Earlier this week during Apple’s earnings call, CEO Tim Cook said that the iPad had experienced its most successful June quarter in nearly a decade. And now IDC is out with its latest worldwide shipment figures that underline Apple’s commanding lead over the tablet competition. After refreshing the iPad Air in 2020 and launching an upgraded iPad Pro earlier this year, Apple is next expected to update the iPad Mini.
IDC estimates that Apple shipped 12.9 million iPads in the second quarter. Its nearest competition is Samsung, which hit 8 million shipments. Samsung’s Galaxy Tab S7 tablets offer fantastic hardware and punchy OLED screens, but they remain hamstrung by Android’s less-than-stellar selection of tablet apps. Lenovo, which continues to release well-received Chromebooks and Chrome OS tablets, took third with 4.7M units shipped, and Amazon came in fourth with 4.3 million Fire tablet shipments.
Both PC and tablet shipments have surged over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic as people have adapted to working from home and remote education. IDC’s figures reveal that Chromebook shipments have grown 68.6 percent year over year and reached 12.3 million units shipped in the second quarter. “While this wasn’t a record quarter for Chromebooks, it wasn’t far off the prior two quarters, which shattered previous highs,” IDC wrote.
But IDC does point to a possible slowdown in sales for Chromebooks and tablets due to ongoing chip shortages and an easing of consumer demand as more people return to the workplace or classroom. Apple has said that supply constraints could be detrimental to iPad sales in the coming months, and the iPhone might be affected as well.
Google has recently been selling a combo-package of the Stadia Controller and 2020 Chromecast as a limited-time promotion. But as spotted by 9to5Google, the company has now made the pair a permanent bundle that it’s calling the “play and watch” package.
For $99.99, you get both the controller and streaming dongle. That’s a savings of $19 compared to buying both products separately. Google is also promoting the Chromecast ethernet adapter as a recommended accessory; if you want the absolute best Stadia experience, it’s probably a smart buy — and it’s a mere $9.99 ($10 off) when purchased alongside the bundle.
In an effort to clear out inventory of the old, puck-shaped Chromecast Ultra, Google is discounting its Stadia Premiere Edition bundle yet again to $79.99. I’d definitely recommend the newer Chromecast with Google TV over the older one. The streaming experience is much richer and more comprehensive on the newer device. But if you’re strictly using it as a gateway to Stadia, the $79.99 deal might be worth hopping on.
Remember that Google’s game streaming service now supports select Android TV products as well. So if you’ve got a TV running that software, all you really need to get going is Google’s controller or a compatible third-party Bluetooth gamepad.
It’s been more than eight months since Sony launched the PlayStation 5. In that time, there have been a few system software updates, but they have all been relatively minor. This week, the first major update is finally rolling out to beta testers. Without a doubt, the most noteworthy feature of the update is support for M.2 SSD devices. It wasn’t possible to expand the console’s SSD storage at launch. But as of this update, it will be possible to insert M.2 SSD drives into the PS5’s expansion slot. Of course, that isn’t the only highlight of the update, as beta testers have found.
Video game controllers are now so advanced that they need software updates of their own. The PS5’s DualSense is no exception. The issue is that the only time your PS5 gives you a chance to update your controllers is when you boot up your console. Sometimes, you might accidentally cancel the prompt when it appears. If you do, you will have to wait another 24 hours for it to reappear. It’s a bizarre system.
Thankfully, as The Verge reports, Sony appears to have ameliorated this situation in the update. In the beta 2.0 software, there is a new way to update the DualSense controller. If you navigate to Settings > Accessories > Controllers, you should see a new option called Wireless Controller Device Software. It will tell you what version of the software your controller is currently running and will allow you to initiate an update if one is available. The prompts will continue to appear as well.
Everything else in the PS5 beta 2.0 update
The PS5 interface still needs plenty of work, but the controller update setting is a good start. Another useful feature in beta 2.0 is the ability to rearrange the controls at the bottom of the screen in the control center. For whatever reason, Sony decided to make it more difficult to access the power controls on the PS5, but this should eliminate at least one of the extra steps.
Other new features include the option to turn on 3D audio for your TV speakers, separate icons for PS5 and PS4 versions of games, a trophy tracker that allows you to track up to five trophies per game, and improvements to the Library menu that should make it easier to navigate.
Sony’s PS5 beta update rolled out on Thursday, so it could be quite some time before it reaches the public. You can sign up for the PS5 system software beta program on the PlayStation website.
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The weekends are supposed to be for rest and relaxation, right? Well, we’re going to give you another reason to be excited that the weekend has finally arrived. We’ve dug through hundreds of daily deals on Saturday to come up with our 10 favorites. None of these deals will be around for very long, though. That means you need to hurry or you’re going to miss out on these deep discounts.
Here are the highlights:
Scroll through all of today’s best bargains below.
Follow @BGRDeals on Twitter to keep up with the latest and greatest deals we find around the web. Prices subject to change without notice and any coupons mentioned above may be available in limited supply.
Article From & Read More ( 10 deals you don’t want to miss on Saturday: $5 Alexa smart plugs, $110 electric standing desk, rare Nest Thermostat deal, more - BGR )
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When was the last time you thought about your old Gingerbread phone? Google launched Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich to the public nearly ten years ago, ushering in the days of its Tron-inspired Holo UI, but some legendary Android devices — including the Moto Droid X, HTC Evo 4G, and Samsung's original Galaxy S — never made the jump. If you're still holding onto a phone running Gingerbread, it's about to get a whole lot harder to use with Google services.
Starting September 27, any device running Android 2.3.7 Gingerbread or earlier will no longer be able to sign into a Google account (via 9to5Google). The company specifically highlights Gmail, YouTube, and Maps as apps destined to produce username and password errors following this date. In an email sent to affected users, Google suggests updating your device to Android 3.0 or higher if possible (a strange request, considering Honeycomb was a tablet-exclusive release), but realistically, the writing is on the wall. If you're still using a Gingerbread phone as your daily driver — or even as a secondary device — it might be time to give up the ghost.
If, for whatever reason, you need to keep accessing Gmail or YouTube on an affected device, you aren't entirely out of luck. You can try logging into your account using your phone's browser. Some web apps will still work with this method, though Google didn't highlight what will and won't be supported in its support forums.
Although distribution numbers for Android ceased being shared a couple of years ago, Gingerbread had fallen to 0.3% market share by May of 2019. It's safe to say that number has since dropped even further, limiting the number of users this affects to a small group of collectors at best. If you know of anyone still watching YouTube videos on a Nexus One, make sure they know it's finally time to pull the trigger on that upgrade.
Article From & Read More ( Your ancient Android Gingerbread phone is about to become even more useless - Android Police )
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If you like your lighting to be on the adventurous side, rest assured that Nanoleaf’s canvas light panels aren’t made to be subtle. The touch-sensitive squares are flashy and versatile, with the ability to display more than 16 million colors and a modular design that lets you place them in a variety of patterns. The bright LED panels also work with all the major smart home platforms, and can cycle through a number of preset colors or respond to sound when in “Rhythm Mode,” a feature that’s just as suited for the ambient noise outside your bedroom as your favorite record. Right now, Costco members can purchase Nanoleaf’s Canvas Light Panel smarter pack with nine panels and everything needed to get started for $50, one of the better prices we’ve seen on the intuitive lighting system.
The Razer Nari Essential is by no means a groundbreaking headset, yet, for the price, it’s an admirable entry-level model that will appease most gamers, especially on the PC side. The jet-black wireless gaming headset features an adjustable headband, a sturdy build, and support for both PC and PlayStation consoles, with THX Spatial Audio simulated surround sound available on the former. Normally $100, it’s currently available at Woot for $55, more than 45 percent off its typical list price. If Razer’s budget-friendly Nari Essential doesn’t offer what you’re looking for, however, we’ve also rounded up the best gaming headsets overall, including multiplatform models and both wired and wireless alternatives.
Good noise-cancellation can be hard to come by for $100 — just look at the Nothing Ear 1s. Fortunately, there’s the second-gen Amazon Echo Buds, a pair of true wireless earbuds that churn out satisfying sound while benefitting from improved comfort and noise cancellation over their first-gen counterpart. Amazon’s mid-range earbuds, which are now on sale for a limited time at Best Buy for $80, also feature IPX4 water and sweat resistance, and allow for hands-free voice commands via Alexa, meaning Amazon’s virtual assistant is always available at the tip of your tongue. Read our review.
The year 2020 was one of big, high-powered game consoles: the PlayStation 5, the Xbox Series X and Series S (and, for me, the Oculus Quest 2). But 2021's new game systems are all about fitting in your hand. Welcome back to Portable Gaming World.
Handheld games have been around for decades: the Nintendo 3DS, the DS before it, the PlayStation Vita, the PSP, the Game Boy and Game & Watch. But there's something of a renaissance going on at the moment. A big part of that involves unique boutique devices that have been promised for several years, and are finally being released after 2020's COVID-related production delays.
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But more than anything else, the Year of the Handheld is being anchored by two products: Valve's surprise Steam Deck, a handheld, Nintendo Switch-like PC gaming device; and Nintendo's newest version of the four-plus-year-old Switch, which adds a larger OLED screen.
I've always loved handheld gaming. I don't enjoy being parked in front of a TV, having to choose a room to play in. When I commuted to work, I could take games with me. At home for a year-plus, I can pick the room or place I play in.
Phones and tablets have already made most people handheld gamers for well over a decade now, but this new wave of devices splits along two clear lines: novelty or specialist products, and flexible or switchable products.
The Steam Deck, like the Switch, can play games on the go or docked into a TV or monitor. So, too, can the Analogue Pocket, an upcoming handheld designed to play throwback game cartridges (Game Boy Advance, Game Boy and more) on a monitor or TV.
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Is this a regression from 2020's wave of high-end consoles? Not to me, not at all. I don't play games just for bleeding-edge graphics. Gaming has already exploded into a million shards of subgenres and media forms, from retro and emulations, to indie to AAA studio titles, online multiplayer metaverses and immersive VR/AR experiments.
I'm just glad that the notion of handheld gaming, which seemed reborn with the Nintendo Switch in 2017, has finally led to another wave of devices. Frankly, I expected this explosion of new multimode handheld devices a few years ago, but better late than never. The fall of 2021 will be pretty busy... if you can find one of these to actually preorder. So far, many of these handhelds have frequently been sold out, or had their shipping dates slip to 2022. Here's what to expect.
Nintendo
The Nintendo Switch isn't reinventing itself, it's just getting a few welcome upgrades. The dockable Switch, which hasn't changed much since 2017, gains a larger 7-inch OLED display, better speakers, a better kickstand for tabletop gaming and a dock with Ethernet. Nintendo is betting that's worth the $50 price upgrade. It sounds worth it for hardcore Nintendo gamers, but otherwise you may be just fine with the Switch you have.
Valve's Linux-based gaming handheld is like a Nintendo Switch for SteamOS. The $399-and-up handheld plays games on the go with a wide array of thumb sticks, trackpads and buttons, but can dock and become a monitor-connected PC, too. SteamOS isn't compatible with all Steam games, and Valve's commitment to this experimental device is unclear, but the relatively low price and its possible flexibility as a Linux-running device gives this a lot of interesting upside. It's already available for preorder, but delivery times have slipped to mid-2022.
This playful little black-and-white plaything, made by the publisher of Untitled Goose Game, looks like a Game Boy cross-bred with a Pikachu and a Tamagotchi. It's a completely new system with its own indie-developed games that get pushed to the device automatically, as part of a subscription that comes with purchase. The whole idea is clever, kitschy, throwback and whimsical. Also, I didn't even mention that there's a crank in its side that works with specially designed games. It's available to preorder now, and early preorders should be getting it this year... but for others it's already slipped to 2022.
Speaking of Game Boys, Analogue's reinvented game handheld is literally made to be a rebuilt, improved player of original retro game cartridges. Analogue has done this before with its reinvented and remastered SNES and Genesis consoles. The Pocket does the same for handheld games: it plays Game Boy, Game Boy Advance and -- with adapters -- Sega Game Gear, Neo Geo Pocket and Atari Lynx cartridges. The $200 Pocket is sharper-screened, USB-C rechargeable, and can dock and play games on a TV via HDMI. The Analogue Pocket is also expected this fall.
It was just a couple of days ago that we first got our hands on Telegram's latest beta, adding screen sharing, video speed controls, and new options for clearing out your chat history. If you gave that version a spin only to find it seemed a bit buggy, you're in luck. Telegram 7.9 is already making its way out to users today, and it's got all of those beta features and a whole lot more.
This update is jam-packed, with a clear focus on improving all things video within the app. Group video calls and video messages have both been upgraded to "2.0" status, with the former adding up to 1,000 viewers in a call with 30 simultaneous broadcasts. Telegram is threatening to continue increasing that limit until every single person on Earth can join a single call, and we're starting to think it's a serious claim. As for video messages, they're now recorded in a higher resolution with a tap to expand option.
A couple of other additions round out the video-centric stuff. Playback speed is here — another option first seen in this week's beta — as are quick-copy timestamp links, allowing for fast and easy sharing of any timecode.
That's far from the only new content, of course. Telegram's Android app picks up some snazzy animation for sending messages, initially added to the iOS client in the previous update. If you use a passcode, it also has improved animations for smoother transitions between displays. Speaking of which, password resets and two-factor authentication both receive some improvements, with options to restore your account even without a recovery email address. All that, plus auto-delete options for your chat threads and new animated emoji for good measure.
This update is undoubtedly chunky, so make sure you head over to Telegram's full patch notes to see everything in action. Grab the newest version of the app using the Play Store link below, or install the latest APK from APK Mirror.
Article From & Read More ( Telegram has created a whole new social experience for you to dread with 1,000 person video calls - Android Police )
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Decentralized social network Mastodon now has an official iPhone app. The nonprofit behind Mastodon launched the app on iOS today, supplementing an existing web version and several third-party apps for iOS, Android, and other platforms. The app is free and offers a similar feature set to Mastodon’s core service, although it doesn’t include Mastodon’s broad local and federated timelines.
Mastodon describes the app as particularly geared toward getting new users on board the nontraditional social platform. As we’ve outlined before, Mastodon looks similar to Twitter but is built around independently run communities (and the ActivityPub protocol) rather than a single central network. You can create your account on a community of your choice while following and messaging people in other communities as well. It’s an unusual design among modern social platforms, and offering an official iOS entry point could help ease people into it more smoothly. CEO Eugen Rochko confirmed plans for a comparable Android app, but there’s no timeline for releasing it.
Mastodon’s iOS app supports features like polls and sensitive content filters, and the app page subtly highlights its differences with bigger services like Twitter by mentioning Mastodon’s “ad-free, chronological timeline.” As mentioned above, however, you won’t find a section for local and federated timelines — Mastodon’s firehose of all public posts from your home community and the communities of people linked with it, respectively.
Rochko tells The Verge that those timelines were a “suboptimal” way to discover new content, and excluding them also reduced the potential for conflict with Apple, which has required some social networks to limit what users can find through their apps. (Reddit’s iOS app, for instance, makes you opt into NSFW content through the web.) For a different feature set, you can keep using one of the existing iOS apps — or just log in through the web.
So far, many Halo fans have been enjoying the Halo Infinite multiplayer technical preview. However, it's been confirmed that campaign content was mistakenly included in the beta's files, leading to spoilers making their way online.
343 Industries' Joseph Staten stated that there were a "small number" of Halo Infinite campaign files unintentionally left in the tech preview build. He confirmed that they do include spoilers.
"Leaks like this are painful for the dev team and can ruin the campaign experience for everyone," says Staten in a tweet. "So please, keep you eyes peeled for spoilers and don't spread them if you see them."
In addition to spoilers, uploading any of the data-mined to places like YouTube could have adverse effects on your channel. Halo community director Brian Jarrard warned that doing so could result in a takedown notice and lead to receiving strikes.
"If you have already posted content, we recommend removing it from your channel proactively," recommends Jarrard.
IMPORTANT: Please don't post data-mined content to your channels! You run a very real risk of getting a takedown notice, which could result in a strike on certain platforms. If you have already posted content, we recommend removing it from your channel proactively.
If you're lucky enough to get an invitation to the technical test, you also have to install the beta client. Players in the beta have also already started competing for high scores in the Academy.
Halo Infinite is set to release holiday 2021 for Xbox One, Xbox Series, and PC. The multiplayer will be free-to-play when it launches.
Twitter is holding a competition in hopes that hackers and researchers will be able to identify biases in its image cropping algorithm — and it’s going to be handing out cash prizes to winning teams (via Engadget). Twitter is hoping that giving teams access to its code and image cropping model will let them find ways that the algorithm could be harmful (such as it cropping in a way that stereotypes or erases the image’s subject).
Those competing will have to submit a description of their findings, and a dataset that can be run through the algorithm to demonstrate the issue. Twitter will then assign points based on what kind of harms are found, how much it could potentially affect people, and more.
The winning team will be awarded $3,500, and there are separate $1,000 prizes for the most innovative and most generalizable findings. That amount has caused a bit of a stir on Twitter, with a few users saying it should have an extra zero. For context, Twitter’s normal bug bounty program would pay you $2,940 if you found a bug that let you perform actions for someone else (like retweeting a tweet or image) using cross-site scripting. Finding an OAuth issue that lets you take over someone’s Twitter account would net you $7,700.
Twitter has done its own research into its image-cropping algorithm before — in May, it published a paper investigating how the algorithm was biased, after accusations that its previews crops were racist. Twitter’s mostly done away with algorithmically cropping previews since then, but it’s still used on desktop and a good cropping algorithm is a handy thing for a company like Twitter to have.
Opening up a competition lets Twitter get feedback from a much broader range of perspectives. For example, the Twitter team held a space to discuss the competition during which a team member mentioned getting questions about caste-based biases in the algorithm, something that may not be noticeable to software developers in California.
It’s also not just subconscious algorithmic bias Twitter is looking for. The rubric has point values for both intentional and unintentional harms. Twitter defines unintentional harms as crops that could result from a “well-intentioned” user posting a regular image on the platform, whereas intentional harms are problematic cropping behaviors that could be exploited by someone posting maliciously designed images.
Twitter says in its announcement blog that the competition is separate from its bug bounty program — if you submit a report about algorithmic biases to Twitter outside of the competition, the company says your report will be closed and marked as not applicable. If you’re interested in joining, you can head over to the competition’s HackerOne page to see the rules, criteria, and more. Submissions are open until August 6th at 11:59PM PT, and the winners of the challenge will be announced at the Def Con AI Village on August 9th.
Article From & Read More ( After accusations, Twitter will pay hackers to find biases in its automatic image crops - The Verge )
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Technology
UPDATE: A previous version of this story referred to the image of the foldable phone seen in an image below as a leaked image of the upcoming Galaxy Z Fold 3. That does not seem to be the case. The image shows the Galaxy Z Fold 2. We regret this error.
Because of the pandemic, the 2020 Tokyo Olympics were postponed to this year and in the convoluted way that things get done these days, the games are taking place now but are still being called the 2020 Olympics. All 17,00 Olympic and Paralympic athletes competing in Tokyo are receiving a free limited-edition version of the Samsung Galaxy S21 5G. These models feature a stunning blue body with either the Olympic rings on the back or the three agitos that make up the symbol of the Paralympics.
Besides leaving Tokyo with a lifetime full of memories, maybe a medal or two, and a Galaxy S21 5G, the athletes in Tokyo are invited to visit the Galaxy Athlete Lounge at Olympic and Paralympic Village. There, the athletes can design a customized case for their free phones with stickers inspired by the 2020 games. They can also collect exclusive Olympic and Paralympic pins.
In case you were wondering, Samsung first offered a special phone for the Olympics back in 1988 (obviously it was not a smartphone). All Olympic athletes have received a phone since Sochi 2014 and all Paraolympic performers have been the recipient of a free handset since PyeongChang in 2018.
At left, the Limited Edition Olympic Galaxy S21 5G with the Paralympic model at right
If you can't make it to Tokyo because you're not an athlete, a member of the media, or a Samsung executive, you can take a look at the virtual Samsung Media Center by tapping on this link. Go inside the Media Center and you can visit the Galaxy Showroom and see what appears to be an image of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3.
The Galaxy Z Fold 2 appears in the virtual Samsung Media Center
The manufacturer's Senior Vice President and Head of Global Marketing Team of Mobile Communications Business, Stephanie Choi, said, "Samsung will continue to support the Olympic and Paralympic movements and connect fans with the Games just as we have for over 30 years. For Tokyo 2020, we will provide athletes and fans opportunities to connect and experience the excitement of the Games through our innovative mobile technologies, such as the latest Galaxy device with its 5G capabilities."
Some of the athletes have already expressed their feelings about Samsung's involvement in the games. Take U.K. skateboarder Sky Brown who stated, "I’m so proud to be part of Team Galaxy for Tokyo 2020. I travel to competitions all over the world, and I take my Samsung phone everywhere so I can stay connected to family and friends wherever I am. I hope to inspire other kids who watch me skate at The Games to decide they can be an Olympian, too."
Article From & Read More ( Samsung leaks image of Galaxy Z Fold 3 in virtual Media Center for the Tokyo Olympics - PhoneArena )
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