iPhone 7 Plus to Feature Dual-Camera Setup, Tips Analyst

New details regarding the rumoured iPhone 7 Plus smartphone have hit the Web. While the previous reports tipped a larger battery and up to 256GB of inbuilt storage for the device, a new report now suggests an inclusion of a dual-camera setup.

In a note released to Apple investors, shared by AppleInsider, KGI analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said he expects the Cupertino-based tech company to launch the iPhone 7 Plus model in two variants. While the first variant will feature a single iSight camera, the second variant will sport two cameras for better shooting experience. The rumoured handset is also said to house a 5.5-inch display.

Kuo adds that the two cameras are likely to be powered by LinX, a company that specialises in creating multi-aperture camera equipment for mobile devices. It is worth mentioning that Apple bought LinXback in April last year. The dual-camera setup is said to include two 12-megapixel sensors, one with OIS (optical image stabilisation) and a wider field of view, and the other featuring a 2-3x telephoto lens. The hardware is expected to come from the company's long time supplier of cameras - Sony.

The dual-camera technology may enable features such as switching between sensors based on shooting environments, image-stitching resulting in a high-resolution picture, better depth and colour sensing, and more.

The analyst also predicts that the dual-camera variant of the iPhone 7 Plus will contribute up to 25 to 35 percent of the total iPhone 7 shipments this year. Needless to say, the model will be the costliest of all the iPhone 7 models when it is launched.

The proposed dual-camera technology for the rumoured iPhone 7 Plus seems similar to the recently published patent. According to the patent titled "Mobile Camera System", while the first camera will capture the complete screen, the second camera with a longer focal length will let users capture clear shot even after zooming. 3D imagery functionality is also hinted. Also suggested is that while one camera could capture a video in normal playback, the other could capture it in slow motion.

Apple Quietly Working on Virtual Reality: Report

Apple has a team secretly working on virtual and augmented reality gear in a budding challenge to Facebook-owned Oculus Rift and Microsoft HoloLens, the Financial Times reported on Friday.

The teams ranks number in the hundreds, bolstered by talent hired away from companies working on altered-reality technology and buying startups in the fields, according to the Times.

Apple also has a trove of patents related to technology that could be put to work in reality-altering gear.

California-based Apple has not commented on reports it is exploring virtual reality, but chief executiveTim Cook voiced interest while answering a question during a quarterly earnings call this week.

"I don't think it's a niche," Cook said of virtual reality in response to a question from an analyst.

"I think it is really cool and has some interesting applications."

Apple has been building headset prototypes for months, according to the Times.

Altered realities abounded at the Consumer Electronics Show gadget-fest in Las Vegas early this month, touching everything from sex and sports to sales and space exploration.

Virtual reality (VR) headsets immersed people in fictional worlds, while augmented reality (AR) eyewear overlaid digital data on the scenes around them.

Facebook-owned Oculus is taking pre-orders for its eagerly-anticipated Rift VR headsets at a price of $599. Rift was slated to begin shipping in March.

While video game players have been natural early targets for virtual reality, the technology is being put to use for education, medicine, sports, pornography and more.

Microsoft is expected to release its HoloLens augmented reality visors this year.

Unlike virtual reality which immerses people in fictional worlds, augmented reality makes information appear to float in the real world.

Nasa's Curiosity Rover Sends Super Cool Selfie From Mars

In its latest selfie sent back home, Nasa's Curiosity rover shows the car-size mobile laboratory beside a dark dune where it has been scooping and sieving samples of sand.

The new selfie combines 57 images taken by the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) camera at the end of Curiosity's arm.

The rover has been investigating a group of active sand dunes for two months, studying how the wind moves and sorts sand particles on Mars.

The site is part of Bagnold Dune Field, which lines the northwestern flank of Mars' Mount Sharp.

When the component images were taken, the rover had scuffed the edge of "Namib Dune" and collected the first of three scoops of sand from that dune.

During processing, an actuator in the sample-processing device did not perform as expected when commanded. This week, the Curiosity team is identifying possible reasons for the actuator's performance.

"The rover responded properly to this unexpected event. It stopped moving the actuator and halted further use of the arm and sampling system," said Steve Lee, deputy project manager for Curiosity atNasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California.

Wing Failure Blamed for Crash of Google's Solar-Powered Drone

A massive drone Google was testing as part of a project to provide Internet service with unmanned aircraft instead of satellites crashed after it encountered an updraft and one of its wings failed, US accident investigators have concluded.

The Solara 50 had just lifted off from a remote, desert landing strip in New Mexico on May 1 when it began experiencing control problems, according to a report by the National Transportation Safety Board. As a remote pilot attempted to stabilize the plane it hit a thermal updraft that propelled it upward and increased its speed, according to the NTSB.

In spite of attempts to reduce power, the plane went faster than designed and the left wing began to fail. "The aircraft began an uncontrollable and erratic flight path roughly straight ahead in a rapid descent," the NTSB wrote in a brief summary posted on its website. The report, dated Nov. 19, hasn't previously been reported.

After a section of the left wing came off, the right wing also failed. The aircraft struck the ground and was destroyed at 11:07 a.m. local time after about four minutes of flight. No one was injured.

iPad Air 3 Tipped to Sport 4K Resolution Display, 4GB of RAM

More rumours have hit the Web regarding the upcoming iPad Air 3 tablet. The device is now being said to feature a 4K resolution display along with 4GB of RAM.

According to a report from Digitimes, the iPad Air 3 will also sport a bigger battery than its predecessor, which is understandable given the high resolution display. The report cites Taiwan-based supply chain makers.

Also mentioned is that the tablet will feature a 9.7-inch screen size and will be backed by a bigger battery. Corroborating previous claims, the report added the tablet models will be unveiled in Marchthis year.

The iPad Air 3's display will reportedly be made by General Interface Solution (GIS) with TPK Holding supplying the touch panels. The report claims that GIS will be manufacturing the LCD modules, touch panels, and 'backlighting products'. The tablet is said to arrive without the company's iconic 3D Touch feature, once again confirming the previous claims.

The supply chain makers predict a slight on-year increase for the touch panel demand by Apple in the first half of 2016 due to the increase in order of products featuring the 3D Touch feature.

It is worth mentioning that the tablet is said to launch alongside the 4-inch iPhone 5se smartphone and Apple Watch 2. Previous reports suggest the upcoming 4-inch iPhone will have the same hardware specifications as the iPhone 5s but with a curved glass design seen in iPhone 6 and iPhone 6s. it is said to be powered by A8 SoC and M8 motion coprocessor. Other features tipped around the iPhone 5se include an 8-megapixel iSight (rear camera), and a 1.2-megapixel FaceTime (front-facing camera).

Rise of the Tomb Raider PC: Cheap but Is It Worth It?

When we reviewed Rise of the Tomb Raider for the Xbox One almost three months ago, we said that while the game's story and combat were up to the mark, it's main campaign was short, and the Rs. 4,699 price was prohibitive. We also wondered what it would be like to play the game with better hardware.

With Rise of the Tomb Raider finally hitting Windows PCs, we didn't have to wait any longer. Here's what you need to know about Lara Croft's latest outing.

More bang for buck
At Rs. 999 on disc or Rs. 899 on Steam at the moment (publisher Square Enix is running a 10 percent discount till February 4), Rise of the Tomb Raider on PC is significantly cheaper than its Xbox One counterpart. The Deluxe Edition of the game, which includes the season pass for additional game modes and story-based downloadable content, is available at Rs. 1,555 (also 10 percent off till February 4). There's also a version of the game on the Windows Store priced at Rs.3,439 (discounted from Rs.3,819) for the same game, so stick to Steam or retail.

That's not all though. Baba Yaga: The Temple of the Witch - Rise of the Tomb Raider's first narrative-driven downloadable content - is available to play with the game's release on PC (provided you bought the game's season pass or the Deluxe Edition). It's a welcome addition that only just released on the Xbox One on January 26. Initial reports indicate that it adds a good two to three hours to the game. In terms of content and price, the PC version wins hands down.


You won't be able to play it immediately
Rise of the Tomb Raider is available digitally on Steam and the Windows 10 Store, as well as on disc. Regardless of how you buy the game, there's a day-one download weighing in at 1.3GB. ​Though Square Enix hasn't commented on what's included, it probably contains the necessary files to unlock the game, not too similar to the last Tomb Raider game that had a day one download of roughly a couple of gigabytes.

This is the definitive version of Lara's latest adventure
Hopefully you didn't buy Rise of the Tomb Raider on the Xbox One, because the PC version is definitely the one to get. Be it the powdery Siberian snow that peppers the environment or the grand tombs you'll raid, Rise of the Tomb Raider on the PC is a visual feast. There's an immense level of detail, from scorpions and ancient ruins in cut-scenes to the dust, dirt and blood on Lara's face, it's a fantastic effort from Nixxes - the company responsible for Rise of the Tomb Raider's PC port. That's no surprise considering it has also delivered great PC ports for Sleeping Dogs and Deus Ex: Human Revolution. We'd go as far as to say that it's possibly the best looking game this generation till now.

What's more, you'll be able to enjoy the game at a buttery smooth 60 frames per second (fps) with the right mix of options and next to negligible loss in image quality. Our test PC consisted of an i5 3470 processor (3.2GHz), 16GB RAM, Nvidia GeForce GTX 980Ti (with the latest drivers installed), Asus PB279Q monitor, and a 500GB SSD on Windows 10. And though this setup might be slightly anaemic in terms of processing power, the game's performance was solid. Rise of the Tomb Raider doesn't need you to have a particularly expensive PC as the system requirements are on the lower side. You can read about them here.

We managed 30fps at 3840×2160 (4K) with every setting cranked up to the maximum. Busier sections saw this drop to 25fps, but it was stable for most part with the exception of anti-aliasing (which smoothens out jagged edges) being set to Fast Approximate Anti-Aliasing (FXAA) and Pure Hair, which renders Lara's hair more realistically, turned off. With Pure Hair on and anti-aliasing at the highest possible setting, we were reduced to a paltry 8 to 10fps. Needless to say, it was unplayable and we could barely tell the difference between the two in terms of image quality, so it's probably not worth cranking it up all the way.

t's a situation that repeated itself at lower resolutions. 2560x1440 (1440p) saw us hit around 50 to 55fps without breaking a sweat. In sequences with a ton of action it went as low as 42fps but these were rare. The moment we added Pure Hair or higher anti-aliasing to the mix, we saw our frame rate halved with almost zero disparity in looks. Similarly at 1920x1080 (1080p) we got a steady 60fps through and through, applying the extra graphical bells and whistles left us at roughly 40 to 45fps.

Very High settings aren't actually very high
Although Nixxes allows for a host of choices such as Depth of Field and Dynamic Foliage, which should satisfy most tinkerers, choosing Rise of the Tomb Raider's "Very High" preset only keeps the quality of its shadows at high as well as that of its Sun soft shadows (which lets shadows cast by the Sun appear smoother and more stable), you'll have to manually set them to the maximum to make the most of the game's visuals. Also, Rise of the Tomb Raider's Nvidia-specific VXAO (short for voxel-based ambient occlusion) feature is absent and won't be enabled until a later update. But these are minor niggles that do little to dilute a rich experience that other developers can learn from.

Facebook’s new policy restricts sale, advertisement of guns.

Facebook had announced some restrictions on gun sales and advertising in 2014, saying it would block minors from seeing posts that advertised guns.

Facebook says it’s cracking down on online gun sales, announcing Friday a new policy barring private individuals from advertising or selling firearms on the world’s largest social network.

The new policy applies also to Facebook’s photo-sharing service Instagram. It comes after gun control groups have long complained that Facebook and other online sites are frequently used by unlicensed sellers and buyers not legally eligible to buy firearms.

Facebook “was unfortunately and unwittingly serving as an online platform for dangerous people to get guns,” said Shannon Watts of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, a group that launched a public campaign to convince the social network to change its policies two years ago.

Watts said her group has found numerous cases of felons and minors who were able to buy guns on the site, including two cases in which the buyers used the guns to slay others. Representatives of two gun-owner rights groups, including the National Rifle Association, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Facebook had announced some restrictions on gun sales and advertising in 2014, saying it would block minors from seeing posts that advertised guns. But the social network did not ban private sales at that time.
Licensed firearms retailers can still promote their businesses on Facebook, but they aren’t allowed to accept orders or make sales on the site.

A Facebook Inc. spokeswoman said the new policy arose from the company’s review of its rules following its recent efforts to encourage new forms of commerce on the site. Facebook expanded its digital payments service last summer, allowing users of its Messenger service to send electronic payments to other individual users.

“Over the last two years, more and more people have been using Facebook to discover products and to buy and sell things to one another,” Monika Bickert, who oversees Facebook product policies, said in a statement. “We are continuing to develop, test, and launch new products to make this experience even better for people and are updating our regulated goods policies to reflect this evolution.”

 Watts, however, said her group had urged Facebook to take stiffer measures, during a series of low-key contacts.

Jibo the home robot nears release

Jibo is being marketed as the world's first "social robot for the home".

It promises to synchronise the family calendar, provide a more friendly way to video chat and even take photos at family celebrations.

The crowdfunded machine is set to go on sale later this year for $749 (£529).

But when the BBC's technology reporter Jane Wakefield was given a demo of a prototype unit, its functions were still very limited.

Flipkart hires without interviews

CHENNAI: Flipkart on Thursday announced a partnership with Udacity, an online learning company to hire graduates based on capabilities they have built through Udacity's Nanodegree programs.

This move showcases how organisations such as Flipkart are opening opportunities to graduates who have built expertise through online education platforms such as Udacity.

Breaking away from convention, Flipkart hired students based on their Nanodegree projects and Udacity profiles.

There were no in-person interview or group exercises. This "interview-less hiring" approach enabled Flipkart to hire talent swiftly, shortening the hiring process and giving it an edge in the hunt for talented professionals.

The three graduates hired have already started working at Flipkart with the mobile development team. These graduates of Udacity's Android Developer Nanodegree moved from New Delhi to Bengaluru. They are the first ones to join the team and both companies expect more to follow.

Global smartphone shipments cross 1.43 billion in 2015: IDC

SANFRANCISCO: More than 1.4 billion smartphones were shipped worldwide last year in a new high for the sector, with Chinese handset makers racking up the biggest gains, an industry tracker said.

Global smartphone shipments for 2015 jumped slightly more than 10% to an unprecedented 1.43 billion, said International Data Corporation (IDC), releasing its preliminary figures.South Korean consumer electronics giant Samsung remained the top smartphone maker, shipping 85.6 million units in the final quarter and 324.8 million for the year, according to the IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker report.

Second-place Apple shipped a record-setting 74.8 million iPhones in the quarter and were up slightly more than 20% to 231.5 million units for the year, said IDC, a day after Apple warned that iPhone sales are set to fall for the first time.

"Apple assured the public that demand for its premium smartphones is still alive and kicking," said IDC's Anthony Scarsella, referring to the new figures. "A new record-setting quarter for Apple indicates consumers continued demand for Apple's latest offerings regarding upgraded hardware and software."

Samsung faces increasing pressure from US-based Apple in the high-end smartphone market and from Chinese firms such as Xiaomi and Huawei when it comes to mid or low-priced handsets, according to IDC.