Tech Roundup: Apple September 7 Event, Samsung Galaxy Note 7 Recall & More

[A recurring feature on the latest in Science & Technology.]

Alphabet/Google:

• To drop Nexus branding from its phones this year; to be instead called Pixel and Pixel XL, and loaded with a special variant of Android Nougat (RIP Vanilla Android!).
• Brings deep in-app searching on Android; will let users search for information (including keywords) across all apps a la Spotlight search in iOS.
• Encroaches Uber's turf with a new carpooling service based on Waze, reports Wall Street Journal (paywall).
• Releases Android 7.0 aka Nougat for Nexus devices (Sorry Nexus 5, you're not getting it!).
• Shelves plans for modular smartphone (aka Project Ara); deems it too ambitious and costly.
• Gives its URL shortening service goo.gl a Material Design makeover.
• Stops selling Chromebook Pixel 2015 edition; says has no plans to restock them for now.
• Adds capabilities in Chrome (developer channel) to save webpages for offline viewing.
• Invests in ex-Googlers' startups, thereby reaffirming its hold over Silicon Valley, reports Recode.

Apple:

• Ordered by European Commission for Competition to pay Ireland $14.5 billion USD in back taxes for the period 2003-2014 for taking advantage of the country's low corporate income tax rate. 
• Sets September 7 event to unveil iPhone 7 and new MacBooks.
• Releases iOS 9.3.5 emergency security patch after human rights defender Ahmed Mansoor receives spyware disguised as "text messages promising 'secrets' about detainees tortured in UAE jails if he clicked on an included link."
• Faces flak from music labels for relying on exclusives to gain new subscribers for Apple Music; Universal Music Group reportedly puts a moratorium on exclusives going forward.

Apple's September 7 event (Image: The Verge)

Facebook:

• Reduces human involvement in selection of Trending Topics after being criticised for being biased against conservatives; algorithm immediately posts fake news.
• Reportedly testing new auto-playing videos (including ads) with sounds turned on.
• Adds a new feature in Messenger that lets users talk to people on their contacts even if they are not friends on the social network.
• Takes on FaceTime and Google Duo with Instant Video on Messenger.
• WhatsApp to begin sharing user data with Facebook for better ads on the social network; WhatsApp to remain ad-free.

Lenovo:

• Unveils Yoga Book, a new type of touchscreen tablet that comes in Android and Windows 10 variants with a unique touch-sensitive surface that doubles up as a keyboard and a panel that accepts stylus input.
• Becomes the latest smartphone maker to pre-install Microsoft apps on its Android devices.

Microsoft:

• Invites criticism from Electronic Frontier Foundation for its "downright malicious" Windows 10 update notifications; says the new OS sends an unprecedented amount of telemetry data back to the tech giant.
• Acquires AI startup Genee that intelligently schedules meetings.
• Postpones shutdown of Sunrise calendar app (on August 31) to port "a few more Sunrise-inspired features in Outlook."

Xiaomi:

• Unveils Redmi Note 4 with deca-core processor for just about $180 USD (64GB variant).
• Joins the likes of Apple and Samsung to offer a new mobile payments solution Mi Pay in China, a market where Android Pay is currently forbidden.

In other news:

• NASA's Juno probe sends first images of Jupiter's North and South poles.
• Researchers discover about 8,000 lakes in Langhovde Glacier, an outlet glacier located at the Soya Coast off Antarctica, in what's believed to be due to global warming.
• Oldest fossils on Earth - structures produced by microbial activity called stromatolites - are discovered in Greenland dating back to 3.7 billion years ago, reports a study published by Nature.
• North Korea, a country known for its isolation, gets its first nationwide video streaming service Manbang.
• Samsung announces a worldwide recall of Galaxy Note 7 phones due to explosion concerns during charging.
• Amazon reportedly working on a cheaper $5 USD version of its music streaming service that will work only on its Echo devices.
• Popular teen-focussed social network Snapchat deletes its official Facebook page.
• Interest network Pinterest acquires read-it-later service Instapaper; fellow rival Readability to shut down on September 30.
• Ride-sharing startup Lyft refutes reports of it going for a sale; says "Bloomberg report is a classic example of Uber using unsavory tactics in an attempt to impact our business."
• NuTonomy commences world's first ever public self-driving taxi trials in Singapore ahead of Uber's.
• Chinese ride-hailing service Didi Chuxing comes under antitrust scanner (paywall) following its acquisition of Uber China operations last month.
• Microblogging social network Twitter to begin paying its popular users to create videos, just like YouTube and Facebook.