If humans still inhabit the Earth 300 million years from now, they will see a very different Saturn that we know today. NASA says that the most iconic feature of Saturn, those magnificent rings, are disappearing. The rings themselves are said to be a young feature of the planet, at least by astronomical standards. They are thought to be less than 100 million years old.
Last week, iOS gamers bid farewell to the Infinity Blade trilogy. By today’s standards, the game may not only look dated but also feel a bit shallow. Epic Game’s decision is perfectly understandable and even justified from a technical and business standpoint. But while this particular news simply borders on sad for those who’ve had fond memories of the games, it belies an inherent problem in the mobile gaming ecosystem and perhaps the whole mobile app ecosystem at large. In a year or two at most, there will be more games that will disappear from app stores and there will be no way for anyone to experience them anymore.
It’s a stylus, a Bluetooth headset, a voice recorder, a 360-degree action cam, and a laser pointer. It’s even actually a phone. From the startup that brought you the insanely small insane tiny t1 feature phone comes what could very well be the jack of all trades of smartphone accessories, the Zanco S-Pen. Perhaps partly inspired by spy movies, this rather thick and large stylus is as crazy as crazy can get.
Apple may have found a way to keep its older iPhones in the Chinese market but it’s not going to fly if Qualcomm is to be asked. Following a preliminary court order that banned iPhone models starting from the 6s to last year’s X, Apple pushed an iOS 12.12 update that supposedly addresses the Qualcomm patents it was accused to have infringed on. Unsurprisingly, Qualcomm says Apple’s response is insufficient and it should comply with the Chinese court’s orders to cease sales and imports of affected iPhones immediately.
Just when you thought everyone has agreed to flatter Apple by copying its notch, along came a few manufacturers who dared to find other ways to solve that design problem. Though the idea is not exactly new, tested first by the odd Meizu Pro 7, the ZTE nubia X is definitely the first to take that to the extreme. But as with any new and unconventional design, the question has always been “will it bend”. Fortunately for those interested in buying it one way or another, JerryRigEverything answered that question and more.
Although it has barely changed its design, the Apple Watch Series 4 has managed to retain the device’s crown as the best smartwatch thanks to new features, both hardware as well as the latest watchOS update. But in case you feel lost on how to use those features both new and old, Apple has released a few short video clips to get your familiar with how to best maximize your talented yet also pricey new smartwatch.
As people become more and more dependent on the Web, web browsers have also increasingly become almost sacred spaces. Anything, even the smallest annoyance, could send users down a rabbit hole of frustration and despair. That’s especially true when websites, intentionally or otherwise, change how standard actions behave. As part of its crackdown on misbehaving websites and web pages, Google Chrome will soon be making sure that its Back button will really take you back to the last page you’ve been to, not the half dozen ads you never even saw.
![Sphero says goodbye to BB-8, Spider-man, Disney-licensed toys [Update]](https://c.slashgear.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/bb8_sphero_main.jpg)
Sphero already earned a reputation among tech-savvy consumers early on but its name really went mainstream when it came out with the official BB-8 robot. It was, after all, a match that seemed destined by the Force. The success of that deal with Disney saw other characters come to robotic life, including Lightning McQueen and even Spider-man. Unfortunately, that profitable partnership is coming to an end because these toys have cost the company more than they’re worth.
NASA has tapped Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin to launch nine of its sponsored technology payloads into space. The launch will take place using the private space company's New Shepard rocket, the agency said in a statement today, with the launch taking place "no earlier than December 18 at 8:30AM CST." The company plans to broadcast the New Shepard launch live on its NASA TV platform.
Comcast is back with another update for its Xfinity X1 entertainment platform: YouTube in 4K quality. According to the company, "YouTube" has been one of the most commonly used voice commands since the app's arrival on the X1 platform. With this new support, customers with compatible TVs are able to stream content from the video site in Ultra HD 4K quality.
Square Enix is preparing to release Kingdom Hearts 3 late next month, but some people will already be familiar with (parts of) the game. For reasons that aren't publicly known, the game has leaked six weeks ahead of its planned release date. Kingdom Hearts 3 director Tetsuya Nomura confirmed the leak, but also offered reassurance to players waiting for the official release.
Epic Games has just announced a delay impacting Fortnite update version 7.10. According to the company, it discovered a bug at the very last moment that it won't be able to fix before the update drops in the early morning. As a result, Fortnite players shouldn't expect to get the update at 5AM ET, which was the originally chosen release time.