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The new Moto 360 comes in two sizes, ships later this month for $299
Samsung and LG might have been first to market with Android Wear smartwatches, but the Moto 360 was the first that really got people excited. Now, after innumerable leaks, Motorola's finally ready to talk about the sequel it's been working on behind closed doors. Say hello to the 2015 Moto 360. Prices for these shiny new models start at $299 and they'll hit store shelves later this month, with pre-orders starting today. In the meantime, let's take a closer look at Motorola's handiwork.
Hands-on with the £129 Wileyfox Swift
Two years ago, Motorola pioneered a new smartphone category with the original Moto G: the almost flagship. It was a device that offered close to high-end performance and design with a price-tag usually reserved for less capable mid-tier handsets. It's now the company's bestselling smartphone and few, if any of its rivals have managed to replicate its winning formula. The latest competitor to step up and take a shot is Wileyfox, a complete newcomer from the UK. Over the next couple of months it'll be launching two new smartphones which run the Cyanogen flavor of Android: the Swift and the Storm. The cheaper of the two, the £129 ($200) Swift, sits somewhere between the latest Moto G and entry-level Moto E. But it's got a lot to prove if it hopes to steal some of the company's thunder.
Meet the Galaxy Note 5: Samsung's most elegant phablet yet
In case the news hasn't already been spoiled for you, Samsung just officially revealed two new phablets, and the updated Galaxy Note 5 is easily the more fascinating of the pair. It's the sleekest, most powerful Note yet (obviously), but -- more importantly -- it's also the most elegant. In fact, after spending a little time with the Note 5, it began to feel like the sort of device that might change a Note naysayer's mind about the "giant screen-writing phone" formula entirely.
Samsung's Galaxy S6 Edge+ is a super-sized sequel that plays it safe
It's been less than six months since Samsung pulled back the curtain on the eye-catching Galaxy S6 Edge, and now it's getting a very familiar-looking sibling. Say hello to the Galaxy S6 Edge+, a super-sized sequel that powers up the original formula with a larger screen, more RAM to help its multitasking prowess and... well, not a whole lot else. Oh, and before we go any further, you'll be able to pick one up from all five major US carriers starting on August 21st (update: we have pricing, see the end of the post). Right, shall we continue?
Touring the Turing, a wonderfully weird encrypted smartphone
You'd think a company that takes security as seriously as Turing Robotics does wouldn't paint its first smartphones purple, red, gold or blue, but you'd have it pegged wrong. For a freshman effort, CEO SYL Chao envisioned an Android phone that was meant for designers and aesthetes as much as it was for security nerds and paranoiacs who crave the encryption tech inside it. Weird? You bet, but after spending a little time with some pre-production prototypes, I can't help but pull for this underdog.
Fove headset uses eye-tracking to make VR more real
If you've shoved one VR headset on your face, you've pretty much shoved them all on your face. They all immerse you in a 3D world with a device that tracks your head movement so you can look around. The Fove, on the other hand, does more than just track your noggin; it also tracks your eyes and recreates how you see the real world while reducing strain on the system running the simulation. The company's slick Kickstarter video promises an impressive experience and even in its early stage, it delivers.
HTC One M9 preview: A battle between polish and progress
It looks the same. That's the impression you'd probably get looking at the HTC One M9 for the first time. I felt that way too, at first. Thing is, HTC knows it's got a good thing going with its high-end One design and just didn't feel like a full-on revolution was necessary in 2015... maybe to the consternation of some of its activist fans. So what's new, if not the M9's aesthetic? Quite a bit, really, and not all of it great.
DTS is making movie and TV dialogue even easier to hear
Compared to other trade shows (E3 being the prime offender), the Consumer Electronics Show floor is relatively quiet. That didn't stop the folks at DTS from showing off their new DTS:X codec however. It separates audio into objects instead of channels so instead of say, left, right, front, rear, center and subwoofer, you get things like dialogue or individual gunshots. If this sounds like Dolby Atmos tech, that's because it's pretty similar. The neat trick with DTS:X, however, is that it separates dialogue into its own thing that you control the volume of independently from everything else. Should you have an A/V receiver, you could always bump the center channel up a bit, but that increases the volume of all sound coming from that speaker, not just what the people onscreen are saying. It sort of achieves the same result, but not quite.
Kodak and Polaroid square off again, this time with smartphones
Kodak and Polaroid are both still fighting for relevance in a world that's mostly left them behind, and this year they've got a new kind of weapon in their arsenals: the smartphone. Both of these companies have basically lent the power of their brands -- the history, the force of nostalgia -- to third-party players who make devices on their behalf. It's a little too early to make a call on which company's definitively doing it better, but we took a look to see how they stack up at this point.
Petcube's WiFi camera lets you play with your pet, remotely
Sometimes your Tuesday is going horribly and the only way to fix it is face time with your four-legged best friend. We've likely all been there. Petcube wants to help make those bad days melt away with its WiFi-enabled pet camera. More than simply offering video and two-way audio communication via smartphone app (both Android and iOS are supported), each camera has a built-in laser pointer that you can control remotely by dragging your finger across your mobile's screen. We saw it in action with cats in San Francisco (pictured above), and it was pretty cute watching felines chase around a red dot controlled by one of Petcube's employees standing next to us at CES in Las Vegas. The outfit says you can grant access to your camera, too, so people besides you can, say, exercise your pets if you're a bit too busy. Naturally, they just need to download the app to their device of choice.
Sony's head-mounted display will turn spectacles into smart glasses
It's no secret that Sony's been working on a sort of Google Glass analog, but the fact that the company's also got a bolt-on display that can (ideally) turn any pair of glasses into a savvy wearable is nothing short of impressive. After Sony wrapped up this year's CES press conference, we got the chance to yank a pair out of some poor spokesperson's hands and strap them on for ourselves. Long story short: Sony just might have a winner on its hands.
Google's Nexus 6 is a high-powered handful (hands-on)
It's a little funny to see Motorola finally crafting a Nexus phone after Google sold it to Lenovo, but hey -- life is peculiar that way. What's more important is that Motorola has taken its responsibilities as Keeper of the Nexus name seriously, and put together a phone that's as big on power as it is big in your pocket. Let's go for a quick tour, shall we?
Verizon's Droid Turbo is a much-improved Moto X (hands-on)
Verizon's Droid Turbo is a curious little beast: It's a distinct improvement over Motorola's one-time flagship Moto X, but it lacks the sort of geek credentials that have gotten people drooling over the newly announced Nexus 6. That said, we were a little taken with just how seriously Motorola still takes its long-running Droid line, so join us as we take a quick look what's worth knowing about the Turbo.
Ask Ooloo puts the 'person' back in personal assistant
Before Google dominated search, Ask Jeeves depended on a team of humans -- yes, humans -- to answer your internet queries. Ultimately, search algorithms killed the internet's favorite butler, but the idea that humans are worthy competition for the software we create didn't follow him to the grave. Case in point: Ask Ooloo, a digital assistant powered by living, breathing human beings. According to Ooloo's makers, the PPDA (people-powered digital assistant) is staffed with "real people 24/7" ready to offer you quick, localized search results with a personal touch. All you have to do is speak your question, as you would with Google Now, Siri or Cortana, and wait for an answer. We put the iOS app to the test, asking it 'Who invented the Internet?" What it revealed, probably won't shock you.
Add Apple CarPlay to your existing ride with Pioneer's latest head units
If you're an iPhone user who's dying to try out the new auto-friendly CarPlay interface, but can't quite shell out the big bucks for a new Ferrari, Pioneer has good news for you: It recently announced that all of its 2014 NEX head units will be CarPlay-compatible. Indeed, if you already purchased one of Pioneer's five aftermarket receiver models that were released earlier this year, you too can have CarPlay with a simple firmware update that's coming out in a few months. I had the opportunity to see this in action with a Pioneer AVIC-8000NEX installed in a Toyota Sienna a couple days ago, and it's exactly how it would appear in a car with CarPlay already built in.
Hands-on with the new PlayStation Vita (update: video!)
Just like the PlayStation Portable before it, the PlayStation Vita comes in iterations. There's the standard, original Vita, and then there's the new, even nicer version. Sony unveiled that new iteration recently at a Japanese event, and we got our first hands-on with it today at Tokyo Game Show 2013. So, what's different? Not too much. As it turns out, it's still a Vita. The good news is that it's a far lighter, more comfy version of the Vita you already know and (maybe) love. Rounded edges make holding the Vita distinctly less abrasive -- the sharper angles on the original Vita were pretty from a design perspective, but not so much from an ergonomic standpoint. The buttons have been rejiggered as well, with a solid click for each (the start / select / PS Home buttons are also all now circles instead of ovals). And hey, the micro-USB port for charging is an unbelievably welcome addition. Gone are the days of your proprietary Vita charging cable (though there's still a port for it as well, should you refuse to change). And that's not the only ergonomic improvement: the new Vita is dramatically lighter than its predecessor, making it all the easier to take on-the-go. We're told that its battery life is also much improved, but we've yet to see that play out in real life, so we'll reserve judgment for now. Update: We've added video just below walking through the new Vita -- please excuse us, as we called the new Vita's LCD screen an LED in the video. Chock it up to jet lag! Check out all our Tokyo Game Show 2013 coverage right here at our hub!
Hands-on with the PlayStation Vita TV, Sony's $100 microconsole (update: video!)
The PlayStation Vita TV is an aberration, but it's also another smart move from a company that's been on the gaming offensive since its February kickoff event for the PlayStation 4. In short, Vita TV is a Vita without a screen, encased in a small white plastic box and meant to plug into your home entertainment system. It plays Vita games, it runs Vita game carts, and it does all the other Vita stuff (media streaming, PSOne games, etc.). The Vita TV's only major difference from the handheld version is that Vita TV streams PlayStation 4 games from within the same WiFi under its "PS4 link" app, while it still goes under the Remote Play moniker on the portable iteration. We didn't get hands-on time with Vita TV at its coming out event in Tokyo last week, but we did today at the Tokyo Game Show. Sadly, though the PS4 streaming was demonstrated on-stage by Worldwide Studios head Shuhei Yoshida earlier in the day, we couldn't try it out ourselves. We did get to check out the UI, though, and we spent our time playing UmJammer Lammy (sequel to staff favorite PaRappa the Rapper). Head below for our thoughts on the time we spent with Vita TV.
PAX Prime 2013: Breaking tables in DC Universe Online
During this year's PAX Prime, I was able to grab some hands-on time with the PlayStation 4 version of DC Universe Online. The demo was made up of content from the brand-new DLC, Sons of Trigon. The DLC features three new duos and an alert, whereas I feature slightly rusty DCUO skills. In fact, nearly all of my DCUO experience has been with a keyboard and mouse, so I reached for the controller with hesitation. I managed to pull slightly more confidence from a long history of PlayStation gaming and Sony's staunch refusal to change the basic layout of its controller for 19 years and counting.
Nintendo 2DS: dropping one dimension, adding one more choice (hands-on)
Nintendo caught us all by surprise when it announced its -- all too literally named -- 2DS handheld last week. But are we really surprised? For a company that found its last success with the "family" experience, and loves to create products in families of their own, it's perhaps surprising that it didn't create a more affordable, more accessible handheld sooner. Either way, it's here now, and will be reaching shelves by October 12th -- just in time to make those Christmas lists. Our list is getting pretty full already though, so we spent a little time with it to see if it could make the cut.
PAX Prime 2013: Adjusting butts in Elder Scrolls Online
After my hands-on demo at E3, I was cautiously optimistic about sitting down for another hour of Elder Scrolls Online at this year's PAX Prime. I was ushered into the press demo area and immediately dived into character creation. There were significantly more options available here than during my last demo just a few months ago. Among the additions was a feature I'm sure you've been waiting for: the "posterior dimensions" slider. Beyond butts, the variety of the options Bethesda brought to PAX Prime was pretty impressive. I spent more time in character creation than I expected, even customizing my stomach size. After I decided on the appropriate butt girth, I loaded into the snowy, nordic area of Bleakrock Isle and immediately spent a solid 10 minutes exploring my option menus.
