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Audio specifications: Which ones matter, which ones don’t

I’ll start with the obvious: most audio specs are nearly useless to consumers — frequency response, total harmonic distortion, slew rate, input sensitivity — fuhgetaboutit. The most useful specs are the ones that average people understand, like the product’s size (dimensions) and weight. Duhhh — is the product too big or small for your needs? At home, heavier speakers and …

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Thrill

Some people like to live on the edge, but daredevil Flaviu Cernescu prefers to unicycle on the edge. On Wednesday, Cernescu posted a YouTube video of himself and a friend having fun on top of a very tall abandoned factory chimney measuring 840 feet high (256 meters) at CET Targu Jiu in Romania. Related stories Courageous couple scales crane perched …

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This robot is a lousy sandwich chef

We’ve all had fantasies of a future where robot chefs live in our homes and make us any meal we desire at any time of day. Sadly, robots aren’t quite sophisticated enough for that sort of home use as of yet. But that didn’t stop Simone Giertz, a YouTube vlogger known for putting together hilariously crappy robots, from making her …

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Is Spotify punishing artists who cozy up to Apple Music?

The rivalry between the subscription music giants may be turning bitter. Spotify has been penalizing some artists who provide music exclusively to its main competitor, Apple Music, according to a Bloomberg report. Citing unnamed people familiar with the practices, the report said Spotify search results bury tunes by artists who give their material to Apple Music first. The company also …

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How to stop WhatsApp from sharing your data with Facebook

For the first time in four years and since being acquired by Facebook, WhatsApp is updating its terms and conditions, as well as its privacy policy. Part of this update includes WhatsApp sharing your account information with Facebook to, among other things, provide better targeted ads. What information is being shared with Facebook? The updated WhatsApp FAQ page says that …

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