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Tiffany Shlain wants us all to unplug our gadgets every now and again
Tiffany Shlain, the Emmy-nominated filmmaker and host of AOL's The Future Starts Here is steeped in technology. That's why it may surprise you to learn that she insists that her family, for one day each week, ditches their smartphones and tablets to indulge in a simpler life. These "technology shabbats" are one of the ways that she's learned to unplug, relax and reconnect with her humanity. In her mind, technology's enormous power for good is great, but it's also dangerous -- shortening our attention spans and sending our amygdalae into overdrive.
Dyson's new vacuums don't need you to clean the filter
Sure, your vacuum cleaner might not need a bag anymore, but you're probably still cleaning or replacing its filter every now and then to make sure you're sucking up as much dirt as possible. You shouldn't have to if Dyson's new Cinetic Science vacuums live up to their hype, though. Both the upright and low-slung versions use rapidly vibrating flexible tips (350 times a second) to prevent dust from blocking the aperture, making sure that all those crumbs and stray hairs reach the bin without any kind of filter maintenance. Supposedly, the Cinetic Science line will operate at peak performance even after 10 years of duty.
Watch Engadget After Hours for a recap of this day at CES 2015
After a long day covering CES, it's time to kick back and reminisce about the day that was... with a cocktail, of course. Join me, your Editor-in-Chief, Executive Editor Christopher Trout and Engagement Editor John Colucci as we talk about our favorite CES things from the past 24 hours and answer some questions (via Twitter) from our readers.
Audi's smartwatch collaboration with LG isn't running Android Wear
Audi briefly, ever so briefly, brandished a not-before-seen smartwatch at its CES event, showcasing some wearable-car connectivity that it's working on. And while that's pretty cool in itself, the watch used to show it off looked pretty darn classy, with stainless steel construction, a substantial crown and another pair of buttons flanking it. While a collaboration between LG and the carmaker, it's not like any smartwatch you've seen from LG so far: This one runs webOS. Now, even though it's not running Android, Android Central managed to track down the watch and tour through the currently lightweight interface. We've confirmed from our own sources that yes, the watch is indeed running webOS, although more details are scarce. Is it too early to direct you to wait for MWC in Barcelona, come February? Perhaps, but we're going to do that anyhow. What do those extra buttons do?
3D Robotics' CEO weighs in on the future of drones
#fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-511089{display:none;} .cke_show_borders #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-511089, #postcontentcontainer #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-511089{width:630px;display:block;} try{document.getElementById("fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-511089").style.display="none";}catch(e){} Twenty minutes with 3D Robotics' Chris Anderson just wasn't enough. After all, before he basically built one of the country's biggest drone makers, he served as editor-in-chief of the storied Wired Magazine (an... unorthodox career leap to say the least). In our wide-ranging conversation, Anderson explored the route that led him from journalism to hardware entrepreneurship, the company's work with Google to help drones scan and navigate the insides of building, and the policies that could shape the very future of our possibly drone-filled skies. Join us for more, won't you? All it takes is a single click above.
The GoPro Hero4 is about to get new photo and video modes
Got a new GoPro? It's about to get better. The camera maker doesn't usually release new products at CES, but it does have a habit of making small announcements. Last year, it was that the GoPro channel was coming to the Xbox; this year it's new firmware (and some LG TV news). Both the Hero4 Silver and Black editions will get a mode that auto-converts time lapses into videos (a real time-saver). There's also a burst-photo setting that'll do 30 pictures over six seconds. Another welcome addition to both cameras (and long overdue) is auto-rotate. Now, when you wear your camera upside-down, it'll figure that out and auto-flip the video. Owners of the Black edition get a few more goodies -- 720p at 240fps will make lovers of HD slow-mo very happy (though it's not at full-wide-angle), and 2.7K will also go up to 60fps -- stock up on memory cards. One last hurrah? You'll be able to add "highlight" tags after the fact during playback. GoPro wouldn't confirm exactly when the update lands, but it'll be in the next month or two. Good timing given the arrival of some new 4K-recording action competition don't you think?
LG's answer to Sonos is a lot like Sonos
LG debuted its Music Flow series of wireless speakers last summer, offering a range of speakers targeted squarely at competitor Sonos' products. More recently, it moved away from aping Sonos with the H4 Portable, a battery-powered speaker that acts just like its larger siblings. At CES 2015, we took a closer look (and listen) at the whole Music Flow family. The way Music Flow works is a hybrid of Sonos and a traditional Bluetooth or NFC speaker. You can pair speakers with a phone via NFC and dedicated apps for iOS and Android, or you can control them directly over a WiFi connection. They speak with one another over WiFi, but need a hub to do so -- a requirement Sonos recently dropped.
Thync's mood-changing wearable made me happy and frustrated
It's eight-thirty in the morning. I'm sitting in a hotel suite in Las Vegas. My colleague Dan Cooper is sitting next to me in near silence. Both of us are in the same room, with the same silence, but we're feeling very different things. I have an intense, yet not uncomfortable "tight" sensation on my right temple. Dan is looking very lethargic. I'm riding the ridge between uneasy and buzzing. Two neuroscientists are also in the room. Dan and I are holding phones, with an app. His subdued state, and my alertness aren't a result of too much/too little coffee. We're self-administering these sensations through the app. This is Thync, a wearable device that uses neurosignaling to shift your mood. It's working.
Sony's new 4K projectors: choose between 'cheap' or lasers
Sure we can spend all day at CES checking out ridiculously large UHD TVs, but if you want to max out your home theater then a projector is the only way to go. Luckily, Sony has two fresh choices here at CES 2015 if you can afford them. First up is its VPL-VW350ES, which qualifies as the value option by bringing its 4K capabilities for under $10,000 -- hardly cheap, but until now the cheapest option has been the $15,000 VPL-VW600ES. On the opposite end of the spectrum is the laser-powered VPL-GTZ1. We saw it last year as a part of the Life Space UX concept, but for the last few months, New York's well-heeled customers have been able to pick one up for just $50,000. Naturally, Sony brought two of them to CES, showing off their "ultra short-throw ability" to beam a 4K image on a wall from just a few inches away. Perhaps the perfect choice for someone with more money than space, we will sadly have to pass on taking either one home, for now.
A closer look at Dish's Sling TV service
If you've been looking to give cable the boot, Dish's announcement of a $20-a-month service that brings you TV channels over the internet may be the most exciting news of CES. Sling TV doesn't quite have the robust network lineup as Comcast, Time Warner and others, but big names like ESPN, CNN, TNT, TBS, Food Network have signed on. What's more, the subscription includes a movie rental feature, and it'll be available on a handful of smart TVs, Roku players, Amazon Fire TV (and Fire Stick), Xbox One, Nexus Player, Android TV and both Android and iOS mobile platforms when it arrives later this year. That means that if you're already itching to opt in, it won't be too difficult to find a compatible device. Read on for a quick walkthrough of the interface, and for all the details, consult more of our Sling TV coverage.
Parrot's new drone keeps its 'head' on straight
Drones are a seemingly everywhere at CES, but senseFly's sensor-laden eXom commercial quadcopter really caught our eye. Why's that? Well, for starters it has a self-leveling and stabilizing err... head up front. That cabeza packs one of five ultrasonic sensors, an ability to record "ultra high-res" stills, HD video and thermal data -- even simultaneously. Like the gizmo's final battery life, weight and price, however, the folks at senseFly, a division of Parrot, aren't ready to talk about exact resolution for any of the cameras. We'd imagine that since the drone's intended to look at pipelines and hydroelectric dams for cracks and defects at close proximity and with "sub-millimeter" accuracy, the imaging tools are going to be pretty powerful.
Here's a closer look at Dell's super thin tablet and nearly bezel-less XPS 13
When I invited Sam Burd, the general manager of Dell's personal computer group, to do an interview with me at CES about the state of the PC industry, I did so mostly because, well, Dell knows a lot about computers. I had no idea at the time that Dell would be showing off some amazing stuff at the show, with not one, but two products making the finalists' list for our Best of CES Awards. So, before Mr. Burd and I got to talking about wireless charging and Intel's RealSense technology, he gave me a closer look at both the skinny Venue 8 7000 tablet and the nearly bezel-less XPS 13 Ultrabook. Check out our interview in full below.
This is not the 'Oculus Killer' you're looking for
It takes a special kind of crazy to show up to the biggest consumer electronics show on Earth, to pay for an exhibition space next to Oculus VR and then advertise your product as an "Oculus killer." That's exactly what 3DHead did with its "GCS3" headset. That phrase is even painted on their booth, as seen above. Given all that, you're probably pretty interested in seeing the company's headset, right? It's probably super sleek, right? Forgive me, but you absolutely have to head below to see this madness. I assure you, you won't regret it.
Take a tour of Samsung's 4K-heavy CES booth
Long before Sling TV was the talk of CES, Samsung was busy boasting about the VCR and, later, the DVD player. Today, its presence at the world's biggest tech show is largely focused on 4K TVs. Curved, bendable, flat -- Samsung's UHD lineup has it all. But there's much more to its sprawling booth. The Korean manufacturer has an equally sprawling product portfolio that includes audio, home automation and mobile devices, among other things. To get an idea of just how much Samsung has to offer, look no further than our photo and video tours below. For more from Samsung and beyond, check out our 2015 CES Field Guide.
Fitbit's CEO explains why his company isn't making a smartwatch
International CES may as well be called the International Smartwatch Show. There are so many wearables on display here, I've had trouble keeping track of them all. And yet, there's one company that in theory should be making a smartwatch, but isn't. That would be Fitbit, whose name is about as synonymous with "fitness tracker" as "Kleenex" is with tissues. Though the company recently released the Surge, a GPS-enabled sports band, CEO and founder James Park insists he'll never build a smartwatch, per se. He also won't be coating his fitness trackers in tacky Swarovski crystals, but really, anyone with good sense should know not to do that. Check out the video below to see my full interview with Mr. Park and to hear what's next for the company (hint: It involves a lot of data scientists).
Samsung's 'Ring Radiator' speakers look strange, but sound pretty good
When Samsung announced a trio of audio products ahead of CES, the two egg-shaped speakers immediately grabbed my eye. Obviously, these don't look like regular in-home gear, and while Bang & Olufsen has been making said audio tech more decorative for quite some time, an affordable entry would certainly be welcome. As a part of that oval design, the WAM7500 and WAM6500 have so-called Ring Radiator technology that blasts sound in 360 degrees, rather than a single direction. If you're familiar with the compact UE Boom or Megaboom, this concept is similar. While that latter model is an on-shelf option, the former is meant to be used with a stand, or more awesomely, hung from the ceiling like a light fixture. Keeping with the home accent theme, Samsung is showing off not only black and white versions, but also wood and metallic models.
The company behind Moto's smart tattoo made an NFC baby thermometer
We wouldn't blame you if the name VivaLnk didn't instantly come to mind, but you'd probably say "Ohhh, them!" if we tell you that it made Motorola's phone-unlocking temporary tattoo. Now, however, the company is deciding to get in on the temperature-monitoring game with this cute NFC sticker. The eSkin Thermometer pairs an NFC chip with a temperature sensor that'll tell you how warm your munchkin is in under three seconds. Oh, and it's shaped like a bear, so that's something.
Gibson's Trainer headphones look to keep runners safe after dark
It might sound odd that a guitar maker is getting into fitness headphones, however Gibson falls under the same corporate umbrella as Philips, Onkyo and other personal audio brands. That being said, it's still a bit strange to see the iconic guitar brand stamped on a pair of on-ears. I was curious enough to give them a shot, and in the process, discovered there was much more to the Usain Bolt-endorsed Trainer headphones than the initial announcement let on. Those are indeed onboard controls on the right earpad, and they sort not only play/pause and skip functions, but also toggle on/off a feature that dampens the sound so you can hear what's going on around you. You can use it to converse with a workout pal, and it's also sure to come in handy when you're coming up on a busy intersection.
BabyBe brings premature children closer to their mothers
CES 2015 does not lack for connected devices. Lightbulbs, beds, socks... seriously, everything is a connected device at CES. But, let's be honest with ourselves: These are luxury goods for people with disposable income. BabyBe is using Intel's connected-device platform Edison to actually better the lives of people, specifically premature babies and their mothers. The most important component is the "Cradle," a pad embedded with air bladders and heating elements, sheathed in a medically safe polyurethane. It's soft and a little odd-feeling. It's supposed to mimic the density and texture of human skin, but kind of ends up falling into uncanny valley territory. The air sacks inside mimic the heartbeat and chest movement of the mother, who can't hold her fragile, premature child.
