Dec 15
Supercut Shreds Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s Claim That She’s ‘Against Hate’
Posted in: Today's ChiliThe extremist Republican’s Islamophobic comments are on full display in the montage.
Dec 15
The comedian also imagined Donald Trump’s blunt response to a direct message from Donald Trump Jr. on the day of the U.S. Capitol riot.
Dec 15
Students On Hunger Strike For Over A Week Urge Dems To Pass Voting Rights Legislation
Posted in: Today's ChiliOver 20 young people from Arizona and beyond are camped outside the White House and haven’t eaten in nine days to support the Freedom to Vote act.
Dec 15
Trevor Noah Points Out Difference Between Fox News And CNN Text Controversies
Posted in: Today's Chili“If one person at your network has no integrity, that’s a problem. But if nobody has integrity, that’s a company policy.”
Dec 15
Congress Averts Catastrophic Debt Default, Votes To Send Biden $2.5 Trillion Debt Limit Hike
Posted in: Today's ChiliThe House gave final approval to the legislation early Wednesday on a near-party-line 221-209 vote, defusing a volatile issue until after the 2022 midterm elections.
Dec 15
Google employees who don't comply with COVID-19 vaccine rules will reportedly be fired
Posted in: Today's ChiliGoogle is giving employees until December 3rd to declare their COVID-19 vaccine status. And according to CNBC, if they fail to comply with the tech giant’s vaccine mandate, they’d have to apply for a medical or religious exemption and convince Google that it’s warranted if they don’t want to eventually lose their job. Google will approve exemptions on a case-by-case basis.
In its report, the publication said that it has seen an internal memo warning personnel of the consequences if they still haven’t complied with the company’s vaccine rules by January 18th. Those who refuse to be vaccinated or who have failed to secure a valid exemption will be placed on paid administrative leave for 30 days. Google will then put them on unpaid personal leave for up to six months and will ultimately fire them if they truly don’t want to be inoculated against COVID-19.
The tech giant reportedly explained in the memo that it’s implementing its vaccine mandate to comply with the administration’s executive order. Under that order, all US companies with more than 100 workers must be fully vaccinated by January 18th. While the order is in limbo after courts had blocked its implementation, Google may have simply chosen to push through with its plans to ensure that it’s compliant in case the order suddenly takes effect.
“We expect that almost all roles at Google in the US will fall within the scope of the executive order. Anyone entering a Google building must be fully vaccinated or have an approved accommodation that allows them to work or come onsite… frequent testing is not a valid alternative to vaccination,” the memo reportedly reads.
Earlier this month, CNBC also reported that Google delayed workers’ return to office and will no longer require personnel to come in a few times a week starting on January 10th. However, it still encouraged employees to come into the office “where conditions allow, to reconnect with colleagues in person and start regaining the muscle memory of being in [one] more regularly.”
While it will strictly enforce its rule for all employees that fall within the scope of the order, Google did give those who don’t want to get vaccinated an option. If they can’t secure a valid religious or medical exemption, they can “explore” other roles within the company that don’t conflict with the order. If they can find such a role and it doesn’t require in-office work, they can also permanently work remotely going forward.
Dec 15
Our gadgets have advanced at an unprecedented rate in recent years, and yet, fundamental limitations with the way we use them remain. Plugging in a cable, switching between profiles as you move from one device to another, and attempting to recall a file you stashed away are some of the clunky tasks we still deal with…
Dec 15
Members of the House voted to hold Trump’s former chief of staff accountable for refusing to cooperate with the committee investigating the U.S. Capitol riot.
Dec 15
Ahead of CES 2022, Dell is previewing a set of concept products like it usually does around this time every year. Previously, the company teased us with a Switch-like PC gaming console and a pair of dual-screen and foldable computers. This time around, Dell is showing off a few prototypes around “seamless work experiences” called Concept Flow, Concept Stanza and Concept Pari. I checked them out at a recent demo in New York (while abiding by COVID-19 protocols), and was surprised by how refined they are.
Of the three, Pari is my favorite. It’s a wireless camera prototype that can magnetically attach to a compatible screen so you can place it at eye level while Zooming your colleagues. Not only does this help keep a more natural gaze as you’re talking, but it also allows you to keep your notes or script up behind the camera in a sort of teleprompter setup. The magnets won’t work with just any standard monitor, though; you’ll need to use one with magnets built in too.
I appreciate the elegance of Dell’s approach. The webcam sits in a cradle perched atop the monitor, and you remove it when you want a different angle. When it’s docked, the webcam wirelessly charges (and a light is supposed to glow to indicate it’s juicing up, though this wasn’t happening during our demo). You can also flip the camera around to face the back of the dock when you want some privacy, so if anyone is spying on you, they’ll only see the black cover.
During my brief time with the prototype, I was able to easily pick up the webcam and attach it to the monitor. The magnets were strong enough to keep the camera in place and prevent it from sliding, yet not so strong that I had to struggle to take it off. I especially liked the stand that Dell made for Pari, which turns it into an overhead camera for top-down shots. It was convenient to pluck the camera off the screen and stick it to the magnetic disc on the stand, which looked like a thin, modern light. The version that I checked out at our demo felt slightly flimsy and I wish the disc swiveled on a hinge to offer more flexibility in angles, but given this is just a concept, I will withhold my complaints for now.
Though Pari is a prototype at the moment, Dell has some specs to share. The device weighs about an ounce (30 grams) and this iteration has an onboard microphone. It streams 1080p video over WiFi and has a light above the lens up front to indicate when the camera is level, so you can more easily ensure your scene is straight. The cradle uses USB-C for charging, too. Since this isn’t currently something the company is ready to sell, it doesn’t have details on battery life, much less a possible price.
Dell
Dell’s two other concepts were more about multi-device environments. Flow, for example, uses a dock to link all the devices at your home office, like a monitor, keyboard, mouse and charger. Then, it lets your laptop wirelessly connect to them while also charging it. If you bring the laptop out of Bluetooth range, the external monitor locks and reconnects when you return with your computer. According to Dell, Flow is the result of bringing together “devices, industry standard wireless charging technology, intelligent software applications and Wi-Fi 6E docking technology to create a singular, seamless experience.”
Finally, Stanza centers around an 11-inch “companion device” that’s basically a thin and light tablet without ports. Dell said it “deliberately chose not to include cameras or speakers, for a distraction-free experience.” You can write on it with a stylus and double tap to have your scribbles converted to digital text. As with many other note-taking apps, you can also draw a line through words to delete them. If you’re drawing a Venn diagram, Dell’s system can also convert your imperfect circles with squiggly lines into flawless spheres. The tablet can also serve as an additional screen onto which you can extend or mirror whatever’s on your laptop screen.
Dell
Again, since these are all just concepts, Dell doesn’t have pricing or availability info to share, but it’s possible we’ll see aspects of these designs show up in the future products. Additionally, the company showed off another Concept yesterday called Luna, and it’s a way to make PCs more sustainable by making their parts easier to replace. Dell is clearly exploring how to make products that align with industry trends (like hybrid workforce, sustainability), and we’ll hopefully see some of the benefits of these in its actual products soon.
Dec 15
There are many wireless chargers available out there, but if you want something that’s a little classier looking, then there is a good chance you might have come across Nomad’s Base Station wireless charging mat.
It works like a regular wireless charger where you place your phone on top of it and charge. However, the company has since updated its Base Station charger in the new Base Station Hub where they have added MagSafe support, although they’re referring to it as “magnetic alignment”. This means that unlike the previous model where you’d have to find the sweet spot, this uses magnets to align the iPhone.
That being said, given that this supports MagSafe, it means that it only works with the iPhone 12 and later models, so those of you holding onto the iPhone 11 or older, then this probably isn’t the model for you. According to Nomad, it will support wireless charging for two devices at once, and two wired.
It will offer up to 10W of wireless charging speeds (7.5W for the iPhone), so it’s not the fastest charger out there for non-iPhone users. Aesthetically, the Base Station Hub looks pretty much the same as the previous model. It has padded leather for the wireless charging surface and there are also LEDs to indicate charging that can dim at night.
It is priced at $119.95 so head on over to Nomad’s website if you’d like to get your hands on it.
Nomad Updates Its Base Station Hub With MagSafe Support
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