Sunday, August 16, 2020

Latest Gadgets News

Congress party called on Sunday for a parliamentary panel to investigate what it said was favourable treatment by Facebook's India team towards the country's ruling party.

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Latest Gadgets News

Facebook said on Friday that Apple had declined its request to waive a 30 percent commission fee the iPhone maker charges apps listed on iOS devices, taking a shot at its fellow Big Tech peer as developers challenge the policy.

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30 of the best movies to stream on Netflix - CNET

Searching for what to watch tonight? Here are some of the best movies Netflix has to offer.

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Latest Tech News

Xiaomi’s latest budget offering, the Redmi 9 Prime will go on sale in India today. The device was part of Amazon Prime Day launch. Today the device will go on sale via Amazon.in and Mi.com.

The Redmi 9 Prime sale will go on sale at 12 noon today on Amazon and Mi.com. The device is priced at Rs 9,999 for the 4+64GB variant and the 4+128GB variant is priced at Rs 11,999. As far as the offers are concerned, you get a 5% instant discount with Citibank Credit Card EMI transaction and 5% Instant discount with HSBC card transactions. Buyers can also avail No Cost EMI offers with multiple banks. 

The device is available in four colour options - Matte Black, Mint Green, Space Blue, and Sunrise Flare.

Check out Redmi 9 Prime on Amazon

Redmi 9 Prime specs

(Image credit: Amazon)

The Redmi 9 Prime features a 6.53-inch Full HD+ LCD screen with a dew-drop notch. You get a screen resolution of 2,340 x 1,080 pixels, 19.5:9 aspect ratio with a peak brightness of about 400 nits. 

On the inside, the device is powered by Mediatek’s Helio G80 SoC. There is the Mali-G52 GPU which takes care of the graphics. It is paired 4GB of RAM and comes in two storage options - 64GB and 128GB. There is also a microSD card slot. The device runs on MIUI 11 based on Android 10 and will get MIUI 12 update in the near future. 

On to the cameras, the Redmi 9 Prime has a quad-camera stack at the rear with a 13MP f/2.2 main lens, an 8MP ultra-wide, 5MP macro and a 2MP depth sensor. The front has an 8MP sensor tucked underneath the notch for taking selfies. All this is backed up by a huge 5,020mAh battery with support for 18W fast charging. However, Xiaomi is providing a 10W charger in the box. 

For biometrics, you get a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor and also AI face unlock feature. Other connectivity options include WiFi, Bluetooth 5.0, 4G LTE, and GPS for navigation. We have the power and volume rockers to the right and USB-C port, speaker grills, and 3.5mm audio jack at the bottom.

Check out Redmi 9 Prime on Amazon



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Celeron CPUs have been part and parcel of Intel’s processor family for more than two decades. They've played a vital role in the company's product mix, despite not getting the sort of press coverage as its flagship CPU family, the Core series.

That’s partly due to the fact you can’t actually buy most Celeron models today. 

A fair chunk are either sold as part of a motherboard (e.g. this Seeed motherboard) or as part of a complete system - most likely a tablet or a laptop.

Intel Celeron N4000 vs Celeron N4100

The N4000 is arguably one of the most sought after Intel processors. It was launched alongside the N4100 towards the end of 2017, nearly three years ago. Both are Gemini Lake parts and built on a 14nm manufacturing process.

That’s not where the similarities end; they have a base speed of 1.1GHz, 4MB cache, a TDP of 6W, support up to 8GB of DDR4/LPDDR4 memory in dual channel mode, run an Intel UHD graphics subsystem with a base frequency of 200MHz and can drive up to three 4K displays.

The biggest difference is in the number of cores. The N4000 has two cores and two threads, while the N4100 has four cores and four threads. The latter also has a slightly lower boost frequency (2.4GHz vs 2.6GHz) and a slightly higher graphics burst frequency (700MHz vs 650MHz).

What this means is that the Celeron N4000 ends up being significantly slower than the N4100, not so much on single thread performance but more because it has half the number of physical cores.

Passmark numbers show that it is about 40% slower than the N4100. Even worse, is it hardly even competes with older processors, such as the Celeron N3450.

What about the Celeron N4120?

Although the N4120 was launched towards the end of last year, it bears a strong resemblance to its predecessors. Based on the Gemini Lake refresh, it shares many common qualities with the N4100, except for a slightly higher boost frequency (2.6GHz vs 2.5GHz).

That should, in theory, give it a slim advantage when benchmarked. However, this hasn't been demonstrated just yet, partly because it's a new processor and not many systems have been tested with this CPU at the helm.

In conclusion, it's best to avoid computers, tablets and laptops based on the N4000 and opt for those with either the N4100 or the N4120. These two are within touching distance of a 7th generation Intel Core i3 processor, which is to say they are quite nippy indeed when paired with an SSD and plenty of memory.



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The Nokia 5.3 might be soon launched in India. The device is currently listed on the official Nokia website in India hinting towards the imminent launch. Nokia-maker HMD Global also made news recently as it received $230 million investment towards making India its export hub. 

Nokia has been under the radar for a while now India and is soon expected to launch ‘Made in India’ Nokia 5.3 mid-range device. According to the earlier reports, the device will be unveiled in India in the month of August. 

The smartphone is already available in the US and European market. The previous reports also revealed that the device will be made in India and pricing of the Nokia 5.3 will start from Rs 12,999. 

Nokia 5.3 specs

Nokia 5.3

(Image credit: Future)

The Nokia 5.3 flaunts a 6.55-inch HD+ display with 20:9 aspect ratio. Inside, the device is powered by an octa-core Snapdragon 665 CPU and is Adreno 610 GPU. It is paired with up to 6GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage. You also get micro SD card support up to 512GB.

On the camera front, you get a 13MP primary snapper, 2MP depth and 2MP macro cameras over at the rear. To the front, there is an 8MP selfie shooter. Powering the devices is a 4,000mAh battery with 10W charging speeds via USB Type-C port. On the software front, the device runs on Android 10 and is also part of the Android One program. So, at least a couple of years of Android update is guaranteed. 

Other features of the device include a rear fingerprint scanner, dual nano-SIM, 4G VoLTE, Google Assistant Button, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.2, GPS/AGPS, 3.5 mm headphone jack, and FM radio.

As far as the pricing is concerned, the Nokia 5.2 is expected to be pierced under Rs 15,000 in India. There is no news of the official launch date yet and we should hear more on that from the company soon. 



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Latest Gadgets News

Redmi 9 Prime sale will begin at 12pm (noon) today. The device is listed for sale on Amazon India and Mi.com both. It is priced starting at Rs. 9,999 for the 4GB RAM + 64GB storage option and Rs. 11,999 for the 4GB RAM + 128GB storage option.

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30 best movies to watch on Disney Plus - CNET

Want to watch something other than a Marvel movie? Let's round up the Disney gems you might have missed.

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50 of the best TV shows to binge on Netflix - CNET

Need another show to watch? Here are some of the best shows Netflix has to offer.

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Get an Apple Watch Series 5 for just $299 - CNET

The latest version of Apple's smartwatch hits its lowest price ever.

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Latest Tech News

World of Warcraft's next expansion, Shadowlands, is set for release sometime before the end of 2020. And, as with previous expansions, certain titles, achievements and mounts will no longer be obtainable as soon as the pre-patch drops, which usually happens about a month before launch. But don't panic: you've still got a little bit of time to tidy up some of those loose ends.

While no date has been set for the release of Shadowlands, we do know that the pre-patch has just dropped on the PTR (public test realm), so it's unlikely that we've got too much longer to wait.

So, if you're unsure what you should be focusing on as Battle for Azeroth winds down, we've put together a handy list of some of the things you may want to turn your attention to in WoW before Sylvanas Windrunner pulls us all into the Shadowlands.

Pick up the Brutosaur mount (if you can afford it) 

(Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment)

If you've had your eye on the Caravan Brutosaur mount, now's the time to pick it up. While it's not being removed from the game entirely, this much-sought-after mount – often affectionately referred to as 'Long Boi' – will be removed from its current vendors in Dazar'alor and Boralus when the Shadowlands pre-patch drops. 

Of course, you'll first need to save up five million (yes, that's five million) in-game gold in order to purchase it. Why is it so expensive? While it's certainly not a looker, it does come with a fully working Auction House NPC as well as a vendor, both of which can be de-seated to allow two friends to jump on your mount with you. 

But if you don't happen to have that sort of capital lying around, you'll still have a chance to get the Brutosaur in Shadowlands via the Black Market Auction House. Though with the demand, I'd hate to think how much gold it will be going for whenever it comes up.

Ahead of the Curve and Cutting Edge achievements 

(Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment)

As with the end of any expansion or raid tier, the associated achievements are removed for defeating the final boss of the current raid on heroic and mythic difficulties. The Shadowlands pre-patch will mark the deadline for grabbing the Ahead of the Curve: N'Zoth, the Corruptor (heroic) and Cutting Edge: N'Zoth the Corruptor (mythic) achievements.

Unless you're already in a guild that's running mythic Ny'alotha, the chances of you getting the Cutting Edge achievement are fairly slim. However, if your guild is still battling through the heroic difficulty, you might want to pick up the pace to avoid missing out on this achievement (no pressure). Of course, if you're guildless, there are plenty of pugs (pick-up-groups) to be found via the in-game Looking for Group tool that are clearing the raid on heroic difficulty but it can be very hit and miss – and more than a little frustrating – trying to find a decent group.

The good news is that, while the achievements may disappear with the pre-patch, the mount – the Uncorrupted Voidwing – is still obtainable for killing heroic N'Zoth up until the launch of Shadowlands. 

Mythic Plus and PvP Season 4 rewards

(Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment)

The launch of the Shadowlands pre-patch will mark the end of the current season for both Mythic Plus and PvP. This means that players will no longer be able to obtain certain season-based rewards from either content.

For Mythic Plus, this means that you'll no longer be rewarded with the Awakened Mindborer mount from completing all dungeons on mythic level 15 or higher. For PvP, you'll no longer be able to obtain the Season 4 Elite Sets, which require an 1800 rating in any Rated PvP bracket to complete the whole set for the season.

Mad World achievement (and title) from Horrific Visions 

(Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment)

This is another one for the completionists out there that don't want to miss out on an achievement and a title. The Mad World achievement will be removed as soon as the pre-patch hits, along with the 'Faceless One' title reward that goes along with it.

If you've been putting off running Horrific Visions with all five masks active, you may want to bite the bullet and start practising those runs. It won't be easy though as each mask adds a debuff that increases the difficulty substantially. You'll need a rank 15 cloak - or close to it - and you should have most of the Titanic Research options unlocked.

To unlock all five masks, you'll need to clear all five areas in a Horrific Vision. It doesn't matter whether that's Stormwind or Orgrimmar – though the latter is probably the easier of the two. This will unlock the first mask and you'll now need to complete the 'lost' areas in both Stormwind and Orgrimmar with one mask active to unlock each of the other four.

You're now ready to attempt a five mask run. But before you do, it might be worth taking a look at this Wowhead guide for further details and tips.

Rank 4 essences 

(Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment)

Picking up the rank 4 essences might not have been much of a priority for you, especially when they only offer a cosmetic enhancement rather than a boost to your power. But these will be removed when Shadowlands launches*, along with the achievement 'Phenomenal Cosmic Power' and it's associated title, 'Azeroth's Champion'.

Much like the lesser essence ranks, the rank 4 essences are obtained in a variety of ways, including raids, Mythic Plus dungeons, PvP, or from Paragon reward chests. You can find more information on how to obtain each one here.

*The rank 4 upgrade for the Vision of Perfection essence will be unobtainable after the pre-patch as the achievement requirement for it will also be removed. If you want to grab it now, you'll need to complete the Mechagon dungeon on Hard Mode with no deaths to earn the achievement, 'Hertz Locker'.

And if you're still at a loose end – level alts

(Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment)

If you dipped your toes into Azeroth over the last few months, you're probably aware of the Winds of Wisdom buff that is active until the Shadowlands pre-patch. The buff provides 100% bonus experience while levelling and, as you might expect, speeds up the process dramatically. And it's even faster still if you have a full set of heirloom gear to equip which provides a further percentage-based experience bonus per piece.

If you've been thinking of holding off levelling any characters until Shadowlands, based on the incoming level-squish, that may not be such a good idea. There will be a lot of new content to keep you busy with the new expansion, so the last thing you'll want to do is be stuck levelling a new character. Of course, if you just want to explore the new levelling experience it may be worth waiting, but if you have Allied Race heritage armour you still need to get or your thinking of switching to a new class for Shadowlands, it's probably a good idea to take advantage of the experience buff now.

It's also worth mentioning that the experience bonus from heirloom gear will be removed in Shadowlands, and replaced with 'set bonuses' that increase rested experience and stats.



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Latest Tech News

Motorola's latest budgest-friendly Fusion One phone is now available in the UAE for AED 699.

Motorola had launched a slightly higher-end version of this phone in June and had labelled it as Motorola Fusion One Plus. However, the model released in the UAE is simply Motorola Fusion One with lower pricing and specs than the Plus model.

Motorola One Fusion specs

The device features a full-screen 6.5-inch Vision HD+ LCD panel with a resolution of 1,600 x 720 pixel and 19.5:9 aspect ratio. Under the hood, it is powered by an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 710 chipset clocked at 2.2GHz / 1.7GHz along with Adreno 616 GPU. 

It is available only in one variant with 4GB RAM and 64GB variant. It runs on Android 10 OS and features Moto display and Moto actions like Quick capture,three-finger screenshot, screenshot toolkit, flip for DND, Pick up to silence, and Media controls.

The Motorola One Fusion features a quad rear camera array with a 48MP f/1.7 primary camera, an 8MP ultra-wide camera followed by a 5MP macro and a 2MP depth sensor. At the front, you get a 8MP selfie camera. It is packed with a rather generous 5000mAh battery and Type-C port for charging.

It also gets a dedicated Google Assistant button. Other features include a 3.5mm headphone jack, Bluetooth 5.0, and dual-band Wi-Fi. It is available in Deep Sapphire Blue and Dark Emerald for AED 699 through retailers such as Lulu, Carrefour, Amazon, Noon and Etisalat.



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Before the start of the season, it was widely suspected that Max Verstappen would be Lewis Hamilton's main contender for the Championship, but just five races in, he looks like the only contender. He's the only non-Mercedes driver to have won a race this season, and looked good in practice and qualifying in Catalonia this weekend, securing third place on the grid. But who's ahead of him? Only Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas, of course. Follow our guide as we explain how to watch F1 online and get a Spanish Grand Prix live stream no matter where you are - read on for details of today's big race.

Spanish Grand Prix live stream

The Spanish Grand Prix starts at 3.10pm local time (CEST), which is 2.10pm BST in the UK, or 9.10am ET / 6.10am PT in America. Sky Sports is the home of F1 racing in the UK and will be showing all the pre-race action from 12:30pm. In the US it's ESPN you want. If you're abroad you can tune in just like you would at home with the help of a good VPN - and you can save nearly 50% on our favourite, ExpressVPN.

Hamilton and Bottas dominated practice and qualifying at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, setting the fastest times in all four sessions. Hamilton has won a hat-trick of Spanish GPs, stretching all the way back to 2017, but his current main rival for the Championship, Verstappen, was the last person to beat him in Spain. 

But it would be unwise to write off Bottas. The Finn is only third in the Championship  because of a desperately unlucky puncture that saw him plunge from second place to 11th with two laps of the British Grand Prix to go. Only victories will get him back in the title race. 

This has been another desperately disappointing show from Ferrari, with Leclerc only ninth on the grid and Vettel not even in the top 10. Alfa Tauri's Pierre Gasly separates the famous red cars, and further up the grid, the returning Sergio Perez is in fourth, just ahead of Racing Point teammate Lance Stroll.

That means Nico is back on his #Hulkenbreak, though he'll surely be in the running for a seat next season. Ready to catch all the high-octane action? Here's how to get an F1 live stream and watch the 2020 Spanish Grand Prix online today.

F1 Spanish Grand Prix 2020: top qualifiers

  1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) - starts row 1
  2. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) - starts row 1
  3. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) - starts row 2
  4. Sergio Perez (Racing Point) - starts row 2
  5. Lance Stroll (Racing Point) - starts row 3
  6. Alex Albon (Red Bull) - starts row 3

How to watch the Spanish Grand Prix from outside your country

If you're resident in the UK, US, Canada, Australia or New Zealand, you can scroll a bit further down for a guide to who's showing the Formula 1 Spanish GP in your country this weekend. But if you're abroad for whatever reason, you might encounter a problem accessing your normal coverage in the form of geo-blocking. 

You needn't worry, though - by using one of the best VPN services we recommend, you can whizz around these digital borders and tune in to a reliable Spanish Grand Prix live stream, just like you would at home. Here's how to get started.

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ExpressVPN is the best all-round VPN for streaming at (appropriately) excellent speeds - and perhaps best of all, it has a 30-day money back guarantee plus 3 months FREE when you subscribe for a year.

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How to watch the Spanish Grand Prix: live stream F1 in the UK

Sky has nabbed the rights to Formula 1, meaning you'll be able to see it all via Sky Sports and its dedicated Sky Sports F1 channel. Coverage of today's race starts at 12.30pm BST, before lights out at 2.10pm.

Subscribers also get to watch on the move using the Sky Go app , which is available on nearly all modern phones, tablets, laptops, PCs and consoles.

For those of you without Sky, the best option is to nab a Now TV Sky Sports Monthly Pass, which includes all 11 channels - currently down to just £25 a month as part of a special two-month deal. As well as plenty more F1 action, this will get you access to live Premier League football, Test cricket, and lots more. 

To access your usual streaming service from outside the UK, you'll need to download a good VPN as detailed above. 

watch Spanish grand prix USA f1 live stream

How to get an F1 Spanish Grand Prix live stream in the US

For the 2020 F1 season, it's ESPN that will be providing broadcasts in the US. Cord cutters are in luck, too, as you don't have to use cable to access ESPN. 

Over-the-top streaming services let you watch TV online and and can typically be had for a fraction of the cost of even the most basic cable package.

When it comes to getting ESPN, two in particular standout.

How to watch F1 and ESPN without cable - option 1

Sling TV's Orange package includes ESPN and offers a FREE trial period before billing you at $30 a month. If you just want access to ESPN and the F1 action, this is the cheapest way to go.

How to watch ESPN and F1 without cable - option 2

For a more complete cable replacement solution, consider Hulu + Live TV, which costs $54.99 a month but comes with over 65 channels, including ESPN, as well as Hulu's full line-up of original and on demand content - plus its own free trial offer allowing you to check it out for nothing.

F1 Spanish Grand Prix 2020: US times and TV coverage

ESPN's coverage is pretty comprehensive with almost identical timings as last weekend's action: so today you can watch the Spanish Grand Prix live from 9.10am ET / 6.10am PT on ESPN (build-up starts at 7.30am ET / 4.30am PT). 

Watch a Spanish Grand Prix F1 live stream abroad

US residents heading outside of the country can still access the feed they normally use and pay for at home by grabbing this sweet VPN deal and following the instructions above.

watch Spanish grand prix live stream canada f1 2020

How to watch the 2020 Spanish GP: live stream F1 in Canada

In Canada, 2020 F1 races are aired on a pair of Bell Media-owned sports broadcasters: the English-language TSN and its French-language counterpart RDS. Check your local listings for linear TV details, but those wanting to watch online are well-served by their digital platforms. 

The TSN Direct and RDS Direct streaming services cost just CA$4.99 a day or (much better value) $19.99 a month and can be purchased by anyone, regardless of whether you have the channels as part of a pay TV package - though existing subscribers should note they can log in to live streams at no extra charge with details of their provider. They both also offer apps for convenient on-the-go streaming.

The Spanish Grand Prix starts at 9.10am ET / 6.10am PT.

Canadians abroad can use a VPN to whizz back to the Great White North and watch the streaming coverage they normally do at home - only from anywhere in the world.

watch f1 Spanish grand prix live stream 2020 australia

How to watch F1 and get a Spanish Grand Prix live stream in Australia

Paid-for TV network Fox Sports is showing every race of the 2020 Formula 1 season Down Under, including all of this weekend's Spanish Grand Prix action from Catalonia. 

The necessary channels are available to Foxtel subscribers on linear TV, but Australians who don't want the commitment or cost of a cable subscription are in luck, as Fox Sports F1 coverage is also available via streaming-only service Kayo Sports

 In fact, it's available from just $25 a month - and it comes with a FREE 2-week trial period so you can see how it works for yourself. It's also home to comprehensive NRL and AFL coverage, making it a great all-around choice for Aussies, while expats and fans of other sports will enjoy its coverage of soccer, golf, tennis, NBA basketball and much more.

For the best value, consider the upgraded Kayo Sports Premium Package, which provides three concurrent streams for $35 per month. We probably don't need to tell you, but if you've got mates or family who also like to watch F1, this can be shared and breaks at just over a tenner a head.

Today, you can watch the Spanish Grand Prix live from 11.10pm AEST. 

Don't forget, you can take your coverage abroad with you as well - just grab a VPN and follow our instructions above to take your streaming service of choice with you wherever you go in the world.

watch f1 live stream Spanish grand prix 2020 new zealand

How to get an F1 Spanish GP live stream in New Zealand

New Zealand gets the 2020 F1 races broadcast by Spark Sport which costs $19.99 per month. But if you just want to catch one race for free, you're in luck as there is a 7-day free trial.

The Spanish Grand Prix 2020 is scheduled to start at 1.10am NZST on Sunday night/Monday morning.

If you're elsewhere in the world right now, using one of our best VPN recommendations should let you sign in to your account and stream just as you would if you were at home.

F1 Spanish Grand Prix qualifying: full results

  1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
  2. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes)
  3. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
  4. Sergio Perez (Racing Point)
  5. Lance Stroll (Racing Point)
  6. Alex Albon (Red Bull)
  7. Carlos Sainz (McLaren)
  8. Lando Norris (McLaren)
  9. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
  10. Pierre Gasly (Alpha Tauri)
  11. Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari)
  12. Daniil Kvyat (Alpha Tauri)
  13. Daniel Ricciardo (Renault)
  14. Kimi Raikonnen (Alfa Romeo)
  15. Esteban Ocon (Renault)
  16. Kevin Magnussen (Haas)
  17. Romain Grosjean (Haas)
  18. George Russell (Williams)
  19. Nicholas Latifi (Williams)
  20. Antonio Giovinazzi (Alfa Tauri)



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Last week, Dark Souls specialist Lance McDonald tweeted about the PS5's backwards compatibility feature before deleting it. Resetera captured the tweet.

"There's been some confusion about this in the past and I can clear it up now: The PlayStation 5 can run all PlayStation 4 games without per-game whitelisting. Sony continue to test titles but the system will not prevent you from launching untested games."

After this was deleted, a later tweet reportedly said: "I deleted a tweet out of respect for the platform holder, feel free to interpret that however you like." This was also deleted.

If true, this essentially means that you won't encounter any barriers when you play a PS4 game on your PS5 – no "whitelisting" would mean you could try any game and see how it plays. It's possible you won't have an experience that's identical to the game as it runs on PS4 – but you won't have to wait for Sony to add that game to a list and give you permission to play it on PS5, if this tweet is correct.

This would be a good thing, and is largely expected anyway. While the solutions that enable backwards compatibility in PlayStation consoles has varied over the years, this is how Sony has always done it from a player perspective. On PS2, you could play your PSone games. On PS Vita, you could play your PSP games. And on early PS3s, you could play PSone games and even most PS2 games, before Sony changed the hardware to cut costs.

Below, we'll talk about what we know about the PS5's backwards compatibility feature so far, and explain what we think is right and wrong about Sony's approach.

What do we know about PS5 backwards compatibility?

What McDonald said in his deleted tweets does basically line up with Sony's own, slightly muddled discussion of how far-reaching the PS5's ability to play PS4 games will be. 

Back in March 2020, Sony's Mark Cerny first explained how backwards compatibility worked on PS5. Rather than putting the PS4's chipset into the PS5, it would instead "incorporate any differences in the previous console's logic into the new console's custom chips." 

This means the backwards compatibility function in the PS5 will be there in every console, and not later removed to save costs as it was on PS3's ability to play PS2 games. That decision instantly made the PS3 a less appealing console. 

"Running PS4 and PS4 Pro titles at boosted frequencies has also added complexity," Cerny said. "The boost is truly massive this time around and some game code can't handle it. Testing has to be done on a title-by-title basis. Results are excellent, though. We recently took a look at the top 100 PlayStation 4 titles as ranked by playtime, and we're expecting almost all of them to be playable at launch on PlayStation 5."

In a follow-up blog by Platform Planning & Management SVP Hideaki Nishino, Sony broadened that to many more compatible games than just the top 100. "With all of the amazing games in PS4’s catalog, we’ve devoted significant efforts to enable our fans to play their favorites on PS5. We believe that the overwhelming majority of the 4,000+ PS4 titles will be playable on PS5."

Again, this largely tallies with what McDonald mentions above. Whitelisting would mean that players would have to wait for individual games

"In his presentation, Mark Cerny provided a snapshot into the Top 100 most-played PS4 titles, demonstrating how well our backward compatibility efforts are going," Nishino also said. 

"We have already tested hundreds of titles and are preparing to test thousands more as we move toward launch. We will provide updates on backward compatibility, along with much more PS5 news, in the months ahead. Stay tuned!"

This is the best approach

ghost of tsushima legend of tadayori

(Image credit: Sucker Punch Productions)

A bit more clarity from Sony on how backwards compatibility will work would go a long way, but we're fans of the approach. You can basically buy any PS4 game now with the confidence it's likely to work on PS5. 

And since you can't even pre-order the PS5 yet, we can't begrudge Sony too much for the lack of information on the subject – plus it's a situation that's probably changing over time, as more games are tested. It's likely that further details on backwards compatibility will be revealed alongside other key hardware info, like the dimensions of the console, or indeed the release date and price.  

Still: we've said it before, but it's disappointing that Sony still sees PS Now as the only outlet for its older PlayStation titles. The PS4 aside, there are great games on PS3, PS2 and PSone that are basically lost to time, unless they're so popular they get a remaster, or you're a collector.

The selection of older games on PS Now is meagre – and we don't expect Sony to take Microsoft's approach of trying to support the vast majority of games from its older consoles. Sony simply doesn't need to work that hard to wow players – and besides, supporting PS4 games on PS5 will probably seem like enough to most players. 

If nothing else, it's cool that in an age of digital downloads, there's some real continuity between these PlayStation consoles. Sony seems to care a lot more about this now than it did back when the PS4 launched, and you could speculate that Microsoft's diligent approach to backwards compatibility was a factor in that move. On PS4, you couldn't play any PS3 games, meaning if you bought The Last of Us, Saints Row 4 or Arkham Origins in 2013, it was gonna stay on your 7 year-old console. 

Hopefully this is a sign that backwards compatibility is becoming standardized between the two console giants. 



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How to watch NASCAR at the Daytona road course today without cable - CNET

You don't need cable TV to watch the racin' and rubbin' on NBC.

from CNET https://ift.tt/2Cv8jkD

Today's Wordle Hints, Answer and Help for May 10, #1786

Here are hints and the answer for today's Wordle for May 10, No. 1,786. from CNET https://ift.tt/FztnkY5