Author: Rodeo Realty Media Team

Stay current on the latest tech news with this week’s blog. From a $450k ticket aboard Virgin Galactic to Eco-Friendly AC tech, we’re sharing the latest!

You Can Fly on Virgin Galactic’s Suborbital Space Plane for $450,000

If you have your heart set on almost flying to the moon and have $450k to spare, you are in luck. Virgin Galactic has re-opened ticket sales for their suborbital space plane Virgin Galactic. The company says they will be prepared to offer commercial flights beginning in 2022. The flight offerings will include single-seat reservations (starting at $450,000), multi-seat reservations for friends and family or the option to buy out all six seats. CEO Michael Colglazier told investors that seats for “microgravity research and professional astronaut training” will be priced at $600,000 each. Tickets for the first flights will be offered to those that joined the “Spacefarer Community” early on by placing a $1000 deposit. So far about 1000 people have paid the deposit towards their future suborbital flight. 

Twitter Changes Up Its Font

If you ventured onto Twitter this week, you may have noticed a slight change chirping up on your feed. Chirp, the company’s new font has replaced the former style of choice along with a few other updates. Twitter announced that the Chirp font is part of a broader brand refresh that was unveiled in January. “Chirp strikes the balance between messy and sharp to amplify the fun and irreverence of a Tweet, but can also carry the weight of seriousness when needed,” Twitter said in a blog post. The company has also adjusted its brand color to put more focus on the image and video content of users. 

Top Announcements from Samsung’s August Unpacked Event

If you missed Samsung’s August event, we have you covered with some new products to be on the lookout for. The Samsung foldable will now include support for the S Pen and will be water-resistant. The phone will also include an under-display selfie camera for the main screen. The newly unveiled Samsung Z Flip 3 comes in at a modest price of just $1000. You can also have your pick between two new smartwatches. The Galaxy Watch 4 (priced at $249) and the Galaxy Watch 4 Classic (starting at $349). Lastly, fans of Samsung’s Earbuds will have a range of fun new colors to choose from. The Galaxy Bud 2 will be the lightest in their lineup of true wireless earbuds that will also include noise cancellation. 

Elon Musk Offers to Front the Bill for NASA’s New Spacesuits

Anasa’s proposed date of landing on the moon may have a slight schedule change. A new report from the NASA Office of Inspector General says the spacesuits will not be ready until April 2025. This announcement will be a stark contrast to NASA’s plans for a 2024 launch. Upon hearing the new SpaceX founder Elon Musk made the suggestion that his company can step in to help. As the report this week notes, the delays are due to issues with the development of the Artemis moon spacesuits. These delays are from funding shortfalls, COBID impacts, and technical challenges. Since NASA began embracing commercial partnerships in recent years, the offer from Musks seems feasible to some. It was in July of this year that NASA said it would embrace partnerships “to optimize spacesuit technology and inspire pioneering in the space market”.

Facebook Rebuilds Ads to Know Less About You

The days of Facebook tracking your every move may be coming to an end…eventually. The company currently has hundreds of engineers working to rebuild how Facebook ads work to place more value on user privacy. This announcement came this week, according to Graham Mudd who serves as a top ad executive for the company. This shift, while still in its infancy, illustrates how the ad-supported internet economy has begun to rapidly change. Facebook, along with Google is working to reexamine several privacy-enhancing techniques to deliver personalized ads without knowing the specifics of a user.  “We definitely see that [ads] personalization will evolve very meaningfully over the course of the next five years,” said Mudd, Facebook’s VP of product marketing for ads.

Sky Cool Systems is Using Technology and Nature to Cut Your Air Conditioning Bill in Half

With summer days becoming hotter, air conditioning has become a more long-term staple of the season. With usage on the rise, Sky Cool Systems has set out to cut the cost of AC bills. And they want to save the environment in the process! The company uses rooftop panels made with nanotechnology. The cooling system reflects 97% of the sunlight that hits it thus cooling the surface below, according to the company. SkyCool’s model involves embedding a network of pipes below those panels. Since the panels cool naturally, they don’t need external power to function, which in turn helps the entire system use less electricity.

Matte home items are various luxury décor options that have skyrocketed in popularity as a result of their sophisticated and timeless appearance, making these smooth-finished pieces at the forefront of interior design trends. From cutlery to chandeliers and accent walls, there are many options.  Certainly, with no shortage of spectacular home items available to outfit your household with, we have our list of favorites.

Jett 20-Piece Flatware Set

A Crate and Barrell exclusive, this sleek and modern silverware set serves as pure opulence. Crafted with 18/10 stainless steel and a black satin finish, need we say more?  Currently retailing for $279.80, certainly this plain yet extravagant flatware set will go perfectly with any meal.

Marin 16-Piece Black Dinnerware Set

Also available for acquisition solely from Crate and Barrel, this matte black dinnerware set with organic curves compliments the silverware set wonderfully and presently sells for $135.20.

Stagg EKG Electric Kettle

Ideal for any coffee-lover, this high-end kettle features a minimalist matte aesthetic, Bluetooth connectivity, and fluid temperature control and can be purchased for $149.00 from Fellow. Certainly a flawlessly crafted device, the Stagg provides luxury and convenience. 

SMEG 2-Slice Toaster

Available on William Sonoma for $199.95, this retro stainless-steel toaster with six definitive browning levels and four modes is a superb addition to your kitchen. Likewise, this SMEG’s impressive satin finish will make for the perfect addition to your kitchen. 

Matte White Fruit Bowl

This classically designed fruit bowl will look exemplary on your kitchen counter or dinner table. Above all, the matte white finish is applied by hand, and the bowl can be bought from Williams Sonoma for $24.95.

XiNBEi 6 Light Chandelier

Marvel at this vintage-looking bare bulb chandelier. The fixture comes equipped with a breathtaking black finish. The chandelier is currently available for order on Amazon for $166.99.

Matte Black Shower System

Moving into the bathroom, this trendy item will give your shower a contemporary makeover. The Matte Black Shower System produced by Remer includes an 8-inch rain shower head and hand shower, and it is priced at $815.00.

Matte Black Single Hole Bathroom Faucet

To match your shower’s new look, make sure to install Remer’s faucet as well. Presently on sale for $301.00, this single-hole high-quality brass faucet with a matte black finish is the perfect item to complete your bathroom’s matte design.

Matte Black Accent Walls

An immensely popular portion of the matte trend has been accent walls. Consider this luxury interior paint which can be bought from Home Depot for $96.98. However, if you are not comfortable painting yourself, likewise a professional interior painter would be the way to go.

Matte White Square Coffee Table

Consider this the perfect addition to your living room! This white coffee table stuns using a single piece of wood with a white gesso finish. The table is available for purchase exclusively from Williams Sonoma for $895.00.

Get your dose of weekly tech news! This week’s blog takes a trip into the Metaverse with Facebook and bids adieu to Sprints 4G LTE Network.

Microsoft and Facebook Seek to Build a Metaverse

While the term and concept of metaverse may seem science fiction, the major tech shift to expanding out their platform proves otherwise. In recent months Facebook pushed forward on creating a metaverse group within their AR/VR-focused reality Labs. Microsoft at this time has been looking for the “enterprise metaverse”. The shift in focus from both companies is not just related to gaming but to rethinking how we live and work. Both companies are hoping to create a future-forward social hub, where avatars can meet in an ecosystem for connected apps. In a statement to CNET reporter Scott Stein, Mark Zuckerberg shared that his goal would be to bring people together for work. Microsoft and software developer Spatial each share similar goals. When and how these companies hope to bring a mass swath of consumers online and into their metaverse has yet to be determined.

CA Legislators Seek to Incentivize Buying Used Electric Vehicles

The Affordable EVs for Working Families Act seeks to incentivize used car purchases. The new legislation being pushed comes from California’s own Sen. Dianne Feinstein and Rep Jimmy Gomez. If passed, the bill would provide up to $2,500 off the purchase of a used electric vehicle. Their hope is that the initiative will drive down CO2 emissions. “This bill would help make electric cars affordable to a larger group of people,” said Feinstein. “With an electric car in the driveway, working families will be able to save money on gas and maintenance costs” Gomez added. Qualifying used EVs would need to be at least two years old and cost less than $25,000. Sorry, Tesla Fam.

TMobile to Shut Down Sprints 4G LTE Network

It’s the end of a Sprint 4G LTE era. In the latest change since the two companies merged last April, T-Mobile has shared the next step in bringing the carriers together. Beginning on June 20 of 2022, Sprint’s 4G LTE network will shut down. The company stated that “retiring older network technologies” allow it “to free up resources and bridge the Digital Divide.” Part of this process, the statement continues, “involves moving Sprint’s LTE spectrum to the T-Mobile network.” The company has said that “most” Sprint LTE and 5G devices will work with its LTE or 5G network. The carrier added that it will contact those who could be impacted by the switch and that notifications began last year. 

The New iOS15 May Include Less Green Flares and Another Camera Upgrade

According to reports, the next iOS should feature another camera upgrade and less green flares. Yay! In Apple’s latest version of the iOS 15 beta, subtle improvements are showing to the phone’s photo processing. Those familiar with the green blobs that tend to appear when taking an image will know this persistent iPhone issue. Some iPhone users have already noticed the change on their devices while most others have not. As with most recent iOS updates, certain features have been limited to phones with the most recent A12 Bionic processor or newer (XS and XR onward). Users should expect this and more new features when the final iOS15 is unveiled. 

Pentagon Uses AI to Predict Events Days into the Future

In what literally sounds like Deju Vu, aka everyone’s favorite Denzel film, the Pentagon is using AI to predict the future. While this may sound like pure cinema, it is not quite as Sci-Fi film-related as it sounds. Gen. Glen D. VanHerck, commander of NORAD, and US Northern Command shared in a recent briefing the latest results of the GIDE. “We’re taking sensors from around the globe, not only military sensors but commercially available information, and utilizing that for domain awareness,” he explained. “We would take artificial intelligence and use machine learning to take a look and assess, for example, the average number of cars in a parking lot that may be there in a specific location to a competitor or a threat.” The system is meant to look for changes in an environment, that if suspicious would trigger an alert. The technology used for the system is not new but rather a combination of existing resources. The Pentagon has not yet released specific details on what GIDE involves.

Square to Buy Afterpay for $29 Billion

Square, the processing for which Twitter’s Jack Dorsey is CEO and co-founder, has plans to expand its reach. In an announcement this week the company announced plans to acquire Australian company Afterpay.  Offering a “buy now, pay later” service, AfterPay lets you pay for purchases in installments interest-free. The purchase will be made for $29 billion in stock.  This serves as just the latest major move by Square which also announced a Bitcoin business unit. “Square and Afterpay have a shared purpose,” said Jack Dorsey in a statement. He continues by adding, “We built our business to make the financial system more fair, accessible, and inclusive, and Afterpay has built a trusted brand aligned with those principles.”