Apple published, during the launch of its new hardware yesterday in New York City, a full security guide for its T2 security chip, which does duty on the new MacBook Air, the new Mac Mini, and the current MacBook Pro. According to TechCrunch, who was the first to dig into the guide, the T2 security chip comes with a hardware microphone disconnect feature for added security. According to Apple’s security guide, the hardware microphone disconnect feature physically kills the connection between the microphone and the rest of the hardware every time the lid of the MacBook is closed. This is done to prevent any software (with root or kernel privileges) either on macOS or on the T2 security chip from accessing the microphone. The security guide goes on to say that the camera does get disconnected in the same way because closing the lid anyway obstructs its field of view. At the end of the security guide, Apple adds confidently, “The features of the Apple T2 Security Chip are made possible by the combination of silicon design, hardware, software, and services available only from Apple. These capabilities combine to provide unrivaled privacy and security features never before present on Mac.” Apple’s words sound convincing, especially considering how only last month almost all Macs except the ones sporting T2 were reportedly found vulnerable to an unexpected cold boot attack. The T2’s unique feature, where connection to the microphone is physically removed, should go a considerable distance in preventing eavesdropping on a closed MacBook as no malicious software can reconnect something that’s physically removed. The T2 chip is also responsible for controlling audio output, solid-state drives, the System Management Controller (SMC), and the Touch ID sensor.
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Google is celebrating Halloween 2018 with its first ever interactive, multiplayer Google Doodle game called Trick-or-Treat: The Great Ghoul Duel! The Halloween themed game is hosted on Google’s Cloud platform and players around the world can team up randomly and join a match or host their own game with up to seven friends and family members via a custom invitation link. In the game, you play as a Green or a Purple Ghost and your job is to collect souls. Spooky music plays out as you dash to collect as many souls or spirit flames as you can and deposit them to your base. Players can also steal souls from other members of the opposing team and gain special ghostly powers like speed boosts, night vision and more. Players can share personal superlatives awarded to them at the end of the match based on their performances. Google implemented this special Halloween Doodle game with the help of Open Match, a highly-scalable, open source matchmaking framework cofounded by Google Cloud and Unity. Open Match is designed to allow game developers to reuse a common matchmaker framework. It includes three core components: a frontend API for game clients, a backend API for game servers, and an orchestrator that runs game-specific custom matchmaking logic. But that’s TMI for Halloween so head on over here to play Google’s Trick-or-Treat: The Great Ghoul Duel!
If you thought Google Pixel 3 XL’s big and bulky notch was enough to put you off, you were wrong. While several handset users (hilariously) reported that their devices grew another notch on the sides of the display, some were really annoyed at the glitch. The virtual notch was not seen at one particular position, and while some said it appeared on the left edge, some side the second notch grew on the right side. Luckily, Google is aware of the problem and says that it will fix it soon. The problem was first reported by UrAvgConsumer who posted a tweet on October 25. Although there is no exact explanation of what caused this glitch, according to Slashgear, there is a possibility that a rogue developer settings could have been enabled. This might have confused the auto-rotate on the phone possibly causing the faux notch stuck in the wrong place. The tech news platform says that Android offers coders the ability to add a virtual notch to their phone so that they can test under development apps to see how they work when run on a device with a notch on the screen. According to AndroidPolice, Google reached out to them to let the publication know that “not only is the company aware of this highly anomalous behaviour, but that a fix should be coming soon”. Google launched the third generation of Pixel smartphones on October 9. In our review, we listed the notch as one of the cons of the smartphone. The notch contains the earpiece which doubles up as one half of the stereo speaker setup, neatly sandwiched between two front-facing cameras.
Microsoft Office 365 for the Mac is getting a dark mode on macOS Mojave. The information comes from Microsoft's own Akshay Bakshi, a Product Manager for Microsoft on Twitter. He tweets, “Look closely at the Pictures icon. Office running on macOS Mojave in Dark Mode.” If you are a part of office insider, you will be able to access this feature as early as next week. As an office insider, users will get previews of the updates coming to MS office, like this upcoming dark mode for Mac. Insiders will also be able to give feedback to Microsoft about the features. It also seems that the dark mode will be limited to Office 365 subscribers. MacOS Mojave already has a dark mode and the dark mode in MS Office will compliment this if you are one that is using dark mode in Apple’s latest desktop and laptop OS. Once testing of the new features is complete, it will roll out to Office 365 users. There is no official information whether dark mode will make its way to any other versions of Office for Mac as of now. Microsoft also introduced a dark mode in File Explorer in the October update for Windows 10. You can read more about the October Windows 10 update here.
Whether you’re looking for a new keyboard or a mouse for your system, we’ve got your back. Paytm Mall has some effective deals on its platform today along with reasonable cashback offers. Let’s just begin. Logitech M275 Wireless Mouse Price: Rs 1,295 Deal price: Rs 849 (inclusive of cashback) The Logitech M275 Wireless Mouse features a 2.4GHz wireless connectivity. The mouse connects to your PC via a nano receiver. As per the company, the battery can last for up to 18 months, which means you do not need to replace the batteries before 1.5 years. View deal here. Dell WM126 Wireless Mouse Price: Rs 799 Deal price: Rs 677 (inclusive of cashback) The Dell WM126 Wireless Mouse comes with a nano receiver that goes into your PC USB port and can be connected to up to six devices at once. As per the company, it has a year-long battery life. View deal here. Logitech Wireless Keyboard and Mouse Combo Price: Rs 2,092 Deal price: Rs 1,572 (inclusive of cashback) If you’re thinking of replacing both your wired keyboard and mouse with wireless ones, then this might be the right deal for you. The device works within a range of 10m from a connected device. View deal here. Logitech F710 Wireless Gamepad Price: Rs 4,495 Deal price: Rs 2,379 (inclusive of cashback) The Logitech F710 is a wireless gamepad that features a 2.4GHz connectivity. The gamepad is compatible with Windows 7 and above. It comes with 3 years of manufacturer warranty as well. View deal here. HP Mini 300 Bluetooth Speaker Price: Rs 2,299 Deal price: Rs 1,079 (inclusive of cashback) The Hp Mini 300 is a wireless portable speaker that you can connect to your laptop or PC via an AUX cable or Bluetooth. One can also connect the speaker to their smartphone and listen to music. View deal here. 
If you have missed out the Great Indian Festival sale both times then you don’t need to feel disheartened, we’ve got you covered. Amazon still has some pretty good offers on a plenty of gadgets such as speakers, Amazon devices and more. So, let’s take a look at the deals. Amazon Fire TV Stick Price: Rs 3,999 Deal price: Rs 3,499 The Amazon Fire TV Stick is a media streaming device that connects to your TV via an HDMI cable and allows you to stream movies and songs from apps like Netflix, Youtube, Hotstar, Gaana and more. It also comes with a voice remote, which lets you search on Amazon Prime app for movies or TV shows using a voice command. View deal here. Redgear Pro Wireless Gamepad Price: Rs 1,799 Deal price: Rs 1,199 The Redgear Pro Wireless Gamepad is compatible with Windows 7 and above. The controller works within a range of 10m from a connected device. As per the company, on a single charge user play for up to ten hours. View deal here. Amazon Echo Price: Rs 9,999 Deal price: Rs 6,999 The Amazon Echo is a hands-free smart speaker that connects to a cloud-based assistant Alexa, which allows you to control the speaker using your voice. One can ask the assistant to play music, check the weather, book a cab, order food and for a lot of other stuff. Users can also connect an external speaker with the Echo via Bluetooth or an AUX cable. View deal here. Marshall Wireless Speaker Price: Rs 26,499 Deal price: Rs 16,390 The Marshall Wireless Speaker is a portable music streaming device that also features a 3.5mm audio jack. As per the company, the speaker can last for up to 20 hours on a single charge. View deal here. Logitech M235 Wireless Mouse Price: Rs 795 Deal price: Rs 499 The Logitech M235 Wireless Mouse is compatible with Windows XP and above. The mouse comes with a 2.4GHz wireless connectivity and features an advanced optical tracking sensor that allows the mouse to work on almost any surface. View deal here.
It has been two days since the OnePlus 6T became official globally and just a few hours since its India price was announced and the company is already rolling out a software update to the phone. OnePlus is now seeding OxygenOS 9.0.4 update to the OnePlus 6T, which brings improvements to Nightscape in camera and also updates the phone’s Android security patch to November, which the OnePlus 6 also received recently through Open Beta 6. We still don't know what the November patch fixes, because Google is yet to release the November Security Bulletins. Nightscape on the OnePlus 6T is nothing but the pro-mode sprinkled with some computational photography. When shooting in low light, the camera bumps up the ISO and slows down the shutter speed. The update was originally spotted by HDBlog and apart from improvements to Nightscape and an updated security patch, it also brings improvements to Screen Unlock, come new navigation gestures, optimised standby power consumption and some general bug fixes. OnePlus 6T’s camera also gets added studio lighting to enhance face contour. The OxygenOS 9.0.4 update is rolling out right now and users may receive it in a phased manner. The OnePlus 6T is priced starting at Rs 37,999 for 6GB+128GB variant while the 8GB+128GB variant will retail for Rs 41,999. The top most variant with 8GB RAM and 256GB storage will be available for Rs Rs 45,999. You can read more about its India availability and buying offers here.
