Hey, good morning! You look fabulous.
Did you watch the Super Bowl on a Vizio TV? There's a chance it may have been watching you too, while LG drops some more G6 hints and Google keeps tweaking Maps.
FTC fines Vizio for not telling customers it's tracking what they watch
About a year and a half ago, Vizio revealed the existence of Inscape, a program that uses technology embedded in its TVs to monitors what's on screen and phone home the data. It sold the data to third parties, who could use the owner's IP address to track activity across devices and gather other personal details.
Now, the FTC is fining the company $2.2 million because it didn't explain to customers that the tech was in their new TVs, and pushed it to older sets without properly informing their owners either. If you have a Vizio TV, go into its settings and make sure "smart interactivity" is disabled so that you're opted out of its scheme.
LG promises a 'Big Screen' for its upcoming G6
Next month we'll meet LG's new flagship phone. With the Samsung Galaxy S8 delayed, maybe the G6 has more of an opportunity to take off. The invite to its event does even more to hint at an extreme lack of bezels, but we'll find out everything February 26th.
New Google Maps tabs flip between driving directions, restaurant info and bus stops
The latest tweak for Google Maps brings shortcuts for some common activities. Just hit the correct icon at the bottom and it's ready to help you deal with traffic, catch a bus or find somewhere to eat. That pretty much covers it, right?
An entire 'Pokemon' game is playable inside 'Minecraft'
This Minecraft add-on recreates the Pokémon experience with incredible detail. It apparently took 31 months to build, and the effort looks like it was worth it. Even if you're not a Minecraft player, there's a video so you can see how much is possible.
What Snap's IPO tells us about Spectacles' future
Filing to go public can reveal a lot about a company (see Vizio above). In the case of Snap Inc., it reveals that those slick Spectacles are a long way from becoming a profitable product. That's not a surprise, given their limited availability, but if you're thinking about investing (with a stock purchase or by putting a couple of hundred bucks into an accessory), then it's important to check out the details.
But wait, there's more...
- Lenovo's Yoga A12 runs Android, starts at $299 and could replace your laptop
- Lenovo's new pro laptops include one built for VR
- Super Bowl LI tech commercials
- Japan's space junk collection experiment ends in failure
- Scientists may have discovered a lost continent
- Appliance giant Electrolux buys out sous vide cooking startup Anova