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The Week in Tech

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Apple find their bearings

Only the most steadfast Apple apologist would argue that the Apple Maps service can come even close to comparing with Google Maps. Indeed, statistics suggest that almost twice as many iPhone owners prefer to get directions and look up addresses on the Google version, compared to Apple’s native app. That could all be set to change though, as reports this weekend have revealed that Apple bought the high-precision navigation service Coherent Navigation, with the CN team to join the Apple Maps team.

Apple have bought the high-precision navigation service Coherent Navigation

Apple hasn't divulged exactly when it bought the company, or for how much, but a quick perusal of his LinkedIn page shows that CEO Paul G. Lego has been working with Apple for the last 5 months. Of course, this is n't the first mapping tech firm Apple has bought with the hopes of catching up to Google, as they snapped up mapping startups BroadMap, Embark and HopStop.com back in 2013. A statement from Apple stated: “Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans.” So keeping it pretty tight lipped as per usual then.

 

Drive a tank with a Playstation controller!

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According to Sputnik International, a new range of Russian infantry fighting vehicles can be controlled by a device based on the humble Playstation DualShock controller! Using a design that has been tweaked over 3 decades makes sense, as the controller has been steadily improving since the original DualShock was released for the original Playstation in the late 90's. A controller the size of a DualShock would also take up less space in a cockpit and would (presumably at least) cost less to manufacture. The Kurganets-25 is being built by leading Russian machine building company Tractor Plants , and is a 25-ton tank that features a 2A42 30 mm auto-cannon, four Kornet-EM anti-tank guided missile launchers and upgradeable modular armour. The Kurganets-25 IFV and APC variants were first shown off to the public during the 2015 Moscow Victory Day Parade rehearsals, and are slated to enter mass production next year.

A new range of Russian infantry fighting vehicles can be controlled by a device based on the Playstation DualShock controller

Tractor Plants vice-president Albert Bakov said: “I spent two years on convincing the designers to make the console similar to a Sony Playstation gamepad, to make it easier for a young soldier to familiarise himself with it. As it turns out, a steering wheel is dangerous for the rib cage during an impact and when climbing out. It takes up more space but provides nothing.” It's unclear, of course, whether the design is based on the older DualShock 3 or the new DualShock 4, but either way, it technically means that (having spent a fair amount of time on the old Dualshockers myself) I could quite happily control a tank! How awesome is that!?

 

Introducing the 10 Core mobile processor

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Mobile technology is improving at an exponential rate, to the extent that we now carry devices in our pockets that are more powerful than desktop machines we were using just a few years ago. Yet another big leap forward happened in mobile processing this week when the Taiwanese manufacturer MediaTek unveiled the Helio X20, a deca-core (that's 10 to you and me) mobile processor! The ten cores are split up into three clusters, with a dual-core handling the most intensive tasks, and two quad-cores taking care of everything else. MediaTek claims that setting it up this way saves 30% on battery life, because if only one cluster is engaged then the others can power down until they're needed. The Helio X20 will launch in December 2015, and is (obviously) designed to be put in only the most high-end smartphones.

 

Facebook's Instant Articles

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This week, Facebook unveiled the long rumoured “Instant Articles”, a program that natively hosts publishers’ content in the Facebook app’s news feed. Instant Articles debuted last Tuesday (May 12) with rich-media stories from The New York Times, BuzzFeed, National Geographic, and six other outlets that were visible through Facebook’s iPhone app. Ads can appear inside Instant Articles, with publishers keeping 100% of revenue if they sell them, and Facebook keeping its standard 30% if it sells the ads. Instant Articles won’t receive preferential treatment from Facebook's sorting algorithm, but if users click, like, comment, and share them more often than others, they might show up more frequently like any piece of popular content, which could incentivize more publishers to adopt the new format.

This week, Facebook unveiled their long rumoured “Instant Articles” program

Beyond just loading faster, Instant Articles can be made to feel like a publisher's website by displaying articles with different fonts, layouts, and formats. Facebook is also providing options like embedding zoomable photos, videos, and maps with audio captions. Justin Osofsky, the company’s VP Of Global Operations and Media Partnerships, said publishers can have “The same tools that an app developer has,” and that they’re “Not stuck with what the (conventional) mobile web can offer.” If the test is well received, Facebook hopes to add more publishers in the coming weeks with the eventual goal of making it available to any outlet that shares stories on Facebook.

 

Rise of the sentient machines on the horizon?

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Though many baulked at Professor Steven Hawking's recent assertions that computers could potentially rise up and overthrow us within the next 100 years, a recent project from researchers at RMIT University in Melbourne suggests that his theory might not be half as batty as many first though. They have reportedly created a nano memory cell which can mimic the human brain's long term memory process, with the multi-state cell able to store and access multiple pieces of information at the same time in the same manner as a human brain. The researchers have even been able to introduce controlled defects in the oxide material in order to imitate how past experiences can affect memory.

Researchers at RMIT University in Melbourne have reportedly created a nano memory cell which can mimic the human brain's long term memory process

This isn't the first time RMIT scientists have created something that sounds like it fell out of a Philip K Dick novel, as they previously worked on artificial memories using an oxide material 10,000 times thinner than a human hair. This new nano cell is an expansion on that work. The hope is that this new technology will be a huge step forward in the treatment of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's patients, as it brings us closer to being able to actually develop a bionic brain. Scary or fascinating? I'm on the fence!

 

It's retro gaming, but not as we know it

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Retro gaming has been making a real comeback of late, what with the success of Hyperkin's Retron 5 console, and the recent spate of well-received, retro indebted indie games. But Mike Kennedy from GameGavel and Retro magazine has gone a step further and created an entirely new console called the Retro VGS, which has been designed to play retro style cartridges. The console will not be a platform to run your old cartridges (like the Retron range), but will instead run brand-new games inspired by retro titles. A Kickstarter campaign is planned for later this year and I'm already on board!

Benjamin Hiorns is a freelance writer, struggling musician and gadget enthusiast from Kidderminster in the UK.

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