Technology - Google News

This is the browser to use if you really care about online privacy - CNET
'Kingdom Hearts: VR Experience' part two is adding the Olympus Coliseum - Engadget
Android is going to get better at managing your wireless headphones - TechRadar

This is the browser to use if you really care about online privacy - CNET

Posted: 21 Jul 2019 04:30 AM PDT

lenovo-yog-c930-26 — Do you really know who's watching?
Angela Lang/CNET

You don't want to be dripping out your private information as you browse the web. The biggest browsers -- from Chrome to Firefox -- can help you lock away your data from prying eyes. But securing your browser may require setting up a few security-minded extensions or fiddling with privacy settings in preferences. But a browser startup is taking the setup and fiddling out of the process and offering a browser that goes all-in on guarding you and your information.

Out of the box, Brave Browser blocks trackers and third-party cookies that monitor your activity as you travel across the web. But the browser gives you control over what you do and don't want to be blocked -- from ads and cookies to Facebook and Google login buttons.

The maker of the unusual Brave browser said it understands that its strict blocking policy has a consequence for websites: You don't see ads that help support the creation of website content. To compensate content creators, Brave takes a clever approach that allows you to make anonymous contributions to websites you visit. Publishers then receive the contributions in the form of cryptocurrencies once they opt into the system. Or, you can allow ads and tracking in Brave's settings if you can't be bothered. But the cost of being tracked is losing control of your privacy.

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Available for Windows, MacOS, Android, and iOS, the Brave Browser is built on the same foundation as Chrome, which means Brave can use Chrome extensions. In fact, when you click 'Find extensions and themes' in Brave's settings, you are taken to the Chrome Web Store to find extensions and themes for the browser.

Here's how to set up Brave and make contributions to websites and content creators.

browser-2-1 — For desktop and mobile, Brave blocks trackers.
Brave

Control what Brave blocks

By default, Brave blocks all ads, trackers, third-party cookies (which track you across the web via social buttons on a webpage) and third-party fingerprinters (that track you by creating a unique profile of you using your browser and computer settings). You can, however, adjust how rigid Brave approaches protection.

1. From the Brave menu, click Preferences.

2. In the Settings panel on the left, click Shields.

3. Via the pop-up menus to the right of Ad control, Cookie control, and Fingerprinting protection, select the level of protection you want.

4. Click Social media blocking to control whether to allow Google and Facebook login buttons, embedded Twitter tweets and LinkedIn embedded posts.

5. If you want finer control, under Additional Settings, click Privacy and security.

6. Here, you can adjust control services the browser uses, such as a predictive service to help autocomplete searches and URLs.

bravesettings — In the browser preferences, you can mind your privacy settings.
Brave

Contribute to websites and content creators

Brave's restrictive approach to ads comes at a cost: Websites don't earn money for their work. As a way to contribute to websites you visit without being tracked, Brave developed Brave Rewards, a program that lets you earn tokens by watching Brave-selected ads which then automatically contributes the revenue in the form of cryptocurrency to websites you visit. Here's how to join the rewards program.

1. Click the three-parallel-line hamburger menu over on the right of the toolbar and select Brave Rewards.

2. Click Yes, I'm In.

3. On the Brave Rewards page, you can set up and adjust your participation in the revenue program:

For ads, you can adjust how many ads to view per hour.
For auto-contributions, you can control how much to contribute each month and set a minimum threshold for time spent on a page before the site is rewarded with a contribution.

4. In addition to earning tokens through your web activities, you can add your own cryptocurrency to your account to contribute to sites.

Sync bookmarks across your phone and desktop

Brave has a syncing tool that lets you manage your bookmarks across the desktop and mobile versions of the browser. It's in beta, and it takes fiddling to set up. But if you don't mind tinkering, it's a handy way to have your bookmarks in sync.

1. Click the hamburger menu over on the right of the toolbar and select Sync.

2. Click Start a new Sync Chain and then choose whether you want to sync to a mobile or desktop device.

3. If you chose Computer, you will see a string of words that Brave calls the Chain Sync Code. Go to the desktop device you want to sync with, navigate to the sync settings in Brave, click I have a Sync Code and enter the chain sync code from the first device.

4. If you chose Phone/Tablet, you will see a QR code. On your phone or tablet, navigate to the sync settings in Brave, tap the Scan Sync Code button and scan the QR code back on the first device.

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'Kingdom Hearts: VR Experience' part two is adding the Olympus Coliseum - Engadget

Posted: 21 Jul 2019 06:29 AM PDT

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When the Kingdom Hearts: VR Experience dropped earlier this year, it was incomplete and missing some levels that might have put a damper on your nostalgia trip. Now, Disney and Square Enix are rolling out the experience's second part, which turns more worlds from the series into a virtual trip down memory lane, including Hercules' Olympus Coliseum. It's still free like the first part was, and it will be arriving on the PSVR on July 24th in the US and July 25th in Japan.

The second part of the KINGDOM HEARTS: VR Experience is coming in an update to #PS4 on July 24 (PT/BST)!✨
You'll be able to use motion controllers in some new, yet familiar, worlds like Olympus Coliseum!
Immerse yourself in the world of #KingdomHearts like never before! #PSVR pic.twitter.com/FyNmxZHpCs
— KINGDOM HEARTS (@KINGDOMHEARTS) July 19, 2019

While it's not clear how many scenarios this update is adding to the experience, it comes with motion control support so you can slash some Heartless with your controllers. You can get the DLC from the PlayStation Store when it comes out next week and spend some more time with Sora and the gang in case you're still not over KH3.

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Android is going to get better at managing your wireless headphones - TechRadar

Posted: 21 Jul 2019 06:30 AM PDT

Since the AirPods first pitched up in 2016, truly wireless headphones (with each earbud separate) have become more and more popular, and now Android is getting new features to improve how these devices connect up.

New changes arriving for the Bluetooth Fast Pair feature in Android include individual battery life readings, so you can see how much battery juice you've got left in your left earbud, your right earbud, and the charging case.

What's more, devices connected via Fast Pair will soon shown up in the Find My Device app on Android and the app, making it easier to track down where your missing wireless headphones have got to.

All of this is being brought together in a device details page inside Android, which will display the battery life of your buds, a link to the Find My Device feature, links to the headphones' own companion app, and Google Assistant settings (if the headphones are compatible).

The Bluetooth device details page is going to be rolling out with Android Q later this year, Google says, although it's not clear exactly when features like battery life indicators and Find My Device support will go live.

What we do know is that you'll need a compatible device for all this to work: Google mentions that headphones from the likes of Anker, JBL, Jaybird, 1More, LG and Cleer are being added to the list, though no doubt more will be on the way.

As The Verge reports, existing Fast Pair headphones will all get the new features as well, so that includes the likes of the Google Pixel Buds and the Bose QuietComfort 35 II. The battle with Apple and the iPhone is well and truly on.

It's likely that both Apple and Google will launch truly wireless headphones of their own in the near future. We're expecting an AirPods refresh sometime in 2020, while the original Pixel Buds will be two years old in October – just in time for the Pixel 4 launch.

Via Engadget

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