Ford and Harman look to transform in-car audio with B&O Play

According to a recent Ipsos 2016 Automotive Audio Branding study, one-third of new car buyers take into consideration the audio brand included into their next vehicle purchase. Whether you believe that or not, we don’t discount the necessity of a good audio system in a car. And that’s what both Ford and Harman are championing with their new partnership. The two companies have joined forces to unveil B&O Play, a new audio system that will debut exclusively on Ford’s global lineup starting next year.

“Customers tell us they value consistent, high-quality audio experiences, and our collaboration with HARMAN is helping provide that,” said Raj Nair, Ford‘s executive vice president, product development and chief technical officer. “This is just one of the ways we are creating richer, more engaging in-vehicle experiences for customers.”

First impressions of the iPhone 7 Plus

Text and photo by Gadjo Cardenas Sevilla

September 16 is finally here, which means some people who preordered the new iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus should be receiving their shiny new devices today. I had the opportunity to live with the iPhones 7, both the 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch models for roughly a day and here are my initial impressions.

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Third-party desktop apps start to appear on Windows Store

Microsoft is finally putting to use Desktop Bridge and is letting third-party developers bring current desktop apps into the Windows Store. Desktop Bridge gives developers the ability to create Universal Windows Platform apps and use all the APIs, which include the Action Center and Cortana. This makes it easier for developers to port their apps to Windows ecosystem—encompassing everything from PCs, phones, HoloLens, to Xbox One. Microsoft has added support for three popular installer technologies: InstallShield, WiX, and Advanced Installer. In this first rollout, the apps you’d see include Evernote, doubleTwist, Arduino IDE, MAGIX Movie Edit Pro, Virtual Robotics Kit, and PhotoScape.

Source: Engadget

Apple releases another GM of macOS Sierra ahead of launch

There are usually only one gold master or GM released to developers before the final macOS is released. This time, though, Apple outed a second GM for macOS Sierra a few days before official release. The new build is labeled 16A323. One GM is usually released because it’s supposed to represent finished code. However, there are cases like these when companies spot bugs that need to be fixed as soon as possible. Sierra will be a free updae for Mac owners and will be bringing Siri and Apple Pay to the brand’s desktop OS.

Source: Apple Insider