Geek News

Creating a smart home can be a complicated affair, with a ton of options available to add voice-control and automation to your lights , window coverings, thermostats and more. GE wants to simplify your options (with its own branded products, of course), and its bringing some new smart ceiling fixtures, wall switches, and lamps to market in 2018. The C by GE series of connected lighting now includes what the company calls the industry's first voice-integrated ceiling fixtures that hide all the smarts in a flush mount or recessed can option. There's a smart wall switch, too, which can provide voice-control to your connected lights, turning them on or off, dimming them, or changing the temperature of the light. No separate GE hub is needed, either, and there's a built-in antenna to make sure you can access it, even if someone accidentally flips the switch manually. If Amazon Alexa devices are your thing, you can now use it with GE's Sol lamp extensions. You can sync...

Samsung's Chromebooks haven't always been smashing successes , but it's clearly willing to shake up its formula when necessary. In a follow-up to hints from November, Chrome Unboxed has discovered code references confirming the existence of "Nautlius," a Samsung-made detachable Chrome OS tablet. And from initial appearances, it might not just be a Google-powered Galaxy Book . While Nautlius appears to use a 7th-generation Intel Core chip like its Windows counterpart, the code points to the presence of the Sony IMX258 camera used in the LG G6 . Given that many Chromebooks have a 720p cam at best, this might be the first Chrome OS device with a camera you'd genuinely enjoy using. There aren't many other clues, although the detachable design suggests this will likely be relatively compact with a 12-inch or smaller screen. To us, the bigger questions are the launch details. You might see Samsung unveil Nautlius at CES later in January, but we wouldn...

Already binged your way through the new Black Mirror episodes? This weekend we'll have new episodes of Star Trek: Discovery and Falling Water, while Fox is ready to bring back The X-Files , again. Showtime is ready to premiere Lena Waithes' new series The Chi while Netflix has episodes of Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee , The End of the F**king World , its new anime series Devilman Crybaby and Rotten, another documentary about the food industry. The Breakfast Club is getting a Criterion Blu-ray release, while Outbreak: The New Nightmare comes to Xbox One along with The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing III , which is free this month with Xbox Live Gold. Look after the break to check out each day's highlights, including trailers and let us know what you think (or what we missed). Blu-ray & Games & Streaming The Breakfast Club (Criterion) American Made (4K) Cadillac Man Hell Night Snow Dogs Brad's Status Battle of the Sexes The Adventure...

Were you disappointed that the OnePlus 5T launched with Android Nougat despite Oreo having launched weeks earlier? You can rectify that today, if you're willing to experiment. OnePlus has posted an open OxygenOS beta that brings Oreo's features to the 5T. You now have Android 8.0 staples like picture-in-picture viewing and autofill text. The launcher also has a few tweaks, including the merger of app shortcuts and icon options as well as the option of uploading brag-worthy photos to Shot on OnePlus. As with the OnePlus 5 Face Unlock beta , you won't want to install this if you absolutely depend on a glitch-free phone. And be sure to back up your info if you decide to revert back, since you'll have to wipe the slate clean. So long as you can live with those caveats, though, you won't have to look on with envy as your Pixel-toting friends enjoy Oreo's perks. Via: 9to5Google Source: OnePlus via Engadget RSS Feed "http://ift.tt/2lxXAdI"

A US government source told The Diplomat this week that China has conducted flight tests of a missile equipped with a hypersonic glide vehicle (HGV). Two tests of the HGV, a model known as the DF-17, took place in November and China is understood to have conducted a number of other tests of experimental HGVs throughout 2014 and 2016. The DF-17 is thought to have a range of between 1,800 and 2,500 kilometers and represents a new kind of weapon system, one that the US and Russia are also developing. HGVs are similar to traditional ballistic missile systems in that they can deliver a payload, be it conventional or nuclear, to a distant target. But HGVs fly at lower altitudes than typical ballistic missiles, meaning existing missile defense systems might initially miss them since those defense systems typically scan higher altitudes. There's a functional tradeoff, however, because when HGVs start to descend, they fly much slower than traditional ballistic missiles. Some defense s...

Technology allows you to experience art in a direct way by physically becoming part of the exhibition, and TeamLab is on the forefront of that movement. The Japanese art collective is at it again with a new exhibition at Melbourne's NGV (National Gallery of Victoria) Triennial called Moving Creates Vortices and Vortices Create Movement . It's a hypnotic melange of art, interactivity and spectacle that shows how humans impact their environment and vice-versa. The technology is similar to what we've seen with Microsoft's RoomAlive and from companies like Theoriz , using sensors and projectors, and crunching everything with a powerful computer. However, TeamLab's execution is particularly effective and poetic. When you move within the large space at the NGV (made larger by mirrors on the walls), the sensors track your location and send a signal to the computer. A computer generates a stream of particles that follow you via a projection on the floor. "The fas...

By Lesley Stockton This post was done in partnership with Wirecutter , reviews for the real world. When readers choose to buy Wirecutter's independently chosen editorial picks, it may earn affiliate commissions that support its work. Read the full article here . After spending 20 hours researching two dozen personal blenders and testing 10 models with an expert in our test kitchen, we think the NutriBullet Pro 900 Series offers the best balance of power, simplicity, convenience, and price for most people. We pureed almost 25 pounds of frozen fruit, hearty kale, fibrous ginger, gooey peanut butter, and sticky dates into thick smoothies to come to this conclusion. Who should buy a personal blender A personal blender is a convenience item for the dedicated smoothie lover who's short on time in the morning. If you want to quickly make a morning smoothie and run out the door without having to wash a blender pitcher and lid, a personal blender is for you. Personal blenders ar...

Weighing yourself after the holidays can be an emotionally trying process, especially if you've gone heavy on the turkey sandwiches. Oftentimes, the bad news sends you reaching for the comfort of the leftover chips and candy to get you through the cold winter months. However, Shapa, the new scale from behavioral scientist Dan Ariely , is designed to keep you ignorant and possibly thinner. By removing the drip-drip of data in the micro, the idea is that you can focus on the macro and avoid getting demoralized by your body's shifting weight. Instead, all you'll get is a color, depending on if you're underweight, about right or overweight, but nothing more specific. Ariely is a professor of behavioral economics at Duke University, but is probably more famous for his books and TED Talks. His work looks into how humans make decisions, and how rational -- or irrational -- we are on a daily basis. It should be no surprise that the bulk of the Shapa app is dedicated to tra...

Starting today, Germany will fine social networks up to to €50 million (roughly $58 million) should they fail to remove posts containing hate speech within 24 hours, or seven days for "complex cases" . The law, known as the Network Enforcement Act (or NetzDG), went into effect in October , but provided a grace period through the end of 2017. Although it was met with criticism and concerns over free speech, the law was nevertheless passed in Germany , which has some of the world's toughest laws against defamation and hate crimes. In June, German police raided the homes of 36 people accused of hate speech or other illegal content. Prior to the removal of the safety net, it's not been clear if social networks have complied with the law, nor if any of them have fallen afoul of it. Germany isn't alone in asking tech companies to take down hate speech posts -- the EU has made a similar request . 2018 is only just beginning, and given the trouble Facebook and Twi...

The new replay tools offered in PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds are so much more than standard video-capture technology. In fact, it isn't video capture at all -- it's data capture. The 3D replay tools allow players to zoom around the map after a match, tracking their own character, following enemies' movements, slowing down time and setting up cinematic shots of their favorite kills, all within a 1-kilometer radius of their avatar. It's filled with statistics, fresh perspectives and infinite data points to dissect. This isn't just a visual replay; it's a slice of the actual game, perfectly preserved, inviting combatants to play God. The toolset comes from South Korean company Minkonet, which just opened a second office in Los Angeles. PUBG is its first big client, and last month's rollout marks the first real mainstream implementation of this data-capture technology. It definitely won't be the last. According to Chief Operating Officer and Chi...

Some Galaxy Note 8 owners have been reporting that they couldn't charge or turn on their handsets after the batteries ran dry -- a problem that plagues other phones as well. While Samsung reps have been trying to address individual issues, a company spokesperson told Engadget that it has received "a very limited number of reports which could be associated with the power management circuit." This issue does appear to be confined to a relatively small number of users, and thankfully doesn't appear to be safety-related . It seems more likely to do with power management -- specifically that a small amount of energy needs to remain in the phone to help kickstart charging control . It's an issue that plagues some other phones as well. Samsung reps have been advising affected users to get warranty replacements for their Note 8s, but those who don't want to hand over their phones or aren't covered by warranty can try something called stack charging. By pl...

A team of Chinese scientists have completed the country's first acoustic test in the Mariana Trench, and the results could lead to a breakthrough in understanding how sound is transmitted in the deepest parts of the ocean. The researchers from Northwestern Polytechnical University in Shanxi province dropped and retrieved an acoustic probe into a valley at the southern end of the trench, which is about 11 kilometers (approximately 6.83 miles) under the surface. The valley in question is the Challenger Deep, and is the deepest recorded point on the earth's seabed, according to the South China Morning Post . At such depths, sound is crucial for communication, since there is no light. The researchers were able to hear sounds from the deepest part of the ocean and they've left six acoustic sensors in the trench to collect information about ambient sea noise for a year. These will be retrieved in November. This is the first such experiment for China, and its results could not...

Historians can use scanning to peek inside mummies without risking damage, but that hasn't been true for the papyrus boxes those mummies were placed in before entering the tomb. If you've wanted to read the discarded everyday writing on that papyrus, you've typically had to destroy the boxes. That won't be necessary from now on, though: researchers at University College London have developed a scanning technique that lets you read a mummy case's writing while leaving it intact. If you scan the cases with light at different frequencies, you can make the ink glow and thus see under the paste and plaster that would normally obscure the text. A lot of the writing is unspectacular (the BBC describes them as shopping lists and tax returns), but that's the point -- it's about discovering Egyptian history beyond royalty and other famous people. The technique has already found success with one mummy stored in Kent. It's not certain that it'll find wide...

After a very long and problematic development process, the F-35 Lightning II is about to serve on the front lines. The US Marine Corps is deploying the F-35B (the short takeoff and vertical landing variant) to ships in the Central and Pacific Command theaters in the spring and summer of 2018. The 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit is traveling aboard the USS Essex, which is headed to the Middle East, while the 31st will be attached to the USS Wasp and might head to the coast of North Korea. While it wouldn't exactly be heartening news if the F-35 did have to see combat, it would put the multi-role stealth fighter's many technological systems to the test. The B's clever STOVL system is its centerpiece, letting it operate from Marine ships and bases that don't have the space for conventional aircraft. It's also a pioneer inside the cockpit , with giant touchscreen displays and an in-helmet display that replaces the conventional HUD. Basically: where the F-22 is a r...

Just as 4K and HDR are finally going mainstream, the ambitious folks at LG Display have also been busy pushing its OLED technology to 8K. Come CES, the Korean manufacturer will be letting attendees get up close with its new 88-inch 8K OLED display, which is both the largest and the highest-resolution OLED panel to date. But as far as specs go, that's all we have for now. Previously, the largest OLED screen size was 77 inches, and it "only" came in 4K. While this combination is currently offered to consumers by the likes of LG Electronics, Sony and Panasonic, they all source their large OLED panels from LG Display. With its main rival Samsung Display having long shifted its focus from OLED TVs to QLED TVs , LG Display is now the sole large-size OLED display maker in the world. That said, with potential competition from other countries like Japan , LG Display has made huge investments to ensure that it continues to have the upper hand by ramping up OLED production c...