The new 11-inch iPad Pro has hit its lowest price ever at Amazon, which means you can grab the base version of Apple's premium tablet for just $699. That's $100 off the list price and $40 less than it was before Black Friday. It won't arrive in time for Christmas, but if you've had your eye on the Pro, this will likely be the lowest price you'll see this year. The steepest discount goes to the 128GB model with WiFi and the applies to the Silver colorway. If you want a bit more storage, both the 256 GB WiFi model and the 512GB WiFi models are also on sale, with both models seeing a $60 discount. We should note that the WiFi plus cellular configurations and the giant, TB size models aren't discounted right now.
The iPad Pro was released at the end of October, and the biggest update came with the addition of Apple's latest processor, the M2 chip. That made an already powerful tablet even more so. We gave the slab an 87 in our review, praising both the "ludicrously" fast speeds and best-in-class screen. The iPad Pro handily makes use of Apple's new Stage Manager, which allows for multitasking with overlapping and resizable windows. The feature finally gives the Pro the opportunity to properly harness all the speed it's been given.
Paired up the Magic Keyboard, the tablet is an extremely capable hybrid device, though with that accessory's $300 price tag, you've essentially entered laptop price range. That said, the iPad Pro is still an impressive tablet with plenty of power and a great screen. The changes to this model probably aren't enough to warrant an upgrade if you've got 2021's model. But if you've been thinking about grabbing a Pro, this $100 discount is a great time to snap it up.
Game developer King said today it’s shutting down Crash Bandicoot: On the Run. The Android and iOS title didn't last long, as it had just launched in March 2021.
King announced on its Facebook page (via Eurogamer) that it would shut down the game’s servers on February 16th, 2023, after which you’ll no longer be able to play. All in-app purchases are already turned off, and players will have until the game’s last day to spend any purchased purple crystals.
The game was an auto-runner in the vein of Temple Run. Holding their phones in portrait orientation, players used touch controls to move the furry marsupial from lane to lane, dodging obstacles, breaking boxes and firing projectiles.
King left plenty of room for confusion before today’s announcement. Some fans noticed last week that it had been delisted from Google Play and the App Store without explanation. Twitter user Festive Charlie reached out (via Crashy News) to King customer support asking about the removal, and a representative responded, “Rest assured though that the adventure is far from over. Our technical wizards in the Studio are already busy putting their finishing touches to more exciting features and islands which will be available very soon.” Although it isn’t shocking that a developer’s (possibly outsourced) customer-support team would be left in the dark about an unannounced cancellation, it’s harder to excuse suggesting to a fan the game is about to receive exciting new content when it was actually on its deathbed.
Crash Bandicoot fans still have adventures to look forward to on bigger screens. Next year, the multiplayer Crash Team Rumble will bring 4v4 arena matches to PS5/4, Xbox Series X/S and Xbox One.
Square Enix’s “pixel perfect” remasters of the first six Final Fantasy games will arrive on Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 next spring, the publisher announced on Monday. First announced at E3 2021 and subsequently released on PC and mobile over the course of that same year, the Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster series features reworked 2D sprites and backgrounds, rearranged music, user interface tweaks and a handful of extras, including a bestiary for all the enemies in each game.
Square Enix
In addition to releasing the games individually on the Nintendo eShop and PlayStation Store, Square Enix will sell a bundle that brings together all six entries in the Pixel Remaster series – Final Fantasy, Final Fantasy II, Final Fantasy III, Final Fantasy IV, Final Fantasy V and Final Fantasy VI – for $75. For well-heeled fans, the publisher will also offer the Final Fantasy 35th Anniversary Edition. For an eye-watering $260 before tax and shipping, you get a physical copy of all six games on a single disc or game card and a handful of extras, including a vinyl soundtrack set, a 128-page art book and a set of figurines. Square Enix says it tentatively expects to release the Anniversary Edition on May 31st, 2023 – though it warns fans international orders could take up to five weeks to ship.
Fortnite maker Epic Games will pay $520 million to settle allegations that it violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and "tricked millions of players into making unintentional purchases," using deceptive design strategies called dark patterns, the Federal Trade Commission said. The agency notes that there are two separate settlements, each of which broke FTC records.
Epic will pay $275 million for allegedly violating the COPPA rule as part of a proposed federal court order. The agency says that's the largest penalty it has obtained to date over a rule violation. Epic will also refund customers $245 million over its billing practices and use of dark patterns. The FTC claims that's the largest refund in a gaming-related case and its biggest administrative order to date. It will decide whether to finalize the consent order after a 30-day public comment period.
"As our complaints note, Epic used privacy-invasive default settings and deceptive interfaces that tricked Fortnite users, including teenagers and children," FTC chair Lina M. Khan said in a statement. "Protecting the public, and especially children, from online privacy invasions and dark patterns is a top priority for the Commission, and these enforcement actions make clear to businesses that the FTC is cracking down on these unlawful practices.”
Epic Games
Fortnite has been a colossal success for Epic. The game generated $9 billion in profit between 2018 and 2019, and $5.1 billion in gross revenue in 2020.
The FTC claimed that Epic violated the COPPA rule by collecting personal data from Fortnite players aged under 13 without notifying or seeking consent from their parents. In its complaint, the FTC said parents who wanted Epic to delete personal information on their kids had to "jump through extraordinary hoops" and even then the company sometimes didn't honor those requests.
The agency also accused Epic of engaging in "unfair practices" and harming children and teens by enabling voice and text chat by default. "Children and teens have been bullied, threatened, harassed and exposed to dangerous and psychologically traumatizing issues such as suicide while on Fortnite," the FTC claimed.
As part of the COPPA settlement, the FTC says there's a first-of-its-kind provision that forces Epic to have more stringent default privacy settings for kids and teens, including making sure that voice and text chat are off by default. The company also needs to delete personal data it has collected on Fortnite players unless a player says they're 13 or over or it gets parental consent to retain the information.
Earlier this month, Epic rolled out "cabined accounts" for young Fortnite, Fall Guys and Rocket League players. It said at the time these accounts provided a safe way for kids to play its games. Without parental consent, users with cabined accounts are locked out of features like using voice chat or buying items from in-game stores with real money.
Epic Games
The second complaint accused Epic of using "dark patterns to trick players into making unwanted purchases and [letting] children rack up unauthorized charges without any parental involvement." The FTC claimed that players could be charged when resuming Fortnite from sleep mode, when it was on a loading screen or by accidentally clicking a button next to an item preview option. The agency said these design decisions led consumers to pay "hundreds of millions of dollars in unauthorized charges."
The FTC said children were able to buy V-Bucks, Fortnite's in-game currency, without parental consent until 2018. "Some parents complained that their children had racked up hundreds of dollars in charges before they realized Epic had charged their credit card without their consent," the agency noted. The FTC has targeted the likes of Amazon, Google and Apple for similar reasons in the past.
On top of that, Epic allegedly locked the accounts of users who disputed unauthorized payments with their credit card companies. The FTC said Epic ignored more than a million user complaints and employee concerns over wrongful charges.
Along with the $245 million Epic will pay to cover refunds, the proposed consent order seeks to block it from using dark patterns to charge users or otherwise charge them without obtaining explicit consent. Epic will also agree not to enact blanket bans for accounts that perform chargebacks, only disabling those it suspects of actual fraud. The FTC will send emails to those who made Fortnite in-game purchases when it has more details to share about the refund program.
Epic Games creator of the video game Fortnite, to pay a total of $520 million over FTC allegations Epic violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act and deployed dark patterns to dupe millions of players into making unintentional purchases: https://t.co/yHaQx8VXlu
Epic said in a lengthy statement that, among other things, it has "restored thousands of accounts that were banned due to reported chargebacks under our previous policy." Payment information will no longer be saved by default, with users offered the chance to opt out. This will add more friction to the checkout process and perhaps help to avoid unintended purchases. "We accepted this agreement because we want Epic to be at the forefront of consumer protection and provide the best experience for our players," the company said.
This isn't the end of Epic Games' legal troubles when it comes to Fortnite, which the FTC notes has more than 400 million players. Earlier this month, a judge ruled that a Quebec class action suit claiming the game is addictive (leading one child to reportedly spend more than $6,000 CAD on skins) could move forward.
When I first checked out the Dyson Zone in March, the company didn't allow us to take our own photos of video of the demos, since they were still a ways from production. Now that we have new details about the pricing and availability of Dyson's air-purifying headphones, the company invited us to check out the device again, this time with video. The Dyson Zone will be available in March at a starting price of $950.
My second experience with the Dyson Zone was very similar to the first, except I was able to test it in more situations. Our video producer Joel Chokkattu and I were accompanied by a company rep while we took the headset out on the streets of New York, walking around for a block on a rainy day. As expected, passersby gawked when I snapped the Bane-like visor onto the headset, and one person even turned their head in shock.
To see if the Zone would be comfortable enough for me to wear on a long flight, which is how I believe most people would want to use it, I laid out on a couch with the entire device on. It wasn't terrible. We also got to check out the companion app and see a live chart showing the sound levels in our surroundings.
As a reminder, the Dyson Zone is not designed to protect against COVID-19 or other viruses. It does not seal to your face, even if the visor does cover your nose and mouth. It does leave the chin exposed, and there's a gap between the device and your skin. You can use inserts like an N95 mask attachment that the company offers as part of a package, but on its own the Zone is only getting rid of particles and acidic gasses like nitrogen dioxide and ozone.
For the full details, check out our video above and let us know what you think!
If you've been meaning to grab a spare gamepad for your PlayStation 5, today is a good day to do so, as Sony's DualSense Wireless Controller is back on sale for $49. This the same deal we saw around Black Friday and ties the lowest price we've tracked. Normally, the controller retails around $70. The discount is available at several retailers, including Amazon, Walmart, GameStop, Target, Best Buy and Sony's own PlayStation Direct store. It also applies to multiple color options, though stock of those appears to differ by retailer, and some models may not arrive before Christmas. According to the controller's PlayStation Direct listing, this offer is scheduled to run through December 23.
The market for third-party PS5 controllers is mostly limited to more expensive "pro" models, so the DualSense remains the only real option for people who want something more reasonably priced. That said, it's still a good controller, with the familiar PlayStation layout, well-sized grips, responsive triggers and impressively detailed haptics (which can also be turned off in most games). Its battery doesn't last nearly as long as something like a Switch Pro Controller, but it's an improvement over the PS4's pad, and it's rechargeable through a USB-C port. And while there's always a risk of durability issues with gamepads you use all the time — yours truly has had two models break in two years — Sony appears to have improved the DualSense's internal hardware since the device launched in late 2020.
The DualSense is still on the heavier side, and though it does have Steam support, using it with a gaming PC is generally a bit more complicated than the process would be with Microsoft's Xbox Series X/S controller (which itself is still on sale for $40). If you want more "pro" features like customizable back buttons, trigger stops and multiple settings profiles, meanwhile, note that Sony's higher-end DualSense Edge controller will release next month, albeit at a pricey $200. All that said, if you just need a PS5 pad for the basics, this is a good deal.
While plenty of gadgets cross our desks, we at Engadget also end up buying a lot of things for ourselves throughout the year. In 2022, some of us upgraded our TVs while others invested in new cookware and deskaccessories that upped our productivity. But there are plenty of things we've been loving recently that haven't made it onto the site. Here, our staffers look back on the year that was by gushing about their favorite items they bought this year.
Nest Hub Max
Sam Rutherford / Engadget
I got a Nest Hub Max last year for Christmas and over the past 12 months, it’s probably brought me more joy than any other gadget. By setting Google Photos to automatically upload pictures of my son to an album linked to the Nest Hub, every day I’m treated to a slideshow of all the fun times we’ve had. When people say kids grow up fast, they’re totally right. But as a photo viewer with voice controls, the Nest Hub max lets me relive those memories while being also an important part of my smart home control center. – Sam Rutherford, Senior Reporter
55-inch LG B2 OLED smart TV
Valentina Palladino / Engadget
In prioritizing big purchases for our new home, I knew I wanted to get a better TV and soon. Not only did we need a new one quickly for our living room while my fiance used our old one in the basement he’d claimed as his man cave, but I also wanted to see if I could get a good deal during Amazon’s October Prime Day event. I ultimately decided to splurge on the 55-inch LG B2 OLED smart TV when it dipped under $1,000 during that period. To say the difference from our old LED TV was instantly noticeable is not hyperbole: as soon as we set the thing up, we were stunned by the quality. Blacks are deep and colors are much more vibrant than on any TV we’ve had before.
We’ve watched a lot of things on it so far, from live sports to documentaries to sitcoms and everything looks much sharper and more colorful than we’re used to. We’re also pleasantly surprised by LG’s webOS. This is the first TV we’ve used with it and it was super easy to get accustomed to. We like how you can customize your homescreen and navigate either with the arrow keys on the remote or the convenient little cursor that flies around the TV screen. We now refer to it as the “good TV” in the house, with my fiancé opting to watch his weekly sports games on the B2 rather than in his basement sanctuary. — Valentina Palladino, Senior Commerce Editor
Chase Bliss Gen Loss v2
Chase Bliss
I have made no bones about my love of all things lo-fi and broken. What can I say? I like warbles. In my quest to make every instrument I own sound like it’s coming out of an old tape player I’ve tried a number of things, but in June I pre-ordered the Generation Loss MKII and I think my search is now complete.
The Generation Loss is one of the most popular lo-fi pedals ever made, and last year its creator, Tom Majeski of Cooper FX, joined the relentless experimenters at Chase Bliss. One of the first orders of business was updating his classic pedal. It’s pitched as a “VHS duplicator,” but that is greatly underselling things. While the original Gen Loss was just sort of a generalized tape simulator, the MKII version digs into the highly specific sonic characteristics of a variety of tape-based devices.
The company pulled apart and analyzed VHS players, Tascam Portastudios and dictaphones in an effort to find out what makes them unique. It covers everything from the subtle frequency drop off of old ¼-inch tape running through a reel-to-reel machine, all the way to the crushed hum that results when you make a copy of a copy of a VHS cassette. And if you’re not into the newer version that faithfully recreates particular tape formats, you can always throw one of Chase Bliss’ patented dip switches to turn on classic mode. — Terrence O'Brien, Managing Editor
Apple MagSafe Duo charger
Mat Smith / Engadget
I’ll admit it: My favorite gadget of the year is, well, something I bought last year. In spring 2021,I picked up Apple’s MagSafe Duo charger, which can charge both your iPhone and Apple Watch at the same time, all in a fold-up, compact form factor. While I could (and have) used it at home to charge my Apple devices overnight, I picked it up as a compact charging kit for when I traveled. As we all know, 2021 was not the year for roaming the globe. But as travel restrictions were lifted this year, I finally got to see if the pricey charger was worth the investment.
Yes, $129 was a lot for a dual charger, but it fulfilled the brief of using just a single cable and being so much more compact than most rival Apple Watch standup chargers. It unfurls like a makeup compact, meaning it can slip into anyone’s luggage with ease. Yes, I could take the Apple Watch cable, but in recent years these cables have USB-C, not USB-A sockets. Unfortunately, a lot of hotels (and charging plugs) still don’t have those, and if I’m visiting a different country, there are only so many things I can charge at once with a travel adapter.
After unfolding the two sides, the magnetic puck for Watch charging can also be folded out at 90 degrees, attaching to the wearable and allowing me to see the time when it’s set up. The small footprint means it fits on most nightstands and bedside tables at hotels, guest rooms and even window ledges. If space is at a premium, you can fold it around to charge a single device, whether that’s the watch or your iPhone. The MagSafe charger spot can also wirelessly recharge my AirPods if I ensure they’re in the correct position.
It’s not perfect. I’m increasingly frustrated at the sluggish charging speed when wirelessly charging my iPhone – even if this isn’t a problem when charging overnight. Hopefully, Apple will bring out another model that’s hopefully cheaper and faster to charge. When Apple eventually ditches Lightning, it’ll need to make a new one anyway. – Mat Smith, UK Bureau Chief
Bissell SpotClean Pet Pro
Bissell
Our new house has carpet on the second floor and, while it’s in pretty good shape, there were some stains we wanted to remove if possible before moving in. We also have a cat who occasionally eats too fast and, well, I probably don’t have to tell you the rest. Investing in a spot cleaner seemed like a no-brainer, and I’m glad I went with Bissell’s SpotClean Pet Pro. It’s fairly light at 13 pounds and not very big, so I can tote it around by its carrying handle to any place in my home. All you have to do is fill the solution tank with the proper ratio of cleaning liquid and water, plug the machine in, turn it on and use the included handle to scrub away stains.
I first used it on some of the carpet’s existing mystery marks and they easily came out after a few minutes of elbow-greased scrubbing. The SpotClean’s handle has a button that lets you control the amount of solution it sprays out, and while it’s running, it’s constantly sucking up excess water, filling up a separate tank with the dirty bits. The hardest part of using it is the scrubbing you have to do, and how much weight you want to put into it is totally up to you. I found most light stains came out quickly and without too much effort on my part, but I did spend more time on tougher spots. I also love that I can use this to deep clean upholstered furniture, like our old couch which is in desperate need of a refresh. This spot cleaner certainly isn’t the sexiest purchase I’ve made for our new home, but it’s one that will keep it looking fresh and clean for longer. — V.P.
Tushy Classic Bidet 3.0
Tushy
Everyone likes a clean butthole. I don’t think that’s a controversial thing to say. But while toilet paper does a decent enough job, sometimes it just doesn’t get the area clean enough. Which means you end up using more TP, potentially clogging the toilet in the process, and you still might not feel like it’s completely clean. That’s why I recently purchased the Tushy Classic 3.0, an affordable bidet that can fit with my existing toilet.
I’ve long wanted one of those fancy Japanese bidet toilets. But not only are they expensive, they require remodeling my bathroom with an additional outlet, which I simply can’t justify at the moment. The Tushy Classic 3.0, on the other hand, is only $130 or so, and it gets the job done at a fraction of the cost. Installing it is easy. All we did was attach it to our existing plumbing and we were done in about 10 minutes. It doesn’t use any electricity either. Turning the knob adjusts the water pressure while moving the toggle adjusts the angle of the spray nozzle.
We’ve been using it for a few months now, and we really do love it. We almost look forward to going number two, which is a strange thing to say. As a woman with monthly menstruation, I really appreciate that it helps get me much cleaner than with toilet paper alone. I think we end up using less TP as a result, too. I’d probably want to upgrade to a fancier bidet in the future, but for now, the Tushy Classic 3.0 more than does the job. — Nicole Lee, Commerce Writer
Blueland hand soap
Blueland
Before we moved into our new home, we had nearly exhausted the available storage in our apartment. Our tiny bathrooms had little to no space to store extra hand soap, bath wash and other necessities, so I resorted to stuffing our linen closet to the brim – so much so that I had to lean on the door to get it to close properly. So I turned to Blueland, which makes hand soap, cleaning supplies and the like that come in small tablets inside compostable pouches, and most of their formulas are plant-based, vegan and more environmentally friendly than cleaners you’ll find in big-box stores. All you do is drop the formula tablet into a container of water, shake it up and let it sit for a while until the whole tablet dissolves and then you can use the product.
I was immediately impressed with the foaming hand soap for a few reasons. First, a couple of packets took up significantly less space than even a refill jug of the soap I was previously buying, plus I liked the fact that I was purchasing one less plastic bottle by switching. Second, the soap actually worked as advertised. I had tried a couple of eco-conscious hand and dish soaps before this, and most of them had left me disappointed because I felt like they didn’t clean as well as standard solutions. But Blueland’s hand soap foamed up nicely and actually left my hands feeling clean after every wash, with no weird residue left behind.
I started off using the tablets in a mason jar outfitted with a foaming pump lid, but I’ve since graduated to Blueland’s own glass hand soap bottles, which are hefty and luxe. Ultimately, Blueland solved a few problems for me: I don’t have to waste as much space storing hand soap refills, I don’t have to create as much waste since I’m not buying those single-use plastic bottles anymore and I don’t even have to remember to buy hand soap when I go shopping because I get refills sent to my door every few months. — V.P.
Fujifilm XF 27 mm F/2.8
Terrence O'Brien / Engadget
Earlier this year, when I started dabbling in photography as a hobby, I decided the best way for me to start honing my skills was to have my Fujifilm X-T30 with me at all times. The only issue was that, even the relatively light XF 35mm f/2 bought was a little too bulky to go everywhere. I ended up snagging one of Fuji’s 27mm pancake lenses used a few months back, and it’s barely left my camera since. More importantly, my camera has barely left my side since.
With this lens the X-T30 comfortably fits in my Peak Design Field Pouch, along with a cleaning cloth and brush, a notebook and pen, plus my keys. It’s so easy to just grab everything no matter where it is that I’m going. To my parents’ for a birthday dinner? Sure. Grocery shopping? Why not? Just around the block to walk my dog? Seems silly not to.
Obviously, the big feature here is size, but it’s not like you’re making a lot of tradeoffs to get there either. Images taken with the 27mm are insanely sharp. Even wide open at F/2.8 the corners are crisp and contrasty. Would a larger aperture have been nice? Sure. But this is plenty for street photography and family snapshots. My version doesn’t have an aperture ring sadly, but the newer model does. Honestly, my one real complaint is that the minimum focus distance is about 13.4 inches, and I often find myself wanting to get closer to my subject. Still, this is probably the best investment I’ve made in my budding love of photography. — T.O.
Anyday Everyday cookware set
Nader Khouri / Anyday
After a traumatic incident where I accidentally set a small fire in a hotel room during a work trip to Barcelona, I've always been extra careful about leaving metal in a microwave. So when my friend gifted me a set of Anyday bowls, telling me it was safe to place their metal lids in my microwave and cook whole meals with them, I was blown away.
The premise of these glass bowls is that they're designed to cook food in your microwave. The bowls themselves are made from thicker, thermal shock-resistant frosted glass so they'll better withstand temperature fluctuations without cracking. The lids keep steam in the dish to cook your food, and have vents to let out the excess. A silicone rim expands to accommodate extra pressure, and the stainless steel in the lids is curved in a way that Anyday says makes it "100% microwave-safe."
As someone who mostly prizes convenience when it comes to cooking, I'm enamored with my Anyday bowls. I love steaming eggs and fish filets, but I can also cook rice, vegetables, pasta, and make nut butters, cakes and pretty much anything in the microwave with this system. Of course, anything requiring a sear, deep fry or broil won't work, and some of the recipes the company shared on its website are too complicated for my liking. But for making healthy steamed meals, the Anyday system is honestly a godsend (or friendsend). Best part: they're dishwasher safe, so I don't need to deal with the cleanup after. — Cherlynn Low, Deputy Editor
Madewell Zip-Top Transport Crossbody
Madewell
My go-to bag for years has been the Pearl crossbody from Lo & Sons, which I love for its compact size and multiple compartments. But it just wasn’t big enough for all the gear that I wanted to carry around with me. So for my birthday this year, I decided to buy myself a newer, larger, bag. I knew that I wanted it to be a crossbody – it feels more secure to me than a regular shoulder model – and I would prefer it if it had top handles. I discovered Madewell’s Zip-Top Transport Crossbody while I was browsing the web, and it seemed to fit the bill.
I’ve had it for a few months now, and it’s earned its place as my new everyday bag. It’s made from a vegetable-tanned leather that’s soft and worn with a slight waxed finish which feels lovely to the touch. The shoulder straps are detachable so I can swap them out if I want, or I can use just the top handles by themselves. The best thing about it for me is its size: at around 10 x 10 x 3 inches, it’s small enough to not weigh me down, but it’s also surprisingly roomy. It fits all my essentials and then some. That includes my wallet, phone, keys, earbuds, pens, my Kobo Libra 2 e-reader, a portable battery and, if I wedge it in correctly, even my Hobonichi Techo planner.
That said, I wish it had more compartments. It only has two inside pockets, which themselves are not that big. As a result, it’s easy for smaller items to get lost; I often have to spend time searching for my lipstick or hand sanitizer. My current solution is to keep these items in a separate small makeup pouch that can fit inside the bag so that it’s easier to fish out. It’s not perfect, but at least for me, the good outweighs the bad. — N.L.
Purist Mover water bottle
Jeff Dunn / Engadget
I spent $50 on a water bottle earlier this year, and surprisingly, I don’t feel like an idiot months later. That’s because the bottle is the Purist Mover, and it has largely solved the problem of my water picking up a metallic taste after a few weeks. The trick is an ultra-thin, unbreakable layer of glass that lines the interior and helps prevent odors and tastes from transferring. To my taste buds, this has actually worked. I still need to wash the bottle every so often, of course, but so far my water has never tasted like anything other than water.
This might seem like a pointless thing to brag about, but the Mover just feels nice, too. Its textured finish is pleasing to the touch, and its simple design looks high-end – for a water bottle, at least. There are multiple lid and size options available; I went with the 18-ounce model and “Union” spout cap, which has been fine, though the lid tends to make a whistling sound that sounds uncannily like hitting a bong. (Be warned if you’re ever off-camera during a work call.) I still can’t tell anyone they should spend this much on a water bottle, but the Mover does the thing I want, and I’m spending way less on wasteful plastic bottles as a result. — Jeff Dunn, Senior Commerce Writer
Instagram has been placing a bigger focus on Reels this year and that extends to how users will create their 2022 Recap. You’ll be able to select up to 14 of your favorite photos. Instagram will automatically stitch these together into a Reel with narration templates from the likes of Bad Bunny (one of the biggest stars on the planet), Priah Ferguson and DJ Khaled.
Last year, Instagram’s recap feature was called Playback. It selected up to 10 of a user’s Stories from the past year and folks were able to swap Stories in and out as they saw fit. The feature meant that users didn’t necessarily have to resort to third-party apps to share memories of the previous 12 months.
Blessedly 2022, a year that by most people's estimation will be remembered as lousy, will soon be in the rear view mirror of history. Hallelujah, life goes on.
There are any number of reasons to give a failing grade to The Year That Was: Inflation and the still-looming threat of another global recession, critical legislative losses on abortion and trans rights, yet another new covid variant, having to pay attention to Elon Musk — take your pick. But, in the realm of labor, there's at least one reason to feel hopeful. 2022 was the year unions won elections to represent workers at two of the world's biggest tech companies, with a third likely on the way.
Workers at an Apple Store in Towson, Maryland made history in June, becoming the first 110 unionized members of the tech giant's approximately 160,000 person workforce. They chose to be represented by the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, but the Baltimore-area staffers are far from alone. Retail workers at a store in Oklahoma City became the second unionized faction within Apple in October — backed by the Communications Workers of America — while another in Glasgow, Scotland — joining GMB — became the third in November.
Many other Apple Store locations have been agitating for better conditions as well, a non-exhaustive list of which includes two stores in New York City, one in St. Louis, and one in Atlanta. Some of these have stalled or been frustrated by the usual union-busting tactics, like an alleged policy created by management in New York's World Trade Center location to curtail organizing. The company's anti-union tactics in Atlanta have since been deemed illegal by the National Labor Relations Board. And of course, Apple reportedly hasn't given up on undermining already unionized locations. Workers at that same Towson store claim the company is withholding new benefits seemingly in retaliation.
Amazon workers in Staten Island have likewise become the first to organize one of the company's warehouses — and not with an established union, either. Amazon Labor Union (ALU), a grassroots effort which officially established itself last April, secured a win against tremendous odds, less than a year after forming. Those odds, incidentally, included retaliatory firings of leaders, using police to intimidate and arrest organizers and an (unsuccessful) attempt to overturn the unionization vote. Amazon has previously illegally interfered with a union election and reportedly retains the services of operatives from the infamous Pinkerton agency to spy on workers and labor groups. The company's new CEO, Andy Jassy, recently violated labor laws in several interviews by openly stating his employees would be “better off without a union.” This is all to say ALU had a tremendous uphill climb and, incredibly, managed to pull it off.
As with Apple though, what we're talking about is a first step. The company has not bargained a contract yet with workers from ALU, and will likely forestall and undermine that process as much as possible, whether by legal or illegal means.
ALU's organizing efforts have branched out but have so far not found the same success. A warehouse in upstate New York voted overwhelmingly against unionization. However, management had put up digital banners at the same location ahead of its organizing drive instructing workers specifically not to sign union cards, again in apparent contravention of labor law. ALU withdrew a union petition to organize a warehouse in California in October, but has remained open to refiling. Apart from ALU, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters claimed last December that organizing Amazon facilities would be a top priority — seemingly it has focused those efforts on an Amazon Air hub in San Bernardino, where workers have walked out in August and October. The surrounding area — California's inland empire — is believed to be home to the highest density of Amazon facilities in the company's logistics network.
Microsoft, too, received an early Christmas present in the form of quality assurance testers at its subsidiary ZeniMax Media announcing their intention to unionize with the Communications Workers of America. While that election has not yet taken place, Microsoft's president Brad Smith penned a lengthy screed earlier this year supposedly espousing the company's openness to union representation within its ranks. To many (this author especially) Brad's words were hot air intended to assuage regulators who are weighing whether to allow the company to merge with games giant Activision-Blizzard. Incidentally if that deal goes through, Microsoft will be home to three bargaining units: this past year QA testers at Raven Software and Blizzard Albany successfully joined the CWA in May and December, respectively, becoming the first workers not only at Activision but at any major games publisher to do so.
Necessarily a huge number of other labor actions in the tech space have been left out of this recollection, but for the most part they fit the pattern above: lower-paid workers at wildly profitable companies whose wages have not even remotely kept up with inflation. Adding insult to injury, tech companies, broadly, did extremely well during the pandemic while these same frontline workers risked their health and safety. Then this year, once economic forecasts became gloomier, many were swept up in downsizing decisions. It's perfectly logical Amazon warehouse workers, games testers at Microsoft and Activision, support staff at Meta, cafeteria workers with Alphabet and Waymo, janitors at Twitter and retail associates at Apple, Google Fiber and Verizon would be unhappy with their work arrangements. It's the same reason rail workers, nurses and Starbucks baristas have been agitating, and the same reason approval for unions is the highest it's been since 1965. Things aren't working. The hand they've been dealt is unwinnable. And though an imperfect tool, unions are one of the few ways workers can attempt to renegotiate the terms.
Unfortunately, labor law in the US leaves much to be desired. Companies have incredible power to delay bargaining, wearing down their own workforces by attrition while cooking up excuses to fire, lay off or manage out organizing leaders. Even after the hurdle of winning a union election, according to Bloomberg Law, the mean negotiation time to secure a contract is over 13 months — and many take significantly longer. The penalties for breaking labor law are so minimal, especially for companies of Big Tech's size, as to be non-existent. Whether this groundswell of organizing continues to grow in the coming year remains in every way an open question, depending at least in part on economic realities. With layoffs continuing to ravage not just frontline workers but higher-wage tech jobs, there's reasons enough to suspect it might.
Europe has hit Facebook owner Meta with a complaint that its Marketplace classified service is unfair to competitors. By tying its main social media site to Marketplace, it has a "substantial distribution advantage" over rivals, the EU Commission wrote in a press release.
"With its Facebook social network, Meta reaches globally billions of monthly users and millions active advertisers," EU Antitrust Commissioner said in a statement. "Our preliminary concern is that Meta ties its dominant social network Facebook to its online classified ad services called Facebook Marketplace. This means that users of Facebook automatically have access to Facebook Marketplace, whether they want it or not."
In addition, the Commission found that Meta imposes imposes unfair trading conditions on competitors that advertise on Facebook or Instagram. That essentially allows it to use "ads-related data derived from competitors for the benefit of Facebook Marketplace," it said. The practices, if confirmed, would infringe on EU rules that prohibit the abuse of a dominant market position. The EU has the power to impose a fine of up to 10 percent of Meta's annual revenue and prohibit the behavior.
In a statement, Meta's head of EMEA competition said the "claims made by the European Commission are without foundation" and that the company "will continue to work with regulatory authorities to demonstrate that our product innovation is pro-consumer and pro-competitive."
Last year, the EU Commission launched an antitrust probe into Facebook's classified advertising practices to determine if it broke competition rules by using advertiser data to its own benefit. The so-called Statement of Objects released today is a formal step in EU antitrust investigations, informing parties of complaints raised against them. Meta can now examine the documents, reply in writing and request an oral hearing to present their comments, according to the Commission.
