QTOOTH

Fell Asleep While Watching a Video? Netflix Hack Day has a Wireless App for That

2014-03-01

Like many forward thinking companies, Netflix sponsors its own Hack Day, an in-house competition for generating innovative ideas. The goal of the Netflix Hack Day is mostly just to have fun, but hey, if something cool comes out of it you never know, they may end up incorporating it into their service.

The most recent Netflix Hack Day was held last week. The employees started their projects on Thursday with many of them working through the night to make the following days deadline. Because they have only 24 hours to complete them, their projects may appear a little rough around the edges.

One of our favorites used a FitBit activity tracker that paused the playback of a video if it detected that the wearer had fallen asleep. The app also created a bookmark so that the person could have the option of restarting the video at the same point where they drifted off. Sounds pretty handy to us.

Check out the video demo:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMKDEH8KTak

There was also a project that used Apple’s iBeacon technology for a better sharing experience between multiple Apple products.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_8sA7ON7Q3o

We would have to agree with many of the comments that people left on the Netflix site, the playlist hack is one they should incorporate immediately. And for the gamers out there who view Netflix through their gaming system, the radial project demonstrated a much better way to enter alphanumeric information than what is currently available. Instead of clicking repeatedly through a grid of letters and numbers, the values are arranged in a circle. Spinning an alpha wheel on the game controller allows you to select the value you want similar to using an old fashioned combination lock. Speedy… and smart!

Netflix makes no guarantee that ANY of these will become a reality anytime soon. So what’s a tech fan to do if they don’t want to wait? DO IT THEMSELVES!! That’s what. A few of these projects, especially the sleep/pause hack using an activity tracker, would be pretty easy to do even without an API (application programming interface) or SDK (software development kit) from Netflix. Would you like to know how? There are an ever-increasing number of public hackathons out there that you can attend that will teach you exactly that. There is a big one in San Francisco next week for Wearable Technology development called Wearables DevCon. Click on their banner for more info. We are also media sponsors for a few others, like the Android Developer’s Conference, AnDevCon, coming up in May in Boston.

If you are holding your own hackathon or know of any conferences that involve wireless technology and would like to attend, please let us know. Not only will we list the event on our site, QTOOTH often has a need for roving reporters or, at the very least, might be able to get you in at a discount. Hit us up on our contact page or join our mailing list.

Attention Developers and Hackers: Wearables DevCon is Next Week!

2014-02-25

Are you a developer or hacker who wants to get in on the exciting world of wearable tech? The Wearables DevCon, March 5-7 in San Francisco is the event for you! And at a discount!

Whether you are just getting your feet wet or a seasoned professional, Wearables DevCon is an event tailor-made for designers, builders and developers of wearable computing devices and software. Leading research analysts project up to 400 million devices to be sold annually by 2017. Learn how to develop for the coolest gadgets and next wave of computing devices like Google Glass, FitBit, Pebble, the Sony SmartWatch 2, Jawbone, and the Samsung Gear 2smartwatches and be a part of the wearables technology revolution!

Use code WEARIT for a $200 conference discount. And if you’re in the area and just want to check out the latest in wearable technology, the Wearables DevCon Expo is free! For more information go to: www.wearablesdevcon.com

Also, if you’re more of an East Coast person, check out their sister event coming to Boston, MA May 27-30: AnDevCon – the World’s Biggest Android Developer Training Conference. We’ll be posting more details here soon, but if you’re interested in attending, use our discount code ANDROID to receive $200 off. Click the logo below for more details and to register:

Bluetooth Internet of Things Revolution? Announcing CSR Mesh

2014-02-25

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FtLBazKoFq8&feature=youtu.be

This is huge! Exciting news for Bluetooth and the future of the Internet of Things, or IoT.

Chip manufacturer and Bluetooth pioneer CSR is today announcing their new Bluetooth protocol called CSR Mesh. Soon you will be able to walk through a wired environment, whether its your home or office, even certain public spaces, and your connected smart device will be able to control it for you. This could be either done automatically through settings that you have pre-programmed or done on the fly using voice command, gesture control or interacting with your favorite device’s touch screen. You will be able to control any Bluetooth Smart enabled device from wherever you are, including lighting, heating, appliances, and entertainment and security systems. Best of all, it doesn’t require the complex setup, pairing, or use of an access device such as a router.

What makes this possible? The CSR Mesh protocol allows Bluetooth to create a decentralized network of interconnected Bluetooth Smart devices. Most current, common Bluetooth applications allow for up to seven devices to be available for pairing and yet will allow only two to be active at any time and only within a 33ft/10 meter range. CSR Mesh technology allows each Bluetooth Smart device to communicate with all of the others in the network. Each added device will also extend the working range of the network. With CSR Mesh, you can control up to 65,000 devices in a single network! And if that wasn’t enough, there is virtually no limit to the number of networks that can be setup in a given location.

Why are these types of numbers so necessary for the success of the Internet of Things? It might seem overkill at first, but consider a modern office building. They can be the size of skyscrapers and contain hundreds of businesses and tens of thousands of employees. This will allow each person to have their own personal network that may or may not overlap with their team’s network, that might overlap with their division’s network, that might overlap with their company’s network, that might overlap with the office building’s network… You get the idea. And I hope you are starting to get the scope of what CSR has done. This is an incredible enabler for inventors, developers and manufacturers in every industry. It is limited at this point only by our imagination. CSR put together a great introductory video to help explain the concept (see above).

CSR is already currently working with a number of undisclosed companies that are building products based on CSR Mesh, set to be launched in the near future. This is going to be a quantum leap for all technology, not just wireless. We all knew it was coming, but CSR Mesh is helping make it today’s reality. And if thinking about this has only led you to more questions, you are not alone. We have plenty, and we are going to be leveraging our contacts at CSR to get them answered. This will not be the last post from us concerning Mesh. Stay tuned, we will have more for you soon!

Click here for CSR’s Original Press Release.

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New Smartwatches: The Debut of Samsung Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo

2014-02-25

Samsung is using the Mobile World Congress that is being held in Barcelona this week to reveal its latest line of innovative products. First up was an update on their Galaxy Gear Smartwatch. Introduced in 2013, the original version was mostly greeted with indifference by the general press but found a lot of admirers among a growing user-base of dedicated fans. Samsung has shown that there is a viable market out there for smartwatches. These latest entries, the Gear 2 and the Gear 2 Neo, should help to further add to their level of acceptance.

By Any Other Name… and Oh, and What’s Tizen?

The first thing that gave an indication that serious changes were to be found was that Samsung has dropped “Galaxy” from the name. The two new smartwatches go simply by the names Samsung Gear 2 and Samsung Gear 2 Neo. This is most likely because Samsung wants to differentiate them from the rest of the Galaxy line up, like the S4 and new S5 smartphones. The reason, and perhaps the most important thing to know, is that these watches are no longer Android-based devices. Instead, Samsung has opted to switch to the open source, Linux-based mobile operating system known as Tizen.

Tizen isn’t that well-known outside of developers’ circles yet, but it is a very promising platform that may attract app developers who do not want to work within the constraints set by Apple for iOS or Google for Android. This will also help Samsung move yet one step further away from those two companies who are in effect their rivals. Samsung has been experimenting with smartphones based on Tizen, but they are smart enough not to release a phone to the market until there is enough of an ecosystem of apps to support it. Android and iOS have millions of apps, many of them free. Any phone attempting to compete will need to have a full complement of full featured, powerful apps. A lack of app choices is one of the main things holding back Windows and Blackberry phones from finding more of an audience. App development for these two new smartwatches may be Samsung’s way of laying the perfect foundation for building a Tizen-based ecosystem. We’ll see how things develop over the next year or two, but this move could prove very forward-thinking on the part of Samsung. However, users of the Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo will not notice this switch. The nature of a smartwatch is much different than a phone. Wearable technology tends to focus on doing a limited number of tasks really well and Samsung already has this covered with over 100 available apps. It is also going to release an SDK (software developers kit) so third party developers can get in on the action.

What’s the Difference Between the Gear 2 and the Gear 2 Neo?

There are really only two differences between the Samsung Gear 2 and the Gear 2 Neo. The Gear 2 has a camera and the Gear 2 Neo does not. The Gear 2 has a brushed metal body and the Gear 2 Neo has a plastic body.

What Makes the Samsung Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo Different from the Original Galaxy Gear?

Well first, let’s start off with what’s the same: The display is still a 1.6-inch Super AMOLED screen with a 320×320 pixel resolution, the RAM is still at 512MB, internal storage remains at 4GB, and they still work on Bluetooth 4.0. Just about everything else has changed.

The biggest improvement came from listening to the feedback of users of the the original Galaxy Gear. The camera, microphone, and antennae were all originally located on the strap. For the camera, this meant that shooting pictures required holding your wrist and arm at an odd angle. In order to speak into the device, the user had to flip their wrist over away from the watch face and the speaker because the microphone was located on the clasp of the strap. And because the camera, microphone, and antennae needed to maintain their electronic connections to the body of the watch, this setup prohibited the wearer from changing out the strap for different styles. The Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo have moved all of these components to the body of the watch itself. This has made for a much improved shooting angle for the camera on the Gear 2 and, for both models, an easier time using the microphone while listening to the speaker and the ability to swap out the straps for any traditional watch wristbands on the market. This will help the user to truly customize the look of the watch. Plus, they’ve also added a couple of new watch body colors into the mix.

What else has changed besides the OS and the interchangeable straps? Processors have been improved from an 800MHz single core to a 1GHz dual core. A Bluetooth music player is included so that the user can stream music stored on their watch to any Bluetooth compatible audio system without the need for their phone. This could be handy for working out without worrying about carrying a phone. They also come with a built-in infrared projector which allows the included app to turn your watch into a remote for TVs and other entertainment systems. Because it is one of the most used functions of any existing wrist-mounted wearable tech, a heart rate monitor and its accompanying app are also included. The screen glows when you tell it to check your vitals, pulsing every 90 seconds. If you use it with one of the personal coaching apps it will use haptic feedback, otherwise known as a vibration alarm, plus on-screen notifications to let you know you should pick up the pace.

The size of these devices has also gotten a little smaller. Because it lacks a camera, the Gear 2 Neo is slightly smaller than the Gear 2. Both of the new units are also smaller than the original Galaxy Gear. This is due in part to the fact that the new versions have a slightly smaller battery. This has caused some to be concerned about battery life and how often they will need to be recharged. The original Galaxy Gear initially had issues with short battery life until a software update increased the average time to about a day to a day and a half. However, Samsung promises that the new devices will last between two and a half to five days between charges. this is most likely because of the new Tizen operating system. The smaller sizes also mean less weight. The Gear 2 is about 10% lighter and the Gear 2 Neo is about 25% lighter than the original Galaxy Gear. This should help improve comfort and their long term wearability.

The body of both versions is IP67 certified for dust and water resistance. This means that they can be submerged in water for up to 30 minutes at a depth of 3 feet/1 meter and should suffer no ill effects. This isn’t foolproof, but it is a great improvement and helps safeguard against one of the most common threats to electronics that no one likes to talk about or even think about… landing in a toilet. It also means that showering with it on should be okay.

Will the Samsung Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo Work with My Device?

In addition to the new Samsung Galaxy S5, the Gear 2 series will work with Samsung’s Galaxy S III, Galaxy S4, Galaxy S4 Mini, Galaxy S4 Active, Galaxy S4 Zoom, Galaxy Mega, Galaxy Note 2, Galaxy Note 3, Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 Edition, Galaxy Note Pro, and Galaxy Tab Pro (12.2, 10.1, 8.4).

How much will the Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo Cost?

Samsung hasn’t released any final pricing on these yet, but consensus says that the Gear 2 will probably be about the same as the current Galaxy Gear at $299 and the Gear 2 Neo is expected to be about $100 less. Although a specific date hasn’t been released, Samsung says that both models will be available for sale in April.

Do I Need a Gear 2 or a Gear 2 Neo Smartwatch?

This is a question many people are asking, even those who make these things! Traditional watches have fallen out of widespread use in general. We have clocks everywhere, on our car dashboards, on our appliances, and especially on our computers, tablets and phones. However, there are still quite a few people who do wear them, and the added functionality that a smartwatch provides may entice a few more to start wearing them again. They may never gain as much market share as a smartphone, but they do have their place and only time will tell how big the audience is. No matter what the answer ends up being, smartwatches will most likely be here to stay, in some form or another.

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The Dash – The Latest Entry in the Dawn of the Smart Headphone

2014-02-16

The latest product to make a splash on Kickstarter as of last week is The Dash, an in-ear wireless headphone. The Dash looks to be a strong entry into the growing class of devices known as smart headphones. In order to make the device qualify as “smart”, the creators of The Dash have included a variety of sensors that can be used to track the wearers health and to communicate and control connected devices wirelessly.

Although we have some questions about some of its component and design choices, the device shows a tremendous amount of promise. Here’s their promo video and info direct from their Kickstarter campaign:

Click for Zoomed View of Internal Components

Overall we are incredibly impressed with their choices of components and the featured functionality of The Dash. Here are what we think are some of the pros:

CSR’s AptX circuitry – for delivering quality audio over Bluetooth
The use of 3-axis and accelerometer sensors in both the left and right ear buds for greater accuracy of motion tracking
Onboard media/music storage (4GB) and playback for greater audio quality than available over Bluetooth and use even when not connected to another device or smart phone
The ability to use the built-in ambient mic to listen to the immediate environment – a great safety feature for when the ears are plugged by use of the device
The ability to turn features on and off via an app – Currently the practical battery charge is about 3 hours when all of the internal circuitry is on and working. Turning of functions that aren’t currently being used will allow the battery life to be extended
A companion storage case that will be able to recharge the ear buds within an hour several times before it too needs to be recharged

Here are some of our potential cons. Since the device may evolve yet before its official introduction to the world, and since we have not personally tried The Dash, these questions may not add up to a hill o’ beans. Here they are any way:

The use of an ear bone microphone for speech – In our experience, we are yet to find an ear bone microphone that really works well, especially for communicating speech. Microphones and speakers that rely on bone conduction are usually significantly lacking in treble response. This is where the clarity of any sound occurs and how we can differentiate one consonant sound from another. Without those high frequencies clearly articulated “P” can sound like “B”, “T” can sound like “D”, and so on. This can cause a lot of confusion for the person on the other end of the line. Perhaps the folks at Bragi have found the ultimate microphone for this, but there is a reason why Google recently abandoned the bone conduction audio on their much anticipate Google Glass. Used in tandem with a traditional microphone that picks up sound from airwaves, a bone conduction microphone can be a great asset (like the way it is used on the Jawbone headsets). In this case we are skeptical, especially since conduction microphones work best when they are held securely against bone. As far as we can tell, The Dash will mostly be surrounded by the softer flesh and cartilage of the folds of the inner ear. Perhaps they can still make it work in conjunction with their ambient mic? Or at least make it an option?
A claim of “waterproof” – Sure, they only claim water resistance to 1m (about 3 feet), but they also claim that it should be okay for daily swimming, albeit with reduced functionality. They also feature pictures of surfing a wave. I’m not sure who only swims to a depth of 1 meter. Diving into a pool, pushing off the wall at the turn of a lap, or getting hit by a wave will probably easily exceed the water pressure of 1 bar/ 1 meter that they claim. It will be interesting to see what real world use of actual customers demonstrates. But just to be clear, we are still thrilled with the direction that Bragi is taking with The Dash. This level of water resistance should mean that getting caught in the rain or keeping the music going or taking a quick call when hitting the post workout shower should be a non-issue.
Passive Noise Reduction – This is a rather cryptic way of saying that The Dash works as an ear plug. They lay claim to the fact that this will help isolate the wearer from noise from their environment. True! Bragi does make some effort to differentiate what they are doing from active noise cancellation circuitry, but we just wanted to clarify the terms for those who may be less familiar. Good active noise reduction circuitry will actually do a better job of reducing noise across a broader range of frequencies than an ear plug. Bragi states that they have kept out the more expensive active noise reduction because it would reduce the battery life. This makes sense, especially considering that the size of this device is quite small and leaves little room for the extra circuitry or increased battery size that might be required. We’d also like to point out that although The Dash provides an ambient microphone to help the user stay aware of their surroundings when necessary, this is not as accurate for positioning those sounds within the environment. All of the folds and curves of the human ear are not just there to make them look as pretty as a sea shell, they serve the purpose of helping us locate sounds. Even if a person is deaf in one ear, as long as the other ear is reasonable healthy, human hearing is incredibly accurate in determining location. This is super beneficial for survival and one of the main reasons I never ride my bike while wearing headphones. I rely on my hearing far too much to help me know exactly where that SUV is in relationship to my rear wheel! Even with the ambient mics active, plugging both ears with The Dash will greatly reduce the wearer’s hearing location abilities.
Reflectance Pulse Oximetry – Say what?! That’s the fancy term for the technology behind how The Dash measures heart rate and oxygen saturation (the amount of oxygen carried by the blood). Reflectance pulse oximetry uses two tiny LEDs to emit low intensity red and infrared light into the capillaries of the ear. The optical reflection of the emitted light reveals the relative amount of red and white blood cells and can be interpreted as both heart rate and oxygen saturation. So far in, other devices, this approach has proven to be a less than perfect way to measure this information. Perhaps having it located on the inside of the ear and using whatever associated circuitry Bragi has developed will greatly improve accuracy. We hope so. This is one of the key features of The Dash and helps combine multiple wearable devices into one. We love the idea!
Comfort and secure mounting – Bragi claims that the 3 sizes that they offer for the ear molds will comfortably fit 94% of the population. Maybe so, but many other headset manufacturers offer the similar and make the same claim. We’ve found that ALL devices that are stuffed into the ear canal increase our desire to remove them the longer we wear them. And although we believe that The Dash mounts securely in the ear (see image below) we wonder what will happen if we do shake them loose, say when swimming or surfing. It would be nice if they added some optional, secondary means of attachment. Maybe an ear hook or some form of leash? Just a thought…

So there you have it, our quick take on The Dash. We’re very excited for them and they are absolutely crushing it on Kickstarter. Check them out when you get a chance and maybe get in line for your own pair by making a pledge toward their campaign. We here at QTOOTH will definitely be keeping an ear out for any news as they get closer to release or when they become available next November!

Going Wacky for Wireless at the Sochi Olympics

2014-02-09

There will be many firsts at the Sochi Olympics and we are not just talking about the sporting events. There is also a brand new public, state of the art ultrafast wireless network so people can make the most of their Olympic experience using their smartphones and tablets.

Two local phone companies were awarded contracts by President Vladimir Putin to install the half a billion dollar network. It promises to deliver plenty of network capacity and data speeds that should average ten times the Russian national average. Although the two companies, MegaFon and OAO Rostelecom, may never get a full return on their investment, they hope that it will raise their visibility and reputations as true global players in the wireless telecom market. We’re pretty sure Putin wouldn’t mind a bump in his street cred among the tech savvy either.

It’s interesting to note that they may have overdone it. MegaFon has installed 900 base stations and antennas on the two square kilometers (0.8 square mile) that will host most of the competitions. Tigran Pogosyan, head of MegaFon’s Sochi project, has reportedly said that according to their advisers at Qualcomm, the San Diego-based wireless technology company, it is the highest density of mobile equipment anywhere in the world. However, after the games are done this is far more than is needed for that area. Perhaps they could formulate a plan to re-use the equipment elsewhere.

Palm Trees at the Winter Olympics?

Most people do not associate palm trees with the Winter Olympics. However, due to its unique geography, Sochi is one of those places where warm body of water that keeps things relatively mild all year round but is still close enough that for a quick drive to mountains whose elevations provide the perfect conditions for snow. Being based in Los Angeles, QTOOTH is quite familiar with this arrangement. and it looks like the folks at Sochi have gotten hip to something that those in Southern California have made use of for quite a few years now: wireless base station towers disguised as palm trees.

Most stadiums and convention centers use as few as a single base station to transmit mobile phone calls and data. Each of Olympic venues in Sochi, on the other hand, have dozens. The main stadium, the Fisht, has thirty just to itself! Because of the sheer density of wireless towers and antennas, MegaFon wisely decided to camouflage them by disguising them as the local flora. Wise choice, and it definitely goes a long way to keeping Sochi beautiful.

It Looked Good in Practice. How About in Performance?

MegaFon expected data speeds to average 35 megabits a second at the Sochi Olympics. To give you a comparison, Verizon Wireless, the largest U.S. wireless carrier, advertises speeds of 5 to 12 megabits for its 4G connections.

So far, the performance of the network has seen mixed reviews. It works great… when it works. There seems to be spotty reception in some areas. Some have also experienced block outs where they can’t get on the network, most likely from the overload of too many users and not enough bandwidth. It’s seems a fair to cut the providers some slack, though. After all, this is virgin territory for all companies no matter where they are from. Similar issues were seen at the 2012 Olympics in London and the situation has only gotten to be more complicated. That was 2 years ago. Since then there has been an incredible worldwide explosion in the number of people using smartphones and tablets. This isn’t just an American or first world phenomenon, athletes and tourists from every corner of the globe are using these devices to surf the web, share photos and watch videos at ever-increasing rates.

Event Access Like Never Before- via Wireless

For the Sochi Olympics, MegaFon developed an application that lets tablet and smartphone users watch live broadcasts and repeats of the competitions. This means that a spectator at an Alpine event could also live stream a hockey game on a tablet screen at the same time. Want one more reason to become an Olympic champion beside getting a medal? Samsung, which sponsors the games, is handing out free Galaxy Note 3 tablets to athletes so they can stay in touch with fans, friends and family.

As we move forward into the wireless world of tomorrow, these types of services will become routine. Cities and venues will already have most, if not all, of the infrastructure in place. The whole thing will seem less of a big deal. Until then, here’s how it’s done. All we need to do is learn how to refine the experience.