Two for the show

Just days after Apple rolled out its latest offerings, Google is getting ready have their own party for the Google Pixel 2, the follow-up to their well-received original Pixel phone. The search giant has released a lead-up video called “Funny you should ask” that features common questions – complaints, really – leveled at most smartphones, with an October 4th date at the end for the debut of the mysterious handset.

OK, maybe it isn’t that mysterious. We know it’s being made by HTC – a company rumors suggest Google has been thinking about buying – and should feature a large, 6-inch and possibly OLED screen, along with 4gb of RAM and a base 64gb of storage, a fancier camera and so on. And while there was talk of a new Snapdragon “836” chip for the new Pixels, it looks like that may have been nothing more than rumor and it’ll have an 835 chip after all.

Just like for the iPhone, rumors and renders are all over the place. Will it be waterproof? Have a headphone jack? Have those “squeezable sides?” All will be revealed in about three weeks, and DT will be there for all the details.

Must… not… use “goes up to 11” cliche…

Speaking of Apple and their new toys, Cupertino has now set a date for the official release of their updated operating system designed that makes all of them work: iOS 11. And it’s gonna drop in just 5 days. September 19th is the big debut for the new OS that will bring a dock to iPads, a new file management app, the ability to use Apple Pay within iMessage, a cool “dark mode,” an “app drawer,” a revamped control center and much more.

Apple typically pushes out the update at about 10am in the morning for some reason, which is the same time they typically begin their big product presentations as well. Conspiracy? Probably. But maybe that’s when Tim Cook finishes his coffee and pushes the big “update” button you know he has hidden under his desk. Hit the link for all the details on what Apple has hidden away in their next iOS update.

Not so soft landings

The CEOs of most companies try to hide their failures from public view while shining a bright light on their successes. Elon Musk, head of SpaceX and Tesla, is not your typical CEO. And since he seems to have a genuine sense of humor about exactly how difficult “rocket science” actually is, he’s released a fun video showing the many, many failures SpaceX had to endure on their way to making launching and then landing giant rockets look like no big deal.

The explosive footage is accompanied by some somewhat ironic Sousa-style soundtrack with some witty explanations as to why the rockets blew up, tipped over, missed the mark and ended up in little pieces. Check out the full video at the link and be thankful your job doesn’t include telling the boss that it was your fault that engine sensor didn’t work as planned. Oops.

We’ve got more news on our Facebook page and YouTube channel, and be sure to tune in to this week’s DT podcasts: Close to the Metal (computers and such) on Tuesday, Trends with Benefits (general tech shenanigans)  on Thursdays, and Between the Streams (movie and TV topics) every Friday.