We're less than a day away from the premiere of the Borderlands movie based on the violent, treasure-hunting comedy adventure games from Gearbox Software. Unfortunately, the vast majority of its reviews are wishing it never went beyond its gaming phase.Rotten Tomatoes rounded up 34 reviews of Eli Roth's adaptation of the Borderlands games and so far, it's earned a freshness rating of 3 percent. Only one of the included critics have given the movie a positive review.So what are the rest of the critics actually saying about this movie? Well, their words are unkind and that's being generous.
The Federal Communications Commission has proposed new rules governing the use of AI-generated phone calls and texts. Part of the proposal centers on create a clear definition for AI-generated calls, with the rest focuses on consumer protection by making companies disclose when AI is being used in calls or texts."This provides consumers with an opportunity to identify and avoid those calls or texts that contain an enhanced risk of fraud and other scams," the FCC said. The agency is also looking ensure that legitimate uses of AI to assist people with disabilities to communicate remains protected.Today's proposal is the latest action by the FCC to regulate how AI is used in robocalls and robotexts. The commission has already moved to place a ban on AI-generated voices in robocalls and has called on telecoms to crack down on the practice. Ahead of this year's November election, there has already been one notable use of AI robocalls attempting to spread misinformation to New Hampshire voters.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/fcc-proposes-new-rules-for-ai-generated-robocalls-and-robotexts-200013807.html?src=rss
A new report from the British non-profit Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) found X owner Elon Musk spread misinformation about the US election and the Democrats' presidential campaign in 50 posts this year alone. His assertions continue to go unchecked on the platform, not even through its own "Community Notes" feature. CCDH's CEO Imran Ahmed says the absence of these grassroots fact-checks show that his business is failing woefully to contain the kind of algorithmically-boosted incitement that we all know can lead to real-world violence, as we experienced on Jan. 6, 2021."The report cites 50 posts made on Musk's X account from January 1 to July 31 that made claims about the election which have been proven false by independent fact-checkers. The posts overwhelmingly involve allegations of the Democratic party importing voters to gain an electoral advantage. He pushed conspiracy theories that The Dem Party goal is to import voters" on March 28 and Dems won't deport, because every illegal is a highly likely vote at some point" on February 26. The fact checking website Politifact rated the latter claim as False" citing the 3.6 million immigrants removed from the US under President Biden's administration between February 2021 to September 2023.
An ad industry group named in X's antitrust lawsuit is discontinuing," two days after the social media company filed a lawsuit accusing major advertisers of an illegal boycott" against the company. The Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM) is discontinuing activities," according to an email reported by Business Insider.GARM was created in 2019 to help set brand safety guidelines for major advertisers, and is part of the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA), which was also named in X's lawsuit. According to Business Insider, WFA CEO Stephan Loerke told members that GARM is a nonprofit with limited resources, but that the groups planned on fighting the lawsuit.X CEO Linda Yaccarino said the news was an important acknowledgement and a necessary step in the right direction" in a statement on X. The company's lawsuit, which was filed in Texas, claims that the WFA, GARM and a handful of major advertisers conspired ... to collectively withhold billions of dollars in advertising revenue from Twitter." X faced steep declines in its ad revenue over the last two years as advertisers have pulled back following multiple reports about hate speech and antisemitic content on the platform.GRAM was previously named in a House Judiciary Committee report that alleged the group had an anti-conservative bias" and engaged in "anti-competitive" behavior. It has called those allegations unfounded." In a statement on its website earlier this week, the group pointed out that it was formed in the wake of a mass shooting that was streamed live on Facebook, with the goal of addressing the monetization of harmful content online. Suggestions that GARM practices may impinge on free speech are a deliberate misrepresentation of GARM's work," it wrote. GARM is not a watchdog or lobby. GARM does not participate in or advocate for boycotts of any kind."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/one-of-the-ad-industry-groups-being-sued-by-x-is-discontinuing-192721024.html?src=rss
Annapurna Interactive just revealed that its beloved cyberpunk cat simulator Stray will be released for the Nintendo Switch on November 19. We knew this was coming, and now we have an official date. Also, it's no coincidence that Annapurna made this announcement on International Cat Day.This was one of our favorite games of 2022, and for good reason. It's a charming little adventure in which you control a cute cat as it navigates a cyberpunk dystopia. The game has been a huge hit for Annapurna and, as such, has slowly crawled onto just about every platform out there. The Switch is pretty much the final frontier, as it's already available for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC and even Mac.There's one feline-shaped elephant (?) in the room. The Nintendo Switch was already pretty much outdated, hardware wise, back when it was released in 2017. Now, it's positively ancient. It remains to be seen how well the game will run on the Switch and what sort of trade-offs the developers had to make in order get it in decent shape. Some devs can strike gold on the Switch and others, well, not so much.Publisher Annapurna hasn't announced a price yet. Stray typically sells for anywhere from $18 to $30, depending on the platform. This being a Switch port, it'll probably fall on the higher end of that spectrum.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/nintendo/beloved-cat-sim-stray-comes-to-the-switch-on-november-19-184048780.html?src=rss
ChargePoint has released a new EV connector designed to work with "any" EV, regardless of its charging architecture without requiring drivers to have a specialized adapter. In a press release announcing the development, ChargePoint said Omni Port is "designed to support vehicles that are already on the road as well as EVs coming to market."ChargePoint said it will begin rolling out Omni Port to select new models of its AC and DC charging stations at no cost. The technology can also be retrofitted into existing ChargePoint stations at an unspecified, "nominal" cost. To use Omni Port, customers can enter their vehicle model into the ChargePoint app or pick the appropriate connector from the charging station screen if they don't use the app.The United States doesn't have a formal standard for electric vehicle charging, but informally, Tesla's North American Charging Standard (NACS) has become the default for many companies on the manufacturing side. ChargePoint began rolling out support for the NACS connector in 2023.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/chargepoints-new-adapter-claims-to-work-with-all-evs-regardless-of-make-or-model-182107079.html?src=rss
The Mac mini could be in line for a major overhaul when the M4-powered model arrives. It's said to be about the size of an Apple TV box, according to Mark Gurman of Bloomberg. That would make it the smallest desktop computer Apple has built. The M4 Mac mini is expected to emerge later this year and, if the report holds up, this would also mark the first major revamp of the system since 2010 - when it was last redesigned under Steve Jobs.The next Mac mini may be just 3.7 inches wide, which is less than half the size of the M2 existing model. But while its footprint may be smaller, the M4 Mac mini could turn out to be taller than the current 1.4-inch-high system. It's expected to still have an aluminum shell.The report indicates the next Mac mini may be roughly equivalent to an iPad Pro, the latest model of which has an M4 chipset. It could be cheaper for Apple to produce than the current Mac mini but it's unclear whether that would result in the company lowering the retail price, which sits at $599 for the M2-powered model.Apple is said to be testing two versions of the Mac mini, including the iPad Pro equivalent and a more powerful setup with an M4 Pro chipset. According to Gurman, the company has tested builds with three or more USB-C ports, a power socket and an HDMI port. It'll be very interesting to see if the company foregoes USB-A ports with the new Mac mini.Elsewhere, we could see M4-powered iMacs and MacBook Pros this year too. The next-gen MacBook Airs may not arrive until spring, while Gurman suggests that the next Mac Pro and Mac Studio could debut in mid-2025.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/the-m4-mac-mini-could-be-apples-smallest-desktop-computer-to-date-180005568.html?src=rss
A good portion of the upcoming season of Netflix's hit animated drama Arcane has leaked online, a and according to reporting and folks on Reddit. A production assistant at Fortiche, the French animation studio behind the series, confirmed the news in a now-deleted post on X, which was captured and published by Mobile Syrup.We just got informed that episodes from Arcane season two have been leaked," the post read. I cannot express how sad we are. We worked very hard on the show. Please, try to avoid the spoilers as much as you can and do not share them. It feels devastating."This is especially noteworthy because Arcane doesn't come back until November, which is three full months from now. There have been leaks for other shows, like Game of Thrones, but those have typically happened days before a premiere and not months.The leak impacts multiple episodes of the forthcoming Arcane season, but it remains unclear as to the exact number. Some Redditors say it's nearly the first half of the season, but note that the episodes are unfinished. This is yet another reason to wait until November. Who wants to watch half-animated storyboards or whatever?The leak doesn't stop with Arcane. Reports indicate that other Netflix animated shows were also put online, including footage from Terminator Zero, Dandadan and Ranma . Wait, there's a reboot of Ramna coming? Cool!As for Arcane, this second season will be its final batch of episodes. The spoilers are likely to be highly impactful and could involve plot elements that involve the end of the series, so browse at your own risk. For the uninitiated, the cartoon delves into the backstories behind some of the champions in Riot Games' League of Legends.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/arcane-second-season-has-leaked-online-so-watch-out-for-spoilers-173527865.html?src=rss
Microsoft is teaming up with secretive data analytics company Palantir, which has been accused of (among other wretched acts) enabling the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to operate as a domestic surveillance agency." Bloomberg reports that Palantir will integrate its products with Microsoft's government cloud tools, including the Azure OpenAI service, in a bid to sell software" to US defense agencies. Oh, joy.The pair will reportedly focus on products for US defense workers to handle logistics, contracting and action planning. But given the secretive nature of Palantir's work, those generic and seemingly non-threatening terms don't necessarily say much.Palantir's software has been used to track and suppress dissent. The company was founded by Peter Thiel, who supports and funds far-right causes and has a political philosophy his biographer described as bordering on fascism." In Thiel's Stanford classes and his book Zero to One, the Silicon Valley billionaire gushed over how much better companies are run than governmentsbecause they have a single decision-maker. A dictator, basically," Thiel's biographer told Time in 2021.Thiel also wrote the words, I no longer believe that freedom and democracy are compatible."In 2018, Palantir claimed in The New York Times that it doesn't work with ICE's deportation squad, Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO). This contradicted a report from The Intercept revealing a 2016 Homeland Security disclosure showing ERO used Palantir's software to gather information for both criminal and civil cases against immigrants."In 2020, Amnesty International warned about Palantir, We could close our eyes and pretend that contrary to all the evidence, Palantir is a rights-respecting company or we can call this facade what it is: another company placing profit over people, no matter the human cost."Bloomberg reports that Palantir's newest AI software requires a large language model. Now, in classified government environments, Palantir will combine its powers with those of Microsoft's Azure OpenAI, which includes GPT-4o, GPT-4 Turbo with Vision, GPT-4, GPT-3.5 and more.What could possibly go wrong?This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/microsoft-and-palantir-partner-to-sell-ai-to-government-agencies-171748773.html?src=rss
Ooni has dropped the price on two of its most popular pizza ovens. The Fyra 2 is down to $250, from $350, and the high-end Karu 16 is $650 instead of $800. These are great deals that get close to record low prices. The Fyra 12 easily made our list of the best pizza ovens, and for good reason. This outdoor oven features a tried-and-true compact design, so it won't take up that much storage space when not in use. It's also just 22 pounds. It uses wood pellets instead of chunks, which makes tending the fire much easier. It's also easy to refill the unit with pellets, as there's a handy chute up top. This oven excels with high-heat bakes, up to 950 degrees Fahrenheit. With temperatures this high, a pizza will cook in around a minute. The only real downside? The oven maxes out at 12-inch pies, which is indicated in the name. Budding pizzaioli will have to bake multiple pies to feed a hungry family, though the rapid cook time helps with this. The Karu 16 actually topped our list of the best pizza ovens, and we named it best multi-fuel unit. It's the company's largest multi-fuel model, meaning people can choose from wood, charcoal or gas to cook up some pies. However, propane and natural gas burners are sold separately. There's a hinged glass door for taking a look at the pie as it cooks along with a digital thermometer to monitor the indoor temp. The larger size is also a boon, as this oven will accommodate 16-inch pizzas. That's around the size of an extra-large pie from a legit pizza joint. Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/two-of-our-favorite-ooni-pizza-ovens-are-deeply-discounted-right-no-163146867.html?src=rss
Those seeking a good deal on a powerhouse MacBook need not look much further. The base M3 14-inch MacBook has dropped to its lowest price to date. Apple's laptop is available for $1,300 from Amazon when you apply a $99 coupon. This was already the most affordable M3 MacBook Pro. But thanks to this deal, you can grab the laptop for $300 less than the regular price. This model comes with the standard M3 chip, 8GB of RAM and 512GB of storage. We typically recommend opting for a configuration with at least 16GB of RAM, especially if you plan to use your MacBook Pro for video editing. But given this deal, there's currently a $600 gap between the base model and one that has 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage. However, if you just need more storage, a model with 8GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD will run you $1,500 when you apply a coupon. That's also $300 off. The M3 MacBook Pro is our pick for the best MacBook for creatives, especially if you're able to swing a higher-specced configuration. But the base 14-inch model still has a lot going for it. There's a great MiniLED Liquid Retina XDR display with a 120Hz refresh rate, for one thing. While there's a 16-inch M3 MBP available, the 14-inch form factor strikes a nice sweet spot in terms of portability and screen real estate. The six-speaker array and built-in mics do an excellent job of handling the audio side of things. The MacBook Pro also has far more ports than the current MacBook Air as you'll get an SD card slot, headphone jack, HDMI port and two Thunderbolt 4 sockets as well as the MagSafe charging port. The 14-inch MBP's battery, meanwhile, lasted for 20 and a half hours in our video rundown test. Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/apples-14-inch-m3-macbook-pro-is-300-off-154142961.html?src=rss
The UK's antitrust regulator is set to carry out an antitrust investigation into Amazon and its ties with AI startup Anthropic. This comes after Amazon completed a $4 billion investment into the company. For the uninitiated, Anthropic is the organization behind the AI chatbot Claude.The investigation will decide whether the aforementioned $4 billion investment qualifies as a merger under current regulations set forth by the country's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA.) If it's officially considered a merger, the investigation will then look into whether or not it will harm competition in the country. The investigators have 40 working days to come to a decision.Amazon has previously stated the investment does not give it a majority stake in Anthropic, according to a report by TechCrunch. The company also told Financial Times that the investment does not raise any competition concerns or meet the CMA's own threshold for review." Anthropic has also dismissed the notion that the investment indicates a merger of any kind.
On more occasions in the last few weeks than I'd like to admit, I found myself doing jumping jacks in my kitchen an hour before going to bed. That's not when I'd usually prefer to do any exercise, but on those nights, I looked down at my watch only to see I was so close to hitting my Move Goal, yet still far enough away that shuffling around doing my nightly routines wouldn't get the job done. And there's no way I'd finish the day without making the elongated blue cat on my watch face vomit up a bunch of ice cream and turn rainbow-colored. Or, in other words, close my movement ring and watch it play a celebratory animation. I guess you could say the Fitbit Ace LTE has been a great motivator. How the Fitbit Ace LTE works The Fitbit Ace LTE is Google's latest kid-focused activity tracker. It offers some smartwatch features, like location-tracking and the ability to call and text parent-approved contacts (who have downloaded the Fitbit Ace companion app). It looks a lot like the company's adult fitness smartwatches from the Sense and Versa lines compared to the original Fitbit Ace, but more fun. The digital clock face, for one, is trimmed with a faint ring that's gradually overtaken by a cartoonish Noodle" design as the wearer's activity points rack up throughout the day. That includes the cat I mentioned, a dog, a tentacle, a robot arm and a deeply unsettling anthropomorphic hotdog that surely only kids in a certain pre-tween age range will get a kick out of. By swapping out the Ace LTE's Cartridge" band with one of the other styles (sold separately), you can add different Noodles and themes to the watch. There are built-in movement-based games as well, including quirky interpretations of a kart racer, golf and fishing. Meet the eejie Then there's the eejie: a customizable humanoid creature that lives in the device, whose happiness is dependent on the completion of daily health goals. Photo by Cheyenne MacDonald/Engadget I'll be honest, I wasn't that drawn to the eejie at first glance. When it comes to virtual companions, I'm typically more interested in weird little critters that in no way look human. But after designing my own eejie, I couldn't help but get attached. It turns out there are a bunch of skin colors, eye shapes, hair types and mouths to choose from, so you can make your eejie as human or nonhuman as you want. Creating a character is always fun, and I could see kids getting really into crafting their virtual friends and switching up their outfits as they unlock more clothing and accessories. My eejie is a freaky-cute Nosferatu-like child with purple skin, sporting a huge pink bow. The watch's Daily Quests and Arcade are really the main stars, as they're what actually entice you to move. Every day, there are four new quests to complete, which feels like a comfortable amount of tasks to be achievable without taking over a kid's life. These include playing a game - the quests will always pick up from the last game you played - and hitting the daily Move Goal, which kids can set in the app. The other two items have less to do with activity. You might be instructed to visit Bit Valley, where the eejies live, and shown a brief tap-to-open fact to learn more about the watch's health features. These more random tasks also sometimes included small mindfulness exercises, which is a thoughtful touch that I'm sure parents would appreciate. Called Community Notes, these challenges asked me to do things like write down the sights and smells around me, or turn off the lights in a room that isn't being used. The watch will sometimes show fun facts to complement your movement goals, like walk 5,000 steps, the length of 33,333 hot dogs." It'll also deliver gentle reminders to complete your quests in the notification section. (Parents have the option to silence these and other notifications during designated School time" so they don't become a distraction). Games on the Fitbit Ace LTE Cheyenne MacDonald/Engadget As I would imagine will also be the case for kids, completing my game quest for the day has been easy. The games are a lot of fun, more so than I was expecting. So far, the Fitbit Ace LTE offers six: Kaiju Golf, Pollo 13, Jelly Jam, Smokey Lake, Galaxy Rangers and Otal's Secret. And Google said that new games will periodically be added to keep things fresh. Two more - Spirit Garden and a virtual pet game, Sproutlings - are already on the way. Games require a bit of patience on startup, though, with slow loading times and a few too many dialogue boxes to tap through before you can actually play, especially the first time. Even I was antsy trying to get through this, so I can only imagine how a kid might be squirming. But once you're in, it's smooth sailing. There's a good amount of variety in the small catalog, too, with options for both relaxed and more active play. Pollo 13, in which you play as a chicken racing through space in an inflatable tub, had me out of my seat, moving around and shouting. On the other hand, Otal's Secret had me solving puzzles, which I did from the comfort of my couch. At first, I was unsure how such seemingly involved games would work on the watch's small screen, but everything was well-sized and laid out nicely. You can only play for limited amounts of time before the game will stop and prompt you to get moving in order to proceed. Only after hitting certain activity milestones will the game be unlocked again. Most of the time, this meant I'd just play in short bursts and return later after I'd naturally racked up more move points over the course of the day. But there were a few moments where I had nothing better to do, so I'd set out to hit those goals right away, taking a brisk walk in the vicinity of my house or, again, launching into some jumping jacks (I'm not very creative). Pollo 13 on the Fitbit Ace LTE. Photo by Cheyenne MacDonald/Engadget After months of using a Fitbit Charge 6 prior to this, I found that the Ace LTE was turning me into a much more active participant in my fitness. I exercise a fair amount in general, and my Charge 6 has basically become a way to passively keep track of my habits. But the visual rewards that came with achieving my goals on the Fitbit Ace LTE felt more like a gratifying pat on the back than the boring notifications on the standard trackers, so I worked to keep earning them. In addition to the silly Noodle animations, I'd be surprised here and there with the appearance of a bouncing pug pinata that I could tap to break open, revealing presents like arcade tickets to buy things for my eejie. Fitbit also slyly uses a dash of guilt as a motivator by tying the eejie's emotional state to the fulfillment of quests. After the first time I saw how dejected she looked when I accidentally neglected my goals for a few days, I never wanted to let her down again. The Fitbit Ace LTE versus Tamagotchi and Digimon All of these things make it a really great health-focused device for kids. Hell, if a software update could bring some of these features to Fitbit's regular fitness trackers, I'd download it in a heartbeat. The Fitbit Ace LTE is essentially a fully realized version of something toymakers have dipped their toes into with wearable virtual pets like recent Tamagotchi and Digimon devices. It straps a little companion to your kid's wrist in hopes that it'll encourage them to get moving, and uses games to make it all go down easier. Bandai's Digimon Vital Bracelet - which was released in Japan in 2021 before coming to the US the following year with the Vital Hero model - took a direct approach to fitness, using metrics like daily steps and heart rate activity to influence the outcome of the monsters' evolution paths. With a companion app, you can also participate in battles, and more monsters can be unlocked by buying and swapping in what are known as DIM cards. The Tamagotchi Uni, the first version of which came out in 2021, expanded on the basic step-counters of earlier models to include a full-fledged walking activity. Rather than simply logging steps, initiating a Tama Walk will send your pet on a 20-minute stroll, during which it can pick up supplies that can later be used to craft special items. How fruitful these outings are depends on how much you moved in real life to fill up the red activity bar. Plus, going on Tama Walks is a good way to boost your pet's happiness. Photo by Cheyenne MacDonald/Engadget As a sophisticated fitness device rather than a toy, Fitbit Ace LTE is able to go so much further. Its game Jelly Jam, for example, almost exactly mirrors a movement-based dancing game found on the Tamagotchi Uni and the Japan-exclusive Tamagotchi Smart. But while the Tamagotchi version is something I stopped playing pretty quickly after the novelty wore off - it's boring and the toy's sensors don't correctly log the motions half the time - Fitbit Ace LTE's spin on an arm-tracking dance game is pretty fun, if only because it actually works as it's meant to. Best of all, it could come with me anywhere. I swam with it, went horseback riding and even put it through a few dance classes. It's lightweight and never felt cumbersome in any of those situations. Still, a part of me wishes there were more ways to get involved with the eejie's care beyond simply dressing it up and keeping it happy, like feeding or playing with it directly. Right now, it doesn't have much depth and mostly feels like a mascot. I wouldn't mind seeing future eejie options that include more animal-like creatures, either. My only real gripe with the watch is its battery life. It'll need to be charged every night, which might be tricky for kids to remember. I woke up to find it dead several times after taking it off and forgetting to pop it on the charger. And it doesn't track sleep. Nonetheless, the watch is also a good peace-of-mind option for parents just as much as it is a solid wellness device. The call/messaging features are as basic as they come, but they work just fine for the intended purpose - giving parents and trusted individuals an easy way to get in touch with their kids, and vice versa. Screenshot by Cheyenne MacDonald/Engadget Calls with the watch sounded decent on both ends, and the location-sharing feature accurately reflected the device's position when I checked it in the app. The Fitbit Ace app itself is easy to set up and navigate, with a simple interface that shouldn't be hard to work with, even for someone who isn't very tech savvy. It's not a full-featured smartwatch with an app library or even a way to communicate outside of the Fitbit Ace app, but its limitations are designed to keep risks to an absolute minimum. Given it's made for kids starting at age 7, I think this is worth the trade-off. At $230 plus the $10/month Fitbit Ace Pass (which allows you to use the LTE connectivity without adding a new line to your existing phone plan), it is pricey. But it should be able to grow with a kid for at least a few years into the early double-digits without coming off as age-inappropriate. Pop off that bright green protective bumper, and it looks like any other smartwatch.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/wearables/fitbit-ace-lte-review-a-kids-activity-tracker-that-was-fun-for-me-an-adult-140043586.html?src=rss
As developer Poncle promised, Vampire Survivors is making its way to PlayStation this summer and now there's a firm release date. Many people's pick for the best game of 2022 is coming to PS4 and PS5 on August 29. All of the paid expansions will be available on launch day as well.PlayStation was the last remaining major platform for the all-conquering, vampire-less game to land on. After coming out of early access on PC and Mac in October 2022, it hit Xbox the following month and then mobile that December (an ad-free version arrived on Apple Arcade earlier this month). The Switch port dropped a year ago. The only place that's really left to go now is VR.For the uninitiated, each character in Vampire Survivors has a unique starting perk and weapon, which fires automatically. All you essentially have to do is control your character's movement and make careful choices about weapon and perk additions and upgrades when you level up as you fend off literally thousands of monsters. Runs typically last for up to 30 minutes, if you can survive that long. It's terrifically chaotic and, best of all, the game costs just five bucks.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playstation/vampire-survivors-hits-ps4-and-ps5-on-august-29-134602924.html?src=rss
There's a problem with most e-bikes, which is that you'll never find one that does every job perfectly. A city cruiser with no grunt will leave you stranded when you reach an incline while a beefy cargo bike can haul gear, but it's too big for commuting. Tenways' AGO-T has tried to square many of these circles by sticking almost too much power onto a Dutch-style step-thru frame. It's marketed as a bike for city living, but for cities where you're not just dealing with flat, well paved roads. It's got a beefy motor and battery, giving it enough power to tackle the steepest hill with ease, and a decent pannier rack for cargo capacity. But all of that extra power comes with the weight that comes with it, and so while it's meant to be nimble, it's also hefty. Photo by Daniel Cooper / Engadget The e-bike market is sufficiently homogeneous that I won't look at a unit unless it's got some eye-catching features. The AGO-T's spec-list sold me on a test ride given the sheer volume of stuff bolted onto its frame: A Bafang M420 mid-drive motor with 80 Nm max torque (although you'll get less of that in day-to-day-use); a Gates carbon belt; and Enviolo's stepless shifting hub. You also get hydraulic disc brakes, a Selle Royal seat, an integrated front light and an integrated rear light built into the pannier rack. There's often something a little medicinal about most bikes with a step-through frame. But a combination of paneling to hide away a lot of its mechanisms and the fancy Jungle Green" paint job sets the AGO-T apart. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that it's a rather stylish way to get around town, even if it's built more for power than maneuverability. You can expect to pay a pretty penny for those sorts of specs, and the AGO-T is priced 2,699 (around $3,500). That's a lot of cash for a bike, but not unreasonable given the gear on show, and the fact it's been packaged so neatly. You can get a cheaper alternative like Gazelle's Paris C7+ for a grand less, but you'll notice compromises, like the weaker motor. Photo by Daniel Cooper / Engadget The AGO-T has a range of 100km (62 miles) with its motor-assisted top speed limited, as per the law, to 15 miles per hour. Put it this way, I rarely if ever felt like I was going too slow on this thing, and often had to dial down its speed. The last few e-bikes I've tested had basic digital displays offering little more than your speed and how much assist the bike was giving you. By comparison, the AGO-T's full-color LCD display comes across almost as too much, especially given its enormous size. There's a lot of negative space in the UI, too, and it looks more like the instrument cluster on a car. Sometimes less is more. And, yes, a TFT LCD isn't ideal when you're out in really strong sunlight. Photo by Daniel Cooper / Engadget Up top is the time and battery level, while the middle shows speed in miles or kilometers per hour. The lower third indicates the assist level (from 0-5) and then there are two boxes, which cycle through a number of data points: Average speed, maximum speed, trip time, range, the amount of CO2 you haven't burned and the trees you've commensurately saved. I'm not sure I'd ever need those last two data points available to me all the time, and I'm not sure what the basis for that claim is anyway. Especially when those sorts of metrics are far better suited to the app than the primary display. As for the app, it's like every other e-bike app in that you probably won't ever look at it except to satisfy your curiosity. There is a built-in GPS that you can use by mounting your phone to the handlebars or, even better, with the directions pushed to the bike display. Sadly, the quality of the GPS on offer is well below Google or Apple Maps, with many local landmarks not listed. Similarly, the turn-by-turn directions routed to the bike screen consist only of turn signal and distance, which is a far cry from what a good GPS should offer. This is a feature that could be world class and suffers by merely being adequate, if that. Photo by Daniel Cooper / Engadget The AGO-T weighs 31kg (68 pounds) and you will feel every gram of that weight when you're holding it. I do not recommend carrying it up and down stairs unless you're built like the worst person you see at the gym. If you live in a poorly-served apartment building I don't think this is the bike for you, but if you can safely store this at ground level, go for it. It's like owning an SUV which is great when you're tooling around town, and awful when you can't fit into a small space in the parking lot. Its heaviness means it's a little stodgier when you're on the road, especially at low speeds where you'll have to work harder to maintain balance. There's an accessibility argument often made about e-bikes that they help empower folks who may not be as physically strong. A bike like this might fall at this hurdle given its heft. But in motion, the AGO-T is tuned to be sedate, gliding around the roads rather than zooming down them. This smoothness makes sense, because you're looking at this to get you from A to B, as well as haul some bags or a kid along with you. Tenways markets the AGO-T on the basis it can take whatever a city can throw at it. I had no doubts, given the power of that Bafang mid-drive motor, that it would be able to tackle the steep hills in my home city of Norwich. When I test e-bikes or scooters, I try to zip up a hill with an incline of 22.4 degrees, which regularly defeats lesser bikes. But with the AGO-T, I actually had to turn the gears down because it felt too easy and weightless with the assist up to the max. Even after I'd tweaked things, I think this is the first time I've ridden up that hill and not broken even the merest hint of a sweat. This does, however, come at the cost of the range, and the estimates quickly started dropping once I'd started tackling hills. That said, you can easily get 30 miles out of this on a charge, which is more than enough for most days, right? Tenways also claims the AGO-T can tackle rough terrain on this bike, so I took it over a few dirt tracks. The adjustable front forks and suspension seat meant that the bike evened out some pretty bumpy areas. Obviously, I wouldn't want to take this off-roading but I was surprised at how well it coped with gravel tracks and dirt pathways riddled with tree branches. Photo by Daniel Cooper / Engadget As a city cruiser that can eat hills like they're cotton candy, the Tenways' AGO-T is a bit of a fantasy bike. I could easily see myself using this as my primary bike, especially given the variable terrain of my home city. Whether you should buy one becomes less a question of its qualities that your needs in the given moment. Are you in need of a bike that can handle all types of terrain at any gradient that'll also give you cargo space? Are you strong enough to wrestle with its considerable weight? And, of course, do you have enough cash in the bank to buy it and then make sure there's safe places to park it? If the answer to all of those is yes, then this is pretty much a slam dunk.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/tenways-ago-t-is-a-well-equipped-but-heavy-e-bike-133005101.html?src=rss
Google worked with Meta to roll out ads that targeted young teens even if it's against the former's rules, according to the Financial Times. Based on the documents seen by the publication, Google worked on a marketing project designed to advertise Instagram to YouTube users within the 13- to 17-year-old age range. Google had blocked age-based ad targeting for users under 18 years ago, but the company reportedly found and used a loophole.Since they couldn't go for the demographic they wanted to reach, they instead targeted a group of users Google had labeled as "unknown." Google's staff proposed the group to Meta, The Times said, because the company had data points to prove that a large number of users under the label are below 18 years in age. The company even reportedly told Meta that the daily engagement it gets from 13- to 17-year-old users exceeds TikTok's and Instagram's. The Information says using this loophole is against Google's rules, as well, since it has policies against proxy targeting.Meta and Google worked with media agency Spark Foundry to launch the marketing program in Canada between February and April, according to the report. When it did well, they kicked off a trial in the US in May and had made plans to expand it to other regions, as well as to include other Meta apps in the campaign.However, Google had investigated and ultimately cancelled the project after being contacted by the Times. "We prohibit ads being personalized to people under-18, period," the company told the publication. It said that its safeguards worked properly in this case because it didn't directly target registered YouTube users know to be 18. That said, it didn't outright deny using the loophole and only said that it will take "additional action to reinforce with sales representatives that they must not help advertisers or agencies run campaigns" that attempt to work around its policies.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/google-and-meta-reportedly-teamed-up-for-ads-targeting-young-teens-130024683.html?src=rss
Just five days after blocking Instagram, Turkey has banned Roblox over reports of inappropriate sexual content perceived as exploiting children, Turkiye Today reported. An official from the Turkiye Directorate of Communications also cited "promotion of homosexuality" and incentives for children via the game's Robux virtual currency as reasons for the ban.The regulator also said that monitoring content on Roblox is a significant challenge. The countrywide restrictions were imposed following an investigation by the chief public prosecutor's office.Last week, Instagram was blocked in in the country following a dispute over Hamas-related content on the platform. Turkey's head of communications stated in a post on X that Instagram was "actively preventing people from posting messages of condolences" for Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas leader who was killed earlier this week.Turkish authorities have banned major social media services before. Twitter was briefly blocked in the country last year following an earthquake that killed thousands of people. YouTube and Twitter were also blocked in 2014.Roblox has had its own problems, particularly around complaints of child exploitation. Earlier this year, the company was hit with a lawsuit accusing it of exploiting child labor and deceptive advertising. The company was also sued in 2022 for allowing adult users to sexually prey on a 10-year-old girl. Discord, Snap and Meta were also named in that suit.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/turkey-has-blocked-roblox-over-child-exploitation-reports-120018044.html?src=rss
X has updated its Premium+ subscription tier so that paying users don't have to see any advertisement at all. The website formerly known as Twitter has announced that Premium+, which costs $16 a month in the US, is now fully ad-free. While one of the tier's original perks is having an ad-free For You and Following timelines, subscribers still saw advertisements on other parts of the social network.As Social Media Today points out, the FAQ page for X's subscriptions used to say that the no-ads feature for Premium+ "does not apply to promoted content elsewhere on X, including but not limited to ads on profiles, ads in post replies, ads in Immersive Media Viewer, promoted events in Explore, promoted trends, and promoted accounts to follow."
Humane's universally derided AI Pin (the solution to none of technology's problems") is not exactly flying off store shelves, according to internal sales documents published by The Verge. Worse, returns are apparently outpacing purchases. The company had once hoped to sell 100,000 in the first year - but there are only around 7,000 units out in the wild. In our review, we had issues with reliability, how slow it was to process requests, its price and its poor battery life. Its shelf life may be even worse.- Mat SmithThe biggest stories you might have missedWhat to expect from Google's Pixel 2024 eventApple's 13-inch M3 MacBook Air is $250 off right now and cheaper than everThe third season of Industry tackles the impact of overhyped techRIP Chromecast: Looking back at 11 years of Google streaming sticksYou can get these reports delivered daily direct to your inbox. Subscribe right here!Fujifilm X-T50 camera reviewA big improvement (for a lot more money).Fujifilm's X-T50 is a big improvement on the X-T30 II, thanks to its higher resolution sensor, in-body stabilization and upgraded video capabilities. However, the high price - an extra half grand over the X-T30 - makes it harder to recommend. We'll also likely see the X-T30 II heavily discounted in the near future. Read on for the full review.Continue reading.Disney+'s password-sharing crackdown starts in earnest' next monthThe password snap' will have nothing on Thanos.A few months back, Disney promised to further crack down on password sharing. It started targeting account sharing in Canada late last year and, in June, in select other countries. It's about to expand those efforts in the coming weeks. In a fun bit of timing, this expanded password-sharing crackdown is scheduled just before Disney increases its streaming prices yet again.The company will apparently also start rolling out what it's calling continuous playlists." These are effectively cable-style channels that will stream around the clock, which will juice its viewing numbers and possibly keep you glued for longer to whatever reheated Star Wars / Marvel creation is currently doing the rounds.Continue reading.Balatro, the best game you're not yet playing, will get its first gameplay updateIt's sold more than 2 million copies in under 6 months.BalatroBalatro, the surreal card game vaguely related to poker, will get its first major gameplay update in 2025. Developer LocalThunk promises it will bring new ideas and strategies to the game." What's more, it will be a free update as a token of huge appreciation to the game's brilliant and passionate community." This is the first of three Balatro announcements/surprises LocalThunk and publisher Playstack are revealing this summer. Hopefully, one of them will be the mobile version.Continue reading.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/general/the-morning-after-humane-ai-pins-are-being-returned-faster-than-the-company-can-sell-them-111503071.html?src=rss
Proton's password manager is gradually catching up with rivals like 1Password. The company, known initially for its encrypted email and VPN services, added biometric authentication to its Proton Pass app, which came out of beta earlier this year. The feature works with Touch ID on macOS and Windows Hello on Microsoft's desktop OS.Like with many other services, biometric authentication lets Proton Pass users quickly unlock the security app using their fingerprint or face without typing the login password every time. However, it isn't available for free users: Only those on a Pass Plus plan (and above) get access. The minimum plan costs $23.88 annually or $4.99 if you'd rather pay monthly.Proton is also fleshing out its password manager to include identities, meaning it can autofill forms with your contact info in one click. Similar to biometric authentication, this type of feature has been seen countless times in competing products. Still, it (along with the recent addition of dark-web scouring) shows Proton is dedicated to building out its encryption-focused password manager, which initially launched in beta in early 2023.Unlike biometric logins, identities are available for free users - not just those on a paid plan.With the introduction of identities and biometric authentication, Proton Pass is significantly boosting productivity for our users," said Son Nguyen Kim, Proton Pass product lead. These features not only enhance our security offerings but also streamline everyday tasks, allowing users to save time and reduce stress in managing their digital lives."The new features are available today in the Proton Pass app for Windows and Mac.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/proton-pass-now-supports-touch-id-and-windows-hello-biometric-logins-100025225.html?src=rss
YouTube seems to be starting to roll out its community notes feature to a select group of users. Screenshots of YouTube's official invitation to join the pilot program for its new community correction feature are popping up all over social media, according to 9to5Google.
Fortnite is reversing a long-held policy for its Battle Passes. Previously, developer Epic Games had treated Battle Pass items as limited-time rewards that would never show up in the in-game shop. Going forward, Epic Games may make Battle Pass rewards available in the shop, but not until at least 18 months after the pass expires. The company said that the updated policy will not have any impact on battle pass pricing."This change lets us continue investing in new and exciting Battle Pass rewards while enabling players down the road to also enjoy the content, including Outfits based on popular licensed characters," Epic Games said in a blog post published on Wednesday.This policy covers every item type that might show up in a Fortnite Battle Pass. The shop may offer alt styles of a Battle Pass reward as well as the original. The 18-month wait time will also apply to any items from the game's Bonus Reward and Quest Reward tabs.The chance to buy a cosmetic later on takes some of the exclusivity pressure off each season for players. Epic said there was no guarantee that a Battle Pass cosmetic would become available in the shop at a later date, so playing enough to obtain unlocks is still the most reliable way to get an item you really want. However, the studio said it would notify players if an item would be exclusively available via Battle Pass.Battle passes are a common way for game developers to maintain revenue for games-as-a-service. The latest one for Fortnite has a post-apocalyptic theme, with tie-ins to the Mad Max and Fallout franchises. Or if cute and colorful is more your jam, check out the limited time integration with Fall Guys.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/fortnite-battle-pass-rewards-may-appear-in-the-shop-under-new-epic-games-policy-220355795.html?src=rss
Last quarter should've been a triumphant one for Sonos with the launch of its first headphones, but the company is facing the realities of its botched app redesign. CEO Patrick Spence explained in the company's Q3 earnings press release that Sonos has reduced its 2024 fiscal guidance as a result of "problems" both customers and partners encountered with the software update. But, the issues don't stop with revenue. The company also said on its earnings call it will delay two new product launches planned for Q4 until the app is fixed.Thanks to Ace, our long-awaited entry into headphones, we reported year over year revenue growth and delivered results that slightly exceeded our expectations in our third quarter," Spence said. This was overshadowed by the problems that our customers and partners experienced as a result of the rollout of our new app, which in turn has required us to reduce our Fiscal 2024 guidance. We have a clear action plan to address the issues caused by our app as quickly as possible."Spence said the new products were ready to ship in Q4, but that right now "our number one priority is to make this right and ensure that the next chapter is even better than the previous ones." Of course, the company hasn't officially discussed exactly what those two products are just yet. Bloomberg reported late last year that Sonos was working on a set-top TV streaming box and a successor to its premium Arc soundbar. The CEO also admitted during the call that the total cost of fixing the issues with the app will cost the company $20-$30 million. However, Spence is confident Sonos will bounce back, describing this as only one "chapter" in the company's history.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/speakers/sonos-is-delaying-two-product-launches-until-it-fixes-its-buggy-app-213743460.html?src=rss
Ready at Dawn Studios, the game studio behind the Echo virtual reality series for the Meta Quest, has been shut down by its parent owner, Meta, effective immediately.Android Centralreported Meta's decision to close Ready at Dawn Studios almost a year and a half after purchasing the game studio. The news comes on the heels of a mid-July report that Meta plans to cut its Reality Labs division's budget by 20 percent by 2026 when it is reportedly scheduled to release the Meta Quest 4 and Quest 4s, its next VR headsets.Ready at Dawn's reach in the gaming industry goes all the way back to the days of Sony's PlayStation Portable (PSP). The studio released its first game in 2006 with Daxter, a PSP spinoff of the popular Jak and Daxter series. Ready at Dawn also released three titles in Sony's God of War series for the PSP including Chains of Olympus, Ghost of Sparta and the Olympus Collection that bundled its two earlier titles. The studio made the jump to consoles starting with the PlayStation 4 in 2015 with The Order: 1886. The Victorian-era third-person action adventure became one of the year's most anticipated titles for its boundary pushing graphics. Following a wave of mixed reviews, Ready at Dawn took a stab at a multiplayer title with a cheerier disposition in 2017 called De-Formers for the PS4, Xbox One and PC. Engadgetsenior editor Jessica Conditt described the colorful character combat competition as cannibalism combat in a 3-D cartoon."The rise of and ease of access to virtual reality prompted the studio to pivot again in 2018 to the new immersive game medium. The studio released the first two VR titles in its Echo game series including the free-to-play Oculus Rift and Quest virtual sport Echo Arena and the interactive, gravity-free sci-fi adventure Lone Echo. Both found a fanbase on the all-in-one VR headset leading to sequels including the free-floating arena shooter Echo Combat in 2018 and Lone Echo II in 2021.Oculus bought the studio in 2023 and allowed it to continue operations in its California and Oregon offices. The same year, Meta shut down its free Echo VR game due to dwindling player numbers.Meta has slashed more than 20,000 jobs since 2023, a period that CEO Mark Zuckerberg has characterized as a year of efficiency."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/meta-shutters-its-first-party-vr-game-studio-ready-at-dawn-212212491.html?src=rss
Venu Sports appears poised to offer a one-stop shop for streaming all kinds of athletic events. However, the extensive amount of sports content controlled by Disney (which owns ESPN), Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery, has raised questions about the upcoming streaming service. Three members of Congress have called on the Department of Justice and the Federal Communications Commission to investigate whether Venu violates antitrust laws."If this JV [joint venture] is permitted to proceed, competitors would be forced to negotiate with Fox, Disney, and Warner Bros. for access to over half of the major sporting licensing rights while simultaneously competing against these companies to offer the best product to broadcast or stream these programs," Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-TX) wrote in an open letter. They also questioned whether Venu could lead to increased prices for consumers. (And the prices for Venu are already looking pretty steep, with a launch price of $43 a month.)This group isn't the first to question this sports streaming venture. Shortly after the joint venture between the three companies was announced, FuboTV filed a lawsuit alleging that Venu would fall afoul of antitrust laws.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/senators-elizabeth-warren-and-bernie-sanders-call-for-an-antitrust-investigation-into-venu-sports-203458843.html?src=rss
New York City has implemented a new drone warning system to alert residents to hazardous weather conditions. Unfortunately, the drones need to work on their Spanish.A resident spotted one of the new drones issuing a flood warning on Wednesday to NYC neighborhoods in English and Spanish, but the Spanish words that came out of the drones were incomprehensible," according to a resident who shared a video on X.
Humane's universally derided AI Pin is not exactly flying off of store shelves, according to internal sales documents published by The Verge. As a matter of fact, returns seem to be currently outpacing new purchases. So many have been returned, that there are only around 7,000 units out in the wild. The company had once hoped to sell 100,000 in the first year, so that ain't happening.To date, around 10,000 have been sold and 3,000 have been returned, leaving the aforementioned 7,000 in the hands of consumers. This gadget costs $700, so I'd obviously have returned it after learning it doesn't actually do anything useful. Wouldn't you? To that end, over 1,000 pre-orders were canceled once reviews started coming in.We called it the solution to none of technology's problems" and struggled to understand who it was even for. This was before the charging case accessory became a potential fire hazard, which added to the image of the product being the ultimate example of tech hubris. There's a reason, after all, why noted tech vlogger Marques Brownlee called it the worst product" he had ever reviewed.Humane has been, sort of, trying to turn things around, mostly by trying to find a larger company to scoop it up into its portfolio. HP has been considering a purchase, according to The New York Times. Also, the company's allegedly been in active negotiations with investors, as reported by The Information.Humane has taken umbrage with The Verge and its reporting, with spokesperson Zoz Cuccias claiming inaccuracies" regarding the financial data but didn't go into specifics. Instead, she said we have nothing else to provide as we do not comment on financial data, and will refer it to our legal counsel."The Verge reports that the company has no refurbishment operation in place, which is another lost opportunity for revenue. The problem allegedly boils down to a limitation with carrier partner T-Mobile that doesn't allow Humane to reassign one of these pins to a secondary user. The returned pins could be destined for the scrap heap, but Humane is reportedly holding onto the returns for now, in the hopes it solves the problem with T-Mobile.The company has been releasing software updates to address user feedback, so who knows. Maybe the ship can right itself. There's still the question of spending $700 for a secondary device that underperforms when compared to a smartphone. The same question applies to a $200 device. We're looking at you Rabbit.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/people-are-returning-humane-ai-pins-faster-than-the-company-can-sell-them-191523105.html?src=rss
An innovative scanner created by an NYU computer scientist is allowing scientists to digitize previously isolated fossils in remote South American regions. Claudio Silva's PaleoScan provides a portable and affordable way to preserve and share collections of ancient impressions that may have otherwise been lost or smuggled.Brazil's Araripe Basin is lush with ancient fossils, some in unusually pristine condition. After a visit to the nearby Placido Cidade Nuvens Museum of Paleontology (MPPCN), where many of them are stored, Silva saw a labyrinth of floor-to-ceiling metal shelving units" that was stacked high with piles of the most beautiful fossils he'd ever seen" from the Cretaceous period, as described by Smithsonian Magazine. The problem was the collection of insects, fish, turtles and pterosaurs from a distant past hadn't been digitized. And, given the region's limited funding, staffing and remote location (getting there requires a flight on a four-seater puddle-jumper of a plane), there wasn't much hope for remedying that.Another problem the museum (and others like it) faced was illegal fossil trafficking. The Araripe Basin is a prime target for the ruthless exploitation of historical resources by smugglers and wealthier nations. Digitizing the fossils could help thwart that practice - both by providing virtual scans, which help offset the risk-benefit ratio for smugglers, and by creating a global dataset paleontologists could use to trace stolen artifacts to their source.Empowering resource-poor museums and institutions to scan their own fossils and provide virtual versions of those fossils to the rest of the world, I think, would really help the scientific community, but also the institutions themselves," paleontologist Akinobu Watanabe with the New York Institute of Technology told Smithsonian Magazine.Claudio Silva / PaleoScanSilva, an expert in graphics visualization and geometry processing, saw an opportunity. He departed the MPPCN, promising to return in two years to help digitize their collection. Given the breadth of that task, it wouldn't have been surprising to hear some snickers or sarcastic jokes from staff after he took off on his flight back to the US.The solution Silva created is PaleoScan, a low-cost, high-throughput scanner that he packed into large wooden boxes" on his journey back to MPPCN in the summer of 2023. Designed to fill in the gaps between hard-to-reach fossil collections and the global community of paleontologists, the device produces high-quality 3D fossil reconstructions through cheap and relatively portable scanning.Adaptable for different fossil sizes, PaleoScan uses a downward-facing camera on an automatic gantry. Its calibration board allows for batch scanning with simple correction for scale and offset camera positioning. The device costs less than commercial 3D fossil scanners, is more easily transportable than CT (computed tomography) scanners and is much easier to operate, even for the less technically inclined.PaleoScan's camera is mounted to a frame moving on two axes. It takes thousands of individual raw photos of a fossil under controlled light conditions," as described by Smithsonian Magazine. Meanwhile, the person operating it only needs to navigate a touchscreen (which, in videos, appears to be a repurposed mobile device).Claudio Silva / PaleoScanOnce scanned, the photo batch is uploaded to the cloud for processing, where software stitches them together into highly detailed 3D models. The processed data can then be saved in a metadatabase and made available via an API for paleontologists around the world to study and share. (Think something like a GitHub for fossil enthusiasts.)The researchers say the resulting reconstructions are validated as highly accurate. Museum workers can receive tutorial videos with step-by-step instructions for operating the scanner.Over 200 unique fossils, using over a terabyte of high-quality data, have already been digitized at the MPPCN, and the response from the paleontology community has been receptive and enthusiastic. Researchers unrelated to the project were impressed with the scanner and hoped to get their hands on versions for other remote regions in Mexico and Chile. Some have requested an upgraded model with true 3D capabilities rather than the current two-axis version ideal for the Araripe Basin's mostly flat fossils, something Silva says is already in the works.For more on PaleoScan's innovation and future, you can check out the research paper and Smithsonian Magazine's in-depth write-up.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/paleoscan-is-a-cheap-imaging-device-democratizing-fossil-research-190034334.html?src=rss
A few months back, Disney promised to further crack down on password sharing, or the practice of multiple households using the same account for a streaming service. That's set to come into effect in the very near future for many more Disney+ users, meaning that account sharers will have to pay extra or have separate subscriptions to keep using the service. Disney started targeting account sharing in Canada late last year and in June in select other countries. It's about to expand those efforts in the coming weeks.Referring to the streaming division, "we need to basically make it a higher return, a higher margin business and a more successful business," Disney CEO Bob Iger said on an earnings call with investors on Tuesday. "And we're doing that right now. We started our password sharing initiative in June. That kicks in, in earnest in September. By the way, we've had no backlash at all to the notifications that have gone out and to the work that we've already been doing."It's unclear how much Disney will charge US customers to share their account with someone located outside of the primary household. Netflix charges an extra $8 per month per additional household, and that strategy has paid off.It's also worth noting that the expanded password-sharing crackdown is scheduled just before Disney increases its streaming prices yet again. Most Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+ plans are going up by $1 or $2 per month in October. The ad-supported Disney+ and Hulu bundle is going up from $10 to $11 per month as well.Iger added that along with bolstering the programming slate, Disney+ needs "stronger recommendation engines" - something that's being worked on - and more efficient marketing to keep viewers engaged and paying for the service every month or year. To help with that, the company will soon start rolling out what it's calling "continuous playlists." These are effectively cable-style channels that will stream around the clock. The first batch includes ABC News Live and a playlist of TV shows and shorts for pre-schoolers.Meanwhile, Disney revealed that its streaming business is now profitable. Disney+ alone reached profitability for the first time in the January-March period, while the entire direct-to-consumer (DTC) business was $47 million in the black last quarter. That's a stark turnaround from the $512 million loss Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+ collectively posted a year earlier. Disney said the business became profitable one quarter earlier than expected.The company is also planning to roll out a fully standalone ESPN streaming service next year. Venu, a joint sports streaming venture from ESPN, Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery, is slated to go live this fall, but that service is facing an antitrust backlash from rivals and lawmakers.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/the-disney-password-sharing-crackdown-starts-in-earnest-in-september-184122554.html?src=rss
Meta is making it a little easier for creators to avoid the dreaded Facebook jail." The company announced a new policy that will allow people with professional accounts to complete in-app educational training" in order to avoid a strike on their account for first-time violations of the platform's community standards.In a blog post announcing the change, Meta notes that it can be frustrating for creators to navigate the company's penalty system, which restricts Facebook accounts from certain features, including monetization tools, after multiple offenses. Under the new rules, creators who receive a warning for a first-time offense will have the option to remove the warning if they view an in-app explanation of the rule they broke.Particularly serious offenses, such as posting content that includes sexual exploitation, the sale of high-risk drugs, or glorification of dangerous organizations and individuals" are not able to be removed. Instead, the system is geared toward helping creators correct unintentional mistakes," according to the company. We believe focusing on helping people understand why we have removed their content will be more effective at preventing re-offending, giving us not just a fairer approach, but a more effective one," Meta explains.It's not the first time Meta has tried to reform its penalty system, which has been criticized by the Oversight Board and is a frequent source of frustration to users who may get strikes for mundane comments taken out of context. Last year, the company said it was trying to focus more on educating users about its rules rather than restricting their ability to post. Though the latest policy change will only affect creators with professional accounts to start, the company says it is planning to expand it more broadly in the coming months."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/facebook-will-let-creators-remove-account-warnings-if-they-complete-educational-training-181503330.html?src=rss
Fujifilm's X-T30 II is one of my favorite cameras, as it offers many of the capabilities of the higher-end models for a lot less money. So I was particularly excited when the company launched the X-T50, which is like a miniature version of the $1,700 X-T5. It shares many features, including a 40.2-megapixel sensor, 6K 30P video support and, in a first for the series, in-body stabilization. At the same time, it retains the small size and retro-cute styling of past models. At $1,400 it's not nearly as affordable as the $900 X-T30, though. To find out if it's worth an extra half grand, I tested the X-T50 out in London with some professional photographer friends. Body and handling The X-T50 is all about portability and style, so it's nice and light at 438 grams (0.96 pounds), just 50 grams more than the previous model. If you're traveling with a compact lens, it can easily be slipped into a bag. At the same time, the grip has been enlarged enough to make the camera easier to hang on to. Operation is largely unchanged, with two control dials, a shutter speed dial and an exposure compensation dial, along with a joystick and eight buttons. However, Fujifilm did introduce one new trick: a film simulation dial in place of the previous drive mode - more on that shortly. All of that makes it nearly as easy to control as much larger cameras. The dedicated shutter dial is an unusual feature these days, so it does take some getting used to. The advantage is that you can see that setting just by looking down at the camera, a must for discreet street or travel shooting. Like past models in this series, the X-T50 has a tilt-only display that doesn't flip out, which is likely a bummer for the vloggers it's tantalizing with its video capabilities. And rival models like the Sony A6700 and Canon R7 do have flip-out displays. The 2.36-million-dot electronic viewfinder isn't super sharp, but is par for the course in this price range. With a smallish battery like the one on the X100 VI, the X-T50 can manage just 305 shots on a charge or 390 in economy mode. That's near the bottom in its category. By comparison, Canon's like-priced R7 can take up to 660 photos before the battery dies. The X-T50 has a decent array of ports, including microHDMI, USB-C and a mic jack. As before, there's no headphone input, but you can use the USB-C slot with a 3.5mm adapter to monitor audio. It comes with a single, but fast UHS-II card slot. Performance If it's pure performance you're after, the X-T50 probably isn't for you. Burst speeds are decent at up to 13 fps in electronic shutter mode or 8 fps with the mechanical shutter - far from the 30 fps of the Canon R7 in electronic mode. Also, the electronic shutter is only good if your subject doesn't move too quickly, as rolling shutter distortion is very noticeable in this model. Steve Dent for Engadget Autofocus still isn't a Fujifilm strong point, either. When I was shooting quick-moving subjects, it was a bit hit or miss in continuous mode, particularly when they were close to the camera. However, performance depends greatly on the lens being used. On top of face and eye detection, Fujifilm has added subject-tracking autofocus modes for animals, birds, cars, motorcycles, airplanes and trains. This feature is completely separate from the regular eye and face detection modes, so you have to dive into the menus to switch between them, or program two separate buttons. For the other types of photography it's designed for, the X-T50's autofocus works well, though it isn't quite up to Sony, Canon or even Nikon's standards. A key new feature is in-body stabilization. With up to seven stops of shake reduction, you can get sharp photos down to about a quarter second. That's the same as the 557-gram X-T5, which is quite an accomplishment given the size difference. It makes the X-T50 far more versatile, letting you blur motion to create interesting shots or shoot in dark environments. Image quality With the same 40MP sensor as the X-H2 and X-T5, the X-T50 offers a major boost in resolution over the 26MP X-30 II. On top of boosting sharpness, the extra pixels make it possible to crop in, something that's handy for travel photography, wildlife shooting or anything else where you might not be able to get close to the subject. In-camera treatment of JPEG files is handled well, with pleasant, accurate colors and just the right amount of sharpening and noise reduction. You can often share photos straight out of the camera, with no need for any post-processing - an advantage for street and other photographers who don't like to mess around in post. The 14-bit RAW photos offer plenty of room for fine-tuning, as they retain high amounts of detail in highlights and shadows. As such, I saw low levels of banding, noise and other artifacts at low ISOs in all image areas. Steve Dent for Engadget The higher resolution doesn't hurt image quality much in low light, either. Noise is controlled well up to ISO 6,400, and you can go up to ISO 12,800 in a pinch. Considering that the X-T50 is an APS-C and not a full-frame camera, I was impressed with the lack of noise when shooting in bars and other dim environments. And of course, the X100 VI offers Fujifilm's full array of film simulation modes, and they're easily accessible on the new dial. You can experiment with popular looks like Velvia, Eterna, Acros black and white and others. It also comes with Fujifilm's new Reala Ace, based on one of the company's old negative films. At the same time, you get a RAW backup in full color, so you're not locked into a specific look. Video With excellent video specs, the X-T50 is a solid hybrid camera, as long as you keep in mind some caveats - particularly around cropping and sharpness. Much like the X-T5, you can shoot 6.2K at 30 fps with a 1.23x crop, or 4K at up to 60 fps with line-skipping and a 1.14x crop. The cropping occurs because 6K video only requires 24 megapixels, and the sensor/processor combination isn't up to the job of supersampling the entire sensor width. Steve Dent for Engadget The camera also offers sub-sampled 4K at up to 30p using the full sensor width, or high-quality 4K 30p with a 1.23x crop. For super slow-motion, Fujifilm also introduced 10-bit and F-Log2 settings for extra dynamic range. At 6.2K and 4K HQ, rolling shutter skewing is pronounced so you'll want to avoid excessive or sharp camera movements. Sub-sampled 4K is better in that area, but video is noticeably less sharp. Video autofocus matches what I saw with photos, meaning it was decent but not ideal for moving subjects. The AI-powered AF did lock onto subjects, but again, couldn't always keep up with birds, animals or vehicles. Handheld video is now a realistic option with in-body stabilization. It works well if you don't make abrupt movements, and the boost" mode offers near tripod-like smoothness. Digital stabilization is also available, but isn't supported with the 6K or HQ modes, and doesn't reduce jolts when walking. Video quality is solid for such a small camera, offering the same accurate colors I saw in photo modes. Shooting in 10-bit F-Log made it possible to adjust footage considerably in post or get creative. You can also shoot video using the film simulation modes if you want a specific look straight out of the camera. Wrap-up Steve Dent for Engadget All told, the X-T50 is an awesome upgrade to the X-T30 II, with improvements in nearly every area - particularly resolution, stabilization and video. The film simulation button is a bit gimmicky, but it should appeal to fans of the brand, particularly those who love the X100 VI. The problem I have with this camera is the price. The $900 X-T30 II was easy to recommend to buyers on a mid-level budget. However, at $1,400, the X-T50 is only $300 less than the superior X-T5, and at that price it has lots of stiff competition from the likes of the Canon R7 and Sony A6700, along with full-frame models like the Canon R8, Nikon Z6 II/Z5/Zfc and Panasonic S9. Fujifilm likely figured that the X-T50 was nearly as capable as the X-T5 and that the 40-megapixel resolution beats out rivals - but it has priced a lot of potential buyers out of the market. If you're looking for something that costs around the same as the X-T30 II, Nikon's $1,100 Zfc is just as pretty and a lot less expensive.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cameras/fujifilm-x-t50-review-a-big-improvement-for-a-lot-more-money-180046809.html?src=rss
If you miss the colorfully profane world of Succession, a show where most characters would gladly sell their souls for power and money, then you should be watching HBO Max's Industry. While they share some similarities - both come from British creators and follow a cadre of anti-heroic characters into a world of hyperwealth - Industry is even more focused on the inhuman ambition that drives its characters.While Succession follows a family that's already wealthy and striving to hold onto its relevance, Industry centers on a group of twenty-somethings who are (mostly) not rich and are all desperate to prove themselves at London's renowned investment bank Pierpoint & Co. Breaking with the rampant nepotism of the Roy family, their workplace could charitably be described as meritocratic - who you are doesn't matter as much as the money you bring in - but it's also an obscenely toxic world devoid of morality.Our gateway to the world of Pierpoint is Harper Stern (Myha'la Herrold, Bodies Bodies Bodies), a genius trader with a dark secret (she never graduated college). As a young black American woman, she stands out from the sea of mostly white British men on the sales floor. Perhaps that's why her New Yorker boss, Eric Tao (Ken Leung, Lost), sees her as a potential protege. Harper works alongside Yasmin (Marisa Abel), the daughter of a wealthy publishing family; Gus, a gay black conservative trader; and Harry (Robert Spearing), the obligatory high achiever from a working-class background.In season three, premiering on August 11, Game of Thrones' Kit Harrington joins the cast as Henry Muck, the wealthy CEO of Lumi, a beloved green tech energy startup on the verge of an IPO. (Not to be confused with actual companies like the design studio Lumi, the piano learning gadget Lumi, or the dead packaging firm Lumi.) But, like a cross between Theranos, Solyndra and the slew of failed Obama-era green tech startups, Lumi may not entirely live up to its eco-friendly hype. Some banks would have qualms about pushing a problematic company into the stock market, but not Pierpoint - its job is to make money on the IPO, not judge the long term viability of Lumi.That sort of amoral viewpoint isn't anything new for Pierpoint or its minions on Industry. From the beginning, series creators Mickey Down and Konrad Kay avoided turning the series into a lecture against the investment banking world. Instead, its characters all reflect the selfish philosophy initially laid down by Wall Street's Gordon Gekko: "Greed, for lack of a better word, is good."Photo by Simon Ridgway/HBOWhile some characters voice their concerns about Lumi, Industry explores the more cynical (and arguably realistic) outcome: Just about everyone finds a way to profit from the company's potential failure - except, of course, for Lumi's customers and early investors."We wanted to write about an energy company that had real world stakes that felt like it was scratching the heels a bit of the sort of bigger monopolistic competitors," Down said in an interview on the Engadget Podcast. "And then also we wanted to write about the collapse of a company like that - a company which [has] really been founded to do something really good and what happens when that company goes kaput and leaves a lot of destruction in its wake."Industry started out as a show focused on interpersonal relationships between a small group of colleagues, their hedonistic night lives and Pierpoint's erosion of their humanity, but now it's scope has expanded to include the wider global economy, Britain's role in propping up failed companies and rival trading outfits.Photo by Simon Ridgway/HBO"When we started off, we were very inexperienced writers," Kay said. "We deliberately wrote about a very sealed off hermetic experience, a very universal one, which is people starting in the workplace at a certain time. [now] The stakes are higher. It's more interested in how the training floor intersects with the wider world, politics, newspapers, media, class."Beyond the inner-workings of finance and the soapy romantic lives of Industry's characters, the real draw of the show is "watching competent people be good at their jobs," as Down says. It doesn't matter if you don't understand all of the financial jargon the characters are spouting off in the first season. Like a cross between Margin Call and Michael Clayton, what makes Industry truly compelling is seeing smart people prove their brilliance repeatedly in a pressure cooker environment.For a show that seemed like a Succession clone early on, Industry has evolved into something dramatically different. Wealth and success isn't a given for anyone in the show - it's something they have to earn with blood, sweat and moral compromise.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/industry-tackles-the-impact-of-overhyped-tech-in-its-ambitious-third-season-170032365.html?src=rss
Balatro, the terrific card game that pushes you to break most of the rules of poker to achieve ever-higher scores, is in line for its first major gameplay update. You'll have to wait until next year for that, but developer LocalThunk promises it will bring "new ideas and strategies to the game." What's more, it will be a free update "as a token of huge appreciation to the game's brilliant and passionate community."This is the first of three Balatro announcements/surprises LocalThunk and publisher Playstack are revealing this summer (one of them has to be a mobile version, right?) just after the game reached two million sales. Some players might be a little nervous about the developer tinkering with a stupendously well-balanced title - which is surely going to end up on many people's game of the year lists - but LocalThunk has probably earned most fans' trust at this point given how exquisitely designed and tuned Balatro is already.
The Ring Stick Up Cam is on sale for $55 via Amazon. That's a discount of 45 percent and is the lowest price ever for the well-regarded security camera. Last time it got this low was Prime Day, but that was only available to Prime members. Now anyone can get in on the action. This is a standard security camera, but it's anything but bare-bones. It's easily mountable to just about any surface and can be moved at will. It allows for two-way communication via a proprietary app or an Echo device like the Show. People can use these same methods to check in on the camera feed. There are two versions of this security cam, and both are available with this sale. The only difference is how they are powered. One uses a removable battery pack and the other plugs into a power source. Obviously, the one with the battery pack (as seen above) is easier to mount in a variety of different locations, as there's no worrying about a nearby outlet. The plug-in version, however, will never run out of juice. These cameras will record footage and put it all in the cloud, but only with a Ring Protect Plan subscription. The plans range from $5 to $20 per month. On the downside, the two security cams lack some of the features found with the Pro model, so there's no radar detection. Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/the-ring-stick-up-cam-is-down-to-its-lowest-price-yet-152949573.html?src=rss
We don't always need the latest and most powerful version of a device, especially when it'll cost more money than an older one that does the trick. If you've been waiting for a good deal on an iPad that can handle the basics, it's worth considering the 9th-generation iPad. A variant with 64GB of storage will run you $229, which is $100 off the regular price. The discount applies to both the silver and space gray colorways. This model is from 2021 and Apple actually discontinued it in May, so this is effectively a fire sale as the company looks to clear out stock - quite possibly ahead of a new base iPad. This isn't quite the lowest price that this model has dropped to (it dipped to $209 at one point), but it's a decent offer as long as you're not planning on video editing or playing the latest games natively. The 10.2-inch Retina display should be plenty capable of handling much of your streaming video, web browsing and productivity needs. The iPad should be reasonably zippy as well, thanks to the A13 Bionic chip. You can even use it for sketching if you have the first-gen Apple Pencil. The front-facing ultra-wide camera supports Apple's Center Stage feature. As such, you should stay in the middle of the frame while you're on FaceTime or other video calls. One factor worth considering is that this is the last mainline iPad with a Lightning port. So that's worth keeping in mind if you have an iPhone 15 and have been getting rid of your old Lightning cables. And while Apple's still allowing 9th-gen iPad owners to upgrade to iPadOS 18 when it becomes available, the OS updates won't last forever. Still, if you're looking for an iPad on which to catch up on reading, zip through your inbox or watch the latest season of a show you dig, this is a good option. Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/apples-9th-gen-ipad-is-on-sale-for-229-right-now-151616014.html?src=rss
Starting next year, Stranger Things fans will be able to watch its stage play spin-off on Broadway. The prequel to the popular sci-fi/horror series, Stranger Things: The First Shadow, won two Olivier Awards and several other accolades since it premiered on West End in December 2023. Its West End production will run until sometime in 2025, thanks to an extended run, but performances on Broadway will also begin on March 28, 2025. That said, the play will officially open at Marquis Theatre in New York on April 22, 2025.The First Shadow is set in 1959, before the events in the Netflix series. Jim/Hop, Joyce and Bob - who was played by Sean Astin - are seniors in the story who all just want to graduate and leave town. "When new student Henry Creel arrives, his family finds that a fresh start isn't so easy... and the shadows of the past have a very long reach," the play's synopsis reads. It's based on a story by the Duffer Brothers, the creators of Stranger Things who will also serve as the play's creative producers, and will be directed by Tony award winner Stephen Daldry.Casting for the production hasn't been announced yet, but fans can already sign up to make sure they get early access to pre-sale tickets. Those who sign up on The First Shadow's official website will be able to buy pre-sale tickets first, starting at 11AM on September 13. Everyone else will be able to purchase tickets when they go on sale to the general public a few days later on September 17.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/stranger-things-will-make-its-broadway-debut-in-march-2025-140015764.html?src=rss
Streaming provider Roku is adding a new free channel for sports content on August 12. The ad-supported Roku Sports Channel will go live with content both owned and licensed by the company. No subscription or sign-up will be required to access the channel.The Roku Sports Channel will offer round-the-clock programming, such as live Major League Baseball games, live Formula E car races, The Rich Eisen Show and GMFB: Overtime. Partner programming on the channel will include classic boxing matches from Top Rank, combat sports from Swerve Sports and poker content from PokerGO.Sports viewership can be a notable revenue source for streaming services. The Disney-owned ESPN+ has a streaming subscription (and its price is going up). Max also has an add-on called the Bleacher Report (that's no longer free). And an upcoming service called Venu could aggregate lots of games and talk content under one umbrella (and it's expected to have a hefty price tag). Roku could stand out from the pack by taking the free, ad-supported streaming television route.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/roku-is-launching-the-roku-sports-channel-on-august-12-130041121.html?src=rss
SpaceX's Crew-9 flight for NASA was supposed to take off on August 18, but the agency has just announced that its target launch date was moved to no earlier than September 24. The delay will give NASA and Boeing more time to finalize their plans for Boeing Starliner's return, the agency said in its announcement. What it didn't say was that while eight space ships can attach themselves to the ISS at one time, the US segment of the space station only has two docking ports that can accommodate astronaut capsules. Both of them are still occupied, since Starliner's supposed eight-day stay has stretched on for months.NASA said that Starliner's ground teams are still analyzing the results of all the testing they've been putting the spacecraft through, including a recent hot-fire test. They still need to confirm if it's ready to bring back astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams back to Earth before a return flight could be scheduled. Boeing's first crewed Starliner mission launched in June and was only slated to stay for a few days to determine whether it was ready for regular flights to the station. However, five of its thrusters failed on its approach to the ISS, and only one came back online. The helium leak that forced Boeing and NASA to push back its takeoff in the past had worsened, as well.In a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, Boeing revealed that it took another $125 million in losses due to the Starliner's delayed return and the extensive testing that had to be conducted to ensure its readiness. The company said a few days ago, though, that it supports NASA's requests for additional testing and that it "remains confident in the Starliner spacecraft and its ability to return safely with crew."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/space/nasa-delays-next-spacex-crew-launch-due-to-ongoing-starliner-problems-123034635.html?src=rss
A Tesla Cybertruck veered off a Texas road and crashed into a culvert, bursting into flames and killing the driver, KHOU 11 Houston reported. It appears to be the first fatality involving Tesla's new electric pickup and has triggered a probe by the NHTSA (National Highway Transportation Safety Administration), according to Reuters. The driver has not yet been identified.It's not clear what caused the accident, but it wasn't related to Tesla's Autopilot as the Cybertruck has yet to gain that feature. Video from the scene shows that the vehicle was nearly completely consumed by the fire, which thwarted identification of the vehicle and driver, Texas state troopers said.The first reported Cybertruck accident happened late last year near Palo Alto, with no injuries and little damage reported. Around 15,000 vehicles have now been sold, so the number of accident reports has ramped up of late. Tesla has issued four recalls for the vehicle, including one that could result in a stuck accelerator pedal.Since its launch in November 2023, the Cybertruck has been criticized for poor build quality, malfunctions, and weird design decisions like "guillotine" body panels deemed unsafe for children and others. It's also come under fire for getting stuck easily and not performing well off road, in one case being outclassed by an ancient French Citroen C15.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/cybertruck-crash-and-fire-reportedly-causes-first-fatality-120031177.html?src=rss
Ahead of next week's Pixel devices event, Google has unveiled its latest product for the living room, the Google TV Streamer. It replaces the Chromecast and is a standalone set-top box as opposed to the dongles we've been used to. The tiny wedge-shaped doodad supports all the expected features, including HDR, Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos and spatial audio. But Google is also making a big deal of the device's smart home bona fides, with support for Matter and Thread. You'll get a popover Google Home panel too, letting you tweak your smart home from the comfort of your TV.Of course, you might wonder why Google needs to push this product out given how many Smart TVs exist. Or the ubiquity of other platforms that do much of the same job, from Roku to most streaming-friendly cable boxes. On one hand, Google wants to keep a toehold on the biggest screen in your home, and on the other, it's a good way to advertise the search giant's AI prowess, offering custom recommendations for things to watch. Plus, if you have been looking for something a bit more Made By Google, then you can snag this for $100 when it launches in September.As for the Chromecast, we've prepared a little obituary for the dirt-cheap little streaming stick that could.- Dan CooperThe biggest stories you might have missedReddit CEO teases AI search features and paid subredditsmacOS Sequoia may require weekly permissions for screen recording appsDisney is increasing prices (again) for standalone streaming plansStar Wars Jedi: Survivor is coming to PS4 and Xbox One on September 17You can get these reports delivered daily direct to your inbox. Subscribe right here!Google's latest Nest Learning Thermostat is much bigger and offers a customizable displayLooks cute.GoogleGoogle isn't done shuttling out products ahead of its 2024 Pixel Event, however, and has also updated the Nest Learning Thermostat. The fourth-generation model gets a bigger LCD display, curvier design and customizable faces, including switching the screen to a clock when idle. You will also get more AI gimmicks to improve your energy efficiency, because of course you do.Continue Reading.X sues advertisers for 'illegal boycott' of the platformYeah, that's the reason, Linda.X has announced it'll sue the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM), an ad-industry group. CEO Linda Yaccarino claims the body, which publishes standards for digital advertising, has organized an illegal boycott" of the platform. GARM, which counts Mars and Unilever in its member lists, stands accused of influencing where mega-brands spend their money.Now, I'm just a simple country lawyer who doesn't know much about advertising, moderation or business. But I wonder if firing your trust and safety team, making the site run as reliably as a British train and allowing hateful content to be posted next to ads might be an issue. No, of course not, that'd be silly. Let's all try to find the guy who did this.Continue Reading.Teenage Engineering's built a medieval-themed sampler, with Gregorian chantsPerfect commitment to the bit.Teenage EngineeringI don't care it's a stupid gimmick, and I don't care I have no real interest in making this sort of music. Damnit, friends, I just want to play with Teenage Engineering's EP-1320 Medieval sampler chock full of old-world sounds. Yes, it's just the K.O. II with a different paint job, but you have to reward commitment to the bit this extreme.Continue Reading.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/general/the-morning-after-google-replaces-chromecast-with-the-tv-streamer-111523672.html?src=rss
Reddit just wrapped up its second earnings call as a public company and CEO Steve Huffman hinted at some significant changes that could be coming to the platform. During the call, the Reddit co-founder said the company would begin testing AI-powered search results later this year.Later this year, we will begin testing new search result pages powered by AI to summarize and recommend content, helping users dive deeper into products, shows, games and discover new communities on Reddit," Huffman said. He didn't say when those tests would begin, but said it would use both first-party and third-party models.Huffman noted that search on Reddit has gone unchanged for a long time" but that it's a significant opportunity to bring in new users. He also said that search could one day be a significant source of advertising revenue for the company.Huffman hinted at other non-advertising sources of revenue as well. He suggested that the company might experiment with paywalled subreddits as it looks to monetize new features. I think the existing, altruistic, free version of Reddit will continue to exist and grow and thrive just the way it has," Huffman said. But now we will unlock the door for new use cases, new types of subreddits that can be built that may have exclusive content or private areas, things of that nature."A Reddit spokesperson declined to elaborate on Huffman's remarks. But it's no secret the company has been eyeing new ways to expand its business since going public earlier this year. It's struck multi million-dollar licensing deals with Google and OpenAI, and has blocked search engines that aren't paying the company.Some players in the ecosystem have not been transparent with their use of Reddit's content, and in those instances, we block access to protect Reddit content and user privacy," Huffman said. We want to know where Reddit data is going and what it's being used for, and so those are the terms of engagement."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/reddit-ceo-teases-ai-search-features-and-paid-subreddits-225636988.html?src=rss
macOS Sequoia will require regular permissions updates to use screen recording and screen-sharing capabilities. The software is in its public beta, and the new Apple operating system has added pop-up notifications that will ask users to confirm that software has access to the device's video and audio. For now, there doesn't appear to be a way to permanently grant permissions to third-party apps. Developers confirmed with 9to5Mac that this is a feature, not a bug. We've reached out to Apple for more information and will update this post with any additional details we receive.These permissions alerts in Sequoia will pop up weekly, as well as the first time a relevant app is opened after a reboot. This security feature will be triggered by both third-party apps focused on screen recording and general programs that have screen-sharing capabilities, such as Zoom, Slack or Discord.This feature might remind you of the User Account Controls from the Windows Vista days. We haven't run into this permissions issue in our time with the beta version of macOS Sequoia, so it's hard to say if the Apple version will be quite as infuriating as the Microsoft pop-ups.macOS Sequoia does bring other useful updates to the computing experience. As well as introducing AI features with Apple Intelligence, the update will let users see their iPhone screen mirrored on their Macbooks, and can block distracting pop-ups in Safari.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/macos-sequoia-may-require-weekly-permissions-for-screen-recording-apps-215854870.html?src=rss
Google's Chromecast is no more. With Tuesday's introduction of its successor, the company laid to rest the brand that kicked off 11 years ago with a novel product that helped move streaming onto the center stage of home entertainment. With the Google TV Streamer taking the baton, it's time to look back at 11 years of Chromecast.Google's casting-centric brand arrived on July 24, 2013, with the first-generation Chromecast. The streaming stick plugged directly into a TV's HDMI port and lacked a remote control. Instead, you fired up content using a mobile device or computer.Most importantly, the innovative gizmo only cost $35. This was when an Apple TV set-top box started at $99, and app-laden televisions were nowhere near commonplace. Even Roku's same-generation Streaming Stick, which landed a year earlier, cost $100. Oh, and it required a TV certified as Roku-ready."When faced with pricier options, it was hard to resist the Chromecast. And many people felt that way: The stick quickly sold out. And it hung around for longer than most tech products, as the company only retired it last year.Engadget applauded the device. Our review praised it as a wholehearted recommendation for anyone who's been looking for an easy, unobtrusive way to put some brains into their dumb TV." The device was Google at its best: Innovating in a highly accessible, affordable and device-agnostic way.The second-generation model from 2015.Nicole Lee for EngadgetWhat followed were years of iterations as competitors pushed out competing products, and Google responded with more modern features and redesigns.The second-gen model from 2015 switched to a dongle form factor with a magnetized back and HDMI plug. The same year, Google launched a music-focused sister device, Chromecast Audio (with a vinyl record-inspired appearance). Chromecast Ultra, the first stab at a higher-end model, landed in 2016 with 4K streaming and Dolby Vision support. A third-gen model followed in 2018 with faster speeds, Nest speaker integration... and not much else.This decade, we saw the awkwardly branded Chromecast with Google TV (4K) in 2020 - now with a remote!! - and the Chromecast with Google TV (HD) in 2022. In hindsight, the strange naming could now be seen as the company's first nudge toward a rebrand.Sam Rutherford for EngadgetThis brings us to today, as Google bids adieu to its streaming wunderkind-at least under its old name. The Google TV Streamer, with its sleek wedge shape and unique hazel color option, is taking over in a much different landscape than we saw 11 years ago.The Chromecast, especially that innovative first-generation model, helped push us into the streaming-first world many of us have lived in ever since. That's especially true when you consider its impact on competitors. Roku's second-generation Streaming Stick from 2014 dropped from $99 to $50 and ditched its doomed Roku Ready TV" requirement. Meanwhile, Amazon saw an opening and launched a Fire TV Stick (also in 2014) that cost $39.Without that first Chromecast model, it's hard to tell how that landscape may have looked different in the following years.It isn't too late to dip your toes into the nostalgia pool and pick up a Chromecast, as Google says the old devices will remain on the market while supplies last. Crucially, the company's promise of security updates and support remains unchanged, so there's no need to fret if you recently picked up one of the soon-to-be-extinct devices.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/rip-chromecast-looking-back-at-11-years-of-google-streaming-211742586.html?src=rss
Yet another video game crossover is coming to Dead by Daylight in the near future. Behaviour Interactive says the previously announced Castlevania chapter will go live on August 27. Those who can't wait that long for the official release can check it out on the Steam public test build right now.The chapter brings both a new killer and survivor to The Fog. Of course, the latest killer to join the lineup is Dracula. Whenever he's the killer, you might see his castle looming on the horizon of the map.He's also the first shapeshifting killer. In vampire form, Dracula "stalks his prey, able to conjure flames that sear flesh and render bone to ash," Behaviour says. As a bat, he can move quickly and quietly. When he's a wolf, Dracula is said to be a relentless hunter.As for the new survivor, it's a Belmont, but perhaps not the first one that springs to mind. You can play as Trevor Belmont, a skilled vampire hunter. While he's maybe not the most physical member of the Belmont bloodline, his teamwork focus and ability to find allies in a pinch should stand him in decent stead in The Fog.So far this year, Behaviour has brought Alan Wake, Tomb Raider's Lara Croft and Dungeons and Dragons to DbD. An original chapter will arrive in December. That's not all, though, as the publisher is gearing up to release a spinoff game called The Casting of Frank Stoneon September 3. That will be a narrative horror-adventure along the lines of developer Supermassive's previous projects, such as Until Dawn and The Quarry.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/castlevania-comes-to-dead-by-daylight-on-august-27-190954431.html?src=rss
In what seems to be an annual tradition, Disney announced that the costs for standalone plans of its video streaming services will get more expensive, starting on October 17.The ad-supported Disney+ Basic plan will increase from $8 a month to $10, while the ad-free Disney+ Premium plan jumps from $14 a month or $140 annually to $16 a month or $160 annually. For Hulu, the plan with ads is changing from $8 a month or $80 a year to $10 a month or $100 a year and the ad-free plan will go from $18 a month to $20 a month. ESPN+ is getting pricing updates as well, with monthly costs going from $11 monthly or $110 annually to $12 monthly or $120 annually.Recall that this service was a mere $7 a month, without ads, when it launched less than five years ago.Only one combo plan seems to be getting a change. The Disney Bundle Duo Basic, which includes ad-supported access to both Disney+ and Hulu, is increasing from $10 a month to $11 a month. The Hulu + Live TV plans are also hiking costs: $83 a month for ad-supported, and $96 a month for ad-free.The increased subscription costs were included in a feature announcement that had been rumored earlier this year. Disney+ will start offering viewers continuous playlists starting September 4. There will be two playlists to start: a channel for ABC News Live, and one with videos for preschoolers. Four more playlists will debut later in the fall: Seasonal Content, Epic Stories (featuring franchises like Marvel and Star Wars), Throwbacks ("nostalgic pop culture content") and Real Life (biopics and documentaries).This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/disney-is-increasing-prices-again-for-standalone-streaming-plans-183518837.html?src=rss
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is coming to last-gen consoles on September 17, including the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. The game was originally released for PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC back in 2023.For the uninitiated, this is a sequel to the absolutely fantastic Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. It's a third-person adventure with a bit of Metroidvania flair that's set in the Star Wars universe in between the events of Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope. It's a very good video game, particularly for franchise fans.Pre-orders are available now and early purchasers get some bonuses. These include in-game cosmetic items that will turn the protagonist into someone who resembles Obi Wan Kenobi and a new blaster set. As for the software, EA says it's been fully optimized to run on those older consoles.It's worth noting, however, that the game has struggled to run on PCs. EA has issued several updates to address performance problems but some still linger. To that end, the company's prepping a new PC update that'll release in the coming weeks." This will bring enhancements to the game's technical performance, controls and more," in addition to a variety of quality-of-life improvements."Star Wars Jedi: Survivor also recently released on Game Pass. The PS4/XB1 version will cost $50. A third entry in the franchise has already been announced because, well, Star Wars loves trilogies.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/star-wars-jedi-survivor-is-coming-to-ps4-and-xbox-one-on-september-17-181004549.html?src=rss
X, whose top executives have long railed against advertisers who fled the platform amid concerns over hate speech, is now also suing them. X has filed an antitrust lawsuit against the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM) and several of its members, including Mars, Unilever and CVS Health, CEO Linda Yaccarino said in an open letter shared on X.According to Yaccarino, the group engaged in an illegal boycott" of X. The consequence - perhaps the intent - of this boycott was to seek to deprive X's users, be they sports fans, gamers, journalists, activists, parents or political and corporate leaders, of the Global Town Square," she wrote.As Axios points out, GARM is part of the World Federation of Advertisers (which is also named in the lawsuit) and was created to come up with brand safety guidelines for online advertisers. The lawsuit alleges that the group conspired, along with dozens of non-defendant co-conspirators, to collectively withhold billions of dollars in advertising revenue from Twitter."GARM didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.It's not the first time X has filed a lawsuit against a group that Musk has accused of stoking an advertiser exodus from the platform. The company previously sued the Center Countering Digital Hate (CCDH), an anti-hate group that published research showing that X failed to take down hateful posts shared by premium subscribers. That lawsuit was later dismissed by a judge who said X was trying to punish" the group for sharing unflattering research. X is also suing Media Matters, a watchdog group that published a report showing X had displayed ads alongside anti-Semitic content.We tried being nice for 2 years and got nothing but empty words," Musk, who nearly a year ago publicly told advertisers to go fuck themselves," wrote in a post on Tuesday. Now, it is war."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/x-sues-advertisers-for-illegal-boycott-of-the-platform-173100888.html?src=rss
Epic Games has brought two of its tentpole titles together in a fun way:Fall Guyshas come to the Fortniteisland for a limited time. A familiar-looking obstacle course has appeared in the skies above the sprawling battle royale arena. It'll be there until August 15.If you happen to find a Bean Idol in the Classy Courts area of the map, your character will be transported to the obstacle course and turned into a Fall Guys bean (which, fact fans, is canonically six feet tall). If you're using an original Fortnite character rather than a licensed one, your bean will look like that skin. Otherwise, you'll have a default naked bean. You'll revert back to your regular more-boring humanoid look when you finish the course.You'll have up to three attempts to finish the course but you can only complete it once per match. Once the course is in the storm, though, it'll be inaccessible.There's a 120-second time limit and if you fall off, you'll respawn at a checkpoint or the start of the course. The faster you finish, the better the loot you'll get. So if you're good at Fall Guys, you'll suddenly be at an advantage in Fortnite. Finish in under 50 seconds and you'll get gold loot, likely making it easier for you to destroy those pesky Cybertrucks. There are quests you can complete for cosmetics like a Fall Guys bean-inspired back bling too.Fall Guys is also now part of Fortnite's creative mode. There are a few pre-built islands you can check out that have new versions of iconic Fall Guys stages, including an unlimited version of Hex-A-Gone. You'll be able to build your own Fall Guys-themed islands in Fortnite too and publish them for others to check out. Whenever you're playing on these islands, your character will be in bean form.Meanwhile, Epic has enabled proximity chat in creator-built islands. It'll be interesting to see that become available in battle royale modes eventually, as it could add an interesting wrinkle to gameplay.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/fall-guys-is-now-in-fortnites-battle-royale-mode-for-a-limited-time-171506216.html?src=rss
Teenage Engineering is no stranger to weird gadgets that defy description. This is a company that released a $250 toy car and, uh, whatever these are. We all knew that. We also knew that the company would likely be releasing a follow-up to its massively successful EP-133 K.O. II sampler. We couldn't in a million years, however, have guessed that it would be a medieval-themed monstrosity.That's right. The sequel to the K.O. II is a sampler built entirely around sounds inspired by the middle ages. It's all here, from Gregorian chants and lutes to drum sounds that recall Monty Python. The sampler also comes pre-loaded with tons of themed foley effects, like sword slashes, arrows, farm animals and, according to the company, an actual dragon." The EP-1320 Medieval has everything, if by everything" we mean samples of screaming peasants.Aesthetically, it's basically the K.O. II with a different skin. The design features red calligraphy, castle towers and, of course, plenty of latin. As a matter of fact, it's not even referred to as a sampler at all. The company's calling it the world's first medieval electronic instrument" and there's a large label on the front that reads instrumentalis electronicum."Teenage EngineeringThere are new effects, for those worried it would just crib from last year's model. These include something called a torture chamber reverb" and another referred to as a Bardic ensemble." The arpeggiator has been redesigned and there are hundreds of new multi-sampled instruments. Teenage Engineering also says, and I'm not kidding, that the drum pads smell of cocoa. We reached out about that last one and will report back when we get some info.Of course, this is a sampler at heart, so users can put anything they want on it via the internal microphone or USB-C connection. It's also essentially a K.O. II, so there's the same punch-in FX tool, nine memory slots, dinky speaker and a battery compartment that holds four AAAs. But out of the box, it has everything you could possibly need for a D&D-themed rave.Just like the original, it's $300. Orders are available now. Diehards can also pick up a themed t-shirt, a vinyl record and a quilted carry bag.The EP-133 K.O. II was a huge hit, but was plagued by some performance concerns, including a number of units that shipped with busted faders. TE says all of this was due to poor packaging. Let's hope the company got all that sorted out.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/teenage-engineerings-built-a-medieval-themed-sampler-complete-with-gregorian-chants-164941795.html?src=rss
Sonos has delivered on its promise to expand TV audio swap for its new Ace headphones, which launched in June. When the premium cans arrived, support for the TV sound-switching feature was limited to the Arc soundbar. But starting on Tuesday, Ace owners can swap their audio with the Ray and both generations of the Beam.After installing today's update through the Sonos app, Ace users can move audio from their TV to their headphones by pressing the content key on their right ear cup. Alternatively, the Sonos app can do the same. The feature works on iOS and Android after being limited to iOS on the headphones' arrival.TV audio swap supports spatial audio with Dolby Atmos, so you can feel centered in the action," as a Sonos spokesperson put it. Engadget's audio gear expert, Billy Steele, was impressed with how the feature worked with the NBA playoffs on TNT. Regularly, the commentary trio is clear with a bit of crowd noise in the background, but after Sonos does its tricks, the announcers are more prominent and dynamic. Plus, the cheers of the crowd envelope you so it feels more like you're in the arena."TV Audio Swap really is as quick and easy as pressing a button," he wrote in our Ace headphones review.Once activated, the feature works through a Wi-Fi chip inside the headphones that takes over to receive the soundbar's signals. Low-energy Bluetooth will remain connected to your phone for controls and settings, although there's one caveat: You'll have to un-swap the audio to reconnect Bluetooth if a call comes in while watching.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/headphones/sonos-ace-owners-can-now-swap-tv-audio-with-the-ray-and-beam-soundbars-161925958.html?src=rss
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