The Morning After: Wednesday, November 16, 2016
How do you like your eggs in the morning?
A smart oven that does the thinking for you, a new product from Apple that costs $300 and doesn't even have a touchscreen, and DJI's duo of upgraded drones that are tailored for filmographers. We're halfway through, folks, you've got this.
Apple wants to sell you a $300 design book
Apple has announced a new photo book that "chronicles 20 years of Apple design." Yes, the clue is in the title. Dedicated to the memory of co-founder Steve Jobs, it features 450 photos of gadgets past and present, shot by famed photographer Andrew Zuckerman. Both a small (10.2 x 12.75 inches) and a larger (13 x 16.25 inches) volume will go on sale online and in select Apple stores starting today, for $199 and $299 respectively.
Google's PhotoScan app digitizes your physical prints
Google says it wants the service to be a home for all of your photos, and today that mission expanded to encompass the old photos housed in shoeboxes and albums around the world. Its new app, PhotoScan, is part of that, and it's just landed on both iOS and Android devices. If you want to try PhotoScan but are worried about your privacy, you don't even need to upload your pictures to Google. (All those facial recognition skills will require Google's online AI skills, however.)
June the smart oven makes a mean steak
Smart cooking gadgets are relatively de rigueur these days: connected sous vide machines, smart kitchen scales and even a WiFi slow cooker have already made an appearance. The June smart oven, however, is a lot more than an oven with a connected app. It's outfitted with a quad-core NVIDIA CPU and a slew of sensors, all for the purpose of taking the guesswork out of cooking. And after three years of development, June is ready to cook. The downside? She charges $1,495 for her services.
Mike Bithell's "point-and-bounce" VR game has a strange inspiration
EarthShape launched last week on Google's Daydream VR platform, and its indie developer explains where the unusual gameplay model came from: drawing lines in a car window's condensation, attempting to "catch" raindrops as they rolled down. In the game, players draw lines on a grid to control a bouncing ball, thereby cultivating life across 25-plus alien planets. All this, of course, occurs as Sue Perkins of "The Great British Bake Off" narrates the action.
Google WiFi routers are available for pre-order
The folks in Mountain View are giving WiFi routing another shot, with these units capable of creating a mesh network covering up to 4,500 square feet. The Google WiFi box is $129 for one, or $300 for a three-pack, and they should start shipping in December.
DJI's newest drones are built for filmmakers
DJI's new Phantom 4 Pro can capture 20-megapixel stills and 4K video at 60 frames per second, thanks to its new 1-inch CMOS, while its Inspire drone sequel is just downright speedy. The filmography drone can accelerate to 50MPH in a mere four seconds and hit a top speed of 67MPH. It's still capable of moving that fast despite packing an on-board SSD instead of an SD card storage option. Coolest part: The new Inspire 2 now offers a dedicated first-person-view camera for the pilot. I'm flying!
"Overwatch" hacker Sombra is now available to everyone
After her Blizzcon debut and a short test period, Sombra is ready for play on all platforms. The latest "Overwatch" character's abilities include hacking, teleportation, invisibility and an EMP blast. It's also added an Arcade that rotates maps and rules as well as a new Antarctica map, and Season 3 of Competitive Play is scheduled to begin November 30th.
