Geekly Update - 29 April 2020

The AskBobRankin Geekly Update

Google Meet, a Zoom competitor, is now free to consumers. You can hold virtual meetings or video chat with up to 100 people. The service requires that all attendees must be logged in to a Google account, and people not explicitly invited will have to be approved by the host. No landline dial-in option, though.

Facebook is also taking on Zoom with Messenger Rooms. Participants can join group video calls even if they don't have a Facebook account. Webex also offers free online meetings with up to 100 participants, HD video, screen sharing, and no restrictions on meeting length.

Mesh routers help to get a stronger Wi-Fi signal into hard-to-reach areas of your home. Eero is offering a three-pack mesh router system for $199, which is $100 off the regular price, and it comes with a free Echo Dot.

Mojo Vision is building an augmented reality contact lens which will use AI to overlay computer images on the real world. A current prototype allows people to see text, sports scores, weather and other information in a lens held just in front of their eye. Next step, in your eye.

The Pentagon released three classified UFO videos filmed by US Navy, as part of its online Freedom of Information Act document library. Spoiler alert: grainy videos, and no little green men.

Scientists at Caltech just figured out how to make perspiration power a wearable e-skin that can monitor your health and control devices over Bluetooth.

The C0r0navirus has resulted in layoffs and lost jobs, but some companies are hiring. LinkedIn has a regularly updated list of companies looking to hire. Instacart, Amazon, CVS, Walmart, FedEx, Ace Hardware, Pizza Hut, and Lowes are among the firms looking for 30K to 300K employees.

Waymo's self-driving tech is off the road for now, but they're still busy in the lab, training neural networks to recognize real-world road hazards. They can simulate 100 years of driving each day, and have racked up over 15 billion miles of simulated driving so far.

CNet says the Apple Watch is saving lives, and offers five testimonials to that effect. The Watch has fall detection, heart rate monitoring, and other features to alert others if there is a health problem.

If you're tired of your robo-vac getting stuck on shoes and power cords, the Deebot Ozmo T8 may be the solution. This $800 machine can vacuum and mop your floors, using AIVI (artificial intelligence and visual interpretation) technology to avoid obstacles.

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