In a surprise announcement, CNBC reports that Jack Dorsey is expected to exit his role as Twitter CEO today. No additional information. You’ve got to hand it to the man. Whatever goes on at Twitter, Jack’s kept his plans tight.
Source: Gizmodo – Jack Dorsey Reportedly Stepping Down as Twitter CEO
The idea of surgery can be daunting. You’re unconscious while someone cuts into you, more or less, and there is nothing you can do about it—it is the height of helplessness. For some, none of that is a big deal. For others—especially first-timers—surgery can be really scary. Here are some tips for how to prepare for…
Source: LifeHacker – What to Do Before You Have Surgery
The UK competition regulator is expected to block Meta’s $315m acquisition of online gif platform Giphy in the coming days in an escalation of the watchdog’s assault on Big Tech. Financial Times: The Competition and Markets Authority is set to reverse the deal according to individuals close to the matter, in what would be the first time the CMA has unwound a Big Tech deal. The watchdog began investigating Meta’s acquisition of New-York based Giphy — the biggest provider of animated images known as gifs to social networks — in June last year. A decision to block the deal would set an eye-catching precedent from the UK regulator, which has never sought to reverse a completed tech deal. In August the CMA provisionally ruled Meta, formerly known as Facebook, should be forced to sell Giphy due to competition concerns. It has until December 1 to make a final call. At that time the CMA argued Meta could cut off its rivals’ access to gifs, and demand platforms like TikTok or Snapchat hand over more of their data in order to access gifs, consolidating power in Meta’s hands. The watchdog also said the deal could remove a competitor to Meta in the display advertising market in the UK, despite Giphy’s lack of presence in that sector.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot – UK Regulator Expected To Block Meta’s Giphy Deal
If you’re an iPhone, Mac, iPad and/or Apple Watch user who’s on the hunt for new earphones this Cyber Monday it’s worth checking out deals on AirPods. The second-generation AirPods are currently on sale for $100 on Amazon, a saving of $59. The price is $115 on the product page, but a $15 coupon is applied at checkout.
Buy Apple AirPods (2nd-gen) at Amazon – $100
We gave the second-gen AirPods a score of 84 in our review, giving them props for maintaining the same solid battery life as the first version and offering better wireless performance.
Elsewhere, you can also save on the most recent model. The third-gen Apple AirPods are currently $150 on Amazon, after a $20 coupon is applied. In total, Amazon has reduced the price by $29. We gave the third-gen AirPods a score of 88 in our review, in part due to the more comfortable design. The latest version offers better audio quality and a longer battery life.
Buy Apple AirPods (3rd-gen) at Amazon – $150
Get the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday offers by visiting our deals homepage and following @EngadgetDeals on Twitter.
All products recommended by Engadget are selected by our editorial team, independent of our parent company. Some of our stories include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
Source: Engadget – Apple’s second-gen AirPods are on sale for 0 right now
Enlarge / Artist’s impression of the James Webb Space Telescope in space. (credit: NASA)
Following a scare last week, NASA and European Space Agency officials have said they will continue launch preparations for the James Webb Space Telescope. The $10 billion instrument is slated to launch on a European-built Ariane 5 rocket no earlier than December 22.
NASA said that engineers have completed additional testing to ensure the telescope’s readiness for flight, and fueling operations began on November 25. The telescope has 20 small thrusters for maneuvering and will be filled with about 240 liters of hydrazine fuel and dinitrogen tetroxide oxidizer. The fueling process will take about 10 days.
The decision to press ahead with the Webb telescope’s launch countdown counts as good news after a slightly worrisome announcement one week ago. On November 22, NASA said it would delay the space telescope’s planned launch by a few days to investigate an “anomaly” during processing operations at the launch site in Kourou, French Guiana.
Read 5 remaining paragraphs | Comments
Source: Ars Technica – James Webb Space Telescope cleared for late December launch
Tired: “My favorite Christmas movie is Die Hard.”
Source: LifeHacker – 18 of the Best Non-Christmas Christmas Movies (That Aren’t ‘Die Hard’)
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey is expected to step down from his executive role, CNBC reported Monday citing sources.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot – Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey Expected To Step Down, Sources Say
Chloé Zhao keeps on teasing her western take on Dracula. More set pictures from The Last of Us tease a familiar locale. Plus, the CW teases what’s next on Riverdale, The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow, and more, and the Sontarans strike in a new tease for Doctor Who’s season finale. Spoilers away!
Source: Gizmodo – Ghostbusters’ Post-Afterlife Future Could Include More Familiar Faces
The holiday shopping season is one of the best times of year to look for a new vacuum — robotic or not. We’ve seen numerous models go on sale before and during Black Friday, and now a new Cyber Monday sale has knocked iRobot devices down to new record lows. Key among them are the new poop-detecting j7 duo of robot vacuums, both of which are $200 off. The Roomba j7 has dropped to $449 while the j7+, which comes with a clean base, is down to $649. Those prices are being matched at Best Buy and Wellbots, too.
Buy Roomba j7 at Amazon – $449Buy Roomba j7+ at Amazon – $649Shop Roomba Cyber Monday sale at Amazon
“Poop-detecting” might sound gimmicky, but these robot vacuums have new AI-driven computer vision technology that helps them detect obstacles as they clean so they can move around them. That means, instead of bumping into chair legs and tables, these machines will do a better job of cleaning around those permanent fixtures in your home — and they’ll more easily avoid surprise hazards like pet poop. And if your new robo-vac doesn’t avoid your pet’s latest mess, iRobot’s Pet Owner Official Promise (yes, P.O.O.P.) ensures that you’ll get a new vacuum if such a disaster happens within your first year of ownership.
Otherwise, the j7 devices are higher-end Roombas, so they have features like dual multi-surface rubber brushes and Imprint Smart Mapping, which lets you control which rooms the robot cleans. The biggest difference between the j7 and the j7+ is the inclusion of the clean base on the latter. When it returns home to charge, the j7+ will automatically empty its bin into the clean base and you’ll only have to empty the base about once every two months.
A number of more affordable Roombas are included in the sale, too, like the Roomba 694, which remains on sale for $179. This is one of our favorite budget robot vacuums thanks to its good cleaning abilities and easy to use mobile app. You can also get the top-of-the-line Roomba, the s9+, with the Braava Jet mopping robot for over $450 off, bringing it down to $1,299.
Get the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday offers by visiting our deals homepage and following @EngadgetDeals on Twitter.
All products recommended by Engadget are selected by our editorial team, independent of our parent company. Some of our stories include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
Source: Engadget – The Roomba j7+ vacuum hits new all-time low in iRobot’s Cyber Monday sale
Do you hear coughing and wheezing sounds coming from your PC? If so, it might be time to finally retire that aging CPU you’ve been holding onto for such a long time and treat yourself to an upgrade (or a brand new PC build). Other than the videocard situation being what it is (crummy), now is an otherwise good time to upgrade your system,
Source: Hot Hardware – Cyber Monday AMD Ryzen Deals Bring Ryzen 7 5800X And More To The Lowest Prices Ever
We review the popular Endless OS as Linux Desktop with the new features and updates of the latest version 4.0.
Source: LXer – Endless OS Review – Desktop Linux Done Right for the Masses
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey is expected to step down from his executive role, CNBC reported Monday citing sources.
Update: Twitter CTO Parag Agrawal will replace Jack Dorsey as CEO, the company announced. From a report: Dorsey, 45, was serving as both the CEO of Twitter and Square, his digital payments company. Dorsey will remain a member of the board until his term expires at the 2022 meeting of stockholders, the company said. Salesforce President and COO Bret Taylor will become the chairman of the board, succeeding Patrick Pichette, a former Google executive, who will remain on the board as chair of the audit committee.
“I’ve decided to leave Twitter because I believe the company is ready to move on from its founders,” Dorsey said in a statement, though he didn’t provide any additional detail on why he decided to resign. Agrawal will have to meet Twitter’s aggressive internal goals. The company said earlier this year it aims to have 315 million monetizable daily active users by the end of 2023 and to at least double its annual revenue in that year.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot – Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey Steps Down
Try as I might to keep my indoor plants alive, I am not a natural plant mom. If you’re similarly incompetent, but still want to keep a little slice of nature in your home, let me present to you: the glorious ecosphere.
Source: LifeHacker – Stop Killing Houseplants (Create a Self-Sustaining Ecosphere Instead)
If you’re still on the hunt for a good gift for the Android fan in your life, one of Samsung’s latest smartwatches is a solid option. The Galaxy Watch 4 is our favorite smartwatch for Android users, and Amazon’s Cyber Monday sale bundles the wearable with a speedy wireless charger while also knocking the price down to a record low. You can get the Galaxy Watch 4 with the charger for as low as $200, which is $110 off its normal price and the lowest we’ve seen it. The price will vary a bit depending on the specific size and model you choose, but overall, this one-day-only sale presents a good opportunity to pick up a new smartwatch and a key accessory for less.
Buy Galaxy Watch 4 bundle at Amazon – $200Shop Samsung Cyber Monday deals at Amazon
We gave the Galaxy Watch 4 and the Watch 4 Classic a score of 85 when we reviewed them thanks in part to their attractive designs, bright screens and comprehensive health tracking. These devices are the first to run Wear OS with the new One UI, and thankfully those who liked Samsung’s Tizen operating system will find that not much has changed here. But since it now has more Google support, you’ll be able to do things like download apps directly from the Play Store and the watch has better third-party app support in general. And for those who want a wearable primarily for health tracking, you’re getting the best Samsung has to offer here with a new 3-in-1 biometric sensor that enables bioelectrical impedance analysis, all-day heart rate monitoring, features like snore detection and more.
The biggest difference between the Watch 4 and the Watch 4 Classic is the rotating bezel on the latter and its stainless steel frame, making it a better option for those who want a more classic-timepiece look in their wearable. The bundled wireless charger can not only power up the watch, but it can also charge a smartphone or a pair of wireless earbuds at the same time thanks to its second, larger charging pad.
The Galaxy Watch discounts are part of a larger Cyber Monday Samsung sale on Amazon, which includes deals on wireless earbuds, too. The Galaxy Buds Pro are 33 percent off today only, bringing them down to $135, and the Galaxy Buds 2 with a Samsung SmartTag are 38 percent off, knocking the bundle down to $110.
Buy Galaxy Buds Pro at Amazon – $135Buy Galaxy Buds 2 bundle at Amazon – $110
Get the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday offers by visiting our deals homepage and following @EngadgetDeals on Twitter.
All products recommended by Engadget are selected by our editorial team, independent of our parent company. Some of our stories include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
Source: Engadget – Samsung’s Galaxy Watch 4 and wireless charger drop to 0 for Cyber Monday
Going into lockdown during the pandemic provided an unexpected boon to a farmer in Rutland, England: he stumbled upon the remains of an old Roman mosaic and surrounding villa complex, dating back to between 300 and 400 CE. Archaeologists are hailing the find as one of the most significant mosaics yet found in Great Britain, and the entire site has been declared a protected area. It will be featured next year on the British documentary TV series Digging for Britain.
This isn’t the first interesting archaeological find from the Roman occupation of Britain. For instance, back in 2018, we reported that archaeologists flying over a prehistoric settlement in southern Wales had spotted the ghostly outline of a Roman villa on the ground inside a known older prehistoric settlement’s boundaries. And in 2020, a 2000-year-old stylus (the equivalent of a cheap souvenir, complete with a suitably corny inscription) turned up in a collection of some 1,400 artifacts that had been excavated from a site on the banks of the River Walbrook, a tributary of the Thames that now flows beneath the city’s streets.
A member of the team from University of Leicester Archaeological Services during excavations of a large mosaic in Rutland, UK. (credit: Historic England)
As Kiona Smith wrote at the time:
Read 5 remaining paragraphs | Comments
Source: Ars Technica – UK farmer went for a walk, stumbled on remains of rare Roman mosaic and villa
The Linux Vendor Firmware Service (LVFS) and FWUPD on their great upward trajectory has in recent times been expanding beyond their initial focus of desktop/laptop hardware to supporting more server platforms for firmware updating. The latest feature driven by their growing server interests is “best known configuration” handling for where there are multiple independently-versioned firmware packages for a given system and may be support recommendations or potential version conflicts between the the different firmware packages…
Source: Phoronix – FWUPD Linux Firmware Updater Prepares “Best Known Configuration” Feature
Letting in some natural light can really brighten up your home, especially during the winter months. However, while traditional skylights are an option, they can be costly and add to heating and cooling costs. Tubular skylights are a good alternative, providing natural light year round without losing as much…
Source: LifeHacker – Why ‘Tubular Skylights’ Are Great for Brightening Up Your Home
Enlarge (credit: Peloton)
I’m a bit of a fitness nerd year-round, but with Cyber Monday sales in full swing, right now is a good time to save on fitness tech. From deals on wearables to full-body workout machines, we’re seeing more than a few discounts that can set you up nicely to burn calories, not money, in the new year.
For bigger-ticket fitness gear like the popular Peloton bike or athlete-endorsed Tonal home gym, though, discounts can be few and far between. But even these upmarket solutions are seeing rare discounts for Cyber Monday. If you have cash to burn and want to give your home gym a makeover, here are three Cyber Monday deals worth your attention on high-end fitness tech we like.
Our Cyber Monday Coverage
Read 13 remaining paragraphs | Comments
Source: Ars Technica – Three high-end home gym machines we like are on sale for Cyber Monday
The British Fashion Council (BFC) has handed out an award in a brand new category called Metaverse Design created in collaboration with Roblox. Five Roblox creators were nominated, with the in-app clothing store cSapphire coming out the winner.
The presentation of the award will play out inside a Roblox experience (from November 29th until December 7th 2021), with a virtual representation of Gucci creative director Alessandro Michele (above) doing the honors. If you’re interested in watching, you’ll be able to do so inside a virtual Roblox recreation of Albert Hall — and even roleplay as a high-profile red carpet guest.
Companies like Roblox have been doing a metaverse long before Facebook decided to jump in. With the award, the BFC has acknowledged that virtual spaces can be a fun way for both consumers and designers to explore fashion ideas. Roblox previously worked with Gucci on a collection, and we’ve seen labels like Moncler Louis Vuitton inside Fortnite and other games.
It’s a fun addition to the show, but the BFC is taking it fairly seriously. The Metaverse judging panel includes some high-profile folks, including fashion model Karlie Kloss along with editors from fashion sites and magazines like W and Highsnobiety.
“By awarding the platform’s creators, we are recognizing the powerful global impact of digital fashion on communities around the world, its ability to create new trends in fashion, as well as the incredible opportunities it provides for talented young creators,” said BFC chief executive Caroline Rush in a statement.
Source: Engadget – The British Fashion Council gave an award for the best Roblox design
People say weed makes things taste better. I never got that—all weed ever did for me was drain the world of joy or purpose and recast all my past interactions as testaments to my utter fraudulence. In any case, I mention the weed thing here to preempt any comments about weed. I am aware that weed supposedly does this…
Source: Gizmodo – Can Technology Enhance Your Taste Buds?
