The BBC introduced “Visual Perceptive Media,” an experimental project out of its R&D unit in Salford, UK, which allows video stories to adapt in response to individuals’ personalities and tastes. The British broadcaster earlier created the audio-based Perceptive Media project; a radio drama makes adaptations based on the listener’s location, time of day and other factors such as proximity to the device and background noise. The video-based project begins with a mobile app that conducts a personalization process. Continue reading The BBC Experiments with TV Shows That Adapt to Personality

Two years after it first announced its Prime Air drone project, Amazon has unveiled its latest UAV prototype, with plans to eventually deliver packages to customers in less than 30 minutes. In a video featuring former “Top Gear” host Jeremy Clarkson, a new hybrid design is introduced — a larger vehicle that is essentially part helicopter and part airplane. The drone can still take off and land vertically, but it can also shift to a horizontal flight mode with the capability of flying 55 mph for more than 15 miles. Continue reading Amazon Debuts New Hybrid Prototype for its Prime Air Drones

Several high-profile technology companies, most notably Hewlett-Packard, have been hard at work trying to reinvent the hard drive. But it looks like Intel will be first to market with its new Optane drives. Although a current prototype of Intel’s Optane drives only functions seven times the speed of a top-end flash disk drive, it could be much faster by the time it is released in 2016. And the potential is great: Optane drives are said to operate as much as 1,000 times faster than today’s memory technology. Continue reading Intel to Bring Superfast Optane Hard Drives to Market in 2016

The most recent prototype of Avegant’s Glyph video headset could possibly illustrate what the future of media consumption will look like. The headset allows users to plug in any HDMI video source to watch movies or play video games. The image is crisp because of a new micromirror projection technique that eliminates the problem of seeing individual pixels. Glyph also has a head-tracking feature so that users can immerse themselves in 360-degree video, but the real world is still visible above or below the eye line. Continue reading Avegant’s Upcoming Glyph Headset Plays Music, Movies and VR

Magic Leap CEO Rony Abovitz participated in a Reddit AMA (“Ask Me Anything”) session last week and his answers revealed some of the virtual reality company’s lofty ambitions. The startup raised some $542 million last year to engineer a pair of chunky sports sunglasses that can make virtual objects appear in a real life setting, a technique called “cinematic reality.” Abovitz believes that Magic Leap’s computing technology could eventually replace the other screens in our daily lives, including those on smartphones. Continue reading Magic Leap’s Cinematic Reality May Replace Your Smartphone

Facebook has unveiled two new iOS apps designed for people working behind the scenes. Designers now have a tool that lets them prototype the interface of an app without writing a single line of code. The Origami Live app will then roughly translate the design into code with the click of a button. Facebook has also created a new app for advertisers so that they can schedule or even create their Facebook ads from their phone. Facebook Ads Manager provides metrics on the ad’s performance. Continue reading Facebook Releases New Apps for Advertisers and Designers

While universal remotes are primarily used to control cable boxes and TVs, Cupertino-based startup NEEO is taking the idea a step further. The company claims its universal remote can control a home theater system and almost every smart device that a homeowner could imagine. The NEEO touchscreen remote works with over 30,000 Internet-connected gadgets such as the Nest, Philips Hue and others. It also uses hand recognition software to create profiles for each user. Continue reading New Universal Remote Controls All Your Smart Home Devices

Sony has announced a possible competitor to Google Glass, essentially a module that clips onto eyewear to make them smart. The company’s lightweight, single-lens display module attaches to glasses, sunglasses, goggles, or other eyewear to add a color OLED micro-display and connected camera. The module weighs a mere 40g and can be removed when not in use. Sony is expected to showcase a prototype at the 2015 CES in Las Vegas next month under the name “SmartEyeglass Attach.” Continue reading CES: Sony to Demo Module That Makes Any Glasses ‘Smart’

According to insiders at LG, the company’s new 8K display has been airlifted to Las Vegas for next month’s 2015 International Consumer Electronics Show. LG Display engineers will accompany the prototype to its CES booth. Codenamed “Mabinogion,” the 55-inch display features a resolution of 33.2 million pixels, more than 20 display driver integrated circuits, and a brightness of 500 nits. LG Electronics (LG Display’s largest client) is rumored to be adding an 8K TV to its UHD lineup next year. Continue reading CES 2015: LG Expected to Unveil its New 55-Inch 8K Display

Startup Haltian has created a hardware device for the Internet of Things so that developers do not have to worry about designing and manufacturing the gadget. Developers can get straight to finding new ways to implement the open-source Thingsee One device, which is packed with different types of sensors that can send notifications back to an app. Thingsee One uses a 2G radio to communicate with the mobile app, so that battery life can last up to a year without charging. Continue reading New Hardware Lets Developers Make Their Own Smart Devices

The Des Moines Register, which reaches 420,000 readers, has launched a virtual reality story to examine how the demographic and economic changes in Iowa are affecting one farming family. The readers of the paper can step into the Dammann family farm and click on objects to learn about how different issues impact Iowa residents. Only 125,000 Oculus Rift headsets are in circulation, but this story may be one of the first steps toward integrating VR into journalism. Continue reading Iowa Newspaper Uses Oculus Rift for ‘Explanatory’ Journalism

Neal Stephenson announced that “Clang,” his sword-fighting video game project launched via Kickstarter, is dead in the water. In 2012, the author of sci-fi classics Snow Crash and Cryptonomicon raised $526,000 on Kickstarter. Stephenson originally set out to create a game that was more engaging than existing sword-fighting games, but ultimately realized that while innovative, the end result was not fun to play. The game and some pledge rewards were not delivered, which frustrated some backers. Continue reading Failed Video Game Underlines the Perils of Using Kickstarter

Oculus unveiled its latest VR headset, currently named “Crescent Bay,” at a Hollywood event over the weekend. Some 800 developers attended Oculus Connect, the company’s first conference, to check out the new device. While not yet commercially available, the prototype promises a more comfortable, natural experience. Crescent Bay features 360-degree motion tracking, integrated headphones and improved ergonomics. It is not the consumer version, but is “sprinting toward” it, explained chief exec Brendan Iribe. Continue reading Oculus Debuts Crescent Bay VR Prototype at LA Conference

California’s DMV requires — in new rules which will take effect September 16 — that, when necessary, a driver must be able to take “immediate physical control” of any vehicle on public roads. This process has traditionally involved a steering wheel and brake and accelerator pedals, which could be a setback for Google’s self-driving car, that does not include these parts. While Google said that it will add them for testing purposes, it is unclear what the company will do in the future. Continue reading Google’s Self-Driving Car Faces New California DMV Rules

Samsung was one of the first companies to tempt consumers with the prototype of a bendable display at CES, but so far, Samsung and others have faced manufacturing challenges in bringing these displays to market. However, a California-based startup, Kateeva, has developed a new manufacturing process that it claims will save time, cut costs, and make bendable screens more durable. Another company, Canatu, has also developed technology to make bendable touch screens. Continue reading Bendable Displays Are Closer Than Ever to Hitting the Market