Did you think Nintendo would simply only release remakes and second-tier games until the Switch's successor finally comes along? Guess again. During Tuesday's Nintendo Direct stream, the company revealed a brand-new Legend of Zelda game. Nintendo is making many fans' long-held dreams come true here, as you'll get to play as Zelda herself in a Legend of Zelda title (as opposed to something like Super Smash Bros. Ultimate).The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom opens where most Zelda games finish, with Link defeating Ganon. But just as he frees Princess Zelda, our usual hero is sucked through a rift into an alternate dimension. That flips the script, as it's now down to Zelda to rescue Hyrule (and her tunic-wearing cohort too, I suppose).Like the best Zelda games, this one's played in a top-down perspective and it borrows the art style of the Link's Awakening remake. Series producer Eiji Aonuma said his team wanted to create a new gameplay style for a Zelda game too.Rather than wielding a sword, Zelda's main tool is called a trirod. With this, she can copy many items and use these "echoes" to navigate the world. This brings some of the sandbox puzzle-solving elements of Tears of the Kingdom to Echoes of Wisdom. In combat, you can hurl echoed items at enemies, and even create echoes of monsters to fight for Zelda.You won't have to wait too long to get your hands on the game and try all of this out for yourself. The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom is coming to the Nintendo Switch on September 26. A Hyrule-themed Nintendo Switch Lite will be available on the same day.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-legend-of-zelda-echoes-of-wisdom-will-finally-let-you-play-as-zelda-herself-143612318.html?src=rss
Nintendo kicked off its latest Direct showcase with quite a surprise. The company has revived the Mario and Luigi RPG series with the first new entry in nearly nine years. The upcoming title is called Mario and Luigi: Brothership, and that title just about melted my darn heart when I saw it pop up.The reveal trailer shows Mario Mario and Luigi Mario working together to explore islands, overcome obstacles and stomp out enemies. They'll be able to use "evolved bros moves" to take out bad guys and as in previous entries, it seems like you'll control both brothers simultaneously. It all looks extremely adorable. Mario and Luigi: Brothership is coming to Nintendo Switch on November 7.The last entirely new entry in the series came in 2015 with Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam on the 3DS, a game that also drew inspiration from Paper Mario. Mario and Luigi: Brothership is the first game in the series made for the Switch, though Superstar Saga is available via Switch Online + Expansion Pack. It's not clear which studio is developing the latest game - Nintendo has been keeping strangely quiet about such details of its first-party games recently - but original studio AlphaDream shut down in 2019.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mario-and-luigi-brothership-is-coming-to-nintendo-switch-this-november-142509633.html?src=rss
Sony released the Playstation Portal late last year as a way to remotely play titles from your PlayStation 5. The device - which we frankly called "a baffling handheld for no one but Sony diehards" - relies entirely on a solid Wi-Fi connection. Well, as we all know, even in the year 2024, that can be challenging to find and annoying to connect to. Sony is attempting to streamline this process with a software update that should allow you to connect to Wi-Fi from a phone or tablet.Starting June 19, you should see a QR code come up on the PlayStation Portal after attempting to connect to a public Wi-Fi network, such as when it requires more than a password (like a sign-in screen). You can scan that on your device and use it to connect more easily. However, Sony is careful to state that it will work for "a range" of public Wi-Fi networks and that the device requires at least 5Mbps to work, but ideally at least 15Mbps.This feature comes alongside an update to the PlayStation Portal's touchpad which provides new visual feedback. Plus, you can now display the device's battery percentage at the top right corner of your screen.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/playstation-portal-update-aims-to-make-connecting-to-public-wi-fi-easier-141304117.html?src=rss
Amazon workers have taken another step towards fighting for worker protections. The Amazon Labor Union (ALU) is teaming up with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT), a century-plus-old labor union active in the United States and Canada. The duo announced the partnership in a joint statement on X (formerly Twitter) following a vote that saw 98.3 percent of ALU members in favor of it.
Black Myth: Wukong is gorgeous. It's built up a lot of momentum, feeding trailer after gorgeous trailer, and at Summer Game Fest this year, I finally got to play it. Is it just a gorgeous tech demo with a heavy dose of Chinese mythology or your next gaming challenge?A Chinese folk story, Journey to the West, inspired Game Science Studio's action RPG. You play as the destined one," a monkey hero wielding an extending bo-staff and a handful of magic spells. I was given the higher-specced (though undisclosed) PC rig to play on, ensuring all that Unreal Engine 5 eye candy had a fighting chance of running smoothly. While less than an hour with a game won't give the definitive answer, Wukong ran smoothly despite my chaotic play style. The game has been held up as a major example of next-gen graphical tech, so I'm relieved it didn't chug during my demo.I played a relatively early part of the game, starting with the Forest of Wolves and the Guanyin Temple. I fought my way through several typical wolf-humanoid enemies, a bigger mid-level boss and then a giant wolf creature. On the way, I unlocked the ability to transform into one of the monsters, summoning their flaming weapon and opening up new attacks and skills. Midway through the demo, an old man with a head like a ginseng root gave me an immobilization spell with its own cooldown meter and offered me a brief reprieve against more dangerous foes, like the final giant wolf. He also briefly transformed me into an insect, able to fly over enemies' heads. This was fun but will apparently only be available at certain points in the game - you won't be able to dodge all the fights.However, you won't progress (or even stay alive long) unless you get a handle on the basics. Attacks are separated into light and heavy, with the ability to charge the heavy attack for even stronger blows. Given how stamina drains during attacks, you'll need to keep on top of defense, too, with jumps and dodges. Dodge perfectly, and time slows a little, an extra illusion of yourself appears and you get to pull a few extra moves before an enemy realizes what happened.As you progress, you earn points to unlock new skills from a talent tree, which teases three staff styles to switch between. I unlocked the pillar' style, so my character could vault up to the top of his staff and grow' it by holding the strong attack button. This way, you avoid ground-level attacks. But if enemies hit your staff, your stamina (but not your health) takes a hit.Releasing the button unleashes an extra strong move that seems to daze enemies if it interrupts their attack. It's high risk, high reward and, like the best action RPGs, there's nothing more satisfying than nailing the timing and move choice. Wukong's battle system means you can't just spam attacks and dodge rolls, as both burn through a stamina bar, which sits next to your health bar. The destined one also carries a rechargeable health potion, but he has to pause to use it. More risk and reward: If you don't use it in a timely way, you'll die and get reincarnated a few minutes down the mountain and have to face (or run past) most of the enemies you'd already dispatched - the fundamental backbone of soulslike games like Wukong. The battle system seemed responsive, and the biggest challenges came from groups of warriors: I had to combine evasion with prioritizing, say, the archer, before other enemies.Game ScienceIt's all elevated by how good the environment looks, the bizarre monster design and the quiet, unsettling soundtrack. The giant wolf boss I encountered was small potatoes compared to other enemies the developer teased in earlier trailers - I want to fight that dragon. While the protagonist was entirely taciturn during my demo, Game Science, the studio behind the game, says the player will uncover the stories behind various characters, understanding their love and hate, greed and anger, past lives and present." I'm intrigued to see how that goes.Black Myth: Wukong is, finally, almost here. It launches on PC and PS5 on August 20, 2024.Catch up on all of the news from Summer Game Fest 2024 right here!This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/black-myth-wukong-hands-on-preview-sgf-2024-133059684.html?src=rss
It's a great day because our favorite smartwatch for 2024 is back on sale. That's right, the 41mm Apple Watch Series 9 is currently down to $299 from $399 - a 25 percent discount. The only catch is that the deal is available on just the (Product) RED model. However, you can get the small to medium or medium to large size wrist options. The Apple Watch Series 9 is a fantastic option for anyone who wants a reliable, multi-faceted smartwatch. It scored a 92 in our review thanks to new features like Double Tap and Raise To Speak. Double Tap works when you bring your index finger and thumb (on the same side as the watch) together twice. This action lets you answer calls or reply with your voice, among other functions. Raise To Speak enables you to activate Siri by bringing your wrist up - plus, Siri is now on-device, meaning you can use it while offline. The Series 9 also has up to 18 hours of battery life (36 in low power mode), blood oxygen and ECG apps and up to 2000 nits on its display. If you're looking for something with even more oomph, then check out the Apple Watch Ultra 2. The top-of-the-line model is currently on sale for $719, down from $799 - a 10 percent discount. Sure, it's still a much bigger chunk of money, but you can decide if it's worth features like 36 hours of battery life (72 in low power mode), a 49mm case size and up to 3000 nits on the display. Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-apple-watch-series-9-is-back-on-sale-for-299-132324844.html?src=rss
At MWC earlier this year, Google announced Gemini's integration with Messages, giving you a way to access the chatbot from within the texting app. The feature was limited to newer Pixel and Samsung Galaxy phones at launch, but now Google has updated its Help page to say that all you need to access it is an "Android device with 6GB of RAM or higher." 9to5Google first reported the change, along with the news that the feature is launching in India.At the moment, Google Messages only supports Gemini in the English language in 164 countries where it's available.The only exception is Canada, where it also supports French. (If you're curious, the feature hasn't made its way to France just yet.) Google says it's "working hard" to make it available in more languages and more territories in the future. But for now, your phone has to be set to English - or French, if you're in Canada - if you want to be able to get Gemini to draft messages, plan events or even just chat with you to pass time.Take note that you also have to be 18 or over and be using Google Messages with an account you manage on your own to be able to access the feature. You'll also need to make sure your RCS chats is switched on. To access Gemini, simply open the Messages app and start a new conversation to see the option to talk with the chatbot.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gemini-in-google-messages-now-works-on-any-android-phone-130034890.html?src=rss
Amazon launched its RxPass in 2023, giving Prime customers access to generic medications that treat more than 80 common health conditions for $5 a month on top of a Prime subscription. Now, Amazon is expanding the program to Prime members on Medicare insurance, opening eligibility up to an additional 50 million customers, the company wrote in a press release.As before, members get unlimited access to 60 generic medications and shipping - along with 24/7 access to a pharmacist - for a flat monthly $5 fee. Same-day delivery is offered in nine major cities.If you're a Medicare user who takes at least one medication, you could save up to $70 per year, and even more for two or more medications, according to Amazon Pharmacy VP John Love. The company estimates that if every eligible Prime user signed up for the service, it could save Medicare $2 billion per year and reduce customer out-of-pocket spending."For some of the Medicare population, the mobility feature can be very compelling. If you don't have easy access to a car or easy access to a retail pharmacy, the ability to get meds delivered is compelling," said Love.Amazon competes against other pharmacies including CVS, Walgreens and rival retailers like Costco. Medications included in RxPass are shown here and when searching, you'll see the RxPass logo next to eligible medications. Amazon also offers discounts up to 80 percent on generic drugs, and 40 percent on brand names.However, the program may not cost-effective if you need medications not included in the 60 offered by Amazon, according to Clark.com. RxPass also requires Amazon Prime, which costs $139 a year or $15 per month, on top of the $5 fee.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/amazons-affordable-pharmacy-program-rxpass-opens-up-to-medicare-users-with-prime-123026092.html?src=rss
Another EV manufacturer bites the dust with Fisker officially declaring bankruptcy. The US-based startup filed for Chapter 11 protections late Monday, June 17, with plans to restructure its debt and sell its assets. Unfortunately, this means the Alaska EV with a designated cowboy hat space will likely never come to fruition."We are proud of our achievements, and we have put thousands of Fisker Ocean SUVs in customers' hands," a Fisker spokesperson stated. "But like other companies in the electric vehicle industry, we have faced various market and macroeconomic headwinds that have impacted our ability to operate efficiently."The news is not exactly surprising, as Fisker had already halted investments in future models, like the Alaska EV. That decision came alongside concerning figures in Fisker's February release of its preliminary Q4 and 2023 earnings. Among them was its plan to lay off 15 percent of its employees - about 200 people - as it attempted a switch to a Dealer Partner model. The startup had claimed it was in talks with "a large automaker" for an influx of cash and production support.Fisker also revealed in the report that it had produced 10,193 units of its sole EV available, the Ocean SUV, in 2023 but only delivered 4,929 vehicles. Plus, there was the fact that, despite Fisker's fourth-quarter revenue increasing to $200.1 million from the previous quarter's $128.3 million, the company still had a gross margin of negative 35 percent.The decision to file for Chapter 11 protections adds Fisker to the ranks of other EV startups, such as Volta Trucks and Lordstown Motors. The two companies filed for bankruptcy last year in Sweden and the United States, respectively.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/fisker-is-the-latest-ev-startup-to-declare-bankruptcy-123056157.html?src=rss
It's time for another Nintendo Direct, where the company teases, hypes and previews its upcoming slate of games. You can watch the June Nintendo Direct right here today at 10AM ET.Nintendo says today's stream will focus on games coming in the second half of 2024. We'll likely hear about the remastered Luigi's Mansion 2 HD, which arrives on June 27, and Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition, set for July 18. Of course, we'll likely see some surprises as well.One thing we can rule out in advance is news about the Nintendo Switch successor. Last month, the company finally confirmed that it will unveil its next console by March 2025. However, Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa quickly dashed any hopes that we'll hear about it in today's Direct. And the stream's YouTube description box reiterates that as plainly as possible: There will be no mention of the Nintendo Switch successor during this presentation."So, Nintendo clearly wants us to think about one of the last waves of games for the Switch before we start drooling over new hardware. Let's see what it has in store.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/watch-the-next-nintendo-direct-here-at-10am-et-120054935.html?src=rss
Google's DeepMind artificial intelligence laboratory is working on a new technology that can generate soundtracks, even dialogue, to go along with videos. The lab has shared its progress on the video-to-audio (V2A) technology project, which can be paired with Google Veo and other video creation tools like OpenAI's Sora. In its blog post, the DeepMind team explains that the system can understand raw pixels and combine that information with text prompts to create sound effects for what's happening onscreen. To note, the tool can also be used to make soundtracks for traditional footage, such as silent films and any other video without sound.DeepMind's researchers trained the technology on videos, audios and AI-generated annotations that contain detailed descriptions of sounds and dialogue transcripts. They said that by doing so, the technology learned to associate specific sounds with visual scenes. As TechCrunch notes, DeepMind's team isn't the first to release an AI tool that can generate sound effects - ElevenLabs released one recently, as well - and it won't be the last. "Our research stands out from existing video-to-audio solutions because it can understand raw pixels and adding a text prompt is optional," the team writes.While the text prompt is optional, it can be used to shape and refine the final product so that it's as accurate and as realistic as possible. You can enter positive prompts to steer the output towards creating sounds you want, for instance, or negative prompts to steer it away from the sounds you don't want. In the sample below, the team used the prompt: "Cinematic, thriller, horror film, music, tension, ambience, footsteps on concrete.The researchers admit that they're still trying to address their V2A technology's existing limitations, like the drop in the output's audio quality that can happen if there are distortions in the source video. They're also still working on improving lip synchronizations for generated dialogue. In addition, they vow to put the technology through "rigorous safety assessments and testing" before releasing it to the world.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/google-deepminds-new-ai-tech-will-generate-soundtracks-for-videos-113100908.html?src=rss
The US Surgeon General, Vivek Murthy, says social media should come with warning labels, writing in The New York Times that social media is an important contributor" to the teen mental health crisis. Last year, he issued an advisory making similar arguments, saying social media posed a profound risk" to teen mental health. In his latest op-ed, Murthy cited a study showing higher social media use was associated with an increased risk of anxiety and depression, as well as a survey where almost half of teens reported social media makes them feel worse about their bodies."He also noted warning labels alone wouldn't make social media safer - I mean, people still smoke - but would help better inform everyone. There is no seatbelt for parents to click, no helmet to snap in place... there are just parents and their children, trying to figure it out on their own, pitted against some of the best product engineers and most well-resourced companies in the world."He'll need support from Congress to make this happen, however. Cooperation in US politics has not been common this decade. However, there has been recent bipartisan support to curtail tech companies' powers - look at the TikTok saga.- Mat SmithGet this delivered daily, direct to your inbox. Subscribe right here!The biggest stories you might have missedThe next Nintendo Direct takes place later todayMcDonald's pauses AI-powered drive-thru voice ordersNeopets is backThe US has sued Adobe over its awful subscription rulesTikTok's genAI avatars are based on real peopleMaking them even creepier.TikTokOh, speak of the devil. TikTok has announced its new AI-created digital avatars for both creators and brands on the app.According to TikTok, the AI personas should make it easier for creators and businesses to create branded content with a human feel" - even if that human feel is an uncomfortable stranger staring at you from a bus stop across the road. There are two kinds of avatars: stock avatars based on paid actors and custom avatars based on existing creators and brand spokespeople. As Karissa Bell puts it, they give M3GAN vibes. At least, the company's own rules require this kind of content to have prominent disclosures.Continue reading.Logitech made a 3D stylus for Meta Quest headsetsThe $130 MX Ink will arrive in September.Logitech has unveiled a mixed reality stylus for Meta Quest headsets - but not the Quest Pro. The MX Ink helps users craft more precise designs and illustrations - although I'm not sure how many pro-level artists are using consumer-grade VR headsets... But hey, maybe it will give Sony some competition.Continue reading.Nikon's Z6 III is the first mirrorless camera with a partially stacked' sensorExpect high shooting speeds.NikonNikon's $2,500 Z6 III has the world's first partially stacked" 24.5-megapixel (MP) sensor. That allows for high-speed shooting in features like RAW video and faster autofocus and both photo and video modes. In short, better than the several-years-old Z6 II. So, er, what is a partially stacked sensor? They're rare (and expensive), having so far only appeared on Sony's A1 and Nikon's own Z8 and Z9. Circuits cover the entire sensor, so it can read pixel data far more quickly than regular CMOS sensors. On the Z6 II, circuits cover only the top and bottom parts of the sensor. So it's faster than normal CMOS sensors, but cheaper than stacked ones.Continue reading.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-morning-after-us-surgeon-general-says-social-media-needs-warning-labels-like-cigarettes-111538368.html?src=rss
It's the dawn of a new era in Microsoft's eyes as the first wave of Copilot+ PCs are now available as of June 18. This "new class of Windows PCs," as Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella describes them, contains hardware designed to run as many generative AI processes locally as possible, rather than having to rely on data centers. These laptops all have an Arm-based Snapdragon chipset from Qualcomm that includes a neural processing unit (NPU) to handle such tasks. Microsoft has stipulated that Copilot+ PCs need to have at least 40 TOPs (tera operations per second) of NPU performance, and 16GB of RAM and 256GB of storage at minimum. The systems each have a dedicated Copilot button on the keyboard and they're all slated to have strong battery life. These Copilot+ PCs could really change how we interact with computers, bringing natural language nuance to a bevy of everyday tasks. A new Windows 11 layer includes dozens of deeply integrated AI models. These can handle all manner of processes including automated photo restoration, real-time captioning and translations for live and pre-recorded video, graphics upscaling for games, image generation, text summaries and much, much more. One highly touted feature will be missing from most Copilot+ PCs at the outset, however. Microsoft has decided to postpone the broad rollout of Recall. The idea behind this feature is to help you find anything you've ever accessed on your computer, such as a web page, document, email, chat or image. To make this work, Windows needs to take snapshots of your activity every few seconds and add these to a Recall timeline. It didn't take long for privacy advocates to criticize the feature. Microsoft backtracked to a certain degree by making Recall opt-in and adding extra layers of encryption. Just a few days before the public debut of Copilot+ PCs though, Microsoft took a further step back by announcing that recall would only be available in the Windows Insider Program at first. The company hopes to receive feedback from more testers before rolling out Recall to all eligible Copilot+ PCs. That said, many Copilot+ PCs are now available and Microsoft plans to roll out the announced features gradually in the coming months. Dell, Acer and HP are among the first third-party manufacturers to build Copilot+ PCs, though Microsoft has some of its own. Let's take a look at the first laptops to carry the new label. Surface Laptop Engadget The new Surface Laptop was the first Copilot+ PC detailed at a Microsoft event held in May. The updated PC has all of the AI bells and whistles you would expect, as it's a first-party device. The Surface Laptop's touch display can hit 600 nits of brightness, with availability in 13.8- and 15-inch options, and there's a full HD camera integrated into the bezel. Microsoft says the laptop is 80 percent faster than the previous generation, with a battery that can get up to 22 hours per charge. There's the Copilot key, of course, as well as a haptic touchpad. The Surface Laptop starts at just $1,000. Surface Pro Engadget Microsoft has dropped its old numerical naming convention for Surface hybrid devices. Based on previous models, the latest version should be called the Surface Pro 10, but it's called just the Surface Pro. Microsoft says the new Surface Pro is a whopping 90 percent faster than the Surface 9, which was already fairly quick. There's also an OLED version that boasts a near-infinite" contrast ratio between deep blacks and brighter colors. The company also brags that the front-facing camera is the best it has ever created, with fantastic low-light performance. The rear-facing camera can capture 4K video. The new Flex keyboard design works whether or not it's physically attached to the 2-in-1, so you can position things however you want. Other features include a customizable haptic touchpad, Wi-Fi 7 and increased multi-monitor support. The new Surface Pro starts at $1,000. Acer Swift 14 AI Acer This is Acer's Copilot+ PC spin on its line of Swift-branded laptops. This laptop features a 14.5-inch, 2.5K touch display, Wi-Fi 7, up to 32GB of RAM and up to 1TB of solid-state storage. All of this is stuffed into a quite fetching metal chassis that weighs 1.36 kg (3 lbs). Acer is also promising a battery life of up to 26 hours. The Acer Swift 14 AI will be available in July, with a starting price of $1,100. HP Omnibook X HP HP has revived its once-iconic Omnibook line of laptops and updated it for the age of AI. The Omnibook X ships with the Snapdragon X Elite CPU, with up to 12 cores and a top speed of 3.4 GHz. The Qualcomm Hexagon NPU powers all of those AI bells and whistles and the Adreno GPU handles the visual side of things. You can spec out this laptop with up to 32GB of RAM and up to 2TB of solid-stage storage. The Omnibook X has a multitouch-enabled 14-inch, 2.2K display, dual speakers with HP Audio Boost technology and up to Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4. The system is available now for a starting price of $1,150. You can easily spot HP AI PCs thanks to a new helix-shaped logo. HP EliteBook Ultra G1q HP The Omnibook X isn't the only Copilot+ PC that HP has announced. The company also unveiled the business-focused EliteBook Ultra G1q. This laptop also uses the Snapdragon X Elite CPU, along with an NPU capable of more than 40 TOPs. That means it should whiz through AI tasks at a rapid clip. The new EliteBook Ultra can do all of the typical chatbot/digital assistant stuff, but the Poly Camera Pro software now runs on the NPU, so you won't draw power from the CPU when using tools like background blur and virtual backgrounds during video calls. This PC also includes premium endpoint security to defend against phishing attempts and malware attacks at the firmware level. There's a 14-inch, 2.2K touch display and a battery that charges to 50 percent in just 30 minutes. You'll be stuck with 16GB of soldered-on RAM, however, and the storage maxes out at 1TB. The EliteBook Ultra G1q is available now and it starts at $1,700. Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x Engadget/Sam Rutherford The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x features the Snapdragon X Elite chip, and a 14-inch screen that covers 100 percent of the DCI-P3 color gamut and delivers up to 500 nits of brightness. The bezels are thin, there's a quad-mic setup and it has a starting weight of 2.82 lbs. Lenovo even managed to fit in cooling fans. There's also a 70Wh battery that should easily last a full work day (unless you're playing games or editing a lot of video). The Yoga Slim 7x starts at $1,300. The company has another AI PC coming, the ThinkPad T14s Gen 6. This also features a beefy NPU processor for AI tasks. Samsung Galaxy Book4 Edge Series Samsung The Galaxy Book series is getting an AI-centric refresh. The Samsung Galaxy Book4 Edge series comes in a few varieties, with screen sizes ranging from 14 inches to 16 inches. They all feature AMOLED display panels with 3K resolution, with a refresh rate of up to 120Hz. The systems run on Snapdragon X Elite processors. Each version also includes a HDMI 2.1 output, two USB-C ports and a 3.5mm headphone jack. In addition, the 16-inch model boasts a USB-A port, a microSD card reader and a number pad. There's a pro version available with the most powerful, 3.8GHz Snapdragon X Elite variant and 1TB of storage (rather than 512GB), though only if you opt for the 16-inch format. These laptops start at $1,350. ASUS Vivobook S 15 ASUS This ultrathin 15.6-inch laptop is powered by the Snapdragon X Elite processor and includes a collection of AI-centric apps developed by ASUS. The AiSense camera feature detects when someone is in front of the display and dims the screen when they look away to preserve juice. This is also used to automatically lock and unlock the computer. This Vivobook is also the first ASUS laptop to feature StoryCube, which is a proprietary AI assistant that helps to manage all digital assets." As for standard specs, it has a 15.6-inch OLED display, with a 3K resolution and 120 Hz refresh rate. There's a Harman Kardon-certified audio system with multi-dimensional Dolby Atmos sound, a solid array of ports and a 70Wh battery with the promise of over 18 hours of use on a single charge. You can outfit these laptops with up to 1TB of internal storage and up to 32GB of RAM. It's surprising the company didn't have a Zenbook ready to go here, given last year's model went pretty hard for AI. A Whole Bunch of Dell PCs Dell Dell is diving in head-first here, as it has already lined up at least five Copilot+ PCs. First of all, there's an AI-centric refresh of the XPS 13 with a Snapdragon X Elite chip. This laptop includes a sleek, minimalist design with a machined aluminum exterior. There's a touch function row that toggles between media controls and function keys, and an option for a 3K touch display. You can stuff up to 2TB of SSD storage and 64GB of memory into this model. The latest XPS 13 starts at $1,300 and it's available now. The company has also refreshed its Inspiron line of laptops. The Inspiron 14 and Inspiron 14 Plus both feature Snapdragon X Plus processors. The Inspiron 14 Plus looks to be a bit more powerful on the CPU side of things, with 10 cores and speeds up to 3.4GHz. The latest Inspiron 14 Plus starts at $1,100. Dell will release pricing and availability information for the standard Inspiron 14 Copilot+ PC in the coming months. For enterprise customers, Dell will have the Latitude 5455 and the Latitude 7455, which are offshoots of the current Latitude 5450 and 7450 notebooks. The big change here is that both new models will be powered by Snapdragon X Plus chips, with the 7455 offering an option for the flagship Snapdragon X Elite. The 7450 features a 360-degree 2-in-1 design and is being touted as the thinnest Latitude laptop ever." We'll get pricing and availability informaton on these later this year. What about other PC companies? These are all of the big hardware announcements from May's Microsoft Surface and Copilot event, but they're only the first batch of Copilot+ PCs. More are certain to be on the way. This is, after all, the decade of AI... so they say.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/here-are-all-of-the-just-announced-copilot-pcs-with-snapdragon-x-chips-184825090.html?src=rss
When I'm traveling, a portable mouse is a must. However, I've never really felt the same way about keyboards, because most portable options are still too big or are saddled with some major compromises in the name of lightness. But with the Keys-To-Go 2, Logitech has managed to create a super sleek typing accessory that disappears into your bag and can be paired with almost any device you can think of. Design and features Those who like traveling light can always opt for something like an iPad Pro or Surface Pro, which can be paired with their own dedicated detachable keyboards. The issue is that those devices aren't really much smaller or lighter than an equivalent laptop. But with the Keys-To-Go 2 measuring just 7.8 ounces and a third of an inch at its thickest point, you get a truly pint-sized companion that's perfect for pairing with smaller devices like an iPad Mini or my personal favorite, a foldable phone. Obviously, a keyboard this thin doesn't have a ton of space for fancy switches. But Logitech somehow found enough room for 1.1mm of key travel. When combined with rubber domes beneath the keys, you end up with a typing experience that's not that far off from what you get on a modern MacBook. Granted, actuation is a bit softer and spongier, but on something this small, it's understandable. I also appreciate that despite its size, the Keys-To-Go 2 still features a full row of productivity shortcuts for stuff like volume, brightness, play/pause and even Logitech's signature emoji key. That last one feels right at home when you're using the keyboard with a phone or tablet. You even get three Easy-Switch keys that allow you to change the keyboard's Bluetooth connection between up to three devices with a single touch. The Keys-To-Go 2 is available in three colors: lilac (seen here), pale gray and graphite. Photo by Sam Rutherford Speaking of connected devices, the Keys-To-Go 2 works with practically any gadget you might want to bring on a trip. It supports Windows, Android, macOS, iOS, iPadOS and even ChromeOS. Plus, there are two different layouts to choose from: a universal arrangement for all OSes (which is what I tested) and one that's tailored for Apple devices. Finally, there's a built-in cover that protects the keycaps while on the go, which also flips around 360 degrees to provide a slight angle for improved ergonomics when typing. However, I wish Logitech had included some kind of onboard kickstand for propping up whatever device the keyboard is connected to. When I had a chance to talk to some of Logitech's designers, they said they learned from customer surveys that most people who need a kickstand already have one attached to the case of their phone or tablet, which would make putting one on the Keys-To-Go 2 redundant. But as someone who loathes cases and doesn't want to deal with a ton of addons, I think putting a stand in the keyboard would still be valuable. Battery life Photo by Sam Rutherford/Engadget Logitech claims the Keys-To-Go 2 offers up to 36 months of battery life, but real-world numbers will vary greatly depending on how much you use it. That's because that figure is based on the expectation that you only use the keyboard for two hours a day, which isn't a lot but makes sense for something that probably isn't your primary work machine. The potentially bigger issue is that the Keys-To-Go 2 relies on a pair of disposable coin-cell batteries instead of a rechargeable power pack. Furthermore, to access the batteries, you need to remove two Torx screws, which could be an issue if the keyboard dies while you're traveling. In a perfect world, the Keys-To-Go 2 would also support charging via USB-C. But given its dimensions, finding room for any port may have been exceedingly difficult. Wrap-up Photo by Sam Rutherford/Engadget Now I admit, the Keys-To-Go 2 is a rather niche device. Its replaceable batteries and lack of ports for charging or wired connectivity means it can't really be your primary workhorse. And its thinness means typing isn't as comfortable as on a traditional desktop alternative. But at the same time, Logitech's latest travel accessory excels at being a lightweight travel companion. It's super thin, super light and has a nifty cover to keep it protected while in transit. It works with multiple devices and OSes, and while relying on coin cells isn't ideal, its battery life is long enough to make replacing them a relatively infrequent hassle. With two layouts (Apple and universal), multi-device connectivity and a price tag of just $80, the Keys-To-Go 2 feels like it's hitting a Goldilocks zone for frequent travelers looking for something that's just right for their next trip.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/logitech-keys-to-go-2-review-a-super-slim-travel-companion-for-almost-any-gadget-070150717.html?src=rss
Apple Pay Later is kaput. The company confirmed to TechCrunch on Monday that it's killing the service only two years after first announcing it at WWDC 2022 - and only seven months after it became available to everyone in the US.The company said at its developer conference last week that loans through third-party service Affirm are coming to Apple Pay later this year, so the two would have been redundant. Users in the U.S. will also be able to apply for loans directly through Affirm when they check out with Apple Pay," the company wrote in a newsroom post after its WWDC keynote.According to TechCrunch, Pay Later is already disabled as an option when checking out with Apple Pay, and it won't accept any new loans moving forward. However, those with current payment plans can still access those through the Wallet app.Starting later this year, users across the globe will be able to access installment loans offered through credit and debit cards, as well as lenders, when checking out with Apple Pay," Apple wrote in a statement to TechCrunch. With the introduction of this new global installment loan offering, we will no longer offer Apple Pay Later in the U.S."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apple-pay-later-is-dead-long-live-affirm-loans-202524989.html?src=rss
A live-action adaptation of Totally Spies is now in production at Amazon. According to a report from Variety, Will Ferrell is the executive producer of the live-action series based on the popular 2000s animated series from French media company Banijay Kids, formerly known as Marathon Media.The live-action Totally Spies will follow Sam, Clover and Alex as they balance saving the world as international spies working for the agency WOOHP with tackling schoolwork and social lives as college freshmen. No actors have been cast as any of the iconic girls, nor are writers attached to the project just yet.The original Totally Spies was created by Vincent Chalvon-Demersay and David Michel, and it revolved around the three aforementioned teenage girls from Beverly Hills, California as they are recruited by WOOHP to solve worsening crimes that arise around the world. They're equipped with spy gear disguised as women's accessories such as hair dryers, high-heel shoes and lipstick. It's like an animated Charlie's Angels, except the girls actually see their boss in person.Since its premiere in 2002, the series aired over 180 episodes, as well as spawned a prequel movie and a spin-off show, The Amazing Spiez. The seventh season of Totally Spies premiered in France last month after a nearly ten-year break, and it will air on Cartoon Network and Max in the US later this year.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/amazon-is-developing-a-live-action-totally-spies-series-201623189.html?src=rss
The US government has sued Adobe and two senior company executives for allegedly deceiving consumers by hiding early termination fees and making them jump through hoops to cancel subscriptions to Adobe products.The complaint filed by the Department of Justice on Monday accuses the Adobe of pushing consumers towards its annual paid monthly" subscription plan without adequately disclosing that canceling the plan within the first year could result in an early termination fee. The complaint also alleges that Adobe's early termination fee disclosures were buried in fine print or required consumers to hover over tiny icons to find them.Americans are tired of companies hiding the ball during subscription signup and then putting up roadblocks when they try to cancel," said Samuel Levine, director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, in a statement. The FTC will continue working to protect Americans from these illegal business practices."Dana Rao, Adobe's general counsel and chief trust officer said that the company would fight the FTC in court. In a statement published on the company's website, Rao said: "Subscription services are convenient, flexible and cost effective to allow users to choose the plan that best fits their needs, timeline and budget. Our priority is to always ensure our customers have a positive experience. We are transparent with the terms and conditions of our subscription agreements and have a simple cancellation process. We will refute the FTC's claims in court."The FTC said that it took action against Adobe after receiving complaints from consumers around the country who said that they were not aware of Adobe's early termination fee. It noted that Adobe continued the practice despite being aware of consumers' confusion. Any consumers who reached out to Adobe's customer service to cancel their subscription encountered other obstacles like dropped calls and chats and being transferred to multiple representatives, the FTC's statement adds.The FTC's action follows a wave of customer outrage over Adobe's latest terms of service. Users were concerned that Adobe's vague language suggested that the company could freely use their work to train its generative AI modes. In response to the backlash, Adobe announced updates to its terms of service to provide more detail around areas like AI and content ownership.Update, June 17 2024, 1:39 PM ET: This story has been updated with a statement from Adobe.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-us-has-sued-adobe-for-early-termination-fees-and-making-subscriptions-hard-to-cancel-165808358.html?src=rss
The US Surgeon General, Vivek Murthy, says that social media should come with warning labels about its potential health impacts much like warnings on cigarettes and other tobacco products. In an op-ed in The New York Times, Murthy says that social media is an important contributor" to the teen mental health crisis.It is time to require a surgeon general's warning label on social media platforms, stating that social media is associated with significant mental health harms for adolescents," Murthy wrote. A surgeon general's warning label, which requires congressional action, would regularly remind parents and adolescents that social media has not been proved safe."It's not the first time Murthy has raised mental health concerns surrounding social media. Last year, he issued an advisory that made similar arguments last year, saying that social media posed a profound risk" to teen mental health. In his latest op-ed, Murthy cited a study showing that higher social media use was associated with an increased risk for anxiety and depression, as well as a survey where almost half of teens reported that social media makes them feel worse about their bodies."As Murthy notes, warning labels can't happen without cooperation from Congress. And it's unclear what kind of support he might have for such a measure, though lawmakers around the country have shown some support for things like age verification laws as they look to crack down on social media companies over teen safety issues.He also points out that warning labels alone wouldn't make social media safer, but would help better inform parents, schools, doctors and others. There is no seatbelt for parents to click, no helmet to snap in place, no assurance that trusted experts have investigated and ensured that these platforms are safe for our kids," he wrote. There are just parents and their children, trying to figure it out on their own, pitted against some of the best product engineers and most well-resourced companies in the world."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/us-surgeon-general-says-that-social-media-like-cigarettes-should-come-with-warning-labels-171005572.html?src=rss
YouTube is borrowing a page from X (Twitter) and adding a community notes feature ahead of the 2024 US election. The company wants the short viewer-created blurbs to add relevant context to videos, such as pointing out misinformation or old footage passed off as new.Notes will roll out initially as a pilot program for a limited number of eligible contributors," who will receive an invitation via email or Creator Studio. The invited participants will need to have an active YouTube account in good standing.During the pilot phase, third-party evaluators" will rate notes' helpfulness to help train the system. YouTube says it wants to launch notes gradually to test and fine-tune the feature before making it more widely available. Look no further than YouTube's often toxic video comments to see why that's necessary.Once the feature is calibrated and widely available, you'll see them under videos if they're found to be broadly helpful." Viewers will be asked to rate notes as helpful," somewhat helpful" or unhelpful" - and tell them why (for example, it cites good sources or is written clearly).Note ratings will be determined by a bridging-based algorithm, which looks for connections among disparate groups. For example, if people who have historically rated things differently agree on a particular note's helpfulness, that one will more likely appear. It sounds like the system could still be abused, especially considering how many online tribes today share an unflinching belief in the same debunked misinformation. But hey, we'll reserve judgment until we see it in action.The feature is awfully similar to one that was rolled out initially under the Jack Dorsey era of Twitter and expanded globally after Elon Musk bought the company in 2022. At the time, Musk described the feature as a gamechanger for improving accuracy on Twitter." X, as it's known today, isn't exactly known for its accuracy, but YouTube apparently saw something worth copying in the crowd-sourced context.As for when you will see community notes, YouTube says the pilot will launch on mobile in the US first. The company anticipates mistakes during this test phase as it tweaks its algorithms. Everyone else in the US can expect to see notes appear in the coming weeks and months."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/youtubes-community-notes-feature-rips-a-page-out-of-xs-playbook-162145673.html?src=rss
Neopets has been trying to get back its once substantial userbase over the past year by fixing and relaunching its classic games, holding timely events and releasing new features meant to get people hooked on the virtual website again. Today, Neopets is launching a new storyline - or as the website calls it, a new "plot" - which is typically a site event that requires players to solve puzzles, fight opponents in the Battledome and do other activities in order to participate. Neopets says it spent the past three years crafting a narrative that "resonates with players from all walks of life" for the plot called "The Void Within."The storyline will feature a new protagonist named Nyx who'll embark on a journey with players to explore "themes of community, family, inclusion, well-being and identity." Together, they'll have to find a way to banish the gray curse that's killing all the colors across the Neopets universe. As part of the event, players will get access to new items, like a range of diverse hairstyles, as well as pride and accessibility customization options, for their characters. The website has also removed outdated terms and lore used years ago, has given the Library Faerie a wheelchair and has introduced new social media mascots with accessibility items like hearing aids.The Void Within starts rolling out today, with more episodes coming out one by one until early 2025. Neopets is also advising old players to log in if they haven't visited in recent years, because it's removing accounts that have been inactive for a decade by October, ahead of its 25th anniversary.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/neopets-is-back-with-a-new-storyline-thats-meant-to-foster-inclusivity-161213313.html?src=rss
Starting with the first Galaxy Buds, Engadget's audio expert Billy Steele has reviewed every pair of buds Samsung has produced - and he calls 2022's Galaxy Buds 2 Pro the company's best effort yet. Right now, Woot is selling pairs in either white, black or the perky purple hue of our review unit for 48 percent off the standard list price. That brings them down to $120 and the lowest price we've tracked. The listing indicates the sale will stick around until Friday or when the stock runs out, whichever comes first. The Galaxy Buds 2 Pro are the company's latest buds (though at this point they're approaching the two-year mark). You can think of them as Samsung's answer to Apple's AirPods because they work best when paired with a phone from their own manufacturer. The Galaxy Buds will work with other Android Phones, and can work with Apple products (just with a number of missing features) but some capabilities, like 24-bit audio, are reserved for Samsung devices. Overall, Billy gave the buds a score of 88 in his review and found himself impressed with the audio (after being underwhelmed by Samsung's previous attempts). He appreciated the punch of the bass and open sound that's both "full and filled with details and clarity." The ANC is good too, effectively blocking the sound of a coffee grinder and the improved fit - thanks to a smaller design and pressure-relieving vents - makes the buds comfortable to wear for longer periods of time. The touch inputs allow for the control of a lot of functions without reaching for a phone, but adjusting the buds in your ear can sometimes result in mistaken taps. Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/samsungs-galaxy-buds-2-pro-drop-to-a-record-low-of-120-155346593.html?src=rss
The premise of A Quiet Place always seemed like great fodder for a game: make too much of a racket and a blind, noise-sensitive alien will most probably kill you. Six years after the original movie hit theaters, a video game spinoff is almost here. A Quiet Place: The Road Ahead is coming to PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S later this year.Developer Stormind Games (Remothered, Batora: Lost Haven) has crafted a first-person horror adventure based on the movies. You'll play as a young woman who attempts to steer clear of those terrifying creatures while dealing with her inner fears and family turmoil. All you'll have to help you survive the aliens is whatever tools you can find, such as a flashlight or homemade noise detector. But as the movies and game trailer make clear, just a single noise can spell doom.Publisher Saber Interactive first announced a video game version of A Quiet Place in 2021 and initially planned to release it in 2022. It took an extra couple of years and perhaps a change of studio (Saber initially said iLLOGIKA and EP1T0ME were working on the project), but The Road Ahead now seems to be just a few months away.Meanwhile, a prequel movie will hit theaters later this month. A Quiet Place: Day One stars the brilliant Lupita Nyong'o and Joseph Quinn of Stranger Things fame.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/a-quiet-place-the-road-ahead-is-coming-to-pc-playstation-and-xbox-this-year-150813192.html?src=rss
The next Nintendo Direct is scheduled for June 18 at 10AM ET. Nintendo said during its latest earnings call that a showcase would take place sometime in June and the company has stuck by its word. The Direct is just far enough away from Summer Game Fest to let Nintendo have all of the attention to itself.The stream will run for around 40 minutes and focus on games coming to Switch later this year. It really does feel like this is the swansong period for the Switch, as Nintendo confirmed it will finally reveal the console's successor by next April. However, the company has made it clear that there will be no discussion of the Switch 2, Super Switch or whatever the next console is called during the Nintendo Direct.That said, here's hoping Hollow Knight: Silksong will show up here - that highly anticipated sequel was a notable no-show during Summer Game Fest. I have my fingers crossed for a Donkey Kong platformer too. It's been too dang long since the last one.
Nikon has introduced the $2,500 Z6 III with the world's first "partially-stacked" 24.5-megapixel (MP) sensor. That allows for high speed shooting in both photo and video modes, while unlocking features like RAW video and faster autofocus - making it far more capable than its predecessor, the Z6 II.Stacked sensors are rare so far, having only appeared on expensive models like the Sony A1 and Nikon's own Z8 and Z9. Those chips have circuits covering the entire sensor designed to read pixel data far more quickly than regular CMOS sensors.By contrast, Nikon's new partially-stacked sensor has circuits covering only the top and bottom parts of the sensor. Those still accelerate readout speeds to much higher levels than ordinary CMOS chips, but fall a bit short of full stacked sensors - at a lesser cost.NikonThat, combined with the Expeed 7 image processor used on the Z8 and Z9, provides the gift of speed. The Z6 III can shoot RAW at up to 20 fps with the electronic shutter or 14 fps with the mechanical shutter (yes, unlike the Z8 and Z9, the Z6 III does have a mechanical shutter). It also comes with a pre-release capture feature shooting at up to 120fps that operates before pressing the shutter, letting you grab fast moving subjects you might otherwise miss.It offers autofocus (AF) that's 20 percent faster than the Z6 III, Nikon said. At the same time it works in low light down to -10 EV2, "superior even to flagship-level cameras," the company claims. Nikon also borrowed the advanced subject detection from the Z8 and Z9, allowing nine types of subject detection including people, animals and vehicles.The video capabilities look formidable as well. It supports up to 12-bit 6K/60fps N-RAW and 10-bit 5.4K/30fps ProRes RAW capture, along with 4K/60fps (uncropped) and 4K/120fps (1.5x crop) video, plus 1080p/240fps recording.NikonNikon is now matching Canon's EOS R5 with eight stops of shake reduction with the 5-axis in-body stabilization system. Rolling shutter should be minimal with the partially-stacked sensor, though Nikon has yet to specify the exact readout speed.Other features are what you'd hope for in a hybrid camera. It has a fully articulating 3.2-inch rear display, along with "the brightest EVF on any mirrorless camera" at an eye-scorching 4,000 nits (and 5.67M dots of resolution), according to Nikon. Finally, it has one CFexpress card slot for N-RAW video and fast photo burst speeds, along with an SD UHS-II slot.It looks like a formidable alternative to the like-priced 33-megapixel Sony A7 IV, offering faster speeds but slightly less resolution. It also competes with Canon's R6 II, which is missing features like N-RAW video recording. It remains to be seen whether it can keep up with those models in the real world, but Nikon has certainly supercharged the lineup, spec-wise. It arrives in late June for $2,500 (body only), or $3,100 in a kit with the Nikkor Z 24-70mm F/4 /S lens.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/nikons-z6-iii-is-the-first-mirrorless-camera-with-a-partially-stacked-cmos-sensor-140036768.html?src=rss
It has hit that time of year when all the rinky-dink chargers I bought have given up, and it's time to invest in some quality options. I'm personally a big fan of Anker, so it's exciting that Amazon is currently discounting some of Anker's best charging gear. Included in the sale is 30 percent off Anker's MagGo magnetic charging station, dropping its price to $70 from $100. This discount brings the Qi2-certified device to a new all-time low. Anker's MagGo magnetic charging station is a great choice if you're looking for an all-in-one option for a range of devices. The 8-in-1 charger comes with two USB ports, two USB-C ports, three AC outlets and one magnetic pad. It offers 15W of power for wireless charging and gets faster when wired to devices - increasing to 67W for charging your MacBook through the USB-C port, for instance. Anker claims that speed can bring your laptop to 50 percent in just 26 minutes. If you're just looking for a wireless charging pad, then you can opt for Anker's MagGo magnetic wireless charging pad instead. It's touting a 10 percent discount right now, which only saves you about $2 - it's available for $20 rather than $22 - but it's still something. The best deal of the bunch is half off Anker's 622 MagSafe power bank (5,000mAh), dropping its price to $35 from $70. It's a great option if you have a newer iPhone and want to have easy, cordless charging wherever you go. Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ankers-magnetic-charging-gear-is-up-to-50-percent-off-right-now-134525337.html?src=rss
Logitech has unveiled a mixed reality stylus for Meta Quest headsets. The MX Ink is designed to help users craft more precise designs and illustrations. The $130 stylus, which is compatible with Quest 2 and Quest 3 headsets (but, curiously, not the Quest Pro), will be available in September.The MX Ink will come with two spare tips, one fine and one wide, and you'll pair it using the Meta Quest App. You'll be able to adjust factors such as pressure curves and double tap timing directly from the Meta Settings.Logitech says that you'll be able to switch between the MX Ink and Quest controllers with ease, and it's the first tracked peripheral from a third-party that Quest headsets officially support. You'll be able to write and design on 2D physical surfaces, then switch to a 3D space and back again as needed, while a pressure-sensitive tip and main button will enable "high-precision creativity," Logitech says. Six-degrees-of-freedom spatial tracking should help with that.The MX Ink will run for up to seven hours on a single charge, according to Logitech. You can recharge it via USB-C or a dock that's available separately. An MX Mat accessory (a flat surface that Logitech describes as "a friction-free writing and drawing environment") will be available too.The stylus will be compatible with several Quest apps out of the box, including Gravity Sketch, PaintingVR, Arkio, Engage, OpenBrush, Gesture VR and ShapesXR. As UploadVR notes, it will also work with PC apps Adobe Substance Modeler and Elucis via Quest Link or Air Link.It's interesting to see Meta beating Apple to the punch when it comes to offering stylus support on a mixed reality headset. Apple, of course, has both the Vision Pro and the Pencil in its stable of devices. The company has reportedly tested a new version of the Apple Pencil that does work with the Vision Pro, but it's yet to see the light of day.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/logitech-reveals-a-3d-stylus-for-meta-quest-headsets-131105249.html?src=rss
Back in April, The Information reported that TikTok was working on AI-generated avatars that advertisers could use to sell their products on the platform. Now, the company has made those plans public, announcing new AI-created digital avatars" that it will begin offering to creators and brands on the app.According to TikTok, the AI personas are meant to make it easier for creators and businesses to create branded content that still has a human feel" but without the time and resources that would go into making a typical highly produced and edited ad.TikTok is starting out with two kinds of avatars: stock avatars that are based on paid actors and custom avatars based on existing creators and brand spokespeople. These avatars will then star in TikTok videos promoting products and can be customized to speak different languages based on the intended audience.The company says the new feature shows how generative AI can help creators reach even more people on its platform (and, presumably, generate more ad revenue for the company). But after looking at a couple of examples of these, I'm not that excited for a bunch of AI-generated creators to take over my For You feed. Take the above example of a custom avatar shared by TikTok. The digital persona seems to be based on TikTok exec Adrienne Lahens. But while the avatar looks like her, the speaking style and movements aren't... quite right. If you watch closely, you'll notice there's a slight jerkiness to the head and hand movements that is giving M3GAN vibes. And, speaking of creepy robots, there's something extremely unnerving about the eyes on AI Adrienne.Now, I've chatted with Lahens before and can confirm she speaks much more warmly and naturally than her AI avatar. Even the still shot of an AI avatar based off of creator O'Neil Thomas at the top of this article has an off-putting 1,000 yard stare that doesn't seem to be representative of Thomas' actual persona.TikTok is far from the first company to experiment with realistic" AI and come up with something that feels a little bit uncomfortable even if you can't quite put your finger on what it is. At least, the company's own rules require that this kind of content gets prominent disclosures. And maybe the new avatars will help creators sell more TikTok Shop gadgets or other supposedly viral" products. I just hope TikTok can do something to make those AI-generated eyeballs feel a tad less creepy.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/tiktoks-gen-ai-avatars-are-based-on-real-people-and-that-only-makes-them-more-creepy-130033649.html?src=rss
Embracer Group has closed yet another studio. This time around, the embattled company has shut down Pieces Interactive, the developer of the recent Alone in the Dark reboot.An image posted on the studio's X account reads "Pieces Interactive 2007 - 2024. Thanks for playing with us." The front page of Pieces' website notes that the developer has released more than 10 titles of its own over the last 17 years. It also worked as a support studio on other projects.Embracer bought Pieces in 2017 and placed it under the umbrella of publisher THQ Nordic. In April, reports emerged that Pieces had laid off some of its employees, just a few weeks after releasing Alone in the Dark (which had been delayed a couple of times).The closure of Pieces comes several weeks after Embracer said it had concluded its restructuring process following the collapse of a proposed $2 billion investment a year ago. The company shut down several studios, including TimeSplitters developer Free Radical Design and Volition (Saints Row), and it laid off nearly 1,400 workers in the second half of 2023. Embracer has also sold off several studios, including large parts of Saber Interactive as well as Gearbox Entertainment.Meanwhile, yet another studio is shutting its doors. Galvanic Games founder Patrick Morgan said on Friday that the company is closing. Morgan noted that despite a promising start, sales of Gavlanic's final game, Wizard with a Gun, were "not strong enough to sustain our studio."The number of layoffs in the game industry so far in 2024 is estimated to be around 10,800. That's already more than the 10,500 total for all of 2023, and we're not even halfway through the year.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/embracer-shuts-down-alone-in-the-dark-reboot-studio-pieces-interactive-124555063.html?src=rss
Chrome on Android has a new feature called "Listen to this page" that lets you read a webpage aloud from within the app, Google said in a help document spotted by 9to5Google. That long-awaited feature should boost accessibility for the app and make it easier to listen to web pages when you're busy with something else.The feature isn't supported by all web sites, but if so, you'll find "Listen to this page" in the three-dot menu at the top right on the Chrome app. The new function offers podcast-like controls, letting you play, pause, scrub, change playback speed and skip ahead or behind by 10 seconds. So far, it works in English, French, German, Arabic, Hindu and Spanish.Also available are options for different voices in each language, including four in the US and two in the UK, along with text highlighting. The control bar stays docked when you open other tabs and playback will continue if you lock your screen with Chrome in the foreground.The new feature is rolling out gradually as part of Chrome 125, so it may take awhile to arrive to your corner of the world. Google Assistant has been able read web pages aloud for quite some time now, but the new feature adds another way of doing this.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/google-chrome-on-android-can-now-read-webpages-aloud-123011073.html?src=rss
McDonald's has ended a two-year test of AI-powered drive-thru ordering. The company was trialing IBM tech at more than 100 of its restaurants but it will remove those systems from all locations by the end of July, meaning that customers will once again be placing orders with a human instead of a computer.As part of that decision, McDonald's is ending its automated order taking (AOT) partnership with IBM. However, McDonald's may be considering other potential partners to work with on future AOT efforts.While there have been successes to date, we feel there is an opportunity to explore voice ordering solutions more broadly," Mason Smoot, chief restaurant officer for McDonald's USA, said in an email to franchisees that was obtained by trade publication Restaurant Business (as noted by PC Mag). Smoot added that the company would look into other options and make an informed decision on a future voice ordering solution by the end of the year," noting that IBM has given us confidence that a voice ordering solution for drive-thru will be part of our restaurant's future."McDonald's told Restaurant Business that the goal of the test was to determine whether AOT could speed up service and streamline operations. By automating drive-thru orders, companies are hoping to negate the need for a staff member to take them and either reduce the number of workers needed to operate a restaurant or redeploy resources to other areas of the business.IBM will continue to power other McDonald's systems and it's in talks with other fast-food chains over the use of its AOT tech. The likes of Hardee's, Carl's Jr., Krystal, Wendy's, Dunkin and Taco Johns are already testing or using such technology at their drive-thru locations.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mcdonalds-pauses-ai-powered-drive-thru-voice-orders-120024406.html?src=rss
According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple's mission to make its thinnest product ever won't stop at the iPad Pro - the company also has plans for a skinnier Macbook Pro, Apple Watch and iPhone. Gurman says the slimmed-down iPhone - also rumored by The Information - could come as early as 2025, with the introduction of the iPhone 17 line.A thinner iPhone is likely to be more expensive than current generation devices, however. Remember 2017's iPhone X, which ditched the home button but cost more? That, again.Meanwhile, on Engadget, we've got even more Summer Game Fest news. Did the show end last week? Yes. Are there still embargoed games we're itching to talk about? Definitely, yes!- Mat SmithThe biggest stories you might have missedMicrosoft's Xbox refresh can't compete with its leaked roadmapDoctor Who: The Legend of Ruby Sunday review: What legend?Cybertruck buyers say they've been told deliveries are paused due windshield wiper problemsYou can get these reports delivered daily direct to your inbox. Subscribe right here!US military reportedly used social media to spread anti-vax propaganda in the PhilippinesDuring the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.According to a Reuters report, the US military used fake social media accounts to discredit China's COVID-19 vaccine in the Philippines during the height of the pandemic. In one example of the US's anti-vax messaging cited by Reuters, an account in 2020 tweeted, COVID came from China and the VACCINE also came from China, don't trust China!" The campaign also pushed the narrative that China's vaccines were haram" - forbidden under Islamic law. In a statement to the publication, a Pentagon spokesperson brought up China's own disinformation campaign, and said the military uses a variety of platforms, including social media, to counter those malign influence attacks."Continue reading.If you're waiting for a new Persona, Metaphor: ReFantazio will scratch that itchIt's an Atlus RPG, and everything but a new Persona title.AtlusMetaphor: ReFantazio has been a long time in the making. It was announced in 2017, but we finally got to play through a three-part demo last week at Summer Game Fest. Atlus and the game's director, Katsura Hashino, are both known more for (semi-) grounded urban fantasy/school life simulations of Persona than wizards and elves, and ReFantazio, in that sense, represents a big departure. As do all the British accents. Expect cockneys, Liverpudlians, and more, all represented in fantasy equivalents. The gameplay of battles, however, is turn-based, strategic and tied to the strength of the bonds with your allies. And yep, that sounds very Persona.Continue reading.The Engadget PodcastRecovering from Apple's WWDC daze.In this week's Engadget podcast, Cherlynn and Devindra discuss their final thoughts on Apple Intelligence and the company's upcoming software teased at WWDC, and they chat about some of our coverage highlights from the pseudo-E3 Game Fest.Listen here.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-morning-after-apple-may-be-planning-thinner-iphones-macbooks-and-watches-111531784.html?src=rss
Delicious in Dungeon just wrapped up its first season on Netflix, and we now have confirmation that there will be another. The studio behind the show shared on social media this week that a season two is coming, and it's already in production. The anime, based on the manga by Ryoko Kui, follows a group of broke adventurers who end up eating monsters along their quest to save their friend from the belly of a dragon. It's one of the most unexpectedly delightful things I've watched recently and, despite the questionable ingredients that often go into the meals, has some truly top-tier examples of mouthwatering anime foods.
Are you more than your past? This seems to be the question at the heart of Penrose, a short but impactful psychological horror game for Playdate by Liza Olson. The answer will ultimately be determined by the choices you make as you try to find your way out of the strange titular town.Much of the experience in Penrose is exploration, and the game plays from start to finish like an eerie, emotionally challenging walk down memory lane. There are things your character might encounter, like an old playground, that'll spark a tinge of fondness, while others - a mirror, a locked bedroom door - seem linked to more painful events. As you make your way out of the house where you started and through the seemingly abandoned town, things get progressively weirder.You'll encounter some creepy entities, not to mention a deeply unsettling mall that is, for some reason, oozing (I really appreciated the design of this in a love-hate kind of way). The names of the stores in that mall are also pretty fun, each being a play on some real-life chain, like Not Tropic. There are a few puzzles in Penrose, but the catacombs stands out as the only area of any real difficulty. It tripped me up for a good minute, which made me feel all the more clever once I figured out how to crack it.Penrose beautifully captures the complicated nature of nostalgia, and there are multiple possible endings to the game that play right into that complexity. Penrose is available on itch for Playdate and the Playdate Simulator on PC, Mac and Linux.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/in-the-playdate-game-penrose-your-past-has-come-back-to-haunt-you-214104554.html?src=rss
NASA engineers have managed to get the long-running Voyager 1 space probe fully back in working order after some seven months of technical difficulties. In November 2023, the spacecraft - which is more than 15 billion miles from Earth - started sending back strange, unreadable data, and the team has been working ever since to get to the root of the issue. While Voyager 1 seemed to be receiving and executing commands just fine, none of the science and engineering data it sent home made sense.In April, the team traced the problem to some corrupted memory in the probe's flight data subsystem (FDS) computer and was later able to get two of its instruments sending science data again. Now, all four of Voyager 1's instruments are back to sending readable data, NASA says. Voyager 1 launched in 1977, so the fact that it's still going in any capacity is incredible. But now, it can resume its duties directly studying interstellar space.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/nasas-47-year-old-voyager-1-probe-is-back-in-action-after-months-of-technical-issues-192057182.html?src=rss
Just how thin can a Macbook Pro get? We may soon find out. According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple's mission to make its thinnest product ever won't stop at the iPad Pro - the company also has plans for a skinnier Macbook Pro, Apple Watch and, as The Information also reported last month, iPhone. According to Gurman, Apple is on the cusp of ushering in a new class of Apple devices that should be the thinnest and lightest products in their categories across the whole tech industry." Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has also shared his belief that the new Apple Watch Series 10 will get a thinner chassis than its predecessor -plus a larger screen (45mm and 49mm, compared to 41mm and 45mm).Adding further fuel to the earlier iPhone rumors, Gurman says he too has been told the slimmed-down iPhone could come as early as 2025 with the introduction of the iPhone 17 line. There's no timeline yet on the rest of the products named in the report. The upcoming thin iPhone is expected to be pricier than the current iPhone Pro Max, and have a screen sized somewhere between that of the Pro Max and the standard iPhone.Update, June 17 2024, 5:26AM ET: This article has been updated to include analyst Ming-Chi Kuo's insight on the Apple Watch Series 10.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apple-reportedly-has-plans-for-a-thinner-iphone-macbook-pro-and-apple-watch-171137550.html?src=rss
Hate it or love it, Lollipop Chainsaw is so back. Developer Dragami Games announced this week that its remastered version of the game, Lollipop Chainsaw RePop, comes out on September 25 for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch and Steam. The polarizing cult classic was first released in 2012 and follows the zombie-hunting cheerleader, Juliet, as she tries to fend off the apocalypse.There were originally plans for a full remake, but last year it was revealed that this had been scaled back to a remaster. Ever since its return was announced, fans of the original have expressed concerns that the intentionally trashy, over-the-top hack-and-slash game might get the censorship treatment in order to appease modern sensibilities, but it looks like there will be a way to experience Lollipop Chainsaw just the way you remembered it.The trailer states that Lollipop Chainsaw RePop allows players to select Original mode, which is based on the original release, or RePop mode, which has less violence and uses pop-art damage effects." The announcement also says RePop leaves the story unchanged, with the focus on quality of life improvements and additional gameplay content."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-lollipop-chainsaw-remaster-comes-out-on-september-25-152207999.html?src=rss
MGM+ has ordered an eight-episode series based on Stephen King's 2019 novel, The Institute, Deadline reported this week. The novel follows the plight of 12-year-old Luke Ellis and a group of other children with telepathic and telekinetic abilities who have been kidnapped and held captive at a facility deep in the Maine woods, where their powers are being exploited. Their story becomes intertwined with that of an ex-cop Tim Jamieson. I really enjoyed this one when it came out, and as a lifelong King reader who has become hardened against the disappointment of terrible adaptations, I'm choosing to remain hopeful.So far, all we know about the cast is that it includes Ben Barnes (Shadow and Bone) as Jamieson and Mary-Louise Parker (Weeds) as the villainous Mrs. Sigsby, according to Deadline. The show has Benjamin Cavell on board as writer and executive producer. Cavell helmed 2020's The Stand miniseries remake, which... well, it happened. Again, we're staying hopeful here. Production starts later this year in Nova Scotia.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/one-of-stephen-kings-best-recent-novels-is-being-made-into-a-show-for-mgm-203220393.html?src=rss
Some Cybertruck buyers who were scheduled to receive their new trucks this week have been told they'll have to wait a little while longer as the company addresses a safety issue with the windshield wiper motor. Tesla hasn't publicly confirmed any such problems or issued an official recall, but numerous commenters on the Cybertruck Owners Club forum and Reddit said they were notified that deliveries have been halted and their pickup dates were pushed back a week.This follows reports from Cybertruck owners who have said that the windshield wiper failed on them, in some cases almost immediately after the truck was picked up. Tesla previously had to pause Cybertruck deliveries this spring, when it issued a recall over faulty accelerator pedals that could get stuck. The problem affected around 3,878 Cybertruck vehicles. In this case, the fix was fairly simple (installing a rivet) and deliveries resumed soon after.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybertruck-buyers-say-theyve-been-told-deliveries-are-paused-due-windshield-wiper-problems-173804018.html?src=rss
The US military used fake social media accounts to spread propaganda that was designed to discredit China's COVID-19 vaccine in the Philippines during the height of the pandemic, according to a bombshell report from Reuters. The anti-vax campaign ran from spring 2020 until mid-2021, and was intended to counter what [the Pentagon] perceived as China's growing influence in the Philippines," the publication found in its investigation. The Philippines saw low vaccination rates through 2021 even months after China's Sinovac vaccine arrived in the area, and recorded nearly 50,000 COVID deaths by November of that year.In one example of the US's anti-vax messaging cited by Reuters, an account in 2020 tweeted, COVID came from China and the VACCINE also came from China, don't trust China!" The campaign also pushed the narrative that China's vaccines were haram" - or forbidden under Islamic law - because of a pig derivative in the ingredients.Former military officials who spoke with Reuters said the Pentagon had propaganda accounts on X, Facebook and Instagram, and was warned in late 2020 by Facebook executives that the accounts had been identified and were acting in violation of the platform's policies. Some of these accounts, however, ultimately weren't taken down after the Pentagon said it would stop using them for its anti-vax campaign. Reuters notified X of at least 300 accounts it found during its investigation that appeared to be part of the operation. These were determined to be bots and removed.According to Reuters, the campaign was launched after the Chinese government made unfounded claims that the COVID-19's spread could be traced back to the US. In a statement to the publication, a Pentagon spokesperson brought up China's disinformation campaign, and said the military uses a variety of platforms, including social media, to counter those malign influence attacks aimed at the U.S., allies, and partners."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/us-military-reportedly-used-social-media-to-spread-anti-vax-propaganda-in-the-philippines-160357361.html?src=rss
The following contains spoilers for The Legend of Ruby Sunday."In an episode full of misdirection, the biggest one has to be its title, given we've learned very little about what Ruby Sunday's legend actually is. Instead, the first part of the series' two part finale is essentially an hour to build a sense of dread that spills over in its final moments. I could cheat and say The Legend of Ruby Sunday" is just Army of Ghosts" - the first half of the 2006 season's finale - with a bigger budget. Except the big bad that reveals itself at the end is a villain from a far deeper cut than the usual corners of Doctor Who's history.The Doctor and Ruby arrive at UNIT HQ to ask about the mysterious woman - Susan Twist - following them around the universe. UNIT, meanwhile, has been monitoring someone named Susan Triad, a British tech billionaire who will announce her gift to humanity later that day. Even the goofballs at UNIT work out that S.TRIAD is an anagram of TARDIS and the Doctor thinks Triad, or the mysterious woman more generally, could be his granddaughter.But there's also the matter of Ruby's parentage to uncover, giving the Doctor a reason not to just confront Triad. The Doctor, Ruby and a UNIT soldier enter the time window - a low-grade holodeck - to try and see who left Ruby on the steps of the church. But the history's a bit wonky, and Ruby's faceless mother - unlike what we saw in The Church on Ruby Road" - turns and ominously points toward the TARDIS. Not long after, the TARDIS is engulfed in a black cloud of swirling evil that nobody's sure what to do about.The Doctor then meets Triad just before she gets on stage, prompting her to remember all of her other selves. Whenever Triad dreams, she's somehow aware of those myriad alternate selves. And while she takes to the stage, the Doctor asks the team at UNIT HQ to scan the TARDIS. It is similarly engulfed in an invisible cloud of malevolent stuff that's threatening everyone in the area.Bad Wolf / BBC Studios[ASIDE: This is the second time in four years that Doctor Who has tried to parody an Apple Keynote. And this is the second time that they've totally misunderstood how to stage one that looks even remotely evocative of what they're parodying. I know the conventions of the tech keynote have mutated since the Steve Jobs era, but they're not even trying.]A UNIT staffer, Harriet Arbinger (Wait... H. Arbinger?) starts muttering about a dark prophecy while Triad goes off script. The Doctor, standing close by, watches as she turns into a skeleton monster while the TARDIS is menaced by a giant animal head surrounded by Egyptian iconography. Turns out Susan isn't the Doctor's granddaughter, or even a key component of the story, but an innocent. An innocent who has been co-opted by Sutekh, an all-powerful Egyptian God we first saw in 1975's Pyramids of Mars." Cue the credits.It's a slender synopsis, mostly because these scenes are played slowly as the tension ratchets up. The Legend of Ruby Sunday" takes its time, letting the screw turn gently until you're almost happy when the big reveal happens. It's a gripping ride on a first watch, although I imagine it'll not have too much value when you go back to it a third or fourth time. But, then again, that's often been an issue with episodes penned by Russell T. Davies. It's also a good way to juice bookings for next week's finale which will get a UK cinema release on June 21.Was it easy to guess that we'd be getting Sutekh back after his one outing in Pyramids of Mars?" The rumor mill certainly pulled in that direction over the last month or so, and it's not as if we didn't get a clue or two along the way. Longtime Davies fans will recall that Vince watches the part one cliffhanger at the end of the first episode of Queer as Folk. And we've already had a whole scene from Pyramids of Mars" lifted - the jump into a ruined future - in The Devil's Chord."Bad Wolf / BBC StudiosIf you are unfamiliar, Pyramids of Mars" is a classic, and another blockbuster from the pen of the series' best 20th century writer, Robert Holmes. At the time, Holmes was the series' script editor and had commissioned a story from writer Lewis Griefer. But Griefer's material was so poor that Holmes and producer Philip Hinchcliffe decided a replacement was needed. So Holmes was tasked with writing a whole new episode in a tiny amount of time. The finished episode was credited to pseudonym Stephen Harris, but it's all Holmes under the hood. Sadly, because of various rules around writing credits, The Legend of Ruby Sunday" end credits actually give credit to Lewis Griefer as Sutekh's creator and omit Holmes, which feels pretty rough.But that one minor injustice aside, let's bring on the finale.Susan Twist Corner
PlayStation Productions and Screen Gems have announced the cast for the upcoming movie adaptation of the interactive horror game Until Dawn. According to Deadline, the ensemble will include Ella Rubin, who stars alongside Anne Hathaway in Amazon Prime's The Idea of You, and Michael Cimino, who played Victor Salazar in Hulu's Love, Victor. Expats' Ji-young Yoo and Sitting in Bars with Cake's Odessa A'zion have also signed on to play characters in the game revolving around eight young adults who have to survive the night at a remote mountain lodge while being hunted by a killer.Supermassive Games got some pretty well-known actors to provide motion capture and voice acting for the game's characters, including Rami Malek and Hayden Panettiere. They're no longer the right age to play their original roles, so it doesn't come as a surprise that they're not involved in the project. But since they're not unknown motion capture actors, the filmmakers are dealing with a unique situation in that famous people's faces are tied to the characters other people will now portray."At PlayStation Productions, we are always looking to find creative and authentic ways to adapt our beloved games that our fans will enjoy," Asad Qizilbash, head of Sony's production company, told Deadline. "Alongside Screen Gems, we've assembled a fantastic cast of new characters that builds upon our already stellar filmmaking team and their vision for the adaptation."The game itself is getting a remake for the PS5 and for PC. It was built in Unreal Engine 5 for the newer console, and it will add a third-person camera mode, new locations and new interactions to the original. Until Dawn's remake is coming out sometime this fall.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/until-dawns-original-actors-will-not-star-in-its-film-adaptation-110036254.html?src=rss
If you regularly stare at the Steam charts to see if there's anything new and exciting to play, you may have noticed an odd little game" called Banana. It has quickly become a huge success and, as of this writing, sits at the number three spot with over 400,000 concurrent players. It's a simple idle clicker game, like many before it, so what's making players flock to what amounts to a static screen of a huge banana?The promise of sweet, sweet cash, that's what. It's an extremely bare-bones title that has you repeatedly clicking on a banana. That's pretty much it, though there's a twist. As you click and click on the tropical fruit, there's a chance of a banana sticker dropping into your Steam inventory. These bananas come in all different designs, from silver-encrusted variants to one that looks like it's glitching out from a hack. aaladin66, Pony, Sky, AestheticSpartanBecause the bananas show up in your inventory, they can be sold on the Steam Marketplace. Rare bananas have already gone for as much as $1,400, though the average payout is somewhere in the $0.02 range. One of the developers called it a legal infinite money glitch" in an interview with Polygon. Users make money out of a free game while selling free virtual items," he continued.The money earned goes into a Steam wallet, which can then be used to purchase games. So these bananas are basically NFTs, only without the blockchain. People are buying and selling them like crazy, like weird fruit-based trading cards. Forget the banana stand: it looks like there's money in just the facsimile of a banana.If the idea of spending all day clicking on a fake banana in front of a vomit-green background doesn't do it for you, the developers sell inventory bananas outright for $0.25 a pop. The game itself, however, is free to play. The devs deny allegations that the clicker is some sort of scam or a Ponzi scheme, simply saying that it's pretty much a stupid game." Idle clickers, after all, are nothing new.As for the future, the designers have teased updates, including a way to use inventory items to change the way the plain in-game banana looks. There also might be a minigame coming down the pike, as well a shop upgrade that lets players exchange multiples of the same banana for a unique drop. One thing is a near certainty. The massive popularity of Banana is sure to inspire a whole bunch of copycats. May I humbly suggest a pizza slice as something to click over and over.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/one-of-the-biggest-games-on-steam-right-now-is-a-clickable-banana-190058749.html?src=rss
Metaphor: ReFantazio has been a long time in the making. It was announced in 2017 as Project re Fantasy through a weird long video that said very little. Since then, Atlus has swapped the Project for Metaphor and scoured Google Translate to find a cool way to say fantasy.' It's also made a giant fantasy JRPG - and after rolling through a demo at Summer Game Fest last weekend, I'm dying to play it.ReFantazio is the first original title by Studio Zero, a relatively new Atlus division headed up by Katsura Hashino. As the director of the third, fourth and fifth Persona game, Hashino is responsible for the Persona series' pivot towards social simulation elements. After finishing up Persona 5, Hashino left P-Studio to work on all-new titles unrelated to Atlus' Shin Megami Tensei and Persona series.Atlus and Hashino are both known more for (semi-) grounded urban fantasy than wizards and elves, and ReFantazio in that sense represents a big departure. This is an epic, sprawling story covering a whole nation, the United Kingdom of Euchronia. The Euchronian king has been assassinated, and the people of the land must elect (!?) a new one.Euchronia is home to eight tribes" (fantasy races) and our hero is trying to reunite them. There's also a cursed prince who everyone thinks is dead, a royal tournament for the throne in six months and monsters everywhere. To make matters worse, Euchronia is being invaded by hideous, Hieronymus Bosch-inspired creatures called humans, which function as the game's bosses. Humans, huh? Wonder if it's a... metaphor?Given Atlus' storytelling history, the broad strokes of ReFantazio will probably make more sense than the moment-to-moment beats. Best to just let it wash over you.The game takes place over the course of six months, and you'll be traveling across Euchronia in a Gauntlet Runner (a cool ship designed by the Evangelion mech guy) trying to rally support for your entry into the royal tournament. Each town in the game has a tavern where you can grab a bite and gather information, a recruitment center where you can accept quests, various shops and an inn where you can rest. Completing quests and making friends along the way will gain you supporters among the various tribes, which is key to both the overarching story and the combat.AtlusAtlus' Summer Game Fest demo was segmented into three 15-minute chunks. The first was a training sequence of sorts, story-heavy and light on combat. This felt mostly like a showcase for ReFantazio's cinematics, which were gorgeous, despite the TVs in the demo area being set to interpolate frames. Atlus has a tradition of showcasing top-quality anime in its games, and the demo clips were among the best I've seen. What I appreciated more than the quality of the animation was how closely the character designs and vibe of the game matched the cinematics.Also memorable is the voice acting. For the English-speaking cast, Atlus is taking the United Kingdom" of Euchronia very seriously, as everyone I ran into had a totally over-the-top British accent. As the owner of an English accent, I found the characters beyond theatrical but nonetheless enjoyable. At one point in the demo I met a hyper-cockney cat girl that could've been auditioning for Oliver.AtlusIn another segment, I fought alongside an adorable floppy-eared fellow from fantasy Liverpool who sounded like he was analyzing a soccer game. If none of this excites you, the Japanese voice cast seems to be shooting for a typical fantasy vibe. Personally, I can't imagine playing this game in anything other than English at this point.Not everything is voiced - as in a lot of JRPGs, key lines and conversations play out in full, but many interactions will be confined to text, with the voice actors emoting a little along the way for flavor. As a speed reader, this is absolutely fine by me.AtlusSegment two was all about dungeon-crawling combat - time for the Persona comparisons! The setup here will be familiar to fans of Atlus games: It's a turn-based JRPG, with various types of physical and magical attacks, status effects and ailments. ReFantazio's version of the classic JRPG class system is Archetypes - there are 14 lineages containing over 40 unique Archetypes, including some familiar roles like Mage, Thief, Knight and Healer.There's also a tactical element to party composition, with a front and back row playing a part in combat, and Synthesis moves that allow you to combine your party's Archetypes for stronger attacks. Everything has a little Persona and SMT to it - you manage Archetypes in an Akademeia (similar to a Velvet Room), they can evolve through experience, and their proficiency in battle is linked to your bond with your supporters.AtlusA twist on the classic turn-based formula - and one I'm very pleased about - is the Fast battle system. When you come across an enemy, you'll be able to gauge their strength before initiating combat. The Fast system lets you target a particular enemy and strike them; this can insta-kill underpowered foes, which allows you to avoid turn-based battling entirely when grinding low-level enemies. For stronger foes, you can use Fast to butter them up and start a squad battle with advantage, but if you mess up this engagement you could start the turn-based combat on your ass. Other Atlus games have a similar risk-reward system to allow players to gain an advantage, but this is more nuanced and satisfying.The interface for all of this is a typically gorgeous menu system and UI that feels more refined than ever. Simple actions are assigned a face button on the controller, which means less time spent in menus. It's all pretty intuitive, and towards the end of my short demo I was already speeding through the turn-based combat without wondering what button did what. Taken as a whole, the combat system feels like a natural evolution to the classic formula Atlus is known for.AtlusThe final demo section starts inside the Gauntlet Runner. It's a claustrophobic space, more submarine than super yacht, but filled with things to do. There are people to talk to, activities to partake in, and routes to choose. Similar to Persona, the game occuring over a fixed period means you likely won't be able to do everything you want to, and instead need to decide how best to spend your time each day. You might try to level up one of the main character's five traits - courage, wisdom, tolerance, eloquence and imagination - or perhaps focus on fighting monsters or earning cash. I played to type and read a book, which was sadly not enough to raise my courage from craven."My cozy book session led immediately into the main show: a face-off against a giant human. This began with an anime sequence, which gave way to classic four-on-one combat. The human designs in this game are buckwild. This one was called, Sea Horror Homo Sabara" and here are the Cliff's Notes:
Neva is going to make me cry. It very nearly did at Summer Game Fest, as the game's introductory cinematics faded to black, literally just one minute into my time with the demo. I won't divulge what happens in those initial frames, but it shattered my soul. It also perfectly primed me for the heart-pounding danger and devastating beauty that I would get lost in for the next 45 minutes, alongside my new best friend, Neva the wolf.Nomada StudioEvery aspect of Neva is breathtaking. It plays like a living watercolor illustration: Alba, the protagonist, has long, slender limbs, a cloud of silver hair and a flowing red cloak that drapes behind her elegantly with each leap and fall. Neva is a young white wolf, fluffy and energetic, and the two share an intense bond that's repeatedly reinforced and tested in the demo.The world of Neva feels slightly more grounded than that of Gris, the game that put Nomada Studio on the map in 2018, but it's still filled with layers of magic. The landscapes beyond the 2D plane that Alba and Neva traverse have incredible depth - dense forests hiding secrets and mountain ranges towering above wide valleys, sharp peaks piercing the sky in the far distance. The demo has lush glades draped in vines and weeping branches, sunlight streaming through the gaps in the leaves, as well as cave systems with dark, tight corridors. At times Neva takes the Frank Lloyd Wright approach to design, squeezing players through claustrophobic thickets that suddenly burst onto fields of thick green grass, the camera pulling back to show how small Alba and Neva really are in this space.Nomada StudioTrees, leaves, rocks and roots compose the game's sidescrolling playground, with sloping platforms and floating islands built mainly out of stone. Touches of fantastical alien technology appear with increasing frequency as the demo progresses, as do hordes of inky-black enemies with round white faces, mouths open in silent screams.Platforming in Neva is intuitive. There's minimal on-screen text in the game, and instead direction comes from the environment, soft highlights and sunkissed glows marking the proper paths in a way that feels completely natural. I flowed through most areas of the demo, leaping onto ledges with almost-subconscious impulses, knowing that I could trust the game's subtle instructions. There are areas of spiky blackness that Alba has to clear for Neva to be able to progress, and at times it's necessary to leave the little wolf behind for a moment, generating instant separation anxiety. Neva yelps and squeaks as she learns how to traverse the world, and they're heart-wrenching sounds. I was keenly aware of Neva with each jump, making sure she could follow my path, lingering to watch her complete big leaps, petting her after each success, and consistently calling out her name.Alba's voice is fairy-like and the way she says, Neva? Neva. Nevaaa!" has become an earworm I can't shake. In the days since coming home from Summer Game Fest and reuniting with my two small dogs, I've been walking around the house saying, Neva?" as if it were their names. It's been a very confusing time for them, but they've gotten a few extra treats, so all's well.Combat in Neva feels as intuitive as platforming, with simple inputs that land satisfying hits of Alba's sword. The enemies, long-limbed creatures that appear out of dark pools in the ground, slash at Alba with their spiky fingers and throw lethal blobs at her, but one-on-one, they're fairly easy to dispatch. Alba is able to get incredibly close to each creature before she takes damage, and this generous proximity makes the fight scenes feel like dance, with constant action and minimal interruptions. I didn't die until I reached the boss fight at the end of the demo, where Neva and I had to fight off a giant creature, double jumping around it to slash at its legs and back, avoiding its attacks. I defeated the boss after three deaths, and the scene felt like an appropriate escalation of everything I'd learned so far.Nomada StudioI'm convinced that every preview of Neva (including this one) will mention how quickly and easily the game will make players cry, and I want to take a moment to recognize the magnitude of this achievement. The bond that Nomada Studio have built between Neva and Alba is incredibly powerful, and this type of emotional connection doesn't just happen when you put an animal and a human in the same scene. Neva is a constant source of anxiety and joy: The cub must be protected, at all costs, and she feels like a physical part of Alba's being, necessary to the protagonist's survival. Neva establishes their shared trauma and every following mechanic reinforces their partnership - protect, pet, repeat. Neva and Alba need each other, and their shared love resonates from each frame of the game.Guaranteed, Neva is going to make me cry.Neva is due out on PC and PlayStation 5 this year, developed by Nomada Studio and published by Devolver Digital.Catch up on all of the news from Summer Game Fest 2024 right here!This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/neva-hands-on-a-grand-achievement-in-emotional-game-design-180516649.html?src=rss
The Google Pixel Tablet with charging speaker dock is $130 off right now via Woot. This is a discount of 26 percent and a record low for the tablet. That's a pretty good deal for a device that's still under a year old.It's worth re-emphasizing that this sale is for the tablet and the charging speaker dock. It's the latter accessory that was largely responsible for the positive review we gave the tablet last year. The dock lets the tablet double as a smart display. It charges the tablet quickly and provides a sturdy base for touch gestures. The speakers are also much louder than one would expect, given the size. The combination of a useful dashboard, an easy-to-read interface and impressive audio make it one heck of a smart display.We were a bit cooler on the tablet itself, though it's perfectly serviceable. The nano-ceramic coating and glass-like backing makes it feel more expensive than it actually is and the low weight, at just over one pound, ensures you won't cramp up while streaming the latest hit TV show. It is, however, slightly heavier than the iPad Air.There's also a neat little kickstand-hanger combo that lets you place the tablet just about anywhere. This is useful, for instance, when following a recipe in the kitchen. You can just hang it right on a cabinet knob. The 2,560 x 1,600 LCD panel isn't as vibrant as a modern OLED, but it gets the job done.The Pixel Tablet is the first of Google's tablets to be a Chromecast receiver, so you can control it from your phone. This comes in especially handy when watching streaming apps, though it only works when docked.Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-google-pixel-tablet-with-charging-speaker-dock-is-130-off-right-now-165101833.html?src=rss
It might be too late to get a big tech gift to ship in time for Father's Day, but if you're looking to upgrade your own setup, you can still take advantage of a few sales that are still kicking ahead of the weekend. The 13- and 15-inch versions of Apple's latest MacBook Air are each down to all-time lows, for instance, as are both versions of the newest MacBook Pro. Beats' new Solo 4 headphones are $70 off, too, while Solo Stove has a sale on some of our favorite smokeless fire pits. Several other gadgets we recommend are also on sale, including Amazon's Echo Buds, the Backbone One mobile game controller and Lenovo's IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus. Here are the best tech deals from this week that you can still get today.Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apples-macbook-air-m3-hits-a-new-low-plus-the-rest-of-the-weeks-best-tech-deals-160638174.html?src=rss
Getty has partnered up with Picsart, a popular photo-editing platform, to build an AI image generator that's entirely trained on licensed stock images. The companies are calling it a responsible, commercially-safe" alternative to current platforms. Images created by the model will have full commercial rights, which should address concerns about AI-generated images violating copyright laws.The service will only be available to paid Picsart subscribers and the whole thing recalls Adobe's Firefly AI model. That generator is also trained on stock images, though not exclusively. Adobe recently outraged users by updating its terms of service to indicate that it could access and use people's work to train AI models. The company quickly amended the terms of service once the backlash started spreading.Picsart and Getty hope to avoid any backlash by sticking to fully licensed stock images, so regular Picsart users won't be at risk of having their creations snatched up by the model for training and generation purposes. It allows creators to bring their visions to life while maintaining the highest standards of commercial safety," Grant Farhall, CPO at Getty Images, wrote in a blog post.It also looks like Getty is playing fair with this one, for those worrying about the work of professional photographers being co-opted. We reached out to the company and a rep said that it is "compensating creators included in the dataset on an annual basis." That's something at least!The Picsart x Getty Images model releases later this year, though there's no concrete launch date. It'll be accessible via Picsart's API services.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/picsart-and-getty-are-making-an-ai-image-generator-entirely-trained-on-licensed-content-154058696.html?src=rss
For years, the iPhone's two-tiered texting system has been a hot topic. iPhone-to-iPhone texts in the Messages app are blue, and enjoy full encryption and more robust media features, like animations. But messages to and from Android devices are merely standard SMS texts, and marked with a green tint. Apple's segregated messaging platform has been the subject of a Google-funded shaming campaign, and even sparked chatter of regulatory intervention. But with Apple's recent confirmation that it will begin supporting the newer RCS texting standard in iOS 18, is the iPhone messaging playing field about to be leveled? Or are we just exchanging one acronym for another?Confused? Don't worry. We're about to lay out what could change with Apple's adoption of the GSMA's next-generation messaging protocol.What is SMS?Short Message Service (SMS) is one of the most ubiquitous messaging protocols on the planet. It dates back to the early days of mobile technology. In December 1992, Neil Papworth, at the time an engineer at Vodafone, sent the first SMS text message when he wished his boss Merry Christmas." By the start of 2011, approximately 80 percent of all mobile phone users globally - an estimated 3.5 billion people - were sending SMS messages every month.Today, however, the standard has some notable drawbacks. SMS messages are limited to 160 characters, and texts you send can't include photos, videos, audio or GIFs. For that, cell phones have long turned to a supporting protocol known as Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS), but it too has its share of technical limitations, including woefully small message size limits. SMS also doesn't support end-to-end encryption.But for all the ways SMS feels dated in an era dominated by instant messaging platforms, it has one defining advantage: SMS messages are routed through your carrier's mobile network, meaning a data plan isn't necessary to use the technology. That fact has meant SMS has often served as a fallback for more advanced protocols, including Apple's iMessage.What is RCS?RCS is short for Rich Communication Services, though sometimes it is also marketed as Advanced Messaging." Either way, it's often positioned as a next-generation replacement for SMS and MMS. RCS allows users to take advantage of many features that were previously exclusive to over-the-top messaging platforms like WhatsApp.For instance, the RCS Universal Profile includes full support for read receipts and typing indicators. It can also facilitate proper group chats, and allow users to send high-resolution images, video and audio clips. As of earlier this year, Google's implementation of RCS also offers by default end-to-end encryption (E2EE) for both one-on-one and group chats.Unlike SMS texts, RCS messages are routed over a mobile data connection or Wi-Fi link, with SMS functioning as a fallback. For that reason, the older protocol likely isn't going anywhere anytime soon.One thing that's important to remember about RCS is that it is not and has never been envisioned as a replacement or competitor to instant messaging apps. At its heart, RCS is a communication protocol between mobile telephone carriers and between a phone and carrier. Taking advantage of RCS does not require signing up for a new service. As long as your phone and carrier support RCS, and you're using a compatible app such as Messages by Google, you can take advantage of everything the protocol has to offer - provided, of course, the person or people you're messaging meet those same requirements.How does iMessage fit into all this?Apple announced iMessage in June 2011, a few short months before Steve Jobs died later that same year. Unlike RCS, iMessage is a proprietary messaging protocol controlled exclusively by Apple and available (barring some occasional, unofficial workarounds) only on iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Mac devices. Starting in 2024 with the iOS 18 update, Apple plans to integrate support for RCS in its Messages app. As of writing this article, the two protocols do not communicate with one another. As such, Apple's Messages app will default to SMS/MMS when users attempt to send texts and media files to someone with an Android phone.From the perspective of an iMessage user, it can feel like Android users are stuck in a bygone messaging era - even though the latter is not at fault for the situation. Due to iMessage's reliance on SMS/MMS for Android communication, media files end up pixelated, there aren't any read receipts or typing indicators and forget about trying to involve multiple iPhone and Android users in a single group chat.How did we get here?Although work on RCS began before Apple announced iMessage, the protocol had one major disadvantage that doomed it to a slow rollout. RCS is a multi-stakeholder project that includes the involvement of the GSMA, a trade body that represents the interests of the mobile communications industry at large. In 2015, Google took a more active role in the proliferation of RCS when it acquired Jibe Mobile. With Jibe's technology as a base, it's effectively Google that provides the glue that binds the RCS ecosystem together, but for a long time, the company did a poor job of aligning everyone involved in RCS toward a shared goal.In fact, the early days of RCS were marked by false starts, with some carriers, including a group made up of AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon forming a short-lived joint venture to push the protocol forward before eventually aligning themselves with Google. Even Samsung did its own thing for a while before it too eventually agreed to make Messages by Google the default messaging app it ships on phones in the US.For that reason, Apple has had little reason to adopt RCS. After all, why would it give a bumbling competitor a freebie? And as recently as 2022, it seemed there was little to no chance the situation was going to change anytime soon. "I don't hear our users asking that we put a lot of energy into that," Apple CEO Tim Cook told the Code Conference that year when he was asked about RCS messaging. Buy your mom an iPhone" was his final word on the matter.But it was also last year that the European Union passed its landmark Digital Markets and Services Act (DMA). The legislation requires gatekeepers" to not favor their own systems or limit third parties from interoperating within them. Gatekeepers are any company that meets specific financial and usage qualifications. Apple, according to the law, is one such company.Ultimately, the EU ruled in 2024 that Apple's Messages app did not constitute a monopoly (though European regulators had plenty of other directives for other aspects of Apple's empire). Despite being in compliance, however, Apple had pledged to adopt RCS support months earlier. Per noted Apple pundit John Gruber, Apple's bigger motivation may have been to placate regulators in China. But whatever the reason, it appears to be a done deal: Apple reaffirmed RCS support is coming to the iPhone as part of iOS 18.Does Apple's support of RCS mean the end of green text bubbles on iPhone?Alas, green bubbles are likely here to stay. The company noted in its original comment on RCS that iMessage will continue to be the best and most secure messaging experience for Apple users." That said, even if you take that statement to mean iMessage will continue to display texts from non-Apple devices differently from those sent from an iPhone, iPad or Mac, Apple's adoption of RCS should lead to a better user experience for both iOS and Android users.Again, Apple needs to provide specifics, but it's easy to envision a future where its Messages app, thanks to RCS, properly displays high-resolution images and videos sent from Android phones, and allows both iOS and Android users to take part in group chats without something breaking. Apple also said in its original November 2023 announcement it would work with GSMA members to improve the existing Universal Profile protocol, with a focus on adding end-to-end encryption to the standard.Of course, whether that interoperability ends the stigma around green bubbles is harder to answer.Editors' note: This story was originally published in November 2023 and has been updated to reflect new information.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/what-is-rcs-and-how-is-it-different-from-sms-and-imessage-202334057.html?src=rss
Controversial facial recognition company Clearview AI has agreed to an unusual settlement to a class action lawsuit, The New York Times reports. Rather than paying cash, the company would provide a 23 percent stake in its company to any Americans in its database. Without the settlement, Clearview could go bankrupt, according to court documents.If you live in the US and have ever posted a photo of yourself publicly online, you may be part of the class action. The settlement could amount to at least $50 million according to court documents, It still must be approved by a federal judge.Clearview AI, which counts billionaire Peter Thiel as a backer, says it has over 30 billion images in its database. Those can be accessed and cross-referenced by thousands of law enforcement departments including the US FBI and Department of Homeland Security.Shortly after its identity was outed, Clearview was hit with lawsuits in Illinois, California, Virginia, New York and elsewhere, which were all brought together as a class action suit in a federal Chicago court. The cost of the litigation was said to be draining the company's reserves, forcing it to seek a creative way to settle the suit.The relatively small sum divided by the large number of users likely to be in the database means you won't be receiving a windfall. In any case, it would only happen if the company goes public or is acquired, according to the report. Once that occurs, lawyers would take up to 39 percent of the settlement, meaning the final amount could be reduced to about 30 million. If a third of Americans were in the database (about 110 million), each would get about 27 cents.That does beg the question of whether it would be worth just over a quarter to see one of the creepiest companies of all time to go bankrupt. To cite a small litany of the actions taken against it (on top of the US class action):
This week has felt like a month worth of news, now that we've wrapped up Apple's WWDC 2024 and Summer Game Fest in LA. In this episode, Cherlynn and Devindra discuss their final thoughts on Apple Intelligence and the company's upcoming software, and they chat about some of our coverage highlights from the pseudo-E3 Game Fest. Also, we dive into X making likes private (what is Elon hiding?!) and the news around Sony buying the Alamo Drafthouse theater chain.Listen below or subscribe on your podcast app of choice. If you've got suggestions or topics you'd like covered on the show, be sure to email us or drop a note in the comments! And be sure to check out our other podcast, Engadget News!Topics
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