Review: Zeiss VR Plus Headset

By Gadjo Cardenas Sevilla

There’s no shortage of VR headsets in the market right now. Starting with the affordable Google Cardboard to the more sophisticated Daydream VR option, there are multiple ways to try various VR experiences available.

The Zeiss VR Plus headset is a premium take on the VR headset experience. It is made from plastic and features Zeiss lenses which are a definitive step up from many plastic lenses found in competing products. Looking very much like a Daft Punk inspired ski mask, the VR Plus headset can accommodate smartphones from 4.7-inches to 5.5-inches. There’s a neat slide-in tray where the smartphones are placed and then inserted into the headset.

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ZTE Axon 7 gets Android Nougat and Daydream support

If you own a ZTE Axon 7, you’re in for a treat. The smartphone is getting a significant update. It gets both Android Nougat and support for Google’s Daydream virtual reality platform. With Android 7.0, the Axon 7 will get access to features like being able to run two apps side by side, new emojis, and better battery saving capabilities. Meanwhile, Daydream brings on the table the ability to get a great VR experience on an affordable phone.

YouTube introduces mobile live streaming

Mobile live streaming is such a ubiquitous feature on major platforms that it comes as no surprise YouTube is adding it to its service. At the moment though, it is open to creators with over 10,000 subscribers. The feature is baked into YouTube’s mobile app and just like what you’d see on Facebook or Instagram, you just need to hit the capture button and then you go live. Mobile live streams get the same features as usual YouTube videos. These can be searched for, found through recommendations and playlists, and protected from unauthorized us. When it was debuted back at VidCon 2016 in beta, one of the first users who got to try it out was Canadian creator UnboxTherapy. Now, it’s open to more users and YouTube promises it’ll be available to more creators soon.

Launching alongside mobile live streaming is a new way for creators to earn revenue from the feature. Called Super Chat, it’s a monetization tool that’ll allow fans watching live streams to stand out from all the commenters and grab the creator’s attention by purchasing chat messages. These will be highlighted in bright colors and will be pinned to the top of the chat window for up to five hours. It also helps creators earn a bit of extra money from their supporters.

AccuWeather and Spotify launch "Climatune" playlists for any weather

Too gloomy out? Maybe this will help. Today, AccuWeather announced it has partnered with the music streaming service, Spotify, on a new site, Climatune. The site offers music fans around the world insights into how the environment around them affects the music they listen to everyday and creates playlists based on current weather moods.

Through a yearlong study comparing 85 billion anonymized streams on Spotify in over 900 cities nationwide, AccuWeather and Spotify analyzed the impact weather has on the music people listen to. Conclusions included:

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