Technology

Blizzard says that the Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks that were overwhelming its servers with coordinated traffic are over, and that you should be able to log into Battle.net again. During the almost hour-long Wednesday evening attack, you may have experienced serious issues trying to get onto the online service underpinning Overwatch, Call of Duty: Warzone, Hearthstone, Diablo’s online features and more. Blizzard stated that the issue was caused by a DDoS on its verified customer service Twitter account, and additionally in a “Breaking News” item you may have seen in the PC Battle.net client if you tried to sign on during the attack. [#BNet] We are currently experiencing a DDoS attack, which may result in high latency and disconnections for some players. We are actively work...

Another day, another interesting gadget making the rounds on the internet — this one is a very tall (aspect ratio-wise anyway) portable monitor with an 8.8-inch display running at a resolution of 420 by 1920. It’s called the Elsonic EK-MD088, and while its size, shape, and built-in stand make it intriguing, it also raises the question: what would you even use such a narrow monitor for? And are there better ways to spend your 14,800 yen (around $130 US dollars)? Gizmodo points out the most obvious use case for such a tall screen: it seems tailor-made for endlessly scrolling through Twitter or Instagram, keeping the gloom of the internet ever-present off to the side of your work. Honestly, that seems like a great way to destroy your brain — when I first saw it, I immediately thought that it’...

Amid the ongoing global chip shortage, Samsung has announced plans on Tuesday to build a $17 billion USD semiconductor factory in Taylor, Texas over the next three years. The company already manufactures chips at other locations throughout the country, including one nearby in Austin. This new site, however, will measure more than 5 million square meters, making it the investment Samsung has ever made in the United States. Construction is expected to begin in 2022 to have the facility completed sometime in the second half of 2024. “As we add a new facility in Taylor, Samsung is laying the groundwork for another important chapter in our future,” said Kinam Kim, Vice Chairman and CEO of Samsung’s Electronics Device Solutions Division. “With greater manufacturing capacity, we will be able to b...

Whether you’re overdue for a new pair or are just trying to cancel out the usual onslaught of holiday music, Black Friday season is a great time to invest in some noise-canceling headphones. You’ll find significant discounts on many of our favorite headphones featured in our noise-canceling headphones buying guide. These include picks from Sony, Bose, Apple, Sennheiser, and others. In some cases, these deals will save you $100 or more. Aside from the steep discounts, another good thing about buying headphones during the holidays is the extended return period at many retailers. That gives you plenty of time to try out your new cans and make sure the sound quality, ANC, comfort, and other factors are all to your liking before you’re stuck with them. Sony’s WH-1000XM4 remain our overall pick ...

The Federal Reserve, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (or FDIC), and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) have issued a joint statement announcing a plan to clarify the rules and regulations around how banks can use cryptocurrencies over the next year (via Bloomberg). The agencies say they’re focusing on setting expectations for what banks can do when it comes to holding crypto, allowing customers to obtain crypto, issuing their own stablecoins (or cryptocurrencies whose value is tied to a fiat currency like the US dollar), and taking crypto as collateral for loans and keeping it on their balance sheets. According to the letter, the goal is to make sure consumers are protected and that banks act responsibly. The regulators also say it’s an attempt to make sure the financial...

Macy’s department stores might be closed this Thanksgiving, but that doesn’t mean the company has run out of things to sell. The retailer is auctioning off 10 one-of-a-kind NFTs to mark the 95th year of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Each NFT references a parade balloon from decades past, going back to a black and white toy soldier from the 1920s. Also featured is an elf character from the 2000s and a spaceman from the 1950s, who lost an arm in the 1955 parade after colliding with a lamppost (the NFT version is fully inflated). Proceeds from the auction benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation, with current bids generating tens of thousands of dollars. The auction ends on November 30th. In addition to the 10 unique NFTs, Macy’s is giving away 9,500 other parade-themed pieces of varying rari...

Trees have become a contentious piece of Democrats’ Build Back Better Act, the budget reconciliation bill that encompasses sweeping social and environmental programs. Congressional Republicans have seized on the $3 billion in the proposed nearly $2 trillion bill earmarked for planting trees, with a focus on boosting ‘tree equity’ — despite the fact that this is a strategy that experts say could reduce health disparities in cities. While opponents have called the tree equity provisions an indicator of Democrats’ “reckless spending spree” and a “waste [of] even more taxpayer dollars,” in reality, disparities in tree coverage across American cities are a huge problem that affects heat exposure, air quality and more, with serious consequences on people’s health. This inequity actually builds o...

NASA‘s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) — the first-ever test mission for Earth’s defense technology against potential asteroid hazards — took off on Wednesday on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. Just one component of NASA’s umbrella defense strategy, DART’s mission will intentionally impact a known asteroid that is not posing a threat to Earth, with the goal of altering the asteroid’s motion using a method that can be measured by ground-based telescopes. “DART will show that a spacecraft can autonomously navigate to a target asteroid and intentionally collide with it – a method of deflection called kinetic impact,” NASA wrote in a statement. “The test will provide important data to help better prepare for an ast...

For an ultra slim case for the Pixel 6, you can’t do much better than this Aorstke minimalist case. Made from hard PC material, it brings grip to your phone without adding bulk; raised edges around your camera bar and screen prevent your screen and camera lenses from getting scratched. It comes in black, pink, green and blue, and is also available for the Pixel 6 Pro.

Game and social platform Roblox has sued a YouTube creator it banned from the platform over harassment and sexual content, saying he amassed a “mob” that temporarily shut down its October developers conference. The Roblox Corporation filed a complaint against Benjamin Robert Simon, also known as Ruben Sim, for breaching its user contract and violating anti-hacking laws. “Defendant Simon is the leader of a ‘cybermob’ that with malice, fraud, and oppression, commits and encourages unlawful acts designed to injure Roblox and its users,” the suit claims, seeking $1.65 million in damages. Polygon initially reported the existence of the California lawsuit this morning. In it, Roblox says it banned Simon for attempting to upload a near-nude picture of himself, images of Adolf Hitler, and a “sex g...

Gamers are served up all kinds of great deals throughout the year. It’s not uncommon for recently released games to drop as much as 20 percent off in the first few months of release or to snag the occasional one-off deal on a controller or headset. But Black Friday and Cyber Monday are something special — a chance to get in on the year’s best offers all at once. Like 2020, the holidays in 2021 are a bit peculiar, what with the ongoing pandemic and chip shortage. There’s no shortage of games and accessories, but fewer consoles are available for first-time buyers to gift, which means the opportunities to get one are very rare and very popular. Some retailers have even taken to charging subscription fees that offer you a boosted chance of getting a console, but even those aren’t a guarantee. ...

Samsung has released a new camera app in beta that lets you use Pro Mode across all four of the Galaxy S21 Ultra’s rear cameras. That means it’s supported on both telephoto cameras, rather than being limited to just its main and ultrawide sensors. The new Expert RAW app has been released in the South Korean Galaxy Store, but tipster FrontTron has an APK available to download if you’d like to sideload it. It only seems to be available for the S21 Ultra for now, on devices running Android 12. The new app overcomes a limitation of the Galaxy S21 Ultra, which is that its stock camera’s Pro Mode is only available with two out of its four rear cameras (aka the 108-megapixel main camera and 12-megapixel ultrawide, but not the 10-megapixel 10x telephoto or 3x telephoto). Pro Mode is an advanced fe...