Stories by Austin Blake

A new area code is set to launch in British Columbia this week. Starting Saturday, May 24, the 257 area code will be added to regions already served by area codes 236, 250, 604, 672, and 778. Traditionally, the area code 250 represents Vancouver Island and 604 for the Lower Mainland, but times sure have...

OpenAI and legendary Apple designer Jony Ive have officially launched a new company called io, with the goal of reinventing how we interact with AI through innovative hardware. The idea began two years ago as a creative collaboration between Ive and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and has now evolved into a formal venture. The company...

Netflix Canada has released its list of new shows and movies coming to the streaming service in June 2025. As for Netflix Games, the World of Peppa Pig is now available. There are now over 90 free games from Netflix for Android and iOS devices. Highlights for June 2025 on Netflix Canada? There are six...

At Google I/O 2025, Google unveiled major AI updates to Search, introducing a new AI Mode designed to offer deeper, more personalized, and task-oriented results. The new experience builds on last year’s launch of AI Overviews, which the company says has already led to a double-digit increase in search engagement in key markets like the...

At Google I/O 2025, CEO Sundar Pichai announced that Gmail will soon gain personalized smart replies, an AI-powered feature that crafts responses in your own tone and style—using context from your past emails and files, with permission. Rolling out this summer for subscribers, the new feature taps into Gemini to help users respond more thoughtfully...

At the opening keynote of Google I/O 2025, the company revealed just how fast its AI footprint is expanding — and introduced Google Beam, a futuristic new video calling platform that aims to blur the line between virtual and in-person meetings. Since last year’s event, Google says it has released over 20 major AI products...

Apple has officially released the schedule for its upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC). Of course, this comes just about an hour away from Google’s I/O developer conference. WWDC will run June 9 to 13 in an all-online format, though more than 1,000 developers and students will attend a special in-person event at Apple Park on...

A U.S. federal judge has given Apple a clear ultimatum: resolve its dispute with Epic Games over Fortnite’s return to the U.S. App Store—or explain the holdup in court. In a Monday court order, U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers said Apple has until May 27 to cooperate, or an Apple executive must appear before...

A group representing major global streaming platforms told the CRTC on Friday that foreign services shouldn’t be forced to meet the same Canadian content rules as domestic TV networks. The Motion Picture Association-Canada (MPA-Canada), which speaks for companies like Netflix and Disney+, said the CRTC should take a more flexible approach as it updates how...

It’s not just Fido users that are getting free data, but parent company Rogers is also doling out freebies as well. Some Rogers customers are getting a surprise deal—40GB of free data every month. A user on RFD shared a screenshot of the message they got from Rogers. The message says: “We think you deserve...

Last month, Rogers launched a new global roaming plan with 250GB data but only in Quebec, priced from $75 per month. Now, we’re seeing Rogers offer special discounts on this plan for select customers. Rogers has also dropped prices in Quebec by $5/month compared to when we reported on the global roaming plan in mid-April:...

Telus-owned Public Mobile has revised its plans again, this time tweaking its 5G plan offerings with a slight price increase. On Friday, the company added a new $32 per month plan with 20GB of data, for use in Canada only. Meanwhile, the $29/10GB plan with 100 international minutes has increased in price by $1, now...