Nest’s indoor Cam IQ security camera now supports Google Assistant

• Nest is rolling out an update to the indoor Cam IQ security camera.
• The update brings Google Assistant support, though it does not work with the device itself.
• Nest also added a cheaper option to its Nest Aware subscription plan.

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Smart home company Nest announced an over-the-air update for its indoor Cam IQ security camera that brings support for Google Assistant. The update was originally promised last September, though it should be noted that the outdoor Cam IQ will not get the update.

With the update, you can utter the usual “OK Google” commands, with the Cam IQ’s blue light shining bright when it is listening. In addition to basic web searches, you can ask the indoor Cam IQ to create shopping lists, set reminders, change the temperature, and dim the lights.

This is another example of Nest and Google products working more closely together. Nest previously operated as an Alphabet subsidiary and recently merged into Google’s hardware division.

Weirdly enough, Google Assistant does not control the Cam IQ itself. You cannot use your voice to turn the camera on when you leave your house or turn it off when you get back home.

You can automate those functions within the Nest app, but there is a possibility Google Assistant will eventually directly work with the indoor Cam IQ.

Editor’s Pick

Nest officially merged into Google’s hardware division

After a couple months of rumors, Google made it official today — Nest, the smart home device company that was previously run as a separate subsidiary to Google’s parent company Alphabet, will now be merged into …

Finally, Nest tweaked its Nest Aware subscription service tiers. In addition to the existing $10 for 10 days and $30 for 30 days, customers can also pick a 5-day plan for $5 a month.

Even with the new tier, more intelligent Nest Aware alerts, and improved facial recognition, the Cam IQ is still a pricy proposition. The camera costs $300, and that is before you factor in the obligatory Nest Aware subscription.

That being said, the Cam IQ’s feature-loaded update and existing features make it a good choice for those who want a cloud-powered security camera.

Source: Android Zone

Anik

Uber Express POOL gets you cheap fares with a little walking

• Uber Express POOL is a new service that gets you cheaper fares in exchange for a little walking on your part.
• The company’s ride algorithm will match you and the driver to a pick-up location, which you will have to walk to.
• The rollout is only happening in certain major U.S. cities for now.

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People who live in large metropolitan areas like New York City, San Francisco, and Chicago are likely familiar with Uber POOL. The service enables you to hop into an Uber ride that is already carrying at least one other passenger. Since you’re both sharing the ride, fares go down for both of you.

Uber is now rolling out a different version of Uber POOL called Uber Express POOL. This even-cheaper version of Uber POOL also pairs you up with other riders but lightens the load on the driver by having you walk to meet them in a more accessible pick-up spot.

 

As an example, you may be at a bar on a cross-street that is one-way, while the driver of an Uber vehicle is on the one-way block. To pick you up in an Uber POOL, the driver would have to go around the block and back down the one-way, which is not very efficient. Uber Express POOL would instead ask you, the rider, to walk to a better pick-up location, so the driver doesn’t have to alter his or her route drastically.

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Thoughts on London’s Uber ban: Innovation vs Regulation

Technology has the power to fundamentally change the status-quo in an incredibly short space of time. Smartphones have reshaped mobile computing, the growth of internet streaming has thrown the music and TV industries upside-down, and …

In return for a little leg-work, Uber Express POOL gives you the cheapest fare Uber has ever offered.

Two of Uber’s biggest competitors, Via and Lyft, also offer services where you share the ride with someone else for a cheaper fare. Since pricing for these services is so competitive, Uber is struggling with appeasing three different variables: the driver, who complains that Uber POOL is more work for the same pay; the rider, who will go with whatever ride is the cheapest from whatever company; and the shareholders, who want to see Uber’s profits go up.

Uber Express POOL is the company’s hopeful answer to all three issues, as it puts less stress on drivers, gives a more reliable discount to riders, and is not cost-prohibitive for the company’s bottom line.

As of right now, only very select metropolitan areas have access to Uber Express POOL. If you don’t live in one of the more famous cities in the United States, you probably won’t see it in your app. But if you live in the Big Apple, the Windy City, the Bay Area, or another large metropolis, check your Uber app for the Express POOL service next time you need a ride.

Source: Android Zone

Anik

Price Drop on Rob Percival’s Web Developer Course 2.0

We’ve featured The Web Developer Course 2.0 on AAPicks before… with good reason. Rob Percival is the Mr. Miyagi of Web development, and his most recent coding masterclass has been a game-changer.

If proof be needed then just look to Udemy, one of the course providers. The Web Developer Course 2.0 boasts a 4.6 star rating, from over 32,000 reviews!

As a Cambridge mathematics graduate and former teacher, Rob leads you through the fundamentals of all the main web dev languages such as HTML5, CSS3, Javascript, and Python. His vast experience of coding together with his accessible instruction will have you flying through the 288 lectures, building websites and mobile apps as you go.

Rob Percival is the Mr. Miyagi of Web development

With Rob’s teachings in your back pocket, you’ll be ready to take on one of the many junior developer roles out there. The course price even includes a year of unlimited web hosting. Perfect for your blog, online shop, or brand platform.

We’re always keeping an eye out for a price drop on this course, and this one is the absolute lowest yet. For the next few days you can get hold of this $149 learning kit for the princely sum of just $25. We’re struggling to see the downside.

You get lifetime access to the materials too, so if coding was on your to-do list for the year, sign up now and clear your weekend. Career opportunities await.

32,000 reviews can’t be wrong, so hit the button below to find out what they’re all raving about.

check it out!

 

The AAPicks team writes about things we think you’ll like, and we may see a share of revenue from any purchases made through affiliate links. To see all our hottest deals, head over to the AAPICKS HUB.

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Source: Android Zone

Anik

Qualcomm shows what’s possible for mobile VR with the Snapdragon 845

• Qualcomm unveiled its Snapdragon 845 Mobile VR platform, which looks to be more power-efficient and powerful than its predecessor.
• The platform introduces features like foveated rendering and Roomscale.
• There is no timetable for when companies will release mobile VR products based on Qualcomm’s platform.

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Qualcomm unveiled its VR headset reference design based on the company’s Snapdragon Mobile VR platform. The platform uses the Snapdragon 845 chipset and introduces promising features for mobile VR.

One such promising feature is foveated rendering, which tracks your eye movement and lowers the resolution of your peripheral vision areas. The headset sports four cameras, with two facing inwards for eye tracking.

The end result is a headset that knows where you look and allocates most of its graphics resources to that area to deliver a sharp image.

Next up is Roomscale, which tracks and processes the location of the headset and your body without the need for separate cables and room sensors. The feature uses inside-out six degrees of freedom (DoF) tracking, along with simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) for body and room tracking.

VR headsets like the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive use room sensors that allow for room-scale experiences, so it is impressive to see similar technology incorporated into the headset itself.

Editor’s Pick

Qualcomm launches its new AI Engine, works on existing Snapdragon processors

Most mobile Machine Learning (ML) tasks, like image or voice recognition, are currently performed in the cloud. Your smartphone sends data up to the cloud where it is processed and the results are returned to …

Elsewhere, the Snapdragon 845-based Mobile VR platform boasts 30 percent greater power efficiency and 30 percent greater graphics performance than the Snapdragon 835 version. Finally, the newer Mobile VR platform supports 3D audio and displays two 2400 x 2400 resolution displays at 120 frames per second, twice as much than existing headsets.

There is no timeline for mobile VR products based on the Snapdragon 845. The reference headset will be at Mobile World Conference next week, so expect hands-on coverage as we walk through the show floor in Barcelona.

Source: Android Zone

Anik

Android Enterprise Recommended helps companies find the best business phones

• Buying phones for your employees can be tricky because of Android’s fragmentation and different tiers of hardware specs.
• Android Enterprise Recommended is a list of Google-approved smartphones that are perfect for employees.
• The list has 22 devices on it for now, with more coming over the rest of 2018.

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When you’re buying a new Android device for yourself, it’s a tricky but relatively straightforward process. You ask yourself what you need, what you want, and what your budget is, and then set about finding the perfect phone that matches all three qualities. But what if you’re buying phones for dozens, if not hundreds of employees? That complicates things a bit more.

Editor’s Pick

Android smartphones with the best battery life (January 2018)

Some people might think that the most important feature in a smartphone is its display size. Others believe it comes down to a phone’s processor performance, or the amount of RAM, or how much storage …

In response to this problem Google has launched the Android Enterprise Recommended program. This list of smartphones comes with a Google seal of approval that each one is suitable as a business device.

Google takes different factors into account when choosing which phones make the list or not. Furthermore, that qualifying list is a living document that will change over time as new devices and technologies hit the market. Right now, every device on the list must meet or exceed these specs:

• Minimum hardware specifications for Android 7.0+ devices
• Support for bulk deployment of Android devices including zero-touch enrollment
• Delivery of Android security updates within 90 days of release from Google, for a minimum of three years
• Availability of unlocked devices, direct from manufacturer or reseller
• Consistent application experience in managed profiles and on managed devices

Google emphasizes that this is not the full list of qualifications needed to earn Android Enterprise Recommended status, but instead are the essentials.

Right now, only 22 devices make the cut. It’s no surprise that the entire Pixel line is there:

• BlackBerry KEYone and Motion
• Google Pixel, Pixel XL, Pixel 2, and Pixel 2 XL
• Huawei Mate 10, Mate 10 Pro, P10, P10 Plus, P10 Lite, and P smart
• LG V30 and G6
• Motorola X4 and Z2
• Nokia 8
• Sony Xperia XZ1, XZ1 Compact, XZ Premium, XA2, and XA2 Ultra

In addition to standard smartphones, Google hopes to add different types of devices to the list as well, including “rugged” smartphones, mobile carriers, enterprise mobility management providers, and systems integrators.

As smartphones become an integral part of running every business, the fight for enterprise customers who have to choose between iOS and Android will rage on. Google no doubt hopes that this new program will help companies to stick with Android rather than go with the much less fragmented iOS ecosystem.

Source: Android Zone

Anik

How to Create a Micro-Job Website Like Fiverr with WordPress

Recently one of our readers asked if it was possible to create a micro-job website like Fiverr using WordPress? A micro-job website allows users to offer their services on your website. This allows you to charge money for job posting or get a commission when the job is finished. In this article, we will show you how to easily create a micro-job website like fiverr with WordPress without any coding knowledge.

Staring a Micro-Job Website using WordPress

There are plenty of ways to make money online using WordPress. One of them is to build a job board with WordPress.

First you need to make sure is that you are using the right platform. To build a micro-job website, you will need a self-hosted WordPress.org website (see: WordPress.com vs WordPress.org for more details).

To start a WordPress site, you will need the following things:

• A domain name (This will be your website’s address. For example, wpbeginner.com)
• A WordPress hosting account (This is where your website’s files are stored)
• SSL Certificate (You need this to accept online payments)
• A Micro-Job addon and theme

The set up will take less than 40 minutes, and we will walk you through every step.

Normally a domain name costs $14.99 / year, SSL certificate $69.99 / year, and WordPress hosting would cost you $7.99 / month.

This sounds like a lot of money if you are just starting out.

Luckily, our friends at Bluehost are offering WPBeginner users a free domain, free SSL, and 60% off on WordPress hosting.

Basically, you can get started for as low as $2.75/month.

→ Click Here to Claim This Exclusive Bluehost Offer ←

Bluehost is one of the largest web hosting companies in the world and an officially recommended WordPress hosting provider.

Once you have purchased hosting, head over to our guide on how to make a website for step by step setup instructions.

That being said, now let’s see how to create a micro-job website with WordPress.

Setting up a Micro-Job Website with WordPress

First thing you need to do is install and activate the Microjob Engine theme. For detailed instructions, see our beginner’s guide on how to install a WordPress theme.

Once you have activated the theme, you will be redirected to the theme’s welcome page. On this screen, you will need to enter your license key which you can find under your EngineThemes’ account.

Next, you need to click on the ‘Install Demo’ button to import and setup a demo website. This will allow you to quickly setup the website to look exactly like the demo. You can then replace the content with your own.

MicrojobEngine comes with two skins to choose from. Once you have imported the demo data, you can select one of the skins to use on your website.

Your website is now set up just like the theme demo. You can visit your website to see it in action.

Selecting Payment Methods and Packages

Microjob Engine works with PayPal and 2Checkout out of the box. You can purchase addons to add other payment gateways like Authorize.net, PayU, PayStack, and Stripe.

You can setup your preferred payment gateway by visiting the Engine Settings » Payment Gateways page in your WordPress admin area.

Packages Explained

Microjob engine allows you to earn money in two ways:

1. You can get comission when a job is finished
2. You can sell packages allowing users to submit gigs for a certain amount.

Setting a payment barrier right from the beginning may prevent some users from signing up, but it will also help keep the spam away.

On the other hand, enabling free job posting will help you attract more freelancers to your website.

You can always change the settings once your website starts getting enough attention from both freelancers and employers.

To set up these options, you need to visit the Engine Settings » Theme Options page and click on the Payment Type tab.

From here, you can enable or disable free posting. If you disable free posting, then you can add packages that freelancers can purchase to submit their offers.

Changing Branding and Website Content

Next, you would want to change the branding and content to make it your own. You can do this by going to Appearance » Customize page where you can change the theme settings with a live preview.

Take your time and go through the different options and adjust them to your liking. Don’t forget to click on the Publish button at the top to save your changes before exiting the customizer.

Testing Your Micro-Job Website

Once you have set up your theme, it is time to thoroughly test every corner of your website.

Open your website in a new tab and try to use it like your users. Start by posting an ad, and then as an employer by hiring a service.

Each user on your website whether freelancer or employer will get their own profile page. Freelancer profiles will show their details, bio, recent gigs, and ratings.

Each user will also be able to manage their account from a custom dashboard. This is where all their chats, messages, and jobs are displayed.

You may also want to make sure that you and your users can receive email notifications from your website. Sometimes WordPress sites run into an email deliverability issues. You can check out our guide on how to fix WordPress not sending email issue.

Managing Your Micro-Job Site

Even though, your users (both freelancers and employers) wouldn’t need to visit the WordPress admin area, you will still manage all aspects of your website from WordPress dashboard.

You can see all orders placed on your micro-job site by visiting Engine Settings » Orders.

You can also see all completed jobs that need to be verified by visting Jobs Verification page. From here you can approve, keep pending, decline, or verify a job status.

Once approved, the freelancer will be able to withdraw their money.

To view all withdrawl activity, you need to visit Engine Settings » Money Withdrawl tab. On this page, you will see a list of freelancers who have withdrawn their earnings.

You can manage all site functions from the admin area of your WordPress site, and you can even peek into conversations between your users.

This helps make sure that freelancers are not insisting clients to use other unverifiable payment methods. It also helps during the dispute resolution between freelancers and employers.

More Resources

Microjob Engine is a powerful app theme with tons of cool features. However as your website grows, it can be quite heavy on your servers. To make sure your site performs well, see our guide on how to improve WordPress speed and performance.

Even then, as your site grows you will run out of shared hosting resources. In that case, you will need to upgrade to a managed WordPress hosting or VPS hosting.

We hope this article helped you learn how to easily create a micro-job site in WordPress. You may also want to see our guide on bringing more traffic to your new WordPress site.

If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

The post How to Create a Micro-Job Website Like Fiverr with WordPress appeared first on WPBeginner.

Source: Wordpres

Anik

Honor 9 Lite gets Face Unlock in India with latest OTA

The Honor 9 Lite is getting Face Unlock with its latest update in India. The news arrives from Beebom, which said the update would arrive in stages, with the full deployment to be completed by March 5.

The Honor 9 Lite is the latest of several Honor devices, including the Honor 7X and View 10, to receive the upgrade recently, though the feature has been available on Chinese devices for some time.

Editor’s Pick

Xiaomi Redmi Note 5/5 Pro vs Honor 9 Lite: specs showdown

Xiaomi took the wraps off the Redmi Note 5 and Note 5 Pro smartphones earlier today. Both phones offer large 18:9 displays, mid-range specs, and affordable price tags.

There’s even more competition in the mid-range sector this …

At Rs. 10,999 (~$170), the Honor 9 Lite is one of the least expensive smartphones on the market to support the feature, which allows users to unlock devices using facial recognition. It’s a fast and somewhat secure method for unlocking devices, but it’s not foolproof.

We gave the Honor 9 Lite a score of 8.3 out of 10 in our full review, praising its design and display, and ultimately labeling it a “stunning all-rounder.” Flipkart’s next sale on the handset begins February 27—for more details on that, hit the link.

Source: Android Zone

Anik

Qualcomm launches its new AI Engine, works on existing Snapdragon processors

Most mobile Machine Learning (ML) tasks, like image or voice recognition, are currently performed in the cloud. Your smartphone sends data up to the cloud where it is processed and the results are returned to your device. However, the ability to perform machine learning tasks locally on your device, rather than remotely via the cloud, is becoming increasingly important. To help developers provide better machine learning-based enhancements, Qualcomm has launched a new brand to encapsulate its current ML offerings. The Qualcomm Artificial Intelligence (AI) Engine consists of several hardware and software components that can be used, by app developers, to provide “AI-powered user experiences”, with or without a network connection.

Editor’s Pick

What is machine learning?

One area of technology that is helping improve the services that we use on our smartphones, and on the web, is machine learning. Sometimes, the terms machine learning and artificial intelligence get used as synonyms, …

Machine learning consists of two distinct stages: training and inference. In the training stage the Machine Learning algorithm (probably a Neural Network) is fed lots of examples (photos, voice, whatever) along with the corresponding classification. Then, once trained, the Neural Network is used to classify new data. For example, the ML system might be trained with thousands of photos of dogs and then in the inference stage it is shown a new, previously unseen, picture of a dog and based on its training it will be able to recognize that the image contains a dog.

This inference stage works on almost any type of processing unit including CPUs, GPUs, DSPs and dedicated inference engines like Huawei’s Neural Processing Unit (NPU) or Arm’s recently announced Machine Learning Processor. The key difference between these processing units is how fast they can perform the inference and how much power they use to do it.

There is a very valid argument for not needing dedicated hardware to perform inference and that is Qualcomm’s current position. However, the performance and efficiency argument is also valid and it is the position currently touted by Arm and Huawei.

The Qualcomm AI Engine uses the existing CPU, GPU and DSP components found in some of the leading Snapdragon processors (the 845, the 835, the 820 and the 660). The key component in these processors is the inclusion of the Hexagon DSP with the Hexagon Vector eXtensions (HVX).

On the software side the Qualcomm AI Engine offers three components:

• Snapdragon Neural Processing Engine (NPE) software framework – A top level heterogeneous library that supports the Tensorflow, Caffe and Caffe2 frameworks, in addition to the Open Neural Network Exchange (ONNX) interchange format. The idea here is that the NPE picks the right component (CPU, GPU, DSP) for any given task.
• Android Oreo’s Neural Networks API – Support for Android’s NN will appear first in Snapdragon 845.
• Hexagon Neural Network (NN) library – Works exclusively with the Hexagon Vector Processor.

Several of Qualcomm’s device partners are already using the AI Engine’s components. They include Xiaomi, OnePlus, Motorola, Asus and ZTE.

Editor’s Pick

Artificial Intelligence vs Machine Learning: what’s the difference?

Artificial intelligence and machine learning are terms which have been thrown around a lot in the tech industry over the last few years, but what exactly do they mean? Anyone vaguely familiar with sci-fi tropes will probably …

As for software developers, Qualcomm is working with several different companies. For example, SenseTime and Face++ offer a variety of pre-trained neural networks for image and camera features including single camera bokeh, face unlock, and scene detection. Uncanny Vision, on the other hand, provides optimized models for people, vehicle and license plate detection and recognition. Also, Tencent recently launched a feature in the Mobile QQ app called High Energy Dance Studio. The Mobile QQ application for Android uses AI Engine components to accelerate frame rates of the game.

While Qualcomm’s AI Engine is indeed capable, the cynics among you may agree with me that this “branding” effort is really just a reaction from Qualcomm to Arm’s Project Trillium announcement from last week. I wouldn’t be surprised if future Snapdragon processors include a dedicated inference engine, either Arm’s new ML, or an in-house development from Qualcomm. Time will tell.

What do you think of Qualcomm’s AI Engine? Should Qualcomm including a dedicated “NPU” in its processors? Please let me know in the comments below.

Source: Android Zone

Anik

Qualcomm brings Broadcast Audio to the Snapdragon 845

Bluetooth audio is finally becoming increasingly popular, not just in headphones, but across the smart home and smart speaker ecosystems too. Many consumers and businesses now seek multi-speaker and multi-room systems. Qualcomm announced today it’s making it easier to stream audio from your phone to multiple devices by adding these capabilities to its Snapdragon 845 Mobile Platform. Smartphones arriving later this year could therefore support the feature.

Qualcomm’s Broadcast Audio enables a single audio stream to be shared to multiple devices with perfect synchronization using Bluetooth. This could include streaming audio to multiple speakers in the same room from your phone, sharing music to multiple wireless headsets, or even using a phone as a mass broadcast system to speak to multiple devices at once. It works for streaming music to speakers, but it can also be used for voice communication and other audio sharing between handsets, as well as consumer, business, and professional audio gear.

Qualcomm powers a wide range of Bluetooth and audio products, so supporting enhanced Bluetooth features on its latest mobile platform — often a hub for streaming — makes sense. The company’s platform portfolio has grown to include products like wireless headphones and smart speaker SoCs, which also support casting and multi-room setups.

As well as multi-device streaming, Qualcomm’s technology also offers a simple setup and pairing process to manage multiple devices at once, automatic packet retransmission to prevent dropped or skipped audio, and the option for an encrypted audio stream to stop eavesdroppers from hijacking your stream.

In addition to the Snapdragon 845, Broadcast Audio is also available on many of the company’s Bluetooth audio SoCs, which are designed for speakers and headphones. These include the CSR8670, CSR8675, CSRA68100, and the latest ultra-low-power QCC5100. The company is also offering software updates for its chips to bring support to existing products, so we might see this feature in plenty of other places.

The bottom line is if you pick up a Snapdragon 845 powered handset later this year, you’ll probably be able to enjoy one-to-many Bluetooth streaming.

Source: Android Zone

Anik

AT&T announces first three cities to receive its 5G internet

AT&T has announced the regions for its 5G launch later this year. The carrier said that parts of Dallas, Atlanta and Waco will receive early 5G coverage before the end of 2018.

AT&T announced the cities in a press release (via Engadget) earlier today, and has promised to deliver 5G in a total of 12 cities before the end of the year. The remaining nine are to be revealed “in the coming months.”

Editor’s Pick

Sprint launching nationwide 5G in H1 2019, may raise Unlimited prices until then

Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure says the company will launch its 5G network on the 2.5 GHz spectrum in the first half of next year. Claure made the comments in a quarterly earnings conference call with …

The initial rollout will occur on the millimetre wave spectrum, which will provide a somewhat limited experience ahead of a broader rollout through 2019 and onwards. Being fast to launch 5G infrastructure is an important marketing move for carriers, but as we’ve discussed previously, it’s going to take some years before 5G reaches its full potential.

Which devices will support 5G on AT&T at launch weren’t discussed; however, there are likely to be only a handful of devices from major OEMs available in the beginnings of the deployment (with far more expected to arrive in 2019).

AT&T also said it is “the only U.S. carrier that’s announced plans to deliver this ground-breaking technology to its customers in 2018″—though that’s not strictly true. Verizon said last year that it has plans to bring 5G to five US cities in 2018, but as this was before the 5G spec was approved, AT&T might have them on a technicality.

Source: Android Zone

Anik