Following the release of its voice control kit earlier this year, Google has produced a new DIY kit for the Raspberry Pi which lets hobbyists turn the compact board into a computer vision system – or in layman’s terms, a smart camera capable of recognizing stuff. When combined with a Raspberry Pi Zero W, a Raspberry Pi Camera, plus an SD card (and power supply), the user can build their own powerful computer vision system which has no need to hook up to the cloud for extra processing power. The

Samsung doesn’t sell a top flagship phone without a curved display any more, as the company has fully embraced curved screen tech, but a new patent has shown that those curves may be set to undergo a big change soon. This may be a new type of screen tech we’ll see on future versions of Samsung’s top-end Galaxy S and Note lines of phones, but we don’t expect to see it very soon. We’ve heard rumors that Samsung may announce the Galaxy S9 early next year, possibly as soon as CES 2018 at the beginni

Apps, especially free ones, understandably sometimes have adverts, but while they tend to only be displayed inside the app itself, some are more intrusive, leaking out on to your lock screen. For the most part, that sounds like a very good thing, as no one really wants adverts on their lock screen, especially from an app that has nothing to do with the lock screen. It’s not clear whether this would be considered a lock screen replacement or not, though it might be safe, since its whole purpose i

Anything free, indoors and relaxing should be seized, upon which is why we’re drawing your attention to the week-long free trial currently taking place in Elder Scrolls Online. 10 million in TamrielDespite getting off to a somewhat shaky start, The Elder Scrolls Online has really come into its own after moving away from a subscription MMO model to a single purchase one. The change has benefited the game so much, in fact, that this free trial is actually to celebrate it reaching 10 million subscr

If you’re keen to join in on the cryptocurrency gold rush, then you’ll want the best mining motherboard for earning Bitcoin, Ethereum and more. Of course, you’ll also need to have a powerful graphics card for mining as well, so check out our list of the best mining GPUs. Unlike many mining GPUs, which can also be used as standard graphics cards, mining motherboards have been specially made for PCs whose sole purpose is mining and generating cryptocurrencies. This means they can run multiple mini

Apple apparently isn’t too happy with the power management chips it uses for the iPhone, and so as early as next year, it could take matters into its own hands. Apple is reportedly considering plans to ditch its relationship with designer Dialog Semiconductor, according to Nikkei , and instead design the chips on its own, much as it already does with its A-series central processors. If Apple takes this course of action, Taiwan Semiconductor will continue to actually make the chips, much as it al

Image credit: AliveCorToday the US Food and Drug Administration announced that it has cleared AliveCor’s KardiaBand, making this the first true medical accessory for the Apple Watch . Basically, it’s a watch strap that serves as a portable electrocardiogram (EKG) reader. KKeep in mind then that it’s not really a full replacement, but its portability and compatibility for the Apple Watch makes it a more appealing option than what was available before. Watch outBack in September, the FDA introduce

Hot on the heels of Apple announcing its lawsuit against Qualcomm in an ever-growing legal battle, the Snapdragon chip maker has filed its own legal complaint that could see iPhone X sales banned in the United States. Qualcomm levied a complaint to the US International Trade Commission (ITC) noting that several of Apple’s smartphones – ranging from the iPhone 7 to iPhone X – violate five of its patent. That’s far fewer than the 16 patent violations Qualcomm raised against Apple in its November 2

It’s why pretty much every semiconductor manufacturer has set up shop here, and TechRadar was invited to take a very exclusive look behind the scenes of Sony’s vast Kumamoto Technology Center. Inside one of Sony’s vast cleanroomsNot that we saw many people – for such a large site, the place was eerily quiet. With time-consuming steps including photolithography, ion implantation and dry etching, as well as cleaning and polishing, it can take up to six months to produce a sensor that’s ready to be

A lotThe Sony Xperia XZ Premium was announced at MWC 2017, so there’s a fair chance we’ll see the Sony Xperia XZ Premium 2 at MWC 2018, which takes place from February 26 to March 1 2018. Further confusing matters is the fact that there was well over a year between the Sony Xperia Z5 Premium and the Sony Xperia XZ Premium, so it’s possible that we won’t see the XZ Premium 2 for a while yet. The Sony Xperia XZ Premium started at $799/£649 (about AU$1,100) SIM-free, and with flagship prices rising

Producing moody, dramatic landscape photos means you and your gear will be out in demanding conditions. Create another world with mist and fogAn ethereal veil of mist or fog across the landscape is perfect for adding mystery and intrigue to your images. Shooting inside the mist will reduce the landscape to a few graphic elements. But you can add drama by converting your images to black and white to add contrast to both the sky and landscape in your images. Record ultimate drama in stormy weather

There’s no shortage of free PDF readers, but software that will convert PDFs to other formats is much harder to come by. That’s why we’ve gathered together all the best free PDF converters in one place, picking only the most versatile. An amazingly flexible free PDF converter with batch processingCustomizable metadataExcellent choice of formatsBatch PDF conversionWith a huge range of supported file types, a smart interface, and optional batch conversion, Icecream PDF Converter is the best free P

But a team of wearable computing engineers at Georgia Tech has developed what looks like a potential solution. It’s a smart ring that lets you trace letters and numbers with your thumb, allowing easy, silent text input on even the tiniest screens. A ring is also socially acceptable, unlike other wearable input devices,” said Cheng Zhang, the Georgia Tech graduate student who created the technology. The ring has an on-board gyroscope and microphone which detect when the user places their thumb ov

Give the perfect gift that keeps on deliveringThey say nice things come in small packages, and that couldn’t be more true of Anki’s must-have robot, Cozmo. The little robot looks as if it’s come straight out of a Hollywood movie, and it has the brains and the personality to reinforce that impression. Before its UK launch in September this year, How It Works magazine was invited to meet Cozmo, the droid dubbed a ‘supercomputer on treads’. As soon as you wake Cozmo from his charging pad, via the i

The BBC has announced a department for virtual reality experiences called VR Hub, that is going to invest in commissioning high-quality VR experiences. In Home, you can experience a space walk, perform maintenance work on the International Space Station, and then face a ‘terrifying emergency situation’. Although that was a 360 degree video rather than a VR experience so you’re not able to control the outcome of any events. This release marks the first time that it has been made available to the

The holidays are an expensive time, so we’re bringing you a special treat: a full, free Windows program to download every day until Christmas. Each day, we’ll open a door on our advent calendar to reveal a new app, ready to download and enjoy completely free. From free VPNs to website builders and song downloaders, there’s always something brilliant to look forward to. Check back tomorrow for your first free festive download! Downloads provided by ASCOMP, Steganos, Ashampoo, Incomedia, Abelssoft

This article is brought to you by T3 Magazine, your essential guide to the latest and greatest lifestyle technology. This means you’ll hear music differently to the next person, and will pick up on, or miss, certain notes. So, how do you pick the right headphones for your hearing? Step forward, adaptive audio headphones, such as those from Nura (£349 / $399). The headphones use soundwave tech to automatically measure your hearing, then adapt the music to suit – helping you to hear each note perf

Following a beta last month, the finished version of Android Oreo has now landed on the Nokia 8, bringing with it a number of improvements and new features. That’s a feature you’ll find on most handsets rocking Android Oreo, but there’s also some stuff exclusive to Nokia handsets, such as ‘Dual-Sight’, which uses the front and back cameras simultaneously when shooting video, so you can stream your reaction to events on social media. And speaking of apps, there’s no bloat here, with no unnecessar

Amazon is bringing its digital assistant Alexa into the office environment, with the company on the verge of revealing Alexa for Business. We will likely hear more about Alexa for Business later today over at Amazon’s big conference, as previously mentioned. We’re not sure how Microsoft will receive this news, given that the workplace is traditionally the software giant’s domain with its twin pillars of Windows and Office – and Cortana, the firm’s own digital assistant, tied in with all that. Th

It’s been five years since the last Nasa rover blasted off to Mars. So Nasa is working on a new mission, named Mars 2020, that will feature a rover. To explore strange new worldsThe rover also has a rather different mission: it’s going to be looking for signs of ancient life. One is an ancient lakebed, another is a possible hot springs, and a third is where warm waters may once have sloshed up against surface rocks. “Whether life ever existed beyond Earth is one of the grand questions humans see