Wrecked By Tech

Episode 16: Super Mario Run, Samsung, and VR on your iPhone


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In this week's show: Super Mario Run for your phone needs an Internet connection; Samsung is remotely killing its phones in the US (and disconnecting from towers in Canada); the Samsung Galaxy S8 might not have a headphone jack; iPhone has a VR headset companion—and it might rival the big guys.

Recommendations

Riley — Red Harvest (A very old book by the guy who brought us the Maltese Falcon)
Marc — Modern Strike Online
Dan — Fallout Shelter

Links:

  • The Bridge Headset Brings Positional-Tracking VR to iPhone | WIRED — Positional tracking is what makes higher-end hardware such as the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, and PlayStation VR such fundamentally different devices compared to phone-based headsets like the Gear VR and Daydream View. With positional tracking, you can roam around inside a virtual world laterally and vertically.
  • Super Mario Run needs a constant internet connection to run | TechCrunch — Shigeru Miyamoto confirmed this week that Super Mario Run will only work on a device with a constant internet connection.
  • Samsung confirms it will render the US Note 7 useless with next update - The Verge — Samsung will render remaining Galaxy Note 7s in the United States useless and inoperable with its next and final update for the recalled smartphone.
  • Verizon refuses to release update that would kill Samsung’s Note 7 - The Verge — Verizon will not be releasing a just-announced Galaxy Note 7 software update designed to stop the recalled smartphone from charging. In a statement, the leading US mobile carrier attributed the decision to concerns over safety for customers who might not have another mobile phone to use after the Note 7 has been crippled.
  • Why you should get rid of your recalled Samsung Galaxy Note 7 now - National | Globalnews.ca — Canadians still hanging on to their recalled Samsung Galaxy Note 7’s will soon have their phones rendered almost entirely useless.
Samsung announced in a press release Wednesday plans to “deactivate service” for the recalled devices by Monday.
  • Samsung’s Galaxy S8 might not have a headphone jack - The Verge — You were probably hoping the whole no headphone jack thing was just a 2016 fad, right? Sorry, but SamMobile thinks it’s here to stay, as Samsung is reportedly preparing to release its Galaxy S8 sans jack.
  • If you tweet emoji at Google, it will reply with local search results - The Verge — Google has a new trick up its sleeve on Twitter — it can now understand emoji you tweet at it.
  • HP Spectre x360 review: the best Windows laptop of 2016 - The Verge — That’s what makes HP’s latest Spectre x360 so interesting. It has the same basic spec sheet as countless other laptops, and from a distance, even looks similar to many others. But in a year that’s been full of laptop disappointments, the Spectre x360’s cohesive design and lack of compromises has been a breath of fresh air.
  • Neil Young is turning Pono into a high-res music streaming service - The Verge — “We’re gonna re-emerge as a streaming service and a high-res download offer,” he said during an interview. “We provide the best that's available. Full resolution music, great sounding music.”
  • Dropbox now has an Xbox One app - The Verge — Since the Xbox One runs a universal version of Windows 10, it's easier then ever for developers to make apps for the video game console. Thus, we now have a Dropbox app for Xbox One.
  • Pokémon GO gets its first Gen II Pokémon and a special limited edition Pikachu (with a Santa hat) | TechCrunch — Pokémon from the series’ second generation (“Johto”) are making their way into the game — but not all at once, it seems. And, in a further twist: You won’t be able to catch these first ones in the wild. You’ll have to hatch them from an egg that you’ve picked up at a Pokéstop.
  • Doppler’s Futuristic Earbuds Sound Great. They Also Speak Spanish | WIRED — Demos are always controlled, and don’t always represent what a product is actually like in the world. Sometimes they’re even fake! But all that said, Doppler’s Here One demo is one of the wildest gadget experiences I’ve ever had.
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    Wrecked By TechBy Riley McDonald