Author Archives: Ehud Riven

Sony’s Official PS5 Website Is Now Live in the UK and Germany

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Playstation 5 is coming soon
Playstation website

After weeks of waiting in anticipation, the official PS5 website is now live in some countries. This means, there might be an announcement anytime soon, and Sony is using curiosity to its benefit. For a while now, industry pundits have expected Sony to announce the PS5 in February. Now that the release date is fast approaching, Sony is trying to build up a media frenzy before it officially announces the PS5. It is still not clear when the console will be announced exactly. 

Users can leave the email addresses on the official PS5 website to be notified when it is available

Sony makes it quite clear that the new console will come with some outstanding features. However, it adds that it is currently not able to unveil the PS5 immediately. Consequently, on the official website, it requests users to share their email addresses so that it can communicate to them when the console is ready to be announced. It also assures visitors that it will soon share price-related details, along with the upcoming roster of launch games. 

No information about pricing yet

Sony had announced just a while ago that it has still not reached a consensus about pricing. It admitted that it’s waiting for Microsoft to launch the Xbox Series X in order to get a better idea of how it can play the market. Yet, one can only wonder why Sony decided to make the official PS5 website go live so soon. The company probably has its own reasons to do so, and speculating its intentions may not be very relevant.  

The most anticipated console of recent months is finally going to be announced

PS5 is one of the most anticipated consoles this year. Fans have long waited for the successor of PS4, and now is the moment of revelation. As the website indicates, the release is might happen anytime this month. Currently, the UK and the German websites of the console are up, and so is the logo, which the company announced just a few days ago. One needs to directly visit the website, and it does not appear on PlayStation’s homepage. 

As it is, Sony has been closely following Apple’s footsteps when it comes to marketing, choosing a premium-style of marketing. When the console does arrive in the market, both Nintendo and Microsoft will have some tough competition to fight.

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Niantic Confirms Pokémon Go Battle League Is Coming Soon

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Pokémon go battle league

If you are a fan of Pokémon Go, you would be pleased to learn that Niantic is finally bringing the Go Battle League that was promised last year. It allows players to fight other trainers across the world, based on their level. However, it may take some time before the feature actually arrives. 

Niantic has temporarily stopped the release in order to make sure that the launch is smooth and free from server issues. When it finally arrives sometime soon, you will be able to play against other trainers in the Go Battle League preseason events. 

What are the Go Battle League pre-season events all about?

There are three pre-season leagues, according to sources. These include the Master League, Ultra League, and the Great League. When people begin to play these leagues, Niantic will make enhancements and improvements depending on their behavior. Niantic will also decide the ideal season length based on these criteria. 

Here is what players need to do in order to be allowed to play the leagues

  • Each player needs to walk a distance of five kilometers and unlock five online matches
  • This can be done thrice a day, but that will take a lot of physical effort
  • The more one walks per day, the more trainers one can battle
  • Those who are lazy and are not willing to walk can pay their way into the Battle Now feature by using PokéCoins. 
  • The price depends on how far you are from your goal

Go Battle League promises many surprises and goodies

There are several surprises that come along with the leagues. For instance, users will encounter Pikachu Libre, when they play Go Battle League. Pikachu Libre is a Lucha libre-wearing Pikachu that looks quite surreal. Niantic will announce when the leagues will be finally thrown open to the public. For now, it only confirmed that the Go Battle League is definitely happening. Many fans had begun to assume that this was another of those hollow promises that game developers make. Thankfully, now we know that it is not a false promise. The Go Battle League is definitely coming. 

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Activision Blizzard Unveils Call of Duty League, Partners with Google

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call of duty

In what could be a turning point in the gaming industry, Activision Blizzard is launching an esports league around Call of Duty. The Call of Duty league has attracted many franchise owners, and they’ve already paid $25 million to be a part of it. In fact, the league will consist of 12 teams and they will start playing in 2020. Millions of people play this game, and the gaming company is putting together this league in order to monetize esports akin to traditional sports leagues. 

Here are some of the important features of Call of Duty League

  • The 12 franchises will represent international cities 
  • Players receive a guaranteed payment of $50,000
  • Each team will have between seven and 10 players
  • They even get retirement and healthcare benefits
  • Housing benefits for players are not part of the offering
  • Franchisees should share 50% of the prize money with the players

Activision Blizzard and Google join hands

The companies entered a long-term and multi-year strategic relationship to bring new player experiences. In effect, the gaming giant will use Google Cloud to host its gaming infrastructure and YouTube will help stream the games worldwide. However, China is the only country excluded from the list. In addition, live broadcasts of Activision Blizzard’s esports leagues and events will be streamed on YouTube. The list includes Call of Duty League, Hearthstone Esports, Overwatch League, etc. 

The company cited many reasons why it chose Google Cloud:

  • Google Cloud has a global footprint and is accessible everywhere, except China
  • It comes with advanced data analytics which will help Activision Blizzard to analyze gaming trends and insight about players. 
  • Google Cloud also has artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities, which makes it easier to enhance interaction between interfaces and players
  • Google’s technical know-how and Activision Blizzard’s gaming experienced will help bring premium network quality-of-service to players
  • Enhanced personalization will make playing games a very enjoyable experience to users

Call of Duty League will benefit from Activision Blizzard’s decision to rope in Google

Certainly, when Activision Blizzard has some mega plans of launching professional esports leagues, it will need the assistance of a company like Google. Call of Duty league may attract millions of users at the same time, and only Google will be able to handle that kind of traffic. Certainly, this venture will bring enhanced experiences to players and improved infrastructure to Activision Blizzard. 

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WhatsApp Dark Mode is Now Available on Android

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WhatsApp Dark Mode

WhatsApp has just announced a dark mode for Android devices but it is only available for developers at the moment. WhatsApp dark mode is highly coveted by users and most people would like to try it out themselves by joining the beta program. However, the beta program is currently full and isn’t available for everyone to join. 

Thankfully, there are workarounds to make sure that everyone can try their hand at WhatsApp dark mode and experience it for themselves. All one needs to do is to download WhatsApp’s beta version via APKMirror. The version number is 2.20.13. 

Here is what one needs to do step by step in order to enable WhatsApp dark mode on their devices:

  1. Open Android’s browser and click the link to version 2.20.13.
  2. Click on the green link and scroll down on the screen that opens up until you see “Download APK”
  3. Once it downloads, locate the file and click on it. Ignore the warning that flashes on your screen. 
  4. Install the APK file and wait for the completion of the installation
  5. Open WhatsApp, and click on the three-dot icon on the upper right of the screen
  6. Click on “Chats” and you will find “Theme”, with three options: Dark, Light or default. 
  7. Click on “Dark” mode

Why dark mode is good for you

The dark mode looks quite beautiful and is a great way to read lengthy texts. In fact, science has shown that dark mode is easier on the eyes, and will not result in eye strain. If you are somebody who reads and sends a lot of text messages and uses your screen for long hours, the dark mode is what you need. Texting for a long time will no longer hurt your eyes, and you can continue to use it in the dark mode just like on other applications. 

A growing number of applications have already moved to the dark mode. Unfortunately, the update is still in beta and it is not clear how long it will take for the dark mode to arrive for the public. Until then, you can use this workaround to get read WhatsApp messages on a darkened screen. 

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Huawei and TomTom Enter Maps Deal to Beat US Ban

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Huawei and TomTom

Huawei and TomTom have tied up to help Huawei get around a ban that was put in place by the US. Currently, no American company can do business with Huawei, resulting in loss of access to Android, Google Maps, and other Google-based services and products. Huawei will use TomTom's technology to launch its own map-based applications and navigation software. The Chinese giant has struggled to enter the American market, though it is wildly popular in the rest of the world.

Huawei and TomTom
work together to override an American ban

Huawei hasn't had an easy time after the US banned it from
doing business with American companies. This means, after the ban, it could no
longer run its phones on Android, use Google Maps on its devices, and sell them
in the US.

While Huawei is very popular in Asia and elsewhere, its
devices cannot be sold in the US at the moment. This had begun to hurt the company’s
bottom-line figures. This is one of the reasons why it has now opted to work around
the ban, and eventually release its devices to the American market. A step in
that direction is its decision to work with TomTom to bring traffic and
navigation information to users.

The company plans to use TomTom's technology and develop its own applications. Huawei is also actively working to launch its own operating system called HarmonyOS. HarmonyOS will power al of Huawei's devices such as tablets, IoT gadgets, TVs and smartphones. Huawei's App Gallery closely mirrors Google Play Store, and users have noted that they don't miss the popular Android store even one bit.

What could be the
consequences of Huawei’s tie-up with TomTom?

Currently, it is not clear how this decision will pan out.
Most likely, Huawei's ban in the US will continue to be put in place. The US
and China have had major trade-related disagreements in the past, and a few
days ago a pact was signed. Yet, this is not going to help Huawei, as America
also believes that the Chinese company could be used for spying, causing
security risks.

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Walmart Announces Alphabot, a Robotic Order Fulfilment System

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Walmart has just announced Alphabot, a robotic fulfillment system, which combines the effort of humans with robotic technology. Alphabot is an automated warehouse where robots and human workers work together in order to deliver orders to customers quickly. At the moment, Alphabot is being used to deliver grocery orders. Each of these automated warehouses will […]

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CES 2020: Samsung Announces Artificial Intelligence-enabled Ballie Device

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Samsung announced a number of things at the CES 2020, including AI-enabled Ballie, Ballie identifies people and streams live video. It can also help users control gadgets such as smart TVs, home lighting and Roomba. Samsung also announced a number of concepts and demos, which most probably will not be available in the market any […]

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Best iPad Black Friday Deals of 2019

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An iPad doesn’t have to be expensive, especially if you know where to look. Now that the Black Friday deals are in full swing, it only makes sense to look in the right place for some mouth-watering iPad deals. Surely, there is someone in your family who still does not have an iPad, and would […]

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AMD Reveals Juicy Plans for New Zen Microarchitectures

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It was just a few months ago, in May, that AMD announced six Zen 2-based desktop processors. While people were still discussing Zen 3, it seems to be pushed back into oblivion already. AMD officially confirmed that it is simultaneously working on Zen 4 and Zen 5 microarchitectures. Zen 2 currently powers the popular Ryzen […]

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