Xbox Scorpio announced early to not piss gamers off

Anthony Garreffa | Gaming | Sep 26, 2016 1:15 AM CDT

Sony might win the console arm wrestle for the rest of the year and into 2016, but Microsoft announced its new Project Scorpio console a year early which has some console gamers waiting, and that's something Microsoft intended.

Microsoft's Senior Director of Product Management, Albert Pinello talked with TechRadar recently, where he talked about the announcements of both the recently released Xbox One S and Xbox Scorpio earlier this year at E3. He said: "We wanted to let people know in advance so that we didn't run into the opposite problem which is next year we announce Scorpio and we have people that bought Xbox One S and went 'Why didn't you tell me this was coming a year later? I would have waited".

It makes sense, with Microsoft announcing Xbox Scorpio early, gamers will know when it's coming - and that it's a powerful console, and will save for it.

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7nm CPU from AMD in 2019 with 8 threads, just 10W power

Anthony Garreffa | CPU, APU & Chipsets | Sep 26, 2016 12:20 AM CDT

AMD has been all over the next-gen CPU game, which seems to be looking to really take off with Zen launching in 2017, but the processors that will follow in the years after will be beyond impressive.

We're now hearing about CPUs that will arrive all the way out in 2019, with a 4-core/8-thread CPU on the 7nm FinFET process using Zen+ cores would use just 10W. The graphics side of these new codenamed Gray Hawk processors will be courtesy of the next-gen Navi GPU architecture due out in 2019, which was reportedly delayed from 2018 just recently.

Gray Hawk will be released after Raven Ridge, with Raven Ridge made on the 14nm process and due sometime in mid-2017. The new Gray Hawk architecture will be used in desktops, notebooks, arcade gaming systems, embedded devices, automation, retail signage to medical imaging and industrial control systems.

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Google tease 'Andromeda' as a merge of Android/Chrome OS

Anthony Garreffa | Software & Apps | Sep 25, 2016 11:44 PM CDT

While we're all distracted with the news of Google's upcoming media event for the unveiling of the next-gen Pixel smartphone, Android Police has an incredible tease for the future of Google, something that will be unveiled on October 4.

Google's next big thing is reportedly something massive for the company, with Horishi Lockmeimer - the Senior VP of Android, Google Play, and Chrome teasing on Twitter:

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Analogix acquired by Chinese consortium for $500 million

Anthony Garreffa | Business, Financial & Legal | Sep 25, 2016 10:24 PM CDT

Analogix Semiconductor have been one of my favorite companies of recent years, getting their exciting technology into a bunch of devices driving them into a totally new direction. Well, they've been acquired by a consortium led by Shanhai Capital for a whopping $500 million.

The $500 million deal is considerable, as it's one of the largest in recent history for the semiconductor industry, where billions of dollars are flowing through the market and into chipmakers. The chips that Analogix make are incredibly important, as they can drive high-res, multi-display and multiple peripherals through a single USB connector with no lag - it's impressive, to say the least.

Analogix make makes high-speed, mixed-signal chips for applications used in mobile devices, virtual/augmented reality (VR/AR), and other high-performance electronic products. Customers include Apple, Samsung, LG, Microsoft, Google, Lenovo, Dell, HP, ASUS, and HTC. The majority of the company's engineering resources are in Beijing, reports VentureBeat.

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Clinton's deleted emails won't go public before election

Anthony Garreffa | Business, Financial & Legal | Sep 25, 2016 9:11 PM CDT

We are edging closer to finding out the next US president, with Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump set to battle on November 8, but before then we have the first presidential debate tomorrow, September 26.

Well before the presidential debate, it would've been good to read over Hillary Clinton's private email server that was nuked clean of its purported classified emails that would have ended her run for the White House - and that won't be happening. The State Department will be publishing 1,050 pages of the 10,000+ that still haven't been released.

Americans want as much transparency as possible, as Engadget reported, and they deserve it - and will not get it, it seems. Judicial Watch and other activist groups are suing the government because of the relaxed nature of the US government in its handing over of the Clinton emails, and are accusing the State Department of creating an "absolutely corrupt process" for publishing data. Ouch.

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Palmer Luckey spends money on pro-Trump 'meme magic'

Anthony Garreffa | Business, Financial & Legal | Sep 25, 2016 8:51 PM CDT

Oculus founder Palmer Luckey is a funny guy, and it seems like he's up to some epic and probably expensive trolling as he's behind the Reddit pseudonym "NimbleRichMan," and has been funding that claims it has proven that "shitposting is powerful and meme magic is real".

The organization is called Nimble America, which is a pro-Trump organization that spreads anti-Hillary Clinton memes, and calls her a "corrupt, a warmonger, a freedom-stripper". Nimble America says that people will be offended by their Hillary Clinton memes because they hate Trump, because they can't stand to see successful people.

Luckey, through his Reddit name NimbleRichMan, said:

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The biggest telescope begins its search for alien life

Lana Jelic | Science, Space, Health & Robotics | Sep 25, 2016 7:33 PM CDT

The world's largest telescope had begun operating in China and it should help humanity search for alien life. The 500m Aperture Spherical Telescope (FAST) is located in the Dawodang depression, a natural basin in Pingtang County, Guizhou Province, southwest China. It consists of a fixed 500m dish constructed in a natural depression in the landscape.

It is the world's largest single-dish radio telescope (Arecibo Observatory held that title for 53 years) and the second largest radio telescope (after the Russian RATAN-600, which has a sparsely filled aperture). The final cost of the FAST telescope was $180 million and it took five years to build it. Its primary goal is to search for alien life but it will also be developed as a tourist attraction. Currently there are 71 people working for the FAST project.

The facility was opened at a ceremony on Sunday but it will take up to three years to calibrate the instrument so it can become fully operational. FAST will help us 'listen' to the universe and it will be able to detect radio waves from space. Scientists hope the FAST will play a key role in the discovery of alien life.

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Want to play Battlefield 1 early? Prepare for October 13

Anthony Garreffa | Gaming | Sep 25, 2016 7:26 PM CDT

We're now less than 30 days away from the release of Battlefield 1, after its major debut during E3 this year, and you can get into the game early - if you want.

EA Access members get 10 hours of game time with Battlefield 1 starting on October 13, and have to use those 10 hours wisely until the official release 5 days later on October 18 for Early Enlister Deluxe Edition, and then October 21 for everyone else. There will be both single-player and multiplayer, five maps to play on with Conquest mode, with progress carrying onto the full game. If you play the 10 hours through, you'll receive a Battlepack when Battlefield 1 launches on October 18.

The two missions included in the October 13 early release of Battlefield 1 are 'Storm of Steel' and 'Through Mud and Blood', but I think it'll be the multiplayer side of BF1 that has everyone talking. I played it as much as I could and fell in love with it, it was the only game that pulled me away from my Overwatch obsession.

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Huawei and Leica establish new R&D center for VR and AR

Lana Jelic | Virtual & Augmented Reality and 3D | Sep 25, 2016 6:33 PM CDT

Huawei has been flirting with virtual reality for quite some time, which isn't surprising since their goal is to be the 2nd biggest phone manufacturer in the world (they are 3rd at the moment) and they need to keep up with the competition. Samsung has its Gear VR, everyone's expecting Apple's step in the VR or AR direction, especially after announcing the iPhone 7 Plus with a dual camera, and even smaller companies like Alcatel are offering VR devices with their phones.

Last year I was at Huawei's headquarters in China where I talked to Kevin Ho, ‎President of Huawei's Handset Business Unit, and speaking about Huawei's future plans he did mention virtual reality as one of many possible goals in the company's future. He said that Huawei's long-term plan is to invest in smart homes, artificial intelligence, wearables, virtual reality and even self-driving cars.

Not even a year later, in April this year, Huawei announced their VR device simply named - Huawei VR. The Chinese giant launched it while unveiling P9 and P9 Plus smartphones in Shanghai. The device should go on sale later this year, presumably only in China cause there was no mention of Huawei VR on P9's global launch in London.

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Snapchat announces sunglasses with a built-in camera

Lana Jelic | Wearable Computing & Fashion | Sep 25, 2016 6:38 AM CDT

Snapchat gained its popularity for its messaging app and fun filters that many users have embraced. Now they announced their first gadget - a pair of sunglasses with an integrated video camera.

The device, which the company is calling Spectacles, will record 10-second clips. They connect directly to Snapchat via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi and transfer data directly into the app in Snapchat's new circular video format.

Circular video plays full screen on any device, in any orientation, and capture the human perspective with a 115-degree field of view. Snapchat introduced the circular video format to resolve the landscape vs. portrait video dilemma.

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