Amazon Future Engineers program provides computer science courses & more.   

A program called Amazon Future Engineer is aiming to make a big difference in the education of thousands of young people.  What Amazon is doing is investing fifty million dollars…funding introductory and advanced placement computer science courses at more than one thousand high schools across the country…many of them in underprivileged areas.  Beyond that the program will support computer science access for many students in younger grades.  Amazon’s Allison Flicker…

“We’re starting with kids all the way in kindergarten and  are actually sticking with kids as they go into college and enter into getting different internships throughout their college careers.”

Of course, Amazon hopes that one day, some of those future engineers will become employees.  There is more information, including for schools and teachers, at www.amazonfutureengineer.com.

 Apple wants to be your top choice for streaming TV.      

How do you stream TV and movies.  However it is today…Apple is aiming to change that…or at least add to it with a new app that will be available on TVs…Roku and Amazon’s Fire TV.  Apple TV will let you buy and rent shows…subscribe to premium channels….and this fall the offerings will include Apple TV Plus….with original content being developed by some of the biggest names in show business from Steven Spielberg to Oprah Winfrey…

“There has never been a moment quite like this one.”

Of the talent Apple has lined up,  CEO Tim Cook says…

“ They’ve impacted our culture, society and we’re so excited and so humbled to be working with them.”

For consumers…the battle to create quality programming…is a good thing…if you can afford the subscription fees.

Techstination Week March 29.   Techstination Week March 29.   Techstination Week is a compilation of this week's Techstination Reports with tech journalist and host Fred Fishkin.  

Google shaking up video game world with Stadia.   

Google is shaking up the world of video games….unveiling Stadia…a cloud gaming platform that will turn just about any device running the Chrome browser…into a game machine.  At this month’s Game Developer Conference, Google CEO Sundar Pichai said…

“If you think about games, there are a lot of barriers for users to play high end games.  Beautiful graphics really need high end consoles or PCs.  And games don’t have instant access.  Think about the way the Web works, you can easily share a link and it works seamlessly.  We want games to feel that way too.  Instantly enjoyable with access for everyone.

Google’s tag line for Stadia is No Boxes, No Downloads, No Limits.  It is due to arrive this year..pricing hasn’t been announced.

 Wearables market growing, evolving: IDC    

We are buying more and more smart wearable devices.  IDC is out with a forecast that says the worldwide market for wearable devices…including wireless headphones with smart assistants…will grow more than fifteen percent this year.  Watches….like the Apple Watch…are leading the way…and much of the focus there is on health care.   IDC Research Director Ramon Llamas…

“We’re not at the point where smart watches are diagnosing your physical condition.  I think we’re several cycles away from that.  But that certainly says something.  And Apple also is not the only one.  Fitbit has its own collection of smart watches.”

And others like Samsung as well.  IDC says the wearables phenomenon is just getting started. Check out the IDC.com Web site for more.

 BioLite's HeadLamp 330 shines: Marketing Dir. Erica Rosen in Techstination interview.

 Pioneer jumping into telematics with rDrive & adding wireless NEX receivers.   Techstination interview with Marketing VP Ted Cardenas.

 An Outdoor Sensor from Philips Hue

 The Philips Hue brand has been a pioneer in connected lighting for the smart home and one of the newest additions to the line up is the Outdoor Sensor.  It is a motion sensor that can be used indoors or out to trigger Hue lights.  I’ve found the addition to be both reliable and very useful.  Product Marketing Director Mike Deschamps…

“Really great product, fully outdoor rated,  can be easily installed.  Battery powered, but will still last for up to two years.  And now you can really have more of that peace of mind and security from your outdoor space.”

Utilizing some of the recent additions for outdoor lighting from Philips Hue….or to trigger indoor lights to come on as you approach the door.  The price…about fifty dollars.  There’s more at MeetHue.com.

 More new iPads from Apple.   Apple says the Mini just got mightier.  A new iPad Mini is on the way along with a new iPad Air.  The designs are a bit of a throw back….with the once familiar white bezels….and even a return to the Lightning port.  But the new iPads will be able to use Apple’s Pencil stylus….a 99 dollar add on.  The displays are better and there are faster processors…along with speedier LTE connections available as an option.  The new iPad Air starts at about 500 dollars for a 64 gigabyte model while a 256 gigabyte version comes in at 649 dollars.  The new iPad Minis are 100 dollars less.  The ability for mobile connections adds about 130 dollars.  For iPad fans….count me as one of those….these are more affordable options that the latest iPad Pro designs.