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Showing posts from June, 2020

FuboTV increases monthly subscription to $65

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FuboTV is the latest virtual TV service to introduce a sharp subscription fee hike, not long after YouTube TV announced that it was drastically increasing its subscription fees to $65 a month. The company sent out emails to subscribers today letting them know that standard plans are increasing from $55 a month to $65 as of their next billing cycle following August 1, 2020. As part of the hike, people on standard accounts will be rolled into Fubo’s Family Bundle plan, which includes three simultaneous streams, Cloud DVR Plus, and 500 hours of DVR space, according to the email. Fubo last increased the price of its standard plan in March 2019 , going from $45 to $55 a month. Other FuboTV customers posted screenshots on social media of... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2VwP2pu

Dreams is getting PlayStation VR support this month

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Dreams , the expansive game creation tool for the PlayStation 4, is getting VR support. Development studio Media Molecule made the announcement on the official PlayStation blog, saying that PlayStation VR compatibility would arrive as part of a free update later this month. There’ll be new tutorials that teach you how to create VR content, and the update will also bring games and experiences that are ready to play right away. There’ll be a lot of flexibility in the interface: VR experiences can be crafted both in and out of the PSVR headset, and PlayStation Move controllers are optional. Sculpting with Move controllers “is a very one-to-one experience and lets you fully immerse in the creation process,” according to Media Molecule, which... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/3eP44OU

Microsoft will ban Forza players who add the confederate flag to their digital cars

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If you play Forza Horizon or Forza Motorsport , you have some freedom to personalize cars in the game, even adding your own custom designs. One popular example: players have used the feature to recreate the General Lee , the 1969 Dodge Charger from The Dukes of Hazzard , in almost every single Forza game since at least 2007 . But the General Lee famously includes the controversial confederate flag on its back — and Microsoft has just announced it will ban players who use that symbol (among others) in the game. In a statement posted on Twitter last Friday, Microsoft updated its enforcement guidelines to have a zero-tolerance policy for any player using the confederate flag or other symbols that represent “ notorious iconography ,” including... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2ZtuCyy

OnePlus confirms its upcoming cheaper phones will be called Nord

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OnePlus has announced a new product line of cheaper phones called OnePlus Nord, with the goal of making the “premium OnePlus experience accessible to more users.” “We are immensely proud of our flagship products and will continue to create more tech-leading flagships for our users. Now we are excited to share the OnePlus experience with even more users around the world through this new product line,” commented OnePlus CEO Pete Lau in the announcement. OnePlus originally began by selling cheaper devices (the original OnePlus One started at just $299 ), but it’s become best known for its premium smartphones over the past few years (like the current OnePlus 8 and 8 Pro ). Those models have attempted to challenge phones from more entrenched... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/31uQLz7

Google now lets you see dinosaurs in the real world through augmented reality

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You can choose from 10 dinosaurs, including Tyrannosaurus Rex, Velociraptor, and Triceratops. | Image: Google It’s one thing to read about the massive dinosaurs that used to roam the Earth; it’s quite another to imagine how they’d look stomping around your neighborhood. Google can help, though. The company has added 10 augmented reality dinosaurs to Google search, meaning that next time you’re looking for vital statistics on a Brachiosaurus or Pteranodon , you’ll also be able to get an idea of how these creatures looked in real life. Google started adding augmented reality animals to searches last year at Google I/O and has since introduced a veritable menagerie , covering cats, scorpions, bears, tigers, and many more. Now, a herd of dinosaurs has also been added to this list, each of which uses graphics developed for the Jurassic World Alive... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2YIEXYl

Motorola’s unlocked Edge gets a $700 price tag, slight spec bump

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Image: Motorola Motorola has announced that the regular Edge — the cheaper sibling to its recently released flagship Edge Plus — will cost $699.99, which puts it at $300 less than the $999.99 Edge Plus. There’s still no release date, though, outside of the previously announced “summer” window. Motorola has also announced that it’ll bump up the specs a bit for the standard Edge. Instead of the originally planned 4GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, the Edge will now offer 6GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. The Motorola Edge features a similar design to the Edge Plus — including the eponymous 6.7-inch “edge” display — but it achieves that cheaper price point by cutting down on some of the specs. The Snapdragon 865 on the Edge Plus is replaced with a slightly... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2Vurlhy

Niantic partners with Sleep No More creator to build immersive AR theater experiences

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Image: Niantic Labs Pokémon Go creator Niantic Labs is partnering with Punchdrunk, the New York City-based production company behind seminal immersive theater piece Sleep No More . The partnership will see both companies work toward “developing multiple projects that will reinvent storytelling for a 21st century audience and further expand the horizon of interactive entertainment.” Sleep No More , launched in 2011, is an immersive theater production that lets audiences walk through a series of rooms and experience various storylines and other elements of the production at their own pace. Influenced in part by haunted houses and other nonlinear live productions, immersive theater sounds like a prime fit for augmented reality because it could allow for Niantic... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2ZmfX8p

Samsung’s Galaxy Watch 3 software detailed in new leak

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Recently leaked press images have lead to speculation of a July 22nd launch. | Image: Evan Blass Several software features from Samsung’s unannounced Galaxy Watch 3 have leaked, after the smartwatch’s firmware was downloaded early by XDA-Developers’ Max Weinbach . According to Weinbach’s sleuthing, Samsung’s unannounced smartwatch could include more customizable watchfaces, alongside updates to its music, email, and calendar apps. Watchfaces are seeing some of the biggest software changes. Weinbach says there are new designs to choose from , and some of these will include a feature called “ informative digital edge ,” where custom details like your heart rate or current steps can be shown around the edges of the watchface. I really like this one https://t.co/RoWsuuKBQk pic.twitter.com/vvx9AtxQyS — Max Weinbach (@MaxWinebach) June 30,... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/3dMfK3t

The ThinkPad TrackPoint tried to build a better mouse

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In today’s digital age, it sometimes feels like hardware has taken a back seat to the software that drives our devices. Button of the Month will look at what some of those buttons and switches are like on devices old and new to appreciate how we interact with them on a physical, tactile level. It goes by many names : the TrackPoint, the nub, the mouse nipple, the pointing stick, the weird red dot on your keyboard. Love it or hate it, the famous — or infamous — mouse solution has practically become the symbol for ThinkPad’s business-focused laptops. It’s a well thought out, but ultimately failed alternative to the now-ubiquitous trackpad. But there’s an argument to be made that it might actually be a better form of mouse for laptops, as... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/3ePf7Yc

Its officially called OnePlus Nord

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OnePlus Nord has officially been confirmed as the name of the company’s upcoming affordable smartphone. The phone has earlier been referred to as the OnePlus Z, OnePlus 8 Lite and more recently, OnePlus Lite. However, putting all rumours and guesses to rest, OnePlus has revealed that its affordable smartphone is called OnePlus Nord. In the first part of the documentary released by OnePlus, the company gives its fans an overview of what went into making an affordable phone in a matter of six months that will be priced below $500. The phone was previously expected to be unveiled along with the OnePlus 8 series that launched on March 15, however, due to the Coronavirus pandemic, the launch was postponed to a later date. It’s now speculated that the OnePlus Nord will be launched on July 10. The second part of the documentary is scheduled to release on July 7 where the company is expected to reveal more details about the launch of the OnePlus Nord. OnePlus Nord will also go up for pre-ord...

TikTok banned in India: Heres what TikTokers have to say about the ban

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We won’t be hearing about TikTok for a while now. The viral video sharing app has been banned by the Indian Government along with 58 other apps originating out of China, and this one’s not a hoax. The order came straight The Ministry of Information Technology, invoking the power under section 69A of the IT Act 2009, based on “information available they are engaged in activities which are prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of state and public order.” The appendix lists out popular apps like UC Browser, Shareit, Helo, Likee, WeChat, ES File Explorer and a bunch of utility and community apps, including that of Xiaomi. Among the 59 apps, TikTok is certainly the largest, and would probably be missed a lot. Based on stats provided by Apptrace, it’s presently ranked fourth in India on the Google Play Store and ranked sixth on the App Store. And the viral short video platform boasts a whopping 119 million active users in India alone! Popular se...

Unilever, Verizon, Coca-Cola, Starbucks, Microsoft: All the companies pulling ads from Facebook

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Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge For the first time in its history, Facebook is facing an organized boycott from advertisers set to begin July 1st. It’s not from small companies, either — large corporations including Hershey, Honda, and Verizon have stopped their spending. The goal of the Stop Hate for Profit campaign is to pressure the social media behemoth into changing how it handles hate speech and misinformation, including often incendiary posts from President Trump . The companies pledge to stop advertising on Facebook and Instagram for at least a month. Some companies have taken the boycott a step further, pulling advertising from all (or most) social media platforms — not just Facebook — and that list includes Coca-Cola, Starbucks, and Unilever. Microsoft has... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/3dIG7ax

Vizio’s latest 4K HDR TVs now shipping, with OLED model due in the fall

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Image: Vizio First announced back at CES, Vizio’s latest lineup of 4K TVs is starting to roll out to retailers. The company’s first OLED model will take a little longer and isn’t expected to ship until the fall, however. Still, the other sets in the 2020 family — Vizio is confusingly calling it the 2021 lineup for some reason — should offer excellent picture quality and be near the top of your list if you’re planning to upgrade your TV for the PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X this holiday. As before, the flagship LED remains the P-Series Quantum X, which can hit up to 3000 nits of peak brightness and comes in 65 ($1,499.99), 75 ($1,999.99), and 85-inch ($2,999) sizes. Vizio says the entire panel can reach up to 800 nits of brightness. The standard... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/3ihISTG

OnePlus announces 100 pre-orders for its affordable phone on July 1

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OnePlus Nord a.k.a the OnePlus Lite / OnePlus Z will be up for pre-orders starting July 1, the company has announced. The much-anticipated affordable OnePlus smartphone hasn’t been announced yet and it's not confirmed what it will be called at launch. However, the company is opening up 100 pre-orders for the phone, indicating that we’re close to an official launch. Interestingly, OnePlus is hosting an event on July 2 where it is expected to launch three new TVs. The new Instagram account OnePlus created for its affordable smartphone has posted a story which says “24 hours until we’re open for business - for at least a couple of seconds. 100 pre-orders coming up”, concluding with a phone emoji. The company has been generating a lot of hype for its affordable phone which marks OnePlus’ re-entry into the affordable segment.  How to pre-order OnePlus Nord? OnePlus will go live with 100 pre-orders for its upcoming affordable phone dubbed OnePlus Nord on July 1 from 1:30 PM IST. ...

Apple might not include a charger with the iPhone 12. Good

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Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Over the weekend, lots of sites reported that Apple analyst Ming-chi Kuo is claiming that the iPhones due to be released later this year won’t have chargers or EarPods in the box. If you want to know what most tech bloggers thought of the rumor, you can head over here to see all the tweets , almost all of which amount to “that sounds like a bad, user-hostile thing to do.” I say good: drop the in-box charger (but I have a couple requests). The clearest piece I’ve seen about pulling the charger out of the box comes from venture capitalist MG Siegler . He points out that there are four reasons that Apple might have for doing this: increased margins, shipping costs, the transition to a future no-port iPhone, and the environment. That list, for... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/3eOL0jJ

Spotify brings real-time lyrics to 26 countries, not including the US

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Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Spotify is launching a new real-time lyrics feature in 26 markets today, including India and countries in Southeast Asia and Latin America, TechCrunch reports . Where available, users can access them by tapping the “lyrics” card at the bottom of the service’s “Now Playing” screen. The new feature uses lyrics provided by Musixmatch, and will be shown in the song’s language. Lyrics have a complicated history on Spotify. The service has actually worked with Musixmatch previously, before breaking ties with the company in 2016 . That same year, Spotify started working with Genius on its “Behind the Lyrics” feature , which gives background information about select tracks, alongside the lyrics themselves. It’s an interesting feature, but this... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2YKFrNF

The Facebook boycott advertisers have the right company but the wrong diagnosis

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Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales It was a big news day for bans: Twitch temporarily banned Donald Trump , Reddit banned The_Donald , YouTube banned a group of far-right creators , and India banned TikTok . But I still haven’t written about the Facebook ad boycott, which accelerated since last I wrote — so let’s talk about that today, and we’ll get to the rest later this week. I. A social media advertising boycott that began with some outerwear brands picked up steam over the weekend, and has been joined by some of the giants of consumer brand advertising. Unilever , Verizon , Starbucks , Coca-Cola , and Clorox are among those who have pulled their ads. ( Microsoft did so quietly in May.) Some pulled their ads for a month; some put their ads on an indefinite “pause.” Some pulled... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2NGiCVd

ACT Fibernet upgrades customers in Delhi with higher speed, more data cap

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If you are an ACT broadband customer, then there is good news for you. ACT has upgraded the speed and data of some of its plans in Delhi. Under the existing plans, the ACT Platinum Promo plan has been upgraded to 150 Mbps speed with 1000 GB FUP and ACT Diamond plan has been upgraded to 300 Mbps Speeds with 1500 GB FUP. The price of the plans remains the same. The ACT Platinum Promo plan is priced at Rs 1049 whereas the ACT Diamond plan is priced at Rs 1349. Let’s break down the changes to these 2 plans. ACT Platinum Promo plan and ACT Diamond plan details Starting with the ACT Platinum Promo plan, the price of the plan is the same for new and existing customers - Rs 1049. The data cap is still the same at 1000GB after which the speed drops to 1Mbps. During the FUP usage, however, speed for customers has been increased from 150 Mbps to 200 Mbps.  Moving over to the ACT Diaomind plan, the speed for users has increased from 150 Mbps to 300 Mbps and the data cap has also increased fr...

‘Hey Google’ smart home event scheduled for July 8th

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Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Google is hosting a virtual smart home developer event on July 8th in lieu of its cancelled Google I/O conference , the company has announced , promising to cover “new and upcoming features for smart home developers and users.” The online Works with “Hey Google” Smart Home Summit , as the event is catchily titled, includes a 45 minute keynote, a series of developer sessions and a panel featuring Google and other companies in the smart home industry. The keynote, which will be presented by Google’s Product Management director of the Smart Home Ecosystem Michele Turner, will go over Google’s new smart home API features along with their benefits for developers and users. Although it’s developer-focused, previous Google I/O keynotes have... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/3g94cJg

PUBG Mobile to get new Livik map from 7 July

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PUBG Mobile has confirmed that its new map, Livik will be available to all players from July 7 onwards as part of the v0.19.0 update. The new map is the game’s first map that is exclusive to the mobile version. It is also expected to be one of the smallest maps yet for the game, even smaller than Sanhok, with each game limited to 50 players. Pack your virtual bags and get ready to take a trip to PUBG MOBILE's first exclusive map Livik. Break new ground with Update 0.19.0 becoming available to all regions on July 7th! Join in on the action nowhttps://t.co/Lvgc5qlZAp pic.twitter.com/K661LrsUbW — PUBG MOBILE (@PUBGMOBILE) June 30, 2020 In an interview,  the developers noted that the idea behind the new map is to allow for shorter, faster-paced matches. This would make it ideal for working professionals who may not have the time to play a normal game of PUBG Mobile on large maps like Miramar and Erangel as these games can last for 40 minutes or so.  Besides a shorter and more f...

MediaTek Helio G35 and Helio G25 gaming chipsets announced for affordable smartphones

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MediaTek has launched Helio G35 and Helio G25 chipsets that are built especially for affordable gaming smartphones and comes with MediaTek HyperEngine game technology. Both the chipsets are part of the company’s G-series of processors such as the Helio G90, G90T, G85, G80 and G70 that offer an enhanced gaming experience and imaging features. “Mobile gaming is now the preferred mode of entertainment across market segments, and MediaTek expanded its G-series to meet the huge demand for competitively priced, mainstream gaming smartphones,” said Dr Yenchi Lee, Deputy General Manager, Wireless Communications Business Unit, MediaTek. The Helio G35 and G25 chipsets have been crafted on a 12nm FinFET process with an octa-core CPU with speeds upto 2GHz and 2.3GHz for the G25 and G35 respectively. The new chipsets come with PowerVR GE8320 GPUs with MediaTek’s Hyper Engine that offers smart power management for efficient battery life during gameplay sessions. With the Hyper Engine technology b...

Microsoft could reveal Xbox Series S in August 2020: Report

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If information circulating the internet is to be believed, then we could see the much rumoured less powerful Xbox Series S also known as Lockhart revealed in August 2020. According to the source, “The company was aiming to show off the long-rumoured, more-affordable Xbox Lockhart around June 9. But it pushed those plans all the way to August — at least for now”. So it looks like Microsoft is waiting to showcase the new console, but when Sony held its PS5 reveal event, the company showed off the design of the PS5 along with an all-digital version of the console.  According to Tom Warren from the Verge, “I’ve been reporting on Xbox Lockhart having a slightly underclocked CPU, but I now believe it’s the same speed as Series X. Just different GPU frequencies and CU counts”. So if the CPU is the same, then we can presume that the CPU bottleneck will not be an issue for developers. However, the lower CU counts and GPU frequency means that the console could take a hit on resolution but s...

Uber offers to buy out Postmates, says NYT

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Photo by Horacio Villalobos#Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images Uber has made an offer to buy food delivery company Postmates, according to a report in The New York Times . The report doesn’t say how big the deal would be, but it could be finalized as soon as tonight; discussions are said to be ongoing. Demand for Uber’s ride-hailing business has plummeted during the coronavirus pandemic as people stay at home, but the same circumstances have driven a huge increase in food delivery orders. Uber has been looking for ways to boost its food service, Uber Eats, after laying off more than a quarter of the company’s overall workforce. Uber attempted to buy GrubHub earlier this year, but the deal fell apart amid reported antitrust scrutiny and GrubHub ended up going to European service Just Eat Takeaway for... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/3iePQJf

AT&T brings 5G to Austin, Miami, Salt Lake City, and 25 other regions

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Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge AT&T’s low-band 5G network is expanding to 28 new regions today , including Austin, Miami, Dallas, and Salt Lake City. If you’ve been waiting for a slight speed boost over your current LTE connection and have a 5G-compatible phone, you might want to check if your neighborhood is part of this latest expansion. Technically, we’re talking about AT&T’s low-band 5G network, which has slightly better speeds and latency compared to 4G LTE. When OpenSignal tested 5G speeds from major phone carriers in downtown cities over the winter, it found AT&T’s low-band download speeds averaged 59.3Mbps. The low-band network is not to be confused with AT&T’s 5G Plus , a high-band network with mmWave frequencies, which offer far faster internet speeds than... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/3i7I8Au

You may finally be able to watch Netflix in 4K on a Mac with Big Sur

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Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Watching 4K Netflix video on a Mac seems like it’s about to get much easier, as the forthcoming macOS Big Sur includes a Safari update that reportedly lets you watch Netflix in 4K, along with Dolby Vision HDR, according to a tweet from Ishan Agarwal ( via 9to5Mac ). This may mark the first time that macOS users will be able to stream Netflix in 4K. Previously, streaming 4K Netflix on a computer at all required you to be on Windows and using Microsoft’s Edge browser or the Netflix Windows 10 app . That means, in theory, you could watch Netflix in 4K on a Mac via Windows in a Boot Camp partition — but just loading up Safari, which is installed with macOS Big Sur, could be a far easier option once Big Sur is released (it’s scheduled to come... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2NEi0PA

Google Photos will no longer backup social media folders by default

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Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge Google Photos will no longer backup images and videos saved from folders created and managed by social media apps by default ( via Android Police ). Previously, Google’s photo backup platform would automatically upload all images saved to your Android or iOS device, including those files stored in folders created by apps like Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. Now, Google says that feature is turned off, and you’ll have to toggle it on for specific apps or run manual backups on specific folders. Google is citing the surge in image sharing happening since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. “People are sharing more photos and videos due to COVID-19. To save internet resources, backup & sync has been turned off for device folders created by... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2VLH4Jh

Indian government bans 59 mobile apps including TikTok, Shareit, UC Browser, Mi Community and more

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TikTok, Shareit, UC Browser, Xiaomi Mi Community, ES File Explorer, Clash of Kings are among the list of 59 mobile apps that have been banned by the Indian government. The Ministry of Information Technology finds these apps “engaged in activities which is prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, the security of the state and public order.”  The Indian government had earlier reportedly received a list of apps that originated or have links with China from intelligence agencies citing security and privacy concerns over the use of these apps. In a press release issued by the Ministry of Electronics and IT, the government cites several complaints, reports and an “exhaustive recommendation” which forms the basis of this new order to ban 59 apps. The government hasn’t revealed the nature of the ban, neither has it approached Google Play Store and Apple App Store to enforce the order. As of writing this report TikTok, Shareit and more apps from the list a...

Sony WF-SP800N review: noise cancellation for your workouts

With longer continuous battery life than the 1000XM3s — and proper sweat resistance Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/3gfrT2N

Disney’s deepfakes are getting closer to a big-screen debut

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How close are deepfakes to being used in big-budget films and TV shows? Pretty damn close, if a new demo from Disney is anything to go by. In a video and paper being presented at a computer graphics conference this week, researchers from the House of Mouse show off what they say is the first photo-realistic deepfake at a megapixel resolution. And the results are... pretty good! They’re not mind-blowing, certainly, and not good enough to be used in the next Marvel movie, but it’s a solid step up from deepfakes we’ve seen in the past. As the researchers suggest, what’s new here is the megapixel resolution. Megapixels may no longer be the byword for high-quality images that they used to be. (The camera on your phone probably has a... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/3gatWVD

Go read about how Americans who depend on libraries for internet are coping with the pandemic

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Photo by Paul Marotta/Getty Images COVID-19 has caused libraries around the US to stay closed since mid-March. Less than two-thirds of Americans in rural areas have broadband internet connections at their homes. The Markup has written about the ways in which libraries are attempting to keep their patrons online. It’s well worth a read. In the town of Cherokee, Iowa, about 40 percent of school-aged kids have no internet access. Tyler Hahn, director of the Cherokee Public Library, told The Markup that many of the services he previously provided to the town’s residents have had to take new forms. The library has left Wi-Fi on 24/7, and kids sit in the parking lot to use their phones. Hahn has helped older patrons access the internet by shouting instructions through the... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2YJn5fY

Homegrown Tik-Tok alternative Chingari garners 25 million downloads on Google Play

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A homegrown social networking app called “Chingari” has gone viral with more than 2.5 million downloads on the Google Playstore. Launched as a TikTok alternative, the short video sharing app reached 500,000 downloads in just 72 hours and the new milestone is coupled with thousands of favourable reviews on the app’s listing page on Google Playstore. Apart from helping users reach out to millions with their posts, the biggest draw for the app is that it also pays content creators for content that goes viral. It’s also available on the Apple App Store. It’s a truly Indian app with support for multiple vernacular languages, which has perhaps resonated with the people of the country amidst a surge in Anti-China sentiments. On the Google Playstore, it’s called Chingari - Original Indian Short Video app. What is Chingari app? Billed as a Tik-Tok alternative, Chingari is a homegrown, short video sharing app founded by two Bengaluru-based software engineers Biswatma Nayak and Siddharth Gauta...

Mercedes-Benz reportedly pulls the plug on its subscription service after poor sales

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Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Mercedes-Benz is suspending its two-year-old subscription service after mediocre sales, Automotive News reports . Mercedes-Benz USA head of sales Adam Chamberlain described the service as a learning experience that would have been expanded if sales were better. “If the demand would have been unbelievable, then it could have gone further,” Chamberlain told Automotive News last week. “But demand was just OK, so we kept it.” Mercedes-Benz first rolled out its Collection subscription service in Atlanta in 2018 with the goal of appealing to customers who want to have access to a fleet of fancy cars but don’t necessarily want to own one. The program offered subscribers access to 30 models for a monthly fee, which included insurance, 24/7... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2ZnzFkf

Asus’ ROG Zephyrus G14 is now available with a hidden LED display on its lid

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GIF by Chaim Gartenberg / The Verge The Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 can now be configured with a LED dot-matrix display hidden in its lid, with a new model costing $1,999.99, Asus announced today. This “AniMe Matrix” display consists of 1,215 Mini-LEDs that support 256 levels of brightness each and can be used to show anything from the time to music visualizers, GIFs, or an animated logo from your favorite technology website (see above). Beyond its eye-catching exterior, the Zephyrus G14’s specs are excellent. Asus says it’s equipped with an AMD Ryzen 9 4900HS CPU and up to an Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 GPU. There’s 16GB of RAM and a 1TB NVMEe M.2 SSD. When we reviewed the $1,449 version of the laptop (sans the dot-matrix lid display, unfortunately), we found that those specs... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2BMVIIT

Amazon’s new Fire HD 8 tablets are more affordable than ever, starting at $60

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Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge Amazon’s Fire HD 8 tablets are $30 off today at Amazon and Best Buy. The base model with 32GB of storage costs $60 (usually $90). If you want the option to have wireless charging and to upgrade the RAM to make things a little more smooth with multiple apps open, the Fire HD 8 Plus is $80 (usually $110). The bundle that includes the Fire HD 8 Plus and a wireless charging dock is $30 off, too, costing $120 today instead of $150. Both of these tablets have a USB-C port for faster charging than previous iterations of the Fire HD 8, as well as a faster MediaTek processor. Still, compared to other Android tablets, the app selection is limited to ones that work on Amazon’s Fire OS. Thankfully, as Dieter Bohn points out in his recent review of... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2ZoqJLi

The human cost of Trump’s guest worker ban

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Four workers describe the stress and chaos of the new H-1B proclamation Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/3g72eco

Level Lock review: smarts you can’t see

Surprise! There’s a smart lock in there Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/31qBPSI

Go read this story about how Telegram evaded its Russian ban

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Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Earlier this month, the Russian authorities lifted their ban on the Telegram messaging app , citing the company’s willingness to help with its counterterrorism efforts. However, despite the official ban being in effect for over two years , Telegram has reportedly remained accessible in the country for much of that time. In a new feature, The Washington Post has written how Telegram’s founder Pavel Durov, “humiliated and outmaneuvered Russia’s state telecommunications regulator,” in preventing the app from being successfully banned. Unsurprisingly, it’s well worth a read in full. Telegram initially gained the attention of the Russian authorities because it had reportedly become one of the apps of choice for the country’s opposition groups.... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/3i9X2Gp

Microsoft’s new Windows File Recovery tool lets you retrieve deleted documents

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Microsoft is releasing its own Windows File Recovery tool, designed to retrieve files you’ve mistakenly deleted. Windows File Recovery is a command line app that will recover a variety of files and documents from local hard drives, USB drives, and even SD cards from cameras. Recovery of files on cloud storage or network file shares is not supported, though. Like any file recovery tool, you’ll need to use it as soon as possible on deleted files to ensure they haven’t been overwritten. You’ll be able to use Microsoft’s new tool to recover MP3 files, MP4 videos, PDF documents, JPEG images, and typical Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents. Microsoft’s Windows File Recovery app. Microsoft’s file recovery tool has a... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2VsqNbW

GitHub goes down, affecting thousands of software developers

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GitHub is down for thousands of software developers this morning. The Microsoft-owned service, which provides version control via Git and hosting for software development, has been down for more than an hour. GitHub users have experienced errors logging into the service, and some are even unable to use their integrated development environment (IDE) due to how closely linked software development is to the service. GitHub says it’s investigating the outage , and has “identified the source of elevated errors and are working on recovery.” GitHub is a large code repository that has become very popular with developers and companies hosting entire projects and code on the service. Apple, Amazon, Google, Facebook, and many other big tech... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2NHxr9G

American Airlines will resume booking flights to capacity, as COVID-19 cases soar

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American Airlines will soon remove the booking limits it placed on flights back in April. | Photo by Sandy Huffaker/Getty Images American Airlines will resume booking its flights to capacity starting July 1st, the company has announced . The policy is similar to that of United Airlines, which ABC News reports has never blocked out seats or put a cap on the capacity of its flights. However, the approach contrasts sharply with other airlines, who are continuing to enforce capacity caps in order to allow for in-plane social distancing as the number of coronavirus cases in the United States is on the rise . The airline industry has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, with passenger numbers plummeting. The Chicago Sun Times reports that at its lowest point in April, American Airlines’ passenger numbers were down by around 95 percent. Although passenger bookings... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/3ibGXjs

Apple might exclude charger and earpods from iPhone 12 box

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As we near the launch of the next iPhone, the rumours and leaks around it start to pick up with a feverish pace. Just like the last few years, we’re getting early, unconfirmed reports surrounding the charger of the iPhone. Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has stated that the iPhone 12 will not come with EarPods in the box. Perhaps the more notable claim is that Apple might, in fact, even be doing away with the bundled charger, leaving just the charging cable as the accessory in the box. According to Kuo, the reasoning behind the removal of the bundled accessories is the potentially high cost of making the iPhone 12. Kuo says that Apple wants to maintain the current retail price for the iPhone 12 and apparently, removing essential bundled accessories seems to be the only way to do so. Do note that at this point, it is not clear whether Kuo is referring to all four alleged models that make up the iPhone 12 series or just a smartphone that might be called the iPhone 12. Unfortunately, we cannot hel...

Realme Narzo 10 now available in a new Blue colour variant, heres how you can buy

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The Realme Narzo 10 may not be the best performing smartphone in the budget segment, but it’s surely one of the best looking. Designed by Japanese designer Naoto Fukasawa, the phone is crafted using a unique spray-painting process. At launch, Realme got the 'That White' and 'That Green' colour variants of the smartphone. Now, Realme has launched a third colour called 'That Blue'  which will go on sale from tomorrow on Flipkart and Realme.com. The Narzo 10 That Blue also sports the same smooth texture finish, and gradient, glowing lines on the body. It’s available only in one variant priced at Rs 11,999. Realme also said the phone with the new colour variant will be available offline in select areas including Bihar, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Karnataka and Kerala. Realme Narzo 10 Specs and Features The Narzo 10 runs on the MediaTek Helio G80, which is a 12nm SoC built for gaming and high performance. Sure enough, the gaming performance is dece...

Xiaomi MIUI 12 stable update rolling out to new phones Heres whats new

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It’s been just about a month that Xiaomi announced the global version of MIUI 12 for its smartphones, with beta versions rolling out on the same day. Now, with the sale and production of new smartphones impacted due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Xiaomi is focusing on rolling out the new interface to new smartphones on priority. A new report states Xiaomi smartphones have already started to receive the stable update to MIUI 12 which includes the Redmi K30 5G, Redmi K30 Pro Zoom, Mi 9, Mi 9 Pro 5G and Mi 10 Youth. The report claims that the updates started rolling out from June 28 for more phones including the Mi 10, Mi 10 Pro, Mi 9 Explorer Edition, Redmi K20 Pro and the Redmi K20. However, it seems there’s still time for the updates to roll out to phones in India. The rollout falls in line with the timeline shared by Xiaomi at the launch of MIUI 12. Xiaomi had promised that the first stable build will start rolling out from June. The rollout will also depend a lot on the COVID-19...

Apple could launch a 108-Inch iPad in 2020, 85-inch iPad Mini in 2021: Report

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According to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, Apple is expected to launch a 10.8-inch iPad in 2020 and an 8.5-inch iPad Mini in 2021. It isn’t clear whether the new iPad will replace or be in addition to the 10.2-inch iPad and 10.5-inch iPad Air. It also isn’t clear what chip the upcoming iPads will run on as the refreshed iPad Air and iPad mini in 2019 run on the A12 Bionic chip which is Apple's latest and greatest. It is possible we could get the A13 with the upcoming iPhone 12 and the same chip could find its way to the upcoming iPads. Kuo has also said that a 20W power adapter will come with the new iPads in the box.  Kuo has often been right with his Apple predictions, but we still suggest you take this with a grain of salt. Apple recently refreshed its iPad Pro lineup and also introduced a snazzy new keyboard that magnetically holds the iPad in place, giving the illusion that it is levitating. The refreshed iPad Pros come with the A12z chip. You can read more about the new iPad Pros he...

Everything you need to know about the upcoming OnePlus TVs

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OnePlus has been drip-feeding us information about the upcoming OnePlus TV with some new teaser every day. So we thought we’d compile everything we know about the OnePlus TV in one place. We will talk about the speculated pricing, display size, features and more. This includes all the information that OnePlus has confirmed about the OnePlus TVs and some information we are guessing based on the teasers, leaks and out experience.  OnePlus TV Screen Sizes As per a Bluetooth listing, it was speculated that OnePlus would launch three variants of the OnePlus TV - 32-inch, 43-inch and 55-inch. The naming convention in the same listing also hinted that the 32-inch TV would be an HD ready TV, the 43-inch TV an FHD TV and the 55-inch a UHD TV. OnePlus has also teased three prices for the TVs hinting at three models. The 32-inch and 43-inch screen sizes are the hottest space in the TV market right now with brands like Xiaomi, Kodak and more offering TVs in this space and new entries from bra...

Qualcomm Snapdragon 875 is expected to be 50 more expensive Will it be worth the premium

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With Qualcomm making the 5G modem on the Snapdragon 865 mandatory, Android flagships are struggling to remain affordable with many crossing the Rs 50,000 mark in India, a market where OEMs aim to keep devices affordable. And if you have been hoping the Snapdragon 875 next year will lower the prices again, we have some bad news. Based on information from South Korea, the Snapdragon 875 will be even more expensive than the current Snapdragon 865. A whopping 50 percent increase in price is expected. A forum post claims the Snapdragon 875 SoC itself will cost $130, as compared to Snapdragon 865’s $85 price tag. The entire package, however, is expected to go up to $250, where the Snapdragon 865 is being sourced at $160. The forum post claims this is the price Xiaomi will be buying the chipsets at, from Qualcomm. It needs to be noted that the final unit price of the chipsets will depend on the volume ordered. Considering the number of flagship Android phones Xiaomi launches and sells i...

Affordable OnePlus phone teased on Amazon India ahead of official launch

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OnePlus is asking people to guess the name of its upcoming affordable smartphone and as listed the OnePlus Lite and OnePlus Z as two options on Amazon India ahead of the official launch. The affordable OnePlus phone has been leaked previously as the OnePlus 8 Lite and subsequently as the OnePlus Z but there’s no confirmation yet on the official name of the upcoming phone. In fact, OnePlus accidentally indicated that the phone could be called OnePlus Nord instead as has been spotted in a now-deleted picture on Instagram.  OnePlus is generating a lot of hype in the heads up to the official unveiling of their upcoming smartphone which marks the company’s re-entry into the affordable segment after the OnePlus X that was launched back in 2015. With the new phone, the company could be looking to stay relevant in the affordable price segment of the Indian smartphone market which it once dominated. OnePlus Nord Leaked Specifications  OnePlus Nord is rumoured to feature a 6.55-i...

OnePlus 8 series to go on sale today on Amazon India: Here are the alternatives to consider

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OnePlus 8 and OnePlus 8 Pro are going on sale later today on Amazon India. The OnePlus 8 series was previously available in limited quantities earlier due to production issues likely caused by the Coronavirus outbreak. However, this afternoon, both the OnePlus 8 and OnePlus 8 Pro will go on sale on Amazon India and OnePlus India store. OnePlus 8 series pricing, sale date and launch offers  OnePlus 8 is priced starting at Rs 41,999 for the base variant in Glacial Green colour with 6GB RAM and 128GB storage. The 8GB RAM and 128GB storage variant is priced at Rs 44,999 and comes in Onyx Black colour. The maxed-out variant with 12GB RAM and 256GB storage is up for grabs in Interstellar Glow and Glacial Green colours and is priced at Rs 49,999. OnePlus 8 Pro is priced starting at Rs 54,999 for the base variant with 8GB RAM and 128GB storage while the maxed-out variant with 12GB RAM and 256GB storage is up for grabs at Rs 59,999.  As part of the sale offers, OnePlus is offering a...