CES 2019: Lenovo’s new 2-in-1 device has Echo Show capabilities

We knew a Lenovo-made tablet was coming with Echo Show capabilities. And now at CES the said device (or we should say devices) has made its debut. The Lenovo Smart Tab works both as an Android tablet and an Alexa Smart Display. You get the latter when you dock it with the included smart speaker dock. This feature is already available with Amazon’s own Fire tablets but in that iteration, you needed to buy the speaker dock separately. Lenovo, on the other hand, is bundling the dock with the tablet. The company is calling it a tablet first with Echo Show features as a nice bonus.

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CES 2019: Google introduces new Interpreter Mode to help translate conversations in real-time

The new Google Assistant feature that debuted at CES hopes to help bridge the communication gap between two people who speak different languages. Coming to Google-powered smart displays and smart speakers, there’s a new Interpreter Mode that turns the digital assistant into a real-time language translator. It’s available in 27 languages but we haven’t seen which ones yet. The demos we’ve seen online have translated conversations in German or Mandarin. In the demo, a concierge at Caesar’s Palace, one of the early beta testers of the feature, talks to a German “tourist” (which was a German-speaking Google employee) about finding show tickets. The concierge turned to the Google Home Hub beside him and prompted Google Assistant to go into German Interpreter Mode to have their conversation.

As the demos showed, the two can hold a conversation as interpreter translates their back and forth. It is going to be a bit stilted though as it takes a few seconds for Assistant to translate what’s being said. And it’s not always entirely accurate, but with the translated text showing up in the smart display, context clues can be picked up. This does show us the possibilities the technology offers for the hospitality business or even for any business owner who needs to converse with people who don’t speak their language. This feature for now is launching as a small pilot at few hotels including one in New York, another in San Francisco, and the aforementioned Caesar’s Palace in Vegas. It’ll be available only on the Google Hub, Google Home speakers and third-party Google Assistant displays.

Source: Wired

CES 2019: Sony debuts massive 8K TV model

8K is the new big thing at this year’s CES. And the big manufacturers seem to all have their take on it. Sony’s model—the Master Series Z9G 8K LCD—is certainly a big one. It comes in two gigantic sizes—85 inches and 98 inches—and is updated with Sony’s Picture Processor X1 Ultimate image processor as well as X-Reality PRO optimized for 8K. This promise you get great-looking content no matter what the native resolution is, which is important as there isn’t any 8K content available at the moment. It also offers Netflix Calibrated Mode, which means the content is shown as the creators intended, and it’s also part of the IMAX Enhanced certification program. The Z9G comes with four front-firing speakers (two at the top and two at the bottom) to make it seem like the actors on-screen are speaking instead of the sound just coming through the speakers, which is what Sony tried to achieve with its OLED Acoustic Surface Audio. The tech couldn’t be brought to LCD, thus the use of speakers. This 8K model is also an Android TV model with Google Assistant and it’s compatible with Google Home and Amazon Echo smart speakers. No word on price or availability just yet.

Source: Digital Trends

CES 2019: Harley-Davidson release more details about its electric motorcycle, opens preorders

Harley-Davidson’s highly anticipated electric motorcycle gets a bit of exposure at CES. The motorcycle manufacturer announced the LiveWire is now available for preorder and will be delivered to those who preorder later in the fall. It’s going to cost a pretty penny, though, at US$29,799. The electric bike is capable of going from 0 to 60mph in under 3.5 seconds and it requires no clutch or gear shifting, making it simpler for new riders. Harley says it can travel 110 city miles on a single charge, but the company didn’t specify how this translates on the highway. It can be charged from a standard household outlet with Level 1 charger and power or riders can visit public Level 3 DC Fast Charge stations for a quicker top-up. The bike has seven riding modes to choose from—four are standard and three are customizable.

It has a tiltable, colour touchscreen above the handlebar. The LiveWire also comes with a telematics system called H-D Connect, which has data on the bike’s vital stats such as battery charging, service reminders, and even tampering. These data can be sent to the owner via Harley’s connected app, making this the brand’s first mass-market, cellular-connected electric motorcycle. It comes in vivid black, yellow fuse, and orange fuse.

Source: Geek.com