Twitter dumps threaded replies, ditches experimental twttr app

Twitter is getting rid of threaded replies just months after incorporating them into the Twitter app, and into Twitter’s web portal. “We asked and you let us know this reply layout wasn’t it, as it was harder to read and join conversations,” the company tweeted Thursday. Your feedback shapes Twitter.We asked and you let us …

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Connect all the things: Get this 15

Sometimes you need to connect all the things. If you need to run your laptop with multiple monitors, for example, and need more than the single USB port (or two) that your laptop manufacturer deigned to provide, I’ve got a solution for you. This 15-in-1 docking port has a little of some things and a lot of others, and right …

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HBO Max kills 1

HBO Max is no longer offering one-week free trials to new subscribers, the latest streaming-video service to remove its try-it-out-free period even as competition for subscribers intensifies. The move comes three weeks before its mega-budget movie Wonder Woman 1984 is set to stream on the service the same day it debuts in theaters in the US.  HBO Max confirmed Thursday that the …

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AR is alive and well on the iPhone, and Apple’s augmented reality is getting better fast

Sometime in the not-too-distant future, Apple will reportedly unveil an augmented- or mixed-reality headset. Apple hasn’t discussed any headgear yet. But augmented reality is alive and well on the iPhone — and it’s only getting better. Apple’s depth-sensing lidar sensor (available on the iPhone 12 Pro and latest iPads), with its advanced 3D-scanning possibilities, feels like the backbone of the Apple headsets of …

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Intel upgrades quantum computer ambitions with new control chip

Intel unveiled on Thursday its Horse Ridge 2 processor for controlling quantum computers, an important milestone in making the potentially revolutionary machines practical. The Horse Ridge 2 isn’t a quantum processor itself but is designed to solve the challenges of communicating with future quantum processors with thousands or more qubits. The processor is the second generation of a family that …

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This 10,000

Here at Cheapskate HQ, we often joke that power banks are a dime a dozen — really good deals come fast and furious to the point that we’re pretty selective about what ones we post on these pages. It’s not hard to find a high-capacity portable charger that isn’t just cheap, but has cool extra features as well. But sometimes …

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YouTube will ask you to rethink posting that comment if AI thinks it’s offensive

YouTube will start asking commenters to reconsider posting something before it goes up if Google‘s artificial intelligence identifies that comment as potentially offensive, YouTube said Thursday. The new YouTube prompt suggests that commenters review the company’s community guidelines if they’re “not sure whether the post is respectful,” and then gives the option to either edit the content or post anyway.  The …

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Google updates Voice Access app, expands to more devices

Google on Thursday launched an update to its Voice Access app, which debuted in 2018 to let people navigate their phones with their voice. Initially available on Android 11, the updated version of Voice Access is now available in beta worldwide on devices running Android 6.0 and up. Machine learning and a new interface make Voice Access easier to use, …

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Apple redesigns accessibility site with tips for people with vision, hearing, other disabilities

Apple wants to make it easier for people with disabilities to discover accessibility features on their iPhones, iPads and Macs and to figure out how to customize their devices to better suit their needs. The gadget maker launched a redesign of its accessibility website, Apple.com/accessibility, to highlight its efforts. The revamped site, announced Thursday, is organized around four areas: vision, mobility, hearing …

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Net neutrality fight is about to come roaring back

An old battle over who governs the internet will likely reignite as Democrats take control of the Federal Communications Commission following the inauguration of Joe Biden. Reinstating Obama-era net neutrality rules thrown out under the Trump administration will likely be a top priority for the agency, experts say.  Earlier this week, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, an appointee of President Donald …

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Android Emoji Kitchen update will let you customize more emoji

Android is giving emoji lovers more ways to mix and match emoji by expanding its Emoji Kitchen feature, Google said in a blog post, Thursday.  Emoji Kitchen, which launched in February, lets you combine emoji (think adding a face mask to an alien). The feature will now offer more than 14,000 combinations, up from just a few hundred. You’ll also …

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Facebook’s hate speech detection systems to focus on ‘worst of the worst’

Facebook is reportedly working on a major overhaul of its algorithms that police hate speech on its platforms. The changes, which are still in the early stages, include reengineering its automated moderation systems to better detect and remove hateful language that’s considered the “worst of the worst,” according to The Washington Post, which cited internal Facebook documents.  The massive social …

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