Kamis, 04 Juli 2019

Wirecutter’s best deals: $450 off an LG OLED TV - Engadget

This post was done in partnership with Wirecutter. When readers choose to buy Wirecutter's independently chosen editorial picks, it may earn affiliate commissions that support its work. Read Wirecutter's continuously updated list of deals here.

LG B8 55-Inch OLED TV

LG TV

Street price: $1450; deal price: $1000

At $1000, this is a new low for the 55-inch size of this OLED TV, beating previous low pricing from reliable retailers by about a hundred dollars. While we're seeing the expected drops on last year's OLEDs at this point, it's still a great price and one well worth your notice. It's also available from Best Buy for the same price if you want a store pickup option.

The LG B8 is the runner-up pick in our guide to the best OLED TV. Wirecutter Senior Staff Writer Chris Heinonen wrote, "If the LG C8 is out of stock, or if you just want to save a little money, the LG B8 offers almost identical performance, usually for about $200 less. The C8 produces slightly improved image processing and brighter highlights, so we recommend buying it over the B8, but with a lot of movie and TV content, you would be unlikely to notice the difference."

Heinonen continues, "Aside from some external styling differences, the main difference between the C8 and B8 is the SoC (system on a chip) that each TV uses. The C8 uses a more advanced version that allows for better color accuracy (because of a larger LUT) and more advanced video processing, which results in cleaner gradients between colors and other image improvements—but even so, the improvement over the B8 isn't huge."

Wemo Mini Smart Outlet

WeMo

Street price: $25; deal price: $18

On sale once again for $18, this is a nice deal on this recommended smart outlet. The Wemo Mini is a reliable, compact, affordable and easy to use smart outlet that offers an easy way into the world of smart-home devices. This model supports Alexa, HomeKit/Siri, Google Assistant, Nest, and IFTTT. We've seen a number of deals for this smart plug in recent months, but this is still a good price if you're looking to try out a smart outlet. Also from Best Buy with store pickup.

The Wemo Mini is the top pick in our guide to the best plug-in smart outlet. Wirecutter Staff Writer Rachel Cericola wrote, "The Wemo Mini is the only model that has been rock-solid reliable over long-term use, offers a compact design that won't block both outlets on a wall plate, and supports all the major voice-control platforms. Like most of the smart plug-in switches we tested, the Wemo Mini is easy to set up: Plug it into an outlet, download an app to your phone, make the wireless connection, and then control lamps, small appliances, and even higher-draw devices like fans and air conditioners."

Q Acoustics 3020i Bookshelf Speakers

Wirecutter

Street price: $300; deal price: $270

While not a huge discount, this is a new low price for the Q Acoustics 3020i and the first sale we've posted. At $270, it's nice to get a discount where you can on speakers we already think look and perform better than their typical $300 price point. These speakers come in four finishes that should be able to match just about any decor, and they're all on sale right now.

The Q Acoustics 3020i are the top pick in our guide to the best bookshelf speakers. Wirecutter Senior Staff Writer Chris Heinonen wrote, "The Q Acoustics 3020i bookshelf speakers impressed us with their clarity, detail, wide soundstage, and excellent bass response with a wide variety of music. This pair also features the best build quality we've seen in a speaker set of this price, with high-quality binding posts (as opposed to cheaper spring-clip attachments), magnetically attached grilles, and nicely rounded corners that resist chipping. The 3020i set comes in a variety of finishes to match your decor, and Q Acoustics sells a matching center channel for use in a home theater system. The 3020i is a bit larger than the prior 3020 (which was our previous top pick), but we still consider it to be fairly compact."

UST 30-Day Duro LED Lantern (Glo White)

Wirecutter

Street price: $32; deal price: $25

Down to $25 from $32, if you like to camp and are in need of an LED lantern, this is a great price for one of our recommendations in a Glo White finish. In our guide, we praise this lantern for providing enough power to light an entire campsite, including a lifetime warranty, and offering great battery life. While we saw some extreme lows during Black Friday, this is one of the best prices we've seen since.

The UST 3-Day Duro LED Lantern is the top pick in our guide to the best LED lantern. Eric Hansen wrote, "The 30-Day shines brightly enough that you can read text on a page from 38 feet away. It also dims to a cozy glow inside a tent, and offers a rare medium setting that's perfect for, say, two people cooking dinner. Even though the 30-Day's battery lid can be difficult to manipulate in the dark, the long runtimes mean that batteries rarely need to be changed. Amazon reviewers have enjoyed testing UST's bold runtime claims only to find that the claims are actually conservative."

Because great deals don't just happen on Thursday, sign up for our daily deals email and we'll send you the best deals we find every weekday. Also, deals change all the time, and some of these may have expired. To see an updated list of current deals, please go here.

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https://www.engadget.com/2019/07/04/wirecutter-best-deals-lg-oled-tv/

2019-07-04 16:30:13Z
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Next build of Google Camera app (v6.3) puts Night Sight front and center - Phone Arena

According to 9to5 Google, the next beta build of Android Q is expected to include version 6.3 of the Google Camera app that brings some changes to the Pixel Night Sight feature. For those unfamiliar with Night Sight, it is a setting that uses algorithms to capture viewable pictures under low-light conditions. Currently, to access Night Sight you need to to open the camera and tap on "More," or receive a suggestion when setting up a shot in the dark. But it appears that Night Sight has earned a spot in the main UI where it will replace the Panorama option. That will put it on the same playing field as other important selections like Portrait, Camera, and Video.
With Google Camera 6.3, Pixel users will tap Night Sight or swipe right twice to activate the feature. Users will still receive a suggestion when to turn on Night Sight. And as you might have already figured out, Panorama replaces Night Sight in the More tab.

Making Night Sight easier to launch isn't the only thing new in Google Camera 6.3. This build removes all white balance and color temperature controls and does away with the thermometer icon at the top of the screen. The new and slightly different Google Lens icon unveiled at Google I/O makes its first appearance on the Pixels, and the front-facing flash for selfies has been renamed "Illumination." That makes sense since there really is no front-facing flash on the phones.

Some of the changes coming to version 6.3 of the Google Camera app

Some of the changes coming to version 6.3 of the Google Camera app

While this new Google Camera build works with Android 9 Pie, it might not be available to the majority of Pixel users until Android Q is officially disseminated. Another possibility is that Google simply offers the update via the Google Play Store. The promotion of Night Sight to the main interface is a result of its importance among Pixel users who probably use it much more often than the Panorama setting. In addition, Google has been heavily promoting Night Sight in ads that compare low-light photos taken with the feature to those taken by the Apple iPhone XS. It doesn't make sense to promote something that is buried in an app.
The next build of Google Camera will eliminate the temperature icon currently found on the top of the UI

The next build of Google Camera will eliminate the temperature icon currently found on the top of the UI

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https://www.phonearena.com/news/Night-Sight-is-front-and-center-in-next-Google-Camera-build_id117260

2019-07-04 15:58:03Z
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You can't drive Ford's first million-dollar car on the street - Fox News

The first million-dollar Ford has arrived.

The Ford GT Mk II is a track-day version of the GT supercar that’s more powerful and offers better handling than the road car. It’s not street legal, nor is it certified for any racing series. Instead, it’s one of a new breed of supercar that lives between the two worlds and is simply meant to have fun with.

The GT Mk II features a 700 hp version of the GT’s 647 hp 3.5-liter turbocharged V6 and is equipped with extra cooling features, including a water spray for the charge air cooler and a roof-mounted air intake. Its aerodynamics package has been modified with a large wing and an eye on improving downforce, and it rides on a set of Michelin Pilot Sport slicks. The cabin is equipped with two Sparco racing seats, a roll cage and a performance computer.

Aside from the ability to generate cornering loads of 2g, Ford hasn’t detailed its performance specifications, but the stock GT can hit 60 mph in 3 seconds and tops out at 216 mph, while regulations restrict the racing GT to about 500 hp.

Ford will only build 45 GT Mk IIs priced at $1.2 million each. The standard model costs $450,000 and the GT line will be limited to 1,350 cars before its production run ends in 2022.

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https://www.foxnews.com/auto/you-cant-drive-fords-first-million-dollar-car-on-the-street

2019-07-04 15:32:55Z
52780326296888

Ford won't use extreme GT version for WEC hypercar - Multimatic - autosport.com

Ford will not use its GT as the basis for an entry into the World Endurance Championship's hypercar class, according to Multimatic motorsport boss Larry Holt.

The GT made its WEC debut in 2016 as part of a four-year deal between Ford Performance and Multimatic to run the factory-backed programme.

That deal expired after last month's Le Mans 24 Hours, although Multimatic - which developed and builds the road and race GT - is seeking to continue with the car in a privateer capacity.

On the first day of the Goodwood Festival of Speed, the two companies unveiled a GT MkII track-only variant but ruled out using it as the foundation for a planned entry into the hypercar class.

Holt told Autosport: "No, the new car has not been done with [the hypercar class] in mind at all.

"Ford did their deal for four years, they've done what they said they would do.

"Are they looking at what they want to do next? Yeah, they are.

"The GT would be the closest thing to a GTE-plus car, but that's not the way [the ACO] have gone.

"They've gone to hypercar rules. That's not a hypercar.

Although Holt ruled out the use of the GT, he said that Ford was still actively looking to join Aston Martin and Toyota in 2020/21 for the opening season of the hypercar regulations.

"There's nothing in the MKII [that points to a hypercar future], but Ford are looking at everything.

"They're in a mode now where they're investigating."

But Holt was confident that if Ford did enter the class it would return to Multimatic with whom it won the GTE Pro class of Le Mans in 2016, saying "we're joined at the hip".

With over 700bhp and additional downforce, Holt said the reveal of the MkII GT was instead the "ultimate expression" of the GT that had been held back due to the constraints of Balance of Performance.

"The GT is a lot less compromised than most supercars, but it is still somewhat compromised," he told Autosport.

"Then we go racing with it and a punter would say it's the ultimate version.

"But it's not, because you've got BoP. It isn't the ultimate way of showing the performance of the GT, it's the opposite.

"You're racing a [Chevrolet] Corvette, [Aston Martin] Vantage, the [Ferrari] 488 and the [BMW] M8.

"You've got basically donkey and giraffe racing."

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https://www.autosport.com/wec/news/144586/multimatic-ford-wont-use-radical-gt-for-hypercar

2019-07-04 14:19:23Z
52780326296888

Ford will sell a $1.2 million supercar that won't be street-legal - CNN

The 700 horsepower Ford GT Mk II is intended for track use only. It was also not designed to comply with the regulations of any particular racing series, giving engineers free reign to maximize the car's performance potential, Ford said.
The Ford GT MK II is designed purely for track use.
That means the 3.5-liter turbocharged engine in the GT Mark II will produce 53 horsepower more than the "standard" Ford GT road car and 203 horsepower more than the Le Mans-winning Ford GT race car. (The race car had to make do with much less power than the street car in order to comply with Le Mans' race rules.)
"The GT Mk II unleashes the full performance potential of the Ford GT without any artificial performance limitations dictated by racing sanctioning bodies," said Hau Thai-Tang, Ford chief product development officer. "It's the closest GT owners can get to the Le Mans-winning performance and exhilarating feeling of crossing the finish line in the Ford GT race car."
The Ford GT Mk II was designed to show what the Ford GT could be if all restrictions for street use or racing requirements were removed.
It also means this car doesn't have some of the comfort features that are built into the street-legal Ford GT. For instance, it doesn't have different driving modes, like Normal, Sport or Track, or the ability to change its ride height to suit those various modes. Instead, this car rides at a road-hugging height all the time to make it as aerodynamic as possible. The car's seven-speed transmission is also tuned for aggressive track driving.
Since weight savings were a priority, the passenger seat in the GT Mk II is optional. For the driver, there's a specially designed racing seat with a six-point harness. The car has no airbags, also to save weight. The GT Mk II also has the stronger brakes of the road-legal Ford GT rather than those used on the race car.
The Ford GT Mk II has special aerodynamic features  such as a special two-part rear wing.
The Ford GT, even the street legal version, is already a very expensive and hard-to-get car. A little over 1,300 have been built since since the car entered production in 2017 at a starting price of $450,000 each. Interested buyers had to apply to Ford for the right to purchase one.
The new Ford GT Mk II is available for ordering immediately.

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https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/04/success/ford-gt-track-only-supercar/index.html

2019-07-04 13:49:00Z
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Samsung sued over water-resistant phone claims - BBC News

Samsung is being sued by Australia's consumer watchdog for allegedly making misleading claims about the water-resistant properties of its phones.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) alleges Samsung's adverts made "false" claims about using its phones while swimming and surfing.

The ACCC said it had reviewed more than 300 Samsung adverts before launching its legal action.

Samsung told Reuters it would defend the case and stood by its adverts.

Deep probe

In its statement, the ACCC said Samsung adverts depicted phones being exposed to seawater and swimming pools and claimed that this would not affect the device during its working life.

Although Samsung adverts say its phones have an IP68 water resistance, said the ACCC, this rating does not cover salt water or that found in swimming pools.

Samsung's own website advises people against using the Galaxy S10 in a swimming pool or on the beach, said the consumer watchdog.

Samsung had not done enough testing to make its advertised claims about the longevity of its products, alleges the ACCC.

"Samsung showed the Galaxy phones used in situations they shouldn't be, to attract customers," said the ACCC.

If Samsung is found guilty of misleading consumers it could face a huge fine.

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https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-48866148

2019-07-04 10:41:58Z
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Relive the sound of the 80s with a Bluetooth cassette player - Engadget

Sponsored Links

NINM Lab

If you find that having your music in good quality, being able to skip tracks with fast forwarding and fitting all your media onto one device is just too convenient, then we've got good news: Cassette tapes are making a comeback.

NINM Lab is introducing the "world's first Bluetooth portable cassette player," an update of the classic Sony Walkman that will play the collection of cassette tapes you still have buried at the back of your closet.

The IT'S OK cassette player has Bluetooth built in, so you can listen to your cassettes on wireless headphones. Or, if you're a purist (or hipster), you can still use headphones.

It comes in three colors: Cloud white, sakura pink and evening blue, and the case is transparent so you can show off your sweet mix tapes to everyone. It "brings a new perspective to the romanticism of the '80s cassette player," apparently.

It launches on Kickstarter later today, and you can get your hands on a piece of ironic / retro tech of your own for $63, if that's something you feel you need in your life.

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https://www.engadget.com/2019/07/04/bluetooth-cassette-player/

2019-07-04 10:26:41Z
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