Felix Krause's discovery that Meta's Facebook and Instagram apps can track iPhone owners across websites hasn't sat well with some people. Bloombergreports users have filed two proposed class action lawsuits accusing Meta of evading Apple's privacy-oriented App Tracking Transparency (ATT) feature and consequently violating both federal and state laws barring unauthorized data gathering. Meta supposedly created a workaround by injecting tracking code into websites when you use its in-app browser, letting it monitor activity regardless of whether or not you gave permission to the app.

Apple introduced App Tracking Transparency as part of the iOS 14.5 update released in April 2021. The technology lets you ask apps not to track you, and requires that you explicitly opt in. Meta has been vocal in its opposition. It encouraged users to allow tracking, and warned that ATT might cost it $10 billion in ad revenue this year.

Meta rejected the allegations in a statement to Engadget. The company said both lawsuits were "without merit," and that it would defend itself "vigorously." It further claimed its in-app browsers honor privacy decisions, including for ads.

The lawsuits aren't certain to obtain class action status, which could lead to compensation for many users. Whether or not the suits are successful, they illustrate the tension between Meta, Apple and privacy advocates — Meta is determined to preserve the targeted advertising that fuels its business, even as critics and rival companies raise more objections.

Starlink satellite internet access has already spread to boats and RVs, and now it might accompany your child on the way home from class. SpaceX told the FCC in a filing that it's piloting Starlink aboard school buses in the rural US. The project would keep students connected during lengthy rides (over an hour in the pilot), ensuring they can complete internet-related homework in a timely fashion even if broadband is slow or non-existent at home.

The spaceflight company simultaneously backed FCC chair Jessica Rosenworcel's May proposal to bring WiFi to school buses, and said it supported the regulator's efforts to fund school and library internet access through the E-Rate program. To no one's surprise, SpaceX felt it had the best solution thanks to rapid satellite deployment, portable dishes and fast service for the "most remote" areas.

We've asked the FCC and SpaceX for comment, and will let you know if they respond. The pitch comes just two months after the FCC cleared the use of Starlink in vehicles, noting that it would serve the "public interest" to keep people online while on the move. The concept isn't new — Google outfitted school buses with WiFi in 2018 following tests, for example.

There's no guarantee the FCC will embrace SpaceX and fund bus-based Starlink service. The Commission rejected SpaceX's request for $885.5 million in help through the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund, and the firm responded by blasting the rejection as "grossly unfair" and allegedly unsupported by evidence. Satellite internet service theoretically offers more consistent rural coverage than cellular data, though, and Starlink competitors like Amazon's Project Kuiper have yet to deploy in earnest.

Moog has brought back its pioneering Model 10 synth for a second time, and you might have a better chance of owning this one. The "compact" modular device has reentered production and is available worldwide through dealers. It's a slight improvement on the limited-run 2019 version, too, with an updated onboard power supply (friendlier to musicians outside the US), a revised rear panel and more reliable calibration.

You can expect 11 analog modules and three 900 Series oscillators. The company hadn't provided pricing as of this writing. We've asked for more details. With that said, the 2019 Model 10 started at $9,950. This is for creators who fully intend to use the synth in their productions and performances.

If nothing else, it's another chance to revisit an important instrument. The original Model 10 arrived in 1971 and was the first relatively compact modular synth — before that, it wasn't uncommon to see giant modular arrays that didn't always fit into studios, let alone onstage. Moog's smaller design made the technology more accessible and was influential in shaping the early days of electronic music. Wendy Carlos used it to create her milestone album Switched-On Bach (still not available on streaming, we'd add), as did Isao Tomita with Snowflakes are Dancing.

Verizon (Engadget's former owner) is finally overhauling TracFone's service following the 2020 acquisition, and the reborn service might pique your interest in the right circumstances. The newly launched Total appears built to compete against big prepaid carriers like AT&T's Cricket and T-Mobile's Metro. In addition to more competitive rates than Verizon's self-branded option (more on that later), you'll also get a few new perks. Every plan offers 5G and unlimited calling and texts to Canada and Mexico, while unlimited plans now include a Disney+ subscription at either six months for the $50 plan or indefinitely with the $60 tier.

Service starts at $30 per month (you get 5 percent off with auto-refills) with 5GB of fast data and 5GB of hotspot data. A $0 plan provides 15GB of speedy data with matching hotspot support. The $50 unlimited plan caps you at 10GB of hotspot data, but the $60 offering bumps that to 20GB while also providing ultra-wideband 5G. Additional lines are $35 each, and international roaming is available if you have two or more lines on at least the $40 plan.

Whether or not this is a good value depends on what you're looking for. Total is a better overall bargain than Verizon's self-branded prepaid service. That doesn't dip to $30 per month unless you've been with the carrier for three months ($25 after nine months), and Verizon is generally stingier with freebies. No plans include Disney+ for longer than six months, and you have to spend at least $50 per month ($35 after nine months) to get unlimited calls and texts with Canada and Mexico. Video streaming is typically limited to 480p, but you can contact support to remove that ceiling.

Rival providers are another story. Total is usually more enticing than Cricket, with greater benefits even at $30 per month — Cricket doesn't even enable 480p video streaming until you spring for the $55 unlimited plan. The bundled HBO Max and 150GB of cloud storage in Cricket's $60 level ($55 with auto-pay) might reel you in. With Metro, it's more complicated. While the $30 5GB package is no-frills, you only need to shell out $40 to get unlimited data and a year of Spanish-language ViX+ streaming. Metro asks you to spend a minimum $50 per month to get hotspot data (and just 5GB at that), but that outlay also gives you a 100GB Google One subscription. Jump to $60 and you also get an Amazon Prime membership that could easily pay for itself.

Total isn't a surefire hit as a result. However, it does make Verizon considerably more attractive to the no-contract crowd than before. It may also be alluring if you want Disney+ and don't expect to switch carriers any time soon, particularly in light of upcoming price hikes for standalone subscriptions.

You no longer need to live in the US to use Affirm's buy-now-pay-later services for much of your online shopping. Affirm is expanding to Canada through a partnership with Amazon. Spend $50 or more at Amazon.ca and you can choose Affirm's pay-over-time option at checkout to split the bill into monthly payments. As in the States, there aren't any late fees or surprise charges.

The payment option will be available within a month. The Canadian rollout comes roughly two years after Affirm bought local equivalent PayBright — this is effectively a rebranding. Affirm serves Australia as well, but only for people buying Peloton exercise equipment.

This won't help if you prefer to shop beyond Amazon, and might prove expensive if your purchase amount and pay schedule involve significant interest rates (they range from zero to 30 percent, Affirm says). As with a car or house, you're paying more overall to make the price easier to swallow. Still, this could be useful if you can't afford to buy a computer or TV outright and need to spread the costs.

It's long been possible to make extremely small robots, but they usually need some form of direct external control just to operate. Cornell scientists may have solved that problem on a basic level, however. They've created microrobots (no more than 250 micrometers across) with basic electronic "brains" that let them walk autonomously. Two- and six-legged robots move relatively simply, while a four-legged "dogbot" changes speed when an operator sends laser pulses.

The trick was to build a complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (or CMOS, as computer enthusiasts know it) clock circuit whose signal produces phase-shifted square wave frequencies that set the gait of the robot's platinum-based legs. Photovoltaics control both the legs and the circuit. The design is far from complex at just 1,000 transistors (for context, a GeForce RTX 4090 has 76.3 billion), and it's still large enough that it effectively serves as the robot's body. However, even that is an achievement — the exceptionally low power demands saved Cornell from having to use relatively gigantic photovoltaics.

These inventions are a far cry from the more sophisticated large-scale autonomous robots you see today. They can move forward, but not much else. The researchers see this as just a beginning, though. They believe future microrobots could be crucial to healthcare, where they could perform internal surgery and clean your arteries. Elsewhere, they could detect chemicals and eliminate pollutants. Any such bots are likely years away, but this project suggests they're technically possible.

More evidence is mounting that virtual reality might relieve pain during surgery. MIT Newsreports that Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center researchers in Boston have published a study indicating that patients wearing VR headsets required less anesthetic during hand surgery. While the average conventional patient needed 750.6 milligrams per hour of the sedative propofol, people looking at relaxing VR content (such as meditation, nature scenes and videos) only required 125.3 milligrams. They also recovered earlier, leaving the post-anesthesia unit after 63 minutes on average versus 75 minutes.

The scientists claim VR distracted the patients from pain that would otherwise command their full attention. However, the researchers also admitted that the headset wearers may have gone into the operating room expecting VR to help, potentially skewing the results.

Beth Israel Deaconess' team is planning trials that could rule out this placebo effect, though. One follow-up trial will also gauge the effect of VR on patients receiving hip and knee surgery. Past experiments, such as at St. Jospeph's Hospital in France, have indicated that the technology can help assuage patients.

The allure for healthcare providers is clear. Patients might suffer less and return home sooner. Hospitals, meanwhile, could make the most of their anesthetic supplies, free recovery beds and reduce wait times. What a provider spends on VR headsets could pay for itself if it allows for more patients and higher-quality treatment.

Florida is calling on the US' highest court to settle the dispute over social media speech regulation. The Washington Postnotes the state's attorney general has petitioned the Supreme Court to determine whether or not states are violating First Amendment free speech rights by requiring that social media platforms host speech they would otherwise block, and whether they can require explanations when platforms remove posts.

In making its case, Florida argued that the court needed to address contradictory rulings. While a 5th Circuit of Appeals court upheld a Texas law allowing users to sue social networks for alleged censorship, an 11th Circuit of Appeals court ruled that Florida was violating the First Amendment with key parts of a law preventing internet firms from banning politicians.

The backers of the Florida and Texas laws have argued that the measures are necessary to combat alleged censorship of conservative views on platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Legislators have contended that social networks are common carriers, like phone providers, and thus are required to carry all speech that isn't otherwise illegal. The companies, meanwhile, believe laws like these are unconstitutional and would force them to host hate speech, hostile governments' propaganda and spam. They say the constitutional amendment is meant to protect against government censorship, and that private outlets have the right to decide what they host.

It's not clear how the Supreme Court will rule. While conservative judges dominate the legislative body, the court granted an emergency request that put the Texas law on hold before it was upheld in the 5th Circuit last week. The higher court hasn't yet issued a definitive ruling on the matter, and a decision in favor of Florida could also help more liberal-leaning states with their own proposed bills requiring greater transparency for hate speech and threats.

Volvo's EV range to date has been limited to smaller vehicles like the C40 Recharge, but it's now ready to tackle the high end. The company has announced that it will reveal the "flagship" EX90 electric SUV on November 9th. While the brand is unsurprisingly shy on details, it claims the new model will offer the best standard safety features of any Volvo to date.

The trick is an improved "understanding" of both the driver and the environment. The EX90 will supposedly include a cutting-edge sensor array that includes cameras, radar and LiDAR on the outside. In the cabin, more cameras and capacitive steering wheel sensors will detect inattentiveness and take gradually more drastic actions to protect you, including stopping the car at the side of the road and calling for help.

Some of these safety concepts aren't new. Systems like GM's Super Cruise check that your eyes are on the road, while Tesla cars will disable Autopilot and come to a stop if you don't put your hands on the wheel. Volvo is clearly hoping it offers the best safeguards of the bunch, though, and LiDAR might provide an advantage over rivals like Tesla (which doesn't use LiDAR) and Lucid (still a relatively small brand).

It's safe to say the EX90 will represent a change of tack. Instead of competing with the Tesla Model Y and other 'entry' luxury SUVs or crossovers, Volvo is more likely to aim squarely at the high end. This vehicle could serve as a halo product that draws EV buyers to the brand, even if they ultimately buy something more affordable.

The James Webb Space Telescope's tour of the Solar System just shed light on the most distant planet in our cosmic neighborhood. Researchers have shared the observatory's first image of Neptune, and it offers the best view of the icy world's rings in over 30 years. The picture is not only clear, but offers the first-ever look at the dust-based rings in the near-infrared spectrum. At these wavelengths, the planet doesn't look blue — it absorbs so much infrared and visible red light that it takes on a dark, ghostly appearance.

The image also shows seven of Neptune's 14 confirmed moons, including Triton (the 'star' at top) as well as Galatea, Naiad, Thalassa, Despina, Proteus and Larissa. The bright spots and streaks on the planet represent methane-ice clouds, including a swirl surrounding a vortex at the south pole. Triton's attention-grabbing look is the product of both the James Webb telescope's telltale diffraction spikes as well as a condensed nitrogen surface that typically reflects 70 percent of sunlight.

NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI

Neptune is a particularly important target for scientists. At roughly 2.8 billion miles from the Sun, it's far enough to deal with conditions that aren't present for nearer planets, such as very low temperatures and a very long (164-year) orbit. Triton's odd retrograde orbit even suggests might be a Kuiper Belt object that succumbed to Neptune's gravitational pull.

This is just the start of studies using the James Webb telescope, and researchers expect to collect more observations of both Neptune and Triton within the next year. As with the recent looks at Mars and Jupiter, astronomers are only collecting preliminary data at this stage. You may have to wait a while before there are further insights that could improve our understandings of Neptune and space at large.