Tesla delivered 405,278 electric vehicles over the final three months of 2022, the automaker announced on Monday. That number represents a new record for the company, but it also fell short of Wall Street estimates. As recently as December 30th, the consensus among most analysts was that Tesla would deliver about 418,000 vehicles in Q4. A year earlier, the company delivered 308,600 cars during the same period.
According to Tesla, the Model 3 and Model Y made up most of the company's deliveries in the fourth quarter of 2022, with 388,131 of those vehicles making their way to consumers before the end of the year. Comparatively, Tesla's more expensive Model S and Model X cars accounted for a modest 17,147 deliveries over the same time frame. Tesla produced 439,701 vehicles in the fourth quarter, setting another record.
It's fair to say the end of 2022 could have gone better for Tesla. Even before considering how much Elon Musk's takeover of Twitter has hurt the company, Tesla was faced with macroeconomic and logistical challenges threatening to slow growth. As they did earlier in the year, COVID-19 restrictions in China forced Tesla to suspend and reduce production at its Shanghai Gigafactory. Tesla also closed the facility during the last week of December, adding to concerns the company has been dealing with weakening demand in the world's biggest automotive market. In Q4, Tesla also had trouble securing transportation for completed vehicles.
Separately, Elon Musk's handling of Twitter and repeat Tesla stock selloffs saw the value of the company's shares drop dramatically. In December, Tesla's stock fell 33 percent (and 45 percent over the last six months) before rallying in anticipation of the company's fourth-quarter numbers. Tesla will publish its full Q4 results on January 25th and hold its next annual Investor Day presentation on March 1st.
Samsung is refreshing its lineup of customizable Bespoke smart appliances with a wall oven, washer and dryer. The Bespoke AI Oven has a seven-inch screen and touch controls. The cooking methods include air sous vide, air frying and steam cooking. Perhaps the most intriguing element, though, is the AI Camera that's inside.
The camera can detect what you're making and suggest optimal cooking settings if it recognizes what you're making, Samsung says. Moreover, it can send you warning notifications to prevent your food from burning. You can keep an eye on your food using the screen or the SmartThings app (which you can use to control the oven remotely). There's the option to take photos of your creation or even livestream the video feed, which could help budding Twitch creators find their niche.
In addition, the oven has Samsung Health integration and can analyze workout stats and diet goals based on the ingredients you have on hand. The Bespoke AI Oven is available in Europe now and will arrive in North America this summer.
Also new is the Bespoke Wall Mount Hood. It's designed to match other Bespoke appliances and is said to operate at 65 decibels on its highest setting. The hood can ventilate up to 700 cubic feet per minute, Samsung claims. The hood can sync with a smart Samsung cooktop to adjust the ventilation levels based on what you're cooking.
In addition, there's an air quality sensor to track the cleanliness of the air. If the device detects that the air quality has dropped, you'll receive suggestions for how to remedy that via the SmartThings app. You'll be alerted when it's time to replace the air filter too. As with the wall oven, the hood will be available in a variety of colors and premium finishes.
Samsung
As for the company's fridges, the 4-Door Flex now has a larger Family Hub+ touchscreen. It now measures 32 inches, so the screen is almost 50 percent larger than on previous models. Samsung says that you'll be able to more easily use multiple apps at once and to multitask. The display includes a built-in SmartThings Hub as well. This will help you to connect other SmartThings-compatible devices without the need for other hub hardware.
As with previous models, there's an AI-powered camera inside that can analyze food labels and images to help make sure you don't run out of the essentials. The latest 4-Door Flex will be available in North America and Korea in the first half of the year.
Meanwhile, the new Bespoke Side-By-Side fridge has touch sensors on each door, so you can open them when your hands are full. Like the 4-Door Flex, it has SmartThings integration and the built-in Beverage Center with two options each for filtered water and ice. This model will be available in the US by the end of March.
Samsung
Finally, Samsung had some updates on the sustainability front. This year, the company will release microfiber emission reduction cycles and filters for its Bespoke washing machines. The aim is to reduce microplastic pollution in water.
The company also says that it has received the industry's first Energy Star Smart Home Energy Management Systems Certification for its SmartThings Energy system. Samsung claims the AI Energy Mode it recently started rolling out can reduce its appliances' power consumption by up to 30 percent without significantly impacting performance. For instance, it might make your freezer one degree warmer or reduce the maximum water temperature on your dishwasher.
Data is a useful tool in any battle, especially if you’re opting to wage war against your waistline in an attempt to be healthier. Back in 2007, I bought a dirt-cheap scale and drew my own graph sheets in order to chart my weight’s downward progress after a rough year at university. I think that while 2007 me wouldn’t be pleased with my own fitness journey, he would love the fact that the process is entirely automated, and affordable. Consequently, allow me to take you (and him) on a journey to pick the best smart scale to help you on your own journey toward behavior change.
Safety
There are valid reasons to weigh yourself, but your self-worth shouldn’t be defined by the number that shows up between your feet. If you’re looking to alter your body shape, that figure could go up as your waistline goes down, since muscle weighs more than fat. Dr. Anne Swift, Director of public health teaching at the University of Cambridge, said that “weighing yourself too often can result in [you] becoming fixated on small fluctuations day-to-day, rather than the overall trend over time.” Swift added that “it’s sometimes better to focus on how clothes fit, or how you feel, rather than your weight.”
(A meta-analysis from 2016 found there may be some negative psychological impact from self weighing. A 2018 study, however, said that there may be a positive correlation between regular weigh-ins and accelerated weight loss. It can be a minefield, and I’d urge you to take real care of yourself and remember that success won’t happen overnight.)
What to look for in a smart scale
Weight
A weighing scale that weighs you is probably the top requirement, right? One thing to bear in mind is that, with all these measurements, the figures won’t be as accurate as a calibrated, clinical scale. Consequently, it’s better to focus on the overall trend up or down over time, rather than the figures in isolation.
Connectivity
Most scales will either connect to your phone over Bluetooth, or to your home’s WiFi network, and you should work out your regular weighing routine ahead of time. A lot of lower-end, Bluetooth-only models will only record your weight when your phone is present and don’t keep local records. That means if you routinely leave your phone outside the bathroom, you could lose that day’s stats. WiFi-connected scales, on the other hand, post your stats to a server, letting you access them from any compatible device. But you need to be mindful that there’s a small risk to your privacy should that information be compromised.
Bone density
The stronger your bones, the less you’re at risk from breaks and osteoporosis, which you should keep in mind as you get older. Clinical bone density tests use low-power x-rays but higher-end scales can offer an approximation from your own bathroom. These tests pass a small current through your feet, measuring the resistance as it completes its journey. The resistance offered by bones, fat and muscle are all different, and your scale can identify the difference.
Body fat percentage and muscle mass
Fat and muscle are necessary parts of our makeup, but an excessive amount of either can be problematic. Much like bone density, a scale can identify both your body fat and muscle mass percentages using Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (BIA). This measurement tests how well your body resists the electrical signal passing through your body. (It’s a rough rule of thumb that you should have a 30/70 percent split between fat and muscle, but please consult a medical professional for figures specific to your own body and medical needs.)
BMI
A lot of scales offer a BMI calculation, and it’s easy to do since you just plot height and weight on a set graph line. Body Mass Index is, however, a problematic measurement that its critics say is both overly simplistic and often greatly misleading. Unfortunately, it’s also one of the most common clinical metrics and medical professionals will use it to make judgements about your care.
Pulse Wave Velocity
French health-tech company Withings has offered Pulse Wave Velocity (PWV) on its flagship scale for some time, although regulatory concerns meant it was withdrawn for a period of time. It’s a measurement of arterial stiffness, which acts as a marker both of cardiovascular risk and also other health conditions. I’ve had anecdotal reports that PWV scales have sent people to the doctor, where they’ve found they were close to a cardiac event. It’s worth saying, as with all of these technologies, that there is limited, albeit positive, research into how accurate these systems are.
Display
Less a specification and more a note that smart scales have displays ranging from pre-printed LCDs or digital dot matrix layouts through to color screens. On the high end, your scale can show you trending charts for your weight and other vital statistics, and can even tell you the day’s weather. If you are short-sighted, and plan on weighing yourself first thing in the morning, before you’ve found your glasses / contacts, opt for a big, clear, high-contrast display.
App and subscriptions
You’ll spend most of your time looking at your health data through its companion app, and it’s vital you get a good one. This includes a clear, clean layout with powerful tools to visualize your progress and analyze your data to look for places you can improve. Given that you often don’t need to buy anything before trying the app, it’s worth testing one or two to see if you vibe with it.
Several companies also offer premium subscriptions, unlocking other features – including insights and coaching – to go along with your hardware. Fitbit and Withings both offer these services, which you may feel is worth the extra investment each month.
Data portability
Using the same scale or app platform for years at a time means you’ll build up a massive trove of personal data. And it is, or should be, your right to take that data to another provider when you choose to move platforms in the future. Data portability is, however, a minefield, with different platforms offering wildly different options, making it easy (or hard) to go elsewhere.
All of the devices in this round-up will allow you to export your data to a .CSV file, which you can then do with as you wish. Importing this information is trickier, with Withings and Garmin allowing it, and Omron, Xiaomi, Eufy and Fitbit not making it that easy. (Apps that engage with Apple Health, meanwhile, can output all of your health data in a .XML file.)
Power
It’s not a huge issue but one worth bearing in mind that each scale will either run disposable batteries (most commonly 4xAAA) or with its own, built-in battery pack. Sadly, all of our crop of smart scales use batteries, adding an environmental and financial cost to your scale life. That’s just about forgivable for scales that cost under $100, but this stretches even to the highest-end models. When you’re spending more than that on a device, the lack of a rechargeable cell feels very, very cheap indeed.
The smart scales we tested
For this guide, I tested six scales from major manufacturers:
Our cheapest model, Xiaomi / Mi’s Body Composition Scale 2 is as bare-bones as you can get, and it shows. It often takes a long while to lock on to get your weight, and when it does you’ll have to delve into the Zepp Life-branded app in order to look at your extra data. But you can’t fault it for the basics, offering limited weight and body composition for less than the price of a McDonald’s for four.
Fitbit, now part of Google, is the household name for fitness gear in the US, right? If not, then it must be at least halfway synonymous with it. The Aria Air is the company’s stripped-to-the-bare bones scale, offering your weight and little else, but you can trust that Fitbit got the basics right. Not to mention that most of the reason for buying a Fitbit product is to leverage its app anyway.
Eufy’s Smart Scale P2 Pro has plenty of things to commend it – the price, the overall look and feel (it’s a snazzy piece of kit) and what it offers. It offers a whole host of measurements, including Body Fat, Muscle Mass, Water, Body Fat Mass and Bone Mass, as well as calculating things like your Basal Metabolic Rate (the amount of calories you need to eat a day to not change weight at all) all from inside its app. In fact, buried beneath the friendly graphic, the scale offers a big pile of stats and data that should, I think, give you more than a little coaching on how to improve your lifestyle.
Shortly before publication, Anker – Eufy’s parent company – was identified as having misled users, and the media, about the security of its products. Its Eufy-branded security cameras, which the company says does not broadcast video outside of your local network, was found to be allowing third parties to access streams online. Consequently, while we have praised the Eufy scale for its own features, we cannot recommend it without a big caveat.
Given its role in making actual medical devices, you know what you’re getting with an Omron product. A solid, reliable, sturdy, strong (checks the dictionary for more synonyms) dependable piece of kit. There’s no romance or excitement on show, but you can trust that however joyless it may be, it’ll do the job in question. The hardware is limited, the app is limited, but it certainly (checks synonyms again) is steady.
Joking aside, Omron’s Connect app is as bare-bones as you can get, since it acts as an interface for so many of its products. Scroll over to the Weight page, and you’ll get your weight and BMI reading, and if you’ve set a goal, you can see how far you’ve got to go to reach it. You can also switch to seeing a trend graph which, again, offers the most basic visualization on offer.
Garmin’s got a pretty massive fitness ecosystem of its own, so if you’re already part of that world, its scale is a no-brainer. On one hand, the scale is one of easiest to use, and most luxurious of the bunch, with its color screen and sleek design. I’m also a big fan of the wealth of data the scale throws at you – you can see a full color graph charting your weight progress, and the various metrics it tracks in good detail. If there’s a downside, it’s that Garmin’s setup won’t hold your hand, since it’s for serious fitness people, not newbies.
At the highest end, Withings’ flagship Body Comp is luxurious, and luxuriously priced, a figure I’d consider to be “too much” to spend on a bathroom scale. For your money, however, you’ll get a fairly comprehensive rundown of your weight, body fat, vascular age, pulse wave velocity and electrodermal activity. Its monochrome dot matrix display may not be as swish as the Garmin’s, but it refreshes pretty quickly and feels very in-keeping with the hardware’s overall sleek look. If there’s a downside, it’s that Withings ditched the rechargeable battery found in the Body Cardio (its former flagship, and an excellent scale I’d recommend if it were within the parameters of this guide) in favor of AAA batteries. Which, when you’re spending this much on a scale, makes me feel very nickel-and-dimed.
The best cheap smart scale: Fitbit Aria Air, Mi Body Composition Scale 2
It’s very competitive at the low end, and Xiaomi and Fitbit offer dramatically contrasting products for a very low price. Fitbit’s scale has far fewer features, but has better build quality, is faster and more reliable than its cheaper rival. Crucially, it also leverages Fitbit’s own app, which is a long refined and easy-to-use app that offers clean, easy-to understand visualizations.
Xiaomi, meanwhile, offers weight and some basic body composition checks, although this extra data is only visualized inside the app. From a data perspective, the Xiaomi has the edge, but its companion app – formerly Mi Fit, now branded as Zepp Life – is terrible. The lag time for each weigh-in, too, leaves a lot to be desired with the Xiaomi, although I had no qualms about its accuracy.
When I was a kid, and complained about something, my nan would say “look, you can either have a first class walk or a third class ride.” And Fitbit’s scale here is the very definition of a first class ride – polished, snappy and with a world-class app by its side. The Xiaomi, meanwhile, offers more for your money, and charges less, but both hardware and software lack any sort of polish. It’s therefore up to you if you’d rather the first class walk or the third class ride.
The best scale for people who want features (and aren’t fussed about security): Eufy’s P2 Pro
Well, this is awkward. Not long before this guide was published, it was revealed that Eufy is in the midst of a massive security issue. Researchers found that its security cameras, which were promised to be secure, allowed internet users to access the stream using VLC player. Consequently the high praise for Eufy’s P2 Pro I have as a scale will need to be moderated by the fact that we don’t yet know how deep the company’s promises around privacy and security really run.
It’s unfortunate, as the scale does leap head-and-shoulders above the competition at this level, and it surpassed my expectations by quite a bit. The ease of use was one thing, but the depth of data made available in the app, and the way it presents that information, is fantastic. While I don’t think the Eufy Life app is better than, say, Withings’ class-leading Health Mate, it offers exactly what a would-be weight-watcher would need.
The fact you can get plenty of your vital statistics graphed by hitting two buttons helps you visualize your progress, but the stat dashboard laying out everything, including your BMR, is so useful. If you’re going all Quantified Self, you could theoretically calculate your daily calorie intake to the finest of fine margins looking at this thing every morning.
The best scale for athletes: Garmin Index S2
I’m very partial to Garmin’s Index S2, but I also think it’s the sort of scale that needs to be used by people who know what they’re doing. Almost everything about the hardware is spot-on, and the only fly in its ointment is the low refresh rate on its color screen. I can’t say how upsetting it was to see the display refresh in such a laggy, unpolished manner, especially when you’re spending this much money. But that’s my only complaint, and the rest of the hardware (and software) is otherwise pitch-perfect. If you’re looking to alter your body shape, this probably isn’t the scale for you – it’s the scale you buy once you already calculate your BMR on a daily basis.
The best scale for the worried well: Withings Body Comp
Naturally, if you’re looking for a machine that’ll cater to your every whim and hypochondriac urge, then Withings’ Body Comp is the way forward. It’s a luxury scale in every sense of the word, and you should appreciate the level of polish and technology on show here. Apart from the batteries, which I’ve already said is a cheap and nasty way to save money given that you’re dropping this much money on a product.
The group of people who think it’s reasonable to spend $200 on a scale is, especially with food and energy prices spiking, a fairly small one. But if you’re the sort who already spends hand over fist to keep your body in check, this is probably justifiable as an “investment.” Knowing all of the extras about your nerve health and arteries is a bonus, but let’s be clear and say this isn’t the scale for everybody. Hell, you might have second thoughts even if you do have a subscription to Good Yachting Magazine.
Samsung is pushing further into the realm of humongous monitors with the next-gen, 57-inch Odyssey Neo G9. Some may find this model a bit more palatable than the 55-inch Odyssey Ark Samsung released last year, as it's an ultrawide with a ratio of 32:9 (the Ark is a 16:9 display). Sure, you might need to turn your head to fully take in Zeta Halo while playing Halo Infinite or see all the apps you have open, but it might feel more immersive and be more comfortable to use as an up-close monitor than the Odyssey Ark. Just don't expect to use the Neo G9 in a vertical orientation.
The latest Neo G9, which Samsung started teasing in November, has an 8K display with a resolution of 7,860 x 2,160 pixels. Samsung claims it's the first dual UHD mini-LED monitor. It has a 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio and HDR 1000 support, along with a matte display to absorb light and minimize glare. The Neo G9 may be a viable option for high-performance gaming, given its 240Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time. In addition, Samsung says it's the first gaming monitor with DisplayPort 2.1 connectivity as well. The company will reveal more details later, including the all-important price.
Samsung has other displays to talk about at CES this year, including its first curved OLED gaming monitors. It announced the Odyssey G8 OLED at IFA last year. The 34-inch, 21:9 display has a resolution of 3,440 x 1,440 and a 175Hz refresh rate. Samsung has already started selling it in some markets and says it will be available in the US very soon.
Samsung
The company has now revealed a 49-inch curved OLED gaming monitor, with many of the same features as the Odyssey G8. Both have a 1ms response time, a 3.6mm thick design, and a screen curvature of 1800R, along with adaptive sync and AMD FreeSync Premium to minimize screen tearing. They each have a Neo Quantum Processor that Samsung claims can deliver "brighter whites, deeper blacks, and near-infinite color contrast," as well as HDR True Black 400. In terms of ports, you'll find Mini-DisplayPort, HDMI and USB-C, with the latter offering up to 65W charging. Both monitors include the Samsung Gaming Hub with access to cloud gaming services such as Xbox Cloud Gaming and NVIDIA GeForce Now.
The Samsung Odyssey G95SC, however, is said to be the planet's first OLED gaming monitor with a 32:9 aspect ratio. It has a 240Hz refresh rate and a Dual Quad-HD display with a resolution of 5,120 x 1,440.
Samsung
Elsewhere, there's a new version of the Smart Monitor with support for video streaming and cloud gaming services, as well as Microsoft 365 apps and a SmartThings hub. The Smart Monitor M80C is a 32-inch 4K, 16:9 display with a detachable SlimFit Camera.
What's new in the latest model is a personalization feature named My Contents. This will show the weather, photos, schedules and more on the ambient display. The personalized content will only be shown when a connected device is within Bluetooth range.
Samsung also announced its first 5K monitor, which is geared toward creatives. The 27-inch ViewFinity S9 has a resolution of 5,120 x 2,880, a wide color gamut of 99 percent DCI-P3 and HDR 600 support. The idea is to provide users with detailed, clear and clean images. In addition, there's a matte display, detachable 4K camera and HDMI, DisplayPort and USB-C ports. You'll be able to calibrate the ViewFinity S9 with the help of the SmartThingsApp and a smartphone camera.
Every year, many of us put things like “eat better,” “stress less” and “get in shape'' on our New Year’s resolutions lists. And sleep can play a big part in achieving all of those goals. Missing out on rest makes us eat junk and pumps up stress hormones to the detriment of pretty much every other way we try to better ourselves. Thankfully, technology can help; in addition to just reminding us to take enough time to sleep, as the bedtime modes on your iPhone or Android device do, there are other gadgets that can help make the sleep you do get deeper and more restful. For those who need a little extra help getting some shut-eye in 2023, here are a few gadgets to help you sleep that we've tried that could work for you, too.
Oura Ring
Oura’s smart ring tracks your activity during the day and your sleep at night (or whenever it is you go to bed), giving you an overall score from one to 100 each morning. Using temperature, movement, blood oxygen and pulse sensors, Oura gains insight into how long you stay in the various sleep stages and uses that data to offer suggestions on ways to get better quality rest. When we tested it out, we called it the “perfect wearable for people who don’t like wearables,” appreciating the data it provides while slipping seamlessly into everyday life. After a few days of wearing it, our reviewer quickly started to ignore its presence, which means you’re probably much more likely to wear it to bed than a fitness band.
Since it doesn’t have a screen, all of Oura’s information comes to you via the companion app. That lack of screen is also the reason you can squeeze up to seven days of battery life out of it, an important feature since no device can track your sleep if it has to spend its nights on a charger.
Fitbit Inspire 3
If you prefer a wearable with a screen, a fitness tracker is arguably better than a smartwatch when it comes to sleep tracking since they tend to be less obtrusive and have longer battery life. That means you’re more likely to wear it to bed many nights in a row, until it eventually has to be recharged. Far more affordable than the Oura, Fitbit’s Inspire 3 is our budget pick for the best fitness tracker right now, and it does a good job tracking your Zs.
It runs for around $100 and has similar sensors to the Oura, including heart rate, temp, movement and blood oxygen. The company has put a lot of effort into expanding their sleep metrics, and the app can offer you detailed insights into how long you’re spending in each stage of sleep. Even without the premium membership, you’ll get a sleep score each morning. With the $10-per-month membership, you get a more detailed breakdown of the score, so you can better track your sleeping trends over time. Along with that, the alarm on the Inspire 3 can wake you up when you’re in a lighter sleep stage so coming back online isn’t as jarring.
Eight Sleep Pod 3
If you don’t want a wearable at all, the Sleep Pod 3 from Eight Sleep will track your metrics and give you a sleep score. It also heats or cools your side of the bed and wakes you up with a subtle rumble beneath your chest. The mattress-and-cover combo goes for between $3,000 and $4,400, depending on the size and thickness of the mattress, which puts it well above any traditional wearable in terms of affordability. The bulk of the cost is in the cover, which conceals tubing through which warm or cool water flows from an external base, regulating the temp, while sensors in the cover monitor your sleep.
You can buy the cover alone and that will save you between $900 and $1,900 off the sticker price, but it’s still not cheap. You’ll also need a $19 per month subscription to access all the sleep tracking features. But in our review, with a score of 81, our reviewer (and new dad) Sam Rutherford said the Pod 3 has delivered some of the best sleep he’s ever had.
Hatch Restore
Part sunrise alarm clock, part audio machine, the Hatch Restore made the cut in our guide to smart lights for its ability to help out before, during and after sleep. To get you to dreamland, the Restore offers guided exercises and sleep stories, and to keep you asleep once you get there, you have your pick of white or pink noise sounds. To wake up, the gentle sunrise alarm slowly brightens, mimicking the sunrise and priming your brain for morning. The caveat here is that you’ll need a subscription to access the library of sleep meditations and guides, and that currently goes for $5 a month or $50 per year.
Headspace
Personally, the best thing I’ve done for my sleep is banishing my phone from the bedroom, so it may seem ironic to add a smartphone app to this list. Headspace, however, has the opposite effect on sleep that social media does. Like the Hatch Restore, this app has an extensive library of meditations and exercises to help you relax and fall asleep.
I prefer the shorter, wind-down segments that last a few minutes and help you do a full body scan to relax. Longer “Sleepcasts” run around 45 minutes and tell you stories in calm voices – there are even a few Star Wars-themed tales, but those just made me want to get up and watch more Andor. Sleep music and soundscapes combine ambient sounds with tones and melodies, lasting up to 500 minutes. And perhaps most critically, there’s a “Nighttime SOS” page, with guided exercises to help you get back to sleep if you wake up with bad dreams, work stress or something else.
A subscription goes for $70 a year or $13 a month. In addition to sleep content, you also get daytime meditations and sessions that help you breathe, focus and manage stress, which can also help with sleep. If you do decide to bring Headspace into the bedroom, make sure you have your phone’s sleep focus or bedtime mode turned on before you do, otherwise nighttime spam emails and Messenger alerts will undo all of the good work your sleep app just rendered.
Philips Hue Smart Lights
We think Philips Hue White + Color are the best smart light bulbs you can buy, and certain features can even help with sleep, such as programming them to change to a warmer color when it's getting close to bedtime. You not only get a subtle hint that it’s time to wind down, but also the warmer tones have lower levels of sunlight-mimicking blue light and can help your brain prepare for sleep. You also have the ability to control them using your voice, so instead of getting out of bed to shut off the lights, you can ask Alexa or the Google Assistant to do it for you.
Felix Gray blue light blocking glasses
Speaking of blue light, it’s not great for sleep. But the habit of staring at screens isn’t going anywhere, which is why blue light-blocking glasses exist. I’ll admit I first thought they were a gimmick, but have since come to rely on the pair I bought from Felix Gray. The science seems to check out and do I notice a difference with my sleep patterns when I wear them versus when I don’t. I initially only wore them in the evening hours, when I was working past 5PM or otherwise still using my computer. Now I wear them basically all day because I feel like they help my eyes feel far less tired. They come with or without your prescription and in enough styles to make them your own.
Bearaby weighted blanket
You’ve probably met someone who swears by their weighted blanket. Our colleague Nicole Lee is one of them. As someone plagued by insomnia, she finds she’s “nodding off faster and staying asleep longer” with the Bearaby weighted blanket and recommends it as one of our top self-care gifts. Unlike other weighted blankets that are filled with glass or plastic beads, Bearaby comforters are hand-knit from a heavyweight cotton, Tencel or eco-velvet, looking more like enormous scarves than a bland sleep aid.
Manta sleep mask
While blue light is bad before bed, any type of light hitting your eyelids can keep you from reaching those deeper levels of sleep. Along with blackout curtains and shutting off the nightlight, we recommend this sleep mask from Manta. There are a ton of sleep masks out there, but Engadget weekend editor Igor Bonifacic finds this one to be better than the rest and recommends it for travelers in our guide. It has removable, repositionable eye cups for a customized fit and they stand up to their claim of blocking out 100 percent of ambient light. You can also buy additional eye cups that you can microwave to provide a warming effect, or eye cups wrapped in silk that will be gentler on your skin and others.
German Bionic, the robotic exoskeleton startup behind the Cray X, will be showing off two new posture-protecting products at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Nevada this week. The Apogee is the company's latest and lightest powered exosuit built for commercial and industrial use while the Smart SafetyVest will "bring ergonomic monitoring and protection to every worker," per a Monday release.
German Bionic
The Apogee builds from the lessons learned in developing the Cray X, resulting in German Bionic's lightest exosuit to date. Despite the litheness, it can offset up to 66 pounds of load to the user's lower back per lifting motion and offers active walking assistance to reduce fatigue. The SafetyVest, on the other hand, doesn't actively help the user pick up heavy stuff but it does monitor their movements and body positioning as they work and offers "data-based, personalized ergonomic insights, as well as assessments and recommended actions."
Both the Apogee and SafetyVest rely on the German Bionic IO architecture to collect, monitor, analyze and report the user's ergonomic data back to them. This is done typically either through the onboard display or via audible alerts when the user is actively making unsafe movements.
German Bionic
“With our new wearables, we are empowering hard-working people with the tools they need to do their jobs more safely and sustainably," Norma Steller, CPO of German Bionic, said in the release. "Both our new ergonomic wearables – Apogee and Smart SafetyVest – as well as our award-winning Cray X exoskeleton enable us to provide the right support for just about any company or work environment where manual work is performed. And with the German Bionic IO data platform, we also deliver a powerful analytics tool for workplace ergonomics and processes."
Details are still sparse ahead of the show but German Bionic will be exhibiting its wares at CES, booth #7141 in the West Hall if you're attending in person. If not, no worries, Engadget will have full coverage of the show floor with hands-on reviews, videos and news throughout the week — stay tuned!
Welcome, reader, to 2023! While some of us are still musing on New Year’s resolutions (we have the tech to help you right here), will 2023 be the year you finally break up with Twitter? There’s never been a better time. All this Elon Musk-induced chaos has breathed new life into the numerous Twitter alternatives. Of all of them, Mastodon has probably benefited the most. The open-source service gained notoriety back in 2017 when some Twitter users were upset with changes the company had made to the functionality of @-replies. (Back then, that was a big deal.) Mastodon isn’t the only app to get a boost from the turmoil at Twitter, though. Other apps like CounterSocial, which has a Tweetdeck-like interface, and Tribel have also seen increased user numbers. There are some new upstarts, too. Post News, a new service from former Waze CEO Noam Bardin, has also tried to capitalize on Twitter’s current state.
Meanwhile, Twitter hasn’t been paying its office rent in San Francisco. According to Bloomberg, Twitter was told on December 16th that it would default on its lease for the 30th floor of the Hartford Building. So far, it’s failed to pay $136,250 in rent.
– Mat Smith
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After completing its 1.4 million mile trip to the Moon and back at the start of last month, NASA’s Artemis 1 Orion spacecraft has returned to the Kennedy Space Center. The homecoming occurred on December 30th. Artemis 1’s record-breaking journey began on November 16th, launching atop NASA’s next-generation Space Launch System heavy-lift rocket. NASA will now conduct an “extensive analysis” of the component and determine precisely how it fared during atmospheric reentry. The agency will also remove Moonikin Campos, the test dummy NASA sent aboard Orion to collect data on how travel to the Moon might affect humans.
The app previously added age restrictions to some "mature" content.
TikTok is launching a new version of its “borderline suggestive model,” which the company uses to automatically identify “sexually explicit, suggestive, or borderline content.” According to a TikTok spokesperson, the new model can better detect so-called “borderline content,” videos that don’t explicitly break the app’s rules but may not be suitable for younger users. Elsewhere, the app is also allowing creators to restrict their videos to adult viewers.
The Attorney General’s office accused the company of using deceptive techniques.
Washington DC Attorney General Karl Racine has announced that his office has reached an agreement with Grubhub "for charging customers hidden fees and using deceptive marketing techniques." The company was sued earlier this year, accused of charging hidden fees and misrepresenting Grubhub+ subscription's offer of "unlimited free delivery" since customers still have to pay a service fee. The DC Attorney General's office also accused the company of listing 1,000 restaurants in the area without their permission by using numbers that route to Grubhub workers or creating websites without the eateries' consent. Under the settlement terms, Grubhub will pay affected customers in the DC area a total of $2.7 million.
Samsung’s mobile division has a new design chief. The company announced Hubert H. Lee would head up its mobile design team, the unit responsible for designing some of Samsung’s most important products, including its flagship Galaxy S series of phones. Lee joins the electronics giant after a stint as the chief design officer of Mercedes-Benz China.
What Are The Upcoming Challenges and Security Trends for IoT and 5G in 2023?
For the past few years, the internet of things (IoT) has become a very important part of our lives and is proving to be very valuable for several industrial sectors. It is nothing but a network of connected physical devices that are furnished with software, electronics, sensors, and chips, which exchanges data through the internet. According to some experts, there would be 22 billion connected devices all over the world by the end of 2025.
Digi-Key Electronics Debuts Farm Different Season 2 Video Series For Sustainability and Waste Reduction
Digi-Key Electronics, is debuting a new season of its “Farm Different” video series that highlights the role of automation and control technologies in sustainable farming and food distribution practices.
After completing its 1.4 million mile trip to the Moon and back at the start of last month, NASA’s Artemis 1 Orion spacecraft has returned to the Kennedy Space Center. The homecoming occurred on December 30th. Artemis 1 splashed down in the Pacific Ocean on December 11th. After the USS Portland recovered the unmanned crew vehicle and brought it to Naval Base San Diego on December 13th, the capsule embarked on an overland trek to Florida the next day. Artemis 1’s record-breaking journey began on November 16th with a memorable nighttime launch atop NASA’s next-generation Space Launch System heavy-lift rocket.
Now that Orion is back at Kennedy Space Center, NASA will remove the spacecraft’s heat shield so that it can conduct an “extensive analysis” of the component and determine exactly how it fared during atmospheric reentry. The agency will also remove Moonikin Campos, the test dummy NASA sent aboard Orion to collect data on how travel to the Moon might affect humans. “Artemis I was a major step forward as part of NASA’s lunar exploration efforts and sets the stage for the next mission of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion to fly crew around the Moon on Artemis II,” NASA said.
While Artemis II won’t launch until 2024 at the earliest, there’s still a lot to look forward to between now and next year. NASA promised to announce the mission’s four-person crew sometime in “early 2023.” Artemis II will set the stage for the first human lunar landing since the end of the Apollo program in 1972, and eventually a permanent NASA presence on the Moon.
