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Nintendo will dedicate a 30-minute Direct stream to 'Splatoon 3'
The event happens on August 10 at 9AM ET.
Animal Crossing's Mario update lets you recreate the Mushroom Kingdom
Animal Crossing: New Horizons is getting a Super Mario Bros. themed update on February 25th.
Netflix is testing a linear-style TV channel in France
The beauty of Netflix is that you can watch anything anytime you want, but what if you don’t feel like making a decision? That’s the idea behind Direct, a new linear-style channel that Netflix is testing in France.
Uber revives product deliveries with person-to-person 'Connect' trial
Uber is returning to goods delivery as its profits have been hit by the coronavirus outbreak.
Paypal lets you spend money in Gmail, YouTube and more
Android Pay users have been able to dip into their PayPal accounts for a little over a year. Now, the money transfer service has partnered with Google to provide a more seamless way to use it across products like Google Play, YouTube and Gmail.
Instagram experiments with a standalone messaging app
It happened to Facebook, and now it's happening to Instagram. Today, the Zuckerberg empire is launching a standalone messaging app for Instagram called Direct. As The Verge reports, it's technically a test and will only be available in six markets — Chile, Israel, Italy, Portugal, Turkey and Uruguay. Like Messenger, the Direct app effectively cuts the Instagram experience in half; your Inbox lives in Direct, while the regular feed remains in the Instagram app. If you want to keep tabs on both, you'll have to shuffle back and forth. It sounds like both apps will have a built-in camera, however.
Play 'Super Mario Odyssey' in style with this themed Switch bundle
If you've been waiting for the next mainline Mario game to pick up a Switch, Nintendo has a bundle just for you. Today during its Nintendo Direct stream, the company announced a Super Mario Odyssey Nintendo Switch bundle, complete with Red joy-cons styled after the mascot's hat, a red carrying case bearing the game's logo and a full digital copy of the game.
Instagram Direct is a new way to share Stories
Though Instagram's Stories is already more popular than Snapchat, the photo-sharing service won't stop introducing more ways to share them. In May, it introduced location and hashtag Stories so they popped up more in Explore. Now, Instagram is taking it a step further and will now allow you to share other people's Stories through Direct messages. Sharing a Story is as simple as sharing a normal Instagram photo. Simply tap a direct icon at the bottom right, choose who you want to send the Story to, and hit send. Of course, as a Story only exists for 24 hours, the recipient had better check it quick before it goes away. Instagram describes this as a relatively harmless feature that lets people share interesting Stories in DMs. But it sounds a little creepy, especially if you tend to think of your Stories as intended only for your followers, not other people. Thankfully, Instagram has included an opt-out in settings, and if you have a Private account, only your followers will be able to see the Story through Direct messages. The feature is rolling out globally starting today, to both iOS and Android.
Nintendo will show off more ‘Super Mario Odyssey’ on Wednesday
Apple isn't the only company showing off new stuff this week. Nintendo has announced it'll hold a 45-minute Direct stream this Wednesday at 6 p.m. Eastern/3 p.m. Pacific. What's on tap? "Information mainly focused on what's headed to Nintendo Switch and Nintendo 3DS over the next few months," according to an email from the gaming titan. Oh, and the announcement specifically mentions we'll hear more about Super Mario Odyssey, which comes out next month (!!!). Unlike Apple's event tomorrow, you can all but guarantee nothing Nintendo announces will cost $1,000.
Valve is making it easier to publish games with Steam Direct
Valve is ditching its oft-maligned Steam Greenlight system for something more straightforward. For the uninitiated, Greenlight is a community-focused program that uses a voting system to determine which games are published on Steam. Developers post information, video and screenshots for their games. If they get enough community support, the games are "greenlit."
EVE Evolved: Could EVE use twitch controls?
A few weeks ago, the EVE Online community went nuts for EVR, CCP's exciting new virtual reality dogfighter developed for the upcoming Oculus Rift gaming headset. The game demo was produced by a team of just a handful of developers in just seven weeks using nothing but their spare time, but attendees and press at EVE Fanfest 2013 were nevertheless blown away during test sessions. Though EVR isn't going to be integrated with the EVE universe, Senior Producer Andie Nordgren stated in her Keynote address that CCP will be looking into more immersive flight and combat mechanics for some the game's ships. This comment has sparked a lot of discussion over the possibility of finally getting some direct flight controls in EVE. The lack of direct twitch-based controls in EVE is often cited by gamers as a big part of the reason they can't get into the game. There's no active dodging of missiles, manual ship targeting, or really complex tactical maneuvers in EVE, but that's kind of the point. Most ships in EVE are colossal lumbering hulks more akin to today's seafaring battleships than fighter planes, and combat with them is more a game of strategy and teamwork than a battle of reaction speeds. But that isn't exactly true of all ships; interceptors and fast microwarpdrive frigates move at several kilometres per second and are so agile that pilots can already pull off some interesting tactical maneuvers. So isn't it about time we made the combat for those ships a bit more visceral and immersive? In this week's EVE Evolved, I look at the fast-paced world of interceptors and explore how twitch controls and weapon aiming could possibly be implemented without killing the server.
MLB Network launches Strike Zone all-highlights channel on four providers
For football fans the NFL Red Zone and ESPN Goal Line Channels have streamlined game day viewing by focusing on switching between scoring opportunities from simultaneously airing games and now Major League Baseball has its own version (there's already a web edition dubbed Full Count). The MLB Network Strike Zone went live Tuesday night on Bright House Networks, DirecTV, Dish Network and Time Warner Cable, airing live look-ins on league games and highlights without any commercial breaks. Although there are baseball games throughout the week, Strike Zone will only broadcast on Tuesday and Friday nights during the regular season. We're not entirely convinced this will work as well as baseball or cause people to sign up for the sports tiers it seems to mostly be placed on the same way its football counterparts have, but it might be just the thing for baseball fans that can't stand following just one game at a time. Check the press release after the break for channel lineup details, and let us know if you've had a chance to check it out yet.
Motorola Admiral outed as mystery Sprint Direct Connect device, strikes a pose for the camera
That unnamed Motorola smartphone coming this fall to help usher in Sprint's new CDMA-based Direct Connect service? It appears to be the Admiral. If the name sounds familiar, its trademarked logo actually appeared simultaneously with the Samsung Epic 4G Touch. But it's so much more than a name now, thanks to a tipster who sent in an image of the device next to some well-detailed specs. The Admiral will likely be a portrait QWERTY Android 2.3 device powered by a 1.2GHz single-core Qualcomm MSM8655 CPU, and will feature a 3.1-inch VGA display, 5 megapixel camera with 720p HD video recording and a stellar 1,860mAh battery. Oh, and it's a rugged phone that's built according to 810G military specifications. If this truly is the mystery Motorola Direct Connect smartphone we've been waiting for, it's bound to turn a few hard-hat-donning heads. [Thanks, Anonymous]
Google calls Apple "valuable partner"
Steve Jobs is trashing Google internally according to rumors, but Google is having none of it. Company reps told the press at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this week that Google considers Apple "a very close and valuable partner," and that they believe that the relationship between the two companies "is stable." Of course, they were responding to rumors that Microsoft's Bing search engine would replace Google on the iPhone, and common sense will tell you that it'll be a cold day somewhere very warm before Apple chooses to partner with Microsoft over Google. If push came to shove, Steve would probably create his own search engine before partnering up with anyone in Redmond. But maybe the Google folks are also playing politics a little here -- Steve is not an unreasonable man, and he is known for being direct, especially in personal communication. Jobs can complain all he want in an internal meeting, but in public, it's probably best that Google takes the high road. Apple and Google may eventually have to show down over cell phones, but until they absolutely have to, it's probably better if they both play as nice as possible. [via Ars]
Sam Raimi thinks a Warcraft movie has potential
The hottest topic that didn't get discussed at BlizzCon this year was the WoW movie -- last year, we had a whole panel dedicated to how it was going, but this year, all we got was a vague mention that it's still being worked on. Still, the biggest question that hangs in the air is just who might direct it, and we've got our first rumor: Sam Raimi, he of Spiderman and The Evil Dead series. He's not exactly hired yet, but he is quoted by MTV Movies as being interested in the Warcraft story and universe.He's got my greenlight -- I don't know how good a movie it would be (Spiderman 3 is proof that Raimi, quirky as he is, can go off the rails at times), but any movie with Bruce Campbell in it works for me. And you know we'd get at least a cameo if Raimi took the helm. But at the very least, it sounds like Raimi has the right ideas to get a Warcraft movie together: "It has such great, adventurous characters in it," he says, "and such fantastic landscapes and rules."If you're going to start looking for directors, you could definitely do a lot worse. At least we know Uwe Boll will never direct it.Thanks to everyone who sent this in!
John Woo directing Ninja Gold film in conjunction with Warren Spector's game
John Woo will direct and produce the film-half of Ninja Gold, a multiformat project co-created with celebrated game creator Warren Spector. According to Woo's production partner Terrence Chang, the concept is based on ongoing factual accounts of the Yakuza and Russian mob stealing gold from South Africa. "The idea actually started with John Woo," Spector told Reuters, "He wanted to do something involving traditional ninjas in a modern-day setting, and the idea just resonated with me."The two components, the game and film, will be developed somewhat independently, while retaining similar elements that will provide a narrative link. In a departure from the norm, neither will be entirely based on the other -- think: convergence, like, totally. Though Spector has been credited as an executive producer of the film, he implied that Woo will be commanding the movie with little help from the game developers. Chang added that the film will be more reality-based (so no signature-Woo bullet ballets?), borrowing lightly from the fantastic elements of the game. Chang hopes that a script can be completed soon, so that production can begin next year. No timetable has been given for the game's development.As for Woo's other game-related project, Stranglehold, Chang suggested that a film adaptation was a strong possibility. "We would definitely bring Stranglehold to the big screen," Chang said. "We would like game titles to have all kinds of possibility. Having a movie made from them is certainly a major consideration for deciding on a title."
DirecTV activates HD locals in four cities, only eight more coming this year?
Grand Rapids, Green Bay, Greensboro and Providence step right up, you're the latest few in DirecTV's campaign to roll out MPEG-4 local channels via satellite. And by "few" we mean fewer than expected. DirecTV previously announced it was planning to add local stations to 25 markets in the fourth quarter of this year, bringing the total number to 67. Without any update on why, these latest press releases indicate that with the four markets added yesterday the company is now up to 49, and expects to add eight more by the end of the year. Thanks to our 3rd-grade educations we have deduced that this will only be 57 markets total. Which 10 cities can join Albany-Shenectady-Troy in waiting for next year is unknown, but maybe that means have the HR20's glitches will be fixed by the time locals come to your area. The stations added yesterday are: Grand Rapids, Michigan WZZM/ABC and WWMT/CBS Greensboro, North Carolina WXLV/ABC, WFMY/CBS, WGHP/FOX and WXII/NBC Green Bay, Wisconsin WBAY/ABC, WFRV/CBS and WGBA/NBC Providence, Rhode Island WLNE/ABC and WJAR/NBC
Switched On: The gist on your wrist
Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On, a column about consumer technology, multimedia, and digital entertainment: Watch maker Fossil was among the first companies to support MSN Direct, the smart objects technology first offered by Microsoft in a number of timepieces. Earlier this year, the company, through its Abacus brand, revisited the technology in its Abacus Smart Watch 2006. While the watch is still on the bulky side, it's slimmed down a bit and Fossil has used a sloping profile to minimize the watch's girth. In fact, the Abacus 2006 was no thicker than a workaday Seiko men's watch I purchased last year. Other improvements include more memory and the inclusion of a year of MSN Direct service. Abacus offers the watch with a metal band that nicely complements the watch's masculine design for $179, as well as a number of leather straps. Unlike nearly any other consumer product that includes Microsoft software, it has nary a trace of Microsoft branding. Like all of the MSN Direct watches, the 2006 Abacus uses FM radio technology to communicate updates to the device. After activating the timepiece, you choose content channels from a Microsoft Web site. The content has diversified considerably from when the watch was first launched, but it's still mostly focused on the basics, including a variety of different "faces" -- two of which I found attractive, three more of which were acceptable, and several of which were just hideous.
Your DIRECTV H20 running hot? Install a fan
Do you have DIRECTV'S newest high-def receiver? The H20? If you do we are confident that it runs hot 'cause most of 'em do. We don't know why (someone can tell us if they know) but we do have a solution for you that we found on AVSForums. Simply, well not super easy but still easy, install a fan on the inside of the unit. We are just talking about a normal 80mm fan that you would use in your computer. If you are going to do this though, make sure you spend the few extra bucks to get a quiet one too; there is nothing worse then a noisy fan mixed in with your AV equipment. You might even want to do a slow 120mm fan as they are historically a bit slower and therefore more quiet. This would require you to take apart the box and keep in mind that if it was 'purchased' after March 1st, this must void some type of user agreement as you don't own the box but are leasing it. The fan plugs into the USB port on the back panel though and since you aren't touching anything on the board, if you take your time chances are DIRECTV won't even notice your were playing around inside of their equipment. Have fun!
Switched On: A direct hit
Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On, a column about the future of technology, multimedia, and digital entertainment: "Hey there. Is this place new? I've been to this mall many times and never saw it before." "Yes, sir. Welcome to The Hewlepsmark Inkjet Printer Cartridge Experience." "No kidding. A whole location devoted to just to printer cartridges?" "Not just any printer cartridges. Only Hewlepsmark inkjet printers. You see, after some failed early experiences with tech manufacturer-direct stores from Gateway and Microsoft, the past few years have seen Apple, Sony, Nokia, Palm, Nintendo, and now Pioneer move forward with their own retail stores. Even Dell and Samsung are using their own retail space to showcase their products. Soon we're bound to see Coby Corner, Craighead, and jWINdow Shopping. It's all the rage. "So, we thought, as one of the world's premiere printing companies, why not develop an environment where we can really reinforce the brand identity and provide a showcase for our great variety of inkjet colors, the best printer cartridge shopping experience possible. We also have weekly seminars, like the one next Wednesday about the link between third-party refill kits and gingivitis."
