Wednesday 21 August 2019

A fourth 'Matrix' movie is happening

Engadget Email Newsletter

It's Wednesday, August 21, 2019.

Hey, good morning!

As my inner teen squeals at the idea of another Matrix movie (and my outer grown-up winces at what the series might turn into), Engadget looks into the true reality of flying cars, offers up impressions from the biggest games from Gamescom in Germany and negotiates the tricky world of laptops for college students.

Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss are coming back.

A fourth 'Matrix' movie is happening

Sixteen years since the end of the trilogy, Warner Bros. says another movie will be joining the Matrix universe, crucially starring Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss -- Neo and Trinity, if you will. Only one of the Wachowski sisters (Lana) is involved, but she'll direct, co-write and co-produce. The Matrix was ahead of its time when it came to a grab-bag of tech themes -- with some of them arguably even more relevant in 2020.

How will the movie resurrect Trinity? (Sorry, spoilers...) Where does Neo go when the film seemed so resolved at the end of Matrix Revolutions?

If they want their stuff to keep working, that is.

IFTTT tells Nest users not to move their accounts over to Google

Back in May, Google announced it was phasing out its Works With Nest program in favour of a Works With Google Assistant framework. Unfortunately it will "break IFTTT," according to Google. But IFTTT (a service that connects together IoT devices and online services) has some good news: IFTTT applets designed for the Nest Thermostat, Nest Protect and Nest Cam will continue to work after August 31st, when Google plans on shutting down the Works With Nest Program. However, IFTTT's applets won't work at all if users move their Nest accounts to Google accounts. Google has said it's working on a system that will allow IFTTT users to migrate, but whether the company will integrate the comprehensive features that made IFTTT so popular in the first place is another question entirely.

Both pack 32.5-megapixel sensors, 4K video and Dual Pixel AF with eye detection.

Canon leaks its EOS 90D DSLR and mirrorless EOS M6 Mark II cameras

Canon's Australian website appears to have accidentally leaked a pair of important new cameras, the EOS M6 Mark II mirrorless and EOS 90D DSLR. Promo videos for the cameras spotted by Canon Rumors (and quickly pulled by Canon) show impressive specs for the two mid-range models. Both feature all-new 32.5-megapixel APS-C sensors, 4K video at up to 30 fps with 120 fps full HD, and Dual Pixel autofocus with eye detection. The videos don't reveal the release date or the price, but given they came from an official Canon source, we're likely to learn those details soon.

Land a lifetime of secure cloud storage for just $20

The wait is over.

Apple Card launch expands to all US iPhone users

Apple has announced its Apple Card is available to everyone in the US starting today, expanding on the limited launch earlier this month. If you didn't see the many signup tutorial videos provided by Apple, you can apply by opening the Wallet app on your iPhone to start. The full rollout comes alongside an extra benefit for those happy to bank with the tech company: a three percent Daily Cash return offer that works with both Uber and Uber Eats.

Then again, Henry Ford said the same thing in 1940.

The dream of flying taxis may not be too far off

"Mark my words. A combination of airplane and motorcar is coming. You may smile. But it will come," Henry Ford quipped in 1940. Our dreams of cars capable of taking flight have been around nearly as long as we've had cars themselves, or at least as long as we've endured heavy commute traffic. Yet the prospect of actual commercially available flying automobiles has always seemed to remain just out of reach.

In 2019, more than 70 companies are developing their own personal flying vehicles, with varying degrees of progress. The EHang 184 quadcopter, which made its debut at CES 2016, has already completed a number of test flights but has yet to receive FAA approval to operate in the US while Volocopter's 18-fan aerial vehicle is set to begin trials in Singapore later this year. Lilium recently released a new video of its five-passenger electric air taxi, though the vehicle won't be ready until 2025. How long will we actually have to wait?

Compromises, but not compromised.

Playing 'The Witcher 3' on the Switch shouldn't work, but it does

How on earth did CD Projekt Red cram The Witcher 3 and all its DLC into a 32GB Switch cart? And does it all still play?

Lenovo's flagship series needs to remain relevant.

ThinkPad X1 Carbon review (2019): Sometimes it’s good to be boring

As always, the ThinkPad X1 Carbon is a strong business laptop that delivers an excellent keyboard and good performance in an elegant body. Reviews Editor Cherlynn Low says that a handy webcam shutter and a sharper, more colorful display than its predecessors keep this 7th-generation model relevant in today’s competitive PC market. Bear in mind, though, that the higher-res screen comes at the expense of battery life, and audio continues to be an issue for the series. Lenovo fans (and keyboard/pointing-stick aficionados) will love this laptop, but competition from Microsoft and Huawei may tempt everyone else.

Think of it like a super soundbar.

Canvas is a big-ass speaker stand for LG OLED TVs

If you've picked up an OLED TV, you're left with two choices for high-quality sound: a soundbar or large speakers for a home theater setup. Canvas, a new project from a group of audio veterans, is something in between. It's a huge speaker that serves as a stand for LG's OLED TVs, giving you sound quality comparable to bigger Hi-Fi offerings, in a form factor that's still relatively compact. And, based on a brief demo attended by Devindra Hardawar, it sounds incredible.

But wait, there's more...

1. How to choose a laptop for college

2. Watch the Google Stadia event in 10 minutes

3. Playing Marvel's Avengers, a living RPG with microtransactions

4. The latest 'Fortnite' weapon lets you drop heavy stuff on opponents' heads

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Tuesday 20 August 2019

E-Commerce Minute

E-Commerce Minute: Tuesday -- August 20, 2019

The E-Commerce Times -- E-Business Means Business
https://www.ecommercetimes.com
Part of the ECT News Network

Headline Scan
US Backs Off Huawei Export Ban for 90 Days
Avoid a Black Friday, Cyber Monday Disaster With Intelligent Testing
T-Mobile Merger Delay Keeps Sprint and Dish on Edge
Faulty Driver Coding Exposes Microsoft Windows to Malware Risks
Spotify for Podcasters Hits the Open Road

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Today's Story Highlights

US Backs Off Huawei Export Ban for 90 Days

The $11 billion export component of the business American companies do
with Chinese electronics giant Huawei is safe for at least 90 days. The
U.S. Commerce Department has extended the Temporary General License for
Huawei and its non-U.S. affiliates to buy goods from American companies.
The license is needed because the Commerce Department has blacklisted
Huawei and its affiliates.
http://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/86196.html

Avoid a Black Friday, Cyber Monday Disaster With Intelligent Testing

Many online businesses rely on Black Friday and Cyber Monday to drive
their profit margins. During this four-day period, retailers will see
traffic on their site skyrocket. How can retailers make sure their sites
are robust and won't fail during this critical period? The answer is to
ensure your site is completely bombproof and can handle the surge in
load without a problem.
http://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/86193.html

T-Mobile Merger Delay Keeps Sprint and Dish on Edge

The T-Mobile-Sprint merger looked like it was pretty much a done deal a
couple of weeks ago, when DoJ gave its approval. It now looks like there
won't be a final answer until 2020. This will go down in history as one
of the longest corporate merger attempts. The delay will be hardest on
Sprint and Dish Network. Even though T-Mobile looks stronger, it needs
the deal too, as it transitions into 5G.
http://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/86189.html

Faulty Driver Coding Exposes Microsoft Windows to Malware Risks

Numerous driver design flaws by 20 different hardware vendors expose
Microsoft Windows users to widespread security compromises that can
cause persistent malware attacks. A report titled "Screwed Drivers,"
which Eclypsium security researchers presented at DEF CON, urges
Microsoft to support solutions to better protect against this class of
vulnerabilities.
http://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/86187.html

Spotify for Podcasters Hits the Open Road

Spotify has launched Spotify for Podcasters following a year-long beta
involving more than 100,000 podcasts from 167 countries. Spotify for
Podcasters is a discovery and analytics dashboard designed to let
podcasters track performance through data such as episode retention
charts, aggregate demographics about listeners, and details on follower
growth. Podcast data is updated daily.
http://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/86182.html

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Editor's Pick: Cerebras Debuts Big Chip to Speed Up AI Processes

Cerebras Debuts Big Chip to Speed Up AI Processes

Jack M. Germain Aug 20, 2019 2:36 AM PT
	Startup chip developer Cerebras has announced a breakthrough in high- speed processor design that will hasten the development of artificial intelligence technologies. Cerebras unveiled the largest computer processing chip ever built. The new chip, dubbed "Wafer-Scale Engine" -- pronounced "wise" -- is the heartbeat of the company's deep learning machine built to power AI systems. [More...]

More Picks:

Avoid a Black Friday, Cyber Monday Disaster With Intelligent Testing
Many online businesses rely on Black Friday and Cyber Monday to drive their profit margins. During this four-day period, retailers will see traffic on their site skyrocket. How can retailers make sure their sites are robust and won't fail during this critical period? The answer is to ensure your site is completely bombproof and can handle the surge in load without a problem. [More...]

Sanity-Saving Tips From a Heavy Traveler
I'm on the road about 50 percent of the time, and I'm often asked for advice on how to have a better trip -- what to carry with you, where to sit, how to manage frequent flier programs, and so forth. One of my first really bad travel experiences was during my stint in IBM Internal Audit. I was auditing an IBM corporate site when the rules were three-piece suit, white shirt and tie. [More...]

Slackel Linux Works Well Inside Its Openbox
The latest release of Slackel Linux renews and improves the mashup of Slackware and Salix built around an Openbox pseudo desktop environment. Slackel 7.2 hit the download servers on July 20, eight months after the release of Slackel 7.1 Openbox edition. Slackel also is available in two older versions running the KDE and Fluxbox environments. All releases are available in 64-bit and 32-bit builds. [More...]

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The Supreme phone you didn't ask for

Engadget Email Newsletter

It's Tuesday, August 20, 2019.

Hey, good morning!

Welcome to Tuesday morning! It’s a day of streaming-service news, as Apple and Disney gear up to deliver their Netflix rivals. The bigger question remains: How many are we going to be willing to pay for? Is this cable all over again? Also: Supreme is decking out a candy bar feature phone, making it desirable. Somehow.

The tech giant is still considering various strategies for the service.

Apple will reportedly launch TV+ in November for $10 a month

Apple has been on a content-buying spree over the past year or so, because it seems it's almost ready to launch its Netflix competitor. According to Bloomberg reports, the tech giant is planning to roll out its TV+ subscription service in November, and it looks like it’ll set you back $10 a month. The Financial Times says Cupertino is trying to pre-empt Disney Plus' debut, so TV+ could become available earlier than November 12th.

Apple apparently earmarked $6 billion of its budget to fund the upcoming service's original shows and movies. It's spending a lot of money in an attempt to make more money, particularly to contribute to its goal to reach $50 billion in service sales by 2020.

Hypebeasts assemble.

Supreme's 'burner' phone is built for hypebeasts

Supreme has unveiled its catalog for fall and winter 2019, and amid the usual eccentricities (champagne flutes and gold-plated dumbbells -- practically all my hobbies) is a BLU Burner Phone. It appears to be a gussied-up Zoey 2.4, a pretty basic candybar device with a 2.4-inch screen, 3G data, a VGA camera and 128MB of (thankfully expandable) storage. You are paying for that Supreme livery, and not much else. But you knew that already.

There's no mention of pricing. The Zoey 2.4 normally costs just $33 unlocked.

It won’t be 33 bucks.

It didn't want to upset users or officials.

Google stops sending Android cell signal data over privacy concerns

Google's increased focus on privacy led it to quietly drop a service that offered signal-strength and data-speed detail to carriers. Reuters sources have learned the tech giant shut down Mobile Network Insights back in April. The data, for Android phones, was anonymized and required opting in to sharing location, usage and diagnostic info, but Google was reportedly worried the practice might raise hackles among users and government regulators.

Mobile Network Insights had only launched in March 2017, but was apparently valuable to providers. Google's feature was helpful precisely because of the sheer number of Android phones in the field.

Become a Mac power user with 9 apps for $29

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It's also launching in Canada, the Netherlands, Australia and New Zealand.

Disney+ will have apps for iOS, Apple TV, Android and Xbox One

The debut of Disney's highly anticipated streaming service, Disney+, is almost here. But, leading up to the November 12th launch, the company is starting to share more details about it. Particularly, how you'll be able to watch content on Disney+, which includes new original series like The Mandalorian, every season of The Simpsons and Disney's entire movie library. And while we knew Disney was planning to bring Disney+ to "your favorite" smart TVs, phones, laptops, tablets and gaming consoles, the only devices it had actually named were Roku and Sony's Playstation 4. Now, in addition to those, Disney's making it official that Disney+ will support iOS, Apple TV, Android, Android TV, Google Chromecast and Xbox One at launch.