I figured this would expand into other areas...but Apple announced iPhone 8 and their new flagship iPhone X today:

https://techcrunch.com/2017/09/12/iphone-x/

Apple’s iPhone X, like the new iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus, comes with a brand new design, ditching bezels and opting for a glass front and back. Apple says there is a deeper strengthening layer in the glass that makes it the “most durable in a smartphone.”

Thanks to this new design, the iPhone X is sealed for water and dust resistance.

It’s made from surgical-grade, stainless steel and comes in two finishes: space grey and silver.

Following the current trend in smartphones, Apple has done away with the bezels on the iPhone X, offering an edge-to-edge 5.8-inch display. In fact, Apple is upgrading quite a bit in that department, offering an OLED display for the very first time, calling it the Super Retina Display. This brings with it all the standard benefits of OLED, including more accurate colors, better image uniformity across the screen, etc.

The iPhone X Super Retina display supports 2046×1125 resolution, with 455 PPI, and HDR in both Dolby Vision and HDR.

The company is reportedly paying around $125 per panel, which is part of the reason for the reports of a more expensive iPhone.

This is also the first iPhone that will not have a home button, with the new screen reaching across the entire front of the device. Users can wake up their device by picking it up or swiping across any part of the screen. To close an app, simply swipe up on the screen and throw it away. Users can also reach Siri by simply saying “Hey Siri” or by pressing the side button.

Given that the home button has historically been central to the iPhone’s security, the replacement comes in the form of a depth-sensing front camera which will unlock the phone by detecting the user’s face. Apple is calling it FaceID.

This means that the iPhone will know what your face looks like from all angles and can unlock the phone while it’s, say, lying on a table. It also means that the feature shouldn’t be susceptible to trickery, such as unlocking for a two-dimensional photo of you instead of the real thing. Apple says the chances that someone can trick FaceID and break into your phone are 1 in a million.

“You’re wearing glasses, or wear a hat, or do it up any way you want to do it…” FaceID still works, day or night, according to Phil Schiller.

FaceID is enabled by a True Depth camera system, equipped with an infrared camera, flood illuminator, dot projector and more all packed into the top of your iPhone.

The feature is used for Apple Pay now, as well as a new feature called Animojis for messaging. Animoji’s use FaceID to lay your facial expressions into emojis, giving them your own unique take. You can pick from a dozen different animated emojis.

As far as cameras are concerned, the iPhone X is about as locked and loaded as one can get. The rear camera features a 12-megapixel sensor, with dual-lenses at f1.8 and f2.8 apertures (which is brighter than the 7 Plus telephoto). It comes with dual-image OIS quad-LED TrueTone flash.

Because of the combination of the new A11 Bionic and the enhanced camera, Apple is introducing a new Portrait Lighting, letting users select their lighting effects. These aren’t filters, but rather a real-time analysis of the light hitting the subject’s face, and these lighting effects can be added before and after the photo is taken.

Video is vastly improved as well. Combined with that A11 processor, video can be captured at 60FPS in low-light mode, with faster frame rate support and 4K capture. Slo-mo videos shot in 1080p will have 240 FPS.

The front-facing camera is powered by that True Depth camera system that supports FaceID. But the big news here is that Portrait mode and Portrait lighting is now available on the front-camera.

The iPhone X, as well as the other new iPhones announced today, comes with wireless charging capabilities, thanks to that new glass back. Wireless charging is supported by Qi, which is considered as the standard in the wireless charging industry.

Plus, battery life is two hours longer than the iPhone 7, with most of the improvement coming by way of software enhancements. But because Apple likes to take things to the next level, the wireless charging on the new iPhones is coming with a new accessory called AirPower. It’s a larger mat that lets users charge their iPhones, Apple Watch and AirPods all at the same time.

The iPhone X is packed with the new A11 Bionic processor: 64-bit design, six cores, two high performance processors that are 25 percent faster than the A10 and 4-high efficiency cores (two more than the A10) that are 70 percent faster. The GPU is 30 percent faster.

Part of the bigger news here is improved photographs. As Panzarino noted in the live blog, “The Apple ISP is one of its secret weapons in photography. If you’ve loved an iPhone picture you’ve ever taken then thank the image processor inside the phone for that result.”

The iPhone X starts at $999 for the 64GB model, with a larger 256GB option.

Pre-orders begin on October 27 and regular sales begin November 3, just in time for the Holidays.

https://krebsonsecurity.com/2021/09/gift-card-gang-extracts-cash-from-100k-inboxes-daily/

https://www.ctvnews.ca/business/paypal-is-about-to-start-charging-canadian-users-an-inactivity-fee-here-s-how-to-avoid-it-1.5572578

Form Energy’s Iron-Air Battery Considered Potentially Disruptive for Power Industry

Washington Post
“Iron-air batteries: Huge green-energy breakthrough, or just a lot of hype?”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/07/27/iron-air-batteries-huge-green-energy-breakthrough-or-just-lot-hype/

This Washington Post article is very cautious, noting that battery breakthrough announcements often do not pan out, but the author does bring up the point that iron is 2000 times more plentiful than lithium, and that replacing lithium with iron would make it much easier for the United States to be come self sufficient in storage batteries, since no rare-earth materials (few are currently produced in the US) are required.

Oilprice.com
“Iron-Air Batteries Could Be The Breakthrough Energy Markets Are Waiting For”
https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/Iron-Air-Batteries-Could-Be-The-Breakthrough-Energy-Markets-Are-Waiting-For.html

The authors of this article not that Form energy has raised $250 million, and the company has announced a deal to provide 150 hours energy storage to the Great River Energy cooperative in Minnesota US (lithium-ion energy storage systems are typically for 2-4 hours).

They write: “a relatively inexpensive 100 hour plus utility-scale storage battery is as disruptive a technological force for the electric utility industry as anything we have ever seen.”

I don't know about you guys, but I wish AM/FM portable radios would make a comeback the one I had been using for a long time had died on me, and unless 97.5 also broadcasts bomber games I might be out of luck tomorrow I'll be super busy and god knows how long it will be until I get home

3 minutes ago, iHeart said:

I don't know about you guys, but I wish AM/FM portable radios would make a comeback the one I had been using for a long time had died on me, and unless 97.5 also broadcasts bomber games I might be out of luck tomorrow I'll be super busy and god knows how long it will be until I get home

You can stream it on your phone, via CJOB. 

25 minutes ago, JCon said:

You can stream it on your phone, via CJOB. 

I am continually amazed at how many people stream radio these days. I get regular numbers sent to me and my steaming numbers are staggering. 

4 minutes ago, Noeller said:

I am continually amazed at how many people stream radio these days. I get regular numbers sent to me and my steaming numbers are staggering. 

I have SiriusXM and YouTube. That's my music. I also have Spotify but only because it's free for 6 months. Radio is dead to me right now. I would listen to CBC radio when I was driving to work. 

I listen to some podcasts, otherwise, what I noted above. 

9 minutes ago, JCon said:

I have SiriusXM and YouTube. That's my music. I also have Spotify but only because it's free for 6 months. Radio is dead to me right now. I would listen to CBC radio when I was driving to work. 

I listen to some podcasts, otherwise, what I noted above. 

I listen to Spotify pretty exclusively... But a **** ton of people stream terrestrial radio through websites and apps like Radio Player Canada... 

11 hours ago, iHeart said:

I don't know about you guys, but I wish AM/FM portable radios would make a comeback the one I had been using for a long time had died on me, and unless 97.5 also broadcasts bomber games I might be out of luck tomorrow I'll be super busy and god knows how long it will be until I get home

Lots of them on Kijiji and Facebook Marketplace.

On 2021-09-17 at 9:40 PM, Noeller said:

I listen to Spotify pretty exclusively... But a **** ton of people stream terrestrial radio through websites and apps like Radio Player Canada... 

Do they give you location specifics.  I would wonder if the people listening to certain stations are outside of their coverage area.

I sometimes stream CJOB on my phone for the pre and post games shows at home games because I've got a 15-20 minute walk to my car from the stadium.

Just now, Sard said:

Do they give you location specifics.  I would wonder if the people listening to certain stations are outside of their coverage area.

I sometimes stream CJOB on my phone for the pre and post games shows at home games because I've got a 15-20 minute walk to my car from the stadium.

Yes, I'd say it's about a 50/50 split of people in the listening area who just prefer to use their phone, and half people who are out of the area....

                                           

13 minutes ago, Tracker said:

                                           

Norway fully vaccinated = 67%

That's worse then Alberta! F**k! Just wait till Kenny sees this.

15 hours ago, FrostyWinnipeg said:

Norway fully vaccinated = 67%

That's worse then Alberta! F**k! Just wait till Kenny sees this.

That's fully vaccinated by population, so includes under 12. Canada is over 71% total right now. Alberta is currently just over 62%. 

4 hours ago, JCon said:

That's fully vaccinated by population, so includes under 12. Canada is over 71% total right now. Alberta is currently just over 62%. 

Just the same, I think Norway is jumping the gun.

4 hours ago, Wideleft said:

Just the same, I think Norway is jumping the gun.

Well, that, along with lutefisk-eating is a national sport there.

Well if you haven't heard by now Facebook, instagram and what's app is down, and this comes more than 12 hours after the 60 minutes interview

@FrostyWinnipeg Did you order that Wyze cam? 

9 minutes ago, JCon said:

@FrostyWinnipeg Did you order that Wyze cam? 

I did order one a while ago but cousin needed it as soon as i got it. She liked it.

I know there was one today(RFD mention) for <40 now @ 43 which is meh price to me. 

 

2 minutes ago, FrostyWinnipeg said:

I did order one a while ago but cousin needed it as soon as i got it. She liked it.

I know there was one today(RFD mention) for <40 now @ 43 which is meh price to me. 

 

That's what I saw too, which is why I asked. Sketchy seller, so I wasn't going to order. Supply is still low but I'm sure the price will go down, in time. Home Depot carries them, along with other retailers, so I expect a sale at some point. Hopefully before Xmas. 

                               

This makes me feel old

https://www.newstatesman.com/culture/tv/2022/05/farewell-to-the-ipod-and-the-age-of-the-personal-music-library

5 hours ago, iHeart said:

This makes me feel old

https://www.newstatesman.com/culture/tv/2022/05/farewell-to-the-ipod-and-the-age-of-the-personal-music-library

You've not old until you get referred to a paleontologist for your annual checkup.

Feds pledge $1M to connect people living along Lake Manitoba to satellite internet service

So the RM of St. Laurent will reimburse people up to $845 to get Starlink.

Now Starlink is like 150/month. If you can afford that......

My cabin is in the rm of st laurent. Trust me internet access is not a priority