Between a pandemic sweeping the world and the ramped-up rhetoric of a U.S. election year, 2020 has felt pretty apocalyptic thus far. It seems that Siri agrees, too — at least, based on the AI assistant’s response to the question, “How long until 2020 ends?”
Siri’s answer varies depending on when you ask the question. But one thing’s consistent: The doomsday clock only has a few hours left on it. Fortunately, there’s a logical explanation.
Google has confirmed in an email to Nest customers on Tuesday that it is throttling camera quality to “conserve internet resources.”
The temporary measure, which will roll out to every Nest user over the coming days, is one of many Google and other tech giants have made in an effort to reduce network strain during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Epic Games confirmed on Tuesday that it is extending Fortnite Battle Royale chapter two, season two into June. It promises fresh gameplay, new challenges, bonus XP, and a “couple more surprises” before season three.
Epic did not provide us with a reason for the extension, but there are a number of reasons why season three may not be ready yet.
You really did need to be in a rush to play Pokémon Rumble Rush because, having only debuted in 2019, it’s blasting off again. Destination: The great gaming scrap heap in the sky.
An in-game notice for the Pokémon-battling title reveals that support for its game service will end on July 22. That will be exactly one year after it launched on Android and iOS.
The San Francisco Opera company said Tuesday that it is scrapping its entire summer season — including its premiere of a critically acclaimed opera about the life of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs — as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
The classical Grammy Award-winning opera The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs had been scheduled to run June 20 through July 3. But like Apple’s canceled keynote last month, it will now no longer take place as planned.
A federal court has thrown out a Florida-based lawsuit claiming that Apple intentionally broke FaceTime for people with older Apple devices.
The lawsuit is very similar to a class action suit filed in California. Apple settled that lawsuit, related to the iPhone 4 and 4s, in February. Like that case, the Florida case concerned iPhones running iOS 6 and earlier. A Florida court wasn’t won over, however. It tossed out the suit Tuesday, claiming that it is “untimely and must be dismissed.”
More people are watching Apple TV+ now that they are staying home to avoid the coronavirus, according to a market-analysis firm. Plus, this streaming service has a couple of strong shows that have increased viewership.
Oprah Winfrey is set to host a conversation about how COVID-19 has impacted black America during an Apple TV+ special that will be available for free.
The special, “Oprah Talks COVID-19 – The Deathly Impact on Black America”, will air Tuesday, April 14, at 11 p.m. and stream on AppleTV+ and OWN.
Check out the teaser:
Comcast is jumping into the streaming wars this week with an early preview of Peacock that gives customers access to over 15,000 hours of movies and TV shows from NBCUniversal. Peacock isn’t set to launch to the public until July, but if you’re an Xfinity X1 or Flex customer, you can get a taste of service starting on Wednesday, April 15, 2020.
A concept artist created an answer for anyone dubious about the usefulness of augmented reality. His video demonstrates how AR could give an Apple Card user their balance and recent transactions with only a glance.
Watch the full concept video now:
Photographer Nick Fancher has been photographing models in his studio at a time when COVID-19 social distancing rules have forced his contemporaries to cancel portrait sessions.
But the only chances the Columbus, Ohio-based Fancher takes are creative ones. In the very spot where models normally stand for him, Fancher is projecting live images of sitters following his directions via FaceTime.
He calls these the “Remotrait” sessions.
Running OS X on a tablet was a pipe dream for many Apple fans long before the iPad came out. Now that the iPad Pro has a processor that can compete with desktop CPUs, that pipe dream is almost a reality.
YouTuber Jules Gerard managed to get Mac OS X Leopard 10.5 running on his new 2020 iPad Pro without jailbreaking the device. Jules turned to the UTM emulator to show off how fast the old Mac operating system can run on the iPad Pro. Everything works shockingly well, including the built-in apps and Microsoft Office.
Prepare to be amazed:
Google will take a play out of Apple’s playbook as it reportedly ramps up development of its own processors for use in Chromebooks and Pixel smartphones.
Under the code-name Whitechapel, Samsung is collaborating with Google on the design of the chip. Samsung also supplies chips to Apple.
If you own multiple iOS devices, then AirPods are supremely convenient. As soon as you connect them to one device, they automatically pair (and remain paired) to all your other devices. So, if you have a Mac, an iPhone, an iPad, and an Apple Watch, then all you have to do is tap connect on whichever device you want to use.
The problem is that the connect button is hidden, and a pain to reach. You have to swipe to open Control Center, then tap the AirPlay icon, then tap your AirPods in the list. And then wait a few seconds to see if it worked. Admittedly, this is a small inconvenience, but we can make it better. How about adding a button to your iPhone Home screen or Mac Dock that connects the AirPods with one tap?
A mobility data trends tool based on data from Apple Maps released on Tuesday graphically demonstrates that people around the world are staying home to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19.
Apple introduced the tool to provide insights to health authorities looking for ways to mitigate the spread of this disease.
Facebook launched an experimental new app today that aims to make it easier to message friends and family from your wrist while stuck inside during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The new app, called Kit, short for “Keep in touch”, only works on Apple Watch. Kit can be used to send voice messages, your location, emoji and more all with just a few quick taps.
Sling TV streaming video service is now available during primetime at no charge. New customers can watch every night from 5 pm to midnight for free.
The company hopes this will help American families staying home during the COVID-19 crisis.
Tired of chowing down on American movies and TV shows during your time in lockdown? Global Indian entertainment company Eros International announced Tuesday that its Eros Now Select service is now available via Apple TV and the App Store.
It brings to Apple users in the U.S. and elsewhere a large catalog of thousands of Bollywood movies, exclusive series, and originals — for a monthly fee of $3.49.
New photos of rare Apple Watch prototypes give us a sneak peek at pre-production versions of Apple’s first ever smartwatch.
The prototypes, which date back to early 2014 — a year before Apple Watch made its official debut — were discovered at an unspecified e-waste facility. Their new owner plans to restore them before selling them on.
Satechi‘s Apple AirPods wireless charging dock plugs straight into a Mac or iPad USB-C port. It’s designed to keep these in-ear headphones powered up anywhere you go. And it offers maximum portability.
Apple has the dubious distinction of being the most imitated brand globally used in attempted phishing attacks, claims a new report.
Check Point Research’s latest Brand Phishing Report covers the first quarter of 2020. It shows that Apple was the top target for web-based phishing attacks and the second for mobile-based attacks for the first three months of the year.
If you’ve ever looked at your AirPods and thought they need to be more Pikachu, Razer has the perfect set of earbuds for you. Its new Pokémon wireless headphones are bright yellow and ship with an incredibly cool Poké Ball charging case. They’re set to debut later this week.
If you’re comfortable with the Apple ecosystem, using a Windows machine can feel a little alien. But with iPadian iOS 13 Simulator, you can get the sleek, familiar iOS experience even on a PC.
The app re-creates the mobile Apple experience on Windows desktops or laptops. (It works on Macs, too.) And right now, you can download it for less than $10.
iPhone sales may be rebounding in China after a new China Information and Communications Research Institute report suggests that Apple sold 2.5 million iPhones there during the month of March.
Due to the coronavirus-related dip in sales in February, during which Apple sold just 500,000 handsets, that’s a massive 416% increase month-on-month.
The coronavirus-induced lockdown is affecting huge parts of the service economy. However, one area it doesn’t seem to be negatively impacting in the U.S. is the streaming music market.
According to a report from Music Business Weekly, published Monday, streaming music service subscriptions are not only not slowing down right now; in some cases they’re actually increasing.