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Walmart unveils ‘pro’ versions of its budget Android tablets

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Walmart has been selling no-frills Android tablets under its Onn brand for a while, but the $65-plus slates have been basic, to put it mildly. There’s now a better option if you’re willing to spend a little more, however. The 9to5Google team reports that Walmart has introduced a slightly higher-end Onn Tablet Pro line in 8-inch and 10-inch models. They both pack faster (if still unnamed) 2GHz octa-core processors, a doubled 32GB of expandable storage, USB-C and 5-megapixel cameras on both the front and back. These really aren’t professional tools, as the name implies, but they’re considerably better-equipped.

Differences are largely dictated by screen size. The 8-inch version uses an “HD” display instead of the 1,024 x 600 screen of before, albeit with the same 2GB of RAM as before. The 10-inch slate moves to a higher-resolution 1080p screen and 3GB of RAM.

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TikTok’s new CEO is Disney’s former streaming leader

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Mayer played a key role in Disney’s internet strategy over the years. He worked on associated sites like Go.com and ESPN.com, but most recently rose to prominence as the overseer for the Disney+ launch. The service has enjoyed early success with over 50 million subscribers in less than half a year (some of them due to a link with India’s Hotstar). And right now, it’s a lifeline — with most movie theaters closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s one of the few ways Disney has to distribute new movies to the public.

It’s not clear how the new chief executive will shape TikTok, although his experience with streaming entertainment will come in handy. He’s certainly arriving at an opportune time. Sensor Tower has determined that people downloaded TikTok 11 million times in March as lockdowns began in earnest, or nearly twice as many as in December. There’s plenty of demand — Mayer’s trick is to sustain that growth once it’s safer to venture out in public.

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Epic Games Store’s self-serve refunds get your money back without the wait

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There are some changes that may affect you even if you’re not experiencing buyer’s remorse. The Epic Games Launcher has been changed to warn you if you’re launching a game you don’t own, although it will store your owned titles in memory so that you’re not locked out of a game when you’re offline. You can limit bandwidth for game updates if it tends to choke your connection. And you can now buy Epic Games Store titles from third-party stores like Fanatical, Genba Digital and Green Man Gaming just by linking your Epic account, rather than a key. That’s partly to discourage key resales, but it also saves you time when you just want to start playing.

There are still useful features in the pipeline, including a mod marketplace and an achievement system. These additions probably won’t change your mind about Epic’s shop. They might, however, add some reassurances if you’re willing to try Epic’s game portal.

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Delayed ‘PES’ Euro 2020 update will arrive on June 4th

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With so many live sporting events canceled due to COVID-19, fans are turning to esports. But even those are facing pandemic-related setbacks and delays. This spring, Konami promised that its free Euro 2020 update for eFootball PES 2020 would be ready on April 30th. Later, Konami postponed the update indefinitely when the European Football Championship was delayed a year. Now, the publisher says it has made a few adjustments and Euro 2020 will be available for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC on June 4th.

The DLC will still feature all 55 national teams and detailed recreations of Wembley and Saint Petersburg stadiums. UEFA Euro 2020 featured players, themed matchdays and other in-game events are still planned but subject to change. The official Team of the Tournament will no longer be released. Konami planned to add the official Euro 2020 finals ball in late June, but now, it will include the ball in the June 4th release.



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Toyota’s 2021 Sienna minivans will all be hybrids

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Toyota’s new, 2021 Sienna is notable for two reasons. First, just look at this thing: It has plenty of sharp body lines and massive front grille that, while supposedly inspired by Japanese bullet trains, looks more like a tremendous scowl. It’s meant to ferry families around, all while looking incredibly aggro. Second — and more importantly — every version of the new Sienna is a hybrid. 

So, what will roughly $33,000 net you when these roll into dealerships later this year? Among other things, a 2.5-liter, four-cylinder engine, helped along by a pair of electric motors powered by batteries under the front foot wells. (Don’t worry about recharging those batteries, either; this thing isn’t a plug-in hybrid.) In tandem, the 2021 Sienna produces a maximum of 243 horsepower, which is noticeably less than what you’d find in the current crop’s naturally aspirated V6 engines. That dip in power may mean this minivan is a little less fun than the outgoing model, but it should make up for that in pure practicality — the 2021 Sienna is rated for 33 combined miles per gallon, up from the earlier model’s 20-ish. 

Roadtrippers will be pleased to know that new Sienna can tow the same 3,500 pounds of whatever as its predecessor and that all trim levels can be kitted out with all-wheel drive. And as usual, those trim levels offer a pretty wide variety of features. Need a minivan with a built-in vacuum? Or a tiny refrigerator? A 10-inch heads up display or a bird’s-eye camera? Toyota’s answer to all of the above is “Sure, why not?”

That Toyota would release a hybrid minivan isn’t much a of surprise: The shift has been the subject of leaks and speculation for months. What’s more interesting is that Toyota seems to have given up on gas-only minivans completely. Even though Chrysler’s hybrid Pacifica beat Toyota to the punch and that quickly became a green car favorite, parent company FCA still felt it important to keep the original model around for traditionalists and people who weren’t ready to splurge. Assuming its redesigned 2021 models don’t tank — a distinct possibility when you consider the effect COVID-19 is having on car sales at the moment –Toyota embrace of hybrid family shuttles may well be permanent. If it is, we certainly wouldn’t mind seeing other automakers follow suit. 

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Google’s Search app finally has a dark mode

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2019 was the year of the dark mode. It’s now 2020, and in a “better late than never” move, Google is finally rolling out a light-on-dark option for its Search app. Dark mode starts rolling out today and will come to more and more phones throughout the week, so if you don’t see it now, you may have to wait a few days. The feature has been part of the beta version of the app for a few months, but now it’s ready for a wider release.

When you get the update, you shouldn’t have to take any action to enable dark mode — the app will detect a device’s display settings and follow suit — at least if it’s running Android 10 or iOS 13. (iOS 12 users may have to turn the feature on manually.) You can turn off dark mode from within the app if it’s not to your taste. The darker interface should help create a more unified look across your smartphone’s apps, and could also be a way to ease some eye strain.

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Instagram introduces ‘Guides’ for wellness tips

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The update marks Instagram’s biggest push into longer form content since it launched IGTV in 2018. But while IGTV enabled longer videos, Guides is closer to the type of content you’d expect from traditional publishers. 

Instagram's Guides will have their own section, much like IGTV.

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Instagram says it’s focusing on “wellness” content only as part of its efforts to reach users during the coronavirus pandemic. And the company’s initial launch partners include organizations focused on local communities and mental health, as well as a handful of publishers, like BuzzFeed and Refinery29. 

But while the guides are, for now, limited to “wellness,” it’s not difficult to imagine just about every other category of influencer on Instagram would also want access to such a feature, which would allow them more flexibility in how they showcase their content. But the company is noncommittal about whether or not guides could expand to other categories, or be available more widely. Instagram is still “exploring what the future of Guides will look like,” a spokesperson told Engadget.

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Quantic Dream’s Twitch add-on puts ‘Detroit’ gameplay in viewers’ hands

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Streams for decision-driven games have been popular on livestreaming services as they give viewers a chance to influence decisions, and Quantic Dream wants to seize on that opportunity. It’s rolling out a Twitch extension for Detroit: Become Human, simply titled Detroit: Community Play, that promises to rope the audience into the decision making process. The add-on will automatically start polls for over 150 plot points, letting you vote on what a streamer should do next. A broadcaster could theoretically hand viewers control of everything but split-second action scenes.

You’ll get a preview of Community Play on May 25th at 2PM Eastern, when Quantic Dream will host an event on its Twitch channel with Bryan Dechart and Amelia Rose Blaire (the actors who play Connor and Tracy) demonstrating the extension during Detroit’s opening scene. While we wouldn’t count on this leading to a surge in demand for games like Detroit, it does hint at where games could go now that livestreaming is relatively commonplace — you could see more games that depend on collective input.

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Texas embraces a virtual jury trial amid coronavirus concerns

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Virtual Jury Selection

Judge Emily Miskel

According to the National Center for State Courts, 39 states and the District of Columbia have encouraged judges to conduct hearings remotely, but bringing in jurors poses another challenge. Arizona’s top court has already approved remote jury selection, and once jury trials resume in Indiana, parties in civil cases will have the option to conduct them remotely, Reuters says.

There are some obvious concerns to address before this becomes the norm. For starters, Zoom has been plagued by security issues, and it may be extra hard to keep remote jurors focused or prevent them from doing research during a trial. At the very least, this could pave the way for virtual jury selection so that people only have to show up in person if they are indeed selected.

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Google is testing an ‘easier’ smart display interface for the less-savvy

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Smart displays aren’t simply glorified photo frames anymore. With more and more people staying at home, these devices also provide a window to the homes of loved ones via video cameras. But for the less tech-savvy user who might have recently been gifted with one, setting it up without in-person help might be challenging. Google wants to find a way to make that process easier, and is launching a “new experience” in some retirement communities in Washington State. The company is also sending nearly 1,000 Nest Hub Max devices to residents in seven Merrill Gardens communities in that area, to help those folks connect with loved ones.

With these displays, users can launch video chats over Duo calls and set up rotating photo galleries featuring loved ones and heartwarming memories. But not everyone knows the breadth of what you can do with a Nest Hub Max (or any smart display, for that matter). In the devices it’s sending to Merrill Gardens residents, Google is pre-loading shortlists of contacts to make video calls easier. The test interface will also feature “What can you do?” cards that “act like shortcuts for showing weather reports, setting alarms or playing relaxing sounds,” the company said in a blog post.

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