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First Click: Samsung Note 7 review, our favorite universal remote, Deus Ex Go, and more in the week ahead

August 15th, 2016

The Galaxy Note 7 begins shipping on all four major US carriers on Friday, August 19th. Samsung's giant 5.7-inch handset still sits comfortably in the hand thanks to a dual-curved Super AMOLED display that helps reduce the phone's overall width. Other notable advancements over last year’s model include an iris scanner, a more sensitive S Pen active stylus, and new software tweaks that could make this the best Samsung phone ever. Is it? Find out later this week when we publish our definitive review.

We’ll also have our This is My Next pick for our favorite universal remote control, as well as a review of the EVGA SC17 gaming laptop. And with any luck, we’ll have our review ready for the Gear360, Samsung's 360-degree camera that goes on sale in the US on Friday.

Dieter Bohn will be reporting live from the Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco starting Tuesday. We’re not sure what we’ll see, but we can expect to hear how the company that powered the Bill Gates-era of computing adapts to a future dominated by drones, self-driving cars, and "smart" everything.

Gamescom kicks off this week in Cologne, Germany. While we're not expecting a ton of news, we're sure to see something new. What we do know is that the augmented reality puzzle game Deus Ex Go will be released on both iOS and Android on Thursday, August 18th. We’ll have some early thoughts to share on gameplay, while also taking a deeper dive with its publisher Square Enix. Andrew Webster will also have another installment of his No Man’s Sky travel diaries ready, as well as a preview of Mafia 3.

Tasha Robinson has two interviews planned this week. First, with Craig Robinson and Chad Hartigan who star in Morris from America which opens in New York and LA on Friday. That’s followed by an interview with Guy Maddin, Dana Dansereau, and Jason Nickel of Seances, a project that creates films that can viewed only once before they’re destroyed forever.

We’ll also have a review of the nature documentary The Hunt, and a report on Laika Entertainment, the studio behind the impressive stop-motion animation film Kubo and the Two Strings.

But that’s just a preview of what’s to come this week. First, let’s get caught up on the weekend that was.

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  4. This is your next jam: Bon Iver, Joyce Manor, and more

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  5. Artist Rafael Varona crams magical stories into tiny GIFs

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  6. Meet the man behind Stranger Things' terrifying monster

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  7. Kenny Baker, the man behind science fiction’s most famous robot, has passed away

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  8. Gadget Thirst Trap: a printer for toast, an obelisk for growing weed, and a pretty TV

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  9. Introducing 1,000 Words, a podcast that describes internet pictures in binaural audio

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  10. Photos prove that George W. Bush knew Harambe's mother

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