This week on The Shift with Drex, I talked about the threat to Huawei now that the U.S. government as listed it and subsidiaries on a list that restricts it from doing business with U.S. companies. I also talked about my experience using the new Huawei P30 Pro and Google Pixel 3a smartphones, and the crazy video game, Rage 2.
This week, closer looks at the Huawei P30 Pro and Google Pixel 3a smartphones and what makes Rage 2 worth playing. But first, why Huawei has its back against the wall.
The U.S. has everybody ganging up on Hauwei
Last week, United States President Donald Trump declared a national emergency relating to the U.S. tech infrastructure.
That led to restrictions on working with Chinese company, Huawei. Google said over the weekend it was restricting Huawei’s access to its software, including Android. Qualcomm and Intel, which make the chips used in smartphones, have also said they would stop selling to Huawei.
On Monday, the Department of Commerce announced it had granted a “temporary general license” to allow American companies to plan for the replacement of any Huawei equipment. This gives everybody three months to get things in order.
Huawei has reportedly been stockpiling chips and is building software and an app storefront, suggesting the company has been anticipating this kind of shift.
Huawei sold the second most smartphones in the first quarter of this year, behind Samsung and ahead of Apple. Only a fraction of those sales were in the U.S.
Huawei P30 Pro takes impressive photos and video
Everybody has a different priority with their smartphone. Some people really want to be able to take the best possible photos with their device. If that’s you, then you should be wielding the Huawei P30 Pro.
No other handset can deliver the quality of images, photographs or video, that the P30 Pro can.
Even the software enhancements that come with Google’s Pixel 3 smartphones can’t deliver the same crystal quality that you’ll get from the P30 Pro.
And despite the world ganging up on Huawei at the moment, the P30 Pro is still a great choice for device, because it’s already running Android 9 Pie, the most recent operating system, and Google has committed to ensuring that existing Huawei handsets will get supported with updates.
If you’re looking for great photos from an Android handset, the Huawei P30 Pro is it.
Google Pixel 3a provides best value in a smartphone
Smartphone sales are in decline, which is one reason that the price of top tier devices continues to climb.
But smart device manufacturers are also seeing that appealing to different market segments is also a way to keep profit levels up.
That’s where Google’s Pixel 3a (5.6”) and Pixel 3a XL (6”) come in. These devices scale back on some of the premium design features without losing any of the functionality. Instead of a metal chassis you get plastic. There’s no water resistance. Instead of an iris scanner or facial recognition you have to use a fingerprint scanner. It’s got a single front camera instead of a double.
The only feature you might miss is the wireless charging, but that’s only if you’ve already been using it. If you haven’t, there’s nothing to miss.
Other than that, the two Pixel 3a handsets do pretty much everything as the Pixel 3 devices. For hundreds of dollars less.
The new Pixel 3a smartphones are available now in three colours in the following configurations:
Pixel 3a, 64 GB storage: $549
Pixel 3a XL, 64 GB storage: $649
Rage 2 is crazy, action-packed mayhem
There’s a lot of open world action games available to play these days. Add Rage 2 to the list. It’s kind of like Mad Max meets Big Trouble in Little China and has a mostly punk rock feel with a taste of disco to brighten things up a bit.
You play as Walker, a Ranger, which is an elite fighter equipped with technologically advanced equipment that gives you superpowers, who can be male or female. Regardless of your gender choice, your objective is to roam the post-apocalyptic wasteland resisting the authoritarian Authority.
Avalanche Studios, which came on as a co-developer of the game with Bethesda-owned id Software, has a track record for open world games with the Just Cause franchise and 2015’s Mad Max (published by Warner Bros. Interactive), and that experience shows here.
And while the world created here – the apocalypse came in the form of an asteroid – is outrageous, the writing doesn’t always work. Not all of the jokes land, for example. I found myself cringing at the many attempts to be farcical that instead came across as juvenile.
For an open world game the story is abbreviated, but the sandbox here provides plenty of enjoyment for those who like their carnage with tongue firmly implanted in cheek. Bethesda has promised that there are going to be in-game events and activities happening in Rage 2 in the months ahead, so there will be plenty of reason to go back to the Wasteland to wreak more havoc on its denizens.
Rage 2 is available now for PS4, Windows, and Xbox One.
This week on The Shift with Drex, I talked about the vulnerability in WhatsApp and what that means, University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab, your rights at the Canadian border, and the PS4 exclusive, Days Gone.
This week, how to be safe online, protesting what can happen to your devices at the border, and fleeing a zombie horde. But first, watch for spyware on your smartphone.
The New York Times reported that a lawyer from London who was targeted by the WhatsApp security flaw contacted the Citizen Lab for help.
Meanwhile, a patch for WhatsApp was released on Monday.
Get advice about being online from Citizen Lab’s Security Planner
The Citizen Lab is all about “the intersection of information and communication technologies, human rights, and global security.”
One of its projects is the Security Planner, which can help you be more secure online by giving you personalized advice.
At the website, you answer a few questions about the devices you use, your chief concerns about online security, and any special conditions, and the system kicks out an action plan with specific recommendations on what you can do to be more secure.
Tips include things like enabling two-factor authentication, how to detect suspicious emails, and installing a password manager.
Advocating for changes to what Canadian border agents can do with your devices
The WhatsApp security flaw comes on the heels of a story out of Toronto earlier this month of a lawyer who’s mobile phone and laptop were seized by Canada Border Services Agency.
He had refused an order by a CBSA officer to provide passwords to allow a search of his devices on the grounds that they contained information that was protected by attorney-client confidence.
OpenMedia has since created a website where you can learn about what rights you have when coming into Canada. You can also sign a petition to pressure federal politicians to update policies around digital privacy at the border.
Days Gone gives us a new zombie horde to run from
Available now as an exclusive to PlayStation 4 is a new post-apocalypse survival set in Oregon. And while the creatures that threaten you are called “freakers” they are similar enough to zombies that you’ll have a sense of what you’re in for. They move slow during the day and fast at night.
The game was developed by Bend Studio and the studio has come up with solid mechanics for riding a motorcycle, battling horrific creatures, and sneaking around. Days Gone is genuinely fun to play and it requires that you conserve your supplies and plan carefully how you’ll approach threats.
It can feel tedious, though, if you’re the kind of gamer who quickly tires of action games that have you repeating missions for non-player characters.
My major quibble with Days Gone is that it leans far too heavily on tired tropes and cliches. In the game you play as an army veteran turned biker outlaw named Deacon St. John. Imagine all of the stereotypes that character description brings up and you’ll find them here.
Even the conspiracy tale that’s woven here feels recycled. And as you discover the source of the pandemic that created the freakers the game sets itself up for the story to continue.
The world is astonishing, though, and the contrast between the stunning Pacific Northwest geography and the masses of freakers that populate it is unnerving.
And when those hordes start chasing after you, you’d better be prepared to fight them or ready to run. The freakers in Days Gone do not relent.
The Mind Control Division is the intelligence arm of Blaine Kyllo's Solo Corps Creative Incorporated. This department conducts investigations and experiments into media and technology culture.
