While the four-pack of AirTags has been on sale for some time now, it's been a while since we've seen one AirTag go on sale. Now, Amazon's brought back the record-low price on a single pack, so you can grab one AirTag for only $24. That's $5 off its normal price — that may not seem like much, but it's a decent deal on an already affordable accessory.
If you're unfamiliar, AirTags allow iPhone users to keep track of their things from within the Find My app. Much like AirPods, AirTags seamlessly pair with iPhones as soon as you take them out of the box, and from there you can label what the tracker is attached to like your keys, wallet or backpack. A big downside to AirTags when compared to competing trackers like those from Tile is that Apple's devices don't have built in keyring holes. That means you'll have to buy a case or holder if you want to attach it to your keys.
After a quick setup process, you'll be able to check the Find My app whenever you need to locate your stuff. AirTags can also emit a chime if you're nearby, which should help you find your lost things a bit more easily. And if you have one of the latest iPhones, the Precision Finding feature can lead you directly to your stuff using on-screen instructions. Bluetooth trackers like these may not be as essential as your smartphone or even a smartwatch that you've grown attached to, but they will come in handy on the rare occasion that you misplace your belongings.
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The Mac Mini is already the most cost-effective way to get an M1-based Apple computer and right now, you can get an even better deal on one. Amazon has the 2020 Mac Mini M1 (with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage) on sale for $570 via a $99 checkout discount, matching the lowest price we've seen to date.
The Mini comes with an eight-core CPU, eight-core GPU, one more than you'll find in the base Air M1. It also packs a 16-core Neural Engine, so you can expect speedy performance, high energy efficiency and nearly instant wake times. It should provide enough power for most users, even content creators and it can even handle some gaming as well.
The exterior design of the Mac Mini is largely unchanged from the Intel model and that's a good thing. The small silver box will fit into nearly any desk setup without taking up too much space and it has a number of ports including two Thunderbolt connectors, two USB-A ports, an HDMI port, an Ethernet connector and a headphone jack.
Our biggest issue with the machine is its lack of upgradeability, as the RAM and SSD are soldered in place. If you can live with that, the Mac Mini M1 remains a good option for anyone in need of an updated, powerful desktop. It's best to act quickly though, as Apple deals often don't last long on Amazon.
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Starting today, you can stream a free demo of Resident Evil Villagefrom Capcom's website, with no need for a fancy gaming PC, Xbox or PlayStation. The demo is similar to one that's available on other platforms, which allows players to explore parts of the village and castle. This appetizer for one of last year's biggest-selling games is powered by Immersive Stream for Games, a version of Stadia tech that Google is licensing to others.
The demo will work on just about any computer, as well as iOS and Android phones and tablets, as long as the device can handle high-definition video and you have a sturdy enough internet connection (with a download speed of at least 10Mbps). It runs on Chrome on Windows, macOS and Android. On iOS, you can try it on Safari. The resolution tops out at 1080p and there's no HDR mode.
PlayStation DualShock 4 and Xbox One controllers are officially supported, but other peripherals might work. Alternatively, you can use touch controls on mobile or a mouse and keyboard.
Capcom
As with Stadia's click-to-play trials, there's no need to register to play the demo. It's worth noting that you'll be disconnected after 10 minutes of inactivity. There's no save function, so you'll need to restart from the beginning if you disconnect. You can play as many times as you like and there's no time limit, unlike previous versions of the demo.
In February, Insiderreported that Google was looking to secure deals with Capcom, Peloton and others to build the licensing aspect of its game-streaming business. It was suggested that Capcom might use the tech to stream demos from its website, which turned out to be the case. This could even be a precursor to Capcom running its own game streaming storefront.
Amazon is having a big sale on Apple Series 7 Watches right now, with the highlight being a new low price of $300 on the 41mm green aluminum model with a clover sports band ($99 off). Other available colors (starlight, midnight, blue and red) are also on sale at the previous all-time-low price of $329, while the 45mm models are marked down to $359 ($70 off) in multiple colors.
The Series 7 wasn't a massive update from the Series 6, but there are some nice improvements. Chief among those is a larger screen that makes it easier to see notifications, messages and other information displayed in complications. It's also the first IP6X dust resistant Apple Watch, so it's more durable than past models. And it supports fast charging, allowing you to get 10 percent power in just 10 minutes and a full charge in under an hour.
Other capabilities carry over from the Series 6, like the always-on display, built-in GPS, ECG and blood oxygen measurement capabilities, fall detection, trackable workout support and more. The biggest drawback with the current model is mediocre sleep tracking — it only tells you how long you slept, which is a lot less information than you get from rival Fitbit or Garmin devices. It's also not a great idea for Android users, but if you're on iPhone, Apple Watch is still the best wearable out there, by far.
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In its ongoing push to corner the education market, Google is introducing new classroom-specific features to Chrome OS. The first of those is Screencast, a new built-in app that allows teachers to build a video library of lessons and demos students can turn to if they miss a class or need help with a homework assignment. Available as of Chrome OS version M103, the software includes tools for trimming and transcribing clips.
Google points out that students can also use the app to create video reports and share ideas with classmates. Additionally, Screencast supports stylus input, allowing both teachers and students to write and draw on their videos. Sharing is done through Google Drive, allowing students to access content their teachers upload both at school and at home.
The other feature Google introduced today is a new cast moderator mode designed to give teachers more control over onscreen presentations and other content shared wirelessly within their classroom. With the help of an access code, the feature gives educators the power to turn off disruptive screencasts. Before making the feature widely available, Google plans to run a pilot program to trial the feature with a select group of schools this summer. Once it’s available, it will work with the company’s Chrome browser, Chrome OS and Google TV devices.
Google
Google also announced today it’s partnering with Figma, a collaborative graphic design tool, to optimize its software for Chromebooks. With the partnership, schools in the US can download a free beta of the software through the Google Admin Console.
TikTok will allow users to create and customize animated avatars to star in their videos. The feature, officially called TikTok Avatars, is a lot like Snapchat’s Bitmoji or Apple’s Memoji characters.
Users can customize the look of their avatar by changing its appearance, clothing and other characteristics like piercings and hair texture. The app will have ready-made templates that can be tweaked, or you can start from scratch to create a completely unique avatar. Once the avatar is created, TikTokers can use the character in their videos, with the ability to add different voice effects or animated “reactions.” And, similar to Apple’s Memoji, users can record videos in which their avatar mirrors their own facial expressions and gestures.
TikTok Avatars was first spotted back in February, though the company hadn’t confirmed its existence until now. Though the company is hardly the first to experiment with animated representations of its users, the addition is likely to raise questions about whether TikTok is eyeing a potential metaverse tie-in. For now, the company hasn’t commented on any metaverse plans, but TikTok says it plans to “continue exploring ways to bring Avatars into more TikTok experiences.”
Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference, an event you should, out of principle, refuse to call Dub Dub, has kicked off. The show started with the customary lengthy keynote showing off all the new software and hardware Apple wants you to get excited about. Including the launch of Apple’s second-generation of homegrown silicon, the M2.
The M2 is very much an evolution of its immediate predecessor, designed to address some of the performance issues from the original vanilla M1. Memory bandwidth has been increased by half, and you can now spec the unit with up to 24GB “unified memory,” more than the maximum cap of 16GB on that first groundbreaking system-on-chip. Apple’s still sure it won’t be beaten on efficiency, claiming the M2 is 18 percent faster than the M1 while drawing the same amount of power.
Of course, with a new chip should come new computers to sit around it, and Apple has finally redesigned the MacBook Air for the Apple Silicon age. Gone is that elongated wedge in favor of a more MacBook Pro-esque body, albeit even smaller. You’ll also get a full-size row of function keys this time around and a bigger 13.6-inch Liquid Retina display that’s brighter than the previous model and has a webcam notch up top. Alas, it’s also $200 more than the M1 MacBook Air, but hopefully we’ll see plenty of retailer discounts in the coming weeks and months. You’ll also find the new M2 in an updated 13-inch MacBook Pro, but there’s no glossy redesign here to get all excited about.
Of course, the point of WWDC is to talk about software, and Apple had plenty to share about iOS and iPadOS 16. The biggest change for the former is a revamped lock screen that’ll give you a choice of fonts, accent colors and layouts for you to customize. You’ll be able to add widgets up front, too, enabling you to check vital data without unlocking your phone. (Sounds like the sort of thing that would be really useful if your phone had an always-on screen, too, doesn’t it?) iPadOS, meanwhile, will let you use overlapping windows just like a real computer, and Apple is even bringing the Weather app to the humble slate, just 12 years after the first model was released.
The next version of macOS, meanwhile, is dubbed Ventura, and the headline feature is the ability to better sort and organize your open applications. Stage Manager will enable you to group windows to the side of your desktop, organizing them by app, letting you switch between each group in turn. You’ll also find incremental updates to Spotlight, gain the ability to search for text in photos and notice long-overdue refreshes to Safari and Mail. But the most exciting feature might be the ability to use your iPhone as a webcam, giving you one fewer excuse to hide your face during those interminable work Zoom calls.
But it might not be that easy for Musk to back out.
Let’s be honest, who hasn’t publicly pledged to do something, made a big show and dance about following through, then got cold feet? It’s something Elon Musk might be feeling right now after he filed paperwork with the SEC to claim Twitter has committed a “material breach” of its deal terms. The Tesla CEO is claiming Twitter is refusing to disclose detailed data about the amount of fake, spam and bot accounts in its user figures. And that it has nothing to do with both Twitter and Tesla’s valuations dropping in recent months, making the deal a lot less enticing (for Musk) than it was when he started the process. For its part, Twitter says it has, and will, continue to share information with the billionaire, and that it fully intends to “close the transaction and enforce the merger agreement at the agreed price and terms.”
Yesterday at WWDC 2022, Apple discussed how iOS 16 would improve the gaming experience with updated Metal 3 graphics, Game Center improvements and more. Now, it looks like iOS 16 will offer support for more third-party gaming controllers as well, most notably Nintendo's Joy-Con and Pro controllers, 9to5Mac has reported.
Developer Riley Testut found that he could play games with Nintendo Switch Joy-Con and Pro controllers on iPhones and iPads with the latest iOS 16 beta release. The update also supports the 8Bitdo, BADA MOGA XP5-X Plus and Logitech F710 Gamepad controllers, according to the internal code spotted by 9to5Mac.
iOS 16 lets you pair the Joy-Cons as one controller or separately, and you can customize the controls in the Bluetooth settings. You can even dynamically switch between using both Joy-Cons as a single controller or two separate controllers by pressing and holding the screenshot and home buttons. "Apple seriously killed it with this implementation," said Testut. (In a reply to his tweet, another user noted that Apple apparently initiated support for Switch Pro controllers last year with macOS 12.)
It looks like Apple will be able to add support for more controllers without the need to ship a new iOS version, using something called "mobile assets." That's similar to another new feature that allows Apple to automatically issue security updates in between iOS releases.
<!! iOS 16 natively supports Nintendo Switch Pro Controllers!><br /><br />Can confirm they work perfectly with Delta 😍 <a href="https://t.co/p8u1sdjvTt">pic.twitter.com/p8u1sdjvTt</a></p>— Riles 🤷♂️ (@rileytestut) <a href="https://twitter.com/rileytestut/status/1533954250824241153?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 6, 2022</a></blockquote></div>
When iOS 16 arrives, iPhone owners won't have to deal with full software installs for the latest security patches. Apple is launching a new feature with the mobile OS called Rapid Security Response, which enables the company to automatically apply security fixes to users' devices in between its standard software updates. It's one of the security features the tech giant has announced at WWDC this year, along with Safety Check that gives users a quick way to see which contacts have access to their location and calendar info. Safety Check will also show them the permissions used by every app on their device.
As MacRumors notes, iOS 16 will add a new section under Automatic Updates in Settings called "Install System and Data Files." When toggled on, users can get software fixes that aren't tied with full updates, installed automatically and without them having to restart their phones or lift a finger altogether. It's switched on by default upon upgrading to the new OS, so those who don't want automatic installs will have to remember to toggle it off.
Apple's iOS 16 brings a bunch of other new features to iPhones, including a more customizable lock screen, the ability to edit texts and the ability to use Face ID even when the device is in landscape mode. The public beta of the mobile platform will come out in July, though it'll no longer support the iPhone 6S, 7 and the first-gen SE.
With a revamped lock screen, redesigned notifications and an enhanced Focus mode, iOS 16 promises to bring a lot of useful new features to Apple's iPhone later this year. But as is always the case with keynotes like WWDC, there's not enough time to cover every enhancement. And one such feature Apple didn't mention is that iOS will allow you to use Face ID even when your iPhone is oriented horizontally.
The quality of life improvement was spotted by Vox Media product manager Parker Ortolani on Apple's iOS 16 preview webpage. As The Verge points out, Apple has allowed iPad owners to use Face ID in this way for a while now, so it's not exactly a new feature. Still, it's one of those changes iPhone users, particularly those who use devices like the Razer Kishi and Backbone One, will appreciate. On its preview page, Apple says the feature will work with supported models without specifying the exact ones included in that list. We've reached out to the company for more information.
