Why haunted houses creep us out so much

<img alt="Haunted-house" height="359" src="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzMxLzkyL2hhdW50ZWRob3VzLjYzOTE2LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTk1MHg1MzQjCmUJanBn/b76c4e2a/207/haunted-house.jpg" width="640" /><br /> <br /> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> The Haunted House is a time-honored horror setting. All of us have shivered our way through spooky flicks such as <em>The Haunting</em>, <em>The Amityville Horror</em>, <em>The Sentinel</em> and <em>Poltergeist</em>.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> It’s not only at the movies that we pay good money to frighten ourselves to death: commercial haunted houses are an integral part of 21st-century Halloween theater, with an estimated 5,000 such attractions <a href="http://www.hauntedhouseassociation.org/haunted_attraction_information.cfm" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">operating in the United States each year</a>.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> The portrayal of cinematic haunted houses has remained remarkably consistent across time, and the architects of our annual macabre Halloween rituals incorporate all of the same bells and whistles (okay — creaks and groans) that we’ve come to expect.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> From a psychological point of view, the standard features of haunted houses trigger feelings of dread because they push buttons in our brains that evolved long before houses even existed. These alarm buttons warn us of potential danger and motivate us to proceed with caution.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Haunted houses give us the creeps not because they pose a clear threat to us, but rather because it is <em>unclear</em> whether or not they represent a threat.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="this-ambivalence-leaves-you" style="color: #00aeef;"></a></div> <blockquote class="microcontent-wrapper pullquote" style="border-left-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-style: none none none solid; border-width: 0px !important; clear: left; color: #777777; float: left; height: auto; margin: 15px 15px 35px -125px; max-width: 45%; padding: 0px 0px 0px 40px; position: relative; width: 400px;"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="This ambivalence leaves you frozen in place, wallowing in unease." data-fragment="this-ambivalence-leaves-you" data-url="http://mashable.com/2015/10/31/haunted-houses-creep-out/" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease; background: rgb(246, 245, 241); height: 0px; left: -47px; opacity: 0; padding: 5px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease; width: 30px;"> <a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-facebook facebook" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/31/haunted-houses-creep-out/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #3b579d; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><br /></div> </blockquote> <span class="microcontent" data-description="This ambivalence leaves you frozen in place, wallowing in unease." data-fragment="this-ambivalence-leaves-you" data-micro="1" data-url="http://mashable.com/2015/10/31/haunted-houses-creep-out/">This ambivalence leaves you frozen in place, wallowing in unease.</span><br /> <br /> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> For example, it would be considered bizarre and embarrassing to run screaming out of a house that makes you feel uneasy if there is actually nothing to fear. On the other hand, it could be perilous to ignore your intuition and remain in a place that is dangerous.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> These are the <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/out-the-ooze/201505/how-we-decide-whos-creepy" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">psychological mechanisms</a> behind feeling “creeped out.” They may be useful if they help you maintain vigilance when threat is uncertain. They also help you manage the balance between self-<em>preservation</em> and self-<em>presentation</em> (ie, presenting yourself in a socially desirable way).</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> While human psychology can explain what makes a haunted house so scary, it also provides the perfect guide to making one ourselves.</div> <h3 style="background-color: white; clear: left; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.27; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> Things that trigger our ‘agent detection’ mechanisms</h3> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Evolutionary psychologists have proposed the existence of <em>agent detection mechanisms</em> — or processes that have evolved to protect us from harm at the hands of predators and enemies.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> If you’re walking through the woods alone at night and hear the sound of something rustling in the bushes, you’ll respond with a heightened level of arousal and attention. You’ll behave as if there is a willful “agent” present who is about to do you harm.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> If it turns out to be a gust of wind or a stray cat, you lose little by overreacting. But if you fail to activate the alarm response and a <em>true</em> threat is present — well, the cost of your miscalculation could be high.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Thus, we evolved to err on the side of detecting threats in ambiguous situations. Things that activate hypervigilance for malevolent supernatural (or natural) agents abound in large, drafty old houses: rattling or creaking sounds in upstairs rooms; the sighing and moaning of wind passing through cracks; ragged curtains fluttering in the breeze; echoes; and cold spots.</div> <h3 style="background-color: white; clear: left; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.27; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> Feeling trapped</h3> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <a href="http://faculty.knox.edu/fmcandre/enviropsychbook.html" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Research has consistently shown</a> that we need more personal space while seated than while standing, more space when we are in the corner of a room rather than in the center of it and more space in rooms with low ceilings.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> We feel uncomfortable when our personal space is violated anywhere, but especially so in situations where we feel as if escape will become difficult.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Such feelings of discomfort are symptomatic of the fact that we are constantly — even if unconsciously — scanning our surroundings and assessing our ability to flee if it should become necessary.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Consequently, a haunted house is our worst nightmare.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> The prototypical haunted house is in a remote, isolated location, far removed from the rest of society (think of the off-season resort hotel in <em>The Shining</em>, for example). If bad things <em>do</em> happen, help would be a long time coming, even if communication with the outside world were possible. (Conveniently, in old horror movies the telephones <em>always</em> stop working.)</div> <figure class="image" style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin: 0px 0px 50px; position: relative;"><div style="padding: 0px;"> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!7e6e" style="color: #00aeef;"></a></div> <div class="microcontent-wrapper" style="clear: left; margin-left: 0px; position: relative;"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!7e6e" data-image="http://rack.1.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzMwLzA1L3RoZXNoaW5pbmcuY2Y1ZTguanBnCnAJdGh1bWIJMTIwMHg5NjAwPg/62fe8786/ee8/the-shining.jpg" data-url="http://mashable.com/2015/10/31/haunted-houses-creep-out/" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease; background: rgb(246, 245, 241); height: 0px; left: -47px; opacity: 0; padding: 5px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease; width: 30px;"> <a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-facebook facebook" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/31/haunted-houses-creep-out/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #3b579d; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-twitter twitter" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/31/haunted-houses-creep-out/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #2daae1; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-google_plus google_plus" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/31/haunted-houses-creep-out/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #f02f16; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-pinterest pinterest" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/31/haunted-houses-creep-out/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #bf1e25; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a></div> <img alt="the shining" class="" data-caption="Exterior shots of remote Timberline Lodge in Oregon were used for the haunted Overlook Hotel in The Shining." data-credit-label="" data-credit-link="" data-credit-name="National Archives/Wikimedia Commons" data-credit-provider="Custom type" data-fragment="m!7e6e" data-image="http://rack.1.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzMwLzA1L3RoZXNoaW5pbmcuY2Y1ZTguanBnCnAJdGh1bWIJMTIwMHg5NjAwPg/62fe8786/ee8/the-shining.jpg" data-micro="1" data-url="http://mashable.com/2015/10/31/haunted-houses-creep-out/" data-width="1920" src="http://rack.1.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzMwLzA1L3RoZXNoaW5pbmcuY2Y1ZTguanBnCnAJdGh1bWIJMTIwMHg5NjAwPg/62fe8786/ee8/the-shining.jpg" style="border: 0px; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" title="the shining" /></div> <br /> <figcaption class="image-caption" style="-webkit-transition: max-height 0.2s; background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.701961); bottom: -1px; color: #dddddd; font-family: ProximaNovaRegular, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 1.2rem; left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; max-height: 100%; overflow: hidden; padding: 0.5em 1em; position: absolute; right: 0px; transition: max-height 0.2s;"><div style="padding: 0px;"> Exterior shots of remote Timberline Lodge in Oregon were used for the haunted Overlook Hotel in The Shining.</div> </figcaption><div class="image-credit" style="-webkit-transition: margin 0.2s; color: #777777; float: right; font-size: 0.9rem; font-style: italic; margin-left: auto; margin-right: 18.75px; margin-top: 12px; max-width: 625px; text-transform: uppercase; transition: margin 0.2s; width: auto;"> <div style="padding: 0px;"> IMAGE: NATIONAL ARCHIVES/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS</div> </div> </figure><div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Also, the darkness and confusing layout of the house may cause us to get lost; at the very least, it would slow us down. Escape could further be impeded by hedges, iron fences or crumbling stairways, all of which are featured prominently in Hollywood haunted houses.</div> <h3 style="background-color: white; clear: left; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.27; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> A womb with a view</h3> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jay_Appleton" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">British geographer Jay Appleton</a> was the first to describe two crucial features that determine whether a place is attractive or frightening to humans: the more “prospect” and “refuge” a place offers us, the more attractive it is.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <em>Refuge</em> means having a secure, protected place to hide where one can be sheltered from danger, while <em>prospect</em> refers to one’s clear, unobstructed view of the landscape. Attractive places offer us a lot of prospect and a lot of refuge, or what <a href="http://ced.berkeley.edu/ced/faculty-staff/randolph-hester" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">landscape architect Randolph Hester</a> refers to as a “Womb with a View.”</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> In the words of Appleton, these are, evolutionarily speaking, places where “you can see without being seen, and eat without being eaten.”</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Unfortunately, most haunted houses make for a bad combination of very low prospect for us, and very high refuge for the creepy-crawly things that are lying in wait to get us. <a href="http://eab.sagepub.com/content/24/1/35.abstract" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Research has confirmed</a> that people experience such environments as unsafe and dangerous.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Such places also lack what environmental psychologists refer to as<em>legibility</em>. Legibility reflects the ease with which a place can be recognized, organized into a pattern and recalled — in other words, a place that we can wander around in without getting lost.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Thus, the typical haunted house is large, dark, surrounded by overgrown vegetation, and full of surprising architectural features such as secret rooms and closets under staircases. Attics and basements are also must-have items, and, of course, spider webs, bats, rats and insects make nice accessories.</div> <h3 style="background-color: white; clear: left; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.27; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> The older the better</h3> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Most haunted houses have some sort of “legend” associated with them. It usually involves a story about a grisly death or accident. There may even be a history of suicide and murder.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> The older a place is, the more likely we are to perceive it as haunted because there’s been much more time for tragic things to have taken place.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Stimuli such as moldy odors, antiquated Victorian or Gothic architecture, wood interiors and old portraits on the wall reinforce an ambiance of great age. Assuming that the house is no longer occupied, signs of life suddenly interrupted and frozen in time only amplify the fear factor.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> For example, remnants of a half-eaten meal on a kitchen table or clothing laid out on a bed waiting for a homeowner who has apparently vanished without warning create a frightening ambiguity about what may have taken place in the house. (There are bonus points awarded if the house is conveniently located next to or on top of an old cemetery or burial ground!)</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Ultimately, whether or not a house is perceived as haunted obviously depends upon something other than the physical features of the house. Just as important are <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/out-the-ooze/201507/why-some-people-see-ghosts-and-other-apparitions" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">the inherent beliefs of the person exploring the house</a>.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Individuals who believe in paranormal phenomena and have expectations that creepy things might actually be present in such a place are more likely to engage in the sort of top-down, cognitive processing that induces fear.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> For these people, otherwise innocuous but uncertain surroundings can become a chilling experience.</div>

Why haunted houses creep us out so much

The Haunted House is a time-honored horror setting. All of us have shivered our way through spooky flicks such as  The Haunting ,  The Am...

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No survivors of Russian plane crash in Sinai, Egypt says

<img alt="42-78723581" height="359" src="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzMxL2FmLzQyNzg3MjM1ODEuNDYyZDAuanBnCnAJdGh1bWIJOTUweDUzNCMKZQlqcGc/a2f5b2b8/f59/42-78723581.jpg" width="640" /><br /> <br /> <section class="article-content" style="-webkit-transition: margin 0.2s; background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-left: auto; margin-right: 28.46875px; margin-top: 1em; max-width: 625px; transition: margin 0.2s; width: auto;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> There are no survivors from a Russian plane with 224 on board that crashed in a mountainous area of Egypt's Sinai, Egyptian authorities said Saturday, as search and recovery teams investigated the wreckage.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Reuters reported that the "black box" data recorder has been found.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Air traffic controllers lost contact with the Airbus A-321, operated by Russian airline Kogalymavia, also known as Metrojet, 23 minutes after it took off from the popular Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh just before 6 a.m. local time. It was headed to St. Petersburg.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Of the 217 passengers, there were 214 Russians and three Ukrainians, including 138 women, 62 men and 17 children, Egypt's Foreign Ministry <a href="https://www.facebook.com/MFAEgyptEnglish/?fref=nf" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">said</a>. There were seven crew members on board.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> The passengers were likely all tourists. Around 3 million Russian tourists travel to Egypt every year, and in 2014 they made up nearly a third of all tourists to Egypt, the Associated Press said.</div> <br /><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Egypt found the wreckage of the plane in the Hassana area, south of Arish, Sinai, the BBC <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-34687309" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">said</a>.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> The cause of the crash hasn't been confirmed. Ayman Al-Mokadem, a pilot who is heading a committee to monitor the crash's aftermath, said the crash was due to a "technical failure,"<a href="http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/162254.aspx" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">according</a> to Egyptian state news agency Al-Ahram.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> A BBC correspondent in Egypt <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-34687309" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">said</a> there would likely be speculation that militants were involved in the incident. They quoted a source as saying the plane was flying at an altitude that it couldn't be struck by something from the ground. The plane was flying at 31,000 feet when contact was lost. Insurgents who have pledged allegiance to Islamic State are <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-25882504" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">active</a> on the Sinai Peninsula.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the formation of a state commission to investigate the crash and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/MchsRussia/photos/a.395482867197814.94964.359379200808181/955550737857688/?type=3" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">set up</a> a hotline for relatives of the passengers. Putin also declared Nov. 1 a day of mourning for the victims.</div> <br /><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> There were conflicting reports about the plane earlier in the day. After contact was lost with the plane, Russia had <a href="http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2015/10/31/Egypt-air-traffic-control-loses-contact-with-plane-.html" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">said</a> it had passed safely through Turkish airspace after losing contact with Egypt.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Metrojet is a small Russian airline that mostly operates charter flights for tourism. <a href="http://www.metrojet.ru/our_history" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">According</a> to a translation of its website, the airline Kolavia was rebranded as Metrojet in May 2012. Its fleet consists of several Airbus A320s and A321s. There has been no comment from the airline.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Russian aviation has suffered as the economy enters recession. Foreign carriers have been canceling unprofitable routes, diminishing Russia's connections by air to the rest of the world. Russia's second-largest airline, Transaero, is being shut down because the Ministry of Transport is concerned that its dire financial situation will become a threat to passenger safety.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <em>The Associated Press contributed some reporting.</em></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> —</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <em><strong>UPDATES</strong></em></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> 9:20 a.m. GMT: Crash location added.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> 9:30 a.m. GMT: Russia ministry info added.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> 9:42 a.m GMT: Info from BBC correspondent added.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> 10:00 a.m. GMT: Airline info added.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> 10:55 a.m. GMT: Added info on possible technical failure.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> 11:20 a.m. GMT: Russia statement, black box recovery added.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> 12:20 p.m. GMT: Statement on survivors added.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> 1:40 p.m. GMT: Background on airlines added.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> 2:20 p.m.: Passenger numbers added.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <em>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</em></div> <div> <em><br /></em></div> </section>

No survivors of Russian plane crash in Sinai, Egypt says

There are no survivors from a Russian plane with 224 on board that crashed in a mountainous area of Egypt's Sinai, Egyptian authoriti...

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Sonos Play:5 has booming sounds and intriguing smarts

<img alt="Sonos_thumb-9" height="359" src="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzMwL2ExL1Nvbm9zX1RodW1iLjUyZGI4LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTk1MHg1MzQjCmUJanBn/add9fd39/95f/Sonos_Thumb-9.jpg" width="640" /><br /> <br /> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Sonos is well known for its Wi-Fi connected, multi-room sound systems and virtually every new speaker it introduces is a variation on its theme of room-filling, connected audio. The redesigned Play:5 fits that mold, but arrives with some secret sauce, the new Trueplay home audio tuning system. The combination is interesting, though not yet too impressive.</div> <figure class="image" style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin: 0px 0px 50px; position: relative;"><div style="padding: 0px;"> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!54cc" style="color: #00aeef;"></a></div> <div class="microcontent-wrapper" style="clear: left; margin-left: 0px; position: relative;"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!54cc" data-image="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzI5L2YyL1Nvbm9zMi5mY2UzOS5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/259a8ec5/594/Sonos-2.jpg" data-url="" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease; background: rgb(246, 245, 241); height: 0px; left: -47px; opacity: 0; padding: 5px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease; width: 30px;"> <a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-facebook facebook" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/sonos-play5-review/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #3b579d; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-twitter twitter" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/sonos-play5-review/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #2daae1; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-google_plus google_plus" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/sonos-play5-review/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #f02f16; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-pinterest pinterest" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/sonos-play5-review/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #bf1e25; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a></div> <img alt="Sonos Play5" class="" data-caption="Sonos Play:5 offers the signature design, which means clean lines and, unlike other Play speakers, not a single button." data-credit-link="" data-credit-name="Mashable, Lili Sams" data-credit-provider="" data-fragment="m!54cc" data-image="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzI5L2YyL1Nvbm9zMi5mY2UzOS5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/259a8ec5/594/Sonos-2.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1920" src="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzI5L2YyL1Nvbm9zMi5mY2UzOS5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/259a8ec5/594/Sonos-2.jpg" style="border: 0px; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" title="Sonos Play5" /></div> <br /> <figcaption class="image-caption" style="-webkit-transition: max-height 0.2s; background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.701961); bottom: -1px; color: #dddddd; font-family: ProximaNovaRegular, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 1.2rem; left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; max-height: 100%; overflow: hidden; padding: 0.5em 1em; position: absolute; right: 0px; transition: max-height 0.2s;"><div style="padding: 0px;"> Sonos Play:5 offers the signature design, which means clean lines and, unlike other Play speakers, not a single button.</div> </figcaption><div class="image-credit" style="-webkit-transition: margin 0.2s; color: #777777; float: right; font-size: 0.9rem; font-style: italic; margin-left: auto; margin-right: 18.75px; margin-top: 12px; max-width: 625px; text-transform: uppercase; transition: margin 0.2s; width: auto;"> <div style="padding: 0px;"> IMAGE: MASHABLE, LILI SAMS</div> </div> </figure><div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> At $499, Play:5 is the most expensive and impressive of the Sonos Play line, which includes Play:1 (my personal favorite) and Play:3. It has double the number of drivers found in the Play:3, as well as three woofers and three tweeters, and can produce intense, clear and thumping office-filling sound. Unlike most of Sonos’ other speakers that you can easily lift with one hand, the Play:5 is a 14 pound, 14-inch-by-8-inch-by-6-inch deep device that will easily fill a bookshelf or demand attention on a hutch.</div> <h2 style="background-color: white; clear: left; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 24px; line-height: 1.27; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> Set-up</h2> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> One of the reasons I love Sonos devices is because they are so easy to set up and Play:5 is no exception. The toughest part might be removing it from the many layers of protective packaging. It arrived in my office in a large black box, which contained the commercial Play:5 packaging. To open it, I had to literally unlock the box — there are two sliding orange plastic locks, one on each side of the box. Inside, the Play:5 was nestled tightly in rigid black foam, its body inside a loose-fitting, clear plastic bag. I took off the bag and found that the speaker was shrink-wrapped. After removing that, there was yet one more clear layer of plastic wrapped around the outside edge of the speaker.</div> <figure class="image" style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin: 0px 0px 50px; position: relative;"><div style="padding: 0px;"> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!d49c" style="color: #00aeef;"></a></div> <div class="microcontent-wrapper" style="clear: left; margin-left: 0px; position: relative;"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!d49c" data-image="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzMwLzA4L1Nvbm9zNi4xNGU2MS5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/262f5443/d2b/Sonos-6.jpg" data-url="" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease; background: rgb(246, 245, 241); height: 0px; left: -47px; opacity: 0; padding: 5px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease; width: 30px;"> <a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-facebook facebook" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/sonos-play5-review/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #3b579d; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-twitter twitter" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/sonos-play5-review/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #2daae1; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-google_plus google_plus" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/sonos-play5-review/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #f02f16; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-pinterest pinterest" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/sonos-play5-review/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #bf1e25; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a></div> <img alt="Sonos Play 5" class="" data-caption="Sonos Play:5 doesn't have any physical buttons (okay, there's one hidden on the back that you use during setup). These touch controls are subtle and responsive." data-credit-label="" data-credit-link="" data-credit-name="Mashable, Lili Sams" data-credit-provider="Custom type" data-fragment="m!d49c" data-image="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzMwLzA4L1Nvbm9zNi4xNGU2MS5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/262f5443/d2b/Sonos-6.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1920" src="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzMwLzA4L1Nvbm9zNi4xNGU2MS5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/262f5443/d2b/Sonos-6.jpg" style="border: 0px; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" title="Sonos Play 5" /></div> <br /> <figcaption class="image-caption" style="-webkit-transition: max-height 0.2s; background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.701961); bottom: -1px; color: #dddddd; font-family: ProximaNovaRegular, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 1.2rem; left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; max-height: 100%; overflow: hidden; padding: 0.5em 1em; position: absolute; right: 0px; transition: max-height 0.2s;"><div style="padding: 0px;"> Sonos Play:5 doesn't have any physical buttons (okay, there's one hidden on the back that you use during setup). These touch controls are subtle and responsive.</div> </figcaption><div class="image-credit" style="-webkit-transition: margin 0.2s; color: #777777; float: right; font-size: 0.9rem; font-style: italic; margin-left: auto; margin-right: 18.75px; margin-top: 12px; max-width: 625px; text-transform: uppercase; transition: margin 0.2s; width: auto;"> <div style="padding: 0px;"> IMAGE: MASHABLE, LILI SAMS</div> </div> </figure><div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> The speaker ships with a plug and an Ethernet jack if you want to wire it directly into your network. I downloaded the free Sonos iPhone app, which instantly noticed that there was a Sonos device in the room and offered to add it to my Wi-Fi network. I never had to add Wi-Fi credentials. It also asked if I wanted to add it to an existing Sonos system (network of speakers) or start a new one. I started a new one.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> For those unfamiliar with Sonos, this system setup is one of the chief benefits of a Sonos system. All the speakers are Wi-Fi connected and, using the app, you can run them together to create house-filling music, or play different audio in different rooms. You can group a couple of speakers to control the volume as one, or adjust the volume individually on each speaker while still playing the same tune.</div> <h2 style="background-color: white; clear: left; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 24px; line-height: 1.27; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> The best sound for the space</h2> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Once the Play:5 is on your network and part of your Sonos set-up, the next step — and one that is brand new — is Trueplay. It's a sonic adjustment utility that actually reads your room environment to adjust the Play:5's audio output. At least that's the promise.</div> <figure class="image" style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin: 0px 0px 50px; position: relative;"><div style="padding: 0px;"> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!431a" style="color: #00aeef;"></a></div> <div class="microcontent-wrapper" style="clear: left; margin-left: 0px; position: relative;"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!431a" data-image="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzI5LzRmL1Nvbm9zNC5jYzMyOC5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/25035cfe/9ca/Sonos-4.jpg" data-url="" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease; background: rgb(246, 245, 241); height: 0px; left: -47px; opacity: 0; padding: 5px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease; width: 30px;"> <a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-facebook facebook" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/sonos-play5-review/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #3b579d; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-twitter twitter" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/sonos-play5-review/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #2daae1; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-google_plus google_plus" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/sonos-play5-review/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #f02f16; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-pinterest pinterest" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/sonos-play5-review/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #bf1e25; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a></div> <img alt="Sonos Trueplay" class="" data-caption="Sonos Trueplay asks you to turn your phone around and wave it up and down to assess the audio conditions in the room and use those readings to adjust your Sonos Play:5 settings." data-credit-label="" data-credit-link="" data-credit-name="Mashable, Lili Sams" data-credit-provider="Custom type" data-fragment="m!431a" data-image="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzI5LzRmL1Nvbm9zNC5jYzMyOC5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/25035cfe/9ca/Sonos-4.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1920" src="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzI5LzRmL1Nvbm9zNC5jYzMyOC5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/25035cfe/9ca/Sonos-4.jpg" style="border: 0px; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" title="Sonos Trueplay" /></div> <br /> <figcaption class="image-caption" style="-webkit-transition: max-height 0.2s; background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.701961); bottom: -1px; color: #dddddd; font-family: ProximaNovaRegular, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 1.2rem; left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; max-height: 100%; overflow: hidden; padding: 0.5em 1em; position: absolute; right: 0px; transition: max-height 0.2s;"><div style="padding: 0px;"> Sonos Trueplay asks you to turn your phone around and wave it up and down to assess the audio conditions in the room and use those readings to adjust your Sonos Play:5 settings.</div> </figcaption><div class="image-credit" style="-webkit-transition: margin 0.2s; color: #777777; float: right; font-size: 0.9rem; font-style: italic; margin-left: auto; margin-right: 18.75px; margin-top: 12px; max-width: 625px; text-transform: uppercase; transition: margin 0.2s; width: auto;"> <div style="padding: 0px;"> IMAGE: MASHABLE, LILI SAMS</div> </div> </figure><div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Trueplay is automatically part of your initial setup, but you can always go back and "retune" the speaker, which is something you would do if you move it from room to room. As of now, there is no way to save the profile for one room or another. Fortunately, the whole process takes less than a minute.</div> <figure class="image" style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin: 0px 0px 50px; position: relative;"><div style="padding: 0px;"> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!9977" style="color: #00aeef;"></a></div> <div class="microcontent-wrapper" style="clear: left; margin-left: 0px; position: relative;"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!9977" data-image="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzMwLzFkL1Nvbm9zVHJ1ZXBsLmY2OGE5LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/9d86f04a/476/SonosTrueplaysetup.jpg" data-url="" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease; background: rgb(246, 245, 241); height: 0px; left: -47px; opacity: 0; padding: 5px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease; width: 30px;"> <a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-facebook facebook" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/sonos-play5-review/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #3b579d; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-twitter twitter" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/sonos-play5-review/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #2daae1; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-google_plus google_plus" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/sonos-play5-review/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #f02f16; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-pinterest pinterest" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/sonos-play5-review/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #bf1e25; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a></div> <img alt="SonosTrueplaysetup" class="" data-caption="The Sonos Trueplay speaker tuning system is easy to use, The app asks you to flip your phone around (far left), scan the room with the phone (middle) and then tells you what it did -- and didn't do -- based on the result." data-credit-label="" data-credit-link="" data-credit-name="Sonos" data-credit-provider="Custom type" data-fragment="m!9977" data-image="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzMwLzFkL1Nvbm9zVHJ1ZXBsLmY2OGE5LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/9d86f04a/476/SonosTrueplaysetup.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1920" src="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzMwLzFkL1Nvbm9zVHJ1ZXBsLmY2OGE5LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/9d86f04a/476/SonosTrueplaysetup.jpg" style="border: 0px; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" title="SonosTrueplaysetup" /></div> <br /> <figcaption class="image-caption" style="-webkit-transition: max-height 0.2s; background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.701961); bottom: -1px; color: #dddddd; font-family: ProximaNovaRegular, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 1.2rem; left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; max-height: 100%; overflow: hidden; padding: 0.5em 1em; position: absolute; right: 0px; transition: max-height 0.2s;"><div style="padding: 0px;"> The Sonos Trueplay speaker tuning system is easy to use, The app asks you to flip your phone around (far left), scan the room with the phone (middle) and then tells you what it did — and didn't do — based on the result.</div> </figcaption><div class="image-credit" style="-webkit-transition: margin 0.2s; color: #777777; float: right; font-size: 0.9rem; font-style: italic; margin-left: auto; margin-right: 18.75px; margin-top: 12px; max-width: 625px; text-transform: uppercase; transition: margin 0.2s; width: auto;"> <div style="padding: 0px;"> IMAGE: SONOS</div> </div> </figure><div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> The Sonos app starts by taking a quiet room reading — if you talk over it, it will stop and make you do it again. Then it shows you a video to train you on how to use your iPhone to read the ambient sounds bouncing off the walls. It even has you turn the phone around so the microphone (on the bottom of your iPhone) is facing outward. You will look a little ridiculous waving your phone up and down as you walk around the perimeter of your room, but it only last for 45 seconds.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> More disconcerting, though is the sound the speaker makes during this process. It's loud and annoying, but all in the service of splendid sound.</div> <h2 style="background-color: white; clear: left; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 24px; line-height: 1.27; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> Great sound</h2> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Here's the good news: The Sonos Play:5 is a fantastic sounding speaker with far more audio power than you can use in an office or even a full-sized cafeteria. Unfortunately, in two separate test rooms of significantly different dimensions and configurations, Trueplay reported that my speaker’s placement in the room "had little effect on the sound." As a result it only made subtle adjustments to the speaker sound, ones that I’m sure I'd have a hard time hearing. I am not an audiophile, after all.</div> <figure class="image" style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin: 0px 0px 50px; position: relative;"><div style="padding: 0px;"> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!e02d" style="color: #00aeef;"></a></div> <div class="microcontent-wrapper" style="clear: left; margin-left: 0px; position: relative;"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!e02d" data-image="http://rack.1.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzI5L2NkL1Nvbm9zOC43YjQzNS5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/c38f7bc8/8cb/Sonos-8.jpg" data-url="" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease; background: rgb(246, 245, 241); height: 0px; left: -47px; opacity: 0; padding: 5px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease; width: 30px;"> <a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-facebook facebook" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/sonos-play5-review/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #3b579d; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-twitter twitter" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/sonos-play5-review/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #2daae1; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-google_plus google_plus" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/sonos-play5-review/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #f02f16; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-pinterest pinterest" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/sonos-play5-review/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #bf1e25; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a></div> <img alt="Sonos Play 5" class="" data-caption="Sonos offers access to a wide array of music services, all of which you can control through your iPhone." data-credit-label="" data-credit-link="" data-credit-name="Mashable, Lili Sams" data-credit-provider="Custom type" data-fragment="m!e02d" data-image="http://rack.1.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzI5L2NkL1Nvbm9zOC43YjQzNS5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/c38f7bc8/8cb/Sonos-8.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1920" src="http://rack.1.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzI5L2NkL1Nvbm9zOC43YjQzNS5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/c38f7bc8/8cb/Sonos-8.jpg" style="border: 0px; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" title="Sonos Play 5" /></div> <br /> <figcaption class="image-caption" style="-webkit-transition: max-height 0.2s; background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.701961); bottom: -1px; color: #dddddd; font-family: ProximaNovaRegular, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 1.2rem; left: 0px; line-height: 1.5em; max-height: 100%; overflow: hidden; padding: 0.5em 1em; position: absolute; right: 0px; transition: max-height 0.2s;"><div style="padding: 0px;"> Sonos offers access to a wide array of music services, all of which you can control through your iPhone.</div> </figcaption><div class="image-credit" style="-webkit-transition: margin 0.2s; color: #777777; float: right; font-size: 0.9rem; font-style: italic; margin-left: auto; margin-right: 18.75px; margin-top: 12px; max-width: 625px; text-transform: uppercase; transition: margin 0.2s; width: auto;"> <div style="padding: 0px;"> IMAGE: MASHABLE, LILI SAMS</div> </div> </figure><div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> So, Trueplay may not be the reason you buy Play:5, not that you really need others. It's an extremely well-crafted device, with sensitive, touch buttons on top for controlling play, pause, volume and skipping back and forth over tracks. It has downward-firing woofers that will turn off automatically when you switch the speaker from horizontal to vertical mode. It marries perfectly with Sonos' excellent app, which gives you access to virtually every music service you can think of, as well as your networked music library, music on your iPhone and Sonos' own radio stations. I defy you to run out of things to listen to.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> If you already own a Sonos speaker or two, this could be the culminating device. If you do not own one, it may be a great place to start. Is it cheap? No. Is it worth it? Yes.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Play:5 is now on pre-order and available in white or the black matte I tested.</div> <div class="pro-con" style="background-color: #f7f7f7; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; max-width: 625px; padding: 34px;"> <h2 style="clear: left; color: inherit; font-family: MuseoSlabRegular; font-size: 1.6rem; line-height: 1.27; margin: 0px 0px 3.8rem; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> Sonos Play:5</h2> <div class="year-2014" style="background: url(http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/assets/mashable-choice-2014-746c31471ce1dc9b86874feaf10a9a5c.png) no-repeat; float: right; height: 76px; margin-top: -72px; width: 76px;"> </div> <div class="product-info"> <h3 style="clear: left; color: inherit; font-family: ProximaNovaBold; font-size: 1.4rem; line-height: 1.27; margin: 2.5rem 0rem 0.5rem; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> The Good</h3> <div style="color: #888888; font-size: 1.4rem; margin-bottom: 1.5em;"> Great looks <span class="bullet" style="font-size: 1.7rem;">•</span> Easy setup <span class="bullet" style="font-size: 1.7rem;">•</span> Excellent audio <span class="bullet" style="font-size: 1.7rem;">•</span> Big sound</div> <h3 style="clear: left; color: inherit; font-family: ProximaNovaBold; font-size: 1.4rem; line-height: 1.27; margin: 2.5rem 0rem 0.5rem; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> The Bad</h3> <div style="color: #888888; font-size: 1.4rem; margin-bottom: 1.5em;"> Trueplay is not life-changing</div> <h3 class="bottomline" style="clear: left; color: #00afec; font-family: ProximaNovaBold; font-size: 1.4rem; line-height: 1.27; margin: 2.5rem 0rem 0.5rem; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> The Bottom Line</h3> <div style="color: #888888; font-size: 1.4rem;"> Sonos Play:5 is another excellent Sonos connected audio device that could be the sound system for the entire floor of a house or even a hall. We just wish Trueplay, which is easy to use, was a bit more impressive.</div> </div> </div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <em>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</em></div>

Sonos Play:5 has booming sounds and intriguing smarts

Sonos is well known for its Wi-Fi connected, multi-room sound systems and virtually every new speaker it introduces is a variation on its...

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Neat Microphones Widget adds some space-age style to your podcast rig

<img alt="Mic-thumb" height="359" src="http://rack.1.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzMwL2E3L01pY3RodW1iLjhjOTBmLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTk1MHg1MzQjCmUJanBn/5308715b/e9f/Mic-thumb.jpg" width="640" /><br /> <br /> <section class="article-content" style="-webkit-transition: margin 0.2s; background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-left: auto; margin-right: 28.46875px; margin-top: 1em; max-width: 625px; transition: margin 0.2s; width: auto;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Capture both audio and the spirit of postwar America with Gibson's newest microphones.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Neat Microphones, a brand created by Gibson Guitars, just launched its Widget series, an affordable line of stylish desktop mics, <a href="http://gizmodo.com/gibson-wants-your-desktop-mic-to-sound-better-and-look-1739034135" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><em>Gizmodo</em> reports</a>. The three mics, which are sonically identical, are available at a variety of electronics and music stores to pre-order for $99.</div> <div class="see-also" style="font-weight: bold; text-transform: uppercase;"> <div class="inline-ad-seealso" style="margin: 0px 18.75px 0px auto; max-width: 625px;"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> All three mics offer a simple plug-and-play USB setup, while height adjustment comes courtesy of the tracks the mic is mounted on. Skipper Wise, president of Neat Microphones, touts that the mics can record professional 24 bit/96kHz audio, in <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKx-gQoyX1Q" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">a video</a> from the National Association of Music Merchants convention January 2015</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> In keeping with the theme of simplicity, the Neat Widget doesn't require drivers or additional software to work. The stylish base also acts as a shock-mount, isolating the microphone from any unwanted vibrations.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Gibson Guitars <a href="http://www.gibson.com/news-lifestyle/features/en-us/gibson-brands-launches-neat-microphones-division.aspx" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">launched</a> Neat Microphones in December 2014, with its first line of products, called the "bee line" because of its color scheme, shipping soon after. Wise and Chief Technical Officer Martins Saulespurens are co-founders of Blue Microphones, one of the most popular manufacturers of desktop microphones.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="the-widget-halves-the" style="color: #00aeef;"></a></div> <blockquote class="microcontent-wrapper pullquote" style="border-left-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-style: none none none solid; border-width: 0px !important; clear: left; color: #777777; float: left; height: auto; margin: 15px 15px 35px -125px; max-width: 45%; padding: 0px 0px 0px 40px; position: relative; width: 400px;"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="The Widget halves the price of entry for Neat Microphones, putting it squarely in the crosshairs of the Blue Yeti" data-fragment="the-widget-halves-the" data-url="" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease; background: rgb(246, 245, 241); height: 0px; left: -47px; opacity: 0; padding: 5px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease; width: 30px;"> <a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-facebook facebook" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/gibson-neat-microphones-widget/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #3b579d; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-twitter twitter" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/gibson-neat-microphones-widget/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #2daae1; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-google_plus google_plus" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/gibson-neat-microphones-widget/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #f02f16; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-pinterest pinterest" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/30/gibson-neat-microphones-widget/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #bf1e25; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a></div> <br /></blockquote> <span class="microcontent" data-description="The Widget halves the price of entry for Neat Microphones, putting it squarely in the crosshairs of the Blue Yeti" data-fragment="the-widget-halves-the" data-micro="1">The Widget halves the price of entry for Neat Microphones, putting it squarely in the crosshairs of the Blue Yeti</span>, one of the most popular, well-received affordable USB microphones. Until we get our hands on a Widget we don't know if it's better than the Yeti, but the Widget clearly wins on looks.<br /> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Indeed, the options for USB microphones in this price-range are rather conservatively styled, so one has to give credit to Neat for injecting some space-age fun into the segment. It's a smart segment for Gibson to get into, too. Podcasting is en vogue right now and the ascendence of YouTube stars makes affordably recording good audio a must for many.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> We'll just have to see if it can beat its more bland-looking rivals.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <em>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</em></div> <div> <em><br /></em></div> </section>

Neat Microphones Widget adds some space-age style to your podcast rig

Capture both audio and the spirit of postwar America with Gibson's newest microphones. Neat Microphones, a brand created by Gibson ...

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Apple ordered to pay $234 million over patent infringement claim

<img alt="Iphon907" height="359" src="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzE3LzAwL2lwaG9uOTA3LjViYzlmLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTk1MHg1MzQjCmUJanBn/cdebda81/d03/iphon907.jpg" width="640" /><br /> <br /> <section class="article-content" style="-webkit-transition: margin 0.2s; background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-left: auto; margin-right: 28.46875px; margin-top: 1em; max-width: 625px; transition: margin 0.2s; width: auto;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Apple has been ordered by a court to pay $234 million to the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) after losing a patent infringement case filed by the group in 2014.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> The patent (U.S. Patent No. 5,781,752) related to an invention that increases the speed and efficiency of computer processing. Although the damages are significant, they are much less than the $862 million some <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-34524785" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">reports earlier this week</a> indicated Apple might have to pay in the event of a legal defeat.</div> <div class="see-also" style="font-weight: bold; text-transform: uppercase;"> <div class="inline-ad-seealso" style="margin: 0px 18.75px 0px auto; max-width: 625px;"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> "This is a case where the hard work of our university researchers and the integrity of patenting and licensing discoveries has prevailed," Carl Gulbrandsen, managing director of WARF, said in<a href="http://www.warf.org/news-media/news/releases-and-announcements/warf-wins-patent-infringement-lawsuit-against-apple-inc.cmsx" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">a statement</a> on the group's website on Friday. "<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="the-jury-recognized-the" style="color: #00aeef;"></a> </div> <blockquote class="microcontent-wrapper pullquote" style="border-left-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-style: none none none solid; border-width: 0px !important; clear: left; color: #777777; float: left; height: auto; margin: 15px 15px 35px -125px; max-width: 45%; padding: 0px 0px 0px 40px; position: relative; width: 400px;"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="The jury recognized the seminal computer processing work that took place on our campus. This decision is great news for the inventors" data-fragment="the-jury-recognized-the" data-url="" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease; background: rgb(246, 245, 241); height: 0px; left: -47px; opacity: 0; padding: 5px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease; width: 30px;"> <a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-facebook facebook" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/17/apple-234-million-patent-infringement/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #3b579d; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><br /></div> </blockquote> <span class="microcontent" data-description="The jury recognized the seminal computer processing work that took place on our campus. This decision is great news for the inventors" data-fragment="the-jury-recognized-the" data-micro="1">The jury recognized the seminal computer processing work that took place on our campus. This decision is great news for the inventors</span>, the University of Wisconsin–Madison and for WARF."<br /> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> A jury in a federal court in the Western District of Wisconsin found that Apple's system on chip designs for the A7, A8 and A8X chips infringed on patent claims made by WARF. According to WARF, the Apple devices affected by the patent issue include the iPhone 5S, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus and several iterations of the iPad.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> "We believed our technology was ahead of its time," Professor Gurindar Sohi, a University of Wisconsin researcher, said in a statement on the WARF website. "Almost two decades ago we tried to anticipate how computers would need to operate today. Our team invested the equivalent of more than 11 years of work to solve this problem."</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> However, despite the costly defeat, Apple plans to appeal the verdict, <a href="http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/warf-awarded-million-from-apple-in-patent-infringement-case/article_8210863c-b7cf-557e-84b1-6ee4c4e7bfb2.html" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">according to</a> the<em>Wisconsin State Journal</em>.<br /><br />"Although patent verdicts like this one are typically appealed," said Gulbrandsen, "we hope to continue to work with Apple to resolve this matter and build a stronger relationship between our two institutions."</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <em>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</em></div> <div> <em><br /></em></div> </section>

Apple ordered to pay $234 million over patent infringement claim

Apple has been ordered by a court to pay $234 million to the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) after losing a patent infringeme...

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French hackers figure out how to activate Siri without talking

<img alt="13989720008_e5eeb76ee8_k" height="359" src="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzE2LzRhLzEzOTg5NzIwMDA4LjI0NmRmLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTk1MHg1MzQjCmUJanBn/68b124dd/ea3/13989720008_e5eeb76ee8_k.jpg" width="640" /><br /> <br /> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> These hackers aren't ventriloquists, but they might have figured out something even cooler.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Researchers at the <a href="http://www.ssi.gouv.fr/" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">ANSSI</a>, a French governmental agency that conducts cybersecurity research, have figured out a way to remotely and silently access mobile concierge services like Siri and Google Now, <a href="http://www.wired.com/2015/10/this-radio-trick-silently-hacks-siri-from-16-feet-away/#" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">reports <em>Wired</em></a>. With microphone-equipped headphones plugged into a phone, the hackers can send radio frequency signals to sound like a person activating Siri or Google Now.</div> <div class="see-also" style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22.5px; text-transform: uppercase;"> <div class="inline-ad-seealso" style="margin: 0px 18.75px 0px auto; max-width: 625px;"> </div> </div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> There's really nothing to worry about here if you have a phone with Siri or Google Now enabled from the lock screen; the likelihood that some malicious hacker could pull of this attack without you knowing is fairly slim.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> The hackers use a laptop running a <a href="http://www.wirelessinnovation.org/assets/documents/SoftwareDefinedRadio.pdf" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">software-defined radio</a>, an amplifier and an antenna to broadcast radio wave signals that are picked up by the cord on the headphones. The phone interprets these electrical signals as someone speaking into a microphone, giving the hackers full access to Siri functions.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="using-a-simplified-portable" style="color: #00aeef;"></a></div> <blockquote class="microcontent-wrapper pullquote" style="border-left-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-style: none none none solid; border-width: 0px !important; clear: left; color: #777777; float: left; height: auto; margin: 15px 15px 35px -125px; max-width: 45%; padding: 0px 0px 0px 40px; position: relative; width: 400px;"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="Using a simplified, portable setup, the hackers can transmit phone-interpretable signals at a range of six and a half feet, with a larger setup increasing range to 16 feet." data-fragment="using-a-simplified-portable" data-url="" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease; background: rgb(246, 245, 241); height: 0px; left: -47px; opacity: 0; padding: 5px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease; width: 30px;"> <a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-facebook facebook" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/16/silent-hack-siri-google-now/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #3b579d; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-twitter twitter" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/16/silent-hack-siri-google-now/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #2daae1; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-google_plus google_plus" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/16/silent-hack-siri-google-now/?utm_cid=mash-prod-nav-sub-st#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #f02f16; display: inline-block; font-size: 3rem; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a></div> </blockquote> <span class="microcontent" data-description="Using a simplified, portable setup, the hackers can transmit phone-interpretable signals at a range of six and a half feet, with a larger setup increasing range to 16 feet." data-fragment="using-a-simplified-portable" data-micro="1">Using a simplified, portable setup, the hackers can transmit phone-interpretable signals at a range of six and a half feet, with a larger setup increasing range to 16 feet.</span> The hackers claim the smaller setup can fit and function in a backpack.<br /> <br /> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> As reported by <em>Wired</em> the hackers describe a scenario in which this was used in a congested area to trick a number of phones into calling a paid hotline. The only other scenario we can think of would be if someone working in a public area left their phone with headphones plugged in out while stepping away from their desk. The hackers could then theoretically set up their spoofing device, but it would be much easier just to grab the person's phone and start messing with it.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> The other limiting factor is that many new phones only activate concierge services when the phone's owner is talking, though a long press on the headphone's remote button will also do the same. With my iPhone 6S, Siri only turns on when I say "hey, Siri," but my desk neighbor could just as easily grab my phone and press the button to start sending texts and making calls.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> While this attack isn't much of a threat to iPhone or Android owners, the method in which it was carried out is fascinating. It also serves as a reminder that lock-screen active concierge isn't all that secure; whether or not they know it, smartphone users are trading some level of security for convenience.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> The researchers suggest that headphone manufactures add an extra layer of shielding to their cords, but considering the huge swath of headphone makers in the industry, this seems unlikely to ever happen.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> So, not ventriloquism, but definitely cooler.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <em>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</em></div>

French hackers figure out how to activate Siri without talking

These hackers aren't ventriloquists, but they might have figured out something even cooler. Researchers at the  ANSSI , a French go...

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The Jaguar F-Type R Coupe is a glorious exercise in overkill

<img alt="Thumb-1" height="359" src="http://rack.1.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzEwLzFhL3RodW1iMS41YTZlYy5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgk5NTB4NTM0IwplCWpwZw/80b28cfc/e08/thumb-1.jpg" width="640" /><br /> <br /> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> On some level, I don't really need to write a review of the Jaguar F-Type R Coupe. I mean, just look at it.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Everywhere I drove, this car turned heads. People in both trendy Manhattan neighborhoods and back country villages in Connecticut loved this car.</div> <div class="see-also" style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-weight: bold; line-height: 25px; text-transform: uppercase;"> <div class="inline-ad-seealso" style="margin: 0px 18.75px 0px auto; max-width: 625px;"> </div> </div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Many thought it was something Italian, like a Ferrari or a Maserati, and more than one person said something to the effect of "I've never seen a Jaguar like that before."</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> That's the thing about the F-Type Coupe; the form is so spectacular, the function doesn't really matter. This is a car Jaguar could — and probably does — sell on looks alone.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> But this car's story doesn't end there. My particular tester was an R model. As such, it comes with a 550-horsepower supercharged 5.0-liter V8 engine, all-wheel drive (AWD) and an 8-speed automatic gearbox. The total cost: A little over $119,000.</div> <figure class="image" style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin: 0px 0px 50px; position: relative;"><div style="padding: 0px;"> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!3c45" style="color: #00aeef;"></a></div> <div class="microcontent-wrapper" style="clear: left; margin-left: 0px; position: relative;"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!3c45" data-image="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxL2JmL2phZzEuYzZkZTUuanBnCnAJdGh1bWIJMTIwMHg5NjAwPg/99dc40c2/d0e/jag-1.jpg" data-url="" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease; background: rgb(246, 245, 241); height: 0px; left: -47px; opacity: 0; padding: 5px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease; width: 30px;"> <a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-facebook facebook" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #3b579d; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-twitter twitter" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #2daae1; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-google_plus google_plus" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #f02f16; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-pinterest pinterest" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #bf1e25; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a></div> <span class="lightbox-expand for-lightbox" style="cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; position: relative; width: 625px;"><img alt="Jaguar F-Type R Coupe" class="" data-caption="" data-credit-label="" data-credit-link="" data-credit-name="Mashable, Miles Goscha" data-credit-provider="Custom type" data-fragment="m!3c45" data-image="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxL2JmL2phZzEuYzZkZTUuanBnCnAJdGh1bWIJMTIwMHg5NjAwPg/99dc40c2/d0e/jag-1.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1920" src="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxL2JmL2phZzEuYzZkZTUuanBnCnAJdGh1bWIJMTIwMHg5NjAwPg/99dc40c2/d0e/jag-1.jpg" style="border: 0px; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" title="Jaguar F-Type R Coupe" /></span></div> <br /> <div class="image-credit" style="-webkit-transition: margin 0.2s; color: #777777; float: right; font-style: italic; margin-left: auto; margin-right: 18.75px; margin-top: 12px; max-width: 625px; text-transform: uppercase; transition: margin 0.2s; width: auto;"> <div style="padding: 0px;"> IMAGE: MASHABLE, MILES GOSCHA</div> </div> </figure><h2 style="background-color: white; clear: left; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.27; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> <span style="font-size: small;">Muscle, with class</span></h2> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> The F-Type name is a reference to Jaguar's iconic 1962 E-Type sports car, considered by some the most beautiful car ever built. And its moniker is more than a nod to the past; the F-Type is the British brand's first true sports car since the E-Type.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Like the E-Type before it, I'd agruge the F-Type is just about the best-looking car on sale today. It manages to be muscular, but not in the way an anabolically enhanced athlete is muscular. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="somehow-the-ftype-is" style="color: #00aeef;"></a></div> <blockquote class="microcontent-wrapper pullquote" style="border-left-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-style: none none none solid; border-width: 0px !important; clear: left; color: #777777; float: left; height: auto; margin: 15px 15px 35px -125px; max-width: 45%; padding: 0px 0px 0px 40px; position: relative; width: 475px;"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="Somehow the F-Type is both punchy and subtle, masculine and feminine." data-fragment="somehow-the-ftype-is" data-url="" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease; background: rgb(246, 245, 241); height: 0px; left: -47px; opacity: 0; padding: 5px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease; width: 30px;"> <a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-facebook facebook" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #3b579d; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-twitter twitter" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #2daae1; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-google_plus google_plus" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #f02f16; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-pinterest pinterest" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #bf1e25; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a></div> <br /></blockquote> <span class="microcontent" data-description="Somehow the F-Type is both punchy and subtle, masculine and feminine." data-fragment="somehow-the-ftype-is" data-micro="1">Somehow the F-Type is both punchy and subtle, masculine and feminine.</span><br /> <br /> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Its design doesn’t shout to the world about how great it is at first glance, but invites repeated viewings. Each look reveals a new detail that you might have missed before. If you catch it at the right angle, you might notice how stubby the rear deck is or the subtle upward curve of the exhaust pipes.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> The car is rich with little things that catch your eye the longer you spend time with it.</div> <figure class="image" style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin: 0px 0px 50px; position: relative;"><div style="padding: 0px;"> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!8db9" style="color: #00aeef;"></a></div> <div class="microcontent-wrapper" style="clear: left; margin-left: 0px; position: relative;"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!8db9" data-image="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxLzU1L2phZzQ0LmRkMmE4LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/e37a93be/99e/jag-44.jpg" data-url="" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease; background: rgb(246, 245, 241); height: 0px; left: -47px; opacity: 0; padding: 5px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease; width: 30px;"> <a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-facebook facebook" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #3b579d; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-twitter twitter" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #2daae1; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-google_plus google_plus" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #f02f16; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-pinterest pinterest" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #bf1e25; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a></div> <span class="lightbox-expand for-lightbox" style="cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; position: relative; width: 625px;"><img alt="jag-44" class="" data-caption="" data-credit-label="" data-credit-link="" data-credit-name="Mashable, Miles Goscha" data-credit-provider="Custom type" data-fragment="m!8db9" data-image="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxLzU1L2phZzQ0LmRkMmE4LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/e37a93be/99e/jag-44.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1920" src="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxLzU1L2phZzQ0LmRkMmE4LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/e37a93be/99e/jag-44.jpg" style="border: 0px; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" title="jag-44" /></span></div> <br /> <div class="image-credit" style="-webkit-transition: margin 0.2s; color: #777777; float: right; font-style: italic; margin-left: auto; margin-right: 18.75px; margin-top: 12px; max-width: 625px; text-transform: uppercase; transition: margin 0.2s; width: auto;"> <div style="padding: 0px;"> IMAGE: MASHABLE, MILES GOSCHA</div> </div> </figure><div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Its proportions are spot-on as well. It takes the classic sports car formula of long-hood, short-deck and modernizes it. The wheels are pushed way out towards the four corners and the character line rises dramatically at the rear.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> You could spend hours looking at the F-Type and never get tired of it.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> “The trick with any great design is actually very, very simple and very very spontaneous,” said Julian Thomson, Jaguar’s Advanced Design Director, in an interview with <em>Mashable</em>. “[The designer] should impart their energy and that spontaneity in how it is.”</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> “It’s a very natural, artistic process to do something like an F-Type.”</div> <h2 style="background-color: white; clear: left; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.27; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> <span style="font-size: small;">Going inside</span></h2> <figure class="image" style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin: 0px 0px 50px; position: relative;"><div style="padding: 0px;"> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!b49d" style="color: #00aeef;"></a></div> <div class="microcontent-wrapper" style="clear: left; margin-left: 0px; position: relative;"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!b49d" data-image="http://rack.1.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxLzg0L2phZzQ2LmIxMDgyLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/d1cffc02/58a/jag-46.jpg" data-url="" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease; background: rgb(246, 245, 241); height: 0px; left: -47px; opacity: 0; padding: 5px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease; width: 30px;"> <a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-facebook facebook" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #3b579d; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-twitter twitter" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #2daae1; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-google_plus google_plus" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #f02f16; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-pinterest pinterest" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #bf1e25; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a></div> <span class="lightbox-expand for-lightbox" style="cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; position: relative; width: 625px;"><img alt="jag-46" class="" data-caption="" data-credit-label="" data-credit-link="" data-credit-name="Mashable, Miles Goscha" data-credit-provider="Custom type" data-fragment="m!b49d" data-image="http://rack.1.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxLzg0L2phZzQ2LmIxMDgyLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/d1cffc02/58a/jag-46.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1920" src="http://rack.1.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxLzg0L2phZzQ2LmIxMDgyLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/d1cffc02/58a/jag-46.jpg" style="border: 0px; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" title="jag-46" /></span></div> <br /> <div class="image-credit" style="-webkit-transition: margin 0.2s; color: #777777; float: right; font-style: italic; margin-left: auto; margin-right: 18.75px; margin-top: 12px; max-width: 625px; text-transform: uppercase; transition: margin 0.2s; width: auto;"> <div style="padding: 0px;"> IMAGE: MASHABLE, MILES GOSCHA</div> </div> </figure><div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Those good looks come at a cost, and that’s interior space and visibility, or rather, the lack thereof.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> The sloping rear deck looks amazing, but it creates massive blind spots and leaves you with a tiny rear window that makes driving the F-Type in city traffic very tricky. To partially solve this, drivers can rely on the mirror-mounted blind spot monitoring system, which works well on the highway. It falls flat, however, when sharing the road with crazed Manhattan cyclists and tourists, as they're too small and quick for the system to pick up.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Sitting very low in the car, looking out over a tall cowl (the place where the hood and windshield meet), forward visibility is better than in the rear... but only negligibly so. This is a big problem in the city, but not a huge deal out on the country roads where the F-Type is in its element.</div> <h2 style="background-color: white; clear: left; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.27; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> <span style="font-size: small;">Exercise in restraint</span></h2> <figure class="image" style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin: 0px 0px 50px; position: relative;"><div style="padding: 0px;"> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!45c6" style="color: #00aeef;"></a></div> <div class="microcontent-wrapper" style="clear: left; margin-left: 0px; position: relative;"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!45c6" data-image="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxLzcyL2phZzUzLjFhZjdlLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/cf0e3bf1/278/jag-53.jpg" data-url="" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease; background: rgb(246, 245, 241); height: 0px; left: -47px; opacity: 0; padding: 5px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease; width: 30px;"> <a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-facebook facebook" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #3b579d; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-twitter twitter" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #2daae1; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-google_plus google_plus" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #f02f16; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-pinterest pinterest" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #bf1e25; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a></div> <span class="lightbox-expand for-lightbox" style="cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; position: relative; width: 625px;"><img alt="jag-53" class="" data-caption="" data-credit-label="" data-credit-link="" data-credit-name="Mashable, Miles Goscha" data-credit-provider="Custom type" data-fragment="m!45c6" data-image="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxLzcyL2phZzUzLjFhZjdlLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/cf0e3bf1/278/jag-53.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1920" src="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxLzcyL2phZzUzLjFhZjdlLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/cf0e3bf1/278/jag-53.jpg" style="border: 0px; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" title="jag-53" /></span></div> <br /> <div class="image-credit" style="-webkit-transition: margin 0.2s; color: #777777; float: right; font-style: italic; margin-left: auto; margin-right: 18.75px; margin-top: 12px; max-width: 625px; text-transform: uppercase; transition: margin 0.2s; width: auto;"> <div style="padding: 0px;"> IMAGE: MASHABLE, MILES GOSCHA</div> </div> </figure><div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Unless you're a sociopath, driving this car on public roads is an exercise in restraint. That's because the unmatched roar of the exhaust and addictive immediacy of the supercharged V8's acceleration is too tempting not to indulge every few seconds.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> The bellowing crackle of the F-Type's exhaust is no accident either. Jaguar <a href="http://articles.sae.org/12441/" style="color: #00aeef; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">engineered</a>the car to let additional fuel in the cylinders when the driver lifts off the throttle, creating what it calls a "controlled misfire." The effect is pops and crackles that sound like gunshots every single time you take your foot off the gas.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> I wasn't there, but suspect this car sounds like the Battle of Britain.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> It's ridiculous and too much for a daily commute. Thankfully, you can switch the exhaust from extremely loud to slightly less loud with the push of a button.</div> <figure class="image" style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin: 0px 0px 50px; position: relative;"><div style="padding: 0px;"> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!ce34" style="color: #00aeef;"></a></div> <div class="microcontent-wrapper" style="clear: left; margin-left: 0px; position: relative;"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!ce34" data-image="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxLzEyL2phZzQyLjIxYTZjLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/f2ac43eb/23d/jag-42.jpg" data-url="" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease; background: rgb(246, 245, 241); height: 0px; left: -47px; opacity: 0; padding: 5px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease; width: 30px;"> <a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-facebook facebook" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #3b579d; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-twitter twitter" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #2daae1; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-google_plus google_plus" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #f02f16; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-pinterest pinterest" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #bf1e25; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a></div> <span class="lightbox-expand for-lightbox" style="cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; position: relative; width: 625px;"><img alt="jag-42" class="" data-caption="" data-credit-label="" data-credit-link="" data-credit-name="Mashable, Miles Goscha" data-credit-provider="Custom type" data-fragment="m!ce34" data-image="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxLzEyL2phZzQyLjIxYTZjLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/f2ac43eb/23d/jag-42.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1920" src="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxLzEyL2phZzQyLjIxYTZjLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/f2ac43eb/23d/jag-42.jpg" style="border: 0px; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" title="jag-42" /></span></div> <br /> <div class="image-credit" style="-webkit-transition: margin 0.2s; color: #777777; float: right; font-style: italic; margin-left: auto; margin-right: 18.75px; margin-top: 12px; max-width: 625px; text-transform: uppercase; transition: margin 0.2s; width: auto;"> <div style="padding: 0px;"> IMAGE: MASHABLE, MILES GOSCHA</div> </div> </figure><div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> The V8 provides excellent power and the all-wheel drive (AWD) does a great job of keeping drivers out of ditches, but it all feels like too much.<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="you-cant-floor-it" style="color: #00aeef;"></a></div> <blockquote class="microcontent-wrapper pullquote" style="border-left-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-style: none none none solid; border-width: 0px !important; clear: left; color: #777777; float: left; height: auto; margin: 15px 15px 35px -125px; max-width: 45%; padding: 0px 0px 0px 40px; position: relative; width: 475px;"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="You can't floor it without doing something highly illegal" data-fragment="you-cant-floor-it" data-url="" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease; background: rgb(246, 245, 241); height: 0px; left: -47px; opacity: 0; padding: 5px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease; width: 30px;"> <a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-facebook facebook" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #3b579d; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-twitter twitter" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #2daae1; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a></div> </blockquote> <span class="microcontent" data-description="You can't floor it without doing something highly illegal" data-fragment="you-cant-floor-it" data-micro="1">You can't floor it without doing something highly illegal</span>, so you never feel like you've driven the car to its full potential.<br /> <br /> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Here’s an example of what I mean; you look to pass someone on the highway, click down two gears on the (excellent) 8-speed automatic gearbox and give it a little gas to pass someone like a normal human. Only after 15 seconds or so, you realize you’ve gone from doing the speed limit to a number that would get you a life sentence in less car-friendly and tolerant states like Virginia.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> When you stand on the throttle with intention, it launches the car towards the horizon with a weird mix of calm and violence. Calm, in that the AWD system quickly sends power to the front wheels to pull you forward effortlessly. Violent, in that the V8 makes absurd angry noises and speed comes seemingly without friction or air resistance.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> To bring the F-Type back to legal speeds, my tester came equipped with optional $12,000 carbon-ceramic brakes designed to not only reduce weight but also reduce brake fade during repeated full-pressure braking scenarios. On public roads, saner drivers will likely never dig deep into the brakes.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> From what I experienced, however, they felt very strong and very reliable. While certainly neat to look at, and brag about to your buddies, the carbon ceramics are designed for race-track driving. And if you don't aim to do much of that, they probably overkill, so save your money.</div> <figure class="image" style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin: 0px 0px 50px; position: relative;"><div style="padding: 0px;"> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!1eaf" style="color: #00aeef;"></a></div> <div class="microcontent-wrapper" style="clear: left; margin-left: 0px; position: relative;"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!1eaf" data-image="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxLzkxL2phZzguNTcwNzUuanBnCnAJdGh1bWIJMTIwMHg5NjAwPg/5de5440c/287/jag-8.jpg" data-url="" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease; background: rgb(246, 245, 241); height: 0px; left: -47px; opacity: 0; padding: 5px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease; width: 30px;"> <a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-facebook facebook" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #3b579d; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-twitter twitter" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #2daae1; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-google_plus google_plus" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #f02f16; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-pinterest pinterest" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #bf1e25; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a></div> <span class="lightbox-expand for-lightbox" style="cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; position: relative; width: 625px;"><img alt="jag-8" class="" data-caption="" data-credit-label="" data-credit-link="" data-credit-name="Mashable, Miles Goscha" data-credit-provider="Custom type" data-fragment="m!1eaf" data-image="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxLzkxL2phZzguNTcwNzUuanBnCnAJdGh1bWIJMTIwMHg5NjAwPg/5de5440c/287/jag-8.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1920" src="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxLzkxL2phZzguNTcwNzUuanBnCnAJdGh1bWIJMTIwMHg5NjAwPg/5de5440c/287/jag-8.jpg" style="border: 0px; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" title="jag-8" /></span></div> <br /> <div class="image-credit" style="-webkit-transition: margin 0.2s; color: #777777; float: right; font-style: italic; margin-left: auto; margin-right: 18.75px; margin-top: 12px; max-width: 625px; text-transform: uppercase; transition: margin 0.2s; width: auto;"> <div style="padding: 0px;"> IMAGE: MASHABLE, MILES GOSCHA</div> </div> </figure><h2 style="background-color: white; clear: left; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.27; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> <span style="font-size: small;">Power isn't everything</span></h2> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Though I love the uproarious V8 and its grippy AWD, they both add tremendous weight to the car. And if you expect a light and nimble sports car, you might be disappointed. Instead of cutting through backroads like a sharp knife, the F-Type pummels the road into submission.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Jaguar quotes the weight at 3,814 pounds, which — for an aluminum-intensive sports car — is very heavy.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> The electric power steering is direct and well-weighted, but it lacks feel, though that can be said about virtually every modern sports car. It’s not points against Jaguar, but rather a reality of the modern era, as automakers switch from hydraulic to electric power assistance.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> While the V8 is a great laugh, I tend to think the V6 models would be more fun. You get less power, but it's more usable on the public road. With a V6, the car would be substantially lighter over the front axle as well, contributing to better handling.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Even still, this car still manages to make backroads fun, even if it feels like the insane power and all-wheel drive are doing all the work for you. It doesn’t take much skill to get a lot out of this car, which is a good or bad thing depending on your perspective.</div> <h2 style="background-color: white; clear: left; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.27; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> <span style="font-size: small;">Sports cars in general</span></h2> <figure class="image" style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin: 0px 0px 50px; position: relative;"><div style="padding: 0px;"> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!d36b" style="color: #00aeef;"></a></div> <div class="microcontent-wrapper" style="clear: left; margin-left: 0px; position: relative;"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!d36b" data-image="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxL2RhL2phZzM2LjYxMjhjLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/8205c606/6d4/jag-36.jpg" data-url="" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease; background: rgb(246, 245, 241); height: 0px; left: -47px; opacity: 0; padding: 5px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease; width: 30px;"> <a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-facebook facebook" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #3b579d; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-twitter twitter" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #2daae1; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-google_plus google_plus" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #f02f16; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-pinterest pinterest" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #bf1e25; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a></div> <span class="lightbox-expand for-lightbox" style="cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; position: relative; width: 625px;"><img alt="jag-36" class="" data-caption="" data-credit-label="" data-credit-link="" data-credit-name="Mashable, Miles Goscha" data-credit-provider="Custom type" data-fragment="m!d36b" data-image="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxL2RhL2phZzM2LjYxMjhjLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/8205c606/6d4/jag-36.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1920" src="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxL2RhL2phZzM2LjYxMjhjLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/8205c606/6d4/jag-36.jpg" style="border: 0px; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" title="jag-36" /></span></div> <br /> <div class="image-credit" style="-webkit-transition: margin 0.2s; color: #777777; float: right; font-style: italic; margin-left: auto; margin-right: 18.75px; margin-top: 12px; max-width: 625px; text-transform: uppercase; transition: margin 0.2s; width: auto;"> <div style="padding: 0px;"> IMAGE: MASHABLE, MILES GOSCHA</div> </div> </figure><div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> This is the sort of car you love in spite of itself, or at least I did. It’s too much power and too little interior space, too little visibility to comfortably live with everyday. That said, it plays a critical role in the ever-changing automotive world.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Right now, much of the development work in the automotive industry is focused on taking the driver out of the equation. Advanced safety systems are designed to prevent crashes the driver would otherwise not be able to avoid, and autonomous systems look to 'liberate' drivers from the stresses and dangers of driving.</div> <figure class="image" style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin: 0px 0px 50px; position: relative;"><div style="padding: 0px;"> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!2552" style="color: #00aeef;"></a></div> <div class="microcontent-wrapper" style="clear: left; margin-left: 0px; position: relative;"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!2552" data-image="http://rack.1.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxL2Q2L2phZzI2LmQyYzM1LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/a1197357/eb9/jag-26.jpg" data-url="" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease; background: rgb(246, 245, 241); height: 0px; left: -47px; opacity: 0; padding: 5px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease; width: 30px;"> <a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-facebook facebook" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #3b579d; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-twitter twitter" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #2daae1; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-google_plus google_plus" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #f02f16; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 0px 2px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a><a class="social-share microcontent-share-badge network-badge network-badge-pinterest pinterest" href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/10/jaguar-f-type-r-coupe-review/#" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; color: #bf1e25; display: inline-block; height: 30px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; padding: 0px !important; position: relative; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -9900px; transition: color 0.3s ease; white-space: nowrap; width: 30px;"></a></div> <span class="lightbox-expand for-lightbox" style="cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; position: relative; width: 625px;"><img alt="jag-26" class="" data-caption="" data-credit-label="" data-credit-link="" data-credit-name="Mashable, Miles Goscha" data-credit-provider="Custom type" data-fragment="m!2552" data-image="http://rack.1.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxL2Q2L2phZzI2LmQyYzM1LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/a1197357/eb9/jag-26.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1920" src="http://rack.1.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDE1LzEwLzAxL2Q2L2phZzI2LmQyYzM1LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/a1197357/eb9/jag-26.jpg" style="border: 0px; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: middle;" title="jag-26" /></span></div> <br /> <div class="image-credit" style="-webkit-transition: margin 0.2s; color: #777777; float: right; font-style: italic; margin-left: auto; margin-right: 18.75px; margin-top: 12px; max-width: 625px; text-transform: uppercase; transition: margin 0.2s; width: auto;"> <div style="padding: 0px;"> IMAGE: MASHABLE, MILES GOSCHA</div> </div> </figure><div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> This Jag has a lot of those modern safety features, but it aims to be a "driver's car," or one that puts the driver at the center of the equation. It is, undoubtedly, a sports car.</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> “Hopefully [the F-Type] is not a ‘the end’ of that sort of excitement you get from a product,” said Julian Thomson. “We’ve got to think about the digital age and whether people will want things or experiences that almost reject the digital age.”</div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> Driving this car on a crisp summer morning, crackling V8 echoing off the trees lining windy Connecticut roads, I suspect Thomson is right. While we can't know for sure what the fate of the sports car will be, at least for now, we have the F-Type. And, like the E-Type before it, it's something to be cherished.</div> <div class="pro-con" style="background-color: #f7f7f7; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; max-width: 625px; padding: 34px;"> <h2 style="clear: left; color: inherit; font-family: MuseoSlabRegular; line-height: 1.27; margin: 0px 0px 3.8rem; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> <span style="font-size: small;">Jaguar F-Type R Coupe</span></h2> <div class="year-2015" style="background: url(http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/assets/mashable-choice-2015-2c034b862ae5360b50fa349e0e9eea7c.png) no-repeat; float: right; height: 76px; margin-top: -72px; width: 76px;"> </div> <div class="product-info"> <h3 style="clear: left; color: inherit; font-family: ProximaNovaBold; line-height: 1.27; margin: 2.5rem 0rem 0.5rem; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> <span style="font-size: small;">The Good</span></h3> <div style="color: #888888; margin-bottom: 1.5em;"> Gorgeous styling <span class="bullet">•</span> More power than anyone needs <span class="bullet">•</span> Ungodly noise is, in fact, divine</div> <h3 style="clear: left; color: inherit; font-family: ProximaNovaBold; line-height: 1.27; margin: 2.5rem 0rem 0.5rem; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> <span style="font-size: small;">The Bad</span></h3> <div style="color: #888888; margin-bottom: 1.5em;"> Bad visibility <span class="bullet">•</span> Cramped interior <span class="bullet">•</span> You can’t look at it while you’re driving</div> <h3 class="bottomline" style="clear: left; color: #00afec; font-family: ProximaNovaBold; line-height: 1.27; margin: 2.5rem 0rem 0.5rem; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> <span style="font-size: small;">The Bottom Line</span></h3> <div style="color: #888888;"> Jaguar’s gorgeous F-Type R Coupe is far from perfect, but it’s so overflowing with character, you overlook its drawbacks.</div> </div> </div> <div style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <em>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</em></div>

The Jaguar F-Type R Coupe is a glorious exercise in overkill

On some level, I don't really need to write a review of the Jaguar F-Type R Coupe. I mean, just look at it. Everywhere I drove, thi...

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