Walyou

3D-printed electric violin sounds surprisingly well

Posted: 04 Sep 2014 07:19 AM PDT

“You wouldn’t download a car”, but the technology so we can finally do that is just around the corner. This time around, we present a 3D printed electric violin.

This is the F-F-Fiddle, by Makezine‘s David Perry. It is a full-size electric violin created in Autodesk's Fusion 360, but ready to be printed in any desktop 3D printer capable of working with fused-filament fabrication (FFF, hence the name). The resulting fiddle is absolutely fit to play.

This F-F-Fiddle is the seventh physical prototype and revision, having each previous version been played on and improved accordingly. 3D printing enthusiasts can find the map of the project at openfabpdx.com/fffiddle , where updates and kits come up.

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Nokia HERE Maps Come to Android, Pose a Threat to Google Maps

Posted: 03 Sep 2014 12:45 PM PDT

Android-powered Nokia X smartphones have the HERE maps pre-installed, but the Finnish company wants to expand. A recent partnership signed with Samsung will bring the maps to Galaxy phones in the first stage, with other brands to follow in the near future.

The HERE mapping app is among the leftovers that Microsoft didn’t want when buying Nokia. After toying a bit with iOS in 2013 just after the “I got into a lake because of Apple Maps” fiasco, Nokia announced that it will launch HERE maps on Android and yet once more on iOS. The Finnish company definitely has an advantage over its competitors, as it bought Navteq, which is well experienced in navigation software and digital cartography in 2007. Since 2011, Navteq has been fully merged into Nokia and has constituted a big part of what the HERE maps are today.

Exec Sean Fernback stated in an interview with the WSJ that “Google Maps is a good solution for many, their maps work very well, but it has looked the same and done the same for a long time.” In a few words, he explained what the HERE maps will focus on changing.

With Navteq in its pocket, Nokia won’t have a lot of catching up to do. In fact, some claim that HERE maps would end up on the third place after being launched, just behind Google Maps and Apple’s. However, what most seem to forget is that Nokia’s maps are available in most cars with built-in navigation, fact that makes the Finns leaders in this industry.

What more, with their offline support, HERE maps are even preferred by some people in India, South Africa and other countries. As far as I’m concerned, the GPS sensor of my smartphone could by faulty, as according to Google Maps I went off-road quite a few times. I should mention that I’m mainly talking about rural areas, and here is exactly where Nokia’s HERE maps are said to excel.

As a consequence of Nokia’s partnership with Samsung, the HERE maps will first be available on Gear S, the Tizen smartwatch that’s said to rule them all. Soon after that, HERE Maps will make their way to the Galaxy line, and if everything goes fine, we should see Nokia’s navigation app on more Android devices. Google should really give some thought to improving their maps before Nokia washes them over.

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