Posts with «region|us» label

AT&T opposes the Starlink and T-Mobile satellite-to-phone service plan

AT&T doesn't think that the satellite-to-phone service T-Mobile and SpaceX's Starlink are planning should be approved as it is, and it has informed the FCC of its opinion in a filing (PDF). As Bloomberg notes, the carrier has raised concerns that the companies' service, in its current proposed state, could interfere with existing wireless services. "[I]t is paramount that operations do not jeopardize or inhibit the delivery of terrestrial wireless services," AT&T wrote. 

In August last year, T-Mobile and SpaceX announced a collaboration that would allow the carrier's subscribers to connect to Starlink's second-gen satellites for coverage even if they're in the most remote locations. The companies are gearing up to begin testing this year, and the FCC started seeking comments (PDF) in April on their request to establish supplemental coverage from space (SCS). AT&T's filing is a response to that call. 

The carrier wrote that FCC's rules "do not permit SpaceX’s proposed use of T-Mobile’s terrestrial spectrum" and that the companies "fail to even request — much less justify — rule waivers that would be necessary to authorize their proposed SCS authorizations." It added: "More broadly, the Applicants' technical showings are woefully insufficient regarding the risk of harmful interference posed by their planned SCS deployments. SpaceX and T-Mobile’s applications fall far short of meeting the threshold for waiver and cannot be granted in their current state."

AT&T has plans for a satellite service of its own in partnership with communications specialist AST SpaceMobile. The companies successfully conducted the first two-way satellite audio call on AT&T's network in Texas to a Rakuten number in Japan on a Samsung Galaxy S22 smartphone in April. The carrier assured in its filing that consistent with its comments, "AT&T and AST intend to provide the demonstrations necessary to show that they will not cause interference to any authorized terrestrial system."

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/att-opposes-the-starlink-and-t-mobile-satellite-to-phone-service-plan-090021432.html?src=rss

‘Overwatch 2’ director explains why hero missions were canceled

When Blizzard announced earlier this week that it had canceled Overwatch 2 hero missions, a central part of its player vs. environment (PvE) story mode, fans were none too pleased. So director Aaron Keller published a blog post today to ease the concerns and offer more transparency about the development team’s “incredibly difficult decision.”

Hero missions, revealed in 2019, were designed to provide a “deeply repayable” branch of the game based on RPG-like talent trees. Although progression would have been separate from the main game (to avoid giving hero mission players an unfair advantage), it was still part of the hype Blizzard used during the past four years of marketing the title. But the publisher ultimately found that the hero missions were pulling too many development resources away from the live game.

“When we launched Overwatch in 2016, we quickly started talking about what that next iteration could be,” Keller wrote. “Looking back at that moment, it’s now obvious that we weren’t as focused as we should have been on a game that was a runaway hit. Instead, we stayed focused on a plan that was years old.” That years-old plan refers to the development team’s influence from its work on Project Titan, Blizzard’s canceled MMORPG. The creators initially saw Overwatch as a vessel to reintegrate some of the ideas from that scrapped project.

Blizzard Entertainment

“Work began on the PvE portion of the game and we steadily continued shifting more and more of the team to work on those features.” But, Keller says, “Scope grew. We were trying to do too many things at once and we lost focus. The team built some really great things, including hero talents, new enemy units and early versions of missions, but we were never able to bring together all of the elements needed to ship a polished, cohesive experience.”

Keller says the team’s ambition for hero missions was devouring resources at the expense of the core gameplay. “We had an exciting but gargantuan vision and we were continuously pulling resources away from the live game in an attempt to realize it,” said Keller. “I can’t help but look back on our original ambitions for Overwatch and feel like we used the slogan of ‘crawl, walk, run’ to continue to march forward with a strategy that just wasn’t working.”

The decision to abandon hero missions came down to prioritizing present quality over past promises. “We had announced something audacious,” Keller reflected. “Our players had high expectations for it, but we no longer felt like we could deliver it. We needed to make an incredibly difficult decision, one we knew would disappoint our players, the team, and everyone looking forward to Hero Missions. The Overwatch team understands this deeply — this represented years of work and emotional investment. They are wonderful, incredibly talented people and truly have a passion for our game and the work that they do.”

Overwatch 2’s story missions — minus the canned hero missions — are set to arrive in season six, scheduled for mid-August. PvE aspects include a single-player version with a leaderboard, in-game and out-of-game stories and “new types of co-op content we haven’t yet shared.” Before that content arrives, there’s still season five, set to launch in June.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/overwatch-2-director-explains-why-hero-missions-were-canceled-211629105.html?src=rss

Disney+ and Hulu will remove a slew of titles on May 26th

Disney+ and Hulu are starting to purge a number of shows from their respective streaming services. This seems to be an industry-wide trend that reinforces the idea that you don’t own anything with subscriptions.

As reported by Deadline, a slew of titles on Disney+, including Big Shot, Clouds, Diary of a Future President, and Benedict Society are leaving on May 26th. On the Hulu side, shows such as Dollface, Maggie and Little Demon will vanish on that same date.

In August of last year, HBO Max (now just Max) announced that it would be stripping 36 shows from its platform, including The-Not-Too-Late-Show with Elmo and My Dinner with Hervé. The company continued its rampage in December 2022 by announcing larger shows such as Westworld were going to be pulled from the platform. And even before then, Netflix was notoriously known for pulling and adding shows and movies at the drop of a hat.

While the list mostly consists of direct-to-streaming movies and shows that didn’t get more than a few seasons, it’s still disappointing to see content being dropped. Movies and TV shows aren’t the only affected medium, as streaming music services have long had the issue of certain tracks becoming unavailable or an entire album being pulled entirely from the catalog. It’s the price you pay when going the subscription route. It’s an all-you-can-eat buffet, but the buffet owner can take anything away at a moment’s notice.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/disney-and-hulu-will-remove-a-slew-of-titles-on-may-26th-204658321.html?src=rss

'Until Dawn' developer Supermassive is making a ‘Dead by Daylight’ spin-off

Behaviour Interactive has revealed what’s next for Dead by Daylight, including two more spin-off games. Perhaps the more intriguing of the two is a project being developed by Supermassive Games. While the game is staying mostly under wraps for now, it seems to build on the formula Supermassive has executed so well on games like Until Dawn and The Quarry.

This will be a single-player interactive story game with a new cast of characters that offers “an intense narrative experience filled with powerful life-or-death choices set within the backdrop of Dead by Daylight,” according to Behaviour. Expect to learn more about the game later this year.

The other spin-off that’s in development is a co-op title from Midwinter Entertainment, which joined Behaviour last year. This game, which is in its very early stages, will focus on the themes of greed and the lust for power. You’ll be able to team up with as many as three other players.

These two games follow on from Hooked On You, a DbD dating sim that arrived last year. A Dead by Daylight film adaptation is in the works too. Behaviour and its partners are currently looking for the director and screenwriter for the project.

Behaviour had a lot more to discuss during the DbD seventh anniversary showcase. There was news on upcoming collaborations for cosmetic items, including team ups with Slipknot and Iron Maiden. Ikumi Nakamura, the former Ghostwire: Tokyo creative director who you may remember from that game’s reveal at E3 2019, has designed some DbD cosmetics too.

On the gameplay front, the stream included a look at the next DbD chapter, which will be available on June 13th. End Transmission will bring sci-fi horror to the game, with a new map set on another planet that doesn't look unlike Atropos from Returnal. The upcoming killer, The Singularity, “is a monstrous amalgamation of restructured organic matter and machine parts seeking to become the perfect lifeform,” Behaviour said. The accompanying survivor is Gabriel Soma, a technician.

Over the next year, Behaviour plans to add four chapters, including End Transmission and two others that will bring another pair of licensed killers from other franchises to DbD. On top of those, there will be two extra survivor-only chapters. We already know who one of those survivors will be: a certain Nicolas Cage.

The actor is playing himself in the game. Lest you think that Behaviour recruited a soundalike, that’s not the case. Cage "was generous enough to record every grunt, scream and exertion you will hear in Dead by Daylight," Mathieu Côté, head of partnerships for the game, told reporters at a preview event this week. Here's hoping that includes Cage shrieking about bees and his eyes. Anyway, you can find out more about Cage's introduction to the game on July 5th.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/until-dawn-developer-supermassive-is-making-a-dead-by-daylight-spin-off-184513565.html?src=rss

Meta’s rumored Twitter competitor could launch as early as next month

Folks are spending less time on Twitter since Elon Musk bought the social media site last year, but there’s still plenty of demand for similar platforms like Mastodon and Bluesky. To that point, Meta has long been rumored to be building its own platform to rival Twitter. After months of speculation, there’s finally some details to go along with the rumors, according to digital media marketing expert Lia Haberman.

Haberman says the app is nearing completion and could launch as early as the end of June. She says that Meta has been meeting with select content creators to discuss the platform. One of these creators furnished Haberman with all kinds of info about the forthcoming app, calling it “Instagram for your thoughts.”

Based on a (somewhat blurry) example I got, Meta's new app looks a lot like Twitter.

So, could this take over all the Twitter screenshots we've been seeing on the Feed lately? Maybe.

It’s impossible to predict how audiences will respond but this could be an alternative. pic.twitter.com/xgQa1kUjCl

— Lia Haberman (@liahaberman) May 19, 2023

Instagram is the right word here, as it looks like the entire platform is built out of the popular photo-sharing social network. The decentralized app is said to work with current Instagram parameters, like usernames and passwords. So if you already have an Instagram account you should be able to sign right up and automatically sync up with your current followers. Your handle, bio and verification should all carry over from IG. Haberman says that even blocked Instagram accounts and hidden words transfer to the new platform.

This is also set to be a decentralized app that’ll integrate with other platforms like Mastodon, meaning you should be able to interact with users across multiple services without having to constantly switch between apps. The report indicates that text updates will be limited to 500 characters, which is less than an Instagram caption, but still plenty long enough to make a sarcastic comment or whatever. 

You’ll likely be able to attach links, photos and videos up to five minutes long, which of course is much shorter than Twitter's recently launched two hour video-sharing feature. Just like Twitter and similar platforms, Meta’s service will have its own versions of likes, replies and reposts. Haberman got her hands on a leaked marketing slide that shows the app in action and, well, it looks a whole lot like Twitter, Bluesky and the rest, with a dash of Instagram's design scheme. 

Back in March when these rumors first surfaced, Meta said it was indeed “exploring a standalone decentralized social network for sharing text updates.” So this is coming, it’s just a matter of what it’ll look like and if it’ll be “the one” to dethrone Twitter. There's no name for the service yet, though within Meta it has a few codenames like Barcelona and P92. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/metas-rumored-twitter-competitor-could-launch-as-early-as-next-month-181625616.html?src=rss

Solo Stove fire pits are up to 45 percent off, plus the rest of this week's best tech deals

We're still a couple of weeks away from the unofficial start to summer, but some Memorial Day sales are already popping up, including one on mostly smokeless fire pits from Solo Stoves. Discounts there range up to 45 percent. BioLite's sale takes up to 25 percent off of outdoor power gadgets and Ring security devices are discounted up 30 percent so you can keep tabs on your home for less. Outside of site-wide sales, Apple's second-gen AirPods Pro are back down to $200 and the Apple Watch Ultra is the cheapest we've seen it, but only with a yellow strap. For anyone thinking ahead to back to school, we found deals on threedifferentlaptops, a smart monitor and a Mac mini. Here are the best tech deals from this week that you can still get today.

Solo Stove Bonfire

Late summer nights outdoors are better with fire pits. Solo Stove is currently hosting a site-wide sale that runs through June 4th and includes discounts of up to 45 percent. The Bonfire is the brand's most popular pit and falls between the portable Ranger and extra large Yukon in size. Usually $400, the sale brings the Bonfire down to $250. Plenty of bundles are on sale too, including an ultimate bundle that pairs up the Bonfire with a stand, lid, shield and tools for $555 which is $530 off the regular price. 

Use the code FREEMESA at checkout and you can get a free Mesa tabletop fire pit. Those normally sell for $120. Whichever unit you choose, you'll get less smoke thanks to the double-walled chamber that burns wood more efficiently. Solo Stove improved upon their original design on all 2.0 models, adding a removable base plate and ash pan that makes clean up much easier. 

Apple AirPods Pro

Apple's latest AirPods Pro are among the best buds an iPhone user can stick in their ears and once again, they're down to $200, which is a tidy savings over their $249 list price and within a dollar of their all-time low. Our resident audio expert, Billy Steele, gave the buds an 88 in his review, pointing out that this generation's sound is massively superior to the previous one. 

The clarity is excellent at low volume an has a more immersive and detailed sound overall. Thanks to the H2 chip, the buds are capable of impressively fast on-device processing to deliver good active noise cancellation and one of the best transparency modes available. The buds switch seamlessly between Apple devices and the battery will give you six hours of play on a charge with noise cancellation turned on. 

If it's pure sound quality you're looking for, Billy also recommends Sennheiser's Momentum 3 buds. They're also down to $200, after an $80 discount. 

BaseCharge 600

Power stations let you bring multiple hours of power for lights, devices and even small appliances when you're camping or otherwise away from an outlet. BioLite's 622 watt-hour portable battery, the BaseCharge 600 is getting its first discount today as part of a larger, site-wide sale. Usually $700, the sale dips it down to a more palatable $560. The sale runs through May 29th with discounts on other power-related devices, including 20 percent off the larger BaseCharge 1500 and the 100-watt solar panels that can recharge either battery.

I spent a few weeks with the BaseCharge 600 and used it to run my work-from-home setup (laptop, monitor, gateway, lights) for a full day with plenty of charge left over. It also ran a power drill outdoors for a small project. There are eight ports up front, including multiple USB-Cs and regular old three-pronged plug outlets. The display offers a lot of useful info, like how long the battery has left, considering your current power consumption, or the amount of time the battery will take to return to full when it's plugged into the wall or a solar panel.

Our favorite low-capacity power bank, the Charge 40 PD is also part of the sale, and down to $45 instead of $60. It's got a tough case and will revive your phone from the dead a couple of times.   

Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2

Many Ring security products are currently cheaper right now, both at Amazon and at Ring. Discounts include $75 off the Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2, which brings it down to $175 and the cheapest its gone for outside of Black Friday sales last November. The Pro 2 is a wired unit that gives you a head-to-toe view of your entryway along with two-way audio and 3D motion sensing that more accurately differentiates between people simply passing by and those actually approaching your door. 

If you don't have a wire available for your doorbell (or wanted something a little cheaper), you can go for the Ring Battery Doorbell Plus. It's down to $140 after a 22 percent discount. It also gives you head-to-toe HD video and two-way audio. The quick-release battery pack is rechargeable and should last a few months between charges.  

Apple Watch Ultra with Yellow Ocean Band

We're not in Patek Philippe territory, but a $799 timepiece is still pretty spendy. This week gave us the lowest price we've seen yet on the top-end Apple Watch Ultra, bringing it down to $702 — but only if you get it with the yellow band. If you're down with the sunny hue, or were already planning to swap out the strap, you can save nearly $100 on a watch that's best suited to athletes and outdoor enthusiasts. Our deputy editor Cherlynn Low gave the smartwatch an 85 in her review, citing it's excellent battery life, durable build and the bright display. Its GPS, Backtrack and Waypoint features also performed admirably during a hike in New Jersey's South Mountain reservation.

For those who want a capable smartwatch that's much more affordable, the current generation 40mm Apple Watch SE with the starlight case is also on sale at Amazon and at Best Buy. It's back down to $219, which is the lowest it's gone since its debut last September. Cherlynn called this one "the best smartwatch $250 can buy" in her review. The 44mm models in all three case colorways are also on sale at Amazon.  

Google Nest Learning thermostat

Right now, Wellbots is offering a total of $105 off Google's Nest Learning Thermostat when you enter the code 55ENGDT at checkout. The smart thermometer is already on sale for $199, but the code takes an additional $55 off, making it just $144. Over time, the Nest will learn your habits and adjust accordingly. By detecting when you're home and away, the device could help save energy too. 

Another discount code will save you a total of $124 on the Google Nest Camera with Floodlight. It's on sale for $220, but the code 65ENGDT will bring it down to $155. The camera pairs up bright lights and a camera to alert you when events are detected outside your home, sending HD video to your phone or smart display so you can keep tabs on your perimeter at all times.  

And finally, we've got a code for the Google Nest Indoor/Outdoor Wireless Camera too. Enter 45ENGDT at checkout for an additional $45 savings over the $140 sale price. 

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra

A sale at Amazon is lowering the price on many configurations of Samsung's latest Galaxy phones. The S23 Ultra, the S23+ and the base model S23 are all seeing discounts of between $50 and $150. The sale brings the S23 Ultra with 256GB of storage down to $1,050. 

These aren't the largest discounts we've seen on Samsung's latest smartphones, but it's a decent discount on what are still pretty new phones. The discounts apply to all storage configurations and all colorways are included. 

We gave the Galaxy S23 Ultra an 89 in our review, praising the powerful performance, "dazzling" display and larger, 200MP rear camera that produces great-looking images. The S23+ earned an 86 review score from us thanks to its bright display and excellent battery life, which went longer than two days before needing a charge.  

Samsung M70B Series Smart Monitor

Multiple models of Samsung monitors are currently on sale at both Amazon and directly from Samsung's site, including the 43-inch M70B smart monitor. It's currently $380, which is $120 off the list price and the lowest its gone for since the shopping holidays late last year. It's got 4K resolution and a 60Hz refresh rate and thanks to the built-in smart TV capabilities, you can stream, video conference and control your smart home without connecting to a PC. The sale also includes the 32-inch Odyssey Neo G8, which is $1,200 instead of $1,500. The curved 4K monitor has a 240Hz refresh rate with a latency as low as 1ms.  

Hulu

If you cancelled Hulu and want to come back, you can get the next three months for just $2 per month. The deal is valid through May 27th and is available to new and returning subscribers — as long as it's been at least a month since you cancelled. This is the ad-supported version of the service, which usually goes for $8 per month. If you don't want your episodes of Abbot Elementary interrupted by ads, you can go for the ad-free plan for $15 per month. Either way, we think Hulu is one of the better streaming services out there and it will be the only place to catch new (yes) episodes of Futurama

Apple 2023 Mac mini M2 

Apple's latest system-on-a-chip is the M2 processor, which you'll find in the newest MacBook Airs, MacBook Pros and the Mac mini. The diminutive computer is the cheapest way to get the speed of the M2 and right now you can grab a mini for just $500, which is $100 off the list price and matches the lowest price so far. This is the model with 8GB of memory and 256GB of storage, which is the same capacity offered by the base model MacBook Air — but the mini delivers it for about half the price. 

Of course, you'll need to add a monitor, but if you've already got on on hand, you can save a significant amount. We gave the Mac mini an 86 in our review, praising the performance, solid design and generous amount of ports for accessories and monitors. 

Eero Pro mesh WiFi router

Amazon is selling many of it's previous-generation Eero routers for 24 to 50 percent off right now. The sale includes the Eero Pro mesh WiFi router which is half price and down to $80. It's a tri-band router that simultaneously supports 2.4GHz, 5.2 GHz and 5.8 GHz signals. A single unit will cover up to 1,750 square feet and if you add more routers, you can expand that coverage easily. Once you install an Eero router, you can even use current-model Echo speakers as WiFi extenders too. Note that the Eero Pro is a previous generation model that supports WiFi 5 — the newer, WiFi 6E model is currently $250 and not on sale. 

Razer BlackWidow V3 Mini HyperSpeed 

If you're dealing with limited desk real estate, a 60 percent keyboard might help. Right now, Razer's BlackWidow V3 is on sale for $180 or 39 percent off at Amazon and Best Buy. Though it's technically a 65 percent keyboard, it's still our top pick for the best 60 percent keyboard with arrow keys. It offers both 2.4G and Bluetooth connectivity A switch lets you pick between a clicky typing experience or a much quieter (though not completely silent) mode. 

KitchenAid Cordless Variable Speed Hand Blender

We named the KitchenAid immersion blender the best cordless option in our in our guide to immersion blenders. Our reviewer, Sam Rutherford, says it easy to use and liked that instead of discrete speed settings, you can adjust the speed by applying more or less pressure on the trigger. Kitchen Aid claims it can blend 25 bowls of soup on a charge. Sam didn't have that much soup on hand, but still found the battery to last a long time. Just keep in mind that you can't charge it while you use it, so plug it in before you plan on cooking.  

Apple MacBook Pro M2, 14-inch

Our senior editor Devindra Hardawar called the new MacBook Pro a "blessing for creatives" when the new laptop came out earlier this year, awarding it a 92 in his review. Right now the base-level configuration, with the M2 Pro chip, 16GB of memory and 512GB of storage is back down to an all-time low of $1,749 at B&H Photo. That only goes for the space gray colorway — you'll pay $50 more for the silver version. 

We named the it the best MacBook for creatives in our guide thanks to the laptop's powerful processing power that easily handles 4K video editing and complex musical arrangements. It has plenty of ports, including a 3.5mm, one HDMI, three Thunderbolt 4 ports and an SD card slot. You can get the same deal on Amazon.

Samsung S95B OLED

Samsung's S95B OLED 55-inch TV is on sale for $1,298, which is a steep, 41 percent discount over the $2,198 price tag it had when it first came out. You can grab the same deal at Samsung too. The S95B smart TV made our list for one of the best TVs for gaming you can buy. The QD-OLED display combines an OLED panel with a layer of quantum dots so it can offer the deep blacks that you get with quality OLED screens, but also gives enough brightness to play in a daylight-lit room. You'll be able to play 4K games with a smooth 120Hz refresh rate and there are four full HDMI ports.  

The 2023 version, the S95C, is now available, but you'll pay about $2,400 right now, after a $100 discount from Samsung. If you want our top pick for a gaming set, check out the LG C2, which is on sale for $200 off at both B&H Photo and at Amazon. That's not the lowest price ever, but a good way to save a few dollars on a great gaming TV. 

Apple MacBook Air M1

The previous generation MacBook Air with the M1 chip is our top pick for a budget Apple laptop, and right now, it's an even better deal at just $800, which is $200 off the list price. It doesn't have the latest system-on-a-chip that Apple makes, but it's still a powerful ultraportable that earned a score of 94 when Devindra reviewed it. He appreciated the display, performance and lack of fan noise from the passive heat sink. It weighs just 2.8 pounds, making it ideal for students taking it to class or for digital nomads who move around a lot. 

If you want the latest model, B&H Photo is offering the 2022 MacBook Air M2 for $150 off, bringing it down to $1,049. That's about $50 more than the lowest price we've seen, but still a nice discount for anyone who wants the laptop that Devindra called a "near-perfect Mac."

Dell XPS 13 Plus Laptop

If you don't want a Mac, consider this laptop instead. We named the Dell XPS 13 Plus the best Windows laptop for college students and it's currently $500 off on clearance at the manufacturer's site. It offers an ample keyboard and an OLED screen with thin bezels that Devindra says looks fantastic. This model packs a 12th-gen Intel Core i5 chip with 8GB of memory and 512GB of storage. It runs on Windows 11 and has a touch screen and capacitative buttons at the top of the keyboard. The glass haptic touchpad blends into the palm rest lending to the overall minimalist design. Unfortunately, that minimalism means Dell ditched the headphone jack, so your personal listening options are limited to Bluetooth. 

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This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/solo-stove-fire-pits-are-up-to-45-percent-off-plus-the-rest-of-this-weeks-best-tech-deals-180013881.html?src=rss

Disney is reportedly laying the groundwork for its standalone ESPN streaming service

Disney has known for a long time that it would eventually make the ESPN TV channels available on a standalone streaming service. Now, it seems the company has begun the work of uncoupling the channels from cable providers so it can offer ESPN directly to cordcutters.

The Wall Street Journal says Disney has started laying the groundwork for the transition as it has been in talks with cable providers and sports leagues. The company hasn't yet locked down a timeline for the standalone ESPN streaming service, which could still be years away.

ESPN is one of the crown jewels of cable bundles. It will still be available on traditional TV platforms after the streaming service goes live, according to the report, though cable providers would have a new competitor to contend with.

Disney debuted ESPN+ in 2018. While that service does include some MLB and NHL games and an NFL game streamed exclusively on it for the first time last season, it doesn't have ESPN's TV networks. As such, Disney hopes to bring the matchups ESPN carries (including NBA and NFL games) to the streaming world outside of the confines of services like YouTube TV and Sling.

It's worth noting that sports streaming rights are a hot commodity among legacy broadcasters and tech companies. Apple has snapped up some MLB and Major League Soccer rights, while YouTube will be the home of the NFL Sunday Ticket starting next season. Peacock, meanwhile, will be the only place where you can watch one of next season's NFL playoff games.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/disney-is-reportedly-laying-the-groundwork-for-its-standalone-espn-streaming-service-172721356.html?src=rss

Get three months of Hulu for only $6 starting today

Hulu’s offering a steep discount in honor of the completely made-up holiday National Streaming Day. Until May 27th, new and returning subscribers can nab three months of the streamer’s ad-supported plan for $6, breaking down to $2 per month. These plans typically cost $8 each month, or $24 for three months, so this is nothing to sneeze at.

Normally these types of deals are just used to lure in new customers and are unavailable to returning subscribers, but this one breaks the mold so long as you canceled over a month ago. Of course, you have to be okay with watching a few ads every now and again, but this is a full subscription with access to the streamer’s entire library of content, including forthcoming seasons of The Bear and the recently-revived Futurama.

The ad-supported tier, however, doesn’t allow you to download content for offline viewing, so keep that in mind when planning a long summer trip. Also, just like a streaming Cinderella, that $2 carriage reverts to an $8 pumpkin after three months, so mark your calendar and cancel to avoid getting charged.

Hulu is generally considered to be one of the best streaming sites around, with tons of original programming like The Handmaid’s Tale and access to broadcast TV standouts like Abbott Elementary.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/get-three-months-of-hulu-for-only-6-starting-today-163723113.html?src=rss

Disney’s pricey, immersive Star Wars hotel is shutting down

Less than 19 months after opening Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser, Disney will close the hotel's doors. Star Wars fans who are willing to splurge now have until the end of September to try the two-night experience.

“Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser is one of our most creative projects ever and has been praised by our guests and recognized for setting a new bar for innovation and immersive entertainment,” Disney told CNBC in a statement. “This premium, boutique experience gave us the opportunity to try new things on a smaller scale of 100 rooms, and as we prepare for its final voyage, we will take what we’ve learned to create future experiences that can reach more of our guests and fans.”

The hotel opened at Walt Disney World in Florida in March 2022 and it promised fans a one-of-a-kind jaunt. Guests are immersed in a Star Wars story. As passengers on a starcruiser, they encounter a First Order officer and stormtroopers who board the ship to find Resistance spies. Guests can choose to join the light side or the dark side and they may encounter the likes of Chewbacca, Rey and Kylo Ren.

Along with the room, food and drink (except for alcohol), access to Disney World's Hollywood Studios park, a Magic Band and valet service are included in the stay. But for all that, guests are charged a pretty penny.

A two-night stay for two people at Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser starts at $4,800. For a group of three adults and one child, the rate is $6,000. That cost is on top of travel expenses and anything else that tourists might want to do in the area. As such, the hotel is out of the price range of many parents who want to take their kids to Disney World.

Disney didn't explain the reasons for closing down Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser, but the writing has been on the wall for a while. Late last year, reports suggested that the hotel was struggling with falling demand and was seeing occupancy rates of as little as 25 percent. In March, it emerged that Disney was cutting back bookings. In the end, it seems Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser was an ambitious experiment for which not enough fans were willing to pay through the nose.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/disneys-pricey-immersive-star-wars-hotel-is-shutting-down-154345788.html?src=rss

Fellow Tally hands-on: A slick scale for precise pour-overs

Precise tools are a coffee nerd’s best friends and after releasing the Opus grinder earlier this year, Fellow has returned with another product called the Tally Pro. And while it’s hard to find a kitchen scale exciting – especially one as niche as this – after trying it out for myself I’m starting to see the appeal.

Like the rest of Fellow’s gadgets, the Tally features a minimalist design with a black-on-black color scheme, though I wish there was a little more matte and less glossy in certain areas to hide fingerprints. In the center, there’s an easy-to-read OLED display along with a handy knob and a big button for setting the timer.

Photo by Sam Rutherford/Engadget

The Tally Pro’s specs are pretty solid, too. You get good sensitivity that goes down to a tenth of a gram, a removable weigh pan for easy cleaning and a max capacity of 2,500 grams (about 5.5 pounds). That means this thing can double as a general kitchen scale for all but the heaviest recipes. That said, what I like is Fellow’s attention to detail. Sure, its battery will last about three months, but unlike a lot of other rechargeable scales, the Tally can still work while it’s plugged in. And because the scale relies on a USB-C port for power, you don’t need to bother with proprietary charging bricks. Fellow even built a little Easter Egg into the scale that lets you play a game similar to the one you get in Google Chrome when you don’t have an internet connection.

Photo by Sam Rutherford/Engadget

However, the standout feature on the Tally Pro is that alongside its weight and timer modes, there’s a new Brew Assist mode that attempts to take some of the math out of hitting that perfect coffee-to-water ratio. Simply by entering the amount of ground coffee you’re starting with and selecting your desired ratio (which can be adjusted manually), the scale will calculate the correct amount of water you need (by weight, of course, because no self-respecting coffee geek settles for volumetric measurements). It will even tell you how much water to add throughout your brewing time to help achieve an ideal extraction. Pretty much the only thing it doesn’t do is give you a bloom timer, but that's because given the huge variety of beans, Fellow believes it’s better to follow the roaster’s instructions for that.

Photo by Sam Rutherford/Engadget

Admittedly, long-time coffee aficionados might think this sort of hand-holding is a bit much. However, as someone who has only recently started diving deeper into the intricacies of making a great cup of coffee, I find it's a nice aid for less experienced brewers. In reality, the much bigger hurdle is its price, because at $185 the Tally Pro is around five times more expensive than a standard kitchen scale. And unless you’re a real java nut, that’s a tough swallow.

But if you want a good-looking scale to help maximize your brew, you better start saving up for when the Tally Pro officially goes on sale sometime in early June.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/fellow-tally-hands-on-a-slick-scale-for-precise-pour-overs-150024886.html?src=rss