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Android users in the UK may get the choice to pay for apps and services on the platform through a billing system other than Google's. Ten months after the United Kingdom's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) launched an investigation into the tech giant's payment system for in-app purchases, Google offered to give developers in the region the choice to use alternative options. The probe came following a separate investigation in which the CMA found Apple and Google held an "effective duopoly" on mobile ecosystems, and that Google's Play Store in particular could potentially lead "to higher prices and reduced choice for Android users."

At the moment, the CMA is asking for feedback on Google's proposals and will continue accepting them until May 19th. If the organization decides to make the proposals legally binding based on people's feedback, then developers will be able to offer a payment system of their own choosing, known as "Developer-only Billing" or DOB, in the UK. They could also offer an alternative payment system next to Google's in a scheme known as "User Choice Billing" (UCB). 

That said, Google will still collect service fees from developers, which typically cost them between 15 to 30 percent of their earnings — it will just be a bit lower than usual. When developers don't offer Google Play billing at all, their service fee will be reduced by 3 percent. If they choose to offer an alternative payment method alongside Google's, and a customer chooses that, their service fee will be lowered by 4 percent.

The tech giant explained in a post about its proposals: "The service fees for distributing apps via Android and Google Play will continue to be based on digital sales via our platform. The service fee is how we support our ongoing investments in Android and Google Play, reflects the value provided by Android and Google Play, and is how we earn money as a business."

Last year, Google allowed Android app developers to use third-party payments in several European Union states. The company also collects service fees in the EU no matter the billing system a user chooses, though the rates are also reduced if they pay using the alternative billing method.

Google says its commitments will be implemented in phases if the CMA decides to adopt them. The ability to add non-Google billing will initially be available to developers of non-gaming apps. Gaming app developers will be able to add alternative billing systems no later than October 2023.

Since February, Netflix has offered paid account sharing in Canada, New Zealand, Portugal and Spain. The add-on allows primary account holders to pay an additional fee every month to share their Netflix service with up to two people outside of their household. Now, it’s coming for US subscribers – or non-subscribers. The company wrote in its Q1 letter to shareholders: “In Q1, we launched paid sharing in four countries and are pleased with the results.” It added: “We are planning on a broad rollout, including in the US, in Q2.” Netflix has estimated more than 100 million non-paying households have access to its service – and it wants them to pay something.

Netflix will also close its DVD rental business in September. Yes, that’s still a thing.

– Mat Smith

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The Polestar 4 electric SUV arrives with 544 HP and no rear window

It also supports up to 200kW DC fast charging.

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Polestar has revealed its coupe-style electric SUV at the Shanghai Auto Show, and as expected, the Polestar 4 is a head-turner – but not for the driver. There's no rear window, so a camera provides the driver's rear view. With a large 102kWh battery, it has a 300-plus mile targeted range and $60,000 starting price, with both all-wheel and rear-wheel drive versions. It'll go on sale starting in China by the end of the year and launch in North America in 2024.

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Apple’s debut VR Headset might include workouts and fitness features

The company has reportedly been working with ‘a small number of developers.’

According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple’s mixed reality headset (maybe named Reality One or Reality Pro) will focus heavily on gaming, fitness, sports and collaboration tools. The headset is rumored to switch between virtual and augmented reality. It may even run Apple Fitness+ workouts in VR as well as support for immersive sports viewing, which could include 360-degree views at live events. It has the technology: Apple bought VR sports startup NextVR back in 2020. We’re expecting the company to announce the headset at WWDC 2023 – which isn’t far off.

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The best e-ink tablets for 2023

Scribble to your heart’s content.

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Is it time to replace your notebook with something high-tech? There’s been a boom in e-ink tablets to replace your myriad notebooks with something that can connect to the internet, detect your handwriting and more. We tested a bunch of the most popular e-ink tablets available now – and we have recommendations.

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Xiaomi's 13 Ultra features four Leica-tuned cameras

These cover focal lengths across 12mm, 23mm, 75mm and 120mm.

After debuting the first "1-inch" mobile camera sensor with the 12S Ultra last year, Xiaomi is back with a familiar-looking new phone with some significant upgrades. The Xiaomi 13 Ultra packs not three but four rear Leica cameras, with the main camera using the same "1-inch" 50-megapixel sensor, but with variable aperture to toggle between f/1.9 and f/4.0. The Xiaomi 13 Ultra is already available for pre-order in China, starting from 5,999 yuan (around $870). While it’s unlikely to launch in the US directly, we’ve been told the phone will reach international markets at some point. If you’re tempted, you may be able to import one.

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Paramount+ greenlights Star Trek film starring Michelle Yeoh

The recent Oscar winner will reprise her ‘Discovery’ character.

Paramount+ is finally making the long-rumored Star Trek Section 31 project, starring recent Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh. However, this won’t be a TV show, but a feature-length movie. A Yeoh-led Star Trek: Section 31 has been in development since 2019, transitioning from a series to an “event film” with this latest announcement, according to Variety. Star Trek: Section 31 joins multiple forthcoming Trek projects, including a just-announced Starfleet Academy show and upcoming seasons of Star Trek: Prodigy, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds and Star Trek: Lower Decks. Star Trek: Picard finishes its three-season run this week, and Star Trek: Discovery returns for a final season sometime next year.

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It's a great time to shop for SSDs and memory cards if you've been looking to expand your devices' storage capacities. Samsung's products are on sale for up to 57 percent off at Amazon, some of which are now listed for their all-time low prices on the website. The Samsung 512GB microSDXC Pro Plus card that comes with a USB reader, for instance, will set you back $48. That's the lowest price we've seen for the product, which typically sells for $55 and used to sell for as much as $115. It has read/write speeds of 160/120 MB/s and can store up to 30 hours of videos shot in 4K.

Another option is Samsung's Evo Select 128GB microSDXC card with adapter, which currently sells for only $12 or 40 percent off its list price of $20. It's a U3-rated card that has transfer speeds of up to 130MB/s, and Samsung recommends it for use not just with mobile devices, but also with the Nintendo Switch console. 

But if what you're looking for is a memory card for dashcams or security cameras, then Samsung's 128GB Pro Endurance microSDXC card may be the better choice. Samsung designed the model to be able to record and rewrite footage up to hundreds of thousands of hours in length, or up to eight years of continuous recording for the 128GB version. The company also says it designed the model to last and to be able to withstand being exposed to magnets, X-rays, water, harsh temperatures, as well as being dropped. 

In case you're looking to give your computer's storage capacity a boost instead, Samsung's 980 Pro internal SSD is also on sale. The 500GB variant will set you back $60, which is an all-time low for the SSD and is 57 percent lower than its list price of $140. It can reach read speeds of up to 3500MB/s and write speeds of up to 3400MB/s. Samsung says the Pro SSD was designed specifically for hardcore gamers and tech-savvy users, since it has the capability to handle heavy-duty applications for gaming, graphics and data analytics, among others. The model is also available in 1TB and 2TB if you need even more space. 

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

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Tesla has slashed its electric vehicles' prices for the sixth time this year, on the eve of its next earnings report. It has quietly lowered the price for the Model 3, so that the the rear-wheel drive variant now starts at $39,990 or $2,000 less than what buyers would pay for it as recently as earlier this month. If you'll recall, the automaker already cut $1,000 off its price and started selling it for $41,990 the last time it implemented price cuts just a couple of weeks ago. And earlier this year, Tesla cut its prices quite drastically across its lineup, with some models getting a price drop of as much as 20 percent.

As Tesla notes on its website, though, the rear-wheel drive model now only qualifies for $3,750 in tax credits after the government's change in guidelines took effect on April 18th. The new rules are related to the US cutting off China as an approved trading partner, which would lead to EVs using China-made batteries losing tax credits as a result. To note, Tesla's other cars are still eligible for the full $7,500 tax credits, including the Model Y vehicles that also got a price cut. 

The base, the Long Range and the Performance Model Y vehicles now cost $3,000 less than before. The base Model Y will now set buyers back $46,990, while the Long Range and Performance vehicles now cost $49,990 and $53,990, respectively. When Tesla reported its earnings for 2022 in January this year, Elon Musk said the company was seeing orders "almost twice the rate of production." According to Bloomberg, though, Tesla was unable to sustain that rate of demand and has made the lowest number of deliveries in the first quarter of this year since 2021. Since the company reportedly produced thousands of vehicles more than it handed over to customers, these price cuts were likely implemented to sell existing inventory and to drum up demand going forward.

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Netflix is about to bring its fight against account sharing to the US. “In Q1, we launched paid sharing in four countries and are pleased with the results,” the company wrote in its Q1 letter to shareholders. “We are planning on a broad rollout, including in the US, in Q2.”

Since February, Netflix has offered paid account sharing in Canada, New Zealand, Portugal and Spain. The add-on allows primary account holders to pay an additional fee every month to share their Netflix service with up to two people outside of their household. As the main owner of an account, you can still watch on your phone and sign into the service on a device outside your home, like a smart TV at a hotel. Netflix also allows secondary users to convert their profiles into new accounts.

“A Netflix account is meant to be shared in one household (people who live in the same location with the account owner),” the company says on a support page. “People who are not in your household will need to sign up for their own account to watch Netflix.”

In the past, Netflix has estimated more than 100 million non-paying households have access to its service through free account sharing. The company says the practice limits its ability to invest in new content. It’s also aware the decision to restrict account sharing is likely to lead to cancelations. The expansion of paid account sharing comes on the same day Netflix said it would sunset its DVD rental business in September.

After 25 years, Netflix's original business is shutting down. The company has revealed that it will "wind down" DVD rentals (that is. DVD.com), with its last movie discs mailing on September 29th. Simply put, the shrinking demand for physical rentals is making it "increasingly difficult" to offer the service the company wants.

Netflix shipped its first disc (Beetlejuice, if you're curious) in 1998. It has since mailed over 5.2 billion movies in its signature red envelopes (nearly all of them before 2019) to more than 40 million customers. You likely know the story after that. The company began streaming on-demand video in 2007, and that business grew quickly enough that it became Netflix's dominant offering. After a premature attempt to spin off the mailed rentals as Qwikster in 2011, Netflix moved them to DVD.com in 2016. By that point, the company was well into producing original streaming shows.

Developing...

Months later than rumored, Meta's Horizon Worlds is opening its doors to younger teens. The company is making its metaverse space accessible to teens aged 13 to 17 in the US and Canada in the weeks ahead. Unsurprisingly, the company is promising "robust" safety measures and parental controls — it wants to be sure the experience is age-appropriate, and the gradual rollout will help it gauge how well those protections are working.

Teens' Horizon Worlds profiles will be private by default, and won't automatically show locations or active statuses. They won't see unfamiliar adults in their "people you might know" lists. Age ratings prevent teens from creating or using mature content, and a "voice mode" garbles the voices of anyone that isn't following back. These younger users will also get safety tips while they're in VR. 

Parents can use the Meta Quest app or Family Center (now available for Horizon Worlds) to control features like personal boundaries. They can also allow or block apps, track usage and see who's following who. All users can cast their VR view to an external screen, so a parent in the room can see what's happening.

The strategy closely reflects Meta's approach to teen safety on Facebook and Instagram. That won't necessarily please everyone. Senators have urged Meta to keep teens off Horizon Worlds over concerns the company's safeguards may be inadequate. They've noted that Meta's own research revealed harm to some teens, and that other virtual spaces like VRChat are prone to predatory and toxic behavior.

There's plenty of pressure on Meta to expand, however. The social media giant has struggled to pivot to the metaverse, and continues to lose billions investing in the Reality Labs unit behind Horizon Worlds and Quest headsets. A wider teen audience could boost Horizon's audience and spur the market for VR hardware.