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You’ll be able to play the entirety of Minecraft in PSVR following the update. There’ll be two main VR modes, Immersive and Living Room (i.e. a virtual screen), along with more settings to help you adjust how the game plays to your liking.
There’s no release date for the patch just yet as Mojang and SkyBox are applying the finishing touches to the update. But if you have a PSVR headset, you’ll soon get to experience Minecraft in a whole new way.
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We’re really sorry about the cheating problem!
We’re expanding the current detection system this week to improve things
We also have a BIG update in the next couple of weeks that adds the same anti-cheat used by games such as Fortnite
Thanks for bearing with us!
[Not BeanBot]
— Fall Guys | BeanBot Activated 🤖 (@FallGuysGame) September 6, 2020
Fortnite developer Epic Games owns and uses Easy Anti-Cheat. The software is used by more than 120 games, and it’s proven to be pretty reliable. So this update should provide the anti-cheat support that Fall Guys fans are looking for.
Mediatonic has been working to fight cheaters for weeks now. It changed its detection criteria so that players would no longer have to report individual cheaters, and it started blocking cheaters in the middle of games, rather than after each round. It also closed a loophole that allowed cheaters to get around bans by creating new Family-Sharing accounts on Steam.
But as Engadget’s Matt Brian found, those efforts haven’t done much to stop cheaters.
So, @FallGuysGame insists that cheaters are auto-detected and removed from the game ASAP. Notice this little complication of four rounds (first two blink and you’ll miss), but pay attention to the last two rounds and how they continued to blatantly cheat and progress. pic.twitter.com/qjhASDOdQG
— Matt Brian (@m4tt) September 5, 2020
Hopefully, adding Epic’s Easy Anti-Cheat will be more effective, so Fall Guys players can stop fighting cheaters and get back to playing the game.
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The Galaxy Watch 3’s allure starts with the relatively thin and light size, though it’s still a bit chunky on the underside. It also has an improved rotating bezel that’s not only smaller, but operates more smoothly than before.
The Watch 3 really shines when it comes to the sleep and fitness tracking side. It comes with a built-in running coach that provides real-time audio and visual feedback for free, unlike the subscription services offered on devices like the Fitbit. It can also effectively monitor your sleep, showing exactly when you wake up and fall asleep again, and giving you a score for each sleep session.
You also fancy health readings like VO2Max, Sp02 and even trip detection (similar to Apple’s fall detection). And of course, it’s a great smartphone companion, letting you easily reply to messages, control music and more.
With all of these features and an OS that works smoothly (unlike wearOS, at times), the Galaxy Watch 3 normally commands a pretty high price. If you’ve been looking to snag one, a $65 discount might be just the incentive you need.
Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.
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India is extending its influence over major tech players. Streaming services, including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ Hotstar and 12 other companies, have signed a self-regulatory code to stay on the good side of India’s regulators. This includes common approaches to age labels and content descriptions as well as a way to report any violations of the system. Streaming services will have to set up complaint departments, internal committees or both to deal with any issues.
The Indian government has been hesitant to censor streaming services and would rather they keep themselves in check. It’s one of several moves the government has made recently to address tech companies’ influence in the country. Last week, it banned more than 100 apps with ties to China, including major game titles like PUBG.
In other news, following up on my favorite story from last week, the Amazon ‘phone tree’ hack is no more.
Withings’ latest smartwatch is the first to offer a complete suite of health-monitoring tools inside a watch. Announced in January, the ScanWatch replaces the Steel HR as the French company’s new flagship timepiece. Or, it will, since it’s still working its way through the FDA for clearance in the US. While it’s not a radical departure from its predecessor, Dan Cooper has been testing one out, and he’s infatuated. Continue reading.
The FCC has proposed fining internet provider BarrierFree for providing false subscriber data, but not before it used some of that data to further its own claims.
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai used BarrierFree’s data in February 2019 to tout improved rural broadband access, even though his agency had warned of inaccurate data on this subject for years. The FCC repeatedly warned BarrierFree about missing data starting in 2015 and raised concerns about what it received when the company finally sent in the details in March 2018.
BarrierFree subsequently missed a September filing, and Pai was cheerleading the incorrect figures the same day the FCC warned the provider about another deadline. Continue reading.
Amazon appears to have stopped freelance delivery drivers’ workaround that used phones in trees to game delivery route assignments. Contract drivers talking to Bloomberg said they’re now getting more routes even when they’re miles away from the Whole Foods locations that had been hubs for the scheme. The tree-borne phones have vanished along with the people lurking around them, one Chicago driver said.
The tree-phone move reportedly exploited the behavior of the Amazon Flex dispatch system. Rogue drivers synced their phones with those in the trees, helping them snap up deliveries that would otherwise go to competing drivers. The company hasn’t confirmed the move, but told Bloomberg that waiting in the parking lot or using store WiFi was “not an effective way” to claim delivery orders.
Continue reading.
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The DoD has said that the cloud contract, which will provide storage, AI processing, machine learning and more is essential to modernizing the US military. Oracle and IBM bid along with Microsoft and Amazon, but were eliminated in 2018. Oracle challenged the decision, but an appeal court recently denied its claim.
Microsoft said that the DoD probe validated its bid. “We appreciate that after careful review, the DoD confirmed that we offered the right technology and the best value,” the company told TechCrunch in a statement. “We’re ready to get to work and make sure that those who serve our country have access to this much needed technology.”
Amazon: “On JEDI, President Trump reportedly ordered former Secretary Mattis to ‘screw’ Amazon, blatantly interfered in an active procurement, directed his subordinate to conduct an unorthodox ‘review’ prior to a contract award announcement and then stonewalled an investigation into his own political interference.”
Amazon, meanwhile, railed against the decision. In its public sector blog, the company said it would continue to fight the contract award, calling it a “flawed, biased and politically corrupted decision.” It also referred to past statements made by President Trump against Amazon: “The question we continue to ask ourselves is whether the President of the United States should be allowed to use the budget of the Department of Defense to pursue his own personal and political ends?”
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As I wrote last year, there aren’t very many fitness tracking technologies that you can cram into a watch. When you have activity tracking, heart-rate and ECG monitors on board, the best you can aim for is refinements. Work is being done on ways of using optical sensors to monitor blood sugar or food intake, but that’s nowhere near ready for prime time.
Steve Dent
I’m in two minds about its design. The larger, 42mm model is wonderfully austere, with thick lugs and a subtle beveled edge. On the other hand, there’s a whiff of trying too hard, like those fake diver’s watches that cost $20. The smaller, 38mm version is far softer, with a narrower frame and rounded lugs that blend far better into the background. For both case sizes, you can opt for a white or black face, although the 42mm black model has a red subdial hand.
There are two subdials on the ScanWatch. The lower one is the patented analog activity dial that features on every Withings hybrid. As before, it counts from one to one hundred, it works up to the total you set for yourself in the companion app. If you’re looking to keep an eye on your activity but want to avoid unnecessary screens, this is ideal.
The second sundial, up top, is the rounded PMOLED display that will show you smart notifications and let you access the watch’s special features. Push the crown in, and you can cycle through menus that show your heart rate, steps taken, distance traveled and floors climbed. You’ll also be able to trigger an ECG (Electrocardiogram) and an SpO2 (blood oxygen saturation) test.
Both are relatively easy to perform, you just have to sit/stand still and lay your hands on a surface, with a finger resting on the bezel for an ECG. I think it’s more elegant and reliable than the Move ECG, which required you to pinch the watch face on both sides like a battery tester. And watching the readout on the small display helps you to see how your heart is doing.
Steve Dent
Naturally, all Withings products lean heavily on Health Mate, one of the better health companion apps available. It breaks down your health into a daily dashboard and collates your longer-term data to give you a wide-ranging picture of your progress (or lack thereof) over time. I also have a soft spot for how the app tells you when you’ve traveled the length of a major landmark — like crossing Madagascar.
Having said all that, I think the ScanWatch is too expensive for a hybrid, despite all these features. In the US, the larger model will set you back $300, the sort of money you could spend on a flagship smartwatch. If you want an alternative to the Apple and Samsung watches of this world, then this is one of your best options, but I wish it was $50 cheaper.
Withings says that the ScanWatch’s battery will last for up to 30 days on a charge, and it comes with a pogo-pin charging plate in the case. In the few days I’ve had to test it, I’ve barely made a dent into the cell, even with repeated ECG and blood oxygenation tests.
Withings ScanWatch is available today in Europe, priced at €280/£250 in for the 38mm edition and €299/£280 for the 42mm body. It’ll be available in the US when the FDA clears it, and will set you back $280 / $300 for the 38mm/42mm versions.
Steve Dent contributed to this report.
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This also depends on the project completing as planned. Borconi-Szdressy is close to hitting his funding target and expects the first dongles to ship in December for $55 each, but there’s always the possibility of delays or other setbacks. You’re backing the project in hopes of getting something in return, not making a pre-order.
Still, this could make Android Auto considerably more practical if you’re willing to take a risk. You might not have to be quite so picky when shopping for a car or head unit. This could be helpful if you’re using an older phone, too. AAWireless only needs a phone running Android 9 Pie, so this might help you delay a device upgrade if wire-free Android Auto is important.
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Pai went on to correct the data in May 2019, but maintained that broadband was reaching Americans in a “reasonable and timely fashion.” The gap was considerably larger than he claimed, though. Where the Chairman initially claimed that people without access dropped from 26.1 million in late 2016 to 19.4 million a year later, there were actually 21.3 million people without fast internet service. That also doesn’t factor in concerns about inaccurate data gathering methods.
These findings don’t necessarily show the FCC was knowingly using false info. However, they at least indicates the regulator wasn’t heeding numerous red flags. The Pai-era FCC has made rural broadband one of its top priorities, committing billions to the cause, but reports like this cast doubt on its progress claims.
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Critics complained not just that they were seeing ads in a paid game, but that the timing was dishonest. The ads appeared roughly two weeks after UFC 4’s launch, or well after initial reviews. If you were an early adopter, you wouldn’t have realized you were in store for a marketing blitz. While advertisers are clearly eager to reach gamers who might not watch much TV, EA appears to have overestimated players’ desire to sit through any ads that disrupt gameplay.
This isn’t the first time EA has had to change a game in response to an uproar over commercialization. Most notably, it revamped Star Wars Battlefront II’s progression system after gamers balked at a pay-to-win loot box mechanic. EA has been accused more than once of putting its desire for post-sale revenue ahead of the gameplay experience, and UFC 4’s brief dalliance with ads won’t help its reputation.
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