Back in 2020, Microsoft announced that it would be changing the name of its Office 365 subscription to Microsoft 365, acknowledging that it had become more than just a work app. Now, it’s removing most of the remaining Office branding, according to new updates spotted by The Verge. “In the coming months, Office.com, the Office mobile app, and the Office app for Windows will become the Microsoft 365 app, with a new icon, a new look, and even more features,” a FAQ states.
Currently, you can access Microsoft’s Word, Excel and other apps online at Office.com, but that will soon be switched to Microsoft365.com — with a new six-sided logo replacing the current square one. The changes will happen next month, and the Office app for Windows, MacOS, iOS and Android will be rebranded in January.
The app names themselves won’t change, as you’ll still be using Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams, Outlook, Clipchamp, Stream and Designer. There will also be a Microsoft 365 app on mobile and desktop that will act as a centralized hub for information, showing meetings, files, documents and more.
The Office name will remain for one-time purchases through Office 2021 and Office LTSC that offers apps through volume licensing. However, it’s now considered a legacy brand, so any new features will be for Microsoft 365 and not Office, according to The Verge. Microsoft added that “there are no changes to Office 365 subscription plans.”
Two extremely rare “unreleased, one-of-a-kind, never-digitized” Nintendo NES games have appeared on eBay, according to a tweet from the Video Game History Foundation’s Frank Cifaldi, seen by Kotaku. One of those, called Battlefields of Napoleon, was only ever released in Japan. The other is a cartridge from Rare, and appears to be the demo of one of the few games ever developed for the Nintendo Power Glove.
According to the eBay listing for Battlefields of Napoleon, the game was “rescued from a dumpster after The Learning Company acquired Brøderbund in 1998 and subsequently discarded most of the historical assets.” The items in the lot include a WATA certified prototype on a development board and two additional CHR ROMs. It also includes the original packaging design.
Both of these are really cool. The first one, Battlefields of Napoleon, is a completed game. And when I say “completed,” I mean the packaging is done! It comes with the actual files that would be mailed to Nintendo for printing! Using these we can make perfect digital versions. pic.twitter.com/VOnUAgDHb0
In fact, the ROMs, boards and packaging were likely prepared for for final production, but it was never released in English for some reason. “It comes with the actual files that would be mailed to Nintendo for printing! Using these we can make perfect digital versions,” Cifaldi said in a tweet. Four more days of bidding remain, but it’s already selling for $5,700.
Since Napolean is WATA graded, the code has already been dumped for review, so technically “never digitized” isn’t quite accurate. As Cifaldi notes, though, the code can be released by whoever buys it. “I can’t put it online unless a new owner allows it, and if that new owner is us [the Video Game History Foundation], we will obviously allow it,” he said. To see how this (extremely complicated) game worked, check this YouTube video from RndStranger.
The other is labelled “CES SAMPLE: Please return to RARE COIN-IT INC.” According to the eBay auction on this one, it’s a “1-level prototype demo of game called ‘Scanner’ which was designed for the Mattel Power Glove” by Rare, the developer that built numerous titles for Nintendo. The listing goes on to say that the seller’s husband was the game designer, adding that it was tested in a retail environment and is playable. The auction is currently at $6,000 with 40 hours of bidding left.
Cifaldi is attempting to purchase these for Video Game History Foundation nonprofit dedicated to preserving video games for future generations. However, he said that the organization needs some help in acquiring these as they’re bound to fetch high prices. If you’d like to chip in to help them acquire these fun and historically important titles, Cifaldi notes that his DMs are open on his Twitter account.
Amazon’s October Prime Day on today is a good opportunity to grab deals ahead of Christmas, and Samsung products are particularly well represented. The company has a raft of products on sale ranging from smartphones to Watches to robovacs, along with monitors, TVs, appliances any other gadget you can think of. Highlights include all-time-lows on the Galaxy Flip 4 and Watch 5/Buds 2 bundles, a great sale on the Smart Monitor M8 and the cheapest prices we’ve seen yet on the 2TB 980 Pro SSD with heatsink.
Samsung’s arguably nicest foldable smartphone is the Galaxy Z Flip 4, and it’s on sale at some of the lowest prices we’ve seen yet. You can grab the 128GB unlocked version for just $800, or 20 percent off, an all-time low price. And if more storage is needed, the 256GB version is on sale at $860, also the lowest price we’ve seen so far.
Samsung’s other folding smartphone, the Galaxy Z Fold 4, is its best Fold model yet thanks to upgraded cameras, a brighter screen and a sleeker hinge. It’s also on sale for $1,390 for a very nice $410 (23 percent) discount.
Samsung’s Watch 5 is one of the best Android smartwatches available, while the Buds 2 are a solid upgrade over the previous model. You can grab both of those items in a bundle at an all-time low price of $300, for a savings of $130 or 30 percent.
If it’s more the Watch 5 Pro your looking for, with its extra battery life and chunky design, that’s also on sale in a bundle with the Galaxy Buds 2. Those two items are also on sale in a bundle at the lowest prices we’ve seen, just $470, for a savings of $130 or 22 percent.
Moving over the display products, Samsung’s popular Smart Monitor M8 offers not only high 4K HDR10+ quality, but works as a smart TV and smart home hub. It’s discounted $230 (32 percent) to $500.
Switching to storage, we have a number of interesting deals. Samsung’s 2TB 980 Pro SSD with Heatsink is discounted 48 percent to $210, tying its all-time-low price. And the 1TB model is marked at $122 or 47 percent off if you’re needs are more modest.
Meanwhile, there are several T7 portable SSD sales of note. The T7 Touch Portable SSD 500GB (1,050 MB/s) is available for just $70, for a savings of 33 percent. And the more rugged T7 Shield 2TB (also 1,050 MB/s) is priced at $171, for a savings of $119 or 41 percent. Finally, for microSD storage for phones, drones or action cams, the Samsung Pro Plus 128GB microSDXC card with 160MB/s read speeds is on sale for only $18, or 49 percent off the retail price.
TVs
Engadget
Last but not least, Samsung’s got a pair of solid deals on TVs. The 32-inch Class Frame QLED model with HDR and Alexa has dropped to $398 (17 percent off), to start with. And numerous other models, including Neo QLED QN series models from 55-75 inches, are seeing discounts up to 30 percent. And finally, Samsung’s Premiere Ultra Short Throw 2020 has dropped 29 percent to $2,498 for a savings of a cool $1,000.
Though already having some success with its Ioniq lineup, Hyundai has far bigger plans for its EV future — including taking a page from Tesla in terms of software updates. The automaker just unveiled a new roadmap, saying it’ll invest $12.6 billion to transform its lineup across brands into “Software Defined Vehicles” (SDVs).
As part of that, it’s developing new platforms and a new Connected Car Operating System (CCOS). It wants all its vehicles (both ICE and EV) to be over-the-air (OTA) capable by 2025, at which point it expects to have 20 million connected vehicles on the road.
The first leg in Hyundai’s plans is two new EV platforms called eM and eS for Hyundai, Kia and Genesis vehicles based on its Integrated Modular Architecture (IMA) announced earlier this year. The eM platform will be used for consumer EVs in all segments, offering 50 percent more range on a charge than current models, according to Hyundai. It’ll also support Level 3 and higher self-driving levels. Meanwhile, the eS platform is designed for logistics, deliveries and other business segments.
The idea is to have more more modularity and standardization for components like batteries and motors, helping streamline production and cut costs. Critically, it’ll also let Hyundai use the same vehicle controller across brands and segments, making OTA software and “Feature on Demand” (FoD) upgrades possible.
Hyundai Motor Group
Another key part of the roadmap is the software platform. The group will use something Hyundai calls the Connected Car Operating System (ccOS), applied to all controllers and using “extremely high computing power.” To achieve that, it’s working with NVIDIA on loading an optimized version of ccOS onto NVIDIA DRIVE, its next-gen chipset for autonomous driving and other vehicle functions.
Speaking of that, it also plans to advance its autonomous driving tech. The ccOS operating system is a key part of that, processing all the data collected by cameras, radars and LiDARs mounted in vehicles. Hyundai hopes to use ccOS to commercialize Level 3 vehicles soon, and go to Level 4 and 5 “in due course.”
“This year, the Group will apply an advanced Highway Driving Pilot (HDP) on the Genesis G90, which is a Level 3 technology for autonomous driving based on the second-generation integrated controller,” said Hyundai’s autonomous driving head Woongjun Jang. “The Group is also developing its Remote Parking Pilot (RPP) for Level 3 autonomous driving.”
To accomplish all that, Hyundai Group plans to invest 18 trillion won ($12.6 billion) by 2030, which will go toward building a Global Software Center and be ploughed into research. “This will pace the Group at the forefront of providing entirely new mobility solutions as society changes, transportation means evolve, and software defined vehicles become commonplace,” according to the press release.
If you’ve been eyeing those Instant Pots or Instant air fryers that everyone seems to have, they’re on sale as part of Amazon’s Prime Early Access Day with savings up to 50 percent. Some of the key products include the Instant Vortex 5.7-quart air fryer oven combo ($70 or 50 percent off), the Instant pot Duo Plus ($90 or 40 percent off) and the Instant Pot Crisp 11-in-1 Air Fryer ($170 or 37 percent off).
While Instant Pot Vortex is an air fryer, it also has one-touch controls for baking, roasting and reheating. It allows supports customized programs for specific types of food, so you can cook wings, potatoes or even cinnamon buns with a single touch. Grab the 5.7-quart model for just $70, or half off the regular price.
Instant Pot’s 8-quart 9-in-1 Duo Plus model is also on sale, if what you need is the brand’s classic pressure cooker. It has dropped to $90, or $76 off the retail retail price. The Duo Plus has nine functions in one device and could act as a rice cooker, slow cooker, yogurt maker, steamer, sauté pan, food warmer, sous vide and sterilizer, in addition to being a pressure cooker. It has 15 customizable programs to make cooking ribs, cake, soup and other types of food a lot easier as well.
Other notable items include the Instant Pot Crisp 11-in-1 Air Fryer ($170), that offers both Air Fryer and pressure cooker options. In addition, grab the Instant Vortex Pro Air Fryer that also offers rotisserie and convection oven functions for $110 (35 percent off) and the Instant Accu Slim Sous Vide that acts as a precision cooker and immersion circulator at $70 (30 percent off).
Roku appears to be expanding into the smart home space with a smart bulbs, light strips and security cameras, according to a Reddit user and report from Zatz Not Funny. The products appear to white-labeled Wyze products, and it looks like Roku is working on a Smart Home channel and dedicated mobile app.
The images, apparently taken from Walmart’s website, show Roku white and colored smart bulbs, a Roku lightstrip, Roku smart plug, Roku indoor and outdoor security cams, and a Roku panning cam. They look exactly the same as Wyze‘s Cam v3, Cam Pan V2, Bulb Color and other products.
Nathaniel/Reddit
With the TV and smartphone apps, Roku could let users show and control camera feeds, bulbs, smart plugs etc. There’s no sign of pricing, but Wyze products like the $34 Cam Pan V2 and $23 Wyze Bulb Color are relatively inexpensive compared to Nest or Philips, for example. However, Wyze was recently criticized for not addressing known camera security flaws in a timely manner, and suffered a December 2019 data breach that exposed the data of 2.4 million customers.
If you need storage on the go for video editing and other data-hungry applications, SanDisk’s rugged 2TB Extreme Portable SSDs are ideal. The 2TB 1,050MB/s model is currently on sale for $160, saving you a full 65 percent on the regular $460 price. If you need even more, the 4TB model is also discounted to just $300, for a savings of 57 percent ($400 off). And finally, if more speed is in order, SanDisk’s 2,000MB/s Extreme Pro Portable SSDs also have heavy discounts, with the 2TB model at $220 (57 percent off) and the 4TB model a real steal at $360 (60 percent off).
SanDisk has you covered on the memory card side as well. For smartphone, drone, or GoPro storage, the 512TB Ultra microSDXS UHS-I cards are on just $44, or 56 percent off the regular price. And for more speed, grab the SanDisk Extreme 1TB card for $128, which is 49 percent off the normal $250 price. And SanDisk has big discounts on CFexpress Type B cards for the latest Fujifilm, Canon and Panasonic mirrorless cameras, with the 128GB model available for just $110, for a savings of 56 percent.
Finally, Western Digital has some solid options for PC and PS5 storage updates. You can grab the 1TB WD_BLACK SN770 model (read and write speeds 5,150MB/s and 4,900MB/s) for $80 and save 38 percent. And if you more speed and space, the WD_Black SN850 2TB model (read speed 7,000 MB/s and write speed 5,300 MB/s) is just $208, saving you 31 percent.
Last week LG announced that it would allow third-party TV manufacturers to use its webOS platform and now its main rival is following suit. Samsung has revealed that it will license its Tizen OS TV platform for use in non-Samsung TV models for the first time, partnering with Akai, RCA and a bunch of other brands (Bauhn, Linsar, Sunny, Vispera) sold in Europe, Australia and New Zealand.
The partnership gives those manufacturers access to Tizen OS features like Samsung TV Plus (a free streaming TV and video platform), Universal Guide for discovery and personalized recommendations, and Samsung’s Bixby and other voice assistants.
As we noted when LG first announced it would license webOS to other TV makers, these deals give buyers another option on lower-priced smart TVs that might otherwise run Android TV, Roku or Amazon’s Fire TV. While you’ve probably never heard of many of the brands mentioned, the fact that Samsung is opening its Tizen platform means it could come to TVs sold in the US at some point.
Samsung’s Smart TV and LG’s webOS are good options instead of Android TV, as both offer good search and personalization capabilities, a choice of multiple voice assistants (their own plus Alexa and Google) and support for Apple Airplay (though not Chromecast). Google TV is a big update from Android TV, but the majority of TVs and streaming boxes like NVIDIA’s Shield TV still use the latter — though Google’s plan is to eventually have all third-party devices running Google TV.
A court in the Netherlands has ruled that a US company violated a Dutch worker’s human rights by forcing him to keep his webcam on during work hours, TechCrunch has reported. Hired by Florida telemarketing firm Chetu, the employee was terminated for refusing to be monitored “for nine hours per day” by a program that streamed his webcam and shared his screens.
The company said it fired the worker for “refusal to work” and “insubordination.” However, the employee stated that he “didn’t feel comfortable” being monitored all day. “This is an invasion of my privacy and makes me feel really uncomfortable. That is the reason why my camera is not on,” he’s quoted as saying in the court documents. (Chetu failed to show up for the court hearing.)
“Tracking via camera for eight hours per day is disproportionate and not permitted in the Netherlands,” the verdict states, adding that it also violated Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The court found that Chetu dismissed the employee unfairly and must pay a $50,000 fine, along with the worker’s back wages, court costs, and unused vacation days. It was also required to remove a non-compete clause.
As Florida is an at-will state, employees can be fired for any reason as long as it’s not illegal. In the Netherlands and other EU countries, however, you must have a valid motive for firing someone (refusal to perform work, culpable conduct, etc.) — otherwise, the employee has grounds to dispute it.
Apple’s latest Watch Series 8 just came out last month, but you can already grab a deal on it. The 41mm model is selling at Amazon in Midnight, Red or Silver for $349, for a savings of $50 (13 percent), and the 44mm model is on sale at $379, or $50 off the regular price. That’ll get you all of Apple’s latest Watch features, including a skin temperature sensor, low power mode and more. Be aware, though, that stock appears to be limited so you may have to move quickly.
The Series 8 is more of an incremental update over the Series 7, but it does have some useful new features. The first is a new temperature sensor that Apple has tied to women’s health, giving female users an estimate on when they may be ovulating. It’s meant to be used overnight, sampling your wrist temperature every five seconds so you can see shifts from your baseline temperature.
The other key feature is Crash Detection. Much as current watches can detect a fall, the Series 8 can detect car crashes via a pair of new accelerometers. It works in concert with the other sensors already included in the Apple Watch to detect four different types of crashes, including rollovers, front impact, back impact and side impact.
While battery life is the same as before at 18 hours, there’s a new power mode that keeps it going for up to 36 hours on a full charge. It also uses a newer S8 system-in-package processor, that should allow for improved performance. With those updates, we found the Series 8 to be the “new best smartwatch,” letting Apple keep its, er, crown in that department. As mentioned, if you’re looking to get one, act quickly.
