Category: News

Picking breakfast cereal at any given American grocery store is a dizzying task. There are so damn many brightly colored boxes full of neon-colored, sugar-infused wheat, oat, rice, corn, and bran shapes to chose from. Then there are the healthy choices. The cereals you should eat. The stuff that tastes like wheat, oats, rice, corn, and bran without all the sugar and marshmallows to mask it.

For an adult, the internal struggle of the cereal aisle is cosmic. It’s good vs. evil. The righteous path vs. the valley of the shadow of death. According to data, habit usually wins out. The box you grab is influenced by your history and feelings of nostalgia. Sense memory dominates. My personal picks when I need my cereal to comfort me on a core level are Frosted Mini-Wheats and Raisin Bran. I’d get Cocoa Puffs and Lucky Charms when I stayed with my cousins.

As I became an adult, those habits didn’t shift much. But every once in a while — with the spending power and autonomy of being a non-kid at my disposal — I like to venture out a little. I’ll walk the cereal aisle and give myself free rein to pick one of the brands I’d always longed for as a child. If you, like me, are the type to splurge on a sweet cereal now and again, there’s one rule that’s crucial: Don’t screw this purchase up. No one wants to break their diet for a sugary cereal that’s also a disappointment, gets soggy too quick, or can be recognized by the adult palate as being 90% artificial flavorings and binders.

So what’s the best sugary breakfast cereal to buy, nostalgia be damned? That’s what we’re going to find out below. To do so, I’m tasting 12 classic bowls of breakfast cereal — dry and with milk! — and ranking them according to taste.

Our lineup:

• Fruit Loops
• Honey Smacks
• Frosted Flakes
• Frosted Mini-Wheats
• Cap’n Crunch’s Crunch Berries
• Apple Jacks
• Lucky Charms
• Trix
• Cinnamon Toast Crunch
• Honey Nut Cheerios
• Golden Grahams
• Cocoa Puffs

Why dry and with milk? Let’s face it, we’ve all hurriedly grabbed a handful of cereal as a snack and eaten it dry. We’ve also all poured ourselves a bowl after a long night out to nourish and comfort the soul before passing out. Those are the cereal experiences I’m trying to recreate here. Sound fun?

Let’s rank some breakfast cereal!

Part 1: The Taste

Taste 1:

The Handful from the Box Taste:

This is pretty bland at first. The fruitiness doesn’t really show up until after you’ve chewed a few and swallowed, which is kind of weird. They’re dry, plain, and need more fruitiness.

The Bowl at Midnight Taste:

That fruit arrives from the first bite when you add in milk. It’s more rounded and a better overall experience. It feels semi-sweet and mildly fruity in the sense that Twizzler is “fruity.”

Taste 2:

The Handful from the Box Taste:

I’m getting nothing. There’s a distant sense of dry puffed wheat that’s almost entirely flavorless. The sugar is barely sweet and arrives very late. It’s not burnt or caramelized or “honey” flavored. Certainly not really honey in any significant percentage. It’s just plain white sugar and mild, at that.

The Bowl at Midnight Taste:

This is pretty much the same with milk as it was dry. It’s listless, flavorless, and barely sweet.

Taste 3:

The Handful from the Box Taste:

There’s a nice crunch that immediately imparts corn and just the right amount of sugar. It’s sweet, for sure, but countered by an almost roasted, grainy corn vibe.

The Bowl at Midnight Taste:

This holds up with a great crunch in the milk. The roasted corn and sweetness holds its own against the moisture, creating a good spoon of cereal.

Taste 4:

The Handful from the Box Taste:

This is surprisingly light for such a big morsel of cereal. The sugar is dialed in and helps the strands of wheat feel like they have more flavor than just plain wheat. There’s a depth at play — in the wheatiness and sweetness — that’s definitely enticing.

The Bowl at Midnight Taste:

Of course, this holds up amazingly well in milk. The sugar frosting stays with the bales of wheat straw. The little pillows soften just enough to not shred the roof of your mouth while still leaving you with a textural and flavorful spoonful.

Taste 5:

The Handful from the Box Taste:

This was a delight. The flavors actually feel like real fruit instead of something that was once “fruit essence” before it traveled through a sterile lab. The non-berry morsels also actually taste like something with a nice grain edge and sweetness.

The Bowl at Midnight Taste:

This really holds up in milk. The integrity of the cereal keeps its crunch while the fruit amplifies its fruitiness without relying on just being sweet. It’s balanced and really delivers on what it promises.

Taste 6:

The Handful from the Box Taste:

Hum. This is pretty one-note. There’s the thought of apple and maybe what was once cinnamon. There’s not a whole lot going on besides a crunch and stale apple juice and spent cinnamon sticks.

The Bowl at Midnight Taste:

Adding milk doesn’t really change anything. The crunch stays but I’d argue the apple fades even more and the cinnamon disappears completely.

Taste 7:

The Handful from the Box Taste:

If it weren’t for the marshmallows, this might be the blandest cereal on the market. The grain nibs are there and feel like they were once wheat but otherwise nothing more than crunch. The marshmallow adds a nice sweetness to give the cereal something for the palate to notice. But this isn’t nearly as fun as the ads make it out to be.

The Bowl at Midnight Taste:

This certainly works better with milk. But you still can’t get past the pointlessness of the cereal without the marshmallows.

Taste 8:

The Handful from the Box Taste:

Woah! This is a blast of artificial fruit flavors to the face. It’s kind of like when you fill your cup with a little bit of all the sodas from the soda fountain but really amp up the Hawaiian Punch at the end. There’s a good crunch factor but it’s still really sweet.

The Bowl at Midnight Taste:

Milk calms this one down a bit. But overall, this is a blast of fake, sweet fruit that feels like a bit much.

Taste 9:

The Handful from the Box Taste:

This is what Apple Jacks thinks it is. There’s a great crunch that delivers cinnamon-sugar toast vibes with a hint of browned butter in there. It’s … complex.

The Bowl at Midnight Taste:

Is this better in milk? That’s a hard one. It’s definitely good with the cinnamon and sugar really holding on as the crunch fades a bit. Not too shabby.

Taste 10:

The Handful from the Box Taste:

This is surprisingly well balanced. The graininess of the Cheerio is the highlight. But the sweetness does feel like honey more than just sugar with a slight nuttiness that plays back into the grain.

The Bowl at Midnight Taste:

Milk doesn’t mute any of the flavors and, arguably, amps up the honey nature of the bite.

Taste 11:

The Handful from the Box Taste:

This really nails the Graham Cracker taste and vibe. The addition of a sweet edge with a hint of vanilla is a good play and makes this very snackable.

The Bowl at Midnight Taste:

This loses a little luster with milk. Still, that dark cracker nature with a hint of sweet remains, leaving you with a solid morning sugar bump.

Taste 12:

The Handful from the Box Taste:

Meh. This tastes like dry cocoa powder that was made by someone who had chocolate explained to them and that explanation was spoken in a language the listener didn’t really understand. Plus, the puffs are overly airy and damn near pointless.

The Bowl at Midnight Taste:

Milk doesn’t really do anything to help the shitty powdered chocolate vibes. Yes, the milk turns into chocolate milk, sort of. But it’s bland choco milk. That doesn’t ease the disappointment.

Part 2: The Ranking

12. Honey Smacks — Taste 2

Average Price: $3.64

The Cereal:

This is a puffed wheat cereal with a honey-flavored sugar coating. Ironically (for this tasting), Honey Smacks is the cereal with the highest sugar content of any cereal on this list.

Bottom Line:

This tasted like nothing. Don’t bother.

Dry or w/milk:

Neither.

11. Cocoa Puffs — Taste 12

Average Price: $3.64

The Cereal:

Cocoa Puffs are from the Kix and Trix family of grain cereals. The puffs are made with a mix of corn and rice before “puffing.” These are the same as Kix, just with cocoa powder added.

Bottom Line:

That fake cocoa powder was impossible to get past and the listlessness of the puff was the nail in the coffin.

Dry or w/milk:

Neither.

10. Apple Jacks — Taste 6

Average Price: $2.98

The Cereal:

Apple Jacks are little o-shaped puffs made with a mix of grains. Those grains are dyed green and orange and flavored with apple and cinnamon with plenty of sugar.

Bottom Line:

This tasted exactly as bad as I remembered it. There were at least the remnants of the flavors promised… but they were severely lacking.

Dry or w/milk:

Neither.

9. Lucky Charms — Taste 7

Average Price: $3.64

The Cereal:

Lucky Charms is a mix of sugar-coated oat pieces with hardened and multi-hued marshmallows. The toasted oat pieces create a counterpoint to the very sweet marshmallow, which is essentially the only reason anyone eats Lucky Charms.

Bottom Line:

In the immortal words of Lisa Simpson, “Eewww, Bart! Don’t put the non-marshmallow pieces back in the box. They go in the trash.”

Dry or w/milk:

With milk.

8. Fruit Loops — Taste 1

Average Price: $3

The Cereal:

Fruit Loops are dyed multi-grain loop puffs. The loops are all flavored with the same “fruit” flavor but there’s no fruit anywhere near the making of this cereal. And yes, all the different colors are the exact same flavor.

Bottom Line:

Even though the fruitiness of these arrives kind of late, at least it’s there. You do feel like you’re eating an okay sugary cereal but just barely.

Dry or w/milk:

With milk.

7. Honey Nut Cheerios — Taste 10

Average Price: $3.64

The Cereal:

Pulverized oats are used to make Cheerios. In this case, the sugar content is amped up with the addition of sugar, brown sugar, and honey to sweeten the deal.

Bottom Line:

This wasn’t too bad. The sweetness was decent and the grain nature of the Os was legit. That being said, this felt more “healthy” than “give me that sugar rush, baby!”

Dry or w/milk:

Dry.

6. Golden Grahams — Taste 11

Average Price: $3.64

The Cereal:

This cereal is a mix of wheat and corn blended and baked into cracker form. It’s then sweetened with sugar and brown sugar to add a little depth beyond a plain old Graham Cracker.

Bottom Line:

The first thing I wrote in my notes was, “Not bad.” That’s why they are right in the middle. They taste like real Graham Crackers with a little sweet edge. They’re … nice.

Dry or w/milk:

Dry.

5. Trix — Taste 8

Average Price: $3.64

The Cereal:

Trix is corn puffs that are flavored with different “fruit” flavors depending on the shape of each puff. The recipe has gone back and forth a lot over the years with it most recently reverting back to artificial colors and flavors after a backlash to ditching those in 2017. [The real fruit ones were delicious, IMO –ed]

Bottom Line:

Wow, these were intense. If you’re looking for an eye-opener in the morning with a real sugar high, this is the cereal for you.

Dry or w/milk:

With milk.

4. Cinnamon Toast Crunch — Taste 9

Average Price: $3.64

The Cereal:

Cinnamon Toast Crunch starts off with mini-squares of wheat and rice crackers, with the rice adding the “crunch” aspect of the cereal. The squares are then dusted with cinnamon and sugar to recreate a cinnamon toast vibe.

Bottom Line:

This felt classic while also delivering on real cinnamon spice, butteriness, and a nice sugar rush. They lose their luster a little on milk but are still potent enough to be enjoyed.

Dry or w/milk:

Dry.

3. Frosted Flakes — Taste 3

Average Price: $3

The Cereal:

Frosted Flakes are a mix of milled corn, sugar, and malt flavor. The flakes hold onto a crisp and crunchy vibe that makes this one of the most popular cereals on the shelf.

Bottom Line:

These were pretty damn good, all things considered. They’re sweet, sure. But they also pack in the Big Cornflake Energy that balances out all that sweetness. This is good stuff.

Dry or w/milk:

Both.

2. Frosted Mini-Wheats — Taste 4

Average Price: $3.64

The Cereal:

Shredded wheat stops being a health food when you frost it with a sugar glaze. Back in 1980, Kellogg’s introduced the mini pillows of shredded wheat and a layer of sugar frosting and the world was forever changed.

Bottom Line:

This is a classic that’s full of flavorful wheat and sweet enough to widen your dewy morning eyes. There’s also a heft here that helps you feel like you’re actually eating something and you feel full when you’re done. My nostalgia might be a factor here, but I think these really hold up.

Dry or w/milk:

With milk.

1. Cap’n Crunch’s Crunch Berries — Taste 5

Average Price: $2.72

The Cereal:

Cap’n Crunch is an oat and corn puff that’s just sweet and crisp enough to stand up to milk. The “Crunch Berries” are colored in green, blue, red, and purple and are all flavored with the same “berry” essence, regardless of the color of the berry.

Bottom Line:

This was damn near perfectly balanced. You feel the grainy nature of the light yet full-bodied puffs while the fruit feels real. It’s sweet enough to get a good sugar rush and really holds up well in the milk.

Dry or w/milk:

Both.

Part 3: Final Thoughts

I haven’t had Cap’n Crunch’s Crunch Berries in decades. In fact, I rarely had it when I was a kid. Still, it was a clear winner with an all-around classic sugary breakfast cereal feel. It stayed crunchy, the flavors had balance, and it was really enjoyable.

All of that being said, the top four were really all great and pretty much interchangeable depending on my mood. Trix was close but a little too “smack you in the face with sweet, fake fruit!” for me.

The bottom three were far behind the rest. Cocoa Puffs, Apple Jacks, and Honey Smacks were completely lacking in any real flavor, much less depth. With Honey Smacks specifically, it was almost offensive how bland they were.

So which one of these is your go-to morning sugar rush vehicle? And which will your reach for next time you feel inspired to walk the cereal aisle?

Lorde is notoriously tight-lipped with any updates about her upcoming projects. But her fans are less patient when it comes to her first new music in four years. So when Lorde temporary uploaded and then removed her new song “Solar Power” to select streaming services, fans were beside themselves.

On Thursday, Lorde’s new song “Solar Power” reportedly appeared on Apple Music, Tidal, Deezer, and YouTube Music. It was only available for a short period of time before being removed, though, and some lucky fans were able to hear it in time.

According to one fan, who was able to catch the song before it was pulled off the internet, the “Solar Power” credits feature some recognizable indie names: Phoebe Bridgers appears in the song’s credits alongside Clairo and Taylor Swift producer Jack Antonoff, who seemingly contributed backup vocals.

Lorde first teased “Solar Power” by sharing its cover art, which features a revealing photo of her in a swimsuit. Rumors about her next album have been circling for months, so when the singer shared the cheeky photo, it was instantly turned into all sorts of hilarious memes. Fans were also quick to make memes about the short-lived nature of “Solar Power,” and they assumed the song was mistakenly leaked by someone on her team.

Lorde has yet to make a statement about the temporary release of her song. But since several fans have already been able to hear “Solar Power,” it’s possible Lorde could be planning on widely releasing it soon.

George Harrison’s 1970 masterwork All Things Must Pass — the album Rolling Stone once called “the War And Peace of rock and roll” — is the centerpiece of a definitive, limited edition 50th-anniversary box set, available on August 6th via Capitol/UMe. The super-deluxe package, which you can pre-order here, is filled with unreleased tracks from the prolific period of the former Beatle’s career, newly mixed by Grammy Award-winning engineer Paul Hicks.

One of these gems is the whimsical “Run Of The Mill (Take 36).” According to Olivia Harrison, the song was one of their favorites. The Harrison estate released the track with a new video, set in Friar Park, which is on their property. “Mill,” along with “Isn’t It A Pity,” “Wah-Wah,” and “Beware Of Darkness,” came out of Harrison’s frustration concerning the Beatles’ breakup in April of 1970.

All Things Must Pass, produced by Harrison and Phil Spector, is an enormous, ambitious statement of Harrison’s remarkably gifted songcraft, deep spirituality, and his dedication to both his distinct style and collaboration with his fellow musicians. The album bursts with a variety of musical genres: rock and roll, country, gospel, blues, pop, folk, Indian classical music, and devotional melodies. Despite being phenomenally popular, Harrison said in the liner notes for the 30th-anniversary reissue, issued in 2001, “I still like the songs on the album and believe they can continue to outlive the style in which they were recorded,” adding, however, “it was difficult to resist re-mixing every track. All these years later I would like to liberate some of the songs from the big production that seemed appropriate at the time.”

The Super Deluxe Edition box set, presented on 8LP (180g) or 5CD + 1 Blu-ray audio disc, explores the 1970 album sessions through 47 demos and outtakes, 42 of which were previously unreleased. The Blu-ray allows fans to experience the main album in a high-res stereo, enveloping 5.1 surround sound, and Dolby Atmos mixes. The collection contains a beautiful 60-page scrapbook curated by Olivia Harrison, with unseen imagery and memorabilia from the era, handwritten lyrics, diary entries, studio notes, tape box images, a comprehensive track-by-track, and more. It also includes a replica of the original album poster.

Watch the album trailer below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvoEtEx95tk

Illuminati Hotties are ringing in Hot Vax Summer with a pop-punk cannonball. “Pool Hopping” is the first track from the just-announced forthcoming album Let Me Do One More, which arrives October 1.

Directed by Katie Neuhof, the bubblegum-bright video features singer/writer/producer Sarah Tudzin chirping about indecision from various doughnut inner tubes. The song emits so many summertime vibes, it’s easy to gloss over Tudzin’s most excellent couplet game, which had me at “Stealth makeout / Breakfast takeout.”

Tudzin said that this record is the culmination of three years of uncertainty in the music business, where she was embroiled in label disputes and unpaid royalties. Let Me Do One More sounds — so far — like a big sigh of relief from all that. As Tudzin said of “Pool Hopping”: “I’m so stoked to have grilled up a splashy new song & music video to soundtrack your wettest & wildest parties to date. This track is for when it’s hot, you’re crushing on someone new, and your adventure senses are tingling. Come on in, the water’s fine!!!”

Illuminati Hotties are on tour supporting Death Cab For Cutie’s west coast dates in September. The day after the album drops, on October 2, the Hotties will headline Zebulon in Los Angeles.

Watch the “Pool Hopping” video above and find the Let Me Do One More art and tracklist below. Also revisit our 2018 interview with Tudzin here.

1. “Pool Hopping”
2. “MMMOOOAAAAAYAYA”
3. “Knead”
4. “Threatening Each Other re: Capitalism”
5. “u v v p” Feat. Buck Meek
6. “Protector”
7. “Joni: LA’s No 1 Health Goth”
8. “Kickflip”
9. “Toasting” Feat. Alex Menne
10. “The Sway”
11. “Cheap Shoes”
12. “Growth”

Let Me Do One More is out 10/1 via Snake Shack Tracks. Pre-order it here.

Death Cab For Cutie is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

A whistleblower and a suspected sex trafficker walked into a political debate…

What sounds like the setup to a likely offensive joke turned out to be data scientist Rebekah Jones’ way of pointing out a glaring hypocrisy in what is going down in Florida right now. Specifically: In the way that she is being treated for speaking out against Florida governor Ron DeSantis’ questionable handling of the coronavirus pandemic while Matt Gaetz, who is under investigation for possible sex trafficking as well as for obstruction of justice in that investigation, is carrying on like it’s just another beautiful day in the Sunshine State.

On Tuesday, Jones announced via Instagram Stories that she was planning to challenge Gaetz for his congressional seat, stating:

“I had hoped that someone in the Republican Party would step up and primary him, and I’ve yet to see that happen. And so, if it takes me going home to Florida to run against Matt Gaetz, then I will do it. If it means getting one child sex trafficker out of office, you’re damn right I’ll do it.” Jones also spoke to NBC News about her announcement, telling them that, “I hope I do better than a sex trafficker. It’s absurd that he’s still in office. Someone like that should not go unchallenged.”

While Gaetz, who is somehow not above cracking jokes even though he’s being accused of sex trafficking a minor, basically told Jones to come at him when he tweeted, “Looks like I’m running against Florida’s Fauci…”

Wow. A world-renowned doctor who has served as the chief medical advisor to seven presidents and proven himself over and over to be a man of the utmost integrity whose only goal is to see as few people killed by the pandemic as possible is now an insult? Good one, Matt!

Well, it turns out that Jones—who worked for the Department of Health and helped to create and maintain Florida’s COVID-19 dashboard, but was fired in May 2020 after refusing to (in her words) “manually change data to drum up support for the plan to reopen”—wasn’t really serious about challenging Gaetz. It was simply her way of trying to illustrate the criminal way in which she has been treated since blowing the whistle on DeSantis and his shady disciples while Gaetz remains unscathed (at least officially, for now).

In a follow-up to her announcement, she posted a statement to Instagram which explained:

“In suggesting a run in Florida 1, I was pointing out the hypocrisy in DeSantis writing a law to prevent the silencing of government critics, while simultaneously celebrating my suspension for sharing a news article that exposed the lies he made that cost so many Florida lives.

I truly believe there is someone good in the Panhandle — Republican, Democrat, or no party — who can and should keep this pervert from writing laws regulating his own sick behavior.”

Gaetz is probably working up a doozy of a sick burn for that one as we type this.

(Via Yahoo! News)

Bill de Blasio is the mayor of New York City. New York City is known for, among other things, da Mets, King Kong attacks, and pizza. Therefore, New York City mayor Bill de Blasio should have good taste in pizza. Folks, he does not.

Ahead of the June primary election, de Blasio, seen here eating pizza with a fork (“disgusting”), performed a ranked choice voting tutorial using pizza toppings. The ballot consisted of eight focus group-approved toppings — olives, pineapple, vegan cheese, clams, sausage, mushrooms, green peppers, and pepperoni — for five slots.

Let’s see how he did:

De Blasio, holding up a large eight-option “ballot,” ranked green peppers first, olives second, sausage third, mushrooms fourth, and pepperoni fifth. “A lot of people don’t appreciate green peppers enough,” de Blasio deadpanned. “I have southern Italian roots. Green peppers are a very big, important part of our life.”

I won’t hate on de Blasio picking green peppers. Green peppers on pizza is great. But first? Over pepperoni?!? That’s nuts. de Blasio picked olives second because he’s “had very good experiences with olives,” whatever that means, but olives are a trash topping. The mayor tried to redeem himself by accurately proclaiming that pineapple “doesn’t belong on pizza,” but it was too late. You lost me, and many others, at olives, Bill.

I’m terrified to look up former-mayor Rudy Giuliani’s preferred pizza toppings.

(Via the New York Post)

Kevin Smith’s enthusiasm for all things geeky has led him down many roads, all of them filled with very big feelings. One doesn’t have to throw an Infinity Stone too far to find Smith’s openly emotional reactions to, say, the Avengers: Endgame trailer or the WandaVision finale or to visiting a Star Wars set. I like to imagine that he had the same reaction to watching his own teaser trailer (for Netflix’s Masters of the Universe: Revelation series), as finished, for the very first time, because, honestly, the dude has the Power of Grayskull running through his veins.

Following first-look images of He-Man and Skeletor, Netflix released this teaser trailer as part of their first Geeked Week. If you ever caught an episode of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (which ran for two seasons beginning in 1983) or the spinoff, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, you’ll be in awe of what Smith has whipped up as showrunner. Between bursts of color, Flashdance vibes, and “Holding Out For A Hero” from the Footloose soundtrack, Smith nailed the (worthy) nostalgia factor with this teaser trailer. Oh, and there’s Orko(!) and lightning and sword play, too.

The voice cast includes Jason Mewes, of course, but also Mark Hamill, Lena Headey, Henry Rollins, Chris Wood, Sarah Michelle Gellar, and more. Here’s how the synopsis describes the state of the war of Eternia in this series:

After a cataclysmic battle between He-Man and Skeletor, Eternia is fractured and the Guardians of Grayskull are scattered. And after decades of secrets tore them apart, it’s up to Teela to reunite the broken band of heroes, and solve the mystery of the missing Sword of Power in a race against time to restore Eternia and prevent the end of the universe.

Netflix’s Masters of the Universe: Revelation streams on July 23.

With Migos‘ new album Culture III dropping in less than 12 hours, the trio’s most visible members, Quavo and Offset, have been busy doing press all week to drum up buzz for the long-awaited, twice-delayed release. While Offset went the print route, giving some choice quotes to Billboard on Monday, Quavo decided to take on the Hot Ones challenge today… and paid the price, ultimately tapping out after the eighth week, topped with the infamous Da Bomb sauce (“It’s got a nuclear weapon?” has to be a top ten response to the sauce’s label).

Before he threw in the towel, though, he gave some pretty insightful answers to questions about how his collaborators set the vibe in the studio, a photo on Instagram featuring Quavo hanging out with Elon Musk, Kanye West, and Travis Scott, Quavo’s upcoming feature film debut alongside Robert DeNiro, and the early days of Migos before they were a trio. When host Sean Evans brings up the song “Boost It Up” and the group’s high school origins, Quavo details how Takeoff earned his name (by getting all of his verses recorded in one take), why fellow students teased them about their early music, and how Offset was eventually added to the crew to form the trio as we know it.

Watch Quavo’s Hot Ones interview above.

Culture III is out 6/11 on Quality Control, Capitol, and Motown Records.

There’s always a serious amount of concern whenever hackers get in and take data from a company. What they get from the hack could be extremely valuable and sometimes can lead to privacy leaks or personal information being stolen. This recently happened to Polish game developer CD Projekt when hackers broke in and stole personal employee data and locked them out of their workstations.

According to a forum post, hackers recently managed to get in and steal 780 GB of data from video game giant Electronic Arts. Vice reported that the hackers are currently trying to sell the data, claiming it contains source code for the Frostbite engine as well as games like FIFA 21 and Battlefield.

EA released this statement in response. Via VICE:

“We are investigating a recent incident of intrusion into our network where a limited amount of game source code and related tools were stolen,” an EA spokesperson told Motherboard in a statement. “No player data was accessed, and we have no reason to believe there is any risk to player privacy. Following the incident, we’ve already made security improvements and do not expect an impact on our games or our business. We are actively working with law enforcement officials and other experts as part of this ongoing criminal investigation.”

Luckily, it sounds like the only information that was stolen was in relation to the development side and nothing personal. However, the statement only mentioned player data, so we don’t currently know the status of any employee data that could have been stolen.

One of the coolest parts of the Nintendo Switch is how it lets you play games like Mario, Zelda, and Skyrim quite literally anywhere. Taking a home console and bringing it on the go is a concept that even now sounds like it shouldn’t be real. This idea is having so much influence that a Kickstarter is out there to turn the Xbox Series S into a portable console.

The “xScreen” is an attachable device that owners can connect to their Xbox Series S and utilize as a screen. This will allow them to play any games on their Series S on the go. The best part of course is that the Series S is a discless console so there’s no need to carry around physical games making it an even more effective portable console than the Switch in some ways.

The Kickstarter hasn’t launched yet, but the idea of it is really cool. It’s not particularly original, these kinds of devices existed for the GameCube for example, but screen technology is far better than it used to be. The xScreen will have 1080p with 60 a Hz refresh rate which is actually more powerful than an undocked Nintendo Switch.

It’s impressive that a device as small as the Series S is powerful enough to run something like the xScreen, but a lot of this is still a concept. We’ll need to see how it performs once it’s in production, but the idea of turning more of our consoles into portable devices is cool. Especially with technology today allowing these portable devices to actually look like they would on actual TV screens. If this screen succeeds, alongside the continued success of the Nintendo Switch, we may see more hardware like it.