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Russia bans the sale of devices without Russian software

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The bill was created by a “pan-partisan group of legislators,” according to Meduza. The aim is ostensibly to give consumers more choice, according to co-author Oleg Nikolayev. “When we buy complex electronic devices, they already have individual applications, mostly Western ones, pre-installed on them,” he said. “Naturally… they might think that there are no domestic alternatives available. And if, alongside pre-installed applications, we will also offer the Russian ones to users, then they will have a right to choose.”

A mandate to add third-party applications to Apple’s ecosystem would be equivalent to jailbreaking. It would pose a security threat, and the company cannot tolerate that kind of risk.

Proponents of the bill also said it would make devices more friendly for elderly users. “Of course, many people can install whatever they want on their smartphones or computers themselves, but more senior individuals may encounter problems, and they need help,” said Communist party rep Alexander Yushchenko.

However, critics said that the bill could force major western tech companies like Apple out of the country. “A mandate to add third-party applications to Apple’s ecosystem would be equivalent to jailbreaking. It would pose a security threat, and the company cannot tolerate that kind of risk,” a source within Apple reportedly told Kommersant. A Russian trade group also said that it’s impossible to install Russian app on some devices, which would force certain manufacturers out of the market.

Others see the moves as march towards a surveillance state, with users forced to install apps that may spy on them. Earlier this month, Human Rights Watch called said the internet blocking bill “is bad news for Russia and creates a dangerous precedent for other countries.”

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The Morning After: Tesla’s angular Cybertruck is electric, fast and $40k

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It’s built for power, and it shows.MacBook Pro 16-inch review: The ultimate Apple laptop

The last great MacBook Pro was the mid-2015 15-inch model, packing plenty of ports, a great keyboard and an SD card slot. No TouchBar and, importantly, no butterfly keyboard. Apple’s newest MacBook Pro gets us at least part of the way back there. According to Devindra, the 16-inch MacBook Pro is basically every creative’s dream machine, with a ton of power and a vastly improved keyboard. The larger screen makes it more useful than the 15-inch model it replaces, and it even has decent battery life for a workstation. Read up on our full verdict.

That certainly looks… unique.Tesla’s electric Cybertruck launches in 2021, prices start at just under $40k

Elon Musk said that Tesla’s angular Cybertruck will do zero to 60 in about 2.9 seconds and tow up to 14,000 pounds. In demo videos, Musk showed it besting an F-150 in a tug of war and beating a Porsche 911 off the line. There was also an awkward moment testing its Armor Glass when it unexpectedly broke after a tester threw a metal ball at the window. Twice.

According to Roberto Baldwin, this early prototype — lacking mirrors, blinkers, windshield wipers and US-legal headlights — has plenty of room in its backseat, a very truck-like ride and all of the superpowered Tesla acceleration you’d expect.

The starting price for this electric truck is $39,900, and Tesla is taking pre-orders now with just $100 down. The sub-$40k model comes with RWD, a single motor and has the EPA-estimated 250+ miles of range, and a dual-motor AWD option ups the range to 300+ for an extra $10,000, and adding yet another $10k gets you a tri-motor AWD Cybertruck with the max towing capacity and range. What we don’t have a price for, though, is Tesla’s matching electric ATV.

It originally launched along with Chrome OS.Google Cloud Print follows Reader and Inbox to the trash heap after 2020

If there’s anything Google loves as much as launching new projects (say hello to Stadia and Duplex on the web!), it’s killing them off after a few years, and now we have an end date for Google Cloud Print. If you’ve come to rely on the service, you have until the end of 2020 to work out an alternative, because when the lights come on in 2021 — “devices across all operating systems will no longer be able to print using Google Cloud Print.”

You’ll need some VR hardware…‘Half-Life: Alyx’ is a VR prequel set before the events of ‘Half-Life 2’

First things first: The new game isn’t going to deal with the cliffhanger we’ve been clinging to since Half Life 2: Episode 2. Half-Life: Alyx is a “full-length” VR entry into the series, with the game’s events taking place between the events of Half-Life and Half-Life 2.

The game will launch on Steam, duh, in March of 2020, just four short months from now, and will work with all PC-compatible VR headsets. Half-Life: Alyx will cost $59.99, though owners of Valve’s Index VR headset will get it for free. From our early glimpses, the world is stunningly detailed, and it looks like the move into VR will let you interact with literally any object in the game. We saw Alyx, the game’s protagonist and Gordon Freeman’s partner-in-revolution, dig through items on a shelf, looking for a spare bullet. Gaming has moved on, Half Life: Alyx will try to prove that the series has kept up.

Unbeatable video quality at up to 6K.Panasonic S1H review: Production quality video in a mirrorless camera

With the Netflix seal of approval, the Panasonic SH1 has earned its title as the best mirrorless camera on the market for video. You can capture video at up to 6K with 10-bit colors, giving you sharp, rich video and HDR, with lots of flexibility in post production.The only drawbacks? According to Steve Dent it’s the mediocre autofocus and a $4,000 price.

But wait, there’s more…

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I rode inside Tesla’s polarizing Cybertruck

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A few hours (yes, hours) after Musk left the stage, I was able to sit, very briefly, in the giant metal series of trapezoids cobbled together, known as the Cybertruck. It’s a very early pre-production vehicle, but my first reaction was, “this is a very comfortable back seat.” It was more comfortable than the pre-production Model Y I rode in after that launch.

Tesla Cybertruck Unveil

I’m not sure why that was my first impression of the interior. Maybe I was tired of standing in line (it was a very long line). While the exterior was all “stabby,” the seating was comfy. If anything, most of the ride wasn’t all that different from just sitting in any other large vehicle.

The ride felt like a truck. When the brakes were applied after hard acceleration, the front end dove like a truck. There was no slalom course or hard cornering during the quick jaunt, so I was unable to see just how a large metal vehicle with a very heavy battery reacted to quick turns. I’m guessing it’s not exactly switchback-corner ready, but in a straight line, it continues the Tesla heritage of accelerating like a rocket.

Oh, that Tesla acceleration. I’m not sure why you want a truck that does zero to 60 in under three seconds, but that’s what the Cybertruck is capable of. The truck took off like a shot, and I watched as the digital display shot up to 65 miles an hour in almost no time. It’s fast, and if that’s your thing, this is your truck.

Maybe.

This is not going to be a mainstream vehicle, by any means. It’s just too odd looking. It’s also not going to appeal to folks looking for a truck for purely utilitarian purposes. In other words, it won’t unseat the Ford F150 for contractors, mechanics and deliveries. One issue is that you can’t readily throw something into the truck from the side of the bed. Those buttresses that slope down from the cabin just get in the way.

It will appeal to those who want something different. Something strange. The interior, while following the path laid down by the Model 3 with a single display for everything, is also full of stark angles. The dash is made of pressed paper and looks like a kitchen countertop. Even the rearview camera is devoid of any soft angles. It’s essentially a rectangle.

There was plenty of leg and headroom for my six-foot three-inch frame in the back seat, which is always a plus when you’re trying to impress your friends with your crazy ’70s sci-fi space truck.

Overall it was a very pleasant — but short — ride in a truck that has a lot of features (locking bed, autopilot support, automatic alignment for hitching a trailer, crazy weird lights) for something that starts at under $40,000.

Tesla Cybertruck Unveil

Yes, the design is insane. Probably too insane for most. And Tesla will have to adjust some of that to comply with regulations. It’ll need to redo the headlights — you just can’t have a string of lights in the US. In fact, all the lights will probably need some rethinking to comply with the law. I don’t think it even has blinkers at this point. Also, it’ll need side mirrors. The steering wheel isn’t actually a wheel, right now. Oh, and Tesla will have to crash that 9mm bulletproof body into a few walls to make sure that, while it can withstand a blow from a hammer, it’ll still deflect and absorb the impact of another car or truck. And the glass will probably need some work.

But while all that happens, I can’t tell you what I think of the Cybertruck’s design. I’m really not sure where I fall on this. Is it so outrageous I love it? Or do I hate it because it’s a series of triangles mashed together? Maybe I’m just somewhere in between. What I do know is that there’s nothing else like it on the road, and for that reason alone, it’s at least worthy of our attention and admiration.



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The creators of ‘Wallace and Gromit’ are making a Netflix musical

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Robin Robin is an animated musical short that will be arriving on Netflix in time for Christmas 2020, focusing on a lost bird who ends up being raised by a family of mice. The creators and directors are Dan Ojari (Slow Derek) and Mikey Please (The Eagleman Stag), with Helen Argo (Wallace & Gromit’s Musical Marvels) producing.

Creating a musical is a departure for Aardman, though the studio’s humorous stop-motion style is surely a good match for some jaunty tunes. “There’s something about animation and music that has such a guttural impact on you when you see things syncing in time to music,” the studio’s executive creative director, Sarah Cox, told The Guardian. “Aardman hasn’t really embraced that yet.”

The launch of the project on Netflix instead of the BBC is unexpected, though Aardman’s managing director, Sean Clarke, told The Guardian the aim of this choice was to reach a wider audience. While the BBC has massive reach in the UK, Netflix can promote content across most of the globe. That said, Clarke did confirm the studio would continue to work with the BBC in future.

One more change that may shock long-term fans is a move away from Plasticine as the base material for Aardman’s figures. Instead, figures like the lead character, Robin, will be made of resin with an armature inside, covered in felt. Cox assured fans that despite the changes, the short will feel “reassuringly Aardman in its sensibility.”

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Alphabet’s rebooted robotics program starts with trash-sorting machines

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Alphabet’s previous robotics venture was Boston Dynamics, famous for its humanoid bipeds and scary metal dogs. However, the company sold the division to Softbank in 2017. Earlier this year, Alphabet lifted the lid on its rebooted robotics program, which as described in a recent blog post and profiled by Wired, is now focusing on the creation of robots that interact with people in meaningful ways and perform useful tasks.

The first use of mechanical comrades at The Everyday Robot Project was sorting trash in the Alphabet offices. Like many offices, Alphabet has a variety of trash cans for recyclables and waste, though inevitably people sometimes put items in the wrong one by accident. This contamination results in more items being sent to landfill instead of being recycled.

To address the problem, the engineers decided to teach robots to sort through trash and move items that were placed in the wrong receptacle. Traditionally, the approach would have been to code the robot to recognize certain items, then tell the robot to grasp an item and move it, and so on.

The X Lab took a different approach using simulation, reinforcement learning and collaborative learning. At night, virtual robots would practice sorting virtual trash in a virtual office. Then this training could be applied to real robots doing the real job. The lessons the real robots learned during the day were transferred back to the virtual robots for even more training.

Everyday Robots sorting trash

The results are noticeable: The robots were able to learn the task through practice rather than having to have each part of the task hand coded. They were successful too, reducing waste contamination level from 20 percent to less than 5 percent. In the image above, you can see robots improving their sorting ability through practice: first the robot misses the cup, then it is able to move a bottle and finally it can move other items out of the way to access the can.

To continue the development of the robots, the team now want to see if they can transfer the knowledge accumulated through practice to different tasks without the need to rebuilt the robot or to add a lot of new code. Eventually, they hope the robots can help with other, more complex tasks, like assisting elderly people in their homes.

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Spotify is hosting its own awards show

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Spotify said the awards would be determined strictly by user-generated data, regardless of genre. “Your plays, patterns, and habits will help determine the award categories, finalists, and winners,” it said. “You can get excited for an awards ceremony that actually speaks to what the people are streaming.”

Spotify released a promotion video in Spanish only, and the awards appear to be focused solely on the Latin America market, but it didn’t release any other details. They’ll be “broadcast live on TNT for all of Spanish speaking Latin America” on March 5th, Spotify said.

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Watch Al Pacino hunt Nazis in Jordan Peele’s upcoming Amazon series

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“There comes a time where we all must choose between the light and the darkness. But when there’s great darkness in this world, perhaps a choice is made for us,” Pacino tells his fellow hunters in the trailer. “The time to act is now before everything we hold dear to us is destroyed. This is not murder. This is mitzvah. Welcome to the hunt.”

Along with Pacino, the diverse cast includes Josh Radnor, Logan Lerman, Kate Mulvany, Carol Kane, Dylan Baker, and Lena Olin, among others. Peele is producing the show, but it was created by Moonfall‘s David Weil, who will run it along with Nikki Toscano (Revenge). The pilot was directed by American Horror Story director Alfonso Gomez-Rejon and will premiere sometime in 2020. Peele’s participation already made this an interesting project, but the presence of Pacino has elevated it to a must-watch.

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AT&T will bring real 5G to millions of customers this year

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AT&T says it will roll out 5G service — not LTE-based 5G Evolution, just 5G — nationwide in 2020, but in the “coming weeks,” tens of millions of customers will get access as it reaches markets like Indianapolis, Pittsburgh, Providence RI, Rochester NY and San Diego. Pre-orders for its first ‘low-band’ 5G smartphone, the Galaxy Note 10+ 5G, start on November 25th, and access to the higher-speed connection is included in two of its recently-launched plans, Unlimited Elite and Unlimited Extra.

According to the maps AT&T posted, it should have more widely-available 5G coverage than we’ve experienced in testing, or seen in very-specific block-by-block maps like the ones Verizon posted. Of course, we’ll have to try it out to see how well the signal spreads out.

According to CEO Thaddeus Arroyo, “”We’re now introducing consumers to the future of wireless with broad 5G service included in our best unlimited plans for 5G devices like the Samsung Galaxy Note10+ 5G.”

This is all in addition to AT&T’s existing 5G+ that serves businesses with mmWave spectrum and is “even faster and higher performing” in 21 cities. It’s expected to reach “parts” of 30 cities with 5G+ by early 2020.

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Tesla’s electric ATV matches well with the Cybertruck

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Besides the electric Cybertruck, Elon Musk also showed off an apparently Tesla-designed electric ATV. It’s not available as part of the pre-orders currently live on Tesla’s store, but in the presentation it was used to show off how the Cybertruck’s adaptive suspension tilts for easy loading. It can apparently charge directly from Tesla’s truck while sitting in the bed, but with production not scheduled to begin until late-2021, there’s plenty of time for the company to work out this toy vehicle.

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Tesla unveils its Cybertruck, with a price starting at $39,900

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CEO Elon Musk took the stage to remind everyone of the company’s plan to make the world a greener place, proclaiming we need sustainable energy now. To show off the angular truck’s toughness, Musk showed off how tough it is taking a shot from a sledgehammer, ball bearings and a gun (the gunshot was in a video).

The truck didn’t fare quite as well with a test of its “Tesla Armor Glass,” as those broke when the volunteer threw an object at it, although Musk said “it didn’t go through.” The CEO seemed unruffled, and said that during earlier tests, the glass didn’t break.

Musk said that the vehicle will do zero to 60 in about 2.9 seconds. But more importantly, it can tow 14,000 pounds. In demo videos, Musk showed it besting an F-150 in a tug of war, and beating a Porsche 911 off the line. He also announced three different battery ranges, with 250+, 300 or 500+ miles per charge, depending on the setup, said the truck will support 250kW charging via Superchargers and pack an air compressor on board.

The design, as you can see, is anything but traditional. Tesla’s design language is evident throughout and while it might not appeal to mainstream truck buyers, the Tesla crowd and those looking to haul things while reducing their carbon footprint will probably be happy to drive something that signals to the world they that care about the Earth — and might be from the future, or at least a movie set in the future.

The starting price for this electric truck is going to be $39,900, and Tesla is taking pre-orders now. The sub-$40k model comes with RWD, a single motor and has the EPA-estimated 250+ miles of range, while a dual-motor AWD option ups the range to 300+ for an extra $10,000, and adding yet another $10k gets you a tri-motor AWD Cybertruck with the max towing capacity and range for just under $70,000. Self-driving features, of course, are a $7,000 option.

Earlier in the day Musk tweeted that the truck’s design was inspired by the Lotus Esprit S1 from the James Bond film, The Spy Who Loved Me. In the movie, the vehicle turned into a submarine. Sadly, the Cybertruck does not have that capability.

Tesla’s pickup will enter an oddly crowded field with potential competition coming from startups Rivian and Bollinger. Meanwhile, Ford has hinted at electrified trucks on the horizon, and earlier today GM’s CEO confirmed plans to develop an electric truck by 2021. In fact, with every vehicle unveiling, Tesla’s competition gets larger as more traditional automakers begin rolling out their own EVs.

Developing.



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