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Tech NewsIt’s Not Too Late to Pass a National Privacy Law (OK, It Kind of Is)
The federal government cares little about what happens to your most sensitive data. Its main focus today is stopping espionage and prosecuting computer criminals who pose a threat to itself or corporations and banks. Little energy is spent holding those same institutions accountable when malpractice and greed produce the same outcomes: millions of people threatened, … Continued
By Dell Cameron -
Tech NewsPoliticsQAnon Is a Dangerous Echo of Conspiracies Past
As the tragic events of January 6th, 2021 played out in glaring clarity on our televisions, laptops, and phones, it became remarkably obvious how disparate the goals were of the separate groups involved. Some of the insurrectionists seemed more than happy to wave TRUMP 2020 flags and snap selfies in the Capitol, while others carried … Continued
Jared Yates Sexton -
Tech NewsTech PolicyCongress Has a New $94 Billion Plan to Bring Affordable Internet to Everyone
The so-called digital divide in the U.S. has become all the more glaring over the course of the current pandemic. A new bill could help close the gap. Enter the Accessible, Affordable Internet for All Act, a new bill that was spearheaded by Democrats Rep. James Clyburn, of South Carolina, and Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar … Continued
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Tech NewsBeeple’s $69 Million NFT Sale Is a Good Time to Rethink Some Things
“It’s hard to be like, ‘Oh man, I hope it doesn’t flop!’” artist Mike Winkelmann aka Beeple chortled at the kickoff of his “Christie’s Closing Party” Clubhouse session this morning, about an hour before his Christie’s sale would close with the staggering bid of $69,346,250—making it the third-most valuable sale by a living artist. In … Continued
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Tech NewsGadgetsI Want to Decorate My Entire Home With Classic Arcade Games Turned Into Playable Works of Art
If you grew up hanging out in arcades, now that they’re gone, there’s probably a small part of you who wants to recreate that experience at home. But sacrificing a big chunk of your living space to classic arcade cabinets no longer seems necessary as Jürgen Müller demonstrates, turning a classic Pong cabinet into a … Continued
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Tech NewsInternetVerizon’s Cheapest Plans Will Only Get You Its Slowest 5G Speeds
Bad news for folks on Verizon’s basic plans. If you want the carrier’s faster 5G speeds, you’re going to have to cough up for a more expensive unlimited plan. Technically that’s nothing new. Verizon has already restricted its faster millimeter-wave (mmWave) network to customers on its Play More, Do More, and Get More Unlimited plans. … Continued
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Tech NewsApple Rumored to Finally Embrace Bigger Batteries on the iPhone 13
For years, Apple has been able to equip its iPhones with smaller batteries than its Android counterparts thanks to the strong energy efficiency of the company’s A-series chips, but it seems that for the iPhone 13, Apple might finally increase the size of the iPhone’s power packs. The latest info comes from noted Apple analyst … Continued
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Tech NewsGadgetsI Love This Over-Engineered Door Handle That Wipes Itself Down With Disinfectant After Every Use
Necessity breeds innovation, and during this pandemic that has resulted in some unique ways to curb the spread of Covid-19. Door handles in well-trafficked locations are notoriously dirty and a hot spot for viruses, so a Swiss company called Tweaq has created what it’s calling the “world’s first smart self-disinfecting door handle.” One solution that’s … Continued
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Tech NewsGadgetsI Can’t Wrap My Brain Around This Tiny SSD That Puts 4TB of Data in the Palm of My Hand
Technology gets faster, cheaper, and more capacious year after year, but every once in a while it still manages to catch you by surprise. It wasn’t too long ago that 4TB of storage required a RAID enclosure claiming a corner of your desk, but Crucial’s new X6 4TB portable SSD packs that much storage into … Continued
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Tech NewsGadgetsHow to Back Up All Your Photos Without a Cloud Subscription
The photos and videos you’ve captured are probably the most important files on your phone, which is why Apple, Google and other storage service providers want to give you ways to get these pictures and movies up into the cloud as quickly as possible. As convenient as that cloud storage is, it usually comes with … Continued
By David Nield -
Tech NewsTransportationAeroMobil Says Flying Cars Are Still Just Two Years Away
Did you see the headlines this week promising that AeroMobil would be making flying cars available for purchase in 2023? That’s just two years from now, if you can believe it. The company’s latest video even ends with the optimistic words, “coming 2023.” But can they pull it off? Let’s just say we’ve been hearing … Continued
By Matt Novak -
Tech NewsFacebook’s Dream of Running a Giant Cable From California to Hong Kong Once Again Dashed
If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again, the old maxim goes, and apparently, that advice counts double if you’re Facebook, a company that has at this point tried a cartoonish number of times to install a high-capacity internet conduit between California and Hong Kong only to be continually thwarted by the U.S. government. … Continued
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Tech NewsApple Tells Parler It’s Still Too Friendly to Racist Filth for iOS
Parler, the social media network for people furious that Lola Bunny’s animated boobs are too small now, won’t be returning to iOS anytime soon. The social network, which caters to conservatives, Trump supporters, and various other right-wing cranks and bigots, branded itself as a censorship-free site that would only remove illegal posts and liberal trolls. … Continued
By Tom McKay -
Tech NewsGadgetsThis Unassuming Little Device Can Hack Your Smart Home
This strange little device may look unassuming—after all, it’s a nod to William Gibson’s famous cybernetic dolphin, Jones. But Flipper Zero, a pocket-sized, dolphin-themed hacking tool, can actually open NFD-based locks, hack access points, and even send keyboard commands to unsuspecting laptops and PCs. The Flipper Zero is an Arduino-compatible board that features an NFT … Continued
By John Biggs -
Tech NewsSolve This Riddle
What is a cross between Twitter and YouTube and is also a newspaper and TV show and radio broadcast? Space? Time? The concept of time? An alchemical process by which vibrating particles moved by a passing sound wave are transmuted into sheets of paper and back into the air? A social phenomenon, like a zeitgeist … Continued
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Tech NewsSenators Launch Latest Salvo in Forever War Over Daylight Saving Time
The Senate might just finally do away with Daylight Saving Time (DST) clock shifts, ridding America of the twice-a-year impositions on everyone’s sanity and standardizing time at the moment after the clock jumps forward on March 14 this year. Of course, similar proposals have regularly flamed out over the years, so take that with a … Continued
By Tom McKay -
Tech NewsInternetWith ESPN+ Now on Hulu, It Really Is the Best All-Around Streaming Service
EPSN+ is officially joining the Hulu platform. Subscribers to the Disney bundle have been able to cut costs on getting Hulu, Disney+, and ESPN+ at a discounted rate for a minute. Now, Hulu has introduced an option for subscribers to pay $6 per month to get an ESPN+ add-on through Hulu itself. Customers who pay … Continued
By Catie Keck -
Tech NewsCassette Tape Inventor Lou Ottens Has Passed Away
The inventor of the cassette tape, Lou Ottens, has passed away, according to De Telegraaf. He was 94 years old. Ottens started working at Philips in 1952, where he eventually came up with the idea of the cassette tape after becoming head of the company’s new product development department in 1960. Fed up with the … Continued
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Tech NewsGadgetsAsus’ ROG Phone 5 Is a Sophisticated but Still Beastly Gaming Phone
The latest wave of gaming phone launches has begun. Last week, Nubia announced the absolutely ridiculous Red Magic 6, and now Asus has arrived with a slightly different take—one that’s a bit more sophisticated while still packing massive specs. The first thing you’ll notice on the ROG Phone 5 (Asus skipped 4 to avoid bad luck) … Continued
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Tech NewsThe War Between Big Tech and News Is Coming to the U.S.
After a showdown with the Australian government over an effort to pay publishers their due, it looks like Google and Facebook might have to gear up for the same battle in the United States. Lawmakers are moving forward on a piece of dormant legislation that would enable news organizations to negotiate with Big Tech over how … Continued