Weekly Tech Recap - № 295 - Amazon Fire HD 10, Calibri discontinued, Apple results, Galaxy Book Odyssey and Secretlab’s Magnus desk
Amazon Fire HD 10
Fire HD 10. © Amazon.
Amazon announced the 11th generation of its Fire HD tablet, which can be pre-ordered today for delivery from May 26. The Fire HD 10 model has a powerful 8-core processor, with 50% more RAM (3 GB), a brighter 1920 x 1200 screen, an updated design, 12 hours of battery life and up to 64 GB of internal storage expandable to 1 TB via a microSD card, all for just 200 CAD. The HD 10 Plus model offers a little more RAM (4 GB), wireless charging and a slate-colored soft-touch finish for 180 USD (this model is not currently offered on Amazon.ca). A wireless charging station, produced by Anker, is offered as an option for an extra 30 USD. A “productivity” offer includes a removable keyboard that doubles as a case, a 12-month subscription to Microsoft 365 Personal and 1 TB of online storage on OneDrive. (We still don’t know whether this pack will be available in Canada, but you can find it for 220 USD on the US market.) The tablets work with Fire OS, a fork of Android developed by Amazon. Instead of the Google environment, the tablets use the Amazon App Store and Alexa Assistant, backed up with the gamut of Amazon’s services. The 11th generation, still running on Fire OS 7, is based on Android 9 Pie. This system is no longer cutting edge: it dates from 2018…
⇨ The Verge, Sam Byford, “Amazon’s new Fire HD 10 tablet has slimmer bezels and better specs.”
2021-04-27
Microsoft needs your help in reading
© Microsoft.
In 2022, Microsoft will discontinue Calibri, the default Office font since nearly 15 years. Microsoft wants everyone to have a say in the matter of five new bespoke fonts commissioned from leading typographers. Your choice will help determine the winner of these five sans serifs, which will become Office’s default font for many years to come:
- Grandview, created by Aaron Bell, is a “bold” suggestion inspired by the extremely legible DIN 1451 font, long used in Germany for road signs.
- Seaford, created by Tobias Frere-Jones, Nina Stössinger and Fred Shallcrass, has gently organic and asymmetrical shapes that make it easy to read by emphasizing the differences between the letters.
- Skeena, created by John Hudson and Paul Hanslow, is a humanist sans serif with modulated lines. A noticeable contrast between thick and thin lines gives it a distinctive character.
- Bierstadt, created by Steve Matteson, is inspired by Swiss typography from the 1950s, and is in the tradition of Helvetica and Arial. The terminals (stroke ends) of the letters have 90-degree angles, a modern note that contrasts with the slanted and softer endings of Arial.
- Tenorite, created by Erin McLaughlin and Wei Huang, has warm, round shapes in the style of Adrian Frutiger’s Avenir, and is particularly readable.
The Microsoft Twitter account stands ready for your opinion and you can also try these new fonts in the Microsoft 365 apps. (Though we have a slight preference for Tenorite, we believe that Bierstadt will ultimately be chosen.)
⇨ The Verge, Tom Warren, “Microsoft is changing the default Office font and wants your help to pick a new one.”
⇨ Microsoft 365 Blog, The Microsoft Design Team, “Beyond Calibri: Finding Microsoft’s next default font.”
2021-04-28
Apple prospers during the pandemic
IPhone 12 Pro Max. © iStock.
Apple presented its results for the first quarter of 2020 to investors and they once again beat analysts’ forecasts. Revenue for the quarter was $ 89.58 billion, a record for a first quarter and a 54% increase from the previous year. The gross margin is 42.5%. Apple recorded double-digit growth in all of its product categories. Mac and iPad revenues grew 70.1% and 78.9% from last year ($ 9.1 billion and $ 7.8 billion, respectively), and iPhone revenues increased by 65.5% (to $ 47.9 billion). Even the service sector saw strong year-over-year growth of 26.7%, with a record turnover of $ 16.9 billion.
However, clouds hover over this blazing success. Apple officials declined to provide investors with a forecast for the next quarter due to several uncertainties, chief of which is the shortage of semiconductors and its threat to meeting demand in the coming months. Tim Cook said the shortage was affecting iPads and Macs and was not for his latest processors, but for older, more common components, which are also in demand by other manufacturers and industries. Luca Maestri, Apple’s CFO, warned that the consequences of this shortage will have a very real financial impact in the next quarter. Apple has seemingly tapped the bottom of its well of inventory that sustained it thus far, while other manufacturers came up empty. The huge surge in sales of iPads and Macs has apparently precipitated the drought.
⇨ Ars Technica, Samuel Axon, “Facing uncharted waters, Apple reports 54% year-over-year revenue increase.”
2021-04-28
Galaxy Book Odyssey
Galaxy Book Odyssey. © Samsung.
Samsung presented a new laptop dedicated to gamers, the Galaxy Book Odyssey, at its latest Galaxy Unpacked event. It has the distinction of being the first laptop equipped with the new RTX 3050 Ti GPU from Nvidia. And its features on paper make it a good candidate to be among the best in its market and in its price range. Featuring a 15.6-inch (1080p) display, it is equipped with an 11th generation Intel Core H-series processor, up to 32 GB of RAM and 2 TB of SSD storage, and it includes an “enhanced cooling system.” The Galaxy Book Odyssey also includes a 720p webcam, a fingerprint reader on the power button, and expandable microSD storage. There are two USB-C ports, three USB 3.2 ports, an HDMI port and a network port. Samsung said it plans to sell the Galaxy Book Odyssey for a starting price of USD 1,400, although the price could probably go much higher depending on how you configure the laptop. As for the release date, Samsung has said that the Odyssey is expected to go on sale in August, and will be available in Korea first. So you’ll have to be patient...
⇨ Tom’s Guide, Alex Wawro, “Samsung Galaxy Book Odyssey price, release date, specs and more.”
2021-04-28
Secretlab’s Magnus desk
Secretlab Magnus Metal Desk. © Secretlab.
Secretlab, the well-known Singaporean maker of gaming chairs, is diversifying its offer with a desk designed for gamers. The steel Magnus desk comes in two lengths: the 150 cm (≃59 inches) version is available now for pre-order, though only in the United States, the European Union and Singapore to start, while the smaller 120 cm (≃47 inch) model is still to come. The depth of the tabletop is 70 cm (≃27.5 inches) and the height of the desk is 73.5 cm (≃29 inches, adjustable up to 75.5 cm). A narrow, lidded trunk running the length of the back tidily stores all your cables, power supplies, USB hubs, etc. You decide where the magnetic accessories retain your cables so that your phone’s charging cable doesn’t slip to the floor. An optional, magnetic faux-leather mat clicks precisely to the steel surface. And since we’re talking about a product for gamers, an optional 96 RGB LED strip with a remote-control casts a rainbow strip along the back edge of your desk.
⇨ YouTube, “The all-new Secretlab Magnus Metal Desk.”
⇨ The Verge, Jay Peters, “Secretlab’s first PC desk keeps your cables under control with the help of magnets.”
2021-04-27
