Tech Bites

Amazon.com on Thursday said it could post its first quarterly loss in five years even as revenue surges because it is spending at least $4 billion in response to the coronavirus pandemic, including... from NDTV Gadgets - Latest https://ift.tt/3bRvzpC

Most people think or at least hope their government is doing a good job in the face of COVID-19, according to the polls . But there can be no doubt that governments around the world were ill-prepared for this pandemic. Country after country has been locking their citizens in their homes to slow the spread of the virus for fear that their health systems get overwhelmed, as has happened in Italy. The lack of ventilators and protective equipment are a particular problem, despite the fact that scientists have called for years for governments to stockpile these life-saving machines and protective equipment . How is it possible that we were not ready? Not only had Bill Gates been banging on about this for a long time , but pandemics also featured strongly on regional and national risk registers produced by governments and bureaucrats, as well as international registers from non-governmental organisations. These administrative tools, highlight the most likely and impactful events that

Patty Jenkins has revealed more of her thoughts on a Wonder Woman spin-off centred on the Amazons of Themyscira - that's the race of warrior women to whom Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) belongs - and... from NDTV Gadgets - Latest https://ift.tt/2VSaSnN

Jio parent Reliance Industries Limited revealed its plans to launch the JioMeet platform while announcing its quarterly earnings for the fourth quarter on Thursday evening. from NDTV Gadgets - Latest https://ift.tt/2z44hxt

NASA on Thursday selected space firms SpaceX, Blue Origin and Dynetics to build lunar landing systems that can carry astronauts to the moon by 2024, the White House's accelerated deadline under the... from NDTV Gadgets - Latest https://ift.tt/2yY0mCA

The Game Developers Conference Summer is still taking place August 4th through 6th, but will now be entirely online, organizers announced in a statement Thursday . When GDC had to nix its live show at the last minute in March, organizers initially planned for a rescheduled in-person event this summer, no doubt hoping… Read more... from Gizmodo https://ift.tt/2VTmXJo

The launch of the iPhone 12 lineup could  possibly be delayed due to the ongoing pandemic. It is expected that a 5.4-inch and two 6.1-inch iPhone 12 models are likely to launch in September, whereas the 6.7-inch model might be delayed and launch in October. However, this news hasn't stopped the leaks. The latest leak claims to reveal the pricing of the upcoming iPhone series. The leaks also suggests that the 2020 iPhone lineup is likely to include four models this time. As per a tweet by tipster Jon Prosser , the iPhone 12 model might come with a 5.4-inch OLED screen, 5G connectivity and it might be priced at $649. This model is codenamed as D52G and is likely to sport dual cameras. Another iPhone 12 model is expected to feature a 6.1-inch screen, 5G connectivity and dual cameras. This model is codenamed as D53G and is expected to be priced at $749. The iPhone 12 Pro model is likely to feature a 6.1-inch screen and three cameras and it might cost you $999. Lastly, the iPhone

Apple on Thursday reported profit slipped as it boosted revenue from services and wearables in a pandemic-cobbled start to the year for the iPhone maker. from NDTV Gadgets - Latest https://ift.tt/2Sr2byF

It has often been argued that the biggest impediment to India emerging as the favoured foreign investment destination is the unreasoned and unreasonable objections raised by naysayers who conjure conspiracy theories and invoke dire consequences like a magician pulling rabbits out of his hat. Decades of perverse socialism, born not out of ideology but government inefficiency and inadequacy, instilled into most Indians a loathing for big industry, profit generation and wealth creation. Virtue was attached to businesses that were perpetually in the red; conversely, it was sinful for businesses to be in the black. Attitudes, both in government and among the people, have no doubt changed and gathered pace in recent years. Young, aspirational India is comfortable with the idea of industry making profits, generating jobs and creating wealth. Government realises that the totem poles of yesterday’s Soviet-style command economy are irrelevant in the era of market-driven economics. Young, asp

ICANN, the non-profit that manages namespaces on the internet, announced today that it’s blocking the controversial sale of the .org registry to private equity firm Ethos Captial. It said the sale would’ve caused “unacceptable uncertainty” over the future of the world’s third-largest domain registry, which is largely used by non-profit organizations. In a blog post, the organization said it’s dedicated to making the right decision to ensure the stable and secure operation of the Internet’s unique identifier systems: ICANN‘s role is to ensure the stable and secure operation of the Internet’s unique identifier systems. We are dedicated to making the right decision, knowing… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3f4lrff

NASA is turning to private industry for the first lunar landers for astronauts in a half-century, with three competing, quite contrasting versions. NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine announced Thursday the three companies that will develop, build and fly lunar landers, with the goal of returning astronauts to the moon in 2024 and ultimately on to Mars. The companies are SpaceX in Hawthorne, California, led by Elon Musk; Blue Origin in Kent, Washington, founded by Amazon’s Jeff Bezos; and Dynetics, a Huntsville, Alabama, subsidiary of Leidos. Altogether, the contracts for the initial 10-month period total of $967 million. “This is the last piece that we need in order to get to the moon” by 2024, Bridenstine said. He noted it will be the first lunar lander since the last Apollo moon mission in 1972. Over the next 10 months, each company will refine its concept and NASA will decide which lander to test first. Bridenstine said NASA will go with the company that has the highest probab

Photo by MARK RALSTON/AFP via Getty Images The organization that oversees internet domain names has rejected a proposal to transfer management of the .org top-level domain from a nonprofit to a private equity group. ICANN said it wouldn’t approve the sale of .org operator Public Interest Registry because it would create “unacceptable uncertainty” for the domain, citing concerns about debt and the intentions of the for-profit firm Ethos Capital. In a blog post , ICANN’s board said the sale would have given up the current focus of PIR in favor of “an entity that is bound to serve the interests of its corporate stakeholders, and which has no meaningful plan to protect or serve the .org community.” It also noted that the sale would leave PIR with a $360 million debt that could... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2SlCnnp

Photo by Becca Farsace / The Verge The coronavirus pandemic has caused the smartphone market to suffer its fastest ever first-quarter year-on-year decline, according to new data from analyst firms. Counterpoint Research and Canalys both put the overall drop in global shipments at 13 percent, though Counterpoint says the drop in China alone was 27 percent while Canalys calculates it at 18 percent. Whichever numbers you look at, the situation is clear: it’s the first time shipments have come under 300 million since 2014, with a precipitous collapse in China preceding falling demand around the world. “By the end of the quarter, as COVID-19 started to spread to other regions, and lockdowns of varying severity were imposed, the pendulum of disruption started to swing from... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2KLk1Z7

Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) reports that the Jio network added 17 million subscribers in Q4 2020, bringing the total subscriber base to around 387.5 million as of March 2020. It was also revealed that the Facebook investment of Rs 43,574 crore (a 9.99 percent equity stake) on 22 April 2020 values Jio Platforms Ltd at Rs 4,36,172 crore, making this the largest investment for a minority stake by a tech company globally. Via a press release, it was revealed that the Facebook-Jio deal means that Jio, Reliance Retail, and WhatsApp are now in a commercial partnership for e-commerce . JioMart, a service that connects local stores and service providers to consumers, will be integrated into WhatsApp . Small and medium businesses are expected to benefit greatly from the partnership. The Jio network also saw significant growth despite the COVID-19 pandemic. The average Jio user now consumes 11.3 GB of data per month, and makes 771 minutes of voice calls. In terms of revenue, it is re

As a record number of Americans grapple with unemployment in the wake of the novel coronavirus pandemic, LinkedIn’s rolled out some AI-powered tools to help job seekers prepare for the nightmare fuel that is the interviewing process. Read more... from Gizmodo https://ift.tt/3f26B8Z

Scientists on Wednesday announced the first effective treatment against the coronavirus — an experimental drug that can speed the recovery of COVID-19 patients — in a major medical advance that came as the pandemic continues to cause upheaval across the globe, with India reporting over 33,000 cases and worldwide toll crossing 2,28,000. California-based biotech company Gilead Sciences and the US government reported that in a major study, remdesivir shortened the time it takes for COVID-19 patients to recover by four days on average — from 15 days to 11. Also, a trend toward fewer deaths was seen among those treated with the drug early on. The study was run by the US National Institutes of Health and involved 1,063 hospitalised coronavirus patients around the world. The news of this recent success took the world by a storm even though further research is ongoing. Interest in Gilead’s drug has been high as there are currently no approved treatments or preventive vaccines for COVID-19

Intel has spent the past several months updating its processor lineup to the 10th generation, and next up are desktops. The company today unveiled its 10th-gen consumer chips, including the new i9-10900K, capable of reaching up to 5.3Ghz with a base clock of 3.7Ghz. Intel claims the new processor can yield 10 percent more FPS than the already-zippy 9900K in PUBG, and is 18 percent faster at editing 4K video. It’s also 63 and 35 percent faster than the i7 7700K from 2017, respectively (there were no i9’s at the time). Of course, not everyone can afford a $500 processor,… This story continues at The Next Web Or just read more coverage about: Intel from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3aPAPbP

Walmart store Walmart is launching a new delivery service, called Express Delivery, that will get purchased items to a customers’ home in less than two hours, the company announced on Thursday . The new service could be helpful if you need to get items in a hurry while respecting shelter-in-place orders during the COVID-19 pandemic. You’ll be able to use Express Delivery for more 160,000 items, including “groceries, everyday essentials, toys and electronics,” Walmart says. Express Delivery will cost $10 in addition to the regular charge for delivery unless you’re a member of the company’s Delivery Unlimited subscription service, in which case you’ll just pay $10 for Express Delivery. (Similar to Amazon Prime, Delivery Unlimited costs $98 annually or... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/2KPyaEI

Vaping is a controversial habit: it certainly has its downsides, but anecdotally it’s a fantastic smoking cessation aid. The thing is, until behavioral scientists know a bit more about who does it, when, how much and other details, its use will continue to be something of a mystery. That’s where the PuffPacket comes in. Designed by Cornell engineers, the PuffPacket is a small device that attaches to e-cigarettes (or vape pens, or whatever you call yours) and precisely measures their use, sharing that information with a smartphone app for the user, and potentially researchers, to review later. Some vaping devices are already set up with something like this, to tell a user when the cartridge is running low or a certain limit has been reached. But generally when vaping habits are studied, they rely on self-report data, not proprietary apps. How companies are working around Apple’s ban on vaping apps “The lack of continuous and objective understanding of vaping behaviors led us t

Mi Note 10 Lite alleged price and specifications have reportedly leaked ahead of the smartphone's launch today. According to a report, the Mi Note 10 Lite will be powered by Snapdragon 730G SoC,... from NDTV Gadgets - Latest https://ift.tt/2KPgV64

LG Premier Pro Plus (L455DL) specifications have been leaked via Google Play Console listing and the phone's user manual has also been spotted. The latest revelations show that the upcoming LG... from NDTV Gadgets - Latest https://ift.tt/35fZ5CK

Redmi Note 9 purported specifications and renders have surfaced online just hours before the official launch where the new phone is speculated to debut. from NDTV Gadgets - Latest https://ift.tt/3d1DxMO

Honor has launched three new smartphones, the Honor 9C, Honor 9A, and Honor 9S which will go on sale in Russia starting May 4. from NDTV Gadgets - Latest https://ift.tt/3d1FOrv

Tesla reported a surprise first quarter profit Wednesday on higher car production and deliveries as its chief called for an end to "fascist" coronavirus restrictions on people's movements due to the... from NDTV Gadgets - Latest https://ift.tt/2ybUzsX

Twitter will grant researchers and software developers access to a real-time data stream of tens of millions of daily public tweets about COVID-19, which they can use to study the spread of the... from NDTV Gadgets - Latest https://ift.tt/2ShgTIs

Microsoft on Wednesday beat Wall Street sales and profit expectations, powered by sharp demand for its Teams chat and online meeting app and Xbox gaming services as the world shifted to working and... from NDTV Gadgets - Latest https://ift.tt/2KNKUf0

Apple has released its new beta of iOS 13.5 today and the highlight of this version is the introduction of "exposure notification API" . Now before we go into the details of what exactly is exposure settings API, you should know that Google and Apple have recently teamed up to develop a digital contract tracing tool. This tool is named as exposure notification. It aims to control the spread of Coronavirus. The new iOS 13.5 is now available to developers  and public health authorities so that it can collect feedback and make changes accordingly. To bring you up to speed, with this tool, all the Android phones, and iPhone users will be notified if they have come in contact with a Coronavirus patient. The system will make use of Bluetooth on users' devices, that will exchange and record an anonymous identity of all the users that come into close contact, so that if they are tested positive for Coronavirus, everyone who came on their contact will be notified. The compan

Facebook beat analysts' estimates for quarterly revenue on Wednesday and said it has seen "signs of stability" for sales in April after a plunge in March, in yet another signal that tech giants may... from NDTV Gadgets - Latest https://ift.tt/3aVTuTC

The U.S. is still living through a pandemic that we have no viable means of currently combatting, other than keeping our distances from one another by largely staying homebound and avoiding places where large groups of people congregate, like movie theaters . But governors in various states have already expressed their… Read more... from Gizmodo https://ift.tt/2W8iYYk

Google Meet , a video conferencing platform, will be available for free starting early May. Anyone with an email ID can sign up for Meet and enjoy its services. Google Meet offers features such as simple scheduling and screen sharing, real-time captions and layouts that adapt to users’ preferences. Those who want to use the video conferencing platform straightaway from next week might not be able to create meetings, as the company will be “gradually expanding its availability to more and more people over the following weeks.” (Also read: Facebook Messenger Rooms: What is it, how does it work and should you use it? All your questions answered )    Users can sign up on Meet to be notified when it is available to them. Meet claims to keep data safe and secure. The platform lets a user admit or deny entry to a meeting, and mute or remove participants, if required. Anonymous users are not allowed to join meetings created by individual accounts. Meet does not require plugins to

U nion Minister of Science & Technology, Health & Family Welfare and Earth Sciences, Dr Harsh Vardhan, here today reviewed, through video-conferencing, the various initiatives undertaken by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) and its Autonomous Institutes and its Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) – BIRAC and BIBCOL, to tackle the current COVID-19 crisis especially with respect to the progress made in indigenous development of a vaccine, Rapid Test and RT-PCR Diagnostic Kits. Secretary, DBT, Dr Renu Swarup informed that DBT has evolved a multi-pronged research strategy and action plan for an immediate response as well as for long-term preparedness to tackle COVID-19. These multifaceted efforts include research towards the development of candidate vaccines, therapeutics, and suitable animal models for COVID-19 as well as the development of indigenous diagnostics and genomic studies on the host and pathogen. The DBT and its PSU, Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Counci

Last week, Netflix finally dropped its latest big anime get : Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045 , the highly anticipated (and perhaps in some regards , dreaded) continuation of the action-packed TV spinoff of Masamune Shirow’s beloved manga/ cyberpunk movie icon. With the story over for now, here’s what worked for us in the… Read more... from Gizmodo https://ift.tt/2VLyavA

The Hubble space telescope stood witness to the comet Atlas shattering into pieces on its journey towards the Sun. NASA subsequently published a detailed note on the breaking up of the comet. The comet was discovered on 29 December last year by the ATLAS (Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System) robotic astronomical survey system. NASA says the telescope spotted about 30 fragments on 20 April and 25 pieces on 23 April. "Their appearance changes substantially between the two days, so much so that it's quite difficult to connect the dots," said David Jewitt, professor of planetary science and astronomy at UCLA, Los Angeles. He led one of two teams that took pictures of the comet with the telescope. Jewitt added that he is not sure if the appearance changes “because the individual pieces are flashing on and off as they reflect sunlight or different fragments appear on different days.” Quanzhi Ye, the leader of a second Hubble observation team, said it is an inte

Xiaomi is all set to host its global launch event today, wherein it is expected to unveil the Redmi Note 9 and the Mi Note 10 Lite phones. The two phones have leaked on multiple occasions in the past,... from NDTV Gadgets - Latest https://ift.tt/3d4vPl1

The CEO has criticized shelter-in-place orders, which have forced the closure of the company's California assembly plant. from Wired https://ift.tt/3aO7fDM

Appearing in the president’s Twitter mentions has, incredibly, finally paid off for somebody: a random Silicon Valley-based electrical engineer named Yaron Oren-Pines who scored a $69.1 million contract with the state of New York after he tweeted at Trump, “We can supply ICU Ventilators, invasive and noninvasive. Have… Read more... from Gizmodo https://ift.tt/2WbSHZ9

A new study has found that the impacts of deep sea mining are still felt a quarter of a century later. Read more... from Gizmodo https://ift.tt/2W9zyqX

Last week, Facebook announced a new video calling tool called  Messenger Rooms . The tool is built on Facebooks's Messenger platform and is currently accessible via the  Facebook and  Messenger apps. As of now, Facebook is still testing the feature, so only a select number of users are able to access it. When rolled out, the tool will be available on both iOS and Android, and will be accessible via both mobile and desktop apps and browsers. But why Messenger Rooms when WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger already offer video calling? Unlike WhatsApp, Messenger, and Instagram ,  which have a smaller limit to how many people can join a video call simultaneously,  Messenger Rooms  allows up to 50 people to participate in a call at one time. Also, to use Messenger Rooms,   only the creator of the room requires a Facebook account, others can join the video call using a shared link even if they don't have an account on Facebook . Additionally, unlike video calls on Instagram, Whats

AT&T , T-Mobile , and Verizon have all partnered with iHeartMedia to deliver thousands of phone chargers to hospitals so that COVID-19 patients can charge their phones. The companies will donate nearly 40,000 phone chargers, according to T-Mobile’s press release. T-Mobile says it has already donated 20,000 chargers to hospitals in Seattle, New York City, Los Angeles, New Orleans and San Diego. Verizon says it’s providing thousands of chargers to healthcare providers in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Seattle, Boston, New Orleans, Detroit and Philadelphia, and more. AT&T says it will donate thousands of chargers to “hospitals in cities across the country that have been hit the hardest by the virus.” The donation efforts by the wireless... Continue reading… from The Verge - All Posts https://ift.tt/3c1rGy8

The two online ad giants say business fell sharply amid the Covid-19 lockdowns in March but has stabilized in April.  from Wired https://ift.tt/2KNpCy1

Apple Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro | $300 | B&H Photo Read more... from Gizmodo https://ift.tt/2YeFp0J

It’s no secret that ThinkPad laptops have historically had some of the best keyboards on the market – better than many desktop ones. If you’ve ever wished you could just chop the keyboard off your ThinkPad and use it on for your desktop setup, Lenovo’s new $99 ThinkPad TrackPoint Keyboard II has you covered. The keyboard was first announced at CES, and it even has the little red nub (that’s the ‘TrackPoint’ part) that ThinkPads are famous for. It might especially come in handy if you ever need to control your PC from a distance without wanting to use a separate… This story continues at The Next Web Or just read more coverage about: Lenovo from The Next Web https://ift.tt/2y2dFlp

YouTube, the video service of Alphabet's Google, said on Tuesday it would start showing text and links from third-party fact-checkers to US viewers, part of efforts to curb misinformation on the site... from NDTV Gadgets - Latest https://ift.tt/2KK8sRS

Mi Note 10 Lite will be launched as a part of the Redmi Note 9 series launch event on April 30, Xiaomi has revealed. The company is hosting a global launch event wherein it is expected to introduce... from NDTV Gadgets - Latest https://ift.tt/3f714Oz

OnePlus Z smartphone has been in the news for some time. It is hinted that OnePlus Z is essentially the rumoured OnePlus 8 Lite that was tipped to be a part of the OnePlus 8 series. from NDTV Gadgets - Latest https://ift.tt/2YgHQje

Movies that skip the big screen will be allowed to contend for Oscars this year, the Academy said Tuesday in a significant rule change forced by the coronavirus pandemic. from NDTV Gadgets - Latest https://ift.tt/3bOUZ71

Samsung Electronics said on Wednesday it expected profit to decline in the current quarter due to a coronavirus-related slump in sales of smartphones and TVs, although the chip business would remain... from NDTV Gadgets - Latest https://ift.tt/2We95bQ

Samsung has integrated Apple Music on its Smart TV platform. The new addition allows consumers in over 100 countries to enjoy over 60 million songs ad-free, watch top music videos and explore thousands of playlists curated by world-class music experts. The company has made Apple Music available on models from 2018 through 2020. “ Apple Music subscribers can also get customised daily recommendations and tune in to the innovative Beats 1 radio station, a global live stream with exclusive shows by artists like Frank Ocean, Nicki Minaj, The Weeknd, DJ Khaled, and Elton John,” said Samsung in a press release . He added that as people are spending more time at home, they are more committed to providing the best entertainment experience more than ever. “Last year, we were the first TV manufacturer to offer the Apple TV app, and today, we are the first to offer Apple Music,” Brodsky said. Samsung Smart TV owners can download Apple Music from the Samsung Smart TV App Store . Those who h