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Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare Trailer Reverts The Series Back To Its Roots

We get dirty, so that the World stays clean

Activision’s vision of a game closer to reality has never looked so good, as showcased in the latest Call of Duty: Modern Warfare reveal trailer that was released on May 30, 2019. The franchise can be deemed nothing less than legendary, and while the reviews of the previous iterations of the game have been dwindling in quality, Modern Warfare aims to take the player back to the roots.

The trailer is centred around the ‘golden’ CoD character, Captain John Price, who is one of the more prominent faces of the franchise. It is expected that other characters such as John “Soap” MacTavish and Derek “Frost” Westbrook will also make an appearance in the reboot. The trailer showcases scenarios that are heavily relatable to the current state of the world in some cases. Terrorism and bio-chemical wars are just two of the threats that were poised in the trailer.

One significant fact is the return of the original developers, Infinity Ward back to the franchise. As per reports, the core developer and design teams working on the game (including developers from Naughty Dog) are focusing on the emotional impact that the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare can have on the players. Infinity Ward co-head stated that the story designers will aim to be sensitive and edgy at the same time. Since the game is based on real world headlines and events, it is expected to feature psychological warfare along with dictating villains and a rich dose of violence.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
The trailer further reveals that the storyline of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare can be experienced from two separate perspectives. The player can play as a lethal Tier-1 Marine with a complete set of weapons and equipment, or he can play as a freedom fighter in the Middle-eastern region. Similar to the previous games, the players can call in airstrikes, perks and care packages to strengthen their position.

Also Read: A 16 Year Old Dies After Allegedly Playing PUBG Mobile For Six Hours

The game is scheduled for launch on October 25, 2019. Additionally, Infinity Ward revealed that Call of Duty: Modern Warfare will support cross play across all major platforms, which may be a major upside to the game. Furthermore, more information regarding the gameplay and the game itself is expected to be revealed at the E3 2019, which will start June 11 onwards. And we can all hope to catch some more glimpses of old characters from the previous Modern Warfare games, because the end of the trailer packs a clue too obvious to ignore.

Who’s your team?

Some Old Comrades

Watch the official reveal trailer of the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare below

May 31, 2019
A 16 Year Old Dies After Allegedly Playing PUBG Mobile For Six Hours

Chinese conglomerate Tencent released the game PUBG Mobile for Android and iOS last year. The game was the mobile adaptation of the renowned battle royale title PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG). Since its release on smartphones, the game has seen an unexpected spike in its popularity which eventually led to a few cities in India going as far ahead to ban PUBG Mobile completely. Now, reports have surfaced that a 16-year-old boy from Madhya Pradesh has died; after allegedly playing the battle royale game for six hours on a stretch.

About the case

According to the report from a reputable media house, 16-year-old Furkan Quereshi of the Neemuch town in Madhya Pradesh died; after playing PUBG Mobile continuously for six hours. The incident occurred after he lost a game, became agitated and started shouting at his teammates. It is then claimed that he collapsed on the floor, after which when his family took him to the hospital, the doctors declared him dead on arrival. The boy started playing the game after lunch on the 26th of May, and the aforementioned incident happened at around 7 PM. His brother claims that he was addicted to PUBG Mobile, playing close to 18 hours in a day.

Also read: Amazon Textract Service Intended For Transcribing Data Is Now Live

According to the doctor who examined Furkan, his heart was healthy as he was a swimmer; but the excitement of the game PUBG Mobile might have caused a surge in the adrenaline. This is reported to have caused a cardiac arrest in the boy, taking his life. The police have filed a case and an investigation; to further determine the cause of death of the boy is underway. The doctor, along with the family of the boy has pleaded for a ban on the game entirely across the country.

May 31, 2019
Apple Foldable Phone Patent Revealed

In the ongoing race of foldable smartphones, American tech giant Apple is looking to introduce its own contender. An Apple foldable device has been in the rumours for quite some time, and as per the latest reports, it may not be far from turning into a reality. The United States Patent and Trademark Office has published a total of 85 patents for the company, two of which include a foldable iDevice and a smart keyboard which resembles the iPad’s Folio keyboard.

Patent For Foldable iDevice

The application titled “Apple invents both Single and Multi-Fold Device Form Factors for Future iDevices” was filed by the company in the month of August 2018. The patent covers electronic devices that feature a bendable region. Such a device will sport a display layer and a cover layer that can fold around the aforementioned bendable region. The patent indicates that the flexible cover layer may be made out of ceramic so as to increase the detail of protection against falls and scratches. Additionally, the flexible cover may also provide structural integrity to the foldable device.

The patent exhibits the ability of the foldable device to transform into a tablet, which would enable the user to make use of the entire display surface. The device can be folded two times, which implies that almost one third of the total display surface will be visible when the device is in its folded state.

Patent For Smart Keyboard Design

The second patent covers a device that is quite similar to the Apple Folio smart keyboard, which was released alongside the iPad Pro 12.9 in the year 2016. The patent includes images of a variety of designs for a new smart keyboard that may be announced in the future. One of the images showcases a keyboard design with a space above the keyboard which can be used to input data via the Apple Pencil. Another design features the inclusion of a trackpad to the keyboard.

Also Read: Korvaa: A Pair Of Biodegradable Headphones Developed By A Finnish Design Studio

It is unsure whether the company will unveil any new products based on the preceding form factors anytime soon. Previously, concept renders had surfaced, which showed off the design of a probable foldable iPhone. Considering the ongoing trend of foldable smartphones (such as the Samsung Galaxy Fold), Apple is expected to announce its own version of the foldable smartphone at its launch event in September 2019, where the company will launch its next generation iPhones.

May 30, 2019
Korvaa: A Pair Of Biodegradable Headphones Developed By A Finnish Design Studio

“Electronics” and “Growing” are probably two words that may not have previously co-existed in the past, though not anymore. Reports claim that almost 400 million headphone units were retailed in the year 2018 alone. The highly popular gadgets are fabricated out of a variety of materials such as leather, plastic and mesh, all of which are not exactly environment favourable. As a solution, Finnish Design Studio Aivan has designed the Korvaa headphones that are extremely environment friendly. In fact, the materials used form a crucial basis of the environment itself.

The headband of the Korvaa headset is born out of a 3D printer and designed with the help of a bioplastic formulated from yeast produced lactic acid. Notably, the earcup padding is made out of Hydrophobin. The compound is known for its ability to form a hydrophobic (water-repellent) coating on the surface of an object. It is essentially a foaming protein generated by a type fungus and plant cellulose. Instead of the mesh used in conventional headphones, the Korvaa headset uses a biosynthetic spider silk that is produced by microbes. The outer foam used in the headphones is a composite compound made out of mycelium and cellulose.

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The headphones are a result of a joint venture between Avian, Aalto University and VTT Technical Research. First showcased at an event in Helinski, the headphones are still in a prototype stage, which means that except the outer casing, no electronic components are present inside the headset. However, The company aims to incorporate the same “growing electronics” technology in future headphones, so that e-waste generation can be put on hold. If the technology is developed further, bio-engineered products might be a common sight while shopping in the future.

May 29, 2019
Samsung’s Deepfake AI Is Capable Of Creating A Convincing Video Out Of A Single Frame

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is expected to be the next big thing in technology in the near future. The idea of human-made objects able to exist as sentient beings capable of making decisions is both optimistic and terrifying at the same time. In a development bordering between the aforementioned emotions; Researchers at the Samsung AI Centre in Moscow, Russia have developed a Deepfake algorithm that can create a video out of a single image. These “Living portraits” as they are called have been tested on some famous historical images and the results are well, surprisingly great.

Samsung Deepfake AI

As mentioned previously, Samsung has developed and had (kind of) successfully tested the algorithm. In a video shared on YouTube, the AI can be seen in action. The researchers refer to this process as few/one-shot learning. In this process, a model can be trained by using only an image to chart out a convincing animated portrait shot. While this works with a single image, using more images, up to 32 improves the results even more. This process of superimposing existing images and videos onto source images or videos using a machine learning technique is generally known as Deepfakes. This has been an avid problem on the internet today which is credited to the rise of fake news.

Also read: LEGO’s New Team-Battle RPG Announced By Gameloft For iOS And Android

These realistically talking head models are generated using a convolutional neural network. By training the algorithm on a large dataset of talking head videos with a variety of appearances. The Samsung researchers have been reported to have used more than 7,000 publically available images from YouTube videos. This technique generated Deepfakes of historical personalities such as famous scientist Albert Einstein, Painter Salvador Dali and the mysterious woman from the Mona Lisa portrait of Leonardo Da Vinci. And while there are a few anomalies that give away the obviously fake nature of the video, it is an example of how far the technology can go. In the meanwhile, we will just leave this GIF of expressive Mona Lisa for you to ponder.

May 24, 2019
SpaceX Successfully Launches 60 Satellites In The Starlink Project For Global Internet

American aerospace manufacturer and space transportation services company SpaceX has successfully launched 60 satellites in the Starlink project on the 23rd of May. This initiative aims at installing almost twelve thousand satellites to deliver latency free, fast internet anywhere in the world. The latest mission was the first in the many launches that are scheduled for the better part of the next six years.

What Is Starlink?

As mentioned above, the ultimate goal of the Starlink project by SpaceX is to launch and install twelve thousand satellites into the lower orbit of the earth; in an attempt to deliver fast internet to even the most remote places in the world. In this initiative, one batch of 4,409 satellites will be placed between 550kms and 1,325 km from Earth’s surface; while the second batch of 7,518 satellites will orbit the planet at a height between 335km to 346km from the surface. When taking a count, that amounts to a total of 11,927 satellites orbiting the Earth in an attempt to deliver fast internet. The company plans to launch the aforementioned satellites by the year 2024.

The sixty satellites stacked together

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) of the United States; a certification body has granted SpaceX the necessary permission to launch the Satellite constellation into space. Notably, the company launched two test satellites in the mission in the year 2018. These were called TinTin A and TinTin B and laid the foundation for the current mission.

Also read: Google Is Reimbursing Pixel 1 Owners In The US, But What About India?

While the idea behind Starlink; a global coverage of the Internet to even the remotest areas seems philanthropic, the truth is more easy on the eyes. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has said the mission is important because Starlink will be a revenue generator for the company. With the money made from the project, the company claims it will be able to fund and develop more advanced space exploration project. This may include SpaceX’s plan to send a human to Mars within a decade.

May 24, 2019
This Avengers: Endgame Theory Tries To Make Sense Of The Confusing Time Travel
Marvel Entertainment’s latest superhero saga Avengers: Endgame hit theatres on the 26th of April. The movie has since progressed to becoming one of the highest earning titles of all time, amassing over US$ 2 Billion at the worldwide box office. If you have seen the movie, loved it but didn’t understand the time travel bit, you might not be alone. While superhero movies rarely try taking the logical route, the part where they explained time travel in Endgame was murky at best. A user on Reddit has tried to dissect the plot and has derived a pretty convincing theory of what transpired in the Avengers: Endgame movie for all of us to understand. There are massive spoilers ahead for the film, so tread carefully.

Avengers: Endgame Time Travel Theory

To understand the theory better, the user claims we have to establish some principles. The first one is that travelling through time does not create alternate timelines. This was explained by Bruce Banner aka Professor Hulk in the movie when talking to Clint Barton aka Hawkeye. He explains that when someone travels to the past, their present then ends up being the past which cannot be altered. The things that have happened will happen but if you try and change the history, you will just become a part of it. The second principle is that only the absence of the infinity stones can create alternate realities. This bit was explained by the Ancient One to Bruce Banner at the time of the Battle of New York. She established that the infinity stones “control the flow of time”, such that if one stone was removed from the timeline, it would cause a different branch of reality to be created without changing what happened in the original reality.

This led to Bruce promising that he will make sure the stones are replaced at the exact moment they were taken, so the creation of an alternate reality is spared. The theory then explains when Captain America travels back to return the stones, he helps the Avengers in the year 2012 look for Loki in time for the 2012 movie’s ending. When the Power Stone is returned, Star-Lord just wakes back up and steals it in the year 2014. This stops any alternate realities from being created as the stones are replaced the exact moment they were taken.

The third principle states collective Infinity Stones have no power over life. It cannot snap life force away from someone and cannot create life force where there is none. This makes the movie’s big bad Thanos wrong about them. If you have already grabbed a pitchfork and are claiming he altered the life of Vision in Avengers: Infinity War, know this; Vision was a vessel for the Mind Stone and while behaved like a sentient being, he also has mentioned he hasn’t eaten anything yet. Not to forget his body is literally made synthetically by Ultron and the Avengers.

The stones can be used, however, to decimate someone using their energy/radiation directed towards the particular person. So when Thanos snaps, the people aren’t really gone, they have just been transported through space and time to the year 2023 when they are called back by Hulk’s reverse snap. Getting confusing? Here is what the individual stone was used for in the snap.
- Space Stone: Altering Space for the Snap
- Time Stone: Altering Time for the Snap
- Power Stone: Needed for powering the Snap
- Soul Stone: Capturing billions of souls for the Snap
- Mind Stone: Computing the magnitude of the Snap
- Reality Stone: Altering the reality after the Snap
The above explanation indicates that when Iron Man snaps the gauntlet containing the stones at the end of the movie, Thanos and his army were transported back to the year 2014 with the Mind Stone wiping their memory. As for Nebula who was shown as shot in a previous scene, she can be replaced for parts later. While the purple giant might not have a memory of what happened in 2023, he did sense defeat and failure, which explains his calm demeanour in Infinity War. The last scene too, where Captain America goes back in time to live with Peggy Carter, that has already happened.

Also read: 10 Avengers Endgame Facts That You Probably Didn’t Know

This explains why no photos of proofs of her husband have been shown in previous movies because Old Man Cap was hiding in plain sight. While this theory is as crazy as it sounds like, the writers for Avengers: Endgame have themselves confirmed the part; where Steve Rogers is Peggy’s husband all along. You can check out the detailed insight into this theory on Reddit and might end up disagreeing with it, but this fan theory seems like the most plausible way to understand the time travel mess in Endgame. What do you think of this theory? Tell us in the comments below.
May 18, 2019
NASA To Crash A Spacecraft Into An Asteroid In 2022

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration or NASA is a well-known space organisation; and an independent agency of the United States. In a world first, it has announced the Double Asteroid Redirection Test or the DART Mission. It is a defence driven mission aimed at preventing the impact on Earth by a potentially hazardous asteroid in the future. In the DART mission, NASA will send a spacecraft to crash into an asteroid in the year 2022.

NASA DART Mission

The DART Spacecraft

The NASA DART Mission, as mentioned above, aims at sending a spacecraft to crash into an asteroid called Didymos to test the planetary defences of Earth. In the details revealed on the organisation’s official website, it is known the mission will be the first time the kinetic impactor technique is demonstrated. The technique will try to change the motion or path of the asteroid in space. The DART mission has swiftly reached Phase C and is managed under NASA’s Solar System Exploration Program at Marshal Space Flight Center for the organisation’s Planetary Defence Coordination Office.

Didymos Asteroid

Also read: Apple iPhone XI 7 nm+ SOC Risk Production Started By TSMC

The DART spacecraft launch is scheduled for late July 2021 aboard the Falcon 9 rocket made by SpaceX. It will launch from the Vandenberg Air Force Base, California and is expected to intercept with the Didymos asteroid in late September of the year 2022. Noteworthy, the asteroid will be within a distance of 11 million kilometres from Earth at the time and poses no harm to the planet in any way. While the mission seems far fetched at first, its real-world application may be very important in the future. If the mission is successful, Earth will have gained the ability to fend off incoming threats from outer space like asteroids or meteorites. This has the potential of minimising or saving the planet from damage in case of any potential collision.

May 11, 2019
Samsung Is Once Again The Number One Premium Smartphone Maker In India
Samsung is currently the number one smartphone manufacturer in the world. Clearly, the company also has a very strong grip in the densely populated Indian mobile phone market. Even though the largest smartphone maker in India is Xioami, Samsung has held the top spot in the premium smartphone segment. But, for the last three quarters, the company lost its title to the Chinese smartphone maker, OnePlus which rode to the top on back of the OnePlus 6 and the OnePlus 6T.

A fresh report published by Counterpoint research reveals the newly launched Galaxy S10 lineup has helped the company regain its pole position. For starters, Counterpoint is a market research company dedicated to delivering intelligence on technology trends across the globe. According to the report, the top three premium brands including Samsung, OnePlus and Apple accounted for 90 per cent of the premium segment shipments in Q1 of 2019 as compared to 95 per cent in Q1 of 2018.

The report states the remaining 10% of the stake is shared companies like Huawei which have gained traction based on the Mate and P Series of smartphones. It also highlights that Apple is also striving to stop its decline which is primarily due to excessive pricing. On the brighter side, as the company starts local assembly of certain iPhone models which is expected to happen soon, it will be relieved of the 20% import duty that the Indian government collects for each unit.

The Counterpoint report exhibits if Apple passes on some of the price benefits to the consumers, it is expected to see a significant rise in its sale. The top selling premium smartphones in the Q1 2019 are as follows:
- OnePlus 6T : 26%
- Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus: 16 %
- Samsung Galaxy S10: 12 %
Also Read: Realme X With 8 GB RAM Spotted On Geekbench

Samsung has certainly managed to race ahead of the competition in the Q1, however, it will be interesting to see what the results are like once the highly anticipated OnePlus 7 and OnePlus 7 Pro launch. The said devices are set to launch on the 14th of May.
May 10, 2019
Apple iPhone XI 7 nm+ SOC Risk Production Started By TSMC

TSMC, a Taiwanese OEM that produces semiconductors and chipsets. Founded in the year 1987 the company currently holds the title for world’s largest dedicated independent semiconductor foundry. Corporations including Apple, Qualcomm and AMD are one of the few customers of TSMC.

The company has qualified a significant achievement in the field of chipset technology which is starting risk production of 5 nm chips. This step would allow the company to reduce the size of a given chipset by up to 45% in comparison to the current technology which is 7 nm. Furthermore, it will provide a performance boost of up to 15% in devices that incorporate the chipset. Even though the size of the foundation die has changed, the architecture of a particular chipset remains the same (eg: A73, Kryo 460). Accrediting to the size reduction, devices using the chipset manufactured using 5 nm process will be more power efficient. Therefore, proving for a longer battery backup on portable devices.

Except for the 5 nm process node, TSMC is also working on the 5 nm+ technology which will push a chipsets performance even further. However, the risk production of chipsets with this fabrication process will reportedly begin next year and they will be production ready by Q1 of 2021. For chipsets originating later this year, the company has 7 nm+ process ready. It should offer 20 % higher transistor density and 6-12% reduction in power consumption.

2019 iPhone Renders

Also Read: Asus ZenFone 6 To Launch With Snapdragon 855

Notable companies that are lined up for the 7 nm+ based chipsets manufactured by TSMC include Qualcomm and Apple. TSMC being the sole chip supplier for Apple, at least until now, will manufacture SoCs for 2019 iPhones. Consequently, the upcoming smartphones from Apple will be kitted with 7 nm+ based chipsets which is assumed to carry the A13 Bionic moniker.

May 10, 2019
OnePlus Expects To Deliver A Great Camera On The OnePlus 7 Pro

OnePlus will launch the latest iteration of its flagship smartphones on the 14th of May. These devices, confirmed to be the OnePlus 7 and the OnePlus 7 Pro, will be the successor to the OnePlus 6T launched last year. In the latest round of teasers shared by the company before the official announcement; the camera prowess of the OnePlus 7 Pro has been showcased through a series of collaborations with known streaming service Netflix and the famous lifestyle channel National Geographic.

About The Partnerships

Shot On The OnePlus 7 Pro

The Chinese smartphone OEM OnePlus has partnered up with the American video streaming giant Netflix. With this collaboration, the upcoming OnePlus 7 Pro has been used to click the posters for the second season of a series by the streaming service called Sacred Games. Various posters featuring the cast of the show have been shot using the smartphone. These images were released by the company to tease the imaging capabilities of its flagship device.

Shot On The OnePlus 7 Pro

The second collaboration with OnePlus has been done by the renowned satellite channel National Geographic. Three photographers at National Geographic will journey across North America capture images of nature which will be then published in a special edition magazine slated to release in July. All the images in the aforementioned magazine will be captured using the OnePlus 7 Pro and will also be shared on the channel’s various social media handles.

OnePlus 7 Pro Cameras

Also read: A John Wick Themed Game Will Release Soon For Windows PC, Mac And Consoles

OnePlus has earlier revealed the upcoming OnePlus 7 Pro will feature a triple rear camera setup. While no further detail about the optics has been shared by the company, the previous leaks about the smartphone provide the necessary information. It has been reported the triple cameras on the handset will consist of an f/1.6 aperture equipped 48 MP sensor, f/2.2 aperture equipped 16 MP sensor and an f/2.4 aperture equipped 8 MP sensor that has 3x optical zoom capabilities. For selfies, an f/2.0 aperture equipped 16 MP Sony IMX471 front facing camera is expected to be housed in the pop-up style mechanism on top of the device.

May 10, 2019
Amazon CEO Bezos Wants To Send People To The Moon By 2024

It’s an exciting time to be alive right now. Humans are closer to interplanetary space travel than ever before. Private space organizations including SpaceX are testing out space vehicles such as the Starship and Super Heavy that can safely transport humans to Mars. On the 9th of May 2019, Jeff Bezos unveiled a Lunar Lander that will fulfil the mission of establishing humans on the moon by the year 2024.

Known as the Blue Moon, the lander will be capable of autonomous space navigation. It will be able to perform soft landings on the surface of the moon while carrying payloads weighing between 3.6 and 6.5 metric tons. This implies that the Blue Moon will be able to carry a total of 4 large rovers simultaneously. This is a small part in a much larger plan to analyze the resources and the surface of the moon.

Why Do We Need To Send Humans To The Moon?

Today, our founder shared our vision to go to space to benefit Earth. We must return to the Moon—this time to stay. We’re ready to support @NASA in getting there by 2024 with #bluemoon. pic.twitter.com/UqQyMa9Zcn
— Blue Origin (@blueorigin) May 9, 2019

Jeff Bezos has previously talked about his vision to “make space an accessible place for all”. The Amazon CEO believes that the earth cannot accommodate a trillion humans. In an attempt to prevent such a situation, he plans to develop an infrastructure that can sustain human life on the bleak rock that we all call “Moon”. Moreover, Blue Origin owned by Jeff Bezos is already working on a couple of space vehicles designed for short duration flights to the moon’s orbit. But that’s not it. Jeff also wants to harness the resources present on the moon in order to generate future-viable energy.

The richest man on the planet plans to instate American astronauts on the South Pole of the moon in the next 5 years. The Indian Space Research Organization’s Chandrayaan-1 lunar orbiter collected data that confirmed the presence of more than 1 trillion pounds of ice at the lunar poles. The ice refuses to evaporate because the temperature on the moon’s surface never exceeds -250 degrees Fahrenheit. NASA wants to harness the ice to generate rocket fuel for future missions.

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Amidst the “space race”, one question still looms over our heads. Will privately funded space organizations compete amongst themselves in the future? If so, how will this affect interplanetary travel? Advancements in aerospace will eventually speed up because of the evolution of technology. Nonetheless, the Blue Moon Lander is expected to undergo its first ignition test this summer, which will mark another integral step towards expanding the “space footprint”.

May 10, 2019
Playing Pokémon May Have Hardwired Your Brain As A Kid

If you are one of those people who loved playing Pokémon as a kid, chances are that your brain is wired in a certain way that enables you to respond more intuitively to cartoon characters than other pictures. As per the latest investigation performed by researchers at Stanford reveals that people who played Pokémon in their childhood exhibit preferential activation to Pokémon characters. The game may have affected the human brain after all.

Scientists found out that a certain area of the brain behind the ears responded more in case of avid Pokémon fans than those who did not play the game at all. It is already known that humans have specific areas of the brain dedicated to recognizing numbers, words, images and faces. For instance, the human brain responds differently to celebrities like Morgan Freeman, Tom Cruise than it does to other people. Scientists at Stanford decided that to confirm the same study at a younger age, Pokémon fans are the most suited options, as they were already exposed to the game when they were quite young.

The existing theory was confirmed in terms that childhood exposure is in fact necessary in order to develop the regions of brain dedicated to recognition and experiential learning. The fold behind the ear, which is called the occipitotemporal responds to images of Pokémon in the same way as it responds to images of animals. Furthermore, researchers believe that the brain acts in a certain way that enables it to decide how to respond to a specific image.

Also Read: Latest OnePlus 7 Pro Renders Show Off Almond Colour Variant

Researchers state that the reason they chose Pokémon was not only because they are loved by kids, instead, owing to a multitude of characters associated with the universe, the Pokémon family was more suited to the same. Since the game rewards its players with in-game items, it creates a memory associated with the same that is tough to eradicate. Additionally, the researchers said that all the test subjects grew up to be very successful people. They all had PhDs, indicating that the game had no adverse effect of any kind on young brains during childhood.

May 7, 2019
Sonic The Hedgehog Director Claims Changes Will Be Made To Design Of The Main Character

The known studio Paramount and legendary gaming company Sega released the first trailer for Sonic the Hedgehog movie on the 30th of April. The film stars the beloved Sonic, a blue hedgehog who is bestowed with the power of superspeed. While the character has been a part of various video games and animated series in the past, to the creator’s surprise, the trailer for the movie was met with disappointing glares and negative reviews.

The fans of the games and animated series made on the beloved character demanded a change in the look and design of Sonic. In a recent tweet, the director of the movie Jeff Fowler claimed that the studio will improve and enhance the design of Sonic before the film is released in November.

Sonic the Hedgehog

Thank you for the support. And the criticism. The message is loud and clear… you aren't happy with the design & you want changes. It's going to happen. Everyone at Paramount & Sega are fully committed to making this character the BEST he can be… #sonicmovie #gottafixfast ???
— Jeff Fowler (@fowltown) May 2, 2019

The announcement was made on microblogging website Twitter as mentioned above. The director of Sonic the Hedgehog movie, Jeff Fowler thanked the fans of the Sonic franchise for their support and criticism surrounding the trailer. He also claimed the Paramount studio and Sega have decided to change the design of the main character as requested by many fans. Unfortunately, it is not known what changes will be made to the characters, but reports are rife the studio will focus on making Sonic less humanoid.

Also read: GTA 6 Leaks Suggest The Game Will Be Set In Vice City And Liberty City

The storyline of Sonic the Hedgehog movie depicts Sonic, who is voiced by Ben Schwartz, trying to save the earth from the evil Dr Robotnik (who is played by Jim Carrey) in association with a policeman (played by James Marsden). The trailer is set against the legendary “Gangsta’s Paradise” soundtrack, which would have actually enhanced the trailer hadn’t it been for the kid-hedgehog combo leading the movie. Sonic The Hedgehog is scheduled to make its way to movie theatres on November 8, 2019. However, because of the changes, the release date may be further pushed into the future.

May 3, 2019
iPhone X Was The Most Selling Smartphone In 2018 Reveals Report

Counterpoint is a market research company dedicated to delivering intelligence on technology trends across the globe. The company has freshly released its “Counterpoint Market Pulse 2018” report which reveals interesting findings. The report details the top-selling global smartphones for the year 2018. Surprisingly, the list is dominated by handsets from Apple which secure six positions out of ten.

Astoundingly, the “Counterpoint Market Pulse 2018” report is topped by Apple’s iPhone X which was launched in the year 2017. The former is followed by three other smartphones from Apple which include iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone 7 in respective order. Even though the report does not provide exact sales figures of each smartphone, it states that the top three iPhone models have combined sales figures close to 100 million.

Interestingly, the number five spot in the report is secured by the budget-oriented Redmi 5A from Xiaomi. Noteworthy, the results also register that the former was the most selling Android smartphone from yesteryear which is closely followed by Samsung’s flagship grade Galaxy S9. Albeit, Samsung’s smartphone sales have been plummeting over the last couple of years, Galaxy S9 was able to perform well in terms of sale for the Android side.

Once again, Apple smartphones with iPhone XS Max and the iPhone XR secure the seventh and eighth positioning in the report. Running further down the list, Samsung’s 2017 flagship Galaxy S8 Plus and the mid-range Galaxy J6 take the ninth and tenth position.

The research company also provided data about top selling smartphones for China in 2018. Unlike Global results, top-selling smartphones in China are mainly dominated by local brands Oppo and Vivo which are both owned by BBK electronics. Notably, the iPhone X is also able to stabilise the number two position even in China. The complete list of most selling smartphones can be found above.

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All in all, it seems Apple smartphones are able to maintain a mojo in the Global market while the Chinese consumers have a preference towards locally assembled devices.

May 1, 2019