New, thinner Macbook Pros will reportedly have an OLED touch bar
Barring
a big change to the trackpad, Apple's high-powered MacBook Pro models
haven't seen many major differences in recent years. That may be until
now. According to 9to5Mac, which is citing both Apple analyst Ming-Chi
Kuo and its own sources, the n... Read More ...
'Ori and the Blind Forest' finally makes its way to retail
What
began on Xbox One as a digital title, then a definitive edition on the
same console, followed by one on PC is finally making its way to bricks
and mortar stores. On June 14th, you'll be able to walk into your
favorite fine purveyor of video game... Read More ...
DJI drones can start streaming live aerial videos on Facebook
DJI
has updated its Go app to add a feature it promised in April: the
capability to stream videos over Facebook Live using compatible drones,
including the latest Phantom and Inspire. Sure, you can already stream
aerial footage of sprawling landscape... Read More ...
Watch the most powerful x-ray laser zap droplets of water
Scientists
at Stanford University's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory wanted to
better understand explosions caused by x-rays, and we got a cool short
movie out of their efforts. They filmed droplets and jets of water being
vaporized by the lab's... Read More ...
Facebook auto-translates 200 million lines of text every day
Facebook
reaches more than 1.6 billion users in every corner of the Earth.
Making sure everybody understands one another, at least at the
linguistic level, has fallen to the company's machine learning
algorithms. According to Alan Packer, Facebook's... Read More ...
Geek Squad employee allegedly searched PCs for the FBI
An
astute PC technician is supposed to report any illegal content they see
while fixing a machine, but one employee of Best Buy's Geek Squad might
have gone too far. The defense in a child pornography case alleges
that the FBI paid Geek Squad agent... Read More ...
What's on your HDTV: 'Overwatch,' 'Chef's Table'
Blizzard
is finally ready with a fully new game. The servers just went live for
Overwatch, and players enjoying its all-multiplayer action. Beyond that,
Netflix is dropping season two of its critically acclaimed Chef's Table
series, as well as its se... Read More ...
'Romancing SaGa 2' is out for mobile devices this week
Square
Enix has been hard at work this year bringing titles we previously
thought may never see the light of day in the west to mobile devices.
The latest to join the ranks of mobile ports is Romancing SaGa 2, a port
of the cult classic Super Famicom... Read More ...
ATM hacking spree nets thieves $12.7 million in two hours
Normally
when your data is part of a haul from some security breach your most
immediate worry is about how it can be used to steal your identity
online. Well, sometimes that information is instrumental in physical
heists. On May 15th, a team of hacke... Read More ...
Facebook Live adds nonstop, 24-hour video
As
part of the social network's wider push into live video, Facebook is
expanding beyond on-the-ground journalism and in-car Star Wars toy
reviews. TechCrunch reports Facebook Live will now also allow for
24-hour, nonstop streaming broadcasts. Read More ...
Polaroid's first smart TVs pack 4K and Google Cast
When
Google unveiled a wider range of TVs with Google Cast support, you
might have done a double-take when you saw Polaroid's name -- what, the
reborn camera maker? Yes, it's true... and you may have a good reason
to take notice. Polaroid has unvei... Read More ...
Snapchat does something useful, lets you buy 'X-Men' tickets
Although
they're sitting out Comic-Con, 20th Century Fox is going big with their
Snapchat-based promotions for Friday's release of X-Men: Apocalypse.
While users will notice Snapchat's filter lenses are all mutant-themed
today, the movie studio has a... Read More ...
Amazon no longer offers refunds for after-the-sale price drops
Say
goodbye to the days when Amazon would cut you a break if the price of a
product dropped right after you ordered it. Customers are reporting
that Amazon has stopped offering partial refunds on orders if a price
drop happens within 7 days -- if you... Read More ...
NASA is building the next Mars rover in mixed reality
I
poked my head inside NASA's latest Mars rover. During a mixed reality
demonstration at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, as
soon as I strapped on a HoloLens, a vibrant holographic vehicle popped
up in front of me. Read More ...
ESPN and 'League of Legends' studio aren't making a broadcast deal
League
of Legends is one of the most popular esports titles in the world, but
it's not heading to ESPN any time soon. Spokespeople for Riot Games and
ESPN tell Engadget that the companies are not working on a broadcasting
deal, despite a report on PV... Read More ...
Facebook Live video replays will highlight the best moments
By
now, you've certainly heard about Facebook's live video push. As the
company continues to revise the live-streaming feature, new tools are
being added on the regular. TechCrunch reports that the social network
will soon let viewers skip straight t... Read More ...
Violent crime prediction algorithms are racially biased
When
a criminal defendant faces sentencing in the United States, a judge can
use several factors to determine a punishment that fits the crime.
Increasingly, one of those factors is what is known as a "risk
assessment score" -- a number meant to pred... Read More ...
Netflix's Disney streaming exclusives start in September
Netflix
is about to get a whole lot more magical. There's a whole cadre of
additional Disney films coming to the streaming service this September
as Netflix becomes the exclusive streaming service for movies from
Disney, Marvel, Lucasfilm and Pixar. Read More ...
Android will have password-free sign-ins by the end of 2016
Back
in 2015, Google teased the prospect of Project Abacus, a sign-in
approach for Android that ditches passwords in favor of a trust system
that uses patterns (such as location, typing speed and voice) to verify
your identity. But when is it coming... Read More ...
Facebook offers a free VR audio tool thanks to a buyout
Facebook
isn't merely content to make a virtual reality camera rig and call it a
day. The company has revealed that it acquired Two Big Ears, the
creator of the VR audio app Spatial Workstation, and has set the
software loose. As of now, Spatial Work... Read More ...
Chance the Rapper's streaming-only album hits Billboard chart
In
late 2014, the Billboard 200 chart began to take into account both
album sales and streaming plays for its rankings. When the list is
updated this week, the first streaming-only album will be included on
the chart. Chance the Rapper's Coloring Boo... Read More ...
Chicago turns to big data to predict gun and gang violence
Chicago
has been inundated with gun-related crimes over the past year -- nearly
3,000 people were shot in 2015, along with another 240 already in 2016.
However, in a city of 2.7 million, the CPD attributes much of this
violence to a small segment of... Read More ...
Waterstones is done selling e-books
Waterstones
is well and truly getting back to basics today, as it has dropped
e-books and audiobooks from its online store. The digital libraries of
Waterstones customers will remain accessible until June 13th, with Kobo
taking over the following day... Read More ...
AT&T streamlines its smartphone installment plans
AT&T's
current Next installment plans are a little bewildering, to put it
mildly. Do you want to trade in at 12, 18 or 24 months? How about a
downpayment and installments for 28 months? Mercifully, the carrier
knows what a mess it made. As of Jun... Read More ...
Dell's 43-inch, 4K monitor supports four clients on one screen
Dell's
latest monitor is a doozy. The Dell 43 Multi-Client Monitor (P4317Q) is
a 4K, 43-inch beast that acts as if it's four displays squished into
one. When shown on a single screen, the displays are borderless, but
users are able to swap any of the... Read More ...
Available Tags:Macbook , Facebook , Google , Amazon , NASA , Android , smartphone ,
True
to its word, Jaybird's latest wireless sport earbuds are making their
debut in the first half of 2016. The company's $200 Freedom in-ears are
now available and I've been putting them through their paces for the
past few days. This new model foll... 
Media
portal and set-top box makers have tried any number of things to help
you decide what to watch next, ranging from visual makeovers to voice
recognition. However, the team at FireCore thinks it has a better way:
filters. The new Infuse 4.2 for... 
Terahertz
spectrum scanning is potentially ideal for finding bombs due to the
sheer range of materials it can detect, but it's not exactly practical
for luggage checks when you need both a suitcase-sized machine and up to
half an hour to conduct a sc... 
Remember
Dean Kamen's iBot wheelchair? Its uniquely adjustable wheel orientation
gave patients the freedom to climb stairs and effectively stand
upright, but its high price ($25,000) knocked it off the market in 2009.
Well, it's poised for a comeback... 
Indiegogo
has made some effort to help get crowdfunded projects off the ground,
but it has mostly focused on big companies so far. What about startups
still grappling with the basics of making devices? Don't worry: they're
getting some help now, to... 
Ever
since Sony switched to x86 processors with the PlayStation 4, gamers
have been craving the chance to play PC games on the console -- it's
much closer to your home computer than the PS3 was, after all. Well,
we're glad to say that it's no longer... 
For
me, one of the most interesting parts of Moogfest is the Circuit
Bending Challenge. Sure, the performances and tech demos are great, but
it's always a treat to see what a community of tinkerers can come up
with on a tight budget of $70. I've seen... 
You'd
think that Google's search results would be protected in the US by free
speech rights. Google gets to say what what shows up on its own site,
right? However, one Florida court thinks differently. It recently
determined that Google wasn't protec... 
Are
you (or your kid) curious about the world around you? Google wants to
help. It just launched Science Journal, an Android app that helps you
perform (and comment on) simple science experiments. The app can record
light, motion and sound levels u... 
It's
been an auspicious week for big promises. Google announced a whole
bunch of stuff at its 2016 I/O developers conference, though it didn't
have a whole lot in the demonstrable product department. Similarly, a
trio of transportation companies anno... 
The
self-driving cars are coming: This week Uber unveiled its first
autonomous vehicle, while Google patented a sticky "fly paper" car hood
that could protect pedestrians caught in self-driving car crashes. Los
Angeles celebrated the completion of it... 
BACtrack
is a San Francisco company known for making breathalyzers for both law
enforcement and ordinary people. But it won the $200,000 grand prize at a
National Institutes of Health-sponsored competition for a different
kind of blood alcohol monito... 
By Cat DiStasio
Ubisoft
and Massive Entertainment are willing to try quite a few things to keep
you coming back to The Division, but their latest approach is
particularly direct: they're upping the ante. Ubi has revealed that its
second free update, Conflict, will i... 
Surgical
teams aren't fond of robots that could replace them (just ask Johnson
& Johnson), but that doesn't mean they're completely against
mechanical helpers. Children's National Medical Center and Johns
Hopkins University recently tested a Sma... 
In
anticipation of Electronic Arts' next Battlefield title, the publisher
is celebrating by serving up free downloads of some of the previous
expansions. You can jump on the platform of your choice and pick up the
Battlefield 4 add-on Dragon's Teeth... 
According
to Match Group, more than one million people have ponied up the $9.99
per month (or more, if you're over 30) for Tinder's premium service
level in the first quarter of 2016. That figure is a relatively small
portion of Tinder's 50 million g... 
If
you're battling hackers, it's helpful to know who they actually are.
Unfortunately, tracking down the culprits of an attack has always been
difficult thanks to VPNs, TOR, and other methods used to disguise the
source of a digital assault. Now DARP... 
While
3D printing is all well and good, it can be frustrating if you need to
make a lot of things, or make them quickly. Do you really want to wait
minutes (or hours) for a bowl to finish? Mayku sure doesn't. It's
crowdfunding the FormBox, a machine... 
Email
services including Gmail, Yahoo Mail and Hotmail have fallen victim to a
hack, exposing usernames and passwords for millions of users. According
to Reuters, a huge data breach consisting of some 273.3 million online
accounts has been reported b... 
Twitter
launched a handy GIF search tool inside its mobile apps back in
February, and now the social network is bring the animated images to the
desktop. With an update to the Mac software, users can expect to
quickly find an appropriate GIF for the... 
Unless
you've been living under the proverbial rock for the last year or so,
you've likely heard of the musical sensation Hamilton (16-time Tony
nominee) and its creator / star Lin-Manuel Miranda. As it turns out,
Miranda isn't just an American histo... 
Would
you like a side of sick beats with those french fries? McDonald's
Netherlands has you covered with the McTrax Placemat, a sheet of paper
that allows you to connect with your smartphone to channel your inner
Diplo. 
Vine
finally debuted an official Windows 10 app today, which you can find
for free on the Windows Store. It offers everything you'd expect: A
selection of the latest trending Vine videos, as well as the ability to
explore videos in different category... 
So
much for US intelligence scaling back its curiosity in the wake of
Edward Snowden's leaks. An Office of the Director of National
Intelligence transparency report has revealed that the CIA and NSA
doubled the number of searches for the content of A... 
KFC
is taking its "finger lickin' good" slogan a bit too far. The fried
chicken fast food chain made two "edible" fingernail polishes for its
fans in Hong Kong. Teaming up with ad agency Ogilvy & Mather and
food experts at McCormick, two shades w... 
A
group of researchers and aviators in Nevada have successfully completed
the first flight of an unmanned cloud-seeding aircraft, the state's
Desert Research Institute reports. 
DARPA's
has been responsible for countless advancements in cutting-edge
technologies since its founding in 1958. During a conference call on
Wednesday, DARPA's Deputy director Steve Walker announced that it is
partnering with Chicago's Museum of Scie... 
Airlines
have made great efforts to update their tech, including replacing bulky
flight manuals with iPads. But pilot teams still receive flight
information updates the same way they've been doing for decades: over
radio voice comms, as current wirel... 
You
can already tour Anne Frank's hideaway in virtual reality if you can't
make it to Amsterdam, but producer Jonah Hirsch is taking that one step
further. He's creating a VR experience, Anne, that will tell the
Holocaust symbol's tale in 360 degrees... 
Roost's
smoke detector smart battery is one of those rare, genuinely useful,
connected home gadgets. It plugs into any smoke detector to give you
alarm notifications on your smartphone, and it costs a paltry $35. Now,
the company is adding two new sm... 
If
you've ever tried to make your own movie, you know that emulating J.J.
Abrams isn't easy. Moreover, even if you were the greatest unheralded
cinematographer in history, you still couldn't compete with Hollywood.
After all, even modestly budgeted f... 
Streaming
live TV over the internet is the latest entertainment land grab -- as
more consumers cut the cord, plenty of companies are finding new ways to
offer potential customers a way to get their live TV fix. According to a
report from Bloomberg, Y... 
Already
trudged through all of what nuclear wasteland simulator Fallout 4 has
to offer? Crossed the first two expansions off of your list? Suit up,
because it's time to head to Fallout 4's fictional island of Far Harbor
on May 19th. 
Respawn
is ready to break out of the Titanfall mold... and in a way you
probably didn't expect. The game studio has announced that it's working
with EA and Lucasfilm on a third-person Star Wars action/adventure. It's
saying precious little about the... 
Presentation
apps may not be the most exciting software out there, but there's no
doubt that tools like Powerpoint and Google Slides are important to
large swaths of professional and educational users. Today, Google is
adding what seems to be a prett... 
The
team of scientists and engineers who confirmed the existence of
gravitational waves earlier this year have just nabbed a handsome $3
million reward as part of a special Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental
Physics. 
Would-be
hackers don't always have to jump through hoops to bring down a
website. Researchers have discovered relatively simple exploits in
ImageMagick, a common package for processing pictures on the web, that
let attackers run any code they like o... 
It's
springtime in downtown Phoenix, and Cobra Arcade Bar is open for
business. Wednesday afternoon sunlight spills through two massive open
windows at the front of the bar, illuminating silver tap handles,
neon-splattered paintings from local artist...