Humans may be wanderers by nature, but in the year 2020, with planet Earth overrun by a pandemic, most human activity has come to a shocking halt. Perhaps one of the best things for a wandering race stuck at home is an opportunity to look outward -- to thought-travel into the boundless universe and dream of grand and sweeping possibilities. That's what Cosmos: Possible Worlds offers.
E-Commerce Optimization During a Crisis and Beyond
In this uncertain and increasingly homebound era, customers are turning online for everything from groceries to cat food. It's more important than ever to make sure that websites are optimized for the highest-possible customer engagement and conversion.
Remarking that people now are more concerned about online privacy than ever before is not a novel observation. What's fascinating, though, is that interest in personal digital security has remained high since the issue exploded about seven years ago.
GitHub Expands Free Feature Access, Slices Other Costs
GitHub has lowered its pricing plans drastically and made its core features free for everyone, even for private development. The new structure allows access to GitHub's private repositories with unlimited collaborators for all GitHub accounts.
Today, many companies are intrigued by the idea of turning to artificial intelligence for help in the sales process. However, most do not know where or how to get started.
Calculate how much time you could save if you had a PIM (product information management) tool to do the work for you. Start building your business case today - it’s quick and easy.
Webinar: Unlocking the Potential of Password Vault Alternatives
Understanding the differing Privileged Access Management solutions can be a challenge, especially for Linux or UNIX environments. Learn how to create a more comprehensive security approach by examining the different approaches of password vaults and privilege management during this webinar.
2020 Online Shopping Habits and Retailer Strategies
Episerver surveyed over 4,000 global online shoppers to learn about their ecommerce expectations and habits. Download Reimagining Commerce to get an exclusive look at successful retail strategies in 2020.
Zoom's paying customers will be able to choose the region they want to use for their virtual meetings. Paying customers will be able to opt in or out of a specific data center region, although they won't be able to change their default, which for ...
More than 50 years after Commander Neil Armstrong became the first human to step on the surface of the Moon, the next Moon landings are being prepared with the goal of landing the first woman on the Moon by 2024.
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Facebook's latest attempt to woo gamers (and the subsequent advertising dollars) is, simply, an app. According to The New York Times, the app will launch today on Android devices, with plans to launch on iOS as soon as it picks up approval. With current world events and lots of us stuck indoors, it could be smart timing. Facebook's game streaming services have grown in the last few years, but it's still dwarfed by the likes of Twitch and YouTube.
Will an app help?
-- Mat
LG's heavily teased Velvet phone is a premium mid-range device.
With 5G and a slick design.
LG Velvet
LG
If a new iPhone and OnePlus flagship weren't enough, here comes LG. It's published a video teaser that showcases its Velvet phone, including the curved edges, that "raindrop" rear camera layout and vivid color options that include the chameleonic "Illusion Sunset." The clip also confirms rumors that this is an upper mid-range phone rather than a flagship — the Velvet will have 5G, but it's running a Snapdragon 765 instead of the 865 from this year's high-end Android devices. Maybe, then, we'll be looking at another cheaper phone? Continue reading.
Australia will make Facebook and Google pay for news content
A mandatory code for online news deals is on the way.
Engadget
Australia has ordered its Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to create a mandatory code of conduct that would ask Facebook, Google and others to pay news outlets when they use content. The code would also dictate data sharing, news ranking and revenue sharing. There will be penalties if companies don't follow through as well as a binding resolution process for any disputes.
Officials had been negotiating a voluntary code, but the COVID-19 pandemic and the sudden hit to ad revenue for media companies prompted the shift to a mandatory system. The ACCC also said that it was "unlikely" tech companies would come to a voluntary agreement on payments. Government Treasurer Josh Frydenberg, meanwhile, argued that it was "only fair" that news outlets got paid for the work they were creating. It follows moves in Europe to tap tech companies that profit from media companies -- France has ordered internet firms to pay for showing news article snippets, and Google subsequently decided to remove news previews. Continue reading.
Instagram founders reunite to create a COVID-19 spread tracker
Rt.live shows how each state is controlling the virus spread.
Engadget
Instagram founders Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger have put out their first joint product since leaving Facebook, and it's not a social network. It does, however, build on their work with virality.
The two have launched Rt.live, a site that helps track attempts to fight the spread of COVID-19 in each state. The project takes advantage of Systrom's open-source approach to calculating Rt (the average number of people infected by a given infected person) on a daily basis to show how well a given state is coping — anything below an Rt of one indicates a successful fight against the disease.
The site also helps make sense of the data in a way you don't always see with these trackers. You can filter by region and the use of shelter in place orders (as you might guess, those states without orders are typically faring worse). Continue reading.
Our readers think the Pixel 3a is a first-rate budget phone
Google's cheapest handset impressed our users.
The Pixel 3a is almost a year old -- and its sequel approaches. The company's high-end flagship for 2018, the Pixel 3, was reproduced in the Pixel 3a handset with a budget price point. And it mostly stuck the landing. In our review, we were pleased by the mix of value and performance that the 3a offered and weren't deterred by its polycarbonate body or lack of water resistance. We asked readers to share their feelings about the handset, and they provided plenty of details on how the 3a fit their particular needs. Continue reading.
After Math: What to spend your stimulus check on
Yeah, $1,200 probably won't cover rent.
Last week was filled with new gadgets that may not be your priority. After the meds, the food and the bills... Continue reading.
Congratulations, you made it through another week. Beyond recapping some of the key stories from the last few days, make sure you don't miss some of the new stories that hit on Friday, like our Chromebook Flip review or a look back at the Apollo 13 mission. I'm still stuck on this slick Cyberpunk 2077 limited edition Xbox One X. The details that went into it are top-notch, from the glow in the dark paint to the extra LED.
The only thing I can't figure out is Microsoft's timing -- shipping this in June puts it out just a few months before the Xbox Series X hits. The game's delay probably threw a wrench in plans to put it out sooner, but this would be nice to have under my 4K TV now instead of later.
-- Richard
The Engadget Podcast: iPhone SE, OnePlus 8 Pro and a ton of new phones
With Motorola on deck next week.
Engadget
On this episode, Devindra and Cherlynn are joined by senior mobile editor Chris Velazco to rip into the glorious phone news that's been bombarding us these past two weeks. Is it time to take OnePlus seriously as a flagship maker? Can LG save itself with a rebranding campaign or should it pivot to making baked goods? We tackle all these searing questions, and recommend some fun entertainment options as always.
Stay tuned to the end of the episode for an interview with Nathaniel Halpern, writer and creator of the new show Tales from the Loop, which is available on Amazon's Prime Video.
The Flip C436 is well-designed, fast, and has a great keyboard and solid screen. But Engadget Deputy Managing Editor -- and frequent Chrome OS evangelist -- Nathan Ingraham says this one isn't as easy to recommend as its predecessors, due to its relatively high starting price ($799) and mediocre battery life. Read on for more details. Continue reading.
'Minecraft' looks like a whole new game with NVIDIA's RTX ray tracing
You've never seen 'Minecraft' like this before.
NVIDIA
Still need a reason to believe in ray-tracing technology? Take a look at the pictures and videos from Devindra Hardawar's experience with the NVIDIA Ray Tracing Worlds pack.
"You can almost feel the sunlight on your face. These are "god rays," volumetric light scattering effects meant to evoke the way sunlight peaks through clouds. While they can sometimes seem overused, like the way J.J. Abrams is notorious for throwing lens flares on everything, seeing god rays deployed realistically with ray tracing was simply breathtaking." Continue reading.
Apple's new iPhone SE is surprisingly powerful for $399
Shipments start next week.
Apple
For just $50 more than the Magic Keyboard, you can buy an iPhone that packs Apple's latest A13 Bionic chipset into a 4.7-inch frame. While it doesn't have the same sensor seen in more expensive iPhone 11 devices and drops Night Mode capturing, the single lens 12MP setup managed to impress us at first glance.
Also, in an increasingly face-masked world, this iPhone includes TouchID for easy unlocking. Check below for Chris Velazco's first impressions, or go direct to spec-for-spec comparisons vs. other iPhones and other similarly priced devices. Continue reading.
OnePlus 8 Pro review: Speed is everything
Two excellent new phones.
Engadget
New OnePlus phones are here, and according to Chris Velazco, the 8 Pro "is a fantastic smartphone that's well worth the price of admission." We shouldn't be surprised that 5G support across the lineup, up to 12GB of RAM and as much as 256GB of storage to go along with excellent screens and speedy processors combine to create the desired effect. The only bad news about the Pro model? That unique pop-up camera is gone, and there are some questions about the decision to put four lenses on it. Continue reading.
