Sketchy Rumor Suggests Apple Still Plans to Sell iPhone X in Blush Gold

Apple is still planning to release the iPhone X in a so-called Blush Gold color, according to well-known leaker Ben Geskin.

iPhone X in gold rendered by Michael Flux
Geskin tweeted a photo of an iPhone X and an accompanying SIM card tray in the new color earlier today. He said the device is “in production,” with a codename of D21A. In a follow-up tweet, he added that the “color is real” and said Apple just “saved it for later,” but hedged that “stuff can be canceled.”

D21A – “Blush Gold” iPhone in production. pic.twitter.com/l2xGYIYsCh

— Ben Geskin (@VenyaGeskin1) March 19, 2018

Geskin has gained a reputation for leaking dummy models, screen protectors, and accessories related to unreleased iPhones, but he doesn’t have a perfect track record. Back in July, he said the iPhone X would be available in four colors, including a “mirror-like” finish that has yet to materialize.

In the months leading up to the iPhone X, it was widely rumored that the device would be available in a trio of colors, including Blush Gold, but Silver and Space Gray ended up being and remain the only colors available.

In September, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said the gold model may encounter some production issues and be available in extremely low volume during pre-orders, which didn’t happen, or go on sale at a later date entirely. Since then, rumors have largely gone quiet, beyond a few false release dates.

A year ago this week, Apple unveiled a special (PRODUCT)RED edition of the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, so there is some precedence for a new color to be added midway during the product cycle. The white iPhone 4 was also delayed until April 2011, over nine months after the black version launched, due to a lack of UV protection.

(PRODUCT)RED edition iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus
Apple may release a (PRODUCT)RED edition of the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X as well, according to Rosenblatt Securities analyst Jun Zhang, and that might be the more likely addition than Blush Gold.

Apple recently announced it will be hosting an education-themed event on Tuesday, March 27 at Lane Tech College Prep High School in Chicago. While the event will be focused on “creative new ideas for teachers and students,” it’s certainly possible we could learn of the new iPhone X colors then.

Related Roundup: iPhone XTag: Ben GeskinBuyer’s Guide: iPhone X (Buy Now)
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Google plans to boost Amazon competitors in search

Google may be assembling a supergroup of big retail brands to go to war with Amazon over the future of online shopping. Reuters is reporting that the search engine is teaming up with Target, Walmart, Home Depot, Costco and Ulta for the new project. These companies, and any other willing participants, can index their catalogs on Google, which will show up when someone starts searching for stuff to buy. Naturally, rather than receiving an ad fee, Google simply gets a cut of the sales that are subsequently generated.

The report claims that Google is selling its new anti-Amazon tools on the basis that it is utterly dominant in the search world. Not to mention that, as voice becomes a more important component of people’s lives, Google’s reach here will help beat back Alexa. The project’s genesis was reportedly down to the company noticing that people were image searching products, or asking where they could buy an item. And it wasn’t small numbers of folks, either, but tens of million of people, a big enough market to make anyone excited.

Right now, many searches begin with Google, but likely end up in Amazon, elbowing out more traditional retailers in the brick-and-mortar world. The hope is that, by getting their results embedded into Google, the traditional retailers can steal back some of those customers it has been losing. Google Express, another project from the search engine, has already demonstrated the benefits, with retailers seeing basket sizes increasing by 30 percent. Given the growing argy-bargy between Amazon and Google, you can only expect this sort of sniping to get worse, rather than better.

Source: Reuters

LG wants to take webOS beyond TVs with ‘Open Source Edition’

WebOS used to power HP’s long-dead Palm devices and early tablets, but since LG got a hold of it in 2013, it’s mostly been associated with smart TVs and refrigerators. LG is hoping to push the the platform beyond that, however, with a new release called webOS Open Source Edition. As the illustration above shows, it’s hoping developers will adopt it for devices like tablets, set-top boxes and (I think) robots.

Since the acquisition, LG has refined the platform significantly, and hopes that the new release will help others exploit it. “When LG adopted webOS for our popular smart TV lineup in 2013, it did so with the knowledge that webOS had tremendous potential,” said LG’s CTO Dr. I.P. Park. “webOS has come a long way since then and is now a mature and stable platform ready to move beyond TVs.”

webOS is LG’s answer to Samsung’s Tizen: An in-house, open-source OS that it can use as a hedge against Android’s gorilla-like dominance. Samsung has ported Tizen to more devices, however, including robotic vacuums, smartwatches and Blu-ray players. (It’s not to be confused with another open-source version of webOS, OpenWebOS, which became LuneOS for mobile devices in 2014.)

LG said that developers needn’t fear webOS, as it’s familiar “Linux-kernel-based multitasking OS with support for HTML5 and CSS3.” Developers can get the source code at http://webosose.org, along with other tools and guides. The company will work with South Korea’s National IT Industry Promotion Agency (NIPA), solicit business proposals and “provide logistical and technical support with commercialization as the ultimate goal.” Provided it can find developers brave enough to bite on a little-used OS, of course.

Source: LG

Postmodern dining with the Japanese art of useless gadgets

The Japanese word “chindogu” covers a delightful range of terrible gadgets. It’s about vaguely genius concepts, ruined either in their execution or ambition. If you’ve seen the baby-floor-mop onesie or the upside-down umbrella for capturing rainwater, you’ve seen a chindogu. Yo Sushi, arguably the UK’s biggest sushi chain, wanted to celebrate this ridiculous facet of Japanese culture, and invited me to embarrass myself through a selection of crapgadgets and tasting dishes.

Noodle cooler

It’s a (USB-chargeable!) accessory for your chopsticks. With two propellers, it adds the gentle breeze of a handheld electric fan from your childhood.. to your food. I liked the 3D-printed finish to the gadget — it kinda added a modern flourish to something that peaked in the ’90s. So what’s the aim here? No more piping-hot noodles. The problem: it’s hard to handle chopsticks when one has suddenly tripled its weight. Also, by about halfway through my meal, the noodle soup had dipped below lukewarm temperature.

It’s a strong, unashamedly chindogu-esque start.

Noodle Splash Guard

This plastic sleeve is meant to keep your crisp white salaryman shirt pristine. Protecting against ramen splashback, the concave collar protects as much as it embarrasses. No wait, it embarrasses way more.

Slurping, contained.

Jamie Rigg, Engadget

The uselessness this time stems from the shortness of the guard: Any splash from your mouth might be captured, but dangly noodles remain a real threat to your wardrobe. Also, why does my forehead need the same protection? I’ve seen this chindogu before — but besides acknowledging who wore it best, it fits with the tenets: According to the Chindogu Society’s official site, there’re ten of them. “Chindogu are offerings to the rest of the world. They are not therefore ideas to be copyrighted, patented, collected and owned.”

Wasabi Stick

Now this is borderline innovative: Wasabi applied in the same way you’d use a glue stick. A quick dab on my plate of salmon nigiri sushi and I was ready to inhale them. It also offered a bit more control on how much I added, as chopsticks usually end up adding only a tiny amount. There is a question of reusability. Not sure that I want to be using this after it’s been applied to untold pieces of raw fish. In that way, it satisfies tenet no. 3. It has, indeed, “broken free from the chains of usefulness.”

Napkin hat

That’s toilet paper. Orange, yes, but nonetheless TP. Beside the “napkin” function that’s meant to go with a pumpkin tonkatsu curry dish, there’re definitely applications for this involving allergies or weepy movies.

It’s peak chindogu for me: As soon as some paper rolls down, my vision is obscured almost entirely, pretty much a sure-fire way for me to make mess and need said napkins. This is also definitely more embarrassing than the splash guard.

Yo Sushi knows its chindogu range is just, well, stupid, and is embracing the foolishness at two branches in London, and another one in Newcastle. Chindogu never really disappeared in Japan: check out Thanko if you’re in the market for something that is a borderline functional chindogu.

I can’t deny that does add a touch of fun to dining. Yo Sushi is fielding the gadget for a week, and customers will get a specific ‘tool’ if they order certain dishes. You won’t be able to take the chindogu home with you afterwards however — or even buy one. Which, in nice way, reaffirms their status. As the fifth tenet of the Chindogu society says: “They must not even be sold. Even as a joke.”

Jamie Rigg contributed to this report.

Japan’s latest supercomputer is dedicated to nuclear fusion

This year, Japan will deploy a Cray XC50 that will be the world’s most powerful supercomputer in the field of advanced nuclear fusion research. It will be installed at the National Institutes for Quantum and Radiological Science (QST) and used for local nuclear fusion science and to support ITER, the massive multinational fusion project scheduled to come online in 2035.

QST’s system, which has yet to be named, won’t even be the top Cray XC50 system (that honor is held by the Swiss National Supercomputing Center’s “Piz Daint”). It will crack the top 30, however and, as mentioned, be the fastest fusion research supercomputer.

Over 1,000 European and Japanese researchers will get access to the system, which is optimized for plasma physics and fusion energy calculations. “The speed and integrated software environment of the Cray XC50 will enhance QST’s infrastructure and allow researchers to speed time to discovery,” said Cray Japan’s Mamoru Nakano.

ITER is still a long way from even running, let alone heralding a breakthrough that will pave the way to commercial fusion reactors. Though it won’t be fully finished until 2035, scientists hope to start running experiments by 2025. Once commercial fusion reactors come online, they’ll be able to supply humanity with unlimited energy for potentially millions of years.

Recently, MIT announced that it would work on its own fusion project with the aim of bringing a 200 megawatt reactor online by the year 2033. It plans to use newly available superconducting materials and technology that can create magnetic fields four times stronger than any in use now. Such powerful magnetic fields are required to keep the explosive nuclear fusion reactions contained.

Source: Cray

How to Reset Your Mac’s Bluetooth Module to Fix Connection Issues

Bluetooth is what your Mac uses to connect to wireless devices like keyboards, mice, trackpads, speakers, and other peripherals. Generally, it’s a reliable technology. At some point however, the chances are you’ll run into difficulty establishing a Bluetooth connection with one or more of your devices.

Most problems can be fixed by unpairing and repairing the Bluetooth device, changing its batteries, rebooting your Mac, or performing an SMC reset. But if none of these methods work, you can always try resetting your Mac’s Bluetooth module. Here’s how to do it in macOS using the hidden Bluetooth Debug menu.

How to Reset Your Mac’s Bluetooth Module

Before proceeding, bear in mind that if your setup relies exclusively on Bluetooth for communicating with your keyboard and mouse, then you’re going to temporarily lose connection to them using the following methods, so you might want to have a backup wired input device option just in case.
Holding the Shift + Option (Alt) keys on your Mac’s keyboard, click the Bluetooth symbol in the top-right corner of the macOS menu bar. (If you don’t see it there, you need to check Show Bluetooth in menu bar in System Preferences -> Bluetooth.)

Locate the revealed Debug submenu and hover your mouse cursor over it.
Click Reset the Bluetooth module.

Now, restart your Mac.You’ll notice a couple of other potentially useful options in the Debug submenu. Factory reset all connected Apple devices does exactly what it says – forces any Apple-branded Bluetooth accessories back to the default settings they came with out of the box. It’s a reliable fallback option if you’ve tried everything else to fix a connection issue, including resetting the Bluetooth module.

Lastly, the Remove all devices option might prove useful if you’re moving your Bluetooth mouse and keyboard to another Mac, for example. However, you can also remove devices on an individual basis from the macOS menu bar, as long as you hold down Shift + Option (Alt) before you click the Bluetooth symbol.

Removing devices in this manner means you’re not also banishing a whole bunch of other established Bluetooth connections like speakers and so on that you might want to keep.

Related Roundup: macOS High SierraTag: Bluetooth
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Apple Likely to Buy 270 Million Display Panels for 2018 iPhone Lineup

Apple plans to order between 250 and 270 million display panels for its iPhone lineup this year, according to sources within Taiwan’s panel industry. Around half that number will consist of OLED panels, to be shared among current-model iPhone X orders, a second-generation model, and a larger 6.5-inch iPhone, according to DigiTimes.

Apple’s purchases of OLED panels in 2018 will reach 110-130 million units, including 70-80 million 5.9-inch units for the current iPhone X and an upgraded version of the same size. The remaining will be 40-50 million 6.5-inch OLED panels for the production of a less expensive model, said the sources.

Given the wording in the above quote from today’s DigiTimes article, the “5.9-inch” reference could overlooked as a typo, but claiming the 6.5-inch OLED panels are for a “less expensive model” seems off the mark.

Several reliable sources claim Apple is readying a second-generation version of the iPhone X with the same 5.8-inch OLED display, along with a larger “Plus” size with a 6.5-inch display. Design wise, both the 5.8-inch iPhone and 6.5-inch iPhone coming in 2018 are expected to look similar to the current iPhone X, with an edge-to-edge display and notch for the TrueDepth camera, glass bodies for wireless charging support, and dual-lens rear cameras.

Along with these two OLED iPhones, which will likely be just as expensive as the current iPhone X, Apple is however planning to introduce a new, more affordable 6.1-inch iPhone with an LCD display.

DigiTimes claims 60 to 70 million Low-Temperature PolySilicon (LTPS) LCD panels have been earmarked for this device, and around the same number in 4-inch, 4.7-inch, and 5.5-inch sizes are destined for new iPhone 8, iPhone SE, and iPhone 7 devices this year. Other reports claim Apple could use a Full Active LCD display for an upcoming 6.1-inch device, which could match or exceed some of the benefits of OLED.

Otherwise, today’s report reiterates previous OLED supplier rumors for 2018. Apple is said to be sourcing the majority of its OLED displays for the 2018 iPhone lineup from Samsung, but LG Display seeks to become the second-largest supplier in the second half of this year, perhaps providing displays for the 6.5-inch OLED iPhone. Lastly, DigiTimes’ sources claim Sharp and Japan Display could become Apple’s main suppliers of LCD panels, rather than shoring up extra OLED supplies, as previous report claimed.

Related Roundup: 2018 iPhonesTags: digitimes.com, OLED
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Make your phone awesome with these Samsung Galaxy S9 tips and tricks

Now that you have the awesome new Galaxy S9 or S9 Plus in hand, it’s time try out all of its features. While some things may not have changed much from the Galaxy S8, there is still plenty of new surprises to try out.

Once you have the phone out of the box and set up, take a few minutes to check out our favorite Galaxy S9 tips and tricks to learn some features you may have missed.

How to use AR Emojis

One of the most talked about features on this year’s Galaxy S9 is the introduction of AR Emojis. With AR Emoji, you can create emojis customized to your likeness. While it’s definitely not as polished as Animojis on the iPhone X, it’s a fun option for chatting.

How to use Bixby Vision

While it may be fair to say the Bixby Vision is Samsung’s answer to Google Lens, it’s not quite as polished. With Bixby Vision, you use the camera on your Samsung Galaxy S9 or S9 Plus to gain contextual information about certain items and locations around you.

Right now Bixby Vision has seven different categories: Place, Text, QR Code, Food, Wine, Shopping, and Image. In addition to those seven categories, there is also a feature called Makeup that allows you to virtually try on different products from Sephora and provides purchase links when you’ve found the perfect look.

While we have an in-depth Bixby tutorial, we focus on Bixby Vision basics here. First, you need to set up Bixby by tapping on the Bixby button on the left side of the phone or by swiping right on the home screen. Follow the prompts until you see the Bixby Homepage appear showing Bixby Level 1 at the top.

Now that Bixby is all set up, here is the fun part. You can easily access Bixby Vision from the Camera and Gallery apps by tapping on its icon. The first time you use Bixby, you also have an option to add a Bixby Vision icon to your home screen.

When you tap the Bixby Vision icon, you will see the different identification categories appear. Tap the appropriate one and then aim the camera at the image in question. You will see different suggestions begin to appear. Once you have the item in focus, tap on the category again to see what type of information Bixby Vision offers.

How to use Super Slow-Motion video

Shortly before Samsung unveiled its newest flagship, the company promised the Galaxy S9 would reinvent the camera. Along with a ton of other new camera features on the Galaxy S9, Super Slow-Motion was introduced. With Super Slow-Motion, you can capture video at an incredibly high frame rate (960 fps to be exact), creating Matrix-like video footage.

To use Super Slow-Motion, you need to open the Camera app. Swipe over to the Super Slow-Motion option above the viewfinder. You will be presented with two options: One will allow you to automatically begin recording at the slower frame rate when motion is detected within a small box on the screen, while the other allows you to manually control the image.

If you select the manual option, just tap the shutter button to begin recording. When you’re ready to capture the slow-motion footage, tap the three-button icon. Since the slow-motion footage is less than a second (0.2 seconds to be exact), you may want to press the three-button icon several times to capture footage in the same video.

Should you choose to try out the automatic mode, tap the auto mode at the bottom of the camera and make sure the object you want to capture in slow motion is in the defined box. Press the shutter button to start recording. You will see the box turn yellow when it is about to capture the clip. As with the manual mode, you can initiate slow-motion recording multiple times within the same video.

How to set up Intelligent Scan

While Samsung did make a number of upgrades to its camera hardware, don’t expect the latest flagship to have a facial identification feature that matches what you find on the iPhone X. With Samsung’s new Intelligent Scan feature you can unlock your phone using iris and facial data. Be warned, however, that the feature has more than its fair share of hiccups so you may want to set up an alternate authentication method.

If you want to give Intelligent Scan a try, tap Settings > Lock screen and security > Intelligent Scan. Enter your password, PIN, or pattern. Tap Continue.  Select a lock screen option and then agree to the disclaimer. Press Continue two times.

First, you register your face by holding the phone 8 to 20 inches away and making sure it is centered in the alignment circle. Once registered, tap Continue. Finally, you register your irises by holding the phone 10 to 14 inches away and making sure each eye is centered in the necessary alignment circles.

To get the best data you will want to make sure you’re in a well-lit room without a lot of backlight. You also need to remove your glasses for the iris scan, and once set up you may not be able to authenticate with them on.

How to set up Secure Folder

If you have sensitive documents or photos you don’t want to share with everyone, the Samsung Galaxy S9 offers a feature called Secure Folder that allows you to store sensitive items in a private, secure folder.

Setting up Secure Folder takes seconds. Tap Settings > Lock Screen and Security > Secure Folder. Press Next > Start. Sign into your Samsung account and tap Confirm. 

Next, you need to choose the best authentication method to access Secure Folder. If you’re using a PIN, password, or pattern to authenticate, you probably want to select something different than what you use to access your phone. Once you have entered your preferred authentication method, a Secure Folder will be set up and added to your home screen.

To use Secure Folder, simply tap the homepage icon. You’ll see options to add photos, apps, and files.

How to use Samsung Pass / Google’s autofill

Samsung Pass allows you to auto-populate personal details such as your name and email address. Sure, Google provides a similar feature with autofill, but Samsung Pass works in the native internet browser.

If you want to give Samsung Pass a try, go to Settings > Lock Screen and Security > Samsung Pass. Tap Next. Sign in with your Samsung Account and press Start. Agree to the disclaimer and tap Next. Finally, choose your preferred biometric identification option and you are all set.

Each time you use Samsung’s browser to sign in on websites or enter personal information, it will be saved to Samsung Pass for future use. When you wish to use the information stored in Samsung Pass, just authenticate using an iris scan or fingerprint.

How to customize your home screen

Want to customize your home screen? If you don’t want to go as far as changing your theme, there are still plenty of customization options available. Here are a few of our favorite features.

If you don’t like frames around your icons, go to Settings > Display > Icon frames > Icons only. 

To change the background, long press on an empty area on the home screen. Tap Wallpapers and select your new image. You can also add and change widgets by simply tapping the Widgets icon instead of Wallpapers.

If you want to make more extensive home screen changes long press on the home screen and select the Home screen settings icon. From here you can adjust icon size, change your grid layout, disable app icon badges, and more.

How to customize the always-on display and lock screen

Now that you have customized your home screen, why not tweak the always on display to your liking? While most people are fine with the default always-on display settings, it takes seconds to switch it.

If you want to customize the always-on display, tap Settings > Lock screen and security > Always on display.  From here you can update what you would like to appear on the always-on screen. To change the clock and widgets, just tap Settings > Lock screen and security > Clock and FaceWidgets. 

How to use Live Focus

While plenty of phones offer a portrait mode, the Samsung Galaxy S9 kicks it into high gear with its Live Focus option. Live Focus allows you to create customized portraits that look stunning.

To use Live Focus, simply open the Camera app and swipe right on the viewfinder screen. Position your subject three to five feet away from the camera lens to get the perfect shot. Once the subject is in the perfect spot, use the background blur slider to adjust the degree of bokeh in the background; Samsung allows you to see the adjustments in real time so you can make sure it doesn’t look overly processed.

Next, you can choose to turn off the beauty filter before taking the photo (it’s on by default) by tapping the sparkle icon and moving the slider to zero. Finally, make sure the two Live Focus circles are yellow before pressing the shutter button.

Once you have taken the photo you will see two images in the Gallery. One is your Live Focus shot, while the other is a regular wide angle shot. Luckily you can still adjust the background blur to the Live Focus image from the slider that will appear in the gallery.

While you will see both images in your Gallery, you may still want to manually save the images by tapping the overflow icon and selecting Save image. The benefit of manually saving the images is that both will be uploaded to your Google Photos account.

How to disable Bixby button

Although Bixby has improved exponentially over the past year, it is still not everyone’s cup of tea. While you can’t map the Bixby button to perform other tasks, it’s pretty easy to disable.

Simply swipe right to reach the Bixby Home screen. Tap the overflow icon on the top right side of the screen and select Bixby Settings. Select Bixby Key and tap the Don’t open anything radio button.

How to customize Quick Settings Tiles

Quick Settings Tiles allow you to quickly access frequently used features on your phone. Just swipe down and you can easily connect to Wi-Fi, turn on the flashlight, or even quickly pair a Bluetooth device. If the number of Quick Settings Tiles seems overwhelming, it may be a good idea to make some adjustments.

To customize your Quick Settings Tiles, use two fingers to swipe down from the top of the display. Press the overflow icon in the top right-hand corner. You will see options for Button order and Button grid. While Button grid will allow you to change the number of icons on the screen, Button order allows you to rearrange icons and remove ones you don’t need.

How to change the Navigation bar

Let’s be honest: Samsung’s Navigation bar is wacky. The reason Samsung continues to default to the back icon being on the right side is beyond us. Luckily if you’re one of the people who find Samsung’s custom Navigation bar annoying, it is incredibly easy to fix

Simply go to Settings > Display > Navigation bar > Button layout. Select your preferred option and you’re set.

How to hide apps

Depending on the carrier, your Samsung Galaxy S9 may come with a lot of apps you will never use. Unfortunately, some of these apps are baked in and can’t be uninstalled without rooting the phone. However, you can hide the apps so they don’t take up screen real estate.

There are two ways to hide apps. From the home screen, simply long press on the app and select Remove from Home. If you want to hide app from the App drawer, swipe up on the home screen and tap the overflow icon in the top right corner. Select Home screen settings > Hide apps. Select the apps you would like to hide.

If you need to access a hidden app, simply search for it by name.

How to set up Do Not Disturb

If you have ever been woken up in the middle of the night by a notification alert, you will appreciate the Do not disturb function on the Samsung Galaxy S9. With Do Not Disturb, it’s easy to block notifications as well as set different notification schedules that occur throughout the day.

To give Do Not Disturb a try, go to Settings > Sounds and vibration  > Do not disturb. From here, you can toggle on Do not disturb.  If you want to schedule certain times to be free of interruption, tap on Turn on as scheduled to toggle the feature on and set schedules.

Finally, if you only want to block certain notifications and callers, you can set up exceptions. Simply tap Settings > Sounds and vibration > Do not disturb > Allow exceptions. Select Custom to define your own parameters.

How to turn on Dual Messenger

If you have multiple social media accounts, Samsung has an excellent feature on the Galaxy S9 called Dual Messenger. With Dual Messenger, you can quickly create multiple instances of the same app.

To turn on Dual Messenger tap Settings > Advanced features> Dual Messenger. 

How to schedule software updates

Julian Chokkattu/Digital Trends

While Android defaults to automatically updating apps when your phone is connected to a Wi-Fi connection, sometimes those updates happen at inopportune times. If you prefer to change it, it’s easy to schedule a specific time for any software updates.

Go to Settings > Software Updates > Scheduled software updates. Select your selected time and press Done. 

Editors’ Recommendations

• Samsung Galaxy S9 review
• Key settings you need to change on your brand-new Galaxy S9 or S9 Plus
• Guard your Galaxy with the best Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus screen protectors
• The Samsung Galaxy S9 has finally arrived — here’s everything you need to know
• Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus review

Samsung will drop its mobile movie editor when Android P arrives

Samsung phones have long had a built-in Movie Maker app that lets you spice up your clips — helpful if you’d rather not hunt down a third-party app just to do more than trim your footage. However, you’ll soon have to kiss it goodbye. The latest version of Movie Maker is warning users that the app will “no longer be provided” when the Android P update arrives. That could take a long while (the stock Android P release likely won’t be ready until late summer, let alone Samsung’s version), but you won’t want to dilly dally. Samsung is warning that it’ll delete all projects at that point, so you’ll want to save finished videos before the cutoff.

It’s not certain just why Samsung is ditching Movie Maker or what will happen in the aftermath. Is this due to a lack of popularity, a compatibility issue, an expectation of a replacement (whether from itself or Google) or something else entirely? Samsung has been accused of offering needlessly duplicative apps on its Galaxy phones in the past, but you can’t argue the same for Movie Maker when Android’s current built-in video editing is basic at best. This may be an acknowledgment that bundled movie editors aren’t as appealing in an era when you’re more likely posting a raw clip to Instagram than producing a magnum opus you’ll watch on a big screen.

Source: Android Police, APK Mirror

NASA’s portable antennas help bring space data back to Earth

Spacecraft don’t usually have much flexibility when it comes to sending data back to Earth: they either have to venture within range of a dedicated ground station or offload it by returning to the planet. NASA may soon have a more flexible option: it’s testing a portable space communications system from ATLAS Space Operations. ATLAS Links is a mobile structure whose four-antenna system is not only relatively light (each antenna is less than 10lbs), but can be set up within minutes. If researchers wanted to grab scientific findings or perform a status check, they could roll out a Links station when and where they need it.

The system only needs power and internet access, and can handle multiple spacecraft at a time — handy for cubesats and other small satellites that might fly in packs.

ATLAS Links will be stuck in the lab for a while, but there are promises of future “shadow” missions where the antennas operate alongside regular stations connected to NASA’s Near Earth Network. If all goes smoothly, these antennas could supplement spaceflights and even serve as backups should the worst happen and a fixed station goes down. Mission crews wouldn’t have to endure lengthy silences before finding out whether a spacecraft has collected the info they need… or whether or not it’s still alive.

Source: NASA