Samsung today unveiled two Galaxy Note 20 models -- the Note 20 (which starts at $999) and Note 20 Ultra (which starts at $1,299) -- arriving later this month on August 21. Both Note 20 smartphones come with an S Pen, but there are some major differences. Notably, the screen and the cameras are a little bit different. From a report: The smaller Note 20 has a 6.7-inch display with flat edges and the larger Note 20 Ultra has a 6.9-inch 120Hz screen with curved sides. Curved glass has long been a signature design on Samsung phones and it looks like the company is at least considering a change. But the one thing I'm most excited for is the Note 20 Ultra's 108-megapixel camera. This is the same image sensor on the S20 Ultra with one important change: a laser sensor that enables faster autofocusing. In other words: Samsung says it has fixed the S20 Ultra's autofocusing issues on the Note 20 Ultra. I'll test that out soon enough to verify the claim, but for now, here's everything else you need to know about the Note 20 phones.

Expand to a TV with DeX: In addition to plugging your Note 20 into a laptop or monitor to turn it into a desktop-like computer experience with DeX mode, Note 20 users can wirelessly connect to a TV with Miracast support. Samsung says all of its 2019 and newer smart TVs support the wireless DeX mode.
Smarter Windows integration: Samsung's growing partnership with Microsoft is yielding even tighter synergy between its devices and Windows 10. Samsung says Windows 10 will let you run multiple Note 20 apps simultaneously later this year and has better drag-and-drop support between devices.
Xbox Game Pass Ultimate: If you're a gamer, you'll be able to stream over 100 Xbox games directly to the Note 20 phones with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. This feature doesn't go live until September 15.
Ultra-wideband: Like the iPhone 11 and 11 Pro, the Note 20 phones have an ultra-wideband chip inside. Samsung says UWB will allow people to share files to another UWB-supported device by pointing them at each other. UWB can also be used to unlock smart locks (for homes or cars).

Microsoft plans to make its Project xCloud streaming service for its Xbox Games Pass subscription service available to the public starting Sept. 15, following nearly a year of public testing. From a report: The company said the service, which allows people to play games over the internet in a similar way we stream Netflix movies today, will be included in its $14.99 per month Xbox Games Pass Ultimate service. That subscription, which launched last year, gives players access to more than 100 games on the Xbox and PC, as well as access to Microsoft's Xbox Live social network. Microsoft plans to offer the accompanying app for its service for tablets and phones powered by Google's Android software, using a Wi-Fi or cellular connection. The company also teased a partnership with Samsung, which will likely be announced at that tech giant's big Unpacked event on Aug. 5. The company declined to say when a version of its app will be made available for Apple iPhones and iPads powered by that company's iOS software. "It's our ambition to scale cloud gaming through Xbox Game Pass available on all devices," a Microsoft spokesman added.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: You won't be able to use Sony's DualShock 4 or other third-party PS4 gamepads to play PlayStation 5 games, Sony confirmed in a blog post today. Those older gamepads will still work with "supported PS4 games" running on the PS5, Sony said, and PS5 software will work with "specialty peripherals" designed for the PS4 -- including "officially licensed racing wheels, arcade sticks, and flight sticks." Those caveats highlight the fact that there's no technical limitation or communication protocol mismatch stopping the upcoming hardware from communicating with legacy controllers.

But Sony says it "believe[s] that PS5 games should take advantage of the new capabilities and features we're bringing to the platform, including the features of DualSense wireless controller." Those features include what Sony is calling "haptic feedback and dynamic trigger effects" and a built-in microphone (last month, Geoff Keighley hosted what is, thus far, the only public hands-on impressions of these new controller features). The DualSense compatibility decision casts Sony in contrast to Microsoft, which is promising that "your Xbox One gaming accessories come into the future with you, too" with the coming Xbox Series X. While that promise doesn't extend to the defunct Kinect camera, it does include specialty pads like the Xbox Elite Controller and Xbox Adaptive Controller. "We believe that your investments in gaming should move with you into the next generation," Microsoft wrote in a blog post last month. PlayStation Move controllers -- first released in 2010 for use with the PS3—will continue to work with PlayStation VR games on the PS5, Sony said. The PS4's existing PlayStation Camera accessory will also work on the PS5, though it will require an adaptor that Sony says it will be providing to users for free.

The U.S. military has for years been using streaming channels and video gaming to recruit people. "Several branches of the military -- with the exception of the Marines -- have had esports teams since 2018," reports The Verge. "And according to Military.com, the Army's esports efforts alone generated 3,500 recruiting leads in fiscal year 2019."

But the question is... should they be recruiting on these platforms? According to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), the answer is no. She is proposing an amendment that would ban the U.S. military from recruiting on Twitch. The Verge reports: "Children should not be targeted in general for many marketing purposes in addition to military service. Right now, currently, children on platforms such as Twitch are bombarded with banner ads linked to recruitment signup forms that can be submitted by children as young as 12 years old," Ocasio-Cortez said on the House floor Thursday. "These are not education outreach programs for the military."

Last week, the Army paused its use of Twitch for recruitment after its channel was criticized for banning viewers who asked about war crimes. The Army told GameSpot: "The team has paused streaming to review internal policies and procedures, as well as all platform-specific policies, to ensure those participating in the space are clear before streaming resumes." And earlier this month, Twitch told the Army to stop sharing phony prize giveaways on its channel that promised an Xbox Elite Series 2 controller, only for users to be directed to a recruitment page when they clicked through. The language of Ocasio-Cortez's draft would make that pause permanent, banning US military organizations from using funds to "maintain a presence on Twitch.com or any video game, e-sports, or live-streaming platform." You can watch the congresswoman's impassioned floor speech here.

Microsoft's livestreaming platform Mixer will shut down later today and encourage users to migrate over to Facebook Gaming's livestreaming service, with treasured Mixer Partners getting partner status over there too. Rock Paper Shotgun reports: From what I've seen on my stroll through Mixer on this final day, a whole lot of folks are planning to switch to Twitch. The shutdown comes less than a year after Microsoft went wild recruiting top Twitch streamers including Tyler "Ninja" Blevins with exclusivity contracts rumoured to be worth millions.

Mixer first launched in 2016 under the name 'Beam' then was bought by Microsoft later that year, who renamed it 'Mixer' in 2017. One of its big selling points was shorter delays between the broadcaster and the viewers, so folks could have more back-and-forth and interact more. It also had built-in support for novelty streams like Pokemon controlled by viewers. Microsoft also had their studios integrate Mixer features into games, so Forza Horizon 4 gave rewards for both streaming and watching it on Mixer, Minecraft let viewers vote on things, and so on. "Ultimately, the success of Partners and streamers on Mixer is dependent on our ability to scale the platform for them as quickly and broadly as possible," Microsoft said in the shutdown announcement in June. "It became clear that the time needed to grow our own livestreaming community to scale was out of measure with the vision and experiences that Microsoft and Xbox want to deliver for gamers now, so we've decided to close the operations side of Mixer and help the community transition to a new platform."

Yesterday, a Microsoft rep confirmed that the option to purchase 12 months of Xbox Live Gold has been removed from the Microsoft Store. That's exactly a week ahead of the July 23 games presentation, where Microsoft could be announcing a plan to phase out the subscription service altogether with the launch of Xbox Series X. Inverse reports: "At this time Xbox has decided to remove the 12 month Xbox Live Gold SKU from the Microsoft online Store," a Microsoft spokesperson tells Inverse. "Customers can still sign up for a 1 month or 3 month Xbox Live Gold subscription online through the Microsoft Store." No attention was brought to this change officially in any public statements, but shortening the length that people can subscribe to Xbox Live Gold is very telling. "It also seems like the right time for Microsoft to talk about the future of Xbox," Venture Beat's Jeff Grubb argues in a post about the July showcase. "That service is starting to feel a bit outdated. Maybe it's time to phase it out."

While Microsoft's Aaron Greenberg has since gone onto say that the July 23 presentation will be solely focused on games, this Grubb's article suggests that Xbox Live Gold is being phased out. That can't be taken lightly now that the option for a 12-month subscription is gone. It is worth noting that the 12-month Xbox Live Gold subscription remains available at retailers like GameStop, so if you do want to buy a year of the service that option is still open. But third-party retailers probably have residual inventory. It now seems likely that Xbox Live Gold will be phased out, possibly to get an edge up on the PS5, which will presumably still make players pay for online via PlayStation Plus subscriptions. If Xbox Series X's final price is cheaper than that of the PS5, and the console offers free online play that saves gamers about $60 a year, then Microsoft's console becomes the better financial investment hands down. But this remains hypothetical. What could Microsoft replace Xbox Live Gold with? The report goes on to say that the most obvious move for Microsoft "would be to integrate Xbox Live Gold into Game Pass Ultimate," which gives players access to Game Pass on Xbox One and PC in addition to an Xbox Live Gold subscription, so players can play any online games and they get unlimited access to any games that are available in the Game Pass library.

The service was also recently confirmed to be compatible with the upcoming game streaming service Project xCloud.

Twitch has intervened to stop the US Army using fake prize giveaways on its esports channel to redirect viewers to army recruitment pages. From a report: The practice was brought to light by a report from The Nation on the use of esports as a recruitment tool by the American military. The US Army, Navy, and Air Force all field esports teams comprised of active and reserve personnel who stream on Twitch and chat with young viewers about life, video games, and the opportunities afforded by military service. "Esports is just an avenue to start a conversation," Major-General Frank Muth, head of the army's recruiting command, told ThinkTech Hawaii recently. "We go out there and we have a shared passion for esports ... and it naturally devolves into a conversation, 'What do you do?', 'I'm in the army.'"

This outreach included automated links dropped into the army's stream chat that told viewers they could win an Xbox Elite Series 2 controller in a "giveaway." But when anyone clicked the link, says The Nation, they were directed to "a recruiting form with no additional mention of a contest, odds, total number of winners, or when a drawing will occur." Viewers, streamers, and game developers reacted with anger to the news, saying that any other channel would face repercussions for such behavior. Twitch itself has now apparently forced the army to stop these giveaways, according to a report from Kotaku.

Microsoft is officially halting production of its Xbox One X and Xbox One S All-Digital Edition consoles. From a report: "As we ramp into the future with Xbox Series X, we're taking the natural step of stopping production on Xbox One X and Xbox One S All-Digital Edition," says a Microsoft spokesperson in a statement to The Verge. "Xbox One S will continue to be manufactured and sold globally." Reports of Xbox One X and Xbox One S shortages have surfaced in recent weeks, and there has been an increased demand in Microsoft and Sony's current-gen consoles during the pandemic. While production is ending on the Xbox One X and the Xbox One S digital edition, it's likely that stock for some retailers will still be available in the coming months. "Gamers can check with their local retailers for more details on Xbox One hardware availability," says a Microsoft spokesperson.

Fans of Microsoft's famous Flight Sim won't have long to wait until the latest incarnation arrives. From a report: This promises to be the most detailed and authentic version to date, with incredibly accurate landscapes that are ever-changing, coupled with highly detailed aircraft, covering everything from light planes to commercial jets. Microsoft Flight Simulator has been around since 1982 -- feeling old yet? -- and the new version will be available in three editions -- Standard ($59.99), Deluxe ($89.99) and Premium Deluxe ($119.99). The Deluxe edition comes with five extra planes and five extra international airports. The Premium Deluxe adds a further five planes and airports on top of that. Microsoft Flight Simulator launches on August 18, and you can pre-order on Windows 10 or pre-install with Xbox Game Pass for PC (Beta) today.

Microsoft will be holding its next Xbox Games Showcase on July 23, the company announced today. Ars Technica reports: Unlike Microsoft's May promotional event, which focused on third-party launch titles for the upcoming console, the July 23 event is expected to discuss first-party exclusives from Microsoft's own Xbox Game Studios. That likely includes new footage of Halo Infinite, which saw a new teaser trailer a few weeks ago. That lineup of first-party studios now includes Psychonauts 2 developer Double Fine, which Microsoft acquired in June, and The Outer Worlds developer Obsidian Entertainment, which Microsoft acquired last November.

According to a new report from The Information, Microsoft is interested in bidding on Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, which is currently a division of AT&T. From a report: Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, or WB Games, is known for publishing the "Batman: Arkham" series, "Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor," many "Lego" and "Harry Potter" games, "Mortal Kombat," and "The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt." The unit consists of game-development studios in the U.S., Canada and the U.K. AT&T acquired the gaming business as part of the 2018 buyout of Time Warner assets. This deal and the 2014 acquisition of DirecTV increased AT&T's debt and the company has been looking to ways to cut costs and unload assets.

For years, it was long believed that $60 is the only price that the U.S. games market could bear (and they're often more expensive in international markets). But industry leaders and journalists have questioned the stubborn stickiness of the sticker price in recent years. And the last three years saw an explosion of varying price tiers, anywhere from free (like "Fortnite") to monthly subscription services, like Apple Arcade and Xbox Game Pass. And much of the industry's total game sales are digital downloads anyway. From a report: "The shift to $69.99 should have taken place in 2013, [in my opinion]," tweeted analyst Mat Piscatella of market research firm The NPD Group. "But folks thought mobile was a threat to the console business. ... Instead we got collector's, silver and gold editions [which offer additional content or perks] that elevate above $59.99 anyway." Big publishers like Activision, Ubisoft and EA all regularly release marked up "special editions" of games. These prices often only come with marginal bonuses (a skin or emote), but it's essentially charging people extra on nothing but a promise that more content is coming. EA's disastrous launch of "Anthem" in 2018 was a high-profile example of a game that charged a premium for promised content and barely delivered. Games haven't always been $60 though. Pricing in the 1990s usually depended on your local stores. Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis games were anywhere from $40 to $100 a cartridge. It wasn't until 2005 that a retail price was unofficially standardized.

Microsoft is testing a number of Windows 10 upgrades to a small number of testers, including changes to the Alt-Tab function and a new Start menu design. The Verge reports: "We are freshening up the Start menu with a more streamlined design that removes the solid color backplates behind the logos in the apps list and applies a uniform, partially transparent background to the tiles," explains Microsoft in a blog post. Essentially, the reduction in the color of the blocky tiled interface on the Start menu will simplify it slightly and make it easier to scan for the apps you use on a daily basis. It's a subtle change, but it certainly makes the Start menu look a little less chaotic and avoids many tiles sharing a similar blue color.

Alongside an updated Start menu, the latest Windows 10 build includes some big changes to Alt-Tab. "Beginning with today's build, all tabs open in Microsoft Edge will start appearing in Alt-Tab, not just the active one in each browser window," explains Microsoft. This seems like a change that might be a little confusing for veteran Windows users, but Microsoft is thankfully allowing you to switch back to the classic Alt-Tab experience.

Microsoft is also making some smaller changes with this new Windows 10 build. The default taskbar appearance will also now be more personalized with the Xbox app pinned for Xbox Live users or Your Phone pinned for Android users. This will be limited to new account creation on a PC or first login, so existing taskbar layouts will remain unchanged. Notifications now include an X in the top right corner to allow you to quickly dismiss them, and Microsoft is also improving its Settings app in Windows 10. Links that would typically push you toward the system part of the legacy Control Panel system page will now direct you to the About page in Settings. This will now house the more advanced controls typically found in that system section of the Control Panel, and Microsoft is promising "there will be more improvements coming that will further bring Settings closer to Control Panel."

If NBA 2K21 is any indication, the price of $59.99 new console games is about to be over: "NBA 2K21 will cost $69.99 on PS5 and Xbox Series X, an increase of $10 compared to the recommended price for the current generation's AAA titles," reports TheGamer. From the report: NBA 2K21, which will be released across both generations, will cost $69.99 on PS5 and Series X. That's $10 more than the game will cost on PS4 and Xbox One. $59.99 is and has been the standard for AAA titles throughout the course of the current generation of consoles, and the generation before that for that matter. Although a recommended price of $69.99 might not apply to all of the next-gen's top titles, NBA 2K21's pricing certainly implies that will be the case. Comments from others in the industry have also hinted that the price will be upped across the board.

Former PlayStation exec Shawn Layden suggested during a recent interview that the price of next-gen games would have to be increased. Either that or the length of AAA titles would have to be shorter. For games like NBA 2K21, that isn't really an option. Chances are developers won't want to sacrifice storytelling just so they can charge less for a game, so be prepared to pay a little extra for quality games in the years to come.

Microsoft's second next-gen Xbox is rumored to be fully revealed in August. According to Eurogamer, the console will be named the Xbox Series S. From a report: Microsoft has been working on this second cheaper next-gen Xbox console for months. A Microsoft document, leaked last week, shed some further light on the company's plans. Microsoft's Xbox Series X devkit, codenamed "Dante," allows game developers to enable a special Lockhart mode that has a profile of the performance that Microsoft wants to hit with this second console. While we've been reporting this performance includes a slightly underclocked CPU, The Verge has seen additional documents that suggest Lockhart will actually have the same speed CPU as the Xbox Series X. The Lockhart console will also include 7.5GB of usable RAM, and around 4 teraflops of GPU performance. The Xbox Series X includes 13.5GB of usable RAM and targets 12 teraflops of GPU performance for comparison.

If the reports are accurate, Microsoft could choose August to unveil this second next-gen Xbox alongside pricing for the Xbox Series X. This second console is designed as a more affordable option, with 1080p and 1440p monitors in mind. Microsoft would have to detail some type of pricing alongside its Lockhart reveal, and it's reasonable to assume it will be heavily tied to the Xbox All Access subscription.

Microsoft has announced it will permanently close all of its physical retail stores and transfer most of its resources to online channels. From a report: This comes after the computing giant shuttered the outlets in late March due to the COVID-19 crisis. In what Microsoft is touting as a "new approach to retail," the company said its retail store employees will be transitioned to its corporate hubs and will provide customers remote sales, training, and support. The company will focus its efforts on existing digital stores on Microsoft.com and through Windows and Xbox, which have a collective reach of 1.2 billion people globally. Microsoft added that the closures will result in a pre-tax charge of around $450 million, which it said consists mostly of asset write-offs and impairments. The Seattle-based tech titan debuted its first physical retail experience back in 1999 at the Sony-owned Metreon shopping complex in San Francisco, though that closed around a decade later. Microsoft's first real foray into brick-and-mortar retail was in Scottsdale, Arizona in 2009. This grew to around a hundred similar outlets across the U.S., including its New York flagship, which opened in 2015. The company later went international, opening seven retail stores in Canada, one in Australia, and one in the U.K.

Microsoft has been planning a second, cheaper and less power next-gen Xbox console. Codenamed Lockhart, it's designed to take most of the key next-gen improvements found in the Xbox Series X and provide them at a lower price point for gaming at 1080p or 1440p. A newly leaked Microsoft document, posted on Twitter, includes references to this Lockhart console and multiple "Project Scarlett consoles." From a report: Project Scarlett was the name Microsoft originally used to reveal its Xbox Series X console before it was officially named. Rumors had suggested two next-gen consoles under the broader Project Scarlett plans: Anaconda and Lockhart. Microsoft has etched an anaconda snake into the Xbox Series X mainboard, but the company has never publicly discussed its Lockhart plans. The leaked document also mentions a Lockhart profiling mode. Sources familiar with Microsoft's Xbox plans tell The Verge that this special Lockhart mode is part of the Xbox Series X developer kit. The devkit, codenamed Dante, allows game developers to enable a special Lockhart mode that has a profile of the performance that Microsoft wants to hit with this second console. We understand that includes 7.5GB of usable RAM, a slightly underclocked CPU speed, and around 4 teraflops of GPU performance. The Xbox Series X includes 13.5GB of usable RAM, and targets 12 teraflops of GPU performance.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Verge: Microsoft is closing its Mixer service on July 22nd and plans to move existing partners over to Facebook Gaming. The surprise announcement means Mixer partners and streamers will be transitioned to Facebook Gaming starting today, and Microsoft will no longer operate Mixer as a service in a month's time. Microsoft is partnering with Facebook to transition existing Mixer viewers and streamers over to Facebook Gaming in the coming weeks. On July 22nd, all Mixer sites and apps will automatically redirect to Facebook Gaming. Existing Mixer Partners will be granted partner status with Facebook Gaming, and any streamers using the Mixer monetization program will be granted eligibility for Facebook's Level Up program. Mixer viewers with outstanding Ember balances, channel subscriptions, or Mixer Pro subscriptions will receive Xbox gift card credit.

Microsoft's choice to partner with Facebook is clearly a strategic one that's also related to broadening the appeal of its upcoming xCloud game streaming service and its overall gaming efforts. Microsoft will work closely with Facebook to bring xCloud to Facebook Gaming, allowing viewers to click and immediately play games that people are streaming. It's a vision that's very similar to Google's ambitions with Stadia, but Mixer has lacked the scale and viewership to truly deliver this more broadly. Microsoft recruited exclusive streamers like Ninja and Shroud with big deals, but they haven't been enough to get more people using the service over rivals. Ninja, Shroud, and other top streamers are now free to rejoin Twitch or stream on Facebook Gaming.

Forbes reports major internet outages across many companies including T-Mobile, Fortnite, Instagram, Comcast, and Chase Bank. Some experts believe it is the result of a coordinated attack, others not so much. Slashdot reader bobthesungeek76036 shares the report: On June 15, a flurry of reports on a number of different services in the U.S. have indicated that the country may be experiencing a coordinated DDoS, or "distributed denial of service" attack. These attacks are malicious attempts to disrupt or shut down targeted servers by overwhelming them with traffic from multiple sources. According to outage aggregator Downdetector, users reported outages in major mobile carriers (T-Mobile, Metro, Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, Consumer Cellular, US Cellular), Internet providers (Spectrum, Comcast, CenturyLink, Cox), social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, Twitter), games and game services (Fortnite, Roblox, Call of Duty, Steam, Xbox Live, Playstation Network), streaming services (Netflix, Hulu, HBO Now, Twitch), banks (Chase Bank, Bank of America), delivery services (Doordash), and other major platforms like Google and Zoom.

Of yet, the would-be source of these attacks is still unknown. @YourAnonCentral, a popular Anonymous twitter account, speculates that it, "may be China as the situation between South and North Korea is currently deteriorating." The same Twitter account cites the Digital Attack Map, which tracks the "top daily DDOS attacks worldwide" offers a visualization of the map of these attacks, but some, like cybersecurity expert Marcus Hutchins, claims that the map is "badly plotted" and does not currently "indicate an attack against the US." All major carriers are listed on Downdetector, but Verizon claims its problems are being artificially represented through attempts to connect to T-Mobile. [AT&T also cites "other carriers' networks" as posing problems for users.]

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Nearly three months after laying out some of the PlayStation 5's technological underpinnings, Sony today offered a first extended look at actual games running on the upcoming hardware during a live event. The event started off with a glimpse of an "expanded and enhcanced" version of Grand Theft Auto V, which is coming to the PlayStation 5 in 2021, in case you need an excuse to buy the game again. PlayStation 5 owners will also get GTA Online free at launch in 2021, while PS4 owners of GTAV will get $1 million in monthly online GTA Cash every month until the PS5 version launches.

A follow-up to last year's Spider-Man featuring Miles Morales will be hitting the PS5 in Holiday 2020. "A hero is just someone who doesn't give up," an unseen narrator says over the footage. "Your dad said that. He was right. Now it's your turn. Go be a hero Miles." Though the footage shown is tagged with a "captured on PS5," (and a ""Be greater, be yourself" slogan), it's unclear if it will also be available on older PS4 systems. Ratchet and Clank are back for more madcap run and gun mayhem in Rift Apart, a game that seems focused on warping quickly between dimensions that are randomly collapsing in on one another. The trailer shows the duo riding dragons, facing pirates, sliding down futuristic buildings, and more. And one dimension even features a female member of Ratchet's species, which is sure to satisfy a particular type of fan. Other games mentioned in the report that are coming to Sony's next-gen console include: Square Enix and Luminous Productions' Project Athia, Annapurna's Stray, Housemarque and PlayStation Studios' Returnal, LittleBigPlanet's A Big Adventure, Destruction Allstars, Ember Lab's Kena: Bridge of Spirits, Goodbye Volcano High, Soulstorm, Ghostwire Tokyo, Superbrothers' The Far Shore, Gearbox and Counterplay Games' Godfall, Solar Ash, Hitman 3, Astro's Playroom, and Little Devil Inside.

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