New ‘Star Wars’ audiobook enlists Hollywood stars like Jon Hamm

Banking on the star power or just the really sultry voice of Hollywood’s elite, an upcoming audiobook about Star Wars: Episode IV has enlisted help from some big stars. Entitled From a Certain Point of View, this Del Rey Books audiobooks will feature the voices of Mad Men’s Jon Hamm, Neil Patrick Harris, and Star Wars Battlefront 2’s Janina Gavankar, to name a few. There will be 40 stories with each tale told by a different author about a character from the movie. Not much is known about who will voice whom but Hamm is confirmed to be voicing Boba Fett and Harris will tell the tale of an Imperial officer who’s aboard the Death Star. Gavankar will voice a different Imperial soldier from the one she voices in Battlefront 2.

The other voice actors include Now on the writing side, the authors contributing to this book include. All the authors have forgone payment for their stories and will have their proceeds go to First Book, a nonprofit that gives new books, learning materials, and other necessary tools needed by educators and organizations that serve children in need. According to Penguin Random House, the publisher has donated US$100,000 to First Book, while Lucasfilm gave 100,000 books to the charity that’s estimated to be worth US$1 million. From a Certain Point of View will be available for purchase starting October 3^rd.

Source: Star Wars

BlackBerry inks licensing deal with Timex

BlackBerry might no longer be in the hardware market but it has been busy signing licensing agreements with other companies. Its latest deal is with Timex, which gives the watchmaker access to over 40,000 patents. Android Authority speculates this could possibly lead to a BlackBerry-branded smartwatch. But this must be taken with more than just a grain of salt. BlackBerry has patents all over, including “wireless communications, networking infrastructure, acoustics, messaging, enterprise software, operating systems, virtualization, and cybersecurity.” The deal could lead to other products. BlackBerry is keeping mum about the possibility of a smartwatch in our future.

But we at least know it might focus on mobile communications. According to BlackBerry senior director of intellectual property licensing Jerald Gnuschke, “This license agreement with Timex demonstrates the strength of BlackBerry’s patent portfolio, and will enable us to focus on further patent licensing opportunities in the mobile communications market.”

Leaked Nokia 2 might be a budget phone with a big battery

HMD Global is steadily building up its Nokia brand and it looks like a budget option might be on its way. Evan Blass just leaked what’s said to be the Nokia 2. And looks-wise it does look like an entry-level option. Those who are averse to bezels will not like this option. But beggars can’t be choosers, right?

Android Authority is speculating October 5 to be the release date, because dates in renders usually match launch time. However, that could change so we’ll keep our eyes out for any announcements. As for specs, we don’t have those yet but if the Nokia 3, which is a budget-friendly option already, expect this to be smaller and with less powerful specs. One thing where the Nokia 2 might shine though is in terms of battery. An FCC certification for the phone claims the battery will be 4,000mAh battery, which would be amazing for a budget phone with a small display. We should find out more about this device soon.

Facebook compiles best emergency tools into new Crisis Response hub

Facebook is bringing together all its emergency features into one place, which should definitely come in handy in times of need. The Crisis Response hub will house Safety Check, which will surface to the top of the hub if you’re in an area affected by a calamity or tragedy; links to helpful crisis-related articles, photos, and videos; a community help feature that will let you ask for and give crisis-related advice; and access to fundraisers and non-profits that will let you donate or help out during relief efforts. The hub is accessible both on desktop and mobile. It’s rolling out in the coming weeks so watch for it.

Source: The Next Web