The Morning After: Weekend Edition

Hey, good morning! You look fabulous.

Welcome to the weekend. SpaceX’s rocket launch had a funny side effect on southern California, and Edward Snowden just released an app.

It wasn’t aliens or a North Korean nukeSpaceX Falcon 9 launch leaves a creepy cloud over LA

Last night SpaceX launched one of its Falcon 9 rockets from Vandenberg Air Force Base with Iridium satellites on board. The interesting thing about this launch is what happened afterward as the rocket’s trail was visible across southern California and Arizona.

None of the data captured is relayed to third-party servers.Edward Snowden’s Haven app uses your phone to detect intruders

Forget phone calls — a new app from The Guardian Project, the Freedom of the Press Foundation and Edward Snowden aims to turn Android smartphones into tiny, unobtrusive security systems. Haven, released today in public beta, was designed to use a phone’s built-in sensors to track sudden changes in the environment around it.

A different kind of caroling.Listen to a 1950s era computer sing ‘Jingle Bells’

Here’s a new version of Jingle Bells you won’t hear played in malls, and it’s courtesy of one of the oldest computers in history. Turing archive director Jack Copeland and composer Jason Long have recreated Ferranti Mark 1’s Christmas performance for the BBC back in 1951.

Planned obsolescence.Apple faces lawsuits over intentional iPhone slowdowns

Now that word is out about Apple’s technique for dealing with battery problems; a few iPhone owners have filed lawsuits. Their claim is that the company slowed down their devices in an attempt to make them upgrade.

Nothing subtle about that.Elon Musk shows off the Tesla Roadster he’s prepping for space

Musk is flexing on us with a set of seven photos that show his cherry red Tesla Roadster prepping to head into orbit near Mars.

Power, tech and safety in an elegant package.The Mercedes C63S is a rare mix of style and nerdery

The Mercedes-Benz AMG C63S sedan is a good car not because it’s fast (though it is very fast with a zero-to-60 time of 3.9 seconds) — it’s a good car because it delivers everything you’d expect from a high-tech, luxury sports sedan.

But wait, there’s more…

• 2017 laid the foundation for faster, smarter AI in 2018
• China’s most popular game just launched in the US
• Engadget’s 2017 in review: Here’s to a better tomorrow
• This is Magic Leap’s mixed reality headset
• Google Home Max review: An assistant for music lovers
• Chrome will block the most annoying ads starting February 15th

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