Monthly Archives: October 2017

At the Google Pixel 2 event earlier this month, Google has revealed their new wireless headphones, the Google Pixel Buds. The reveal has caused lots of excitement due to their power to translate between 40 languages (in combination with Google’s Pixel 2 handset) in real-time.

The Google Pixel Buds are wireless headphones designed for use with Google’s new Pixel 2 handset. Once paired with the handset, you tap the right earpiece and voice to Google Assistant your command, ie. directions, make a call, text etc.

The exciting part is that you can also say something like, “help me speak Japanese” and then start speaking in English, the phone’s speakers will output your translated words as you speak them. When the other party replies in their language, it will then play into your ear in English through the Pixel Buds. If the technology works as it says it will, this is an exciting step forward for global communication.

Translation technology has been improving and over the past couple of years and has been taken on by big names. Skype released their Live Translation feature in 2015, which works with four languages for spoken audio and 50 languages over instant messenger. Most of these previous technologies though are not quite in real-time and often have a lag between the original and translated messages.

Microsoft also released earlier this year, PowerPoint “Presentation Translator” add-in. When using an iOS or Android app, Presentation Translator can convert your voice over into Spanish or Chinese in real-time.

Waverly Labs, a startup who crowdfunded their pilot project on wearable translation technology — speech recognition, machine translation and the advances in wearable technology is now in a tough spot due to Google launching the tech before them. Google not only beat them to it but are offering 40 languages instead of Waverly’s 15 and for a price of $160 instead of $300. Great for us consumers but bad news for the small startup.

The matter that this technology is being released now through major companies such as Google will bring new heights to global communication technology and will set the bar high for the competition. The implications are greater than the technology itself, with language barriers falling, communication world-wide will likely only improve. It is exciting to also see where this technology will go from here and how companies like Apple will respond in the likely near future.

If you would like to discuss Google’s new Pixel 2 handset, available to customers on 19th October or the Google Pixel Buds, available in November, please be in touch with us at [email protected].

Dropbox has redesigned their aesthetic and has introduced much more colour than its previous white and blue. The new look also includes an updated box logo that has a flatter, more modern, look that looks more abstract and less like an actual box.

This is Dropbox’s first major revamp in 10 years and the redesign will set them apart from their competitors such as Box, Google Drive and iCloud — who all use some version of blue in their logos.

The update also includes a new typeface called Sharp Grotesk which will also enhance the new look as a modern and fresh file sharing platform.

Dropbox is saying the new colour combination will help them stand out among the crowd of file-sharing services, as well as give a nod to the creativity of their users. They say the new look is closer to Adobe now than to Microsoft OneDrive.

Though the logo is new, most of the web and app user interface remains visually similar — with mostly white with blue and grey accents. The new colour combinations are most likely to be seen on marketing campaigns and ads than actual interface changes.

If you would like to learn more about Dropbox or our Cloud services, please be in touch with us at Read More

Mozilla, the nonforprofit organisation behind Firefox, will launch their new version of the browser next month on 14 November 2017, called Firefox Quantum. In the meantime, you can sign up to be notified regarding its launch or try the beta version called Version 57.

Firefox Quantum is the most important release for the organisation in years. It’s the culmination of years of work on many of the moving pieces that a user never sees but that allows the browser to quickly display your email inbox, Youtube or blog page.

The new version is said to have many new and improved features that will make the browser worth installing once again.

Features include:

The most popular browser today is Chrome due to its speed and simplicity. Up until around 2011, Firefox was one of the most popular browsers but since then have yet to release a version that can compete with Chrome. The new Firefox Quantum is now said to be worth revisiting the old favourite so it might be worth having a look to see if it’s the browser for you.

If you would like to discuss switching browsers or have any question related to web development, please be in touch with us at [email protected].

The first mass consumer online messaging platform, AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) will discontinue their services as of 15 December 2017. AIM was the first online experience of it’s kind for an entire generation and they never capitalised on it.

It’s sort of an end of an era, especially for those of us who grew up in the 90’s. Nowadays, AIM has fallen in favour with the newer and flashier services on our smartphones like SnapChat, Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp.

You can continue to use AIM up until 15 December, but after this date, access will cease and all data will be deleted. If you use AIM, be sure to save any data that you may want to keep before this date.

If you use an aim.com email address your email account will not be affected and you will still be able to send/receive email as normal even after the 15 December.

If you would like to discuss your email account or are interested in our email hosting services, please be in contact with us at Read More

The sale of new machines with Windows 7 and Windows 8/8.1 operating systems preinstalled are no longer available to retailers and OEMs; Dell, HP, Lenovo, Toshiba — PC manufacturers who pre-install Windows.

Though the end of the Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 sales life cycle does not mean that those older versions are completely dead and there are still ways to run a preferred older version.

When purchasing a new machine, you can still downgrade from Windows 10 to the old Windows 7 or Windows 8.1, which is available through the downgrade rights from Windows 10.

Windows 7 will also continue to receive security fixes via Windows Update until 14 January 2020 and Windows 8.1 will be supported until 10 January 2023.

We do warn that there are risks running the increasingly ageing Windows 7 and Windows 8.1, especially on newer hardware. System manufacturers have no economic incentive to develop drivers and support tools for these older Windows versions — most downgrades will work, but there is the risk that some components might not work properly, or at all.

If you have any questions regarding your Windows operating system or are in need of support in upgrading or purchase of a machine, please be in touch with us at [email protected].

Snapchat is planning to launch their new augmented reality art platform. The platform will feature art from pop artist Jeff Koons and other artists eventually will also have the opportunity to sign-up and have their art added to the platform.

The new AR feature is based on the technology from Cimagine, an Israeli AR startup that Snapchat acquired in December. The dancing hot dog is powered by a similar feature called World Lens’, that has received 1.5 billion views on Snapchat!

The leak of the news of this new AR feature came about when the TechCrunch news agency asked Snapchat regarding the rumour, and Snapchat responded with this “art.snapchat.com” URL with a countdown to 3PM eastern time today, over Central Park.

You can click the link to follow the countdown but unfortunately, the surprise has already been discovered by savvy readers who discovered a time hack to trick the site and reveal what will be launched, ruining Snapchat’s big surprise. The hack method has been disabled now so you can still follow the countdown on the link. Although the reveal is mostly ruined it may still be fun to keep an eye on the countdown to see what or if they add anything new.

Fundamentally, when users are nearby a Snapchat ART, they’ll see a special Lens and an indicator will direct them in the direction of the ART until they see it appear on their phone. The ART instalments will likely also be visible in the Snapmap so users can find one near them and view different pieces around the world.

Pop artist Jeff Koons is most famous for his giant balloon animal sculptures which will be used for Snapchats ART features initially. Installments will be available in New York, Chicago, Washington DC, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Toronto, Syndey, London, Paris and Rio de Janeiro. Other artists will also be able to sign up to have their art added to the platform as well. It will be important for other artists to get involved so these AR installments can be featured world-wide and not just in major cities.

Snapchat seems to have beaten Facebook in terms of an AR feature with this launch. Facebook has been planning its “pin augmented reality to real-world locations” for some time now but previews of the feature are on a much smaller scale to Snapchat’s massive instalments.

After Snapchats share prices hit a low in August, this ART launch could help reignite the social platform as user growth has recently slowed. Intense competition from Instagram Stories and Facebook caused damage to their user base and frequency but this fresh new feature could bring people back and even acquire new users with from this fun world-wide feature.

Similar to the madness that was Pokemon Go, if the launch goes well, it could get users running to these physical locations and users of all ages to download Snapchat to join in on the action too.

If you are interested in learning more about this new Snapchat feature or would like to hear about our social media service, please be in touch with us at [email protected]