Initial reactions were relatively positive, garnering praise for its sleek menus and "lag-free" play while connected to the PlayStation Network. The lucky few who wound up handling the not-yet-finalized controller dug the lightweight feel (thanks to the omission of a rumble feature), and noted that switching from wired to wireless modes was much snappier than the versions at (the final) E3. Unfortunately, no new information was leaked about titles in development, and no substantial secrets were unearthed, but hopefully that'll change pretty soon once these start making the rounds.[Via Game Informer]
