OLPC XO Tablet final version hands-on (video)
The XO Tablet that One Laptop Per Child was shuttling around the floor of the Las Vegas Convention Center at CES back in January wasn't quite the final version of the company's first consumer-facing device. Now, a few weeks out from its official June 1st online availability, OLPC's finally got its hands on the shipping product. It's designed by Vivitar, a price-conscious manufacturer hand-picked by retail partner Walmart, marking the first time that the educational company didn't have a direct hand in the creation of its hardware, a big change from the custom components that have traditionally gone into its XO line.
OLPC's made some tweaks to the software, which runs atop of Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, taking more advantage of the swipe functionality while navigating through its "I Want to Be An..." UI, which builds the child's experience around dream jobs like astronaut, artist and doctor. It's a super simplified interface built with an even younger target audience in mind than its XO laptops (ages 3 and up, according to the company). The tablet will come pre-loaded with 200 apps (100 in English and 100 in Spanish) and 200 books (also 100 English, 100 Spanish), including selections from content partners like Sesame Street and Oxford University Press. The idea is to offer up enough content so the child can be sufficiently entertained / educated even when not online.
Filed under: Tablets
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OLPC working on XO laptop telescope and microscope peripherals (hands-on)
So much of what children are taught in the sciences amounts to abstractions. It's a shame, really -- concepts of the universe are so much easier to extrapolate when we can see them for ourselves. OLPC's looking to give the classrooms it serves more access to the very big and very small with two new attachments that we had the opportunity to check out on a recent visit to the company's Miami office. First off is a telescope that secures to the side of its XO-4 laptop with a vice grip, utilizing the device's built-in camera. There's also a microscope that sits atop a swiveling base and plugs directly into one of the laptop's USB ports. Both peripherals run on Fedora-based software designed by the company.
OLPC will be bringing these out as soon as it can get the price down through manufacturing. For the France-designed telescope, the company is aiming for $10, with a potentially lower price on the microscope. The idea is to get one of each in a classroom, rather than the one-to-one approach of its XO line.
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Visualized: Google Glass prototypes
As a part of the 7 Techmakers and a Microphone panel tonight at Google I/O, Project Glass Staff Hardware Engineer Jean Wang dropped in this slide reflecting on the process of developing the headset. We've seen pictures of a few early Glass prototypes before, but as she describes, this shows off the full process from strapping a cellphone to a pair of goggles along with a pico projector shining directly into the wearer's eyes. The jump from off the shelf components to custom 3D-printed materials is represented in the third version (top right), and allowed the progress seen along the bottom row.
She also got a laugh pointing out that the Glass-inspired SNL skit starring our friend Fred Armisen wasn't "too far off" the team's initial efforts in gesture and voice control. The panel itself focused on a series of TED-style segments featuring seven women discussing being technical leaders inside their company. You can check out the entire thing embedded after the break or just zoom to the Google Glass part (6:13) for more details.
Filed under: Wearables, Google
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Via: Danny Sullivan (Twitter)
Source: Google Developers (YouTube), Google Developers
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Google AirShow streams I/O live from several RC blimps (video)
Yes, there's a fleet of camera-equipped, remote-controlled blimps live-streaming a bird's-eye view of Google I/O on YouTube, right now. It's called Google AirShow and it's taken over the airspace within Moscone Center. We briefly chatted with Chris Miller, a software engineer with AKQA (the company that put the dirigibles together for Google), about the technology used in each aircraft. It all begins with an off-the-shelf model airship that's flown manually via standard a 2.4GHz radio. Each blimp is outfitted with a servo-controlled USB camera and 5GHz USB WiFi dongle which are both connected to a Raspberry Pi board running Debian, VLC and Python. A custom-designed Li-polymer battery system powers the on-board electronics. The webcam encodes video as motion-JPEG (720p, 30fps) and VLC generates a YouTube-compatible RTSP stream that's broadcast over WiFi. Python's used to pan the servo-controlled camera via the Raspberri Pi's PWM output. The result is pretty awesome. But don't take our word for it -- check it out in the gallery and source link below, then watch our hands-on video after the break.
Filed under: Cameras, Misc, Transportation, Internet, Alt, Google
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Source: I/O AirShow 2013
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Google Wallet comes to Sprint HTC One, Galaxy Note II, GS4 and US Cellular Note II
Currently, Google Wallet is available on a plethora of smartphones, but is there really such a thing as too much coverage? Google surely doesn't seem to think so. Earlier today, the company added support for its mobile payment system to the GS4, HTC One (Sprint) and the Galaxy Note II (Sprint and US Cellular). If you own one of these devices, hit the Google Play link below to add its NFC-powered tap and pay capabilities.
Filed under: Software, Mobile, Google
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Via: Google Wallet (Google+)
Source: Google Play
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PrimeSense demonstrates Capri 3D sensor on Nexus 10 (hands-on)
Take the 3D sensor inside the Microsoft Kinect, shrink it down to a tenth of its original size and add a bunch of mobile capabilities, and you have yourself PrimeSense's latest conquest, better known as Capri. The company, which is the brains behind the Kinect, has been openly working on bringing a tiny-yet-advanced 3D experience to tablets, televisions and smartphones for quite some time now. And it's proud enough of its progress so far that it's willing to give some real-life demonstrations to developers attending Google I/O. You may not see Capri embedded on the PCB of your portable gadget anytime soon -- at least, not until PrimeSense winds up wooing the pants off a lucky OEM or two -- so in the meantime, the company has connected the sensor board to the Nexus 10 via micro-USB.
Unlike the Kinect, however, PrimeSense doesn't think gestures will play a significant role in how we use Capri to interact with our gadgets. Rather, it seems to be more focused on 3D-based use case scenarios, many of which haven't even been thought up yet. As you'll see in the video below, we were shown an AR game that takes the environment around you -- walls, furniture and other elements -- and uses them as restrictions, just as much as they would be in real life. In another app, Capri snapped a three-dimension shot of an object on the table in front of us, captured its measurements and let us export that image to another device or even a 3D printer. In many respects, PrimeSense appears to be taking the same strategy Google does with Glass: get developers excited about the tech in the hopes they'll come up with clever uses for it. And while the company isn't ready to put Capri in their hands yet, the SDK is up for grabs, and I/O is no doubt an ideal place to build excitement for it. If you're looking for more info, we have a gallery, video and press release below, and you'll find the SDK at the More Coverage link.
Filed under: Cellphones, Peripherals, Tablets, Mobile
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Android to get built-in Bluetooth Smart Ready support this year
As powerful as Android can be, Bluetooth is one of its glaring weaknesses: the absence of a default Bluetooth framework has led to inconsistent implementations from both device builders and app developers. Google is at last covering that gaping hole, however. As hinted earlier today, it's incorporating Bluetooth Smart Ready support (that is, Bluetooth 4.0 on a dual-mode chip) in an upcoming version of Android. Having a common platform should allow for more reliable behavior, not to mention fewer roadblocks to using low power Bluetooth Smart (single-mode Bluetooth 4.0) devices like the Fitbit Flex. There's only one catch that we can see, so far: when Google hasn't said how soon we'll get that Android upgrade, wireless peripheral lovers will have to remain patient.
Filed under: Cellphones, Peripherals, Tablets, Mobile, Google
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Source: Bluetooth Blog
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Recon Instruments Jet heads-up display debuts at Google I/O, we go hands-on (video)
Google Glass is a lot of things, but it's hardly a superstar when it comes to the world of sports. Though we've seen proof it is at least water resistant, it doesn't feel particularly durable and isn't entirely well-suited to wearing while, say, sweating profusely during a lengthy climb on a road bike. Recon Instruments has what it thinks is a solution: the Jet. It's a pair of sporting sunglasses with an integrated, Android-powered display that could make things like running and cycling far more exciting -- or at least far more information-packed. Join us after the break for our impressions.
Filed under: Wearables
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Google Play Music All Access: Android / US-only rollout is just the start
Nearly two years ago to the day, Google introduced Music Beta at I/O 2011. But in reality, it was little more than a gigantic cloud to store 20,000 of your favorite tracks. Despite a plethora of rumors that the search giant would beat Spotify to the punch by launching a subscription-based music service in the United States, we got a digital locker that has done little to distract most listeners from giving Rdio, Pandora, iTunes and other like services at least a piece of their heart. Fast forward to today, and Google's finally joining the bandwagon... in majorly limited fashion.
Google Music All Access is presently only available for mobile as an Android app, and only to users in the US. Moreover, it costs $9.99 -- the exact same sum as practically every one of its rivals. Rivals that have multi-year headstarts in terms of mind and market share. (Yes, it's $7.99 per month if you sign up prior to June 30th.) Google has landed deals with the same "major labels" as everyone else, but even product manager Paul Joyce affirmed to us here at I/O that All Access doesn't have access to any exclusives. In a post-keynote meeting with Joyce, he noted that this is only the start for the product. Naturally, Google's going to do its finest work on its own platform, but it's certainly odd to see iOS users left out in the cold given Google's acknowledgement of its importance just minutes earlier.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Google
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Source: Google Play
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Visualized: Google I/O's colorful circle of ChromeBook Pixels
Google loves to use I/O as a platform for sharing its creativity with the world. This year, one of the masterpieces is a circular edifice consisting of two lines of Chromebook Pixels, with each keyboard on the outside. Ultimately, the artistic monument appears to highlight the Pixel's touchscreen and high-def display, as it flashes a wide variety of colorful imagery and music as you interact with each monitor. We have a gallery of images and a brief video below, showing off some of what this clever spheroid of Chrome OS can do.
Filed under: Displays, Laptops, Google
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The Daily Roundup for 05.15.2013
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
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Redesigned Google Maps hands-on: vector-based, more personal and coming soon to mobile
According to Bernhard Seefeld, product management director at Google Maps, "this is the most significant overhaul of Maps since it launched in 2005." We sat down with both Seefeld as well as Jonah Jones -- lead designer of Google Maps -- following a marathon keynote to kick off Google I/O. Their slice of the event centered around the desktop refresh of Google Maps, but there's actually a lot more to be excited about than what was announced today. Essentially, the preview that I/O attendees were granted access to is the first instance of Maps for desktop using vectors instead of tiles. In lay terms, that's a far sexier rendering engine, and users of the mobile Maps products will already be familiar with how it feels. Seefeld affirmed that the new desktop Maps is slightly quicker to load, but you'll want a WebGL-supporting browser to take advantage of the bells and whistles. (In our tests, the Maps experience was far superior in Chrome compared to Firefox.)
We toyed around with the new layout for a bit, and overall, it looks and feels better. Refreshing, you could say. The search box is now entirely more useful, popping up intelligent cards beneath places you search for. You'll have glanceable access to operating hours, surrounding traffic and recommended places -- that's not new, it's just surfaced in a more sensible way now. There's also dedicated shortcuts to directions and starring. Visually, it looks a lot nicer, the zooms are a little cleaner, and the search box is a tad more useful. Street View is accessed via the search box now, and there's a toggle on the right side that overlays Google Earth data and (impressively) shows it from varying degrees of tilt. The magic really begins after you sign in with your Google account. If you've starred or rated a restaurant using Google Maps or Google+, for example, it'll automatically populate recommended eateries that your friends have rated highly. If, of course, your friends are using Google+.
Filed under: GPS, Software, Google
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Source: Google Maps preview
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YouTube for Google TV updated with streamlined UI, support for paid subscriptions
Google TV is getting a refreshed YouTube app to go along with its update to the latest versions of Android and Chrome. The video-streaming service now features a sleeker UI, complete with playlists displayed under the video discovery and subscription tabs and larger thumbnails for previewing content. The update also lets you subscribe to a channel with just one click, and it's now easier to share a clip via Google + as well. Other additions include more in-depth playback controls and support for paid subscriptions. Google TV owners can download the update now -- just hit up the source link below.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Software, HD, Google
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Via: Android Police
Source: YouTube for Google TV (Google Play)
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YouTube live-streaming now available to channels with over 1,000 subscribers
Initially, YouTube's live-streaming service was limited to select partners and special events, but that's about to change. Starting today, all channels in good standing with over 1,000 subscribers will be able to sign up for this broadcasting option. When using YouTube Live, account holders can insert ads, display multiple camera angles and add closed captions. Meanwhile, viewers can control a broadcast stream's playback by rewinding and skipping (previously aired content, of course) ahead à la Google Hangouts On Air. To add YouTube Live to your channel, visit your Account Features page and click the "Enable" button in the Live Events section. Google notes that eligible accounts will start gaining access in the coming weeks, which hopefully gives you enough time to save up for a teleprompter.
Filed under: Internet, Software, Google
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Source: YouTube Creators Blog
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Google Play Books updated to allow user uploads, supports EPUB and PDF
With the exception of a brief mention in Google Play for Education, Mountain View's book platform was all but absent from its Google I/O presentation. Still, the service is getting updated with a significant new feature: user uploads. It hasn't rolled out to all users yet, but those with access are now able to add up to 1,000 PDF and EPUB files to their Google Play online library. Both the Android and iOS versions of the app will be able to read these files starting today. The update brings a standard assortment of stability and performance improvements too, and Android users will see a few minor visual tweaks. Check out the source link below to see if the feature has rolled out to your account, or click here to peek at Google's biggest I/O announcements.
Filed under: Software, Google
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Via: Android Police
Source: Google Play, App Store, Google Play online library
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Google+ Hangouts app hands-on
Google's new, unified Hangouts platform focuses heavily on its mobile apps, which give Android and iOS users a common platform for text and video chats. In theory, they're the cure for the consistency problems Google's messaging systems have faced for years. But are they the fixes we've all been waiting for, the all-encompassing solutions that have us dropping the likes of Facebook Messenger or WhatsApp? We gave Hangouts a test on both Android and iOS to find out -- check our impressions after the break.
Filed under: Internet, Mobile, Google
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Google's Map Dive takes us on a virtual skydive across seven instances of Chrome (video)
During Google's extended edition opening keynote this morning, there was a distinctive lack of skydiving. However, developers showed off lots of interesting things, including functionality highlighting the easy, real-time syncing of data across multiple instances of the Chrome browser -- whether on smartphone or tablet or desktop. The on-stage demo was a simple slot car racing game but, out on the I/O floor Google had a somewhat more advanced implementation: Map Dive. Running on seven separate instances of Chrome and relying on a 3D camera, Map Dive lets you experience the Maps API from a rather elevated perspective. Join us after the break for an arm-waving demo.
Filed under: Internet, Google
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Google I/O 2013 opening keynote roundup: All Access music streaming, a vanilla GS4 and more
Phew. Day one of Google I/O is far from over, but there's already been an onslaught of news. While our editors are running around the floor, why not catch up on any bits of the opening keynote you may have missed? There's now a Galaxy S 4 with vanilla Android Jelly Bean for $649, a $9.99 per-month music subscription service and a host of updates for Google+, Play, Maps and others. Join us past the break where we've got it all neatly categorized for your viewing pleasure.
Filed under: Internet, Software, Mobile, Google
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Microsoft Surface Pro coming to the UK on May 23rd starting at £719
Microsoft has a good excuse for the Surface Pro's late arrival in the UK: the company claims that demand in the US stripped its cupboards bare, leaving nothing but RT crumbs to sell on this side of the Atlantic. In any case, Redmond tells us that a date has now been set, with the Core i5-powered tablet due to be available from Microsoft's online store from May 23rd. For once, Brits can look forward to dollar-equivalent pricing, with the 64GB version going for £719 and the 128GB model fetching £799 inclusive of VAT. (That may not be cheap, but at least it's fair.) Meanwhile, the bendy Touch Cover will continue to cost £99, and the more traditional key action of the Type Cover will add another tenner on top of that. So, there it is. Just in time for Haswell to make us wonder when a more power-efficient sequel might be coming out.
Filed under: Tablets, Microsoft
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Google Play Music All Access hands-on
More Info
Among the worst kept secrets to be revealed during today's Google I/O keynote was Play Music All Access. Mountain View's desire to create a subscription-based music streaming service was pretty well-documented. Now it's finally here, for $9.99 a month (or $7.99 if you're an early adopter and get in on the free trial before June 30th), with at least a couple major labels on board. Of course, All Access is entering a rather crowded field -- one already dominated by heavy hitters like Spotify. We spent the afternoon getting acquainted with Google's subscription music service to see if it has what it takes to hang with more established properties. Head on past the break to see what we learned.
Filed under: Software, Mobile, Google
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The New Yorker unveils Strongbox, a tool for sources to submit files and tips anonymously
As with most news organizations, a lot of the posts we publish start out as emailed tips
from you, our dear readers. But some employees put their jobs on the
line when they share info, which, as you might imagine, makes them
reluctant to hit send. The New Yorker seems to have a solution
that'll offer a much higher degree of anonymity, stripping IP addresses
and other identifying data whenever you upload a file or submit a tip.
You create an alias, and all correspondence takes place within a secure
environment, called Strongbox. Best yet, the code for this tool, called
DeadDrop, is completely open-source, so you can download the necessary
software and implement it on your own site, free of charge. More info on
both are available at the source links below.
Filed under: InternetComments
Source: Strongbox, DeadDrop
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This is the Modem World: Digital junk food
Each week Joshua Fruhlinger contributes This is the Modem World, a column dedicated to exploring the culture of consumer technology.
I'm hanging out in Atlanta right now, getting ready to speak at Digital Summit 2013 about things you're probably not terribly interested in. Most importantly, I'm sitting at a bar and just ordered what looks to be a monster of a burger called the "Hot Mess" at a place called Park Bar near my hotel. Despite my disdain for online review sites, it was either this via Yelp or the hotel bar and, well, I find hotel bars depressing.
It's also pretty clear that the only reason I ordered the Hot Mess is because my wife isn't here to give me a hard time about it. No, I'm not a kept man, but I respect her knowledge of health and try to let her guide me most of the time. But when I'm on the road, I sometimes let all bets fall to the floor so that daddy can dig into a burger uninterrupted.
Filed under: Misc
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Google adding quick action buttons, real-time flight status to Gmail
Responding to an invitation or checking in for a flight soon won't require any typing at all, assuming you're using Gmail
to manage your inbox. When the situation calls for it, new quick action
buttons will pop up in an email, letting you accomplish simple tasks
without reaching for the keyboard. For event RSVPs, you can even mark
your attendance from the main inbox view -- a preview with all the key
details will pop up, letting you respond with a simple Yes, Maybe or No.
On the air travel front, flight confirmation emails will now display
your flight status in real time, along with a check-in box, which will
boot you directly over to the carrier's site. As you've probably
guessed, Google
will be rolling out these new features gradually, so if they haven't
already appeared in your browser, you're certainly not alone.
Filed under: GoogleComments
Source: Gmail Blog
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Google+ Hangouts video chat won't connect over AT&T (updated)
If
you have a smartphone connected to AT&T, you just got a bit
more incentive to hop over to WiFi whenever possible. The new Google+ Hangouts app
group video chat feature appears to be disabled whenever you attempt to
connect via the cellular network. We tested the feature using a Verizon
handset as well -- we were able to stream video just fine. It's not
entirely clear whether AT&T has specifically blocked access to
the service, but regardless of the reason, we're all too familiar
with the carrier's desire to keep video chat off the airwaves. We can
only hope that we'll be able to use Hangouts to its full potential soon,
just as we can with Apple's FaceTime.
Update: AT&T
has reached out with a statement. From what we can tell, Hangouts won't
fall under the first category outlined below, as it replaces a
pre-loaded app (Google Talk).
Filed under: Cameras, Wireless, Software, GoogleAll AT&T Mobility customers can use any video chat app over cellular that is not pre-loaded on their device, but which they download from the Internet. For video chat apps that come pre-loaded on devices, we offer all OS and device makers the ability for those apps to work over cellular for our customers who are on Mobile Share, Tiered and soon Unlimited plan customers who have LTE devices. It's up to each OS and device makers to enable their systems to allow pre-loaded video chat apps to work over cellular for our customers on those plans.
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Via: SlashGear
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Google TV officially updated to latest versions of Android and Chrome, faster updates promised going forward
It apparently wasn't big enough to garner a mention earlier today, but Google has now followed up its slew of I/O keynote announcements with the news that it's moving Google TV to the latest versions of Android (that'd be 4.2.2) and Chrome. What's more, it also says that it's "refactored" Google TV so that its OEMs can update their devices to future versions of Android faster than they're currently able to -- in a "matter of weeks rather than months," according to Google. Likewise, Chrome for Google TV will now be on the same six week upgrade cycle as its desktop counterpart going forward, and it'll also now come with support for hardware-based content protection.
As for those with existing Google TV devices, though, the company's only saying that they can expect to see updates in the "coming months." We've yet to hear from most Google TV manufacturers themselves yet, but LG has chimed in to say that it will be updating its devices to Jelly Bean sometime in the third quarter of this year. You can get a look at what the update will bring in the video after the break showing off high performance apps enabled by NDK support, and an LG remote control app that has two-handed control for games and updates reflecting the action on-screen.
Update: Some have asked what this means for the future of Flash on Google TV. We've confirmed with Google that this does mean the end of Flash on Google TV since it's no longer supported on the newer versions of Android, and the build that was in Google TV was already out of date. The update will bring more enhancements to HTML5 streaming and interactive content -- hopefully the sites some users frequent will expand their technology platforms just as quickly.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD, Google, LG
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Source: Google TV Developers, LG
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