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Photo by Chesnot/Getty Images United States Army soldiers can no longer use TikTok on government-owned phones following a decision to ban the app. The move comes amidst ongoing worries that the video app owned by Beijing-based company ByteDance could compromise national security or be used to influence or surveil Americans. “It is considered a cyber threat,” Army spokeswoman Lt. Col. Robin Ochoa told Military.com , which broke the news on December 30th. The army reportedly used TikTok to recruit members prior to the ban. Both the Navy and Defense Department sounded alarms on TikTok earlier this month. The Navy previously told its members not to add the app, and to delete it from government-issued devices if it was already installed. The Defense Department also... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2QDnbQS

Vizio says LeEco has breached the settlement the two companies agreed to last year in the $60 million lawsuit over their failed merger, and claims the Chinese tech conglomerate still owes a “substantial amount of money,” according to a new motion filed in California’s central district court on Monday. LeEco, which was once considered to be the “Netflix of China,” tried to buy Vizio in 2016 for $2 billion as part of its effort to expand its business beyond streaming. Founder Jia Yueting wanted his company to move into hardware like televisions and smartphones so he could create an entire ecosystem of hardware and software products that worked together, hence the “eco” in LeEco. But Jia’s ambition consumed LeEco, as he burdened the... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2QbqNKY

Photo credit should read DON EMMERT/AFP via Getty Images Times Square revelers will ring in the New Year to a theme of existential crisis tonight. Science teachers and students taking on the climate crisis will push the crystal button to trigger the ball drop in Times Square. Organizers of the annual New Year’s Eve celebration in New York City choose a theme each year based on the biggest issues in the news, and this year that theme is climate change. “[You’d] have to have a soul of Styrofoam not to be moved by the passion of young people demanding that we do better, and ‘listen to the science’ to start solving the problem,” Tim Tompkins, president of the Times Square Alliance, said in a press release. He added that “you’d have to have your head buried” in sand not to be alarmed by 2019’s... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2ZCjNKo

Image: Netflix Netflix released its list of the most popular movies and TV shows of 2019 and, with the exception of Disney Pixar’s Incredibles 2 , every title on the list is a Netflix original. Most notable is Adam Sandler’s Murder Mystery , which Netflix declared as the most watched title in 2019. The Sandler and Jennifer Aniston-starring comedy broke records when it first hit Netflix back in June, generating more than 30 million account views within its first three days. It marked the biggest opening weekend for a Netflix film in the company’s history. Some of the other entires on the list, seen below, also saw record-breaking weekends or weeks for Netflix. A couple – including Henry Cavill’s The Witcher — only just came out. Murder Mystery S... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2u0nnSG

The Witcher has everything it needs to be Netflix’s next success: popular source material, a massive marketing campaign, a well-received performance by Henry Cavill, and an iconic meme in the form of the hit song “Toss A Coin To Your Witcher.” Yet, while certainly popular, it doesn’t seem like The Witcher is going to become “must see” television like other recent hits, such as The Mandalorian on Disney+ or Watchmen on HBO. At least part of the reason why is how Netflix released it: in a single, all-you-can-eat drop — like almost all of its other shows — instead of a more traditional weekly rollout. Weekly releases have numerous benefits for fans: continued and focused conversation every week around the latest episode, a chance to digest... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/35aXTiC

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge The California Consumer Privacy Act goes into effect January 1st , and it doesn’t look like anyone, even the state of California itself, is totally ready. Draft regulations for enforcing the law are still being finalized at the state level, and questions about specific aspects of the most sweeping privacy regulation since the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) are still not clear. “If you thought the GDPR was bumpy, the CCPA is going to be a real roller coaster,” Reece Hirsch tells The Verge . Hirsch is co-head of Morgan Lewis’ privacy and cybersecurity practice and has been advising clients on how to adapt to the new law. “This is a complex set of new rules, which are still a work in progress.” The crux of the... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2ML8xWV

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge The global hacking campaign known as “Cloud Hopper” perpetrated by government-sponsored Chinese hackers was much worse than originally reported, according to an investigation by the Wall Street Journal you should read in full. The report says that “at least a dozen cloud providers” were affected, but focuses on HP to illustrate the severity of the intrusions and the tactics used to attack and defend. ”The Journal found that Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co. was so overrun that the cloud company didn’t see the hackers re-enter their clients’ networks, even as the company gave customers the all-clear.” ”Inside the clouds, the hackers, known as APT10 to Western officials and researchers, had access to a vast constellation of clients. The... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2thXzkG

Back in November this year, Xiaomi launched its first smartwatch called the Mi Watch. Now, the Chinese company has unveiled a new wearable called the Watch Color. Much of the details of the device are not yet known, but that information will be revealed on January 3.  Based on the teasers Xiaomi shared on its Weibo page, the Watch Color will have a circular colour display. The Mi Watch that the company launched last month had a rectangular display. The device is also tipped to be available with a bunch of colourful straps, and users have the choice to interchange between them as and when they wish. The company also noted in its post on Weibo that users have 1540 kinds of combinations. While features of the Watch Color are not yet known, we can get a pretty good idea of what it might offer by looking at the features of the recently launched Mi Watch. The wearable was launched last month and features a number of notable features such as calling, internet access, sleep monitoring, ...

Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) is taking on Amazon and Flipkart by launching an e-commerce venture, JioMart. The new business is operated by Reliance Retail and it has initially been launched for the customers in Navi Mumbai, Thane and Kalyan. However, it is said to expand gradually across India. To recall, the launch of JioMart was first teased by RIL Chairman Mukesh Ambani last year. With JioMart, RIL is projected to connect three crore offline retailers with over 20 crore households in the country.  “Our beta trials with thousands of merchants across multiple locations in the country established the premise of New Commerce with a significant increase in sales and improvement in margins for the participating merchants. We are now getting ready to roll out the platform at a larger scale,” Ambani said while addressing the 42nd AGM earlier this year. Reliance Retail has already started taking pre-registrations for JioMart. The new venture is said to offer a portfolio of over 50...

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BSNL has been on a spree to reinvent itself by announcing new competitive plans that aim to offer more bang for your buck. It recently announced new offerings for new users and the telco has again rolled out two new broadband plans for its consumers, priced at Rs 299 and Rs 491. The two new plans are being offered on a promotional basis and will be available for new users till March 25. The Rs 299 broadband plan by BSNL offers 50GB high-speed monthly data at up to 20Mbps speeds and offers 1Mbps after 50GB data is exhausted.  Coming to the Rs 491 plan, the option is called 120GB_CUL and offers up to 120GB high-speed data at speeds of up to 20Mbps. After exhausting high-speed data, one will sṭill be able to access the internet at 1Mbps speeds. Both the Rs 299 and Rs 491 plans offer unlimited calling to any network. These plans were first spotted by TelecomTalk, which reports that these plans also offer ISD calling at Rs 1.2 per unit. Additionally, new consumers going for this plan w...

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Townew automatically seals the bag when full and pulls a new bag into place. | GIF: Townew Until there’s a Roomba that takes out the trash, this self-sealing bin from Townew is as close as we’ll get to an automated garbage experience. Townew is fitted with a Refill Ring that contains enough recyclable material to create 25 trash bags. Its touchless design opens the lid with a wave of the hand. When full, a button press on the front seals the bag, opens the top assembly for bag removal, then closes to pull a new bag into place. If the lid won’t close due to overloading, the trash can will automatically lift the top and seal the bag for removal. The trash can is fitted with infrared sensors that detect movement at a range of 35 centimeters (about 14 inches). The bags are pulled from the Refill Ring and cut and sealed using... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2SFsYbt

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Huawei has reportedly been allowed to participate in 5G trials in India by the government, according to IANS. The approval should come as a major breakthrough for Huawei as the company is facing a ban by the U.S for spying using telecom equipment. Considering the scrutiny Huawei is facing globally, this should come as a major relief for the company. The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) said it will provide trial spectrum to all the major players in the telecom sector and these operators can each choose their own partners. Earlier in December, DoT approved prices for 5G spectrum auction which will offer around 6050MHz of air waves for 5G connectivity. Commenting on the development, Jay Chen, Huawei CEO told IANS, “We thank the Indian government for their continued faith in Huawei. We firmly believe that only technology innovations and high quality networks will be the key to rejuvenating the Indian telecom industry. We have our full confidence in the Modi Government to drive...

Apple is not a company known for manufacturing high-end gaming machines. It has consistently snubbed the games industry with only a handful of titles releasing for their devices. But, with a new year comes new resolutions. It has been reported that Apple are looking at releasing a brand new ‘gaming Mac in 2020. The company is rumored to be unveiling the gaming Mac at WWDC 2020.   The gaming Mac could be an ‘e-sports centric’ machine that will come with a price tag of $5000 ( Rs 3,56,427 approx). You may think that $5000 is too much for a gaming machine, but remember that Apple does have a habit of overcharging users for its products so this comes as no surprise. Considering that most Apple computers are used for professional activities like audio or video production, it remains to be seen how Apple will handle high-end games on its machines.  Another thing to consider is that Apple has little to no experience when it comes to porting demanding games on its systems, so take t...

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Samsung is rumored to be launching the Galaxy Fold 2 alongside Galaxy S11 series. A new report claims that the next foldable phone from Samsung could go on sale earlier than the mainstream flagships. To recall, Samsung launched the Galaxy Fold alongside the Galaxy S10 series on February 21 this year. Reportedly, Samsung will launch the Galaxy Fold 2 and Galaxy S11 series on February 11. According to a new report from South Korea's Yonhap News Agency, Samsung Galaxy Fold 2 could go on sale before the Galaxy S11. Samsung is said to be in talks with three of South Korea's major carriers to release the Galaxy Fold 2 in February. The next Samsung foldable phone is rumoured to be made available for sale "immediately" after its official unveiling. However, whether or not it will go on sale in markets outside South Korea before the end of February is yet to be known. Samsung Galaxy Fold 2 is tipped to be a clamshell foldable phone like the Motorola Razr (2019). It is said t...

Samsung Galaxy S10 successor could launch earlier than expected. According to a new leak, Samsung Galaxy S11 series could launch on February 11, instead of February 18 that was reported earlier. Samsung is tipped to host the launch event that it usually calls “Unpacked” in San Francisco, California to unveil the next-generation Galaxy S-series phones. Alongside the Galaxy S11 series, the company is expected to unveil its next foldable phone - the Galaxy Fold 2.  According to a report from Israeli website Girafa, Samsung is said to launch the Galaxy S11 models before the official opening of Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2020. Samsung would get more time to promote its Galaxy S11 series by choosing a date ahead of MWC 2020 as its competitors will be bringing their flagships at the event. However, Samsung is yet to announce the launch date. Samsung Galaxy S11 series is expected to comprise of Galaxy S11, Galaxy S11+ and Galaxy S11e. The trio is said to feature a telephoto lens with 48...

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The Uncharted movie, based on the massively popular Indiana Jones -like game series, has lost another director, according to Deadline . Its release date has also been pushed back. Deadline says Travis Knight, who most recently directed Transformers spinoff Bumblebee , had to drop from the Uncharted movie because of scheduling difficulties. The movie is set to star Tom Holland as protagonist Nathan Drake. Holland, however, is also committed to playing Spider-Man in the next Marvel iteration of series , which apparently begins shooting this summer. Deadline reports that Sony still plans to release the Uncharted movie, but with a new director and later release date. (It was originally slated for a December 18th, 2020 release.) The Uncharted... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2Qz3l9x

NIO’s new EC6 SUV, which is expected to hit the road in late 2020.  | Images: NIO NIO, China’s leading EV startup, announced its third production vehicle this past weekend, a small and sporty all-electric SUV called the EC6. The Tencent-backed automaker also announced it has developed a new battery pack that will enable all three of its production models to travel well over 300 miles on a full charge. But neither of these new products will arrive until late 2020, meaning they offer almost no direct help to NIO when it comes to fixing the troublesome financial situation the startup is currently in. NIO announced Monday that it finished the third quarter of 2019 with just $274 million in cash, and also told its shareholders the company will only survive if it rapidly raises new funding. “The Company’s cash balance is... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/36cJ5RE

Photo: Katalin Vermes / Netflix Netflix’s The Witcher is really popular, at least according to the company — it’s in their top ten most popular series releases this year, despite debuting about a week and a half ago. That’s given The Witcher games a huge bump on Twitch and Steam. Kotaku reported yesterday that over on Steam, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — a great game — set a new active player count record, with 94,000 people playing the game, which came out four years ago. That is a 93 percent jump from the month before. pic.twitter.com/VzJ7tgIsGb — Netflix US (@netflix) December 30, 2019 Over on Twitch, the bump was equally large. According to Twitchmetrics , The Witcher 3 had a peak of 31,000 viewers this week alone; back in October, the game was averaging around... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/35bE3Um

Photo by Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto via Getty Images A handful of depression management and suicide prevention apps — downloaded millions of times — included incorrect or nonfunctional contact information for suicide crisis help lines, according to a new analysis . While apps can offer people with suicidal thoughts or behaviors an important lifeline, experts are worried that many of the apps available on the Apple App Store or Google Play may not be following best practices, or connecting people with appropriate resources. Depression management and suicide prevention apps can fill an important role: many people feel more comfortable looking for information or seeking help online, and report that it’s easier to ask questions and share problems online rather than speaking with a person face... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2F8xFCx

Credit: Nick Walton AI Dungeon 2 may not have appeared on The Verge’s game of the year list , but it’s one of the coolest video game experiments of 2019, and it’s now playable in its easiest form yet. AI Dungeon 2 is an adventure game run by a text generation program, capable of responding to basically any command with a coherent response. Its earlier versions were either clumsy to set up or limited to mobile apps, which aren’t ideal for a typing-based game — but it recently relaunched on the web in a faster and more stable version. As my colleague James Vincent has explained , AI Dungeon 2 was built on OpenAI’s text production system. When you pick a genre (like fantasy, mystery, or zombie fiction), it generates a setting that you can interact with however... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2ti2QIU

Image: Wyze An unsecured server exposed the data of Wyze customers over a period of three weeks, the smart security camera manufacturer has admitted. The leak was first discovered by the cybersecurity firm Twelve Security, which published its findings on December 26th , while IPVM , a blog focused on video surveillance products, was able to verify that its own data had been affected by the leak. According to Twelve Security, the data of around 2.4 million Wyze customers was compromised. In a forum post announcing the leak to its users, Wyze co-founder Dongsheng Song wrote that the exposed server was not a production server, but was instead a “flexible database” that was created to allow for customer data to be more quickly queried. The co-founder said... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/37h13Tc

Netflix’s The Witcher adaptation seems to be the streaming service’s latest hit, helped at least in part by the massive viral success of the hit song of the season, “Toss a Coin to Your Witcher,” sung by the bard Jaskier (Joey Batey) at the end of the show’s second episode to immortalize the epic deeds of Geralt of Rivia (Henry Cavill). But there’s one huge issue with “Toss a Coin to Your Witcher” (other than the fact that it will get stuck in your head seemingly forever): Netflix hasn’t released it (or any of The Witcher ’s soundtrack) for streaming on Spotify, Apple Music, Google Play, or any other major streaming or music purchasing service. The only semi-official release of the song, in fact, comes not from Netflix,... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2F4FuJo

A tiny New Mexico town has been waiting for space tourists to fly down the road Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2SCedWL

Oppo has sent out a press release stating that it will introduce a new F-series smartphone soon. The company says that the Oppo F15 is all set to make its way in India. As the name suggests, Oppo F15 will succeed the F11 and F11 Pro. The latter two were launched in March, this year.  According to Oppo, the F15 will be lightweight and fashionable. However, the company has not revealed any specifications of the phone. Although, there is a teaser image that gives us our first look at the upcoming device. Oppo says, “OPPO F15 will come equipped with a host of features making it a worthy contender in its price segment,” it adds, “OPPO has combined some of its latest breakthrough technologies in a sleek design for their upcoming OPPO F15.” Hence, one can expect the Oppo F15 to be a sleek smartphone that could be made official early net year. The company is likely to launch Oppo F15 in March 2020 as the Oppo F11 duo will complete one year in the Indian market. Generally, the O...

Oppo launched its mid-range Oppo A5 2020 smartphone back in September in India and now it has silently announced a new variant of the handset. A 6GB RAM variant of the phone is now available for purchase via the company’s offline retailers and it is priced at Rs 14,990. This new version comes equipped with 128GB of internal storage and except for the increased RAM and storage, there isn’t any change to other hardware specs of the phone. To recall, the handset was previously launched in 3GB RAM + 64GB storage version and 4GB RAM + 64GB storage variant.  Oppo A5 2020 specifications and features Coming to the specs of the Oppo A5 2020, the handset sports a 6.5-inch display with a 1600 x 720 pixel resolution. The display sports a waterdrop notch display design. It is powered by the Snapdragon 665 SoC and comes in the above-mentioned RAM and storage options. Alongside face unlock, there is also a fingerprint sensor on the phone and the entire package is backed by a 5000mAh battery...

Building on the existing Collections feature, Google has added a new feature on Google Search called ‘Watchlist.’ It enables users to bookmark television shows and movies that they want to watch in the future. It can be found within a card on Google Search, joining a different tool that allows users to mark a show or movie as already watched. Users can find the Watchlist feature below the description card for a TV show or a movie searched by the user. The new feature enables users to generate a Watchlist, which in turn makes it easier to browse content they are looking to watch the next time they’re in need of something to stream for movie night.  There is a ‘Watched it?’ bubble next to the ‘Watchlist’ whose function is precisely what it sounds like - it lets users mark a movie or TV show they’ve already watched. Once bookmarked, the movies and TV shows are saved to the particular Google Account used to perform the action. When a user clicks on the Watchlist, it shows t...

Image: 91Mobiles / @OnLeaks The Pixel 4A could be Google’s first phone to feature a hole-punch display, new renders published by 91Mobiles claim. The unofficial renders, which are based on information provided by leaker OnLeaks , show what could be an unannounced budget version of the recently released Pixel 4, similar to the Pixel 3A that followed last year’s Pixel 3. The design appears to combine elements of both the Pixel 4 and the 3A. The 3.5mm headphone jack from the 3A returns, as does the bottom-firing speakers and rear-mounted fingerprint sensor. Meanwhile, the square camera bump from the Pixel 4 also makes an appearance here. However, while the Pixel 4 included two sensors on its rear, the renders claim that the 4A will have just one. The 4A will... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2MD4YBW

He Jiankui at the event where he publicly announced the experiment. | Image: ANTHONY WALLACE/AFP via Getty Images A Chinese court has sentenced the scientist behind the world’s first gene-edited babies, He Jiankui, to three years in prison, saying that the researcher’s team “crossed the bottom line of ethics.” Alongside his prison sentence, The Guardian reports that He was also fined 3 million yuan (around $430,000). He Jiankui was sentenced alongside two colleagues. Zhang Renli was fined 1 million yuan (around $143,000) and sentenced to two years in prison, while Qin Jinzhou was fined 500,000 yuan (around $71,000) and sentenced to 18-months in prison, with a two-year reprieve. “The three accused did not have the proper certification to practice medicine, and in seeking fame and wealth, deliberately violated national regulations in scientific... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2MH98ZB

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Realme is all set to launch its first 5G smartphone, the Realme X50 5G on January 7. However, more than one week before the official arrival of the handset, alleged specifications have surfaced online. Moreover, the leaked specification sheet lists three variants of Realme X50 5G alongside their price. The handset is claimed to deliver a two-day battery life on a single charge.  The leak comes from a tipster on Weibo. Realme X50 5G is tipped to feature a 6.67-inch full-HD+ (1080 x 2400 pixels) 2.5D curved display made by JDI with Gorilla Glass 5 protection. Further, the handset will feature a 3D curved glass design on the back that is said to be protected by Gorilla Glass 5. It is said to come with 90Hz display refresh rate. Realme X50 5G is confirmed to be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G SoC. It is said to come in two RAM variants, 6GB and 8GB and have up to 256GB storage onboard.  On the optics front, Realme X50 5G will sport a quad rear camera setup: a 64MP Samsun...

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Photo by James Bareham / The Verge Tesla has delivered the first cars produced by its Chinese Gigafactory, just under a year after the company broke ground on its first factory located outside of the US. Reuters reports that the Model 3 vehicles were delivered to 15 of Tesla’s employees as part of a ceremony. The deliveries were made well within schedule by the company, which had previously said it wanted to begin delivering its Chinese-made cars before the Lunar New Year on January 25th. The locally-produced cars already offer a large price saving over imported models, and a Bloomberg report recently said the company could lower prices further as it cuts costs and uses more locally-sourced components. The deliveries mark an important milestone for Tesla, which hopes to... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2tVSFKr

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Reliance Jio captured the entry-level smart feature phone market with JioPhone as the top-selling device till Q3 2019. However, the company lost its top spot as the most sold feature phone to Samsung, as per a Counterpoint Research report. It now seems like there is another device in the pipeline, which could revive Jio’s position in the feature phone segment. According to MySmartPrice’s sources, Jio is readying a new handset, which is devoid of internet connectivity and is reportedly called Jio Phone Lite. While the idea of any handset that doesn’t support internet connectivity seems absurd, it might just work out in tier II and tier III cities.  The Jio Phone Lite’s alleged pricing might be set below Rs 500 and the company might announce a new Rs 50 prepaid plan for it. The recharge option is said to offer free Jio to Jio plans that will be valid for 28 days and calling others would be chargeable. As for the handset’s specification, the device could feature an alphanumeric keybo...

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Google Pixel 4a has reportedly appeared online, tipping a new Pixel design. The smartphone is seen to sport a never-seen-before-on-a-Pixel hole-punch display. Moreover, the handset is seen to feature a single rear camera in the Pixel 4-like rectangular module. However, tipster OnLeaks suggests that Google could add more image sensors. Google Pixel 4a is expected to launch sometime in mid-2020.  The latest development comes from Twitter tipster OnLeaks who has shared the alleged 360 degree renders of the Google Pixel 4a. While the Pixel 4a has been leaked in White, the report says it will launch in Black and Purple colour options as well. Moreover, an additional colour may be added to the mix. Coming to the display, Pixel 4a is seen sporting a punch-hole screen with a thin outline of bezels on all sides of the display. The handset is rumoured to feature a flat 5.7-inch or 5.8-inch display. The rear of White Pixel 4a hints at a matte finish and a square-shaped module to house the ...

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Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge The holidays are here, and if you’re unwrapping a new Kindle (or a non-Amazon-branded e-reader, or just a device with an e-book app on it), you might be looking for some new books to read. If you need some recommendations, here’s a list of some of the best science fiction books released in 2019, which should be the perfect choices for a long plane ride home or a quiet vacation morning. We’ve rounded up our favorite and most-used games, apps, and entertainment. Check out our app picks for iPhones , Android phones , PCs and Macs ; our favorite mobile games from Apple Arcade and Google Play Pass ; and our top choices for gaming PCs , the PS4 , Xbox One , Nintendo Switch and VR . We’ve also listed our favorite streaming shows on Disney+, Hulu,... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/367bDMv

Two months ago, just before The Mandalorian was about to premiere on Disney+, I made a joke to some friends: wouldn’t it be funny if this show was better than Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker ? I thought it was unlikely, but possible: ending a trilogy well is hard, and The Mandalorian didn’t have nearly as many expectations riding on it. Eight weeks later and The Rise of Skywalker is out, a very profitable hot mess , and The Mandalorian concludes its first season with a finale that doesn’t try for much, but also rocks. It is, surprisingly, the better Star War. (Very mild spoilers to follow.) Mando and The Child, out and about. What will they find next? Most of the reasons why I like The Mandalorian boil down to restraint: It’s full of... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2SAlcQ0

Storm chasers, a rocket launch, and a melting ice cream cake Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2skkImC

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Sci-fi futures, toxic cultures, and scooter wars Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2Q4RpO0

You’ve got an evening to kill and a Netflix subscription — don’t waste any time browsing. These ten picks aren’t going to even begin to cover all of the great stuff on Netflix, but it’s a good start. Here’s what you should definitely watch. We’ve rounded up our favorite and most-used games, apps, and entertainment. Check out our app picks for iPhones, Android phones, PCs, Macs and TVs; our favorite mobile games from Apple Arcade and Google Play Pass; and our top choices for the PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. We’ve also listed our favorite streaming shows on Disney+, Hulu and Netflix, some great sci-fi books, and exciting new podcasts. (Note: pricing was accurate at the time of publishing, but may change.) Marriage Story ... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2t90wE7

Disney The Disney-fueled ESPN+/Disney+/Hulu triple pack might be the biggest power play in the streaming wars yet. The late-2019 bundling of these services offers three huge entertainment libraries, a staggering array of choices that’s mostly good at making it impossible to choose. Don’t sweat it. Here are 10 rock-solid picks culled from all three services, with something for any mood. Unless noted otherwise, most of these are available on Hulu, the service with the largest and most varied library. We’ve rounded up our favorite and most-used games, apps, and entertainment. Check out our app picks for iPhones, Android phones, PCs, Macs and TVs; our favorite mobile games from Apple Arcade and Google Play Pass; and our top choices for the PS4,... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2QqF2e3

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The Mandalorian and Baby Yoda will return for a second season next fall, executive producer Jon Favreau confirmed today. Favreau tweeted the confirmation, adding that it will arrive in the fall, but with no specific release date just yet. The Mandalorian ’s season 1 finale was released today, and was praised by both critics and fans for its satisfying end . The episode concludes with a tease of what to expect from the show’s villain Moff Gideon — including a possible tie-in to Star Wars Rebels — that many fans are hoping will be explored in the second season. Season 2 of #TheMandalorian coming Fall 2020 pic.twitter.com/8VQYLDMQ0V — Jon Favreau (@Jon_Favreau) December 27, 2019 Fall 2020 is shaping up to be a busy time for Disney+. The... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2F0K6jK

This decade, babies took on a new life. Everyone wanted to be a baby, and particularly this year, babies dominated the meme cycle. We’re obsessed with babyfication — turning everything into a baby including ourselves and beloved characters. Unlike infantilization, babyfication suggests corporate strategy, forethought about how turning users or characters into babies could spur brand visibility. I can’t pretend to understand why we’re baby-crazy, except for positing that it has something to do with a complete lack of control over the world and our lives. Climate change is going to burn up the Earth; wealth inequality is rampant; and generally, many things are bad. Babies, on the other hand, are good. They’re innocent and pure. They don’t... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/37pyjIf

Photo by Dan MacMedan/WireImage Phoebe Waller-Bridge is having a great year. Fresh off the second season of her acclaimed show Fleabag , the writer / actor / producer inked a blockbuster deal with Amazon Prime Video in September. She’s emerged at the end of 2019 as one of the biggest names in TV, having worked on the script for the upcoming James Bond film, started on a brand-new HBO show, hosted Saturday Night Live, and won big at the Emmys for Fleabag. Image: Rosalind O’Connor / NBCU Photo Bank / NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images Fleabag , in which Waller-Bridge plays the title character, is based on a play she wrote and performed at the Edinburgh Film Festival in 2013. Season 1 premiered in 2016, but the show practically went viral... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2SwFCJV

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Popular USB charging company Anker has an all-new iPhone accessory that should elevate your mobile photography game in the lighting department. It’s an LED flash that connects to the iPhone 11 via the Lightning connector. Anker’s new gadget confirms a 9to5Mac report from earlier this month regarding upcoming flash accessories soon to be certified in Apple’s Made-for-iPhone (MFi) licensing program. It appears Anker has one of, if not the , first of these flashes on the market. External flashes have existed for the iPhone in the past , but just not as part of the MFi program. That means these devices haven’t been able to integrate with Apple’s native hardware and software, like the iPhone’s built-in flash or its stock Camera app. ... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/37fHMBM

Alex Castro / The Verge As first reported by AdAge , Spotify said Friday it will “pause” political advertising early in 2020 on its ad-supported tier and its original and exclusive podcasts, saying it doesn’t have the resources to properly vet such ads. “At this point in time, we do not yet have the necessary level of robustness in our processes, systems and tools to responsibly validate and review this content,” the company said in a statement to The Verge . “We will reassess this decision as we continue to evolve our capabilities.” Spotify does not offer ads on its platform outside the US. The company would not tell AdAge how much revenue its political ads generate, but Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-VT) and the RNC have run ads on Spotify in the past. Spotify joins... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2ZsJ0H7

Photo by ARIS OIKONOMOU/AFP via Getty Images A rapidly changing climate drove hundreds of governments around the world to declare states of emergency in 2019. While the declarations are largely symbolic gestures, they have in some cases become jumping-off points for real action. It’s the culmination of coordinated efforts by activists pushing governments to take action that is as dramatic as the threats posed by the climate crisis. “The Climate Emergency movement reached a tipping point” “This year, the Climate Emergency movement reached a tipping point, and thousands of average people began getting involved in climate politics and advocating for change,” Laura Berry, director of research and publications at The Climate Mobilization wrote to The Verge in an email. Her... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2Q57lzL

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Got a VR headset for the holidays this year and unsure of where to start? Not to worry — whether you’ve got an Oculus Quest, Vive Cosmos, or a Nintendo Labo VR kit, here are recommendations for some of our favorite games that best show off the platform’s capabilities. There’s a good range of games that span family-friendly to escape-the-family, so hopefully there’s something here for everyone. We’ve rounded up our favorite and most-used games, apps, and entertainment. Check out our app picks for iPhones , Android phones , PCs and Macs ; our favorite mobile games from Apple Arcade and Google Play Pass ; and our top choices for gaming PCs , the PS4 , Xbox One , Nintendo Switch and VR . We’ve also listed our favorite streaming shows on Disney+,... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2tWm5Z3

Make almost anything work with Sonos, but it’ll cost you Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2t9991m

Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge Sonos today announced that it will increase prices on the Sonos Amp and Sonos Port by $50 as it shifts production out of China and into Malaysia. The Amp will now retail for $649 and the Port will sell for $449; the price increases will be effective January 9th, 2020. Other Sonos products will remain the same price. Sonos telegraphed this move earlier in the year, telling analysts on earnings calls that it would be moving production out of China and prices might be affected. The company tells me the move is less about tariffs, which it called a “one-time hit,” and more about diversifying production for the future. The Amp and Port are at the upper end of the Sonos product line — they allow custom AV installers and enthusiasts to... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/360hJ12

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Getting the most out of your Apple computer often means exploring well beyond the stock apps pre-installed on macOS and the top charts of the Mac App Store. Many of the best productivity, workflow, and OS customization software have been around for years, but they can be hard to find if you’re a first-time Mac user and don’t know what you’re looking for or what the crucial differences are between macOS and Windows. Below, we’ve compiled a list of some of the best software available for Mac, from email and shortcut apps to window organizers and multimedia players. This isn’t meant to be a definitive list; check out last year’s guide for GIF making, recipe organization, and photo editing apps, for example. But it is a good place to start... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2ZuEqbk

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales Setting up a new phone is a flurry of entering passwords, transferring contact data, downloading must-have social media apps, and entering even more passwords. Once that’s all done, it’s time to fill your phone with everything else you might need day to day: a smarter weather app, a good email client, and some things to make sure you have plenty to read and listen to. Here are our suggestions for where to start. We’ve rounded up our favorite and most-used games, apps, and entertainment. Check out our app picks for iPhones, Android phones, PCs, Macs and TVs; our favorite mobile games from Apple Arcade and Google Play Pass; and our top choices for the PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. We’ve also listed our favorite streaming shows on... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2ZtB1tf