It's almost time for Amazon's annual fall hardware event, where the company typically announces a bunch of upcoming devices, including new entries for its ereader and smart speaker lines. On September 20, the company will stage Devices at its second headquarters in Arlington, Virginia. Amazon will not be streaming it to the public, but Engadget will be there to liveblog so you can follow along and read about its new products as soon as they're announced, starting at 11AM ET. 

Last year, one of the event's main reveals was the Kindle Scribe, a 10.2-inch ereader that comes with a pen that you can use to jot down notes on its 300 ppi display. It was launched with a retail price of $340 — and it still costs that much — but it's been on sale since. The company also announced a redesigned Echo Studio that features a new spatial audio processor, as well as a new Echo Dot with a larger driver, at the event. Plus, Amazon revealed a "no-contact" sleep tracker called the Halo Rise and a refresh of the Fire TV Cube. 

In the security department, the company announced two new cameras from Ring, along with the Spotlight Cam Pro and Spotlight Cam Plus. While those aren't quite out of the ordinary, Amazon is known to reveal more exciting devices at the event from time to time. In 2021, it introduced an Alexa-powered robot named Astro that can patrol your home, while it revealed a Ring drone that can fly around your house the year before that. 

We're entering the season of long scenic drives and holiday parties, which means lots of time using your devices away from home and needing a quick recharge wherever you are. Currently, this is doable for a much lower cost, with Amazon running a sale on Anker's power banks and fast-charging plug-ins. The deals include Anker's 511 Power Bank, available for 50 percent off, dropping from $40 to $20. It's one of our favorite portable chargers, thanks to its slim size and ability to juice up an Android smartphone to 75 percent in just over an hour. Plus, it has a built-in plug that can act as a wall adapter if you have a spare cable handy. 

Amazon's Anker deals also includes two new releases: The MagSafe 3-in-1 Charging Cube is 20 percent off, bringing its price down from $150 to $120. We're currently testing the 3-in-1 device, and, so far, it's a solid upgrade compared to previous Anker multi-use chargers. It has 15W max charging and works with the iPhone 13 to 15, the Apple Watch models Ultra and one through eight and the AirPods 2, 3 and Pro. Then there's the Anker 315 67W USB-C Charger, which has dropped from $34 to $24 — a 29 percent discount. It's a great high-speed option for juicing up everything from your MacBook Pro to your new iPhone 15. 

Items like the 12-in-1 Docking Station, touting a 42 percent discount and dropping from $120 to $69 are also part of the sale. If you don't plan on giving up your older iPhone anytime soon, there's the USB-C to Lightning Bio-Braided Cable, down from $22 to $12 — a 45 percent discount.

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

When Apple previews the upcoming version of iOS at WWDC, we expect to see all of the new features that will improve the iPhone. However, it’s not guaranteed that the company will take that opportunity to also update its popular wireless earbuds. But, alongside the arrival of iOS 17, a firmware update adds a few new features to the second-gen AirPods Pro, most of which will automatically adjust to your environment or activity so you don’t have to touch the earbuds or reach for your phone.

The headline addition is Adaptive Audio, a tool that automatically and “dynamically” blends transparency mode and active noise cancellation (ANC) based on your surroundings. Apple says it will change the noise control settings continuously throughout the day, making the proper adjustments as you move to different settings. Thanks to the H2 chip in the AirPods Pro, the earbuds use a combination of computational audio and machine learning algorithms that can discern between consistent and transitory noise. The technology inside of the earbuds also accounts for whether you're stationary or in motion, and if you’re listening to music or taking a call when making its automatic adjustments.

The whole idea is for this to happen without you really noticing. When there’s a change in your surroundings, Adaptive Audio gradually starts tweaking the blend of ANC and transparency. So if you enter a loud coffee shop or sit near a noisy A/C unit, AirPods Pro gently increases the level of noise cancellation to combat the clamor. The point is to smooth the transition, so the change in cancellation level doesn’t become a distraction itself.

Indeed, unless you’re really listening for the fluctuations or you encounter loud noise, you won’t notice them. It gradually increased ANC when I was washing dishes at the sink or grinding coffee to keep the audio where I could hear it clearly. But it also swung back to the transparency mode I previously had active when I ventured into a quieter spot. It works very well and it’s not jarring at all thanks to the gentle, but still quick, transition.

Photo by Billy Steele/Engadget

Before, you could switch between transparency mode and ANC by pressing and holding the AirPods Pro stem. You could also reconfigure one of those to just turn noise control completely off. Apple will allow you to swap one of the options that are accessible on the earbuds with Adaptive Audio, but the company is keeping it to only two settings via the on-board controls. As you might expect, Adaptive Audio is accessible through the Control Center where the AirPods options have been re-organized. There’s a noise control section that expands to give you access to transparency, Adaptive Audio, ANC and off just below the volume slider.

The next new feature is Personalized Volume. This “​​uses machine learning to understand environmental conditions and listening preferences over time to automatically fine-tune the media experience,” according to Apple. It’s another layer of hands-off adjustment that AirPods Pro will do when you move from one place to the next. However, the “over time” part means I haven’t used it long enough to really notice a difference. After only a few days of testing, I can’t say I’ve encountered a time where the adjustment was obvious. Maybe the feature needs more time to learn my preferences or maybe Apple’s claims that you’ll barely notice the difference are true. Either way, I’m not comfortable weighing the merits just yet. Personalized Volume is enabled via the AirPods Pro settings menu, just above the option for Loud Sound Reduction.

A handy new tool that I can see quickly becoming popular is Conversation Awareness. When you start talking, this feature automatically lowers the volume or pauses, focuses on voices in front of you and reduces background noise. It’s similar to Sony’s Speak-to-Chat, only that it completely pauses media when it detects your voice. Here, Apple reduces volume when you're listening to music and pauses things like podcasts and audiobooks. The main issue with Sony’s version is it’s easily triggered by light coughs or clearing your throat. After a few days of testing, Conversation Awareness is less susceptible to false positives, unless you’re really hacking. And if you find you don’t like it, you can disable it entirely in the AirPod Pro settings.

I was skeptical at first, but I quickly got on board with Apple’s decision to reduce volume rather than stop a song completely. It’s certainly less jarring, and the feature returns to your previous volume about three seconds after it no longer senses your voice or the person you’re speaking to. I’m sure there are some users who’d prefer a complete pause for all media, those who don’t want to talk over something in the background. But this is meant for quick convos rather than extended chats, and for that reason I’m OK with Apple’s implementation.

The only issue currently with Conversation Awareness is volume reduces on podcasts first when you start talking and pauses a few seconds after. It’s a bit clunky, and I think it would be smoother to just gently decrease the volume to zero. Thankfully, it works outside of Apple Podcasts with apps like Pocket Casts so you don’t have to worry if you’re not 100 percent in Apple’s ecosystem.

All of the features so far are exclusive to the second-generation AirPods Pro with the H2 chip. However, Apple is making improvements to other models too. For both versions of the AirPods Pro, third-gen AirPods and the AirPods Max, Apple improved automatic switching between the company’s various devices. This means faster and more reliable changeover between listening to music on your Mac and taking a call on your iPhone, for example. This update also requires iPadOS 17 and/or macOS Sonoma, depending on your stable of devices, for you to notice the difference. I do not have an iPad or Mac running those yet, so I was unable to test Apple’s claims here.

Photo by Billy Steele/Engadget

Apple also added a mute function to the most recent AirPods, both models of AirPods Pro and AirPods Max. Simply press the stem or the Digital Crown on AirPods Max to mute or unmute yourself during calls. It’s straightforward, but it’s also a welcome update. You’ll see a banner and hear a chime every time you change the microphone state, so Apple will make it clear which setting you're on via two cues on your iPhone, iPad or Mac. Developers working on video- and voice-calling apps will be able to implement this functionality as well through CallKit on iOS. So in addition to being able to press to mute with Phone and FaceTime, you will be able to do so on other popular apps like Skype, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp and WeChat. Apple says a Mute API will be available for macOS apps as well.

Apple doesn’t typically offer such a robust update to AirPods alongside the annual iOS refresh. However, the additions of Adaptive Audio, Personalized Volume and Conversation Awareness expand the toolset of the most recent AirPods Pro so that you spend even less time physically pressing buttons to interact with them. And you can decide whether or not you even want to use them at all. I’ll bet you will though, especially at times when your hands are full or you might’ve stepped away from your phone.

The new AirPods Pro features are now available in the iOS 17 public beta. If you're okay waiting, the official release of the AirPods Pro firmware update will be available later today.

These days when we talk about what's next for chip design, we focus on things like cramming in more cores, increasing clock speeds, shrinking transistors and 3D stacking. We rarely think about the package substrate, which holds and connects those components. Today Intel, in the midst of its reinvention as a foundry company, has announced it's made a major breakthrough in substrate materials—and it's all about glass.

The company says its new glass substrate, which is set to arrive in advanced chip designs later this decade, will be stronger and more efficient than existing organic materials. Glass will also allow the company to cram more chiplets and other components next to each other, something that could lead to flexing and instability with an existing silicon package using organic materials.

"Glass substrates can tolerate higher temperatures, offer 50% less pattern distortion, and have ultra-low flatness for improved depth of focus for lithography, and have the dimensional stability needed for extremely tight layer-to-layer interconnect overlay," Intel said in a press release. With these capabilities, the company claims glass substrates will also lead to a ten-fold increase in interconnect density, as well as allow for "ultra-large form-factor packages with very high assembly yields."

Intel

We're slowly beginning to see what Intel's future chips could actually look like. Two years ago, the company announced its "gate-all-around" transistor design, RibbonFET, as well as PowerVia, which would let Intel move power delivery to the rear of a chip wafer. At the same time, Intel also announced it would be building chips for Qualcomm and Amazon's AWS service.

Intel says we'll see chips using glass substrates in areas in high performance areas first, like AI, graphics and data centers. The glass breakthrough is another sign that Intel is ramping up its advanced packaging capabilities for its US foundries, as well. That's something TSMC is reportedly stumbling on with its Phoenix, Arizona plant, which will require shipping chip materials back to Taiwan for advanced packaging.

When Sonos released its first portable speaker, the Move, four years ago, it was an anomaly. Previously, the company had looked down on Bluetooth as low-quality and unreliable, and all of the speakers it sold required a power outlet. The Move, on the other hand, used Bluetooth or Wi-Fi and had a 10-hour battery.

In 2023, these tricks have proliferated across the Sonos lineup. The more affordable Roam speaker brought the Move’s feature set to a much smaller device, while recent home speakers like the Era 100 and 300 both support Bluetooth, as well. As such, the recently-announced Move 2 doesn’t suggest a new direction for future Sonos products — it simply brings the company’s latest tech and design cues to an existing product.

And, as usual, it’s more expensive — at $449, it’s the same price as the Era 300, which is capable of spatial audio playback. It’s also more expensive than buying an Era 100 and a Roam. Given how Sonos has changed since the original Move, I’ve been trying to figure out what place — if any — the Move 2 has in the company’s lineup.

What hasn’t changed

At first glance, the Move 2 looks nearly identical to its predecessor. It’s a chunky and rather heavy speaker, weighing just over 6.5 pounds, and it’s noticeably bigger than the Era 100. That said, it’s identical in size and weight to the original Move, despite having redesigned internals. Given the speaker’s size and weight, I still see its potential use cases the same as four years ago: you can lug it around the house with the built-in handle and get loud, quality sound anywhere, or bring it outside to power a party in the backyard. But it’s clearly not a speaker you’ll take with you anywhere, like the tiny Roam, which you can tuck in a bag and mostly forget about.

As before, and like all other Sonos speakers, the Move 2 can stream audio over your Wi-Fi network from dozens of services through the Sonos app. If you have other speakers, you can stream the same music to all of them at once, or play different things on each. If you have two Move 2 speakers, you can set up a stereo pair. And for when there’s no Wi-Fi, the Move 2 has Bluetooth.

The Move 2 also has built-in microphones so you can command the speaker with either Alexa or Sonos’ own voice assistant. These also let the speaker automatically tune audio output to optimize sound quality. This auto Trueplay feature first arrived on the Move four years ago and is now available on many of the company’s products. In my experience, it definitely improves the speaker’s output, so I always turn it on. It’s particularly useful on a portable speaker that is constantly used in different spots.

Finally, the Move 2 is built to withstand the elements; its IP56 rating means it is dust- and water-resistant. You can’t actually drop it into a body of water (unlike the smaller Roam, which can survive a dip in the pool), but it’s just fine getting hosed down. It can also withstand a wide temperature range — Sonos said the first Move worked between 14 degrees F and up to 131 degrees F (-10 to 55 Celsius) and confirmed that the Move 2 has the same weather resistance as the original. That’s not something most people will need to worry about, but the Move 2 should survive a night outside in the winter if you forget to bring it in.

Photo by Nathan Ingraham / Engadget

What’s new

While you’d be forgiven for mistaking the Move 2 for the original, there are some significant changes on the inside (and some subtle ones on the outside). The speaker’s top touch controls have been redesigned to match the layout Sonos introduced earlier this year with the Era 100 and 300. Flanking the play / pause button are track forward and back buttons. Previously, you had to double-tap the play button to skip songs, and this is definitely easier. The volume controls are now a slider, but you can also tap the left or right side of the volume area for little adjustments. Finally, there’s a button to mute the speaker’s microphones. And for extra security, there’s also a physical switch on the back of the speaker that cuts power to the mics entirely.

There’s also a USB-C port in the back that can be used for charging or, with the right dongle, as a line-in jack. I hooked the Move 2up to my turntable with no issues, same as I did with the Era 100 and 300. My slight annoyance at needing a dongle is more than tempered by having this option at all — a year ago, only the $550 Sonos Five speaker had line-in, and now it’s available on most of the music-focused speakers Sonos sells.

Nathan Ingraham / Engadget

Oh yeah, and the Move 2 comes in olive green in addition to black and white!

Ultimately, there are two big changes that define the Move 2: an improved battery and all new speaker components. Sonos says that the Move 2 should last for “up to 24 hours” — and it seemed to blow past that in my testing. I had the speaker playing music over Wi-Fi for 22 hours and 50 minutes when I went to bed, and the speaker still had a whopping 46 percent of its battery left. When I checked in again 10 hours later, the battery was depleted, so it died sometime between those check-ins. But it’s safe to say you should get the 24 hours Sonos promises and more. That’s more than double the old Move, and more than sufficient for a speaker like this. I’m still testing the Move’s battery and will try and be awake when it dies next time so I can get a better handle on just how long it lasts.

Sonos again included a charging “ring” that you can just place the Move 2 in to power it up. It’s an elegant solution that requires no fiddling with cables. At first, I considered that it might be good to have two of them around the house, but honestly the battery lasts so long that I didn’t find it necessary to set up two “home base” spots. And you can charge it via USB-C, too. It’s not as clean and aesthetically pleasing as using the charging ring, but useful in a pinch.

The new speaker components seem to be inspired by the Era 100. Like that speaker, there are two angled tweeters to provide a semblance of stereo sound, as well as one midwoofer. The original Move, on the other hand, had a single downward-firing tweeter and a midwoofer. Thanks to the two tweeters, the Move 2 is technically a stereo speaker — but as with the Era 100, it’s nothing like the stereo separation you get from a pair of speakers. The fact that there’s no left-right balance control in the app for the Move 2 indicates that there’s only so much true separation between the two channels here, a fact of life given how close together the two tweeters are.

My go-to track for testing these stereo capabilities is “Such Great Heights” by The Postal Service, and the ping-ponging electronic intro and hard-panned vocals that jump between the left and right channels still more or less sounded like they were coming from a single spot. There’s a little space between them, but it doesn’t sound all that different from playing the song through the mono Sonos One speaker.

That quibble aside, the two tweeters in the Move 2 provide improved clarity over the original. It’s a clear, well-balanced speaker that faithfully reproduces sound across all ranges of the spectrum. Bass is prominent but not overdone, and the high end is distinct and detailed, especially compared to the original Move, which could get muddier than I liked. The Move 2 replicated the intricate details in delicate albums like Daughter’s Stereo Mind Game and End, the latest from Explosions in the Sky, and dance floor tracks like Dua Lipa’s “Don’t Start Now” and Tove Lo’s “No One Dies From Love” had plenty of low end power.

It’s also a very loud speaker – inside the house, I never really needed to turn it above 50 percent, except when I simply wanted to hear what it could do. Going much above 70 percent gets downright startling. But as with the old Move, Sonos gave this speaker extra oomph for outdoor spaces where sound dissipates much easier.

The main issue with the Move 2 is that you still sacrifice sound quality for portability. The Move 2 costs $449, the same price as the Era 300. That speaker has four tweeters and two woofers and can play back audio in Dolby Atmos. The whole spatial audio experience can be hit-or-miss depending on the quality of the mix, but even without that, there’s no doubt in my mind that the Era 300 is a more capable speaker.

Nathan Ingraham / Engadget

Another way you could spend that $449 would be to get an Era 100 ($249) and Roam ($179). That gets you an indoor speaker that sounds just as good as the Move 2 plus a portable speaker that’s much smaller and easier to take with you. To be clear, the Move 2 is far more powerful than the Roam, with better sound quality and the volume to fill a large outdoor space. The Roam, on the other hand, is for portable, personal use. It comes down to what you think you’ll need more: portability or power.

Despite my feelings that the Move 2 is somewhat of a niche device, a quick look at the market shows there are plenty of competing products with similar price points and features. Speakers like the JBL Boombox 3, Ultimate Ears Hyperboom and Bose Portable Smart Speaker all offer similar feature sets to the Move 2, and the Move 2’s vastly improved battery life means it should fare better than the earlier device in these comparisons.

Photo by Nathan Ingraham / Engadget

Wrap up

Due to its price and size, the Move 2 isn’t the ideal portable speaker for everyone. But that’s OK, because it does succeed as a speaker that you can rely on for high-quality and seriously loud audio. It’s well-suited to being your main speaker inside the house as well as something you can take to the porch or backyard to power a party. And while it won’t comfortably slip into a backpack, it should make a good road trip companion. I could definitely see tossing it in the car and bringing it on my summer vacation with me.

The battery and speaker upgrades make it a worthy improvement over its predecessor, as well, though I am disappointed to see Sonos raise the price yet again on one of its products. But if you’re looking for one speaker that can cover as many bases as possible, the Move 2 fits the bill — and it’ll be that much more useful if you have other Sonos products to pair it with.

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

Amazon is having a second sale this fall exclusively for Prime members as it did last year, and though we knew it was happening in October, we didn't yet have an exact date. Now, Amazon has announced that the sale will happen on October 11 and 12, and even gave it a new name: Prime Big Deal Days. 

As ever, Prime Day gives members access to thousands of deals, so many folks wait for the sale to get the best possible deals on pricey products like laptops, phones, memory cards, cameras and more. Knowing that, Amazon uses the event as a way to boost sales and, more importantly, Prime subscriber numbers. At the same time, some select deals are available to non-Prime members as well. 

Amazon detailed a few early deals on Amazon devices and more. You can save up to 65 per cent on a three-pack of eero Pro Mesh Wi-Fi, select Fire TV devices, Kindles and more. Amazon is promising a $15 credit to Prime members who download its Photos app and upload their first photo, between now and October 7. You'll also find deals on Prime Video, a longer free trial of Amazon Music and more. 

Last year's October Prime Day saw a plethora of deals on devices ranging from Sony's WH-1000XM5 ANC headphones to the MacBook Air to the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 to Roomba 694 robot vacuum. You might not see quite as many deals as on the main Prime Day (held this year on July 11 and 12), but I was glad I waited to purchase items like memory cards and storage. It's also a good way to grab some Christmas presents cheap and avoid the rush. 

Besides electronics, the sale is likely to cover clothes, shoes, household items, appliances. If you're looking for some savings, it's best to get ready by making lists and bookmarking a price tracker. For more on how to prepare for Amazon's Prime Big Deal Days, check out our post on the subject. 

Amazon is having a second sale this fall exclusively for Prime members as it did last year, and though we knew it was happening in October, we didn't yet have an exact date. Now, Amazon has announced that the sale will happen on October 10 and 11, and even gave it a new name: Prime Big Deal Days. 

As ever, Prime Day gives members access to thousands of deals, so many folks wait for the sale to get the best possible deals on pricey products like laptops, phones, memory cards, cameras and more. Knowing that, Amazon uses the event as a way to boost sales and, more importantly, Prime subscriber numbers. At the same time, some select deals are available to non-Prime members as well. 

Amazon detailed a few early deals on Amazon devices and more. You can save up to 65 per cent on a three-pack of eero Pro Mesh Wi-Fi, select Fire TV devices, Kindles and more. Amazon is promising a $15 credit to Prime members who download its Photos app and upload their first photo, between now and October 7. You'll also find deals on Prime Video, a longer free trial of Amazon Music and more. 

Last year's October Prime Day saw a plethora of deals on devices ranging from Sony's WH-1000XM5 ANC headphones to the MacBook Air to the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 to Roomba 694 robot vacuum. It's also a good way to grab some Christmas presents cheap and avoid the rush. 

Besides electronics, the sale is likely to cover clothes, shoes, household items, appliances. If you're looking for some savings, it's best to get ready by making lists and bookmarking a price tracker. For more on how to prepare for Amazon's Prime Big Deal Days, check out our post on the subject. 

Apple is prepping a software update to address alleged radiation concerns regarding the three-year-old iPhone 12s after French regulators alleged that the phone exceeds proper radiation levels. France stopped selling the smartphones after recommendations from the country’s radiation watchdog (ANFR), but Cupertino denies the allegations and seems to place the onus on the European nation’s testing protocols, as reported by Reuters.

To that end, Apple has reiterated that this isn’t a safety concern and notes that the phone was certified by multiple international bodies as compliant with global radiation standards. The software update won’t adjust radiation levels, as that would be a hardware issue, but it will “accommodate the protocol used by French regulators.” So it looks like Apple thinks 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.”

France did change its regulations back in 2020. It added consideration for extremities, like hands, when testing for radiation levels and the rate of radio-frequency energy absorbed by the body by using a particular piece of equipment. This is called the Specific Absorption Rate (SAR.) During the country's recently-instituted SAR tests, regulators found that the iPhone 12s exceeded normal levels of energy absorption when holding the phone, despite acing the test when considering the head and body.

Belgium and Denmark have both come to Apple’s aid here, with Belgian minister for digitalization, Mathieu Michel, saying that local tests were “reassuring” and recommending against a suspension on sales. Denmark’s Safety Authority followed suit, suggesting it had no concerns regarding iPhone 12s radiation levels. Industry experts have also weighed in, stating that the findings indicated no risk of burns or heatstroke emanating from the phone’s radiation.

France says Apple’s software fix should be adequate and that they’ll resume testing as soon as it arrives, which was spelled out in a French press release unearthed by TechCrunch. Apple regularly drops software updates for its iPhones, so it should show up in the near future. In the meantime, the company’s focusing its energy away from the three-year-old iPhone 12 and onto the new hotness that is the iPhone 15.

Amazon Prime members can save big on security cameras today. The retailer has a bundle including the Blink Video Doorbell and three Blink Outdoor 4 security cameras for 61 percent off. Usually $424.95, you can pick up the four-camera collection for $164.98.

You can connect the Blink Video Doorbell to your existing in-home chime or use it wirelessly. The device records in 1080p during the day and infrared at night. It supports two-way audio so you can hear and talk with whoever shows up on your front step.

Meanwhile, wireless Blink Outdoor cameras can alert you to motion or people in your yard, allowing you to check in from your phone or Alexa devices. The outdoor cameras have a 143-degree field of view and on-device computer vision to help with nighttime recording. The Outdoor 4 also supports two-way audio.

Blink

Each camera in the bundle uses two AA batteries (included), which Amazon estimates will last up to two years. The collection also ships with four mounting kits and the Sync Module 2, a hub that connects the cameras to your Wi-Fi network. You can bring your own USB drive for local storage or subscribe to a Blink Subscription Plan ($3/month or $30/year) for cloud storage. You can choose between black or white options for the cameras, although there's no mixing and matching colors within the bundle: It’s all one or the other.

The deal only lasts through the end of today, wrapping up at midnight PST. Remember that you'll need a Prime membership to take advantage of the deal. If you don’t have one already, you can subscribe for $15/month or $139 / year.