Welcome to the latest edition of our round-up of recent news from the tech world.
The News
Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Coming August 5
Samsung has scheduled an Unpacked event for August 5 at 10 AM Eastern Time (14:00 GMT). The company is expected to unveil the Galaxy Note 20, and the successor to the Galaxy Fold. The Note 20 is rumoured to have a tripe camera array in the rear and a Time of Flight sensor. Images of the device were accidentally posted on Samsung’s Russian website earlier this month.
User Profiles Coming to Amazon Prime
Amazon is rolling out user profiles for friends and family sharing a Prime account the company announced. Each account will allow up to six profiles, with personalised recommendations and watchlists. Profiles are shared using Amazon’s wallet sharing tool through Amazon Household. The feature is rolling out globally in phases, so expect to see it sometime before the end of the year.
Loon Brings Commercial Internet to Kenya
Alphabet’s Loon launched its first commercial service in Kenya on July 7. The project has been in testing for several months, in a partnership with Telkom Kenya. 35 balloons have been deployed over an area of 50,000 square kilometres of Western and Central Kenya, including the capital of Nairobi.
TikTok Pulls Out of Hong Kong
After Hong Kong was forced to adopt new security laws, TikTok has announced it is pulling out of the region. “In light of recent events, we’ve decided to stop operations of the TikTok app in Hong Kong,” a spokesperson told Axios. This follows Google, Facebook and Twitter who have stopped processing requests for data by the Hong Kong government.
Twitter to Replace ‘Insensitive’ Programming Language
A report by CNET found that Twitter engineers have been working since January to replace insensitive programming language like “master” and “slave”. It follows a similar move made by GitHub in June. Inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, the tech community is facing its own moment of reckoning, where such terms are commonplace.
QR Codes, Animated Stickers Coming to WhatsApp
WhatsApp users will soon be able to add contacts via QR codes the company announced. Other features coming include animated stickers and improvements to the video chat interface in the coming weeks. Group chats with up to eight people will also feature a video call button. WhatsApp’s desktop client is also getting updated with support for dark mode.
Spotify Launches Plan for Couples
Spotify has launched a new plan for couples called Spotify Duo. Costing $12.99 a month, the plan will allow couples to share one plan while maintaining their own accounts. When using the plan, Spotify will create a ‘Duo Mix’ playlist featuring music both people like.
Check back next week for more of the latest technology news and keep an eye out for our movie and gaming round-ups.
In the meantime, we have plenty of other tech content for you to read!