ArduinoMania

World of Warcraft Classic will return to the Wrath of the Lich King era on September 26th, Blizzard announced on Monday. WotLK is widely considered one of the best expansions in World of Warcraft’s nearly 20-year history. Even if subsequent releases went on to expand the game’s mechanics in more interesting and creative ways, few hit thematically in the way that WotLK did. For those who loved Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne, it felt special to set foot on the shores of Northrend for the first time and explore the continent from a new perspective, and then eventually fight Arthas as part of the Icecrown Citadel raid.

Ahead of the expansion’s arrival, Blizzard is introducing a new leveling mechanic called Joyous Journeys. Starting today, Burning Crusade Classic players can visit an innkeeper at one of their faction’s capital cities to toggle a 50 percent experience boost. You can use the boost to finish leveling an existing character or start working on a new one. The boost will be available until the launch of WotLK Classic. For those who want to create a Death Knight once the expansion arrives, you won’t need an existing level 55 character on a server to do so as was the case with the original release.

Blizzard will include Wrath of the Lich King Classic with all World of Warcraft subscriptions, meaning you won’t have to purchase the expansion separately if you want to bring your old guild back together.

The Energy Department's Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Program (ATVMP) hasn't offered a loan to an electric car maker since 2010, but it's ready to offer money once again. As Reutersreports, the Energy Department is providing a $2.5 billion loan to the GM and LG joint venture Ultium Cells for the sake of constructing EV battery cell factories. This is the government agency's first loan for battery production under the program.

The money will be used for manufacturing plants in Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee. It will come with conditions (unspecified as of this writing), and is expected to close sometime in the months ahead. Production starts at the Ohio plant in August, and should be followed by Tennessee in late 2023 and Michigan in 2024. Ultium in a statement characterized the deal as beneficial for the country, and expected it to create 5,000 US jobs.

All previous loans under ATVMP went to car manufacturers in the early days of EVs, including Tesla, Ford and Nissan. The efforts have so far been fruitful. Tesla, for instance, grew quickly with help from the loan during its early days. It finished repaying the Energy Department in 2013, nine years ahead of schedule.

The GM loan isn't surprising. While the brand has extensive car manufacturing capacity, it's racing to establish battery factories that will help it both clear an order backlog and produce relatively mainstream models like the upcoming Blazer and Equinox EVs. Extra funding may help GM cope with demand. President Biden, meanwhile, wants zero-emissions vehicles to represent half of all new sales by 2030 — that won't happen unless GM and others can ramp up production to meet demand.

Daedalic Entertainment has delayed The Lord of the Rings: Gollum a little more than five weeks before it was due to debut on September 1st. The studio took to Twitter on Monday to announce it would need more time to complete work on the game. “In order to deliver the best possible experience, we have decided to push the release of The Lord of the Rings: Gollum by a few months,” Daedalic said. The studio did not share a new release date but promised to do so “in the near future.”

First announced in 2019 with a 2021 release window, Daedalic eventually went on to push the game back to 2022 at the start of last year. It shared the previous September 1st release date in May. Set during the early chapters of The Fellowship of the Ring, Daedalic is billing Gollum as a “cinematic stealth adventure.” Part of the game involves navigating a narrative system that reflects Gollum’s dual personalities. Once the game finally arrives, it will be available on PlayStation 4, PS5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and PC.

Funko, which is best known for its Pop vinyl figurines, is about to venture into new territory. It's making video games with the help of developer 10:10 Games. The studio is led by Jon Burton, the founder of Traveller's Tales and TT Games. “By partnering with 10:10 Games and utilizing the best creators in the business, we will have the talent to deliver games that reflect Funko’s unique look and feel across its lines and varied products," Funko CEO Andrew Perlmutter said in a statement.

The first game under the partnership is an action platformer that's coming to PC and consoles in 2023. Funko says the untitled game will have "major third-party studio integration," which probably shouldn't be a big shock given the high-profilelicensing deals Funko has for collectibles and Burton's experience with the various Lego games. Meanwhile, Funko expects the game to have a “T” for teen rating. The first teaser shows a Pop-style character called Freddie Funko, but offers few other details.

In late June, Blizzard delayed Diablo Immortal’s Chinese launch mere days before the game was set to debut in the country after co-developer NetEase seemingly drew the ire of government censors over an ill-advised social media post. The episode was a reminder of the tightrope act foreign game developers often have to pull off to release their games in China.

Now, newly published documents by Motherboard offer a rare insight into the steps some companies will take to comply with China’s censorship laws. The publication obtained an internal presentation created by Roblox in 2017 as the company was working toward entering the Chinese market.

In addition to highlighting the lengths Roblox was prepared to go to appease Chinese censors, the documents reveal the risks the company was willing to shoulder. One of the presentation's more interesting insights is that Roblox expected its game would be hacked, likely by whatever firm it partnered with to bring Roblox to China. “Expect that hacking has already started,” states one bullet point. “Expect it to ramp up after a deal is signed, possibly even by partner.”

There’s no evidence Tencent, the company Roblox eventually partnered with, ever targeted the game, but the company clearly had reservations about working with the tech giant. The slides warn a relationship with Tencent would require Roblox to “keep our guard up.” Additionally, they show Roblox also considered working with NetEase and even had a favorable assessment of the company. “Direct, down-to-Earth, flexible problem solvers, acting in the interests of a joint venture,” one slide states. It’s unclear why Roblox ultimately went with Tencent over NetEase, but the fact the former promised the “fastest way to mega acquisition” probably played a part in the decision.

Roblox did not immediately respond to Engadget’s request for comment, but the company did share a statement with Motherboard.

“The slide you reference was from 2017, before we had a formal joint venture relationship in place,” a Roblox spokesperson told the outlet. “As normal for a company entering into a new market, we consider risks and opportunities and plan for them.” The spokesperson added the company’s policy is to comply with the laws of the regions where it operates.

In the end, whatever plans Roblox made to ensure a smooth entry into the Chinese market were not enough. Five months after Roblox launched within the country, the company temporarily shut down the Chinese client to take “important transitory actions.” If you want to read more about the factors Roblox considered before entering China, make sure to read Motherboard’s full report.

Anker has revealed its third-gen gallium nitride (GaN) chargers, just over a year after the previous batch. The company is branding the new lineup of power bricks and portable chargers as GaNPrime. Anker said it worked with several partners to create products that last longer and are more sustainable. It claims the GaNPrime is the "most intelligent, most powerful and greenest multi-device charging system ever created."

The GaNPrime chargers boast the latest version of Anker's PowerIQ tech, which can detect the power needs of each device they're connected to and automatically adjust the power distribution to each USB-C port every three minutes. Anker says that, when two 67W 14-inch MacBook Pro laptops are being charged simultaneously, a GaNPrime device will reduce the overall charging time by 62 minutes. It also says GaNPrime chargers are compatible with more than 1,000 mobile devices. 

On top of that, a feature called ActiveShield 2.0 will monitor temperatures and adjust the power output to protect devices that are connected to a charger. Anker says it has increased the temperature detection frequency by 75 percent compared with previous generations — it monitors temperatures 3 million times a day.

Anker claims its new devices are much smaller than comparable offerings on the market. For instance, it says the 150W 747 charger is 38 percent more compact than Apple's 140W charger. Meanwhile, Anker says GaNPrime models improve the efficiency of AC to DC power by two percent compared with its previous GaN products. Switching from legacy silicon to new GaN semiconductors can reduce carbon emissions by up to 30 percent as well, Anker claims.

There are six devices in the initial GaNPrime lineup, all of which are available starting today in the US. The 65W 735 charger costs $60 and has one USB-A and two USB-C ports. The 615 USB Power Strip has has an additional two AC ports. That's also a 65W charger and it costs $70.

Next up is the 737 charger, which has a maximum output of 120W and, according to Anker, can fully charge a 16-inch MacBook Pro in 1.5 hours. That model, which has one USB-A and three USB-C ports, costs $95. The even more powerful 747 charger has a maximum output of 150W, one USB-A port and three USB-C ports. It will run you $110.

Anker

The slim 727 Charging Station is a power strip with two AC, two USB-C and two 2 USB-A ports. Anker claims it's 50 percent thinner than traditional power strips. It offers a maximum output of 100W via USB-C and it costs $95.

Elsewhere, the GaNPrime lineup includes the 733 Power Bank. It can output up to 65W via AC and offers DC output of 30W (i.e. when it's in battery mode). It has one USB-A and two USB-C ports, and it costs $100.

The Play Store is officially 10 years old, and Google is eager to mark the occasion. On top of a new logo in line with the tech giant's current aesthetic (see above), there's a promotion starting July 25th that offers 10 times the usual Play Points to rewards program members who make purchases.

Google launched the Play Store in 2012 to unify all its online stores of the era under a single umbrella: Android Market (apps), music, e-books and videos. You could effectively buy anything Google offered through one website or a handful of apps. For a while, you could also shop a digital newsstand and hardware products like Nexus devices and Chromebooks. The service has unsurprisingly been popular given its importance to Android, with over 2.5 billion people using the store every month across 190 countries.

The anniversary comes as the service is evolving. The company rebadged Play Newsstand as Google News in 2018, and wound down Play Music in 2020 as it finished transitioning to YouTube Music. This year, Google is pulling the Movies & TV section to put its content in the TV app. The Play Store is still intact, but it's considerably more focused than it was a decade ago.

The Play Store has also endured its share of controversy. While the Play Protect anti-malware system and data safety listings have made the store more trustworthy than in its early days, there are still occasional instances of shady apps dodging Google's screening system. Google has also drawn flak for its policies. Fortnite creator Epic Games and others have accused Google of stifling the use of third-party payment systems, and even blocking manufacturer deals. Google even tightened its policies this June, requiring that a host of apps use the Play Store's billing system.

The European Union partly reversed that approach with legislation requiring access to third-party payment platforms. Other regulators have demanded similar changes. As important as the Play Store has been to Android and Google as a whole, there's a chance it will lose some of its clout in the years ahead.

Google has started making good on its promise to update and optimize 20 of its apps for tablets. The tech giant has rolled out a number of new features for Google Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides and Keep, which all take advantage of tablets' larger screens. They're tools you can use to make it easier to juggle multiple tasks and to transfer content from one app to another when you have two windows open side-by-side. You can now easily drag-and-drop text and images from apps like Chrome, for instance, to a Google document or a spreadsheet cell. That could make writing up notes or reports go much quicker than before.

If you need to upload anything to Google Drive, you can simply open the app in a split window and then drag-and-drop the files in. You can now even open two Drive windows side-by-side, so you can compare files without losing the current view for whatever's already open. Sounds useful if you're reviewing particularly lengthy PDF files or documents. To access the feature, make sure to click the three-dot menu on a Drive file and choose the "Open in new window" option.

Now, if you want to create links for direct access to specific drive files, you can easily do so by dragging files into Google Keep. And if you have any images in Keep that you want to use elsewhere, you can drag them out of a note and into another app. Finally, you'll now be able to use keyboard shortcuts such as select, cut, copy, paste, undo and redo while navigating Drive, Docs and Slides if you're using a keyboard with your tablet.  

Google hasn't exactly been prioritizing Android tablet users over the past few years, but Android 12L's release seems like a promising start in its attempt to address the platform's shortcomings for larger screens. When it announced that it was going to optimize its apps at Google I/O back in May, the company showed it was getting serious about building apps for Android tablets again. Hopefully, that doesn't change and future updates could continue improving the Android experience for tablet users.

DJI's Action 2 is an option worth paying attention to if you're in the market for an rugged camera, and now might be the time to scoop one up. It's currently on sale as part of a bundle on Amazon for $279, which is a third off the regular price of $419.

What helps set the Action 2 apart from other rugged camera options is a magnetic modular mounting system that can boost the functionality. This bundle includes a magnetic protective case that's designed to reduce the surface temperature. In addition, you'll get a battery module. DJI says this can extend the battery life from 70 minutes to up to 180 minutes while adding an extra microSD slot. You'll also get a magnetic lanyard, so you can wear the Action 2 around your neck.

A module with a second touchscreen is available separately, which could be helpful for vlogging use. A bundle of the camera and the dual-screen module is also a third off on Amazon at the minute. Meanwhile, since it uses magnets, attaching the Action 2 to a mount should be a cinch.

DJI announced the Action 2 last year as a successor to the Osmo camera from 2019 — some Osmo accessories are compatible with the Action 2. The latest model has a 12-megapixel sensor that can capture 4K video at up to 120 frames per second and 1080p footage at up to 240 frames per second for your slow-motion edits. The camera has a 155-degree field of view as well.

There's a sensor designed to help it capture accurate color tones in challenging lighting conditions and while it's being used underwater. DJI says the Action 2 is waterproof at depths of up to 10 meters, as well as dustproof and drop proof. In addition, the SpanShot feature allows users to hold down the power button to turn on the camera and start recording right away. There's also a stabilization system called HorizonSteady. DJI says its algorithm can detect and correct camera shake and rotation in real-time.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

After months of teasing, the NFL has launched its expected streaming service. The newly available NFL+ gives you access to live football streams and ad-free library content through the NFL App and the web starting at $40 per year or $5 per month. Spend $80 per year or $10 per month on NFL+ Premium and you'll also get ad-free match replays (both full and condensed) across devices as well as Coaches Film features like All-22.

There are some significant catches, however. While you'll have live audio for every game regardless of device, live video is only available for live local and "primetime" games on phones and tablets — you can't use this to watch a playoff run through your computer or TV. Preseason games are limited to out-of-market showdowns (on all devices), although arguably a perk when you can often find local preseason games on TV for free.

The NFL+ debut puts an end to Game Pass in the US. Not that you'll necessarily mind — even the Premium tier is less expensive than the outgoing $100 per year offering. While you won't have as much freedom as you might like, the new offering might make more sense if you normally watch on mobile or just want to catch the occasional game while away.