Technology

Google Fi will stop activating non-VoLTE phones in January, and encourage customers with older phones to upgrade with a $100 credit provided they purchase a new phone from the Fi store and activate it before December 31st, 9to5Google reports. Google’s hand is forced in the matter. Customers subscribe to Fi, but as an MVNO, Fi actually piggybacks on T-Mobile and US Cellular’s networks to provide coverage. Since T-Mobile has already announced its own plans to phase out support for non-VoLTE phones starting in January 2021, Fi has to as well. Requiring VoLTE all but assures 3G’s days are numbered VoLTE stands for “Voice over LTE”, which is the handling of phone calls over LTE data rather than older 3G tech. VoLTE calls are typically clearer, with fewer drops in connection, though they’re comp...

The Trump administration won’t enforce its own deadline for ByteDance to sell or spin out video-sharing platform TikTok’s business in the US, according to Bloomberg. The latest deadline for that move, given by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) on November 28th, was today, December 4th. An extension isn’t expected, though the current deadline will “be overlooked while the discussions continue” between the Trump administration and TikTok, Bloomberg reports. CNN tech reporter Brian Fung is corroborating that the US won’t enforce its own deadline, with his sources amusingly suggesting that the lack of a deadline is proof that the US is “highly motivated” to complete talks about the sale. US officials are “highly motivated” to complete the talks, the person said, ...

President Donald Trump’s effort to overturn California’s ability to set fuel efficiency rules just lost another automaker. According to Reuters, Nissan said it was joining General Motors in abandoning the group of car companies that were previously supporting Trump’s fight with California. On November 23rd, GM announced it would leave the group of automakers that included Nissan, Fiat Chrysler, and several others, that were supporting Trump’s legal efforts to overturn pollution-fighting powers. Under the Clean Air Act, the state has historically been allowed to set its own emissions standards. And as the largest auto market in the US and one of the biggest in the world, California has a lot of influence over the auto industry. California has a lot of influence over the auto industry Nissan...

Maybe you’re feeling nostalgic for a classic James Bond film following Sean Connery’s death in late October. Or perhaps you’re simply feeling a gap given that the next film, No Time to Die, got pushed back to April 2021 or beyond. Either way, you can now binge a sizable selection of the James Bond collection completely for free (with ads) from YouTube, Peacock (with a free account), and PlutoTV. (Disclosure: Comcast, which owns Peacock parent NBCUniversal, is also an investor in Vox Media, The Verge’s parent company.) Not every provider has every film, and a few aren’t on streaming services at all: you’ll need to rent Skyfall and Spectre if you care to watch those again. It’s also not clear how long these films will be free to stream. But every Sean Connery, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pi...

If you’ve ever wished you could share an in-app purchase with your family, you may be in luck. Today, Apple announced that subscriptions and one-time in-app purchases can now be shared among families. If you buy a consumable item, like coins in a game, you’ll still be the only one who can use them, but if you unlock an ad-free or pro version of an app it could be eligible for the new Family Sharing program. Apple announced this change back in June with Big Sur, but it’s finally letting developers flip the switch to allow subscriptions and purchases to be shared. App developer PSA: it is now possible to enable Family Sharing for IAPs and subscriptions, but you have to turn that on in App Store Connect. For subscriptions, it’s under the duration… pic.twitter.com/Hj3NBRN3L0 — Steve Harr...

If your iPhone 11 isn’t responding to touches, it might be eligible for a free fix from Apple. The company has launched a replacement program for iPhone 11 displays that stop responding to touches “due to an issue with the display module.” Apple says that “a small percentage of iPhone 11 displays” are affected. Devices affected by the issue were manufactured between November 2019 and May 2020, Apple said, meaning not every phone is affected. If you’re seeing the issue on your iPhone 11, you can check to see if your phone is eligible for the program by plugging its serial number into a box on Apple’s website for the replacement program. If your phone is eligible for replacement, you can find one of Apple’s authorized service providers to help, make an appointment at an Apple retail store, o...

Lots of objects look good stuffed into a pair of Crocs. Strange things you wouldn’t expect, like mini plastic bowls of ramen, beaded butterflies, or, like in Jillian Maddocks’ case, a pile of pistachio green foam with a cherry on top. Maddocks started selling her take on Jibbitz, a Crocs-specific word for charms that stick into the shoes’ holes for decoration, as part of her 323 apparel line. She repurposed materials she already had lying around — foam she uses to make headbands, fake cherries, and seashells — and ended up designing charms that make the Crocs look like a wearable sundae. “I’ve sold more [Jibbitz] than I sold everything else this year, which is really weird and funny and exciting,” Maddocks says. She guesses she sold around 100 total pairs in the three months they were live...

When the COVID-19 vaccine becomes available in the United States, officials’ first challenge is getting the people in the door for their shots. Then, they’ll have a second problem: making sure they come back again to get a second dose of the same vaccine. With two two-dose vaccines headed for authorization, the logistical challenges of a vaccination program are only magnified. “You don’t want to have someone get the first dose of one brand of vaccine, and a second dose of another,” says Ben Moscovitch, project director of health information technology at The Pew Charitable Trusts. Assuming the Food and Drug Administration authorizes the vaccines after they review the data later this month, states will start to receive shipments of the Pfizer and BioNTech vaccine on December 15th, and the M...

Amazon’s decision to fire warehouse worker Courtney Bowden violated labor laws, according to charges filed by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) last month and obtained by BuzzFeed News. Bowden was advocating for better working when the company abruptly let her go. Bowden was one of many workers fighting for paid time off at Amazon warehouses as the coronavirus pandemic intensified. While the company said it was rolling out increased safety measures, workers continued to get sick and executives became increasingly hostile to employee organizing efforts . In March, Bowden was fired over an alleged incident with her supervisor. Bowden’s termination came at a time of unprecedented demand for Amazon services. Throughout the spring, the company struggled to keep up with rising orders, ev...

Chrome OS 87 is rolling out now, and it adds a few nice features to help you while browsing the web and when using Bluetooth accessories (via 9to5Google). One new addition in Chrome OS 87 is tab search. I typically have dozens of tabs open at any given time, so I could see how tab search might be a really handy way to find something I’ve lost in the process. Google is also adding tab search to the desktop version of Chrome, though the company said in mid-November that the feature would be coming first to Chromebooks and to other desktop platforms “soon.” Here’s what tab search looks like.Image: Google Chrome OS 87 can also now show you the battery levels of Bluetooth devices that you have connected to your computer (such as wireless headphones) in the Settings and Quick Settings menus. I o...

A Ditto chair is on its way to Japanese retailers. It exists somewhere on the spectrum of big gut Pikachu and a bean bag chair, and, according to PokéJungle, it costs roughly $250. The whole situation is a nice lavender and appears very, very squishy. Just behind your seated body looms Ditto’s eternal smile. As a pokémon, Ditto’s whole schtick is imitating other pokémon. It turns into anything it wants, albeit with the same unnerving, wide-mouthed smile of its blubbery purple form. You’ll notice I did not say true form because I humbly submit that it’s this Ditto chair. While likely not canon, it should be. I’m right about this. No questions at this time. You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating should be. It begins with giving yo...