• Some hospitals in Thailand are taking a high-tech approach to fight the spread of the novel coronavirus.
• They’ve begun employing so-called “ninja robots,” which refers to their all-black appearance. Those robots can do everything from monitor patient temperatures to allow a doctor to stay outside the room and speak with the patient via the robot so that the front-line doctors and medical workers reduce their risk of infection.
• Engineers there are planning to make more of the robots for additional hospitals, robots that could also perform tasks like disinfecting rooms.
• Visit BGR’s homepage for more stories.

“Ninja robots” is not a phrase I could have ever envisioned uttering in response to the novel coronavirus crisis that’s causing so much upheaval around the world — a crisis that’s also given us such idiosyncratic phrases that are now part of the common lexicon like “community spread” and “social distancing.”

About the robots, the “ninja” part of the phrase refers to them being all-black. They are incredibly adorable, like something out of Pixar’s Wall-E, and they’re currently in use in hospitals in Thailand to help doctors there fight back against the new coronavirus.

Continue reading…

Today’s Top Deals

1. 10 deals you don’t want to miss on Sunday: DIY face mask supplies, $23 Fire TV Stick, 99¢ Kindle best-sellers, more
2. 10 deals you don’t want to miss on Saturday: $23 Fire TV Stick, 4K home theater projector, Bose blowout, more
3. Today’s best deals: Huge Bose speaker sale, $23 Fire TV Stick, $25 wireless ANC headphones, $199 Dyson killer, more

Trending Right Now:

1. New drug combo wiped out coronavirus in patients
2. New study finally reveals how long coronavirus survives on surfaces and in the air
3. Android 11 is finally getting a key feature iPhones have had for years

These ‘ninja robots’ are helping Thai hospitals fight the coronavirus originally appeared on BGR.com on Sun, 22 Mar 2020 at 15:08:27 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read more here:: Boy Genius Report

• Following Netflix’s lead, both YouTube and Amazon announced plans to lower video stream quality in Europe to reduce strain on the Internet.
• YouTube videos will now be in SD by default, but users can manually adjust individual videos back to HD if they choose.
• With the coronavirus resulting in a surge of people now spending their days at home, there’s a concern that Internet providers won’t be able to handle what could be an unprecedented surge in traffic.
• Visit BGR’s homepage for more stories.

With millions of people now staying at home during the day because of the coronavirus — either because they were laid off or are working from home — there’s been some concern that Internet bandwidth will be pushed to the limit. To this point, a report from Speedtest recently found that mean download speeds in areas that have been particularly impacted by Covid-19 did, in fact, go down.

In light of this, and as part of an effort to keep Internet connectivity robust, Netflix recently obliged with an EU request to degrade the quality of its video streams to reduce the strain on Internet infrastructure. Specifically, the EU asked Netflix to reduce the quality of its streams from HD to standard definition.

Continue reading…

Today’s Top Deals

1. 10 deals you don’t want to miss on Sunday: DIY face mask supplies, $23 Fire TV Stick, 99¢ Kindle best-sellers, more
2. 10 deals you don’t want to miss on Saturday: $23 Fire TV Stick, 4K home theater projector, Bose blowout, more
3. Today’s best deals: Huge Bose speaker sale, $23 Fire TV Stick, $25 wireless ANC headphones, $199 Dyson killer, more

Trending Right Now:

1. New drug combo wiped out coronavirus in patients
2. New study finally reveals how long coronavirus survives on surfaces and in the air
3. Best Buy just kicked off a giant 3-day sale – here are the best deals

YouTube and Amazon to downgrade video quality due to coronavirus originally appeared on BGR.com on Sun, 22 Mar 2020 at 14:07:58 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read more here:: Boy Genius Report

• Global smartphone shipments in February dropped by 38% compared to last year, setting a record-breaking decline in the process.
• With millions of individuals still stuck at home on quarantine, there’s a good chance the decline will be more pronounced in March.
• Apple retail stores outside of China remain closed and there’s no telling when they may re-open for business.
• Visit BGR’s homepage for more stories.

In a development that shouldn’t come as a surprise to anybody, global smartphone shipments in February dropped by 38% year-over-year, according to a new report from Strategy Analytics. The 38% drop off marks the biggest decline in smartphone shipments in history, a fact which can obviously be attributed to the coronavirus. As to the specific figures, global smartphone shipments in February of last year checked in at 99.2 million units. Last month, smartphone shipments dropped down to 61.8 million units.

Continue reading…

Today’s Top Deals

1. 10 deals you don’t want to miss on Sunday: DIY face mask supplies, $23 Fire TV Stick, 99¢ Kindle best-sellers, more
2. 10 deals you don’t want to miss on Saturday: $23 Fire TV Stick, 4K home theater projector, Bose blowout, more
3. Today’s best deals: Huge Bose speaker sale, $23 Fire TV Stick, $25 wireless ANC headphones, $199 Dyson killer, more

Trending Right Now:

1. New study finally reveals how long coronavirus survives on surfaces and in the air
2. New drug combo wiped out coronavirus in patients
3. Best Buy just kicked off a giant 3-day sale – here are the best deals

Coronavirus led to the biggest smartphone shipment decline in history originally appeared on BGR.com on Sun, 22 Mar 2020 at 13:06:52 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read more here:: Boy Genius Report

• Best Buy is the latest retailer to close its stores nationwide as part of an effort to contain the coronavirus.
• Best Buy stores will remain open to employees only. Consumers can purchase items online or via the Best Buy app whereupon a Best Buy employee will deliver it directly to a consumer’s car.
• Best Buy didn’t indicate when its stores might re-open.
• Visit BGR’s homepage for more stories.

Best Buy isn’t fully closing, but the nationwide electronics retailer recently announced that its stores will no longer be open to the public. Joining dozens of other retailers, including Apple and Nike, Best Buy is simply the latest company to close its doors as part of an effort to contain the coronavirus from spreading even further.

As to the specifics of Best Buy’s semi-shutdown, here’s how things will work for the foreseeable future: Starting today, only employees will be allowed in-store, and any orders consumers place via the Best Buy app or website will be processed and subsequently delivered to buyers curbside.

Continue reading…

Today’s Top Deals

1. 10 deals you don’t want to miss on Sunday: DIY face mask supplies, $23 Fire TV Stick, 99¢ Kindle best-sellers, more
2. 10 deals you don’t want to miss on Saturday: $23 Fire TV Stick, 4K home theater projector, Bose blowout, more
3. Today’s best deals: Huge Bose speaker sale, $23 Fire TV Stick, $25 wireless ANC headphones, $199 Dyson killer, more

Trending Right Now:

1. New study finally reveals how long coronavirus survives on surfaces and in the air
2. New drug combo wiped out coronavirus in patients
3. Best Buy just kicked off a giant 3-day sale – here are the best deals

Best Buy to close all stores and will shift to curbside delivery only originally appeared on BGR.com on Sun, 22 Mar 2020 at 12:37:24 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read more here:: Boy Genius Report

• Netflix has another huge week lined up with 18 new releases coming to the streaming service, including the third season of Ozark.
• There isn’t much new licensed content coming to the service this week, but Killing Them Softly is a neo-noir crime thriller starring Brad Pitt, if that sounds like something you might like.
• A Wrinkle in Time is the only piece of content leaving Netflix this week.
• Visit BGR’s homepage for more stories.

Not every week of new releases on Netflix can be busy, even as we are all forced to find ways to entertain ourselves inside for the foreseeable future. Thankfully, one of Netflix’s most popular original series is returning this week. Ozark is back for its third season on Friday, March 27th, and I bet that many of you will spend the entire weekend bingeing it to see how the Byrde family navigates the latest dangers facing them.

There’s not much else that stands out, though I’ve heard good things about 7SEEDS, which is an anime that follows a group of survivors in the distant future long after a meteor hit Earth. The second season starts streaming on Thursday. There are also a few licensed movies joining the library: Blood Father, which stars none other than Mel Gibson, and Killing Them Softly, which stars the much more palatable Brad Pitt.

The only departure this week is Disney’s A Wrinkle in Time, which is finally making its way over to Disney+. As you can see on the Disney+ page for the movie, existing agreements are keeping the movie from being streamable on Disney’s own streaming service until March 25th, so you’ll have to watch it there from now on.

Continue reading…

Today’s Top Deals

1. 10 deals you don’t want to miss on Sunday: DIY face mask supplies, $23 Fire TV Stick, 99¢ Kindle best-sellers, more
2. 10 deals you don’t want to miss on Saturday: $23 Fire TV Stick, 4K home theater projector, Bose blowout, more
3. Today’s best deals: Huge Bose speaker sale, $23 Fire TV Stick, $25 wireless ANC headphones, $199 Dyson killer, more

Trending Right Now:

1. New study finally reveals how long coronavirus survives on surfaces and in the air
2. New drug combo wiped out coronavirus in patients
3. Best Buy just kicked off a giant 3-day sale – here are the best deals

Netflix arrivals and departures for the week of March 22nd, 2020 originally appeared on BGR.com on Sun, 22 Mar 2020 at 12:05:19 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read more here:: Boy Genius Report

• At least 20 coronavirus vaccines are already in development, as the WHO continues to work with scientists to deal with the various problems that may arise along the way.
• It may be as long as 18 months before a vaccine is finally approved, even though human testing started in record time after the initial outbreak.
• Vaccines will need to clear various regulatory hurdles that ensure their safety before the general population can be inoculated.
• Visit BGR’s homepage for more stories.

With more than 300,000 registered cases since it all began and over 13,000 fatalities worldwide, the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19 is far from being neutralized. But humanity is making tremendous progress when it comes to treating and researching the COVID-19 disease — containment is the top priority, and that’s where everyone’s social distancing efforts can help. Aside from trying new combinations of drugs that can kill the virus, scientists are also working on a vaccine that would help the people who haven’t been infected. At least 20 vaccines are in development around the world, the World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed, with some of them already approaching the human trial phase. The rollout of vaccines will take quite some time though, with the WHO saying that it may take as long as 18 months for vaccines to be approved.

Continue reading…

Today’s Top Deals

1. 10 deals you don’t want to miss on Sunday: DIY face mask supplies, $23 Fire TV Stick, 99¢ Kindle best-sellers, more
2. 10 deals you don’t want to miss on Saturday: $23 Fire TV Stick, 4K home theater projector, Bose blowout, more
3. Today’s best deals: Huge Bose speaker sale, $23 Fire TV Stick, $25 wireless ANC headphones, $199 Dyson killer, more

Trending Right Now:

1. New study finally reveals how long coronavirus survives on surfaces and in the air
2. New drug combo wiped out coronavirus in patients
3. Best Buy just kicked off a giant 3-day sale – here are the best deals

At least 20 coronavirus vaccines are already in development, WHO says originally appeared on BGR.com on Sun, 22 Mar 2020 at 11:04:52 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read more here:: Boy Genius Report

• The coronavirus prompted Apple to close all of its retail stores outside of China.
• Apple hasn’t given a timeline for when they might re-open, and there’s a chance that stores will remain closed through April or even May.
• Some customers who dropped off their iPhones and Macs for repair at Apple retail stores are out of luck and currently have no way to retrieve them.
• Visit BGR’s homepage for more stories.

Apple’s handling of the coronavirus epidemic thus far has been commendable. After initially announcing its plan to close all retail stores outside of China until March 27, Apple subsequently indicated that all retail stores outside of China will remain closed for the foreseeable future. And with many countries across the globe still trying to get a handle on the coronavirus, it’s possible that Apple stores won’t re-open until sometime in April or May, or perhaps even later.

Now that’s all well and good, but one downside to Apple retail stores closing is that some people who dropped off items for repair at Apple stores before the pandemic really took hold have no way to retrieve their devices.

Continue reading…

Today’s Top Deals

1. 10 deals you don’t want to miss on Saturday: $23 Fire TV Stick, 4K home theater projector, Bose blowout, more
2. 10 deals you don’t want to miss on Sunday: DIY face mask supplies, $23 Fire TV Stick, 99¢ Kindle best-sellers, more
3. Today’s best deals: Huge Bose speaker sale, $23 Fire TV Stick, $25 wireless ANC headphones, $199 Dyson killer, more

Trending Right Now:

1. New study finally reveals how long coronavirus survives on surfaces and in the air
2. New drug combo wiped out coronavirus in patients
3. Android 11 is finally getting a key feature iPhones have had for years

People who left iPhones for repair at Apple stores have no way to get them back originally appeared on BGR.com on Sun, 22 Mar 2020 at 10:03:07 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read more here:: Boy Genius Report

• Will your hospital have enough beds for coronavirus patients? A new tool by ProPublica can estimate how prepared your locality is for the pandemic.
• The tool is based on real virus data and information on available hospital beds at locations all across the United States.
• Practicing social distancing and staying home is still our best weapon against the spread of the virus.
• Visit BGR’s homepage for more stories.

A new online tool by ProPublica can show you an estimate of how prepared your local healthcare system is to handle the novel coronavirus outbreak. The tool, which is easily accessible online, crunches a whole bunch of data and digests it to provide you with the most accurate projection of how your local hospitals will fare in the face of varying degrees of COVID-19 spread.

Depending on how rapidly the situation evolves, the tool could offer a glimmer of hope for people who are frightened that their nearby hospitals and clinics won’t be able to handle new patients. However, if the disease spreads rapidly across the country, it’s a stark reminder that no corner of the United States is adequately prepared for a truly catastrophic scenario.

Continue reading…

Today’s Top Deals

1. 10 deals you don’t want to miss on Saturday: $23 Fire TV Stick, 4K home theater projector, Bose blowout, more
2. 10 deals you don’t want to miss on Sunday: DIY face mask supplies, $23 Fire TV Stick, 99¢ Kindle best-sellers, more
3. Today’s best deals: Huge Bose speaker sale, $23 Fire TV Stick, $25 wireless ANC headphones, $199 Dyson killer, more

Trending Right Now:

1. New study finally reveals how long coronavirus survives on surfaces and in the air
2. New drug combo wiped out coronavirus in patients
3. Android 11 is finally getting a key feature iPhones have had for years

How prepared is your hospital for the coronavirus? This tool can tell you originally appeared on BGR.com on Sun, 22 Mar 2020 at 09:02:49 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read more here:: Boy Genius Report

Sunday’s roundup of daily deals has a few solid sales that will help make self-quarantining more tolerable, but we’re starting off with the return of some crucial supplies that are finally back in stock on Amazon. Hurry and you can once again order MERV 13 Pleated Air Filters and Activated Carbon Filters. Why is that so important? Because you can use them and follow these instructions to make your own DIY medical-grade face masks.

Other top daily deals on Sunday include the $40 Fire TV Stick for only $22.99 if you’re a Prime member, an Echo Show 5 for just $10 or an Echo Show 8 for $40 when you buy one bundled with a Ring Video Doorbell Pro, the awesome wireless camera that lets your iPhone or Android see anywhere for only $31.99, UV-C smartphone sanitizers that are available to order again, almost half off the awesome Instant Pot Air Fryer Lid that transforms any 6-quart Instant Pot into an air fryer and dehydrator, Bissell’s $350 Dyson cordless vacuum killer for just $199, a 43-inch 4K Fire Edition TV for just $229.99, and a one-day sale on dozens of best-selling Kindle books priced from $0.99 (remember, you can read Kindle books on any Kindle, tablet, smartphone, computer, or anything else with a Kindle app). Check out all of today’s top deals below.

DIY Face Mask Supplies

Aerostar Home Max 12x12x1 MERV 13 Pleated Air Filter Made in the USA Captures Virus Particles,…: $32.52

Breathe Naturally Universal 16×48 Cut-to-Fit Activated Carbon Filter (4 Pack) Charcoal Air Filt…: $21.99

DIY face mask instructions

Fire TV Stick streaming media player with Alexa built in, includes Alexa Voice Remote, HD, easy…: $22.99

Ring Video Doorbell Pro with Echo Show 5 (Charcoal): $259.00

Ring Video Doorbell Pro with Echo Show 8 (Charcoal): $289.00

DEPSTECH 1200P Semi-rigid Wireless Endoscope, 2.0 MP HD WiFi Borescope Inspection Camera,16 inc…: $31.99

HoMedics UV-Clean Phone Sanitizer | Faster Than Any UV Sanitizer On The Market | Kills Up to 99…: $79.99

Instant Pot Air Fryer Lid with Roast, Bake, Broil, Reheat & Dehydrate: $79.95

BISSELL ICONpet Cordless with Tangle Free Brushroll, SmartSeal Filtration, Lightweight Stick Ha…: $199.00

Insignia NS-43DF710NA19 43-inch 4K Ultra HD Smart LED TV HDR – Fire TV Edition: $229.99

Today only: $0.99 & up, select New York Times best sellers on Kindle: $0.99+

Today’s Top Deals

1. 10 deals you don’t want to miss on Saturday: $23 Fire TV Stick, 4K home theater projector, Bose blowout, more
2. Today’s best deals: Huge Bose speaker sale, $23 Fire TV Stick, $25 wireless ANC headphones, $199 Dyson killer, more
3. Fire TV Stick is only $23 today at Amazon – but there’s a catch

Trending Right Now:

1. New study finally reveals how long coronavirus survives on surfaces and in the air
2. New drug combo wiped out coronavirus in patients
3. Best Buy just kicked off a giant 3-day sale – here are the best deals

10 deals you don’t want to miss on Sunday: DIY face mask supplies, $23 Fire TV Stick, 99¢ Kindle best-sellers, more originally appeared on BGR.com on Sun, 22 Mar 2020 at 08:01:08 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read more here:: Boy Genius Report

• The video game retail chain GameStop says it will close customer access to US storefronts starting Sunday, March 22, as a result of the continued spread of the coronavirus.
• Along with closing its US stores, GameStop says it will still allow customers to place orders for curb-side pickup, as well as digital and e-commerce orders.
• Visit BGR’s homepage for more stories.

The struggling video game retail chain GameStop has finally succumbed to the inevitable, announcing that its US stores will close effective Sunday, March 22, after days of what has seemed at times to be head-scratching moves by the company that haven’t always reflected the gravity of the coronavirus crisis.

That included a somewhat tone-deaf announcement that the chain would start selling DOOM Eternal a day before its release, on March 19, “as a safety precaution for our customers and associates” while Animal Crossing would release on March 20 as planned. Social media was quickly flooded with posts from scared and frustrated employees who claimed that working conditions weren’t safe, they didn’t have the necessary precautionary equipment like sufficient hand sanitizer, and that they feared for their safety. Then came GameStop’s attempt to claim its business is “essential” to try and skirt the increasing lockdowns that are taking place around the country.

Continue reading…

Today’s Top Deals

1. 10 deals you don’t want to miss on Saturday: $23 Fire TV Stick, 4K home theater projector, Bose blowout, more
2. DIY face mask: How to make your own medical mask for coronavirus
3. Today’s best deals: Huge Bose speaker sale, $23 Fire TV Stick, $25 wireless ANC headphones, $199 Dyson killer, more

Trending Right Now:

1. New study finally reveals how long coronavirus survives on surfaces and in the air
2. New drug combo wiped out coronavirus in patients
3. Best Buy just kicked off a giant 3-day sale – here are the best deals

GameStop is now closing all US stores after trying to claim they’re too ‘essential’ to close originally appeared on BGR.com on Sat, 21 Mar 2020 at 19:39:46 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read more here:: Boy Genius Report