The rumors of a Sony-TSMC chipmaking partnership were true. Nikkeireports Sony and TSMC are teaming up to build a semiconductor factory in Kumamoto, Japan that would tackle "strong global market demand" for specialized chips. That is, it would address chip shortages that have plagued everyone from car makers through to phone brands. The deal has TSMC creating a local subsidiary, Japan Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing, where Sony will have a minority stake of roughly $500 million.
This fab wouldn't be used to make cutting-edge chips on 5-nanometer and smaller processes. Instead, it would start out with 22nm and 28nm parts. That may sound outdated (even Intel's 14nm CPUs have been around for several years), but they could be ideal for tasks where cost and reliability are more important than raw performance, like cars and industrial equipment.
As with many chip shortage solutions, you won't notice the impact for a while. Sony and TSMC only expect to start construction of the factory sometime in 2022, and the plant won't start production until sometime before the end of 2024. The initial crunch that prompted the effort may have been solved by then. Nonetheless, this could help the tech industry keep up with demand and prevent any future crisis from hobbling whole economies.
It’s only a payday (or possibly two) away from the holiday season, and with supply difficulties for retailers, manufacturers and everyone in between, it might pay to get ahead of the crowd for some of the most desirable gifts.
While we can’t promise to source you a PS5 or OLED Switch, we’ve got ideas for the game streamer, the creative, the pet parent and more. Naturally, we’ve got camera, laptop and smartphone buying guidance, too. We’re Engadget, after all.
We also have the return of our popular sub-$100 gift selections, along with ideas for stocking stuffers that come in under $50. My pick would be Anker’s tiny Nano II charger. It’s USB-C and ready for high-speed device charging. If you’ve picked up a new phone in the last year and a half, you might have missed the in-box charger. This is probably faster at charging than your years-old Apple charging brick.
You’ve probably heard or seen DJI's gimbals, but rival Zhiyun actually carries more models — particularly those designed for mirrorless, DSLR and cinema cameras. Its three-axis Crane M3, designed for mirrorless cameras, is about the size of a water bottle and offers tilt, roll and pan axes, with locks for each. It works with smartphones and, Zhiyun claims, 90 percent of mirrorless cameras. It also has a quarter-inch adapter, so you can connect a professional microphone to an expansion base and run a second cable to the camera. It’s now available to order starting at $369 (£369) for the standard package.
Renewable sources may meet most power demands in 'advanced, industrialized nations'.
Wind and solar power could meet around 85 percent of US electricity needs, according to a paper published in Nature Communications. Batteries, capacity overbuilding and other storage options could increase that figure. The report found that most reliable systems, in which wind power is prevalent, can meet energy needs between 72 and 91 percent of the time in the countries they studied, and that's before any storage considerations. Add the capacity to store up to 12 hours of energy, and these renewable energy sources can meet between 83 and 94 percent of hourly energy needs.
There is a caveat though: The researchers noted even when wind and solar sources can power over 90 percent of a region's energy needs, there would still be hundreds of hours per year when demand isn't met.
Walmart, working with startup Gatik, has started its fully driverless box truck deliveries between its own locations on a fixed seven-mile loop in Bentonville, Arkansas. The route involves negotiating "intersections, traffic lights and merging on dense urban roads," the companies said.
The new service is part of Walmart's transition to a hub-and-spoke model with warehouses or fulfilment centers closer to customers. This means smaller warehouses, so "there is a growing need for doing repeated trips from the fulfilment centers to the pickup points," Gatik CEO Gautam Narang told CNBC.
You'll see smaller black bars on your TV during IMAX sequences.
You can expect to see Shang-Chi and an array of Marvel movies in movie-theater style large IMAX proportions later this week. The 1.90:1 IMAX aspect ratio will look up to 26 percent taller than the typical 2.35:1 widescreen format in Marvel films, so those annoying black bars will almost disappear while you're watching scenes shot in IMAX. It’s not properly IMAX, which is so square it has enormous black bars on the sides of your TV — see Zack Snyder's Justice League for how that goes.
Shang-Chi will come to the service on November 12th, along with 12 other IMAX-enhanced Marvel movies.
Ryzen chips for we mere commoners will have to wait.
AMD has unveiled its first processors based on its new Zen 4 architecture, and they promise a lot of brawn... at least for some users. AnandTech notes AMD has outlined its early Zen 4 roadmap during a virtual data center event, and the first two CPU families are Epyc chips, aimed at servers and other heavy-duty computing tasks.
The star of the show may be Bergamo. It's designed for cloud computing and emphasizes core density — AMD is promising up to 128 cores in a single CPU. This beastly chip won’t appear until the first half of 2023.
Yelp seems like it's been on the internet forever, but it still helps millions of people figure out where to eat. Now for the first time, the company is introducing a vertical home feed featuring images of dishes and more, designed to help people discover local restaurants.
The feed will first and foremost feature "popular dishes and other trending photos from consumers, including food photos or interior and exterior shots of the restaurants," Yelp said. Much like Google and other types of news feeds, the content shown is based on your proximity to the business, the freshness of content and a dish's popularity.
When you click on a restaurant's dish, you'll be directed to see more photos and reviews of that dish. Yelp uses machine learning to pick out those dishes based on reviews, then pairs them with photos and reviews of the dish. Clicking on other images, like the interior or exterior of a restaurant, will take you to the business page and show you more photos and info.
The other feature, Yelp Connect, is a paid feature for restaurant owners. It allows businesses to share updates with new and existing customers directly to home feed, helping their posts gain visibility (and Yelp more ad revenue, no doubt). Yelp said that it's initial testing showed it may lift a restaurant's consumer engagement up to 30 percent.
The new experience is arriving today on iOS exclusively in 150 cities in 25 US states, Yelp said. There's no word yet on an Android release, but the company said to "stay tuned for additional updates."
Marvel's superheroes are about to get a bit bigger on your TV. Disney+ announced today that it's adding an expanded IMAX aspect ratio for 13 Marvel titles, including Shang-Chi and Black Panther, on November 12th (AKA "Disney+ Day"). The 1.90:1 IMAX aspect ratio will look up to 26 percent taller than the typical 2.35:1 widescreen format in Marvel films, so those annoying black bars will almost disappear while you're watching scenes shot in IMAX. (You'll still see some slight bars, though, as the IMAX format doesn't completely fill 16x9 widescreen TVs.)
Disney
Before this Disney+ partnership, IMAX and DTS brought the "IMAX Enhanced" home viewing format to a handful of TV streaming apps, like Sony's Bravia Core. IMAX-ified films will have a prominent label on their Disney+ screens, and you'll also be able to launch the standard widescreen version if you prefer. Physical Blu-ray collectors are already used to shifting IMAX aspect ratios in some films, most notably The Dark Knight, Tenet and Mission Impossible: Fallout, but streaming films have typically lost on this perk.
The expanded aspect ratio should give Marvel's action sequences more room to pop on your TV, and it's a feature Disney+ can lord over its streaming competitors. Technically, IMAX Enhanced isn't delivering the large film format's true aspect ratio, which is more square. But, as we saw with Zack Snyder's Justice League, that leads to enormous black bars on the sides of your TV. It's also worth noting that we won't see IMAX versions of The Avengers and Ant-Man, as those are the rare Marvel films that used the TV-filling 1.85:1 aspect ratio (a choice made to convey a better sense of height).
Looking ahead, IMAX Enhanced will also bring immersive DTS sound to Disney+, a competing option to the more ubiquitous Dolby Atmos format. Representatives from all of the companies involved tell us that IMAX Enhanced films will also support Dolby Vision, HDR10, 4K (naturally) and Dolby Atmos sound.
Sony has the best in-ear and over-the-ear wireless ANC headphones on the market right now, but it also has some of the best mid-range models. A case in point is the recent WH-XB910N over-ear wireless noise-cancellation models, with features like 30 hours of battery life, effective noise cancellation and tech that can amplify your voice on Zoom calls. They're not exactly cheap at $250, but you can now pick them up via an exclusive Amazon deal for $138 or 45 percent off for today only.
The WH-XB910 headphones offer sound quality nearly as good as Sony's top-end WH-1000XM4 models, though the noise cancellation isn't quite as effective. If you like your music with some serious bottom end, they offer the "XB" (extra bass) feature that amps up the bass when activated. It also uses DSEE tech to restore detail lost to compression, and supports Sony's 360 Reality surround-sound audio content.
Sony is also pitching these to the work-from-home crowd, with its Precise Voice Pickup that can amplify your voice on calls. It also offers an ambient sound mode so you can hear what's going on around you, along with on-board controls. On top of the 30-hour battery life, you can gain an additional 4.5 hours with a 10-minute quick charge.
If you're looking for the best instead, Sony's WH-1000XM4 headphones offer both incredible sound, accurate sound quality and cone-of-silence levels of ANC noise cancellation. That model is still on sale for $248 in black or silver, or $100 off the regular price.
You might already be familiar with DJI's gimbals, but rival Zhiyun actually carries more models — particularly those designed for mirrorless, DSLR and cinema cameras. Now, it has released the three-axis Crane M3 designed for mirrorless cameras, with some interesting new features like a tiny LED light and a built-in screen.
The Crane M3 is about the size of a water bottle and offers tilt, roll and pan axes with locks for each. It works with smartphones and 90 percent of mirrorless cameras, Zhiyun notes. It has a smart new white and black chassis that the company says delivers a better gripping and user experience. It also offers upgraded motors with stronger torque than the original Crane 3.
A key feature is the quick-release design with different plates that lets you change rapidly between different sized cameras (action and mirrorless, for instance), without the need to rebalance. It also has a quarter-inch adapter so you can connect a professional microphone to an expansion base and run a second cable to the camera. A mic or other accessory can then be attached to a quarter-inch threaded expansion port. Zhiyun is even selling its own shotgun mic in one of the packages, or you can connect other models.
Zhiyun
The most noticeable feature, though, is an 800-lumen 6 watt dual-color LED light. It's designed for "impromptu low-light shooting," Zhiyun notes, with full stepless dimming control and temperature settings via a control wheel. The light is softened with a translucent filter, though it's largely designed for run-and-gun shooting.
Other features include Bluetooth (or USB-C) control of supported cameras and a joystick and wheel to control, roll axis, aperture, shutter and ISO. If you'd rather not set controls using the smartphone app, it also offers a 1.22-inch full-color interactive touchscreen to change mode settings (portrait, vortex and go modes), as well as follow speed. It also shows camera operational status, gimbal connection and battery levels.
Zhiyun sent me a unit to try out, complete with the expansion plate, so I attached a Panasonic GH5 II. While some functions weren't working (like the camera app), it was one of the easier gimbals to balance that I've tried and it's certainly easy to detach and attach the camera using the quick release plates. The ability to connect a microphone away from the camera is also smart, reducing complexity and rebalancing, though you'd need some accessories to attach a decent-sized microphone.
Zhiyun
Operation was smooth, with controls well placed for manual operations. The touchscreen was nice, though it's relatively easy to hit it by mistake — I did so once and accidentally changed the language. The lighting feature works great in a pinch, but because of the small size, it casts some harsh shadows. Hopefully all the features I didn't get to try, including app support, will be available soon.
The Zhiyun Crane M3 is now available to order starting at $369 (£369) for the standard package, $449 (£449) for the combo package with a backpack, cellphone mount and Tripod Plus, or $649 (£649) for the Pro package, including all the above plus the TransMount Shotgun Microphone and TransMount Expansion Base. You can also get customized release plates for specific camera models: Sony α7M3; Sony α7C; Sony α6000; Sony α7S; Sony ZV-E10; Canon M50; Nikon Zfc; Fuji X-S10; Fuji XT-4.
Marvel's superheroes are about to get a bit bigger on your TV. Disney+ announced today that it's adding an expanded IMAX aspect ratio for 13 Marvel titles, including Shang-Chi and Black Panther, on November 12th (AKA "Disney+ Day"). The 1.90:1 IMAX aspect ratio will look up to 26 percent taller than the typical 2.35:1 widescreen format in Marvel films, so those annoying black bars will almost disappear while you're watching scenes shot in IMAX. (You'll still see some slight bars, though, as the IMAX format doesn't completely fill 16x9 widescreen TVs.)
Disney
Before this Disney+ partnership, IMAX and DTS brought the "IMAX Enhanced" home viewing format to a handful of TV streaming apps, like Sony's Bravia Core. IMAX-ified films will have a prominent label on their Disney+ screens, and you'll also be able to launch the standard widescreen version if you prefer. Physical Blu-ray collectors are already used to shifting IMAX aspect ratios in some films, most notably The Dark Knight, Tenet and Mission Impossible: Fallout, but streaming films have typically lost on this perk.
The expanded aspect ratio should give Marvel's action sequences more room to pop on your TV, and it's a feature Disney+ can lord over its streaming competitors. Technically, IMAX Enhanced isn't delivering the large film format's true aspect ratio, which is more square. But, as we saw with Zack Snyder's Justice League, that leads to enormous black bars on the sides of your TV. It's also worth noting that we won't see IMAX versions of The Avengers and Ant-Man, as those are the rare Marvel films that used the TV-filling 1.85:1 aspect ratio (a choice made to convey a better sense of height).
Looking ahead, IMAX Enhanced will also bring immersive DTS sound to Disney+, a competing option to the more ubiquitous Dolby Atmos format. Representatives from all of the companies involved tell us that IMAX Enhanced films will also support Dolby Vision, HDR10, 4K (naturally) and Dolby Atmos sound.
Here are all the IMAX Enhanced films arriving on Disney+ on November 12th:
Now that Netflix is offering mobile games on Android, there's a lingering question: how will iOS players join in when Apple's policies bar all-in-one gaming services? The hard way, apparently. In his "Power On" newsletter, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman (with help from developer Steve Moser) claimed to have seen code indicating Netflix would release all its games "individually" on iOS, through the App Store. They won't all be downloadable and playable within the app, Gurman added.
The main Netflix app would still offer access to the game catalog, but you'd merely be launching a separate app when you tap a game. That's currently how it works with Android, but Netflix has the option of folding games into its Android app. On iOS, it would have no choice but to make games available separately. Apple requires that every game on the App Store receive an individual screening, even if it's only available through the cloud.
You could see this coming in light of Apple's approach, but it still indicates that Netflix will have to make some compromises if it's going to bring mobile games to iOS. This also underscores a growing rivalry between Apple and Netflix, as Gurman explained. The two are competing on an increasing number of fronts, ranging from gaming to streaming video services, but neither can afford to estrange the other. The potential exists for a significant conflict, especially if Apple has to make further concessions on App Store rules.
Samsung might just revive the S-Pen with the Galaxy S22 Ultra after all. Front Page Tech has obtained photos of what it claims are the first live photos of the (apparently finished) S22 Ultra, and it's effectively the new Galaxy Note. There's an S-Pen, a slot to hold the stylus and even a less-rounded design reminiscent of Notes past.
Unlike previous 3D renders, however, there's no P-shaped camera hump. Samsung reportedly needed a thicker design to accommodate the S-Pen, allowing lenses that are far more flush with the body. You might have to forego significant camera upgrades, though. The S22 Ultra will supposedly still revolve around a 108MP main sensor joined by a 12MP ultra-wide shooter, a 10MP 3X telephoto cam and a 10MP 10X telephoto.
Front Page Tech
Separately, FPT's Jon Prosser claimed Samsung would take pre-orders for the Galaxy S22 family on February 8th ahead of a February 18th release. We'd treat those dates as tentative no matter how reliable they are (the timing could easily change at this stage), but they hint the S21's January debut was more of a one-off than the start of a trend.
If the leak is accurate, it helps explain Samsung's decision to skip a Galaxy Note update in 2021. The company wasn't so much 'killing' the Note as moving it into the Galaxy S line. The company may reserve its summer phone launches for foldables like the Z Fold 3. While that may be a hassle if you've been patiently waiting for a new Note, it beats having to either give up built-in S-Pen functionality or settling for a "good enough" optional equipment.
Engadget’s product reviews this week run the gamut from earbuds to e-readers. Billy Steele checked out the Beats Fit Pro and liked them for their improved fit and deeper sound. Next, a few items of note for photography enthusiasts: Steve Dent reviewed the Panasonic GH5 II to see the difference an all-new processor can make, while Mat Smith used the Sony Xperia 1 III and reported that the oblong smartphone has a slew of intriguing camera features to offer. Finally, Nathan Ingraham reviewed the Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition, which left him suitably impressed.
Billy Steele likes the more traditional fit of the new Beat Fits Pro earbuds. These are the newest true wireless buds in the company’s lineup and they have a slight design update with flexible wingtips, which bend to fit more ear shapes. Billy says this element helped keep the buds in place and he hardly noticed them in his ears. In addition to the hardware refresh, the earbuds also feature active noise-cancellation (ANC), adaptive EQ and spatial audio, plus other features integrated with iOS that make them an attractive option for iPhone users.
The $200 Beat Fits Pro also have an IPX4 rating, and their wingtips make them more secure during workouts. The upgrades the company made to the sound profile were immediately noticeable according to Billy, who reported a punchier bass with more depth, more room for vocals and other elements and more low-end tone. The buds have the same H1 chip found in the AirPods Pro, allowing them to access features like one-touch pairing and hands-free Siri. But the Beats Fit Pro weren’t without issue: Billy experienced a lot of accidental button presses and they don’t support wireless charging. But they still offer a good blend of features, sound and performance, making them a solid alternative to the AirPods Pro.
Nathan Ingraham knows that an e-reader isn’t a gadget that most people upgrade often. However, a larger 6.8-inch screen, smaller bezels, 17 LED backlights, USB-C charging and 32GB of storage make for quite an update, and because of all that, Nathan calls the Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition the best e-reader he’s ever used. Those extra LEDs emit an adjustable warm light that should reduce eye strain at night, and Nathan says this was his favorite new feature on the device. He also said the hardware changes to the bezels and screen helped to make this feel like a more premium device.
The latest Kindle can also automatically adjust the backlight to reduce nighttime eye strain, plus it has wireless charging and won’t display ads on the lock screen. Like previous versions, the Signature Edition is waterproof, can play audiobooks using Bluetooth and has a battery life that lasts weeks. But it comes in at $190, which is $50 more than the standard Kindle Paperwhite. Nathan says that for most people, the extra storage isn’t worth the extra money — unless you plan on downloading a lot of Audible titles on your e-reader.
Steve Dent found a lot to like about the Panasonic GH5 II. The refreshed design still has the same 20-megapixel Micro Four Thirds sensor, as well as the same 3.68 million dot resolution and .76x magnification. The body hardware is nearly identical with an excellent grip, logical control positions and a smaller but brighter rear display. However, the new version of the camera has a faster processor and double the refresh rate at 120Hz. The chip helps improve the AI autofocus, which can now double the face- and eye-tracking speeds as well as pick up focus on a face tilted away from the camera.
Steve also liked the menus better on the GH5 II, which are color coded and tabbed to help you find what you’re looking for. Panasonic also kept the info panel, which shows important settings at a glance. Another upgrade comes in the image stabilization system, which now delivers up to 6.5 EV of shake protection. Thanks to this, Steve said the GH5 II does a better job than competitors at smoothing out walking or running. But there’s still no external RAW video, and low-light shooting remains a weak point.
Sony’s Xperia 1 III closely resembles last year's smartphone with an unusual 21:9 screen ratio and an elongated design. Mat Smith says the addition of a matte finish helps to make it feel like a premium handset. The updated 4K 120Hz screen also helps make everything look quite crisp, and it runs smoothly thanks to a Snapdragon 888 chipset, 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. Though Mat says the phone's 6.5-inch OLED screen is gorgeous, the Xperia can’t dynamically change refresh rates to maximize battery life — and that results in barely a full day of use, even with a 4,500mAh battery, if you keep the panel at 120Hz. He was pleased with the sound from the front-facing stereo speakers, which continues support for audio formats like 360 Reality Audio, Hi-Resolution audio and Dolby Atmos. And — shocker — the Xperia 1 III still includes a 3.5mm audio jack.
But the phone’s camera shines, courtesy of the three 12-megapixel shooters with varying focal lengths. The Xperia 1 III can track moving subjects and catch crisp shots in busy scenes because it’s capable of capturing 20 frames per second and has dual-phase-detection-autofocus pixels. Mat says it’s a more technical approach and it has a learning curve, but it makes the smartphone an intriguing prospect for photography enthusiasts.
