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If you love technology as much as we do and have writing chops to boot, we want to hear from you. Engadget is looking for freelance news writers in the US! Interested applicants should send a cover letter, resume and links to three writing samples to jobs at engadget dot com. Here’s the deal:

Contributing writer

Engadget is looking for ambitious and enthusiastic freelance writers capable of telling compelling stories about technology, science and the future of everything. The ideal candidate will put important news in proper context with minimal fluff, find an interesting and original angle from which to tackle a story, explain complicated subjects simply and clearly, and do this all reasonably quickly.

As a writer at Engadget you'll be an essential part of our dedicated and passionate news team. Our ideal candidates will have some solid professional media experience under their belt, but we're also open to early-career writers who are ready to hustle. You'll gain valuable experience and exposure in a fast-paced, online newsroom. Plus, you'll have access to some of the finest writers and reporters in the business who can offer invaluable lessons on how to thrive in the modern media landscape.

Freelance contributing writers will take on between three and five assignments per day (sometime between 8AM and 9PM ET, but your exact schedule is negotiable). We are currently looking for writers located in the US, or anyone willing to work during US business hours. Shifts will be a minimum of four hours.

We're looking for:

• Preferably someone who already has some professional tech/science/auto bylines under their belt.

• A familiarity with and sincere interest in consumer technology.

• A writer with a strong, lively voice who can turn in clean copy quickly.

• Works well with others, and is receptive to feedback.

• Experience with Photoshop or other photo editing software is a plus.

MoviePass is about to write the next chapter in its turbulent history. A beta of the revived service will launch on or around September 5th (Labor Day). Pricing will vary depending on each market, but it will be a tiered system costing around $10, $20 or $30 per month. Insider, which first reported the relaunch details, notes that users will get a number of credits each month to see movies in theaters. There won't be an unlimited plan at the outset.

MoviePass cofounder Stacy Spikes announced at a launch event earlier this year that users will be able to transfer credits. There was no mention of that in an FAQ, though it says more details will be revealed later. The FAQ does not provide details of the Web3 framework Spikes said the service would use, nor was there any mention of the eye-tracking tech the app will supposedly employ to reward users with credits for watching ads.

Those who want to try out the revamped MoviePass can join a first-come, first-served waitlist, which will open at 9AM ET on Thursday on the company's website and close at 11:59PM on Monday. The beta will have a limited number of users and MoviePass will start sending invites on September 5th. If you're selected and you become a member, you'll receive 10 invites that you can send to friends. Returning users who are on the waitlist will receive extra credits when they join.

The beta won't go live across the entire US at once. In the FAQ, MoviePass says the "launch determination will be weighted on level of engagement from the waitlist in each market as well as locations of exhibition partners." It added that the service will be available at all major theaters in the US that accept major credit cards. The company says it has officially partnered with a quarter of US theaters.

There will be a physical card again, though it will be black instead of red. You can use it to pick up tickets at a theater's box office. Alternatively, you can book tickets through the MoviePass app.

Spikes, who regained control of MoviePass last November, created the service with Hamet Watt in 2011. Helios and Matheson Analytics (HMNY) bought the service in 2017. A subscription plan introduced that year offered users a movie ticket a day for $10 per month. That approach unsurprisingly proved unsustainable despite the plan's popularity. The app shut down in 2019.

HMNY filed for bankruptcy the following year amid investigations from the Federal Trade Commission, Securities and Exchange Commission, several district attorneys in California and New York's attorney general. Among its other questionable business practices, MoviePass at one point forced those on an annual plan to renew their subscription three months early if they wanted to keep it. Former CEO Mitch Lowe suggested that the app was tracking users' locations too. Lowe, fellow principal Theodore Farnsworth and HMNY reached a settlement with the FEC last year over charges that they prevented subscribers from using the service and didn't do enough to secure users' data.

The revival of MoviePass comes at a time when theaters are still struggling to drum up business in the wake of pandemic-imposed closures. Regal Cinemas owner Cineworld, the second-largest movie theater chain in the world, said today that it's considering filing for bankruptcy. The company has around $5 billion in debt. It claimed that the relative lack of blockbusters this year has left it struggling to draw movie fans back to theaters. Global box office revenue this year is down by a third compared with 2019.

The James Webb Space Telescope team is still flexing its ability to capture detailed images close to home. Webb has snapped a pair of near-infrared photos showing Jupiter's polar auroras. You can also see the planet's extremely faint rings and two of its smaller moons, Amalthea (the bright spot to the far left) and Adrastea (the dot at the left edge of the central ring).

The pictures were taken using NIRCam's widefield view on July 27th. As for the trippy visuals? Astronomers created composites using several images produced with filters mapped to multiple colors (particularly visible in the image below). The Great Red Spot and other cloud formations are white as they reflect large amounts of sunlight.

NASA, ESA, Jupiter ERS Team; image processing by Judy Schmidt

The James Webb crew didn't just create these images for the sake of bragging rights. The observations should provide more insights into Jupiter's "inner life," according to the European Space Agency. That, in turn, could help scientists understand the behavior of gas giants beyond the Solar System. In other words, Webb's data could soon prove useful on multiple levels.

Apple's Self Service Repair program is no longer limited to iPhones. The company is adding M1-based MacBook Air and Pro systems to the program on August 23rd, giving you access to official parts and tools to fix your laptop at home. You can replace the display, the battery (plus the top case), trackpad and other major components. As before, you're using "many" of the same resources you'd find at an Apple retail store or authorized repair shop.

You'll pay $49 to rent a repair kit. TechCrunchnotes part pricing is the same as for third-party service centers, ranging from $12 for an audio board through to $580 for a motherboard. You'll have to trade in your old parts to get these prices (a motherboard costs three times as much otherwise), but Apple will recycle anything it can't rescue. Don't expect to use this as a memory or storage upgrade — Apple will charge the full amount if you buy a board that doesn't match the computer you bought.

The program will expand to more Macs and countries later this year. As usual, Apple recommends repairs only to experienced users. It's still pointing the "vast majority" of customers to approved repair facilities.

The program kicked off in April, and is widely seen as Apple's response to Right to Repair laws and regulations, including at the federal level. It won't necessarily reduce government scrutiny, and may not change much for DIY repair fans who've turned to unofficial sources like iFixit. Still, this could be welcome news if you'd rather not rely on a technician to maintain your Mac.

YouTube's interest in podcasts appears to extend beyond paying creators to make videos. 9to5Googlenotes YouTube has quietly launched a podcast Explore page. Only some people can access it on desktop or mobile, but those that can will see popular channels, episodes and playlists as well as categories and recommended shows. At present, you'll see standard video thumbnails and playback controls, even if you're a YouTube Premium subscriber who normally sees listening-oriented options.

We've asked YouTube for comment. The Explore page appears to have gone live near the end of July, but is only now becoming more widely available. It's not clear what (if anything) will happen to Google Podcasts.

Engadget

While YouTube's longer-term plans aren't evident, the new area suggests the Google brand is positioning itself as an alternative to major podcast clients like Apple Podcasts and Spotify. That wouldn't be surprising if so. YouTube already hosts numerous podcasts, particularly those that have video versions. The Explore page could draw more attention to those productions and encourage more podcasters to publish their work on YouTube.

Google has made some solid wireless earbuds over the past couple of years, but the latest Pixel Buds Pro are its best yet. We gave them a score of 87 when we reviewed them last month, and now you can pick the buds up while they're on discount for the first time. Amazon has the Pixel Buds Pro in charcoal and lemongrass for $175, which is $25 off their usual price and a record low. The more affordable Pixel Buds A-Series have also been discounted to $69, which is their lowest price yet.

Essentially, Google made small changes to the earbuds' design and also added a few key features to make them worthy of the "Pro" moniker. The buds themselves are bit more oval shaped than the previous models, helping them fit better into the contours of the ear. They're IPX4-rated, so they'll survive sweaty workouts, and they have onboard controls that let you play/pause, skip tracks, adjust the volume and switch between ANC and transparency mode.

ANC is arguably the biggest new feature on the Pixel Buds Pro, and Google did a pretty good job with it. The buds use a six-core audio chip for active noise cancellation, and a feature called Silent Seal helps block out even more noise and minimize sound leaks. All of those things combine to make solid ANC that blocks out noises like a TV show playing in the same room as you or sounds of people talking nearby. Sound quality is also quite good and Google added a feature called Volume EQ that automatically adjusts tuning when you change the volume, so the highs, miss and lows are more balanced and nuanced at any volume.

The buds' companion app lets you do things like customize touch controls, change sound modes, fine-tune Google Assistant features and check in on the last known location of the earbuds. You can also turn on automatic switching between Android devices in the app, which will come in handy when you use a few devices in tandem. Finally, when it comes to battery life, you'll get roughly 13 hours out of the Pixel Buds Pro when using ANC or up to 20 hours with that feature turned off. Google also added wireless charging capabilities to the buds' carrying case, which is a feature that previous iterations didn't have. So while the Pixel Buds Pro are Google's most expensive wireless earbuds to date, they're also its best sounding, most capable and most versatile buds yet.

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Ahead of the premiere of HBO’s new Game Of Thrones spin-off, House of the Dragon, the company shared the first glimpse of its adaptation of PlayStation’s The Last of Us. In a trailer published on YouTube, we get a heady 20 seconds of Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey as Joel and Ellie, including a flashback to Joel interacting with his daughter. The 10-episode series should premiere in early 2023.

— Mat Smith

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Lincoln replaced the steering wheel with a 'chess piece controller' in its new concept car

It drives itself.

Lincoln

Last week, Lincoln revealed the Model L100, its futuristic foray into electrified mobility, which draws inspiration from the company’s very first luxury sedan, the 1922 Model L. The Model L100 tries to match the opulence of the original, with “next generation battery cell and pack technologies” that apparently deliver “game changing energy density.” Instead of a steering wheel, it has a “jewel-inspired chess piece controller that captures light and depth by redefining the vehicle controls inside the cabin.” Sure.

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Scientists may have found an affordable way to destroy forever chemicals

PFAS are everywhere and have been linked to negative health effects.

A team of scientists may have found a safe, affordable way to destroy forever chemicals. PFAS, or perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are in many household items, including non-stick Teflon pans and dental floss. They share one common feature: a carbon-fluorine backbone that is one of the strongest known bonds in organic chemistry. It’s what gives PFAS-treated cookware its non-stick quality, while also making them harmful to humans. A group of scientists have been able to break down these PFAS with a mix of sodium hydroxide and an organic solvent called dimethyl sulfoxide.

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The Sega Genesis Mini 2's 60-game line-up includes two unreleased titles

Let’s not forget the Sega CD classics.

Sega has unveiled the complete list of games coming with the Genesis Mini 2, and it's clear the new machine is as much for collectors as it is nostalgic fans. The 60-game catalog includes two previously unreleased games, for starters. There’s Devi & Pii, a "paddle-style" game designed by Sonic 3's Takashi Iizuka, as well as Mindware's finished but unpublished puzzler Star Mobile. I think the 12 Sega CD titles — including Night Trap and CD versions of classics Sonic the Hedgehog and Ecco the Dolphin — are the most exciting part.

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Search ads could arrive in Apple Maps as early as next year

The company may have already allocated resources to the project.

Apple could integrate ads into Maps by next year, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. Gurman says the company has begun preparing the software to support search ads. He previously reported the company had tested an internal version of Maps that included search ads. Apple already serves ads through its App Store. Developers can pay the company to prioritize their software in search results, ensuring it shows up at the top of the page when users input specific terms. Search ads within Maps would work in a similar way, says Gurman.

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A group of Apple employees is pushing back against a looming deadline demanding they return to working in the office. The Financial Times has seen a petition, circulated by employee group Apple Together, requesting more flexibility around remote work. It’s in response to an edict that demanded workers return to working in the company’s Santa Clara Valley offices for at least three days a week starting September 5th, 2022.

It’s the latest in a series of attempts by Apple to return to the status quo ante after COVID-19 forced it to adopt home working. Tim Cook has always emphasized the important nature of in-person collaboration as fundamental to Apple’s business and success. Apple Together, however, says that the company’s culture of secrecy makes chance moments of inspiration impossible, and that workers are happier and more productive with a more flexible arrangement.

The announcement of a new working model has already seen a tweak after pushback — the original plan was to enforce office working on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. Now, the order is for Tuesday and Thursday, with the third office to be set by both the employee and their manager. Even so, the rigidity of the announcement has already seen Apple’s head of machine learning, Ian Goodfellow, quit the company (to go to Google) in search of more flexible work.

Apple Together has become a powerful voice inside a company that has previously been famed for its culture of secrecy. Revelations published earlier this year say that the company retaliated against women who reported incidents of misconduct, including sexual assault. Ashley Gjøvik was fired after attempting to blow the whistle about unsafe working conditions at an office in Sunnyvale. The company also stands accused of union busting after its retail employees at several locations across the US started discussing forming a union.

HBO has shared the first footage from its upcoming live-action adaptation of The Last of Us. In a trailer the streamer published on YouTube before the premiere of House of the Dragon, we see about 20 seconds of Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey as Joel and Ellie. Despite the short length of the clip, it's filled with moments fans will recognize. We see an exchange between Joel and Ellie that's lifted directly from the original game. There's even a flashback featuring Joel's biological daughter. The footage also offers a glimpse of Nick Offerman as Bill.

Expectations for the series are already riding high. In addition to a star-studded cast, Craig Mazin of Chernobyl fame is involved in the project as writer, creator and executive producer, as is the game's original creative director, Neil Druckmann. The series is expected to premiere in early 2023. The first season will feature 10 episodes.  

Apple could integrate ads into Maps as early as next year, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. Writing in his latest Power On newsletter, Gurman says the company’s engineering team has already begun preparing the software to support search ads. Consumers will reportedly see Apple begin integrating that work starting sometime in 2023.

Gurman previously reported that the company had recently tested an internal version of Maps that included search ads. Apple already serves such advertisements through the App Store. Developers can pay the company to prioritize their software in search results, ensuring it shows up at the top of the page when users input specific terms. Gurman said search ads within Maps would work in much the same way. For example, a Mexican restaurant could pay Apple for their business to show up higher in local listings when people search for terms like “tacos” and “ceviche.”

At the time, Gurman suggested the test was part of a plan by Apple to significantly expand its advertising revenue. He attributed the push to Todd Teresi, the vice president in charge of the company’s ads business. The division generates about $4 billion in annual revenue, a number Teresi hopes to increase to at least $10 billion per year over time.