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Project Sandcastle shows Android can be installed on an iPhone 7

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As Forbes notes, Apple sued Corellium last year, accusing it of breaching copyright laws by creating a software version of an iPhone for testing. The smaller firm criticized the tech giant on its website, which reads:

“The iPhone restricts users to operate inside a sandbox. But when you buy an iPhone, you own the iPhone hardware. Android for the iPhone gives you the freedom to run a different operating system on that hardware.”

At the moment, the version of Project Sandcastle you can download is still very limited. It only works for the iPhone 7 and 7+, and it doesn’t support the devices’ audio output, Bluetooth, camera and cellular modem yet. It also only has read-only access to system storage, and you won’t be able to download apps from Google Play. If those limitations don’t bother you, and you still want to try it out, you can get Project Sandcastle from its website.

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The Morning After: Sony’s PlayStation 2 turns 20

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The coronavirus outbreak may hurt supplies for weeks.Apple reportedly warns stores of iPhone replacement shortages

Apple has briefed retail staff that replacement phones will be in short supply, due to the effects of the coronavirus. This could last between two and four weeks. So what if your iPhone no-worky? Geniuses will be able to offer short-term iPhone loans — but these won’t be new replacement devices.

Samsung needed space for that zoom camera setup.Galaxy S20 Ultra teardown shows what’s inside that giant camera bump

If you’ve wondered exactly what is inside that bulging camera lump on Samsung’s Galaxy S20 Ultra, the teardown pros at iFixit are in the best position to show you. The 108-megapixel primary camera by itself is huge — the sensor covers twice the surface area of the 12-megapixel unit in the iPhone 11 series. The periscope-like zoom camera, meanwhile, needs a lot of space for its unusual lateral design, including optical image stabilization just for the prism. Check it all out, including a video, right here.

If you need one so you can play ‘Half-Life: Alyx,’ here’s your chance.Valve will sell more Index VR headsets on March 9th

The first new Half-Life game in years launches March 23rd, and it’s built as a virtual reality showcase. However, as if the expensive headsets weren’t hard enough to get, the coronavirus outbreak has affected production, and Valve says it will have fewer Index headsets to sell than expected.

They’ve been sold out for months, but the stock that is available will go on sale March 9th at 1 PM ET. A full setup will cost around $1,000 (on top of a well-equipped PC), but cheaper options like the Oculus Rift S can work in a pinch.

Google accused him of breaching legal obligations by forming a Waymo rival.Ex-Waymo engineer Levandowski ordered to pay Google $179 million

A court has ordered Anthony Levandowski — once a pioneer of Google’s self-driving projects — to pay the tech giant $179 million to end a contract dispute. Their relationship turned sour after Levandowski left Google, and the company accused him of poaching talent and stealing trade secrets to start a new venture.

Levandowski’s new company was later acquired by Uber, igniting a court battle between the two corporations. Google accused the ride-hailing titan of colluding with him to steal secrets from Waymo before he left. This particular case, however, only addresses Google’s contract dispute complaint with the engineer.

Levandowski has filed for bankruptcy to be able to negotiate these debts, telling the court he only has $50 million to $100 million in estimated assets — the struggle is real. This isn’t enough to pay off between $100 million and $500 million in liabilities, however.

Because coronavirus.Tesla is using older hardware in Chinese Model 3 cars because of supply issues

It’s not just replacement iPhones. Supply constraints have forced Tesla to install its older chipset in Tesla Model 3s made in China. Those new car owners are missing out: the new chip is up to 21 times faster at processing images; it’s a chip that Tesla built from the ground up to handle autonomous driving tasks. Tesla has subsequently apologized for the decision and said it will offer free upgrades to affected Model 3 owners once supplies free up.

Embedded synthetic fibers let it fracture without breaking entirely.Scientists create bendable concrete that could better withstand earthquakes

Instead of traditional Portland cement, this new concrete incorporates fly ash, which is a byproduct of burning coal for power. According to Dr. Behzad Nematollahi, one of the researchers who developed the material, it’s 400 times more bendable than regular concrete, making it ideal for use in places where earthquakes are frequent. Click here to see some flexible concrete action.

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‘Half-Life: Alyx’ creators explain how its VR gameplay will work

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In an IGN exclusive, the pair explain that for many players, Alyx will be their first foray into VR gaming. As such, they took a number of measures to help newbies get acquainted with the technology. Shooting and reloading is a completely different ballgame to controller-based play, for example, so Alyx‘s starter levels involve lots of basic non-threatening enemies to give players the opportunity to learn that maneuver, before moving on to the trickier stuff.

They also explain how, during the testing stages, they found that because of the VR nature of the game players were far more likely to engage with their environments. As such, a lot of detail has gone into designing what would otherwise be considered background environments – much of it based on the way playtesters were reacting in VR.

Half-Life: Alyx is going to be a pivotal release for Valve. Not only does it resurrect a much-loved universe, but it’s likely to be a major reason for many gamers to move into VR — which is still not without its wrinkles. As such, it’s got to get it right, and as the video above shows, it’s well aware of the weight of expectation on its shoulders.

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Electric skateboard maker Boosted announces ‘significant’ layoffs

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In 2012, Boosted came onto the scene with its crowdfunded Loaded Vanguard light electric skateboard and has since produced a string of personal vehicles including last year’s Rev scooter. Unfortunately things may be nearing the end, as the company announced “the incredibly difficult decision to let a significant portion of the Boosted team go.” It cited the “unplanned challenge “of the US-China tariff war as a factor in its struggle, despite the many riders putting in millions of miles of riding on its products.

Since its launch, the “micromobility” field has become increasingly crowded, and there doesn’t seem to be a sure winner at this point, but as its CTO and CEO noted in the post, the need to keep capital flowing to maintain production and maintenance of vehicles is tricky. Now the plan is to “pursue strategic options under new ownership,” so we’ll have to wait and see what that looks like in the future.

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Google Stadia is rolling out 4K streaming on the web

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Until now, the only way to access 4K gaming was by using a Chromecast Ultra with a television. If it’s working on the web, you should see a noticeable bump in quality. You can confirm it by opening the in-game menu (hit shift-tab or use the Stadia button on your controller), where you should see a green 4K icon under “data usage.”

4K streaming has been a thorny issue for Stadia. As Engadget noted last month, a key part of Google’s pitch was that Stadia could hit 4K at 60 fps. However, that resolution isn’t supported on key games like Red Dead Redemption 2 and Destiny 2, something that Google didn’t make clear. Instead, players had to figure out which titles supported 4K for themselves. Also, games that do support 4K appear to be running at a lower resolution than native 4K games on a PC.

Google recently boosted the number of Stadia games by five and added key features like screenshot and clip downloading. Several key features are still missing, though, including support for wireless Stadia controllers on the web and expanded Assistant support. Google still hasn’t made 4K Stadia play on the web official, but the fact that a lot of players are seeing the feature means an announcement could be imminent.

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Bang & Olufsen’s Beosound Balance is a $2,250 statement speaker

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The bottom portion of the Beosound Balance is wrapped in FSC-approved timber and contains one large, upward-facing subwoofer. The low-frequency sound goes up and through a perforated metal dish before reflecting off the rounded base of the top section. The upper unit, meanwhile, contains a downward-facing bass driver, three mid-range speakers and two tweeters. They’re all wrapped up in a knitted textile produced by Danish specialist Kvadrat. Like the timber base, the material is supposed to evoke premium furniture and be something that, even if the product had zero functionality, you would want to display in your home.

Bang & Olufsen Balance

The top of the Balance is a touch-sensitive dish that lets you adjust the volume, skip tracks and access other basic controls. The various options are etched into the aluminium surface and illuminated with LEDs that subtly turn off when the speaker isn’t in use. According to Layer, the Beosound Balance also has an internal microphone that, during the initial setup process, will analyse the room and create a set of personalized “filters” that compensate for the walls and other sound-reflecting surfaces.

Bang & Olufsen’s new speaker will support Bluetooth, AirPlay 2 and Google Cast, with Spotify Connect coming before the second half of 2020. And if you prefer voice to touch controls, fear not: the Beosound Balance will offer the Google Assistant and, later in the year, Amazon’s Alexa alternative. If you own other Bang & Olufsen hardware, the Balance can also be used as part of a Sonos-style surround sound or multi-room setup.

Bang & Olufsen Balance

The Besound Balance will be available in two colors, Natural Oak and Black Oak, for $2,250 (£1,750/€2,000) later this month. That’s the same price as the cone-shaped Beosound 2 — a Layer spokesperson told Engadget, however, that the Balance sits above that model and isn’t a direct replacement. (Maybe the Beosound 2 is getting a price cut?) Regardless, the speaker is far more expensive than Apple’s HomePod and anything offered by Sonos at the moment. Instead, a closer point of reference is the Formation line by Bowers & Wilkins, which includes the standalone Wedge for $900 and bookshelf-style Duo speakers for $3,999.

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Internet-connected bunny Nabaztag is back for a second crowdfunding campaign

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In a brand new Ulule campaign, Violet said it was able to finish sending the first batch of backers their TagTagTag-only kits — they work with old robots purchased over a decade ago — and full units — kits with Nabaztag robots — in January after three months of delay. However, a lot of people signed up for the waiting list for another production run.

In addition to giving fans the chance to buy a Raspberry Pi-powered Nabaztag, the new campaign also promises two new features. First is support for RFID, while the other is the addition of a kids’ programming course called Nabblockly. Pledges start at €33 (US$37), but backers need to shell out at least €75 ($84) for a TagTagTag board without a Raspberry Pi and at least €335 ($373) for a full TagTagTag-Raspberry Pi kit and a robo-bunny.

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Ex-Waymo engineer Levandowski ordered to pay Google $179 million

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Levandowski’s new company was later acquired by Uber, igniting a court battle between the two corporations. Google accused the ride-hailing titan of colluding with its former employee to steal secrets from Waymo before he left. This particular case, however, only addresses Google’s contract dispute complaint.

Back in December, an arbitration panel ruled that Levandowski and colleague Lior Ron breached their legal obligations, as well as engaged in unfair competition, when they started a rival company and brought Google employees over. Ron chose to settle with Google, but Levandowski decided to dispute the ruling. Now, a San Francisco County court has denied his petition and backed the panel’s decision.

That said, it’s unclear if he has to pay anything. Uber may have to shoulder the payment, depending on the terms of his contract. In addition, Levandowski has filed for bankruptcy to be able to negotiate debts, telling the court he only has $50 million to $100 million in estimated assets, which aren’t enough to pay off between $100 million and $500 million in liabilities.

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Netflix, Apple reportedly pull out of SXSW 2020

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While the SXSW 2020 festival is still scheduled to take place, a couple more big names are reportedly taking a pass on the event in a couple of weeks. Outlets like Variety, Deadline and The Hollywood Reporter have confirmed that both Apple and Netflix have canceled, abandoning plans for panels and premieres for highly-anticipated releases like the Beastie Boys documentary that’s coming to Apple TV+. Amazon has also pulled out of the event as premieres and debuts largely go online instead of in-person as companies try to avoid putting people in unnecessary contact.

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Apple reportedly warns stores of iPhone replacement shortages

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We’ve asked Apple for comment.

The company’s factory partners only briefly stopped manufacturing to deal with the coronavirus outbreak, but there has already been evidence of strain on Apple’s inventory across multiple fronts. iPhone 11 volumes have reportedly shrunk slightly worldwide, while the iPad Pro has also suffered shortages. Limited stock for replacement iPhones would be the most conspicuous sign of trouble, however, as it’s something you might notice even if you have no intention of upgrading in the near future.

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