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Instagram might be considering the possibility of offering paid verification to users, based on code seen by reverse engineer Alessandro Paluzzi. The developer shared screenshots in the app's code with TechCrunch, showing lines that say: "IG_NME_PAID_BLUE_BADGE_IDV" and "FB_NME_PAID_BLUE_BADGE_IDV." They clearly say "paid blue badge," most likely referencing the blue checkmarks verified users on the platform get. FB and IG stand for Facebook and Instagram, which could mean that Meta is thinking of verifying users for a fee across platforms. IDV, as TechCrunch notes, is a known acronym for "identity verification." Paluzzi has unearthed numerous unreleased features in the past, including a BeReal-like feature and in-app scheduler on Instagram.In addition, the developer also reportedly discovered code referencing a new type of subscription, though it's unclear if it's directly connected to paid verification. Twitter Blue, as you know, is a subscription service that costs $8 to $11 a month and gives users access to the website's verified checkmark, along with some experimental features. Offering paid verification was one of the earliest moves Elon Musk made upon taking over Twitter, and it did make Blue look more appealing to prospective subscribers. Its launch was pretty disastrous, however, as the company didn't implement safeguards to prevent random users from impersonating companies and high-profile personalities.If Meta truly is developing paid verification, it has to find a way not to repeat Twitter's mistake. Especially since Instagram users might scramble to get their profiles verified, considering how hard it currently is to get a blue badge on the app. There's even a black market for Instagram verification, with people paying up to tens of thousands of dollars to get a blue tick next to their name. TechCrunch says Meta chose not to comment on Paluzzi's discovery, though, so whether it truly is working on paid verification is still up in the air.

TikTok is facing yet another call from a prominent lawmaker for the app’s ban, Colorado Senator Michael Bennet, a Democrat who sits on the Senate Intelligence Committee, sent a letter to Apple and Google urging the companies to ban TikTok from their respective app stores.In the letter, Bennet says that “TikTok, in its current form, [is] an unacceptable threat to the national security of the United States.” The letter, addressed to Apple CEO Tim Cook and Google CEO Sundar Pichai, repeats many of the same points that have been raised by other lawmakers seeking to ban the app.Specifically, Bennet raises the possibility that TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, could be compelled to “use its influence to advance Chinese government interests,” via TikTok. “Like most social media platforms, TikTok collects vast and sophisticated data from its users, including faceprints and voiceprints,” Bennet writes. “Unlike most social media platforms, TikTok poses a unique concern because Chinese law obligates ByteDance, its Beijing-based parent company, to ‘support, assist, and cooperate with state intelligence work.’”TikTok has long denied that such scenarios could play out, and has attempted to downplay its ties to China. "Unfortunately, Senator Bennet's letter relies almost exclusively on misleading reporting about TikTok, the data we collect, and our data security controls," TikTok spokesperson Brooke Oberwetter said in a statement. "It also ignores the considerable investment we have made through Project Texas—a plan negotiated with our country's top national security experts—to provide additional assurances to our community about their data security and the integrity of the TikTok platform."Apple and Google didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.While it seems unlikely either company would take such a drastic step based on a letter from one senator, it highlights the mounting pressure and scrutiny on TkTok. The company has spent the last two years negotiating with the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) in order to secure its ability to continue to operate in the US. But that process is reportedly stalled, and the company has been waging a new charm offensive in an attempt to win over critics.TikTok has also been sharing more details around its partnership with Oracle to safeguard US user data and comply with US regulators’ concerns. But lawmakers seem to be in no rush to let TikTok off the hook. The app has already been banned from federal devices, and numerous state governments have passed bans of their own. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew is scheduled to testify at his first Congressional hearing next month.Update 2/2 8:27 PM PT: Added TikTok's response to the letter.

As many Apple watchers have predicted, the company's financial results this quarter are a break from the last few years of nonstop growth. The iPhone maker reported a revenue of $117.2 billion for its first fiscal quarter (ended December 2022), which is five percent down year over year, marking the first time Apple's revenue is down since 2019.There are a couple of bright spots in the company's performance, namely in its setting a revenue record of $20.8 billion in its Services business and hitting more than 2 billion active devices in its installed base. All-time revenue records were also set in markets like Canada, Indonesia, Mexico, Spain, Turkey and Vietnam.In a statement, CEO Tim Cook said "As we all continue to navigate a challenging environment, we are proud to have our best lineup of products and services ever, and as always, we remain focused on the long term and are leading with our values in everything we do."On its earnings call, Cook said there were three main things that impacted revenue: the "challenging macroeconomic environment", foreign exchange issues and COVID-related supply constraints that led to delays in the ship times of iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max models. "Production is now back to where we want it to be," he added.Apple's decline in revenue is in line with a general slump in the tech industry, with Meta having just reported revenues that are 4 percent down from the previous year. Alphabet is also seeing a slowdown in growth this quarter, and while Microsoft saw its revenue climb, its earnings missed expectations and profits fell by 12 percent. Amid the economic downturn, tech companies havebeenlaying off significant portions of their workforce, though Apple doesn't appear to have made similar moves at the moment.

It's no secret that the huge tech companies are still making money hand over fist, but there's also a noticeable slowdown going on. Google's parent company Alphabet is not immune — the company just reported its earnings results for Q4 of 2022, and just barely grew revenue year over year. The $76 billion the company pulled in during the quarter is up only one percent from Q4 of 2021.Google's ad business is the backbone of the company, and revenue slipped there by about 3.5 percent compared to a year ago. But eight percent growth in the "other" category (which includes products like Google and Nest hardware and revenue from the Play Store) and 32 percent yearly growth in in Google Cloud made up for those ad losses. Overall profits, meanwhile, dropped significantly: Quarterly net income of $13.6 billion is down 34 percent year-over-year.Of course, the backdrop for all this is that Google announced a few weeks ago that it is laying off about 12,000 employees; that makes up about six percent of the company's overall workforce. At the time those layoffs were announced, we didn't yet know what Google's financials for last quarter looked like, but now we can see that things are slowing down.That's all relatively speaking, though. Net income of $60 billion for 2022 as a whole was down significantly compared to the $76 billion in profit Alphabet made in 2021 — but it's still far ahead of the $40 billion the company pulled in for 2020. It looks like the big numbers Alphabet posted in 2021 weren't exactly sustainable, and obviously we don't yet know what 2023 will bring. But we'll be tuning into the company's call with investors, which starts at 4:30PM ET, to see what additional details CEO Sundar Pichai can share about the state of Alphabet in the year to come.

Amazon's drone delivery program doesn't seem to be off to a great start. The Prime Air division was said to be hit hard by recent, widespread layoffs. Now, a new report indicates that Amazon's drones have made just a handful of deliveries in their first few weeks of operation.After nearly a decade of working on the program, Amazon said in December that it would start making deliveries by drone in Lockeford, California, and College Station, Texas. However, by the middle of January, as few as seven houses had received Amazon packages by drone, according to The Information: two in California and five in Texas.The report suggests that Amazon has been hamstrung by the Federal Aviation Administration, which is said to be blocking drones from flying over roads or people unless the company gets permission on a case-by-case basis. Although Amazon had touted its FAA certification, the agency imposed a string of restrictions, which hadn't been revealed until now. It has largely rejected Amazon's requests to loosen the limitations.One of the plans the FAA agreed to, according to the report, was for Amazon employees to check no cars were passing on surrounding roads before drones left its Lockeford delivery facility. That depot is on an industrial block, and the drones need to fly over at least one road before getting to any homes.Amazon's drones are far heavier than ones operated by Wing, as well as Walmart’s partners Flytrex and Zipline. Those weigh between 10 and 40 pounds. Amazon's drone, on the other hand, weighs around 80 pounds and can only carry a five-pound payload. The report suggests the drone's mass could be causing concern among FAA officials. The agency has given Wing, Flytrex and Zipline permission to fly over roadways — to date, Wing has carried out more than 300,000 deliveries.One other aspect that doesn't help Amazon's prospects is that folks who want to receive deliveries by drone need a backyard where packages can be dropped off — so apartment dwellers need not apply. The drone can only carry a certain size of box and it dumps packages from 12 feet in the air, further limiting the types of products it can transport.“We meet or exceed all safety standards and have obtained regulatory authorization to conduct commercial drone delivery operations," Amazon spokesperson Maria Boschetti told The Information. "We welcome the FAA’s rigorous evaluations of our operation, and we’ll continue to champion the significant role that regulators play to ensure all drone companies are achieving the right design, build and operating standards." Boschetti added that the Prime Air layoffs, which have reportedly slashed the size of the delivery teams at both locations by more than half, have not affected Amazon's plans for the test sites.

Starbucks Rewards members can now pay with Venmo. The payment service’s parent company, PayPal, announced the change today, saying customers can use Venmo accounts to load and auto-reload their Starbucks Card funds.PayPal says you can add your Venmo account in the Starbucks app or the Starbucks Card section of the company’s website. Additionally, you can pay directly from Venmo after adding your account to the coffee chain’s app.The companies are running a promotion to entice you to try it. Until February 10th, Starbucks Rewards members will get 100 bonus Stars (perks for spending money there) by adding at least $15 from Venmo to their Starbucks Card. Alternatively, spending $15 or more using Venmo as a direct payment in the Starbucks app will also get you the bonus.This isn’t the coffee chain’s first new partnership as it deals with recent slowdowns. It announced last month it was working with DoorDash to offer 95 percent of its in-store menu items through the delivery service. Unfortunately, it also pounced on the NFT bandwagon, launching an alternative rewards system using digital collectibles.

The science of grafting skin has come a long way from the days of scraping it off one part of a patient's body and slapping it back on somewhere else to cover a nasty burn or injury. These days grafts are commonly bioprinted like living inkjets using the patient's cultured cells to seed the growing process, down to the vascularization. The primary shortcoming of these printed grafts is that they can only be produced in flat sheets with open edges. This method "disregard[s] the fully enclosed geometry of human skin," argue a team of researchers from Columbia University. Instead, they've devised a novel means of producing skin in virtually any complex 3D shape they need — from ears and elbows to entire hands printed like a pair of Buffalo Bill's mittens.Alberto Pappalardo and Hasan Erbil Abaci / Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and SurgeonsThe team published their findings, "Engineering edgeless human skin with enhanced biomechanical properties," in the January issue of Scientific Advances. They explained how they engineered, "the skin as a fully enclosed 3D tissue that can be shaped after a body part and seamlessly transplanted as a biological clothing."“Three-dimensional skin constructs that can be transplanted as ‘biological clothing’ would have many advantages,” Dr. Hasan Erbil Abaci, lead researcher and assistant professor of dermatology at Columbia University, said in a recent press release. “They would dramatically minimize the need for suturing, reduce the length of surgeries, and improve aesthetic outcomes.”What's more, these uniform grafts have shown superior performance, both mechanically and functionally, than their patchwork alternatives. The Columbia team has dubbed the grafts "wearable edgeless skin constructs" (WESCs). Ok, but can you eat them?The process of making these skin prosthetics isn't that far off from the existing techniques which result in flat slabs of skin. The transplant site is first scanned with a 3D laser to create a digital facsimile of the structure. That data is worked through a CAD program to generate a hollow wireframe of the appendige and then printed. This serves as the scaffolding on which the patient's cultured cells will grow. It's coated with skin fibroblasts and collagen then covered by an outer layer of keratinocytes (which make up the epidermis) and growth medium to feed the cells as they mature. As with making flat sheets, the entire process requires around three weeks for the cells to fully set up and be ready for transplant.Initial lab tests with mouse models were encouraging. “It was like putting a pair of shorts on the mice,” Abaci said. “The entire surgery took about 10 minutes.” Don't get too excited, mouse skin is not people skin. It heals differently enough that additional animal studies will be required before we start trying it on humans. Such tests are likely still years away.

Amazon told lawmakers it wouldn’t build storm shelters in its warehouses after a December 2021 tornado killed six employees at an Illinois location. Although the company changed its severe-weather response strategy after the incident, it essentially told the elected officials that since building storm shelters isn’t required by law, it won’t do that.The company responded to lawmakers Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Cori Bush (D-MO), who sent a letter on December 15th, questioning the company’s lack of storm shelters or safe rooms at its warehouses. “Amazon’s apparent unwillingness to invest in a storm shelter or safe room at its Edwardsville facility is made even more concerning by the fact that installing one could be done by Amazon at relatively low cost,” the lawmakers wrote. “This cost is negligible for a company like Amazon, which brought in more than $500 billion in revenue over the 12-month period ending September 30, 2022 and clearly has the resources necessary to protect its workers should it have the will to do so.”Company vice president of public policy Brian Huseman responded (via CNBC), “Amazon requires that its buildings follow all applicable laws and building codes. We have not identified any jurisdiction in the United States that requires storm shelters or safe rooms for these types of facilities.”Lawrence Bryant / reutersHuseman added that Amazon follows Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and National Weather Service guidelines and will continue using a “severe weather assembly area” for sheltering in place instead of the requested storm shelters. The six employees and contractors who died at the warehouse tried to protect themselves in a bathroom; the surviving workers took refuge in an assembly area.OSHA investigated the incident last April and ordered Amazon to review its severe weather policies, but it fell short of penalizing the company for its response. Additionally, Amazon hired a meteorologist, launched an internal center for monitoring severe weather and created emergency cards pointing out evacuation points and assembly areas.Amazon reportedly began rebuilding the warehouse last June. The families of two of the employees killed there have sued the company for wrongful death.

Razer announced its lightest gaming mouse today, the Viper Mini Signature Edition. It only weighs 49g, making it 16 percent lighter than the company’s Viper V2 Pro and one of the most lightweight mice we’ve seen from a large company.The mouse uses a magnesium alloy exoskeleton with a semi-hollow interior (bearing a slight resemblance to the SteelSeries Aerox 3 Wireless). “We wanted to push beyond the traditional honeycomb design, and this required a material with an outstanding strength-to-weight ratio,” said Razer’s Head of Industrial Design, Charlie Bolton. “After evaluating plastics, carbon fiber and even titanium, we ultimately chose magnesium alloy for its exceptional properties.”RazerRazer says the mouse uses its fastest wireless tech and will be among its best-performing wireless mice. It includes the Razer Focus Pro 30K Optical Sensor, Optical Mouse Switches Gen-3 and HyperPolling Wireless with 4000Hz polling rates. Additionally, Razer says the mouse’s battery lasts up to 60 hours and can fully charge via USB-C in less than 90 minutes. It ships with a pre-paired USB dongle.The $280 mouse will be available exclusively on Razer’s website starting February 11th.

Most electric vehicles get upgrades to boost performance or range, but Antarctica's one and only EV has received a tune-up due to the realities of climate change. Venturi has revealed that it upgraded its Venturi Antarctica electric explorer early last year due to warmer conditions on the continent. The original machine was designed to operate in winter temperatures of -58F, but the southern polar region is now comparatively balmy at 14F — and that affected both crews and performance.The company has added a ventilation system and air intakes to the front of the Antarctica to prevent overheating in the cockpit, while additional intakes keep the power electronics from cooking. Redesigned wheel sprockets were also necessary to maximize the tracked EV's capabilities. The warmer snow was sticking to the sprockets, creating vibrations as it compacted and hardened. Future upgrades will help restore range lost to changing snow consistency. The Antarctica is built to cover 31 miles, but scientists have been limiting that to 25 miles.Ars Technicanotes Venturi's EV has been in use at Belgium's Princess Elisabeth Antarctica Station since December 2021. It has two modest 80HP motors and just a 52.6kWh battery (plus an optional second pack), but raw power isn't the point. The design lets station residents perform research without contributing to emissions or polluting a relatively pristine region.You might not see Venturi make similar climate-related upgrades for a while. However, the refresh shows how global warming can affect transportation in subtle ways. Venturi and other manufacturers may have to design their next explorers on the assumption that Antarctica won't be as chilly as before.

Folks on the lookout for a new video doorbell or home security camera might be interested in checking out the latest sale on Arlo gear. You can snap up the devices for up to half off at the minute, with the Essential Wire-Free Video Doorbell seeing the biggest drop from $200 to $100.The doorbell, which you can plug in if you wish, offers a 180-degree wide field view and HD video with HDR. It captures video prior to motion-activated recordings, so you can see what caught the camera's attention (such as what someone was doing right before ringing the doorbell). You can speak to whoever's at your door from your phone thanks to two-way audio support. Alternatively, you can respond with quick reply prompts if you're busy. Arlo says the device is durable too, so it should be able to withstand the elements.The doorbell should play nicely with other smart home security devices, as it has Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and Samsung SmartThings support. Those who take out an Arlo Secure plan, meanwhile, will receive notifications when the doorbell detects people, vehicles, and packages.The sale also includes a wired version of the doorbell, which is 47 percent off at $80. A two-pack of the spotlight camera, which offers 1080p video capture and color night vision without the need for a hub, will run you $160 (31 percent off). Meanwhile, an indoor camera with a privacy shield is $30 off at $70.Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

Star Wars: Visions is returning for a second 'season,' this time with a more international scope — including a studio you might not have expected. Disney has announced that Star Wars: Visions Volume 2 will premiere May 4th (aka Star Wars Day) with shorts from nine countries, including one from UK stop-motion legend Aardman. Details of the project ("I Am Your Mother") aren't available, but it's directed by Wallace & Gromit veteran Magdalena Osinska.Other titles come from 88 Pictures (India), Cartoon Saloon (Ireland), D'art Shtajio (Japan), El Guiri (Spain), Punkrobot (Chile), Studio La Cachette (France), Studio Mir (South Korea) and Triggerfish (South Africa). Some of the creators have illustrious credentials. El Guiri's Rodrigo Blaas is a Pixar alumnus, for example, while Triggerfish has worked on BBC titles like The Highway Rat and Stick Man.The first Visions focused on Japanese anime studios' approach to the Star Wars universe, including well-known names like Production I.G (Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex) and Trigger (Kill la Kill). Creators were given more creative freedom than those producing canonical movies and TV shows — they were free to not only pursue different art styles and themes, but to break continuity with the official storyline. That's likely to continue with Volume 2, as series executive producer James Waugh says the anthology is about "celebratory expressions" of Star Wars that open "bold new ways" of telling stories in the space fantasy setting.The Visions release date bolsters an increasingly packed Star Wars release schedule at Disney+. It starts with The Mandalorian season three on March 1st, but will also include Young Jedi Adventures (spring), Ahsoka and Skeleton Crew. You'll have plenty to watch, then, even if the animated shorts aren't to your liking.

Fresh off the heels of news that Microsoft is making a multibillion-dollar investment into OpenAI, it’s integrating the company’s tech into more of its products and services. Microsoft has announced that Teams Premium is now broadly available. The service features large language models powered by OpenAI’s GPT-3.5, along with other tech geared toward making meetings "more intelligent, personalized and protected,” Microsoft says.Teams Premium offers AI-generated chapters in PowerPoint Live and “personalized timeline markers for when you leave and join a meeting." Live translations in captions are currently available too. In the coming months, Teams Premium will be able to automatically generate meeting notes with the help of GPT-3.5. Users will have access to AI-generated task and action item suggestions as well. Microsoft will likely expand the Teams Premium AI features over time.The company previously introduced the Azure OpenAI Service for developers, along with a tool to help beginners build their own apps and a graphic design app that are both powered by OpenAI tech. Word on the street is that Microsoft is building ChatGPT, OpenAI’s astonishingly popular chatbot, into Bing (Google is said to be working on an AI chatbot for Search too.)

After releasing two previous models, Hasselblad seems to have finally nailed the compact medium format camera with the X2D 100C. With a 100-megapixel backside-illuminated sensor that doubles the resolution of the last model, it promises incredible image quality and a stunning design. However, it also has limited autofocus abilities, no video and a large price tag. So is this just a luxury item, or is it good for serious photographers?My pro photographer friend Nathanael Charpentier wanted to find out. He was interested in seeing if the X2D could help him take more creative photos compared to his current Sony A1 and A9 cameras. At the same time, he was looking to use it in select situations to complement, rather than replace his existing setup.The X2D is obviously going to work well and take great shots in a controlled studio environment, but Nathanael wanted to test it in more challenging scenarios like live events. As such, he photographed a theatrical group, several professional scenarios, musicians and an evening out – with both the Hasselblad and his Sony A1 for comparison. I also took it myself to test in low light, for landscapes and more.Body and handlingThe X2D is bound to draw comparisons to Fujifilm’s 100-megapixel GFX 100S. On the one hand, Fuji’s model has more advanced technology like eye- and face-detect AI autofocus. However, the Hasselblad offers a better industrial design, handling and build quality.Physically, they couldn’t be more different. Where the GFX 100S looks like other Fuji mirrorless cameras but larger, the X2D is sleeker and more modern. It has nearly the same design and controls as the X1D II and X1D first introduced in 2017, with a few refinements. That’s great, as the body is both beautiful and practical. There are a few usability quirks, though.The control layout is sparse compared to the GFX 100S and most other modern mirrorless cameras. It has front and rear dials for primary settings, along with ISO/white balance, mode, power, exposure lock, display and menu buttons. They’re generally responsive and have a high quality feel.It’s relatively light for its category at 895 grams but still quite heavy. Luckily the big, non-slip grip is nice to hold and makes the X2D comfortable for all-day sessions. Ergonomically, it’s generally easy to use, but I missed having a joystick to move the AF point. That has to be done using either the display or the dials, which can be awkward.The menu system is equally simple. The main settings are available on one screen, and everything else has its own category, like focus, exposure and general settings. Again, it’s easy to use, but some extra manual controls would help if you need to make adjustments on the fly.Where the X1D II had a fixed display, the 3.6-inch, has a 2.36-million dot touchscreen. It’s the only way to change many settings, so luckily it’s bright, sharp and reactive. It does tilt up, unlike past models, but only 70 degrees which is insufficient for very low shooting angles. It’s also blocked a bit by the large protruding viewfinder (EVF) when you’re looking straight down.Steve Dent/EngadgetSpeaking of, the OLED EVF is another strong point. It has a sharp 5.76 million dot resolution with a 60 fps refresh rate and a huge 100 percent magnification. It even offers an electronic diopter adjustment for folks who wear glasses, which proved to be effective and kind of cool. Setting it is like taking an eye test, as words come into focus.On top of the CFexpress Type B slot, the X2D has a built-in 1TB SSD, enough to hold over 3,000 RAW and JPEG shots. It’s easily fast and spacious enough to hold and transfer the enormous images. I never even used the CFexpress slot, except as a backup – but it’s also nice to have a high-speed card slot for rapid transfers.With 420 shots, battery life is better than on past models, but still on the low end, and that figure is reasonably accurate in our experience. Luckily, it supports PD 3.0 fast charging up to 30W, so you can get a full charge in about 2 hours and run it on AC power in a studio. Still, I’d recommend extra batteries and the optional dual-battery charger, which costs $155 extra.Steve Dent/EngadgetIf you are shooting in a studio, you can use Phocus’s app (on Windows or Mac) for remote triggering and photo organization. It does offer exposure bracketing, but doesn’t have a live view or any way to change settings.Finally, while the X2D 100C is well made, Hasselblad doesn’t say if it’s weatherproof, So for landscape shooting in bad weather, the GFX 100S might be a better choice as it’s rated by Fujifilm for dust and splash protection.

Meta has routinely fought data scrapers, but it also participated in that practice itself — if not necessarily for the same reasons. Bloomberg has obtained legal documents from a Meta lawsuit against a former contractor, Bright Data, indicating that the Facebook owner paid its partner to scrape other websites. Meta spokesperson Andy Stone confirmed the relationship in a discussion with Bloomberg, but said his company used Bright Data to build brand profiles, spot "harmful" sites and catch phishing campaigns, not to target competitors.Stone added that data scraping could serve "legitimate integrity and commercial purposes" so long as it was done legally and honored sites' terms of service. Meta terminated its arrangement with Bright Data after the contractor allegedly violated company terms when gathering and selling data from Facebook and Instagram.Neither Bright Data nor Meta is saying which sites they scraped. Bright Data is countersuing Meta in a bid to keep scraping Facebook and Instagram, arguing that it only collects publicly available information and respects both European Union and US regulations.Meta has spent years suing individuals and companies for scraping its platforms without permission. In some cases, it has accused companies of masking their activities and accessing sensitive details that require logins. Last year, for instance, Meta sued Octopus last year over a tool that reportedly collected sign-ins and took private information like dates of birth and phone numbers.However, the Bright Data revelation isn't a good look for a company that has faced numerous privacy violation accusations, including some related to scrapers. The EU fined Meta €265 million (about $277 million) last fall for allegedly failing to protect Facebook users against scraping that grabbed and exposed private information. This latest case isn't guaranteed to create further trouble, but certainly won't help Meta's defense.

The next time you rent a Lyft scooter, you might find the company has a new model for you to ride. Starting today, Lyft is rolling out a “next-gen” electric scooter across its footprint. The device features a redesigned suspension system Lyft claims will result in smoother rides. The company says the new model can also travel to places its previous scooters could not, thanks to a more powerful motor and 11.5-inch airless tires.Internally, Lyft has equipped the scooter with a swappable battery that provides up to 50 miles of range and that can be charged out in the field. Later this year, the company plans to roll out a variant of the scooter that can recharge at stations connected to local electrical grids. The scooter also features cameras and Lyft’s latest sidewalk detection and parking awareness software. When you need to park the scooter, that software will use visual cues to alert you of restrictions, including areas where you can’t leave the scooter. Last but not least, the scooter comes with a built-in phone mount to make navigating easier.LyftAt the same time, Lyft has begun rolling out new docking infrastructure. The company has redesigned its steel bollards to make them more resistant to corrosion and rust, and, thereby, easier to maintain. It has also added solar cells to the bollards and found a way to make them more power efficient. Those are changes Lyft says should make them go longer between battery swaps. As mentioned above, the bollards can also pull power from the local power grid, a feature Lyft claims will increase vehicle availability. If you’ve run into trouble docking a Lyft scooter or e-bike before, you’ll also be happy to learn the new bollards feature a redesigned locking mechanism Lyft says requires “significantly” less physical effort to use. Additionally, they feature flip dots and speakers to make using them more accessible to first-time users.Lyft hasn’t said when people in specific cities could expect to see its new scooters and docking infrastructure arrive, but it sounds like the rollout will take place gradually throughout the year.

TikTok is trying to make it easier for creators and others to navigate its rules, and understand what’s happening to their accounts. The company is introducing a revamped “account enforcement system,” a series of changes that includes a new strike system, as well as features that allow creators to check if their content has been blocked from the app’s recommendations.The changes come amid a broader push from TikTok to increase transparency around how it handles content moderation and algorithmic recommendations, both of which have been subject to intense scrutiny by lawmakers, regulators and other critics.In a blog post, the company says the new strike system is meant to address “repeat offenders” who can have an outsized impact on the platform. “Under the new system, if someone posts content that violates one of our Community Guidelines, the content will be removed and their account will accrue a strike,” the company explains. “If an account meets the threshold of strikes within either a product feature (i.e. Comments, LIVE) or policy (i.e. Bullying and Harassment), it will be permanently banned.” The company added that users may also be banned after just one strike if the violation is considered “severe.”The change makes TikTok’s policy more in line with that of its peers. YouTube and Meta also use a strike system against accounts that break their rules, though each platform has its own criteria for determining strikes, and the penalties associated with them.TikTokIn that vein, TikTok says it will also provide creators with new tools to view if their account has racked up any strikes over the previous 90 days. The feature will live in a new “account status” section of the app’s Safety Center. The company is also adding a “reports” section, where users can follow up on any content or accounts they’ve reported.TikTok’s also starting to test two new features that deal with recommendations. The first is a feature that will notify creators if one of their videos has been blocked from the app’s For You page. The feature, which the company says “will be testing in select markets over the coming weeks,” will “let them know why, and give them the opportunity to appeal.”The second test is a feature that will allow users to essentially reset the recommendations that appear in For You page. According to a TikTok spokesperson, those in the test will see a “refresh” option in their For You feed, which basically gives the app’s main feed a fresh start. After the feed is “refreshed,” videos will be surfaced purely from new interactions and activity rather than what a user has historically interacted with.The updates come at a precarious moment for TikTok. The company has spent the last two years negotiating with the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) over changes to its policies and practices so it can continue to operate in the US. At the same time, scrutiny of the company has only intensified, with numerousbans and proposed bans piling up. And while the latest changes could meaningfully increase transparency for TikTok’s creators and users — who have sometimes complained that the app’s policies are unclear or unevenly enforced — the updates alone are unlikely to satisfy the company’s staunchest critics.But TikTok isn’t only relying on product changes. The company has also been physically showing off its stated commitment to transparency by opening up tours of its freshly opened “Transparency and Accountability Center,” a space at its Los Angeles office where participants can get a firsthand glimpse of how the company handles recommendations and content moderation.This week, TikTok offered reporters a tour of the center as part of its shifting strategy to win over critics. We’ll have more to say soon about the transparency center, and TikTok’s sweeping plan to comply with US regulators, but both seem to be aimed at tackling one of the central criticisms of TikTok head on: that the app’s recommendations algorithm is opaque and ripe for abuse.So while changes like the ones announced today don’t come close to addressing the full scope of critics’ concerns, it does help TikTok begin to chip away at the perception that the app is an impossible-to-understand black box.

ChatGPT has been growing at a rate much, much faster than TikTok or any other popular app or service. According to a new study by analytics firm UBS (via Reuters and CBS), the OpenAI-developed chatbot was on pace to reach over 100 million monthly active users in January. The chatbot only became available to the public on November 30th last year, but its rise to fame has apparently been meteoric. Within its first month of availability, it already boasted 57 million monthly active users, the study said. By January, it was already being visited by around 13 million individual users a day.In comparison, it took TikTok nine months after its global debut to reach 100 million monthly users despite its popularity, especially among the younger generation. UBS analyst Lloyd Walmsley also pointed out that Meta's Instagram had been around for two-and-a-half years before reaching that point. It remains to be seen, however, if the chatbot can maintain this level of interest in the coming months. "The next question is obviously what its staying power will be. There may be an element of people just coming to look," Walmsley added.ChatGPT provides users with natural-sounding human-like responses to queries, so much so that educators are concerned that it could be used by students to cheat. While it still has serious accuracy problems — "Models like ChatGPT have a notorious tendency to spew biased, harmful, and factually incorrect content," MIT's Tech Review wrote in a piece — there isn't another public chatbot with comparable capabilities. It has reportedly rattled Google's execs to the point that they decided to declare "code red" and accelerated the company's AI development. The tech giant is working on a few potential ChatGPT competitors, including a chatbot for search, and is aiming to showcase 20 AI products this year.ChatGPT remains free to use at the moment, and OpenAI doesn't seem to have any plans to completely lock access to it behind a paywall. However, the startup does intend to start charging for the service and has already started testing a paid ChatGPT plan for $20 per month, which offers faster response times and priority access to new features.

Samsung’s first big tech event of 2023 unveiled three phones and three laptops. The showstoppers are, predictably, the company’s premium flagships, the Galaxy S series. The S23 Ultra ($1,199) has a huge 6.8-inch, an S-pen stylus and a 200-megapixel camera. That’s a lot of pixels.It’s the company’s first Adaptive Pixel sensor, which means while you can still shoot at 200MP, by default, the system uses pixel-binning to deliver brighter, clearer pictures at 50MP or 12MP. Other upgrades include optical image stabilization that’s been effectively doubled for better-lit photos and less shaky video.Meanwhile, the Galaxy S23 (starting at $800) and S23+ ($1,000) are slightly more iterative but still premium smartphones. They pack reliable cameras and faster processors – the entire S23 series has a special overclocked version of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. All the phones are available to pre-order now.Samsung also revealed an ultra laptop. The 16-inch Galaxy Book 3 Ultra draws inspiration from the company’s best-selling Galaxy S phones, but combines it with heavy-hitting PC specs, like 13th-gen Intel Core i9 processors and NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 4070 graphics.– Mat SmithThe Morning After isn’t just a newsletter – it’s also a daily podcast. Get our daily audio briefings, Monday through Friday, by subscribing right here.The biggest stories you might have missed

After lightly integrating Discord features on PlayStation 5 consoles in early 2022, voice chat has finally arrived in its latest beta update, Sony has announced. PS5 Testers in the US, Canada and Japan will be able to join Discord calls, some months after Microsoft introduced the feature on Xbox. The PS5 is also gaining Variable Refresh Rate support for 1440p, along with dashboard UX improvements and more.Discord integration is a bit clunky, much like it was on Xbox at first. Here's how to set it up and use it, according to Discord's blog. First, you need to link your PlayStation Network (PSN) account to Discord, then select Discord under "Linked Services." After that, you can complete the integration using either a QR code or the PS5's integrated browser.Each time you want to use Discord chat on console, though, you'll need to use your mobile device to transfer your conversation, which isn't ideal. Back in November, Microsoft made it possible to join Discord chats directly from the console, so hopefully Sony will eventually do the same.SonyOther new social features include a new way to share screens, party chats in the dashboard and "friends who play" that shows which of your friends are playing a game right now. Sony also introduced Variable Refresh Rate support for 1440p gaming, so HDMI 2.1 displays should exhibit smoother performance at that resolution with less tearing. Sony launched PS5 VRR in April last year and 1440p support shortly afterwards, but the two features have yet to work together.Gamers will also find new tools to access PS4 saved data on a PS5, along with the ability to move games from one PS5 console to another over WiFi or ethernet. The new beta is rolling out to certified testers today, and should be available to everyone else over the next few months.

Developers will soon have to pay Twitter to be able to use its API. The website has announced through its Twitter Dev account that it will no longer support free access to its API, both versions 1.1 and 2, starting on February 9th. It will launch a "paid basic tier" instead, but the company has yet to reveal how much it would cost. Twitter has been experimenting with new ways to make more money ever since Elon Musk took the helm. The biggest change so far has been Twitter Blue, which evolved into a $8-to-$11-a-month subscription service that allows users to purchase the website's previously elusive blue checkmark.A New York Times report from last year said Musk and his advisers also discussed the possibility of adding paid direct messages and videos behind a paywall. They even reportedly considered reviving Vine, its short-form video app that it shut down back in 2016. Musk has been exploring all possible sources of income to be able to pay the loans he took when he purchased Twitter for $44 billion. As The Information notes, he borrowed $13 billion from a group of banks to close the deal, and they weren't able to sell the debt to investors as planned. The company now has to pay $1.5 billion every year in interests alone.Twitter showed signs that it had plans to change the way developers accessed its APIs when third-party clients like Tweetbot suddenly stopped working in January. Later, the company confirmed that it deliberately cut off their access due to "long-standing API rules," even though it previously removed the section in its developer policies that discouraged app-makers from creating something similar to its core service. A few days after third-party Twitter clients went down, the website updated its developer agreement to ban access to its "Licensed Materials to create or attempt to create a substitute or similar service or product to the Twitter Applications.""Twitter data are among the world’s most powerful data sets," the company wrote in a follow-up tweet. "We're committed to enabling fast & comprehensive access so you can continue to build with us." While it's pretty clear that Twitter intends to charge developers to use its API, it didn't say if it would make exceptions for researchers. Twitter provides specialized access to its API for academic research, and people in academia have been using data from the website for their studies across various fields, including health and politics.The website promises to share more details about the new "paid basic tier" for its API next week.

Kindle's Paperwhite 5 launched in 2021, but Amazon has just spruced up the models a bit with a couple of new colors and put them on sale for good measure. You can now grab them in Agave Green and Denim, with the regular 16GB variant priced at $110 (27 percent/$40 off) and the Signature version on sale at $140 ($50 or 26 percent off). Oddly, the black version doesn't carry any discount and is still priced at $190, so the new color versions are currently the way to go.Amazon also did this for the Paperwhite 4, introducing new colors well after the original launch date, as The eBook Reader pointed out. Amazon used the same Denim Blue color on the 11th generation 2022 Kindle as well. Even if you're not crazy about the new colors, you'll see the same black bezels when viewing it from the front.We gave the Paperwhite 5 Signature Edition one of our highest Engadget scores ever (97) calling it "the best e-reader, period." It has a bigger and more responsive screen than ever, tiny bezels, both USB-C and wireless charging, a waterproof body, 32GB of storage, automatic brightness and warm light options. The standard model drops storage to 16GB and lacks wireless charging, but is otherwise the same.As mentioned, the Signature Paperwhite is $50 off in Agave and Denim, while the standard version offers a $40 savings in the green and blue shades — near the lowest prices we've seen.

Sony's gaming business had a blockbuster holiday quarter as it sold 7.1 million PS5s from October to December compared to 3.9 million in the same quarter last year. That's a whopping 82 percent increase, so the company's supply issues appear to be largely solved — much as the company has said as of late. In other words, you should be able to buy a PS5 now with little to no delay.All of that resulted in a giant boost in revenue, as its Game & Network Services segment took in 1.25 trillion yen ($9.7 billion), up 53 percent year on year. That includes over double the revenue for hardware and healthy boosts in software (30 percent), network services (20 percent) and others including PSVR and first-party software sales on other platforms (73 percent).To grasp the significance of all this, Sony has now sold 32.1 million PS5s compared to 25 million in November 2022, so total unit sales increased 28 percent in just a single quarter. It also means that Sony may hit its fiscal year 2022 PS5 sales forecast (18 million units from March 2022 to March 2023) if it can ship 5.2 million consoles next quarter, something that previously seemed wildly optimistic. If it does reach that goal, it'll reach 37 million in total PS5 sales by the end of its fiscal year.Sony has fought Microsoft's acquisition of Activision, though Microsoft itself recently pointed out that Sony has five times more exclusive games than Xbox. In terms of first-party titles, God of War Ragnarök and Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut were standouts on PS5 this quarter.Sony's gaming business dwarfed its other segments, though its imaging sensor business continues to rise as well, with sales up 63 percent year on year to 417 billion yen ($3.24 billion). Sony supplies the lion's share of camera sensors to both smartphone and mirrorless camera manufacturers.

Back in 2021, Nissan revealed a few concept vehicles as part of its announcement that it was going to invest $17.6 billion in the development of electric vehicles over the next few years. One of the concepts it presented is a convertible two-seater sports car called the Max-Out, but the automaker only released a render that showed what it was supposed to look like. Now, the company has shown off a real-life physical version of the Max-Out at the launch of the Nissan Futures event in Yokohama, and it looks like the automaker stayed true to its original design.It's still a two-seater convertible with headlights and edges that light up in different neon colors. The EV's design has the mixed aesthetics of several different sci-fi franchises, including Tron and Avatar. But other than showing what it looks like, Nissan hasn't shared details about the EV concept, probably because it doesn't have plans to create a production version of it anytime soon, if at all.TORU HANAI/EngadgetWhen the company first unveiled the Max-Out, it vowed to develop 23 electrified vehicles and to launch 15 new EVs by 2030. It didn't make a pledge to go fully electric by the end of the decade, but it did say that it was aiming for a mix of EVs and gas vehicles. In particular, it's targeting a market mix of 75 percent electrified vehicles in Europe and 40 percent electrified in the US and China. One of the EVs it has released since its 2021 announcement is the Ariya, Nissan's first electric crossover, which has an estimated range of 216 to 304 miles depending on the variant.Nissan says the Futures event will showcase how it's "shaping the future of sustainable mobility and innovative design" and how it's preparing for "the various challenges and opportunities the coming large-scale transition to electric mobility will bring." While the event will be held at the company's global headquarters in Japan, Nissan will upload some panel recordings on its YouTube channel.

The Federal Trade Commission has slapped prescription drug discount app GoodRx with a $1.5 million fine for the unauthorized disclosure of customers' identifiable health information with third parties, such as Facebook and Google. This is the first time the agency has taken enforcement action under its Health Breach Notification Rule, which requires vendors of personal health records to notify customers if their data has been breached. While the rule has applied to companies handling health records since 2009, FTC commissioners voted in favor of expanding it to cover health apps in 2021.According to the FTC, the California-based telehealth service repeatedly violated the rule by sharing customers' personal health information, including their health conditions and the medicine they're taking. Further, it shared their information with companies that have third-party advertising platforms like Facebook, Google and Criteo despite making a promise to customers that it will never do so. The FTC says GoodRx also monetized its customers' information. In 2019, for instance, it uploaded the email addresses, phone numbers and mobile advertising IDs of users who purchased certain medications to Facebook, so it can target them with health-related ads.In addition to imposing a $1.5 million fine on GoodRx, the FTC is also seeking to change how the company handles user information. In its proposed court order (PDF) against the company, it listed several provisions, including banning the service from disclosing user data for advertising purposes. For other purposes, it wants to require GoodRx to secure customers' consent first before sharing their health information to third parties. The FTC also wants GoodRx to get the third parties it shared data with to delete its customers' information, and it wants the company to establish a comprehensive privacy program that will protect user data.Samuel Levine, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, said in statement:"Digital health companies and mobile apps should not cash in on consumers' extremely sensitive and personally identifiable health information. The FTC is serving notice that it will use all of its legal authority to protect American consumers’ sensitive data from misuse and illegal exploitation."

Almost 20 years in, Facebook is still growing. The social network now has 2 billion daily active users, Meta reported alongside its fourth-quarter earnings. The report marks the first time Facebook, which added 16 million users last quarter, has reached 2 billion daily users.While Facebook isn’t the first Meta-owned platform to reach 2 billion daily users — WhatsApp recently crossed 2 billion DAUs — it does show that the company’s biggest source of ad revenue is still growing, even while Meta has made significant cuts to its business in recent months. CEO Mark Zuckerberg alluded to the company’s recent restructuring, which resulted in the elimination of more than 11,000 jobs, saying in a statement that “our management theme for 2023 is the 'Year of Efficiency.'”MetaBut while Meta’s revenue has shrunk over the last year, the company’s $32.2 billion in revenue for the last quarter of 2022 was still slightly better than expected even as it was down 4 percent from last year.During a call with analysts, Zuckerberg suggested that Meta will continue to make cuts as it prioritizes efficiency. “We're going to be more proactive about cutting projects that aren't performing or may no longer be as crucial,” he said. The CEO also said that generative AI would be a priority for Meta in the year ahead.“Generative AI is an extremely exciting new area with so many different applications,” Zuckerberg said. “And one of my goals for Meta is to build on our research to become a leader in generative AI.”Meta also continues to lose vast amounts of money on its metaverse investments. Reality Labs, the division overseeing its VR, AR and metaverse projects, lost $4.3 billion in the fourth quarter of 2022, and nearly $14 billion for the whole year, Meta reported. and the company, once again, confirmed that it expects to lose even more money on Reality Labs in the year ahead. "We still expect our full year Reality Labs losses to increase in 2023," Meta CFO Susan Li said. "And we're going to continue to invest meaningfully in this area given the significant long term opportunities that we see."While the Reality Labs losses have contributed to Meta's revenue slowdown over the last year, Zuckerberg also said that he believes the company is in the midst of a "pretty rapid phase change," compared to years past. "We can't just treat everything like it's hyper growth," he said. "There are gonna be some areas that are going to be very rapidly growing, or that are very, kind of, future investments that we want to make."

With the third season of Overwatch 2 slated to start on February 7th, Blizzard is stepping up its efforts to combat cheating. In a blog post published Wednesday, the studio said it would begin identifying players who regularly play with known cheaters. Blizzard says the owners of those accounts will face repercussions, even if they’re not cheating themselves. It warns of “severe suspensions” and, in some cases, outright bans.Next season, Blizzard will also introduce a system for moderating custom game modes. The company says the new technology will automatically remove games with inappropriate titles or content and sanction the accounts that create and post those modes. The system comes after the original Overwatch’s “sexual harassment simulator” custom mode made a brief reappearance last month. The mode tasked players with impregnating the game’s female heroes while playing as Cole Cassidy, the hero Blizzard renamed after allegations about its “frat boy” workplace culture came to light in 2021. After the mode appeared in Overwatch 2’s most popular list, Blizzard took action but didn’t say how it would prevent a similar incident from happening again.Lastly, Blizzard says it’s taking action against a practice known as stream sniping. If you’ve ever watched a popular streamer play a multiplayer game like Overwatch 2 or Valorant, you know how frustrating it is for content creators when someone tries to queue into the same match and uses a stream to give themselves a competitive edge. Starting with season three, players will have the option to prevent their BattleTag, and the tags of anyone else in their match, from appearing in their game client. Blizzard will also allow players to hide or delay their queue time. The studio says those measures should prevent someone watching a stream from figuring out if they’re in the same lobby as a streamer. You’ll find the toggles to enable those features within Overwatch 2’s social settings.

EA didn't just kill Apex Legends Mobile and Battlefield Mobile, apparently. Bloombergsources claim the publisher canceled an unannounced single-player game set in the Titanfall and Apex Legends universe. While details of the project aren't available, veteran developer Mohammad Alavi (who also worked on the Call of Duty series) was reportedly helming the project until he left Respawn in early 2022. EA is said to be finding places for the affected 50 team members when possible.EA declines to comment. Respawn says it's shutting down Apex Legends Mobile as its content roadmap is starting to "fall short" of expectations. The studio also delayed Star Wars Jedi: Survivor by six weeks over quality concerns.The reported cancelation doesn't come as a shock. The global economy is slowing, and game publishers are among those scaling back to help endure financial turmoil. Ubisoft recently canceled three games amid a gloomy outlook, and Halo developer 343 Industries is dealing with the consequences of Microsoft's layoffs. Decisions like this theoretically help EA and Respawn concentrate on known money-makers like Apex Legends, which has earned over $2 billion so far.The rumor is likely to be disappointing to fans if true. The Titanfall games are well-reviewed, but Titanfall 2 arrived seven years ago. A third title in the series eventually transformed into Apex Legends as the battle royale trend took hold. Now, players may have to wait even longer for a new story-driven game in the franchise — if it happens at all.

Paramount+ has reportedly joined the trend of streaming platforms removing original shows to cut costs. The Real World: Homecoming, which reunites casts of the original 1990s MTV reality series, got the boot along with six other shows.Jordan Peele’s The Twilight Zone reboot, which ran from 2019 to 2020, was also a casualty. In addition, the streamer axed true-crime drama Interrogation, the animated series The Harper House, the comedy No Activity, the crime drama Coyote and the dark comedy Guilty Party. Parent company Paramount Global hasn’t announced whether they will land somewhere else after their removal.The cuts follow similar removals from sister company Showtime, which Paramount will fold into Paramount+ later this year. (It will then take on the unfortunate rebranding, “Paramount+ With Showtime.”) Rival streamer HBO Max recently pulledWestworld, Raised by Wolves, The Time Traveler’s Wife and The Nevers. They will begin appearing this month with ads on a Roku and Tubi channel creatively titled “WB TV Series.”

Don't worry if you missed out on Nintendo's bargain game vouchers from 2019 — they're back. The company is once again offering a pair of vouchers for $100 to Switch Online subscribers. If you buy two eligible $60 games, this could save you $10 on each. Needless to say, this could help you score a deal for a a blockbuster like The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom even when it's brand new.There are conditions beyond the limited catalog. You have to use the vouchers within a year, so you can't save them for perpetuity. You also can't hold more than eight at a time. You do get My Nintendo Gold Points equivalent to five percent of what you pay, though. Nintendo doesn't say if or when the vouchers willThere's no secret behind the strategy for the vouchers. Nintendo clearly hopes you'll not only join Switch Online, but commit to buying multiple games where you might have otherwise bought just one. Still, it's difficult to ignore the value. Even one set of vouchers can recoup the cost of Switch Online if you were already planning to buy games. In theory, you could quickly build a collection of major titles while saving a significant amount of money.

ChatGPT, the AI chatbot that has blown up over the last few months, is going premium. After confirming a few weeks ago that it would test a paid plan, OpenAI has rolled out ChatGPT Plus.Although people will still be able to use the chatbot for free, there are of course some perks that come with a ChatGPT Plus plan. OpenAI says subscribers will have general access to the chatbot, even during peak times. They'll also get faster response times from ChatGPT, along with priority access to upgrades and new features.The paid service is available in the US for now. OpenAI plans to gradually invite people from the ChatGPT Plus waitlist to sign up for the service over the coming months. The company is also looking to open up the plan to folks in other countries and regions in the near future.OpenAI says that the premium plan will help to keep ChatGPT free for anyone to use. In addition, it's exploring cheaper subscriptions, as well as business plans and data packs to increase availability."We launched ChatGPT as a research preview so we could learn more about the system’s strengths and weaknesses and gather user feedback to help us improve upon its limitations," OpenAI wrote in a blog post. "Since then, millions of people have given us feedback, we’ve made several important updates and we’ve seen users find value across a range of professional use-cases, including drafting and editing content, brainstorming ideas, programming help and learning new topics."OpenAI has found some other ways to bring in funding. Last month, Microsoft announced it's making a multibillion dollar investment in the company and it plans to use OpenAI's tech more broadly across its products. Google, meanwhile, has reportedly focused heavily on its AI work after the emergence of ChatGPT. It's said to be preparing its own chatbot and at least 20 other AI-powered products to show off this year.

When Elon Musk took over Twitter, he said he would offer “amnesty” to previously banned and suspended accounts. Since then, he’s restored dozens of controversial high-profile users, including Donald Trump (who has yet to return to the platform), comedian Kathy Griffin, and a number of whitenationalists and members of the far-right.Now, Twitter is opening a public-facing appeals process, which will allow anyone whose account has previously been suspended to request reinstatement. The company posted a link to an online form accessible to users who are able to log into an account that’s previously been locked or suspended.

In 2016, Studio Ghibli co-founder and director Hayao Miyazaki, responsible for beloved anime classics like Princess Mononoke and Kiki’s Delivery Service, made headlines around the world for his reaction to an AI animation program. “I would never wish to incorporate this technology into my work at all,” Miyazaki told the software engineers who came to show their creation to him. “I strongly feel that this is an insult to life itself.” A half-decade later, artificial intelligence and the potential role it could play in anime productions is once again in the spotlight.This week, Netflix shared Dog and Boy, an animated short the streaming giant described as an “experimental effort” to address the anime industry’s ongoing labor shortage. “We used image generation technology for the background images of all three-minute video cuts,” said Netflix Japan of the project on Twitter, according to a machine translation. The short is touching but was immediately controversial. As Motherboard points out, many Twitter users accused Netflix of using AI to avoid paying human artists.

A new Twitch livestream tries to answer the question: What if AI made never-ending Seinfeld? “Nothing, Forever” is an experiment using OpenAI’s GPT-3 natural language model to produce (occasionally coherent) dialog between pixelated counterparts of Jerry, George, Elaine and Kramer. Although it’s closer to surreal performance art than the beloved 90s sitcom, it conjures images of a strange, dystopian future where we entertain ourselves with endless content generated by robots.“Nothing, Forever” immediately hits you with well-known aesthetics. Scene transitions show the exterior of a line of New York City brownstones over the sound of a quirky jazz bassline. It frequently cuts to “Larry” (the Jerry equivalent) performing what AI passes as standup comedy. Scenes inside Larry’s apartment show him chatting with George, Elaine and Kramer's counterparts about appropriately mundane topics. Their conversations, while mostly unintelligible and lacking structure or narrative, make their inspiration clear.On the other hand, the stiff and rudimentary character models look like they walked out of a 1980s Sierra adventure game. Their voices are robotic too, and Jerry and George sound less like their real-world counterparts and more like Mr. Van Driessen, the hippie social studies teacher from Beavis & Butthead. Finally, it’s a stretch to say the generated dialog is coherent — much less funny. (If not for its laugh track, you wouldn’t notice the laugh lines.) Generative AI’s current limits are as much on display as the show’s influence.Twitch“Aside from the artwork and the laugh track you’ll hear,” one of the show’s creators posted to Reddit, “everything else is generative, including: dialogue, speech, direction (camera cuts, character focus, shot length, scene length, etc), character movement, and music.” The stream has little human involvement and changes based on viewer feedback from the Twitch stream. “The show can effectively change, and the narrative actually evolves based on the audience,” said Hartle in an interview with Vice. “One of the major factors that we’re thinking about is how do we get people involved in crafting the narrative so it becomes their own.”That goal may be far away, as any narrative — much less a personalized one — seems beyond its current capabilities. Still, with a sizable budget and several years of technological advancement, it’s easy to imagine someone producing more watchable generative programming, an endless stream of personalized, assembly-line digital media. “Our grounding principle was, can we create a show that can generate entertaining content forever? Because that’s truly where we see the future emerging towards. Our goal with the next iterations or next shows that we release is to actually trade a show that is like Netflix-level quality.”

Before Samsung Unpacked even wrapped up today, Amazon swooped in with an offer on pre-orders for unlocked units of the new Galaxy S23 Ultra, Plus and base model smartphones — bundling a $100 Amazon gift card with the Ultra and plus and a $50 card with the S23 standard. All three phones will also get a free bump to the larger storage size and the offer is good on all available colors (black, cream, green and lavender). Like Amazon, Samsung is also offering $100 or $50 bonus, but in the form of Samsung credit.The S23 Ultra has an MSRP of $1,200 for the 256GB storage capacity and the S23+ starts at $1,000 for the 256GB size. The free storage upgrade bumps both of those models up to 512GB. The base S23 goes for $800 with 128GB, and the upgrade brings that to 256GB. The phones will ship on February 17th and the Amazon gift card will be delivered via mail once the phones ship.We got a chance to spend some time with the S23 and the S23+ this week. The notable differences between the two versions are screen size, battery capacity and price. Both have vivid and smooth screens, as you'd expect from Samsung's Galaxy S series, and this year's versions include software advances for both photo and video capture.We also got a chance to check out the S23 Ultra, and, of course, the big news there is the big 200 MP camera lashed to its back. We'll dive into full reviews on all three phones very soon, but in the meantime, the new S23 Galaxy phones are ready to pre-order as of today, and both Amazon and Samsung will throw in a bonus if you jump in now.Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

Electric vehicle maker Rivian is laying off another six percent of its workforce. The company reduced its headcount by the same proportion of workers back in July. The automaker has around 14,000 employees, according to Reuters, so it will be letting go around 840 people this time.As with the previous round of layoffs, Rivian says it's focusing resources on increasing production and becoming a profitable company."While this doesn’t impact manufacturing jobs in Normal, teams across the company will be losing passionate collaborators — teammates who stretched themselves daily and have given their all to help us execute on our mission," CEO RJ Scaringe wrote in an email to employees. The company shared a copy of the memo with Engadget.As part of its push toward profitability, Rivian is attempting to ramp up production of its R1T and R1S vehicles, as well as the delivery vans it's making for Amazon. It had to slash its production target for 2022 due to supply chain issues. Reuters notes that Rivian fell just short of its goal of making 25,000 vehicles last year.The company is also working on more affordable R2 electric trucks, which it plans to produce at high-volume, but it doesn't expect to start shipping them until 2026. Rivian will build that truck at a $5 billion factory it's constructing in Georgia."Continuing to improve our operating efficiency on our path to profitability is a core objective and requires us to concentrate our investments and resources on the highest impact parts of our business," Scaringe wrote. "The changes we are announcing today reflect this focused roadmap."We'll get a clearer picture of the state of Rivian's business when it reports quarterly earnings on February 28th. The company announced its latest layoffs soon after Tesla and Ford cut prices of their EVs, making it more difficult for newer players like Rivian to compete. Earlier this week, EV startup Arrival said it would cut around half of its workforce.

All good things must come to an end. Since September 2020, Sony has offered the PlayStation Plus Collection to PlayStation 5 owners with an active PS Plus membership. That bundle comes with some of the PlayStation 4’s best games, including Bloodborne, God of War, The Last of Us Remastered, Batman: Arkham Knight, Fallout 4 and Resident Evil 7: Biohazard. Come May 9th, however, Sony will no offer the PlayStation Plus Collection, the company announced today.If you haven’t claimed any of the 19 titles included in the bundle, you have until May 9th to do so. Once those games are associated with your account, you’ll continue to have access to them as long as you maintain an active PlayStation Plus subscription. Sony says it plans to focus its efforts on growing the PS Plus library of monthly games and its Games Catalog, which PlayStation owners can access by subscribing to either PlayStation Plus Extra or Premium.On that note, the company also revealed February’s slate of PlayStation Plus games. This month’s lineup features Evil Dead: The Game, OlliOlliWorld, Destiny 2:Beyond Light and Mafia: The Definitive Edition. You can download all four games starting on February 7th, and they’ll be available until March 6th. Of the titles on offer, you should definitely give OlliOlliWorld a try. It was one of Engadget’s favorite games of 2022.

Samsung's Unpacked event isn't just focused on the Galaxy S23 and Galaxy Book 3. The company has revealed to The Washington Post that it's working on "extended reality" (that is, augmented, mixed and virtual reality) wearable devices. While there aren't many details, the hardware will run a new, Google-designed version of Android designed with wearable displays in mind — this isn't Meta's heavily customized take on Android from the Quest line. Qualcomm will provide the chipset.The "XR" hardware will also entail partnerships with Meta and Microsoft, although Samsung isn't elaborating further. Rumors have swirled that Microsoft axed HoloLens 3 in favor of this project. In an interview with The Post, mobile president TM Roh says the ecosystem has to be "somewhat ready" before launch. The tech giant wants to avoid the missteps of rivals who debuted comparable hardware without robust support.Samsung is no stranger to wearable screens. The company leapt into the market with 2015's Gear VR, which used the smartphone as both the display and computing power. In 2017, the firm jumped into PC-oriented mixed reality headsets with the HMD Odyssey. Samsung largely left the market to rivals like Meta and HTC after 2018, however.Whether or not the timing is right is another matter. Roh says Samsung has been working on its latest initiative for a while, and it may give the brand a quick counter to a long-rumored Apple headset that might debut this spring. With that said, Meta has been struggling with its metaverse efforts and cut 11,000 jobs to shrink costs last fall. Microsoft, meanwhile, has grappled with problems that include a halt to military HoloLens sales, the departure of the team lead over misconduct claims and reports the company may have scrapped the entire HoloLens unit as part of its recent layoffs. Samsung is reentering the mixed reality space right as some of the category's biggest players are flailing or bowing out — it's not certain if the Galaxy maker will fare better.

Samsung has unveiled the Galaxy S23 series, and the formula will seem familiar if you've seen the company's phones from the past few years: one 'small' 6.1-inch handset, a larger 6.6-inch version and a range-topping 6.8-inch Ultra that steals the show. They're all faster and take better photos. The competitive landscape is very different this year, however. The S23 line is competing against not just an expanded Apple lineup with two large-screen iPhones, but a Pixel family that finally lives up to some of Google's loftier promises. Check out the specs below to see how they compare, and be sure to look at our hands-on sessions with the S23, S23+ and S23 Ultra.What's ChangedThe centerpiece upgrade, as you may have guessed, is the Galaxy S23 Ultra's 200-megapixel main camera. It makes the S22 Ultra's 108MP sensor seem modest, and Samsung claims strong low-light photography as well as 8K video at 30 frames per second. You can also expect an improved 12MP selfie camera on the S23 and S23+ models (up from 10MP) with 60FPS HDR, and those phones can shoot Expert RAW photos at their primary camera's full 50MP resolution.After that, the Galaxy S23 series revolves around incremental (if welcome) updates. They all use the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip, which promises ray-traced graphics and big boosts for AI performance and power efficiency. Batteries are ever-so-slightly larger, and there's greater use of recycled components. Memory and storage are largely unchanged, although that still delivers up to 12GB of RAM and 1TB of storage on the S23 Ultra. You'll still want the highest-end device if you crave more than 8GB of RAM and a 1080p display. Simply speaking, there's no rush to upgrade from the S22 if you're still happy with its capabilities.Galaxy S23 Ultra vs. iPhone 14 Pro MaxGalaxy S23 UltraiPhone 14 Pro MaxPricingStarts at $1,200Starts at $1,099Dimensions163.3 x 78 x 8.9 mm (6.43 x 3.07 x 0.35 in)160.7 x 77.6 x 7.85 mm (6.33 x 3.05 x 0.31 in)Weight233.9g (8.25oz)240g (8.47oz)Screen size6.8in (173mm)6.7in (170mm)Screen resolution3,088 x 1,440 (501PPI)2,778 x 1,284 (458PPI)Screen typeAMOLED (120Hz, always on)Super Retina XDR (120Hz, always on)Battery5,000mAh4,323mAhInternal storage128 / 256 / 512 GB / 1 TB128 / 256 / 512 GB / 1 TBExternal storageNoneNoneRear camera(s)Four cameras:Wide, 200MP, f/1.7Ultra-wide, 12MP, f/2.2Right telephoto, 10MP, f/2.4Left telephoto, 10MP, f/4.9Three cameras:Wide, 48MP f/1.78Ultra-wide, 12MP, f/2.2Telephoto, 12MP, f/2.8Front camera(s)12MP, f/2.212MP, f/1.9Video capture8K at 30FPS4K at 60FPSSoCSnapdragon 8 Gen 2Apple A16 BionicCPU3.2GHz octa-core3.46GHz hexa-coreGPUAdreno 740Apple penta-core GPURAM8 / 12 GB6 GBWiFiWiFi 6eWiFi 6Bluetoothv.5.3v.5.3NFCYesYesOperating systemAndroid 13iOS 16Other featuresUSB-C, Qi wireless charging, reverse chargingLightning, Qi wireless charging, MagSafe chargingGalaxy S23+ vs. Pixel 7 Pro and iPhone 14 PlusSamsungGalaxy S23+Pixel 7 ProiPhone 14 PlusPricingStarts at $1,000Starts at $899Starts at $899Dimensions157.7 x 76.2 x 7.6 mm (6.21 x 3 x 0.3 in)162.9 x 76.6 x 8.9 mm (6.4 x 3 x 0.35 in)160.8 x 78.1 x 7.8 mm (6.33 x 3.07 x 0.31 in)Weight195.9g (6.9oz)212g (7.5oz)203g (7.16oz)Screen size6.6in (167.6mm)6.7in (170.2mm)6.7in (170.2mm)Screen resolution2,340 x 1,080 (422PPI)3,120 x 1,4402,778 x 1,284Screen typeAMOLED (120Hz, always on)AMOLED (120Hz, always on)AMOLED (60Hz)Battery4,700mAh5,000mAh4,323mAhInternal storage256 / 512 GB128 / 256 GB128 / 256 / 512 GBExternal storageNoneNoneNoneRear camera(s)Three cameras:Wide, 50MP, f/1.8Ultra-wide, 12MP, f/2.2Telephoto, 10MP, f/2.4Three cameras:Wide, 50MP, f/1.85Ultra-wide, 12MP, f/2.2Telephoto, 48MP, f/3.5Two cameras:Wide, 12MP, f/1.5Ultra-wide, 12MP, f/2.4Front camera(s)12MP, f/2.210.8MP, f/2.212MP, f/1.9Video capture8K at 30FPS4K at 60FPS4K at 60FPSSoCSnapdragon 8 Gen 2Google Tensor G2Apple A15 BionicCPU3.2GHz octa-core2.85GHz octa-core3.24GHz hexa-coreGPUAdreno 740Mali-G710 MP07Apple penta-core GPURAM8GB12GB6GBWiFiWiFi 6eWiFi 6eWiFi 6Bluetoothv.5.3v.5.2v.5.3NFCYesYesYesOperating systemAndroid 13Android 13iOS 16Other featuresUSB-C, Qi wireless charging, reverse chargingUSB-C, Qi wireless charging, reverse chargingLightning, Qi wireless charging, MagSafe chargingGalaxy S23 vs. Pixel 7 and iPhone 14SamsungGalaxy S23Pixel 7iPhone 14PricingStarts at $800Starts at $599Starts at $799Dimensions146.3 x 70.9 x 7.6 mm (5.76 x 2.8 x 0.3 in)155.6 x 73.2 x 8.7 mm (6.1 x 2.9 x 0.34 in)146.7 x 71.5 x 7.8 mm (5.8 x 2.8 x 0.31 in)Weight168.1g (5.93oz)197g (6.95oz)172g (6.07oz)Screen size6.1in (154.94mm)6.3in (160.5mm)6.1in (154.94mm)Screen resolution2,340 x 1,080 (422PPI)2,400 x 1,080 (416PPI)2,532 x 1,170 (460PPI)Screen typeAMOLED (120Hz, always on)AMOLED (90Hz, always on)AMOLED (60Hz)Battery3,900mAh4,355mAh3,279mAhInternal storage128 / 256 GB128 / 256 GB128 / 256 / 512 GBExternal storageNoneNoneNoneRear camera(s)Three cameras:Wide, 50MP, f/1.8Ultra-wide, 12MP, f/2.2Telephoto, 10MP, f/2.4Two cameras:Wide, 50MP, f/1.85Ultra-wide, 12MP, f/2.2Two cameras:Wide, 12MP, f/1.5Ultra-wide, 12MP, f/2.4Front camera(s)12MP, f/2.210.8MP, f/2.212MP, f/1.9Video capture8K at 30FPS4K at 60FPS4K at 60FPSSoCSnapdragon 8 Gen 2Google Tensor G2Apple A15 BionicCPU3.2GHz octa-core2.85GHz octa-core3.24GHz hexa-coreGPUAdreno 740Mali-G710 MP07Apple penta-core GPURAM8GB8GB6GBWiFiWiFi 6eWiFi 6eWiFi 6Bluetoothv.5.3v.5.2v.5.3NFCYesYesYesOperating systemAndroid 13Android 13iOS 16Other featuresUSB-C, Qi wireless charging, reverse chargingUSB-C, Qi wireless charging, reverse chargingLightning, Qi wireless charging, MagSafe charging

While the Galaxy S23 Ultra might be the 200-megapixel camera-toting showstopper, Samsung is also unveiling two more premium smartphones. The Galaxy S23 and S23+ feature a minor redesign, some useful software tricks and, this time, almost spec parity across the two devices.Even more so than last year’s Galaxy S22 series, the 6.1-inch S23 and 6.6-inch S23+ are very, very similar. The main differences are the screen size, battery capacity and price. Although, the S23+ also has ultrawideband support, which could help with precision location hunting of any compatible Bluetooth trackers. Besides that, these are the same phone.What’s new for 2023? Well, a mild redesign. The company has removed the camera cutout on the back of both devices, even though it’s another trio of cameras. The S23 series, regardless of which phone you choose, will launch in a range of colors: black, off-white, green and lavender. I like the muted green.The Galaxy S23’s AMOLED FHD+ screen is capable of 120Hz refresh rates and now has a peak brightness of 1,750 nits – one of the notable upgrades from last year’s S22, which topped out at 1,300 nits. Beyond the bigger size, the 6.6-inch Galaxy S23+ has an identical screen and both are bright, vivid and smooth. Screens are what Samsung, always, does well on the Galaxy S series.Engadget, Mat SmithThe entire S23 series doubles the number of components made from recycled materials, up to twelve. That includes “pre-consumer” recycled glass for the front screen and back cover. In addition, Samsung used recycled aluminum for the SIM tray and volume keys. It also sourced recycled plastic from water barrels, discarded fishing nets and PET bottles for the speaker modules and in the construction of the back glass.The camera specifications are recycled too: a combination of 50-megapixel wide, 12MP ultra-wide and 10MP telephoto sensor. In Samsung’s defense, last year’s S22 series beefed up cameras substantially. This year’s update is more of the same. The cameras seemed responsive and capable enough during our brief hands-on, but we’ll have to wait and see if they perform better than their predecessors in real life.At least there are some imaging software advances. You can now capture full 50MP images in Samsung’s Expert RAW format, which used to be limited to 12MP. Video capture also picks up upgraded video stabilization. The S23 analyzes movements and compensates for your shakiness at up to two times wider angles than its predecessor. Rounding out the camera hardware, both the S23 and S23+ have an upgraded 12-megapixel selfie camera, which features a Super HDR mode that captures 60 frames per second in higher dynamic range.While the cameras may not be pushing the boundaries of smartphone photography (that’s the S23 Ultra’s job) there are bigger batteries in both phones year. The Galaxy S23 has a 3,900mAh battery (up from the 3,700mAh cell in the S22), while the Galaxy S23+ has a 4,700mAh battery, 200mAh bigger than the S22+.This year One UI update also throws in a few new useful features. Typically, Google’s Android updates dominate a “what’s changed” list between S-series phones. But this year there are some Samsung-made additions worth highlighting. Let's start with the improved comfort mode. The S23 will now adjust contrast levels and colors to reduce the screen’s harshness later in the day. The S23 series also has a new image clipper – no S-Pen needed – replicating the addictive sticker feature that Apple introduced on iPhones in iOS 16.Engadget, Mat SmithOur first impressions: it’s not a particularly exciting year for Samsung’s smaller flagships. This year especially, The Galaxy S23 Ultra is clearly the company’s favorite child – check out our impressions on Samsung’s most expensive phone here. While these are still premium smartphones, we'd wait for our full review if you’re using an S22 and considering an upgrade. The Galaxy S23 and the Galaxy S23+ are available to preorder now. The S23+ starts at $1,000 with 256GB of storage, while the S23 starts at $800 with 128GB of storage.

Samsung announced the latest cohort of Galaxy phones today at its annual Unpacked event, following it up with new laptop news as well. This year’s flagship is the Galaxy S23 Ultra, which sports a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor, a 200-megapixel camera sensor, S Pen integration and more. As in years past, Samsung also has the standard Galaxy S23 and S23+, which have the same processor as in the Ultra and similarly capable camera arrays. On the notebook side of things, the Galaxy Book 3 Ultra has 13th-gen Intel processor plus NVIDIA graphics, while the Galaxy Book 3 Pro series come in standard clamshell and 2-in-1 designs. Here’s everything you need to know about how to pre-order the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, and all of the other devices announced at Unpacked 2023.Samsung Galaxy S23 UltraThe Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra is available for pre-order today and starts at $1,199. Those who pre-order between today and February 16th on Samsung's website are eligible for a free storage upgrade and up to a $100 Samsung credit. If you pre-order through Amazon, you'll get a $100 gift card along with the same free storage upgrade. In addition, specific carriers including Verizon, T-Mobile and AT&T have their own pre-order specials.Samsung didn't deviate too much from last year's Galaxy S22 Ultra with this year's flagship. The Galaxy S23 Ultra looks much the same, although it does have a slightly flatter design that presumably address complaints about its predecessor's curved screen edges. This year's phone has a 6.8-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2x Infinity-O QHD+ touchscreen with a 120Hz adaptive refresh rate and a peak brightness of 1,750 nits. Beneath it lies an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor for biometric authentication, although you will still be able to access your info and apps with face recognition as well. The S Pen integration has carried over again, with the Ultra sporting an embedded stylus that you can use to doodle, take notes and more.Aside from the small design change, the biggest difference between this year's Ultra and last year's is the upgraded rear camera array. The Galaxy S23 Ultra has a whopping 200MP Adaptive Pixel sensor, along with a 12MP ultra wide shooter and a 10MP telephoto lens. The system is capable of shooting 8K video at 30fps, 4K video at 60fps or FHD video at 120fps and 960fps, the latter of which is dubbed Super Slow-Mo. Plus, it can shoot 4K/60fps video from its 12MP selfie camera, too.When it comes to specs, the Galaxy S23 Ultra runs on a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor and supports up to 12GB of RAM, up to 1TB of storage and 5G connectivity. It has a 5,000mAh battery inside and supports fast charging and wireless PowerShare.Samsung Galaxy S23 and S23+Both the Samsung Galaxy S23 and S23+ are available for pre-order today and they start at $799 and $999, respectively. Those who pre-order between today and February 16th on Samsung's website are eligible for a free storage upgrade and up to a $100 Samsung credit. If you pre-order through Amazon, you'll get up to a $100 gift card along with the same free storage upgrade. In addition, specific carriers including Verizon, T-Mobile and AT&T have their own pre-order specials.Much like last year, the S23 and the S23+ do have some similarities between them. Both run on Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipsets and their rear camera setups are the same: a 50MP wide shooter, a 12MP ultra wide camera and a 10MP telephoto lens. With that, you'll be able to shoot 8K video at 30fps, 4k video at 60fps and FHD video at 120fps or even 960fps with Super Slow-Mo.While their designs are cut from the same cloth, the Galaxy S23+ has a 6.6-inch Dynamic FHD+ AMOLED screen while the Galaxy S23's display measures 6.1-inches. Both, however, have an adaptive 120Hz refresh rate and a peak brightness of 1,750. In addition to the larger screen, the S23+ includes a larger battery, "Super Fast Charging 2.0" with a wired connection and UWB support, plus the option to get up to 512GB of storage (as opposed to only 256GB on the standard model).Samsung Galaxy Book 3 UltraThe new Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Ultra will be available for pre-order on February 14th and it starts at $2,199. It will be widely available on February 22nd.The most advanced model in Samsung’s notebook lineup, the Galaxy Book 3 Ultra has a 16-inch Dynamic AMOLED x2 display with a 16:10 aspect ratio and a refresh rate of 120Hz. It sports a full aluminum frame and parts made from recycled plastics. It maintains a sleek and slim design we've come to expect from Galaxy Books, while much of the upgrades are in its interior. The notebook runs on 13th-gen Intel Core i9 processors and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 graphics, and it can be specced out with up to 32GB of RAM and up to a 1TB SSD. There’s even an expansion slot that you can use if you need even more storage in the future.You’re also getting an FHD webcam on this laptop that offers improvements like light correction and auto framing using Samsung’s Studio Mode. That’s paired with AI noise-cancelling microphones to provide a better video conferencing experience. Standout new features include Multi Control, which lets you control your laptop, tablet and Galaxy phone from one keyboard and trackpad, copying and pasting content between devices seamlessly; and Second Screen, which lets you use your Galaxy Tab as another monitor when you need extra screen space.Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Pro and Pro 360The Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Pro in 14-inch and 16-inch sizes will be available for pre-order soon starting at $1,249. The Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360 (16-inch only) will also be available for pre-order soon starting at $1,399. All of the new laptops will be widely available on February 22nd.If you’re just on the market for a regular laptop, you’ll get to pick from the 14-inch or 16-inch Galaxy Book 3 Pro. The 2-in-1 version only comes with a 16-inch display, and all three of these laptops have minor differences when compared to the Book 3 Ultra. The Pros support 13th-gen Core i7 CPUs and Intel Iris X GPUs, but they can be configured to have up to 32GB of RAM and up to 1TB of storage (albeit that’s your cap there, as there’s no expansion slot on these). You do, however, get the same 120Hz Dynamic AMOLED 2x display on the Pro laptops, so you won’t have to sacrifice there — and the 360 model supports touch input as well. The other noteworthy difference to call out is that both the 16-inch standard and 2-in-1 models have a larger battery than the 14-inch Book 3 Pro laptop, which is to be expected.

It’s February and the first major flagship phone launch of 2023 is here. Samsung is launching the new Galaxy S23 series at its Unpacked event in San Francisco today, and this year’s trio of phones are no surprise. While last year’s focus was on the addition of an S Pen slot to the Ultra variant and saying hello to the Note replacement, this time around things feel less monumental.Most of the changes to the standard S23 and S23 Plus models feel incremental, while the biggest update to the S23 Ultra is a new 200-megapixel rear camera, enhanced selfie shooter and a few software updates. Some other improvements are less obvious, like a tweak in the curvature of the phone’s screen, different materials used in the case and the latest Qualcomm processors. There are also new colors and storage options available, but that’s pretty much it. If you want the details on the regular S23 and S23 Plus, check out what my colleague Mat Smith thought in his hands-on. I am focusing on the S23 Ultra here.Besides the camera bump, everything about the S23 Ultra feels like a negligible improvement. But that’s not a bad thing and it does mean those who bought last year’s model won’t feel like they’re missing out by not jumping on the new phone.Design and displayAt first glance, unless you have one of the newer colors like green or lavender, the S23 Ultra looks nearly identical to its predecessor. It retains the same boxy shape, though Samsung says it’s reduced the screen edges’ curvature to make it easier to use with the S Pen. The display can also hit up to 1,750 nits of outdoor peak brightness now, though I couldn’t really tell the difference, especially without an S22 Ultra on hand to do a side by side comparison. And even though I continue to struggle using a 6.8-inch screen with just one hand, I was able to reach across the display to hit far-off elements. It just took some effort.One of Samsung’s focal points for the S23 Ultra is sustainability. Materials like pre-consumer recycled aluminum and glass, as well as post-consumer plastics from discarded fishing nets went into the handset. The S23 Ultra is also the first phone to use Gorilla Glass Victus 2, which the company says offers “heightened durability for long-term use and [was] designed with an average of 22 percent pre-consumer recycled content.” Honestly, I couldn’t tell the difference simply by touch. All I can say is the S23 Ultra felt well-made and wasn’t noticeably heavier or lighter than before.CamerasThe most significant update to the S23 Ultra is its new 200-megapixel “Adaptive Pixel” rear sensor that Samsung says is a first for its Galaxy family of products. While you will have the option to shoot at 200MP, by default the system uses pixel-binning to deliver brighter, clearer pictures at 12MP. When I used the S23 Ultra to shoot a bowl of lemons at the available options of 200mp, 50MP and the default level, the latter resulted in the best picture. I zoomed in on the peel of the fruit on all three images, and was surprised to see individual pits and fine hairs on the 12MP photo. On the other two, there was barely enough detail to see the skin texture.Cherlynn Low / EngadgetSamsung says it also improved its Nightography mode for better images in low light, thanks to a new “AI-powered image signal processing (ISP) algorithm.” Our demo area was very brightly lit and I wasn’t able to access any dark corners to put this claim to the test, so we’ll have to wait till we can run a real-world test to verify how well this works. And though I did capture a quick 8K video at 30 frames per second (up from 24fps before), it’s hard to judge the quality just by playing that footage back on the phone. You’ll likely want to shell out for the new 1TB storage model if you plan on filming a lot of 8K video.There are some additional improvements to the S23 Ultra’s cameras that I couldn’t test during the hands-on event. The optical image stabilization (OIS)’s range has been doubled, meaning it can compensate for twice the amount of movement in all directions. The processing algorithms have also been updated to, as Samsung says, “carefully reflect a person’s dynamic characteristics” based on details “even down to minute facial features such as hair and eyes.” I don’t really get what that last one means practically and couldn’t see a difference in the few photos I snapped.I also checked out the S23 Ultra’s new 12-mp selfie camera, which is the same across this year’s lineup. Though the bump in resolution seems like a step up for the two standard models, going to 12-mp might feel like a drop from the S22 Ultra’s 40-mp sensor. But a Samsung rep told me the new sensor is bigger and more advanced, featuring dual-pixel autofocus. They also support Super HDR and can now shoot clips at 60 fps, up from 30 fps before. The few selfies I snapped at the demo came out clear and autofocused quickly, but without a side by side comparison I can’t judge how much better the S23 Ultra is than its predecessor and competitors.The Galaxy S23, which has the same front camera as the S23 Ultra, showing a selfie snapped with it.Cherlynn Low / EngadgetThe rest of the Ultra’s rear camera array is the same as last year. In addition to the new 200MP sensor, you’ll find a pair of 10MP telephoto cameras and an ultrawide 12MP option. The Ultra also has a laser autofocus that the regular S23s don’t.Processor, battery and S PenJust like last year, the Ultra is the only model that has an S Pen that tucks away inside the onboard slot. There are no changes to the stylus this year, and making the few sketches and notes I did during my preview felt as smooth as before.As always, there are loads of things we will need to wait till we can run our full barrage of tests before we can say for sure. For example, all the new S23s are powered by a custom version of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, featuring higher clock speeds than the standard version. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy will hit up to 3.3Ghz, which is a whole 100Mhz faster than the standard. But Qualcomm said the improvements include “accelerated performance… in both CPU and GPU frequencies,” and that the chipset is “the fastest Snapdragon ever.” You’ll still get the benefits of the standard Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, like hardware-accelerated ray-tracing for better lighting effects in games.The S23 line also has a larger vapor cooling chamber to keep the phone from overheating during a gaming marathon, while Samsung says the S23 Ultra’s 5,000mAh battery can last more than 20 percent longer than last year’s model.Short of installing benchmarks on the demo units at the hands-on, which is kind of a no go, there wasn’t much I could do to test the S23 Ultra’s performance. I installed Survivor.iO and ran through the tutorial and first round, and the phone ran as quickly and smoothly as expected. I did encounter some lag when trying out new OneUI features like picking system-generated themes and switching modes and routines, though.Cherlynn Low / EngadgetNew OneUI 5.1 featuresAll three new S23s ship with OneUI 5.1, which brings intriguing new features that are at once Android 13-like and iOS 16-esque. In addition to new color palette options generated from your choice of wallpaper, Samsung’s software now offers lock screen customization options that are strongly reminiscent of Apple’s. You can choose your clock widget’s color, font and style, pick what system indicator symbols sit below it, as well as your wallpaper and more. But the S23 Ultra has a field for you to include a message on your lock screen in case you leave your phone somewhere and have enough faith in humanity to leave your contact information for someone to return it.Samsung is also adding new Modes and Routines to OneUI 5.1, and the former is basically the company’s take on Apple’s Focus modes. Both give you the ability to create profiles for activities you might start like sleeping, gaming, exercising or driving, and dictate which apps to silence or whitelist. OneUI’s Routines feature, however, is a little more fun. It’s basically “if this then that” conditional programming, offering more granular triggers and action. At the demo, a Samsung rep set the Ultra to change its wallpaper when Airplane mode is activated. There was some lag when we first tried to turn Airplane mode on before the wallpaper changed, but subsequently the transition was quicker.I’m not someone who needs my phone background to be different when I’m on a plane, but I do like the variety of combinations that Routines allows. I also appreciate that Samsung went a step further than Apple here, rather than purely mimicking the iPhone.Cherlynn Low / EngadgetOther new OneUI features are still very similar to their iOS versions, like the new widget stacks and Smart Suggestions widget. There’s also a new Image Clipper tool that lets you long press on a photo and grab just the subject without its background to share in other apps — just like Apple’s updated visual lookup. Samsung’s offering is slightly different because its interface supports split screen, so you can more easily drag and drop your stickers between apps and then resize them in Notes, for example. During my brief time with the phone, Image Clipper seemed about as accurate as the iOS version, which is to say it’s mostly effective but sometimes doesn’t recognize objects. It identified people well, but failed to separate a phone from the table it was on.Of course, OneUI 5.1 will most likely roll out to older Galaxy phones, so you don’t necessarily need to get an S23 to use these new tools. But if you’re already convinced you want the new flagships, you can pre-order them today. The S23 Ultra starts at $1,200 and will be available on February 17th. If you’re not yet sure if these phones are worth the upgrade, make sure to wait for our full review, so we can tell you more about performance, battery life and how well the S23s stack up against the competition in the real world.

True to the rumors, Samsung has unveiled the Galaxy Book 3 line — including the company's first-ever Ultra laptop model. The Galaxy Book 3 Pro, Galaxy Book 3 Pro 360 convertible and Galaxy Book 3 Ultra all center around 120Hz, 2,880 x 1,800 "Dynamic AMOLED 2X" displays with technology lifted directly from Samsung's higher-end smartphones. You'll only find touch input on the Pro 360, but this still promises rich colors (120 percent of the DCI-P3 gamut), smooth responses and DisplayHDR True Black 500 support.The 16-inch Galaxy Book 3 Ultra (pictured above) is, unsurprisingly, billed as a performance powerhouse. It comes with up to a 13th-gen Intel Core i9 and NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 4070 graphics — this is very much a gaming machine. You can also expect up to 32GB of RAM, a 1TB SSD (with an expansion slot), a 1080p webcam and an AKG-tuned quad speaker array with Dolby Atmos surround. Two Thunderbolt 4 ports, one USB-A port, a microSD slot, a headphone jack and HDMI round out connectivity. The Ultra is an easy-to-carry system despite the specs, weighing 3.9lbs and measuring 0.65in thick thanks to a "full" aluminum frame that you'll also find in other models.SamsungThe Galaxy Book 3 Pro and Pro 360 (middle) are more conventional thin-and-light portables. Both support up to a 13th-gen Core i7 and lean on integrated Iris Xe graphics. They support up to 32GB of RAM a 1TB SSD and the ports of the Ultra, but don't have the Ultra's expansion or HDMI 2.0 compatibility (only HDMI 1.4). The Pro is available in a very light (2.42lbs) 14-inch model as well as a 16-inch (3.4lbs) configuration, while the Pro 360 is only available in a 16-inch (3.7lbs) variant. The touchscreen laptop does have optional 5G, however.Integration with Samsung's phones is tighter than before, too. Multi Control now lets you steer your handset (not just your tablet) using the Galaxy Book 3's keyboard and trackpad — you can drag-and-drop content between devices. You can automatically upload the phones' Expert RAW photos and edit them in Adobe Lightroom, too. The company is also eager to note support for Microsoft Phone Link, including new productivity features. You can quickly continue web browsing on your computer, or quickly connect to your phone's hotspot.Prices start at $1,249 for the Galaxy Book 3 Pro, $1,399 for the Pro 360 and $2,199 for the Ultra. Pre-orders begin today. They'll ship on February 17th, starting with the Pro and Pro 360 notebooks. It's evident that the Ultra is the headliner, though, as it's one of the few truly portable laptops that can still deliver the performance needed for games and heavy-duty media editing.

Samsung is ready to take its Ultra branding to the final frontier — at least, as far as its mobile products go. After introducing an Ultra variant of its tablets last year, the company is launching a similarly high-specced model of its Galaxy Book laptops in 2023. Alongside the new S23 series of flagship phones, Samsung launched the Galaxy Book 3 Pro, Galaxy Book 3 Pro 360 and Galaxy Book 3 Ultra at its Unpacked event in San Francisco today.The Ultra and the Pro 360 are only available in 16 inches, while the clamshell Galaxy Book 3 Pro comes in 14- and 16-inch sizes. I was able to check out a few of them at a recent hands-on event, though Samsung didn’t have every single model available. Rather than detail every configuration, I’m going to focus on my impressions of the Book 3 Ultra here. For the complete breakdown of the six other laptops, check out our news post for the full specs.In general, the Galaxy Book 3 lineup is pretty straightforward. They’re powered by 13th-gen Intel Core i5 or i7 processors, with Iris X graphics and up to 32GB of DDR5 RAM. The Pro 360 is the only touch-enabled model, and Samsung has redesigned its display to remove a layer in the panel while still supporting touch. All models have 3K Dynamic AMOLED screens that run at 120Hz and can get as bright as 400 nits.The star of the show, however, is the Galaxy Book 3 Ultra, and it’s a beast of a machine. It uses Intel’s Core i7 and i9 processors, and those are paired with NVIDIA’s RTX 4050 and 4070 graphics cards respectively. The i7 model comes with 16GB of DDR5 RAM while the i9 configuration has 32GB.Despite packing such powerful guts, the Book 3 Ultra is an impressively thin and light laptop, weighing 1.79kg (3.9 pounds) and measuring 16.5mm (0.64 inches) thin. It’s not as light as the LG Gram Style I saw at CES, which is just 1.2kg, but the latter doesn't offer RTX 30 series graphics. Samsung’s laptop also felt more premium and sturdy than the Gram, which might be thanks to its aluminum frame, though I have to say LG’s machines at least have a distinctive style. The Galaxy Books are starting to look boring, with the same MacBook-esque design they’ve come in for years. Like the Galaxy S23 phones, parts of the Book 3 series were built from recycled plastics from discarded fishing nets.The Book Ultra is heftier than the other Book 3s, but it also offers a generous array of ports including HDMI, microSD, two Thunderbolt 4 USB-C sockets, a USB-A slot and a 3.5mm audio jack. Like most laptops with a 16-inch screen, the Ultra also sports a roomy keyboard and its trackpad is positively enormous. I wish the buttons had a bit more travel, but typing on the Book Ultra was comfortable enough. It’s no ThinkPad, but it’ll do the job.Cherlynn Low / EngadgetI didn’t get to try out much else on the Galaxy Book 3, since we had a limited amount of time to check out a ton of devices. The few apps I opened, like Notepad and Control Panel, launched quickly, but I can’t say that’s a good measure of performance.I also wish I had been able to check out the 1080p webcam or new features like the updated quad speaker system and PC-smartphone connectivity tools like Recent Websites and Instant Hotspot via Microsoft’s Phone Link. In theory, though, signing into your Samsung account on the Book Ultra and your Galaxy smartphone should allow you to seamlessly move a web page from your phone to your PC. Samsung’s Multi Control now supports Galaxy smartphones so you can use your laptop, tablet and phone with a keyboard and trackpadComputer makers have been building software that makes connecting your phone and PC less of a hassle for years. While tools like this are getting better over time, it’ll be interesting to see just how useful Samsung’s offering will be in the real world. Frankly, the most intriguing thing about the Galaxy Book 3 Ultra is what Samsung has been able to squeeze into such a svelte frame. The Galaxy Book 3 Ultra will be available on February 17th from $2,400, but you should wait till we can get one in for testing to determine how it stacks up against the competition on performance and battery life before dropping your money.

Along with delaying Star Wars Jedi: Survivorby six weeks, Electronic Arts says it's shutting down Apex Legends Mobile less than a year after releasing the game on iOS and Android. The company is also abandoning Battlefield Mobile and closing Industrial Toys, the studio behind that game."At Respawn, we aim to provide players with games that are consistently outstanding," Respawn Entertainment said in a statement. "Following a strong start, the content pipeline for Apex Legends Mobile has begun to fall short of that bar for quality, quantity, and cadence. It is for this reason, after months of working with our development partner, that we have made the mutual decision to sunset our mobile game." Tencent and Lightspeed had been working on the mobile version.EA has already delisted Apex Mobile (which Apple named the iPhone game of the year for 2022) from app stores and halted all in-app purchases with real money. The game will still be playable for a few more months until the servers are switched off on May 1st at 7PM ET. EA says it won't refund real money purchases but suggests that users can request refunds from the App Store or Play Store.As for Battlefield Mobile, that game hadn't been fully rolled out. EA started testing it in select markets in the fall of 2021. EA says it's still focused on helping the Battlefield series reach its potential (it has ambitious plans for the franchise) and supporting Battlefield 2042, but a mobile version is no longer on the cards for the time being.Meanwhile, around the same time EA announced the end of Apex Legends Mobile, it emerged that the Epic Games-published Rumbleverse, a pro wrestling-themed battle royale, will shut down at the end of this month. While big players like Fortnite, PUBG: Battlegrounds, the PC and console version of Apex Legends and Fall Guys seem to be doing just fine for now, these closures suggest the battle royale bubble is starting to burst.

The Federal Trade Commission has suffered a setback in its attempt to prevent Meta from buying Supernatural developer Within Unlimited. According to Bloomberg, a federal court this week denied the agency’s request for a preliminary injunction to block the purchase. The deal reportedly won’t close for at least another week yet, as the court also issued a temporary restraining order to give the FTC time to decide whether to appeal the ruling.Engadget could not confirm Bloomberg’s reporting because the court documents announcing the decision are sealed. Meta did not immediately respond to a comment request. The FTC sued the company last July, arguing Meta’s acquisition of Within would reduce competition in the emerging virtual reality market. Within is the creator of Supernatural, one of the most popular VR exercise apps on the Oculus Quest Store. An eight-day trial in December saw Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Chief Technology Officer Andrew “Boz” Bosworth testify. During the hearing, Bosworth said Meta could abandon the acquisition if it did not “close in a timely manner.”With Wednesday’s decision, the FTC must decide whether to move forward with its antitrust case against Meta. The agency has a hearing scheduled for February 13th with its administrative judge. If the FTC chooses to let the order stand, it will mark an early defeat for agency head Lina Khan. President Biden appointed Khan to the FTC for her expertise in antitrust law. The Meta decision could impact the FTC’s effort to block Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard, a case where the agency already faces an uphill battle due to the vertical nature of the proposed merger.

It's almost time for Samsung's first big event of the year, Unpacked 2023. The company hasn't said what to expect from the presentation, but it has strongly hinted that the Galaxy S23 is on the way. Samsung's reservation page suggests a new high-end Galaxy Book laptop is on the way as well. Of course, there's always the chance the tech giant could surprise us too.You can watch the livestream below. Samsung's event starts at 1PM ET, but Engadget is kicking things off a bit early with a pre-show at 12:30PM ET. Join Engadget Deputy Editor Cherlynn Low and Senior Writer Sam Rutherford as they break down all of Samsung's announcements.

Biden administration officials have taken aim at Apple and Google in a new report, describing the pair as “gatekeepers” of the mobile apps that consumers and businesses rely on. The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) states that users “should have more control over their devices” and argues that more legislation is probably needed to bolster competition in the app ecosystem. The agency also claims that "the current ecosystem is not a level playing field."In a report titled “Competition in the Mobile App Ecosystem” (PDF), the NTIA says it pinpointed two major policy issues that are getting in the way of a more competitive app ecosystem. First, it says that users "largely" can't get apps outside of the Google and Apple-controlled app store model. The report notes that sideloading is not an option broadly available to most iOS users and that alternative app stores such as Amazon Appstore and Samsung’s Galaxy Store "are not currently sufficiently viable options to create robust competition."The NTIA says the second issue it identified is that Apple and Google impose technical barriers that can make it more difficult for developers to compete. These can include factors such as limits on how apps function and funneling apps through "slow and opaque review processes," the report says.The agency determined that, while there are some benefits to the current mobile app ecosystem, particularly when it comes to security measures, the cons outweighed the pros. It added that it's still possible to shore up privacy and security in a more competitive marketplace. To get to that point, the NTIA suggests that several changes are required.First, it says, users should have more control over what they do with their devices, including the option to set their own apps as defaults (something that's already possible on Android and iOS to some degree), a way to hide or remove pre-installed apps and the ability to use third-party app stores. The NTIA argues that operators of app stores shouldn't give their own apps preferential treatment in search results as well.In addition, there should be measures in place to prevent limits on sideloading, web apps and other app stores "while still preserving appropriate latitude for privacy and security safeguards," the agency said. Moreover, it claimed that "limits on in-app purchasing options should be addressed" by preventing app store operators from forcing developers to use their own payment systems. Google has been testing third-party billing options for certain Android apps, while Apple last year started allowing certain app makers to direct users to their websites to manage payments and accounts."We appreciate the report acknowledges the importance of user privacy, data security and user convenience," an Apple spokesperson told Engadget in a statement. "Nevertheless, we respectfully disagree with a number of conclusions reached in the report, which ignore the investments we make in innovation, privacy and security — all of which contribute to why users love iPhone and create a level playing field for small developers to compete on a safe and trusted platform.”In a filing with the NTIA, Apple said it "competes with other products that do not offer the same level of protection and instead choose to let customers load unvetted code onto their devices — which independent studies show leads to more malware and less privacy." The company also claimed that if its "security and privacy protections were regulated out of existence, the result would thus be less competition and less consumer choice."Engadget has contacted Google for comment.The NTIA report comes amid a drive from the White House to bolster competition in the tech industry. "My vision for our economy is one in which everyone — small and midsized businesses, mom-and-pop shops, entrepreneurs — can compete on a level playing field with the biggest companies," President Joe Biden wrote last month in a Wall Street Journal op-ed.There have been attempts in Congress to increase competition in the mobile app ecosystem. Proposed legislation called the Open App Markets Act failed to pass in the last session despite gaining bipartisan support. It would have required Apple and Google to let developers use third-party app stores and payment systems.

Jony Ive once designed a limited edition Leica camera for charity, but he worked on a far lower-tech product for the UK charity Comic Relief's Red Nose Day. In fact, the famed ex-Apple designer came up with a new version of the Red Nose itself, designing a model that transforms from a flat "C" shape into a honeycomb paper sphere. It's a key part of Comic Relief's annual charity broadcast March 17th on several BBC channels.In a short video (below), comedian Diane Morgan jokingly describes it as "the most perfect nose in history." It has a few typical Ive touches, like plant-based materials and a small case for storage when it's folded flat. In a press release, Comic Relief called it "the most dramatic makeover since [the Red Nose] debut in 1988.""We've grown up with Comic Relief and are proud to support their remarkable work," said Ive. "This new and seemingly simple Red Nose has been a fabulously complex little object to design and make and has involved our entire team. We hope it brings a little moment of joy to everyone who wears one."The £2.50 ($3) product is being sold directly by Comic Relief and also on Amazon for the first time with a limit of eight per customer. Money raised from the March 17th telethon and Red Nose sales goes toward people battling issues like homelessness, mental health issues and food insecurity. Ive left Apple in 2019 and now co-leads his own firm LoveFrom with designer Marc Newson.

Alienware has announced when you'll be able to get your hands on its first laptops with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 40-series graphics cards. Last month at CES, the brand unveiled a new 18-inch model, as well as more 16-inch laptops, and now the company has revealed some pricing and availability details.The chunkiest system is called the Alienware m18. It will initially be available in the US on February 9th with a GeForce RTX 4080. That powerhouse system will start at $2,899. More configurations will be available at a later date, including an entry-level model that starts at $2,099 ($2,999 CAD in Canada).Along with one of NVIDIA's most powerful laptop GPUs, the Alienware m18 boasts Intel's fastest 13th-gen HX mobile CPUs, up to 9TB of storage and either a 165Hz quad-HD or 480Hz 1080p display. It's as thick as the existing m17 but there's a promise of improved cooling, thanks to a vapor chamber covering the processor and graphics card, seven heat pipes and a quartet of fans. These are said to provide a 25 percent airflow improvement.The m16 has a similar design and the same cooling boosts. Likewise, it will debut in the US with an RTX 4080 configuration on February 9th. That version of the m16 will start at $2,599. More variants are on the way, with the entry model slated to start at $1,899 ($2,699 CAD).As for the x16, that also has a 16-inch display, albeit in a slimmer, more portable and all-metal form factor. Alienware managed to cram six speakers into this laptop, including two upward-firing tweeters and dual woofers. You'll be able to snap one up with Intel's fastest non-HX 13th-gen CPUs. The x16 will debut in the US with an RTX 4080 on February 14th for $3,099. Other Intel and NVIDIA-powered variants, available later, will start at $2,199 ($2,999 CAD).Alienware plans to release AMD-powered versions of all of these laptops in Q2. It will reveal pricing closer to launch.Meanwhile, Alienware has revealed that its first 500Hz monitor will arrive in the near future. The 24.5-inch display will debut in China on February 9th and it will make its way to North America "soon." Pricing for the US and Canada will be announced later.You'll also need to wait a little longer to find out initial pricing and availability for the next Alienware x14, as well as Dell's G15 and G16. Alienware will announce those details on March 2nd. On the same day, the brand will host an event on Twitch, during which it will reveal more peripherals and other hardware.