SpaceX Taking Next Steps Towards Sending Astronauts into Space

SpaceX will move a step closer to putting human’s into space this weekend. Early Saturday morning, it will launch an upgraded version of its Dragon capsule craft, called Crew Dragon. The craft will contain supplies for International Space Station. Wired reported on how Elon Musk’s company hopes to prove that this type of craft can keep a human crew safe if it had to make an emergency landing.

SpaceX has always intended for its Dragon capsules to ferry humans, but Every SpaceX Dragon capsule launched so far has only shuttled cargo to and from the ISS. The upgraded version, debuting on DM-1, will feature new crew life-support systems, seats, control panels, and a propulsion system that can be used to keep the crew safe during a launch emergency. But it won’t carry people; before astronauts can climb aboard, SpaceX has to prove Dragon is ready.

5G Makes Location Tracking More Precise

5G will be a major upgrade to cellular networks. But since this technology requires more cell towers than 4G, it will make location tracking more precise (paywall).

5G signals in the U.S. will have a very short range and won’t easily go through buildings. This means there need to be many more cell towers. The main way that a cellphone tells where you are—as opposed to a website or an app—is, which tower are you talking to. Today’s towers have a radius of about a mile. If the new towers cover a much smaller area, it means that they know much more precisely where you are.

Robots, Apple Robots, Autonomous Vehicle Robots, and Foldable Phones with John Martellaro - ACM 503

This episode is all about robots! Apple robots, military robots, delivery repots, preacher robots, manufacturing robots, and self driving car robots! Bryan Chaffin is joined by guest host John Martellaro to deep into what’s happening with robots today and what they expect for robots in the future. Put your SciFi futurist cap on for this one. They also talk about foldable phones, or as they like to think of it, the netbook of 2019.

Apple Cash Holdings Could Lead to Emulating General Electric

At BetaNews, Robert X. Cringely writes:

But most importantly for those who are still looking for a headline, Apple will in 2019 greatly expand its profile in the finance industry. Tim Cook has already started in 2019 along the same path forged by GE’s Jack Welch back in 1981.

This strategic shift started to show just this week with Apple directly financing iPhone sales in China and announcing an Apple credit card with Goldman Sachs.

The theme here is wiser utilization of all that cash to make more cash. That’s what Big Companies do and what Apple seems poised to do now.

Omnia Q Wireless Charger: $25.49

We have a deal on the Omnia Q Wireless Charger. This wireless charging pad will charge your iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone XR, and other Qi-compatible devices. It also glows while it’s charging with built-in multi-hued LED bulbs. Our deal is for $29.99, but coupon code SEMIANNUAL saves 15%, for a checkout price of $25.49.

New Beats X Headphones to Go on Sale in Paris

LONDON- Apple’s Beats and Japanese fashion brand, Sacai are coming together to create BeatsX. The specially designed headphones are going to initially go on sale in a pop-up store in Paris on March 4th, AppleInsider reported. They come in three different colours, and they are not going to be cheap.

To buy a pair, at least initially, people will have to turn to a pop-up store launching in Paris on March 4. The product will also cost about $200 — a premium of more than $100 over normal BeatsX models. Apple is no stranger to treating Beats products as fashion accessories, often focusing more on their style than sound quality or features. The company regularly pays to insert Beats products into music videos or sports sponsorships to lure in a young audience.

Huawei and 5G Dominate Mobile World Congress

MWC in Barcelona is drawing to a close. We’ve seen foldable phones and a lot of talk about 5G. Another of the hot topics was Huawei, and the U.S. governments ongoing bid to claims that the company spies on behalf of the Chinese state. The New York Times has a rundown of what happened at conference.

American officials were left to hold a hastily called news conference on Tuesday at a booth operated by the Spanish government. They didn’t present any new evidence against Huawei. The conference previewed many of the hottest mobile trends, particularly the capabilities of new hyperfast 5G networks. For years, the technology has had more promise than actual uses. Executives said the faster networks would debut this year, with wider adoption coming in 2020 and beyond.