#engadget
Former Samsung engineers build a smart umbrella
Wouldn’t it be great if your umbrella told you if it was going to rain before you left the house each morning? That’s the idea behind the Opus One, a(nother) smart brolly that’s been designed by a team of former Samsung engineers. The device (for it is not an umbrella now, but a device) connects to your smartphone over Bluetooth and pulls weather reports every morning. When it’s time to go out, you simply shake the handle and a light will flash red or green, depending on what’s coming.
That’s not the only thing that it can do, however, and Opus One will also offer up smartphone notifications in the form of vibrations. Should you receive an incoming call or message, the handle will shake to let you know that there’s something you need to check. In addition, the handle doubles as a Bluetooth tether, so if you leave your phone — or umbrella — behind, the other device will let you know before you get too far away.
ClickHERE for the full story.
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The 11 best tech gifts for workaholics
For our full list of recommendations in all categories, don’t forget to stop by our main Holiday Gift Guidehub.
The 12 best tech gifts for the entertainer in your life
You know the type: Someone who loves throwing parties. In fact, you will probably partake of egg nog and sugar cookies in their home before the season is up. So why not get them something that helps them do what they do best: entertain. If your friend loves to cook, you might consider an easy-to-use WiFi sous vide, asmart kitchen scale or a smokeless infrared grill. For entertaining, a countertop draft beer system is convenient – and then your friend can servepour-over coffee as the party is winding down. Finally, we have some ideas on how the hostess in your life can keep guests amused – try the Cards Against Humanityscience pack expansion,USB turntableorLomography instant camera.
For our full list of recommendations in all categories, don’t forget to stop by our mainHoliday Gift Guidehub.
12 gifts for the gaming geek in your life
Consoles, controllers and graphics cards for everyone!
Whether they’ve got a fully tricked out PC gaming rig or just looking to get a little retro button mashing done on their new 4K TV, we’ve got the gift for the gamer in your life. Obviously, with some new consoles on the scene, there’s an obvious upgrade out there for the hardcore in the PS4 Pro and Xbox One S. But you don’t need to drop $300 - $400 to upgrade your favorite geek’s gaming experience. A high-end mouse, top notch controller or a new headset can make a world of difference for those glued to online battles. And, for those in your life that prefer their gaming be a little more… let’s say physical, you can’t go wrong with a board game like Mechs vs. Minions or King of Tokyo.
For our full list of recommendations in all categories, don’t forget to stop by our main Holiday Gift Guidehub.
12 gifts for your NSFW neighbor
And by neighbor, we mean your special someone.
We’re all adults here – no shame if you want to get a certain someone in your life something naughty for the holidays. First, the obvious: We brought together a team of male and female editors to research the best sex toys for both men and women, because yes, we know that’s where some of your minds went when we said naughty. But if a vibrator seems like a buzzkill, we also have recommendations for a vaporizer, VPN subscription and even a combination iPhone case/cigarette lighter.
For our full list of recommendations in all categories, don’t forget to stop by our main Holiday Gift Guidehub.
12 tech gifts for the geekiest people in your life
There’s one in every family: The uber geek who pretty much has it all when it comes to tech basics. They don’t need a laptop or a fancy TV. But don’t worry, there’s always some gap in their collection of gadgets that you can easily fill. And remember, the more niche the product, the better gift it is for these folks.
You could get them started on building out their smart home with a lock like AugustorKevo. Or maybe they need a central hub to control their sprawling network of connected goods from, like an Amazon Echo Dot. If the nerd in your life is too young for a smart home, you can always pick them up a high-tech take on the paper airplane or a box of tinker toys likeLittleBits, to get them start on their journey to become the next great inventor.
For our full list of recommendations in all categories, don’t forget to stop by our main Holiday Gift Guidehub.
CES 2017, brought to you by a whole lot of nope.
Connected home gadgets were everywhere at CES 2017 – we saw WiFi cameras,smart walking canesandEchoclones aplenty. But while several of them were truly innovative, there were some that made no sense at all.
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Technology helped me through the emotional roller coaster of CES
“Humans love to control how they feel. Booze and coffee have been perking us up and lubricating social situations for millennia. Mood-enhancing technology, on the other hand, usually tries to emulate a cup of joe or a glass of wine but without the need for rinsing your liver. I’m generally OK with pumping chemicals into my body, but with a few mood-changing gadgets catching my eye in the run-up to this year’s CES, I thought I’d give some a go. The hope was that I could avoid the usual uppers-and-downers routine that a week in Vegas demands.” - James Trew, Deputy Managing Editor, Engadget
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Honda’samazing self-balancing motorcycle defies gravity
Keeping a motorcycle upright at high speeds is simple – mostly you just have to hang on. Yet when a bike is slowly cruising through a parking lot, in traffic, or at a stop, balance is handled by the rider. That can be difficult on larger, heavier cycles like cruisers. Honda’s trying to make bike stability easier with its new Riding Assist technology.
Willow’s smart breast pumps slide into moms’ bras
Chrysler unveils its concept minivan for the selfie generation
The future of driving (or more likely, riding) has become less about speed and more about making sure occupants are comfortable and more importantly, entertained. At CES later today, Fiat/Chrysler (FCA) will unveil its Portal concept car. The electric vehicle will have face recognition and voice biometrics for what the automaker says is focused on millennials and will be “more than a tool – it’s an integral part of their lives.”
ClickHERE for the full story
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Linksys is the latest company to unveil a WiFi mesh system
Lenovo’s new VR headset is coming for less than $400
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Dell intros the $799 Inspiron 7000, details Alienware CPU upgrades
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The Dell 27 Ultrathin monitor really lives up to its name
Dell is hoping to turn some heads at CES with the 27 Ultrathin, which sports one of the thinnest display profiles I’ve ever seen. Instead of having most of its hardware sitting behind the screen, Dell moved it down to the base, which makes the monitor seem almost like an all-in-one machine at first.
ClickHERE to see more.
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2016: The year in winners and losers
2016 was an interesting one, that’s for sure. To celebrate its quickly approaching end, we’re going to spend the next two weeks looking back at the most important story lines of the year – starting with the biggest winners of 2016. (Don’t worry, next week we’ll be taking shots at the biggest losers.)
Over the next six days Engadget will take stock of who is entering 2017 in a much better position than in 2016. Facebook for one, has started to really pull away its social media competitors, despite its struggles with fake news. And, after years of being promised that VR or AR would go mainstream, 2016 finally seems to have delivered. Oh, and we also saw emoji evolve from a bunch of silly pictures to a full-fledged language of its own – one that represents the diversity of our society.
So stay tuned through December 31st as we run down the biggest winners and losers of 2016.
Check out all of Engadget’s year-in-review coverage right here.
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Obama signs bill to fund ‘Moonshot’ research to cure cancer
Several months after President Obama laid out his plans to cure cancer in his last State of the Union address, he is signing legislation to do just that. Known as the 21st Century Cures Act, the bill will invest $1.8 billion in aCancer Moonshot Task Force led by Vice President Joe Biden that aims to achieve a decade’s worth of research in just five years. In so doing, the team hopes to ramp up science and technological progress to the point where a cure for cancer can be found.
“We are bringing to reality the possibility of new breakthroughs to some of the biggest health challenges of our time,” said Obama in a ceremony today. “We’re tackling cancer, brain disease, substance abuse disorders and more, and none of this would have been possible without bipartisan cooperation from both houses of Congress.”
The overall bill plans $6.3 billion to not just tackle cancer research but also brain research, substance abuse prevention and to streamline drug and medical device approval.
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