Technology news

Google is adding the ability to automatically recognize addresses, phone numbers, and contacts to the Gmail website and mobile apps today (including Inbox), in the rollout of a feature that seems so blatantly obvious that I refuse to believe that Gmail didn’t have it already.
A feature so blatantly obvious it seems impossible that Google is only adding it now
But yes, somehow in the year 2017, Gmail did not have this incredibly basic functionality. A feature that the company — which

Google has added a new feature to Search that will show you if your local library has the ebook you’re looking for in stock. If you’re old like me and didn’t know that you could borrow ebooks, well you can, and many libraries across the US have a digital collection that you can borrow from.
Now you don’t have to bother searching through what’s likely an archaic library website — Google will do all the legwork for you. The company says the feature is now availa

2014’s Kingsman: The Secret Service has a fairly succinct premise: an ultra-violent, laddish James Bond crossed with My Fair Lady, from Kick-Ass director Matthew Vaughn. Based on a graphic novel by artist Dave Gibbons and writer Mark Millar (who also wrote Kick-Ass), the film paired a veteran secret agent with ne’er-do-well youth Gary “Eggsy” Unwin (Testament of Youth’s Taron Egerton), who has to confront both a flamboyant supervillain and upper-crust British societ

Two years ago the US Environmental Protection Agency issued a notice of violation to Volkswagen, setting off the far-reaching investigation and media storm into the VW diesel scandal. New research captures some of the real-world impact on lives lost due to air pollution associated with diesel cars.
In a new study published in the journal Environmental Research Letters, researchers showed that in 2013, air pollution by diesel cars, vans, and light commercial vehicles contributed to roughly 10,000

As Apple likely predicted, it appears a large number of prospective iPhone buyers are waiting until the iPhone X goes up for preorder in late October rather than purchasing the more readily available iPhone 8, which launches Friday. Noted Apple watcher and industry analyst firm KGI Securities put out a report today, detailed by 9to5Mac, explaining how the existence of the iPhone X may be cutting into iPhone 8 preorders, which went live last weekend and still show a reasonable availability window

While I’m generally cynical when it comes to most fintech startups (I’m British – cynicism is my default position), I’m a huge fan of Monzo. This UK-only banking startup lets you track your spending through a gorgeous mobile application, as well as spend with abandon while overseas without incurring any fees. Monzo, like many fintech startups, hasn’t fully developed its infrastructure yet. When it comes to spending money through the cards, it depends on a third-par

While I’m generally cynical when it comes to most fintech startups (I’m British – cynicism is my default position), I’m a huge fan of Monzo. This UK-only banking startup lets you track your spending through a gorgeous mobile application, as well as spend with abandon while overseas without incurring any fees. Monzo, like many fintech startups, hasn’t fully developed its infrastructure yet. When it comes to spending money through the cards, it depends on a third-par

Microsoft is holding an event on October 3 to discuss the latest on its mixed reality efforts. The company has just sent out press invites for the event, which will take place in San Francisco. Mixed Reality head honcho Alex Kipman will be there to elaborate on and show off the “final Windows Mixed Reality experience coming this holiday to Windows 10 PCs” .The company will likely show off virtual reality headsets from its partners, but don’t get your hopes up for a new Ho

Augmented Reality is used to define technology that creates a computer-generated image that the user can see in the real world. A physical environment is created whereby the elements therein are augmented and extracted through real-world sensory inputs such as audio, video, graphics or GPS data. The computers involved are used to manipulate and modify the user’s view of reality. This enhances the user’s current perception of reality in comparison to virtual reality which replaces th

Pepe the Frog will no longer be a go-to symbol for the white supremacist far right, if creator Matt Furie has his way. Motherboard reports that Furie’s legal representatives have sent DMCA takedown notices to “alt-right”-affiliated sites and figures using the symbol, including white nationalist Richard Spencer’s Altright.com and the r/The_Donald subreddit, which still features the cartoon frog prominently on its front page. The legal team also takes credit for getting Ama

When Facebook disclosed earlier this month that it was the target of a Russian propaganda campaign, it stayed light on details. The company said Russia-linked accounts had been used to purchase at least $100,000 in advertisements aimed at “amplifying divisive social and political messages.” But Facebook declined to provide any specific ads, to say who may have been a target of those ads, or to say how many people the ads may have reached. The incident raises questions about the thoro

Going into the 69th Emmy awards Sunday night, online streaming services were poised to make a statement. Original programming from Netflix, Amazon Studios, and Hulu earned more than 125 nominations this year. Netflix earned 92 of them on its own, buoyed by huge showings for Stranger Things and The Crown. With Game of Thrones out of the running due to its release dates falling outside the Emmy window, the door was open for Netflix to finally take home the biggest prize of the evening: Outstanding

Some carrier exclusive phones are interesting, like the original iPhone on AT&T. Most others, however, tend to be less novel. The Asus ZenFone V is squarely in the later category, a device that boasts last year’s specs and almost nothing notable about it beyond the (admittedly cheap) $384 price tag.From a design perspective, the ZenFone V looks kind of dull, and the bezels flanking the screen look painfully large compared to newer (and more expensive) flagships like the Samsung Galaxy

Shure just announced two new models of Bluetooth wireless earphones. The $150 SE215 and $100 SE112 each deliver deep bass and sound isolation, and they’re the first Bluetooth earbuds that Shure has ever made. Both deliver up to 8 hours of battery life on a charge and offer a maximum wireless range of around 30 feet. Their noise isolation blocks “up to 37 dB of ambient noise.” Both are available immediately.Shure promises that the SE215 earphones put out “rich, detailed so

Microsoft is planning to hold a special Windows Mixed Reality event next month. The software giant has started inviting members of the press to an event on October 3rd in San Francisco, and the invite teases an “opportunity to hear where Microsoft is headed next.” Microsoft’s Kinect and HoloLens inventor, Alex Kipman, will be speaking at the event.
Microsoft is likely to focus on its range of Windows Mixed Reality headsets, ahead of their availability on October 17th. Mixed Rea

Video game expansions are good places to focus on storytelling. Developers can give players a fine-tuned and familiar experience, but with a new narrative attached — like Fallout 4’s “Far Harbor” hard-boiled mystery, or the power struggle over a supercomputer in BioShock 2’s“Minerva’s Den.” Arkane Studios has reinforced this idea with the Dishonored 2 follow-up Death of the Outsider, calling it a “standalone story” set in the same unive

Apple’s iOS 11 rolls out to everyone tomorrow, but it turns out you’ll have to wait a bit longer if you want to use one of its headlining features, Apple Pay Cash. The company quietly announced the feature is “coming this fall with an update to iOS 11 and watchOS 4,” for devices in the US.  There’s no word on when it will arrive in other regions. The feature is Apple’s take on Venmo-style cash transactions. Facebook Messenger has had money transfer since

Intel announced today that it will be collaborating with Alphabet’s self-driving unit Waymo to provide the computing power necessary for Level 4 and 5 autonomous vehicles that can drive in most any condition.Waymo’s self-driving Chrysler Pacifica minivans, which are operating on public roads in Arizona and California, already feature Intel-produced technology for everything from connectivity to sensor-data processing. By working more collaboratively in the future, the two companies s

For a long time, security experts have warned that text messages are vulnerable to hijacking — and this morning, they showed what it looks like in practice. A demonstration video posted by Positive Technologies (and first reported by Forbes) shows how easy it is to hack into a bitcoin wallet by intercepting text messages in transit.
The group targeted a Coinbase account protected by two-factor authentication, which was registered to a Gmail account also protected by two-factor. By exploiti

Bored? Of course you are, it’s Monday. So why not use this little AI-powered tool to turn a photo of your face into a 3D model, then idly spin it round, pondering exactly how and when super-intelligent robots will liquidate your body and replace you with a perfect 3D-printed simulacra.
Okay, so that’s probably not what’s going to happen here, as this widget is the result of some normal research from The University of Nottingham and Kingston University in the UK. (Although, that

AI will be the next general purpose technology (GPT), according to experts. Beyond the disruption of business and data – things that many of us don’t have a need to care about – AI is going to change the way most people live, as well. As a GPT, AI is predicted to integrate within our entire society in the next few years, and become entirely mainstream — like electricity and the internet. The field of AI research has the potential to fundamentally change more technologies

Huawei is taking a playful swipe at the iPhone X with a recent little Facebook ad. It’s really rather cringey, but at least it tells us a bit about what to expect for its next flagship, the Mate 10. The ad pokes fun at the iPhone X’s FaceID, using a rather crestfallen clown emoji to imply FaceID won’t be very reliable. Meanwhile, a caption below the post says “Let’s face it, facial recognition isn’t for everyone.”  While I agree with that sentiment

Middle-Earth: Shadow of War is (at least in theory) set in the same world as the rest of the Lord of the Rings saga. And with the new live action commercial, the game is getting a cinematic adaptation to match Peter Jackson’s iconic films of J.R.R. Tolkien’s novels.Live action trailers are increasingly becoming a big thing for games
The short film sees Talion — the main protagonist in the Middle-earth games — fighting his way at the head of an army of orcs, storming a for

Retail is changing at breakneck speed. While it’s become pretty clear that brick and mortar is here to stay, it’s becoming much more difficult for brands to compete in a saturated omnichannel retail market. In fact, 92 percent of American’s retail shopping still occurs offline, meaning offline retailers that try to move at the pace of the industry stand to pick up a good number of customers and potential revenue. So what are the ways that retailers are making strides to change

Waze has finally integrated Spotify into its iOS app, six months after it came to Android. The integration will allow users to control Spotify within the Waze app, instead of having to switch apps while driving.Users can control song playback, view recently played songs, and access Spotify recommendations right within Waze. And if you need to jump into the Spotify app you can access it by tapping the “go to Spotify” button instead of going through the multitasking menu or jumping hom

Microsoft first announced support for cross-platform play at E3 last year, but Sony has been hesitant to enable it. Eurogamer reports that Reddit users have noticed that Epic’s co-op survival game, Fortnite, has been quietly updated to support cross-platform play between Xbox One and PS4 players. It’s not clear if Microsoft and Sony are both supporting this, or whether it’s a temporary glitch. The Verge has reached out to both Sony and Epic Games, to confirm whether this has be

The Oregon Trail is perhaps the most beloved educational game ever made — and soon it’ll be getting a new life in schools thanks to Minecraft. A blocky rendition of The Oregon Trail is now available for Minecraft: Education Edition, a version of the game tailored specifically for classrooms. The new Oregon Trail was created by educational publishing company Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, and features the complete storyline from the original release, as well as a number of new activities

“I believe,” Shadow breathes in the final episode of season one of the Starz series American Gods. Ricky Wittle, who plays Shadow, wears a beatific smile as he speaks; it’s supposed to be the emotional climax of the series. But the smile looks overdetermined and vapid, like the grin of a car salesman, not a Buddha. Shadow’s belief is vocal but unbelievable — especially after watching the recent season-two finale of the much more theologically cynical AMC show Preach

Apple has quietly increased the cost to repair broken screens on the iPhone 6S, 6S Plus, 7 and 7 Plus, as noted by Reddit users over the weekend, raising the price of screen replacements on Apple's more recent devices by $20 across the board.That means that it now costs $149 to replace a screen on the smaller 6S and 7 instead of the original $129, and $169 for the 6S Plus and 7 Plus, up from the old price of $149. The new $149 and $169 prices also apply to the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, which will be

Chinese regulators have decided on a “comprehensive ban” on platforms that allow people to buy or sell virtual currency in China, reports The Wall Street Journal. China is cracking down on Bitcoin trading and also planned to shut down Bitcoin exchanges, according to reports from earlier in September, but this move goes even further, with government officials apparently offering an explicit directive to the nation’s currency exchanges.
WSJ reports that a document was passed arou

Sprint has announced that it’s upgrading its iPhone 8 preorder deal, with the carrier now offering an 18-month lease for free when you trade in an existing high-end device instead of the original 50 percent off lease it had originally offered. As is the case with all of Sprint’s leases, after the 18-month period expires, customers will then be able to return the phone and upgrade to a new device, or pay out six more months at the regular $29.17 / month price and own the phone.It&rsqu

One small joy of sleep is flipping over the pillow and feeling the relief of the cooler side. But would you pay $400 to experience that relief all the time?A French start-up called Moona is hoping that the answer is yes. Moona, which launched last week on Kickstarter and delivers in June 2018, has created a “machine learning smart pillow” that can always stay cold (or hot, if you prefer) and learn to adjust to the best temperature. The gadget tries to improve sleep quality by making

It’s hard to argue that Samsung hasn’t had a terrific year so far. In 2017, the world’s most prolific smartphone maker delivered a critically acclaimed new flagship in the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus, and it followed that up with a record-breaking Note 8 super flagship. Redemption complete, right? Well, not so fast. Even as it rises to new heights of software and design refinement, Samsung is holding on to some bad habits, the chief of which has a name and a sort of anthropomorphized

One of the cool new features on Samsung’s Galaxy Note 8 is Live Messages, a fun new addition that lets you draw animated messages to send to your friends. To access live messages, simply take the S Pen out from the device, hit the grey pen icon that pops up, and select “live message.”
That’ll pop up the Live Messages window, where you can draw your own custom message. On the top left of the window, there are a couple of icons, each providing different options for the pen.

VideoBlocks has been offering savvy creatives an alternative to the traditional Getty and Shutterstock’s of this world with their Netflix-like stock media service. All-you-can-eat subscription packages for video, audio, and images has seen the company and its smorgasbord of content outgrow its current branding. Step forward StoryBlocks, a new brand that will allow the company to bring all of their content libraries together. StoryBlocks CEO, TJ Leonard told me in a recent podcast intervie