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Amazon's self-driving subsidiary Zoox announced on Monday that it will begin testing its autonomous vehicles in Dallas and Phoenix. The company will initially deploy retrofitted Toyota Highlander SUVs with human safety drivers to map the new cities before eventually rolling out its purpose-built robotaxis.Zoox says these two cities will offer a chance to test its sensors and battery performance in unique conditions its cars haven't yet encountered in existing markets. Phoenix experiences extreme heat, dust and high-speed roads, while Dallas has more sprawling roads and varied weather compared to other cities where Zoox operates. The company is also opening new depots in both cities and a command hub in Scottsdale, Arizona which will handle fleet operations, remote guidance and rider support.The move brings Zoox's footprint (between actual launches and test markets) to 10 US cities. It's other areas of operation are Las Vegas, San Francisco, Seattle, Austin, Miami, Los Angeles, Atlanta and Washington, DC. Amazon acquired the self-driving startup for $1.3 billion in 2020 and has been steadily expanding its reach, with the company saying its fleet has driven over one million autonomous miles and served more than 300,000 riders to date.Zoox's expansion comes as competition in the robotaxi market intensifies. Alphabet-owned Waymo has continued its rapid spread across the US, while Tesla's Robotaxis launched last year, though those are currently limited to parts of Austin, Texas. US regulators are set to hold a self-driving safety forum on Tuesday, with the CEOs of Waymo, Zoox and Aurora all expected to attend.The regulatory framework has dragged behind the rapid rollout of these vehicles as companies test and iterate the technology on public streets. Just in the last year, autonomous vehicles have struck a child near a school, blocked emergency services responding to a mass shooting and, at least in the case of Teslas, appear to be crashing at higher rates than human drivers.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/amazons-zoox-will-test-its-robotaxis-in-dallas-and-phoenix-143828899.html?src=rss

Perhaps one of the most surprising things about the Apple Silicon era is how quickly Apple now updates its products. Take the iPad Air, for example. It's been less than two years since the company released the M2-powered iPad Air in 11- and 13-inch sizes. We're already on our third iPad Air iteration, one with the M4 inside. That's the same chip that was inside the iPad Pro that was unveiled alongside that M2-powered Air in 2024. (The Pro was updated with an M5 last fall.)Just as I said a year ago when Apple unveiled the iPad Air M3, this latest model doesn't fundamentally change the formula. The Air is a notable step up over the basic iPad, with a more powerful processor, more RAM, a better display and superior accessories like the Apple Pencil Pro and Magic Keyboard. The Air line is also the only way to get a 13-inch iPad without spending $1,300 or more.But without more substantial updates this year, I find myself less enthused by it than I was when the 13-inch model M2 model arrived in 2024. That's primarily because Apple has stuck with the same display for another year. As best I can tell, the 11-inch iPad Air that I'm reviewing has the same screen in 2026 as it did when the redesigned version with no Home button was released in late 2020. Other features that feel like they should be table stakes at this point, like Face ID, are also restricted to iPads that cost at least $1,000. For better or worse, the Air is a very mature product with few surprises. But on the other hand, if you have an iPad older than the 2024 refresh, the iPad Air M4 will provide a solid performance improvement. Apple's iPad Air M4 and the Magic Keyboard accessory. Nathan Ingraham for Engadget The M4 still has power to spareBefore we start answering existential questions, though, let's quickly recap what's new with the iPad Air. It still starts at $599 for an 11-inch version with 128GB of storage; the 13-inch models starts at $799. The one I tested came in an extremely light purple color with 1TB of storage and 5G connectivity and costs $1,249. Seriously Apple, don't be afraid of putting a little more saturation in these colors next time! As mentioned, the iPad Air now has a more powerful M4 chip as well as 50 percent more system memory (12GB, up from 8GB on last year's model). If you're coming from an iPad older than the 2024 model, you'll likely notice solid performance gains, and the M4 is so performant that I imagine this iPad will be more than powerful enough for years to come. It looks purple-ish in the right light, I swear. Nathan Ingraham for Engadget I ran some Geekbench 6 benchmarks to quantify the difference between the iPad Air M4 and last year's M3 model - unsurprisingly, the biggest gains came in the GPU. Single-core and multi-core scores were 23 percent and 12 percent higher, respectively. But the GPU score was a whopping 39 percent higher with the M4 compared to the M3. Don't get me wrong, the single-core and multi-core performance improvements the M4 offers are impressive. But tasks that hit the GPU hard, like gaming and AI (of course) should see notable improvements.In practice, the iPad Air M4 feels quite similar to the M3 model. That's due in large part to my relatively modest workflow. I jump between numerous apps all day, but none of them are exactly taxing to a chip like the M4. My day mostly consists of Slack, Google Docs, a ton of Safari tabs, utilities like Messages and Todoist, constant streaming music and other lightweight apps like Gmail and Trello. But if you're coming from an M1 iPad Air, the M4 should feel significantly faster for almost everything you do. Apple's iPad Air M4 playing the video game 'Control.' Nathan Ingraham for Engadget Unsurprisingly, the iPad Air flies through games from the App Store as well. I tried my usual more casual fare like Balatro, Mini Motorways and Powerwash Simulator from Apple Arcade and those were all quite smooth. But I wanted to push things a bit more, so I downloaded Resident Evil 2 as well as a pre-release build of Control Ultimate Edition which is slated to hit iOS in the coming months. Both games looked and played great, with highly detailed environments and pretty quick action that didn't slow the iPad Air down in the least. I could tell the graphics aren't as sharp as on my PS5, but both games were impressive considering they're running on extremely portable hardware with no fans.I also tried some generative AI apps, even though that's not really something I'm interested in. For apps like Apple's own Image Playground, the M4 is extremely speedy. It ripped through my goofy queries (an orange kitten dressed up like an astronaut) in a matter of seconds. When I compared it to the iPad Pro M5, the Air barely lagged behind it. However, the M4 couldn't quite keep up with more advanced image generation tools. The Draw Things iPad app lets you download and run a host of local models to create images, and the M4 definitely couldn't keep up with the M5. The iPad Pro M5 was typically more than twice as fast as the Air. We already knew the M5 was an AI beast, so I'm not knocking the Air for its performance at all - it's just worth knowing that if you really want to push the envelope, you'll probably be better off with an iPad Pro. Apple's iPad Air M4, Apple Pencil Pro and Magic Keyboard. Nathan Ingraham for Engadget The other main change is Apple's in-house networking chips are on board here. The N1 covers Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6 and Thread, while the C1X handles cellular connectivity if you buy a 5G-capable model. Again, this doesn't change the experience of using the iPad Air in any major way, but having the newest Wi-Fi and Bluetooth protocols on board is good for future usage, regardless of who built the chip. In my testing, the C1X on Verizon's 5G network was extremely fast around the suburbs of Boston and didn't seem any slower (or any faster) than other devices I have running on the same carrier. That's fine, as other Apple devices I've tried with the C1X (like the iPad Pro) are solid and reliable, which is the most important thing.A very familiar experienceOther than these new chips, the iPad Air is identical to the last two models I've reviewed. (This year, Apple sent an 11-inch Air M4 to review, while the last two were the newer 13-inch. But other than the larger screen, those tablets are the same.) Same screen, same cameras, same 10-hour estimated battery life, same USB-C 3 port. Naturally, it supports the $129 Pencil Pro that Apple introduced alongside it in 2024, and it works with the revamped Magic Keyboard Apple released last year. That keyboard remains quite expensive at $269 ($319 for the 13-inch model), but for me it's a must-buy accessory if I want to use my iPad for any real work." The Pencil, on the other hand, is not something I personally need, but it's an excellent tool for anyone interested in visual art or written notes. There are a plethora of excellent apps in both categories, and the iPad app ecosystem at large remains unmatched.Battery life also hits what I'd expect out of an iPad. I don't get 10 hours the way that I test it - I used the iPad Air as my main machine, all day for several days. In that scenario, I got between seven and eight hours of battery life. That's more than enough that I'd take it with me for half a day or more and not worry about charging, but not so long that I'd be totally comfortable without a charger for much longer. In a more casual, mixed-use setup, most iPads get closer to the 10-hour mark and I expect that'll be the case here as well. Of course, if you're playing games, editing videos or doing heavier generative AI tasks, expect battery life to drop noticeably.I'd be remiss if I didn't quickly mention iPadOS 26, which arrived last fall. It runs on iPad Air models all the way back to 2019, so it's not a reason alone to upgrade. But, it improved the multitasking experience on iPads to a significant degree. It still feels native to the iPad, but there are so many Mac-like flourishes that it's a lot easier for me to use as my main computer now. That said, it really shines on larger-screen iPads; the 11-inch model still feels best to me when running an app fullscreen or two apps side-by-side feels most comfortable to me. Apple's iPad Air M4 and Magic Keyboard. Nathan Ingraham for Engadget My major lament for the iPad Air remains the screen. Apple's LCD Retina display still looks great in a vacuum - it's a lovely standard screen, with bright colors and sharp text. But Apple's continued insistence on gatekeeping a screen with a higher refresh rate for iPads that cost $1000 or more gets more frustrating every year. It bothers me less on a product like the MacBook Air. But with an iPad, you're literally touching and interacting with that screen as the main interface. Having the fluidity of a 120Hz refresh rate simply makes everything feel more responsive to your touch.The consolation is that even Apple's standard displays still feel very smooth, so unless you're directly comparing an iPad Air to an iPad Pro you likely won't notice the difference. I mostly forgot about it in my time reviewing this device, only reminded of it when I went back to the iPad Pro.I also wish that Apple would implement more advanced display tech. Last year, I imagined that the mini-LED display used in the iPad Pro in 2021 and 2022 would be a great step up for the Air. It wouldn't be as good as the tremendous OLED screen in the iPad Pro, but it would still offer HDR and significantly increased brightness and contrast. Alas, we're stuck with a plain old LCD again this year. Again, that's mostly fine, but playing games like Control made me wish for more contrast, and movies do not have nearly the same visual pop on the Air as they do on the Pro. Apple's iPad Air M4. Nathan Ingraham for Engadget Wrap-upIf it's not obvious, I very much wish that Apple would bring some of its more advanced technology to the iPad Air. But at this point, I have to accept that the Air is what it is. In the same way that the MacBook Air hasn't changed substantially since the M2 model arrived in 2022, the same goes for the iPad Air. Both products still have displays that haven't been cutting edge for years, and that's just the way it is.Once I started comparing the iPad Air to its Mac counterpart, my negative feeling mostly subsided. I think the MacBook Air is a great laptop and wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to many people. Sure, its screen isn't cutting edge, but it's good enough for its target audience. And the many positives that it has outweigh a few places where Apple cut corners. The same can be said for the iPad Air.The iPad Air offers a lot of important upgrades over the basic $349 iPad, which is saddled with the A16 chip from 2022. The Air will be a better performer for much longer, and other niceties like a better screen and accessory support are worth considering. And it doesn't threaten the iPad Pro, which costs $400 more; between its screen, improved performance, superior industrial design and numerous other small benefits, it's pretty easy to see what you get for your money in all cases.So while I wish Apple would push the envelope with the iPad Air and give me something that feels more like a Pro-lite, I understand why it hasn't yet. The iPad Air isn't an exciting gadget at this point, but I still think it's the best iPad for most people.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/tablets/ipad-air-m4-review-still-apples-best-overall-tablet-with-a-few-caveats-130000409.html?src=rss

By introducing the iPhone 17e just a year after the iPhone 16e, Apple is closing some gaps. Before, the company would only roll out a new entry-level iPhone every few years, with the iPhone 5c (2013), iPhone XR (2018) and iPhone SE (2016, 2020, 2022) all having two to four years between their releases. But Apple is getting into an annual groove now, and having renamed the device to integrate better with the rest of the iPhone lineup, Apple is making a clear statement: It cares about the midrange now.With the current state of global economics, Apple's focus on lower cost devices like the iPhone 17e and newly launched MacBook Neo is timely. Most people probably don't make full use of the high-powered machines in their pockets and on their laps, and might be reconsidering whether they need to spend as much money on the Pros and the Airs of Apple's product lineup. At $599, the iPhone 17e is about half the price of an iPhone 17 Pro or the iPhone Air. It's $200 cheaper than the base iPhone 17, too.Since I reviewed the iPhone 16e last year, I've been using it as a work phone, mostly for Slack, email and light editing in Docs. The way I see it, most people considering the iPhone 17e are likely in a similar situation - either thinking of getting a supplementary device or looking for a good enough phone for a child or other dependent. For this review, I've tried to cover most of those scenarios whether it be a person that would spend most of their phone time on social media and games like a teenager or someone that's largely using it for administrative work purposes. I mostly want to answer this question: If you're getting your first iPhone or buying one for someone else, should you get the iPhone 17e or the iPhone 17?iPhone 17e vs iPhone 16e, for testing's sakeIt's very clear from Apple's website that it doesn't want you comparing the iPhone 17e to the iPhone 16e. The company doesn't allow you to do so in the comparison tool on the iPhone 17e product page, limiting you to the iPhone 11, iPhone 12 and the iPhone SE (second and third generations). Sure, I understand that no one is really thinking about getting an iPhone 17e after just buying the 16e last year. But for the purposes of this review, it makes sense for me to shout out what's new from the previous generation. The most significant additions this year are the A19 chip, double the storage, improved Portrait photography and MagSafe with faster wireless charging. Oh, and a new pink color option, adding an ever so subtle splash of color to the previously monochromatic lineup.The A19 chip is supposed to make AI processes faster, thanks to the neural accelerators in its GPU. In my testing so far, the difference has been negligible at best. Initially I was seeing the iPhone 17e perform slower than the 16e, but after a software update, the iPhone 17e caught up. In Apple Intelligence-powered tools like Cleanup, the iPhone 17e was a split second faster at identifying unwanted objects in photos and erasing them than the 16e. If you've just received your iPhone 17e and run into issues where image generation or cleanup is slow or stalling, give it a day or so for the software to stabilize.Oddly, in some side-by-side Image Playground testing, the iPhone 17e and iPhone 16e were neck and neck. Sometimes, the iPhone 16e was faster. Occasionally, the iPhone 17e was ahead. I'll continue to keep an eye on how both phones do here, as it could still be due to some early software issues, but for now the improvements from the A19's GPU seem to be hit or miss. The pink iPhone 17e and the white iPhone 16e held up in one palm in front of a red brick wall. Cherlynn Low for Engadget Improved portraits on the iPhone 17eOf all the improvements to the iPhone 17e, to me, one of the most important is in portraits. In my review of the iPhone 16e, I said that the majority of my grievances with the single camera setup was the fact that Apple ended up using an older version of Portrait mode.That version was much more limited and didn't allow for applying a background blur to pictures of non-human subjects. This time, Apple borrowed the algorithms it developed for the iPhone Air for the iPhone 17e's rear and front cameras. This not only delivers a general improvement to portraits, with better segmentation and a more natural-looking bokeh effect, but also allows for depth information to be captured when applicable. For instance, when a person, cat or dog is detected, the iPhone 17e will automatically capture depth information so you can apply a blur after the picture is taken, even if you didn't use Portrait mode initially.Importantly, these next-gen portraits" also allow you to edit the level of blur and change up the focal point of the picture after you've taken the shot. In some photos of my neighbor's grumpy shih-poo, I was shocked that my colleagues actually preferred the samples I shared from the iPhone 16e over the ones from the iPhone 17e. But their critique was fair: the newer phone blurred out Oreo's tail, keeping only his face in focus. I was able to address this by going into the editing tools and dragging the slider for aperture to bring more of the dog into focus. I also played around and tapped on Oreo's tail to make it clear, and the iPhone 17e blurred up his face instead. Two photo samples side by side, featuring a dog on a blue leash staring up into the camera. Cherlynn Low for Engadget When using Portrait mode to photograph people, the iPhone 17e did indeed deliver more pleasant bokeh than its predecessor. In pictures of my friend Brenda Stolyar, with the depth" or aperture set to f/4.5 across both devices, there was more softness in the brick wall behind her on the new phone. I was slightly confused since it seemed like the older iPhone actually delivered a sharper picture, until I realized it was actually just softer bokeh.For those coming from older phones like the iPhone 11, 12 or SE, the addition of next-gen portraits should feel like a major step up. Even when compared to the iPhone 16e, the fact that I was now able to apply the effect on photos of food and other inanimate objects with no faces made me happier. It makes the camera more versatile, and feels like a noteworthy update that makes your photos feel more modern.But that is definitely because I like pictures with the artificial depth of field effect. If you don't care for bokeh and really only want a phone's cameras to be good enough to snap pictures of menus or receipts, for instance, the 17e's improvements here won't mean much.MagSafe and wireless charging The rear of the iPhone 17e catches the light in front of a stone wall. Cherlynn Low for Engadget What might matter more, then, is this generation's wireless charging speeds. While the iPhone 16e could only support up to 7.5W, the iPhone 17e goes up to 15W (with adapters of 20W or higher) and also works with MagSafe accessories. I can't imagine anyone considering a new iPhone 17e already has magnetic cases or stands, but if you decide to invest in those accessories, you'll find them convenient and satisfying.I placed both models on my wireless charging stand - the 17e snapped on and started charging, while the 16e clattered helplessly off the stand. I placed it on the charging pad at the base instead and noted how much power each of them gained in 15 minutes. The improvement is clear: the iPhone 17e went up by 16 percent (30 percent to 46 percent), while the 16e only gained 3 percent (69 percent to just 72 percent).Beyond the numbers, what this means is that when you're in a pinch and trying to quickly top up your phone on, say, a wireless charger you found at a cafe, you won't need to sit around as long with the iPhone 17e. For those of you that simply leave your phone on a stand overnight, this is less likely to meaningfully impact you.There are a few other updates that I haven't really tested in this review, like the improved durability with Ceramic Shield 2 on the iPhone 17e's screen. The new display also has a treatment that is supposed to reduce glare, and considering the week of wonderfully gloomy weather we've had here in New York, this isn't something I've truly had a chance to evaluate. Also, while I do appreciate the doubled storage, which is sure to please the media hoarders among us, I will say I've already been served warnings about my iCloud storage running out. It still feels like something else Apple might need to address, but for newcomers to the iOS world, the higher base storage is absolutely a positive.Elsewhere, there are virtually no differences between the iPhone 17e and iPhone 16e. They have the same size displays with the same resolution, brightness, refresh rate, contrast ratio and color gamuts. Both are rated IP68 for dust and water resistance, and have similar battery lives (up to 26 hours of video playback, according to Apple). They also have the exact same dimensions of 5.78 x 2.82 x 0.31 inches, although the iPhone 17e does weigh a whole 2 grams (0.8 ounces) more than the 16e, which is almost definitely attributable to the addition of MagSafe. Unless you have weighing scales for hands, though, this difference is negligible. An iPhone 17e held up in front of a tree trunk. Cherlynn Low for Engadget Should you get the iPhone 17e or the iPhone 17?Where you might find more meaningful distinctions is when comparing the iPhone 17e to the iPhone 17. For $200 more, you'll get longer battery life and slightly better performance thanks to one more GPU core. The iPhone 17 also has a larger, sharper and brighter display that's 6.3-inches, with higher refresh rates and a full-screen design incorporating the Dynamic Island. It also supports the Always On Display and has an 18MP front camera with the Center Stage feature that allows for easy switching between landscape and vertical orientations in your selfies without having to rotate your phone.In fact, the camera upgrades alone on the iPhone 17 might be worth the money. On top of getting the additional ultrawide camera, you'll also gain the dedicated camera control button on the right edge, the latest generation of Photographic Styles, support for macro photography, Cinematic mode and Dual Capture in videos as well as spatial and macro recording capabilities. It also comes with sensor-shift optical image stabilization, which is more advanced than the OIS on the iPhone 17e. Rounding out that long list of differences is higher recharge speeds (with compatible chargers) and Apple's second-generation Ultra Wideband chip for more precise Find My support. The iPhone 17 also offers dual-frequency GPS and works with the latest standards in connectivity, like Thread, Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 (whereas the iPhone 17e only gets to Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.3).Sure, the iPhone 17 is slightly taller and heavier, but considering all the bonuses and the extra camera, that feels like a tradeoff that is more than fair. It's a lot more advanced for $200, and feels like a better starter phone than the iPhone 17e. But if your budget is tight and camera performance isn't a priority, you'll get a great experience from Apple's latest. The iPhone 17e held up in mid-air in front of some red foliage. Cherlynn Low for Engadget Wrap-upIn 2026, it feels like Apple has done the impossible. It's managed to serve up multiple iPhones at various price points with enough meaningful differentiations to justify each tier. Meanwhile, each iPhone 17 in the full lineup is a capable and satisfying device for its price. Upgrading to the iPhone 17e from the iPhone 11, 12 or SE will certainly feel significant, although getting almost any current-gen phone will feel modern compared to those.In fact, if you're platform agnostic and wouldn't mind an Android device, there are options out there with significantly superior screens and cameras. The Pixel 10a, for instance, offers a larger display with a 120Hz refresh rate and a dual-camera system all for $100 less. With Apple seeming to be setting its sights on the midrange market, it should seriously consider stepping up in those two areas in the next e-series iPhone.But of course, the name iPhone" carries its own premium, and the iPhone 17e is a solid entry-level handset for those who need a basic, no-frills path into the Apple ecosystem.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/iphone-17e-review-the-economical-choice-130000647.html?src=rss

Tech has a bad (and deserved) reputation as a sleep killer. Blue light, incessant scrolling and information onslaught conspire to keep us on edge and exiled from dreamland. But a few gadgets and apps out there may actually help us sleep. We've tried many such products over the years and have gathered the ones that actually did some good in this list. But first, take the arguably most important step towards good sleep: Use the sleep schedule on your phone (Android, iPhone). Once you've done that, check out the best sleep gadgets below and prepare to shuffle off to the land of nod. Best sleep apps and gadgets This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-10-best-sleep-apps-and-gadgets-for-a-better-nights-sleep-in-2026-114742582.html?src=rss

As houses and apartments get more energy efficient, they also get more airtight, limiting air exchange with the outside world. That's partly why indoor air is often far more polluted than outdoor air. Synthetic building materials, cleaning products, pet dander, cooking emissions and smoke all conspire to muck up what we breathe in. In our tests, the best way to get the green light from our air quality monitors was opening the windows. But bad weather, wildfires and high pollen-count days mean you can't always do that. Air purifiers are your next best option. Their combination of specialized filters, fans and sensors suck in particulate matter, VOCs, dust and odors. We tested more than a dozen models to come up with the best air purifier for your home. Best air purifiers for 2026 What an air purifier can and can't do There are three key categories of air pollution that adversely affect the quality of the air you breathe: volatile organic compounds (VOC), particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10) and carbon dioxide. VOCs are emitted gasses that can come from cleaners, off-gassing plastics, paint, solvents, fragrances, cooking food and, ironically, air fresheners. VOCs are most closely related to odors you can smell. High levels can irritate your breathing passages, cause headaches and may become cancer-causing over time. Air purifiers with activated charcoal components can help clean VOCs from the air. Particulate matter is usually discussed as PM2.5 and PM10, with the numbers indicating particle size in microns. This is dust, dirt, mold, smoke and, again, emissions from cooking food. Higher levels of PM can lead to respiratory irritation, allergy symptoms, respiratory infections and potentially lung cancer. Air purifiers that include a HEPA or particle filter can help remove airborne particles from your space. Carbon dioxide is what humans and pets breathe out. Elevated levels can cause dizziness and lethargy. But no air purifier can reduce CO2 levels because the molecules are so small. Plants can help to some extent, but really the only solution is opening a window or otherwise ventilating the space. There are no federal standards for air purifiers, but the state of California does require all air cleaners sold in the state to be certified by the California Air Resources Board (CARB). All of our top picks here have met that certification. What to look for in an air purifier HEPA filters and other filter types An air purifier isn't an overly complicated device. Smart modes and app connectivity aside, they're not much more than a filter and a fan, which you can certainly DIY. The fan pulls air through the filter to capture particulate matter and other unhealthy elements so you don't breathe them in. The type of fan can make some difference - it should be powerful enough to pull in air quickly, but also quiet enough on its low speed so it can unobtrusively clean all day long. Filters, on the other hand, are more varied. Most have two or more layers, typically a pre-filter, an activated carbon filter and sometimes a particle or even a true HEPA filter. The pre-filter is made from a fine mesh that captures big stuff like pet hair and larger chunks of dust. Sometimes this part is separate from the more technical filters - which means you can remove and clean it without needing to swap out the whole thing. For all-in-one filters, you can vacuum the outside of it to remove larger particles. An activated carbon or activated charcoal layer is extremely porous, tightly packed coal that presents a vast amount of microscopic surface area to the passing air. Gaseous chemicals, VOCs and other molecules become lodged in the crannys and stick. This is the layer that gets rid of odors. Nearly all types of air purifiers include a particle filter. Some of those can be called "true HEPA" (high-efficiency particulate air) filters - meaning they conform to the standards set out by the DOE. Particle filters are made up of pleated masses of ultrafine fibers that force air to take a convoluted path in order to pass through. This traps and absorbs tiny molecules of smoke and dust, allergens like dander and pollen, and some viruses and bacteria. Since all of these air filters physically trap particulates, they'll eventually fill up and become less effective. Most manufacturers recommend replacing the filter every six months, while others claim a year-long life span. Most smart air purifiers will let you know in the app when it's time to replace. When you're considering a unit's cost, be sure to factor in the expense of replacement filters, which you may end up buying twice a year. Room size Air purifiers list their air filtration capabilities in terms of room size and frequency of air exchanges, sometimes listed as clean air delivery rate (CADR) or you may see a number for cubic feet per minute (CFM). A smaller unit might say it can exchange the air in a 500-square-foot room twice per hour. So that model should be able to pass all of the air in a 250-square-foot room through the filter every 15 minutes, but a 1,000-square-foot room would probably be outside its effective range. Of course, there's no standard for manufacturers to adhere to when it comes to these calculations, but typically, larger air purifiers can handle large rooms. Controls In our testing, we focused on Wi-Fi-connected smart" air purifiers with companion apps that can monitor air quality and adjust the fan settings as needed. Within the apps, you can control auto-clean settings, set timers and schedules and check the health of the filter as well. Most will remind you when it's time to get a replacement, and let you order one directly from the manufacturer through the app. You can also see the current and historical readings from the internal air quality (AQ) sensor. Most determine air quality through an optical particle meter, though some brands like Dyson and Molekule also include chemical sensors for VOC measurements. When levels of particulates become elevated, the fans switch up to high speed to move more air through until the quality improves. Most smart purifiers also work with voice assistants, so if asking Alexa to turn on your air purifier makes your life easier in some way, you can do so. If you don't want to talk to an AI or grab your phone to control your purifier, getting a unit with simple on-board controls is a good idea. These can be as basic as buttons with indicator lights or as elaborate as a touchscreen panel. At minimum, it's good to have a way to control the fan speed and turn on or off auto mode on the device itself. Design As we mentioned, sticking the device as close to the middle of the room is helpful for getting the best performance. That means you'll be looking at it a lot, so design considerations matter. Most purifiers are cylindrical towers with fan vents up top. Units meant for larger rooms are not small, weighing between 12 and 20 pounds and reaching two feet tall (or in the case of the Dyson Purifier Cool, three and a half feet). Some, like Coway's Airmega IconS, take on more furniture-like designs to blend in. Others, like Dyson's, are conspicuously designed to stand out. How to set up an air purifier Even the best air purifier can't do much without airflow. So ideally, you won't shove your air purifier off in a corner right next to a wall. Most manufacturers recommend at least a foot of clearance between the machine and anything that could block circulation - walls, couches, cabinets and the like. Most cylindrical models have intake vents all around the outside, but box models may have them on just one side, so make sure you point the vents outwards towards the center of the room. Smaller air purifiers work better if they're up off the ground by a couple feet, such as on top of a stool or end table. And of course, make sure the cord isn't stretching across trafficked areas to avoid tripping. Before you plug your air purifier in, make sure to check that the filter isn't wrapped in plastic inside the machine. I probably don't need to tell you how I know this is a very important first step. The purifiers we recommend are smart home models, so the next step will usually involve downloading the manufacturer's app to your phone and connecting the air purifier to the app as well as your home's Wi-Fi. Additional steps for clearing the air Air purifiers, as the name suggests, clean the air. Once dust, dander and smoke settle onto surfaces, there isn't much these machines can do to eradicate them. So vacuuming and good old-fashioned dusting are important steps to keep allergens and particulate matter at bay. If you have an HVAC system, changing or even upgrading your system's air filters can help keep bad air in check. The American Lung Association recommends filters with at least a MERV-13 rating. The association also recommends not burning candles in your home, foregoing air fresheners and opting for homemade cleaning supplies over chemical cleaners. When an air purifier just isn't enough The most striking bit of knowledge I picked up from testing air purifiers is how effective opening windows can be on indoor air quality. What took an air purifier a half hour to clear out took mere minutes when I opened my front door and a few windows. Every variable measured by the air quality sensors, including VOCs, PM, and particularly CO2 levels (which air purifiers can't alleviate), improved dramatically after exposure to fresh air - significantly faster and better than any machine we tested. Letting in fresh air for just fifteen minutes each day can help, according to the Lung Association. On very cold days, do it midday. When it's hot, open windows in the early morning when it's coolest. When I did it in the middle of winter, my HVAC system had to work a little overtime afterwards, but venting a room was the most surefire way of getting air quality quickly back in the green. Of course, if the air outside is unhealthy from wildfire smoke or run-of-the-mill pollution, or if you're dealing with seasonal allergies, throwing open the windows won't work and an air purifier might be the best way to consistently clean things up. How we test air purifiers My living room is not a science lab; there's far too much pet hair for that to be the case. Still, I went beyond just turning stuff on and sniffing the air by acquiring two consumer-grade indoor air quality monitors that performed well in laboratory assessments, the Element from Awair and the uHoo Smart Air Monitor. I conducted burn tests in this medium-sized room by measuring the ambient air quality, then burned a brick of pinon incense for twenty minutes and measured the air again. Then I ran one purifier at its highest speed for thirty minutes and recorded levels, then ran the unit on the lowest setting for a half hour and remeasured. I made note of the sound levels using a simple iPhone app to compare one machine's noise level to the next. Over the course of a month, I used each unit in different scenarios (such as in the basements where the cat litter box is) and tried out each device's smart features, controls and auto modes. I also just lived with them and evaluated how they fit into everyday life. As new purifiers come on the market we continue to acquire units that seem worthy of inclusion. Most recently, we tested purifiers from Blueair, IQAir, Windmill and others, adding our findings to this guide. Other air purifiers we tested AirThings Renew The AirThings Renew is supposed to look like a piece of high-end audio equipment, complete with audio-grade fabric on the side. I can see the resemblance, but it also looks like a PC tower sitting in the middle of the room. You can mount it on a wall, however, which could help with its aesthetic appeal. The companion app is simple and clean, and it's also where you'll check in on the optional AirThings View Plus AQ monitor, which is one of the most attractive AQ monitors I've tried. The auto mode is effective and it's relatively quiet. Its purification performance wasn't as good as other purifiers on this list, however, particularly on low. Blueair Mini Restful I appreciate a good multi-tasker. The Blueair Mini Restful combines a small-room air purifier with a sunrise alarm clock and night light. It reminds me of a grown up version of Levoit's Sprout purifier, which is geared towards kids with its white noise and night light functions. The Mini Restful is definitely small enough to pop on a night stand so it would be pretty handy if it could replace your alarm clock up there. Unfortunately, those secondary functions feel a little incomplete. There's no timer function for the night light, only manual control. The clock readout is on the top, making it impossible to view from bed if it's on your nightstand. The sunrise alarm clock will start lighting up at either 15 minutes or a half hour before the sound kicks in, but if the light happens to be enough to wake you, there's no way to stop the alarm from sounding without getting out your phone. It performed well enough in its primary function, and got a smoky bedroom back to breathable in around a half an hour of running on high. (There's no built-in sensor, so you have to manually adjust the fan through the app or onboard controls.) It's also quiet enough to run all night on low - I'm fairly sensitive to noise and was able to sleep. IQAir HealthPro Plus SE The IQAir HealthPro Plus SE is a formidable piece of equipment. The boxy tower looks like something you'd see in a hospital and weighs 35 pounds, making me appreciate the included wheels when I needed to move it around. It's designed and made in Sweden and each unit comes with an impressive certificate of performance. I'm certain the testing processes IQAir employs are more scientific than my tests - after all, the company is probably best known for its air quality monitors - but I found the filtration efficiency to be on par with and, in one test, worse than that of other models I tested. I was also disappointed that a $1,000-plus air purifier from an air monitor device company was only capable of measuring particulate matter - and not VOCs - to trigger the auto-clean function. That said, setup was simple and the app can integrate data from public air quality sources as well as other AQ monitors you may have set up. Coway's Airmega Icon S Coway's Airmega Icon S was our previous pick for best design. It looks more like a tiny mid-century-modern credenza than an air purifier and the little shelf up top doubles as a wireless phone charger. The PM2.5 sensor reliably kicked in the auto mode as I used it and the three-speed fan is quiet, even on high, yet powerful. I had a little trouble getting the app to connect, but the onboard touch controls worked better anyway. It's expensive at $699, too, but it does have a washable pre-filter. Sensibo Pure At $229, and nearly always on sale for $130, I had the Sensibo Pure pegged as a contender for a budget pick. Unfortunately, replacement filters are $99 unless you subscribe to automatic shipments and many of the app features are behind a paywall as well. It's not certified by CARB and underperformed many of the other units in the burn test, though it did return the air back to a good" rating according to the air monitors after 30 minutes. The design is inoffensive, it's not overly loud and it does integrate with Sensibo's smart AC devices, so if you're already happy with one of those, this may be a decent option. Dyson Purifier Cool Like all Dyson products, this air purifier is dripping with design. It looks like no other unit on the market and it's up to you to decide whether you like that or not. I was indifferent to the looks, but appreciated the slick and informative app, which not only displays indoor air quality, it also shows what conditions are like outside, using a clever house graphic to differentiate the two sets of numbers. I also like that it detects VOCs as well as particulates and the auto mode seemed to read the room accurately. The air coming out of the fan did indeed feel cool, though at first had a strong plastic odor. Unfortunately, it was the lowest performing unit during two separate burn tests and had repeated connectivity issues. Molekule Air Pro The Molekule Air Pro comes from a brand that pays keen attention to aesthetics. It and the app have that Instagrammable, muted-modern look that countless clothing and bedsheet brands emulate these days. That style doesn't come cheap as the Air Pro costs over $1,000 and requires $140 filters. The company came under fire for and had to stop making many of its claims about its filtration system, which may have led to it filing for bankruptcy in 2023. Molekule is still able to tout its patented photoelectrochemical oxidation, which the company says destroys pollutants at a molecular level." In my tests, it performed almost as well as the others in improving VOC and PM2.5 levels. But it's also very loud: When auto mode kicked the fan into high gear, it would make me tense. Also, I found the unit often indicated bad" or very bad" levels when my two monitors indicated the air quality was actually pretty good. Air purifier FAQs What settings should you run an air purifier on? There aren't many settings to adjust on an air purifier. Most have low, medium and high fan speeds and possibly an auto-mode that detects impurities in the air and increases the fan speed on your behalf. Air circulates through a purifier faster at higher fan-speed settings so it cleans the air more efficiently. Higher speeds also make the air purifier louder. That means you typically want to find the balance between cleaning power and noise levels. Other settings like timers and dimming the LED lights make the unit more comfortable to live with, particularly if you use yours in your bedroom. For everyday cleaning of the air, you're probably best off leaving the air purifier running on low, only kicking it up to high at certain times when the air is murkier, like after you cook. What is a HEPA filter? A HEPA filter is a type of particle filter. Every air purifier has a particle filter, but not all are considered true HEPA" filters. The specifications are determined by the US Department of Energy and require a minimum efficiency of 99.97 percent when filtering airborne particles of 0.3 microns. HEPA filters can remove dust, pollen, mold and bacteria. Check out more from our spring cleaning guide.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/smart-home/best-air-purifier-120040002.html?src=rss

The hype for Gang of Dragon, the debut game from Nagoshi Studio, may already be getting derailed. According to a Bloomberg report, Chinese tech giant NetEase is going to stop financing Nagoshi Studio starting in May. Bloomberg confirmed the news with the studio's employees and a NetEase spokesperson.The report explained that NetEase decided to cut funding to Nagoshi Studio, which was founded in 2021 by Yakuza franchise creator Toshihiro Nagoshi, after finding out the studio needed $44.4 million to complete the project. Bloomberg reported that Nagoshi Studio is trying to find new sponsors but hasn't had any success so far. The report also added that the studio can continue the project on its own, but would be responsible for paying NetEase for any associated costs to hold onto the brand or assets.While Nagoshi Studio may have been working on Gang of Dragon since the studio's creation, the general public got a better look at the title through a trailer announcement during The Game Awards 2025. The action-adventure game set in Tokyo would star Ma Dong-Seok, a South Korean actor who starred in Train to Busan and Marvel's Eternals. As of now, Nagoshi Studio might be at risk of joining other casualties stemming from NetEase's executive decisions, like when the tech giant decided to shut down Ouka Studio in 2024.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/netease-is-reportedly-pulling-funding-for-yakuza-creators-studio-182945690.html?src=rss

There could be even more 3D-printed Apple products coming in the future. According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple is exploring ways to 3D print aluminum to make the manufacturing processes for iPhones and Apple Watches more efficient.Gurman reported that this new production process could specifically change how Apple makes its watch casings as well as iPhone enclosures. It's not the first time Apple has tapped into 3D printing, since both the Apple Watch Ultra 3 and Series 11 were partially built with 3D-printed titanium that's 100 percent recycled. More recently, Apple used its 3D printing process to create the titanium USB-C port for the iPhone Air, which was touted as thinner, stronger and more environmentally friendly.While Apple is reportedly only looking into 3D-printed aluminum right now, it could possibly result in an overall cheaper manufacturing process and lower starting prices for iPhones. Looking at Apple's just-announced MacBook Neo, the company introduced a new manufacturing process that saves on the amount of aluminum used, helping to achieve the $599 starting price for its latest entry-level laptop. Like the colorful MacBook Neo, Gurman also reported that Apple is planning to use a "refreshed color palette" for its iMac reveal later this year.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/apple-is-reportedly-looking-into-3d-printing-aluminum-iphones-and-apple-watches-163721491.html?src=rss

OpenAI's robotics hardware lead is out. Caitlin Kalinowski, who oversaw hardware within the robotics division of OpenAI, posted on X that she was resigning from her role, while criticizing the company's haste in partnering with the Department of Defense without investigating proper guardrails. OpenAI told Engadget that there are no plans to replace Kalinowski.Kalinowski, who previously worked at Meta before leaving to join OpenAI in late 2024, wrote on X that "surveillance of Americans without judicial oversight and lethal autonomy without human authorization are lines that deserved more deliberation than they got." Responding to another post, the former OpenAI exec explained that "the announcement was rushed without the guardrails defined," adding that it was a "governance concern first and foremost."OpenAI confirmed Kalinowski's resignation and said in a statement to Engadget that the company understands people have "strong views" about these issues and will continue to engage in discussions with relevant parties. The company also explained in the statement that it doesn't support the issues that Kalinowski brought up."We believe our agreement with the Pentagon creates a workable path for responsible national security uses of AI while making clear our red lines: no domestic surveillance and no autonomous weapons," the OpenAI statement read.Kalinowski's resignation may be the most high-profile fallout from OpenAI's decision to sign a deal with the Department of Defense. The decision came just after Anthropic refused to comply with lifting certain AI guardrails around mass surveillance and developing fully autonomous weapons. However, even OpenAI's CEO, Sam Altman, said that he would amend the deal with the Department of Defense to prohibit spying on Americans.Correction, March 8 2026, 10:30AM ET: This story has been updated to correct Kalinowski's role at OpenAI to "robotics hardware lead" instead of "head of robotics."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/openais-robotics-hardware-lead-resigns-following-deal-with-the-department-of-defense-195918599.html?src=rss

Here comes another disappointment for ChatGPT users. As first reported by Sources' Alex Heath, OpenAI is yet again delaying its "adult mode" for ChatGPT. A company spokesperson told Heath that "we're pushing out the launch of adult mode so we can focus on work that is a higher priority for more users right now."More specifically, OpenAI's spokesperson said that things like "gains in intelligence, personality improvements, personalization, and making the experience more proactive" were being prioritized instead. However, the company still wants to release an adult mode, but it would "take more time," according to the company spokesperson.The reveal of ChatGPT's adult mode dates back to October, when OpenAI's CEO, Sam Altman, posted on X that the company would roll out more age-gating as part of its "treat adults like adults" principle, adding that this would include "erotica for verified adults." Altman originally said this adult mode would be available in December, but an OpenAI exec later said during a December briefing that it would instead debut in the first quarter of 2026.With Q1 almost coming to a close, we no longer have a timeframe for when ChatGPT's adult mode will release. However, OpenAI began rolling out its age prediction tool in January, which may go hand-in-hand with the upcoming adult mode.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/openai-is-reportedly-pushing-back-the-launch-of-its-adult-mode-even-further-213013801.html?src=rss

When NASA crashed a spacecraft into the asteroid moonlet Dimorphos in 2022, it altered both Dimorphos' orbit around its parent asteroid, Didymos, and the two objects' orbit around the sun, according to new research. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) said in a press release that this "marks the first time a human-made object has measurably altered the path of a celestial body around the Sun." It's a promising result as scientists work to find a feasible method of defending Earth from hazardous space objects.The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission was designed to demonstrate one possible way of deflecting such an object, targeting the non-threatening moonlet Dimorphos, which is about 560 feet wide. NASA quickly declared it a success after its initial analysis showed the planned collision shortened Dimorphos' orbit around Didymos, the larger of the two objects in the binary asteroid system. In a follow-up study published in 2024, a team at NASA's JPL reported that Dimorphos' orbital period had been trimmed by about 33 minutes, as its path was nudged roughly 120 feet closer to Didymos than before. The latest study now indicates that the whole binary system was affected, not just Dimorphos.Didymos and Dimorphos have a 770-day orbital period around the sun, which lead author Rahil Makadia said has been changed by "about 11.7 microns per second, or 1.7 inches per hour." That might not sound like much, but according to Makadia, Over time, such a small change in an asteroid's motion can make the difference between a hazardous object hitting or missing our planet."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/space/nasas-dart-spacecraft-changed-a-binary-asteroids-orbit-around-the-sun-in-a-first-for-a-human-made-object-210529924.html?src=rss

Following in the footsteps of Australia, Indonesia will be the latest country to limit social media usage for children under 16. Meutya Hafid, Indonesia's communication and digital affairs minister, announced that a new government regulation will require "high-risk" platforms to delete any accounts from Indonesia that are under 16, starting on March 28.Hafid said in the announcement that the implementation would be done in stages, starting with major platforms like YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, Roblox and Bigo Live, a live-streaming platform based in Singapore. The minister added that all platforms will have to fulfill compliance obligations from the Indonesian government, but didn't specify what they were. In response to the ban, a Meta spokesperson told The New York Times that the company hasn't received an official regulation from the country yet and was awaiting details.While Australia was the first country to implement such a sweeping ban on social media, many other countries are currently in the process of doing the same. Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced last month that the country is also ready to ban social media for users under 16, while Malaysia's cabinet approved a similar ban that will reportedly go into effect sometime this year.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/indonesia-announces-a-social-media-ban-for-anyone-under-16-174634956.html?src=rss

Roblox has launched a feature powered by AI that can rephrase inappropriate language in real time. The online game has been using AI filters to block out any language that goes against its policy for a while now, but it has been replacing censored chats with a series of hash signs (####). Roblox admits that encountering too many hashmarks can be disruptive and make conversations hard to follow. This new feature will instead replace words and phrases with what the AI deems as more appropriate substitutes.Rajiv Bhatia, Roblox's Chief Safety Office, said the game is starting with profanity. For instance, if a user sends Hurry TF up" in chat, the system will replace it with Hurry up!" Everyone in the chat will see a note when a message has been rephrased, and the sender will see what language was edited out. A user who keeps cursing in chat will still be penalized for breaking Roblox policy even if the AI rephrases their messages. As these systems scale, they create a flywheel for civility, where real-time feedback helps users learn and adopt our Community Standards," Bhatia said in a blog post.Rephrasing has been rolled out to chats between age-checked users in similar age groups and in all the languages the game's translation tool supports. Roblox introduced a mandatory age verification system back in January after reports came out that it has a pedophile problem," with adult players allegedly using the game to groom children. Kids under 13 can no longer use in-game chat outside of certain experiences, while everyone else can chat with players around their age. Age check, however, hasn't stopped authorities from suing Roblox: LA County, in a lawsuit filed in February, said Roblox knows its platform makes children easy prey for pedophiles." Louisiana's AG has also just filed a lawsuit, saying Roblox created a public park and filled it with sex predators that are preying on... children."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/roblox-introduces-real-time-ai-powered-chat-rephraser-for-inappropriate-language-160000063.html?src=rss

It's a busy time for the reviews team and Engadget, and with Apple announcing new devices this week, we aren't letting up any time soon. New products from Samsung, Dell, Google and ASUS headline the roundup this time, and we've got a few unique items to discuss as well. Read on to catch up on anything you might've missed, including the latest installment of Pokemon.Samsung Galaxy S26 UltraThis year's Samsung flagship phone may not impress you with a load of new features, but there's one in particular that senior reporter Sam Rutherford was wowed by. This goes double for the S26 Ultra, whose biggest upgrade - the Privacy Display - is something meant to stop other people from snooping at what you're doing.," he said. When it's on, you probably won't even be able to tell, which is kind of the point."Samsung Galaxy Buds 4 and 4 ProSamsung went all-in with with AirPods mimicry last year, and that continues on the Galaxy Buds 4 and 4 Pro. However, despite big improvements to sound quality and the continued addition of new features, Samsung could certainly do more. The company is really only lagging behind Apple in two areas: hearing health and heart-rate tracking," I wrote. Samsung currently offers the option to amplify voices on its earbuds, but it hasn't built a hearing test or the hearing protection tools Apple has. The biggest update on the AirPods Pro 3 was the addition of heart-rate tracking last year, which would be a great foundation for a fitness-focused version of the Galaxy Buds."Dell XPS 14 (2026)We review a lot of devices that are almost excellent, except for one big flaw. That's the case with the new XPS 14, where senior reporter Devindra Hardawar had a hard time with very basic functionality. If I were to judge the XPS 14 based purely on its specs and design alone, it would be my favorite Windows laptop available today," he wrote. Dell is so close to making a PC that's a true MacBook Pro competitor, it's a shame a simple keyboard issue holds the XPS 14 back from true greatness."Google Pixel 10aGoogle's A-series devices have consistently been a great option if you're looking to spend less on phone but still want a capable handset. Despite minimal upgrades on the Pixel 10a, that sentiment still holds true. On the one hand, part of me wants to dock points because Google has added so few updates," senior reporter Igor Bonifacic said. On the other, the 10a is still a great phone for $500, and at a time when consumer electronics are becoming more expensive by the day, the fact it hasn't gone up in price is a small miracle."ASUS ProArt GoPro Edition PX13Creators often need a combination of power and display quality in a laptop that would be overkill for most of us. For those who do need it, contributing reporter Steven Dent found the ASUS ProArt GoPro Edition PX13 nearly checked all the boxes. ASUS is one of the few PC manufacturers trying to compete with Apple in the creator market, and with the ProArt GoPro Edition laptop, it has largely succeeded," he said. This model offers excellent performance and battery life, a huge amount of memory, a very nice OLED HDR display, a nice range of ports and an excellent keyboard and trackpad."Ambient Dreamie, Seattle Ultrasonics and moreWe also recently reviewed a couple of off-beat gadgets, both of which earned high marks from our team. The Ambient Dreamie is a bedside companion" that functions as an alarm clock with both bedtime and morning routines. Weekend editor Cheyenne MacDonald was so impressed by how it improved her sleep that she bought one for herself. And the Seattle Ultrasonics C-200 was dubbed the future of kitchen knives" by Sam.Sam also played a few hours of Pokemon Pokopia and he was charmed by the new take on gameplay for the series. Lastly, Devindra put the Falcon Northwest FragBox through its paces, discovering a powerful gaming rig in machine that looks a bit like a box of fried chickenThis article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/engadget-review-recap-galaxy-s26-ultra-galaxy-buds-4-dell-xps-14-and-more-140435975.html?src=rss

There is so much to love about Dell's new XPS 14, it's hard for me to discuss it without sounding like a total fanboy. Its new design makes it incredibly thin and light. And Intel's Panther Lake chips give it a ton of power, even when it comes to games. After reviving the XPS brand from last year's ignominious rebranding, it's as if Dell was laser-focused on fixing all the issues we've had with the XPS 14 so far.Unfortunately, a shallow, unresponsive and hilariously error-prone keyboard kept me from truly loving the XPS 14. Simply put, it has trouble recognizing keys if you press them too quickly in succession. And for fast and demanding typists like myself, that leads to countless errors that disrupt your flow. In the last sentence alone, I counted ten times where I had to go back and make sure commas appeared before a space, or tweak simple spelling errors. What good is a fast, light and beautiful machine if I can't type a sentence in peace?It's not unusual for laptop keyboards to require a bit of user training. But my issues with the XPS 14 aren't from a lack of practice - it simply doesn't recognize key presses as quickly as every other laptop I've tested. As you can see in the video below, quick key presses are almost always recognized in reverse, or sometimes aren't recognized at all. Those issues mostly go away if you type more slowly and deliberately, but that seems like a ridiculous compromise for a premium machine in 2026.Dell engineers are currently testing one of the two review samples I received, both of which exhibited the exact same keyboard issue. Other reviewers have also noted that they need to type more slowly for the keyboard to work best. Gizmodo's Kyle Barr seems to be just as frustrated with the keyboard as I am, but he thinks it's due to Dell's seamless key design, which doesn't have any spaces between keys. My brother, who is an IT professional, also noticed the input issues when he typed on the XPS 14.I'm not crazy, I swear!Dell XPS 14 (2026) keyboardDevindra Hardawar for EngadgetAccording to Dell, its engineers say that a small batch of early XPS units" have the quick typing issue I ran into. They also say the issue is currently resolved and doesn't affect XPS units shipping now. The company plans to release a firmware fix later this month, and I'll be sure to update this review once I get my hands on it. But given that these laptops have been out in the wild for weeks, I decided to review the XPS 14 as is. TL;DR, it's the prettiest machine I've ever used that I hate to type on.Seriously, this thing is gorgeous. Dell's designers outdid themselves with the machine's smooth metal case, which is more MacBook-like than its boxy predecessors. It's astonishing this system weighs just three pounds, putting it right between the 3.4-pound 14-inch MacBook Pro and the 2.7-pound 13.6-inch MacBook Air. It's also just a third of a pound heavier than the MacBook Neo, Apple's attempt at an underpowered entry-level laptop.I'm also glad to see that Dell has heard my complaints about how over-designed the last XPS line was. For example, the company has stuck with its "invisible" trackpad, which sits flush with the laptop's wrist rest. But now there are two faint lines that designate where, exactly, the trackpad begins and ends. It's a solution reminiscent of Apple's MacBooks, which all feature large glass trackpads separated by a light border from their metal cases. Thanks to these two small lines, which don't detract from XPS 14's minimalist aesthetic, I feel more confident swiping around.Dell also reversed course on the wonky capacitive function row from the previous models - which again, looked cool, but had some serious usability issues. It was tough to touch type with them, since they didn't feel as tactile as normal keys. And most crucially, the capacitive function row completely disappeared in direct sunlight. God forbid you were outside and wanted to change the volume level! This XPS 14 brings back a normal keyed function row, which is easier to touch type on and actually works in direct sunlight. (I sometimes wonder if Dell's designers ever went outside with the last XPS 14.)Dell XPS 14 (2026)Devindra Hardawar for EngadgetOur review model's 2.8K 14-inch OLED touchscreen looked spectacular, with bold colors and wonderfully deep black levels. But that's pretty much what I've come to expect from OLED by this point. I can't get enough of the extra eye candy OLED adds to photos and videos, and it makes a huge difference with games as well. But take note that OLED is only available for the priciest XPS 14, all other models get a standard non-touch 2K LCD.When it comes to connectivity, three USB-C ports and a headphone jack are all you get with the new XPS 14. The microSD card slot from the previous model is gone, and there's also no HDMI or USB Type A connections like you'd find on similar systems from ASUS and Acer. Apple's 14-inch MacBook Pro, notably, features three USB-C ports, a full-sized HDMI slot, a large SD card reader and a headphone jack.Dell XPS 14 (2026)Devindra Hardawar for EngadgetBeyond Dell's redesign, the main star of the XPS 14 is Intel's new Panther Lake Core Ultra X7 358H chip, which offers some serious graphics upgrades over the last generation. Our review unit, which featured 32GB of RAM and Intel's built-in Arc B390 GPU, was able to reach 130fps in Arc Raiders while playing in 1080p with medium graphics settings, as well as XeSS upscaling and frame generation. I was able to play through a few rounds with no lag - my only distraction was the lingering realization I was playing so smoothly on an ultraportable's integrated graphics.I certainly wouldn't recommend the XPS 14 for heavy gamers. But if you're forced to choose a new non-gaming system for work or school, it's certainly nice that it can play some modern titles well. I also saw 63fps while playing Cyberpunk 2077 in 1080p with medium graphics settings and XeSS tech active. Not bad for one of the most demanding PC games in recent memory!ComputerPCMark 10Geekbench 6Geekbench 6 GPUCinebench 2024Dell XPS 14 (Intel Core Ultra X7 358H)9,6512,890/16,74556,378125/685MSI Prestige 14 Flip AI+ (Intel Core Ultra X7 358H)10,1692,864/16,63356,425117/719Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch (M5, 2025)N/A4,310/18,00348,840197/1,034Dell 16 Premium (Core Ultra 7 255H, NVIDIA RTX 5070)7,7802,711/15,919109,443127/1,104Benchmarks also point to plenty of power under the hood: The XPS 14 scored similarly to the MSI Prestige 14 AI+, which also has the Ultra X7 358H chip, in PCMark 10 and Geekbench 6. I was also surprised to see that its single-core Geekbench 6 score was higher than ASUS's ProArt PX13 GoPro Edition, a beastly machine with 128GB of RAM and a powerful AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 chip. The XPS 14 also scored 3,000 points higher than the Acer Predator Triton 14 AI gaming laptop (powered by a last-gen Core Ultra 9 288V chip) in Geekbench's multi-threaded CPU test.Clearly, this was a growth year for Intel's hardware. Just keep in mind that all of our figures come from Dell's highest-end XPS 14 configuration, which currently starts at $2,250 with 64GB of RAM on the company's site. The lowest-end configuration, which starts at $1,450, comes with an Intel Core Ultra 7 355 chip, 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage. When I briefly tested that system (it had to be sent back to Dell for that keyboard issue), it scored 2,000 points lower than the Ultra X7 model in PCMark 10. I didn't get to game on the entry-level XPS 14, but I wouldn't expect much, since Intel's beefy Arc graphics are reserved for its pricier X7 and X9 CPUs.Dell XPS 14 (2026) case logoDevindra Hardawar for EngadgetI was also surprised to see that the XPS 14 lasted just 10 hours and 21 minutes in PCMark 10's Modern office battery test. The MSI Prestige 14 went for a whopping 22 hours and 15 minutes - that's far more in line with Intel's efficiency claims for Panther Lake systems. I tested both the XPS 14 and MSI Prestige 14 in Window's balanced" battery profile, so you may be able to eke out more life with more battery saving features turned on.If I were to judge the XPS 14 based purely on its specs and design alone, it would be my favorite Windows laptop available today. But I swear, I can't live with its keyboard issues. I had to seriously slow down my typing just to get this review written, and even then I still had to back up and make more corrections than usual. Dell is so close to making a PC that's a true MacBook Pro competitor, it's a shame a simple keyboard issue holds the XPS 14 back from true greatness.Update 3/6/26 2:20PM ET: Added further information about the XPS 14's keyboard issue and a potential firmware fix.

Welcome to our latest roundup of what's going on in the indie game space. We've got a lot of new and upcoming games to highlight this week, and those are on top of all of our coverage of the Nintendo Indie World stream the other day. Nintendo packed a lot of news into that 18-minute stream, including the sudden arrivals of three great games - Blue Prince, Minishoot' Adventures and Ooo - on Switch and/or Switch 2.The company revealed release dates for a bunch of games we've had on our radar, such as InKonbini: One Store. Many Stories (April 30), Mixtape (May 7), Denshattack! (June 17) and Ratatan (July 16). Release windows for several games were confirmed as well, including Toem 2 and Grave Seasons, both of which will be out this summer.Meanwhile, if you have a Playdate (or have been meaning to get one), be sure to check out the third anniversary sale on the Playdate Catalog storefront this weekend. There are lots of good deals and we've got some suggestions for you.Elsewhere, speedrunners will be showing off their skills in AAA games, indies and everything in between during the Frost Fatales event from Games Done Quick. From March 8-14, you can watch women and femme speedrunners tear through the likes of Undertale, Strange Antiquities, An Airport for Aliens Currently Run by Dogs, Tunic, Hollow Knight and Windswept. It's a charity event that will be raising funds for the National Women's Law Center.On that note, there's a Women's Day sale on Steam that's running until March 15. There are discounts on tons of games from women and gender marginalized-led teams as well as demos for upcoming titles. Among the games on sale are Dredge (60 percent off), Overcooked 2 (75 percent off), The Wandering Village (50 percent off), Dogpile (35 percent off) and Consume Me (35 percent off).New releasesSlay the Spire has helped to popularize the roguelite deckbuilder genre since its early access debut in 2017. Mega Crit is back for another bite at the cherry with Slay the Spire 2, which hit Steam in early access this week for $25. The studio says the price will increase after early access.The studio expects the sequel to remain in early access for between one and two years, though it won't release the full version until the game "feels great." During the early access period, Mega Crit is going to try some experimental features and "exotic designs," while pinpointing niche issues and getting feedback from players to "make sure the game is headed in the right direction."Perhaps the biggest change in the sequel is the addition of a co-op mode for up to four players. There are new cards (including multiplayer-specific ones), characters and enemies in the mix as well, of course.Demons have descended on Toronto and his Sex Bom-omb bandmates have been kidnapped, so it's up to Scott Pilgrim and his allies to save the day. Scott Pilgrim EX is the franchise's latest side-scrolling fighter, following on from Scott Pilgrim vs the World: The Game.This entry is from Tribute Games, which has a pretty great recent track record when it comes to co-op beat-'em-ups after Marvel Cosmic Invasion and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge. This time around, the studio teamed up with Scott Pilgrim creator Bryan Lee O'Malley to develop a new storyline.I haven't had time to jump into Scott Pilgrim EX yet, unfortunately, but I'm really looking forward to doing that soon. When I do, I'll be instalocking Roxie Richter as my character. Gonna listen to Black Sheep" a bunch in the meantime.Scott Pilgrim EX is out now on Steam, Nintendo Switch, Switch 2, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S PS4 and PS5 for $29.Planet of Lana II: Children of the Leaf is at the top of my to-play list this weekend. I adored the first entry from Wishfully and Thunderful Publishing a few years ago, and I've heard that the sequel is even better.This is a narrative-driven adventure platformer in the vein of Limbo and Inside. As in the first game, you'll be evading dangerous robots after the antagonist weaponizes technology to exploit the resources of Lana's home planet. I'm sure that doesn't have any parallels with our reality.Planet of Lana II looks just as gorgeous as the first game. Lana is said to be more agile this time and is capable of moves like wall jumps. Her companion, Mui, remains available to help her solve puzzles and survive this dangerous world.Planet of Lana II is out now on Steam, Switch, Switch 2, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S for $20. The Steam, Switch and Switch 2 versions have a 10 percent launch discount. You can get that same discount on PlayStation if you're a PS Plus member. The game is also available on Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass.The Legend of Khiimori hit Steam and Epic Games Store in early access this week for $30. It's an open-world adventure game in which you take on the role of a courier rider in 13th-century Mongolia. You can breed and train horses with special abilities to help you explore this landscape and carry out deliveries.You'll need to set up camp and craft critical items on your journeys, and you'll need to be on the defensive against dangerous wildlife. There are also evil spirits to fend off in order to liberate corrupted zones.There's a lot going on here and, evidently, a lot more to come. Developer Aesir Interactive plans to add a string of features during the early access phase (which is expected to last for around a year), including racing, falconry, a "peaceful mode" and character and horse customization.Lost and Found Co. is a lovely-looking hidden object game from Bit Egg and co-publisher Gamirror Games. It's on Steam for PC and Mac for $18, though there's a 10 percent discount until March 19.I love this trailer for Lost and Found Co. It's full of charming animations and neat details, like a comic book-style series of panels that helps tell the story. You play as Ducky, a duck who has turned into a human intern at a startup that helps people get their lost items back. That sentence alone has me smiling.In the wake of Blippo+, another game that debuted on the Playdate has now landed on PC (Steam and Itch), Mac (via Steam and the Mac App Store) and Nintendo Switch. Ratcheteer DX typically costs $13, but there's a 25 percent launch discount on all storefronts except the App Store.The original version of Ratcheteer made its bow in Playdate season one, meaning that every owner of the little yellow console has access to it. You play as a young mechanic who - like the rest of humanity - lives underground to stay safe from an eternal winter. However, after the power plant and water treatment plant go out of commission, it's up to you to fix them. That kickstarts a top-down pixel-art adventure in the vein of the early Legend of Zelda games that should take you about four to five hours to finish.This updated game from Shaun Inman, composer Matt Grimm and illustrator Charlie Davis is available in color - with filters that include the 1-bit Playdate look - and it has a CD-quality version of the soundtrack. It's the first game that publisher (and Playdate maker) Panic has made in house that's landed on Steam and consoles. I've only played a little of Ratcheteer DX so far but it seems just as delightful as the original version, so I'm eager to keep going with it.On another day, I might have wrapped up this section with a feel-good game like Lost and Found Co. Not this time. Instead, here's a bird-spotting psychological horror walking sim.The one-minute launch trailer for Birds Watching, from Studio Ortica, is about one-60th as long as the game's runtime. It's full of creepy details, like a giant bird with humanoid legs. The tone is unnerving, but it absolutely caught my attention.Birds Watching is out now on Steam for $5. You can get it for 10 percent off until March 13.UpcomingThis trailer for My Little Puppy (which premiered during the Indie World showcase) captured my whole damn heart. Korean developer Dreamotion created the game by "adding dreams and hopes to the story I shared with Bong-gu, a dog who I adopted and raised," the studio's Junyoung Lee said. After crossing the rainbow bridge, the game's version of Bong-gu eventually picks up the scent of his dad and sets out on an adventure to rescue his human. I'm crying in the club at my desk.My Little Puppy is coming to Switch on May 29. It's already available on Steam for $25.Lunacy Studios is a studio that boasts developers with experience on the likes of Star Wars: Battlefront, Mass Effect, Assassin's Creed Brotherhood and Life is Strange. Its first game is The House of Hikmah, which is coming to Steam on April 8.This is a story-driven 3D adventure game that takes place in a setting inspired by the Islamic Golden Age. You take on the role of Maya, a 14-year-old who is looking for answers after her father passes away. He left Maya with an elemental heirloom that she can use to solve puzzles and she can use wind channels to help her traverse the environments.I can't speak to how authentic its representation of the Islamic Golden Age is, but the setup and art direction of this game have me intrigued. It certainly doesn't hurt that Austin Wintory (Journey, Sword of the Sea, The Pathless) composed the music.I got completely hooked on Ball x Pit and I'm looking forward to trying out MLB The Show 26. So, I really think there should be more ball-based games. And, look at that, here's a first peek at Ballgame from new studio Human Computer.In this physics platformer, you play as a sentient ball. As is the case in golf, the idea is to get to the hole in as few shots as possible. Also like in golf, that's harder than it might seem at first. The levels pull in elements from a range of inspirations, including pachinko, pinball, skeeball and many other types of ball games. Among other things, you'll skim across water, bounce off of bumpers and float in bubbles.There are arcade minigames where you can earn a type of currency that you can use to unlock upgrades, custom looks and dozens of other balls. It all seems quite chaotic at first glance. I live for chaos. I'm in.Ballgame is coming to Steam later this year.To wrap things up for this week, here's a nifty teaser trailer for Echobreaker, a precision platformer with an isometric perspective. The aim is to reach the goal as quickly as possible. You'll use powerups to help you do that. You'll also need to battle enemies along the way.I had no trouble following what was happening at any given moment in this short clip. I think the perspective here makes things interesting. There have been a bunch of high-octane first-person platformers in recent years. I think that being able to see the action from above helps make it clearer to me what's going on here. The clean, futuristic art style helps too.Echobreaker, which is from Upstream Arcade and publisher Weekend Games, is slated to hit Steam later this year.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/slay-the-spire-2-scott-pilgrim-ex-and-other-new-indie-games-worth-checking-out-120000884.html?src=rss

As part of a Year in Review blog detailing changes Valve made to Steam in 2025, the company shared a minor update on its hardware plans that doesn't sound good for anyone hoping to buy a Steam Machine, Steam Controller or Steam Frame in 2026. Specifically, the company is now opening up the possibility its new hardware won't ship this year at all.In February, when Valve acknowledged the ongoing memory and storage shortage had delayed the launch of its hardware and could lead to higher prices, the company was still committing to a (fairly wide) window of when its hardware would ship:

Netflix's library of streamable party games is expanding today with a custom version of Overcooked! All You Can Eat. Netflix launched its cloud gaming program with games like Lego Party and Tetris Time Warp, but Overcooked feels a bit unique because it features a roster of Netflix-affiliated characters from KPop Demon Hunters and Stranger Things.For the uninitiated, Overcooked plays like a more manic version of Diner Dash, where teams attempt to prepare food together in increasingly elaborate kitchens filled with obstacles. The original version of Overcooked! All You Can Eat was released in 2020, and includes DLC and stages from previous versions of the game. Netflix's version bundles in the same content, and "10 Netflix celebrity chefs" including "Dustin, Eleven, Lucas, and the Demogorgon from Stranger Things," and "half-dozen faces from KPop Demon Hunters," like "Mira, Rumi, Zoey, Jinu, Derpy and Sussie." Like Netflix's other streaming games, playing Overcooked also requires you to use a connected smartphone as a controller.Offering a growing library of streaming games is part of Netflix's new strategy under Alan Tascan, a former executive from Epic Games. Tascan took over as Netflix's President of Games in 2024, and appeared to start revamping the company's plans not long after, cancelling the release of several mobile games and reportedly shutting down its AAA game studio. Netflix is also continuing to adapt video games into content for its platform. For example, A24 is reportedly developing a game show based on Overcooked for the streaming service.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/netflixs-version-of-overcooked-lets-you-play-as-huntrx-212515187.html?src=rss

Nintendo of America is suing the US government, including the Department of Treasury, Department of Homeland Security and US Customs and Border Protection, over its tariff policy, Aftermath reports. The video game giant already raised prices on the Nintendo Switch in August 2025 in response to market conditions," but has so far left the price of its newer Switch 2 console unchanged.Nintendo's lawsuit, filed in the US Court of International Trade, cites a Supreme Court ruling from February that confirmed a lower courts' opinion that the Trump administration's global tariffs were illegal. Nintendo's lawyers claim that the video game company has been substantially harmed by the unlawful of execution and imposition" of unauthorized Executive Orders," and the fees Nintendo has already paid to import products into the country. In response, the company is seeking a prompt refund, with interest" of the tariffs it has paid.

Samsung caught flak for the Galaxy Buds 3. The company's mimicry of Apple's AirPods was all too obvious last year when it opted for a stem or blade" design after several generations of putting touch controls on the main housing of its earbuds. The Galaxy Buds 4 and Galaxy Buds 4 Pro continue that trajectory, as Samsung keeps adding new features with direct parallels to AirPods. The good news is, both models have been improved in various ways, all while their prices stay the same.A refined design that's still too familiarOn last year's Galaxy Buds models, Samsung introduced its blade" design and overall shapes that clearly took inspiration from Apple's earbuds. While all of that remains the same on the Galaxy Buds 4 lineup, Samsung made some refinements that at least gives its earbuds a more polished look.The angular blade" is gone from both the open-fit Galaxy Buds 4 and silicone-tipped Galaxy Buds 4 Pro. That stem is now a flat panel with a thin metal cover, but it's still called the blade (thanks, Samsung). And thank the gods, the gimmicky blade lights on the last Pro model are now gone. The Galaxy Buds 4 and 4 Pro both have an indented area that accepts both swipes and presses for the onboard controls, a design choice that makes that area easy to find by touch alone. Aside from that, the overall shape of both Galaxy Buds 4 models remains mostly the same, and they're both pretty much the same size too.One big change for the Galaxy Buds 4 duo is the charging case. Since the buds now lay flat in there instead of sitting vertically in the case on the previous model, Samsung has gone back to its rounded square shape from older generations. The company did, however, keep the translucent lids, so you can clearly see if the earbuds are in the case without having to open it.In addition to their styles (the Buds 4 are open fit while the Pro have ear tips), a notable distinction between the two is their ingress protection (IP) levels. The Galaxy Buds 4 Pro is rated IP57, which is good enough for dust protection and full immersion in up to three feet for 30 minutes, while the Galaxy Buds 4 is IP54. That latter number means you're only guarded against dust intrusion and water splashes.Useful features, if you have a Samsung phone Samsung Buds 4 Pro Billy Steele for Engadget A few years ago, Samsung offered iPhone users the same suite of features as those onGalaxy phones. Those days are long gone. Like Apple does with AirPods and Google with Pixel Buds, Samsung requires you to pair a Galaxy phone to get the most out of a pair of Galaxy Buds 4 or 4 Pro. If you opt for the open-fit model though, you'll have to sacrifice a few features.Let's start with the tools that are available on both versions. You can expect Adaptive EQ 2.0, 360 audio with head tracking, Auracast, automatic switching, head gestures and both touch and swipe controls across the board. Both models also offer AI assistance via either Bixby or Gemini.Voice features are where the two models primarily differ. The Galaxy Buds 4 Pro has voice detection that automatically lowers the volume and activates ambient sound mode when you start speaking. The pricier version also offers hands-free access to an AI assistant without having to touch the earbuds or your connected device.Pretty much all of this stuff requires a Samsung phone. Sure, you can use the basics - ANC, onboard controls and ambient sound - from the likes of iPhones and Macs. But the more advanced items like voice detection, head gestures and automatic switching won't be available there. As before, there's an app for Android users with non-Galaxy phones, but things like UHD audio and higher-quality calls are not available on those devices. If you do have a Galaxy phone, everything is baked into the Bluetooth menu, just like Apple does with AirPods.Shockingly good sound quality Samsung Galaxy Buds 4 Pro (left) and Samsung Galaxy Buds 4 (right) Billy Steele for Engadget I've come to expect good sound from the Galaxy Buds line. I usually go into any new Samsung audio review knowing I"ll be getting average audio quality at the very least. On last year's Galaxy Buds 3, the sound performance was well above average for both sets, and that continues on the two latest models. However, if audio is your main priority, the Galaxy Buds 4 Pro is the better pick.Like Samsung did with the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro, this year's 4 Pro has a two-way driver setup with an 11mm super-wide" woofer and a 5.5mm planar tweeter. While the woofer is larger than what's inside the 3 Pro, the tweeter is smaller. Those components combine for shockingly good sound quality for a pair of Samsung earbuds. I was truly surprised when I put the Galaxy Buds 4 Pro in my ears for the first time and played aya's electro-tinged hexed! The driving bass line on off the ESSO" is energetic yet nuanced, vocals are cutting and clear, while the synths and other percussive elements pierce through the mix. The Galaxy Buds 4 Pro deftly handled everything I threw at it, from Spiritbox's heavy metal to the mellow acoustic tunes on Muscadine Bloodline's 2025 release.The Galaxy Buds 4 aren't a sonic slouch by any means. It's true you'll get deeper bass and more overall clarity and detail from the Pro model, but prospective buyers who desire an open fit don't have to sacrifice too much in the sound department. There's still punchy bass and crunchy highs, with enough midrange to fill in the gaps adequately. I noticed the biggest difference on that aya track, where the bass isn't as deep or detailed and the rest of the mix isn't quite as dynamic as it is on the Galaxy Buds 4 Pro.Active noise cancellation that still needs work Samsung Galaxy Buds 4 Pro (left) and Galaxy Buds 4 (right) Billy Steele for Engadget While both Galaxy Buds 4 models offer active noise cancellation (ANC), the Pro version has what Samsung calls Adaptive Active Noise Cancellation 2.0 versus just Adaptive Active Noise Cancellation on the other. The company didn't go into much detail about the differences, other than to say the ANC performance on the Galaxy Buds 4 Pro is superior. Hence the 2.0, I guess.ANC performance was a major issue on the Galaxy Buds 3 and that continues on the Galaxy Buds 4. Samsung just hasn't managed to crack the noise cancellation code on open-fit earbuds the same way Apple has with its regular" AirPods. In fact, the ANC on this new model makes such a modest difference, I'd wager most customers would prefer to trade it for longer battery life (or a lower price). I only kept it on in the interest of my battery rundown, otherwise I wouldn't have used it at all. It's definitely more like active noise reduction than outright cancellation.Thankfully, noise cancellation is a different story on the Galaxy Buds 4 Pro. It's still not going to silence the world like the second-gen Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds can, but Samsung's tech does just enough to make it useful in most circumstances. I found it particularly adept at blocking moderate levels of constant noise, like a clothes dryer, fan or white noise machine. It's the sudden jolts of racket where the Pro struggles. The Buds 4 Pro also does a decent job at muffling human voices, which caused my family much frustration.Calls and voice quality Samsung Galaxy Buds 4 Pro (left) and Galaxy Buds 4 (right) Every audio company claims its special sauce is the key to the clearest calls, and Samsung is no different. The company boasts that its combo of a 16kHz super wideband mode, DNN noise reduction and personalized beamforming mics offer calls so clear, it's stunning." Of course, that promise requires a Galaxy S26 series phone - not just the earbuds.I was shocked to discover how well I sounded in quiet environments as both of these earbuds offer voice quality that's crisp and clear. If you move to a noisy spot, both models will completely block any background roar, but you will sound slightly digitized on the other end. This was more apparent on the Galaxy Buds 4, but it's noticeable on both versions. That's due to all the audio processing Samsung is doing to mute those distractions.To top it all off, the ambient sound mode on the Galaxy Buds 4 Pro is very natural, which means you won't be yelling to hear yourself during calls or meetings.The competitionIf you're looking for the best earbuds to use with a Samsung phone, the Galaxy Buds 4 and 4 Pro are your best options. Again, like Apple does with the AirPods and Google with the Pixel Buds, Samsung continues to offer the most advanced and most useful features to the Galaxy faithful. If you don't really care about that synergy, the second-gen Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds are currently my top pick. That set won't wow you with features, but the combination of excellent sound quality and the best ANC performance make them hard to beat. Plus, multipoint Bluetooth connectivity offers easy switching between a Galaxy S26 and a MacBook.Wrap-upWith each passing year, Samsung draws closer to offering Galaxy phone users a true like-for-like AirPods rival. The company is really only lagging behind Apple in two areas: hearing health and heart-rate tracking. Samsung currently offers the option to amplify voices on its earbuds, but it hasn't built a hearing test or the hearing protection tools Apple has. The biggest update on the AirPods Pro 3 was the addition of heart-rate tracking last year, which would be a great foundation for a fitness-focused version of the Galaxy Buds.Everything else continues to improve on a familiar formula. Samsung has bolstered overall sound quality and ANC performance, even if the noise canceling abilities of the Galaxy Buds 4 remain somewhat lackluster. The design changes offer a more premium look and the gradual addition of modern features like head gestures help the company keep pace with the competition. While the Galaxy Buds 4 and 4 Pro are both good, Samsung really needs to take bigger swings with new features to make its earbuds the must-buy that AirPods are for iPhone users.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/headphones/samsung-galaxy-buds-4-and-4-pro-review-impressive-audio-imperfect-anc-190000202.html?src=rss

One of the biggest issues with mainline Pokemon games is that you're often so focused on catching, battling and trying to be the very best that you don't have time to stop and smell the flowers. But in Pokemon Pokopia, you're rewarded for doing just that while building a loving community of friendly monsters. The game is one part Animal Crossing and one part Dragon Quest Builders sprinkled with a touch of Minecraft and Stardew Valley. he result might be one of the coziest, most wholesome life sims on the market.Setup and gameplayIn Pokopia, you play as a Ditto, who has awakened to a world where all the other humans and Pokemon have mysteriously disappeared. Naturally, the loss of your trainer has inspired you to take the form of a person (well, as best as a Ditto can). You work together with the only other soul around, Professor Tangrowth, to figure out how to revitalize this once thriving town. As you explore, you learn to create habitats from a mix of shrubs, trees and anything else you can scavenge. You can also create new homes for the missing Pokemon and lure them back, slowly converting the wasteland into a bustling place full of life and excitement. It's a simple but extremely rewarding gameplay loop, and as you make friends with the returning monsters, they help you on your quest by teaching you skills that allow you to continue shaping and manipulating the environment. They also provide handy items and building materials.Some Pokemon like Squirtle can even teach you new moves that you can use to manipulate your environment. Nintendo / EngadgetThis is where the other main gameplay cycle comes in, as the entire world is made up of blocks that you can excavate or rework to your heart's content. Not only does this let you customize your environment, it also serves as a way to traverse the world. See a shiny treasure on the other side of a river but you can't swim there? You can simply build a bridge instead. And just like in Minecraft, you can use raw materials to create all sorts of fancy blocks and furniture so your homes look exactly how you want. When compared to games like Animal Crossing, I found I actually prefer Pokopia's flavor of world-building a touch more, as it relies slightly more on building and exploring and less on decorating.In order to lure Pokemon to your town, first you need to build a home they'll want to live in. Nintendo / EngadgetMy one small issue with the game is that while I like the real-time building mechanic that lets Pokemon work on stuff while you're not playing, having to wait a full day for bigger projects to be completed can bog down your progress a bit. With a game that easily provides more than 50 hours of content just for its main story (and that's not counting all the time you'll spend customizing and tweaking your town), sometimes things become a slower burn than they ought to be.The magic of PokopiaAs befitting a Pokemon game, each monster has skills befitting their type like Charmander being able to light fires. Sam Rutherford for EngadgetWhile the success of Pokopia's core mechanics can be largely attributed to co-developer Bandai Namco borrowing the game's basic template from the Dragon Quest Builders series, the real magic of the game comes from the Pokemon themselves. When I load into the world and the first thing that happens is one of my townsfolk running up to me to say thanks or give me a present, it just makes me happy. And unlike most other Pokemon games, you can actually have proper conversations with them, instead of just hearing them do their 8-bit cries. Speaking of that, I really think it's time for Game Freak to archive those Game Boy-inspired sound bites in favor of proper voice acting. We've had thirty years of crunchy, low-fi yells, and in an open-world game with adorable polygonal graphics, I think we can finally let the 'mons say their names like they do in the anime.Pokopia's roster of characters is also bigger than expected. That's because in addition to new faces like Peakychu and Mosslax, there are well over 100 different Pokemon to befriend. And while the game leans a bit more heavily on characters from Kanto and the original 151, there's solid representation from other generations, including cameos from legendaries. Furthermore, each monster has its own unique habitat, preferences and abilities. I appreciate little details like water-type Pokemon who ask you to make their home a bit more humid or fighting-type monsters who ask for exercise equipment to spruce up theirs. Similarly, when it comes to building out your town, I like that the game makes you turn towards plant-types if you want help with your crops or a fire-type if you need help smelting some iron.Teamwork makes the dream work. Nintendo / EngadgetHowever, the most heartwarming thing about Pokopia might not even be how you interact with the other Pokemon, but how they socialize with themselves. Sometimes you'll run into two mons chasing each other around, working out together or cuddling up for a nap. And thanks to the game's photo mode, you can capture all these moments when they happen.Exploring the world is also quite satisfying, particularly for anyone who has played any of the Pokemon games from gen one. There are a ton of references to memorable people and places from Kanto. Plus, when you're just out and about or spelunking, you'll sometimes run into other adventurous mons who need a little help before you can convince them to move into town. It feels like there are fun secrets hiding around every other corner, and even for those that are a bit less obvious, Pokopia drops just enough hints to point you in the right direction.Wrap-upJust look how happy everyone is when we all work together. Nintendo / EngadgetThere's so much to do in Pokopia that I wouldn't be surprised if dedicated players could tide themselves over with this game until Pokemon Winds and Waves comes out next year. But more importantly, Bandai Namco and Game Freak have found a perfect balance between the title's open-world building mechanics and homages to the underlying franchise. Pokopia isn't just a half-hearted life-sim clone with a thin veneer of monster catching (or in this case, monster community outreach) draped on top; it's a good game in its own right that just gets better with the addition of neighborly Pokemon.

Today the US Senate unanimously passed proposed legislation known as COPPA 2.0. This measure, fully named the Children and Teens' Online Privacy Protection Act, aims to create new protections for younger users online, such as blocking platforms from collecting their personal data without consent.COPPA 2.0 is a modernized take on the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998, attempting to address recent changes in common online activities, like targeted advertising, that could prove harmful to minors. Lawmakers have made several attempts to get this bipartisan bill through. While it has made varying amounts of headway in the Senate, none of the COPPA 2.0 bills to date have gotten past the House of Representatives.Industry groups such as NetChoice have previously opposed COPPA 2.0 and other measures around minors' online activity such as KOSA, the Kids Online Safety Act. NetChoice members include Google, YouTube, Meta, Reddit, Discord, TikTok and X. Google specifically has since changed its stance to support COPPA 2.0, however."This bill expands the current law protecting our kids online to ensure companies cannot collect personal information from anyone under the age of 17," Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said in a statement about the latest result. "This is a big step forward for protecting our kids. We hope the House can join us. They haven't thus far."However, there has been a bigger push both domestically and internationally toward restrictions on when and how younger people engage online. Several states - Utah, California and Washington to name a few - have enacted laws requiring some level of age verification, either to access mature content online or to use social media apps at all. Many of these efforts have raised concerns about privacy regarding where and how people's personal information is stored and protected. COPPA 2.0 might wind up benefitting from the privacy debates since it emphasizes giving teens and parents ways to protect themselves from having their data used against them rather than asking adults to give up data in order to use the internet as usual.Update, March 6 2026, 11:38AM ET: Article updated with additional context on Google.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/coppa-20-passes-the-senate-again-unanimously-this-time-215044656.html?src=rss

Capcom revealed during its March 5 Spotlight showcase that Pragmata, its repeatedly delayed dystopian sci-fi adventure game, will release on April 17 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch 2 and PC via Steam. The game had been set for April 24 since its appearance at The Game Awards in December.The game's new trailer shows previously unseen locations and gameplay moments, and new elements within the Shelter, the in-game lunar base. Pragmata was first revealed in 2020 with a 2022 release window. Capcom then delayed it to 2023, then went radio silent on the project before resurfacing with a new 2026 date last year.A free Sketchbook demo is available now on the PlayStation Store, Xbox Store, Nintendo eShop and Steam. Pre-orders for the game are available now.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/capcoms-long-delayed-pragmata-is-now-arriving-a-week-earlier-160257053.html?src=rss

Life EV has completed a court-approved acquisition of Rad Power Bikes, granting a second life to the troubled e-bike brand.The Florida-based Life EV now owns Rad's brand, intellectual property, inventory and certain unspecified operating assets, and will continue to operate as Rad Power Bikes in the US, with plans to expand to "select key markets."Rad's new owner has committed to honoring certain warranties and gift cards purchased prior to the acquisition, and says new bikes will be built in the US going forward. Life EV will adopt a Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ) structure for its manufacturing operations, allowing it to take advantage of special domestic customs procedures when sourcing parts from global suppliers."Rad Power Bikes has helped define the e-bike category in North America with its innovative products and passionate rider community," said Life EV CEO, Rob Provost. "Respecting and preserving that legacy - its brand, vision, and leadership - is foundational to this acquisition. Together, we will build on that trust and create new opportunities for riders nationwide."The completed acquisition marks the end of a turbulent period for Rad. Back in December, the company was forced to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy after the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) warned Rad's customers to "immediately stop using" some of its e-bike batteries due to a serious fire hazard. At the time, Rad said it couldn't afford to recall the at-risk batteries.Less than two months later, in what can only be described as a strange twist of fate, a fire broke out at a Rad Power Bikes retail store warehouse in Huntington Beach, California. "We're working with local authorities to review a thermal incident that occurred at our Huntington Beach store Sunday evening," a Rad Power Bikes spokesperson told Engadget at the time. "The incident was contained and happened while the store was closed. The cause of the fire has not been confirmed."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/rad-power-bikes-gets-a-new-owner-pledge-to-build-bikes-in-the-us-144641940.html?src=rss

It's been a wild week for Apple. After announcing a slew of new hardware, the company capped things off with its cheapest laptop ever: the $599 MacBook Neo. It's low on specs, but high on character and value. In this episode, Devindra and Engadget Deputy Editor Nathan Ingraham dive into the MacBook Neo, as well as the refreshed MacBook Air M5, MacBook Pro M5 Pro/Max, iPad Air M4 and iPhone 17e.Also, Devindra chats with Spencer Ackerman, author of Forever Wars and recent Iron Man comics, about the ongoing battle between Anthropic and the Department of Defense. It turns out the DOD still used Claude for attacks on Iran, after banning Anthropic'/s AI last week. And really, what do these AI companies expect to happen when they jump at military contracts?Subscribe!

Right off the back of the iPhone 17e, new iPads and MacBook Airs, Apple also announced a keenly priced new laptop. The MacBook Neo is a multi-colored low-cost Mac ($599), running on an iPhone chipset with most but not all of the hardware features you find on the MacBook Air and Pro. All models of the MacBook Neo ship with an extremely scant 8GB of RAM, which might be the main productivity bottleneck for demanding tasks.The Neo has a 13-inch Retina display, a 1080p webcam, two USB-C ports, a headphone jack and optional Touch ID, if you're willing to pay a little more. A lot has been said about whether this is Apple marching to the beat of its own drum again, in a year of RAM shortages and AI obsessions. This is a direct attack on cheap Windows laptops and underperforming Chromebooks. Tempted? Check out our initial impressions from Apple's event earlier this week, right here. Oh, and for everything Apple announced - we've pulled all the news together here.- Mat SmithThe other big stories this week

The UK government is working on a controversial data bill that would allow AI companies like Google and OpenAI to train their models on copyrighted materials without consent. However, following a two month consultation, it looks like passage of the law will be delayed. "Copyright is going to be kicked down the road," a person with knowledge of the matter told The Financial Times.Responses by stakeholders during the consultation period weren't favorable to any of the government's proposed ideas for use of copyrighted materials, the FT's sources said. There's no expectation now that an AI bill will be part of the King's Speech set for May this year.As a result, Ministers have decided to go back to the drawing board and spend more time exploring other options. The House of Lords Communications and Digital Committee called on the government to develop a licensing-first regime "underpinned by robust transparency that safeguards creators' livelihoods while supporting sustainable AI growth."The UK parliament's preferred position on the bill (also argued by tech giants like Google) has been that copyright holders need to formally opt-out if they don't want their materials used to train AI models. However, publishers, filmmakers, musicians and others have said that this would be impractical and an existential threat to the UK's creative industries.The House of Lords took the side of artists and introduced an amendment that would require tech companies to disclose which copyright-protected works were used to train AI models. That addition, however, was blocked by the UK's House of Commons in May last year.The UK's majority Labour government - already under fire for its handling of the economy - has taken hits from publishers, musicians, authors and other creative groups over the proposed law. Elton John called the government "absolute losers" while Paul McCartney said that AI has its uses but "it shouldn't rip creative people off." McCartney and others artists were part of a "silent album" meant to show the impact of IP theft by AI.Baroness Beeban Kidron from the House of Lords has also ripped the government over the AI bill. "Creators do not deny the creative and economic value of AI, but we do deny the assertion that we should have to build AI for free with our work, and then rent it back from those who stole it," she said last year. "It's astonishing that a Labour government would abandon the labor force of an entire section."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/uk-government-delays-ai-copyright-rules-amid-artist-outcry-113937154.html?src=rss

In a new blog post, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei has admitted that it received a letter from the Defense Department, officially labeling it a supply chain risk. He said he doesn't believe this action is legally sound," and that his company sees no choice" but to challenge it in court. Hours before Amodei published the post, the Pentagon announced that it notified the company that its products are deemed a supply chain risk, effective immediately."If you'll recall, the Defense Department (called the Department of War under the current administration) threatened to give the company the designation typically reserved for firms from adversaries like China if it didn't agree to remove its safeguards over mass surveillance and autonomous weapons. President Trump then ordered federal agencies to stop using Anthropic's tech.Amodei explained that the designation has a narrow scope, because it only exists to protect the government. That is why the general public, and even Defense Department contractors, can still use Anthropic's Claude chatbot and its AI technologies. Microsoft told CNBC that it will continue using Claude after its lawyers had concluded that it can keep on working with Anthropic on non-defense related projects.The CEO has also admitted that his company had productive conversations" with the department over the past few days. He said that they were looking at ways to serve the Pentagon that adheres to its two exceptions, namely that its technology not be used for mass surveillance and the development of fully autonomous weapons, and at ways to ensure a smooth transition if that is not possible." That confirms reports that Anthropic is back in talks with the agency in an effort to reach a new deal. In addition, he apologized for a leaked internal memo, wherein he reportedly said that OpenAI's messaging about its own deal with the department is just straight up lies."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/anthropic-says-it-will-challenge-defense-departments-supply-chain-risk-designation-in-court-054459618.html?src=rss

Amazon's website appears to be stabilizing after experiencing technical issues that kept users from logging in and prevented prices from displaying correctly. DownDetector reported a spike of outage reports around 2PM ET, but as of 5:56PM ET, user complaints have fallen significantly.The Amazon.com homepage currently loads, and Engadgets staff have been able to load product pages and view prices without any problems. During the peak of the site's issues, neither were loading consistently, and clicking through in some cases showed an error page with text that says "Sorry, something went wrong on our end." Users also reported being unable to log into their accounts.We're sorry that some customers may be experiencing issues while shopping," Amazon said in a statement to Engadget. We appreciate customers' patience as we work to resolve the issue." The company shared a similar sentiment with customers on X, confirming that it's aware there's a problem and acknowledging that its working on a fix. Amazon has yet to confirm whether the issue is fully resolved.As a cloud provider through its Amazon Web Services (AWS) business, Amazon has experienced its fair share of outages, including one in October 2025 that took out services like Snapchat and Amazon's own Alexa voice assistant for hours. The company's website experiencing issues without a larger AWS outage seems a bit more unusual, and might suggest the problem lies outside of its cloud infrastructure.

Xbox CEO Asha Sharma is gearing up to spill the beans on Microsoft's next-generation console. In a post on X today, she revealed that the system is codenamed Project Helix." Confirming previous rumors, she says it will lead in performance" and play both console and PC games. Sharma also notes that she'll be discussing the system at GDC next week with partners and developers.The next-gen console tease follows Sharma's appointment as Xbox CEO a few weeks ago, after former Xbox head Phil Spencer stepped down. Last year, it was clear that things were rocky for Microsoft's storied gaming brand, and the executive shakeup certainly didn't help much. But it'll be interesting to hear more details about Project Helix at GDC - is it simply a PC masquerading as a console? What sort of performance benchmarks is Microsoft trying to reach, and will we get any hints about hardware?For the first time, in a long time, there's something intriguing happening in the land of Xbox. Much like the first Xbox, Microsoft could end up cutting this generation short to quickly prep a successor. And if the rumors about a PlayStation 6 delay end up being true, it could give Microsoft a few years with new hardware ahead of Sony.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/xbox/xbox-ceo-confirms-next-gen-project-helix-console-will-play-pc-games-204654357.html?src=rss

It feels like we could all use a little (or a large) boost of joy and optimism right now, so it's a perfect coincidence that a Games Done Quick event is on the horizon. Frost Fatales 2026 is running from March 8 through March 14. This week-long livestream will be raising money for the National Women's Law Center, a nonprofit working toward gender justice for women and girls.GDQ events have been branching out with more ways to tune in for the speedrunning fun. Frost Fatales 2026 will be a streaming on the GDQ Twitch channel as usual, but the organization is also now broadcasting on YouTube, and you can watch the live feed there next week as well. Each day's pre-show kicks off at 12:30PM ET.Frost Fatales is the winter charity event from the Frame Fatales, a community for women and femmes in speedrunning that operates under the GDQ banner. The group has raised more than $1 million for philanthropic organizations since its first event in 2019.The schedule for next week has a mix of speedrun standards (think Super Mario 64 and Super Metroid) alongside and newer releases, plus some more offbeat categories that promise to be a highly entertaining watch. The event kicks off on Sunday with western flair in Red Dead Redemption 2. Horror fans have a good selection on Tuesday night with Silent Hill f, Resident Evil 3 (2020) and Resident Evil Village. The Kirby Air Riders run on Friday night will highlight a bunch of community members for max wholesome vibes. Peak, a notable new game from 2025, is already getting speedruns, which you can watch Saturday afternoon before a bingo race of recent indie hit UFO 50 in the evening and the final run of Titanfall 2 to close the event. Fatales events aren't a 24/7 affair like Awesome and Summer Games Done Quick, so be sure to check the schedule for all the highlights.Or, if you simply can't wait until Sunday to dive into some great speedruns, Games Done Quick recently launched GDQ TV. This dedicated Twitch channel is always on and highlights some notable moments and runs from the entirety of the GDQ archive.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/how-to-watch-frost-fatales-2026-kicking-off-on-march-8-201826864.html?src=rss

Epic Games' courtroom battle with Google is over, but it's reportedly going to affect how its CEO can speak about the tech giant for years for years to come. According to The Verge, part of the settlement terms Epic had signed has a clause stating that Epic and Sweeney will have to speak positively about Google's competitiveness and app store operations going forward. Epic believes that the Google and Android platform, with the changes in this term sheet, are procompetitive and a model for app store / platform operations, and will make good faith efforts to advocate for the same," the clause reportedly reads.Further, The Verge says the settlement terms between the companies will expire five years after Google is done rolling out changes to its service fees. Since Google expects to finish implementing changes worldwide by September 30, 2027, Sweeney can't speak negatively about the app store until after September 30, 2032.Sweeney is one of the most vocal critic of how Apple and Google operate their app stores, which had led to several lawsuits between the companies. He once called both Apple and Google gangster-style businesses" that will always continue" to be engaged in illegal practices and just pay the fine afterwards. Epic Games filed a lawsuit against Google in 2020, accusing it of illegal monopoly on app distribution and in-app billing services for Android devices. In 2023, Google lost the lawsuit. It then lost its appeal two years later, before the companies reached a settlement in November 2025. On March 4 this year, Google officially scrapped the 30 percent cut it takes from Play Store transactions, lowering it to 20 percent and even to 15 percent in some cases.In response to the Google's decision, Epic Games is bringing back Fortnite to the Play Store worldwide. Google is opening up Android all the way with robust support for competing stores, competing payments, and a better deal for all developers. So, we've settled all of our disputes worldwide. THANKS GOOGLE!" Sweeney posted on X. Based on the clause in their settlement, future statements from the CEO about Google will need to carry a similar tone, in the next few years at least.Update, March 5 2026, 2:13PM ET: Epic reached out to Engadget to share an important clarification: Criticizing Google is fair game on topics not related to app store distribution/ fees," the company wrote on X, Epic and Google agreed to not disparage only on topics about the settlement." We've updated the copy of our story to reflect the specificity of the non-disparagement agreement, and look forward to the ways in which Epic will certainly exercise its remaining capacity to be critical of Google.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/google-reportedly-muzzles-epic-games-ceo-tim-sweeney-until-2032-105501644.html?src=rss

Who needs Half-Life 3 or Beyond Good & Evil 2? Roku, in an attempt to gamify content discovery on its platform, has cooked up a gaming announcement for the ages. Behold: Roklue. Yes, that's a real name that someone with a job title and (likely high) salary came up with.Roklue (shudder) will quiz players on "the movies and TV shows that everyone is talking about," along with classic "beloved favorites." When it references a movie or show, it will provide a link for you to tune in on your device. The initial version is an Oscar season tie-in ("Roklue: Awards Season") that debuts on Saturday. This inaugural version is produced by B17 Entertainment, a Sony-owned company.Roku says it will rotate thematic content throughout the year. Variety reports that those will center around music festivals, the Emmys and holidays.Apart from that name, which should come with a gag-reflex warning, Roklue sounds harmless enough. You play a trivia game to find new stuff to stream; Roku grows its engagement. Win-win. But with corporate schemes like this, it's always worth wondering where further monetization might eventually come into play. Think something like linking to series on platforms you don't yet subscribe to. (Hello, kickback.)On March 7, you'll find the free Roklue (ick) game on your Roku home screen, no download required.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/roku-is-launching-a-trivia-game-called-roklue-190000386.html?src=rss

Netflix has acquired an AI filmmaking startup called InterPositive, according to a report by Variety. This is a company that was founded by actor Ben Affleck back in 2022. Don't worry if you haven't heard of it. Affleck has been operating the company in stealth mode for the past few years, so this is pretty much it's big coming-out party.The terms of the acquisition haven't been disclosed, but Affleck will remain on as a senior advisor to Netflix. Additionally, the entire staff will be absorbed into the streaming platform.Affleck says he started the company after "observing the early rise of AI in production" and realizing how the "models came up short." The company makes tools that generate AI models based on an existing production's dailies. This lets filmmakers use the model in the post-production process to do stuff like mix and color, relight shots and add visual effects.Affleck adds that this tech is "not about text-prompting or generating something from nothing." Netflix says the company will keep "filmmakers at the center of the process." The company recently used generative AI tools to whip up a VFX shot in a show called The Eternaut. It's also been using AI to make ads more intrusive. We'll have to wait and see if creators do indeed remain at the center of things. Netflix will offer access to InterPositive's tech to creative partners but has no plans to sell it commercially.To Affleck's credit, he seems to have a nuanced understanding of modern AI tools. "We also need to preserve what makes storytelling human, which is judgment," he said. "The kind that takes decades to build, experience to hone and that only people can have. I knew I had a responsibility to my peers and our industry, to protect the power of human creativity and the people behind it." However, it's worth reiterating that the company is no longer in Affleck's hands, as he is now just an advisor.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/netflix-just-bought-an-ai-startup-founded-by-ben-affleck-184536640.html?src=rss

Meta is facing a class action lawsuit for false advertising related to its AI glasses following reports about the company's use of human contractors to review footage captured from users' glasses. The lawsuit, filed Wednesday in federal court in San Francisco, alleges that Meta's claims about the devices' privacy features have misled users.The lawsuit comes after a Swedish newspaper reported that subcontractors in Kenya have raised concerns about viewing footage recorded via Ray-Ban Meta glasses. According to Svenska Dagbladet, workers have reported witnessing "intimate" material, including bathroom visits, sexual encounters and other private details as part of their job labeling objects in videos captured on users' smart glasses."This nationwide class action seeks to hold Meta responsible for its affirmatively false advertising and failure to disclose the true nature of surveillance and its connection to the company's AI data collection pipeline," the lawsuit, filed by Clarkson Law Firm, states. The filing names two individuals who live in California and New Jersey who purchased Meta's smart glasses. It says that both "relied" on Meta's marketing claims about the glasses' privacy protecting features and that they would not have purchased them if they knew about the company's use of contractors. The lawsuit seeks monetary damages and injunctive relief.A spokesperson for Meta confirmed to Engadget that data from its smart glasses can be shared with human contractors in some cases. The company declined to comment on the claims in the lawsuit."Ray-Ban Meta glasses help you use AI, hands free, to answer questions about the world around you," the spokesperson said. "Unless users choose to share media they've captured with Meta or others, that media stays on the user's device. When people share content with Meta AI, we sometimes use contractors to review this data for the purpose of improving people's experience, as many other companies do. We take steps to filter this data to protect people's privacy and to help prevent identifying information from being reviewed."What the company doesn't explicitly say there is that there is no way to use the smart glasses' "multimodal" features without sharing the captures of your surroundings with the company. As I noted in my review of the second-generation Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses last year: "images of your surroundings processed for the glasses' multimodal features like Live AI can be used for training purposes (these images aren't saved to your device's camera roll)."So while Meta claims that users' own recordings are kept private, footage that is captured but not stored locally for users - like video when Live AI is in use - can be sent to contractors who help train the company's AI models. Meta's privacy policy doesn't specifically mention the use of human contractors, though it states that such data can be used for training purposes."The undisclosed human review pipeline renders the Meta AI Glasses' privacy features materially misleading, transforms the product from a personal device into a surveillance conduit, and exposes consumers to unreasonable risks of dignitary harm, emotional distress, stalking, extortion, identity theft, and reputational injury," the lawsuit says. "Indeed, Meta employees and contractors have described viewing credit card numbers, nudity, sexual activity, and identifiable faces in the footage they reviewed, and reported that Meta's purported anonymization safeguards do not reliably function."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/meta-hit-with-a-class-action-lawsuit-over-smart-glasses-privacy-claims-182846817.html?src=rss

OpenAI is releasing a new model today, and like GPT-5.2 before it, GPT-5.4 is all about professional work. OpenAI is calling GPT-5.4 its most capable frontier model for tasks like coding and data analysis. OpenAI claims the new model produced presentations with stronger, more varied aesthetics and made more effective use of its image generation tools.It's also the first model from OpenAI built with native computer-use capabilities, making it better at carrying out tasks across several apps at the same time. When it comes to computer use, one noticeable improvement OpenAI has recorded is the way GPT-5.4 issues mouse and keyboard commands. It's significantly better at navigating a desktop environment than its predecessor.When users turn to GPT-5.4 in ChatGPT, where it will now be the default model for the chatbot's Thinking mode, the system will outline how it plans to tackle a request, giving people the opportunity to tell it to adjust course as it's generating a response. At the same time, the new model offers better web research capabilities, especially when it comes to "highly specific" queries, according to OpenAI."Together, these improvements mean higher-quality answers that arrive faster and stay relevant to the task at hand," the company states. Separately, OpenAI claims GPT-5.4 is its most factual model yet, noting, relative to GPT-5.2, it's 18 percent less likely to generate a response with any errors. Here's hoping it knows not to turn to Grokipedia for information, something its predecessor was known to do.As mentioned, GPT-5.4 will be available in ChatGPT when users select the chatbot's Thinking mode, and as GPT-5.4 Pro from the model picker. As such, this isn't a release for Free and Go users - or even Plus subscribers, for that matter. It's more for enterprise customers, and developers who rely on the company's Codex app. On that note, for API customers, OpenAI claims GPT-5.4 is its most token efficient reasoning model to date, though those tokens will cost more than their GPT-5.2 counterparts. For instance, OpenAI is pricing one million input tokens at $2.50, up from $1.75 with GPT-5.2.The fact that OpenAI has increasingly shifted its strategy to focus on professionals shouldn't be surprising. When Microsoft announced last September it would add Anthropic's models to Copilot 365 (where previously it depended exclusively on OpenAI's systems), there were reports that suggested the company made the decision because it found Claude was better at tasks like generating spreadsheets and presentations. Reporting from The Information suggests OpenAI is generating about $25 billion in annualized revenue. However, the company is still far from being profitable, and with more than $1.4 trillion in data center commitments on the books, it's reliant on funding from investors to keep the lights on. Seen in that context, productivity represents a place where it might have a chance to build a sustainable business.

It might sound like the stuff of daydreams now, but once upon a time it was briefly the very real intention of Sony and Nintendo to collaborate on a console. Nicknamed the Nintendo PlayStation, the idea was that a new CD-ROM format backed by Sony would be added to the cartridge-based Super NES, resulting in a hybrid console that could play both.The partnership didn't last long, though, with Nintendo backing out before it ever really got off the ground, announcing that it would instead be working with Philips. Sony decided to make the PlayStation on its own instead, in an act of revenge that you have to say paid off in the long run, and we never did get to see Crash Bandicoot running around the Mushroom Kingdom. Still, the short-lived Nintendo PlayStation remains a fascinating what-if scenario in video game history, and the USA's National Video Museum has acquired the original development kit.

Google is living up to its word and posting warning labels for battery-killing apps. 9to5Google spotted Google's rollout announcement, which the company previously said would arrive on March 1.The label says, This app may use more battery than expected due to high background activity." If you don't yet see the warnings, they may not have reached you yet. Google says the banners will "roll out gradually to impacted apps" in the coming weeks.Play Store battery warningGoogleWarning labels aren't the only stick in Google's fight against infringing apps. They may also be excluded from discovery services like Play Store recommendations.Google's definition of battery-draining apps centers around Android's "partial wake lock" mechanism. This service allows an app to keep the phone's processor running even while the screen is off. There are logical exceptions where apps do need this: audio playback, location access, etc. But the company apparently sees too many abusing that API for other reasons. And Google wouldn't want people to assume the problem is with the hardware and switch to an iPhone - because then we're talking about money.If you're a developer, Google's technical documentation offers much more detail. For everyone else, keep an eye out for those Play Store labels and consider steering clear of those apps until their devs clean things up.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/google-begins-calling-out-battery-killing-android-apps-170650936.html?src=rss

Google has pledged "at least" $50 million through 2030 on "projects designed to eliminate superpollutants." The company will be joined by a handful of other companies including Amazon and Salesforce in the newly formed Superpollutant Action Initiative.In total, these companies have committed $100 million to the project, hoping to "accelerate the reduction" of superpollutants like methane, black carbon and refrigerant gases. Google says these are responsible for close to half of all planetary warming."Superpollutants are a major part of the equation to limit atmospheric warming. Experts agree that eliminating them where we can is one of the most powerful levers we have to deliver near-term impact, playing a vital and complementary role to removing CO2," said Randy Spock, Google's carbon credits and removals lead. The gases break down faster than CO2 but can trap heat thousands of times more efficiently, and the coalition claims that aggressive action could prevent more than half a degree Celsius of warming by 2050.Alphabet, Google's parent company, reported $132 billion in net income in 2025. Google's five-year, $50 million pledge works out to about three hours of that. The company is also set to spend billions building massive data centers for AI that it claims are more resource conscious than others. So far, Google's AI infrastructure buildout drove an 11 percent rise in the company's total emissions last year.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/google-pledges-roughly-three-hours-of-its-annual-profit-to-fight-climate-change-164808010.html?src=rss

The Canadian government says that OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has agreed to take steps to immediately strengthen safety protocols, according to a report by Wall Street Journal. This follows a mass shooting incident at a high school in which OpenAI flagged the suspect and suspended his account, but did not alert authorities.These changes look to primarily involve law enforcement, with commitments to notify police about potentially suspicious use of ChatGPT. We don't have any confirmation from the company at this time, but Canada's Artificial Intelligence Minister Evan Solomon says he "asked OpenAI to take several actions, which Altman has agreed to do."

Smart ring maker Oura has acquired Doublepoint, a company that specializes in gesture recognition for wearables. The Finnish startup uses smartwatches and wristbands as examples of products that benefit from its technology, but Oura will clearly be looking to incorporate it into its rings, in theory allowing you to control your connected devices with hand movements.Oura said in a press release that the deal sees it inherit an "exceptional team of AI architects and builders from Doublepoint," including Doublepoint's four founders. The newly-acquired company will remain in its native Helsinki, where it will work with Oura's international teams.It added that Doublepoint's expertise in helping devices register subtle hand movements will be key, as nobody wearing a smart ring is going to engage with gesture control if they have to thrash their hand around like a conductor.Oura says it believes that the next generation of wearable AI-powered tech will use a combination of gesture and voice control, and Doublepoint's background in biometric integration with devices will give it an edge in a competitive market.Oura's most recent release is the Oura Ring 4, which Engadget's Daniel Cooper called "the smart ring to beat" in his long-term review last year. He praised the design, improved data collection and app interface, but was disappointed that even using basic hardware features requires a paid subscription.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/wearables/oura-buys-gesture-navigation-startup-doublepoint-163758659.html?src=rss

We've known Apple would follow up its blockbuster film F1: The Movie with live coverage of F1 races in 2026. Now that we're approaching the first grand prix weekend of the year, the company has provided details on what fans can expect to see inside the Apple TV app and beyond.There's already a dedicated F1 channel in the Apple TV app, which is where you'll stream races live when the time comes. You can also watch practice sessions, sprint races and both pre- and post-race coverage. Apple offers a number of additional F1 videos there (I'd recommend watching the one on the new rules) and you'll be able to stream the latest season of Drive To Survive on Apple TV as well.Apple will offer the F1 TV feed as the main broadcast alongside the Sky Sports feed for all races. If you'll recall, ESPN used to show the Sky Sports feed with Sky's commentary team for its coverage of F1. Apple says it'll broadcast every grand prix in 4K (Dolby Vision) with 5.1 audio (no mention of Dolby Atmos).As part of Apple's deal with F1, Apple TV subscribers get F1 TV Premium for the 2026 season. This gives you access to things like onboard cameras, team radios and live telemetry in addition to live coverage of the entire grand prix weekend. So, you can watch races on Apple TV or F1 TV, depending on your app preferences, or use the additional features of F1 TV Premium as a second (or third, etc.) screen setup. Netflix will also broadcast the Canadian Grand Prix in May as part of the deal that brought Drive To Survive to Apple TV.Multi-view for F1 on Apple TVAppleFull replays for all sessions will be available in the Apple TV app as well. Apple will offer a condensed race in 30 minutes replay option too, and the company says it's working to hide spoilers in case users are watching after the race begins or concludes.Apple has cooked up some new features for F1 grands prix as it takes over broadcast rights in the US. When you click on the F1 channel in the Apple TV app, the current grand prix week's content is up top and you have the option to follow F1 so that you get notifications about the various events. Apple will provide a Driver Tracker, Driver Data and dedicated feeds for P1, P2 and P3. You can also watch the driver onboard cameras for each car in the Apple TV app. So, you don't necessarily have to venture out to F1 TV for those things.Apple will provide various Multiview options so you can put the main broadcast next to driver cams and race data. The company will offer some preset configurations, but you can make your own Multiview mix too. If you like Mercedes, for example, you can watch the main feed with driver cameras from Russell and Antonelli right beside it. Apple says Multiview will support up to five feeds at once (one main in the middle with two smaller ones on each side).The Formula 1 channel on Apple TVBilly Steele for EngadgetIf you can only listen to races, you can hear live coverage and commentary in Apple Music through a dedicated radio streaming channel. There are also updated features for Apple News, Apple Sports and Apple Maps, the latter of which will have detailed info for fans attending in-person so they can hopefully avoid any surprises - like road closures - on race day.The first race of the season is in Australia (March 6-8). Practice begins Friday with qualifying on Saturday and the grand prix on Sunday. Or if you live in the US, that will be Thursday night through Saturday night (race begins at 11PM ET).This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/everything-you-need-to-know-about-streaming-f1-on-apple-tv-190600771.html?src=rss

You'd be forgiven for thinking that the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra looks a lot like the last four models. That's because it does, right down to its general design and rear camera layout. But on Samsung's latest flagship phone, some stealthy upgrades are hidden beneath its classic blocky silhouette that might go unnoticed by the casual observer. Those help make this year's release feel like a better deal than its most recent predecessor. It remains rather expensive, starting at the same $1,300 as before, but considering the price of RAM these days, that almost feels like a blessing. So while it won't hit you over the head with monumental changes year over year, it's subtly one of the best Ultras we've gotten in the past half-decade.Design: Back to aluminumAfter dabbling with titanium frames on the last two Ultras, Samsung returned to aluminum for 2026. The company says this makes it easier to color-match the phone's chassis to the Corning Gorilla Armor 2 panels on the front and back, though it's incredibly difficult to see the impact on my black review unit. Elsewhere, the company shaved a few grams off its total weight and a few millimeters off its thickness (7.9mm and 214 grams), but even when directly comparing the new model to last year's S25 Ultra (8.2mm and 218 grams), that difference is basically imperceptible. I almost think the S26 Ultra's extra sleekness was just so that people would stop saying the Z Fold 7 is lighter than Samsung's most premium traditional candybar-style handset.As always, there's a built-in storage slot for Samsung's S-Pen, which is essentially a carbon copy of what we got last year without any functional changes. However, because the phone's corners are more rounded than ever, one small peculiarity is that now there's a right and wrong way to insert it. No matter what you do, the stylus will stay put, but if you don't align the curve on the end of the S-Pen with the shape of the phone's corner, it just doesn't look right.Display: Now with more privacy The Galaxy S26 Ultra's display has the same specs as the previous model, except now it comes with a built-in Privacy Display. Sam Rutherford for Engadget The S26 Ultra's 6.9-inch screen is easily its most undercover upgrade because it sports essentially the same specs as last year. You still get 2,600 nits of peak brightness with a variable 120Hz refresh rate and a max resolution of 3,120 x 1,440. The secret is that with the touch of a button, you can activate Samsung's Privacy Display, which effectively stops others from spying on your screen when viewed from acute angles (both from the side and up and down).When you turn the Privacy Display on and look at the phone less than head-on, everything sort of fades to black. Depending on the angle, you may still see an outline of UI elements and some bright spots depending on your content, but the wider you go, the fainter things get. The way it works is that the phone has two sets of subpixels, narrow and wide, the latter of which get turned off when the feature is active. And if you're really concerned about people snooping on you, there's an extra level called Maximum Privacy Protection that makes almost everything completely go gray, though there are trade-offs for this. Even on maximum protection, you can still make out some faint details. But good luck to anyone trying to glean any usable info while the Galaxy S26 Ultra's Privacy Display is on. Sam Rutherford for Engadget When using the standard Privacy Display mode, there's very little impact on image quality and brightness, so it's not that big of a deal to leave it on all the time. If you look closely, you may notice what appears to be a small drop in resolution, though this requires some serious pixel peeping and good eyesight. But with maximum protection on, there's a noticeable drop in contrast and luminance that, for me, isn't worth the increased privacy. The effect is more pronounced in person, but in this side-by-side comparison, you can still see how Maximum Protection mode has an impact on the S26 Ultra's contrast and color saturation. Sam Rutherford for Engadget Thankfully, there's a third option, which is to have the phone selectively activate Privacy Display under certain conditions. You can have it automatically turn on when you get notifications or open selected apps (like for banking or authenticators), which is what I prefer. The phone can also enable the feature when you need to enter a PIN, pattern or password. The caveat is that this only applies to system-level prompts like your lock screen. Theoretically, there's no reason the S26 Ultra can't do this anytime you're presented with a password or PIN prompt, but every app needs to be optimized properly, so that isn't a thing just yet. Regardless, it's a powerful tool that can prevent people from gleaning sensitive info while you're and about and I really hope it becomes standard inclusion on all premium phones going forward.Performance and software: More speed and AI Apparently this is what Samsung's AI thinks a Pikachu sticker should look should look like. Sam Rutherford for Engadget The main engine powering the S26 Ultra is Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip for Galaxy along with 12GB or 16GB of RAM and up to 1TB of storage. Its biggest strength lies in its improved NPU, which is 39 percent more powerful than the previous generation, paving the way for improved AI-based features. That said, the rest of the processor provides some nice but not especially impressive gains in processing speed. Its CPU boasted 19 percent better performance while its GPU is around 24 percent beefier. In Geekbench 6, this translated to a multi-core score of 11,240 for its CPU (up from 9,828 on the S25 Ultra) and a GPU score of 25,403 (up from 19,863). Granted, it's not like its predecessor ever struggled with performance, but it's still worth noting that this is essentially as fast as an Android phone can get right now.Of course, as we progress deeper into the AI era, Samsung has come up with a boatload of new and improved AI-powered tools as well. The most useful of these is Photo Assist, which serves as a one-stop shop for all your editing and content creation needs. In addition to fixing things like reflections or deleting objects in an image, you can use natural language text prompts to generate completely new elements like hats for your pets or pretty much anything else you can think of. And if that's not enough, there's also Samsung's Creative Studio, which is a playground for making all sorts of fun digital art like wallpapers, stickers and greeting cards. The S26 Ultra's Now Nudge feature uses AI to find and suggest relevant photos when you use the Samsung Keyboard. Sam Rutherford for Engadget Elsewhere, there's also an improved document scanner and a call screener that's better at blocking spam and robocalls. All told, they're welcome upgrades and they work rather well. Samsung even borrowed an idea from Google's Magic Cue with its Now Nudge feature, which can surface relevant photos based on context anytime you're using the Samsung keyboard. Unfortunately, what's arguably the S26 Ultra's coolest new feature, Automated App Actions, isn't available for another week. But the bigger issue is that almost all of these features are things we've seen before on rival devices like the Pixel 10 Pro. While they're nice to have, it's gotten to the point where these tools are more like table stakes for high-end phones nowadays instead of being reasons you might want to upgrade.Cameras: The same sensors with some larger apertures While the S26 Ultra has the same sensors as before, Samsung gave it wider apertures for its main and 5x telephoto cameras. Sam Rutherford for Engadget While the sensors on the S26 Ultra haven't changed since the previous model, Samsung didn't completely forget about photo upgrades. Alongside its 10-megapixel 3x telephoto, 50MP ultra-wide and 12MP selfie cam, its 200MP main cam and 50MP 5x telephoto camera have larger apertures at f/1.4 and f/2.9, respectively (up from f/1.7 and f/3.4). So on top of already being able to take excellent photos during the day, the UItra's primary shooter is noticeably better at night.In a shot of some Transformers in a dimmed room, the S26 Ultra basically matched what I shot with a Pixel 10 Pro - aside from some minor differences in white balance. Details were sharp and Samsung's photo was less noisy, which is due in part to a change in the phone's image processing. But the most impressive example of the Ultra's improved picture quality was when I took a very challenging backlit shot of a Grogu doll, in which the S26 did a better job of exposing Baby Yoda's face compared to the P10 Pro. So even without new sensors, Samsung has managed to make an already great main camera just a bit better.Battery lifeThe Galaxy S26 Ultra features a 5,000mAh battery, just like what we got on the previous model. That means it's largely relying on power efficiency gains from its new chip for improved longevity, which it delivers, but it's not a major leap. On our local video rundown test, the S26 Ultra lasted 30 hours and three minutes, which is only about half an hour longer than before. That said, considering the only phones that have fared better were the OnePlus 15 and 15R, it's hard to be upset about its overall runtime.As for charging, the Ultra has gotten a big leap in speed (assuming you have compatible power adapters) compared to its less expensive siblings. When using a cable, it now supports up to 60 watts versus 45 watts for the S26+ or just 25 watts for the base S26. And it's a similar story when charging wirelessly, with the Ultra now capable of hitting 25 watts when plopped on a pad compared to 20 watts for the S26+ and 15 watts for the S26. The S26 Ultra has significantly faster wired and wireless charging than its less expensive siblings. Though sadly, it still doesn't have a built-in ring for magnetic accessories. Sam Rutherford for Engadget The major annoyance is that Samsung still hasn't given any members of the S26 family a built-in magnetic ring for Qi2 charging or other magnetic accessories. The company claims this was done to help keep the phone as thin as possible, but honestly, I thought we had gotten over the desire for needless sleekness long ago. Sure, you can add that functionality back in by choosing the right case, but that's not a very premium experience and I sincerely hope this is the last time Samsung makes this omission on its flagship phone line.Wrap-upThere's a strange feeling I often get when testing phones. After I got everything updated and set up the way I like, I noticed it even more with the S26 Ultra. The issue is that despite using a brand new device with shiny hardware, better performance and a more refined design, I'm still largely doing the same things and using the same apps as I was before (like Google Maps, Gmail and whatever my go-to mobile games are at the moment). This means my daily flow is basically unchanged from device to device. This better be the last time Samsung skips putting a magnetic ring inside the Galaxy S line. Sam Rutherford for Engadget However, if you're paying attention, you'll notice things like higher framerates while gaming, sharper and more well-exposed photos at night and helpful suggestions like when the phone surfaces relevant photos in the middle of a text conversation. This goes double for the S26 Ultra, whose biggest upgrade - the Privacy Display - is something meant to stop other people from snooping at what you're doing. When it's on, you probably won't even be able to tell, which is kind of the point.There's no doubt that the S26 Ultra is an improvement over last year's phone. It's faster, it takes better low-light photos and thanks to all of its new AI features, the handset feels smarter too. But it takes a discerning eye to spot and feel all these differences, particularly if you're upgrading from a device that's only a year or two old. So while the S26 Ultra remains the top pick as a phone that can do pretty much everything really well, in the grand scheme of things, it's more of a stealthy, undercover update than an eye-catching new crown jewel.

One of the big surprises to come out of Sony's recent State of Play showcase was the announcement of a sequel to 2021's Kena Bridge of Spirits, the impressive debut from indie studio Ember Lab. If you missed the first game and want to catch up before its successor launches on PC and PS5 later this year, it's coming to Switch 2 this spring.The Switch 2 is very much in its port era, owing to publishers seizing the opportunity to take advantage of the new system's popularity and improved graphical grunt. And while it's hard to get too excited about a five-year-old game making its way to the latest Nintendo console, Kena's gorgeous Pixar-lite aesthetic, cute critters and decidedly Zelda-y medley of combat, exploration and puzzle-solving make it a great fit for Switch 2.If you missed it the first time around, Kena: Bridge of Spirits is a third-person action-adventure game that follows the eponymous Kena, a young spirit guide who helps wayward souls on their journey through to the afterlife. It has PS2 energy in the best possible way, and a deceptively deep combat system that will eventually catch you out if you don't pay attention to enemy patterns.While nothing about the game is particularly groundbreaking, Kena is a visual feast, which is unsurprising when you learn about Ember Lab's roots in film animation. I'm quite looking forward to seeing how it looks running on the Switch 2's big, bright handheld display.The Switch 2 version comes with the Anniversary DLC, which features Charmstones, Spirit Guide Trials, new outfits, and various accessibility features. You also get a New Game+ mode with even trickier encounters. It arrives this spring, with Kena: Scars of Kosmora due to launch later in 2026 on PS5 and PC.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/kena-bridge-of-spirits-is-coming-to-nintendo-switch-2-this-spring-132839640.html?src=rss

For an electric car to survive in this incentive-free, tariff-laden, emissions-loving world, it has to be very, very good. It also helps if it's priced right, and looking great doesn't hurt either.Unfortunately for BMW's latest EV, the i3 sedan, we still can't say much about those last two questions. BMW hasn't announced pricing yet, and thanks to some eye-crossing camouflage, it's impossible to know exactly what it looks like, either. But, after a day behind the wheel of a prototype machine sliding it through the Swedish wilds, I can at least confidently confirm that it's shaping up to be a very good indeed.Deja VuIf you're thinking to yourself, "Wait, didn't BMW already have an i3?" You are absolutely right. Back in 2013, BMW released its first mass-market electric car, a little five-door hatchback called the i3. I drove a few versions of it over the years. It was wonderful and novel and earned itself some ardent fans, but it never quite reshaped the motoring world the way that its creators surely hoped.A decade later, BMW's got a new i3 that has the potential to be a far bigger success on the global scale, and it also resets that designation to slot in with the company's already well-established naming scheme. BMW's 3 Series is its iconic sedan, and "i" is the designation for its electric vehicles. The i3, then, should be an electric sedan, and so it is going forward.BMW's i3 prototype on a course in SwedenBMWThis new i3 is built on the Neue Klasse platform, BMW's "new class" architecture that also underpins the iX3 SUV. In developing Neue Klasse, BMW started almost from scratch, developing a whole new suite of technologies in pursuit of a better-driving, faster-charging and more-affordable next generation of EVs.There's a battery pack that's wholly new compared to the company's prior efforts, a cell-to-pack architecture that promises more capacity in a smaller, lighter enclosure. There's a whole new stack of electronics systems offering more power and capability than before. And, there's a completely new styling design language that not everyone will love.The iX3 SUV was the first recipient of all that newness, and the i3 sedan will be the second. Again, we can't pass judgment on its styling just yet, but you can probably get a bit of an idea of what to expect by looking at 2023's Vision Neue Klasse concept.Heart of JoyThat new electronics suite running throughout the Neue Klasse is a huge part of the appeal here. Typically, when buying a new car, you don't worry too much about who did the ABS or the traction control. Those are simply table stakes in modern motoring.However, BMW decided to shake up these pedestrian safety features in the i3 by re-thinking everything from the brake actuators to the electric motor controllers and doing it all in-house. Now, fewer, more powerful chips from Qualcomm and others run all of the car's disparate systems like those together in a system that BMW evocatively calls "Heart of Joy." That makes for a far smoother and more seamless driving experience when the ABS can, for example, talk directly to the stability control.BMW's i3 prototype on a course in SwedenBMWThat's the theory, anyway, and in Sweden this week I got a chance to test that out. I got behind the wheel of what will be the first i3. Called the i3 50 xDrive, it's a dual-motor, all-wheel-drive sedan that produces 463 horsepower and 476 pound-feet of torque.All-wheel drive helps with acceleration, but it's the braking where the Neue Klasse's technology really shines. Thanks to having more finesse over the control of its two electric motors, the Neue Klasse can rely far more on recuperative braking and far less on using the physical brakes. This makes for ultra-smooth, calm stopping, even when driving on glare ice.Accelerating, though, is far more entertaining. Even on extremely low-grip, unpredictable surfaces like a frozen lake, I could just mash my foot to the accelerator and clumsily turn the wheel in the direction I wanted to go. Despite my lack of finesse, the system intelligently applied the brakes on the inside wheel to help get the car to rotate, and automatically cut the power to the electric motors front and rear based on how much grip was available.BMW's i3 prototype on a course in SwedenBMWEven with my foot flat on the accelerator, I was able to navigate tight turns on glare surfaces without having to deploy any fancy ice driving techniques. However, as someone who enjoys deploying such techniques, I was also invited to turn off the car's stability systems and have a little fun.Like this, the BMW turned into an absolute riot. Let loose, the i3 was a very willing drift partner, letting me slide through the corners with wild abandon. It still used just enough of its smarts and control systems to keep me from spinning out when I got a little too eager on the throttle, but it never ruined the fun.Panoramic VisionThis prototype drive was also a chance to sample the i3's Panoramic Vision display in a new environment. As debuted formally at CES back in 2025, Panoramic Vision replaces the standard gauge cluster behind the steering wheel with a massive, windshield-spanning display. It's a little like an ultra-wide heads-up display in that it reflects up from a lengthy display embedded in the dashboard.In pictures, this seems like it will be horribly distracting, since you have six customizable sections of information flashing at you in your line of sight. In practice, though, it's actually quite nice. You can customize those panels to show whatever information you like, from whatever track you're playing to the current vehicle speed to even a disembodied head representing the car's integrated voice assistant. Or, if that's all too much, you can simply disable most of the panels and keep it simple, relying only on the left-most pane to display your speed and other vehicle information.I didn't get to see all of the i3's interior. Since it's still a prototype, BMW kept much of it covered in black fabric. Still, the Panoramic Vision display and the weird central touchscreen that's inclined to the left work together to create a great user experience. I will, though, miss the rotary iDrive knob, which is sadly no more.Wrap-upWe have a little while yet to wait until BMW gives us all the details on the new i3 - its debut is set for March 18 - but from what I experienced in Sweden, it's shaping up extremely well. If BMW gets the pricing right, and if what's hiding under that vinyl camouflage isn't too offensive, this thing has all the makings of a hit.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/bmws-i3-prototype-conquers-the-ice-with-power-and-technology-130000610.html?src=rss

Anthropic is reportedly trying to reach a new deal with the US Defense Department, which could prevent the government from labeling it a supply chain risk. According to Financial Times and Bloomberg, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei has resumed talks with the agency over the use of its AI models. In particular, the publications say that Amodel is having discussions with Emil Michael, the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering.The two of them were trying to work out the contract over the use of Anthropic's models before negotiations broke down and the government soured on the company. The Times reports that they couldn't agree on language that the AI company wanted to see to ensure that its technology will not be used for mass surveillance.In a memo sent to Anthropic staff, Amodei reportedly said that the department offered to accept the company's terms if it deleted a specific phrase about analysis of bulk acquired data." He continued that it was the single line in the contract that exactly matched" the scenario it was most worried about." Anthropic, which first signed a $200 million deal with the department in 2025, refused to comply with the Pentagon's demands. The agency then threatened to cancel its existing contract and to label it a supply chain risk," a designation typically reserved for Chinese companies. President Trump ordered government agencies to stop using Anthropic's technology afterward. However, there's a six-month phase-out period" that reportedly allowed the government to use Anthropic's AI tools to stage an air attack on Iran.Amodei also said in the memo that the messaging OpenAI has been trying to convey is just straight up lies," the Times reports. He hinted, as well, that one of the reasons his company is now on the outs with the government is because he hasn't given dictator-style praise to Trump" like OpenAI's Sam Altman has.If you'll recall, OpenAI announced that it reached an agreement shortly after it came out that Anthropic was having issues with the agency. Its CEO, Sam Altman, said on Twitter that he told the government Anthropic shouldn't be designated as a supply chain risk. He said during an AMA on the social media website that he didn't know the details of Anthropic's contract, but if it had been the same with the one OpenAI had signed, he thought Anthropic should have agreed to it. Anthropic's Claude chatbot rose to the top of Apple's Top Free Apps leaderboard after OpenAI announced its Defense Department contract, beating out ChatGPT.Altman later posted on X that OpenAI will amend its deal with language that explicitly prohibits the use of its AI system on mass surveillance against Americans. When it comes to the military's use of its technology, though, CNBC says that Altman told staffers that the company doesn't get to make operational decisions." In an all-hands meeting, Altman reportedly said: So maybe you think the Iran strike was good and the Venezuela invasion was bad. You don't get to weigh in on that."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/anthropic-is-reportedly-back-in-talks-with-the-defense-department-125045017.html?src=rss

Nothing has announced its latest premium midrange device, the Phone 4a Pro. The company says it's the thinnest full-metal phone on the market, measuring in at 7.95mm. It also looks notably different from the prior A-series phones - and pretty much any of the company's phones to date.It features an aluminum unibody while retaining Nothing's retro-clear hardware design touches, with a clear, redesigned camera unit. Yes, the aggressively protruding circular camera unit of the Phone 3a Pro is gone, replaced with an oblong housing that houses the triple-camera array and a tweaked Glyph Matrix, similar to what debuted on last year's Nothing Phone 3. It also feels incredibly premium - more so than even the company's flagship phones.Despite that, Nothing seems to be strikeinga balance between affordability and wow factor with the Phone 4a Pro. It has a slightly higher price tag ($499) than the 4a and alongside a major hardware redesign, a lot of the improvements here make this phone feel pro" compared to its smaller sibling. This new premium vibe comes at a cost of design excitement, though.It also looks a little like another certain smartphone or two. Don't call it a camera plateau.Image by Mat Smith for EngadgetThe Phone 4a Pro has its own take on the Glyph Matrix, composed of 137 mini-LEDs. That's fewer LEDs than the Nothing Phone 3, but they are 100 percent brighter at around 3000 nits. It supports pretty much all the Glyph toys we enjoyed on last year's Nothing flagship, although the 4a Pro lacks a dedicated Glyph Button, which is a shame. This means in order to hop between toys and modes, you'll have to dig into Glyph settings inside the settings menu - not the existing Glyph menu - in order to flit between them. Honestly, may make me less likely to play around with the Glyph, but I'll have to see after further testing. It's a little odd when there's a circular metal detail on the lower left corner that looks like it could have been a Glyph button. Ah well.The Phone 4a Pro will land in three different colors: silver, black and pink. The pink hue is tastefully subtle. So subtle, in fact, that you'd think it was the silver option. I like the black version.The gigantic camera unit seen on the Phone 3a Pro is no more.Image by Mat Smith for EngadgetThe Phone 4a Pro has a slightly bigger screen than both its predecessor and the 4a, but the real news isn't just the extra fraction of an inch. The 6.83-inch display can now reach 144Hz refresh rates, while it can also top out at 5,000 nits of brightness with HDR content. That makes it up to 66 percent brighter than its predecessor, and it was noticeably easier to read in Nothing's harsh spotlights and daylight.Nothing has further refined the cameras, and the 4a Pro uses the same telephoto sensor as the flagship Phone 3. That's paired with a new 50-megapixel Sony LYT-700C camera sensor that's 24 percent bigger than the 50MP sensor inside the 3a Pro. It's also faster at auto-focus than its predecessor, and seems to more easily lock onto subjects without having to tap on what you want in focus.There's also a new triple 12-bit Image Signal Processor (ISP), which enables up to 140x ultra zoom, like we've seen on Galaxy phones for the last few years. Don't expect to be blown away by those zoom extremes: it seems to work well on the easy-to-guess structures of buildings and patterns, but a 70x zoom range and higher aren't settings I'm going to lean into much.I haven't had time yet to fully scrutinize the 4a Pro's camera, but there's a lot of feature parity with pricier phones. It can capture super-slow 120fps video at full HD, while Action Mode is built directly into the camera app to shoot up to 30 Ultra XDR images in a row. Codeveloped with Google, Ultra XDR images are high-dynamic-range images that capture 13 RAW frames at different exposures and combine them into a single image. In practice, this should offer another way to pull usable shots from challenging low-light or harsh-light environments.Power users may also like new presets, alongside Nothing's own collection of camera filters. There are seven new editing options, letting you tweak (and save) contrast levels or even apply a vignette effect. I'm a fan of the built-in presets, but it's nice to have access to the same camera settings to make and save my own B&W filter.Nothing says you can expect 30 percent improved graphics performance and 27 percent faster CPU speeds, with flagship" LPDDR5X memory, which makes it 100 percent faster than last year's 3a Pro. Improvements to the chipset and memory speed weren't immediately noticeable during my time seeing the device.Image by Mat Smith for EngadgetNothing continues to refine its own OS skin, but it's still a refreshing, different take on the Android interface you're used to. And if you're not a fan, you can turn it back to a more stock look. Based on user feedback, there are new size options for the home screen widgets and a new custom lock screen. It may be due to the more powerful processor, but both the 4a Pro and the base 4a seem to have smoother animation flourishes when opening and switching between apps or swiping across content.New AI software includes a formal launch of Essential Search, able to scour the entire device for information, images, documents, apps and more. The 4a series include the first Nothing devices to include cloud access for the still useful Essential Space app, housing your voice notes, screengrabs, text notes, and more. This means, hopefully, I can transition everything across from my Nothing Phone 3. (Or even between the Phone 4a and 4a Pro.)Image by Mat Smith for EngadgetIt's a different look for Nothing, and the 4a Pro's price (and timing) will pit it against both the Pixel 10a (priced the same) and base flagship devices from Samsung. The Phone 4a series pre-orders are open now at nothing.tech and other retailers, with sales of the Phone 4a Pro starting March 27. Expect our full review in the coming weeks.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/nothing-phone-4a-pro-hands-on-price-launch-date-123053485.html?src=rss

While music streaming apps like Bandcamp, Spotify and Deezer have taken steps to inform users about AI-generated content, we haven't heard much out of Apple Music in that regard. However, Apple Music has now introduced "Transparency Tags" designed to show listeners if any elements were generated in whole or part by AI. The catch is that Apple is leaving it up to labels and distributors to create those tags, according to an Apple newsletter to industry partners seen by Music Business Worldwide.."Proper tagging of content is the first step in giving the music industry the data and tools needed to develop thoughtful policies around AI, and we believe labels and distributors must take an active role in reporting when the content they deliver is created using AI," Apple wrote, calling it a concrete first step toward transparency around artificial intelligence.Streaming platforms already use metadata tags for things like song and album titles, genre and the name of the artist. The new tags will now identify any artwork, tracks, compositions and music videos created in whole or in part by AI.However, Apple's new system requires labels and distributors to opt in and manually flag their use of AI, a system that's similar to what Spotify is doing. On top of that, Apple has no apparent enforcement mechanism for AI content.By contrast, other music platforms including Deezer and Bandcamp are using in-house AI-detection tools to flag content whether the distributor opts in or not. Deezer disclosed in January 2026 that it receives over 60,000 fully AI-generated tracks every day, double the number it saw in September 2025. Synthetic content, also called "AI slop," has accounted for 13.4 million tracks on its platform, Deezer added.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/music/apple-music-can-now-flag-ai-content-but-only-if-distributors-elect-to-label-it-121521873.html?src=rss

Nothing is back with two new smartphones, the entry-level Phone 4a and the mid-range Phone 4a Pro. With the base 4a in particular, there's no shortage of substantial hardware upgrades since the 3a, even if the design doesn't quite stand out as much. This year, that's apparently the role of the Nothing Phone 4a Pro. That said, the base 4a's two new color options (blue and pink) are gorgeous additions to the usual monochrome duo of white and black.There have been many upgrades since 2025's Phone 3a. It comes with IP64 dust and water resistance, and is also physically tougher: Nothing says it has increased bend resistance by 34 percent, but I always considered all of the company's phones pretty solid. The display also gets Gorilla Glass 7i, something I've wanted to see Nothing improve on its cheapest phones. My Phone 2a's screen got pretty messed up when I tussled with my keys a few years ago. The 6.78-inch display is also 23 percent brighter than its predecessor, reaching 1,600 nits during outdoor viewing.The main upgrades are centered around the cameras, marking a major improvement over what the Phone 3a last year. A new tetraprism periscope telephoto camera extends to up to 3.5x optical zoom, further than the base Phone 3a.Image by Mat Smith for EngadgetNothing says the main camera, with a new Samsung GN9 50-megapixel sensor, captures up to 64 percent more light than similarly sized camera sensors. The company has also upgraded its computational photography and tone mapping, which help it deliver on a new 70x ultra zoom mode, which beefs up your images with AI smarts. While it's unlikely to be a regular feature for me, it's still an option. It works well with straight lines and architecture, but don't expect faces and nuanced detail at 70x zoom. But hey, sometimes you want that up-close picture of an iconic landmark. Fortunately, you'll get up to a 7x lossless zoom by combining the 3.5x optical zoom with sensor cropping, which works well.I've been testing the Phone 4a for a few days - because I can't get enough phones - and noticed that photo image quality is noticeably better compared to the Phone 3a. Images have less noise and more detail, with the Phone 4a being far more capable in poor lighting conditions.Image by Mat Smith for EngadgetThe Phone 4a has a 1.5K (1,224 * 2,720) display, up from the full HD display (1,920 * 1,080) on last generation's phone. It supports up to 120Hz refresh rates and has a peak brightness of 4,500 nits for HDR content. That resolution boost means Nothing's meticulously designed UI and icons look sharper and everything is easier to see when using the 4a in the bright spring sunlight.Nothing says the new Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 processor offers 10 percent better power efficiency, but what will make the Phone 4a go the distance is more likely the 5,080mAh battery - the biggest yet in Nothing's midrange phones. Even the storage has been upgraded, with 47 percent faster read and 380 percent faster write speeds. I almost immediately clocked the improvement while attempting some light video editing and installing a few games.This year's Glyph system has turned into a Glyph Bar. It's made up of 63 mini-LEDs in seven square lights in a row. These top out at 3500 nits, which is 40 percent brighter than the Phone 3a's Glyph Interface. Over the years, I go through waves of loving Nothing's take on notifications through to forgetting they're there. Nothing is gradually adding more utility each year, and it'll double as a notification tracker for a few select apps, like Uber, indicating how far away your ride is. The Glyph Bar can apparently double up as a fill light, although I couldn't get that to work on my pre-release sample. I'll update this story when I can test it out. Likewise, Nothing's Playground of fan-made widgets and mini-apps isn't entirely compatible with the 4a - at least not yet.Image by Mat Smith for EngadgetThe Nothing Phone 4a is an upgrade over its predecessor in every way - and the improvements are tangible, and I noticed them almost immediately - something that can be challenging with other phone refreshes. The display is crisper, as are the photos and video it can capture.Like previous Nothing phones, despite the global launch," this phone won't be headed to the US. However, in the UK, starting at 349 (roughly $467), it's only marginally more expensive than its predecessor and you get a lot more bang for your buck. It's also a good chunk of change cheaper than the $500 Pixel 10a. For those looking for an eye-catching, capable phone at a similar price, the Phone 4a's biggest competition may be its bigger brother, the $499 Phone 4a Pro. Expect our hands-on for Nothing's other phone very soon. The Phone 4a is open for preorders now at nothing.tech, going on sale starting March 13 next week.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/nothing-phone-4a-hands-on-price-launch-date-111533547.html?src=rss