Do you regret buying the Galaxy Note 9?

$1,000 second thoughts.

Late last month, Samsung officially launched the Galaxy Note 9 for everyone around the world to purchase. The phone’s not cheaper with a starting price tag of $1,000, but you definitely get what you pay for thanks to the gorgeous display, huge battery, S Pen, and more.

A lot of our AC forum members have been rocking the Note 9 since the day it came out, and recently, one user asked if anyone had any regrets about upgrading to the phone.

Here are just a few of the responses.

Jax112
09-03-2018 04:24 PM

“

None at all. This is the phone I’ve been waiting for. Don’t get me wrong I loved the Note 8 but this thing is great.

Reply

Jewels81
09-03-2018 04:30 PM

“

No regrets here. I got both note8 and note9. I can go back and forth when want to. But since getting the note9, the note8 has been put in it’s original box for back up.

Reply

Gary02468
09-03-2018 04:42 PM

“

I’m happy with my N8->N9 upgrade. I like the stereo speakers, the much longer battery life, the enhanced S-Pen, the dual-aperture camera, and the extra storage (128 GB is sufficient for me, in addition to my 256 GB SD card). And the AR emoji are cute. Plus I got the free Duo fast-charging stand, Dex station, and AKG Bluetooth headphones. And I sold my N8 for more than $400.

Reply

Cary Quinn
09-03-2018 06:39 PM

“

I almost regret not having the money for the 512 Gb version.

Reply

What say you? Do you regret getting the Note 9?

Join the conversation in the forums!

Samsung Galaxy Note 9

• Samsung Galaxy Note 9 review
• Galaxy Note 9 vs. Note 8
• Where to buy the Galaxy Note 9
• Galaxy Note 9 specifications
• Is the Note 8 still a good buy?
• Join our Galaxy Note 9 forums

AT&T
Verizon
T-Mobile
Samsung
Amazon

Type away for days on an unlocked BlackBerry KEYone for just $350

Accurate typing on the go!

Amazon currently has the unlocked BlackBerry KEYone on sale for just $349.99, which is a new all-time low. When it was first released, the KEYone sold for $550 and recently it dropped down to a regular price of $400, making today’s price an extra $50 off.

The KEYone has an intuitive smart keyboard with flick typing, fingerprint sensor, and customizable shortcuts. It’s built with aluminum casing and Corning Gorilla glass for protection. It also has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 processor, a 3505mAh battery, and runs on Android’s Nougat operating system.

CrackBerry has the rundown on everything you need to know to use your new KEYone, including a Beginner’s Guide and a list of helpful how-to articles. The BlackBerry KEY2 is also now available for pre-order, though it is priced at $650.

See at Amazon

Samsung will launch its foldable Galaxy X smartphone this year

This will be the next big thing … at some point.

The mobile industry has been tracking this rumored Samsung “Galaxy X” prototype phone for several months, gradually pushing back the supposed launch timeline for what’s apparently to be a successor to the general “Galaxy S” line. But even so, we’re still struggling for details on what this supposed Galaxy X with a foldable display will be. Here’s the latest information.

The latest Galaxy X news

September 4, 2018 —Samsung confirms a folding phone will be launched this year

While there’s been no doubt that Samsung’s working on a foldable smartphone, one detail we haven’t had a definite answer on is when the thing will be released. That’s now changing, however, as the company’s CEO of its mobile division — DJ Kohn — confirmed to CNBC that a folding phone will launch at some point this year.

Koh told CNBC that “it’s time to deliver” and that Samsung has “nearly concluded” its development of the phone. We’re still uncertain how exactly the foldable nature will be implemented, but during IFA in Berlin, Kohn went on record saying:

You can use most of the uses … on foldable status. But when you need to browse or see something, then you may need to unfold it. But even unfolded, what kind of benefit does that give compared to the tablet? If the unfolded experience is the same as the tablet, why would they (consumers) buy it? So every device, every feature, every innovation should have a meaningful message to our end customer. So when the end customer uses it, they think ‘wow, this is the reason Samsung made it’.

July 18, 2018 — Galaxy X reported to fold in the shape of a wallet, might cost over $1,500

A report from The Wall Street Journal surfaced this morning outlining a few key details we can expect from the Galaxy X. When describing the design of the phone, part of the report notes that:

The screen can be folded in half, like a wallet, these people said. When folded, the exterior of the phone boasts a small display bar on the front and cameras in the back, they added.

Furthermore, it’s said that the Galaxy X has a screen that measures in at 7-inches diagonally.

As for pricing and availability, WSJ notes that the Galaxy X has “taken on a greater sense of urgency in recent months” and that its price tag could reach well beyond $1,500. The phone’s expected to be released at some point in early 2019.

All the big details

Some background on Galaxy X rumors

No, you didn’t miss an announcement — Samsung didn’t have anything public to say about the Galaxy X (if that is its real name) at CES 2018. But as many companies do, Samsung took the opportunity of having so many high-up industry people together to show off what it’s working on to partners. According to The Investor, this year that included the Galaxy X. The device in question has a 7.3-inch display that can fold in the middle — multiple versions were shown, with different capabilities such as folding both inwards and outwards.

The inward-folding model (protecting the screen when closed) is reportedly the design with the most traction at the moment. The outward-folding one, on the other hand, includes “more advanced next-generation technology,” whatever that entails. The rest of the specs of the phone aren’t yet known, and considering how far out we are from a potential release — reportedly as late as early 2019 — those can and will change between now and then.

How will a ‘foldable’ phone actually work?

Samsung has of course been putting curved panels in production phones since the Galaxy Note Edge that eventually spawned into a phenomenon that has become a hallmark of Samsung’s high-end devices. The company has been experimenting with bendable OLED panels for years, going so far as to show them off publicly as technology demonstrations. But the question is whether it could make devices with displays that could be actively bent or folded thousands of times as a regular part of use. The display would have to be very robust, but then you also have the issue of what covers the display panel — typical Gorilla Glass wouldn’t do the trick.

LetsGoDigital has worked up renderings based on reports and patent filings that show the Galaxy X as a vertical-orientation phone, but with a hinge mechanism built into the sides of the phone. The phone would be rigid (and what looks to be extremely tall as well) when the display is extended and flat, but you could pull the top and bottom apart to expose the hinge to then bend while the screen follows suit.

Further renders show the phone while closed, which leaves a gap around the hinge portion not unlike a Microsoft Surface Book laptop. Large internal components would of course split between the top and bottom halves of the phone by the hinge.

Early rumors pointed to a Galaxy X with a hinge and two displays, but now we’re talking about just one panel.

Early rumors of the Galaxy X pointed to some sort of announcement or teaser as early as late 2017, which obviously didn’t happen. But those same rumors questioned whether the Galaxy X was truly a “bendable” phone with a single screen, or simply a hinged device with two distinct panels — like the ZTE Axon M, for example. It seems now that Samsung’s going to attempt a full-on single bendable display. Other rumors also had indicated Samsung had a more tablet-shaped device with this bendable display technology in place, and that may still be on the table in different future devices, but in terms of the “Galaxy X” it looks to be a traditional vertical phone orientation.

When it will be announced

During IFA 2018 over in Berlin, Samsung’s mobile division CEO — DJ Koh — confirmed that a foldable smartphone will be launched before the year is over.

Koh teased that we may learn more information during the Samsung Developer Conference in November, but it’s still unclear when this year the phone will actually go up for purchase.

Update August 2018: Updated with a new statement from Samsung about the Galaxy X’s launch.

Xiaomi shares hands-on Mi Mix 3 photo, confirms 5G capabilities

Where’d the bezels go?

Less than a week ago, Xiaomi shared an official render for its upcoming Mi Mix 3 smartphone — confirming a nearly bezel-less design and a mechanical slider that houses the phone’s camera sensors.

Now, Xiaomi’s Director of Product Management, Donovan Sung, has confirmed another feature for the phone — 5G.

Sharing one more photo. Does anyone see anything interesting? 😎#Xiaomi pic.twitter.com/LjZGibMsuR

— Donovan Sung (@donovansung) September 3, 2018

Sung shared the above Tweet on September 3, and as you can see in the upper right-hand corner of the Mi Mix 3’s screen, there’s a very prominent 5G icon.

Along with the 5G confirmation, this photo also gives us another look at the Mi Mix 3’s design, this time with its slider portion closed.

Are you getting excited for the Mi Mix 3?

Xiaomi render suggests the Mi Mix 3 will also feature a mechanical slider

Marvel’s Spider-Man review: Amazing, Spectacular, and a little clumsy

In which Insomniac Games teaches a master class in what it means to make something for every kind of Spidey fan.

While the Spider-Man archive in my brain runs back as far as I can remember, my first Spider-Man videogame was Spider-Man 2. For most people, this game was a deeply positive experience. For me, it was a waking nightmare from which there was no return. I was working in the games department of a Best Buy, where we’d received a full copy of the game to put in our demo station. This lead people to come in as soon as the store opened each day and wait for a turn to play. We had that game in the demo station for almost six months, during which I heard the sounds of web slinging approximately 700 billion times. To say I was not a fan of Spider-Man games at this point would be underselling it considerably.

30 seconds into the first gameplay teaser for Insomniac’s vision of a whole new Spider-Man game, and all of that negativity washed away entirely. I was excited and, like countless others, started following every step of the development process. The PlayStation 4 community has been following this game so closely that there was an argument about whether game performance had forced developers to adjust the size of puddles in the game because one was not where it looked like it should be from a pair of gameplay videos. It is not understating anything to say this title has earned itself a rabid fan base before it even launched and, after spending 16 hours in this game, I can safely say a lot of that hype has been well earned.

Marvel’s Spider-Man

Price: $60

Bottom line: On top of being absolutely stuffed with fun things from every corner of the Spider-verse, this game is fun as hell to play from beginning to end. It absolutely deserves a place on your shelf.

See at Amazon

Pros:

• Breathtakingly beautiful
• Strong story
• Excellent combat system
• Heaps of content

Cons:

• Boss fights are way too scripted
• Non-combatant AI is sloppy

About this review

I’ve been playing a copy of Marvel’s Spider Man, provided by Sony, for the last four days. While I have completed the core story, I have only completed 64% of the total game according to the save menu. My total gameplay time for this review is 16.4 hours.

NYC has never looked so pretty

Marvel’s Spider-Man world and story

Welcome to a New York City-sized sandbox. For long-time Spider-Man fans, your first few minutes in this game will feel all too familiar. Sling the web, sail through the city, spot a bad guy, do the friendly neighborhood thing, repeat. This is the experience you paid for, the thing everyone craves when they hear about a Spider-Man game.

But what Insomniac has done here exists on an entirely different level from any other game in this genre. This world doesn’t just kind of look like NYC, it feels like you’re actually there. As someone who regularly travels to a lot of the places in New York where events unfold in this game, it was beyond cool to see things like the Amtrak entrance to Madison Square Garden and appreciate how real it seemed. There’s a mission where you are put inside of Grand Central Terminal and you can actually walk up into the Apple Store on the balcony and crouch among the tables full of phones. And for people who have actually stood next to those tables, surreal doesn’t adequately cover it.

The basics of a Spider-Man game are polished to a point of realism as well. Most Spider-Man fans are used to having that “what did that web he just shot even attach to” conversation while playing these games. It’s even something you hear about the movies at times. Even in a city like New York, there are limitations to where you can attach a web and swing through and those limitations are pretty reasonably respected in this game. When you sail through the city, your web looks like it connected to something. If you’re up high above the buildings, you can’t shoot a web into nothing and continue swinging. You fall below the buildings and then the web starts flying again. This gameplay mechanic is fairly automatic as you play but there are lots of little things you can do to speed yourself up or perform aerial tricks which make the experience a whole lot more dynamic. You can choose to be less engaged when traveling from place to place, but the game rewards you for having fun and really getting into character. And really, that’s a theme for the whole game. You are rewarded for being excited about the game and for not taking every moment super seriously.

For many, this is going to be a fairly new take on Spider-Man and I personally loved every minute of it.

Since this web travel mechanic includes a bit of a free-fall, Insomniac doubled-down and includes a way for you to basically skydive straight down from time to time. This is a handy and visually stunning way to bring yourself down closer to the streets and it also helps close the gap when chasing villains in a car. However, all of this sort of falls apart if you hit the ground accidentally. If this happens, Spider-Man assumes the tried and true three-point superhero landing – even if that drop happened from the top of the Empire State Building.

There is no death or damage from falling when travelling through the city but you do get to scare the pants off the citizens walking the sidewalks. When you hit the ground everyone around you is immediately alarmed and scatters but this AI quickly forgets why it is running away when someone recognizes you so you get this mix of panic and someone shouting about getting your autograph. This weird mixed panic mechanic even happens when you land on the roof of a police building. The officers standing on the roof for seemingly no reason are not only surprised to see you, but frequently say things like “we don’t need your help right now” as they run from you. Clearly, the civilian AI didn’t get the same level of polish as the rest of the city.

As for our hero, well let’s just say he’s not the Spider-Man you’ve seen in the recent Marvel Cinematic Universe films. This isn’t Tony Stark’s ward, as Doctor Strange would call him. This is grown up Peter Parker. He’s graduated from college, has a job, struggles to pay his rent on time and has a great relationship with his aging Aunt May when he remembers to stop by to see her. You aren’t playing through an origin story; this Spider-Man has lived through multiple revisions to his suit and has already defeated many of the big-name villains from the early days of the comics. J. Jonah Jameson has been relieved of his post at the Bugle, and spends his days as a Alex Jones-esque radio loon, which you tune in to as you sail through the city. For many, this is going to be a fairly new take on Spider-Man and I personally loved every minute of it.

Perhaps my favorite part of the world Insomniac has created for this game is in the little details. It couldn’t be more clear this game was made by people who cherish the Spider-Man franchise and had some opinions on the direction it had been taken in previously. The game is positively stuffed with references to the other movies and games and comics, from the suits you can unlock to the trinkets you find lying around the city. There are jokes about web gliders, commentary on past relationships and so many nods to other parts of the Marvel universe.

And the focus is always on Spider-Man, instead of constantly bumping into the other heroes who also live in the city. You can find Doctor Strange’s New York Sanctum or Jessica Jones’ Alias Investigations, but there’s no awkward side-quest where you have to interact with these heroes and help them with something. This is the most complete Spider-Man experience I’ve ever played and every kind of fan is going to deeply appreciate how much work went in to building this shrine to Spidey.

Meanwhile Jameson is over here shouting about Nazis made of bees…

Marvel’s Spider-Man gameplay and missions

Capturing the way Spider-Man fights in video game form is a challenge no previous developer has quite managed. Spider-Man’s combat style is fluid; he fights in the air and on the ground and around obstacles and with every part of his body constantly. Spider-Man dodges first, attacks when opportunity arises and relies on his webs and web-based gadgets to get him out of trouble when the stakes are truly high. Building all of these elements into a single combat system, without making it too difficult for most people to play and still have fun, seemed almost impossible before playing this game. Insomniac, in my opinion, absolutely nailed what it is to fight as Spider-Man.

This combat system is something truly special. You are rewarded for dodging at just the right moment or landing that perfect hit, and you can spend that reward in real time on more devastating and visually stunning takedowns or on quick bursts of health to keep the fight going. You can be surrounded by a dozen enemies and not feel overwhelmed, as long as you keep moving and remember to use your gadgets. Give some of the enemies a reason to pause and free themselves from webs, while you focus on taking down the others. Use the momentum of one enemy to take out another. Never stay on the ground for long, and always remember to dodge first and punch later. It’s challenging but also deeply exciting, and judging from the way my whole family sat and watched as I played this game, it’s almost more entertaining to watch than it is to play.

And as much as you are rewarded for thinking like Spider-Man, you’re punished for trying to take on too many enemies with just brute force. This game has no problem killing you in combat and, in most cases, that death is surprisingly violent. You don’t see blood and guts or anything, but the visuals of Spider-Man’s broken body as a car hits him or as he’s beaten into the dirt quickly refocus you into seeking a different strategy. In missions, death resets you to the last save point but out in the sandbox, you’ll revert to the closest high point on a building or lamp post and whatever random encounter you were in will have disappeared. The bottom line is you really need to be constantly thinking about how you are fighting and moving, which ends up being quite a bit of fun.

Marvel’s Spider-Man is a thrilling celebration of everything fans love about the friendly neighborhood web-slinger.

Unfortunately, all of that fluid combat and careful thought goes out the window as soon as you are in a boss fight. Every boss fight is scripted, almost entirely taking away your user agency in exchange for something that looks nice. And it’s almost always the same format, too: interrupt the bad guy, land a hit, dodge the counter. Everything else is quick-time events and the occasional grouping of non-boss mobs to help you restore your combat bars for health or extra points for more visual takedowns. It honestly felt like the boss fights were designed by a different team, whose focus was more on exposition than gameplay. As incredible as normal combat feels, that’s how lackluster every boss fight is throughout this game.

When you’re not following the story, the sandbox is filled with tons of other things for you to do. You can flex Peter Parker’s mind with research puzzles, stop random crime events throughout the city, follow clues left by Black Cat and a bunch of other clusters of tasks. Each of these events on the map earn you tokens, which you can spend on upgrading your gadgets and purchasing new suits with new abilities. And, mercifully, you aren’t presented with all of these options at the very beginning of the game. Instead, there’s a nice slow trickle so you’re encouraged to spend a fairly even amount of time exploring the city in between plot points throughout the entire game. There are, however, some obvious advantages to fulfilling these side missions as early as possible, especially if your goal is to collect all of the suits.

Each of the Spider-Man suits you can unlock has a specific ability attached to it. Some help with stealth, while others give you combat or healing advantages. None of these abilities are actually locked to the suit after you purchase them, which means you can wear the Iron Spider suit from Avenger’s Infinity War but use the super stealth ability from the Spider-Man Noir suit. This means you can wear your favorite suit throughout the whole game without compromising your abilities, which I appreciated. It also means there’s value in unlocking things as quickly as possible so you can see how those abilities impact your combat style throughout the missions. Without giving too much away, you’re really going to want to play with as many of these abilities as possible.

The combination of story and side missions comes together to really make this game feel full. By the time you reach the endgame, the map is covered in things to do and the difficulty level for everything from combat to puzzles increases at a steady pace. The whole design encourages you to play through all of the game evenly, instead of just plowing through the story in a rush to the end, which should come together to make at least 20 hours of gameplay by the time you’ve reached the final mission in the story.

That ending though

Marvel’s Spider-Man review

Insomniac deserves all of the positivity this game is about to receive. It couldn’t be more clear this was a labor of love crafted by folks who genuinely enjoy every facet of the universe they were invited to be a part of. The story is unique yet familiar, the combat natural while complex, and there’s a constant focus on Spider-Man and his immediate connections I deeply appreciated. Marvel’s Spider-Man is a thrilling celebration of everything fans love about the friendly neighborhood web-slinger and, with three different DLC packs already announced, it’s clear this is going to be a deeply popular game for quite a while.

4.5
out of 5

The best thing you can do for the Spider-Man fan in your life is make sure they have time to really explore this game deeply and with as few spoilers as possible. Also, don’t be too alarmed if you catch them shouting with excitement towards the end of the game. It’s fine, I promise. We all did it.

See at Amazon

Aukey’s $16 PowerHub Mini replaces a single outlet with six charging slots

Power multiple devices at once!

Using coupon code AUKEYSA1 during checkout, you can grab Aukey’s Powerhub Mini for just $15.99, a savings of $4. It has two AC outlets and four USB ports built-in, meaning that your single outlet becomes far more valuable to you. The USB ports have a max output of 2.4A each, totaling 6A. The AiPower Adaptive Charging Technology allows the charger to automatically adapt to give your devices the fastest charge possible.

You can grab this option with six USB and twelve AC outlets for $32.99 when using coupon code AUKEYSA4. This option is far less compact and portable, but great for those with lots of devices that need to be charged!

See at Amazon

Get lifetime access to Rosetta Stone + a $10 Amazon gift card for $179

Broaden your horizons.

Amazon has a one-day offer for Rosetta Stone Lifetime Access. Tons of different languages are down to $179 today. You’ll get lifetime access online and through your phone, plus a free $10 Amazon gift card. The access code is redeemed by email so you could give this as a gift to someone too.

At its least expensive, Rosetta Stone costs $7.49 per month for a 24-month subscription. It goes up incrementally for shorter subscriptions too. This is a killer deal for a lifetime subscription, especially because it has access for up to five family members, and you could take a refresher course to brush up before you go out and use your newfound skills in the wild. You’ll also get all future product updates for whatever language you select.

Rosetta Stone has been the go-to for language learning for years. It uses Dynamic Immersion to help the language stick. You’ll learn through context by seeing, hearing, speaking, reading, and writing.

See at Amazon

Apple Watch Led Wearables Market in Q2 2018 on Strength of LTE Models

Apple again held the top spot in the wearables market during the second quarter of 2018, shipping 4.7 million Apple Watch units and holding a 17 percent share of the overall wearable market. The new data comes from IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Wearable Device Tracker, which states that the market as a whole was up 5.5 percent due to “gains in emerging markets.”

Markets such as Asia Pacific, Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and Latin America grew 14 percent year-over-year because “basic wristbands” remain in high demand due to their low prices. On the other hand, more mature markets like North America, Japan, and Western Europe declined 6.3 percent year-over-year.

Still, IDC research analyst Jitesh Ubrani says this decline “is by no means worrisome” because the wearables market is transitioning to become “more sophisticated.” Instead of tracking basic data points like steps, calories, and workout minutes, future wearables “are well on track to become prescriptive and diagnostic tools.” Rumors related to Apple Watch fall in line with this idea, with reports describing future Apple Watch models that could include an EKG heart monitor and track blood glucose levels.

“The decline in mature markets is by no means worrisome as these markets are in the midst of transitioning to more sophisticated wearables,” said Jitesh Ubrani senior research analyst for IDC Mobile Device Trackers.

“While the previous generation of wearables was focused on providing descriptive feedback like step counts, the current and upcoming generations are far more capable and are well on track to becoming prescriptive and diagonistic tools. Surrounding these smarter wearables is a constellation of technologies and service providers that includes app developers, telcos, component makers, healthcare insitutuions and more – each poised for growth in the coming years.”

Overall, IDC says that “two key forces” were at work in Q2 2018: “stronger demand for smart wearables” and “slower decline in the basic wearables market.” IDC’s data describes a smart watch as a product like Apple Watch or Fitbit Versa, while a basic wearable is something like the Fitbit Charge or Garmin Vivosport.

With this in mind, the researchers state that Apple saw continued demand for its LTE-enabled Apple Watch Series 3 in the quarter, which came as a “welcome addition to many telco channels worldwide.” In total, Apple saw a 38.4 year-over-year growth in its Apple Watch shipments from 2017 to 2018. It should be noted that Apple itself does not report Apple Watch sales figures, so IDC’s numbers today are just estimates.

Behind Apple’s 17 percent share and 4.7 million Apple Watch shipments was Xiaomi, which owned 15.1 percent of the market and shipped 4.2 million devices in the second quarter, a growth of 19.8 percent from 2017. While Fitbit sat at third place with a 9.5 percent share and 2.7 million units shipped, this was the biggest decline tracked by IDC, dropping 21.7 percent year-over-year.

Rounding out the last two spots were Huawei at a 6.5 percent share and 1.8 million units shipped (growing 118.1 percent from the year-ago quarter) and Garmin at a 5.3 percent share and 1.5 million units shipped (up 4.1 percent). IDC says that Garmin “extended its lead over Samsung,” knocking the company out of the top five spots as Garmin’s shipment volume of smart watches eclipsed its basic wearables volume.

As smart watches continue to grow in popularity, we’re about one week away from the official unveiling of the Apple Watch Series 4, which leaked last week. The wearable will have smaller bezels with more visible screen space, and at least one new watch face that includes more complications than ever before on Apple Watch.

Related Roundups: Apple Watch, watchOS 4, watchOS 5Buyer’s Guide: Apple Watch (Caution)
Discuss this article in our forums

Apple Music Hosting Exclusive Concert in Paris Featuring Artist ‘Christine and the Queens’

As it has in the past for artists like P!nk and Shawn Mendes, Apple Music this month will host a special performance of new music from artist Christine and the Queen’s upcoming album “Chris” (via iGeneration) At the same time, those in attendance will see the exclusive debut of a new Apple Music film that goes behind-the-scenes of the making of “Chris.”

Fière et excitée de pouvoir vous présenter Chris en concert avec @AppleMusic !
Join me in Paris for an exclusive performance and a special screening of @applemusic presents : Chris. 
Pour assister au concert / Apply for free tickets here: https://t.co/VaPObTRMqK pic.twitter.com/xxXkRDrhqT

— Christ̵i̵n̵e̵ ̵a̵n̵d̵ ̵t̵h̵e̵ ̵q̵u̵e̵e̵n̵s̵ (@QueensChristine) September 4, 2018

The concert takes place on Thursday, September 13 at 7:00 p.m. local time at the Salle Pleyel concert hall in Paris, France. Following the exclusive show, the film “Apple Music Presents: Chris” will launch on the streaming service on Friday, September 14. The full new album by Christine and the Queens will then launch one week later on September 21.

Join Christine and the Queens and Apple Music for a special performance of new music from the forthcoming album Chris, and an exclusive screening of the Apple Music film of the same name – which is a look into the titular character that inspired it all.

Chris is an intimate peek into the intrepid French singer-songwriter-producer’s creative process while she writes and records her forthcoming album, a daring exploration of self and sexuality, identity and perception.

Apple Music has been increasing the number of both special performances and exclusive documentaries on its platform lately, releasing short films about Kesha’s “Rainbow” and Ed Sheeran’s “Divide” over the last couple of weeks. In May, Apple’s streaming service hosted a one-night-only Shawn Mendes concert in Los Angeles, which was recorded and uploaded to Apple Music in its entirety.

Similar to that concert, Christine and the Queen’s performance appears to be free for attendees, and those interested (over the age of 16) can navigate to this page to fill out a form and apply for tickets. According to Apple, those who win will receive a ticket for themselves and one guest.

Tag: Apple Music
Discuss this article in our forums

Japan preps first test for its awesome ‘space elevator’

Next time you step inside an elevator, imagine it has a button marked “space.”

It may sound like the stuff of science fiction, but researchers in Japan are prepping an experiment for this month to test part of a design for an elevator between Earth and space.

Based at Shizuoka University, 80 miles west of Tokyo, the research team envisions a so-called “space elevator” as a low-cost alternative to rockets for getting astronauts and cargo to orbiting space stations way above Earth.

The experiment is the first of its kind, Japan’s Mainichi newspaper reported.

We first heard about Japan’s plan for a space elevator six years ago when construction firm Obayashi Corporation outlined an electric-powered design capable of transporting up to 30 people at a time into space.

While the two projects are separate, Obayashi has agreed to act as technical adviser for the Shizuoka team, sharing expertise gained from its own research conducted over the last few years.

This month’s experiment will involve a tiny version of the setup in which the team aims to move a motor-driven “elevator car” — essentially a small container — along a 10-meter-long cable connected between two microsatellites. Both satellites will be released from the International Space Station, with satellite-based cameras monitoring the experiment as it takes place.

If the engineers can succeed in moving the container along the cable, the achievement would take the team closer to realizing its dream of building an elevator between Earth and space.

A nine-day ride

Obayashi’s design, which is similar in many ways to the one proposed by the university team, envisions a high-strength cable stretching 22,370 miles (36,000 km) from Earth to a terminal station with laboratories and a living area. At 125 mph (200 kmh), the elevator would travel at more than twice the speed of today’s fastest elevator in China’s Shanghai Tower. And if getting too close to people in a regular elevator leaves you feeling queasy, then take note — the space elevator’s “top floor” will take nine days to reach.

The Mainichi points out that the project could cost as much as 10 trillion yen ($90 billion), but with the elevator’s operating costs estimated at around one-hundredth of that of the space shuttle, the financial benefits could be huge over time.

Obayashi already has plenty of experience in working on bold construction projects, though there’s little argument that a cosmic elevator would be its boldest to date.

But let’s not get carried away with ourselves here. Building an elevator to space is a monumental undertaking and a range of obstacles will need to be overcome for it to become a reality. These include developing a high-strength cable using carbon nanotechnology, and one that can protect against cosmic rays and incoming space debris. There’s also the question of how to fund it.

Still, we like the idea of stepping into an elevator and pressing the button marked “space,” so we hope Obayashi succeeds in meeting its (somewhat ambitious) 2050 deadline for the project.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Get your Sagan on with 60 awe-inspiring photos of the final frontier
• Women may be immune to brain damage from cosmic rays, study finds
• NASA (again) delays launch of the world’s most powerful telescope
• NASA wants help coming up with ways to get rid of astronauts’ space trash
• Virgin Galactic wants to launch space tourism flights from an Italian spaceport