Google’s AI can now lip read better than humans after watching thousands of hours of TV

Researchers from Google’s AI division DeepMind and the University of Oxford have used artificial intelligence to create the most accurate lip-reading software ever. Using thousands of hours of TV footage from the BBC, scientists trained a neural network to annotate video footage with 46.8 percent accuracy. That might not seem that impressive at first — especially compared to AI accuracy rates when transcribing audio — but tested on the same footage, a professional human lip-reader was only able to get the right word 12.4 percent of the time.

The research follows similar work published by a separate group at the University of Oxford earlier this month. Using related techniques, these scientist were able to create a lip-reading program called LipNet that achieved 93.4 percent accuracy in tests, compared to 52.3 percent human accuracy. However, LipNet was only tested on specially-recorded footage that used volunteers speaking formulaic sentences. By comparison, DeepMind’s software — known as “Watch, Listen, Attend, and Spell” — was tested on far more challenging footage; transcribing natural, unscripted conversations from BBC politics shows.

Microsoft starts shipping Surface Studio orders early, offers dedicated support line

Microsoft has started shipping some Surface Studio orders a little early. The software giant originally planned to ship units to customers in mid-December, but Microsoft has been emailing the first people to preorder the $3,000 device, letting them know the Studio will arrive this week. Microsoft is still accepting “preorders” for the Surface Studio, but new devices won’t ship until “early 2017.”Alongside the shipments, Thurrott.com reports that Microsoft has even setup a dedicated support line for Surface Studio owners. A phone line has been created, alongside a personal note from Panos Panay, head of Surface devices, asking customers to call a special number for questions, comments, or concerns. Microsoft is also shipping a little booklet in the Surface Studio packaging, thanking customers for spending $3,000 or more on the all-in-one PC.

You can check out The Verge’s review of the Surface Studio right here.Alongside the shipments, Thurrott.com reports that Microsoft has even setup a dedicated support line for Surface Studio owners. A phone line has been created, alongside a personal note from Panos Panay, head of Surface devices, asking customers to call a special number for questions, comments, or concerns. Microsoft is also shipping a little booklet in the Surface Studio packaging, thanking customers for spending $3,000 or more on the all-in-one PC.

Sphero’s Force Band wearable can control nearly anything now thanks to IFTTT

Sphero has been selling the Force Band wearable for awhile now, designed to let you control the adorable little BB-8 droid with "force gestures" — like a Jedi. But now the $80 (or slightly less) gadget is potentially a lot more useful. As Gizmodo notes, the company is setting it up to work with If This Then That, which means that you can use it to control much more than a cute robot toy. IFTTT, if you’re not familiar, lets you create little applets that use one thing to trigger another thing automatically. One good example I like: you can set your Instagram posts to auto-Tweet with the embedded image so they actually show up on Twitter. IFTTT can do stuff with smart gadgets, your Android phone, Facebook, and so much more.

And now, they can be triggered by the Force Band. Sphero is obviously leading with the most fun stuff: controlling your smart home gadgets. Making a real world gesture cause real world things to happen is obviously going to impress your family more than using it to fire off a tweet. The recipe page for the Force Band has some pre-made, Star Wars-themed suggestions, including "Play the Imperial March" and "post your Jedi wisdom to Twitter."

There are three gestures that work with the Force Band: push, pull, and stop — but an absolutely massive set of services you can connect those three simple gestures to. Will mapping broad arm gestures to turning on your smart lights actually be useful? Doubtful. Will it be cool? Yes.

Sadly, I don’t think there’s a way to remote start your car with IFTTT, otherwise you’d be able to turn the classic Volkswagen ad into a reality. Maybe next year.

Get a free ticket to Westworld with this sweet Chromecast deal

Google has sweetened the deal for a new Chromecast, offering 3 months of free HBO Now access for new subscribers. If you want HBO, the deal basically nets a more-than-free Chromecast: the streaming device is on sale for $25, and 3 months of HBO Now normally costs about $45. The free subscription also comes with Google’s higher-end, 4K Chromecast Ultra, which costs $69. It’s definitely the best deal Google is offering this year for Black Friday.

We’re not telling you what to do with that HBO subscription, but there are only two episodes of Westworld left, so now is a good time to take a trip to the park if you’ve been missing out.

Star Wars smartphones are coming to SoftBank in Japan

Japanese mobile carrier SoftBank is marking the incoming release of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story by launching a pair of phones that let you choose your Force allegiance. The Star Wars Mobile phones are made by Sharp and come in both Dark and Light side editions.

Here are the unexciting specs:

5.3-inch 1080p IGZO display
Snapdragon 820 processor
22.6-megapixel camera
3,000mAh battery
TV tuner
3GB of RAM
32GB of storage (plus microSD slot)
7.6mm thick, 155g

Apple offers gift cards up to $150 for its Black Friday deals

After skipping out on Black Friday last year, Apple is back with some seasonal deals. Or, well, gift cards. Rather than giving customers money off products, the iPhone-maker is instead bundling in gift cards worth up to $150 on select purchases.

Here’s what you can get:

$150 gift card when buying a MacBook (from $1,299), MacBook Pro 13-inch or 15-inch (from $1,299; no late-2016 models are included so that means no TouchBar), MacBook Air (from $999), iMac (from $1,099), or Mac Pro ($2,999)

Up to $100 gift card when buying an iPad Pro (from $599), iPad Air 2 (from $399), or iPad mini 4 (from $399)

Up to $50 gift card when buying an iPhone SE (from $399), iPhone 6s (from $549), or iPhone 6s Plus (from $649)

$25 gift card when buying an Apple TV (from $149) or select Apple Watch Series 1 models (from $269)

Similar deals are also available in markets including Canada (gift cards up to CA$200), Australia (gift cards up to AU$200), New Zealand (gift cards up to (NZ$215), and the United Kingdom (gift cards up to £120).

The deals are, frankly, a little disappointing, especially when Apple’s teaser for the sales suggests something quite substantial. (Or maybe that was just our imagination.) Getting $150 or $100 off a future Apple purchase isn’t to be sniffed at, but it’s a shame the company hasn’t bothered to include any of its latest products in the deals. For more savings, you should check out what other stores have to offer

GoPro is already recalling its long-awaited Karma drone

After selling 2,500 units so far, GoPro today announced plans to recall its Karma drone after just 16 days on the market.GoPro founder and CEO Nick Woodman said the recall is due to safety concerns caused by a malfunction causing power loss and unpredictable behavior by the drone. According to Woodman in statement:

Safety is our top priority.

A very small number of Karma owners have reported incidents of power failure during operation. We have moved quickly to recall all units of Karma and provide a full refund while we investigate the issue. We are working in close coordination with both the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and Federal Aviation Administration. We are very sorry to have inconvenienced our customers and we are taking every step to make the return and refund process as easy as possible.

Unfortunately, this came at a terrible time for GoPro. Last week, the company announced it missed quarterly revenue expectations by 23 percent. A 2,500 unit recall for its first non-camera product doesn’t bode well.