Scott Johnson joins the show and we’ll have a good old fashioned talk about wearable fitness trackers, and why science says we don’t need ’em!
Using a Screen Reader? click here
Multiple versions (ogg, video etc.) from Archive.org.
Please SUBSCRIBE HERE.
A special thanks to all our Patreon supporters–without you, none of this would be possible.
If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting the show here at the low, low cost of a nickel a day on Patreon. Thank you!
Big thanks to Dan Lueders for the headlines music and Martin Bell for the opening theme!
Big thanks to Mustafa A. from thepolarcat.com for the logo!
Thanks to our mods, Kylde, TomGehrke, sebgonz and scottierowland on the subreddit
Show Notes
Today’s guest: Scott Johnson, of the place with the pants on the frogs.
Headlines:
Ars Technica reports that some users of Samsung TVs say a Pepsi ad with no audio is being inserted into their movies every 20-30 minutes when using Plex or Foxtel TV apps. One redditor reported the ads went away if you disagreed with the Yahoo Privacy Notice in the TVs smart hub settings. Samsung has a partnership with Yahoo to serve pop-up ads. Samsun told Business Insider in January that the ads would be opt-in.
Reuters reports that stolen iPhones dropped 40% in San Francisco, 25% in New York and50% in London after Apple added a kill switch to the phones in September 2013. London Mayor Boris Johnson, San Francisco District Attorney George Gascon and New York state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman have all called for laws mandating the kill switches. California passed such a law which has yet to go into effect.
Bloomberg Business reports that according to the usual suspects, I mean, the people with direct knowledge of the matter, Samsung plans to release two new versions of its Galaxy smartphone next month at Mobile World Congress. One of the phones will have a display that wraps around both edges. Similar to the Note Edge but on both sides. Both phones will use Samsung chips, have all metal bodies and have 5.1 inch screens.
The Verge passes along a report from “the Information” that Square is working on an Android tablet to replace the current iPad based Square Registers. The project is in its early stages and may not go through to production. In addition The Information also claims Google is testing out a new mobile payment system, called Plaso, that would let customers pay by confirming their name or initials at the register.
GigaOM reports Facebook has launched a collaborative threat detection framework called ThreatExchange. ThreatExchange is a hub where organizations can share data on attacks and malicious activity. Facebook’s graph-database correlates the data points together and figures out new relationships like malware targeting specific domains or IP addresses. The idea is to stop attacks before the occur. Current participants include Pinterest, Tumblr, Twitter, Yahoo, Bitly and Dropbox. ThreatExchange is available now in beta.
TechCrunch passes along details from a report by Ernst & Young that shows China, India, Russia and Mexico will have 2 billion broadband connections by 2016, twice that of more mature markets. Smartphone shipments will double in those countries between 2014 and 2018. China will have 500 million wireless broadband connections by 2016. India will have the youngest average age by 2020. Russia has the higest penetration rates for broadband services. And Mexico’s population has the highest per capita consumer spending of the four at $11,000 per person.
Reuters reports that China’s Potevio will begin selling YotaPhone 2 later this quarter. Its the first mass market distribution deal for YotaPhone. The Yota Phone has one screen for calls and apps and a second always-on display for notifications and e-reading.
Wired reports that US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, AKA the people who brought you Internet, have a project called Memex to index pages ignored by commercial search engines as well as sites on TOR network’s Hidden Services. The ones with .onion addresses that are only accessible through the TOR browser. They want to look for hidden relationships int he content that would be useful to law enforcement, military and private sector entities.
We previously mentioned BitTorrent’s partnership with Rapid Eye Studios to launch an original sci-fi show called Children of the Machine. Today BitTorrent announced a revised distribution plan. Children of the machine will launch in “late 2015” as a free ad-supported video through BitTorrent Bundles. You can also pay $9.95 for no ads and bonus features. ALSO BitTorrent’s chief content officer and his team are moving from San Francisco to LA to work with the Rapid Eye team. The partners intend to launch shows with a 30-60 day exclusive window.
News From You:
spsheridan sent us the ArsTechnica story announcing that all major wireless carriers in the US must start unlocking paid off phones today. The FCC and the carriers agreed in 2013 to unlock devices upon fulfillment of contract terms por payment of an early termination fee. Prepaid users can get their phones unlocked after a year of.
habichuelacondulce sent us the Reuters report that the UK will make it legal to test driverless cars on British roads next summer, as long as a person is present and able to take control of the car if necessary. The British Department for Transport is working on a ‘code of practise’ for driverless cars which will be published this spring.
Discussion Section Links:
https://gigaom.com/2015/02/11/study-says-dont-buy-a-fitness-tracker-just-use-your-phone/
http://jama.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=2108876
http://www.uphs.upenn.edu/news/News_Releases/2015/02/case/
https://gigaom.com/2014/12/08/insurance-provider-oscar-will-reward-you-if-you-hit-your-step-goal/
http://www.engadget.com/2015/02/11/android-wear-2014-shipments/?ncid=rss_truncated
Pick of the Day:
I wanted to share this awesome PC building resource to all my fellow DTNS listeners who want to be able to build the best system for their budget.
Logical Increments provides you a list of the best components at several price levels starting at destitute for $200, up to a monstrous system for $4000. Each tier will give you a choice of 3 for each component, the price, and a link where you can purchase it. All items in each tier are also designed to work best with other items in that tier. A great resource for anyone wanting to build their own system, especially a hardcore gaming machine.
Thanks and love the show!
Jamie in beautiful BC
I’d like to submit howtoreplaceyourpc.com as a listener pick. The site is meant for people who are not listeners of DTNS, who just use a computer, and occasionally they need to get a new one. The site covers Mac and Windows, desktops and tablets and phones. If someone comes asking what computer to buy, and they are not an immediate family member, this is where I send them. The site was made by one of the managers at a UK company providing home tech support.
The site does heavily push for Apple products, but does not focus on them exclusively, and Mr. Hutton does provide explanations for why he suggests what he does. Also, he does use Amazon referral links.
Thanks for the read, and insert generic closing message here.
~ A. Karl Kornel – karl@kornel.us
Wednesday’s guest: Sarah Lane of Tech Crunch
Dear Tom and Jennie,
I’m the fellow (physician and mathematician) who wrote some time ago expressing doubts about the accuracy of commercial devices using wrist sensors for measuring heart rate, among other physiological parameters.
I’m responding to the discussion of the letter in JAMA about the usefulness of the new fitness devices and smartphones for measuring overall activity.
At the time I wrote my previous comment, I was confident that in resting situations, up to and including gentle walking, these devices might do quite well in recording heart rate.
I’m referencing a case report in the form of an Amazon product review of the FitBit Surge written in Dec, 2014 by an EMT. He described in detail that his device had precisely the limitations during real exercise that those of us who monitor heart rate for a living would predict. The Surge was useless in such situations, not trending and certainly not measuring well while measuring heart rate at rest quite well.
I hope this link to the Amazon review will work. If not, it can be found by searching reviews of the device on Amazon. It was designated the most helpful critical review.
Given how well it appears overall energy expenditure/exercise level can be monitored, I want everyone to be mindful of the very limited usefulness of the FitBit Surge, and very likely comparable devices, during actual exercise.
Love DTNS – have told everyone to listen to it.
Best, Ted Dushane
Hey Tom,
Regarding the fitness tracker study: it’s important to note that the phones in the study were located in pants pockets, while the fitness trackers were strapped to wrists. It should be no surprise that a sensor placed on the hip is more accurate (and deals with less “noise”) at counting steps than a sensor placed on the wrist.
However, my wife’s wardrobe does not include pants pockets big enough for her iPhone 6. Her phone stays in her purse, or on the desk or table. For her, a fitness tracker that straps to her wrist is the most accurate option simply because it actually stays on her body throughout the day, unlike her phone. I’m sure there are many other people in the world with a similar lack of phone-sized pants pockets.
Keep up the good work, and I expect those TPS reports on my desk tomorrow morning.
Your boss,
Brian