Dec 03
President Joe Biden Has A Cold
Posted in: Today's ChiliThe president has repeatedly tested negative for COVID-19.
Dec 03
New coronavirus cases in South Africa have increased from about 200 a day in mid-November to more than 16,000 on Friday.
Dec 03
A real Sony PlayStation challenger for Xbox Game Pass could be released shockingly soon
Posted in: Today's ChiliWe’ve heard whispers of a potential PlayStation competitor to Xbox Game Pass in the past, but today we’re learning additional details about what such a service could look like. Sony, of course, already offers a game streaming service called PlayStation Now, but a new report suggests that Sony may roll that into a larger, multi-tiered service that offers more beyond … Continue reading
Dec 03
There may soon be more ways to get your friends to pay their share of the check. Facebook (or its parent company Meta) announced today that it’s testing Split Payments, “a free and fast way to share the cost of bills and expenses.” Starting next week, users in the US will be able to charge their friends in a group chat or from the Payments Hub in Messenger.
In a group chat, you’ll need to hit the “Get Started” button to initiate the payments, and then you can choose to divide a sum of money evenly or decide what each person owes. You can also choose to include yourself and add a customizable message. The money will be sent through Facebook Pay, and after you submit, your request will be sent to the group’s chat room.
Facebook also said it’s added new custom group effects from four additional creators: King Bach, Emma Chamberlain, Bella Poarch and Zach King. Earlier this month, the company also released new “soundmojis” tied to the Stranger Things soundtrack and Taylor Swift’s remaster of her album Red.
Dec 03
Following founder Jack Dorsey’s recent departure, Twitter’s new CEO Parag Agrawal is wasting no time in shaking up the company. A Washington Post report states that Agrawal announced a “major reorganization of the company” today, and it appears to include the stepping down of Michael Montano and Dantley Davis, who were the heads of engineering and design respectively.
Twitter confirmed the reorganization to Engadget, and a spokesperson said “Parag is focused on operational excellence and setting Twitter up to hit its goals; these changes were made with that in mind.” The changes include moving to a “General Manager model” for teams in the product and technology organizations, which will mean having one person lead the work in those divisions. “This will allow us to operate more cross-functionally and enable faster, more informed decision-making,” the spokesperson added.
Davis tweeted earlier today a picture from a team offsite, saying “It was the highlight of the past two years at Twitter for me. Thank you to everyone who made this special. It has meant more than words can describe.”
The Washington Post reported that a companywide email it obtained said Montano and Davis will be leaving by the end of the year (basically this month). It also indicated that the “reshuffling appears to primarily affect the company’s consumer, revenue, and core tech divisions, which will be helmed by Kayvon Beykpour, Bruce Falck, and Nick Caldwell, respectively.”
This appears to reflect the sentiment in a series of tweets by Twitter’s Investor Relations account during the Bank of America Securities 2021 Leveraged Finance Conference yesterday. Specifically, the team said “We can move faster and execute better. We’ll focus on the same goals, same metrics, and same work. But we believe Parag can help us make decisions faster, and be more clear about where decision-making sits.”
We think we have the right strategy in place and Parag will build on top of the really strong foundation that Jack built to but allow us to move faster and execute even better. $TWTR
— Twitter Investor Relations (@TwitterIR) December 2, 2021
Update (at 3:24pm ET): This post was edited to include a statement and details from Twitter that arrived after the story was published.
Dec 03
IKEA has sold a variety of wireless chargers since 2015, but never one that you could use without plugging into a wall outlet. It looks like that’s about to change with images of a new portable Nordmärke Qi charger making their way online courtesy of a few hawk-eyed Reddit users. We also have some details on the device thanks to German media outlet mobiFlip, which obtained them from a reader who bought one at a store in Cologne.
IKEA Nordmarke Qi charger
The individual paid €20 (approximately $22.64) to buy the portable charger. While it’s not available online yet, you can see from the photos it features a 6,500mAh battery. It can charge your Qi-compatible devices at a glacial 5W. What you won’t find inside the box is a power adapter or USB cable. It’s up to you to supply those, so it’s not quite as affordable as its price would suggest. However, one nifty feature is that the internal batteries are user-replaceable.
We’ve reached out to IKEA to find out if the company plans to carry the Nordmärke portable Qi charger in the US. In the meantime, if you’re desperate to find a way to charge your devices on the go, your best bet is to buy a portable power bank. You can find ones that cost less than $20. What’s more, they will feature a bigger battery than the Nordmärke and they will charge your devices faster.
Dec 03
The Weirdest Things Star Wars' Boba Fett Got Up to After Escaping the Sarlacc
Posted in: Today's ChiliLater this month, Boba Fett will make his play as a major new face in the Star Wars underworld in his very own Disney+ show, The Book of Boba Fett. But while this will be our “official” look at what Boba got up to after escaping digestion, it’s not the first time Star Wars has pondered what the infamous Bounty Hunter…
Dec 03
It’s that time of year to take a look at the natural world through the eyes of some of the most talented wildlife photographers on the planet—and you can vote for your favorite. This week, the Natural History Museum in London released 25 images that it has shortlisted for the Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s…
Dec 03
A white police officer is on trial for fatally shooting Daunte Wright, a Black man, during a traffic stop in April.
Dec 03
Arkansas-Pine Bluff coach Solomon Bozeman apparently tried to light a fire under his struggling team.
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