Battery life has long been a key limiting factor in drone use. Although there are commercial models that can stay aloft for 45 minutes or longer on a single charge, being able to keep drones in the air for longer would be helpful for many purposes. Researchers at the University of Southern Denmark have been working on that issue for several years by developing drones that can recharge directly from power lines.

This time around, the scientists attached a gripper system to a Tarot 650 Sport drone, which they customized with a electric quadcopter propulsion system, an autopilot module and other components. When the drone's systems detect that the battery is running low, the device employs its camera and millimeter-wave radar system to pinpoint the closest power line, as New Atlas notes.

The drone then flies up to the power line from underneath, using a pair of inward-sloping arms to guide the cable into the gripper. An inductive charger pulls current from the power line. When the battery is full, the gripper opens and the drone continues on its way.

At the outset, the idea is for drones that inspect power lines to use this charging system. The researchers first showed off a self-charging drone that tops up its battery from power lines in 2022. This time around, they improved the gripper system and demonstrated a real-world use case for the tech.

In a paper they're presenting at next month's IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, the team described the project as "to the best of our knowledge, a first-in-the-world system with the ability to sustain operation throughout many inspection/charging cycles powered by energy harvesting from power lines in a real outdoor environment." In arguably the most successful test, the drone stayed aloft for over two hours through five cycles of power line inspection and charging.

Drones have been used for years to monitor and inspect power lines. They're particularly useful in remote areas, such as mountain tops, where examining power lines manually is a tough ask. Still, it's hard not to feel a little uneasy about drones clamping onto power lines. If anything goes wrong and a drone somehow ends up damaging a power line, an entire region could lose electricity. Charging pads for drone exist and may be a safer option, but they'd require extra space for infrastructure.

Google has finally launched its long-awaited Find My Device network after teasing it at last year’s I/O event. The technology leverages a crowdsourced network of over a billion Android devices to help people locate lost gadgets, with a basic functionality in line with similar offerings from Apple and Tile. It’s rolling out today to Android users in the US and Canada, with a global release coming soon.

Once installed, people can use the app to locate compatible Android phones and tablets. The tool will cause them to ring at your command and their location will pop up on a map. This map data works even if the items are offline. Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro smartphones will appear on the map if they’re powered off or if the battery is completely dead. That sounds pretty handy.

The technology isn’t yet available for everyday items, but that’s coming soon. Bluetooth tracker tags from Chipolo and Pebblebee will get integrated into the Find My Device app in May. This will let users locate just about anything, including car keys, purses, wallets and, hopefully, wandering felines. The upcoming tags are being built specifically for the network.

Google

The Pebblebee offerings include tags, clips and slim cards for wallets. They hit store shelves in late May or early June. Chipolo is making versions of its One Point and Card Point trackers for Android devices, which will arrive in May. Google says more trackers are coming later this year, including products made by Motorola and eufy.

Google’s Find My Device service also integrates with Nest smart home gadgets. If you lose something in the home, the Find My Device app will show you the location of the item in relation to pre-existing Nest devices. This should help provide an “easy reference point” to snatch them back up.

Finally, there’s a nifty feature that lets you share the location of an item with other people, so friends and family can keep an eye on precious belongings. Google says it’ll let folks “easily divide and conquer if something goes missing.” 

The new Find My Device tracking technology works on devices running Android 9 and above. That OS came out in 2018, so it means a whole lot of people will have access to this service. As for compatible products beyond Android devices and Bluetooth tags, the company says future software updates will allow integration with a full range of headphones from JBL and Sony.

Of course, there are the usual privacy concerns with this kind of thing. Google says that users can opt out of the service via a web portal if they feel uncomfortable, according to a story by The Verge. Reports indicate that the technology has been ready for a while, but Google delayed it until Apple implemented tracking protections into iOS to address stalking concerns. To that end, both companies announced a partnership last year to develop industry standards to fight the misuse of tracking devices. Apple applied updated protections against stalking in iOS 17.5, which is still in beta. 

The GoPro Hero 12 already had the promise of a better battery life than its predecessors. When you toss a battery grip into the mix, the company says you'll get over five hours of continuous 4K recording at 30 frames per second (depending on conditions). That's bound to be pretty enticing for those who like to capture as much footage as they can during a day of action sports or travel vlogging. What's even better is that a bundle of the camera and battery grip is on sale for $499 at Amazon and GoPro directly. The bundle is $100 off the regular price and a record low.

Along with 4K footage, you can film in HDR at a resolution of 5.3K at up to 60 frames per second. You can shoot in 4K at up to 120 fps too, while there's 10-bit color support. A vertical capture feature makes it a cinch to shoot footage for apps like TikTok even while the camera is in a horizontal orientation.

GoPro's stabilization tech is in full force here as well, with the company claiming HyperSmooth 6.0 can give you "impossibly smooth footage no matter how rough it gets." A horizon lock option should keep the horizon steady as you move the camera.

There's directional audio support thanks to the microphone on the included Media Mod, which has a 3.5mm mic port and micro HDMI port too. You can also connect AirPods, Bluetooth earbuds and wireless microphones to the camera and even use voice commands..

The battery grip affords you single-hand control over the camera. It has a built-in tripod and you can remove it to operate the GoPro Hero 12 remotely from up to 30 meters (98 feet) away. Along with the battery grip and Media Mod, the bundle includes a self-explanatory Light Mod and Enduro Battery.

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Apple, in its latest update to its App Store developer guidelines for iPhones and iPads, flagged by 9to5Mac, says it will allow game console emulators – and even downloadable games.

Apple warns developers, however, they “are responsible for all such software offered in [their] app, including ensuring that such software complies with these Guidelines and all applicable laws.” So don’t expect to play Super Mario, Spyro, or a third game series that starts with an 'S'.

Meanwhile, we have a guide to watching (and recording) the total eclipse in North America later today. The best chance of good viewing along the path of eclipse totality is still in northeastern parts of the US (Buffalo, NY, Burlington, VT) and southeast Canada (Niagara Falls and Montreal).

— Mat Smith

The biggest stories you might have missed

iOS music apps in the EU can now send users to external websites for purchase

Best Buy’s Geek Squad agents say they were hit by mass layoffs this week

Meta asks a judge to throw out an FTC antitrust case

Polestar 4 first look: When no rear window means a better car

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OpenAI and Google may have transcribed YouTube videos to train their AI models

If so, they violated YouTube creators’ copyrights.

OpenAI and Google trained their AI models using text transcribed from YouTube videos, potentially violating creators’ copyrights, according to a report from The New York Times. The report centers on how OpenAI, Google and Meta have attempted to maximize the data they can feed to their AIs and cites numerous people with knowledge of the companies’ practices.

Not that these companies relied on the auto-generated (hit-and-miss) auto-transcriptions provided by YouTube itself. Reportedly, OpenAI used its Whisper speech recognition tool to transcribe more than a million hours of YouTube videos to train GPT-4. The report, however, claims people at Google knew but did not act — because Google was doing the same to train its own AI models. Google told NYT it only uses video content from creators who have agreed to it.

Continue reading.

Tesla will unveil a robotaxi on August 8

Musk made the announcement on X.

Hours after Reuters published a report about the automaker scrapping its plans to produce a low-cost EV, Tesla boss Elon Musk took to X to say the company would unveil a robotaxi on August 8. The same report said Musk’s directive was to “go all in” on robotaxis built on the company’s small-vehicle platform.

In response to the report, the Tesla chief tweeted “Reuters is lying (again).” Given he confirmed the robotaxi plans, he could have meant a more affordable Tesla EV was still on the table, at least for now.

Continue reading.

One of these concept lunar vehicles could join NASA’s next moon mission

Three companies are in the running.

NASA

Three companies are pitching lunar vehicle designs to support NASA’s upcoming Artemis missions. The space agency announced this week that it’s chosen Intuitive Machines, Lunar Outpost and Venturi Astrolab to develop their lunar terrain vehicles (LTV) in a feasibility study over the next year. The LTV will need to function as both a crewed and uncrewed vehicle, serving sometimes as a mode of transportation for astronauts and other times as a remotely operated explorer. NASA says it’ll contract the chosen vehicle for lunar services through 2039. Take a look at the options.

Continue reading.

Apple’s second-generation AirPods Pro have dipped to under $200 in a deal from Amazon. The AirPods Pro, which normally cost $250, are $60 off right now, bringing the price down to just $190. That’s the same price we saw during Amazon’s Big Spring Sale. The AirPods Pro offer a number of premium features over the standard AirPods, including active noise cancellation for when you want to shut out the world, and an impressive transparency mode for when you want to hear your surroundings.

The second-generation AirPods Pro came out in 2022 and brought Apple’s H2 chip to the earbuds for a notable performance boost. It offers Adaptive Audio, which will automatically switch between Active Noise Cancellation and Transparency Mode based on what’s going on around you. With Conversation Awareness, they can lower the volume when you’re speaking and make it so other people's voices are easier to hear.

We gave this version of the AirPods Pro a review score of 88, and it’s one of our picks for the best wireless earbuds on the market. The second-generation AirPods Pro are dust, sweat and water resistant, so they should hold up well for workouts, and they achieve better battery life than the previous generation. They can get about six hours of battery life with features like ANC enabled, and that goes up to as much as 30 hours with the charging case. Apple says popping the AirPods Pro in the case for 5 minutes will give you an hour of additional listening or talking time.

AirPods Pro also offer Personalized Spatial Audio with head tracking for more immersive listening while you’re watching TV or movies. The gesture controls that were introduced with this generation of the earbuds might take some getting used to, though. With AirPods Pro, you can adjust the volume by swiping the touch control.

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Geek Squad agents have been flooding Reddit with images of their badges and posts about “going sleeper” after the company reportedly conducted mass layoffs this week. A former employee who spoke to 404 Media said they were sent an email notifying them to work from home on Wednesday and were then called individually to be told the news about their jobs. Some, per 404 Media’s sources and numerous Reddit posts, were longtime Geek Squad agents who had been with the company for more than 10 or even 20 years. Best Buy has not yet responded to Engadget’s request for comment.

There has been an outpouring of support for the laid off workers on the unofficial Geek Squad subreddit, where many have lamented the loss of jobs they’d dedicated much of their lives to and noted that things in the lead up had been heading in a concerning direction. Some commented that their hours had dwindled in recent months, with one former employee telling 404 Media it’s been “a struggle to get by.”

Best Buy conducted mass layoffs affecting employees at its retail stores just last spring, and as The Verge reports, CEO Corie Barry indicated during the company’s February earnings call that more layoffs were coming in 2024 as Best Buy shifts resources toward AI and other areas.

In addition to updating its developer guidelines to allow music streaming apps to link to external website, Apple has also added new language that allows game emulators on the App Store. The updated guidelines, first noticed by 9to5Mac, now say that retro gaming console emulator apps are welcome and can even offer downloadable games. Apple also reportedly confirmed to developers in an email that they can create and offer emulators on its marketplace. 

Emulator software wasn't allowed on the App Store prior to this update, though developers have been finding ways to distribute them to iOS users. To be able to install them, users usually need to resort to jailbreaking and downloading sideloading tools or unsanctioned alternate app stores first. This rule update potentially eliminates the need for users to go through all those lengths and could bring more Android emulators to iOS.

Apple warns developers, however, that they "are responsible for all such software offered in [their] app, including ensuring that such software complies with these Guidelines and all applicable laws." Clearly, allowing emulators on the App Store doesn't mean that it's allowing pirated games, as well. Any app offering titles for download that the developer doesn't own the rights to is a no-no, so fans of specific consoles will just have to hope that their companies are planning to release official emulators for iOS. While these latest changes to Apple's developer guidelines seem to be motivated by the EU's Digital Markets Act regulation, which targets big tech companies' anti-competitive practices, the new rule on emulators applies to all developers worldwide. 

Tesla is introducing a robotaxi on August 8, Elon Musk has announced on X a few hours after Reuters published a report that the automaker is scrapping its plans to produce a low-cost EV. Reuters also said that Musk's directive was to "go all in" on robotaxis built on the company's small-vehicle platform. Tesla has been promising a more affordable EV with prices expected to start at $25,000 for years, and Musk said as recently as this January that he's optimistic the model will arrive in the second half of 2025. In response to the report, the Tesla chief tweeted that "Reuters is lying (again)."

He didn't clarify which part of the report was a lie, but considering he confirmed that Tesla is unveiling a robotaxi, he likely meant the news organization's claim that the company pulled the plug on a more affordable EV. At the moment, Tesla's cheapest vehicle is the Model 3, but its prices start at $39,000. It'll be interesting to see how the company will make a robotaxi work with its camera-only system — it dropped radar and other sensors, which robotaxi companies like Waymo use extensively, from its driver assistance technologies a few years ago. 

We highlight Samsung's Galaxy Tab A9+ in our Android tablet buying guide for those who just want a competent slate for as little money as possible. If that describes you, take note: The 11-inch device is now on sale for $170 at several retailers, including Amazon, Walmart and Best Buy. This deal has technically been available for a couple of weeks, but it still represents the lowest price we've tracked. For reference, Samsung typically sells the tablet for $220. Both the Graphite and Silver finishes are discounted.

Do note, though, that this price applies the base model, which includes 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage. The latter is expandable with a microSD card, but the limited memory can cause some stutters if you want to push the the tablet for anything beyond casual streaming and web browsing. Samsung sells a higher-spec model with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage: That one will be a better buy for gaming and more involved use, and it's also $50 off at $220, another all-time low.

As my colleague Sam Rutherford notes in our buying guide, the Galaxy Tab A9+ isn't likely to wow you in any one area, but it covers the basics well. Its 11-inch LCD display is well-sized and has a faster-than-usual 90Hz refresh rate, which helps the UI feel smooth to scroll through. The screen has a wide 16:10 aspect ratio, so it's better suited to landscape mode than the 4:3 display on an iPad. The metal and plastic frame is slick for the price, while the 7,040mAh battery should hold up for a day or two of casual use. And though no Android tablet really nails the software experience, most people should find Samsung's One UI to be cleaner than something like Amazon's Fire OS. The company says it'll provide OS updates through the eventual Android 16 and security updates through October 2027.

That said, this is still a cheap tablet. The Galaxy Tab A9+'s Snapdragon 695 chip is speedy enough but no powerhouse, and its charging speed tops out at a relatively meager 15W. There's no fingerprint reader, included stylus or formal water-resistance rating, either. If you're not beholden to Android, one of Apple's iPads will still be more well-rounded (though we expect to see new models arrive in the coming weeks). Still, at these prices, the Galaxy Tab A9+ is a solid buy if you're on a tighter budget.

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The Apple Vision Pro is an impressive piece of hardware, and the eye-tracking/hand gesture input combo is fantastic for navigating menus and the like. It’s not so great for gaming. There haven't been many easy ways to connect a third-party controller for playing iPad or cloud games. This is changing, however, as accessory manufacturer 8BitDo just announced Vision Pro compatibility for a number of its controllers.

These accessories are officially supported by Apple, so they should work as soon as you make a Bluetooth connection. No muss and no fuss. All told, eight devices got the Apple seal of approval here. One such gadget is the company’s Ultimate Bluetooth Controller, which we basically called the perfect gamepad for PC.

8BitDo

Other compatible devices include various iterations of the SN30 Pro controller, the Lite 2 and the NES-inspired N30 Pro 2. The integration isn’t just for game controllers, as 8BitDo also announced AVP compatibility for its Retro Mechanical Keyboard. Of course, the Vision Pro works out of the box with most Bluetooth keyboards.

This is pretty big news, however, as media consumption is one of the best parts of the Vision Pro experience. Video games fall squarely in that category. Just about every iPad title works on the device. If playing Cut the Rope on a giant virtual screen doesn’t do it for you, the headset also integrates with Xbox Cloud Gaming and Nvidia GeForce Now for access to AAA titles. 

8BitDo announced official controller support for Apple devices last year, though this was primarily for smartphones, tablets and Mac computers. The integration was thanks to new controller firmware and Apple's recent iOS 16.3, iPadOS 16.3, tvOS 16.3 and macOS 13.2 updates. It looks like all of the accessories that work with iPhones and iPads also work with the Vision Pro.