 |
|
|
|||||
Perhaps like the loser of the proposed cage fight between Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg that's never, ever happening, X has been down and out for much of Monday. Down Detector saw a spike in outage reports from users between around 5:30 AM and 6:30AM ET. There were two more prolonged spikes, denoting more significant outages, later in the morning. Team Engadget has not been able to view tweets on X for the most part, save for a few brief moments when the service showed signed of life. The platform's owner, Elon Musk, claimed that there was a "massive cyberattack against X" with either a "large, coordinated group and/or a country" behind the claimed assault. Musk didn't provide any evidence, but experts told NBC News that his assertions were plausible. Its difficult to be certain, but given the pattern of three observed outages, a denial service attack targeting Xs infrastructure cant be ruled out, Isik Mater, director of research at NetBlocks, which tracks internet connectivity around the world, told the outlet. Its certainly one of the longest X/Twitter outages in our records. This isn't the first time that Musk has blamed a major attack for X's technical issues. He did the same thing last year when when he held a livestreamed audio chat with President Donald Trump last year and the broadcast wasn't working.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/elon-musk-says-a-massive-cyberattack-is-to-blame-for-x-being-down-184148605.html?src=rss
Category:
Marketing and Advertising
TCL just unveiled a new TV in its Precise Dimming Series. The QM7K is a Mini-LED TV and a follow-up to the recently-released QM6K. It uses the companys Halo Control Technology Suite, which is kind of a catch-all name for a bunch of tweaks the company has made to the dimming and picture quality of its Mini LEDs. The company says the QM7K offers higher peak brightness than its predecessors and a new anti-reflective panel. TCL also promises enhanced color accuracy, gray scale accuracy and virtually no blooming. This is thanks to the company's Super High Energy LED Chip, which combines high brightness with increased light efficiency, and the Super Condensed Micro Lens, which uses a narrower light path for more precise control. TLC Additionally, newly-enhanced technology minimizes the optical distance between the backlight and the diffuser, which eliminates blooming, reduces the halo effect and avoids LED light overlap. The new features, in conjunction with the anti-reflective panel, create a picture with a better contrast and deeper blacks. On the software side of things, theres a new color optimization algorithm for improved accuracy. The Halo Control System also adds a bi-directional 23-bit backlight controller, which allows for granular control of over 65,000 levels of brightness for each and every LED. Theres also a new algorithm that intelligently optimizes incoming SDR signals at near HDR level. The QM7K features Bang & Olfusen speakers and select sizes ship with a pedestal stand. Sizes range from 55-inches all the way up to 115-inches. Prices fluctuate from around $1,300 for the smallest one to a whopping $20,000 for the 115-inch monster. Traditional sizes are availright right now at retailers nationwide, with the large models coming soon. Some purchases come with a $500 Visa gift card, which is a nice bonus. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/home-theater/tcls-new-mini-led-tv-offers-higher-peak-brightness-and-better-contrast-than-earlier-models-175237076.html?src=rss
Category:
Marketing and Advertising
Season two of HBOs The Last of Us is just a month away, and as such the hype cycle kicked into full gear this past weekend. A full trailer finally arrived on Saturday during a panel at SXSW with the shows creators and cast (not to mention an in-depth preview in Variety), and both that trailer and the panel discussion reinforced at least one major change coming this season: more action. That could fix one of the bigger complaints fans had about season one, which garnered tons of praise from critics and fans alike. While season one brought the Infected to life in terrifying fashion, there were long stretches of the show where they simply werent around, making them feel like less of an ever-present threat. The new trailer shows off the town of Jackson, where Joel and Ellie settled at the end of season one along with his brother Tommy, under a massive siege of Infected, the kind of battle that might take up an entire episode. And show creators Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann hinted that Infected would play a bigger role this season, not just in numbers. "It was important to us to always move the ball forward with the infected," Mazin said during the SXSW panel. "Its not a question of just more, but something else that is meaningful to what is going on so they dont just become NPCs. So definitely an escalation, were careful about it because we know we have space yet to go [in future seasons]." And in response to the panels moderator noting the balance between action and drama, Druckmann pointed out that, for the showrunners, "everything is drama, even the action scenes. They all have to be character-driven." To that end, the trailer showed off a new-but-old way for the infection to spread that wasnt present in the first season: spores. Anyone who played the games noted the absence of spores as a transmission for infection in the first season, but Mazin exclaimed "spores? Theyre back!" when talking about how the Infected were evolving for the new season. "There had to be a dramatic reason to introduce [spores] now," Druckmann said, "and now there is." Unsurprisingly, he wasnt more forthcoming about the details. I didnt really object to the lack of spores in season one; it felt more like a game mechanic than something crucial to the plot. But there are a few story beats in The Last of Us Part II that I can recall where having spores around leads to a crucial plot reveal, and Im looking forward to seeing how they get integrated here, and what the on-screen excuse will be for not seeing them before now. Similarly, I chalked the smaller number of Infected up to changes made to translate a video game to a show, though I feel like the first season could have had one more big throw-down but I feel like season two will answer those complaints and then some. Druckmann also said part of the reason the Infected werent more present was simply that the showrunners "werent exactly sure what we were doing." Thats not in terms of the story, but specifically in terms of showing the Infected on screen. "What should Infected look like? How much should be practical effects? How much can be VFX? Now, we know what were doing and we swung for the fences," he said. "In the game, we talk about how Jackson has had these attacks, but now we get to show it. And the reason we do it is we show you whats at stake, not for individuals but for an entire community." The notion of community plays into the overarching story that Mazin and Druckmann want to tell in season two. Druckmann said that the first season followed Joel and Ellie and was a lot about them against other communities, like the group in Kansas City or Davids flock of followers late in the first season. "Now, we get to see them settled in Jackson, thats their home, and theres a love there for a community," Druckmann explained. "That gets us into tribalism what happens when you go against another group and you dont see the humanity in them and how far will that take you, especially when they hurt someone you love." HBO Mazin followed that up by noting that the show has tried to investigate "the cost of love" and is now trying to create a sense of a larger, communal love and how a smaller, tighter group can fit into it. "What happens if someone in your tight group is taken from you, and you feel alone? One thing Ellie said in season one was the thing shes most afraid of is ending up alone," Mazin said. "So all these characters have to face this potential threat of being alone, and without a tribe, and then what do you do?" The other big theme that came out of the panel focused on how new cast members Kaitlyn Dever (Abby), Isabela Merced (Dina) and Young Mazino (Jesse) would fit in with returning stars Bella Ramsey (Ellie), Pedro Pascal (Joel) and Gabriel Luna (Tommy). "Yes, [the new cast] came in like badasses," said Pascal before then turning to Ramsey. "But you make it so easy, and so welcoming. I think we all really looked to Bella this time around as far as the cast is concerned. And this kind of open permission to be ourselves and to partner together in the scenes I think it is the sort of unspoken leadership that made it such an easy, horrifying place to step into." With his ever-present Dad-style humor, Pascal followed that by saying "The story was horrifying. Not Canada." "Theyre not new to me, because weve lived all this time together and it was seamless and I feel rather protective of you guys, and I love you guys, and you gave us everything," Mazin said. "Not a weak link in the chain," Druckmann interjected before Mazin went on to say how much he was looking forward to shooting with them yet again. Ramsey spoke to how well the new cast integrated itself during season twos filming. "I think its such a hard thing to do, to come into a world and a show thats already really established, it must be so intimidating and these people just came in and made it their own and fit in so well," they said. "Izzy brought a lot of joy and laughter and made everyone laugh consistently its just a joy to work with all three of these guys." HBO Kaitlyn Dever owned up to the anxiety the shot produced, saying that stepping into a world that was so beloved was "nerve-wracking and anxiety-inducing" and thats without mentioning the online hate that the character shes portraying (and its voice actor) received in 2020 when The Last of Us Part II was leaked two months before its release. Dever didnt get into that specific hornets nest during the panel, but did say that "there are so many expectations going into this, and it's just a matter of balancing that and also coming to it with my own ideas and building the character with Craig and Neil." The cast was an undeniable highlight of the first season of The Last of Us everyone on the show absolutely killed, regardless of whether they were in six episodes or were on the screen for six minutes. Projecting familial friendliness during a press tour is one thing, but the love and respect the actors have for each other as well as Mazin and Druckmann has been continually obvious over the last few years, particularly between Ramsey and Pascal. A fan shot a clip of Pascal watching the season two trailer during the panel, and he clearly gets emotional at the end of it, leaning over and giving Ramsey a big bear hug. As much as the show might be, on the surface, about fungal zombies, it only works because of the relationships between the characters on screen, whether thats Joel and Ellie or now Ellie and Dina or Abby and her WLF crew. Assuming everyone gets that right in season two, the show should satisfy again regardless of how many Infected are on screen.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/the-last-of-us-season-two-promises-a-lot-more-action-alongside-devastating-drama-170044014.html?src=rss
Category:
Marketing and Advertising
All news |
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||