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Snapchat's 'Harry Potter' Bitmoji invade the Muggle world
Snap's fondness for pop culture Bitmoji now extends to the Harry Potter universe. In sync with the titular character's birthday, Snapchat now offers a 3D Harry Potter Bitmoji Lens that brings a dash of sorcery to the Muggle realm. It's not terribly complicated (your avatar flies around chasing the Golden Snitch from Quidditch), but you might appreciate the customization -- you can choose your Hogwarts House in addition to your usual appearance. If you're bent on flaunting your Ravenclaw affiliation to your friends, it should only take a few taps.
Visit the British Library’s ‘Harry Potter’ exhibit from your sofa
Assuming your Hogwarts letter got lost in the mail (it happens from time to time) and you still want a peek at The Boy Who Lived's coursework, Google has you covered. The search juggernaut has digitized the British Library's "Harry Potter: A History of Magic" exhibit and tossed it on the Google Arts & Culture mobile-and-web app.
UK bookstore tweets entire 'Harry Potter' novel at Piers Morgan
J.K. Rowling is famously outspoken on Twitter, a lesson Piers Morgan is now learning the hard way. On a recent episode of HBO's Real Time with Bill Maher, Morgan spoke in favor of President Donald Trump's travel ban, according to The Huffington Post. That prompted this tweet from the Harry Potter author, who took pleasure in the TV personality "being told to fuck off" by Maher:
Twitter's week of beef is something we need more of
Despite rapper beefs being an unofficial feature of Twitter practically since it launched, this week alone has taken things to a new level. Less than 24 hours after Neil deGrasse-Tyson tangled with B.o.B over (of all things) whether or not the Earth is round, Kanye West decided to call out Wiz Khalifa over criticizing the title of his upcoming album and his usage of "kk." ( Hit the link for a recap, but if you missed it: Kanye decided the letters were a shot at his wife when Wiz was just pushing his own Khalifa Kush. Things have now been settled after intervention by their ex-in-common Amber Rose.) At turns hilarious ("I went to look at your twitter and you were wearing cool pants ... #Wizwearscoolpants"); dismissive ("You have distracted from my creative process"); and incredibly disappointing ("you let a stripper trap you"); it was a moment that not only belongs on Twitter, it belongs to Twitter. It's time to embrace that.
Illustrated 'Harry Potter' novels come to iBooks
Apple fans are used to getting the latest and greatest before others, from apps all the way through to, uh, U2's latest album. But, they've also had to learn how to be patient, for instance, when it took several years before the Beatles released their back-catalog onto iTunes. That's why it's a red letter day for Harry Potter fans, since Apple has signed an "exclusive" detail with JK Rowling's people. For the first time, the digitally-enhanced versions of the world-famous novels are available on iBooks complete with high-quality illustrations and animations. The texts are still on sale at the official Pottermore website, but should you want to read them on your iPhone or iPad, you can grab each one for $9.99 a pop.
'Harry Potter' comes to Oyster's all-you-can-read book service
If you're the sort of Harry Potter fan who can't help but read the series again and again, Oyster has a treat in store. The all-you-can-read subscription service has teamed up with Pottermore to carry all of the Harry Potter books, including the Hogwarts Library collection. There's even a little treat the first time you start reading -- rather than pick from one of the humdrum standard themes, you choose your favorite Hogwarts house (Slytherin, obviously). You probably don't want to sign up for Oyster's $10 a month service just for the sake of reliving Harry's school years, but it's potentially cheaper than purchasing the series on top of a slew of other books.
J.K. Rowling, Google to bring Pottermania to your e-reader
Having a hard time parting ways with a certain plucky, lightning-scarred orphan? J.K. Rowling feels your pain (as she counts her money) and has teamed up with Google to help you fall in love with the world of Hogwarts all over again -- e-book style. The voluminous tomes will be making their exclusive electronic debut through Google's eBooks platform as part of the Sony-backed Pottermore site launching this October. El Goog's open format plays nicely with "more than 80 ereaders" -- we're looking at you iRiver Story HD -- and can also be downloaded in app form for iOS and Android smartphones. But the integration doesn't end there -- under terms of the agreement, Google Checkout "will be the preferred third party payment platform" for all the site's Harry Potter knick knacks your credit limit will allow. It's ok, you don't have to let go of the dream just yet. There's still a little wizard inside us all.
