Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

The latest Pixel feature drop is here with Google rolling updates across its family of smartphones and wearables. If you're a Pixel 9 owner in the US, you'll soon have access to a new version of Pixel Studio capable of creating stickers and images of people. As a refresher, Pixel Studio is an AI image app that is exclusive to Pixel devices. "Just type a description of a person or scene you'd like to see, or choose the style you want, like 'video game' or '3D cartoon,'" Google says of the new feature. The approach Google taking here is similar to the one Apple currently employs with Image Playground. Photorealistic images are off the table so that you can't use Pixel Studio to confuse your friends and family.Beyond Pixel Studio, Google is bringing other AI features to the Pixel family in the US and beyond. Most notably, the company's live scam protection, which Google brought to testers last fall, is expanding to more devices, with additional functionality for those with Pixel 9 handsets in the US.If you own a Pixel 9, it will start screening English calls to protect you from scams. On the Pixel 6 and newer, Google is expanding the availability of scam text detection, with the feature rolling out to phones in the US, Canada and United Kingdom. Meanwhile, Pixel 9 and Pixel 8 Pro users in Japan can look forward to a large portion of the brand's AI suite, including Pixel Screenshots and Pixel Studio, rolling out to their devices. Similarly, Google is making many of those same features available to Pixel 9 users in Germany.GoogleIf AI features aren't your thing, this month's Pixel drop won't leave you disappointed. To start, Google is updating its Find My Device app to allow users to send and receive the location of friends and family, "so you can rest easy knowing where they are, or that they got where they were going safely." This is rolling out to recent Pixel devices, and more broadly the wider Android ecosystem. One other nifty new feature allows Pixel 9 owners to connect their phone to a recent GoPro camera or another Pixel phone to stream video from multiple angles.Google hasn't forgotten about Pixel Watch users. If you're running the latest model, the company has obtained clearance from the FDA to offer its Loss of Pulse Detection feature. "This first-of-its-kind feature can detect when you've experienced a loss of pulse," Google explains. A loss of pulse can occur due to a cardiac arrest, a respiratory or circulatory failure, overdose or poisoning. Whatever the case, the Pixel Watch 3 will automatically call emergency services if the user is unresponsive.Google is also rolling out on-device menstrual tracking to the Pixel Watch 3, and the entire Watch family will start tracking steps with greater precision and accuracy. This is due to the fact Google has made the underlying algorithm better at recognizing when you deviate from your usual walking pattern to go do something like push a shopping cart or wheelchair. "The improved algorithm ensures that not only are your steps accurately counted toward your daily goal, but that you'll get reliable insights into your daily activities."The March Pixel drop is starting to roll out today. As usual, it may take a few days before the update is available to download on your device.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/googles-pixel-studio-can-now-generate-images-and-stickers-of-people-170032821.html?src=rss

Acclaim was one of the biggest gaming brands in the '80s and '90s, but the company ran into trouble in the the early 2000s. It filed for bankruptcy in 2004 and it was sold off in parts. Now, more than twenty years later, a group of industry veterans has revived the publisher with the aim of supporting indie developers and revitalizing its own gaming franchises.The company will help indie studios on the funding, marketing and PR fronts. That's very welcome news, especially at a time when funding is tougher to come by.Acclaim's plan to revive its own catalog of gaming IP is pretty exciting too. The company, which was founded in 1987, published the console and PC versions of the NBA Jam and Mortal Kombat series, as well as a string of licensed games, including WWF titles, The Simpsons: Bart's Nightmare, Spider-Man games, Alien 3, Terminator 2: Judgement Day, Space Jam and many more. Acclaim also published the first games in the Burnout and Turok franchises.CEO Alex Josef said in a press release that Acclaim has already signed some indie games and it plans to reveal those soon. But here's hoping the publisher gives the people what they really want: a modern take on NBA Jam.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/acclaim-is-back-from-the-ashes-to-support-indie-games-and-revive-its-own-classic-franchises-165005620.html?src=rss

Shure just revealed the MoveMic 88+ wireless direct-to-phone microphone with four selectable polar patterns. The company says this is the first-ever microphone of its type to offer this feature. For the uninitiated, polar patterns dictate where a microphone picks up sound. Most of the mics in this category offer just an omnidirectional polar pattern, which records equally from all sides. Some companies swap that out for a cardioid pattern, which picks up audio from a single direction. The MoveMic 88+ offers access to both of the aforementioned polar patterns, in addition to bi-directional and raw mid-side. Why does any of this matter? It increases the versatility of the microphone. The cardioid pattern is perfect for, say, a TikTok video or an acoustic performance. The bi-directional pattern would be the go-to choice for a two-person interview and the omnidirectional pattern is the one to select for a field recording. The microphone also offers a bevy of mounting options. It attaches to most popular tripods and mic stands with included mic clips and can be used as a handheld microphone. It pairs directly with a mobile phone via Shure's MOTIV app, without the need for the company's MoveMic Receiver. It can, however, integrate with the receiver if you want to use it with a regular camera or a computer. The app also gives users controls over the audio signal, with settings like gain, EQ, high pass filter and more. The wireless range maxes out at 100 feet and the battery lasts around eight hours per charge. The MoveMic 88+ is available right now for $299 and comes with a cold shoe mic clip, 5/8" mic clip and USB-C charging cable. Shure Shure introduced another wireless direct-to-phone microphone last year, but that one didn't feature selectable polar patterns. It also recently unveiled a pretty nifty condenser mic that includes a built-in two-channel audio interface. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/shures-movemic-88-is-the-first-wireless-direct-to-phone-microphone-with-selectable-polar-patterns-164052767.html?src=rss

Late last year, Australia passed a law banning social media for all people under 16 years old. Now, some of those companies - namely Meta, TikTok and Snap - are not happy at one exception: YouTube. Australia has deemed YouTube as a critical education tool and is allowing use, despite an original assumption that the Google-owned platform would be included, Reuters and The Guardian reports.This follows last month's report from Australia's eSafety Commissioner, which found that YouTube is the most popular platform with 13 to 15-year-olds - with just under three-fourths of that age range using it in 2024. Notably, anyone under 16 needs to be part of a family account that offers parental supervision rights to use YouTube.Remarks from big tech were pointed. "It is illogical to restrict two platforms while exempting the third. It would be akin to banning the sale of soft drinks to minors but exempting Coca-Cola," said TikTok's director of public policy in Australia and New Zealand, Ella Woods-Joyce. Meanwhile, Meta called out the Australian government for failed transparency and making "a mockery of the government's stated intention, when passing the age ban law, to protect young people."Snap reiterated its fellow platforms' concerns, stating, "There must be a fair and impartial application of exclusions and all services should be held to the same standard." At the same time, Snap is arguing that it's a messaging service and thus shouldn't be part of the ban.Australia's ban on social media for under 16-year-olds should go into effect towards the end of this year. Time will tell whether big tech's outrage will change its impact on YouTube.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/meta-tiktok-argue-youtube-should-be-included-in-australias-under-16-social-media-ban-160220248.html?src=rss

Repairing your iPhone without shelling out lots of money to Apple has long felt impossible. But, with recent Right to Repair laws in the likes of Colorado and Oregon, the new iPhones are a bit easier to repair without ever setting foot in an Apple store. This shift includes Apple's latest product, the iPhone 16e, which debuted last month. It received a provisional 7/10 rating from iFixit thanks to features like a new repair guide for the USB-C port and its easy-release battery adhesive.The charging port repair guide is a big deal and something even the other iPhone 16s don't offer. However, that's not to say it's a simple process. First, you have to remove the back glass, selfie camera, top earpiece speaker, battery, Taptic Engine and the list goes on. Then you have to lift up the logic board to access the port replacement bit. So, it's still a bit of a mess, but at least you now know you're taking the right steps as you go along it.The iPhone also offers the same electrically released battery adhesive as its fellow iPhone 16 models. It replaces the stretch-release adhesive which never worked as well as you'd hope. This is also the first time an iPhone has Apple's C1 modem after a decade of rumored development. iFixit got down and dirty with the logic board to explore the C1 modem. The team went so far as to run the C1 through a CT scanner, which revealed that there's not a trace of Qualcomm tech in the package.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/ifixit-tears-down-the-iphone-16e-now-with-repairable-usb-c-charging-port-151558784.html?src=rss

The Google Nest Wi-Fi Pro 6E is now 50 percent off at $99. That's a whole $100 off, and if you've been eyeing a Wi-Fi upgrade, now might be the time. Google claims this mesh router can provide coverage up to 2,200 square feet, and the signal won't lose strength even at the edge of that area. You also have lower latency than Wi-Fi 6, so your internet usage will be smoother overall. Because Wi-Fi 6E offers three bands compared to the two Wi-Fi 6 and older has, the network can divide the burden across more bands and reduce interference. This sounds complicated, but Google designed the Nest Wi-Fi Pro to be a more straightforward device you can set up and then forget. Besides receiving regular security and software updates, the router can adjust the network's performance and fix simple problems. Plus, it integrates well with Google services and smart home devices. Just make sure you're using the latest Nest Wi-Fi and Google Wi-Fi devices. The Google Nest Wi-Fi Pro 6E is on our best mesh Wi-Fi systems list due to its ease of use. It's admittedly lacking in the customization department, but the simplicity makes up for it if the former isn't a concern. 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/pick-up-the-nest-wi-fi-pro-6e-while-its-50-percent-off-150954369.html?src=rss

More than a month after their reveal at CES 2025, I think it's fair to say NVIDIA's 50 series RTX GPUs are a disappointment. Between manufacturing issues, the company's misleading marketing around the 5070 and minimal performance gains over the 40 series, this might be one of NVIDIA's worst releases in recent memory. But the worst part of it all has been watching history repeat itself.Looking back at the last few weeks, I'm reminded of an article I wrote in 2022. The short of it was I bought an RTX 3070 in August of that year, or little more than two years before NVIDIA announced the GeForce 40 series. Plenty of readers rightfully pointed out that I was wrong about the effect the crypto market would have on future pricing, but I think my underlying reasoning was sound. I bought the 3070 when I did because I had a feeling NVIDIA's new GPUs would cost more than their 30 series counterparts and that finding a new card at release for a reasonable price would be nearly impossible. And I was right: 40 series cards were difficult to find at launch.Here we are two years later at the start of a new GPU generation, and we're doing this all over again. If you're just a regular person looking to upgrade your gaming PC, not only is it impossible to find a 50 series GPU in stock anywhere, but nearly every single model is priced far above NVIDIA's suggested price. There's no pandemic to blame this time, so what gives?Devindra Hardawar for EngadgetThe problem is that trends during COVID set a precedent. Since 2020, some people have been willing to pay whatever it costs to buy NVIDIA new cards at launch. The difference now is that rather than give scalpers the chance to profit on that behavior, NVIDIA's partners have decided to take that money for themselves. The end result is that the company's GPUs are now marked up as high as the market will tolerate, and they will continue to carry outrageous prices as long as supply is limited.It's time we admit the business model at the heart of the GPU industry is broken. For the uninitiated, AIBs (or add-in board partners) like ASUS, Gigabyte, XFX, and Zotac produce the majority of GPUs you can buy from NVIDIA and AMD. In the past, this model led to differentiation between cards in the same tier. For instance, there was a time in the mid-aughts where you could spend extra to buy a GeForce 8800 GT with 1GB of VRAM instead of the 512GB specified by NVIDIA. However, those days are long gone.Modern AIB GPUs can feature slight overclocks or an extra fan but fundamentally they're all the same product. Whether you buy a 5070 directly from NVIDIA or one of its partners, it will still be a 5070. At best, you might see a few percentage point difference in performance if you pick a model with an overclock or additional cooling, and yet pricing can vary dramatically between different AIBs and even within one company's lineup.Digital Foundry's Alex Battaglia said it best in one of the outlet's recent DF Direct episodes. "The AIB model seems, for a lot of cards, like some weird middle man that purely exists to extract more value from the consumer, and doesn't offer valid differentiation for the price increase."Just look at the 5070 Ti. According to NVIDIA's website, pricing starts at $749. However, retailer websites tell a different story. If you visit Newegg, for instance, there's not a single 5070 Ti listed for $749. The most affordable one comes in at $799, with every other option priced above $830. There's even one listed at $920. Needless to say, the 5070 Ti is a very different (and worse) value proposition at $900 than it is at $750.Newegg briefly blamed the Trump administration's recent tariffs on Chinese imports for the inflated price of NVIDIA's new 50 series GPU, and that would have been a plausible explanation if the cost of those cards went up by only 10 percent.NVIDIA seems uninterested in tackling the problem in a meaningful way. So far, the best solution it has offered is a program that gives an unspecified number of US customers the chance to buy a 5090 or 5080 directly from the company. Provided they deliver the performance the company is promising, AMD's new $549 Radeon 9070 and 9070 XT cards will put pressure on NVIDIA to price the 5070 and 5070 Ti more aggressively, but it remains to be seen if AMD will manage to keep the cards in stock and at their suggested retail price.Pricing for this generation's GPUs will normalize eventually, but unless there's a fundamental change to how the industry does business, you can bet all of this will happen again. Just because the industry has always done things this way doesn't mean we should settle for business as usual - especially as the status quo gets worse every launch cycle.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/the-gpu-market-is-built-on-a-broken-foundation-143100986.html?src=rss

Apple has been steadily updating its product lineup over the last year or so to make sure as many devices work with Apple Intelligence as possible. But shockingly enough, the new base iPad now has an A16 chip rather than the A14 in the previous model. That'll certainly provide better performance, but it's not enough for Apple Intelligence. It's an obvious way to differentiate this iPad from the just-updated iPad Air, which now has an M3 chip. The two most recent Air models also work with Apple Intelligence. One nice thing here is that Apple doubled the storage and kept prices the same - the 128GB model costs $349, and you can also get it with 256GB or 512GB of storage. It comes in blue, pink, silver and yellow. Besides the A16, much remains the same here, though. The iPad still has a 10.9-inch screen (that they're just calling 11 inches at this point) that lacks some of the niceties you'll find on the iPad Air display like full lamination to the front glass and an antireflective coating. It has basically the same camera array as other non-Pro iPads at this point, a 12-megapixel shooter on both the front and back. There's no Face ID, unsurprisingly - you'll need to authenticate with Touch ID on the power button. As with the iPad Air, the new base iPad is open for pre-orders now and will be available on March 12. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/tablets/apple-updates-the-base-ipad-with-an-a16-chip-and-more-storage-141208654.html?src=rss

It's been less than a year since Apple update the iPad Air, but the company is taking another opportunity to speed things up by adding the M3 chip to the mix. The new iPad Air still comes in 11- and 13-inch sizes and starts at the same price as the prior model - $599 for the 11-inch and $799 for the 13-inch. It also works with a redesigned Magic Keyboard, similar to the one Apple introduced last May with the iPad Pro. It's definitely a strange update, given that Apple doesn't typically upgrade its iPads on an annual basis at this point. And an M3 versus the M2 that it had before likely won't make a big difference to most users - the iPad Air already worked with Apple Intelligence, and the M-series chip also enables it to use the more advanced Stage Manager multitasking mode. I guess moving to the M3 means Apple can get one step closer to winding down M2 production. Most other specs appear identical to last year's model. The 11- and 13-inch displays are the same resolution and are still stuck at a 60Hz refresh rate, though they are fully laminated to the glass and have an antireflective coating, unlike the screen on the base iPad (which was also just updated). It still uses Touch ID on the power button rather than Face ID, and storage (which starts at 128GB) remains unchanged. As usual, you can get 5G wireless capabilities for an extra $150. Surprisingly enough, Apple cut the price of the updated Magic Keyboard - it now starts at $269 for the 11-inch and $319 for the 13-inch, $30 less than before in both cases. It's a lighter and thinner keyboard than the one it replaces, and adds an extremely handy function key row to the top. There are a few differences to the keyboard compared to the iPad Pro model, though. It isn't backlit, and the trackpad doesn't have haptic feedback. Still, it's a definite step up over the older model Apple offered, at a better price as well. That said, it's identical in size to the M2 model, so an older Magic Keyboard should work without issue. Pre-orders start today, and the new iPad Air will ship on March 12. In case you were curious, it looks like it comes in the same four colors as the last model: space grey, starlight silver, purple and blue. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/tablets/apple-updates-the-ipad-air-with-an-m3-chip-and-a-new-magic-keyboard-140525345.html?src=rss

Peak Design may have recently begun dabbling in tripods and dedicated smartphone accessories, but it started as a bag maker. It's continuing that tradition by announcing its first-ever roller luggage, the Roller Pro Carry-On. This bag is appropriate to stow away overhead during flights, thus the name, but also comes with some tech-friendly features.First of all, there's a hidden compartment specifically for an AirTag tracker. That would come in mighty handy in the case of a mistaken identity/swapped luggage type of deal like in the movies. It also boasts external gear loops for hooking stuff like tripods. There's a protected pocket for chargers, headphones, tablets and laptops.The Roller Pro has been designed to accommodate the company's newly-announced XL-sized Camera Cube. This container fills the entire volume of the Roller Pro and holds a 400mm prime lens, along with other camera accessories. The company says it turns the bag into a mobile creative workstation for photographers on location or in the studio." It also eliminates the need for a dedicated camera roller.Tech aside, this is a piece of luggage. To that end, the carbon fiber handle has been designed for maximal strength in a minimal volume." Peak Design says it's significantly stiffer" than rival handles, but takes up just a third of the volume." This allows for more packing space, which is always good. The 60mm wheels also nestle into the corners, further maximizing space. The capacity is expandable from 34L to 39L, which is great for piling on last minute gifts while traveling.Peak DesignIt's covered in a lightweight polycarbonate shell and Peak Design's proprietary VersaShell fabric. The Roller Pro is available in a few colors and preorders start today via Kickstarter. This is a Peak Design product, however, so get ready to empty that bank account. The price ranges from $140 to $600, depending on add-ons.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cameras/peak-design-made-a-roller-suitcase-thats-perfect-for-techies-and-content-creators-140035490.html?src=rss

I'll cut right to the chase: If you're an RTX 4070 owner looking to upgrade to NVIDIA's latest video cards, the $549 RTX 5070 won't be much different than what you're used to. Aside from DLSS 4's ability to generate multiple extra frames, the 5070 is practically the same as the 4070 Ti in our testing (and in some cases it's worse). So if you're already committed to spending more than $500 for a new GPU, you're likely better off saving up a bit more for the $749 5070 Ti, which has more VRAM (16GB instead of the 5070's 12GB) and more capable hardware for gaming in 4K.Given the current state of the video card market, though, those prices are basically just theoretical. NVIDIA's previous RTX 50-series cards are already selling well above their retail prices at most stores, if you can find them in stock at all. So I wouldn't be surprised to see the RTX 5070 suffering the same fate. For now, though, Best Buy has NVIDIA's Founder's Edition card and an ASUS model listed for $549.The RTX 5070 comes in $50 cheaper than the RTX 4070's original launch price, so at least we're edging closer to the days of the $500 RTX 3070 (again, if you were lucky enough to snag it for that MSRP). The 5070's price alone made it the new NVIDIA GPU I was most looking forward to test. But after spending some time with it, I can see why NVIDIA was able to keep it relatively affordable: It's simply not a huge jump from the 4070.Devindra Hardawar for EngadgetHardwareAs the runt of the litter (so far), the RTX 5070 is clearly behind its siblings on paper. It sports 6,144 CUDA cores, compared to the 5070 Ti's 8,960, and the aforementioned 12GB of GDDR7 memory. Notably, the RTX 4070 also shipped with 12GB of memory, though that was slightly slower GDDR6X RAM. The new card has a 33 percent memory bandwidth advantage - 672 GB/s vs 504 GB/s - but it would have been nice to see more RAM, especially since AMD managed to deliver 16GB in the upcoming $549 Radeon 9070.The NVIDIA Founder's Edition RTX 5070 we reviewed looks similar to the 5090, with a gorgeous metal case and dual fans to cool down the PCB sandwiched in the middle. A dongle with two 8-pin PSU connections is included in the box, and the 5070 requires a 650W power supply at a minimum. (Though I'd recommend going for at least an 800W PSU if you want to future-proof a bit.) Around the back, the 5070 features three DisplayPort 2.1 connections and an HDMI 2.1 port.

Alienware unveiled a widescreen 34-inch QD-OLED monitor a few years ago and it was hit from the get-go thanks to the HDR brightness, OLED color accuracy and smooth 175Hz refresh rate. Now, the company has launched an updated version that boosts the refresh rate to 240Hz - making it a tempting option for gamers who prize visuals and speed. Dell's gaming brand also revealed several inexpensive LCD gaming models, including a 25-inch, 320Hz model for just $250.On top of the boosted refresh rate, the new Alienware 34 Ultra-Wide QD-OLED Monitor (AW3425DW) offers improved connectivity with HDMI 2.1 FRL, while adding G-SYNC, AMD FreeSync Premium Pro and VESA AdaptiveSync certification. As before, it comes with WQHD 3,440 x 1,440 resolution and 1800R curve, providing a 21:9 gaming experience that while not as sharp as 4K, is still a huge leap ahead of 1080p. It goes on sale today for $800.Along with that model, Alienware's 27-inch 280Hz QD-OLED Monitor (AW2725D) is also available at a reasonable $550 price point (arriving summer 2025). It combines QHD resolution with a high-speed 280Hz refresh rate, allowing sharp high-quality visuals along with a smooth gaming experience. Rounding out the QD-OLED models is the 27-inch 4K QD-OLED Monitor (AW2725Q) previously announced at CES, with a 240Hz refresh rate and highest pixel density of any OLED or QD-OLED monitor, the company claims. It's available starting today for $900.Finally, Alienware unveiled four new LCD monitors, including 34- and 32-inch curved VA monitors with 180Hz refresh rates priced at $400 and $320, with both available starting March 6th. The most interesting, however, is a 25-inch 320Hz monitor available for just $250 (coming summer 2025), giving pro gamers on a budget a very high-speed option, if they don't mind a smallish screen.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/accessories/alienware-boosts-its-34-inch-qd-oled-gaming-monitor-to-240hz-140015276.html?src=rss

Lenovo hasn't even released its futuristic laptop with a rollable screen, but it's rejigged all those parts into a whole new thing for MWC in Barcelona. Officially called the ThinkBook codename Flip AI PC Proof of concept (no typos), the laptop uses the same flexible OLED in its rollable, revealed earlier. However, instead of disappearing inside its chassis, the display folds outwards. This allows what is normally a 13-inch panel to double to 18.1 inches. Notably, because the Flip's screen bends instead of sliding in and out of the bottom half of the system, Lenovo can use the panel's full area.And, just to drill home that it's a concept, Lenovo also added a Smart ForcePad, with a three-layer illuminated dashboard with customizable controls and icons.EngadgetThen there's the Lenovo ThinkBook 16P, which ostensibly is a lot like other 16-inch ThinkBooks. But, if you use the company's Magic Bay docking system, you can really amp up the screen space. The Magic Bay 2nd Display Concept is a small 8-inch screen that attaches magnetically to the ThinkBook 16P, while the Magic Bay Dual Display Concept adds two 13.3-inch panels that flank the notebook's primary screen, giving you that true I'm-a-00s-hacker aesthetic in your local coffee shop.Sadly, the ThinkBook 16P Gen 6 is not slated to be available in North America, so it may have to be a Parisian cafe. Or a cafeteria in Barcelona?- Mat SmithGet this delivered direct to your inbox. Subscribe right here!The biggest tech stories you missed

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), the world's top semiconductor manufacturer, has pledged to invest another $100 billion over the next four years to boost advanced semiconductor manufacturing in the United States. The company's chairman and CEO C.C. Wei has announced its expanded investment in the US at the White House with President Donald Trump. TSMC was originally going to invest $40 billion into building chip-making facilities in Arizona, which it then raised to $65 billion after it was announced as a CHIPS Act recipient getting $6.6 billion in grants under the Biden administration. This announcement is for an additional $100 billion, bringing the company's total planned investment to $165 billion. TSMC called it "the largest single foreign direct investment in US history."During the announcement at the White House, Trump reportedly said that his threat to impose new tariffs on chip imports prompted TSMC to invest more into its US manufacturing efforts. The president previously told reporters that his administration could collect 25 percent in taxes, or higher, for chip imports. The tariffs could go substantially higher over the course of a year, he said.The company's original investment already included plans for three fabrication factories in Arizona. This expansion will allow TSMC to build three more fabrication plants, two advanced packaging facilities and a major research and development center. TSMC's facilities in Arizona will manufacture chips for AI and other cutting-edge applications for its customers, which include Apple, NVIDIA, AMD, Broadcom and Qualcomm. The company didn't give a timeline for when the new facilities will open, but it said its additional investment will lead to 40,000 construction jobs in the next four years and will create "tens of thousands of high-paying, high-tech jobs in advanced chip manufacturing and R&D."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/tsmc-is-investing-an-additional-100-billion-into-semiconductor-manufacturing-in-the-us-130045776.html?src=rss

Waymo and Uber's robotaxi service is launching today in Austin, exclusively in the Uber app. The companies announced their plan to expand to Austin and Atlanta in September 2024, and Waymo raised a cool $5.6 billion in October to help pay for it.Unlike the Waymo One service offered to riders in San Francisco and Los Angeles, interested Austin riders will get a chance to ride in a Waymo just by ordering an UberX, Uber Green, Uber Comfort or Uber Comfort Electric ride, similar to how things are handled in Phoenix. You're not guaranteed to receive a Waymo when you do order one of those rides, but Uber says you can increase your chances of receiving one by changing your "Ride Preferences" in the app. Upfront prices remain the same whether you get a Waymo or not, though if you do end up in a robotaxi, you won't be prompted to tip. You'll use the Uber app to unlock the Waymo, open its trunk and start your ride, too.Uber / EngadgetUber says Waymo One will cover 37 square miles in Austin, and in a first for the company, Waymo vehicles themselves will be stored, cleaned and maintained by a third-party partner, Avomo, theoretically making the experience even more taxi-like than before.Waymo won't be the only major self-driving shop offering rides in Austin. Tesla's robotaxi service is supposed to launch in the Texas capital in June. They're not evenly matched so far, though. In May 2024, Waymo said it makes 50,000 paid trips every week. It remains to be seen how quickly Tesla will reach the same scale. For its part, Uber has expressed interest in offering Tesla rides through its app, too, though so far the EV company is operating on its own.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/waymo-and-ubers-austin-robotaxi-expansion-begins-today-120035908.html?src=rss

Nothing doesn't have a Phone 3 yet, instead choosing to make a lateral move to not one, but two new mid-range devices, the Nothing Phone 3a and, intriguingly, the 3a Pro. Reassuringly, Nothing continues to design phones unlike anything else out there. Its retro-future design aesthetic for the exposed-but-not hardware on the rear of the phones, as well as the dot-matrix fonts, animations and software, are all back. Hardware design remains Nothing's biggest strength. I get asked about the Nothing phone more than I do when I'm using the latest iPhone, Samsung's foldables or anything else. It's just different. The Phone 3a series now has a glass backing (upgraded from polycarbonate) and you can still see screw fittings, electronics and a return of Nothing's Glyph lighting system. The Phone 3a is rated IP64, adding better protection this year against rogue water sprays and liquid incidents. Image by Mat Smith for Engadget Nothing has once again rejigged the exposed hardware, and the Glyph lighting details are all at the top of the phone, circling the camera unit. On the Phone 3a Pro, courtesy of a new periscope sensor capable of 3X optical zoom, a substantial circular camera unit protrudes from the back. If you think the 3a Pro's camera module looks chunky, it also adds roughly 10 grams to its weight compared to the base Nothing Phone 3a. But for camera obsessives, only one of these phones will hold your attention. (Although the blue iteration of the Nothing Phone 3a is gorgeous.) The Nothing Phone 3a Pro's 50-megapixel telephoto sensor can stretch to 3x optical zoom, but it also includes a rather useable, in my early testing, lossless cropped 6x zoom. There's also a 50MP primary sensor with f/1.88 lens, and dual-pixel phase detection auto-focus (PDAF). Nothing has crammed in an ultrawide 8MP sensor with a 120-degree field of view. The 3a Pro also has a telemacro mode and can combine focus as close as 15cm (5.9 inches) away with the zoom of the telephoto. It's a feature that makes macro photography far more useful - and still rare on phones outside of China. The base model Phone 3a's main 50MP camera has single-pixel PDAF, but otherwise keeps the same primary camera specs. Its telephoto stretches to 2x optical zoom, and a third ultrawide 8MP camera. While we'll explore the camera more deeply in our review, my early impressions are positive. Images are crisp and Nothing has a knack for curated filters that look good. I especially like the frosted glass effect, which Nothing also offers for wallpaper customization. Image by Mat Smith for Engadget Nothing says its TrueLens Engine 3.0 combines AI-powered tone mapping with Ultra XDR, which it co-developed with Google, to tune photos. It involves a burst of 8 RAW images, which are all processed together to adjust the brightness of each pixel up to five times. Nothing's image processing seems to lean towards punchy, high-contrast photos and video. The Phone 3a and Phone 3a Pro are otherwise identical in specs. Compared to the Nothing Phone 2a, both new devices have a bigger 6.77-inch AMOLED LTPS display, now using Panda Glass rather than Corning's Gorilla Glass. As you might expect from most (but not all) phones, the 3a has an always-on display, can reach 120Hz refresh rates and it now hits 1,300 nits, making it brighter than the company's last phone, too. Once again, the phones both have a big 5,000mAh battery and fast charging at up to 50W. According to Nothing, this means it should take less than an hour to charge the device entirely, while you should be able to get halfway there in 19 minutes. One of the only parts of the Nothing Phone 3a series that hints that they aren't quite at a flagship level is their processor: a Snapdragon 7s Gen 3. We'll put that chip through its paces in our review, but it is supposed to help with Nothing's own custom software pecadillos, like the TrueLens Engine. The company says that chip makes the 3a series 92 percent better at AI processing than its predecessor. In a nod to both its OnePlus history and the recent trend for adding buttons, Nothing added its Essential Key to the Phone 3a, on the right edge below the power button. Oddly, it has a different finish to the rest of the machined buttons on the 3a and feels a bit cheaper. It works like an AI assistant launcher on other smartphones, like Samsung's Gemini AI launcher, although the AI hooks come later. One press will capture and send content a screenshot to Nothing's Essential Space app, while a longer press will start recording a voice note. You can also double-press to launch straight into the Essential Space app, which is a storage space for all those collections. Image by Mat Smith for Engadget Nothing uses the same AI tricks we've seen elsewhere; it just simplifies them. The Phone 3a will transcribe your voice notes, automate reminders, and even describe your photos and screenshots if needed. As I juggle work commitments, other writing projects, life and everything else, this is an intriguing soup of AI tools, storage and automation, all in a single place. This also seems to be Nothing's equivalent of Android's Labs setting. The company is teasing further functionality, such as focused search, flip-to-record, Camera Capture (using the Essential key while in the camera app), Smart Collections of all your notes and more. It seems to be the Notes equivalent of how Google Photos gives you quick and easy access to the images and videos you're looking for. With the Phone 3a Pro's software more broadly, Nothing OS is fun. Despite a learning curve in places, it's playful. The icons, fonts, and animations across Nothing's take on Android 15 add a refreshing touch of personality in a sea of smartphone sameness. Perhaps there are a few too many creative cooks, as Nothing's decorative touches jostle with what I assume are Google's baked-in fonts and menus. Some of the icons are hard to discern, too. After powering up the Phone 3a for the first time, a pixelated smiley face appeared on the home screen. I'd tap it and realize it does nothing. It turns out this is Nothing's attempt at showing your screen time - but it doesn't need to be a 2x2 widget. Image by Mat Smith for Engadget Other nice touches include a monochrome theme (on these monochrome phones), app label removal and a smart app drawer that corrals similar apps together for more straightforward navigation. Availability in the US will come through a Beta Program, like in previous years. The Phone 3a ($379) is available to preorder now in grey, black and blue, with devices landing March 11, while the Phone 3a Pro ($459) in black and grey, goes on preorder March 11 and launches March 25. In the UK, the company's Nothing Store in London will be one of the first places to offer the phone directly, from 11AM GMT on March 8. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/nothings-phone-3a-pro-is-a-stylish-almost-flagship-experience-for-459-103058974.html?src=rss

Let's be honest, your home Wi-Fi probably sucks, with regular drop-outs, buffering or even the dreaded data dead zone. It's because traditional Wi-Fi routers are a single unit, pumping out data only as far as the laws of physics will allow. So if you've got thick walls, plumbing or any other quirky internal design, your overall connectivity is going to suffer. It's these issues mesh Wi-Fi systems are designed to solve, using multiple nodes (or satellites) scattered around your home to create a broader, more reliable and consistent connection.

Meta and the Internet Society have established the Connectivity Co-Funding Initiative, which aims to expand affordable internet connection around the world. They announced the new project at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain. The partners are committing a $30 million investment through 2030 that will go to funding infrastructure development in various communities, specifically those overlooked or intentionally ignored by commercial providers. In addition, the initiative's money will go towards training programs that improve the technical know-how of marginalized grounds, to community-centered solutions for underserved areas, as well as to locally owned networks that create jobs.This an expansion of the non-profit organization's partnership with Meta, which started years ago when they worked together to improve internet connectivity in Africa, Asia-Pacific and Latin America by developing Internet exchange points. These points, or IXPs, are physical locations where internet providers can exchange traffic.Meta is only the Internet Society's first partner for the Co-Funding Initiative, and the non-profit org is putting out a call for more partners who can help grow that fund. "This new Connectivity Co-Funding initiative, supported by Meta, is a prime example of collective action that will help provide meaningful access to more than 2 billion people across the world with insufficient or no Internet," said Sally Wentworth, President and CEO of the Internet Society. "It is our hope that this fund plays a pivotal role in reducing this gap and creating a more equitable digital society."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/meta-and-internet-society-team-up-to-expand-internet-access-around-the-world-080034114.html?src=rss

Before a new car comes to market, it's subjected to many months, sometimes years, of rigorous testing around the world. Sweden often hosts a big part of that journey, its cold northern expanses offering the perfect mix of frigid temperatures and frozen surfaces.It's there that I myself got to do a little testing of an upcoming new EV from Mercedes-Benz. It's the GLC with EQ Technology, an all-electric version of one of the company's most popular SUVs. With new batteries, new motors and a higher-voltage charging system, it marks a significant departure from, and upgrade over, the company's current EV offerings like the EQE SUV.But could it be better to drive? That's the question that brought me to Sweden. I'm generally quite comfortable driving on the ice and snow. I've certainly been doing it long enough, living in the northeast my entire life and ice racing for the last 20 years. But, put me behind the wheel of a priceless, hand-built prototype and I'll usually take a few extra minutes before I start to really push things.Not so when I got behind the steering wheel of the electric GLC SUV. Within 30 seconds, I had my foot flat to the floor, and I, along with a wide-eyed development engineer, were flying down an ice-covered trail bisecting a birch tree stand.Andre Tillmann on behalf of Mercedes-Benz AGThat's how good the new GLC's traction and stability control systems are. Where most cars will simply cut all the power in a slippery situation like that, especially practical-minded ones like a typical crossover SUV, the GLC was far more giving. When the grip was low over sections of dark, glassy ice, the system reduced the power application and kept me from making a big, expensive dent in a snowbank.When the grip was there, though, the GLC quickly ramped back up to maximum acceleration, relying on the power of its dual electric motors and all-wheel drive to keep us tracking smoothly and cleanly between the trees. Those motors and the smarts that control them are all part of Mercedes-Benz's new platform, MB.EA. These are permanent magnet type motors, with the front one featuring a physical disconnect to reduce its drag when it's not needed.The car also features a new heat pump that's able to absorb thermal energy from the ambient air as well as the car's various internal systems. Mercedes engineers said it will warm the cabin twice as fast using half the energy as their current EVs. Indeed, the interior in the GLC was quite cozy despite temperatures well below freezing.Unfortunately, I can't comment on the vehicle's range in those conditions. This is just a pre-production prototype, after all. Still, I'm expecting a substantial improvement over the 307 miles the EQE SUV can manage on a charge. The batteries in the GLC rely on a revised chemistry, said to reduce the reliance on troublesome cobalt while also increasing energy density. That means more miles per pound of battery.Andre Tillmann on behalf of Mercedes-Benz AGAnother thing helping to extend range is a revised regenerative braking system. The GLC will feature multiple different rates of regen, including a one-pedal mode that will bring the SUV to a complete stop. When you do go for the brake pedal, though, you might notice it feels a little weird.That's because stepping on the pedal doesn't really do anything. Similar to a sim-racing pedal set, the resistance here is simulated. You're not feeling a hydraulic system squeezing pistons, just springs compressing.It's a different sensation, but not a bad one. The idea is that the car will give you a steady, consistent feel regardless of what you're doing or how you're driving. The car itself will determine how much of your desired deceleration can come from the regenerative power of the electric motors. When it needs more than they can provide, it seamlessly calls in the physical brakes for reinforcement.In practice, it works brilliantly. The car stops smoothly and cleanly, and there's none of the occasional uneven braking that you get when stomping hard on the stop pedal in an EV. The lack of pedal feedback when ABS engages is a bit disappointing, but then I've heard that pulse causes some people to lift off the brake pedal, so perhaps it's for the best.Andre Tillmann on behalf of Mercedes-Benz AGWhen stomping on the other pedal, again, the GLC accelerates strongly. It's quick enough to keep performance-minded drivers entertained. Still, given the low-grip nature of the roads and trails I covered, I can't say just how competent a handler it will be.I can say that the optional air suspension did a sublime job over truly terrible road conditions. Ruts, washboards, frost heaves, you name it, the car happily soaked it up, even raising the suspension by an inch when some deeper snow and ice necessitated a little more ground clearance. On smoother roads, the GLC was every bit the quiet limousine that you want a luxury EV to be. There was a bit of road noise from the aggressively treaded snow tires, but this thing should be a delightful cruiser on normal tires.The only problem? We'll have to be patient. The GLC is set to make its formal debut in Germany in September, which means it likely won't enter production until well into 2026. Mercedes-Benz hasn't set a price for the electric GLC yet either. Given the state of the world right now, it's anyone's guess what the incentive/tariff situation will look like for foreign EVs, even those built in the US like Mercedes-Benz's current EQS SUV.If it's priced right, though, and if it doesn't look too awful once those camouflage stickers and taped-on protrusions are removed, it should be a winner. I already can't wait for another go behind the wheel and another chance to get even more comfortable.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/mercedes-benz-glc-with-eq-technology-prototype-drive-better-when-chilled-230157718.html?src=rss

Apple's offered Major League Baseball games through the Apple TV app since 2022, and that's continuing in 2025, with new programming at no additional cost. The company announced that "Friday Night Baseball" is coming back on March 28, and that its releasing a three-part docuseries on the 2024 World Series and a new Yankees-focused Immersive Video for the Vision Pro.The opening weekend double-header on March 28 features a match between the Baltimore Orioles and Toronto Blue Jays at 6:30 PM ET and the New York Mets and Houston Astros at 7:30 PM ET. Apple says its season coverage will also include a rematch between the New York Yankees and the Los Angeles Dodgers after their World Series face-off in 2024, a game between the Texas Rangers and Astros, and match-ups between the Dodgers and the Philadelphia Phillies and the Dodgers and the Mets. You can view the complete schedule for the first half of the season in Apple's press release.Apple TV+ subscribers will also be able to watch coverage throughout the week on MLB shows like MLB Big Inning or Countdown to First Pitch, along with game recaps and replays of classic games. What's more interesting is the narrative documentary work Apple plans to release this season. The docuseries Fight For Glory: 2024 World Series covers the Dodgers and Yankees journey to last year's World Series and how each team handled their post-season. Meanwhile, the small Venn diagram of Yankees devotees who also happen to be Vision Pro owners will be able to watch VIP: Yankee Stadium, a short film shot in Apple's Immersive Video format that "gives viewers an all-access pass to one of the world's most iconic sports venues."While Apple has reportedly toyed with buying the rights to NFL Prime Ticket in the past, so far the company's sports programming only covers Major League Soccer and Major League Baseball. "Friday Night Baseball" launched for free in the Apple TV app in 2022, and was moved behind the Apple TV+ paywall in 2023. That subscription required continues in 2025, though Apple is clearly trying to sweeten the deal with some additional baseball content this season.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/apples-friday-night-baseball-is-back-on-march-28-with-a-world-series-documentary-in-tow-222335747.html?src=rss

What started as an Apple Intelligence feature exclusive to the Camera Control-endowed iPhone 16 line is coming to older iPhones, and soon. We already knew that the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max would get Visual Intelligence at some point in the future, and thanks to 9to5Mac, we now know it's one of several options you can assign to the Action Button in the second iOS 18.4 beta. That likely means the feature could end up in the final release of the update.Visual Intelligence lets you draw on AI models from Google and OpenAI to find information (and websites) about anything you point your iPhone's camera at. You can also use the feature to add information from a flyer to your calendar and oddly, identify dog breeds. Until recently, the feature had to be summoned with a long-press of Camera Control on an iPhone 16, but as of the release of the iPhone 16e, Apple made it possible to use an Action Button to pull it up, too. Considering the iPhone 15 Pro's A17 Pro chip offers enough RAM to enable other Apple Intelligence features, it makes sense that its ACtion Button shouldn't be left out of the fun.iOS 18.4 is currently in beta and is expected to launch in early April. Alongside expanding the number of phones that can run Visual Intelligence, Apple is also using the update to launch a new recipe section in Apple News called Apple News+ Food. Previously, Bloomberg reported that iOS 18.4 was supposed to also mark the launch of Apple's upgraded Siri, which is supposed to have the ability to see and take action inside of apps, but that feature is now coming later.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/the-iphone-15-pro-will-get-visual-intelligence-with-ios-184-204658321.html?src=rss

We already suspected that Apple was planning to announce a new MacBook Air in March, and now we have it from the horse's mouth. Company CEO Tim Cook took to social media to post a tease-heavy video, along with the caption this week."The video itself plays music as the text there's something in the air" crawls along the screen. Finally, a tell-tale ultra-thin swoosh interrupts the text. It's incredibly likely that the swoosh is being used to represent the forthcoming M4 MacBook Air. We don't know when this week the announcement will take place, so hold tight.

Samsung Galaxy S25 smartphones are on sale for record-low prices, making this a great time to upgrade. The standard S25 is down to $700, which is a discount of $100. The slightly-beefier S25+ now costs $800 instead of $1,000. Finally, the S25 Ultra has been discounted to $1,100 from $1,300. All of these deals are available via Amazon. This is Samsung's latest and greatest smartphone line, having just released back in January. We appreciated the base S25 in our official review, calling out the solid build quality and incredible battery life. The processor is also noticeably more powerful than last year's model. This makes the whole Gemini AI experience smoother, if that's something you're into. The camera system is fantastic, though virtually unchanged from the S24. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, as Samsung phones offer a top-tier experience for shutterbugs. The S25 and its cousins are tangibly thinner, which is nice, and the 2X AMOLED screen is plenty bright, at 2,600 nits. The S25 Ultra is pricier, but did make our list of the best Android phones. The 6.9-inch screen is glorious, with an anti-reflective Gorilla Armor 2 panel, and the new 50MP ultra-wide camera sensor is useful. It does have some extra horsepower, but it seems to be used primarily to boost the AI experience. If you want the speediest AI around, go for the Ultra. If you just want a great smartphone, consider the S25 or the S25+. 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/samsung-galaxy-s25-series-phones-are-on-sale-for-record-low-prices-170952808.html?src=rss

The UK's Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has announced it's investigating how TikTok, Reddit and Imgur protect children on their platforms.The probe into TikTok is looking at how the platform uses it young users' (13 to 17 year olds) personal data for recommendations and suggested content, while the investigation into Reddit and Imgur focuses on both how the platforms are using children's personal information and how they're using measures that estimate or confirm a child's age."If social media and video sharing platforms want to benefit from operating in the UK they must comply with data protection law," UK Information Commissioner John Edwards stated. "The responsibility to keep children safe online lies firmly at the door of the companies offering these services and my office is steadfast in its commitment to hold them to account." The UK doesn't yet know if these companies have infringed on personal data protections.In 2023, the ICO handed down a 12.7 million ($16.1 million) fine to TikTok. The platform had allowed up to 1.4 million children under 13 on it in 2020, and used their data without parental consent. The ByteDance-owned company has also faced backlash in the US around young users, with mixed results.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/uk-watchdog-investigates-chidrens-safety-on-tiktok-and-reddit-153052793.html?src=rss

Mobile World Congress 2025 has officially kicked off in Barcelona. Google is on the ground previewing two AI features that will begin rolling out to Android devices starting later this month.The first is Live Video, which Google first showed at I/O 2024 last May. The tool takes advantage of Gemini's multi-modal capabilities to allow users to show the chatbot what their phone's camera sees. As you can see from the demo Google shared, Gemini is able to answer a question about mid-century modern decor and offer a suggestion when it comes how to apply that knowledge to pottery.The other new feature, screensharing, works exactly as you would imagine. You can share your screen with Gemini to ask questions about what you see in front of you on a website or app. Google isn't exactly pushing the envelope with either feature. ChatGPT's Advanced Voice Mode has offered both live video and screensharing since the end of last year, but the nice thing here is you won't need to jump into a separate app to take advantage of Gemini's new capabilities.As mentioned, Google will begin rolling out live video and screensharing to Gemini Advanced subscribers starting later this month. Gemini Advanced is included in the company's $20 per month Google One AI Premium plan. If you're a Verizon customer, the carrier recently added the subscription as a perk for some plans.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/gemini-live-video-and-screensharing-arrive-on-android-devices-later-this-month-151743457.html?src=rss

Apple's iPad mini 7 (A17 Pro) from 2024 is currently on sale for $399, a record low for this compact iPad. It's perfect for those who find a full-sized iPad too large for their needs, but make no mistake this tablet can punch above its weight. The iPad mini 7 runs on the same Apple A17 Pro chip found in iPhone 15 Pro series devices. It's not the most powerful chipset available, but it's enough for daily tasks, light gaming, reading and streaming content. Apple claims that the iPad mini 7's battery can last 10 hours, but our tests revealed that the number was usually closer to eight, depending on the apps you're running. If you have an Apple Pencil Pro (sold separately), this iPad mini supports it. You can quickly start writing notes with the tap of a button, which calls up a blank document. It's the perfect tool for artists or those who prefer a tablet stylus. Despite the absence of features like Face ID or refresh rates above 60Hz, the iPad mini 7 is a convenient yet powerful device you can bring anywhere. That's why it's on our best iPads list. Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/the-ipad-mini-7-is-back-on-sale-for-100-off-143830970.html?src=rss

I've been wondering why everyone seems so hyped on Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. It's the debut game from Sandfall Interactive, an independent French studio with fewer than 30 employees, and it's attracted massive partnerships in video games and film over the past five years. Expedition 33 has a high-profile cast of voice actors, including Andy Serkis, Charlie Cox, Shala Nyx and Jennifer English. Itreceived an Epic MegaGrant in 2022, it was picked up by Pacific Drive publisher Kepler Interactive in 2023, and it was a tentpole of Xbox's first showcase of 2025. Even though the game isn't out until April, Story Kitchen has already signed on to turn it into a live-action film. At the very least, it's seemed like an easy game to fall in love with. After playing just over three hours of Expedition 33, I understand all of it - the hype, the quick love and the quiet excitement generated by the game's writing, acting, world and mechanics. Expedition 33 is innovative and absolutely stunning. Expedition 33 feels like a prestige drama set in a surreal, slightly gothic 3D landscape. Tonally it's drenched in melodrama, and visually it's reminiscent of Game of Thrones, but with Belle Epoque stylings and mountains of diabolical magic. The realm of Lumiere has been consumed by a powerful being called the Paintress - she paints a new number on the tower each year and all people of that age instantly die. She's been counting down for more than half a century, killing the oldest citizens first, and she's just painted the number 33. The people of Lumiere send out annual expeditions to stop the Paintress, but so far, they've all been met with death. The heroes of expedition 33 have one year to live. When we meet Gustave in the preview, things aren't going well for expedition 33. His party has been ambushed by a mysterious white-haired man - someone so old that he shouldn't be able to exist in this world - and Gustave is alone. Gustave has a magical robot arm and a very French moustache, and he sets off through lush forests and dark, wet caves to track down other survivors. He does find some, but only after he nearly kills himself in despair. Lune, a strong-willed and scholarly mage, appears just in time to save Gustave from himself, and together they meet up with Maelle, Gustave's introverted but powerful foster sister. Sandfall Interactive Your party supports six playable characters in the full game, but the preview focuses on these three. The prestige-drama vibes stem from their interactions, and particularly their personality clashes. In one cutscene, Lune and Gustave find themselves sitting around a campfire on a starry night, screaming at each other about the ethics of utilitarianism. Between tirades, Gustave screams, Fuck the mission!" Eventually their intensity subsides and the conversation returns to a tentatively amicable space. At the end of the scene, the shot pans to Lune, who smirks and says, Fuck the mission? Really?" Gustave sheepishly responds, Sorry." And suddenly, I'm deeply invested in the relationship between Lune and Gustave, but also Maelle and all of the friends they've come to save. It doesn't hurt that these cutscenes are truly gorgeous, with realistic skin textures and dirt smudges in close-up shots, and beautiful performances by all actors. From cutscenes to combat, Expedition 33 is radiant. Sandfall Interactive Environments in the preview grow more surreal as Gustave, Lune and Maelle travel closer to the Paintress, who's hidden herself across deep seas and expansive land masses. They travel through raw areas shattered by magic, boulders hovering in mid-air and ornate buildings haphazardly embedded in odd places, broken and inhospitable. Anthropomorphized rock enemies roam the lands and there are bits of chroma - currency, essentially - to find, and some upgrades hidden off the linear path. We're not talking Avowed levels of shinies, but a minimal sense of curiosity is definitely rewarded. When exploring, you can swap among party members without breaking stride, and Lune emerged as my clear favorite. Instead of running, Lune speed-hovers a few inches above the ground, and embodying her is like soaring through a dream. Running (or hovering really fast) feels great in the game, and so does the grapple system that flings you across gaps and up buildings. There are also climbable handholds and ropes of light that act as elevators, and all of it works a treat. The game's dreamlike feeling only crystallizes in Flying Waters, a region that looks and behaves as if it's at the bottom of the ocean - bubbles, shipwrecks, whales and all - but without a drop of water to be found. You breathe, walk, run and jump as normal here, but there are schools of fish swimming through the air and the waterline is visible high above you. It's wonderfully trippy. I could spend the rest of this preview just gushing about Expedition 33's fabulous environments, characters and enemies, or its top-notch writing, music and graphics - but let's talk combat. Sandfall Interactive Expedition 33 is a turn-based game with clear JRPG influences, but it adds a twist to the traditional battle system: quick-time prompts. Your party members have the ability to use an item, deploy a specific skill, or plain-old attack, plus they have a Free Aim move that can snipe enemy weak points before a full strike. There are elemental weapons to equip and upgrade, and each character runs on a distinct battle mechanic. Gustave has an overcharge system that powers up his robot arm for a special move, Lune uses elemental stains to stack specific damage, and Maelle switches among three fencing stances. Balancing healing, buffs, defensive moves and attacks is a delicate dance in Expedition 33, and the preview really started to sing once I had all three members nicely leveled up, kitted out and slinging various types of elemental damage. Unlike traditional turn-based play, there are real-time prompts embedded in your skill attacks, and executing these delivers bonus damage and effects. The Final Fantasy series has toyed with this idea to mixed success, but in Expedition 33 it's a critical, finely tuned system, and I love the tension it creates. Quick-time elements infuse the familiar turn-based loop with a twitchy kind of clarity, adding a few extra dopamine hits to the classic press-and-wait rhythm. Each QTE prompt is tricky without being punishing, and it's not just offensive moves that get the real-time treatment. Dodging, parrying and jumping are essential skills in Expedition 33, and these mechanics demand your attention with every enemy turn. In short, no, you won't be able to set the controller down during combat in Expedition 33. And, yes, I'm totally here for it. Sandfall Interactive Maybe it's because each character strikes a dramatic pose whenever it's their turn, but combat has a distinct Persona flair (and this is a great thing in my book). Meanwhile, the game's soundtrack has echoes of Nier: Automata and Tetris: Effect, and altogether, even boss battles can be a bit of an emotional experience. In the interest of keeping this preview under 3,000 words, I'm not going to get into the specifics of upgrade trees and resource types, but I will say that I found these systems to be purposeful and responsive. I was pleased with how often my party leveled up, there were ample traits to tweak for each character, and the effects of my stat manipulation were immediately apparent in combat. Rest assured, Expedition 33 is an RPG. Though this is just based on a preview, Expedition 33 seems incredibly polished. Not only does it play seamlessly on a macro level, but it also gets the smallest details right, including voice-acted memories, haptic feedback that kicks in when a grapple point is in range, an opaque text box that's both readable and seamlessly integrated into every scene, and the ability to put a rose in Gustave's hair, even in cutscenes. The entire preview is impressive. Sandfall Interactive That said, I wonder whether Expedition 33 is too impressive, technically speaking. I played the preview at a stable 1080p/60 on a gaming PC with an RTX 4070 Super, and I didn't encounter any issues, but locking to 60 fps at 1440p was beyond my setup. This feels like a game that's going to break a lot of hearts and PC parts. And it's not just PC - I'm curious to see how Expedition 33 will run on any console that isn't a PlayStation 5 Pro. But, that's a consideration for review time. The final preview for Expedition 33 illuminates why Sandfall Interactive has received so much pre-launch attention and support. Expedition 33 is composed of beautiful contradictions: It's a JRPG but it comes from a Western studio. It's a fantasy RPG built outside the restrictions of Dungeons & Dragons rulesets. It's an indie game that looks, sounds and feels AAA. Most of all, Expedition 33 is refreshing. Expedition 33 is due to hit PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S on April 24. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/clair-obscur-expedition-33-preview-stunning-visuals-innovative-combat-prime-melodrama-140052194.html?src=rss

Your new iPad is sleek, powerful and ready to tackle everything from binge-watching to serious productivity - but without the right protection, it's also one drop away from disaster. One of the most important iPad accessories is a solid case. Whether you want something rugged to handle everyday wear and tear, a slim case that keeps things lightweight or a keyboard cover to turn your tablet into a mini laptop, there are plenty of options to suit your needs.

Lenovo is showing business laptops lovers some attention by announcing several new ThinkPads at Mobile World Congress 2025, including a new form factor for the T-series line, and updated internals across the business laptop lineup.The ThinkPad T14s 2-in-1 is by far the most interesting of the bunch, with a new convertible body that's similar to Lenovo's Yoga laptops, and supports the magnetic Yoga Pen stylus. The laptop comes with up to a 14-inch, 400-nit WUXGA touch display, and inside, you can get up to a Intel Core Ultra 7 H or U 200 series chip, 64GB of LPDDR5x RAM and 1TB of storage. If you're looking for an option without a 360-degree hinge, the ThinkPad T14s Gen 6 and ThinkPad T14 Gen 6 will also now come with either Intel Core Ultra or AMD Ryzen AI Pro chips, up to 32GB of RAM and up to 2TB of storage.LenovoLenovo describes the new ThinkPad X13 Gen 6 as "one of the lightest ThinkPad designs ever," at only 2.05 lbs, but that light weight doesn't mean the laptop misses out on the latest internals. The X13 Gen 6 comes with either a Intel Core Ultra or AMD Ryzen AI Pro chip, up to 64GB of LPDDR5x RAM and your choice of a 41Wh or 54.7Wh battery. The new ThinkPad can also support Wi-Fi 7 and an optional 5G connection, if you want to take it on the go.Chip updates round out the remaining ThinkPads, with the ThinkPad E14 Gen 7 and E16 Gen 3 gaining support for up to an Intel Core Ultra 7 U or H 200 series chip and up to 64GB of DDR5 RAM, while the ThinkPad T16 Gen 4 is caps out at 32GB of RAM.Lenovo is making the majority of its new ThinkPads available this summer, with the ThinkPad T14s 2-in-1, ThinkPad T14s Gen 6 and ThinkPad X13 Gen 6 arriving in June 2025 for $1,719, $1,674 and $1,139, respectively. The ThinkPad T14 Gen 6 and ThinkPad T16 Gen 4 are launching a little earlier in May for $1,359 and $1,623. And rounding things out, the ThinkPad E14 Gen 7 and E16 Gen 3 are coming in "Q2 2025" for $849 and $859.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/laptops/lenovo-is-updating-its-thinkpad-lineup-with-new-chips-and-form-factors-at-mwc-2025-230055977.html?src=rss

Lenovo hasn't even released its futuristic laptop with a rollable screen. But that hasn't stopped the company from taking that notebook's core components and remixing it into a whole new thing at MWC 2025.Officially called the ThinkBook codename Flip AI PC Proof of concept (yes, that is its official name and it's a real mouthful), the laptop uses the same flexible OLED featured in its rollable sibling, except this time instead of disappearing inside its chassis, the display folds outwards. This allows what is normally a 13-inch panel to double in size to 18.1 inches at a moment's notice. Notably, because the Flip's screen bends instead of sliding in and out of the bottom half of the system, Lenovo can utilize the panel's full area unlike the ThinkBook Rollable, which can only extend up to 16.7 inches.In its vertical mode, this provides a ton of extra space for documents or multitasking. However, the screen can also be folded back into tablet mode or something akin to a 2-in-1's tent mode for times when you might want to share your display with someone on the other side of the table.Sam Rutherford for EngadgetSomewhat impressively, a fancy monitor isn't the only trick the Flip has. Down below, Lenovo created what it calls a Smart ForcePad, which features a three-layer illuminated dashboard that adds customizable controls and icons to its surface. It's a neat trick that expands what a basic touchpad can do, though it's not exactly a huge leap from what we've seen on rival machines from Acer and others. Finally, on the inside, the Flip should have solid performance thanks to the inclusion of an Intel Core Ultra 7 processor, 32GB of RAM and PCIe SSD storage.As a fan of anything with a flexible screen, it's fascinating to see how quickly Lenovo was able to take the components used in the ThinkBook Plus Gen6 Rollable and turn them into something else. That said, as this was a very early prototype (a Lenovo representative said it was only one of two in the world at the time), there are some obvious issues that need to be ironed out before this thing ever gets close to an official release.The first is that for a system with a screen this tall, its hinge wasn't fully up to the task of keeping everything stable, as even a light tap would cause the whole panel to sway back and forth in a disconcerting way. The model I used also lacked that kickstand that appears in some of Lenovo's promotional images, which would have further increased its sturdiness.However, the biggest potential problem with the Flip may be difficult to address because it's inherent to its core design. When the laptop is collapsed down into a clamshell for traveling, the way its screen folds exposes the flexible display to items that might scratch it. And while it's possible to get around this by using a form-fitting laptop sleeve, that seems a bit too dangerous, even for someone like me who's been using foldable phones for half a decade. Upon further consideration, I wouldn't be surprised if this design challenge is a big reason Lenovo decided to bring the ThinkBook Rollable to market instead of the Flip.Currently, Lenovo has no plans to bring the Flip to full production, but even so, it's nice seeing what a company can come up with when it's not scared to show off unfinished devices.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/laptops/lenovos-codename-flip-is-another-wild-take-on-a-flexible-screen-laptop-230051495.html?src=rss

Lenovo has announced new laptops with generative AI features for this year's Mobile World Congress (MWC), including the Yoga Pro 9i Aura edition. Lenovo's Aura edition branding is the result of a partnership with Intel to create a set of "distinct software, hardware and AI features" that make "computing a more personalized, productive, and protected experience." The Yoga Pro 9i Aura edition is powered by the Intel Core Ultra processor and ships with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 GPU, which is the company's most affordable model in the RTX 50 series.It has a 16-inch 3.2K PureSight Pro display with a double layer of OLED pixels that increases its overall brightness to 1600nits peak, as well as boosts its power efficiency. The display also supports 100 percent sRGB, P3 and Adobe RGB color gamut that provide true-to-life color accuracy. Like the previous versions of the Yoga Pro 9i, the Aura edition comes with the Lenovo Creator Zone, an on-device AI suite that can make third-party video, photo and music applications for creators easier to use. Lenovo's Yoga Pro 9i Aura Edition will be available starting in the second quarter of 2025, with prices starting at $1,799.The company has also introduced the 15-inch IdeaPad Slim 3x, a Copilot+ PC that runs on Snapdragon X chip, Qualcomm's new platform designed to put Copilot+ PCs within reach for more people. IdeaPad Slim 3x can also process AI tasks on device and comes with a dedicated key for Microsoft's Copilot assistant. One more interesting feature is the device's open SSD slot that can fit an extra SSD for those who want to expand the laptop's storage capacity. The model will be available starting this month for at least $649.LenovoThis article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/laptops/lenovos-new-ai-laptops-for-mwc-include-the-yoga-pro-9i-aura-edition-and-the-ideapad-slim-3x-230024761.html?src=rss

You might be surprised to learn that the first laptop with built-in solar panels is nearly 15 years old. But to me, the bigger shock is that with all the recent advancements in photovoltaic cells, manufacturers haven't revisited this idea more often. But at MWC 2025, Lenovo is changing that with its Yoga Solar PC Concept.Weighing 2.6 pounds and measuring less than 0.6 inches thick, the Yoga Solar PC Concept is essentially the same size as a standard 14-inch clamshell. And because its underlying design isn't all that different from Lenovo's standard Yoga family, it doesn't skimp on specs either. It features an OLED display, up to 32GB of RAM, a decent-sized 50.2 WHr battery and even a 2MP IR webcam for use with Windows Hello.However, all those components aren't nearly as important as the solar cells embedded in its lid. Lenovo says the panels use Back Contact Cell technology so that its mounting brackets and gridlines can be placed on the rear of the cells. This allows the panels to offer up to 24 percent solar energy conversion, which is pretty good as that matches the efficiency you get from many high-end home solar systems. Furthermore, the PC also supports Dynamic Solar Tracking to automatically adjust the cells' settings to maximize the amount of energy they can gather.Lenovo says this means the Yoga Solar PC can generate enough juice to play an hour of videos after only 20 minutes in the sun. But what might be more impressive is that even when the laptop is indoors, it can still harvest power from as little as 0.3 watts of light to help top off its battery. Finally, to help you understand how much power it's gathering, Lenovo created a bespoke app to track how much light the panels absorb.Unfortunately, Lenovo doesn't have any plans to turn this concept into a full commercial device. But after playing around with it, I was pleasantly surprised to see how solid and sturdy its chassis felt. Unlike a lot of prototype devices, the Yoga Solar PC Concept doesn't feel like that much of a stretch technologically compared to other notebooks on sale today. Its PV cells sit safely behind a sheet of glass (or possibly plastic, Lenovo wouldn't confirm which one) while also adding a bit of distinctive visual flair.However, the biggest hurdle (and possibly a big reason why we haven't seen more laptops like this) is that for people who want to use solar panels to charge their devices, it's probably easier and more versatile to rely on a standalone solar array instead of something built-in to the gadget itself. Regardless, Lenovo's Yoga Solar PC is a surprisingly polished concept that I'd love to see get more attention in the future.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/laptops/the-lenovo-solar-pc-concept-feels-like-a-device-whose-time-has-come-230022723.html?src=rss

The ThinkBook line has sort of become Lenovo's de facto testing ground for far-out ideas and ambitious concepts. See the ThinkBook Plus Gen 6 Rollable we saw just a couple months ago at CES. But at MWC 2025, the company is pushing things further than ever through the new ThinkBook 16p Gen 6 and four of its display accessories - which range from practical add-ons to something that's more like a Tamagotchi.The ThinkBook 16P powering all of Lenovo's crazy concept accessories isn't all that different from the company's previous 16-inch workstations. It sports up to an Intel Core Ultra 9 2785HX chip with as much as 64GB of RAM, 2TB of PCIe storage and an NVIDIA RTX 5070 GPU. You get the choice of either a 3.2K IPS display with a 165Hz refresh rate or a slightly lower-res 2.5K IPS panel with a faster 240Hz refresh. There's also plenty of connectivity including dual Thunderbolt 4 ports, three USB-A jacks, a full-size HDMI 2.1 and a card reader.Lenovo's Magic Bay 2nd Display Concept attached to the ThinkBook 16p Gen 6.Sam Rutherford for EngadgetOne interesting addition is that Lenovo included a discrete NPU (separate from its main chip) that offers up to 32 TOPS of additional performance. This should provide a nice boost, particularly for anyone who needs to run demanding AI tasks locally. That said, for the rest of us lay folk, it's largely unnecessary.However, the real spectacle is Lenovo's assortment of accessories. They all connect to the ThinkBook 16P using the company's Magic Bay docking system, which was first introduced to this product family a couple generations ago. For people who constantly yearn for extra space to multitask while traveling, Lenovo has two add-ons to choose from. The Magic Bay 2nd Display Concept is a small 8-inch screen that attaches magnetically to the ThinkBook 16P. It can be used simply as an external monitor or as an AI dashboard that displays widgets, messaging apps and other tools.On the flipside, the Magic Bay Dual Display Concept adds not one but two additional 13.3-inch panels that flank the notebook's primary screen, giving you a huge amount of real estate for pretty much anything. In addition to using the laptop's mounting system, this prototype also features a built-in kickstand to help keep the whole contraption stable. This is important because while it is rather complicated compared to most accessories, once you get everything set up, it really does a good job of recreating the multi-monitor workstations people have at home or in their office.Lenovo Magic Bay Tiko Pro Concept displayLenovoAs for Lenovo's remaining two concepts, they are so new the company wasn't able to show them off during my preview session. The Tiko Pro Concept looks like an even more streamlined take on 2nd Display, as it's a slim panel with an extra-wide aspect ratio that's meant to sit across the top of the laptop's display, sort of like an external notification shade. Meanwhile, the non-pro Tiko Concept is a circular screen that houses an AI companion with its own set of emoji-based faces, gesture-based responses and more.In case that's not enough, Lenovo even teased a cat-themed headband that adds little ears to your robotic friend. At this point, you may be asking how the Tiko is supposed to increase your productivity? And for that, I can only guess that having a friendly face around might boost your mood and thus improve your productivity. Or at the very least, it could be a more charming way of seeing stuff like Slack reactions. Honestly, I have no idea, and I'm not sure Lenovo does either.Now I have to stress again that all of these accessories are concepts, so there's no guarantee that they'll ever officially go on sale. Lenovo says they are merely prototypes meant to help expand and explore how its Magic Bay docking system could be used in the future. But in a time when so many PC makers seem to be having trouble thinking up ways to innovate, it's clear Lenovo isn't being shy about thinking outside the box.Sadly, the ThinkBook 16P Gen 6 is not slated to be available in North America, but for those in Europe and Asia, keep an eye out for it to go on sale sometime this spring or summer.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/laptops/lenovo-gave-its-latest-16-inch-thinkbook-a-bevy-of-funky-concept-screen-accessories-230008238.html?src=rss

I love a game that screams things like neato!" and godlike!" while I'm feverishly pressing buttons and darting my eyes around the screen, trying to make my fingers work as fast as my brain. My skills in the Playdate game XTRIS are definitely not godlike, but there's just something about that classic arcade announcer voice that makes me think each time, this is the one where I'll finally crack the leaderboard." (It never is). XTRIS is a $4 game by Fletch Makes Stuff that'll have you chasing a moving X around a board made up of either four, five or six tiles. The timer's set to 60 seconds, and in that time you have to land on the X as many times as possible. Each X you collect will go tumbling dramatically off the grid and be added to your score, which is faintly displayed in the background. If it sounds easy, it's not. The X moves fast, and as you race after your target using the D-pad to control the movement of a black square, things become increasingly intense. The music builds like an alarm that's telling you time is almost up, and flames start shooting up from the bottom of the screen. All the while, the announcer (voiced by Jordan Carroll) is shouting words of encouragement that start to feel a little ominous by the end. It's wonderfully chaotic. Despite the relatively simple presentation, XTRIS really lives up to its promise of being a juicy arcade action directly into the palm of your hand." For each of the three levels - Tetromino, Bridge and Squiggle - you'll be able to see how other players scored, and how you stack up against them. And once you've played a certain level a few times, you'll be shown your own score trends to see how you're improving (or plateauing). I keep telling myself, just one more try" when I finish a round, and we all know how that goes. There's a Zen Mode for each level as well, so you can work on your dexterity without the time crunch and with a chiller track playing. If you poke around in the menu, you can also find some unlockable characters and symbols to switch up the appearance of the game, swapping the X for something like a frog or a slice of pizza. XTRIS is available now on the Playdate Catalog.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/xtris-is-a-fast-paced-arcade-style-playdate-game-you-wont-be-able-to-put-down-224738429.html?src=rss

According to Rolling Stone, employees with the Federal Aviation Administration were told on Friday to begin finding tens of millions of dollars for a Starlink deal," after The Washington Postreported that the FAA may cancel its $2.4 billion contract with Verizon to overhaul the US's airspace management systems and go with Elon Musk's company instead. Whether the FAA has actually dropped its Verizon deal in favor of Starlink has yet to be confirmed publicly.Anonymous sources told Rolling Stone that the orders from FAA officials on Friday were delivered verbally" to staff, in an unusual" move. It comes a few days after Musk claimed on X that the situation around air traffic control communications is extremely dire," saying the existing system (which he wrongly attributed to Verizon before later adding a correction) is breaking down very rapidly." He went on to say that Starlink terminals are being sent at NO COST to the taxpayer on an emergency basis to restore air traffic control connectivity."Bloomberg, citing sources close to the matter, previously reported that 4,000 Starlink terminals were being sent to help upgrade the FAA's networks, which the FAA confirmed. In a statement posted on X in response last week, the FAA claimed it's been considering the use of Starlink since the prior administration." As recently as Wednesday, though, the FAA said in statements to The Washington Post and other publications that it had not made a decision about its Verizon deal.The agency is one of many that has been hit by layoffs led by Musk's DOGE over the last few weeks, with hundreds of FAA employees fired in February.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/faa-reportedly-ordered-staff-to-find-millions-of-dollars-to-fund-starlink-deal-205236985.html?src=rss

Firefly Aerospace's first attempt at landing on the moon was a success. The company, which is working with NASA under the agency's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program, announced early Sunday morning that its Blue Ghost lander softly touched down on the moon, and it's upright and communicating with the team back home. Blue Ghost landed at 3:34AM ET in a region known as Mare Crisium. While Firefly's lander isn't the first commercial spacecraft to land on the moon, it is the first to land properly - Intuitive Machines' Odysseus ended up on its side last year after a faster-than-planned descent.Blue Ghost and the NASA instruments it's carrying are expected to remain in operation for about 14 Earth days. After that, lunar night will begin. If all goes as planned, the lander will capture images in the leadup to lunar night and a few hours after darkness falls, getting high-definition imagery of a total eclipse, the lunar sunset and other moments to document the behaviour of levitating lunar dust. NASA is also testing instruments that can drill and collect samples from the surface.Firefly's Blue Ghost Mission 1 launched on January 15 and reached lunar orbit about a month later. The team says it's already sent over 27 GB of data back to Earth from its journey. Just through transit to the Moon, Firefly's mission has already delivered the most science data to date for the NASA CLPS initiative," Shea Ferring, Firefly's Chief Technology Officer, said in a statement, noting that the hardest part of the mission is over. On X, the company shared a photo showing the lander's shadow on the surface of the moon following its successful touchdown, and joked, The lander saw her shadow, 2 more weeks of ops!"This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/space/fireflys-blue-ghost-lander-successfully-touched-down-on-the-moon-155728834.html?src=rss

Practically every flagship phone can take a great picture. But that hasn't stopped Xiaomi from continuing its partnership with legendary camera maker Leica to produce a photo powerhouse in the new Xiaomi 15 Ultra.Powered by a Snapdragon 8 Elite chip with up to 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage, it goes without saying that the Xiaomi 15 Ultra has top-notch specs. It also has a huge 6,000 mAh battery, which is bigger than anything you get from Apple, Google or Samsung. Meanwhile, when it comes to charging, wired speeds go up to 90 watts or just a tad slower at 80 watts wirelessly, which is no mean feat. And unlike most phones sold in the US, it comes with a power adapter in the box.Elsewhere, the 15 Ultra sports a gorgeous 6.7-inch AMOLED display with a 1-120Hz refresh rate and up to 3,200 nits of brightness. It's also available in three colorways: a white model with an etched back, black with an almost rubbery textured finish and a special Silver Chrome edition that draws inspiration from some of Leica's old-school cameras. I appreciate that the white model I tested features subtle swerves carved into its back that shine in the sunlight. But let's be honest, that two-toned metal and black one is easily the most attractive of the bunch because it really leans into what this phone does best.In back, there's a massive circular camera module that normally I'm not a huge fan of when used on rival devices like the OnePlus 13. However, on this device, it's more than just a showpiece because inside it is some serious photo hardware. The Ultra 15's 23mm equivalent main camera uses a massive 1-inch 50-megapixel Sony sensor. Then, for stuff like expansive landscapes, there's an f/2.2 50-MP ultrawide cam. But it doesn't stop there because there's not one but two zoom lenses: a 50MP midrange shooter with a 70mm focal length plus a super high-res 200MP periscope array with a 100mm focal length (which equates to a 4.7x optical zoom).Now, I haven't had a ton of time to fully put it through its paces, but from what I've seen so far, the Xiaomi Ultra 15 has one of the most well-rounded photo toolkits around. It's got Leica optics along with big sensors and lenses that cover pretty much every focal length you'd need on a daily basis. And on the software side, there are some preset Leica filters like Vibrant or Authentic to really drive home the collaboration between the two brands.Sam Rutherford for EngadgetThat said, one of the things that impresses me the most is that Xiaomi even created a separate Photography kit that includes an add-on camera grip with a physical shutter button, an adjustable dial and a dedicated video button. There's also a case that allows you to attach a standard 67mm filter adapter. This means, assuming you have the right gear, you can take some of the same glass you use on your real camera and use it with the Ultra 15. And this isn't just some half-hearted afterthought either, as the kit also comes with bonuses like a hand strap, a decorative lens ring and two different removable caps for its shutter.Notably, unlike some Chinese phones like those from Huawei, Xiaomi handsets still have access to Google services, so you can download apps from the Play Store. Even the company's HyperOS 2 is a relatively minimalist Android skin that looks good and is easy to use. And while this model will be available globally starting at around 1,499, sadly there are no official plans to bring it to the US, which is a real shame because no one is really selling handsets like this in America anymore. (RIP to the Panasonic Lumix DMC-CM1.)This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/the-xiaomi-15-ultra-is-a-leica-powered-photo-showcase-143001055.html?src=rss

While I naively hoped to see the Galaxy S25 Edge ahead of MWC, that wasn't what I saw last week at Samsung's pre-show briefing. However, what I did see might intrigue many of you: a cheaper slice of Galaxy hardware in the form of the Galaxy A56. It will be available later this year, starting at $499 (or 499 in the UK), which is slightly cheaper than the Pixel 8a when it first appeared. Samsung also announced the Galaxy A36 and A26 today, and they'll start at $399 and $299 respectively.Many of the A series upgrades this year match what we saw from the S25. The A56 is thinner than its predecessor, down to 7.4mm from 8.2mm, while packing a marginally bigger 6.7-inch screen. The bezels, which were usually one of the most prominent visual tells of an A series, have been shaved the device's bezels down further on the A56, too.Photo by Mat Smith for Engadget.The hardware has been tweaked, with a brushed metal frame and a minor design twist: a new slightly protruding bump on the side where the volume and power buttons sit. When I got to handle the A56 briefly, I liked this. Asymmetry aside, it was easier to handle, which was surprising since this was a 6.7-inch device, and I'm more used to 6.3-inch phones. The A56 felt less unwieldy. (Did Samsung's designers read my unhinged editorial on the sides of phones and decide to muddy the waters further? Perhaps.)It's a mixed bag on camera specs this year. The front of the A56 now has a lower-res 12-megapixel selfie camera, while on the back sits an upgraded 12MP ultrawide, 50MP main sensor with an f/1.8 lens and optical image stabilization. There's still a 5MP macro lens for someone out there.Those new cameras feature many of the latest upgrades on the S25 family, including improved image signal processing for better low-light performance, as well as a raft of AI features, including enhanced subject detection in portrait mode. Samsung says the A56 will better recognize sky, skin, faces, hair and grass for improved bokeh effects.Regarding AI-powered image editing, there's also Object Eraser, auto trim for videos and Create Filter, where you can choose an existing image and apply its color and tone to a different photo. You'll also get Best Face, which lets you pick from multiple captures for everyone's best expression, as long as you have motion photos enabled. These aren't new features on smartphones, but their addition brings the midrange A56 closer to the Galaxy S25.Through One UI 7, the A56 gets style flourishes and home screen improvements like the Now bar, notification panel changes and scalable widgets in different shapes and sizes. Samsung also promises six generations of OS updates (up from four on last year's A55) and six years of security updates.Photo by Mat Smith for Engadget.As you can tell by now, there aren't any surprises here. The 5,000mAh battery is the same size as the A55's, although the charging speed is now 45W. The company says you can charge the device fully in just over an hour. Samsung has swapped to its own 4nm Exynos 1580 chip, too, with CPU boosts of around 18 percent. The hardware, once again, inches closer to the quality and premium feel of what we typically see on Galaxy S devices.It's peak midrange phone season. The Galaxy A56 goes up against the recently launched iPhone 16e, while rumors suggest Google's Pixel 9a could break cover very soon.The Galaxy A36 and Galaxy A26Samsung also announced the Galaxy A36 5G and Galaxy A26 5G today, which both have 6.7-inch screens that get as bright as 1,200 nits and refresh at up to 120Hz. They come with One UI 7 as well, including features like Circle To Search that previously launched on pricier phones. Plus, they also feature triple camera systems on the rear with a 50MP main sensor, though their ultrawide setup camera is not as sharp as the A56 at 8MP. Some of the software features, like Best Face, are also reserved for the A56, though you'll still find the updated Object Eraser and Filters on the pair of cheaper handsets.Finally, though the A36 and A26 have the same IP67 rating and 5,000mAh battery as the A56, they'll only pack 6GB of RAM and the A36 uses the Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 processor instead of the Exynos 1580 in the A56.Galaxy A56 price and availabilityIn the UK, the Galaxy A56 will go on preorder on March 2nd and launch on March 19th. It'll come in four awesome" (Samsung's wording) colors, Graphite, Olive, Pink and Light Grey. Because nothing screams awesome like a lighter shade of grey. While we do have US pricing, Samsung hasn't shared more precise timing for availability than "later this year."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/samsungs-midrange-galaxy-a56-has-ai-photo-editing-and-a-bump-for-its-buttons-230018254.html?src=rss

New releases we picked up this week that belong on your reading list. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/what-to-read-this-weekend-warm-fusion-brings-biotech-and-body-horror-to-a-gritty-nyc-of-the-future-170043844.html?src=rss

Side Quest, formerly called Mere Mortals, will premiere on March 26 on Apple TV+. It's the spin-off/expansion series for Mythic Quest, a comedy show on the streaming service about a video game studio developing an MMORPG of the same name. All four episodes of Side Quest will be available on the service on the same day the season four finale of Mythic Quest drops on the platform. Side Quest will revolve around the lives of the fictional studio's employees, as well as the players and fans impacted by the Mythic Quest game.The show will take on an anthology format, with a bunch of actors taking on leading roles for each installment. It was created by Mythic Quest writers Ashly Burch, John Howell Harris and Katie McElhenney, who also served as executive producers. Burch plays the character of Rachel in the original show. Charlie Day, Megan Ganz and Rob McElhenney, who created the Mythic Quest series, served as executive producers for the spin-off, as well. Lionsgate, 3 Arts Entertainment and Ubisoft produced the show for Apple TV+.In addition to announcing the show's premiere, Apple has also released the official trailer for the show, which gives you a pretty good idea of its tone and what you can expect if you watch it.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/apples-mythic-quest-spin-off-side-quest-debuts-on-march-26-160057451.html?src=rss

Alphabet has announced a new development for Taara's technology that could lead to low-cost, high-speed internet connectivity, even in far-flung locations. Taara's general manager, Mahesh Krishnaswamy, has introduced the Taara chip, a silicon photonic chip that uses light to transmit high-speed data through the air. The Taara chip is abut the size of a fingernail, far smaller than the technology the Alphabet division has been using. Taara Lightbridge, which is what its first-generation technology is called, is the size of a traffic light and uses a system of mirrors and sensors to physically steer light to where it needs to go. The new chip uses software instead.Taara is a project under X, Alphabet's moonshot factory. The high speed wireless optical link technology underpinning the project was originally developed for X's Project Loon internet broadcasting balloons. Alphabet pulled the plug on Loon in 2021 and focused on Taara instead, using its technology to beam broadband across the Congo River and the streets of Nairobi. Even years before Loon shut down, Alphabet's X was already toying with the idea of using light to beam internet and tested the technology in India.Taara's technology works by using a "very narrow, invisible light beam to transmit data at speeds as high as 20 gigabits per second, up to distances of 20 kilometers (12.1 miles)." It's like traditional fiber, in the sense that it uses light to carry data, except that light doesn't travel through cables. Instead, Taara's hardware emits beams of light. The beams from two units must be aligned with each other to be able to form a secure link that can transmit data, which is why Lightbridge was fitted with the parts needed to be able to physically steer the light. Taara's new chip doesn't need those components: It contains hundreds of tiny light emitters controlled by software with automatic steeringKrishnaswamy said Taara's light-beaming units will only take days to install instead of the months or years it can take to lay fiber. During tests in the lab, the Taara team was able to transmit data at speeds of 10 Gbps over a distance of one kilometer (0.62 miles) using two of the new chips. They're now looking to improve the chip's capacity and range by creating an "iteration with thousands of [light] emitters." The team expects the chip to be available in 2026.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/alphabets-taara-chip-uses-light-beams-to-provide-high-speed-internet-140040922.html?src=rss

Amazon's long-awaited update to its assistant is almost here. About 18 months after the company first previewed the next-gen Alexa" built with generative AI, it unveiled Alexa+, and early access will be available starting in March. Alexa+ will exist alongside the older Alexa and will cost $20 a month, unless you have a Prime membership, which will make it free to use. The new assistant will come with all the modern upgrades that its contemporaries like the redesigned Siri or Gemini offer, like more conversational interaction, better contextual understanding and the ability to summarize complex topics" and make suggestions based on your interests." But it does one thing differently, and it's the way Amazon purports to integrate with third-party apps and the rest of the internet that could set it apart.At the presentation, vice president of Alexa and Fire TV Daniel Rausch outlined three ways the new assistant can integrate with other services you use. Firstly, it already works with tens of thousands" of integrations already available, with Uber, Sonos, Samsung and Xbox being a few of the many logos that were displayed when Rausch said this. Presumably, that means Amazon worked with these partners to get their apps to play nicely with Alexa+ through their APIs.Secondly, for the large swath of the online world that doesn't have apps or the resources to code an API just for Alexa+, the assistant should be able to scour the internet for their website and navigate it on your behalf. During the presentation, Rausch demonstrated how Alexa+ was able to go to the Thumbtack website to hire a professional to fix his oven. Instead of having to whip out a phone or laptop to click through menus himself, Rausch could just verbally tell Alexa+ what he needed and what times he was available, and the AI did the rest.Sam Rutherford for Engadget This example in particular struck me as very similar to Google's restaurant-reservation system Duplex, which, since way back in 2018, could call businesses on your behalf to book a table. All you had to do was tell Google what date and times you were considering, how many people were in your party and it would make the call for you, even speaking in a human-sounding voice to the restaurant. The way Alexa+ would click around websites on your behalf seems like Duplex on steroids.Finally, Alexa+ can work with the AI agents" on other sites, so you can talk to just one assistant instead of dozens of chatbots. In the presentation, Rausch got Alexa+ to work with the AI music generator Suno to come up with a country-style song about bodega cats.After the company's presentation, I spoke with Rausch to get more clarity on how Alexa+ will work with the rest of the online world. For one, I wanted to know for sure if that third method would work with customer service chatbots from companies like Capital One, United Airlines and more. While Rausch said that he had no details to share on specific names or services, he did confirm that the SDK is all about integrations like that," saying it's for people to use Alexa to connect with agents on their behalf to complete tasks.Rausch is aware that any friction at all in the adoption and setup process can turn people away. To that end, upgrading to Alexa+ should not require any additional sign-ins or authentication. You should be able to have all your connected appliances, security cameras and home routines carry over without any effort.The reason that customers love Alexa is it takes away all the complexity," Rausch said. People don't need to remember the brand of the WeMo plug they bought, for example, to be able to tell Alexa to turn off a lamp. We would never take that away," he said. When you're adding new services after upgrading to Alexa+, Rausch said you'll either do so in the ways that you do it today" or that it'll get even easier, since Alexa can walk you through those setups in many more cases."Sam Rutherford for Engadget According to Rausch, instead of having to dig around in the Alexa app, you just say Alexa, I want to set up a streaming account with Hulu' or something." You'll be presented with a QR code on an Echo device with a screen to facilitate that, and the assistant should guide users along the way.We like to say Alexa is an expert, and now an expert on herself."Amazon isn't the only company that has made its assistant perform tech support for users. This approach is very similar to how Siri can teach you how to, say, shoot a video in Cinematic mode or create a Genmoji. Where better to get help about a product you're using than the product itself? Why make me go to a different place for information?From a customer experience perspective, customers just want the thing done," Rausch said. They don't have to be responsible or care about any of these things, right?" He believes people just want the plumber or a reservation booked, and don't want to fuss around with websites and phone calls.People do want their digital assistant to be helpful and easy to use, but isn't it equally important that these AI services are accurate and reliable?When I asked Rausch how Amazon worked around the tendency of generative AI to hallucinate and sometimes spread misinformation, he said I actually think in the industry, there's been a mistake of thinking a model is a product." He also said LLMs are at the foundation of the architecture, but they're not the only thing answering the question."In other words, Alexa+ is using a combination of Amazon's knowledge graphs, reliable sources on the internet and partnerships with authoritative outlets. Other products will simply give you an answer out of the LLM. If you're asking for an authoritative answer, that's not actually sometimes the way to get one. and I think that's what you're highlighting," he said.Rausch added that Amazon has taken great care" with Alexa. Will it make mistakes? Every piece of software makes mistakes," he said. But we're working hard to ground it in knowledge."I've yet to try out Alexa+ for myself, and everything we've seen so far has been in highly controlled demos, so it's hard to tell what real world performance will be like. But if the new Alexa is truly able to work with third-party services in a way that's seamless and effective, it would not only bring Amazon back into the consumer AI race, but could possibly give it an advantage over the likes of Google, Apple and OpenAI. Considering Amazon really brought the idea of a virtual assistant into homes around the world, this could also have an impact that goes beyond the tech-savvy users of today's AI services.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/amazons-generative-ai-vision-for-alexa-is-appealing-but-unproven-140014416.html?src=rss

As Engadget celebrates its 21st birthday this weekend, we're rounding up all of the recently published reviews from the last few weeks. It's already a busy time for the reviews team, even though spring is still officially a few weeks away. The latest entries include a new iPhone, the latest from NVIDIA and those Beats workout earbuds the company teased months ago. Pour a couple bevvies for the weekend and make one a double, because we're old enough to drink now. iPhone 16e Apple's new "budget" phone has arrived, providing the most affordable gateway to Apple Intelligence. While the iPhone 16e offers solid performance, expected long battery life and a great display, there are some caveats that you might not be able to live with. "In my week or so with the iPhone 16e, I felt the drawbacks of the camera the most - I can live without MagSafe and the Dynamic Island," Cherlynn writes. "But what the iPhone 16e does offer is fast performance, a clean design, long battery life and, most crucially, cheaper access to Apple's ecosystem." NVIDIA GeForce 5070 Ti If you're in the market for a new 4K gaming GPU, the RTX 5070 Ti is a a nice upgrade over the regular 5070. However, finding one, and doing so for a decent price, is another thing entirely. "I knew it would be a tad faster than the 4070 Ti Super, but with the addition of multi-frame generation, it's also a far more capable 4K card," Devindra says. "And it's definitely more future-proof than the 5070, since it has 16GB of VRAM like the 5080." Sony A1 II With A1 II, Sony had to live up to its own high standards. And while the camera may be the company's best mirrorless option yet, it's not a huge leap over the A1. "The innovation that Sony is known for is lacking here, and on top of that, the A1 II is very expensive," Steve explains. "The A1 II is only a mild upgrade over the A1 and when it comes to video, it's lagging behind the Nikon Z8 and Z9 as well as the Sony R5 II." Steve also took the DJI Flip for a spin. He gives the creator-friendly drone high marks for 4K video quality, battery life and a people-safe design. The drone's obstacle detection isn't the best though, and it struggles in windy conditions. Lenovo Legion Go S While Lenovo has already teased a new version of the Legion Go gaming handheld for later this year, the company introduced the more streamlined Legion Go S in the meantime. There are some things to like here, including a more portable design, an 8-inch 120Hz display and handy controls. For now, the price is the main problem. "The issue is that Lenovo hasn't fully rolled out all of its variations," Sam writes. "So even if you aren't holding out for the SteamOS variant, you'd be silly not to wait for less expensive versions to come out with starting prices closer to $600 (or even $500 for the one with Valve's platform)." Beats Powerbeats Pro 2 After an initial tease months ago, Beats finally debuted its updated Powerbeats Pro workout earbuds. The hook design remains, but there are significant upgrades both inside and out, including Apple's first dance with heart-rate tracking in an audio product. "On the whole, the Powerbeats Pro 2 are a substantial upgrade over the original," I explain. "They're more comfortable and have a host of new features that help it match today's earbuds." I also reviewed the Noble Audio FoKus Rex5 earbuds in the last month. This set offers the best sound quality I've experienced on wireless earbuds, thanks in part to the company's use of five drivers in each one. However, the Rex5 is expensive at $449 and it's far from a complete package in terms of features and noise-canceling performance. Other notable reviews and a look ahead Managing editor Cherylnn Low spent more time living with the Kindle Scribe 2 and updated the review with some long-term observations about the tablet. The Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 was wrapped around the wrist of buying advice senior report Amy Skorheim as she put yet another incremental update from the company through its paces. My review of the Technics AZ100 earbuds that one a Best of CES award from Engadget is coming soon. As I suspected during my brief hands-on in Las Vegas, the improved sound is the star of the show here, but I won't spoil the rest of the review with more observations. MWC 2025 is happening next week, so whatever is announced during the show will certainly be on the upcoming review agenda. For now, you can check out our preview here.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/engadget-review-recap-iphone-16e-nvidia-rtx-5070-ti-sony-a1-ii-and-more-130054263.html?src=rss

The Dungeons & Dragons faithful have another option for times when a physical tabletop isn't feasible. Wizards of the Coast's Sigil is a 3D virtual tabletop (VTT) experience that borrows some elements from video games without straying too far from the joy of sitting around a table with like-minded cohorts. It launched publicly this week and is now available for anyone to try.If you have no clue what a 3D VTT is, imagine a graphical recreation of all the hallmarks of tabletop D&D: virtual versions of a game board, miniatures, dice, character sheets and so on. It isn't a full-on video game like Baldur's Gate because the characters are still static minis that you move around as if they were physical pieces. But it adds digital touches like animated spell effects and lighting. If done well, it's like recreating top-of-the-line D&D gear (with some added flair) that you can use to play with anyone in the world.Sigil (named after a city in D&D lore) isn't the first of its kind. BouncyRock Entertainment's TaleSpire is a popular 3D VTT currently in early access for PC and Mac. And its business model will be preferable to many: Everyone pays $25 as a one-time purchase. Although Sigil is free to tinker around with and join others' games, you'll need a D&D Beyond Master Tier subscription ($6 monthly or $55 annually) to host multiplayer games and unlock extra goodies like builder kits and mini customization options.Wizards of the CoastWhere Sigil has an advantage is its integration with D&D Beyond's character sheets. So, if you've already built out your characters, equipment and abilities with the official D&D digital companion service, you should (at least in theory) have an easy transition.Sigil provides a library of assets, brushes and lighting effects for you to play around with and customize your maps and minis to your heart's content. "These customizable tools let you bring your world to life, whether you're exploring fantastical landscapes, towering fortresses or dangerous dungeons," the company says in its pitch.It also includes tabletop-esque touches like virtual dice that tumble realistically across the game board. You can customize your miniatures with different scales, sizes and appearances. "All of our assets are created in a way that's like actually buying a high-end mini or figure," the company said in its 2024 introduction video. "We wanted them to feel kind of painted, but kind of realistic - trying to capture that beautiful in-between where art, figures and games come together."Wizards of the CoastSigil runs on Unreal Engine 5, and you'll need at least a decently powerful gaming PC to partake. Although its minimum system requirements are less daunting, D&D Beyond recommends at least an Nvidia RTX 2080, AMD R9 380 or Intel UHD on the GPU front, along with 16GB of RAM. It's Windows only for now, but the company wants it to eventually run on consoles, mobile and maybe even your fridge. (Fridge-top gaming, anyone?)If this sounds like your kind of adventure, you can sign up with your D&D Beyond account on the product page. (For a more established alternative, you can also give the highly rated TaleSpire a spin.) For a better sense of Sigil, check out Wizards of the Coast's intro video from D&D Direct 2024:This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/pc/dds-3d-virtual-tabletop-experience-sigil-is-now-available-for-pc-212113793.html?src=rss

Anyone looking for an alternative to Instagram might have a suitable candidate in Flashes, a recently launched app built on Bluesky that seems to get all the important basics right. Flashes technically launched on the App Store on February 24, but a series of updates released in the days after launch have made the app much easier to recommend.If you remember an Instagram before Meta turned it into its Facebook replacement, you have the basic gist of what Flashes is. It's an app for sharing photos and videos, with some Bluesky-flavored wrinkles, like multiple custom feeds to choose from instead of Meta's algorithm-driven default option.Ian Carlos Campbell for EngadgetWhen you first open Flashes you'll be prompted to login with a Bluesky account or create a new one to use exclusively with Flashes. If you use your existing account, the app essentially repackages image and video posts from whoever you're currently following into an Instagram-style feed. This setup also works in reverse: Any post you put on Flashes will also show up in your normal text-focused Bluesky feed.The app itself features multiple tabs, with a home tab for your feeds, a search tab where you can search for posts and view trending topics, a dedicated tab for creating new posts, a notifications tab that features all of your Bluesky notifications and a profile tab. Flashes includes some filters to apply to your photos, along with some custom feeds that you can use if you want, but otherwise customizations are minimal. It's really an image and video-focused version of Bluesky. That comes with some annoying drawbacks, though. If you get a lot of Bluesky notifications, you'll now get them twice, once in the Bluesky app and once in Flashes. If you delete your account from one app, it will also be deleted from the other.Ian Carlos Campbell for EngadgetBuilding a more customizable, portable version of social media that doesn't lock you to one platform is a big part of Bluesky's goal with the AT Protocol and what apps like Mastodon and Threads are trying to do with ActivityPub. It's not clear if one standard is going to become the default, but Bluesky has been picking up momentum. The app hit 20 million users in November 2024, prompting a dramatic expansion to its moderation efforts, and then passed 30 million users in January 2025. Flashes design means all of those new Bluesky accounts are potential Flashes users, too.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/flashes-an-instagram-alternative-based-on-bluesky-is-available-for-iphones-now-205946754.html?src=rss

Developer Necrosoft Games has assembled another huge bundle of games on Itch.io to support a good cause. It includes more than 400 games that can be yours if you pony up at least $10 to support wildfire relief efforts in Southern California.Tunic, one of our favorite games of 2022, is arguably the highest-profile game in the California Fire Relief Bundle. Buying this beautiful, Zelda-esque adventure on Steam right now would cost you $30. That alone makes the bundle great value, though it includes over $3,200 worth of games.There are a few other particularly notable games on the list. You may have heard of restaurant sim Cook, Serve, Delicious! 2!!, the fairly self-explanatory SkateBird or the utterly ridiculous Octodad: Dadliest Catch. There's also Hidden Folks, a charming puzzle title that we reckon is a great way to help you destress. Hundreds of other lesser-known games await your curiosity too. For instance, there's a pretty puzzle-platformer called Hoa that I've been meaning to get around to.Along with video games, there are physical table-top roleplaying games (including a Bugsnax card game you can print and play), asset packs, books, comics and other projects in the bundle. You'll find a few Playdate games in there as well. Note that there are no Steam keys available through this bundle, but it's not too complicated to set up an Itch.io launcher on Steam Deck.Organizers are aiming to raise $100,000 for CORE (Community Organized Relief Effort). The Los Angeles-based organization "offers direct monetary support to survivors of the fires and supports projects for fire resilience in affected areas (and potential disaster zones)," the bundle's page states. Save for processing fees, all proceeds will go to CORE. The campaign, which will run until just before midnight ET on March 13, is already over three-quarters of the way to its goal.The wildfires that struck Southern California in early January damaged or destroyed more than 18,000 structures and led to the evacuation of more than 200,000 people. As of February 12, 29 people are known to have died in the fires.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/pc/tunic-and-400-other-games-can-be-yours-for-just-10-thanks-to-a-charity-itchio-bundle-202504116.html?src=rss

Square Enix just announced a new sub-brand called Dragon Quest Golf, which is exactly what it sounds like. It's a team dedicated to making golf merchandise and accessories based on the long-standing JRPG franchise. As expected, one of the brand's initial offerings is a golf ball based on the iconic blue Slime. This is typically the first enemy players encounter in a DQ game.The company will showcase more merch at the 59th Japan Golf Fair on March 7, though Square Enix hasn't yet revealed any other gear besides the aforementioned ball. I could see a golf bag based on a Weartiger or tees designed to resemble an Eggsoskeleton. Maybe a super-powerful driver named after a Golem? The possibilities are endless, though it'll probably just show off a bunch of golf shirts and khakis with DQ branding.Why is Square Enix doing this? The company said it's all about shifting demographics, according to a translation by Siliconera. The franchise has been incredibly popular in Japan since its introduction in 1986, which was almost 40 years ago. Folks who started with the first game could now be grandparents. Also, Japan loves golf.Incredibly, this isn't even the weirdest gaming-adjacent merch to pass our eyeballs this week. Honda just announced an absolutely bizarre "near life-size recreation of the Legendary Pokemon Koraidon." It's powered by the company's self-balancing technology, so Honda says it'll be able to walk on all four legs. Just like Dragon Quest Golf merchandise, this thing goes on exhibit on March 7.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/square-enix-is-making-dragon-quest-themed-golf-merch-because-og-fans-are-now-grandparents-194314177.html?src=rss

Intel announced that it's further delaying plans to open two chip fabrication facilities in Ohio, pushing their completion out to 2030. The company originally announced its plans for Ohio in 2022, with an ambitious opening set for 2025.Intel says it completed the "basement" level of its Ohio One project last quarter, which allows above-ground construction to get underway now. The $20 billion dollar project is technically split across two different chip fabs, dubbed Mod 1 and Mod 2, which won't be completed at the same time. Mod 1 is now set to open in 2030, to "align the start of production of our fabs with the needs of our business and broader market demand," according to Intel. Mod 2 will be completed the following year in 2031.Intel CorporationThe justification is financial: Intel says it's taking a "prudent approach" that will ensure the chip fabs are completed in a "financially responsible manner." Intel previously told the state of Ohio that it was delaying the fabs until 2027. It also delayed the groundbreaking of the project seemingly to incentivize the passing of the CHIPS Act in 2022, according to a report from The Washington Post.More delays add to what's been a tumultuous period for Intel as a company. In December, former CEO Pat Gelsinger was pushed out, likely because he wasn't pulling-off Intel's aggressive plans to expand chip production. Prior to that, the funding the company was set to receive through the CHIPS Act was reduced by $600 million. Add in layoffs and the continued dominance of chip makers like AMD, and Intel remains in a tricky spot.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/intel-once-again-delays-its-long-awaited-ohio-chip-fabrication-facilities-185516274.html?src=rss