When Apple launched the first Macs with its own M1 silicon inside (the MacBook Air, MacBook Pro and Mac mini), they were essentially identical to the Intel models they replaced, aside from the new processor of course. But numerous rumors have indicted that Apple is working on major redesigns for its laptops soon, and the company already released an all-new iMac with Apple silicon inside. Now, it sounds like the Mac mini will get a big refresh soon, as well.
Both 9to5Mac and MacRumors are citing a newsletter from Bloomberg's reliable Mark Gurman that says a redesigned Mac mini with an "M1X" chip in it should arrive in "the next several months." The M1X hasn't been announced, but it's been the shorthand over the last year or so for a chip that can outperform the M1 that Apple currently offers.
In addition to the new internals, Apple is also expected to redesign the Mac mini and add more ports to the small desktop computer. This Mac mini might be more focused on power users and will also likely cost more than the current models Apple offers, so it seems likely that the company will keep the M1 model around as a more basic and affordable option.
In addition to the Mac mini, Apple is also expected to introduce totally redesigned MacBook Pro models this fall, also sporting the more powerful M1X chip. It also sounds like Apple might take the multi-colored approach that it brought to the iMac earlier this year, as well.
Andrey Shumeyko, known as YRH04E and JVHResearch in online circles, spent years trading secrets in the leak and jailbreak community. He was also sharing what he found with Apple. As Motherboard explains, Shumeyko was collecting "personal information of people who sold stolen iPhone prototypes from China, Apple employees who leaked information online, journalists who had relationships with leakers and sellers and anything that he thought the company would find interesting and worth investigating."
Sony's Manchester studio opened in 2015, and when it was shuttered in 2020, it had yet to release what Polygon describes as "a throwback to old-school action games like Genesis shooter Desert Strike — albeit in 3D and utilizing modern technology on PlayStation 4." While the studio had "AAA aspirations," it never had a staff of more than 30 people.
EA finally reworked Madden NFL's Franchise mode for this year's release. While the updates might not be apparent at first, give it some time. A feature like Gameday Momentum, Polygon explains, "doesn’t seem like much, until it seems like a lot."
In the nearly 40 years since Alexey Pajitnov created Tetris, the game has inspired many permutations. The latest example is Tetris Beat, an Apple Arcade exclusive that adds rhythm elements to the title's classic line-clearing formula. In the game’s beat mode, the more you keep to the rhythm of a song, the more points you’ll earn. However, if you want a more traditional Tetris experience, the included Marathon mode offers that. As with all Apple Arcade titles, Tetris Beat does not include any in-app ads or purchases.
With today’s launch, the game features 18 exclusive songs, with more to come every month. Some of the current contributors include well-known artists like Alison Wonderland, Hannah Diamond, and my personal favorite among the group, Dauwd. What’s more, if you own a pair of AirPods Pro or Max, the game supports Apple’s Spatial Audio technology, so you can look forward to a more immersive experience.
You can download Tetris Beat on iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple TV starting today. An Apple Arcade subscription costs $5 per month. It’s also included in the company’s Apple One membership.
The internet was awash with tech deals this week, with some of the best coming from Apple and Amazon. Apple's AirPods Pro dropped to $180 while the MacBook Pro M1 received at $200 discount. Amazon kicked off its "off to college" sale by reducing the prices of its Echo speakers, including the Echo Dot, Kindle e-readers and a handful of Fire tablets. And those looking for a new streaming gadget can get the Roku Streambar or the NVIDIA Shield TV for less. Here are the best tech deals we found this week that you can still get today.
AirPods Pro
Billy Steele / Engadget
Apple's AirPods Pro are down to $180 right now, or $70 off their normal price. These are the best sounding earbuds you can get from Apple, and we gave them a score of 87 for their better, more secure fit, IPX4 water resistance and solid audio quality.
The MacBook Pro M1 is $200 off at Amazon thanks to a sale price and an automatically applied coupon on top of that. That means you can get the model with 256GB of storage for $1,099 and the 512GB version for $1,299. We gave the Pro M1 a score of 84 for its powerful performance, solid keyboard and trackpad and healthy battery life.
Those looking to invest in an iPad Pro as a laptop alternative need look no further than Amazon's most recent sales on the 1TB models. The WiFi version of the latest 11-inch iPad Pro is down to $1,399 while the WiFi + Cellular version is down to $1,599. These iPad Pros run on Apple's M1 chipset, so you're getting the latest processor technology and formidable performance in these slabs.
The Echo Dot has been discounted to $35 while the regular Echo smart speaker is down to $80 as part of Amazon's "off to college" sale. While not all-time lows, these sale prices are great for those that want to save a bit and add an Echo device to their home, or college students who want a convenience speaker for their new dorm room.
Both Amazon's Kindle Paperwhite and regular Kindle are on sale right now for $80 and $65, respectively. These are some of the best prices we've seen on both e-readers since Prime Day back in June. We recommend the Paperwhite to those that can afford it, but the standard Kindle is an even better buy now than it was a couple of years ago thanks to its new front light and higher-contrast display.
A number of Amazon Fire tablets are on sale this week, including the new Fire HD 10, which is down to a record low of $100. The Fire HD 8 has been discounted to $60, which is a great price for a basic tablet that we praised for its long battery life, USB-C charging and hands-free Alexa capabilities. And if you've been eyeing a Fire tablet for your child, the Fire 7 Kids Pro and the Fire 8 Kids Pro are both on sale for $60 and $90, respectively.
Amazon knocked $20 off its Fire TV Cube, bringing it down to $100. It's been around for a while, but the Fire TV Cube remains the most powerful streaming device in Amazon's lineup. It has solid performance and supports 4K HDR output as well as voice commands via Alexa for both your TV and other smart home devices.
The NVIDIA Shield TV is $20 off right now, bringing it down to $130. We like it for its Tegra X1+ processor and its support for Dolby Vision HDR, Dolby Atmos audio, Chromecast 4K and AI-powered HD-to-4K upscaling.
The Roku Streambar is down to $99 right now, or $30 off its normal price. It's a relatively affordable device to get to upgrade an old TV in your home, or up the audio chops on your main set. We gave it a score of 86 for its compact size, good sound quality and 4K HDR streaming chops.
Samsung's premium Galaxy Buds Pro are on sale for $127 at B&H Photo right now. That's 37 percent off their normal price and close to a record low. We gave them a score of 85 for their comfy fit, good sound quality and wireless charging case.
In this Omaze giveaway you can win two seats on one of the first Virgin Galactic flights to space. In addition, you'll go on a tour of Spaceport America in New Mexico with Richard Branson. You don't have to pay to enter, but funds from all paid entries will support Space for Humanity, an organization that hopes to make space more accessible for all. The sweepstakes is open through September 1, so you still have time to enter.
Through September 18, Omaze is giving away another $20,000 to build your ultimate gaming PC. This sweepstakes is free to enter, but funds donated with purchased entries will benefit Schools on Wheels, an organization that provides free tutoring and mentoring services to children experiencing homelessness across Southern California.
Through December 8, you can enter to win four-day passes to San Diego Comic-Con 2022. Along with the passes, you'll get access to a special preview night, reserved seating in Hall H, a personal concierge, a private tour of the Comic-Con Museum, dinner in Balboa Park and tickets to the "Night at the Comic-Con Museum" event. It's free to enter, but funds from this sweepstakes will go to the San Diego Comic Convention.
Logitech's C922x Pro webcam is on sale for $75, or $25 off its normal price. While not a record low, it's a good sale price on a solid webcam that you'll actually be able to get relatively soon — Amazon estimates orders will ship in the first few weeks of September. This version of the C922 webcam is optimized for streaming, so it could be your Zoom-meeting webcam as well as your main game streaming camera.
One of our recommended VPNs is running a decent sale on a two-year subscription. You can sign up for NordVPN for $99 for the first two years, which comes out to $49.50 per year, and get three additional months of access for free. We like NordVPN for its speed, its no-logs policy, the thousands of servers it has to choose from and that one account supports up to six connected devices.
While Apple may have released Siri before Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa, in many ways its voice-activated assistant is the least advanced of the three. A lot of that has to do with the amount of data and training digital assistants need to understand different languages, dialects and speech patterns. In an effort to improve its digital assistant, Apple recently launched a study to collect speech data and feedback with the help of an app called Siri Speech Study.
“The Siri Speech Study app allows participants to send certain data to Apple for product improvement, as detailed in the informed consent form,” the company says in a listing spotted by TechCrunch. The software is available in the US, Canada, Germany, France, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand and Taiwan. According to data from analytics firm Sensor Tower, Apple uploaded Siri Speech Study to the App Store on August 9th, and recently updated the software on August 18th.
Apple isn’t being exactly secretive about the app, but nor is it advertising its existence either. You can’t find the software by searching for it, nor is it listed as one of the apps published by Apple. Similarly, you can’t join the study simply by installing the software on your phone; you need an invite from Apple to participate. We've reached out to Apple for more information on the app.
Notably, the app allows those involved to choose what Siri requests they send to the company. That's an important point. In 2019, The Guardian published a report that detailed an Apple program where third-party contractors listened to anonymized Siri recordings to analyze the assistant’s responses. A whistleblower told the outlet there had been “countless instances” where graders listened to private conversations, including some that involved criminal dealings and sexual encounters. Apple subsequently moved the program in-house, and switched to opt-in transcripts.
Ahead of the show's Apple TV+ premiere on September 24th, Apple has offered another look at its latest sci-fi saga, Foundation. The latest trailer doesn't reveal too much about the story, but it has some impressive visuals.
The clip features a elevator that, according to showrunner David S. Goyer, stretches around 26 miles into space. There's also a floating visualization of a supercomputer that takes design cues from a Möbius strip. Goyer told IGN that he challenged his production team to find a look that didn't remind viewers of Star Wars or Star Trek, perhaps the two biggest linchpins of science fiction. In any case, it's clear Apple hasn't skimped on the budget.
The show seems to be much more about humanity more than eye-popping visual effects, though. Based on a series of Isaac Asimov novels, Foundation centers around a group of exiles who try to protect the future of civilization after leader Dr. Hari Seldon (Jared Harris) uses data to predict the fall of the Galactic Empire. What's left of the Empire isn't too thrilled about that, and it tries to suppress Seldon's group.
The story plays out over the course of a millennium. The first season will run for 10 episodes, with the first two episodes dropping at the same time and the remainder hitting Apple TV+ on a weekly basis.
Apple TV+ has more sci-fi projects on the way. Invasion, oddly enough, is a series about an alien invasion. It debuts on October 22nd. A couple of weeks later, on November 5th, Apple will release Finch, a movie starring Tom Hanks as an inventor who hits the road with his dog and a robot. A third season of For All Mankind is also in the works.
Am I a weirdo for liking in-person meetings? Sure, they can go on too long, be scheduled far too often and distract from your core work. But even before the pandemic made them an exotic memory, I always loved the energy of being in a room with other people, finding the same creative wavelength, working towards a common goal. There's no video chat app that can replicate that. So, what about VR?
We've already seen companies like Spatial take a stab at virtual meetings, where you can chat with others, inspect objects and even explore 3D environments from the comfort your home with a VR headset. Now Facebook's Oculus is entering the fray with Horizon Workrooms, an ambitious attempt to capture the best aspects of in-person meetings for Oculus Quest 2 users.
To be clear, Workrooms isn'tFacebook Horizon, its long-awaited multiplayer VR playground. But it is part of the company's overall vision for the Horizon universe, one entirely devoted to collaborating in meeting rooms and classrooms. And despite being so focused, it's still a showpiece for Facebook's VR ambitions, tapping into the company's expressive avatars, spatial sound, hand tracking and mixed-reality capabilities. You'll even be able to stream your PC desktop in VR to take notes or goof off during meetings (just like real life!).
After spending an hour in a Horizon Workrooms demo, it's clear that Facebook still has plenty of work left to do. There were a few connection issues, avatar glitches and at one point I got booted out entirely. But when it was running smoothly, it was the closest I've felt to being in an live meeting since March of last year.
But let me start from the beginning. After creating a Workrooms account, I installed the PC companion app and the Workrooms Quest 2 app. Once I booted it up in VR, I was surprised that it recommended putting my controllers down and enabling the Quest 2's hand-tracking. Outside of demos for that feature, I can't think of any Oculus apps that have done the same. After that, I customized a goofy avatar — an idealized version of myself with purple hair and no beer belly — and mapped out the edge of my desk so Workrooms can accurately place me in front of virtual tables.
Facebook
As soon as I hopped into my Horizon Workrooms demo, it was instantly clear why Oculus recommended hand-tracking. I waved to a PR rep, and as I struggled to unmute myself, I was able to throw a thumbs up to confirm I was hearing her. I shouted hello to CNET's Scott Stein, who was sitting a few seats away, and his audio sounded appropriately far off. We all spent way too much time staring at our hands and testing the limits of the Quest 2's finger tracking capabilities (for the record, rolling your hands over each other like a wannabe raver can easily scramble things).
Even though I was in a swanky virtual room, with a stylized deer head wearing VR goggles on the wall, and ceiling-tall windows overlooking expansive lake and mountain rage somewhere in the Pacific Northwest, sitting desk-side with others felt vaguely normal. We made small talk about our families and our vastly different locations (including folks in California, New Jersey, London and myself in Atlanta). I could see who was working on Macs and PCs, based on the virtual accessories in front of them. And along the wall there were also video feeds from other Facebook reps calling in from their PCs, which reminded me of the enormous video conferencing screens in many meeting rooms.
To see my keyboard and mouse, I hit a button to enable pass-through mode, which projected grey-scale footage of my actual desk inside of Workrooms' VR environment. It wasn't crystal clear, but it was enough to touch-type notes in Evernote by streaming my PC desktop. If you're running an Apple Magic Keyboard or a specific Logitech model, you'll also be able to see your keyboard in VR, so you won't have to deal with the pass-through video.
Andrew Bosworth, Facebook's head of VR and AR, said during the demo that he believes there's "something missing" with video calling, and that there's a strong pull towards VR collaboration apps as a solution. Of course, that's exactly what you'd expect Facebook's VR lead to say. But he has a point.
Video calls are a fantastic way for seeing people and maintaining social connections. But when it comes to getting work done, they can get old fast. Everyone's audio comes in from one channel; it's hard to make eye contact in large group chats; and the entire session just lives on your computer or phone screen. There's no sense of actually being in a space with others. Bosworth says that Facebook has been using Workrooms internally for about six months, and he's noticed some clear benefits. In particular, he can remember specific meetings better thanks to the immersion of sitting beside people in VR with realistic spatial audio.
Facebook
Of course, virtual reality can also make meetings awkward in entirely new ways. I quickly learned that I couldn't look closely at someone's avatar if they were sitting nearby, because it actually felt like I was staring at them. I couldn't reach for a cup of water on my real-world desk, because it was sitting in front of my neighbor's virtual space. I also had to be careful about where I placed my hands, because the Quest 2's hand tracking could make things look... suspect, if they're under your desk.
All of that awkwardness culminated when Mark Zuckerberg crashed our demo and sat in the virtual chair beside me. He sketched out his overall vision for Horizon as a stepping stone for his metaverse ambitions. But as he was speaking, I was also trying hard to keep my virtual cool: Don't stare! Don't be weird with your hands! Pay attention and be respectful! I thought I was doing pretty well in the heat of the moment, but a recording of our session looked like I was performing some sort of interpretive dance beside the world's fifth richest man. (Thankfully, that footage isn't meant for public consumption.)
Zuckerberg only stopped by for a few minutes, but the fact he made an appearance at all is telling. Workrooms isn't some side project: It's a significant component of what he wants Facebook to become. You can see that in the app's more ambitious features, like a whiteboard that can grow as long as you'd like. You can sketch out thoughts by holding your Oculus controller straight up, so that you can use the end like a massive pen. And if you want to stretch your legs, you can assign a blank wall in your room to serve as your life-sized whiteboard. You can also change the size and layout of your workspace at will, allowing you to move from a circular conference table to something that resembles a classroom.
Facebook
Perhaps because Zuckerberg wants Workrooms to be a success, the company is also making it more accessible to people who don't want Facebook accounts. You can join a session via video chat by creating a Workrooms account, which is separate from Oculus and Facebook logins. If you want to enjoy the experience in VR, though, you'll need a Facebook account to use the Quest 2. Maybe letting people peek at the 2D Workrooms experience could encourage them to go virtual.
The company is also being up-front about security and privacy, saying that it won't use conversations or materials from Workrooms sessions to inform Facebook ads. You'll also be able to report individuals and entire groups if they're harassing you or violating community standards. That was a major concern when I demoed Facebook Horizons last year; the idea of a VR playground sounds great, but how do you make it safe for everyone?
If anything, Horizon Workrooms tells us that Zuckerberg's metaverse ambitions are more than just marketing fluff. He paid $2 billion for Oculus, after all, and Facebook has continually invested in VR development and content. You don't spend that sort of money if you don't have a vision for the future.
When he stopped by our demo, Zuckerberg told us he used to scribble code in his notebook during middle school. As soon as he got home, he would type it up with the hopes of building an immersive world to hang out with friends. Workrooms isn't the perfect VR collaboration solution yet, but it could be the start of what the younger Zuckerberg envisioned. After all, the metaverse won't be built in a day.
As part of its ongoing data breach investigation, T-Mobile has confirmed the enormity of the stolen information. Roughly 47.8 million current and former or prospective customers have been affected by the cyberattack on its systems, the carrier confirmed on Wednesday. Of that number, about 7.8 million are current T-Mobile postpaid accounts and the rest are prior or potential users who had applied for credit, the company added in a press release.
Worryingly, the data includes some personal information including the first and last names, date of birth, SSN, and driver’s license/ID information for a "subset of customers." So far, T-Mobile said it does not have any indication that the stolen files contain phone numbers, account numbers, passwords or financial information.
What's more, the company said about 850,000 active T-Mobile prepaid customers also had their names, phone numbers and account PINs exposed. The affected users do not include Metro by T-Mobile, former Sprint prepaid, or Boost users and T-Mobile said it has reset the PINs on these accounts. In addition, it claimed that "some additional information" from inactive prepaid accounts was accessed through prepaid billing files.
The findings from the carrier's preliminary analysis come just days after it was notified of a data breach. Initially, it was reported that a member of an underground forum claimed to have obtained the data for over 100 million T-Mobile customers. The culprit was reportedly selling information of about 30 million T-Mobile customers for about $270,000 in Bitcoin.
As part of its compensation and mitigation efforts, T-Mobile is offering affected customers two years of McAfee’s ID Theft Protection Service; recommending all postpaid users change their PIN; and setting up an online resource page. T-Mobile said that it began coordination with law enforcement on Tuesday as its investigation into the data breach — the third such attack it has suffered in the past two years — continues.
Google has started a new promotion to entice YouTube Premium users to check out its Stadia Pro subscription. Provided you’re new to the paid service, you can now get a three-month trial to see if cloud gaming is your thing.
First spotted by 9to5Google, the promotion is only available to current YouTube Premium subscribers in the US, Canada, France, Germany, Hungary, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK. You can claim the three-month trial until January 31st, 2022, at which point you have until February 14th to redeem the offer. According to the fine print on Google’s website, the promotion is also available to those who currently have a trial to YouTube Premium.
As a Stadia Pro subscriber, you get access to several free titles every month. You can also purchase select games and downloadable content at a discount. But the reason most people get Stadia Pro is to stream the platform’s catalog of games at a 4K resolution with HDR and 5.1 surround sound.
Apple has renewed Carpool Karaoke for a fifth season and plans to move the series over to its TV+ service, according to Deadline. The show predates the streaming platform by several years and has been available through Apple Music and the TV app since the company first premiered the project back in 2017.
Both the series and The Late Late Showwith James Corden skit it’s based on have been on hiatus since the start of the pandemic. Once season five gets underway, you’ll find the previous four seasons on Apple TV+ as well. The change should make it easier to find the series since it will live alongside the company’s other original programming.
