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Our favorite books we read in 2024
We may be a bit technology-obsessed here, but the Engadget team does occasionally get around to low-tech activities, like reading. Well, some of us read on ereaders or our smartphones, but you get the point — books are great, and we read some exceptional ones this year that each deserve a shoutout. These are some of the best books we read in 2024.
Judge finds spyware-maker NSO Group liable for attacks on WhatsApp users
A federal judge in California has agreed with WhatsApp that the NSO Group, the Israeli cybersurveillance firm behind the Pegasus spyware, had hacked into its systems by sending malware through its servers to thousands of its users' phones. WhatsApp and its parent company, Meta, sued the NSO Group back in 2019 and accused it of spreading malware to 1,400 mobile devices across 20 countries with surveillance as its purpose. They revealed back then some of the targeted phones were owned by journalists, human rights activists, prominent female leaders and political dissidents. The Washington Post reports that District Judge Phyllis Hamilton has granted WhatsApp's motion for summary judgement against NSO and has ruled that it had violated the US Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA).
The NSO Group disputed the allegations in the "strongest possible terms" when the lawsuit was filed. It denied that it had a hand in the attacks and told Engadget back then that its sole purpose was to "provide technology to licensed government intelligence and law enforcement agencies to help them fight terrorism and serious crime." The company argued that it should not be held liable, because it merely sells its services to government agencies, which are the ones that determine their targets. In 2020, Meta escalated its lawsuit and accused the firm of using US-based servers to stage its Pegasus spyware attacks.
Judge Hamilton has ruled that the NSO Group violated the CFAA, because the firm appears to fully acknowledge that the modified WhatsApp program its clients use to target users send messages through legitimate WhatsApp servers. Those messages then allow the Pegasus spyware to be installed on users' devices — the targets don't even have to do anything, such as pick up the phone to take a call or click a link, to be infected. The court has also found that the plaintiff's motion for sanctions must be granted on account of the NSO Group "repeatedly [failing] to produce relevant discovery," most significant of which is the Pegasus source code.
WhatsApp spokesperson Carl Woog told The Post that the company believes this is the first court decision agreeing that a major spyware vendor had broken US hacking laws. "We’re grateful for today’s decision," Woog told the publication. "NSO can no longer avoid accountability for their unlawful attacks on WhatsApp, journalists, human rights activists and civil society. With this ruling, spyware companies should be on notice that their illegal actions will not be tolerated." In her decision, Judge Hamilton wrote that her order resolves all issues regarding the NSO Group's liability and that a trial will only proceed to determine how much the company should pay in damages.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/judge-finds-spyware-maker-nso-group-liable-for-attacks-on-whatsapp-users-140054522.html?src=rssTesla is recalling almost 700,000 vehicles over a tire pressure monitor issue
Another day, another Tesla recall. This time, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) informed the owners of almost 700,000 Tesla vehicles warning them of a problem with a warning light for the tire pressure monitoring system as reported by the Associated Press.
The recall affects the 2024 Cybertruck, 2017-2025 Model 3 and 2020-2025 Model Y Vehicles. The NHTSA says the warning light for the tire pressure monitoring system may not stay illuminated between drives.
Tesla says it will send out an over-the-road (OTR) update to vehicles affected by the warning light issue. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed on Feb. 15, 2025.
The past year has seen more than a few Tesla recalls and OTRs. The NHTSA recorded seven recalls in the last year for the Cybertruck to address problems involving the rear-view camera, faulty windshield wipers and loose trunk beds. Tesla issued an over-the-air update in June for 1.8 million vehicles including select 2021-2024 Model 3, S and X vehicles and 2020-2024 Model Y vehicles to fix hoods that could come loose during drives if closed improperly.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/tesla-is-recalling-almost-700000-vehicles-over-a-tire-pressure-monitor-issue-223639361.html?src=rssJames Bond (the movie franchise, not the spy) may be in deep jeopardy
Movie icon and super spy James Bond seemed to be on another rise to the top of the box office just a few years ago, but things have been almost as quiet as a shot from a Walther PPK with a silencer ever since then. Daniel Craig took on the role in 2006 with Casino Royale and passed the baton with 2021’s No Time to Die in one of the most heart-wrenching endings in Bond’s cinematic history (you cried, just admit it).
The only thing sadder is the reason why we haven’t seen a new Bond movie since then.
The Wall Street Journal reports that Amazon and Barbara Broccoli, the producer who inherited the franchise from her father and film producer Albert “Cubby” Broccoli when he died in 1996, are in the middle of an ugly fight that’s halted production on the next Bond film. Apparently, Barbara doesn’t trust Amazon with her family’s famous film franchise.
How bad is it? Well, here’s a quote from Barbara to some of her friends explaining how she feels about the people who run Amazon’s media empire: “These people are f—ing idiots.” Man, that’s awkward with a capital “awk.”
The stalemate started back in 2021 when Amazon bought MGM for $8.5 billion and thus acquired the rights to distribute Bond films, according to Variety. The deal seemed like a big move for Amazon to weave its way into Hollywood using one of its most storied and rock solid film franchises.
Unfortunately for Amazon, the true power over the James Bond films lies with Broccoli. She supplies the ideas for Bond’s big screen adventures and when they go into production, and Broccoli isn’t keen on working with Amazon anytime soon. The WSJ spoke to 20 people familiar with the feud who say Broccoli feels Amazon isn’t the right place for a Bond movie because its core business is retail and ecommerce.
When Amazon purchased MGM, clinching the rights to the Bond franchise was a key part of the deal’s value. Broccoli and co-producer Michael Wilson had some reservations but were assured they would still retain creative control. COVID lockdowns were already making it hard to jump into the next Bond film production as well. However, things seemed to be smoothing over between the two parties when Amazon also insisted that its next Bond movie No Time to Die would get a theatrical release.
But as soon as the deal closed, Amazon executives started thinking of ways to expand the Bond film franchise to other mediums like a Moneypenny spinoff series for Prime Video or a separate spy film or TV show that took place in the Bond universe. Broccoli refused to let any of these projects go forward. She also took umbrage with Amazon entertainment executive Jennifer Salke’s use of the word “content” to describe new James Bond projects and any ideas Amazon had for Bond were labeled “TBD” in memos. To date, the only Bond property Amazon could get Broccoli to sign off on is a reality series 007: Road to a Million that’s entering its second season.
Broccoli and her family have been part of the Bond movie franchise for almost as long as she lived so she’s fiercely protective of the brand and her father’s cinematic legacy. She’s also started training Wilson’s son Gregg to produce recent installments and possibly prepare him to take over the franchise someday. Even that has led to disagreements over who should play Bond in the next film. That’s assuming we get one and it doesn’t look like that will happen anytime soon.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/james-bond-the-movie-franchise-not-the-spy-may-be-in-deep-jeopardy-211608094.html?src=rssGoogle's Gemini Deep Research tool is now available globally
A little more than a week after announcing Gemini Deep Research, Google is making the tool available to more people. As of today, the feature, part of the company’s paid Gemini Advanced suite, is available in every country and language where Google offers Gemini. In practice, that means Gemini Advanced users in more than 100 countries globally can start using Deep Research right now. Previously, it was only available in English.
As a refresher, Deep Research takes advantage of Gemini 1.5 Pro’s ability to reason through “long context windows” to create comprehensive but easy-to-read reports on complex topics. Once you provide the tool a prompt, it will generate a research plan for you to approve and tweak as you see fit. After it has your go-ahead, Gemini 1.5 Pro will search the open web for information related to your query. That process can sometimes take several minutes, but once Gemini is done, you’ll have a multi-page report you can export to Google Docs for later viewing.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/googles-gemini-deep-research-tool-is-now-available-globally-210151873.html?src=rssHow to schedule messages on Instagram
Instagram is still thought of as a feed of algorithmically-suggested photos first and foremost, but the app is also pretty popular for messaging, too. If you want to take some of the stress out of remembering to send a birthday message to a friend, as part of a recent update, you can now schedule Instagram messages in advance. Scheduled messages can't contain media like GIFs, photos or videos, but you can schedule them up to 29 days in advance on both the Android and iOS versions of the app.
What are Instagram DMs?
If you've stuck to using Instagram as a repository for your smartphone photos, you might have missed out on the introduction of Instagram Direct back in 2013, a direct messaging system integrated right in the Instagram app for sharing photos and videos with friends and family.
Meta has changed the look, location, and features of Instagram DMs over the years, hooking it up with Messenger in 2020, and more recently adding location-sharing abilities in November 2024. Adding scheduled messages brings Instagram more line with messaging tools like iMessage and Gmail.
How to schedule an Instagram message
You can access DMs by tapping on the arrow or chat bubble icon in the top right corner of your feed. To schedule a message, choose an existing chat or create a new message by tapping on the new message icon in the top right corner. Then fill out the text box with whatever you want to say, and tap and hold on the blue arrow icon to the right of the text box.
Instagram will then pull up a series of dials you can use to set the date and time you want your message to be sent. Once you're happy, tap the blue send button at the bottom of the menu and the message will be scheduled.
How to delete a scheduled Instagram message
If you change your mind about a scheduled message, you can delete them directly from your chat. From inside a chat, tap on the small text that says "scheduled messages" above the text box. Then tap and hold on the message you want to delete. From the dropdown menu that appears, tap on "Delete" to remove the message.
How to edit a scheduled Instagram message
If you want to edit your message instead of deleting it, things get more complicated. It became possible to edit normal Instagram messages in March 2024, but editing a scheduled message currently isn't possible. There is a way to achieve the same effect if you're willing to do some extra work, though.
First, open the chat were the scheduled message you want to edit is. Then tap on "scheduled messages" near the bottom of the screen above the text box. Find the message you want to edit, then tap and hold on it. Tap on "Copy" from the menu that menu to copy the text to your clipboard, then repeat the process and tap on "Delete."
With your copied message in hand, paste it into the text box of your existing chat or a new message. Edit it however you see fit, then tap and hold on the blue arrow to the right of the text box to schedule it again for your desire date and time. Tap on the send button at the bottom of the menu, and it will be scheduled.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/how-to-schedule-messages-on-instagram-205659294.html?src=rssIntel Arc B580 review: The new king of $250 GPUs (for now)
When Intel debuted its first Arc video cards two years ago, I was more than a little skeptical. Could a company that famously gave up on its last major desktop GPU project in 2009 actually make a dent in a market dominated by NVIDIA and AMD? Well, when I reviewed them in 2022, the Arc A750 and A770 turned out better than I thought, though they were also held back by Intel's poor drivers. But it seems Intel has learned from its mistakes.
The new $250 Arc B580 performs better than AMD's low-end Radeon 7600, and it can even tangle a bit with NVIDIA when it comes to budget ray tracing. The only question is if it's worth investing in an Intel video card given its rocky corporate outlook. But for such a cheap video card, with a price that harkens back to the early 2000s, the risk may be worth it.
The B580 marks the debut of Intel's second-generation Arc Xe2 GPUs, and it'll be joined by the $219 B570 next month. Based on their specs alone, it's easy to see why they're compelling for budget games. The B580 features 20 Xe cores, 20 ray tracing units and a faster clock speed than the previous Arc cards. Most importantly, though, it's rocking 12GB of VRAM with a 192-bit memory interface, giving it more than enough room to pump out 1440p gameplay.
The $299 NVIDIA RTX 4060, in comparison, is stuck with 8GB of VRAM and a far more limited 128-bit interface. Even the RTX 4060 Ti sports that meager amount of VRAM, limiting both of those GPUs mostly to 1080p gameplay (especially if you wanted a bit of ray tracing). AMD's Radeon RX 7600, which goes for around $269, is also burdened with 8GB of RAM and weaker ray tracing performance than NVIDIA and Intel's cards.
While Intel has a clear hardware advantage, timing is once again a major concern. The Arc B580 launched as we're preparing for CES 2025, where both NVIDIA and AMD are expected to show off new desktop GPUs. Given NVIDIA's ever-increasing prices, I wouldn't bet on seeing an RTX 5060 around $250, but AMD is another story. It's been trying to make an impact in the low- and mid-range GPU market for years, and that’s reportedly still the case with its RDNA 4 cards. There's a good chance we'll eventually see some sort of inexpensive next-gen GPU from AMD.
If you need to build a budget gaming rig in the next few months or so, though, the Arc B580 will serve you well. In my testing, it scored slightly higher than the RTX 4060 Ti in 3DMark's Timespy Extreme Benchmark, and it was also noticeably faster than the Radeon 7600. The B580 shone even brighter with ray tracing. I hit a 58 fps average in the Cyberpunk 2077 benchmark running at 1080p with Ultra graphics settings and mid-range ray tracing. The Radeon 7600, on the other hand, sometimes struggled to stay above 40 fps with similar settings.
GPU |
Timespy Extreme |
3Dmark Speedway |
Port Royal Ray Tracing |
|---|---|---|---|
Intel Arc B580 |
7,287 |
2,443 |
7,872 |
Intel Arc A770 |
6,718 |
N/A |
6,960 |
NVIDIA RTX 4060 Ti |
6,599 |
3,217 |
8,170 |
AMD Radeon 7600 |
5,526 |
1,969 |
5,478 |
I was genuinely surprised by how well the Arc B580 tackled 1440p gaming. In Dragon Age: The Veilguard, I hit 70 fps on average with high graphics settings, mid-range ray tracing and Intel's XeSS upscaling flipped on. That's better performance than you'll see on the $700 PlayStation 5 Pro (though admittedly, Sony's PSSR AI upscaling might look better to your eyes). I also hit 85 fps on average while playing Halo Infinite in 1440p with maxed out graphics, which was slightly better than the 4060 Ti. While we're used to budget cards being mainly limited to 1080p gaming, the Arc B580's additional memory clearly makes it well suitedfor 1440p.
Still, there are benefits that the competition offers. NVIDIA's RTX GPUs can also work with its specialized apps, like NVIDIA Broadcaster, which can clean up your audio and video for streams and recordings. Additionally, NVIDIA's DLSS 3 upscaling is available on over 500 games, while Intel's XeSS just cracked 200. And then there’s the driver issue: NVIDIA has decades of experience crafting solid GPU software, whereas Intel is still recovering from its recent driver missteps. At least the XeSS 2 AI upscaling seems more useful than AMD's FSR 3 (FidelityFX Super Resolution), as Intel's tech looks dramatically better and can often increase a game's performance by 30 percent or more.
The Arc B580 also survived several hours of benchmarking and gaming without any hardware or driver issues. When I first tested the Arc A750 and A770, they would often crash within an hour of testing. Intel's software has clearly made some progress. The B580 reference model I tested also stayed relatively cool under load, and it never surpassed 64 degrees celsius (which also kept its two large fans from ever making much noise). While there will be third-party cards available, I was also impressed by Intel’s reference design: The B580 feels premium and sturdy, not cheap and plasticky like many other budget GPUs.
At this point, it seems like Intel is already having trouble keeping the Arc B580 in stock, a rare good problem for the beleaguered chip giant. It’s easy to see why gamers are smitten: It delivers solid 1080p and 1440p performance for most new titles, even with a bit of ray tracing. Finally, there’s a viable $250 GPU that doesn’t make you feel like you’re desperately behind the pack. It’s a clear win for Intel – at least until we see what’s new from AMD.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/pc/intel-arc-b580-review-the-new-king-of-250-gpus-for-now-200047482.html?src=rssHisense's HT Saturn speakers feature wireless Dolby Atmos and room calibration
Hisense has officially unveiled its new HT Saturn audio system just ahead of CES, and it's a doozy. This five-piece surround system includes four identical satellite units and a single 6.5-inch subwoofer. All told, it ships with 13 speakers spread across the five units, each of them wireless.
The company says this system has been “purpose-built to complement” extra-large screens, with Hisense announcing its the perfect companion to its own TVs that are 85-inches or bigger. The HT Saturn is especially feature-rich, as it’s compatible with both Dolby Atmos and DTS:X technology.
It also includes a room calibration system, to ensure the best possible audio, and can use the TV’s onboard speaker as an additional component. The system features plenty of useful connection options, including HDMI eARC, optical and Bluetooth 5.3. Everything is wall-mountable, which is great because it can be tough to find space for five cube-shaped speakers.
The system also features five unique EQ modes that optimize sound for movies, music, games and more. We don’t know the cost or when it’ll come out. The Hisense HT Saturn wireless audio system will officially debut at CES 2025, so we’ll likely get pricing and availability details early next year. If you have an immediate hankering for a new entertainment-based sound system, Sony put out some good stuff this year.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/speakers/hisenses-ht-saturn-speakers-feature-wireless-dolby-atmos-and-room-calibration-192952302.html?src=rssUbisoft quietly squeezes out another NFT game featuring Rayman, Blood Dragon
Hey, gamers! Do you like Rayman? Do you like Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon? Do you wish they’d make a new Rayman or Blood Dragon game? Well, you got your wish (sort of) if you’re willing to give your wish a lot of leeway and a bit of money. Journalist Stephen Totilo’s Game File newsletter reported that Ubisoft secretly released a new Web3 game with NFTs featuring Captain Laserhawk from the Blood Dragon animated series spinoff on Netflix and Rayman (who hasn’t appeared in a proper new adventure in years).
Captain Laserhawk: The G.A.M.E. looks like a generic top down shooter set in the bright neon futureworld of the Blood Dragon universe. You compete in an arena-style bloodsport where getting the most kills gets you the win. Totilo describes it as “the most basic top-down shooter imaginable.”
You’ll need a Niji Warrior NFT to play the game. Totilo reported that Ubisoft offered 10,000 of the special NFTs for free with some Web3 transaction fees earlier this month. The Niji Warrior NFT serves as a kind of ID card, and if you missed your chance to snag one for free, you’ll have to fork over a minimum of $14.38 (0.0022 in ethereum, according to Coinbase) just to get in the game.
Then to add digital insult to injury, Rayman serves as the announcer for these gladiatorial deathmatches of the future. Rayman appears in the game but you don’t even get to play as the wily, cartoon-ish game hero. He’s forced to be the Marv Albert of this bloodthirsty cryptocash grab.
There’s only one compelling reason to play the game: You won’t need to exert much effort to get on the leaderboard. Totilo said he got into the top 10 of the global leaderboard — on a leaderboard that showed less than 100 players. I wouldn’t call the game a runaway hit just yet.
This isn’t the first time that Ubisoft has quietly pushed out a Web3-based game to cash in on the NFT craze that petered out of popularity years ago. Ubisoft Quartz released the tactical RPG Champions Tactics: Grimoria Chronicles in October in which players could buy NFTs for as much as $6,300.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/pc/ubisoft-quietly-squeezes-out-another-nft-game-featuring-rayman-blood-dragon-192102438.html?src=rssOpenAI's next-generation o3 model will arrive early next year
After nearly two weeks of announcements, OpenAI capped off its 12 Days of OpenAI livestream series with a preview of its next-generation frontier model. “Out of respect for friends at Telefónica (owner of the O2 cellular network in Europe), and in the grand tradition of OpenAI being really, truly bad at names, it’s called o3,” OpenAI CEO Sam Altman told those watching the announcement on YouTube.
The new model isn’t ready for public use just yet. Instead, OpenAI is first making o3 available to researchers who want help with safety testing. OpenAI also announced the existence of o3-mini. Altman said the company plans to launch that model “around the end of January,” with o3 following “shortly after that.”
As you might expect, o3 offers improved performance over its predecessor, but just how much better it is than o1 is the headline feature here. For example, when put through this year's American Invitational Mathematics Examination, o3 achieved an accuracy score of 96.7 percent. By contrast, o1 earned a more modest 83.3 percent rating. “What this signifies is that o3 often misses just one question,” said Mark Chen, senior vice president of research at OpenAI. In fact, o3 did so well on the usual suite of benchmarks OpenAI puts its models through that the company had to find more challenging tests to benchmark it against.
One of those is ARC-AGI, a benchmark that tests an AI algorithm's ability to intuite and learn on the spot. According to the test's creator, the non-profit ARC Prize, an AI system that could successfully beat ARC-AGI would represent "an important milestone toward artificial general intelligence." Since its debut in 2019, no AI model has beaten ARC-AGI. The test consists of input-output questions that most people can figure out intuitively. For instance, in the example above, the correct answer would be to create squares out of the four polyominos using dark blue blocks.
On its low-compute setting, o3 scored 75.7 percent on the test. With additional processing power, the model achieved a rating of 87.5 percent. "Human performance is comparable at 85 percent threshold, so being above this is a major milestone," according to Greg Kamradt, president of ARC Prize Foundation.
OpenAI also showed off o3-mini. The new model uses OpenAI's recently announced Adaptive Thinking Time API to offer three different reasoning modes: Low, Medium and High. In practice, this allows users to adjust how long the software "thinks" about a problem before delivering an answer. As you can see from the above graph, o3-mini can achieve results comparable to OpenAI's current o1 reasoning model, but at a fraction of the compute cost. As mentioned, o3-mini will arrive for public use ahead of o3.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/openais-next-generation-o3-model-will-arrive-early-next-year-191707632.html?src=rssThe 7 best white elephant gifts that are worth stealing
Whether or not you’ve heard of a white elephant gift exchange before, there’s a good chance you have the wrong idea of what it is, how it actually works and where the idea came from. According to legend, the King of Siam would give a white elephant to courtiers who had upset them. It was a far more devious punishment than simply having them executed. The recipient had no choice but to simply thank the king for such an opulent gift, knowing that they likely could not afford the upkeep for such an animal. It would inevitably lead them to financial ruin.
This story is almost certainly untrue, but it has led to a modern holiday staple: the white elephant gift exchange. Picking the right white elephant gift means walking a fine line: the goal isn’t to just buy something terrible and force someone to take it home with them. Rather, it should be just useful or amusing enough that it won’t immediately get tossed into the trash. The recipient also shouldn’t be able to just throw it in a junk drawer and forget about it. So here are a few suggestions that will not only get you a few chuckles, but will also make the recipient feel (slightly) burdened.
White elephant FAQs
What is white elephant?
A white elephant gift exchange is a party game typically played around the holidays in which people exchange funny, impractical gifts.
How does white elephant work?
A group of people each bring one wrapped gift to the white elephant gift exchange, and each gift is typically of a similar value. All gifts are then placed together and the group decides the order in which they will each claim a gift. The first person picks a white elephant gift from the pile, unwraps it and their turn ends. The following players can either decide to unwrap another gift and claim it as their own, or steal a gift from someone who has already taken a turn. The rules can vary from there, including the guidelines around how often a single item can be stolen — some say twice, max. The game ends when every person has a white elephant gift.
Why is it called white elephant?
The term “white elephant” is said to come from the legend of the King of Siam gifting white elephants to courtiers who upset him. While it seems like a lavish gift on its face, the belief is that the courtiers would be ruined by the animal’s upkeep costs.
Check out the rest of our gift ideas here.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-7-best-white-elephant-gifts-that-are-worth-stealing-150516076.html?src=rssThe US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau sues Zelle and four of its partner banks
On Friday, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) sued four financial companies involved with Zelle. The CFPB’s lawsuit (via CNBC) accuses Zelle’s operator (Early Warning Services) and three of the service’s partner banks — JPMorgan Chase, Bank Of America and Wells Fargo — of failing to protect consumers from widespread fraud on the peer-to-peer payment system.
The CFPB says customers of those three banks have lost over $870 million during Zelle’s seven years as a payment service. The suit claims hundreds of thousands of customers who filed fraud complaints were denied meaningful assistance, with some being told to “contact the fraudsters directly to recover their money.” (Pro tip: Don’t do that.)
“The nation’s largest banks felt threatened by competing payment apps, so they rushed to put out Zelle,” CFPB Director Rohit Chopra wrote in a statement. “By their failing to put in place proper safeguards, Zelle became a gold mine for fraudsters, while often leaving victims to fend for themselves.”
The CFPB says one of the system’s loopholes is that its “tokens” (linked US phone numbers or email addresses) can be used and reassigned across different banks. The agency claims fraudsters can exploit this by connecting a victim’s number or email to the perpetrator’s deposit account, causing payments meant for the consumer to go to the scammer’s account instead.
The suit accuses Zelle and the banks of allowing repeat offenders to bounce between financial institutions with impunity. “Banks did not share information about known fraudulent transactions with other banks on the network,” the CFPB wrote. “As a result, bad actors could carry out repeated fraud schemes across multiple institutions before being detected, if they were detected at all.”
The CFPB also claims the defendant banks didn’t heed red flags to prevent further fraud, report incidents consistently or on time, properly investigate customer complaints or take appropriate action.
On Friday, Zelle framed the government’s lawsuit as a political hit that would help criminals and force them to charge fees. “The CFPB’s attacks on Zelle are legally and factually flawed, and the timing of this lawsuit appears to be driven by political factors unrelated to Zelle,” Jane Khodos, Zelle spokesperson, wrote in a statement. “Zelle leads the fight against scams and fraud and has industry-leading reimbursement policies that go above and beyond the law. The CFPB’s misguided attacks will embolden criminals, cost consumers more in fees, stifle small businesses and make it harder for thousands of community banks and credit unions to compete.”
In September, JPMorgan Chase wrote in a quarterly filing (via CNBC) that it would consider counter-litigation if the CFPB took action against the bank for its role with Zelle.
Last month, The Washington Post reported that President-elect Donald Trump and Congressional Republicans plan to limit the CFPB’s funding and powers, aligning with the agendas of large financial institutions. Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, his “government efficiency” advisors, have said they want to eliminate the agency, which was established in 2011 in response to the 2007-08 financial crisis and resulting recession.
Killing the agency would require a congressional vote that wouldn’t likely pass, given Republicans’ thin majorities. But they could do what Trump did in his first term: appoint a new director to slow or stop regulatory actions, effectively kneecapping the agency as long as they’re in charge.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/the-us-consumer-financial-protection-bureau-sues-zelle-and-four-of-its-partner-banks-175714692.html?src=rssNetflix scores the broadcasting rights to the FIFA Women's World Cup
Netflix has inked a deal with FIFA to snag exclusive US broadcasting rights to the next two Women’s World Cup tournaments, according to a report by ESPN. This contract covers both the 2027 and 2031 events.
Neither entity has described the financial value of the deal, but it has been reported to be the most significant contract that FIFA has ever signed with a streaming service for a major tournament. FIFA president Gianni Infantino called it a “landmark moment for sports media rights and a “truly historic day for broadcasting and for women's football.”
This happened because FIFA unbundled the media rights for the women’s event for the very first time, which goes into effect after Fox airs the next Men’s World Cup in 2026. The 2027 Women’s World Cup is being held in Brazil. The 2031 event doesn’t have a home yet, but the US is expected to make a bid.
This is a fairly big deal for Netflix, given that FIFA reported that a full 1.12 billion people watched the 2019 Women’s World Cup, which the US won. This is a global number, of course, but the 2023 tournament recorded the highest-ever US domestic viewership. The sport is certainly catching on over on this side of the pond.
Netflix has been making big moves into the world of live sporting events as of late. There was that utterly ridiculous Jake Paul/Mike Tyson fight, but the platform will soon be home to the weekly WWE Monday Night Raw broadcast.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/netflix-scores-the-broadcasting-rights-to-the-fifa-womens-world-cup-174017963.html?src=rssThe best stocking stuffers for $50 or less
The big ticket tech gifts may get the lion's share of attention during the holidays, but it's surprising how much people appreciate small and thoughtful accessories and gadgets. We picked out a dozen such stocking stuffers for under $50 — perfect for a little something extra for a loved one or a welcome gift for a coworker. Just be sure to check the shipping windows to make sure these handy gizmos will arrive in time. Here are some of our favorite techie gift ideas come in at $50 or less.
Check out the rest of our gift ideas here.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/accessories/the-best-stocking-stuffers-for-50-or-less-130049421.html?src=rssOur favorite Sony earbuds hit an all-time low, plus the rest of the week's best tech deals
We're less than a week from Christmas, and if you haven't finished your holiday shopping, well, you should probably get on that. While it's likely too late to get most items shipped by Wednesday morning, there are still tons of decent tech deals available for those you're seeing after the holiday — or if you just want to treat yourself. For one, Sony's WF-1000XM5, our pick for the best wireless earbuds, is down to an all-time low of $198, while the 10th-gen iPad is back at its best-ever price at $250. Several other gadgets we recommend are similarly discounted, including the PlayStation 5, Roku Streaming Stick 4K and Apple AirTags. Here are the best tech deals from this week you can still get today.
Sony WF-1000XM5 for $198 at Amazon ($102 off MSRP): The XM5s are the top pick in our guide to the best wireless earbuds, offering exceptional noise cancellation, a warm yet customizable sound, 8-12 hours of battery life and loads of handy bonus features. The design may not fit everyone's ears comfortably, but it's slimmer and lighter than previous versions. This discount matches the lowest price we've seen and undercuts the pair's Black Friday deal by $30. Also at Target and Best Buy.
Apple iPad (10th gen) for $250 at Amazon ($99 off): This matches the best price we've seen for the budget pick in our iPad buying guide. Just note that it only applies to the silver model, and you'll need to clip an on-page coupon to see the full discount at checkout. While the entry-level iPad lacks the laminated display, faster chip and wider accessory support of the iPad Air, it gets close enough to be a strong value for casual web browsing, reading and gaming.
Roku Streaming Stick 4K for $29 at Amazon ($21 off): A pick from our guide to the best streaming devices, the Roku Streaming Stick 4K is snappy and easy to navigate, with support for all the major HDR formats, streaming apps (Twitch aside) and Apple AirPlay. Its search function isn’t as comprehensive as some competing streamers, however, and the UI isn't the most exciting to look at. This deal ties the price we saw on Black Friday; it's a few bucks above than the stick's all-time low but still $5 off its typical going rate in recent months. Also at Target and Best Buy.
PlayStation 5 (slim) for $424 at Amazon ($76 off): This 15 percent discount has been live since before Black Friday, but Sony says it'll end on December 24, so consider this a last call. While it's not the best price we've seen, larger drops have still been uncommon over the last year. This bundle throws in a few Fortnite skins and V-Bucks, while the console alone is available for the same price. You can also pair it with the RPG Dragon Age: The Veilguard or an EA sports game for $450 at Walmart and Best Buy. Also at Target, GameStop and PlayStation Direct.
PlayStation 5 Digital Edition (slim) + NBA 2K25 for $374 at GameStop ($76 off): If you don't care about owning physical media, you can still save an extra $50 upfront by getting the all-digital PS5. This bundle includes the latest NBA 2K game, though the Fortnite bundle noted above and the standalone console are each available for $375 too. Also at Target, Best Buy and PlayStation Direct.
$100 PlayStation Store gift card + $15 Target gift card for $100 at Target ($15 off, Target Circle only): If you pick up a digital PlayStation gift card worth $100 or more at Target, the retailer will toss in its own $15 e-gift card with your purchase. The catch is that you need a Target Circle membership to take advantage, though it's at least free to sign up for that. If you often shop at Target and planned to pick up some PlayStation credit anyway, it's hard to complain about bonus money either way. The same offer is available for Xbox gift cards as well. Target says both promos will expire on Friday.
Apple AirTags (4-pack) for $70 at Amazon ($29 off): Apple's Bluetooth tracker is our top pick for iPhone users, unsurprisingly, as it accurately locates tagged items right from the Find My app. Its waterproof design and replaceable battery are nice, too, though you'll need to grab a holder or case if you want to attach one to your keys. This deal isn't quite an all-time low for a four-pack, but it beats the street price we've seen for most of the past month by a couple bucks. Also at Best Buy.
Apple Pencil (2nd gen) for $80 at Amazon ($49 off): This discount comes within a dollar of the best price to date for Apple's second-gen Pencil stylus, which remains an accurate tool for sketching and notetaking. To be clear, though, you should only get it if you have an older iPad Air, Pro or mini and don't plan on upgrading anytime soon. Otherwise, go for the Apple Pencil Pro, which works with the newer models and adds built-in Find My support, among other conveniences. Also at Target.
LG B4 OLED TV (48”) + $50 Best Buy gift card for $600 at Best Buy ($250 off): The B4 is LG’s entry-level OLED TV for 2024. It gets you the core benefits of any good OLED set — excellent contrast with deep black tones, wide viewing angles, fast motion, etc. — but it’s not as bright as some upper-tier OLEDs, so it’s better off in a darker room. That said, this is a stellar value if you don’t mind a smaller panel. This offer ties the largest cash discount we've seen and, unlike the deal we saw on Black Friday, it also includes with a $50 digital gift card.
Half-Life: Alyx for $20 at Steam ($40 off): In case you missed it, Valve kicked off its annual Steam Winter Sale yesterday, bringing its usual buffet of PC game discounts along with it. There are simply too many deals to list everything here, but this one ties the lowest price to date for Half-Life: Alyx, which remains a must-try FPS for VR newbies. A few other quick-hit highlights: Halo: The Master Chief Collection for $10, The Orange Box for $2, Grand Theft Auto IV (plus DLC) for $6, Titanfall 2 for $3, Pizza Tower for $13 (trust me on this one) and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt for $8. Valve says the sale will last until January 2.
Super Mario RPG for $30 at GameStop ($30 off): The SNES classic Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars didn’t really need a Switch remake, but it got one last year anyway. Thankfully, the new version keeps the original’s oddball spirit intact as it spruces up the visuals for true 3D. If you're in the mood for a lighter RPG, this price is an all-time low.
Backbone One (2nd gen) for $50 at Best Buy ($50 off): The Backbone One is a comfy mobile gamepad that connects directly to your phone's USB-C port and makes playing console-style games feel a little more natural. This matches the all-time low for the most recent model.
Anker Soundcore Space A40 for $45 at Amazon ($40 off): The Soundcore Space A40 is the longtime top pick in our guide to the best budget earbuds. While it can't match the Sony XM5s in terms of sound quality and noise-canceling strength, it gets admirably close for way less cash. Wireless charging, multipoint connectivity, 8-10 hours of battery life and a compact design all help, though call quality is mediocre, and there's no auto-pausing when you remove an earbud. This is the same deal we saw on Black Friday; outside of a couple drops for Costco members, it ties an all-time low. Also at Anker with an on-page coupon.
JLab Go Air Pop for $10 at Target ($15 off): The Go Air Pop is another pair we highlight in our budget earbuds buying guide. It's about as basic as the price would suggest, with no active noise cancellation (ANC), an all-plastic design and a relatively boomy sound. JLab released a new ANC version in October. That said, the older model's audio quality is still passable, its built-in touch controls actually work and it gets a solid 8-9 hours of battery life. If you just want a competent pair for as little money as possible, it's hard to beat $10. This deal ties the Pop's all-time low.
Keychron Q3 Max for $182 at Keychron ($32 off): The Keychron Q Max series is the top pick in our guide to the best mechanical keyboards, pairing an upscale (if heavy) aluminum case with a delightful typing experience and deep customizability. This ties the all-time low we saw on Black Friday for the tenkeyless model, but other sizes are discounted as well. Also at Amazon for $188, but only for Prime members.
Beats Pill for $100 at Amazon ($50 off): We gave the latest Beats Pill a score of 83 over the summer and currently recommend it in our Bluetooth speaker buying guide. It's not the best pure value, and it struggles at maximum volume, but in general it pumps out strong bass without sounding imbalanced. A clean, water-resistant design, ample battery life and wired audio support over USB-C add to the appeal. This deal ties the speaker's all-time low. Also at Target and Walmart.
Samsung Pro Plus (512GB) for $38 at Amazon ($38 off): The Pro Plus is the top pick in our guide to the best microSD cards. It's not the cheapest option, but it was faster than most in our benchmark tests, with a particular edge in random performance. That helps it play a bit nicer in a portable gaming PC or a device like the Raspberry Pi, where it’d more frequently have to access smaller bits of data in random locations. The 512GB model here has previously sold for less, but this discount marks its lowest price since March. Also at Samsung and B&H.
Google Pixel 8a for $399 at Amazon ($100 off): This is the second-best price we've seen for an unlocked Pixel 8a, which we consider the best midrange phone for Android fans. It has most of the headline features you'd get from a flagship Pixel phone — excellent cameras, a crisp 120Hz OLED display, clean software with updates through 2031, solid performance and battery life — only it puts them in a slightly cheaper plastic frame with slower charging speeds. At this price, though, that should be easier to live with. Also at Target and Best Buy.
Anker Prime Power Bank for $78 at Amazon ($52 off): The Anker Prime is the premium pick in our guide to the best power banks. It may be overkill for most, but its hefty 20,000mAh capacity and pair of 100W USB-C ports mean it can recharge multiple laptops — let alone mobile devices — at full speed. There's a 65W USB-A port as well, plus a handy display that keeps you updated on the battery's status. This deal ties the lowest price we've seen. Also at Anker with an on-page coupon.
Anker 525 Charging Station for $30 at Amazon ($26 off, Prime only): We recommend this 67W desktop charging station in our remote worker gift guide. It's not the fastest model around, but it packs four USB ports (two USB-C, two USB-A) and three AC outlets in a design that's compact enough to fit on a crowded desk. This deal is another all-time low, though it's only available to Prime members.
Twelve South AirFly Pro for $40 at Amazon ($15 off): Another holiday gift guide recommendation, the AirFly Pro is a Bluetooth transmitter that lets you pair up to two sets of wireless headphones to an inflight entertainment system, older treadmill or most other devices with a 3.5mm jack. This discount marks the lowest price we've seen in a couple of years. Also at Best Buy.
Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/our-favorite-sony-earbuds-hit-an-all-time-low-plus-the-rest-of-the-weeks-best-tech-deals-173211089.html?src=rssThe best tech gifts for $100 or less to give for Christmas from Apple, Samsung and more
The winter solstice is upon us, which means that Christmas is next up — and that the clock for timely gift-giving is nearly expired. If you're gifting for a tech fan, something from Apple, Google, Samsung or another big brand is always at the top of the list. But be prepared for sticker shock once you look at the price tags for their latest and greatest devices. Thankfully, you don’t have to spend hundreds of dollars to get a gift for someone that has all the cachet of a brand they know and love.
Apple, Samsung, Sony and other big tech companies all have affordable gear that comes in at $100 or less, you just have to know where to find them. These are some of our favorites, but remember: you can often find alternatives that are just as good (and sometimes better) than these. However, for the people in your life for which brand names really do matter, these gifts will speak to them.
Check out the rest of our gift ideas here.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/accessories/the-best-tech-gifts-for-100-or-less-to-give-for-christmas-from-apple-samsung-and-more-130038897.html?src=rssTrailer: 'Rule Breakers' will bring Afghanistan’s first-ever girls’ robotics team to the big screen on March 7
The courageous story of Afghanistan’s first all-girls robotics team is coming to a theater near you.
Rule Breakers is based on the true story of The Afghan Girls Robotics Team, who grabbed the world’s attention when they were denied member visas by the United States in 2017 while attempting to compete at the First Global Challenge international robotics competition. Fifty three members of Congress signed a petition and President Donald Trump intervened to give the girls travel documents on special humanitarian grounds allowing them to enter the US and compete in the robotics games, according to a New York Times profile.
The story of the team’s struggle to compete in the robotics competition goes much deeper than their attempts to enter the US. First Global founder Dean Kamen, who is best known for designing the Segway, put together his competitive robotics league as a way to spark interest in science and technology among high schoolers. He invited and enlisted Afghan tech entrepreneur and Digital Citizen Fund (DCF) founder Roya Mahboob to put together an all-girls robotics team for the competition nicknamed the Afghan Dreamers. A dozen girls made the cut forming the first team and worked on their robotic creation in Mahboob’s parents’ basement using whatever they could find for tools along with parts donated by Kamen, according to the Times.
The movie tells the story of the team’s deep and perilous struggle to compete and pursue their passions. The Taliban’s return to power in 2021 reversed years of gender equality and strife for freedom by forbidding women from receiving an education in science and technology, forcing some of the team members to flee their country for their own safety and the right to pursue their future on their terms. Team member Sadaf Hamidi, who fled for Qatar in 2021, told NBC News last year that one of her sisters had to give up her dream of going to medical school saying “This is heartbreaking for me and for them.”
Rule Breakers is directed by two-time Academy Award winner Bill Guttentag and stars Nikohl Boosheri as Mahboob and Fleabag’s Phoebe Waller-Bridge. The film hits theaters on March 7, 2025.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/trailer-rule-breakers-will-bring-afghanistans-first-ever-girls-robotics-team-to-the-big-screen-on-march-7-170049854.html?src=rssCES 2025: The new tech we're expecting to see in Las Vegas from AMD, NVIDIA, Hyundai and more
The holiday season has barely begun, but some of us are already getting ready for CES 2025. Shortly after New Year’s Day, many from the Engadget team will be packing our bags to fly to Las Vegas, where we’ll be covering tech’s biggest annual conference. As usual, our inboxes are already flooded with pitches from companies that are planning to be there, and our calendars are filling up with appointments for briefings and demos.
Based on our experience, as well as observation of recent industry trends, it’s fairly easy to make educated predictions about what we might see in January. Over the years, the focus of the conference has spanned areas like TVs, cars, smart home products and personal health, with a smattering of laptops and accessories thrown in. At CES 2025, we expect to see AI get even more pervasive in all areas of the show floor. But we are also likely to get the usual slew of new processors and subsequent laptops, as well as all manner of wearables, trackers, bathroom appliances and massage chairs. Oh, the massage chairs.
There's already a lot we know is coming, just by a cursory glance at the lineup published by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA). In addition to numerous panels and talks, there will be keynotes by NVIDIA's founder and CEO Jensen Huang, Delta CEO Ed Bastian as well as C-suite executives from companies like Panasonic, SiriusXM, Waymo and Volvo group. That gives us a taste of who might make big announcements at the show.
In fact, some companies didn't even wait till January to make their news known. LG, for example, continues its annual tradition of sharing its upcoming CES launches weeks ahead of the show by unveiling the 2025 refresh for its QNED evo line of LCD TVs. Hyundai Mobis, meanwhile, has said it will be giving us a look at its "Holographic Windshield Display," something it's claiming is a world's first. Hyundai Mobis even shared a picture of what its booth at CES 2025 will look like, in case pictures of convention center booths get you excited.
If you’re already looking ahead to 2025 and are studiously researching what might be coming in January, here’s a taste of what our team expects to see at the show.
New video cards from AMD and NVIDIA
There’s no doubt 2025 is going to be a momentous year for PC gamers. NVIDIA is expected to debut its long-awaited RTX 5000 video cards at CES, while AMD CEO Lisa Su has confirmed we’ll see next-generation RDNA 4 GPUs early next year. Of the two companies, AMD could use the upgrade more. Its last batch of Radeon 7000 cards were decent mid-range performers, but they lagged far behind NVIDIA’s hardware when it came to ray tracing, and AMD’s FSR 3 upscaling also couldn’t compete with NVIDIA’s AI-powered DLSS 3.
"In addition to a strong increase in gaming performance, RDNA 4 delivers significantly higher ray-tracing performance and adds new AI capabilities,” AMD CEO Lisa Su said in an October earnings call.
As for NVIDIA’s new hardware, a rumor from the leaker OneRaichu (via DigitalTrends) suggested that the RTX 5090 could be up to 70 percent faster than the RTX 4090. (That’s a GPU that I previously described as having “unholy power.”) They also note that other “high level” cards could see 30 to 40 percent performance bumps. Those gains might be enough to tempt wealthy RTX 4090 owners to upgrade, but RTX 4070 and 4080 owners might want to skip this generation. For NVIDIA holdouts with RTX 3000 and earlier GPUs, though, next year may be the perfect time to upgrade. — Devindra Hardawar, senior reporter
AI PCs round 2
Last year, I predicted that AI PCs would dominate CES, and that mostly turned out to be true. As 2024 rolled on, we saw even more powerful NPUs in chips from Intel, AMD and Qualcomm. Microsoft also doubled down on AI PCs with its Copilot+ initiative, which gave a big marketing push for artificial intelligence features and premium specifications (like having at least 16GB of RAM).
Expect more of the same going into CES 2025, alongside even more AI being stuffed into every category of product imaginable. This year, in particular, PC makers are likely to gear up to take advantage of Windows 10 support ending next year. Instead of just upgrading your old computer to Windows 11, the likes of Dell and HP would rather you buy a whole new AI PC with the new OS pre-installed.
While 2024 was a year of endless AI PC hype, 2025 might end up being a year of reckoning. Microsoft’s long-delayed Recall feature is slowly trickling out to more users, but it’s already showing some glaring security holes, like failing to scrub social security and credit card numbers from screenshots. We’ve also been mostly underwhelmed with Apple Intelligence’s image generation capabilities. PC makers have been eager to talk up the potential of AI-powered features until now, but in 2025 they’ll have to actually prove they can live up to their fantastical claims. — D.H.
Earbuds that follow Apple’s lead on hearing health
I’m fully aware not every audio company has the ability to build out a clinical-grade hearing test and hearing aid features in their apps. However, Apple’s recent update for the AirPods Pro 2 should inspire the competition to offer some form of hearing health tools on their flagship products. Jabra was probably the best equipped to do this since parent company GN has extensive hearing aid experience. Sadly, the company announced earlier this year that it wouldn’t make earbuds anymore.
Samsung and Google could probably integrate something like what Apple made for the AirPods, given both companies’ existing health platforms. If they did, those announcements are unlikely to be made at CES, as both companies prefer to host their own standalone hardware events throughout the year.
That leaves Sennheiser as the biggest audio company that consistently launches earbuds and headphones at CES. Last year, it showcased multiple new models, including one with heart-rate tracking for workouts. Plus, it already offers hearing assistance with dedicated devices like the true wireless Conversation Clear Plus. Those earbuds are more hearing focused than for general content consumption, so it would be great to see Sennheiser bring some features from that product to its flagship Momentum line of earbuds. Perhaps a Momentum True Wireless 4 Pro or Plus is in the cards, but the current model is just nine months old.
Of course, there’s plenty of room for other companies to innovate here, and there will be no shortage of new earbuds in Vegas next month. We also tend to see a ton of assistive devices and technology launch at CES, from major accessibility companies like OrCam and all manner of smaller brands. I just hope some of the new tech includes more general hearing tools on the models most people will want to use. — Billy Steele, senior editor
Vehicle electrification goes sky high
As the growth of electric cars nears 10 percent of new models sold in the US, it’s easy to forget that wheeled vehicles aren’t the only kind of transportation seeing the shift to battery-powered propulsion. Flying taxis have been a mainstay of CES for the past few years, with concept vehicles from brands as large as Hyundai dotting the show floor in Vegas.
Granted, these contraptions look more like giant drones with cockpits than anything the Jetsons ever dreamed up. But with companies like Archer Aviation and Joby Aviation pledging to actually launch eVTOL services (electric vertical take-off and landing) in 2025, the era of air taxis may have landed for real this time. — Sam Rutherford, senior reporter
Expanded dialog improvement features on soundbars
When it comes to the main aspects of soundbars, there really isn’t a ton of innovation from year to year. Heck, Samsung’s biggest update last year was the addition of HDMI 2.1 support to its flagship model, which should’ve been there already. Companies have also been focused on the transition to cable-free everything, whether that’s wireless Dolby Atmos or wireless transmission boxes. Audio enhancement features are a place where companies can really rise above the fray, and tools like Sonos’ TV Audio Swap and Bose’s Personal Surround Sound are great examples of this. A key area nearly every company can improve is dialog boost, a feature that raises the volume or separates spoken word from background noise and music for better clarity.
Sonos made a huge leap in this regard on the Arc Ultra, offering two additional settings for its so-called Speech Enhancement. Previously, this was just an all-or-nothing toggle, which is how most companies handle their versions of this tool. Not only is the Sonos update customizable to a degree, it’s also just better, thanks in part to the redesigned architecture of its new premium soundbar. This is an obvious area where other companies can improve.
LG and Samsung typically announce new soundbars at CES, and there are plenty of smaller companies that will debut some too. I’d love to see all of them take dialog enhancements a step further and at the very least give multiple options for how it’s applied. LG has been using AI Sound Pro from its TVs since 2021 and Samsung offers something called Adaptive Sound on its home theater speakers. I would expect them both to generally improve the quality of their features, but I’m hoping they’ll expand the capabilities too. — B.S.
Update, December 17 2024, 12:40PM ET: This story has been updated to include the companies and CEOs that will be making keynotes at the show.
Update, December 20 2024, 11:55AM ET: This story has been updated to include LG and Hyundai Mobis' announcements ahead of CES 2025.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ces-2025-the-new-tech-were-expecting-to-see-in-las-vegas-from-amd-nvidia-hyundai-and-more-200052730.html?src=rssA four-pack of Apple AirTags is down to a record low of $70
Do you constantly lose stuff? Then we have a deal for you. A four-pack of Apple AirTag tracking chips is available via Amazon for just $70. This is a record low price and represents a discount of $30. That breaks down to $17.50 per tag.
Apple AirTags easily made our list of the best Bluetooth trackers, and this is especially true if you’re already tied into the company’s ecosystem. The finding network is vast and comprehensive, which really helps when it comes time to actually find one of these tags. Just think of all of those AirTags, iPhones and other devices out there in the world helping to create this network.
These trackers can also tap into the ultra-wideband (UWB) wireless protocol, which creates a sort of game out of finding a lost item in the home. As long as the object is within 25 feet of your smartphone, the screen will display directional arrows and a distance meter. This lets you zero in on the object without having to constantly ring the AirTag.
Now onto the caveats. AirTags really only work with iPhones and other Apple devices, so Android users should keep shopping for something else. Also, the ringer only pings for seven seconds at a time, which can make finding something feel like a mad dash. Finally, there’s no attachment point for connecting to a keychain or a related accessory. Luckily, there are all kinds of amazing AirTag accessories to get that job done. One recent case even comes with batteries that will power the tag for a full decade.
Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/a-four-pack-of-apple-airtags-is-down-to-a-record-low-of-70-161406703.html?src=rssBluesky's latest update addresses an important verification problem
Bluesky has rolled out an update that fixes one important issue that could lead to impersonation on the decentralized social network. Now, when you verify your identity on the platform with your own domain, Bluesky will no longer free up your old .bsky.social username. In the past, going through the authentication process will make your original .bsky.social name available again, which means you'll have to sign up again to secure your old handle if you don't want impersonators to scoop it up.
The social network has been trying to fix its verification issues, which became a significant problem after the service welcomed an influx of new users in recent months. A third-party entity from Cornell Tech who analyzed the app's userbase previously found that 44 percent of Bluesky's 100 most-followed accounts have a doppelganger. As a response, Bluesky adopted a more aggressive impersonation policy and required parody, satire or fan accounts to label themselves as such in both their handles and their bio in late November. It also explicitly prohibited identity churning, in which users would start off as impersonators to gain followers and then switch their identity later to avoid enforcement action.
In addition to reserving your old handle, the updated Bluesky app adds a "Mentions" tab in notifications, making it much easier to find replies to your posts. As The Verge notes, it also has a new button that lets you choose how replies show up, so you can choose to see them in a linear order or in threaded discussions.
YouTube will crack down on 'egregious clickbait,' starting in India
Clickbait videos have always been annoying, but there are times when they can be downright harmful. YouTube has vowed to strengthen its enforcement efforts when it comes to dealing with "egregious clickbait" on its website, particularly those that cover — or pretend to cover — breaking news and current events. The website describes egregious clickbait as "videos where the title or thumbnail promises viewers something that the video doesn't deliver."
YouTube says these videos leave viewers "feeling tricked, frustrated, or even misled" if they come to the website looking for truthful and timely information on important issues. If you've ever watched a clickbait video, you'd know that's definitely true. You may have trained yourself on being able to spot and skip them over the years, but some people might still not know the difference between clickbait and legitimate content.
One example of egregious clickbait, according to YouTube, is if a video says "the president resigned!" without actually addressing the president's resignation. Misleading thumbails are considered egregious clickbait, as well. If a thumbnail reads "top political news" and the video doesn't contain any political news, then it will also be subjected to YouTube's enforcement action.
The website will start cracking down on clickbait videos in India — it didn't say how it will expand from there, but we've asked it for more information. For now, it will delete any video that violates this policy without issuing strikes. After it goes through old videos, it will then prioritize new uploads, presumably so that they don't reach more people that they should.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/youtube/youtube-will-crack-down-on-egregious-clickbait-starting-in-india-130010064.html?src=rssOur favorite tech we bought in 2024
We at Engadget are in the unique position to test out many more gadgets than we actually use on a regular basis. It just comes with the territory of reviewing the newest smartphones or testing out dozens of power banks to find the best ones. But we still have to buy things for ourselves, and there are winners and losers just like there are when we test things out for professional purposes only. And similar to when we find a new top-tier tablet or VR headset, we like to sing the praises of the tech we bought ourselves to anyone who will listen. These are the best things Engadget staffers purchased this year that will continue to get lots of use in 2025.
Engadget Podcast: The AI hype train stalled in 2024
This week, we're looking back at our hellish 2024 and trying to figure out where to go from here. We began the year with enormous hype around artificial intelligence, but that's cooled off after seeing how useless many AI features have been. It's also clear that many companies, including Microsoft and Apple, are trying to push half-baked AI concepts onto users. Looking forward, we're expecting a rough few years for the tech industry (not to mention the world as a whole).
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!
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Topics
2024 in review: AI hype hasn’t led to much and the social media vibes are in flux – 1:12
What we’re looking forward to in 2025 – 21:43
Tiktok appeals its ban all the way to the US Supreme Court – 29:53
TP-Link routers are being investigated by US authorities – 32:39
Quick thoughts from last week’s Game Awards – 35:35
Working on – 38:26
Pop culture picks – 39:17
Interview with Tim Miller and Dave Wilson of Prime’s Secret Level – 49:20
Credits
Hosts: Devindra Hardawar and Cherlynn Low
Producer: Ben Ellman
Music: Dale North and Terrence O'Brien
The Morning After: Google accused of using novices to fact-check Gemini’s AI answers
Last week, Google allegedly instructed contract workers evaluating Gemini not to skip any prompts, regardless of their expertise, TechCrunch reports based on internal guidance it viewed.
Now, contractors have allegedly been instructed not to skip prompts that “require specialized domain knowledge” and to “rate the parts of the prompt you understand,” adding a note that it’s not an area they have knowledge in. Apparently, the only times contractors can skip now are if a big chunk of the information is missing or if it has harmful content.
Google filed a statement to Engadget, saying its raters “perform a wide range of tasks across many different Google products and platforms. They provide valuable feedback on more than just the content of the answers, but also on the style, format and other factors.”
— Mat Smith
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Elevation Lab’s TimeCapsule is a waterproof 10-year battery case for your AirTag
A literal set and forget.
Elevation Lab has released an accessory for the Apple AirTag that extends its battery life by up to 10 years and makes it waterproof. The TimeCapsule contains your AirTag and two AA batteries. You don’t need to open your AirTag and tinker with it — you only have to remove its backplate and coin battery before attaching it to the case. As you can see, it will make your tracking device a lot bigger and considerably heftier, so it’s mostly ideal for use with large objects, such as vehicles and big suitcases. Peace of mind for $20 — plus two AAs.
Honda is unveiling two EV prototypes at CES 2025
The concepts broke cover last year.
Honda is officially introducing two Series 0 electric vehicle prototypes at CES next year, and the company says they’ll be available for purchase around the world sometime in 2026. The vehicles will be based on the futuristic-looking concepts the company presented at CES 2024, including a flagship model called the Saloon, which featured a low profile and aerodynamic design.
Lenovo’s leaked ThinkBook Plus unrolls extra screen space
The company teased a rollable laptop concept in 2022.
According to images shared by leaker Evan Blass, Lenovo’s sixth-generation ThinkBook Plus will have an extendable rolling display. The company first teased a “rollable” laptop concept in 2022. The display can extend and unroll until you effectively have two screens stacked on top of each other. Lenovo’s images show a video call open on the top part of the display, and what looks like a PowerPoint presentation on the bottom. It looks a little weird.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/general/the-morning-after-engadget-newsletter-121541903.html?src=rssThe best budgeting apps for 2025
Almost a year ago, I was prompted to look for another budgeting app. Intuit, parent company of Mint, the budgeting app I had been using for a long time, shut down the service in March 2024. The company encouraged Mint users to migrate to its other financial app, Credit Karma, but I found it to be a poor Mint replacement after trying it out. That sent me searching elsewhere to find an app to track all of my financial accounts, monitor my credit score, track spending and set goals like building a rainy-day fund and paying down my mortgage faster.
If you’re looking for a new budgeting app to get your finances straight, allow Engadget to help. I tried out Mint's top competitors in the hopes that I'd be able to find a new budgeting app that could handle all of my financial needs, and to see which are actually worth the money.
How we tested budgeting apps
Before I dove in and started testing out budgeting apps, I had to do some research. To find a list of apps to try out, I consulted trusty ol’ Google (and even trustier Reddit); read reviews of popular apps on the App Store; and also asked friends and colleagues what budget tracking apps (or other budgeting methods) they might be using for money management. Some of the apps I found were free and these, of course, show loads of ads (excuse me, “offers”) to stay in business. But most of the available apps require paid subscriptions, with prices typically topping out around $100 a year, or $15 a month. (Spoiler: My top pick is cheaper than that.)
All of the services I chose to test needed to do several things: import all of your account data into one place; offer budgeting tools; and track your spending, net worth and credit score. Except where noted, all of these apps are available for iOS, Android and on the web.
Once I had my shortlist of six apps, I got to work setting them up. For the sake of thoroughly testing these apps, I made a point of adding every account to every budgeting app, no matter how small or immaterial the balance. What ensued was a veritable Groundhog Day of two-factor authentication. Just hours of entering passwords and one-time passcodes, for the same banks half a dozen times over. Hopefully, you only have to do this once.
Best budgeting apps of 2025
Budgeting app FAQs
What is Plaid and how does it work?
Each of the apps I tested uses the same underlying network, called Plaid, to pull in financial data, so it’s worth explaining what it is and how it works. Plaid was founded as a fintech startup in 2013 and is today the industry standard in connecting banks with third-party apps. Plaid works with over 12,000 financial institutions across the US, Canada and Europe. Additionally, more than 8,000 third-party apps and services rely on Plaid, the company claims.
To be clear, you don’t need a dedicated Plaid app to use it; the technology is baked into a wide array of apps, including all of the budgeting apps listed in this guide. Once you find the “add an account” option in whichever one you’re using, you’ll see a menu of commonly used banks. There’s also a search field you can use to look yours up directly. Once you find yours, you’ll be prompted to enter your login credentials. If you have two-factor authentication set up, you’ll need to enter a one-time passcode as well.
As the middleman, Plaid is a passthrough for information that may include your account balances, transaction history, account type and routing or account number. Plaid uses encryption, and says it has a policy of not selling or renting customer data to other companies. However, I would not be doing my job if I didn’t note that in 2022 Plaid was forced to pay $58 million to consumers in a class action suit for collecting “more financial data than was needed.” As part of the settlement, Plaid was compelled to change some of its business practices.
In a statement provided to Engadget, a Plaid spokesperson said the company continues to deny the allegations underpinning the lawsuit and that “the crux of the non-financial terms in the settlement are focused on us accelerating workstreams already underway related to giving people more transparency into Plaid’s role in connecting their accounts, and ensuring that our workstreams around data minimization remain on track.”
Why did Mint shut down?
When parent company Intuit announced in December 2023 that it would shut down Mint, it did not provide a reason why it made the decision to do so. It did say that Mint's millions of users would be funneled over to its other finance app, Credit Karma. "Credit Karma is thrilled to invite all Minters to continue their financial journey on Credit Karma, where they will have access to Credit Karma’s suite of features, products, tools and services, including some of Mint’s most popular features," Mint wrote on its product blog. In our testing, we found that Credit Karma isn't an exact replacement for Mint — so if you're still looking for a Mint alternative, you have some decent options.
What about Rocket Money?
Rocket Money is another free financial app that tracks spending and supports things like balance alerts and account linking. If you pay for the premium tier, the service can also help you cancel unwanted subscriptions. We did not test it for this guide, but we'll consider it in future updates.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/best-budgeting-apps-120036303.html?src=rssThe best laptops for gaming and schoolwork in 2025
While there remain regular laptops and gaming laptops, the line that separates them has nearly disappeared. Today, if you have a fast CPU and graphics card, along with perks like a big screen and a good cooling system, you can play a decent number of games on your laptop. Besides, not everyone wants a big, garish gaming rig, nor does everyone want to spend the money required to get one of those. If you’re considering a new laptop for school, there are more options now than ever before that can both get you through your most challenging studies and keep up with your next AAA play through. These are our top picks for the best laptops for gaming and schoolwork — but if you’re looking for a dedicated gaming laptop rather than an all-in-one machine, check out our best gaming laptops list for our recommendations.
Best laptops for gaming and school in 2025
Are gaming laptops good for school?
As we’ve mentioned, gaming laptops are especially helpful if you're doing any demanding work. Their big promise is powerful graphics performance, which isn't just limited to PC gaming. Video editing and 3D rendering programs can also tap into their GPUs to handle laborious tasks. While you can find decent GPUs on some productivity machines, like Dell's XPS 15, you can sometimes find better deals on gaming laptops. My general advice for any new workhorse: Pay attention to the specs; get at least 16GB of RAM and the largest solid state drive you can find (ideally 1TB or more). Those components are both typically hard to upgrade down the line, so it’s worth investing what you can up front to get the most out of your PC gaming experience long term. Also, don’t forget the basics like a webcam, which will likely be necessary for the schoolwork portion of your activities.
The one big downside to choosing a gaming notebook is portability. For the most part, we'd recommend 15-inch models to get the best balance of size and price. Those typically weigh in around 4.5 pounds, which is significantly more than a three-pound ultraportable. Today's gaming notebooks are still far lighter than older models, though, so at least you won't be lugging around a 10-pound brick. If you’re looking for something lighter, there are plenty of 14-inch options these days. And if you're not into LED lights and other gamer-centric bling, keep an eye out for more understated models that still feature essentials like a webcam (or make sure you know how to turn those lights off).
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/laptops/best-laptops-for-gaming-and-school-132207352.html?src=rssAmazon to pay OSHA $145,000 in workplace safety settlement
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has reached a settlement with Amazon about alleged hazardous workplace conditions at ten of the tech giant's facilities. Under the terms of the settlement, Amazon will pay a penalty of $145,000 and must implement "corporate-wide ergonomic measures" to reduce the risk of worker injuries. OSHA will also continue inspecting the facilities for the next two years. On the government side of the agreement, OSHA is withdrawing nine of its ten ergonomic citations against the company.
Ergonomic injuries are also known as musculoskeletal disorders. These can include sprains and strains experienced on the job.
A rep from the Department of Labor told ABC News that this settlement is the "largest of its kind" and "will resolve all outstanding ergonomic litigation" against Amazon. However, it will not impact a separate investigation into Amazon allegedly concealing workplace injuries that is currently underway at the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York. Amazon has denied those charges.
Amazon's workforce also made news this week as strikes began at multiple facilities in California, Georgia, Illinois and New York. Members of the Teamsters union organized the effort, with several union chapters voting yesterday to take action against the company. The Teamsters had called on Amazon to negotiate around working conditions, wages and benefits, asking the company to agree to bargaining dates for a contract by December 15. Local journalists from Hell Gate captured footage of the first day of strikes in Queens, NY, showing a peaceful picket line being broken by local police, who reportedly erected barricades to allow contractors to enter and leave the Amazon distribution center.
“If your package is delayed during the holidays, you can blame Amazon’s insatiable greed," Teamsters General President Sean M. O’Brien said in a statement from the organization. "We gave Amazon a clear deadline to come to the table and do right by our members. They ignored it."
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/amazon-to-pay-osha-145000-in-workplace-safety-settlement-230933629.html?src=rssWaymo's driverless cars are apparently an insurance company's dream
Waymo’s fleet of driverless vehicles are operating in more cities and a study indicates that may reduce crashes on roadways. The study, a non-paid partnership between Waymo itself and reinsurer Swiss Re, indicated Waymo’s cars result in fewer insurance claims than those operated by people.
Swiss Re analyzed liability claims from collisions covering 25.3 million miles driven by Waymo’s autonomous cars. The study also compared Waymo’s liability claims to human driver baselines based on data from over 500,000 claims and over 200 billion driving miles. The results found that Waymo Driver “demonstrated better safety performance when compared to human-driver vehicles.”.
The study found cars operated by Alphabet’s Waymo Driver resulted in 88 percent fewer property damage claims and 92 percent fewer bodily injury claims.
Swiss Re also invented a new metric to compare Waymo Driver against only newer vehicles with advanced safety tech, like driver assistance, automated emergency braking and blind spot warning systems, instead of against the whole corpus of those 200 billion driving miles. In this comparison, Waymo still came out ahead with an 86 percent reduction in property damage claims and a 90 percent reduction on bodily damage claims.
Of course, there are two glaring issues. First is that Waymo currently only operates in cities, which, yes, account for the bulk of crashes in the US, but rural areas account for a much higher number of crashes (especially fatal ones) proportional to their population. (The study, incidentally, states that having exurban data included in the baseline metrics actually cuts against Waymo's true safety numbers.) Second: Waymo simply hasn't been around that long. It's very hard to get an accurate measure of the system when its real-world testing period has been so relatively short.
The numbers may look good for Waymo Driver in studies but they aren’t perfect by any stretch. Waymo issued its second recall over the summer when one of its robotaxis hit a street level telephone pole at 8 mph in Phoenix. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration launched an investigation into Waymo and found 24 incidents that involved crashes or traffic violations.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/waymos-driverless-cars-are-apparently-an-insurance-companys-dream-220746643.html?src=rssTis the season for the Steam Winter Sale to take all your money
It's here! The Steam Winter Sale is underway now and runs through January 2. That leaves you plenty of time to internally debate whether you really need to buy yet more games and ultimately convince yourself that yes, in fact, you do.
Several notable titles from the Summer Sale are once again seeing similar discounts this season. Baldur's Gate 3 is 20 percent off and you can buy it for $48. At $27, Cyberpunk 2077 is half off and Elden Ring is $36, which is 40 percent off.
If you've already had your fill of Elden Ring, you can save 40 percent on a different Souls-like. Lies of P takes the familiar gameplay in a dark retelling of the Pinocchio fairy tale and you can grab it for $36. There's also a 60 percent discount on No Man's Sky, which is still getting regular content patches; soar into infinite space for $24. Another great deal is for the original Cities: Skylines, which is a calmer and more stable experience than the game's troubled sequel has been. The simulator is 70 percent off, costing just $9.
Steam sales are always a great time to fill up on indie hits. We here at Engadget are bonkers for Balatro, which you can save a dollar on at only ten percent off, but there are many steeper sales to explore. Feline-focused Stray is $18, or you can play a more sinister critter in Cult of the Lamb for under $13. For $14, you can fish and roll sushi to your heart's content in the quirky Dave the Diver. Slay the Spire is just over $6 and the perennial favorite Stardew Valley is down to $8.
A bunch of classic titles are up to 90 percent off. Stellar first-person shooter Titanfall 2 is a mere $3. Go nuclear in Fallout 4 for $8. The trio of games in the Mass Effect Legendary Edition can all be yours for $5. Divinity Original Sin, the sprawling RPG that helped prove Larian Studios was the right team to make Baldur's Gate 3, is $4.
That's just scratching the surface of what's included in this season's Steam sale. Take a look over your wishlist and see what else you might want to buy. Happy holidays!
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/pc/tis-the-season-for-the-steam-winter-sale-to-take-all-your-money-202852825.html?src=rssThe best USB-C hub for 2025
When Apple put its new M4 chip in the iPad Pro before adding it to a MacBook, that was a pretty clear sign that tablets are more than just idle couch companions. But with just one or two ports, you’ll need a hub if you want to maximize that potential. The same goes for laptops: they can be more powerful than desktops, but they almost always have fewer ports. USB-C hubs give you some combo of extra USB, HDMI, memory card, Ethernet and/or 3.5 mm ports so you can connect peripherals like monitors or wired mice and keyboards. You can hook up external drives for more storage — some hubs even have memory card slots. We tested 15 different USB-C hubs to see how they perform and put the best of what we tested below.
What to look for in a USB-C hub
Hub vs docking station
The first thing to decide is whether you need a USB-C hub or a docking station. There’s no set standard for what differentiates the two, but docking stations tend to have more ports, offer a separate DC power supply and cost more, with some reaching upwards of $400. We have a separate guide to the best docking stations to check out if you’re looking for something bigger than what we’re discussing here. USB-C hubs, in contrast, have between four and 10 ports, can support pass-through charging and typically cost between $30 and $150.
Hubs make more sense for smaller setups with just a few peripherals, such as a monitor, a wired keyboard and mouse, and the occasional external drive. They’re also more portable, since they’re small and require no dedicated power. That could be useful if you change work locations but want to bring your accessories with you, or if you want to replace your laptop with a more powerful tablet. A docking station makes more sense for someone who needs a robust setup for their laptop, including multiple external monitors, webcams, stream decks, microphones and so on.
Both docks and hubs make it easy to grab your laptop off your desk for a meeting or other brief relocation and when you get back, plugging in one cable gets all your accessories reconnected.
Ports
The first port to consider is the one on your laptop or tablet. For a USB-C hub to work, it needs to connect to a port that supports video, data and power — all of which is covered by anything listed as USB 3.0 or better. The port, of course, needs to be Type-C as well. The sea of laptops out there is vast, so it’s hard to make generalizations, but modern laptops should have at least one USB-C port that will suffice, and indeed, every one of our top picks for the best laptops do.
Next, it’s a matter of finding a hub that has the right connections for your needs. Most hubs offer some combo of HDMI, USB, memory card, Ethernet and 3.5 mm ports. If you have a 4K monitor and would like at least a 60Hz refresh rate, you’ll need a hub with an HDMI 2.0 port — HDMI 1.4 only goes up to 30Hz. HDMI 2.1 will handle 4K at up to 120Hz, but hubs that have adopted that standard aren’t as common just yet. Keep in mind that a low refresh rate can cause your screen to feel laggy, making your mouse appear glitchy and your webcam movements to look delayed.
Additional USB ports on these accessories are usually Type-A or Type-C. They can support data with different transfer rates, typically 5Gbps or 10Gbps. Some ports only handle passthrough power and no data, and some can do data, power and video, so it’s best to check the spec list to make sure you’re getting the support you need. Keep in mind that a hub may bill itself as a 7-in-1, but one of those ports may not be usable for anything other than charging.
Standard SD and microSD slots are useful for transferring data from cameras and the like. Ethernet ports may deliver faster internet speeds than your Wi-Fi and a hub with a 3.5mm jack can bring back the wired headphone connection that some laptops have ditched.
Power delivery
Nearly all of the USB-C hubs I tested support passthrough charging. That means if your laptop or tablet only charges via USB, you don’t have to take up another port on your laptop to keep everything topped up. Unlike a docking station, powering a hub is optional. The one exception is if you want to close the lid on your laptop while you work on an external monitor. Most computers will go into sleep mode if the lid is closed without power, so either the laptop or the hub will need to be plugged into the wall to prevent that from happening.
Many of the newer hubs include a 100W power delivery (PD) port, with a healthy 80 to 85 watts going to your computer (the hubs take a little of the juice for themselves, hence the 15-watt or so difference). In my tests, sending power through the hub made them run even hotter than they do already, so I prefer to charge the computer directly. But for tablets or other devices with no extra ports, that PD option is important.
Some PD ports are also data ports — which is both good and bad. On one hand, it feels wasteful to use a perfectly good data port just for boring old electricity. But on the other hand, USB-C connections that only carry a charge are less versatile, and it makes it seem like it has more accessory hookups than it actually does.
Design
There’s surprisingly little design variation among hubs. Most look like a flat slab, a little smaller than a smartphone, and have an attached Type-C host cable. The hues range from a silvery black to a silvery gray. Some are thinner than others, some have all ports on one edge and some have ports on both sides. All of this is just to say that aesthetics probably won’t make or break your buying decision.
One variation that could tip the scales is the length of the cable. A longer one will give you more freedom as you arrange the hub on your desk, potentially even letting you hide it behind your laptop. Or you may prefer a shorter one to keep the hub neatly set beside your laptop.
How we test USB-C hubs
Before we test anything, we take a look at what’s available and how they’ve been received by shoppers, forum-goers and other publications. I became familiar with a few reputable brands when I was testing docking stations, so I looked into hubs from those companies as well. I focused on items that would help with an average day of productivity — not high-end setups or demanding gaming situations. Once I settled on a dozen or so that would make good candidates, I had them shipped to my humble office in the desert and started testing them out over the course of a few weeks.
I used an M1 MacBook Pro as the host computer and plugged in accessories that include a 4K Dell monitor, a ZSA USB-C ergo keyboard, a Logitech USB-A gaming mouse, an Elgato USB-C 4K webcam, a Logitech streaming light, a USB-A 3.0 Sandisk thumb drive, a USB-C Samsung T7 Shield external drive and a pair of wired headphones I got for free on an airplane (I should probably invest in some wired headphones, but the cord dangling on my chest drives me nutty so all my earbuds are wireless). I used high-end HDMI and USB-C cables to ensure that any data or connectivity issues weren’t related to my equipment.
Then I put each USB-C hub through a gamut of basic tests. I looked at what could be plugged in at once, the resolution on the monitor, data transfer speeds, the overall build quality of the hub and general usability factors, like the placement of the ports and the length of the cords. And, finally, the price to value ratio helped determine the best ones for a few different use cases.
Best USB-C hubs for 2025
Other hubs we tested
HyperDrive Next 10 Port USB-C Hub
There’s a lot to like about HyperDrive’s Next 10 Port USB-C Hub. The tethered cable is a lavish 13 inches long, the HDMI 2.0 port outputs clear and crisp 4K visuals at 60Hz and the data transfers are screaming fast. It has the coveted two USB-C data ports plus a PD port, and there’s even a headphone jack. The only thing that holds back a full-throated endorsement is the way our unit handled a streaming light. Having it on at full brightness made the webcam flicker every time. The issue went away at 75 percent brightness, but the same problem didn’t happen on any other hub I tested.
Anker 341 USB-C Hub (7-in-1)
There’s nothing wrong with the Anker 341 USB-C hub. In fact it’s a current recommendation in our iPad accessories guide and it comes at a great $35 price. It gives you two USB-A ports as well as SD slots. But at this point, a 1.4 HDMI connection, which only supports 4K resolution at 30Hz feels a little retro. There’s also just a single USB-C downstream port and the data transfer tests proved to be a touch slower than the other hubs. But if you’ve got a lower resolution monitor and don’t need more than one USB-C, you won’t be disappointed with it.
Startech 4-Port USB-C Hub (data only)
I only became aware of Startech when I started researching for this guide. The quality is decent and the yellow accents are a welcome bit of color in the otherwise very gray world of hubs. The performance is solid, with no hiccups that I encountered. The brand’s 4-Port USB-C Hub has a long cord that wraps around the hub itself, which is unique. It doesn’t bother with power delivery, which isn’t an issue if you can power your computer directly. But the four USB ports (three Type-A and one Type-C) max out at 5Gbps and there’s no HDMI connector. It goes for $46, and unfortunately for it, there are cheaper ways to get a few more USB ports for your setup.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/accessories/best-usb-c-hub-120051833.html?src=rssLenovo’s extendable ThinkBook Plus laptop accidentally unrolled early
It looks like Lenovo’s next ThinkBook Plus laptop is going to have a rolling screen. According to images shared by prolific leaker Evan Blass, Lenovo’s sixth-generation ThinkBook Plus will have an extendable, rolling display that builds on the “rollable” laptop concept the company first introduced in 2022.
The leaked images show a laptop with a traditional, if slightly taller than average display, that can extend and unroll until you effectively have two screens stacked on top of each other. Lenovo’s images show a video call open on the top part of the display, and what looks like a PowerPoint presentation on the bottom, but one imagines the possibilities for what you can use the extra screen space for are pretty limitless. Blass didn’t share any other technical details about the new ThinkBook Plus, but with CES 2025 weeks away in January, it seems highly likely the new laptop could make an official appearance soon.
Lenovo’s been toying with the concept of a rollable laptop for a few years at this point, and this new ThinkBook Plus seems like a direct descendant of the company’s earlier concept device. Lenovo is no stranger to making weird laptops, either. The Lenovo Auto Twist from CES 2024 featured a display that could rotate and fold on its own, and the Lenovo Yoga Book 9i from 2023 joined two separate touchscreen displays to give owners even more screen space to play with.
Up until this point, rollable displays have mostly existed in smartphone concepts and expensive televisions, so if Lenovo can sell a laptop with a unique screen at an approachable price, and guarantee it won’t suffer from hardware issues, it might have a hit on its hands. Then again, the previous fifth-generation ThinkBook Plus — a Windows computer when you attached a keyboard and an Android tablet when you didn’t — started at $2,000, so it might be wrong to expect affordability.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/laptops/lenovos-extendable-thinkbook-plus-laptop-accidentally-unrolled-early-193056769.html?src=rssMeta’s AI video editing features are coming to Instagram next year
Earlier this year, Meta previewed Movie Gen, an AI video editing tool that looked impressively realistic (at least in the sample clips it released). At the time, though, Meta said it was still a research project with no immediate plans to make the features available to users.
But it now seems that Movie Gen could arrive on Instagram sooner than later. Instagram’s top exec Adam Mosseri posted a short video previewing the kind of seamless AI edits that will eventually be possible, saying that the company is “hoping to bring this to Instagram next year.”
In the clip, Mosseri says that Meta is “working on some really exciting AI tools” for video creators. “You should be able to do anything you want with your videos,” he says. "You should be able to change your outfit, or change the context in which you're sitting, or add a chain — whatever you can think of.”
During the short clip, Mosseri’s backdrop and outfit changes several times, including a brief shot where he looks like a Muppet-inspired character. Throughout the clip, the transitions look pretty seamless without obvious AI artifacts. Of course, that won’t necessarily be the case once Movie Gen is actually available and videos of its abilities aren’t entirely controlled by Meta. But if it works anything like Mosseri’s teaser video, it could open up some interesting possibilities for Instagram creators.
It’s probably not a coincidence that Meta is teasing the feature just days after OpenAI released its video generation model to subscribers. Meta has repeatedly said it wants its AI assistant to be the “most used” in the world and in an update that was also published today, the company said Meta AI has “nearly” 600 million monthly users.
Unfortunately, Mosseri didn’t indicate exactly when Movie Gen features may actually arrive on Instagram, other than some time in 2024. But he did say that there would be “more to come” from the company.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/metas-ai-video-editing-features-are-coming-to-instagram-next-year-191501418.html?src=rssSonic the Hedgehog 4 movie confirmed by Paramount
Paramount Pictures is hoping to spin-dash to success for a fourth time. The studio has confirmed that it is working on Sonic the Hedgehog 4 and is targeting a theatrical release of spring 2027 for the movie. No details have leaked about the plot, but it's likely that the project will see actors Ben Schwartz and Jim Carrey reprising their roles as Sonic and Dr. Robotnik.
The recent film adaptations of Sega's famous game franchise have become a consistent hit for Paramount. The first film secured the biggest opening weekend in history for a video game movie, only to be dethroned in 2022 by its own sequel. Sonic the Hedgehog 3, which adds Keanu Reeves to the already star-studded cast of the series, releases tomorrow. Variety is currently projecting the third entry to fall short of the financial bar set by Sonic the Hedgehog 2, but anything could happen. The movies have also received a television spin-off on Paramount+ due to air next spring. The show will delve into the backstory of Sonic's echidna ally Knuckles, voiced by Idris Elba.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/sonic-the-hedgehog-4-movie-confirmed-by-paramount-190234137.html?src=rssStarlink’s first nationwide satellite texting service goes live in New Zealand
SpaceX’s satellite-to-cell Starlink texting service can now operate throughout New Zealand, thanks to the telecommunications company One NZ. The New Zealand-based provider says this is the first time that a nationwide satellite text messaging service has been powered by Starlink. T-Mobile has been making a lot of noise about getting this going, but it looks like One NZ beat it to the punch.
What’s the benefit here for New Zealand residents? It’s a country with many rural areas without access to mobile towers, resulting in weak or no signals. This should even the playing field for people who don’t live near big cities.
Now onto the caveats, and there are a couple of big ones. Starlink texting is incredibly slow when compared to traditional methods. One NZ says that most messages should be sent and received within three minutes during the initial rollout, but admits that timeframe could increase to “10 minutes or longer.” It is for this reason that the company continues to urge folks to carry a personal locator beacon when traveling to a remote area.
The service is also only supported by four smartphone models, which includes the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6, Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6, Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra and OPPO Find X8 Pro. This list of eligible devices is expected to grow next year. The company also intends to eventually expand the service to include voice calling and data.
The satellite service is free for existing One NZ customers on paid-monthly plans, but we don’t know the pricing scheme for new customers or for those signed up for other types of contracts. Starlink has partnered with other telecommunications companies to bring comprehensive coverage to Japan, Peru, Switzerland and Chile. As previously mentioned, it’s also working with T-Mobile to do something similar in the US.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/starlinks-first-nationwide-satellite-texting-service-goes-live-in-new-zealand-182343142.html?src=rssSony is now the largest shareholder of FromSoftware’s parent company
Sony has acquired a major stake in FromSoftware’s parent company Kadokawa. This follows reports that Sony was in talks to purchase the company outright. It looks like that isn’t happening, but Sony has boosted its total ownership of Kadokawa up to ten percent after spending around $300 million on more shares. This makes Sony the largest shareholder of the Japanese publisher.
Sony likely made this move to get its hands on some of Kadokawa’s IP, which includes the entire roster of FromSoftware games and franchises created by Spike Chunsoft and Gotcha Gotcha Games. Kadokawa also publishes a boatload of anime and manga. A press release noted that the two companies will now “discuss specific initiatives for collaboration,” which will include “live-action films and TV drama.”
Does this mean that we’ll soon get an Elden Ring or Dark Souls movie? These are some of Kadokawa’s most prominent franchises, so it’s certainly possible. The companies have also promised to promote the “global expansion of a wide range of entertainment, including anime and games.”
As for console exclusivity, don’t hold your breath. Sony already owns a 14 percent stake in FromSoftware and games like Elden Ring and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice are available on PlayStation consoles, Xbox consoles and for PCs. To that end, there's some co-op DLC coming to Elden Ring sometime next year.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/sony-is-now-the-largest-shareholder-of-fromsoftwares-parent-company-165934956.html?src=rssGoogle accused of using novices to fact-check Gemini's AI answers
There's no arguing that AI still has quite a few unreliable moments, but one would hope that at least its evaluations would be accurate. However, last week Google allegedly instructed contract workers evaluating Gemini not to skip any prompts, regardless of their expertise, TechCrunch reports based on internal guidance it viewed. Google shared a preview of Gemini 2.0 earlier this month.
Google reportedly instructed GlobalLogic, an outsourcing firm whose contractors evaluate AI-generated output, not to have reviewers skip prompts outside of their expertise. Previously, contractors could choose to skip any prompt that fell far out of their expertise — such as asking a doctor about laws. The guidelines had stated, "If you do not have critical expertise (e.g. coding, math) to rate this prompt, please skip this task."
Now, contractors have allegedly been instructed, "You should not skip prompts that require specialized domain knowledge" and that they should "rate the parts of the prompt you understand" while adding a note that it's not an area they have knowledge in. Apparently, the only times contracts can skip now are if a big chunk of the information is missing or if it has harmful content which requires specific consent forms for evaluation.
One contractor aptly responded to the changes stating, "I thought the point of skipping was to increase accuracy by giving it to someone better?"
Shortly after this article was first published, Google provided Engadget with the following statement: "Raters perform a wide range of tasks across many different Google products and platforms. They provide valuable feedback on more than just the content of the answers, but also on the style, format, and other factors. The ratings they provide do not directly impact our algorithms, but when taken in aggregate, are a helpful data point to help us measure how well our systems are working."
A Google spokesperson also noted that the new language shouldn't necessarily lead to changes to Gemini's accuracy, because they're asking raters to specifically rate the parts of the prompts that they understand. This could be providing feedback for things like formatting issues even if the rater doesn't have specific expertise in the subject. The company also pointed to this weeks' release of the FACTS Grounding benchmark that can check LLM responses to make sure "that are not only factually accurate with respect to given inputs, but also sufficiently detailed to provide satisfactory answers to user queries."
Update, December 19 2024, 11:23AM ET: This story has been updated with a statement from Google and more details about how its ratings system works.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/google-accused-of-using-novices-to-fact-check-geminis-ai-answers-143044552.html?src=rssApple and Meta are beefing over the DMA’s mandated interoperability requests
Apple has issued a complaint about Meta regarding the DMA’s mandated interoperability requests, as reported by Reuters. The iPhone maker says that Meta has issued 15 of these requests, which it says could impact the privacy and security of users. Meta disagrees.
First, a quick primer. The EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) requires that Apple allow rivals and third-party app developers to inter-operate with its own services or risk a steep fine, as much as ten percent of global turnover. Under the terms of the DMA, Apple must allow other companies to submit interoperability requests for hardware and software that affect iOS and iPadOS devices.
Apple must assess these requests and, if approved, have to design a solution to allow for effective interoperability. Meta has issued 15 of these requests, more than any other company, and Apple says that compliance would give the company extensive access to its technology stack. Apple also says that doing so could put the privacy and security of users at risk.
"If Apple were to have to grant all of these requests, Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp could enable Meta to read on a user's device all of their messages and emails, see every phone call they make or receive, track every app that they use, scan all of their photos, look at their files and calendar events, log all of their passwords and more," Apple wrote in a statement to Reuters.
The company also referred to Meta’s recent privacy issues throughout Europe. Meta has been fined in various countries for data breaches and for tracking users across apps, among other concerns.
Meta, of course, has a different take on things. The social media and VR giant wrote that “what Apple is actually saying is they don’t believe in interoperability. Every time Apple is called out for its anticompetitive behavior, they defend themselves on privacy grounds that have no basis in reality.”
We sent preliminary findings to Apple under the Digital Markets Act.
— European Commission (@EU_Commission) December 19, 2024
Apple should open iOS features like notifications, AirPlay, and AirDrop to third-party devices, enhancing innovation and user choice.
It should also improve transparency and predictability for developers ↓
We don’t know if the EU will intervene on behalf of Apple or Meta in this case, but the European Commission recently published preliminary directions on how Apple should open up to rivals. These measures would require Apple to be transparent regarding the different phases, deadlines and criteria involving the completion of interoperability requests.
These proposed measures are open for debate until January 9. In March, a decision is expected as to whether or not Apple has complied with the DMA’s interoperability provision.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/apple-and-meta-are-beefing-over-the-dmas-mandated-interoperability-requests-155851120.html?src=rssThe 10th-gen iPad is back on sale for $250
It's been available for over two years, but Apple's 10th-generation iPad is still the newest model available for the base iPads. Our choice for best budget iPad is a great option for some last-minute present shopping. That's especially the case, right now, as the Apple 10th-gen iPad is down to $250 from $349.
The great markdown comes courtesy of a 20 percent discount and a $29 off coupon that you can apply on the product page. It's available on the Wi-Fi model with 64GB and with a silver finish. The deal also doesn't include AppleCare+, but, for this great a price, all the specificities might be worth it.
Apple's 10th-gen iPad has a 10.9-inch Liquid Retina display with a 2360x1640p resolution. We gave it an 85 in our review thanks to features like its landscape 12MP Ultra Wide front camera and an updated design from its predecessor. It also offers up to 10 hours of battery and recharges using a USB-C port, so you don't have to worry about a lightning charger.
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This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/the-10th-gen-ipad-is-back-on-sale-for-250-143153900.html?src=rssStar Trek: Lower Decks ends on a new beginning
Spoilers for “The New Next Generation.”
When Starfleet said it had dispatched the Enterprise to help the Cerritos close the rift, I was worried. Lower Decks has spent the last four years stepping out the shadow of its more famous predecessor. Its grand finale didn’t need a focus-pulling cameo from any of the Next Generation cast (or even a subtle one from Steven Culp). Mercifully, none came, and we got one last chance to spend half an hour with the Cerritos crew on their last ride. For now, at least.
The length of the Previously On… sequence was clue enough this was going to be an overstuffed episode. In fact, it felt as if creator Mike McMahan set himself the task of resolving every plotline in one episode. You can imagine some of these would have been addressed in some future episode had the show not been canceled. But even with a slightly longer runtime, the episode moves far too fast for you to really savor it.
As usual, the Cerritos is the only vessel close enough to deal with the fallout from last week’s episode. On the way to close the rift, the crew meet Ma’ah and Malor, who are fleeing a fleet of Klingon warships led by Relga, Dorg and Bargh’s sister. The fleet chases the Cerritos to the rift which is pumping out waves of dimension-hopping uncertainty. That sets up a wonderful scene where the Cerritos is remade in different ship classes as it pushes toward the center of the rift.
All of this unfolds while Rutherford fights both with his implant and his general distaste for the Cerritos. Tendi and T’Lyn are battling for supremacy as the senior science officer on the ship, and Boimler’s still using his alternate self’s diary to advance his career. A normal half hour show can accommodate an A and B story; here we’re down to G or H, at least. Given a lot of the fun of this show is just in spending time with these characters, it’s a shame their farewells are rattled through as boxes ticked off on a list.
There are plenty of wonderful moments, like when Mariner and Boimler go to Freeman and are instantly believed. In-universe, the characters have earned enough trust to be taken at their word and it’s touching. It’s also a sign of how far we’ve come compared to, say, the days of “Shut up Wesley.” Or when Rutherford realizes what’s wrong and is able to solve the issue by remembering the California Class is Starfleet’s Swiss Army Knife. Or when Boimler smashes his Padd to protect Mariner, as their friendship is more important than his career.
The episode ends with the rift being stabilized, creating a permanent interdimensional wormhole to the multiverse. Starfleet tows Starbase 80 there, with William Boimler tasked with exploring the various dimensions therein. But such a high-profile assignment needs an experienced head, and so Captain Freeman is assigned to take command of Starbase 80. It means Mariner has to say goodbye to her mom, and Freeman goodbye to her dedicated crew of misfits.
Ransom takes command of the Cerritos, with Mariner and Boimler acting as joint first officers, at least for now. Rutherford has his implant removed, and it’s suddenly obvious to everyone how into Tendi he has been all this time. T’Lyn and Tendi are now happily science besties, sharing the role as the Cerritos heads off to explore new parts of the galaxy. And Ransom’s choice of phrase for his warp command is perfectly in keeping with his love of exercise, and no I won’t be sharing it here.
You can never quite escape Star Trek once it’s on your CV, and I’ve said before this isn’t the last time we’ll see the Cerritos crew. Animation doesn’t need your actors to stay the same age and we could easily see a revival in a few years or so. McMahan was clear the fifth season was also being used to set up potential spin-off ideas, so there’s plenty of scope for more. Which is why I’m not going to write an obituary for Lower Decks, it doesn’t need one.
Still, it’s mad to think how things have changed since Lower Decks debuted as the goofy wildcard alongside its more august siblings. Discovery and Picard were meant to be reputable shows with Lower Decks little more than the class clown for diehard fans. Both of those turned out to be far less than the sum of their parts, while Lower Decks held the spirit of Star Trek far more effectively than its so-called betters. It was the only one of that trio to emerge with anything close to a coherent legacy, and with genuine affection from fans.
Lower Decks knows this, and ends its episode with a celebration of the Cerritos and Star Trek more generally. The show exists as a celebration of the day-to-day work that would never be lionized in those brasher, shoutier, punch-fightier Treks. The USS Cerritos is an island of misfit toys who have gathered together to make themselves and each other that little bit better. Hell, that could be a comment on Star Trek, or its fans more generally, but it’s great being one of those misfit toys.
Cerritos Strong!
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/star-trek-lower-decks-ends-on-a-new-beginning-140003832.html?src=rssDJI evades US ban but has one year to prove its products aren't a national security threat
The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) spending bill has just been release and it grants DJI a year's grace before it's potentially banned in the US, The Verge reported. It was expected that DJI and rival Autel could be banned by the end of 2024 because of the Countering CCP Drones Act provision. However, the bill gives DJI an extra year to prove to an "appropriate national security agency" that its products don't pose a national security risk in the US.
Failing that, the bill authorizes the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to place DJI's drones on its covered list for 2026, meaning retailers would no longer be able to import them. It also means that the products (including drones and cameras like the Osmo Pocket 3) would be prohibited from connecting to US networks, and their internal radios would no longer be authorized by the FCC. That would technically prohibit the use of DJI products already owned by consumers, though the US wouldn't likely stop consumers from doing so.
In a reply on its Viewpoints blog, DJI said it's "good news" that the ban wasn't included in this year's budget. However, it pointed out that "drones manufactured in China are singled out for scrutiny and the legislation does not designate a specific agency to undertake the required study." The latter point could cause the company harm "simply because no agency chose to take on the work of studying our product," it wrote.
The main reason DJI is still alive is through the support of drone enthusiasts and content creators, along with law enforcement and search and rescue organizations. "In the event that a bill like this would go fully through and would potentially ban the use of Chinese drones for public safety, it'd be catastrophic for the public safety drone industry," said Law Enforcement Drone Association spokesperson Brendan Karr in a letter to Congress.
However, US representatives believe they're a risk. "DJI drones pose the national security threat of TikTok, but with wings. This Chinese-controlled company cannot be allowed to continue to operate in the US," said Republican Representative Elise Stefanik. "These Chinese-manufactured drones allow for the CCP, the Chinese Communist Party, to access data in a backdoor manner and ultimately surveil Americans," added Democratic Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cameras/dji-evades-us-ban-but-has-one-year-to-prove-its-products-arent-a-national-security-threat-133042749.html?src=rssElevation Lab's TimeCapsule is a waterproof 10-year battery case for your AirTag
A company called Elevation Lab has released an accessory for the Apple AirTag that extends its battery life by up to 10 years and makes it waterproof. The TimeCapsule is essentially a case that contains your AirTag and two AA batteries. You don't need to open your AirTag and tinker with it — you only have to remove its backplate and coin battery before attaching it to the case. As you can see, it will make your tracking device a lot bigger and considerably heftier, so it's mostly ideal for use with large objects, such as vehicles and big suitcases.
As Elevation Lab says in its announcement, the TimeCapsule could make it easier to manage multiple AirTags. You won't have to change their batteries every year anymore just to make sure they'll work as intended if you lose your stuff. That said, the batteries you use will dictate how long it would take before you have to unscrew the case and replace them.
The Energizer Ultimate Lithium batteries Elevation Lab reommends are 1.5V each and have a capacity of over 3,000mAh, which is why they can power an AirTag for up to a decade. Other AA batteries will work with the case, but they may not be as effective, depending on their specs. The amount you spend for the whole setup will depend on the batteries you choose, but the case itself will set you back $20.
The Morning After: US Supreme Court agrees to hear TikTok’s ban appeal
The US Supreme Court has agreed to hear TikTok owner ByteDance’s appeal of a law that could ban the app. The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act is set to go into effect on January 19, the day before President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration. ByteDance claimed the law violates free speech rights, a position the ACLU has supported. The Justice Department defended the law in lower courts, citing concerns that the Chinese government could influence the company and collect data about American citizens.
The Supreme Court’s response was fast — only two days after the company filed its appeal. Oral arguments are scheduled for January 10.
— Mat Smith
The biggest tech stories you missed
TP-Link routers are being investigated by several US authorities
Nifty survival horror game Pacific Drive is getting turned into a TV show
— Mat Smith
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YouTube is helping high-profile actors and athletes monetize their AI likenesses
It’s teaming with talent agency CAA to test ‘likeness management technology.’
YouTube is teaming up with one of the world’s largest talent agencies, CAA, to help its high-profile actors and athletes monitor their AI likenesses. The platform will test its “likeness management technology” with unnamed award-winning actors and top NBA and NFL athletes. Down the road, it will announce further testing for top YouTube creators, creative professionals and other talent agencies. It’s largely aimed at removing depictions of their likenesses.
Apple might give up on turning its iPhone into a monthly subscription
It’s about avoiding regulatory pressures and regulation.
Apple is shelving its plans to offer the iPhone for a monthly subscription, according to a Bloomberg report. The idea of an Apple hardware subscription was first rumored in 2022, but a hardware subscription might have required Apple to “follow the same regulations as credit card companies.” It’s part of a retreat from the headaches of financial services. Apple Pay Later shut down in June 2024, replaced with access to Affirm loans in Apple Pay as part of iOS 18, while the Apple Card is also reportedly in limbo as it tries to find a replacement partner for Goldman Sachs.
LG’s transparent OLED T television can be yours for just $60,000
It can flit between transparent and standard modes with the push of a button.
LG’s transparent wireless OLED TV is now available. The 77-inch OLED T has 4K resolution, the company’s wireless transmission tech for video and audio and the ability to shift between transparent and opaque modes with the push of a button. And you pay just $60,000 for the privilege. Here’s what we thought when we saw it early this year.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/general/the-morning-after-engadget-newsletter-121550707.html?src=rssHonda is unveiling two Series 0 EV prototypes at CES 2025
Honda is officially introducing two Series 0 electric vehicle prototypes at CES next year, and the company says they'll be available for purchase around the world sometime in 2026. The vehicles will be based on the futuristic-looking concepts the company presented at CES 2024, including a flagship model called the Saloon that featured an aerodynamic design. They'll be the company's first entries in the Series 0 lineup, which are also expected to feature an advanced driver-assisted system and, over the coming years, AI-powered automated driving features.
In addition to presenting the prototypes themselves, Honda will also introduce a new proprietary vehicle operating system that the Series 0 cars will use. Plus, it will give you a look at the SoC powering the vehicles during the event. Honda trailed behind competitors in terms of making the transition to electric vehicles, but its first electric SUV, the Prologue, became one of the best-selling EVs in the US after its release in the country earlier this year. The company will unveil its new EV prototypes during its press conference in Las Vegas that will be held on January 7 at 10:30AM PT/1:30 PM ET. The event will be livestreamed on YouTube, but we'll also keep you updated on the latest news from CES 2025.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/honda-is-unveiling-two-series-0-ev-prototypes-at-ces-2025-120017862.html?src=rssThe best earbuds for Android devices in 2025
Whether it’s justified or not, Apple’s AirPods have become the default for most iPhone owners in the market for new wireless earbuds. If you use an Android phone, however, the best options aren’t as obvious. If you’re hunting for a new pair yourself, allow us to help: We’ve tested countless pairs over the years, so we’ve broken down our top recommendations for Android users below. Whether you want powerful noise cancellation, a pair that’ll survive the gym or just something that plays nice with a Galaxy or Pixel phone, here are our favorite AirPods alternatives for Android.
What to look for in wireless earbuds for Android devices
For the most part, the features you want from a set of “Android earbuds” are the same as what you want from any headphones. Pleasing sound quality, a comfortable fit and sufficient battery life are still the foundations. Adequate water resistance is good for workouts, and nobody wants a crummy mic for making calls. Once you approach the $100 range, features like active noise cancellation (ANC), wireless charging, an ambient sound mode (which lets you better hear outside noise without turning off your music) and multipoint connectivity (the ability to pair with multiple devices simultaneously) should be expected.
For Android devices specifically, there are a few extras to consider. A dedicated app that makes it easy to switch sound modes, customize the audio profile, locate your earbuds if they ever get misplaced or adjust other settings is strongly preferred. Features like Google Fast Pair or NFC-based pairing, which can help you avoid having to dig through your Bluetooth menu to connect your earbuds for the first time, are also nice perks. Some Android devices can also utilize higher-quality Bluetooth codecs such as aptX Adaptive or Sony’s LDAC — these aren’t nearly as important to audio quality as the actual architecture of your earbuds, but they can help wring out a little more detail if the buds are capable enough and you’re streaming lossless files. AptX Adaptive can also help reduce latency, which is good for streaming video or gaming.
Diversity is Android’s greatest strength, but it also means that some wireless earbuds play nicer with certain devices, typically those made by the same company. Recent Samsung earbuds, for instance, come with a few perks that are only available if you use a Galaxy phone. We have a couple of recommendations related to this idea above.
Recent updates
December 2024: We’ve lightly edited this guide for clarity and ensured that our current picks are still accurate.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/headphones/best-earbuds-for-android-devices-120015765.html?src=rssThe best Chromebook you can buy in 2025
You might be tempted to get a Chromebook as your next laptop and we wouldn’t blame you. Chrome OS has come a long way: Chromebooks today have a good combination of build quality, battery life and power while also supporting years of software updates that will take you years into the future. If you primarily browse the web, or don’t need a ton of extra software on a regular basis, a Chromebook can be a powerful daily driver.
While Google did make things simpler last fall by introducing the Chromebook Plus initiative (more on that below), there are still multiple things to keep in mind when shopping for a new Chromebook. The market is saturated with machines at different price points and power levels; I’ve been testing and reviewing Chromebooks for years and know what you should be looking for, and what you can expect out of these laptops.
What is Chrome OS, and why would I use it over Windows?
This is probably the number one question about Chromebooks. There are plenty of inexpensive Windows laptops on the market, so why bother with Chrome's operating system? Glad you asked. For me, the simple and clean nature of Chrome OS is a big selling point. Chrome OS is based on Google’s Chrome browser, which means most of the programs you can run are web based. There’s no bloatware or unwanted apps to uninstall like you often get on Windows laptops, it boots up in seconds, and you can completely reset to factory settings almost as quickly.
Of course, simplicity will also be a major drawback for some users. Not being able to install native software can be a dealbreaker if you’re a video editor or software developer. But there are also plenty of people who do the majority of their work in a web browser.
Google and its software partners are getting better every year at supporting more advanced features. For example, Google added video editing tools to the Google Photos app on Chromebooks – it won’t replace Adobe Premiere, but it should be handy for a lot of people. Similarly, Google and Adobe announced Photoshop on the web last year, something that brings much of the power of Adobe’s desktop apps to Chromebooks.
Chromebooks can also run Android apps, which greatly expands the amount of software available. The quality varies widely, but it means you can do more with a Chromebook beyond just web-based apps. For example, you can install the Netflix app and save videos for offline watching. Other Android apps like Microsoft Office and Adobe Lightroom are surprisingly capable as well. Between Android apps and a general improvement in web apps, Chromebooks are more than just portals to a browser.
What do Chromebooks do well?
Put simply, web browsing and really anything web based. Online shopping, streaming music and video and using various social media sites are among the most common daily tasks people do on Chromebooks. As you might expect, they also work well with Google services like Photos, Docs, Gmail, Drive, Keep and so on. Yes, any computer that can run Chrome can do that too, but the lightweight nature of Google Chrome OS makes it a responsive and stable platform.
As I mentioned before, Chrome OS can run Android apps, so if you’re an Android user you’ll find some nice ties between the platforms. You can get most of the same apps that are on your phone on a Chromebook and keep info in sync between them. You can also use some Android phones as a security key for your Chromebook or instantly tether your laptop to use mobile data.
Google continues to tout security as a major differentiator for Chromebooks, and it’s definitely a factor worth considering. Auto-updates are the first lines of defense: Chrome OS updates download quickly in the background and a fast reboot is all it takes to install the latest version. Google says that each webpage and app on a Chromebook runs in its own sandbox as well, so any security threats are contained to that individual app. Finally, Chrome OS has a self-check called Verified Boot that runs every time a device starts up. Beyond all this, the simple fact that you generally can’t install traditional apps on a Chromebook means there are fewer ways for bad actors to access the system.
If you’re interested in Google’s Gemini AI tools, a Chromebook is a good option as well. Every Chromebook in our top picks comes with a full year of the Google One AI Premium plan — this combines the usual Google One perks like 2TB of storage and 10 percent back in purchases from the Google Store with a bunch of AI tools. You’ll get access to Gemini in Gmail, Docs and other apps, Gemini Advanced (which runs on the 1.5 Pro model) and more. Given that this plan is $20/month, it’s a pretty solid perk. Chromebook Plus models also include tools like the AI-powered “help me write,” the Google Photos Magic Editor and generative AI backgrounds you can create by filling in a few prompts.
As for when to avoid Chromebooks, the answer is simple: If you rely heavily on a specific native application for Windows or a Mac, chances are you won’t find the exact same option on a ChromeOS device. That’s most true in fields like photo and video editing, but it can also be the case in law or finance. Plenty of businesses run on Google’s G suite software, but more still have specific requirements that a Chromebook might not match. If you’re an iPhone user, you’ll also miss out on the way the iPhone easily integrates with an iPad or Mac. For me, the big downside is not being able to access iMessage on a Chromebook.
Finally, gaming Chromebooks are not ubiquitous, although they’re becoming a slightly more reasonable option with the rise of cloud gaming. In late 2022, Google and some hardware partners announced a push to make Chromebooks with cloud gaming in mind. From a hardware perspective, that means laptops with bigger screens that have higher refresh rates as well as optimizing those laptops to work with services like NVIDIA GeForce Now, Xbox Game Pass and Amazon Luna. You’ll obviously need an internet connection to use these services, but the good news is that playing modern games on a Chromebook isn’t impossible. You can also install Android games from the Google Play Store, but that’s not what most people are thinking of when they want to game on a laptop.
What are the most important specs for a Chromebook?
Chrome OS is lightweight and runs well on fairly modest hardware, so the most important thing to look for might not be processor power or storage space. But Google made it easier to get consistent specs and performance late last year when it introduced the Chromebook Plus initiative. Any device with a Chromebook Plus designation meets some minimum requirements, which happen to be very similar to what I’d recommend most people get if they’re looking for a laptop they can use every day.
Chromebook Plus models have at least a 12th-gen Intel Core i3 processor, or an AMD Ryzen 3 7000 series processor, both of which should be more than enough for most people. These laptops also have a minimum of 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, which should do the trick unless you’re really pushing your Chromebook. All Chromebook Plus models have to have a 1080p webcam, which is nice in these days of constant video calling, and they also all have to have at least a 1080p IPS screen.
Of course, you can get higher specs or better screens if you desire, but I’ve found that basically everything included in the Chromebook Plus target specs makes for a very good experience.
Google has an Auto Update policy for Chromebooks as well, and while that’s not exactly a spec, it’s worth checking before you buy. Last year, Google announced that Chromebooks would get software updates and support for an impressive 10 years after their release date. This support page lists the Auto Update expiration date for virtually every Chromebook ever, but a good rule of thumb is to buy the newest machine you can to maximize your support.
How much should I spend?
Chromebooks started out notoriously cheap, with list prices often coming in under $300. But as they’ve gone more mainstream, they’ve transitioned from being essentially modern netbooks to the kind of laptop you’ll want to use all day. As such, prices have increased: At this point, you should expect to spend at least $400 if you want a solid daily driver. There are still many cheap Chromebooks out there that may be suitable as secondary devices, but a good Chromebook that can be an all-day, every-day laptop will cost more. But, notably, even the best Chromebooks usually cost less than the best Windows laptops, or even the best “regular” laptops out there.
There are plenty of premium Chromebooks that approach or even exceed $1,000 that claim to offer better performance and more processing power, but I don’t recommend spending that much. Generally, that’ll get you a better design with more premium materials, as well as more powerful internals and extra storage space. Of course, you also sometimes pay for the brand name. But, the specs I outlined earlier are usually enough.
See Also:
Best Chromebooks in 2025
Other Chromebooks we tested
Samsung Galaxy Chromebook Plus
Samsung’s new Galaxy Chromebook Plus is one of the more unique Chromebooks out there. It’s extremely thin and light, at .46 inches and 2.6 pounds, but it manages to include a 15.6-inch display in that frame. That screen is a 1080p panel that’s sharp and bright, but its 16:9 aspect ratio made things feel a bit cramped when scrolling vertically. Performance is very good, and the keyboard is solid, though I’m not a fan of the number pad as it shifts everything to the left. At $700 it’s not cheap, but that feels fair considering its size and capabilities. If you’re looking for a big screen laptop that is also super light, this Chromebook merits consideration, even if it’s not the best option for everyone.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/laptops/best-chromebooks-160054646.html?src=rssSteam Replay 2024 is available now so you can compare your Balatro playtime with friends
Steam Replay, Valve’s take on Spotify Wrapped for games you’ve played through Steam, is available now for your perusal. Valve’s offered the year-end presentation since 2022, and it can be a pretty revealing glimpse into how time-consuming most games have become in the last two years (or how much one game can really stick in your craw).
You can access the data dump directly through the Steam app, your Steam Deck or the web. For 2024, Valve tracked the number of games and demos you’ve played, the number of achievements you’ve unlocked, your longest gaming streak and the games you spent the majority of your time playing. The company also collected data on how much of your time spent playing was on Steam Deck, which genres you tend to prefer and shared some details on how the median Steam users plays. For example, the median Steam user only played four games this year, and unlocked 13 achievements.
According to my Replay, the majority of my time on Steam this year was spent playing 1000xRESIST, Arco, Animal Well and Balatro. Since I’ve basically treated the Steam Deck like a console from the moment I bought one, it’s also where I spent 100 percent of my time using Steam in 2024. I suspect that’s unusual for the average user, but it’s really the only surprise I found combing through Valve’s data.
If you dig up anything interesting in your Steam Replay, Valve has made it easy to make your Replay public so you can share with friends. If you’re particularly proud of how much you’ve completed in 2024, you can also attach an overview of your stats directly to your Steam profile.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/pc/steam-replay-2024-is-available-now-so-you-can-compare-your-balatro-playtime-with-friends-234027828.html?src=rssEPA gives thumbs up to California’s new gas-powered car sale ban
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has approved California’s plan to phase out and ban the sale of new gas-powered cars and light trucks by 2035. ABC News reported the EPA gave California the waivers it needed to enact the Advanced Clean Cars II Regulations (ACC II) devised and approved by the California Air Resources Board in 2022.
The EPA also approved California’s plan to reduce nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from heavy-duty vehicles in order to reduce the amount of smog in the air. The state will require an initial 75 percent reduction in NOx pollution followed by a 90 percent reduction a few years later.
The ACC II provides a year-to-year blueprint for phasing out the selling of combustion-engine vehicles. The plan sets a 2026 deadline by which 35 percent of the state’s car sales must be electric vehicles, plug-in hybrids or models with hydrogen fuel cells. Then by 2030, the electric vehicle sale threshold rises to 68 percent before reaching its ultimate 100 percent sale requirement by 2035. Consumers and dealerships will still be able to buy, sell and drive used ICE and hybrid cards until the ACC II. California Air Resources Board chair Liane Randolph estimated the ACC II could lead to a 50 percent drop in pollution by 2040.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom hailed the decision and ACC II in a statement as evidence that “California can rise to the challenge of protecting our people by cleaning our air and cutting pollution.”
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/epa-gives-thumbs-up-to-californias-new-gas-powered-car-sale-ban-232048688.html?src=rssThreads' new 'use media' feature is its latest attempt to fight stolen memes and engagement farming
Another day, another new Threads feature. Meta’s app will “soon” be rolling out a feature that allows users to re-share photos and videos to their timelines with credit to the original poster but without the original post attached.
Once available, users will need to long press on a photo or video from their feed and select “use media.” They’ll then be able to draft a new post with the image of the clip attached, with a watermark from the original poster showing in the top left corner. “This is a quick, easy way to add your creative takes to trending images and clips without quote posting,” Threads chief Adam Mosseri wrote in a post.
The feature is presumably meant to make it easier for people to reshare other users’ work with some credit for its original creator. Mosseri has fielded a number of complaints on Threads from frustrated users who see their work ripped off without credit. In a post last month, Mosseri said that Meta was “trying to shift more distribution from aggregators to creators on both Instagram and Threads,” though he acknowledged it can be “very difficult to do so” when the original post was lifted from a non Meta-owned platform. On Instagram, the company recently tweaked its algorithm in an attempt to boost creators over aggregators.
Judging by some of the reactions to Threads’ latest update, however, a number of creators are still unhappy with Meta’s approach. “It just seems like blatant content theft,” one photographer replied. “Quoting the post is a far more effective way of sharing someone's content with your own comments while crediting the creator,” another user said.
In a separate post, Meta noted that individual creators are able to disable media reuse in their app’s settings, so it is possible to block your posts from being shared this way. (There are also settings to prevent others from quote posting entirely.) However, for those worried about accounts straight up ripping off their posts in the interest of engagement farming, there’s still little any user can do to prevent less scrupulous accounts from copying their content with screenshots or other means.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/threads-new-use-media-feature-is-its-latest-attempt-to-fight-stolen-memes-and-engagement-farming-224119483.html?src=rssApple is reportedly giving up on plans to turn the iPhone into a subscription
Apple is shelving its plans to offer the iPhone for a monthly subscription, Bloomberg reports. The company was first said to be exploring a hardware subscription in 2022, but like the company’s “buy now, pay later” product, Apple Pay Later, it seems like it ultimately proved too problematic.
The hardware subscription was rumored to work in a similar way to existing options like the iPhone Upgrade Program or Apple Card Monthly Installments, where you pay off a new phone or other Apple device with monthly payments, and in some cases get the option to upgrade to a new device without changing your subscription fee. Unlike those payment methods, which apply your payments to a one-time loan from either Citizen One or Goldman Sachs, Apple’s subscription was going to be managed through an Apple account and use whatever payment methods you already have connected.
Apple’s expectation was that if it fronted the cost for an iPhone directly, people would upgrade more often and increase the company’s recurring revenue. The problem is that much like Apple Pay Later, which let you split Apple Pay purchases into four smaller installments, the hardware subscription might have required Apple to “follow the same regulations as credit card companies,” Bloomberg says. That’s extra scrutiny the company didn’t want to invite.
There’s also the potential strain a hardware subscription could put on Apple’s relationships with carriers. You can buy an iPhone 16 from T-Mobile or Verizon with an installment plan that might be technically different from a subscription, but definitely feels like one when you’re paying monthly.
Apple’s hardware subscription was never officially announced, but it reflects what could be a larger retreat from the headaches of financial services. Apple Pay Later was shut down in June 2024 and replaced with access to Affirm loans in Apple Pay as part of iOS 18. The Apple Card is also reportedly in limbo as Apple searches for a partner to replace Goldman Sachs.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/apple-is-reportedly-giving-up-on-plans-to-turn-the-iphone-into-a-subscription-223540728.html?src=rssRivian car dashboard screens now support YouTube and Google Cast
Rivian vehicles now offer more entertainment options with the adoption of Google Cast in the company's cars. When the cars are parked, passengers can use Google Cast to stream from thousands of apps to the dashboard screen. The cars are also getting native apps for YouTube and SiriusXM for playing media directly from the vehicle's larger screen. Rivian is offering all its customers a temporary free trial of SiriusXM; after the trial ends, users will need to subscribe to keep using the satellite radio.
Google announced in the spring that it would be updating Android for Cars with a casting feature. Rivian seems to be the first manufacturer to take advantage of the tech. The Google updates are just the latest collaboration for the company. Earlier this month, Rivian also opened up its charging stations to use by other brands of electric vehicles.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/rivian-car-dashboard-screens-now-support-youtube-and-google-cast-222004612.html?src=rss