What a week! Between the cancellation of the Note 7 and the excitement around the Pixel, we've hardly slept around here. But that's a good thing: It's nice being busy.
But it also makes me look forward to the inevitable slowdown that happens around U.S. Thanksgiving, when people get a chance to slow down and take a few moments to breathe. Of course, Black Friday is another reason to look forward to the holidays; it's a chance for us to make recommendations, and for you actually buy the things you've read about for the past few months.
Phones aside, I'm getting a sense that people are pretty excited about VR, and PlayStation VR in particular. It's more expensive than Daydream and Gear VR, but it's also far more immersive, and has the potential to lure millions of casual gamers into the world of virtual reality. I know I'm definitely one of those people.
What's on your Black Friday wish list this year?
It's now 100% illegal to take your Note 7 on an airplane
The hurt is almost over, we promise. The U.S. Department of Transportation has banned the Note 7 from all flights originating from or flying into the country, making it effectively an offense to bring one on a plane.
Individuals who own or possess a Samsung Galaxy Note7 device may not transport the device on their person, in carry-on baggage, or in checked baggage on flights to, from, or within the United States.
If you were planning to hold onto the phone indefinitely, is that enough to convince you otherwise?
Samsung to take a $5.3 billion hit on the Note 7
Samsung is estimating that it may lose $3.1 billion over the next two quarters as the company deals with the Note 7 recall. That's in addition to the $2.2 billion loss it forecast for this quarter, bringing the total to $5.3 billion. More{.cta}
SwiftKey goes incognito with latest update
SwiftKey beta has been updated to version 6.4.5, adding support for Nougat, text expansion shortcuts, and an incognito mode. SwiftKey won't remember new words or save any data you enter while you're incognito, with the keyboard switching to a dark theme with a mask overlay.
Google's updated Pixel camera app can now run on the Nexus 5X and 6P
Looking to get give your Nexus 5X or 6P a little camera boost? You can now download a slightly modified version of the Pixel camera for last year's Nexus devices, offering the same gestures and quick toggles that may or may not come to those phones with Android 7.1.
HTC Bolt appears in a new leak with no headphone jack
The HTC Bolt is a rumored new Sprint mid-ranger and today we get to see some pictures of the phone from VentureBeat. Externally things look a lot like the HTC A9 from last year, minus one important detail — a headphone jack. HTC has gone full circle from the G1 to the Bolt.
Google is creating a new index just for mobile
Google is working on a new mobile-only index that will go live in a few months. The mobile index will become the "primary" index, and while the desktop version will continue to co-exist, it will not be as up-to-date. No specifics on how this will work, but we should be learning more in the coming months.
SmrtFOB is a cool idea with a silly name
The folks behind bKey have a Kickstarter for a key fob that acts as a battery as well as storage between your phone and any other computer. What makes it special is the app that helps you remember to charge it and lets you manage the data in the fob while it's sitting in your key bowl. It's a neat idea, and the Kickstarter is nearly funded already.
Why does nobody want to buy Twitter?
Salesforce, the leading candidate in the proposed purchase of Twitter, has walked away from the deal following waning interest by a number of companies, including Google and Disney. Twitter may be incredibly popular for a certain subset of users, but on Wall Street it just can't catch a break.
That's it for us this week! Thanks for following along, and have a wonderful weekend!
