Space.com writes: “CBS is certainly providing enough fodder for Star Trek excitement to hit full-on fever pitch come January. Fans had a new teaser only two weeks ago, and then, last week, it was the penultimate “Short Trek” (we get the final episode on Jan. 3) — and now we have a new full-length trailer for Star Trek: Discovery Season 2.” Image credit: CBS All Access.
Google Won't Sell Facial Recognition Software. Yet.
A senior Google executive said the company will work through technology and policy issue before it sells its facial recognition software.
App Analytics from new Mojave Mac App Store now Available
Developers can now access analytics from apps in the new macOS Mojave App Store via the App Store Connect service.
Mujjo Folio Sleeve for the New 13″ MacBook Air and Pro
Mujjo released a very smart leather-folio case for the new 13″ MacBook Air and MacBook Pro on Wednesday. It has a single-leather panel on the outside and zips that go around three sides to make accessing the interior easier. The inside is felt-lined and contains a variety of compartments, including some for bank cards. The case is treated to be water-repellant. The Mujjo folio sleeve comes in black and is available online for €119.90 ($134.38) with free worldwide shipping.
Tony Hawk's Skate Jam for iOS is Here
My fellow children of the 90s…prepare to get nostalgic – Tony Hawk’s Skate Jams has arrived on iOS! This modern take on the skateboarding game is available to download from the app store now. It can be played on both iPhone and iPad and has all the old Tony Hawks elements you know and love from playing his games on PlayStation or even Game Boy. This includes the classic career mode alongside new Skate Jams Tournaments. You can skate as the man himself, and take on street, vert, and park courses. Players who pull of particularly impressive moves can record them in the game and share them online using #SkateJam. Tony Hawk’s Skate Jam is available as a free download with in-app purchases. It’s available for Android, too.
Apple Releasing Updates Next Week to try and Resolve Qualcomm China Dispute
Apple will release software updates next week in a bid to overturn the ban on sales of some iPhone models in China.
Russian Robot Exposed as a Fake
A Russian state-owned TV news channel proudly showed off a “state-of-the-art” robot at a technology forum for children this week. Boris appeared to walk, talk, and dance. Except, as the Telegraph explained, everything was not quite as it seemed. Boris was, in fact, a man in a very expensive costume…
‘Boris’ the Robot was apparently able to walk, talk and dance – and was passed off as state-of-the-art robotics by the TV channel at a technology forum for school pupils. But its authenticity started being questioned when photos appeared online that clearly showed a human inside a robot suit.
Turn Your Wired Devices into Bluetooth Ones with This Ultra-Portable Receiver: $11.20
We’ve got an interesting gizmo for our deal of the day, a portable Bluetooth 4.2 receiver that turns your wired devices into wireless devices. It works with speakers, headphones, and even your car’s stereo system. You can also connect to up to two Bluetooth devices at the same time with just one receiver. Our deal is for $14, but coupon code GREENMONDAY20 takes 20% off, for a final price of $11.20.
The High Cost of Being Loyal to Apple
This week’s Particle Debris leads with an interesting aspect of being loyal to Apple and how much that costs.
BONX Grip: A Group Chat Earpiece for the Outdoorsman
It’s an outdoor group talk system for active people like runners, cyclists, hikers, etc. They let you create a group chat with up to 10 people.
5G Rollout, Apple v. Qualcomm – TMO Daily Observations 2018-12-14
Today on TDO: 5G networks flaws/rollout, and an Apple v Qualcomm (software) update. Charlotte Henry, Andrew Orr, and host Kelly Guimont.
How to Get an iOS Linux Shell On your iPad or iPhone
OSXDaily has a cool tip on how to put an iOS Linux shell on your iPhone or iPad. It involves installing an app called iSH through TestFlight. You can also side load it.
In case it’s not obvious, iSH is not a full version of Linux with a window manager and GUI like Ubuntu for iPad or iPhone, it’s just a shell, but it is by far the most functional local command line environment in iOS that is currently available.
Sounds like a fun weekend project for all you Terminal tinkerers 😉
Don't Be Fooled By The 5G Hype Train
Carriers insist that 2020 will be the year of 5G. Apple says it won’t have 5G iPhones until 2020. But it’s going to take years for widespread rollout.
The industry is doing its best to hype 5G up as The Next Big Thing™, but 5G hardware in 2019 is going to be a decidedly first-generation affair. Early adopters for 5G will have to accept all manner of tradeoffs. And when there might not even be 5G reception in your area, it might be better to just wait the whole thing out for a year or two.
4G LTE will remain the dominant spectrum for a long time. There are a lot of problems with 5G millimeter-wave broadband, and my opinion is that we won’t see America fully 5G until 2030 or so.
Rest In Peace: Apple Music Connect Has Died
You can still find Connect content through search results, but Apple will remove artist-submitted posts in May.
Australian CommBank Adding Apple Pay in January
Apple Pay adoption in Australia has been slow because of tough negotiations. However, CommBank will be supporting the payment service starting in January 2019.
Currently you can order and activate a CommBank PayTag for your iPhone with a one-off fee of $2.99. CommBank PayTag is a small sticker, around a third of the size of a credit card. The PayTag is attached to the back of your iPhone, allowing you to make Tap & Pay purchases using your phone.
Apple Orders J.J. Abrams Series Starring Jennifer Garner
Apple gave a straight-to-series order of a show starring Jennifer Garner, and produced by J.J. Abrams called My Glory Was I Had Such Friends.
Apple TV Guide: All of the Original Video Content [Update]
The content won’t appear until 2019, with the majority of the production happening in 2018. The list will be updated continuously, so be sure to bookmark this page.
Giving Up Meat Won't Cure Climate Change
I’ve seen a lot of these headlines. The latest one is from FastCompany: “If these insanely good athletes can give up meat, so can you.” Is that enough to fix climate change? Nope.
The whole point of Markkanen’s campaign with Neste, called #DontChoke, is to ask people to pledge to take simple actions to decrease their personal carbon footprint.
While I don’t doubt that giving up meat would be better, we also need to take a good, hard look at our rich overlords. Example: This study found that 10% of rich people are responsible for 50% of carbon emissions, whereas 50% of poor people are responsible for 10%. Nice symmetry.
The Marvel Series Cancelled by Netflix Won't Be on Disney+ Anytime Soon
Here’s the opening of a detailed story from Variety.
Fans of the Marvel Television series recently canceled by Netflix who hope to see the shows revived on Disney+ may be out of luck.
Sources tell Variety that the deal for the original four Marvel shows includes a clause that prevents the characters from appearing in any non-Netflix series or film for at least two years after cancellation. That means that “Daredevil,” “Luke Cage,” and “Iron Fist” — which were all canceled this year at Netflix — could not come to the Disney streaming service until 2020 at the earliest.
Iron Fist image credit: Marvel.
Djay Moves to Subscription Model
Popluar iOS music app djay moved to a subscription model and simplified how users access it across multiple devices.
