Here’s how to track Santa during his busiest night of the year
It's that time of year again when Santa and his team of reindeer head out to deliver gifts to expectant kids around the world. A couple of popular online services let you follow Santa's progress on December 24 as goes about his business. Just make sure you're tucked up in bed before he arrives!
Snap, snap, hooray! Google Photos doubles Live Album limit to 20,000 images
Google Photos' Live Albums feature lets you automatically create albums containing particular people or pets. The object-recognition feature launched in October 2018, but it seems that some users have already been hitting the album capacity of 10,000 images. So Google has just increased it to 20,000.
No, ‘volcano selfies’ are not a good idea (especially during eruptions)
A report from the Royal Geographical Society has noted how more people are traveling around the world to erupting volcanoes in a bid to snap dramatic shots for their social media followers. But it's not always such a great idea, as the formidable force of nature can often place them in danger.
Drones force one of the world’s busiest airports to suspend all flights
There was major disruption at Gatwick Airport in the U.K. on Wednesday night, and going into Thursday morning, as two drones forced it to suspend and divert all flights for at least 11 hours. The incident began at 9 p.m. local time following "multiple sightings" of at least two drones near the airfield.
Here’s a Leica that won’t break the bank, though there is a catch
Leica cameras are renowned for their solid build, impressive performance, and attractive design, but they cost more than most people can afford. Second best option? How about this $45 Lego Leica, which lets you build a plastic-brick version of the $6,000 Leica M camera.
Google’s new Street View backpack offers better imagery in a lighter package
Higher-quality imagery is coming to Street View thanks to a new design for Google's Trekker backpack. The kit, which enables Street View to capture imagery from more places, now has better-quality camera sensors and is lighter than before. Google rebuilt the kit after listening to feedback from users.
Lovot is a cute companion robot that wants to give you affection
It won't do the housework or cut the grass, but it might make you happy. We're talking about Lovot, a new companion robot out of Japan. It's been designed by Tokyo-based Groove X, whose CEO Kaname Hayashi worked extensively on SoftBank's Pepper robot before he left to set up his own company.
Twitter makes it easier than ever to switch between latest and top tweets
Twitter has finally delivered on its promise to give users more control over their timeline. It comes in the form of a new button on the main screen that lets you switch between an algorithm-generated timeline or, as some people like to have it, a timeline that shows the most recent tweets first.
Google to expand New York City presence with $1 billion campus
Google is following in Amazon's footsteps with its own plans to significantly expand its presence in New York City. The company announced on Monday, December 17 that it's investing $1 billion on three sites in Manhattan for more than 7,000 workers. The first buildings will be open for business by 2020.
Holiday shopping: Here are the final dates for Amazon’s free shipping promotion
If you're shopping with Amazon this holiday season, time is fast running out if you want your gifts delivered before December 25. Tuesday is the final day for some of Amazon's free shipping options, and then those options start falling away — for Prime members, too. Here are the dates you need to know.
High-tech dancing robot turns out to be a guy in a costume
A Russian TV audience was impressed recently by an adult-sized "robot" that could dance and talk. But when some viewers began pointing out that the android's actions were a little bit weird, and that it had no sensors, the truth finally emerged ... it was a fella in a robot suit.
Starbucks teams with Uber Eats for delivery from 2,000 of its U.S. stores
Coffee giant Starbucks has teamed up with Uber Eats to offer customers beverage delivery from 2,000 of its stores — a quarter of all of its outlets in the U.S. The major expansion will see Uber Eats run alongside Starbucks' current partnership with rival delivery service Postmates.
Delivery robot goes up in flames while out and about in California
A small meal-delivery robot suddenly caught fire in Berkeley, California, on Friday. The robot's maker, Kiwi, said the incident was caused by a faulty battery. The blaze was quickly extinguished and no one was hurt, but the episode is still a troubling one for the fledgling robot delivery industry.
Netflix is testing an instant scene-replay feature, but would you use it?
Netflix has confirmed that it's testing a feature that lets you skip back to the beginning of the scene you just watched. The pop-up message only appears for certain stand-out scenes, though Netflix subscribers who've seen it seem to find it annoying more than anything else.
Postmates’ to roll out Minion-like autonomous delivery robots in 2019
On-demand delivery firm Postmates is about to employ a cute little robot to work alongside its human delivery personnel. Called Serve, the wheel-based bot can carry items weighing up to 50 pounds and has a range of 30 miles. It'll hit the streets first in Los Angeles, with more cities welcoming the robot next year.
Cops go after porch pirates with dummy Amazon boxes and GPS trackers
The fight against those pesky porch pirates has begun in earnest after Amazon teamed up with police in Jersey City to catch the thieves. It involves dummy Amazon boxes and GPS trackers, and within just minutes of the operation's launch this week, cops nabbed their first criminal.
Amazon shows off compact cashier-free store that could show up at airports
Amazon is testing its smallest Amazon Go store to date as it considers taking the grab-and-go technology to new venues such as airports and train stations. The compact store is a quarter the size of its current locations and is located in Macy's Department Store in Seattle, Washington.
Hertz speeds up car rentals with biometric scan technology
Biometric security tech using face and fingerprint recognition is gaining traction, with Hertz the latest company to incorporate it into daily operations. Launching at 40 of its rental locations over the next year, customers can bypass the service counter and use their face or fingerprints as ID instead.
Queen’s ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ becomes the most-streamed 20th-century song
Queen's iconic Bohemian Rhapsody has become the most-streamed 20th-century song. Knocking Nirvana's Smells Like Teen Spirit off the top spot, the British band's 1975 classic has now been streamed more than 1.6 billion times globally. Its popularity was given a boost by the recently released Queen biopic.
Uber Eats is testing a system for cheaper meal delivery
In an effort to make its service more competitive while at the same time increasing its efficiency, Uber Eats is looking at ways of encouraging customers located in a specific area to order from the same restaurant so that a single driver can deliver multiple meals in one journey.
Puma revives its classic 1986 smart shoe, complete with high-tech heel hump
More marketing stunt than serious effort to dominate the smart shoe space, Puma is about to re-release its classic RS-Computer Shoe. The high-tech footwear from 1986 was a breakthrough at the time, allowing runners to measure time, distance, and calories expended, before uploading the data to a PC.
‘YouTube Rewind 2018’ is about to become its most disliked video ever
YouTube is about to achieve a record it really doesn't want — that of "most-disliked video." Yes, its annual recap of featuring popular YouTubers has gone down really badly this year. The record currently belongs to Justin Bieber, whose 2010 hit, "Baby," has so far received 9.7 million dislikes.
Walkie-talkie voice messaging finally comes to Instagram
Instagram has added walkie-talkie-style voice messaging to its app. Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, Snapchat, and iMessage, among others, already offer the feature. To send a voice message, simply tap on the app's messaging icon and then press and hold the microphone button inside the text box -- and speak!
Amazon knocks $30 off its Paperwhite ebook reader in limited-time deal
Amazon is running a couple of limited-time deals for its Paperwhite ebook reader. One offers a $30 discount giving it a $100 price tag, while the other throws in a pair of headphones and a free, extended Audible trial. The latest version of the Paperwhite launched last month and is now waterproof.
Full-fledged drone delivery service set to land in remote Canadian community
Some drone delivery operations seem rather crude in their execution, but Drone Delivery Canada is building a comprehensive platform that's aiming to take drone delivery to the next level. Part of its work includes the imminent launch of a service between two remote communities in northern Canada.
Leica targets street photographers with a pricey camera bundle
Described by the camera company as "your perfect companion in the city," Leica's Street Kit for street photographers comprises a Leica CL camera body, a Leica Summicron-TL 23mm (35mm full-frame equivalent) F2 lens, two batteries, a black handgrip, and a Leica-branded black leather carrying strap.
Lime’s dockless electric bikes land in London, but its scooters aren’t allowed
Lime has landed in London with its dockless bikesharing service. The pedal-assisted electric bikes are unlocked using Lime's smartphone app and can reach speeds of 15 mph. It plans to have 1,000 bikes on the streets of the capital before the end of the year, with more planned for 2019.
Google’s updated Santa Tracker entertains and teaches coding throughout December
Google's Santa Tracker is in its fifteenth year and is back again with even more features. You can have fun with more than 20 games, learn about different holiday traditions around the world, and enjoy some festive animations. There's also a chance to learn some basic coding, all Christmas-related, of course.
Elon Musk to unveil tunnel elevators and autonomous pods on December 18
We'll soon learn if Elon Musk's high-speed tunnel plan is a serious effort to relieve traffic congestion or little more than a fancy theme park ride. Musk has announced a big unveiling event for December 18 that will show off not only a tunnel but also a ground-to-tunnel car elevator and an autonomous passenger pod.
Robot janitors will soon be scrubbing the floors at your local Walmart
Hundreds of robot janitors will soon be working at Walmart stores across the U.S. The company says the autonomous floor scrubbers will free its human staff from monotonous tasks, giving them more time to focus on customers. The rollout follows in-store testing of the technology over the last year.
Apple’s first iPhone XR case lets you show off your handset’s color
Apple has released its first case for the iPhone XR. Costing $39, it has a clear back to let you show off the color of your phone, whichever of the six options you chose. The case comprises a blend of polycarbonate and flexible TPU materials, and includes a scratch-resistant coating inside and out.