Saturday, October 23, 2021

Saturday Technology News and More

 Technology News and More...





Editor’s note: This post was last updated on Oct. 22, 2021, with new information. Travel is back. Americans are hitting the road again, and even if they’re not already traveling, many are ready to start booking future trips. For more TPG news delivered each morning to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter . Most countries are reopening their borders to travelers, or at least planning for i



Trump Truth Social•
Hackers tied to the group Anonymous defaced a private version of the former president’s app, Truth Social, posting images of defecating pigs and explicative-laced rants.



Apple Beats Fit Pro•
It seems like the AirPods 3 aren't the only pair of wireless earbuds Apple is set to launch this year, as the rumored Beats Fit Pro wireless earbuds may not be too far behind. And with the eventual existence of the AirPods Pro 2 still up in the air (we heard nothing of them during the October 18 Apple Unleashed event ), we're now looking towards Apple's Beats lineup that could well launch sometim

TODAY



Google's Pixel phones have been the spark behind today's incredible computational photography – and the new Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro are looking to once again break new imaging ground with some impressive new camera tricks. The two phones have some powerful camera hardware, including 50MP wide cameras and 12MP ultrawides (with 4x optical zoom on the Pixel 6 Pro). But it's actually their new softwa



Best VPN 2021 Knives Out•
Mashable / 1h
Most consumers and even small businesses are fine with a standard wireless router. If all you want to do is add an extra layer of security or access geo-restricted sites, you can do so with a subscription to a reputable VPN service installed on your devices. For enterprises who want site-wide access to a particular network, however, things get a little more complicated. Those folks may want a VPN
YESTERDAY



Walmart Bitcoin Coinstar•
37Gizmodo / 3h
Bitcoin is one step closer to being readily available to the masses. If you have any doubts, check out your nearest Walmart. You might be able to buy Bitcoin there at a Coinstar kiosk. Read more...



Mashable / 4h
TL;DR: The 2021 Amazon FBA Master Class Bundle is on sale for £14.69 as of Oct. 23, saving you 97% on list price. Before you throw your hat into the Amazon FBA ring, you should take some time to optimise your Amazon platform so you can get started easily, stay on track, and turn your little digital shop corner into real cash. With the 2021 Amazon FBA Masterclass , you can do just that by learning



Apple M1 Max Pro•
The launch of Apple's new M1 Pro and the M1 Max hardware has been met with a lot of “ohhhs” and “ahhhs” as Apple kept dishing out numbers and specs to an army of analysts, journalists and fans worldwide. Everything however catered for a mobile professional audience geared towards embracing something from the MacBook Pro line. What about the Mac Pro and the iMac Pro ? Surely they won’t be left alo



Mashable / 5h
Our phones so often serve as our lifelines: how we navigate to and from new places, how we organize meetings, how we do our work, and how we contact help if we need it. So keeping its battery life up and engaged for as long as possible is an important aspect of life in the 21st century. Thankfully, setting up low power mode on your iPhone is just takes a few simple steps. 1. Navigate to your Sett



“In 2007, I, along with a few other colleagues, founded Arbisoft because we loved solving a variety of computing problems rather than staying close to one particular domain or technology vertical. We felt it was much easier to do that in a software services company than a software product company,” says Yasser Bashir, co-founder of Arbisoft. “In addition to our love for software development, we a



Intel Pat Gelsinger 2023•
Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger made quite the bold claim, stating in a recent interview with CNBC that both the gaming CPU and graphics card shortages could last as far as 2023. While he’s weighed in on the issue before, this is the first time he’s named a specific year. Gelsinger believes that while the semiconductor shortages that have plagued the tech industry will marginally improve over time, he do



Facebook Jan. 6 Capitol•
48Engadget / 7h
Facebook officials have long known about how the platform’s recommendations can lead users into conspiracy theory-addled “rabbit holes.” Now, we know just how clear that picture was thanks to documents provided by Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen. During the summer of 2019, a Facebook researcher found that it took just five days for the company to begin recommending QAnon groups and other di



27Gizmodo / 8h
Have you forgotten who stars in the Kingsmen prequel The King’s Man ? I wouldn’t blame you if you had, honestly. The film was originally meant to premiere in the distant prehistory of November 2019—yeah, nearly full two years ago—before getting pushed back to March of 2020, when recorded history began. The ancient… Read more...



Invasion Apple Tv+•
Mashable / 8h
If you've been online — or hang out around people who spend time online — at all for the last few weeks, you've likely heard your fair share of Ted Lasso love. Or maybe you're more of a Morning Show person, or you're into Physical or Greyhound . No matter your poison, you can't watch any of these shows, or be part of the cultural conversation, without an Apple TV subscription. And once you've got



As Microsoft closes down the main version of LinkedIn, Apple looks more alone in China than ever.



SlashGear / 8h
The full-dose Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine is already authorized for use in kids as young as 12 in the US, but public health officials have been working toward granting similar authorizations for vaccinating younger kids. A new study published today reveals that Pfizer’s “kid-dose” COVID-19 vaccine offers youth ages 5 through 11 years around 91-percent protection against symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infecti



Gizmodo / 8h
Ana Martínez has worked on a farm in Florida for nearly two decades. Her job is to cut pieces of bushes to use as fillings for flower bouquets. One Monday this past July, she knew something was wrong because she got a headache on the job. Read more...



YouTube Premium offers many features, but if you don’t use them, it’s wise to cancel your paid subscription. We’ll show you how to cancel YouTube Premium on both desktop and mobile. Read This Article on How-To Geek ›



It seems like every single day, there’s some hack or leak that causes personal data to be leaked. Sometimes, it’s just a name or phone number, but in the latest hack involving SCUF Gaming, people’s credit card information was stolen. Read This Article on How-To Geek ›



By default, your iPhone will display photo suggestions with thumbnails in Spotlight Search results on iOS 15 or higher. It can be handy, but it also can potentially clutter up the search results. Here’s how to disable or hide the photo thumbnails. Read This Article on How-To Geek ›



49How-To Geek / 8h
If you’re not ready to give up on Windows 10, you can rest easy knowing that Microsoft isn’t, either. The company just announced that the 21H2 Update is coming in November 2021. It doesn’t bring much in terms of new features, but at least it’s keeping Windows 10 alive and kicking. Read This Article on How-To Geek ›



Gizmodo / 9h
The first day of reveals for Hasbro’s Pulsecon fan event is over, and there’s lots (and lots) of goodies from the worlds of Power Rangers , Transformers , and Star Wars on the way to rob you blind and leave you with nothing but piles and piles of action figures. Here’s all the major reveals from the event so far. Read more...




This is about government regulation and the bottom line at American Airlines, it isn't about safety. Sadly, even United Airlines which presents its vaccine mandate as being somehow more noble, imposes no such condition on passengers traveling. I'd certainly choose to fly an airline where I knew the person in the middle seat next to me was vaccinated. No U.S. airline is offering this in a meaningf



Prosecutors focused on her alleged deceptions, trying to make the case that she intentionally misled Theranos’s investors and commercial partners.



Mashable / 9h
Are you a connoisseur of horror? You appreciate all flavors of this rich genre, from the spine-tinglingly spooky to the gleefully gruesome, from the sickeningly suspenseful, to the willfully outrageous. But maybe you've seen so many horror movies that it has become a challenge to find something fresh to thrill. We've been there, and we're here to help. Scouring Shudder's streaming library of horr



SlashGear / 9h
Months after revealing its plans regarding its Revue acquisition and the future of newsletters on its platform, Twitter has introduced Revue subscription buttons on tweets, enabling users to monetize the content they already publish. The new option joins the previously released Tip Jar feature, which allows users to put links to cash apps and platforms in their bio. Revue is … Continue reading



300+Gizmodo / 9h
Star Wars ’ Ahsoka Tano is one of the best examples of how much richness there is to be found in the franchise when it manages to veer slightly away from focusing solely on the Skywalker family and its personal significance in the Force. Though Anakin Skywalker was a fixture in The Clone Wars , the series also gave… Read more...



It’s that delightfully gruesome time of the year again. Nights are drawing in, a goosebump-raising chill descends, and people gather in the dark, eerie glow of their TV to watch unknown terrors unfold in sleepy suburbs. Luckily there’s an abundance of creepy content available on HBO Max , with the streaming service providing a varied collection of films and TV series to appease your ghoulish appe



TechCrunch events always offer a compelling mix of main stage presentations and smaller breakout sessions that allow more time for lots of questions and deeper discussions. Expect nothing less at TC Sessions: SaaS 2021 on October 27. We want to highlight these sessions we have on tap for you. Remember, TechCrunch partners don’t just cut a check and call it a day. They show up ready to inform, enl



Enlarge / Harvard scientists built "Totimorphic" structural materials that can adopt and maintain any possible shape. Scientists at Case Western Reserve University and Tufts University are exploring shapeshifting liquid crystals. (credit: Aurich Lawson/Harvard/Case Western Reserve) Luxo, Jr., Pixar's trademark animated Luxo balanced-arm lamp, is based on a classic design known as the anglepoise l



Company documents show that the social network’s employees repeatedly raised red flags about the spread of misinformation and conspiracies before and after the contested November vote.



63Engadget / 10h
On Tuesday, October 26th, Carli Lloyd will play her final game as part of the US women’s national soccer team when it takes on South Korea in a friendly match. In honor of the event, Fox Sports will stream a dedicated “CarliCam” that will follow Lloyd throughout the contest. You’ll be able to watch the game from that vantage point through the Fox Sports app, as well as the network's Facebook and



Samsung Galaxy Tab S8•
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 was shown off in a series of renders that gives us a possible first look at what the tablet’s final design might be, as well as a specs leak giving us details about the display, chipset, battery, and another claim that the tablet will release in January or February 2022. Noted leaker @OnLeaks tweeted out the purported Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 design via renders made by Zout



If you, like us, are struggling to get your hands on that coveted RTX 3080 graphics card, consider checking out Dell's early Black Friday gaming PC deals this weekend. In particular, take a look at this Alienware Aurora R12 for $2,155.99 (was $2,489.98) . A tasty $334 price cut has made this easily one of the best value RTX 3080 pre-builts out there, and the combination of an Intel Core i7-11700F



With the long-awaited announcement of the new MacBook Pro 16-inch (2021) , we can confidently say that this year is going to see some absolutely amazing Black Friday MacBook deals on the smaller M1 MacBook models. If last year's Black Friday deals on Apple's MacBook Air (M1) and 13-inch MacBook Pro (M1) are any indication, this year's sales are going to be some real bangers, with hundreds off the



61TechCrunch / 10h
To get a roundup of TechCrunch’s biggest and most important stories delivered to your inbox every day at 3 p.m. PDT, subscribe here . Friday! Dear friends, we made it to the end of the week. It was a big, busy few days, so give yourself a round of applause. Looking ahead, not only do we have earnings from Facebook and Alphabet and Microsoft and Robinhood next week, but our super-great SaaS event



Microsoft's PowerToys are open-source utilities that aim to make Windows users more productive and the next addition to the collection will address one of the most annoying aspects of using multiple monitors . According to a recent tweet from the software giant's senior program manger Clint Rutkas, the company's next PowerToy will make things much easier for 4K monitor , ultrawide monitor and mul



One Rewards Card AE•
100+The Points Guy / 10h
Editor’s note: This post has been updated with the latest credit card information. Chase Sapphire Preferred Card overview The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card is one of the best-known travel rewards credit cards, featuring 5 points per dollar on travel booked through the Chase travel portal and 3 points per dollar on dining, select streaming services and online grocery store purchases (excluding Tar



SlashGear / 10h
If you’re a horror buff who loves the idea of living in a classic horror movie house, good news. The house featured in the original Nightmare on Elm Street is now for sale. The property is located in Los Angeles, California, where it is offered for $3,250,000. Make no mistake, however, the house won’t invoke feelings of terror or even … Continue reading



Gizmodo / 10h
Most movie art books merely collect concept art, behind-the-scenes photos, and maybe a few of the film’s best stills. Not Dune , part of Insight’s The Art and Soul of Dune Limited Edition. Instead, it’s a book pairing the art photography of Dune cinematographer Greig Fraser with writing by Josh Brolin , who plays House… Read more...



TechCrunch / 10h
Early-stage entrepreneurs who are eager to ship usually spend more time calculating their startup’s monthly burn rate than selecting an optimal development environment. As a result, technical debt starts to accumulate. And accumulate. TechCrunch Senior Writer Romain Dillet interviewed Jill Wetzler, VP of Engineering at Pilot, and Preeti Somal, EVP of Engineering at HashiCorp , to learn more about



24TechCrunch / 10h
When Zillow announced that it was hitting pause on its iBuying operations earlier this week, the news sent shockwaves through the real estate industry. Zillow blamed the pause on labor and supply constraints that were hampering its ability to quickly renovate and efficiently turn over its housing inventory. The announcement sent Zillow’s stock plummeting 10% in the day after the report, while dri




Gizmodo / 10h
Carriers will stop at nothing to entice you away from your current plan. T-Mobile is known for pushing freebies and price cuts to keep its customers on board, and now it’s offering $1000 pay off your smartphone at your current carrier and have you come over to the pink side. Read more...



Gizmodo / 10h
On Wednesday, ex-president and current loser Donald Trump announced he is launching the Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG), a venture supposedly valued at $1.7 billion that will encompass everything from a hellhole social network called Truth Social to “non-woke” entertainment. Par for his track record, it looks… Read more...



86Mashable / 11h
Oscar-winning composer Hans Zimmer shares his process in creating iconic scores and realizing his lifelong dream to make Dune.



Gizmodo / 11h
Oil and gas companies keep saying they’re committed to the goals of the Paris Agreement . They keep making net zero promises . They touting high-tech solutions they’re working on. It may feel like most of it is bullshit, but now we have the science to prove it. Read more...



Futurism / 11h
Anti-Satellite Weapons A team of scientists in China have created a device that uses explosives to destroy enemy satellites. The weapon can be inserted inside of a satellite’s exhaust nozzle, according to The South China Morning Post . A paper published about the device and obtained by SCMP says that it can detonate to create a “time-controlled, steady explosion.” Astonishingly, the weapon leaves



Gizmodo / 11h
Seeking to make an app that was designed to be a fun distraction less fun and less distracting, the powers that be over at Douyin—the Chinese version of TikTok that’s pretty much the same the U.S. version, but with boosted ecommerce capabilities—are launching new features aimed at curbing the binge-watching behaviors… Read more...



79Engadget / 11h
Overwatch hero Jesse McCree has a new name, and, no, it’s not Deadeye Dave. As promised , Blizzard has renamed the gunslinger in the aftermath of his real-life namesake leaving the studio back in August. As of October 26th, McCree will be known as Cole Cassidy. “To make the new Overwatch better — to make things right — he had to be honest with his team and himself.” Blizzard said in a tweet . “Th



85Gizmodo / 11h
What a weird, weird race to the bottom of the branded-IP media universe barrel we find ourselves in. Read more...



I'm an editor at a tech site, so it's probably not terribly surprising to know that I'm constantly carrying either one or two laptops in my bag at all times, along with at least one phone and a pair of wireless headphones. That's up to four devices that are part of my daily routine that all need charging. And for me, the Razer USB-C GAN charger has been a lifesaver. Razer sent it to me back when



Lifehacker / 11h
Online multiplayer is great, but sometimes you want to plop down on the sofa next to your friend or spouse and play a game on the same screen. These 12 split-screen games were all released within the last five years, and any would make an excellent choice on your next couch co-op game night. Read more...



Citi is a TPG advertising partner. Some things in life are better in twos — and that’s absolutely the case with the Citi Premier® Card and the Citi Rewards+® Card . While the Citi Premier is a great stand-alone travel credit card , you should seriously consider adding the Citi Rewards+ to achieve another sign-up bonus and earn more points on everyday spending — all for no annual fee. This also wo



The Chase Sapphire Reserve is one of the best luxury travel credit cards in the miles and points world. TPG readers have voted it the No. 1 premium credit card three years in a row. Here are a few reasons why: The card earns Chase Ultimate Rewards points , which are some of the most valuable points you can earn for free travel. They’re easy to use, and they can be redeemed for a wide variety of t



SlashGear / 11h
Satechi today announced a new USB-C adapter, and it’s quite the doozy. Though its official name – the Satechi USB-C Hybrid Multiport Adapter – might be a little boring, the actual adapter is anything but. As you’d expect, the USB-C adapter comes with a variety of ports, but it comes with something else we’re not really used to seeing on … Continue reading



One Essential Amino•
SlashGear / 11h
A specific combination of essential amino acids may help protect against the development of dementia, according to a new study from Japanese researchers with the National Institute for Quantum Sciences and Technology. Key to the research is protein and the role it plays in brain health, among other things, with the researchers noting that low protein diets sped up the … Continue reading



From megafauna and massive anthropods to an exoplanet that got hit so hard it had the wind literally knocked out of it, science news has definitely been lively this week. On the biology front, a newly discovered fossil of a meter-long scorpion was the first of its kind in Asia, while scientists now believe they have conclusively proven what killed off the woolly mammoth. Arizona park attendees we



The Austin airport was supposed to be getting a new lounge accessible by American Express Platinum cardmembers. A contract was set to be awarded right before the pandemic. But the owners of Priority Pass disputed the award, wanting to build their own club. This stalled the process, the award was cancelled, and now the airport says they have no plans to try again. Continue reading ...



Enlarge / The telescope array of the Next Generation Transit Survey. (credit: NGTS ) If you've ever wanted to search for distant worlds, your time has come. The team behind a planet-hunting telescope array called the Next-Generation Transit Survey (NGTS) is looking for help with the large volume of data the instrument has produced. The NGTS scans large areas of the sky with a collection of small,



38Mashable / 11h
Looking to get hooked on a new tale of true crime? HBO Max has you covered. The streaming service boasts tons of great documentaries, many of them centered on criminal activity. But for the purposes of this list, we've limited the definition of the genre to focus exclusively on those all-consuming stories that drive you to marathon-viewing multiple, terrifying tales. You know, those whodunnits —



Lifehacker / 11h
Homophones are words that sound alike but have different meanings, and usually different spellings. Some are easy to distinguish (plane and plain, flower and flour— though I still pause and reflect every time I need to write “cauliflower”) and some are harder. Here, we’ll focus on the trickier ones people easily get… Read more...



Hackers Rootkit Microsoft•
Gizmodo / 12h
A recent report by cybersecurity firm Bitdefender shows that e-criminals have been using a particular rootkit, dubbed “FiveSys,” that bafflingly received a digital signature from Microsoft. Read more...




Lateral Flow Test Days•
We all know how complicated international travel can be right now. But that doesn’t mean my wanderlust has dissipated. So this past weekend, I decided to hop across the pond for a quick trip to London to visit a good friend. London is one of my all-time favorite destinations, and I was longing for the prompt Tube, a cup of steamy English breakfast tea and an outing to the British Museum. Because



Mashable / 12h
Sure, Hulu's got a great catalogue of current and recent TV hits , not to mention a pretty impressive originals lineup of its own. But sometimes, you're in the mood for something more classic — a feature film that's stood the test of time, say. That's where we come in to help. We've scoured Hulu to find the best old movies from a range of genres, from action-packed Westerns to outrageous comedies



Gizmodo / 12h
Like a cherry placed atop a delicious sundae, NASA technicians have successfully mounted the Orion spacecraft onto the Space Launch System rocket. It’s a major milestone, as the space agency prepares for the upcoming Artemis missions to the Moon. Read more...



State of Play October•
SlashGear / 12h
It hasn’t been that long since the last PlayStation State of Play, but that isn’t stopping Sony from hosting another one. Today, Sony announced that another State of Play will be happening next week. Still, unlike the previous one that focused primarily on PlayStation 5 games, this one will focus on upcoming games for both PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5. … Continue reading



400+The Points Guy / 12h
Editor’s note: Hotels.com was the exclusive sponsor of Fall Travel Week here at The Points Guy. All content below is from TPG and wasn’t subject to review by Hotels.com. This post has been updated with new information. It’s official: Fall is here, and if you want to see the leaves turn color, you need to plan your leaf-peeping trip now. According to many reports, fall foliage all over the country



SlashGear / 12h
The next new lowest-end iPhone was rumored today with a set of features that are likely on their way out. The iPhone SE 3, as it MIGHT be called, will likely have a Touch ID sensor mounted up front, in the home button just like its predecessor. It’s also tipped that this very well could be the final LCD iPhone … Continue reading



Facebook Whistleblower•
200+Engadget / 12h
with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The latest complaint, which was first reported by The Washington Post , alleges Facebook misled its investors about “dangerous and criminal behavior on its platforms, including Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger.” In the complaint, the former employee described a conversation with one of Facebook’s top communication executives who, following disclosure



After releasing the new Chromium-based version of Edge last year, Microsoft has continued to update its browser with new features in an attempt to get even more users to make the switch from Google Chrome . For those that want to be the first ones to gain access to all of the new features coming to its browser, the software giant offers three different Microsoft Edge Insider Channels including th



TechCrunch / 12h
Like it or not, memes are part of how we communicate now — we even reference memes in our headlines. But iterating upon existing memes can be a needlessly clunky user experience . First, you need to find a meme template, then you need to figure out how to add text, even if that means reverse-engineering Instagram story drafts into photo-editing software. But instead of scrolling through Google im



Apple Updates App Store•
25TechCrunch / 12h
Apple today introduced a new set of App Store Guidelines that include three key changes. One of the changes is the result of a previously announced settlement agreement with a class of U.S. app developers. It clarifies that developers are allowed to communicate with their customers about other payment methods available outside their app. Related to this, another new guideline explains that apps m



SlashGear / 12h
Walmart is recalling thousands of bottles of a Better Homes & Gardens aromatherapy spray over potential contamination with a deadly bacteria called Burkholderia pseudomallei. The recall follows four illnesses in the US earlier this year that resulted in two deaths, according to the US Centers for Disease Control, which found the bacteria in a bottle of the aromatherapy spray sourced … Continue re



Invasion Apple Sci-Fi•
Mashable / 12h
In the late 19th and early 20th century, a new genre of literature emerged from eventually realized fears that the world was vulnerable to massive global conflict sparked by foreign invasions. This "invasion literature" was a phenomenon that explored these conflicts through a terrestrial lens, exploring scenarios where France invaded England, or Prussia got randy with Germany; it wasn't until 189



Engadget / 12h
For a while now, Discord has offered a feature called Rich Presence . It’s an API developers can use to connect their games to Discord and make it easier to jump into them from the chat app. We’ve mostly seen studios add the integration to individual titles, but now EA is doing it at the launcher level . Starting today, its EA app will allow you to connect your Discord account. Once you link the



Ford Bronco SEMA 2021•
SlashGear / 12h
Ford’s Bronco may already have proved it can go more places than the average truck, but with SEMA coming up it’s time for the SUV to get even more aggressive with some eye-catching customizations. The automaker designed the new Bronco to be flexible on that front anyway, with a hefty catalog of dealer accessories to sift through, though for this … Continue reading



iFixit Apple Watch 7•
iFixit's full Apple Watch Series 7 teardown. [credit: iFixit ] As has become something of a ritual, tools-seller and repair-advocacy group iFixit has published a detailed teardown of the latest Apple product. This time, we get a look at the innards of the Apple Watch Series 7. This Watch model was announced in September—but without a release date. The eventual ship date for the first orders was F

Backblaze
Posted by at