From a bad battery to a crash, Virginia Tech’s automated car beat all challenges
General Motors and the Society of Automotive Engineers created the AutoDrive Challenge, and a team of mechanical engineering students from Virginia Tech overcame technical and human obstacles to create a basic autonomous car in one year. Over the next two years, they’ll build a true autonomous car.
To Russia, with Keanu: ‘Siberia’ director Matthew Ross shares tales from the set
Siberia director Matthew Ross first gained Hollywood's attention with his debut film Frank and Lola, and now he's behind the camera for Siberia, a romantic thriller starring Keanu Reeves that's set in Russia. Digital Trends spoke to Ross about making movies, Keanu, and cold-weather filmmaking tips.
Apple Music is winning the stateside streaming war. Here’s how it beat Spotify
Apple now has more paying subscribers for its on-demand music streaming service in the United States than Spotify. Here's how Apple Music surpassed the Swedish streaming service for stateside streaming supremacy, and why it will likely continue its lead in the United States for some time to come.
How Logitech continues to thrive in the post-PC world
The PC is in decline, yet a company like Logitech continues to find ways to stay relevant. From its high-end audio to emphasis on gaming, the company is more determined than ever to not go down with the desktop. We took a behind-the-scenes look at its state-of-the-art facility in Washington to see just how it's all done.
Can’t we all just drive along? The not-so-universal language of autonomous cars
The road to an autonomous future is filled with competitive driving systems – but what happens when they encounter each other on the street? Automakers must decide whether to follow the same code, or duke it out for safety supremacy.
Sirin Labs’ crypto-phone could change the way we pay
If blockchain technology, tokens, hot and cold wallets, and all the other cryptocurrency buzzwords have put you off learning about and using this fascinating technology, Sirin Labs is making the phone for you. It’s called the Finney, and it wants to make cryptocurrency as easy as Apple Pay.
Keanu Reeves shares ‘Bill and Ted 3’ plot, questions the nature of his reality
One of the biggest names in Hollywood, Keanu Reeves has set himself apart from many of his peers by constantly reinventing himself. We recently spoke to Reeves about his prolific career on both sides of the camera, his latest indie thriller, Siberia, plans for a new Bill and Ted sequel, and more.
Minimalist footwear maker Vibram jumps feet first into barefoot tech debate
Vibram launched FiveFingers toe shoes in 2005 and now, 13 years later, barefoot running is having a second revolution. The idea is that by freeing your toes from traditional shoes — aka “foot coffins”— you let them function more naturally. Here we speak to foot surgeons and experts to take a closer look.
Nikon P1000’s 125x super-zoom lens is both ridiculous and awesome
Yesterday, a 50x zoom was a big zoom. But the 125x zoom lens on the new Nikon Coolpix P1000 makes other superzooms seem short in comparison. The lens is the equivalent of a 24-3000mm lens on a DSLR. So, just how crazy is a bridge camera with a 125x zoom lens on the front? Here's a first look.
Go off-road in your bathrobe thanks to the rock-taming tech in Ram’s new Rebel
Off-roading doesn’t have to mean crawling around in the mud to lock hubs and climbing into a jacked-up cab. Ram’s Rebel 1500 uses technology to take the discomfort out of the road less traveled, and it works shockingly well.
School shooters leave clues. Could A.I. spot the next one before it’s too late?
Educators and security experts are using artificial intelligence to sift through big data, to look for warning signs in kids who may be at risk of committed future violent acts.
When we run out of room for data, scientists want to store it in DNA
Here in 2018, we're generating data faster than we're creating ways to store it. Could encoding data in DNA be a viable long-term storage option? A startup created by two MIT graduates believes that the answer is an unequivocal yes. Here's how their unique solution could change everything.
From translating hearing aids to sign-language gloves, amazing assistive tech
Think that assistive technology for the deaf community is all about your run-of-the-mill hearing aids here in 2018? Think again! From signing robot arms to mind-reading hearing aids, the next few years are going to be pretty darn amazing for accessibility tech if this list is anything to go by.
Why is PlayStation king? Because Sony bravely supports games that end
With titles like 2018’s ‘God of War’ and ‘The Last of Us’, Sony has continuously delivered “walk and talk” games that offer emotional and rich stories without having to sacrifice interactivity, or remove control from the player. It’s what makes PlayStation 4 the king of consoles.
We all cut cable, and now we’re just as screwed on streaming
As live TV streaming services like Sling TV and PlayStation Vue raise prices in tandem, it raises questions about whether these services were ever a viable alternative to cable in the first place. After all, if it costs nearly the same as cable, and offers lower quality, what’s the point?
Five generations of Intel HD Graphics tested
Intel's HD Graphics has come a long way over the years, but is it enough to play modern games at 1080p? We tested every modern incarnation of Intel HD Graphics, from HD 4000 up to the latest Intel UHD 620. The results are what you'd expect, but there is some hope.
7 times Honda’s iconic Asimo robot blew us away (and 1 side-splitting fail)
Asimo is gone, but it won't be forgotten. Honda's talented bipedal bot dazzled and delighted us over the years, and was ahead of its time in many respects. So, as a tribute, we've compiled a collection of some memorable Asimo moments from 2000 when it made its very first appearance.
Repainting a room sucks, so I tried to see if tech could make it any easier
To figure out what color to paint our walls, we used a bunch of online tools, from paint company’s sites to Adobe Color Wheel, to get just the right look. Then we tried out a paint sprayer to see if it really was any easier than doing the job by hand. There are some parts of painting that tech hasn’t figured out how to help with yet, though.
Who controls the tech inside us? Budding biohackers are shaping ‘cyborg law’
We live in a society of cyborgs. This newfound technological power and vulnerability may need a whole new set of laws and regulations aimed at protecting individuals (their data and enhancements) in a society of heightened surveillance and digitization.
Internet connectivity is a human right, and Rightmesh has a plan to fulfill it
Rightmesh believes internet connectivity is a human right, and it plans to help spread internet access using mesh networks built from users' existing smartphones, and other devices. The platform has completed an initial coin offering and plans a beta SDK to launch this fall.
How racing simulators are helping stroke victims get back behind the wheel
Researchers at Loyola Marymount University are adapting technology developed to train the world’s top pro racing drivers to assess cognitive abilities and help victims of stroke and traumatic brain injury to safely retrain themselves to drive. For brain injury survivors, this is anything but a game.
Google’s smart home mastermind talks security, A.I., the future of control
Google product lead Mark Spates works on the company’s smart speakers, including Google Home. In an interview with Digital Trends, he talked about the role of voice in the smart home and where the future might lead, including gesture control, proximity sensors, and new smart speaker hardware.
Tear it up on Mars in ‘Red Rover,’ the driving sim built on NASA data
During the festive holiday season in 2016, Alan Chan spent his week’s vacation time off work exploring Mars. In virtual reality, at least. And thanks to his hard work, now you can too. Here's how one intrepid developer turned space images into our most immersive look at the Red Planet yet.
How VAR and instant replay have transformed the 2018 World Cup (so far)
For years, FIFA attempted to keep replay technology off the soccer field. However, in 2018, the Video Assistant Referee (or VAR) system made its long-awaited debut and has impacted nearly every match at the Russia-hosted World Cup. Here's every notable match where VAR influenced its outcome.
Just add whitewater: These are the gadgets pro kayakers use to go ‘500 percent’
Technology like video analysis, smart fitness trackers, bluetooth headphones, wifi-equipped autos, and other pieces of the modern have an impact on competitive sports. In this interview with pro kayakers Nick Troutman and Emily Jackson, we discuss the role technology plays in whitewater kayaking.
Why I still won’t wear wireless headphones
Wireless headphones promise liberation from cords, tangles, and snags, but there’s just one issue holding them back: battery life. And until manufacturers figure it out, sales numbers prove consumers aren’t yet biting.
The Foreo UFO can fit into your makeup bag and your busy lifestyle
The Foreo UFO is a smart mask treatment that's controlled by your smartphone. Even with the steep price tag, the easy setup and quick execution had us incorporating it into our skincare routine whenever our skin felt dull or needed hydration -- busy schedule or not.
After 14 years, a new generation of Wi-Fi security is coming. Here’s what to know
WPA3 is a new security standard for Wi-Fi hardware that will charge manufactuters with meeting stricter guidelines to be certified to support it. It will bring about greater security and privacy for users in the home and when utilizing 'open' public Wi-Fi networks, as well as better password protections for everyone.
Qualcomm’s new fully wireless in-ear chip makes banded Bluetooth buds obsolete
Qualcomm's new QCC3026 chip will take fully wireless headphones to the next level, offering up to 50 percent more battery life, more powerful audio processing, and the potential for lower price points, a move that could make banded wireless in-ears obsolete.
Google might be planning a game console. That doesn’t mean it will happen
A new report suggests Google is working on a game console, code-named Yeti, and took a variety of meetings at E3 to interest from game developers. It seems likely the reports about Google's game console are true, but that doesn't mean we'll ever see it.
If you blinked, you may have missed this year’s biggest phone innovation
The cool pop-up camera on the Oppo Find X may have caught your attention recently; but a far more exciting and useful piece of new tech arrived on the Lamborghini special edition version, and if you blinked, you may have missed it. It’s called Super VOOC, and it’ll change the way you think about charging phones.
‘Can I book a table for Thursday?’ Google Duplex duped me, but I didn’t mind
Google’s Duplex technology enables the Google Assistant to make calls, so you can ask it to book a reservation at a restaurant or schedule a haircut, and it’ll do all the work for you. We spent some time with the team behind Duplex to learn more about how it works, and to take a call from the Assistant.
Android P gestures vs. iOS 12 gestures: What are the differences?
Both Android P and iOS 12 betas are now available, giving us a look at the new gesture controls in both new operating systems. But what are the major similarities in gestures between the new operating systems? And what are the differences? We put the Android P and iOS 12 betas head-to-head to find out.