Qualcomm wants your phone to drive your next VR and AR headsets

Qualcomm wants to create a new device category, XR viewer headsets, that combine the compute power of its current Snapdragon 855 platform with the speed of 5G on a smartphone to provide you with mobile VR and AR experiences — or ‘Extended Reality,’ as Qualcomm likes to call it — with six degrees of freedom […]

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Microsoft and Trimble made a hardhat with HoloLens built-in

Microsoft is really hoping to get down to business with the next version of the Hololens. In fact, the software giant announced a new customization program for the HoloLens 2. How, precisely such customized versions of the XR headset will look remains to be seen, but the company’s first partner, construction hardware company Trimble, is […]

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First look at Samsung’s sleek Galaxy Watch Active

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It was easy to miss amid all the foldable phone hype, but Samsung revealed its latest smartwatch Wednesday at its Unpacked event: the $199 Galaxy Watch Active.

But just because it didn’t have much time in the spotlight doesn’t mean the Galaxy Watch Active  isn’t worth checking out. While Samsung’s prior smartwatches have tended to be massive, its latest wearable is much more subtle — and one I’m much more likely to want to actually wear.

Meet the Galaxy Watch Active

A followup to last year’s Galaxy Watch, the first thing you’ll notice about the Galaxy Watch Active is that it’s not nearly as bulky as the relatively massive Galaxy Watch.  Read more…

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Samsung’s new Galaxy Watch Active tracks blood pressure

You’ve got to hand it to Samsung. The company sure threw a LOT at us during today’s Unpacked event — five phones (including the foldable), earbuds, a fitness track and the Galaxy Watch Active, the company’s latest smartwatch. The biggest news on the watch front finds the company embracing user health, much like the rest […]

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Now Puma has self-lacing sneakers, too

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The task we learned in kindergarten is apparently too dang hard.

Puma debuted its latest smartphone-connected self-lacing shoe called Fit Intelligence, or, “Fi,” giving Nike’s Adapt BB sneakers a run for their money. Puma released its first generation self-lacing shoes in 2016. But it says that the new Fi is powered by a “state of the art technology platform” that will allow your shoes to, uh, fit really well. 

Fi will apparently power other smart footwear products. Smart laces are — *gazes off into the cosmos* — just the beginning. Read more…

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China continues 5G push despite economic slowdown and Huawei setbacks

China will fast-track the issuance of commercial licenses for 5G as part of a national plan to boost consumer spending, said a notice published this week by the National Development and Reform Commission. The move appears to be multifaceted, for 5G plays a key role in China’s bid to lead the global technology race and one […]

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Samsung is ditching plastic packaging

Samsung Electronics said Sunday it will replace plastic packaging used for its bevy of products from mobile phones and tablets to home appliances and wearables with paper and other environmentally sustainable materials like recycled/bio-based plastics. Samsung will start making the switch in the first half of the year. The company aims to only use paper packaging materials […]

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Alphabet’s Verily scores FDA clearance for its ECG monitor

Big week for Google wearable news — which, honestly, I not a phrase I expected to write in 2019. But a day after the company announced an agreement to purchase Fossil’s wearable technology for $40 million, Alphabet-owned research group Verily just scored FDA clearance for its electrocardiogram (ECG) technology. The clearance pertains specifically to the […]

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Google is buying Fossil’s smartwatch tech for $40 million

Rumors about a Pixel Watch have abounded for years. Such a device would certainly make sense as Google attempts to prove the viability of its struggling wearable operating system, Wear OS. Seems the company is finally getting serious about the prospect. Today Fossil announced plans to sell its smartwatch IP to the software giant for […]

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Apple reportedly looking to subsidize Watch with Medicare plans

If nothing else, the addition of ECG/EKG reinforced Apple’s commitment to evolving the Watch into a serious medical device. The company has long looked to bring its best selling wearable to various health insurance platforms, and according to a new report, it’s reaching out to multiple private Medicare plans in hopes of subsidizing the product. […]

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