The controls are easy enough to manage, letting you click or tap your way around the store. Click on snowflake icons, and you can jump to shelf areas containing specific products or groupings. It’s easier to browse than to find specific items, as areas are not labeled and the “Floor Plan” option resembles a strange retail Advent calendar, with 50 sections that don’t indicate what they contain until you’ve clicked through to one. There’s also a “Dollhouse” mode, which offers a 3D rotatable view of the World of Joy with zones you can click. … [Read more...] about These virtual stores are a joyful twist on e-commerce
Release planning
CES 2021: The smartest ideas from the scaled-down virtual show
Always-listening earbuds While lots of high-end wireless earbuds now offer a “transparency” mode that lets in outside sound, Samsung’s new Galaxy Buds Pro can activate this feature automatically, relaying audio through their outward-facing microphones when they hear the sound of your voice. The feature isn’t perfect—it’d be even better if it could detect when someone else is talking to you—but it does free up the earbuds’ touchpads for other functions such as volume control. … [Read more...] about CES 2021: The smartest ideas from the scaled-down virtual show
The pandemic created a biking explosion. How can cities make it permanent?
We’ve seen the U.K.’s Department for Transport announce a 2 billion pound package to encourage active travel and aimed at doubling cycling and increasing walking to work by 2025. Similarly, Paris rolled out 650 kilometers of cycleways, Milan revealed that it will transform 35 km to support cycling and walking infrastructure, and Germany decided to expand its cycle lanes to meet the demand of active travelers. … [Read more...] about The pandemic created a biking explosion. How can cities make it permanent?
Puerto Rico cell phone service is still out. Can Alphabet’s Project Loon fix it?
Now the FCC has approved the plan that will hopefully restore some internet access to the islands. To make the plan a reality, though, Alphabet still needs a telecommunications partner to work with, but as the private sector rushes to the island’s aid, it seems likely that a company will step forward to help. Alphabet isn’t the only tech company doing their part in Puerto Rico. Tesla sent hundreds of its Powerwall battery systems to Puerto Rico, along with employees to install them. Facebook sent its connectivity staff to the island to help in recovery and reconstruction, too. Want to help? Here’s how you can assist Puerto Rico right now. … [Read more...] about Puerto Rico cell phone service is still out. Can Alphabet’s Project Loon fix it?
