Best Buy will stop CD sales as digital music continues to take over

There’s not much reason to shop for CDs when you download or stream all your music, and big-box stores are reacting to that decline. Billboard sources have learned that Best Buy has told suppliers that it will remove music CDs from its stores as of July 1st. The chain was only making $40 million per year from the plastic discs — a drop in the bucket for a retailer this size. Vinyl aficionados will still find records on sale for the next 2 years, according to the insiders, although they may have to be sold next to the turntables themselves.

Target, meanwhile, appears on the cusp of backing out. It reportedly wants to switch from paying for all music CDs and DVDs it receives (and shipping back whatever it doesn’t sell) to only paying for those discs that actually sell. Suppliers would have until April 1st or May 1st to make the switch, depending on the company. And they’re not necessarily willing to cooperate — at least one major music label is “leaning no,” Billboard said, while two others have yet to make a call.

We’ve asked Best Buy and Target for comment.

The move isn’t coming out of left field. Best Buy and Target are nowhere near as important for CD sales as they used to be (Best Buy in particular was once the biggest music reseller in the US), and now stock just a small selection of discs. And they’re unlikely to bounce back when CD sales have been dropping across the board for a while. Why go to an electronics shop with a mediocre music catalog when you can get the physical album you want through an online store, visit a dedicated retail store or stream virtually any song on-demand? Not that they’ll necessarily mind — this won’t be a tremendous loss, and they already sell devices for digital-only listeners. This is more a sign of the times than a devastating blow.

Source: Billboard

Tencent-backed ‘Arena of Valor’ World Cup boasts $500,000 purse

Mobile eSports are becoming a big deal. Last year, mobile MOBA Vainglory‘s big eSports tournament was backed by Amazon. Supercell put on a Clash Royale $1 million tournament last summer, too. Now China’s Tencent Games is getting in on the action with plans for a series of eSport tournaments, beginning with the Arena of Valor World Cup in July of this year. The contest will take place in Los Angeles and offer a prize pool of more than $500,000, according to the press release.

Arena of Valor is a 10-player multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) that pits two teams of five against each other across various maps. The title is a big hit for Tencent and just came to the US in mid-January of this year. The gaming company plans to roll out a series of regional and collegiate tournaments across the country, too, the winners of which can participate in the larger competitions.

Source: Tencent

Nougat is now the most-used version of Android, 17 months later

Google hasn’t quite licked its problems getting users to adopt the latest version of Android. Its latest Play Store user share stats show that Nougat has become the most-used Android release at 28.5 percent… just over 17 months after its summer 2016 debut. Not exactly a speedy transition, then. That still gives it the edge over the older-still Marshmallow release, mind you, and indicates that a large chunk of the user base is running a modern take on Android.

There’s a smaller piece of good news, too: Oreo has climbed above 1 percent after sitting below that milestone since its fall premiere.

The long interval between Nougat’s launch and taking the lead can likely be pinned on the same factors that have dictated Android upgrade cycles for years. Many Android vendors take months to deliver upgrades (due to both their custom software and carrier testing), and stop providing upgrades roughly 2 years after a device launch — you might not see more than one or two major revisions until you replace your phone.

That pattern might not repeat itself going forward. Oreo’s modular Project Treble framework is designed explicitly to reduce the delays for upgrades. It might not dramatically increase the adoption rate for newer Android releases, but it certainly won’t hurt. The challenge, not surprisingly, is increasing Oreo adoption. It likely won’t see a dramatic upswing until more major smartphones ship with Oreo out of the box, such as the Galaxy S9.

Via: 9to5Google

Source: Android Developers

‘The Cloverfield Paradox’ would be doomed without Netflix

The Cloverfield Paradox would have been a theatrical failure. It’s exactly the sort of B-grade sci-fi critics tend to eviscerate. So how do you generate hype for a movie that’s practically doomed? If you’re Netflix, you unveil a trailer during the Super Bowl with an unprecedented announcement: you’ll be able to watch the film right after the game ends. No warning, no early reviews. It’s the sort of “holy shit” moment you could only pull off if you’re a global entertainment powerhouse. You could think of it as Netflix flexing its marketing muscles and mocking its competitors, “Do you even stream, bro?”

Just like with Bright, Netflix’s awful but wildly successful Will Smith film, it doesn’t matter if The Cloverfield Paradox, directed by Julius Onah, is any good. It’s a vehicle for hype — just take a look at how the internet reacted to its surprise availability last night (yes, I was a part of that too). While there were other high-profile trailer premiers during the Super Bowl — notably a glimpse at Solo and Mission Impossible: Fallout — only Netflix could immediately turn that hype into viewers. Disney will have to keep people’s attention for months to make them see Solo. That’s power.

It helps that the Cloverfield franchise has a certain amount of clout among genre fans, as well as a history of surprising audiences. The original 2008 film was produced in secret by J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot, unveiled to the world as an untitled teaser and relied on viral marketing to generate buzz. (To put things in perspective, that campaign made heavy use of MySpace and text messaging.) Some media watchers speculated that it could be a Lost tie-in, or a sequel to Godzilla. A large part of the film’s early appeal is that we simply didn’t know what it was. 2016’s 10 Cloverfield Lane, meanwhile, was announced just two months before its release and also relied heavily on viral marketing (and a wide-eyed John Goodman).

While the Cloverfield movies aren’t directly related (though the trailer for the Netflix film implies a strong connection to the original), they don’t need a meticulous shared universe, a la the Marvel films, to have some marketing power. At the very least, we know a Cloverfield story is going to be some sort of exercise in science fiction. They’re almost like feature-length Twilight Zone episodes with much better special effects. Genre fans are going to lap up every entry in the series, but Netflix also knows that the name is enough to intrigue mainstream viewers just looking for something to watch.

In many ways, this surprise release is the best outcome possible for The Cloverfield Paradox. I found it to be an entertaining film, with a great cast and some genuinely inventive set pieces. But it’s also the sort of film that wouldn’t have had much legs in theaters.

Netflix/Scott Garfield

Last year’s Life only brought in $30 million on a $58 million dollar budget, while Passengers earned slightly over $100 million after costing $110 million. Both of those films also featured major film stars, like Chris Pratt, Jennifer Lawrence and Jake Gyllenhaal. The most recognizable name in The Cloverfield Paradox is Zhang Ziyi, who isn’t exactly a huge box office draw in the US. Rather than letting it languish in cinemas, Paramount and Bad Robot were able to make the film “immediately profitable” with the Netflix deal, according to Deadline. Given that the movie’s estimated budget was around $45 million, the streaming giant likely had to shell out well above that to secure distribution.

By launching the film as a surprise, the studios were also able to avoid an onslaught of negative reviews from critics. The Cloverfield Paradox currently has a disastrous 16 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes. (In comparison, 10 Cloverfield Lane was beloved by critics with a 90 percent score, and the original film had a solid 77 percent.) Of course, general audiences weren’t really swayed by Bright’s critical bashing (27 percent on Rotten Tomatoes), but Netflix probably grabbed a few extra watchers who might have been dissuaded by reviews.

A take like this, from Indiewire’s David Ehrlich, isn’t exactly pull-quote material: “It’s worth remembering that the Cloverfield movies were only able to successfully disrupt conventional distribution methods because they’re good. The best thing you can say about this one is that it’s free with your Netflix subscription.”

Netflix/Scott Garfield

If anything, The Cloverfield Paradox shows just how much clout Netflix has today. If Amazon or Hulu announced they would be debuting a film like this right after the Super Bowl, would they have generated as much hype? Not likely. Netflix, with its more than 110 million subscribers, showed that it was able to do the impossible: It saved a doomed film from oblivion.

Woman of color-led, sci-fi thriller released worldwide day + date w/ big Netflix muscle for black director, his super producer + POC cast. No advance press, ads, trailer. Straight to the people. Gamechanger. Congrats to helmer #JuliusOnah + my dears JJ, Gugu, David. #Cloverfield pic.twitter.com/m186Hprhqz

— Ava DuVernay (@ava) February 5, 2018

Elon Musk emphasizes the risks ahead of Falcon Heavy’s first mission

Tomorrow, SpaceX will attempt to launch its massive Falcon Heavy rocket for the very first time. If successful, it will be the most powerful rocket in operation and opens up the possibility of future crewed missions to the Moon or Mars. Today, Elon Musk gave a few more details about the launch attempt during a press call ahead of tomorrow’s main event.

Musk detailed the rocket’s mission: After launch, it will coast for six hours, straight to geosynchronous Earth orbit, which is an orbit that follows the Earth’s rotation so a satellite stays in the same place. This phase of the mission is specifically related to national security missions, to show that the rocket can deliver a payload directly to GEO.

After this, the rocket will begin a trans-Mars injection engine burn. The upper stage of the Falcon Heavy will position itself in an elliptical orbit — one part will be in Earth orbit, and the other will be in Mars. Musk described it as an “Earth-Mars cycler,” but it’s a little tricky to imagine just what this orbit will look like without some visuals. If everything goes well, the rocket will be about 400 million kilometers (about 250 million miles) away from our planet, and will remain in that orbit for up to a billion years. There’s an “extremely tiny” chance it (along with the Tesla roadster that the Falcon Heavy will carry) could even impact the red planet.

But there is a lot of risk associated with tomorrow’s mission, and Musk was frank about it. “It’ll be a real huge downer if it blows up,” he said on the call. If it explodes on the pad, the damage will take 9-12 month to clean up. However, an unsuccessful launch will not impact production.

Even if the rocket takes off, there’s a lot of uncertainty in its risky mission. It will travel through the Van Allen Belts, charged areas of trapped radiation that surround the Earth, which could damage the rocket. There’s also the concern of ice on the upper stage, as well the possibility the fuel could freeze or the oxygen could vaporize. There are many unknowns when it comes to tomorrow’s scheduled launch; but one thing that Musk promises is that it’ll be exciting: “It’s either going to be an exciting success or an exciting failure — one big boom.”

Images of Samsung’s Galaxy S9 Leak Ahead of Rumored February Unveiling

Samsung is planning to unveil its next-generation smartphones, the Galaxy S9 and S9+, at an event that’s set to take place at Mobile World Congress on February 25, but ahead of that date, several images have leaked depicting the South Korean company’s new flagship device.

Noted leaker Evan Blass, aka @evleaks, has shared several renders of the new Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ on Twitter, along with details about what to expect from the device that will compete directly with Apple’s own iPhone X.

Galaxy S9
Samsung’s two new smartphones will continue to use the same general design as the Galaxy S8 devices, with slim bezels and a near edge-to-edge Super AMOLED display. Unlike the iPhone X, the S9 and S9+ have black bars at the top and bottom of the device, with the top bar housing components like the camera and the microphone.

Galaxy S9+
The larger of the two devices, the Galaxy S9+, features a new vertical dual camera design at the back of the phone, similar to the iPhone X. Samsung’s invite for its February 25 event suggested camera improvements will be a main focal point for the two new flagship devices.

Rumors suggest the Galaxy S9 will feature a single 12-megapixel camera with variable aperture from f/1.5 to f/2.4, while the S9+ will feature the same variable aperture 12-megapixel camera paired with a second 12-megapixel camera with a fixed aperture.

Samsung isn’t ready to introduce a robust Face ID-style feature in its smartphones (but it will continue to offer less secure iris scanning and facial recognition as options), so the Galaxy S9 and S9+ will feature fingerprint sensors located at the back of the devices. Samsung has, however, repositioned the fingerprint sensor on both devices to below the camera instead of to the right of it.

These are the Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ https://t.co/deXGg39m0d pic.twitter.com/RNGezrF4Bs

— Evan Blass (@evleaks) January 26, 2018

Samsung plans to offer its Galaxy S9 and S9+ in Midnight Black, Lilac Purple, Titanium Gray, and Coral Blue. The Samsung Galaxy S9 will measure in at 5.8 inches like the iPhone X, while the S9+ will measure in at 6.2 inches. Android Central has additional details about Samsung’s upcoming S9 and S9+ for those who are curious about what to expect to see in the devices that will directly compete with the iPhone X.

Tag: Samsung
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Banks ban Bitcoin credit card buys as cryptocurrency crash continues

As Bitcoin “hodlers” brace against the storm of the biggest cryptocurrency crash in recent memory, banks in the United States and United Kingdom have taken steps to prevent customers from getting in over their heads. A number of financial institutions have now banned the use of credit cards for purchasing Bitcoins, meaning potential investors will need to resort to other means to purchase their cryptocurrency.

Bitcoin and altcoins like Litecoin and Ethereum became vogue investment purchases at the tail end of 2017 when a wave of mainstream attention saw prices increase by tens, if not hundreds, of percent in just a few short weeks. That latest bubble eventually burst towards the end of December, with Bitcoin itself reaching near $20,000 per token before the crash. It then tumbled by thousands of dollars in the weeks that followed, dragging most other cryptocurrencies down with it.

With Bitcoin now having fallen to less than $7,500, its lowest price point since early November last year, Chase, Bank of America, and Citigroup have all banned the use of credit cards for buying Bitcoins. In the U.K., Lloyds group banks have done the same, including Bank of Scotland, Halifax, and MBNA.

Although this may stop some banking customers getting into hot water, the move is more to prevent lenders from being hit by this latest crypto-crunch. As Bloomberg reports, customers overspending in expectation of quick returns could leave banks in the lurch if they can’t repay. Similarly, there is concern over stolen credit cards being used to buy cryptocurrency, which is often hard to twin with its real-life owner.

As much as those banks are taking steps to create some moderate separation between their services and Bitcoin, not all banks are doing the same. As Diar reports on Twitter, two top U.K. banks, HSBC and Barclays, have confirmed that they are not restricting cryptocurrency investments at all.

Indeed it’s important to remember that while the banks that have banned credit card purchases have restricted one avenue of buying cryptocurrencies, bank transfers, currency trading, and even gift-card buys can be used to purchase Bitcoin and other altcoins.

As much as this latest news could exacerbate the current tumble Bitcoin and its contemporaries have taken, as we discussed in a recent piece, regulating Bitcoin is harder than most people think, so the long-term impact may not be too dire.

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HP’s new 3D printers can print in full color and use multiple materials

HP wants to support the 4th industrial revolution with its latest 3D printers.

The company has launched four new 3D printers capable of printing in full color and with multiple materials within the same print.

The Jet Fusion 300 and 500 3D printers, each of which is available in black and white and color models, are HP’s next step in democratizing 3D printing. Designed with small-to-medium operations in mind, the machines start at approximately $50,000 and can easily top $100,000 depending on the specific configuration. This isn’t exactly consumer-friendly pricing, but it’s a comparatively small investment for teams looking to prototype and develop without outsourcing.

What sets these two printers apart is their ability to work at voxel-level — a voxel essentially being a 3D pixel that’s used by 3D printers to make objects — to create full color objects. Already, HP has worked with Phoenix Children’s Hospital, Yazaki Corp., and Youngstown State University to Find new purposes for full color 3D printing technology.

Seen in the above image, Phoenix Children’s Hospital has used the full-color 3D printing technology to recreate an anatomical model of a patient’s heart that has a complex defect. By doing this, doctors can better visualize the optimal surgical path and also explain to the patient’s family what will be done.

It’s not just color though. HP is also working with partners, such as SolidWorks, to boost its Open Platform. These partnerships are helping to develop different materials that will be used by the Jet Fusion printers at the voxel-level.

What this means is while printing a design, the Jet Fusion printer is able to change the material used to alter the final product. Imagine being able to 3D print a shoe insert that has a fabric-like material for the top, but offers a springy platform for optimal support, all in a single process. That’s what HP’s Jet Fusion printers will be able to do, alongside the addition of color.

HP expects 3D printing to be a vital part of what it deems the fourth industrial revolution. And from the looks of it, they’re on track with the release of these new printers and the ongoing improvements to its partnership program.

You can find out more information by visiting HP’s website.

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Tired of broken eggs? Google might have a solution with a new patent design

Have you ever drove over a bump on your way home from the grocery store, then found all your freshly bought eggs cracked? Many of us have been there. Even those who use grocery delivery services may find a few eggs arrive broken from time to time, which can be a pain for customers.

But Google just might have a solution for disgruntled egg consumers. According to recently released patent filings, Google seems to want to solve the problem of broken eggs once and for all, or to ensure its Google Express grocery delivery customers don’t open up their grocery bags to find yolk all over the carton.

So what is the secret to Google’s egg carton patent? It might be an insert made up of interconnected domes that keeps the eggs from moving while they are resting in the carton. Each dome is ideally sized to cup the top portion of an egg and the insert itself can be placed directly into the egg carton, with each dome corresponding to one dimple of the carton. When the insert is placed into a carton full of eggs, the carton should be able to close securely.

In addition to the insert, Google also outlined a special carton packaging that should keep the eggs doubly secure. The cruciform sheet is sized such that it wraps tightly around the outside of the carton, bound by flaps at the top and bottom and secured with tabs on the sides. With the carton resting in this special packaging, the eggs would theoretically move around less while traveling from point A to point B.

Google Express was publicly launched in September 2013. Since then, the search engine giant has found competition in other grocery delivery services such as AmazonFresh, Instacart, and Shipt. But if Google Express can guarantee its eggs arrive at your doorstep without so much as a single crack, that just might put them above the competition.

Interested in giving Google Express a try? Membership is free, and you can shop from all different retailers, including Costco, Target, Overstock, Walgreens, and more. Shipping is free as long as you reach the minimum purchase requirement, which for most stores is between $25 and $35.

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Google adds tablet-friendly features in the latest Chrome OS 64 build

Google’s Chrome OS continues to make noticeable strides as a lightweight operating system that runs primarily on relatively low-cost PCs. As with the Windows 10 market, Chrome OS is seeing an increase of 2-in-1 machines of the 360-degree convertible variety, along with hints at an impending influx of detachable tablets.

Unsurprisingly, we’re now seeing Chrome OS adopt new features that make the OS more suitable for touchscreen devices, and the latest Chrome OS 64 update is a prime example. The latest build, taking Chrome OS to version 64.0.3282.134, adds in two specific features that make the platform more 2-in-1-friendly.

First, there’s a new screenshot method that’s aimed at convertibles. You can now hold down the power and volume buttons simultaneously to capture the screen, which is also how you take screenshots on most Android devices. In addition, there are new touchscreen pairing settings, an obvious boon when a convertible is in tablet mode and, of course, for dedicated tablet devices such as the upcoming Acer Chrome OS tablet.

Here are some other fixes:

• Revamped intent picker for Play applications (same window by default with override)
• Lockscreen performance improvements
• Enable VPN for Google Play apps
• Enhancements to the protected media pipeline for Android
• Android container auto update optimizations

Google also notes that it has implemented additional precautions in the browser against the notorious speculative side-channel attacks dubbed Spectre, which have gained industrywide attention and forced a number of updates on virtually every computer platform. These recent changes are in addition to steps taken in earlier versions to address issues caused by Meltdown and Spectre. If you want to understand how the flaws have been affecting Google’s products, then take a look at this overview.

As usual, you can update your Chromebook manually by clicking on the Setting cog icon, heading to About Chrome OS in the menu, and then clicking “Check for Updates” under “Google Chrome OS.” The update will be downloaded and then you can perform the update. Be prepared to reboot your Chromebook, and when it returns to action, your touchscreen-enabled convertible Chrome OS machine will be that much easier to use.

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