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Now you can rouse your kids to the smell of ‘Frozen’
Do your kids struggle to wake up, no matter how loudly you shout that if they're not quick, you'll steal their cereal? Perhaps you could try tempting them into wakefulness with the scents of either Olaf from Disney's Frozen or the armpit scent of Despicable Me's Minions. That's the idea behind the newest couple of devices from the makers of Sensorwake's perfume-based alarm clock.
Lenovo’s first augmented-reality glasses are a 'Star Wars' exclusive
Compared to virtual reality, augmented reality has been slow to take off. Sure, phone-based augmented reality is getting a bit of a boost right now -- Apple and Google are certainly investing in it -- but there's still a dearth of commercially available headsets. Devices like HoloLens and the Meta 2 are too expensive, and while there are startups that promise more affordable models, they're still years away from being on store shelves. Lenovo, however, has come with a solution -- and it's partnered with Disney to bring it to the masses. The caveat? It works with only one game (at least for now) and that's Star Wars: Jedi Challenges.
B&O Play launches the E8, its first wireless earbuds
Bang & Olufsen never adopt a new technology until it can guarantee that the audio quality is up to its usual high standards. But the firm has moved fairly quickly, by its standards, to build its first pair of in-ear Bluetooth earbuds. The Beoplay E8 is a pair of Bragi and IconX-esque in-ears that come with their own charging case, just like its rivals.
Sony's Xperia Ear Open Style is its most promising concept yet
After teasing its Xperia Ear Open Style Concept earlier this year at MWC 2017, Sony is now sharing more details about the wireless audio set. For starters, as we found out in Barcelona, the Xperia Ear has traditionally consisted of a single device, but now it's a pair built for both of your ears. Another big change is that they're now meant to be clipped around the bottom of your earlobes rather than sit without any support near your ear canal. That also means the earbuds are designed to let noise from the outside world in as you're wearing them, a feature that may be both good and bad.
Sony's tiny RX0 is made for VR and multi-camera work
Sony is so on top of its camera game right now that it is ready to try crazy products to attack new markets. Take the new RX0, a $700 camera that is aimed at the virtual-reality and remote camera shooting markets. It's equipped with a 1-inch, 15.3-megapixel Exmor RS CMOS sensor and a fixed Zeiss 24mm F4 wide-angle lens, giving it the same kind of high image quality you'd see with a new RX100 Mark V, for instance. It can also shoot 4K video, full HD at 240 fps and 16 fps RAW still images.
Watch Samsung's IFA 2017 press showcase in six minutes
We heard you liked TVs, a bunch of wearables and... AI-linked washing machines. While Samsung's "new normal" nonsense fell flat, its IFA 2017 sales pitch was an interesting one. The company's understated Frame TV series is coming in a more sensible size, it believes its washing machines could half the time it takes to do your laundry, and it might have even got the fitness wearable right with two different riffs on the category. Watch on... if you're normal.
LG V30 hands-on: The phone the G6 should've been
Despite all its resources and technical know-how, LG has always felt like an also-ran in a race dominated by Apple and Samsung. The G4 is the subject of a class-action lawsuit. The modular G5 was an ambitious nonstarter. Last year's V20 and the G6 were welcome steps forward, but neither managed to generate that much excitement. The company's V30 smartphone just might be able to change that. Announced today at IFA, the V30 is meant to be as much a creative tool as it is a device for taking phone calls. This time, though, LG wisely excised some gimmicks, leading to a device that, after a week of living with a preproduction model, feels more polished and more focused than I dared expect. I'm trying to be cautious with my optimism, but it's honestly a little tough: I haven't enjoyed an LG phone this much in years.
TomTom watches push you to roll back your 'fitness age'
Instead of launching a fitness watch or two at the IFA conference, TomTom has announced three new features for existing devices that could provide that push you need to get fit. The first one is called Fitness Age, because it tells your age based on your fitness level. It computes for the result by comparing your VO2 max to other people's of the same age and gender. In athletic training, VO2 max means the maximum amount of oxygen you can consume per minute for your weight and is a key indicator of cardio fitness and endurance.
Watch ASUS' IFA 2017 event in under seven minutes
The first official day of IFA 2017 isn't until Friday, September 1st, but the pre-event festivities are already in full force. Like Acer and Samsung, ASUS had its big press conference today in Berlin, where it revealed a slew of new mainstream, multimedia and gaming laptops. It also shared more details about its upcoming Windows Mixed Reality headset, which promises to be a solid, premium device -- so don't expect it to be cheap. You can catch these and other announcements in this highlight reel we put together, just for you.
The best way to customize a supercar is in VR
To paraphrase Robin Williams, buying a $2.8 million supercar is God's way of telling you that you're making too much money. And yet there's a certain thrill in picking out the red leather trim that goes so well with a black carbon-fiber shell. Because that's what I picked to trick out the Pagani Huayra I could buy if I had Zuckerberg-level money. It's also the same way that members of the super rich will customize their own rides soon.
Samsung has a 43-inch version of its Frame TV for smaller spaces
Samsung has announced that its art-inspired Frame TV, which launched this past June, will soon come in a 43-inch version. The new model could be a good alternative for people who may not be able to fit one of the existing 55- or 65-inch Frame TVs on their wall, or for those who simply think the others are too large for their taste. As part of today's reveal, Samsung also said that it has partnered with Spain's Museo del Prado, aka the Prado museum, on an experience that will let Frame TV owners display about 1,000 of its pieces. There's no word on pricing or availability yet, but you can expect the 43-inch version to cost around $1,500 since the 55 and 65 are $2,000 and $2,800, respectively.
Samsung's refined Gear IconX earbuds now talk to Bixby
The Gear Fit 2 Pro and Gear Sport aren't the only products Samsung is unveiling at IFA 2017. Today, the company also introduced a revamped version of its Gear IconX wireless earbuds, which feature better battery life (up to five hours of streaming) and support for its virtual assistant, Bixby. That means you can now use your voice to control your music or paired phone, all by simply tapping and holding the side of the IconX earbud. And because runners may be into these, Samsung added a Running Coach mode that gives you real-time, in-ear status updates as you're working out.
Dell's Inspiron 7000 Gaming laptop comes with a GTX 1060 now
Dell's Inspiron 15 7000 Gaming has always been a solid, if unexciting, option among entry-level gaming laptops. With its latest refresh, Dell is making things a little more interesting with some improved graphics options, ports and a refreshed design. Most of the spec options are identical to the last model. There's a choice of Intel's 7th-gen i5-7300HQ or i7-7700HQ, anti-glare 1080p and 4K panels, between 4GB and 32GB of RAM and various hard and solid state drives for storage. The main improvement is graphics: While the current 7000 Gaming tops out at an Nvidia GTX 1050 Ti, the latest adds the option for a 6GB GTX 1060 Max-Q, a more-powerful card. Although the full-fat GTX 1060 is marketed as "VR-ready," the Max-Q edition with its reduced energy draw (6OW versus 80W) may struggle with some titles. Inside there's also 2x2 802.11ac WiFi as standard, an improvement over the 1x1 chipset in the previous model.
Watch Acer's IFA 2017 showcase in under six minutes
Didn't get up early enough for the first salvo of new gadgets from IFA 2017? Don't worry, we've got your back. Acer kicked things off with its press event this year, unveiling its latest all-in-one PCs, ever-evolving hybrid laptops and a new push into 360 cameras -- including one for looking after your pooch. You can never get enough pet-gadgets, right? We've condensed everything worth talking about, all into a tidy six-minute package.
ASUS' new ROG Strix gaming laptop is built for FPS players
ASUS' IFA welcome mat is scattered with laptops, and it's not just more slender ZenBooks. The company's gaming arm, ROG, has recast its Strix gaming laptop in two different editions, each dedicated to a different type of game. First up, the SCAR edition, which was built for first-person shooter gamers "looking for a competitive edge". That edge involves the newest eighth-generation Intel Core i7 processors, and NVIDIA's GeForce GTX 10 in the way of graphical might. You'll be staring into either a 15-inch or 17-inch screen, with a 5ms response time and smooth 120Hz refresh rates. ROG says this will eliminate motion blur, while also contradicting itself and teasing an even smoother 144Hz, 7ms display option also in the works.
We're live from IFA 2017 in Berlin!
Part of the Engadget crew may have just wrapped up Gamescom in Cologne, Germany, but another set of staffers has arrived in a different part of the country to start IFA 2017. This year, at Europe's biggest tradeshow in Berlin, we're expecting to see products from a handful of major tech companies. That includes Acer, LG, Samsung and Sony, which are all expected to unveil products ranging from brand new smartphones to wearables and smart appliances. Sony, for one, is said to be preparing to launch the XZ1 and XZ1 Compact, while Samsung could show us the next iteration of its Gear wearable lineup. Whatever it may be, we'll be bringing you the action live from the event, so be sure to stay tuned and don't miss a beat. Even though the IFA show floor doesn't officially open until September 1st, and runs through September 6th, you can expect to see stories from us starting today. Hopefully you'll like what you see.
The first water-resistant BlackBerry will ditch the keyboard
TCL, the Chinese conglomerate that produces phones under the BlackBerry name, is going to broaden its appeal to more than just keyboard devotees. The company has revealed to Engadget that it will launch a full touchscreen device under the BlackBerry name at some point in October. It may not be a Z10, or even a Storm (or Thunder), but if you were looking to get your mitts on a keyboard-free BlackBerry, it's coming.
Steam VR is coming to Windows Mixed Reality headsets
After nearly two years, Microsoft is months away from releasing its first Windows Mixed Reality headset to the public. The first out the gate will be Acer's $300 VR headset, which runs on the same platform as the HoloLens and therefore already has access to a whole plethora of Windows 10 apps. But a VR headset isn't any fun without games, right? That's why today Microsoft has announced that Windows Mixed Reality headsets will be compatible with a slew of different titles, including some from one of the biggest names in VR: Steam.
Samsung's smart belt lands on Kickstarter
Remember that health-tracking smart belt Samsung showed at its CES booth in January? You can score one for yourself. Spinoff company Welt has started a Kickstarter campaign to fund the launch of its namesake belt. Drop $119 ($69 or $99 if you're early) and you'll get a subtle wearable that tracks your waistline, eating habits, step counts and the time you spend sitting. Higher-priced Classic and Premium models mainly up the style quotient. Provided the crowdfunding run is successful, you should get your Welt as early as January -- just in time to track your efforts to shed weight after the holidays.
The best of the rest at IFA 2016
Now that we've said goodbye to IFA 2016, it's time to bring you highlights of the most interesting devices at the event. In this particular edition, you'll find some that aren't smartphones or wearables. We're talking virtual reality massage chairs, fridges with built-in tablets, as well as adorable robots and drones. Acer's ridiculous 21-inch gaming laptop is there too, along with its new convertible Chromebook. But that's just part of it, so check out the slideshow and think about which items you want the most. We're live all week from Berlin, Germany, for IFA 2016. Click here to catch up on all the news from the show.
