Google has tentatively settled with the alliance of attorneys general that filed a lawsuit in 2021 alleging the search giant abused its dominance on Android app distribution through the Google Play store. Officials claimed Google was leveraging “its monopoly power with Android to unlawfully maintain its monopoly,” saying that 90 percent of all app sales took place through Google Play. Bloomberg reports that the matter has been referred to a judge who, if happy, can confirm the settlement and cancel the pending courtroom battle. It’s a smart move on Google’s part as it has faced a number of antitrust lawsuits over its dominance and power in recent years, with outcomes including a €4.3 billion ($4.6 billion) fine and threats to break up its advertising business.

Not everyone is pleased about the latest deal, with Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney tweeting Epic isn’t included in the settlement. The games developer sued Google in 2020, alleging the latter had made deals with other big games publisher to box out rival app stores. Sweeney is also, as usual, grumbling about other stores asking a cut of each transaction to pay for the running costs of those stores.

Epic's trial against Google is set for November 6th, but Sweeney tweeted: "If Google is ending its payments monopoly without imposing a Google Tax on third party transactions, we'll settle and be Google's friend in their new era. But if the settlement merely pays off the other plaintiffs while leaving the Google Tax in place, we'll fight on. Consumers only benefit if antitrust enforcement not only opens up markets, but also restores price competition." The exact amount Google must pay and any necessary changes required have yet to be disclosed, but could be made public at an October 12th hearing.

With yet another self-own (intentional or otherwise), Google has revealed its upcoming Pixel 8 Pro again, putting it into a special pantheon of leaked phones that includes, well, every otherPixelmodel. This time, the leak comes via Google's own 360-degree simulator that lets you see the device from every angle, with little yellow dots showing different sensors and ports. It not only confirms features like a new temperature sensor and physical SIM slot, but also three of the available colors. 

The simulator (since shut down), was originally noticed by X user José Rubén, and others then posted their own images taken from the tool, as The Verge reported. It reveals blue, porcelain and black colors, along with a home screen that looks similar to the previous Pixel 7 Pro. It also shows a SIM card slot and confirms the temperature sensor we saw in an earlier leak.  

It doesn't list any specs, but we already have a pretty good idea about those thanks to (yes) past leaks. The Pixel 8 Pro's camera array should include a 50-megapixel main camera that lets in 50 percent more light and a 64-megapixel ultrawide Sony camera. It's also rumored to have a flat display instead of curved ones similar to the Pixel 6 Pro's and Pixel 7 Pro's. In addition, it's expected to come with a 5,000 mAh battery and a 27W max charging speed.

The Pixel 8 Pro should be revealed at Google's next launch event, set for October 4 at 10AM ET — the leaks come just ahead of the iPhone 15 launch on September 12th, surely a coincidence. On top of the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro, we may see the Pixel Watch 2 and other hardware. 

You can enjoy Disney's subscription service for a fraction of its usual price if you haven't tried it before or if you haven't been paying for it for quite some time. Starting today until September 20, a Disney+ Basic subscription will cost only cost you $2 a month for three months if you're a new or returning subscriber in the US. The ad-supported tier would typically cost you $8 a month, so that's $18 in savings if you've been thinking of finally signing up or resubscribing for any of the service's upcoming releases. 

The company launched an ad-supported plan for its streaming service back in December 2022. It hasn't raised prices for this tier since it became available, but the ad-free options had a price hike twice over the past year. An ad-free premium tier subscription will set you back $14 starting on October 12. This promo could give you an idea whether you're ready to commit to paying that much for the service every month, or if you could endure the ads Disney+ serves and stick to the basic option.

Of course, a subscription to Disney+ means getting access to its latest show and movie releases. Star Wars: Ahsoka dropped on August 23, while the live action reimagining of The Little Mermaid and the second season of I Am Groot are now also available. In addition, Disney and Pixar's film Elemental will be available for streaming on September 13.

Logitech's original Pebbles are reliable, affordable and portable — all the things you want in a simple computer accessory (and some of the reasons the Logitech Pebble M350 is a great productivity mouse). Now, Logitech has announced the Pebble 2 collection, featuring the Pebble Mouse 2 M350 and Pebble Keys 2 K380.

One of the biggest changes for the Logitech Pebble 2 collection is its more environmentally friendly production. According to the accessories maker, its new keyboard, the Pebble Keys 2 K380s is made of a minimum of 49 percent recycled plastic, while the Pebble Mouse 2 M350s is built of at least 58 percent recycled plastic. However, these figures only look at the products themselves and exclude the packaging and printed wiring assembly.

The second-generation iteration of the M350 also includes a customizable middle button that you can set to do anything from sending an emoji to bringing you to a favorite app — with the Keys 2 K380 including similar shortcuts. Logitech claims its keyboard is on the quieter side, so if you like hearing that strong click-clack as you go, this might not be the one for you. Pebble 2 Combos are available as general add-ons or specifically for Mac users if you want to refresh your whole setup.

Logitech emphasizes that its five color options (shades of blue, white, rose, graphite and sand) "defy boring." To further drive home this point, the company even made a Spotify playlist of the same name with bumpy songs like Future Nostalgia by Dua Lipa — do with that what you will.

It’s been a little while since Ultimate Ears (UE) released an entirely new speaker model and this one slots right into the existing lineup between the Megaboom and the Hyperboom. Continuing with the whimsical hyperbole, this latest model is called the Epicboom and it’s available starting today at the company’s website for $350. Now that it’s here, it seems obvious a speaker was missing from the UE lineup. It pumps out a bit more volume than the Megaboom, but is still more portable than the larger Hyperboom party speaker.

The UE Epicboom is like a double-wide Megaboom in size and shape, and it still provides 360-degree sound. It does seem that the two 1.5-inch mid-high transducers are on the rounded sides with passive radiators along the front and back. This enhances the surround sound vibes if you’re listening to it head-on. Inside, the Epicboom packs a 4.6-inch woofer for a more rounded bass experience down to 50Hz, at least. And just like the Hyperboom, it has an adaptive EQ that supposedly helps provide the best audio output possible for your space.

There’s an outdoor mode available, which seems to drop the low end down a bit in favor of the mid to high end output so it can be heard more clearly at greater distances. The speaker has Bluetooth 5.2 and in keeping with tradition, the speaker claims up to 180 feet in range (in the best line-of-sight conditions possible I assume). The Epicboom definitely has a robust range and worked throughout my apartment without the sound dipping out, which is commendable.

As usual, the speaker is fully waterproof with an IP67 rating. Go ahead and plop it in the pool if you like. It’s a rugged box of beats that will fit into a backpack although it will take up a good deal of space at 6.3 x 4.6 x 9.4-inches and 4.36 pounds. You shouldn’t have to worry about battery life much either, since it's rated for up to 17 hours and there's an LED battery indicator just above the +/- buttons. Unlike the Boom and Megaboom, there’s no charging dock accessory for the Epicboom. It has a single USB-C charging port along the back and no aux inputs.

Photo by Jon Turi / Engadget

The speaker is slightly chunky and unless you’ve got big mitts, the rounded edges makes it a little bit difficult to grab and hold by hand. There is a carrying strap of course, and if you hate having a loose loop dangling about your device, you’re in luck. This flattened strap uses a small magnet to help keep it in place along the back. It's heavy nylon (like seat belts) and although it has a loop, it takes some fiddling to pull it apart. I found myself just grabbing the strap as it is to haul it around.

NFC, a long lost Ultimate Ears feature, has returned with the Epicboom. It works for users with Android 8.0 or later, but sadly there's no support for iOS. The speaker has multipoint connectivity allowing you to pair up to eight devices and this can help speed up the process immensely. It also helps to future proof the speaker, as aging devices can sometimes be difficult to pair with and NFC is a great backup plan.

Photo by Jon Turi / Engadget

You can use the PartyUp feature in the Boom app (which gets an update today) to play music on the Epicboom plus any other Hyperboom, Megaboom and Boom models nearby. There are also a variety of pre-set EQs including Signature, Bass Boost, Game/Cinema, Podcast/Vocal, and a new Deep Relaxation mode. I didn't get a chance to test the new app experience yet, so I can't provide any more details in that regard.

If you’re an Ultimate Ears fan and want to upgrade your output, but still have a speaker that’s relatively easy to bring along when you’re out and about, the Epicboom could be right for you. It seems to have a more spacious sound than the Megaboom models and its audio output definitely covers some ground for a device this size. It’s not quite the powerhouse party output of the Hyperboom, but it's a decent upgrade from the Megaboom 3. People in the United States, Europe, and Asia-Pacific regions can order the $350 UE Epicboom starting today on the company's website and other retailers will begin selling the product on September 22nd. 

Product Specifications

• Size: 6.3 inch (L) x 4.6 inch (W) x 9.4 inch (H)

• Weight: 4.36 lbs / 1.98 kg

• Bluetooth version: 5.2 

• Bluetooth range: 180 ft / 55 meters

• Battery life: Up to 17 hours

• Charge time: < 3 hours (with 5V/0.5A or more than 0.5A adapter)

• Drivers: Two 1.5-inch active mid-high frequency transducers and one 4.6-inch woofer

• Maximum Sound Pressure Level (SPL): 94 dBC(normal) and 95 dBC (outdoor)

• Frequency range: 50Hz to 20kHz

• Rating: IP67 

• Sustainability factors: 100% post-consumer polyester fabric mesh, 59% post-consumer recycled plastic

TikTok has started migrating its European users' data to its long-promised center in Ireland. The video-focused social network has announced that its Ireland data center is finally operational as part of its larger progress update for Project Clover. TikTok announced the data privacy and security initiative back in March shortly after the European Commission banned staff members from using its app on work devices. As TechCrunch notes, though, the service revealed that it was putting up a data center in Ireland way back in 2020, with the expectation that it was going to be operational by early 2022.

Now that TikTok was able to overcome the issues that caused delays to the center's launch, it has started data migration, which likely won't be finished until the fourth quarter of 2024. Meanwhile, a second center in Ireland and another Norway are also under construction. The video hosting service has been under intense scrutiny over the past few years, and these are part of its efforts to get authorities to trust the app. In 2022, TikTok's parent company ByteDance confirmed that some of its employees, whom it eventually fired, accessed the data of several users in the US, including journalists. The revelation came in the midst of state governments banning TikTok from government-owned devices.

In addition to announcing the beginning of data migration, TikTok has also revealed that it has secured the services of a company called the NCC Group. The information assurance firm based in the UK will audit its data controls and protections, monitor its data flows, provide independent verification and report any incidents if needed. TikTok says the company will monitor data coming in and out of the center so it can ensure that only approved employees can access users' sensitive information. 

Spotify is experimenting with the offerings of its Premium service. Over the last few days, several Spotify users on the free tier noticed they no longer had access to in-app lyrics. Instead, they were greeted by a notification bubble saying, “Enjoy lyrics on Spotify Premium,” along with a link to sign up. Spotify says putting the in-app lyrics behind a paywall is just a part of its routine testing.

"At Spotify, we routinely conduct a number of tests, some of those tests end up paving the way for our broader user experience and others serve only as an important learning,”

Spotify's co-head of global communications, CJ Stanley, told The Verge. “We don’t have any further news to share at this time.” It's possible Spotify could remove the paywall and make in-app lyrics available to all users again, but there is currently no timeline for that.

This test comes at a time when Spotify has laid off employees from its podcast division, which the company poured quite a bit of money into in recent years. And despite raising its prices and actively working to grow its paid subscribers, it's still losing significant amounts of money. Spotify's decision to experiment with the possibility of making lyrics a Premium feature shows that the company is searching for ways to get users to pay for a subscription. However, this might not be the best way to do so as some users who have noticed the change are not happy about it.

In-app lyrics was one of Spotify's most requested features and the company began testing in 2019. In 2021, Spotify officially rolled out the feature, which allowed users to see and sing along to the words of their favorite tracks. This was available to all users — on both free and Premium versions and on all platforms. While charging for a previously free feature will always bring about some negative feedback as people adjust, some users believe this move would be discriminatory to people with disabilities.

TikTok appears ready to move the platform closer to a full-fledged social network. As spotted byAxios, the company has posted new job listings for positions focused on social networking features and expanded direct messaging. A “Product manager - TikTok social” posting reads that the company wants to build “meaningful social connections between users.”

The job listings are reportedly connected to worries within the organization about retaining and growing user engagement. “Inside TikTok, there’s concern that users are sharing TikTok videos externally on other social media and messaging apps when they want to discuss them with friends,” Axios reported, citing sources within the company. Job postings for mobile engineers say the candidates will focus on “building a reliable and adaptive platform that enables users to meet and interact with their real-life friends seamlessly on TikTok, and encourage them to share their life moments with each other and stay connected regardless of where they are.”

Expanding TikTok’s messaging features appears to be of primary importance. One job listing for a backend tech lead admits that the company’s messaging capability is in “its infancy,” according to Axios. That posting said the person hired will “explore and implement diversified social solutions” while referring to creating messaging that’s a “distinctive TikTok social solution.”

TikTok made its bones on viral videos — with social features mostly limited to peripheral interactions such as likes, comments and reposts. As rival platforms like Instagram integrate more TikTok-like features, it seems logical the company would return the favor by expanding its social capabilities. However, it stressed that video remains at the heart of its identity when trying new things. A TikTok spokesperson told Axios: “Being an entertainment channel has always been and remains the core of TikTok’s business model even as we experiment with new features to enhance the user experience.”

We're getting into the last days of summer in the northern hemisphere. As fall comes into view, many of us will be spending more time at home cooking. Having high-quality equipment (and ingredients) can help ensure you make the best food possible. To that end, you may want to consider picking up a KitchenAid stand mixer and/or immersion blender during a current Amazon sale. The KitchenAid Cordless Variable Speed Hand Blender, for instance, has dropped from $100 to $80. That's the lowest price we've seen for it all year.

This is our pick for the best cordless immersion blender. It could come in very useful if you want to make soups, sauces, smoothies and drinks even if you don't have much counter space for a full-sized blender.

If you do have some space to plunk down a new gizmo in your kitchen, however, there's always the option of snagging one of KitchenAid's classic stand mixers. The KitchenAid Artisan Series 5-Quart Tilt-Head Stand Mixer is on sale too. Depending on which color you opt for (Ice Blue and Kyoto Glow are particularly fetching), the mixer can be yours for as little as $380 during this sale. That's $70 off the regular price and close to the cheapest we've ever seen it.

This is our choice for the best stand mixer you can own. It's a powerful and durable machine, plus it looks gorgeous. It makes baking much easier than having to mix dough by hand. Best of all, it works with a variety of attachments. Given the glut of late-summer produce, it might still be worth picking up the ice cream maker attachment as well. Trust me, you can make some delicious mint choc chip and strawberry-basil ice cream with this thing.

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The attorneys general from all 50 states have banned together and sent an open letter to Congress, asking for increased protective measures against AI-enhanced child sexual abuse images, as originally reported by AP. The letter calls on lawmakers to “establish an expert commission to study the means and methods of AI that can be used to exploit children specifically.”

The letter sent to Republican and Democratic leaders of the House and Senate also urges politicians to expand existing restrictions on child sexual abuse materials to specifically cover AI-generated images and videos. This technology is extremely new and, as such, there’s nothing on the books yet that explicitly places AI-generated images in the same category as other types of child sexual abuse materials.

“We are engaged in a race against time to protect the children of our country from the dangers of AI,” the prosecutors wrote in the letter. “Indeed, the proverbial walls of the city have already been breached. Now is the time to act.”

Using image generators like Dall-E and Midjourney to create child sexual abuse materials isn’t a problem, yet, as the software has guardrails in place that disallows that kind of thing. However, these prosecutors are looking to the future when open-source versions of the software begin popping up everywhere, each with its own guardrails, or lack thereof. Even OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has stated that AI tools would benefit from government intervention to mitigate risk, though he didn’t mention child abuse as a potential downside to the technology.

The government tends to move slowly when it comes to technology, for a number of reasons, as it took Congress several years before taking the threat of online child abusers seriously back in the days of AOL chat rooms and the like. To that end, there’s no immediate sign that Congress is looking to craft AI legislation that absolutely prohibits generators from creating this kind of foul imagery. Even the European Union’s sweeping Artificial Intelligence Act doesn’t specifically mention any risk to children.

South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson organized the letter-writing campaign and has encouraged colleagues to scour state statutes to find out if “the laws kept up with the novelty of this new technology.”

Wilson warns of deepfake content that features an actual child sourced from a photograph or video. This wouldn’t be child abuse in the conventional sense, Wilson says, but would depict abuse and would “defame” and “exploit” the child from the original image. He goes on to say that “our laws may not address the virtual nature” of this kind of situation.

The technology could also be used to make up fictitious children, culling from a library of data, to produce sexual abuse materials. Wilson says this would create a “demand for the industry that exploits children” as an argument against the idea that it wouldn't actually be hurting anyone.

Though the idea of deepfake child sexual abuse is a rather new one, the tech industry has been keenly aware of deepfake pornographic content, taking steps to prevent it. Back in February, Meta, OnlyFans and Pornhub began using an online tool called Take It Down that allows teens to report explicit images and videos of themselves from the Internet. This tool is used for regular images and AI-generated content.