Wirecutter’s best deals: Save $30 on an NVIDIA Shield TV

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.

Amazon Fire HD 8

Street Price: $80; Deal Price: $50

This deal matches the previous low price we’ve seen for our budget pick Android tablet. We only just saw this $50 low price during Black Friday sales, so this is a great time to pick up this tablet at a discount. With the holidays coming, this is a nice option while it lasts.

The Amazon Fire HD 8 is our budget pick in our guide to the best Android tablets. Ryan Whitwam wrote, “If you want a cheap tablet for watching videos, reading, or browsing the Web, Amazon’s Fire HD 8 tablet is great. It doesn’t have access to the Google Play Store or any of Google’s apps, but it costs just $80 and makes it easy to access Amazon content (especially for Prime members). Amazon’s Fire OS (based on Android) runs very well on the tablet, and the Fire HD 8 offers better battery life than the ZenPad or Tab S3. The display is only 1280×800, but that’s fine for a budget media tablet. The Fire HD 8 also has more-extensive parental controls than other tablets, making it a great family device. The selection of apps in Amazon’s app store is small compared with what you can get via Google Play, but it includes most popular non-Google apps.”

Puro BT2200 Kids Headphones

Street Price: $100; Deal Price: $75 w/ code HOLLY25!

If you’re in the market for headphones for your young one, this is a great opportunity to pick some up at the best price we’ve seen. When you use code HOLLY25! in cart, it drops the price of the Puro BT2200 headphones from their normal price of $100 down to $75. This code deal beats the $80 pricing that we’ve seen on and off since the run-up to Black Friday, can be applied to any of the 4 available colors, and can be applied to multiple sets of headphones. The code is valid thru 12/21.

The Puro BT2200 Kids Headphones are our top pick in our guide to the best kids headphones. Lauren Dragan and Brent Butterworth wrote, “The Puro BT2200 is our pick because not only do these headphones remain within safe listening levels when used properly, but they were also the top pick of all our kid panelists, which means your little ones will be more likely to use them. The Bluetooth wireless connection—done correctly here—means that the Puro pair will play at the correct levels, whatever source the child uses it with. The wireless design is also handy for avoiding tangles, a favorite feature of our big-kid panelists. The size and weight fit kids from 2½ to 11 years comfortably, so you can buy these headphones once and they’ll grow with your child, and they are sturdy enough that they should last a long time, too.”

Breville Boss To Go Personal Blender

Street Price: $160; Deal Price: $128

Down to $128, this price matches a few previous deals we’ve posted on the Breville Boss To Go, but is still the lowest price we’ve seen in the last 6 months. Street price on this personal blender tends to sit between $150 and $160. Although we do see drops to $128 with some frequency, the price usually doesn’t stay that low for more than a few days.

The Breville Boss To Go is the upgrade pick in our guide to the best personal blender. Lesley Stockton wrote, “The Breville Boss To Go offers smoother blending, sleeker design, and a better travel lid than our top pick. The Boss To Go blended kale the finest, and berry seeds were the smallest of all our picks. The Breville blends thick mixtures easily without straining. The stainless steel housing and sleeker design will look good on your counter top, and the travel lid has the largest opening of all the blenders we tested for easier drinking.”

Nvidia Shield Streaming Media Player with Remote

Street Price: $180; Deal Price: $150

If you’re looking for a streaming device that supports 4K with HDR and is capable of playing local media via USB, the Nvidia Shield (2017) is a nice option that comes at a bit of a premium. Right now there’s a drop that lessens that cost a bit. This sale sees this version of the Shield with remote (but without gaming controller) drop in-cart from its usual price of $180 down to $150, beating the previous low we’ve seen for this iteration. We’ve posted a deal for the player with remote and controller for $170, a better deal for gaming enthusiasts, but this is still a great price.

The Nvidia Shield TV is our local media streaming pick in our guide to the best media streaming devices. Chris Heinonen wrote, “If you want to play back lots of local media directly from a USB hard drive or thumb drive, the Nvidia Shield supports almost any file format and serves as a full Android TV streamer, which gives it access to a large and quickly growing selection of streaming apps. It also supports 4K playback, including HDR, from most streaming services that offer it.”

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.

Amazon to Resume Selling Apple TV and Chromecast

Amazon has decided to once again sell the Apple TV and Google Chromecast in its online store, reports CNET. An Amazon spokesperson confirmed that the company is officially offering the two products as of today.

“I can confirm that we are assorting Apple TV and Chromecast,” CNET was told.

There are new product pages for the 32GB fourth-generation Apple TV, the 32GB Apple TV 4K, and the 64GB Apple TV 4K. There are also two listings for the Chromecast and the Chromecast Ultra.

All of the products are listed as “Currently unavailable” right now, but that is likely to change soon after the listings are completed and propagated to Amazon’s site.

Amazon first stopped selling the Apple TV and the Google Chromecast in its online store in 2015, claiming the reason for the removal was incompatibility with the Amazon Prime Video streaming service.

“Over the last three years, Prime Video has become an important part of Prime,” Amazon said in the e-mail. “It’s important that the streaming media players we sell interact well with Prime Video in order to avoid customer confusion.”

Since then, the Apple TV has been unavailable on Amazon’s site, but Amazon’s original reason for not selling the Apple TV was invalidated with the launch of the Amazon Prime Video app for Apple TV.

Amazon last week introduced a long-awaited Amazon Prime Video app for the Apple TV. The new app is available on third, fourth, and fifth-generation devices.

The return of the Chromecast to the Amazon site comes after Google once again removed YouTube from the Amazon Echo Show and the Fire TV. Google said Amazon’s refusal to carry the Chromecast and Google Home and its refusal to make Prime Video available for Google Cast was a key reason that it stopped supporting YouTube on Amazon’s products.

Related Roundup: Apple TVTags: Google, AmazonBuyer’s Guide: Apple TV (Buy Now)
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iMessage Has Emoji-Related Bug Dating Back Several iOS Versions

Apple released iOS 11.2.1 on Wednesday with multiple bug fixes, but an emoji-related issue continues to affect the Messages app on iOS devices.

The bug happens as follows: start a fresh conversation with a new recipient in the Messages app, send a single emoji as the first message, and much of the interface will essentially go blank with the top menu disappearing.

The glitch effectively renders the Messages app unusable until it is force closed and reopened through the multitasking menu.

The bug has affected most iPhone, iPad, and likely iPod touch models since at least iOS 11.1.2. MacRumors is able to reproduce the issue on iOS 11.2, iOS 11.2.1, and the first iOS 11.2.5 beta released yesterday.

The issue is prevalent in both iMessage conversations with blue bubbles and SMS conversations with green bubbles.

While this bug is a minor one, it adds to a growing list of issues that have surfaced over the past several versions of iOS 11 and macOS High Sierra, including a major Mac vulnerability that provided easy access to the root superuser.

Beyond the root bug, Apple has also dealt with a HomeKit-related vulnerability, an iPhone camera autofocus issue, iOS autocorrect bugs, and iPhone X glitches in cold weather, among other problems, in recent weeks.

We’ve alerted Apple about this bug shortly prior to publishing this article and we’ll provide an update if and when we learn about a fix.

Tags: emoji, iMessage
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iMac Pro’s RAM Can Only Be Upgraded by Apple or Authorized Service Provider

Standard 27-inch iMacs have a small hatch in the back that allows the RAM in the machine to be upgraded after purchase, but the iMac Pro does not have that feature.

There is no rear hatch because the RAM in the iMac Pro is not user upgradeable following purchase, but there’s good news — an Apple Store or an Apple Authorized Service Provider is able to open up the iMac Pro and swap out the RAM.

iMore’s Rene Ritchie spoke to Apple and learned that any service center is able to upgrade the RAM on an iMac Pro following purchase.

Yes. Any service center, Apple or indie, can upgrade the RAM on iMac Pro post-purchase. https://t.co/4JIRCSsu5H

— Rene Ritchie (@reneritchie) December 14, 2017

At Apple Stores, iMac Pro users will likely only be able to upgrade to Apple-provided RAM, but third-party service providers will be able to offer non-Apple RAM and might even allow users to bring in their own RAM. Policy will undoubtedly vary by location, however.

The entry-level $4,999 iMac Pro ships with 32GB of 2666MHz ECC RAM, but up to 128GB RAM is supported. Apple charges $800 to upgrade to 64GB RAM and $2,400 to upgrade to 128GB RAM. Upgrading RAM after purchase in eligible machines is often more affordable than purchasing Apple’s RAM upgrades at checkout.

There are no post-purchase options for upgrading the SSD, processor, or graphics card in the iMac Pro.

Apple began allowing customers to purchase the iMac Pro this morning. 8 and 10-core machines will begin shipping out this week, while 14 and 18-core options won’t be available to ship out for 6 to 8 weeks. While the entry-level iMac Pro is priced at $4,999, there are a number of upgrades available. A maxed out 18-core machine with 4TB of storage and a Radeon Pro Vega 64 is priced at $13,199.

Related Roundup: iMac ProBuyer’s Guide: iMac Pro (Buy Now)
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iTunes Chief Eddy Cue to Participate in Q&A Session at Pollstar Live! 2018 Conference

Apple iTunes Chief Eddy Cue will attend the Pollstar Live! 2018 Conference where he will sit down for a QA session with Variety Executive Music Editor Shirley Halperin, Variety reported today.

Cue’s official title is vice president of Internet Software and Services, and he oversees both iTunes and Apple Music along with Apple Pay, Maps, iCloud services, Apple’s video efforts, and more.

“Eddy Cue and his team at Apple have changed the way we listen to music, played a transformative role in artist discovery, and ignited the passion of music fans,” said Ray Waddell, president, Media & Conferences, for Oak View Group, producers of Pollstar Live! “We are thrilled to have him address the attendees at Pollstar Live! and can’t wait to hear what he has to say.”

Other speakers at Pollstar Live! 2018 include William J. Bratton, Troy Carter, Coolio, Mark Cuban, Marc Geiger, Michael Rapino, Alan Krueger, James E. Meyer, Roger Lynch, and more.

The Q&A session, entitled Apple and the Music Business, will take place on the morning of February 7, 2018 at the InterContinental hotel in Downtown Los Angeles. Pollstar Live! is a three day event that starts on February 6.

Tags: Eddy Cue, iTunes
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Apple Launches New Podcast Analytics Beta for Podcasters

Apple in June promised to introduce new analytics features for podcasters, providing in-episode analytics options for tracking people listening, where in a podcast listeners stop and skip content, whether ads are skipped, and how long people generally listen for.

Starting today, Apple’s podcast analytics feature is rolling out in a beta capacity, reports TechCrunch.

In recent years, podcasts have been growing in popularity, which is what led Apple to finally introduce dedicated analytics tools. Apple also redesigned the Podcasts app entirely in iOS 11, implementing a much improved end user experience with better linearity for podcast episodes.

Apple’s new podcasts analytics feature uses anonymized data to make sure user privacy is preserved while also allowing developers access to data that will improve their podcast performance. Data is available from iOS 11 and iTunes 12.7 users.

Podcasters can access the new analytics options for free starting today in iTunes Connect.

Tag: Podcasts
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Here’s how A.I. is helping Gfycat get rid of those crummy pixelated GIFs

GIFs may be growing in popularity, but many of them are grainy, low-resolution files that make the moving memes less than stellar — but GIF platform Gfycat is working to change that using A.I. The company recently shared a new program that uses tools like facial recognition to churn out higher quality GIFs from its platform.

The tech is being used to bolster Gfycat’s library in three ways. First, the software identifies individual frames and then searches online for another, higher resolution copy of the same file. Since GIFs are often created from popular movies, TV shows, and the like, the software can often find another version that has a higher resolution than the GIF. After determining which video the GIF came from, the A.I. then has to find the exact frames included in the GIF and swap them out to provide the highest quality version.

The second step is to recognize who’s in the GIF in order to make those higher-quality GIFs easier to find. The platform uses facial recognition and a database of celebrity images to automatically tag the GIFs, making those files pop up in search results and categories even when the user who uploaded the original file didn’t add those tags. Gfycat says its facial recognition system is a bit different because it uses a larger training set which aids accuracy for look-alike celebrities. The company hopes the system will also help recognize new celebrities before they reach rock star status.

The third component of the A.I. system helps correct text that has been affected by the low resolution of the file. Rather than facial recognition, this branch of the tech uses optical character recognition to help make out the text, then replaces the grainy version with new text to match the resolution of that replaced video segment.

Gfycat isn’t as popular as platforms like Giphy in terms of user count, but it has a number of attractive options, including a mobile app for making looping GIFs. The platform launched specifically to create better GIFs and says a Gfycat can be produced around 10 times faster than a traditional GIF, along with support for interaction, more colors, and more file formats. The new A.I. program pushes the firm’s goal further by working to create higher resolution GIFs.

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Apple embraces VR video with 360-degree and 8K support for Final Cut Pro X

Apple has firmly embraced 360-degree video with its latest update for Final Cut Pro X that lets users edit video especially for virtual reality. The update also introduces a number of additional features for modern video editing, including support for High Dynamic Range (HDR), 8K resolutions, and advanced color grading.

As much as we love fully immersive virtual reality games and experiences, it’s likely that 360-degree video will be the first point of contact many people have with VR. As a standard, VR video may also be the future of immersive media, in much the way that color imagery supplanted black and white. Apple is keeping itself at the forefront of modern content creation with its latest update for its premier video editing suite.

The 360-degree video editing takes place within the standard 2D timeline of Final Cut Pro X, but has a number of options and tools to help manage the newly immersive video. They include new 2D and 3D effects that are compatible with virtual reality, and visual controls to straighten horizons and remove camera rings. Better yet, users can check out what they’re editing in real time utilizing an HTC Vive headset.

To help push the video content out beyond the editing platform itself, Apple’s latest update for Final Cut Pro X also adds new social networking and sharing functions that let users immediately upload their creations to Facebook, YouTube, and Vimeo.

Along with support for VR video editing and creation in Final Cut Pro X, Apple is also extending its support to its companion apps Motion and Compressor. They join new HDR and 8K video support, along with new color grading tools. This, Apple hopes, will give Final Cut Pro X the edge when it comes to competitor editing suites.

“When combined with the performance of Mac hardware, including the all-new iMac Pro, Final Cut Pro provides an incredibly powerful post-production studio to millions of video editors around the world,” Apple’s VP of app product marketing, Susan Prescott, said in a statement.

Additional changes in the latest update include new import tools for iMovie projects created on iPhones and iPads; HEVC (High Efficiency Video Coding) and HEIF (High Efficiency Image File) support for importing from Apple devices; updated audio effects plug-ins from Logic Pro X, and a new optical flow analysis utilizing Apple’s Metal graphics technology that was introduced in the recent MacOS High Sierra build.

Editors’ Recommendations

• VR Stabilizer plug-in brings 360 stabilization to Adobe Premiere Pro, After Effects
• Want Hollywood results on a budget? Here’s the best free video editing software
• Go steady in 360 degrees with PowerDirector’s new image stabilization algorithm
• Garmin Virb 360 gains new creative editing controls and 5.7K mode
• Got an iPhone X? Apple’s Clips app now has a feature exclusively for you

Refreshed LG Gram laptops head to North America in January for CES 2018

LG Electronics said on Wednesday, December 13, that it plans to inject its super thin and light LG Gram laptops with eighth-generation Intel Core i5 and Core i7 processors in 2018. The new units will make their initial appearance during the CES 2018 technology show in early January, packing 72WHr batteries promising up to 22.5 hours on a single charge. That is the same battery ballpark Microsoft and Qualcomm boast about the upcoming Always Connected PCs using ARM-based Snapdragon 835 processors.

Unfortunately, LG Electronics wasn’t exactly brimming with details in its pre-CES announcement. There will be three sizes throughout the refresh delivering 40 percent better work efficiency than the previous generation, and boot times under 10 seconds. That timing partly stems from the use of a solid-state drive (SSD), which will be accompanied by a second SSD drive slot in the updated laptops.

As for the eighth-generation processors, LG didn’t provide any specifics, but here is what they may include:

Core i7-8650U
Core i7-8550U
Core i5-8350U
Core i5-8250U
Cores / Threads:
4 / 8
4 / 8
4 / 8
4 / 8
Base speed:
1.90GHz
1.80GHz
1.70GHz
1.60GHz
Max speed:
4.20GHz
4.00GHz
3.60GHz
3.40GHz
Graphics:
UHD Graphics 620
UHD Graphics 620
UHD Graphics 620
UHD Graphics 620
Graphics base speed:
300MHz
300MHz
300MHz
300MHz
Graphics max speed:
1,150MHz
1,150MHz
1,100MHz
1,100MHz
Power use:
15 watts
15 watts
15 watts
15 watts

According to the company, the LG Gram laptops will have a 20 percent increased durability over the standard laptop due to their Nano Carbon Magnesium full-metal alloy body. They passed seven U.S. military MIL-STD 810G durability tests, meaning they should withstand “extreme environments” and the torturous actions of kids. Despite the chassis, they will still remain thin and light for easy mobility.

Here are the weights and maximum battery times we pulled from the announcement:

Screen Size
Weight
Battery Life
13Z980
13.3 inches
2.13 pounds
22.5 hours
14Z980
14 inches
2.19 pounds
21.5 hours
15Z950
15.6 inches
2.41 pounds
19 hours

“We’re very proud to introduce the new Gram PCs, which have been designed in direct response to those wishing to get an all-around, high-performance laptop with maximum portability,” Chang Ik-hwan, head of LG’s IT business division, said in a statement. “The 2018 gram series can tick all the boxes for users who want versatile and lightweight laptops with faster processing capabilities.”

Other tidbits coughed up by LG include what it calls IPS In-cell touch technology, which means the display will not only have wide viewing angles and rich colors but touch input support as well. The takeaway from this detail is that touchscreens can be thicker than standard screens due to the touch-capable layer, but that is not the case with the panel used in LG’s Gram-branded laptops.

A few other hints about the upcoming LG Gram refresh include backlit keyboards, DTS Headphone X support providing multi-channel sound up to 11.1 channels, 1.5-watt speakers, fingerprint scanners, and Thunderbolt 3 connectivity. That connection can provide data transfers of up to 40Gbps, depending on how it’s hard-wired.

The new LG Gram laptops will be made available to purchase within North America in January either during the CES 2018 show in Las Vegas or shortly thereafter. Other markets will see the LG Gram refresh shortly after the North American rollout.

Editors’ Recommendations

• HP revamps Spectre line with 8th-gen CPUs, new designs, and more
• Benchmark spills the Intel Coffee Lake beans, including a Core i9 laptop CPU
• AMD crams desktop performance into ultra-thin laptops with its new Ryzen APUs
• Asus ZenBook 3 Deluxe (Late 2017) review
• Yes — Core i7 is faster than Core i5. But what’s the real difference?

In just a few minutes, this software can verify your identity from a bit of DNA

Your DNA says a lot about you, but before it can divulge your deepest genetic secrets, it has to be analyzed. And that can be a pretty costly process.

Now a simple blood test can reveal your identity in just a few minutes, thanks to a new method developed by researchers at Columbia University and the New York Genome Center. With their custom software, the researchers think they’ve developed an accurate test which, when paired with an inexpensive sequencing tool, can cheaply analyze crime scenes or identify victims following a major disaster.

The new method provides an “off-the-shelf” way to perform a DNA analysis using a smartphone-sized device called the MinION.

“The MinION reads the DNA in real-time, and a DNA read that comes off can be interpreted right away,” Sophie Zaaijer, a researcher who led the project, told Digital Trends.

The most sci-fi use of this software would be out in the field, where it might verify identities at a crime scene, the most immediate — and most promising from the perspective of the researchers — is within the lab, where the new software and MinION could be used to flag compromised data in cancer experiments. In these experiments, mislabeled or contaminated cell lines is a big reason why studies can’t later be replicated.

“We have developed an application to generate directly actionable results using the MinION,” Zaaijer said. “Our work facilitates that the MinION can be an addition to a standard lab for the routine verification of all cell lines. This will just be the start of this device being used for various rapid read-outs that would otherwise take much more time in sending it for sequencing and waiting for the results to return.”

According to a study published last month in the journal eLife, the new method is capable of determining a person’s identity in as little as three minutes. “The time it takes can vary, but will get even shorter due to the advances in speed [at which] the DNA is read by the MinION,” Zaaijer said. Accurate identification requires that a person’s DNA already be in the database, which is likely to raise privacy concerns and limit the method to laboratory use for now.

“To start, an appropriate database needs to be compiled,” Zaaijer said. “This often involves genetic privacy considerations. This is why our method will be useful for, for instance, patient material that might require house testing to comply with the privacy agreements set up between patient and hospital or clinical lab.”

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