Android Go phones will be available soon

Android Oreo had quite the interesting feature lurking in its software: Go Edition, which was designed for smartphones with 1 GB of RAM or less. Today, the company announced that the first set of Android Oreo (Go Edition) phones will be unveiled next week and be available for purchase soon after that.

Over the last few months, Google has been introducing lightweight “Go” editions of its popular apps, such as Gmail and Google Assistant. It’s a concerted effort and catering to a traditionally underserved market in tech: Those who have older phones and who have purchased newer, but cheaper, phones. It’s especially important in developing areas, where people might not be able to afford the newest, most powerful phones. Now Google will give those users hardware that is dedicated to and optimized for Android Oreo (Go Edition).

Source: Google

In search of pixel perfection with the Analogue Super NT

The 16-bit aesthetic is the new vinyl. It taps into a growing vein of ’90s nostalgia, and it also reflects a longing for a tactile past world that just predates full-scale digitization. Fat, colorful sprites represent an era when technology was still analogue and full of exciting possibilities. The Super Nintendo is as much an emblem of this retro near-futurism as it is a game machine. But boy, is it also a great game machine.

Hence, nostalgia for the Super Nintendo is currently at its absolute peak. There are half a dozen or so clone consoles on the market and advanced emulators such as Higan that run with near-cycle perfection on high-end PCs. Then there’s Nintendo’s own incredibly popular SNES Mini. In short, there is no shortage of ways to play these classic games right now. All options have their strengths and drawbacks, but Analogue’s new Super NT retro console easily blows them all out of the water, delivering sprites with pixel-perfect accuracy, zero lag and considerable polish.

For years, Analogue has been delivering high-end retro consoles that run original carts and deliver pixel perfection seamlessly to modern televisions. The Super NT is the culmination of these efforts: a 99-percent-accurate recreation of the Super Nintendo in a consumer-friendly package. Analogue achieves this magic via field-programmable gate array (FPGA). Nearly all purpose-built consoles, including Nintendo’s own SNES Mini, run retro games through software emulation, which means they’re using a program to simulate the original Super Nintendo. But FPGA is an integrated circuit that is coded to recreate the architecture of the original Super Nintendo hardware itself.

To look at it another way, software emulation is like streaming a recording of a classic song while FPGA is playing the original vinyl on a modern turntable with digital outputs. For most consumers looking for a quick hit of nostalgia, software emulation is just fine. Many emulators deliver a mostly accurate and quality experience. But for enthusiasts seeking purity, software emulators just can’t compare to what the Super NT’s FPGA chip delivers.

To be clear, the Super NT is not the “perfect” SNES experience for purists. The absolute gold standard is to locate an original Super Nintendo 1CHIP console (a rarer revision of the hardware that outputs video over RGB) and either wire it into a high-end CRT monitor or run it through an expensive Framemeister or Open Source Scan Converter in order to hook it up to a modern TV. It’s a deeply nerdy experience that is time-consuming and space prohibitive, and it requires a strong knowledge of how old consoles work. But the Super NT is about as close to this gold standard as you could possibly get — plus, it is a pretty piece of hardware, and it plugs in with only an HDMI cable. For anyone who has spent weeks tracking down a good CRT or tweaking the settings on a Framemeister, the act of plugging the Super NT into a 4K TV and receiving pixel perfection with the click of a button is a magical experience.

As simple as it is to get started, the Super NT has a deep well of options that you can modify on the fly through a menu that has been cleverly programmed to run on the Super Nintendo CPU. You can adjust the resolution, the refresh rate and the aspect ratio. In my experience, 1080p output delivers the sharpest pixel-perfect image, and 720p is better suited for turning on scan lines (there are several options to customize your scan line thickness and improve brightness, which dulls when using scan line effects). Buffer-mode adjustments are available. Normally, the Super Nintendo runs at 60.09Hz, but with the zero-delay buffer option, you can adjust this to 60Hz, which removes any latency in the gaming experience (or there are options that more closely replicate the original experience).

Other adjustments available to tinkerers include interlacing options; pseudo high-res blending, which simulates certain techniques that made use of CRT monitors to create special “high-res” effects; and 64-sprite mode, which enables more sprites on-screen and fixes flicker in certain classically problematic games. These modes will give hobbyists plenty to play with, though they only really apply to select games. In my experience, 64-sprite mode eliminated a lot of the notorious flicker from R-Type III. I suspect that in time, retroheads will discover all kinds of new applications of these features, and recommended-settings regimens for each game will begin circulating.

It also works with all Super Nintendo peripherals (except light guns, which will require a CRT), such as Super Game Boy. And you can toggle regions and frequency to play PAL carts (though I didn’t have any on hand to verify this). In short, as Analogue founder and CEO Christopher Taber told me, the Super NT was “literally designed to be the end all, be all.”

The range of visual options are stunning (and a tad overwhelming), but for me the real “wow” moment came from the sound. Strictly in auditory terms, switching between the SNES Mini and the Super NT is night and day. SNES audio has always been notoriously difficult to emulate on the software level, but the FPGA chip’s hardware mimicry achieves the best achievable sound quality from games. It hits the difficult notes in Yoshi’s Island or Final Fantasy III perfectly.

Analogue

The Super NT is suffused with other quality touches. The interface’s font and colors are customizable, and even the dang LED power light is adjustable (rainbow throb is my jam)! In terms of product design, the console is wonderfully tactile. Made with a compact plastic shell a tad thicker than an original Super Nintendo and with a weighted base and rubber mat on the bottom, the console has heft and presence. I tested the black model, which felt perfectly at home with all the other sleek black boxes that live under a modern TV. The console feels good to touch, and touch it you will: Swapping carts is a tactile pleasure in its own right.

And the carts are probably what will make your mind up here, as you need Super Nintendo carts to play on this console. While the SNES Mini comes with 21 games pre-installed (including many of the best), you will need to head to eBay, Craigslist or your mom’s basement to hunt down your own carts to use with the Super NT. This will deter the casual nostalgia seeker. (However, the console does come with two pre-installed titles, Super Turrican: Director’s Cut — an extended edition of the original — and Super Turrican 2. Both are wonderfully frenetic action games.)

This fact belies the hidden costs of the console, one of its bigger drawbacks. You will likely need to buy not only carts but also a controller. You can plug in an original pad, but Analogue recommends the 8Bitdo SN30 wireless Bluetooth controller ($25) and Retro Receiver ($20), which are available in matching colors. The 8Bitdo feels very much like the original SNES controller and can be synced with other devices, such as PCs, Macs and even the Nintendo Switch — it’s a good standalone product in its own right but works extremely well with the Super NT.

These hidden costs add up. The console itself is $190, but add on one or two 8Bitdo pads and shipping fees and you’re looking at around $250 to $300. If you also need to build a library of carts, your total expenditure can swiftly hit $500. Stack this up against the SNES Mini, which delivers 21 top-shelf games and two controllers for $79, and it’s clearly the premium option. But if you want to track down a SNES 1CHIP, that’ll run you about $175 on eBay, and if you’re going that far, you’ll want to get a high-end CRT monitor. A 20-inch Sony PVM will set you back around $200. Considering this, the Super NT is the more affordable option.

There’s one other glaring drawback: The console currently only supports HDMI, so there is no way to output to a CRT monitor. Analogue says it will release an adapter that converts the digital signal out to RGB, component, S-Video and all those geeky options “in a month or two.” For a device that is built on retro fidelity, the lack of analog outputs out of the gate is disappointing.

So who is this console for? If you’re still here and you’re still interested, then chances are it’s for you. It’s for the hipster geek who loves retro games but not quite enough to track down a Sony PVM and a bunch of cables and rig up a 1CHIP SNES. Surprisingly, this is a bigger market than one would think. Demand has already far outstripped Analogue’s expectations: Pre-orders sold out before release, and the next run of pre-orders may follow suit, so keep a close eye on the stock if you’re on the fence.

Personally, the Super NT has focused my attention on Super Nintendo games in a way that the SNES Mini simply couldn’t. The play experience is far more accurate, but more importantly, the possibilities are far greater. Though I only tested the Super NT with about a dozen SNES games, Analogue says that it’s tested it with practically all 2,200 SNES and Super Famicom games ever made.

The SNES library is deep and contains some of the best games of all time. That library is well represented on the SNES Mini, but what grabs my interest are the games that for whatever reason didn’t make Nintendo’s cut. Chrono Trigger, Demon’s Crest, Blackthorne, R-Type, even Uniracers — a game that literally haunted my childhood with fever-dream nightmares of disembodied unicycles — are all on the menu. For me, the Super NT represents the possibilities of a deep dive into the richest and most varied video gaming catalog in existence.

The Super NT is a retro machine that somehow does not wallow in nostalgia — it looks and feels like it belongs under a flat panel in 2018. The design is thoughtful, tasteful and unobtrusive. Analogue has miraculously achieved a rare alchemy: 99-percent-perfect Super Nintendo accuracy, with zero hassle. The nerdy stuff about cabling and Framemeisters is gone, and the distracting intangible factors that come along with nostalgic consoles have been nullified too. Who touched these controllers before, and why are they so gummy now? Did this yellowing console come from a smoke-filled home, and what was that like? Why is life so much more complicated now anyway? With the Super NT, these questions are moot, leaving the games to speak for themselves.

Images: Analogue

The best 4K Blu-ray player

By Chris Heinonen

This post was done in partnership with Wirecutter. When readers choose to buy Wirecutter’s independently chosen editorial picks, it may earn affiliate commissions that support its work. Read the full article here.

After researching every currently available 4K Blu-ray player, and spending more than 20 hours testing the features and performance of six contenders, we’re sure that the Sony UBP-X800 is the best for most people. All the players we tested had indistinguishable 4K disc performance, but the Sony’s disc-loading speed, snappy menus, and superior 4K upscaling of DVDs and non-4K Blu-rays set it apart from the pack.

Why buy a 4K Blu-ray player

If you have a TV that can show off 4K resolution with true HDR and wide color gamut support, 4K Blu-ray discs will outperform any video you’ve watched at home and look more dynamic and colorful than what you’ll see in almost any movie theater. Although the majority of 4K video content comes from streaming services, 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray discs offer the highest video quality you can get at home today. A Netflix 4K HDR stream has a maximum speed of 15.6 megabits per second (Mb/s), while a 4K Blu-ray can average 100 Mb/s. This means more fine detail, less compression, fewer artifacts, and a better-looking image. Most 4K Blu-rays also contain lossless Dolby Atmos or DTS:X soundtracks, providing better audio quality than any streaming service.

How we picked and tested

Photo: Chris Heinonen

Right now there are only a handful of 4K Blu-ray players on the market. We evaluated what was available and called in almost every player we could. All the players included must-have features like dual HDMI outputs so that you can use them with older receivers that can’t pass 4K signals by passing audio to the receiver and video directly to the TV.

We tested the players using Samsung MU8000 LCD and Sony A1E OLED TVs. When we needed to test Dolby Vision, we used the Vizio P65-C1 that was our pick for best TV in 2016. Each TV was calibrated to be as accurate as possible, so we could see exactly what the disc was outputting on the screen.

Unfortunately, measurement hardware and software to ensure that each player is objectively outputting the correct data isn’t currently available. In lieu of objective measurements, we used multiple copies of the same UHD disc in different players plugged into the same TV (using different HDMI inputs). This allowed us to compare still images sourced from each player side by side.

Our testing showed that all players look identical when displaying 4K footage, as long as you leave them in their standard image mode. If there were small differences, we didn’t notice them, and we don’t think you will either. However, picture performance differed noticeably when playing back non-4K Blu-ray and DVD discs, so we focused much of our evaluation on the ability to upconvert legacy formats to 4K resolution.

Our pick: Sony UBP-X800

Photo: Rozette Rago

The Sony UBP-X800 4K Blu-ray player combines fast disc loading, a responsive interface, great Blu-ray and DVD upscaling, streaming content you can organize, and solid build quality to make it the best 4K Blu-ray player for most people. It plays Ultra HD discs as well as any player, but more important than that, it will make your existing Blu-ray and DVD discs look better than most other 4K Blu-ray players will, and it loads as fast as any player we tested.

The Sony does a better job scaling HD and SD content to 4K resolution than other players, which is important because there are a whole lot more non-4K discs than 4K ones. In comparison with the other 4K players, the Sony produced smoother curves, more readable text, less shimmer, and fewer edge enhancement artifacts with DVD and Blu-ray content.

Using the Sony UBP-X800 is easy, with settings clearly labeled to explain what they do. The main screen gives you a selection of all the source options. Everything is right up front so you don’t need to hunt around in hidden submenus. However, the menus themselves aren’t displayed in 4K, so they look softer and display less information than on competing players.

Runner-up: Samsung UBD-M8500

Photo: Rozette Rago

If our main pick isn’t available, the Samsung UBD-M8500 is a good alternative. It offers the same quality playback for 4K Blu-ray discs, a good section of streaming content, and an improved user interface that takes full advantage of the high resolution of 4K. The remote is small but easy to use and fits nicely in your hand, although like the Sony, it requires line of sight to work because it uses IR and not RF.

However, the Samsung’s upscaling of DVD and Blu-ray discs produces more artifacts and more jagged-looking curves compared with the Sony. It also doesn’t support playing 3D Blu-ray discs. This won’t matter to most people, but it will make it a worse choice for those with a library of those titles.

Upgrade pick: Oppo UDP-203

Photo: Rozette Rago

If you want even better looking upscaling of DVD and Blu-ray discs, or want Dolby Vision support and are willing to pay for it, the Oppo UDP-203 is the best 4K Blu-ray player available. It outdoes the competition by scaling lower-resolution video with fewer artifacts. It also offers an analog audio output if you need it for an older system that can’t handle audio over HDMI. However, it lacks any streaming service support, so you’ll need an additional 4K media player in your system. The UDP-203 also costs far more than any other player tested and, to our eyes, looks the same when playing 4K UHD discs.

If you need Dolby Vision or want the best player overall, the Oppo UDP-203 is it, but for most people paying two to three times as much for it compared with our main pick won’t be worth it. Although, Oppo does offer excellent service and support for its products if you do decide to invest, with a stronger warranty than Sony or Samsung.

This guide may have been updated by Wirecutter. To see the current recommendation, please go here.

Note from Wirecutter: When readers choose to buy our independently chosen editorial picks, we may earn affiliate commissions that support our work.

Public radio stations are saving Gothamist sites

Last year, billionaire Joe Ricketts shut down Gothamist and DNAInfo a week after newsroom employees unionized. Though there was immediate public outcry over the decision, the sites’ future has remained bleak and uncertain, but, as Wired reports, they’re now getting an unexpected helping hand from some old-school media — public radio. At least three public radio stations — New York’s WNYC, Washington DC’s WAMU and Southern California’s KPCC — will be taking over Gothamist and associated sites like LAist, DCist and DNAInfo, maintaining their archives and adding new content in the near future.

Gothamist founders Jake Dobkin and Jen Chung said that the sudden shutdown of the sites last year was unexpected. “We tried to do our best to improve the situation and bring something positive out of it, and we did,” Dobkin told Wired. Two anonymous donors have provided funds for the deal, though the amount hasn’t been disclosed.

Going forward, WNYC will run Gothamist alongside its own site. Chung and WNYC staff will write content for it and at some point, new hires and possibly previous Gothamist staff members will join the team. WAMU plans to hire three people for DCist and hopes to start adding new content this spring. And KPCC’s Alex Schaffert told Wired, “Our goal is to generate new content for the site, build on the archive of stories that we were fortunate to acquire and integrate LAist into KPCC’s portfolio of services.”

Dobkin told Wired that they’re still looking for additional local radio stations to take over other Gothamist sites like Chicagoist and SFist.

Via: Wired

Not even IBM is sure where its quantum computer experiments will lead

Despite the hype and hoopla surrounding the burgeoning field of quantum computing, the technology is still in its infancy. Just a few years ago, researchers were making headlines with rudimentary machines that housed less than a dozen qubits — the quantum version of a classical computer’s binary bit. At IBM’s inaugural Index Developer Conference held in San Francisco this week, the company showed off its latest prototype: a quantum computing rig housing 50 qubits, one of the most advanced machines currently in existence.

Quantum computing — with its ability to calculate and solve algorithms in parallel, at speeds far faster than conventional computers — promises to revolutionize fields from chemistry and logistics to finance and physics. The thing is, while quantum computing is a technology for the world of tomorrow, it hasn’t yet advanced far enough for anyone to know what that world will actually look like.

“People aren’t going to just wake up in three or four years, and say, ‘Oh okay, now I’m ready to use quantum, what do I have to learn,’” Bob Sutor, VP of IBM Q Strategy and Ecosystem at IBM Research, told Engadget.

These systems rely on the “spooky” properties of quantum physics, as Einstein put it, and their operation is radically different from how today’s computers work. “What you’re basically doing is you’re replacing the notion of bits with something called qubits,” Sutor said. “Ultimately when you measure a qubit it’s zero or one, but before that there’s a realm of freedom of what that can actually be. It’s not zero and one at the same time or anything like this, it just takes on values from a much, much larger mathematical space.

“The basic logic gates [AND, OR, NOT, NOR, etc], those gates are different for quantum,” he continued. “The way the different qubits work together to get to a solution is completely different from the way the bits within your general memory works.” Rather than tackling problems in sequence, as classical computers do, quantum rigs attempt to solve them in parallel. This enables quantum computers to solve certain equations, such as modeling complex molecules, far more efficiently.

This efficiency, however, is tempered by the system’s frailty. Currently, a qubit’s coherence time tops out at 90 milliseconds before decaying. That is, if a qubit is designated as a 1, it’ll only remain a 1 for 0.09 seconds. “After that all bets are off. You’ve got a certain amount of time in which to actually use this thing reliably,” Sutor said. “Any computations you’re going to do with a qubit have to come within that period.”

As such quantum computers are highly sensitive to interference from temperature, microwaves, photons, even the electricity running the machine itself. Sutor said, “With heat you’ve got lots of electrons moving around, bumping into each other,” which can lead to the qubit’s decoherence. That’s why these rigs have to be cooled to near absolute zero on order to operate.

“Outer space in the shade is between two and three degree Kelvin,” Sutor explained. “Outer space is much too warm to do these types of calculations.” Instead, the lowest levels of a quantum computer rig, where the calculations themselves take place, exist at a frosty 10 millikelvin — a tenth of a degree above absolute zero. So no, Sutor assured Engadget, we probably shouldn’t expect desktop quantum computers running at room temperature to exist within the next few decades — perhaps even within our lifetimes.

Surprisingly, these systems are fairly energy efficient. Aside from the energy needed to sufficiently cool the system for operation (a process that takes around 36 hours) IBM’s 50-qubit rig only draws 10 to 15 kilowatts of power — roughly equivalent to a standard microwave oven.

So now that IBM has developed a number of quantum computer systems ranging from 5 to 50 qubits, the next challenge is figuring out what to do with them. And that’s where the company’s Q network comes in. Last December, IBM announced that it’s partnering with a number of Fortune 500 companies and research institutes — including JPMorgan Chase, Samsung, Honda, Japan’s Keio University, Oak Ridge National Lab and Oxford University — to suss out potential practical applications for the technology.

Learning centers like Keio University also act as localized hubs. “We in IBM research, while we have a large team on this, we can’t work with everybody in the world who wants to work on quantum computing,” Sutor explained. These hubs, however, “can work with local companies, local colleges, whomever to do whatever. They would get their quantum computer power from us, but they would be at the front lines.” The same is true for Oakridge National Lab, Oxford University and the University of Melbourne.

What’s more, the company has also launched the IBM Q experience which allows anyone — businesses, universities, even private citizens — to write and submit their own quantum application or experiment to be run on the company’s publicly available quantum computing rig. It’s essentially a cloud service for quantum computations. So far more than 75,000 people have taken advantage of the service, running more than 2.5 million calculations which have resulted in more than two dozen published research papers on subjects ranging from quantum phase space measurement to homomorphic encryption.

But while the public’s interest in this technology is piqued, there is a significant knowledge gap that must be overcome before we start to see quantum applications proliferate the way classical programs did in the 1970s and ’80s. “Let’s say in the future you’re running investment house types of calculations [similar to the financial risk applications that JP Morgan is currently developing],” Sutor points out, “there are big questions as to what those would be, and what the algorithms would be. We’re way too early to have anything determined like that, even to the extent of knowing how well [quantum computing] will be applicable in some of these other areas.”

The entry point for writing programs is a challenge too. For classical computers, it’s as simple as running a compiler. But there’s not yet such a function for quantum computers. “What does it mean to optimize a quantum program knowing that this completely different from the model that’s in your phone?” he queried.

Another challenge that must be overcome is how to scale these machines. As Sutor points out, it’s a simple enough task to add qubits to silicon chips, but every component added, increases the amount of heat generated and the amount of energy needed to keep the system within its operational temperature boundaries.

So rather than simply packing in more and more qubits and setting off a quantum version of Moore’s Law, Sutor believes that the next major step forward for this technology is quality over quantity. “Having 50 great qubits is much more powerful than having 2,000 lousy ones,” he quipped. “You don’t want something very noisy that you’re going to have to fix,” but instead research should focus on improving the system’s fidelity over increasing the qubit count.

But even as quantum technologies continue to improve, there will still be a place in the world of tomorrow for classical computers. “Don’t think of quantum as a wholesale replacement for anything you do,” Sutor warned. “The theory says that you could run any classical algorithm on a quantum rig but it would be so glacially slow because it’s not designed to run those types of products.”

Instead, Sutor prefers to think of the current crop of quantum technologies as an accelerator. “It does certain things very quickly, it does some things we don’t know how to do well classically… and so it’ll work hand in hand that way.”

And if you’re waiting for today’s quantum computers to be able to compete with modern supercomputers anytime soon, you shouldn’t hold your breath. “We need to get several orders of magnitude better than we are now to probably move into that period where we’re solving the really super hard problems,” he said.

“Just to be very clear,” Sutor concluded, “this is a play for the 21st century… this is I think going to be one of the most critical computing technologies for the remainder of the century, and major breakthroughs will occur all along the line. Many of which we can’t even imagine right now.”

Infographic: IBM

Netflix courts HGTV fans with its first home makeover series

Netflix appears to be looking to pull in more of that HGTV crowd, as Deadline reports that the streaming service just ordered its first property-focused original series. With a working title of Amazing On The Inside, the show will reportedly feature homes that look ordinary on the outside but have incredible interiors that reflect their owners’ passions and identities. Deadline says Netflix has ordered 12 30-minute episodes.

It won’t be the only home property show on Netflix — it already hosts series like Reno My Reno, Brojects and Grand Designs — but it’s the first original of this type of show commissioned by the service. The show comes from British production company Barcroft Productions.

Netflix also recently announced it would be expanding its slate of animated originals with a new Tiffany Haddish-led series from the team behind Bojack Horseman called Tuca & Bertie. It also just snagged the rights to the Duplass Brothers’ next four films.

Via: Deadline

YouTube App on Apple TV Updated Following User Complaints Over Subscriptions Layout and More

It’s been just over two weeks since YouTube updated its Apple TV app with a major redesign, essentially bringing the app in line with YouTube on other products like Android TV, smart TVs, PS4, and Xbox One. While the original YouTube Apple TV app was never widely favored, the new update was met with even more blowback from some users, who referenced laggy controls, poorer playback UI, illogical changes to the subscription tab’s channel list, and more.

This week, YouTube pushed out version 1.01.04 of the app for Apple TV 4th and 5th generation devices, and it addresses a few of these user concerns. The major update is a “modified” subscriptions tab that nixes the long horizontal list of subscribed YouTube channels — which made it take much longer to get to channels at the bottom of the alphabetized list — and reverts back to a grid layout akin to the original app. YouTube said this was done for “easier channel selection.”

Although it’s not mentioned in the update notes, one user on Reddit said that there have also been a few tweaks to video scrubbing, so users can “go through the video with the touchpad again instead of slowly rewinding/fast forwarding.” When doing this, thumbnail previews of the video pop up to give you an idea of where to land as you jump through the video, but YouTube still doesn’t use Apple’s systemwide playback UI and there isn’t any support for quick 10-second jumps forward and backward.

Otherwise, YouTube said that the update fixed an issue with the search keyboard when people were using “non-Siri TV remotes,” and it includes the usual bug fixes and stability improvements.

Related Roundup: Apple TVTag: YouTubeBuyer’s Guide: Apple TV (Buy Now)
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Apple Denied Request to Ban Tax Protestors From Its Stores in France

The High Court of Paris on Friday denied Apple’s request for an injunction that would have blocked activist group Attac from protesting at the company’s retail stores across France, as it has been doing for the past several months.

Attac activists protesting at an Apple Store in France via Libération
The order states that the mere presence of protesters at Apple’s stores in France, without violence, vandalism, or customers being blocked from entering the premises, is not enough to justify limiting the group’s rights to freedom of expression and freedom of peaceful assembly protected by human rights laws in Europe.

The court added that Attac acted in accordance with the European Union’s Statutes of the Association, and defined the protests as a matter of public interest. Apple has been ordered to pay 2,000 euros to cover Attac’s legal fees, according to the order, which was earlier reported by French website MacGeneration.

Attac is a voluntary association that has been accusing Apple of corporate tax evasion in Europe, in line with the European Commission ordering Ireland to recover around 13 billion euros in back taxes from the iPhone maker in 2016. Apple and Ireland have denied the accusations and are appealing the decision.

Apple previously said it has “a long tradition of supporting individuals and groups that peacefully express their opinions,” but it accused Attac’s activists of “vandalizing shops and endangering the security of staff and customers,” which it finds unacceptable, according to court documents obtained by The Guardian.

During a stunt at an Apple store in Aix-en-Provence last November, for example, activists painted “pay your taxes” on the glass windows. Attac also gathered in front of the High Court of Paris last week with Stormtrooper costumes and Star Wars-themed signs that equated Apple to the evil Galactic Empire.

Apple CEO Tim Cook equated to Darth Sidious via Sol Trumbo Vila‏
Attac has a different view. In a blog post published today, the association said it is “defending the public interest” with “non-violent citizen actions,” and it has previously called its actions “festive and good-natured.”

Apple has yet to comment on today’s decision, and it’s unclear if it will exercise other legal options in its fight against Attac.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Tags: corporate tax, France, Attac
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Does the Google Pixel 2 have Bluetooth issues?

It all depends.

As great as the first-generation Google Pixel was, one thing it wasn’t was a perfect phone. The Pixel had its fair share of issues, with one of the most annoying being inconsistent Bluetooth performance.

The Pixel 2 fixes a lot of the complaints people had with its older sibling, but how does it fare when it comes using Bluetooth?

One of our forum users recently asked this very question, and these are a few of the responses they received.

Almeuit
02-21-2018 02:56 PM

“

Some people have issues with various cars. With my 2017 F150 and my BT headset I use at work I have had no issues. I use my BT headset at work all day and use the BT in the truck every time I drive.

Reply

MooMooPrincess
02-21-2018 03:00 PM

“

This. In my 2010 Cobalt (am Bluetooth) I have 0 issues, my 2011 infiniti? Issues, my 2016 infiniti? 0 issues.

Reply

mtbmike24
02-22-2018 11:38 AM

“

Zero issues hooks up to all the Bluetooth head phones I have. My helmet Bluetooth my command center in my truck a wireless jbl speaker and a old black berry gateway I have in my other vehicle. Pretty much flawless. Have had my 2xl since October. It even works great with my Microsoft band 2 . Notifications, responding to text and syncing everything works as it should. It also works great with my…

Reply

TraderGary
02-22-2018 05:21 PM

“

Zero Bluetooth issues here.
I have a Pixel 2 XL 128.
Works with my Sony HW100XM2 wireless headphones.
Works with my car Garmin GPS for wireless hands free calling.
Works with my wireless Omron Blood Pressure device.
Works with my wireless HP LaserJet Pro M402dw printer.
Works with my wireless Canon InkJet printer.
Works with my Chromecast on several TV’s.
Works with my Chromecast Audio…

Reply

Now, we’d like to pass the question on to you — If you have the Pixel 2, have you run into any Bluetooth issues?

Join the conversation in the forums!

Google Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL

• Pixel 2 FAQ: Everything you need to know!
• Google Pixel 2 and 2 XL review: The new standard
• Google Pixel 2 specs
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Kingdom Hearts 3 for PlayStation 4: Everything we know so far!

Want to know what’s going on with Kingdom Hearts 3? Here’s what we know so far

In the early years of gaming, there were quite a few swings taken at the creation of a game utilizing Disney properties. Most of those games were ranged anywhere from unplayable to mediocre as far as quality goes.

Then in 2002, Square released Kingdom Hearts onto the PlayStation 2. Disney fans and gamers rejoiced as they finally had a significant video game with Disney characters. Thus far, there have been a total of nine Kingdom Hearts games and here in 2018 Square stands poised to release a new entry to the gaming public.

We have been hearing rumblings about Kingdom Hearts 3 for years now but there is finally light at the end of the tunnel for fans of the series. As it stands now, we should see a release toward the end of 2018. However, what do we know about Kingdom Hearts 3? Let’s take a look.

A whole new world

Since its inception, an important element of the Kingdom Hearts games has been setting. Part of the joy of these games is the opportunity to explore familiar Disney worlds in a way that is not possible when you’re watching a film. Some of the worlds which have been tapped for inclusion in KH3 include Toy Story, Monsters Inc, Tangled, and even San Fransokyo from Big Hero 6.

With Disney owning just about every existing IP under the sun there doesn’t seem to be many worlds left that are not within their reach. However, everything indicates that all the worlds tapped for inclusion will remain those who lie directly under the Disney Umbrella.

Characters Welcome

Another critical element of the Kingdom Hearts series has, of course, been characters. There is something undeniably exciting about running into some of your favorite Disney denizens whilst you progress through a KH game.

While your main characters will remain steadfast there is, as to be expected, some additions. With the inclusion of the aforementioned worlds, it should come as no surprise that we will see end up crossing paths with their related character inhabitants. I, for one, am totally ready to get some heals from Beymax.

Gameplay

Everything we have seen thus far indicates that we will see similar gameplay elements as developed in previous KH entries. That being said, director, Tetsuya Nomura is incredibly skilled at taking existing mechanics and adding new things in order to bring increased depth to the gaming experience.

We have to imagine that we will see a hack and slash base to the combat like previous entries. Trailers seem to indicate that Sora has been practicing parkour and we should see new traversal methods available. In addition, we should be seeing some pretty epic team-up attacks between our main characters.

When can I play?

As it stands, it’s still a bit far away from release for us to start holding our collective breath. Everything is subject to change but at this very moment, Amazon has the release date set for December 31st of 2018. If you want to get in line early, you can always head over and preorder a copy for $60.

See at Amazon

In its long and storied history, Kingdom Hearts has done a stellar job of taking the elements that work and adding new ones. Like a fine wine KH has (mostly) gotten better with age. At this point, we don’t know everything about what is in store for us but as the year progresses we will undoubtedly see more new pieces of the puzzle unveiled. I think Square knows that part of the magic and joy in these games is the surprise of running into unexpected characters. I have no doubt that they are holding a few cards close to their chests for the time being but I can’t wait to find out what those cards are.

What do you want to see in Kingdom Hearts 3?

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