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Oppo’s next flagship will use a custom Sony sensor with faster autofocus

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Conventional phase detection autofocus (PDAF), as featured on most modern smartphone cameras, works by detecting pattern changes in the vertical direction only. In other words, PDAF wouldn’t work as well on horizontal pattern changes.

This is where “All Pixel Omni-directional PDAF” comes in. In a nutshell, it’s about detecting pattern changes in both vertical and horizontal directions to make use of more image data, thus enabling faster focusing and better low-light performance. This also allows the sensor to focus on smaller objects or finer details.

Sony 2x2 OCL

Sony 2x2 OCL

All Pixel Omni-directional PDAF requires some tweaking on the sensor’s micro lens level. To achieve this, Oppo tapped into Sony’s “2×2 On-Chip Lens (OCL)” solution, which places four adjacent pixels with the same color under one on-chip lens, thus turning all imaging pixels into usable pixels for phase detection. A conventional sensor layout, on wouldthe other hand, would have one lens per pixel, which vastly limited the number of detection pixels.

Of course, this sounds great and all on paper, but we’ll have to see it to believe it. Oppo didn’t have performance figures to share at the time of writing, nor could it share a model number for its custom-made sensor. Likewise, there’s no word on whether the under-screen camera will make it to this phone — the prototype I tried today certainly wasn’t ready, as the sample shots had a fair amount of hazing. We’ll know more when the Find X2 launches in Q1 2020 — maybe at MWC?

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Porsche Taycan Turbo’s EPA range of 201 miles is much lower than expected

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By Tony Markovich

The Porsche Taycan Turbo already passed its biggest initial test. By our estimations, it drives and feels like a real Porsche and deserves the name and crest it wears (the Turbo part is a different story). But its second major test is serving as a properly usable everyday electric car, and its credibility in that regard just took a right hook from the EPA. After initial Porsche estimates pegged the Taycan Turbo’s full-charge range at about 280 miles using the generous WLTP rating, the EPA gave it an official range of 201 miles. Uh oh.

In our First Drive Review of the Taycan, we guesstimated a real-world driving range of about 230-240 miles with the idea that most drivers will be baited into taking advantage of the Taycan’s performance prowess. But even when considering imperfect driving manners, our number is high. If the 201-mile number were to be true, the Taycan would have one of — if not the — worst cost-per-electric-mile ratios on the market.

The size of the Taycan’s battery, which is located in the underbody, is not an issue, as it has a total capacity of 93.4 kWh. The two-tier battery has 33 cell modules, each of which has 12 individual cells. In total, it has 396 cells. When the Taycan launched, Porsche claimed it was the first manufacturer to use an 800-volt system in a production car, compared to other electrics that used 400-volt systems. The change gives the Taycan the advantage of repeated performance and quicker charging. But according to the EPA, that isn’t helping its range.

There’s another relevant number out there, too: 275. As Jalopnik points out, Porsche has already worked with independent testing company AMCI Testing, which gets its readings by using the car in a variety of normal city and highway tasks. It estimates the Taycan has a range of 275 miles.

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Netflix is giving Line’s cute mascots their own animated series

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In Netflix’s announcement, it said the series will be a CG-animated non-verbal slapstick comedy telling the story of a diverse set of friends living in the same town. Aram Yacoubian, the Director of Original Animation at Netflix, said in a statement: “The band of adorable BROWN & FRIENDS characters has been a part of many fans’ daily lives since they created as stickers on Line mobile messengers, and now we’re excited to develop the expanded world for screens of all kinds to delight new audiences everywhere on Netflix.”

The show, simply entitled Line Friends, doesn’t have a premiere date yet, but the streaming giant promises to announce more details at a later date. There’s no word on whether BT21, the Line characters created in collaboration with famous K-Pop band BTS, will also appear in the series.

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Sling TV’s Cloud DVR can finally record ESPN

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You no longer have to worry that you’ll miss out on a big sports extravaganza just because you’re a Sling TV subscriber. The cord-cutter service has switched on Cloud DVR for key ESPN channels, including the main channel, ESPN2, Desportes, Bases Loaded, Goal Line, ACC Network and SEC Network. There’s a good chance you can catch that big college basketball match game if you know you’ll miss the live match. This doesn’t extend to digital-only channels like ESPN3, ACC Network Extra and SEC Network+, however, so you’ll still need to tune for some programming.

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‘Forza Horizon 4’ is getting a 72-car battle royale mode

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It’s a racing game, so don’t expect to be building bases and trying to land headshots from across a map in The Eliminator. Players (up to 72 of them) can upgrade their car by finding drops or challenging and beating someone in a head-to-head race to a random point on the game’s version of Britain.

If you beat someone else, they’re eliminated and you can claim their car or pick an upgrade. The arena will periodically get smaller and push the remaining cars closer together. The last batch of survivors will then compete in one last free-for-all race to determine the winner.

The Forza series has experimented with play modes over the years, such as with Infected and Survival. So, it’s not perhaps too strange that Forza Horizon 4 is trying a battle royale.

While Fortnite and PUBG also have vehicles, Forza Horizon 4 won’t have the first car-focused battle royale: Notmycar hit Steam this year. The Eliminator, along with a mini-campaign and unlockable rewards, will hit Forza Horizon 4 with a free update that’ll be available Thursday at 1PM ET for Xbox One and Windows 10.

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What’s coming to Netflix in January: hello ‘Sabrina,’ goodbye ‘Friends’

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The first big release of 2020 is a textbook example of what to expect next month: it’s the third and final season of Anne with an E, Netflix’s adaptation of the classic Anne of Green Gables story. The series winds down January 3rd. Grace and Frankie‘s second-to-last season premieres January 15th. The Ranch bows out on January 24th. And like it or not, the second half of Bojack Horseman‘s final season brings the animated series to a close on January 31st.

Don’t despair; it’s not all sad. The situation brightens on January 10th, when RuPaul goes on a road trip in AJ and the Queen. The second season of the Gillian Anderson-starring comedy-drama Sex Education arrives on January 17th, as does the thriller Tyler Perry’s A Fall from Grace. For many, the highlight of the month may be the January 24th debut of Chilling Adventures of Sabrina season three, when our titular heroine goes on a desperate mission in Hell.

There are some back catalog additions you’ll appreciate as well. Dozens of movies and TV shows will be available on New Year’s Day, including Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle, Inception, the two volumes of Kill Bill, The Ring and both the original Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory as well as its decades-later revival as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

For many, though, Netflix’s January will be defined by one glaring, impossible-to-miss departure: Friends is leaving the service at the end of 2019. WarnerMedia is determined to make the classic sitcom a centerpiece of HBO Max, leaving legions of devotees without much choice to subscribe to yet another service to revisit their favorite moments. You’ll also want to budget some viewing time if you like certain classic movies. Æon Flux, American Psycho, Grease and the original Zombieland are among the better-known titles that will vanish at the end of the month.

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The Game Awards will run a 48-hour demo 'festival'

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Public hands-on time at shows like E3 and PAX is great, but it's not much use if you can't be there in person. The Game Awards might have a simple solution for that problem: bring the show to you. It's introducing The Game Festival, an experimental…

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‘The Matrix 4’ premieres in theaters on May 21st, 2021

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There still isn’t much known about the plot of the fourth movie, although its cast is filling out. Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss are still the only returning actors known to have roles. Neil Patrick Harris, Jessica Henwick (Nymeria from Game of Thrones) and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Us and Watchmen) are also slated to appear. Co-creator Lana Wachowski is also involved, although she’ll share production and writing duties this time around. If there’s any certainty, it’s that expectations and anxiety are equally high. This could breathe new life into The Matrix and its visions of robot-controlled virtual worlds, or it could be another flawed attempt to cash in on a beloved classic.

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Naughty Dog is donating the money from its ‘Jak and Daxter’ reissues

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Money from the games (Jak and Daxter, Jak 2, Jak 3 and Jak X: Combat Racing), which were released with help from Limited Run Games, will support K9 for Warriors, Child’s Play, Surfrider Foundation, LGBT Center for Los Angeles, Able Gamers and DAGERS.

“We’re proud to lend our support to these groups advocating and advancing important work for accessibility, environmental conservation, veterans, the LGBTQ+ community, and children’s hospitals,” Naughty Dog President Evan Wells wrote in a blog post.

We don’t know exactly how much Naughty Dog is donating, but whatever the amount, it’s nice to see the gaming community giving back. Last month, Desert Bus for Hope raised $864,415.01 for the Child’s Play hospital charity, and earlier this year, Ubisoft pledged to donate $564,000 to help rebuild Notre-Dame.

If you’re inspired to do a little good, we’ve rounded up a few charities that deliver gifts to those in need.

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Twitter lets you upload iOS Live Photos as GIFs at last

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While it’s nice to have another way to use Live Photos, Twitter’s a touch behind the curve here. Apple introduced Live Photos on iPhone 6s in 2015. That same year, Tumblr and Facebook started allowing people to share them on their platforms, while Google’s iOS app has been able to convert them into GIFs since 2016. In 2017, Apple offered a way to embed Live Photos on any website.

Twitter’s useful Live Photos feature arrives alongside other changes to how it handles images. It’ll also preserve JPEG encoding on photos of up to 16 megapixels you upload via the web, instead of transcoding them (which impacts image quality).



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