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With the launch of services like CBS All Access, Peacock, and Disney+, Hulu isn't quite the definitive place to watch every TV show you want anymore. However, it does still have a sizable catalog of stuff to watch from many different networks (plus a few decent exclusive movies/shows), and now you can enjoy all of it for $2/mo with Hulu's Black Friday offer.
Google introduced Project Mainline as part of Android 10, to turn some of Android into modular components that could be updated through the Play Store. Several more parts of the system were converted to Mainline modules with Android 11, and now another core Android component is expected to become modular next year.
India bans AliExpress, WeTV, and 41 more apps in latest purge
The country's campaign against China-made apps rages on
India began banning mobile applications and services based in China earlier this year, following a series of border tensions. The bans have taken place under the guise of national security, though the government rarely states how the violating apps are placing India or its citizens in danger. There have been several additional bans, and now the latest order includes AliExpress and other services.
Twitter's verification system has been a massive failure in just about every way possible. Twitter ended public applications for the infamous verified symbol three years ago, after the company couldn't figure out if verification should be an endorsement or not. Now the company is gearing up for a new public application process, aimed to begin in 2021.
November security patches rolling out to OnePlus 7 series, following release on 7T
Better late than never
Read update
The OnePlus 7T is now two generations out of date, thanks to OnePlus' bi-yearly phone release schedule, but it's still a capable flagship smartphone heading into 2021. Now the phone is receiving another round of security fixes, according to a new forum post by OnePlus.
Google Stadia is now a year old, and this has probably been the best month ever for the service. Family sharing finally arrived, iOS support is (once again) in development, some YouTube Premium subscribers received Stadia Premiere Edition for free, and Assassin's Creed Valhalla was a day-one release. The good news just keeps on coming, as Stadia receives another high-profile game (albeit a year late) and some decent Black Friday sales.
The OnePlus 8T hasn't been out for very long, but it has already been updated several times to fix launch bugs and improve device security. The last system upgrade was released exactly one week ago, which aimed to improve NFC and calls, and now another OTA is on the way.
Zoom now has just as many installs on Android as Spotify and SwiftKey
The app has now passed 500 million downloads
Zoom was already a popular video-conferencing tool before the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Still, as it became one of the top choices for video calls at the start of 2020 (much to Google's chagrin), it quickly turned into a household name. If you needed another indicator of how popular Zoom has become, the Android app just passed 500 million downloads on the Google Play Store.
Samsung's free TV service is coming to more Galaxy phones
Galaxy S9, Note9, and various A-series phones are joining the party
Samsung TV Plus was originally developed as a feature for the company's line of smart TVs, giving buyers something to watch before they plugged in a cable box or logged into Netflix. Samsung started rolling out the service to a handful of Galaxy phones earlier this year, and now the app is coming to even more devices.
Mobvoi's TicWatch 3 Pro is the latest and greatest Wear OS smartwatch, but it costs a whopping 0. If you're looking for a better deal, Fossil has once again dropped the price of some Gen 5 smartwatches to $179.00 on Amazon. That's $116 off the usual cost.Fossil currently has three of its styles on sale. The Carlyle is primarily designed for men, and both the black and 'Smoke' grey colors are discounted to $179. The Julianna watch with a gold accent is also on sale for the same price. All three options function identically, with Snapdragon Wear 3100 chipsets, NFC for Google Pay, a heart rate sensor, microphones and speakers for Google Assistant, and limited water resistance. Check out our original review here for all the details.
OxygenOS Open Beta brings November security patches to OnePlus 8 series
The update also includes plenty of bug fixes
The OnePlus 8 and 8 Pro are no longer the hot new phone on the block, but both phones continue to receive early access to new software through the Open Beta program. OxygenOS Open Beta 5 is now rolling out to both devices, containing November security patches and a few other changes.
Google Duo's newest face filter adds a dash of lipstick
The filter was made in partnership with L'Oréal Paris
Google Duo has added more than a few fun face effects over the past few months, including a scarecrow for Halloween, a cat, and even a cactus (we're still not sure about that last one). Now another face filter has arrived, this time featuring a splash of capitalism.
Google will keep Chrome working on Windows 7 until at least 2022
Google says the delay will give IT leaders more time to upgrade
Microsoft Windows 7 was first released over a decade ago, and even though it has been succeeded by Windows 8, 8.1, and 10, it's still widely used in enterprise deployments. Google originally planned to stop providing Chrome for Windows 7 starting in 2021, but plans have now been pushed back to 2022.
Chrome 86 was a fairly massive update, with support for the Native File System API, various interface improvements, and new experiments to try out. Almost exactly one month later, Chrome 87 is starting to roll out to desktop and mobile platforms. There are more than a few exciting changes in store, so let's dive in!
Pine64 partners with KDE for new Community Edition PinePhone
Pine64 is also working on new Wi-Fi/Bluetooth drivers and Qi charging
The first production-ready PinePhones became available earlier this year, giving Linux enthusiasts another option for a phone powered by open-source software. Pine64 has released a few different production runs of the PinePhone, each partnered with a different OS vendor, and a new model running KDE Plasma Mobile will be available next month.
Ting Mobile replaces pay-as-you-go model with simpler plans following Dish acquisition
Ting customers can keep their existing plans, if they want
Ting Mobile's main draw over the years has been its customizable pricing, where you only pay for the calls, texts, and data you actually use. That resulted in lower prices for people who didn't use much cellular data, but Google Fi, Visible, other MVNOs have put up more of a fight recently. Under new leadership by Dish, Ting today announced that its pay-as-you-go scheme is being replaced with more traditional plans.
Hulu raises live TV subscription cost for the second time in a year
Hulu Live TV is now just as expensive as YouTube TV
To quote Batman, "You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain." That certainly applies to TV streaming services, which all started as cheaper alternatives to cable, but later became just as expensive as cable with the rising costs of bundling channels. YouTube TV recently increased its monthly cost to $65, and now Hulu's live TV option is following suit.
United States military has been purchasing user location data from apps with millions of downloads
Muslim Pro, Screen Stream Mirroring, and Global Storms are some of the affected apps
The lack of strong data protection across most of the world, combined with the need for free smartphone apps and services to create some amount of revenue, has often led to private user data being shared with third parties. This time around, several high-profile Android apps have been sending location data to data brokers, which in turn are selling them to defense contractors working for the US military.
Google Fit receives new home screen and better sleep tracking
Wear OS will also get some more fitness Tiles
Google Fit has been in a state of limbo for a while now. It has always lagged behind competing services from Apple, Samsung, and others, and sometimes has broke entirely. Thankfully, Google has revealed a major update to Fit today, along with a few minor new features for Wear OS.
Dropbox aims to be the ultimate collaborative workspace with Spaces 2.0
Spaces 2.0 lets you manage tasks, post updates, and set up meetings all in one place
Dropbox used to just be a simple cloud file service, but the company has been adding more collaborative features to compete with G Suite and Microsoft 365. The 'Spaces' feature arrived last year, which lets you add descriptions and to-do lists to Dropbox folders, and now Spaces is receiving an overhaul with more functionality.