Fanboys Anonymous

Whatever's got Elon Musk and Stephen Hawking worried about a Terminator-style rampage suggests that the sci-fi future we once saw on the silver screen is beginning to become reality. Musk recently made a donation of $10 million to the Future of Life Institute, in hopes that the potential risks of artificial intelligence will be controlled. Without even mentioning the possibility of time-travel, how close are we to seeing cyborgs roaming the streets? Closer than you might think. But let's focus on the present. Right now we already have a whole range of exciting developments across artificial intelligence, robotics and tech in general that seem to be making the sci-fi films of the past come true. On top of that, it looks like someone's invented an actual hoverboard.

The Power of Love  Electric Ducted Fans

Zapata Racing claims to have invented a real, fully functional hoverboard. Unlike the one Marty McFly glides around on in Back to The Future, this version looks less like a skateboard and more like something out of the original Star Wars trilogy. They say it's not ready for production quite yet, but videos released on Facebook look promising. More promising still is the ArcaBoard, an oblong, fan-assisted floating board, harnessing 272 horsepower created by Romanian aerospace company Arca. Though it can only reach speeds of 20mph, the next ten years could see all of us gliding along to the sound of Huey Lewis and the News Track "The Power of Love," though hopefully not wearing an 80's shell suit.

To Self-Drive and Beyond

The film history of driverless cars has been more (self-fulfilling) prophecy than fantasy, as Google continues to fine tune its version. We've seen this kind of smart transport in so many films, most notably '90s cult classic Demolition Man. Sandra Bullock's Lieutenant Huxley drives a car with a self-driving mode which can be overridden, amazingly reflecting the offerings from Tesla and Nissan currently in development. In fact, Nissan aims to have a fully autonomous car on the market by 2020, racking up the equivalent of 80 years of research. What are we looking at here? By 2018, Nissan hope to send out cars that can change lanes autonomously. Elon Musk's Tesla, hopefully avoiding any Terminator-style situations, aims to introduce fully automated cars by 2018. In the immediate future is Summon technology, where you can call your car from within a range of 3 miles. Accio car? So not only could we see one kind of autonomous car on the highways, but several different kinds in city streets, as seen in Minority Report. Who knows what this means for the movie car chases of the future?


Metropolis Hold'em

How long would it take to play a billion billion hands of poker? Cepheus, a poker-playing AI developed by a team at the University of Alberta, took just 2 months. By now Cepheus is unbeatable, and plays poker at a superhuman level. Then there's AlphaGo, a Google DeepMind program that plays the ancient game Go at a similar level, and has beaten the human world champion. There's a gap between a game-playing program and the manipulative HAL from 2001: A Space Odyssey, and the decisions HAL makes are based on its own, sinister internal logic. AlphaGo makes decisions based on its initial training of 30 million Go moves, and a process of reinforcement learning. Cepheus plays a game that involves bluffing and anticipating other players' moves, which sounds pretty impressive. It's maybe a bit soon to panic about a computer taking over the world though, Cepheus has its limitations. The distinction between Limit and No-limit Hold'em is important here. Of the two most popular Hold'em variations out there, Cepheus has mastered arguably the less "human" kind -  Limit Hold'em. The amount a player can bet per hand in this version is predetermined, leaving Cepheus with a series of specific rules that its opponent must also adhere to. No Limit Hold'em sounds like a job for HAL, or supercomputer V.I.K.I from I, Robot; it's all about taking chances, betting all your chips if you think you'll win the hand, using your instinct as well as your intellect and understanding of the rules. We have yet to invent an AI that can manage that.

I, Receptionist

So we're still a little far from dystopic supercomputer domination. However, artificial intelligence with a human face is already a reality. Meet Nadine, the receptionist robot. If you greet her, she will respond. She is what they call "a social robot." She was developed by Nanyang Technological University, Singapore to communicate effectively with people, chat and remember faces. Though her software is closer to Apple's Siri than the complex learning processes Cepheus and AlphaGo use, she is literally the face of robotics today. NTU's aim is for Nadine and her fellow "social robots" to be used in care homes and hospitals to make a new, robotic workforce. Sound familiar? In I, Robot, the famous 3 Laws of Robotics of Isaak Asimov were broken. Let's hope that future Nadines keep them in mind.


So we've all thought about which sci-fi films might actually turn into reality – cool points for you if that film was Blade Runner. But no matter what futuristic vision sparks our imagination, what if tomorrow you went to the supermarket and the check-out girl was a super-sophisticated AI, or on the way a black cat went past you, and then another that was just like it? There's no doubt we're pretty comfortable with our day to day technology. How soon will we make the leap from apps that control our central heating to a full-on HAL situation? And was it the same cat?

Apple has become increasingly less risk-free as users were targeted by hackers over the weekend with a malicious software known as Ransomware, in what is believed to be the first attack on Apple products.

Apple issued a voluntary recall on Thursday for certain models of its wall plug adapter, citing the risk of electrical shock, the company said in a blog post. The faulty adapters were shipped with every Mac and certain iOS devices between 2003 and 2015 and were included in the Apple World Travel Adapter Kit.

According to Apple, the two-prong AC wall plug adapters that were designed for use in Continental Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Korea, Argentina, and Brazil may break, leaving the user at risk of electrical shock if touched. Twelve incidents have so far been reported worldwide.

"Customer safety is always Apple's top priority, and we have voluntarily decided to exchange affected wall plug adapters with a new, redesigned adapter, free of charge," Apple said, noting that wall adapters designed for the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, China, Hong Kong, and Japan were not affected. Apple USB power adapters are also not affected.

To identify whether your wall plug may be a hazard, an affected plug will have either four or five characters or no characters on inside slot where it attaches to the Apple power adapter. The redesigned adapters will have a three-letter regional code in its place (EUR, KOR, AUD, ARG, or BRA).

Though the chances of the adapters breaking are rare according to Apple, users are encouraged to exchange their potentially dangerous adapters at their local Apple Store or at an Authorized Apple Service Provider. The exchange program is free, though Apple is offering refunds to those that previously bought new adapters due to issues.

Before we get into this, yes, I'm an Android guy. I've never owned an Apple product for a couple of different reasons—mostly money—but I've never been opposed to the idea of owning Apple products, either. So far, there just hasn't been anything that was so much more interesting and better than the non-Apple alternatives that I could afford and justify the price difference. There are plenty of other people here at Fanboys Anonymous who are more knowledgeable not only about Apple products, but about phones in general. However, that's one of the reasons why I decided to write this article from this perspective: as an Android user, is the iPhone 7 something that appeals to me enough to make me want to make the jump over and switch my phone?

Many people are salivating at the idea of the latest edition of the iPhone series without knowing any information about it whatsoever, just because they're loyalists and fond of the brand. As an outsider, it's going to take more than just the word "new" to get me in line. Since rumors are flying around now about this latest release, I started looking at the details to see if anything stood out to me. Here's some of the information I've come across so far.

Note: Remember that this is speculation on a lot of websites' parts, so don't take this information as 100% fact.

Name = iPhone 7 or iPhone 6s Plus or...

Let's start off with something very basic: the name. Right now, it isn't even confirmed that the name will be the iPhone 7, although most people are referring to it as such. An alternative name rumor is that it will be the iPhone 6s Plus, but there are also reports saying it could be named anything from the iPhone Air to something totally new.

What's in a name? Marketing can go a long way based on a name, but I'm not buying a product based on its name alone. I'd be hesitant to purchase a phone called "The Piece of Shit That Never Works", but you could name it "Totally the Most Awesome Phone Ever" and it wouldn't make me pull out my wallet. More people would be willing to buy the iPhone 7 than the iPhone 6s Plus, though, I'd assume, because it would seem like a bigger upgrade and worth the price difference.

Size = probably 4.7 or 5.5 inches

I'm someone who doesn't like phones that are too huge, but not super small, either. I currently have an LG G3, which is 5.7 inches and sometimes can be a little cumbersome. All in all, if the new iPhone is around this size, I'm okay with that.

As far as the thickness goes, one can assume that it would be slimmer than previous models, but that's not a guarantee. Even if it is, I can't seem to find a straight answer for how much it would be. At a certain point, if phones get too thin while being too wide, they become awkward to hold. As long as they keep that in mind and don't make it super thick, that's a plus.

Standard Improvements

It would be odd to hear that the new iPhone would be worse in any way such as camera resolution, display, battery life, and so forth. Then again, how much of an improvement can you really tell between cameras that are already good or displays that are comparable to one another?

When it comes to battery life, that might even end up being worse than before! Sometimes, stronger processors and such just suck up the juice more by default and these companies would rather not call attention to it. If you start seeing advertisements that basically equate to "Oh, uh, battery life? Well, uh, before I answer that question, let me show you all these cool new features. Woaaaah, totally awesome, eh? So cool! Bells and whistles! Who cares about that battery, am I right? Apple! WOO!" then we'll get our answer that it's a downgrade.

Capacity Expectations

Supposedly, there will be three versions: 16GB, 64GB, and 128GB. This is one of the biggest reasons why I've never gotten an iPhone in the past. I like the idea of being able to put a memory card in and expand my phone's space and it kind of bugs me even just in theory that Apple ignores that idea. That just feels like a means to grab as much money as possible and beat down the consumer with the idea that they should avoid buying products (memory cards, in this case) from other companies in any case.

Pricing

That leads us to the biggest reason why I'm an Android guy, which is the cost. Estimates for the iPhone 7 place it at the $900 mark. Hell no! I'm still trying to pay off my $600 LG G3, which I wrestled with the price of for quite a while. Particularly if you have an iPhone 6 or some other kind of phone, Android or not, that isn't outdated or broken, I just can't see spending a thousand dollars on an upgrade unless that upgrade is massively significant. If money is nothing to you, then my opinion on that matter means even less, so you'll go ahead and get it anyway, but if you're someone like myself who has to watch what he spends, $900 is hard to justify no matter how you cut it.

BOTTOM LINE: Nope, I won't be converted to the Apple side of things.

When you don't have the money to upgrade your phone constantly, you need to be conservative of which upgrades you do. The main reason why I switched to the LG G3 was because my previous phone (LG Optimus L9) was rather outdated and wasn't functioning as well anymore. Since receiving the last Lollipop "upgrade" to my phone, it's had a bunch of problems that it never had before, which are irking the crap out of me, but those problems combined with what's being spoken about for the iPhone 7 aren't enough to convince me to make such a drastic switch.

To an extent, some of this is just the Apple brand's methodology itself. As someone who doesn't own any of their products, it feels like a commitment I'm not willing to make. Most people I know treat Apple loyalty as a lifestyle choice where they get sucked into buying all types of their products down the line. Some of those people, naturally, just do it because they prefer those specs, which is the right reason for purchasing them. Others, though, buy them just because they recognize the name better and like being able to say that they own that product. I've never seen the reason to spend $50 on a plain white t-shirt from a more expensive store if the quality is the same at Old Navy for $5, so if you took an iPhone 7's label off, called it the jPhone 7 and decreased the price to $600, I'd be more open to the idea.

Another reason why I can't see myself changing is the lack of flexibility. 16GB has been more than enough for me so far with my LG G3, but if I found myself needing more storage, I'd be screwed if I had an iPhone. With mine, I can just put in that memory card I purchased for $5 and be all set. I also like being able to use cables and other accessories from a wide variety of vendors rather than needing to have Apple-brand everything, for the most part.

Really, if nothing is screaming out to me to upgrade to the LG G4 at this time, then I'm really seeing even less of a reason to go over to the iPhone 7 for even more money. It may be newer and fancier in some ways, but until it starts pulling out some Minority Report holograms and Iron Man-style J.A.R.V.I.S. artificial intelligence, it's just a big check for some minor improvements in my mind.

The iPhone 7 is set to be released sometime around September with an official launch day not currently announced. Until then, speculation and rumors will run wild and people will be asking whether the iPhone 7 will be a success or a failure.

More importantly than what I think, though, what do YOU think? Are you an iPhone user who is excited about this new release or are you sticking with what you currently have? Are you an Android user who will be making the switch come September?

Leave your thoughts in the comments below!

What is up Dacetacular Fanboys? Chris "The Dace Man" Dace back again with some exciting news…or depressing, however you read into it. If you read the title of this article you know Amazon is celebrating a milestone coming up. The Internet shopping juggernaut is turning 20. Yeah, 20 years ago when yours truly was in first grade, Amazon became a thing.

In honor of this historic event, Amazon is having Black Friday–like sales starting July 15th, but bigger. Pretty sweet huh? Well there's one catch: you have to be an Amazon Prime member. Given the title of "Prime Day," July 15th will consist of deals bigger than you would see on the infamous day after Thanksgiving as an initiative to drive consumers to purchase Prime membership.

So the question is: Are you going to subscribe to Prime for the deals, or are you gonna be up at midnight July 15th to score some sweet swag, because you're already a Prime Member? Whatever the day holds for Internet consumer, I feel sorry for UPS, FedEx, and USPS on Friday the 17th with all the packages they will have.

As always, check back regularly to see what Chris "The Dace Man" Dace is looking at (and no, not just porn), as well as all of the other bloggers here at Fanboys Anonymous. Remember, keyboard warriors: leave your feedback! Until the next time, for the few, the proud, and, of course, the Dacetacular, grab a beer—and in this case a Prime Membership—and check out what's going on here in the Dace-Sphere. See ya next time!


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A glitch in Apple's iOS leaves iPhones vulnerable to a simple text that, if sent to your iPhone, it can lock down your apps and reboot your phone.

Revealed on Reddit late Tuesday, the text message exploits the inability of iMessage's preview feature to render a particular string of unicode characters. After the notification banner fails to present the incoming text, it causes it to crash and reboot the phone.

The malicious text, which is extremely easy to find on Twitter, includes Arabic and other non-Roman characters and is likely to come from someone on your contacts list as many have turned the system glitch into a prank. The ability to crash someone's iPhone works both from Android-to-iPhone and iPhone-to-iPhone and can also affect Apple Watch.

It has been reported that similar results have been found through other apps such as WhatsApp and Twitter that have banner notifications enabled. Another Reddit user reported that they were able to get the mail app to crash after setting the text to the subject line. "[It b]asically locks the mail app so that it can't be opened until the email either scrolls out of the main viewport or is deleted externally," they explained.

An Apple spokeswoman said in a statement that, "We are aware of an iMessage issue caused by a specific series of unicode characters and we will make a fix available in a software update."

The glitch seems to only work with banner notifications and can be avoided by disabling notification alerts in your settings. However, if you happen to fall victim to this prank, the person who sent the initial text can send another, effectively fixing the glitch. There's no word for how soon Apple will release an update.

Android 5.0 Lollipop is officially here—well, technically it's been here since November of last year—and that means phone manufacturers have been clamoring to get the update onto their existing phones. It was eagerly sought after by many Android fans because it was supposed to be better than ever, a big leap from Android 4.4 (KitKat). Like any other operating system (OS), however, Android Lollipop has its positives and its negatives.

So what should Android Samsung Galaxy Phone users like me be expecting?

For one, the OS updates are coming in batch by batch. If you're really knowledgeable about these things, you could push it by force onto your phone or tablet, but if not, it's best wait for the official release for your particular device. So while some of you Android Samsung Galaxy Phone users (S4, Note 3) are waiting for the update, here are a few things you should be expecting to see:

Interface & Design

This is one of the best interfaces I have ever seen. It's not J.A.R.V.I.S., but it's a start. It's cleaner and simpler with some embellishments that are really useful and not just mere add-ons. This goes hand-in-hand with a newly refreshed notification system. Individual notifications are now displayed on cards that adhere to the material design language, and sets of notifications can be lumped together by the app that produced them (this is most important for mobile gamers). A do-not-disturb function has also been added under notifications. With regard to design, everything looks more polished (even if the same grid of icons is used) and is still as customizable as before, so you can arrange it just how you want it.

Project Volta

Because of the big changes in the material UI for Android Lollipop, Project Volta was created to improve battery usage through a series of optimizations. Among its changes is a new battery saver mode, job-scheduling APIs that can restrict certain tasks to only occur over Wi-Fi, and grouping of tasks to reduce the overall amount of time that internal radios are active.

Notifications Everywhere

This is where I'm on the fence. Although I like the new notifications update, which gives me the ability to view detailed notifications on my locked phone, this also seems like a security issue. If you're the type of person who leaves their phone unattended, anyone can have a glance at your notifications even though your device is locked. This issue may get more even aggravating if you use a security pattern, password, or PIN for your device, because you now have to swipe away the initial lock screen with the pesky notification before inputting your code. It's an unavoidable extra step that might annoy some Android Samsung Galaxy Phone users.

App Switcher & Merged Tab Notes

The recent updates with the app switcher makes closing it more of a hassle and a real job, since it shows all of your recent apps in one spot. The same goes with the merged tabs for Chrome. Although it looks nice to see all of your tabs in a stacked way, it can be bothersome to have some of the sites you've searched a couple of days ago still there. In a way, it cuts down on the clutter, but in another way, it contributes to it.

App Crashes

Not all applications have been moved to support the new OS, hence there are some applications I use that close down on me. However, this occurs for maybe 1 out of every 10 applications, so it's more of an annoyance. One that has had a few more glitches than normal is the WInput remote mouse control app, but this isn't a constant.

Are you happy with the changes made with this latest update? What kind of problems and errors have you experienced? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below.

Recent reports have been surfacing on Reddit and Twitter that the Apple Watch has been malfunctioning for those with tattoos, leaving inked users unable to receive notifications, place calls, and use Apple Pay and other apps.

The issue, now dubbed "Tattoogate," stems from the interference of the ink pigmentation with the sensor's ability to read your heart rate. The high-end watch needs this sensor to assess if the user is wearing the watch; according to Apple, the Watch's green and infrared light is either absorbed or reflected through your skin, allowing it to read your heart rate.

"So I thought my shiny new 42mm SS watch had a bad wrist detector sensor," wrote Reddit user guinne55fan on Tuesday, receiving over 700 upvotes and 300 comments. "The watch would lock up every time the screen went dark and prompted me for my password. I wouldn't receive notifications. I couldn't figure out why especially since the watch was definitely not losing contact with my skin."

With a full sleeve tattoo on his left arm, he tried holding the Watch against his hand and it began to work. However, once he put it back on the area that is tattooed with black ink, the watch automatically locked.

YouTube user Michael Lovell also experienced similar issues, which he demonstrated on both his tattooed and non-tattooed arms.


The Apple blog iMore followed up with a report confirming the issue, and after conducting their own series of tests, they found that dark, solid colors are responsible for the most heart rate misreadings (196 BPM before failing to read entirely). Lighter tattoo colors produced slightly elevated heart rate misreads but did not appear to interfere with the Watch's ability to register skin contact.

For those with issues with the Watch's sensors, you can turn off the Wrist Detection on the Apple Watch app to avoid auto-locking, although this will also disable Apple Pay.

It is important to note that the Apple Watch works fine with dark-colored skin and scars, and Apple offers a 14-day return policy.

It is common knowledge that death is the only real certainty we have in life. For this reason, many of us decide to lessen the burden on our family members and loved ones by buying life insurance to cover the our final costs and designing a will to divide whatever assets we may have.

Pick your heir wisely.

Apparently, aside from which insurance to buy and how to draft a legal document containing information on our final wishes, many of us are also haunted by another question: What will happen to my social media accounts when I die?

Part of me really wished this was a joke, but a quick search on Google made me realize this is what many 21st-century minds worry about.

Well worry no longer, my friends.

Facebook ;has announced a new setting that will allow users to choose between the options of having their accounts permanently deleted after death or of designating "Legacy Contacts."


The Legacy Contact is a person of your own choosing, a friend or family member, who will have control over the following aspects of your profile when you die:

• Change your profile picture and cover photo.
• Write a post that will appear at the top of your timeline (for example, to announce a memorial service or share a special message).
• Accept friend requests from real-life friends and family who were not connected to you on Facebook before your passing.

According to Vanessa Callison-Burch, a Facebook product manager, these particular features "were among those most requested by Facebook users who gave the company feedback on its memorial-page policies."

On the other hand, the chosen person will not be able to:

• View or download your messages.
• Edit or delete posts you shared in the past.
• Edit or delete posts others have shared on your timeline.

So no one will be able to delete any embarrassing pictures of you, but at least they will not be able to read any kinky messages you might have sent or received.

Leave a legacy, or delete your page?

Want to know how to setup your Legacy Contact now?

Step 1: Go on "Settings" on your Facebook account and click on "Security."

Step 2: Click on "Legacy Contact" and type the name of your choice in the "Choose a friend" box. Note that this page also gives you the option to delete your account instead.

What will you say to your friend in your last message?

Step 3: Review the message your chosen Legacy Contact will receive. This message can be revised so that it is more personal between you and your friend.

Step 4: Once you are satisfied, you can either hit "Send" to have your message sent immediately or choose the "Not Now" option to have the message sent in the future.

Step 5: If you want to allow your Legacy Contact to download posts, photos, videos and/or other content from your account, check the "Data Archive Permission" box.

Done!

When your time comes, Facebook will notify your chosen contact that he or she may now manage your account.

Until now, accounts could only be memorialized by Facebook; they could still be viewed but could not be accessed or edited by anyone else. Callison-Burch believes this new feature is a great step up when it comes to social media:

Our team at Facebook is grateful and humbled to be working on these improvements. We hope this work will help people experience loss with a greater sense of possibility, comfort, and support.

Legacy Contacts are currently only available in the United States, but Facebook looks forward to expand it to other countries.

Setting up a Legacy Contact is completely optional.

What do you think about this Legacy Contact business? Do you think you will use it? Let us know your opinion by leaving your comments below!

On episode 15 of the Fanboys Anonymous Group Meeting podcast, the panel has a roundtable discussion about what it means to be safe on the internet when dealing with social media websites.

Hosted by Tony Mango, the panel includes Caroline Oliveira, Ronnie Brown, Stephen Wago.

Some topics we address:

• General password hacking
• Doxing from 4chan
• Being bullied over Facebook
• Censorship levels
• and more!

You can watch the podcast below. Make sure to subscribe!

They're the "best iPhones" the company has ever produced, Apple CEO Tim Cook said after the new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus were introduced to a packed auditorium during an Apple event at the Flint Center for the Performing Arts earlier today—the same place where Steve Jobs introduced the Macintosh in 1984. After rumors and months of waiting, consumers finally got a look at the next-gen of Apple phones.

iPhone 6 isn't simply bigger -- it's better in every way. Larger, yet dramatically thinner. More powerful, but remarkably power efficient. With a smooth metal surface that seamlessly meets the new Retina HD display. It's one continuous form where hardware and software function in perfect unison, creating a new generation of iPhone that's better by any measure. (Apple.com)

Bigger is better, and with iPhone 6's 5.44 inches and iPhone 6 Plus's 6.22 inches compared to the previous iPhone 5S size of just four inches, these new phones not only boast a larger screen (up to 5.5 inches on the iPhone Plus), they're thinner than ever with 6.9 mm for the iPhone 6 and 7.1 mm for the iPhone 6 Plus. The Retina HD display allows for 1334 x 750 resolution (iPhone 6) and 1920 x 1080 resolution (iPhone 6 Plus).

The new 64-bit A8 chip has two billion transistors—twice as many as the A1 chip—and allows for 25 percent faster CPU performance and up to 50 percent faster graphics performance. Apple claims the new phones have better battery life that can last up to 24 hours of 3G talking (iPhone 6 Plus) and up to 14 hours on the iPhone 6. Users can also enjoy a much improved Internet browsing: up to 12 hours on 3G, 14 hours of video playback, and 80 hours of audio playback.

While Apple has always attempted to innovate the next bigger and lighter piece of hand-held technology, these new phones are slightly heavier than last gen's 3.95 ounces. The larger iPhone 6 Plus weighs 6.07 ounces and its smaller counterpart weighs 4.55 ounces. It's not a significant weight difference (the iPhone 5s weighed only 3.95 ounces), but for a company that seems to boast its light-as-air products and puts all its efforts into making new products lighter than before, it makes all the difference.

A new 8-megapixel camera with true tone flash might not be the boost consumers want, but Apple is praising its "Focus Pixel" technology that allows the lens to move in and out to determine autofocus points. It's video capabilities will be able to shoot in 1080p HD at 30 to 60fps, and offers an improved slo-mo option.

Apple also introduced the phone's new payment feature: Apple Pay. Built into both new phones, it uses a new chip called the Secure Element, storing encrypted payment information that allows you to pay for items through your iPhone by using the Touch ID. Payments will be charged to the user's credit or debit card linked to their iTunes Store account. This may be the breakthrough for a future of card-less payment, and Apple reassures there's no need to worry about identity theft.




After unveiling the new phones, Apple launched its Apple Watch: the highly anticipated new wearable device coming early next year. "Our goal has always been to make powerful technology more accessible, more relevant, and ultimately more personal," Apple wrote on its page dedicated to the Apple Watch. "Apple Watch represents a new chapter in the relationship people have with technology. It's the most personal product we've ever made, because it's the first one designed to be worn."

With a wide range of watch faces—Apple states there's "over two million ways to see time"—this tiny gadget is not only marketed as a fitness companion, it adds a new way to communicate, offering easy access to mail, messages, and calls. The three editions of the watch, Apple Watch, Apple Watch Sport, and Apple Watch Edition, also mimics a smartphone, enabling users to use a variety of apps and take full advantage of Siri. Pricing starts at $350 and requires an iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus.

Apple seems to be following market trends instead of creating them, cashing in on the new smart-watch trend and larger phones that almost match up to the market's smallest tablets (aka "Phablets).

Anticipation of the announcement fueled both excitement and disappointment, causing Apple shares to spike reaching 102.69 by 2 p.m., but it eventually fell 0.38 percent to 98.00. Last year, the stock fell 2.3 percent the day iPhone 5S was introduced, according to USA Today.

The new iPhones, available in Apple's usual silver, gold, and space grey variants, start at $199 for the iPhone 6 and $299 for the iPhone 6 Plus with a two year contract. Configurations include 16GB, 32GB and 128GB. Preorders start Sept. 12 and will be available on Sept. 19.

Will you be among the thousands lining up to grab the new iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus? Let us know in the comments below.

While Twitch is finding themselves under the microscope lately with a potential buy-out from Google and a dubious new copyright claim process, it's a welcome time to hear about something unique coming from the service to remind us why the streaming site exists: to watch people play games. Funny enough, this reminder came from something very not-human.

Introducing Grayson Hopper. A beta fish belonging to a student of the University of Chicago. This fish is currently playing Pokémon Red and is live-streaming it for everyone to see! Sections of the tank have been designated as button inputs allowing Grayson to control his on screen character.

While you think this may be a completely fruitless effort, the owner states that in the 160+ hours played, he's managed to capture his first pokémon! A charmander named AAAABBK. Together they managed to defeat their rival's squirtle!

You can watch the steam running live at twitch.tv/fishplayspokemon. So far over 1.5 million people have tuned in with about 20,000 viewing at the time of this writing. The chat room ends up being just as entertaining as the fish.

Breaking news: He just saved the game! Glad I was present for this update.

Say good-bye to the rest of the day you had scheduled. How long will you be watching Grayson? Tell us in the comments below.

A few weeks ago the Internet exploded with excitement over Seinfeld emojis being developed. If you think that's the best thing that can happen to your mobile keyboard, you know nothing, reader.

Elite Daily reports that work has begun on Game of Thrones–themed emojis. These will feature many of your favorite characters as well as iconic items such as the Iron Throne and dragon eggs. As excited as we all must be, all men must wait. These are unfortunately not available yet and have no release date announced. For now though, enjoy the preview gallery below.

The gateway to pixelated pubescent puerility, or total and utter disappointment

Do you remember the days before the Internet but after the advent of the home computer—the days when debating about whether the Spectrum was better than the Commodore 64 seemed like a cause you would lay your life on the line for? If so, you will probably remember the wrath of the uninitiated and ill-informed (our parents) when the Internet became a viable prospect in the home.

Correct me if I am wrong, but I seem to remember conversations being had in the media and across garden fences about how the Internet was both a dangerous and divisive thing, a porn addled wasteland that would corrupt the youth of today (well yesterday) if they so much as looked at it. The Lawnmower Man had just gone on general release, and I believe that this in no small way contributed to this warped view: The Internet was real and alive; it was like HAL. The X Files was airing on BBC 1 and everything was all a big conspiracy.

The thing is, I remember the 20th Century P.I. (pre-Internet), and those were not innocent times for my friends and me. We weren't monsters; we did not go around wielding baseball bats or running across the roofs of New York City like those pesky kids in The Warriors. No, our corruption was all rather more pixelated than that. You see, P.I. was the time when my friends and I used clunky RM networked PCs with no Internet access or Acorn Archimedes machines at school. At home (or at the homes of any number of my friends), we used the Amiga. Most of the time, we played games like Stunt Car Racer and boasted (read: lied) about how far we had gotten on The Secret of Monkey Island. However, when swapping disks and stories of this nature got a little boring, we went on the search for a new adventure…

This could survive a nuclear holocaust and came equipped with a porn insertion early warning siren disguised as a noisy rewind mechanism.

Now, here is where I make a logical assumption (based upon the fact that most of my friends' dads had these so why not the rest of the UK; that's how most surveys work anyway). For some reason, the years immediately P.I. were also the years in which bed manufacturers decided to offer underbed storage of the most ridiculous nature. Alas, instead of having simple pull out drawers in which to store your "clothes," most double beds came with a lift-and-prop solution. The owner would have to lift the board that held the mattress and bed linens to a 45-degree angle until a spring clicked into place, revealing a cornucopia of clothes, old shoes, and—yep, you guessed it—porn magazines. You know, the ones mum wasn't supposed to know about. The manufacturers of these beds must have been having a laugh at the expense of all the dads in suburban England, in much the same way as the maker of the noisy top-loading Ferguson Videostar VCR player laughed at the generation of teenage lads before us—as Peter Kay epitomizes in his stand-up routines. Essentially, whenever dad lifted up the bed to gain access to his "clothes," the ratchet spring let out an almighty "clunk/dong," the duvet and mattress slid off the bed, and dear Papa would be caught with one hand stuck in the spring mechanism and the other clutching a copy of Razzle. Thus, the only time that one could feel safe cracking open this Pandora's box of porno delights was when nobody else was in the house.

I cannot remember exactly how my friends and I became interested in the underbed storage areas of our collective parents' bedrooms. I seem to vaguely recall that one of my friends said that he had been in his parents' room and happened to see a magazine of that nature hidden down the side of the bed (note, not in the storage space defined above). This led to feigned revulsion from everyone else in our group—"No way would my dad have such things in his possession!"—followed by us parting ways much like the Secret Seven a few hours before a big adventure. However, instead of Seven Catch a Thief, "Individual Children Looked Under their Parents' Beds" would be an apt title if ever a book recounting such an adventure were to be penned (Enid Blyton must be turning in her grave). In any case, this led us to find large caches of adult videos and magazines as well as something else, something new. Thanks to our discoveries, many teenage boys in a semi-rural town in the South East of England never looked at their Amigas in the same way again. Also, never would there be such an aptly named disk duplication program made as X Copy…

Dad's nemesis. First the Videostar, now this? When was the world going to give him a break?

In one of the underbed storage cavities, there was a rather innocent-looking disk. However, its saintly white color (unadorned by any label or ornament), belied its true contents. We (as all of the male student population of our school were soon to discover) had found Centerfold Squares, a game in which—you guessed right—you match pixelated picture cards of naked women. In hindsight, why we found this at all titillating is now beyond me. If memory serves, these pictures were far worse than the FMV footage found on a Mega CD game. However, I think the fact that this was considered "forbidden" or "contraband" provided half the thrill. Either way, that is not the point. The point is, some 3 years prior to the Internet going…err…viral, we were corrupting our fragile little minds with relative ease. Food for thought the next time someone decides to wax lyrical about the next game or app that is derided as "certain to cause anarchy in the UK."

Does anyone else have such fond memories of this time? If so, please feel free to leave a comment below.

Microsoft has a special offer, and they're targeting specifically Macbook users. The company is offering a $650 in-store credit on their Surface Pro 3—that is, if you're willing to trade in your perfectly good Macbook Air.

The offer is only good until July 31 when you trade in certain models, which need to be in good working condition, but the fine-print terms are vague and don't say which models are actually valid.

Microsoft conveniently offers a comparison of their tablet to the Macbook Air, but in the full picture, it doesn't seem as though the tablet holds up as a good contender to the Macbook, even if it has been cleverly slated as a laptop replacement that can do everything a Macbook can do—and more.

The Macbook Air starts at $899 for an 11-inch model with 128GB flash storage and goes up to $1199 for the top-end 13-inch with 256GB of flash storage. The Surface Pro 3 comes with a 12-inch screen and starts at $799 for only 64GB storage, but you need to purchase the $130 Type Cover keyboard separately to get the tablet's full function—making the lowest price $930. By that, it only leaves you with a $70 difference between the 13-inch Macbook Air with 128GB flash storage. A 256GB Pro 3 will cost you $1,549—$350 more expensive than a 13-inch Macbook Air with the same configuration, and that doesn't even include the Type Cover!

Although they both have some similarities in hardware and strive to cram in an entire desktop in the lightest and slimmest portable device, the key difference between the Macbook Air and the Pro 3 is the display quality. The Surface Pro 3's display has a 2160 x 1440 (216 ppi) resolution, whereas the 13-inch Macbook Air's display has a 1440 x 900 (128 ppi) resolution, and it's even lower on the 11-inch Air. The Pro 3 also has a battery life of 9 hours, whereas the Macbook Air has up to 12 hours.

Sure, the better screen resolution, slightly lighter tablet (Microsoft boasts its 2.4 pounds as opposed to 2.96 pounds), and a touchscreen with a detachable keyboard may make the Surface Pro 3 attractive, but you're not really getting a good deal for your buck.

Even if you traded in your perfectly functioning Macbook Air to get the full discount, the cheapest Surface Pro 3 would come with half the memory, shorter battery life, and you'd still have to purchase the keyboard. Nice try, Microsoft.

The only benefit of this promotion is actually making people talk about both products. (I see what you did there, Microsoft. Kudos.)

Microsoft isn't new to promising consumers a good deal if they ditched their current devices for new Microsoft ones. In January, they ran a promotion that offered $100 off the Xbox One if you ditched your PS3.

What do you guys think? Are you holding on to your Macbook Air, or are you debating whether the Surface Pro 3 is the way to go? Let us know in the comment section below.

Hello all fanboys and fangirls! It looks to be that time of year again where the future of gaming is revealed. Yes, it is none other than the week of the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3). I'm just going to share with you a little preview of sorts highlighting the games that are set to be showcased as well as some potential surprises.

Let's start off with Day 0, which takes place on June 9th. While technically a day before E3 officially begins, this is when a number of major game companies hold their official press conferences. Sony, Microsoft, Ubisoft, and Electronic Arts have all stated that their conferences will take place during different intervals thoughout the day. The same thing occurred at last year's event and I'm sure it's probably to open up some free room for actual gaming during the actual dates of the event.

For this day, I'm mainly looking forward to what Sony has to show for itself. Microsoft has its set of games previously announced for display. The usual crowd-pleasers like Halo 5: Guardians, Fable Legends, and Killer Instinct: Season 2 just to name a few. Ubisoft and Electronic Arts are practically doing the same thing. For example Ubisoft will be displaying such games as: Assassin's Creed: Unity and Farycry 4. And EA will be showcasing all their core sport titles like NHL, UFC, and FIFA as well as other major games like Battlefield Hardline and Star Wars: Battlefront for the Xbox One and PlayStation 4.


Sony, though, has very few games listed, and the only one really worth bringing up is Uncharted 4. On the other hand, what is also worth bringing up is Sony's consistent and subliminal mentioning of Crash Bandicoot. You seen that sign with him in the PlayStation 4 launch trailer and the company have brought him up a couple times since then over social media. Whether or not it means anything is unknown at this point, but if all this does lead to them giving the series a resurgence on the PlayStation 4, then all I can say is I'm all for it.


That leads us into June 10th, which just so happens to be Nintendo's day of the event. They will apparently be hosting their first ever "Digital Event" on this day. What they plan to use this time for is anybody's guess. However, one of the few things that we know for sure is that on the game's floor, Nintendo will be hosting a "Super Smash Bros. Invitational", which is a major tournament set to showcase the upcoming fighting game for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U.

The games Nintendo has formally announced that they have on their agenda on this day (other than Smash) are as follows: Bayonetta 2, Hyrule Warriors, a new RPG game called X, Pokemon Omega Ruby and Pokemon Alpha Sapphire, and last but certainly not least the official unveiling of The Legend of Zelda for the Wii U. With no other details than that, I'm sure it's going to be a must see event. I hope we actually get a brand new and innovative IP from Nintendo for their Wii U console. I think that console would greatly benefit from getting something new like that for it.


As for the rest of the companies, they will be showcasing their games throughout the 11th and 12th of June. These are the days we are going to hear from such names in the gaming industry as: Sega, Namco Bandai, Atlus, Bethesda, Square Enix, etc. Sega will provide some updates on Sonic Boom for sure. Atlus is going to show off Persona 5, Bethesda have The Evil Within to showcase as well. A lot of these third party developers have at least one game pre-announced for E3.


Square Enix is no different, as they have two major titles set to be displayed. Those, of course, are Final Fantasy XV and Kingdom Hearts III. Personally, I am very much looking forward to any updates regarding Kingdom Heart's second sequel. Considering it will have a year of development behind it come next week, I'd love to see the worlds, bosses, characters, and so on that we will potentially be able to interact with. I'm really holding out for a Toy Story-themed world in the third game, but anything Pixar would suffice just as easily. As long as there is some representation you know?