Wednesday, March 18, 2015

Samsung can put 128GB of storage in your low-cost phone

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2015/03/18/samsung-can-put-128gb-of-storage-in-your-low-cost-phone/

Samsung Galaxy A5 used by a pair of overenthusiastic models

Just because you're not splurging on a top-of-the-line smartphone doesn't mean that you have to settle for a tiny amount of storage. Samsung certainly thinks that way -- it just announced a 3-bits-per-cell flash memory chip that promises 128GB of storage in "mass market" (read: more affordable) mobile devices. It's based on the plain eMMC tech you see in most phones instead of the fast UFS format inside the Galaxy S6, but you probably won't complain about the speed when it can still read sequential data at a very respectable 260MB per second. The one catch? There's no word on when it'll be ready, so you may be waiting a while before you're carrying a budget phone with more drive space than some laptops.

[Top image credit: Samsung Tomorrow, Flickr]

Samsung's 128GB eMMC flash storage

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Source: Samsung (BusinessWire)

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drag2share: 'Defective' graphene makes for super-efficient fuel cells

source: http://www.engadget.com/2015/03/18/graphene-fuel-cell-membrane/?utm_source=Feed_Classic_Full&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Engadget&?ncid=rss_full

Though graphene is noted for its beautiful symmetry, when you add a few warts and imperfections, it becomes more interesting -- specifically, it has the potential to make fuel cells better and cheaper. Scientists from Northwestern University and other institutions were toying with the material as a hydrogen fuel cell membrane, and found that by knocking out at least four carbon atoms from the normally pristine structure, it performed vastly better. A large number of protons (and nothing else) slipped through imperfections in the atom-thick material in just a few seconds, efficiently generating electricity.

The "defective" graphene membrane transports protons much faster and more selectively than standard fuel cell membranes, which tend to let too many impurities through. That could lead to less complicated, hyper-efficient fuel cell batteries for EVs and wind or solar power plants. The tech could also bring improvements to regular batteries, according to the researchers. Despite being the poster-child for promising materials that nobody uses, Graphene might finally get its day by powering your future fossil-free car.

[Image credit: Murali Raju, Penn State]

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T-Mobile courts the business world with simple pricing, free website

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2015/03/18/t-mobile-uncarrier-9-for-business/

The last few times T-Mobile's CEO went off on an Uncarrier spree, he revealed a way to bank the data people paid for but didn't use, and eased up its credit requirements for new phone buyers. Now, at a cozy studio space in New York City, John Legere has a new Uncarrier 9.0 initiative to show off and it's a little different than what we're used to: It's meant to make pairing businesses with T-Mobile service less of a pain in the ass than than it normally is.

In short: Pricing is dead simple, so companies with less than 20 lines pay $16 per line for unlimited talk, text and 1GB of LTE data. Oh, you're running a bigger operation than that? Lines'll cost you $15 instead, and you can set up business family discounts of up to 50 percent, too.

In the event you need even more data, you can pay additional fees per line or shell out the dough for one big pool that costs $4.75 a gigabyte (naturally, rates dip a little the bigger your pool gets). The icing on the cake: Your business gets a free .com domain and website thanks to a partnership with GoDaddy, plus free Microsoft business email service if just one of your lines has additional purchased data stuck to it. And just like that, T-Mobile just made itself relevant to cash-strapped startups and mom-and-pop operations across the country.

Legere, boisterous as always and with a now-trademark Red Bull in hand, kicked off the event by summing up T-Mobile's big moves in 2014. To hear him tell the tale, the company saw 1 billion free international data roaming sessions, and paid for 1.8 million early termination fees last year, a testament to just how strongly these . More importantly, Legere confirmed once again that T-Mobile was sitting pretty with more than 55 million subscribers at the end of 2014, putting it neck and neck with -- or possibly just a bit ahead of -- its bitter rival Sprint, which Legere just couldn't stop ragging on.

Oh, and in case you were keeping count: It took about 10 minutes for Legere to drop his first f-bomb.

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Hear Bucky Fuller Talk About Life, Airplanes, and the Future

Source: http://paleofuture.gizmodo.com/this-new-short-video-about-bucky-fuller-is-neat-1691990809

There's something jarring about hearing old interviews of legendary futurist Buckminster Fuller. He speaks at a rapid pace, like each word is racing to get out before the next. But both Fuller's style and his self-assuredness make it hard not to get swept up in his unbridled optimism about the future of technology — especially in this new animated video created from audio interviews conducted by Studs Terkel in 1965 and 1970.

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Premera Blue Cross Was Hacked -- And Took Months To Tell Anyone

Source: http://gizmodo.com/premera-blue-cross-was-hacked-and-took-months-to-tel-1692059150

Premera Blue Cross, a health-insurance company with millions of patients in the US, has just admitted that 11 million of its customers have been victims of a wide-ranging data breach. Stolen data includes Social Security numbers, bank account information, and clinical records. Oh crap.

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This Cheap Hack Shows No iPhone PIN Is Really Safe

Source: http://gizmodo.com/this-cheap-hack-shows-no-iphone-pin-is-really-safe-1692020457

I've always thought of an iPhone passcode as being fairly secure — it's a 4-digit number, whith a lockout that prevents just mashing buttons until you find the right answer. But apparently, there's a cheap box that can get hack your security, no matter what.

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Autodesk's new app lets kids design their own toys

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2015/03/17/autodesk-tinkerplay/

3D printers can build anything from prosthetics and musical instruments to Hershey chocolates. But, even as the technology continues to make strides with materials (metal, concrete, etc.) and takes on full-fledged architectural projects, it seems to move further away from the reach of children. Tinkerplay, a new kid-friendly 3D printing app, makes it quick and easy for all age groups to design and experiment with minimal assistance.

The app is the brainchild of Autodesk, the company best known for its flagship AutoCAD design software. It's an evolution of Autodesk-acquired Modio, an iPad app that worked with desktop 3D printers. Like its predecessor, Tinkerplay eliminates the need for additional rafts and support materials which tend to complicate the process for at-home designs. But new features and functions allow kids (and older humans) to choose from the pre-loaded character templates or create their own versions from modifiable parts. Users can drag and drop parts to create characters or create their own complex little parts with customizable textures and colors for a new design. For the latter, connectors available with the larger Tinkercad family can be employed. In the end, the printer processes similar color parts that can be snapped up together for a ready-to-pose figurine.

The app, available on iOS, Android and Windows, is an addition to a growing list of 3D printing tools that encourage at-home experimentation. But it also engages a more pertinent audience -- a generation that learns to swipe screens and tinker with gadgets before they can walk.

[Image credit: Tinkerplay]

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Source: Tinkerplay

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Tuesday, March 17, 2015

New Liquid 3D Printing System Is 25 Times Faster Than Its Competitors

Source: http://gizmodo.com/new-liquid-3d-printing-system-is-25-times-faster-than-i-1691865330

3D printing isn't short of advocates in the design and engineering world, because of its ability to easily produce prototypes—but it can be slow. A new company called Carbon3D hopes to change that, though, with a new 3D printing method that claims to be 25-100 times faster than other resin printing techniques.

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drag2share: Bitcoin's tech could be used to prevent digital gift card fraud

source: http://www.engadget.com/2015/03/17/gyft-bitcoin/?utm_source=Feed_Classic_Full&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Engadget&?ncid=rss_full

Bitcoin

Bitcoin may linger on the fringes of the mainstream, but plenty of companies are casting envious eyes towards the technology that underpins it. Just days after IBM announced a plan to use the blockchain as the basis for its own payments platform, Gyft has said that it's doing the same. The digital gift card company has revealed that it's looking into ways to "tokenize" gift cards and issue them on the blockchain for better theft protection. CEO Vinny Lingham has admitted that the company is a long way away from having a working prototype, but it's clear that Bitcoin isn't going anywhere.

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Article: Tiny Sensor Package Will Let Students Design Their Own Physics Experiments

Measure everything from acceleration to magnetic fields From what I remember of my high school physics class, we spent a lot of time rolling marbles down inclined planes. Today's kids are used to a little more tech, so the Pocket Lab project on Kickstarter wants to spice up science class by devel...

http://www.popsci.com/tiny-sensor-package-lets-students-design-their-own-experiments?dom=tw&src=SOC

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Article: Contact lens with built-in telescope

Lights, mirrors, action! Scientists are developing smart contact lenses embedded with miniscule mirrors that can magnify your vision by almost three times. The 1.55mm-thick lenses incorporate a thin reflective telescope made of mirrors and filters; when light enters the eye it bounces off the ser...

http://www.cnn.com/2015/03/17/tech/contact-lens-telescope-blindness/

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Article: The UK's latest 'wonder material' is made from sugar beet

A Scottish start-up is turning root vegetables into an ingenious new material, which can be used to lock moisture into anything from food to cosmetics to concrete A Scottish start-up has developed a material made from carrots and sugar beet that it claims is twice as strong as carbon fibre, and i...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/businessclub/11475639/The-UKs-latest-wonder-material-is-made-from-sugar-beet.html

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Monday, March 16, 2015

NCAA tournament makes more than $1.1 billion selling TV commercials

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/chart-ncaa-tournament-tv-commercials-value-2015-3

The NFL is famous for its high-priced Super Bowl commercials. But when it comes to the bottom-line for the entire post-season, the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament is not far behind.

In 2014, the NCAA Tournament generated $1.13 billion in ad revenue over 67 games, compared to $1.23 billion for the 11 games in the NFL playoffs according to data collected by Kantar Media. The NCAA Tournament actually led the NFL in 2013 when TV commercials sold for a total of $1.11 billion compared to $1.10 billion for the NFL playoffs.

The NBA playoffs is the only other North American postseason that generates more than $500 million in ad revenue while Major League Baseball and the NHL are way off the pace.

NCAA Tournament Chart

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drag2share: Argos now lets customers order 3D-printed jewellery online

source: http://www.engadget.com/2015/03/16/argos-3d-printing/?utm_source=Feed_Classic_Full&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Engadget&?ncid=rss_full

Argos is under relentless pressure from Amazon in the UK, so it's looking to personalised services as a way to stand apart from its online-only competition. Today, the company is launching a new site for 3D-printed jewellery, which includes rings, bracelets and cufflinks. Customers can tweak the designs with their own names, words and phrases, and Argos promises to deliver the final product in 21 days. 3D printing is often associated with low-quality trinkets, but here Argos is clearly targeting a more luxurious market. All of the products are available in silver and 18 carat gold plating, with prices ranging between £50 and £220. It's a small trial for now, and Argos is enlisting Digital Forming and Innovate UK to help out with some of the technical aspects. If customers embrace the service though, the company says it'll consider how it can be expanded to other areas of its business, such as lighting and homeware. 3D-printing isn't a silver bullet for dethroning Amazon, but it represents the level of risk and creativity Argos needs to stay competitive.

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'BeeRotor' drone uses an insect-style eye to navigate tight spaces

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2015/03/16/bee-robot-sight-accelerometer/

Accelerometers have become integral components for many of our favorite gadgets. By measuring acceleration forces, such as gravity or someone's arm waving clumsily back and forth, these sensors can accurately identify a device's angle in relation to the Earth. It's how your smartphone knows when to automatically switch between portrait and landscape orientation. Now, scientists are researching how drones can be built to fly autonomously without the use of accelerometers. It's led to the creation of "BeeRotor," which, as the name implies, takes inspiration from the visual cues and analysis used by winged insects.

The approach is called "optic flow," and it measures both distance and elevation based on how your eyes naturally interpret movement. So when you're cycling at high speed, the landscape on the horizon looks relatively stable; if you move your head to either side, however, the scenery rushes by faster and faster, topping out when your noodle is turned at exactly 90-degrees. The BeeRotor recreates this effect with 24 photodiodes that record contrasts and their motion as part of the environment. When a section of the terrain moves from one sensor to another, the robot uses this data to calculate the angle at which the scenery is passing by, and by extension, its relative position. Likewise, the BeeRotor keeps tabs on its speed by analysing how quickly the landscape is moving across its "eye."

Researchers from the Institut des Sciences du Mouvement Etienne-Jules Marey are using optic flow to develop three stabilisation-focused feedback loops for BeeRotor. The first automatically adjusts the robot's altitude in accordance with the floor or roof. The second changes BeeRotor's speed depending on the size of the space it's flying in. The final loop moves the robot into position so that its "eye" always has the best possible view of the approaching terrain. In the video below, a tethered BeeRotor is able to safely traverse artificial tunnels that change in size and elevation. Scientists hope to develop the technology further into a lightweight replacement for accelerometers on smaller drones, as well as a backup system for larger models carrying out important research.

[Image Credit: (C) Expert & Ruffier (ISM, CNRS/AMU)]

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Via: CNET

Source: CNRS

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