Tech Brew Ride Home - Mon. 09/28 – Roku’s New $130 Streambar and Updated $100 Roku Ultra

Starting point is 00:00:00 On April 4th, 2023, around 2 in the morning, a man was found stabbed multiple times on a sidewalk in downtown San Francisco. Hey, who did this to you? What happened next turned the story into a political firestorm. Reports have identified the victim as Bob Lee, the founder of Cash App. From Bloomberg Podcasts, this is Foundering, the Killing of Bob Lee, beginning April 16. Welcome to the Tech meme right home for Monday, September 28th, 2020. I'm Brian McCullough. Today, Roku launches a stream bar and an Ultra with Dolby Vision. Dell updates the XPS 13 lineup. TikTok is still ticking as of this moment. Will we see the return of the mini moniker with an iPhone 12 mini that might not actually be that small? Amazon Prime Day lives again, but the days are numbered for the original Farmville. Here's what you miss today in the world of tech. It's been a bit of a Hardware Day for Roku. Roku announced both a brand new stream bar, which combines a compact soundbar with a 4K and HDR streaming device, and they also launched a redesigned Roku Ultra with Dolby Vision. Let's start with that stream bar. It'll run you

Starting point is 00:01:24 $130.30. It ships mid-October, and it's basically a 14-inch soundbar, which happens to also have 4K HDR streaming capabilities, quoting the verge. It's compatible with all the apps and services you'd expect from Roku, and it combines this with four full-range speaker drivers to fill your living room with stereo audio. The big difference between the stream bar and Roku's previous smart soundbar is size. While the original soundbar was over 32 inches long, the new stream bar is under half that at 14 inches. Its smaller size should make it easier to fit into smaller living rooms or alongside bedroom TVs. Otherwise, the stream bar specs are broadly similar to the smart soundbar. It connects to your TV via HDMI arc or optical audio, and it has a Bluetooth receiver and support for Spotify

Starting point is 00:02:15 Connect if you want to stream music. There's also a USB port on its back if you want to plug in a USB stick or external hard drive to play content locally, and this port can also be used for Ethernet with an adapter. If you're in the U.S., then like the Smart Soundbar, you can pair it with Roku's wireless speakers and subwifor to give yourself a surround sound setup. Also like the smart soundbar, the stream bar includes software audio features for a couple of different use cases. There's one that makes speech easier to hear and another that levels out the volume across the content you watch to reduce the volume of loud commercials. There's also a night mode so you can hear the TV without waking others in the house and all of this is controlled with

Starting point is 00:02:54 an included Roku voice remote, end quote. As for the new Roku Ultra, it's basically a redesigned version of its top line player, with a little extra quoting variety. The new Roku Ultra remains priced at $100 and is slated to ship in October. The upgraded 4K HDR device expands wireless range by up to 50% according to the company, and finally add support for Dolby Vision, picture quality. It also supports Dolby Atmos sound when you pair it with compatible devices. The Ultra comes with a voice remote with TV power and volume controls, headphones for private listening, a lost remote finder, and for the first time includes an

Starting point is 00:03:33 HDMI cable in the box. And here's an interesting wrinkle. The company plans to add support for Apple Airplay 2 and HomeKit for select 4K Roku models in the next few months, which would provide a new way to stream HBO Max on those devices. Roku has not supported WarnerMedia's HBO Max natively since its May launch as the parties continue to spar over business terms. Roku earlier this month, inked a deal with NBC Universal for Peacock. With Airplay 2, Roku customers will be able to stream, control, and share video and audio directly from an iPhone, iPad, or Mac to a supported Roku device. HomeKit allows customers to securely control their Roku device using the Apple Home app,

Starting point is 00:04:15 and Siri on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, or HomePod, end quote. If we're doing product launches slash product refreshes today, let's also mention that Dell has updated its XPS 13 and XPS 132 and 1 laptops, now featuring Intel's Tiger Lake CPUs, Thunderbolt 4, and other bells and whistles, shipping on September 30th, starting at $999, quoting and gadget. The updated XPS 132 and 1 and XPS 3rd, offer Intel's G graphics as well. On top of that, the 2&1 has an IR camera that supports Windows Hello and more design options. The convertible machine starts at $1,249, and the XPS 13 begins at $999. There's also a Linux-based developer edition that is preloaded with Ubuntu, and Dell is targeting a maximum battery life of nearly 19 hours.

Starting point is 00:05:12 It also boasts an updated Infinity Edge FHD Plus display, though Dell hasn't revealed pricing for that one yet, end quote. So TikTok status check, still alive, at least at the time of this recording, because, a federal judge has apparently granted a preliminary injunction against the Trump administration order that would have banned TikTok from U.S. App Stores, quoting the New York Times. The injunction halts only the element of the ban scheduled to take effect Sunday at midnight, which would have forced TikTok off app stores run by companies like Apple and Google. It does not cover a broader set of restrictions set to take effect in November at this time, the judge Carl Nichols of United States District Court for the District of Columbia, said in his order.

Starting point is 00:06:00 Lawyers for the app told Judge Nichols in a hearing on Sunday morning that forcing online stores to remove the app weeks before an election and at a time of increased isolation because of the pandemic would impinge on the rights of potential new users to share their views. TikTok had sought the preliminary injunction to temporarily halt the ban. A ban would, quote, be no different from the government locking the doors to a public forum, said John Hall, a lawyer for TikTok. Quote, were pleased that the court agreed with our legal arguments and issued an injunction, preventing the implementation of the TikTok app ban, a spokesman for TikTok said on Sunday after the judge's decision. We will continue defending our rights for the benefit of our community and employees. At the same time, we will also maintain our ongoing dialogue with the government to turn our proposal, which the president gave his preliminary approval to last weekend, into an agreement, end quote. The Commerce Department said in a statement that it would, quote, comply with the injunction and has taken immediate steps to do so, but intends to vigorously defend the executive order and the Secretary's implementation efforts from legal challenges, end quote.

Starting point is 00:07:09 Almost all of the Apple rumor gurus agree that we will see four new iPhones when they're finally announced likely sometime next month. Increasingly, though, a lot of them are also seeing signs that the smallest of the quartet will get the Suburkey iPhone 12 Mini. Maybe the term Mini conjures up memories of your first iPod. But if the term conjures up dreams of a new iPhone. new 4-inch screen like on the original iPhone SE or even the 4.7 inch screen of the 2020 version of the SE. Guess what? In this case, the iPhone 12 Mini might even be bigger than either of those,

Starting point is 00:07:49 depending on bezels, et cetera, et cetera, quoting the verge. The name was mentioned earlier this week by established leaker Love to Dream, who suggested that the four new iPhones would be called the iPhone 12 Mini, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, and iPhone 12 Pro Max. Now, another leaker, Dwanri 1205, has shared images showing Apple's silicone case stickers complete with names and hand-labeled screen sizes. They match previous rumors for sizes and specs with the lineup as follows. Apple iPhone 12 at a 5.4 inch screen, iPhone 12 at a 6.1 inch screen, same as the iPhone 11. Apple iPhone 12 Pro, a 6.1-inch screen, but presumably with higher specs, and an Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max, with a 6.7-inch model larger than the 6.5-inch iPhone 11 Pro Max. An iPhone Mini with a 5.4-inch screen might eventually take the place

Starting point is 00:08:44 of the iPhone SE, currently the smallest handset in Apple's iPhone lineup. But this would be a surprisingly difficult niche to occupy. A 5.4-inch iPhone Mini would have a larger display than both SE models, but could be smaller than the second generation because of slimmer bezels. And if the rumors are true that the new iPhones will return to the industrial design of the iPhone 4 and 5, think a rounded rectangle with flat metal edges like the new iPad Pro, then it might even look like the original iPhone SE. Once more, it seems, no one can resist the lure of adding stories to their product. LinkedIn has become the latest to roll out its own version of stories.

Starting point is 00:09:28 but then it's rolled out a bunch of stuff with a new design, including new messaging options, also the addition of Zoom, Blue Jeans, and Teams video integration, which makes me realize, yeah, the platform for work, the place where work gets done, shouldn't LinkedIn want to battle for that space as much as anyone else, especially as the employment market remains so sluggish? Let's start with the stories, quoting Engadgett. LinkedIn's version of Stories is a lot like what you'd find on Instagram or Snapchat. take a photo, decorate it with text or a jiff, and upload to your profile for all of your professional connections to see for 24 hours. You can change up your privacy settings and

Starting point is 00:10:07 control who can view your story. And in case you need an extra reminder that the features exist, LinkedIn will place all your connection stories at the top of your main feed, end quote. And quoting from TechCrunch. As you would expect, the subjects focus more on work life, influencer types speaking to their LinkedIn audiences, the video equivalence, in other words, of the kind of content LinkedIn is already known for, but now in a more engaging image-first format. For now, Prasad said that there are no ads in these stories, but the plan will be to bring in paid content eventually. In wider LinkedIn, advertising, along with premium subscriptions, sit alongside recruitment in LinkedIn's business model, so that would make sense.

Starting point is 00:10:47 Messaging, meanwhile, has been one of the more popular services on LinkedIn, allowing for more private conversations between connections and would-be contacts. The site doesn't disclose you numbers but says that messages sent are up by 25% in the last year. That will be something LinkedIn also hopes to boost again with a turn to video. In this instance, it's announcing integration with Zoom Blue Jeans and Microsoft's Teams for video chats, end quote. The U.S. Army wants to modify SpaceX's Starlink satellites to double as an alternative GPS system, quoting MIT Technology Review. SpaceX has already launched more than 700. Starlink satellites with thousands more due to come online in the years ahead.

Starting point is 00:11:35 Their prime mission is to provide high-speed internet virtually worldwide, extending it to many remote locations that have lacked reliable service to date. Now, research funded by the U.S. Army has concluded that the growing megaconsolation could have a secondary purpose, doubling as a low-cost, highly accurate and almost unjammable alternative to GPS. The new method would use existing Starlink satellites in low-E-E-O-E-O-E-O to provide near global navigation services. The existing global positioning system consists of a constellation of around 30 satellites orbiting 20,000 kilometers above the Earth. Each satellite continuously broadcast

Starting point is 00:12:12 a radio signal containing its position and the exact time from a very precise atomic clock on board. Receivers on the ground can then compare how long signals from multiple satellites take to arrive and calculate their positions, typically within a few meters. The problem with GPS is that those signals are extremely weak by the time they reach Earth and are easily overwhelmed by either accidental interference or electronic warfare. The concept of using LEO satellites for navigation isn't new. In fact, some of the first U.S. spacecraft launched in the 1960s were transit satellites orbiting at 1,100 kilometers, providing location information for Navy ships and submarines. The advantage of an LEO constellation is that the signals can be a thousand times

Starting point is 00:12:55 stronger than GPS. The disadvantage is that each satellite can serve only a small area beneath it so that reliable global coverage requires hundreds or even thousands of satellites, end quote. But if someone were to have helpfully put up thousands of LEO satellites for you, apparently it would only require a simple software upgrade to modify the Starlink satellites to provide position and navigation from their existing communications and GPS abilities. Quoting one more time. The new system can even, counterintuitively, deliver better accuracy for most users than the GPS technology it relies upon.

Starting point is 00:13:33 That is because the GPS receiver on each Starlink satellite uses algorithms that are rarely found in consumer products to pinpoint this location within just a few centimeters. These technologies exploit physical properties of the GPS radio signal and its encoding to improve the accuracy of location calculations. Essentially, the Starlink satellites can do the heavy computational lifting for their users below. The Starlink satellites are also essentially internet routers in space capable of achieving 100 megabits per second. GPS satellites, on the other hand, communicate at fewer than 100 bits per second. Quote, there are so few bits per second available for GPS transmissions that they can't

Starting point is 00:14:12 afford to include fresh, highly accurate data about where the satellites actually are, says one of the researchers proposing this new plan. If you have a million times more opportunity to send information down from your satellite, the data can be much closer to the truth, end quote. Let's end today with a couple of quick items here. Amazon says it's prime day annual sale will actually be two days and will take place on October 13th and 14th after the original summer date was delayed by the pandemic. Quoting CNBC, members of Amazon's prime subscription program will get access to over one million

Starting point is 00:14:52 deals across every category, including toys, electronics, and apparel, the company said. Amazon settled on a mid-October. Prime Day after it consulted with its global teams and spent several months adjusting operations inside its warehouses to make it safer for employees to continue to work, said Jemil Ghani, Vice President of Prime in an interview with CNBC last week. Quote, we've proceeded adaptively, and we've come to the decision that October 13th and 14th is the right time for us to have Prime Day. Ghani said, we feel like the preparation we've done all year, and for 20 years before that,

Starting point is 00:15:23 ensures that we will have a successful and very importantly a safe Prime Day, end quote. The timing means that the holiday shopping period will begin earlier than ever. Typically, Amazon and other retailers might begin running promotions as the calendar ticks closer to Black Friday, which is the day after Thanksgiving and is the unofficial start of the holiday shopping season. Some prime day discounts and promotions are already launching on the site starting Monday, Amazon said. And pour one out for Farmville, the original Farmville on Facebook, because that is shutting down at the end of this year. Facebook is planning to stop supporting flash-based games entirely, so this comes really as no surprise, but still, the end of an era, right? Quoting the verge. As silly and sometimes annoying, as Farmville

Starting point is 00:16:12 could be, especially when it seemed like all of your Facebook friends were tending their crops, it was a huge win for Zinga. The game launched in 2009 and had more than 10 million daily active users in less than two months. At its peak popularity, some 30 million people played Farmville daily, driving Zinga to record revenues. A mobile, mobile, version and a sequel followed, but subsequent games never quite captured the magic of the original. Farmville players will be able to continue making in-app purchases until November 17th, after which its payment system will shut down. You can still play the game until December 31st, after which it will shut down permanently. And Zinga says a mobile version of Farmville 3 will be available

Starting point is 00:16:48 worldwide soon, end quote. That's all for today. Seems like we're already done with September, basically. I feel like I blinked and this month just basically passed me by. Frankly, if I could just hit a button and fast forward past the next six months entirely, believe me, I would. Talk to you tomorrow.

Tech Brew Ride Home - Mon. 09/28 – Roku’s New $130 Streambar and Updated $100 Roku Ultra

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