Technology news

In case you were living off the interwebs this weekend, a woman named Candace Payne rocketed to viral fame after buying herself a Chewbacca mask and livestreaming the hysterical joy of trying her purchase – sound effects and all – for the first time. Now, as is tradition with all the best viral videos, Payne’s euphoric episode has been autotuned by the geniuses of Schmoyoho, also known as The Gregory Brothers. That is to say, the same minds behind the infamous Double Rain

Most people shop on Amazon because of its large catalog and competitive pricing – prices so good that sometimes, they drop even lower just days after you’ve made a purchase. When this happens, Amazon customers are generally able to request a price adjustment and be refunded the difference within seven days of purchase. According to a customer thread on Reddit, however, this is no longer an option. In a statement to Recode, Amazon says the price adjustment policy only

Facebook is adding the ability for Live broadcasts to be indefinite, but won’t let you save or share those streams. A new Continuous Video API will make all of this possible, according to TechCrunch. It aims to host live feeds of nature, huge events and or just keeping an eye on your dog while you’re away at work. Ahead of this API, Live streams were capped at 90 minutes (though I can’t imagine wanting to watch a 90-minute feed of anything). Longer form videos can be set to en

Facebook Live video is quickly becoming more popular, but sifting through video to find the interesting bits can be a pain. According to TechCrunch, a new ‘engagement graph’ feature could soon make that way easier. It’s a simple concept. Facebook records when an ongoing stream is being most commented on or reacted to, and then visualizes that data on the video’s seek bar. The more interesting bits will form peaks, the duller sections troughs. It’s fairly reminiscen

It was only a matter of time: Snapchat now lets you attach stickers to your photos and videos. Or what we normally consider ‘stickers’ anyway. Previously, Snapchat stickers only included a standard set of Unicode emoji. While more illustrated stickers appeared in conversations a couple of months ago, this is the first time you’ve been able to attach them to your ephemeral snaps. As with emoji, you add the stickers by click on the Post-It-looking button on the to

Another week, another threat to your personal data. Reportedly, someone has 117 LinkedIn logins up for sale on the dark web. This breach doesn’t have the blackmail potential of, say, the Ashley Madison affair, but this is  nevertheless a great time to give all those logins in your password manager a refresh. If you’re especially security-minded, there’s no time like the present to check out who’s got your back in the cyber security space! Privacy concerns aside, las

Ridesharing apps have generally made hailing a cab much more convenient, but sometimes you just need to arrange for a cab in advance. A report by the Financial Times indicates Lyft is beating Uber to the punch with the ability to schedule rides up to 24 hour in advance. Both Lyft and Uber had previously shut down the idea of scheduled rides, claiming they were inefficient. They could take potential drivers off the roads waiting for scheduled customers, and people are prone to cha

E3 is the world’s biggest gaming event, but it’s lost some of its luster to other conferences like PAX over the past few years. Now it wants to fight back by opening it’s doors to everyday gamers. The Entertainment Software Association – which manages E3 – today announced E3 Live, a public conference that will live alongside the main E3 event. Though it’s free, there will be limited ticket availability. To be clear, E3 proper is still open to trade profe

In the wake of Google I/O and Daydream, Facebook has purchased spatial audio company Two Big Ears for an undisclosed sum. It’s ‘Spatial Workstation’ will now be known as ‘Facebook 360 Spatial Workstation,’ and many of its tools will be free: Starting today, our pipeline for cinematic VR and 360 video, including the authoring tools, encoder and rendering engine are available for free via download below. We’re excited to be able to continue developing great too