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Instagram Lite vanishes ahead of a redesign

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You’ll have to go without Instagram Lite’s more efficient social networking for a while — but just a while. In the wake of an Android Police report, Instagram has confirmed to TechCrunch that it’s “rolling back” Lite in those countries where it was available. The social network is reportedly taking lessons learned since Instagram Lite’s 2018 debut to produce a new version of the less-demanding app, although it’s not certain when or where the redesigned software will appear.

For now, users who try to fire up Lite are being pointed to the regular Instagram app if they don’t want to resort to the web client. The software first disappeared from Google Play charts in mid-April.

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Apple’s rumored over-ear headphones may let you wear them ‘backwards’

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Apple’s rumored over-ear headphones may lean on more than just their looks or common AirPod features to reel you in. Tipsters talking to 9to5Mac claim the headphones (purportedly called AirPods Studio) will have sensor and software features you haven’t seen in any Apple audio product to date. Reportedly, the sensors will not only play or pause music depending on whether or not they’re on your head, but switch the audio channels depending on orientation — there would be no ‘wrong’ way to wear them.

The headphones might also see Apple break with its longstanding reluctance to allow custom audio profiles. The sources said that you’ll finally have custom EQ settings if you pair with an Apple device, including “low, medium and high” frequency tweaks. You could crank the bass if you listen to dance music and rap, or ramp up the treble if you prefer classical.

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Motorola Razr’s Android 10 update makes better use of the outer screen

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Motorola is finally updating the new Razr to Android 10, but it’s not just an under-the-hood update — it should deliver genuinely functional improvements, particularly when the foldable phone is closed. You can now use more apps on the outer (aka Quick View) screen, including Google Maps’ turn-by-turn navigation and music control for apps like Pandora, Spotify and YouTube Music. You can also access favorite contacts to make calls from that external display, and you can reply to messages directly from the screen using either a new Quick View keyboard or canned Smart Replies.

More camera modes are available from the closed Razr, including group selfies and portrait modes. You can quickly access the camera by either swiping right or twisting your wrist.

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3D atom mapping helps investigate the origins of life

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A relatively new technique for studying atoms might shed more light on how life began on Earth. Scientists have used 3D atom mapping (specifically, atom probe tomography) to discover that the oldest molecular fluids in the Solar System could have supported the development of amino acids and, eventually, life. The team studied molecules on the boundaries of magnetite grains in a 4.5 billion-year-old meteorite (shown above) to find the signs of the liquids where those magnetites formed — apparently, they were alkaline and loaded with sodium.

This was possible in part thanks to the nature of the meteorite sample itself. It’s never been above room temperature or exposed to liquid water, so any signs of liquidity come from the asteroid.

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Elon Musk restarts Tesla production in defiance of county lockdown

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The county hasn’t yet said how it will react. In a discussion with the New York Times, however, district supervisor Scott Haggerty said that the county had been near an agreement to restart production on May 18th after determining Tesla had done a “pretty good job” of implementing safety measures. Musk just wasn’t willing to wait, Haggerty said — in fact, he wanted to reopen the factory on May 8th.

There’s little doubt that Tesla is under pressure to resume production. While the company had stellar first quarter earnings and could partly buoy the second quarter through deliveries of already-produced EVs, time is running out. At a certain point, it has to make new cars to avoid a huge shortfall.



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Bethesda says ‘Elder Scrolls 6’ details are years away

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Almost two years after it announced the game, you might think Bethesda is ready to share more information about its latest mainline Elder Scrolls project. But that would be a wrong assumption. Prompted by a fan over the weekend, Bethesda senior vice president of marketing and communications Pete Hines said the company won’t have anything substantial to say about The Elder Scrolls 6 for a couple more years.  

“It’s after Starfield, which you pretty much know nothing about,” he said. “So if you’re coming at me for details now and not years from now, I’m failing to properly manage your expectations.”



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Fujifilm’s X100V now warns you if the camera is overheating

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Fujifilm’s X100V is a great camera for street photography. It’s compact, pairs a good sensor with a sharp lens and has a handy tilting display. Despite its small size, the X100V also excels at 4K video shooting. However, now that users have had a few months to play around with the camera, it’s become clear that it does overheat easily, especially when shooting video. Fujifilm just released an update that addresses the problem, and while the firmware won’t fix the camera’s thermals, it will at least warn the user before it shuts down.

Capturing video requires a lot of battery usage and processing power, and the resulting heat can overpower the camera and cause it to shut down, especially when shooting indoors. Even big DSLR cameras suffer from overheating. While it’s rare to lose a piece of footage to a shutdown (most cameras automatically cut the clip and save it before completely shutting down) it’s still painful to have to wait until the components have cooled down enough to turn back on — several great shots could go unfilmed. 

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Ubisoft’s ‘E3-style’ showcase will stream July 12th

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On July 12th, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla publisher Ubisoft will host its first-ever “digital conference” to give fans a look at its latest games. Dubbed Ubisoft Forward, the company says the “E3-style showcase” will feature “exclusive game news, exciting reveals and much more.” The Sunday stream will start at 3PM ET / 12 PM PT.

Ubisoft is now one of several companies that plans to make up for the cancellation of E3 2020 with a digital event. The timing of Ubisoft Forward will likely put it in close proximity to Microsoft’s July Xbox 20/20 showcase where we’ll see gameplay footage of the company’s first-party exclusives.  

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Twitter will add labels to tweets with misleading COVID-19 claims

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An example of a label on a tweet that links to verified information about COVID-19.

Twitter

The label will include a link to a Moment curated by Twitter or an external site that includes facts about COVID-19. You might see them on some tweets that were posted before today.

Twitter may also apply a warning to such tweets that include potentially harmful or misleading claims. Before you can view such a tweet, you’ll have to click or tap through a warning noting that it “conflicts with guidance from public health experts regarding COVID-19.”

An example of a warning about COVID-19 misinformation on a tweet.

Twitter

As of now, Twitter will take action on coronavirus-related tweets based on three criteria: claims subject matter experts have shown to be false or misleading; disputed claims (i.e. those for which “the accuracy, truthfulness, or credibility of the claim is contested or unknown.”); and unverified claims.

It suggests it won’t take action regarding the latter yet, but it’ll roll out more labels to offer more context about other types of rumors and unverified claims when necessary. That said, the company will remove tweets that include severely misleading information.

A chart detailing how Twitter will determine when to apply warnings and labels to tweets with contentious COVID-19 claims.

Twitter

Twitter is monitoring tweets related to COVID-19 using its internal systems, which “help ensure we’re not amplifying tweets with these warnings or labels and detecting the high-visibility content quickly,” Roth and Pickles wrote. The company’s trusted partners are also helping to identify tweets that are “likely to result in offline harm.” 

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Sony debuts three new Extra Bass speakers for portable dance parties

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Sony SRS-XB33

Sony

To protect your investment when you venture outside, all three of these new speakers are IP67 rated dustproof, water resistant and rustproof. What’s more, the XB23 and XB33 are also shockproof, so they should be able to withstand “knocks, bumps and scrapes” that are unavoidable when you’re spending time outdoors. Similar to previous Extra Bass models, the XB33 and XB43 feature built-in lights for Sony’s Fiestable and Music Center apps. You can use that software to sync the lighting to the beat, change the color or turn it off completely. Sony also redesigned the lighting overall. Instead of a multi-color frame that wraps the entire face of the speakers, now there are two light bars on the sides of the front to compliment the illuminated speakers inside. And yes, the Party Connect feature is back, which allows you to connect up to 100 compatible speakers (which is limited to these three models) as you see fit.

In terms of battery life, Sony says the XB33 and XB43 will last up to 24 hours on a charge. The compact XB23 has up to 12 hours of battery life. The larger XB33 and XB43 can also be used to charge your phone or other devices, and they both offer NFC pairing if that’s something you prefer to use.

The XB23, XB33 and XB43 are all available for pre-order today in a range of colors. Sony didn’t offer and exact ship date just yet, but we’ll be sure to update when that information is available.

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