Woman's Apple Watch detects heart condition the hospital missed

Shane McGlaun | Wearable Computing & Fashion | May 4, 2020 4:08 PM CDT

A key feature of the current generation Apple Watch wearable is its ECG function that has discovered heart conditions in people all around the world who had no idea they had the condition. Recently, an 80-year-old woman in Germany was warned of a heart condition by her Apple Watch that the hospital had missed in an ECG that was performed previously. The woman had visited the hospital at the University Medical Center Mainz of Johannes Gutenberg University in Germany with what the medical team called "typical angina symptoms."

Woman's Apple Watch detects heart condition the hospital missed

The woman had experienced situations where she almost lost consciousness due to the reduced flow of oxygenated blood to the brain. The woman had previously been diagnosed with arterial hypertension, paroxysmal atrial fibrillation, and she previously had a pulmonary embolism. Doctors at the hospital ordered a 12-Channel ECG, which didn't see any evidence of ischemia, which is a restriction in blood vessels that can restrict the blood supply.

The medical staff was reportedly convinced that the woman had some sort of issue due to previous ectopic heartbeat episodes that were recorded using the ECG function of her Apple Watch. The physicians opted to treat the woman based on the recordings that the Apple Watch made. In a nutshell, the Apple Watch was able to diagnose an issue that the hospital's equipment didn't find.

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Don't buy Streets of Rage 2 on GOG if you want to play online

Derek Strickland | Gaming | May 4, 2020 3:34 PM CDT

Streets of Rage 4 is local co-op only on GOG.com, and won't get online functionality, developer LizardCube confirms.

Don't buy Streets of Rage 2 on GOG if you want to play online

Streets of Rage 4 is all the rage right now, and there's tons of places to buy it. But if you want to play online with friends, you'll probably want to avoid the GOG version. The game is offline-only on GOG and can only played singleplayer or via local co-op. The devs say online play with friends simply won't be added to the game: "Hello, unfortunately the GOG version of the game won't be supporting online features," LizardCube wrote on Twitter.

The GOG storefront listing warns players about the missing online features, which is great, but it also hints online functionality could be added later on. "Please note that at this time, the DRM-Free version supports local co-op only with up to 4 players. The 2-player online mode is not available," reads the GOG storefront listing.

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Valve announces the end of SteamVR support for macOS

Shane McGlaun | Business, Financial & Legal | May 4, 2020 3:01 PM CDT

When it comes to gaming, there aren't nearly as many options out there for Mac users as there are for Windows users. One of the bright spots for Mac gaming has been Steam, with some of the games offered there supporting Mac operating systems. Mac users who want to enjoy VR games had SteamVR to take advantage of, but that is changing.

Valve announces the end of SteamVR support for macOS

Valve recently posted a very terse announcement on the Steam Community forums that SteamVR has ended macOS support. The announcement says that support has ended for Mac computers to allow the team to focus on Windows and Linux development. SteamVR is recommending that macOS users continue to opt into the SteamVR macOS branches for access to legacy builds.

Users can opt into a branch by right-clicking on SteamVR in Steam and selecting properties, Betas. This means that Mac users will continue to be able to use VR, but no new features will be coming. The change also means the potential for future security or compatibility issues to surface.

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HP Omen 27i gaming monitor debuts rocking 2560 x 1440 resolution

Shane McGlaun | Displays & Projectors | May 4, 2020 2:04 PM CDT

HP has debuted a new gaming monitor that is called the Omen 27i Gaming Monitor. It uses a Nano IPS panel that gives a color gamut of DCI-P3 98%. The high color gamut means that the display will provide deeper hues and more accurate colors with a 25% wider color gamut than sRGB. HP says that "largely nullifies color degradation from shallower angles."

HP Omen 27i gaming monitor debuts rocking 2560 x 1440 resolution

The native resolution for the display is quad HD, meaning 2560x1440, and it has 350 nits brightness. Other features include NVIDIA G-Sync compatibility that eliminates issues with display stutter, input lag, and screen tears. HP also bakes in support for AMD FreeSync technology for AMD graphics cards. The refresh rate is 165 Hz, and the screen has 1 ms response time with overdrive. Viewing angles are 178-degrees horizontal and vertical

The screen measures 27-inches diagonally with dual pillar height. The stand is adjustable, and it has four easy access tilted ports. On the rear of the display is an immersive diamond panel lighting solution that is controlled via the OMEN Command Center. That solution helps reduce eye fatigue by matching an adjustable ambient light to the color of what's on the computer screen.

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The Last of Us 2 made Neil Druckmann cry, dev teases ambitious sequel

Derek Strickland | Gaming | May 4, 2020 1:33 PM CDT

The Last of Us 2 has gone gold and is ready to ship. After years of development, crunch, and passionate work, Naughty Dog's most ambitious project to date is finished. The milestone is pretty emotional for the dev team, especially creative director Neil Druckmann.

The Last of Us 2 made Neil Druckmann cry, dev teases ambitious sequel

Games take a long time to make, so when you finally submit your gold master, it's a big event for any studio. In a recent Instagram post, Naughty Dog dev Neil Druckmann highlights what this means for the team and shares the kinds of feelings that surround a game's launch. He also talks about the leaks and mentions gamers just aren't prepared for the sequel until they play it.

"We have gone gold. Back in April we told you that due to the state of the world which was way beyond our control we had to push the game, which gave us a few extra weeks to polish," Druckmann said. "Now that we have a release date, we've submitted our gold master. That means the executable has been put on the PlayStation Network and you're going to have our game in just a few short weeks."

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Samsung confirms the Galaxy Fold 2 and Galaxy Note 20

Typically, smartphone makers keep their plans for future devices close to the vest. Leaks certainly aren't uncommon, but rarely will you find a smartphone manufacturer who confirms future devices ahead of their official unveiling. However, Samsung recently did just that with confirmation in its Q1 financial results that the Galaxy Note 20 and the Galaxy Fold 2 are both coming in the second half of 2020.

Samsung confirms the Galaxy Fold 2 and Galaxy Note 20

Samsung went so far as to call the new devices "differentiated products in the premium segment." The confirmation of the devices coming in the second half of 2020 comes after a rumor surfaced last week that the Note 20 would use an upgraded chipset. A new report says that Samsung had originally planned to use the Snapdragon 865+ chipset, but production delays caused by coronavirus meant that chipset wouldn't arrive in time.

Instead, the Note 20 will use Samsung's own upgraded Exynos 992. Another potential implication here is that devices launched in the United States could have an older Snapdragon under the hood instead. Forbes reports that a licensing agreement is in place that prevents Samsung from selling flagship smartphones with Exynos chips in the United States.

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New Jedi: Fallen Order update lets you make custom sandbox levels

Derek Strickland | Gaming | May 4, 2020 12:32 PM CDT

Hello there! Today's Star Wars Day, and Respawn just released a free content update for Jedi: Fallen Order that lets you set up your own horde mode battles on-the-fly.

New Jedi: Fallen Order update lets you make custom sandbox levels

The new Jedi: Fallen Order update is pretty ambitious. It centers around the Jedi power fantasy combat Respawn baked into the game--it's easy to use but hard to master--and basically lets you test your ultimate lightsaber skills. In Combat Challenges, players can jump into quick offline matchmaking-style arena battles against a set number of foes. It's basically a survival horde mode where you try to complete objectives like no healing or not taking damage and, of course, destroy everyone in your path.

The second mode, the Battle Grid, basically lets you create and plot out your own battles. It's like Fight Club, only in Star Wars. You can pick what enemies you want to fight, where you want to fight them, and lay out a progression scheme point system. Respawn is basically letting you make your own game here, and the grids can even be saved for later use. It's a great way to keep engagement flowing in a singleplayer-only game.

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Apple updates 13-inch MacBook Pro with a new keyboard and more

Shane McGlaun | Laptops | May 4, 2020 12:03 PM CDT

Apple announced today the updated 13-inch MacBook Pro with the new Magic Keyboard to bring an improved typing experience. The new Magic Keyboard replaces the keyboard on the older machines that was vulnerable to failure. Along with adding a new keyboard to the small MacBook Pro, Apple also notes that it doubled the storage across all standard configurations adding more value to the notebook computers.

Apple updates 13-inch MacBook Pro with a new keyboard and more

The upgraded lineup also has 10th-generation Intel processors, and up to 80% faster graphics performance. Buyers can choose up to 16 GB of RAM as standard on some configurations. The updated laptop offers the 13-inch Retina display, Touch Bar, Touch ID, onboard stereo speakers, and more. The 13-inch MacBook Pro starts at $1299, or $1199 with the education discount.

Apple notes that with the new update, the entire line of MacBook Pro computers now uses the Magic Keyboard. This keyboard was first introduced on the 16-inch MacBook Pro last November. Magic Keyboard offers a redesigned scissor mechanism with 1 mm of key travel. The keyboard also has an inverted-T arrangement for the arrow keys to make them easier to find.

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Motorola razr buy one get one free deal available now

Shane McGlaun | Mobile Devices, Tablets & Phones | May 4, 2020 11:03 AM CDT

The Motorola razr smartphone hasn't turned out to be a very popular device so far taking flak for a fragile design and few redeeming qualities. One of the biggest downsides with the smartphone is the price for many at $1499.99. That high price tag and issues that have turned up with the device in reviews have made the razr not so popular with buyers.

Motorola razr buy one get one free deal available now

Anyone interested in the smartphone that was turned off by the price alone may find a deal that Motorola is offering on its official website very appealing. The deal is appealing assuming that you want two of the smartphones rather than one. Motorola is offering a buy one razr, get one free deal that allows you to mix-and-match colors. The deal essentially makes the price of the smartphone $750 each.

A lower price tag certainly won't make up for fragile build quality that has seen the screen peel at the fold of some devices or a Snapdragon processor that is slower than other similarly priced devices. However, for those who put more value on style than performance and want to be the first among their friends to get a folding device, the special deal may be precisely what they're waiting for.

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Microsoft Teams is being targeted by phishing attacks

Shane McGlaun | Business, Financial & Legal | May 4, 2020 9:59 AM CDT

There are many online chat and video chat services that are being used increasingly during the coronavirus pandemic around the world. One of those is Microsoft Teams, and with the significantly increased use of Teams also comes cybercriminals looking to take advantage of those using the service. A security research firm called Abnormal Security has announced that cybercriminals are using new phishing campaigns targeted at Teams users that are attempting to steal Microsoft account credentials.

Microsoft Teams is being targeted by phishing attacks

Abnormal Security says that it has discovered a series of convincing emails that are designed to spoof notification messages from Microsoft Teams. One of the campaigns the security researchers talk about is a phishing email that includes a link to a document on a domain used by a legitimate email marketing company for hosting content for marketing campaigns. The document that is linked to is an image that prompts users to sign into their Microsoft Teams account.

Anyone clicking on the image is taken to is a malicious page impersonating the Microsoft Office logon page with the intent of capturing the user credentials. Another campaign the security researchers found redirects the user to a page hosted on YouTube. That page is redirected two more times until reaching a fake Microsoft page that is attempting to steal login credentials.

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