‘Servant’ wins Best Animation at Silver Scream fest.

TEHRAN, Jun. 14 (MNA) – Short animated piece ‘Servant’ directed by Farnoosh Abedi won Best Short Animation award at the 2017 Silver Scream Festival in California, US.

BeatsX wraps AirPods tech in a neckband-style headphone for less

Like 'em or hate 'em, Apple's AirPods have been the talk of the headphone world ever since they were announced alongside the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus back in September 2016. But there's another Apple wireless headphone from the company's Beats by Dre subsidiary that's also received its share of buzz: The BeatsX ($150, £130, AU$200). And like the AirPods, the BeatsX was also delayed, but it's officially available as of February 10.

The BeatsX employs Apple's new custom low-power Bluetooth chip, the W1, which is also found in the AirPods, PowerBeats3 Wireless and the Solo3 Wireless, and allows for automatic pairing with Apple devices updated with the latest versions of its operating systems (iOS 10, MacOS Sierra and WatchOS 3). But among that trio of new Beats models, the BeatsX is the only truly fresh model, and the first one designed with the help of Apple's design and engineering teams. (The PowerBeats3 Wireless and Solo3 Wireless just updated the previous models in their respective lines with Apple's new wireless chip.) Another bonus: the BeatsX is the only one that charges with a Lightning cable.

 

Companies blur lines over who owns devices

When Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) remotely disabled the last of its flawed Galaxy Note 7 smartphones last month, it further blurred the lines between who ultimately controls your phone, or computer, car or appliance: you, or the companies that make it work?

Industry executives and analysts say companies are exerting greater remote control over their devices - changing how and whether they work, removing or adding software and content, or collecting personal data from them - not always with permission or with the user's best interests at heart.

"(The Samsung case) is exactly an example of how devices ... are no longer objects we own, but rather services we've subscribed to and which can be revoked at a moment's notice," said Stefano Zanero, an Italian computer security expert.

Alphabet Inc. Takes Another Shot at Amazon With Home Control

Alphabet Inc.’s (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Google Home connected speaker takes on Amazon.com, Inc.’s (NASDAQ:AMZN) Alexa on its home turf. But what about Google’s big advantage over Amazon in the smart home war — all those smartphones?

The company has just begun rolling out Home Control, a new feature that lets Google Assistant control smart home devices by voice.

However, at this point, Home Control — like Google Assistant — remains a feature that’s exclusive to Google’s own Pixel Phones.

The Battle for the Smart Home

 

GivingTuesday Roundup: The Logo Story – A Designer’s Trip to Vegas!

As I boarded a plane to Las Vegas last week, I realized how much we are influenced by these logos and monograms in our everyday lives. It hit me harder when I reached my destination and had to refuse to stay at a motel for its horrid looking advertising sign (as well as interior). I decided not to risk my sanity in there and rented a room elsewhere. For me, logos are a deal maker or breaker when it comes to leisure spending.