Whether it’s Zano’s high-profile bankruptcy (and subsequent post-mortem ) or LightFreq’s complete disappearance altogether, it seems like another big-money crowdfunder flop is just around the corner.
The latest tech project to fall victim of a case of reality not being able to stand up to its ambition is the CST-01, which proudly boasted of being the thinnest watch in the world on its Kickstarter page. Over the course of the campaign, Central Standard Timing raised $1,026,292 to bring the prototype to mass production.
Unfortunately, that was way back in 2013, and the last project update was a rather negative explanation of why it was parting ways with the stated manufacturing partner Flextronics, back in June 2015 .
Now, backers have been giving confirmation that the company is bankrupt and currently in the process of being closed, repaying creditors where possible.
Unfortunately, any backers of the project are incredibly unlikely to ever see any of their money back. According to SlashGear , which saw the backer-only update , it has only $30,000 remaining from the $1 million raised. There’s also no detailed explanation given for where the remaining cash went.
The lowest-cost, early bird tier cost $99, and then rose to $129.
Apple unveils new iPod Touch along with new colors for iPod Shuffle and Nano
Apple has refreshed its iPod line . The iPod Touch gets the most love with all new internals but there’s a fresh coat of paint for the iPod Shuffle and iPod Nano too.
The new iPod Touch has a better camera – jumping from 5 megapixels to 8 megapixels – which puts it in line with the iPhone 6/6 Plus and i Pad Air 2 .
Apple has also updated the image sensor processor and added burst and slo-mo modes. The front-facing camera hasn’t had a resolution bump but it does not feature burst mode for swifter selfie capture.
The Touch also has cinematic video stabilization now, which should make it a lot better at capturing videos on the move.
There’s also the 64-bit A8 chip under the hood for better graphics and gaming.
Exercise fans will be pleased to find the ‘M8’ chip, which tracks fitness data, steps and elevation in the current generation of iPhones, has made its way to the Touch.
One other spec change is that the device now supports the faster AC Wi-Fi standard.
The new iPod Touch is available in 16GB ($199), 64GB ($299) and 128GB ($399) models, in space gray, silver, gold, pink, red, and blue
Meanwhile, the iPod Shuffle and Nano are now available in the new colors.
➤ Apple
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Everything we know about Oculus’ big event tomorrow
Gamers and tech enthusiasts have always been keen for virtual reality — something that seems to be perpetually on the horizon but never fully realized. Tomorrow, Oculus is taking another step toward making VR real for the masses with a pre- E-3 press extravaganza outlining the details of its new Rift VR headset.
Oculus will take the wraps off information about its consumer model from a live event in San Francisco tomorrow at 10:00 am Pacific time. It will be livestreamed via various sources, including on Oculuom or its official Twitch channel .
In anticipation, Oculus VR has unveiled a new website and logo. Oculus Rift, which as acquired by Facebook last year for $2 billion, has been working on a VR headset since 2012.
Leaked image is a genuine prototype, but will be updated.
Anticipation has been off the charts for at least a year, fueled this week by supposed leaks of images depicting the final headset — until Oculus VR founder Palmer Luckey put a stop to the rumor mill. He confirmed in a Reddit post that a barrage of photos sucked up from deep inside the Oculus VR website coding were indeed legit, but old.
According to VRFocus :
TNW has already reported that the new headset will build on the Crescent Bay prototype , featuring 3D spatial audio.
In terms of tech specs, it’s PC only — no Mac or Linux support. Specifically, we’re talking NVIDIA GTX 970/AMD 290 equivalent or greater; Intel i5-4590 equivalent or greater; 8GB+ RAM; Compatible HDMI 1.3 video output; 2x USB 3.0 ports running Windows 7 SP1 or newer.
The Oculus Rift headset will be available in the first quarter of 2016. Oculus CEO Brendan Iribe told the Code Conference last month that the Rift and the PC to power it would cost some $1,500 combined. Pre-orders for the Oculus Rift consumer edition will start later this year.
The headset is already being used for more professional purposes — or more pro games, at any rate. Football players are now using the device in real-world training using Oculus Rift goggles and software created by STRIVR Labs ,
Tomorrow’s event will cover a range of VR topics, including the Oculus Rift , Gear VR, and more.
TNW will be at the event tomorrow, so be sure to check out our live blog for up-to-the-minute news.
➤ Oculus VR