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Apple has rolled out iOS 17.5, which includes a bunch of updates, including support for a cross-OS alert system for unwanted Bluetooth trackers that the company worked on with Google. The other headline feature is the introduction of web-based app distribution in the European Union.This is a function that Apple is introducing in the wake of the bloc's Digital Markets Act coming into force. It won't be a free-for-all, however. Developers who want to let users download iOS apps from their websites will need to opt into new App Store rules that will mean they have to pay a fee for each user after hitting a certain threshold. They'll also need to have a developer account that's in good standing and to have an app that had more than a million iOS installs in the EU in the previous year.There's another notable update in iOS 17.5 in the form of a new feature called Repair State. In a nutshell, this will mean that iPhone users no longer need to turn off Find My when they send in their iPhone for repair.Elsewhere, there are some changes on the Apple News+ front. The app now at long last has an offline mode, so you can use it to catch up on some reading while you're on a flight and don't feel like paying for Wi-Fi. The Today feed and News+ tab will work without an internet connection.Apple is also moving beyond crosswords and deeper into the daily word game trend popularized by the likes of Wordle. Quartiles is a Boggle-style original game for Apple News+ subscribers. You'll connect tiles of various word combinations to create words and score points. You'll be able to share your scores with other players.AppleLast but not least, Apple has the latest incarnation of its annual Pride collection in honor of the LGBTQ+ community, including a Pride Radiance watch face and iOS and iPadOS wallpapers. You'll be able to customize these with a range of colors.You'll see the colors trace numerals of the watch face and react as you move your Apple Watch. A matching Apple Watch Pride Edition Braided Solo Loop will be available to order on May 22 for $99. The iPhone and iPad backgrounds spell out "Pride" in bold beams of color and move when you unlock the device.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ios-175-is-here-with-support-for-web-based-app-downloads-in-the-eu-192624433.html?src=rss

OpenAI on Monday announced GPT-4o, a brand new AI model that that the company says is one step closer to much more natural human-computer interaction." The new model accepts any combination of text, audio and images as input and can generate an output in all three formats. It's also capable of recognizing emotion, lets you interrupt it mid-speech, and responds nearly as fast as a human being during conversations.The special thing about GPT-4o is it beings GPT-4 level intelligence to everyone, including our free users," said OpenAI CTO Mira Murati during a live-streamed presentation. This is the first time we're making a huge step forward when it comes to ease of use."During the presentation, OpenAI showed off GPT-4o translating live between English and Italian, helping a researcher solve a linear equation in real time on paper, and providing guidance on deep breathing to another OpenAI executive simply by listening to his breaths.

A group of Amazon workers in Quebec have formed the first union at one of the company's Canadian warehouses. On Friday, the province's labor tribunal granted union accreditation to workers at the DXT4 warehouse in Laval, a Montreal suburb. It determined that a majority had opted to unionize after signing union cards.A group of some 200 workers are organizing as the Laval Amazon Workers Union under the Confederation des syndicats nationaux (CSN), which represents around 330,000 people across a variety of industries in Canada. A general assembly to decide on a constitution, bylaws and representatives will take place in the coming days. A consultation with union members will then take place to agree on a list of demands.The union says Amazon is legally required to come to the negotiation table to hash out a contract. However, it expects Amazon to appeal the labor tribunal's decision after allegedly attempting to stop the unionization efforts.First and foremost, this is a great victory for the men and women from Latin America, Chad, the Maghreb and Asia who were not afraid to stand up for their rights," CSN president Caroline Senneville said in a statement. Over the past few months, Amazon has pulled out all the stops to block our unionization campaign, flooding the workplace with scaremongering messages. DXT4 workers have given us all a lesson in courage. Of course, we hope it spreads."Amazon claimed in a letter to the labor tribunal on May 6 that the accreditation would not "respect the interests of its employees." The company argued that some workers signed union cards after being misled and that some aspects of the Quebec labor code run contrary to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms."We believe that all people should have the right to inform themselves and to vote according to their situation and convictions at the time," Amazon spokesperson Barbara M. Agrait told the CBC. "If a simple majority of people at an employer have joined a union at any point, then there's no vote and representation is automatic for all employees - including maybe dozens or hundreds of employees who didn't even know it was being considered."Amazon has long been accused of attempting to upend unionization efforts at warehouses in the US and Europe. In 2022, workers at a warehouse in Staten Island, New York, became the first in the company to form a union. But the Amazon Labor Union does not yet have a contract with Amazon, and reports suggest it's running low on funds ahead of a leadership election.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/amazon-workers-become-the-first-to-unionize-at-one-of-the-companys-canadian-warehouses-180447875.html?src=rss

Google is teasing an intriguing new AI feature one day ahead of its I/O developer conference. The company shared a brief video on X that appears to show a new camera-powered AI feature that's able to recognize what's in the frame in real time.The video, which is labeled as a prototype," shows what appears to be a Pixel device with the camera open viewing the keynote stage at I/O. The person holding the camera asks, hey, what do you think is happening here?"A voice replies that it looks like people are setting up for a large event, perhaps a conference or presentation." It's also able to identify the IO" letters as being tied to Google's developer conference and mentions new advancements in artificial intelligence." As the two voices go back and forth, a text transcript appears on the screen.

Apple and Google's long-in-the-works effort to alert people to unwanted Bluetooth trackers that may have been planted on them has come to fruition. The companies have developed an industry standard called Detecting Unwanted Location Trackers. This makes it possible to alert someone via iOS or Android if they're being tracked with one of those devices.When an unknown Bluetooth device is seen moving with someone over a period of time, they'll get an alert that reads [Item] Found Moving With You," no matter which platform the tracker is paired with. Apple and Google are rolling out the capability in iOS 17.5 and across Android 6.0 and later devices starting today.The companies announced a partnership to tackle this issue last May with backing from industry partners such as Samsung and Tile. Apple says that Chipolo, Eufy, Jio, Motorola and Pebblebee are among the companies who say that their future Bluetooth tags will work with the new standard.Not long after Apple started selling AirTags three years ago, stories of bad actors using the devices to track people and steal cars started to emerge. Apple quickly started working on ways to make it harder for stalkers to use AirTags illicitly and it refined its approach to that over time. The company also released an Android app in late 2021 to help folks find out if an AirTag had been planted on them, but the new approach will take an OS-level approach to warning people about unwanted trackers across both platforms.Apple has been hit with legal challenges over AirTag stalking. In March, a San Francisco judge rejected the company's effort to dismiss a class-action lawsuit over the issue.The timing of the Detecting Unwanted Location Trackers alert rollout is intriguing. There have long been rumors that Google was working on its own Bluetooth tracker. With its I/O developer conference taking place on Tuesday, perhaps such a device is about to come to light.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apple-and-google-roll-out-a-cross-platform-feature-to-tackle-unwanted-bluetooth-trackers-172411423.html?src=rss

Google is teaming up with HP to bring its futuristic video conferencing technology Project Starline to enterprise consumers. The company first began demoing this service in 2021 and the first iteration involved a 3D video chat booth with a projection of the person you're talking to. We came away extremely impressed by the holographic technology, remarking on how realistic everything seemed and that the other person seemed to be in the room with you.However, this technology isn't quite the same as what we tried a couple of years back. Since then, Google has streamlined and simplified the system a fair amount. There's no more video chat booth, as the whole thing has been moved to a system that features a large TV and cameras. This scales back some of the wow factor, but makes it much easier to implement.To that end, Google and HP will be integrating Project Starline with common video conferencing apps like Google Meet and Zoom. There's no information as to how much it'll cost for companies to sign on to use this technology, or any details regarding the initial setup. Google says more information will be revealed later this year with actual commercialization beginning in 2025.HP calls it an immersive collaboration experience" and it certainly looks to be a better telepresence solution than a tiny smartphone screen. At the end of the day, though, it's just a big display. The updated Project Starline tech doesn't include anything resembling holographic projection.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/googles-project-starline-video-conferencing-tech-is-coming-to-offices-171622980.html?src=rss

It's only been a month since Apple started allowing retro game emulators on the App Store and we already have our second bona-fide hit. The newly-released Gamma is a free PS1 emulator with plenty of bells and whistles for those looking to dive back into the world of blocky polygons. It joins the massively popular Nintendo emulator Delta. We have no idea why these apps keep getting named after the Greek alphabet, as both are made by completely separate devs.Gamma comes courtesy of developer ZodTTD, which has been in the space nearly since the dawn of the iPhone. The app is primarily for Apple's smartphone, but there is a dedicated iPad version, which is always nice. Gamma integrates with Bluetooth controllers and keyboards, offering a myriad of input options. It also features customizable on-screen controller skins, but we all know how frustrating it can be to play old-school games with a touchscreen. It's nice to have the option though.The app uses Google Drive and Dropbox syncing for backing up game files and save states, and the software will even automatically grab game cover artwork. The whole thing's actually based on the codebase for Delta, according to reporting by The Verge. As always with emulators, you'll have to supply the games. To stay on the right side of the law, convert titles that you already own into ROM files.

A Prince of Persia game from the studio behind Dead Cells was supposed to hit early access on PC on May 14. That's no longer the case. Evil Empire says The Rogue Prince of Persia's debut is delayed until later this month, and it's because of a little game called Hades II.Soon after a technical test wrapped up, Supergiant Games released Hades II into early access on Monday. It skyrocketed up the Steam charts and quickly reached a peak of 102,000 concurrent players. Evil Empire suggested that everyone and their mom" is playing Hades II, including its own team, so it's getting out of that game's way.While we have every confidence in The Rogue Prince of Persia, it's not every day that a game in the same genre as you, which is one of the most anticipated upcoming games of 2024, will release into early access a week before you plan to do the same," Evil Empire wrote on X. We are not prideful enough to ignore the implications of that, and we truly believe that this short delay is the best decision for us and our early access journey.

Apple last week refreshed its iPad lineup by upgrading the iPad Pro and iPad Air. The latter got its first hardware update in over two years. The latest iPad Air is powered by an M2 chipset and it ships on May 15. If you're interested in picking one up and haven't yet done so, you're in luck. You'll get a $30 discount on the M2 iPad Air if you preorder one at Amazon. The discount is available on select models such as several colorways of the base 11-inch iPad Air with 128GB of storage, which drops to $570. The purple 256GB variant of the 13-inch iPad Air is also $30 off at $870.The M2 is one of the two major changes to the iPad Air this time around. The chipset is about 50 percent faster than the M1, according to Apple, so the latest model should be noticeably zipper than the previous generation. However, the iPad Pro is now significantly more powerful than the Air, as the high-end models arriving this week run on the new M4 chipsets, making them the first Apple devices to do so.The screen is the other major change to the iPad Air. Not only is the base model's display 0.1 inches larger, making it a tidier 11 inches, there's a 13-inch variant of an iPad Air for the first time. That means the iPad Air has the same screen sizes as the iPad Pro (which is now somehow thinner and lighter than its mid-range sibling).There's one other immediately noticeable change to the iPad Air The front-facing camera is now positioned along the landscape edge. That should make video calls a bit more palatable for those who tend to have their iPad in that orientation, including those who use keyboard attachments.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-m2-ipad-air-is-30-off-if-you-preorder-at-amazon-153809896.html?src=rss

One of Anker's MagGo power banks is on sale for just $32 via Amazon. This is a discount of 21 percent, as the device is typically $40. For the price, you get a full-featured magnetic power bank that boasts a 10,000mAh capacity, which allows for around 22 extra hours of use with a modern smartphone.The power bank features magnetic charging technology, like Apple's MagSafe, and the device automatically attaches to the back of a smartphone via those same magnets. It's also light and portable, so most pockets and handbags should be able to accommodate both the power bank and the attached smartphone.On the downside, it's not for every smartphone. It's only for the iPhone 12 and up, as that's when Apple introduced its MagSafe technology to the lineup. However, it can be used with other gadgets that allow for magnetic charging, like AirPod cases and the like. It's also worth noting that, while cool, wireless magnetic charging is much slower than traditional wired charging.We gave another Anker MagGo charger the top spot in our list of the best power banks. Anker makes good stuff. The primary difference between the one that topped our list and this one is that the former boasts Qi2 wireless charging technology, which is faster, and a nice LED display for data metrics. It's also more than twice the price.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/pick-up-this-anker-10000mah-magnetic-power-bank-for-only-32-150230046.html?src=rss

Things are really changing over at Apple with the announcement of a new M4 iPad Pro and M2 iPad Air. The company has also discontinued the ninth-generation iPad and cut the price of its 10th-generation model to $349. While that was exciting on its own, Apple's 10th-gen iPad is now available for an even better deal on Amazon: $334. The discount brings Apple's 64GB base model to a new record-low price.The 10th-gen iPad is becoming Apple's cheapest option on the market and it's a solid product. We gave it an 85 in our review when it debuted in 2022 thanks to updates like a USB-C charging port and a redesign that made it more comparable to the iPad Air. It also has a landscape-mode front-facing camera so you can join video calls without being awkwardly vertical on people's screens.Apple's most affordable iPad also has a 10-hour battery estimate but lasted 11 hours and 45 minutes for us when playing a movie pushed from iTunes - though gaming or other active use would shorten the amount of time it works between charges. This iPad also has a 10.9-inch screen, compared to it's predecessors 10.2-inches. Plus, it uses an A14 chip (the same one as in an iPhone 12).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-10th-gen-ipad-hits-a-new-low-of-334-141510163.html?src=rss

The recipe for Google's A-series Pixels is incredibly straightforward: Combine top-notch cameras with a vivid display and then cram all that in a tried and tested design for a reasonable price. But with the addition of a Tensor G3 chip, the Pixel 8a now supports the same powerful AI features as Google's flagship phones. So when you consider that all this comes for just $499, you're looking at not just the top midrange Android handset on the market but possibly one of the best values of any phone on sale today.Design and displayAside from a new aloe color option - which in my opinion is the best of the bunch - the Pixel 8a is nearly identical to the standard Pixel 8. However, there are a few subtle differences that become more noticeable when the two are viewed side-by-side. The most obvious is slightly larger bezels, which also has an impact on the Pixel 8's screen size. Instead of a 6.2-inch display like on its pricier sibling, the Pixel 8a tops out at 6.1 inches. That said, you still get a vibrant OLED panel that produces deep blacks and rich colors, plus a slightly faster 120Hz refresh rate compared to the 90Hz on last year's Pixel 7a.The phone's frame is still made out of aluminum, which feels great, while the metal camera bar in the back is actually a millimeter or two thinner, resulting in an ever so slightly sleeker device. Google also switched out the Pixel 8's rear glass panel for plastic. But thanks to a new matte finish that's supposed to mimic the texture of cashmere, it definitely doesn't feel cheap. And while its IP67 rating for dust and water resistance is one step down from what's on the mainline Pixel 8, that's still enough to withstand dunks of up to 1 meter for 30 minutes. Not bad.PerformanceOne of the biggest knocks against Google's Tensor chips is that they don't offer the same level of raw performance you get from rival Apple or Qualcomm silicon. And while that's still true of the G3, when we're talking about it powering a phone that costs $499, I'm much less bothered. In normal use, the Pixel 8a feels swift and snappy and even when gaming. Titles like Marvel Snap and TMNT: Shredder's Revenge looked smooth. The only time I noticed significant hiccups or lag was when playing more demanding shooters like Call of Duty: Mobile.While both sport very similar designs, the Pixel 8a (left) has a slightly smaller 6.1-inch screen with larger bezels than the standard Pixel 8 (right). Photo by Sam Rutherford/EngadgetOf course, the other part of the performance equation is all the on-device AI features that the Tensor G3 unlocks such as Audio Magic Eraser, Best Take and the Magic Editor, which you can use as much as you want instead of the 10-picture cap that free users are subject to in Google Photos.CamerasThe Pixel 8a features the same 64MP main and 13MP ultra-wide sensors used in last year's P7a. But that's OK, because Google's affordable phones punch way above their weight. So instead of comparing it with a similarly priced rival, I decided to really challenge the Pixel 8a by putting it up against the Samsung 24 Ultra. And even then, it still largely kept up.In bright light, I'd argue the Pixel 8a might be the superior shooter, as it captured more accurate colors and excellent details compared to the warmer tones and often oversaturated hues from Samsung. This was especially noticeable when shooting a single yellow rose. The S24 Ultra made the middle of the flower appear orange and super contrasty, which looks great in a vacuum but doesn't reflect what I saw in real life.However, at night the S24 Ultra's massive 200MP main sensor pulled back in front, producing images that were generally sharper and more well-exposed. That said, thanks to Google's powerful Night Sight mode, the Pixel 8a wasn't far behind, an impressive feat for a phone that costs $800 less.Finally, while the Pixel 8a doesn't have any other hardware tricks besides a solid 13MP selfie cam, Google's AI is here to take your photos even further. Best Take allows you to capture multiple group shots and then swap in people's reactions from various options. It's easy to use and lets you create a composite where everyone is smiling, which feels like a win-win scenario. Then there's the Magic Editor, a fun and powerful way to eliminate distracting elements or move subjects around as you please. It's the kind of thing you might not use every day, but now and then it will salvage a shot you might have otherwise deleted. So even if you don't care about AI or how it works, Google is finding a way to add value with machine learning.Battery life and chargingPhoto by Sam Rutherford/EngadgetWhile the Pixel 8a's 4,492 mAh battery is a touch smaller than what you get on the standard model (4,575 mAh), it actually boasts slightly better battery life, possibly due to its more petite screen. On our video rundown test, the 8a lasted a solid 20 hours and 29 minutes, barely beating the regular Pixel 8's time of 20:16.Meanwhile, when it comes to recharging, both wired and Qi wireless speeds have stayed the same. This means you get up to 18 watts when using a cable, but a rather lethargic rate of 7.5 watts if you slap it on an induction pad. That might not be a big deal if you only use wireless charging overnight or to conveniently top up the phone while you're doing something else. But if you need some juice in a jiffy, you better grab a cord.Wrap-upGoogle isn't breaking new ground with the Pixel 8a. But the simple formula of class-leading cameras, a great display, strong battery life and a slick design will never go out of style - especially when you get all this for just $499. And with the addition of AI features that were previously only available on Google's flagship phones, the Pixel 8a is a midrange smartphone that really is smarter than all of its rivals. To top everything off, there's a configuration with 256GB of storage for the first time on any A-series handset (though only on the Obsidian model), plus even better support with a whopping seven years of Android and security updates.Photo by Sam Rutherford/EngadgetThe one wrinkle to this is that the deciding factor comes down to how much its siblings cost. If you go by their default pricing, the $499 Pixel 8a offers incredible savings compared to the standard $799 Pixel 8. However, prior to the 8a's announcement, we saw deals that brought the Pixel 8 down to as low as $549, at which point you might as well spend an extra $50 to get the full flagship experience.But for those who don't feel like waiting for a discount or might not care about details like slower wireless charging speeds, in addition to being the best midrange Android phone, the Pixel 8a is just a damn good deal.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/google-pixel-8a-review-the-best-midrange-android-phone-gets-flagship-ai-features-140046032.html?src=rss

Over the last few days, heightened solar activity (and those heady geomagnetic storms) led to outages in the GPS navigation systems that guide some modern tractors from John Deere and other brands. 404 Media reported farmers have been told to pause using high-tech tractors that use GPS systems to program and tightly farm their land. John Deere's tractors' Real-Time Kinematic (RTK) systems can apparently plant precisely, down to the centimeter. A bit of GPS noise could derail that.REUTERS / ReutersThe weekend's geomagnetic storm is the strongest in the last 20 years and reached G5 levels, considered extreme," on Friday and Saturday morning.- Mat SmithThe biggest stories you might have missedDoctor Who: The Devil's Chord review: Is this madness?What we're listening to: Trail of Flowers, Hyperdrama, Science Fiction and morePre-orders for Ghost of Tsushima on PC are being canceled in countries without PSN accessYou can get these reports delivered daily direct to your inbox. Subscribe right here!Most Apple App Store developers aren't trying outside paymentsOnly 38 of a possible 65,000 have applied.Apple's recently added option for App Store developers to include links to external payment methods isn't actually all that appealing. In a hearing on Friday, as part of the ongoing legal battle with Epic, Apple said only 38 developers have applied to add such links - out of roughly 65,000 that could. The changes were to satisfy an injunction ordered by US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in 2021. According to Bloomberg, Rogers said during the latest hearing: It sounds to me as if the goal was to then maintain the business model and revenue you had in the past."Continue reading.Alienware m16 R2 reviewWhen less power makes for a better laptop.EngadgetThe Alienware m16 R2 is a rarity among modern laptops. Normally after a major revamp, gadget makers like to keep new models on the market for as long as possible to minimize manufacturing costs. However, after the freshly designed m16 launched last year, the company re-engineered it again. This time limiting the GPU. By doing that, Alienware could rework the m16 into a gaming laptop with a sleeker design, better battery life and a more approachable starting price - built for what customers were buying when the original launched. It's a good approach. Check out our review.Continue reading.Waymo's robotaxis are making 50,000 paid trips every weekAcross three cities.The Alphabet-owned autonomous taxi company has announced it's now serving more than 50,000 paid trips every week across Phoenix, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Waymo One operates 24/7 in parts of those cities, so if the company is getting 50,000 rides a week, that's five bookings every minute.Continue reading.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-morning-after-those-geomagnetic-storms-are-messing-with-farming-techs-gps-systems-111558939.html?src=rss

Apple's first unionized Store in Towson, Maryland has now authorized the first strike against the retail giant. That follows what the union called "over a year of negotiations with Apple management that yielded unsatisfactory outcomes," according to a press release from the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers' retail coalition (IAM CORE).The Maryland store located in a Baltimore mall represents around 100 employees and unionized in 2022, becoming the first Apple Store to do so. The vote concluded last weekend and allows workers to walk out at any time, but no date has been set yet.While the sides have agreed on principle in 25 areas, other key matters remain unresolved. "The issues at the forefront of this action include concerns over work-life balance, unpredictable scheduling practices disrupting personal lives and wages failing to align with the area's cost of living," the union wrote."We deeply value our team members and we're proud to provide them with industry leading compensation and exceptional benefits. As always, we will engage with the union representing our team in Towson respectfully and in good faith," Apple said in a statement.The union previously accused Apple of illegally withholding new benefits including healthcare and other perks from workers at the Towson Store. Last year, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) said Apple violated federal law with anti-union meetings in Atlanta. A New York judge also issued a cease-and-desist order against Apple for abusing employee's rights.Apple and IAM CORE will return to the negotiating table on May 21, according to the union. "This vote today is the first step in demonstrating our solidarity and sends a clear message to Apple," the union said in a statement. "As discussions with Apple management continue, we remain committed to securing tangible improvements that benefit all employees."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apple-store-workers-in-maryland-have-voted-to-authorize-a-strike-091428890.html?src=rss

It seems Apple's recently added option for App Store developers to include links to external payment methods isn't actually all that appealing. In a hearing on Friday as part of the ongoing legal battle with Epic, Apple said only 38 developers have applied to add such links - out of roughly 65,000 that could, according to Bloomberg. The new guidelines, introduced in January, require developers get Apple's approval before they can add alternative payment options and stipulate that they'll still have to pay a commission fee of up to 27 percent.The changes were intended to satisfy an injunction ordered by U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in 2021, but, per Reuters, Epic in March called Apple's attempt at compliance a sham" and filed a complaint with the court. At this point, Rogers doesn't really seem impressed either. It sounds to me as if the goal was to then maintain the business model and revenue you had in the past," Rogers said of Apple's solution during the latest hearing, according to Bloomberg.On top of Apple's commission, developers also need to consider payment processing fees, which altogether could lead to them paying even more than they did before. You're telling me a thousand people were involved [in approving the new fee] and not one of them said maybe we should consider the cost [to developers]?" the judge reportedly said.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/most-app-store-developers-arent-taking-apple-up-on-its-new-outside-payments-option-210802382.html?src=rss

Space weather has been known to cause disruptions to GPS and communications systems, and perhaps no one is feeling those headaches more than farmers this weekend. 404 Media reports that the heightened solar activity over the last few days has led to outages in the GPS navigation systems that guide some modern tractors from John Deere and other brands. The technology has allowed farmers to plant more efficiently in ultra-tight, straight lines, but they've been advised to temporarily stop using it due to the potential for inaccuracies that could cause havoc down the line come harvesting time.John Deere's tractors connect to what are known as Real-Time Kinematic (RTK) systems, 404 reports, which allow for precision planting down to the centimeter level. If farmers were to go ahead and plant without their usual accuracy, we expect that the rows won't be where the AutoPath lines think they are" when it's time to tend and harvest the crops, Landmark Implement, owner of some John Deere dealerships, told 404 Media.The timing is terrible - it's peak planting season for corn, and one Nebraska farmer, Kevin Kenney, told 404, All the tractors are sitting at the ends of the field right now shut down because of the solar storm." Many farms have had to pause planting, while others are carrying on and just hoping for the best.The geomagnetic storm we're currently experiencing is the strongest observed in the last 20 years, and reached G5 levels on Friday and Saturday morning, which is considered to be extreme." It later died down some to G4/G3, but is expected to surge again on Sunday evening when some intense but slower-moving coronal mass ejections (CMEs) from the sun reach Earth. That's great if you want to see the northern lights, but not so much if your livelihood depends on the technology the storm is interfering with.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-geomagnetic-storm-is-a-nightmare-for-farmers-relying-on-precision-agriculture-tech-180252016.html?src=rss

People who pre-ordered the PC port of Ghost of Tsushima Director's Cut in countries that don't have access to PlayStation Network (PSN) were reportedly notified this weekend that their purchases have been canceled and auto-refunded. Steam, Green Man Gaming and the Epic Games Store have all been canceling these orders, Eurogamer reports. Developer Sucker Punch previously said that a PSN account would only be needed for the game's multiplayer mode, and the single-player campaign would be playable without it. But, here we are - and just days after the Helldivers 2 mess that transpired last week.According to Eurogamer, people in affected areas were sent an email letting them know their orders were being refunded, saying, The publisher of this game is now requiring a secondary account to play portions of this game - and this account cannot be created from your country." Prior to this, Ghost of Tsushima was delisted from Steam in the over 170 countries without PSN, PCGamer and other outlets have reported. Sony hasn't said anything publicly about the whole debacle yet. Ghost of Tsushima Director's Cut is slated to be released for PC on Thursday.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/pre-orders-for-ghost-of-tsushima-on-pc-are-being-canceled-in-countries-without-psn-access-155429366.html?src=rss

The strongest geomagnetic storm in 20 years made the colorful northern lights, or aurora borealis, visible Friday night across the US, even in areas that are normally too far south to see them. And the show may not be over. Tonight may offer another chance to catch the aurora if you have clear skies, according to the NOAA, and Sunday could bring yet more displays reaching as far as Alabama.

Fans have been waiting a long, long time for another installment in the 28 Days Later franchise, and we now know when the next followup is coming out: June 20, 2025. Per Variety, Sony Pictures announced the release date for the upcoming film 28 Years Later on Friday. It would have been kind of cool if it were timed with the original film's actual 28th anniversary in 2030, considering how close we are to that now (horrifying, I know), but I can't blame them for not keeping people hanging even longer.28 Days Later, starring Cillian Murphy in what turned out to be his breakout role, came out in 2002, and was followed by a sequel with a different cast, 28 Weeks Later, in 2007. There were at one point murmurs of plans for 28 Months Later, but it looks like we're skipping over that. The new film will be directed by Danny Boyle and written by Alex Garland, who both helmed the first movie, The Hollywood Reporter reported earlier this year. Murphy will be among its executive producers, according to Variety, but don't get your hopes up for seeing him in a starring role. As of now, it doesn't seem like that'll be the case.We don't know anything about the plot yet, but 28 Years Later will reportedly star Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Ralph Fiennes. And it could be the first of three new movies in the franchise. According to THR, the plan is ultimately for a trilogy.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/28-years-later-is-coming-to-theaters-next-summer-171831988.html?src=rss

In this installment of What We're Listening To, Engadget writers and editors discuss some of the recent music releases we've had on repeat. It's safe to say there's some variety on this list.Sierra Ferrell - Trail of FlowersSierra Ferrell seems almost like an anachronism in 2024, but in the best possible way. She has this effortless, old-timey country style that is at points reminiscent of the likes of The Carter Family or Flatt and Scruggs (her brilliant covers of songs once performed by the latter duo are permanently seared into my brain), and it's just so refreshing. Trail of Flowers, Ferrell's second studio album, toes a little further into a more modern sound, but it maintains this deeply Americana feel that just seems to roll off the West Virginia-born artist so naturally.Country music isn't just one thing, and neither is Trail of Flowers. It meanders through different flavors - folk, bluegrass, hints of jazz - but it manages to do so in a way that feels cohesive when it's all taken together. The wistful American Dreaming" and Wish You Well" are offset by sillier, whimsical numbers like I Could Drive You Crazy" or the deep cut cover, Chitlin' Cookin' Time in Cheatham County." Tracks like Money Train," I'll Come Off the Mountain" and Lighthouse" are instantly catchy. Why Haven't You Loved Me Yet" and No Letter" feel like classics in the making.And then there's the cheekily sinister, scorned-lover's lament, Rosemary." It's one of the songs that first got me hooked on Sierra Ferrell years ago, as I imagine is the case for a lot of fans who have followed Ferrell's career since her busking days or her unforgettable GemsOnVHS performances. I was almost nervous to hear it on Trail of Flowers, with a full production, after loving the raw, stripped-down recording I've been replaying on YouTube for so long. But they've done a beautiful job of capturing that magic, and Rosemary" may be my favorite track on the album. It's hard to pick, though.Castle Rat - Into the RealmSometime early last year, I discovered something I didn't realize was missing from my life: medieval fantasy doom metal. I was at a show at the gloriously trippy Brooklyn Made watching an opener ahead of the band I'd gone there to see, and unexpectedly found myself witness to an on-stage choreographed sword fight (well, there was a scythe involved too) between a woman in chainmail and someone wearing a hooded rat mask and lingerie. I'd already been enraptured by the band's heavy, immersive riffs and the singer's hypnotic 1970s-esque vocals, but in that moment, yeah, things really clicked into place. This was my introduction to Castle Rat, and it was a damn good one.I've been eagerly awaiting the release of their debut album ever since, and from the second it dropped last month - an LP called Into the Realm - I've pretty much been playing it on a nonstop loop. It would actually be embarrassing if you were to check the number of times I've listened to the album's standout ballad, Cry For Me." It is a haunting, emotional song that really takes you on a journey and I'm a little obsessed with it. Into the Realm opens strong with the boppy Dagger Dragger," and some real heavy-hitters follow in tracks like Feed the Dream," Fresh Fur" and Nightblood." Red Sands" is a slow-building powerhouse, and I've even found myself loving the three roughly minute-long instrumental interludes that tie the whole album together.Doom bands love a good theme (as do I), and we tend to see a lot of weed, witchcraft, science fiction and fantasy pop up throughout the subgenres that fall under this umbrella. Castle Rat definitely isn't the first to have a shtick, but there's a certain freshness to the band's even more specific, self-described medieval fantasy brand, perhaps because they commit to it so hard. Their 70s and 80s influences are obvious, yet everything they've put out so far still feels original. Some people might find the whole thing gimmicky, but I think it's working. Especially since they have the chops to back it up. I'm excited to see where Castle Rat goes from here.Honorable Mentions:Girl with No Face, Allie X- Another song I've been listening to an embarrassing amount these days is Weird World, off Allie X's latest album, Girl with No Face. I somehow haven't tired myself of it yet, it makes me go absolutely feral. Girl with No Face is full of synth-pop gems, like Off With Her Tits" - a dancey, angsty anthem sure to resonate with anyone who has experienced dysphoria around their body image - John and Johnathan," Black Eye" and Staying Power."Club Shy, Shygirl - This is just a collection of straight-up bangers. It's not even 16 minutes long, but it really hits. If you need an instant mood-elevator ahead of a night out, this album is it.Stampede: Volume 1, Orville Peck - Orville Peck's first release in his fringeless era is a duets album, the first part of which was released on Friday and features artists including Willie Nelson, Noah Cyrus and Elton John. I haven't had much time to spend with Stampede: Volume 1 yet, but I'm into it so far. Conquer the Heart" ft. Nathaniel Rateliff and How Far Will We Take It?" with Noah Cyrus feel like they combine the best elements of Pony (2019) and Bronco (2022). Bronco came in two waves, so I expect we'll see a Volume 2 for Stampede before long, too.- Cheyenne MacDonald, Weekend EditorHannah Jadagu - ApertureWhenever I hear the words banger" or bop," I don't think about artists like Taylor Swift. I think about the nebulous musical genre known as bedroom pop. Bop, after all, is right there in the name. Hannah Jadagu is a bedroom pop wizard of the highest order. Her first EP was made entirely on an old iPhone and still slaps, though she has since graduated to real recording studios. Jadagu's latest full-length on Sub Pop, Aperture, is filled with both bangers and bops, and my favorite is the lovelorn Say It Now." Listen to this thing. It just may be the perfect pop song and is absolutely crying out for some road trip singalongs. The shoegaze-adjacent What You Did" is another classic and would be at home on any decent summer playlist.- Lawrence Bonk, Contributing ReporterJustice - HyperdramaJustice's first full-length release Cross from 2007 is one of my favorite albums of all time. Not only did it define the crunchy electronic sound of the blog house era in the late 2000s and early 2010s, it also felt like a new French duo had picked up where Daft Punk left off following 2005's Human After All. Now Justice is back with its fourth album in Hyperdrama. But instead of being inspired by a specific genre of music like we heard in Audio, Video, Disco's stadium rock tracks or Woman's disco-fueled beats, this album feels more like the soundtrack to a moody sci-fi thriller, almost as if this is Justice's alternate reality take on the Tron: Legacy soundtrack.Generator" is a certified banger and probably the song that sounds the most like classic Justice. Neverender" and One Night/All Night" are also highlights, though I think Justice may have leaned a bit too heavily on Tame Impala to give this album personality. Dear Alan" delivers super smooth vibes and Thundercat makes a delightful appearance and finishes things strong in The End."The one thing I really miss is at least one truly danceable track like we got on all of the band's previous albums. I also have to admit that some of the songs in the middle blend together in a less-than-memorable way. So while Hyperdrama isn't the top-to-bottom masterpiece that Cross was a decade and a half ago, more Justice isn't a bad thing.- Sam Rutherford, Senior ReporterUtada Hikaru - Science FictionOver the past few weeks, I've mostly been listening to songs from Science Fiction, the first greatest hits album by J-Pop artist Utada Hikaru. I've been a fan since they released their debut album First Love back in 1999, when people were far more likely to be weirded out by the fact that yes, you can enjoy music with lyrics in a language you don't understand. Utada has been in and out of the J-Pop scene since then, and there were long stretches of time when I wouldn't hear anything about them. Every new music drop is a gift, especially this album, since it's tied to an upcoming concert tour, which they only do once in a blue moon.Utada experienced a resurgence in 2022 when their songs First Love" and Hatsukoi" - which also translates to first love" - were featured in a hit Japanese drama series on Netflix called (you guessed it) First Love. Those tracks are, of course, in Science Fiction, which also includes songs from various points in Utada's career.The album will take you on a journey from when they mostly wrote R&B-inspired pop to an era when their music became more experimental, and it will introduce you to their current sound, which is both mainstream and unique. While some of the re-recorded versions of their older songs like Traveling" don't quite hit the mark, it's still a good representation of who Utada is as a musician. As a long-time fan, though, this album isn't just a collection of songs to me, but a collection of memories from different stages of my life.- Mariella Moon, Contributing ReporterCaroline Polachek - Starburned and Unkissed"There are a few reasons that Starburned and Unkissed" stands out against the I Saw the TV Glow soundtrack, which is replete with not only beloved mainstays like Broken Social Scene's Anthems For A Seventeen-Year Old Girl" as well as other original songs from luminaries like Phoebe Bridgers and Hop Along's Frances Quinlan. If cornered, I would say the most brilliant thing about Starburned and Unkissed," its greatest strength, is that it's just a little too slow.Every note stretches and yearns with the impatience of adolescence, verges on running out of air, of snapping in two. Much like the scene of the utterly and equally brilliant I Saw the TV Glow it was written for, it captures the sleepy anxiety of a too-warm high school, overcrowded and isolating. The heaviness of its crushing guitars ebbs and flows unsteadily, mimicking the experimentation of callow hands. (It takes the second try on the chorus for the drums and guitars to all come in on cue.)It's unstable, hopeful. Caroline's voice - gently mangled by intentional autotune pitch shifts - falls out of key in the song's last few refrains, threatening to derail the dreamy beauty of the past three minutes. It ends abruptly, begging for another listen, another return to a time that can't be recaptured.Honorable mentions:Lover's Spit Plays in the Background," Claire Rousay - Rousay's sentiment is a perfect album for reading outside on an overcast day. I'm not sure I can pick a standout track, as the experience is really in letting the whole thing wash over you, but this one's close enough.Stickers of Brian," Hot Mulligan - Classic pop punk subject matter (my job sucks and I hate everyone") but my god what an earworm.On Brand," Ekko Astral - Levels of snottiness previously considered unachievable. Hard not to love what a beautiful mess these folks make.Cometh the Storm," High on Fire - Most of High on Fire's 20+ years of output sounds like - and lyrically is probably about - an axe-wielding barbarian ripping a bong, or whatever other D&D nonsense they're up to. (I say this lovingly. I adore High on Fire.) The title track off the new one is... unusually dirge-like? At first it felt very old band showing their age" but it's grown on me as an intentional and welcome change. They're not off the hook for using AI for the Burning Down" music video though. C'mon guys.- Avery Ellis, Deputy Editor, ReportsThis article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/what-were-listening-to-trail-of-flowers-hyperdrama-science-fiction-and-more-143052023.html?src=rss

If you've been seeing more Waymo robotaxis recently in Phoenix, San Francisco and Los Angeles, that's because more and more people are hailing one for a ride. The Alphabet-owned company has announced on Twitter/X that it's now serving more than 50,000 paid trips every week across three cities. Waymo One operates 24/7 in parts of those cities. If the company is getting 50,000 rides a week, that means it receives an average of 300 bookings every hour or five bookings every minute. Waymo has revealed, as well, that it's had over one million rider-only trips across four cities, including Austin, where it's currently offering limited rides to select members of the public.In its announcement, Waymo credited its "safe and deliberate approach" to scaling its program for reaching the milestone. "We see people from all walks of life use our service to travel carefree, gain independence, reclaim their commute and more. Fully autonomous ride-hailing is a reality and a preferred mobility option for people navigating their cities every day," it added.While Waymo certainly seems to be doing better than Cruise, which only recently re-deployed some of its autonomous vehicles following a much-needed hiatus, it's had its share of controversies. In April, six Waymo robotaxis blocked traffic in a San Francisco freeway, and it was just one of the instances wherein the company's vehicles caused traffic blockage. Earlier this year, two Waymo vehicles crashed into the same pickup truck one after the other, because their software had incorrectly predicted the future movements of the truck. The company issued a software recall after the incident to fix the issue and prevent similar incidents from happening.

The following includes spoilers for The Devil's Chord."For a show about time (and space) travel interwoven with British pop culture since its start in 1963, a trip to visit the Beatles is an obvious premise. So obvious that this is the second time we've had a what if" episode hinging on the Fab Four's cultural impact. After all, both the Beatles and Doctor Who became global cultural exports as Britain flexed its post-imperial soft power. But while there's plenty of material to mine in that premise, this isn't an episode that's interested in doing that, relegating the Beatles to little more than window dressing.This has always been a trick in Doctor Who's toolbox, especially when Russell T. Davies is in charge. He loves dangling an idea, or eye-catching visual, to lure in an audience before moving the focus to something else. I'm reminded of the kung-fu monks from Tooth and Claw" which looked great in the trailers but had no real impact on the story. It's Tooth and Claw" that The Devil's Chord" feels similar to - an early season one episode that doesn't quite work in and of itself, but does spend a lot of its time gesturing to this year's recurring themes. (FilmStories reported from a recent Q&A, where Davies said that this episode lacked a central plot and was, instead, "Just some subplots.")James Pardon/Bad Wolf/BBC StudiosBut to understand that, and my stance, we're going to have to take a little look at The Context before we get to examining the meat. You see, during its history, Doctor Who has bent itself to fit the vision of its primary creative figure and Davies is a voracious watcher of TV. He's obsessed with the form and format of TV as much as its content, and this is reflected in his work. His episodes often develop with news reports, CCTV clips and deeper forms of exposition revealed through screens. Bad Wolf" is a great example, where the show lands at a TV studio that's making sci-fi versions of the then-current pantheon of British reality TV.Davies also trusts his audience to instinctively know the unspoken rules of TV even if they can't name them. Which is why I think it's worth looking at The Devil's Chord" as an episode that is, for want of a better phrase, collapsing in on itself. When Mrs. Flood talks to the camera at the end of Church on Ruby Road," it felt Deliberately Wrong, especially after she was seemingly unaware of the TARDIS earlier in the episode. Here, the numerous fourth wall breaks and lapses in storytelling are similarly an intentional sign of How Wrong Things Are. What starts out as a by-the-numbers celebrity historical quickly collapses into a fever dream like Sam Lowry's descent into madness at the end of Brazil.James Pardon/Bad Wolf/BBC StudiosWe open in a concert hall in 1925 as a teacher outlines the basics of music theory for a young child. He shows off that he has discovered" The Devil's Chord and, by playing it, unleashes Maestro (Jinkx Monsoon), the embodiment of music. Maestro is a godlike elemental force and a child of the Toymaker - featured villain of the 60th Anniversary special episode The Giggle." After praising the musician for their genius, Maestro then sucks the music out of their heart and eats it like cotton candy before staring into the camera and playing the show's theme tune on the piano.When the titles end (notice the theme is playing out of the jukebox) it's clear Ruby has been on the TARDIS for some time. She asks the Doctor if it would be possible to visit the recording of the Beatles' first album at the EMI's studios on Abbey Road. Before they open the doors, she asks if it might be worth them changing into less conspicuously modern clothes and they spring off to sample the delights of the TARDIS wardrobe, complete with a wig for the Doctor.James Pardon/Bad Wolf/BBC StudiosThe pair sneak into George Martin's producer's booth but quickly spot something is wrong with the scene in front of them. Rather than playing any of Please Please Me's big and recognizable hits, they're turning out mop-top music about animals. The Doctor doesn't know it yet but Maestro has spent the last few decades swallowing all of the music out of people's hearts. It's a genius way to get around the fact that, even with all the cash thrown at Get Back and Disney's vast bank balance,Doctor Who still can't readily afford to license Beatles songs.Next door, (famous British singer / TV presenter / notorious diva) Cilla Black is similarly stricken with a case of the muzaks while a concert orchestra is just about mustering a version of Three Blind Mice. The Doctor and Ruby head to the canteen to corner John and Paul to try and find out what went wrong with history. They then head to the roof with a piano, where Ruby plays a tune she wrote to help a friend get over a breakup. But once the Doctor hears Maestro's giggle, he sprints away, hiding in a nearby basement.James Pardon/Bad Wolf/BBC StudiosThe Doctor explains that any villain who laughs is tied to the Toymaker and is a sign of the fractured universe. Fighting the Toymaker in The Giggle" was sufficiently draining and difficult, especially given how powerful these elemental forces are, that he doesn't want to do it again. Maestro is hunting for them, but the Doctor uses his sonic screwdriver to kill all of the sound in the area. (The Doctor knows just enough about how the form and format of TV works to turn the tables on their opponent.) Maestro works out how to undo the blocking - with some magnificent sound editing - but is then distracted from their pursuit of the Doctor by an older woman Ruby had inspired to play the piano.The eagle-eyed among you will notice that this is the second time in two episodes that Ruby has inspired another person to be bold to their detriment. Her words were enough to encourage Eric to try and take on the bogeyman single-handed in Space Babies," nearly imperiling him. The older woman isn't so lucky and gets consumed by MaestroBecause of how long Doctor Who has run, it's often its own source material. Ruby, once they've escaped, assumes that everything is okay because she recalls listening to music as a child and so therefore Maestro can't have won. So, in a scene pulled from Pyramids of Mars," the Doctor takes her to 2024 in the TARDIS to show the wreckage of the alternate future. Because while she's protected from the ravages of continuity by the fact she's traveling through time, the rest of the universe isn't so lucky.Natalie Seery/Bad Wolf/BBC StudiosBut this flash-forward, in an echo of the meeting with the Toymaker, flips from a visage of a bombed-out London to a stagey set. Maestro arrives behind a white piano to outline their plan to rid the universe of music, leaving just the aeolian tones of the wind brushing against objects. But the Doctor says that a universe without music, unable to express joy or anger through art, turns sour and destroys itself. It's a feeling I can relate to - like when love becomes so painful in its absence that you'd rather disappear into the void than keep going on. Davies is also a nihilist so many of his episodes have revolved around the dark face of humanity that reveals itself when denied Earthly pleasures.Escaping back to the 60s, the Doctor and Ruby meet Maestro and find the walls of reality are collapsing. Murray Gold's swirling soundtrack isn't just the background music, it's bled into the fabric of the show itself. The Doctor and Ruby start trying to find a chord that will bind Maestro with the Mrs. Mills piano, a (real) fixture of Abbey Road's studio. As they play, the notes are rendered floating over the piano, but the pair fail to identify the final note before Maestro turns up.Maestro begins attacking, throwing around musical scores as weapons and hurling the piano into the hall. It's here that the episode's coherence starts to sag, the scenes get longer and odder, a wonky version of a standard monster-of-the-week TV show conclusion. The tension builds, and all looks lost, until John and Paul stumble upon the piano in the hallway. They're able to see the notes hanging in the air over the piano and with their, uh, innate musical nous, and complete the chord to bind the villain. But before they're whisked away, Maestro has time to reveal they aren't the only one of the Toymaker's minions coming, and the one who waits" is lurking in the background.Out of nowhere, the episode ends with a big musical number that features the cast dancing through the Abbey Road sets, delighted at the return of music. Even the steps of the road crossing light up as the Doctor and Ruby cut a rug across them. I can't work out if it's simply an indulgent sequence, or another big sign that the show's structure is breaking down. That the Doctor and Ruby are blind to the apparent Wrongness of it all hints at the latter, especially given the deeper context of the song's title - see below.James Pardon/Bad Wolf/BBC StudiosThere are other signs that Doctor Who is collapsing into its own TV series, including the casting decisions. The older woman who plays the piano is June Hudson, the show's costume designer from 1978 to 1980 - who famously redesigned the fourth Doctor's costume. The musician at the piano during the dance number is Murray Gold, while the figures the Doctor and Ruby dance with at the end are Strictly Come Dancing stars Shirley Ballas and Johannes Radebe. Maybe the big nemesis haunting the series will be some form that could threaten its existence as a TV show itself.It's worth saying that Doctor Who has an uneasy relationship with big" villain performances which can turn hard into hamminess. But Jinkx Monsoon manages to pitch Maestro as just big and flamboyant enough to steal every scene they're in, but never too silly. It's also the right side of charming and magnetic, and while they don't have anywhere near enough time to properly face off against Ncuti Gatwa's Doctor, it's still a great match-up.The problem of Susan TwistAs much as I don't want to get into the weeds here, it's possible this stuff is going to come up later that I need to flag it. Doctor Who has been running for more than 60 years with a revolving door of creative figures who paid little-to-no attention to consistency. A convenient way to justify these is by suggesting time travel, by its very nature, would always mess up your personal history. But, in latter days, the show has often preferred to overlook the thornier parts of its backstory, like the existence of the Doctor's granddaughter, Susan.When the show started, the Doctor was joined on his adventures by Susan and a pair of teachers who followed her home one night. Long before any mention of Time Lords or Gallifrey, she was just the kid figure who often wound up needing rescuing. Then, in The Dalek Invasion of Earth," the Doctor exiles her to 22nd century Earth because she wants to kiss a boy. His goodbye speech has been long since de-contextualized and made to sound noble. But it is essentially him going yeah, you're interested in boys now, so you go make babies (eww babies) and stay here while I go off running around the universe." Yes, it is a bit yikes.This ties in with a small body of writing about this trope in children's literature about the way female characters are treated when reaching adulthood. In combination with a sexual awakening, this is often used as justification to dump them out of the narrative. It's even called The Problem of Susan," albeit named after Neil Gaiman's rebuttal of what happens to Susan at the end of The Chronicles of Narnia. If you'd like to learn more, you can read Elizabeth Sandifer's essay on "The Dalek Invasion of Earth" which talks about this in some detail.Why is this relevant? Because when Davies' returned to Doctor Who, he cast the same actress in two different episodes. Susan Twist played Mrs. Merridew in "Wild Blue Yonder" and was seen again in "The Church on Ruby Road," which sent keen-eyed fans into a frenzy. She pops up here as a tea lady and, on the roof of Abbey Road; the Doctor even talks about the fact another of his incarnations is living in Shoreditch in 1963 with his granddaughter. That the episode ends with a musical number called There's always a Twist at the end" with Ncuti Gatwa winking to camera is as big a neon sign as you could hope for.Doctor Who fans - never ones to not scour the text, metatext and paratext of each episode - took Twist's repeated casting as a signpost. They assumed, not unjustifiably, that this series would feature a twist about Susan, and that Davies was subtly signaling this to diehard fans. Given Twist's appearance here, and that we get a song saying the quiet part out loud, seems to vindicate those theories. Unless, of course, it's all a triple bluff, but I'm not sure how anyone could game that successfully. The only question that remains, of course, is what Davies' plan is, and how exactly it'll play out in the next six episodes.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/doctor-who-the-devils-chord-review-is-this-madness-010056449.html?src=rss

The following includes spoilers for Space Babies."You can't help but admire Russell T. Davies' audacity. He plucks the rights to make Doctor Who from the BBC. He gets Disney+ to write an enormous check to bring the show to life in a way never before attempted. Then, with so much money at stake and a months-long promotional campaign, he opens season one and the door to new fans with this.We kick off at the end of The Church on Ruby Road," with the Doctor's latest companion, Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson), entering the TARDIS for the first time. The Doctor introduces himself and offers a quick run-through of the premise for the folks at home. They're an alien, adopted by the Time Lords of Gallifrey who were then wiped out. That leaves the Doctor (once again) as the last of their kind; a quasi-immortal time traveler who can go anywhere in the universe.To set the scene, the pair hop back to prehistoric Wyoming to gaze at a detailed vista of some CGI dinosaurs. This is the show boasting about what it can do even for a throwaway scene with its new bigger budget. And it helps banish the memories of some of the less successful attempts to do a dinosaur episode from way back when.Ruby is already savvy to the conventions of the time-travel genre and asks about the risks to causality if she steps on a butterfly. The Doctor dismisses this idea out of hand before Ruby does and causes unutterable damage to the timeline. The butterfly is quickly revived and the Doctor nips back into the TARDIS to activate the Butterfly Compensator. Which is as close as this show gets to saying that it has never been a hard sci-fi show and it never will be.James Pardon/Bad Wolf/BBC StudiosFor their next trip, they travel into the far future, landing on a space station that grows babies for colony projects. The bowels of the vessel are being stalked by an eyeless, teeth-heavy monster while the upper deck is crewed by talking babies. Mere seconds after proving the show can do decent-looking dinosaurs, it overreaches and adds an appallingly creepy CGI mouth to a baby. I've seen this done in movies, and commercials, and it never works, and please God stop trying.The Doctor and Ruby encounter the crew, a bunch of babies with the minds of preschoolers and the mouths of adults, or something. They've been left to run the station, with pulleys and cables letting them control specific onboard functions, and smart strollers to carry them around. The only other presence on the ship is an AI, NAN-E, which acts as a comforting voice for the kids.Ruby's genre-savviness kicks in again here, and she notices there's almost a storybook quality to the situation. A bunch of kids being menaced by an unwelcome, bogeyman-esque presence below, and the need for a hero to step in and rescue them. The pair give the babies some much-needed cuddles and are then invited to another part of the station by NAN-E.On the way, the pair discuss origin stories and how Ruby, following on from the events of The Church on Ruby Road," wants to use the TARDIS to find out who her parents are. While they talk, snow - the same snow that fell when Ruby was left on the steps of the eponymous church - starts to fall inside the corridor. Ruby's memories and history are somehow seeping through into the present, or she's able to do something to alter the universe.James Pardon/Bad Wolf/BBC StudiosBut they can't focus on that too much, since they're interrupted by NAN-E, who turns out not to be an AI, but a person. Jocelyn Sancerre (Golda Rosheuvel) is the last adult crew member, who stayed on the station to care for the children when everyone else was ordered to leave. The government of the planet below pulled funding for the stations and ordered the adults to leave, abandoning the children in place. But, because the planet is also anti-abortion, they wouldn't terminate the as-yet unborn babies, preferring them to slowly die from external factors. Geez, do you think they might be talking about us?Much as this will be framed as a post-Roe story by US audiences, it's worth saying the UK's Conservative Party has taken a similar approach. In 2010, the Labour government had worked to greatly reduce child poverty and homelessness with a number of targeted programs. These were quickly unwound by the incoming Conservatives, not only undoing all of those gains but making the issue a lot worse. So much so that the UN - the UN! - of all people upbraided the nation.The streak of saying the quiet part out loud continues when, while hatching a plan to save the babies, they opt to take them to another planet in the system. It's a world that takes in refugees, but you have to turn up on the planet's doorstep to get any help, because it won't lift a finger to help rescue people in need from further afield. Again, this is a not-so oblique reference to the UK's monstrous policy of attempting to block refugees from reaching the country via sea. It is a point of enormous pride for the Prime Minister that he has boasted about his work to prevent boat crossings.This is made all the more painful as, for a brief moment, the country was reconsidering its approach following the death of Alan Kurdi, a two-year-old boy who drowned while attempting passage to Europe from Syria. The image of his body became a harrowing and defining image of the day, but the press quickly worked to stifle any pro-migrant sentiment, enabling the country to engage in an enormous boondoggle by spending millions of pounds building a detention center in Rwanda to forcibly-relocate people seeking asylum in the UK as a deterrent."James Pardon/Bad Wolf/BBC StudiosThe grown ups can't mull their problems for long as Eric, one of the babies (sorry, space babies) heads down to the lower level to tackle this bogeyman. There's a telling moment where Ruby sprints out to rescue the child far ahead of the Doctor, continuing a thread from the Christmas special: Ruby Sunday is willing to throw herself head-first into the action rather than waiting for help, steel pipe in hand. Doctor Who has always thrived when the companions - a name we've been saddled with since 1963 - are active figures in the narrative. Every one of the show's sidekicks, bar one, has their ardent fans, but commanding figures like Sarah Jane and Ace are always the most beloved.Once the baby is rescued by the other babies wielding a gas pipe as a flamethrower, they're sent back upstairs while the Doctor and Ruby take on the bogeyman. Ruby's assumptions are proved further right when it turns out the alien is actually a bogey-man, as in made of snot. The station's malfunctioning systems sought to build an appropriate environment for the kids, and used children's literature as its template.Jocelyn works out that she can force the bogeyman toward an airlock while keeping the Doctor and Ruby safe. She then exposes the monster to the void of space, but the Doctor can't be so cruel to another lonely, misunderstood figure. He makes his way into the airlock room and closes the door to seal them both in to save the bogeyman's life.The episode ends with the Doctor realizing that the station can eject its six full years worth of soiled diapers to propel it towards the refugee planet. It's entirely fair game to resolve a crisis precipitated by rogue bodily fluids with a poop joke.Crisis averted, he and Ruby walk back to the TARDIS where he gives her a key and welcomes her to the team, before adding that, as much as she may want to, he can't take her back to the moment she was abandoned. He covertly begins scanning Ruby to work out what exactly is her deal, and why she's capable of bending the universe. (And yes, there are shades of the Impossible Girl arc in how this is playing out.)The TARDIS lands back at Ruby's home, smashing up the kitchen and the Christmas dinner therein.James Pardon/Bad Wolf/BBC StudiosI imagine it won't be long after the episode airs that the usual corners of the internet will scream culture war. Davies was always a political writer and feels a duty to be unapologetic about his viewpoint on current-day matters. His original tenure on the show was rooted at the tail-end of the Blair and Brown years, fueled by righteous fury around the invasion of Iraq. This is, again, all the more surprising given it's being broadcast on Disney+, the model of conservative restraint.During his first tenure, Davies would begin the production of every episode with a tone meeting which outlined how each episode would maintain a consistent feeling in the writing, acting and direction. By comparison, Space Babies" lurches wildly: Poop and fart jokes in one scene, unsettling horror in the next, weighty examinations of human morality between. The scenes of Jocelyn's adult dialog being run through the nanny filter" is a good source of comedy, it's just odd that they're juxtaposed with high drama.But that's more or less what makes Doctor Who one of the best shows on TV - its ability to do anything it damn well pleases. If the weirdness of what you've just seen appeals then you've just become a Doctor Who fan. If it didn't, then you might find the next episode will serve up what you were looking for.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/doctor-who-space-babies-review-bet-you-didnt-expect-that-000030277.html?src=rss

Apple will reportedly focus its first round of generative AI enhancements on beefing up Siri's conversational chops. Sources speaking with The New York Times say company executives realized early last year that ChatGPT made Siri look antiquated. The company allegedly decided that the large language model (LLM) principles behind OpenAI's chatbot could give the iPhone's virtual assistant a much-needed shot in the arm. So Apple will reportedly roll out a new version of Siri powered by generative AI at its WWDC keynote on June 10.Apple Senior Vice Presidents Craig Federighi and John Giannandrea reportedly tested ChatGPT for weeks before the company realized that Siri looked outdated. (I would argue that the epiphany came about a decade late.) What followed was what The NYT describes as Apple's most significant reorganization in more than a decade."The company sees generative AI as a once-in-a-decade tentpole area worth shifting heaps of resources to address. You may recall the company canceled its $10 billion Apple Car" project earlier this year. Apple reportedly reassigned many of those engineers to work on generative AI.Apple executives allegedly fear AI models could eventually replace established software like iOS, turning the iPhone into a dumb brick" by comparison. The clunky, awkward and overall unconvincing first wave of dedicated AI gadgets we've reviewed, like the Human AI Pin and Rabbit R1, aren't good enough to pose a threat. But that could change as software evolves, other smartphone makers incorporate more AI into their operating systems and other hardware makers have a chance to innovate.So, at least for now, it appears Apple isn't launching direct competitors to generative AI stalwarts like ChatGPT (words), Midjourney (images) or ElevenLabs (voices). Instead, it will start with a new Siri and updated iPhone models with expanded memory to better handle local processing. In addition, the company will reportedly add a text-summarizing feature to the Messages app.Apple's M4 chip (shown next to VP John Ternus) could help process local Siri requests.AppleApple's first foray into generative AI, if The NYT's sources are correct, sounds like less of an immediate threat to creators than some had imagined. At its May iPad event, the company ran a video plugging the new iPad Pro that showed various creative tools crushed by a hydraulic press. The clip accidentally served as the perfect metaphor for the (legitimate) fears of artists, musicians and other creators, whose work AI models have trained on - and who stand to be replaced by those same tools as they become more normalized for content creation.On Thursday, Apple apologized for the ad and said it canceled plans to run it on TV.Samsung and Google have already loaded their flagship phones with various generative AI features that go far beyond improving their virtual assistants. These include tools for editing photos, generating text and enhancing transcription (among other things). These features typically rely on cloud-based servers for processing, whereas Apple's approach will allegedly prioritize privacy and handle requests locally. So Apple will apparently start with a more streamlined approach that sticks to improving what's already there, as well as keeping most or all processing on-device.The New York Times' sources add that Apple's culture of internal secrecy and privacy-focused marketing have stunted its AI progress. Former Siri engineer John Burkey told the paper that the company's tendency to silo off the information various divisions share with each other has been another primary culprit in Siri's inability to evolve far past where the assistant was when it launched a day before Steve Jobs died in 2011.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apples-big-ai-rollout-at-wwdc-will-reportedly-focus-on-making-siri-suck-less-203035673.html?src=rss

Samsung's HW-Q990C was the best overall soundbar I tested last year, mostly due to its stellar audio and the fact that a subwoofer and rear speakers came with it. The company didn't change much for the 2024 version, the HW-Q990D, but one tweak delivers a feature last year's model should've had: HDMI 2.1. There are some new audio modes too, but you can find those on other Samsung soundbars. The Q990D is as powerful as ever, but it's still pricey at $2,000. If you already bought a Q990C, the company hasn't given you a reason to upgrade just yet.What's new on the Samsung Q990D?The biggest addition on the Q990D is HDMI 2.1. With this, Samsung addressed my main criticism of the Q990C, which debuted last year at a time when much of the competition had already adopted the standard. HDMI 2.1 delivers 4K passthrough at 120 frames per second, which will improve the visuals if you connect your PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X directly to the soundbar.The Q990D also arrives with new audio modes. Private Listening turns off all of the front-firing drivers and uses only the rear satellite speakers. It's basically an expanded version of the night mode a lot of companies offer on soundbars, aimed at reducing boomy bass when family or roommates might be asleep. My house has an open floor plan and my TV faces towards the hallway to the bedrooms, which means any soundbar will beam noise in that direction. Private Listening sends the audio the opposite way, and while you have to sacrifice some overall quality, it's good enough for all the times you need to be quieter.There's also a new Party Play mode that provides more balanced sound between the soundbar and rear speakers for a better experience when you're hosting a rager. When this is active, you get the full audio range rather than just the channels specifically programmed for the speakers behind you. I actually turned the speakers around and faced them out of the living room to project the re-tuned audio into other communal spaces. This makes a bigger difference for movies and TV because music already plays from the rear speakers with more balanced levels.These two modes aren't unique to the Q990D; the rest of the 2024 Q-series lineup will be able to use them too. This is the first time I've tested them though, and it's notable that they actually work well on Samsung's most expensive soundbar.What's goodBilly Steele for EngadgetThe combination of a driver-packed soundbar, large subwoofer and more-robust rear speakers produces immersive sound that envelops my living room. Whether you're listening to music or the soundscape of Dune, the Q990D retains the sonic prowess of its predecessor. Dolby Atmos content from Disney+ is as immersive as ever. I could hear the finer details of Knowhere in the opening scenes of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, including the life-like reverb of Radiohead's Creep" playing over a loudspeaker. The directional sounds of the town, including the hustle and bustle of people moving around, make it seem like you're standing right there.For music, there's deep, boomy bass when a track calls for it, and that crisp detail that I heard in movies is here too. Justice's Hyperdrama shows off the Q990D's range, with driving low-end tone on songs like Neverender" accompanied by textured synths. Quieter genres like jazz are a blanket of sound too, with albums like Miles Davis' Kind of Blue offering subtleties that make you feel like you're in the studio.The thing I like most about the Q990D is that everything you need for a complete surround sound setup is included in the box. The subwoofer and rear speakers come with the soundbar and don't require an additional purchase. Those satellite speakers also house up-firing and side-firing drivers, which isn't always the case on comparable accessories from the competition. And the setup is as easy as plugging everything in because pairing with the rest of the system happens automatically.What's badBilly Steele for EngadgetAn all-in-one setup is great, but that also means the Q990D is expensive. At $2,000, this is a considerable investment even if you're getting everything you need in the package. The Q990D is currently on sale for $1,750, but we don't know how long that discount will last. For comparison, Sony's upcoming Bravia Bar 9 is $1,400. The cheapest subwoofer and rear speakers you can get for it are $400 and $350 respectively, which puts your total cost at $2,150. Of course, with Sony you have two options for subs and rears, and you don't have to buy all of them. LG offers some respite if you want to go that route, with its S95TR coming in at $1,500 and including the subwoofer and rear speakers with up-firing drivers.The overall size of the soundbar is something else you'll need to consider. The Q990D houses 11 front-facing speakers, two up-firing drivers and a subwoofer. All of those components need space, and accommodating them means this soundbar ends up being quite large at 48.5 inches wide. While that's not a deal-breaker per se, it does require some planning, so just know you'll need ample room.Like soundbars from other companies, the Q990D has some handy features that are reserved for Samsung TVs. For example, Q-Symphony, which uses your TV speakers in addition to the soundbar to expand the audio capabilities, requires a compatible 2020-2024 Samsung TV. The Q990D sounds great without this, but just know you're not getting the full bag of tricks unless you also have a supported TV.Wrap-upUnless you care for the latest HDMI standards, the Q990D doesn't offer a huge upgrade over last year's model. Their design and features lists are nearly identical, except for two new sound modes and 4K/120 passthrough. And some of those additions are available on more-affordable Samsung soundbars. So if you already sprang for last year's Q990C, there's probably not enough reason to make another sizable investment. If you don't already own a Samsung flagship soundbar, the Q990D offers boomy, immersive sound in an all-in-one package that now has all the modern conveniences it should.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/samsung-hw-q990d-soundbar-review-a-small-but-significant-update-180022782.html?src=rss

Climate protestors in Germany broke through police barricades on Friday, amid clashes between activists and law enforcement. The protestors either made it onto (according to protestors) or near (according to local police) the grounds of a Tesla gigafactory in Grunheide, Germany, near Berlin. It's part of a planned five-day demonstration ahead of a local government vote next week to determine whether Tesla's plant can expand.Wired flagged social media videos showing activists, many of whom have been camping out in treehouses in nearby forest encampments, running toward a Tesla building on the site. In addition, the German newspaper Welt said at least one person participating was injured. Police reportedly police used pepper spray and batons to try to thwart the crowd, and there were at least some arrests.A spokesperson for one of the groups participating in the protests told Wired that they broke the police barriers and stormed the Tesla grounds. Eight hundred people have entered the premises of the gigafactory," Lucia Mende of Disrupt Tesla said. However, local police posted on X (Musk's social media platform) that the activists only reached a field facing the site. We have been able to prevent them from entering so far," they posted.Axel Schmidt via Getty ImagesAt least at first glance, it's easy to wonder why activists are pouring so much energy into fighting Tesla. After all, despite Musk's increasingly unhinged right-wing conspiracy-mongering and Nazi-catering on X, other automakers pushing gas-guzzling cars seem like more appropriate targets (not to mention the fossil fuel companies spending big bucks on anti-climate-reform disinformation). However, several factors make the issues at the heart of the protests less simplistic.A (nonbinding) vote in February showed Grunheide residents opposed the expansion by almost a two-to-one ratio. If for no other reason, the local government having a chance to brush aside the overwhelming will of the voters in the name of capitalism is enough to raise the eyebrows of anyone who balks at minority rule.Wired notes the area is also one of the most water-scarce in Germany, and residents worry the gigafactory will drain the resource, leaving much less for the humans who live there. The plant could also pollute local water supplies.Those fears appear to have merit: The plant is licensed to use 1.4 million cubic meters of water annually, and a separate Wired report from Tuesday noted that's enough to supply for a large town. As for the contamination fears, Tesla was fined in 2019 by the EPA for several hazardous waste violations at a California factory. The company paid a grand total of $31,000 to settle. (Tesla had a market cap of almost $76 billion in 2019.)But some of the groups protesting have concerns that go much farther than those more immediate issues affecting the locals, instead taking issue with the entire electric vehicle movement. Companies like Tesla are there to save the car industry, they're not there to save the climate," Esther Kamm, spokesperson for Turn Off the Tap on Tesla told Wired.Another activist, who only gave Wired the name Mara, described the factory as the result of green capitalism." She views the EV movement as little more than a theatrical performance in the name of profit. This has been completely thought up by such companies to have more growth, even in times of an environmental crisis," she said.I wouldn't exactly say flipping the bird to the EV movement is a workable" solution to the very real and pressing climate crisis. Regardless of your thoughts on the matter, the world needs to move quickly to fend off climate change's most ravaging effects, and the scientific consensus is that the planned shift to EVs will need to play a central role.Tesla reportedly told its employees at the factory to work from home on Friday, shutting down the plants for the planned protests. As for Friday's protests, Welt reports that the situation had calmed by afternoon - at least for now.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/climate-protestors-clash-with-police-outside-teslas-german-gigafactory-175726961.html?src=rss

Swiss start-up Climeworks has done it again. The company just opened the world's largest carbon capture plant in Iceland, dwarfing its own record of how much CO2 it can pull from the air. The company's previous record-holding carbon capture plant, Orca, sucks around 4,000 tons of CO2 from the atmosphere per year, but the new plant can handle nearly ten times that, as reported by The Washington Post.The plant's called Mammoth and boasts 72 industrial fans that can pull 36,000 tons of CO2 from the air each year. Just like with Orca, the CO2 isn't recycled. It's stored underground and eventually trapped in stone, permanently (within reason) removing it from the environment. The plant's actually located on a dormant volcano, so it'll make a great hideout for a James Bond villain should it ever cease operations.The location was chosen for its proximity to the Hellisheidi geothermal energy plant, which is used to power the facility's fans and heat chemical filters to extract CO2 with water vapor. After extraction, the CO2 is separated from the steam, compressed and dissolved in water. Finally, it's pumped 2,300 feet underground into volcanic basalt. This compound reacts with the magnesium, calcium and iron in the rock to form crystals, which become solid reservoirs of CO2. It's pretty nifty technology.However, it's not the end-all solution to climate change. It's barely a blip. For the world to achieve "carbon neutrality" by 2050, "we should be removing something like six to 16 billion tons of CO2 per year from the air," said Climeworks founder Jan Wurzbacher, according to reporting by CBS News.Therein lies the problem. This facility, the largest of its kind by a wide margin, can capture up to 36,000 tons of CO2 from the air each year, but that's just 0.0006 percent of what's needed to meet the minimum annual removal threshold as indicated by Wurzbacher. There are other plants, of course, but all of them combined don't make a serious dent in what's required to pull us from the brink.To that end, Wurzbacher has pleaded with other companies to take up the cause. He says that Climeworks has a goal of surpassing millions of tons captured per year by 2030 and a billion by 2050. The company's chief technology officer, Carlos Haertel, told 60 Minutes that scaling up the process globally is possible, but requires political will to rally behind the initiative.The Biden administration recently committed $4 billion to jumpstart the industry here in the states and earmarked $1.2 billion for a pair of large-scale projects. The US Department of Energy also started a program called Carbon Negative Shot, with a goal of fostering the development of budget-friendly carbon capture technology.

The new iPad Pro and iPad Air - and the internet's reaction to how they've been advertised - may have been the big Apple news of the week, but we're turning our attention to AirPods for our latest deals roundup. More specifically, all four models in Apple's wireless headphone lineup are currently on sale. The noise-canceling AirPods Pro and third-gen AirPods back down to lows of $180 and $140, respectively, while the entry-level earbuds and top-end AirPods Max are both cheaper than usual at $80 and $450. Beyond that, we've also found noteworthy discounts on Amazon's Kindle, LG's C3 OLED TV, Keychron's budget-friendly C3 Pro keyboard and annual Paramount+ with Showtime subscriptions, among others. 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-entire-airpods-lineup-is-discounted-plus-the-rest-of-the-weeks-best-tech-deals-164320939.html?src=rss

Not all connected speakers have a voice assistant built in. The Sonos One SL, for instance, doesn't have a microphone. So, if you want to use your voice to control such devices, you may need to pick up a secondary smart speaker, such as Amazon's Echo Dot. As luck would have it, that little Alexa-enabled device is on sale for $28. That's 44 percent off and just $5 more than the record-low price.That's not to say the Echo Dot isn't a decent speaker in its own right. In fact, we think it's the best smart speaker under $50.Amazon has been steadily improving the Dot's audio quality over the years and the most recent version from 2022 pumps out far louder and clearer audio than could be reasonably expected from a sub-$50 speaker. The globe-shaped speaker has some physical buttons, including ones for volume control and another that mutes/unmutes the microphone if you don't want Alexa to remain alert for voice commands at all times.If you'd prefer to save a few extra bucks, you could instead opt for the Echo Pop. That Alexa-enabled speaker is currently half off at $20. The colorful speaker also has a mic mute switch. It could prove to be a handy bedside speaker for listening to podcasts or a sleep story when it's time to nod off.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/amazons-echo-dot-drops-to-just-28-162815137.html?src=rss

They say "Twitter isn't real life," but Black Twitter proved otherwise. For years, that phrase has been a way to ignore the real-world impact of social media conversations, especially when they spark radically new ideas. But that's clearly not true when you look at Black Twitter, an unofficial community made up of the site's black users, which inspired culturally significant movements with hashtags like #BlackLivesMatter and #OscarsSoWhite. Hulu's new documentary, "Black Lives Matter: A People's History," adapted from Jason Parham's Wired article, explores the rise and global influence of the community. Over the course of three engaging and often hilarious episodes, the series cements itself as an essential cultural document."The way I would define Black Twitter is a space where Black culture specifically was hanging out in a digital way," said Prentice Penny, the series director and former show-runner of HBO's Insecure, in an interview on the Engadget Podcast. "And even though it was a public space - clearly, it's Twitter, anybody can get on it - it still felt like you were having conversations with your friends that are like on the back of the bus. Or like on the stoop, or in the lunchroom. I mean, that's the energy of it."In particular, Penny says that Twitter felt special because there was no real hierarchy, especially in the early days. That meant that even celebrities weren't immune to being mocked, or acting out on their own social media profiles (like Rihanna's notorious early Twitter presence). Twitter in its heyday felt like a place where money or class didn't really matter."This was kind of an equalization of a lot of things, that somebody in Kentucky who nobody knows could have the same strong opinion as someone who you revere, right?" Penny said. "And I think that's what made the space so fresh, because we don't really have spaces that are kind of a level playing ground in this country."Twitter also felt genuinely different from the other social networks in the late 2000s. At the time, Facebook was mostly focused on connecting you with schoolmates and family members - it wasn't really a place for simply hanging out and joking around. Prentice notes that the forced brevity on Twitter also made it unique, since you had to really focus on what you were trying to say in 140 characters."Each of the creators [in the series] had a different idea of what Twitter should be," Penny added. "Some thought it should be a town square, some people thought it should be a news information thing... I think like with Black culture, the one thing we do really well is, because we're often given the scraps of things, we have to repurpose something, like taking the worst of the pig and making soul food... I think we are really good at taking things that could kind of be different things and make it be pliable for us."The documentary recounts the many ways Black Twitter leveraged the platform, both for fun and for kicking off serious social movements. The community helped make live-tweeting TV shows a common occurrence, and it's one reason Scandal became a hit TV show. But Black users also helped raise the profile around Trayvon Martin's killing by George Zimmerman. His eventual acquittal led to the creation of the #BlackLivesMatter hashtag, a movement which sparked national protests in 2020 following the killing of George Floyd and other Black Americans.If you've been online and following the Black Twitter community for years, the Hulu documentary may not seem particularly revelatory. But there's value in charting the impact of cultural movements, especially given how quickly social media and the tech world moves.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/hulus-black-twitter-documentary-is-a-vital-cultural-chronicle-161557720.html?src=rss

Google has released a security update for the Chrome browser to fix a zero-day vulnerability exploit that has been used by threat actors. This is the fifth time this year the company has had to issue a patch for one of these vulnerabilities, as reported by Bleeping Computer."Google is aware that an exploit for CVE-2024-4671 exists in the wild," the company said in a short advisory. It did not issue any specifics as to the nature of the real-world attack or the identity of the threat actors. This is common for Google, as it likes to wait until a majority of users have updated the software before announcing specific details.We do know some stuff about the exploit. It's being classified as a high-severity issue" and as a user after free" vulnerability. These bugs arise when a program references a memory location after it has been deallocated, leading to any number of serious consequences from a crash to a random execution of code. It looks like the CVE-2024-4671 vulnerability is attached to the visuals component that handles rendering and the display of content on the browser.The exploit was discovered and reported to Google by an anonymous researcher. The fix is available for Mac, Windows and Linux and updates will continue to roll out to users over the coming days and weeks. Chrome updates automatically with security fixes, so users can confirm they are running the latest version of the browser by going to Settings and About Chrome. Users of Chromium-based browsers like Microsoft Edge, Brave, Opera and Vivaldi should also update to a new version as soon as they are available.As stated, this is the fifth of this type of flaw addressed by Google this year. I don't mean within the last calendar year." I mean in 2024. Three were discovered back in March at the Pwn2Own hacking contest in Vancouver. This isn't a record or anything. Google found and fixed five in one month back in 2020.Zero-day exploits have been a constant thorn in Google's side. These are a type of cyberattack that take advantage of an unknown or unaddressed security flaw in computer software, hardware or firmware. The company typically pays out big money for bug discoveries, as part of its Vulnerability Rewards Program.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/google-just-patched-the-fifth-zero-day-exploit-for-chrome-this-year-153723334.html?src=rss

As rumors foretold, Apple has revamped the iPad Pro with an M4 chip, tandem OLED screen and a thinner case. There's also a new Magic Keyboard that should deliver a more MacBook-like typing experience! In this week's episode, Cherlynn and Devindra discuss how Apple is shining a new light on tablets (which also includes the new iPad Air models) and reworking its vision of mobile computing. Does anyone really need the iPad Pro today? And could it be more compelling if iPadOS improves its multitasking capabilities? Also, we discuss the launch of Google's new mid-range phone, the Pixel 8a.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

Apple has apologized for its Crush! ad, which sparked a furious backlash among artists, musicians, and other creators. AdAge reports Apple said the video missed the mark," and it has scrapped plans to run the commercial on TV. The video shows a series of musical instruments and other tools for human expression, including a guitar, drums, trumpet, amplifiers, record player, TV and much more being crushed to All I Ever Need Is You" by Sonny and Cher. The crusher pulls up to reveal an iPad. Tonally, you could see how it could be misconstrued.Apple is rumored to have more AI tricks planned for its next WWDC, while this new iPad Pro has a chip that boasts a lot of AI power, all with the looming threat of AI to creatives.But - and imagine I'm using my indoor voice, here - it's just an ad. However, Apple is such a huge company that it wields a huge amount of influence. And everyone is watching.- Mat SmithThe biggest stories you might have missedHow to watch Google's I/O 2024 keynoteNintendo is done paying Elon Musk for X integration on its consolesAsteroids and Resident Evil join the World Video Game Hall of FameYou can get these reports delivered daily direct to your inbox. Subscribe right here!Jack Dorsey claims Bluesky is repeating all the mistakes' he made at TwitterBluesky was the Twitter spinoff.In a rambling interview, Twitter founder Jack Dorsey claimed Bluesky was literally repeating all the mistakes" he made while running Twitter. Dorsey's complaints seem to boil down to two issues. First, he never intended Bluesky to be an independent company, with its own board and stock and other vestiges of a corporate entity. Instead, his plan was for Twitter - as it was called - to be the first client to take advantage of the open-source protocol Bluesky created.Dorsey also didn't like Bluesky's form of content moderation, and how it has occasionally banned users for things like using racial slurs in their usernames. A lot of this isn't particularly surprising. If you've followed Dorsey's public comments over the last couple years, he's repeatedly said Twitter's original sin" was being a company beholden to advertisers.Continue reading.An insulin pump software bug has injured over 200 peopleThe FDA has issued the highest level of recall for the app.The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a Class I recall for the t:connect mobile app on iOS, which people with diabetes use to monitor and control an insulin pump. The FDA received 224 injury reports as of April 15. Insulin pumps, like the t:slim X2, automatically deliver insulin under the user's skin at set intervals and whenever needed. The bug excessively drained power from the pump, meaning it could shut down without warning and before the user expected it to, leading to the under-delivery of insulin.Continue reading.Netflix and Roblox team up for a digital theme parkMommmm, I want more corporate synergy!'NetflixThis simply sounds horrible.Continue reading.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-morning-after-apple-apologizes-for-its-ipad-pro-ad-that-crushed-human-creativity-111523044.html?src=rss

In a couple of months, you'll be able to get Microsoft's mobile games from its own store. Xbox President Sarah Bond has revealed at the Bloomberg Technology Summit that the company is launching a web-based store where you can download its mobile games and get add-ons or in-app purchases at a discount. Bond said the company has decided to launch a browser-based store instead of an app to make it "accessible across all devices, all countries, no matter what" so that you don't get "locked to a single ecosystem."Microsoft will only host its own games to start with, which means it will feature a lot of titles from Activision Blizzard. If you'll recall, it snapped up the gaming developer and publisher in a $70 billion deal that closed last year. You'll most likely find Candy Crush Saga, which has apparently generated $20 billion in revenue since it launched in 2012, and Call of Duty's mobile games in the first batch of titles available for download. Bond said that Minecraft may also be one of the first games you can get.An Xbox spokesperson told Bloomberg that this is "just the first step in [the company's] journey to building a trusted app store with its roots in gaming." Microsoft plans to open the app store to third-party publishers in the future, though it didn't share a timeline for that goal.The company first announced its intention to launch a gaming store for Android and iOS devices last year shortly before rules under the EU's Digital Markets Act became applicable. To comply with DMA rules, Apple and Google have to allow third-party app stores to be accessible on their platforms and to offer alternative billing systems for purchases. They're also compelled to allow app sideloading, which will be a massive change for Apple, a company known for its "walled garden" approach to business.Operators of third-party app stores will get to avoid some of the fees Google and Apple charge, but they'd still have to pay the companies for bypassing their mobile platforms' official stores. Both tech giants have already outlined how they're changing things up to comply with the DMA regulations. The companies' rivals found the changes they're making insufficient, however, prompting the European Commission to start investigating their compliance plans.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/microsofts-web-based-mobile-game-store-opens-in-july-090044359.html?src=rss

Just in case there was any doubt about how Jack Dorsey really feels about Bluesky, the former Twitter CEO has offered new details on why he left the board and deleted his account on the service he helped kickstart. In a characteristically bizarre interview with Mike Solana of Founders Fund, Dorsey had plenty of criticism for Bluesky.In the interview, Dorsey claimed that Bluesky was literally repeating all the mistakes" he made while running Twitter. The entire conversation is long and a bit rambly, but Dorsey's complaints seem to boil down to two issues:

Apple has reportedly apologized for its tone-deaf Crush!" ad that sparked a furious backlash with artists, musicians and other creators. AdAge reports that Apple said the video missed the mark" and has scrapped plans to run the cutesy-turned-cringey commercial on TV.It's clear that Apple intended for the ad to serve as a metaphor for all the myriad creative tools one has when they throw down $1,000 or more for a new iPad Pro. Run during Tuesday's event, the video shows a series of musical instruments and other tools for human expression, including a guitar, drums, trumpet, amplifiers, record player, TV and much more. All I Ever Need Is You" by Sonny & Cher soundtracks the clip.Soon, it's revealed that the objects are all sitting on an industrial crusher, which descends upon the scattered creative instruments, exploding in plumes of satisfyingly colorful smoke. But when the crusher pulls back up, we see that everything was transformed into a shiny new iPad Pro.AppleA decade ago, this ad likely wouldn't have been a big deal. But Apple's marketers completely whiffed on the context of the moment. The ad comes weeks before Apple will take the stage at WWDC to announce its generative AI features that its investors have been salivating for.Generative AI, as you may have heard, needs something to train on - and that means humans' work. It learns from existing content to make algorithmically generated words, pictures, music, voices or who knows what else. It also has the capability to put those same creators - most of whom don't have cushy jobs at Apple or other Big Five tech companies - out of work as corporations and consumers eagerly adopt the robots destined to put creators on the unemployment line.Context is everything, and Apple failed spectacularly there. Its ad serves as a pitch-perfect metaphor for generative AI's potential to crush human creation, turning us all into prompt artists" who type words into text boxes to replace their years of training and experience. (Granted, generative AI has genuinely exciting applications, too, but much more needs to be made of the society-level chaos it can and will unleash.)Creativity is in our DNA at Apple, and it's incredibly important to us to design products that empower creatives all over the world," Tor Myhren, Apple VP of marketing communications, told AdAge. Our goal is to always celebrate the myriad of ways users express themselves and bring their ideas to life through iPad. We missed the mark with this video, and we're sorry."Hey, an apology means something. But we'll see what tone Apple adopts next month when it rolls out the tools that set the stage for the apology in the first place. Something tells me that train is out of the station and will be plowing forward full steam, no matter how much creativity the company has in its DNA.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apple-apologizes-for-its-tone-deaf-ad-that-crushed-human-creativity-to-make-an-ipad-211116524.html?src=rss

Google has an offer for iPad owners who are curious about the Pixel Tablet. The company has a trade-in promotion that covers at least the cost of the Pixel Tablet for iPad owners - if not more, depending on which model you have. It works with Samsung tablets as well, but those trade-in values are lower. The Pixel Tablet costs $399 (without deals) for 128GB storage and no charging speaker dock.The promo works with iPads as old as the sixth-generation model from six years ago. For that, Google will give you a surprising $399 - matching the Pixel Tablet's base cost. That iPad model only cost $329 in 2018, so Google is overpaying by a lot for that one.However, Google balances that with much worse offers for modern, high-end iPads. For example, the 12.9-inch iPad Pro with M2 chip (2022) only nets $450. Until this week (when the company launched a new iPad Pro and iPad Air), Apple sold that model for $1,099, so we don't recommend that trade-in price. If you're done with a high-end iPad from the last few years, you can likely sell it on places like eBay, Craigslist or Swappa for significantly more.Sam Rutherford for EngadgetThe Pixel Tablet stands out from its Android-running competitors by working with a charging speaker base that lets the device double as a smart display, making it much more versatile. Engadget's Cherlynn Low thought that part overshadowed its core functionality as a tablet. As a smart display, the Pixel Tablet mostly shines. It has a useful dashboard, an easy-to-read interface and impressive audio quality," she wrote in our full review.The tablet has a 10.95-inch display with a 2,560 x 1,600 resolution (276 PPI) and runs on a Google Tensor G2 chip. It weighs slightly over a pound and is lighter than Android rivals like the Galaxy Tab S8 and OnePlus Pad. Its back has a nano-ceramic coating that gives it a premium, glass-like feeling that you may not expect from a $399 device.Accessories are where the Pixel Tablet stands out the most. Google's Pixel Tablet Case, sold separately for $79, has a built-in kickstand that makes the slate more versatile. What I love about the kickstand-hanger-combo is that it allows you to place the Tablet pretty much anywhere," Low wrote in Engadget's review. So when I want to hang it off a kitchen cabinet to follow along with a recipe video or keep watching Love Is Blind for example, I can. And though the 2,560 x 1,600 LCD panel isn't as vibrant as the OLED on Samsung's Galaxy Tabs, it still produced crisp details and colorful images."The star accessory is Google's $129 charging speaker dock, which you can use without removing the kickstand case. This product transforms the tablet into a smart display, potentially voiding the need for other smart home control hubs. The speaker has impressive sound for its size, making it easier to hear its responses if you aren't right next to it.Google's fine print notes that the trade-in value will be finalized after receiving the tablet, and it could be lower if it determines the condition doesn't match what you selected during the trade-in process. The refund will be processed on the credit card you used to buy the Pixel Tablet (or through Google Store credit if you return your purchase during that time).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/get-up-to-450-off-a-google-pixel-tablet-when-you-trade-in-your-old-ipad-or-android-slab-192718892.html?src=rss

The Alienware m16 R2 is a rarity among modern laptops. That's because normally after a major revamp, gadget makers like to keep new models on the market for as long as possible to minimize manufacturing costs. However, after its predecessor launched last year sporting a fresh design, the company reengineered the entire system again for 2024 while also limiting how big of a GPU can fit inside. So what gives? The trick is that by looking at the configurations people actually bought, Alienware was able to rework the m16 into a gaming laptop with a sleeker design, better battery life and a more approachable starting price, which is a great recipe for a well-balanced notebook.DesignThere are so many changes on the m16 R2's chassis it's hard to believe it's from the same line. Not only has Alienware gotten rid of the big bezels and chin from the R1, but the machine is also way more portable now. Weight is down more than 20 percent to 5.75 pounds (from 7.28 pounds) and it's also significantly more compact with a depth of 9.8 inches (versus 11.4 inches before). For some style points, Alienware added RGB lighting around the perimeter of the touchpad. This result is a major upgrade for anyone who wants to take the laptop on the go. It fundamentally changes the system from something more like a desktop replacement to a portable all-rounder.Critically, despite being smaller, the m16 R2 still has a great array of connectivity options. On its sides are two USB 3.2 Type-A ports, a microSD card reader, an Ethernet jack and a 3.5mm audio socket. Around back, there are two USB-C slots (one supports Thunderbolt 4 while the other has DisplayPort 1.4), a full-size HDMI 2.1 connector and a proprietary barrel plug for power. Generally, I like this arrangement as moving some ports to the rear of the laptop helps keep clutter down. That said, I wish Alienware had switched the placement of the Ethernet jack and one of the USB-C ports, as I find myself reaching for the latter much more often.DisplayPhoto by Sam Rutherford/EngadgetThe m16 R2 has a single display option: a 16-inch 240Hz panel with a QHD+ resolution (2,560 x 1,600). It's totally serviceable and for competitive gamers, that high refresh rate could be valuable during matches where potential advantage matters. But you don't get any support for HDR, so colors don't pop as much as they would on a system with an OLED screen. Furthermore, brightness is just OK at around 300 nits, which might not be a big deal if you prefer gaming at night or in darker environments. But if you plan on lugging this around to a place with big windows or a lot of sunlight, games and movies may look a bit subdued. That said, it's not a deal breaker, I just wish this model had some other display options like the previous one.PerformanceWhile the m16 R2's sleeker design is a major plus, the trade-off is less space for a beefy GPU. So unlike its predecessor, the biggest card that fits is an NVIDIA RTX 4070. This may come as a downer for performance enthusiasts, but Alienware said it made this change after seeing only a small fraction of buyers opt for RTX 4080 graphics on the old model. Even so, the R2 can still hold its own when playing AAA titles. In Cyberpunk 2077 at 1080p and ultra graphics, it hit 94 fps, barely behind what we saw from the ASUS ROG G16 (95 fps) with a more powerful 4080. And while the performance gap grew slightly when I turned ray tracing on, the m16 still pumped out a very playable framerate of 62 fps (versus 69 fps for the G16).Battery lifeOne of the biggest benefits of the m16 R2's redesign is that it allowed Alienware to install a larger 90Wh battery versus the 84Wh pack in its predecessor. When you combine that with components and fans better tailored to the kind of performance this machine delivers, you get improved longevity. On our rundown test, the m16 R2 lasted 7 hours and 51 minutes, which is longer than both the Razer Blade 14 (6:46) and the ASUS ROG Zephyrus G14 (7:29) and just shy of what we got from a similarly specced XPS 16 (8:31). That said, it's still not as good as the ASUS G16's time of 9:17. Regardless, the ability to go longer between charges is never a bad thing. Meanwhile, for those who want to pack super light, one of the m16 R2's USB-C ports in the back supports power input, though you won't get the full 240 watts like you do with Alienware's included brick.Wrap-upPhoto by Sam Rutherford/EngadgetFor 2024, it would have been so easy for Alienware to give the m16 a basic spec refresh and call it a day. But it didn't. Instead, the company looked at its customers' preferences and gave it a revamp to match. So despite not having the same top-end performance as before, the R2 is still a very capable gaming laptop with a more compact chassis, improved battery life and a lower starting price of $1,500 with an RTX 4050. Sure, I wish its display was brighter and that there was another panel option, but getting 240Hz standard is pretty nice.Really, the biggest argument against the m16 R2 is that for higher-specced systems like our $1,850 review unit with an RTX 4070, you can spend another $150 for an ASUS ROG G16 with the same GPU, a brighter and more colorful OLED display and an even lighter design that weighs a full pound less. But for people seeking a well-priced gaming machine that can do a bit of everything, there's a lot of value in the m16 R2.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/alienware-m16-r2-review-when-less-power-makes-for-a-better-laptop-174027103.html?src=rss

Netflix and Roblox have teamed up for a digital theme park with activities pulled from the streamer's many popular franchises. Netflix Nextworld is an area within Roblox that's currently in early access. The company says the experience is all about bringing fans to the entertainment they love."To that end, Nextworld features activities based on Stranger Things, One Piece, Cobra Kai and even those Zack Snyder Rebel Moon movies that people seem to hate. There's also an activity based on the upcoming Jurassic World: Chaos Theory cartoon. The whole thing is arranged like a theme park, with mini-games and easter eggs galore.Some of these games look pretty fleshed out, like the survival horror title Stranger Things: Escape from Hawkins High and the fighting sim One Piece: East Blue Brawls. Regular people can make some really cool stuff on Roblox, so a company with resources like Netflix should really raise the bar.There are also a bunch of shorter experiences, like an online version of the game show Is It Cake? in which, well, people try to guess if something is cake. We aren't sure how that one will work since none of it is cake. It's just pixels and code.Playing these games and exploring the park nets users collectibles and wearables from various shows, which are then used to decorate a private space called a Fan Pod. Some of these collectibles include a Demogorgon plushie head and the iconic One Piece flag.NetflixFinally, there's something called the Streamship, which is a shared space to watch Netflix content. The company says this home base within Nextworld" will provide social features" and include events like premieres and viewing parties."Netflix Nextworld is now in early access and is available on any console that supports Roblox, in addition to mobile and PC/Mac. The streamer does say the theme park will feature plenty of surprises, so let's hope for a mini-game based on the driving crooner.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/netflix-and-roblox-team-up-for-a-digital-theme-park-thats-heavy-on-corporate-synergy-171944923.html?src=rss

Nintendo has apparently had enough of X's (Twitter's) API fees. The Mario maker said on Wednesday that starting on June 10, direct integration from the Switch's image album to Elon Musk's Nazi-curious platform will no longer work. With Nintendo's departure, all three major console makers have pulled the plug on native screen-sharing to X.X's official gaming account posted a bizarre, downright Orwellian response that ignores its central role in the Mario maker's exit. Our partnership with Nintendo remains strong, and we are working together to ensure a smooth transition for all users," @xGaming posted at the end of its nonchalantly misleading reply to Nintendo's announcement. We will continue collaborating with partners to bring new and exciting experiences to our global gaming community."Ironically, X's built-in reader context feature filled in the omitted subtext. This is in direct response to X changing their API," the user-generated context says. Specifically, X is charging companies upwards of $40,000 or more per month to access its API. Sony's PlayStation and Microsoft's Xbox already removed integration with X last year."

Ember's highly-esteemed Travel Mug 2+ has dropped to a record-low price of $128, which is a discount of $72. The actual sale price is $160, but there's a clippable coupon for the remaining $32. This is a pretty great deal for those in the market for a tech-heavy travel mug.To that end, the Travel Mug 2+ integrates with Apple's Find My technology, so you'll always know exactly where your beverage is. It even has a built-in speaker that'll ping when you're looking for it. Anything can happen while traveling, so it's good to have a little peace of mind, particularly because the usual price of this mug is $200.Otherwise, this is a fantastic mug that keeps beverages hot for up to three hours and boasts a 12-ounce capacity. The battery's on point, allowing for three hours of use on its own and a full day while resting on the included charging coaster. You also get access to the Ember's proprietary app for setting the temperature, customizing presets and more. The mug does feature a little touchscreen for this, so the app's not always necessary.Ember makes great products, which is why we often recommend the company's mugs. However, the Travel Mug 2+ isn't perfect. You can hand wash it, but don't put it in the dishwasher, unless you want to turn it into an expensive mug-shaped thing that doesn't actually work. There's also the price. At $200, it's very hard to recommend this product because, well, it's a mug for drinking tea and coffee. It's easier to recommend at $128, and it makes a great gift, but at the end of the day it's still just a container for liquids.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/embers-travel-mug-2-with-find-my-support-drops-to-a-record-low-price-163054893.html?src=rss

Dead by Daylight's next chapter isn't too far away and it's another crossover rather than an original creation. Behaviour Interactive likes to keep fans on their toes with some unexpected partnerships and the latest one is no exception. This time around, Dungeons and Dragons is entering the fog. It's a bit of a surprising turn as D&D isn't normally associated with horror, but there's enough connective tissue for it to make sense.Behaviour revealed the crossover in a short teaser trailer with no further details about what to expect. It remains to be seen what the chapter will bring in terms of a killer, survivor and/or map. But you won't have to wait too long to find out.

The Strong National Museum of Play has revealed this year's inductees into the World Video Game Hall of Fame. Asteroids, Myst, Resident Evil, SimCity and Ultima have made the cut. While that means the likes of Guitar Hero, Metroid and Tony Hawk's Pro Skater miss out from the slate of finalists, it would be hard to make a case against any of the five inductees.Games are selected for the hall of fame based on a number of criteria, including cultural impact and their influence on the industry. Asteroids absolutely fits the bill. The 1979 game was an enormous hit. Atari sold more than 70,000 arcade units, making Asteroids its best-selling coin-op machine. The home version on the Atari 2600 was very popular too. While the vector graphics were rudimentary, that didn't take away from the immensely satisfying gameplay loop of blowing up a ton of space rocks.

Most headphones don't last forever, especially wireless ones as the battery life will inevitably dwindle. If you're ready for an upgrade and you're willing to splash a little cash, Apple's AirPods Max are worth considering. Those headphones are currently on sale at Amazon. The price has dropped by $100 to $450, putting it at just $20 above the lowest price we've seen for the cans to date. The offer applies to all colorways.The price was one of our major drawbacks when we reviewed the AirPods Max back in 2020 so the sale mitigates that a bit. We gave the headphones a score of 84, with the audio quality and aesthetics proving to be major plus points.We felt that the AirPods Max had great balanced sound and capable active noise cancellation (ANC). With both spatial audio and ANC enabled, we had no trouble getting 20 hours of use out of the headphones on a single charge, just as Apple pledged.Given that it's been a few years since the AirPods Max debuted and the fact Apple is in the midst of switching out the Lightning charging port for a USB-C one across all of its devices, a new version of the headphones may be on the way. That may result in Apple bringing the price of the original model down even further to clear out the stock. That said, if you don't want to wait, this is a solid deal on a good set of headphones, particularly if you're already entrenched in the Apple ecosystem.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-airpods-max-are-100-off-and-close-to-a-record-low-143019278.html?src=rss

Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings film trilogy came out right around the time movie studios decided everything needed to be a big franchise that exists in perpetuity. From that perspective, it's a little surprising that Warner Bros. Discovery hasn't milked Tolkien's work more than they already have. That'll change soon, though, as the company just announced that there are two new Lord of the Rings films in the works (you can read the full press release here).The first is tentatively titled Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum, and it's being directed by Andy Serkis - you may remember him for his landmark performance as Gollum in Jackson's prior movies. The fact that Serkis is on board, and working from a script by Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens (who co-wrote the prior Middle-earth movies along with Jackson) has me feeling a bit better about this not being simply a crass cash grab. Peter Jackson, along with Walsh and Boyens, are set to produce as well. Serkis previously served as second unit director on The Hobbit films and also directed 2022's Venom: Let There Be Carnage.Given the working title of the film, you won't be surprised to learn that Serkis is also starring again as the titular Gollum. While part of me was interested to see how another actor might take on the character, Serkis so defined Gollum for the big screen that it's almost impossible to put anyone else in the role. As for what the movie will cover, there's no official word yet - but again, the title indicates it'll take place between the events of The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings as Gandalf and Aragorn search Middle-earth for Gollum, trying to learn more about the ring that Bilbo and then Frodo possessed.Given Hollywood's insatiable thirst for Content based on Popular Franchises, it's a little surprising something like this didn't happen sooner. Jackson and company followed up the original trilogy of films nine years later with the bloated and overly CGI-reliant film series based on The Hobbit and corresponding events from Tolkien's LOTR appendices. And, of course, Amazon's The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power series debuted in 2022. And before The Hunt for Gollum arrives, we'll see another intriguing project: an anime-style film called The War of the Rohirrim. That movie arrives this December and covers events in Rohan a few hundred years before The Lord of the Rings.As a massive Lord of the Rings fan, I'm both skeptical and excited by this announcement. The sad reality of the entertainment world is that projects like this are going to happen no matter what; there's too much money wrapped up in things like Lord of the Rings to not try and extract more. But Serkis seems like an excellent choice to direct this movie, and hopefully they'll find a tight, self-contained story that works as a standalone film. The mess that was made in the Hobbit films has me wary, but even in those movies I found plenty of things to enjoy - and this feels like a good opportunity to chart a positive course forward for more movies in Middle-earth.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/a-new-lord-of-the-rings-film-the-hunt-for-gollum-will-hit-theaters-in-2026-140141386.html?src=rss

It's no secret that MacBooks can cost you a pretty penny, which is why we're excited to see that our favorite budget Macbook has dropped to a new all-time low price. Apple's 2022 Macbook Air is currently available for $829, down from $999 - $20 lower than ever before. The deal is running the 256GB model in all colors but doesn't include AppleCare+.We've been a huge fan of Apple's 2022 MacBook Air from the start, calling it a "near-perfect Mac" when it first launched, and, despite new arrivals since, it's still an excellent option for a well-made, everyday laptop. We gave it a 96 in our review thanks to its thinner look and an impressive 13.6-inch high-quality screen. The MacBook Air also comes with an M2 chip, and despite Apple's new foray into an M4 chip with the iPad Pro, it's still a fast-performing, great option.This model was also the first MacBook Air to get rid of the wedge design and get the more uniform, sleek look of its more expensive sibling, the MacBook Pro. Other perks include a great quad-speaker system that works with Dolby Atmos and Spatial Audio and a three-mic array for better sound quality during video chats.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-13-inch-macbook-air-m2-drops-to-a-new-low-of-829-131644937.html?src=rss

The fight continues to protect artists' content from being used to train AI without their consent. The latest pushback comes from IbisPaint, which has announced an AI Disturbance tool that interferes with AI image generation. The feature applies noise to illustrations, which stops AI from properly interpreting or replicating the art. Another popular option, Glaze, corrupts the data to prevent copies - but is available as an outside tool rather than being integrated into a creative program.IbisPaint is a popular app for mobile and tablet users that offers over 15,000 brushes, 21,000 materials and a stroke stabilization feature - among other tools. When a user turns on AI Disturbance in IbisPaint, the image they've created appears almost grainier. However, artists can determine the level of AI Disturbance they want (based on how much they're willing to impact the work) and adjust accordingly. In its announcement, IbisPaint shows that the higher the noise intensity, the less alike AI-created images are to the original.Users can access the AI Disturbance tool by clicking the back button and then choosing to save the artwork. At that point, there's an option to turn on AI Disturbance and adjust its intensity. However, IbisPaint notes, "the effectiveness of the disturbance effect depends on the AI and the fine-tuning algorithms used. This feature does not guarantee that the disturbance effect will be achieved in any situation."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ibispaint-launches-an-ai-disturbance-tool-to-make-it-harder-for-machines-to-copy-your-work-131015685.html?src=rss

Sega has announced its latest iteration of the many Sonic titles: a game called Sonic Rumblethat will be coming exclusively to mobile devices. The "multiplayer action game" is reminiscent of Mediatonic's Fall Guys, which even offers a version called Sonic's Adventure. Both games can accommodate up to 32 players, have minigames and are battle royale-style, with only one player left standing as the winner. In Sonic Rumble, players can also collect rings to get new costumes and accessories.Sonic Rumble isn't the first game to compete with Fall Guys. Kitka Games released Stumble Guys (big name change there) globally in early 2021 and has seen massive success. Like Sega, Kitka targeted mobile users - an area Fall Guys avoided.While Sega doesn't expect to release Sonic Rumble until the winter, you can get in on the action relatively soon. The company is recruiting closed beta testers to try out the game in different time slots between Friday, May 24 and Sunday, May 26. You can register here anytime before Sunday, May 19 at 11:59PM PT, and Sega will email you if you're selected. Until then, you can get a sneak peek of the game in its announcement trailer.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/segas-next-sonic-game-looks-a-lot-like-fall-guys-124524392.html?src=rss

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a Class I recall for the t:connect mobile app on iOS, which is used to monitor and control the t:slim X2 insulin pump used by people with diabetes. It was supposedly the first smartphone app that can program insulin doses that the FDA had approved. The agency issued the highest level of recall it could, because the app had serious software problems that could've have caused life-threatening conditions or even death. In fact, while there were no mortalities reported, the FDA received 224 injury reports as of April 15.According to the agency, version 2.7 of the t:connect mobile app had a bug that initiated a cycle wherein the app would crash and then would be relaunched by the iOS platform again and again. That apparently led to excessive Bluetooth communication that would drain the pump's battery and cause it to shut down earlier than the user would expect. Insulin pumps like the t:slim X2 are designed to automatically deliver insulin under the user's skin at set time intervals and whenever needed. They're supposed to take on the burden of managing the user's sugar levels so that they can go about their day without having to stop and inject themselves or if they're prone to getting hypo or hyperglycemia.If a pump shuts down without warning and before the user expects it to, it could lead to the under-delivery of insulin. As the FDA explained in its recall, that could result in hyperglycemia and even diabetic ketoacidosis, a life-threatening complication caused by the inability of the body to turn sugar into energy due to the lack of insulin. Tandem Diabetes Care, the company behind the app and the pump, sent all affected customers an emergency notice back in March. It advised them to update their app, to monitor their pump battery level closely and to carry backup insulin supplies. The FDA's recall notice could reach potentially affected customers who may not have seen the manufacturer's alerts, however, or who may have brushed it aside. Malfunctioning insulin pumps had been linked to multiple deaths in the past, so users may want to keep a close eye on theirs regardless of the brand.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/an-insulin-pump-software-bug-has-injured-over-200-people-123056847.html?src=rss