Yesterday, Magic Leap CEO Rony Abovitz and NBA commissioner Adam Silver announced plans to eventually bring Turner-owned NBA content to Magic Leap’s elusive AR goggles, by casting virtual screens in front of a wearer’s face through the goggles. It wasn’t an earth-shattering announcement, but it was an indication that Magic Leap’s tech could be more than billion-dollar vaporware, and that the company is thinking about the kind of content needed to convince people to wear light-field face computers. What’s more interesting is that Abovitz believes volumetric video — a way of capturing video as 3D objects and scenes — will be live-streamed to people’s faces within a relatively short period of time, and that the kind of cameras used to make this happen will eventually replace traditional broadcast cameras. In an interview with The Verge, Abovitz said that within “two to five years,” it will be technically possible for people … [Read more...] about Magic Leap promises live-streamed holograms within five years
Magic
Amazon Tap review: Alexa’s magic is gone
The Amazon Tap is a black cylinder that measures about the height of a large glass of water. It’s a little shorter than the $149.99 UE Boom 2 and noticeably smaller, all around, than the $179.99 Amazon Echo. My favorite feature of the Tap is its included charging cradle, which saves you the hassle of reaching behind a desk or couch to untangle a charging cable when this thing runs out of juice. Amazon estimates that the Tap’s battery will last for nine hours of music playback, and since it sleeps when it’s not being used, and I regularly dropped it back in its cradle to charge, I was never surprised by a dead battery. The idea for the Amazon Tap is compelling: you get an affordable Bluetooth speaker that also happens to do some smart assistant stuff. But this idea only works adequately. The sound quality of the Tap’s Dolby-powered, omnidirectional speakers is mediocre, at best, for listening to music. And every time I played the same song on it and the UE Boom … [Read more...] about Amazon Tap review: Alexa’s magic is gone
Magic Leap Creator Edition Priced Like High-End Tablet, Smartphone
Magic Leap’s founder and CEO, Rony Abovitz, sat down for an on-camera interview at Recode’s Code Media Conference to discuss the company’s upcoming Magic Leap digital lightfield platform. Abovitz wouldn’t discuss the finer details about the Magic Leap Creator Edition, which is set to launch later this year. However, the executive revealed enough to set the expectation that Magic Leap headsets won’t be cheap devices. Mass Market Pricing? Don't Hold Your Breath! Abovitz didn’t reveal the specific price of the Magic Leap Creator Edition headset. However, when pressed, he conceded that it wouldn’t be a $200 mass-consumer device. Abovitz set the expectation that Magic Leap devices would be pricey, not only at launch but well into the future. “I think we’re pricing it—it’s a premium computer so that I would think of it that way,” Abovitz said. He added that the company isn’t pursuing a path to bring the price down … [Read more...] about Magic Leap Creator Edition Priced Like High-End Tablet, Smartphone
For UN, tech’s help is no ‘magic bullet’ in humanitarian crises (Q&A)
This story is part of our Road Trip 2016 summer series "Life, Disrupted," about how technology is helping with the global refugee crisis -- if at all. When earthquakes crumble cities and tsunamis wreak havoc, Stephen O'Brien gets a call. As chief of emergency relief for the United Nations for the past year, O'Brien's job is to scramble aid -- fast -- whenever a crisis hits. That's why he knows that governments and aid groups can use all the help they can get when disaster strikes. The need for services, support and resources in all the humanitarian crises taking place around the world today is "eye-wateringly huge." It's one of these crises that inspired this year's CNET Road Trip project. Called "Life, Disrupted," the series looks at conflicts in the Middle East that have led 1.1 million people to flee Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq and seek shelter in Europe and other parts of the world. The goal: To find out how tech is helping with the refugee crisis, if at all. CNET's … [Read more...] about For UN, tech’s help is no ‘magic bullet’ in humanitarian crises (Q&A)
Harry Potter Hogwarts Great Hall in Lego is pure magic
So you never got your Hogwarts letter. Make your own version of Harry Potter's wizarding school with this new Lego set depicting the school's famed Great Hall, where I have always wanted to have Christmas dinner.The set will go on sale Aug. 1 for $100 (£71, AU$126), and includes some magical details. Get ready to sniffle at the Mirror of Erised, showing Harry and his late parents, James and Lily Potter. Another neat touch: The house banners you can hang in the Great Hall. Ravenclaw 4 life!But my favorite parts are the minifigs, including Harry and pals, Hagrid, Dumbledore, and Nearly Headless Nick, the Gryffindor ghost. (More expansion packs will come later, and we need Moaning Myrtle because COME ON, LEGO.) Extra points for including the Sorting Hat and Ron's rat Scabbers, among others.And at $100, it's not early as pricey as this $800 Millennium Falcon set. Which is great for those of us who don't quite have Harry's overstuffed vault in the Gringotts Bank.First published Feb. … [Read more...] about Harry Potter Hogwarts Great Hall in Lego is pure magic