Sphero outs an adorable Spider-Man toy

If you’ve loved Sphero’s take on Star Wars’s BB-8, you might also fall in love with this talking Spider-Man toy, which comes out just in time for the release of Spider-Man: Homecoming next month. It’s unlike the usual Sphero toy, though. Unlike the BB-8, which moves around, it’s more of a talkative rubber toy. Kids can speak to it via voice commands—much like we would the other smart home speakers. It can guide kids through comic book storylines, which The Verge likens to camp counselor telling a story at a bonfire. But there’s a “Choose Your Own Adventure” book aspect to it as Spidey asks the kid what to do next. There are 400 pages worth of content included and 100 storylines to get through. Sphero intends to add stories in the future. You don’t have to worry about your child’s security as the toy doesn’t send information over the web or stores data in the accompanying app. It’ll just look for its wake-up phrases.

As mentioned, you can pair phones with Spider-Man over Bluetooth but it’s not essential to control the device with it. Some of the trigger phrases include asking it to “Tell me a story” or “Make me laugh.” It’s going to be a fun toy for young (and old) Spider-Man fans. It’s said to be available for US$149 starting today but a quick check of Amazon shows that it’s “Currently unavailable.”

OnePlus 3T gets shelved in North America and Europe

Preparing for the release of the OnePlus 5, OnePlus has opted to stop selling the OnePlus 3T eight months after they first announced it. This isn’t the first time OnePlus has been weird about its release cycle. When the OnePlus 3T came out, the OnePlus 3 got discontinued after just being released for a few months. It will still be sold in India and other Asian countries but outside of that region, we’d all have to wait for the OnePlus 5, which is set to come out next week on June 20^th.

Source: TechnoBuffalo

Canadian carriers can’t lock phones to their networks now

A review of the existing Wireless Code is helping bolster the protection of consumers when it comes to dealing with the big telecom providers. The code, which defines the rules and regulations for service providers, was enforced back in June 2015. Two years after the enactment, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) reviewed and revised the code. One of the big changes is that starting December 1, 2017, any wireless consumer can get their mobile phones unlocked from their carrier free of charge. Carriers can’t lock devices for sale from that point forward, too.

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Essential Phone coming exclusively to TELUS in Canada

Anyone interested in the Essential Phone, which is Android creator Andy Rubin's first news flagship smartphone, will be happy to know that the device is coming to Canada exclusively through TELUS. Pricing and availability are still being determined but Canadians can pre-register at telus.com/essential to be the first to know when pre-orders will be open late July. The Essential Phone will be available in store and online later this summer.

Rather plain looking and blocky, the Essential Phone is crafted from titanium, offers expansion with a 360' camera and has a unique edge-to-edge display as well as premium smartphone features.