The vacuum connects to Dyson’s app, where you’ll find resources such as how to empty the dustbin and wash the filter, but not much else. It can tell you how long your last vacuuming session was, but no other details, so it’s not as interesting or as informative as the data you’d get from a robot vacuum.
Fluffy Face
Photograph: Nena Farrell
Photograph: Nena Farrell
This vacuum’s full name is the Dyson PencilVac Fluffycones, aptly named for the four fluffy cones inside the vacuum head. Dyson’s previous recent stick vacuums all have the Fluffy Optic cleaner head for vacuuming hard floors. While both have a fluffy roller bar, the Fluffycones have a conical shape that Dyson says will detangle and remove hair rather than the hair getting stuck all around it. It did detangle hair for me, but when I vacuumed up larger portions of hair from my bathroom floor (a place where many a stray hair comes to die at the hands of my hairbrush, comb, and towel), it actually bunched up the hair into a ball and spat it back out a few times before finally sucking it up into the dustbin.
Video: Nena Farrell
While the hair results weren’t great, I did love this vacuum for sucking up the cat litter that constantly plagues my home. It did a great job with flour on my hard floors and a solid job with dry oats, but it occasionally just bumped the oats around instead of immediately sucking them up. I was even able to quickly run it over the top of my carpet, but rolling back and forth on the carpet a bunch did stop the cones.
The head is designed to move in just about any direction. The cones make it easy to swivel around, and the green illuminating lights on the front and back help you spot any debris you might otherwise miss. With its compact size that fits in tricky corners, the PencilVac finally lets me vacuum up all the litter around the base of my toilet and pedestal sink. It’s part of what makes me reach for this vacuum over and over, even after my robot vacuum cleaned the day before.
Forward Momentum
Photograph: Nena Farrell
Do I think this vacuum replaces Dyson’s existing cordless options? No. But Dyson has other new vacuums planned that could do that. This vacuum has a specific design for a specific use: smaller homes with entirely hard floors. There’s an accessibility opportunity here, too. This lightweight vacuum can be much easier to use for folks with mobility and strength restrictions. The magnetic charging base also makes it easy to store and access for a variety of people, whether they struggle with fine motor skills or can’t bend over and grab the vacuum.
The vacuum connects to Dyson’s app, where you’ll find resources such as how to empty the dustbin and wash the filter, but not much else. It can tell you how long your last vacuuming session was, but no other details, so it’s not as interesting or as informative as the data you’d get from a robot vacuum.
Fluffy Face
Photograph: Nena Farrell
Photograph: Nena Farrell
This vacuum’s full name is the Dyson PencilVac Fluffycones, aptly named for the four fluffy cones inside the vacuum head. Dyson’s previous recent stick vacuums all have the Fluffy Optic cleaner head for vacuuming hard floors. While both have a fluffy roller bar, the Fluffycones have a conical shape that Dyson says will detangle and remove hair rather than the hair getting stuck all around it. It did detangle hair for me, but when I vacuumed up larger portions of hair from my bathroom floor (a place where many a stray hair comes to die at the hands of my hairbrush, comb, and towel), it actually bunched up the hair into a ball and spat it back out a few times before finally sucking it up into the dustbin.
Video: Nena Farrell
While the hair results weren’t great, I did love this vacuum for sucking up the cat litter that constantly plagues my home. It did a great job with flour on my hard floors and a solid job with dry oats, but it occasionally just bumped the oats around instead of immediately sucking them up. I was even able to quickly run it over the top of my carpet, but rolling back and forth on the carpet a bunch did stop the cones.
The head is designed to move in just about any direction. The cones make it easy to swivel around, and the green illuminating lights on the front and back help you spot any debris you might otherwise miss. With its compact size that fits in tricky corners, the PencilVac finally lets me vacuum up all the litter around the base of my toilet and pedestal sink. It’s part of what makes me reach for this vacuum over and over, even after my robot vacuum cleaned the day before.
Forward Momentum
Photograph: Nena Farrell
Do I think this vacuum replaces Dyson’s existing cordless options? No. But Dyson has other new vacuums planned that could do that. This vacuum has a specific design for a specific use: smaller homes with entirely hard floors. There’s an accessibility opportunity here, too. This lightweight vacuum can be much easier to use for folks with mobility and strength restrictions. The magnetic charging base also makes it easy to store and access for a variety of people, whether they struggle with fine motor skills or can’t bend over and grab the vacuum.
Amazon’s rolling out a free software update for Echo Hub devices that gives the home screen a much-needed update to the interface it launched with in 2024. It had already added Alex Plus AI support, but the new interface has a cleaner, fully customizable layout that fits more smart home info and controls on the screen than the previous version.
The Echo Hub is also getting access to Ring AI’s Video Search feature that lets you use natural language to search through your smart home camera footage, as well as Alexa Plus summaries of detected camera events.
These are the five new features Amazon highlighted for the Echo Hub:
Amazon’s rolling out a free software update for Echo Hub devices that gives the home screen a much-needed update to the interface it launched with in 2024. It had already added Alex Plus AI support, but the new interface has a cleaner, fully customizable layout that fits more smart home info and controls on the screen than the previous version.
The Echo Hub is also getting access to Ring AI’s Video Search feature that lets you use natural language to search through your smart home camera footage, as well as Alexa Plus summaries of detected camera events.
These are the five new features Amazon highlighted for the Echo Hub:
#Amazons #Echo #Hub #customizable #Rings #featuresAmazon,Amazon Alexa,News,Smart Home,Tech">Amazon’s Echo Hub gets a customizable new look and Ring’s AI features
Amazon’s rolling out a free software update for Echo Hub devices that gives the home screen a much-needed update to the interface it launched with in 2024. It had already added Alex Plus AI support, but the new interface has a cleaner, fully customizable layout that fits more smart home info and controls on the screen than the previous version.
The Echo Hub is also getting access to Ring AI’s Video Search feature that lets you use natural language to search through your smart home camera footage, as well as Alexa Plus summaries of detected camera events.
These are the five new features Amazon highlighted for the Echo Hub:
That’s the bet behind Theker, an AI robotics startup that aims to go beyond robots trained for a single task. “If you always have to put the same cookie in the same box, that works perfectly, but most processes aren’t like that,” co-founder Carla Gómez Cano told TechCrunch.
Theker is designed for that messier reality. Unlike humanoid robots designed around a fixed form — think Boston Dynamics — Theker’s machines are built to be reconfigured. Their hands, arms, and overall form can be swapped out or resized depending on the task, whether that’s sorting packages, packing clothing, or handling bottles and cans in a warehouse.
That Inditex, Zara’s parent company, signed on as an early backer is a signal of where Theker’s ambitions start, not where they end. The company’s broader goal is to move beyond retail into heavier industrial settings like manufacturing, where the complexity and scale of manual tasks is even greater.
This generalist ambition has helped cement Theker’s status as one of Europe’s hot startups to watch — and raise capital accordingly. The Barcelona-based startup has just raised $85 million in what it’s calling “Europe’s largest ever robotics Series A.” (We haven’t found a larger one in our records, either.)
Less than a year after a record seed round, this Series A was led by American VC firm CRV and backed by a mix of traditional and strategic investors, including Samsung and Aglaé Ventures, the investment vehicle tied to LVMH chairman Bernard Arnault.
Gómez Cano said Samsung is not a client yet but that the two are in advanced discussions. Theker would welcome having the Korean company as a customer, supplier, and investor simultaneously — a trifecta that would give the startup both revenue and credibility in manufacturing at scale.
She also noted that she and co-founder Jiaqiang Ye Zhu “didn’t build Theker to run pilots,” so the team skips innovation departments entirely and goes straight to logistics or operations, where deals are real and timelines are shorter.
To demonstrate that the company can actually deliver on that, Theker has a showroom in central Barcelona, and plans to open others as it expands across Europe, the U.S. and Asia. It will also grow its headcount across tech, deployment, and sales.
“We already received 15,000 job applications and have to filter like crazy,” Gómez Cano said. She estimated that the team could grow from dozens to up to 120 people by the end of the year, then caught herself: “I am saying that, but I also said that we’d raise $30 or $40 million!”
That Theker managed to raise twice its target also reinforces the startup’s conviction in keeping its HQ in Barcelona, a growing robotics hub, and in Europe’s tech ecosystem more broadly. “It has never been a barrier to acceleration for us, so we are making the most of it,” Gómez Cano said.
When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. This doesn’t affect our editorial independence.
That’s the bet behind Theker, an AI robotics startup that aims to go beyond robots trained for a single task. “If you always have to put the same cookie in the same box, that works perfectly, but most processes aren’t like that,” co-founder Carla Gómez Cano told TechCrunch.
Theker is designed for that messier reality. Unlike humanoid robots designed around a fixed form — think Boston Dynamics — Theker’s machines are built to be reconfigured. Their hands, arms, and overall form can be swapped out or resized depending on the task, whether that’s sorting packages, packing clothing, or handling bottles and cans in a warehouse.
That Inditex, Zara’s parent company, signed on as an early backer is a signal of where Theker’s ambitions start, not where they end. The company’s broader goal is to move beyond retail into heavier industrial settings like manufacturing, where the complexity and scale of manual tasks is even greater.
This generalist ambition has helped cement Theker’s status as one of Europe’s hot startups to watch — and raise capital accordingly. The Barcelona-based startup has just raised $85 million in what it’s calling “Europe’s largest ever robotics Series A.” (We haven’t found a larger one in our records, either.)
Less than a year after a record seed round, this Series A was led by American VC firm CRV and backed by a mix of traditional and strategic investors, including Samsung and Aglaé Ventures, the investment vehicle tied to LVMH chairman Bernard Arnault.
Gómez Cano said Samsung is not a client yet but that the two are in advanced discussions. Theker would welcome having the Korean company as a customer, supplier, and investor simultaneously — a trifecta that would give the startup both revenue and credibility in manufacturing at scale.
She also noted that she and co-founder Jiaqiang Ye Zhu “didn’t build Theker to run pilots,” so the team skips innovation departments entirely and goes straight to logistics or operations, where deals are real and timelines are shorter.
To demonstrate that the company can actually deliver on that, Theker has a showroom in central Barcelona, and plans to open others as it expands across Europe, the U.S. and Asia. It will also grow its headcount across tech, deployment, and sales.
“We already received 15,000 job applications and have to filter like crazy,” Gómez Cano said. She estimated that the team could grow from dozens to up to 120 people by the end of the year, then caught herself: “I am saying that, but I also said that we’d raise $30 or $40 million!”
That Theker managed to raise twice its target also reinforces the startup’s conviction in keeping its HQ in Barcelona, a growing robotics hub, and in Europe’s tech ecosystem more broadly. “It has never been a barrier to acceleration for us, so we are making the most of it,” Gómez Cano said.
When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. This doesn’t affect our editorial independence.
#Theker #raised #85M #build #factory #robot #doesnt #specialize #TechCrunchAutomation,theker">Theker just raised $85M to build the factory robot that doesn’t specialize in anything | TechCrunch
Humanoids aren’t quite ready to replace factory workers, but the industry can’t wait. Faced with labor shortages, manufacturers have shown growing interest in startups that promise faster automation without the usual tradeoffs.
That’s the bet behind Theker, an AI robotics startup that aims to go beyond robots trained for a single task. “If you always have to put the same cookie in the same box, that works perfectly, but most processes aren’t like that,” co-founder Carla Gómez Cano told TechCrunch.
Theker is designed for that messier reality. Unlike humanoid robots designed around a fixed form — think Boston Dynamics — Theker’s machines are built to be reconfigured. Their hands, arms, and overall form can be swapped out or resized depending on the task, whether that’s sorting packages, packing clothing, or handling bottles and cans in a warehouse.
That Inditex, Zara’s parent company, signed on as an early backer is a signal of where Theker’s ambitions start, not where they end. The company’s broader goal is to move beyond retail into heavier industrial settings like manufacturing, where the complexity and scale of manual tasks is even greater.
This generalist ambition has helped cement Theker’s status as one of Europe’s hot startups to watch — and raise capital accordingly. The Barcelona-based startup has just raised $85 million in what it’s calling “Europe’s largest ever robotics Series A.” (We haven’t found a larger one in our records, either.)
Less than a year after a record seed round, this Series A was led by American VC firm CRV and backed by a mix of traditional and strategic investors, including Samsung and Aglaé Ventures, the investment vehicle tied to LVMH chairman Bernard Arnault.
Gómez Cano said Samsung is not a client yet but that the two are in advanced discussions. Theker would welcome having the Korean company as a customer, supplier, and investor simultaneously — a trifecta that would give the startup both revenue and credibility in manufacturing at scale.
She also noted that she and co-founder Jiaqiang Ye Zhu “didn’t build Theker to run pilots,” so the team skips innovation departments entirely and goes straight to logistics or operations, where deals are real and timelines are shorter.
To demonstrate that the company can actually deliver on that, Theker has a showroom in central Barcelona, and plans to open others as it expands across Europe, the U.S. and Asia. It will also grow its headcount across tech, deployment, and sales.
“We already received 15,000 job applications and have to filter like crazy,” Gómez Cano said. She estimated that the team could grow from dozens to up to 120 people by the end of the year, then caught herself: “I am saying that, but I also said that we’d raise $30 or $40 million!”
That Theker managed to raise twice its target also reinforces the startup’s conviction in keeping its HQ in Barcelona, a growing robotics hub, and in Europe’s tech ecosystem more broadly. “It has never been a barrier to acceleration for us, so we are making the most of it,” Gómez Cano said.
When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. This doesn’t affect our editorial independence.
gaming laptops. But what if you’re tired of the conventional gaming laptop that has a screen on top and a keyboard on the bottom? That’s exactly the problem Asus wants to solve, as it has just opened pre-orders for its latest premium gaming product in India. The new lineup is headlined by the flagship ROG Zephyrus Duo, which features two screens and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card. Along with that, the company has also announced refreshed versions of the Zephyrus G14 and G16, the TUF Gaming A14, and the creator-focused ProArt PZ14. Here’s everything you need to know about them.
What’s Up With The Zephyrus Duo?
The biggest announcement is the new ROG Zephyrus Duo, ASUS’s latest take on the dual-screen gaming laptop concept. The laptop features two 16-inch 3K OLED touch displays, allowing users to run games, editing tools, livestream controls, or AI applications simultaneously. ASUS says the system is powered by up to an Intel Core Ultra 9 Series 3 processor and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card.
The secondary display can be used for multitasking, while a 320-degree hinge and detachable wireless keyboard allow the laptop to be used in multiple modes. ASUS has also included its Intelligent Cooling system with liquid metal thermal compound and a tri-fan setup to keep temperatures under control. The ROG Zephyrus Duo starts at ₹5,49,990, while the top-end RTX 5090 variant costs ₹6,99,990.
Zephyrus and TUF Series Get RTX 50-Series Upgrades
ASUS has also refreshed its popular Zephyrus G14 and G16 gaming laptops with NVIDIA’s latest RTX 50-series GPUs. The Zephyrus G14 continues to target users who want a powerful gaming laptop in a compact package. It weighs just 1.5kg and features a 3K ROG Nebula HDR OLED display with 100% DCI-P3 color coverage. ASUS pairs the display with Intel Core Ultra processors and up to RTX 5070 Ti graphics.
The larger Zephyrus G16 is aimed at users looking for more screen real estate without sacrificing portability. Despite packing a 16-inch display and a 90Wh battery, the laptop weighs under 2kg. It comes with Intel Core Ultra 9 processors and up to RTX 5080 graphics, depending on the configuration.
ASUS has also announced the TUF Gaming A14, a more affordable gaming laptop that weighs just 1.46kg. The laptop runs on AMD’s new AI-powered Gorgon Point processor paired with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 graphics. ASUS says it has been designed for students, gamers, and creators who need a portable machine without giving up gaming performance.
Pricing starts at:
TUF A14 – ₹1,99,990
Zephyrus G14 Refresh – ₹2,59,990
Zephyrus G14 RTX 5070 – ₹3,69,990
Zephyrus G16 RTX 5070 Ti – ₹4,19,990
Zephyrus G16 RTX 5080 – ₹5,09,990
ProArt PZ14 for Creators
For creators, ASUS has introduced the new ProArt PZ14, a lightweight 2-in-1 device with a detachable keyboard. The laptop features a 14-inch 3K ASUS Lumina Pro OLED touchscreen with 100% DCI-P3 coverage and Pantone validation. It is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X2 Elite processor and offers up to 80 TOPS of AI performance. ASUS says the device can deliver up to 22 hours of battery life and supports the ASUS Pen for creators who sketch, design, or edit on the go. The ProArt PZ14 is priced at ₹2,69,990.
gaming laptops. But what if you’re tired of the conventional gaming laptop that has a screen on top and a keyboard on the bottom? That’s exactly the problem Asus wants to solve, as it has just opened pre-orders for its latest premium gaming product in India. The new lineup is headlined by the flagship ROG Zephyrus Duo, which features two screens and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card. Along with that, the company has also announced refreshed versions of the Zephyrus G14 and G16, the TUF Gaming A14, and the creator-focused ProArt PZ14. Here’s everything you need to know about them.
What’s Up With The Zephyrus Duo?
The biggest announcement is the new ROG Zephyrus Duo, ASUS’s latest take on the dual-screen gaming laptop concept. The laptop features two 16-inch 3K OLED touch displays, allowing users to run games, editing tools, livestream controls, or AI applications simultaneously. ASUS says the system is powered by up to an Intel Core Ultra 9 Series 3 processor and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card.
The secondary display can be used for multitasking, while a 320-degree hinge and detachable wireless keyboard allow the laptop to be used in multiple modes. ASUS has also included its Intelligent Cooling system with liquid metal thermal compound and a tri-fan setup to keep temperatures under control. The ROG Zephyrus Duo starts at ₹5,49,990, while the top-end RTX 5090 variant costs ₹6,99,990.
Zephyrus and TUF Series Get RTX 50-Series Upgrades
ASUS has also refreshed its popular Zephyrus G14 and G16 gaming laptops with NVIDIA’s latest RTX 50-series GPUs. The Zephyrus G14 continues to target users who want a powerful gaming laptop in a compact package. It weighs just 1.5kg and features a 3K ROG Nebula HDR OLED display with 100% DCI-P3 color coverage. ASUS pairs the display with Intel Core Ultra processors and up to RTX 5070 Ti graphics.
The larger Zephyrus G16 is aimed at users looking for more screen real estate without sacrificing portability. Despite packing a 16-inch display and a 90Wh battery, the laptop weighs under 2kg. It comes with Intel Core Ultra 9 processors and up to RTX 5080 graphics, depending on the configuration.
ASUS has also announced the TUF Gaming A14, a more affordable gaming laptop that weighs just 1.46kg. The laptop runs on AMD’s new AI-powered Gorgon Point processor paired with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 graphics. ASUS says it has been designed for students, gamers, and creators who need a portable machine without giving up gaming performance.
Pricing starts at:
TUF A14 – ₹1,99,990
Zephyrus G14 Refresh – ₹2,59,990
Zephyrus G14 RTX 5070 – ₹3,69,990
Zephyrus G16 RTX 5070 Ti – ₹4,19,990
Zephyrus G16 RTX 5080 – ₹5,09,990
ProArt PZ14 for Creators
For creators, ASUS has introduced the new ProArt PZ14, a lightweight 2-in-1 device with a detachable keyboard. The laptop features a 14-inch 3K ASUS Lumina Pro OLED touchscreen with 100% DCI-P3 coverage and Pantone validation. It is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X2 Elite processor and offers up to 80 TOPS of AI performance. ASUS says the device can deliver up to 22 hours of battery life and supports the ASUS Pen for creators who sketch, design, or edit on the go. The ProArt PZ14 is priced at ₹2,69,990.
#ASUS #ROG #Zephyrus #Duo #RTX #PreOrder #IndiaAsus">ASUS ROG Zephyrus Duo With RTX 5090 Now Available for Pre-Order in India
It’s no secret that Asus knows how to make gaming laptops. But what if you’re tired of the conventional gaming laptop that has a screen on top and a keyboard on the bottom? That’s exactly the problem Asus wants to solve, as it has just opened pre-orders for its latest premium gaming product in India. The new lineup is headlined by the flagship ROG Zephyrus Duo, which features two screens and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card. Along with that, the company has also announced refreshed versions of the Zephyrus G14 and G16, the TUF Gaming A14, and the creator-focused ProArt PZ14. Here’s everything you need to know about them.
What’s Up With The Zephyrus Duo?
The biggest announcement is the new ROG Zephyrus Duo, ASUS’s latest take on the dual-screen gaming laptop concept. The laptop features two 16-inch 3K OLED touch displays, allowing users to run games, editing tools, livestream controls, or AI applications simultaneously. ASUS says the system is powered by up to an Intel Core Ultra 9 Series 3 processor and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card.
The secondary display can be used for multitasking, while a 320-degree hinge and detachable wireless keyboard allow the laptop to be used in multiple modes. ASUS has also included its Intelligent Cooling system with liquid metal thermal compound and a tri-fan setup to keep temperatures under control. The ROG Zephyrus Duo starts at ₹5,49,990, while the top-end RTX 5090 variant costs ₹6,99,990.
Zephyrus and TUF Series Get RTX 50-Series Upgrades
ASUS has also refreshed its popular Zephyrus G14 and G16 gaming laptops with NVIDIA’s latest RTX 50-series GPUs. The Zephyrus G14 continues to target users who want a powerful gaming laptop in a compact package. It weighs just 1.5kg and features a 3K ROG Nebula HDR OLED display with 100% DCI-P3 color coverage. ASUS pairs the display with Intel Core Ultra processors and up to RTX 5070 Ti graphics.
The larger Zephyrus G16 is aimed at users looking for more screen real estate without sacrificing portability. Despite packing a 16-inch display and a 90Wh battery, the laptop weighs under 2kg. It comes with Intel Core Ultra 9 processors and up to RTX 5080 graphics, depending on the configuration.
ASUS has also announced the TUF Gaming A14, a more affordable gaming laptop that weighs just 1.46kg. The laptop runs on AMD’s new AI-powered Gorgon Point processor paired with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 graphics. ASUS says it has been designed for students, gamers, and creators who need a portable machine without giving up gaming performance.
Pricing starts at:
TUF A14 – ₹1,99,990
Zephyrus G14 Refresh – ₹2,59,990
Zephyrus G14 RTX 5070 – ₹3,69,990
Zephyrus G16 RTX 5070 Ti – ₹4,19,990
Zephyrus G16 RTX 5080 – ₹5,09,990
ProArt PZ14 for Creators
For creators, ASUS has introduced the new ProArt PZ14, a lightweight 2-in-1 device with a detachable keyboard. The laptop features a 14-inch 3K ASUS Lumina Pro OLED touchscreen with 100% DCI-P3 coverage and Pantone validation. It is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X2 Elite processor and offers up to 80 TOPS of AI performance. ASUS says the device can deliver up to 22 hours of battery life and supports the ASUS Pen for creators who sketch, design, or edit on the go. The ProArt PZ14 is priced at ₹2,69,990.
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