Digital Trends Live: iPhone 11 and Nintendo Switch leaks, insect meat, and more
On this episode of Digital Trends Live, we discuss the biggest trending stories in tech, including confirmation of the new iPhone 11 design, leaked images of Nintendo Switch mini console, Samsung’s roll-up display phone, a virtual reality massage center, insect meat, and more.
Walmart offers the Oculus Go virtual reality headset with a $30 gift card
If you're looking to step in to the virtual realm, Walmart is running a great deal on the Oculus Go VR headset. Whether you buy 32GB or 64GB of internal storage, you'll get a $30 gift card with your purchase. The Oculus Go is a great entry-level VR headset, and gives you content from over 1,000 apps.
HTC’s Vive Pro Eye, a $1,600 VR headset with eye-tracking, is all business
HTC released its Vive Pro Eye virtual reality headset this week for its U.S. customers. But it’s not really for your average consumer. The Vive Pro Eye is stacked with more business-friendly features than anything else, including eye-tracking technology and heat-mapping.
Apple unveils ARKit 3 for more immersive augmented reality experiences
Apple unveiled ARKit 3, which features intriguing new updates to its augmented reality platform. These include photorealistic rendering, real-time people occlusion, and real-time motion capture. RealityKit and Reality Composer promise to make it easier for developers to create immersive AR experiences.
Digital Trends Live: Apple WWDC lead-up, Tesla pickup, and more
On this episode of Digital Trends Live, we discuss the lead-up to the Apple Worldwide Development Conference (WWDC), going on a safari with Google Search, Tesla’s upcoming pickup, in-display smartphone selfie camera, robotic lunar landers, and the future of untethered soft robots.
Volvo wants to use augmented reality tech to help design future cars
Volvo and Finnish tech firm Varjo have developed an augmented reality headset that can be used while driving a real car. Volvo claims this will help speed up the development process of future cars. Digital tools are quickly being adopted by automaker design departments.
What would it take to build a Matrix-level simulation of reality?
What would it take, technologically speaking, to build a real version of the Matrix? Now that we're rapidly approaching the point at which such a thing will be possible, MIT computer scientist Rizwan Virk explores what we'd need to do to build a Matrix-level simulation
Google’s new $999 augmented reality smartglasses are ready for business
Google unveiled Google Glass Enterprise Edition 2, a new version of its business-focused augmented reality wearable. The company's latest smartglasses ship with a new and faster Qualcomm processor, an updated 8MP camera, safety frames from Smith Optics, and a $999 price tag.
Minecraft Earth hands-on preview: The next big AR craze Is coming
Minecraft Earth is a new mobile augmented reality game from Microsoft that has Pokémon Go dead in its sites. The cute monster collect-them-all started the genre, but Minecraft Earth is about to prove what augmented reality can really do.
YouTube VR app to bring more than 1 million experiences to Oculus Quest at launch
The untethered Oculus Quest launches later this month and a major force in media is making sure you have access to a wealth of content if you're one of the early adopters. YouTube has announced that the company's VR application will be a part of the Quest launch, delivering Emmy-award winning content.
New Sony patents could be PlayStation’s answer to Google Stadia
Google Stadia will be attempting to cut into the pie dominated by Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo later this year but one of its competitors may already have an answer for the game streaming platform. A new Sony patent shows what could be the PlayStation spin on streaming.
Nike Fit aims to help you slip into your new sneakers more easily
Nike says a new augmented reality feature for its app should increase the chances of a snug fit for customers buying its shoes online, or even in-store. The process takes less than a minute and involves taking a detailed scan of your feet. Nike Fit launches in the U.S. in July and the following month in Europe.
Get a PSVR and Five Nights at Freddy’s with new bundle deals at Walmart
PlayStation VR is an accessible high-end virtual reality HMDs and there are a couple of new deals at Walmart you can take advantage of. The two new bundles feature a combo of either Trover Saves the Universe and Five Nights at Freddy's: Help Wanted or Blood & Truth & Everybody's Golf VR.
Google’s ARCore is getting better at tracking moving images
Google has announced a series of updates to ARCore that should make the augmented reality experience a whole lot more fluid. For example, ARCore is getting better at tracking moving images through Augmented Images, plus you'll soon be able to view augmented reality objects directly in Search.
As AR heads to Google search, Lens learns to translate, add tips, and more
Google Lens can soon help you decide what to eat by scanning the menu, then calculate the tip with one look at the receipt. Translation options are also expanding for Lens, while 3D objects and augmented reality tools will be built directly into Google search results, the company announced during I/O.
Minecraft AR teased during Microsoft Build 2019, full reveal arrives on May 17
The Vision Keynote during the first day of Microsoft Build 2019 closed out with a quick teaser of what may a big hit experience for augmented reality. The trailer showed off an upcoming Minecraft AR application that we'll hear more about later this month during the full reveal on May 17.
Oculus Rift S gets a release date, pre-orders are now available
The Oculus Rift S made its debut at the 2019 Game Developers Conference. Oculus's newest VR headset is expected to replace the original Oculus Rift as the company's flagship product. The new headset features a few new improvements and its design is the result of a partnership with Lenovo.
Valve Index VR headset costs $500, but the full bundle will set you back $1,000
Valve is stepping into the VR headset market with the high-end Index, and the company finally revealed the price and release date. The Index can be purchased individually or as part of a couple of bundles that include virtual reality controllers and/or Steam Index base stations.
From Oculus Quest to a Facebook redesign, everything announced at F8 2019
Facebook F8 is finally here, and Facebook has taken the wraps off of a number of new products and services, including a major Facebook redesign, a Messenger desktop app, and more. Here's everything Facebook announced at Facebook F8 2019, its annual developer conference, held on April 30 and May 1.
Google Creative Lab’s new AR experiment helps you learn how to draw
Google's Creative Lab has developed an experiment, called Drawalong AR, that could make it a little easier for aspiring artists to follow YouTube tutorials. The experiment essentially leverages Google's ARCore to create a kind of virtual tracing paper on a phone's display.
The best 360 cameras you can buy
Immersive 360-degree video is still a newcomer, nowhere near as ubiquitous as the like of acton cams. Still though, there are dozens of 360 cameras on the market to choose from. To help you narrow down which one best fits your needs, we've rounded up a collection of our favorite 360 cameras.
Digital Trends Live: Facebook data security, Ubisoft helps Notre Dame, and more
DT Live talks Facebook and Instagram security issues, Ubisoft's plan to help rebuild Notre Dame, the theft of 100 Car2Go vehicles, and more. We are also joined by Emily Teteut of littleBits and Snap the Gap, Jennifer Sendrow of New York Public Radio, and DJ and producer Zeke Thomas
The VR goggles you wear to shoot alien ships is helping Magna design car parts
Canadian automotive supplier Magna has started using virtual reality in its research and development department. The technology helps engineers see what they're working on without making (and, sometimes destroying) a prototype, so it saves time and money. VR also brings international teams closer together.
Sony patent describes glasses with eye tracking for VR headsets
A curious patent from Sony shows off prescription glasses that feature eye-tracking capabilities for a virtual reality headset. The patent also infers that the headset that the glasses are paired with already has eye tracking, deactivating the feature when it senses that these glasses are in use.
Army uses modified Microsoft HoloLens 2 for ‘real-life game of Call of Duty’
The U.S. Army gave CNBC an exclusive look at its modified Microsoft HoloLens 2 augmented reality headset. The Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS), shows the location of allies and opponents on a map, offers thermal imaging capabilities, and helps soldiers aim by displaying their weapon's reticle.
Nintendo is bringing the latest Zelda and Mario games to its VR headset
The Nintendo Labo VR Kit launches this month and two of the Switch's biggest games, Super Mario Odyssey and Breath of the Wild, will get free VR support via a software update that goes live a couple of weeks after the VR Kit launch. Odyssey will feature bonus VR levels while BoTW can be played in full.
A Google patent hints at a new attempt at an augmented reality headset
Google may be working on another augmented reality headset. The company was awarded a patent for an augmented reality headset. Unfortunately, the patent isn't entirely specific as to what the headset will look like, but it at least highlights that Google is working on one.
Valve may have accidentally leaked the ship date for its VR headset
Valve published three Index store pages early and, while they featured mostly placeholder text, they revealed the 2019 ship date for the VR HMD. The individual pages show off the Index itself, details on the controllers, and the base station that will track the HMD and controllers.
Nonny de la Peña wants to put virtual reality within Reach
Immersive journalism uses virtual reality to put viewers inside true stories and up close and personal with the subjects. Nonny de la Peña is a pioneer of the medium and hopes to make it more accessible with Reach, her WebVR platform.
Valve Index VR headset revealed, more info coming in May
The Valve Index was teased, confirming rumors that the gaming company is working on its own virtual reality headset despite the partnership with HTC for the Vive and Vive Pro. More information about the Valve Index will be coming in May, which could also be the device's release date.
VR tool lets you see the world through the eyes of an endangered primate
Researchers at Dartmouth College have developed a virtual reality system that gives it wearers a sense of what it’s like to see the world through highly specialized eyes of an endangered tarsier. The goal is to give students an immersive experience of the natural world.
HTC’s stand-alone Vive Focus Plus will be out in April, and it won’t be cheap
The HTC Vive Focus Plus is set to release on April 15 to commercial businesses and developers. The stand-alone headset features the "six degrees of freedom" system, and includes hazard-tracking protection. It will not be aimed at average customers, but has applications in video game arcades.
The U.S. Army is building a giant VR battlefield to train soldiers virtually
Imagine if U.S. Army soldiers were able to rehearse battlezone scenarios dozens, or even hundreds, or times before setting foot on actual terrain. That's what the Department of Defense's new VR Synthetic Training Environment hopes to make possible. Here is how it works.
Angry Birds AR: Isle of Pigs brings 3D demolition into your living room
Angry Birds is releasing its next entry in the spring of 2019 with a new spin. Bringing 3D environments and destruction, Angry Birds AR: Isle of Pigs uses augmented reality to add a new dimension to a classic series. Free-to-play and launching on iOS, pre-orders are available starting March 19.