The National Association of Music Merchants has delayed the 2022 Winter NAMM Show. The annual event, which didn’t go forward as an in-person gathering in 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic, will now take place between June 3rd and 5th, instead of January 20th and 23rd as previously announced. The trade show will take place at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California.

The change in date means there won’t be separate NAMM Summer and Winter events. Instead, they’ll be the one event, known as The NAMM Show, that will combine the best of both conferences. NAMM says it’s postponing Winter NAMM due to the coronavirus pandemic, as well as to account for new product developments and launches.

“As the health and safety of our members remains top of mind, and after carefully listening to companies here in the US and around the world, the new dates will help members maximize their opportunity and accelerate what has arguably been a transformative time both in new products and in how they come to market,” Joe Lamond, the CEO and president of NAMM, said.

Much like in 2020, the coronavirus pandemic has forced many event organizers to change their 2021 plans. In August, for instance, the New York Auto Show was canceled. More recently, Riot Games announced it was moving the 2021 League of Legends World Championship from China to Europe due to travel restrictions.

Piranha Games is bringing MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries to Sony consoles. The studio will release the game and its Heroes of the Inner Sphere expansion to PlayStation 4 and PS5 on September 23rd, it announced on Wednesday over on the PlayStation Blog. The release marks a significant milestone for the franchise. The last time you could play a BattleTech game on a PlayStation console was back in 1997 when Activision released MechWarrior 2: Arcade Combat Edition on PSone.

In addition to a handful of PlayStation-specific features, including support for the adaptive triggers on Sony’s DualSense controller, the PS4 and PS5 release will feature all the previously released enhancements for MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries. That means you’ll be able to play the game with people on other platforms and check out the DLC campaign if you join a co-op match hosted by someone who owns the expansion.

Back in January, Moog updated its Model 15 app to support Macs running Big Sur, marking the first time one of the company’s soft synths had come to desktop. It was a significant step forward in terms of accessibility. However, the synth ran as an Audio Unit v3 plugin, meaning you couldn’t use it in conjunction with non-Apple digital audio workstations like Abelton.

That’s changing today with the Model 15 app now available within a VST wrapper. Short for Virtual Studio Technology, VST is the most widely supported standard for DAW synthesizer and effect unit plugins. As such, you’re no longer limited to GarageBand, Logic and MainStage if you want to dabble with the modular synth. Unfortunately, if you're a Windows user, you still can't install the software on your computer. You will have to look to either Moog's iOS app or one of the many other modular synths you can download online.

On Wednesday, security researchers from Google and cybersecurity firm Mandiant disclosed that a network of fake pro-China social media accounts tried to mobilize Americans to attend anti-racism protests in response to the coronavirus pandemic. According to a report the two organizations published, the network “did not appear to achieve any success,” but in one instance it tried to push Asian-Americans to attend an April 24th protest that sought to “fight back” against claims the virus was engineered in a Chinese lab.

They did not directly attribute the campaign to the Chinese government. However, John Hultquist, vice president of analysis at Mandiant, told The Wall Street Journal the operation was “almost certainly supported by a government sponsor, either directly through a government agency or a third-party contractor.” Additionally, the scale of the campaign suggests the network had significant resources at its disposal.

Researchers say the campaign may suggest an intention to motivate real-world action outside of the borders of China. At the very least, the scope of the activity is far broader than previous efforts this network has conducted. In 2019, it was linked to efforts to discredit the pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong.

This time around, they did not limit their efforts merely to Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Instead, they cast a wide net, creating accounts across more than 30 social media platforms and 40 additional websites and “niche” forums, including places like LiveJournal and Vimeo. They also tried to reach a global audience by posting in Russian, German, Spanish, Korean and Japanese, in addition to Chinese and English.

"Over the past two years, we have seen this threat actor evolve, from the types of content they publish to the tactics they use to amplify it. However, the most significant features of this network remain its scale and persistence, in spite of low engagement levels,” Shane Huntley, the director of Google’s Threat Analysis Group, told Engadget. “... We anticipate they will continue to experiment to drive higher engagement and encourage others in the community to continue tracking this actor, shedding light on their operations and taking action against them."

Snap is introducing a fun new way for Snapchat users to track and celebrate the birthdays of their friends. The company’s new Birthday Mini gives you one place to see a list of all the upcoming birthdays of people you follow on the app. You can either see them organized by how soon they’re coming up or by zodiac signs. The tool comes courtesy of the Minis functionality Snap introduced last summer. And as with all other Minis, you can find this one by tapping the rocket icon in Snapchat or by searching for it individually.

For privacy reasons, the Mini won’t display the birth year of your friend nor their exact age. Similarly, other Snapchat users won’t see that same information about you. You also won’t see the birthdays of friends who haven’t consented to display them in the app.

The Birthday Mini is the first one to include lens sharing, a feature that allows you to unlock special themed lenses you can send as snaps to your friends or include in your stories. When someone sees them in those contexts, they can swipe up to join the Mini. It’s a small feature addition, to be sure, but one that makes keeping track of everyone’s special day easier. Previously, Snap would indicate your friend was celebrating their birthday through an emoji in your friends feed. You can access the Birthday Mini starting today.

After making its debut in Japan last year, the Pokémon franchise’s 23rd animated movie is making its way to Netflix. Outside of Japan, China and Korea, Pokémon the Movie: Secrets of the Jungle will debut globally on the streaming platform on October 8th. The premiere will mark the film’s international debut.

The film is essentially Pokémon’s take on the tale of Tarzan. When Ash and Pikachu go to explore the forest of Okoya, they discover a boy named Koko. Thanks to an upbringing at the hands of a Pokémon named Dada Zarude, Koko believes he too is a Pokémon. Ash and Pikachu’s arrival in his forest home leads him to question everything he thought was true about his existence.

Ahead of the movie’s release, you can add Dada Zarude and a shiny Celebi to your Pokémon Sword and Shield roster by signing up for the Trainer’s Club newsletter by September 25th. The Pokémon Company, Niantic and Netflix also plan a special Pokémon Go event tied to the film’s release. They promised to share more information on that front soon. 

Add another wrinkle to Apple’s oft-rumored efforts to build its own electric vehicle. On Tuesday, Ford announced the hire of Doug Field. The former Tesla executive, known for his involvement in the development of the Model 3, most recently held the position of vice president of special projects at Apple. It’s believed Field oversaw Project Titan.

In his new position of chief advanced technology and embedded systems officer, Field will report to Ford CEO and president Jim Farley. He will oversee Ford’s Embedded Software and Hardware division, which will see him lead development on the automaker’s Blue Oval intelligence stack. It’s expected he will have a say in everything from vehicle controls to enterprise connectivity features and driver assistance technology. For Field, this is something of a return to where everything started. He began his career at Ford back in 1987.

What’s unclear is what this means for Apple’s automotive ambitions. Bloomberg reporter and Apple insider Mark Gurman says it’s bad news for the company. “This is probably the largest setback in a history filled with setbacks for Apple’s car project,” he tweeted. “As I wrote in January, there is no Apple Car launching anytime soon, not 2024, not 2025. Further out now, if ever.” Apple does have executives who could take over Field’s role. For instance, the company recently hired Ulrich Kranz, a former BMW executive who led the development of the i3. All the same, it's never a good sign when a high-profile executive leaves a company. 

With Vanguard, Activision’s Call of Duty franchise is returning to the Second World War for the first time since 2017’s WWII. We already had a chance to take in the new single-player story lead developer Sledgehammer Games plans to tell, but we’ve only seen a few glimpses of the title’s multiplayer offering outside of its Champion Hill mode. That changed on Tuesday when the studio broadcast a nearly 30-minute multiplayer deep dive and shared a new trailer.

Vanguard looks to attract new players to the series with a feature called Combat Pacing that allows you to decide how hectic you want matches to play out. Three filters — Tactical, Assualt and Blitz — determine the number of players in a match. Tactical, for instance, limits things to a 12-person match, while in Blitz there can be as many as 24 players on each team. 

Vanguard also introduces a new game mode called Patrol. It’s a fresh take on Domination that sees a capture zone slowly move across the map. It’s joined by classics like Team Deathmatch, Kill Confirmed, Domination and Search and Destroy. Returning from previous Call of Duty titles is Gunsmith. It’s a feature that allows you to customize your weapons with various accessories.

If you want to see more of Call of Duty: Vanguard’s multiplayer before the game comes out on November 5th, the game’s multiplayer beta starts later this week. Provided you pre-ordered Vanguard on PlayStation, you can see what’s new before anyone else. The beta will open up to all PlayStation users on September 16th. That same day, those who pre-ordered the game for Xbox and PC can also see what's on offer. For everyone else, the beta opens up on September 18th and runs through to the 20th.

Ahead of September 9th, when it plans to share the first full trailer from The Matrix Resurrections, Warner Bros. has launched a teaser for the upcoming film. The website, whatisthematrix.com, offers a first look at Neo's latest adventure. 

In a call back to the first film, you'll see a red and blue pill on the screen when you first visit the website. Choose the former and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II will narrate the clip that follows, while the latter will treat you to the voice of Neil Patrick Harris. Each will present a different interpretation of what follows and a different series of cuts from the movie. 

What's more, each time you refresh the website and watch the clips again, you'll see a different set of scenes from the movie, as well as a mention of the current time — you know, to break the fourth wall. There aren't an infinite number of variations of each teaser, but you can piece together quite a few different scenes together if you watch each one multiple times.  

Either way, it's a fun way to build up excitement for the film before the first official trailer drops later this week. Of course, if you want to go into The Matrix Resurrections blind, then it's best to wait until December to see it on your own terms. 

After dipping its toes in the world of Bluetooth earbuds last year, Technics is back to releasing new turntables and audiophile equipment. The company announced a raft of new products on Monday. The SB-G90M2 leads the company's fall lineup. Like the SB-G90, the M2 is a three-way bass reflex speaker pair. It features a two-way coaxial driver that combines a 25mm dome with a 160mm aluminum midrange cone and two 160mm subwoofers. The SB-GM90M2 will go on sale in October, with each one costing $2,699. 

For those who don’t have nearly $3,000 to spend on a single speaker, Technics also announced its new SB-C600 bookshelf speakers. You’ll pay $999 for a pair of them. They went through much of the same design process as the SB-GM90M2 to reduce distortion and vibrations. Each one features a 15cm woofer paired with a 25mm aluminum dome tweeter. You can buy them starting in November.

Technics / Panasonic

Alongside the two speakers systems, Technics announced an updated version of its SU-G700 amplifier. The mark two model borrows features from the company’s reference-level SU-R100 amp. Among other features, it includes its JENO anti-jitter and distortion technology. In designing the SU-G700M2, Technics sourced new semiconductor parts, including some made from gallium nitride, to improve power delivery. The company says the new model is more efficient and reactive than its predecessor and better at driving a variety of speakers. There’s also a Phono Input Phase selector to improve playback when you listen to older vinyl albums that were recorded with the inverted phase. The SU-G700M2 goes on sale in October for $2,699. It will be available in both black and silver versions, with the former including an extra “-K” in its model designation.

Lastly, Technics announced a new version of its direct-drive SL-1200 turntable. If the SL-1210G looks familiar, it’s because the company released a limited edition black model of the SL-1200G, known as the SL-1210GAE, back in June 2020. A spokesperson for Technics told What Hi-Fi the SL-1210GAE sold out almost immediately. The SL-1210G then gives those who missed the GAE another chance to get the company’s historic turntable in black. The GAE will cost $3,999 when it goes on sale next month.