Google has begun rolling out the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro’s latest update following a delay in December. As may you recall, the company “paused” the release of the OTA after there were reports of the software causing calls to drop and disconnect. The issue was such that Google took the nearly unprecedented move of removing the associated factory images for that update from its developer website.
In December, the company said the software would arrive sometime in “late January.” Last week, it pushed up that timeline to today, January 14th. “The update will be available for all devices over the following week, but exact timing may vary depending on your carrier and country,” the company said. To that point, some carriers have said they’ll begin pushing out the software starting early next week. For instance, Canadian carrier Fido notes on its website it’s targeting January 17th for the start of its rollout.
Now that the update is available, it includes all the fixes Google had planned to release in December in addition to more than a dozen new ones. Among other tweaks, you’ll find a fix for an issue that had caused the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro to drop a connection to a WiFi network in certain situations. Additionally, the update addresses a bug that had caused the phones to drain their batteries faster than expected.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) as well as several states, including New York, Tennesse and North Carolina, are reportedly investigating Meta’s virtual reality division in relation to potential anti-competitive behavior. According to Bloomberg, the FTC and involved state attorneys general began interviewing third-party developers last year to find out if the company has put them at a disadvantage when they’ve tried to compete against its own software.
Some third-party developers claim Meta frequently copies their best ideas and then makes it harder for their apps to function on its headsets. Among other developers, the outlet points to the experience of Virtual Desktop creator Guy Godin. In 2019, he added a feature to his app that allowed Oculus Quest owners to stream PC games to their headsets. Meta, then known as Facebook, reportedly threatened to delist the app if Godin didn’t remove the feature. That same year, the company released Oculus Link, a feature that allows Quest users to connect the headset to their PC via a USB-C cable.
It’s unclear how close the FTC may be to filing formal charges against Meta. The agency declined to comment on the matter for Bloomberg. However, what is clear is that Meta is firmly in the FTC’s crosshairs over its various acquisitions. In December, The Information reported the agency had opened a probe into its proposed $400 million deal to buy Supernatural studio Within. Separately, this week a federal judge allowed the FTC to proceed with an amended antitrust lawsuit that seeks to undo the company’s acquisitions of WhatsApp and Instagram.
One year, 10 months and eight days after the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 pandemic, Americans will be able to order free, at-home tests from the government. Starting on January 19th, you'll be able to visit COVIDTests.gov and request tests, which will be mailed to your home.
For now, the website only has a landing page in English and Spanish. It notes that the shipping costs will be covered too.
The Biden administration is buying one billion at-home, rapid tests to give to US residents for free. The hope is to make sure everyone has a test on hand when they need it. The White House said 500 million of those tests will be available on January 19th. At the outset, you'll be able to order four per residential address.
A phone line is being set up so those who can't access the website can place an order. The administration says it's working with national and local organizations to help people in at-risk and hard-hit communities to secure tests.
One important thing to note: the tests will usually ship within 7-12 days of ordering. That timeline won't be incredibly useful for people who show symptoms of COVID-19 or have a close contact with a positive case and don't have an at-home test handy.
Still, it's worth stocking up on these free tests, especially given how in-demand they are. Even Twitter accounts known for helping people secure new gaming consoles are providing stock alerts for COVID-19 tests these days.
It's that time again: Netflix is raising prices for customers in the US and Canada. Monthly prices are slated to increase a buck or two, depending on your subscription tier.
Reuters first reported that in the US, standard plans would go from $13.99 monthly up to $15.49; Netflix's own help site confirmed the change, as well as a bump to the premium tier from about $18 to $19.99 monthly.
The change is essentially mirrored up north, where standard plans were hiked from 15.99 Canadian to 16.49. (Standard plans only cover the use of two screens simultaneously, while premium allows for up to four, as well as Ultra HD picture quality.)
If this all sounds familiar, it's because this is more or less what Netflix does every few years. An extra dollar or two was tacked on near the tail end of 2020. The same was true in January of 2019, October 2017, October 2015, May 2014, you get the idea. You start to forget that this service used to cost $8 a month a decade ago, albeit the company's original content ambitions have grown in parallel to the price, for better or worse.
Companion Mode is a second screen experience designed to support the shift towards hybrid working environments by providing easier access to various Google Meet controls and features for people calling in from a shared office.
Previously, workers who called in from a meeting room often had to jockey for control if they wanted to do simple things like raise their hand (virtually) or drop a comment in chat. The result was that employees who worked remotely and called into meetings using a phone or PC were often more active and visible in meetings than their colleagues at the office who participated using a traditional conference room set up.
However, thanks to the addition of Companion Mode, office workers will soon get access to most of Google Meet’s features via Nest Hub Max or other certified hardware like a Lenovo Tap while still being part of the shared meeting. And while the Nest Hub Max might not be a common sight in conference rooms today, this new mode could help Google push more devices to businesses of all sizes as they adapt to post-pandemic working arrangements. To join a meeting using Companion Mode, you can either activate the setting in Google Meet’s “green room” or by using a dedicated URL: g.co/companion.
Google Meet features available in Companion Mode include chatting, starting and voting on polls, raising your hand (which includes displaying a person’s name and title), using host controls and turning on captions or translations.
Google says the goal is to ensure that regardless of where you’re working from, everyone in a video call will have access to a similar set of tools and features. Companion Mode will be enabled by default, though, for people using the free version of Meet, it’s important to note that anyone using it will count as an additional participant towards the 100-person limit, instead of a room full of people counting as a single attendee.
Companion Mode in Google Meet is rolling out this week, though depending on your domain or user type, it may take another few weeks for it to be available on your device.
Last June, Alphabet’s self-driving unit worked with J.B. Hunt, a trucking and logistics company, to test its Waymo Via technology in Texas. On Friday, the two announced they’re forming a strategic partnership with the hope of deploying a fully autonomous trucking operation within the state sometime in the next few years. In the immediate future, Waymo and J.B. Hunt say they plan to hold multiple pilots involving Waymo Via. That’s the Waymo Driver-powered unit the Alphabet subsidiary developed for Class 8 trucks. They also plan to complete additional market studies.
The expanded partnership follows a successful first pilot in which Waymo and J.B Hunt said they moved 862,179 lbs of freight without their test trucks speeding or ending up in any accidents. The conclusion they drew at the time was that Waymo Driver was ready to deliver freight on-time and safely. Waymo is just one of a handful of companies working on autonomous trucking technology. A few months before the company completed its June pilot with J.B. Hunt, Aurora, the startup that acquired Uber’s Advanced Technologies Group, announced it was working with Volvo to build fully autonomous semi trucks that would carry cargo across North America.
Netflix is making a bigger push into sports docuseries following the success of Formula 1: Drive to Survive. We learned this week that a show covering the 2022 PGA Tour and men's major golf championships is on the way, and now the company has announced a similar show covering the world of top-level tennis is in the works.
All three shows are being produced or co-produced by the same company, Box to Box Films. Netflix says the as-yet-untitled tennis series will devote equal time to men and women. The names of the players involved haven't been revealed, according to Bloomberg, but given the high-profile names taking part in Drive to Survive and the golf show, expect the tennis series to feature prominent figures.
Netflix has locked in deals with both tennis governing bodies, the ATP and WTA, as well as the organizers of the four Grand Slam tournaments — the biggest events on the tennis calendar. Given that production has started at the Australian Open, the docuseries could start with some major drama.
On Friday, Australian officials once again revoked the visa of Novak Djokovic, the world's top-ranked men's player, this time "on health and good order grounds." Djokovic, who is unvaccinated against COVID-19, said earlier this month that he was granted a medical exemption to travel to Australia and continue his quest for a record 21st men's Grand Slam singles title. However, questions were raised about the validity of his exemption, and he admitted to making an "error of judgment" by attending public events in December while awaiting the awaiting the results of a COVID-19 test. He tested positive.
Drive to Survivehelped to boost the popularity of Formula 1, especially among US viewers. Tennis execs will surely be hoping for a similar effect from the upcoming docuseries. Last year's US Open drew an average of 796,000 viewers, the second-lowest viewing figures since ESPN secured rights to the tournament in 2015.
Five dozen companies specializing in women’s health products and services say Facebook has frequently rejected their ads over objections they contain “adult content,” according to a report the Center for Intimacy Justice published this week. Facebook’s advertising policies prohibit reproductive health products or services that focus on sexual pleasure, but anecdotes from the companies the Center for Intimacy Justice either interviewed or surveyed paint the picture of a company that enforces those guidelines in a way that’s seemingly arbitrary and sexist.
The 60 companies that took part in the report have all had advertisements rejected by Facebook at one point or another. About half said they’ve also had their accounts suspended by the social media giant. One such company is Joylux. It offers vFit Gold, a product women can use to strengthen their pelvic floor. “Because of the nature of our product, the look of it,” Joylux CEO Colette Courtion told The New York Times Facebook and other companies believe it’s “pornographic” in nature.
Since 2017, Joylux claims Facebook has shut down its advertising account twice. It says the company never provided a reason for those actions. It also claims Facebook has automatically denied ads that include “vagina.” That’s something Meta, Facebook’s parent company, disputes. A spokesperson for the company told Engadgetitdoesn’t enforce a blanket ban on keywords like “vagina” and “menopause.” Instead, it says it considers “how each ad is positioned.”
Center for Intimacy Justice
With help from an agency specializing in appealing ad rejections, Joylux has managed to get its ads up on Facebook in recent years. However, the company has had to change its copy to the point where those advertisements aren’t helpful to consumers. “We can’t show what the product looks like and we can’t say what it does,” Joylux told The New York Times.
A spokesperson for Meta told Engadget its enforcement isn’t perfect and that sometimes it makes mistakes. The company also noted it has its current policy in place in part because it strives to take into account what people from different countries and cultures will take away from ads that promote adult products.
“We welcome ads for sexual wellness products but we prohibit nudity and have specific rules about how these products can be marketed on our platform,” the spokesperson said. “We have provided detail to advertisers about what kinds of products and descriptions we allow in ads.”
What makes Facebook’s actions in these instances frustrating for the 60 companies that took part in the report is that they believe Meta hasn’t applied the same standards to ads targeting men. “Right now, it’s arbitrary where they’ll say a product is or isn’t allowed in a way that we think has really sexist undertones and a lack of understanding about health,” Jackie Rotman, the founder of the Center for Intimacy Justice, told The Times.
To that point, the organization found an ad promoting an erectile dysfunction pill that promised a “wet hot American summer.” Another, promoting a lubricant, said the lotion was “made just for men’s alone time.”
Hackers have hit around 70 Ukraine government department websites, forcing many of them offline. A message in Ukrainian, Russian and Polish on the country's foreign ministry site reportedly read "Ukrainians! All your personal data has been uploaded to the public network. All data on the computer is destroyed, it is impossible to restore them.”
The page referenced "historical land" and featured crossed-out versions of Ukraine map and flag. "All information about you has become public, be afraid and wait for the worst. This is for you for your past, present and future," the message is said to have read. Along with the foreign ministry site, the state emergency service, state treasury and the ministries of education, foreign affairs, sport, energy, agrarian policy, veterans and environment were reportedly targeted.
However, Ukraine's security service told CNNthat personal data was not affected. It noted that most services have been restored.
According to the Ukrainian Information Ministry, early indications suggest the Russian Federation carried out the attack. "This is not the first time or even the second time that Ukrainian Internet resources have been attacked since the beginning of the Russian military aggression," the ministry said in a statement.
The Ministry of Culture and Information Policy suggested that references to Ukrainian ultra-nationalist groups in the message were an attempt by hackers to mask the "Russian footprint." The ministry added that "It is obvious that this was done on purpose to cast a shadow over the hacker attack on Poland: Russia and its proxies have been working for a long time to create the quarrel between two friendly neighboring countries."
Hackers believed to be from Russia have targeted other parts of Ukraine's infrastructure in recent years. In 2015, an attack took out parts of the power grid. Since then, Russia was also blamed for attacks on Ukraine's weapon supply and the Kiev airport. The NotPetya cyberattack, for which the US charged Russian hackers in 2020, impacted the Ukrainian government and banking system, a state power distributor and an airport, as well as entities in Russia and the US.
The latest attack took place as Russia mobilizes 100,000 troops to Ukraine's border. Western allies fear Russia will again invade Ukraine, following its annexation of Crimea in 2014.
Attempts by the US, NATO and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe to de-escalate the situation in talks with Russia this week haven't proven successful. Russia’s lead envoy said the discussions hit a dead end.
Although Russia has denied plans to attack Ukraine, it said it may take action if its demands aren't met. Among those is an assurance that Ukraine and Georgia won't join NATO.
Jens Stoltenberg, the secretary general of NATO, condemned the cyberattack on Ukraine. He said NATO has been working with the country for years to bolster its cyber defenses and that the two sides will sign an agreement on enhanced cyber cooperation in the coming days. As part of that, the country will gain access to NATO’s malware information sharing platform.
This week brought deals on Apple devices, gaming gear and more. The Mac Mini M1 remains on sale for $600 while the 3rd-generation AirPods are back down to a record low of $140. Nintendo's Ring Fit Adventure is back in stock and $25 off, while you can still get a one-year Switch Online family membership plus a microSD card for 50 percent off. Here are the best tech deals from this week that you can still get today.
Nintendo Ring Fit Adventure
Devindra Hardawar / Engadget
The Ring Fit Adventure is back on sale for $55, or $25 off its normal price. It's a good option for Switch owners who want to work out more in the new year but don't want to go outside to do it. Joy-Cons strap to the included ring and leg strap so the game can record your movements as it has you doing things like squats and crunches to progress through a fantasy world, defeat enemies and more.
Apple's latest AirPods are on sale for $140 right now, or 22 percent off their normal price. These are the company's newest earbuds and we gave them a score of 88 for their improved design, better audio quality and long battery life.
The 2020 MacBook Pro M1 remains $150 off, bringing the model with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage down to $1,150. It's not the latest MacBook Pro with the higher-end CPUs that Apple recently came out with, but it's still a viable option. We gave it a score of 84 for its speedy performance, lovely display and its long, 16.5-hour battery life.
The base Mac Mini M1 is $100 off thanks to a sale and an additional coupon, bringing it down to $600. This model runs on the M1 chipset along with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. This is Apple's most affordable M1 machine, making it a good option if you're in need of an upgraded desktop.
Amazon still has a bundle that includes a one-year Switch Online family membership and a 128GB SanDisk microSD card for $35. You're essentially getting the microSD card for free here, and the family-plan subscription gives up to eight people access to online play, cloud data storage and a library of NES and SNES games to play whenever you want.
The Galaxy Buds 2 are down to $100 right now, or $50 off their normal price. We gave them a score of 84 for their improve sound quality, adjustable ambient sound mode, comfortable design and support for wireless charging.
Samsung's latest smartphone, the Galaxy S21 FE, is officially available and starting to ship and Amazon throws in a $100 gift card if you order the handset through the online retailer. We briefly tested the FE at CES 2022 and called it "last year's flagship without the frills," and it includes a 5-nanometer processor, a 120HZ display, a 32-megapixel front-facing camera, a larger battery and more.
The Nest Audio smart speaker is down to $75, which is $25 off its regular price. While not as good as its Black Friday price, it's still a good discount on one of our favorite smart speakers. It earned a score of 87 from us for its excellent audio quality, stereo mode and minimalist design. You can also pick up the Nest Mini for only $25.
The second-generation Nest Hub has been discounted to $60, or $40 off its normal price. That's also only $10 more than it was during the holiday shopping season. We gave it a score of 89 for its nice 7-inch display, improved performance and audio quality plus its new sleep tracking feature.
Withings' Body+ smart scale is 41 percent off for today only as part of a daily deal on Amazon that includes a number of other similar scales. Withings' gadget connects to WiFi and tracks things like your weight change, body fat and water percentage, muscle and bone mass and more.
Engadget readers can get a total of two free audiobooks when signing up for Libro.fm, the audiobook subscription service that supports local bookstores. Similarly to Audible, a Libro.fm membership costs $15 per month and gives you one audiobook credit per month, plus 30 percent off any audiobooks you buy á la carte.
The second-generation Echo Show 5 is on sale for $45, or 47 percent off its normal price. Not much has changed from the first to the second generation, but that's ok. We gave the latest model a score of 85 for its good sound quality, tap-to-snooze feature and quaint design.
The Wyze Cam v3 with spotlight kit is 32 percent off, knocking it down to $36. This is one of the easiest smart home security cameras to use, and one of the most affordable, and the spotlight kit will make it more useful as an outside cam at night.
HBO Max is having a sale through January 25th that knocks 20 percent off its monthly plans. That means you can get the service with ads for $8 per month or the ad-free tier for $12 per month, with both discounted rates lasting for one year. Current HBO Max subscribers cannot take advantage of the deal, but if you recently cancelled and wanted to come back, you should be able to get the discount.
