Nintendo has a solution if your Switch is looking a little drab, or if you need an extra controller pair for a Mario Kart session. The company is releasing Joy-Con controllers in two pastel color combos, purple/green and pink/yellow, on June 30th. Both sell for the same $80 as other shades and deliver the same combination of motion control and "HD rumble" as before.
Additional controllers are must-haves for games with local multiplayer, such as Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. However, a Joy-Con set in particular is useful for any titles with motion controls (such as Arms) or four-person multiplayer (like Mario Kart 8 Deluxe). It's often a good idea to get Joy-Cons in different colors so that there's no ambiguity as to which units are yours.
This isn't going to address the potential for Joy-Con drift, and you may want a Pro Controller if you prefer a conventional gamepad. There are some good third-party alternatives, too. Still, this adds some welcome variety. You now have your pick of six color pairings, most of which weren't available when the Switch launched. It's just a question of whether or not you're willing to invest more into the Switch six years after its debut.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/nintendo-kicks-off-the-summer-with-pastel-hued-joy-con-controllers-141002133.html?src=rss
This is a good moment to buy into a smart speaker ecosystem. Sonos is holding a Father's Day sale that cuts up to 25 percent off the price of recent speakers and soundbars. Most notably, the high-end Arc soundbar is down to $719, or nearly $180 off. That could make it particularly appealing if you want to roll the savings into another smart speaker. The sale ends June 18th, or while supplies last.
The sale also drops the prices of the portable Move speaker to $299, and the mid-tier Beam soundbar to $399 — both $100 discounts. The Roam, meanwhile, is down to $134 (about $45 off). The savings also stack up with bundles, some of which include Sonos' new Era 100 and Era 300 speakers.
The Arc is one of our top premium soundbar picks for good reason. It delivers exceptional sound quality, including immersive Dolby Atmos audio, and its integration with the Sonos ecosystem makes it ideal if you want multiroom audio or a smart speaker with access to a wide range of services. The only real catch is that expansion can quickly get expensive, especially if you want spatial audio using the Era 300.
The Roam, meanwhile, is our favorite portable speaker. It sounds superb for the money, and it's very portable while offering the benefits of Sonos' system. It's not Sonos' loudest portable option (that's the Move), and the 10-hour battery life isn't stellar compared to some of the competition. At this price, though, it's a good pick for a picnic or a small backyard gathering.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/sonos-speakers-and-soundbars-are-up-to-25-percent-off-in-rare-sale-133001802.html?src=rss
There's no better way to make a dumb TV smart than Chromecast with Google TV, thanks to the breadth of streaming options, Dolby Vision support and relative affordability. Now, you can grab one for even less at Amazon thanks to a new sale. The 4K version is available for just $40 (20 percent off), tied for the lowest price we've ever seen. And if HD resolution is fine, the Chromecast with Google TV (HD) is just $20, for a savings of 33 percent — also back down to an all-time low.
The Chromecast with Google TV isn't as small as some streaming sticks, but it's still a nice compact (and attractive) solution, and the cable makes it easy to plug into most TVs or projectors. It also comes with a nice remote control that's comfortable in hand offers controls that are pleasant to use.
The design, along with the solid feature set helped the 4K version earn an 86 score in our Engadget review and top pick in this year's streaming devices buyer's guide. For compatible TVs, it offers support for Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos, along with regular HDR10. It also offers excellent Google Assistant integration that makes voice commands a breeze. And while past Chromecast devices could be laggy, both the 4K and HD versions offer much improved performance.
The main downside is the lack of Apple TV, but Chromecast with Google TV works just fine with Apple devices. As mentioned, both the 4K and HD devices are down to all-time lows ($40 and $20 respectively), so it's best to act soon if you're interested in buying one.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-4k-chromecast-with-google-tv-is-cheaper-than-ever-at-amazon-125601913.html?src=rss
It’s only a few days until the beginning of Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference next week, and we’re eager to see what the iPhone maker is cooking up. This week, Cherlynn and Devindra are joined by Engadget Senior Writer Sam Rutherford to dive into all of the Apple rumors: That fabled mixed reality headset, a potential 15-inch MacBook Air and more! But really, all eyes are on the headset. Is Apple setting itself up for failure, or for a future where smart glasses are actually a thing? Also, we discuss the late-breaking news about Meta’s Quest 3 headset, which sounds like it will offer better VR and color mixed reality support for $500.
Listen below or subscribe on your podcast app of choice. If you've got suggestions or topics you'd like covered on the show, be sure to email us or drop a note in the comments! And be sure to check out our other podcasts, the Morning After and Engadget News!
Apple’s AR Headset, iOS 17, MacOS 14 and everything else we expect to see at WWDC 2023 – 1:16
Meta Quest 3 details drop ahead of Apple’s developer conference next week – 33:48
Oppo debuts MR Glass Developer Edition – 37:41
AI leaders issue dire warning on its risks, neglecting their own responsibility in its development – 41:46
Chatbot rolled out by National Eating Disorders Association taken offline after giving bad advice – 45:37
Working on – 52:17
Listener mailbag – 56:41
Pop culture picks – 58:39
Livestream
Credits Hosts: Cherlynn Low and Devindra Hardawar Guest: Sam Rutherford Producer: Ben Ellman Music: Dale North and Terrence O'Brien Livestream producers: Julio Barrientos Graphic artist: Luke Brooks and Joel Chokkattu
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/engadget-podcast-apple-wwdc-2023-preview-123020712.html?src=rss
Boeing's Starliner was supposed to fly its first crewed mission to the International Space Station (ISS) on July 21st, but a couple of technical issues has kept the company from pushing through with its plan. Together with NASA, the aerospace corporation has announced that it's delaying the CST-100 Starliner spacecraft's Crew Flight Test date yet again to address the risks presented by two new problems Boeing engineers have detected.
The first issue lies with the spacecraft's parachute system. Boeing designed the Starliner capsule to float back down to Earth with the help of three parachutes. According to The New York Times, the company discovered that parts of the lines connecting the system to the capsule don't have the ability to tolerate the spacecraft's load in case only two of the three parachutes are deployed correctly. Since the capsule will be carrying human passengers back to our planet, the company has to look at every aspect of its spacecraft to ensure their safety as much as possible. Boeing expects to do another parachute testing before it schedules another launch attempt.
In addition to its parachute problem, Boeing is also reassessing the use of a certain tape adhesive to wrap hundreds of feet of wiring. Apparently, the tape could be flammable, so engineers are looking to use another kind of wrapping for areas of the spacecraft with the greatest fire risk.
The Crew Flight Test is the last hurdle the company has to overcome to regularly start ferrying astronauts to the ISS. NASA chose Boeing as one of its commercial crew partners along with SpaceX, but it has fallen behind its peer over the years. The Starliner has completed uncrewed flights in the past as part of the tests it has to go through for crewed missions. But SpaceX already has 10 crewed flights under its belt, with the first one taking place way back in 2020. In addition to taking astronauts to the ISS and bringing human spaceflight back to American soil since the last space shuttle launch in 2011, SpaceX has also flown civilians to space.
That said, NASA and Boeing remain optimistic about Starliner's future. In a statement, NASA Commercial Crew Program manager Steve Stich said:
"Crew safety remains the highest priority for NASA and its industry providers, and emerging issues are not uncommon in human spaceflight especially during development. If you look back two months ago at the work we had ahead of us, it’s almost all complete. The combined team is resilient and resolute in their goal of flying crew on Starliner as soon as it is safe to do so. If a schedule adjustment needs to be made in the future, then we will certainly do that as we have done before. We will only fly when we are ready."
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/boeing-starliners-first-crewed-iss-flight-delayed-due-to-technical-issues-114023064.html?src=rss
Mark Zuckerberg has revealed the Meta Quest 3, the company's long-rumored, next-gen virtual reality headset, just a few days before Apple's WWDC, where it’s expected to debut its own first, mixed reality headset. As with the Quest Pro, the Quest 3 supports mixed reality and offers full-color passthrough. This enables users to see a color version of the physical space around them, and the headset will apparently be able to add augmented reality elements into it.
Zuckerberg says it will offer twice the graphical power of the Quest 2, and it’s 40 percent thinner than its predecessor. Meta has redesigned the controllers, too, nixing the outer tracking rings and adding TruTouch haptic feedback. The headset will start at $500 for 128GB of storage, and it'll be available this fall in all countries the Quest 2 is available. Expect to hear more details at its Connect conference on September 27th.
If you already own a Quest headset, there’s good news too: An upcoming software update will boost the performance of the Quest 2 and Quest Pro. Meta says the CPU of each headset will get a performance increase of up to 26 percent, with a GPU boost of up to 19 percent on Quest 2 and 11 percent on Quest Pro. Dynamic Resolution Scaling will be enabled on both headsets as well, to help stabilize frame rates.
– Mat Smith
The Morning After isn’t just a newsletter – it’s also a daily podcast. Get our daily audio briefings, Monday through Friday, by subscribing right here.
According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple is testing a couple of high-end Macs powered by its new M2 Max processor and the M2 Ultra chip that the company has yet to announce. Apple debuted the M2 Max on its 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro laptops, as well as its Mac mini, earlier this year. The desktop with the chip will reportedly have eight high-performance cores, four efficiency cores and 30 graphics cores. It will also have a heady 96 GB of RAM. Meanwhile, the unannounced M2 Ultra chip is supposed to be the more powerful of the two, with twice as many processing cores. Specifically, the chip is expected to have 16 high-performance, eight efficiency and 60 graphics cores, though Bloomberg reports the company will offer a more powerful version with 76 graphics cores.
Fiat already has its own cute EV in the 500 series, but it has now gone even tinier in its latest urban mobility push. The Topolino is essentially a rebadged Citroen Ami, sharing the Ami's drivetrain (both Citroen and Fiat are under the Stellantis umbrella) and looks nigh-on identical, apart from a few tweaks. It has a 5.5kWh battery that delivers a 47-mile range, and it'll hit a top speed of 28MPH. The Topolino is technically a "quadricycle" – not a car – so you can buzz around cities in it without needing a driver's license.
Motorola returns to the foldables. Headlining the 2023 Razr family is the Razr+ (Razr 40 Ultra in Europe), a flagship-level model whose centerpiece is a comparatively huge 3.6-inch, 1,056 x 1,066 external display running at up to 144Hz. That’s substantially bigger than other flip-phones.
Like Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip, the device opens at different angles for hands-free recording and video viewing. A redesigned hinge also makes this the thinnest foldable phone on the market when closed, Motorola claims. The company will sell the Razr+ with 256GB of storage on June 23rd through its website on AT&T, Google Fi, T-Mobile, Optimum Mobile and Spectrum Mobile for $1,000, or $41.67 per month in a two-year plan. That's well below the price of past US models. We’ve had a play with the Razr+ and the rest of Motorola’s foldable family.
It can even create 3D assets from videos taken by smartphones.
NVIDIA has introduced a new AI model called Neuralangelo, which can create 3D replicas of objects from 2D videos, whether they're classic sculptures or run-of-the-mill trucks and buildings. Neuralangelo works by selecting several frames showing the subject from different angles in a 2D video, so it can get a clear picture of its depth, size and shape. It then creates a rough 3D representation of the object before optimizing it to mimic the details of the real thing. NVIDIA said it can even create large-scale vistas from drone footage.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-morning-after-meta-announces-its-new-mixed-reality-headset-the-quest-3-111524859.html?src=rss
Last year, Facebook parent Meta said it may stop Canadians from sharing news content in response to the country's proposed Online Sharing Act. Now, the company has announced that it will begin tests on Facebook and Instagram that "limit some users and publishers from viewing or sharing some news content in Canada," it wrote in a blog post. The testing will take place over several weeks and the "small percentage" of users affected will be notified if they try to share news content.
"As we have repeatedly shared, the Online News Act is fundamentally flawed legislation that ignores the realities of how our platforms work, the preferences of the people who use them, and the value we provide news publishers," the company wrote.
The proposed law, also known as Bill C-18, was introduced by the ruling Liberal government earlier this year. Modeled after a similar Australian law, it aims to force internet platforms like Facebook into revenue-sharing partnerships with local news organizations. It came about, in part, because of Facebook and Google's dominance of the online advertising market — with both companies combined taking 80 percent of revenue.
Last year, Meta said it was trying to be "transparent about the possibility that we may be forced to consider whether we continue to allow the sharing of news content in Canada." The company made the threat after a government panel failed to invite Meta to a meeting about the legislation. Google also temporarily blocked some Canadian users from seeing news content.
In response, Canadian Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez called the tests "unacceptable," Reuters reported. "When a big tech company... tells us, 'If you don't do this or that, then I'm pulling the plug' — that's a threat. I've never done anything because I was afraid of a threat," he told Reuters.
Facebook, Google and others eventually agreed to the Australian law, and now pay publishers to post news links with snippets. Before that happened, though, Facebook followed through on its threat to block users from sharing news links in the nation. It later reversed the ban following further discussions, after the government made amendments addressing Facebook's concerns about the value of its platform to publishers.
For now, the test will only affect a small number of users and for a limited time. If it follows the same playbook it used in Australia though, Meta may block news sharing for all users in Canada, possibly as a way to force the government and publishers to the bargaining table.
"As the Minister of Canadian Heritage has said, how we choose to comply with the legislation is a business decision we must make, and we have made our choice," the company wrote. "While these product tests are temporary, we intend to end the availability of news content in Canada permanently following the passage of Bill C-18."
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/meta-test-will-limit-news-posts-for-facebook-and-instagram-users-in-canada-104026273.html?src=rss
If you've been debating whether to pick up some Apple AirTags, now might be the time finally to go for it. The AirTag 4-pack currently has a 20 percent discount, dropping from $100 to $80. Not only does this bring the pack close to its all-time-lowest price, but it makes each AirTag only $20 — $8 less than buying one on its own. So, in a sense, it's a buy three get the fourth free sale, with four extra dollars saved for a coffee.
AirTags pair to your iPhone or iPad in one tap with their live location available in the Find My app alongside your friends and other devices. Its small frame — about an inch and a quarter in length and width — is water and dust resistant with an included battery that requires replacing about once a year. You can get detailed instructions to reach your AirTag on newer iPhone models thanks to Ultra Wideband technology or put it in "Lost Mode" to immediately receive notifications if it pings off another person's device.
You can slip your AirTag into your wallet or purse as is or pick up a case to connect it to your keys or pet's collar. Either way, it's one of the better Bluetooth trackers on the market, especially at such a low price.
Last year, Rocket Lab announced that it would embark on an ambitious mission to send a small probe to Venus to hunt for organic molecules in its atmosphere. The launch was supposed to happen in May 2023, but now Rocket Lab has confirmed that it's "not imminent," TechCrunch has reported. While company didn't provide a new date, a research paper published in July 2022 states that a "backup launch window is available in January 2025."
News of the mission flew under the radar, as it were, but it's rather ambitious. Rocket Lab plans to use its Electron booster and Photon spacecraft, sending a small probe into Venus's cloud layer about 30-37 miles up, where temperatures are Earth-like. (Thanks to the planet's greenhouse effect, temperatures on the surface are greater than 900 degrees F and pressure more than 75 Earth atmospheres.)
Rocket Lab
Once there, the tiny 40 centimeter diameter probe will search for organic molecules or other clues that the atmosphere could support life. Venus came into the news back in 2020 after researchers claimed to spot signs of phosphine, a chemical that's typically produced by living organisms. While controversial, the findings sparked a new interest in the Venus atmosphere as a possible source for life, and Rocket Lab's mission is centered around just that.
At the same time, it's a way for the company to show off its Photon spacecraft designed to go beyond Earth orbit to the Moon and Mars. Last year, Rocket Lab successfully launched Photon on NASA's CAPSTONE mission, designed to verify the orbital stability of the planned Lunar Gateway space station. The lunar satellite spent nearly six months in orbit and flew within 1,000 miles of the Moon's North Pole in a so-called near-rectilinear halo orbit.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/rocket-lab-delays-its-venus-atmospheric-probe-mission-090847239.html?src=rss
Volkswagen has finally unveiled the version of the ID.Buzz electric van that's destined for North America, and there's more to it than you might think. The three-row design with two extra seats is clearly the main draw for roadtrippers and growing families, but this isn't just a stretched version of the modern Microbus. It boasts a larger 91kWh battery (versus 82kWh for the two-row), a more powerful 282HP motor for the rear-wheel drive trim (versus 201HP) and a higher 99MPH top speed (versus 90MPH). While there are no range estimates yet, there will also be an optional all-wheel drive configuration with a 330HP dual-motor system.
The interior tech hasn't changed much from the two-row model, although that's not necessarily a bad thing. You'll still face a 5.3-inch digital instrument cluster and a 12.9-inch infotainment display. The larger ID.Buzz now has the easier-to-use interface from the ID.7, though, and you'll find a total of eight USB-C ports — helpful when friends in the back want to charge their phones. The three-row EV also comes standard with Level 2 driver assistance (including lane centering), and the customizable cabin lighting doubles as a status indicator for everything from charging levels to navigation directions.
Volkswagen
The North American van also touts the largest panoramic roof of any car in the VW group at 67.4 inches long, and uses electrochromic glass to turn opaque when it's not needed. You'll also find a 110V outlet under the passenger seat area, and a 12V port in the cargo space can charge more of your gear. A nine-speaker audio system is standard, but you can upgrade to a 14-speaker Harman Kardon unit.
VW still hasn't outlined pricing for the North American ID.Buzz ahead of its 2024 debut. Don't expect it to be the people's van like the Microbus was, however. The closest comparable two-row model, the Buzz Style, sells for £63,715 (about $79,240) in the UK with tax included. This is for nostalgic drivers who want an eco-friendly revival of a classic ride, and well-heeled EV fans who want more capacity than the ID.4 crossover can provide.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/vw-unveils-the-larger-idbuzz-electric-van-headed-to-north-america-070132379.html?src=rss
