Brian Heater
Hardware Editor
The Latest from Brian Heater
Samsung pulls the plug on ‘Supreme’ collaboration
When Samsung announced a collaboration with Supreme at an event back in December, it didn’t go over great. It wasn’t that people weren’t excited about the potential of rocking a Supreme-bran
Google intros a pair of Android accessibility features for people with hearing loss
Google this morning unveiled a pair of new Android features for people who are deaf or hard of hearing. As the company notes in a blog post this morning, the WHO estimates that 900 million people will
LittleBits lays off employees as it shifts focus toward education
New York City open-source maker startup LittleBits began to lay off staff last month, TechCrunch has learned. The loss of jobs comes as the company looks to shift more focus toward the K-12 market. Ed
Foxconn says Wisconsin factory plans are back on after talk with Trump
It seems Foxconn’s plans for a $10 billion Wisconsin plant are back on. After a couple of years of back and forths, the manufacturing giant says it’s recommitting to plans for a plant in the upper
Huawei’s folding phone debuts this month
Huawei mobile chief Richard Yu has already made mention of the company’s upcoming foldable phone amid talks of smartphone world domination. This morning, however, we caught our first glimpse of the
Sony posts strong music earnings, as gaming business disappoints
Sony posted record quarterly earnings this week on the strength of very strong music profits. Those numbers were catapulted thanks to the company’s $2.3 billion acquisition of EMI as part of an ever
Carbon is 3D printing custom football helmet liners for Riddell
Just in time to ride the last of the pre-Super Bowl buzz, Carbon today announced that it’s teaming up with sports equipment giant Riddell to 3D print customized football helmet padding. Referred to
Is Android Popsicle next?
Barring any sort of major shakeup at Google’s mobile division, there are two things we know for sure about the next Android’s name: it will start with the letter “P” and it will be a dessert f
Users and advertisers are mostly unfazed by Facebook scandal
Facebook’s downfall has, it seems, been greatly exaggerated — at least according to Facebook . Even with the Cambridge Analytica fallout and subsequent #DeleteFacebook campaigns, the site appears
Volkswagen’s CEO is out following diesel scandal
Matthias Müller is out as Volkswagen CEO, amid a diesel emissions scandal that shook the world’s largest car maker. The company confirmed the move today, naming Brand Chief Herbert Diess to the top
Are hardware makers doing enough to keep Android phones secure?
For all the good of Android’s open-source approach, one of the clear and consistent downsides is that the onus to issue software updates falls on the manufacturer. That can mean frustration for thos
Amazon officially owns Ring, so let’s talk product integration
Amazon’s acquisition of Ring officially closed today. Now the companies (or company, rather) are marking the occasion by discounting the Ring Video Doorbell $30, down to $100 — because what better
Uber introduces a bunch of new safety features
In a post today, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi announced a slew of new features for the app, designed to address growing concerns over rider safety. A majority of the additions are contained within a han
Apple starting to alert users that it will end 32-bit app support on the Mac
Tomorrow at midnight PT, Apple will begin issuing an alert box when you open a 32-bit app in MacOS 10.13.4. It’s a one-time (per app) alert, designed to help MacOS make the full transition to 64-bit
Cambridge Analytica’s acting CEO steps down
Welp. While Mark Zuckerberg gets the grilling of a lifetime on Capitol Hill, the firm at the center of all of this is losing its top (if temporary) executive. As day two of the Facebook testimony was
Trump signs controversial anti-sex-trafficking bill
A few weeks after passing both the Senate and House with an overwhelming majority, the controversial Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act (FOSTA) has been signed into law. In s
Snapchat’s second-gen Spectacles hit the FCC
After a huge early buzz, Snapchat’s wearables ultimately bellyflopped. The company says it lost $40 million on the device. But that failure wasn’t enough to dissuade the company from giving things
A revamped version of Spotify’s free service is reportedly in the works
Spotify’s got something big up its sleeve, that much we know for sure. The music streaming service has a big event in the works for April 24 in New York — though it hasn’t really offered up anyt