Kevin Durant Is Officially the Face of Coinbase

NBA brooklyn nets superstar Kevin Durant and his company Thirty-Five Ventures have officially entered into a strategic partnership with cryptocurrency exchange platform, Coinbase. As a part of the multiyear deal, the Brooklyn Nets‘ sharpshooter is now the face of the platform and is set to promote Coinbase across all his business ventures.

Coinbase is also joining forces with Durant’s sports site, Boardroom for sponsored crypto content and digital ads. Coinbase will also be an avid supporter of Durant’s foundation in support of his youth programs. Thirty Five Ventures initially invested in Coinbase back in 2017 and since then, the relationship between the two companies has developed greatly. KD’s company is expected to work with Coinbase to grow the awareness of NFTs and the use of Coinbase as the main platform. Thirty Five Ventures and Coinbase will be releasing exclusive NFT drops and educating users on the growth of the digital crypto world. Bloomberg reports that Rich Kleiman, who is KD’s longtime manager and co-founder of his company, said, “Kevin does very, very few brand deals and that was by design. They’re this new model of brand partner for us, where they do integrate in all different parts of our business.”

Adobe Announces Creative Cloud Express

Adobe announced Creative Cloud Express, aka graphic design for dummies. For media professionals all over the world, Adobe's Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, and Premier are vital tools for editing and creating content. The programs are also somewhat complex and require a lot of experience to master. Creative Cloud Express is a simplified version of these tools. Amateurs can create multimedia content without the need of a graphic designer.

 


With Creative Cloud Express, users can do things like remove a background, trim or merge videos, or build a color palette, and yes, export as a PDF in a few clicks. It will replace Adobe Spark, which was used to design web-based graphics and content. Designed with the the creative economy in mind, Creative Cloud Express has a library of social media templates and can automatically resize for different platforms. Users get access to 20,000+ fonts and 175 million Adobe-licensed stock images, and everything can be shared through Creative Cloud. For Spark users. Adobe says any existing content will be transferred over to Creative Cloud Express. Sites like Canva and PicMonkey already offer this kind of user-friendly graphic design service. But Adobe's brand presence, inventory of assets, and proprietary tools will be hard to compete with. Creative Cloud Express operates with a freemium model. Access to the aforementioned features is free, and a premium plan with additional features is US$9.99 per month. It is available on iOS and Android.

Major Matrix Revolutions Character Confirmed for Resurrections

In many ways, The Matrix Resurrections feels like a remake: Thomas Anderson is trapped inside the simulation once again, waiting to be woken up in the real world. A new group of runners led by Morpheus are fighting the Agents and Machines that threaten Zion. Once again, Keanu Reeves’ Neo is faced with a choice: the red pill or the blue pill? But as much as history seems to be repeating itself, Resurrections is also a continuation of the trilogy of films that concluded with Revolutions in 2003. Not only is the new sequel bringing back characters like Niobe (Jada Pinckett Smith) and the Merovingian (Lambert Wilson) but Warner Bros. has also confirmed the return of another character from Revolutions.

 

The official Warner Bros. Korea Instagram handle has finally revealed that Priyanka Chopra is playing the adult version of Sati, the little girl/program who was at the center of one of the more enigmatic subplots of Revolutions. “#사티ㅣ#프리앙카초프라” reads the first two hashtags of an Instagram post written in Korean, which translate to “#Sati | #Priyanka Chopra.” While it’s long been speculated that Chopra was playing Sati, this is the first time WB has confirmed the character’s return. In Revolutions, Sati was introduced as a bit of an anomaly herself, a program born out of the love between two other programs (her parents). Because she didn’t have a defined purpose, Sati was to be deleted but her parents made a deal with the Merovingian to save their daughter’s life. Neo first encounters Sati and her parents at the train station between the Matrix and the real world. At the end of the movie, she designs a beautiful sunrise for Neo, who she hopes to see again someday. There have been only snippets of Sati briefly the Resurrections trailers and teasers released so far. In the first full-length trailer, we see her reading a copy of Alice in Wonderland and then smiling up at Neo as he enters a coffee shop. She seems to be expecting him, with the knowing expression that we saw plenty of times on the Oracle’s face in the original trilogy, suggesting that perhaps Sati has taken over the Oracle role in the 20 years since the last adventure. That’s me speculating, though. In our brand-new interview with Matrix Resurrections star Jessica Henwick (she plays future cyberpunk fashion icon Bugs), the actor teases one of Sati’s scenes in which she delivers a “10-page monologue of thick, very technical Matrix dialogue.” According to Henwick, Sati is talking to Neo in the scene. “Then at the end of the scene, Keanu had one line. The line was like, ‘Will it work?'” Whether Sati is the new Oracle or not, it sounds like she’s at the very least a guide for the new generation of heroes in their never-ending fight to free humanity from the simulation. And it makes sense that she would take up such an important role. After all, the Oracle (Mary Alice) and mysterious bodyguard Seraph (Collin Chou) went to great lengths to protect Sati from both the Merovingian and Smith. The Oracle even alluded to Sati’s importance in a cutscene from the tie-in video game Enter the Matrix, revealing she believed the child would “change both the Matrix and the real world.” It’s a prophecy that isn’t exactly fulfilled in the original trilogy some might even say the subplot seems to come out of left field and goes nowhere in Revolutions but perhaps it was meant to be more of a promise for a future Resurrections is now set to explore. Something tells me that when Neo meets Sati again 20 years later, she’ll be able to do more than just change the sky.

The Best Black Friday Laptop Deals 2021

Black Friday and Cyber Monday are often thought of as times to stock up on smaller investments on the cheap, like headphones, games, and other gadgets you may not have wanted to pay full price for. But it’s also a great time to save on big-ticket items, like that laptop you’ve maybe had your eye on. The shopping holidays have brought some seriously good discounts on laptops, whether you’re keen on sticking with Mac, or you want a Windows PC. Both often come in very slim designs, but for people who don’t mind a heavier laptop, we’ve included some gaming laptop picks.

The kinds of deals you can get on laptops vary depending on the retailer, so that’s how we’ve split up the deals.  Razer is offering a $300 gift card to its online store when you purchase one of its Razer Blade 15 Base gaming laptops, which start at $1,799.99.

Amazon’s best laptop deals

Amazon is selling the MSI GL66 gaming laptop for $1,295 (usually $1,500). It’s incredibly rare to find a laptop with an RTX 3070 inside below $1,500, but that’s what this machine offers. It has an eight-core Intel Core i7-11800H processor, 16GB of RAM, and a 512GB SSD. It also has a 144Hz refresh rate 1080p 15.6-inch display.

Best Buy’s best laptop deals

    Apple’s MacBook Air with the M1 processor is $150 off at Best Buy. This brings the starting price down to $850 for the base model that has 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD.
    Several models of Microsoft’s Surface Go 2 are discounted, but we recommend the 8GB / 128GB model that’s just $399.99. That’s an impressive $150 discount. Note that you’ll need to purchase a Type Cover separately.
    The 15.6-inch Samsung Chromebook 4 Plus is just $199, which is $100 off its usual $299 price.
    Many Surface Pro 7 models are discounted. Our recommended model is the configuration that includes an Intel Core i5 processor, 8GB of RAM, and 128GB of storage for $699 ($200 off). Note that this Surface also doesn’t include a Type Cover, and those run for $129 and up.
    Google’s Pixelbook Go is seeing a slight price drop, and the base configuration below that we recommend is just $599. This is one of the best Chromebooks you can buy, and compared to some others, it has a great typing experience.

    If you want an even better screen than the Pixelbook Go, Samsung’s Galaxy Chromebook that has a vivid 4K touchscreen is just $599, down $400 from its original $999.
    Another appealing 4K-equipped laptop, Lenovo’s Yoga 9i, is $1,349, a steep $400 price cut from its original $1,749.99 price.
    Several of Microsoft’s Surface Laptop 4 laptops are discounted by $150, and if you ask us, we recommend the Ryzen-equipped ones over the Intel models. This model with an AMD Ryzen 5 processor, 16GB of RAM, and a 256GB SSD costs $1,049.99 instead of $1,200.
    Dell’s 2021 G15 gaming laptop with an AMD Ryzen 7 CPU, Nvidia’s RTX 3050 Ti graphics chip, 8GB of RAM, and a 512GB SSD costs $879.99, down $270 from its original price. This is a great price for an entry-level gaming laptop, and it also has a 120Hz refresh rate display.
    Asus’ ROG Zephyrus G15 gaming laptop is $1,549.99, $350 off $1849.99. This is our favorite gaming laptop for the cost, packing in a QHD display, a fast AMD Ryzen 9, and Nvidia’s RTX 3070, among other impressive specs.

Newegg’s best laptop deals

    The MSI GP66 Leopard gaming laptop with an Intel Core i7 processor, Nvidia’s RTX 3080 graphics chip, and 16GB of RAM is $1,799, which is a total of $400 off its usual price. You’ll pay $1,899 today, but you can mail a rebate in to reap an extra $100 in savings. Read our review.
    The Strix Scar 15 from Asus is $200 off its usual price, coming in at $2,199.99. This is a solid deal for a gaming laptop that features AMD’s Ryzen 9 CPU and the RTX 3080. Read our review.
    For a more affordable gaming laptop, the Asus Strix G15 is $1,249.99. That’s not a bad price for a model that features AMD’s Ryzen 7 CPU and an RTX 3060 graphics chip. Read our review.
    For a slim and capable laptop that’s not meant for gaming, the Asus Zenbook 14 that has an AMD Ryzen 7 CPU, 16GB of RAM, and a 1TB SSD costs just $949.99, $100 down from its original price. Read our review of a similar model.
    MSI’s Prestige 14 Evo is loaded for $949 ($350 off), equipped with an Intel Core i7 processor, 32GB of RAM, and 1TB of storage. Read our review.
    For an extra laptop deal coutesy of Adorama, the MSI Katana GF66 15.6-inch gamine laptop is just $699 after a $100 mail-in rebate. That is some exceptional performance for the money especially when you consider the 144Hz screen and GPU even if it’s far from being the prettiest laptop.

The Best Black Friday 2021 Samsung Phone Deals

This year’s Samsung phone deals aren’t much better than Apple’s: you get a free pair of Galaxy Buds 2, but there aren’t any deep price cuts unless you have some devices you can trade in. The best deal so far might be at Walmart, where you can get a $500 Walmart gift card with the purchase and activation of the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 5G. Read our full review.  We also dig the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE, now on sale at Walmart for $249 (limited availability). Typically $699, the flagship phone features a 6.5-inch 1080p display with a 120Hz refresh rate but in a plastic body. Read our full Galaxy S21 FE review. Samsung is offering an unlocked Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra for as low as $825 with an eligible trade-in, where the maximum credit is $250. You’ll get a free Chromebook 4 as your gift (sold out), but keep in mind it only offers 4GB of RAM and 32GB of storage.

Samsung Galazy Z Flip 3 5G

    Target is not offering a price cut on the unlocked, 128GB Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 5G, but it is throwing in a $200 gift card and a free pair of Galaxy Buds 2 into the $1,000 bundle.
    Samsung is offering an unlocked Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 5G with 128GB storage for $100 off, bringing the price down to $900 and including a pair of Galaxy Buds 2 with every purchase. You can also trade in up to two devices for a maximum of $650 in credits.
    You can get a $500 Walmart gift card with the purchase and activation of a Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 5G on AT&T or Verizon. You could also get up to an additional $250 Walmart e-gift card by trading in an eligible phone. This offer runs through December 3rd, but you need to activate the new phone no later than December 3rd at 11:59PM local time to take advantage of the deal. If you prefer to get this deal and trade-in squared away in-store, you need to schedule an in-person appointment, starting as early as 5AM local time on November 26th.
    Best Buy is offering an unlocked Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 5G with 128GB of storage for $850, whether you activate it with a carrier today or later, but the discount won’t be issued until the device is activated with a carrier. That’s $150 off the phone’s debut price.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G

    Samsung is currently offering an unlocked Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G with 265GB storage for $1,550 (originally $1,800) and throwing in a pair of Galaxy Buds 2 for free. If you have up to two devices to trade in, you can get a maximum of $900 in credits.
    Best Buy is offering an unlocked Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G with 256GB of internal storage for $1,400 if you activate it with a carrier on the same day, a $400 savings discount on the $1,800 foldable. You’ll even get a free pair of Galaxy Buds 2.

Samsung Galaxy S21 FE

    The Samsung Galaxy S20 FE will be a cool $249 at Walmart for Straight Talk Wireless customers, a $450 price discount on its original price of $699. Literally known as the “Fan Edition,” the S20 FE has the best features from the flagship S20 line, like a 6.5-inch 1080p display with a 120Hz refresh rate, but with a plastic body and a more basic-but-still-good triple camera system. The deal is valid only online and in-store through November 28th.

The hottest Black Friday 2021 deals on TVs, AirPods, air fryers, toys and more

The 2021 Black Friday deals event is almost here, which means you score fantastic bargains right now from retailers including Walmart, Amazon, Target, and Best Buy. We're scouring through all the top offers from official Black Friday sales that have already launched to bring you the very best Black Friday deals that are happening right now. Our Black Friday deals list is filled with cheap 4K TVs, this year's hottest appliances and toys, affordable laptops, and Apple's latest and greatest devices. So whether you're doing some early holiday shopping or looking to score a bargain before the big day, our Black Friday 2021 deals guide has you covered.

You can check the links for all the best Black Friday hubs from your favorite retailers, including Amazon, Walmart, Target, Best Buy, and Home Depot. We've also picked out the best Black Friday deals we've spotted so far on everything from OLED TVs, iPads, and Amazon devices to vacuums, air fryers, Instant Pots, and more. So what are today's best Black Friday deals? You can get Apple's best-selling AirPods Pro in stock and on sale for $189.99 (was $249), Dell's powerful XPS 13 laptop on sale for just $636.99 (was $949.99), and score cheap TV deals from Best Buy starting at just $99.99. If you're looking for gift ideas, Amazon has the best-selling iRobot Roomba on sale for a record-low price of $199.99 (was $299.99), and grab a free smart bulb with Amazon's Echo Dot smart speaker for just $24.99 (was $49.99). We'll be bringing you more Black Friday 2021 deals as soon as they drop and updating this page with all the latest offers through Cyber Monday and beyond.

 

Rivian Automotive Stock Soars In Trading Debut

The euphoria around Rivian kicked into overdrive Wednesday as it debuted as a publicly traded company, with an opening share price of $106.75. If that sticks, it would give Rivian an implied valuation of $90 billion. The opening trade was nearly 37% higher than its listed IPO price of $78. That absolute eye-popping number makes Rivian one of the largest IPOs in U.S. history and puts its market cap above GM as well as one of its backers, Ford (GM’s market cap is $86.31 billion; Ford’s is $78.2 billion). That share price continued to rise after it began trading around 1 pm ET, hitting as high as $119 a share before falling to about $112.

The historic size of the Rivian IPO is not lost on founder and CEO RJ Scaringe. However, and perhaps as expected, he is bullish on the future of EVs, noting in a recent interview that the 90 to 100 million vehicles sold each year will transition to electric in the next 10 to 20 years. “Ultimately, the way investors look at the space is really valuing what the future looks like,” Scaringe said. “In not too much time, 100% of the business will be electric.” And while Rivian is very early in terms of its vehicles and launch, Scaringe said investors see and are valuing the company based on its future potential as well. “If they’re evaluating us purely on our P&L (profit/loss) today, I think they’d be missing the point of the company; they’re, of course looking at what they think the company is capable of achieving over time,” he said. The stock’s first trade was at $106.75 at 1 p.m. Eastern for 10.3 million shares, or 36.9% above the IPO price. Shares ended 29% higher at $100.73 after trading as high as $119.46. The stock held to gains in the extended session, up 3%. Rivian, which has big backers such as Amazon.com Inc. AMZN, -2.63%, Ford Motor Co. F, -3.78%, and T. Rowe Price TROW, -3.00% funds, is hoping to carve a niche for itself offering all-electric pickup trucks and SUVs, the type of vehicles U.S. residents have favored for decades. The auto maker started selling a limited number of its R1T, a two-row, five-seat pickup truck, in September. It plans to launch an SUV, the R1S, in December. Wider sales of the truck and the SUV are expected to begin in December and January. Rivian markets its vehicles as “electric adventure vehicles” with prices starting at low $70,000s. Rivian also plans to make electric delivery vans for Amazon and have its own charging network. One of the biggest obstacles for Rivian to overcome is the price of its vehicles, said Jessica Caldwell, an analyst with Edmunds. On a recent test, the electric pickup truck mostly performed as claimed, she said. It also has the advantage of being first to the market, with Ford planning to launch the electric version of its iconic F-150 next year and the Tesla Inc. TSLA, +4.34% Cybertruck entering production next year and hit volume production by 2023. But “the long-term volume expectations for a $70,000+ midsize truck aren’t very high,” Caldwell said. It will be challenging for Rivian to compete with the bigger, cheaper Ford F-150 Lightning when it becomes available, and the competition will grow fiercer as General Motors Co. GM, +1.11% is also expected to unveil its all-electric Silverado at CES next year, she said.

The Best Black Friday Deals 2021: Top Early Offers To Browse Now

Black Friday deals are continuing to drop, and there are a number of record-low prices already. While the official date for Black Friday 2021 is November 26, many major retailers - including Amazon, Walmart, Target, and Best Buy - have launched early Black Friday sales in a bid to encourage people to do their holiday shopping now and avoid shipping delays.

And there are some strong offers so far. Standout deals include cheap smart TVs at Amazon starting from just $99.99 - some are almost half price; the best-selling Instant Pot marked down to $119; and Amazon's Fire HD 8 tablet on sale for the lowest-ever price of $44.99. We've also teamed up with luxury mattress maker Saatva on an exclusive pre-Black Friday deal: you can save $250 when you spend $975 at Saatva - that's $100 better than the company's current offer.


On this page, we're covering all the latest Black Friday news and rounding up the best early promotions. Amazon was the first retailer to launch its early Black Friday event, with some of the lowest-ever prices from the likes of Apple, Sony, Instant Pot, Roomba, and more. The retail giant is releasing new bargains every day, and we're curating the hottest discounts here.

Best Buy has also started rolling out early Black Friday deals on everything from TVs to toys, and they come with a Black Friday price guarantee for members of the retailer's free My Best Buy program. Best Buy promises that if the price goes down on a 'Black Friday Price Guarantee' item on or before Black Friday, it will refund the difference. 

Walmart, too, has launched its first official holiday season sale, with some very good discounts on TVs, toys, laptops, appliances, and more. It will be releasing three more early Black Friday promotions starting on November 3, two of which Walmart+ members will get exclusive early access to. Here's our pick of the best early Black Friday deals you can buy now.

Black Friday deals: quick links

Halloween Costume Sale 2021: Squid Game, CoComelon, Stranger Things

Squid Game Enforcer has been the most searched Halloween costume, which reports one million searches for “Squid Game Halloween Costumes” on Google in October. Walmart has just opened what it says is the largest online destination for Netflix merchandise, a home for goods tied to Squid Game, The Witcher, Stranger Things and many other titles. Over the next few months, the retail giant said, products spanning music, apparel, toys and games will feature tie-ins with shows like Stranger Things, Nailed It! and CoComelon. Not even two weeks after it premiered, Ada Twist, Scientist is also one of the initial points of focus.

Items will range from plush dolls and Halloween costumes to bedding and electronics. While it is the dominant player in streaming, with 209 million global subscribers, Netflix has largely relied on a single revenue stream, unlike traditional media companies. It has recently expanded into the video game sector as it looks to diversify. Merchandise, a staple of Hollywood universe-building, is a key part of the growth plan, along with developing a deeper roster of big-ticket original franchises. The company signaled as much recently by making its largest-ever acquisition, buying the Roald Dahl catalog for more than $700 million. Netflix had previously made limited forays into merchandising through physical retail, endorsing a line of Stranger Things fare for Target. A collection of “ugly” Christmas sweaters and other gear launched ahead of the 2017 Halloween debut of a new season of Stranger Things. To celebrate, senior executives at Netflix pulled sweaters over their dress shirts during the company’s quarterly earnings video interview. The venture with Walmart follows the launch last spring of a direct-to-consumer site under the Netflix corporate umbrella. That online store began as a boutique effort, with a selection of specialty items like $60 Lupin throw pillows and Yasuke anime hoodies designed by Hypwear’s Jordan Bentley. “Through this new partnership, Walmart will not only offer products that bring the imagination of Netflix creators into reality, but Walmart customers and Netflix superfans will also find a new, exciting entertainment destination,” Jeff Evans, Walmart’s EVP, Entertainment, Toys and Seasonal, wrote in a blog post. “The Netflix Hub brings together some of its most popular shows in its first digital storefront with a national retailer, and we’re proud to partner with them on this new adventure that will let our customers dive even deeper into their favorite stories and characters.”

Facebook fined £50.5million by UK Government

Facebook has been fined after failing to provide enough important information to the UK competition regulator investigating the firm's takeover of GIF sharing platform Giphy. The Competition and Markets Authority launched a probe into the acquisition in June last year, shortly after the deal was announced, over concerns about a 'substantial lessening of competition'.

Giphy's user-uploaded library of animated images is already integrated and used widely by Facebook's family of social media apps but can also be used on other platforms such as Twitter. As part of the investigation, the social network was ordered to keep the two businesses separate until a conclusion was reached. Under the initial enforcement order (IEO), Facebook is also expected to provide the regulator with regular updates demonstrating its compliance but the CMA said the firm had significantly limited the scope of those updates despite repeated warnings.

NBA Urges Kyrie To Get COVID-19 Vaccine

Adam Silver wants Kyrie Irving to end his COVID-19 vaccine standoff ASAP ... saying it's time for the Brooklyn Nets star to listen to the science and do what's best for his family, the community and his team. The NBA commish addressed the drama surrounding Irving's status with TNT's "Inside The NBA" prior to the start of the 2021-22 season on Tuesday ... and was asked what he'd say to the 29-year-old as he remains away from the team. "I'd tell him to get vaccinated, first and foremost, for himself and his family," Silver said minutes ago. "Next, for his teammates and his community and also for the league that I know he cares so much about." “I'd tell him to get vaccinated, first and foremost for himself and his family.

Next, for his teammates and his community and also for the league that I know he cares so much about.” "I understand that it's not just Kyrie, there are people in this county who disagree with the notion of getting vaccinated. But, at least from everything that I understand, science is firmly on the side of getting vaccinated." Silver praises the "miracle" vaccine for helping the league get to where it is today ... reflecting on the journey back to normalcy after the paused 2020 season and the bubble in Orlando. "I think at some point for Kyrie to be engaged member of society, putting aside this league -- he needs to get vaccinated and that's, you said, that's the law in New York. The law in New York is if you want to play in an arena, if you want to visit an arena, you want to participate in an activity in an arena, you need to be vaccinated." Silver who's in Milwaukee for the Bucks' championship ring ceremony -- says he wishes Irving was in town as the Nets face off against Giannis Antetokounmpo and Co. Kyrie has been adamant against getting the vaxx ... with reports claiming he is standing up for those losing jobs over mandates. Irving could lose out on millions if he continues to stay unvaccinated ... and now that the season is here, it'll be interesting to see if he holds firm to his stance.

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