Airbnb reveals summer travel trends for 2021 and over 100 upgrades

As we quickly approach the summer months many of us are wondering about travel plans. Sticking close to home has always been a great option pandemic or not. When to go, where to stay, and what health and safety protocols are in place are important factors now more than ever. Airbnb has just announced 100+ upgrades across their entire service to meet a new era in travel. Inspired by the Arbnb Report on Travel & Living–a comprehensive analysis of Airbnb booking data and consumer research–revealing how guests are going from travelling at all the same times to all the same places, to living anywhere at any time, and for however long. The trend report also reveals how people are travelling this summer and where they are going. 

Click to read more ...

You might soon use Google Assistant to power off your Android phone

It might soon be possible to use Google Assistant to power off your Android phone. 9to5Google has been digging around the beta versions of Android 12 and Search and found clues leading to this option. With Android 12, Google is adding a long-press to access Google Assistant. The dilemma this feature brings is you can't find a way to turn your phone off when you select this option. One potential solution the site found is adding a power button in Android's quick settings menu. Another is pressing the Power and Volume Up buttons to access the power menu. And then, there's also the option to tell Google Assistant to "Power off" your phone.

But since the features aren't live yet, it isn't clear if the voice command will immediately shut down your phone or open the power menu. It isn't also clear if this feature will be exclusive to Pixel devices or Android 12. When we get more details, we'll be sure to update you.

Fitbit shifts to USB-C for the Luxe's charging cable

9to5Google

It looks like Fitbit is finally shifting to using USB-C for its charging cables, at least when it comes to its new lifestyle tracker, the Luxe. 9to5Google shares images of the Luxe's charging cable, and it shows a USB-C connector with a button used for the reset process if the tracker is unresponsive. 

The Google-owned company doesn't refer to the charging cable on its product page, but you can see its difference from other Fitbit charging cables. It doesn't have that distinct cutout associated with the USB-A standard. We don't know if this charging cable will be a standard for the company moving forward, but we hope it will be.

Twitch to add 350+ new tags for 'Your Community' tab

Twitch

Twitch will be rolling out soon over 350 new tags related to gender, race, sexual orientation, ability, mental health, nationality, and more. The tags will include transgender, Black, veteran, Vtuber, disabled, and more. According to Twitch, it will take out references to ally from the LGBTQIA+ tag and create a standalone ally tag. The additional tags won't change who the platform's tagging system works but will give creators more choices.

Twitch explained why it took them so long to implement the feature in the blog post announcing these new tags. When it introduced tags in 2018, the platform wanted to give creators a way to describe their content and not who they were or what they stood for. But their team realized that viewers love Twitch because of the creators and "what they care about... and the communities they have built." 

Click to read more ...