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A Deep Dive Into Apple's A13 Bionic Chip

Andrew Orr ·

Om Malik wrote a great dive into the A13 Bionic chip that powers the latest iPhones.

Apple’s new chip contains 8.5 billion transistors. Also, there are six CPU cores: Two high-performance cores running at 2.66 GHz (called Lightning), and four efficiency cores (called Thunder). It has a quad-core graphics processor, an LTE modem, an Apple-designed image processor, and an octa-core neural engine for machine intelligence functions that can run over five trillion operations per second.

Big numbers are amazing, and I still marvel at the fact that this chip can do five trillion operations per second. That is astoundingly fast. Five trillion seconds is 158,550 years. Just one trillion seconds ago (31,710 years) was before written history, before the pyramids were built.

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Science Journal Admits Those Bone Horns Were Wrong

Andrew Orr ·

Remember the study claiming smartphone usage caused bone horns to grow on millennials? The publisher now admits the conclusion was false. But other scientists say their correction is still false.

While the correction attempts to clarify the record on smartphones, it does not do anything to address the fact that the study’s main finding — that poor posture and age are connected to neck bone spurs — still isn’t supported by the underlying data…

“I actually think Nature should remove the original article as the correction has not proved their point,” said Sara Becker, a bioarchaeologist at the University of California Riverside.

Cool Stuff Found

Sayonara Wild Hearts Available on Nintendo Switch, Playstation 4

Andrew Orr ·

When Apple said that Apple Arcade games were exclusive, it meant that they won’t be on Android. But these games can be released on other platforms. Like Sayonara Wild Hearts which was shown at Apple’s keynote. It’s available for Nintendo Switch and Playstation 4 for US$12.99. In Sayonara Wild Hearts, players follow a young woman after she experiences heartbreak and finds her other self dubbed “The Fool” in an alternate universe. Play as The Fool and journey through a custom-written pop soundtrack, chase scores, and set out to find the harmony of the universe hidden away in the hearts of Little Death and her star-crossed allies: Dancing Devils, Howling Moons, Stereo Lovers and Hermit 64. Additionally, you can get physical copies as well as a vinyl record at iam8bit.com.

TMO Deals

Pictar Smart Grip + Wide Angle 16 MM and Macro Lens Bundle: $129.99

Bryan Chaffin ·

We have a deal on the Pictar Smart Grip and a bundle of two lenses. This device is a camera grip that fits most iPhones and Android devices, if that’s your thing, and it does that in a very clever way. Rather than matching physical buttons or even using a wireless connection for camera controls, this device emits high frequency sounds you can’t hear, but that the free companion app can. That allows you to control all manner of camera settings on your iPhone while using very little power. The deal includes the Pictar Smart Lens Wide 16 mm + Macro X12 clip on lens kit, and you get the bundle for $129.99 through our deal.

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Don't Storm Area 51, Begs Fan Site Webmaster

Charlotte Henry ·

Joerg Arnu is fascinated by Area 51. He even runs websites focussed on the site. However, as Wired discovered, he really does not want people descending on the mysterious Air Force base.

Arnu isn’t into it. He is not into the joke that has already inspired at least two people, young Dutch YouTubers, to breach the Air Force’s perimeter. And he is not into the party that threatens to take over his very little locale, a place located freakishly close to Area 51’s back gate. He has tried to put an end to its flight path. With the original festivities scheduled to start today, it’s unclear whether the horde will be huge or whether this bang will end with a poorly attended whimper.

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Photographer Heaps Praise on iPhone 11 Pro Camera

Charlotte Henry ·

Photographer Austin Mann could not wait to get his hands on a new iPhone 11 Pro and test the camera. His conclusion following a trip to China with the device? “If you are a serious photographer, get a Pro.” He explained why in a blog post, which also contained some stunning pictures (including the one featured in this article).

The addition of any new lens is a pretty big deal. You might remember my excitement when we gained the “telephoto” 51mm lens with the iPhone 7 Plus, and today I’m just as thrilled to be putting an entirely new Ultra Wide lens in my pocket. It gives us another format to tell the story, another perspective to visualize, and a better rounded tool for doing our best creative work. I’ve had a blast shooting with the new Ultra Wide on iPhone 11 Pro in all kinds of scenarios here in China.

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Mark Zuckerberg Heads back to Washington D.C. for Dinner with Senators

Charlotte Henry ·

On Wednesday, Axios exclusively revealed that  Mark Zuckerberg was set to return to Washington D.C. The site later reported that the Facebook CEO dined with senators Thursday evening. It was his first visit to the city since his high profile hearings on Capitol Hill.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg discussed election security and privacy with a group of senators over dinner ahead of his return to Capitol Hill Thursday, said a spokesperson for Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), who organized the meeting. Warner’s spokesperson said in a statement emailed to Axios that he organized Wednesday’s dinner at Facebook’s request. “The participants had a discussion touching on multiple issues, including the role and responsibility of social media platforms in protecting our democracy, and what steps Congress should take to defend our elections, protect consumer data, and encourage competition in the social media space.”

TMO Deals

Babbel Language Learning 1-Year Subscription: $69

Bryan Chaffin ·

We have a deal on a 1-year subscription for Babbel Language Learning. You can choose from 14 languages to learn, practice with 10-15 minute bite-sized lessons, and it uses speech recognition technology to keep your pronunciation on point. 1 year through our deal is $69. There’s also a 2-year option for $99.

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Apple Moves to Trademark 'Slofie'

Andrew Orr ·

Apple wants to trademark ‘slofie’, it’s term for slow-motion video clips you can now take with iPhone 11.

Apple has applied to the USPTO for a trademark on the term “Slofie” in terms of “downloadable computer software for use in capturing and recording video.” Don’t worry, it’s not trying to own the cultural landscape — rather, this is largely to prevent app developers and phone makers from ‘borrowing’ the term for their own features.

At least Apple isn’t trying to pull an Ohio State University, which was recently denied its effort to trademark the word “the.”

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California Governor Signs AB5 Bill Into Law Protecting Gig Workers

Andrew Orr ·

AB5 is a bill that could one day give full employee status to gig workers from companies like Uber, Lyft, and DoorDash. Today, California’s governor signed it into law.

While a major victory for the organized labor movement in California and in the U.S. broadly, the passing of AB5 is by no means a guarantee drivers in the state will become employees. Drivers or individual cities will need to challenge these businesses in court to apply the aforementioned ABC test, and Uber has already adopted an offensive posture in that regard, claiming that drivers are not core to the company’s business model—one of the stipulations of the ABC test.

Drivers in a ride-sharing company are not core to Uber’s business model. Wow.