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Google's 2016 was defined by 'Pokémon Go,' Olympics and Trump
Google's Year in Search summaries have a knack for capturing the cultural zeitgeist, and that's truer than ever in 2016. The company has published its top search trends for the year, and it clearly mirrors a tumultuous 12 months defined by the unexpected, the tragic and the rise of technology. Notably, the biggest global search trend was for Pokémon Go -- yes, the wildly popular mobile game did more to captivate the world's attention than political upheaval or sports triumphs. Apple's iPhone 7 was the runner up, followed by President-elect Donald Trump.
Twitter in 2016 was a pretty depressing place to be
Let's not be mealymouthed: 2016 sucked. As a stark reminder, Twitter has released its "Top 10 Global Conversations" for the year, a change from last year's #YearOnTwitter format. This time, it lumped events into categories like #RIP, #Brexit, #Trump and #Oscars, perhaps as a way to give equal time to the rare good news stories. Otherwise, the list would be pretty much death, politics and Trump.
Brexit's good for tech, Brexit's bad for tech
Ever since 52 percent of referendum voters helped decide that life would be better outside of the European Union, Britain's economic future has been less than certain. The government continues to insist "Brexit means Brexit" and is attempting to negotiate trade terms before invoking Article 50 early next year, leaving markets and statisticians to estimate its true impact. While those talks are held behind closed doors, in the past week, some of the world's biggest technology companies -- Google, Facebook and IBM -- have seized the opportunity and confirmed their commitment to the UK. "Leavers" may see it as justification of their vote, but there's more to these announcements than meets the eye.
Microsoft to raise some UK prices by up to 22 percent over Brexit
Like it or not, the outcome of the Brexit vote has caused a lot of financial uncertainty in the UK. The government has yet to decide which course to take when it invokes Article 50, effectively triggering an exit from the European Union, but some major tech companies have already moved to reduce the impact of the falling pound. In a recent blog post, Microsoft shared that it too will soon amend prices, confirming that from January 1st, 2017, business software pricing will rise by 13 percent and cloud services will see a 22 percent increase.
'Football Manager 2017' will simulate the effects of Brexit
With Football Manager, developer Sports Interactive has always tried to make the most authentic manager simulator possible. Juggling transfers, training and match tactics -- it's a deep, addictive blend of strategy, statistics and luck. For the latest version, Football Manager 2017, the team is going one step further by including the British EU referendum. The UK will trigger Article 50 by the end of March 2017, beginning its separation with the EU. It could have financial and legal repercussions for the football industry too, which Sports Interactive is keen to emulate. The problem is that until it happens, predicting the exact consequences is tricky.
Apple has quietly hiked the price of key products in the UK
The price of admission for Apple's gadget wonderland is slowly rising in the UK. The company announced a slew of new products yesterday, including the iPhone 7 and Apple Watch Series 2, with a flurry of slides and promotional videos. But behind all of the grandstanding were some notable price increases; the smaller iPad Pro, for instance, now starts at £549, rather than £499. The 128GB model has been bumped to £639 -- up from £619 -- and all of the 4G-ready models have been notched up too. Weirdly, however, the standard 256GB model has been dropped by £10.
Fox News broke UK broadcasting rules with pro-Brexit views
UK communications regulator Ofcom has ruled that Fox News broke broadcasting guidelines when it aired a program discussing the EU referendum on the day of the vote. Your World with Neil Cavuto, a show produced in the US, was broadcast in the UK at 9pm on June 23rd, one hour before the polls had closed. During the business and financial news program, Cavuto said:
OnePlus 3 gets a £20 price bump after Brexit madness
As the UK government crumbles before our very eyes, the fallout from the vote to leave the European Union is even starting to impact our beloved gadgetry. OnePlus was eager to warn us last week that the falling value of the British Pound might cause the company to revisit handset pricing -- much in the same way a Euro exchange rate slump was reflected in a jump in the cost of the OnePlus One early last year. That warning has become a reality today, with the announcement that as of July 11th, the price of the much-praised OnePlus 3 will increase from £309 to £329.
Brexit: Where UK tech companies stand on the EU referendum
The political mud-slinging that has defined Britain's EU referendum has almost come to a close. At 7am tomorrow morning, polling stations will open and UK citizens will be allowed to vote on whether to leave or stay in the European Union. Arguments have been drawn up on either side, contesting how the economy, jobs and immigration would be affected by a hypothetical split. In truth, nobody knows what would happen if Britain left the EU -- there are too many factors and decisions to consider. On the eve of such an important vote, Engadget contacted 50 technology companies that are either based in the UK or wield significant influence there, be it through sales, users or general operations. We posed a simple question: should Britain leave or remain in the EU? While many declined to pick a side, the majority that did were in the "remain" camp. Only one, in fact, thought it was best for Britain to cut its ties with the European Union.
Tinder: one in five Brits swiped right to learn more about Brexit
Despite its reputation as a dating app for millenials, Tinder often uses its powers for good. In the US, it's already helped Americans find their presidential match and learn more about the dangers of STDs. But in the UK, over the past three weeks, Tinder has been educating users about tomorrow's EU referendum -- commonly known as the Brexit vote -- and it's had quite the effect.
John Oliver's Brexit takedown won't air in the UK until after EU vote
As Britain gears up to vote in the EU referendum later this week, broadcasters are constantly working to ensure their coverage remains impartial. One such company is Sky, which has this week been forced to delay the latest instalment of John Oliver's Last Week Tonight HBO show. Why? Because it contains a 15-minute diatribe on why the UK should remain part of Europe. Instead of airing the programme after Game of Thrones on Sky Atlantic on Monday night, like it does usually, Sky has pushed it back until 10:10pm on Thursday, just after the polls close. Social media users are up in arms about the decision, but in reality, Sky appears to be playing everything by the book.
