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Ubuntu could force itself to look at that creepy-looking canine robot CyberDog

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Canonical, the company which manages the Ubuntu open-source operating system, is reportedly planning to deepen its understanding of a creepy-looking canine robot called CyberDog – probably giving itself nightmares in the process.

CyberDog is a quadrupedal, experimental, open-source robot created by Chinese mobile phone giant Xiaomi. This canine robot is eerily similar to the other, more famous and even more terrifying robot dog produced by Boston Dynamics. That one – called Spot – is also open source.

Xiaomi says its aim in releaasing CyberDog is to “improve the robot development environment and promote the development of the robot industry”. Xiaomi says it has a clear vision for its product. [Read more…] about Ubuntu could force itself to look at that creepy-looking canine robot CyberDog

Huawei surpasses Apple in smartphone sales

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Huawei has surpassed Apple in smartphone sales in the second quarter of this year, according to figures collated by the International Data Corporation.

The preliminary data from IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, smartphone vendors shipped a total of 342.0 million units during the second quarter of 2018 (2Q18), resulting in a 1.8 percent decline when compared to the 348.2 million units shipped in the second quarter of 2017.

The drop marks the third consecutive quarter of year-over-year declines for the global smartphone market and only the fourth quarter of decline in history.  [Read more…] about Huawei surpasses Apple in smartphone sales

Vacuum cleaning robots invading homes all over the world

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roomba
Long-exposure photo showing path taken by Roomba in 45 minutes. Picture: Wikipedia

Other than washing the dishes, vacuuming the house is probably the most boring activity in the world, and probably only a very few sane humans would enjoy the activity. 

But household chores need to be done, and it is this human right to avoid boring tasks which the robots are exploiting to find their way into homes all over the world.

In the future, when we look back at how the robots took over everything, it’s probably not industrial robots which will be blamed – because they’re mostly caged off and controlled inside factories: it’s the vacuuming and other cleaning robots we should be scared of.

They might look innocent – with their rounded edges and small, apparently unintimidating size, maybe even reminiscent of a slow-moving pet cat, only better behaved – but vacuuming robots could be seen as the artificially intelligent machine army’s frontline infantry in the battle for the future of humanity, and they are gaining more and more floorspace every day.  [Read more…] about Vacuum cleaning robots invading homes all over the world

NXP signs deal with China’s Xiaomi on intelligent transport payments technology using NFC

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NXP and Xiaomi have agreed a mobile payments technology deal for public transit systems in China, a country with some plans for intelligent transport networks. 

As a key part of the deal, Xiaomi integrated NXP’s Secure Element and Near Field Communication (NFC) solution into its next-generation flagship Mi 5 smartphone, which the companies believe will help accelerate the adoption of mobile payments in China.

The newly launched Mi 5 models will allow customers to use tap-to-pay for travelling, seamlessly enter and exit public transport systems without using a ticket or travel card, and enable simple balance checking all while ensuring payment security, claimed the companies. [Read more…] about NXP signs deal with China’s Xiaomi on intelligent transport payments technology using NFC