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| Japan: the robot hotel is a reality Posted: 30 Jul 2015 03:01 PM PDT  Japan has surprised us in the last few days with something new: a robot hotel. Nagasaki now has its Hen-na Hotel (“weird hotel”), staffed almost exclusively with automatons. Read all about it here! Passengers visiting the robot hotel at the Huis Ten Bosch theme park in the Nagasaki prefecture will be welcomed by a very realistic looking ladies, if they speak Japanese… or by a dinosaur if they speak English. Several robots staff this hotel, and will carry luggage to the rooms, control the lockers, clean, and other tasks while the room service is all managed via tablets provided by the hotel itself. The doors to each of the guest’s rooms will use facial recognition and practically the entire building will be using solar energy, a measure taken both to save energy and protect the environment. Another bit of news is that the prices of the rooms will be changing through time, using a bid system which works in direct relationship to the demand each time of the year. There is a minimum base price of $60 USD per room, and a max of $150 for the triple room which isn’t all that high, all things considered. They have yet to release the prices for the special and luxury rooms, but this is a five star hotel after all so it could be quite higher. In the future, the hotel will grow to have some 72 rooms, as their website explains, and a future expansion which will add 72 more by March of 2016. There is also a plan to open some 1000 hotels just like this around the world – quite ambitious. It would seem that the Japanese are ready for this idea to catch on. If this will have results or not, only time will tell, but if you want to travel to Nagasaki and give this place a try. head over to their official website (in English) and make your reservation. Be social! Follow Walyou on Facebook and Twitter, and read more related stories at Jaeger vs. Jaeger: the USA and Japan battle with giant robots and Apple Will Employ Robots to Map Building Interiors.         |
| I5 Plus Smartband Takes Simplicity to the Extreme Posted: 30 Jul 2015 01:41 PM PDT  While some wearable manufacturers prefer to make overly complex devices, Iwown teaches everyone a lesson in simplicity with its I5 Plus waterproof smartband. 1. Contents of the Box Contents of the BoxAt a first glance, it might look like something is missing from the box, but in fact, there’s everything needed to get started. Upon opening the box, a logical question could arise: “Shouldn’t there also be a USB cable included?” Well, no, since the main part of the smartband also includes a USB plug. Inside the box, you will find just the smartband and a user manual. Instructions on how to set it up and how to use it are available in both English and Chinese, fact that indicates the manufacturer’s desire to market this product internationally. Design and Build QualityThe back of the Iwown I5 Plus looks a bit like it was made in a rush. Other than that, the smartband is impressively well built. The TPU band has a slot for the USB plug and two other holes for securing the main unit into place. Check out the following slideshow to get an idea about how the item looks. Click to view slideshow.It really would be something if all wearables priced this low were made out of so sturdy materials. The only thing that worries me is what would happen to the main unit if pressure is applied onto it while it charges. That being said, when it’s “plugged” into the bracelet, there are no chances the USB plug could ever get damaged. Add to that the fact that the smartband is IP67 certified, which means it is dust- and waterproof, and you have a rather impressive product. ConnectivityAs most wearables out there, the I5 Plus connects to smartphones via Bluetooth. In terms of operating system compatibility, it works with iOS 7.0+ or Android 4.3+. Click to view slideshow.The companion app, called Zeroner, is about as simple as the smartband itself. However, judging by the 2.3/5 score it has on Google Play Store, I’d say that most people aren’t happy with it, with the most cited reasons being bugs, connectivity issues with various smartphones, and loss of data after unexpected resets. Fortunately, I didn’t experience any of these problems, and the overall experience was very pleasant. Right after launching the app, you need to set up an account using an e-mail address and a password, to make sure that your statistics get synced, should you want to pair the smartband with another device. Menu and NavigationIf it’s versatility you’re after, Iwown’s I5 Plus might just be up your alley. Navigating through the menu is done by swiping to the left or to the right, while confirming a selection is done by pressing the touch screen for three seconds. Here are some of the things it can do. Display time and date: There is no way to manually set the time and date, but the smartband syncs these details when getting paired with your smartphone using the companion app. To see the current time, you either have to tap the display or do a wrist gesture, as you would if you wore a conventional timepiece. On the other hand, to see the current date, you need to swipe up or down when the time is displayed. Sleep and fitness tracking: Using the included accelerometer, the I5 Plus can tell when you’re sleeping (moreover, it can distinguish deep from light sleep), and when you’re moving around. When it comes to fitness, it counts calories, number of steps and distance. Of course, no fitness tracker out there is extremely accurate, so these are more like estimations. To make sure sedentariness doesn’t get to you, you can set sedentary reminders or move alerts, as Iwown calls these. Push caller ID and notifications: When your phone rings, the caller ID will get displayed on the smartband’s screen. Similarly, when you’re getting notifications from certain apps, they are transmitted to the I5 Plus, provided that the Bluetooth connection is not broken. According to the Zeroner app, you can be alerted using vibrations whenever you’re getting a text, or when receiving messages on Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp or Skype. You’ll have to enable notifications for each of these apps in Zeroner. Alarm clock: This is yet another feature that’s handled using the companion app. You can set up as many alarms as you want, and you can even establish a pattern for them, depending on the day they fire up. Battery LifeThe I5 Plus allegedly features a 75mAh battery that should keep the smartband up and running for up to a week. The manufacturer recommends charging the device for half an hour prior to using it. From my experience, the battery can last a week, but that will depend a lot on how the smartband is used. Setting up a lot of alarms and getting a ton of notifications will cause the battery life to drop dramatically. Price and AvailabilityAt $16.36, which is as much as it costs on GearBest, the I5 Plus competes against Xiaomi’s Mi Band. On the upside, this one has a display, but the lesser companion app and the poorer battery life rank it lower than Xiaomi’s wearable. ConclusionsIwown’s I5 Plus packs quite a few features for its small price. That makes it a good choice when compared to its mainstream counterparts, considering that the latter cost a few times more. It remains to be seen how and if this smartband stands the test of time, but so far, the Be social! Follow Walyou on Facebook and Twitter, and read more related stories about the I5 Plus waterproof smartband, or the Mifone W15 smartwatch.    |
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