It might just be time to upgrade your monitor or to buy an external display for your laptop. As luck would have it, there’s a sale on Samsung monitors on Amazon right now, with savings of up to 40 percent. One deal that’s definitely worth taking notice of is a discount on the Samsung Smart Monitor M8. That has dropped by $120 to $580, which is the lowest price we’ve seen to date.

Since it's a smart monitor, it can do more than just display your computer's video output. You can effectively use the 32-inch M8 as a smart TV to stream shows and movies from the likes of Netflix, YouTube, Amazon Prime Video and Disney+. You can stream games via the Samsung Gaming Hub, which includes Xbox Cloud Gaming. So, all you'll need is a controller and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription to hop into the likes of Starfield.

There's Microsoft 365 support, so you can get some work done and even browse the web without hooking up a PC or laptop at all. A detachable SimFit Cam could come in handy for video calls — it can help keep the focus on your face as you move around.

There's the option to connect to a PC remotely using the Workmode feature. In addition, you can connect a Samsung phone or tablet and use them in DeX mode. You will have the ability to control your smart home devices with the M8 via SmartThings and built-in Alexa support too.

Elsewhere, the curved Odyssey G8 gaming monitor is $996.51 (down 34 percent from $1,500) and if you really feel like splashing out, the enormous 55-inch Odyssey Ark has dropped by 33 percent from $3,000 to $2,000. For the full 40 percent discount and a more budget-friendly monitor, though, it's worth considering the Odyssey G32A, which is down from $250 to $150.

This is a Full HD 24-inch gaming monitor with a refresh rate of up to 165Hz and a response rate of just 1ms. There's support for FreeSync Premium, which should reduce screen tearing and minimize input latency further for those with AMD-powered systems. If you need a gaming monitor with solid performance but don't want to break the bank, this seems like a viable option for you.

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PC indie standout Dave the Diver is coming to the Nintendo Switch, the game’s first proper console launch. The title was teased at today’s Nintendo Direct livestream event and it releases next month, on October 26th. However, for the curious, a free demo drops for the Switch today. This is good news for gamers, as Dave the Diver has long-seemed like the perfect match for the Switch, due to its bite-sized gameplay segments.

What’s all the fuss about? Dave the Diver casts you as, wait for it, a guy named Dave who dives for a living. So you spend your days exploring an ever-changing underwater wonderland, catching fish, battling with sharks and, occasionally, betting on seahorse races. Once you finish adventuring, the game shifts gears. You spend your nights operating a sushi restaurant, so those fish you catch get transformed into delectable menu items.

The daytime adventures are sort of like an underwater Metroidvania while the nighttime restaurant management is a combination of a Kairosoft sim and the arcade classic Tapper. It shouldn’t work, as the gameplay loops are extremely different, but everything meshes splendidly. There’s also an overarching adventure that may or may not include a giant shrimp wearing boxing gloves.

The longer you play Dave the Diver, the more gameplay elements it introduces. Eventually, you’ll unlock a simple farming sim, kitchen mini-games akin to something like Cooking Mama and your very own fish nursery so you can breed hammerhead sharks with reckless abandon.

We always knew it was coming to Switch, and now we have a launch date. Check out the demo to see if the gameplay jives with your tastes. There’s no word on if the title will eventually launch on other consoles. In other news, today's Nintendo Direct also teased a remake of Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door and a battle royale take on the classic racer F-Zero.

If you thought Nintendo would be done with Mario games for its current console after Super Mario Bros. Wonder, you were very much mistaken. During today's Nintendo Direct, the company revealed Mario vs. Donkey Kong is coming to Switch on February 16, 2024.

It's a new version of a Game Boy Advance game that sees Mario having to recover Mini-Mario toys that his oldest rival stole from a factory. "Observation and action" is a mantra that Nintendo used during the clip, which makes sense since this is a puzzle platformer. It'll be worth taking the time to figure out exactly what's going on in a stage before you start tackling it. You'll also need to battle Donkey Kong at certain points.

This time around, Nintendo has added local co-op support. So you'll be able to bring in a friend to help you recover the pilfered toys.

Mario vs. Donkey Kong isn't the only updated version of an older Mario game that's coming to Switch, though. Super Mario RPG will hit the console on November 17.

That’s not Photoshop — it’s supposed to look like that. This is Honda’s Motocompacto, a throwback all-electric rideable inspired by the short-lived Honda Motocompo scooter of the ‘80s, and I'm sorry to say that I'm kind of into it.

The vehicle, folded up, resembles one of those Costco folding tables but with little aluminum wheels poking out the bottom. To transform it into a scooter, you extend the handlebars, seats and back wheel, and ride away on something vaguely approximating a bike. (To give you some perspective on the design, this thing is just over three feet long.)

Honda

Honda says its aluminum frame and wheels keep it “lightweight” but at 41 pounds it’s firmly in the same weight class as regular e-bikes, and with a range of "up to 12 miles," it's not getting you very far either. After its 12-mile range is used up, it can be re-juiced in 3.5 hours, which is a considerable amount of time, but at least it comes with an on-board charger ready for you to plug into a 110V outlet.

The scooter is designed to be easy to take into vehicles or on public transportation — which could be a huge selling point for city dwellers that want the convenience of an e-bike or scooter but not the trouble of securely locking it up all day. It's part of Honda's big EV push, which aims to replace its entire lineup with battery-electric and fuel-cell-electric vehicles by 2040.

The Honda Motocompacto will be available starting in November priced “under $995” exclusively on Motocompacto.com and at Honda and Acura dealers.

AI is just about everywhere lately, but nobody expected it to be used as a salvo in the ongoing cola wars. Coca-Cola, however, has other plans, as it just launched a new flavor co-created by artificial intelligence. The company’s calling it the soda “from the future” and it’s available for a limited time in both regular and zero sugar varieties, as reported by CNBC.

It’s called Y3000, which is certainly a futuristic-sounding name, though it calls to mind Skynet and its army of evil Terminators more than a refreshing beverage. Coke hasn’t released any information as to how it actually tastes, but testers describe it as resembling a raspberry slushy.

The company did release info on the creation process. It all started with researchers collecting flavor preferences from consumers, looking for trends to understand what the “future tastes like.” Next, this data was fed into a proprietary artificial intelligence system to help create the flavor profile. Before you know it, a new baby soda was born. What a mitzvah.

Doing its best Secret Invasion impression, Coke also tasked AI to help design the artwork on the slim can. The cans have a beachy, neon-purple vibe that absolutely calls to mind an image generation platform like Dall-E or Midjourney. There are also traditionally-sized bottles filled with the futuristic fluid.

Y3000 is described as a limited edition flavor, but Coke hasn’t said when the soda would head to the scrapheap to join other futuristic foods, like Dippin’ Dots freeze-dried ice cream and the transparent (and awful) Crystal Pepsi. It should stick around through the fall, though, as Coca-Cola also announced a partnership with luxury streetwear brand Ambush to release a Y3000-themed clothing collection later in the season. 

Today, Google unveiled a range of software updates for Android Auto and vehicles equipped with Google integration. At the forefront, Google says its drivers will now be able to join WebEx or Zoom meetings, a feature it previously announced at I/O 2023. The apps will only work in an audio-only capability, which Google says will make it “easy and safe” for drivers to quickly join scheduled meetings from car displays.

Beyond enhancing productivity, Google is also attempting to expand its audio and visual entertainment offerings with its rollout of Prime Video on the Google Play app. This feature, which will appear on the display for “parked entertainment,” will only be available for select vehicles — namely Renault, Polestar and Volvo Cars. Eventually, Google says this will appear in other brands. In addition to streaming, Chrome-based internet browsing will be available starting today. Internet browsing is already available in some cars on Google Play through the standalone app, Vivaldi.

Google

While keeping drivers productive and entertained, Google is also expanding the functionality of the display by making the Weather Channel app available for hourly forecasts, and a follow-me alert safety feature that allows third parties to track your vehicle. A “Trip View” radar will also display live maps — mainly for severe weather events.

Lastly, Google’s digital car key — which allows drivers to use their phones to lock and unlock their vehicles — will finally be available in select Hyundai, Genesis, and Kia models in the US and Canada for those with compatible Pixel and Samsung devices. The tech will also allow drivers to share digital keys with family and friends wirelessly. Digital keys will have already been available in several European countries.

When I saw one of the first 49-inch ultrawide monitors from Samsung five years ago, I found it to be a curious creation. I was no stranger to the world of ultrawides, but that screen was a bit much. It was too unwieldy, and its odd resolution wasn't tall enough for my tastes. Since then, though, the 49-inch category has evolved: They're cheaper, have newer display technology and are better equipped for gaming. Sure, you'll still need to have a lot of room on your desk (or a very sturdy mounting arm), but these days they could actually be considered practical.

LG's 49-inch Curved UltraGear is a prime example of how much things have changed. Starting at $1,300, it offers 49-inches of glorious screen space with a sharp 5,120 by 1,440 resolution; an ultra-fast 240Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time; and AMD FreeSync Premium support. It's LG's largest and most immersive gaming monitor yet. And after spending several weeks with the UltraGear 49, it has finally made me a convert of for the 49-inch ultrawide life.

Of course, one does not simply decide to buy the 49-inch UltraGear. You need to have the space to fit its bulky frame, which measures 46-inches across. You need to make sure all of your accessories can still fit on your desk (it's particularly annoying if you regularly use cameras and large microphones). And, last but not least, you also need to ensure the games you play the most can take full advantage of the UltraGear's wide 32:9 aspect ratio.

That any game can run at 5,120 by 1,440 pixels is a testament to just how far the ultrawide monitor movement has grown over the last decade. A typical widescreen TV has a 16:9 aspect ratio with a 1,920 by 1080 (1080p), 2,560 by 1,440 (1,440p) or 4K resolution. Ultrawide displays stretch those proportions a bit with a 21:9 aspect ratio, typically running at either 2,560 by 1080, or 3,440 by 1,440 pixels. These days, it's rare to find a new PC title that doesn't support those ultrawide resolutions. And when they don't, as in the case of Elden Ring, developers often argue it's done to avoid giving ultrawide players any advantage. (Of course, as is often the case with PC gaming, modders will find a way.)

Photo by Devindra Hardawar/Engadget

Official support for extreme ultrawides like the 49-inch UltraGear is more rare, but it's not unheard of. I was able to play several hours of Halo Infinite, Cyberpunk 2077, No Man's Sky, Armored Core VI and the recently released FPS Sprawl at the LG's full 5,120 by 1,440 resolution. You'll still need the GPU horsepower to actually get decent framerates, of course, but the UltraGear's native resolution is still less demanding than 4K. (For the record, I tested the UltraGear 49 on my personal PC equipped with a Ryzen 8700K and an NVIDIA RTX 4090 Ti.)

Starfield (below) was the first new game to spoil my extreme ultrawide fun. It supports 3,440 by 1,440 , but it can't stretch out to 32:9 resolutions. That meant I spent my first 10 hours of the game with black bars on the sides of the screen. It was still playable, but I think anyone who buys a monitor this size will be disappointed with the restrictions. You could easily hack Starfield to support wider resolutions, but there's no guarantee those solutions will work forever.

In many ways, the 49-inch Ultragear is emblematic of PC gaming itself: Owning one puts you right on the bleeding edge, but the experience isn't always perfect. Incompatibility risks and other issues are simply a fact of life if you want a screen that can completely consume your peripheral vision. And to its credit, the Ultragear still looks and feels like a typical gaming display. Setting it up was just a matter of assembling the sturdy stand and slapping the screen on the rear mount. The stand also supports vertical, swiveling and tilting adjustments, letting you dial in just the right viewing angle.

Compared to Samsung's monstrous 55-inch Odyssey Ark, the 49-inch UltraGear is far easier to use for both gaming and regular productivity tasks. Sure, it can't rotate to be completely vertical, but that feature always felt like a gimmick on Samsung's screen. Instead, I appreciated the simple things, like being able to have two browser windows opened up alongside Slack while I was doing research. While recording podcasts, I could simultaneously keep an eye on my audio timeline, as well as have windows dedicated to a video chat with my cohosts, a Google Doc with shownotes and a browser for research.

For the multitasker who demands as much usable screen space as possible, the 49-inch UltraGear is heaven. Just be prepared to stretch your neck more than usual to see the extreme edges. You could always push the monitor back a bit to avoid that, but that also hurts immersion, which is the whole point of buying this thing.

Based on several hours of gameplay, as well as watching clips from 4K HDR films and plenty of other video content, the 49-inch UltraGear was just as bright and bold as I'd expect from a modern monitor. It can reach up to 1,000 nits of peak HDR brightness, and it covers 95 percent of the DCI-P3 color gamut. While the images didn't exactly leap off the screen as they did with Alienware's phenomenal QD-OLED display, a more expensive 34-inch screen, the sheer size of the 49-inch UltraGear made me feel like I was actually driving around Night City in Cyberpunk 2077, or exploring alien planets in No Man's Sky. 

While the screen doesn’t really give you an advantage in FPS titles like Halo Infinite, since your view is basically cropped from what 16:9 players see, I still enjoyed having an extra wide view of every match. You may have to tweak field-of-view settings in some titles though, as the monitor's large 1000R curve can lead to distortions along the edges of the frame. (This could also be a problem when it comes to photo editing, or any task requires exact measurements.)

While I reveled in having such a vast amount of screen space available, using the 49-inchUltraGear led to some awkward adjustments outside of the screen. To record podcasts, I had to push it down to its lowest position and maneuver my rear desk-mounted microphone over the display. With my own 34-inch ultrawide monitor, there was enough room for the microphone to fit along the right side of the screen. I also had to push my large desktop speakers even further away to fit the 49-inch UltraGear on my desk. If you're actually considering this screen, it's worth thinking seriously about how it will fit in your space and alongside your other accessories. (You could also attach it to a wall or a monitor arm that fits a 100 x 100 mm VESA mount.)

The 49-inch UltraGear is clearly a gaming focused monitor: it includes features like a built-in crosshair, FPS counter and requisite RGB LED lighting. There aren’t any speakers attached (because really, who uses those?) but you can plug in headphones for DTS HP:X virtual surround sound. (That sounded fine in my testing, but I stuck with Windows’ Dolby Atmos upmixing while playing with the Arctis Nova Pro headset.) There are also 2 USB 3.0 ports along the rear for accessories, but for a monitor in this price range I expected even more connectivity.

Given that 27-inch 5K screens like Apple’s Studio Display sell for $1,599, the 49-inch UltraGear’s $1,300 retail pricedoesn’t seem so bad. But with great 16:9 gaming monitors going for around $300, it’s still a hefty price to stomach. And if you’re ready to pay more than $1,000 for a monitor, it may be worth holding out for an OLED screen that can deliver better contrast. (The Alienware 34-inch QD-OLED is now available for $900 with AMD’s FreeSync Pro, while LG’s UltraGear 45 ultrawide OLED goes for a whopping $1,700.)

Few people actually need a 49-inch monitor. But LG has built one that’s laser-targeted at the people who demand that much screen. It does everything you want a gaming monitor to do: It’s bright, colorful and can play titles at incredibly high frame rates. And it does it all while consuming your entire field of view. When it comes to sheer immersion, the UltraGear 49 is the next best thing to putting on a VR headset.

In the world of console video games, Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo stand as titans. For PC gamers, however, Valve reigns supreme. Its distribution platform, Steam, may not be the only place to buy and play games on the PC, but it's easily among the largest, oldest and most iconic. Today marks Steam's 20th anniversary.

Valve is celebrating by slashing prices on its self-published games, offering most of its catalog for 90 percent off, except Half-Life: Alyx. The sale's landing page doubles as a cheery retrospective of Steam's last two decades. It's a fun read that offers users the chance to buy the "Top Games" from key years in the platform's history, punctuating footnotes about the very first Steam Sale with a chance to buy the original Portal for just $0.99.

Again, it's fun, but the nostalgic look back leaves out a few key details. Folks who were around when Steam first launched might remember its early days as a time of frustration. Valve built the platform as a way to easily deliver updates to its games and combat cheating in online multiplayer — but many saw it as an antagonistic force and an early attempt to impose restrictive DRM on players.

Digital distribution was in its infancy in 2003, and most PC gamers bought their games at the store, installing them manually from a CD or DVD. That didn't change, but when Valve released Half-Life 2, players were surprised to find that the game required Steam — and an internet connection — to launch the single player experience. It was unheard of at the time, and people hated it.

As history shows, however, we got used to it. Other publishers started selling games on Valve's platform. Users were drawn in by the convenient distribution model and the allure of the aforementioned Steam Sales. Steam added cloud save backups, a hub for player-created content, social features and more. Soon, Valve started toying with making its own hardware, first with the somewhat lackluster Steam Machines initiative, and later, the much more successful Steam Deck.

Today, Steam is a household name in the gaming community, and with good reason. Go ahead, celebrate. Valve even brought back the platform's original dark green color to give the anniversary a nice, retro feel.

Panasonic has unveiled the Lumix G9 II, its first Micro Four Thirds camera with hybrid phase-detect autofocus. A successor to the 20-megapixel photo-centric G9 released way back in 2017, it comes with a new 25.2-megapixel (MP) sensor, and offers features like 60 fps burst speeds, 5.7K and 4K 60p ProRes video, USB-C SSD recording and 8 stops of optical image stabilization. It instantly becomes Panasonic's best Micro Four Thirds camera and should appeal to users ranging from wildlife photographers to content creators. 

The key feature is the new 25.2-megapixel dual native ISO sensor. It carries the same resolution as the GH6, but adds hybrid phase-detect (PDAF) autofocus with 779 points that's married to Panasonic's AI subject tracking. The new system allows not only for faster tracking, but better AF in backlit conditions, low illumination and other tricky conditions. It recognizes not just faces and eyes, but also human bodies, and can track animal eyes, cars and motorcycles. 

Panasonic is promising blackout-free burst speeds of 60 fps with continuous AF and the electronic shutter, or 10 fps in mechanical mode. At the same time, the buffer takes three seconds to fill, meaning you can grab around 160 RAW+JPG images before shooting slows. It's also got a pre-burst shooting function (0.5-, 1- or 1.5-second settings), meaning photographers won't miss a decisive moment if they're a bit late on the shutter.

Panasonic

Panasonic also borrowed the "Dynamic Range Boost" function from the GH6. It's essentially an HDR photo mode that combines low and high ISO images to produce a composite with both low noise and high saturation. The G9 II also has Panasonic's handheld high-res mode that combines multiple images to create a 100MP JPEG photo with extra detail. It uses the camera's IBIS mechanism to keep the camera steady, meaning no tripod is required.

As for the IBIS, it's also borrowed from the GH6 and delivers 8 stops of compensation, or 7.5 stops in 5-axis Dual IS 2 mode (used for longer telephoto lenses). As with other recent models, the G9 II also offers Active IS for shooting on the move, and Enhance IS to correct larger shake when running or walking. 

The G9 II has a weather-resistant design, a new 8-direction joystick and supports an all-new optional $350 camera grip (also compatible with the S5 II/S5 IIx). The 1,840K dot LCD display fully articulates for vloggers and self-shooters, of course, and it comes with a decent 3,680K dot OLED. Other features include microphone/headphone ports and a full-sized HDMI port.

Panasonic

Panasonic downplayed it a bit, but the G9 II is now the company's most powerful Micro Four Thirds mirrorless model for video, thanks largely to the PDAF. It can shoot 4:2:0 10-bit 17:9 5.7K video at up to 60 fps, or 10-bit 4K at up to 120p. It also offers 4:3 open gate (5.8K) and 4:3 anamorphic shooting (4.4K). Plus, it supports regular MP4 formats (including I-frame) and Apple ProRes — not bad for a camera aimed at photographers.

You can shoot V-Log/V-Gamut video with 13+ stops of dynamic range, while applying your own LUTs in real time to see how graded footage will look. Panasonic also has a few new creative looks including Leica Monochrome "for deep black-white contrasts." 

Other handy video features include a red rec frame indicator, a frame marker and AWB (auto white balance) lock. You can capture video not just to the dual UHS-II SD cards (relay, backup and allocation recording), but also to an SSD via the USB-C Gen 3.2 port. It also supports external ProRes recording via HDMI. The major drawback compared to the GH6 is the lack of a fan and a dedicated cooling design — so it may shut off during long recordings at high frame rates in hot conditions. 

Panasonic

The Panasonic G9 II arrives to the US in early November for $1,900. That's $200 more than the original G9 at launch, but a bit less than OM System's OM-1 Micro Four Thirds camera. Along with the G9-II, Panasonic introduced the new $1,600 Leica DG 100-400mm f/4-6.3 II Power OIS lens (200-800mm 35mm equivalent), ideal for wildlife and macro photography. It also unveiled the $1,150 Leica DG 35-100mm f/2.8 (70-200 35mm equivalent). 

As part of Samsung's fall sale event, you can get a Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 for as little as $100 with a new phone purchase. The phones eligible for this bundle deal include the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra and the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5.

The Watch 6, which debuted in August at a starting price of $300, is effectively getting a $200 price drop in this deal. That might be compelling if you already need a new phone and are on the fence about a smartwatch.

The exact savings you can get with a purchase will vary depending on the size of the watch and if you choose a Bluetooth or LTE model. The basic 40mm size with Bluetooth connectivity will run $100 as part of the bundle, while upgrading to 44mm will cost $110, down from $330. On the LTE side of things, the 40mm and 44mm varieties go for $120 and $130, respectively. That top-spec version technically shaves $250 off the retail price, so spend a little more, save a little more.

For those that don’t need a watch, you can alternatively get the Galaxy Buds 2 Pro for $130 off with your purchase. The Buds 2 Pro, which comes in white, purple, or graphite, normally sells for $230 but can now be purchased for $50 with a phone. However, if both a smartwatch and a new pair of wireless earbuds don't tickle your fancy, you can add a Galaxy Tab S9 to your Android collection instead. You can save up to $230 on the 256 GB beige tablet. It originally goes for $920, but with this deal will only cost $690, but only if you get the Galaxy S 23 Ultra.

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