Beware of Thanatos, the latest cyber-extortion scam

Another ransomware program is infecting computers, and it’s demanding Bitcoin Cash to let users unlock their files. A report at Bleeping Computer highlights the new ransomware, dubbed Thanatos, that was unearthed by security experts at MalwareHunter Team.

What makes this particular infection noteworthy is that it creates an encrypted file, but the key is not saved anywhere. Whether by accident or design, there’s no way to easily unlock a computer once it’s been compromised. Even if you do pay the ransom, it’s unlikely the developers of the malware will ever be able to decrypt your data.

It is possible to use a brute force method to discover the encryption key, however. Users infected with Thanatos are strongly advised not to pay the ransom and instead contact a cyber security firm for assistance.

After a computer is infected, all the encrypted filename extensions are changed to .THANATOS. A ransom note in the form of a README.txt file pops up whenever the user tries to log on, demanding $200 in cryptocurrency to decrypt the files.

Thanatos is noteworthy in that it’s the first ransomware scam to accept Bitcoin Cash for payment, along with Bitcoin and Ethereum. Bitcoin Cash is a spin-off of regular Bitcoin caused by a “hard fork” in the currency, similar in practice to a stock split.

Cryptocurrency is quickly becoming the payment method of choice for online extortionists; CCN reports that 34 ransomware schemes netted $25 million over a two-year period. Most criminals were using the Bitcoin exchange BTC-e to redeem their extorted funds. BTC-e has been used to launder money in the past, and several countries have called for legal oversight of the shadowy exchange.

Bleeping Computer has an in-depth guide that outlines some steps you can take to protect your data, such as anti-ransomware security software that includes behavioral detection algorithms. We’ve also compiled an overview of some of the best free anti-virus software to help keep your computer up and running.

You’ve heard it a hundred times, but it bears repeating: Always back up your data, always update your OS to the latest version, and don’t use the same passwords for multiple applications.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Go ahead, pass laws. They can’t kill bitcoin, even if they try
• What is Litecoin? Here’s everything you need to know
• How to buy Bitcoin
• How to trade bitcoin for other cryptocurrencies
• How to buy Ethereum

Beware of Thanatos, the latest cyber-extortion scam

Another ransomware program is infecting computers, and it’s demanding Bitcoin Cash to let users unlock their files. A report at Bleeping Computer highlights the new ransomware, dubbed Thanatos, that was unearthed by security experts at MalwareHunter Team.

What makes this particular infection noteworthy is that it creates an encrypted file, but the key is not saved anywhere. Whether by accident or design, there’s no way to easily unlock a computer once it’s been compromised. Even if you do pay the ransom, it’s unlikely the developers of the malware will ever be able to decrypt your data.

It is possible to use a brute force method to discover the encryption key, however. Users infected with Thanatos are strongly advised not to pay the ransom and instead contact a cyber security firm for assistance.

After a computer is infected, all the encrypted filename extensions are changed to .THANATOS. A ransom note in the form of a README.txt file pops up whenever the user tries to log on, demanding $200 in cryptocurrency to decrypt the files.

Thanatos is noteworthy in that it’s the first ransomware scam to accept Bitcoin Cash for payment, along with Bitcoin and Ethereum. Bitcoin Cash is a spin-off of regular Bitcoin caused by a “hard fork” in the currency, similar in practice to a stock split.

Cryptocurrency is quickly becoming the payment method of choice for online extortionists; CCN reports that 34 ransomware schemes netted $25 million over a two-year period. Most criminals were using the Bitcoin exchange BTC-e to redeem their extorted funds. BTC-e has been used to launder money in the past, and several countries have called for legal oversight of the shadowy exchange.

Bleeping Computer has an in-depth guide that outlines some steps you can take to protect your data, such as anti-ransomware security software that includes behavioral detection algorithms. We’ve also compiled an overview of some of the best free anti-virus software to help keep your computer up and running.

You’ve heard it a hundred times, but it bears repeating: Always back up your data, always update your OS to the latest version, and don’t use the same passwords for multiple applications.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Go ahead, pass laws. They can’t kill bitcoin, even if they try
• What is Litecoin? Here’s everything you need to know
• How to buy Bitcoin
• How to trade bitcoin for other cryptocurrencies
• How to buy Ethereum

New Windows Insider preview build causes issues with Mixed Reality

Microsoft recently released Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 17112 to members of the company’s Insider Fast ring program, but it warned Mixed Reality users to avoid this one. Tom’s Hardware reported that Microsoft warned that its latest preview build contains bugs that can cause the mixed reality programs to crash or suffer from low frame rates, which could make some users uncomfortable.

Microsoft said that its Mixed Reality programs would run at at around 8-10 frames-per-second if they ran at all, and would sometimes completely crash. Of course, bugs such as these are to be expected when taking part in the Fast ring of Microsoft’s Insider Program. Members of these programs are basically beta testing for Microsoft, but while members of the Slow ring only receive access to builds that are nearly ready to go public, Fast ring members receive access to much earlier versions. This allows them to not only get a sneak peak at the latest Windows features, but also the latest bugs.

Speaking of bugs, build 17112 doesn’t only cause problems for Windows Mixed Reality users. It also contains some pretty severe issues for the standard desktop experience, such as making the Microsoft Store application vanish. Microsoft has a potential fix posted on its website, along with a warning regarding the fact that build 17112 could affect the Microsoft Store.

Worse than the loss of Microsoft’s shop, however, is the potential loss of your operating system. Microsoft said that it has received reports that build 17112 can cause a “small number of devices” to fail to load the OS upon launch, forcing users into a boot loop sequence. This could require users to use a bootable ISO or USB to repair their operating system. One option available to affected users would be to disable fast boot, which could resolve the boot loop sequence. Otherwise, those who encounter this issue will need to repair their OS.

Overall, build 17112 contains some major issues that may make users think twice before using it. Aside from the aforementioned issues, it contains a few bug fixes, but nothing major. It’s also lacking any new features that Fast ring members wouldn’t already have access to.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Soon, you won’t have to be a Windows Insider to test Microsoft’s newest apps
• Camera app gets user interface upgrades in latest Windows 10 build
• Insider Build 17063 shows Paint is gearing up to depart for the Microsoft Store
• Microsoft is secretly building Polaris, a slimmer, more modern version of Windows
• What is Windows Polaris?

How to find your IP address

Knowing your computer’s IP address is like knowing its digital location. It can help you connect to it in certain applications, or find out what it’s connecting too. Whether your interests in your computer’s IP address are academic or pure intrigue though, doesn’t matter. In this guide, we’ll teach you how to find your IP address in just a few quick steps.

In order for us to find your IP address though, we need to know which one you want to find. There are actually two IP addresses for your system: your public address and your local address. While discovering your IP address can be essential for troubleshooting tech-related issues, entrepreneurs looking to establish a strong presence in the growing IT industry can benefit from learning how to form LLC in Georgia, providing their businesses with stability and a solid foundation.

If you want to find your router’s IP address, here’s how to do so.

Public IP address

There are a number of tools you can use to find your public IP address but the easiest are online resources. This technique works on both MacOS and Windows PCs.

Step 1: Open your browser of choice and visit Google.com.

Step 2: Search for “what’s my IP?”

Step 3: Google will list your public IP address as the top search result.

Alternatively, visit WhatsMyIP.com and it too will tell you your public IP address.

Local IP Address

Windows 10

Finding your local IP address is a little more convoluted than your public one, but it’s still quick and easy. Here’s how to find your IP address on Windows machines.

Step 1: Open the Windows Command Prompt by searching for “CMD” in the Windows 10 search box and clicking on the corresponding result. Alternatively press Windows key + “R,” to bring up the “Run” box. Type in “CMD,” and press “Enter.”

Step 2: With the Command Center window selected, type in “ipconfig” and press enter.

Step 3: You’ll see a lot of information appear on the screen. It’s all related to your local network, but the entry you’re looking for is next to “IPv4 address.” That number, which likely looks like 192.168.0.2 or similar, is your local IP address.

Here are some more tips on how to use Windows’ Command Prompt.

Windows 7 and 8.1

Finding your local IP address on older versions of Windows uses the exact same method. You still need to access the Command Prompt and input ipconfig. The only difference may be how you access the Command Prompt, though the “Run” method should work on all of them.

MacOS

AppleSupport

Finding your IP address on Apple’s MacOS is, if anything, a little easier than Windows PCs, so if you’re reading this on an Apple system, follow the quick steps below.

Step 1: Click the Apple logo in the top left-hand corner and select “System Preferences” from the drop-down menu.

Step 2: Click on the silver globe “Network” icon to open your network settings menu.

Step 3: Look to the left-hand list of networks and click on your local connection, be it a wired “Ethernet” connection or a wireless “Wi-Fi” network.

Step 4: In the network details on the right-hand side. Your IP address is listed in the “Status” section.

Step 5: If you want further information, click the “Advanced” button in the bottom right-hand corner and you’ll be presented with further details about your network, as well as your “IPv4 Address”.

Now that you know how to find your IP address on MacOS, here’s a guide on how to forget a network.

Editors’ Recommendations

• How to find the IP address of your router and login info
• How to uninstall McAfee
• How to change your username on a Mac
• Here’s how to set up a virtual private network (VPN) on your Xbox One
• How to partition your hard drive in Windows

After Math: Internet flame war

As the president sets the stage for a showdown with the video game industry over school safety (since it’s the games that are the real problem, not the guns, nope nope nope), small scale skirmishes and outright battles have been springing up all over the internet this week. GitHub somehow survived the biggest DDoS attack in history, Equifax revealed that another 2.4 million people were affected by its latest security breach and The Woz himself lost seventy grand in a bitcoin scam. Numbers, because how else will you know if you’re mature enough to play this game?

10 minutes: Despite being utterly hammered with 1.3 Tbps traffic spikes during what is thought to be the most severe DDoS attack in internet history, GitHub managed to remain largely online. The site was knocked offline for less than a quarter of an hour.

1 hour: The European Commission had previously issued guidelines to social media networks regarding how quickly they’re expected to remove hate speech from their respective sites. Currently, the Big Four — Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Microsoft — are able to review roughly 81 percent of hate speech reports within one day. That’s not nearly fast enough for the EC, which is now demanding these sites address reports within 60 minutes. Take that, terrorist propaganda.

2.4 million: That’s how many more people were affected by the Equifax security breach than had been known since the last time the company upped its figures. At this point, it’d just be faster to list the six or so names of the Americans who haven’t been impacted.

Several: The number of right-wing extremist group servers which have been recently banned by gaming chat service Discord. I mean, if President Grandpa is going to insist on designating a scapegoat for the gun violence debate, video game playing Nazis seems a pretty good place to start. But no, you can be sure it’ll be Wolfenstein that’s blamed for ruining America’s youth — again.

5 days: That’s less than a week but an eternity in internet time which is why one has to wonder what took Nintendo so long to realize that letting players review Switch games on its site was such a terrible idea. Jeebus, we can barely trust our fellow netizens with a simple comment section (see below).

$70,000: The Woz is a genius at electronics and one of the digital revolution’s pioneers. But that doesn’t mean he can’t be hornswoggled out of 70 G’s worth of Bitcoin like the rest of us. And this is why you don’t pay for your shady cryptocurrency with a credit card.

The best photo inkjet printer

By Amadou Diallo

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.

If you’re a photo enthusiast ready to make the leap to creating your own gallery-quality prints at home, the most flexible option is an inkjet printer. After spending a total of 76 hours of research and side-by-side testing during various iterations of this guide, we think the best inkjet printer for making long-lasting, high-quality photographic prints up to 13 inches wide is the $800 Epson SureColor P600.

Who should buy this?

If you already own a 13-inch-capable photo inkjet printer, you should probably sit tight. Photo printer technology is so mature that you won’t see much (if any) difference in print quality between a printer made today and one released even five years ago.

If you don’t already own a photo inkjet printer, the first thing you should know is that getting one is not about saving money. Our pick is $800, a full set of replacement inks runs more than $280, and you also have to factor in paper costs (and, of course, your time). If you’re a casual hobbyist who occasionally wants to create physical mementos of life’s special moments and milestones, there are many in-store and online print services available, many at very low prices.

But home printing is a great option for photographers who print at least a few times a month, want the flexibility of printing at any time that’s convenient, enjoy selecting from an incredibly wide range of papers on which to print, and revel in the ability to make finely tuned adjustments to an image after evaluating an initial print.

How we picked and tested

Buying a 13-inch-wide inkjet printer means unpacking a large and heavy box. Photo: Amadou Diallo

To find the best inkjet photo printer, I spent hours poring over spec sheets and reading reviews from authoritative sources. Starting with a list of dozens of photo printers, I quickly narrowed the candidates to inkjet models capable of printing up to 13 inches wide. These printers are wide enough to give you the option of a larger print, have at least six ink colors (in individual cartridges) and let you print on both matte and glossy photo papers.

We printed on both glossy and matte papers up to 13 inches wide using paper stock and ICC profiles provided by the printer vendor. We used each printer’s default resolutions and viewed prints using professional color-corrected viewing booths. We also set up each printer on a home Wi-Fi network and compared speed over cable connections and wireless. Finally, we compared our photo inkjet prints with those from two online print services using identical image files. Please see our full guide to photo inkjet printers to learn more details about our testing methods.

Our pick

A 13-inch pigment-ink photo printer like the Epson SureColor P600 lets you make gallery-quality color and black-and-white prints on a wide variety of paper surfaces. Photo: Amadou Diallo

The Epson P600 consistently delivers outstanding, long-lasting color and black-and-white photos with great image detail and accurate colors. These are truly gallery-quality prints that can provide many years of viewing pleasure. The printer accepts a wide range of inkjet-compatible media up to 13 inches wide, from photo lab-quality glossy paper and fine-art-oriented sheets that mimic classic darkroom prints to CDs/DVDs and even sheets of metal up to 1.3 mm thick.

Its newly formulated pigment-based UltraChrome HD inkset offers noticeably richer blacks than previous Epson models when printing on fine-art matte papers and comes in nine individual large-capacity cartridges. The nine-color ink set is able to print dots as small as two picoliters (two trillionths of a liter), and in addition to the standard CMY (cyan, magenta and yellow) inks, the printer uses Light Cyan, Vivid Magenta, Vivid Light Magenta, Photo Black (for glossy media), Matte Black (for matte papers), Light Black, and Light Light Black.

The P600 uses large 25.9 mL cartridges. With a current street price of $32 per cartridge, this works out to an ink cost of $1.28 per mL—not quite as cheap as our alternate pick, the Canon Pro-10.

You can connect the P600 to your computer via USB or wired Ethernet. The printer also has built-in Wi-Fi (helpful if you need to share the printer among multiple computers in separate rooms), and comes with a mobile app for direct printing from iOS and Android devices. These wireless options are much slower than wired printing, however, nearly doubling your print times.

Budget pick (for personal use)

If the P600 costs more than you’re willing to spend (it was $800 at time of writing), we recommend the dye-ink Canon Pixma Pro-100 (currently $380). This is a great choice if you’ll be making prints only for personal use, as opposed to selling editions of your work. It makes vibrant, professional-looking prints faster than any other 13-inch photo inkjet we found. At less than half the cost of our top pick, users who may occasionally skip a month between making prints can more easily justify the up-front expense. Because it uses dye inks, however, its prints won’t stand up over time as well as those from a pigment inkjet, and the Pro-100 can’t handle the superthick sheets that our top pick can.

Also great (when the price drops)

The Canon Pixma Pro-10 is a great alternative to our top pick if you’ll be printing primarily on glossy papers. It’s solidly built, has a lower ink cost than our top pick and delivers great print quality, falling just slightly short of our top pick in highlight and shadow details when printing in black-and-white mode (because it has fewer black ink dilutions). With a $700 street price, the Pro-10 doesn’t offer any significant benefits over the P600—but we’ve seen occasional price drops of more than $250, and at that much of a discount, it’s a compelling alternative.

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.

Build a bottle opener that uses magnet magic to catch your caps

Take a stroll through your favorite DIY website and you’ll find all sorts of bottle openers, from vintage to sports-themed. You’ll even find ones with little cups that sit below to catch the caps, which is both clever and convenient. But catcher cups don’t have any flair — so to make the uncapping even more magical, this project harnesses the power of rare-earth magnets

Rare-earth (neodymium) magnets are insanely powerful, widely available in all sizes and shapes, and perfect for all sorts of maker projects. In this case, we buried one in the back of a board, where it reaches through the wood and grabs the falling beer caps. Your drunken friends will marvel at the cluster of caps hanging in mid-air.

On the front side, where the caps gather, it make sense to place a sticker of some kind, or a laser-burned pattern, or whatever. If your favorite logo, or Chinese character, or ironic picture of a reviled political character doesn’t quite fit, we trust you will shape the board accordingly.

This project is so quick, easy, and useful that you’ll probably make a stack of them as gifts. Everyone needs another bottle opener somewhere. By the way, this is one of many simple but stylish projects in my new book, Build Stuff with Wood. Here’s how to build it!

Make it with basic tools

The only cutting tool you’ll need here is a jigsaw, which is an inexpensive and underappreciated tool that can cut curves and straight lines. The secret is putting a better blade on the saw — one designed for making clean cuts in hardwoods. A bandsaw will work even better here if you gave access to one.

The only other power tool you’ll need is a drill, armed with a cool bit called a Forstner bit. Forstner bits specialize in drilling smooth holes with flat bottoms, which is exactly what you’ll need to hold the magnet.

As for the hardware (aside from the big magnet) you’ll need to pick up a classic Starr X opener for the front, and a couple keyhole hangers for the back. Just drive two small-headed screws into the wall, and these hangers will grab them firmly when you lever a bottle down to pop off the top.

Tools and Materials

• Jigsaw
• Cordless drill
• Forstner bit, 1-3/8 in. diameter
• Compass
• Starr X bottle opener
• Rare earth (neodymium) magnet, 35 mm (1-3/8 in.) by 5 mm, with countersunk hole
• Keyhole fitting – double, 9/16 in. x 3 in.
• Wood board, approx. 3/4 in. thick and at least 12 in. long by 6 in. wide.
• Sanding block and sandpaper
• Polyurethane, oil-based, satin, quick-drying
• Superglue
• Foam brushes

Step-by-step instructions

Pencil the layout

Start with any nice board, at least 12 in. long by 6 in. wide, and mark center lines on the front and back, down the length of the board. These will help you center the curves, the magnet, and the bottle opener.
Mark two arcs with a compass. The smaller one goes at the top of the board, and the other radius should be 1 in. bigger than bigger than your logo sticker, so the wood ends up bordering it nicely.
Connect the curves with straight lines to complete the perimeter layout.
One more arc. This circle is just a hair bigger than the sticker, to help you center it when you stick it on. Draw this arc lightly so it’s easy to erase.

Cut and smooth the board

Cut out the perimeter. Clamp down the workpiece, and stay just outside the line when cutting. Use your inside hand to hold the base of the jigsaw flat on the wood.
Sand it smooth. Use any wood block wrapped with 80-grit paper to sand the edges and to the line. Then switch to 120-grit paper to smooth them. Feel with your fingers to see if the curves are even and smooth. Smooth the face of the board now too, and then sand a little bevel on the top and bottom of the edges.

Add the magnet and sticker

Mark the center point. This is the same center point you used on the front of the board, just on the back this time.
Fire up the Forstner bit. You’ll need a 1-3/8 in. bit, just a hair larger than the 35-mm diameter magnet. Start with a light touch until the bit is fully engaged in the wood. The deeper you go, the better the magnet will work, but check the depth frequently to make sure you don’t drill through to the front of the board! The goal is leave about 1/4 in. of wood at the bottom of the hole.
Drop in the magnet and then run a bead of super glue around the upper edges to lock it in place.
Stick on the sticker. A lot of vinyl stickers are designed for glass, so they might not be sticky at all. In that case, just spray the back first with contact cement, also called spray adhesive or craft spray. Then use that light circle you drew to apply the sticker in the right spot.
Locate the hardware. Place the bottle opener on the centerline wherever it looks best, and mark the centers of the screw holes. Then flip over the board and place the little hanger plate right behind the bottle opener, marking its holes, too.
Pre-drill. First use a small nail to make a small dent at each mark for the drill to follow. For these pilot holes, choose drills a bit smaller than the screws, and add a little tape flag to help you avoid drilling through the board. When the flag brushes the chips away, stop drilling. This is the best trick ever.

Finishing up

Before brushing on the polyurethane finish, erase all the pencil marks and wipe off the dust.
Get some oil-based satin polyurethane, stir it well, and brush it on smoothly with a foam brush. Do the top and edges, let it dry, and then flip the board and finish the back too.
Sand and repeat. Using 220-grit paper, sand the wood areas lightly—not the sticker—wipe off the dust with a paper towel, and brush on one more coat.
Screw on the hanger and bottle opener. You’ve already got your pilot holes drilled, so this goes fast.

From the Editor’s Desk: We don’t need longer battery life, we just need to use our phones less

Consider this option.

I haven’t met someone who doesn’t complain about the battery life on their phone to some extent. Walking through airports, as I so often do, people aggressively hunt for power outlets so they can charge up their phone. On the streets of every major city I visit there are people walking with a power bank stacked underneath their phone with a USB cable so they don’t have to stop using it on the go. Market demand has generated a near-infinite number of car phone charger choices for topping up while driving. If you asked anyone in these situations what they’d give up to get something like 30% longer battery life, I bet the list would be extensive and perhaps worrisome.

But here’s an idea: what if instead of complaining about battery life and chasing power outlets or buying battery packs, we just chose to use our phones a little less?

In your desire to find an airport power outlet, you’re making your traveling experience far more stressful. By connecting to that 5000mAh battery pack to juice up on the go, you aren’t paying attention to the world around you. And for what? So you can scroll through Twitter endlessly, play Pokémon Go for a couple more hours, watch 15 episodes of a series on Netflix, or add posts to your Instagram story? The lengths we’ll go to power up our phones seem like they introduce far larger trade-offs than the benefit we gain from the increasingly meaningless and mundane things we’re so often doing with our phones.

Smartphones are used for many critical things — but most of our battery goes down the drain on useless things.

Yes I understand that for some people, using their phone is critical and not a choice. A parent needs to be able to keep in touch with their kids. A worker on a remote job site has to be able to connect back to the home office for information and reporting. All sorts of very important communication, information gathering, commerce and, well, downright fun stuff comes through our smartphones — most of which is improving and enriching our lives. The question is whether or not we’re able to take an honest look at our usage of smartphones and decide that if we really only used them for things that “matter” (which is different for everyone), perhaps their current battery life offering is more than sufficient.

In the past year there has been a groundswell of people talking about smartphone addiction, along with plenty of thoughts of just how bad it is and what can be done — either personally or societally — to slow its effects. It generally centers around the idea that people have gotten so deep into interactions with their phones that they see the phone as the center of their world and the real world as secondary in many circumstances. Tons of research on smartphone addiction shows that despite people’s awareness of the issue, they continue (or increase) their use. Children and young adults are facing it the most.

So maybe instead of artificially extending our phone’s battery life to do all sorts of menial things for no reason other than it’s just a thing that has become ingrained in us, we just use our phones a bit less and enjoy the extended battery life as a result. As an upside, you’ll cut way back on all of these power-related accessories — not to mention the mental overhead and frustration of constantly being worried about the battery percentage on your phone. The latter, at a minimum, can have a positive effect on your life.

And with all of that deep thought out of the way, a few more quick hits:

• If you’re on the fence about a Galaxy S9, you’ll want to see my initial impressions of its cameras.
• The short version: this new sensor and lens combination is legit. Daylight photos are pretty great, and low light photos are incredibly sharp with low noise.
• The longer take on this whole new camera setup (and everything else about the phone) will have to wait for my review, which is coming soon!
• Coming back from MWC 2018 at the end of this week, I was surprised when i looked back and saw just how many good announcements came from the show. Despite being a “slow” year on account of Samsung’s dominance of the news cycle, lots of great stuff — like the new Nokia announcements — made a splash.
• We’re now in a tiny bit of a lull, but expect more stuff to happen as we get through March. Early leaks point to a possible release of the Android P Developer Preview, and multiple companies have phones to release before the midway point of 2018.

That’s it for now — have a great week, everyone.

-Andrew

Here’s what you missed at MWC 2018

This year’s Mobile World Congress has been strangely quiet. Despite Samsung’s return to the event to launch its latest flagship phones and Google unveiling new Android Go devices, the convention has been almost uneventful. In fact, the most interesting thing to have happened this show has been snow falling in Barcelona, with temperatures dipping close to 38 degrees Fahrenheit (almost 0 degrees Celsius). Although Nokia’s parent company tried to drum up interest by reviving an old favorite like it did before, people just didn’t care as much the second time around.

There was plenty of news around 5G developments, since an early version of the spec was approved late last year. Every major company had its own demos of achieving 5G speeds on all varieties of communications — from phones and detachables to cars, drones and VR headsets. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai himself was here to share plans to open up 28GHz and 24GHz spectrum for auction late this year, as well as to discuss his belief that the US needs light regulation to “enable the 5G applications of the future.”

Despite it being an underwhelming show this year, there were still a few surprising reveals from the likes of LG, ASUS and Huawei. To catch up on all that you might have missed, check out the video above.

Catch up on the latest news from MWC 2018 right here.

VW’s Seat unveils the first fully electric touring-class race car

You’ve seen electric Formula cars, Le Mans racers and even a Pikes Peak machine, but there’s still room for more firsts in EV racing. VW’s Seat brand has unveiled the Cupra e-Racer, which it says is the first completely electric touring-class race car. It’s built on the existing Cupra Leon TCR design and promises the kind of performance you’d expect in this category: it can muster 402HP of continuous power, and 670HP at peak.

There’s no question that Seat is treating this as a halo car, particularly for its newly formed Cupra sports badge. However, it’s not just for show: it’s helping to start a new “E TCR” (no prizes for what the “E” refers to) category. It may soon be a question of which racing classes haven’t been electrified, even though it’ll likely take a long while before the EVs dominate.

Via: Autoblog

Source: Seat