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X has reached a settlement with President Donald Trump in a lawsuit over the president's 2021 suspension from Twitter. The Wall Street Journal reports that the Elon Musk-owned company has agreed to pay about $10 million" to settle the long-running case.Trump sued Twitter, along with Meta and YouTube, more than three years ago after the companies booted him off their platforms following the riots on January 6, 2021. His lawyers claimed that the suspensions were a violation of his First Amendment rights. The lawsuit against Twitter was dismissed by a judge in 2022, but Trump's lawyers appealed that decision.X's settlement comes shortly after Meta also reached an agreement with Trump. The company paid $25 million, much of which will go toward building Trump's presidential library, the company confirmed. The Wall Street Journal reports that the president's lawyers are also expected to pursue a settlement with Google." X didn't respond to a request for comment.The settlement with X is particularly notable given Elon Musk's close relationship with Trump. The owner of X reinstated Trump's Twitter account soon after taking over the company in 2022 and spent at least $250 million on Trump's campaign in 2024. The president's lawyers reportedly considered letting the lawsuit fizzle out" ahead of the settlement.Since Trump took office less than a month ago, Musk has used his perch at the top of the department of government efficiency" to wreak havoc across the federal government, in a series of moves that have prompted multiple lawsuits and growing concerns about a constitutional crisis.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/x-will-pay-about-10-million-to-settle-lawsuit-over-donald-trumps-twitter-suspension-234757817.html?src=rss

Other than a Days Gone remaster, Sony's first State of Play stream of the year was fairly light on first-party games. At least that was the case until the very end of the showcase.The company announced the long-awaited next game from Returnal developer Housemarque. The third-person action title is called Saros, and it stars the always-delightful Rahul Kohli. The actor plays Arjun Devraj, "a powerful Soltari Enforcer searching for answers on a lost off-world colony," per the trailer's YouTube description.The clip shows Arjun waking up on a beach with a gun by his side. "Every time the sun dies, madness reigns," he says as an ominous eclipse occurs. Moments later, a giant being with eight arms and a broken, pointy headpiece emerges from the depths. The creature summons balls of fire in its hands as Arjun readies himself to battle it.Housemarque/PlayStation StudiosHousemarque says Saros is a new game, but it's one that builds on the roguelite foundations of Returnal and its repeatable runs - just in case Arjun saying "After every death, I always come back stronger" in the trailer wasn't clear enough. In this game, your resources and progression persist after each run. You'll have an "evolving set of weapons and suit upgrades" to help upgrade your loadout, though as in Returnal, the world will change after every death.One other major difference between Saros and Housemarque's last game is that Arjun isn't alone on this planet. Details about other characters in the ensemble cast, the story and gameplay will be revealed later.Sony liked Returnal enough to buy Housemarque and add the developer to its stable of PlayStation Studios, so it'll likely have high hopes for this one. Saros is slated to arrive on PS5 in 2026.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playstation/saros-is-the-next-game-from-housemarque-coming-to-ps5-in-2026-232243078.html?src=rss

Borderlands 4 is coming this fall. Developer Gearbox revealed that the latest entry in the Borderlands series is launching on September 23, 2025 at Sony's latest State of Play event, and the game will receive a standalone State of Play this spring where you can get an in-depth look at it in action.Like past Borderlands games, Borderlands 4 has shooting and looting, though with much looser and faster-paced movement. You'll be able to double jump, dodge and grapple your way through the game, and play as four new vault hunters looking to make their fortune.Borderlands 4 was originally announced during Gamescom in 2024, and Gearbox showed off a first glimpse of gameplay during the Game Awards. Other than those tweaks to traversal, it looks like more Borderlands. Considering its been about six years since Borderlands 3 was released in 2019, that might not be a bad thing, but hopefully Gearbox still has something up its sleeve to justify another dip into the post-apocalyptic shooter well.Borderlands 4 is launching on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC on September 23, 2025.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/borderlands-4-is-launching-on-september-23-225358207.html?src=rss

Blizzard is making some major changes to Overwatch 2 for its Season 15 update, including adding all new gameplay in the form of a perks system and the return of loot box rewards, on top of the new heroes and skins.Overwatch 2 has been through several changes since it left early access in 2023, many of which brought the game from the revamped structure that made it a sequel to something that works more like a free-to-play version of the original Overwatch. Perks are legitimately new, though. Now during a match you'll be given two opportunities to pick a perk for your hero. One minor perk after leveling up for the first time, which adds smaller upgrades like a passive ability or a cooldown reduction, and one major perk that can alter the play style of your hero. For example, Torbjorn can pick from turrets that stick to ceilings and walls (a frankly diabolical upgrade) or an even more powerful "Level 3 turret."Blizzard EntertainmentAs a reward for your hard work in-game, Blizzard is also adding to Overwatch 2's battle pass system by reintroducing loot boxes as another way to get cosmetics. You can earn loot boxes by completely weekly and event rewards, and you'll get one Legendary Loot Box for having the Free Battle Pass or two Legendary Loot Boxes for having the Premium Battle Pass, as well. Beyond publishing drop rates for boxes, Blizzard is guaranteeing that "a Rare or better item will drop in every single box, with an Epic item within five consecutive boxes and a Legendary item within twenty consecutive boxes."Blizzard Entertainment Coming a bit later in Season 16, Overwatch 2 will get an entirely new "Stadium" game mode that draws clear inspiration from competing shooters Counter-Strike 2 and Valorant. In a Stadium match you'll be placed on a team of five fighting to earn currency across seven possible rounds. In-between rounds you can spend that currency to unlock upgrades and customize your abilities as you play. Stadium will also let you pick between the traditional first-person mode or a new third-person mode, which should make it easier to aim some of the wilder abilities you can unlock during a match.The cherry on top to all these changes are new quality of life features Blizzard plans to add this year, like the ability to ban specific heroes from a match, and vote on maps you want to play. Of course, there are also two new heroes in the works: Freja, "a former search and rescue operative turned bounty hunter" with an explosive crossbow who will be playable in a free trial weekend during Season 15 before joining the game in Season 16, and a hero currently being called "Aqua" who will land in Season 18 and can control water.Season 15 launches on February 18, while features like hero bans and map voting are coming later this year, in that order, according to Blizzard.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/overwatch-2s-next-update-overhauls-the-game-with-perks-and-loot-boxes-212409206.html?src=rss

OpenAI's upcoming GPT-5 release will integrate its o3 reasoning model and be available to free users, CEO Sam Altman revealed in a roadmap he shared on X. He said the company is also working to simplify how users interact with ChatGPT."We want AI to 'just work' for you; we realize how complicated our model and product offerings have gotten," Altman wrote. "We hate the model picker as much as you do and want to return to magic unified intelligence."In its current iteration, forcing ChatGPT to use a specific model, such as o3-mini, involves either tapping the "Reason" button in the prompt bar or one of the options present in the model picker, which appears after the chatbot answers a question. If you pay for ChatGPT Plus or Pro, that dropdown menu can get pretty long, with multiple models and intelligence settings to choose from.

Google will start testing a feature this year that uses machine learning to weed out children trying to access adult content on YouTube. The machine learning-based age estimation model" will try to predict whether a user is under 18 and, if so, apply appropriate age filter settings to their account. The announcement came amid a flurry of Google child safety announcements as the US Senate considers a bill that would ban pre-teens from social media.YouTube CEO Neal Mohan first mentioned the ML age restriction feature on Tuesday in his letter about the platform's bets" for the coming year. We'll use machine learning in 2025 to help us estimate a user's age - distinguishing between younger viewers and adults - to help provide the best and most age-appropriate experiences and protections," he wrote.A YouTube spokesperson clarified to Engadget that the model will make its predictions using data like the types of info the person searches for, the categories of videos they watch and the age of their accounts. For example, if someone frequently searches for info about mortgage lending or taxes, that probably points to the person being over 18. Ditto for an account that's over 20 years old.If the ML model predicts that someone is underage, YouTube will apply its standard protections to deliver a more age-appropriate experience. Of course, the platform blocks explicit (and otherwise age-restricted) videos from under-18 users. Google's underage restrictions also include its SafeSearch Filter, which (as its name suggests) blocks explicit content from search results.YouTube told Engadget it will begin testing the filtration tool by the end of this year. The platform plans to roll it out globally in 2026. Although YouTube's CEO first announced the feature, Google will test the feature in other areas, too. However, we don't yet know where else the new ML feature will pop up. Google isn't alone in trialing such a feature.Google isn't alone in trialing such a moderation feature. Last year, Meta said it would use an adult classifier" tool to identify underage Instagram users posing as adults.GoogleGoogle also said on Wednesday that School Time, a feature previously only available as a smartwatch app on the Fitbit Ace LTE and Galaxy Watch for Kids, will roll out to Android phones and tablets. Part of Google's Family Link parental controls app, School Time will let parents determine what phone features and apps their children can use during school hours. Parents can choose which apps remain active (like, say, learning-friendly apps) while allowing messages and calls from certain contacts. The idea is to minimize screen time and help kids focus on their work while still green-lighting emergency contacts.Along similar lines, the Android Family Link app will let parents approve or deny contacts to add to their children's devices. (This is another feature making its way over from the Galaxy Watch for Kids.) Parents can then limit calls and texts to only approved contacts. However, that feature isn't quite here yet: Google says it will roll out in the coming months."Finally, this spring, parents using Google parental control features can add tap-to-pay to their children's Android phones. (Google said this was coming last year.) Parents will be able to approve a payment card, add or remove further cards and view the child's transactions. Google says the feature will also work for things like gift cards and concert tickets.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/google-will-use-machine-learning-to-try-and-tell-if-a-user-is-under-18-204713279.html?src=rss

After years of waiting, the Apple TV app is finally available natively on Android devices. This version was built from the ground up" to take advantage of the Android operating system and is currently ready for download from the Google Play Store. It was designed for smartphones, tablets and foldables.This is a full version of the app, with all of the stuff Apple users have come to expect. There's a feature for picking up a show where you left off and a tool for downloading content to watch offline. It works via Wi-Fi or cellular.The app allows access to Apple TV+ content, so you can finally watch the absolute boatload of original shows the platform pumps out. It's a veritable cornucopia of sci-fi goodness, with hit shows like Severance, Silo and For All Mankind. The platform also airs non-genre fare like Ted Lasso, Shrinking and Slow Horses. New users get a free seven-day trial to the platform. Otherwise, pricing is the same as always and folks can sign up for subscriptions via Google Play.The app even grants access to MLS Season Pass content, just in time for Major League Soccer's 2025 season. Sports fans can also check out a weekly MLB double-header each Friday with no local restrictions.There have been workarounds to get Apple TV content on Android devices. In the past, users were forced to enter credentials via the web app or use a Prime Video bundle. Android TVs have long had a dedicated Apple TV app, but there was no way to subscribe on the television itself. That also changed today, as Google Play now offers the ability to subscribe on Android TVs.There's no casting support on this first version of the app, but we hope it'll come soon via a future update. The Apple TV app only works on devices running Android 10 or later.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/an-apple-tv-app-is-finally-available-for-android-devices-200044050.html?src=rss

Iconic game designer Jeff Minter is back with another modern take on a long-forgotten Atari title. Minter has turned his psychedelic eye toward the 1984 arcade cabinet I, Robot. His version ups the visuals and takes serious liberties with the original design, adopting techno music and some new game modes.The original I, Robot was a flop, despite being made by Dave Theurer, the guy behind Missile Command and Tempest. Maybe it was just ahead of its time. After all, it was the very first commercial video game to use real-time, flat-shaded 3D polygon graphics. The game came out a full eight years before Sega's Virtua Racing and more than a decade before the PlayStation and N64 brought 3D gaming into the mainstream.The original title had players control a robot as it jumped around mazes to flip the color of tiles and shoot enemies. There was also a giant eyeball that had to be avoided at all costs. Minter's version keeps the core gameplay mechanic, but increases the speed and incorporates new gameplay elements. For instance, there are new tube shooter levels and an exploration mode called Ungame. It looks pretty nifty.If the name Jeff Minter seems vaguely familiar, he's the person who made Tempest 2000 and its various sequels. More recently, he remade an unreleased Atari prototype called Akka Arrh that originally dates back to 1982. He also provided the visuals for a Nine Inch Nails video.Minter's version of I, Robot will be released this spring on pretty much every platform, including Nintendo Switch, PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S. The design team is also working on a port for PlayStation VR2.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/acclaimed-designer-jeff-minter-is-back-with-a-remake-of-the-80s-arcade-curio-i-robot-194037105.html?src=rss

MyFitnessPal, a popular, free food logging app, is getting into AI, specifically letting AI plan your meals for you. Following an acquisition of a startup called Intent, MyFitnessPal is adding an AI-generated meal planning feature for subscribers.The meal plans the updated MyFitnessPal app will be able to create take into account subscribers' "goals, preferences, dietary habits, and routines," according to MyFitnessPal, via information the app already has on you, and what looks like a survey. The feature will also be part of an end-to-end experience. Any plan the app creates can be automatically translated into a grocery list for the next time you're at the store, or an order to a grocery delivery service if you'd prefer to do as little as possible.MyFitnessPalGiven the sheer number of recipe and diet videos you can stumble upon across social media, trying to simplify the process of planning what you're going to eat makes sense. Using AI to do it does seem like it could have some unintended consequences, though. Knowing AI's ability to hallucinate, even if MyFitnessPal isn't generating recipes from scratch, it still feels like you could end up with some oddball meal combinations or incorrect grocery lists.The only way to know for sure is to try the AI meal planner for yourself, and if you're interested, you can already sign-up for a waitlist so you're able to try it out as soon as its available. MyFitnessPal says meal planning will officially launch in the spring in the US, UK, Ireland, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and require joining a new $99.99 annual subscription tier called "Premium+" to use.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/myfitnesspal-is-going-to-let-ai-play-your-nutrionist-191239496.html?src=rss

We're in the tail end of winter here, but it's snowing as I write this. Not a lot, but just enough to be a potential frustration to the move I have planned for later this week. Basically, winter weather sucks, and one of the worst things about it is how unpredictable it can be. The Weather Company, owners and developers of the Weather Channel app (but not the TV station) know this, and have just released a feature to try and make planning for storms a little easier.It's called probabilistic snowfall, and it aims to give you greater insight into just how severe or impactful a storm might be. You'll still see the standard "50 percent chance of snowfall" in your forecasts, but in the 72 hours leading up to snow, you'll also see the percent change for specific snowfall amounts. For example, you'll see that there's an 80 percent chance of snow overall, but you'll also see bars detailing how likely more specific snowfall amounts are. In this screenshot from the app, you can see that five to eight inches is the most likely outcome, followed by eight to 12 inches - enough snow that you might want to change your plans to deal with it.According to Rachel Chukura, head of product at The Weather Company, that was precisely the vision behind the feature. "The idea is that users can see the different probabilities and know there could be variations, she said. "That's important because of all the decisions we make in terms of what weather we think is coming. What time do you need to leave for your commute, will there be a school delay, and so on." And while the company is starting with snowfall forecasts, they also hope to bring it to more forecasting tools over time.I've been using the feature for about a week, just in time to see it pop up for the small storm we had in Philadelphia last night. I obviously can't say how accurate it is, as I'm not out there measuring snowfall with a ruler. But the few inches we got overnight were in line with the probabilistic forecast, and it was helpful leading up to the storm to know I likely didn't have to worry about the weather truly being an inconvenience.The feature is part of the Weather Channel app's premium subscription, which costs $30 per year. Besides probabilistic snowfall, that also removes ads, shows longer-term forecasts on the radar, adds a 30-mile lightning strike map and provides more detailed 15-minute weather breakdowns. While most people out there will stick with the default weather app on their phones, or just use the free version of the Weather Channel or other similar apps, there's definitely something to be said for greater insight into how likely you are to get crushed by a snowstorm.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/the-weather-channel-app-can-show-how-likely-you-are-to-get-specific-snowfall-amounts-165900316.html?src=rss

Roll up, gamers. It's time for your latest influx of PlayStation knowledge. Sony is hosting its first State of Play stream of 2025 today (February 12) at 5PM ET. The showcase will focus on PS5 games. You'll be able to watch it on the PlayStation website or the brand's YouTube and Twitch channels. Or, you know, by hitting the big play button on the YouTube video embedded above.The State of Play will run for about 40 minutes, so there should be lots of juicy details here. Ghost of Yoteiand Death Stranding 2: On the Beachare both slated for 2025 debuts, so we could get release dates for those. For what it's worth, Death Stranding 2 director Hideo Kojima recently teased that he was working on a new trailer and he's appearing at an SXSW panel next month to talk about the game.Other first-party projects such as Marvel's Wolverine, Marathon and Fairgame$ could get a look in during the State of Play. It seems far too early for us to get another peek at Naughty Dog's Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, though there's a chance that we'll finally find out the exact release date for season two of The Last of Us on HBO.As for third-party games, it's a pretty safe bet that we'll see a trailer and release date for Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater since, whoops, Sony itself leaked those last week. Forza Horizon 5and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle are making the leap over from Xbox this spring, so release date reveals for those during the State of Play would make sense.Rumors also suggest that Senua's Saga: Hellblade II, a remastered collection of the first three Gears of War games and even the Halo series, Xbox's crown jewel, will cross the great divide to PlayStation. Perhaps we'll learn about some of those during the stream too. In any case, you'll be able to find coverage of all the big State of Play news on a cool website called Engadget dot com.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playstation/watch-sonys-state-of-play-showcase-here-at-5pm-et-165148390.html?src=rss

Hark thee, foul tarnished. Those who have yearned for fresh battles against hideously wicked beasts in The Lands Between need not wait an age for such misadventures. Elden Ring Nightreign has a release date, and it's not too far away. The co-op title will land on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One and PC on May 30. We first learned about the Elden Ring spinoff at The Game Awards in December. FromSoftware's original blockbuster game arrived in 2022 and that was followed by the mammoth Shadow of the Erdtree expansion last year. This time around, you can team up with two other players or go it alone in a procedurally generated version of Limgrave, the first main area of Elden Ring. You'll be able to choose one of eight Nightfarers, each with their own set of abilities, to play as on your run. The aim is to survive three in-game days and nights until a battle with a final boss. FromSoft appears to have taken a little inspiration from battle royale games like Fortnite, as the playable area shrinks over time. Even if your entire team sees the dreaded "you died" screen before completing a run, you'll still receive a relic you can use to upgrade your characters and align them more with your personal playstyle. Some lucky ducks will actually be able to try Elden Ring Nightreign in closed beta tests that are taking place this weekend. Pre-orders for the game (which of course has several different editions) are now available too. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/elden-ring-nightreign-arrives-on-may-30-153416886.html?src=rss

The MacBook Pro is certainly not a necessity for everyone and the steep price ensures that (I downgraded to an Air, myself, a few years ago). But, every once in a while, a sale makes the superior laptop seem worth it. Right now is one of those times, with the new 14-inch MacBook Pro available for $1,400, down from $1,599. The sale comes courtesy of a 10 percent off discount and an additional $39 coupon on the product page (just remember to click it before heading to check out). The 14-inch MacBook Pro has 16GB of memory and 512GB SSD storage in either Space Black or Silver. Apple's 14-inch MacBook Pro came out late last year and scored a solid 92 in our review. This rating - along with naming the device our pick for best MacBook for creatives - comes thanks to perks such as it fast M4 chips. It also has an exceptionally long battery life, bright display and Sharp 12MP Center Stage webcam. Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/the-14-inch-m4-macbook-pro-is-200-off-at-amazon-151507181.html?src=rss

How do you follow up a product that has reigned as the king of mirrorless cameras for the last four years? For Sony, the answer with the A1 was simple: just improve everything. The result is the $6,500 A1 II, a powerful pro-level hybrid mirrorless camera that's Sony's best to date. The A1 II is equipped with a 50-megapixel stacked sensor, not a global sensor like the A9 III, so it's not quite as fast. However, its blend of speed and resolution makes it the most versatile camera in Sony's lineup. It also impresses on the video side with 8K 30 fps 10-bit capture, along with 4K slo-mo at up to 120 fps. I expect a lot out of a Sony flagship camera, though, and while the A1 II has lots of small improvements, there's nothing terribly innovative. It's also up against impressive (and cheaper) competition like the $4,300 Canon EOS R5 II and $4,000 Nikon Z8. Plus, there's the similarly priced pro-level Canon R1 and Nikon Z9. So despite its strengths, I found Sony's new flagship to be slightly disappointing. Body and handling The A1 II is Sony's best-handling camera to date. In terms of design and control placement, it's nearly identical to the company's high-end A9 III. At 743 grams (1.64 pounds), it's heavier than the 617-gram (1.36 pound) A1, but still a featherweight compared to other professional models like the three-pound Z9. The new grip has slightly softer materials and more rounded contours, so it's more comfortable and secure to hold than the hard-edged A1. That's a big help to working pros with heavy lenses. If you like manual controls, the A1 II is a dream. It has three primary dials, compared to just two on rival flagships. There's a mode selector ring to choose photo, video and so-called Slow & Quick modes, along with a dual-control wheel for both shooting and autofocus. Around back, there's yet another dial, plus a joystick and numerous customizable buttons. The A1 II's menu system has been refreshed to match the A9 III. It now offers a home" setting for your most-used features, and everything is neatly organized into sub-menus. Sony also added an easy-to-use section for customizing buttons, dials, the quick menu and more. Steve Dent for Engadget Despite the price difference, it's natural to compare the A1 II's design and setup with the Canon R5 II as both are high-performance, high-resolution cameras. The R5 II does feel a bit nicer thanks to the more rounded shape and softer materials. But the A1 II has a larger array of controls, so it's easier and faster to shoot with it once you get used to them. Sony also has a more intuitive menu system that makes it easier to find key settings. Then there's the A1 II's sublime electronic viewfinder (EVF). Though it has the same resolution as the A1 at 9.44 million dots, it no longer drops in resolution at its default 120 fps frame rate. With that, it's so sharp and bright that it blows away any argument for an optical viewfinder. Sony even provides two eyepiece cups, including what it calls a squishy" option that molds around your eye to block out light, giving me a fully immersive experience. With all of that, this is easily the best EVF I've ever used. Vloggers complained about the lack of a fully articulating display on the A1. Sony addressed that by outfitting the A1 II with a bright, 3-inch, 2.1-million-dot screen that not only tilts up and down but also fully swivels - ideal for both photographers and content creators. As before, the A1 II has a dual card slot system with support for both SD UHS II and (sigh) Sony's CFexpress Type A cards that no one else uses. Those are faster than SD, but not as fast as the CFexpress Type B slots found on the R5 II, Z8 and others. Steve Dent for Engadget The Z-type battery delivers a decent 520 shots on a charge, which is just slightly less than the 530 on the A1. It comes with a nice array of ports, including full-sized HDMI and high-speed USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 that allows rapid 10Gbps file transfers. You also get mic and headphone ports, a 2.5 Gbps ethernet connection and a flash sync port. Even the Wi-Fi was upgraded with 2x2 MIMO support that allows 2.5Gbps transfer speeds instead of 1Gbps as before. Performance The A1 II is the fastest high-resolution camera available, letting you hit burst speeds up to 30 fps when shooting RAW with continuous autofocus enabled in electronic mode, or 10 fps with the mechanical shutter. Those speeds match or beat its main rivals, but aren't an improvement over the four-year-old A1. That's a bit of a surprise, given that the A1 II has a much faster Bionz XR image processor borrowed from the A9 III. The autofocus is a big improvement, though. It locks onto subjects quicker than before, so I saw fewer out-of-focus shots when firing off bursts. The A1 II also has Sony's latest algorithms and AI features from the A9 III that make subject-recognition faster and more user-friendly. It can now recognize human bodies, faces and eyes, along with animals, birds, insects and several types of vehicles. On top of that, the A1 II is Sony's first camera to automatically identify those subjects so you don't have to tediously select them yourself. In other words, if you're photographing birds and happen to see a bear, you won't waste valuable time switching modes. Sony is a bit late to the game with this auto subject selection, as Canon and other brands have had it for a while. However, the A1 II has the best implementation I've seen to date, as it chooses and locks onto subjects more quickly. Like other cameras, it can get tripped up in situations with multiple subjects, occasionally selecting the wrong one. With human subjects, Canon has an edge thanks to its face-memorization feature on the R1 and R5 that will always try to lock onto a specific person. Steve Dent for Engadget While the A1 II has both a mechanical and electronic shutter, the stacked sensor's fast readout speeds mean you can use the latter almost exclusively. Even in sports like golf with high speed movements, skewing and distortion is rarely an issue when using the electronic shutter, and you can shoot photos silently without disturbing participants. Pre-capture is a key new feature, letting you keep up to 70 frames when half-pressing the shutter button, before fully pressing it. That reduces the odds of missing a decisive moment in a scene. When it comes to stabilization, the A1 II also represents a first for the company. It offers 8.5 stops, beating the A9 III by a half-stop and matching the EOS R5 II and R1. Thanks to that, I was able to nail sharp photos even at ridiculously slow shutter speeds, like a full second. That's ideal when you need to shoot in low light or deliberately blur moving subjects without using a tripod. While the A1 II is quick, it didn't bring the generational leap I expected compared to a four-year-old camera. My professional photographer friends (who already own A1s) felt the same way and won't be upgrading. Image quality The A1 II is not just fast, but also delivers high resolution, and that combination is why you pay the big bucks. Images are sharper than just about any full-frame camera, with the exception of Sony's own A7R V. Dynamic range is excellent and colors are accurate when shooting JPEGs, though I prefer Canon's warmer images straight out of the camera. The new model has the same sensor as the A1, but Sony managed to boost dynamic range very slightly at higher ISOs. As a result, you get minimal noise up to around ISO 6,400 and images are very usable at ISO 12,800. This is outstanding for a 50MP camera, and better than Canon's EOS R5 II. Beyond that, and up to the camera's maximum ISO 32,000, noise starts to become distracting. RAW files give photographers ample room to dial down blown out highlights or boost detail in shadow areas. If you need the maximum amount of dynamic range, you'll want to shoot using the lossless compressed RAW format, as lossy compressed RAW files are noticeably worse in highly detailed images. The downside to the latter is that shooting them limits burst speeds to 20 fps and fills your memory card much faster. While image quality is outstanding, it's not much of an improvement over the A1. For studio and landscape photographers who value image quality above all and already own an A1, the A1 II likely isn't worth the investment. Video On paper, the A1 II is a powerhouse for video, offering up to 8K 30 fps recording and 4K 60 fps(up to 4K 120 fps with no sound), with 10-bit log shooting available. It comes with a new feature that lets you load custom LUTs when shooting in log (S-Log3) mode, so you can better judge your exposure. It also has a setting that lets you better match footage with Sony's professional cinema cameras. That's on top of the other improvements I already mentioned, like the fully articulating display and upgraded stabilization, that are also beneficial when recording video. Frame of 8K video from the Sony A1 II Steve Dent for Engadget Autofocus is much improved with more reliable tracking of moving subjects, as I found when shooting a fast-moving soccer event. It also supports the same subject tracking modes available when capturing photos (eyes, faces, bodies, birds, animals and vehicles). Looking closer, though, the video capabilities are slightly disappointing. Unlike the much cheaper Nikon Z8 and Canon EOS R5 II cameras, the A1 II doesn't offer internal RAW recording, possibly because the CFexpress Type A slots can't handle the required bandwidth. That can make a big difference with video quality and the ability to adjust colors and levels when editing. Still, when recording 8K or 4K 10-bit log video at the highest data rates, image quality and dynamic range are solid. The S-Log3 and 10-bit features give content creators a lot of room to tweak footage shot in dim interiors or a bright sunny day. The in-body stabilization may be the best I've seen on any camera to date. The optical mode does a great job removing any hand jitters if you don't move around too much. And for walking or running, the electronic stabilization (not available in 8K) provides near GoPro-like smoothing, with none of the sudden jolts seen on other models. If you do need to move the camera quickly, rolling shutter is usually a non-issue. I only saw any distortion when shooting 8K video, and even then, it was minimal. Wrap-up Steve Dent for Engadget The A1 II is an awesome camera and near the top of the food chain in terms of speed and power. Nearly every aspect has been improved over the A1, including the stabilization, body design and autofocus. However, the innovation that Sony is known for is lacking here, and on top of that, the A1 II is very expensive. With that taken into account, I think it falls short. The A1 II is only a mild upgrade over the A1 and when it comes to video, it's lagging behind the Nikon Z8 and Z9 as well as the Sony R5 II. If you already have the A1, I don't think the A1 II offers enough extra to justify a new investment. And anyone who is more serious about video should consider either the Canon R5 II or Nikon Z8, as both offer higher-quality RAW video at up to 8K 60p for less money. However, for pros or serious amateurs going into the A1 lineup for the first time, who focus on photos and have no qualms about the $6,500 price, the Sony A1 II is a great pick.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cameras/sony-a1-ii-review-a-powerhouse-camera-that-falls-short-of-its-own-high-standards-150053430.html?src=rss

Google Pixel fans who don't wish to break the bank often look to the more affordable A series of Pixel smartphones. The successor model of this series, the Pixel 9a, hasn't been released yet, but at this point nearly everything important about the handset has been leaked. Here's everything we know so far.The Pixel 9a will come with a slightly modified Google Tensor G4 chip with the Exynos Modem 5300 found on the Pixel 8 series instead of the newer Modem 5400 on the other Pixel 9 smartphones, according to Android Authority. Android Headlines reported that other specs include 8GB of RAM, up to 256GB of storage space, dimensions measuring 6.1x2.9x0.4 inches (154.7x73.3x8.9mm) and a weight of 6.6 ounces (185.9 grams). It'll also get the largest battery on a Pixel device ever so far, with a capacity of 5,100mAh, which is 40mAh more than the Pixel 9 Pro XL.The Pixel 9a will also reportedly have a 48-megapixel main sensor, 13MP ultrawide sensor and 13MP front camera. There's a new pill-shaped camera housing instead of the familiar camera bump. It fits flush with the back of the phone, a welcome departure from previous models.The Pixel 9a is expected to come in four colorways, the names of which are not finalized: Iris (purple), Obsidian (black), Peony (hot pink) and Porcelain (white). It's believed the handset will cost $499 for the 128GB version and $599 for the 256GB upgrade. A Verizon mWave model will reportedly tack on an extra $50 charge as well. According to a source who spoke to Android Headlines, the smartphone will launch on March 26, but Google will start accepting pre-orders on March 19.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/everything-we-know-about-the-rumored-google-pixel-9a-so-far-141908754.html?src=rss

Think you might have met someone attractive, single and successful" on Facebook or Instagram? You might want to think again, Meta says. Ahead of Valentine's Day, the company is once again warning users not to fall for romance scams.These kinds of schemes, in which scammers create fictitious identities to form online relationships with unsuspecting victims, aren't exactly new. (The FTC says that people lost more than a half billion dollars to romance scams in 2021.) But the people behind these scams are apparently persistent. Meta says that already in 2025 it's taken down more than 116,000 accounts and pages across Facebook and Instagram that were linked to romance scams. In 2024, it removed more than 408,000 such accounts.According to Meta, these scam accounts often originate in West African countries with scammers impersonating members of the US military or famous celebrities. In both cases, they'll claim to be looking for love" and will strike up conversations with people on Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp as well as other messaging platforms. Eventually, the scammer will request gift cards, crypto, or other types of payments.Meta has taken steps to fight these types of schemes. The company said last year it would bring back facial recognition tech to address celebrity impersonation. It also works with other companies to shut down organized groups of scammers. Still, David Agranovich, director of threat disruption at Meta, noted that "scammers evolve consistently."Researchers also say that AI has made it even easier for scammers to assume convincing fictitious identities. In the last three or four months, there's a couple of different tools that have come out where they're free, they're accessible, they're easy to use, and they allow the attacker to transform their face dynamically within the video call," Rachel Tobac CEO of SocialProof Security said during a call with reporters. They can also use these deepfake bots that allow you to build a persona, place phone calls, use a voice clone and a human actually doesn't even need to be involved."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/meta-warns-users-not-to-fall-for-romance-scammers-posing-as-celebrities-or-military-140031858.html?src=rss

Adobe's Firefly Video Model is in public beta as of today, meaning the days of praying you had a chance to test it are over. The company claims that it's the first commercially safe generative AI video model in the market. Previously, it was only available in the Adobe Premiere Pro video editor with Generative Extend, but you can also access a standalone Firefly web app now.For those unaware, Adobe's Firefly Video Model powers the Generate Video feature, which can generate video clips from a text prompt or image. It can also edit images, turn them into videos, create 3D worlds and more. The content is safe" for commercial use too, since the AI applies watermarks signifying which parts have AI assistance, and that can be checked with the Adobe Content Authenticity web app's Inspect tool. In other words, it's safe" because people can check if AI was used in the content due to embedded data.The Firefly web app integrates with Adobe Creative Cloud apps such as Photoshop, Premiere Pro, Express and more. Three new features available on the app today include video generation and scene-to-image generation with the ability to fine-tune footage, allowing users to make images from 3D sketches, plus audio and video translation into supported languages.Currently, there are two pricing plans: Firefly Standard and Firefly Pro. The former grants access to 2,000 video/audio credits a month and 20 five-second 1080p video generations, while the latter increases the number of credits to 7,000 and video generations to 70. A Firefly Premium plan for professionals is coming soon. You can now purchase a Firefly Standard subscription for $10 a month, while a Firefly Pro subscription costs $30 a month.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/adobes-firefly-generative-ai-video-app-is-now-in-public-beta-140030134.html?src=rss

Qualcomm is bringing AI to its mid-range mobile chip lineup with the Snapdragon 6 Gen 4 Mobile Platform, the company announced. The new chips also promise improved CPU and GPU performance, lower power requirements and faster Wi-Fi and mobile connectivity compared to the previous chip.The new AI features are made possible with support for Qualcom's on-device Gen AI support, allowing voice-activated assistants, background noise reduction during calls and more. It's also the first 6-series Snapdragon processor with support for INT4 that allows generative AI to run more efficiently on small devices.QualcommQualcomm is also promising 11 percent improved CPU performance via its latest Kryo CPU and a 29 percent boost in GPU performance. Neither of those gains will stress your battery, thanks to a 12 percent savings in power. Qualcomm is also debuted its 5G Modem-RF systems that promises to improve 5G speeds and compatibility, while introducing Wi-Fi 6E connectivity via its FastConnect system. Other. new features include lossless audio and a triple ISP that will allow phones to take photos and record videos simultaneously.All of that means that Android users won't need to break the bank on flagship devices to get the latest AI features and decent speed. The Snapdragon 6 Gen 4 Mobile Platform will soon appear on Oppo, Honor and other devices, the company said.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/qualcomms-snapdragon-6-gen-4-is-its-first-mid-range-chip-with-ai-support-140005612.html?src=rss

Samsung is making a play to, well, repair its repairability image. The new Galaxy S25 UItra offers a slew of helpful features, including an accessible, easy to remove battery. Instead of Samsung's adhesives of the past, the S25 Ultra's battery can just pop right out, iFixit reports.This time around Samsung has included four sticky tabs that wrap around the battery. All you need to do is lift up these tabs and the battery comes out in a matter of seconds. This shift aligns with Europe's right-to-repair laws, which push companies to make repairs more accessible for device owners.iFixitWe gave the Galaxy 25 Ultra an 89 in our review, thanks to its nearly 30 hours of battery life, anti-reflective Gorilla Armor 2 panels and slimmer bezels. It also offers a new 50MP ultra-wide sensor on its ultra-wide lens (rather than the previous 12MP) and an excellent screen.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/with-the-galaxy-s25-samsung-finally-nailed-a-truly-repairable-battery-134546580.html?src=rss

In surprising news, Apple has actually done something that could save you money. The company is now allowing users to migrate purchases from one Apple Account to another. Transfers can include items such as movies, books, music apps and more.The only catch: You can only move purchases from your secondary account, the one you use for Media and Purchases, to your primary account, the one signed in to iCloud and most other features.Before starting a migration, check that you are signed in to both accounts on your device and that the secondary account isn't part of Family Sharing or Purchase Sharing. Then, make sure you have two-factor authentication on for both accounts and that they are both linked to the same country and region. You'll also need to spend any remaining balance and not have any rentals or pre-orders.Then, transfer your things by going to the Media and Purchases tab and scrolling to Migrate Purchases. Follow the steps on your screen and then, once the migration is complete, log out of your secondary account on all devices. As a heads up, you'll no longer be able to use that other account for purchases.Users based in the US can now migrate their purchases. However, the new feature isn't available globally yet, as users in the European Union, UK and India can't access it.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/apple-finally-lets-you-move-your-digital-purchases-to-another-account-134535401.html?src=rss

US District Judge John D. Bates has ordered (PDF) the Center for Disease Control and Food and Drug Administration to restore the web pages and resources they had previously removed to comply with President Trump's executive order related to gender ideology. Bates gave the agencies until February 11, 11:59 PM Eastern time, to comply. As of this writing, the CDC website on "Transgender and Gender Diverse Persons" is already back online with a note up top that says the CDC's website "is being modified to comply with President Trump's Executive Orders."The judge's decision is part of a temporary restraining order that he has granted as requested by the Doctors for America. Represented by Public Citizen, the non-profit organization sued the CDC (PDF), the FDA and the Department of Health in February. It also sued the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), which issued the memo for the pages' removal. As The Washington Post notes, the memo ordered agency heads to "end all agency programs that use taxpayer money to promote or reflect gender ideology."In response, the CDC and FDA removed a number of web pages covering a wide variety of topics. In its lawsuit, Doctors for America said the pages that were removed provided healthcare workers with treatment guidance and important datasets necessary for research and for formulating appropriate public health responses. The pages contained resources for HIV monitoring, contraception, assisted reproductive technologies like IVF, health risks for youths, social vulnerability and environmental justice. In addition, the organization pointed out that the agency didn't provide any notice before removing those pages.The non-profit organization gave some specific examples in its lawsuit. Dr. Reshma Ramachandran, who has a research program at Yale School of Medicine, said that the CDC's removal of its resources about contraceptives and STIs caused delays in her "patients' access to appropriate contraception." Meanwhile, a Dr. Stephanie Liou said the the pages' removal impeded her ability to formulate a quick and appropriate response to a chlamydia outbreak in her high school, as her employers didn't have access to "many expensive clinical resources." Doctors of America accused the CDC and the FDA of violating the Paperwork Reduction Act that requires officials to "ensure that the public has timely and equitable access to the agency's public information."In addition to bringing back the pages that were removed, the agencies were also ordered to restore any resources that were modified to their original state by February 14. The resources that were brought back online will remain available while the non-profit org's lawsuit is ongoing.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/court-orders-the-cdc-and-fda-to-restore-deleted-web-pages-related-to-gender-identity-133008251.html?src=rss

$449 is a lot to pay for earbuds. When you consider the quality of the options at $100 and below, it may seem exorbitant. However, Noble Audio hasn't just crafted another set of high-end wireless earbuds. The company is offering something unique on the FoKus Rex5: five drivers. Most earbuds have one or two, but Noble has put its in-ear monitor (IEM) expertise to work here, packing in a 10mm dynamic driver, a 6mm planar driver and three balanced armature drivers. The result is absolutely incredible sound quality for a set of wireless earbuds. A wide, immersive soundstage surpasses every other set I've tested, and I've tested a lot of them. However, audio performance alone doesn't make a complete product. There's still battery life, active noise cancellation (ANC), customization and other features for Noble to contend with. And the company needs to check all the boxes to justify that price. Design of the FoKus Rex5 The FoKus Rex5 earbuds are very green. From the charging case to the aluminum and acrylic housing, the company is dedicated to that hue on this model. Its gold accents won't be for everyone either. The styling is akin to a set of IEMs, which Noble also makes in spades. If you're looking for other colors from the company, the pricier FoKus Prestige ($599) will be available in black and blue when they're back in stock. Other than the color scheme and marbled acrylic shell, the FoKus Rex5 looks like standard earbuds - at least in terms of its shape. The rounded, triangular frame mimics a set of generic in-ear monitors and it fits well in the ear. Weight is nicely balanced too, with nothing sticking too far out from your head. This all leads to a secure, comfy fit that never becomes a burden, even after hours of constant use. Additionally, Noble includes nine sets of extra ear tips across three shapes in the box. One of those is foam instead of silicone, if you're into that, and the diversity of the pack should help you find an ideal fit for your ears. Software and features All of the settings and features for the FoKus Rex5 reside in the Noble FoKus app. Here you'll find battery percentages for each earbud, quick access to the personalized EQ, media controls and noise-cancellation toggles up front. On the right side, an expandable menu offers a 10-band EQ, EQ curve, personalized EQ and touch control settings. Noble opted for Audiodo's customizable sound software to power its Personal EQ feature. Like some of the competition, this tech takes you through a setup process to calibrate the audio to your hearing. The FoKus Rex5 has a Qualcomm QCC3091 chip inside that stores these custom profiles on the earbuds. This means that the audio tweaks stay with you on any device you pair to without having to download the app multiple times. Noble says Personal EQ works well for people with uneven hearing, offering balanced sound at the appropriate levels. For me, the test determined that I needed a boost in the high frequency range, which raised the volume for vocals and guitars. I don't love it. The stock tuning is a better blend of all the instruments and I prefer the balance of that mix. This doesn't mean the feature won't help you, it just means that you might want to keep the default settings rather than opt for Personal EQ. The FoKus Rex5 is equipped with multipoint Bluetooth connectivity, which adds convenience to daily use. The earbuds seamlessly switched between my MacBook Pro and my iPhone whenever I got a call or started playing audio there. What you won't find on the Rex5 is automatic pausing as the earbuds don't have a proximity or wear sensor on the back side. Perhaps the company needed every millimeter for all of those drivers, but this is a handy feature that would have been great to have. FoKus Rex5 sound quality Billy Steele for Engadget It's amazing how much nuance five drivers will allow you to hear when listening to music. Noble says its driver array effortlessly delivers rich, full bass, detailed mid-tones and crystal-clear highs," and I found that to be true across a range of genres. Where most earbuds have a frequency range of 20Hz-20kHz, which is in line with the capabilities of the human ear, the FoKus Rex5 extends that a bit to 20Hz-40kHz. Am I confident that I can hear that extra high frequency? No. Does that impact my rating of the sound quality? Not at all. I'm well aware that artists, producers and recording engineers make the decisions on how to split instruments on the left and right channels. But for the first time, I could clearly hear the separation in the guitars on songs like L.S. Dunes' I Can See It Now..." and across the entirety of Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit's latest live album. There's a sonic division on these earbuds that's more segmented, yet everything still blends well for a great immersive sensation. It's like you're standing in the middle of the studio. You can hear that the lead guitar is situated to the right while the rhythm player is on the left. A lot of earbuds would smash them together. There's also minute detail in guitars, drums, vocals and more with the FoKus Rex5. You can hear the texture in the vocals on Julien Baker & TORRES' Sugar in the Tank," and it sounds like you're almost inside the acoustic guitar on that track. There are a number of flagship-quality earbuds that deliver fine details well, but I've never heard the level of subtlety that the FoKus Rex5 provides song after song. And the earbuds do so with a robust soundstage that, once again, envelops you like you're standing in the middle of a performance rather than simply streaming tunes. Noble offers support for aptX Adaptive and Sony's LDAC codecs on the FoKus Rex5, in addition to SBC and AAC. I tested primarily with Apple Music, including a lot of albums in either lossless or Dolby Atmos. All of the songs from the service sounded incredible with these earbuds, although the crunchy, layered guitars on that L.S. Dunes record sounded particularly stunning (that album is Dolby Atmos, Lossless and Apple Digital Master). ANC performance Billy Steele for Engadget Noble doesn't go into too much detail about the ANC setup on the FoKus Rex5, other than saying the sophisticated" tech effectively minimizes external noise." Unfortunately, that effectiveness is just average. The earbuds only dampen constant noise sources like fans and noise machines. And while they slightly lower the volume of human voices nearby, they suffer the same inefficacy as much of the competition there. Simply put, you're not buying the FoKus Rex5 for the ANC performance, it's the sound quality that's the primary draw. But I'd argue you should have both if you're spending $449. Call quality on the FoKus Rex5 Call quality is another area Noble could improve. The FoKus Rex5 is usable for calls, but the audio performance is average at best. If you're looking for something to use for virtual meetings, or any situation where you need to sound crystal clear, these earbuds aren't a great option. What's more, the ambient mode doesn't beam your voice back through the buds on calls. I kept feeling like I was shouting just to hear myself during those chats. Battery life Noble promises up to five hours of listening time with ANC on, or up to seven hours without. What's more, the company packed an extra 35-40 hours of use in the wireless charging case, which is longer than most of the competition can muster. There's a 15-minute quick charge feature that will give you two hours of use as well. During my tests, the FoKus Rex5 easily met the stated figures, and even went beyond them by about 30 minutes. Five hours of noise-canceling use is standard these days, but it's nice to see that Noble delivered on this, even with the additional drivers and codec support. The competition In terms of sound quality, only Bowers & Wilkins' Pi8 comes close to the pristine audio performance of the FoKus Rex5. Unfortunately, those earbuds don't offer a complete package either. And at $399, they're still a bigger investment compared to the likes of Bose, Sony and Sennheiser. You'll get excellent sound on the Pi8, though the level of detail and separation isn't on the level of the five-driver Rex5. ANC performance is slightly better, but still not robust, and there's a lack of advanced features that are offered by much of the competition on products that cost less. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/headphones/noble-fokus-rex5-review-incredible-sound-if-youre-willing-to-pay-for-it-130043824.html?src=rss

The Electronic Frontier Foundation, along with multiple federal employee unions, have filed a lawsuit against Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) team to block their access to sensitive and identifying information on millions of Americans. Specifically, the plaintiffs are looking to block them from being able to access data stored by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and to delete any information they've collected so far. The lawsuit also names OPM and Acting Director Charles Ezell as defendants.In early February, Reuters reported that Musk's aides locked OPM employees out of the agency's systems. "We have no visibility into what they are doing with the computer and data systems," one of its sources said back then. The OPM has the largest collection of employee data in the US and contains sensitive information on both past and current federal employees, as well as on job applicants for federal positions who applied through USAJobs.gov. As the EFF notes, the agency's records contain federal employees' names, birthdates, home addresses, social security numbers, work experience, union activities, salaries, performance reviews, demotions, life insurance, death benefits as well as classified information NDAs. The list even includes the first names and last name initials of CIA employees in highly sensitive roles.In its announcement, the EFF explained that the mishandling of information in OPM's systems could lead to "significant and varied abuses," and that DOGE's "unchecked access" on its own puts federal employees at risk of privacy violations and even political pressure and blackmail. The foundation also emphasized the risk federal employees are facing with DOGE's access to unrestricted information and Musk's ownership of X. It cited Musk's old tweets naming specific government personnels whose jobs he would cut even before he had access to OPM's database.OPM violated the Privacy Act of 1974 when it gave DOGE "unrestricted, wholesale access" to its systems, the EFF said. Under the Privacy Act, the written consent of the individual whose data is being shared is required if government records are to be disclosed. Meanwhile, the plaintiffs are accusing Musk and his DOGE agents of exceeding "the scope of their legal authority" by controlling OPM's systems, because it has resulted in the the unlawful disclosure of the their contents. "Our case is fairly simple: OPM's data is extraordinarily sensitive, OPM gave it to DOGE, and this violates the Privacy Act," the EFF wrote. "We are asking the court to block any further data sharing and to demand that DOGE immediately destroy any and all copies of downloaded material." Last week, a federal judge blocked Musk and DOGE from accessing Treasury Department information and ordered them to destroy any data they've already collected.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/eff-sues-elon-musk-and-doge-to-block-their-access-to-federal-employee-data-042245323.html?src=rss

Google Maps now officially shows the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America if you open the app in the US. In a blog post, Google said it rolled out the named change because the government has already updated the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS), which decides the "federal and national standard for geographic nomenclature." One of the executive orders President Donald Trump signed in January when he took office renames the body of water, but Google previously explained that it's the company's longstanding policy to wait for official government resources to be updated before applying any name change.The Gulf of America label will only be visible if you use the Maps app in the US, or if you open Maps on the web and your device's location is set to the region. If you're in Mexico, the label still shows Gulf of Mexico. And if you're elsewhere, you'll see it marked as both, specifically: Gulf of Mexico (Gulf of America). It's also longstanding policy for the company to show official local names when they vary between countries. Trump's executive order also renames Denali, the highest mountain peak in North America, to Mount McKinley. So far, the location is still being shown as Denali on Maps.GoogleSeparately, Apple updated its Maps application and website to include the new nomenclature for US users. At present, the company's map graphics still display "Gulf of Mexico," but clicking on the region brings up a card that says "Gulf of America." Searching for "Gulf of Mexico" brings up the same GoA card.According to Bloomberg, Apple won't limit this change to only the US. The news org, paraphrasing Apple, said that the company will "soon roll out the shift for all users globally." We have reached out to Apple to confirm that users worldwide, including those in Mexico, will see Gulf of America on the company's maps.A Congressional Research Service report on how and where geographical name changes apply specifically says that "private companies such as Google Maps and Apple Maps" would be unaffected by President Trump's Executive Order. The report also notes that decisions from the US Board on Geographic Names, which was responsible for actioning the name change, only apply to federal use.Update, February 11, 5:35PM ET: This story and its headline were updated to reflect Apple's decision to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico in its Maps application. Additional context on geographical name changes from a Congressional Research Service report was also added.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/google-adopts-gulf-of-america-for-us-maps-users-140026397.html?src=rss

Google has set the date for its next I/O developer conference. This year, the annual event will take place over two days starting on May 20, the company announced on Tuesday. As in previous years, the conference will feature an in-person component at the Shoreline Amphitheatre right on the company's doorstep in Mountain View, California."We'll start day one with keynotes, followed by breakout sessions, workshops, demos, networking opportunities and more continuing on day two," Google said. In a separate email the company sent to Engadget, it promised to share updates on Gemini and Android, alongside new innovations related to web and cloud development. Last year's conference saw Google spend a lot of time talking about AI, including initiatives like Project Astra, and it's probably a safe bet to say I/O 2025 will be similar in that regard, with potential updates from DeepMind on Gemini 2.0, Project Mariner and more.Notably, this year I/O will overlap with Microsoft Build, which is set to run from May 19 to 22. Like I/O, Build is expected to include a major focus on AI.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/google-io-2025-kicks-off-on-may-20-212810869.html?src=rss

The Apple Studio Display is available with a discount of $300 from Amazon. This discount applies to all versions, so prices range from $1,300 to $2,000. For the uninitiated, the Studio Display is available with a standard glass design or a nano-texture glass design that helps reduce reflections. There's also a model with both a tilt and height-adjustable stand. The cheapest version, at $1,300, is the standard glass with a tilt-adjustable stand or a VESA mount. The Studio Display made our list of the best monitors, and this is particularly true for Mac users. The 27-inch screen boasts a 5K resolution with a max refresh rate of 60Hz. It has several useful connection options, including a trio of USB-C ports. The monitor also includes built-in speakers and a 12-megapixel camera that keeps the subject constantly in frame, thanks to Apple's Center Stage software. We called out the display's excellent build quality in our official review. We also appreciated the bright screen, up to 600 nits, and the accurate color reproduction. The speakers are excellent, as is the three-mic array that accompanies the webcam. The webcam itself, however, is a bit on the dull side. So what's the downside? At the end of the day, this is just another IPS LED display with a relatively low refresh rate and single-zone backlighting. Today's discount makes Apple's extreme pricing on this unit a bit more palatable, but $1,300 (at minimum) is still a pretty big investment for a monitor. The add-ons are also extremely pricey. It costs a whopping $400 to add a height-adjustable stand and $300 for that nano-texture glass coating. Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/apples-studio-display-is-300-off-right-now-195210809.html?src=rss

Microsoft's six-year-old program to make HoloLens headsets for the US Army could be getting some extra help. If the Department of Defense approves the deal, the company will expand its existing partnership with Anduril Industries, Palmer Luckey's defense startup, for the next stages of the Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS) program.Microsoft, which spearheaded the program, would transition into supplying AI and cloud infrastructure. Meanwhile, Anduril would do pretty much everything else, including oversight of production, future development of hardware and software and delivery timelines."Anduril makes a wide array of defense tech, including drone interceptors, sentry towers, comms jammers, drones and even an autonomous submarine. But given Luckey's background as the primary inventor of the Oculus Rift - and, by extension, the modern consumer XR industry - the IVAS program could perhaps be the defense tech startup's most natural fit.US Army / MicrosoftMicrosoft started working with the Army in 2019, using a modified HoloLens 2 for a headset that reportedly felt like a real-life game of Call of Duty." Early prototypes allowed soldiers to see a virtual map showing their squad's locations, a compass and their weapon's reticle. Thermal imaging served as an alternative to traditional night vision headsets.But the program ran into speed bumps, one of which was all too familiar to many who tried poorly designed VR games: It made them want to hurl. In addition to nausea, the headsets also led to eyestrain and headaches. Their bulk, limited field of view and - perhaps worst of all - an emitted glow (which could make them easy pickings for an enemy) didn't help, either.The problems contributed to Congress denying the Army's request to buy 6,900 pairs as part of a 2023 government funding bill. Instead, it allocated $40 million for Microsoft to develop a new version, which the Army accepted later that year. However, the headset has yet to make it onto the battlefield.Bloomberg reported on Tuesday that early feedback of the latest IVAS prototypes is encouraging, but the Army wants the cost to be substantially less than" each headset's currently projected $80,000. The Army could eventually order as many as 121,000 devices, but the new version would still need to pass a high-stress combat test this year before going into full production.In December, Anduril partnered with OpenAI to develop AI for the Pentagon. That deal will have the ChatGPT maker supplying its GPT-4o and OpenAI o1 models to Anduril's drone defense systems for the military.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ar-vr/microsoft-wants-to-hand-off-much-of-its-army-hololens-program-to-palmer-luckeys-anduril-190223240.html?src=rss

My hand is cramping. It's not carpal tunnel or some other dubious reason that's causing the pain. It's an analog ache that is oddly satisfying in a nostalgic way. In the last few days, I've held a pen and written more words for a much longer time than I have ever done in years. As I pushed myself to handwrite large parts of this review to spend more time with the 2024 Kindle Scribe's stylus and note-taking tools, I started to feel a sensation I hadn't remembered since my teens. I often feel the urge to jot down thoughts and lists, but I never really wanted to spend longer than 15 minutes writing. And yet, Amazon's new AI features for the Kindle Scribe seem to cater more to those who labor over essays or missives that they ultimately need to share with others. The Summarize and Refine tools for your notebooks, for example, can shorten and neaten up your scrawl so, I guess, you can send it to another person to read. That's it, really. The other improvements to the Scribe's writing experience are for scribbling on books, which I'll get to in a bit. Update, February 11 2025: Since this review was published in December, Amazon released new software in February 2025 that brings collapsible margins to the Kindle Scribe. Now that I've been able to evaluate that feature, as well as spend more time with the Scribe 2 and its competitors like the reMarkable Paper Pro, I am ready to assign a score, which you'll see below. For the most part, the new collapsible margins don't drastically affect my experience with the Kindle Scribe 2. As someone who mostly reads fiction and self-help books, I don't often find myself itching to scribble in the columns of a page. In the months since I published the review, the Scribe 2 has served me well as a general ereader that is a perfectly functional notebook. I actually found the feature that converts my handwriting into legible text more useful than I thought it would be, since I frequently write down my team's priorities and sending a cleaned-up version is more professional than passing along my scrawl. It also saves me some time as I don't have to retype every word. I do have to point out, though, that now that I have a reMarkable Paper Pro in for testing, it's clear the latter is the superior product for writing. reMarkable's software accommodates both handwritten and typed writing in the same document, and its app lets you edit those notes from your phone. It's everything I wanted the Scribe to do, and performs well enough that I am tempted to shell out the $3 a month to keep using it. Of course, if you're more of a reader who occasionally wants to mark up books,s ketch out some floorplans or make to-do lists, the Scribe 2 is better, thanks to Amazon's huge library of titles. The rest of my original review follows below. What's changed on the new Kindle Scribe As I said earlier, most of what's new on the Kindle Scribe is internal. On the outside, Amazon did tweak the bezels not in actual size but in colors, so that there's a white rectangle surrounding the screen, within a teal green column on the side. If you opted for the tungsten" version, then instead of teal green you'll see dark gray. I love the new color, but it's a bit confusing and makes me think the grippable area is narrower than before when in fact, it's about the same. Still, this is a small complaint, if that, and one that is mostly mitigated by how fresh the new version looks. The other main change is on the Premium Pen, which now has a rubberized top for its faux eraser. I've always appreciated how easy this was to use on the original Kindle Scribe, and I'm happy to report that the updated texture doesn't get in the way of responsiveness. It certainly feels enough like erasers of my youth that every now and then I find myself subconsciously swiping away phantom dust. I will point out, though, that I had to remind myself to use the eraser on a few occasions, since I was more accustomed to simply striking out a mistake with the pen. The new Premium Pen also has a customizable shortcut button so long-pressing it can activate the highlighter, pen, marker, pencil, eraser, canvas or sticky note. Drawing on books on the new Kindle Scribe Finally, in addition to the two AI-related tools I already mentioned, Amazon also updated how you can write on ebooks. As I described in my hands-on in October, the new Active Canvas feature makes it so that once you put your pen on the page, a box will appear to contain your writing. Compared to the clunky implementation on the older model, which required you to first go to the floating toolbar on the left of every page, select the sticky note feature and then write in it, this seemed a huge improvement. In my testing so far, though, this was less impressive. The software was buggy in my experience. On one occasion, I drew a spiral over the words We had a good yarn about old times" in an Agatha Christie novel. A translucent box appeared, containing my drawing in a layer above the text, with a check mark and cross at the top. You're supposed to tap the check, which will cause the box to fully solidify and the rest of the page's words will rearrange themselves to make room. However, when I hit X by accident, the box didn't go away, and I was able to continue to add doodles all over the screen. When I flipped to a different part of the book and came back, though, it disappeared, only to reappear later when I was trying to underline something. That's clearly just a bug, and when executed as intended, Active Canvas does work. You can resize the box, and lines will continue to reflow to make room or snap back into place. The boxes will stay where you left them, instead of disappearing under a little tag the way they did with the original Scribe. It's a slight improvement, and though I can't yet imagine how I'd use it in real life, it's nice to know it's there. I do have to point out a couple of caveats, though. This doesn't work on samples - you can tell whether the Active Canvas is supported by checking if the floating toolbox is present. The other issue, which is a bigger one, is that Active Canvas can sometimes be triggered even when you're just trying to underline something. Drawing lines under or on text will generate underlines, which will be indexed by Amazon the same way highlights are, so you can easily find them again later on. Cherlynn Low for Engadget It's pretty annoying when you're trying to underline some text and the words jump away to make room for a box you never wanted to appear. It gets even more frustrating when, due to the lag, you have to wait for seconds for the box to go away after you tap the X on top of it. Worse, that bug I mentioned earlier caused the spiral and other doodles I had drawn to show up where I was trying to underline words. Thankfully, I was able to delete that when it reappeared and had no more phantom boxes. These little hiccups would be less of a problem if Amazon weren't already behind its competitors. Similar products from companies like Kobo already offer better support for writing on books, where you can circle specific words and the drawing will stay in place (though this is wonky if you resize the text afterwards). I understand that Amazon has to manage the resizability of its content, to support people who often change up font sizes while reading. There needs to be a better way. One might be coming. At the Kindle's launch event, the company did preview a collapsible margins feature, which lets you scribble in the column on either side of every book. Importantly, you'll be able to resize these columns and the space in them can scroll vertically, giving you plenty of room to cram in your musings. Sadly, this feature is only going to be available in early 2025, so I wasn't able to test it out. It's also worth noting that the original Kindle Scribe, which continues to retail for $340, will be getting the Active Canvas and generative AI features, as well as the collapsible margin when that arrives. Generative AI features on the new Kindle Scribe Where things feel more finished is in Notebooks, where Amazon has had to contend with fewer limitations. This section contains your lists, jotpads and works of art. Like you could on the original, you can select from a variety of backgrounds like lines, a dot grid or even planner or calendar views. It's here that you'll find the new Summarize and Refine tools, by tapping on the sparkles icon on the top menu bar. Selecting either Summarize" or Refine writing" will bring up the option to work Amazon's magic on the page you're on or the entire notebook. After you decide, the Kindle will get to work, using cloud-based processing to generate either a summary of your words or a tidied up version of your chicken scratch. This usually took about 10 to 15 seconds, depending on the length of the source material. Once a result is returned, you'll also get the option to customize the font and line spacing, as well as the ability to add it to the end or beginning of your notebook. Screenshots / Engadget I was surprised to see the Scribe make sense of a disorganized plan I made for reviews coverage that involved some lists with three in a row up top, two at the bottom and three lining the right side. The Refine tool accurately laid them out in sequential order, giving me a list of lists starting with the one I had in the top left position and ending with the tiny one titled OSes" that I had squeezed in below iPads" at the bottom right. The summary it returned for this example was also decent, and in all the other notes I tested I saw largely accurate results. Any mistake the system made felt reasonable, since I have horrible handwriting. It's not really the Scribe's fault that it thought I wrote Addly" when really I just had an extremely malformed n" and a barely legible g" at the end of Adding." When I did make an effort to write more neatly, the Scribe was more accurate, but that almost feels like it defeats the purpose. If I'm going to try to write better for the AI so it can make my handwriting neater for others to read, then how is that different from making a greater effort for humans? As competent as the generative AI features here have been, I still remain hesitant to call them useful. I'm not the sort of person that likes writing long enough to need AI summarization (to that end, you'll need to have at least 25 words on a page to qualify for Summarize). I also don't generally share my handwritten thoughts with other people, though on the extremely rare occasion that I do, I could see Refine being a good start. Screenshots / Engadget The problem is that Refine isn't always accurate, and its generated result isn't editable. If I could go in and correct Addly," then I might not mind sending that document to my team. Or if that were the only mistake in the refined writing, I could share the note and tell my friends to ignore the one error. But I'd have to write a whole new appendix just to clarify the mistakes, at which point I might as well type up my original thoughts. Neither Refine nor Summarize are groundbreaking new features in generative AI or even note-taking, either. Apple offers a version of Refine on the new iPadOS, while Summarize is something we've seen all over products from Google, Apple, OpenAI, Samsung and more. While I respect that Amazon has largely avoided chasing hype with its adoption of generative AI on the Kindle Scribe, I need more time and testing to better understand how useful it might be in the long run. What I like about the Kindle Scribe 2 so far As I did with the original, I do like the Scribe a lot. It offers a smooth, convenient writing experience in a svelte, relatively light package that's just 0.22 inches thick and weighs 433 grams (0.95 pounds). None of those dimensions have changed in the second-gen model, though the 10.2-inch screen somehow seemed sharper to me, despite having the same brightness and pixel density. Reading on such a roomy canvas is a joy, although I prefer to take the Paperwhite on the go since it's a lot easier on my wrist. That expanse can be helpful for those with visual impairments that might need a much larger font, for example. I've also liked doodling on PDFs and write-on books." The latter is a category of titles in the Kindle store that are formatted so you can doodle directly on them. I borrowed a couple of these through my Kindle Unlimited subscription, and had a blast solving cryptography and Sudoku puzzles. I did see some promising books in this category, like interactive or hyperlinked planners, but the customer reviews for those put me off. There is a lot of potential in that space, though, that could make the Kindle Scribe far more useful. I just wish Amazon would invest more in the format and make a notebook you can write on that would also work with your phone's calendar or reminders app and seamlessly integrate what you write on your planner into your digital universe. What I don't like about the Kindle Scribe 2 Alas, that is not a reality. And the reality is that there are quite a lot of things Amazon could stand to improve. While I can understand that finding a way to keep a loose stylus attached to a tablet is challenging, the magnetic edge that the Premium Pen can latch onto is just a precarious approach. I was walking into my apartment with the Kindle Scribe in my hand and jostled the door by accident. Two seconds later, I was wondering where the stylus had gone. It was on the floor, and when I picked it up, I noticed the nib was slanted. I didn't know if I had damaged it, and though it still worked well, I eventually saw some scratches on the Scribe's screen that I suspect might not have been there had the pen not dropped due to a light knock against a doorframe. The company does include some replacement nibs in the box, so fixing this is fairly easy. Cherlynn Low for Engadget I also really wish Amazon's Notebooks were more versatile. They're better than they were with the original Scribe, but you still can't edit them in the mobile Kindle app. You can view your Notebooks there, which is nice, but it's slightly annoying that they're listed in alphabetical order instead of based on what's recently been opened like they are on the Kindle. Amazon rates the new and original Scribes as having the same battery life - that is, up to three weeks if you write for about half an hour a day, and up to 12 weeks if you read for that same amount of time. In my review of the older model, I saw battery numbers drop 35 percent in about a week with lots of writing and testing. With the new Kindle Scribe, the power level is currently at 21 percent after coming out of the box at 50 percent just a couple of days ago. I have been testing its AI, writing and annotating features pretty relentlessly in that time, and usually see the percentage fall one or two points whenever I generate an AI summary or refinement, too. I'll need much more time to get a better sense of how the new Kindle Scribe's battery holds up under more normalized use, but if it behaves like its predecessor, I shouldn't need to charge it more than once every couple of months. Wrap-up Amazon's new Kindle Scribe has a lot of competition from companies like Kobo, Boox and reMarkable. And with a price of $399, the new Scribe is a whopping $60 costlier than its predecessor, which will also get a lot of the new software updates. To be fair, the new Scribe comes with a Premium Pen for the price, while the cheaper model only includes a Basic Pen, so you're partially paying more for a better stylus. While I do like the new color option and slightly improved annotation capabilities, I'm not sure Amazon has done enough to justify the additional cost here. I'd much rather see the company focus its efforts on improving its Notebook syncing and mobile editing software, as well as investing in innovating on the write-on book format, than chase the generative AI trend. No matter how much restraint it's exercised in doing so. Still, Kindles, the Scribe 2 included, remain some of the best ereaders around, and are pretty much the most obvious choice for anyone already invested in Amazon's ecosystem.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/tablets/kindle-scribe-2-review-in-progress-is-slightly-useful-ai-worth-the-extra-cash-140018638.html?src=rss

Kickstarter just unveiled a bunch of new tools for backers and creators. The most notable of the bunch is called Pledge Over Time and, well, it's exactly what it sounds like. The tool allows backers to split a pledge into four payments that get pulled from a bank account every two weeks. It's sort of like Affirm or Klarna.This feature should also help creators, as it'll entice more backers to buy into a campaign. It's available right now, but only to select campaigns. Pledge Over Time is coming to everyone by spring." This follows a related tool that was released last year that allows folks to back projects after a campaign has ended.KickstarterThe platform is also in the process of refining search and discovery to help backers find stuff that interests them. Kickstarter promises that new search filters and sorting options are coming to web and mobile this spring. The mobile app is also getting an update by the end of 2025" that lets backers view all of their funded, live and unsuccessful projects in one place.KickstarterThere are some changes coming down the pike to make backers feel more secure when pledging. If a project faces significant fulfillment failures" it'll get slapped with a notice on the main page. Backers of these projects will also get a notification that outlines the issues and actions that Kickstarter has taken. Project pages will also soon include more details about a creator's overall track record. Indiegogo already does something similar via its Trust-Proven badge.For creators, the fundraising platform is introducing add-ons. These are perks that can be added to a campaign after being successfully funded. It gives backers more opportunities to spend money and get cool stuff in return. Shipping management is also being streamlined, as is the tax collection system.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/kickstarter-is-rolling-out-new-tools-for-backers-including-a-way-to-split-pledges-into-four-payments-170051752.html?src=rss

James Howells, a British IT worker, mined over 7,500 Bitcoins back in 2009, when they were worth next to nothing. Now a single Bitcoin is worth nearly $100,000, valuing his stash at well over $700 million. Unfortunately, Howells accidentally threw the hard drive he stored the key on in the trash. He has a scheme to get that money back, according to The Guardian. He wants to buy the landfill where it could be buried and dig it up.Howells doesn't exactly know where the hard drive is, but has a solid guess based on when he tossed it in the trash. He has it narrowed down to a particular section of a South Wales landfill that houses 15,000 metric tons of waste. The landfill is approaching maximum capacity, so Howells wants to buy it off the city. Officials have warned that the hard drive is buried under 25,000 cubic meters of waste and earth" as it has been there for almost 12 years.While the city hasn't made a final decision, it doesn't look good for Howells and his needle in a haystack" plan. There are serious ecological dangers to haphazardly digging up a landfill. The excavation process would be risky and costly. Afterward, the landfill would have to be resealed, another expensive project. The city also has plans to build a solar farm on part of the land.Finally, there's the hard drive itself. Would there be anything recoverable after laying underneath tons and tons of trash for 12 years? It seems highly unlikely, though Howells and his investors must have some serious data retrieval specialists standing by.

Chinese EV maker BYD is pretty much the king of EVs in the country, even challenging Tesla in the country. Yesterday, in a company livestream, founder Wang Chuanfu claimed that the company will make all of its models self-driving, including the cheapest ones like the $9,600 Seagull hatchback, the Financial Times reported.Wang said that BYD is starting an era where autonomous driving is for everyone" and that self-driving cars will no longer be an unattainable luxury, but an essential tool." BYD intends to power its cars with the God's Eye" driving system it developed in-house. According to The Straits Times, God's Eye relies on cameras and radar sensors to perform tasks like valet parking, automatic braking and adaptive cruise control.Additionally, BYD is joining other local EV makers like Geely, Great Wall Motor and Leapmotor to integrate DeepSeek's AI into their autonomous driving systems. However, there's no news about when this will happen. Of course, whether BYD will deliver its promises of accessible autonomous driving remains to be seen as well. Meanwhile, Tesla is struggling to get its software off the ground in China, so whether BYD beats it to the punch is yet another thing to look out for.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/chinese-ev-maker-byd-promises-to-make-all-of-its-models-self-driving-capable-164641323.html?src=rss

You might have spent the last few years turning your domicile into a smart home with a fancy speaker setup, robot vacuum and voice-controlled lights. Another way to make your home more connected is with a video doorbell, and as it happens, a model from Ring is on sale. The latest version of the Ring Video Doorbell has dropped down to $60, which is $40 off. The discount also matches the record-low price. As the name suggests, this is a battery-powered model, so you won't have to worry about wiring it up. The doorbell has a USB-C port, and all you have to do to top up the battery is detach it and plug it in for a while. The second-gen model offers 66 percent more vertical coverage than the previous one, allowing for a head-to-toe view of whoever is on your doorstep. You can keep an eye on what's going on from your phone, tablet or another compatible device using the live view feature. You can also chat with the person at your door remotely thanks to the two-way talk function. The Video Doorbell has motion-detection capabilities, and you'll receive real-time alerts on your phone whenever it spots movement. For more detailed alerts about whether that motion is because of a person or package delivery, you'll need to sign up for a Ring Home plan, which starts at $5 per month. The subscription also grants access to features such as 180 days of video event history being saved. The premium tier, which costs $20 per month, includes round-the-clock recording on every compatible doorbell and/or camera at your home. Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/the-latest-ring-video-doorbell-is-back-on-sale-for-a-record-low-price-161258034.html?src=rss

As I sat down to play the 90-minute South of Midnight preview, I had one major question: Why does the framerate look like that? The trailers display a purposefully choppy animation style that's meant to be reminiscent of stop-motion, but it wasn't clear how this effect would be applied in the game's cutscenes, combat and traversal moments. After playing the preview, I'm still unsure. I should state my bias at the top: I am super primed to enjoy South of Midnight. I've been a fan of Compulsion Games since the studio debuted Contrast in 2013, and I eagerly followed the development of its follow-up, We Happy Few, through 2018. Compulsion's games are stylish, with an emphasis on polished 3D graphics and lanky characters in fabulous outfits. Microsoft acquired Compulsion in 2018 and the studio has been working on South of Midnight ever since. My intrigue has only grown in the past year, following a drip-feed of trailers with luscious Southern Gothic settings, a bluesy soundtrack and the game's magic-weilding protagonist, a young Black woman named Hazel. First, let's talk about what the game does well. The preview begins at chapter three, after Hazel has discovered the basics of her magical abilities but has not mastered the power flowing through her veins. Hazel is a Weaver, capable of manipulating the invisible strands that hold reality together, and she's looking for her mother, Lacey, after a hurricane swept through their hometown of Prospero in the American Deep South. If Hazel is the main character in South of Midnight, the environment is her co-star: The swamps of Prospero are lit with a rich, golden hue and they're buzzing with surreal life. Towering cypresses, lush ferns and thorny vines the size of tree trunks weave their way through the forest and its cloudy pools. The houses, half-demolished shacks connected over the bayou by crumbling wooden platforms, are filled with rotting trinkets and faded photos, and many have eviction notices stuck to the front doors. Car-sized peaches dot the landscape, plump pinkish skin sticking out of the swampwater and buried at the bases of trees. This land is drowning in magic. Compulsion Games Though Hazel is on a linear journey to find her mom, there are plenty of opportunities for light exploring around Prospero. Chapter three features a handful of hidden paths that conclude with glowing bits of Floof, the game's currency, for Hazel to collect. These alternative routes are positioned in plain sight, but they're integrated into the landscape off the beaten path, so they're easy to miss if you're not paying attention. Hazel explores by running, jumping, double jumping, gliding and wall running, and her movements through the world feel utterly natural. Her abilities build on one another nicely and they're perfectly responsive, creating a mini parkour flow that I didn't expect in this game. At times Hazel uses magic to turn ghostly objects into tangible platforms, and her double-jump and glide combo is particularly fun. Hazel always looks cool, regardless of the framerate. She moves her long, thin limbs with the haphazard confidence befitting a teenage track star, and her clothes - a waffle-stitched sweatshirt tied around her waist, denim jeans, a tank top with a sports bra, leather arm bands and a holster across her chest - are heavily textured, lending each piece a tangible feel. Hazel's dialogue is delivered with a hefty amount of adolescent snark, too, and I laughed out loud when she met the giant talking catfish and immediately was like, Nope," and turned to walk away. Actors Nona Parker Johnson, who performs Hazel's motion-capture and stunts, and Adriyan Rae, Hazel's voice, have done some fabulous work here. Compulsion Games In the preview, Hazel encounters an eccentric local, a few magical creatures and at least one powerful ritual, and she eventually finds herself chasing the ghosts of two brothers, one of whom died after being stuffed inside the trunk of a tree. As she hunts their memories and traps their pain in a blue bottle, banjo music trickles into the scene until it becomes a full-on folk song recounting the brothers' tragic story. It's a unique and effective mechanic. The world around Hazel is composed of dark and surreal beauty, and after seeing (and hearing) this sliver of gameplay, I'm eager to uncover all of Prospero's hidden stories. Combat in the South of Midnight preview takes place in contained stages, with spiky vines blocking off the exits as soon as the fight begins and the haints - ghosts, in Hazel's vernacular - pop up. The enemies in this chapter come in three basic forms: tall floaty haint, stationary haint nest and floaty blob haint. The enemies are made of gooey black tendons and red magic, and they attack in specific ways depending on their type. The tall one moves quickly and rushes forward, the nest spews out exploding bugs and the floaty blobs shoot parryable projectiles. Hazel has a basic attack, dodge, healing move and four magical abilities: weave, strand push, strand pull and a final locked move. Weave freezes an enemy in place, while strand pull and push can be used to throw objects back in the haints' faces. Each combat stage starts out with a healing totem that Hazel can tap into once, as long as she can reach it and (on Xbox Series X) press Y. She also receives health regen by pressing Y near a pile of freshly killed haint meat, unraveling their essence for a little boost. These piles are only available for a few seconds after each kill, so there's some light strategizing involved in staying alive mid-battle. Compulsion Games The fights flow just fine, and a lock-on system allows Hazel to swap her attention among the haints on the fly. Parrying projectiles is the toughest ability to master in the preview, but with a little more time to practice, I think it'll become second nature. South of Midnight is not an open-world RPG or anything, but Hazel has a small skill tree with three upgrades for each of her magical abilities and nine slots to unlock moves like ground slam. A second screen contains Hazel's collection of magical objects (five slots), patterns (six slots), readables (104 slots) and storybooks (14 slots). By the end of the demo, I'd collected four magical objects and one readable. Just looking at the menus, it seems like South of Midnight is a contained, sub-20-hour experience. Now, let's talk about the game's animations. South of Midnight begins with a gorgeous, handcrafted stop-motion intro movie that brings Hazel and her storybook adventure to life, but after that, the game's stop-motion conceit only half-works. Hazel's movements and the world at large are supposed to render at 60 fps, while her facial expressions in cutscenes render at something closer to 15 fps, mimicking the animated in twos" style of Into the Spider-Verse. This appears to be true for anything in the game with a face, and it's particularly apparent with the catfish character, which is basically all mouth. When it all comes together as Compulsion intended, the effect looks and feels very cool. Unfortunately, this is a rare occurrence. In practice, the stop-motion effect is inconsistent during third-person exploration moments and close-up cutscenes, and it tends to feel less artistic, and more like the game simply has an erratic framerate. It's possible to turn off stop-motion effects and I tried this, but honestly, I couldn't spot the difference. Even with stop-motion turned off, Hazel is rendered at an unpredictable rate that often dips well below 60 fps. The framerate issue appears across characters and vignettes, and it's especially shitty during brightly lit memory scenes, where NPCs appear in front of Hazel as glowing white ghosts, filled with particles and visually stuttering all over the place. South of Midnight targets 4K/60 on Xbox Series X, but my preview at times felt like it struggled to maintain 30 fps. What's more troubling, though, is the screen tearing that appears throughout the preview, spawning from the game's use of a-sync. The tearing often appears close to the center of the screen, suggesting the game is far away from its performance target. Of course, Compulsion is still working to optimize South of Midnight and there's some time to address these problems before the game comes out on April 8 - but they're cutting it close. I think the stop-motion effect is a grand idea and it would work well if Compulsion committed to the bit. If the framerate is supposed to be low, keep it low, rather than popping in and out of higher framerates, which makes everything feel like a mistake. Consistency is the key, and South of Midnight hasn't nailed that yet. This is Compulsion's first attempt at building a game with all of the resources and attention that Xbox provides, and the studio has crafted a beautiful, mysterious world with an ambitious mechanical conceit and a badass protagonist. The stop-motion effect is still hit-or-miss, but that doesn't detract from the game's other successes. I remain incredibly stoked on South of Midnight. South of Midnight is due to hit Xbox Series X/S, PC and Game Pass on April 8. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/xbox/south-of-midnight-preview-stopped-motion-160003119.html?src=rss

If you're not one for carrying lots of books around then an e-reader is the way to go. Right now, you can get the 16GB Amazon Kindle Paperwhite for $135, down from $160. The 16 percent discount brings the device to just $5 more than its Black Friday price. Amazon's Kindle Paperwhite came out in 2024 and offers a seven-inch glare-free display with 300ppi resolution. It also has up to 12 weeks of battery, an adjustable warm light and a flush-front design. Plus, its IPX8 certified waterproof and Audible through Bluetooth. The Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition, which retails for $200, is our choice for best premium ereader. It offers 32GB of storage, wireless charging and an auto-adjusting front light sensor. We gave it an 85 in our review when Amazon released it late last year. Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/the-2024-kindle-paperwhite-drops-to-its-lowest-price-of-the-year-151158322.html?src=rss

It's happening again. Sony just scheduled a State of Play livestream event for February 12. The stream starts at 5PM ET and should run for around 40 minutes. You can watch it on the PlayStation website, Twitch or via the official YouTube page.What will be revealed? We don't exactly know. We do, however, have some educated guesses. It's likely we'll get new trailers and information regarding hotly-anticipated titles like Marvel's Wolverine and Death Stranding 2. Hideo Kojima's upcoming sequel should come out this year, so it's high time for another beefy trailer.Sucker Punch's Ghost of Yotei already has a 2025 release window, so we could get an actual date on that one. Maybe we'll even get a fresh look at gameplay. Bungie's PvP extraction shooter Marathon could get a trailer and a beta release date, which would be pretty cool. Naughty Dog also recently announced a brand-new IP called Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet. I wouldn't mind some more info on that one.Finally, there's the Xbox of it all. We know that the former Xbox exclusive Forza Horizon 5 is coming to PS5 this spring, so we could get a concrete release date. The same goes for the blisteringly fun Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. Could we even get an announcement that the Halo franchise is finally coming to PlayStation? Maybe, as there have been rumors.What we won't see are the various live-service games that Sony has recently canned. Last month, Sony canceled two unannounced live-service titles that were in development at Bend Studio and Bluepoint Games. The Bluepoint game was reportedly a live-service God of War game, though Bend Studio's title remains unknown.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playstation/sonys-next-state-of-play-event-is-set-for-february-12-at-5pm-et-150934514.html?src=rss

The Powerbeats Pro 2 ($250) was hardly a secret. Although Beats officially announced the new fitness-focused earbuds today, it has been teasing them since last September. And over the last few weeks, a number of pro athletes have been wearing the earbuds in public, including a few NFL players at the Super Bowl. There was little left to see of the Powerbeats Pro 2, but at least there remain more details to discover about the tech inside. Beats completely overhauled this new model, reducing both size and weight in the process. The company is also utilizing Apple's H2 chip to unlock a host of features - most notable of which is heart-rate tracking. Given it's been nearly six years since the original, there are understandably substantial improvements to audio quality and battery life, as well as the addition of active noise cancellation (ANC). The Powerbeats Pro 2 will be available this week, and since I've been testing them for several days, I can offer some advice on whether these earbuds are worth investment. Surprisingly, Beats delivered its big overhaul while keeping the price the same as the original Powerbeats Pro. Powerbeats Pro 2 design One of the main updates Beats brought to the Powerbeats Pro 2 is its overall look. An over-the-ear hook has been the main aesthetic and functional element on this product line since the first Powerbeats model debuted in 2010. For this redesign, Beats opted for nickel titanium alloy wiring inside the hook to improve comfort, flexibility and durability. The earhook is over 50 percent smaller than what's on the Powerbeats Pro, a change that Beats made to help the earbuds work better with glasses. That's a welcome change since the previous model wasn't very glasses or hat friendly. Version 2.0 is definitely more comfy when I wear them with my Goodr shades or a baseball cap. The main housing of the earbuds is smaller as well, and it's 20 percent lighter. This results in a more compact frame that's less obtrusive. Beats says it tweaked the shape of both the earbuds and their acoustic housing for improved comfort and an effective seal. Physical buttons are still available on the Powerbeats Pro 2, with a volume rocker on each side and multi-function controls on the b" logo button for playback, calls and more. This new model is IPX4 rated for water resistance, so sweaty workouts shouldn't be a concern. Thankfully, Beats also made the charging case more compact. The company says the accessory is 33 percent smaller than the one that came with the Powerbeats Pro. It's still plenty big compared to most earbuds cases these days since it needs extra space to accommodate those hooks. The case supports wireless charging, but there's also a USB-C port around back for wired top ups. The pairing button, should you need it, is inside between the two earbud cradles. Heart-rate tracking Billy Steele for Engadget There's plenty to discuss in terms of features on the Powerbeats Pro 2, but the biggest of them is heart-rate tracking. Interestingly, these are Apple's first earbuds with that technology onboard, an ability that Beats says it borrowed from Apple Watch. The sensor is situated right behind the ear tip to take readings from both earbuds every five seconds. Beats says it developed the Powerbeats Pro 2's heart-rate sensor from the ground up," and that it relies on four key components. A green LED light emits over 100 pulses per second to go through the skin and hit red blood cells. A photodiode then captures reflected light from those cells and an optical lens keeps transmitted and received light separated. Finally, an accelerometer compensates for your movement to aid in accuracy and consistency. Tracking my heart rate with the Powerbeats Pro 2 was accurate and reliable. During my tests, the figures displayed in the Runna app mirrored what was on my Apple Watch. They sometimes took a second or two to sync because the two devices take measurements at different times, but once the earbuds and the smartwatch settled, the numbers always matched. The main issue with heart-rate tracking right now is the relatively short list of supported apps on iOS. The Powerbeats Pro 2 doesn't work with Apple's own Fitness app. Instead, you'll have to rely on Nike Run Club, Runna, Ladder, Slopes, Open, Peloton and YaoYao for your workouts. You will be able to see all of the collected data in the Health app on iOS. It's a much better situation for Android users as Beats says all fitness and wellness apps" that have heart-rate monitoring abilities will be fully compatible with these earbuds. On Android though, you have to manually turn on heart-rate monitoring in either the Beats app or on the Powerbeats Pro 2 - and remember to turn it off when you're done. On iOS, it happens automatically once you give your go-to app(s) the proper permissions. Software and additional Powerbeats Pro 2 features Billy Steele for Engadget Beats decided to use Apple's H2 chip this time around, the same tech that enables all the powerful features on the AirPods Pro 2. That component assists with everything from heart-rate monitoring to Spatial Audio and ANC. A number of handy AirPods features are available on the Powerbeats Pro 2 thanks to the chip as well. You won't find the AirPods Pro 2 Hearing Aid and Hearing Test tools here, but Beats says Apple's Hearing Protection is available on these earbuds. The features list is longer for iOS users than Android this time around. On iPhone and iPad, you can expect quick, one-touch pairing that syncs with iCloud for every Apple device on your account. There's also Audio Sharing with another set of Beats earbuds/headphones or AirPods, hands-free Siri, Find My, Personalized Spatial Audio and controls customization. Like other recent Beats products, all of this is baked into iOS and accessible through the Bluetooth menu, so you don't need to download another app. On Android, you will need the Beats app. Once it's installed, you'll get one-touch pairing, Locate My Beats, control customization, the ability to switch listening modes and enable or disable heart-rate monitoring. Sound quality Beats completely redesigned the acoustic architecture for the Powerbeats Pro 2, including new venting, an upgraded amplifier, new protective mesh and a custom-designed, dual-layer transducer. The company says it also changed the angle of the transducers for a more direct path for sound to your ear canals. All of this leads to remarkable dynamic range across the frequency curve," according to Beats. The promise of a balanced, powerful sound profile" holds true across most genres, although the Powerbeats Pro 2 is at its best with bass-heavy, high-energy tunes. Kendrick Lamar's GNX has excellent, nuanced low-end thump on these earbuds, and most hip-hop albums follow suit. There's plenty of bass to boost your energy levels during training sessions, but it doesn't overpower the mix. Vocals and other elements cut through clearly, which is crucial for less bass-dependent styles like rock and metal. No Cure's I Hope I Die Here carries every bit of dirty texture from the distorted guitars, but those instruments don't get mashed up with the metal band's drums, bass and vocals. Amidst the chaos of tracks like Hang Me From the Bible Belt," there's plenty of sonic detail in every breakdown. The Powerbeats Pro 2 supports Apple's Personalized Spatial Audio and Adaptive EQ. The former works with Dolby Atmos content (including Apple Music) to provide immersive, 360-degree sound. With those albums, movies and shows, these earbuds provide the sensation of being surrounded by 64 speakers. Spatial Audio is a staple of recent Apple and Beats audio products and it works well on the Powerbeats Pro 2. Plus, you get dynamic head tracking with Apple platforms and both lossless audio and ultra-low latency when you pair these earbuds with Apple's Vision Pro headset. I don't have a Vision Pro, so I wasn't able to test that compatibility. ANC performance on the Powerbeats Pro 2 Billy Steele for Engadget The Powerbeats Pro 2 are the first Powerbeats earbuds with ANC. In fact, Beats calls the performance here an exceptional noise canceling solution with an immersive listening experience - the best ever in a Beats product." Hybrid microphones monitor environmental noise and any clamor that might make its way in your ears, automatically adjusting the level of ANC to match your surroundings. While the Powerbeats Pro 2's noise-canceling tech does reduce distractions from constant annoyances like white noise machines and fans, it doesn't entirely block them. The earbuds also struggle to quiet human voices, which is where a lot of the competition stumbles, too. If you're like me and listen at around 70 percent volume most of the time, this is less of an issue. But at quieter levels, and during podcasts, the mediocre ANC performance here becomes apparent. Call quality ANC might not be impressive on the Powerbeats Pro 2, but the earbuds are certainly handy for calls. Thanks to Apple's natural-sounding transparency mode, you never feel like you need to shout to hear yourself over voice or video chats. I don't think that ambient sound is quite as clear as the AirPods Pro 2, though, especially in terms of piping in your voice. Beats says it has employed microphones and an accelerometer to focus on your voice while blocking background noise. In fact, the company explains that the computational audio setup is the same as what's available on the iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple TV. The Powerbeats Pro 2 also offers Voice Isolation with compatible Apple devices, which the company says enables clarity and noise suppression that exceeds any other Beats product. In practice, the voice clarity isn't pristine, but it's certainly usable, even for work calls when you need to sound as good as possible. Where the Powerbeats Pro 2 does shine in this regard is blocking background racket. The earbuds silenced loud fans and other constant sources of noise to the point they weren't noticeable at all on the other end. Powerbeats Pro 2 battery life Billy Steele for Engadget Beats says the Powerbeats Pro 2 will last up to 10 hours on a charge with ANC off and eight hours with either noise-cancellation or transparency mode active. The previous model was rated at nine hours, but it wasn't equipped with ANC. During my tests with active noise cancellation mostly disabled, but still employing all of the sound modes at certain times, I managed to wring out over 13 hours of use. In another test with ANC on the entire time, I surpassed the eight-hour figure with ease. The company explains that the heart-rate tracking doesn't impact battery life, in case that was a concern for you. I didn't notice any speedier battery drain during my workouts for this review, which were once a day and lasted at most one hour. If I do encounter anything to the contrary, I'll update this review with those findings. The competition Plenty of companies make earbuds with a similar hook design to the Powerbeats Pro 2 these days. But none of them come close to offering the tech and features that Beats does, especially for iOS users. If you're looking for an alternative with heart-rate tracking, the Sennheiser Momentum Sport is a reliable alternative. Sennheiser's fitness earbuds lack the polish of the company's flagship Momentum set, mostly in terms of audio and ANC performance. However, the heart-rate monitoring is reliable and accurate, plus it even tracks body temperature for workouts. I prefer the design of the Sport to the regular Momentum model as well, and the option of added bass is great for an energy boost. This set is more expensive than the Powerbeats Pro 2 though ($330), so that may factor into your decision. Wrap-up The Powerbeats Pro 2 presents an interesting proposition, at least for the time being. For now, it's the only set of Apple earbuds that offers heart-rate tracking. Reports indicate that the upcoming AirPods Pro 3 will also carry such sensors, but those probably won't arrive until September with the new batch of iPhones. It may seem odd that Apple would rely on a subsidiary for such a notable debut, but it makes a lot of sense when you consider these are earbuds designed primarily for workouts and other physical activities. Plus, this is a great stress test for the tech before it makes its way into a set of AirPods. On the whole, the Powerbeats Pro 2 are a substantial upgrade over the original. They're more comfortable and have a host of new features that help it match today's earbuds. Beats needs to expand support for heart-rate tracking on iOS and its ANC performance won't silence the world around you. But if you're into the hook design for a secure fit, you'll have a hard time finding another spec sheet that's this full. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/headphones/beats-powerbeats-pro-2-review-apples-first-earbuds-with-heart-rate-tracking-150026710.html?src=rss

This week is the AI Action Summit in Paris and the European Union is using it as an opportunity to deep dive into the growing sector. The bloc has announced it's putting 200 billion ($206 billion) toward AI development. This number includes 20 billion ($20.6 billion) for AI gigafactories that process and train large models.European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced the plan, called InvestAI, at the AI Action Summit on Tuesday. She pushed the position that Europe isn't late to the competition against China and the US. "The frontier is constantly moving, leadership is still up for grabs, and behind the frontier is the whole world of AI adoption," von der Leyen stated. "Bringing AI to industry-specific applications and harnessing its power for productivity and for people, and this is where Europe can truly lead the race."The news follows France announcement that private investments are funneling 109 billion ($112.5 billion) into its AI ecosystem. The country is also committing a gigawatt of nuclear power for an AI computing project led by FluidStack. It will use Nvidia-made chips.January was a big month for AI growth in the US and China. In the US, OpenAI and SoftBank announced a $500 billion partnership called Stargate to create AI infrastructure. Then Chinese AI assistant DeepSeek exploded onto the global stage, with the company claiming it offers the same quality as its competitors - but cost a lot less to built.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/eu-will-put-over-200-billion-toward-ai-development-150036706.html?src=rss

When it launched a couple of years back, the Ninja Creami became a viral sensation by making it easy to turn almost anything into a tasty frozen treat. However, there was still one thing it couldn't do: a classic soft serve, like the kind you dream about on hot summer days. But Ninja has made it its goal to change that by launching the Swirl by Creami today, and after getting a chance to taste what it makes, I'd say: mission accomplished. In a lot of ways, even though the Swirl is its own standalone gadget, it sort of like an expansion pack for the original Ninja Creami. That's because if you look at the right side of the machine, it looks almost identical to its predecessor. The big change is the new module on the left, which is reserved entirely for soft serve. The other major difference is the design of Ninja's pint containers. Now there's a new base featuring a built-in nozzle for spitting out soft serve and not one but two lids. There are also a few other details like a large handle on the side of the device, but we'll get to that later. Sam Rutherford for Engadget For anyone who has used the original, the general workflow is quite familiar. First, whip up an ice cream base and then freeze it in a pint container. From there, you select one of two main modes (traditional scoops or soft serve), attach the paddle lid and then spin your frozen base as normal. If you're making a traditional churned-style ice cream or one of its variants, you can simply stop there. But if you want soft serve, here's where things take a turn. After spinning your base, you take the paddle lid off, put on Ninja's soft serve lid before slotting the entire pint into the cavity on the left side of the machine. Then you need to twist the base of the container to open up the previously mentioned nozzle. Now you can pull down on the handle to the right and after a short pause, the Swirl will push out smooth, airy soft serve just like your favorite local shop. Or Pinkberry, because this thing can do froyo too. The Ninja Swirl uses a new pint container with a built-in nozzle for dispensing soft serve. Sam Rutherford for Engadget Granted, Ninja's latest two-in-one contraption takes a few extra steps to get to the end zone, but the results really do speak for themselves (assuming you started with a decent recipe, of course). The Swirl's soft serve is light and creamy without a hint of any crystal to mess up that unique semi-solid texture. And as its name implies, you can even twirl it around to create that signature spiral of frozen goodness on top of a cone or cup. Honestly, it's kind of magical. I will die on this hill, but to me there's nothing better than enjoying soft serve on a super hot day (preferably after a game of mini golf or a trip to the beach). So to have the power to make it at home feels really special, as soft serve has long been one of those things you need to go outside to get. During my demo, I tried a basic chocolate soft serve, froyo, peanut butter Creamifit" (which is basically soft serve with added protein and less sugar) and even a faux Shamrock Shake, all made using the Swirl. Heck, there was even some frozen mango and pineapple that were blended up to create homemade Dole Whips. And all of them tasted fantastic. The nozzle on the Swirl's pint container even recreates the look and shape you get from commercial soft serve machines. Sam Rutherford for Engadget Aside from soft serve, the Swirl also features a few improvements over previous models. Ninja says it has refined some of its programs to reduce things like the need to respin ice cream in order to get the proper consistency. The machine is also a bit quieter and it has indicator lights that tell how long it takes to finish blending a frozen base. And for people who like making treats with alternative sugars, the Lite Ice Cream mode has been adjusted to produce better results. That said, there are a couple of important things to know about the Swirl before you run out and buy one. Like the standard Creami, it uses traditional pint-sized containers instead of the larger 24-ounce cups used with the Creami Deluxe. You also can't spin half a pint like you can on the larger models, though if you want, you can make soft serve out of store-bought ice cream (you know, in case you're too lazy or impatient to make your own). Finally, when making soft serve, mix-ins are better left for the end rather than trying to blend them in. Regardless, similar to what the original Creami did for ice cream by distilling the tech from a $5,000+ Pacojet into a $200 machine regular folk can actually afford, the Swirl is now doing the same for soft serve. Right now, even the cheapest single-purpose machine on the market costs almost $1,000, while the $350 Ninja Swirl can do everything the old Creami could do (which includes making milkshakes, sorbets, gelatos and more) plus practically every type of soft serve you can imagine - all in one device. So while it's definitely pricer and bulkier than its predecessor, the Swirl really feels like a one-stop home ice cream shop. The Ninja Swirl by Creami is available today directly from Ninja or third-party retailers including Amazon, Target, Best Buy and Kohl's. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/kitchen-tech/the-ninja-swirl-by-creami-is-conquering-the-hardest-type-of-ice-cream-to-make-at-home-143002442.html?src=rss

YouTube has officially been around for two decades and a lot has changed over the years - including how people watch it. Now, a new report from YouTube claims TV has overtaken mobile to become the primary device for viewing content in the US.Yes, despite the tremendous push to smart phones, TVs, with their big screens and chunky remotes are still relevant. YouTube looks at watch time to determine device positions.Nielsen, a market research company that's been reporting on TV viewing habits for decades, says that YouTube has been the number one service in streaming watch time for the last two years.YouTube has also announced that its working on a new feature called Watch With. This tool should allow creators to produce live commentary and reactions to any games and events. Of course, many creators already do something like this, but the new tool could be more integrated into the platform. YouTube began testing it with the NFL but will try it out with other content throughout the year.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/youtube/more-users-are-watching-youtube-on-tv-than-mobile-140035151.html?src=rss

Eric Council Jr. from Alabama has pleaded guilty to being a co-conspirator in the unauthorized takeover of the US Securities and Exchange Commission's Twitter account last year. In early January 2024, SEC's official X account tweeted that bitcoin ETFs had been approved "for listing on all registered national securities exchanges," but SEC Chair Gary Gensler quickly announced that the agency's account was compromised. The commission later revealed that it was the victim of a SIM swapping attack, though it also admitted that it account wasn't protected by multi-factor authentication. Council was the one who carried out the SIM swap, according to the Department of Justice.Council used an ID card printer to create a fake ID that he then used to gain access to a phone number associated with the SEC's account. In a SIM swap, the perpetrator typically gets a user's carrier to reassign a phone number to a new SIM card that they control. His co-conspirators, who paid Council in bitcoin, then changed the SEC account's password to control it before posting the false news along with a fake quote from Gensler. As for why the SEC's account was protected by MFA, the agency previously said that it asked X's support staff to disable it last July, because it was having issues with account access. But it remained disabled until after the account was compromised.Council, who was arrested in October, has pleaded guilty to aggravated identity theft and access device fraud. He will be sentenced on May 16 and could face up to five years in prison. The Justice Department said Bitcoin rose by $1,000 after the fake announcement went up and then fell by $2,000 when the SEC issued a correction.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/man-from-alabama-pleads-guilty-over-secs-fake-bitcoin-post-on-x-133045810.html?src=rss

Elon Musk has launched a $97.4 billion bid for AI darling OpenAI. The Wall Street Journal reported that a group of investors led by Musk's xAI submitted an unsolicited offer to the company's board of directors on Monday. It's a bid for the non-profit that controls OpenAI's for-profit arm.OpenAI is not a traditional company, and the non-profit structure Sam Altman and others at the company want it to get away from may, in fact, protect it from Musk's offer.There's further drama around all this: Musk had sued OpenAI and Sam Altman for allegedly ditching its non-profit mission around this time last year.An OpenAI spokesperson pointed Engadget to an X post from CEO Sam Altman that said, No thank you but we will buy twitter for $9.74 billion if you want." Musk's purchase of Twitter was a heady lump of money that didn't lead to a typical ROI. It did, however, help him attach himself to President Trump's successful bid for office.- Mat SmithGet this delivered direct to your inbox. Subscribe right here!The biggest tech stories you missed

Sky Glass, an all-in-one TV with a six-speaker sound bar and 4K Quantum Dot Display, came out in late 2021. Now the system is getting its successor: the Sky Glass Gen 2. One of the biggest improvements is sound quality, with a seven-speaker Dolby Atmos sound system, including a new dual sub-woofer.The second gen Sky Glass model also has a brighter 4K Quantum Dot display, a wider viewing angle and a better contrast. It gets a newly designed stand, which just slots right into the TV without any nuts and bolts. The TV also now fits on universal wall mounts.A lot of things do remain the same between the new and older model. The TV's core offerings remain the same, filled with Sky Originals, Sky Exclusives and access to apps like BBC iPlayer and Netflix. The new model also keeps Playlist, a feature that lets you add your favorite shows and movies to their own tab. Plus, it's still available in 43-inch, 55-inch and 65-inch models. However, the Gen 2 comes in three new colors: Volcanic Grey, Arctic Silver and Atlantic Blue.Get the Sky Glass Gen 2 43-inch model for 699, 55-inch model for 949 or the 65-inch model for 1,199.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/the-sky-glass-gen-2-offers-a-brighter-display-and-better-sound-113000277.html?src=rss

There's no such thing as one best" music streaming service. Most of these apps are designed around the same principles and provide access to a huge music catalog. Pretty much none of them are paying artists properly, yet nearly all of them are steadily raising prices. If you've used one to build up a library over the years, that one is most likely to be in tune with your musical tastes.

A new iPhone update patches a flaw that could allow an attacker to turn off a nearly seven-year-old USB security feature. Apple's release notes for iOS 18.3.1 and iPadOS 18.3.1 say the bug, which allowed the deactivation of USB Restricted Mode, may have been exploited in an extremely sophisticated attack against specific targeted individuals."The release notes describe the now-patched security flaw as allowing a physical attack," which suggests the attacker needed the device in hand to exploit it. So, unless your device was hijacked by extremely sophisticated" attackers, there was nothing to panic about even before Monday's update.USB Restricted Mode, introduced in iOS 11.4.1, prevents USB accessories from accessing your device's data if it hasn't been unlocked for an hour. The idea is to protect your iPhone or iPad from law enforcement devices like Cellebrite and Graykey. It's also the reason for the message asking you to unlock your device before connecting it to a Mac or Windows PC.Aligned with its typical policy, Apple didn't detail who or what entity used the attack in the wild, only noting that the company is aware of a report that this issue may have been exploited." Security researcher Bill Marczak of the University of Toronto's Citizen Lab reported the flaw. In 2016, while in grad school, he discovered the iPhone's first known zero-day remote jailbreak, which a cyberwarfare company sold to governments.You can make sure USB Restricted Mode is activated by heading to Settings > Face ID (or Touch ID) & Passcode. Scroll down to Accessories" in the list and ensure the toggle is off, which it is by default. Somewhat confusingly, toggling the setting off means the security feature is on because it lists features with allowed access.As usual, you can install the update by heading to Settings > General > Software Update on your iPhone or iPad.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/apple-patches-iphone-exploit-that-allowed-for-extremely-sophisticated-attack-214237852.html?src=rss

Roblox, Discord, OpenAI and Google are launching a nonprofit organization called ROOST, or Robust Open Online Safety Tools, which hopes "to build scalable,interoperable safety infrastructure suited for the AI era."The organization plans on providing free, open-source safety tools to public and private organizations to use on their own platforms, with a special focus on child safety to start. The press release announcing ROOST specifically calls out plans to offer "tools to detect, review, and report child sexual abuse material (CSAM)." Partner companies are providing funding for these tools, and the technical expertise to build them, too.The operating theory of ROOST is that access to generative AI is rapidly changing the online landscape, making the need for "reliable and accessible safety infrastructure" all the more urgent. And rather than expect a smaller company or organization to create their own safety tools from scratch, ROOST wants to provide them, free of charge.Child online safety has been the issue du jour since the Children and Teen's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) started making their way through Congress, even though both failed to pass in the House. At least some of the companies involved in ROOST, specifically Google and OpenAI, have also already pledged to stop AI tools from being used to generate CSAM.The child safety issue is even more pressing for Roblox. As of 2020, two-thirds of all US children between nine and 12 play Roblox, and the platform has historically struggled to address child safety. Bloomberg Businessweek reported that the company had a "pedophile problem" in 2024, which prompted multiple policy changes and new restrictions around children's DMs. ROOST won't make all of these problems go away, but should make dealing with them easier for any other organization or company that finds itself in Roblox's position.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/roblox-discord-openai-and-google-found-new-child-safety-group-194445241.html?src=rss

Lyft is scrambling to compete as Uber racks up autonomous vehicle (AV) partners. On Monday, Lyft said it partnered with Japanese conglomerate Marubeni to bring robotaxis to Dallas roads as soon as next year before expanding to thousands of vehicles" in other cities.It's the first fruit from Lyft's Mobileye partnership, announced in November. TechCrunch notes that the Intel-owned Mobileye's tech is already available in models from (among others) Audi, Ford, GM, Nissan and Volkswagen. Lyft hasn't yet said which automaker(s) it's partnering with for the Dallas rollout. But Lyft executive vice president of driver experience Jeremy Bird told TechCrunch that it's in talks with every major autonomous carmaker."Marubeni, which owns subsidiaries in industries ranging from cereal to fossil fuels (fortunately, not in the same product), owns and manages fleets with over 900,000 vehicles across the globe. The company's Mobileye-equipped robotaxis will be available for folks in Dallas to hail through the Lyft app after the program launches.Although the Dallas launch will serve as Lyft's pilot program for Mobileye AVs, it may not end up being the company's next robotaxi rollout. Last year, it also partnered with AV company May Mobility and aims to bring robotaxis with its tech to Atlanta sometime in 2025.The pressure is on Lyft to keep up, as Uber has inked deals with a long list of companies in the AV space, including Avride, Aurora Innovation, Nuro, Waabi and Wayve. Uber and Alphabet's Waymo also plan to launch AV fleets in Austin and Atlanta early this year. (The waitlist is already open.) Tesla has also said it plans to introduce its first autonomous vehicle service in Austin this June.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/lyft-aims-for-a-2026-dallas-launch-of-its-first-mobileye-robotaxis-190137968.html?src=rss

OnePlus has revealed that you'll be able to get your hands on (or wrist under) its latest smartwatch very soon. The OnePlus Watch 3 will be available in the US, Canada and Europe on February 18. The company hasn't announced pricing just yet, but you can get a $30 discount if you sign up for updates.It claims that the Watch 3 can run for up to 16 days in power saver mode and five days in smart mode (which would be 20 hours longer than the Watch 2). Meanwhile, the wearable is said to run for up to 72 hours on a single charge if you're a heavy user. The company added that you can get a full day of use out of a 10-minute charge as well.OnePlus is trying to balance performance and battery life by employing two chipsets: the Snapdragon W5 performance chipset and the new BES2800 MCU Efficiency chipset. The Watch 3 also uses the same battery tech that the company employed in the OnePlus 13, while battery capacity has increased from 500mAh in the previous model to 631mAh. The extra capacity plus the promise of lower power consumption make for a potent combination to boost battery life.As was the case last time around, the OnePlus Watch 3 supports WearOS. The latest model doesn't look very different from the previous one on the surface, though there's a new bezel made from titanium and the sapphire crystal screen should bolster durability. The OnePlus Watch 3 will be available in two colorways, emerald titanium and obsidian titanium.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/wearables/the-oneplus-watch-3-arrives-on-february-18-155208939.html?src=rss

Last month, a pack of two Blink Mini 2 security cameras was $40, down from $80. They're currently 46 percent off at $38, meaning you get two for less than the price of one. These are also the latest model, offering advantages previous iterations don't have. The Blink Mini 2 security camera captures live video in 1080p HD, and there's also a night HD view. If you have a Blink Subscription Plan, you can stream continuously for 90 minutes. The plan is sold separately, of course, but this package comes with a 30-day free trial to let you have a taste of these extra features. The subscription also grants access to more features like motion detection alerts and clip-saving. You can even send clips to others later. The newest model comes with a spotlight for improved night visibility and has a wider field of view, 143 degrees up from 110 degrees that the original Blink Mini has. It's also compatible with Amazon's Alexa, allowing you to see what's going on outside with just a few words.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/pick-up-two-blink-mini-security-cameras-for-only-38-152645383.html?src=rss

It's a classic New York experience. You're riding the subway to work, and suddenly the train stops. The lights go off, and you seem to be trapped between stations in a tunnel. For many New Yorkers, hardened over years of bad weather, prevalent trash and cohabitation with rats, this is just another recurring event that's made less nerve-wracking by experience. But for Jarrod Musano, being stuck on a southbound 6 train that had lost power, there was little relief. Musano was born deaf, and the audio-only announcements were of no help. Musano couldn't see anything in the darkness, and had to rely on gauging the amount of panic in his surroundings.I knew if it were serious, people would be moving quickly," he recalled of the incident. Musano's experience reflects one of many ways people who have disabilities and, more specifically, who are hard of hearing, have difficulty when using public transportation. Musano is the CEO of Convo, a company that was founded in 2009 and connects people with sign language interpreters on demand. Today, the company is announcing a partnership with the New York Transit Authority, New Jersey Transit and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey that brings its service to area airports, trains and other major transit hubs. This includes the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) subway system, the Long Island Rail Road and NJTransit.Through this partnership, QR codes will be placed at various locations across those systems, and scanning them will launch Convo's web app through a browser. The user will be asked to grant access to their microphone and camera, and they'll then be connected to a real-time sign language interpreter on their devices. This, of course, requires that people have mobile phones or tablets with working internet connections, which might not always be reliable. It's worth noting, though, that the MTA has been adding Wi-Fi coverage to subway stations across its network. Plus, many of these QR codes are placed at customer service booths, which have gadgets on hand that could provide access.Convo and its partners had been conducting pilot tests at Penn Station, Times Square and the Port Authority terminal for months, and said in a press release that in general, users reported feelings of empowerment, inclusion and newfound confidence in interacting with transit staff." The company added that 44 out of 47 users were able to successfully access the service during the pilot.There are a number of reasons using a sign language interpreter would be more effective and efficient than, say, typing messages on your phone and handing them to another person to read. First, for many deaf individuals, sign language is their native language, and it would be more intuitive to express themselves that way than to type in English. Sign language also has different syntax than English. A sign language interpreter can also help translate as a deaf person is signing and also while a person with hearing is speaking, which can reduce frustration and time spent handing a phone back and forth. It can feel comforting and reassuring to have an interpreter available that understands what you're communicating, and since they are likely to be fairly familiar with the situation, the interpreter could also help share information they already know from context and experience.I went to look for these QR codes when I was at Moynihan Train Hall (an extension of Penn Station) this weekend, and once I spotted the first one at a ticketing counter at the LIRR service area, I started noticing them all over. I counted five of the little green squares in total, and after scanning one, I was brought to Convo's page on my browser, which displayed an explanation and tips for better service. I didn't want to waste an interpreter's time, so I stopped after that.I do have to point out that as a T-Mobile user, I frequently lose my signal in Moynihan Train Hall and have to use the station's public Wi-Fi, which in my experience has unreliable speeds.That's one of the challenges Convo will have to contend with and work on as the service reaches more people. As we deploy this out to the MTA, we're going to learn the types of behaviors, the types of requests, the types of challenges that we're going to face," Musano said when I asked if languages other than American Sign Language would be supported. For now, ASL is the default, though Convo wouldn't have to stretch too hard to find interpreters for British Sign Language and others. In fact, Convo already works with major networks in countries like Australia and the UK, with Musano saying it has partnerships with British Airlines, Aer Lingus, the British railway and more.Convo's service in the New York and New Jersey transit systems is free, and its app Convo Now provides 20 free minutes per month to all users who need sign language interpreters.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/new-york-metro-transit-systems-add-on-demand-sign-language-interpreters-152034505.html?src=rss

Having thought-out, unique passwords for each account is hard - recently, I got stopped for putting the same letter twice in a row - especially when it comes to remembering them all. That's why a password manager is so helpful: It creates and stores all your passwords, so you have peace of mind instead of a major headache. Now, one of our favorite password managers for cross-platform availability is having a sale. NordPass Premium is currently available for $1.29 per month or just shy of $35 for 27 months, rather than $81, and includes three free months. While NordPass offers a free tier, the Premium plan keeps you logged in when you've switched devices. NordPass Premium also gives you tools such as Password Health, which identifies weak, old or reused passwords, and Data Breach Scanner, which alerts you if your emails or credit cards appear in a data breach. Plus, it has Emergency Access, which allows a chosen friend or family member to access all your accounts if you're unable to do so. Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/two-years-of-nordpass-premium-is-56-percent-off-right-now-144511622.html?src=rss