Enlarge / A whole bunch of Google devices, including Android phones, can now control Matter devices. Those devices will be here at some point, perhaps soon. Google The promise of Matter—the future where smart-home devices easily nestle into your home, regardless of what other devices or speakers you use—just got a bit closer today. Google announced that Nest and Android devices are Matter-enabled, allowing… Source link

The Grinch might be a short-seller this Christmas season. Retail stocks were tanking across the board on Thursday, as a much worse-than-expected November retail sales report early Thursday, combined with Wednesday’s latest announcement from the Federal Reserve, had markets under heavy selling pressure. In early afternoon trading, shares of Macy’s (M) were off 3.9%, while shares of Target (TGT) and Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) were down more than 4%, among other notable names underperforming in… Source link

Google has made significant changes to its Quality Rater Guidelines (QRG) for search. While Google updates this document several times per year, the latest version, updated today, came with notable changes to the structure of the document, with many new sections and tables added and a total of 11 new pages worth of content.  While there are dozens of important details about what changed, arguably the most important change was the introduction of… Source link

Google, Apple and Mozilla are collaborating on a better web browser benchmark. Speedometer 3 will be a “cross-industry collaborative effort” from the Chrome, Safari and Firefox makers to create a new model that balances the companies’ visions for measuring responsiveness. Three companies making a tool that will rate the effectiveness of their competing products sounds like a recipe for disaster. However, Speedometer’s governance policy includes a consent system that differs based on… Source link

Google has updated its search quality raters guidelines for the second time in 2022, only four and a half months since its last update in July 2022. This revised document has some substantial changes to E-A-T, by adding an extra E to E-A-T for “experience.” The document is now about nine-pages longer, adding up to 176 pages up from 167 pages in the previous version. Double-E-A-T. Yes, Google has added a letter to E-A-T, adding an extra E and… Source link

As expected, Google has started beta testing digital driver’s license and state ID card support on Android through Wallet, starting with the state of Maryland.  Google is explicit about how this “feature is being tested in beta and some features may not work as expected.” In fact, it’s advised that you “keep your physical ID card on you.” That said, out of the gate, it’s “accepted by Transportation Security Administration (TSA) at some supporting airports [

Photo: Lukmanazis (Shutterstock) Google Chrome users in the U.S. can now launch select video games directly from Google Search results, much like you already could for movies, music, and TV shows. The games run in your browser via cloud streaming services such as GeForce Now or Microsoft Cloud Streaming, meaning you can play on any computer, smartphone, or tablet that runs Google Chrome. Even weak devices can play games this way—often in 1080p resolution and 60fps with minimal input lag—as… Source link

Netflix (NFLX) stock sank 7% in early trading on Thursday after a new report from Digiday said the streaming giant is falling short on viewership guarantees it made to advertisers for its new ad-supported tier. According to Digiday, which cited five agency executives, Netflix is now allowing ad buyers to take their money back after missing viewership targets. The company reportedly only delivered around 80% of the expected audience. Yahoo Finance reached out to Netflix for comment but did not… Source link

So much for dining out on a dime. Menu prices are up significantly, 12.9%, at fan favorites like Wendy’s (WEN), Chick-fil-A, Taco Bell, Burger King and McDonald’s (MCD). The most expensive of the five fast food joints? Wendy’s. Over the past year the cost to dine at the Dublin, Ohio-based chain increased by 35%, making it the largest bump across the Big Five this year. That’s according to new data from Pricelisto.com, which gathered the data from in-store visits, phone interviews and uploaded… Source link

Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk’s selling spree continues, to the chagrin of Tesla investors who can’t seem to catch a break. In a filing yesterday, Musk disclosed that he sold 22 million shares of Tesla stock Monday through Wednesday. The value of those Tesla stock sales was around $3.6 billion. Tesla shares have been under immense pressure the past few days, with shares down nearly 13% since the start of the week. Musk’s stock sales this week bring his total amount sold since April, when he… Source link