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Trends with Benefits: Oculus Touch, self-lacing shoes, Google runs your life

Greg Nibler
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Google wants to be your life assistant, the Oculus Touch offers a new way to play, virtual reality and social media are colliding, and Nike is fulfilling the wishes of Back to the Future fans everywhere with self-lacing shoes.

Our latest weekly episode of Trends with Benefits features Nick Mokey, Brendan Hesse, Matt Smith and Greg Nibler.

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Our topics this week:

  • Google wants to run your life
    Google came out swinging on Tuesday, with Pixel phones to take on Apple and Samsung, Google Home to take on Alexa, and Daydream to shake up VR systems. Can Google swoop into these emerging markets and become your go-to service for … well life?
  • Oculus Touch 
    Oculus’ annual developers conference had some big announcements, but Oculus Touch took the cake, giving Rift players a long-awaited way to interact with the virtual worlds around them. But there’s a catch …
  • Social media goes VR
    It was only a matter of time before Facebook began including VR options for interacting. In addition a company called VRChat just received funding for a cross-platform, avatar-based VR app. Is this the beginning of a newer, more immersive version of Second Life?
  • Nike brings us Back to the Future
    Nike has announced that Marty McFly’s self-lacing sneakers from Back to the Future are finally real! You’ll need to win a raffle, but it’s worth the entry. What kind of movie tech would you like to see come to fruition?!

Please subscribe and share Trends with Benefits and send in your questions to podcast@digitaltrends.com. Want to watch the next episode live? We broadcast the show live on YouTube every Thursday at 2:30 pm Pacific.

Check out our other live-streamed shows, Between the Streams and Close to the Metal.

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Greg Nibler
Greg Nibler
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Greg has worked as a Host, Producer, and Writer in radio and television since the early 2000s, working for such companies as…
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