Category: Other Tech

Google today announced Google Play store improvements focused on the size of updates. A new delta algorithm, bsdiff, has been rolled out to further reduce patches for apps and games. Mobile users are sensitive to the amount of data they use, especially when Wi-Fi is not available. Google is thus trying to reduce the data required for Google Play app installs and updates, as well as make data cost clearer to users. Google says that for approximately 98 percent of app updates from the Play Store, only deltas to APK files (the…

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At first glance, hydrogen fuel cells sound like a great power source for fixed-wing drones making long flights – they have much longer run times than batteries, and they emit no emissions other than water vapor. Unfortunately, the hydrogen typically has to be stored in large heavy pressurized tanks. Last month, however, a Raptor E1 electric drone made a successful test flight running on a unique new system that’s actually lighter than the lithium-ion battery it replaced. The flight was carried out on Jan. 19th at Scotland’s Oban Airport, by a team…

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With the aid of one of the strongest materials on Earth, a researcher at Australia’s Swinburne University has created a battery that charges up super fast and can be used over and over and over again, without losing efficiency. Researcher Han Lin developed the battery using a form of carbon called graphene, which is commonly heralded as one of the strongest materials on the planet. The new supercapacitor addresses many of the shortcomings of traditional lithium ion batteries, beating them in charging time, lifespan, and also environmental impact. Researchers around the globe have…

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By combining a wireless connected EEG headset from Emotiv and an assistive communication app, California-based Smartstones is bringing the power of speech to those who have difficulty communicating verbally. The “think to speak” technology works by reading the brainwaves of the user and expressing them as phrases spoken through the app. :prose is the app at the heart of it all, developed by Smartstones to help nonverbal people communicate by tapping or swiping on a mobile device. Like sign language, individual gestures and movements are linked to words and phrases: for example, swiping…

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Mattel is about the change the way how kids think about toys. The company recently revealed a new app and 3D printer called the Mattel ThingMaker at the New York Toy Fair. The 3D printer will enable children and parents to build their own toys using simple mobile apps and the printer. Mattel has built the Mattel ThingMaker mobile apps in collaboration with software companyAutodesk, a company that creates software used by creatives and inventors of all abilities. There’s no shortage of budget 3D printers in the market but they all…

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Making interfaces touch-free is a problem with a number of solutions, such asvoice control to hand gesture recognition. NEC’s ARmKeypad brings augmented reality (AR) into the mix to display a virtual interface onto the user’s arm, with input registered through vibrations from the tapping of fingers on the arm. Now the company has announced a new, tap-free version called the ARmKeypad Air that provides a completely contact-free interface. After we first heard about the ARmKeypad back in 2011, things kind of went quiet until November last year, when it resurfaced in the form of…

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There are three things you can be sure of in life: death, taxes – and lying. The latter certainly appears to have been borne out by the UK’s recent Brexit referendum, with a number of the Leave campaign’s pledges looking morelike porkie pies than solid truths. But from internet advertising, visa applications and academic articles to political blogs, insurance claims and dating profiles, there are countless places we can tell digital lies. So how can one go about spotting these online fibs? Well, Stephan Ludwig from the University of Westminster, Ko de Ruyter from City University London’s…

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Buzzing may not be the only thing drones have in common with insects. Tiny drones of the future might “see” their world with tiny, artificial sensors inspired by flying insects’ compound eyes. The experimental sensors are small and light enough to fit on the tiniest drones, which could give them the ability to sense and avoid collisions in cluttered spaces. Smaller and Smaller Like most other gadgets, scientists are looking to make drones smaller and smaller for a number of reasons. For one, a tiny drone is far stealthier and…

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