Month: February 2016

Video shot/edited by Jennifer Hahn. (video link)

Under Armour has been quietly building a connected fitness empire for a while. Over the past couple of years, the sports apparel company has purchased MyFitnessPal, Endomondo, and MapMyRun, and recently it launched a number devices at CES to accompany those integral software pieces. One of those things—the $150 Speedform Gemini 2 smart running shoes—are smart in the most subtle way. The shoes have sensors built into their soles, allowing them to track running stats including distance, calories, and pace.

Since Under Armour has been designing athleticwear for years, it's a strategic move to take one of its most beloved sneaker designers and incorporate connected components into it. While the shoes are more limited than other $150 fitness trackers, they make up for it by being especially convenient.

(credit: Alyson Hurt)

Six Democratic US senators today criticized Comcast and other TV and broadband providers for charging erroneous fees, such as cable modem rental fees billed to customers who bought their own modems. The senators have written a letter to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler asking the commission to "stop unfair billing practices."

Last year, more than 30 percent of complaints to the FCC about Internet service and 38 percent of complaints about TV service were about billing, wrote Senators Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Bernie Sanders (D-Vt.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Al Franken (D-Minn.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.).

The senators described Comcast, the nation's largest cable and broadband company, as a repeat offender. "We are troubled upon hearing complaints of consumers being charged the modem rental fee after they have returned the rented equipment to Comcast or being charged the rental fee having never rented a modem in the first place," the senators wrote. "Not only are the majority of customers using automatic payment systems and may not personally authorize every erroneous charge, many consumers report having to call and remedy this problem throughout several billing cycles. In fact, customer help boards found online at Comcast’s Help and Support Forum contain complaints about this exact problem."

Enlarge / The Android component for Google Play Music Podcasts. Note the new "Podcast" option in the navigation drawer. (credit: Android Police)

If you remember a few months ago, Google announced it would be jumping back into the podcast arena with "Google Play Music Podcasts." It launched a site to take RSS submissions from content creators and promised the product would be launching "soon." That product now appears to be live for some users.

Google hasn't made an announcement yet, but Android Police has screenshots of the Android component, which lives inside the Google Play Music app. If you have Play Music version 6.3 and (critically) have the server-side switch for podcasts turned on, you'll see a new section in the navigation drawer called "podcasts."

The section contains a searchable podcast catalog, which allows you to subscribe and auto-download shows. The Now Playing screen has been tweaked with 30-second skip and rewind buttons, and the app will alert you when new shows arrive and start downloading. For now, it seems the podcast section is pretty bare bones, feature-wise. There's no variable playback speed, no importing of existing RSS lists, and search isn't limited to just podcasts.

Jonathan Gitlin

The C-HR concept car was shown off at last year's LA Auto Show. It's still going into production but will be branded as a Toyota.

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Japanese car companies have been experimenting with US-market sub-brands for quite a while now. Toyota arguably owns the trend—and the most successful example—with Lexus, which rebranded Japanese-market Toyotas like the Soarer and Camry with a side helping of added luxury. Others followed suit (Nissan and Infiniti, Honda and Acura), and Toyota tried it for a second time with Scion, a sub-brand aimed at the young. Today, the company announced that Scion is no more.

“Scion has had some amazing products over the years and our current vehicles are packed with premium features at value prices,” said Andrew Gilleland, Scion vice president. “It’s been a great run and I’m proud that the spirit of Scion will live on through the knowledge and products soon to be available through the Toyota network.”

In addition to more youth-oriented cars, Scion also let Toyota experiment with ideas like no-haggle pricing and a slimmed-down options list (not to be confused with the huge number of accessories for personalizing one's car).