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Google fully explains why its apps aren’t on new Huawei phones

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Since last spring, the government’s entity list ban against Huawei (and ZTE) has largely prevented US companies from working with them. Despite legal wrangling and trade negotiations between the two countries the ban is still in place, and in the case of Google, it means that while there are still updates and services available on older devices, any new Huawei phones (like the Mate 30 Pro, shown above) don’t have access to its services.

This has been the case for months now, but today Google posted a longer explanation, which it said was in response to continued questions about the issue. For end users, especially those outside the US and China, it might not be immediately clear why the usual suite of Google apps and services aren’t on new Huawei phones and now there’s at least a detailed official explanation to reference. It could also serve the purpose of warning off anyone planning on making a workaround available, like the LZ Play one that was blocked last year.

Android & Play legal director Tristan Ostrowski also laid out the company’s opposition to people sideloading its apps. According to him it’s because Google can’t certify new Huawei phones, due to the ban, and cited the risk of compromised security either in the devices or via an app that has been tampered with. While Huawei had hinted at replacing Android with its own OS, it’s continuing to use Android, and replaced Google services with those of other companies like TomTom, for maps and navigation.

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WSJ: Comcast’s NBCUniversal is in advanced talks to acquire Vudu

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As we discussed last year, it’s getting expensive to keep up with TV due to the increasing number of streaming options popping up. Companies need to find a way to make money, especially those pumping millions into their projects. WSJ says that Vudu would complement Peacock if the sale goes through, and its online movie rental service would support Fandango, NBCUniversal’s movie ticketing and rental business. Peacock would set users back $10 a month for the ad-free tier and $5 for the ad-supported one. Vudu doesn’t have a subscription fee. It has shows users can stream at no cost, but they can also pay for movies and series not available for free.

The possibility of Vudu’s sale doesn’t exactly come as a surprise. Walmart announced a lineup of originals for the service in May 2019, but a report that went around a few months later said the retail giant would consider selling the ad-supported streaming platform if it finds a buyer.

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Vinyl cover maker Slickwraps coughs up customer info in a data breach

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In an email sent to customers this morning, Slickwraps says an “unauthorized party” accessed its private databases, and obtained customer names, emails and addresses. Slickwraps claims passwords and credit card information weren’t compromised.

“We are deeply sorry for this oversight. We promise to learn from this mistake and will make improvements going forward. This will include enhancing our security processes, improving communication of security guidelines to all Slickwraps employees, and making more of our user-requested security features our top priority in the coming months,” the company said. “We are also partnering with a third-party cybersecurity firm to audit and improve our security protocols.”

However, the scale and severity of the breach could be much more significant than Slickswraps is letting on. According to a security researcher who goes by the Twitter handle of Lynx, they reportedly tried to warn the company multiple times over the last several days about a massive vulnerability to their website. What’s worse, they claim all of their messages were ignored by Slickwraps. At one point, the company even went so far as to block Lynx’s Twitter account. Eventually, Lynx disclosed the breach in a Medium post that they’ve since deleted. Someone then used the information in the post to access the databases and email all of Slickwraps’ 377,428 customers, letting them know of the breach before the company had said anything about it.

In whatever way the scenario actually played out, it highlights just how frequent these types of breaches have become in recent years. As an individual, it’s hard for you to know when a website you’ve used in the past may get hacked, but by taking a couple of simple precautions you can minimize the effects on your online privacy.



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‘Friends’ cast is locked in for a reunion special to launch HBO Max

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Now that AT&T spent more than $400 million pulling Friends from Netflix to serve as one of the pillars for its HBO Max streaming service, the WarnerMedia company has also shelled out to get the original cast back together for a reunion special. Negotiations for the special have been rumored for months, but now it’s confirmed that Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry, and David Schwimmer will all be a part of the unscripted event.

Along with all 236 episodes of the popular sitcom, it will be available when HBO Max launches in May.

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Hot Wheels brings its NFC-enabled stat-tracker to even more toys this year

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First up, the core ID setup gets a bit of a rethink. The Smart Track set, with its sturdy USB-connected pieces, was a pretty cool piece of tech. (We even included it in our holiday gift guide.) But at $180, it was probably too pricey for a lot of parents. This year there’s a new $120 Core Track. It may cost $60 less but it carries all of the same functionality in terms of the race portal and the pump that propels the cars. The one concession you make for the price is that the assembled track set is a little bit smaller — not that I could tell at first glance. It’s still a nice swooping oval shape with a loop in the middle, so maybe that’s all you really need.

Hot Wheels ID

If you already have an existing Hot Wheels track setup, the brand now has more options to integrate the standalone $35 race portal into it. Last year’s race portal set came with blue clips that could be used to attach the portal to pieces of standard orange track, but it wasn’t exactly the most secure arrangement — it was a little flimsy, and it was easy to lose the clips. Now, sets from the Track Builder and City lines will include a special piece of track that the race portal can be slotted into directly. This is great if you’re not a particular fan of how the Smart Track set was laid out or its “kid-powered booster,” which even I always had a bit of trouble with myself (it’s very much about hitting a sweet spot). Some sets have a motor that propels the car forward without your constant intervention, and now Hot Wheels ID can work with those too.

What’s even more interesting is that having more places to plug the race portal in also means more variety in what you see on the screen of your connected mobile device. While we didn’t get a live demonstration, a representative told us that one piece that had molded plastic water nozzles on it would actually manifest as a car wash in the app — so you’d see your vehicle getting washed as it went through the race portal.

Hot Wheels ID

Of course, more cars will also become available for Hot Wheels ID in 2020, including the upcoming Tesla Cybertruck. (That’s in addition to the 1/64-scale RC Cybertruck also introduced at Toy Fair this weekend.) Like the other NFC-chipped cars, it will cost $5.

All of these products are set to roll out later this year, with the new Core Track core set due this spring. But you could just pick up last year’s Smart Track set from Amazon for $125 today — only $5 more expensive than the upcoming scaled-down version, making it a better choice right now if features are important to you.

Follow all the latest news from Toy Fair 2020 here!

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Google search is showing invitations to private WhatsApp groups

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You won’t want to count on these invitations leaving the web, either. A WhatsApp spokesperson asserted these links were shared in “searchable, public channels,” and that people who want to keep links private shouldn’t share them on publicly reachable sites. Google’s public search liaison, Danny Sullivan, reiterated this by saying it was “no different” than any other situation where sites allow links to be publicly listed. He added that Google offers tools to block content from being listed. A Google spokesperson didn’t have more to add following an inquiry from Engadget.

Concerns appear to have been circulating since at least November 2019, when a Facebook representative told one user that this was an “intentional product decision.”

This should mean that it’s possible to keep private chats truly closed off by asking members to avoid sharing invitations in public spaces. The problem, of course, is that it only takes one not-so-careful participant to make a link public, and users might not always understand when sharing a link makes it visible in search engines. It also undermines Facebook’s assertion that its future is private — it’s hard to maintain privacy if a link shared in one place is visible to anyone with a knack for Google searches.



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Analytics firm exposed data for 120 million households

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Tetrad responded relatively quickly. UpGuard said it found and notified Tetrad of the exposure on February 3rd, and a back-and-forth led to the data being locked down on February 10th. It’s not certain whether anyone besides UpGuard or Tetrad accessed the data, however.

The findings underscore one of the problems with collecting data on a large scale. It not only raises concerns about what companies do with your data, it also increases the chances that this data might fall into the wrong hands. It’s also a stark reminder that your data is only as secure as the weakest link in the chain — a simple mistake by a partner can render a company’s security measures pointless.

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The Hot Wheels RC Cybertruck is a mini Tesla for $400

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The Hot Wheels Cybertruck R/C has all the details you would expect for a toy that costs a few hundred dollars, including rows of front and rear lights and the distinctive rear cover with a telescoping tailgate. Sadly, unlike the original, it’s not automatically activated — you’ll have to pull it out by hand. There’s also no RC Cyberquad ATV to tuck neatly into the truck bed. (Mattel is thinking about introducing one down the line, but nothing’s set in stone yet.)

It’s obviously too small to ride in but the inside will be fully designed with seats and a dashboard; the shell is removable so you can take a look inside (or pose your favorite action figures in the chairs). This is definitely designed for the Tesla fan, but even regular RC fans will find plenty to like about the Cybertruck. It’s capable of actual speeds up to 25 miles per hour which doesn’t make it the fastest RC out there but is still is nothing to sniff at. (That’s actually the speed limit in New York City, meaning that if you were crazy enough to take this thing out on the street, it wouldn’t hold up traffic by being too slow. But you probably shouldn’t.)

Hot Wheels RC Cybertruck

The Cybertruck uses hobby grade parts and a standard dial-based RC controller, so in addition to going fast it also turns on a dime. In a demonstration at Toy Fair we watched it gracefully navigate under a table and around the legs of passersby. There were moments I was sure it would crash and it didn’t.

If it did have a collision, though, the plastic construction seems to mimic its full-sized metal counterpart well, though I still wouldn’t throw heavy objects at it. Oh, if you’re fond of that botched demonstration from the reveal back in November, Hot Wheels has packed in a little treat for you there too — the Cybertruck comes with “shattered window” decals so you can emulate the look of Tesla’s little mishap on stage.

Hot Wheels RC Cybertruck

If $400 is still a little rich for your blood, don’t worry, there’s a 1/64 scale RC model too and it’s only $20. It doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of its larger sibling like the removable cover, and it uses a gamepad-like controller instead, but it’s still very fast (7 miles per hour, which scales up to 500 mph) and maneuverable — this one could stop close to the edge of a table without rolling off. And, since it’s the same scale as the majority of Hot Wheels’ vehicle line, it can be used on the standard orange track, so you can speed your car through loop-de-loops that owners of the real Cybertruck will only be able to dream about.

We don’t have a release date for either toy at this point but they are available for pre-order today on MattelCreations.com, with the release set for later this year.

Follow all the latest news from Toy Fair 2020 here!

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The first 'Apex Legends' map is returning for a weekend-long event

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If it's been a while since you played Apex Legends, you may want to take some time to return to the game this weekend. Starting today through to February 24th, Respawn Entertainment is bringing back Kings Canyon, Apex's original map, as part of a sep…

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iHeart will turn podcasts into books starting with ‘Stuff You Should know’

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Plenty of people listen to podcasts on their commute and during work, but iHeartMedia is hoping they can squeeze even more podcast consumption into their days — possibly before they nod off. The company partnered with Flatiron Books to create a series of titles based on popular podcasts. The first iHeart podcast to get a book adaptation will be the long-running Stuff You Should Know. Subtitled An Incomplete Compendium of Mostly Interesting Things, the book will be written by the show’s co-hosts, Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant, and will “answer all the questions readers didn’t know they wanted to ask” about everyday objects.

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