Market Reality: Vuzix & Meta Represent the Brightest AR Present at CES, While Google, Facebook & Huawei Grow AR's Future
It would be difficult to discuss the business of augmented reality without acknowledging the annual tech meat market of CES.
Manufacturers Seeking Search Results
News: Merge Locks & Loads 6DoF Blaster for Mobile AR Shooting Games
On Monday, toy maker Merge virtually blasted its way into CES 2018 with a new tech-meets-toys innovation in the form of an augmented reality gun controller for use with smartphone-powered first-person shooter apps.
News: Lumus Licensing Deal with Quanta Could Pave Path to First Generation of Consumer Smartglasses
Transparent display maker Lumus has reached a deal to license its augmented reality optical engine models to Quanta Computers for mass production of displays for consumer smartglasses.
Market Reality: Auto Industry Ramps Up AR Use via Microsoft & Snapchat
Between Renault Truck's testing of the HoloLens in factories and BMW promoting its newest model through Snapchat, the auto industry is hot for augmented reality to improve internal operations and engage consumers.
News: The Biggest Bugs & Performance Issues in the Essential Oreo Update
We've been running the Essential Oreo Beta on our PH-1 over the past week and compiling a list of important changes. If you're interested in getting the Beta yourself, we even put together a quick guide on how to do that. Now that we've ran down the best new features, let's take a look at all of the bugs and performance issues in Android 8.0.
News: Meet the Honor 7X — Huawei's New Premium Budget Phone
Huawei has been on a roll recently. They just became the second largest smartphone manufacturer in September, passing Apple and trailing only Samsung. Shortly after, they announced their new Kirin 970 flagship SoC to rival the Snapdragon 835, then followed that up by announcing the Mate 10 and 10 Pro. Well apparently, Huawei isn't done with announcements just yet.
News: How Would the Pixel 2 XL Look if HTC Built It? Now We Know
The Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL were built by different manufacturers. This is pretty common knowledge among Android fans at this point — Google's smaller Pixel 2 was built by HTC, while the larger Pixel 2 XL was built by LG. What would the Pixel 2 XL look like if HTC had followed through and delivered on the larger phone for Google? Today we have some answers.
News: Translucent HTC U11 Plus Bares All in Leaked Video
Just as we published our rumor roundup for the HTC U11 Plus, the internet happened: A Facebook video revealed the flagship HTC U11 Plus and the midrange HTC U Life in all their glory. The video was in German and has since been taken down, but according to a translation, it revealed exactly what we should be expecting see at HTC event November 2.
News: Your Banking App Could Soon Help You Locate the Nearest ATM in AR
A potentially groundbreaking new app targeting retail financial services hopes to bring augmented reality to your local bank and credit union.
Brief Reality: Mobile AR Apps Help Save Rhinos (& Sell Stuff)
Mobile apps themselves are not always the end product or service for generating revenue. More often, they are deployed as tactics within a larger marketing or public relations strategy.
Apple vs. Samsung: How Does the iPhone X Stack Up Against the Galaxy Note 8?
Now that the cutting-edge iPhone X is up for preorder, everyone is excited to see how the new device will compare to offerings from Apple's competitors. Namely the Galaxy Note 8, which is a beast of a phone in its own right.
Market Reality: Techstars Seeks Startups for Accelerator Program
Outside of early military applications, augmented reality is a relatively new technology. It stands to reason that the next company to make a splash in AR would be a startup, and Techstars wants to help.
News: Meta Reaches Settlement as Patent Infringement Claims Emerge
While Meta Company has agreed to a settlement in its lawsuit against a former employee and his company, they find the tables have now turned on them in the form of patent infringement allegations from another entity.
Xposed 101: How to Install the Xposed Framework on Lollipop or Marshmallow
The Xposed Framework is still alive and kicking despite the fact that development has slowed down a bit lately. Rovo89 is the only true developer behind Xposed, so it's really a one-man show. This means the popular root mod doesn't typically support the latest Android version, but it's usually only one version number behind.
Today's Top News: Lyft Is Going to Keep the Dude in the Car
Ride-sharing firm Lyft says it will continue to rely on drivers in the near and long term even as it replaces them with driverless cars, Taggart Matthiesen, Lyft's director of product, said during a Podcast with Recode.
Today's Top News: Tesla Could Be Stretching Itself Thin by Chasing the Driverless Truck
Elon Musk's SpaceX is launching the world's most powerful rocket. The Tesla founder and CEO says the company is about to go through "manufacturing hell" to make delivery schedules for its new Tesla 3. Somehow, Musk says Tesla will offer Level 5 driving (so you can take a nap while your car drives you to and from work) within two years.
Today's Top News: What Elon Musk Didn't Say at the Tesla Model 3 Launch Party
Tesla founder and CEO Elon Musk said during the Model 3 launch party Friday night that all Tesla cars in production have the same driverless hardware, signaling that Tesla's jump to Level 4 hinges on a software update — but Musk didn't exactly say that.
Today's Top News: Elon Musk Warns of Zombie Driverless Fleets
Tesla founder and CEO Elon Musk offered some insight into how hackers might seek to turn driverless cars into zombie fleets, but remained upbeat about what can be done about it.
News: Powassan Virus Implicated in Recent NY State Death
A recent case of Powassan virus has been reported in Saratoga County and may have been the cause of the infected patient's death. It's the 24th case in New York State since 2000, and will be reported to the CDC tomorrow, the NY Department of Health told Invisiverse. The tick-borne illness has no vaccine or specific treatments and can damage the nervous system.
News: Tesla Says New Autopilot Is Now as Good as Old One
Tesla says the new version of Autopilot is now as good as the previous one, after having completed over-the-air updates of the driverless software during the past few days.
News: Tesla Starts Massive Video Uploads from Cars for Machine Learning
Tesla has confirmed the EV carmaker has begun to upload videos from models equipped with its latest flavor of Autopilot, as Tesla seeks to "fleet source" data to help improve its cars' machine learning capabilities.
News: Magic Leap Founder Says Launch 'Not Far Away'
At the eMerge Americas investors conference in Miami, Florida, Magic Leap founder and CEO Rony Abovitz previewed details of the launch of their highly-anticipated device.
News: Niantic Promises More AR in Pokémon GO on the iPhone with ARKit
Pokémon GO's augmented reality journey is continuing with Apple's newly announced ARKit. It's no surprise considering Pokémon GO is the largest mainstream augmented reality game, with 500 million downloads.
News: Can't Sleep? This App by US Navy Veteran Can Help
Despite what you may have heard, sleep is NOT for the weak. It's essential, not to mention it makes us feel a hell of a lot better in general. But for some, getting to sleep is easier said than done. In fact, about 50 million to 70 million people in the US have a sleep or wakefulness disorder, according to the CDC.
News: Meta Sues Former Employee Over Trade Secrets
Meta Company filed suit today against a former employee and his startup DreamWorld USA, Inc. for the misappropriation of trade secrets and confidential information.
News: Toyota Puts Blockchain to the Test for Data Security
Toyota is testing blockchain and distributed ledger technology (BC/DL) for data sharing for driverless cars and other applications. This could eventually reassure buyers of its upcoming high-end cars by making sure their sensitive data is secure.
News: Who Has the Best Camera of Them All? HTC U11 Apparently
The Google Pixel was just knocked off its pedestal as DxOMark Mobile's best smartphone camera, courtesy of the HTC U11. Ouch ...
News: New Tool Makes It Easy to Check if a Phone Was Lost or Stolen
Buying a smartphone used is an excellent way to save money, but those savings come with a risk that your seller isn't as forthcoming as they claim. You don't want to end up buying a stolen smartphone because it might not work correctly ... and, you know, it's wrong. Luckily, there's an easy way to check if the phone you're about to buy is legit.
Brief Reality: Industries Take a Peek at the Future of Augmented Reality
This week's Brief Reality is led by a pair of stories with an eye to the future of the augmented reality industry, first in terms of standards for the industry, then with regards to its future applications in the automotive realm. Finally, one company looks to boost its future sales with an executive hire.
News: Captain Blimey Seeks to Plunder the Pokémon GO Craze
A Seattle development team is putting the "ARRRR" in AR with the maiden voyage of Captain Blimey, an augmented reality game for iOS and Android devices that puts a pirate premise on Pokémon GO.
News: Here's Everything We Know About That Nasty iPhone 8 Delay Rumor
Updated 5/2/17: CultofMac reports analysts at Deutsche Bank are confirming the delays. The analysts believe the delays are due to "component shortages and technical challenges." This would corroborate the rumors listed below. We here at Gadget Hacks will bring you more on this story as it develops.
News: iPhone 8 Leaked Without Touch ID, Includes Wireless Charging
It's Monday, and what's a Monday at Gadget Hacks without a new leak to ponder over? Thanks to known leaker Benjamin Geskin, we have a dummy iPhone 8 without one of its most-anticipated features.
News: Unique Way Gonorrhea Breaks Down the Female Body's Defenses
Usually, the mucus lining of the female genital tract presents a barrier that helps prevent infections. But, somehow, the bacteria that causes gonorrhea gets around and through that barrier to invade the female genital tract.
News: Google Rumored to Invest $875M in LG Display to Give Pixel 2 Some Curves
The Pixel is now rumored to be the next phone up in line to be getting a curved display. ET News just reported that Google is in talks to invest $875 million (KRW 1 trillion) in LG Display to give their next-generation Pixel 2 smartphone some curves around the edges.
News: How an Innocuous Bacteria Lots of Us Have Turns into Deadly Meningitis & Sepsis
How can bacteria that lives in the throat of 10%–35% of people—without causing an infection—cause life-threatening meningitis and sepsis in others?
News: Uber's Next Big Step Is Convincing You to Fly
Uber wants you to forget about cars and start thinking about fully autonomous flying as an alternative—a more "economically favorable" way of getting to your grinding nine-to-five.
How To: Root Android Oreo on the Nexus 5X & 6P
The first developer preview of Android Oreo 8.0 was only out for a couple of days before Chainfire created a new root method for it. For the time being, only the Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P are supported by this first SuperSU ZIP, as the Pixel's dual-partition layout has created some hurdles, though Chainfire is surely working on overcoming those at some point soon.
News: Mumps Outbreaks Hit 3 Different US College Campuses; Cases More Than Double Last Year at This Time
There have been mumps outbreaks in three different US colleges so far this year as instances of the illness are on the rise, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
News: 'Turkish Crime Family' Demands $75,000 in Bitcoin from Apple in Exchange for Hacked iPhone Accounts
Rumor has it that a gang of hackers—or possibly, one lonesome individual—holds the power to remotely wipe millions of iPhones and iCloud accounts, unless Apple coughs up some ransom money by April 7.
News: Indian 'Driverless' Startups Like Swaayatt Are Daring to Navigate the World's Most Dangerous Roads
In Bhopal, India, a place nestled in between the royally pink city of Jaipur and the dry (i.e., alcohol forbidden) state of Gujarat, is a team of developers determined to make a fully driverless car suitable to the complexities of Indian traffic. An algorithm elaborate enough has yet to be made by any other company, but is the fundamental key to handling the intuitive habits of Indian drivers, the often intense and gridlocked traffic, and the country's vast expanse of jarring roads.