Matt Brian

Former Managing Editor, UK

Matt Brian has spent over fifteen years sourcing, writing and editing stories about technology, video games and psychedelic rugs. After applying for his first role at The Next Web using his own Wordpress blog, Matt had a brief stint at The Verge before finding his forever home at Engadget in 2013. Originally joining as a news editor, Matt quickly became Managing Editor of Engadget's UK Edition, leading a small team of reporters that produced scoops and closely covered the UK tech news cycle before it was rolled into the global Engadget team. These days, Matt spends his time leading a worldwide news team from his base in the UK, while finding some of the best discounts and savings on popular tech products.

Articles by Matt Brian

'Fortnite' will force PS4 and Xbox One players to fight each other
For years, the idea of PlayStation 4 and Xbox One gamers teaming up and shooting enemies together was just a pipe dream. Walled gardens and exclusives meant picking a side and dealing with the consequences. However, thanks to the popularity of games like Fortnite, those multiplayer lobbies are now a much more accepting place. The battle royale shooter opened up last year, allowing players to find friends on other platforms and drop together. Now, Epic Games going one step further and automatically forcing PlayStation 4 and Xbox One players to fight one another every time they board the Battle Bus.
Treasure hunts have come to 'Fortnite'
Not satisfied with the swashbuckling adventures of Fortnite Season 8? Epic Games has you covered. As part of its first update to the game since things kicked off last week, the company will put you on the hunt for secret pirate bounties thanks to a new item: treasure maps.
Apple quietly bought Lighthouse's AI home security camera patents
When Lighthouse's intelligent security camera finally went on sale just over a year ago, the company believed that with AI recognition and 3D sensing technology, it offered something truly unique over its rivals. However, the promise of automatic face detection didn't really resonate with consumers, and the hardware maker shut down less than 10 months later. While the company slipped quietly into the night, its technology didn't, with none other than Apple ghosting in to acquire its innovations.
Fortnite's response to 'Apex Legends' is lava and pirates
After weeks of teases and many an earthquake, Fortnite Season 8 is officially here. As is typical with any major update to the popular battle royale shooter, there are a lot of new locations, unique weapons and tons of new skins and emotes, which all revolve around pirates, ice and a lot of lava. It appears Epic Games is taking notice of its competition too, because there's a lot of new features coming to Fortnite that you've possibly seen before in other games.
'Fortnite' players can get the next Battle Pass for free
For the best part of a year, Fortnite has been king of the battle royale genre, both in terms of players and revenue. PUBG and Blackout have attempted to usurp the free-to-play shooter but Epic Games has successfully managed fend off its competition with the promise of addictive gameplay and regular updates. However, there's a new pretender to the throne. In the space of two weeks, Respawn's Apex Legends has amassed 25 million players and become streamers' battle royale of choice. Epic Games knows it has a fight on its hands and has begun employing the clever tactic of giving away stuff for free in order to keep its player base loyal.
'Fortnite' will host a Marshmello concert this weekend
With Super Bowl LIII only days away, Epic Games is ensuring that Fortnite players will be able to partake in some of the festivities. As reported by The Verge, the game's creators have booked EDM artist and producer Marshmello to perform an in-game concert the game, which will be hosted directly on the football field in Pleasant Park.
IKEA is launching low-cost smart window blinds
Almost a year ago, Swedish furniture giant IKEA signalled its intention to make people's homes smarter with the launch of its own intelligent lighting range. TRÅDFRI -- as we now know it -- has grown to include a variety of LED bulbs, motion sensor kits, dimming lights and a selection of LED light panels and doors that can be built into kitchen and bedroom cabinets. With its low-cost lighting now in stores all over the world, IKEA has decided it wants to further automate people's homes and has confirmed the launch of a new product: smart window blinds.
'Infinity Blade' will live on inside 'Fortnite'
For any studio, stopping development on a game is never fun. Just ask Epic Games, which just announced that it will no longer dedicate any more resources to its Infinity Blade trilogy because it couldn't support the series to "a level that meets [its] standards." However, when you're also behind one of the biggest games of 2018 (hint: Fortnite), it often provides opportunities for some of those older ideas to live on. That's exactly what's happened in the battle royale title's latest update, which welcomes the Infinity Blade as its new weapon.
'Fortnite' season seven adds planes, custom weapons and lots of ice
I don't want to undersell this, but if you've been looking to play as a swole Father Christmas, Epic Games' latest Fortnite update has got you covered. Season seven of the battle royale shooter has arrived, bringing with it weapon customization, a brand new icy biome, a bunch of new skins and even a new vehicle: planes.
Google's Home Hub is more like a Chromecast than an Android tablet
At first glance, Google's new Home Hub looks like any other smart display featuring the company's Assistant platform. It features both voice and touch inputs, giving consumers the option to manually control their smart home, watch YouTube videos and see appointments for the week ahead. However, underneath the hood, Google has done things a little differently. Unlike Lenovo, JBL and LG, Google's Home Hub doesn't run a stripped-down version of Android -- in fact, it's closer to a Chromecast.
'Fortnite' season six arrives with invisibility and pets
It feels like we had to wait forever, but it's finally here: Fortnite season six has begun. As is customary with any new competitive window, tonnes of new content has landed, but it's also time to say goodbye to items and locations you may have come to love (or really really hate). The theme for season six is "Darkness Rises," turning the island shadowy thanks to the otherworldly powers exhibited by "The Cube."
The latest Pixel 3 leak came from the back of a Lyft
In a truly global smartphone market, unreleased devices leak all the time. It's become almost impossible for Apple, Samsung and other major handset manufacturers to keep designs, specifications and features of their latest flagship secret before their official launch. The same can be said for Google, which has seen its upcoming Pixel 3 launch beset by a number of leaks -- none more puzzling than having the larger model appearing in the back seat of a Lyft.
Dixons Carphone admits 2017 hack was bigger than first thought
Dixons Carphone -- owner of major high street brands Currys PC World and Carphone Warehouse -- has confirmed that its 2017 cyber attack was much bigger than first anticipated. In an investor announcement, the company said that the breach affected as many as 10 million customers, up from the 1.2 million it acknowledged back in June.
Amazon sets its sights on official soccer shirt sales
Amazon's foray into clothing and fashion has been met with mixed responses, particularly from major labels that believe its marketplace could devalue their brand. That notion doesn't seem to fit with Italian soccer giants Napoli, however, as the club has just become the first team in the world to launch its own "brandstore" on Amazon's sprawling marketplace.
'Fortnite' season five adds a desert locale, golf carts and rifts
Fortnite players, the event you've been waiting for is finally here. Epic Games has officially kicked off the battle royale shooter's fifth season, offering a whole host of new locations, weapons, vehicles and mechanics. After teasing a historical theme at the end of Season 4, today's update delivers viking ships, sandy outposts (goodbye Moisty Mire), ancient statues and plenty of skins to do them justice.
'Fortnite' gets a four-player Playground practice mode
Fortnite: Battle Royale is relentless and unforgiving, affording players no time before 99 other wannabe champions set their sights on each other. In fact, the fast-paced action is one of the biggest barriers for new players -- people rarely have time to get to grips with the game's building mechanics and varying weapon types before they're set upon. Epic Games previously teased that it would introduce a new way for players to practice away from the main island. Playground Mode has arrived as part of today's v4.5 update, giving players a much-needed way to hone their skills before taking them onto the battlefield.
‘Fortnite’ E3 tournament was a taste of its esports future
As Fortnite continues to suck in gamers by the millions, Epic Games has worked hard to keep the game fresh and entertaining, whether players are dropping in for the first or thousandth time. But behind the scenes it's also putting the finishing touches on its plans for turning Fortnite into a competitive sport. Last month, it committed more than $100 million into Fortnite tournament prize pools and announced its first official esports event: the Fortnite Pro-Am. Popular streamers and YouTubers -- with backgrounds in PUBG, League of Legends, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Call of Duty and, of course, Fortnite -- joined actors, sports stars and musicians at E3 for a 50-team, 100-person battle royale. Tyler "Ninja" Blevins, the biggest personality in competitive esports right now (helps when you stream with hip-hop megastar Drake), buddied up with EDM DJ Marshmello, and YouTuber Ali-A joined Fall Out Boy singer Pete Wentz while professional gamer Gotaga was accompanied by UFC fighter Demetrious Johnson in a bid to win a $3 million charity prize pool.
'Fortnite' gets its first vehicle: Shopping carts
For all of the things that Epic Games has delivered in its weekly Fortnite updates, vehicles have not been one of them. While both PUBG and H1Z1 already allow players to hop in a car and fast-travel across the map, Fortnite has relied on items such as Hop Rocks and Jetpacks to give gamers an advantage over their opponents. However, Epic Games isn't shy when it comes to testing out new ideas, so today it finally gave players their first taste of transportation in the form of 'shopping carts.
'Fortnite' update delivers destruction, new areas and meme emotes
Fortnite Season Four is here, and Epic Games has delivered in a big way. After teasing a spectacular comet crash at the end of the previous season, today's update sees much-loved areas of the map destroyed, new ones added and players bestowed with tonnes of new skins, emotes and in-game items.
'Fortnite' update adds instant fort-building grenades
As Fortnite continues to pick up new players across various platforms, Epic Games has consistently deployed new updates to keep the game fresh and free from game-breaking bugs. Earlier this week, we saw the team introduce new space-themed skins, complete with NASA-like space shuttle gliders, but we've had to wait until today to see some of the new in-game items. The most notable inclusion is the Port-A-Fort, a new epic drop that will instantly deploy a three-story fort made from metal.

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