51 percent of tech experts say fake news can’t be fixed

With content peddlers Facebook and Google still struggling to combat fake news, especially during crises like the Las Vegas shooting, the proliferation of such false content might seem like an unstoppable flow. If that’s your opinion, you’re in the (slight) majority. A Pew survey of over 1,100 “tech experts” and scholars found that 51 percent believed the fake news problem will continue to get worse in the next decade.

When asked to explain their reasoning, both groups centered their outlooks on the potential of technology to prevent (or fail to prevent) people from enacting their less-than-noble agendas. In practice, this has meant the string of Russian actors influencing the 2016 election and its aftermath, but their successful efforts have opened the door to other bad actors with nefarious motives.

Those who believe technology won’t stop their efforts had two major arguments: Human desire pleasing content will inevitably feed the fake news machines, and that technological advance will outpace our ability to comprehend and control it. The 49 percent who believe we’ll get a handle on fake news have serious faith in eventual tech fixes, along with our human capability to recognize a collective threat and collectively organize a solution. More extensive responses can be found on the survey’s page.

In the meantime, tech titans are still scrambling to produce fixes to stem the tide of fake news. Facebook continues to introduce possible solutions, like applying its algorithms to supply a fact-checking feedback loop, but fake news continues to slip through, as we saw yesterday with Google’s ads. And then, of course, there’s Twitter’s late policing.

Via: Recode

Source: Pew Research Center

Google considers ‘fixing’ the Pixel 2 XL’s display colors

While Google’s Pixel 2 XL has generally been well-received, there have been some complaints about its LG-made P-OLED screen. It’s supposed to reflect “natural” colors, but many see it as downright dull after years of seeing extra-punchy OLED displays from Samsung and other phone makers. What if you want that explosion of color? You might just get it. A Google spokesperson tells 9to5Google that it’s considering adding color options to the Pixel 2 XL beyond the “vivid colors” toggle you see today. It knows that some users want more saturation, and it’s open to software updates to add that “if that makes the product better.” Nothing is set in stone, then, but it’s promising.

The 2 XL has reignited a long-running debate in the mobile world: is it better to have color-accurate screen, or an exaggerated but potentially more pleasing screen? They both have merits. Bold colors will make photos and videos pop, but accuracy is better if you want to be sure that your snapshots reflect what you really saw. There’s a concern that some people are so used to punched-up colors that the 2 XL’s more accurate display seems lifeless — and without many options to tweak that display, prospective buyers either have to accept Google’s current approach or find another phone.

As it is, any options won’t completely address concerns about the P-OLED panel. It also produces a bluish tint when you look at the screen off-angle, and that’s clearly due to hardware alone. While it’s not going to wreck the experience (you do tend to look at a phone head-on while you’re using it), you don’t see this in many other OLED screens. Google and LG took a bit of a gamble on the larger Pixel’s visuals, and it’s not entirely clear that this bet paid off.

Source: 9to5Google

Marvel and Netflix’s ‘The Punisher’ will debut November 17th

Marvel and its distinguished competitor will go head-to-head this fall. But rather than the brawl playing out at comic book shops, the venues will be your living room and local multiplex. Netflix has revealed that its latest Marvel superhero antihero series The Punisher will arrive on November 17th. As Polygon notes, that’s the same day that Justice League premieres in theaters.

The titular Punisher, real name Frank Castle, previously made a standout appearance in Marvel’s Daredevil series, and the actor who portrays him, Jon Bernthal, is a staple on The Walking Dead. Netflix began teasing the show last April. DC, on the other hand, began running trailers for Justice League this summer.

The difference is that DC’s cinematic universe has been incredibly shaky following tepid receptions to Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice and Suicide Squad last year. This summer’s Wonder Woman started turning the tide, however, but it’s anyone’s guess if Justice League will keep the momentum going. In comparison, Marvel’s Netflix shows — Iron Fist aside — have all been pretty well received.

It’ll probably be difficult to tell what, if any, impact The Punisher will have on Justice League’s opening box office weekend, but you can guarantee internet fanboys will have opinions about it either way. The rational among us will just watch both. A new trailer featuring Metallica’s anti-war anthem “One” is embedded below.

Via: Polygon

Source: Netflix (YouTube)

Intel and Amazon partner on voice recognition tech

Intel and Amazon are partnering to combine the former’s silicon and smarts with the latter’s Alexa voice platform. The chipmaker has introduced the Intel Speech Enabling Developer Kit to provide a “complete audio front-end solution for far-field voice control,” according to a press release. The idea is that Intel has done the hard work of designing the mic arrays and voice systems and that all developers will need to do is write applications for them. It offers algorithms for echo cancellation and beam forming, wake words, an 8-mic array and the company’s dual digital signal processor.

The development kit is up for pre-order starting today for $399. And while that might be a little too expensive for a hobbyist developer (a Raspberry Pi costs $25), it isn’t exorbitantly priced like some game console development kits. If you wait until after the pre-order window, the cost jumps by $100.

Of course, if you don’t want to get your hands dirty with hardware — or spend any money — you can always make skills for Alexa for free with Amazon’s developer portal. That’s helped Amazon’s voice platform grow by leaps and bounds, so it’ll be interesting to see what effect Intel’s new kit will have.

Source: Intel (1), (2)

‘The Daily Show’ library of Trump’s tweets opens in Chicago tomorrow

Back in June, we covered The Daily Show’s presidential Twitter library in New York. After all, the frequency at which our Commander in Chief takes to Twitter is surely to become a part of his legacy. The library is now moving to Chicago, and you can see it this weekend only. It’s free and open to the public from 10 AM to 10 PM CT tomorrow through Sunday. The library is located in the Burlington Room at Chicago’s Union Station.

The library displays the president’s Twitter feed, and exhibits include testimonials of people who were targeted by Trump on the social network, as well as what The Daily Show considers his finest work. You can also find “Sad! A Retrospective” and the many, many times Trump tweeted one sentiment and later contradicted himself in another tweet.

Source: Comedy Central

Volkswagen is building an electric supercar to tackle Pike’s Peak

Last month, Volkswagen laid out a roadmap for its EV rollout, promising 300 zero-emissions vehicles by 2030. While it’s certainly good PR to move the company beyond its lingering diesel scandal, it also follows other automakers that recently committed to electric vehicle fleets. But to really seal the deal, VW has a new stunt in the works: It’s creating an all-electric sportscar for next June’s Pikes Peak high-altitude race in Colorado.

Volkswagen is partnering with Technical Development in Wolfsburg to build the all-wheel-drive prototype. The automaker hopes it will break the record for electric racers on the course, which was set at eight minutes 57.118 seconds in 2016. Pikes Peak International Hill Climb is 12.4 miles long, with a nearly 5,000-foot climb to top out at a maximum elevation of over 14,000 feet above sea level.

“The Pikes Peak hill climb is one of the world’s most renowned car races. It poses an enormous challenge and is therefore excellently suited to proving the capabilities of upcoming technologies,” Volkswagen board member Dr Frank Welsch said in a press release. “Our electric race car will be equipped with innovative battery and drive technology. The extreme stress test on Pikes Peak will give us important findings that will benefit future development, and it will showcase our products and their technologies.”

Source: Volkswagen

Wirecutter’s best deals: Bose SoundLink Mini II speaker drops to $150

This post was done in partnership with Wirecutter, reviews for the real world. When readers choose to buy Wirecutter’s independently chosen editorial picks, it may earn affiliate commissions that support its work. Read their continuously updated list of deals here.

You may have already seen Engadget posting reviews from our friends at Wirecutter. Now, from time to time, we’ll also be publishing their recommended deals on some of their top picks. Read on, and strike while the iron is hot — some of these sales could expire mighty soon.

Coway AP-1512HH Mighty Air Purifier

Street price: $230; Deal price: $210

While we’ve seen deals as low as $160 before, those deals tend to last hours, not days. If you’re in need of a good air purifier and can’t wait, this $20 drop in price is a decent deal from the $230 street price. Currently only available in black.

The Coway AP-1512HH Mighty is our top pick in our guide to the best air purifier. John Holecek and Tim Heffernan wrote, “The Coway is HEPA-certified and rated to clean areas up to 350 square feet—the size of a large living room, and far bigger than the average bedroom. In terms of measured particle removal, the Coway is very nearly the best we’ve tested. On the moderate setting—the highest you’re likely to ever run it on for long periods—it purified better than all but two units in our 2016 lab test, reducing particle concentration to just 12 percent of the background level after 20 minutes when set on medium/sub-55-decibel. (Of the two machines that bested it, one, our runner-up Winix, only beat it by a statistically insignificant 2 percent; the other, the Blueair 503, showed seriously degraded performance when we re-tested it after a year of occasional use, and we no longer recommend it; see The competition.) In the 2017 lab test, the Coway again shone against the competition, reducing particulates to as little as 10 percent of the initial level.”

Bose SoundLink Mini II Bluetooth Speaker

Street price: $180; Deal price: $150

At $150, this is the lowest price we’ve seen in recent months on the Bose SoundLink Mini II Bluetooth speaker. While you’re limited to just one color (Black/Copper) and Bose has released some new wireless speaker options of late, this speaker still rarely falls below $180. This deal is available to both members and non-members of Costco. Shipping is free.

The Bose SoundLink Mini II is an option we like in our guide to the best portable Bluetooth speaker. Brent Butterworth wrote, “If you want better sound quality and louder volume, or if you also want an excellent speakerphone for making calls, the Bose SoundLink Mini Bluetooth Speaker II is worth the cost (roughly twice the price of the Roll 2). It’s shocking to hear how much better the SoundLink Mini II comes across than most competitors, with clearer voices and a fuller sound closer to what you might expect from a decent small stereo system. It also plays loud enough to drown out a small dinner party.

At nearly 1.5 pounds in a boxy frame, the SoundLink Mini II is probably heavier than backpackers and business travelers will want to carry, but perfect for lugging along on family vacations. (A recent price reduction has pushed the larger, even better-sounding Riva Turbo X down into the SoundLink Mini II’s price range, but because the Turbo X is four times as large by volume, it’s really in a different category.) Additionally, this model’s speakerphone was the only one in our tests that didn’t muffle voices or pick up echoes, so it’s a good choice for home-office use.”

Vitamix 5200 Blender

Street price: $400; Deal price: $358

This is the lowest price we’ve seen on the Vitamix 5200 in the black color since Christmas of last year. At $358, this is a little over $40 under the historical street price, but this blender has jumped up to the full MSRP of $450 in recent months, so this drop is a good one. While we saw the white color for a crazy $305 during the summer, that price is an outlier and shouldn’t deter you from pulling the trigger on this one if you need a blender. Shipping is free.

The Vitamix 5200 Series is our upgrade pick in our guide to the best blender. Christine Cyr Clisset and Lesley Stockton wrote, “For the fifth year running, a Vitamix blender performed best, overall, in our testing. The classic 5200 was our top pick in 2014 (the Pro 300 the year before), and once again it was the only one in our tests that could make creamy peanut butter and puree soup without spewing molten liquid up the sides of the jar, and it has the best range of speeds (far better than the equally priced Blendtec Designer).”

Refurbished Amazon Tap

Street price: $90; Deal price: $60

Despite all of the recently released Amazon speakers out there, the Tap remains the only Amazon-branded portable option, a nice selling point for those who want Alexa on the go. At $60 ($55 + $5 shipping), this refurbished model is at the lowest price we’ve seen for the Tap, period. It carries a one year warranty from Amazon.

The Amazon Tap is our portable Alexa speaker pick in our guide to Alexa-enabled Amazon speakers. Grant Clauser wrote, “The Tap is for people who want to take Alexa into the backyard, primarily those who’ve already made the investment in an Echo (or otherwise use Alexa within the home). Smaller than the Echo, the Tap includes a speaker capable of decently reproducing music, a rechargeable battery, and a charging base. Keep the Tap charging in a convenient place near the back door so every time you want to sit on your lounge chair you can grab it on the way out. As long as your Wi-Fi signal is strong enough to pass through your wall, the Tap can tap into its music abilities for all the neighbors to hear.

The Tap didn’t originally sport the always-on microphone for receiving voice commands that the Echo and Dot have, but Amazon recently enabled a hands-free mode with a firmware update. Without enabling that feature you need to press a microphone button prior to giving a command, similar to pressing the home button on an iPhone to call Siri to attention (if you don’t have “Hey Siri” enabled on your iPhone). This little inconvenience is meant to make the Tap’s battery last longer. It also makes it unsuitable as your main Alexa interface.”

Because great deals don’t just happen on Thursday, sign up for our daily deals email and we’ll send you the best deals we find every weekday. Also, deals change all the time, and some of these may have expired. To see an updated list of current deals, please go to thewirecutter.com.

‘Ulysses’ iOS Writing App Gains Drag and Drop, Image Previews, and More

Popular text editor Ulysses received a substantial update on Thursday, adopting features and UI design concepts that bring the universal app into greater alignment with iOS 11.

Foremost in the changes is support for Drag and Drop in iOS 11, enabling users to rearrange sheets by picking them up and moving them around. It’s also now possible to drag images and text passages from other apps to Ulysses’ editor, or the other way around.

In terms of functionality, Ulysses for iPad has aligned more closely with its Mac counterpart: The library now grants access to all texts, regardless of whether they are stored on iCloud, in Dropbox, or locally, which should save users a couple of steps when switching between those sections.

In addition, users can now work with open sidebars, for example to leave attached writing goals, keywords and images open for quick reference.

A new, much-requested feature has also made it into this Ulysses update: Image previews in the text editor window. Up until now, images in a text were only indicated via a small tag — and adding a visual representation within the text was high up on the customer’s wish list, according to the developers.

Elsewhere, the new version refines Ulysses’ filter and search capabilities, improves the accessibility for the visually impaired, and enhances performance.

Ulysses for iOS can be downloaded for free on the App Store, while the macOS version, which was updated over weekend, is available on the Mac App Store. After a 14-day trial period, a subscription is required to unlock the app on all devices. A monthly subscription costs $4.99, while a yearly subscription costs $39.99. Students can use Ulysses at a discounted price of $11.99 per six months. The discount is granted from within the app.

Tag: Ulysses
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Deals: $100 iTunes Gift Card for $85, MacBook Pro and Beats Discounts Debut in Best Buy Sale

PayPal’s Digital Gifts storefront on eBay today has a 15 percent discount on $100 iTunes gift cards, letting those interested purchase the card for just $85 while the deal lasts. As a bonus, the gift card is electronic, so you’ll get a code sent to your email for the iTunes credit within a few minutes after checkout. Head over to PayPal Digital Gift’s eBay page right here to check out the discount.

In other deals, Best Buy’s 3-Day sale has hit its first day for non-My Best Buy members. A few products have been added, including $100 off select configurations of the latest MacBook Pro (with prices matched at both B&H Photo and Adorama), $55 off the new Beats Pill+ speaker, and $290 off the harman/kardon Onyx Studio 3 speaker. Check out our article from yesterday for a few MacBook Air markdowns that remain alive, and then read on below for an updated list of sales posted today:

• 13-inch MacBook Pro, Intel Core i5, 8 GB Memory, 128GB, Space Gray and Silver – $1,199.99, down from $1,299.99 / matched at B&H Photo, Adorama

• 13-inch MacBook Pro, Intel Core i5, 8 GB Memory, 256GB, Space Gray and Silver – $1,399.99, down from $1,499.99 / matched at B&H Photo, Adorama

• harman/kardon Onyx Studio 3 Portable Bluetooth Speaker – $159.99, down from $449.99

• Beats by Dr. Dre Beats Pill+ Speaker in White – $174.99, down from $229.99

• Beats by Dr. Dre Beats Studio Wireless Over-the-Ear Headphones – $179.99, down from $379.99

Aukey also expanded its Amazon sale today, adding in its Mini Bluetooth Speaker with Enhanced Bass & Metal Housing for $18.82 with promo code AUKSKM31, down from $29.88. There’s also the Aukey Bluetooth Receiver and Transmitter with 2-in-1 Wireless Audio Adapter for $27.99 with code AUKEBRO2, down from $39.99. The two products are available at a discount until Monday, October 23, and join three other Aukey accessories that were discounted earlier this week.

In terms of app sales this week, a handful of apps based on board games have gone down in price:

• Ticket to Ride – $1.99, down from $5.99

• Jaipur: A Card Game of Duels – $1.99, down from $4.99

• Twilight Struggle – $2.99, down from $9.99

• Potion Explosion – $0.99, down from $2.99

For even more of the latest deals — including ongoing exclusive discounts on RAVPower’s Qi mat, the Pixie Point tracker system, and Top Greener’s USB wall charger outlet — head over to our Deals Roundup.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with these vendors

Related Roundup: Apple Deals
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Mastercard’s Plans to Fully Eliminate Signature Requirement Next Year Will Speed Up Apple Pay

Mastercard today announced that cardholders will no longer have to provide a signature for any purchases in the United States and Canada after April 2018. The change will apply to both debit and credit cards.

Mastercard said removing the need to sign for card-present transactions will not have any impact on customer security due to modern safeguards.

“Our secure network and state-of-the art systems combined with new digital payment methods that include chip, tokenization, biometrics, and specialized digital platforms use newer and more secure methods to prove identity,” said Linda Kirkpatrick, an Executive Vice President at Mastercard.

Mastercard’s consumer research unsurprisingly found that a majority of people believe it would be easier to pay, and that checkout lines would move faster, if they didn’t need to sign the receipt when making a purchase.

Already, more than 80 percent of in-store Mastercard transactions in North America today do not require a cardholder signature at checkout. Mastercard said both customers and merchants support the change.

The long-existing “signature required” clause is intended to verify that customers own the debit or credit card they are attempting to use. The process is supposed to involve the cashier verifying the signature on the receipt matches the one on the back of the card, but in reality, this process is often skipped.

The change should make Apple Pay transactions even quicker for Mastercard cardholders. Currently, even when using Apple Pay, sometimes a signature can be required for purchases over $50 in the United States.

The signature requirement is already very uncommon in Canada, where chip-and-PIN cards are the norm. At most merchants in Canada, customers insert a card into the payment terminal, enter a PIN, and the purchase is completed.

Mastercard removing the signature requirement won’t speed up Apple Pay in Canada, however, as contactless payments aren’t generally permitted for purchases above $100. Above this limit, customers must use chip-and-PIN.

Mastercard currently doesn’t require a signature for purchases totaling $50 or less. Visa’s no-signature limit is $25, but the amount is upped to $50 for purchases made at grocery stores and discount stores like Walmart.

Related Roundup: Apple PayTag: MasterCard
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