Following a slip-up, HBO has confirmed a release date for its long-expected The Last of Us TV series. The video game adaptation will debut through HBO and HBO Max on January 15th at 9PM Eastern. You'll have something to watch while you wait for Succession, then, although you may want to pace yourself when there are 10 episodes in this initial season.

As you're likely aware by this stage, The Last of Us stars The Mandalorian's Pedro Pascal as cynical survivor Joel and Game of Thrones' Bella Ramsey as Ellie, the teen Joel has to smuggle out of a quarantine zone 20 years after a fungal zombie plague wrecks civilization. Big names like Nick Offerman, Gabriel Luna and Anna Torv also star, while game voice actors Ashley Johnson and Troy Baker also make appearances.

The show is expected to largely follow the plot of the original game, with Naughty Dog's Neil Druckmann serving as writer and executive producer alongside Chernobyl's Craig Mazin. Unlike many game-based productions, The Last of Us will have both the creative input of the developer and critically acclaimed talent behind the cameras. It's just a question of whether or not that combination works in practice, especially for newcomers who aren't attached to the story.

Tidal has already been closing gaps with the competition by adding a free tier and similar upgrades, but its latest improvement may be one of the most important. The streaming music service has finally introduced user profiles that let you easily share your playlists. Make a playlist public and Tidal users can discover your musical tastes through search, or share that track listing through links. You could technically share before, but it was much more difficult until now.

Profiles (and thus playlist sharing) are available now through Tidal's Android, iOS, desktop and web apps. They replace the "My Collection" saved content section in the mobile app. Don't worry about having to start from scratch — your existing saved material will still be available after you create a profile.

Tidal is free to use with ads, although it's limited to a 160Kbps bitrate and doesn't support offline tracks or unlimited skips. Pay $10 per month for Tidal HiFi and you'll remove the ads and restrictions while jumping to a much higher 1,411Kbps quality. At $20 per month, the HiFi Plus plan offers "master quality" 9,216Kbps audio for some songs and direct payouts to the artists you listen to most often.

The addition is arguably overdue when Apple Music, Spotify and other services have had playlist sharing for years. This might not do much to help Tidal grow beyond a small slice of the market. However, you might have a stronger incentive to stick around. The feature will not only let you see what your friends enjoy, but might help you find a new running mix or workday soundtrack.

Fujifilm is delivering a follow-up to the well-received X-T4. The company has introduced (what else?) the X-T5, a sequel to the higher-end APS-C mirrorless camera that delivers some major technical upgrades — the largest in five years — while refining the basic formula. The new model now packs Fuji's current 40MP sensor (up from 26MP) that can shoot 6.2K video at 30 frames per second. You don't need to buy a top-tier cam like the X-H2S to venture beyond 4K. You can also expect a jump in computing power through the X-Processor 5 that allows for AI-based autofocusing, 4:2:2 10-bit output, F-log2 and support for the HEIF photo format.

The X-T5 design is also smaller, lighter and simpler than its predecessor, and moves the shutter button and front control dial for a better hold. There are some under-the-hood changes, too, including slightly better in-body stabilization (seven stops instead of 6.5), a mildly higher-resolution tilting LCD and an electronic viewfinder with 0.8X magnification instead of the X-T4's 0.75X. You'll theoretically notice improvements, then, even if the body still seems very familiar.

Don't expect many other changes. There are still dual UHS-II SD card slots, a USB-C port and HDMI. The X-T5 still uses the same battery, although Fujifilm says the upgraded processor should help with power management.

Fujifilm ships the X-T5 on November 17th for $1,699 for the body alone, $2,099 with an 18-55mm lens and $2,199 with a more flexible 16-80mm lens. It's debuting alongside a $599 XF30mm f/2.8 macro lens that can focus on subjects as close as 3.9 inches from the sensor, and just 0.5 inches from the 11-element glass. In some ways, this is a return to form. Our primary gripes with the X-T4 were its not-so-compact form factor and imperfect autofocus tracking — both of those are hopefully fixed. The price still makes it costlier than rivals like Sony's A6600, but the improved performance may help justify the premium.

DJI's Mavic 3 is a useful cinematic drone, but its steep price ($1,899 as we write this) can be off-putting compared to the $1,449 of the older Mavic 2 Pro. The company thinks it has a simple solution, though: offer a trimmed-back version. DJI has introduced the Mavic 3 Classic, a new variant that drops the telephoto lens in exchange for a better $1,469 starting price (more on that later).

The Classic otherwise includes the features that might draw you to the Mavic 3 in the first place. The centerpiece remains a 20-megapixel, 24mm-equivalent Hasselblad camera that can shoot 5.1K video up to 50 frames per second (4K at 60FPS) and capture 12-bit RAW photos. You can likewise expect a healthy 46-minute peak flight time, a range of up to 9.3 miles and an O3+ transmission system that can send 1080p 60FPS video to your remote. You're still asked to fly within line of sight, but an AirSense ADS-B receiver can warn you of nearby aircraft if you operate at higher altitudes.

This still isn't a trivial expense. The base price is for the drone only, and doesn't include a remote or charger. It's meant for upgrading DJI users who have the necessary gear. Everyone else will have to pay at least $1,599 for the standard kit, which includes the charger and the basic RC-N1 remote. Spend $1,749 and you'll get the display-equipped DJI RC remote. And if you need accessories, the $649 Fly More add-on includes two batteries, a charging hub, a car charger, three pairs of quiet propellers and a convertible carrying bag.

The Mavic 3 Classic clearly isn't meant for newcomers, or even many enthusiasts. You'll want to look at the $679 Mini 3 Pro or $999 Air 2S if you're on a tighter budget. However, it might represent a solid value if you care about drone camera quality but don't need long-zoom shots to create your next magnum opus.

Kids love to use smart speakers, but it's all too easy for things to go horribly wrong — including content that's decidedly not family-friendly. Google is trying to address those worries by both revising parental controls for Assistant and providing more child-oriented responses. To start, an update will let you disable some Assistant features, restrict the services children can use and establish downtime hours. You can bar kids from making calls, or limit them to watching YouTube Kids on a Nest Hub.

The controls will be available in the "coming weeks" through the Google Assistant, Google Home and Family Link apps for Android and iOS. They'll be available in the Assistant settings for your child's account.

Google is simultaneously encouraging kids to ask more questions. It's adding a "Kids Dictionary" to Assistant that provides age-suitable answers on speakers, displays and mobile devices. If your young one asks what a telescope is, for instance, you'll get a simple explanation rather than discussions of optics and electromagnetic radiation. There are also four new "kid-friendly" voices that are slower, more expressive and otherwise better-matched to childhood development.

Google is relatively late to these kinds of features. Amazon's Alexa has had parental controls for a while, and can help kids read stories. Even so, this is good news if you've wanted more choice in kid-oriented smart speakers and displays. You can likely get the device that meets your grown-up needs without worrying quite so much about your little ones.

Epic Games' Star Wars collaborations didn't end with Darth Vader. The gaming giant has added Luke, Leia and Han skins to Fortnite as part of "Skywalker Week," complete with appropriate accessories such as Luke's Landspeeder glider and Leia's R2-D2 back bling. Lightsabers are back if you can either open Imperial Chests or defeat Darth Vader, and fans of wildly inaccurate soldiers can pick up Stormtrooper blasters.

All the new Star Wars skins and accessories are available through the Fortnite Item Shop. Skywalker Week also revives the pulse rifle and "Junk Rifts" that can drop the Landspeeder. The event runs until November 8th at 9AM Eastern, and offers special quests to boost your XP.

This certainly isn't the first such team up. Epic held a Fortnite Star Wars event in December 2019 to mark the premiere of The Rise of Skywalker, and introduced both Darth Vader and a young Obi-Wan this spring. It may be one of the more important, though. This is the largest nod yet to the original movie trilogy (i.e. the most beloved trilogy) in the battle royale brawler, and may do more to reel you in if you're uninterested in Marvel heroes and game character crossovers.

Now that Elon Musk owns Twitter, he's officially taking the reins as CEO — for the moment, anyway. Twitter has made an amended filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission indicating that Musk is "the Chief Executive Officer" of the social network. This comes alongside the entrepreneur's moves to dissolve the company board, become sole director and fire many of the company's veteran executives, including former CEO Parag Agrawal. He's clearing house, in other words.

It's not clear how long Musk will remain in the CEO position. He states that his sole director status is "just temporary," but hasn't elaborated. Musk already runs Tesla, SpaceX, The Boring Company and Neuralink, so there's only a limited amount of time to helm yet another firm. Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey has rolled over his shares (that is, transferred them to the new company), indicating his support for Musk.

Musk has already made or proposed sweeping changes in the first week of owning Twitter. On top of the leadership overhaul, he has reportedly ordered layoffs and unveiled plans for a "moderation council" that will make key content decisions. The new CEO has also floated a number of potential changes, including charging for verification as part of a Blue subscription and even resurrecting Vine.

The management shakeup is poised to be expensive, with The Guardianreporting that it could lead to a minimum $120 million in "golden parachute" exit payments. The figure pales in comparison to what Musk paid to buy Twitter in the first place, though.

You may trust Chegg with your textbooks or tutoring, but regulators aren't quite so confident. The Federal Trade Commission has filed a complaint accusing education tech provider Chegg of "careless" security practices that compromised personal data since 2017. Among the violations, the company reportedly exposed sensitive info for roughly 40 million customers in 2018 after a former contractor used their login to access a third-party database. The content included names, email addresses, passwords and even content like religion, sexual orientation and parents' income ranges. The info eventually turned up for sale through the online black market.

Some of the stolen info belonged to employees. Chegg exposed Social Security numbers, medical data and other worker details.

The FTC further alleges Chegg failed to use "commercially reasonable" safeguards. It reportedly let employees and contractors use a single sign-in, didn't require multi-factor authentication and didn't scan for threats. The firm stored personal data in plain text and relied on "outdated and weak" encryption for passwords, the Commission adds. Officials also say Chegg didn't even have a written security policy until January 2021, and didn't provide sufficient security training despite three phishing attacks.

Chegg has agreed to honor a proposed order to make amends, the FTC says. The company will have to both define the information it collects and limit the scope of that collection. It will institute multi-factor authentication and a "comprehensive" security program that includes encryption and security training. Customers will have access to their data, and will be allowed to ask Chegg to delete that data.

The provider isn't alone in facing government crackdowns over security problems. Uber settled with the Justice Department in July for failing to notify customers of a major 2016 data breach, while the FTC recently penalized Drizly and its CEO for alleged lapses that led to a 2020 incident. The government is clearly eager to prevent data breaches and make an example of companies with sub-par security measures.

In a statement to Engadget, Chegg says it treats data privacy as a "top priority." The company cooperated with the FTC and will "comply fully" with the Commission's order. It adds that it didn't face any fines, and believes this is a reflection of its improved security stance. You can read the full response below.

"Data privacy is a top priority for Chegg. Chegg worked cooperatively with the Federal Trade Commission on these matters to find a mutually agreeable outcome and will comply fully with the mandates outlined in the Commission’s Administrative Order. The incidents in the Federal Trade Commission’s complaint related to issues that occurred more than two years ago. No monetary fines were assessed, which we believe is indicative of our current robust security practices, as well as our efforts to continuously improve our security program. Chegg is wholly committed to safeguarding users’ data and has worked with reputable privacy organizations to improve our security measures and will continue our efforts."

You're not alone if you're unable to check your Instagram feeds. Instagram has confirmed that some users are "having issues" accessing their accounts. The social network hasn't identified a cause as of this writing, but some users have received notices that their accounts were suspended, while others have seen their follower counts drop.

We've asked Instagram for further comment on the outage and will let you know if we hear more. Reports of failures started spiking on Downdetector shortly before 9AM Eastern. They're not consistent, however, as many users (including here at Engadget) aren't running into problems.

This isn't the first significant outage in the past year. Meta's social networks suffered a major outage roughly a year ago after a bug disconnected key parts of the social media giant's backbone network. More recently, Instagram fixed a bug in early October that prevented iOS users from accessing the service. These hiccups aren't frequent, but they suggest Instagram still has teething troubles as it continues to grow.

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Twitter isn't about to rush into big content policy changes now that Elon Musk owns the company. Musk has announced that the social network will form a moderation council with members holding "widely diverse viewpoints." There won't be any "major" content decisions or ban reversals until that council meets, the entrepreneur says.

Musk hasn't named council members or provided a timeline for the council's creation. We've asked Twitter if it can comment on the strategy or provide additional details, and we'll let you know if we hear more.

The Tesla chief has vowed to make substantial changes to Twitter's moderation policy, such as relaxing the overall rules and limiting permanent bans on people like Donald Trump. However, the council plans suggest Musk could take some time to implement a new approach, and may delegate at least some of the responsibility. He recently tried to reassure advertisers that Twitter won't become a "free-for-all hellscape" where ads run alongside horrific posts.

This isn't to say Musk is avoiding all swift decisions. He has already fired multiple executives, including policy head Vijaya Gadde. Musk reportedly informed rank-and-file staff that he won't lay off as many people as feared, but he's still expected to cut jobs in relatively short order. Tesla engineers are believed to be helping with a code review that could lead to technical revisions.

If and when the council arrives, critics will be watching it closely. Conservatives have long accused Twitter of silencing right-wing viewpoints, and have gone so far as to enact state laws that force social networks to carry more content. Others, however, have rejected the claims and contended that strong moderation is necessary to prevent hate speech and misinformation from gaining traction. A moderation panel theoretically addresses both sides of the debate, but its effectiveness is far from established at this stage.