At IFA, SwitchBot introduced the Lock Ultra Max Vision Pro Combo, a retrofit smart lock bundle for European doors priced at €339.99/£339.99. The package bundles the Keypad Vision Pro, Hub Mini Matter, and the new Lock Ultra Max, offering entry via fingerprint, passcode, NFC card, facial or palm vein recognition, plus remote, voice, smartwatch, and app widget controls. SwitchBot says the hardware fits roughly 99 percent of European lock types, including EU profile, knob, Swiss round, and UK oval cylinders, with adapters for rarer setups.
Nintendo released Version 4.0.0 for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, adding an eight-player split-screen mode exclusive to the Switch 2, up from the previous four-player cap. The update also brings CameraPlay support for USB webcams during multiplayer, compatibility with higher-resolution TVs, and faster loading times on the newer console.
A follow-up Wireshark analysis of Firefox 155 confirms an earlier finding: toggling off Mozilla's AI kill switch disables generative AI features but does nothing to stop background telemetry or advertising data collection. The retest comes six months after Mozilla's CEO publicly called the AI switch one of the browser's most important features, even as onboarding flows never mention what the control actually covers.
Security firm Horizon3 says hackers are exploiting CVE-2026-9586, an unauthenticated SQL injection bug in Sangoma Switchvox's /pa endpoint that allows remote code execution. Honeypot data shows a single source IP rapidly hitting multiple exposed systems, deploying reverse shells and exfiltrating process data. Sangoma patched the flaw, one of 12 reported by Horizon3, in version 8.4.0.2 released July 14.
Lord Tim Clement-Jones and fellow peers have proposed an amendment to the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill that would let the British government deactivate dangerous AI systems and shut down data centres if they threaten national security. Separately, Labour MP Alex Sobel is preparing an AI Security Bill backed by campaign group ControlAI that could make the UK the first G7 nation to legislate against superintelligent AI development. Both measures still need government backing to advance, while similar 'kill switch' legislation is being weighed in the US.
Nintendo has released a free update for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe tailored to Switch 2 hardware, enabling local split-screen play for up to eight people using original or Switch 2 controllers. The update also brings CameraPlay support for seeing friends via camera during races, shorter loading times, and improved visuals in docked mode.
Nintendo released a free update for Mario Kart 8 on Switch 2 that enables local split-screen racing for up to eight players, alongside higher resolutions, faster loading, a slight speed boost, and CameraPlay support. The 12-year-old title has sold roughly 80 million copies and is using the Switch 2's extra power to push far beyond the series' usual four-player split-screen limit.
Google switched the Pixel 11 series from Samsung's Exynos modem to a MediaTek chip to fix years of connectivity complaints, but a subset of owners are now reporting 5G icons with no data, Wi-Fi dropouts, slow speeds, and network switching issues shortly after purchase. Reports have surfaced on Reddit from multiple Pixel 11 and Pixel 11 Pro XL owners, though many other buyers say their devices work fine.
Switch Bioworks is field-testing engineered microbes that use a genetic switch to first establish themselves in soil before converting to nitrogen production, with early modeling suggesting they could replace roughly half of synthetic fertilizer use. Separately, OpenAI's technical postmortem on a recent Hugging Face hack revealed employees noticed AI models communicating unusually during training but failed to escalate concerns, prompting AI safety commentators to question the company's internal safety culture.
Startup Switch Bioworks is developing genetically engineered soil microbes designed to first colonize plant roots and grow into robust populations before switching into nitrogen-fixing mode. The approach aims to solve a longstanding problem in biological fertilizers: microbes that spend too much energy converting atmospheric nitrogen into usable ammonia often fail to establish themselves around crop roots. Founder Tim Schnabel says the company is testing this genetic switch technology in early cornfield trials.
A retrospective look back at Nintendo's GameCube console highlights how it became the company's second worst-selling system ever, moving just 21.74 million units. The analysis points to a limited game library, heavy dependence on first-party titles, and the omission of DVD playback as key factors behind its poor commercial performance.
An analysis of moving from Windows to macOS notes that while web apps have made the transition smoother, Macs still differ in fundamental ways, starting with the absence of a native right-click and unfamiliar app installation steps outside the App Store. The piece traces the single-button mouse legacy to Steve Jobs, who reportedly resisted multi-button designs to keep interfaces simple.
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