CIA reportedly plans to launch a cyberattack against Russia

The United States is preparing to launch an unprecedented cyber attack against Russia, according to NBC News. Sources told the publication that the White House asked the CIA to present it with several “clandestine” cyber operation tactics that the administration can choose from. The cyber strike’s purpose? To get back at Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin for allegedly interfering with the country’s elections. If you’ll recall, hackers hiding behind the pseudonym Guccifer 2.0 broke into the Democratic National Convention’s computers and leaked 20,000 DNC emails, personal info and donor data. The government believes Russia orchestrated the whole thing in an effort to influence the election’s results.

NBC’s sources didn’t mention anything specific, but the intelligence agency apparently already possesses a collection of documents that could expose Putin’s “unsavory tactics.” While we can only guess what those documents contain, Vice President Joe Biden recently dropped a hint: “It’s well known that there’s great deal of offshore money moved outside of Russia from oligarchs,” he said. “It would be very embarrassing if that was revealed…”

A couple of CIA officers told NBC News that the White House worked with the agency to wage cyberwar against Russia several times in the past. However, the government would always drop the idea, because anything the US can do, Putin and his cohorts can, as well. “Do you want to have Barack Obama bouncing checks?” one of the agents asked. Ultimately, it’s up to the president to decide whether to push through with a covert operation or to retaliate against the Russian government with something more visible, like imposing sanctions.

Since the cat’s now out of the bag and the White House’s plans aren’t so secret anymore, though, some people (like WikiLeaks) are doubting whether the government is actually serious, or if this is merely a political ploy.

If the US “clandestine” pending cyberwar on Russia was serious:

1) it would not have been announced
2) it would be the NSA and not the CIA

— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) October 15, 2016

Source: NBC News

Watch Orbital’s Antares rocket fly for the first time in 2 years

Orbital ATK’s new and improved Antares rocket is ready for lift off two years after the company’s unfortunate accident. Back in 2014, its older version blew up merely six seconds after launch, taking the space station’s supplies with it. Since then, the aerospace corporation has been resupplying the ISS by sending its Cygnus spacecraft to orbit aboard United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V. Well, that partnership is over. The brand new rocket is already at NASA’s Wallops facility in Virginia and is scheduled for launch on October 16th at 8:03 PM Eastern time.

The team spent the past two years not only figuring out what happened in 2014, but also fitting the Antares with two new engines made by a Russian company. These engines provide the new rocket with a 13 percent increase in thrust. Since that time, Orbital also started using a bigger Cygnus that can carry more cargo to the station. That’s what the company is sending to orbit on Sunday. If you’re nowhere near Wallops, you can watch the event online through the facility’s Ustream channel, starting at 2PM, or through NASA TV, starting at 7PM.

Now that Orbital is done making another Antares that can fly to the ISS, it has set its sights on creating an even more powerful version. The company has begun working on a third stage that can give it enough power to ferry satellites to slightly higher orbits.

Source: NASA

Best NFL apps for Android

Stay up-to-date on everything NFL with these great apps for Android.

The NFL season is well underway, and the action is heating up. There are a ton of ways to follow the action on your phone or tablet, and we’ve rounded up some of the best Android apps for making sure you don’t miss a thing.

If you’re more of a casual football fan, we’ve included some top-notch football games here that just about anybody can enjoy.

Alright, ready for kick-off?

Madden NFL Mobile

Fans of EA’s Madden series on PlayStation or Xbox might be wary of diving into the mobile version of the celebrated NFL video game, but there’s lots to love here. It uses the same card upgrading system that’s become so popular in both mobile games and EA’s Ultimate Team systems alike — not ideal in my mind — but it offers many ways to play and earn coins and XP. There are daily and weekly live challenges (think the mini games from Madden 2004), a single-player season mode, and time-delayed head-to-head matchups in which you and your opponent take turns on offence. If that sounds a little too casual, you’re right, but it allows you to keep multiple games going at one time without dedicating a huge chunk of time to play a game to completion. And, of course, there’s the constant temptation of microtransactions to upgrade your team in a hurry.

Other than those downsides, the gameplay and graphics are on point and the control scheme is pretty smart as well. Football fans would be remiss if they didn’t at least give Madden Mobile a shot.

Download: Madden NFL Mobile (Free)

NFL Mobile

NFL Mobile is the official NFL app which includes news, video clips, and live streaming for NFL Network subscribers on Verizon or Bell. Set your favorite team for quick access to the latest news and analysis from the Stories and NFL Now sections. Tablet users can access NFL Network 24/7/365 and NFL RedZone if they’re eligible subscribers of AT&T U-verse, Charter, Cox, DirecTV, Optimum, Verizon FiOS, DISH, and many more providers. If you’re not a subscriber of any of those service providers, you can check into the NFL Now tab for breaking news and analysis.

NFL Mobile offers fast, polished football news right from the source.

Download: NFL Mobile (Free)

Football Heroes Pro 2017

Football Heroes Pro 2017 is a full-fledged arcade football game, licensed by the NFLPA. Unlike the realistic sim-style of Madden, it provides a casual football experience (think Tecmo Bowl) in your down time when you’re all caught up with the real games. Players build and train their own team with their favorite real-life players and unlock new plays by opening card packs. Premium currency can be used to buy card packs, though you’re also able to buy packs with coins earned from winning and by levelling up your players.

For those looking for a casual football game to kill time during commercial breaks, Football Heroes Pro 2017 has plenty to offer.

Download: Football Heros Pro 2017 (Free, with IAPs)

theScore

If you’re looking to catch up on news after the game, theScore is widely regarded as the best app out there. You can follow specific teams, get home screen widgets for the latest information at a glance, and notifications when things get crazy with your favorite teams. The best part is, you can keep tabs on any other sports you might happen to be into, including college sports and all the other “football” leagues that the rest of the world follows.

If keeping up to date on football news is your top priority, get theScore.

Download: theScore (Free)

Yahoo! Fantasy Sports

Fantasy sports is a massively popular phenomenon among really hardcore sports fans, and Yahoo! has an outstanding app for managing all your fantasy teams in one spot. You can keep tabs on player news, plan your next matchup or draft, and talk smack on the message boards. Scores are updated in real-time, which is perfect if you need to make some last-minute calls. And when we say all your fantasy teams, we mean it. This is Yahoo!’s catch-all fantasy app, so if you’ve bought in to Yahoo!’s fantasy system and enjoy fantasy baseball, basketball, hockey when the season is right, along with daily and weekly paid fantasy games, if you’re into that sort of thing.

Fantasy football fans needn’t look any further than Yahoo! to get their fix.

Download: Yahoo! Fantasy Sports (Free)

Are you ready for some football?

Those are our picks, but there are plenty of ways to get in on the action. How do you keeping tabs on your teams during the season and through the playoffs? Which team are you rooting for?

Android and Chill: What can replace the Note 7?

The S Pen is tough to replace. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

A whole lot of folks aren’t very happy about looking for something to replace their Note 7. Before we go there, though, let’s all agree that this is just stupid and move on. Samsung doesn’t want you to use a phone that has a higher than normal chance to hurt you. Don’t do it.

Back to saner things, it’s tough to replace a Note 7 if you used the one unique feature it boasts — the S Pen. There are other phones that have a good camera and a big screen. They seem like a fine choice as a replacement, and for some, they will be. But if you used the pen, you’re going to be forced to use an older model from Samsung or learn to stop using it. That kind of sucks, but it didn’t have to happen. Android has support for a potentially better way to use a stylus that nobody bothered to implement on any serious level.

Read: Best phones to replace your Note 7

Bluetooth Active Stylus support just didn’t take off. We can’t really blame anyone. Samsung has things figured out using Wacom’s tech and a separate digitizer in the screen and they didn’t have to change anything. Trying to compete with the Note series by bringing your own stylus was something LG and NVIDIA have done, and nobody seemed to care and still bought the Note if they wanted or needed stylus support. App developers could build their stuff with Active Stylus support, but it makes more sense to target the Note because that’s what people are using. It’s the ultimate catch 22 — for it to happen, someone has to do it and nobody will do it because it isn’t happening.

If you write Android apps, now is a perfect time to support an Active Stylus for note taking or drawing.

That sucks for ex-Note users, but it’s also pretty sucky for the rest of us. A digital stylus can offer the same or better pressure sensitivity and accuracy as using a stand-alone digitizer and has the potential to do more. But with only a few apps supporting them (all I can find are from companies who make the stylus themselves) they work no better than the 99-cent rubber-tipped stylus you can buy at that cell phone dude kiosk at the mall. I had plans to find the best active stylus to try and help folks who had to give up on the Note 7, but abandoned the idea because there just isn’t one. We can add it to the list of other potentially great things that Android could do (like MIDI or low latency audio over USB C) if anyone bothered to make a thing that did it.

Now is a perfect time, though. If you’re reading this and work on Android apps, there’s a large chunk of people with a need for you to support a good stylus. And there are likely plenty of others who would be willing to give it a try if it worked on their phone as well as it does on the Note. And there’s at least one dude who wants to use it and tell as many people as he can about it. Holler at me.

In the meantime, sorry ex-Note 7 users who depended on the S Pen. Enjoy your Note 5 and be ready for next year.

Blue’s Raspberry mic is small, but delivers stellar audio quality

It’s no secret that Blue’s line of USB microphones are a go-to choice for podcasters and anyone else who wants a simple, easy-to-use recording device. The company’s Snowball and Yeti mics may be the most popular, but its last few products have focused more on technology that helps you streamline the postproduction editing process. The same can be said for its latest device, the Blue Raspberry. The Raspberry’s compact stature and built-in audio tools make it ideal for on-the-go recording, even with the $200 asking price.

With the Raspberry, Blue threw in its usual retro design touches without overdoing it. The company has a knack for blending old and new aesthetics in a way that’s unique but not kitschy. The exterior here is mostly silver with a matching metal stand to anchor it. Tiny rubber feet on the bottom of the stand help insulate the mic from any vibrations on your desktop that could cause problems for your captured audio. The prominent Blue logo sits front and center on a panel of red leather that continues down to the bottom and around back — no doubt a nod to the gadget’s name. This thing is also really small. When it’s folded down and nestled in its attached stand, it stands about as tall as both of the phones I have lying around: the Moto X and iPhone 6s.

Above that red patch, the speaker grille extends from halfway down the front panel, around the top and to the middle of the back side. There’s also a status light on the front that glows green when you’re ready to record and flips to red when you’re muted. This red/green combo makes it much more obvious which mode you’re in, as opposed to the Yeti, whose light either glows or blinks in red. The change shows you at a glance when the mic is on, so now you don’t have to second-guess it.

Over on the right side of the front face lies the mic’s gain/level control. With that knob, you can adjust the gain between 0 and 40 decibels. Additionally, that rotating dial serves as the mute switch. Simply push it in to cut the signal if you need to cough or get a drink of water during your session. Push it once more to unmute. Like the mute function on previous Blue microphones, there’s also an audible click accompanying the changing light.

On the back panel, there’s a headphone jack and a micro-USB port. The 3.5mm headphone jack provides zero-latency monitoring while you record, and there’s a volume knob on the left side of the device. It perfectly matches the look of the gain control, lending the design a symmetrical feel. As far as the USB socket goes, it’s there where you’ll connect either the standard USB or lightning cable that comes in the box. There’s also a carrying pouch and a microphone-stand adapter should the need arise. Blue says the Raspberry will work with USB-C devices with an adapter. In fact, it has successfully tested the mic with the LG Nexus 5X and Huawei Nexus 6P and the device still performed as intended.

One thing I’ve always liked about Blue products is their ease of use. The company’s line of USB mics require almost no setup, thanks to their plug-and-play design. The same goes for the new Raspberry. To test the mic, I recorded an episode of my beer-focused podcast (it’s a side project, OK?). Before firing up a quick YouTube Live session through Hangouts on Air, all I did was plug the microphone into my MacBook Air. Once I got to the Hangouts on Air interface, the only thing I had to do was select the Blue Raspberry as the input and output device instead of my laptop’s built-in mic and speakers. I was ready to record in two or three minutes, and that included setting up the YouTube event.

What you hear in the episode above is the unedited audio from the Hangouts recording (I’m the host). This is just the audio pulled from the video YouTube logs, imported to Audacity and exported in a format that SoundCloud accepts for uploads. There was no editing, save for adding the intro clip. Inside the Raspberry, there’s a new Internal Acoustic Diffuser (IAD) design inspired by concert halls and recording studios. It’s built to diffuse noise and any reflections, thereby minimizing the sound of the room. The company says this allows the device to offer studio-quality 24-bit/48kHz audio wherever you’re recording.

When I compared the session I recorded with the Raspberry to clips captured with other USB mics, I noticed a big difference when it came to ambient noise. The captured audio through Hangouts was much cleaner with this new model. It didn’t capture sounds from my house like the hum of the air conditioner, washer/dryer and other environmental noises that tend to go unnoticed on a daily basis. I also record in my living room, which has tall vaulted ceilings, so I can plug directly into my router. Other mics also typically pick up on my voice bouncing around the space, but with the Raspberry I didn’t notice an echo.

Not everyone needs a microphone for podcasting, though. When it initially unveiled the Raspberry, Blue said the device would work with any audio software. The company specifically lists GarageBand, Opinion Podcasts, Spire Recorder and Movie Pro on the microphone’s product page. Since I’m a Mac owner, GarageBand is the most accessible option for me. It’s also free. The desktop setup is nearly identical to using the Raspberry for YouTube or Hangouts: Plug in the mic, select it as the input source in the app’s preferences menu and you’re ready to record.

If you’re wondering about using the device with an iPhone or iPad, the process is very similar. The only difference is GarageBand for iOS automatically detects when you have an “audio device” connected, so you have to confirm you want to turn on monitoring via headphones to avoid feedback. It’s slightly different, but the setup for an iOS handset or tablet is just as efficient.

Blue also says that you can use the Raspberry up close to your face or, if there’s more than one person speaking, position it at the center of a table. As with other USB mics, using the gear for a group is a workable option, but the audio quality suffers. I’d really recommend it only for things like conference calls instead of trying to track some high-quality audio. Even with the built-in tech, I still noticed some of that ambient noise coming through. This became more obvious as I placed the mic the farther away. Using the Raspberry alone at a close distance will provide the best results, unless you’re OK getting cozy with your colleagues.

At $200, the Raspberry is the same price as Blue’s Spark Digital, which came out in 2012. That microphone also touts USB and iOS connectivity with the same cardioid condenser capsule as the pro-grade Spark studio mic. What you forfeit with the Spark Digital is the IAD tech on the Raspberry that cuts down on the unwanted noise. The Spark Digital is also larger with a more substantial stand, so it’ll take up more space in your backpack.

If you’re after a microphone that adapts to what you’re tracking, and you don’t need to use it with your mobile device, you might want to look at Blue’s Nessie. The device will adapt to your vocals and instruments in real time to help you get solid audio without a lot of editing. The best part? Nixing iOS functionality will save you $100. Of course, if you just want a straightforward mic, the Blue Snowball is really affordable at $70. It’s been around for years, too — a testament to how beloved it is.

After my podcasting session with the Raspberry, the latest Blue mic is an attractive alternative to the Yeti I typically use. Built-in IAD technology provided cleaner audio than what I’m used to for my recording environment, living up to Blue’s promise of cutting out some of that extra noise. There’s also the much smaller form factor; the Raspberry takes up considerably less space than the Spark Digital or Yeti. This means it’s convenient if I need to pack it for a trip, but it doesn’t skimp on audio quality, either. When you tack on iOS connectivity, Blue seems to have a complete package here in a compact device — even if it does come with a $200 price tag.

Aukey’s 30,000mAh portable charger is a power user’s dream gadget

If you need lots of juice on demand and all the ways to deliver it to your phone, you just found what you were looking for.

Aukey sent me their humungous 30,000mAh portable charger to take a look at. I’ve been using it for a week or so as my primary way to keep the phones I’m using charged up, and can say wholeheartedly that this thing is just what the doctor ordered if you’re a power user or on the go a lot. Or both.

Before we get into anything else, you have to know it’s big. Not big like regular big, but big like GREAT BIG. And heavy. It’s a hair under 6-inches long, 3.5 inches wide and just over an inch thick. On the scales, it comes it at 20.6 ounces with a full charge. It takes about 13 hours to charge it using the Nexus 6P charger. So basically, this isn’t just a “regular” external battery pack. It’s a beast designed for people who want or need a beast of a portable power station.

The operation is pretty simple. You charge it through a USB Type-C port or a Micro-USB port, or both. As mentioned, I used my Nexus 6P charger to bring it back to full power two of the three times I had to recharge, but I did try the turbo charge method using both inputs. That takes about 5 hours from darn-near-dead to full. I didn’t notice any excessive heat, but it does get warm while charging. When it’s fully charged the green LED stops blinking. Other than having two charging inputs that can be used at the same time, there’s nothing crazy or exciting here. Plug it in, charge it up, and you have a box of juice you can use to recharge your phone. Or tablet. Or MacBook.It’s a great big box of juice that will charge your things plenty of times and has everything needed to do it quickly.

This portable charger is big and heavy. But it holds so much juice we can’t complain about it.

The outputs set it apart from many other portable power sources and external batteries. The AUKEY PB-Y3 30000mAh Power Bank (that’s it’s full name in scientific notation and stuff) has two USB outputs, a Micro-USB input, and a USB Type-C port. The Micro-USB input is only there to charge it. That’s easy — plug it into a charger you would use for a phone or anything that has a Micro-USB plug and charge away. Unplug it later after it’s finished. The other ports are more interesting.

The USB C port is a full USB Type-C interface that acts as both an input to charge the battery inside the charger and as a port to plug your phone or tablet in. It is a USB-C rapid charger and can top the Nexus 6P from a red icon low-charge state to about 70% in about 15 or 20 minutes. It will charge it to full in 90 minutes. It will charge a Pixel C from dead to full in about 2.5 hours. I don’t have a MacBook here to test it with.

You can charge just about anything, and probably do it more than once.

The two USB outputs are color-coded. There’s an orange port that uses Qualcomm’s Quick Charge 3.0 feature, and a green port that uses standard USB power delivery. The QC 3.0 port will charge my HTC 10 from dead to 50% in about 15 minutes. It slows down after that and takes between 90 minutes and two hours to charge it to full capacity. This is exactly how Quick Charge is supposed to work. The green port will charge a phone (I used my BlackBerry Priv on that port to test it) in about 2.5 hours, but there’s no initial boost from any faster-charging tech. Both USB -A ports support Aukey’s AIPower tech, which monitors battery feedback to charge things safer and faster.

There’s also an LED flashlight built in, which you turn on and off by holding the power button.

The real story is the capacity. You can charge a phone like the Galaxy S7 edge from dead to full five times. You can charge a Pixel C from dead to full two times. In both cases, you have enough left-over power to charge something with a smaller battery once or twice. On one charge of the Aukey portable charger, I was able to charge a Nexus 6P, Nexus 5X, HTC 10, Galaxy S7 edge, a set of MotoRokr Bluetooth headphones and 5 batteries for my Sony camera. And I was able to charge the Nexus 6P and HTC 10 at the same time and use their fast-charging tech. There’s 30,000mAh in there to do whatever you need to do with it. That’s a lot of juice.

This Aukey portable charger is perfect for a trip or in your gear bag.

I wouldn’t recommend this for someone who needs an external battery for Pokemon Go or Ingress. It’s too bulky and heavy to carry around in your pocket, and there are plenty of other solutions that can work and aren’t quite as cumbersome. But if you plan on going camping or on a road trip, or have a job that requires a gear bag filled with things that need to be charged, this is probably the best gadget you’ll find to keep your phone topped up. I’d buy one with my own money, and am not afraid to recommend you do the same.

See at Amazon

These are the best PlayStation VR games!

Your PlayStation VR collection should include these titles!

Sony and their partners did a great job making sure there are plenty of great games for you to play in PlayStation VR on launch day. It doesn’t matter if you’re into shooting, flying, music, adventure, or silly games that involve putting bacon in a blender, there really is something for everyone to enjoy.

That also means it’s not entirely clear which games you should go for first, but we’ve been playing through all of them and have some suggestions for you! If you’re starting a PlayStation VR collection, make sure these games are on your list!

Read more at VR Heads!