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Valve will support the ROG Ally with SteamOS

Administrator — Tue, 20 Aug 2024 06:05:34 +0000

Valve will officially support SteamOS 3 on the Asus ROG Ally, the company has confirmed to The Verge.

This will address criticisms that Asus’ handheld gaming PC required people to play around with an awkward version of Windows. Valve had previously said gave a general statement about allowing other companies to use SteamOS, but this announcement provides explicit confirmation for ROG Ally support.

Official word from Valve comes after users spotted mention of “Added support for extra ROG Ally keys” in its latest SteamOS release notes. “The note about ROG Ally keys is related to third-party device support for SteamOS. The team is continuing to work on adding support for additional handhelds on SteamOS,” Valve designer Lawrence Yang told The Verge.

It’s unclear, however, when the support will come. For context, the ROG Ally launched over a year ago.

Distributed also on: The Verge

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Koodo ups $39 plan from 20GB to 50GB of 4G data

Administrator — Tue, 20 Aug 2024 06:03:23 +0000

Telus-owned Koodo surprisingly changed up its $44/mo plan, adding 30GB of data to it.

As of August 16th, Koodo’s website started showing a $44/50GB plan. With Koodo’s autopay system, the price drops to $39/mo. Previously, Koodo offered a $39/20GB plan, so that’s a significant increase in data for no extra cost, assuming you sign up for autopay.

Koodo’s previous 50GB plan cost $49/mo, or $44/mo with autopay.

The move puts Koodo’s 50GB plan below similar offers from Bell’s Virgin Plus and Rogers’ Fido, which both have $44/50GB plans. Update 16/08/2024 at 3:08pm ET: Virgin has now matched Koodo’s $39/50GB plan.

Koodo’s $39/50GB plan includes 4G data with speeds capped at up to 100Mbps along with unlimited Canada-wide calling and texting, call display, voicemail, call waiting and conference calling. Customers can also pick one free perk to add to the plan, such as premium voicemail or rollover data.

Moreover, while $39/50GB is an improvement for Koodo, it’s still not the best offer out there. Freedom Mobile has its $35/50GB 5G Canada/U.S./Mexico plan (after the $5 autopay discount and a $5/mo credit for 18 months), while Public Mobile has $34/50GB 4G and $39/50GB 5G Canada/U.S. plans.

Koodo also added its $5/mo autopay discount to its $30 talk and text plan, dropping the price to a more reasonable $25/mo.

You can check out the plan here.

The Rings of Power season one is now available on Samsung TV Plus

Administrator — Tue, 20 Aug 2024 06:01:20 +0000

Season one of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is now available on Samsung TV Plus. Oddly, this is a partnership between Prime Video and Samsung, and you don’t need to subscribe to Prime Video to get access to this. You do, however, need a Samsung TV.

The show will be available for two weeks, ending on August 28th, which coincides with the first two episodes of season two of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power dropping on the 29th on Prime Video.The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is set in the Second Age of Middle-earth, exploring the creation of the Rings of Power and the rise of Sauron.

If you haven’t watched the show’s first season, you can purchase a Samsung TV or subscribe to Prime Video.

Prime Video is included with an Amazon Prime membership, which costs $9.99/month or $99/year. Prime Video is available on the web, iOS, Android, consoles, smart TVs and more.

Epic Games Store app launches on iOS in EU and Android worldwide

Administrator — Tue, 20 Aug 2024 05:59:19 +0000

At long last, Epic Games has officially launched its Epic Games Store (EGS) on iOS in the European Union and on Android worldwide.

This comes after years of the Fortnite maker battling with Apple and Google over their respective app store policies. Epic is now able to launch an iOS version of the app in the EU following January changes to the region’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), which require Apple devices to allow third-party stores outside of the App Store.

On iOS, users will have to go through a multi-step process to download the app from Safari. A similar process will be required to download the app on Android through Chrome.

Through the EGS app, users will then be able to download Fortnite to their mobile devices. Fellow Epic-owned games Fall Guys and Rocket League Sideswipe are also available to download from the EGS app.

Epic first announced plans to bring EGS to iOS and Android in March, stating the app would launch sometime in 2024. However, Epic accused Apple of attempting to “stall” its efforts to bring EGS to iOS through “arbitrary” and “obstructive” App Store policies pertaining to ‘Install’ and ‘In-app purchases’ naming conventions and button labels.

Clearly, it eventually worked out, albeit so far only for the EU. However, Epic confirmed in a video explaining the steps to download EGS onto iOS devices that it is “working with regulators around the world to get the Epic Games Store on iOS in other locations, and to make this process easier in the future.”

The mobile rollout of the Epic Games Store coincides with Epic’s August 16th launch of ‘Absolute Doom,’ a new Fortnite crossover event with Marvel focused on iconic Fantastic Four villain Dr. Doom.

Distributed also on: Epic Games

Uber launches Uber One for Students in Canada

Administrator — Tue, 20 Aug 2024 05:57:13 +0000

With Back to School on the way, Uber is releasing a new way for postsecondary students to get more affordable Uber Eats deliveries. Uber says it partnered with SheerID to verify student eligibility. Meaning that hungry journalists like myself can’t take advantage of this deal.

Free Trial: Students who have never used Uber One can try Uber One for Students for free for their first four weeks.
Membership Cost: $4.99/month (50% off regular price).
Delivery Perks: $0 Delivery Fee on eligible food ($15+ basket), groceries ($40+ basket) and more, plus 5% off eligible deliveries and pick-up orders.
Cashback: Earn 5% Uber Cash on eligible rides.
Top-Rated Drivers: Only ride with top-rated drivers.

Uber also offers students exclusive deals to keep them fed.

Dominos: 10% off every order and score a free order of Parmesan Bread Bites on Wednesdays with orders over $25.
Starbucks: 10% off coffee runs, in addition to $0 Delivery Fee and 5% off Uber One Benefit.
Osmow’s: 5% off their Osmow’s orders (of $15+) and get a free order of Falafel on Mondays on orders of $15+.
Mary Brown’s: 5% off their Mary Brown’s orders (of $15+) and get a free Big Mary on Tuesdays on orders of $15+.

Companies are all in on magnetic rings in Pixel 9 cases this year

Administrator — Tue, 20 Aug 2024 05:55:17 +0000

Since the Pixel 9 series has again eschewed Qi2, it’s been up to the manufacturers to pick up the slack.

Google is even selling cases from Bellroy, Mous and Case-Mate in its online store that feature magnetic rings inside so you can attach Qi2 chargers and accessories to your new Pixel 9-series phone.

I’ve been a fan of Belroy’s leather cases for years, so it will take a lot for me not to buy that one for my Pixel 9 unit, and the Ruby Red one for the 9 Pro XL is really striking. The options from Mous case are super thin, so they are likely the most minimal way to add magnets to your Pixel, and they also come in the most colours.

The Case-Mate option is made of clear plastic and features a white magnetic ring that resembles the basic cases for iPhones. However, it costs only $54 in Canada, making it the cheapest magnetic case Google sells.

Other cases that work with magnetic ring chargers (MagSafe and Qi2) are Peak Design’s Everyday Case ($64.95) and Moment’s Camera case, but the Moment case is only for the Pixel 9 Pro and 9 Pro XL, not the regular Pixel 9.

Beyond that, I’ve been able to find a few more cases with magnet rings, and they’re all listed below;

Image Distributed also on: Bellroy

OnePlus ‘Back to School’ deals offer discounts on tons of products

Administrator — Tue, 20 Aug 2024 05:53:16 +0000

OnePlus is offering several products at a discounted rate in time for back-to-school. With the code BACKTOSCHOOL promotion, you can get deals on the OnePlus 12, OnePlus Pad 2, OnePlus Open and more.

Here are the deals below:

Trade in and use code BACKTOSCHOOL to save up to $500 on the OnePlus Open and get free OnePlus Buds Pro 2.
Save $130 on the 16GB of RAM + 512GB of storage OnePlus 12 with free OnePlus Buds Pro 2 worth $269.99.
Save $100 on the 16GB of RAM + 256GB of storage OnePlus 12R.
Save 15 percent off the OnePlus Pad for $549.99.
Save 33 percent off the OnePlus Nord 3 Pro for $79.99.

There are a ton more deals at a discounted rate, you can check them out here.

Distributed also on: OnePlus

Virgin joins Koodo with its own $39/50GB 4G plan

Administrator — Tue, 20 Aug 2024 05:51:14 +0000

Bell’s Virgin Plus has rushed to match Koodo’s $39/50GB plan.

Virgin updated its website Friday afternoon to remove its $44/50GB 4G plan and bump its $39/20GB 4G plan up to 50GB. That matches the $39/50GB plan Koodo launched Friday morning, though notably, Koodo’s plan requires signing up for autopay to get that price.

Virgin’s plan includes 4G data with speeds capped at 150Mbps, video streaming capped at 480p, unlimited Canada-wide and Canada-U.S. calling and international texting sent from Canada. Notably, the Canada-U.S. calling and international texting features aren’t offered by Koodo.

At the time of writing, Rogers’ Fido still had $39/20GB and $44/50GB plans. However, I suspect Fido won’t be far behind the others and will have its own $39/50GB plan soon.

As I wrote in my post about Koodo’s plan, the $39/50GB option is nice, but doesn’t really stack up to other offers available. Freedom Mobile has its $35/50GB 5G Canada/U.S./Mexico plan (after the $5 autopay discount and a $5/mo credit for 18 months), while Public Mobile has $34/50GB 4G and $39/50GB 5G Canada/U.S. plans.

You can check out Virgin’s plan here.

The sequel to Fallout Shelter is finally out, in Canada at least

Administrator — Tue, 20 Aug 2024 05:49:24 +0000

A new game called The Elder Scrolls: Castles is now available on iOS and Android. It takes the gameplay of the wildly popular Fallout Shelter and adds even more features alongside a medieval fantasy style.

The game has actually been in early access in certain countries like the Philippines for at least the last seven months as the company looked to iron it out and make sure it was thoroughly playtested ahead of the global launch on September 10th.

Leading up to that, it looks like Canada has been included in the playtest, and now, Canadians can download and play the game on iOS or Android for free. M-series Mac users can also play the iPad version of the game on their computer.

Like Fallout Shelter, your ultimate goal is to build a large fortress and fill it with different rooms for things like resource production, population expansion and more. At its core, these are sim management games, but Castles twists things up by also forcing you to make difficult choices to really make you feel like the ruler of your kingdom. Also, like Fallout Shelter, you can send out your subjects on missions to help you get cool loot and other resources.

The other big twist in Castles is that every real-life day, a year passes in the game, so with time moving that fast, you should be aiming to manage a dynasty of rulers rather than mostly ageless groups of people like you do in the Fallout version.

Expect more on the game over time as I play it more, but for now, you’ll have to download it and play it yourself. (iOS/Android).

New Beats Studio Pros use Kim Kardashian’s specialty colours

Administrator — Tue, 20 Aug 2024 05:47:59 +0000

Following 2022’s Beats Fit Pros by Kim, the audio company has released a new slate of Kardashian colours for the over-ear Beats Studio Pro headphones.

Like the Fit Pro, you can get them in Moon, Dune and Earth colours. Earth is the deep brown model that’s in my photographs. Moon is more of a pale pink/beige colour and Dune is a lighter shade of brown that is almost verging on cream. All three look really cool though, and are more on trend with their colours than the normal black and white options you get from most brands.

These headphones might be backed by Apple, but notably they work just as well on iPhone as they do on Android and Windows. Plus, to take things a step further, they’ll also charge and play audio over USB-C at the same time when plugged in, which is a nice bonus.

They’re also one of the few pairs of headphones that fold up, and they come with a pretty compact case, making them great for travel. Notably, the headphones come with matching braided USB-C and AUX cables for charging and using these with a wired connection. You can also use the USB-C to C cable to transfer audio, and the earphones have their own DAC, so they can support lossless audio this way.

In a few brief listening sessions over the past two days, I’ve been impressed with the active noise cancellation (ANC) and sound quality. Combining that with the light weight, these have been great headphones to wear for extended periods of time. The sound quality doesn’t feel as strong as what you get from the Sonos Ace, but the Beats are roughly $100 less, so I’d argue their lower price makes up for the slight discrepancy in audio quality.

The other thing that’s great about these headphones is the control panel on the right earcup. Press on the Beats logo to play/pause or press on the upper edge of the cup to push volume up and the bottom edge for volume down.

If you really like these cool Kim K colours, you can buy the new headphones from Apple or Beats for $469.