Facebook Messenger will now let you send money to friends

Facebook Messenger will now let you send money to friends

We reported on rumors that Facebook was going to add payments to its messaging services back in October of 2014. Today the company made it official, introducing a new feature to Facebook Messenger that lets users send and receive money at no cost. Facebook says the money is sent right away, although it may take one to three days to show up in your bank.
The company, understandably, put a lot of emphasis on the security it built into this system. "We use secure systems that encrypt the connection between you and Facebook as well as your card information when you ask us to store it for you." The company is also building out new teams for in-house security. "These payment systems are kept in a secured environment that is separate from other parts of the Facebook network and that receive additional monitoring and control. A team of anti-fraud specialists monitor for suspicious purchase activity to help keep accounts safe.
Facebook says the first time you use payments, you'll need to add a Mastercard or Visa debit card issued by a US bank. It's not clear yet when the option for credit cards will be added, or when the service will expand internationally.


Ben Popper
The Verge 

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NVIDIA's latest and greatest GPU will cost $999

NVIDIA's latest and greatest GPU will cost $999

While NVIDIA unveiled its latest powerhouse GPU last week, it unveiled more information about the brand new Titan X at its own developer's conference earlier today. For those who squirm at tech speak, look away now, because we're going to indulge in quite a bit of it: The Titan X comes with eight billion transistors, 3,072 CUDA cores, 7 Teraflops worth of single-precision performance plus 0.2 Teraflops of double-precision workloads. It also has 12GB of VRAM, which NVIDIA says is twice the amount of previous graphics cards. What does this mean for you? Well, NVIDIA is promising better gaming performance of course, but Jen-Hsun Huang, NVIDIA's CEO, says that the Tegra X also has great potential in scientific applications. A 16-core Intel Xeon would normally take 43 days to process data for a deep neural net analysis, but the Titan X can do it in just 1.5 days, he says. Suffice to say, the Titan X is a monster of a GPU, which might explain its hefty price tag: $999. That's about the same cost as its predecessor, the Titan Black, so we're betting that the cost of that will likely drop some time soon.
NVIDIA

Nicole Lee
Engadget 

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Buy the Moto X Pure Edition, get a free Moto E

Buy the Moto X Pure Edition, get a free Moto E

Want to buy a smartphone for yourself, but also need to snag a cheap phone for family (or, let's be honest, a backup for yourself)? Motorola might have you covered. It just kicked off an unusual promotion that gives you a free 3G version of the new Moto E when you buy a Moto X Pure Edition. That's not so hot if you insist on LTE data for every device, but it's a no-brainer if you were either set on getting a Moto X or don't relish the idea of splurging on two phones at once. Don't spend long deciding what to do, though -- Motorola is only running the promo through March 24th.
Motorola

Jon Fingas

Engadget

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eBay and Sotheby's high-end auctions will launch next month

eBay and Sotheby's high-end auctions will launch next month

You wouldn't expect to be let in to a fine art auction wearing nothing but tighty whities, but starting April 1st, no one's going to be able to stop you. Sotheby's has teamed up with its digital counterpart, eBay, to launch its long-promised digital sales channel. Now, online collectors flush with Beanie Baby sales cash can fight as equals against
 entitled Manhattan socialites for Ansel Adams' photography and Andy Warhol watches.
For now, a single auction per day will be streamed live from Sotheby's New York outfit, with catalogs from the April 1st and 2nd events available to view right now. The biggest item currently listed is the sign from Yankee Stadium from 1976, which is expected to fetch up to $600,000. Let's just hope no one from overseas wins that particular auction -- imagine the shipping fees!
[Image credit: Robert Orion Martin, Flickr]
eBay

Daniel Cooper
Engadget 

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Apple is reportedly willing to share viewing data to clinch TV deals

Apple is reportedly willing to share viewing data to clinch TV deals

Apple is apparently bending over backwards to make sure that its oft-rumored streaming TV service gets off the ground. New York Post sources claim that the company is willing to share viewer data with the networks, including demographics and viewing habits, if it means getting channels ahead of its service's reported fall launch. It's not clear just how much info broadcasters would get, although there's talk of letting them run ads if they don't think the subscription fees are enough.
No matter what, Apple would be breaking from tradition to grant this kind of access to its customer base. The company often likes to brag about how it doesn't share your data, and once told magazine publishers that they couldn't collect subscriber details unless they asked readers directly. If the rumor is at all true, though, it suggests that Apple is willing to make exceptions if it can prevent rivals like PlayStation Vue or Sling TV from getting an early lead.New York Post

Jon Fingas
Engadget 

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Autodesk's new app lets kids design their own toys

Autodesk's new app lets kids design their own toys

3D printers can build anything from prosthetics and musical instruments to Hershey chocolates. But, even as the technology continues to make strides with materials (metal, concrete, etc.) and takes on full-fledged architectural projects, it seems to move further away from the reach of children. Tinkerplay, a new kid-friendly 3D printing app, makes it quick and easy for all age groups to design and experiment with minimal assistance.

The app is the brainchild of Autodesk, the company best known for its flagship AutoCAD design software. It's an evolution of Autodesk-acquired Modio, an iPad app that worked with desktop 3D printers. Like its predecessor, Tinkerplay eliminates the need for additional rafts and support materials which tend to complicate the process for at-home designs. But new features and functions allow kids (and older humans) to choose from the pre-loaded character templates or create their own versions from modifiable parts. Users can drag and drop parts to create characters or create their own complex little parts with customizable textures and colors for a new design. For the latter, connectors available with the larger Tinkercad family can be employed. In the end, the printer processes similar color parts that can be snapped up together for a ready-to-pose figurine.

Engadget

The app, available on iOS, Android and Windows, is an addition to a growing list of 3D printing tools that encourage at-home experimentation. But it also engages a more pertinent audience –– a generation that learns to swipe screens and tinker with gadgets before they can walk.

[Image credit: Tinkerplay]

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Windows 10 launches this summer in 190 countries

Windows 10 launches this summer in 190 countries

Microsoft's leaner, meaner, latest iteration of Windows is coming in just a few months, and it's launching in 170 countries, in 111 languages. Don't forget: Windows 10 is a free upgrade if you're already using Windows 7 or 8. Hiding in its imposing shadow, and launching at the same time, the company will release special free version of its OS for Internet of Things devices, which Microsoft's Terry Myerson reckons could well find its way into ATMs and ultrasound machines. Curiously, anyone that has a Xiaomi Mi 4 will also able to download the preview of Windows 10 ahead of it's release -- despite it being an Android phone.
Windows Blog

Mat Smith

Engadget

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Calum Hood, Luke Hemmings & Ashton Irwin Wear Matching Outfits

Calum Hood, Luke Hemmings & Ashton Irwin Wear Matching Outfits

Calum Hood, Luke Hemmings and Ashton Irwin obviously spend a ton of time together since you know they happen to be a in a band together. The 5 Seconds of Summer boys are even dressing like each other, which just makes us love them even more.

Calum posted this pic on his Instagram account showing us how he, Luke and Ashton all wore T-shirts repping their favorite band, Red Hot Chili Peppers. We like to think that Michael Clifford was busy taking this photo, which is why he wasn't in it, but it's kind of adorable that the guys showed up all wearing the same shirt. Great minds think alike!

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Drones will soon detect unexploded bombs in Laos

Drones will soon detect unexploded bombs in Laos

Drones are more than just flying robots designed for commercial deliveries and buying Crocs. Despite some lingering suspicion from consumers, unmanned aircrafts have been deployed for social good too. They can aid rescue missions, navigate tough regions and even put out fires. Now, Austin-based ArchAerial's new drone mission could potentially save lives in war-torn regions that are prone to accidents and fatalities from unexploded bombs.
An aerial imaging firm, ArchAerial, already employs multi-rotor aircrafts for agricultural mapping, academic research and archeological surveys. Over the weekend at SXSW, Ryan Baker, the company's CEO, announced that his firm plans to deploy a prototype that will map minefields and locate unexploded bombs in areas historically ravaged by war. The humanitarian drone, essentially an Octocopter, will be loaded with LIDAR, a remote sensing technology that 3D maps the surface of the Earth with immaculate precision. If the mission goes as planned, it will keep surveyors from ever having to set foot on the ground in search of minefields.

ArchAerial's first minefield-locating mission will be in Laos, a country quite literally scarred from the Vietnam War. The US dropped about two million tons of explosives within a span of nine years, making Laos, a small Southeast Asian country the most bombed area in the world. Half a century later, an estimated 80 million baseball-sized bombs scattered across the country continue to threaten civilian lives.

[Image credit: ArchAerial]The Stack

Mona Lalwani
Engadget 

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Folding electric bike talks to all your other smart devices

Folding electric bike talks to all your other smart devices

While there's no shortage of smart bikes, they still have limits: many rely chiefly on pedal power, and their tech-savviness is often limited to talking to a special smartphone app. The JIVR Bike might just solve several of those problems at once, though. The two-wheeler not only uses a chainless electric drive (good for 20 miles of pedal-free travel per charge), but serves as an iBeacon that talks to any nearby device which supports the format -- you could have it send info to your laptop, if you like. It folds to fit into small apartments, too, and you can plug in your phone to use it as a dashboard.
As you'd imagine, a connected e-bike isn't going to be cheap. JIVR is crowdfunding its machine, and you'll have to shell out between £699 to £1,749 ($1,036 to $2,593) to get the Bike early depending both on how quickly you act and whether or not you're willing to be an ambassador for the brand. Provided the hardware makes its planned September release, however, you may well get a lot for your money.
Kickstarter

Jon Fingas

Engadget 

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Nintendo is finally developing smartphone games

Nintendo is finally developing smartphone games

Despite denying it would ever do such a thing, Nintendo has entered into a partnership with developer DeNA to create new games for mobile devices. The emphasis is on the word "new" -- you won't be getting Super Mario Bros. on your Android smartphone, for instance. Instead, the companies said "only new original games optimized for smart device functionality will be created, rather than porting games created specifically for the Wii U home console or the Nintendo 3DS portable system." In other words, it looks like Nintendo has relented to investors who've said it's not profiting enough from its valuable intellectual property, and you may soon see its universe of characters pop up in Candy Crush-style games.
Nintendo started experimenting with free-to-play games featuring paid downloadable content (DLC) last year. If you've never heard of DeNA, it runs the popular Mobage Japanese mobile gaming portal, and has created notable mobile spinoffs for games like Final Fantasy.
Developing...
Nasdaq

Steve Dent

Engadget 

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Nintendo's next-generation console is codenamed 'NX'

Nintendo's next-generation console is codenamed 'NX'

It should come as no surprise to hear that Nintendo is working on a new console. Fresh hardware takes years to develop, so engineers are always working on future systems while the rest of us play on the current generation of consoles. What we didn't expect, however, is for Nintendo to talk about its next system so soon. In today's press conference, where the company detailed its plans to make mobile games with DeNA, it also teased a new system codenamed "NX." Few details were disclosed, other than it'll involve fresh hardware and a new gameplay concept. The NX symbol appeared on a slide alongside the Nintendo Wii U, 3DS and other mobile platforms, which suggests it could be a complimentary device, rather than a straight successor to either its current home console or handhelds.

It's no secret that Nintendo's Wii U has been struggling. Despite some standout titles, including Mario Kart 8 and Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, the platform hasn't resonated with consumers like the original Wii or the latest hardware from both Sony and Microsoft. Many have wondered how long it will take before Nintendo decides to cut its losses and shift focus to a new console entirely. That would, of course, disgruntle existing Wii U owners, so a new system that sits alongside Nintendo's existing hardware, at least for a short time, makes sense. Chief executive Satoru Iwata said more details about NX will be shared "next year," so don't expect any grand announcements at E3 or the next Nintendo Direct.

"As proof that Nintendo maintains strong enthusiasm for the dedicated game system business, let me confirm that Nintendo is currently developing a dedicated game platform with a brand-new concept under the development codename 'NX,'" he says.

Why is Nintendo making this announcement now? Its decision to develop new smartphone games with DeNA is sure to rile some of its most dedicated fans, which feel the company's characters should be protected from outside developers, especially those in the mobile space. Teasing the "NX" now should reassure gamers that Nintendo is still committed to "hardcore" titles and isn't abandoning its hardware business anytime soon

Nick Summers
Engadget

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