Today August Home and Deliv, a leader in same day delivery services, announced a partnership for in-home delivery to offer consumers greater convenience by placing packages and groceries securely inside their homes, garages and multifamily buildings nationwide. Together, August’s open platform along with Deliv’s last mile fulfillment solutions, gives retailers new options for offering customers safe, secure and convenient, in-home delivery.

August Access is August’s in-home delivery software platform that works with its family of August Smart Locks as well as Yale residential and commercial locks. Deliv powers 4000+ retailers from leading omnichannel nationals, ecommerce marketplaces as well as small and medium sized B2B and B2C businesses in 35 markets and 1,400 cities across every major category from perishables, to apparel, to high end electronics and jewelry.

“In-home delivery provides an exciting new paradigm for shoppers, freeing up time while goods and groceries are safely and securely delivered inside the home. August and Deliv recently partnered on a pilot with Walmart to test new in-home delivery services that make people’s lives easier. With Deliv, we are making August Access available to any retailer to offer their customers the option of secure in-home delivery,” said Jason Johnson, CEO of August Home.

“Through this unique partnership, we are bringing a bit of magic to the shopping experience,” said Daphne Carmeli, CEO of Deliv. “Deliv provides the last mile fulfilment solution for a broad retailer network across the country while August Home supplies the technology to take the final step into the home for a totally seamless experience, start to finish.”

How It Works

The checkout process will remain unchanged for customers, as well as the retailers who use Deliv to power their same day delivery service today. Customers will simply choose same day delivery at checkout from Deliv powered retailers and select the time that works best for them. With this new partnership, August Access customers will be able to opt for secure in-home delivery after the transaction with the retailer or business is completed. If the customer authorizes an in-home delivery, August generates a one-time passcode. When the Deliv delivery specialist arrives, they ring the doorbell and a notification will be sent to the customer’s phone via the August app that the delivery is occurring. If no one answers the door, the Deliv delivery specialist will use the one-time passcode to unlock the door and drop off the package. Customers can even choose to watch the delivery take place in real-time through the August app or view a recording of it any time.

The new Nautiz X9 Android handheld is targeted for industrial and field applications where reliability is critical and ruggedness is key. Offering a complete and unique set of features, the fully rugged Nautiz X9 can be used as a mobile computer, data collector or field controller.

The fully rugged Nautiz X9 offers:

• A quad-core processor and easy-to-use Android 7 (Nougat) OS.
• GPS/GLONASS capabilities standard
• Optional high-quality, high-speed 2D imager.
• Dual cameras including 13-megapixel rear-facing with autofocus and flash, and 2-megapixel front-facing.
• 4G/LTE Android phone functionality.
• Google GMS for Google Maps navigation and Play Store app access.
• A sunlight-readable 5-inch capacitive display with multi-touch sensitivity.
• IP67 ruggedness rating for waterproof, dust-tight performance.

The Nautiz X9 is designed for use in the most challenging outdoor and industrial environments. This rugged PDA is MIL-STD 810G tested for drops, vibrations, humidity, extreme temperatures and varying altitudes. Handheld's newest device has a fast 1.3 GHz processor with 2 GB RAM and 16 GB Flash. And the 4800 mAh battery will run for a full shift, even with heavy use.

"Adding the Nautiz X9 to our family of products reflects our commitment to bringing truly rugged field devices to market," says Johan Hed, Handheld Group director of product management. "The Nautiz X9 also extends our wide Android offerings, which have been in increasingly high demand. GMS certification is an extra feature not always included in enterprise devices, but it has proved to be invaluable for our customers, giving them access to the full suite of Google applications. The reliability and toughness of the Nautiz X9 will bring great value to field users worldwide."

The Nautiz X9 is part of the Nautiz rugged handheld family. See it at our upcoming tradeshows, starting with InfraTech, Geospatial World Forum and Intersec.

IRVINE, Calif., Jan. 09, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- JVC—the longstanding technology innovator known for its vast line-up of premium products—is set to showcase its newest smart home entertainment products at CES 2018 in Las Vegas from January 9-12, 2018. JVC’s newest products including its Quantum Dot HDR TV and Portable Sound Bar with Smart Dock—works beautifully with the burgeoning Google Home eco-system, allowing users to utilize voice command to manage the Chromecast built-in Quantum Dot TVs and sound bars. With more than 70 percent of smart home automation being compatible with Google Home assistant, you can access and control everything using the Google Home app for Android and iOS via your phone or a device like the best-selling Google Home speakers.

“For years, JVC has been at the forefront of producing intelligent and innovative products,” said John Araki, Chief Technology Officer. “Today, JVC is poised to create excitement in the smart home entertainment category by offering cutting-edge quality – and making innovation more accessible. We are pleased to be attending CES 2018 and look forward to introducing our latest products.”

• Boasting a wider, more true-to-life color palette, JVC’s Quantum Dot TV provides premium technology. Beyond 4K UHD, the Quantum Dot TV with HDR offers stunning picture quality by enhancing the contrast and color representation of the existing pixels. With 4K UHD HDR Quantum Dot TV you’ll see that each R,G and B sub-pixel can generate 1,024 separate color shades resulting in a total of 1.07 billion possible distinct colors. That nets out to stunning life-like picture quality.
• A Portable Sound Bar with Smart Dock is a versatile audio solution that is both a sound bar and a portable speaker. JVC’s portable sound bar delivers powerful audio in a small footprint. As a sound bar it will compliment and take the TV audio to a next level. As a speaker you can easily stream your favorite playlist and podcast from any room in your house.
• A family of Chromecast built-in sound bars ranging from 16” to 37” will enhance your home entertainment experience with or without a TV.

TAIPEI, Taiwan, Jan. 10, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Kneron, a leading provider of edge Artificial Intelligence (AI) solutions, today launched its Real Facial Recognition solutions to unlock entry level and mid-range smartphones. As long as a smartphone has a front camera[1], through Kneron's facial recognition software with deep learning technology, it can not only accurately recognize people's facial features, but also determine whether the face is real or not. It can rule out the risk of using photos and videos to unlock a smartphone within 0.2 seconds, with less than 0.0001 error rate[2]. Additionally, one device can recognize several faces. Kneron's Real Facial Recognition solutions have been adopted by smartphone manufacturers and will be marketed worldwide through its partner GMobi.

"There are still many security flaws in traditional facial recognition technologies. For example, the smartphones can be unlocked by using photos and videos. In general, to eliminate the risks, other hardware components, such as infrared lenses and high-resolution lenses, must be embedded into the smartphones, and sometimes design changes are required," said Albert Liu, Kneron's CEO. "Kneron now provides innovative real facial recognition solutions to unlock entry level and mid-range smartphones. Only through the software update with no need to change hardware design or add other components, users can experience real-life facial recognition with high accuracy and high security."

"GMobi has professional experience in mobile Internet services for many years. We offer a wide range of advanced services to help customers to update their mobile devices and serve around 250 million end-users worldwide," said Paul Wu, GMobi's CEO. "Kneron's innovative Real Facial Recognition solutions allow AI technology be quickly embedded into smartphones and accelerate the popularity of face unlocking applications. We look forward to working with Kneron to promote the solutions to the global market and popularizing the face unlocking function to make it a feature that everyone can use."

Kneron Real Facial Recognition solutions integrate sophisticated facial recognition and deep learning technologies, which can recognize a real face within 0.2 seconds, with less than 0.0001 error rate. Additionally, one device can recognize several faces. Kneron Real Facial Recognition solutions include three technical versions: optical sensing analysis, biological behavior recognition, and background depth detection. Optical sensing analysis can determine whether a face is three-dimensional through analyzing the lighting variations on the face; biological behavior recognition integrates behavioral detection, such as eye blinking, to determine whether a face is real; the background depth detection solution can be used if there is an autofocus function in smartphone's front camera. It can analyze the scene depth of field to avoid unlocking by a two-dimensional image.

PLAYA VISTA, Calif. and LAS VEGAS, Jan. 8, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Linksys®, celebrating thirty years of networking and Wi-Fi innovation for the home and business this year, today announced at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas that it is expanding its Velop™, whole home mesh Wi-Fi line to include a Dual-Band offering and new software advancements that enhance performance with Intelligent Mesh™ technology, security features with advanced parental controls, network traffic monitoring, and web site blocking as well as ease of use with improvements in the Linksys app. Velop is now the most flexible whole home mesh Wi-Fi system on the market. It can be installed in different configurations to support any type of home, is compatible with any ISP modem or gateway, and both Dual-Band and Tri-Band nodes are 100% interoperable and interchangeable. Linksys will be showcasing its Velop product line at CES this week in the South Hall 3 – Booth #30750.

Linksys Velop Dual-Band Whole Home Wi-Fi Mesh System

Linksys is expanding its Velop product line to include a Dual-Band modular Wi-Fi system, the world's first mass-market Flexible Wi-Fi System, (available in 1-pack, 2-pack and 3-pack options) that can be installed in various mesh configurations providing fast and reliable Wi-Fi to the edge of a home network. Velop Dual-Band nodes are designed for performance as well as elegance; they stand about two inches shorter than the Velop Tri-Band solution and small enough to be placed anywhere with a clean and attractive look that appeals to everyone - which is unique to the mesh category of solutions for the home. Each Velop "node" is a powerful Dual-Band AC1300 device that serves as router, range extender, access point, and bridge which provides users the future proof technology they need as they bring new and more devices into the home.

Each node is configured during setup by the accompanying Linksys app (available for iOS and Android), which provides the industry's simplest and most intuitive setup leveraging Bluetooth to securely communicate between the mobile device and each node. After setup is complete, the Linksys app serves as a powerful Wi-Fi management tool with useful features, such as guest access, parental controls, device prioritization, and insights that help Velop users get maximum performance and utility from their network. Velop helps users get the most out of their broadband subscription by delivering 100% of their speed to the edge of their network.

"According Industry Reach Group, NPD - Mesh Wi-Fi systems grew 338% in 2017 and will continue to grow in 2018; so we wanted to make sure that consumers had price and performance options to choose from", said Justin Doucette, senior director of product management at Linksys. "Our new Velop Dual-Band provides the price for performance that customers are looking for plus all the intelligent software and security features that continue to be updated for real time access to the latest enhancements."

The Most Complete and Flexible Whole Home Mesh Wi-Fi Solution on the Market

Velop is a union of high performing hardware, intelligent software, simple to use App, and cloud service features. This combination provides users with a solution that will future proof their home network for years to come.

Key highlights include:

• Powerful Dual-Band – Each Velop node is a Dual-Band AC 2x2 802.11ac Wave 2 with MU-MIMO radio configuration with combined speed up to 1300 Mbps*.
• True Modular Mesh Design – Each node is built to connect with each other over Wi-Fi or wired Ethernet or combination of the two for best performance. They auto configure to connect in multiple different mesh topologies.
• Intelligent Mesh™ Technology – The Velop system adapts to a user's Wi-Fi needs. It self-heals and optimizes to consistently deliver fast, flawless Wi-Fi everywhere in home.
• Velop Dual-Band and Tri-Band are interoperable – Velop is the most flexible Wi-Fi system which users can simply select a Velop system based on size of their home, internet connection or smart home readiness. Velop users can use both the Tri-Band and Dual-Band versions on the same network. Adding a Dual-Band node to an existing Tri-Band mesh network is an affordable way to extend coverage. Introducing a Tri-Band node to a Dual-Band mesh network will unlock future-proofed smart home capabilities and improve performance.
• App-Led Setup – The new Linksys app automatically identifies the nodes to be setup using Bluetooth and creates a secure connection between the mobile device and each node. The app guides users through the installation process using visual animations where needed to clearly explain each step, including the transition from current networking hardware.
• Patented-Pending Spot Finder Technology – The placement of each node is critical to establish a reliable connection. During setup, Velop will recommend the best placement to reduce latency, maximize throughput and improve range and signal strength.
• Velop works with Amazon Alexa – Velop includes custom Amazon Alexa "skills" that can turn the guest network on/off and read back the credentials of both the main and guest networks
• Automatic Updates – Velop is connected to the Linksys cloud service and will automatically monitor for updates and apply new firmware that unlock new features, resolution to security vulnerabilities, and improved performance as they become available. Some Whole Home Wi-Fi systems require manual firmware updates making them vulnerable to security infringements. Users have the option to turn automatic updates off. Also, frequent updates to the Linksys app ensure that the Velop experience will continue to get better over time.
• Superior Warranty and Support – Velop comes with 3-years warranty and support

Intelligent Mesh and New Software Features Rolling Out To All Velop Users

Linksys is introducing Intelligent Mesh™, an evolution in Home Wi-Fi engineering, that combines Linksys software and hardware to deliver Wi-Fi via the fastest path to the internet for the best experience possible. Intelligent Mesh helps provide better speed at distances, improved client handling between nodes, and dynamic improvements to back-haul to always ensure the best connection to the Internet. Velop Intelligent Mesh is organized into these 4 pillars and works seamlessly and automatically across both Velop Dual-Band an Tri-Band nodes:

1. Self-Organize: The Velop system is a modular mesh system that support both Wi-Fi and wired back-haul, configures in AP/Bridge mode, works with any ISP modem or gateway and interoperates seamlessly across Dual-Band and Tri-Band nodes.
2. Self-Optimize: The Velop system continuously calculates the signal strength and speed between nodes to help deliver the best internet connection to your devices. For Example, Velop uses patent pending Spot Finder technology during setup to automatically configure the mesh network optimizing both Wi-Fi channels and bands to provide best performance to each client device
3. Self-Healing: The Velop system will reconfigure itself if a node goes offline so that the network continues to perform. Also, the Linksys app includes the Channel Finder feature to initiate a new channel scan to avoid interference or crowded wireless signals.
4. One Network: The Velop system uses one network name, one password, one admin password for a consistent and secure mesh network of multiple nodes. Velop's guest network will extend to all nodes and changing passwords to stay secure only requires a single update in the Linksys app or web interface.

Linksys is announcing new software features planned for automatic update in 2018:

Linksys is adding new software features in its Intelligent Mesh architecture to enhance the performance of Wi-Fi throughout the home as well as new parental control and security features thru in-app purchases that will add to the overall value of the system.

• Client Steering by node: (Self-Optimize). Ensures device is connected to the closest node for optimal performance.
• Backhaul Reconnect and Optimization (Self-Optimize, Self-Configure, Self-Healing). Nodes will reestablish best connection to the Internet in the event one of the nodes fails or joins the network.
• Parental control improvements including website category content filtering with allow and block overrides
• Automatic network traffic security monitoring for malware, phishing, and blocking of malicious web sites

Pricing and Availability:

The Linksys Velop Dual-Band Whole Home Mesh Wi-Fi System (available in 1-pack, 2-pack and 3-pack) is planned to be available this spring. Prices will be announced when product is available at major retail and online stores.

The new software features will be released as they become available via firmware updates and Linksys app updates for all Velop models starting this spring.

SAN MATEO, Calif., Jan. 08, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Tile, the world’s leading smart location company, today announced expansions to the Tile Platform with several new partnerships, delivering on its vision to build a world where everyone can find everything that matters. Today there are multiple innovative ways in which brands can partner with the Tile Platform to give their customers the protection and peace of mind that Tile offers.

“With the Tile Platform, we’re extending the finding power of Tile and its global community to leading brands spanning audio, travel, transportation and even digital health management,” said Mike Farley, CEO and Co-Founder of Tile. “Whether it’s a pair of wireless headphones, a suitcase filled with precious memories, or a life-saving connected inhaler, we want to make sure consumers can find their items no matter where they are, whether under the couch or halfway around the world.”

Through these innovative new partnerships, Tile continues to enable other companies to embed Tile’s easy-to-use solution directly within their products.

• The company today announced it is working with leading consumer electronics company, Bose. Beginning late spring 2018, Bose SoundSportⓇ Wireless and QuietControl™ 30 headphones will come with Tile technology embedded inside, allowing users to ring their headphones when misplaced or tap into the Tile community when truly lost.
• Tile also welcomes Samsonite to the Platform. With a global pilot scheduled for spring 2018, Tile and Samsonite are working together to define and create next-generation luggage.
• Propeller Health is now working with Tile to integrate Tile technology into its sensors. Through Propeller's connected inhalers, digital interfaces and personalized insights, it will now be easier than ever to ensure asthma and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease patients are able to find important inhalers and information.

In addition to growing the global Tile community, Tile is expanding its technology ecosystem through access point partnerships. By creating additional access points to receive location information, Tile increases the likelihood of finding lost items while reducing the time required to do so.

• Tile and global media and technology leader, Comcast, are teaming up to minimize loss and explore ways to improve the smart home experience.
• Ruckus Networks, a leader in secure access networks, has partnered with Tile to detect Tile-enabled items from indoor and outdoor access points.
• San Jose International Airport, the fastest growing airport in the United States, has also joined the Tile Platform. Tile is blanketing the San Jose International Airport with Tile access points to help find lost items throughout the airport in near real-time.

“As the fastest growing airport in the United States, millions of people come through our terminals each year, creating endless opportunities for lost belongings,” said Rebecca L. Baer, Deputy Director of Innovation and Business Development of Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport. “We partnered with Tile to help travelers find their lost items in near real-time, which means a lot when you’re rushing to catch a flight. In just a few weeks since installation, we’ve already seen Tile same-day found rates increase to nearly 95%. We look forward to our continued partnership with Tile to create the best possible travel experience.”

“It’s exciting to see leading brands and venues join the millions of Tile users to grow the Tile community,” said Farley. “With these key partnerships, along with many others to come, we are truly blanketing the world with smart location and building a world where everyone can find everything that matters.”

Additional Platform partners include Herschel Supply, Boosted Boards, Bianca and Starling by VersaMe. Visit TilePlatform.com to learn more.

LAS VEGAS and SAN JOSE, Calif., Jan. 8, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- CES 2018 -- uSens, Inc., a pioneer in HCI and computer vision tracking solutions for augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR), today announced the availability of uSensAR, a smartphone augmented reality (AR) engine. uSensAR is a single camera, smartphone AR engine that is optimized for low-end cameras, sensors and IMUs. It utilizes computer vision, machine learning, SLAM and smartphone hardware to bring high-performance AR experiences to all Android smartphone users, not just those with expensive, top-tier hardware.

As part of this announcement, uSens has partnered with Spreadtrum Communications (Spreadtrum), a leading SOC company. uSensAR has enabled AR camera effects for the native camera app for the Spreadtrum SC9853 chipset platform, which is expected to sell hundreds of millions of smartphones in 2018, bringing AR experiences to those users for the first time.

"ARcore currently only serves about 30 million Android phones, which is just five percent of the entire Android smartphone ecosystem," said Dr. Yue Fei, uSens CTO and co-founder. "For the AR industry to thrive, it is essential that as many people as possible have access to AR-ready devices, which in turn will entice more AR content to be developed. With the release of uSensAR, we are allowing developers, smartphone manufacturers, and content creators to build those AR experiences not just for iPhone, Pixel and Samsung S8 users – which ARkit and ARcore have limited their offering to initially – but for the entire Android ecosystem."

Unlike other AR engines and frameworks, uSensAR is optimized for mid- and low-tier phones, with even better performance on high-end smartphone models. It is extremely resilient to poor camera, IMU and sensor data, while remaining flexible to integrate with all Android smartphones. Powered by SLAM technology, a series of computations and algorithms that constructs a virtual map of an environment, this markerless approach tracks a user's location by continuously scanning and 'learning' about their environment via computer vision. A user's position can then be tracked in unknown and changing environments, which enables 'World Scale' tracking, for a truly mobile experience.

Spreadtrum is a leading fabless semiconductor company in China with advanced technology in 3G and 4G wireless communication standards. With 14nm 8-core 64-bit Intel Airmont processor architecture, Spreadtrum SC9853 reaches 1.8 GHz in dominant frequency, and possesses efficient mobile computing performance and ultra-low power dissipation management.

"2018 is the year where we really expect to see augmented reality show its true capabilities, and we are seeing increased demand for AR-ready phones among our customer base accordingly," said Adam Zeng, Global Executive Vice President of Tsinghua Unigroup and CEO of Spreadtrum. "Spreadtrum has been committed to providing differentiated and diversified product portfolios for consumers all over the globe. We are excited to publish this mobile AR solution together with uSens, which is another excellent example of our premium solution integrating leading technologies and optimal benefits."

uSensAR features include:

• Mobile, inside-out motion tracking
• Visual Inertial Odometry (VIO) which utilizes IMU and camera sensors for motion tracking
• Low CPU and battery consumption
• Markerless tracking
• Advanced plane detection technology
• Environmental understanding via SLAM technology
• Loop closure and relocalization
• Millimeter-level position accuracy
• 100% developed in-house, specifically for mobile
• Support for Unity, C++ and Java