Techmeme
August 12, 2020, 12:10 PM

Top News

Tom Warren / The Verge:
Microsoft is launching its Surface Duo dual-screen Android phone on September 10 for $1,399, with preorders starting today in the US  —  Microsoft is launching its Surface Duo dual-screen Android phone on September 10th, priced from $1,399.  After months of Microsoft executives teasing …
Scott Stein / CNET:
Hands-on with a non-functioning Surface Duo prototype, which has two 5.6-inch OLED screens forming a 8.1-inch display, bound together by a unique hinge  —  Inside a little white box in front of me is a gadget that looks like a little book.  The Microsoft Windows logo is embossed on top.
Francoise Brougher:
Former Pinterest COO provides a detailed account of her claims about gender discrimination and toxic workplace culture with recommendations for the company  —  Pinterest has always been about aspiration.  It is a platform for sharing beautiful images, curating galleries of an idealized world.
Erin Griffith / New York Times:
Former Pinterest COO accuses the company of gender bias in a new lawsuit, alleging she was fired in April after complaining about sexist treatment  —  Françoise Brougher, Pinterest's former chief operating officer, said she was fired after speaking up about mistreatment.
Russell Brandom / The Verge:
Trump's executive order to ban TikTok by Sept. 20 is a gross abuse of power and sets an alarming precedent for the executive branch's control over software  —  An alarming precedent for government control over software  —  For months, President Trump has been teasing some kind of ban on TikTok …
Theodore Schleifer / Vox:
Biden's VP pick Kamala Harris, who has close ties with tech execs and has dodged questions about breaking up Big Tech, is likely to generate excitement in SV  —  Sen. Kamala Harris has had a close relationship with Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg.  Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
Wall Street Journal:
Analysis: TikTok used an Android security hole to collect MAC addresses, possibly for ad tracking, without an ability to opt out; the practice ended in November  —  The tactic, which experts in mobile-phone security said was concealed through an unusual added layer of encryption, appears to have violated Google policies
New York Times:
Hands-on with Instagram's Reels: confusing, frustrating, impossible to navigate, and lacking TikTok's editing features  —  TikTok might not be winning over President Trump, but it sure beats its Instagram copycat for making and sharing short videos.  —  Millions of people have used …
Tom Warren / The Verge:
Microsoft commits to launching the Xbox Series X in November and will delay Halo Infinite until 2021  —  Halo Infinite will not be available until 2021  —  Microsoft is committing to launching its next-generation Xbox Series X console in November.  The company had previously only confirmed a vague …
Becky Ferreira / New York Times:
As Amazon joins SpaceX and OneWeb in launching satellite constellations, astronomers worry about the effects on astronomical observations and image quality  —  The F.C.C. approved the company's 3,236-satellite constellation, which aims to provide high-speed internet service around the world.
Andrei Frumusanu / AnandTech:
Samsung Display reveals new generation of variable refresh rate mobile display panels, making its debut in the Note20 Ultra, helping lower device power usage  —  By now we've become quite familiar with high refresh-rate displays in the mobile space, as the first pioneering 90Hz devices …
Catalin Cimpanu / ZDNet:
Microsoft fixes 17 critical and two zero-day flaws, including an actively-exploited RCE flaw in IE that can compromise PCs when users visit malicious sites  —  Microsoft says attackers have used a Windows zero-day to spoof file signatures and another RCE in the Internet Explorer scripting engine to execute code on users' devices.
Joseph Cox / VICE:
A look at so-called Russian, encrypted, or “white” SIMs, used by criminals to spoof phone numbers, add voice manipulation to calls in real-time, and more  —  Criminals use so-called Russian, encrypted, or white SIMs to change their phone number, add voice manipulation to their calls …
Terry Nguyen / Vox:
Instagram has been taken over by “social justice slideshows” that use the 10-image carousel format to inform and educate about myriad issues  —  PowerPoint activism is everywhere on Instagram.  Why do these posts look so familiar?  —  In 1971, to the backdrop of a funky jazz rhythm …
Anthony Ha / TechCrunch:
LinkedIn says it has sold presentation-sharing service SlideShare to Scribd, which will take over its operation on September 24  —  SlideShare has a new owner, with LinkedIn selling the presentation-sharing service to Scribd for an undisclosed price.  —  According to LinkedIn …

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Eriq Gardner / Hollywood Reporter:
Kurt Wagner / Bloomberg:
Sam Rutherford / Gizmodo:
Joseph Cox / VICE: