News

ASUS ZenFone 3 Deluxe’s reign may be more short-lived than we thought

Published

December 8, 2016

Monch Lopez

We had a feeling that the ASUS ZenFone 3 Deluxe’s reign on the throne would’t last long — it’s only started to catch on in certain Asian markets this month — but it may be even more short-lived than we thought.

ASUS is already sending out press invites for the next Zennovation event at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2017 in Las Vegas. The event, which will be streamed live on ASUS’ website, will take place on January 4th, 2017, and it’s highly likely that the Taiwan-based manufacturer will use it as a launch pad to introduce a premium ZenFone handset built around Qualcomm’s next-gen Snapdragon 835 system-on-a-chip, the successor to the Snapdragon 821 found in today’s heavy hitters.

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The Snapdragon branding already appears on the invite, so we would be foolish to assume otherwise. ASUS has somewhat been a pioneer when it comes to using the best components available anywhere; the ZenFone 3 Deluxe — however late (and controversial) it may be — is among the first handsets to launch with the Snapdragon 821 in tow.

ASUS Zennovation invite

Next year, ASUS could once again find itself in the same exclusive club as the likes of Google and OnePlus when all is said and done at CES 2017. Hopefully, if it does announce a Snapdragon 835-based phone, pricing will be competitive with industry disruptors from the Far East. That, or CEO Jerry Shen will take the stage rocking a transcendental product that’s more than just the sum of its glass, metal, and bleeding-edge silicon parts.

The ZenFone 3 Deluxe, though likable, lacks a headline-grabbing feature that truly distinguishes it from other flagships. Obviously, arriving late and being sold at roughly the same price as the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge and Apple iPhone 7 Plus doesn’t help its cause, either.

So now the waiting game begins, and we’ll be waiting with bated breath for news of updates. We’re pretty sure you will, too. In any case, we’ll be on the ground at CES 2017 on January 4 to find out all of ASUS’ intentions.

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Related Topics:ASUS CES 2017 Zenfone Zennovation

Enterprise

TikTok finally gets a buyer in the United States

The deal targets a closing date in late January.

Published

December 19, 2025

Luigi Leonardo

The year started with a ban. A day before Donald Trump started his second term, TikTok went dark, in anticipation of an impending ban. The platform quickly went back online, leading to an ultimatum that saw TikTok hunt for an American buyer to full stave off a definitive ban in the United States. Now, as the year ends, a buyer is finally here.

Via CNBC, TikTok has reportedly inked a deal to finalize a deal in the United States, as stated in an internal memo from CEO Shou Zi Chew. The memo, which was sent just this week, details a plan that will see the deal close by January 26, 2026.

Fifty percent of TikTok’s newly restructured U.S. arm will be held by a collection of American investors including Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX. Meanwhile, already existing investors of TikTok will hold 30.1 percent. Finally, ByteDance will retain 19.9 percent.

Additionally, TikTok’s algorithm in the United States will be retrained with American data. The American arm will also handle the country’s “data protection, algorithm security, content moderation, and software assurance.” Oracle will be the “trusted security partner” in charge of making sure the company keeps within regulations in the country.

With a deal pushing through, the long-running TikTok saga in the United States might finally come to a close.

Gaming

Silksong is getting its first major expansion next year

The expansion is called Sea of Sorrow.

Published

December 16, 2025

Luigi Leonardo

I still can’t believe that Hollow Knight: Silksong came out this year. After years of just waiting for the mythical title, it’s surreal to have it in my library. Now, barely waiting to catch their breath, Team Cherry is already working hard towards the next content drop, starting with Silksong DLC.

Just like the original Hollow Knight, Silksong is getting free DLCs to expand its story. The upcoming Sea of Sorrow DLC will be the game’s “first big expansion.”

The expansion’s trailer barely shows anything about the new content, besides vague allusions to what’s coming. At the very least, Team Cherry has confirmed, both via the announcement and the accompanying poster, that Sea of Sorrow will be nautical-themed.

It will feature new locations, new tools, and new enemies. By itself, Silksong is already a huge game. Adding more content then is a massive undertaking. Plus, Team Cherry says that this is just the first expansion, hinting at more coming in the future.

Sea of Sorrow will launch in 2026.

Besides the new expansion, the studio is also working on a Nintendo Switch 2 update for the original Hollow Knight. It will add higher framerates, resolutions, and more graphical effects. PC players will also get some upgrades to support larger screens.

The Switch 2 update, which will be free for those who already own the original game, will also launch next year.

Entertainment

Supergirl gets its first teaser trailer

Milly Alcock stars as the titular character.

Published

December 12, 2025

Luigi Leonardo

Before the new year starts, it’s already fair to assume that Supergirl might be one of the most anticipated movies of 2026. Premiering a year after the globally successful Superman, Supergirl will see the adventures of Clark Kent’s superpowered cousin, Kara Zor-El. Now, the next film in the sage finally has a teaser trailer.

As James Gunn mentioned previously, Supergirl will be based on Tom King’s Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow. Off traveling to other planets to party, Kara finds herself thrust back into the role of being a hero after a young girl named Ruthye Mary Knoll asks her for help.

Though the teaser trailer is mostly a montage of scenes, we already know what we can expect. According to Gunn, Supergirl will be tonally different from Superman, and we see this in the trailer.

However, we can still see influences from Gunn including the usage of “Call Me” by Blondie for the trailer. Also, the film’s space scenes look like they can fit right in with Guardians of the Galaxy.

Still, that’s what we have, and we’re excited. Supergirl will premiere on June 26, 2026.

The film will be directed by Craig Gillespie (Cruella). Milly Alcock plays the titular character. Meanwhile, she will star alongside Eve Ridley as Ruthye Mary Knoll.