dna Tech Reads: From a day with the Google Pixel XL to Microsoft's speech recognition system

1. The first few hours with the Google Pixel XL

It’s not often that Google outs their very own smartphone. And by very own, we’re talking about one that bears their own stamp of approval, a device that they ascribe to embodying the current state of the art. Today, this phone is the Google Pixel. Read more here.

2. An apartment in Seoul just got a 52Gbps fibre connection

Nokia has partnered with South Korea’s SK Broadband to offer single fibre access speeds of a mind-boggling 52.5Gbps to a few apartment buildings in Seoul. Read more here.  

​3. Microsoft reaches 'human parity' with new speech recognition system

Researchers at Microsoft have announced a ‘major breakthrough’ in speech recognition. The company has created a technology that recognizes the words in a conversation, just as well as a person does. Read more here.

4. Scientists develop wearable tattoo that detects alcohol levels in sweat

Scientists have developed a wearable skin tattoo that detects alcohol levels in sweat and transmits the information to a smartphone, allowing users to monitor their drinking in real time. Read more here.

5. ESA's "Life on Mars" lander aims for risky touch down on red planet

The search for life on Mars may take a giant leap on Wednesday when a space lander is due to touch down on the red planet in Europe's first attempt to land a craft there since the Beagle 2's "heroic failure." Read more here.