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If there was ever a movie franchise that was seemingly made to be turned into a video game, it would be A Quiet Place. The films are basically already stealth horror titles. The premise, after all, involves bloodthirsty and noise-sensitive aliens. To that end, we already knew the franchise was getting the gaming treatment. Now we have an official release date of October 17 for the first digital spinoff.A Quiet Place: The Road Ahead is a first-person horror adventure that's set in the same world as the movies, but tells a brand new story. In other words, you won't be controlling a digital John Krasinski or a digital Lupita Nyong'o. You'll play as a brand-new character charting her own path in this royally screwed up dystopia.Just like the movies, players will have to rely on their wits and whatever simple tools they find when scavenging about, like flashlights and noise detectors. Developer Stormind Games, who was behind Remothered and Batora: Lost Haven, promises both thrills and chills. Today's release date trailer certainly confirms that. The spooky vibes are off the chart.A Quiet Place: The Road Ahead will be released on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. Pre-orders are available right now and early purchasers get exclusive in-game content and digital concept art." The game costs $30.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/a-quiet-place-the-road-ahead-is-coming-to-pc-playstation-and-xbox-on-october-17-151706002.html?src=rss

It's all too easy to accidentally damage a piece of tech, which is why many Apple fans opt to pay for the company's AppleCare+ coverage for piece of mind. It's perhaps not too often that you see deals involving AppleCare+, but there's a solid one on the Beats Studio Pro at the minute. You can snap up a pair with two years of AppleCare+ coverage for $174. That's a discount of $205. Given that the headphones by themselves cost $180, you're effectively getting 24 months of AppleCare+ protection for zilch and saving five bucks on the headphones. The deal applies to the black, navy and sandstone colorways but not the deep brown variant. We gave the headphones a score of 81 in our review last year. The improved sound quality (compared with previous Beats over-ear headphones) and voice clarity were major plus points. The transparency mode, a feature that wasn't present in the Beats Studio 3, works fairly well too. Meanwhile, if you plug the headphones into your audio source via USB-C, you can enjoy lossless music at sample rates up to 24-bit/48kHz thanks to the built-in digital-to-analog converter. Dynamic head tracking is a neat feature, while some reviewers have pointed out that the Beats Studio Pro play nicely with Android devices too. Unfortunately, the headphones might be a tight fit for some folks given their clamping force. We found the lack of automatic pausing and multipoint iOS connectivity to be disappointing, particularly in the latter case since this is an Apple product. AppleCare+ for Headphones builds on the one year of limited warranty and 90 days of technical support you get as standard with Apple's audio gear. It adds round-the-clock access to Apple experts by phone or chat, along with unlimited incidents of accidental damage protection for the two-year coverage period. You'll just need to pay a $29 fee for each repair.. 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/get-beats-studio-pro-headphones-with-applecare-for-174-150034075.html?src=rss

Up until now, Google's Chromecast line has been largely focused on making it easy to watch shows and movies on your favorite big screen. But with the new Google TV Streamer, Google finally has a proper set-top box for binging content that also supports a much broader range of smart home controls. Design: From dongle to wedge Coming just a week ahead of Google's upcoming Made By event, perhaps the biggest change for the TV Streamer is switching from being a simple dongle that hangs off your TV to a truly standalone device that lives on your media console. Google says its wedge-shaped design is meant to blend in easily with your decor when sitting in front of your TV so that it offers better reception for its included remote and other smart home devices (more on that later). The Google TV Streamer will be available in two colors: porcelain white and hazel, the latter of which will be exclusively direct from Google. Photo by Sam Rutherford/Engadget Google has also given the Streamer TV a massive hardware upgrade compared to the Chromecast with Google TV from 2020, including a 22 percent faster CPU, double the RAM (4GB instead of 2GB) and four times more storage (32GB total). That might not sound like a ton, but considering that the previous model often ran out of space for downloading basic streaming apps, that's a much-needed improvement. Streaming resolution caps out at 4K/60fps, though you do get support for HDR, Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos and spatial audio (when paired with Google Pixel Buds). Furthermore, there's an HDMI 1.1 jack, a powered USB-C port and a dedicated Ethernet slot for people who want peak bandwidth for streaming. Google also made the remote a touch longer while moving the volume rocker to the top and adding a customizable button that can be set to launch your favorite app, switch inputs or summon the new smart home control center. And just like before, there's a built-in microphone and a button for summoning the Google Assistant. Smart home: Becoming a proper device hub Here's a sample of what the Google TV Streamer's new smart home control panel looks like. Google This brings me to the Google Streamer's improved smart home capabilities. Not only does it support Matter, it also features a built-in Thread border router for easily communicating with the other devices in your house. On top of that, the TV Streamer is getting its own version of the Google Home panel (which we've seen on previous Pixel phones and Nest Hubs) so that it's easier to adjust things like smart lights while also giving you the ability to view feeds from your security cameras and video doorbells. New AI features Finally, it wouldn't be a 2024 Google device without some new AI features. Thanks to Gemini, the TV Streamer can create custom recommendations based on the kind of content you watch and generate summaries, reviews or even season-by-season breakdowns for stuff you haven't. There's also an ambient TV mode that allows you to pull screensavers or memories from your Google Photos library. However, if you want something a bit more unique, you can also use AI to generate something fantastical. Meanwhile, if you lose the remote, you can ask the Google Assistant (not Gemini) to help you find it or you can simply press the dedicated button on the back of the box. Photo by Sam Rutherford/Engadget So while I haven't had much chance to dive into its features, with the new TV Streamer, at last it feels like Google has a significantly more capable smart home hub that's also a true rival to the Apple TV 4K and other Android-based boxes like the NVIDIA Shield TV. The Google TV Streamer costs $100 and is available for pre-order today with official sales beginning September 24. It will be available in two colors: porcelain white and hazel, the latter of which will be available exclusively from the Google Store. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/home-theater/the-google-tv-streamer-is-the-next-big-upgrade-to-the-chromecast-line-130034951.html?src=rss

Google just announced a refresh of the Nest Learning Thermostat ahead of next week's Made by Google event. The fourth-gen smart thermostat has been completely redesigned, with a new form factor and plenty of updated features. The LCD display is 60 percent larger than what's found with the (now ancient) third generation, with a curved front that eliminates the appearance of bezels. Basically, the whole thing is a screen now, with no giant black plastic loop around the exterior. This leads us to another new feature. The larger display allows for more personalization, as the fourth-gen Nest offers customizable faces. This works just like how it does with smartwatches. You can turn the face into a clock, change colors or transform the background into something artsy. Google No matter which face you choose, the UI automatically adjusts what's displayed on the screen depending on how far you're standing from the thermostat. For instance, the font will be bigger the further you step back. This is all thanks to integrated Soli radar sensors. As for the actual inner workings of the thermostat, the new Nest leverages AI for more accurate readings and to offer potential actions to save money on that monthly energy bill. It'll even take action on its own depending on the ambient temperature and other factors. The thermostat also comes with one wireless temperature sensor that you can place anywhere. This is helpful for sussing out cold spots or when trying to find a perfect average temperature across the whole home. Google says this wireless device can go for three years before requiring a battery replacement. You can also buy these separately, as each Nest integrates with up to six sensors. The device boasts some eco-friendly bona-fides. The internal battery is made entirely from recycled cobalt and the packaging is free from plastic. Pre-orders for the new Nest Learning Thermostat are open right now, with shipments beginning on August 20. It's available in three colors, including silver, black and gold. Each thermostat costs $280, with additional temperature sensors priced at $40 or $100 for a three-pack. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/smart-home/googles-latest-nest-learning-thermostat-is-much-bigger-and-offers-a-customizable-display-130045155.html?src=rss

A federal judge ruled that Google has illegally abused its monopoly over the search industry. The ruling follows a 10-week trial held in 2023, which followed a 2020 lawsuit.Judge Amit Mehta of the US District Court for the District of Columbia wrote in the ruling that the company had acted to maintain its monopoly."The lawsuit claimed that Google illegally acted to maintain its dominant position in search through behavior like paying Apple, Samsung and Mozilla billions of dollars a year to be the default search engine on smartphones, browsers and elsewhere. The DOJ argued Google is responsible for almost 90 percent of web searches.Mehta has not imposed any remedies on Google yet, but he could demand it change how it operates or even sell parts of the business. Google plans to appeal.- Mat SmithThe biggest stories you might have missedNeuralink successfully implants its chip into a second patient's brainNVIDIA's AI team reportedly scraped YouTube, Netflix videos without permissionElon Musk drags OpenAI into federal courtYou can get these reports delivered daily direct to your inbox. Subscribe right here!Latest iOS 18 beta adds Safari distraction control'And rolls back its big Photos app redesign.Apple dropped the fifth developer beta, and with it comes a few changes to Safari and Photos. Specifically, Apple's browser gets Distraction Control. It's not quite an ad blocker, but it could be even more useful for sites with video embeds, moving elements and other chaos. Press the Page Menu button in the Search field (where the Reader and Viewer buttons are) and tap Hide Distracting Items to select which parts of a page you want to filter out. If something you've chosen to block, like a headline or an ad, changes in any way, it will resurface upon your next visit.Apple also used the update to rewind its Photos app redesign, something I wasn't super keen on in my preview of the iOS beta.Continue reading.Watch the first teaser for The Last of Us season 2Joel faces the consequences of his past.HBOHBO has released the first teaser for The Last of Us season two. It starts with Joel (Pedro Pascal) in conversation with a new character played by Catherine O'Hara (seemingly his therapist), reckoning with his past actions. It's set to broadcast in 2025.Watch here.The next Zelda game has a smoothie shopAnd a cartoon horse to ride.EngadgetI won't be taking questions at this time.Continue reading.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/general/the-morning-after-us-judge-rules-that-google-is-a-monopolist-in-search-111531098.html?src=rss

Two key OpenAI personnel are leaving the company, while another one is taking a months-long leave of absence. As reported by The Information, OpenAI president Greg Brockman is taking a sabbatical, while his fellow co-founder John Schulman is bidding the company farewell and joining its rival Anthropic. Peter Deng, its VP for consumer product who joined last year, is leaving OpenAI, as well. Deng used to lead product developments at Meta and Uber.In a post on X/Twitter, Brockman said his leave of absence will last through end of year and that it's his "first time to relax" since the founding of OpenAI nine years ago. He also reportedly assured staff members that he's coming back after his vacation. Brockman temporarily left OpenAI last year when the company's board ousted its CEO, Sam Altman. They were both reinstated just a few days later, whereas the board was disbanded and replaced.

In the latest example of a troubling industry pattern, NVIDIA appears to have scraped troves of copyrighted content for AI training. On Monday, 404 Media's Samantha Cole reported that the $2.4 trillion company asked workers to download videos from YouTube, Netflix and other datasets to develop commercial AI projects. The graphics card maker is among the tech companies appearing to have adopted a move fast and break things" ethos as they race to establish dominance in this feverish, too-often-shameful AI gold rush.The training was reportedly to develop models for products like its Omniverse 3D world generator, self-driving car systems and digital human" efforts.NVIDIA defended its practice in an email to Engadget. A company spokesperson said its research is in full compliance with the letter and the spirit of copyright law" while claiming IP laws protect specific expressions but not facts, ideas, data, or information." The company equated the practice to a person's right to learn facts, ideas, data, or information from another source and use it to make their own expression." Human, computer... what's the difference?YouTube doesn't appear to agree. Spokesperson Jack Malon pointed us to a Bloomberg story from April, quoting CEO Neal Mohan saying using YouTube to train AI models would be a clear violation" of its terms. Our previous comment still stands," the YouTube policy communications manager wrote to Engadget.That quote from Mohan in April was in response to reports that OpenAI trained its Sora text-to-video generator on YouTube videos without permission. Last month, a report showed that the startup Runway AI followed suit.NVIDIA employees who raised ethical and legal concerns about the practice were reportedly told by their managers that it had already been green-lit by the company's highest levels. This is an executive decision," Ming-Yu Liu, vice president of research at NVIDIA, replied. We have an umbrella approval for all of the data." Others at the company allegedly described its scraping as an open legal issue" they'd tackle down the road.It all sounds similar to Facebook's (Meta's) old move fast and break things" motto, which has succeeded admirably at breaking quite a few things. That included the privacy of millions of people.In addition to the YouTube and Netflix videos, NVIDIA reportedly instructed workers to train on movie trailer database MovieNet, internal libraries of video game footage and Github video datasets WebVid (now taken down after a cease-and-desist) and InternVid-10M. The latter is a dataset containing 10 million YouTube video IDs.Some of the data NVIDIA allegedly trained on was only marked as eligible for academic (or otherwise non-commercial) use. HD-VG-130M, a library of 130 million YouTube videos, includes a usage license specifying that it's only meant for academic research. NVIDIA reportedly brushed aside concerns about academic-only terms, insisting their batches were fair game for its commercial AI products.To evade detection from YouTube, NVIDIA reportedly downloaded content using virtual machines (VMs) with rotating IP addresses to avoid bans. In response to a worker's suggestion to use a third-party IP address-rotating tool, another NVIDIA employee reportedly wrote, We are on [Amazon Web Services](#) and restarting a [virtual machine](#) instance gives a new public IP[.](#) So, that's not a problem so far."404 Media's full report on NVIDIA's practices is worth a read.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/nvidias-ai-team-reportedly-scraped-youtube-netflix-videos-without-permission-204942022.html?src=rss

Google is in deep trouble after a federal judge ruled that the company illegally abused a monopoly over the search industry. The ruling follows a 10-week trial held in 2023 that stemmed from a 2020 lawsuit filed by the Department of Justice and several states.Google is a monopolist, and it has acted as one to maintain its monopoly," Judge Amit Mehta of the US District Court for the District of Columbia wrote in the ruling. "It has violated Section 2 of the Sherman Act."Mehta has not imposed any remedies on Google at the time of writing. The judge may order Google to change how it operates or even sell parts of its business.The lawsuit claimed that Google illegally acted to maintain its dominant position in search through a number of actions, such as paying the likes of Apple, Samsung and Mozilla billions of dollars per year to be the default search engine on their phones and web browsers. The DOJ argued that Google facilitates almost 90 percent of web searches and that by paying to be the default option, it prevented rivals from achieving the kind of scale needed to compete. As such, Google is deemed to benefitted in terms of both revenue and data collection."Those search access points are preset with a 'default' search engine," the ruling reads. "The default is extremely valuable real estate. Because many users simply stick to searching with the default, Google receives billions of queries every day through those access points. Google derives extraordinary volumes of user data from such searches. It then uses that information to improve search quality."According to Mehta, Google has acknowledged that losing its position as the default search engine on various platforms would harm its bottom line. "For instance, Google has projected that losing the Safari default would result in a significant drop in queries and billions of dollars in lost revenues," the ruling states.Google released the following statement from Kent Walker, President of Global affairs, on X regarding the judge's decision:"This decision recognizes that Google offers the best search engine, but concludes that we shouldn't be allowed to make it easily available. We appreciate the Court's finding that Google is the industry's highest quality search engine, which has earned Google the trust of hundreds of millions of daily users,' that Google has long been the best search engine, particularly on mobile devices,' has continued to innovate in search' and that Apple and Mozilla occasionally assess Google's search quality relative to its rivals and find Google's to be superior.' Given this, and that people are increasingly looking for information in more and more ways, we plan to appeal. As this process continues, we will remain focused on making products that people find helpful and easy to use."During the trial, Google argued that its significant slice of market share was due to having a better product that consumers appreciated.In addition, the DOJ claimed that Google held a monopoly over ads that appear in search results. It argued that Google artificially inflated the prices of ads beyond what they'd cost in a free market.In his ruling, Mehta agreed that "Google has exercised its monopoly power by charging supracompetitive prices for general search text ads. That conduct has allowed Google to earn monopoly profits." However, the judge added that Google does not hold monopoly power in the broader market of search advertising.Meanwhile, Mehta declined to impose sanctions on Google for failing to preserve employee chat messages that may have been pertinent to the case. The ruling notes that, since 2008, Google deletes chat messages between its employees by default after 24 hours."The court's decision not to sanction Google should not be understood as condoning Google's failure to preserve chat evidence," Mehta wrote. "Any company that puts the onus on its employees to identify and preserve relevant evidence does so at its own peril. Google avoided sanctions in this case. It may not be so lucky in the next one."Google and the DOJ are set to return to federal court in September over an ad tech case.Update, August 5 2024, 4:40PM ET: This story was updated to include Google's statement on the ruling.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/google-is-a-monopolist-in-search-us-judge-rules-in-antitrust-case-193358356.html?src=rss

X will soon close its longtime San Francisco office and move employees to offices elsewhere in the Bay Area, according to an email from CEO Linda Yaccarino reported by The New York Times. Yaccarino's note to employees comes several weeks after Elon Musk threatened to move X's headquarters out of California and into Austin, Texas.Yaccarino's note, however, doesn't seem to mention Texas. According to The New York Times, she told employees the closure will happen over the next few weeks" and that employees will work out of a shared engineering space in Palo Alto" that's also used by xAI, as well as other locations in San Jose."Twitter, and now X, has had a rocky relationship with its home base since Musk's takeover of the company. Musk banned employees from working remotely shortly after taking over the company in 2022, and ordered many Twitter workers back to the office in the mid-Market neighborhood of San Francisco.He later ran afoul of the city's Department of Building Inspection for installing a giant flashing X on top of the building, and for reportedly converting office space into hotel rooms for employees to sleep in. The company's landlord had also sued X over unpaid rent, The San Francisco Chronicle reported earlier this year. The lawsuit was later dismissed.Despite Musk's frequent complaints about San Francisco and its elected leaders, he had previously vowed to keep the company's headquarters in the city. Many have offered rich incentives for X (fka Twitter) to move its HQ out of San Francisco," Musk tweeted last year.Moreover, the city is in a doom spiral with one company after another left or leaving. Therefore, they expect X will move too. We will not. You only know who your real friends are when the chips are down. San Francisco, beautiful San Francisco, though others forsake you, we will always be your friend."But, even before Musk's recent posts about moving to Austin, there were other signs X may be getting ready to leave after all. The San Francisco Chronicle reported in July that X's landlord was looking to sublease much of the company's 800,000 square-foot headquarters.X didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/x-is-reportedly-closing-its-san-francisco-office-203650428.html?src=rss

National Geographic is no stranger to new media. The network has produced a slew of immersive virtual reality experiences, 360 degree videos, and even its own "Space Projection Helmets" for its big-budget show One Strange Rock. Today, it's finally delivering its first immersive experience for the Apple Vision Pro: A Disney+ environment featuring Iceland's Thingvellir National Park. Now you can sit back and watch The Avengers in 3D amid pristine white snow, towering rock formations and a clear blue sky (or a star-filled on at night). Alongside that film, Disney+ is also adding 3D versions of The Age of Ultron and the first two Ant-Man movies today.While standing in the middle of a snow-filled park isn't as adventurous as, say, rowing a kayak through Arctic waters in VR, the environment shows that Nat Geo isn't completely ignoring the Vision Pro. Apple's headset has sorely lacked truly immersive experiences, outside of the "Encounter Dinosaurs" demo it shipped with, as well as Marvel's What If...?I'm not holding my breath for a big-budget National Geographic experience only meant for the Vision Pro, but it's not out of the realm of possibility. Nat Geo could reconfigure some of its existing VR projects to work on the Vision Pro, or even adapt One Strange Rock's unique helmet projection view. (I'd bet money only very few people ever saw the footage in that form.)This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ar-vr/nat-geos-first-vision-pro-immersive-environment-takes-you-to-iceland-190036673.html?src=rss

CrowdStrike has taken a lot of flak over the enormous IT outage that brought much of the planet's computer systems to a halt last month. One thing that the company isn't willing to accept full blame for though is Delta's severe flight troubles.Delta CEO Ed Bastian said last week the company had "no choice" but to seek damages. The airline canceled more than 5,000 flights and said it was looking at a cost of over $500 million in lost revenue and compensation to passengers.

Apple is pumping the brakes on some of its updates to the Photos app in iOS 18. The company made some changes - removing some features and tweaking others - on Monday to address user feedback. The pared-down version can be found in the software's fifth developer beta, which app makers can install today.The biggest change is that Apple removed the Carousel from the Photos app altogether. The iOS 18 feature used on-device intelligence" (which, confusingly, isn't the same as Apple Intelligence) to aggregate what it thought was your best content, placing them in a swipeable row. Previously found to the right of the photo grid, it's now gone altogether, helping Apple clean up one of the features that earned a healthy dose of complaints from beta testers.In addition, Apple tweaked the All Photos view in today's update to show more of the photos grid. The company also added Recently Saved content to the Recent Days collection. Finally, Apple made albums easier to find for users with more than one. (The difficulty of locating that section was a frequently echoed complaint among testers.)AppleApple pitched the changes to the Photos app as one of the pillars of its 2024 software update. Although the app is streamlined into a single view and designed to be more customizable, it too often ends up as a mishmash of extra features most people won't need, sometimes getting in the way of finding what you're looking for.A Reddit thread from July with over 1,000 upvotes gave voice to some of the most frequent complaints. Once again taking a rapid-use app and making it into an experience for no reason," u/thiskillstheredditor commented. I just want a camera roll and maybe the ability to sort photos by location. It was perfectly fine, if maybe a bit bloated, before. But this is an unmitigated mess."Time will tell if today's updates are enough to clean up the app's user experience ahead of iOS 18's fall launch to the public. The changes aren't yet in the public beta but will likely appear there in the next version or soon after.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apples-latest-ios-18-beta-walks-back-some-changes-to-the-redesigned-photos-app-180145232.html?src=rss

Ahead of the full release of iOS 18, iPadOS 18, macOS Sequoia and more, Apple continues to bring updates to the betas it's made available to early testers. Today, the company has dropped the fifth developer beta to those platforms, and with it comes a few changes to Safari and Photos. Specifically, Apple's browser is getting some tools that could make surfing today's cluttered and overwhelming web pages a lot less distracting, with something called Distraction Control.Is Safari's Distraction Control an ad blocker?To be clear, this isn't intended to be an ad blocker. It's for parts of a page that distract you, like an overlay asking you to subscribe or even requests to use cookies. When you land on a website, you can press the Page Menu button in the Search field (where the Reader and Viewer buttons are). There, you can tap "Hide Distracting Items" and go on to choose which parts of a page you want to filter out. Subsequently, that part will be blocked on that domain moving forward on repeated visits.There are a few important caveats, though. The first time you click on Distraction Control, Apple will inform you that it won't permanently remove ads or other areas where content might change or get updated. Since on-page banner ads usually refresh on each visit, this renders Distraction Control useless for those elements.You'll also be the one selecting which parts of the site to hide, and there's no artificial intelligence automatically detecting which components might be deemed distracting. You'll see a blue outline over certain areas and can tap to select them. According to Apple, nothing will be hidden unless a user proactively selects it. You'll also be able to unhide items afterwards, by going back to the hide icon in the search field and choosing "Show hidden items."If something you've chosen to block, like a headline or an ad, has changed in any way, it will resurface upon your next visit.How does Distraction Control handle those pesky GDPR cookie requests?Theoretically, you would also be able to use Distraction Control to hide the dialogs with the GDPR-stipulated cookies permission requests. If you choose to block those, the website would just be told you closed its request without an answer. Based on the legal requirements in different regions, the website would then have to proceed based on that information.It's not yet clear how Distraction Control will handle paywalls, especially since there are different ways that content is protected.The fifth developer beta also brings with it features that were teased at WWDC, like a redesigned Reader and Highlights, which brings up summarized information from a website like a business' hours or phone number. There's also a new Viewer experience that works when Safari detects a video on the page and puts in front and center. It'll also give you system playback controls in this mode, including picture-in-picture.If you're curious about how the new tools and Distraction Control work, you can run Apple's developer beta. Just know that since you'll be opting in to preview software, there may be bugs or quirks, so make sure to backup your data before you proceed. According to the information accompanying the iOS 18 beta 5 update, it requires 7.11GB of storage, too.Update, August 5 2024, 1:31PM ET: This story has been updated to clarify that hiding distracting items only applies to that specific domain moving forward, and not all websites across the internet.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/safari-can-block-distracting-ads-and-other-website-clutter-with-the-latest-ios-18-and-macos-betas-172041678.html?src=rss

Fitness enthusiasts and extreme sports aficionados who haven't yet taken the plunge on an Apple Watch or are perhaps looking to upgrade from an older model may be interested in snapping up a version that's on sale. The Apple Watch Ultra 2 has dropped by $100 to $700. That matches both the Prime Day price and the lowest we've ever seen this product sell for. Apple designed this smartwatch with endurance athletes, outdoor adventurers and water sport practitioners in mind, including a dedicated band for each category (Trail Loop, Alpine Loop and Ocean Band, respectively). The discount applies to a range of bands on Amazon, so you can pick which one best fits your needs and/or style. One reason why the Apple Watch Ultra 2 is suited for such activities is because it's pretty darn rugged. It's made with aerospace-grade titanium, for one thing. Apple says the case is resistant to corrosion. The Apple Watch Ultra 2 is swimproof and water resistant up to 100 meters, while it can be used for recreational dives for up to 40 meters, according to Apple. The always-on Retina display reaches a peak brightness of 3,000 nits, so it should be easy to look at even in direct sunlight. Thanks to the 49mm display (which is larger than the screen on other Apple Watch variants) you can have up to six complications on your watch face and view six metrics simultaneously. The S9 System in Package (SiP) that powers the Apple Watch Ultra 2 supports the neat Double Tap feature. This is a customizable gesture control that allows you to carry out actions by tapping your thumb and index finger on your watch-wearing hand twice. So if you're carrying something in your other hand and want to take a call, all you have to do is double tap your fingers. It works well once you get the hang of it. Elsewhere, Apple says the device will run for up to 36 hours on a single charge and as much as 72 hours in low power mode. The wearable comes with cellular connectivity too. Hikers will appreciate the Compass app - which offers information including elevation, incline, longitude and latitude - as well as the ability to set custom waypoints with a press of the action button. This will help you retrace your steps if need be. There are many other fitness and health features, including an electrocardiogram app that can help detect signs of abnormal heart rhythms, as well as fall and crash detection. Those can quickly connect you to emergency services if necessary. 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/the-apple-watch-ultra-2-is-on-sale-for-100-off-171347976.html?src=rss

Apple's AirPods Max headphones are on sale for $400 via Amazon. This isn't a record-low, though it's close, but does represent a savings of $150. The sale includes a bunch of colorways, like gray, blue, silver and pink. For the uninitiated, these are Apple's high-end over-ear headphones. They are, in a word, luxe. In our official review, we praised the excellent, balanced sound and useful ANC. These headphones sound very good, which is aided by an adaptive EQ system that automatically adjusts low and mid-frequencies. This algorithm takes into account how the headphones are being worn, such as the fit and earcup seal. We also praised the solid battery life, getting around 20 hours of use even with ANC and spatial audio turned on. The battery life is enhanced by an automatic lower power mode" that kicks in after 72 hours outside of the case. This mode disables Bluetooth and Find My. There's no power button, so the headphones never really turn off until the battery is completely drained. However, the quick-charge feature provides 90 minutes of listening time in just five minutes at the charger. Billy Steele/Engadget On the downside, the included case isn't really a case at all. It's basically a wraparound piece of cloth. However, resting the headphones inside of the "case" automatically puts them in a power-preservation mode. The other significant drawback is the price. Simply put, $550 is just a whole lot of money for a pair of headphones, especially ones that are over four years old. Many of the features have been surpassed by the newer second-gen version. In other words, these headphones don't have adaptive transparency and lack USB-C charging.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apples-airpods-max-drop-back-down-to-400-164310126.html?src=rss

If you've been holding out for a deal on an iPad mini, it may be time to make a move. Apple's mini-tablet has dropped to a record low on Amazon. Usually $499, the sixth-gen model with 64GB is on sale for a mere $379. If you want more storage, the 256GB variant, typically $649, is on sale for $529. Although the iPad mini is a niche device these days, it's still a terrific tablet for those who like something smaller to easily hold in one hand and stow away in a small bag or purse. It can serve as a fancy eReader (through Apple Books, Kindle or any other iPadOS reading app), and it's handy for perusing other content, watching videos and FaceTiming friends. It even includes Apple's AI-powered Center Stage feature, which keeps you in frame on video calls. This sixth-generation model is several years old (it launched in 2021), but it's still Apple's newest model. It was the first to shed the old Touch ID home button design from iPads in the days of yore, moving to an 8.3-inch Liquid Retina display that nearly covers its entire face. Like the iPad Air, its Touch ID sensor is on its power / sleep button, which is on the tablet's side. It has a 2266 x 1488 resolution with 326 ppi. Its battery life is rated for up to 10 hours, but it lasted around 12 in Engadget's continuous video playback test. Powering it is the A15 Bionic chip, only one generation behind the A16 found in the (non-Pro) iPhone 15 series. The iPad mini supports the second-generation Apple Pencil, which attaches magnetically to its side. The tablet includes a USB-C charging port, aligning with Apple's current standard. 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/apples-ipad-mini-drops-to-a-record-low-of-380-163004518.html?src=rss

Nintendo just dropped a rather lengthy new overview trailer for The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom. That's the top-down Switch entry that stars the titular princess instead of Link. The six-minute video focuses on traversing Hyrule," so there's plenty of cool stuff here about the kingdom and, more importantly, the overworld map.This looks like a brand-new map. Many people had assumed this game would lift the map from The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, but that doesn't seem to be the case. Some of the landmarks, however, are in the same place. The castle is at the center, for instance, and the mountains are up top.NintendoOtherwise, this game includes all of the various cultures and towns from 3D Zelda games. You can meet Gorons, Zora and even enter the all-female Gerudo Town. This is also the first top-down Zelda game to feature traversal by horse. There are a few horses in the trailer, though none look exactly like the world-famous Epona. It's possible that Princess Zelda's white stallion from Breath of the Wild is hanging around though. In any event, they are all pretty darn cute.The trailer also shows off some deliciously kooky stuff, and we all love it when Nintendo gets weird. There are smoothie shops scattered throughout Hyrule, candy-obsessed Deku Scrubs and more.Finally, there's a newly-featured ability for Zelda called Bind. It forces objects and creatures in the game world to follow you around, likely for puzzle-solving purposes.All of this is good news. This doesn't look like a throwaway end of a console's lifespan" game. It looks adorable and inventive. The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom comes out on September 26.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/new-zelda-footage-features-cute-horseback-riding-and-uh-smoothie-shops-154503850.html?src=rss

Here we go again. Elon Musk has filed another lawsuit against OpenAI and the company's CEO Sam Altman, two months after withdrawing a previous one. Musk once again alleges that OpenAI breached its founding commitments by putting commercial concerns ahead of the public good.This time around, though, the suit has been filed in federal court rather than in a state court. That's because the new filing alleges that OpenAI violated federal racketeering laws by conspiring to defraud Musk, according to his lawyer, Marc Toberoff. The previous suit lacked teeth - and I don't believe in the tooth fairy," Toberoff told The New York Times. This is a much more forceful lawsuit."The latest suit claims that Altman and fellow OpenAI founder Greg Brockman knowingly misled Musk when the trio (and others) formed the company. It alleges that Altman and Brockman walked back on their pledge to open source OpenAI's tech by instead granting Microsoft an exclusive license to it. Microsoft has invested billions of dollars into OpenAI's for-profit subsidiary and holds a 49 percent stake (the FTC is said to be investigating those business dealings).Furthermore, Musk has asked the court to determine whether OpenAI has achieved artificial general intelligence (AGI), a form of AI that's the equivalent of a human brain. Altman said in January that AGI could be developed in the reasonably close-ish future."Per the suit, Microsoft's contract with OpenAI stipulates that once the latter has reached AGI, it can no longer use the company's tech. If OpenAI has reached AGI in the eyes of the court, then its pact with Microsoft should be declared null and void, according to the filing.Musk filed the original suit in February. He withdrew it in June, one day before a judge was set to rule on OpenAI's request to dismiss it, but did not provide a reason for doing so.In a response to the original suit, which it claimed was "incoherent," OpenAI says it aimed to serve the public good by creating AGI. It claims that it needed far more resources than initially thought to do so. The company added that it (and Musk) agreed that a for-profit arm was required to accrue enough resources. However, the parties disagreed on how to go about this, according to OpenAI. The company said Musk wanted full control or for OpenAI to merge with Tesla. Musk ultimately left OpenAI and eventually went on to start his own AI company, xAI.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/elon-musk-drags-openai-into-federal-court-152709507.html?src=rss

No matter how many years have passed since I had to prepare to go back to school, I can't help but feel like August requires getting some new equipment. If you're the same, then it's worth looking at the 23 percent sale on Apple's 2024 MacBook Air 13-inch Laptop with an M3 chip. The MacBook is currently available for an all-time low price of $850, rather than its usual $1099. The 15-inch model is also on sale, down to $1,050 from $1,299 - a 19 percent discount. This model is our choice for Apple's best MacBook overall. We gave it a 90 in our review thanks to a solid bump in power over its predecessor and reliable features. It comes with an 8-core CPU, 8-core GPU and 16-core Neural Engine. It also has 256GB of storage, 8GB of memory and up to 18 hours of battery life. Plus, we love the solid quad-speaker array, sturdy, sleek design and fast performance. If you're in the market for a very heavy-duty laptop, then check out the 24 percent discount on Apple's 2023 MacBook Pro Laptop with an M3 Pro chip - our choice of best MacBook for creatives. The 512GB model with 18GB of unified memory is available for $1900, down from $2,499. The 2023 MacBook Pro offers a 14.2-inch Liquid Retina XDR display with an Extreme Dynamic Range and 1000 nits of sustained brightness. This is the model to look into if you're going to be completing high-speed editing and incredible clarity. 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/apples-13-inch-m3-macbook-air-is-250-off-right-now-and-cheaper-than-ever-140221470.html?src=rss

Neuralink's brain chip has been implanted into a second patient as part of early human trials, Elon Musk told podcast host Lex Fridman on Saturday. The company hasn't disclosed when the surgery took place or the name of the recipient, according to Reuters.Musk said 400 of the electrodes on the second patient's brain are working out of 1,024 implanted. "I don't want to jinx it but it seems to have gone extremely well," he said. "There's a lot of signal, a lot of electrodes. It's working very well."The device allows patients with spinal cord injuries to play video games, use the internet and control electronic devices using their thoughts alone. In May, the company announced that it was "accepting applications for the second participant" in trials following FDA approval.The original Neuralink implant patient, Nolan Arbaugh, described the surgery as "super easy." In a demo, the company showed how Arbaugh was able to move a cursor around the screen of a laptop, pause an on-screen music device and play chess and Civilization VI.Arbaugh himself participated in the marathon podcast with Musk and Fridman. He said that the device allows him to make anything happen on a computer screen just by thinking it, helping reduce his reliance on caregivers.However, problems cropped up shortly after his surgery when some of electrodes retracted from his brain. The issue was partly rectified later on by modifying the algorithm to make the implants more sensitive. Neuralink told the FDA that in a second procedure, it would place the implant's threads deeper into the patient's brain to prevent them from moving as much as they did in Arbaugh's case.Neuralink previously tested its implant in animals, including chimps, and some of those testing practices have been the subject of federal investigations.Despite those issues, the company said it had over 1,000 volunteers for its second surgical trial. Musk said he expects Neuralink to implant its chips in up to eight more patients by the end of 2024.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/neuralink-successfully-implants-its-chip-into-a-second-patients-brain-123013864.html?src=rss

HBO has released the first teaser for The Last of Us season two and while short, it offers clues as to what we can expect when the series debuts in 2025. It starts off with Joel (Pedro Pascal) in conversation with a new character played by Catherine O'Hara (seemingly his therapist), reckoning with his past actions. "Did you hurt her?" she asks. "I saved her," he replies.On top of O'Hara's unknown role, we see other characters for the first time including Kaitlyn Dever's Abby, Jeffrey Wright reprising his video game voice role as Isaac, and Dina, played by Isabela Merced. Meanwhile with returning cast, Joel's brother Tommy (Gabriel Luna) as well as Ellie (Bella Ramsey) appear briefly in some intense action scenes.As revealed last year, showrunners Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann decided to split the events from The Last of Us Part IIvideo game into two seasons, since the story was far more complex than the original. The second season will be just seven episodes to create a natural break, while the third season will be "significantly larger," they said.The original series mostly followed the events of the game, with some smart deviations and changes. Expect more of the same for season two, though the teaser already shows one significant divergence. In the game, Joel only confesses the events that occurred at the hospital to his brother, but here, he's telling Catherine O'Hara's character.The teaser appeared as part of HBO's Coming to Max trailer, along with previews for The Penguin, Dune: Prophecy, It: Welcome to Derry, and our first peak at A Knight of the Seven Kingdom, the next Game of Thrones spinoff.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/hbo-drops-the-first-teaser-for-the-last-of-us-season-two-120035871.html?src=rss

According to Bloomberg and The New York Times, Meta is in talks with the likes of Keegan-Michael Key, Awkwafina and Dame Judi Dench, among others, for its AI projects. The company apparently intends to incorporate their voices into a conversational generative AI-slash-digital assistant called MetaAI, which is rumored to be like Siri and Google Assistant, which could live within Facebook, Meta hardware, and all the other parts of the multimillion-dollar social network company.The actors' representatives are still negotiating for stricter limits, though SAG-AFTRA has reportedly agreed on terms with Meta. SAG-AFTRA, if you recall, fought for provisions to protect actors from the threat of job loss due to AI.Didn't Meta already do something like this? Yes. During its Connect event last year, the company also introduced a chatbot platform with 28 characters" voiced by celebrities, including Snoop Dogg, Paris Hilton, Dwyane Wade and Kendall Jenner. However, those celebrity chatbots' pages have since disappeared, and The Information reports that Meta has just quietly scrapped that project.This appears to be more central to Meta's AI ambitions.- Mat SmithThe biggest stories you might have missedWhat to expect from Google's Pixel 2024 eventApple apologizes for another ad that missed the markOpenAI is looking into text watermarking for ChatGPT, which could expose cheating studentsNintendo profits fall 55 percent as people save their cash for the Switch 2Say goodbye to Boomerang, the streaming service dedicated to classic cartoonsYou can get these reports delivered daily direct to your inbox. Subscribe right here!Apple has finally started sending out payments from its butterfly keyboard settlementIt agreed to pay $50 million.Payments relating to a class action lawsuit filed in 2018 over Apple's butterfly MacBook keyboards have reportedly begun. The settlement website now states that payments for approved claims will go out in August, and claimants will receive checks. For some, it could mean a check of up to $395.After Apple introduced the butterfly keyboard in 2015, complaints arose over sticky" and unresponsive keys. A lawsuit filed in 2018 accused Apple of knowing its keyboards had problems and concealing this from consumers. While Apple denied the lawsuit's allegations of defective keyboards, it agreed to pay $50 million as part of a settlement. It also started phasing out the keyboard design in 2019.Continue reading.Instagram scammer faces felony charges after bragging on a podcastIdriss Qibaa is being charged over death threats in social media extortion.A guest who appeared on a podcast to boast about a hack-and-payback scheme involving his victims' social media accounts is now facing the wrath of the FBI. It received a tip about Qibaa's alleged extortion scheme on April 1, pointing to his appearance on the No Jumper podcast. Qibaa outlined a financial scheme using over 200 victims' social media accounts, in which he would lock them out of their pages and charge them to regain access. He added he made about $600,000 a month.Continue reading.Game Informer magazine is shutting downAfter 33 years.Game InformerGame Informer announced its parent company, GameStop, is shutting the magazine after 33 years in the business. The entire website and its archives are gone, redirecting to the magazine's final statement of thanks to its readers. The publication's content director, Kyle Hilliard, said on X the bad news about the mass staff layoffs landed right when they were in the middle of creating an issue. Game Informer launched in August 1991 with Sonic the Hedgehog sprinting across its cover.Continue reading.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-morning-after-meta-is-reportedly-offering-millions-to-get-hollywood-voices-into-its-ai-projects-111549125.html?src=rss

Root Bear is one of those games that seems to get recommended all the time to new Playdate owners looking for somewhere to start. After months of encountering the title on the internet and vaguely wondering what could be so great about a game where all you do is pour root beer for bears, I finally decided to give it a go this weekend. And, yup, I totally get it now. Root Bear is ridiculously fun - emphasis on ridiculous.Root Bear is a $3 Catalog game in which your goal is to achieve the perfect pour from the root beer tap while picky customers (all bears, of course) judge your work. You can also get it on itch.io. The game requires precise use of the crank to get the root beer flowing at just the right rate, and cut it off at just the right time so it doesn't go above or fall short of the desired fill line. There's foam to consider too, and how it settles can really mess you up if you aren't careful. The closer you get to a perfect pour, the more money you'll earn.Alex Sussman/Cole O'Brien/Andrea Cabral/Beau QPIt's exactly the kind of design to bring out a person's competitive streak. But the best part about Root Bear is the bears themselves. Or, their reactions. The first time I royally messed up a customer's order, the bear let loose a Howie Scream that I was in no way prepared for - with a facial expression to match - and I was completely floored. So yes, Root Bear is a really good, really silly time.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/i-finally-understand-the-hype-around-the-playdate-game-root-bear-002037850.html?src=rss

Following a report from The Wall Street Journal that claims OpenAI has been sitting on a tool that can spot essays written by ChatGPT with a high degree of accuracy, the company has shared a bit of information about its research into text watermarking - and why it hasn't released its detection method. According to The Wall Street Journal's report, debate over whether the tool should be released has kept it from seeing the light of day, despite it being ready." In an update published on Sunday to a May blog post, spotted by TechCrunch, OpenAI said, Our teams have developed a text watermarking method that we continue to consider as we research alternatives."The company said watermarking is one of multiple solutions, including classifiers and metadata, that it has looked into as part of extensive research on the area of text provenance." According to OpenAI, it has been highly accurate" in some situations, but doesn't perform as well when faced with certain forms of tampering, like using translation systems, rewording with another generative model, or asking the model to insert a special character in between every word and then deleting that character." And text watermarking could disproportionately impact some groups," OpenAI wrote. For example, it could stigmatize use of AI as a useful writing tool for non-native English speakers."Per the blog post, OpenAI has been weighing these risks. The company also wrote that it has prioritized the release of authentication tools for audiovisual content. In a statement to TechCrunch, an OpenAI spokesperson said the company is taking a deliberate approach" to text provenance because of the complexities involved and its likely impact on the broader ecosystem beyond OpenAI."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/openai-confirms-its-looking-into-text-watermarking-for-chatgpt-that-could-expose-cheating-students-223920531.html?src=rss

In this installment of What We're Listening To, Engadget's Weekend Editor Cheyenne MacDonald dives into the new releases she's been enjoying lately.Francesca Wexler - I Dreamt I Found a Red RubyEvery once in a while, the algorithm" actually does right by me. While scrolling through my Instagram feed sometime in the last month or so, a suggested Reel from artist Francesca Wexler popped up, and I couldn't help but get pulled in by her captivating flow. Her style isn't so easy to nail down to a single genre, but would fit under the alt hip-hop umbrella - she described her work in one instance as psychedelic rap."Some songs on Wexler's latest album, I Dreamt I Found a Red Ruby, have almost an ethereal quality to them, like its opening and closing tracks, Heaven on Earth" and Moonwalking." The upbeat and catchy Ain't I" hits like a sunny day. But there are darker, harder moments too in songs like Amphetamine Man" that really show off Wexler's depth as a rapper. With I Dreamt I Found a Red Ruby, it's evident that Wexler is an artist that shouldn't be slept on.Orville Peck - StampedeOrville Peck didn't make us wait long for a full album after dropping Stampede: Volume 1 in May. On Friday, the country artist released the duets album in its entirety, and even though it hasn't been a full three days yet since it came out, I can already tell it's going to dominate my Most Listened playlists for the foreseeable future.Stampede sees Peck collaborating with country legends and emerging artists alike, and genre-wise, there's a little of everything in there. On top of the songs I shouted out from the first half, the rest of Stampede brings a bunch of new bangers, my favorites including Back At Your Door" featuring Debbii Dawson, Papa Was a Rodeo" featuring Molly Tuttle and Golden Highway, and You're an Asshole, I Can't Stand You (and I Want a Divorce)" featuring Margo Price.Honorable mention: Street CleanerI recently set out looking for music that sounds like it could be straight out of an 80s horror/thriller movie, and Reddit pointed me to Street Cleaner. Well let me tell you, I was not disappointed. Street Cleaner, whose style is described on Bandcamp as being a theatrical and grimey take on synth music," has become my go-to artist to pop on when I need to get some work done or otherwise be locked in.There isn't a particular song or album I've latched onto - I just throw the entire discography on and let it get me in the zone. Street Cleaner released some new music in April, though, and that's as good a place as any to start your listening journey. The artist apparently also made a video game, which I fully plan on checking out.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/what-were-listening-to-i-dreamt-i-found-a-red-ruby-stampede-and-more-205000229.html?src=rss

There's a new hand-drawn platformer coming to PC and consoles, and it looks absolutely breathtaking. The Eternal Life of Goldman, announced on Friday during THQ Nordic's Digital Showcase, is an upcoming title from Weappy Studio that's inspired by ancient fables and depicted in classic frame-by-frame animation." There's no release date just yet, but when it does come out, it'll be available for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC and Nintendo Switch.Weappy describes The Eternal Life of Goldman as a vibrant yet dark platformer adventure that weaves together legends, fairy tales and myths."Its protagonist is an old man who uses his cane to fight off legendary creatures in a land known as the Archipelago. The trailer gives us a glimpse at some gameplay footage, revealing a sprawling and gorgeously animated fantasy world. The developers say it's designed to be challenging but not grueling, and encourages exploration to uncover all the secrets of the Archipelago.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-eternal-life-of-goldman-is-a-gorgeous-platformer-that-looks-like-a-hand-drawn-cartoon-173751928.html?src=rss

Apple's AirTags are the best item trackers an iPhone user can get, and they're going for cheap right now in a deal on Amazon. A four pack of AirTags - normally $100 - is 23 percent off, making it just $76. That's only $1 more than the pack was selling for during Amazon Prime Day. AirTags tap into Apple's Find My network, sending out a signal that can be picked up by nearby devices to guide you to your lost item. AirTags work seamlessly with other devices in the Apple ecosystem and have a battery life of over a year. In addition to helping locate belongings you may have left somewhere outside the home, AirTags can also help you track down items you've misplaced in your immediate surroundings thanks to the Precision Finding feature in the Find My app. You can also ping the AirTag so it'll play a sound that you can follow. AirTags don't have a loop or clip that would allow you to attach them to a keyring, so you'll need to pick up a case if you want to do so. There are all sorts of accessories available for AirTags to secure them to your belongings, including keyring holders and cases designed to adhere to fabric so you can securely stick them in the lining of a jacket or purse. AirTags have an IP67 rating, meaning they'll withstand dust and brief exposure to water, and the CR2032 battery is easily replaceable. The Find My app supports tracking up to 32 items. 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/a-four-pack-of-apple-airtags-is-back-on-sale-for-76-150547693.html?src=rss

Payments relating to a class action lawsuit filed in 2018 over Apple's butterfly MacBook keyboards have reportedly begun to arrive. The settlement website now states that payments for approved claims will go out in August - and sure enough, 9to5Mac's Michael Burkhardt reports that he received two settlement checks in the mail on Saturday. Just how much eligible MacBook owners will get varies depending on the extent of the repairs their devices needed. But for some, it could mean a check (or multiple) of up to $395.After Apple introduced the butterfly keyboard in 2015, complaints arose over sticky" and unresponsive keys, susceptibility to debris and other major issues. The company ultimately started phasing out the design in 2019. The lawsuit filed in 2018 accused Apple of knowing that its keyboards had problems and concealing this from consumers. While Apple denied the lawsuit's allegations of defective keyboards and did not admit to any wrongdoing, it agreed to pay $50 million as part of a settlement.Per the settlement website, people who got two or more topcase replacements within four years of purchasing one of the affected MacBooks are expected to get between $300-$395. MacBook owners who got just one topcase replacement could get up to $125. Claimants who only needed keycap replacements will get a maximum of $50. Of course, to receive a payment, you'd need to have filed any claims by the deadlines outlined in the settlement. And, when the settlement was first reached in 2022, Reuters reported that it will only apply to customers who bought the affected laptops in California, Florida, Illinois, Michigan, New Jersey, New York and Washington. You can find the full details in the case's FAQ.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apple-has-finally-started-sending-out-payments-from-its-butterfly-keyboard-settlement-210754935.html?src=rss

New releases in fiction, nonfiction and comics that caught our attention.Toward Eternity by Anton HurToward Eternity does not waste any time in getting to the drama. The novel by Anton Hur begins in the not-so-far-off future, and opens with a moment of crisis: a patient in a nanotherapy research clinic has seemingly vanished into thin air. This patient had been undergoing a new type of treatment that uses android cells (dubbed nanites") to cure cancer by replacing the body's own cells. In doing so, however, it transforms the body entirely into a nanodroid, giving rise to nano humans" that are no longer subjected to mortality.The story jumps through time and different perspectives, exploring what it means to be human in a world where technology is quickly catching up to biology." From the second I started reading this one, I did not want to put it down.Into the Clear Blue Sky: The Path to Restoring Our Atmosphere by Rob JacksonIt can be hard not to get swept up in the doom and gloom of climate change, especially amid reports marking Earth's hottest years on record and still-rising emissions from fossil fuels. Stanford climate scientist Rob Jackson's new book Into the Clear Blue Sky: The Path to Restoring Our Atmosphere aims to foster a more optimistic outlook by calling attention to the courses of action that could lead us to a better future for our planet and its inhabitants.I view my book as a home repair manual for the planet," Jackson said in a recent interview published by the scientific journal ACS Central Science. It highlights the people and the ideas needed to solve the climate crisis. I want most of all to give people hope, a sense of optimism. Yes, climate change is already bad, but we can still fix this problem."Epitaphs from the Abyss #1Legendary comic book publisher EC Comics, which brought us series like Tales from the Crypt and Weird Science more than 70 years ago, is making a comeback with its first new series in decades: Epitaphs from the Abyss. The first issue of the horror series was released at the end of July and features four tales - which are introduced by a ghoulish narrator dubbed The Grave-Digger.Epitaphs from the Abyss #1 has stories by Brian Azzarello, J. Holtham, Stephanie Phillips and Chris Condon, with art by Lee Bermejo, Phil Hester, Peter Krause and Jorge Fornes. There's something about those old EC Comics that just hits different, and Epitaphs faithfully slips back into that vibe to deliver spooky new stories that have a classic feel.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/what-to-read-books-existential-sci-fi-ai-technology-climate-crisis-solutions-ec-comics-horror-183058573.html?src=rss

Prison Architect 2, the sequel to the 2015 cult hit, isn't coming out this year as its creators had planned. The prison construction simulator's publisher, Paradox Interactive, has announced that its release has been delayed indefinitely. In its post, Paradox has admitted that its internal reviews and beta testing feedbacks surfaced the areas that need more attention, mainly the game's performance and content. "We need to raise the quality a bit more to meet the standards we'd like to achieve with this sequel," it wrote.This latest development comes after a series of delays. Prison Architect 2 was supposed to come out on March 26, but it was pushed back a couple of times so that its developers at Double Eleven and Kokku could resolve issues concerning memory usage and minimum spec configuration. This time, Paradox decided not to set a new release date. It says it will announce a new one once the Prison Architect 2 teams are done reworking the game's scope.Earlier this year, Paradox Interactive also had to deal with the overwhelmingly negative reception for Cities: Skylines 2's Beach Properties asset pack. Players weren't happy with the $10 DLC's contents, especially since they're still waiting for patches for the main game that was riddled with visual and mechanical bugs when it was released in 2023. Prison Architect 2's delay could prevent a repeat of what happened to Cities: Skylines.Paradox explained that improving the game will take time, because it has "deep systems that all interact with each other." If one area is fixed, other parts of the game need to be fixed or adjusted, as well. For now, the publisher and the developers will refund all pre-orders. Those who purchased from Paradox directly will automatically be reimbursed, but those who purchased from the Xbox, PlayStation or Steam stores will have to go through those platforms to get their refund. Paradox will remove the option to pre-order the game entirely and will add the supposed pre-order bonus to the base game instead.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/prison-architect-2-is-delayed-indefinitely-160038125.html?src=rss

NVIDIA has discovered design flaws" in its upcoming series of AI chips that may push their release back at least three months, The Information reports. The company has reportedly started notifying customers of the delay, including Microsoft. Large orders of the new Blackwell chips were initially slated to start shipping sometime this year, but sources told The Information that they're now not expected until early 2025. In addition to Microsoft, the publication reports that Google, Meta and other major companies have placed bulk orders of the Blackwell chips that are collectively worth tens of billions of dollars."NVIDIA announced the Blackwell series chips back in March, touting performance boosts of up to 30 times what's achieved by its flagship H100, which serves as the backbone for some of today's biggest AI systems. The company at the time also said the Blackwell chips could reduce cost and energy consumption by up to 25x." But according to The Information, citing sources involved with the Blackwell chip, design problems arose unusually late in the production process."NVIDIA and its chip manufacturer, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, are now doing test production runs to get to the bottom of the issues, according to The Information, which reports that the first big shipments may not go out until the first quarter.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/nvidias-blackwell-ai-chips-have-reportedly-hit-a-snag-and-may-arrive-months-late-163009474.html?src=rss

A future artificial intelligence product by Meta could have you chatting with celebrities. According to Bloomberg and The New York Times, the company is in talks with Awkwafina, Judi Dench and Keegan-Michael Key, among other celebrities from various Hollywood agencies for its AI projects. The company apparently intends to incorporate their voices into a conversational generative AI-slash-digital assistant called MetaAI, which is similar to Siri and Google Assistant.Meta plans to record their voices and to secure the right to use them for as many situations as possible across Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp and even the Ray-Ban Meta glasses. Bloomberg says negotiations have started and stopped many times, because both sides can't seem to agree with the terms for use. For now, they seemed to have settled on a time limit, meaning any voice the company records can only be used over a set period. However, the deals with the actors could be renewed or extended by the time their contract is up.The actors' representatives are still looking to negotiate for stricter limits, though SAG-AFTRA has reportedly reached an agreement with Meta on terms. SAG-AFTRA, if you'll recall, fought for the establishment of provisions to protect actors from the threat of job loss due to AI when it went on strike last year. Under those terms, a company will have to pay actors and obtain their consent before it can use their AI-generated likeness. If Meta reaches a deal with the actors it's talking to, it could pay them millions of dollars in fees.Meta is looking to finalize deals before its Connect conference in September, The Times says, where it's expected to launch a bunch of AI products. During the same event last year, the company also introduced a chatbot platform with 28 "characters" voiced by celebrities, including Snoop Dogg, Paris Hilton, Dwyane Wade and Kendall Jenner. The Information reports that Meta has just quietly scrapped that project, and the celebrity chatbots' pages on Facebook and Instagram are no longer available.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/meta-is-reportedly-offering-millions-to-use-hollywood-voices-in-ai-projects-121019385.html?src=rss

Apple pulled the latest short film in its The Underdogs: OOO (Out of Office) series set in Thailand. The tech giant scrubbed it over complaints about stereotypical portrayals of Thailand and its people in certain scenes.The Bangkok Post reports that Apple issued an apology to the people of Thailand for the fifth film in its Underdogs series. The ad series features a group of travel weary office workers navigating the world using Apple's various products.Several viewers posted comments criticizing the film's use of a sepia filter to make Thailand seem underdeveloped. The comments also called out the costuming and scenery decisions in its airport scene using outdated representations of Thailand's citizens.Sattra Sripan, the spokesman for the Thai House of Representatives' committee on tourism, called for a boycott over the ad.Thai people are deeply unhappy with the advertisement," Sripan said in a statement. I encourage Thai people to stop using Apple products and change to other brands."Apple issued an apology for the ad shortly after pulling it off of YouTube. Lawmakers have also invited Apple representatives to visit with them to discuss the ads and how they portray Thailand on film.Our intent was to celebrate the country's optimism and culture, and we apologize for not fully capturing the vibrancy of Thailand today," the statement read.This is the second time this year that Apple has apologized for a commercial. Apple pulled an ad back in May that it told AdAge missed the mark" for its new thin iPad Pro. The commercial features a giant pneumatic press crushing a large collection of items used in or to represent creative endeavors such musical instruments, paints, a generic arcade cabinet, and camera equipment. The steel crusher smooshes everything flat and lifts up to reveal an intact iPad sitting on the lower steel block that a voiceover describes as the most powerful iPad ever is also the thinnest."Artists, musicians and other creators took offense to the ad's implied tone that generative AI would replace human artistic endeavors. Apple vowed not to air the ad on TV but it's still on its YouTube page with the comments section disabled.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apple-apologizes-for-another-ad-that-missed-the-mark-220045564.html?src=rss

A guest who appeared on the No Jumper podcast to boast about a hack and payback scheme involving his victims' social media accounts could face federal charges. Idriss Qibaa, also known as Dani" and Unlocked" who authorities allege ran the social media hacking site Unlocked4Life.com, faces two criminal felony counts filed by the US Attorney's Office in Nevada for allegedly violating interstate communications laws for threats he issued in text messages to two victims and members of their families, according to documents obtained by 404 Media.Investigators filed the sealed complaint against Qibaa on July 25 and issued a warrant the following Monday when also made his first initial appearance in court, according to federal court records.The criminal complaint states that the FBI received a tip about Qibaa's alleged extortion scheme on April 1 pointing to an appearance he made on the No Jumper podcast hosted by Adam22, also known as Adam Grandmaison, back in January under his pseudonym Dani." Qibaa outlined a financial scheme using over 200 victims' social media accounts in which he would lock them out of their pages and charge them to regain access.He also boasted that he made about $600,000 a month from his activities and hired two security guards to follow him.You're making $2 million a month off your Instagram and Telegraph," Qibaa says on the podcast. I come and I take it away and make you pay for it back and I make it public and I post it and I expose you."Qibaa even said on the podcast episode that he pulled the scheme on celebrities who unknowingly kept paying him to get their social media back. He later noted I'm very petty" followed by a menacing laugh.I've talked to stars who have told me that they've paid to get it back 20 times over and over and over they just have to keep paying to get it back," Qibaa says, and I'm like you realize what's happening to you right like the same that's getting you it back is...you're getting extorted."The criminal complaint tells the story of eight victims' encounters with Qibaa and his services. One identified as J.T." operated two Instagram accounts: a cannabis news aggregate account called theblacklistxyz" and a cannabis merchandising store under caliplug," both of which are currently set to private. J.T. reached out to Qibaa asking if he could obtain a username. Qibaa quoted a price back between $4,000-$5,000. J.T. refused to take Qibaa up on the offer and Qibaa responded with threats.Qibba told J.T. that J.T. had wasted Qibaa's time, blocked J.T.'s Instagram pages and demanded $10,000 to reinstate it," the complaint reads. J.T. offered Qibaa $8,500 to reinstate the account, an offer Qibaa accepted."The complaint asserts that Qibba reached out to J.T. two more times. The first time, Qibba asked if J.T. would promote his Instagram page under the username unlocked4life" that's since been taken down. J.T. agreed but when he learned Qibaa had been threatening and extorting other victims, he confronted Qibaa and Qibaa was irate."A few months later, Qibaa apparently increased the scope of his threats to J.T. and members of his family. He sent threats to call the victim's ex-wife's lawyer and child protective services on his kids. Screenshots of the victims' phone show Qibaa allegedly identifying the address and phone number of the victim's sister. He texted another family member and introduced himself as The guy that's gonna murder your drug dealer brother. Tell him Unlocked says hi though. We have your entire family's info."Another victim identified as a journalist and comedian with the initials E.H." learned they were a target of Qibaa's illegal services. Qibaa blocked their Instagram account, the name of which was redacted, at the request of a dentist in California who treated them. E.H. reached out to the Unlocked4Life account and received a reply that read, Yo its Idriss." He then told E.H. to pull up the No Jumper podcast episode featuring his interview. Qibaa not only took the victim's Instagram account access away but also threatened to take their Social Security number and blast it out" if they didn't pay him $20,000.According to the complaint, not even restraining orders could make Qibaa leave his victims alone. One named R.B." received a restraining order from Los Angeles County Superior Court in July but Unblocked" responded, Cute restraining order..last I checked you're still gonna die." Then UNLOCKED UNCENSORED" posted on Telegram, $50,000 reward for whoever sleeps BO this week."Perhaps the most disturbing threats happened to several victims in which Qibaa claimed he'd happily go to jail if payments weren't made to him. Screenshots of the text chains show a person named Dani" and Daniel" telling his victims, I will come and shoot you myself," I'm going to bury you for this shit" and D., L., J., T., Children-Main Targets" referring to the victims' children.Another text chain shows Qibaa allegedly threatening someone that he would rather take a life sentence for murdering you then this," Idc if I have to shoot you my self [sic]" and I'll go to jail happily." He follows the text with the threat Here's the last guy that came to take photos / came near my home" and sends three pictures of an unidentified bearded man, his car and a photo of his badly bruised and bloodied on the ground."Adam22 concluded his podcast interview with Dani" saying he was very excited to see the fallout from this" and I respect the hustle even though I can't justify it on a moral level."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/hack-and-payback-instagram-scammer-gets-nabbed-after-bragging-about-it-on-a-podcast-202509349.html?src=rss

Google is phasing out an Olympics ad for its AI-powered chatbot, Gemini, after receiving widespread criticism for showing a father using AI to help his daughter write a fan letter to her favorite athlete. In the 60-second commercial, which is still available on YouTube, a father uses Gemini to write a fan letter to Olympic track star Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, on behalf of his young daughter.She wants to show Sydney some love and I am pretty good with words, but this has to be just right," the dad says in the commercial. So Gemini, help my daughter write a letter telling Sydney how inspiring she is." The ad ends with the words: A little help from Gemini."A Google spokesperson told CNBC that although the ad tested well before it aired, given the feedback, we have decided to phase the ad out of our Olympics rotation." The spokesperson added that the ad's goal was to create an authentic story to celebrate Team USA. We believe that AI can be a great tool for enhancing human creativity, but can never replace it," they added.The commercial showing somebody having a child use AI to write a fan letter to her hero SUCKS," wrote Linda Holmes, the host of NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast, on Threads. Obviously there are special circumstances and people who need help, but as a general look how cool, she didn't even have to write anything herself!' story, it SUCKS. Who wants an AI-written fan letter??"Shelley Palmer, a professor of advanced media at Syracuse University's communications school, strongly criticized the ad in a widely-shared post on her blog. She argued that the commercial's approach could lead to a monocultural future where original human thoughts become increasingly rare" and expressed concern for the ads's implications for parenting and education.The backlash reflects the broader debates around the role of AI in creative processes and its potential impact on the quality of human expression. As AI technologies continue to advance, companies are facing increasing scrutiny not only over how they portray and promote these tools but also about using the work of creative professionals without permission to train AI models.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/google-will-no-longer-air-an-olympics-ad-that-showed-a-child-using-ai-to-write-a-fan-letter-201214273.html?src=rss

The US Department of Justice is suing TikTok for violating a child privacy law and violating a 2019 agreement with the Federal Trade Commission for previous privacy violations. The lawsuit stems from an earlier investigation into the company by the Federal Trade Commission, which referred its privacy case to the DoJ earlier this year.The FTC had been looking into whether TikTok had violated the terms of an earlier privacy settlement with Musical.ly, which was acquired by ByteDance prior to the launch of TikTok. According to the FTC, the investigation found that TikTok had flagrantly" violated both the 2019 settlement and the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).In a statement, the Justice Department also cited TikTok's collection of personal information about children on its platform and its failure to comply with the requests for the information to be deleted.

Warner Bros. Discovery is shuttering Boomerang, a streaming service dedicated to classic cartoons, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The platform started as a digital cable channel back in 2000 before expanding to a streaming platform in 2017.Boomerang will officially cease operations on September 30, giving subscribers around two months to quickly binge every Looney Tunes, Tom and Jerry and Scooby-Doo cartoon. However, some content will be folded into Max. The linear channel will continue to operate via cable and satellite providers, reaching an estimated 26 million homes.Additionally, Boomerang subscribers will be grandfathered into Max's ad-free tier with no change" to the subscription price until further notice," according to an email sent to users. That's a dang good deal, as Boomerang costs $6 per month and Max's ad-free plan currently costs $17 per month.MaxMax, however, is already home to much of the same programming as Boomerang. This includes Looney Tunes shorts, several Scooby-Doo shows, Tom and Jerry and The Flintstones, among others. It's also home to the entire catalog of Cartoon Network shows and plenty of DC animated series, like Harley Quinn.The company hasn't specified which shows and movies would be making the move to Max, simply telling subscribers that some Boomerang content may not be available" after September 30.Boomerang isn't the only cartoon-adjacent streaming platform on the chopping block. Kid-friendly Noggin shut down earlier this year after layoffs at parent company Paramount Global. On the upside, Disney+ has plenty of cartoons, given the pedigree, and the same goes for Netflix and Prime Video.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/say-goodbye-to-boomerang-the-streaming-service-dedicated-to-classic-cartoons-182127381.html?src=rss

Another giant name in the gaming press is shutting down its operations. Game Informer announced today that it's been shut down by its parent company GameStop after 33 years in the business. The entire website and its archives have also been removed and now redirect to the magazine's final statement of thanks to its readers.After 33 thrilling years of bringing you the latest news, reviews and insights from the ever-evolving world of gaming, it is with a heavy heart that we announce the closure of Game Informer," the publication's statement reads.

Instagram is blocked in Turkey amid a dispute over Hamas-related content on the platform. The app has been inaccessible in the country since Friday morning. Netblocks, an organization that tracks internet and social media outages, confirmed that Instagram had been restricted in the country.Turkish regulators didn't specify why the block was in place but, as Bloomberg reports, the crackdown on Instagram appears to be related to its handling of Hamas-related posts on the platform. On Friday, Turkey's head of communications Fahrettin Altun, said in a post on X that Instagram is actively preventing people from posting messages of condolences" for Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas leader who was killed earlier this week.Meta hasn't publicly commented on the block.It's not the first time Turkish authorities have blocked a major social media service. Twitter was briefly blocked in the country last year following a devastating earthquake that killed thousands of people. YouTube and Twitter were also blocked in 2014.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/turkey-has-blocked-instagram-amid-a-dispute-over-hamas-related-content-175934777.html?src=rss

It's Friday, which means it's time for another roundup of good tech deals. Our latest edition is headed up by a few notable discounts from the PlayStation Store's Summer Sale. Both the standard and digital versions of the PS5 are $50 off, for one - not a huge price drop, but still about as low as we usually see the consoles fall. The soon-to-be-improved PlayStation VR2 is down to $349, a $200 discount, while a number of our favorite PS5 games are also on sale. Beyond that, Apple's entry-level AirPods are back down to a low of $70, several Amazon Echo devices are available for the prices we saw during Prime Day and Google's Pixel 8a is at a new low ahead of the company's big Pixel hardware event later this month. Here are the best tech deals from this week you can still buy today. 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/the-playstation-5-is-50-off-plus-the-rest-of-the-weeks-best-tech-deals-170024467.html?src=rss

Tesla is facing yet more legal action over Autopilot after the parents of a motorcyclist who was killed in a crash involving a Model 3 sued the company. The plaintiffs, who also sued the driver of the Tesla, claimed that the car's driver assistant tech and other safety measures are defective and inadequate."The plaintiffs argued in the complaint, which was obtained by Reuters, that Autopilot sensors and cameras should have identified the hazard posed by" the motorcycle. Autopilot was engaged when the Model 3 struck the back of Landon Embry's motorcycle at 75-80 miles per hour in Utah in 2022. Embry died at the scene.His parents also claim the Model 3 driver was tired and that "a reasonably prudent driver, or adequate auto braking system, would have, and could have slowed or stopped without colliding with the motorcycle." Tesla does not have a public relations department that can be reached for comment.This is the latest in a long line of legal and regulatory issues that Tesla has contended with over the Autopilot and Full Self-Driving features. Just this week, Washington state investigators determined that a Tesla Model S involved in a fatal crash with a motorcycle in April had Full Self-Driving engaged at the time.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/tesla-sued-over-fatal-autopilot-crash-164723952.html?src=rss

THQ Nordic is holding a livestream showcase event at 3PM ET and you can watch it live via the YouTube embed placed below. If YouTube isn't your bag, the event will also stream on the company's Twitch channel and its Steam page.The company says the digital showcase will offer updates on a bunch of games, like Titan Quest II, Way of the Hunter, Disney Epic Mickey: Rebrushed and the upcoming remake of Gothic 1. The press release does suggest that there will be more games spotlighted during the event, but didn't name names. It also says there will be new announcements."There's a car-shaped elephant in the room here. The press release advertising the event is titled The day of (W)reckoning is at hand." This is almost certainly a reference to the company's long-gestating racing franchise Wreckfest. Are we getting a sequel or maybe a remake? Time will tell.Not that much time though. The stream officially starts at 3PM ET, but there's a pre-show at 2:45 ET hosted by HandyGames. This subsidiary of THQ Nordic is responsible for titles like Lock's Quest and Townsmen - A Kingdom Rebuilt, among others.One final thing. If you're into puzzles or internet-based mysteries, THQ Nordic did drop a hint about something else that would be covered during the event. The Wheel of Fortune-esque teaser simply says _ _ e E _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ e _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _." Make of that what you will.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/watch-thq-nordics-digital-showcase-at-3pm-et-164018041.html?src=rss

After a couple of months of beta testing on consoles to iron out some bugs, Valorantis now properly available on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S in some regions. You can dive into the free-to-play tactical shooter on the consoles if you're in the US, Canada, Europe, Japan or Brazil. Riot plans to open up the game to console players in other regions down the line.Riot says it optimized the gameplay for consoles, which included the addition of a new Focus shooting mode that's a bit like hipfire, but with lower sensitivity for greater precision. There won't be any support for crossplay between PC and consoles so as to maintain competitive integrity, but you will have access to all your purchased or earned cosmetics and there will be shared progression across all platforms. Riot also notes that there will be parity between all platforms in terms of balance changes and added agents, maps, premium content and other features."We believe there are millions of players that would love to play Valorant, but currently can't, and we hope to change that with bringing Valorant to consoles," Valorant production designer Arnar Gylfason said in a statement. "We aim to provide them the joy of the Valorant experience and all it entails: a core tactical shooter gameplay focused on mastery and player expression, a team-based competitive environment where match quality and fairness comes first, our amazing ecosystem with a unique style, high-quality cosmetics and a thriving community that values personal and competitive identity."This is a significant step for Riot as Valorant is its first live-service game on console - the likes of League of Legends and Teamfight Tactics remain PC-only. However, the publisher plans to bring its upcoming LoL-based fighting game 2XKOto PlayStation and Xbox as well.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/valorant-is-now-out-of-beta-on-playstation-5-and-xbox-series-xs-160016521.html?src=rss

Apple has been pressuring ByteDance and Tencent to close loopholes in China that funnel customers to external payment systems for making in-app purchases, according to a report by Bloomberg. Anyone living in the West knows the drill here. Apple wants that 30 percent commission.Reporting indicates this pressure campaign began in May. Apple allegedly warned Tencent that it would reject crucial WeChat updates if it didn't eliminate the ability for users to make payments outside of Apple's ecosystem. Tencent complied with the original request, issuing an update in July, but Apple went one step further.WeChat is home to thousands of third-party mini-games and experiences. Apple asked Tencent to disable in-game chat between creators and players, as that's another theoretical loophole that could funnel users to third-party payment systems. Tencent has yet to agree to this request.Back in June, Apple reportedly did something similar with ByteDance. It threatened to withhold updates of Douyin, which is basically the Chinese version of TikTok, unless it plugged any gaps that steer users away from that much-coveted 30 percent commission. According to Bloomberg, ByteDance has yet to issue a formal response.These are aggressive moves on the part of Apple. China is the world's largest smartphone market, sure, but the iPhone isn't the dominant brand throughout the country. As a matter of fact, the phone failed to crack the top five in sales last quarter and the company recently experienced a 6.5 percent decline in profits.It's also worth noting that both ByteDance and Tencent aren't happy corporate warriors looking out for the little guy. These massive companies levy their own commissions on creators and likely didn't want Apple cutting into their bottom lines.An Apple spokesperson was unusually blunt in a statement to Bloomberg, simply saying that company guidelines dictate that the sale of all digital goods must go through its system and that the review team has the power to reject app submissions that violate that policy. Neither Tencent or ByteDance issued a comment to Bloomberg.China, like the rest of the world, has been cracking down on walled gardens like Apple's App Store. Despite the country's hesitance to continue allowing closed ecosystems controlled by a single entity, Apple CEO Tim Cook is bullish about its prospects in China. We continue to be confident in the long-term opportunity in China," he said during a recent earnings call. I don't know how every chapter of the book reads, but we're very confident in the long term."Apple is facing numerous legal hurdles all over the world regarding its Hungry Hungry Hippos approach to gobbling up commission fees. The European Commission issued a ruling that dictates it must allow app developers to steer users to payment systems and offers outside of the App Store. The company also faces potential fines from the EU, to the tune of ten percent of global annual revenue. As for the US, Epic sued Apple over its developer transaction fee policy and many other companies have expressed their own concerns. It's also worth nothing that Tencent owns a 40 percent stake in Epic Games.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apple-is-fighting-tencent-and-bytedance-over-in-app-payments-in-china-155949462.html?src=rss

People are so excited for the next-gen Switch, they're likely holding off on buying Nintendo's current consoles and games. At least that's what the company's latest earnings report seems to indicate. For the quarter ending on June 30, Nintendo posted a net profit of 80.9 billion Japanese Yen, which is higher than its forecast but over 50 percent lower than its net profit for the same period last fiscal year. In addition, the company said it only sold 2.1 million Switch consoles for the quarter. That means it experienced a 46.3 percent decline on unit sales year-on-year. Even its games didn't sell well, seeing as Nintendo posted a software sales figure that's 41.3 percent lower than last fiscal year's at 30.64 million units sold.In its report, Nintendo admits that the low sales figures for games was caused by the lack of big releases, such as the previous year's The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. The Super Mario Bros. Movie also helped "energize" its business back then. But since hardware sales for this quarter are similar to the previous one's, Nintendo considers its Switch sales to be stable.Nintendo is expected to launch its "Switch 2" console soon. It was expected to come out sometime this year, but according to reports published in the previous months, it will be released in early 2025 instead. There's still very little known about the upcoming console, but rumors say it will have backwards compatibility, as well as 4K capabilities.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/nintendo-profits-fall-55-percent-as-people-save-their-cash-for-the-switch-2-140019403.html?src=rss

Our pick for the best budget Android phone is looking even better right now as the Google Pixel 8a has dropped to a new all-time-low price. You can pick up the device for $399. That's 20 percent off the regular price, and it's even lower than any of the deals we saw for it during Prime Day. The Pixel 8a has the same Tensor G3 chip as the rest of the Pixel 8 lineup, which means you get access to the same AI features that its higher-end siblings have. We're fans of the cameras, 120Hz OLED display and battery life too (it lasted 20-and-a-half hours on our video rundown test). IP67 dust and water resistance is definitely welcome as is Qi wireless charging, even if it's not the fastest at a max capacity of 7.5 watts. Add all of that up and it's little surprise that the Google Pixel 8a earned a score of 90 in our review. But that's not all, folks. The rest of the Pixel lineup is on sale too. The standard Pixel 8 with 128GB of storage is $499, which is $200 off the regular price. We gave that model a score of 90 in our review. The Pixel 8 Pro pipped that, however, with a score of 93. That's our pick for the best Android phone on the market right now, and you can pick up one with 128GB of storage for $699, or $300 off. This all comes with one key caveat in that Google is set to unveil the Pixel 9 lineup later this month. Those are expected to have more fancy features (some of which will come to Pixel 8 devices eventually), a more deeply integrated Gemini AI chatbot, an upgraded chipset and a revamped camera system. If you want the latest Pixel device - which will come with an extra year of software support - it'll be worth holding off for a couple of weeks. However, if you need a new phone of the Android variety right now, you can't really go wrong with any of the above options. 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/the-google-pixel-8a-drops-to-a-new-low-of-399-135125969.html?src=rss

Intel is extending the warranties for its controversial Core 13th and 14th-gen processors by two years, it has announced in a community post. The company says it will share more details in coming days, but for now, customers just waiting for their computers to conk out can at least know that they may not have to spend money to replace their processors. Intel revealed in July that after extensive analysis, it found that elevated operating voltage was causing these particular processor models' instability issues for a lot of people.A microcode algorithm has apparently been sending incorrect voltage requests to the processor, causing users' computers to crash. The company is working on a patch that it plans to release in mid-August, but for some people, it may be too late: As Tom's Hardware notes, the patch will not fix processors that are already crashing. An indie gaming studio called Alderon Games reported that based on its personnel's observations, the processors' failure rate is 100 percent. Even CPUs that work well deteriorate and fail in the end. That's why an extended warranty is very much welcome, especially since some models only have a year-long warranty."Intel is committed to making sure all customers who have or are currently experiencing instability symptoms on their 13th and/or 14th Gen desktop processors are supported in the exchange process," the company wrote in its announcement. It also admitted that "this has been a challenging issue to unravel and definitively root cause." For now, Intel advises those who purchased systems from computer manufacturers to reach out to the brand's support team. Meanwhile, people who purchased boxed CPUs for their PCs can contact Intel's customer support.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/intel-makes-good-on-cpu-instability-issues-by-extending-warranties-by-two-years-130010567.html?src=rss

The Federal Communications Commission's voted to restore net neutrality protections back in April, but the process isn't as smooth-sailing as its proponents would like. According to Reuters and Fast Company, the Sixth Circuit US Court of Appeals has temporarily blocked the rules from taking effect because the broadband providers' legal case challenging their reinstatement will likely succeed. A group of cable, telecom and mobile internet providers sued the FCC shortly after its three Democrat commissioners voted to restore net neutrality protectionsUnder net neutrality rules, broadband services are classified as essential communications resources. That gives the FCC the power to regulate broadband internet and to prohibit providers from offering paid prioritization, which some ISPs have been using to charge bandwidth-heavy companies like Netflix additional fees. It will also prevent ISPs from blocking or slowing down traffic to specific websites.Net neutrality's opponents have long argued that the rules will put off investors. The group of providers that filed this recent case against the FCC said the rules' reinstatement would force them to "forego valuable new services, incur prohibitive compliance costs and pay more to obtain capital." In its decision, the court wrote that the "commission has failed to satisfy the high bar for imposing such regulations and that "net neutrality is likely a major question requiring clear congressional authorization."The commission originally approved net neutrality rules back in 2015, though they have been in the works for years before that. Under the Trump administration, however, the FCC had voted to roll back the rules and to reclassify broadband internet services back to Title I, which means the agency would have less oversight on the industry. The rules were supposed to take effect on July 22 after the FCC voted to reinstate them, but a court blocked them from taking effect until August 5. Now, net neutrality's proponents will have to wait even longer. The appeals court has scheduled oral arguments discussing the issue for late October or early November, before or during the 2024 US presidential election.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/court-blocks-the-fccs-efforts-to-restore-net-neutrality-again-123029311.html?src=rss

The surprise 2022 hit PowerWash Simulator has already seen loads of extra content like a DeLorean car washing DLC and even a special edition to aid mental health research. However, the latest update gave users more than developer FuturLab bargained for, according to a recent post on X.The company released a cruise ship DLC yesterday (Summer Seasonal 2024), but multiple users on Steam complained that they couldn't play it. While a fix was being readied, an upcoming level called "Muckingham Files 4" was somehow released for free onto Steam. Consequently, users on that platform (and no others) can now play both both levels.

When most tech companies are challenged with a lawsuit, the expected defense is to deny wrongdoing. To give a reasonable explanation of why the business' actions were not breaking any laws. Music AI startups Udio and Suno have gone for a different approach: admit to doing exactly what you were sued for.Udio and Suno were sued in June, with music labels Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group and Sony Music Group claiming they trained their AI models by scraping copyrighted materials from the Internet. In a court filing today, Suno acknowledged that its neural networks do in fact scrape copyrighted material: "It is no secret that the tens of millions of recordings that Suno's model was trained on presumably included recordings whose rights are owned by the Plaintiffs in this case." And that's because its training data "includes essentially all music files of reasonable quality that are accessible on the open internet," which likely include millions of illegal copies of songs.But the company is taking the line that its scraping falls under the umbrella of fair use. "It is fair use under copyright law to make a copy of a protected work as part of a back-end technological process, invisible to the public, in the service of creating an ultimately non-infringing new product," the statement reads. Its argument seems to be that since the AI-generated tracks it creates don't include samples, illegally obtaining all of those tracks to train the AI model isn't a problem.Calling the defendants' actions "evading and misleading," the RIAA, which initiated the lawsuit, had an unsurprisingly harsh response to the filing. "Their industrial scale infringement does not qualify as fair use'. There's nothing fair about stealing an artist's life's work, extracting its core value, and repackaging it to compete directly with the originals," a spokesperson for the organization said. "Defendants had a ready lawful path to bring their products and tools to the market - obtain consent before using their work, as many of their competitors already have. That unfair competition is directly at issue in these cases."Whatever the next phase of this litigation entails, prepare your popcorn. It should be wild.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/ai-startup-argues-scraping-every-song-on-the-internet-is-fair-use-233132459.html?src=rss