This week, the 2021 Rebelle Rally kicked off with participants in the all-female race embarking on a 1,500-mile trek across the deserts of Nevada and California. Hyundai’s Kia is fielding two modified Sorento plug-in hybrids as part of the event. In the spirit of the rally, the automaker asked LGE-CTS Motorsports, a female-owned shop in Southern California, to make the two vehicles race-ready.
Each one features underbody armor to protect its vulnerable internal components. Additionally, the shop fitted both Sorentos with bumper guards, skid plates and 1-inch spacers to elevate them just a bit higher off the ground. They’re riding on 17-inch KMC matte black wheels fitted with Hankook Dynapro AT2 tires. For carrying equipment, LGE-CTS removed the rear seats to make room for an interior cargo mounting system and added roof racks. Notably, the shop didn’t modify the powertrain of either PHEV.
We’re starting to see more and more electric vehicles take part in endurance races like the Rebelle Rally. At the end of April, Volkswagen’s ID.4 SUV took part in the Mexican 1000 Rally. The company’s Audi division is also getting ready to race a custom-built PHEV at the Dakar Rally at the start of next year. At this rate, it feels like it's only a matter of time before they become a more common sight at endurance races.
The weather is starting to get cooler, but that doesn’t mean it’s time to head indoors for winter just yet. There’s ample time to enjoy the backyard, porch or balcony before the first snowfall. We’ve rounded up the best outdoor gear for cooking, relaxing and imbibing this fall, from a pizza oven, to a uniquely designed fire pit and a smart outlet for your outdoor lighting.
Ooni Karu 16
Ooni
If you’ve opened Instagram in the last several months, chances are you’ve seen someone firing up an Ooni pizza oven in their backyard. The company has become even more popular during the pandemic, and rightfully so. Its line of wood- and gas-fired pizza ovens allow you to make restaurant-quality pies at home. The Karu 16 is the company’s latest offering, with a larger stone for bigger pizzas, an easier to access fuel chamber and a built-in thermometer. The door is also attached so it’s simpler to use and has a glass window so you can keep an eye on things without losing heat. Like commercial Neapolitan-style ovens, the Karu 16 can reach temperatures of up to 950 degrees Fahrenheit, and does so in just 15 minutes. This model runs on wood chunks out of the box, but the company offers an optional gas burner for $100.
Cooler weather is a perfect time to tune up your backyard pitmaster skills. Even if you’re a beginner, Traeger’s line of WiFi-connected pellet grills can guide you through the entire cooking process. The company’s app, which allows you to control and monitor its grills remotely, is also packed with recipes and step-by-step guidance.
Personally, I like the Ironwood series, which comes in two sizes with 650 and 885 square inches of grilling space. They sit in the middle of Traeger’s lineup, and offer the best bang for your buck. Low and slow smoking? Yep. Hot and fast searing? They do that too. And with the company’s pellet sensor, you don’t have to worry about running out of fuel halfway through a 10-hour brisket sesh.
Weber is best known for its charcoal kettle grills, but its gas models aren’t too far behind. Following up on the smart grilling tech it built into its SmokeFire pellet grills in 2020, the company brought the Weber Connect system to its gas lineup earlier this year. There are a number of options here, but the Genesis II EX-315 is a great mid-range choice. Thanks to the Connect tech, you get real-time food doneness updates, estimated completion times and fuel level monitoring.
Weber Connect also offers step-by-step guidance based on the food you're cooking and the LED display on the grill shows both meat and ambient temperatures. Of course, the grill is WiFi-enabled, so all of this info can be sent to your phone. And if you get caught in the dark, a handle-mounted light and backlit control knobs are there to help.
The Thermapen is the grilling tool I use most often. It’s handy for making sure I’m not serving undercooked chicken or overcooking a pricey steak I’ve had in the sous vide for hours. It’s also great to have in the kitchen to instantly check temps of things like bread. Thermoworks unveiled the successor to its wildly popular Thermapen Mk4 earlier this year with the Thermapen One. The device is super fast, giving you a reading in one second. It’s also more accurate and has a brighter display than the previous model. The screen automatically rotates depending on how you hold it, plus an auto-wake and sleep feature and IP67 rating keep things running smoothly.
I’ll admit it: when I first saw Meater’s wireless food probes I was skeptical that they would work well. The Meater Plus has all of the convenience of the company’s original wireless probe, but with extended Bluetooth range. Each one has two sensors, so it can monitor both internal food temperature and the ambient temp of your grill. All of the info is sent to the company’s app where you can set target temperature, get estimated completion times and follow step-by-step directions if you need them. What’s more, you don’t have to worry about routing wires since the Meater Plus is completely wireless and stays out of your way. Not having to fight food probe cords is a grilling innovation I’m sure a lot of people can get behind.
Last year, the Thermacell Patio Shield kept us mosquito-free for socially-distanced outdoor activities. For 2021, the company is back with the E-55 that offers a 20-foot coverage area and is fully rechargeable. This slightly larger unit runs on a Li-Ion battery instead of burning fuel to keep the biting bugs at bay for up to 12 hours. If you need more protection for you and the fam, you can buy refills for up to 40 hours of use. Also, like other Thermacell products, the E-55 doesn’t give off any odor, so you’ll barely notice it’s there.
As the temperatures drop, a fire pit is a cozy place to spend your time. However, most of the cheap options you’ll find at your local big box store aren’t really designed to channel smoke away from you or to maximize airflow. Solo Stove’s stainless steel fire pits do both, creating a roaring fire that won’t smoke you out. Each of the three models, ranging from $269 to $599, are portable(ish) and burn whatever variety of wood you happen to have. I’ve been testing the Ranger, the smallest and most portable option. While you can certainly set these right on the ground or concrete patio, I highly recommend splurging for a stand and a weather-proof cover which cost around $80 for the Ranger and Bonfire models.
I tested the Kasa Outdoor Smart Plug for our first backyard guide and I was immediately hooked. TP-Link recently announced a new model of the smart plug in addition to a dimmable single-outlet version. Both are waterproof and plug into your existing outside outlet to give you one or two spots for lights and other gear. With the two-plug option, you can control each one independently. The Kasa app allows you to set a schedule, timer, runtime and more for each plug, so you can automate when those string lights over the deck turn on. Additionally, they work with Alexa and Google Assistant, so you don’t even need to pick up your phone most of the time. Plus, 300 feet of WiFi range means you shouldn’t have trouble connecting these to your home network for use.
When you need tunes outside, whether that’s at home or on the go, Sony’s tiny XB13 speaker is a great option. Its small size makes it insanely portable, but it still manages big sound thanks to Sony's Extra Bass feature and Sound Diffusion Processor. It’s rated IP67 for dust- and water-proofing so taking it outside shouldn’t incite anxiety. What’s more, it has a UV coating for protection from the sun. You can use the XB13 for hands-free calls and employ two of them at once for a stereo pair. It lasts up to 16 hours on a charge and will only set you back $60.
I’ve been a big fan of Brumate’s beverageware since I bought myself a Hopsulator Trio for a beach vacation a few years ago. I still use it all the time, during both warm and cool months. However, when the temperatures begin to dip, I tend to reach for hot beverages more often, so Brumate’s Toddy insulated mug is a better option. The cup works well to keep drinks hot or cold and the trademark feature is the spill-proof lid. That thing has saved me from massive cleanup more times than I can count. The regular Toddy can hold 16 ounces while the Toddy XL doubles the capacity to 32 ounces.
In 2020, Panasonic announced the BGH1, its first-ever box-style camera. The company took the internals of its well-liked Micro Four ThirdsGH5S and rehoused them in a body better suited for video production workloads. Almost exactly one year later, Panasonic has announced the DC-BS1H. Like its predecessor, this latest release from the company takes an existing Panasonic camera, the full-frame S1H, and puts it in a new body.
At the heart of the BS1H is a 24.2-megapixel CMOS sensor that can capture footage at up to a 6K resolution. Specifically, it’s capable of recording 6K video at up to 24 frames per second, 5.4K at 30 frames per second with a 3:2 crop and 5.9K at 30 frames per second with a 16:9 framing. Panasonic claims the BS1H’s sensor features more than 14 stops of dynamic range and the inclusion of both an optical low pass filter a Dual Native ISO feature help reduce moire and digital noise.
But if you’re looking at a box-style camera for yourself, you want one for the added connectivity options the format promises. On the front, the BS1H is no slouch. Notably, it includes a USB 3.1 Type-C connection, an HDMI Type-A port and a 3G serial digital interface. It’s also possible to connect 12 BS1H cameras together to create a multi-camera setup. Additionally, you’ll find the usual assortment of 3.5mm and XLR microphone connections, on top of a LAN port. Oh, and it comes with dual SD card slots for worry-free redundancy.
Panasonic will sell the DC-BS1H for $3,500 when it becomes available in November.
The 2022 Geneva International Motor Show (GIMS) won’t go forward due to the coronavirus pandemic. Following cancellations in 2020 and 2021, the trade show was supposed to return on February 19th, 2022, but that’s no longer happening. Organizers are billing the move not as a cancellation but as a postponement that will see GIMS come back as a “more impactful” event in 2023.
“The decision to cancel GIMS 2022 was made with the best interests of both car manufacturers and automotive fans in mind,” said the Committee and Council of the Foundation “Salon International de l’Automobile,” which is responsible for organizing the auto show. The group blamed the impact COVID-19 has had both on travel and event restrictions and automakers through the global semiconductor supply for the decision.
We’ve seen plenty of other auto shows get canceled in 2021, but the way GIMS continues to struggle is not a good sign for the industry. Pre-pandemic, it was one of the largest car shows in the world. It would usually attract more than 600,000 visitors, including some 10,000 journalists, to Swizterland. Beyond its sheer size and scale, the show was particularly known for all the new and wild concepts cars that would debut on its floor.
Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City, a reboot of the movie series, will hit theaters on November 24th, and Sony Pictures has provided a taste of what's in store with the first trailer. Writer and director Johannes Roberts (47 Meters Down) indicated earlier this year that he was taking things back to the franchise's horror roots and the trailer offers some positive signs that he's achieved his goal.
The film is based on the first two games in the classic series and it's a complete reset following the six (6) Paul W.S. Anderson movies. In case there was any ambiguity about Roberts starting over, the trailer's opening voiceover puts that firmly to bed. "Every story has a beginning," one character, perhaps Claire Redfield, says. "Discover the origin of evil."
Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City is set in 1998, and we see the first game's creepy mansion as well as some of the city where the sequel takes place. The trailer hits a lot of the right beats and it includes some memorable moments from the games. There's a nod to the opening scene of Resident Evil 2, in which an infected truck driver plows his tanker into Raccoon City. Despite a couple of iffy CGI shots, there's some solid creature design too, including zombie dogs and even a licker. Add in some jump scares, and it's a promising first look.
If you're craving more Resident Evil until the movie arrives, you can check out a virtual-reality version of Resident Evil 4 on Oculus Quest 2 later this month. Elsewhere, a live-action show based on the franchise is coming to Netflix. The delayed multiplayer game Resident Evil Re:Verse will arrive next year, and Capcom is working on DLC for Resident Evil Village.
The Adobe Max 2021 conference is happening this month and, as usual, that means updates across its product lineup. Adobe Elements is first on the list, with plenty of Adobe's Sensei AI-based changes that make it easier to fix photos or videos, extend backgrounds, add animations and more.
First up, Adobe Photoshop Elements 2022 introduces a bunch of new art filters that let you make a photo look like a painting by Da Vinci, Van Gogh and other artists. Another fun (but also easy to overdo) feature is moving overlays that let you add animated snowflakes, sparkles and the like to photos, then export as an MP4 to share on social networks.
Adobe
More practically, Photoshop Elements 2022's "Guided Edits" feature has new options that let you easily make adjustments. Some of those include a pet photo adjustment that lets you remove leashes and collars, adjust lighting and colors, refine fur and more. You can also extend or replace photo backgrounds, create arty double-exposures (above), remove distracting elements from a photo and adjust shadows and highlights.
Premiere Elements, meanwhile, uses Sensei AI to automatically re-frame videos to fit in social-friendly aspect ratios for TikTok, Instagram and other apps — while still retaining important content. It also comes with two new Guided Edits options: the ability to add animated overlays and adjust shadows and highlights. Other new features include new slideshow styles, and GIF playback in the Organizer.
Adobe
Both apps now support automatic updates, so novice users have "no need to deal with dialog boxes," according to Adobe (this would be a non-starter for most professional users). They also feature a refreshed look and feel with a somewhat cleaner, less cluttered interface. Both apps are now available as a one-time purchase for $100 each, or $150 in a bundle — students and teachers can get both for $80.
When General Motors CEO Mary Barra delivers the opening keynote at next year's CES, she won't only be kicking off the event — she'll also be unveiling Chevrolet's electric Silverado. The automaker first revealed that it's working on an electrified version of the pickup truck in April, promising an EV with a 400-mile range, which can rival Tesla's 2020 Long-Range Plus Model S.
In today's announcement, Chevrolet has also confirmed that the retail model will come with a glass roof with increased headroom to make the interior look and feel bigger. It will apparently be the first time GM is making a glass roof option available for a full-size pickup. Chevrolet has also confirmed that the vehicle will be capable of four-wheel steering.
The electric Silverado is based on GM's Ultium platform, the automaker's modular technology that enables it to mix and match battery and drive units to electrify all kinds of vehicles across its brands. GMC's electrified Hummer vehicles are also based on the Ultium platform. And, like the Hummer EVs, the electric Silverado will be manufactured at GM's Factory ZERO, the company's new Detroit-Hamtramck assembly plant. GM spent $2.2 billion to set up the factory with the equipment needed to build all types of electric vehicles.
Mary Barra's CES 2022 keynote and the Silverado's debut will take place on January 5th.
Canon has made a surprising product announcement, revealing a dual, RF mount fisheye lens that's part of an all-new system called EOS VR. Its aim is nothing less than to transform VR and AR production by making workflow simpler than current systems, while delivering the quality of a full-frame mirrorless camera.
The key product is the $1,999 RF5.2mm F2.8 L Dual Fisheye manual lens designed specifically to mount on Canon's 8K-capable EOS R5 camera. It's a highly unusual looking product, to say the least, with two bulging fisheye lenses mounted side by side. They're placed approximately 60mm (24 inches) apart to match human interpupillary distance and provide comfortable parallax for VR and AR.
The lenses project two circular images onto the EOS R5's 45-megapixel sensor. They support 190-degree capture, allowing for delivery of stereoscopic 180-degree 3D footage or photos at up to 8,192 x 4,096 resolution for AR or VR applications.
Canon
The lens has some unusual features, like a ring that focuses both lenses at once and an Allen screw adjustment that lets you tweak the focus of one lens to precisely match the other. Otherwise, you get features typically found in high-end Canon L RF mount glass, like coatings to control flare and ghosting, dust and water-resistant sealing and a solid F2.8 to F16 aperture range. Despite the odd looks, the lens is fairly compact and not much larger than Canon's 35mm F1.8 lens.
The lens is just one part of the equation, though. Canon is working on a firmware update for the R5 with new features to support the lens and EOS VR system. That includes MF peaking and manual focus confirm via Canon's Dual Pixel autofocus system, along with a "Magic Window" UI that helps user plan for delivery to different types of headsets.
In addition, Canon made its own EOS VR Utility and EOS VR Plugin apps, each available by subscription for $5 per month. The VR Utility app flips the stereo images left to right and converts them from circular to an "equirectangular" square image that can be viewed on a VR headset. It also offers quick editing tools like trimming of clips and application of a LUT, while letting you change to preset resolutions and file types (DPX, Pro Res, H264, etc.) prior to export.
Canon
There's also the EOS VR plug-in for Adobe Premiere that "will convert the dual fisheye imagery to equirectangular, while allowing the ability to cut, color, and edit with the full control of Premiere Pro," Canon told Engadget. It also lets you export footage to the desired spec for different types of delivery.
The system can be used for weddings, journalism, sports, training, events and more, while offering a number of advantages over current VR cameras. To start with, it's designed to deliver quality superior to standalone VR cameras with smaller lenses and sensors like the $5,000 Insta360 Pro 2. At the same time, you get all the R5's tools like log shooting, RAW capture, 10-bit video and more. And when you're not using the VR lens, the R5 can be used for regular video production or photo shoots, unlike dedicated VR cameras.
At the same, the production process is simpler and cheaper than with dual cameras used in higher-end productions. Those cameras must be rigged, synced, focused and positioned correctly, with the end result being two files in many cases. Canon's EOS VR system, by contrast, delivers similar quality but offers focus and setup like a regular camera, while leaving you with a single file to edit at the end.
The entire system isn't exactly cheap, considering you need to pay $1,999 for the lens and $3,899 if you don't already have an R5 camera, for a total of $5,898. However, considering how niche the lens is, it costs less than I expected. There's also the issue of R5 overheating that limits 8K recording times to 20 minutes, with a 10-minute recovery period. You can improve that by capturing 8K to an external Ninja V+ RAW recorder, but that'll add $1,500 to your cost.
Still, it looks very promising for VR, which has boomed in popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic. It's been especially in-demand for business training and collaboration, which in turn requires content production. A lot of producers, particularly those who already have a Canon EOS R5, might be willing to jump into that type of work if Canon's new system is as easy to use as it promises.
Sony may be keeping the PS3 and Vita stores alive, but that doesn't mean it will be easy to shop. Kotakunoticed that Sony is shutting down credit card, debit card and PayPal store payments for its older consoles on October 27th. From then on, you'll have to either load your virtual wallet (through the web or another console) or rely on gift cards — you can't just buy games directly.
The company didn't explain the decision in a notice to customers. We've asked Sony for comment.
Whatever the reasoning, the reduced payment options send a not-so-subtle signal: Sony would really, really like you to stop buying games for older consoles and move on to a PS4 or PS5. That's unsurprising when the PS3 is 15 years old and has the aging store infrastructure to match, but it's not very reassuring if you're hanging on to a PS3 or Vita to play classic games.
Sony has revealed its first wireless neckband speaker with Dolby Atmos support. The company says the SRS-NS7 offers "an immersive home theater experience" without the need for a surround sound speaker system or having headphones clamped around your head.
For the full Dolby Atmos effect, you'll need a Sony Bravia XR TV and the included wireless transmitter. After you hook up the adapter and pair it with the neckband over Bluetooth, you can use the 360 Spatial Sound Personalizer app to take a photo of your ear. The app will estimate the shape of your ear and optimize the arrangement of virtual Dolby Atmos speakers for you.
The company says the transmitter also will minimize audio lag to precisely match up the audio and images. You can buy the WLA-NS7 wireless transmitter separately and use it with some Sony headphones for the same effect.
Sony
Along with watching their TV with the neckband, users can connect it to other devices. Pair the SRS-NS7 with a smartphone and you can listen to 360 Reality Audio from supported music streaming services such as Deezer and Tidal. Customers can link the device with a PC or tablet too.
Sony notes the flexibly designed SRS-NS7 includes multipoint connection, meaning it can link to two devices simultaneously. So if you're listening to music from your computer and a call comes in on your phone, you can answer with a press of a button and use the built-in microphone. In addition, the SRS-NS7 has an IPX4 rating, meaning it's splash-proof.
As for the battery life, you'll get up to 12 hours of use out of a single charge, Sony says, and up to five hours of playback at maximum volume. You'll get up to an hour of use after 10 minutes of charging.
The SRS-NS7 neckband costs $300 and the TV transmitter is $60. Pre-orders are open now and the devices will ship on October 27th.
