Thanks to falling demand for PCs and increased competition from rival chip makers, it looks like Intel may be planning to layoff thousands of employees soon.  In addition to the introducing the new Surface Pro 9 and Surface Laptop 5 today, Microsoft has unveiled a Surface Studio 2+ for creative professionals… but it’s a kind of […]
bootloader
Chromecast with Google TV (HD) has an unlockable bootloader (Update: maybe not)
Google’s new Chromecast with Google TV (HD) looks virtually identical to the 4K model the company launched a few years ago. But it’s a more affordable device with a $30 price tag, a less powerful processor, and less RAM. It does have a few advantages over the $50 Chromecast with Google TV (4K) though. We […]
Lilbits: Google is taking Android tablets seriously (again), Elementary OS troubles, and more about Apple’s M1 Ultra
It’s been more than a decade since Google released Android 3.0 Honeycomb, the first version of the company’s mobile operating system specifically designed for tablets. The next release, Android 4.0, basically merged the smartphone and tablet operating systems into one… and Google hasn’t really paid much attention to tablets or tablet apps since then, leaving […]
Lilbits: Unlocking the Galaxy Z Fold 3 doesn’t kill the cameras anymore (plus Firefox, Intel, and Plasma Mobile news)
Shortly after the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 launched this summer, hackers figured out how to unlock the foldable phone’s bootloader and root the device. But there was a catch: if you unlocked the bootloader, the phone’s cameras would stop working. So users had to choose between unlocked and rooted or… you know, fully functional […]
LG’s bootloader unlocking tools will no longer be available after December 31
LG shut down its smartphone division earlier this year, but promised to continue providing Android updates for its latest flagship phones through 2022. Want to keep using up to date software on an LG phone after that? Your best bet may be unlocking the bootloader and installing a custom ROM. But you’d better hurry up, […]
Unlocking the Samsung Galazy Z Fold 3 bootloader kills the camera
There’s good and bad news on the modding front this morning for Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 owners. First, the good: the bootloader has already been unlocked and root access achieved, which could pave the way for rooting or running custom ROMs on the phone. Now for the bad. If you do choose to unlock […]
Unlock the Chromecast with Google TV bootloader to run LineageOS or Ubuntu (older models only)
The $50 Chromecast with Google TV is a dongle that hangs from the HDMI port of a TV, allowing you to stream video, listen to music, or play games using Google’s software. Want to use it for something more? A team of developers have just released a method for unlocking the bootloader. That makes it […]
Video: Megi’s multi-boot image for the PinePhone (with 17 Linux distros)
The PinePhone is designed to make distro hopping easy. Whether you order a model that comes with Ubuntu Touch, postmarketOS, Manjaro, or KDE Neon pre-installed, the phone is designed to boot first from any properly prepared microSD card. That means you can install an alternate OS on a card, insert it, and turn on the […]
Lilbits: Hackable handhelds
Another day, another Raspberry Pi-based handheld computer. This time the developer of the YAHR.IO MK1 has created a system with a 5 inch, 800 x 480 pixel resistive touchscreen display, a tiny keyboard and touchpad, a 5,000 mAh battery, and a 3D printed case. But the device features a modular design, which means you can […]
p-boot is a tiny, crazy fast PinePhone bootloader with multi-boot support
There’s a new bootloader available for the PinePhone, and it’s small, speedy, and has a graphical user interface that allows you to choose between different operating systems when you start up the phone. The new p-boot utility takes up less than 32KB of space and boots in less than 60 milliseconds. Once loaded, it takes […]