Tech news, analysis, culture, business, security, and more
In a new wrinkle in the still-unfolding SolarWinds saga, it seems that some of the company’s top investors sold off close to a collective $280 million dollars in stock just days before the news of its role in a far-reaching federal cyberattack became public. That’s according to a new Washington Post report that specifically calls…
Ridiculously expensive speakers, headphones, and soundbars are nothing new. But there are “normal” levels of expensive, followed by the “are you serious?” levels of expensive (cough, AirPods Max), and then there’s whatever the hell this Tidal for Bugatti collaboration is. Behold, the Tidal for Bugatti Royale series: a speaker tower made for adults with Too…
The Chromecast with Google TV is simply one of the best streaming devices you can buy right now (especially at just $50), and now Google is plugging one of the only holes in its flagship streaming video device thanks to upcoming support for the Apple TV app. In a blog posted today, Google’s head of…
One of the few disappointments with this year’s iPhones are their lack of support for displays with high refresh rates. Based on new reports, it seems that could change for at least two versions of iPhone 13 next year. According to a report from Korean tech news outlet the Elec, next year Apple is hoping…
When I was younger I owned a handheld TV that had a mode where you could listen to broadcasts with the screen off, letting me secretly enjoy shows I wasn’t actually allowed to watch. According to Android Police, a similar feature is now being introduced for Netflix, essentially turning your favorite shows into audio-only podcasts.…
It’s been almost three years to the day since the price of Bitcoin was close to breaking the $20,000 ceiling and came crashing down. On Wednesday, the arbitrary milestone of hodlers’ dreams was finally achieved. Bitcoin crossed the $20,000 threshold this morning with its value rising around 6% at the time of writing. Increased oversight…
Much to the dismay of my fellow coworkers, I admit I’ve got a soft spot for gadgets with RGB lighting. I prefer keyboards that light up like a disco ball (after all, you can always turn the lights off), and I pay extra to make sure that all the smart lights in my house can…
Cramming a full terabyte of storage onto a microSD card the size of a baby fingernail is a remarkable feat, but when it comes to cost and reliability, magnetic tape is still the preferred method for archiving data for decades. And even as hard drives continue to swell in size, magnetic tape storage still holds…
A coalition of states is reportedly readying a new antitrust lawsuit against Google that will claim that the company changed its search infrastructure to the disadvantage of certain rivals that offer specialized search results. According to Politico, the complaint — led by Democratic Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser — could go live as soon as…
If you’re anything like me, your unmanageable luddite tendencies will have, by now, made you the proud owner of probably well over 100 notebooks. Spiral-bound, composition, Moleskine; the type doesn’t really matter, but what DOES matter is your unfettered ability to tote these notebooks around from apartment to apartment, until the day you die probably,…
With the help of an extra graphics processing chip inside the cartridge, Star Fox did the impossible by bringing 3D graphics to the 16-bit Super Nintendo. The decision to engineer the SNES’ hardware to allow for this upgrade was a clever one on Nintendo’s part, and 29 years after its debut, Ben Carter has used…
Decades before cloud computing was invented, the government decided it should have the power, after 180 days, to read anyone’s emails, and that it shouldn’t need a warrant to do this. While no lawmaker today would seriously suggest passing such an incredible invasive law, Congress has found itself incapable of closing this privacy loophole for…
Livestreaming app Periscope, beloved by far-right conspiracy theorists and child predators alike, will be put out of its misery by the end of this coming March, Twitter announced on Tuesday. Shutting down the app was apparently a no-brainer that was a long time coming. According to Twitter, which purchased Periscope in 2015, the app was…
Children are wonderful miracles. The way they go from babies to chaos to creatures with genuine personalities and feelings all their own is remarkable. But youngest kids of a multi-child household are another story. They are nightmare hellions with little regard for others, an incredible capacity to care only about themselves, and a tattletale cry…
A cyberattack that began by targeting an IT firm used by numerous federal government agencies, Fortune 500 companies, and other high-value targets is shaping up to be a historic event. The U.S. government is still reeling after the detection of a massive foreign intrusion into federal computer systems at agencies including—at a minimum—the Department of…
I’ve tried way too many distraction-free writing devices, from the Freewrite to an old Brother typewriter. As a glutton for punishment, however, I may just build the FeatherQuill while I’m trapped at home. The FeatherQuill is a project by Cameron Coward, a writer and hardware hacker who focuses on 3D printing. The project consists of…
The debate over which is the better gaming system—a console or a PC—may never be resolved, but it’s hard to argue against the benefits of gaming with a keyboard and mouse, including improved accuracy. You can have the best of both worlds, however, as this clever hack that grafts a computer mouse onto a console…
Signal, the encrypted messaging app beloved by tech privacy enthusiasts around the world (including Edward Snowden), is taking on the world of group video calls. The company rolled out a new video-based group chatting feature on Monday alongside its latest app update, promising these chats will have the same end to end encryption that keeps…
Debuting back in 2017, the Google Home Max was a hi-fi alternative to the original Google Home smart speaker, promising better sound but still providing access to Google Assistant. It was big, kind of pricey at $400, and from our testing, not as loud or booming as you’d expect, so Google has done what Google…
The director of White House security, Crede Bailey, became sick with covid-19 back in September and has kept a low profile during his health struggles since being hospitalized in early October. But a new report from Bloomberg News contains new details about Bailey’s medical hardships, including the fact that Bailey needed to have part of…