Technology news

Rarely is the appearance of Godzilla-like beasts accompanied by applause instead of screams of terror, but over the past weekend, 750,000 people cheered on towering robotic monsters duking it out in downtown Ottawa.
French street theatre company La Machine created the two mechanical marvels and designed the four-day public performance called “The Spirit of the Dragon-Horse, With Stolen Wings.” La Machine derives all its inspiration from machination and movement, saying it chose publi

There are few people in tech who capture our attention in quite the same way as Elon Musk. Whether he’s arguing with Mark Zuckerberg about the dangers of AI, or he’s breaking Hyperloop news on Twitter, he’s usually good for a headline or two. Today he’s making a splash for frank comments about what it’s like to be Elon Musk: @elonmusk are you bipolar? — Fahad Uddin (@iFahadUddin) July 30, 2017   Maybe not medically tho. Dunno. Bad feelings correlate to b

The next iPhone — the one with the bezel-less screen that leaked out in the HomePod code over the weekend — might be getting a massive jump in screen resolution in addition to therevamped design, according to a tweet from developer Steve Troughton-Smith. According to Troughton-Smith, there are references in the code for an upcoming iPhone with a functional resolution of 1125 x 2436, a number that gels with an existing rumor back in February from typically reliable KGI analyst Ming-Ch

New messaging apps need a gimmick to set them apart. And, as far as chat apps go, there aren’t many things as gimmicky as Snaappy’s masturbating bear emoji. I got the chance to try it out, and while I liked its character, I struggled to find anything fun or unique about it. Snaappy is a new messaging app, sort of a hybrid of Whatsapp and Snapchat — with none of the appeal of either. One of the first things you’ll notice about it is the animated blue bear emoji libra

The big number surrounding Tesla’s Model 3 has been $35,000, which is the base price for the electric car. But there’s one big problem: barely anyone will pay that price, if they want a Model 3 with autopilot (which, let’s face it you do), or even a color other than black, according to screenshots of the Model 3 configurator posted in the Model 3 Owners Club.The truth is the Model 3 costs $40,000 if you want a standard version with autopilot (an extra $5,000) in black with no o

Two weeks ago, Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss announced they were making an alternative history drama called Confederate, about an America where slavery still exists. Also working on the show are producers Nichelle Tramble Spellman (The Good Wife) and Malcolm Spellman (Empire). The internet immediately deemed this a terrible idea, with a wave of negative comments, followed by a Twitter campaign built around the hashtag #NoConfederate. Benioff and Weiss’ defense ha

While most tech companies are busy trying to harness virtual and augmented reality, a number of audio companies are studying how software can enhance our listening experiences. Even made waves a few years ago with its headphones that could be tuned to your hearing profile – essentially glasses for your ears, as the company describes it. Last week, the company announced the H2, its first Bluetooth model. I’ve had the chance to use it over a couple of weeks, and there’s plenty t

President Vladimir Putin has signed a law that prohibits forms of technology that grant access to banned websites in Russia, effective November 1st. The ban covers services that allow people to use the internet anonymously, such as virtual private networks and proxies, and internet providers will have to block websites that host these services.
Leonid Levin, Russia’s chairman of a parliamentary committee on information policy and communications, told news agency RIA Novosti earlier in the

Spotify has just updated its subscriber information, and it now has more than 60 million paying users. That means the company is up 10 million subscribers since March, when it last announced it had 50 million. As of last month, Spotify said it had 140 million total users.Since it last released subscriber numbers, a few things have changed for Spotify. Most crucially, the company reached licensing agreements with Universal Music Group and Sony. The deals will give these labels’ artists the

By now, information about marketing strategies is so widespread, it can feel like you know all there is to know about designing the perfect push. From SEO to visual infographics, most aspiring and current marketers have pretty well-stocked advertising toolkits. However, even the most experienced and talented marketers in the world still need help once in awhile. No one should feel embarrassed about or ashamed of using marketing tools, especially given the increasing competition between organiza

The International Brotherhood of Teamsters, a union representing 1.4 million members, is fighting tooth-and-nail against the legal implementation of autonomous trucks in the US. Last week it successfully lobbied Congress to place a 10,000 pound weight-limit on current driverless vehicle legislation. The legislation represents a rare example of bipartisanship under the current administration; it passed with a vote of 54-0. It also paves the way for cars without drivers to occupy our roads. The n

Ryan Reynolds tweeted the first official image of Domino from Deadpool 2 today. The photo of Zazie Beetz, who will play the X-Force mutant in the sequel, is a callback to one of the first promo images of Reynolds as Deadpool, in which he lounges on a bear rug by a fire.In the new image, Domino poses in the same room, near the same fire, except this time she’s lying on a Deadpool suit.
Some people just know how to work a red carpet. #Domino #DeadPool2 pic.twitter.com/llCc8JfKT6— Ryan

Asus will unveil its newest ZenFone — the ZenFone 4 — on August 19th in the Philippines. The invitation is transparent about the fact that we can expect the new phone to include a dual-camera system and better sensors. A version of the ZenFone 4 already exists in Russia under the name ZenFone 4 Max. That phone includes dual rear-facing cameras and is powered by either a Snapdragon 430 or 425 processor. It isn't clear whether Asus will just reintroduce this phone for other markets or

Google is going to make it a bit easier to check the battery level on Bluetooth devices connected to your phone. As spotted by XDA Developers, the Android Open Source Project has added support for “[retrieving] battery level information of [a] remote device.”
When this makes its way to a full Android release, it should allow an Android phone to display the battery level of any connected Bluetooth headphones, speakers, or other accessories. Those devices will have to be set up to shar

I’m standing on a high peak, surrounded by red Martian rocks, when the sand storm approaches. I see it in the distance. It bubbles up in the atmosphere, its menacing clouds coming closer and closer. When the red wind finally hits, it’s underwhelming. There aren’t any gusts against my body, no flecks of dirt against my helmet, no adrenaline running through my veins. All I can feel is the queasiness that comes with spending a half-hour using a VR headset. This is Mars 2030, a VR

Salesforce is a powerful set of tools for you and your sales team on its own, but that doesn’t mean you can’t improve the experience for your team. If you’re just getting started with Salesforce there are plenty of features and tools right out of the box, ones that will keep you busy for quite some time, but if you’re a veteran to the service you’re probably starting to notice things here and there that you could do to improve your efficiency and sales numbers, and

Parenting in the age of technology presents challenges Grandma and Grandpa didn’t have to deal with. Our children are ‘connected’ to the world — and if they aren’t their toys are. Common sense practices keep your kids safe most of the time. Just about everyone uses computers either at work, at home, or both. We have anti-malware software and firewalls. Everyone should know about password security and phishing scams. Your bank will never ask you for your password in

When you’re looking for a tech job, a common (clichéd, even) interview question is “what happens when you type google.com into Chrome and hit the return key.” The aim is to see if you understand the fundamentals of how the Internet works — stuff like DNS, HTTP, and ARP. If you’ve got an interview coming up, or if you just wanted a refresher on computer networking fundamentals, you’ll want to check this out. Alex Gaynor, a developer with Mozilla, wrote

GIF search engine Giphy will begin testing sponsored GIFs within integrated messaging apps, according to TechCrunch. The same source also said Giphy has reached 200 million daily users between its apps, integrations, and websites, and had reached 250 million monthly users.
The sponsored GIFs could work in a variety of ways. Most people search Giphy using emotion or action words, with popular categories on the site like “hungry,” “party,” and “smiling.” Imagine

Instagram, Clash of Clans, Tinder, and Snapchat are all free. In fact, 90-percent of apps are free because people expect them to be free. So how do developers stay in business?   In-app advertising In-app advertising is the most popular and profitable way to monetize an app. Because everyone spends massive amounts of time scrolling, watching, and engaging, in-app advertising is the fastest growing form of mobile advertising. App-install ad revenue is estimated to g

The Tesla Model 3 is finally (kind of) here. The first 30 Model 3s to roll off the production line were handed over to Tesla employees with reservations at an event this past weekend, and the company now begins the uphill climb of filling the 500,000 other preorders. The introduction of the production version of the Model 3 also meant we finally learned exactly what this car will be capable of. So how does it stack up against the competition?There are certainly more electric vehicles, plug-in hy

Samsung’s next smartphones could get even faster. The company announced that the next version of its LTE modem for its Exynos chipsets now supports up to six carrier aggregation (6CA), allowing it to hypothetically reach download speeds of up to 1.2Gbps.
For a brief recap, carrier aggregation is a method where LTE speeds are increased by using multiple LTE bands across the spectrum at the same time, resulting in increased bandwidth speeds. The more bands supported — in Samsung’

The number of apps out there for period monitoring are legion, which is as it should be. It’s an important part of health. And it took me shamefully long to discover them — I had my iPhone for almost two years before I downloaded my first tracker app. There are specialized apps — for example, FitrWoman, a period tracker for athletes. But basic apps monitoring cycles and symptoms are all the average woman will ever need. With that in mind, here are the free period-tracking apps

An upcoming Game of Thrones script and two unreleased episodes of Ballers and Room 104 have leaked online after an apparent security breach at HBO, Entertainment Weekly reports. The GoT script is reportedly from the episode scheduled to air next week.The hackers apparently claim to have 1.5 terabytes of data stolen from HBO. EW reports that the hackers sent an email to several reporters on Sunday night that contained information about the leak. The email reportedly said “HBO is falling,&rd

You can say this about any episode in Game of Thrones’ six-year history, but boy oh boy, things are really spiraling out of control in Westeros.We’ve been conditioned to expect first-rate political strategy from Tyrion, but it’s clear now that he’s not even a passable military strategist. The siege of King’s Landing failed spectacularly, and the Targaryen coalition left the Tyrells utterly defenseless in the Reach. Cersei, on the other hand, can move political chess

Hackers claim to have taken episodes from HBO shows to release online, including information on the current season of Game of Thrones. According to Entertainment Weekly, the hackers sent an email to reporters reading: Hi to all mankind. The greatest leak of cyber space era is happening. What’s its name? Oh I forget to tell. Its HBO and Game of Thrones……!!!!!! You are lucky to be the first pioneers to witness and download the leak. Enjoy it & spread the words. Whoeve

Design is often thought of as something pleasing to the user’s eye. With good design principles, companies gain a strategic advantage at creating an experience their customers like and want to return to. But design thinking is a more comprehensive and holistic approach to problem-solving. While it’s deployed in many different industries, banks are increasingly using design thinking to build stronger services that solve user problems. Such innovations can be found in fintech, se

The third episode of Game of Thrones’ seventh season is the story of meticulous strategy and how quickly it can fail.
Daenerys finally meets Jon Snow, but neither of them get what they want from the encounter. Dany’s Dornish alliance ends with Ellaria Sand watching Cersei poison her daughter Tyene in a prison cell. And the Dragon Queen’s gambit to take Casterly Rock succeeds, but it’s a hollow, meaningless victory: the Lannisters have moved their bannermen to Highgarden,

Amazon has thought of another way to combine commerce and entertainment, emphasis on commerce. Its new home makeover series, Overhaul, will follow YouTubers redesigning their homes. As they watch, viewers will be able to purchase products they see on the show — directly through Amazon.Overhaul will exist in part of a “special hub” on Amazon that is meant to facilitate easy shopping, according to Business Insider. It’s not clear if viewers will be able to click through the

The quest for power is eternal. Phones, our tethers to both the virtual and IRL world, almost never have enough juice to last an entire day. Our lives are turning into endless hunts for places to charge. Even charging at home can be difficult, particularly if you share your space with other people and use multiple devices daily. These issues can be solved through planning, though.Unfortunately, no universal charging strategy exists. Everyone has to devise routines that work best for their lifest

Google has released the latest update for Gboard on iOS, which brings Maps and YouTube to the keyboard. Now, instead of typing out an address, you can just tap the G button and drop a Google Maps link into your conversation, saving everyone a bit of copying and pasting.There’s also a new YouTube tab that lets you share videos, and a feature called Ink, which allows you to draw whatever you want, much like you can do with the standard iOS keyboard in landscape mode.All of these features are

PRESS RELEASE: AUSTIN, Texas–(BUSINESS WIRE)–July 31, 2017– Kony, Inc., the leading enterprise mobility and digital applications company, announced that it has received the highest and second highest scores by Gartner for critical capabilities for Mobile App Development Platforms (MADP). Based on a five-point scale, Kony received the highest scores for External Informational Apps (4.24) and External Transactional Apps (4.24) use cases. Kony also received the second highest scor

Advanced Micro Devices has launched a new version of its drivers for professional graphics hardware. The AMD Radeon Pro Software Crimson ReLive Edition for Vega-based Radeon Professional Graphics has a bunch of features for professional graphics fans. That includes 8K display support.
The Sunnyvale, Calif.-based company announced the new drivers at the Siggraph graphics event in Los Angeles. It comes after AMD introduced new Ryzen Threadripper CPUs and Vega graphics chips last night. The launch