Phones with Pop-up cameras were popping left and right last year and we were momentarily led to believe that conventional notches were finally on their way out. The trend, however, didn’t hold and notches of different sizes and shapes slyly crept back in. In the interest of immersive full-view screens, Transsion Holdings is now trying […]
The post Infinix S5 Pro Review appeared first on Smartprix Bytes.
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
Microsoft has launched a new interactive Bing map to provide information on the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. The map shows the amount of cases on a per country basis, broken down by the number of currently active cases, recovered cases, and fatal cases. In the US, meanwhile, you can view information state-by-state. Selecting individual countries or states will provide links to relevant news stories and videos. Unfortunately, the stories being promoted aren’t always the most timely or useful to understand the current state of the evolving pandemic.
Microsoft says the tool is pulling data from a collection of sources including the World Health Organization (WHO), the US Centers for Disease Control and...
Microsoft Teams
Microsoft’s chat and communications tool, Microsoft Teams, is down across Europe this morning. The outage started just as thousands of workers started to sign into the service and attempt to work remotely amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Microsoft Teams users are currently experiencing issues signing into the service and sending messages. “We’re investigating messaging-related functionality problems within Microsoft Teams,” says a Microsoft support Twitter account.
The timing is less than ideal, just as many businesses are encouraging employees to work remotely and collaborate using services like Microsoft Teams. Even schools are also using tools like Microsoft Teams for remote education, with some schools in The Netherlands...
Microsoft Teams
Microsoft’s chat and communications tool, Microsoft Teams, is down across Europe this morning. The outage started just as thousands of workers started to sign into the service and attempt to work remotely amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Microsoft Teams users are currently experiencing issues signing into the service and sending messages. “We’re investigating messaging-related functionality problems within Microsoft Teams,” says a Microsoft support Twitter account.
The timing is less than ideal, just as many businesses are encouraging employees to work remotely and collaborate using services like Microsoft Teams. Even schools are also using tools like Microsoft Teams for remote education, with some schools in The Netherlands...
Rohit Sharma has expressed his concern over the ongoing coronavirus outbreak and has called on his countrymen to take all preventive measures.
The Indian Premier League franchises might be working overtime with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to find ways to make the 13th edition of the IPL a reality
For some of us, it might be like a nostalgic revisit as Motorola has finally released the Razr in India. The phone which had its debut back in November 2019, is hankered for its vertical folding format. This will be the third folding phone to hit the Indian stores. Due to Coronapocalypse, Moto stuck to […]
The post Motorola Moto Razr launched at an expensive price than the Galaxy Z Flip in India appeared first on Smartprix Bytes.
Interestingly, PCB is going ahead with the Pakistan Super League, which has entered the knockout stages now.
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
Steam smashed its all-time record for concurrent users over the weekend with a 24-hour peak set at 20,313,451, according to data from the PC gaming platform’s website. It’s the first time Steam has ever had more than 20 million users online at once; nearly 6.4 million of them were actively playing a game.
The previous record wasn’t particularly long-standing, and Steam outdoes itself pretty often — the 19 million mark was first reached just over a month ago. But the milestone is notable, as is the speed with which it was reached.
There weren’t really any notable Steam releases last week, so it’s probably safe to say that the spike in users staying home and logging on was sparked by the fact that it is generally not...
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
Steam smashed its all-time record for concurrent users over the weekend with a 24-hour peak set at 20,313,451, according to data from the PC gaming platform’s website. It’s the first time Steam has ever had more than 20 million users online at once; nearly 6.4 million of them were actively playing a game.
The previous record wasn’t particularly long-standing, and Steam outdoes itself pretty often — the 19 million mark was first reached just over a month ago. But the milestone is notable, as is the speed with which it was reached.
There weren’t really any notable Steam releases last week, so it’s probably safe to say that the spike in users staying home and logging on was sparked by the fact that it is generally not...
Motorola seems to be finally bouncing back with some hype-worthy titles. Today, the brand’s folding novelty launched in India and on a different stream, we have news on the Motorola Edge. You may already know about this series, thanks to its supposedly big brother Edge+ which has made rounds in the tech rumor mills for […]
The post Latest Motorola Edge leak reveals everything you need to know about the phone appeared first on Smartprix Bytes.
Lahore will host both semifinals on Tuesday, and also the final on Wednesday without fans present due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The sports calendars were shredded worldwide, including international and domestic cricket all over.
Cheteshwar Pujara has reiterated his confidence in his batting style, saying that his main aim while out in the middle is not to entertain fans but win matches.
WV Raman, ever since he took charge of the Indian women’s team 14-months back, has successfully managed to change their fortunes, especially in the T20 format. That has come by instilling belief in the players, and identifying the new talent.
Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images
Google’s sister company Verily has launched a screening website for people who want to get tested for COVID-19. However, Verily’s website is very limited in scope: it’s only available to people in the Bay Area of California and it’s more of a pilot program than a public health utility.
In fact, it’s even more limited than that: in order to qualify you must be 18 years of age or older, be able to speak English, and be a US resident. It very much looks like the program a Verily spokesperson described to us on the phone on Friday and not the expansive triage system that the Trump administration promised.
The initial question on Verily’s site asks “Are you currently experiencing severe cough, shortness of breath, fever, or other concerning...
Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images
Google’s sister company Verily has launched a screening website for people who want to get tested for COVID-19. However, Verily’s website is very limited in scope: it’s only available to people in the Bay Area of California and it’s more of a pilot program than a public health utility.
In fact, it’s even more limited than that: in order to qualify you must be 18 years of age or older, be able to speak English, and be a US resident. It very much looks like the program a Verily spokesperson described to us on the phone on Friday and not the expansive triage system that the Trump administration promised.
The initial question on Verily’s site asks “Are you currently experiencing severe cough, shortness of breath, fever, or other concerning...
The final rounds of New Zealand's domestic first-class competition the Plunket Shield have been called off due to the coronavirus pandemic.Kumail Nanjiani doesn’t mind posing for shirtless pics. At least, not these days after getting ridiculously jacked for his upcoming role in The Eternals. If you’ll recall, photos circulated late last year of the comedian’s incredible transformation and now, he’s at it again.
While appearing in Men’s Health Magazine, Nanjiani recreated some iconic shirtless scenes in movies including the volleyball scene from Top Gun, Patrick Bateman’s workout routine in American Psycho, John McClane crawling through a ventilation duct in Die Hard and as Hugh Jackman’s iconic turn as Wolverine.
In fact, Jackman was shown Nanjiani’s reenactment while appearing on Fox News and the actor was very impressed with the likeness, saying:
“Wow! That really looks like the set. That is so cool… If you’ve done all that work, get your shirt off.”
You said it, Hugh. If I looked like that, I would walk around shirtless all day. Not to mention that Nanjiani is known for playing a schlubby nerd on Silicon Valley and a struggling comedian in the autobiographical movie, The Big Sick. So, to see him looking like a Greek God gives motivation to a lot of us.
In The Eternals, Nanjiani will suit up as Kingo, and while plot specifics are scarce, we know it revolves around a race of immortal beings who live on Earth and shape its history and civilizations. No footage of the film has been released online yet, but with a cast that also includes Angelina Jolie, Salma Hayek, Kit Harington, Richard Madden, Gemma Chan and Brian Tyree Henry, hype is definitely high.
And as for the aforementioned photos, well, we do need a new Wolverine, so I guess this is Nanjiani’s audition.
The first few months of every new year have traditionally been a down period for Hollywood and the movie industry in terms of box office. The holidays just ended, kids are going back to school and the weather’s generally bad so no one wants to trek to the local theater.
That notion changed in the last few years though with films like Black Panther, Get Out and Captain Marvel opening early in the year. But 2020 is reverting back to the old days. Only this time, it’s for far more serious reasons.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, we’re seeing film and television productions shut down, a number of big budget movies, including A Quiet Place: Part II, Mulan and Fast & Furious 9, delayed and even theaters beginning to take precautions like limiting the number of tickets sold per screening to avoid personal contact with your fellow moviegoer.
In light of all of these decisions, Hollywood could lose in excess of $20 billion according to The Hollywood Reporter. From No Time To Die taking a $30-$50 million loss for moving its release from April to November to Marvel losing $300,000 a day while Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is shut down, all of these losses will certainly add up.
And $20 billion might be a conservative estimate as we still don’t know how long the crisis will last. For instance, Black Widow comes out in two months and Wonder Woman 1984 in three. Could this pandemic still be happening then? And will it cause those releases to be delayed, too? Time will tell.
Of course, the area hit hardest by this outbreak are the below-the-line employees in Hollywood. From set decorators to costume designers to hair and makeup, all of those workers can’t work if productions are shut down. And again, this is only a week or so in. As such, the true ramifications and financial toll will not be known for quite some time.
One of the more unusual consequences of the coronavirus happened this week in Thailand, where the lack of tourists caused rival gangs of monkeys to begin a brutal war.
The Lopburi monkeys are a feature of the local Phra Prang Sam Yod Buddhist temple, where they are typically divided by train tracks. However, the monkeys’ reliance on tourists for food has been hit by COVID-19, forcing them to search further afield, and into a clash over a single banana. And as was to perhaps be expected, reactions to the story have caused Planet of the Apes to trend on Twitter.
Although the story involves monkeys, many people have been quick to note the fight as the first step in an ape apocalypse:
Who had "Monkeys use global pandemic to rise up and create Planet of the Apes" in their Apocalypse Pool? https://t.co/qQqcOuTHE8
— Tony Wirt (@Wirter) March 12, 2020
Which one is Caesar? This is how Planet of the Apes start, people.
Also, monkeys fight for food. Humans fight for toilet paper. We’re doomed.
https://t.co/a9WbgzGgfE
— Ming-Na Wen (@MingNa) March 12, 2020
Others were quick to throw in a classic meme from The Simpsons, whereby we should fall in line with the new order:
I for one welcome our new monkey overlords #PlanetOfTheApes https://t.co/styTW4MAaP
— Host of the 2020 Lunwi’s ً (@Lunwi88) March 12, 2020
In addition, some noted the chilling similarities between the viral outbreak in the rebooted Planet of the Apes franchise and what’s currently happening in the world:
First bears waking up early from hibernation, now the Planet of the Apes has begun. #coronapocalypse #PlanetOfTheApes https://t.co/vxBaKlRbdc
— Ariel
(@Not_A_Mermaid) March 15, 2020
All worrying signs, then, and just another bizarre story in a week of them, as quarantine, cancellations, and delays are becoming the norm. In the last few days or so, we’ve seen major movie releases get pushed back, Disney parks shut down, Tom Hanks going into quarantine, and many more events that may have seemed like a (quite boring) disaster film only a few months ago.
If the Thailand monkey riots are anything to go by, it may take some time for the ecosystem of tourist hotspots to return to normal. Furthermore, monkey fights are not that unusual compared to the people fighting over toilet paper rolls and essential supplies around the world. In any case, we’re very much hoping that things can go back to normal soon and the Planet of the Apes-style apocalypse being predicted does not come to pass. For now, though, it’s probably best to stay indoors.
Photo by Nick Statt / The Verge
The British government is opening a public consultation into the use of electric scooters in what is likely to be the first step toward legalizing them in the country. The consultation, news of which leaked in January, is an attempt to work out what rules should be placed on scooter riders and manufacturers to make sure they’re safe on the UK’s roads.
It’s been announced as part of a broader review into transport in the country, which transport secretary Grant Shapps called “the biggest review of transport laws in a generation.”
Despite their increasing popularity around the world, electric scooters have remained essentially illegal in the UK because of the country’s preexisting laws. These laws categorize electric scooters as motor...
Photo by Nick Statt / The Verge
The British government is opening a public consultation into the use of electric scooters in what is likely to be the first step toward legalizing them in the country. The consultation, news of which leaked in January, is an attempt to work out what rules should be placed on scooter riders and manufacturers to make sure they’re safe on the UK’s roads.
It’s been announced as part of a broader review into transport in the country, which transport secretary Grant Shapps called “the biggest review of transport laws in a generation.”
Despite their increasing popularity around the world, electric scooters have remained essentially illegal in the UK because of the country’s preexisting laws. These laws categorize electric scooters as motor...
