YouTube is widening the audience for its fact check panels, and not a moment too soon. The video service now displays (via TechCrunch) independent fact checks for searches of known false claims. Look for claims behind COVID-19 conspiracy theories, for instance, and a panel will link you to an article debunking those myths. As before, YouTube is limiting these cards to relatively narrow searches — you shouldn’t get them while you’re simply looking for the latest news.
The panels bring up info from third-party publishers who honor the International Fact-Checking Network’s ethics code and meet the standards for ClaimReview’s tagging system. This includes partners like FactCheck.org, PolitiFact and The Washington Post Fact Checker.
The Polestar 2 is still slated to come to the US this summer, despite the coronavirus pandemic. The Swedish company — a subsidiary of Volvo — recently announced that the all-electric sedan will start at $59,900. That’s well above the similarly spec’d Tesla Model 3, which starts at about $40,000. However, given the Volvo pedigree, the Polestar 2 may have an advantage over the Model 3 when it comes to safety. The company outlined various elements that will keep drivers safe in the event of a crash, including automatic braking, inner-side airbags and battery safeguards.
Polestar 2’s autopilot features use Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS), which the company says will come to other models from Volvo. Pilot Assist provides acceleration, breaking and steering when driving at up to 81 miles per hour. The exact mechanisms that will help aid in driver and passenger safety aren’t clear, but the technology should at least help prevent collisions on highways, and help drivers stop short if they don’t see a road hazard.
“One-ring scams are annoying and pernicious, waking up many Americans with confusing calls in the middle of the night and tricking them out of their money if they call back,” FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said in a statement. “With this effort, this agency shows it’s serious about aggressively combating this scam.”
Earlier this month, the FCC and FTC sent letters to three gateway providers that were facilitating COVID-19-related robocall scams. The FCC warned that if the providers did not cut off those robocalls, phone companies would begin blocking all traffic from those gateway providers’ networks. According to the FCC, the providers stopped carrying those scams within 24 hours. Now, the FCC wants feedback on whether a similar approach might be used for one-ring scam calls.
In the meantime, the FCC advises consumers not to answer or return calls from numbers they don’t recognize and to check whether unfamiliar numbers have international area codes. It even suggests asking your phone company to block outgoing international calls if you don’t typically place those.
Following the Wall Street Journal’s report alleging that Amazon uses sellers’ data to make competing products, Senator Josh Hawley is asking for a criminal antitrust investigation into the claims. Hawley formally requested the investigation in a letter submitted to Attorney General William Barr today.
According to the Wall Street Journal’s sources, Amazon employees (including executives) have been using proprietary seller data to design and price in-house, Amazon products. In a statement, Amazon denied the practice, and as recently as July, Amazon told Congress that it doesn’t use seller data to gain an unfair advantage. But with more than 20 former Amazon employees corroborating the recent report, Hawley wants to take another look.
The new Pixel Buds finally deliver true wireless. They’re more comfortable, and the touch controls are both reliable and intuitive. While they have solid audio quality, Google did not include active noise cancellation (ANC), which is a bit of a disappointment.
We would have also liked to see improved battery life. The Pixel Buds will last for about five hours, but that’s lower than several cheaper wireless earbuds on the market. Though, the charging case gives you an additional 19 hours of listening time, and it can provide 10-minute quick charges for two-hour boosts. That’s probably plenty of power for most users.
Overall, we gave the new Pixel Buds an 83. They are Google’s long-awaited attempt at Apple’s AirPods — we don’t count the 2017 Pixel Buds because they were not completely wireless, Google Assistant wasn’t reliable and they felt a bit incomplete. The new Pixel Buds should solve some of their predecessor’s shortcomings, even if they aren’t perfect. Plus, even at full price, they are pretty affordable.
If you plan to take US Cellular up on its offer, there is one catch. Only those who live in areas covered by US Cellular can purchase the Buds from the site. A quick look at the provider’s coverage map suggests that the majority of the US is covered, but you’ll want to check the map before you attempt to get this deal.
With widespread shutdowns due to the COVID-19 pandemic, online shopping has become more important than ever. Shopify, which until now has mostly helped online retailers sell their products, wants to make it easier for consumers to browse and buy goods, especially from local businesses. Today, it’s unveiling its new consumer app, Shop.
With location filters, Shop will help users find local businesses to buy from — at least the Shopify-powered ones. It will also suggest recommendations from users’ favorite brands. Shoppers can checkout with one-click payment, and they can track all of their online orders.
That’s why today’s news is significant. Sonarworks has revealed the SoundID Listen app for Mac and Windows which allows users to apply their personalized audio profile to everything they listen to on their computer. The mobile and desktop apps are still a 1-2 punch though, as the hearing test only resides inside the phone software for now. The company says it may consider bringing that process to the desktop, if there’s enough interest. Until then, you’ll need to do the initial setup on your phone before hopping over to your Mac or PC. Once you sign in, your profile automatically syncs with the desktop app. From there, you simply need to select the headphones you’re using so the software can use the appropriate sound calibration.
SoundID currently supports over 350 headphone models, but there are some omissions. For example, the Bose 700 and Beats Solo Pro aren’t available (yet). However, Apple’s AirPods Pro, Sony’s WH-1000XM3 and other notable options are on the list. There’s a mix of wired and wireless headphones too, so you do have a lot to choose from.
I’ve been using SoundID Listen on a MacBook Pro for about a week and the results are consistent with what I heard at CES. Ditto for what I’ve experienced with the limited abilities of the SoundID iOS app. Again, the initial test is quick and easy, and if you input your sex and birthday, it will also factor in average hearing loss into your profile. I had no trouble syncing my personal setting in the macOS app, and the headphone selector is front and center. And there’s an obvious on/off button for the SoundID personalization so you don’t have to go hinting for it should the need arise.
Sonarworks SoundID Listen
Like I mentioned before, Sonarworks takes a more even-handed approach to applying your sound profile, so the change is more subtle. However, it does make a noticeable difference, and as far as I’m concerned, a noticeable improvement. That being said, the tweaks are more prominent in some genres than others. There’s more presence, depth and a bit more clarity. I could barely hear the change with SoundID Listen on with some bass-heavy electronic tracks compared to what the software did with metal, rock and other styles. Sonarworks says this is evidence the software is working as intended based on the initial test. In order to fit your preferences, for example, Gojira’s bruising metal might need more adjustment than Run The Jewel’s bombastic hip-hop. Of course, that example was my experience, and yours might be the complete opposite — which is kind of the beauty of this.
Sonarworks makes calibration software for recording studio headphones and monitors, which is where the company got its start. It also debuted the True-Fi app for headphone calibration a few years ago. True-Fi featured a similar hearing test to gauge your personal preferences before allowing you to pick from hundreds of presets for hundreds of headphone models. That app also allowed you to further tweak the EQ and dive deep into settings. However, Sonarworks admits it never really took off, so it discontinued support in early March to focus on the simplified and more user-friendly SoundID app. The company has a solid track record when it comes to audio calibration, and now it’s bringing that knowledge to the masses.
SoundID Listen is available now as a 60-day free trial. When that initial period is up, the desktop app will cost $4.99 a month. If you commit to a year before May 18th, you’ll get it for the 6-month plan price of $24.99 (saving you $20). The SoundID mobile app — which includes the hearing test — is free on Android and iOS.
Now the esports pros will take center stage, however in this third season, the plan is to play at least the first six weeks remotely, for obvious reasons. There are 23 teams participating, including the first one that’s not linked to an NBA franchise with the Gen.G Tigers of Shanghai, and over the first six weeks they’ll all play at least eight matches. The best-of-three competitions start at 7 PM ET from Tuesday through Friday each week.
The plan is for the league’s broadcast to take place from a virtual studio, and switch between games in real-time to focus on whatever action is most exciting. A League Pass / Redzone style experience is an interesting approach for esports, presented as a simulcast via Twitch and YouTube.
NBA 2K League Managing Director Brendan Donohue said in a statement: “We are thrilled to officially tip off the 2020 NBA 2K League season remotely and hope the excitement of NBA 2K League competition provides both new and returning fans with a fun way to stay connected and engage with our league during these unprecedented times.”
LG’s certainly a fan of novelty phone features, and while it’s tried to steer clear of anything too gimmicky in this release, the “raindrop” camera design is definitely a standout, bringing together a 48-megapixel primary lens, an 8-megapixel ultra-wide lens and a 5-megapixel depth sensor in a unique pattern. There’s a 16-megapixel camera on the front.
There’s also a 4,300mAh battery and a headphone jack, plus “stereo speakers” that according to LG are complemented by AI software that controls volume and optimizes sound. The whole thing will be powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 765 5G, which suggests the device will be positioned in the upper-mid-range market. The Velvet is probably not intended to challenge the likes of the Galaxy S20 or iPhone 11 Pro, but rather offer a fancy design at a decent price (which is yet to be announced). This is particularly true if you’re big on looks — as well as black and white, the phone will also come in an ombre-like teal and sunset pink.
As for these recent sightings, however, the Pentagon has decided to release the clips “in order to clear up any misconceptions by the public on whether or not the footage that has been circulating was real, or whether or not there is more to the videos,” Pentagon spokesperson Sue Gough told CNN. She added that “After a thorough review, the department has determined that the authorized release of these unclassified videos does not reveal any sensitive capabilities or systems, and does not impinge on any subsequent investigations of military air space incursions by unidentified aerial phenomena.”
So in a nutshell, the Pentagon is saying there’s nothing to worry about — although they haven’t exactly clarified what these objects are. Sightings like this can often be chalked up to weather, test aircraft and other phenomena, or as one of the voices in the videos speculates, it could just be a drone.
