Microsoft joins the VR contenders with HoloLens

As Many of the worlds biggest tech giants join the VR market (excluding Apple) Microsoft made an announcement today that implies that they too would be joining the train.

In this vision of a future shared experience enabled by Windows Holographic, one user is wearing HoloLens within a room scanner/communicator (left), another joins via a VR headset (middle) and the third initiates the session from a HoloLens at a remote location (right).

At the Computex trade show in Taipei, Terry Myerson (Executive Vice President, Windows and Devices group) was joined by Nick Parker and Alex Kipman (HoloLens Architect) to announce that Microsoft would be widening the scope of their mixed reality headset by incorporating VR.

 

At the announcement, Terry Myerson stated :

"The market for virtual reality devices is expected to be 80 million devices per year by 2020. However, many of today’s devices and experiences do not work with each other, provide different user interfaces, interaction models, input methods, peripherals, and content. And most virtual reality experiences can’t mix real people, objects, and environments into the virtual world, making creation and collaboration difficult. This is because they lack the human, environmental and object understanding that is already built into Windows 10."

On the unveiling of HoloLens, Microsoft had also released Windows Holographic, which is a platform to allow Windows 10 developers design apps for the device.

 

Googles new app, Science Journal, for conducting scientific experiments on your smartphone.

Google has just released its new app, "Science Journal" that is basically a clipboard for scientific field experiments. The app can be used to record data in real time and then convert them to easily readable graphs and charts. 

 The app is equipped with helpful tools like an accelerometer, and light and sound meters, that can be used to gather information during tests. Project progress and data can also be saved on the app to be previewed later or continued in cases of incomplete projects.

Google is also making hands-on learning kits to accompany the app. These would contain external sensors, microcontrollers and craft supplies that would help kids perform more detailed experiments. The app is now available on Google play.

YouTube in-app messenger coming soon!!

The most popular video sharing app in the world, YouTube is blurring the line between video sharing and messenger apps by adding an in-app messenger that allows users to share videos with friends directly on YouTube. In an announcement made this week, YouTube announced that they are currently testing the in-app messenger, which would allow users to send videos directly on YouTube without having to copy a link or share on other social network platforms. Shared videos can be replied to by sending a video as well, typing up a message or sending an emoji.

With this move, YouTube is possibly hoping to capitalize on the tendency of its users to want to share videos and increase the general usage of its app especially on mobile. This would definitely be considered a wise move from YouTube, as it is now known for a fact that other social media networks such as Facebook and Snapchat are chasing after YouTube's audience. Even Amazon is now on board as it yesterday announced it's own online video posting service

Gboard: search for information, GIFs and emojis straight form your keypad

Google today released an app for iOS devices called "GBoard" that allows you to perform Google searches directly from your keypad. It allows users to send information like weather forecasts, business listings, locations, and more, as well as GIFs, and of course emojis straight from your keypad saving you the trouble of exiting your screen to open a browser or the google app before performing the same operations.

source: Techcrunch

It even allows you to search for emojis rather than scrolling through the sea of available ones to find the one you're looking for. It also has glide typing, which allows you to type by sliding your finger from letter to letter.

source: google blog

The functionalities of this app definitely come in handy, considering stats from eMarketer that states that mobile device users this year will spend 3 hours 15 minutes per day using apps and just 51 minutes using browsers.

This app is currently available for download at the App store but is only available in English