Backup Cameras now required

And with that, it's only a matter of time before LiDAR sensors become required too. 

USA Today
New cars sold in the U.S. must have backup cameras to help drivers avoid accidents under a federal regulation that took effect Wednesday.

The regulation requires rearview cameras and video displays on new models, a move aimed at preventing accidents in which pedestrians — often children — are run over because a driver can't see them as they back their vehicles.
Congress passed a law in 2008 requiring regulators to enact measures requiring the adoption of technology to greatly improve rearview visibility.

After years of delays, the Department of Transportation announced the camera requirement in 2014, giving automakers several years to prepare.
Many higher-end models and mainstream vehicles with extra safety packages already have rearview cameras. But the technology will now be standard in even the cheapest of new cars.

Backover crashes kill more than 200 people annually and injure more than 12,000.

Ford ahead of Waymo and Uber

Be a critical part of solving big problems.

They all need good LiDAR components.


Ford Ahead of Waymo and Uber in self Driving cars

Michigan-based Ford is leading the pack, closely followed by GM and the Renault-Nissan Alliance, according to a report released Monday by clean tech market research firm Navigant Research. Google’s Waymo ranks seventh out of the 18 companies examined, and Tesla and Uber don’t even crack the top 10 — coming in at 12th and 16th, respectively.

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“Automated driving is increasingly being considered the key technology to address societal problems caused by the proliferation of automobiles around the world,” wrote the researchers, who graded companies on factors including their vision, go-to market strategy, technology and staying power. “It has accelerated in the last decade, enabled by advancements in computational architectures and sensing technology, along with dramatic cost reductions.”

USA Today

Ford Motor is in pole position when it comes to benefiting from the coming age of autonomous vehicles.

That's the conclusion of a study released Monday by Navigant Research, which sells its in-depth surveys of energy and transportation markets to suppliers, policymakers and other industry stakeholders.

The Dearborn-based automaker took the top spot by demonstrating that it has the strategic vision and execution capabilities to both develop automated driving systems as well as deploy them across a range of mobility platforms.


Drive.com

The following group included the Volkswagen Group , BMW, Waymo - owned by Google's parent Alphabet - and Volvo.

Ford was ranked the highest due to its advanced on-road testing programs in Michigan, California and Arizona. Ford has also announced plans to expand its testing to Europe in 2017.

This emerging technology has infiltrated safety technology systems such as Ford's new Evasive Steering Assist, which is capable of helping drivers steer around slow or stopped vehicles through the use of radar and camera detection.

The American car maker has set itself a target of 2021 for when it wants a fully autonomous vehicle on the road, with ride-sharing its initial focus.

General Motor is employing the same strategy, and has teamed up with ride-sharing company Lyft to test thousands of driverless Chevrolet Bolts around the US in 2018, however, initially GM is testing a fleet of 40 cars in California and Arizona with a plan to extend to Michigan.

Streaming Media Device Sales

Young people move to streaming media and cut the cord --  They're also using mobile devices to watch. This is good news for MicroVision. The amount they anticipate increasing is huge and if the trend is real, probably underestimated.

They also do not account for the arrival of new devices that will have features that mobile media sharers will demand.

From USA TODAY

As more consumers experiment with and rely on streaming video, networks and content providers expand their offerings. As a result, "there has been this explosion of streaming boxes that allow content companies to talk to consumers in their homes," says Jason Krikorian, co–founder of Sling Media and general partner at DCM Ventures, a tech-focused venture capital firm.

"Young people look at 1,000 channels that are pushed to them via the cable bundle and say, ‘Why do I need that when all I care about is eight shows and a couple of sports teams?'" he said. "They are interested in new kinds of solutions.”

"Cutting the Cord" is a regular column covering Net TV and ways to get it. If you have suggestions or questions, contact Mike Snider via e-mail at msnider@usatoday.com. And follow him on Twitter: @MikeSnider.

ATT, Verizon & Ecosystem for PicoP

When a new device hits the market -- the kind of environment it lands in is very important. If the environment is ready for it it will do very well, very quickly. If the environment isn't ready the device may remain an oddity for a long time.

The telephone and the fax machine are examples of devices that didn't have an easy environment to land in when they were first available. If you had the first fax machine -- it was completely useless to you until you had people to communicate with who also had a fax machine.

With PicoP -- it's good to keep a close watch on the ecosystem. If there will be a lot of content for PicoP --- and support from content providers and bandwidth providers, things will go very smoothly. 

Verizon and ATT both have content ready for mobile. ATT purchased DirecTV, and Verizon is rolling out a FREE ad-supported service for mobile video.

Both companies are featuring the ZTE Spro2 -- a projector that I will stack SONY's MPCL1 up against any day. While it's getting decent reviews and has some excellent features, it's big, it sucks power, has a poor contrast ratio, and poor resolution next to the MPCL1.

ZTE Spro2 - Featured in USA Today
ZTE Spro 2 - PC MAG
ZTE Spro 2 - ATT
ZTE Spro2 - Verizon
ATT ZTE Spro 2 Videos


Verizon Go90
"Go90 is expected to be a free, ad-supported service that offers a blend of live and on-demand content. Though initially developed for mobile devices (the name of the service is about rotating a smartphone 90 degrees to view video in landscape mode), Verizon’s also noodling TV-based streaming strategies, the paper said."

USA TODAY - 5 gadgets everyone will own in 5 years:

USA Today

Pocket-sized home projector: Turn your ceiling into an HD experience and enjoy your favorite TV shows from the comfort of your own bed — without the need for a TV.