Boeing hails first test flight of 777X, world’s largest twin-engine jet
Boeing on Saturday sent its new 777X jet on its first test flight ahead of deployment in 2021. Described as the world’s largest twin-engine plane in terms of length and width, the jet features specially designed folding wings that will enable it to operate at all of the airports that handle existing models of the 777.
Obi-Wan Kenobi series delay won’t change premiere date, says Ewan McGregor
The Obi-Wan Kenobi series produced by Disney+ and Lucasfilm appears to be experiencing some trouble, with reports claiming the scripts have been ditched and the episode count reduced. The premiere date for the series won't be affected, though, according to star Ewan McGregor.
Waymo’s self-driving minivans and big rigs arrive in two more states
Texas and New Mexico are the latest states to say hello to Waymo's self-driving minivans and big rigs. The autonomous-vehicle specialist will start by using its minivans to map the highways in readiness for trial runs using its trucks. The tests could lead to a commercial freight operation using the trucks.
Astronauts discover how to bake the perfect cookie in space
Future astronauts heading to Mars will likely be baking chocolate chip cookies during the trip. The crew aboard the International Space Station recently made some of the cookies in the first-ever space-based baking experiment. The cookies returned to Earth last week and are now being inspected by scientists.
Apple Safari flaw left users’ browsing activity open to being tracked
Apple recently fixed a serious security flaw with its Safari browser after being alerted to it by Google. The vulnerability, if exploited, would've enabled third parties to gather “sensitive private information about the user’s browsing habits,” Google said this week. Apple fixed the issue soon after learning of it.
Flickr hikes Pro subscription fee a month after pleading for more sign-ups
A month after pleading with users of Flickr's free tier to switch to a paid Pro account, the company has raised its prices. Flickr’s owner, SmugMug, said in December 2019 that the photo site was eating through cash, and so asked users to consider signing up for a subscription “to keep the Flickr dream alive.”
NASA reveals 9 finalists in Mars 2020 rover naming contest. Cast your vote
NASA has revealed the top nine entries in its Mars 2020 rover name contest and you can vote for your favorite. The contest will reveal the winning name in March, with the student who suggested it invited to watch the mission launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida in July.
Boeing says 737 Max will stay grounded until at least mid-2020
Boeing had hoped that its troubled 737 Max aircraft might get permission to fly again this month, but this week the plane-maker said that after considering the FAA’s evaluation process, it’s unlikely to get clearance until mid-2020. The news will come as a serious blow to airlines that use the aircraft.
Space Station gets the Lego treatment in wonderfully detailed design
A Lego version of the International Space Station will launch on February 1 priced at $70. The level of detail is impressive, with the entire kit comprising not only the space station, but also a Lego brick-built NASA space shuttle, three mini cargo spacecraft, and two astronaut microfigures.
Tesla strongly rejects claims of acceleration issue with its cars
Tesla has described a recent petition alleging unexpected accelerations among its cars as "completely false." It said that it has already discussed most of the complaints in the petition with the NHTSA, adding that in every case where it had the vehicle's data, it was able to confirm that the car operated as designed.
Here’s why Instagram removed the IGTV button from its home screen
Instagram has erased the IGTV button from the main page of its app because "very few" people tapped on it. The company says users are accessing IGTV content in other ways, but the loss of the button, and lack of any metrics from the company about IGTV app downloads, has left some wondering how it’s really doing.
Watch SpaceX nail in-flight escape test, and lose a rocket in a huge fireball
SpaceX took a big step toward crewed flights on Sunday after performing a successful in-flight abort test of its Crew Dragon capsule. The test showed how the Crew Dragon’s SuperDraco engines would fire the capsule away from the rocket if a serious anomaly should occur shortly after launch.
Look, no hands! Airbus nails autonomous takeoff in move toward pilotless jets
Pilotless planes have come a step closer after Airbus recently achieved the first fully automatic vision-based takeoff using image-recognition technology installed directly on the aircraft. Moving forward, the aerospace giant is aiming to test automatic vision-based taxi and landing sequences by the middle of 2020.
WhatsApp: Facebook shelves plan to fill app with ads, report claims
Facebook has reportedly backpedaled on plans to bring ads to WhatsApp. The social networking giant has apparently disbanded the team that was working on the idea, and removed code from the app. The founders of the messaging app, who quit a couple of years ago, always said they never wanted to see ads on the service.
Toyota just invested $394M in a secretive startup that makes flying taxis
Toyota has shown it is serious about flying taxis with a $394 million investment in California-based Joby Aviation, which is working on an all-electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft. The current version can reach 200 mph and fly around 150 miles on a single charge. It’s also super-quiet in flight.
Bose to close all of its U.S. retail stores in pivot to online shopping
Bose has announced it's closing all 119 of its brick-and-mortar stores in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Japan, and Australia in the coming months, focusing its efforts on e-commerce instead. But 130 Bose stores in China, India, South Korea, Southeast Asia, and the United Arab Emirates will remain open, at least for now.
Check out the short list in the Mars 2020 rover naming contest
NASA has revealed the semifinalists in the naming contest for its Mars 2020 rover, which is set to begin its journey to the Martian Surface in July 2020. The public will soon have a chance to vote for their favorite suggestion among nine finalists, though NASA said its judges will have the final say.
Japanese billionaire seeks significant other for SpaceX moon trip
SpaceX has already named wealthy Japanese entrepreneur Yusaku Maezawa as its first paying passenger for a moon trip set to take place in 2023. Now Maezawa says he's looking for someone special to accompany him, with an online streaming channel creating a show to follow his efforts in finding a significant other.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness loses director Scott Derrickson
Scott Derrickson announced that he’ll no longer direct Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness because of creative differences. It’s too early to say whether his surprise decision will impact the movie’s release date, currently slated for May 2021. He wrote and directed 2016's Doctor Strange.
Mark Zuckerberg says he’s not making any more New Year’s resolutions
For years now, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has gone public with his New Year’s resolutions. But in a message posted online this week, the Zuck said that while he’s been happy to set himself new challenges at the start of each year, it’s now time to do things a little differently.
Elon Musk says a UFO-on-a-stick will connect you to his internet satellites
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk says that anyone signing up to his Starlink broadband service will receive a contraption that looks like a thin, flat, round UFO on a stick to connect to the internet. A test service is expected to launch in the U.S. later this year, once enough of the Starlink satellites have been deployed.
Twitter may let you select who can reply to your tweets
Twitter is planning a new feature that aims to give you more control over your conversations. It lets you control who can reply to your tweets, for example, you can choose to let only your followers reply, or only those mentioned in your tweet. It even lets you prevent anyone from replying.
Hackers demand $6M from largest retail currency dealer in ransomware attack
Travelex, the world's largest retail currency dealer, has been targeted in a ransomware attack, with hackers reportedly demanding a payment of $6 million so the company can regain control of its systems. They’re also threatening to publish customer data if Travelex fails to pay the ransom.
Ballie is a rolling robot from Samsung that can help around the smart home
Ballie is a new ball-shaped bot from Samsung that can be your friend and help around the smart home. The tech giant unveiled Ballie at CES on Monday. A video showed the robot that's about the size of a grapefruit performing tasks such as opening smart curtains and firing up a robot vacuum.
SpaceX launches 60 more Starlink internet satellites amid astronomer concerns
SpaceX is making progress with its efforts to launch an internet service from space after launching its third batch of 60 Starlink satellites this week. SpaceX is planning to launch batches of 60 satellites every two to three weeks over the next 12 months in a bid to achieve global coverage later this year.
Uber received more than 3,000 reports of sexual assault in the U.S. in 2018
Uber's first-ever safety report reveals the ridesharing giant received more than 3,000 reports of sexual assault on both riders and drivers in the U.S. in 2018. The firm said 99.9% of its rides take place without any issue, though the CEO said there’s still more work to do to improve the safety of its service.
Homeland Security wants to expand airport facial scans to U.S. citizens
Fancy having your face scanned every time you leave and enter the country? The Department of Homeland Security already performs facial scans of noncitizens entering the U.S., but in a bid to improve security, it’s now proposing extending the procedure to citizens as well.
Shoppers spend big (again) as Black Friday sets new online sales record
Online shoppers in the U.S. spent a whopping $7.4B on Black Friday, according to data from Adobe Analytics. The figure set a new record for the day, beating last year's revenue by $1.2B. It was also the second-biggest online shopping day ever in the U.S., trailing 2018’s Cyber Monday record of $7.9B.
FedEx’s autonomous delivery robot sent packing by New York City
FedEx's delivery robot only made a short trip as part of a promotion, but when New York City officials learned about the outing, they sent the machine packing. A cease-and-desist letter sent to the shipping giant warned of dire consequences if it rolled the robot onto the city’s streets again without prior permission.
Virtual reality goggles for dairy cows? Pull the udder one
Russian farmers are putting VR headsets on their cows to help improve milk production. It may sound like a load of bull, but apparently it really is part of an ongoing experiment. The modified headsets play visuals that simulate a “unique summer field,” helping to relax the cows so that they produce more milk.
Elon Musk spills the beans on Tesla Cybertruck pre-order numbers
Tesla boss Elon Musk unveiled the extraordinary Cybertruck on Friday, paving the way for any interested buyer to drop a $100 pre-order deposit on the futuristic vehicle. And within 48 hours, more than 180,000 people had opened their wallets with the hope of receiving the electric pickup in the next couple of years.
Elon’s Cybertruck smash and more: The biggest on-stage screwups in tech history
It’s a brave person who steps onto a stage to show off a new piece of tech. When it goes wrong, it can go spectacularly wrong, leading the incident itself to become the star of the show.
NASA invites SpaceX and Blue Origin to help with moon missions
NASA has given SpaceX and Blue Origin the green light to bid for contracts linked to its Artemis program, which is seeking to establish a sustainable presence on the moon with an eye on eventual missions to Mars. The two companies are among 14 vying to help take essential payloads to the moon starting in 2021.
Watch Boeing’s Starliner crew capsule hit 650 mph in critical test
Boeing deemed a launch abort test of its Starliner crew capsule a success on Monday, but it didn’t go entirely to plan as one of its parachutes failed to deploy when it returned to the ground. Following more tests, the Starliner could be used to carry astronauts to the space station as early as 2020.
Nikon apparently can’t make enough of its $8,000 58mm f/0.95 lens
Nikon says it's had to place a temporary suspension on orders for its new Nikkor Z 58mm f/0.95 S Noct lens because it can't keep up with demand. It added that producing the $8,000 lens — Nikon's fastest to date — takes longer than usual because of the advanced technology required to make it.
Facebook is getting interested in news again with News Tab launch
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is expected to unveil the site's latest feature at an event in New York City on Friday. The News Tab, which will host the latest international and local news stories, marks a return to the genre for Facebook after it altered its algorithms two years ago to prioritize more personal posts.
Samsung develops a fix for the Galaxy S10 and Note 10 fingerprint flaw
Samsung’s Galaxy S10 and Note 10 handsets hit the headlines last week after a serious security flaw came to light regarding its in-display fingerprint scanner. It meant that particular silicon screen covers allowed any fingerprint to unlock the device. The company now says it’s developed a fix.