In the tech world, a lot happens in a week. Too much, in fact, for mere mortals with real lives to keep track of everything. That’s why we’ve compiled a quick and dirty list of the top 10 tech stories from this week. From major glitches halting all NYSE trading and grounding United Airlines flights, to Tinder introducing verified accounts for celebrities and Disney launching the official Star Wars app for iOS and Android devices, it’s all here.
Take selfies with Darth Vader in the official Star Wars app
With San Diego Comic-Con right around the corner, it’s no surprise that Disney and Lucasfilm launched an official Star Wars app for iOS and Android devices. By downloading the app, Star Wars fans can take and share selfies in iconic costumes, get Star Wars themed weather forecasts, and play sound effects from their favorite characters. The app also provides Star Wars news and blogs from StarWars.com, movie trailers, and behind-the-scenes features.
Tinder adds verified profiles for celebrities you will never date
Tinder announced in a blog post on Tuesday that it’s introducing verified profiles for “notable public figures, celebrities, and athletes.” If you see a Tinder profile with a blue check mark icon, that means the profile has been through the verification process, which is similar to the ones used by Facebook and Twitter. Over the past few months, it’s been rumored that celebrities such as Leonardo DiCaprio and Hilary Duff have been using the dating platform.
Here are all the places that support Apple Pay, including 300+ banks and credit unions
At the time of its launch, Apple Pay had more than 220,000 participating vendors. Now that Apple Pay is compatible with the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, banks and retail locations are looking to show their support for Apple Pay. Since new partners are being added to the list every day, we’ve compiled a list of all of the major brands and countries that support Apple Pay.
Microsoft slashes 7,800 jobs from its phone business
Microsoft announced on Wednesday that it will be laying off up to 7,800 employees over the next few months, most of which are based in its phone division. Microsoft also stated that it will write off $7.6 billion for its acquisition of Nokia’s devices and services business, but it admits the deal to acquire Nokia was indeed a failure. The new round of layoffs come in addition to the 18,000 employees Microsoft let go last year.
Major glitches halt NYSE trading and ground United Airlines flights
United Airlines flights were halted on Wednesday morning after the FFA said it was experiencing “automation issues,” which forced planes to be grounded for more than two hours. United said in a statement: “We experienced a network connectivity issue this morning. We are working to resolve this and apologize to our customers for any inconvenience.”
The New York Stock Exchange was also halted for nearly four hours on Wednesday after what was described as an “internal problem.” The NYSE blames an internal computer glitch for the issues and reports it wasn’t a cyberattack.
Next page: 5 more tech stories you might have missed this week
YouTube star PewDiePie made a whopping $7 million in 2014
YouTube’s biggest star Felix Kjellberg, also known as PewDiePie, has revealed he earned $7.4 million from recording himself playing video games. Since launching his YouTube channel in 2010, Kjellber’s videos received more than 37.7 million subscribers and 9.4 billion views. After Swedish paper Expressen released his earnings, the news began to spread on various social networks.
This app shows you who deleted you on Facebook
Keeping up with your friends is tough, and while your Facebook News Feed my appear busy most of the time, missing updates from a certain someone may go unnoticed. As days, or weeks or months go by, you might begin to realize that this person is no longer interacting with your updates, so you check that person’s profile and to your surprise, you’re no longer friends on Facebook! Every day, Facebook members are blindly “unfriended.” While Facebook doesn’t provide a feature to notify its users every time they are removed from someone’s friends list, an app called Who Deleted Me plans to fill that gap.
Showtime standalone streaming debuts on multiple devices
CBS announced last month its plans for a new a la carte subscription service for Showtime to compete against similar services from HBO and others. Earlier this week, the network launched the new venture, making it available on several platforms including the Apple TV and other Apple devices, Roku boxes, Sony’s PlayStation Vue streaming service, and the Web. By downloading the Showtime app, you can catch up on hit shows like Dexter, Weeds, Californication, and more. After the 30-day free trial, you will need to subscribe to Showtime for $11 a month.
T-Mobile’s ‘Mobile without Borders’ ends roaming fees in Mexico and Canada
T-Mobile announced on Thursday it’s getting rid of roaming fees for all U.S. users who travel to Mexico and Canada for no extra charge starting July 15. In other words, when T-Mobile users travel to Mexico or Canada, they’ll get calls, texts, and data with speeds up to 4G LTE from Mexican and Canadian networks through their Simple Choice plans at no extra cost. The ‘Mobile without Borders’ feature allows users to call to landlines and mobile phones in both countries.
U.S. Government data breach affected 21.5 million people
Back in April 2015, the Office of Personnel Management discovered that 4.2 million former employees’ personal data had been hacked. The government agency revealed that 19.7 million were individuals who applied for background checks, as well as 1.8 million others, who weren’t even applicants at all.
