Author: Henry R. Lares

Henry Lares is still early into his career as tech reporter but has already had his work published in many major publications including Tech Crunch and the Huffington Post.  In regards to academics, Henry earned an engineering degree from Apex Technical School. Henry has a passion for emerging technology and covers upcoming products and breakthroughs in science and tech.

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Microsoft Surface Go to Hit the Market for $399

This device is said to be smaller, easier to keep at all times with you, and cheaper. It sounds amazing, right? Well, it’s also going to be less powerful. And you’ll have to buy additional things for it, meaning that the price could get higher.

Microsoft Surface Go to keep the place of a PC

We know for sure that the price will get up to $399 (£299 and AU$599). The device ’s smaller, it has a 10-inch display, in comparison with the 12.3-inch Pro device, the latter which makes us feel like we’re holding an iPad. It’s also worth mentioning that it will have Pentium processors instead of the Core i-series Intel CPU. This will make it feel more like a laptop than a PC. It’s a step back when it comes to the processing power. We cannot really understand the difference between them 2, instead of the obvious ones.

Key specs

It will come with an Intel Pentium Gold Processor 4415Y CPU, 64GB eMMC storage, or 128GB or 256GB SSD storage. The display will be of 10-inch, 1,800 x 1,200 display and it will have 4GB or 8GB RAM. It will have the 5MP Windows Hello face sign-in camera feature, and the rear camera will have autofocus and 8MP. It will come with a USB-C, microSD card and headphone inputs and the operating system will be Windows 10 S, Home or Pro.

Additional items

Unfortunately, if you want to enjoy its keyboard cover, you’ll have to buy it separately, for the price of $99 (£99 or AU$139). The stylus also comes for the price of $99 (£99 or AU$139). By buying these items, you can pay up to 50% more than the price of the device. The new Mobile Mouse comes for the price of $35 and we’re talking matching colors.

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Chromium vs. Chrome: Which is The Best for You?

While most internet users use Chrome as the default browser ( IE and Edge being the prime download tool for it) some users have also checked out the Chromium browser.

Launched by Google as an open source project, Chromium is an experimental browser that is continuously improved by the community. While Chrome itself is based on Chromium, it is a more simplified and user-friendly browser.

In the light of the data privacy controversies, some people prefer Chromium as an alternative to Chrome, citing personal privacy as the main reason.

The Pro and Contra

  • Aside from the color of the logo which is blue in the case of Chromium there are no major differences regarding the user-interface.
  • Chromium never reports crashes while Chrome reports them only if the option is turned on
  • Chrome reports users metrics if allowed, Chromium never reports user metrics.
  • Both programs offer support for modern codecs: Opus, Theora, Vorbis, VP8 and VP9 and WAV by default. Chrome offers additional default video codecs :AAC, H.264, and MP3 for audio.
  • In Chrome sandbox mode is on by default and can only be turned off by manual override. His grants an extra layer of security against malicious sites In most Linux distributions it can be easily disabled.

Is Chromium safer?

Well not really. While it may not offer as many reports and metrics to Google, Chromium will still track your activity if you decide to log-in with a Google Account. Chrome is also released only in stable builds while Chromium receives several unstable builds daily. The added layer of security is thin, as even if you do not log in Google will still track your IP.

Conclusions

While Chromium sends less data towards Google it is not much better than Chrome. Both are great for browsing the Internet and if you really need the added security, I would rather suggest a trusted VPN solution.

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VR Will be a Genre of its Own in About 5 Years, Claims Sony Design Lead

In an interview offered to MCV at the Develop: Brighton Conference, Michael Hampden revealed Sony’s confidence in the future of Virtual Reality. As a lead designer for the Sony London Studio, working on the highly anticipated Blood &Truth VR game, Hampden offered predictions for the next 5, 10 and 25 years of VR.

For the five years mark, many new titles are expected to make a show in the industry. Since the release of Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and PS VR, many new games are developed for the platform, ranging from simple FPS to more advanced and immersive RPGs. Hampden expects that a standard design vision will be established and as the genre matures, designers will be more able to fully explore and use the capabilities they have at hand.

Around 2028, haptic feedback, which could be observed in the Steven Spielberg’s Ready Player One will finally become accessible. This will increase immersion and realism, accelerating the rate of adoption for the VR platform.

.Then, 25 years down the line, he expects that “VR should be as ubiquitous as smartphones are today.” He states confidently, which brings optimism for Sony’s future as a gaming solutions provider.

Hampden also highlights the rise of the digital stores, in the light of high ranking physical retailers closing doors, the most recent one being the Toys-R-Us.  He believes that although physical shops are in decline, there is a need for test centers to be available for possible customers.  VR demo stations play a vital role, as they allow customers to test the product and limit future return from unsatisfied customers whom did not enjoy the experience after some time passed.

While VR demo stations remain scarce, Hampden  assures that arcade-style VR destinations will appear, as famous franchises dive into VR: “We have a limited number of these experiences out there so far, but I think this trend is here to stay, and we’ll see more and more location-based VR coming in the future.”

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News Tech

Leaked Samsung Galaxy Note 9 Images Suggest that it Looks Similar to Note 8

A supposedly official render of the future flagship phablet Note 8 has been posted by Android Headlines. Offered by what was deemed as a ‘’highly credible source’’ the render, believed to be official is underwhelming. It features no hints regarding software, so the hope that Samsung will see the light and drop its customizations in favor of stock Android.

It also lacks details in regards to the position of the fingerprint sensor, previously uncomfortably placed on the side of the camera. The design seems to follow The Samsung Galaxy S9, with the Infinity Display as the major focus of the device, and limited bezels on the top and bottom. The power, volume and Bixby buttons maintain the exact position they had on Note 8, the stylus pocket seems harder to notice.

On the hardware side, Note 9 seems to sport no obvious upgrade from its predecessor. The iris scanner, front camera, sensors and earpiece seem to be in the exact same position. Just as the Samsung Galaxy S9 was a disguised S8 with a more advanced camera, Note 9 seems to be almost a clone.

Samsung seems to get back to the old habit of releasing 2 or three generations of identical looking devices with modest upgrades. While the camera on the S9 was revolutionary, Huawei upped the ante with the release of the P20 and its three cameras. The P20 also features a 24 MP camera in comparison to the meager 8 MP used by the competition.

While only rumors circulate for now, it remains to be seen how the flagship phablet will actually look like. Certain modifications are possible and we may even consider the fact the render may have been leaked in order to make the revealed device a surprise.

Samsung plans to reveal the Note 9 on August 9th.

 

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DJI Mavic Air vs. Parrot Anafi – Best Foldable Drone of 2018

If you are searching to buy your first drone, keep this in mind.

Camera

The cameras of both drones sport potent cameras, but there are some differences between them.

Parrot Anafi ($699)

  • film in 4K Cinema mode (4,096 x 2,160) with only up to 24 FPS
  • hybrid, roll, and tilt are mechanically controlled
  • incredible vertical tilt range, it can point straight downwards (-90º) and straight upwards (90º)
  • comes with a 16GB microSD (20 minutes of 4k filming)

DJI Mavic Air ($799)

  • film in 4K Ultra HD (3,840 x 2,160) at up to 30 FPS
  • slightly steadier camera support for non-shaky filmmaking
  • comes with internal storage of 8 GB
  • supports up to a 128GB card

Both

  • powerful cameras that sit on maneuverable 3-axis gimbals
  • sport the same max bitrate – 100Mbps

Design and portability

They are both lightweight, portable and can be carried easily.

Parrot Anafi

  • weighs a mere 320g (11.3oz)
  • measures at 9.6 x 2.6 x 2.5 in (244 x 66 x 63.5 mm)
  • all of the arms flatten outwards, and can be pulled out or pushed in independent of one another

DJI Mavic Air

  • weights 430g (15.2oz)
  • measures 6.61 x 3.26 x 1.92 inches (168 x 83 x 49 mm)
  • fold the front arms back alongside the drone body; then the back arms fold forward on top of the front arms

Flight and control

Options such as a return home feature, “follow-me” tracking and smart shot modes are found in both drones along with boomerangs or dramatic pans upward.

Conclusion

When we said, Parrot Anafi is strong enough to challenge DJI Mavic Air’s dominance we were not wrong. Its comparable tight design, superior camera, and battery, speed and price, make it an excellent choice for a first drone.

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