Activists say Facebook has learned lessons from its experience in developing countries, but they question its ability, and willingness, to control misinformation and hate speech.
Samsung’s trade-in promotion for the Note 9 is this week’s best deal
The best deals of the year are yet to come, with Black Friday and Cyber Monday now on the horizon. But we’ve seen some pretty good deals already in October. This week, we’re putting the spotlight on the not-so-new Samsung Galaxy Note 9, which is celebrating the release of a few new colors in the US. The colors aren’t all that remarkable, but Samsung and a few retailers are seizing the moment to make a big second push of deals.
The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 in cloud silver (one of two new colors in the US, black is the other) is now available at Best Buy for $999 unlocked. Other purchase options are available for less upfront if you want to add it to your carrier plan, but what sticks out about this deal is that you’ll get a free Samsung…
Pixel 3, new Chromecast, Pixel Slate and more: Everything we expect at Google event this Tuesday – CNET
Google’s fall hardware event promises to be one of its most jam-packed ever.
Meet the UFC champ who uses Microsoft Excel to smash opponents – CNET
UFC champion Robert Whittaker has a spreadsheet so detailed, it predicts how he’s going to feel before he starts training.
Best Halloween movies to watch and where to stream them – CNET
No matter which service you have, there’s something scary for you to watch. Time to stream and scream!
Men are from cyberspace: this week in tech, 20 years ago
A few months ago, I mentioned that it was “unfortunately” too early to write about the release of beloved role-playing game Fallout 2. Well, Fallout 2 was released this week 20 years ago, and I am definitively not going to write about it — because I already spent half my summer immersed in the series while researching the never-released Fallout Online. Fortunately, Kotaku’s Kirk Hamilton has you covered with an entertaining analysis of Fallout 2’s first, frustrating level.
Instead, this week’s stories cover cyber romance, Y2K, and one of the year’s worst new TV shows.
Men are from cyberspace
HBO premiered a documentary last month called Swiped: Hooking Up in the Digital Age that explored the worst aspects of online dating — you can…
Amazon fired an employee who shared customer e-mail addresses a third-party seller
In September, Amazon confirmed that some of its marketplace sellers had bribed Amazon employees to delete negative reviews or to obtain proprietary information like sales data or customer e-mail addresses, following a report in The Wall Street Journal. Now, according to FT, Amazon has fired at least one employee.
FT says that the employee had provided customer e-mails to a seller. Amazon confirmed the news, saying that “individual responsible for this incident has been terminated from their position, and we are supporting law enforcement in their prosecution.” The affected customers have since been notified, and Amazon says that no other customer information was leaked to outside parties.
The WSJ’s report revealed that third-party…
Yes, your selfies look different on the iPhone XS. Here’s why – CNET
Is there a so-called “beauty mode” on the iPhone XS?
Talking to Master Replicas’ Hal 9000 smart speaker sent chills down my spine
“I’m sorry Dave, I’m afraid I can’t do that.”
Even with the background hum of New York Comic Con all around us, the iconic voice of Hal 9000 — the sentient computer from the film 2001: A Space Odyssey — made me intensely nervous as its red eye stares back from Master Replicas’ booth on the convention floor.
Steve Dymszo, CEO for the prop-making company, leans in to speak over the noise of the crowd. “What’s the problem?”
“I think you know what the problem is just as well as I do,” Hal responds. Dymszo gestures to the device. “You can go on and on with the rest of the sequence.”
Announced earlier this year in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of the iconic film’s…
Amazon’s new Echo Dot vs. the Google Home Mini: Which sounds better? – CNET
Go ahead and take a listen for yourself.