Sean Hollister
The Verge
California, United States
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Recent articles by Sean:
US colleges are trying to install location tracking apps on students’ phones
Colleges like the University of Missouri are testing out location tracking apps to monitor class attendance, and asking students to install these apps on their phones. The idea raises privacy concerns, though it appears students are able to opt out of these particular apps. → Read More
The unofficial Apple Archive is on death’s door once more
Apple appears to have filed hundreds of DMCA takedown notices → Read More
Lenovo is building another standalone VR headset
Lenovo hasn’t made the best bets in virtual reality so far, but it seems like the company’s about to try again — according to a new FCC filing for the "Lenovo VR3030S," which company docs identify as an upcoming standalone VR headset. Standalone means it shouldn’t require you to plug in a phone or PC. → Read More
Here’s the zany internal Apple music video you’ve probably never seen
The Apple Archive, an unofficial collection of the Cupertino company’s official videos, print ads, and marketing images also includes this delightful monstrosity: a four-minute music video masquerading as an "Easy Pay training video". → Read More
Senators won’t be trusted to keep eyes off their phones during Trump impeachment trial
President Donald Trump has been impeached, and his trial in the US Senate is expected to begin in earnest on January 21st. Don’t expect to see any Senators tweeting @ Trump from the proceedings, though — because they’ll have to leave their phones at the door. Tablets and laptops can’t come along for the ride, either. → Read More
DJI brings back the Phantom drone, a year after it vanished from stores
14 months after DJI’s flagship Phantom 4 Pro drone went AWOL, it’s back on sale this month. The part shortage seems to be over, and we’re seeing it in stock at DJI’s own official store, B&H, BuyDig, and Amazon (via Beach Camera) for $1,729. → Read More
Trump accuses Apple of refusing to unlock criminals’ iPhones, setting the stage for a fight
"We are helping Apple all of the time on TRADE and so many other issues," Trump unfairly claimed → Read More
Oprah is yanking an upcoming #MeToo documentary from Apple TV+ over creative differences
Apple TV+ may have just lost a second high-profile project that was set to appear on the streaming platform, just one month after it was announced: the Oprah Winfrey-produced documentary that follows music industry executive Drew Dixon, one of the women who accused Russell Simmons of rape and came forward in an interview with The New York Times. → Read More
This is Intel’s first discrete graphics card, but you can’t buy one
The PC industry had given up on Intel ever producing its own powerful desktop graphics cards, after the company unceremoniously killed its Larrabee project ten years ago last month. Now, we’re seeing the Intel DG1, the company’s first discrete graphics card, at CES 2020. → Read More
This real-life Transformer might be one of the coolest robot toys ever made
The Robosen T9 is a transforming toy that actually transforms from car to humanoid all by itself, thanks to 22 programmable servo motors. It can pose, dance and drive around in car mode and has voice commands as well. → Read More
Sprint is killing off Virgin Mobile USA
Virgin Mobile USA, the virtual cell carrier owned by Sprint that piggybacks on its network, will be no more in February. Sprint’s shutting it down and pushing its customers onto Boost Mobile, a similar MVNO. → Read More
Inside Intel’s Ghost Canyon NUC, the incredibly small modular desktop PC
The new Intel NUC 9 Extreme is just 5 liters in volume, and yet it’s theoretically easier to upgrade than desktops twice its size, thanks to its NUC Element modules that let you swap out its CPU, memory, storage, wireless, and ports. → Read More
Razer’s first desktop gaming PC is the stunning modular Tomahawk
Intel’s swappable NUC Element CPU modules already have another design win: the Razer Tomahawk, the company’s first desktop gaming PC. It’s a 10L chassis with enough room for full-length graphics cards and an SFX power supply, and Razer will also sell the chassis separately. → Read More
Intel just confirmed it’s building this tiny modular desktop gaming PC
We’d heard whispers of the Ghost Canyon NUC, and now Intel is confirming that it’s real: a 5-liter chassis where you can upgrade the CPU just by plugging in a new “compute module”. We’ll be learning more at CES 2020, where Intel will apparently have partners delivering systems around the idea. → Read More
Suunto’s first Wear OS smartwatch is taking on Garmin with outdoor offline maps
The Suunto 7, announced at CES 2020, appears to be the company’s first smartwatch. It runs Google’s Wear OS, and it’s attempting to turn that operating system toward sports watches, similar to the ones sold by Garmin, by adding a host of sport modes as well as maps you can use outdoors without an internet connection. → Read More
Here’s what I was thinking a decade ago, according to Google’s records
On Reddit, the r/LifeProTips subreddit had a fun idea — you can see what you’ve been doing over the past decade just by looking at the data Google has collected from you. → Read More
The power tool company behind DeWalt, Black & Decker and Craftsman is testing batteries that don’t explode
Stanley Black & Decker makes many of the most popular brands of power tools, while Amionx has an invention that could make batteries safer. Now, Stanley has signed a licensing agreement to put Amionx’s SafeCore battery material into a product. → Read More
The Expanse season 4 just arrived on Amazon Prime hours ahead of schedule
That December 13th release date was a white lie — The Expanse’s new Amazon Prime exclusive season 4 has arrived for you to binge-watch right now on Thursday, December 12th. → Read More
Valve says Half-Life Alyx will be a ‘one-way journey’ you’ll play for hours at a time in VR
Half-Life: Alyx — the first Half-Life game in 13 years, which is exclusive to VR — will be a linear game with no multiplayer mode, but one that Valve says is comfortable to play for hours at a time, thanks to its design. It’s coming in March 2020. → Read More
Google built its own tiny HDMI 2.1 box to jump-start ‘the next generation of Android TV’
Today, Google is announcing that Android 10 is arriving on Android TV, and it’s about as bland of an update as they come. Primarily, it’s just the performance and security benefits of Android 10, without a single new user-facing feature. But at the bottom of Google’s blog post, the company hints at why: Google’s busy prepping for the “next-generation of Android TV,” starting with the ADT-3. → Read More