Important announcements
The stakes are rising in Google’s antitrust fight with Europe
Over the next two weeks the technology giant will respond to the various antitrust allegations by the European Commission. They come in three buckets: that Google abuses the dominance of its Android operating system (to which it has to respond by today); that the firm has been blocking rivals in online-search advertising (November 3rd); and that it has favored its own shopping-comparison services over rivals (November 7th). In a few months the commission will hand down its verdicts, which are apt to include hefty fines. For Google, Europe’s lengthy effort to rein in how the search giant operates in the region represents a potential threat to the billions of dollars it earns annually from selling online advertising and other, often dominant, digital services across the Continent and beyond. But Google has plenty of opportunities to appeal and the final verdict won’t arrive for years.
You can read more here.
Facebook takes on PC Steam with the Gameroom platform
Facebook, that was once home to some addictive and extremely popular games, soon began losing to Android and iOS. Now, it has decided to give a big push into PC gaming with the Gameroom. So, Gameroom is a PC app that will let users play web, ported mobile and native Gameroom games on the platform. Facebook has also posted a video showing how to integrate your Unity game with Facebook Gameroom. Clearly, it will go head-on with Steam, which has about 125 million active users. Steam may be everyone’s favourite, but lets not forget Facebook has a large user base. Many believe that Gamesroom could serve as a place for developers to bring heir games to attention of the hordes of Facebook users.
More info are available here.
Google officially ends support for Eclipse Android Developer Tools in favor of Android Studio
Google today said that it has stopped supporting and developing Google Android Developer Tools (ADT) plugin for the Eclipse integrated development environment (IDE). Android Studio is the official IDE for Android development, and now Google wants to push all Android developers to it, following the release of version 2.2. All of the tools that are in the Eclipse plugin are present in Android Studio, which is a free download on Windows, Mac OS, and Linux. Current projects built in Eclipse should still work well enough, but taking advantage of new Android features will be harder and harder from here on out.
You can read more here.
Top new products
Huawei Mate 9 Porsche Design launched
The limited edition, designer smartphone will only be launched in a Graphite Black colour variant, and go on sale in late December via European Porsche Design Stores. It will also be available in January from Porsche Design Stores worldwide, and select Huawei retail stores in Asia, Middle East, and Europe. Whereas the Mate 9 is quite large at 5.9-inches, the Huawei Mate 9 Porsche Design is more manageable thanks to a 5.5-inch panel. That panel also sports a bit of a curve and carries a resolution of 2,560 x 1,440. A QHD panel is glorious, but that’s not the only major change for the Huawei Mate 9 Porsche Design smartphone. It will have 6GB of RAM under the hood instead of 4GB and the storage capacity is listed at a whopping 256GB. Everything else will essentially stay the same on the inside with the exception of the charging port which is a USB Type-C 3.0 port instead of a 2.0 slot.
You can read more here.
Zotac launches VR GO Backpack PC with GeForce GTX 1070
ZOTAC has formally introduced its VR GO backpack PC designed for virtual reality enthusiasts. The system is equipped with NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX 1070 graphics, a quad-core CPU from Intel, rich I/O capabilities and a hot-swappable battery. Despite its positioning, the VR GO can be used like a normal desktop computer, which differentiates it from early prototypes of wearable VR PCs from other makers. Inside the ZOTAC VR GO there is a custom motherboard in a proprietary form-factor carrying an Intel Core i7 CPU, two DDR4 SO-DIMMs, an M.2 SSD (PCIe 3.0 x4), an 802.11ac Wi-Fi module and NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX 1070 MXM module. To cool down the CPU and the GPU (a total TDP of 150 W), ZOTAC uses a proprietary low-profile air cooling system but has not disclosed details.
More info here.
Google Daydream View VR headset will be available in store starting November 10
Daydream View, which Google announced just under a month ago, is a smartphone-based VR headset. The device runs on Google’s Daydream platform, which is integrated into Nougat, the latest version of Android. Daydream View currently works with Google’s new Pixel and Pixel XL phones, and other compatible devices are coming soon from third-party manufacturers. Google is releasing Daydream View in one color for now, Slate (gray), and will flesh out the lineup with Crimson (red) and Snow (white) units by the end of the year. The headset comes with the Daydream controller, a small plastic remote that features two buttons and fits into the “door” of the headset.
You can read more here.
Top interesting info
Google disclosed details about a critical vulnerability in Windows, and Microsoft isn’t happy about it
The bug can be used to bypass the security sandboxing in the Windows32K system, Google said in a blog post. Compounding the issue, Google said it reported the bug to Microsoft 10 days ago but the company has done nothing to address the issue publicly. “After seven days, per our published policy for actively exploited critical vulnerabilities, we are today disclosing the existence of a remaining critical vulnerability in Windows for which no advisory or fix has yet been released,” Google wrote. “This vulnerability is particularly serious because we know it is being actively exploited.”
Microsoft didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment but apparently wasn’t pleased by Google’s revelation.
You can read more here.
LinkedIn now tells you how much you should be earning, in exchange for your salary info
LinkedIn is tapping into its data to bring you deeper insights in regards to how much money you should be making. LinkedIn Salary is the business-oriented social network’s new tool that provides detailed information on the factors that impact your salary, from location to experience. However, there is one catch: If you want to use LinkedIn Salary, you must first tell the platform how much you’re currently earning. LinkedIn promises that your salary data will be encrypted, and remain separate from your identity and profile. LinkedIn Premium members, on the other hand, will have access to the tool without the need to provide their salary information. The company claims the tool can point out the educational requirements that will most benefit your earning potential, and tally how experience will change your income in a particular field.
More info can be found here.
Samsung considering offering Galaxy Note 7 customers discounts on new Galaxy S8, S8 Plus and Note 8 upon release
Samsung is in full crisis mode with its Galaxy Note 7 cancellation, as reports say loyal users will abandon future devices from the company. In an effort to make up for its Galaxy Note 7 blunder, the company is reportedly considering Note 7 customers a discount offer on next year’s Samsung Galaxy S8, S8 Plus and Galaxy Note 8 (if the company doesn’t kill the Note series entirely). It will be interesting to see if Samsung actually goes through with this plan and how much of an impact it will have on regaining customer confidence in its new smartphones.
You can read more here.
