Today after a brief server down time Fortnite nabbed an update to version 17.30. This newest update to Fortnite brings about The Abduction of Slurpy Swamp, just before the Ariana Grande Rift Tour event. If you head over to Slurpy Swamp and find it slightly more difficult to stay stuck to the ground, don't worry! You're not alone in this abduction situation.
The last part of the Pokemon GO Ultra Unlock series for this year's Pokemon GO Fest includes Zacian and Zamacenta. These Pokemon will be among the first released by Hoopa! Hoopa will likely play a significant part in the in-game story rolling through Pokemon GO from this point on, especially when it comes to Legendary releases. In this case, the first to Galarian Legandary Pokemon come from the hoops!
The month of October, 2021 is a magical time for Nintendo Switch gamers. In that month, a wide variety of different sorts of games will launch. In that month, a set of top-tier exciting games will launch. In the month of October in the year 2021, Nintendo Switch will be the console to have if you're all about the most awesome oddities and AAA games in the gaming universe.
The retail powerhouse team-up between Best Buy and Amazon continues with a new line of Insignia-branded smart TV sets. These newest sets will launch later this year alongside Best Buy Toshiba-branded Fire TVs with features that are ever-so-slightly better than their predecessors. The Insignia F50 Series Fire TVs are the first of the line branded with "Fire TV" instead of "Fire TV Edition" - and that could be an important distinction in the coming years.
Twitter just added log in and sign up connections to both Google Account and Apple ID accounts. It would seem like these sign up and log in options should've been a part of the equation since the beginning... but here we go! Twitter JUST added the ability to log in or sign up to "join the conversation on Twitter" with options to use a Google Account on the app and on the web, or an Apple ID on iOS and "soon on web."
Today Dark Matter revealed a pair of new monitors made for PC gamers, video editors, and graphics artists. One is the Dark Matter 27-inch 165Hz monitor, the other is the Dark Matter 24-inch 144Hz monitor. Both monitors are headed to market with 1-year warranties and introductory prices between approximately $200-$230. We have yet to review a monitor from this Monoprice sub-brand Dark Matter, so we're still in the "how can this be possible" camp for price, given the rest of the specifications - we shall see!
Today Microsoft revealed an Xbox Wireless Controller with a unique physical design detail. Utilizing a color-changing finish on the top panel, this controller delivers just a bit of a "shimmer." This is the Xbox Wireless Controller - Aqua Shift Special Edition, a controller that Microsoft presents "for your holding pleasure."
Leaks today suggest we're about to see a new collection of products from Apple, including MacBook Pro, iPhone, and Apple Watch. The most major event is the event that'll have devices with the fewest major changes - the iPhone 13 event, likely ready to roll in September of 2021. The rest will likely appear at another event either in September or October of 2021.
Niantic is facing a bit of backlash from Pokemon GO gamers who are not pleased to find changes in the game this week. Per Niantic, they intended to "remove or change some of the bonuses introduced last year," and would not be starting this rolling set of changes until the end of July 2021. Niantic began changing these bonuses "first as a test" in two key regions: New Zealand and the USA.
A new phishing campaign was identified this week by the folks at Microsoft Security Intelligence. They've identified this campaign as widespread enough that they took action in warning the public on multiple fronts, including through the official Microsoft Security Intelligence social media account (Twitter and etc.) There they've made the process of avoiding the new threat seem relatively simple - assuming the target knows to watch for said emails.
The next major Lord of the Rings production is ready to launch as Lord of the Rings on Prime. Amazon isn't taking any chances with the name on this particular title, making it very VERY clear that the Lord of the Rings universe will be their hero for the future of Prime Video. The Lord of the Rings on Prime universe will debut in a little over a year from now for all people that have an Amazon Prime subscription.
The Google two-factor authentication (2FA) security system was updated with a new security key. This system is also called 2SV, or 2-Step Verification. Before now, users were given the option to use a physical security key (USB), or via a Google Prompt notification (via the Google or Gmail app)*. Now Google also allows users to use a smartphone with Android running the Chrome web browser app.