Software

Apple will appear before the U.S. Supreme Court today to argue that a lawsuit brought against it is invalid. Apple claims that the lawsuit, which alleges that the iOS App Store creates a monopoly for the company, could only be brought by app developers, not the end users. If Apple is successful, then the case will be dismissed. Otherwise, Apple could be taken to court for potentially monopolistic practices.

This franchise that has been around since 2011 — when the first Kingdom Rush title was introduced as a free flash browser game — is back to Android and iOS as Kingdom Rush Vengeance. This new fantasy tower defense title involves fights against trolls, orcs, wizards, in various environments such as forests, wastelands, and mountains.

Google's newly launched Pixel 3 phones are mostly incremental upgrades over their predecessors. Google could very well make a comeback with some exciting devices next year, as word of two more devices surface in the wild.

Some innovative gamers have gotten Pokémon: Let's Go to boot and run on the Nintendo Switch emulator Yuzu. Despite the game only being a week old, it is somewhat playable, although there are numerous glitches and oddities. The framerate is highly inconsistent and the audio is a mess, but the fact that a week old game is playable via emulation is impressive.

AMD posted a response to a common complaint from Ryzen-based laptop users on Reddit earlier this week, stating that the company would better support graphics drivers for Ryzen laptops starting in 2019. However, AMD plans to work with laptop OEMs and depend on them to release device-specific graphics drivers twice a year. The response garnered further criticisms of what many see as a lazy blame-shifting solution.

Kodi 18 has been in development for two years, and the first release candidate (RC 1) is finally available. Although it is still technically a beta version, RC 1 will be reflective of the final release. There are several new features, including better Android TV support, a 64-bit version for Windows, and a new gaming section with support for emulators.

The latest issue in the growing string of problems with the Windows 10 1809 update affects devices using certain versions of Intel's display drivers. The Windows 10 October update breaks audio playback through monitors or TVs connected via versions 24.20.100.6344 and 24.20.100.6345 of Intel's display driver.

A commit posted to Fuchsia's source code management hub last night showed that a Huawei engineer was able to boot the Fuchsia kernel (Zircon) on the Honor Play. This commit hints at many things, mainly that Fuchsia development is continuing strong and Google has partnered with Huawei to continue work on Fuchsia, perhaps to bring the OS to consumer smartphones.

Microsoft has announced that only Secure Hash Algorithm 2 (SHA-2) code-signing will be used to update legacy versions of Windows (namely Windows Server 2008 SP2, Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 and Windows 7 SP1). Machines that only support SHA-1 will be considered too vulnerable, and will be prevented from updating by next April.

Microsoft has acknowledged that there is a known issue with its latest Windows 10 update. Some users have reported that the seek bar in Media Player has become inoperable after downloading the new patches. The issue corresponds to KB4467708 (OS Build 17763.134) that applies to the now somewhat notorious Windows 10, version 1809 (October 2018 Update).

The LG G7 ThinQ is still currently on Android Oreo, with no upgrade in sight. However, reports of a new Pie-based beta available to users in South Korea may give new hope to owners worldwide of a stable version of this OS soon.

Remember Duplex, the software that could make appointments by itself at Google I/O 2018? Well, it is to be seen in the wild soon on Pixel phones. The AI-powered feature will initially only be functional in some US cities; however, it may become more widespread in the future.

The latest Command Center software by Alienware finally brings CPU, GPU, and memory overclocking capabilities to the "current-gen platforms with compatible components," so those using older Alienware hardware might not be able to fully enjoy these benefits. However, even XPS users can install this piece of code and use some of its features.

Open Beta 7, the latest in a series of in-testing stock ROMs available to owners of the OnePlus 6 to test out, contains an interesting new feature. It is OnePlus Roaming, a SIM-independent form of access to the internet that can be purchased directly on the 6 - and only the 6 for now.

A Korean IT news outlet claims that Samsung is developing three-dimensional time-of-flight (3D TOF) modules for next year's phones. 3D TOF is linked to improved depth-sensing and AR capabilities. The Galaxy S10 line may be in line for these next-gen sensors.

A key Samsung executive has just confirmed that the upcoming Galaxy F foldable handset will ship with Bixby 2.0's successor. However, he also added that the company has not decided yet if the next-gen virtual assistant will be branded as Bixby 3.0, so in the end we might get Bixby F or something completely different.

Tumblr's disappearance from Apple's App Store finally has an official reason: what was first simply described as "an issue" was, in fact, child pornography that slipped through the filters — enough of it to make the app vanish. This is not the first time Tumblr has run into pornography-related problems — most likely not the last time, either.

Since Apple Maps often gives the same directions to pedestrians and drivers, the company's pedestrian recon teams are now back on the streets of the United States. The individuals who are part of these teams are wearing backpacks apparently filled with the same cameras and sensors as those found on Apple Maps vehicles.

FSLogix is a next-gen app-provisioning platform that optimizes the ingredients — hardware resources, time, and human resources — needed to offer virtualization support when deploying and scaling Windows and Office on Azure. As usual, the financial details have been left out of the spotlight.

Another industry may soon be replaced by robots - IBM's Watson AI scripted a 60-second commercial for luxury car brand Lexus. Watson was fed 15 years worth of award-winning commercials and was able to outline and script the basis of the commercial. After a bit of editing by IBM researchers, Oscar-winning director Kevin Macdonald shot the commercial after being convinced by the "melodrama of the story."

Many Microsoft users will soon be able to make Skype calls over their Alexa-powered smart speakers. This feature is only available in select countries, however. Those living in them may be able to find the new function in the speakers' Settings menu.

The Samsung Galaxy J7 (2016) has just become the first Galaxy J series handset to receive two major upgrades for the operating system. In some markets, this handset has received Android 8.1 Oreo, but it is not clear yet if the Galaxy J5 (2016) will get the same treatment or not. The new firmware comes with Samsung Experience 9.5 on top.

Finally launched in the United States earlier this month, the Motorola One is already receiving Android 9.0 Pie. In addition to the Motorola One, Android Pie is now reaching the Motorola One Power as well. Both these two handsets are also expected to get the Android 10 Q update once it comes out.

The Red Magic may represent a novel alternative in a gaming-phone space dominated by a small number of brands. This phone, marketed by the ZTE sub-brand Nubia, is reportedly getting a second generation. A new leak shows a Geekbench score for the phone, and suggests some other new details about the device.

Users have reportedly discovered that iCloud stops working on laptops updated to the latest version of Windows (1809). This prevents syncing or uploading to the service. New installs of iCloud may also fail due to a lack of compatibility. Microsoft has announced a collaboration with Apple to fix the problem.

In a rather awkward effort aimed at reducing the production costs by a very small amount, Samsung is now using the front-facing camera to take selfies and adjust the screen brightness based on them instead of including an ambient light sensor. In some markets, Galaxy J8 owners are already receiving this feature via a software update.

While we're usually vocal about Samsung's unimpressive update roadmaps, we're also impressed by the company's treatment of the Galaxy S6, a device launched close to four years ago, and still receiving security updates.

So far, only a few OEMs like OnePlus, HMD Global, and Sony have sent out the stable Pie update. Thankfully, the Android One program exists to combat that, and it's been rather effective so far, with a number of Android One phones receiving the update to Android Pie last week.

Although Nekki's Shadow Fight has a history that started back in 2011, Shadow Fight 3 is only one year old. This action-RPG fighting game is available for iOS and Android devices, supports 11 languages, and works great on mid-range hardware while providing a realistic visual experience at the same time.

Yu Chendong, the consumer business division CEO at Huawei, has said that his company is aiming to take the smartphone-OEM crown from Samsung in under 2 years. It has already overtaken Apple as the #2 manufacturer in the world; now the CEO believes that they will be at least level with the Korean giant in 2019.

Wear OS is getting a new update. Known as "H", it adds a new battery-saving mode to Android-powered watches. The new update also overhauls how a watch reboots or shuts down, as well as how it resumes apps and handles the switch to sleep mode.

PlayStation 4 players who have been waiting for Warhammer: Vermintide 2 to hit their consoles since early March can now take this title for a spin, although this console version is still in a Beta phase. Its release date has been set for December 18 — more than five months after the arrival of the Xbox One version.

Although Microsoft Translator supports over 60 languages and 12 speech languages, the next-gen Neural Machine Translation improvements are only available for Chinese and German from/to English translations for now. More languages will be supported by the new system — which brings an 11 percent in overall quality — starting in early 2019.

In a paper presented at a biometric securities conference, a research team from NYU showed off a new algorithm for cracking fingerprint readers. The system, named "DeepMasterPrints," operates in similar fashion to a dictionary attack for passwords. DeepMasterPrints uses a library of fingerprint images and permutes them until it finds a match.

Google Pixel users — and the lucky ones who are using other handsets — on Android Pie can finally enjoy the Digital Wellbeing app, which has just rolled out of Beta. As more handsets get updated to Android Pie, the list of Digital Wellbeing-supported devices should also receive new entries.

The Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus have been reported not to be in line for official upgrades to Pie until January. In the meantime, some users do have access to a version of the OS, in exchange for some beta-testing. In Korea, the latest of these betas replaces Samsung Experience with One UI.

After this year's earlier AI-related acquisitions that involved Semantic Machines (May), Bonsai (July), and Lobe (September), Microsoft is up for another round. Its latest purchase is XOXCO, a software product design and development studio that has been developing conversational AI and bots so far.

The award-winning creators of Skyrim and Fallout 4 are back with Fallout 76, an online prequel to the epic series of post-apocalyptic RPGs that was introduced by Interplay Entertainment back in 1997. Fallout 76 is now available via the Microsoft Store as an Xbox One X Enhanced title and also comes as a Tricentennial Edition with various in-game bonuses.

Good luck, commanders! EA announced today that Command & Conquer, the grandaddy of RTS games, will be getting a 4K remaster in the future. EA will work with Petroglyph Games, a studio founded by some of the original developers of C&C when Westwood Studios closed down.

The October update for Windows 10 is currently being rolled out to the general public. For those in the Fast ring of the Insider Preview program, however, the build of the future is available to try out. This update, known as 19H1, includes an improved Light Theme and some other things Microsoft had promised.

The latest update to Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 is a massive one and comes with a rather long list of changes, which includes Nuketown, Daily Tier Skip, Blackout with Nuketown Island zombies and the Bowie Knife, stability tweaks, and much more. The update is already rolling out to PlayStation 4 consoles, and the other platforms should get it next week.

The mobile game Harry Potter: Wizards Unite has finally received a teaser trailer, just over a year after its development was announced. There are plenty of games based in the Harry Potter world, but this one is particularly newsworthy because of the developer involved: Niantic. The American software company is probably best known for its work with Pokémon Go.

The Fairphone 2 has finally received an update to Android 7.1 Nougat, a two-year-old version of the mobile OS. Considering the Fairphone 2's age and the slow rollout of supported software, the handset may be entering its end-of-life.

Google Chrome Labs has just revealed Squoosh, an in-browser image compression tool that can use non-browser image codecs to compress images without much loss in quality. The app can also be run offline after it is loaded in a browser at least once. Squoosh is aimed at web designers that hope to reduce web page load times by using compressed images.

HMD has sent the Pie update out to the Nokia 6.1 and Nokia 7 Plus. The company has now reaffirmed its commitment to providing steady software updates by confirming that the last-gen Nokia 3, 5, 6, and 8 will also all receive the Android Pie update.

Nintendo has won $12 million in a settlement with LoveRoms.com and LoveRETRO.co, two ROM distribution sites it sued this past summer. The couple that operated the two sites admitted that they participated in copyright infringement and agreed to the $12 million judgement against them. While it's unlikely the couple will have to pay the full judgement, this ruling will surely send a message to other ROM sites that distribute ROMs of Nintendo games.

Earlier, OnePlus had made a commitment to bring Pie to its older flagship series. However, the company later admitted that this upgrade would be delayed. Now, it seems that the prospect of Pie for last year's phones, the 5 and 5T, is back on the table with a new Hydrogen OS beta based on the latest version of Android.

Although Google's G Suite is more than enough for the office-related needs of many companies, Microsoft is working on a tool that would ease their migration to Office 365. If everything goes as planned, this "G Suite migration experience" should become available in the second quarter of 2019.

PlayStation 4 owners will soon be able to get their hands on the smash-hit battle royale game PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG). PUBG Corp and Sony have jointly announced that the title is now available for pre-order and will be launched on December 7. Four different editions will be available, and there are bonuses for those who pre-order the game.

The Xiaomi Mi A2 is supposed to receive the Android Pie update before the end of the year, but the firmware still needs some work. For now, the official Beta ROM can be downloaded via TWRP or fastboot and tried by the more adventurous users. Obviously, there is no OTA update to talk about at this stage.