Wednesday 11 March 2020

Tech News Flash

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Tech News Flash

March 11, 2020

VPN, Ad Blocker Provider Caught With Hand in the Data Jar

A number of VPN and ad-blocking apps owned by Sensor Tower, a popular analytics platform, have been collecting data from millions of people using the programs on their Android and iOS devices, according to a report.

COVID-19 and the End of Daily Life as We Know It

We apparently have no immunity to COVID-19, and a vaccine likely is around 18 months away. It takes a while to change human behavior, but if we go a full 18 months or more with people working from home and avoiding places like malls, big box stores, and other areas where people congregate -- like offices and events -- it will force a fundamental, permanent change in the way we work and interact.

Twitter Tiptoes Into Battle to Curb Social Media Misinformation

Twitter on Sunday applied its "manipulative media" label to a deceptively edited video showing presidential hopeful Joe Biden saying, "re-elect Donald Trump." It was the first time the service enforced rules adopted last month to control synthetic and manipulated media.

Elive Beta With Enlightenment Is Brilliant, but Don't Get Lost in the Maze

Elive Linux is an awesome integration

of the Debian Linux base and the Enlightenment desktop. The combination provides a uniquely powerful and flexible computing platform. Check out Jack Germain's review on LinuxInsider.

COVID-19 and the Bleak Outlook for the Tech Supply Chain

Consumers around the world already are seeing empty shelves in retail stores, and products from China likely will be in high demand. Shortages will disproportionately affect the tech sector, as tech firms typically do not keep large inventories of parts on hand.

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To boost customer satisfaction and loyalty, your contact center agents need to stay engaged and motivated. Access the ICMI Agent Experience Toolkit and get the framework to help you assess your current agent experience.

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Tesla might build a Cybertruck plant in 'central USA'

Engadget Email Newsletter

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It's Wednesday, March 11, 2020.

Hey, good morning! You look fabulous.

I’ve been waiting for another NFL-licensed 2K football game since ESPN NFL 2K5 on the original Xbox, and it appears the wait might be over. On Tuesday morning, 2K announced it has a new deal with the NFL to make non-simulation NFL games, which could hint at something in the mold of NFL Street or NBA Playgrounds -- an ideal situation for me, since I’m a little past my prime for managing audibles and route combinations on the fly.

Still, the most interesting thing about this news is that the NFL’s exclusive deal with EA and its Madden franchise will reportedly expire after the 2021 season. While I’ll take what I can get for now, a true NFL 2K game is what I’m really hoping to see for 2022.

-- Richard

(View in browser.)

Gigafactory Texas?

Tesla builds its millionth car and scouts new manufacturing locations

Within 24 hours, Elon Musk tweeted a picture of Tesla’s millionth car -- a red Model Y that, according to our friends at Autoblog, appears to have the Performance Upgrade packages -- and speculated on locations for new factories. The auto and space exec suggested a Cybertruck plant for “central USA” (he’s previously floated the idea of Texas gigafactory) and a Model Y facility on the East Coast.

Erasing the edges is one way to show off tech leadership.

Why the tech world is waging war on bezels

We live in an age of disappearing borders -- on our screens. Devindra Hardawar takes a look at the design trends on TVs, laptops, tablets and phones to see where all that extra plastic is going and why manufacturers keep pushing for seamless screens.

Even if Google I/O is off, the leaks are still coming.

Pixel 4a leak video dives into the phone’s most intimate details

Remember all the Pixel 3a leaks last year? We may be in for a similar situation with Google’s next midrange phone -- a Cuban YouTube channel showed video of what it’s claiming is the Pixel 4a. The plastic-bodied device reportedly has a headphone jack, a 5.8-inch display and Snapdragon 730 CPU inside along with 64GB of storage and 6GB of RAM.

This certified refurbished HP Spectre is just $1,250

What can’t Dyson re-engineer in a more expensive way?

Dyson's Corrale is a $500 straightening iron with over-engineered plates

The Corrale is Dyson's new cordless straightening iron, and it's supposed to provide "all the same styling with half the damage" of a conventional straightener. It's also the first Dyson beauty product not to use the company's air-multiplier technology. Its trick feature relies on flexing manganese-copper alloy plates to apply the same pressure to all of your hair at once.

The company claims that because the iron applies pressure consistently,it will require fewer strokes and lower heat for the same effect, with less mechanical damage to your hair. Cherlynn Low got an in-person demo and came away impressed but still thinking most people don’t need to spend $500 on a straightening iron.

Pricey.

Bang & Olufsen Beoplay E8 true wireless earbuds review

The third generation of B&O’s E8 wireless earbuds provide good sound, wireless charging and solid battery life. However, as Billy Steele explains, skipping over active noise cancellation and automatic pausing makes them tough to recommend at $350.

But wait, there's more...

1. The SensorTower analytics platform secretly scraped user data via VPN apps

2. Google tells North American employees to work from home

3. 'Command & Conquer Remastered Collection' arrives on June 5th

4. 'Phantasy Star Online 2' will finally come to North America next week with an open beta

5. Disney+ reportedly scrapped a 'Tron' series from John Ridley

6. Gmail rolls out support for multiple signatures

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