Author: Mobile Syrup

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Mobile Syrup

Street Fighter: Duel launches on Android and iOS

Crunchyroll Games has launched Street Fighter: Duel, a new mobile RPG, in Canada, the U.S. and a handful of other countries.

The first mobile RPG based on Capcom’s beloved fighting game franchise, Street Fighter: Duel is a party-based title that has characters like Ryu, Chun-Li, Ken, Guile and Akuma fighting automatically as you tap buttons for combos.

Altogether, more than 40 characters are included, and you can unlock variants for each of them, like ‘Mad Ryu’ and ‘Beast Zangief’ with their own unique abilities. A variety of limited-time challenges will also be offered at launch.

The game is free to download (with microtransactions for in-games currencies, of course) on Android and iOS.

Image credit: Crunchyroll

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Mobile Syrup

Select SanDisk SD Cards are up to 20 percent off

Another round of price cuts from SanDisk on select SD cards. Really good timing to score some savings and amp up your storage.

Check out these deals below:

MobileSyrup utilizes affiliate partnerships. These partnerships do not influence our editorial content, though we may earn a commission on purchases made via these links that helps fund the journalism provided free on our website.

Source: Amazon Canada

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Mobile Syrup

Pixel smartphone spotted at the FCC

A new Google handset has appeared at the FCC; however, it’s unclear what device it is. The dreamer in me would like to believe it’s the Pixel Fold; however, it can also be the Pixel 7a, but phones are rumoured to launch in the coming months.

The new listings are G0DZQ, GHL1X, and GWKK3, which all reference another model, G82U8. These are all four model numbers and describe the same phone, but it’s unclear why. This may be the Pixel 7a, spotted in an early hands-on back in January. 

The phone is expected to feature a ‘Smooth Display,’ a refresh rate that can adjust from 60Hz to 90Hz.

This model could be a Pixel Fold; however, rumours are blurry on when the phone is supposed to release. One leak indicates the smartphone will launch in May alongside the Pixel 7a, whereas another leak says the handset will launch the Pixel Fold will launch in Q3.

It’s unclear when Google will have its I/O conference, but it’s likely to take place in May when we will see at least one of these products.

Source: 9to5Google

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Mobile Syrup

Staples currently has the Apple Watch Series 7 on sale

If you’ve been looking to pick up Apple’s 2021 Apple Watch Series 7, Staples Canada currently has the GPS variant of the smartwatch on sale.

The online retailer has the 41mm and 45mm sizes of the watch in Product Red listed for $349.97 and $389.97, respectively. For reference, the 41mm watch variant is currently listed on Amazon for $469.77, while the 45mm is out of stock.

Staples only has the Product Red in stock, with ‘Blue,’ ‘Green’ and ‘Midnight’ variants seemingly sold out. Further, since this is Staples’ clearance, it’s likely there aren’t a lot of units left in stock.

Learn more about the Apple Watch Series 7 here.

Source: Staples

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Mobile Syrup

LastPass’ vault breach came from hacking engineer’s home computer

LastPass’s August 2022 security breach continues to get worse.

In a recent update, the company has confirmed hackers have access to customer vault data, building on news it shared in December.

The revelation stems from an August 2022 cyber attack, which allowed bad actors to access the company’s source code. LastPass originally said customer data was safe.

However, hackers were able to steal login credentials from a senior engineer through their home computer in December, gaining access to storage services containing backups of encrypted vault data containing user information.

“The threat actor was able to capture the employee’s master password as it was entered, after the employee authenticated with MFA, and gain access to the DevOps engineer’s LastPass corporate vault,” the blog post reads.

The company has four DevOps engineers who have access to the folders, and LastPass said it was “difficult” to tell the difference between legitimate and illegitimate activity.

LastPass says it has completed several actions following the December incident, including cancelling and re-issuing certificates accessed by the hackers.

Source: LastPass

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Mobile Syrup

Pedro Pascal says The Last of Us Season 2 might film later this year

The second season of The Last of Us might begin filming later this year.

During an interview with Collider to promote The Mandalorian Season 3, Pedro Pascal, who stars as Joel on The Last of Us, was asked about the sophomore outing for the popular HBO series. While he noted that he couldn’t reveal much, he did tease that production could begin sometime in 2023.

“In the year 2023? Oh, what season are we in now? We’re getting into spring?” he said coyly. “Yes, there is a chance. Yes.”

The Last of Us was renewed last month after only two episodes had aired, with HBO saying the series had its second-biggest premiere ever after House of the Dragon. However, the network didn’t reveal any further details beyond confirming that it would adapt the 2020 PlayStation game The Last of Us Part II. Craig Mazin, co-creator of the series, has also indicated that at least two seasons may be needed to fully adapt the sequel.

For now, though, the first season of The Last of Us still has one more episode before its March 12th finale. It should be noted that we don’t actually know how far along Mazin and co-creator Neil Druckmann (co-director of The Last of Us) actually are in the writing process for Season 2, although Pascal’s comments suggest they might have made some significant progress already.

Another big question: where will The Last of Us Season 2 film? Most notably, Season 1 was filmed entirely in Alberta in what’s believed to be part of Canada’s largest TV production to date. Bella Ramsey, who stars opposite Pascal as Ellie, has also suggested that production could return to Canada, although HBO hasn’t made any official comment on the matter.

That said, the entire cast and crew have had nothing but positive anecdotes to share about their time in Alberta. In a recent interview with MobileSyrup, Pascal, Ramsey and Mazin raved about the province. John Paino, the series’ production designer, has also said how “shocked” he was at how clean Alberta ended up being.

It’s worth noting that Canmore — Pascal and Ramsey’s favourite filming location — stands in for Jackson, Wyoming in the series, and the first few hours of The Last of Us Part II are set in the American town. Therefore, it remains to be seen whether HBO will return to the Alberta location — or any others — for Season 2.

Image credit: HBO

Source: Collider

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Mobile Syrup

Albertans to receive emergency test alert on March 1

Alberta Public Safety and Emergency Services will issue a provincial test of the emergency alerting system on Wednesday, March 1st, 2023.

The test is scheduled to take place at 1:55pm Alberta time, and will be delivered over TV, radio and other compatible wireless devices, including mobile phones.

“The Alberta Emergency Alert system is tested twice a year, during spring and fall. This is not just a test of the emergency alerting system, it’s an opportunity for all of us to test our own readiness,” reads Alberta’s website.

Alberta’s next alert ready test is scheduled to take place on November 15th, 2023. To find out the next alert ready test in your province, check out the testing schedule here.

Albertans are not required to take action when they hear the alert.

Source: @AB_EmergAlert

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Mobile Syrup

Here’s what it’s like to use the Nothing Phone (1) in Canada

Carl Pei’s Nothing recently launched a U.S. beta test for the Nothing Phone (1), giving people in North America a way to try out the new device that made waves across Asia and Europe with its flamboyant look.

The device was released in select parts of Asia and Europe in early 2022, with Canadians and Americans blatantly left out of the picture. According to the company, a lack of partnerships, paired with a lack of carrier coverage, was the reason for the phone not arriving here. “Nothing phone (1) is not fully supported in North America. Functionality may be impacted depending on your carrier, coverage, speed and/or reliability; or it may not function at all,” reads a disclaimer for a Nothing Phone (1) auction page.

Now, with the new U.S.-based Beta, Nothing is allowing interested customers to pay $299 USD (roughly $404 CAD) in exchange for a black version of the smartphone with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage to test. The beta program is set to end on June 30th, 2023, with testers allowed to retain their devices thereafter.

If you’re looking to get your hands on the device via a relative in the States, or trying to buy a device from the likes of Facebook Marketplace, Ebay or Kijiji, you should note that the device isn’t fully supported by all Canadian carriers, but you should still be able to get by. I’m not going to talk about the phone, since it is already pretty well covered. Rather, this is more about the experience of using the device in Canada, and the issues that come with it.

The Nothing Phone (1) does not support all of the frequencies used by Canadian networks, but it does support a majority of them. Rogers-owned Fido offers the 1,700MHz and 2,000MHz Band 4 spectrum, 2,600MHz Band 7 spectrum and 700MHz Band 17 spectrum, all of which are 4G bands supported by the device. On the other hand, Rogers’ 5G bands, including the 1,700MHz n66 frequency and 600MHz n71 frequency bands, are not supported by the device.

Check below for a table of Canadian carrier bands and frequencies supported by the device:

Check below for a list of Canadian carrier bands and frequencies not supported by the device:

Data for both the tables above was found on kimovil.com.

As evident in the tables above, network coverage for the Nothing Phone (1) isn’t necessarily spotty, though to offer optimal coverage, the device needs to support all frequencies for all networks used in Canada. Network coverage might be limited in certain areas, though I haven’t had a problem with coverage anywhere in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Even with a SIM as obscure as Eastlink in the GTA, the device provides reliable 4G coverage, though with slower download and higher upload speeds when compared to my daily driver iPhone. This might not be the same for you, depending on where you live.

For me, the iPhone always seemed to offer faster download speeds, even when both devices were tested with the same exact SIM card. However, the lower mobile data speed wasn’t very noticeable in daily use with the Nothing Phone (1), and shouldn’t be an issue for a majority of Canadians interested in the smartphone.

Telus, Bell, Rogers or Koodo are the best networks to use with the Nothing Phone (1), as the device supports 5G frequencies provided by the mentioned carriers, along with support for the most 4G and 3G bands.

Canadian weather and the Nothing Phone (1)

There have been mixed reports about the Nothing Phone (1) being sensitive to cold temperatures. Considering weather in Canada is not just cold, but, in peak winters, numbingly cold, is the device’s reported sensitivity to sub-zero temperatures a cause of concern?

It’s worth noting that in general, phone batteries do deplete faster in cold weather, but reports have suggested that the Phone (1) even performs worse when exposed to sub-zero temperatures.

According to Reddit user ‘u/TheLucas777‘ on the ‘Phone (1)’ subreddit, the Nothing Phone (1) performs worse in weather below Zero-degree Celsius. “The battery drains like 20% in 45 min SOT [screen on time], and this even with the dimmest extradim and battery saving mode.”

Another user that goes by the name ‘Crappyuserrnamee‘ added that they are an international student and brought the Nothing Phone (1) along with them when coming to Canada, and the device does not like negative temperatures.

Others have had differing views. ‘Momo8969‘ said that “I do snow removal in an unheated tractor for hours. My phone’s in my jacket breast pocket and it works no problem even when it’s an ice block.”

‘KailiTheThechie‘ added that they went skiing in -9 degree Celsius weather and their device and its battery was fine. While ‘the-mighty-taco’ said that their device performs without any issues, even in -10 to -15 Fahrenheit (-23 Celsius to -26 Celsius).

In my experience using the device, I wasn’t able to go skiing with it, or take it out in -20 or colder weather. However, being out and about in -10 to -15 celsius temperature had no noticeable effect on the device’s normal performance. The battery did seem to drain comparatively faster, but the 4,500mAh cell’s normal screen time offering is higher than roughly eight hours, which is already more than what I’m used to with the iPhone 12 Pro, so the difference felt negligible.

Repairability

Canadians can easily get in touch with Nothing customer support via phone or live chat for basic support, troubleshooting, and to request help, but what about repairability?

Since the device isn’t officially available in Canada, Nothing wouldn’t be able to provide warranty repairs for the Phone (1). However, you can pay the company to fix your device, roughly 170 Euros for a screen repair + shipping costs ( roughly $244.84 CAD).

I called Canadian phone repair services to check if they’ll be able to fix the device, but since the parts for the Nothing Phone (1) aren’t available in Canada, you’ll find it impossible to get the phone repaired from a third-party repair shop.

We know that the Nothing Phone (2) will launch in the U.S. later this year. In an interview with Inverse, Pei said that the device will come later this year and that they’re “developing a smartphone that’s more premium than the Nothing Phone (1).” In such a scenario, we can likely expect the device to be available in Canada as well, alongside greater support for repairs and warranty.

The device is expected to release sometime in the second half of 2023, and is likely to be named model A065. For reference, the Nothing Phone (1) is model A063.

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Mobile Syrup

Unpacking the controversy surrounding Hogwarts Legacy

Avalanche Software’s Hogwarts Legacy allows players to explore J.K. Rowling’s fantastic Harry Potter universe in an open-world role-playing setting. As the game’s main character, you select your House and appearance, develop relationships with students and more.

For many fans of the series’ books or films, it’s the Wizarding World video game they’ve been waiting for.

I covered the controversial title for MobileSyrup, explored its detailed world and completed the main story. Overall, I had a lot of fun with the game. However, before and while I played Hogwarts Legacy, I felt conflicted because of Rowling’s stance on the transgender community.

For those unaware of the controversy, in 2020, Rowling made an egregious comment on Twitter in response to an opinion piece.

Rowling’s tweet implied that “people who menstruate” are “women,” disregarding that not all women menstruate — including trans women.

Since then, Rowling has used her expansive platform to promote her anti-trans views several times. For example, Rowling’s anti-trans stance stems from her belief trans women aren’t women and should be treated differently. Rowling, who is a survivor of sexual abuse, also claims she wants women to be safe in bathrooms, perpetuating the stereotype that trans women are predators. U.S. politicians have even cited Rowling’s rhetoric when pushing back against pro-LGBTQ+ bills.

The author continues to vocally spread her beliefs, causing harm to those in the trans community, and because of this, many that were once fans of Rowling’s work have turned away from anything to do with the Wizarding World, including Hogwarts Legacy.

With all that said, I want to dive into the controversy surrounding the title to unpack my conflicted feelings about the game, and also to educate our readers about the issues trans women face.

If you want suggested readings from trans writers to better understand why Hogwarts Legacy is so controversial, follow this link.

Are you anti-trans if you play Hogwarts Legacy?

While I don’t believe playing Hogwarts Legacy directly means you hold an anti-trans stance, many disagree with this sentiment.

“Any support of the Harry Potter franchise current projects while J.K. Rowling is in charge of it and using her ongoing platform to target and also justify her continued targeting of trans people is harmful to trans people,” tweeted YouTuber and writer Jessie Earl.

Even though Rowling didn’t create the game herself and wasn’t involved in its development, she still financially benefits from Hogwarts Legacy‘s sales and created the world the game is based on, as noted by Bloomberg‘s Jason Schreier.

Hogwarts Legacy started development in 2018, with job listings tied to the title appearing as early as 2017. As noted earlier, J.K.’s cruel tweets about the trans community started in 2020; before this, most were unaware of her anti-trans beliefs.

Unfortunately, boycotting Hogwarts Legacy won’t hurt Rowling — a billionaire with many revenue streams aside from Hogwarts Legacy — as much as it will the developers who created the game and signed onto the project before her statements and blog post. If not hurt monetarily, having all your efforts go to waste can be a cause of pain.

Some might argue the development team at Avalanche Software, and even the voice actors, should have just left their jobs when the author’s beliefs came to light. But this a privileged way to look at the situation, given leaving your job is not a viable option for many, especially amid the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and the impending economic recession.

The voice actor for the masculine-gendered Hogwarts Legacy character, Sebastian Croft, tweeted this before the game’s launch (check out the tweet below). Croft also stars in Heartbreakers, a Netflix show focused on a group of LGBTQ+ teens.

I echo Croft’s beliefs. When I purchased Hogwarts Legacy, it didn’t improve Rowling’s life. She’s already a billionaire, and the royalties she’ll earn from Hogwarts Legacy won’t change that.

Hogwarts Legacy also doesn’t actively spread hatred and strives to be inclusive in several ways. For instance, the title allows users to create their own in-game avatar, make that character look exactly how they want, and change their voice to sound more feminine or masculine. Unfortunately, you still need to identify as a ‘witch’ or ‘wizard,’ which disregards other genders in a sense, such as those that are genderfluid or non-binary.

The game also features a trans character that is reportedly voiced by a trans woman. However, some reports indicate that this character was just added to appease fans upset about Rowling’s comments. Further, some criticize the character for their name, ‘Sirona Ryan,’ which can be coded as ‘Sir Ryan.’ With the Harry Potter novels featuring characters named Cho Chang and Kingsly Shacklebolt, this, admittedly, isn’t a good look for Hogwarts Legacy, although others have pointed out that “Sirona” is actually an old Celtic name for a goddess.

Despite the lack of racial diversity in Harry Potter stories (except for the aforementioned few with racist names), Hogwarts Legacy does a good job of including people from different walks of life and cultures. The friend that the playable character makes from Gryffindor, Natsai “Natty” Onai, is from Africa, where they don’t need to use wands to cast spells. Other classmates and teachers are also from different races, such as Japanese Broom professor Chiyo Kogawa, Korean caretaker Gladwin Moon and Indian Charms Master Abraham Ronen.

It’s also worth mentioning that the game focuses on a goblin rebellion, and some are prejudiced against goblins in the title. Goblins aren’t a race, so you can’t be racist towards a goblin; however, since the early books, many have related goblins to Jewish people, due to specific stereotypes. It’s worth noting that goblins in many sources of fantasy literature and games are shown similarly.

Jason Schreier, a Jewish journalist, doesn’t feel Hogwarts Legacy is antisemitic but finds the game overall “dull.”

Some who worked on the game also don’t agree with purchasing the title, including Parker Hartzler.

While buying Hogwarts Legacy doesn’t make a notable difference to Rowling’s bank account, there’s a valid argument that, as an ally, you should avoid supporting Rowling in any shape or form. The Gamer editor-in-chief Stacey Hanley holds this view and said the following:

“On the other, you have a much smaller, already marginalized group, pointing out that buying, streaming, or praising the game gives money, a further platform, and a longer future to J.K. Rowling, who is on the record saying she feels empowered that people support her beliefs because they keep buying her products.”

However, some trans people still purchased the title. Mitch Burdett, a 23-year-old trans man, spoke to Washington Post regarding his dilemma surrounding the game:

“For a while, Burdett said, he faced a crisis with how to move forward with his love of the series. Then, after talking to his mom and considering what others were saying, he decided — like many other fans — to renounce Rowling but continue to enjoy the world she built. “She doesn’t rule the wizarding world; it was just her creation,” Burdett said. “What we as fans, readers, watchers, gamers decide to do with that world is entirely separate from her or any beliefs she may have.”

Ultimately, there’s no clear-cut answer regarding how a game like Hogwarts Legacy should be approached. Some trans people and allies are okay with separating the art from the artist, while others, understandably, are not.

I really enjoyed my time with Hogwarts Legacy, but I also understand if you’re vehemently against playing it.

I know several people who are afraid to talk publicly about enjoying the game (or even playing it at all) due to concerns about fear or hatred from the trans community. People like the couple behind ‘Girlfriend Reviews’ cried over reported bullying after playing the game. There’s also a platform that can find anyone who streams the game, so you can block them.

It’s important to point out the trans community has experienced more fear and hatred than most can likely imagine, and they didn’t choose to be trans, while you chose to play Hogwarts Legacy. I personally don’t support extremists on either side of the coin, or the bullying and harassment.

I stand with transgender people, and I’m a part of the LGBTQ+ community myself. I don’t feel that I’m transphobic because I’ve covered and enjoyed Hogwarts Legacy, but I’m also still very conflicted and want to highlight that trans people continue to face a lot of hate from J.K. Rowling and her supporters.

If you are unsure about how to feel, just know that supporting the trans community in itself is the right move.

Below are several notable LGBTQ+ notable organizations you can learn from and support, including:

  • Canadian Professional Association for Transgender Health (CPATH) — the largest national multidisciplinary, professional organization in the world, which aims to support trans and gender-diverse people
    GLAAD — an organization aiming to support the LGBTQ+ community in general
  • Trans Lifeline — a grassroots organization offering direct emotional and financial support to trans people (Canadians can dial 1-877-330-6366)
  • Trans Pulse Canada — a community-based survey of the health and well-being of trans/non-binary people in Canada
  • Bridges4Life — a Black lead non for profit to support Black Trans Youth.
  • In the past, I’ve chosen to support The Trevor Project —  Trevor Project provides 24/7 support for LGBTQ youth in crisis

Image credit: Warner Bros.

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iPhone, Android feature opens security hole that could let someone steal your account

For all the talk of security, iPhones and Android smartphones are both vulnerable to a surprisingly low-tech hack that could leave you locked out of your Apple or Google account, with no access to find your device tools or your data.

The low-tech hack in question? Thieves just need your smartphone passcode and your smartphone. Both iOS and Android have built-in features that let users change the password for their Apple ID or Google account with just the PIN or passcode used to unlock their phone.

The Wall Street Journal detailed the low-tech hack in a recent report, noting that the feature is intended to make it easier for people to change their account passwords. It works because your smartphone is considered a trusted device.

Moreover, the WSJ shared several accounts of this happening to people, revealing just how easy it can be. Someone snooping over your shoulder could see you tap in your PIN. Then if they steal your smartphone, they could use the PIN to change your Apple ID or Google account password. Once changed, the thief would have access to a trove of personal data and the account owners would effectively be locked out. Even worse, the thief could take advantage of the option to force sign out all devices tied to that account, locking victims out of their accounts on other devices they have.

Coupled with the apps many people have on their phones, thieves could potentially do a lot of damage. The WSJ cited several cases of victims having their bank accounts drained by thieves who took their phones, not to mention the thieves would have access to Apple Pay or Google Pay to make purchases. Some victims reported that Apple Cards were opened in their name and used by thieves.

Finally, with access to the Apple or Google account, the thieves can disable security tools for locating missing devices, ultimately enabling them to wipe and resell the stolen phones.

How to protect yourself

Obviously, all of the above is quite concerning for smartphone owners. Thankfully, there are a few ways people can protect themselves. Most of the advice boils down to avoiding using your passcode in public and relying on biometrics like Face ID or fingerprint unlock instead. Though it’s worth noting that there are issues with these unlock methods as well. You can also avoid sharing your passcode and be careful about when you enter it into your phone.

Beyond that, you can strengthen your passcode by making it longer or by switching it to a password instead. Either of these could make it harder for someone to steal by watching you unlock your phone.

Moreover, it’s worth being careful about how you use apps on your phone. For example, don’t enable PIN unlocks for things like your bank app or your password vault. It’s less convenient, but it could hamper a thief’s ability to gain access to sensitive data if they have your passcode.

Source: The Wall Street Journal Via: 9to5Google