Gear News of the Week: Chrome OS Will Merge With Android and Sony Surprises With a New Camera
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It's been speculated on. It's been rumored. It's been hoped for. And according to an interview with TechRadar, it's happening. Android ecosystem president Sameer Samat says Google plans to combine Chrome OS and Android 'into a single platform.'
Google has kept its phone and tablet operating systems distinct from its laptop platform. There has been plenty of crossover over the years—the biggest being the introduction of Android apps to Chromebooks back in 2016—but they have always coexisted. With Samat's new statement, though, change is afoot.
In the interview, Samat also followed up on a comment made to WIRED's Julian Chokkattu at Google I/O this year, hinting at a future Google laptop, stating that 'he's interested in how people are using their laptops these days.' The last Google laptop was the Pixelbook Go in 2019, which followed the ill-fated Pixel Slate 2-in-1 in 2017. If Google does plan to merge the new platforms, having flagship Google hardware on hand is a must. — Luke Larsen Pixels Are on the Way Rick Osterloh, senior vice president of devices and services at Alphabet Inc., during the Made By Google launch event in Mountain View, California, US, on Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024. Alphabet Inc.'s Google is rolling out upgraded smartphones, watches and earbuds, aiming to take on Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. and offer more ways to use artificial intelligence. Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via GettyIn other Google news, the company has set a date for its Made by Google event, where it's expected to debut the Pixel 10 series smartphones, a new Pixel Watch, and new wireless earbuds. The keynote takes place on August 20 in Brooklyn, New York, and it kicks off at 1 pm ET (10 am Pacific). It'll be livestreamed as usual.
Google used to hold its big hardware event in October, but changed things up last year, putting the Pixel release date ahead of the iPhone, with more breathing room ahead of the holiday shopping season. The highlight of this year's release—other than marking 10 years of Pixel—is that Google is rumored to be moving to TSMC chips for its Tensor G5 chipset due to issues with Samsung's foundry. Sony Surprises With a New Camera
Sony has dropped a new full-frame camera out of the blue, the RX1R III. The RX1R series was last updated nine years ago. Why now? If I had to guess, I'd say it has a lot to do with the success of compact fixed-lens cameras, like the Leica Q series, Fujifilm X100 series, and the Fujifilm GFX100RF. Sorry you had to wait almost 10 years, RX1 fans, but better late than never.
What do you get out of a 10-year development cycle? Turns out … not that much. The RX1R III is pretty much a repackaged a7R V in terms of image capabilities. There's the same 61-megapixel full-frame sensor paired with the a7R V's Bionz XR image processor and the dedicated AI chip. That's a significant upgrade for this camera relative to the last model in the series, but there's no brand-new tech here.
More interesting are the design changes. The RX1R III ditches the pop-up electronic viewfinder of the RX1R II in favor of a rear-mounted viewfinder, making it look a bit like Sony's high-res travel camera, the a7R C. Also, Sony dropped the articulating rear screen; this one is fixed like the very first RX1R. Probably the best upgrade here is that the RX1R III uses Sony's larger batteries, the NP-FW50, which will dramatically improve battery life.
One thing that hasn't changed at all since this series was launched in 2012 is the built-in Zeiss Sonnar T* 35-mm f/2 lens. The big question here is, how will this more-than-a-decade-old lens work with the latest and greatest autofocus? We'll let you know when we get our hands on a review unit later this year. — Scott Gilbertson Omega's Summer Seamaster
Omega this week dropped a bright, summery version of its excellent Seamaster Diver 300M, following on February's bronze gold and burgundy watch. While, yes, it's not exactly a groundbreaking departure from last year's original, it hits all the right notes, mainly thanks to how strong November's first iteration was. However, this model has an edge over its siblings.
The aluminum bezel and stylish mesh bracelet remain, but look closely and you'll see subtle changes, most pleasing of which is that the wave-pattern on the dial has been replaced with a flat, matte-textured black. For the orange enthusiasts, note the lollipop seconds hand, and indices at 12, 3, 6, and 9 have all been given a pop of color. A final flourish is the matching orange 'Seamaster' dial signature.
As with last year's 42-mm original, we'd still opt for the mesh bracelet ($6,800), but if you want to go totally tangerine, then spec the integrated orange rubber strap at $6,500. Regardless of strap selection, with the Caliber 8806 inside (certified as a Master Chronometer by METAS) and water resistance to 300 meters, this piece—either in orange or the original black—is currently WIRED's pick of Omega's lineup. — Jeremy White EcoFlow Launches a Home Battery System
Whether you're worried about power outages or unpredictable weather events, or looking to better manage rising energy costs, EcoFlow's new Ocean Pro system is targeting you. This whole-home energy backup system pairs modular 10-kWh batteries (expandable up to 80 kWh) with an inverter that can handle up to 40-kW solar panel arrays. Ocean Pro can output up to 24 kW continuously, enough to fully power most households, including HVAC systems, EV chargers, and other appliances.
The brain of the Ocean Pro system is its Smart Home Panel, allowing for real-time energy monitoring and AI forecasting on weather, pricing, and usage to automate your smart home systems. The system can act as a backup with a 10-millisecond switchover time should the grid fail. Ocean Pro can also export power to the grid, and there's support for the Virtual Power Plant (VPP) network to export excess energy based on need and electricity prices.
EcoFlow offers a 15-year warranty, with an IP67 rating for water resistance and flood resistance up to 2.6 feet. The kit can handle extreme temperatures (from –4 to 140 degrees Fahrenheit) and has built-in fire prevention. The Ocean Pro also passed the UL 9540B safety certification for energy storage systems. Most folks install them on the side of their house, so the batteries come in a choice of aluminum, carbon fiber, or walnut finishes.
These systems are a big jump up from the EcoFlow portable power stations and power banks we've tested, but the company has been selling its PowerOcean home batteries in Europe for a while, and they have a decent reputation.
The Ocean Pro beats Tesla's Powerwall 3 on two key fronts: It can handle more solar (double) and it can store more energy (Tesla maxes out at 54 kWh). But Ocean Pro will not be cheap. Exact pricing depends on your home and the size of the system, but just a couple of batteries and the inverter will cost around $10,000. Ocean Pro is available directly from EcoFlow now. — Simon Hill Viture's Luma Series Smart Glasses
Purveyor of gaming-focused virtual display glasses, Viture just announced a whole new lineup. The Luma Series has four models: Luma, Luma Pro, Luma Ultra, and the Beast. Aside from a sharper display across the board, Viture's main addition in the top three models is a front-facing camera to allow for spatial capture and 6 degrees of freedom (dof) using its Spacewalker app, though this is not available yet.
The Luma Pro I have been testing gives you a 152-inch virtual display with a 52-degree field of view at up to 1200p resolution and 1,000 nits of brightness. Viture describes them as 4K-like, despite the resolution, but what it means is that this is its sharpest display yet. The clarity and brightness are excellent. There's also electrochromic film to darken the shades, and full customization with nose pieces, diopter dials, and adjustable temples with lighting effects.
Viture's Pro XR glasses topped our Best Smart Glasses guide until the Xreal One Pro displaced them. The key advantage Xreal's glasses have is a hardware chip that allows 3 dof, so you can pin screens in place. Up until now, Viture's virtual displays moved with you when you moved your head (unless you used its Pro Neckband wearable Android computer or Spacewalker app). But the Luma Pro and up will support 6 dof, allowing you to move in 3D space, though it will still be handled through software on your connected device. Viture also offers AI-powered 2D to 3D conversion across its glasses.
The entry-level Luma ($399) lacks the camera and is set to land in September. The Luma Pro ($499) is available now, but the 6-dof functionality will be enabled via Spacewalker later. The Luma Ultra ($599), coming in August, gets a little brighter with newer Sony Micro-OLED panels, and also sports dual-depth cameras and wider 6-dof platform support, including MacBook and Windows. The flagship model, the Beast ($549), landing in October, ups the field of view to 58 degrees and the display size to 176 inches, and it has built-in hardware to enable 3 dof, with 6 dof via software, and a built-in microphone. — Simon Hill Sony and NFL Have a Headset Deal for 2025 Season
Sony is jumping into business with the National Football League. The two megabrands announced a partnership this week that includes a custom-developed Sony headset as the primary communications device for NFL head coaches. The headset may look familiar to fans of Sony's popular wireless headphones, as the design borrows heavily from the brand's flagship WH-1000X series, from engineering insights to the look and feel of the earcups.
Sony says the headset has undergone extensive testing in rain, snow, cold, and extreme heat to take on the notoriously bad-weather games NFL coaches endure, as well as drop testing for mishaps (and presumably flaring tempers).
Sony not only brought its years of noise-canceling experience to the system, but also optimized it for real-game environments using crowd noise at over 100 decibels, according to Sony Audio product manager Gator Nakahashi. Sideline communication will be handled by a custom mic transmitted over Verizon Business' Private Wireless Solution. The headsets will hit the field at the start of the 2025 season as the Cowboys take on the Eagles on September 4. — Ryan Waniata
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