‘Limited number’ of non-Touch Bar 13-inch Apple MacBook Pros need to have batteries replaced

Apple has just launched a free battery replacement program for some non-Touch Bar-toting Apple MacBook Pros. The company claims a “limited number” of these units have had their batteries expand. These supposedly affect those that were manufactured between October 2016 and October 2017 and is due to a fault component that causes the battery to expand.

The linked page above will ask you to submit your computer serial number to check if you’re eligible for a replacement. Those that qualify can bring their MacBook Pro to an authorized dealer or retail store or mail the unit to Apple’s repair center. If you’ve already gotten the battery replaced, you can contact Apple to see if you can get a refund. Apple notes that any damage that might inhibit the battery’s replacement will need to be fixed first and this program does not extend the computer’s standard warranty.

New documentary pays tribute to Apple's Newton PDA and the people who love it

Love Notes to Newton (Preview) from Noah Leon on Vimeo.

A lot of the features we enjoy on smartphones and tablets came from PDA's (Personal Digital Assistants) like the PalmPilot. PDA's owe a lot to Apple's Newton, a mobile computer that captured a lot of hearts and loyal users even if it was derided for failing at writing recognition. Still, this was Apple innovation at its finest. A fearless and fun to use personal device that resonated with users to such a degree they are still using them today. Love Notes to Newton is a cool, nostalgic look at a landmark product which was the first to be killed of when Steve Jobs returned to Apple in 1997.

Huawei P20 Pro wins ‘Best Photo Smartphone’ from TIPA World Award 2018

First impressions of the Huawei P20 and P20 Pro

For the second year in a row, the TIPA General Assembly has recognized Huawei for its smartphone camera efforts awarding the P20 Pro this time around as the “Best Photo Smartphone.” According to TIPA Chairman Thomas Gerwers, ““The new P20 Pro, developed in cooperation with Leica, is an amazing milestone in the development of smartphone devices for high-quality photographic imaging.”

This smartphone is considered to have the world’s first triple-camera system with what is considered from this generation as having the highest pixel count available for a smartphone with with f/1.8, f/1.6 and f/2.4 wide aperture. It has a 40MP RGB sensor, a 20MP monochrome sensor, and an 8MP sensor with an optically stabilized 3X telephoto lens. Huawei promises you get the best low light photos with the P20 Pro and combined with its homegrown artificial intelligence system the phone recognizes over 500 scenes in 19 categories, making sure you get the best photos you can from any scenario.

Google pauses development of Allo, focuses on Android Messages

With Google Allo not picking up as people’s messaging app of choice, the tech giant has decided to take a step back from developing the app. According to Anil Sabharwal, Google’s new head of the communications group, the have decided to “pause investment” on Allo and have the team focus Android Messages. Their team is putting all of its resources that it can in the development of tis Rich Communication Services, specifically the service it’s calling Chat. This is Google’s latest effort to create a messaging service that can rival iMessage and other big messaging apps like Facebook Messenger.

At the moment, Google will continue to support Allo. It hasn’t decided yet what to do with the app. According to Sabharwal, they just needed the team to support Android Messages as soon as possible. But he adds, “We want to do right by users. We want to make the right decisions here, and we don’t want to rush anything.”

Source: The Verge