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Weekly Rewind: Better beer drinking, a $100 iPhone crack, oceans on Europa

weekly rewind top tech stories 9 24 2016 wr 09 23 header
NASA
In the tech world, a lot happens in a week. So much news goes on that it’s almost impossible for mere mortals with real lives to keep track of everything. That’s why we’ve compiled a quick and dirty list of the top 10 tech stories from this week. Everything from Yahoo’s huge data breach to everything you need to know about the Apple Car, it’s all here.

Confirmed: A hacker accessed records of more than 500 million Yahoo accounts

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Following reports Thursday morning of a massive Yahoo security breach, the embattled internet giant confirmed the worst this afternoon: personal records associated with hundreds of millions of accounts had been compromised in one of the worst cybersecurity breaches this year. According to a statement on a Yahoo FAQ webpage, a “state-sponsored actor” scraped the names, email addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, and passwords associated with more than 500 million Yahoo accounts as recently as 2014.

Read the full story here.

Alien life? Maybe not, but NASA says there’s ‘surprising activity’ on Europa

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NASA will hold a press conference Monday on what is being billed as “surprising evidence of activity” — and the possible discovery of a subsurface ocean — on Europa, one of Jupiter’s moons. While details are scant, a team of researchers is expected to unveil a set of images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope showing this activity.

Read the full story here.

Who certified the exploding Samsung Galaxy Note 7 safe? Samsung did

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We consumers are a trusting bunch. We’ll spend hours carefully comparing the specs of two competing products, pore over reviews, and scrutinize images and videos of potential purchases. But do we ever check to see if the product has been certified as safe by an independent third party before hitting the buy button? Typically, we don’t, and it’s a growing problem — just ask the unfortunate Samsung Galaxy Note 7 buyers who discovered that their phones spontaneously combust.

Read the full story here.

Post-9/11 shatterproof glass likely saved many from injuries in Chelsea blast

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The Chelsea bombing that injured 29 people on September 17 might have hurt more, and possibly resulted in fatalities, if not for shatterproof glass. Following the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks, extensive building safety modifications were made in New York City, including the addition of shatterproof glass, according to Popular Science.

Read the full story here.

Want to watch the presidential debates? Just head over to Twitter

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A new deal brokered between Twitter and Bloomberg Television will allow the Twitterverse to view a live-stream of all three presidential debates, the first of which is to take place on September 26. The vice presidential debate featuring Tim Kaine and Mike Pence on October 4 will also be live-streamed, as will the two subsequent presidential showdowns on October 9 and October 19.

Read the full story here.

Recommended Videos

Drones, VR, and brisket collide (peacefully) at Digital Trends’ TechPop Drone Show

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As hundreds of thousands of pilots can attest, flying a remote-controlled drone is an absolute blast. For 20 fleeting minutes, you get to glide through your city capturing views hitherto reserved for birds and Superman. But unless you’ve paid hundreds of dollars for one, or get to review them like us, you may not have had the privilege of trying one. We’re trying to change that! Digital Trends just launched a pop-up event series dubbed TechPop in its hometown of Portland, Oregon.

Read the full story here.

You can hack almost any iPhone with just $100 worth of electronics

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The FBI made headlines when it paid security contractors an estimated $1.3 million to unlock an iPhone 5C last year, but as it turns out, bypassing the security on Apple’s top-of-the-line headset doesn’t necessarily require a truckload of money — or the expertise of one of the world’s largest law enforcement agencies. A U.K.-based computer scientist demonstrated an exploit that requires no more than $100 worth of off-the-shelf equipment… and plenty of patience.

Read the full story here.

Think beer can’t get any better? Fizzics’ Waytap device will make you think again

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Do you think beer can’t possibly get any better? Well, think again. The technological revolution has brought about some pretty monumental changes, but this might be the most exciting yet for anyone fond of a good brew. Meet the Waytap, a new portable draft beer system from Fizzics that promises to “enhance the flavor of any canned or bottled beer.”

Read the full story here.

Exclusive: This company has the perfect cure for streaming video

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You’re watching Game of Thrones on Sunday night on HBO Go – or trying to anyway. The stream sputters, the audio drops out, it freezes for a few seconds, before the app ultimately crashes. Wait seven days, rinse, and repeat. That’s streaming video today, and the same thing holds true across every popular video event, whether it’s the SuperBowl or an Apple event or the Red Wedding. And this problem is only getting worse – think about the Olympics and the World Cup. Think about cricket, for gods sake.

Read the full story here.

Apple Car rumor roundup: Here’s everything you need to know about ‘Project Titan’

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Over the past several months, questions surrounding the so-called Apple Car have switched from “Will they or won’t they?” to “When will it show up?,” “What will it look like?,” and “Who — if anyone — will it be built with?” Despite the company’s secretive ways — or perhaps because of them — the rumor mill is working overtime for “Project Titan.” To keep our readers in the loop, we’ve compiled all the relevant rumors, evidence, and speculation surrounding the project all in one place.

Read the full story here.

Lulu Chang
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Fascinated by the effects of technology on human interaction, Lulu believes that if her parents can use your new app…
The Pixel Watch is about to get a long-awaited software update
The Google Pixel Watch 3 lying on top of a plant.

For the most part, Google has issued an update to the Pixel Watch roughly once a month. Most were simple security updates, while others included new features and OS upgrades. Fans expected an update in October, but Google delayed it until this month. This update will resume the rollout of Wear OS 5 to Pixel Watch 1 and Pixel Watch 2 users after a series of crashes caused Google to pause it back in September. After several months of work, the company has addressed the cause of the crashes and is confident that yesterday's update will be stable.

In addition to Wear OS 5, the update will also include better camera controls and changes to the Pixel Recorder app, which will be available through the Play Store. Your individual watch will notify you when the update is available for download, so you don't have to constantly check for it. The first update for the Pixel Watch 3 since its launch is also coming with bug fixes and security updates. All Pixel Watch models will eventually update to version AW2A.241105.012, although when the update happens will depend on both the carrier and the device.

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I wore two of 2024’s best smart rings. This is the one you should buy
A person holding the Oura Ring 4 and the RingConn Gen 2.

Now that the Oura Ring 4 is here, how does it stack up against the RingConn Gen 2? I’ve had both smart rings on for several weeks to help understand where each ring's strengths lie and which is the best to buy.

It's easy to think it all comes down to the price and whether you want to pay a subscription or not, but by wearing these smart rings, understanding the design differences, and testing out the very different apps each day, I can give you a much deeper insight into the best one to wear over the long term.
Is the Oura Ring 4 or the RingConn Gen 2 more comfortable?
The RingConn Gen 2 Andy Boxall / Digital Trends

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These ESR Gear mobile accessory deals are Apple-tastic — Save over 50% off
ESR Gear mobile accessory deals -- MagSafe 3-in-1 charger with devices

Shiny new phone? Preparing to get one soon? Congratulations, that's always a great feeling, isn't it? The dopamine hit of the mobile upgrade. But now it's time to start thinking about some smarter more efficient ways to use that device, even if it's not new. That's where mobile accessories come into the equation. From stands to car mounts and portable power packs, they extend the functionality and usability of your favorite and beloved smartphone. Chief among the phone gear options is ESR Gear with its excellent selection of MagSafe accessories. Need an example? Look no further than the ESR 3-in-1 MagSafe Charger with Qi2 wireless charging and CryoBoost cooling technology. It can charge the iPhone 16 and Apple Watch, fast.

But here's the thing: You came here under the guise that there were some great deals to be had, and I don't blame you, so let's get right into those. You can expect to save upwards of 30% off some of ESR Gear's best MagSafe options. They're already discounted, plus there are exclusive coupon codes to get an extra 10% off. All coupon codes are valid until December 25th.

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