Sep 01
Life in the kitchen shouldn’t be so hard.
Sep 01
‘Jeopardy!’ Champ’s Delightfully Evil Tweet Celebrates Mike Richards’ Ouster
Posted in: Today's ChiliThe game show great had plenty to say after Richards was pushed out as executive producer.
Sep 01
A U.S. bankruptcy judge is expected to rule on whether the OxyContin maker will settle thousands of lawsuits.
Sep 01
A new report from the U.N. weather agency finds the world is getting several times more disasters than in the ’70s.
Sep 01
Netgear has announced availability for its newest mobile 5G router that uses Wi-Fi 6 technology. The router is called the Netgear Nighthawk M5 5G (MR5200), and by combining 5G wireless connectivity with Wi-Fi 6, the router provides the fastest speeds possible to wireless users. In addition, the wireless router supports Gigabit Internet speeds in a mobile environment. Thanks to the … Continue reading
Sep 01
Bentley Rear Seat Entertainment has two rear touchscreens and nifty connectivity features
Posted in: Today's ChiliBritish luxury house Bentley has unveiled its new Rear Seat Entertainment System for the Flying Spur limousine and Bentayga SUV. We’ve all seen this type of thing before, but Bentley is taking it up a notch by offering two removable touchscreens and the latest connected technology. Both touchscreens mount cleanly to the back of the front passenger seat headrests via … Continue reading
Sep 01
LinkedIn is a professional social network, and the company is constantly testing new features and asking for user feedback on them. Last year, LinkedIn launched Stories to allow members to share video updates concerning their personal and professional lives. LinkedIn is now leveraging what it’s learned since Stories launched to grow the format into a reimagined video experience available across … Continue reading
Sep 01
Locast loses legal protections that keep its local TV streaming service alive
Posted in: Today's ChiliA company purporting to improve access to local TV stations for people who can’t access the signal via traditional means has been dealt a blow by a New York Court. Locast has lost the courtroom skirmish started by CBS, ABC, NBC and Fox, which said that the company was violating their copyright. Deadline reports that the quartet’s request for summary judgment was granted, saying that it couldn’t use its non-profit status as a defense against further action.
The big four, of course, don’t believe Locast’s aims were anywhere near as public-minded as the company made out. The body was reportedly backed, in part, by AT&T and Dish Network, and the networks feel that the whole project was set up as a way of dodging carriage fees. Part of Locast’s defense was that US copyright law allows third parties to boost local signals, and that it acted like a signal booster station.
It’s worth noting that Locast’s founder David Goodfriend, a lawyer and former FCC legal advisor, conceived of Locast in the wake of Aero’s destruction at the hands of the big networks. A 2019 New York Times profile explained that he had designed the legal situation to be “compliant within the law.” The profile is even titled that the company would “love to get sued” to act as a test-case for the rules.
The court found that Locast’s policy of expanding into new markets runs contrary to the aim of a non-profit, where cash should be used to cover running costs only. Judge Louis Stanton said that the cash raised from Locast’s $5-per-month (don’t call it a) subscription was being used to bankroll further expansion and earned “far more money from user charges than was necessary.”
It didn’t help, that when some TV providers have entered into carriage disputes, Locast has been cited as a way of still accessing that content. As The Wall Street Journal wrote back in 2019, DirecTV and Dish customers were directed to access Locast, although Dish and AT&T both said that this was only because it felt that it was obliged to offer the choice to its users.
By removing Locast’s major legal shield, it’s certainly likely that the project will soon have yet more lawyers on their door. After all, were it to survive, it would be a challenge both to the profitability of the major TV players and encouragement to any future upstarts looking to disrupt the space.
In a statement, Locast said that the ruling was “disappointing,” citing commentary from the EFF adding that the “court interpreted the law in an artificially-narrow way.” The EFF added that “over three million people use Locast to access local TV, including many who can’t afford cable and can’t pick up their local stations with an antenna. This ruling threatens their access to local news and vital information during a global pandemic.” It closed by saying that the ruling “treats copyright law not as an engine of progress but a moat protecting the most privileged position of the four giant broadcasting networks.”
Sep 01
Microsoft has announced that Windows 11 will be available on October 5th as a free upgrade for qualifying Windows 10 systems, as well as on new PCs shipping after that date. But it isn’t for everyone; a gradual rollout will prioritize newer hardware and use “intelligence models” to determine who gets the upgrade first. Microsoft will apparently factor in reliability and device age. It could be the case that friends and family utterly disinterested in an OS update could be offered it ahead of anyone chomping at the bit for the latest edition of Windows. Check out Engadget’s Devindra Hardawar’s preview on what to expect from Windows 11.
All supporting machines will get the update by mid-2022, if you can think that far ahead. For those at the head of the line, you’ll still miss out on Android app support, which won’t be available on launch. Microsoft plans to introduce the feature in a Windows Insider preview build sometime in the “coming months.”
— Mat Smith
Apple’s rumored iPhone satellite support may be for emergency calls and messages
But the service may not be ready for the next iPhone.
A rumored satellite feature for future iPhones is reserved for emergency uses only, according to Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman. A few days ago, another report said the next iPhones will come with support for Low Earth Orbit satellite calls and messages. Other sources said, however, that Apple is reportedly developing at least two emergency-related features relying on satellite networks.
The first feature, Emergency Message via Satellite, will be added as a third protocol, alongside iMessage and SMS, to the Messages app. Apple is also reportedly working on a second satellite feature for users to report crisis situations, like plane crashes and fires.
Best Buy is now selling e-bikes and electric scooters
It’s online only at first.
You can now visit Best Buy’s website to purchase powered bicycles, as well as electric scooters and mopeds from brands like Unagi, Bird, Segway and SWFT. In October, Best Buy will begin stocking those same EVs in select stores across the US, including Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco. The company’s Geek Squad will even offer a $100 service where it comes to your house to adjust the brakes, seat height and handlebars for you.
Polaroid’s Now+ connected camera comes with five clip-on lens filters
The $150 snapper works with the redesigned Polaroid app.
Polaroid
Polaroid’s Now+ is a $150 analog camera with Bluetooth connectivity and five physical lens filters. It’s the first time the company has included the latter out of the box. You can clip the filters on to the camera’s lens to saturate or deepen the contrast of your photos or add new effects, like starburst, red vignette, and orange, blue and yellow colors.
NVIDIA’s latest tech makes AI voices more expressive and realistic
One new tool lets you record your own voice to train the tone of an AI voice
The voices on Amazon’s Alexa, Google Assistant and other AI assistants are far ahead of old-school GPS devices, but they still lack the finer qualities that make speech sound, well, human. NVIDIA has unveiled new research and tools that can capture those natural speech qualities by letting you train the AI system with your own voice.
To improve its AI voice synthesis, NVIDIA’s text-to-speech research team developed a model called RAD-TTS. The system allows an individual to train a text-to-speech model with their own voice, including the pacing, tonality, timbre and more.
(Maybe it’s time to build an AI voice so I don’t have to record Engadget’s The Morning Edition podcast each day. Don’t tell anyone, OK?)
South Korea will force Google and Apple to allow third-party payments
The bill could have global ramifications.
South Korea has today passed a law requiring major app stores to allow alternate payment methods. The bill, due to be rubber-stamped by President Moon Jae-in, forces platform holders to open up their stores, which will affect their lucrative commissions on digital sales. Apple and Google are facing lawsuits and regulator investigations in multiple countries, many focused on how their app stores operate.
Bose QuietComfort 45 headphones have improved ANC and a familiar design
The new model also has better battery life and a lower price.
Finally, 2017’s QuietComfort 35 II headphones have a proper replacement: the QuietComfort 45. Bose says these headphones “maintain the hallmarks of their predecessor” when it comes to audio quality, comfort, reliable controls and more. The QC45 also keeps nearly the same design as the QC35 and QC35 II except for a few subtle changes — and a longer battery life estimated to be around 24 hours. At $329.95, they’ll debut at a lower price than the previous two QuietComfort models.
The QuietComfort 45 headphones will be available in black and light gray on September 23rd. Pre-orders begin today at Amazon and Bose’s website.
Jabra’s new feature-packed Elite 3 true wireless earbuds are only $80
Ambient sound, customizable settings and good battery life.
When it comes to true wireless earbuds, Jabra has continued to improve design, features and technology since the Elite 65t. But there was one thing it was still missing: a low-cost model for around $100. So say hello to the Elite 3: an $80 set of true wireless earbuds with more features than we’re used to seeing at this price.
All the big news you might have missed
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Netgear’s 5G mobile hotspot router with WiFi 6 is now available for $700
Amazon’s Echo Show 5s are cheaper than ever starting at $45
Sep 01
The Bonnaroo music festival in Tennessee has been cancelled due to flooding from Hurricane Ida, which was Tropical Depression Ida by the time it hit the state on Tuesday. The four-day festival was scheduled to start Thursday with headliners like the Foo Fighters, Run the Jewels, Tyler the Creator, Lizzo, Tame Impala,…
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