In a bid to sidestep the issues of power, size and other technical hurdles of wearable displays, Verizon and Motorola have teamed to create the 5G Neckband. Putting connectivity, processing and battery in a collar could lead to lighter and more comfortable heads-up displays (and high-tech glasses).
Inside the pendant, there’s a Snapdragon processor, battery and touchpad, as well as sensors like a gyroscope, accelerometer, barometer and GPS. “We took a smartphone and exploded it around your neck,” said Vice President of Technology at Verizon, Brian Mecum. No details yet on pricing and availability.
— Mat Smith
The biggest stories you might have missed
Cheaper than similar OLED monitors.
Alienware
Dell’s Alienware monitor that uses Samsung’s quantum dot OLED (QD-OLED) tech will arrive this spring for a surprisingly reasonable $1,299. Dell first unveiled the curved, 34-inch gaming display at CES, and while that might seem expensive for a monitor (and well, it is), it’s cheaper than comparable OLED screens out there. (LG’s 32-inch UltraFine OLED model costs $3,999.)
The EV maker hopes to steal the spotlight from heavyweight rivals.
Volvo’s sibling brand aired a 30-second spot for the Polestar 2 during Super Bowl 2022 that took some not-so-subtle potshots at competitors and industry hypocrisy at large. The commercial was dominated by “nos:” “no dieselgate,” “no conquering Mars” and “no greenwashing.” In short, it’s kept the tradition of aggressive Super Bowl ads going for another year.
The stalls are already available at 49 stores, and they’ll soon be at more than 500.
Polestar will be happy. EV charging network Volta is bringing another 1,000 DC fast-charging stalls to 500 Walgreens locations. It’s a major expansion. The pair started working together in 2019, and there are currently Volta stations at 49 Walgreens stores. It’s also just the start: The Biden administration recently announced a $5 billion plan to improve EV charging infrastructure across the US.
The Polaris Program will end with the first crewed Starship flight.
Shift4 founder and Inspiration4 leader, Jared Isaacman has unveiled a Polaris Program initiative of “up to” three crewed SpaceX flights. The first, Polaris Dawn, is planned for the fourth quarter of 2022 and should include the first commercial spacewalk. The effort will ideally end with the first human-occupied Starship flight. The program hinges on SpaceX and partners solving a number of problems. SpaceX is developing spacesuits necessary for the spacewalk, and Isaacman’s group hasn’t yet decided how many crew members will step outside. Then, there’s the Starship’s own issues…
A big, beautiful convertible laptop.
Engadget
Musing on a convertible PC? HP’s x360 16 has everything you’d want in a big-screen convertible notebook. It’s fast, with a gorgeous screen and one of the best keyboards on the market. Just give up on the dream of using it as a tablet, though. While it’s gorgeous, it’s also… big.
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