Here are some audio and video trends picks for the year 2017:
It seems that 3D craze is over. So long, 3DTV – we won’t miss you – BBC News reports that at this year’s CES trade show, there was barely a whimper of 3D TV, compared to just two years ago when it was being heralded as the next big thing. In the cinema, 3D was milked for all it was worth, and even James Cameron, who directed Avatar, is fed up with 3D. There are currently no major manufacturers making 3DTVs as Samsung, LG and Sony have now stopped making 3D-enabled televisions. According to CNet’s report, TV makers are instead focusing on newer technologies such as HDR.
360 degree virtual reality video is hot how. Movie studios are pouring resources into virtual reality story-telling. 360-Degree Video Playback Coming to VLC, VR Headset Support Planned for 2017 article tells that VLC media player previews 360° video and photo support for its desktop apps, says the feature will come to mobile soon; dedicated VLC apps for VR headsets due in 2017.
4K and 8K video resolutions are hot. Test broadcasting of 8K started in August 2016 in Japan and full service is scheduled for 2018. According to Socionext Introduces 8K HEVC Real-Time Encoder Solution press release the virtual reality technology, which is seeing rapid growth in the global market, requires an 8K resolution as the current 4K resolution cannot support a full 360-degree wraparound view with adequate resolution.
Fake News Is About to Get Even Scarier than You Ever Dreamed article tells that advancements in audio and video technology are becoming so sophisticated that they will be able to replicate real news—real TV broadcasts, for instance, or radio interviews—in unprecedented, and truly indecipherable, ways. Adobe showed off a new product that has been nicknamed “Photoshop for audio” that allows type words that are expressed in that exact voice of someone you have recording on. Technologists can also record video of someone talking and then change their facial expressions in real time. Digital avatars can be almost indecipherable from real people – on the latest Star Wars movie it is hard to tell which actors are real and which are computer-generated.
Antique audio formats seem to be making come-back. By now, it isn’t news that vinyl albums continue to sell. It is interesting that UK vinyl sales reach 25-year high to point that Vinyl Records Outsold Digital Downloads In the UK at least for one week.
I would not have quessed that Cassettes Are Back, and Booming. But a new report says that sales of music on cassette are up 140 percent. The antiquated format is being embraced by everyone from indie musicians to Eminem and Justin Bieber. For some strange reason it turns out there’s a place for archaic physical media of questionable audio fidelity—even in the Spotify era.
Enhance! RAISR Sharp Images with Machine Learning. Google RAISR Intelligently Makes Low-Res Images High Quality article tells that with Google’s RAISR machine learning-driven image enhancement technique, images can be up to 75% smaller without losing their detail.
Improving Multiscreen Services article tells that operators have discovered challenges as they try to meet subscribers’ requirements for any content on any device. Operators must choose from a variety of options for preparing and delivering video on multiple screens. And unlike the purpose-built video networks of the past, in multiscreen OTT distribution there are no well-defined quality standards such as IPTV’s SCTE-168.
2017: Digital Advertising to overtake TV Advertising in US this year article tells that according to PricewaterhouseCoopers, “Ad Spend” on digital advertising will surpass TV ads for the first time in 2017.For all these years, television gave a really tough fight to internet with respect to Ad spend, but online advertising to decisively take over the market in 2017. For details check How TV ad spending stacks up against digital ad spending in 4 charts.
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Tomi Engdahl says:
Some more trends from CES 2017 can be found at
http://www.epanorama.net/newepa/2017/01/05/ces-2017/
Tomi Engdahl says:
FPGA-Based AI System Recognizes Faces at 1,000 Images per Second
http://www.eetimes.com/author.asp?section_id=36&doc_id=1331264&
There is tremendous potential for facial recognition technology, such as informing visually impaired persons if someone they know is approaching them.
I find it difficult to believe just how fast things are moving with regard to using artificial neural networks (ANNs) and deep learning techniques (for example, see Deep learning machine vision system aids blind and visually impaired, Deep learning hits a sweet note, Machine learning platform speeds optimization of vision systems, Unlocking the power of AI for all developers, and Push-button generation of deep neural networks).
Of course, one really interesting application is to perform object detection and identification, including the really tricky task of recognizing and identifying faces in images and videos.
This sort of task benefits from the extreme parallelism offered by FPGAs.
Intel’s midrange Arria 10 FPGAs, for example, provide up to 1.5 teraflops (TFLOPs) of single-precision floating-point processing performance, 1.15 million logic elements, and more than a terabit-per-second high-speed connectivity.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Voice at 700 Bits Per Second
http://hackaday.com/2017/01/20/voice-at-700-bits-per-second/
AM radio stations (traditionally) used about 30 kHz of bandwidth, while FM stations consume nearly 200 kHz. Analog video signals used to take up even more space.
Traditional shortwave broadcasts eat up about 10kHz of bandwidth, but by stripping off the carrier and one sideband, you can squeeze the voice into about 3 kHz and it still is intelligible. Typical voice codecs (that is, something that converts speech to digital data and back) use anywhere from about 6 kbps to 64 kbps.
[David Rowe] wants to change that. He’s working on a codec for ham radio use that can compress voice to 700 bits per second. He is trying to keep the sound quality similar to his existing 1,300 bit per second codec
Codec 2 700C
http://www.rowetel.com/?p=5373
Tomi Engdahl says:
Camera Restricta Ensures Original Photography
http://hackaday.com/2017/01/28/camera-restricta-ensures-original-photography/
http://philippschmitt.com/projects/camera-restricta
Algorithms are already looking through the viewfinder alongside with you: they adjust settings, scan faces and take a photo when you smile. What if your grin wasn’t the only thing they cared about?
Camera Restricta is a speculative design of a new kind of camera. It locates itself via GPS and searches online for photos that have been geotagged nearby.
If the camera decides that too many photos have been taken at your location, it retracts the shutter and blocks the viewfinder. You can’t take any more pictures here.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Todd Spangler / Variety:
WSJ: Facebook building video app for Apple TV and other set-top boxes as it ramps up its original programming efforts
Facebook Developing Video App for Apple TV, Other Set-Tops (Report)
http://variety.com/2017/digital/news/facebook-video-app-apple-tv-set-tops-1201974857/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Connected TVs in 74% of U.S. Internet Homes
http://www.btreport.net/articles/2017/01/connected-tvs-in-74-of-u-s-internet-homes.html?cmpid=enl_btr_weekly_2017-01-31
According to the Diffusion Group, the penetration of Internet-connected TVs among U.S. broadband households has increased nearly 50% since 2013, from 50% to 74% at year-end 2016.
“At 74% penetration, connected TV use is squarely in the Late Mainstream phase of its trajectory,” said Greeson. “Barring any major disruption in TV technology or market conditions, growth will slow each year as the solution reaches saturation.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Todd Spangler / Variety:
WSJ: Facebook building video app for Apple TV and other set-top boxes as it ramps up its original programming efforts — Facebook is developing an app for set-top boxes including Apple TV, as a way to bring longer-form video content — and video ads — to big-screen TVs in consumers’ living rooms, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Facebook Developing Video App for Apple TV, Other Set-Tops (Report)
http://variety.com/2017/digital/news/facebook-video-app-apple-tv-set-tops-1201974857/
Facebook is developing an app for set-top boxes including Apple TV, as a way to bring longer-form video content — and video ads — to big-screen TVs in consumers’ living rooms, the Wall Street Journal reported.
By pumping video to TVs, Facebook is hoping to capture a bigger slice of ad budgets earmarked for television. The social giant has been mulling a connected-TV app for several years, but the initiative took root last summer as Facebook decided to make video a top strategic priority, according to the Journal, citing anonymous sources.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Top speakers manufacturer Genelec’s founder and pioneer of audio technology Ilpo Martikainen died on Monday a long illness.
Finnish speaker manufacturing pioneer Ilpo Martikainen had died, 69-year-old. Martikainen chaired by Genelec, the Board of Directors and actively participated in the development of the company’s operations until the end.
Source: http://www.uusiteknologia.fi/2017/02/01/kaiutinvalmistaja-genelecin-perustaja-kuollut/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Tim Cook gave a strong hint that Apple will battle Amazon and Netflix in original video
http://www.cnbc.com/2017/01/31/apple-tim-cook-talks-original-video-content-on-earnings-call.html
“In terms of original content, we have put our toe in the water doing some original content for Apple Music, and that will be rolling out through the year. We are learning from that, and we’ll go from there. The way that we participate in the changes that are going on in the media industry — that I fully expect to accelerate from the cable bundle beginning to break down
Apple has already dabbled with some content, including the late-night spinoff, “Carpool Karaoke.”
Apple’s foray into more original content — first reported by The Wall Street Journal earlier this month — would put Apple alongside telecom companies, Netflix, Amazon, Facebook and Google, who are all trying to compete with traditional media companies for viewers.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Norway Turns Off the Lights on FM Radio
http://mwrf.com/blog/norway-turns-lights-fm-radio?NL=MWRF-001&Issue=MWRF-001_20170202_MWRF-001_435&sfvc4enews=42&cl=article_2_b&utm_rid=CPG05000002750211&utm_campaign=9523&utm_medium=email&elq2=9ec644585ae447e39fc2e96f347fac50
Recently, news came forth that Norway is planning to be the first nation to eliminate FM radio. It goes without saying that this move is significant given how long FM radio has been in existence. Norway’s intention is to replace FM with digital audio broadcasting (DAB), with the transition expected to be completed by the end of the year. Proponents of DAB point out its advantages, including better reception and lower operating costs.
However, many Norwegians do not support this move—some 66%, according to a recent poll.
While a similar move is not likely to happen in the U.S. anytime soon, it does beg the question of what life would be like without FM radio.
This “old vs. new” debate also led me to think about the “print vs. digital media” one. While many outlets have transitioned away from print media, a large number of people still prefer the “old school” approach of reading a physical magazine.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Virtual Reality Market To Grow When Hardware & Content Cost Less
What to expect at Mobile World Congress
http://www.eetimes.com/author.asp?section_id=36&doc_id=1331258&
What will the tipping point be for mass adoption of virtual and augmented reality? This year’s Mobile World Congress has some clues.
The potential growth of virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) won’t be realized until there is more content available. People are not jumping to buy VR headsets and, despite the efforts of some vendors promoting them and bundling them with other devices, the sales of headsets and other VR devices has been slow.
While VR headsets hold tremendous potential, only 12 million were sold in 2016, mostly inexpensive units to use with smartphones. This year, new devices arriving from several manufacturers, and faster, cheaper, video processors, could boost VR to the masses.
The real size of the VR market is difficult to estimate. According to a July article in Fortune: “Analysts are divided over how quickly virtual reality will catch on. At the high end, 20 million units could be sold this year [2016],
Market tracker Digi-Capital has cut their forecast from $150 million to $120 million for 2020.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Sharing Virtual and Holographic Realities via Vive and Hololens
http://hackaday.com/2017/02/02/sharing-virtual-and-holographic-realities-via-vive-and-hololens/
An experimental project to mix reality and virtual reality by [Drew Gottlieb] uses the Microsoft Hololens and the HTC Vive to show two users successfully sharing a single workspace as well as controllers.
http://drewgottlieb.net/2017/01/31/mixing-reality-with-vr.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
Smart Eyeglasses That Auto Focus Where You Look
http://hackaday.com/2017/02/04/smart-eyeglasses-that-auto-focus-where-you-look/
A University of Utah team have a working prototype of a new twist on fluid-filled lenses for correction of vision problems: automatic adjustment and refocus depending on what you’re looking at. Technically, the glasses have a distance sensor embedded into the front of the frame and continually adjust the focus of the lenses. An 8 gram, 110 mAh battery powers the prototype for roughly 6 hours.
https://unews.utah.edu/i-can-see-clearly-now/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Apple now offers Final Cut, Logic, and other pro apps for $199 through education bundle
https://9to5mac.com/2017/02/03/pro-apps-bundle-for-education/
Education pricing is available to college students, students accepted to college, parents buying for college students, faculty, homeschool teachers, and staff at all grade levels.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Gliding To Underwater Filming Success
http://hackaday.com/2017/02/05/gliding-to-underwater-filming-success/
If you are a fan of nature documentaries you will no doubt have been wowed by their spectacular underwater sequences. So when you buy a GoPro or similar camera and put it in a waterproof case accessory, of course you take it with you when you go swimming. Amazing footage and international documentary stardom awaits!
Of course, your results are disappointing. The professionals have years of experience and acquired skill plus the best equipment money can buy, and you just have your hand, and a GoPro
[Steve Schmitt] has an answer to this problem, and it’s a refreshingly simple one. He’s built an underwater glider to which he attaches his camera and launches across the submerged vista he wishes to film
GoPro Underwater Glider
http://www.instructables.com/id/GoPro-Underwater-Glider/
I like getting underwater footage with my gopro but there are two main problems.
1. When you swim with it, there is a lot of wobble, especially if there’s waves.
2. Sometimes you don’t want to swim in the body of water (too cold).
What I dreamed of was a simple underwater glider. No fancy motor to break, no ballast tanks. Just some kind of rig that would allow the camera to glide forward and down, and then be retrieved by a tether.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Google Brain super-resolution image tech makes “zoom, enhance!” real
Google Brain creates new image details out of thin air.
https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2017/02/google-brain-super-resolution-zoom-enhance/
Google Brain has devised some new software that can create detailed images from tiny, pixelated source images. Google’s software, in short, basically means the “zoom in… now enhance!” TV trope is actually possible.
As you can see, the software seemingly extracts an amazing amount of detail from just 64 source pixels.
Of course, as we all know, it’s impossible to create more detail than there is in the source image—so how does Google Brain do it? With a clever combination of two neural networks.
The second part, the prior network, uses an implementation of PixelCNN to try and add realistic high-resolution details to the 8×8 source image. Basically, the prior network ingests a large number of high-res real images—of celebrities and bedrooms in this case. Then, when the source image is upscaled, it tries to add new pixels that match what it “knows” about that class of image.
To create the final super-resolution image, the outputs from the two neural networks are mashed together. The end result usually contains the plausible addition of new details.
To create the final super-resolution image, the outputs from the two neural networks are mashed together. The end result usually contains the plausible addition of new details.
Google Brain’s super-resolution technique was reasonably successful in real-world testing. When human observers were shown a real high-resolution celebrity face vs. the upscaled computed image, they were fooled 10 percent of the time (50 percent would be a perfect score). For the bedroom images, 28 percent of humans were fooled by the computed image. Both scores are much more impressive than normal bicubic scaling, which fooled no human observers.
It’s important to note that the computed super-resolution image is not real. The added details—known as “hallucinations” in image processing jargon—are a best guess and nothing more. This raises some intriguing issues, especially in the realms of surveillance and forensics. This technique could take a blurry image of a suspect and add more detail—zoom! enhance!—but it wouldn’t actually be a real photo of the suspect. It might very well help the police find the suspect, though.
Tomi Engdahl says:
The Megapixel Race and its Clear Winner
http://hackaday.com/2017/02/07/the-megapixel-race-and-its-clear-winner/
Like any Moore’s Law-inspired race, the megapixel race in digital cameras in the late 1990s and into the 2000s was a harsh battleground for every manufacturer. With the development of the smartphone, it became a war on two fronts, with Samsung eventually cramming twenty megapixels into a handheld. Although no clear winner of consumer-grade cameras was ever announced (and Samsung ended up reducing their flagship phone’s cameras to sixteen megapixels for reasons we’ll discuss) it seems as though this race is over, fizzling out into a void where even marketing and advertising groups don’t readily venture. What happened?
While transistor density tends to be limited by quantum effects, image sensor density is limited by what is effectively a “noisy” picture. Noise can be introduced in an image as a result of thermal fluctuations within the material, so if the voltage threshold for a single pixel is so low that it falsely registers a photon when it shouldn’t, the image quality will be greatly reduced. This is more noticeable in CCD sensors (one effect is called “blooming“) but similar defects can happen in CMOS sensors as well. There are a few ways to solve these problems, though.
First, the voltage threshold can be raised so that random thermal fluctuations don’t rise above the threshold to trigger the pixels. In a DSLR, this typically means changing the ISO setting of a camera where a lower ISO setting means more light is required to trigger a pixel, but that random fluctuations are less likely to happen.
Another reason that thermal fluctuations cause noise in image sensors is that the pixels themselves are so close together that they influence their neighbors. The answer here seems obvious: simply increase the area of the sensor, make the pixels of the sensor bigger, or both.
There are some non-technological ways of increasing megapixel count for an image as well. For example, a panoramic image will have a megapixel count much higher than that of the camera that took the picture simply because each part of the panorama has the full mexapixel count.
Of course, if you have unlimited area you can make image sensors of virtually any size. There are some extremely large, expensive cameras called gigapixel cameras that can take pictures of unimaginable detail.
For example, images with high dynamic range are becoming the norm even in cell phones, which also helps eliminate the need for a flash. Whatever you decide, though, if you want to start taking great pictures don’t worry about specs; just go out and take some photographs!
Tomi Engdahl says:
DIY Thermal Camera That’s Better And Cheaper Than a FLIR
http://hackaday.com/2017/02/08/diy-thermal-camera-thats-better-and-cheaper-than-a-flir/
A few years ago, FLIR unleashed a new line of handheld thermal imagers upon the world. In a manufacturing triumph, the cheapest of these thermal imaging cameras contained the same circuitry as the one that cost six times as much. Much hacking ensued. Once FLIR figured out the people who would be most likely to own a thermal imaging camera can figure out how to upload firmware, the party was over. That doesn’t mean we’re stuck with crippled thermal imaging cameras, though: we can build our own, with better specs than what the big boys are selling.
This thermal camera is built around the FLIR Lepton sensor, providing thermal images with a resolution of 60 by 80 pixels. These thermal images were combined with a VGA resolution camera to produce the very cool enhanced imagery the commercial unit will get you
The DIY-Thermocam is a do-it-yourself infrared camera, based on the FLIR Lepton long-wave infrared sensor and the popular Teensy 3.6. http://www.diy-thermocam.net
https://github.com/maxritter/DIY-Thermocam
Tomi Engdahl says:
Faking TV Remote Control with Paper and a Lighter
http://hackaday.com/2017/02/07/faking-tv-remote-control-with-paper-and-lighter/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Cynthia Littleton / Variety:
HBO Now, HBO’s standalone digital streaming service, has surpassed 2M subscribers, Time Warner Chief Jeff Bewkes told investors on Wednesday
HBO Now Grows to More Than 2 Million Domestic Subscribers
http://variety.com/2017/tv/news/hbo-now-2-million-subscribers-time-warner-1201981371/
HBO’s stand-alone digital streaming service has surpassed 2 million domestic subscribers, Time Warner chief Jeff Bewkes told investors Wednesday.
HBO Now launched in April 2015. Wall Street has been keenly attuned to the pace of subscriber growth for HBO Now as a bellwether of how major media giants will evolve their businesses in the digital era. Bewkes announced the subscriber number during his conference call with analysts following the release of strong fourth-quarter and full-year 2016 earnings.
“We’re really pleased with the progress” of HBO Now, Bewkes said.
Tomi Engdahl says:
John Hopewell / Variety:
EU agrees to cross-border access to streaming and digital content services, like video-on-demand, online TV, music, and online games, starting 2018
E.U. Agrees to Cross-Border Access to Streaming Services
http://variety.com/2017/digital/news/e-u-see-as-you-travel-online-cross-border-access-1201980748/
So-called ‘portability’ rules the first piece in the European Commission’s Digital Single Market strategy, and the least contentious
BERLIN – Putting in place the first piece of its hoped-for unified digital market, the European Union agreed Tuesday on new rules allowing subscribers of online services in one E.U. country access to them while traveling in another.
The new “portability” ruling is the first step of regulation under a drive by the European Commission to introduce a single digital market in Europe. Announced in May 2015 on the cusp of the Cannes Film Festival, the proposed Digital Single Market was met with full-throated opposition from Europe’s movie and TV l industry, which viewed it as a threat to its territory-by-territory licensing of movies and TV shows. They were especially concerned by the DSM’s support for cross-border access, whereby people in the E.U. would be free to buy content situated on other countries’ digital platforms.
Hollywood studios, represented by the Motion Picture Assn. of America, share the European industry’s concerns about DSM.
Tomi Engdahl says:
ITU-T wants video sizes to halve again by 2020
Boffins challenged to make H.265 compression look flabby
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/02/09/itut_pushes_start_on_new_codec_standard/
The International Telecommunications Union wants researchers to get busy on new video compression codecs, setting an ambitious target to double their squeezing compression power by 2020.
H.264 is probably today’s most-used video codec, but the ITU-T’s asking for experts to submit proposals to double-down on H.265 codec, also known as High Efficiency Video Codec (HEVC), developed in 2013 and formally published in 2015.
The (deep breath) “Preliminary Joint Call for Evidence [CfE – Ed] on Video Compression with Capability beyond HEVC” asks for companies or organisations with suitable technology to get in touch with the Joint Video Exploration Team (JVET).
JVET reckons its early work on a Joint Exploration Model can improve compression capability by 30 per cent, but it suffers from high computational complexity.
Tomi Engdahl says:
You don’t need a subwoofer for your wrist
https://techcrunch.com/2017/02/07/basslet-hands-on/
Sometimes it’s best to just be blunt — to ask a company, “why is this a thing I want?” It’s an important question — perhaps the most important question in consumer electronics — and for some companies, it’s seemingly becoming increasingly more difficult to answer.
It’s something Basslet gets a lot.
The answer is immersion; an attempt to recreate the live music experience, albeit in a sort of hyper-localized region of the body, rather than a real concert that really shakes you to the core. CEO Daniel Büttner told TechCrunch the idea for the product occurred to him while he has playing the stand-up bass, a big resonant hollow hunk of wood that does indeed let the player feel the music
It’s interesting and sort of compelling, but I can’t imagine it’s $199 worth of compelling for most users outside of that initial Kickstarter round
Really, the Basslet feels more like an interesting first step than a full-fledged standalone product. The Berlin-based company is in the business of making what it calls “HD haptics.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Audio experts on microphone levels and pressure zone mics
http://www.edn.com/electronics-blogs/anablog/4443268/Audio-experts-on-microphone-levels-and-pressure-zone-mics
Many engineers and audio people don’t realize just how much signal can come out of a microphone. A hot mic with large signal can output many volts. That a dynamic microphone does this with a 120 ohm impedance is all the more remarkable
“The circa 1968 demo for those who didn’t understand how much level could come out of a microphone (like those who were still trying to do rock-n-roll with Altec 1567 mixers with no input attenuators): Take your Simpson 260. Set it on the 2.5 VAC range, and connect it to the output pins of a Shure vocal mic. Hand the mic to someone with a good set of lungs, and have them do a good rock-n-roll scream. I never saw anyone pin the meter at 2.5 volts, but 1.5 volts was easily achieved.” anon
Now I see why audio amplifier guys like ±15 volt power for those microphone pre-amps.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Home> Analog Design Center > How To Article
SmartEverything and the rise of the microphone array
http://www.edn.com/design/analog/4457396/SmartEverything-and-the-rise-of-the-microphone-array
Over ten years ago, a major smartphone manufacturer developed a demo of a smartphone with a ten-microphone array. It could pick out and hear a single person’s voice in a crowd – an amazing feature with obvious market potential. But the company predicted that 90% of such devices would fail in the field within six months. The compounded fragility of ten microphones killed the concept and was a brutal reminder that microphones are fundamentally mechanical devices.
It was a setback to an idea that now seems inevitable. As electronics become smarter and more pervasive, the screen-based user interfaces of the last decade have not kept up. The impending swarm of “SmartEverything” devices – smartphones, speakers, TVs, wearables/hearables, light bulbs, kitchen appliances, connected/autonomous cars, robots, drones, virtual/augmented reality and entire buildings – demand a form of interaction less obtrusive and more intuitive than small and large screens. Voice interfaces are the obvious candidate, and microphone arrays are the critical component.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Startup ‘Eyes’ Healthier Displays
http://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1331331&
Display technology shouldn’t be left to engineers.
That’s what’s driving a Montreal-based startup to develop eye-friendly technology for smartphones, automotive dashboards and virtual reality headsets. The genesis of IRYStec goes back to 2013, when Tara Akhavan, a second-year PhD student attending the Vienna University of Technology, was presenting at a conference around high dynamic range (HDR), where her work caught the eye who would be the company’s first investor, Montreal-based TandemLaunch.
Research suggests Americans spend as much as seven hours a day in front of a screen. Over the last 20 years, said Akhavan, physiologists have developed a better understanding of how the human visual system works, as well as the negative side effects that result when display use exceeds four hours a day. However, she said, device manufacturers have traditionally relied solely on image processing and hardware engineers to design their displays.
IRYStec Software’s Perceptual Display Platform (PDP) addresses the current shortcoming when it comes to developing displays for devices such as smartphones and automobile dashboard clusters. The standard approach to measuring a display’s performance is in a dark or dim room, but the display’s performance does not often account for the fact that it will be viewed in multiple environments: a dark room, normal ambient illumination and in bright light; so as ambient illumination goes up, the perceivable black level rises, darker tones are harder to see, colors become desaturated and overall contrast decreases.
Tomi Engdahl says:
A Deeper Dive into Comcast’s OTT-as-a-Service
http://www.btreport.net/articles/2017/02/a-deeper-dive-into-comcast-s-ott-as-a-service.html?cmpid=enl_btr_weekly_2017-02-07
Comcast Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CMCSA) recently announced a direct-to-consumer (D2C) solution to help content providers build, launch and manage over-the-top (OTT) services. It is a turnkey offering, with video processing, management, multi-CDN distribution, playout capabilities, as well as monetization options from subscription management and promotion to billing.
However, the approach is not one-size-fits-all. The D2C solution is built with the acknowledgement that customers may have unique needs. Therefore, flexibility is key.
Ultimately, however, the D2C solution is about simplicity, repeatability and speed. A recent PwC survey indicated that 78% of U.S. consumers subscribe to at least one OTT service. Time-to-market becomes crucial in this customer-rich environment.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Kif Leswing / Business Insider:
Image of Magic Leap’s prototype from January leaks, revealing a bulky backpack containing a visible circuit board with a large heat sink — Magic Leap, the $4.5 billion startup backed by Google building technology that “augments” human vision with digital imagery, is scrambling to finish …
REVEALED: This is what secretive billion-dollar startup Magic Leap has been working on
http://nordic.businessinsider.com/magic-leap-photo-leak-prototype-2017-2
Magic Leap, the $4.5 billion startup backed by Google building technology that “augments” human vision with digital imagery, is scrambling to finish a working prototype before an important board meeting next week.
Here is the first public photo of a working prototype of Magic Leap’s portable augmented reality device, which was given to Business Insider by a source.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Tim Cook says augmented reality is ‘a big idea like the smartphone’
Like TV, AR is becoming an Apple passion project
http://www.theverge.com/2017/2/10/14581428/apple-tim-cook-ar-vr-product-reveal-interview
The latest comments, from an interview the Apple chief gave to The Independent, indicate that Cook sees AR as a fundamental, revolutionary technology similar to the smartphone.
http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/features/apple-tim-cook-boss-brexit-uk-theresa-may-number-10-interview-ustwo-a7574086.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
TV and video delivery is likely to become a core capability of next-generation 5G wireless service, according to Strategy Analytics. “Recent demonstrations have suggested that 5G will support 1-Gbps data throughput rates,” according to the firm. “Combining 5G with other networking enhancements and technologies would allow operators to support TV-equivalent services which could eat into the $500 billion global TV and video market currently served by cable, satellite, IPTV and terrestrial broadcast service providers.”
Source: http://semiengineering.com/the-week-in-review-manufacturing-150/
More:
5G TV Could Become Rival to Cable, Satellite and IPTV, Says Strategy Analytics
https://www.strategyanalytics.com/strategy-analytics/news/strategy-analytics-press-releases/strategy-analytics-press-release/2017/02/06/5g-tv-could-become-rival-to-cable-satellite-and-iptv-says-strategy-analytics#.WJyVyGfTnIU
5G Should Include TV and Video as ‘Anchor’ Use Case
Boston, MA – February 6 2017 – TV and video delivery is likely to become a core capability of next generation 5G wireless services, concludes a new report from Strategy Analytics. Recent demonstrations have suggested that 5G will support 1Gbps data throughput rates. Combining 5G with other networking enhancements and technologies would allow operators to support TV-equivalent services which could eat into the $500Bn global TV and video market currently served by cable, satellite, IPTV and terrestrial broadcast service providers.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Computer vision: Current and future state of the technology
http://www.vision-systems.com/articles/2017/01/computer-vision-current-and-future-state-of-the-technology.html?cmpid=enl_vsd_vsdnewsletter_2017-02-13
http://www.vision-systems.com/articles/slideshow/2017/january/embedded-vision-alliance-s-jeff-bier-current-and-future-state-of-computer-vision.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
What’s the Difference Between Passive and Active DisplayPort Adapters?
https://blog.tripplite.com/whats-the-difference-between-passive-and-active-displayport-adapters/?utm_source=ADV_CablingInstall&utm_medium=email&utm_content=06-20-16-text&utm_campaign=blog-displayport
If you’re sending DisplayPort or Mini DisplayPort signals from a computer or other video source device to a VGA, DVI or HDMI monitor, you’ll need an adapter. The type of DisplayPort adapter you need, passive or active, depends on the type of signal you’re converting to, how many monitors you’re using, and whether your video source supports dual-mode DisplayPort (DP++) output.
Passive DisplayPort Adapters
If your video source supports dual-mode DisplayPort (DP++), you can use a passive adapter to convert DisplayPort signals to single-link DVI or HDMI. The DP++ video source performs the conversion instead of the adapter. Source devices that support dual-mode DisplayPort are usually marked with the DP++ logo.
Active DisplayPort Adapters
An active DisplayPort adapter converts both single-mode and dual-mode output, so your connected video source doesn’t have to support DP++. The adapter performs the conversion from DisplayPort to VGA, DVI or HDMI instead of the source device. Active adapters are ideal for use with graphics cards, such as AMD Eyefinity, that do not output dual-mode signals.
Connecting to Multiple Monitors
If you’re planning to connect your DisplayPort video source to multiple VGA, DVI or HDMI monitors, you’ll probably need an active adapter or splitter, regardless of whether your video source supports DP++.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Microscope DSLR Mount Using PVC & Heat
http://hackaday.com/2017/02/10/microscope-dslr-mount-using-pvc-heat/
Microscopes are a great way to see the mysteries of the universe hidden at the smaller scale. When they were first developed, scientists had to rely on illustration to convey their findings through the lens. Thankfully we can now rely on photography to help us out instead. Many microscopes come with a special port — often called a trinocular port — for mounting a camera. Using this, [Brian] developed a DSLR mount for his microscope using a hacker staple: PVC pipe.
DIY DSLR Microscope Mount
https://hacknbuild.github.io/blog/posts/DSLR-Microscope-Mount/index.html
In this build, I create a DSLR microscope mount using jeweler’s loupes and PVC pipe. The mount fits over the Trinocular port of the microscope since the lenses I had available were too large to fit inside the port.
Tomi Engdahl says:
This video app promises to keep your homemade sex tapes private
https://thenextweb.com/apps/2017/02/13/homemade-sex-tape-video-private/#.tnw_3ru8eHUR
Few things can heat up your love-making sessions as much as getting into homemade videos. However, while some have made careers out of it, having your sex tapes leaked to the internet is simply plain embarrassing and nerve-racking. But fret no more: There’s an app that will keep your raunchy homemade clips safe.
Available for iOS, Rumuki is a free video-encryption software that promises to protect your privacy by becoming the “prenup” for your sex tapes and home clips. The app essentially lets you and your partner pair up your devices to record a video that can later be played only when both parties have agreed on it.
Once recorded, every video is encrypted using two keys stored at separate phones – one key for you and one for your partner in crime. Every time someone wants to play the video, Rumuki prompts the other party to “grant a playback” by entering the secret key. Each permission is valid for only one playback.
To make things even safer, all content you record with the video-encryption tool is stored exclusively on your devices.
https://rumuki.com/privacy-policy.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
WTF is up with the W3C, DRM and security bods threatened – we explain
Five years on, attempts at compromise on web standards still fueling fights
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/02/13/w3c_drm_security_battle/
A lengthy battle over the inclusion of digital rights management as a Web standard is coming to a head, with a set of new guidelines planned for early March.
Those guidelines will include the latest attempt at compromise between pragmatists and idealists over how to allow control of content online without undermining the central concept of a free and open internet.
On March 2, the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) will publish details of its new vulnerability disclosure program, closely followed by a “call for review” from its director, Tim Berners-Lee, that intends to protect security researchers from being sued if they dig into the black box of code that makes digital rights management (DRM) possible.
It is a messy compromise, and one that some are still not happy with, but it is progress on an issue that has set the W3C against itself for five years.
It is also a proxy for a much broader fight: between corporations that want to be able to protect their content, and internet engineers opposed to commercialization of the internet who want to protect the open internet in an era of closed systems.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Yvonne Villarreal / Los Angeles Times:
YouTube Kids to launch original programming, with the first four shows beginning rollout in April
YouTube Red launches slate of original children’s programming
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/la-et-st-you-tube-red-for-kids-20170213-story.html
YouTube is taking a bold step to capitalize on its popularity among swipe-savvy kids — and become a bigger player in the entertainment industry.
The Internet’s dominant video platform said Monday that it was launching its own slate of original TV shows aimed at children and families in the coming months.
The new shows, aimed at children ages 12 and under, will be available through the mobile app YouTube Kids, as long as pint-sized users (or their parents) subscribe to YouTube Red. The app launched two years ago and helped pave the way for the children’s programming.
Tomi Engdahl says:
CNN broadcasts on YouTube after TV ban in Venezuela
A report critical of the vice president led the government to suspend their signal.
https://www.engadget.com/2017/02/15/cnn-broadcasts-on-youtube-after-tv-ban-in-venezuela/
Earlier today, the Venezuelan government cut CNN en Español’s signal, shutting off its television broadcasting in the country shortly after it aired a report on fake passports. Not to be deterred, the news network has taken its programming to YouTube and posted links to news reports on its Spanish-language site. Apparently, the Venezuelan government doesn’t know that you can’t stop the livestreaming signal.
Tomi Engdahl says:
SmartEverything and the rise of the microphone array
http://www.edn.com/design/analog/4457396/SmartEverything-and-the-rise-of-the-microphone-array
Arrays and the human ear
Like most mammals, we have two ears. Their shape and position allow us to find the origin of sounds in our surroundings. This is so natural that we will spin around when we hear unexpected sounds, to help us locate their source. These stereo-acoustic abilities are a constant aid and help to protect our lives. They are a testament to the power of directional audio.
Advanced MEMS microphones improve on nature. We can build very large microphone arrays with sophisticated processing algorithms to pinpoint the origin of sounds, hone in on a specific source (such as one person’s voice) or pointedly ignore unwanted sounds (such as the roar of a ventilator duct). These microphone arrays give us a much richer set of acoustic experiences, a greater understanding of our surroundings and more control over our environment.
We can scale this principle to much larger arrays, from the seven microphones in the Amazon Echo to the 300+ microphones in Squarehead Technology’s AudioScope.
The use of microphone arrays goes far beyond improving our listening. Every major technology company is now deeply invested in the field of computational linguistics – teaching our connected devices to understand natural human speech. But to understand speech the way we can, they must also hear as clearly as we do. They must emulate the directional, long-ranged hearing that we do instinctively.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Ken Yeung / VentureBeat:
Lytro raises $60M Series D from Blue Pool Capital, Foxconn, Qualcomm Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, NEA, GSV, others to bring light field VR technology to Asia
Lytro raises $60 million to bring light field VR technology into Asia
http://venturebeat.com/2017/02/15/lytro-raises-60-million-to-bring-light-field-vr-technology-into-asia/
Lytro may have had some setbacks in 2016, but it appears to be onto something. Investors have noticed the potential of the company’s light field technology, so much that Lytro has raised another round of funding, bringing in $60 million in new capital.
“We believe that Asia in general and China in particular represent hugely important markets for VR and cinematic content over the next five years,” said company CEO Jason Rosenthal.
Lytro wants to be a major player for studios and companies seeking high-quality production value for their VR projects. Rosenthal told VentureBeat that he sees this space as being a “new computing platform bigger than the mobile revolution. From entertainment, to education, training, and teleportation, how we get together and meet will be transformed by this medium.” And the company doesn’t think its focus should be limited to just the U.S., one of the largest markets for virtual reality, which is why it’s now targeting Asia and Greater China.
While Lytro currently doesn’t have any business operations in Asia, its Immerge and Cinema hardware devices and accompanying software can be used around the world. Rosenthal believes that the Asian market will be important over the next couple of years
In other news, Lytro revealed that its Immerge camera is now production ready and is already being used in multiple projects, with the first one at VR studio Within. The film is still in post-production work and expected to premiere next quarter. Previously, Lytro had created demo projects themselves
https://www.lytro.com/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Sahil Patel / Digiday:
In the wake of the PewDiePie scandal, dozens of advertisers have been contacting YouTube analytics firms to help them police their YouTube ad campaigns — Advertisers might want more stringent ways to police YouTube content in light of the controversy surrounding YouTube’s biggest star …
On PewDiePie and the inherent difficulties in policing YouTube
http://digiday.com/agencies/pewdiepie-inherent-difficulties-policing-youtube/
Advertisers might want more stringent ways to police YouTube content in light of the controversy surrounding YouTube’s biggest star, PewDiePie, making anti-Semitic comments on several of his recent videos. Unfortunately, the problem is a lot bigger and more nuanced than PewDiePie (then again, most things are more nuanced than PewDiePie).
While Disney and YouTube are distancing themselves from Kjellberg, advertisers are worried they’ll find themselves in the crosshairs of viewers angry at Kjellberg. With 53 million subscribers on YouTube, Kjellberg had one of the most sought-after YouTube channels. In light of the allegations, dozens of advertisers have contacted YouTube analytics firms looking for more stringent ways to assess the quality of different YouTube creators and channels.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Ken Yeung / VentureBeat:
Twitter opens up Periscope Producer to all users; the service lets broadcasters incorporate live video from sources other than their mobile device
Twitter opens up Periscope Producer service to everyone
http://venturebeat.com/2017/02/23/twitter-opens-up-periscope-producer-service-to-everyone/
After four months of being slowly released, Twitter announced that its Periscope Producer service is now available to everyone, allowing broadcasters to incorporate high-quality live video from sources other than their mobile device — it’s supported on the web, iOS, and Android.
Periscope Producer is a service Twitter created to let brands, media organizations, and other creators broadcast professionally produced, high-quality live video and incorporate it into the normal Periscope live video experience. “We wanted to enable the framework and groundwork to let people do the things we wouldn’t have the creative chops to explore,”
Now creators can share video from external cameras, an Xbox One, virtual reality headsets, a computer, a webcam, or other devices right into their broadcasts streaming through Twitter. Live videos are done normally, but there’s a setting within Periscope Producer where arbitrary sources can be added, allowing third-party devices with a video output to be connected.
Periscope is simply the distribution mechanism. Full-scale videos can be embedded, and sponsorship logos, live webpages, Skype calls, and more are supported through Periscope Producer.
Tomi Engdahl says:
A soft whisper heard clearly: Getting automatic speech recognition right
http://www.edn.com/electronics-products/electronic-product-reviews/other/4457645/A-soft-whisper-heard-clearly–Getting-automatic-speech-recognition-right
I have been seeing some innovative development in microphone and speech recognition. Consumers want to speak commands to their automobiles, mobile devices, and wearables, but ambient noise can get those messages wrong. Automatic speech recognition (ASR) and natural language processing (NLP) for systems like Siri, Google Now, Alexa, Cortana, etc., work pretty well in a quiet home, but our real-world environment surrounds us with a great deal of noise.
Most system designs developed to mitigate ambient noise will analyze the speech and noise and try to enhance the speech and suppress the noise. Seems reasonable. But this technique distorts the voice signal; this is a “physics” approach which suppresses noise signals and boosts voice signals – but this inherently introduces distortions that speech engines cannot process.
Speech recognition is presently at about 95% accuracy, but experts, like Andrew Ng, Chief Scientist at Baidu, say that going to 99% would be a game-changer. Accuracy is a primary goal and the secondary goal is latency
In 1970, Machine speech recognition was only 10s of words. Fast-forward to 2016 and 7-8 million words were recognizable with 90% accuracy in a low noise environment, according to Google.
Tomi Engdahl says:
5 Augmented Reality Suppliers to Watch in 2017
Augmented reality (AR) isn’t just for games. Here are five companies looking to bring AR into enterprise, including the factory and beyond.
https://www.designnews.com/content/5-augmented-reality-suppliers-watch-2017/17538688352509?cid=nl.x.dn14.edt.aud.dn.20170223.tst004t
Tomi Engdahl says:
Own a Vizio TV? It May Have Spied on You
Vizio secretly collected viewing data from 11 million TVs, according to an FTC complaint.
http://www.pcmag.com/news/351582/own-a-vizio-tv-it-may-have-spied-on-you
Vizio has been watching you watch TV. The flat-panel display maker, which was acquired last year by Chinese giant LeEco, will pay $2.2 million to settle claims that it collected viewing data from 11 million TVs without their owners’ consent.
According to a complaint from the Federal Trade Commission, Vizio was able to capture second-by-second information about what its TVs were displaying. The monitoring wasn’t limited to built-in smart TV apps, either. It included video from cable set-top boxes, DVD players, and over-the-air broadcasts. Vizio also recorded and tracked the TVs’ IP addresses, according to the FTC complaint.
“The data generated when you watch television can reveal a lot about you and your household,” FTC Division of Privacy and Identity Protection attorney Kevin Moriarty wrote in a blog post. “So, before a company pulls up a chair next to you and starts taking careful notes on everything you watch (and then shares it with its partners), it should ask if that’s O.K. with you. Vizio wasn’t doing that, and the FTC stepped in.”
“Today, the FTC has made clear that all smart TV makers should get people’s consent before collecting and sharing television viewing information and Vizio now is leading the way.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Twitter opens up Periscope Producer service to everyone
http://venturebeat.com/2017/02/23/twitter-opens-up-periscope-producer-service-to-everyone/
After four months of being slowly released, Twitter announced that its Periscope Producer service is now available to everyone, allowing broadcasters to incorporate high-quality live video from sources other than their mobile device — it’s supported on the web, iOS, and Android.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Jack Nicas / Wall Street Journal:
YouTube viewers worldwide watch more than 1B hours of video a day, a 10-fold increase since 2012, threatening to eclipse US TV viewership
YouTube Tops 1 Billion Hours of Video a Day, on Pace to Eclipse TV
Google unit posts 10-fold increase in viewership since 2012, boosted by algorithms personalizing user lineups
https://www.wsj.com/articles/youtube-tops-1-billion-hours-of-video-a-day-on-pace-to-eclipse-tv-1488220851
Tomi Engdahl says:
3-D Interactive Projection Redefines MEMS
http://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1331406&
Bosch, the biggest and oldest micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) maker, introduced at Mobile World Congress 2017 a combo of infrared micro-scanner and laser projector, capable of transforming any surface into a virtual user interface.
The MEMS device, small enough for wearables and cheap enough for toys in high volumes, is also finding a plethora of applications anywhere a human-machine interface (HMI) is needed ‐ on the factory floor, in industrial equipment, for robotics, medical devices, infotainment and in-car heads-up displays.
The new microscanner BML050 extends Bosch Sensortec’s portfolio into optical microsystems and moves the firm from stricly a component supplier to become a system supplier, too
Because it is based on an integrated IR-RGB (infrared, red, green, blue) module just 6 mm high ‐ with up to HD resolution ‐ its two MEMS scanning mirrors can both project images and collect the reflected light so as to determine where a user’s finger is touching the projected image.
The two-mirror system, one of which is hinged in the X-direction and one of which is hinged in the Y-direction, projects from a module only 6-by-24 millimeters using 30 lumen lasers.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Laser Sensor focus an image in five milliseconds
The flight time ToF-measuring sensor (time-of-flight) is used in a variety of applications to measure distances and identify objects. STMicroelectronics has now presented a new sensor that detects multiple objects at once more from a distance. The sensor makes the smartphone’s camera faster.
VL53L1 sensor measures the distance to an object in five milliseconds.
The module has a size of 4.9 x 2.5 x 1.56 -millinen. The light source is a 940 nanometer laser component.
Source: http://www.etn.fi/index.php/13-news/5930-laseranturi-tarkentaa-kuvan-viidessa-millisekunnissa
The VL53L1 is an I2C capable module that is in production and available now.
More: http://www.st.com/en/imaging-and-photonics-solutions/vl53l1.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
Google Takes on Cable With ‘YouTube TV’—40 Channels for $35
https://www.wired.com/2017/02/youtube-tv-skinny-bundle/
Google just joined the “skinny bundle” TV war with YouTube TV, a paid subscription service that streams a slew of premium broadcast and cable networks to your mobile device, tablet, computer, and anything with Chromecast.
Just $35 a month gets you six accounts and access to live TV from more than 40 providers including the big broadcast networks, ESPN, regional sports networks and dozens of popular cable networks. Subscriptions include cloud DVR with unlimited storage, AI-powered search and personalization, and access to YouTube Red programming.
So-called skinny bundles include only those channels you really want, at a price that is cheaper than traditional cable. They also bring the world one step closer to the day when you can watch what you want, when you want, when you want, on the device you want. YouTube TV joins a growing wave of services, including Dish’s Sling TV, Sony PlayStation Vue, and AT&T’s new DirectTV Now, with a similar web TV offering from Hulu expected soon. And like these other options, unfortunately, YouTube still has some holes with its offering.
The company won’t say when the service launches, but says you can expect it in the US in the “coming weeks and months.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
MWC 2017: Netflix mobile streaming should soon cost you much less data
http://www.smh.com.au/technology/innovation/mwc-2017-netflix-mobile-streaming-should-soon-cost-you-much-less-data-20170228-gunnbc.html
Netflix has traditionally focussed on television screens, and for good reason. Around two thirds of all Netflix hours are viewed on traditional TV sets. But that is changing fast, and internally Netflix is increasing its efforts to give mobile viewers the highest quality video possible.
After enabling users to download content to their devices, and after “donating” servers full of content to ISPs globally to reduce the lag caused by it having to push data around the world by itself, Netflix appeared at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this week to tell telcos and device-makers about its next step in embracing an increasingly mobile audience.
In two months, Netflix will switch to VP9, the open source video codec created by Google. The codec offers higher quality images than the current industry standard, h.264. Netflix took the switch in codecs as an opportunity to rethink the way it compresses video before it is streamed.
Netflix demonstrated the new codec on a number of devices. Using the new codec and compression technique to show a video on a mobile screen, a 500 Kbps file was indistinguishable from a traditional high quality file, which used three times the data per second.
Even at 100 Kbps, the highest compression setting Netflix offers, video was sharp and detailed on a mobile screen. Normally video this compressed would look as blocky as Lego, but the video was entirely watchable