Apple is prepping a software update for the three-year-old iPhone 12s after French regulators alleged the phone exceeds proper radiation levels. France stopped selling the smartphone after recommendations from the country’s radiation watchdog (ANFR).

The software update won’t adjust radiation levels but will “accommodate the protocol used by French regulators.” (I am not sure how that works, either.) Apple believes the software patch will be enough to allow the iPhone 12s to sail through future radiation tests, saying it looks forward “to the iPhone 12 continuing to be available in France.”

Belgium and Denmark don’t have the same worries as France. Belgian minister for digitalization, Mathieu Michel, said local tests were “reassuring” and recommended against a suspension on sales. Denmark’s Safety Authority followed suit, suggesting it had no concerns regarding the iPhone 12’s radiation levels.

— Mat Smith

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The Morning After: The iPhone 15 kills off Lightning. Plus, AI-generated Coke

The week’s biggest news meets Engadget’s lens.

Engadget

Our spin-off video series continues to let Mat do his thing, whether that’s throwing his iPhone at the camera, complaining about ’00s movies or writing about himself in third person. Our short-but-sweet edition this week covers iPhone 15, the return of movie rentals (kind of), and Sony’s Aibo dogs getting a second chance. There’s a new video every Saturday morning.

Watch it here.

Spider-Man 2 is following Sony’s sequel playbook

A two-hour demo showed off new tricks.

Sony

How do you outdo a well-received open-world game with its sequel? Engadget’s Nathan Ingraham played two hours of Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 at a press event earlier this week, and it seems the answer is go bigger. That’s the same tactic used by Sony’s cadre of development teams for The Last of Us, Horizon Zero Dawn and God of War.

Because the world of New York in this game is almost twice as big as the original, with the addition of Brooklyn and Queens, finding new ways for players to get around was a major focus for developer Insomniac. Enter the web wings, a tool for gliding around the city, catching wind tunnels and updrafts that sling you at high speed. It’s not meant to replace the core web-slinging mechanic but augment it. And gliding seems to be the new having a horse in video game trends.

Continue reading.

Meta starts testing Horizon Worlds on mobile and the web

A small number of mobile and web users can now access Meta’s metaverse.

Meta has announced Super Rumble, the first game out of its in-house studio Ouro Interactive, is now available to a small number of mobile users through the Meta Quest app on Android. It’s also making its way to the app on iOS devices in the coming weeks. When Meta launched the first-person shooter, it said Super Rumble would be one of the first worlds available when its new app came out. It also said the game will feature cross-platform play on mobile, the web or a VR headset.

Continue reading.

Engadget Podcast: iPhone 15 and Apple Watch Series 9 hands-on

We also dive into our review of Samsung’s Galaxy Watch 6.

This week, Cherlynn gives us her on-the-ground thoughts from Apple’s iPhone 15 launch event. It turns out the iPhone 15 Pro’s titanium case is noticeably lighter. (Which we hope was the point.) Engadget’s Malek Saleh also joins to discuss her review of the Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 and Dyson’s ridiculous Zone air filter mask/headphones.

Listen here

Apple announced its latest iPhones this week, which means, after several months of betas, iOS 17 is about ready to launch to the public. The new software includes significant upgrades to Messages, FaceTime, keyboard and more. Here’s everything you need to know to upgrade your iPhone the latest firmware.

What devices are not supported by iOS 17?

First, iOS 17 is only available for iPhones launched within the last five years. That means phones from 2018’s iPhone Xs / Xr series are the oldest compatible models. Other supported devices include all models from the iPhone 11 (2019), iPhone 12 (2020), iPhone 13 (2021) and iPhone 14 (2022) lines. (That includes the standard, pro, Pro Max, mini or plus-sized variants from any given generation.) In addition, the second and third generations of Apple’s budget iPhone SE are supported. If you’re unsure which model you have, you can head to Settings > General > About > Model Name on your phone. If you don’t see that box, you can look at the Model Number on the same page and head to Apple’s support document that breaks down each model’s corresponding number.

How to install iOS 17

Once you confirm your device is supported, you have two options. You can wait for Monday, September 18, when the update will become available to the public. At that time, navigating to Settings > General > About > Software Update will allow you to install the software over the air once Apple has pushed it live. (If you have automatic updates turned on, it will install automatically but maybe not until a few days after the software is available.) Or, you can run a beta version to cut in line and try the software before its official launch.

How to install iOS 17 before the release date

To install iOS 17 before Monday, you can install the RC (release candidate) beta, which usually ends up being identical to the final version. Doing that is much easier this generation: Head to Settings > General > About > Software Update, then tap the option for Beta Updates. Selecting the Developer beta option will (at the time of publication) push the RC1 update that Apple pushed to developers on Tuesday after its iPhone launch event. (The release candidate will likely launch through the public beta later this week.) Just be sure to head back to the same place in settings after Monday and turn off beta updates if you don’t want to keep installing future versions of the (sometimes buggy) bleeding edge of iPhone software.

Mat Smith / Engadget

New features with iOS 17

iOS 17 enhances Messages with machine learning-based audio message transcriptions. So if your long-winded friend leaves you a meandering monologue, you can skip the playback and read a text breakdown of the note’s contents, sparing you from a full listen. In Engadget’s time with the betas, we found the transcription accurate with British and American accents. Apple also moved most of Messages’ features and apps behind a plus button to the left of the input box in any chat. Tapping that symbol will expand, revealing the options that lived above the keyboard (including Memojis and GIFs) on older iOS versions.

FaceTime adds video voicemails, so you can let your friends see you as you leave them a message. iOS 17 also works with tvOS 17 to allow you to take FaceTime calls on Apple TV, using your iPhone or iPad as a camera.

The update also includes a new StandBy mode that transforms your iPhone into a smart display when it’s charging while sitting horizontally. Meanwhile, Contact Posters give you customizable full-screen profiles that flash on your phone’s screen when friends and family call. Namedrop makes exchanging numbers and other info with new friends easier by bringing your iPhones or Apple Watches close together. And the iOS 17 keyboard adds a new inline predictive text feature that uses machine learning to guess the rest of your sentence (a quick space bar tap confirms it). You can read more about all the new features in Engadget’s full iOS 17 preview.

Today, Google unveiled a range of software updates for Android Auto and vehicles equipped with Google integration. At the forefront, Google says its drivers will now be able to join WebEx or Zoom meetings, a feature it previously announced at I/O 2023. The apps will only work in an audio-only capability, which Google says will make it “easy and safe” for drivers to quickly join scheduled meetings from car displays.

Beyond enhancing productivity, Google is also attempting to expand its audio and visual entertainment offerings with its rollout of Prime Video on the Google Play app. This feature, which will appear on the display for “parked entertainment,” will only be available for select vehicles — namely Renault, Polestar and Volvo Cars. Eventually, Google says this will appear in other brands. In addition to streaming, Chrome-based internet browsing will be available starting today. Internet browsing is already available in some cars on Google Play through the standalone app, Vivaldi.

Google

While keeping drivers productive and entertained, Google is also expanding the functionality of the display by making the Weather Channel app available for hourly forecasts, and a follow-me alert safety feature that allows third parties to track your vehicle. A “Trip View” radar will also display live maps — mainly for severe weather events.

Lastly, Google’s digital car key — which allows drivers to use their phones to lock and unlock their vehicles — will finally be available in select Hyundai, Genesis, and Kia models in the US and Canada for those with compatible Pixel and Samsung devices. The tech will also allow drivers to share digital keys with family and friends wirelessly. Digital keys will have already been available in several European countries.

Just seven months, and reportedly 2 billion generated images, after first incorporating the beta AI into its suite of image and video editing tools, Adobe announced on Wednesday that its Firefly for Enterprise generative AI is now commercially available in Photoshop, Illustrator and Adobe Express workflows. And with the release comesa new Firefly web application as well, available as part of the company’s Creative Cloud paid plans.

The new subscription plan revolves around “generative credits” (GCs), which Adobe defines as, “tokens that enable customers to turn a text-based prompt into image and vector creations in Photoshop, Illustrator, Express and the Firefly web application.” It’s a made up currency that facilitates the transmutation of your money into faster access to the Firefly AI. Once users hit their monthly allowance of GCs, they’ll be able to continue using Firefly, just at a slower rate.

The web application will be available through Creative Cloud, at the Express and Express Premium price points. Those users will also gain access to the full paid version of Express Premium. Per a company release. Adobe Express is a new “AI first, all-in-one creativity app” designed specifically to generate commercially safe images and effects (and presumably the correct number of fingers). With it users can generate design elements, images and video, pdfs and animations in over a 100 languages, then export that content to social media and publishing platforms.For enterprise users, Firefly and Express Premium will be bundled together as an all-in-one editor.

Generative AI has not exactly been greeted with the warmest of welcomes, mostly on account of it ripping off an entire internet’s worth of art for its training. Then there was the whole subsequent “replacing actual artists with cheap AI knockoffs after stealing their work for training purposes” issue as well. 

To help allay those well-founded fears, Firefly embeds Content Credentials by default in all generated works. These credentials act as a as a digital “nutrition label,” displaying the asset’s name, creation date, creation tool and a log of any edits made to it. They’re the latest measure to come out of Adobe’s Content Authenticity Initiative, an industry group seeking to establish baseline ethical and transparency norms for AI development before the Feds step in and impose real regulations.

Bluesky, one of the most notable alternatives to the platform formerly known as Twitter, has just hit a million users. That's admittedly tiny compared to the number of users on major social networks, but it's a big deal for a service that remains inaccessible to most people until today. Bluesky team member Rose Wang, who has announced the milestone on X, told TechCrunch that the service's app reached a million downloads in July. However, those interested in getting in on the action at Bluesky will have to secure invite codes to log in, and it's only now that enough people were able to create accounts for the social network to be able to announce that it has reached 1 million users. 

Bluesky first burst into the scene as a decentralized social network (previously) funded by Twitter and backed by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey. Shortly after it launched in closed beta, it rolled out the ability for users to choose their own algorithms so that they can customize their timelines. And in its bid to remain ad-free, it started offering a paid domain service as a way for users to verify their identity. It's unclear when the app will open to the public, and, upon checking, some codes are still being sold on eBay for hundreds of dollars. 

Meta, on the other hand, chose to make Threads available to everyone from the get-go, even though it was still lacking a number of critical features. Threads reached 100 million users merely a week after it became available in July, but keyword search only started rolling out earlier this month. 

Apple's next desktop overhaul is almost ready to download. macOS Sonoma will be available on September 26 as a free update for users with a compatible Mac device, the company announced at its annual fall event today. As is typically the case with desktop software upgrades, a lot of the improvements are under the hood. However, changes to widgets, high-resolution video screensavers and other items mean there's plenty of new stuff to try.

One of the more notable changes is that widgets are now available on the main desktop area. Sure, it's not the most thrilling of updates, but it will be handy to have things like weather and upcoming calendar events just a glance away. Apple is also adding high-res video screensavers to macOS, something akin to what's been available on Apple TV. The motion continues on your lock screen, but once you've signed in, that all settles into a still image. 

There are upgrades for video chat apps like FaceTime too. New gestures will trigger effects over top of your camera feed while presenter overlays allow you to be present while you're sharing your screen. When it comes to Safari, any website can now be transformed into a web app and the browser supports multiple profiles for things like work and personal use. There's also a new Game Mode that prioritizes your computer's power during those sessions and both Memoji and Stickers now sync across all of your iCloud-connected devices.  

Follow all of the news live from Apple's 'Wonderlust' event right here.

We figured the iPhone 15 Pro would feature some sort a new A17 chip, but Apple surprised us by debuting its first "Pro" chip today. The A17 Pro is Apple's most powerful mobile silicon yet. The 3 nanometer chip features 17 billion transistors and a six-core CPU. Apple claims its two performance cores are 10 percent faster than the A16, while its four efficiency cores offer far better performance per watt. The 6-core GPU is also 20 percent faster than before, and it features advanced graphics features like hardware accelerated ray tracing.

The A17 Pro seems particularly useful for game developers. Apple announced that Resident Evil 4 and Resident Evil Village are coming to the iPhone, while The Division Resurgence will also launch next year. 

The real question, though, is why Apple is calling this the A17 Pro. Does that mean we'll see a stripped down version of this chip in next year's iPhone 16? It certainly gives Apple more leeway in the future — instead of trying to justify why the A17 Pro may lose features when it heads to cheaper hardware, the company can trot out a slightly slower chip that's still an upgrade from the A16.

Follow all of the news live from Apple's 'Wonderlust' event right here.

It's September, which means the air is thick with the promise of fall, school is back in session, and Apple just revealed a new Apple Watch. This year, the company is showing off the Apple Watch Series 9. The Series 9 features a new processor, the S9 chip, and a quad-core neural engine, which promises 18-hour battery life and overall performance boosts. On the software side, watchOS 10 is poised to be the biggest UI overhaul in Apple Watch history, with a renewed focus on widgets, and a slew of app and input updates.

The new neural engine enables offline Siri access and powers new gestures.

With watchOS 10, Apple is returning to its wearable roots. The original Apple Watch UI revolved around Glances, which offered a carousel of widgets and other features, but the company eventually transitioned to an app-first UI. WatchOS 10 puts widgets front-and-center once more, in a style similar to the existing Siri watch face. Rotating the digital crown opens a smart stack of widgets, and apps like timers, stopwatches and podcast players will populate as widgets when they're in use.

Other watchOS 10 upgrades include the ability to view FaceTime video messages and join Group FaceTime audio, track power and heart rate data during cycling sessions, and update your emotional state in the Mindfulness app using the digital crown. The software update also adds useful features to the Compass app, including a pin that will automatically drop near the last place you had cellular connection, which will be particularly useful while hiking and camping. Physical controls are changing with watchOS 10, too — press the side button to open the Control Center and double-press the digital crown to see recently used apps.

Of course, you won't need a shiny new Series 9 to take advantage of these new features. The watchOS 10 update will be available on Apple Watch Series 4 and later models.

The Apple Watch hasn't seen a significant design update in years, with incremental hardware and software changes in each new model since the Series 6 in 2020. This makes the S9 processor upgrade in the Series 9 notable. Bundle that with the rollout of watchOS 10, and it's a mildly exciting year for Apple Watch wearers.

Follow all of the news live from Apple's 'Wonderlust' event right here.

It turns out that Threads’ recently introduced keyword-searching abilities won’t work for all topics. The app is currently blocking searches for a number of “potentially sensitive” words, including “vaccines,” “covid,” and other variations of words that have previously been linked to misinformation on Meta’s platform.

The limits, which were first reported by The Washington Post, are an apparent attempt to prevent controversial content from spreading on Meta’s newest app. The company has blocked a number of covid and vaccine-related terms, including “covid,” “coronavirus,” “covid-19,” “vaccines” and “covid vaccines,” as well as other terms associated with potentially unsavory content like “gore,” nude,” and “sex.”

The company confirmed it was blocking searches in a statement to The Post, calling it a temporary measure. “The search functionality temporarily doesn’t provide results for keywords that may show potentially sensitive content,” a spokesperson said. Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram who also oversees Threads, tweeted that the company was “trying to learn from last [sic] mistakes and believe it's better to bias towards being careful as we roll out search.”

Meta’s history shows the company has good reasons to be cautious about search on Threads. Instagram search has been widely criticized as a vector for misinformation and its ability to lead users down conspiratorial rabbit holes. The app’s search was particularly weaponized during the early days of the pandemic, when it promoted conspiracy-touting anti-vax accounts in its top results for simple queries like “vaccine” and “5g.”

At the same time, it’s telling that Meta is now opting to block all searches containing “potentially sensitive” keywords, even posts that don’t contain rule-breaking content. It’s also a notably more aggressive approach than the social media company has taken in the past.

While Meta has previously limited search functionality on both Facebook and Instagram, the company has typically intervened when search terms were explicitly linked to rule-breaking content, like specific hashtags related to QAnon. In other cases, the company has worked to clean up search results for topics like vaccines, and pushed in-app PSAs directing users to official resources.

As The Washington Post points out, the result of the total block on covid-related search terms is that users are also prohibited from looking for information, resources and conversations that don’t break the platform’s rules, which could be a barrier to those seeking advice or credible information from experts.

Meta’s caution also underscores just how quickly the company rushed the development of Threads. The app was released just five months after a small group of Instagram engineers started working on the project. The quick turnaround meant that Threads launched with several basic features missing from the service. And while Meta has said Threads has the same safety policies of Instagram, it hasn’t disclosed many details about its plans to moderate content on the Twitter-like app, where posts look and feel very different.

The latest WhatsApp beta contains a new screen called Third-party chats that may allow it to work with other messaging apps, WaBetaInfo has reported. While the page is blank, its presence could signal that WhatsApp is getting such a feature ready in order to comply with the European Union's Digital Markets Act (DMA). 

In July, the EU announced that seven tech giant "gatekeepers" with over $7.5 billion in turnover — Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, TikTok owner ByteDance, Meta, Microsoft and Samsung — must comply with all of the EU's new digital market rules. A key tenet of the DMA is that gatekeepers are prohibited from favoring their own services and must allow interoperability with third parties. Last week, the EU Commission designated key apps subject to the rules, including Meta's messaging apps, WhatsApp and Messenger. 

That means Meta must make WhatsApp work with other third-party messaging apps like Signal and Telegram starting in March 2024. That will allow users of those apps to contact people on WhatsApp, even if they don't have a WhatsApp account — though WhatsApp users will supposedly be able to opt out. There's no news yet about what kind of features will be available with cross-messaging, though end-to-end encryption will supposedly be preserved, according to WaBetaInfo. 

Apple's iMessage app isn't (yet) one of 22 key services mentioned under the DMA, so Google's dream of having Apple support RCS messaging may not happen soon. However, the App Store will be impacted. Apple is reportedly set to allow third-party app stores and sideloading in iOS 17, and both Microsoft and Epic Games are preparing their own stores for iOS mobile apps. We're likely to learn more about that tomorrow evening (September 12th) at Apple's iPhone 15 event, when it will take the wraps off of iOS 17.