The iOS 15 public beta is live today, which means a larger swath of people can now check out the latest features coming to iPhones later this year. Despite being a beta, it’s surprisingly complete, with most of the coming changes already available. Some of the updates getting the most buzz are the new Focus modes and FaceTime sharing tools, but there are also changes across Messages, Maps, Weather, Safari, Photos and more to check out.

So far, the preview software seems largely stable. But as always with betas, think twice about how willing you are to risk bricking your phone in exchange for early access to new features. Regardless of whether that's you, we've put together a detailed preview of how iOS 15 will work when it launches in the fall.

FaceTime: SharePlay, screen sharing and spatial audio

Though it would have been a lot more helpful if Apple had launched this feature during the throes of the pandemic, FaceTime’s SharePlay feature will still be useful for many of us. Whether you want to watch an episode of Ted Lasso with your long-distance buddy or provide remote tech support to your relatives, SharePlay and screen sharing over FaceTime will make your life a little easier.

Screenshots of iOS 15 beta

Unfortunately, my colleague Mat Smith and I had to futz around for ages before we figured out how to SharePlay something. While screen sharing is more straightforward — just press a button at the bottom right of a new control panel at the top of FaceTime calls — SharePlay options only show up when you have a compatible media app open during a chat. Mat and I are seasoned tech journalists and we still spent some time looking for a SharePlay-specific button, which seems like the more intuitive way.

Once we figured it out, things went a little more smoothly. When you try to play an episode or video while on a FaceTime call, a window pops up asking if you want to use SharePlay. From there, you can choose to stream with your caller (or callers), play it only for yourself, or cancel.

As a reminder, depending on the app, both you and your friend will need subscriptions to watch stuff together on SharePlay. For Apple’s services like TV+ and Music, you’ll both need a subscription or trial. Other streaming apps like HBO Max, Hulu and Disney+ will be the ones that decide whether all parties need accounts to watch shows together on SharePlay, but it’s highly unlikely they allow it some other way.

On our attempts to stream episodes of Mythic Quest and Central Park on SharePlay, though, Mat and I kept getting a failure notice saying “Unable to SharePlay. This title isn’t available to SharePlay with people in different countries or regions.” It’s odd, since both those shows are available in both our regions. It’s also sad that you wouldn’t be allowed to watch it with someone abroad. Apple hasn’t said if this limit will be in place when iOS 15 launches, but if it is it’ll be disappointing for anyone that was looking forward to SharePlaying with their overseas partners, families and friends. We’ll update this article if Apple confirms this either way.

Screen sharing worked better. I was able to show Mat my dubious shopping list on Instagram though, as it does with other video chat apps, my camera automatically turned off whenever I shared my screen. When Mat streamed his display, his camera stayed on. We suspect this has something to do with the fact that he’s using a more capable iPhone 12 mini while I was on an aging iPhone XR that was burning up from my testing. This is a known issue with SharePlay that has been detailed in the iOS 15 developer beta release notes, so it may get fixed in time. 

Screenshots of the iOS 15 beta

Two other FaceTime features that are also live in this beta: links to join calls from non-Apple devices and spatial audio. The latter lets you hear each person in a call from the direction where they’re positioned on your FaceTime grid. Since it required multiple people running the beta to work, I couldn’t fully experience this. I got on a call with Mat and our former colleague Chris Velazco, and while Mat and I were able to hear each other from different directions, Chris wasn’t on the beta and did not notice the effect.

I also sent FaceTime web links to Chris, as well as Engadget staffers Nathan Ingraham and Valentina Palladino. The URL brought us to a page that prompted us to enter our names, and as the host I could choose to allow or block each would-be participant. Chris was able to join my call from a non-Apple laptop, while Valentina and Nate went through the browser on their Macs. Meanwhile, I was using an iPhone. Everyone looked and sounded great… to me.

Valentina and Nate couldn’t hear each other until they used the FaceTime app on their MacBooks. Chris also couldn’t hear other people on the call — all anyone heard was my beautiful voice. (As it should be.) But really, this appears to be an issue with how browsers handle audio input devices or a possible bug in the beta.

It’s not yet clear whether the region-specific SharePlay restrictions will also work this way in the stable release. But so far, barring some glitches, the updates to Apple’s video calling app appear meaty and potentially very useful.

Focus modes

I’ve spent too much time talking about FaceTime, so I’m going to try to succinctly describe the other iOS 15 features I’ve tested thus far. One of these felt incredibly relevant as I spent time finishing this article on deadline: Focus modes. Here, Apple allows you to customize profiles that will allow notifications from specific apps or people when enabled.

Screenshots from the iOS 15 beta

Three placeholders are available at the start: Work, Bedtime and Personal. On your first time trying to enable each, you’ll have to set up which contacts and apps to allow. You can also choose to enable your Focus Status so people who try to reach you will see that you’re away when they’re using a compatible app. Developers of messaging apps will have to use Apple’s API to enable this, so that your friends who hit you up on, say, Telegram or Facebook Messenger will see your status too.

For now, only Apple’s own Messages supports it and I was able to see below our conversation that Mat had silenced notifications. I sent a message anyway, and the app showed my text was “delivered quietly.” Just like you can on Slack, you can choose to “notify anyway” so your message breaks through the wall of silence. (I’m not an awful person so I didn’t, poor Mat had already put up with my relentless testing and FaceTiming all day.)

With each Focus mode, you can also pick a home screen showing just the apps you want. To do so, you’ll have to first create each page as an additional panel on your main screen, then select the relevant one when customizing your Focus mode. I created a barebones page with just four apps and designated it as my main Personal screen. I also made a different option for Work and was able to have apps appear on multiple pages — Instagram and Twitter could be placed on every page, for example. When each mode was enabled, I couldn’t see any other page; swiping sideways only showed the apps drawer and the Today view.

I haven’t spent enough time with the beta to know how useful these customized views will be, but I’m already in love with the ability to pick different notifications profiles. You can also set them to automatically activate based on the time of day, your location or app usage. Again, this is something I’ll need to use for more than a few days, but I appreciate the concept. Unfortunately, I haven’t encountered Notifications summaries in the beta yet.

Live text (aka Apple’s version of Google Lens)

Many other iOS 15 updates are similar to features that competitors already offer, and the most obvious of these is Live Text. This tool scans the photos on your device for words and turns them into text you can actually use, whether it’s copying and pasting a phone number to another app or translating foreign words on a menu. This is basically Apple's answer to Google Lens, which has been around for years.

Screenshots of the iOS 15 beta

Similar to Lens, Apple’s version will show a small symbol at the bottom right of each image in the Photos app to indicate it’s found something. Tap that icon, and all the characters in that picture will be highlighted, and you can select the portions you need. I snapped a picture of my bottle of moisturizer and was able to copy all the words on the label and URLs also got identified as links I could click through. You can also use Live Text via the Camera app’s viewfinder without snapping a shot, by the way. When your phone detects words in the scene, the same icon will appear in the bottom right and you can hit it to pull up the snippets that Live Text noticed.

So far, this generally performed as expected, though it's worth noting that as its name suggests, Live Text only works on images that have a lot of words in them. But even a photo of my dinner, which included a container of yogurt with a brand name prominently displayed on it, didn’t trigger Live Text. Google’s Lens, meanwhile, will identify buildings, pets, furniture and clothes in pictures with nary a letter in them.

Maps, Photos and generally tighter integration

Elsewhere in iOS 15 you’ll find updates to Maps, Weather and Photos. In some cities, Apple’s maps look richer and more detailed than before, thanks to meticulous drawings of individual trees, lanes, traffic lights and more. I was able to explore a golf course in San Francisco, as well as the Conservatory of Flowers and Dutch Windmill in the Golden Gate Park in surprisingly detailed 2D and 3D views. I was disappointed when I zoomed super close to the Penguin Island in the San Francisco zoo and there were no cute little feathered friends. But I guess that’d be too much to ask.

Screenshots of the iOS 15 beta

Memories in Photos has also been updated to give you greater control over who shows up in them and what music plays in the background. You can now edit your pictures’ descriptions to create richer alt text that stays with each image as you forward them to friends. I liked using this to identify people and places in a photo for contacts who are blind or have low vision. Even though I added keywords like “sunset” and people’s names to some pictures’ descriptions, searches for those words in my iPhone’s Spotlight didn’t return those images. It would be nice, but the descriptions aren’t currently being indexed for that.

But that’s another update in iOS 15: Spotlight searches for all things in your phone will now include your photos in results, too. It uses Apple’s own machine learning to detect things in your library though, and this is still sometimes inaccurate. I searched for “Cherlynn” and “Sunset” and was shown screenshots with my name in them and an image of a red-hot map of New York from the Weather app that Apple thought was a sunset. This isn’t perfect, but at least photos are better integrated into Spotlight now.

Another update that provides better integration across iOS is the consolidation of media that your friends send you. Apple calls this Share With You, and things from your recent interactions with each person will show up there — pictures that Mat sent me of his adorable baby niece, as well as the screenshots he shared from our FaceTime adventures, were all in his page in the Phone app.

Screenshots of the iOS 15 beta

There’s still a ton more to explore not only in the public beta but in iOS 15 when the final release is ready. The Weather app has new maps that appropriately show just how scorching hot it’s been in the New York area these last few days. And we still have to test more things like Safari mobile extensions and ID and keys support in Wallet. For now, this has been an intriguing taste of what to expect in the software update. Despite a few snags, it looks like iPhone users will have plenty to look forward to later this year.

Near the end of the Epic v. Apple trial, Judge Yvonne Gonzales Rogers had some pointed questions for Tim Cook on the state of Apple’s relationship with its developers. Citing an internal survey of developers, she noted that 39 percent of them indicated they were unhappy with the App Store’s distribution. What incentive then, she asked, does Apple have to work with them.

Cook seemed to be caught off guard by the question. He said Apple rejects a lot of apps and that “friction” can be a good thing for users. Rogers replied that it “doesn’t seem you feel pressure or competition to change the manner in which you act to address concerns of developers.”

It was a brief, but telling, exchange. And one that strikes at the heart of Apple’s currently rocky relationship with developers.

Epic vs. Apple vs. developers

Ostensibly, Epic’s antitrust case against Apple was about the iPhone maker’s treatment of Fortnite and its refusal to allow the game developer to bypass the App Store for in-app purchases. Epic, along with many other prominent developers, has long chafed at Apple’s 30 percent commission, or “App Store” tax.

It’s not just that they see 30 percent as greedy and unfair (Apple recently lowered its take to 15 percent for small developers). It’s that Apple has appeared to treat some developers differently than others. For example, documents unearthed during the trial detail how Apple went to great lengths to prevent Netflix from yanking in-app purchases from its app.

After considering “punitive measures” toward the streaming giant, Apple offered Netflix custom APIs that most developers don't have access to. It also dangled the possibility of additional promotion in the App Store or even at its physical retail stores. Netflix ended up pulling in-app purchases anyway, but it was illustrative of the kind of “special treatment” many developers have long suspected Apple employs towards some apps.

Meanwhile, game developers have no choice but to pay Apple’s “tax.” Not only that, but Apple’s rules prohibit them from even alerting their users that they may be able to make the same purchase elsewhere for less — what’s known as its “anti-steering” rules.

Friction over these rules is nothing new. But the details of these arrangements, and Apple’s hardball tactics with developers, had never been as exposed as they were during the trial.

“What was great about the Epic trial was that it brought many of these issues to light and into the public dialogue,” said Meghan DiMuzio, executive director for the Coalition for App Fairness, an advocacy group representing developers who believe Apple’s policies are anticompetitive. “I think we saw how Apple more generally chooses to approach their relationships with developers and how they value, or don't value, their relationships with developers. I think those are really incredible soundbites and storylines to have out in the public eye.”

The case touched on other issues that have been the source of long-simmering developer frustrations with Cupertino, and not just for giants like Netflix. Epic also highlighted common developer complaints around App Store search ads, fraudulent apps and Apple’s often inscrutable review process.

In one particularly memorable exchange, the developer of yoga app Down Dog spoke at length about how Apple’s opaque policies can have an outsize impact on developers. For example, he said Apple had repeatedly rejected app updates for seemingly bizarre reasons, like using a “wrong” color on a login page. Once, he said, an update was rejected because App Store reviewers couldn’t find his app’s integration with Apple’s Health app. He later realized it was because the reviewers were testing on an iPad, which doesn’t support the Health app.

These types of complaints are probably familiar to most developers. It’s not unusual for Apple to quibble over the placement of a particular button, or some other minor feature. These seemingly small issues can drag on for days or weeks, as Epic repeatedly pointed out. But it’s rare for such squabbles to spill over into public view as they did during the trial.

The trial raised other, more fundamental issues, too. A witness for Epic testified that the operating margin for the App Store was 78 percent, a figure Apple disputed but didn’t offer evidence to the contrary. Instead, Tim Cook and other execs have maintained they simply don’t know how much money the App Store makes.

Cook did, however, have much more to say when pressed on whether game developers effectively “subsidize” the rest of the App Store. “We are creating the entire amount of commerce on the store, and we’re doing that by focusing on getting the largest audience there,” Cook stated.

The argument struck a nerve with some. Marco Arment, a longtime iOS developer whose apps have been featured by Apple, wrote a scathing blog post in response.

“The idea that the App Store is responsible for most customers of any reasonably well-known app is a fantasy,” Arment writes. “The App Store is merely one platform’s forced distribution gateway, ‘facilitating’ the commerce no more and no less than a web browser, an ISP or cellular carrier, a server-hosting company, or a credit-card processor. For Apple to continue to claim otherwise is beyond insulting, and borders on delusion.”

Determining just how many developers agree with that sentiment, though, is trickier. There are millions of iOS developers and for much of the App Store’s history, most have been reluctant to publicly criticize Apple. The company has conducted its own surveys — as evidenced in the Epic trial disclosures — but the findings aren’t typically made public. And even Cook admitted he was unsure if it’s a metric the company regularly tracks.

“There's not a lot of actual third party survey on the developer ecosystem,” says Ben Bajarin, CEO of analyst firm Creative Strategies. He has been conducting his own poll of Apple developers to gauge their feelings toward the company.

He says he sees “a pretty big gap” between the smaller, independent developers and the larger businesses on the App Store. Developers with smaller projects, he says, are “simply much more reliant on Apple.” And while they quibble with things like search ads or Apple’s review process, they don’t have many alternatives. “These aren’t developers that have a huge budget for marketing… they’re entirely reliant on Apple to get them customers.”

The coming antitrust battles

These issues could end up being much bigger than Epic’s or a few other high-profile frustrated developers. Regardless of the outcome of the Epic trial, Apple is facing other antitrust battles in the United States and Europe, where many of the same issues are being raised.

UK regulators launched an investigation into the App Store in March. That probe, which came in response to developer complaints, is looking at Apple’s rules for developers and its policies around in-app purchases. Separately, the European Union is moving forward with its own antitrust case centered around the company’s commission structure and anti-steering rules. And earlier this month, US lawmakers, who have also heard from frustrated app developers in recent months, introduced five antitrust bills targeting Apple and its fellow tech giants. One of which would bar Apple from pre-installing any apps on iPhones at all.

The outcome of any one of these could dramatically reshape how Apple runs the App Store, and the rules it sets for developers.

On its part, Apple has argued that opening the App Store would harm users and affect its ability to protect their privacy. Behind the scenes, Cook has reportedly personally lobbied members of Congress to rethink the proposed legislation.

Even if Apple is able to emerge from its antitrust fights relatively unscathed, dissatisfied developers could eventually pose a more existential problem for Apple. Bajarin, of Creative Strategies, says that issues with developers are unlikely to hurt Apple in the short term because there are still few alternatives. But, he says, that could change should Apple face competition from an emerging platform it doesn’t yet dominate, such as AR or VR.

“You just don't want this strain on developer relationships because Apple wants all those developers to be right on board day one for whatever's coming next. They need those larger developers to still prioritize their OS.”

How can Samsung make its smartwatches as successful as the Apple Watch? Returning to the Google fold — or at least collaborating on wearable software — is a start. Samsung has already helped develop the latest edition of Wear OS, apparently improving responsiveness and battery performance. Now we have a glimpse of a more unified software experience between your Samsung watch and phone, called One UI Watch. According to the company’s MWC showcase, you’ll be able to adjust settings across both devices, while the menus on the watch will also mimic what you’re already probably used to on Galaxy phones.

Samsung

Yeah, I know, I’m not captivated either.

A few years ago, when Samsung developed its own mobile OS, Tizen, for both phones and wearables, it struggled to muster up third-party app support. With the new Wear OS inside, the One UI Watch will offer Google Play Store access, including apps from Adidas, Calm and MyFitnessPal, as well as core Google services, from Maps to Messages to YouTube Music. This will be crucial in helping Samsung turn a corner with its smartwatches. According to the latest figures from IDC, it remains a contender, but the Apple Watch still dominates the wrists of smartwatch buyers.

— Mat Smith

YouTube TV now supports 4K streaming, but it comes at a price

A new 4K Plus plan adds at least $10 to your YouTube TV subscription.

Finally, starting today, YouTube TV will have a new add-on called 4K Plus. As the name suggests, it'll enable 4K streaming, assuming you have a compatible TV and streaming device. The 4K Plus add-on also includes the ability to download recordings from your DVR to a phone or tablet, too.

4K Plus also lets you stream YouTube TV from "unlimited" devices when you're at home. The basic YouTube TV package can stream on three devices simultaneously. Unfortunately, this all comes at a fairly steep cost. The 4K Plus add-on costs $19.99 per month, on top of whatever your existing YouTube TV plan costs. (Right now, the basic YouTube TV plan starts at $64.99 a month.) That said, if you act quickly, you can get a price deal on 4K Plus — YouTube is offering a one-month free trial to new users, after which you can sign up for $9.99 per month, a pretty good deal over the standard price. Continue reading.

'Dune' release gets pushed back again

Warner Bros. plans to release it simultaneously on HBO Max and theaters.

Warner Bros.

If you've been waiting impatiently to see Denis Villeneuve's much-anticipated take on Dune, you'll have to keep on waiting. After being delayed to October 1st, 2021, from its original December 18, 2020, release date, Dune has been pushed back a further three weeks to October 22nd. Warner Bros. announced last year that its entire 2021 movie lineup, including Dune, would be released simultaneously on HBO Max. That move didn't sit well with director Villeneuve, who railed against the decision online. Continue reading.

Microsoft’s first Windows 11 preview is available now

Test out the new OS today.

Microsft

Microsoft has begun rolling out the first preview for Windows Insiders. The build will show off the operating system's centered taskbar and redesigned Start menu, as well as its improved window management. But you'll have to wait a bit for some of the more advanced features, like the integrated Microsoft Teams chat and Android app compatibility. Check your PC meets the Windows 11 minimum hardware requirements before you get too excited, though. Continue reading.

The Windows 11 preview can dynamically change your refresh rate to save battery

Amazon launches vinyl record of the month club

For $25 a month.

Amazon is targeting newbie record collectors with its latest subscription. If you sign up to the Vinyl of the Month Club, you’ll receive a new record for your collection every 30 days or so.

You won’t know what records you’ll receive as part of the $25 plan until they show up at your door, but they’ll be classics from the “Golden Era of Vinyl” — the 1960s and ‘70s — chosen by curators at Amazon Music. Expect releases from Pink Floyd, Aretha Franklin and ABBA, so if your tastes fall outside of the mainstream of the mainstream, this might not be for you. At least the spirit of Columbia House lives on. Continue reading.

Honda's first electric SUV will be called the Prologue

The mainstream EV is due in early 2024.

Honda finally has a name for its first electric SUV. The Prologue is coming in 2024, so there’s a little time to wait. You should also see the Acura SUV sometime in 2024, but that vaguer promise suggests this model will come later than its more mainstream counterpart.

Honda hasn’t offered much detail about what the Prologue will entail, although it reminded us that both the Prologue and its Acura counterpart will run on GM's Ultium batteries. Honda is still hard at work on its own electric car architecture. Continue reading.

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Companies will never stop trying new things when it comes to our tablets and laptops. While Apple might be going bigger on iPad sizes — see below — Lenovo added a hanger to its new Yoga Tab. It might also be a kickstand, but the idea of hanging your tablet is what’s new. We’ve seen kickstands in other tablets, the Nintendo Switch or, lest we forget, the terribly designed HTC Thunderbolt, where the charging port was placed so you couldn’t charge the thing when using the kickstand.

Lenovo’s 13-inch tablet shouldn’t have such issues, but the idea of suspending it has some cool use cases if you use your imagination. (Hard on a Monday, I know.) I could see people using it for cooking guidance, with the tablet hanging off utensil hooks. It also means your electronics won’t take up counter space and tomato sauce and the like will be less likely to be hit it.

You could also, possibly, hook it to the coat hooks or tray table latches on trains or planes — depending on dimensions. Further still, the tablet can double as a secondary display: You could hang it from the wall in your tiny work-from-home setup. The use cases are there, but the device is expensive for an Android tablet at $680. I’m intrigued by the prospect, though — and that’s something I’ve never uttered about Lenovo before.

— Mat Smith

Apple may be exploring even bigger iPad designs

Bigger!

Engadget

Bigger than 12.9 inches? Your next iPad might be. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman claimed Apple was exploring iPads with even larger displays. Any potential products might take at least a "couple of years" to ship if they go ahead, but still — Apple hasn’t gone bigger since 2015’s iPad Pro. Continue reading.

YouTube took down videos documenting Xinjiang human rights abuses

Its explanations weren't always clear.

YouTube is facing criticism for cracking down on videos documenting China's alleged abuses against Uyghur Muslims in the country's Xinjiang province. Reuters reported that YouTube took down a dozen videos from Atajurt Kazakh Human Rights, and at one point removed the channel itself, for supposedly violating the site's anti-harassment policy. The takedowns followed reports from unnamed parties.

YouTube told Engadget that videos documenting human rights abuses were allowed on the site, and it was aware that Atajurt didn't have sinister intent when showing the ID cards. However, it argued the rights group didn't have enough "educational, documentary, scientific and artistic content" to allow an exception to its policies, primarily showing ID cards, which broke a rule against showing sensitive personal information. Continue reading.

China shares video and audio from its Mars rover

Zhurong has the footage to back up its accomplishments.

CNSA/PEC

China has released early clips of video and audio from the Zhurong rover's first forays on the Red Planet. They cover the landing as well as the deployment and initial movement. There's also a panorama revealing just how far Zhurong has traveled from its landing platform. Continue reading.

The Engadget Podcast

All things Windows 11.

In this week's podcast, Cherlynn and Devindra came straight from live Windows 11 coverage to run through this week’s biggest tech news, including McCaffee, Snapchat in the Supreme Court and a chat with developers from Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart.

Listen on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts or Stitcher.

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We're still staring at Canoo's unusual electric pick-up that looks set to take on Tesla's Cybertruck. We're also thinking on why Apple's iPhone 12 Mini has struggled. But today we're starting with some sad news. The former Philips engineer who invented the first compact cassette tape, Lou Ottens, has passed away at the age of 94. Cassette tapes had a major impact on music culture, offering listeners the ability to easily create their own albums and playlists, recording from different sources, like other tapes and live radio. Like a lot of people in my generation, I owned a dual-cassette boombox in my childhood, just please don’t ask me about my musictastes.

Cassette tapes were subsequently usurped by compact discs (which Ottens also helped develop) and then digital music and streaming services. Having said that, tapes persist. In 2016, sales of cassettes increased by 74 percent.

— Mat Smith

Canoo plans to launch this oddly shaped electric truck in 2023

The company will build several electric vehicles on one platform.

This design certainly takes a different approach to Tesla's edgy Cybertruck and is even going to stand out as electric pickups from Rivian, Ford and others start to hit the streets. The specs promise more than 200 miles of range on a charge, with up to 600 HP and 550 lb-ft of torque in a dual-motor configuration and a payload capacity of up to 1,800 pounds.

At 76 inches, it's one inch taller than Tesla's Cybertruck but notably shorter than GMC's 81.1-inch tall Hummer EV. It's also short in length compared to those competitors at just 184 inches, but a pull-out bed extension brings the total length to 213 inches.
Continue reading.

iPhone 12 mini 'production cut' hints demand was lower than hoped

Reports suggest Apple is slashing production by at least 70 percent.

Apple is slashing production of the iPhone 12 mini through the first six months of the year, according to Nikkei. The company will reportedly produce at least 70 percent fewer units than it planned and backs previous suggestions that the 5.4-inch iPhone 12 mini isn't selling as well as other models. There are certainly drawbacks to the mini, like its battery life, but there are also few phones as small and as high-specced as the mini iPhone 12 — it might just be a niche proposition.
Continue reading.

ASUS ROG’s latest gaming phone focuses on audio

Yeah, the company skipped number 4.

It's only been a little over seven months since ASUS launched its ROG Phone 3 gaming smartphone, but the company is already releasing a follow-up model, the ROG Phone 5 (skipping 4 due to tetraphobia). There are some minor cosmetic changes, but also better heat dissipation, weight distribution and audio performance. Those audio improvements seem to be the focus: Better component choices mean there’s more space inside the ROG Phone 5 for the front-facing speakers.
Continue reading.

'Shredder's Revenge' is a throwback brawler for Ninja Turtles fans

It looks like a spiritual successor to ‘Turtles in Time.’

TMNT

If cassettes weren’t nostalgic enough, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge is sure to delight anyone who remembers ‘90s arcade scrolling beat-em-ups. The new game, developed by Dotemu (Streets of Rage 4) and Tribute Games (Mercenary Kings), is a four-player brawler that looks like a natural successor to Turtles in Time. No quarters needed.
Continue reading.

Sony, Nokia and Ericsson bow out of in-person attendance at MWC 2021

What will the show look like when it kicks off on June 28th?

The GSMA is sticking to plans for an in-person Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this June — just without a few marquee names. A handful of companies, including Oracle, smartphone maker Sony and networking firms Nokia and Ericsson, have all confirmed they will not attend the show.

There are also strict travel restrictions for would-be attendees. The website for the US Embassy in Spain and Andorra says that entry into the country is not allowed unless they meet “very specific requirements or have already obtained special permission from the Government of Spain.”
Continue reading.

Nikon's full-frame Z9 with 8K video will arrive later this year

It promises "the best still and video performance in Nikon history."

Nikon

Nikon has announced it's developing the Z9, a flagship full-frame mirrorless Z mount model with "the best still and video performance in Nikon history." The new model will ship in 2021 with 8K video and other advanced features. Expect the very best from Nikon and a price tag to match. There's no word yet on pricing, but Nikon has promised more information in the months to come.
Continue reading.

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After axing its AirPower project in 2019, Apple chose to offer a range of wireless charging products under the revived MagSafe brand instead. Last year saw the release of fast wireless chargers for Qi-enabled devices, and compatible cases, sleeves and wallets that could snap on the back of the iPhone 12. The priciest, and most versatile, item on the list was the MagSafe Duo: A $129 wireless charger that could simultaneously charge two compatible devices including, for the first time, the Apple Watch. Now, Best Buy is offering the Duo for $29 less (or 22 percent off) as part of a bigger sale on all things MagSafe.

Buy Apple MagSafe Duo at Best Buy - $100Buy Apple iPhone cases at Best Buy

Interested buyers should note that the MagSafe Duo does not come with a wall outlet power adapter out of the box. For that, Apple recommends purchasing a 20W USB-C adaptor (a 29W USB-C power adapter won't work). That shouldn't surprise anyone who has purchased an Apple product recently as both the Apple Watch and the iPhone 12 don't ship with one either. Also worth noting is that the Duo charges the iPhone 12 Mini slower than its larger kin, with a peak 12W of power delivery, compared to 15W for the other iPhone 12 models.

Along with the aforementioned devices, the MagSafe Duo can also charge your AirPods charging case and, as it's compatible with Qi charging, it also works for the iPhone 8 or later. Plus, you can fold it up to carry with you. There's a cheaper $39 MagSafe charger too, but that's no good if you want to charge your Apple Watch. Best Buy's sale on Apple cases also applies to compatible MagSafe versions for the iPhone 12 range, which include clear, leather and silicone cases that start from $20.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

Apple is slashing production of the iPhone 12 mini through the first six months of the year, according to Nikkei. The company will reportedly produce at least 70 percent fewer units than it initially planned. That will account for most of a 20 percent drop in overall planned iPhone 12 production until June.

Apple is even said to have told some suppliers to temporarily stop making specific parts for the iPhone 12 mini. Some other components have been reapportioned for the iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max.

Even with the cuts, Apple is still on track to make more iPhones this year than it did in 2020. Nikkei suggests the company plans to manufacture 75 million units in the first six months and 230 million handsets in total, representing an overall increase of 11.6 percent. This is reportedly to help Apple get ahead of possible parts shortages as well as possible economic recovery (and more people perhaps having enough spare cash to buy a new phone).

The report backs up previous suggestions that the 5.4-inch iPhone 12 mini isn't selling all that well. Although the iPhone 11 is a year older than the 2020 lineup, it offers superior battery life to the iPhone 12 mini and it costs $100 less. That, aligned with the fact many people are opting for phones with larger screens, could be one reason why the iPhone 12 mini seemingly isn't selling as much as Apple would have hoped.

If you want a portable speaker, Sonos is looking for anyone that doesn’t already own one. At $169, the Roam is more expensive than many Bluetooth-only portable speakers, but it’s also Sonos’ cheapest speaker ever.

Unlike the Move (Sonos’ previous moveable, if not all that portable, speaker), the Roam has a smaller, narrower design and weighs just about one pound. The battery should give 10 hours of playback, and it automatically goes into a low-power sleep mode when it’s not in use. There’s also dust and water protection, and you’ll be able to pair two speakers for portable stereo sound. You can even connect the new speaker to existing Sonos devices around your home, rounding out your sound system.

Sonos

The company is tacitly aware that the portable Bluetooth-speaker market is an incredibly crowded one — so the Sonos features will be important if it wants to convince a lot of us to upgrade from our existing beach-trip speaker. The Roam’s versatility pitch, however, is a compelling one. Let’s see how it sounds.

Pre-orders for the Roam are open now, and the speaker will be available on April 20th.

— Mat Smith

Chrome OS is getting a big redesign for its 10th birthday

New features include a Phone Hub and Nearby Share.

Google

Google’s very own operating system, Chrome OS, is getting a bunch of features and some new styling to celebrate a decade in existence. It’s a good time to strike: Chromebooks have never been so popular. Phone Hub might be the most useful update. It’s a little dashboard that accesses your phone's controls so you can see its status for things like battery life and data connectivity. You can ring your Android device when you've misplaced it, and also remote-enable tethering with one click. We unravel all the new features right here. Continue reading.

Bose Sport Open Earbuds review

Great for workouts, but not much else.

Bose

Bose is well-regarded for its great-sounding headphones. The company’s latest buds have an “open” design that sits outside your ear. Not only does this increase comfort but it also means you can hear what’s going on at all times — a key safety feature for runners. Bose decided allowing you to be hyper-aware of everything around you was paramount, and according to News Editor Billy Steele, who reviewed the Bose Sport Open Earbuds, that means accepting sacrifices to sound quality. Continue reading.

How to use Apple Shortcuts to clean out your iPhone or iPad

A handy crash course.

Engadget

If you’re an iPhone or an iPad user, Apple’s Shortcuts helps with your digital spring cleaning. With Shortcuts, you can quickly perform a specific task or a more complex sequence of tasks with a single tap or voice command. Mobile Editor Chris Velazco walks you through a Shortcut for clearing out your excess Notes and outlines everything you need to make your own Shortcut routines. Continue reading.

Samsung's 980 NVMe SSD boasts high performance with a tradeoff

Cheaper, but…

Samsung has finally introduced a 980 SSD that isn't part of the high-priced Pro line, and it's mostly good news for performance-minded PC users — with a caveat. Hitting read speeds up to 3,500MB/s and faster writes (up to 3,000MB/s versus 2,500MB/s) than the 970 Evo it replaces, Samsung says it also offers 36 percent lower power consumption, 54 percent greater power efficiency and improved cooling, which should prevent overheating. However, Samsung is also ditching built-in DRAM on the plain 980, joining the ranks of lower-cost SSDs. It's promising speeds "identical" to faster DRAM-equipped drives in part by using Host Memory Buffer technology to directly access system RAM, but it's clear this is a tradeoff to keep prices down.

Those prices are low, thankfully. The 980 will start at $50 for a 250GB model, $70 for 500GB and $130 for 1TB. Continue reading.

Nothing's wireless earbud design was inspired by a smoking pipe

This is Nothing's Concept 1.

Nothing

We still only know a few things about Nothing, a new hardware startup by the co-founder of OnePlus, Carl Pei. One thing we know is its first product will be wireless earbuds, which we assume informs what we're looking at above. The see-through casing on what appears to be a concept wireless earbud is a nod towards making tech devices less obtrusive. The shape is apparently inspired "a grandmother’s tobacco pipe", which is at least different from the chopped off q-tip look that epitomized the most popular wireless earbuds so far. Nothing’s first products launch this summer. Continue reading.

Samsung will hold its next Unpacked event on March 17th

The company promises to share something "awesome."

Two months ago Samsung held an Unpacked event to announce the Galaxy S21, but the company is already sending out invites for another event it plans to hold on March 17th at 10 AM ET. Continue reading.

But wait, there’s more...

Hacked surveillance startup Verkada leaked live feeds for Tesla, others

Google Voice will soon stop forwarding your text messages to other numbers

Bethesda is now officially part of Xbox

Nintendo knocks 35 percent off Switch games for 'Mar10 Day'

Elon Musk reveals why the SN10 Starship exploded

Tag Heuer unveils a wellness app for its Connected watch

Volkswagen's ID.4 EV is the basic people mover you've been waiting for

Insta360's upgraded Go 2 action cam will have a 'Minions Edition'