Technology

After years of speculation, we finally know what Google’s first in-house smartwatch will be called. Surprising absolutely no one, a new trademark filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office reveals it is... Pixel Watch. The filing (via 9to5 Google) is about as barebones as it gets. The description says the Pixel Watch name is “intended to cover the categories of smartwatches; cases adapted for holding smartwatches; wearable computers in the nature of smartwatches; smartwatch straps; smartwatch bands.” Further on…

Jack Dorsey’s new title at Block is not CEO, but Block Head. No, this is not a very belated April Fools’ joke. The company filed an 8-K with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announcing the change — and of course, the new title came into effect on 4/20. Despite the new title (which, in full, is “Block Head and Chairperson”), Dorsey’s job at Block, the company formerly known as Square, will ultimately remain the same: there will be “no changes in Mr. Dorsey’s roles and responsibilities, and he will…

At CES 2022, Anker announced an addition to its Nano II USB-C charger lineup with this more powerful version sporting two USB-C ports capable of outputting up to 100W, plus an old school USB-A charging port. Now the $79 Anker Nano II 100W (also known as the Anker 736 charger) has popped up for sale on Amazon (via MacRumors), although it is already showing sold-out. The Nano II chargers use the company’s second-generation version of gallium nitride-based components that replace older charger’s silicon components to pump…

The EU has agreed on another ambitious piece of legislation to police the online world. Early Saturday morning after hours of negotiations, the bloc agreed on the broad terms of the Digital Services Act, or DSA, which will force tech companies to take greater responsibility for content that appears on their platforms. New obligations include removing illegal content and goods more quickly, explaining to users and researchers how their algorithms work, and taking stricter action on the spread of misinformation.…

The Lapsus$ hacking group stole T-Mobile’s source code in a series of breaches that took place in March, as first reported by Krebs on Security. T-Mobile confirmed the attack in a statement to The Verge, and says the “systems accessed contained no customer or government information or other similarly sensitive information.” In copies of private messages obtained by Krebs, the Lapsus$ hacking group discussed targeting T-Mobile in the week prior to the arrest of seven of its teenage members. After purchasing employees’…

Meta held its 2022 games showcase this past week, lifting the curtain on several new virtual reality games in the works for the Quest 2 headset. We’ve got a roundup of the titles that we’re most excited about right here. In celebration of the event, Meta has slashed prices on several VR games that see discounts only on a few occasions each year. So, whether you just bought a Quest 2, or you just want to fill out your library a little more, check out these deals. I’ve highlighted a few deals that I think are…

If you find yourself face to face with the TCL 30 V 5G, chances are you’re at a Verizon store or on Verizon’s website contemplating its prospects as a “free” phone. Free is nice! But free may even be too steep for the 30 V 5G. The 30 V 5G’s full retail price, which few people will opt to pay upfront, is $299. That gets you a nice, big full HD display, a healthy 128GB of storage, 4GB of RAM, and a 4,500mAh battery that easily lasts over a day. Those specs are just fine — even good for a budget phone where lower-res 720p…

Instagram’s testing out a new feature, called Templates, that will let creators make Reels by borrowing formats from other videos on the platform, according to a report from Insider (via TechCrunch). The feature appears somewhat similar to TikTok’s own templates tool, which allows creators to drop their own content into a premade sequence. Reverse engineer Alessandro Paluzzi spotted an early version of Templates in January, while marketing manager and influencer Josephine Hill has already gotten to experience the…