Technology - Google News

iPhone 'X' names have nowhere to go in 2019 - CNET
Blizzard hopes to improve the quality of 'Overwatch' esports chats - Engadget
China Approves Several Games Except for Tencent Games - Bleeding Cool News

iPhone 'X' names have nowhere to go in 2019 - CNET

Posted: 30 Dec 2018 04:00 AM PST

Might as well hand Apple a shovel, because with 2018's iPhone XS, XR and XS Max, the trillion-dollar iPhone-maker has dug itself into a hole. Puzzle through this with me: what comes after iPhone XS and XR?

It might be tempting to discount phone names as trivial, but they're actually important tools for brands to entice buyers and convey certain values and characteristics about the brand. iPhone X, good. iPhone XYZ or iPhone XX, bad. And if you need more convincing, consult this gallery of 30 worst phone names below.

For Apple specifically, the "X" is an important shift because it represents Apple's rebranded iPhone line with ultraslim bezels, secure infrared face unlock technology and no home button. The X brand is a pricier lineup than before, and it's easing you into paying more for your phone.

Part of the problem is that the iPhone "X" name is already confusing. It looks one way, but sounds another -- "ten" instead of "ex." That's all right when it's just the iPhone X you're looking at. But when you combine it with an S, an R and an S Max, my guess is that nine people out of 10 will call them the "excess," "ex are" and "excess max." See? Confusing.

The trouble began in 2017 when Apple skipped over the iPhone 9 to release two 8s and a "10," its tenth-anniversary phone. But in so naming the iPhone X -- and following it up with three more "X" phones in 2018 -- Apple has created a ripple effect that makes me wonder what the plan is next. (I've made similar arguments here and here.)

So what logically comes after the iPhone XS, the linchpin of the new iPhone X family?

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Apple could follow up the iPhone XS -- where "S" indicates a minor upgrade -- with the iPhone 11. Or is that the iPhone XI? Would that make 2020's phone the iPhone XIS? No way; what a horror show.

Well, what about simply calling it the "iPhone X (2020)"? Apple has done this before with iPads and MacBooks and although we don't like it, we've learned to accept it, even if it does create mass confusion. ("Which iPhone do you have?" "Uh, the iPhone?")

Apple could also just carry on with its maddeningly illogical new naming convention. Perhaps 2019 will bring us the iPhone XRS or the iPhone X2. But then would the following year beget the iPhone X2S? (What does the R in iPhone XR mean anyway..."reduced"?)

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Or maybe next year we'll finally get that rumored stylus-friendly iPhone at the top end. That could be the "iPhone X Pro," at least.

Then again, Apple could always throw us for a loop and finally bring the iPhone family in line with Apple's love of California geological name-places and call its next flagship phone the iPhone Tahoe, to mirror MacOS High Sierra.

I miss the warm certainty of a logical naming structure, where S's follow integers and all is well in the universe. As far as future iPhone names go now, it's still a brave -- and confusing -- new world.

Originally published Sept. 16, 2018, and updated most recently Dec. 30 at 4 a.m. PT.

Apple iPhone XS

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Blizzard hopes to improve the quality of 'Overwatch' esports chats - Engadget

Posted: 30 Dec 2018 07:31 AM PST

Blizzard isn't just interested in improving the professionalism of its players... it wants to improve the experience for the audience, too. The developer is testing a chat moderation system for its Overwatch Contenders feeder league that will require linking your chat in the Twitch channel to your Battle.net account. While it's not clear how this will clean things up, it's implied that unruly behavior in Twitch chat could have ramifications for your Battle.net standing. You'll want to be polite while you cheer on would-be pros, then.

The trial started alongside the Season 3 quarterfinals on December 28th and will continue until the round's end on January 12th. After that, the Contenders team will study the "overall effect" of the test run on positivity in the channel.

This lightens the moderation load for Blizzard, of course, but it could also play an important part in Blizzard's effort to take Overwatch esports into the mainstream. A more professional atmosphere could help it obtain a wider audience (not to mention big-name advertising) that might be put off by toxic activity.

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China Approves Several Games Except for Tencent Games - Bleeding Cool News

Posted: 29 Dec 2018 07:45 PM PST

No one ever said that the Chinese approval process for video games ever made sense, but what makes less sense is them leaving Tencent Games off the list. The State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (yes, that’s a real governing body there) approved 80 online games, but for some reason excluded games from their home country’s biggest company. Which takes much of the wind out of the company’s sales and hurts gamers as they are heavily involved in bringing popular mobile titles to China like Arena of Valor, Fortnite, and PUBG.

Right now, no one has an explanation as to why this took place, not even industry insiders. The best guess people have is that all of those games recently came up on a suggested list of titles that should be censored or banned. But the list was a suggestion and hasn’t been implemented yet, so it doesn’t explain why current games that haven’t hit the market yet would be affected. The failure to get approved caused shares of Tencent Games to dip 20%.

About Gavin Sheehan

Gavin has been a lifelong geek who can chat with you about comics, television, video games, and even pro wrestling. He can also teach you how to play Star Trek chess, be your Mercy on Overwatch, recommend random cool music, and goes rogue in D&D. He also enjoys standup comedy, Let's Play videos and trying new games, along with hundreds of other geeky things that can't be covered in a single paragraph. Follow @TheGavinSheehan on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Vero, for random pictures and musings.

(Last Updated December 29, 2018 9:44 pm )

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