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A dispatch from inside Sony’s prototype electric car

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The car isn’t meant for use on public roads, but we know it can be driven. It’s been tested, and briefly cruised onto the stage during Sony’s CES press conference earlier this week. According to Sony’s Tatsuya Koeda, the next stage in the development of Vision-S is to figure out how the autonomous driving systems, safety features and even the in-car entertainment array, fare in the real world?

Step inside the Sony car and it feels and looks like a luxury sedan. The inside, with a row of screens across the dash, looks like a car from a startup like Lucid Motors. In contrast, the outside is like a Porsche Taycan or a Tesla. It’s not a wacky concept device with sci-fi ambitions, which I like. It’s more… realistic.

According to Engineering Manager Ogawa-san, the team focused on the interior so it could showcase what Sony does best. They’re not trying to beat carmakers at their own game, it’s a stage for the relatively tech and software that’s often invisible in your average car.

Take entertainment, an area where Sony knows what it’s doing. Not only do you have expansive screens for displaying information, entertainment and controlling things, but the car’s audio system (with a speaker attached to each of the four seats’ headrests), is capable of broadcasting music in 360 Reality Audio. Sony’s relatively new music standard creates a richer soundstage that goes beyond stereo. Inside a car, surrounded by press and trade show hall music, it sounded pretty good, especially considering this very much in the early stages of development. Given Sony can make the speakers and created 360 Reality Audio, it’s something it could easily share with Ford, Toyota or whichever car company comes calling.

Likewise, Sony’s been working on LiDAR sensors for a while. For this project, it’s come up with a term for all these collective sensors working together: the Oval. For the exterior, that involves sensors that will detect the road, objects and people around the car and even velocities. Inside, though, Time of Flight (ToF) sensors are embedded to detect the passengers and driver, adjusting settings to suit whoever is there. While the likes of seat pitch and foot space are included, this will apparently encompass the 360 Reality audio settings too. Sony’s image of how its tech all works together is pretty advanced.

The user interface, Ogawa notes, was a surprisingly crucial part of Project-S. It’s all polished and connected: the dashcam can beam content to the dash, where you can add backing music or even visual effects, like a cute little highlight reel of a particularly pretty road-trip. You can swipe content, maps and more from the driver side of the dash to the passenger side. Again, this is the kind of stuff Sony can make in its sleep: gadget interfaces.

The car has Level 2 autonomous driving capabilities, which cover steering, acceleration and breaking, but also dictate that a driver needs to be behind the wheel at all times to take control when needed. Sony’s Koeda told me that the team is looking further into the higher levels of autonomous driving, but that solving those challenges was a more distant goal. And that’s enough. This is still just a concept car.

There are little features everywhere, and the finish tricked me into thinking this car was a road-bound model. But that’s not what Vision-S is. We’ve barely seen the car move, the window switches didn’t work when I was messing around inside — then you remember that this isn’t a proper car. It’s proof that Sony is very serious about getting even more involved in mobility tech. It just had to make a car to do so.

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Amazfit’s HomeStudio is a smart mirror paired with a treadmill

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Amazfit HomeStudio has three components: a 43-inch HD smart mirror, called THE GLASS (all caps), JBL surround-sound speakers, and a treadmill. You get the pick of two: a premium model that uses slat belt technology (like the Peloton Tread) and can reach speeds of up to 12mph. If that’s too much for your wallet, or your home isn’t that big, you could opt for the AirRun, a foldable version that reaches a top speed of 9 mph instead. Rounding out the package is a 3D time-of-flight camera that the system’s computer vision will use to keep an eye on your posture and technique.

When you want to start a class, fire up the smart mirror at which point you’ll be able to access a library of 1,000 classes across a wide variety of exercises. And they don’t all have to be treadmill-based either, since you can participate in yoga, sculpt and stretching classes on the floor.

This is by no means the first product in this space, and there are already several smart-mirror based home gyms. Like Mirror, for instance, which is priced at $1,495 and offers workout videos from fitness experts that you need to follow along with at home. Similarly, Peloton makes a smart treadmill, with on-demand classes, albeit costing the better part of five grand, plus the monthly subscription.

Huami says that the price and release window of the Amazfit HomeStudio will be revealed soon, and that the price “will delight US customers.” Obviously, the only price point that would delight me is for it to be free, with a candy bar thrown in for good measure. But maybe I have a skewed sense of what delight means when we’re talking about high-end exercise equipment manufacturing companies.

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Apple’s rare CES appearance was another privacy pitch

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Touting privacy, of course, has become one of the company’s main marketing strategies. The pitch is that, in a post-Cambridge Analytica world that’s become an arms-race for consumer data, Apple alone — not Google, Amazon or Facebook — can be trusted with personal information. Its business comes from hardware and software (and maybe now entertainment), not trafficking user data. Apple CEO Tim Cook has been vocal about it and his company has both introduced new privacy features and trolled its competitors.

But for those expecting a three-way dust-up between Apple, Facebook and the FTC at CES, there was no such thing. Even though moderator Rajiv Chand of Wing Venture Capital tried his best to set up the conflict on the all-female panel that also included Erin Egan, VP of public policy and chief privacy officer for policy at Facebook, Rebecca Slaughter, commissioner at the Federal Trade Commission and Susan Shook, Procter & Gamble’s global privacy officer.

“Almost every day when we read the newspaper we see different concerning stories about privacy or security breaches. It would be impossible to conclude that enough is being done,” said Slaughter of the FTC.

And the burden of protecting privacy can’t lie only on consumers, she said. Understanding the amount of user data that’s processed daily is “untenable for most people.”

“I don’t think anyone here could tell any of us accurately who has what data about them and how it is being used.”

Apple’s Horvath, who previously was global privacy counsel at Google and chief privacy counsel at the Department of Justice, expectedly listed the company’s “privacy by design” and data minimization principles. For instance, the way Apple injects noise into the “frequently used” emoji datasets to anonymize them and processes facial recognition on the Photos app on-device. Horvath also confirmed that Apple scans for child sexual abuse content uploaded to iCloud. “We are utilizing some technologies to help screen for child sexual abuse material,” she said.

Egan, of Facebook, tried to put her employer on an equally secure plane as Apple, citing privacy as a fundamental right — despite the fact that in the last year Facebook has been in privacy skirmishes with Apple and received a record fine from the FTC. “We have a different business model than Apple but both business models are privacy-protective” she said.

When Chand asked if privacy is protected today for people, Egan responded said yes.

Slaughter, however, disagreed. “I don’t think anyone here could tell any of us accurately who has what data about them and how it is being used,” she said.

One point that was more or less agreed on: the need for a federal privacy law. Slaughter — while not drawn into concrete predictions — said she’d hope for legislation in the next year. Horvath said the US should not only learn from the GDPR model in implementing legislation, but suggested “we need to look at every consumer regardless of where they live as entitled to the same strong protections.”

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Google’s new policy gives developers more time to address security flaws

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There are more reforms. If there’s an incomplete fix, it’ll be reported to the developer and added to an existing report. Before, it would sometimes be treated as a separate problem with its own deadline. Google will also open tracker reports the moment a flaw is patched during the “grace period” (a 14-day window available if a developer will just miss the 90-day target) and on the 90th day.

Google plans to test the revamped Project Zero approach throughout the whole of 2020, and might make it permanent if there aren’t problems.

This should increase the chances that you’ll be well-protected against exploits before they’re made public. At the same time, it doesn’t address concerns that Google’s come-hell-or-high-water approach to disclosures has sometimes led to disclosures while patches were in the works, either forcing a hasty release or leaving users exposed. You could still see instances where you have no choice but to live with an elevated risk.

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This rechargeable lunchbox uses steam to reheat your food

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The Dutch startup behind the Heatbox showed me a near-final prototype at CES 2020. It’s a chunky container — larger than I would typically pack for work — but small enough to fit inside most backpacks and duffel bags. You’ll need to add a smidge of water before you leave the house in the morning, and recharge its 18000 mAh internal battery after three operations. It’s activated by a button on the front or through a companion app, which can also be used to adjust the default 8-minute heat time.

Heatbox

I activated the Heatbox and saw some steam slowly rise into the air. The lunchbox was plugged in, though (round-the-clock demos would have been a charging nightmare for the company, otherwise) and I couldn’t try any actual food (CES doesn’t allow this unless you’re an approved caterer, I believe). Still, I could clearly see and feel the heat from the container.

The team raised $90,965 from 581 backers on Kickstarter last November. If you’re interested, it’s still possible to pre-order one for $144 (it’ll normally cost $207) on Indiegogo. As with all crowdfunded projects, there’s no guarantee the Heatbox will ever reach your doorstep. I’m hopeful, though, after seeing the company’s almost-complete prototype in Las Vegas.

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Citizen’s Alexa smart speaker is like a Sonos One with an analog clock

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The Alexa-powered smart speaker is the more interesting of the two, even though it wasn’t officially announced. It’s called, well, the Citizen Smart Speaker. It kind of looks like a slightly fancier Sonos One, with a Citizen timepiece wedged on the front. All of the controls will be similar to those with Alexa speakers, such as a mic mute button, volume controls and an Alexa wake button. The Citizen Smart Speaker will apparently come in different designs and colorways, though a spokesperson said they’re not finalized just yet.

Like other Alexa-powered speakers, you can use it to play music from sources such as Spotify, Amazon Music, Pandora, Apple Music, Sirius XM and more. I don’t know the full specifications of the Citizen Smart Speaker just yet, but from what I could tell from my brief experience with it, the sound coming from it is very impressive. Even though I was on a busy showfloor, I could still hear the booming bass and loud tunes coming from the small speaker. As with all Alexa speakers, you can also use it to power other smart devices in your home that are compatible with the Alexa ecosystem.

Also, the comparison to the Sonos One is a pretty apt one. A spokesperson I talked to said the company actually benchmarked the sound with the Sonos One speaker, and it says that one is comparable and very similar to the other. Of course, you can’t use the Citizen Smart Speaker as part of the Sonos system, but you can at least pair two Citizen Smart Speakers together to create stereo sound if you like.

Citizen

The olfactory alarm clock line, on the other hand, is called the Sensory Time collection. Each device houses a scent diffuser, a Bluetooth speaker, a 24-hour digital alarm clock and an LED lamp. There’s also a USB charging port available in case you want to use it to charge your phone on your nightstand. Much like the SensorWake olfactory alarm clock, you can choose to set your alarm so that it wakes you up with the scent. Of course, you can also choose regular alarm beeps too, in case you have a stuffy nose.

According to a Citizen spokesperson, the Sensory Time clock is a very efficient at filling a room with fragrance. While most scent diffusers use a combination of oil and water, the Sensory Time uses just the oil, thus maximizing its effects. You can also set a diffuser timer of 30, 60 or 120 seconds, so you can keep your room constantly smelling like a rose garden if you like. The spokesperson did say that one diffuse can cover a 500 cubic foot area pretty effectively, so you might only need to set the timer to every couple hours if in a small room.

The Sensory Time Clock will retail for $100 and should be out in March of this year, while the Citizen Smart Speaker is priced at $149 and is set to ship by June.

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DFree is making an emergency alert system for your colon

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Codenamed B1, the prototype is designed to stick onto your stomach, just below your belly button, using a small adhesive pad on top. Unlike its predecessor, which has an external battery clipped to the waist, the B1 has both battery and sensors in a single, very small package. But like the model that’s currently on sale, it’ll use ultrasound to monitor your intestinal activity, and will alert you when it reaches the right intensity.

DFree B1

The companion app will be able to show you both the “magnitude of your intestinal activity” and track the details of previous bowel movements. It’s hoped that the system will help folks with IBD, IBS and other gastrointestinal issues better manage their conditions and offer tips on how to improve. Unfortunately, the company doesn’t expect to have the B1 ready for prime time until 2021 at the earliest, so until then, keep drinking water and getting plenty of fiber.

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Sony is still trying to make 360 Reality Audio a thing

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The content is there. When 360 Reality Audio was first announced, my primary concern was content availability. It’s one thing to create a new audio standard, it’s another to convince people to use it. Sony has its own record label, so it had a library of music to pull from. Plus, it negotiated deals with Amazon Music, Tidal, Deezer and other services that have high-res tiers. The amount of available content is still limited — there were only 1,000 songs at launch back in the fall — but at least there’s something. It’s certainly a start.

Sony’s latest demos for 360 Reality Audio include an Alicia Keys live performance from Tidal on a soundbar. It’s very similar to the setup you’d find in a lot of living rooms. And of course, it sounded great. However, Sony positioned two satellite speakers in the back of the room so the “wow” factor of the immersive audio the company is pitching is significantly reduced. Of course the sound in a setup with a soundbar and sub in the front, and two more speakers in the back, is going to seem like you’re in the middle of an arena. Or at least, more so than it would if you were just using a soundbar/subwoofer combo positioned in front of you. For now, this integration is just a demo. Sony’s staff say there’s nothing more to share in terms of consumer availability.

Sony

Sony also built another wireless speaker prototype. The company’s representatives were clear this is still only a demo unit, and there’s currently no plans to sell it — just like the prototype we saw last year. This new model is a different design, and it looks more like a refined Echo Studio. The directional speakers at the top from the 2019 version are gone, but the audio sounds just as good. It’s also noticeably better than what I heard on the Echo Studio during my review, which is to be expected for a tradeshow demo.

At this point, Sony has made two prototypes. They both sound great, and both have a better design than a lot of the WiFi speakers we see all the time. Sony has made Google Assistant speakers in the past as well, so it has experience with voice control in a product like this. And yet, the company still hasn’t introduced its own speaker for the 360 audio system its championing. I thought it was odd that Amazon debuted the first 360 Reality Audio speaker, and to date, it’s the only one. It’s just as confusing that Sony, a year after showing off its first prototype, still hasn’t announced one of its own. If the company wants to put some weight behind the audio ecosystem it’s trying to sell us on, it needs to put it in more of its products besides just headphones.

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Samsung SelfieType is a more virtual virtual keyboard

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SelfieType is a project out of the Korean giant’s C-Lab startup incubator, which uses the front-facing camera to track your motion. Prop your phone up as if it was a display, fire up the app, and then touch type onto the table as if you had a keyboard there. The phone’s front-facing camera and a “proprietary AI engine” will then examine the motions of your fingers, interpreting them as the taps on a QWERTY keyboard.

SelfieType

Naturally, skilled touch-typists only need apply, since there’s no real guide for where your hands need to go in the real world. At least right now, since the team behind SelfieType hopes to make it easier to use, and more intuitive for novices in the near future. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to try the system for myself, and was only able to watch a canned demo by one of the team.

But even watching from the sidelines, it’s clear to see the potential such an app has, both for emergency typing when you need to be faster than fingers on glass. You probably won’t expect to see this pop up in the next Samsung phone, but if the company feels that it can make this ready for prime time, perhaps it’ll do so in a few years.

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Samsung’s Galaxy Home Mini is finally landing in early 2020

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Assuming Samsung doesn’t delay the device, that means you’ll finally be able to get your hands on a Bixby-powered speaker more than 18 months after Samsung first announced the Galaxy Home. We initially saw the device at the company’s Note 9 event in 2018. Minus a brief appearance at last year’s CES, we’ve heard very little about the speaker. The irony is that the Galaxy Home could still become vaporware. In the same interview, Kim revealed Samsung hasn’t decided whether it will ultimately release the bigger speaker.

It also looks like Samsung has scaled back its ambitions for Bixby. Rather than build out the AI’s ability to hold a conversation, Kim said the company instead focused on letting it control your other Samsung appliances and devices. For example, you’ll be able to tell Bixby when you want your dishwasher to wash the dishes and it will set a schedule. At launch, it also looks like Samsung won’t include an Alexa Skills-like API that will allow other companies to make their products work with the Galaxy Home Mini.

Kim didn’t outright mention Samsung’s upcoming Unpacked event on February 11th, but that seems as good a venue as any for the company to detail the device.

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