If you're looking for a camera (or drone) for content creation, travel photography and more, Amazon Prime Day has some great deals, including rare sales on popular models. For example, Sony's latest A7 IV model is on sale for the first time at $2,400, or $2,600 with a 28-70mm kit lens — saving you $100 on each. DJI, which doesn't often discount its popular drones, is selling the Mini 3 Pro with DJI RC remote for $729. Meanwhile, Canon is selling its R50 creator's kit for $850 for a savings of $150, Panasonic has its full frame Lumix S5 on sale with two lenses (including a prime) for $1,700 (40 percent off) and OM System is selling the OM-D E-M1 Mark III mirrorless camera for just $1,300, for an impressive $500 discount. There are plenty of other deals as well, and if you don't find what you want at Amazon, some of the products come with the same discount elsewhere. 

Sony A7 IV

Sony’s A7 IV is a successful follow-up to its popular mainstream A7 III. Resolution is up considerably to 33 megapixels, and image quality is much improved overall. Video is now on par with rivals with 4K at up to 60p with 10 bit 4:2:2 quality. Autofocus is incredible for both video and stills, and the in-body stabilization does a good job. The biggest drawbacks are rolling shutter that limits the use of the electronic shutter and the relatively high price — but the $100 discount helps ease the latter a bit. The sale is on now, but extends to July 16th. 

Sony A7 III

When it first came out, I said that Sony's 24.2-megapixel A7 III was a "near-perfect all-around camera." That still applies. The already excellent 693-point hybrid phase detect autofocus system has been updated via firmware with the real-time eye and animal AF features introduced with the A6100/A6400 models. On top of that, you can shoot bursts at up to 10 fps with continuous autofocus and auto exposure. On the video side, however, it's been surpassed by the like-priced Z6 and S1 models from Nikon and Panasonic. As mentioned, the deals are good until July 16th, but act soon before stock runs out. 

DJI Mini 3 Pro drone with DJI RC screen remote

The DJI Mini 3 Pro is a lightweight drone under 250 grams, but it’s loaded with features found on bigger models like the Mavic 3. It has some of the best image quality specs on a lightweight drone, including 4K 60p, 1080 120p and 48-megapixel photos. It also offers most of the AI and tracking features found on the Mavic 3, like ActiveTrack, QuickShots and more. DJI also introduced the screen-equipped RC remote that’s more convenient than using a smartphone. The Mini 3 Pro is a bit expensive at $909 with the RC remote, but it's far more palatable at $729.

Canon R50 Content Creator Kit

Canon’s 24-megapixel EOS R50 is the company’s third APS-C camera to launch in the EOS R mount ecosystem. Weighing just 375 grams and packing a built-in flash, it’s extremely portable so it’s great for travel, parties, street photography and more. At the same time, it can shoot images at up to 15 fps, outputting high-quality, human-friendly photos. It’s capable for video as well, with 4K 30p supersampled from 6K, with 10-bit capability via HDR PQ. With features aimed at creators, you can grab it in a kit with a stereo microphone, tripod grip, wireless remote and an S18-45mm lens — saving you $150 on the kit. 

Sony 24-70mm f/2.8 G Master full-frame zoom lens

Sony's FE 24-70mm f/2.8 G Master full-frame lens covers the standard zoom range, so it's great for all kinds of shooting. It offers incredible G Master optics, but it's currently on sale at $1,598, the lowest price we've seen to date. 

Panasonic Lumix S5 with two lenses

With the arrival of the Lumix S5 II, Panasonic is offering some stellar deals on its predecessor, the S5. It’s smaller and costs less than the Lumix S1, but it actually delivers better video features. That includes a flip-out display, five-axis in-body stabilization and 10-bit 4K recording at up to 60 fps. The autofocus is faster and more accurate than the S1, but not as good as Sony and Canon’s systems for video. Still, at this price, it's one of the best cameras currently available for content creators. 

OM System E-M1 Mark III

Despite being a few years old, the 20-megapixel OM System (formerly Olympus) E-M1 III is still one of the best wildlife photography cameras available. It offers excellent image stabilization, fast shooting speeds, a compact, weather-proof body, flip out screen and accurate colors. It's also a solid choice for content creators, with 4K 30p video and OM-Log mode to boost dynamic range. Best of all, powerful telephoto lenses are relatively inexpensive compared to other brands. It's now on sale for $1,299, saving you $500 over the regular price. 

Sony A7C

Sony’s 24.2-megapixel A7C is a slightly smarter version of the popular full-frame A7 III in the smaller body of the crop-sensor A6600. That means it’s easy to carry around, but has worse handling than the A7 III. It has very similar image quality, shooting speeds and video specs as the A7 III, but uses Sony’s latest AI smarts to improve autofocus tracking. The A7C isn’t quite as capable as recent cameras like the Canon R6, but it’s a bit cheaper. Overall, it’s a good choice for hybrid shooters that lean to the photo side who want a lightweight, modestly priced full-frame camera.

Sony A6600

As Sony’s flagship APS-C camera, the 24.2-megapixel A6600 has a lot to offer. It comes with features like real-time AF tracking, a pop-up screen, in-body stabilization, solid battery life and awesome photo quality. It's also a great travel camera thanks to the compact size. It is a bit old now, having come out in 2019, but it's an attractive option at this low price. 

These are the best deals we've found, but there are others as well. Sony in particular is active, with savings on no less than seven cameras and multiple lenses. For example, the 62-megapixel A7R IV is on sale for $2,998 (6 percent off). In addition, it's fastest prime lens, the FE 50mm f/1.2 model, is discounted $100 to $1,898. You can also grab the Panasonic S5 (body only) for $1,298 if you don't need the lenses, saving 35 percent off the regular price. 

There are some notable deals on accessories, too. Lexar's V60 II memory cards (250MB/s read and 120MB/s write) are up to 31 percent off, with the 128GB model priced at just $31 and the 256GB model at $62. The faster V90 II cards are marked down up to 44 percent, with the best deal on the 128GB card ($96). You can also grab deals on the company's microSDXC cards, with the best deal on the 1TB Play card ($63 or 52 percent off). And if it's a camera backpack you're looking for, LowePro's Slingshot Edge 250 AW is marked down to just $74, or 56 percent off the regular price. And one its best backpacks, the ProTactic 450 AW II is on sale for $205, for a savings of 45 percent. 

Google is already testing its Med-PaLM 2 AI chat technology at at the Mayo Clinic and other hospitals, The Wall Street Journal has reported. It's based on the company's PaLM 2 large language model (LLM) that underpins Bard, Google's ChatGPT rival — and was launched just months ago at Google I/O. 

Unlike the base model, Med-PaLM-2 has been trained on questions and answer from medical licensing exams, along with a curated set of medical expert demonstrations. That gives it expertise in answering health-related questions, and it can also do labor-intensive tasks like summarizing documents and organizing research data, according to the report. 

During I/O, Google released a paper detailing its work on Med-PaLM2. On the positive side, it demonstrated features like "alignment with medical consensus," reasoning ability, and even the ability to generate answers that were preferred by respondents over physician-generated responses. More negatively, it showed the same accuracy problems we've seen on other Chat AI models. 

Microsoft is also developing medical AI chat tech based on OpenAI's ChatGPT, having teamed up with the healthcare software company Epic. Google is also working on using its AI for ultrasound diagnosis and cancer therapy, it revealed in March. Both companies have promised to keep patient information confidential, saying they don't train their models on patient data. Last month, Microsoft expressed alarm about its ChatGPT technology being used by doctors to improve communications with patients. 

In an internal email seen by the WSJ, Google said it believes the updated model could "be of tremendous value in countries that have more limited access to doctors." Still, Google has admitted that the technology is still in its early stages. "I don’t feel that this kind of technology is yet at a place where I would want it in my family’s healthcare journey," said Google senior research director Greg Corrado. However, he added that the tech "takes the places in healthcare where AI can be beneficial and expands them by 10-fold." 

Apple is planning to roll out its $3,500 Vision Pro headset gradually, starting in the US with appointments for demos in designated Apple Store areas, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The gradual rollout is in line with the "niche and complex nature" of the mixed reality headset, and resembles what Apple originally did with the Watch when it launched in 2015. 

Apple will require appointments to try and buy the Vision Pro, much as it did with the Apple Watch, according to people with knowledge of the matter. It will also ask potential buyers to provide their eyeglass prescriptions. Special areas will be created in stores that offer demo Vision Pro devices, seating and tools to size accessories. 

The primary aim is to make sure that customers leave with a headset that fits correctly and gives them a clear view. It has even developed an iPhone app and physical machine that will scan your head to ensure a tight seal that keeps light out. Apple may also be working on a second strap that will make the headset more comfortable for people with smaller heads. 

Vision Pro demo spaces will only be available at Stores in major US markets like New York and Los Angeles to start with, before eventually rolling out across the US. It will come to other countries at the end of 2024, possible starting with the UK and Canada, followed by Europe and Asia soon after. 

The Vision Pro is Apple's most important product in years, but also one of the most complex devices it has ever built. It's also much more expensive than other consumer VR headsets. To that end, Apple is no doubt counting on the Vision Pro to get mainstream consumers excited about the idea of mixed reality.

In our hands-on preview, we found that the device delivered an awesome experience, offering an "unparalleled sense of immersion, with displays sharp enough to read text on websites, plus an intuitive gesture-based user interface," according to Engadet's Devindra Hardawar. He also had concerns, though, about the solitary nature of using mixed reality headsets, particularly for socially-oriented activities like movie watching. 

Apple has reportedly had manufacturing issues as well, and only expected to sell a 900,000 units in the headset's first year. However, even that modest target has reportedly been slashed by over half to 400,000 units due to the tiny and costly OLED displays, the Financial Times reported yesterday. 

Uber, DoorDash and Grubhub are suing for an injunction to stop New York City's new $18 minimum wage law for food delivery app workers, The Washington Post has reported. The app delivery platforms are asking for a temporary restraining order against the new rules, set to be implemented on July 12th. "We will not stand by and let the harmful impacts of this earnings standard on New York City customers, merchants, and the delivery workers it was intended to support go unchecked," a DoorDash spokesperson told CNN. 

The Worker's Justice Project that backed the survey decried the new lawsuit. "This latest legal maneuver to prop up their business model comes at the expense of workers who can barely survive in a city facing a massive affordability crisis," director Ligia Guallpa told the Post.

New York became the first US city to mandate a minimum wage for food delivery workers, ordering platforms to pay workers $17.96 per hour, plus tips, by July 12th. The minimum wage in the city is $15 per hour, but the extra amount accounts for the fact that delivery workers are usually paid as contractors, so have higher taxes and must pay work-related expenses out of pocket. According to an estimate from the DCWP (NYC Department of Consumer and Worker Protection), NYC has more than 60,000 food delivery workers who earn an average of $7.09 per hour. 

However, DoorDash and GrubHub argued that the earnings estimate was based on flawed methodology. Workers surveyed were told up front that the aim was to help raise the pay of delivery workers and suggested "correct" answers, according to the lawsuit. 

Grubhub also expressed concern about the increased difficulty in monitoring workers. Uber said, in a separate lawsuit, that the higher minimum wage would inflate food order prices, in turn hurting local restaurants.

App services like Uber have fought for years against regulations against the "gig worker" economy. Earlier this year, a court ruled that Uber and Lyft could keep treating drivers as contractors, rather than reclassifying them as salaried employees. 

To give you an idea how old Angry Birds is, it arrived on iOS, webOS and something called Maemo 5 (?) before it even came to Android, according to our 2010 review. Not only is it still around over 13 years later, but developer Rovio is being purchased by Sega for around $776 million. And on top of all that, Rovio is opening the first Angry Birds-themed restaurant on Friday (July 8th). Called "iSwii by Angry birds," it'll be located within the Food Court at Tangram's new mall in Flushing, Queens, NY — ready to fling cakes, pastries and other treats into your mouth. 

Partnering with construction outfit SCG America, Rovio promises "endless culinary treats, bright visuals, newest Angry Birds Games and interactive technology." Its decorated with "Instagrammable" NYC-themed statue installations outside the entrance, a ceiling mural, terrazzo counter and flooring that looks like dessert sprinkles. You'll also see "nest-like wicker and hanging chairs, bird paradise graphic wall coverings, and tropical plants on the shelving units where hatchlings, the baby birds wander around."

No menu was shown, but the press release mentions "yummy seasonal holiday cakes and pastries," and the provided photo shows mostly deserts, candies and other sweets. It's also hosting private parties in "nests" or "rooms that will offer Angry Birds VR games & treats, including customizable Angry Birds-themed gift bags for party goers. 

We're not sure if people will embrace a restaurant based on a game that peaked around 2015 with the Angry Birds Movie. In any case, Sega's purchase for three-quarters of a billion dollars shows the IP still has value, and the app has over 5 billion downloads to date — plus, the restaurant has a 2013 vibe that could make it a big nostalgia draw. 

Meta's Twitter rival Threads just went live and has already exceeded 10 million signups within the first seven hours, according to (a Thread by) CEO Mark Zuckerberg. The app is now available globally (except in Europe), with the rapid signup pace showing Meta's enormous ability to scale up compared to other Twitter rivals like Bluesky — which still requires invite codes. 

To, er, mark the occasion, Zuckerberg tweeted for the first time in over a decade with the classic Spider-Man standoff picture (showing that unlike Elon Musk, he actually knows how memes work). "10 million signups in seven hours," he added on Threads. 

With Threads, Meta is taking on Twitter and alternatives like Mastodon. It's under the purview of Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri, who is planning to make Threads compatible with ActivityPub. That's the source protocol that powers Mastodon and other decentralized services sometimes collectively referred to as the “Fediverse.”

Threads is strongly tied to Instagram and built on the same platform, giving Meta an effective way to advertise it. Any users who pre-ordered the app on iOS received a push notification when Threads went live, another move that no doubt boosted signups. 

The site is not without early teething issues, though. The biggest complaint is the lack of a chronological, following-only feed, with users stuck with whatever the Threads algorithm decides to push their way. ("95 percent of the posts I see are completely irrelevant to me," complained one user). It also lacks post editing (which Facebook and Instagram both have), hashtags, account switching and more. 

Mosseri has addressed all those issues, posting on Threads that a following-only feature is "on the list." He said the same about post editing and account switching, and added that hashtags will be tappable "in time." 

Engadget

Another key problem for many users is the lack of a web version of Threads. Much like Instagram was for a long time, Threads is read-only on browsers, with posting limited to the iOS and Android apps (Mosseri has yet to address this). Finally, the design of Threads seems to be a love it or hate it affair, with some users finding the layout less intuitive than Twitter.

Verification remains another key talking point. Elon Musk famously changed Twitter's system so that only Twitter Blue subscribers would receive the blue check mark (or very notable public figures and news sites). That made the experience less enjoyable for many users, as it became difficult to tell who was an official athlete, celebrity, journalist, etc. 

So far, only users verified on Instagram (and not Facebook) have received the blue badge on Threads. While Instagram verification is notoriously more difficult to get, it's largely held by influencers and creators. But Threads is positioned as a discussion site and will likely be focused on news (if it's to compete with Twitter), so it might make sense to allow Facebook verified users to also be verified on Threads — or create an all-new verification system.

In any case, it's still early days for Threads and the app will no doubt change substantially in the near future. It's clear that users have strong opinions — whether Meta listens to them or not will be an interesting story over the next few months.  

Fisker has given us another glimpse of the 600-mile range Ronin convertible EV and promised to unveil it in full on August 3rd, according to an Instagram post from CEO Henrik Fisker. Like the original Fisker Karma, it's a low and swoopy four-door "super GT" sedan that will join the Ocean SUV and future Pear EV. "Fisker Ronin, All Electric super GT! Reveal August 3rd! Super fast & space for 5! The ultimate long distance Grand Touring car with anticipated range of 600 miles!" Fisker wrote in the post. 

There's no word yet on the price, but the company previously promised to keep it under $200,000. Other than the anticipated range, specs like power have yet to be shared. It was first revealed last year when Fisker announced it would show it off in August 2023, so it's on schedule in that regard. 

It's a bit behind on Ocean EV deliveries, however. The company announced the start of production back in December 2022, saying it planned to build 300 Ocean EVs in Q1 2023 and boost that to more than 8,000 in Q2 and 15,000 in Q3. So far, however, it has only shipped 22 units in the US and just started deliveries a few weeks ago. The Ocean (built at Fisker's "carbon neutral" Graz, Austria factory) is priced at $37,500 for the base model and goes up to $69,000 for the 350-mile range, 550 HP Ocean Extreme.

Fisker is working on an even more affordable EV, the four-door Pear that starts at $29,900 before any incentives. Not a lot of details are available for that vehicle either, but production is supposed to start next year in Lordstown, Ohio, with Foxconn as the contract manufacturer. The two companies plan to eventually produce a minimum of 250,000 units per year. 

Meta's rival to Twitter called Threads, an Instagram app is set to launch tomorrow in the US and UK, but it may not come to the rest of Europe anytime soon. A Meta spokesperson told Ireland's Data Protection Commission that the service will not be rolled in the EU "at this point," Independent.ie has reported. 

Threads may not be launching in much of Europe due to more stringent data privacy requirements. The DPC is apparently not blocking the service — instead, it's Meta that has "not yet prepared the service for a European launch outside the UK, which is not fully governed by GDPR or EU privacy rules," according to the report.

The EU just hit Meta with a ruling that it must obtain consent from users before delivering personalized ads in the region. Prior to that, the company was hit with a €390 million EU fine (about $425 million) for not receiving consent before serving up such ads. 

On top of that, in 2021, the DPC fined WhatsApp €225 million ($266.8 million at the time) or not providing enough detail on how it shares EU users' data with Facebook. That could pose a problem for Threads in its current state, as it automatically imports data from Instagram, including advertising and behavior information, according to the policy listed on its iOS App Store page. 

Threads is arriving amidst issues with Twitter like "rate limits" on tweets and degraded service for the power-user app Tweetdeck. Many of Twitter's active users have been seeking an alternative with apps like Bluesky and Mastodon, but some see Threads as the most viable option due to Meta's scale. That's despite any reservations they may have about CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook's track record on privacy and other issues.

If you're looking for a high-quality 4K streaming stick, look no further. Amazon's best model, the Fire TV Stick 4K Max, is on sale for Prime Day at an all-time low of $25, a full 55 percent off the regular price. And if even that is slightly too expensive, Amazon has also discounted the regular Fire TV Stick 4K by 54 percent to $23 (also an all-time low). Finally, if you want the most streaming power possible, the Fire TV Cube is on sale for $110 ($30) off — once again the cheapest price we've ever seen.

The best deal by a long shot is the Fire TV Stick 4K Max, though, with a steep $30 discount that makes it just $2 more than the Fire TV Stick 4K. It's Amazon’s most powerful streaming stick, thanks to a faster processor that delivers 40 percent more power than the one in the Fire TV Stick 4K. That translates to faster app start times and more fluid menu navigation, for a better overall experience. The Fire TV Sitck 4K Max also comes with WiFi 6 connectivity, as well as support for Dolby Vision, HDR, HDR10+ and Dolby Atmos audio, along with Alexa commands via the Alexa Voice Remote.

While not quite as zippy, the Fire TV Stick 4K is also on sale for $23, or 54 percent off. It's a great option if you want a low-profile streaming device that can handle 4K content. It also supports Dolby Vision and HDR, and comes with the Alexa Voice Remote, which lets you search for and launch content with voice commands. Frankly though, for the extra $2, I'd grab the Fire TV Stick 4K Max.

Amazon

The Fire TV Cube (which is rarely discounted much) is on sale at an all-time low price of $110 (21 percent off). It's Amazon's most powerful streaming device with a hexa-core processor, 2GB of RAM and 16GB of storage. It supports 4K, HDR content with Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos, and it has picture-in-picture live view as well. You're also getting hands-free Alexa controls, too, which means the Cube's built-in speaker will hear and recognize your commands to turn off your lights or check the weather, even with your TV off.

Finally, if you want to upgrade your remote on any Fire TV device, the Alexa Remote Pro is on sale for $28, or 20 percent off the regular price. It features a backlight and programmable buttons, but the most useful feature is the Remote Finder, which lets you ask Alexa to trigger a noise if decides to play hide and seek. And if you want to save a few more bucks on top of these all-time low prices, don't forget that Amazon is offering a $5 credit with the purchase of a $50 eGift Card. 

Your Prime Day Shopping Guide: See all of our Prime Day coverage. Shop the best Prime Day deals on Yahoo Life. Follow Engadget for the best Amazon Prime Day tech deals. Learn about Prime Day trends on In the Know. Hear from Autoblog’s car experts on must-shop auto-related Prime Day deals and find Prime Day sales to shop on AOL, handpicked just for you.

Google's Pixel 8 Pro may have been revealed in new photos on Reddit by someone affiliated with Google, DroidLife has reported. The back shows a very Pixel-like camera array along with the rumored body temperature sensor, along with a sticker that reads "for test/evaluation only." Another reads "Zuma - B1," a possible code name for Google's incoming Tensor G3 chip. The front screen, meanwhile, shows a Fastboot Mode indicating 12GB of Samsung LPDDR5 DRAM, 128GB of storage and "husky," a previously revealed codename for the Pixel 8 Pro. 

The Pixel 8 Pro is supposed to have a more capable camera array, with a 50-megapixel (MP) Samsung main camera that allows 50 percent more light, and a 64MP ultrawide Sony camera. It also looks to have a flat display, as rumored, rather than a curved one like the Pixel 6 Pro and Pixel 7 Pro models. According to yet another leak, it will have a 5,000 mAh battery (roughly the same as the Pixel 7 Pro) and a modest bump from a 23W to a 27W max charging speed. 

Reddit

In a series of posts on Reddit, the poster "annoyingtoread", said that he received it "from the device team in Google for testing." The person then mused that they should perhaps use a throwaway account, and someone replied "you really should, considering that in this account you've even posed pictures of yourself." The original poster subsequently deleted his account.