Oculus Rift VR Gaming PC

I'm constantly looking for technical projects my son and I can enjoy working on together. As a father that spends most of his days time immersed in #datacenter technologies, and having a son that spends the majority of his free time playing video games, I thought it only fitting that with our forces combined we embark on the VR PC building journey. I spent time researching the differences between the @HTCVive and @Facebooks Oculus Rift #VR platforms. The choice for me to go with Oculus Rift was simple once reading about the Rift Core 2.0 update. Below is a list of hardware components purchased for my VR platform. I'd ask you to wish me luck but who needs luck when your prepared? 

“Luck Is What Happens When Preparation Meets  Opportunity". @Seneca

@AMD #Ryzen 7 1700
@MSI #X370 Gaming Pro Carbon
@Nvidia #GTX 1080Ti
@OculusRift
@Geil 16gb DDR4
@Nvidia 750 watt Gold PS
@Microsoft Windows 10 Home 64bit
@Samsung 850 #VNand EVO 500gb
@Samsung 960 #NVMe EVO M.2 250gb
@NZXT H440 Mid Tower

Have a great weekend. I know I will!

Google inks non-exclusive $1.1B deal with HTC

#Google on Thursday announced that it has entered into  a $1.1 billion cooperation with Taiwanese smartphone manufacturer #HTC. Under the arrangement, Google gains a team of HTC employees, a number of which had already worked together on the Pixel smartphone. Moreover, Google receives non-exclusive licenses to some of HTC’s intellectual property. As a pioneer of the smartphone market, we are very proud of our history of innovation. Our unmatched smartphone value chain, including our IP portfolio, and world-class talent and system integration capabilities, have supported Google in bolstering the Android market – Cher Wang, Chairwoman and CEO of HTC The agreement formally cements a relationship that started nearly a decade ago with the first Android phone, the T-Mobile G1. What’s more, it helps Google and its endeavors in the hardware space; phones and virtual reality are two areas where Google really wants to make headway. Rumors of a potential partnership have circulated for some time, including a few last minute details surfacing today that HTC has halted sales of its stock. HTC at one point commanded a sizable slice of the Android and smartphone pie with around ten percent of the market. However, the market share has fallen over the last few years, all the way down to where it sits today at less than two percent. Google has done its part to keep HTC afloat over time, turning to them for some of the Nexus tablets and the Pixel. It’s hard to say where the company might be had Google not tapped the phone maker for help these last two years. Regardless of the money involved, Google inherits a company in desperate need of some help, if not a complete turnaround. It will be interesting to see what becomes of Google’s hardware plans going forward and whether they’ll rely solely on HTC’s smarts and IP for future phones.

http://www.androidguys.com/2017/09/20/google-inks-non-exclusive-1-1b-deal-with-htc/

Google planning to acquire HTC's mobile smartphone division: Report

#Google is reportedly close to acquiring #HTC 's mobile business as the Taiwan-based company continues to struggle with financial losses. According to China's Commercial Times, Google and HTC are in the final stages of negotiating a deal where Google will rescue the company behind the first Android smartphone. advertisements  HTC launched the very first Android smartphone in 2008 and is also the manufacturer for Google's first Pixel-branded smartphones. The report states that Google is either looking to acquire HTC's smartphone business or become a strategic partner. In the past year, HTC has differentiated its smartphone division and Vive virtual reality unit and has focused more on the latter. DigiTimes notes that the demand for HTC made smartphones have waned and there doesn't seem to be a turnaround in the near future. If Google acquires HTC's smartphone business then it won't be the first time for the search giant to rescue its OEM partner. The company famously rescued struggling Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion in 2012, only to offload it two years later for a mere $2.91 billion. However, Google said that its Motorola acquisition has been a major success in the form of access to a vast majority of patents. HTC, once known for its premium design and superior build quality, lost its prominent place to Samsung in the last few years. The company's latest flagship U11 was promising, but failed to stand against Samsung's Galaxy S8 with the nearly bezel-less design. advertisements  On the other hand, Google has ditched the Nexus brand to announce its own Pixel and Pixel XL premium Android smartphones last year. The smartphones were a critical success, but Google failed to offer enough supplies. With the acquisition of HTC, Google stands to gain a manufacturing partner for its Pixel lineup, while the former's engineering prowess will continue to be available on a flagship device.

http://www.digit.in/mobile-phones/google-considering-acquisition-of-htcs-mobile-business-report-36939.html

White House pledges $400 million to research 5G wireless technology

The Obama Administration on Friday announced a $400 million initiative led by the National Science Foundation that will conduct research in the area of 5G wireless technology which promises to be up to 100 times faster than today’s 4G LTE. The Advanced Wireless Research Initiative (AWRI), which builds on the Federal Communications Commission’s recent Spectrum Frontiers vote, will deploy four city-scale testing platforms over the next decade that will be used for advanced wireless research. Each platform will be comprised of a network of software-defined radio antennas blanketing their respective cities, essentially mimicking existing cellular networks. The White House says this will allow academic researchers, entrepreneurs and wireless companies to test, prove and refine their technologies and software algorithms in a real-world setting.

#AT&T, #HTC, #Intel, #Juniper Networks, #Nokia, #Qualcomm, #Samsung, #Sprint, #T-Mobile and #Verizon

http://www.techspot.com/news/65607-white-house-pledges-400-million-research-5g-wireless.html