So long, Twitch Prime. Today, Amazon is rebranding the suite of video game-focused perks to match the naming convention of its other digital services, such as Prime Video and Prime Reading. The newly-named Prime Gaming works the same way as before. It’s bundled with Amazon Prime — the company’s all-encompassing subscription service that includes faster ‘premium’ deliveries — and offers a bunch of digital goodies that are designed to entice gamers. These include a free channel subscription on Twitch (if you don’t have Prime, these normally cost at least $5 per month), a smattering of games and items for popular titles such as Apex Legends.
Amazon hasn’t said why it’s rebranding Twitch Prime. We’re guessing some Prime customers still aren’t aware that Twitch Prime exists or comes with their membership. There might be some users, too, who play games but don’t use Twitch and wrongly assume that the perks aren’t relevant to them. In a press release, Amazon said that Prime Gaming “brings more new content for more games than ever before,” pointing to the various SNK titles that have been offered to subscribers and the agreements it’s secured with heavyweight publishers such as Riot Games and Roblox Corporation.
Apple is striking back at Koss, which filed a patent infringement lawsuit last month related to AirPods and Beats. It countersued the maker of the first stereo headphones, asking for a court to rule that Apple didn’t infringe any of the five patents as laid out in the original suit. Not only that, it contends Koss didn’t have the right to sue over wireless headphone tech in the first place.
Koss met with Apple multiple times under a confidentiality agreement, according to Patently Apple. While Apple was seemingly happy to have no restrictions on the discussions, Koss is said to have insisted on the agreement. It prevents either side from litigating based on anything they discovered in the talks. But Apple claims that’s “exactly what Koss did.”
The livestream starts at 8PM ET / 5PM PT, and after that begins the “11 Days of Wozdom,” which is described as 11 days of challenges to win Apple gear, merchandise, a shout-out from Woz on Twitter and more. Right now, there’s no real details on what the challenges are — on Woz’s site, there are names for each day, like “bake a cake,” “dancing with the stars,” “happy place,” “Apple kindness” and so on. More details should be revealed during the stream, but USA Today reports that the organizers said the creative challenges will be focused on “happiness, creativity, ingenuity and fun.” Regardless, it’s a bit of fun frivolity in a time where such things can’t hurt, especially if Woz and Janet can raise some money for a good cause.
Would ‘free’ Citi Bike rentals sway you on Lyft’s Pink subscription service? That’s what the Uber rival is testing with a new pilot program in New York City. Starting next week, select Lyft customers — including those who are yet to try Pink — will be offered two-month access to Citi Bike’s blue two-wheelers. The experiment will include unlimited ‘classic’ Citi Bike rides with a 45-minute cap, which should be long enough to travel between Central Park and Brooklyn Bridge. E-bike enthusiasts, meanwhile, will get a 10-cent-per-minute discount during the trial. If you start an electrified trip outside of Manhattan, Lyft will also cap the first 45 minutes at $2.
The ride-hailing company launched Lyft Pink as a replacement for its All-Access Plan last October. It costs $19.99 per month and gives subscribers a 15 percent discount on all car rides throughout the US. In addition, members get airport priority pickups and — more importantly in the current climate — three ‘free’ rides on a ‘classic’ Lyft bike or scooter, capped at 30 minutes. In select markets, the company also offers three e-bike unlocks and discounted rates in New York City and San Francisco. Adding Citi Bike’s fleet to the mix could increase Pink signups and persuade a few more people to ditch cars and mass transit until the pandemic is over.
It sounds like a sci-fi movie: pitting an artificial intelligence against human pilots. (In fact, it’s definitely been done already.)
Sadly, DARPA will no longer hold an in-person event for its third and final AlphaDogfight Trial. It’ll happen virtually, instead, with participants and viewers watching online as AI algorithms control simulated F-16 fighter planes in aerial combat. By the end of the three-day event, viewers will witness a matchup between the top AI and an experienced Air Force fighter pilot, who’ll also be controlling a virtual F-16.
If you’re interested, you need to register beforehand to tune in. If you’re in the US, you have until August 17th to sign up, while everyone else has until August 11th. As long as the human race doesn’t fall, it should be pretty cool.
— Mat
Amazon may turn JCPenney and Sears stores into warehouses
Reclaimed by one of the things that killed them?
Jim Steinfeldt/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
Wall Street Journal sources claim Amazon is in talks with mall owner Simon Property Group to convert some of its department store spaces into fulfillment centers. The retailer is reportedly looking at either stepping into empty JCPenney and Sears stores or else buying locations still in use. At the same time, Amazon is also in discussions with multiple mall owners about putting its future low-cost grocery stores in former JCPenney spaces. Continue reading.
WarnerMedia shakes itself up to focus on HBO Max
And focuses its global ambitions.
HBO
WarnerMedia has gone through a management shakeup under new CEO Jason Kilar, and it’s part of his efforts to make HBO Max the company’s main priority. Kilar announced the restructuring in an email to employees. He stressed how important it was to act with urgency due to the “economic pressures and acceleration of direct-to-consumer streaming adoption” caused by the coronavirus pandemic. In short, people’s behaviors are changing, and now is the time for change.
The new structure consolidates all of WarnerMedia’s production operations — Warner Bros., HBO, HBO Max, TNT, TBS and TruTV — under (thankfully) a single studios and networks group led by Warner Bros. Continue reading.
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Toshiba officially quits the laptop business
Sharp owns what’s left of Toshiba’s computer lineup.
Engadget
Toshiba has quietly sold its remaining 19.9 percent stake in its Dynabook laptop brand to Sharp, officially exiting the laptop business and the PC business at large. The company hadn’t been a major name in PCs for a while (it sold the majority of the business to Sharp in 2018), but this is still notable — the end to a 35-year run. Toshiba was a pioneer in the early days of portable computers but struggled in the modern era of ultraportables and slick designs. Continue reading.
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Amazon’s Fire HD tablets are again on sale at their lowest prices ever, matching deals we saw just a couple of weeks ago. With a starting price of just $70, they may have some appeal if you’re looking for a cheap entertainment device or e-reader.
While the Fire HD 8 doesn’t offer any Google apps (unless you’re into side loading), there’s a lot about it to like. That includes Alexa support, a USB-C port that allows for faster charging, very respectable build quality, 32GB or 64GB of storage (that can be upgraded via a microSD card slot, a relatively sharp 1,280 x 800 display, 2GB of RAM, a 4,850mAh battery and decent performance thanks to a quad-core chip. It’s on sale for $60, or $30 off the regular price.
The Ioniq 5 will thus be a crossover (shown above, at right) and based on Hyundai’s angular Frankfurt Motor Show concept, the retro-styled, Pony-inspired 45 EV. As Autoblog pointed out, the Ioniq 5 may have already been seen in testing, and while heavily camouflaged, it bears only a passing resemblance to the concept vehicle.
Meanwhile, the Ioniq 6 (top left) is based on the Prophecy, a slippery concept car that Hyundai said would eventually be produced in some form. Finally, we’re seeing a tease of the Ioniq 7 for the first time. Hyundai said it will be a “large SUV” and the illustration shows a slim Rivian-like light that covers the front of the car, along with side lights that may use the same dot matrix tech featured on the 45.
All the vehicles will use Hyundai’s E-GMP electric vehicle platform shared with Kia’s electric cars. Like with other EVs, E-GMP keeps the powertrain below the floor, opening up what Hyundai calls a “‘smart living space’ with highly adjustable seats, wireless connectivity and unique features such as a glove box designed as drawers.” It also said that infotainment and dash displays will be “simple, intuitive and ergonomically designed.”
The current Ioniq model comes in EV, PHEV and hybrid versions and will carry on separately from the Ioniq brand with the current models: Ioniq Hybrid, Ioniq Plug-In and Ioniq Electric.
Hyundai wasn’t able to hold a live launch event for the new brand due to the pandemic, but it did try to make a splash. To celebrate, it added some electric lights to the London eye to transform it into a giant “Q.” We’ll no doubt hear more about the upcoming vehicles over the next year.
Well before Microsoft revealed its next-gen Xbox Series X console, rumors had been bubbling of a second cheaper, possibly disc-less console code-named “Lockhart.” It looks like that device will be called the Xbox Series S, according to a controller packaging leak and report from Ars Technica. A source named Zak S managed to purchase one of the next gen controllers and the packaging indicates that it’s designed for the “Xbox Series X|S.”
Sources confirmed to Ars that the Xbox Series S is indeed an upcoming, yet to be announced Microsoft product. It will join the Xbox Series X, which was announced on December 12th but doesn’t yet have a price or exact release date. If the naming convention follows what Microsoft did with the Xbox One S, the Xbox Series S will be a more affordable, less powerful console with no disc drive.
If Nissan has its way, you might not need to pay for a parking spot if your electric car has some range to spare. Autoblognotes that the automaker has opened an exhibition space in Yokohama, the Pavilion, that lets you pay for parking by sending electricity from the Leaf and other EVs into the building. You won’t have to worry about the cost of trip (beyond whatever it costs to recharge elsewhere, of course) if you’re determined to see the Ariya crossover or get a taste of Formula E racing.
It’s meant as a demonstration of Nissan’s Energy Share and electricity storage technologies, such as the use of Leaf cars to power homes and city infrastructure during disasters. The exhibition, which also highlights connected car and semi-autonomous driving tech, is open until October 23rd.
Allen was also instrumental to advancing women in technology. Apart from being one of the relatively few women participating in early work on computers (she joined IBM as a code instructor in 1957), she made a point to support women and served as a mentor. Half the experimental compiler group at IBM was made of women during the 1970s and 1980s. She was the first woman to become an IBM Fellow, receiving the distinction in 1989. She was also the first to win a Turing Award, in 2006, and an upcoming IEEE award will be named after her.
In those lights, Allen’s work will likely persist for a very long time to come. The apps on your computer or phone depend on the speed that comes from modern compilers, and Allen helped crack the door open for more inclusiveness in tech. She’ll be missed.
