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‘Homeworld 3’ is real, and it’s being crowdfunded by Gearbox

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It’s certainly odd to see Gearbox take the crowdfunding route with Homeworld 3, when it’s a large enough publisher to finance it entirely. But according to the campaign page, it’s aiming to use Fig as a way to bring together die-hard players and the game’s developers. You’ll also be able to take advantage of the platform’s key feature — investing! — to claim a piece of the pie for yourself. Gearbox is offering shares in Homeworld 3 at $500 each, with a maximum offering of $10 million.

“We’ve been craving the right opportunity to dive deep with a community in a way only crowdfunding offers,” Gearbox wrote on the Fig page. “With Homeworld’s incredibly patient and thoughtful community, we’ve got exactly that opportunity.”

At this point, Homeworld 3 is still in early pre-production, so be prepare to wait a while. The Fig page lists a Q4 2022 delivery date, but as with every crowdfunding project, expect plenty of delays along the way.

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Form’s Swim Goggles display heart rate data in the pool

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Swimmers will be able to view their heart rate in their line of sight, thanks to the Swim Goggles’ augmented reality capabilities and the tiny, see-through display inside one of the lenses. The Polar sensors will attach to the goggles via a strap and sit against the swimmer’s temple. Data will be transmitted wirelessly, and in real time, to the Swim Goggles. Data from completed swims will sync to the Form Swim App, which will match heart rate data with metrics like split times, stroke rates, pace and calories.

Heart rate tracking is extremely important to swimmers, especially when they’re doing splits. For the first time, swimmers will be able to see that data as they swim, without pausing or leaving the pool. “By adding it to the arsenal of metrics that our goggles already deliver, we’ll empower serious swimmers to make their training even smarter and more purposeful,” Form’s founder and CEO Dan Eisenhardt said.

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US and Poland agree to rigorously evaluate foreign 5G equipment

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“Protecting these next generation communications networks from disruption or manipulation and ensuring the privacy and individual liberties of the citizens of the United States, Poland, and other countries is of vital importance,” the agreement reportedly states.

As Reuters notes, Huawei has a strong presence in Poland. But in January, authorities arrested a Chinese employee of Huawei and a former Polish security official on spying allegations. Huawei denied the charges, but it has remained under scrutiny.

The US has been urging other countries against using Huawei’s 5G network tech since last year. Huawei has repeatedly denied US allegations and objected to being blacklisted by the Trump administration. This spring, the UN said that US fears over Huawei’s equipment are politically motivated. Huawei has through November 19th to serve existing US customers. Time will tell if more countries take a similarly wary stance toward 5G network equipment from foreign providers.

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E-bikes are now allowed in US national parks, for better or worse

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E-bikes make it easier to travel far, the NPS said. It could likewise enable park rides for people with limited mobility, particularly on hilly and otherwise challenging terrain. They might also lower emissions and improve air quality by reducing the use of cars and motorcycles.

It’s not certain how the service would enforce the rules.

While the NPS’ arguments appear to hold up, USA Today also highlighted concerns that e-bikes could cause more harm than good. Safety may be more of an issue than it is for conventional two-wheelers. E-bikes may also wear down trails in a less sustainable way. And then there’s the simple matter of noise. People often go to parks for peace and quiet, and that may be harder if they have to contend with the hum of e-bike motors. This isn’t to say that e-bikes will prove calamitous — it’s just that the NPS is letting more of them in without evidence that it considered the potential drawbacks.

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iOS 13 code hints Apple may be testing an AR headset

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Earlier stories have painted varying pictures of what Apple is working on. Rumors from 2018 suggested it could be a powerful AR/VR device with 8K displays for each eye, but more recent reports have hinted the headset could be dependent on an iPhone.

Whatever the plans may be, more than one source has claimed that the headset could be available as soon as 2020. If so, the iOS 13 references would make sense. In this time frame, Apple would have just months to solidify the design and put it into production — prototypes would be virtually necessary at this stage.

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You can once again pre-register to buy the Samsung Galaxy Fold

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To be clear, pre-registering to purchase a device is not the same pre-ordering one. In this case, you’re not putting down any money before the phone is available to buy. In fact, it’s currently unclear whether Samsung plans to take Fold pre-orders this time around; there’s no mention of whether you can pre-order the device on the company’s website.

All things considered, it might be for the best if Samsung decides to forego pre-orders this time around. Over the summer, both carriers and retailers, including AT&T and Best Buy, canceled Fold pre-orders after the company delayed the device indefinitely. And while Samsung has shared details about how it re-engineered the Fold to address the durability issues that came up with some review units, the company still needs to prove the Fold is more than a paperweight.

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Android 10 may reach Pixel phones on September 3rd

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It’s not known if third-party phones will make the leap to Android 10 that quickly, although it’s not likely. Outside of brands like Essential, you’ll typically have to wait weeks or months for new revisions to reach your device. Betas have been available on phones from the likes of Huawei, LG, Nokia and OnePlus — we’d expect them to deliver Android 10 sooner than most, just not right away.

You’ll at least know what to anticipate from the software itself. The highlights are a system-level Dark Mode and revamped gesture navigation, not to mention chat bubbles, accessibility features like Live Captions and perks like Focus Mode and background security updates. Android 10 isn’t a dramatic revision, despite the name, but it should offer tangible improvements.

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Apple Watch may get sleep tracking as soon as next week

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The technology would rely solely on the watch’s motion, heart rate and noise detection to gauge the quality of your sleep. You wouldn’t need a Beddit sensor to fill in the gaps. This isn’t shocking (other wearables have done this), but there would be a dedicated Sleep app on the watch in addition to rest quality data in the Health app. You’d get reminders to charge your watch before you tuck in for the night, a watch-only wake-up alarm (including vibration-only if you prefer), and you could even specify a designated watch just for bedtime.

The main unknown: whether or not you’ll need new wristwear. Apple sometimes ties Watch features to new hardware and might have refresh devices on the way, but the sleep tracking as described doesn’t sound like it explicitly requires an upgrade. This doesn’t mean that anyone running watchOS 6 will get sleep tracking. It’s just that existing users might not be in a rush to upgrade.

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Facebook is considering hiding ‘Like’ counts as part of new test

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The change was first noted by reverse engineer Jane Manchun Wong, who discovered the new behavior in the code of Facebook’s Android app. Instead of seeing the full ‘Like’ count on a specific post, Facebook users caught up in the company’s test will simply see the names of a handful of friends who clicked the ‘Like’ button. That’s essentially how things work in Instagram’s test countries, which comes as little surprise. Don’t start scrubbing through your Facebook feed in search of those lost Likes yet, though: The company later confirmed to TechCrunch that it would indeed strip those ‘Like’ counts as a test, but that the change hasn’t yet gone into effect.

Unfortunately, Facebook’s admission didn’t reveal much else — we’re still not sure when exactly the company plans to begin its test, or where. (The current list of countries where Facebook is conducting its similar experiment on Instagram is a good place to start, though.) On some level, though, it seems that Facebook is trying to mitigate some of the social pressure that comes with sharing on social media. You might not fret over how many Likes your Facebook posts receive, but some people certainly do, and who needs that additional stress?

If these tests eventually graduate to become globally mandated features, Facebook will have a chance to reshape people’s behavior on the platform. Removing those ‘Like’ counts means you can’t immediately gauge your post’s popularity (unless it’s so noxious that no one likes it at all); without that at-a-glance feedback, it’s not hard to imagine people sharing content that matters to them without feeling quite so self-conscious about it. Changes like this won’t fix every problem platforms like Facebook have — and there are a lot of them — but they might be steps in the right direction.



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B&O’s first soundbar packs Dolby Atmos, Chromecast and AirPlay 2

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Speaking of 3D sound, the Beosound Stage supports Dolby Atmos for more immersive movies and television. How well Atmos works in an all-in-one speaker like this can vary, so that will be something to keep an ear on if we’re able to listen to this thing in the future. The soundbar also offers Bluetooth and WiFi in terms of wireless connectivity, with the latter powering handy features like Chromecast built-in, AirPlay 2 and multiroom listening. Like a lot of premium soundbars, the Beosound Stage has a few audio presets you can choose from: TV, Music, Movie, Night Listening or None. You can also employ B&O’s ToneTouch tech from inside its app to change the EQ settings based on your mood. Fair warning though, these tweaks are based on feelings, so you select things like warm, excited, relaxed and bright instead of treble, bass and mids.

The Beosound Stage will go on sale in “late autumn” this year. When it does, the aluminum and bronze models will cost $1,750 (£1,250/€1,500) while the oak version will be $2,600 (£1,900/€2,250).

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