Engadget the morning after | Engadget



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As we recover from all of the console reviews from the past week and some presidential and other elections, the tech news begins at the start of this week. In fact, it started on Sunday night as Virgin Hyperloop completed its first crew test. At the company’s DevLoop plant in Nevada, two passengers were pulled through the 500-meter tube.

The morning after

To maintain a comfortable experience, the speed of the capsule in this test was limited to 107 miles per hour. That’s less than half of the pod’s maximum speed in the tube, which peaked at 240 miles per hour during testing at the end of 2017. This is mainly due to the length of the tube: 500 meters are only not long enough to reach the sort of speeds the company promises to achieve. It’s the next step, however: Higher speeds are likely when the second, longer Hyperloop facility is built in West Virginia.

– Mat Smith

It highlights the issues with Android update policies.

The morning after

The Let’s Encrypt CA warns that phones running versions of Android prior to 7.1.1 Nougat will not trust its root certificate from 2021, excluding them from many secure websites.

All of this means that as it is, you might need to upgrade your Android phone before long if you want to visit large parts of the secure web. A partial workaround is available by installing Firefox (Mozilla is a partner in Let’s Encrypt) and using its own certificate store, but that won’t help rival clients or functionality beyond browsers.
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He may have to reduce his lunar ambitions.

The morning after

Apple’s world of mobile accessories has grown dramatically with the launch of the iPhone 12 line and MagSafe, and it now has a brilliant way to showcase them all without you having to set foot in the store. MacRumors noticed that Apple has released an iPhone 12 Studio (currently mobile only) that lets you try out MagSafe accessory combos to see how good-looking they will look with your favorite phone. The experience is very similar to the Apple Watch Studio, which launched last year. Continue reading.

Nasal spray could prevent COVID-19 infections

This could make prevention much more accessible.

Researchers at Columbia University have developed a nasal spray that has been successful in preventing COVID-19 infections when tested on ferrets as well as a 3D model of human lungs.

The lipopeptide (that is, a combination of lipids and peptides) prevents the coronavirus from fusing with the membrane of a target cell by preventing a key protein from taking a necessary shape. It should work immediately and last at least 24 hours. It’s also affordable, lasts a long time, and doesn’t need refrigeration.

A spray like this is still far from reaching the public. It would require human clinical trials, let alone large-scale production to provide sufficient access. Scientists plan to “move quickly” to further testing, Columbia said.
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