Geek News

During yesterday’s education-focused event that saw the introduction of a new iPad, Apple executive Greg Joswiak revealed that the company is upgrading the amount of free iCloud storage given to students. Previously, managed student accounts had the same 5GB as regular consumers, but now, Apple is raising that limit to a much more spacious 200GB. This applies to students who have Apple IDs provided and administered by their school. That’s a great thing! Apple displayed a focused, determined approach to providing educators with powerful new hardware and improved classroom software. 200GB is an enormous amount of runway for collaboration and creation among students. But why shouldn’t people shelling out hundreds more for an iPhone have a... Continue reading… via The Verge - Tech Posts "https://ift.tt/2GBOisM"

DIY Safely take to the skies. So you've just purchased a shiny new drone. Follow these tips to fly your expensive device without endangering other people—or risking damaging your drone. via Popular Science "https://ift.tt/2J0vz8s"

Facebook adjusted its privacy settings page today, following the ongoing Cambridge Analytica data scandal. Most obviously, the privacy settings page now features shortcuts with images to make it easier to navigate, particularly on mobile. Users can enable two-factor authentication, control what they share or have shared, manage who can see their posts, and learn more about their ad preferences. The company’s also launching a new page called “Access Your Information,” on which users can further evaluate the information they’ve shared and manage it. From there, they can delete anything from their timeline or profile that they don’t want on Facebook. None of these features are new; they just make data management easier to parse and more... Continue reading… via The Verge - Tech Posts "https://ift.tt/2pJo8tE"

Apple has a Google problem — in education, that is. Google has won over a large portion of the education market in the US, something that can be credited to both the cheapness of web-based Chromebooks and the accessibility of Google’s apps. Apple knows this, so yesterday, it hosted a “field trip” — that’s actually what it was called — for press, teachers, and student journalists at a magnet high school in Chicago. The event may as well have been called “Sorry, you can’t make a cool video with a Chromebook.” That’s the point Apple seemed to want to underscore as it presented another iPad and a new and improved suite of apps for teachers and students. The new, $329 9.7-inch iPad ($299 for students) supports Apple’s fancy Pencil, as well... Continue reading… via The Verge - Tech Posts "https://ift.tt/2GjLIV1"

French audio company Focal is launching its Listen Wireless closed-ear headphones in three new colors today: olive, purple, and blue. Originally released in June 2017, the specs of the headphones are still the same. The company says they feature playback close to CD quality, a 40mm titanium / mylar driver, Bluetooth 4.1, 22mm thick heat-sensitive memory foam cushions on the ear pads, and a dual microphone system with “clear voice capture.” The headphones take three hours to charge, last around 20 hours, and have a range of 15m, so you can wander around to your leisure. The headphones also have buttons to control music and take calls. Focal says the headphones have noise isolation capabilities that preserve acoustics, even if you’re... Continue reading… via The Verge - Tech Posts "https://ift.tt/2pK8vD6"

Animals We put a lot of pressure on species to adapt. In just a few thousand years we drastically changed the temperament of dogs by domesticating them, and in a couple hundred managed to diversity them into separate… via Popular Science "https://ift.tt/2pL7WIo"

A spider brooch-wearing mathematician Continue reading… via The Verge - Tech Posts "https://ift.tt/2GDjtnx"

The next OnePlus flagship phone will have a notch in its display, and above is the first official image of it, provided exclusively to The Verge . OnePlus, still the darling of many Android enthusiasts, was alarmed by the vociferous chorus of disapproval directed at new smartphones launching at Mobile World Congress this year with notched displays. So the company reached out to me, as one of the louder critics of the notch trend , to try to make its case for why that change in design is a good thing and why its next phone release will be more than just another iPhone copycat . “How big a notch is always depends on your choices as a company,” said Carl Pei, the public face of OnePlus, when he met me in London last week. In his mind, the... Continue reading… via The Verge - Tech Posts "https://ift.tt/2GjwK1l"

If you look at an iPad and an iPad Pro side by side, you won’t notice much of a difference. The Pro is a little bigger, it has slightly thinner bezels, there are some metal dots on one edge — and that’s about it. With Apple’s update to the entry-level iPad on Tuesday, the two full-sized tablets are surprisingly close together in both appearance and spec sheet. There are some notable differences between them, but if you’re planning to buy one for casual use — or for a student, like Apple hopes — there’s not a ton you’re missing out on by getting the $329 iPad instead of the $649 iPad Pro. Seriously, if you want an iPad (or really, any tablet at all) and don’t have particularly demanding needs, the entry-level iPad is more than likely the... Continue reading… via The Verge - Tech Posts "https://ift.tt/2GeS4ZN"

If you’ve ever wanted to try out a VR gaming headset but have been put off by the price, we have good news — Sony is cutting the prices of its PSVR bundles in the US and Europe . In the US, the Playstation VR Doom bundle now costs $299.99 and includes a PSVR headset, the Doom VFR game, and PlayStation Camera. The Playstation VR Skyrim bundle is now $349.99 and includes the Skyrim VR game, two PlayStation Move controllers in addition to the PSVR headset and PlayStation Camera. Both bundles are $100 cheaper than their previous retail prices. If you’re in Europe, you can now get a discounted Starter Bundle for €299.99 that includes the PSVR, PlayStation Camera, and a download code for the PlayStation VR Worlds game. PSVR bundles have been t... Continue reading… via The Verge - Tech Posts "https://ift.tt/2DYanwl"

I know I’m supposed to be outraged about tech companies blatantly copying each other’s designs, but I don’t have the naivety for it anymore. Huawei, the company that’s been shipping copycat Apple EarPods with its Android smartphones for years, has decided to also clone Apple’s wireless AirPods, and the product of that is called the Huawei FreeBuds . I got my hands on the FreeBuds at Huawei’s P20 launch event , and I found myself pleasantly surprised by their styling and comfort. Yes, Huawei is copying Apple; but I’m not a patent lawyer, I just want to see good tech proliferate, and the FreeBuds look promising. If anything, I’m a little surprised that it took so long for another major company to copy Apple’s AirPod design. As I wrote in my... Continue reading… via The Verge - Tech Posts "https://ift.tt/2I95Ol9"

Samsung has released a new software update for its Tizen-based Gear S2 smartwatch that offers new fitness features, new control options for the Gear VR and powerpoint presentations, and more detailed daily morning weather forecasts. The company says the updates will make the three-year-old smartwatch more convenient to use. The software update also features what Samsung describes as a cleaner user interface so content can be viewed more easily, though we always found the S2’s bezel-controller UI to be its best feature. The update adds a new App Shortcuts widget to the Gear S2, which automatically places your recently used and favorite apps in one place. You can now swipe down from any screen to access a quick panel, which displays... Continue reading… via The Verge - Tech Posts "https://ift.tt/2I9QULu"

Space The James Webb Space Telescope has an ever-expanding timeline—and projected cost. NASA just pushed back the launch of the costly and ambitious James Webb Space Telescope. Again. The launch is now pencilled in for sometime around May 2020—delayed by… via Popular Science "https://ift.tt/2pIvcHY"

Apple pushed several updates to its music creation software GarageBand today, following education-based announcements including a cheaper iPad and new Crayon stylus earlier in the day. There’s an intriguing new feature that makes use of the iPhone X’s TrueDepth camera and face tracking features. If you’ve got Apple’s flagship phone, you’ll now be able to use your face to control effects and synths, hands-free. Yup, GarageBand will read your facial expressions and translate them into instrument controls. If available for use on an instrument or effect, a small smiley face icon will appear. The parameters that can be adjusted are locked and can’t be customized, but there are some fun options. For example, smiling / opening your mouth... Continue reading… via The Verge - Tech Posts "https://ift.tt/2pJ4H4R"

Gadgets It sounds like a gimmick, but each one actually plays a specific role Three cameras team up for Huawei's high-end smartphone camera. via Popular Science "https://ift.tt/2GxKVTQ"

Blender Character Rigging for Beginners HD is Now Available on Steam! Blender Character Rigging For Beginners HD is a video tutorial series by Riven Phoenix that takes the art student through a step-by-step process in rigging a high quality 3D human character from scratch using blender's powerful rigging features. via Steam RSS News Feed "https://ift.tt/2IXQ8CB"