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Nintendo delivers solid Q2 performance with strong software sales offsetting drops in hardware sales and revenues.

Nintendo recently reported its Q2 Fiscal Year 2023 results and the numbers are quite impressive, especially as the yen depreciates against the dollar. Using data published by Nintendo, we have converted earnings into USD based on the exchange rates included in the company's quarterly earnings reports.

Read Also Nintendo Switch hits 114.3 million shipments, will beat PS4 by end of 2022

The Buick Electra electric vehicle crossover prototype has been spotted out in public, while General Motors remains silent about models and specifications.

We aren't even sure what to call the secretive prototype, so it's temporarily called the Electra SUV - and it was covered up well. It's unknown if this is closer to a Blazer EV or a Chevrolet Equinox EV - or maybe neither - as there is no official announcement.

The vehicle could be riding on 20" wheels wrapped with Michelin e-Primacy tires - and features a tri-bar third brake light.

Scientists have detected a black hole more than a million light years away from Earth engulfing a star, causing what researchers refer to as a "Tidal Disruption Event".

The new study published in the scientific journal Nature Astronomy details that Tidal Disruption Events happen when a black hole sucks up a nearby star, essentially shredding all of its available matter and energy much like a paper being put through a shredder. Throughout this process a blast of radiation and energy can be released by the black hole and that's exactly what caught astronomers' eyes when this middle-weight black hole consumed a star within the distant dwarf galaxy.

Researchers believe that measuring the blast of radiation will allow them to learn more about black holes and their relationship within dwarf galaxies. In particular, the researchers say that blast caused by the Tidal Disruption Event can provide insight into how researchers measure black hole in the future as well as how black holes go about consuming nearby stars.

Twitter rolled out its Twitter Blue subscription service on November 9, and temporarily users noticed two check verification check marks scattered across the platform.

Before Musk changed everything to do with verification check marks, accounts would receive the typical blue verification check mark after providing Twitter with accurate information on the identity of the owner of the account. Typically, accounts given the blue verified checkmark pre-Musk's takeover also had to have a considerable amount of followers, or met other criteria. Now, check marks can be purchased with Twitter Blue, leading to thousands of parody accounts being created of companies, public figures, and celebrities.

Now, Twitter has rolled out another check mark that was briefly seen when Twitter Blue launched, gray checks. The "official" gray checks are seemingly coming back, but to only a few big-name accounts such as Amazon, Nike, Coca-Cola, The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Wall Street Journal, Wired, Twitter's own account, and more.

NASA's Artemis 1 vehicle was positioned on Launch Pad 39B at NASA's Kennedy Space Center when it was smacked by maelstrom Nicole.

Nicole hit NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket with the attached Orion capsule on November 10, and as it rolled in from the coast, it was deemed a Category 1 hurricane but later changed to a weakened tropical storm as it moved more inland. NASA officials have reported that the Artemis 1 rocket and Orion capsule have experienced high-speed winds and rain but have made it through the several hours of panic with minimal damage.

According to reports, sensors located at the Launch Pad 39B indicate that wind speed peaked at around 82 mph while at an altitude of 60 feet, which is actually within the rocket's designed capabilities. According to a statement from NASA on November 8, the SLS rocket is designed to withstand wind speeds of up to 85 mph at 60 feet - talk about a close call.

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, which has been in operational service for 32 years and counting, witnessed the moment a star started exploding more than 11 billion years ago.

A new study published in the scientific journal Nature details a team of astronomers combing through Hubble's observational data from 2010 when they realized that the space telescope witnessed a star exploding. Notably, NASA explains on its website that witnessing a star exploding, or more accurately, going supernova, is actually quite a rare event as the period of time that it can be detected ranges from a few hours to just a few days. Hubble managed to capture a sequence of images that show the progression of the supernova.

NASA explains in its blog post on its website that this supernova happened when the universe was extremely young, less than a fifth of its current age of 13.8 billion years. Furthermore, the space agency writes that the observation wouldn't have been possible without a phenomenon called gravitation lensing, which was caused by the galaxy cluster Abell 370.

SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk has sent out his first company-wide email where he outlined the current state of Twitter and what the company has ahead of it.

The email was picked up by several publications, and according to reports, it was sent out to Twitter employees at 2:39 am ET on Wednesday. The billionaire first apologized for this email being the first one he's sent out since he acquired the company on October 27, but then went on to explain the overall situation at Twitter is dire. Musk explained that the "economic picture ahead is dire" and that Twitter is overly dependent on advertising, with 70% of its advertising being "brand rather than performance".

Musk explains that since Twitter is so advertiser reliant, he has been directing his attention toward the launch of Twitter Blue Verified Subscriptions as he believes the company needs a consistent revenue stream. Musk writes that without significant subscription revenue, there is a good chance that Twitter "will not survive the upcoming economic downturn". Musk added that Twitter needs approximately half of its total revenue to be from Twitter Blue subscriptions.

German automaker Volkswagen has big plans for its ID. Buzz vehicle, with a specific interest in software, offers a unique driving experience. Interested drivers will be able to select between a passenger version and a cargo van.

Using swarm data generated by thousands of Volkswagen vehicles, VW's Travel Assist helps drivers keep the middle of the lane. The system can adjust based on a driver's driving style. Volkswagen has spent years researching and developing swarm data, which will remain a major endeavor as vehicles inch their way closer to fully autonomous driving support.

Simply tapping the turn signal when the vehicle is traveling 55 mph or faster supports lane changes - once sensors don't detect any objects or vehicles nearby - the ID. Buzz is able to automatically steer itself into another lane.

Since Elon Musk has taken over Twitter, top executives at the company have departed, with two more top executives recently leaving and describing their experience at the social media company as "Game of Thrones"- like.

A new report from NBC News has revealed that top Twitter executives such as Twitter's Chief Information Security Officer, Lea Kissner, along with Twitter's Chief Compliance Officer, Marianne Fogarty, officially resigned Wednesday night, following the rollout of Twitter Blue and the slew of account impersonations that have and still are taking place.

The publication reports that the top executives left the company only hours before SpaceX CEO Elon Musk sent out his very first email to Twitter employees, which was titled "difficult times ahead". The email implemented a mandatory return-to-work policy. Fogarty recently took to Twitter and wrote, "I don't watch Game of Thrones. I certainly don't want to play it at work." The roller coaster at Twitter has attracted the attention of the Federal Trade Commission, as a spokesperson for the government agency recently wrote that the agency is "tracking recent developments at Twitter with deep concern".

Ahead of its public debut during the LA Auto Show later this month, the Porsche 911 Dakar underwent testing on gravel, sand, and snow. The Dakar model name is a nod to the victory by Porsche in the 1984 Paris-Dakar rally with a purpose-built Porsche 911 car.

Overall, Porsche tested the 911 Dakar for 300,000 miles in different weather conditions, including 6,000 miles of off-road testing. These varying environments gave Porsche the best baseline on how the car drives in any type of weather or terrain.

During testing on sand dunes in Dubai and Morocco, the 911 Dakar conquered a 160-ft. steep dune climb with outside air temperature topping 113 degrees Fahrenheit.

Impersonation has become a point of contention on Twitter following Elon Musk's newly revised and rolled out Twitter Blue subscription service that allows paying customers to gain the iconic verification checkmark badge.

The new Twitter Blue service became available on November 9, and since then, numerous accounts across various industries have decided to pay the $7.99 fee to receive their blue verified check mark and a range of other features. Leading up to the release of Twitter Blue, there was a wave of already-verified accounts impersonating Elon Musk, with celebrities and public figures such as H3 Podcast host Ethan Klein and comic Kathy Griffin changing their display names to "Elon Musk" and then posting several tweets in an attempt to impersonate his account.

Now that Twitter Blue is available, we are seeing this account impersonation spread beyond just targeting Elon Musk, with companies such as Nintendo, Twitch, Valve, and many more becoming victims of impersonation. Most notably, Twitter's own Twitter account was impersonated by a random user that created a new Twitter account, paid for Twitter Blue to receive the verification badge, and then proceeded to post a tweet that claimed Twitter Blue was now free for crypto/NFT holders who "authenticated" their digital wallet assets by clicking a link.

Swedish automaker Volvo has unveiled the all-electric EX90 SUV, as the company lays the groundwork for a fully electric future. Each EX90 will have next-generation LiDAR and software support to enhance safety for everyone in the EV.

Volvo is known for industry-leading safety and promotes the EX90 as a vehicle able to understand drivers - and will be able to keep drivers and passengers safe with help from constant learning. Volvo teamed up with NVIDIA to roll out the tech company's DRIVE platform, which creates a full 360-degree view around the vehicle, done in real-time. The car LiDAR sensors were designed to assist drivers identify - and avoid - any safety hazards while in motion.

A single charge should provide upwards of 300 miles of driving - and can recharge from 10 to 80 percent somewhere around 30 minutes. The dual-motor configuration is supported with a 111-kWh battery pack, and it's unknown how that will change based on trim configurations.

The push from traditional internal combustion engines towards an electric future is inevitable, with automakers and governments sorting themselves out. Although EV batteries heavily rely on lithium-ion now, researchers hope seaweed-based nanomaterials can one day offer a more energy-efficient storage platform.

The seaweed-inspired battery separator is strong enough to prevent punctures by sodium-created metal structures - and successfully keeps the plus and minus ends separate for the charge to freely move.

EVs are noticeably pricy when released which is heavily influenced by the high costs of lithium procurement - and producing the heavy battery packs. Researchers and engineers are keen to find more sustainable solutions to lithium batteries. Researchers from the University of Bristol, University College London, and Imperial College found brown seaweed cellulose nanomaterials to be an effective alternative.

Final Fantasy XVI launches Summer 2023 on PlayStation 5, and depending on its actual launch date the game could also release on other platforms next year as well.

We know that Square Enix's new mainline Final Fantasy game is exclusive to PlayStation 5, but for how long? Sony revealed the news in a new PlayStation promo reel which confirms Final Fantasy 16 is only exclusive to PS5 consoles for six months after launch.

"Final Fantasy XVI anticipated Summer 2023. PS5 exclusive for six months," the video says.

NVIDIA is only a few days away from launching its second Ada Lovelace GPU, with the upcoming GeForce RTX 4080 graphics card starting from $1199... and now we know where the top-end pricing will end up: $1549, thanks to MicroCenter.

MicroCenter has officially listed the pricing of an entire stack of AIB partners and their custom GeForce RTX 4080 graphics cards, with 13 custom models that start from $1199 ranging up to $1549. The cheapest custom GeForce RTX 4080 graphics cards come from GIGABYTE and ZOTAC in the form of the GeForce RTX 4080 EAGLE and GeForce RTX 4080 Trinity graphics cards both priced at $1199.

ASUS and PNY also have custom GeForce RTX 4080 graphics cards in the form of the TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 4080 which will also cost $1199, so too will PNY's upcoming GeForce RTX 4080 XLR8 VERTO graphics card. From there, there are a few bumps in pricing by $40 to the GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 4080 EAGLE OC, another $30 on top for GIGABYTE's GeForce RTX 4080 GAMING OC, and then $10 more above that ($1279) for MSI's custom GeForce RTX 4080 VENTUS 3X OC graphics card.

TSMC has been busy making 7nm wafers for a bunch of different companies over the years, and while you might not know it, you're probably using at least one product in your house that uses a chip based on the 7nm process node at TSMC.

AMD is building the semi-custom SoCs inside of the Sony PlayStation 5 and Microsoft Xbox Series X/S consoles, as well as its range of Zen CPUs (up until its latest Zen 4 CPU which switched over to TSMC's new 5nm process node) and its Radeon RX 5000 and Radeon RX 6000 series GPUs (while its new Radeon RX 7000 series are also based on TSMC's new 5nm process node).

Intel has been tapping TSMC's 7nm process node for a while now, Qualcomm as well, and also MediaTek... oh and we can't forget Apple. You can see TSMC has been busy with making 7nm chips for everyone, but with hundreds of millions of 7nm-based products shipped... the 7nm party is winding down and coming to an end.

Razer currently has its Blade 14, Blade 15, and Blade 17 gaming laptops with 14-inch, 15-inch, and 17-inch displays, respectively... but it looks like there's something bigger coming on the horizon.

In a new leak on Geekbench, the purported Razer Blade 18 gaming laptop has been tested and it is shaping up to be quite the powerhouse. We should expect a larger 18-inch display (making it the largest display on any Razer laptop yet) as well as it being the first laptop from Razer that will feature an Intel HX-series CPU: a desktop-class CPU that's designed for the laptop BGA package.

Intel's upcoming Core i9-13900HX "Raptor Lake" CPU will feature 24 cores and 32 threads of CPU power, matching the desktop Core i9-13900K processor, with the Core i9-13900HX laptop CPU to boost up to 5.4GHz inside of Razer's upcoming Blade 18 gaming laptop.

Ex-BioWare developer and games industry veteran Mark Darrah shares his thoughts on the $68.7 billion Microsoft-Activision buyout deal.

The Microsoft-Activision merger is shaking up the industry and has major implications for the future of the video games market. We've heard Sony, Microsoft, and a number of publishers argue their points on the matter through regulatory filings. We've seen lots of information, including how much Xbox Game Pass and Nintendo Switch Online made in 2021. But we haven't really heard the opinions from developers on the front lines of the industry--especially those that have spent decades at video game studios.

Mark Darrah, who had spent over 20 years at BioWare, recently gave his thoughts on the merger and consolidation in general. Darrah's opinion is noteworthy because he has not only shipped multiple high-profile games, but also gone through consolidations first-hand--Darrah was at the studio when EA purchased BioWare in 2007. Darrah is familiar with the shifts required not only in the games business itself but also the kinds of things that happen post-acquisition.

The Switch may soon be the best-selling console on the market as total lifetime Switch shipments break114 million worldwide.

The Nintendo Switch handheld-console hybrid has now reached 114.33 million shipments worldwide since its launch in March 2017. If Nintendo meets its shipment target, and it's very likely that it will, then the Switch will achieve over 126 million shipments by March 2023 and become the top console in terms of sell-in, beating the PlayStation 4's current 117.2 million figure.

Nintendo actually shipped less Switch units in Q2. Overall Switch shipments were down by some 580,000 units during the quarter, with 3.25 million Switch systems shipped in Q2'23 as compared to 3.83 million in Q2'22. Total Fiscal Year 2023 Switch shipments are at 6.68 and Nintendo needs to ship at least 12.23 million more Switch consoles in order to meet its yearly sales forecast.

To commemorate Ford's launch of the F-150 Lightning Lariat this year, the Legoland Florida Resort had a special idea in mind. A full 1:1 replica was created with 320,740 Lego bricks and took a team of 15 Master Builders 1,600 hours. The full build weighed in at 3,730 pounds.

The design team used a honeycomb-like structure to prevent the Lego blocks from collapsing due to the weight - much of the total weight is the steel frame inside the structure. The use of CAD programs and other design software helped design the Lego truck's curves and contours. Even the headlights and rear lights are functional, with the team clearly taking a realistic approach to developing their Lego model of the electric truck.

Lego's Master Builder is an actual position with a salary, reserved for a select few model designers and creative minds. One of their objectives is to create massive Lego builds for retail display or public events with heavy foot traffic to draw attention. The team is tasked with developing elaborate builds that seem impossible - and shouldn't be possible - just to show what can be done with Lego blocks.