Tech news, analysis, culture, business, security, and more
Good news: the Mac Mini is back! Bad news: ain’t no way you’re going to be upgrading the RAM yourself. https://gizmodo.com/the-mac-mini-is-back-with-all-new-guts-1647212364 It’s been confirmed by a number of people over the weekend that the RAM in Apple’s little desktop isn’t upgradable. You can upgrade the hard drive—but in doing so you will void the warranty.…
Remember how the Justice Department decided it was just fine for a Drug Enforcement Administration agent to steal a woman’s identity and set up a fake Facebook account to chase subjects? Well, Facebook’s not OK with that. https://gizmodo.com/doj-it-was-ok-for-a-dea-agent-to-impersonate-this-woma-1643235818 In a letter sent to the Drug Enforcement Administration on Friday, Zuckerberg & Co. have made their…
The slow but steady approach of winter means that it’s almost time for many of us to fire up our heaters—also heralding the return of of chapped lips and dry skin. Dyson’s new humidifier is one solution to the problem, but it doesn’t only prevent dry air. It also ensures your home isn’t being filled…
Welcome to another week of apps. We had some big additions to our smartphones from Skype and Microsoft recently, but iOS, Android, and Windows Phone once again has some new additions worth taking a look. Android Brainwave Brainwave is an Android app that lets you perform Jedi powers on your smartphone. This app empowers your…
Quick! Stop what you’re doing (including reading this), and go watch television history. The Simpsons will be airing the 25 installment of a now national Halloween tradition known as Treehouse of Horror at 8pm ET on Fox. Beginning with the second season in 1990, Treehouse of Horror is a spooky annual episode showing three short…
With great reward comes risk, and tech companies are probably pretty familiar with that sentiment. Each product, service, or device is a gamble on whether it will resonate, successfully separating us from our discretionary income, or languish on stockroom shelves, untouched. All companies, even the biggest ones, are built upon a mixture of successes and…
These huge coronal loops reach out more than fifteen times the diameter of the Earth, tracing out disruptions in the sun’s magnetic field. Whoa. The coronal loops were captured by the Solar Dynamics Observatory on October 14th and 15th, 2014. The loops are particles spiraling along magnetic field lines after a long-lasting M-class flare erupted,…
We got an exclusive look last week at Fitbit’s refresh of the Fitbit Force fitness tracker with the Fitbit Charge and Fitbit Charge HR, but that appears to have been only part of what the company has in store. The Verge reports that Fitbit will also be launching its own smartwatch, known as the Fitbit…
What a week, what a week. Let’s have a chat, and take a look back at the highs and lows of the past 7 days on Toybox. This week’s been a tough one, but a crazy one, and one with big highs and lows – let’s kick off with the low though. Tuesday was the…
According to Forbes, Microsoft is planning to counter Apple and Google’s wearable ambitions with its own device in the coming weeks. Forbes says that the device will be a smartwatch “that will passively track the wearer’s heart rate and work across several mobile platforms.” Reported sources familiar with the project say that the device will…
Happy Sunday fellow Gizmodo readers. Lots of techy tech stuff happened this week. Google let us see the brave new Nexus future and Apple had a few new toys to showcase before 2014 wraps up. But in between and among these big events, lots of great stories filtered through the web. Here are great long…
Mars is all set to protect its beloved robots as comet Siding Spring charges past today spewing dust and gas during its close approach to the Red Planet. Meanwhile, everyone from the rovers to Earth-based telescopes will be tracking the comet, learning as much as possible. https://gizmodo.com/this-is-every-place-in-the-solar-system-ever-occupied-e-1645507693 https://gizmodo.com/comet-sliding-springs-dual-jets-and-glowing-coma-1553455840 https://gizmodo.com/comet-siding-spring-is-headed-towards-mars-1553616502 Top image: Mars protecting its robotic…
Siding Spring sounds like such a tranquil name for a massive comet. After traveling millions of years at the leisurely pace of about 33 miles per second, the comet will fly by Mars at around 2:25pm EDT or so, passing only 138,000 kilometers from the red planet. This is a little bit more than one-third…
Antiques Roadshow, the venerable BBC programme about valuing the public’s collections, came a cropper during a recent event in Buckinghamshire when they were shown an incredibly rare prop from the original Star Wars – which much to their surprise, is worth quite a bit of money. The helmet, a TIE Fighter Pilot’s headpiece from A…
Posted earlier today via Evan Blass (evleaks), this image gives us the most detailed look at Verizon’s upcoming superpowered smartphone. It would appear that the Turbo definitely has the looks to match its high-powered guts. We expect to hear more about the Turbo at an upcoming Verizon event on October 28th. https://gizmodo.com/the-droid-turbo-could-be-the-most-supercharged-smartpho-1647132383
Last month at IFA, we heard that Sony’s new waterproof line of flagship devices, the Z3, Z3 Compact, Z3 Tablet Compact (and eventually even Verizon’s variant, the Z3v, pictured above) would all be able to stream video games via the PS4. Now, a Sony slip details that the last generation Z2 and Z2 Tablet may…
Who doesn’t love great films? But it takes a certain sort of person (and a certain sort of patience) to appreciate, and even love, films that may never be considered cinematic greatness. But we love them all the same. A few weeks ago, I asked the Gizmodo crowd what was the best worst film they’ve…
Engadget reports that Google’s Nexus Player has received the required FCC certification it seemed to pass over before its launch. It’s uncertain if this tiny legal hiccup will cause any problems with the Nov. 3rd release date. [Engadget] https://gizmodo.com/nexus-player-pulled-from-google-play-store-over-fcc-cer-1647946963
Robots often find themselves in dangerous situations, and their distinct lack of biology makes them perfectly suited for battling infectious disease. Next month, a simulcast workshop will determine if and how they’ll join the West African fight against Ebola. Certain robots have already been dispatched at the U.S. hospital in Dallas, Texas, but where those…
Actors taking home items from the movies and TV shows they work on is a very common practice – but it’s normally just a piece of costuming or a small prop. Robert Downey Jr however, doesn’t tend to do things the usual way though, and his memorabilia from The Avengers was a little bit bigger…