This tilting kettle will make your coffee-loving friends livid

I’m a geek about a whole bunch of things, though coffee isn’t one of them. But, boy, do passions run hot when coffee preparation becomes the subject of a discussion. Take this recent Kickstarter, called The Automatica, as a good example. What I see is a cute gadget with a really appealing promo video. Set to a minimalist soundtrack of guitar strumming and engine rumbling, the video treats us to a view of the Salt Lake City skyline at sunset before moving on to pleasing closeups of bubbles foaming up as the coffee is filtered through the machine. The narration is calming and friendly. I kind of want to hang out with the makers of this gadget, they seem like good, chilled-out people.

Coffee-loving gadget nerds, though, they see through all of this facade and ask, “wait, isn’t this just a kettle that tilts?” To which the brief answer is “yes.” The longer answer, as per the Kickstarter pitch, is that the Automatica “controls temperature, flow rate, volume, pour pattern, and time so you don’t have to.” My colleagues are in uproar over this completely unnecessary design — engineered solutions for automated pour over coffee already exist and they’re self-contained little boxes — but, in all honesty, I like it exactly because it’s unnecessary. The tipping motion is like a one-step Rube Goldberg machine, and for me it triggers childhood memories of quirky inventions I’ve seen in comics and animated movies where the human is replaced by a clumsy mechanical concoction.

Google prepares for Pixel Watch with mandatory Wear OS app reviews and a rumored fitness coach

Google is making changes to its Wear OS app review process that could improve the quality of software on the platform. It’s also reportedly working on a fitness coach/assistant for wearables. Put together, it sure seems like the company is preparing for some sort of wearable release. Google said yesterday that Wear OS apps will have to go through a mandatory “light review process,” perhaps in an effort to improve the Play Store offerings ahead of announcing a rumored Pixel Watch in October. The reviews for new apps start on October 1st while reviews for existing apps will begin March 4, 2019.
Google already offers an optional review, which it rolled out with Android Wear 2.0, but it says this new process is designed to improve the app quality and presentation. The most common issue, it says, has to do with screen size because Wear OS apps are available for both square and round displays, which might also include various bezels.
VentureBeat reporter and frequent gadget leaker Evan Blass said to expect a new Google smartwatch this fall, and now, Android Police has published additional rumors about a feature called Google Coach.
The service would recommend workout routines, track your progress, and recommend alternatives if you miss a workout. It would also log your activity and maybe even suggest healthy meal options. It could create a meal plan, too, and a shopping list.

How to install Fortnite on Android

Epic Games launched its battle royale hit Fortnite on Android devices last week with a big catch: it was exclusive to Samsung-made phones for a few days as a way to help market the new Samsung Galaxy Note 9. Now, the exclusivity period appears to be over, and beta invite codes are going out to select users of non-Samsung phones like the Google Pixel 2 XL.
If you’re itching to dive off the battle bus on mobile, you might have to hold on just a little while longer: there appears to be a waiting list, just like there was when the game launched on iOS. There’s also a bit of trickiness involving exactly how you get the app because Epic announced it would be distributing the Android version of Fortnite on its own terms.
Last week, the app was distributed through Samsung’s app store, and Epic is using its own website and a Fortnite Installer program to distribute the game more widely on all compatible Android devices. (Epic CEO Tim Sweeney said this is basically to avoid paying Google’s 30 percent cut on in-app purchases.)
Given this unprecedented arrangement, here’s a step-by-step breakdown to make sure you’re prepared and understand the best way to start playing Fortnite on Android.

Google Play warns users it doesn’t carry Fortnite Battle Royale

Google is warning Android users that it doesn’t carry Fortnite Battle Royale in the Play Store. If you search for Fortnite in the Play Store, it will return a notice from Google. “Fortnite Battle Royal by Epic Games, Inc is not available on Google Play,” the sign says, likely as a clarification to users, as first spotted by 9to5Google.
By saying upfront that the Play Store doesn’t have Fortnite, Google is attempting to protect unknowing users who might download some malicious clone of the app.
Epic Games requires users who want to run Fortnite on Android to download an APK of the beta directly from its site. The decision essentially cuts Google out of potential revenue from app purchases, which would have been a 30 percent cut.
Android settings also usually dissuade users from downloading apps from “unknown sources,” likely as another safety mechanism and a way to maintain the importance of the Play Store as the main source for apps.

YouTube now recommends the best phones for video playback, and it doesn’t suggest an iPhone

At its Note 9 announcement today, Samsung boasted the new phablet is a “YouTube Signature Device” for 2019. If you haven’t heard of that certification before, that’s because it’s a brand-new program YouTube just launched. The YouTube Device Report recommends the best smartphones, which it calls “signature devices,” for watching YouTube. These phones feature the ability to watch 360-degree footage, support for high dynamic range, high frame rate, 4K decoding, next-generation codecs, and reliable DRM performance. Google says its team evaluates each device and works with manufacturers to fix video playback performance and capability issues.
The report launches with 18 devices, with the aforementioned Note 9 alongside other popular smartphones like the Pixel 2 XL, the OnePlus 6, and the HTC U12 Plus. Notably, none of the devices is an iPhone, which might make you feel sad (or understandably neutral since YouTube, Google, and Android are all part of the same company anyway). Apple also doesn’t support the VP9 video codec, which Google developed, which is why Safari users don’t have the option to watch footage in 4K.

The new Anki Vector robot is smart enough to just hang out

the table before me are two diminutive robots, each emitting endearing little robot beeps and bloops, their screen eyes active. When I knock on the table, one of them turns to face the noise with surprising alacrity. The other just watches my face, turning slowly to keep me in focus as I move around.
These are prototypes for Vector, the latest robot from Anki, the company behind both the Cozmo and the Overdrive RC cars. I spent the day in Anki’s labs in San Francisco to learn just what Vector is and — critically — what it can do. When it ships in October for $249.99 (or cheaper for early Kickstarter backers), Anki will be marketing it as a “home robot.” It’s a sort of Cozmo for adults, a step beyond that robot’s learn-to-code toy ethos.
You can ask it questions, play games with it, and even pet it to elicit a chirpy little purr. But Anki doesn’t want you to focus on Vector’s functionality. The company has been putting a lot of effort into its personality. And because Vector is completely autonomous, you can do something completely surprising for a new piece of technology: just ignore it, and let it do its own thing.

The Army is buying microwave cannons to take down drones in mid-flight

The US Army has a new plan for microwaving drones out of the sky. In a public solicitation last Friday, the agency announced its intention to purchase an airborne high-powered microwave system from Lockheed Martin, which is intended for use against drones. The weapon, which would be mounted to an airplane, would disable fixed-wing or quadcopter drones with a beam of focused radiation.
Drone countermeasures are particularly relevant in the wake of an apparent assassination attempt against Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro that was carried out by a pair of hexacopter drones rigged with remote-triggered explosives. Public video collected by Bellingcat indicates the attack was carried out by drones similar to DJI’s Matrice 600. Each drone was equipped with a kilogram of C4 explosive, according to a statement by Venezuelan security forces. The Matrice 600’s maximum carrying capacity is 5.5 kilograms.
The Army’s new system comes on the heels of a similar microwave system that was developed by Lockheed Martin for the Air Force called the Self-Protect High Energy Laser Demonstrator or “SHiELD.” Intended for use against incoming missiles, the project was the subject of a $26 million design award in November 2017.