Netflix is finally gearing up to do something about unauthorized account sharing. After testing a notification last year that pushed people to stop mooching and get their own Netflix accounts, the company has announced another test in Chile, Costa Rica and Peru that will let subscribers pay extra to share their account with people outside of their home. According to Variety, subscribers will be able to add up to two "sub-members" for $2.99 each in Costa Rica. Those users will get their own Netflix logins, recommendations and profile.
Additionally, Netflix will also let subscribers in those countries transfer individual profiles to completely separate accounts. That'll make it easy for moochers to keep their queue and recommendations intact. The company isn't committing to these features globally yet, but if it works out in those countries, don't be surprised if it starts nagging your parents to pay extra for your account.
"We’ve always made it easy for people who live together to share their Netflix account, with features like separate profiles and multiple streams in our Standard and Premium plans," Chengyi Long, director of Netflix Product Innovation, said in a blog post. "While these have been hugely popular, they have also created some confusion about when and how Netflix can be shared. As a result, accounts are being shared between households - impacting our ability to invest in great new TV and films for our members."
If anything, it's surprising it's taken Netflix this long to do something about account sharing. The practice is explicitly forbidden in the company's Terms of Service, but it's something many people do anyway. (And really, grandma doesn't need her own account just to watch her stories.) After raising its prices in North America earlier this year, it wouldn't be too shocking to see the company push for additional fees.
Intel's quest to deliver the perfect mini-desktop continues with the NUC 12 Extreme, its latest "next unit of computing" DIY kit. Code-named "Dragon Canyon," it's basically a slightly upgraded version of last year's NUC 11 Extreme, which was notable for being the first of its kind that could fit a full-sized desktop graphics card. Now it has Intel’s hybrid 12th-gen desktop processors, which promise to be a huge upgrade over last year's CPUs. While this latest kit is still a bit cramped – and it can easily get expensive once you add your own RAM, SSD and GPU – the NUC 12 Extreme proves that Intel is clearly committed to the world of tiny desktops. And with Apple's Mac Studio coming soon, it may be more compelling than ever for PC creators.
Given how much effort Intel put into developing a large NUC case last year, it's not too surprising that the NUC 12 Extreme shares the same 8-liter housing. It's large enough to fit in a 12-inch graphics card, but the rest of its interior is tightly packed with its power supply and Compute Unit, a removable card that houses its CPU, three NVMe SSD connections and two RAM slots. It's clearly a case meant for gaming enthusiasts, with the telltale sign being the RGB LED skull up front and additional lighting underneath. The NUC 12 Extreme is basically the PC equivalent to a Honda Civic souped up for street racing: It can't exist without a bit of bling.
Despite its small stature, the NUC's case has just about all the connectivity you'd want from a desktop. Up front, there’s a USB-C Thunderbolt 4 port, a USB 3.1 Type-A socket, an SDXC card slot and a headphone jack. And on the back of the Compute Card, there are two more Thunderbolt 4 USB-C connections, six USB Type-A ports, an HDMI 2.0b socket and two Ethernet jacks (10GbE and 2.5Gb). We reviewed the NUC12EDBi9 kit, which included the Core i9-12900 processor, but there's also another kit with an i7-12700 available.
Typically, Intel sends out pre-built NUC kits for review so we can get straight to benchmarking. This year, however, the company issued the same DIY kit consumers would get, which only includes the case, PSU and Compute Card. That meant I had to roll up my sleeves and prepare for scraped knuckles – it was PC building time! I scrounged up 16GB of RAM and a one-terabyte Samsung SSD from the previous NUC Extreme, along with a spare NVIDIA RTX 3080 card and got down to business.
Devindra Hardawar/Engadget
Getting into the NUC Extreme is pretty simple: You just have to remove a few screws from the rear, open up the portion of the case blocking the PCI slot screws and remove a side panel to expose its innards. Thankfully, I was able to add in the RAM and SSD without removing the Compute Card. But if you'd like to take that out, perhaps to upgrade to a newer model down the line, you just have to hit a latch to unlock the three large top fans, pull those back, and yank the card out like any other PCI card. You'll have to be careful when removing its antenna cables and power connectors, but it's easy enough if you've already got PC building experience. Given the delicate nature of that process, it's not something I'd recommend doing unless you absolutely have to, though.
Devindra Hardawar/Engadget
The RTX 3080 easily fit into the NUC Extreme's PCIe slot, but I wish there was a bit more internal space to deal with all of its power cables. As with most powerful GPUs, the RTX 3080 requires two 8-pin PSU connections, which are attached to the card by a dongle. It was a challenge stuffing all of those cables into the NUC, and I was constantly worried they'd be clipped by the GPU's fan blades. I also had a hard time accessing the PCIe latch to remove the 3080 after I installed it. I was eventually able to unlock it with a flat-edge screwdriver, as I typically do in tight PC builds, but the latch flew off as soon as I removed the card. Clearly, there's room for better build quality.
Once I plugged everything in (and soothed my poor knuckles from being jammed into sharp edges and cables), I booted up the NUC and installed Windows 11 via a flash drive. Then, I rewarded myself the way every PC builder must: I started gaming. I averaged around 100fps while playing Halo Infinite in my monitor's ultrawide (3,440 by 1,440) resolution with all of the graphics settings cranked to maximum. That's impressive, but pretty much what I'd expect from any system powered by an RTX 3080. More notable, I'd say, is that the NUC was able to play games for hours without overheating. I typically see CPU temperatures between 80 and 85 Celsius under load, while the GPU never surpassed 82C. Not bad for a system with severely limited airflow and no room for any sort of liquid cooling.
Benchmarking the NUC 12 Extreme also made it clear that Intel's 12th-gen processors are a serious upgrade. Its GeekBench 5 CPU score was the highest we've seen on any system; the closest match was the Alienware x14, powered by the 12th-gen Core i7-12700H, followed by Apple's 16-inch MacBook Pro with an M1 Max. The NUC's multi-core score was also around 4,000 points higher than last year's model, which makes it an even better choice for creators doing serious rendering work. It also achieved the highest PCMark 10 score we've seen yet, though that's partially influenced by GPU power.
Devindra Hardawar/Engadget
While these benchmarks don't tell the entire story, they indicate that the NUC 12 Extreme could be a solid workhorse that'll serve you well for years. Of course, its overall performance depends on all of the other hardware you configure it with. But at least you're free to upgrade the RAM, SSD and GPU down the line, something you can't do with a competitor like Apple's Mac Studio.
When I started testing this NUC kit, I was concerned it was going to be another overly expensive curiosity like its predecessors. Why spend thousands more than a standard mid-tower or mini-ITX desktop system just to have a slightly smaller box on your desk? It's still pretty pricey: The Core i7 Kit starts at $1,150, while the Core i9 model we're reviewing sells for $1,450, and then you'll have to add around $1,000 for a GPU, memory, SSD and OS. But you know what? Apple's Mac Studio also starts at $2,000, and while it includes a hefty 32GB of RAM, you'll probably want to add a 1TB or 2TB SSD for an additional $200 or $400. Basically, if you want tiny desktop power, be prepared to pay.
Devindra Hardawar/Engadget
If anything, Intel was just ahead of the current mini-desktop moment. If you're in the market for one, and you enjoy getting down and dirty with PC hardware, then the NUC 12 Extreme will serve you well. While the Mac Studio is sleeker and doesn't require any scraped knuckles, macOS also doesn't have nearly the same level of gaming support as a Windows PC, so it's mainly meant for work. Apple Arcade titles are nice and all, but they're no replacement for having a tiny box that’ll play Elden Ring.
This week, Cherlynn and Devindra dive into all of the news from Apple’s first 2022 event. What’s so great about the revamped iPhone SE? Is the new iPad Air better than the iPad Mini? And who really needs the Mac Studio anyway? Also, we chat about Android 12L and other Google news, the recently announced Magic Leap 2 and our fond memories of illicit filesharing services.
Listen above, or subscribe on your podcast app of choice. If you've got suggestions or topics you'd like covered on the show, be sure to email us or drop a note in the comments! And be sure to check out our other podcasts, the Morning After and Engadget News!
Apple’s next step in processing power, the M1 Ultra – 20:07
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Apple Studio Display – 29:05
Android 12L coming to larger screens later this year – 35:52
Google promises Chrome 99 will be faster on Android and Macs – 39:57
New Pixel update brings Samsung exclusives to Pixel – 41:18
Magic Leap 2 announced – 45:17
Limewire is now…an NFT marketplace?? – 50:51
Carl Pei’s Nothing to announce 2022 roadmap – 55:20
Working On – 57:06
Picks – 1:02:29
Interview with Upload creator Greg Daniels – 1:11:13
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Credits Hosts: Cherlynn Low and Devindra Hardawar Producer: Ben Ellman Music: Dale North and Terrence O'Brien Livestream producers: Julio Barrientos and Luke Brooks Graphic artists: Luke Brooks and Brian Oh
California can now set its own emission standards under the Clean Air Act, the EPA announced today. The decision puts an end to a feud that began when automakers pushed the Trump administration to revisit fuel efficiency rules, which eventually led the former president to revoke California's waiver to declare its own standards in 2019. California is known for pushing stricter emissions requirements than the federal government, standards which have also been adopted by 16 other states and Washington, D.C.
“Today we proudly reaffirm California’s longstanding authority to lead in addressing pollution from cars and trucks,” EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan said in a statement. “Our partnership with states to confront the climate crisis has never been more important. With today’s action, we reinstate an approach that for years has helped advance clean technologies and cut air pollution for people not just in California, but for the U.S. as a whole.”
The EPA also confirmed that other states can once again adopt California's standards. As the LA Times reports, the EPA decision means that California can continue with its plan to ban sales of gasoline vehicles by 2035. In January, Governor Gavin Newsom announced a $10 billion plan to accelerate EV adoption, with a focus on making EVs more accessible for low-income consumers, building out more charging infrastructure and electrifying the state's fleet of vehicles.
Amazon is taking an even stronger stance against Russia following its invasion of Ukraine. The company announced today that it will suspend shipments of products in Russia and Belarus, as well as halt access to Prime Video in Russia. Additionally (though perhaps less impactful), Amazon also won't be taking more orders for its MMO New World in Russia.
"Unlike some other U.S. technology providers, Amazon and AWS have no data centers, infrastructure, or offices in Russia, and we have a long-standing policy of not doing business with the Russian government," the company said in a blog post.
Yesterday, Amazon also said that it won't be accepting new AWS subscribers in Russia and Belarus. The company's stronger stance isn't too surprising, as many other tech companies like Apple, Google, and Microsoft have also taken actions against Russia. While Russia's ecommerce industry has seen explosive growth over recent years, it's mostly dominated by local retailers like Wildberries.ru and Ozon.ru, whereas Amazon is still struggling to compete.
Apple rocked the computing world with its M1 chip, the first "Apple Silicon" hardware that turned the MacBook Air, Mac Mini and other computers into portable powerhouses. Last year, the company followed that up with the M1 Pro and M1 Max, which delivered even more performance for the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro. Now, Apple is adding a new member to the family: the M1 Ultra. To put it simply, it's essentially two M1 Max chips put together, making it even better suited to intensive creative applications like video editing and 3D rendering.
Developing...
Catch up on all of the news from Apple’s Peek Performance event right here!
If you're looking for a capable mid-size SUV with a bit of plug-in hybrid pep, three rows of seats and don't mind a slightly ho-hum aesthetic, Kia's 2022 Sorento plug-in hybrid (PHEV) is made for you. It's not nearly as flashy as Toyota's RAV4 Prime, a car widely considered to be the pinnacle of affordable plug-in SUVs. But the Sorento is larger and in many ways more practical for families.
And yet, even though the 2022 Sorento PHEV offers a relatively posh experience, I couldn't help but feel disappointed every time I passed a Telluride, Kia's larger and far more fashionable family SUV. Where the Telluride raises the bar for affordable SUV designs with its aggressive front fascia, voluminous seating space and Land Rover-like styling, the Sorento is decidedly more basic. Sure, it has leather seats and plenty of great safety and entertainment technology, but looking at it just doesn't stir my soul.
That's a shame, because on paper the 2022 Sorento sounds like the ideal family PHEV for people who don't want to make the leap to minivans like the Chrysler Pacifica plug-in or Toyota's excellent hybrid Sienna. Its electric engine can keep things moving for up to 32 miles – more than enough to deal with many daily commutes. And in hybrid mode, which also taps into the 1.6-liter gas engine, the Sorento can run for up to 34 miles per gallon. It also offers standard all-wheel drive and up to 75.5 cubic feet of cargo space, more than double the RAV 4 Prime's 33.5 cubic feet of storage. So you wouldn't have to worry about hauling a large TV, or a full trunk of groceries alongside baby gear for two kids.
If all you care about are those specs, the Sorento will serve you nicely. But, like the middle child sandwiched between an over-achieving elder sibling (the Telluride) and a new baby (Kia's adorable EV6), it almost feels like the Sorento PHEV is an afterthought for Kia. While having some pure EV driving is a nice thing to have, especially as gas prices continue to climb, its electric motor only spits out 90 horsepower. That's enough to deal with street-level driving under 40 miles per hour, but it'll need some serious help from the gas engine to deal with highway traffic. As Car and Driver found, the weak EV just holds back the overall driving experience. (It's also unclear to me why the Sorrento still occasionally spun up its gasoline engine at low speeds.)
Devindra Hardawar/Engadget
During my week of testing, I drove the Sorrento PHEV around winding local roads, up highways that climbed along nearby mountains, and to visit family an hour away. The driving experience felt solid and never overtly floaty, but I was also constantly reminded that I was behind the wheel of a 4,537-pound SUV. (The gas variant weighs 3,794 pounds.) Large batteries always add more weight to PHEVs, but the Sorento felt bogged down as I I tried to reach 65MPH highway speeds in hybrid mode. Even so, I appreciated being able to force it to only use EV for local driving, something that Chrysler still doesn't offer on the Pacifica. Though the Sorento's EV motor is relatively weak, it gives a decent bit of electric torque off the line, making it well-suited for dealing with stop signs and traffic lights.
I typically saw around 30 miles of electric driving before the Sorento's gas engine kicked on, but its hybrid efficiency was less impressive, typically clocking in around 32MPG. The RAV4 Prime gets around the same electric range, but it can reach up to 40MPG in hybrid mode. As with any PHEV, your efficiency with the Sorento is dependent on how often you plug it in to charge. It typically took around 12 hours to juice up completely on a standard 110-volt outlet. If you've got access to a Level 2 charger, you can top it off in around 2.5 hours.
Given the complexity involved with installing a Level 2 setup — that involves running a 220-volt outlet to your garage and installing a charger — many EV-curious shoppers may be better off with a PHEV like the Sorento. There's no need to install any additional outlets, plus you don't have to worry about EV range anxiety since PHEVs will automatically flip over to their gas engines when they're out of electricity. That also makes them better suited for family road trips, since you won't have to spend time hunting down EV chargers and waiting to get juiced up.
Devindra Hardawar/Engadget
I didn't have much to complain about with the Sorento's entertainment system. The 10.3-inch central display was bright, responsive and made it easy to deal with Apple CarPlay. I appreciated that it was a wide screen, since it didn't cut into my view of the road and it didn't prevent Kia from including buttons for climate control right below it. While large and tall screens might look more impressive at first, as we've seen on Teslas and the Prius Prime, I find them much more annoying to use while driving. I'll always prefer physical buttons combined with an unobtrusive screen. Below the dash there's a circular dial for changing gears (which feels as elegant as it does on cars twice as expensive), another dial to manage driving modes, and more buttons to turn on the heated steering wheel, parking camera view and other features.
I'll give Kia credit for delivering an incredible level of comfort in a relatively affordable mid-size SUV. The Sorento's leather seats were perfectly plush, and I appreciated having both heating and ventilation options. The two second-row captains chairs were less comfy, but still better than I've felt on some competitors. It was a bit tough for me to secure my daughter's large car seat, but once I did (thanks to a bit of extra cushioning from a pool noodle), it was easy for me to lift her up and bring her down. And while the third-row seats were far too cramped for me to fit comfortably, they're fine for kids. Most mid-size SUVs have cramped back rows, which is why minivans are still the better choice if you're regularly carting around adults.
Devindra Hardawar/Engadget
There’s also a decent dose of safety features, including forward collision warning with pedestrian and cyclist protection, blind-spot monitoring and a 360-degree camera. I particularly appreciated the camera views whenever I hit the left or right indicators, which allowed me to see right beside the Sorento for any cars or cyclists in my blind spot. If you’re a nervous driver, it may be worth looking into the Sorento for those cameras alone.
The 2022 Sorento PHEV starts at $46,405, around $6,800 more than the AWD Sorento Hybrid EX model. Since it's a plug-in hybrid, you can get a hefty $6,587 tax credit, which puts them on a slightly more level playing field. (You'll still have to wait for your next tax filing before you can see that credit, though.) The Sorento has always been a budget-focused car — the gas-powered 2022 model starts around $30,000 — so the PHEV model feels particularly out of place as it nears $50,000.
Much like video cards, these prices are also purely theoretical. The global chip crunch, along with manufacturing delays and other issues, have pushed new and used car prices up considerably. So while you may see advertised figures close to MSRP, don't be surprised if dealers end up tacking on extra fees once you're ready to negotiate. (During my recent quest to buy a new Toyota Sienna, local dealers regularly added around $8,000 in "market adjustment" fees. I gave up and instead bought a used 2018 Chrysler Pacifica hybrid with a slight markup from Carvana.)
Devindra Hardawar/Engadget
There’s a lot to love about the Sorento PHEV, it’s just unfortunate it’s debuting as Kia’s Telluride is winning over reviewers and consumers alike. Still, it’s notable it exists at all, as there aren’t many plug-in hybrids with three rows of seats. It’s perfectly positioned as an upgrade from compact SUVs and sedans, especially for families that want to dabble with electric driving and rely less on gas. Personally, though, I can’t wait for Kia to take what it learned here and bring it over to the Telluride (which debuted as a PHEV concept car).
After a week of negotiations in Nairobi, the United Nations has agreed to start working on a first-ever global plastic pollution treaty, Reuters reports. It's not projected to be completed until 2024, but according to the UN it could end up being as important as the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, the most significant global effort to curb climate change yet. In 2019, the organization found that humanity is damaging nature at an "unprecedented" rate, with plastic pollution growing by more than ten times since 1980. Heck, we've even found microplastics in the Arctic, one of the most remote areas on Earth.
The real question, of course, is how UN members plan to address the scourge of plastics. As the New York Times reports, the agreement would involve coming up with legally binding measures to clean up plastic waste. But crucially, it would also involve limiting plastic production, a move that's certain to face industry pushback.
As you'd expect, different countries also have different priorities. While major plastic producers like the US and Japan objected to language in the agreement, developing nations stressed the need for more involvement. In particular, the agreement highlighted the importance of waste pickers, who work long hours sorting trash, all the while breathing in toxic fumes.
It's been two years since I reviewed the first ASUS Zephyrus G14, but my fondness for it hasn't waned. It's colored my view of every gaming laptop since: Why can't they all pack in great performance in a compact 3.5-pound case for under $1,500? Now, with its latest edition, ASUS is fixing the G14's major flaw: It's finally adding a webcam. Together with AMD's latest Ryzen 6000 chips and Radeon GPUs, the 2022 G14 sounds like a dream machine on paper. But, thanks to significantly higher configuration prices, it's no longer a value-oriented machine. And that’s a shame.
Aside from the pricing change, though, the new Zephyrus G14 builds on everything we loved about the original. The sturdy magnesium alloy case returns, and select models feature more of ASUS's "AniMe Matrix" LEDs, which can display images and text on the back of the screen. You can choose between 14-inch 144Hz 1080p and 120Hz 1440p screens, which offer 400 and 500 nits of brightness, respectively. That's a huge leap from last year's 300-nit screen, and it makes the displays much better suited for Dolby Vision HDR (another helpful addition).
And then there's the webcam. That's not something we'd usually highlight, but it's notable for the Zephyrus G14. The 2020 model was one of the first modern gaming notebooks that didn't feature any sort of camera, a move that helped ASUS achieve some impressively thin screen bezels. Given that many gamers already have better external cameras for streaming, it didn't seem like a huge deal at the time. But of course, now that many of us need to be ready to hop on a Zoom at the drop of a hat, that calculus has shifted a bit. The G14's IR camera also supports Windows Hello, so it can securely log you in without much fuss.
Devindra Hardawar/Engadget
With a webcam in tow, the Zephyrus G14 has just about all of the features we'd want in a gaming laptop. And it's bolstered by impressive new hardware under the hood: the Ryzen 9 6900HS, AMD's latest eight-core powerhouse chip, as well as either Radeon RX 6700S or 6800S graphics. Those GPUs aremeant for thin and light notebooks like the G14, with better performance-per-watt ratings than the previous NVIDIA RTX 3060. ASUS also ramped up cooling significantly this time around, thanks to a vapor chamber cooler and liquid metal thermal paste for both the CPU and GPU.
All of this new gear amounts to a bit more heft than the original 3.5-pound G14, unfortunately. It starts at 3.6 pounds without the AniMe Matrix LED display, and it scales up to 3.8 pounds with the LEDs. That's still relatively light compared to the competition, though. The Razer Blade 14 weighs 4.1 pounds, and the Alienware x14 comes in just under four pounds.
Once I saw the Zephyrus G14 in action, I didn't mind that it was slightly heavier. Our review unit was one of the most premium options: a $2,499 configuration with the Ryzen 9 6900HS, Radeon 6800S, 32GB of DDR5 RAM and the AniME Matrix. Not surprisingly, it was a significant upgrade from the 2020-era G14 I tested, though that was also a $1,499 build with an RTX 2060. The new G14 held its own against the Razer Blade 14 and Alienware x14 in PCMark 10, Geekbench and 3DMark's TimeSpy Extreme benchmark. If you're particularly interested in multi-threaded performance, though, it's worth noting that the hybrid 12th-gen Intel CPU in the Alienware x14 practically blew away the G14.
In Halo Infinite, my current multiplayer addiction, the Zephyrus G14 hovered between 80 and 100 fps in 1440p with all of the graphics settings cranked to the max. That's perfectly playable, though it's unfortunate that such an expensive machine can't completely fill the monitor's 120Hz refresh rate. I didn't notice any tearing or stuttering though, thanks to the display's FreeSync Premium support. Older titles like Destiny 2 and Overwatch surpassed 120 fps in 1440p easily, as you'd expect. Still, the cost of our review unit never left my mind. For $2,500, I'd expect something a bit more future-proof.
As for ray tracing performance, I was pleased to see that the G14 was only slightly behind the RTX 3060-equipped Alienware x14 in 3DMark's Port Royal benchmark. Unfortunately, it's still not powerful enough to keep Control above 60 fps in 1440p with medium ray tracing settings. NVIDIA's GPUs can hit that mark by relying on its DLSS AI upscaling technology, but Control doesn't yet support's AMD's alternative, FidelityFX Super Resolution.
Thanks to its improved cooling system, the Zephyrus G14 ran far quieter than the 2020 model, even when I was in a prolonged Halo Infinite Big Team Battle session. The CPU never surpassed 85 celsius, while the GPU typically stayed around 75 celsius under load. Most importantly, the "Silent" fan mode lived up to its name, which is a big deal if you ever need to bring your gaming laptop into a quiet coffee house or meeting room.
While I was gaming, watching videos or just bumming around the web, I genuinely appreciated the G14's revamped "ROG Nebula Display." In addition to the faster refresh rates and Dolby Vision support, it's also a 16-by-10 aspect ratio now, which gives you a bit more vertical space for scrolling documents. Halo Infinite's war-torn maps looked vibrant and detailed on the G14, and I appreciated having Dolby Vision while I watched a few Netflix shows. The computer's HDR support is a bit confounding, though. Windows 11 doesn't detect it as an HDR capable display, and I couldn't view any HDR YouTube videos. And yet somehow, I was still able to watch Netflix with Dolby Vision HDR enabled. I've asked ASUS for clarification on those issues, and will update this review as I learn more.
Devindra Hardawar/Engadget
As much as I love the idea of 14-inch gaming laptops, their cramped keyboards often leave me underwhelmed. Uncomfortable fingers could easily mean the difference between winning or losing a multiplayer match. Thankfully, the G14's keyboard, while small, handled my fast-moving digits just fine. There's a satisfying amount of travel too, which helps both during gaming and general typing. While I certainly wouldn't mind a larger keyboard, the G14's felt kinder to my gaming-battered digits than the Alienware x14 or Blade 14. But seriously, folks, if these companies can make luxuriously wide keyboards for their 13-inch ultraportables, why can’t they do the same for gaming hardware?
I'm more impressed with the Zephyrus G14's new trackpad, which is 50 percent larger than it was last year. I'm of the mind that you can never really have a trackpad that's too big, so I appreciated having more space to swipe around and use finger gestures. I never once mistakenly hit the wrist pad by accident, which is really all I'm asking for in a notebook these days.
Devindra Hardawar/Engadget
Unlike other slim machines, the G14 is equipped with all of the ports you'd need: two USB 3.2 Type-C ports, two USB 3.2 Type-A connections, a full-sized HDMI 2.0 socket, a combination audio jack and a microSD card reader. The laptop's 240-watt power supply also pushes more juice than last year's, which means you'll see a faster charge than before. (You can also charge over USB-C in a pinch, but that won't deliver enough power while gaming.)
During our battery test, which involves looping an HD video, the G14 lasted nine hours and 46 minutes. That's almost two hours longer than the Alienware x14 lasted. And during my typical workflow of juggling dozens of browser tabs, editing photos, and hopping on Zoom calls, the G14 usually kept going for over seven hours. That's not impressive when ultraportables are well into double-digit battery life, but that's the price you pay for having a slim-yet-powerful machine.
Devindra Hardawar/Engadget
Pricing is where things get sticky with the Zephyrus G14. It technically starts at $1,600, according to ASUS. But the cheapest model you can currently snag at Best Buy goes for $1,650 with a quad HD display, Ryzen 9 CPU, 16GB of RAM, 1TB SSD and a Radeon RX 6700 GPU. You can also bump up to a Radeon RX 6800 GPU for $1,900. While those prices aren’t unreasonable when it comes to gaming laptops, they’re significantly more than the $1,050 starting price of the 2020-era model. Our original review unit came in at just $1,450 with an RTX 2060, Ryzen 9 4900HS, and 16GB of RAM.
While it started out as a surprisingly affordable 14-inch gaming laptop, the G14 is now firmly in mid-range or even premium notebook territory. Chalk it up to the global chip crunch, price inflation (which, admittedly, is affecting all PC makers) and all of the other supply chain issues we’re facing in 2022. If you’re looking for pure power, the Blade 14 starts at $2,000 with the Ryzen 9 6900HX, an RTX 3060, and a 144Hz 1080p screen. The Alienware x14, meanwhile, starts at $1,600 with a Core i7-12700H and RTX 3050 GPU (go up to $1,900 and you can add the RTX 3060). ASUS is still your best option if you absolutely need a quad HD display, but if you just care about high frame rates, you’ve got better options.
And when it comes to our review model, you’re basically just paying a huge premium to get decent hardware in a slim case. Personally, I’d opt for the heavier $2,500 Razer Blade 15 Advanced, which has an RTX 3070, Core i7-12800H and a 15-inch 240Hz quad HD screen. But that’s admittedly an unfair comparison – I realize some people don’t mind paying more for portability.
Devindra Hardawar/Engadget
The Zephyrus G14 is still an incredibly compelling 14-inch notebook, especially if you’re aiming for one of the cheaper models. It’s powerful, slim and it finally has a webcam. But it’s also lost much of what made the 2020 model so special. I suppose that’s progress, though. ASUS kicked off a trend, but now it’s racing to keep up with the competition.
It’s a gaming heavy week! Devindra chats with Engadget Senior Editor Jessica Conditt about one of our most anticipated games of the year, Horizon Forbidden West. Plus, they dive into the lackluster Street Fighter 6 reveal, the PlayStation VR 2 and what’s up with Elden Ring. Finally, we explore what went wrong with the Uncharted movie.
Listen above, or subscribe on your podcast app of choice. If you've got suggestions or topics you'd like covered on the show, be sure to email us or drop a note in the comments! And be sure to check out our other podcasts, the Morning After and Engadget News!
Intel and AMD announce powerful new chips for ultraportables – 28:08
A new tool on Steam will check your library for Steam Deck compatibility – 30:17
Working on – 33:00
Pop Culture Picks – 34:29
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Credits Hosts: Jessica Conditt and Devindra Hardawar Producer: Ben Ellman Music: Dale North and Terrence O'Brien Livestream producers: Julio Barrientos and Luke Brooks Graphic artists: Luke Brooks, Kyle Maack
