Month: January 2016

A new patent reveals that Facebook is currently investigating the market for a car-sharing platform.

We are already accustomed to using Facebook to create or join events, therefore coordinating a shared car trip should be no obstacle for the social media giants.

Facebook’s idea is to make the activity of car sharing into an event. Here you have a rough plan of how it could work:

As you can see, Facebook should be able to help  you organize the details and even go as far to provide suggestions of who may wish to accompany you.

A month ago, the company announced its agreement with Uber that allows users to book a car using the Messenger app. In their statement, Facebook also hinted that they would look to add similar services in the near future.

Running out of battery is one of the biggest problems smartphones users face on a daily basis. Now, if Bloomberg’s rumors are true, Apple may have a solution to put an end to that problem. The idea is basically to be able to charge our devices from a distance.

There are currently products on the market such as cable-free chargers from Samsung and Apple that have the ability to charge mobiles or tablets using a docking station or charge-surface, but of course, the device always needs to be on top of the charger, which in itself uses a cable, kind of defeating the object.

This could all change with the new technology that Apple apparently may be working on, which would allow remote charging for iPhones and iPads.

But how far away are we talking? Meters? Miles?

For the time being, we don’t have a clue, but if this rumor does come true, and whatever the distance, it is sure going to revolutionize the way we charge our phones.  We’ll keep you updated!

You either love them or you hate them, but one thing’s for sure, you can’t escape them.

“Memes” have become increasingly popular over the last couple of years and regularly haunt our social media feeds with the usual faces, and those bold, white letters.

But, who are these people?We decided to delve a little deeper to understand who these people are, and how their faces have become nothing short of internet sensations.

1. Blake Boston

Known as “Scumbag Steve”, Blake Boston is now a 25-year-old living in Boston. His mom apparently took the famous photo which he uploaded to his MySpace account many years ago.  He apparently doesn’t get recognized in the street simply because he’s put on so much weight.

2. Silvia Bottini

Italian-born Bottini is better known as “First World Problems” girl, and is a full time model and actress. The image in question was simply a stock photo image which has gained her tearful expression internet stardom!

3. Jonathan Goldsmith

Better known as “The Most Interesting Guy in the World”, Jonathan Goldsmith is an American actor, who starred in the advertisement for “Dos Equis”beer, where the image is originally from. He’s well-known for his extremely deep voice and is a very keen sailor, as you can see.

4. Sammy Griner

The original photo was taken by Laney, the child’s Mother, who later uploaded it onto Flickr back in 2007. He quickly became popular as the kid who “hates sandcastles” but was later renamed “Success Kid” which has stuck ever since.

5. Lania Morris

Famous for being the “Overly Attached Girlfriend”, Texan Laina Morris gained internet fame through her YouTube channel where she first created the character. She continues to create similar videos and has over half a million subcribers on YouTube.

Remember Pixar’s movie “Up”? The one where the dogs wear collars that translate their barks and thoughts into human language? Soon- this invention is going to be real (apparently), and the name they’ve given it is “WhatsYapp.”

WhatsYapp look like an ordinary collar that you put around your dog’s neck, yet when your dog barks, the message is converted and sent directly to your smartphone in the form of a WhatsApp message – so you can give your dog exactly what they need. “Let’s go for a walk”, “I’m hungry” or “Where are you?” are just some of the phrases available on the collar.

The collar is not yet available to buy as it’s still in the development stages as the developers continue to explore the various reactions from animals.

WhatsYapp will connect directly to your smartphone via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, and will basically consist of the same technology that makes up a smartwatch: microphone, movement detector, etc.

Obviously, this could be a great idea, but we can’t help but question: up to what point will this device be able to interpret our dog’s thoughts and barks? Does this seem like a product with a future, or just a gimmick from Fetch, the British pet store that has come up with it?

Source: Telegraph

Li-Fi: it’s a word that’s been lurking around the internet for the last couple of months (some may say years), and although we all love the idea of having much faster internet, very few of us know exactly how it works, and when we can expect to see it.

In a nutshell, “Li-Fi” means Light Fidelity, just as Wi-Fi means Wire Fidelity (but you knew that, right?). It’s basically a wireless optical networking technology that utilizes LEDs in order to transmit data.

Confused? Read on.

Light is part of the electro-magnetic spectrum, as are radio waves (what Wi-Fi currently runs on). The difference is that light has a frequency range ten thousand times higher than radio waves, therefore has the capacity to transfer data energy in far less time.

A professor from the University of Edinburgh called Harold Haas claims to have been the first person to identify light as a way to transfer internet data, which is not only faster but a lot more secure due to the fact light cannot penetrate walls. Here he is introducing and demonstrating the technology back in 2011.

Can’t view the video? Click here.

Just to give you another  example of how fast it is, scientists involved in an experiment using Li-Fi last year were able to achieve data transmission at 224 gigabits per second. To put that into perspective, imagine downloading 18 movies (of 1.5GB each) in just one second. Still sounding a bit too science fiction for you?

The technology utilizes Visible Light Communication (VLC), which basically works like an insanely fast (invisible to the human eye) Morse code. These “Morse” coded messages can be used to transmit binary codes.

You can see here the potential of how it could work and be adapted into real life:

Fascinating stuff huh?

Studies are still currently in motion, and there are many people saying it’s just not feasible or necessary to replace our Wi-Fi systems with Li-Fi technology. Instead, engineers are looking at ways the two technologies can work together. Late last year, it was announced that the company pureLiFi had joined forces with a French lighting company with the intention to release Li-Fi enabled products by the end of 2016. Stay tuned for more updates soon!