Apple Patents MagSafe to USB-C Adapter

Apple has filed a patent for a MagSafe to USB-C adapter that could be used to power its notebooks and provide the breakaway protection users have come to appreciate. Despite Apple’s pivot away from the breakaway charging cable, people still love it — since it doesn’t cause your laptop to crash to the ground when you trip over the cable — and the option to choose between USB-C and MagSafe would be great. One of the big complaints with Apple’s new line of MacBook Pros has been the loss of…

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Apple Music on Android catches up with iOS

Apple’s subscription streaming service, Apple Music, rolled out a major (ver. 2.0) release to Android users today, introducing a new design that largely brings the app to parity with its iOS counterpart. The update includes a visual makeover, which organizes content into a few main sections – Library, For You, Browse, and Radio – as on iOS. However, it’s clear that Apple Music for Android is not a priority for Apple, despite its seeming intentions to compete with rival services like Spotify or the now on-demand Pandora, for instance. In…

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Microsoft and Adobe Launch Joint Customer Experience Offerings

Adobe and Microsoft have teamed up to offer a set of joint enterprise solutions designed to help companies improve the customer experience for their clients. The agreement includes Adobe Experience Cloud, Microsoft Azure, Dynamics 365 and Power BI. The tech firms also plan to collaborate on an industry standard to define and unify the language for marketing, sales and services data needed to deliver digital experiences consistently at scale. The new integrations will help businesses better align their sales and marketing efforts, and create compelling, personalized and consistent experiences for…

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Nikon celebrates 100th anniversary with limited edition cameras

Nikon has been around for 100 years, and it’s pulling out all the stops to celebrate. Along with a set of commemorative trinkets, like neck straps and crystal cameras, the imaging and optics multinational has designed limited edition versions of its flagship cameras. The company is releasing commemorative models of its cameras, lenses, and binoculars, as well as some miscellaneous accessories. Most people are probably going to be interested in the special edition D5 and D500. The D5 ships with a new anniversary booklet while the D500 includes a metal…

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China robot industry developing fast, but risks oversupply in low-end segment

robot

China has strong demand for robots, but locally robot production took up only 26.7% of its demand in 2015. The industry is growing rapidly, but a more standardized industry is required if products are to be more reliable.To meet the demand, China firms have geared up development of robots with government incentives in recent years and the use of robots has extended from manufacturing to other sectors. But the development of China’s robotic industry faces two risks: over investment in low-end robots with low added values, and consequently oversupply, according…

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Future Robots May Be Controlled By Magnetic Fields

Robots have to be soft and flexible if they are  to become more lifelike or if we want to start using them for more biological applications. Scientists studying soft robotics are trying to overcome some of the inadequacies of moving metal beings made from janky, clanky parts, which might not be so useful for squeezing into tight spaces or moving around in the human body. But switching to bendier materials comes with its own set of problems to solve—for instance, how best to control soft robots, or make them strong…

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Samsung’s quest to redeem itself with the Galaxy S8 Launch

Samsung has unveiled its new flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S8, the Korean giant’s latest attempt to take on the iPhone. The launch of the device is seen as a crucial moment for Samsung coming after the scandal that saw it forced to recall and cease production of the Galaxy Note 7, its previous top-end phone. The new device comes in two sizes, the 5.8-inch S8 and the 6.2-inch S8+. They feature a new design in which the “infinity display” wraps around the device, meaning that the large screen takes up almost all…

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Is technology contributing to increased inequality?

Airlines

As global poverty continues to decline thanks to technology, another issue emerges. According to the World Economic Forum, rising income inequality and the polarization of societies pose a risk to the global economy, and may lead to increased polarization and lack of political stability reports Tech Crunch. This, however, is not a global problem. In developing countries, inequality is decreasing and the amount of people living in extreme poverty is at an all-time low. Mobile technology is contributing to financial inclusion in countries without an established financial infrastructure, and global markets create trade opportunities. However, the…

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Google Translate mobile apps now available for users in China

Farmers

Google has reintroduced its Translate mobile apps to China, where they can now be accessed and used without the need for software to bypass local censorship. Google left China more than seven years ago when it redirected its local search engine to Hong Kong and many of its services are censored in the country. Today’s low-key relaunch marks the first time it has revived a service specifically for users in China. The google translate apps will be maintained by Google’s joint-venture in China, which runs the services it has remaining there, and will be subject…

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Facebook pivots into Stories

Facebook is evolving from textual content and link-focused sharing to the visible verbal exchange layout its admits “Snapchat has in point of fact pioneered”. All users will quickly have access to the Facebook’s new digicam feature that permits them to overlay special effects on photos and videos. They can then share this content to a Snapchat clone known as facebook tales that seems above news Feed on cellular and works in a similar way to Instagram’s 24-hour ephemeral slideshows. Users also may share these posts to News Feed, individual friends…

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