Live To Tell | June 14, 2019

Talk About It

Fantastic: Better iPhone Battery Life

If you’re like me and your iPhone goes from being fully charged to having 20% battery life in the span of an hour then mysteriously hovers at 1% for several hours after that, you’re in luck—Apple’s latest iOS update includes a new “optimized battery charging” feature that learns your daily habits and prevents your phone from charging beyond 80 percent until it needs to.

Celebrity: Kevin Durant’s Injury Impact Beyond the NBA

On Monday night, Golden State Warriors forward and arguably the best player in the NBA, Kevin Durant, started Game 5 of the NBA Finals after missing a month with a calf injury, only to suffer an Achilles injury early in the second quarter. KD was expected to become a free agent after the season, and it was widely reported he was seriously considering signing with the New York Knicks. Upon news breaking that KD reportedly tore his Achilles—an injury that would cause him to miss the entirety of next season—shares of MSG Networks tumbled nearly 5%.

Cash Money: Scooter Company Bird Acquires Scoot

The scooter wars are coming: Bird is acquiring electric scooter and moped startup Scoot for an undisclosed amount. Prior to the acquisition, Scoot was valued at around $71 million, according to TechCrunch. The acquisition was strategic, as it means Bird will now have a presence in San Francisco, since Scoot was one of two companies that beat out Uber and Lyft to operate in the Bay Area.

Forward Thinking: Miller Lite Cantrollers

This week at the E3 esports Expo, Miller Lite debuted the limited-edition Cantroller—a video game controller that also holds 12 ounces of Miller Lite. The beer brand created a limited supply of 200 beer can-video game controller hybrids that attendees could win by beating comedian Eric Andre at Street Fighter V during the Expo. Per Adweek, the Cantroller claims to be a “fully functioning controller” equipped with USB charging, Bluetooth capabilities and haptic feedback, in addition to beer, of course.

Friend or Foe: Movie Franchises

Is it really that hard to be original in today’s world? Apparently so, if the Hollywood box office is any indication. According to a recent Deadline article, franchise films of one sort or another account for 40 percent of 150 wide releases annually, yet grab 80 percent of the box-office, leaving just 20 percent for the remaining, non-franchise films. So, what gives? As a society, are we really not compelled by original content anymore, or is consuming an endless cycle of The Fast and the Furious spin offs for entertainment just simply good enough?