Quordle was one of the original Wordle alternatives and is still going strong now more than 1,000 games later. It offers a genuine challenge, though, so read on if you need some Quordle hints today – or scroll down further for the answers.

Enjoy playing word games? You can also check out my Wordle today, NYT Connections today and NYT Strands today pages for hints and answers for those puzzles.

Apple has released the much-anticipated iOS 18.1 recently and users with iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max and iPhone 16 lineup are going gaga about the new Apple Intelligence features.

ALSO READ: Here’s how it’s different from latest iOS 18.0.1 that is crucial for iPhone 16 owners

The Apple Intelligence features would not be available for iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus or older models. But that does not mean iOS 18.1 is unnecessary for these users. Because iOS 18.1 is loaded with 28 security fixes for all iPhone users.

Major security fixes

Issues in the iOS Kernel and Safari browser WebKit are said to be fixed in the update. An issue in the Kernel, titled CVE-2024-44239, that allows apps to leak sensitive kernel state has been fixed.

Two WebKit issues have also been patched. The first issue, CVE-2024-44261, would have allowed an attacker to view restricted content from the lock screen while the latter, CVE-2024-44244, prevented the Content Security Policy from being enforced when a maliciously crafted web content gets downloaded.

Another issue was CVE-2024-44255, which would let a malware app to run shortcuts without user consent. Three privacy bugs in Siri and a flaw that allows hackers to breat out of Web Content sandbox have also been fixed.

Other bug fixes

In Podcasts, there was an issue with unplayed episodes being marked as played. This will be fixed with iOS 18.1.

Videos recorded at 4K 60 fps while the device is warm have been experiencing stutter while scrubbing the video playback in Photos. This issue has been fixed.

Another issue that has been fixed is the digital car keys not unlocking or start a vehicle with passive entry after restoring from a backup or transferring directly from another iPhone.

There were complaints that iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro models failed to restart on certain occasions. This has also been fixed.

Call recordings

This allows you to record live phone calls. There will be an automatic announcement that the call is being recorded.

Camera Control

This new feature allows iPhone 16 series users to switch to the front TrueDepth Camera using Camera Control

Spatial camera mode

For users with iPhone 15 Pro and above, a new Spatial camera mode will be available allowing them to capture spatial photos and videos

Hearing Test and Hearing Aid

Hearing Test and Hearing Aid features require AirPods Pro 2 with firmware version 7B19 or later. The Hearing Test feature gives you scientifically validated hearing test results while the Hearing Aid feature provides personalised, clinical-grade assistance.

The Hearing Aid feature is intended for those with perceived mild to moderate hearing loss. It is automatically applied to sounds in your environment as well as music, videos and calls.

Other improvements

Control Centre will have new options to add connectivity controls individually and reset your configuration. RCS Business Messaging allows you to connect with businesses over RCS. This needs network provider support.

Venom: The Last Dance is set to win the North American box office for the second weekend in a row, according to a forecast by Boxoffice Pro.

Sony Pictures’ sci-fi action movie is projected to earn between between $17 million and $23 million at theaters across the U.S. and Canada after raking in $51 million on its debut a week ago.

Starring Tom Hardy (Venom, Mad Max: Fury Road), Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave, The Martian), and Juno Temple (Ted Lasso, Killer Joe), Venom: The Last Dance currently has an audience score of 80% on Rotten Tomatoes, but a paltry 39% rating from more than 160 reviews by professional critics. It also has a less-than-stellar 6.2 rating on IMDb, while Digital Trends’ gave it only 1.5/5.

The movie’s official logline reads: “Eddie and Venom, on the run, face pursuit from both worlds. As circumstances tighten, they’re compelled to make a heart-wrenching choice that could mark the end of their symbiotic partnership.”

Check out the trailer below:

Eyeing second spot at this weekend’s domestic box office is a new movie starring Tom Hanks called Here.

Forecast to earn between $3 million and $7 million, Here is described as “a generational story about families and the special place they inhabit, sharing in love, loss, laughter, and life.” The movie is directed by Robert Zemeckis and is notable for its use of generative AI technology to face-swap and de-age the actors.

Also starring Robin Wright (Forrest Gump, Unbreakable) and Paul Bettany (WandaVision, A Beautiful Mind), Here hasn’t got off to a great start on Rotten Tomatoes, currently scoring only 38% from just over 50 reviews by professional critics (the Guardian’s 1/5 review calls it “a total horror show”), and just 5.6 on IMDb.

Watch the trailer below:

There’s a chance that Smile 2, on its third weekend, could nab second spot from Here, as the horror movie is forecast to take between $3 million and $5 million. Its ratings are certainly better, scoring 85% among professional critics and 81% among audience-goers on Rotten Tomatoes, and 7.2 on IMDb. Check out the trailer below:

Android Auto support has abruptly stopped for older phones. Google had previously revised the minimum version of Android required for the platform, but the company had allowed it to run on older versions of Android.

Google stopped support for Android Auto on older versions of Android

Android Auto is one of the most powerful platforms for in-car navigation. It allows using an Android phone’s functions via the infotainment console.

Modern versions of Android have Android Auto baked in. However, older versions of Android and the platform had a dedicated and optional app. In other words, before Android 9, users had to download the Android Auto app from the Google Play Store and then sync it with their vehicle’s infotainment system.

Google had ensured Android Auto worked all the way back on Android 6. However, back in July 2022, Google revised the minimum Android version required for Android Auto.

From Android 6, the search giant mandated Android 8 as the lowest version of the OS. The same happened recently. Google has reportedly stopped supporting Android Auto on Android 8 and lower versions of the OS.

What is the minimum version of Android needed to run Android Auto?

Earlier this year, Google raised the minimum requirement for Android Auto to Android 9. It is, however, interesting to note that several Android 8 users were able to use Android Auto on their devices. This concession seems to have stopped.

According to a Reddit thread, Google seems to be strictly enforcing the minimum requirement rule. In other words, smartphones running Android 8 are being greeted by a notification that says, “This phone no longer supports Android Auto.”

It seems Google had been lenient, and it was not enforcing the requirement, presumably to offer people more time for an upgrade. Although the chances are rather slim, there could be a few Android smartphones running Android 8 in 2024. After all, the version arrived way back in 2019.

Google could be enforcing the requirement because Android 9 and newer versions of the OS have Android Auto integrated within. This offers a streamlined experience. Additionally, it is possible that Google might be removing Android Auto from the Play Store as a standalone app, and keeping it as an updatable system app.

Android Auto has had multiple bugs recently, and it even stopped functioning in one of the beta versions of Android 15. Moreover, the app could be breaching EU rules. Google could be enforcing the rule to limit such issues as ensuring backward compatibility is often very complex.

It’s getting harder and harder not to view the Humane AI Pin as destined to go down as one of tech’s all-time stinkers and cautionary tales. After reviews questioning why it existed, returns that outpaced its sales and a warning that its Charge Case could pose a “fire safety risk,” the company is now recalling the latter. The issue stems from the case’s battery cells, supplied by a third-party vendor, which could overheat and cause a fire hazard.

Humane posted on Thursday that it’s conducting the voluntary recall “out of an abundance of caution.” The startup says its charging case is the only accessory affected — not the battery booster, charging pad or Pin itself. “The issue is isolated to battery cells used in the Charge Case Accessory,” Humane wrote. “It is not related to its hardware design.”

The company says one of its battery suppliers is to blame. “Our investigation determined that the battery supplier was no longer meeting our quality standards and that battery cells supplied by this vendor can pose a fire risk,” Humane wrote. The company says it’s severed ties with the supplier and is currently evaluating a new one.

In fairness to Humane, the recall was (in its words) the result of only one incident where a user plugged it into a third-party USB-C cable and power source. It hasn’t received reports of injuries or damage. As easy as it is to poke fun at an overhyped company’s other shoe dropping, at least it’s informing consumers and conducting the recall voluntarily rather than trying to bury it for the sake of PR. Perhaps Humane can look to Samsung for inspiration on rebounding from a product that catches on fire — and not in a good way.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) posted a blurb about the recall with more detail. It says consumers who bought the Charge Case separately will receive a $149 refund. Those who got the case as part of the Humane AI Pin Complete System will get $129 back. In addition, Humane will supply replacement charging cases, but don’t expect them anytime soon: The estimated wait is three to six months. The CPSC says about 10,500 units are affected.

Humane advises charge case owners to “dispose of the product in accordance with any local and state laws” rather than chucking it in the trash. Presumably, that’s to avoid a real dumpster fire to match the metaphorical one at Humane.

Autonomous vehicle technology startup Aurora Innovation is targeting April 2025 for commercial deployment of its autonomous trucks, pushing its timeline back by about a quarter. The company had originally planned to launch by the end of 2024. The company said it delayed the launch so it can continue to validate its self-driving technology. 

“While this is modestly later than we had intended, this timing remains within the margin of error we have anticipated and conveyed throughout 2024,” Aurora CEO and co-founder Chris Urmson wrote in his third-quarter earnings shareholder letter. “With our intention to introduce the Aurora Driver with a crawl, walk, run approach, this shift to our timeline will have a negligible financial impact.”

Aurora will go to market as a carrier, but its end goal is to pursue a driver-as-a-service model, wherein carriers purchase trucks with the Aurora Driver tech on board and then offer their services via those trucks to shippers. 

One of the ways Aurora measures the performance and commercial readiness of its Aurora Driver is its use of on-site support, which the company says will be the most expensive support provided. As of the end of the third quarter, the Aurora Driver was delivering commercial loads without the support of a remote human 80% of the time, which is up from 75% in the second quarter. The goal is to reach 90% by commercial launch in the spring. 

The startup intends to deploy up to 10 driverless trucks during commercial launch, with the goal of increasing to tens of trucks by the end of 2025.

Aurora has been testing commercial loads with pilot customers including FedEx, Werner, Schneider, Hirschbach, Uber Freight, and others. The company schedules roughly 160 commercial loads per week, which Aurora says is more than double the volume from last year. As of October 27, 2024, Aurora’s trucks have autonomously delivered more than 8,200 loads and driven over 2.2 million commercial miles — but all with a human behind the wheel.

Aurora, a pre-revenue company building pioneer tech, recorded an operating expense of $196 million in the third quarter, including stock-based compensation of $35 million. That’s less than the $212 million it spent in the same period last year, which Aurora says demonstrates its commitment to being frugal on its path to commercialization. 

The startup ended the quarter with $1.4 billion in cash and investments after raising almost half a billion dollars in August, which should give Aurora runway into 2026 and fund its initial stage of scaling and getting to a place of sustainability.

Correction: This story has been updated to reflect that Aurora Driver was delivering commercial loads without a human driver 75% of the time in the second quarter.