Today’s best tech deals: AirPods Pro, Fitbit trackers, Lenovo ThinkPads, and more by Ars Staff on 2021-02-02 17:09 (#5DN97) Dealmaster also has deals on the MacBook Air, OLED TVs, and lots of video games.
Huawei’s HarmonyOS: “Fake it till you make it” meets OS development by Ron Amadeo on 2021-02-02 15:00 (#5DN1H) No discernible difference between Huawei's "all-new" OS and Android.
Flash is dead—but South Africa didn’t get the memo by Jim Salter on 2021-02-02 11:45 (#5DMNF) Adobe: You can't use Flash in 2021. South Africa: Watch me!
Hackers are exploiting a critical zero-day in devices from SonicWall by Dan Goodin on 2021-02-02 01:30 (#5DM7B) "Highly sophisticated threat actors" exploit flaws in coordinated attack on SonicWall.
Media frenzy, skepticism engulf virus origin probe—and WHO is over it by Beth Mole on 2021-02-01 23:20 (#5DM3N) It's "time for people who say and think they have information to start providing it.”
We’re getting a Wakanda spinoff series from Ryan Coogler on Disney+ by Jennifer Ouellette on 2021-02-01 23:03 (#5DM3P) It's part of a 5-year exclusive TV development deal for the Black Panther director.
Apple rolls out macOS Big Sur 11.2 with bug fixes and Bluetooth tweaks by Samuel Axon on 2021-02-01 22:55 (#5DM1E) macOS update comes a week after updates to iOS, iPadOS, tvOS, and watchOS.
SpaceX announces first “free flyer” human spaceflight by Eric Berger on 2021-02-01 22:28 (#5DM1F) "This is an important milestone towards enabling access to space for everyone."
Why victims of AT&T unlimited-data throttling get only $22 in settlements by Jon Brodkin on 2021-02-01 21:59 (#5DKYW) Victims of deceptive "unlimited" plans paid hundreds, get just a fraction back.
Why Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ 31 million sales are so incredible by Kyle Orland on 2021-02-01 21:28 (#5DKYX) In 9.5 months, New Horizons makes up almost half of all Animal Crossing sales.
70% of top “civic” Facebook groups are toxic or violent, report finds by Kate Cox on 2021-02-01 21:16 (#5DKYY) Internal report found top civic groups "non-recommendable" due to hate, harassment.
New supply chain attack uses poisoned updates to infect gamers’ computers by Dan Goodin on 2021-02-01 20:41 (#5DKW6) If you've used NoxPlayer in the past 5 months, it's time to check for malware.
Google closes Stadia’s dedicated game studios after less than 2 years by Sam Machkovech on 2021-02-01 20:19 (#5DKW7) Service isn't changing, but path to streaming-exclusive games will clearly narrow.
Facebook makes the case for activity tracking to iOS 14 users in new pop-ups by Samuel Axon on 2021-02-01 19:12 (#5DKS7) In a new test, Facebook pre-empts Apple's required prompt with its own.
Xiaomi denies ties to China’s military, calls US ruling “unconstitutional” by Ron Amadeo on 2021-02-01 17:49 (#5DKJA) Xiaomi says DOD ruling last month "deprived the company of legal due process."
Ford is switching to Android OS for infotainment in 2023 by Jonathan M. Gitlin on 2021-02-01 16:30 (#5DKEK) Ford and Google are also partnering to improve vehicle cloud services.
Dogs have been our best friends for at least 23,000 years by Kiona N. Smith on 2021-02-01 15:53 (#5DKBB) They accompanied the first people to set foot in the Americas.
It’s official—NASA will subject the SLS rocket to another hot fire test by Eric Berger on 2021-02-01 15:38 (#5DKBC) "A second, longer hot fire test should be conducted and would pose minimal risk."
Ars Technicast special edition, part 2: Open systems and the “joint force” by Lee Hutchinson on 2021-02-01 15:00 (#5DKBD) How the military is striving to make its technology a little more Lego-like.
As Virgin Galactic gets swept up in GameStop mania, it gets back to flying by Eric Berger on 2021-02-01 14:35 (#5DK8J) Company says its next window for a test flight opens on February 12.
Goldeneye 007’s lost Xbox 360 remaster has leaked—as a full-game speedrun by Sam Machkovech on 2021-02-01 13:07 (#5DK4C) Speedrunner talks to Ars, claims the remake is (mostly) on par with N64 original.
Hedge fund Melvin sustains 53% loss after Reddit onslaught by Financial Times on 2021-01-31 22:10 (#5DJFB) $4.5 billion drop in assets after bets against the likes of GameStop go sour.
Multi-layered Outside the Wire is part action thriller, part intimate drama by Jennifer Ouellette on 2021-01-31 21:31 (#5DJEA) Director Mikael Håfström on making a military action movie that is ultimately anti-war.
An electric race car has lapped Daytona for the first time by Jonathan M. Gitlin on 2021-01-31 15:45 (#5DJ68) We may well see an electric touring car series in the US in the next few years.
A curious observer’s guide to quantum mechanics, pt. 4: Looking at the stars by Ars Staff on 2021-01-31 14:00 (#5DJ2N) How do photons travel across light years? (Their quantum waviness enables modern telescopes.)
New study: A zero-emissions US is now pretty cheap by John Timmer on 2021-01-31 13:00 (#5DJ19) In 2050, benefits to the US offset costs, but there are some unexpected outcomes.
Why kids matter in the quest to stamp out COVID-19 by WIRED on 2021-01-31 11:44 (#5DJ03) Inoculating kids can help protect an entire population.
Google Play bans open source Matrix client Element, citing “abusive content” [Updated] by Ron Amadeo on 2021-01-30 23:02 (#5DHJN) Banning a Matrix client for content is really no different from banning a Web browser.
A new $110 light gun for old Duck Hunts: Ars tests an HDTV-friendly option by Sam Machkovech on 2021-01-30 17:50 (#5DHAN) It's far from "plug-and-play," but awesome for devoted retro gamers.
Lawmakers take aim at insidious digital “dark patterns” by WIRED on 2021-01-30 12:15 (#5DH2Q) New laws bar efforts to trick consumers into handing over data or money.
Nine Russian adventurers mysteriously froze to death—a new theory explains why by WIRED on 2021-01-30 11:15 (#5DH1K) 60 years later, new evidence points to a peculiar kind of avalanche as the culprit.
What’s really going on with Elon Musk, the FAA, and Starship? by Eric Berger on 2021-01-29 21:39 (#5DGGV) In the end, it's likely that cooler heads will prevail.
It’s the wombat’s strange intestines, not its anus, that produces cubed poo by Jennifer Ouellette on 2021-01-29 20:06 (#5DGFA) "Our research finally proves that you really can fit a square peg through a round hole."
Cable ISP warns “excessive” uploaders, says network can’t handle heavy usage by Jon Brodkin on 2021-01-29 19:46 (#5DGDX) Mediacom says heavy uploaders harm network even if they don't exceed data cap.
No, WallStreetBets isn’t robbing Wall Street to help the little guy by Timothy B. Lee on 2021-01-29 17:50 (#5DG9J) Analysis: A seductive "short squeeze" narrative obscures what's really happening.
30% of “SolarWinds hack” victims didn’t actually use SolarWinds by Jim Salter on 2021-01-29 17:33 (#5DG9K) "This campaign should not be thought of as the SolarWinds campaign," says DHS.
Robinhood’s plan to “democratize finance” hit a GameStop-shaped speed bump [Updated] by Kyle Orland on 2021-01-29 17:26 (#5DG9M) Liquidity requirements lead to unexpected restraints, and it's probably legal.
COVID variants throw J&J vaccine a curveball, lowering efficacy to 66% by Beth Mole on 2021-01-29 16:58 (#5DG73) The adenovirus vector-based vaccine is another useful tool against SARS-CoV-2.
YouTube’s new “Clips” feature lets users share 60-second clips of videos by Ron Amadeo on 2021-01-29 16:50 (#5DG74) Just like on Twitch, "clips" lets users chop up and share sections of videos.
25 years later, Midway’s lost “MLB Jam” arcade game has been found by Sam Machkovech on 2021-01-29 16:00 (#5DG75) Includes oral history of unreleased Power-Up Baseball: Cool trackballs, bad business.
Today’s best tech deals: Apple’s M1 Mac Mini, Xbox controllers, and more by Ars Staff on 2021-01-29 15:59 (#5DG76) Dealmaster also has discounts on noise-cancelling headphones and gaming mice.
Rocket Report: FAA grounds Starship, Biden’s big rocket dilemma by Eric Berger on 2021-01-29 12:00 (#5DFW0) "The launch vehicle shall deliver a minimum 6,065 kg Europa Clipper spacecraft."
WallStreetBets craze pushes dogecoin up 5x in 24 hours by Timothy B. Lee on 2021-01-29 02:10 (#5DFCT) The social media mob that pumped up GameStop is now dabbling in cryptocurrency.
Coronavirus variants: What they do and how worried you should be by Beth Mole on 2021-01-29 00:00 (#5DFA6) The Ars guide to the coronavirus variants
Every crazy thing that happened in Apple and Facebook’s privacy feud today by Samuel Axon on 2021-01-28 23:35 (#5DF81) Apple CEO Tim Cook claims Facebook’s model leads to polarization and violence.
New Biden executive order makes science, evidence central to policy by John Timmer on 2021-01-28 22:39 (#5DF62) Agencies will perform evidence-based evaluations of their own performance.
Rocky Linux gets a new sponsor—Gregory Kurtzer’s startup, Ctrl IQ by Jim Salter on 2021-01-28 20:59 (#5DF3F) Money can't buy you love—but it can sponsor a new Linux distro.
GM says no more tailpipe emissions by 2035, carbon neutrality by 2040 by Jonathan M. Gitlin on 2021-01-28 20:25 (#5DF0D) GM says that 40 percent of US models will be battery electric vehicles by 2025.
Intel’s first discrete GPU in 20+ years is only for OEMs, integrators by Jim Salter on 2021-01-28 20:00 (#5DF0E) The DG1 only works in special motherboards—no support for the enthusiast market.
Biden’s approach to climate: Calling it a crisis and treating it that way by John Timmer on 2021-01-28 19:55 (#5DEXZ) From diplomacy to infrastructure, a deep re-evaluation of the role of government.