Long time, no see BIGtechies! Halloween may be over, but we’re still feeling some spooky vibes after binge-watching the recently released Stranger Things Season 2 on Netflix. In the spirit of the holiday and our new favorite show, we’re bringing you all the tech news you may have missed while you were out trick-or-treating, as told by the kids of Hawkins (no spoilers ahead, we promise).

iPhone X
Apple-lovers rejoice. The iPhone X, Apple’s latest offering, is officially available today. The new smartphone offers users a whole slew of unique features, including wireless charging, advanced camera settings, a design made of glass and stainless steel and much more. Surprisingly, the iPhone X is smaller than the iPhone 8 Plus, but has higher pixel retina display and longer battery life. Although the iPhone X may lose the popular Touch ID home button, you can now unlock your phone simply by looking at it with Face ID. Face ID is also compatible with Apple Pay, making your trip to the grocery store one step easier. And don’t forget about Animoji, the 3D emoticons that use your favorite emojis to mimic your facial movements. Needless to say, the iPhone X is pretty tricky to get today; and even if you can stand waiting in line for hours outside your local Apple store, you’ll be short $1,000 with your purchase.
 
Amazon
Next time you binge watch Fixer Upper on HGTV and get inspired to completely renovate your home (only to immediately regret it), try Amazon’s latest augmented reality feature: AR View. The AR View tool is now available in the regular Amazon app and enables you to place and view furniture and various items in your home before buying them. Simply open the camera in the Amazon app and click on AR View to select thousands of items in home decor, electronics, toys and more and move them around to see how you would place them. The live camera mode allows you to see how the item would look and fit in real time, and then you can easily purchase the product with the touch of a button. If only Joyce Byers could have seen how her house would look with all the Christmas lights first.
 
T-Mobile and Sprint Merge
Can you hear us now? Two of the four biggest US cellular services, T-Mobile and Sprint, are reportedly in talks to combine forces as one big carrier. If the two companies merge, it would have a dramatic effects on the US mobile industry. The merger would establish the combined T-Mobile and Sprint company (new name to be determined) as a mega-carrier with over 130 million customers. While individually always falling behind big names such as Verizon and AT&T, the deal would catapult the new combined company into becoming a prominent cellular provider on the market. Of course, the deal is only in preliminary talks, with rumors flying around about which side would take majority control over the new company.
 
Spotify
Did you know Spotify offered video content? If the answer is no, you’re not alone. After failing to effectively promote its TV shows and gain viewership, Spotify has killed their third attempt at video content on its platform. The music streaming app curated several original video series over the years, but many users could not locate them in the app or knew they even existed. While Spotify succeeded in acquiring more people to pay for a music service than Apple Music and Youtube Red combined, the company still struggles with incorporating non-music entertainment in its app. The company claims that by cancelling these old videos, they are giving this new format a fresh start. But for now, Spotify remains focused on its insanely popular original playlists. In theme of this blog post, go ahead and take a listen to one of Spotify’s new Stranger Things playlists. Click here to find out which character’s playlist best describes you.
That’s all we have for today. We’re off to go finish Stranger Things and head into the weekend. Let us know what tech news we may have missed by tweeting us @BIGfishPR!