Fully Charged: Samsung’s Note 5 gets S Pen warning, and grab PS4 or Xbox One wood paneling
Get the morning started with our quick-hit tech news roundup
Galaxy Note 5 gets stylus warning
Shortly after the Galaxy Note 5 released in late summer, a small controversy popped up when some users noticed that putting the S Pen in the wrong way could break the phone. Whoops. Samsung said it was much ado about nothing at the time – although our Singapore team’s unit actually broke, as well – but the company has made a notable change in how it teaches buyers about the device.
As SamMobile noticed, a new unboxing video on YouTube shows a message on a warning label atop the phone screen, which highlights the right and wrong way to put the stylus back into the phone. In any case, it may help Samsung avoid legal issues here, although any earlier buyers who run into the issue could still have a compelling argument for free repair or reimbursement.
[Source: SamMobile]
Read More › Samsung Galaxy Note 5 review
Wood paneling for PS4 and Xbox One
Toast, the company that makes gorgeous wood smartphone cases, has entered a new market: wood game console paneling. You can buy a set of laser-cut panels for your PlayStation 4 or Xbox One, which perfectly link together to make your console look like it shipped with a wooden exterior.
As Polygon notes, it takes about 20 minutes to deck your system out with the panels, and they’re available in ash, bamboo, and ebony styles for US$59 (about £40) per console. You can even get them custom-engraved for extra, if you want.
Valkyria Chronicles revival
Sega’s Valkyria Chronicles on PlayStation 3 is much beloved by its fans, although it was never a huge smash. Luckily, it has just enough of a following to keep pushing ahead: Japanese magazine Famitsu has revealed that a new fourth entry (following a pair of PSP sequels, the last only out in Japan) is coming to PlayStation 4.
Valkyria: Azure Revolution is due out next winter, and it’ll have a real-time battle system to augment the strategic role-playing of past entries. And there’s more good news: Valkyria Chronicles Remaster will hit PS4 on 10 February in Japan, bringing the original entry to a new audience with various enhancements. No word yet on whether either game will spread outside of Japan, but here’s hoping.
Read More › The 30 most anticipated games of 2015
Netflix’s Christmas special trailer
Netflix has the money and clout to do just about whatever it wants now, so this holiday season, it’s making a Christmas movie with Bill Murray. Catch a first look at the incoming streaming release, A Very Murray Christmas, above.
Read More › The 35 best things to watch on Netflix right now