Apple Vision Pro headset production is reportedly being cut, sales are reportedly “way down.” But but but wait: Wasn’t the Vision Pro meant to change the world of VR/AR, ushering in an era of spatial computing? Is the dream over?

Hah, no. As Sam Rutherford laid out just before the weekend, while reports and rumors can’t nail exact numbers, based on financial figures from Apple’s last earnings, Vision Pro sales likely equate to around one percent of the company’s revenue. It’s almost as if early Vision Pro sales numbers don’t matter. Remember: The first iPhone wasn’t great either.

— Mat Smith

The biggest stories you might have missed

Apple’s OLED iPad Pro may pack an M4 chip and AI tricks

Dell XPS 13 and XPS 14 review

Playing Fire Emblem Engage on easy mode got me back into gaming

Budget doorbell camera manufacturer fixes security issues that left users vulnerable to spying

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Drake deletes his AI-generated Tupac track after legal threat

He deepfakes Shakur and Snoop Dogg’s voices to diss Kendrick Lamar.

Drake has deleted an X post with his track “Taylor Made Freestyle,” which used an AI-generated recreation of Tupac Shakur’s voice to needle Kendrick Lamar. The takedown came after an attorney representing the late hip-hop legend’s estate threatened to sue the Canadian rapper for his “unauthorized” use of Tupac’s voice. Drake used Snoop Dogg’s voice too, but… he’s still alive.

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Aaron Sorkin is working on a Social Network sequel focused on January 6

He blames Facebook for the Capitol attack.

Sony Pictures

Aaron Sorkin has announced he’s writing a follow-up script to The Social Network, once again about Facebook / Meta but with a fun, miserable focus on the January 6 insurrection attempt. Sorkin is cagey on the actual details of the new script but pretty much lays the blame for the attack at Meta’s feet. Sorkin hasn’t announced a partnership with any studio to make the film, but my big question: Who’s going to play Trump?

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Nikon’s Z8 is a phenomenal mirrorless camera for the price

A cheaper alternative to Sony’s A1.

Engadget

Nikon is arguably the world’s most famous camera brand, but with the decline of DSLRs, it has struggled. In 2022, it released the Z9, a flagship mirrorless camera that could finally hold its own against rivals, but the $5,500 price tag put it out of reach for most. Now, we’re testing the Z8, which has the same sensor and specs for $1,700. The Z8 may also be better than Sony’s A1 for many hybrid shooters, particularly for video. But don’t ask me: Check out Steve Dent’s full test-shoot right here.

The popular Nintendo emulator, Delta, that arrived on the App Store for iPhone to much fanfare a few weeks ago is now getting a version that’s optimized for the iPad. Developer Riley Testut shared an update on Threads this weekend revealing that an iPad app has been in the works, and is now being prioritized since Apple changed its tune on game emulators. The iPad app is “near completion,” and subscribers to Testut’s Patreon can get it now through the AltStore, an alternative marketplace the developer created a few years back for sideloading iOS and iPadOS apps. Otherwise, you can wait a little while for it to come with Delta’s next big update, version 1.6.

In the post, Testut also shared a little preview of how it'll run on iPad. Delta was released as the successor to Testut’s Game Boy Advance emulator, GBA4iOS, and supports a slew of other Nintendo systems, including NES, SNES, N64, and DS. It shouldn’t be long before the iPad version is finished — Testut wrote that the team just needs to “finish up controller skins [and] fix some last bugs.” They’re also working on device-to-device multiplayer, Testut wrote (but that’s still a couple of items down on the checklist). And, as an added treat, he said a SEGA Genesis emulator is on the way too. That’s still in beta, but will become available “soon-ish.”

Apple’s “Let Loose” iPad event is just over a week away, and the rumors in the leadup are starting to get interesting. According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, the much-anticipated OLED iPad Pro may arrive not with the new M3 chip as we’ve all been expecting, but the next-gen M4. In the Power On newsletter on Sunday, Gurman wrote that he’s “hearing there is a strong possibility” that this will be the case. And, he says it’ll herald Apple’s official entry into AI.

“I believe Apple will position the tablet as its first truly AI-powered device — and that it will tout each new product from then on as an AI device,” Gurman wrote. Doing it this way for the May 7 event would set the stage for Apple to go all-in on AI at its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June. This all builds on Gurman’s previous reports that Apple has been in talks with OpenAI and Google to potentially tap their AI tech for new features with iOS 18.

The “Let Loose” product showcase is also expected to bring updates to the iPad Air and iPad accessories like the Magic Keyboard and Apple Pencil. According to Gurman, the upcoming Apple Pencil may introduce haptic feedback.

Eken Group has reportedly issued a firmware update to resolve major security issues with its cheap doorbell cameras that were uncovered by a Consumer Reports investigation earlier this year. The cameras in question pair with the Aiwit app and are sold under a slew of brand names, including Eken, Tuck, Fishbot, Rakeblue, Andoe, Gemee and Luckwolf. During its tests, the watchdog found that the unencrypted cameras could expose sensitive information like home IP addresses and Wi-Fi networks, and allow outside parties to access images from a camera’s feed using its serial number. Now, Consumer Reports says the issues have been fixed — just make sure you update your devices.

Devices from those brands should now reflect a firmware version of 2.4.1 or higher, which would indicate they’ve received the update. Consumer Reports says its own samples got the update automatically, but it can’t hurt to double check in your settings considering the risks (that is, if you haven’t tossed the cameras out already). The publication says it’s confirmed that the update fixes the security problems. Eken also told Consumer Reports that the two doorbell cams it had rated with the “Don’t Buy” label — the Eken Smart Video Doorbell and Tuck Sharkpop Doorbell Camera — have been discontinued.

These doorbell cameras, which were sold on popular ecommerce platforms including Amazon, Walmart and Temu but since appear to have been pulled, also lacked the proper labeling required by the FCC. The company told Consumer Reports it will add these IDs to new products moving forward. Following its tests of the update, Consumer Reports has removed the warning labels from its scorecards.

Google filed a motion on Friday in a Virginia federal court asking for the Department of Justice’s antitrust lawsuit against it to be thrown away. The DOJ sued Google in January 2023, accusing the company of monopolizing digital advertising technologies through “anticompetitive and exclusionary conduct.” Per Bloomberg, Google is now seeking summary judgment to avoid the case going to trial in September as planned.

Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said at the time the lawsuit was first announced that Google “has used anticompetitive, exclusionary, and unlawful conduct to eliminate or severely diminish any threat to its dominance over digital advertising technologies.” The lawsuit alleges that Google controls digital advertising tools to such an extent that it “pockets on average more than 30 percent of the advertising dollars that flow through its digital advertising technology products,” according to a press release from the agency last year.

Google now argues that that the DOJ hasn’t shown that the company controls at least 70 percent of the market, which some previous cases have used as the threshold for qualifying as a monopoly, and that the agency “made up markets specifically for this case,” according to Bloomberg, excluding its major competitors like social media platforms. The company also claims the DOJ’s case goes “beyond the boundaries of antitrust law,” Reuters reports.

Something is up with Apple ID this weekend. As reported by 9to5Mac, Apple users started complaining online last night that they’d been logged out of their Apple IDs on all of their devices without explanation. Upon trying to log back in, some say they were locked out of their accounts despite entering the correct details, and had to reset their passwords. Engadget has reached out to Apple for more information.

Apple hasn’t said anything publicly about what’s going on, and its System Status page makes no mention of problems with Apple ID or any other systems in the last 24 hours. In a Mastodon post spotted by The Verge, one person said Apple support told them only that “sometimes random security improvements are added to your account.” It’s unclear how many users have been affected, though people have piled onto social media threads about the issue to say they’ve experienced it too. According to 9to5Mac, some of the publication’s own team have run into the problem.

While the issue seemed to have heightened on Friday night, there have been sporadic reports of similar problems in the recent past. Software developer Michael Tsai published a blog post about it the latest incident and referenced a time just last fall when the same thing happened.

I allowed myself to play Fire Emblem Engage on the easiest possible mode, and it finally got me back into gaming. The first time I picked up a Fire Emblem game back in 2010, a friend told me that the only correct way to play is in Classic mode with permanent death. For some reason, I took that to heart, and I played each subsequent game ready to restart my console during every skirmish and story battle so that I didn’t lose any of my friends. Due to unexpected upheavals in my personal life over the past few years, I mostly stopped gaming, even though I kept buying new titles I'd typically play. That included Persona 5: Royal, which I have yet to even touch, and Fire Emblem Engage, which sat sealed in my cabinet for over a year.

I wanted to play Engage since I got my pre-ordered copy, but the mere thought of having to find the best class for all my units and having to grind by fighting one skirmish after another so that they can maximize their stats and not get killed in the battlefield was overwhelming. It felt like a chore and not at all appealing for someone who's trying to get back into gaming. One day, though, I decided to pop the cartridge into my Nintendo Switch and see if I could get anywhere. Upon being asked to choose a difficulty, I squashed the persistent voice in my head that kept saying: "If you're not playing with permadeath, are you even playing Fire Emblem?" As quickly as I could, I chose Normal difficulty, the easiest option available, and Casual mode that merely pulls units from a fight instead of killing them completely after they get defeated in battle. 

I had no idea whether I'd end up finishing the game when I started, but I did — and I had tons of fun. The biggest reason why I was able to keep playing was because I didn't feel stressed like I did when I played Fates and Three Houses. I didn't have to plan out every single move on the battlefield, and I didn't have to look up other people's class choices for their units because a character that started as a swordsman might do better as a Wyvern Knight. I didn't have to keep notes like I usually do for strategy games. The only information I searched for online was the same-sex romance options for this installment's protagonist. It truly felt like I was playing to relax, which is something I've never said before in relation to a Fire Emblem game. 

In the grand scheme of things, having an internal conflict over a game's difficulty is really quite silly. But it's a reflection of how we tend to be harsher on ourselves than on other people, because I would never judge anybody else on how they want to play their games. Sure, winning battles and matches in more difficult modes will feel more rewarding, but not every gaming experience has to be a challenge. It's okay to play to decompress, to have some joy in your life and in my case, to get started after years of being in gaming limbo. Someday, I might pick up Engage again and play in Maddening difficulty, most likely in Casual mode now that I've broken free from the shackles of permadeath. That is, however, a long way off — for now, I want to get through the titles I missed over the past five years one by one. I've started with the newest one in my collection, Eiyuden Chronicle, which I'm absolutely excited to play as a long-time Suikoden fan. And, yes, I'm still taking it easy on myself by playing it in the least difficult mode possible. 

Apple has resumed conversations with OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT, to power some AI features coming to iOS 18, according to a new report in Bloomberg. Apple is also building its own large language models to power some iOS 18 features, but its talks with OpenAI are centered around a “chatbot/search component,” according to Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman. 

Apple is also reportedly in talks with Google to license Gemini, Google’s own AI-powered chatbot, for iOS 18. Bloomberg reports that those talks are still on, and things could still go either way because Apple hasn’t made a final decision on which company’s technology to use. It’s conceivable, Gurman says, that Apple could ultimately end up licensing AI tech from both companies or none of them.

So far, Apple has been notably quiet about its AI efforts even as the rest of Silicon Valley has descended into an AI arms race. But it has dropped enough hints to indicate that it’s cooking up something. When the company announced its earnings in February, CEO Tim Cook said that Apple is continuing to work and invest in artificial intelligence and is “excited to share the details of our ongoing work in that space later this year.” It claimed that the brand new M3 MacBook Air that it launched last month was the “world’s best consumer laptop for AI,” and will reportedly start releasing AI-centric laptops and desktops later this year. And earlier this week, Apple also released a handful of open-source large language models that are designed to run locally on devices rather than in the cloud.

It’s still unclear what Apple’s AI features in iPhones and other devices will look like. Generative AI is still notoriously unreliable and prone to making up answers. Recent AI-powered gadgets like the Humane Ai Pin released to disastrous reviews, while others like the Rabbit R1 have yet to prove themselves valuable.

We’ll find out more at WWDC on June 10.

According to a court document viewed by Engadget, the Federal Trade Commission accused Amazon of using Signal’s disappearing messages feature to conceal communications as part of its antitrust suit against the company. The FTC says the retailer continued to auto-delete its communications even after the agency notified it that it was under investigation and asked it to preserve them. Founder and former CEO Jeff Bezos and current CEO Andy Jassy are among the accused.

“For years, Amazon’s top executives, including founder and former CEO Jeff Bezos, discuss[ed] sensitive business matters, including antitrust, over the Signal encrypted-messaging app instead of email,” the FTC wrote in the full document, acquired by (Bezos-owned) The Washington Post. “These executives turned on Signal’s ‘disappearing message’ feature, which irrevocably destroys messages, even after Amazon was on notice that Plaintiffs were investigating its conduct.”

The FTC wants a federal judge to compel Amazon to provide documents related to its data handling. The government agency says the retailer didn’t disclose its Signal use until March 2022, ahead of a Wall Street Journal article highlighting the covert practice.

“Although the contents of deleted messages are impossible to recover, the app shows when a user turns the disappearing message feature on, off, or changes the timer for deletions, leaving breadcrumbs showing that Amazon executives’ deletions were widespread,” the document reads. “From the messages that were not deleted, it is apparent that Amazon executives used Signal to talk about competition-related business issues.”

The issue appears to be an increasingly common business practice in Silicon Valley. Last year, the DOJ accused Google of routinely destroying its internal chat histories, which it was required to preserve under federal law. In addition, before Elon Musk bought Twitter and changed its name to X, the company asked a judge to sanction the Tesla founder for using Signal’s auto-deletion to withhold messages sent through the app.

In addition to Bezos and Jassy, The Washington Post reports that the full document names General Counsel David Zapolsky, former CEO of Worldwide Consumer Jeff Wilke and former CEO of Worldwide Operations Dave Clark as participating in the practice.

Drake apparently learned it isn’t wise to mess with Tupac Shakur — even decades after his untimely death. Billboard first spotted that the Canadian hip-hop artist deleted the X (Twitter) post with his track “Taylor Made Freestyle,” which used an AI-generated recreation of Shakur’s voice to try to get under Kendrick Lamar’s skin.

The takedown came after an attorney representing the late hip-hop legend threatened to sue the Canadian rapper for his “unauthorized” use of Tupac’s voice if he didn’t remove it from social channels within 24 hours. However, the track was online for a week and — unsurprisingly — has been copiously reposted.

“The Estate is deeply dismayed and disappointed by your unauthorized use of Tupac’s voice and personality,” Howard King, the attorney representing Shakur’s estate, wrote earlier this week in a cease-and-desist letter acquired by Billboard. “Not only is the record a flagrant violation of Tupac’s publicity and the estate’s legal rights, it is also a blatant abuse of the legacy of one of the greatest hip-hop artists of all time. The Estate would never have given its approval for this use.”

2PAC.com

King implied that using Shakur’s voice to diss Lamar was an especially egregious show of disrespect. Lamar, a 17-time Grammy winner and Pulitzer recipient, has spoken frequently about his deep admiration for Tupac, and the Oakland rapper’s estate says the feelings are mutual. “The unauthorized, equally dismaying use of Tupac’s voice against Kendrick Lamar, a good friend to the Estate who has given nothing but respect to Tupac and his legacy publicly and privately, compounds the insult,” King wrote in a cease-and-desist letter.

Drake’s track also included an AI-generated clone of Snoop Dogg’s voice. The Doggystyle rapper and cannabis aficionado appeared surprised in a social post last week: “They did what? When? How? Are you sure?” He continued, “Why everybody calling my phone, blowing me up? What the fuck? What happened? What’s going on? I’m going back to bed. Good night.”

However, the one-time Doggy Fizzle Televizzle host has a history of poker-faced coyness. Last year, he took to Instagram to solemnly announce he was “giving up smoke,” leading to rampant speculation about why the stoner icon would quit his favorite pastime. Soon after, his announcement was revealed as a PR stunt for Solo Stove — which, marketing gimmicks aside, makes some terrific bonfire pits.