Eve and Villanelle's spy games finally seem set to come to a head, in what looks like being a chaotic finale for the hit Phoebe Waller-Bridge show. Read on to find out to watch the Killing Eve season 3 finale no matter where you are in the world - including for free where possible.
With a host of loose ends to tie up, Eve and Villanelle have a lot of ground to cover in episode 8. Read on for full details of your viewing options for the Killing Eve season 3 finale - but please be aware that potential spoilers lie ahead.
The tagline for episode 8 is “Are You Leading Or Am I?”, and its corresponding teaser trailer offers a few telling insights as to how events are set to play out. Not least, that the show's two main protagonists look to have finally been brought back together.
Meanwhile, the official synopsis for the finale piles on the intrigue as to what the nature of their reunion will be like: "Konstantin makes a break for it. Carolyn might have finally found what she’s looking for. Eve and Villanelle try to work out what the future may hold for them…together or apart".
While it's fair to say the new series hasn't been quite the big hit that its predecessors were with critics, we're still hoping Waller-Bridge has pulled it out of the bag for the season finale. Whichever way the story pans out, you can probably expect a cliffhanger - as season 4 of the show has already been green lit.
Follow our guide as we explain all the easiest ways to watch the Killing Eve season 3 finale and stream the last episode of the show online from anywhere in the world.
How to watch Killing Eve online from outside your country
The coronavirus may have put old paradigms like holidays and work trips to bed temporarily, but the fact is international travel will one day resume in full - and you may even be stuck outside your country of origin, for whatever reason. If and when that's the case, you could be forgiven for wanting a taste of home comforts, especially now.
If that means streaming the services you normally would, geo-blocking can prove to be a major obstacle - but fortunately there's an easy solution. Using a little handy trick, you can get around these pesky digital borders using a VPN. This will allow you to gain access to Killing Eve as it happens by changing your IP to your nation of residence. But which VPN is best for you?
How to watch Killing Eve for free online: stream the season 3 finale in the UK for FREE
How to watch the Killing Eve season 3 finale online in the US
How to watch Killing Eve online in Australia
How to watch Killing Eve online: stream seasons 1 and 2 for free
If you're new to Killing Eve, then there are worse things to do during a global pandemic than watch the first two seasons of the hit show.
Anyone in the UK or the US has it good, as the BBC show is available on a number of convenient streaming services.
In the US, the best option for binging Killing Eve right now is Sling TV, whose affordable $30 a month Orange bundle gets you the full back catalogue for on-demand streaming plus all the new season 3 episodes.
Another option is Hulu, which offers a FREE trial and seasons 1 and 2 of Killing Eve on-demand, but note that you'll need its higher-end Hulu + Live TV package, which normally costs $54.99 a month.
Although BBC America does also offer its own option for a free season 2 Killing Eve stream - as does AMC to the best of our knowledge.
In the UK, it's all gratis provided you hold a valid TV license in the country - in which case just tune into BBC iPlayer and watch Killing Eve seasons 1 and 2 for free online.
If you're in Australia, you can watch Killing Eve season 1 on Stan - but beyond that you're looking at paying to buy the show via a platform like iTunes.
Will a makeover be in store for host Steve Harvey? Celebrity Family Feud returns with a showdown between two generations of Queer Eye cast members - read on to find out how to watch Celebrity Family Feud online and stream the show no matter where you are in the world.
The new season kicks off by pitting the original Queer Eye crew, led by Carson Kressley, against the latest cast members from Netflix's version of the show, captained by Bobby Berk. Needless to say, we're in for a hilarious one-hour episode!
Joining Bobby in his team will be Jonathan Van Ness, Antoni Porowski, Tan France and Wesley Hamilton. Facing them will be Carson's Queer Eye OG team, featuring Ted Allen, Kyan Douglas, Thom Filicia and Jai Rodriguez.
As ever, the show sees celebrities, along with their families and friends, go head-to-head in a contest to name the most popular responses to survey-type questions posed to 100 people to win money for a charity of their choice.
Alongside the Queer Eye special, the new season also promises a battle of the East Coast Reality Stars from “Jersey Shore” versus the West Coast Reality Stars from “The Hills.”
Future episodes are also set to see appearances from 2Chainz, Cedric The Entertainer, Big Boi, Kevin Nealon, Drew Carey and Drag Race star RuPaul. Read on to find out how to watch Celebrity Family Feud and stream every episode live no matter where you are in the world.
How to watch Celebrity Family Feud online in the US for free
AT&T Now: Has numerous plans, the cheapest being $65 p/m for over 40 channels, which includes ABC as well as HBO. As ABC is only available in select markets you should check to ensure you have access to the channel's live stream.
YouTube TV: $44.99 for over 70 channels. Episodes of Celebrity Family Feud can be watched On Demand and live, though double check ABC is available to stream in your area by entering your zip code.
How to watch Celebrity Family Feud from abroad
While anyone in the UK will find it easy to watch Celebrity Family Feud via ABC, folks elsewhere in the world may struggle to tune in to the new gameshow because of geo-blocking.
If this is the case, anyone from the US who's currently abroad could consider using a VPN. This nifty bit of software changes your IP address so that you can access all the content and services you already pay for back home - just from anywhere in the world.
OPPO recently dropped an official teaser for the upcoming Reno4 series of phones. The Reno4 and Reno4 Pro will be launched on June 5 in China. Now, renders and specifications of the OPPO Reno4 have leaked online.
The smartphone features a 6.43-inch Full HD+ display with a punch-hole at the upper-left corner of its screen. The duo is said to be powered by the Snapdragon 765G SoC and pack a 4,000mAh battery with 65W fast charging.
On the optics front, the OPPO Reno4 is tipped to sport a 48MP primary sensor + an 8MP camera + a 2MP lens. On the front may lie a 32MP + 2MP dual selfie shooter. The Pro variant is said to come with OIS on the primary camera alongside a 12MP lens and a 13MP sensor.
We’re certainly using our phones a bit differently while we shelter-in-place to ride out the outbreak – binging more media, chatting over video, and taking breaks from social media. But it took us a couple months to realize something else: since we’ve spent most of our time in our apartments and homes, we’re rarely out of Wi-Fi range, and our LTE data consumption has plummeted.
Which has led us to a new suggestion: perhaps it’s time to dial down your data cap and save some money on your monthly plan, at least for the foreseeable future.
This advice isn’t for everyone: there are still plenty of you who are still leaving home often enough to keep your data plan right where it is, and are benefiting from US carriers relaxing late fees, UK carriers giving 10GB of extra data per month, or other such relief amid the outbreak.
Data use (in GB) by month: March, April, and May
But we, working from home, found our cellular data use plummeting: one of our editors, who regularly used more than 14GB per month, saw their LTE data consumption drop down to just over 1GB. To be clear, everyone’s still downloading more data as they watch and video chat more – they’re just accessing it over their Wi-Fi instead of tapping into their data plan.
First up: check your data
Before you consider jumping ship on your reliable data plan, it's probably wise to check how much data you’ve used. Now that we’re a couple months into a new stay-at-home reality, you should have some idea how that’s changed your data consumption habits.
Most carriers or networks will have their own tools that help you visualize how much data you’ve used in the last pay period, which is typically broken up into monthly chunks. Log in to your carrier’s website or dedicated app and head to your account page, where a ‘usage’ section should outline what you’ve used thus far.
Compare that to your previous period’s data usage by navigating to the appropriate section – for the US carrier Verizon, for instance, you can find this on the ‘My Usage’ page > ‘View previous usage’ > My Bill section, or you can find it in the My Verizon app by going to Data Hub > History > selecting which billing cycle you’d like to see.
If your data use hasn’t changed much, that’s fine – but if it’s dropped while you’ve been relying on WiFi at home, read on for how to change your plan.
Switching your plan: easier than it sounds
For most carriers, switching data plans isn’t too difficult, and it’s broadly similar between providers: sign in to your account either online or in your carrier’s dedicated app, navigate to your account settings, and look for a way to manage your plan (with Verizon, it’s changed by going to My Verizon > clicking Manage plan; with T-Mobile, it’s changed by going to Account > choosing your plan > clicking ‘Manage my plan’).
It’s possible that differences between carriers will make it more difficult to shift plans, though providers should let you swap to a new one without too much delay. If you’re still in contract, you may not be able to do so.
If it’ll save you money, and you’ll be sticking around Wi-Fi for the foreseeable future, it might be worth the effort to switch over. And if you don’t end up using much data at all, perhaps consider switching to a prepaid or metered plan, if that works for you.
By the time things open back up and you transition away from home, it should be just as easy to ramp up your data cap, too. And by saving a little money in the meantime, maybe you can afford some of the weird tech stuff we’ve picked up to make our shelter-at-home lives just a little more comfortable.
If you're after a powerful tablet for flexible work, streaming, or gaming, you'll want to check out the latest Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 deals at Best Buy. While an iPad Pro will set you back closer to $900 right now, you'll find these cheap tablets up for just $549 at the cheapest end.
That's the price of a 128GB Tab S6, but if you can stretch just a little further you can double your storage for just $619 this weekend. That's a $110 discount on the larger model, and a fantastic price cut on one of Samsung's most recent releases.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 combines a lightweight, slimline design with powerful octa-core processing and the flexibility of a more laptop-based design once a keyboard is attached. If you do opt for the cheaper model this weekend, you'll also be glad to know that you can always upgrade your capacity thanks to the microSD slot.
We're rounding up these Samsung Galaxy Tab deals below, but you can also find more Samsung tablet prices and sales from around the web. Not in the US? You'll find the best Tab S6 prices in the UK and Australia further down the page.
Exploring strange new worlds, seeking new life and new civilisations, and boldly going where no one has gone before has been hardwired into Star Trek’s DNA since day one. Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Picard may have taken a more cynical – and serialized – view of the future, but recently announced spin-off Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is set to get back to basics…
When (spoiler warning!) the crew of the USS Discovery warped into the distant future in the season 2 finale, Captain Christopher Pike, Science Officer Spock and first officer Number One stayed behind in the 23rd century.
The trio were such a hit with fans, however, that they’re getting their own show, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, a new series set on the USS Enterprise a decade before James T Kirk took control.
“When we said we heard the fans’ outpouring of love for Pike, Number One and Spock when they boarded Star Trek: Discovery last season, we meant it,” executive producer and franchise overlord Alex Kurtzman told StarTrek.com. “These iconic characters have a deep history in Star Trek’ canon, yet so much of their stories have yet to be told. The Enterprise, its crew and its fans are in for an extraordinary journey to new frontiers in the Star Trek universe.”
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds promises to be an exciting departure for Trek TV, so before the Enterprise fires up the dilithium crystals once more, we've set coordinates for the 23rd century to reveal what’s in store for Starfleet’s finest. Hit it!
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds release date: what do we know?
The USS Enterprise has faced numerous foes in its distinguished lifetime, but few have been as problematic as the coronavirus. With lockdown restrictions bringing much of Hollywood to a halt, executive producer Akiva Goldsman admitted to Variety that he has “no idea” when Star Trek: Strange New Worlds will go into production. And seeing as a shows as VFX-heavy as the Treks tend to require lengthy post-production, we’d be surprised if we see Strange New Worlds before the second half of 2021 – and that’s being optimistic.
Luckily, we have season 3 of Star Trek: Discovery and animated series Lower Decks lined up for this year, season 2 of Star Trek: Picard due to start shooting when Covid-19 restrictions lift, and a couple more shows in development. They include a Michelle Yeoh-starring Section 31 spin-off, plus a CG kids’ show for Nickelodeon. “The intention is to have something Star Trek on the air all the time, but not necessarily on top of each other,” Kurtzman told the Hollywood Reporter back in April 2019. In other words, it’s the best time to be a Trek fan since The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine ruled the galaxy in the 1990s.
Anson Mount as Christopher Pike, alongside Sonequa Martin-Green as Michael Burnham in Star Trek: Discovery.
Cut to the chase
What is it? A Star Trek: Discovery spin-off featuring the adventures of Captain Christopher Pike, Science Officer Spock and first officer Number One on the USS Enterprise, a decade before James T Kirk takes command.
Where can I see it? Like its Trek stablemates, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds will air on CBS All Access in the US. International distribution is TBC – with Discovery streaming on Netflix outside the US and Picard on Amazon Prime Video, where it ultimately lands is anyone’s guess.
When can I watch it? Hopefully it won’t be too long, but the optimistic estimate is second half of 2021 at the earliest.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds cast
Having owned the bridge when seconded to Star Trek: Discovery’s second season, Anson Mount is back in the captain’s chair as Captain Christopher Pike. Meanwhile, after proving himself worthy of donning the pointy ears that once belonged to Leonard Nimoy, Ethan Peck returns as Spock. And Rebecca Romijn, who made a few guest appearances in Discovery, reprises her role as first officer/helmsperson Number One.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds trailer: watch the announcement video
It’s still early days, so there’s no trailer – though stars Anson Mount, Ethan Peck and Rebecca Romijn have beamed in an announcement video:
The party line is very much that the show exists because of fan demand. “Without you this wouldn’t be happening,” says Peck, while Mount explains a bit about the tone of the series. “[It’s] a classic Star Trek show that deals with optimism and the future.”
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds story: what we know about this part of Trek history
Pike, Spock and Number One have been part of the Star Trek story even longer than James T Kirk – they were on board the Enterprise in original Star Trek pilot “The Cage”, unaired in the ’60s and set more than a decade before Kirk’s famous five-year mission. Jeffrey Hunter, Leonard Nimoy and Majel Barrett originated the three roles.
While we know that the trio have been together at least three years by the time Star Trek: Strange New Worlds kicks off and that a tragic fate awaits Pike – more on that later – most of their voyages remain undocumented. That means it’s prime storytelling territory.
“We’re going to try to harken back to some classical Trek values, to be optimistic, and to be more episodic,” executive producer Akiva Goldsman told Variety. “Obviously, we will take advantage of the serialized nature of character and story building. But I think our plots will be more closed-ended than you’ve seen in either Discovery or Picard.”
He also said that, “I think what we would want to do is keep the characters having moved through and recognizing the experiences they’ve had in previous episodes, but to be able to tell contained, episodic stories.”
This suggests that, while Strange New Worlds will feature an overall story arc, the show will get back to the story-of-the-week structure that defined the Original Series and much of the Next Generation era – a radical departure from the heavily serialized Discovery and Picard. Indeed, the ability to visit a huge galaxy of, well, strange new worlds, should allow the show to feel different from week to week – a versatile formula that’s a big reason for the franchise’s longevity.
Going on Mount’s performance in Discovery, Pike is the ideal captain for an optimistic mission of exploration. We can also expect to see a Spock more prone to displays of emotion than his Original Series counterpart – in “The Cage” Number One was the more buttoned-up, logical member of the crew, with her personality traits passing to the Vulcan when Star Trek went to series. And maybe we’ll finally get to find out if Number One has a surname – Discovery confirmed her first name is Una, but that’s all we know.
At this point in the Star Trek timeline, Kirk and other members of the original crew must be out there somewhere in the universe, so the smart money would be on a few headline-grabbing (recast) guest appearances – as the older members of the Original Series line-up, McCoy and Scotty would seem prime candidates. We’d also be very surprised if James Frain doesn’t reprise his Discovery role as Spock’s dad, Sarek.
And then there’s Pike’s tragic story…
When we meet him in Original Series two-parter “The Menagerie”, it’s revealed that he’s been left severely disabled by a radiation leak. In Discovery, he’s forced to endure a vision of that future. It’ll be intriguing to see how that knowledge preys on his mind, and how much it plays into the drama of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.
The Government of India is dropping clauses including the evaluation of plant and machinery to be brought from China and South Korea. These were mainly opposed by Apple. It paves way for the company, and others including Foxconn, Samsung, OPPO, Vivo, and more to increase local production using the product-linked incentive (PLI) scheme.
Recently, many companies have been looking to shift parts of their production to more-competitive Asian countries, like Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand. In light of the constantly-developing and changing economic climate in China, the step has been taken in a vow to attract more US investment. It makes India more attractive as a partner in the so-called “China plus one strategy”.
Other amendments to PLI rules include lowering the excessive amount of business information the government previously required beneficiaries to share and clauses permitting the Empowered committee to unilaterally change investor rules.
For reference, PLI is an incentive of 4% to 6% on incremental sales (over base year) of goods manufactured in India, covered under target segments, for a period of five years.
If the manufacturers want to benefit from the said incentive, they will have to produce high-end phones (with freight on board value of more than $200) of more than INR 4,000 crore (1 crore is INR 10,000,000) for the base year. It will have to be followed by INR 8,000 crore, 15,000 crores, 20,000 crores, and 25,000 crores, for the next four years, respectively.
Apple is said to benefit from the new PLI conditions as its contract manufacturers Wistron and Foxconn could soon be shifting a significant portion of iPhone production to India.
Right now Google Stadia only works on a limited number of smartphones, including newer Pixel models, but that could be about to change. Code spotted in the latest Stadia app for Android suggests support for devices that haven't been "certified" is coming.
As discovered by 9to5Google, the change would mean you could at least give Stadia a go on any Android phone you like, even if it hasn't been specifically approved by Google. The new feature would likely be marked as experimental.
While Stadia also works on TVs and the Chromecast Ultra, as well as in Google Chrome on computers, letting more phones into the fold would undoubtedly add to the game streaming service's appeal – and probably get more subscribers on board.
Google Stadia remains a work in progress to some extent, with new features and new games rolling out regularly. A few weeks ago, for example, we saw support for wireless controllers added to Stadia on computers.
Coming soon... maybe
A more relaxed approach to which mobile devices can play Stadia isn't the only change spotted by 9to5Google, though it's worth bearing in mind that there's no guarantee that these hidden features will ever become official.
The latest app teardown reveals more hints of a "touch gamepad" so you can play on a phone without a separate controller – which would certainly make it easier to switch to your phone for a quick gaming session without any extra hardware.
There are also signs that Stadia's voice chat function is finally going to show up on Android, a potential upgrade that has been coming for quite some time now. Of course adding chat is a little more complicated on smaller devices.
Finally, the code mentions numerous promotions and sales events, so it looks as though Google is going to spend plenty of time advertising the platform in the coming months. One possible future feature is being able to play a game for free over a weekend.
Update (May 29): A new report suggests that it will be an entirely new model to launch in India.
Update (May 31): The Mi Notebook "1C" will launch in India on June 11, according to Ishan Agarwal.
At the start of 2020, Xiaomi had confirmed its plan to launch laptops in India. After months of silence, the company (and its officials) have finally started teasing the launch of its first laptop in India.
Xiaomi’s Manu Kumar Jain just uploaded a teaser video on Twitter which shows him shut a laptop, followed by exclaiming “It’s time!”. He was quickly joined by other key people from the Mi team in sharing similar teasers. All of them used the same iconic matte grey laptop, clearly hinting at the long-due launch of Xiaomi laptops in India.
This certainly looks like a laptop from the house of Xiaomi. All the tweets also included #WhatsnextfromMi, which indicated that the laptops might come with Mi branding instead of Redmi. Further, to strengthen our point, the official Mi handle replied to a tweet saying “The hashtag says 'Mi'”, when a fan asked if it was the RedmiBook.
In China, there are several Mi branded laptops such as Mi Notebook, Mi Notebook Pro, Mi Gaming Laptop, and Mi Laptop Air. They come in a variety of sizes starting from a 12.5-inch Mi Laptop Air to a 15.6-inch Mi Notebook Pro.
It is still unclear which series or laptop Xiaomi will bring to the Indian market. All the Mi NoteBook series and Air series laptops are powered by Intel core processors. If we were to guess, this will be the Mi Notebook 2019 with a 15.6-inch display in the Deep Grey finish. However, it could be a new variant of any of its other laptops too.
However, Windows Central suggests that it will be an entirely new model that will launch in India, with powerful specifications. It is unlikely to be a budget laptop, with specs such as an i5 processor, a minimum of 8GB of RAM and 256GB of SSD storage, and capable graphics.
As of now, Xiaomi hasn’t mentioned any date for the launch of its first laptop in India. We should hear more about the laptops in the coming days, as the launch shouldn’t be far now. It’s unclear as of now if the pricing will be as impressive as it was in China.
The Justice League Snyder Cut is real, and it's coming to HBO Max in 2021. The film is a new version of 2017's pretty bad Justice League movie, finished by its original director Zack Snyder, who left the project during production at the time for personal reasons. Expect a vastly different and far longer film this time, possibly split into episodes.
Originally intended as the DC Comics equivalent to Marvel's enormously successful Avengers films, Justice League was a follow-up to Man of Steel and Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice that didn't feel like it was part of the same series of films. The Snyder Cut should correct this, but whether it'll be a great film or not is yet to be seen. Expect a fascinating finished result, though.
Here's what we know about the Justice League Snyder Cut so far, including its release date, budget, trailer and Darkseid's appearance in the movie.
What is the the Snyder Cut of Justice League?
The Snyder Cut is a new version of 2017's Justice League movie, which is coming to the new streaming service HBO Max in 2021. It's the movie as envisioned by original director Zack Snyder, who left production halfway through to deal with a personal tragedy along with his wife and producing partner, Deborah Snyder.
Avengers director Joss Whedon stepped in to help finish the film, which was ultimately a critical and commercial flop. Justice League was mocked extensively for its reshot scenes featuring Henry Cavill's CG'd upper lip, the result of him being forced to retain a mustache during reshoots to finish filming Mission Impossible: Fallout.
Following Justice League's release, fans started petitioning to release the Snyder cut of the film, with actors Gal Gadot and Ben Affleck joining in on an extensive hashtag campaign. In December 2019, Snyder confirmed the cut was real in a post on social media network Vero.
In early February 2020, a group of Warner executives went to Snyder's house to watch a cut of the movie, and to figure how much finishing it will cost, according to a THR interview with the director. Warner greenlit the project and announced it for HBO Max in May 2020, and the Snyders have begun the process of finishing the movie, which involves rehiring their original post-production crew. As well as being edited and scored differently, it's possible actors will return to record more dialogue. Extensive effects work will be required to finish the Snyder Cut, too.
The Justice League Snyder Cut could be released on HBO Max as a nearly four hour-long movie, or as a series of episodes, based on that same report. Snyder believes that maybe a quarter of his work ended up in the final cut. Expect an entirely new movie at the end of it.
The finished film should feel like a more suitable follow-up to Man of Steel and Batman Vs Superman. "This movie was the culmination of a hero’s journey that all these characters went on," producer Deborah Snyder told THR. "And the idea was always to build them up to be the heroes people expected them to be." Hopefully, it'll make for a more satisfying viewing experience generally.
The finished result of 2017's Justice League is likely a more complicated matter than being a single person's fault, though. In this interview with Holt McCallany, who briefly appears in Justice League as a criminal chased by Batman across Gotham's rooftops, he mentions his scene was re-edited at the behest of the studio and not director Joss Whedon.
Justice League Snyder Cut release date: 2021 on HBO Max
The Justice League Snyder Cut release date is set for 2021 on HBO Max. There are no more specifics right now on that front.
Justice League Snyder Cut: Darkseid first look revealed by Zack Snyder
The DC Comics villain Darkseid has been confirmed for the Snyder Cut of the film. Zack Snyder tweeted out a slightly blurry first look at the character above.
Justice League Snyder Cut trailer: does one exist?
Not for this particular cut, no. The above trailer, though, which was released at San Diego Comic Con 2016 while Snyder was still filming Justice League, probably gives the best look at what the director and producing partner Deborah Snyder had in mind before they left the project.
It's not as tonally wonky as the finished product, but it's still a lot lighter than Batman vs Superman was. The Barry Allen introduction scene above is one of the best parts of the original film.
What is the Justice League Snyder Cut budget?
The Snyder Cut budget hasn't been confirmed, but it's upwards of $30 million. WarnerMedia's chairman Bob Greenblatt spoke to Vox's Recode Media podcast on the matter. "I'll just say I wish it was just $30 million, and stop there!"
Will the Justice League Snyder Cut be any good, though?
Zack Snyder's DC Comics movies have proved enormously divisive, but they're singular creations that stand apart from the Marvel movies. We're not convinced an amazing movie is waiting for us, here, but it can't be worse than the version of Justice League we have now. Besides, Snyder deserves his shot at finishing this film, given the circumstances that led to his original exit.
Intel’s Xe DG1 graphics card has been spotted in a 3DMark benchmark, or at least the rumor mill believes that result is for Intel’s first crack at a discrete GPU.
As ever, we shouldn’t read too much into this given that it is just speculation that this is DG1, although the source is a reliable one, the ever-present TUM_APISAK. But even if the leak is on the money, remember that this is an early sample GPU, and won’t reflect the exact performance Intel may achieve with the final product.
At any rate, the purported DG1 graphics cards scored 5,538 in 3DMark’s Fire Strike test (paired with an Intel Core i9-9900K processor) and hit a graphics score of 5,960.
That’s not a massively impressive result, but as we’ve already mentioned, it must be treated with caution. It’s in the ballpark of a graphics card as old as the GeForce GTX 750 Ti, albeit a bit faster than that veteran GPU (which scored 5,402 for graphics in a 3DMark result highlighted on Twitter).
As Wccftech, which spotted this, observes, it’s a fair way behind the GTX 1050 to pick out another example from Nvidia’s line-up – that previous-gen budget card is around 500 points to 800 points better than the DG1 depending on which 3DMark result you look at.
No cause for concern?
Anyhow, you get the idea – and as with a previous Geekbench result, which showed that the DG1 wasn’t much better than Nvidia’s low-end MX250, the overall vibe thus far is that Intel’s initial product is not going to be causing either AMD or Nvidia any sleepless nights.
That said, at least this new 3DMark leak shows the Intel GPU comfortably outdoing the likes of the MX350, by around a third in terms of that graphics score in fact.
Further remember that Intel’s first GPU is likely to be a testing the waters affair, and as we’ve previously heard via the rumor mill, it’s going to be a mobile part – in other words, a graphics card for laptops, not a GPU for a desktop PC. With further development, perhaps it could start to worry Intel’s rivals at least in the notebook arena – particularly when combined with the potential of Xe integrated graphics with Intel’s Tiger Lake mobile processors.
When Poco introduced the F1 back in 2018, it turned a lot of heads — sure it wasn’t a completely premium device on the outside, but it had all of the trappings of a flagship phone at the time on the inside. Now, Poco is back with a slightly different strategy: put their brand on an existing sibling brand device. Even if the coat of paint looks and even feels very familiar, the company might be looking at a hit with a phone they are actually labeling a flagship killer. This is the Poco F2 Pro review.
Surface level familiarity
I’m sure many of you will bring up this detail, so let’s start off with it — yes, it seems we’ve seen this phone somewhere else before. As Xiaomi continues to grow and have plenty of brands underneath their umbrella, it’s equal parts surprising and understandable that very similar design cues would blend together. The Poco F2 Pro looks pretty much like a carbon copy of the Redmi K30 Pro, but I don’t find that to be a bad thing for one particular reason: Poco will reach some markets that Redmi won’t. Case in point — here at Pocketnow and even over at JV, we don’t have any Redmi phones, do we? So, if this is how I get to try out this smartphone package, I’m happy getting it one way or another.
So let’s talk about the aesthetic. I have the shiny white edition — it’s not glass on the back, but it’s shiny nonetheless. The camera module up top is a point of contention for some, a circle housing four lenses. The tiniest bit of color flourish is found in the red power button, which is appreciated. And I enjoy that there is a clear plastic case included in the box.
Notice, however, that the top of the case has a substantial cutout — this is because the F2 Pro comes with a feature I’ve been dying to see come back in 2020: a pop up camera. I loved how weird phones were getting in 2019 with cameras like this, and in a sea of 2020 hole punch cameras, we finally get a bit of weird back in our smartphone lives. Poco didn’t skimp on making it flashy, as it has LEDs in the actual model to make it light up and grab your attention. There are even sound effects and on screen color effects that add to the experience. And while there is an in-display fingerprint reader, the novelty of the pop-up for face unlock never gets old.
Up top there are a couple of other features I’m sure some of you will be really happy to see: a headphone jack, for one, and an IR blaster. These are two things I don’t use as often these days, but it’s great to see how the Poco F2 Pro basically marries two different worlds together: the flagship daily experience and the features you only really see nowadays in midrange phones. And for that matter, the phone ultimately looks and feels really nice — a bit of a far cry from the intentionally plastic build of the Poco F1, which the company made that way because they figured users would put a case on anyway and just enjoy what’s underneath the surface. This time, the phone’s not shy about showing off.
The right stuff (with a little clutter)
That pop up camera means that the screen is an unencumbered viewing experience. Now, this is a Full HD+ resolution display at 60hz, putting it behind other displays that are either QuadHD resolution, high refresh rate, or both. But as comments in my unboxing video over at JV seem to indicate, many of you are not really affected by this spec. And rightfully so — for the vast majority of people who are looking at this phone as a value prospect, it would have been nice to have the extra features but it doesn’t mean this phone is any less capable. Content does get rendered below the rounded corners sometimes, which is a bit odd but otherwise this is a full screen 6.67 inch AMOLED display. And the fact that it is AMOLED is a further plus, because it gives the F2 Pro a great always on display.
Okay so that pretty much covers everything you get on the outside, so let’s see what powers it all — the story is really familiar and thus pretty easy to enjoy, honestly. The Snapdragon 865 gives this phone the current specs and 5G capabilities, even though I don’t actually get 5G using this on Google Fi. 4G LTE has been fine, but a little slow because there are some bands missing. But in general the daily experience has been on par with the competition, despite regional differences.
My model is the 6GB RAM and 128GB storage option. I mentioned biometrics already with the in-display fingerprint reader and the face unlock via the pop up which I love. And the battery is a sizable 4700mAh unit that definitely got through full days of work and play. Speaking of, there is a liquid cooling system just like from the Poco F1 to keep things from getting too hot during heavy tasks like gaming. Call of Duty Mobile move along swimmingly, for example. That battery can be charged up quickly at 30W or via Qualcomm’s Quick Charge 4+ — there is no wireless charging, however, which is a little bit of a bummer.
Another small bummer is MIUI — don’t get me wrong, I like how far this software has come and with the Poco specific launcher, it brings a lot to the table. Customization options are abundant and it’s Google Now by default to the left of the home screens. Like many Asian Android interfaces, however, there are a few too many additions that end up collecting dust. Mi branded apps are an example; not to mention, all of the games that were pre-installed for some reason. And while we all know Xiaomi makes a sizable chunk of money from its services and ads therein, seeing an ad for another app on the very screen used to install an app is always odd.
A snapshot we’ve seen before
Despite some bumps in the road, the Poco F2 Pro is hitting all of the right marks in being a flagship device. In some cases, it is barely reaching the echelon like with the display, but overall there’s no reason to believe this phone is a bad everyday companion. So, is the camera the same story? In a nutshell, yes — but it says more about the current landscape of smartphone cameras than it does this phone’s usability. See, these days flagships have to get really crazy with their 100x zooms and their built-in gimbals to be considered high level. Meanwhile, the quality level that might actually be used on the daily is more easily achievable than ever. And phones at sub-$500 are making it happen — the Poco F2 Pro is a snapshot of that phenomenon: a high powered main sensor with a few friends to back it up.
The 64MP main sensor is a good performer especially at the pixel-binned 16MP results. Colors could use a bit more punch and dynamic range is just fine, but in all but lower light situations pictures are plenty usable for social media and messaging. And in those lower light scenarios, the Night mode is available but doesn’t seem as aggressive as ones we’ve seen in Huawei or Pixel phones. There’s a significant dip in the megapixel counts of the other lenses, but they all put out some good results still. There’s the 13MP ultrawide which can also be used for 4K video recording, and then there is a 5MP macro lens that puts out better quality results than many of its competitors that rock 2MP macros. You can even do macro video, but you tell me if macro is ultimately useful in your daily smartphone life. And finally there’s a 2MP depth sensor for portraits. Speaking of portraits, the 20MP pop up front facing camera does a fine job for stills but only records up to 1080p resolution video.
Speaking of, video is an endeavor the Poco reaches for but doesn’t quite excel at. AI 8K recording is nice to have, but it’s still not a practical format to shoot with for most people. At 8K, it seemed the autofocus was having some issues and the stabilization was far less reliable, leading me to stick to 4K throughout. Some Xiaomi inspired additions are here like Movie Frame which adds the black bars at the top and bottom of any video; also, there’s a Vlog mode that guides you in shot collection and automatically adds in the transitions and music for a stylized end result.
If you’ve been paying attention to phones under the $1000 price point, all of this is going to sound familiar. And that’s not a bad thing because it means good, if not overachieving, camera quality is available to just about anyone. It’s not the best shooter out there, but the value prospect fits the results.
If you can’t kill ’em, join ’em
So, as Poco has decided to co-opt the phrase “Flagship Killer,” I think that the F2 Pro manages to find itself among plenty of flagships in the market today, with great performance and a good camera experience — a sum of parts that easily overshadows the few flaws it has. But as phones like this continue to be released, we have to start asking the question of what a flagship actually is right now, halfway into 2020. If you prioritize the S20 Ultras and the P40 Pros of the world, this phone is no killer. But it does help make available the right stuff in the hands of more people. Carbon copy rebrand or not, Poco is making good on their impression as a maker of affordable flagship devices. It’s a trend we’re happy to see more and more of, and at around $500 hopefully this template continues to redefine the flagship experience for more and more people to enjoy.
Here's another reminder that the gadgets you buy aren't necessarily going to be supported forever: Amazon has decided to discontinue its Echo Look smart speaker/camera device, and existing Looks will stop working on July 24.
As reported by Voicebot.ai, people who've bought an Echo Look should already have been notified about the move, and a lot of the functionality first offered by the device has since made its way into other Amazon apps and hardware.
If you've never heard of the Echo Look before, the smart camera worked together with your phone and some computer learning magic to give you an assessment of how good your outfits looked.
The device and its companion app could also help you keep track of what you wore when, and of course tapped into Amazon's various shopping services to help you pick out new outfits to suit you as and when needed.
Don't Look now
"When we introduced Echo Look three years ago, our goal was to train Alexa to become a style assistant as a novel way to apply AI and machine learning to fashion," Amazon said in an email to customers.
"Customers will still be able to enjoy style advice from Alexa through the Amazon Shopping app and other Alexa-enabled devices. We look forward to continuing to support our customers and their style needs with Alexa."
According to Android Central, at least some Echo Look owners are being given discount codes to get an Echo Show 5 for free, though that hasn't been confirmed by Amazon. The Echo Show devices can to some extent duplicate the functionality of the Echo Look.
While the Echo Look was hardly one of Amazon's biggest sellers, it's interesting to see the company abandoning an Alexa-enabled product even as it continues to get the smart assistant pushed into as many new devices as possible.
For football fans the past three months have been a strange, quiet time. What should have been another dramatic climax to an action-packed and VAR-influenced season was cut down in its prime back in early March.
While the English Premier League doesn't return until June 17, there's good news if you can't wait for Premier League football to restart.
You can treat your sporting soul to live games from around the world. Some of the top leagues are back playing right now, and you can even watch some of them live from the comfort of your home.
Germany's top-flight league, The Bundesliga, is one of the best leagues in the world, with giants such as Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund on the fixture list and a host of world-class players.
The German Bundesliga restarted on May 16, 2020 and its bumper fixture list has games running through to the new season end date of June 27, 2020.
What's more, it's possible to watch live Bundesliga games. In the UK, BT has the rights to German football, allowing you to watch every game that's left of this season live on TV if you subscribe to the BT Sport channels.
You don't need a TV to watch BT Sport – if you're a subscriber you can also use the BT Sport app to watch the action, and it can be cast to a compatible display.
South Korea’s top-tier of football, K-League 1, was the first to kick-off post-pandemic, with its initial return match between Jeonbuk Motors and Suwon Bluewings being played on May 8, 2020 – and it was live streamed on Twitter and YouTube for the world to see.
The game gave us our first glimpse of top-flight football behind closed doors, with empty stands and the handful of coaches, officials and TV crews on the sidelines all wearing face masks.
Being able to catch more live K-League 1 games outside of Korea isn't quite so easy, but YouTube Channel Copa90 is handpicking a game each week to stream live.
Spain – La Liga
Spain's La Liga – featuring greats such as Barcelona and Real Madrid – is set to kick off a few days ahead of the English Premier League, which means you'll be able to warm yourself up with some Spanish football.
The competition has been given the green light by the Spanish government to resume from June 8, and the good news for Sky subscribers in the UK is it looks like you'll be able to watch the rest of the La Liga season for free.
According to reports, Sky TV customers will be able to to activate the Premier Sports channel for free throughout June. However, there is a catch. You'll want to remember to cancel the channel once the month is up, as from July, you'll be charged a monthly fee of £5.99 to keep the channel as part of your package.
This is the league you're likely waiting for, and the good news is the wait is almost over. The English Premier League will restart on June 17, 2020 with two games taking place; Manchester City vs Arsenal and Aston Villa vs Sheffield United.
Of the 92 remaining Premier League fixtures for the 2019/2020 season, Sky has confirmed that it will show 64 of the games live, with 25 of those being made available on Sky Pick – a free-to-air channel available on Freeview. That means you won’t need a Sky Sports subscription to watch those 25 games – but you will need one if you want to catch all 64 live games it will be showing.
A further 20 games will be shown live by BT, but there's no word on whether any will be made free-to-air. That means you'll likely need a BT Sport subscription to watch these 20 games.
Another four games will be shown live on Amazon Prime Video, while the BBC has snapped up the final four fixtures, which will be available free-to-air, without any subscription required.
3pm EDT SpaceX update: New SpaceX launch video and video replays have been added embedded via YouTube and Twitter below, so you can rewatch the highlights, from liftoff on the Dragon Endeavor to docking with the International Space Station. Next up is a post-arrival news conference at the Johnson Space Center at 3:15pm EDT.
1:47pm EDT update: The live stream video just showed the Dragon Endeavor crew being greeted by NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine, NASA Johnson Space Center Director Mark Geyer, US Senator Ted Cruz, and US Representative Brian Babin on a video call from Mission Control in Houston, Texas.
1:30pm EDT update: The two NASA astronauts who went up on the SpaceX Dragon capsule yesterday have joined three other astronauts on the ISS (International Space Station): American Chris Cassidy and Russians Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner.
1pmEDT update: The hatch is now open (as of 1:02pm EDT on March 31), meaning the hatch between the SpaceX Dragon capsule and the ISS is open and the two NASA astronauts can float through the International Space Station.
The live stream continues below via a YouTube video, and it's happening after the two astronauts established pressure equalization in SpaceX Dragon capsule.
The SpaceX hatch is opening a little more than two hours after docking with the ISS. The SpaceX Dragon docking with the ISS was a success and happened autonomously, at first with a soft capture, then there were 12 latches around the docking ring that created a pressure-tight seal. An umbilical cord was then deployed to link the SpaceX Dragon and the ISS to share power and data – think of it has a giant USB-C cable in space.
It took a total of 19 hours for the SpaceX Dragon capsule to navigate to the ISS for docking on Sunday, following a successful SpaceX launch live stream. You can see a video replay of the liftoff below, along with four other can't-miss highlight videos.
SpaceX live stream video
Here's where you're able to watch the NASA astronauts float around in space board the SpaceX Dragon capsule. The live stream commentary has been brilliant, insightful and inspiring regarding the future of commercial space travel.
SpaceX video: see the NASA astronauts arrive at ISS
For the first time, NASA astronauts arrived at the International Space Station from a commercially-made spacecraft. Watch Doug and Bob join three other astronauts from the Dragon Endeavor (what they named their capsule after the launch).
SpaceX hatch opening video replay
The SpaceX hatch opened at 12:45pm EDT, a little more than two hours after the Dragon capsule first linked up with the ISS. NASA astronauts equalized the pressure between the two spacecrafts so that they could move to the ISS.
SpaceX docking with ISS video replay
You can see the ISS docking in this video below. It shows the SpaceX Dragon and ISS linking up in what's called a 'soft capture'. It happened autonomously, and then a set a 12 latches or hooks create a pressurized seal so that the two crafts orbit together.
This particular SpaceX video is of the more visually-pleasing soft capture (there's no good video vantage point for the more internalized hard capture with latches).
SpaceX toy dinosaur floating in zero gravity
You can't buy the "Ty Flippable Tremor The Aqua/Pink Sequin Dinosaur" on Amazon anymore. It's sold out after it was seen floating in space. The NASA astronauts took it onboard for their kids to see it experience zero gravity.
Best SpaceX video replays
All of the important SpaceX video replays are below, from launch to right now.
Both SpaceX and NASA are providing a bunch of footage – both live video and video replays – to capture this space mission. Here are the best videos to check out.
1. SpaceX launch video replay – see the liftoff again
Liftoff happened at 3:22pm EDT Saturday, and it was spectacular, especially after a nine-year hiatus for NASA launches on US soil. You can rewatch the launch again.
2. SpaceX Falcon 9 booster returns to Earth
Just beyond the T-0 countdown, we saw the SpaceX Falcon 9 booster return to Earth – and land successfully. Having a reusable rocket is a huge milestone for the future of space travel when it comes to cost.
Commentators on the SpaceX live stream compared the Space Shuttle era rockets falling into the ocean (and being scrapped) as throwing away an airplane engine every time a plane pulled into an airport gate. It's a great analogy to explain why what SpaceX pulled off on Saturday was a huge deal for space exploration.
3. Falcon 9 second stage separates from Dragon capsule
Here's some great footage of the Falcon 9 second stage rocket separating from the Dragon Capsule and falling back to Earth.
4. NASA astronauts' first video transmission
Right now, NASA astronauts are above Earth in the SpaceX-made Dragon capsule as you read this (they'll be up there for 19 hours), and they're wearing SpaceX-designed spacesuits. The US government's Space Shuttle program ended nine years ago and the private SpaceX has picked up where NASA left off. It's a giant step for space exploration.
5. Live views of the SpaceX Dragon orbiting the Earth
The SpaceX cameras were able to capture some amazing live views of Earth as the Dragon capsule orbited the planet on its way to dock with the ISS. Here's a short clip of exactly that.
The first hours of Saturday's SpaceX livestream felt like deja vu if you watched the SpaceX live stream Wednesday. But unlike that first launch attempt, Saturday's launch countdown didn't stop at T-minus 17 minutes. Instead, history was made.
It wasn't always clear that Saturday's launch would happen, even minutes before the launch window. "We are predicting a 50/50 shot of going this time," said NASA administrator NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine at the top of the SpaceX live stream. "But given the fact that we are in late May – in Florida – we have to take every shot that we can get." They're glad that they did, despite the gloomy forecast.
Saturday's SpaceX Demo-2 mission was a delayed and a second attempt, but it was always going to be historic, as it's happening at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. It's the first such launch on US soil in nearly a decade – since NASA retired the Space Shuttle nine years ago. It's also the first time that a SpaceX reusable spacecraft has sent NASA astronauts into space. It's the birth of commercially-backed human space travel.
It's the birth of commercially-backed human space travel.
The destination of this SpaceX launch is the International Space Station (ISS) for a one- to four-month duration for NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken, according to our friends over at Space.com.
SpaceX launch – as it happened on Saturday, May 30
The official Demo-2 SpaceX launch time, Saturday, May 30 at 3:22pm EDT, so the times across the continental US were 2:22pm CDT / 1:22pm MDT / 12:22pm PDT.
The UK SpaceX launch time was 20:22 BST. In addition to tuning into the video live stream, you were able to go outside soon afterward and maybe catch a glimpse of the SpaceX-built spacecraft in the night sky at around 20:40 BST.
In Australia, it was already Sunday morning, with the new launch time occurring at 5:22am AEST.
SpaceX launch weather concerns subsided
Up until the last few minutes of Saturday's SpaceX launch, weather was a concern. It wouldn't have been time, as we saw this play out on Wednesday: "The weather got us," admitted NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine in a somber 30-second Twitter video on Wednesday. "I know there was a lot of disappointment today."
Bridenstine went on to explain the reasoning behind what we all saw: the SpaceX launch was scrubbed just 17 minutes inside the launch window, with NASA hanging on until the last minutes in an effort to save its efforts. The weather didn't cooperate.
NASA has strict weather rules for clearing spacecraft launches and noted that three weather violations existed, including the chance of the craft triggering 'natural lightning'. If they would have been able to wait ten minutes beyond the countdown, they could have cleared those three violations, according to SpaceX and NASA officials.
Waiting even ten minutes wasn't an option, though. Both Saturday's successful launch and Wednesday's scrubbed launch had what's known as an 'instantaneous launch window', meaning due orbital mechanics a delay wasn't possible if the crew wanted to get to the International Space Station (ISS) on time and lock in accurately. Blame Newtown's law of universal gravity, if you'd like.
The good news is that everything technical with the SpaceX craft and NASA crew was 'go for liftoff' on both days when the hatch door successfully closed. Weather was the only concern, according to NASA during the live streams.
Even with all of the exceptional planning ahead of this SpaceX launch, NASA and SpaceX can't control the weather (not yet anyway). Florida, while normally sunny, does have frequent quick-moving thunderstorms (anyone who has ever visited nearby Disney World knows that), and that's what the crew faced Wednesday and most of Saturday until the final half-hour.
Another weather variable is the fact that the weather conditions need to be good everywhere this spacecraft might be. For example, if the crew had to abort anywhere along their ascent and come down, recovery crews would need to access the capsule, so it's more than just the immediate Florida launchpad that needs ideal weather.
What happened before the SpaceX launch
The live stream saw SpaceX founder Elon Musk visit suited-up astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken and exchange a few words before liftoff time. Sadly, there was no audio during this portion of the live stream on Wednesday.
Musk then greeted US Vice President Mike Pence, who is there to watch the launch, while President Donald Trump joined soon after. Hurley and Behnken traveled to the launch site in a Tesla Model X (Tesla being another company Musk founded). Both the President and Vice President returned to see the launch Saturday.
NASA continued to monitor the weather via data sensors around the launch site in an effort to get everything into 'the green position' on their maps. At the time, NASA said, "the weather is trending in the right direction," but as the countdown got to T-minus 17 minutes, favorability went the other direction.
This meant that the crew was seated in the capsule after crossing the crew access arm, and the crew arm had already retracted. Steam started to come off of the rocket before the launch was called off. It was that close to liftoff.
SpaceX spacecraft, SpaceX suits and NASA astronauts
NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken are inside the SpaceX Dragon capsule, which sat atop the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket for liftoff. It was situated on a launch pad at legendary Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida’s Cape Canaveral.
LC-39A was originally built for the Apollo missions and remodeled for the Space Shuttle program. Now it's home to the first space flight to send astronauts into space using a private aerospace company.
Hurley (the spacecraft commander) and Behnken (the joint operations commander) are NASA astronauts, engineers and both former members of US military (Hurley is a former marine, while Behnken was in the US Air Force).
The two-man NASA crew are not only be flying in a SpaceX-built spacecraft, but also outfitted in SpaceX pressurized suits, first shown off in 2017.
