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The Morning After: Square is building a bitcoin hardware wallet
And Amazon's (kind of) exclusive streaming rights deal.
As studios and streaming services continue to strike deals, jump ship and generally settle with preferred partners, it’s getting harder to figure out which movies will be available where — and when. Amazon’s latest deal with Universal is case in point.
Amazon has struck a multi-year deal for exclusive Prime Video streaming rights for Universal's live-action theatrical releases, which will kick in next year. According to a report from Deadline, it will cover blockbusters such as Jurassic World: Dominion, Get Out director Jordan Peele's next horror film and Halloween Ends.
However, the deal is for a chunk of the pay-one window, which is the 18-month period after a movie's theatrical run. Just days ago, Universal struck an agreement with its NBCUniversal sibling, Peacock, for the first four and last four months of the window.
So, that should mean that within four months of their theatrical release date, Universal's live-action movies will start streaming on Peacock. Four months after that, they'll move over to Prime Video for a 10-month run, before going back to Peacock for at least another four months.
Universal’s plan seems to be shuffling the release schedule around different streaming platforms to ensure its movies get to more audiences across different services — while keeping said platforms satisfied with what they get. The trouble is you might struggle to find the film you want to watch — or miss the chance to see it — unless you’re paying a lot of attention to movie release dates.
— Mat Smith
Qualcomm and ASUS made a phone for Snapdragon Insiders
An expensive phone for spec die-hards.
ASUS and Qualcomm have teamed up to make a smartphone that shows off some of the latter's mobile tech. Although the phone is ostensibly for the 1.6 million members of the Snapdragon Insiders program, it'll be more broadly available by August.
Oddly, it won’t pack the very highest-end Qualcomm mobile processor (Snapdragon 888+), but a Snapdragon 888 5G chipset, with what’s described as "the most comprehensive support for all key 5G sub-6 and mmWave bands" of any device, along with WiFi 6 and WiFi 6E. There’s also 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage.
The screen, too, is specced out: It’s a 6.78-inch AMOLED screen with a 144Hz refresh rate and up to 1,200 nits of brightness. The rear 64-megapixel camera will also be capable of recording 8K video.
It’ll be one of the first phones to support Snapdragon Sound, which features low Bluetooth latency, listening profiles, active noise cancellation (ANC) and high-resolution audio support up to 24-bit 96kHz. Along with stereo speakers, the phone comes with Master & Dynamic true wireless ANC earbuds, which is a nice touch. The ASUS-designed Smartphone for Snapdragon Insiders will initially be available in a few countries, including the US, UK, Japan and South Korea. It will cost a heady $1,499 when it arrives later this summer. Continue reading.
Harley-Davidson's latest LiveWire electric motorcycle is a more affordable ride
The first electric motorcycle from the company's LiveWire brand is here.
The most eye-catching feature of Harley-Davidson’s new LiveWire One is its price tag. The electric motorcycle will cost $21,999. That’s almost $8,000 less than the $29,799 the original LiveWire sold for when it came out in 2019. With federal subsidies, Harley-Davidson expects most US buyers will be able to get the LiveWire One for less than $20,000.
Harley-Davidson has also improved the motorcycle’s range. Driving on slower city streets, the LiveWire One can travel 146 miles on a single charge, the company claims. By comparison, its predecessor was limited to a maximum of about 110 city miles. Using a DC fast charger, the company says you can get the LiveWire One’s battery from dead to a full charge in about an hour.
The second electric motorcycle from Harley-Davidson will initially be limited to customers who live in California, New York and Texas since only 12 dealerships in those states are authorized to sell the LiveWire One at the moment. However, the bike will be available at more dealers come this fall. Continue reading.
Square will build a bitcoin hardware wallet
But it's still early days for the project.
Square is building a bitcoin hardware wallet and service, a month after company CEO Jack Dorsey announced it's considering the move. Jesse Dorogusker, Square's Hardware Lead, revealed on Twitter that the company came upon the decision "to make bitcoin custody more mainstream.” At this point, the company at least knows it wants to make the product available globally and prioritize mobile use. Continue reading.
The first ‘Star Trek’ movie is getting a 4K remaster
Headed to Paramount+.
Paramount has greenlit a “full restoration” of Robert Wise’s 2001 Director’s Edition of Star Trek: The Motion Picture. The project will apparently take between six and eight months to finish, be formatted in 4K, with Dolby Vision HDR, and have a new Dolby Atmos soundtrack.
The film, which was the first time Kirk, Spock et al. hit the big screen, was a slower affair than you might expect from a sci-fi series, taking some inspiration from 2001: A Space Odyssey.
And no, this isn’t the one where Kirk shouts “Khan!” Continue reading.
The best high-tech gear for babies
If it can make parenting easier, it’s a good gadget in our book.
When it comes to dealing with a newborn baby, you need all the help you can get. While tech can’t help with everything — where’s our diaper-changing robot of the future? — you can upgrade your nursery with some reliable, simple to use and effective kit. We pick out our favorite baby monitors, smart breast pumps and more. Continue reading.
But wait, there’s more...
Dodge will debut an all-electric muscle car in 2024
Petcube is making a more affordable treat slinger for your pets
EU fines BMW and VW $1 billion for limiting emissions reduction tech
Marvel's 'What If...?' series debuts August 11th on Disney+
'Death Stranding Director's Cut' will hit PS5 September 24th
Canon's EOS R6 and EOS-1D X Mark III get C-Log 3 support
FDA clears Natural Cycles birth control app for use with wearables
