Google Home’s new feature and a solution for video buffering 

Show Notes

Google Home

Google is rolling out an update to its Google Home smart speaker that lets you make calls to any phone number in the US and Canada for free.

So, if you are looking to ditch your landline, then this might be a replacement to look at.

One thing to note though is that you can’t call 911 with Google Home.

If you have a Google Home, what are you waiting for, say “Hey Google, Call …,” and you’ll be on your way.

Motorola

A new patent recently published by the US Patent and Trademark Office shows that Motorola may be working on a phone that features a self-repairing display.

The technology would allow the device to analyse the display’s structure, spot issues, and slowly use heat to modify the scraped area by remolding it in a way as close as possible to the original.

Motorola already offers shatterproof displays with its Moto Z Force lineup of phones, which offer a much increased durability over regular front panels.

Video buffering

A group of MIT researchers believe they’ve figured out a solution to video buffering annoyances plaguing millions of people a day.

The researchers have developed “Pensieve,” an artificial intelligence (AI) system that uses machine learning to pick different algorithms depending on network conditions. In doing so, it has been shown to deliver a higher-quality streaming experience with less rebuffering than existing systems.

YouTube and Netflix already strive to do, but their systems currently have to make a trade-off between the quality of the video versus how often it has to rebuffer in order to prepare the next segment of the clip for viewing.

The technology could also prove useful in applications like streaming high-resolution VR content which is their next project.

Tech Bytes

Netflix announced that in 2018 it will spend $7 billion on content. The vast majority of the $7 billion will be spent on licensed content.

The US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) issued a recall on batteries used in the Galaxy Note 4. The power supplies are being recalled due to the potential to “overheat, posing burn and fire hazards.” The CPSC urges anyone with an affected device to immediately stop using it and power it down. Last September, Samsung issued a recall of all Galaxy Note 7s due to a similar problem.

Jawbone is making the move from consumer wearables to medical devices. Jawbone is looking to build a heart health bracelet that would use white light to warn you when your tissue isn’t getting enough blood, warning you of a potential heart attack or similar failure. And that’s not all, Jawbone is hoping to land a partnership with Microsoft.

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