Google, Samsung partner to allow Android users to sync fitness data between apps

Aside from working on Wear OS together, Google and Samsung are now developing a platform for unified Android-based health and fitness management. Health Connect is a new set of APIs (application programming interfaces) that allows developers to securely access data from different programs so you can sync and track your health information across apps and devices. We understand that this could mean you can use a Samsung wearable and have that sync with a Google Pixel, for example.

Samsung Health, Google Fit, and Fitbit (owned by Google) will adopt the feature. Google collaborates with MyFitnessPal, Leap Fitness, and Withings on an early access program. Health Connect will offer centralized privacy controls. You can give choose which apps to access on-device encrypted data. On the flip side, developers can access the data provided to them for their programs. It is an opt-in platform, so it's your decision if you want to try it out when it launches. Health Connect is now available to developers to help develop the feature.

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Ecobee thermostats rumoured to get refreshed

Rumoured Ecobee Premium model (C/O Canadian Tire)

There might be a couple of new Ecobee thermostats coming out soon. The Ecobee Enhanced and Premium models were spotted online. The former was in a Reddit post, while the latter was spotted via a retail listing from Canadian Tire. It looks like both models are set to replace the 2016 Ecobee3 Lite and the 2019 Ecobee SmartThermostat with voice control.

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Matter smart home standard is expected to launch this fall

Google

Google's Matter smart home standard is almost ready for primetime. Google plans to launch Matter in the fall. This standard will support different voice assistants and networking protocols, making it easier to use smart home devices from various brands under one platform. Your appliances can connect quickly using Fast Pair. It supports Alexa, Google Assistant, Siri, Wi-Fi, Thread, and Bluetooth LE.

Fast Pair is typically associated with headphones and audio gear, but Google is working on using it for more devices, including lightbulbs and smart plugs with Android and Nest devices. Setup should be more straightforward with Matter since you just need to scan a QR code on your phone to get things started. This is something we've definitely been waiting to happen since Google announced it back in 2019 as Project CHIP (Project Connected Home over IP).

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'Alan Wake Remastered' comes to Nintendo Switch in the fall

Remedy Entertainment

After launching on the PlayStation, Xbox, and PC, Alan Wake Remastered will make its way to the Nintendo Switch this fall. Developer Remedy Entertainment said the Switch version will run "natively on the hardware," unlike Remedy's cloud-streamed Switch port of Control. 

The developer kind of shared details about the Alan Wake series, too. Creative director Sam Lake hinted before that we could hear more about the game this summer, but in a new video released, it seems the wait will be a bit longer. Remedy also shared that AMC Networks bought the rights to the Alan Wake TV show. "There's still a long way to go for the series to become a reality, but we are excited, to say the least, about this latest development," Remedy said in the press email.

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