Apple make a Swift reappraisal of their Music service
Social media appeared to almost collapse in on itself last week when Taylor Swift decided to bite one of the many hands that fed her and take on Apple. If you've been living under a digital rock for the last 7 days, the tech giants were essentially planning on holding back payment on any artists whose music was played through their new streaming service (Apple Music) over the first 3 months of a user's subscription. The logic was that those first 3 months are free to all subscribers, so Apple would be making a loss on every song streamed, but considering the sizeable wealth and power or the Cupertino-based company, it did come across as something of a dick move.
Taylor Swift decided to bite one of the many hands that fed her last week and take on Apple Music
The current reigning queen of pop Taylor Swift, however, took umbrage with Apple's policy, so decided to withhold her latest blockbusting album from the Apple Music service. Apple responded by telling Miss Swift that they were very sorry (sic), and altered their artist policy so that musicians now earn exactly $0.002 per stream for the first 3 months. So is Swift a real hero here? Or is it just another cunningly calculated media stunt. We're going to say a little from column A and a little from column B. Mostly column B though, as you'd be a fool to think that every single word that comes from Swift's worryingly perfect lips isn't decided by committee. Either way though, it's a win for independent musicians, who might have missed out on the 3 or 4 pence they might now earn!
Facebook's Messenger takes on WhatsApp
WhatsApp has become so popular that many users have forgone traditional text messaging completely in favour of the internet-based messaging service. Facebook have tried to get in on some of that action with their own Messenger app, but until now, you needed a Facebook account in order to use it. This is set to change, as the social media monopolisers have realised the potential of internet-based messaging away from the constraints of social media, so now even those who refuse to sign up to Facebook will be able to use the Messenger app by signing up with their phone number. So. Very WhatsApp.
Users will now be able to use the Messenger app by signing up with their phone number, even if they don't have a Facebook account
Louis Boval, a software engineer at Facebook, said of the update: “With Messenger, we’ve been focused on creating the best messaging experience possible by giving people a fun and easy way to connect and express themselves with friends and contacts. If you’re in Canada, the United States, Peru or Venezuela, we are starting to roll out a new way for you to sign up for Messenger without a Facebook account.” Of course, Facebook still recommends signing up via your existing log-in credentials (if you have them) as it says this will streamline the process of messaging friends across multiple devices. But the announcement should definitely be food for thought for WhatsApp users unhappy with the services annual subscription costs, as Facebook Messenger is completely free!
This camera turns the real world into Virtual Reality
Virtual Reality is very much the “In thing” in tech right now, and 3D modelling firm Matterport are jumping onto the bandwagon in a big way with their ambitious $4500 camera, which essentially captures the real world and transforms it into a virtual one. The camera has already been a hit with real estate agents, but with the $30 million it just raised and a newly announced partnership with Google's Project Tango, the tech could be making its way into the mainstream. The partnership with Project Tango is particularly interesting, as it means that in the future you might technically be able to use your phone to map an environment and then transfer that footage into your computer to explore it virtually.
With this tech, you could use your phone to map an environment and then transfer that footage into your computer to explore it virtually
In the past, it took a gigantic, $50,000 rig to capture a VR environment, but Matterport's camera has proven a revelation. Indeed, the company has already sold thousands of its cameras that have generated tens of thousands of virtual scenes explored by over 1.2 million unique viewers per month. Matterport, which spawned out of the Xbox Kinect hacking scene, have aspirations beyond being a simple camera company though, and is instead investing in a software layer that stitches together images into VR. Matterport will be hiring out a top-notch team to make mobile VR scanning a reality thanks to the $30 million Series C led by Qualcomm Ventures. The goal is to produce an SDK and APIs that will let other apps host Matterport’s image stitching to present VR experiences to the public.
Amazon Echo brings voice recognition to the home
Voice recognition is something many of the world's biggest Tech companies have (rather aptly) been making a lot of noise about recently. Indeed, Microsoft were so sold on it that they designed their latest games console (the Xbox One) around it, though this turned out to be a bit of a misstep. Amazon have decided to throw their rather sizeable hat in the ring with a product that's a little less ambitious and a lot more useable. The Amazon Echo is a device designed to be placed around your home to pick up simple voice commands and relate them to your smartphone, tablet, computer, and (most excitingly) WeMo-enabled smart-switches and Philips Hue lights.
Amazon Echo is a device designed to be placed around your home to pick up simple voice commands
Echo’s basic functions include answers to quick queries about measurements, unit conversions, the weather and random trivia, a shared grocery list, and smart home implementation, which means that with the right equipment, you'll eventually be able to control your everything in your home with just your voice. The controls are smart and granular, allowing you to control specific lights by name, or group devices for controlling more than one at once. With Hue, you can even tell Echo exactly how bright you want your lights to be. In other words, it's a genuine godsend for lazy tech heads with a little extra cash in the bank.
Introducing Eargo: The hearing aid of the future
As we age, gradually losing the senses we use to navigate and enjoy the world is a worrying inevitability, so news of technological advances such as Eargo should be music to all of our ears. Launching out of beta last week, Eargo is an invisible, rechargeable hearing aid that's the result of five years of research and $13 million in venture funding. The device is made from flexible fibres which suspend a tiny speaker in your ear, and unlike traditional hearing devices, which block the entire ear drum, these fibres allow certain sound waves to pass through, so the speaker only has to amplify the frequencies that the user has trouble hearing.
Eargo is an invisible, rechargeable hearing aid that's the result of five years of research and $13 million in venture funding
Eargo’s device comes in two sizes and has four settings, which you adjust by tapping the side of your ear. One side can even be set louder than the other! The device, along with a portable charger and inductive home charger, can be purchased on the Eargo site for $1,980. For an additional charge, people with specific hearing problems can also work with Eargo’s team of audiologists to customise the settings on their hearing aid specifically to suit their needs. The device is modelled after a fishing fly, and aspires to be a comfortable, powerful and affordable solution for the hearing impaired, who currently pay on average $4,200 for a hearing aid in the US!
