YouTube will kill its classic desktop user interface in March

YouTube is the most popular video streaming service on the Web. Over the years, the Alphabet-owned company has redesigned its desktop user interface multiple times. In 2017, the desktop version of the service received a major redesign based on Google’s Material Design principles, including the use of more white space and bigger fonts. The redesign also included new features such as a dark mode (which arrived in Android in 2018) and better playback of portrait videos. It first started rolling out in March, and received a wider roll-out in August of that year. The interesting thing was that YouTube still retained an option for users to disable the new YouTube interface and switch back to its classic desktop UI. In fact, it was the default option on other web browsers for many months, until they were switched to the design incrementally. Now, the company has announced that it will kill the classic interface in March 2020.

Users who are still using the classic desktop interface will now get a notification that tells them to “Switch to the new YouTube”. The notification will also mention if their current browser is compatible with the new YouTube. YouTube’s reasoning for killing off the classic UI is that older versions of YouTube are missing “many of the new features and design improvements [that the company] has introduced over the past three years, including top requests based on [user] feedback”. The company also says that users may need to update their browser if it’s not compatible with the new version. The exact date for the transition was not mentioned.

It’s worth noting that the new YouTube design has a history of performing poorly in non-Chromium-based browsers such as the old Microsoft Edge and Firefox because of its reliance on a deprecated shadow DOM UI (it used Polymer 1.0 instead of newer versions such as Polymer 2.0 or Polymer 3.0). Specifically, it could even perform five times as slower in Firefox and Edge than in Chrome. The new Chromium-based Microsoft Edge has no problems with the new design, as expected. Users of older browsers that were still using the classic UI will have no choice but to upgrade their browser now to keep using YouTube, as it doesn’t seem as if any workarounds will be available to keep using the old UI. Therefore, the march to a Chromium-dominant web will continue.

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Via: 9to5Google

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10 Things That Everyone Traveling for Work Needs

Traveling for work is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, you are not permanently stuck in the office. But life on the road definitely comes with challenges. Here are ten gadgets and accessories that can make the journey much smoother — now with up to 74% off MSRP at the XDA Developers Depot.

MP02: Minimalist 4G Mobile Phone

This push-button phone gives you access to key technology, without the distractions of push notifications and games. You get 4G LTE connectivity with support for VoLTE, and 180 hours of battery life on standby. Normally $349, the MP02 phone is now $299.99.

Genius Pack Travel Backpack

This smart backpack opens into three sections, with a laundry-compression section, and space for a laptop. It comes with a charger to keep your devices powered, and the shell is water resistant. Worth $198, the backpack is now only $129 after a major price drop.

Incase Reform 15″ Brief with TENSAERLITE

With a faux-fur lining and impact-resistant sides, this stylish brief is a safer way to carry a MacBook. The butterfly design lets you fly through TSA checks, and there is even a dedicated iPad sleeve. The Reform Brief retails for $89.95, but you can get it now for $57.95.

InstaSteam™: The World’s First Electricity-Free Clothing Steamer

Measuring just 6.5 inches long, InstaSteam lets you freshen up your clothes wherever you go. You can steam two or three garments at a time, and you don’t even need an electricity supply. The InstaSteam is currently 39% off MSRP at $14.99. 

Incase Nylon Backpack

Made from ballistic nylon with a faux-fur pocket for any 15-inch laptop, the Incase backpack can handle any trip. It has five smaller pockets for accessories, and adjustable shoulder straps for comfort. Normally $159.95, the backpack is currently 74% off at $39.99.

Tech Accessory Travel Bag

Perfect for wires, power banks, USB drives, action cameras, and more, this gadget bag keeps your small items secure. It has 12 elastic loops for cables, slots for SIM and TF cards, and a water-resistant exterior. Normally priced at $24.99, it is currently $13.99.

Genius Pack Compression Packing Cubes Set

Designed to fit inside any regular overnight bag or suitcase, these compression cubes help you fit more into your luggage. The set includes small, medium, and large cubes, each made from durable nylon. Worth $78, the set is now only $39.99.

Rollux 2-in-1 Expandable Suitcase

Thanks to an award-winning design, Rollux can transform from a carry-on bag into a full suitcase in seconds. It is made from high-quality materials, with detachable spinner wheels and a built-in USB port. Originally priced at $349, the bag is now only $224.99.

Omni-Travel Bundle

Meet the ultimate travel survival pack. This bundle includes a soft memory foam travel pillow, a light-blocking sleep mask, and a lightweight travel toothbrush. It comes in a bag that straps onto your suitcase. Worth $99, the bundle is now 39% off at $59.99.

EndlessID® Smart Luggage & Backpack Tags: 4-Pack

These smart luggage tags are NFC-enabled, meaning baggage handlers can look up your details in seconds. In addition, you can upload medical information and see the last known location of your bag via email. Order now for $42.49 to get this four-pack, worth $79.96.

Prices subject to change 

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Huawei Band 4 goes on sale in India for ₹1,999 ($28)

The fitness band market in India is heating up and a number of smartphone OEMs have entered this space with their own unique offerings. Late last month, Chinese OEM Huawei also launched its fitness band — the Huawei Band 4 — in India for ₹2,099. The new fitness band from Huawei features a 0.96-inch touch-enabled display and a design reminiscent of the fitness bands from its sub-brand Honor. Unlike the fitness band from Honor, however, the Huawei Band 4 features a built-in USB plug to charge the device which eliminates the need for a proprietary charging dock.

For your fitness tracking needs, the Honor Band 4 includes support for 9 exercise modes, including outdoor running, indoor running, walking, outdoor cycling, indoor cycling, free training, elliptical machine, rowing machine, and indoor walk. The band is water-resistant up to 50 meters, which means that you can also take it swimming with you. For the health-conscious, the Huawei Band 4 includes a continuous heart rate monitor and a scientific sleep mode detector that can identify 6 most common sleep-related disorders. Additionally, the band features other quality-of-life features, including smart identification of cold calls, a phone finder, remote shutter capabilities, a smart clock, and a sedentary reminder to ensure you stay active.

Even with all the aforementioned features, the Huawei Band 5 boasts of up to 9 days of battery life on a single charge thanks to its 91mAh battery. The Huawei Band 4 is already available for purchase on Flipkart for an introductory price of ₹1,999 (~$28). If you’re interested in purchasing the new Huawei Band 4, you can follow the link to the Flipkart listing below. Do note that the introductory pricing is only available for a limited time, after which the band will be available for ₹2,099.

Buy Huawei Band 4 from Flipkart

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Google Chrome 80 stable update rolling out for Android and Desktop

Over the last few weeks, Google has been testing a bunch of new features for its popular browser Chrome. We’ve seen evidence of a radically new UI for Chrome’s new tab page on Android, a custom share sheet that was spotted in Canary, less intrusive notification prompts, and more. Now, Google has started rolling out some of these features in the latest update for Google Chrome. As per a recent report from BleepingComputer, Chrome 80 has now started rolling out to both Android and desktop. The update brings a wide array of security fixes, bug fixes, and several new features. Here are some of the major changes included in Chrome version 80.0.3987.87.

Back in May last year, Google announced new cookie controls to improve the way Google Chrome managed cookies. With the latest update, Chrome is enforcing the secure-by-default cookie classification system which is designed to treat cookies without a SameSite value SameSite=Lax. Google claims that only cookies set as SameSite=None; Secure will be available in third-party contexts, with the condition that they’re accessed from a secure connection. For a detailed explanation of what the SameSite cookie change is all about, you can check the video below.

The Google Chrome 80 update also auto-upgrades mixed content by rewriting the URL to HTTPS. The browser doesn’t provide an HTTP fallback and blocks the websites if they fail to load over https://. We learned about this feature back in October last year, and as per the schedule shared on the Chromium Blog, Chrome will now automatically update mixed audio and video resources. Mixed images, however, will still be allowed to load, but they will bring up the “Not Secure” label in the omnibox.

With Chrome 80, developers will also be able to use scalable SVG images as favicons. This could, in turn, help them reduce the number of such resources on any website or app. Additionally, the update also enables authors and users to link a specific portion of a webpage by adding a text fragment from the page to the website URL. When such a URL is opened in the browser, the added text will be highlighted in the page and Chrome will automatically scroll the highlighted fragment into view.

On top of all these changes, the latest Chrome update also brings a selection of changes and improvements to DevTools, along with a fix for 56 vulnerabilities identified in the browser.

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Source: Google (1,2), Chromium Blog

Via: BleepingComputer

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Google Play Games prepares to notify you of Google’s chosen Game of the Week

Even though Google Play Games isn’t one of the company’s more popular apps, Google keeps bringing new features to the app to keep it at par with all of its other offerings. Google Play Games was one of the earliest apps from the company to get a dark theme and it even received a major design overhaul last year. Now, it seems like Google is testing a new feature for the app which will notify users of the company’s Game of the Week selection to promote discovery.

An APK teardown can often predict features that may arrive in a future update of an application, but it is possible that any of the features we mention here may not make it in a future release. This is because these features are currently unimplemented in the live build and may be pulled at any time by the developers in a future build.

A teardown of the latest version of Google Play Games (v.2020.01.15707) revealed strings of code that talk about the upcoming feature. Once released, the Games of the Week notification feature will be available in the app settings and will allow users to tap on a toggle to receive notifications for Google’s top pick each week. Tapping on the setting for the first time will bring up a dialog that states, “We’ll highlight a different instant game every week and notify you when it’s ready. No installation needed.” The dialog will include a ‘Done’ button to enable the feature.

<string name="games__gotw__game_of_the_week_notifications_disabled_label"><u>Enable Game of the week notifications in settings</u></string>
    <string name="games__gotw__notification_channel_name">Game of the week</string>
    <string name="games__gotw__opt_in_dialog_body">"We'll highlight a different instant game every week and notify you when it's ready. No installation needed."</string>
    <string name="games__gotw__opt_in_dialog_button">Done</string>
    <string name="games__gotw__opt_in_dialog_label">Get game of the week notifications</string>
    <string name="games__gotw__opt_in_dialog_title">Want updates on the game of the week?</string>

For the unaware, Instant Games is a separate category within Google Play Games which consists of titles that you can play instantly without installing them on your device. These include titles like Microtrip, Mazes & More, and Sea Battle, that can be played just by tapping on the Instant play button next to the listing. As of now, Google has revealed no information on when the feature will roll out to the stable version of the app. But since the code has already made it to the app, we expect the company to reveal more information soon.

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Thanks to PNF Software for providing us a license to use JEB Decompiler, a professional-grade reverse engineering tool for Android applications.

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Amazon Echo Show 8 now available for pre-ordering in India

Amazon’s Echo and Google’s Nest (formerly Home) are the dominant players in the smart speaker market. The Echo lineup of smart speakers is powered by Alexa, while the Google Nest speakers are powered by the Google Assistant. Amazon and Google are competing for superiority in the smart speaker market. In 2018, both players separately introduced a new product category of smart speakers with built-in displays in the form of the Amazon Echo Show and the Google Nest Hub (formerly Home Hub) respectively. The original 10.1-inch Echo Show was launched two-and-a-half years ago, and since then, the family has expanded with a 5-inch Echo Show 5. More recently, Amazon launched the 8-inch Echo Show 8 as part of a variety of product announcements in September. Now, the device is available for pre-ordering in India. Its official price tag is ₹12,999 ($183), but the pre-ordering price is discounted to ₹8,999 ($126), until the product’s shipping date on February 26.

Echo Show 8

The Echo Show 8 comes with an 8-inch HD display, stereo sound with two-inch neodymium speakers and a passive bass radiator, Internet connectivity through Wi-Fi, and a camera with a built-in physical shutter to alleviate privacy concerns. It slots in above the Echo Show 5 and below the 10.1-inch Echo Show in Amazon’s device portfolio in terms of screen size and pricing. The Echo Show 8 is more expensive than the Echo Show 5, which costs ₹6,999 ($98) in India (although it originally launched for ₹8,999), while being cheaper than the 10.1-inch Echo Show (₹12,999 vs. ₹22,999). The capabilities of all three products are the same, as they differ only in their hardware.

The Echo Show 8 can do all things Alexa-related, which includes search queries, watching content, hands-free voice calls, video calls with the built-in display, and more. The existence of the product itself can be explained in a single sentence: Amazon wants to build Alexa-enabled devices in every size, for most popular consumer requirements. The company aims to make its voice assistant ubiquitous in the lives of consumers, and to an extent, it is succeeding.

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Pre-order the Echo Show 8 on Amazon India

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Galaxy Buds+ spec sheet and renders confirm what’s new for Samsung’s wireless earbuds

Late last year in December, we first got word of the upcoming Galaxy Buds+. At the time, we didn’t know anything about the earbuds other than its name. Then, late last month, leaked renders of the earbuds surfaced online giving us our first look at Samsung’s updated Galaxy Buds+. The renders confirmed no design changes for the wireless earbuds, however, they did confirm the three color variants. Now, just a week ahead of the Samsung Unpacked launch event, we have received more information about the upcoming earbuds.

Renowned leakster @evleaks has shared a detailed spec sheet for the Galaxy Buds+ which not only highlights all of its specifications but also reveals the price. As per the spec sheet, the Buds+ will be slightly heavier than the non-plus variant due to the slightly larger 85mAh battery in the buds and 270mAh battery in the case. Thanks to the larger battery, the Galaxy Buds+ will offer 11 hours of continuous use on a single charge, with an additional 22 hours offered by the charging case. The buds will also include fast charge support, boasting of 60 minutes of playtime with just 3 minutes of charging.

Much like the older Galaxy Buds, the Buds+ will feature Bluetooth 5.0, but this time around Samsung has included support for multi-device connections. The updated buds also feature a 2-way dynamic speaker system, one additional microphone, IPX2 rating, and support for iOS devices. Sadly though, the spec sheet doesn’t mention support for active noise cancellation. The Galaxy Buds+ will allegedly be available in four color variants — black, white, blue, and red — and it will be priced at $149.

The aforementioned information was also confirmed in a recent report from WinFuture, which also included some new renders of the Galaxy Buds+. The report also reveals that Samsung’s companion app for the Galaxy Buds+ is already available on the Apple App Store, thereby confirming iOS compatibility.

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Source: Twitter, WinFuture

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