You won't have to wait much longer to see an honest-to-goodness production version of Volkswagen's ID.Buzz minivan. VW Group chief Herbert Diess has announced that his company will debut the reincarnated microbus on March 9th. He didn't share more beyond a sketch, but VW's testing of a self-driving prototype suggests the finished van won't lose many of the design cues from the nostalgia-inspired concept.
The ID.Buzz is expected to launch in Europe later in 2022, and reach American shores in 2023. You'll have to 'settle' for the passenger-focused long-wheelbase model in the US where Europeans will get short-wheelbase and commercial models. Europe is also more likely to get a self-driving variant, too. Entry models could start with rear wheel drive models that offer up to 200HP, while the range-topper could include AWD and 300HP. You may see up to three battery capacities.
The Buzz might not be as mass market-friendly as the ID.4 and other more conventional models, but it could still be one of VW's most important EVs. Like the Beetle, VW's microbus design remains iconic. The Buzz could serve as a halo vehicle whose cachet attracts buyers to the brand's overall EV lineup, even if they ultimately settle for another model.
It seems The Athletic, which quickly came to prominence for publishing exclusive reporting and high-quality sports journalism, is getting a new owner. According to The Information and Bloomberg, The New York Times has agreed to buy the subscription-based digital media company for $550 million.
The Times has set a goal of reaching 10 million subscribers by 2025 and it's well on the way. It had 8.3 million subscribers as of September 30th. Along with its digital and print publications, the Times has separate plans for its cooking and games (which includes crosswords) products. It bolstered its offerings in recent years by acquiring Wirecutter and placing the popular product review site behind a paywall.
It's not yet clear whether The Athletic will be rolled into the standard Times subscription or if it will remain a standalone product. The company previously said it didn't expect to turn a profit until next year. The Athletic had 1.2 million subscribers as of November, though its growth was reportedly slowing by that point. The Times held talks with the company last summer about a deal, according to reports, but it backed out before returning to the negotiating table last month.
The Athletic has a roster of talented, big-name sportswriters, many of whom it poached from publications across North America and the UK by offering competitive salaries. Back in 2017, co-founder Alex Mather told The Times (oddly enough) that his company "will wait every local paper out and let them continuously bleed until we are the last ones standing” and "suck them dry of their best talent at every moment." Mather later apologized for those remarks.
The late David Bowie's music is already immersive on many levels, but that's now reflected in the mixes themselves. All of Bowie's post-2000 studio albums (Heathen, Reality, The Next Day and Blackstar) plus a live album (A Reality Tour) have been remixed in Sony's 360 Reality Audio for release on Amazon Music Unlimited, Deezer and Tidal on January 21st. You can also listen to four of the A Reality Tour songs today (January 6th) at 7PM Eastern through Sony Square and YouTube, and through the Artist Connection mobile app afterward.
Importantly, longtime Bowie producer Tony Visconti was responsible for the mixes. This is as close as you'll get to a Bowie-approved mix in 2022, in other words, and it's a fitting tribute for the rock legend's imminent 75th birthday. You can use any headphones to listen in 360 Reality Audio, although Sony would clearly prefer you use its products.
This won't satisfy fans who want 360-degree mixes of full classic albums like Hunky Dory or Low (really, the album with "Sound and Vision" didn't get a rework?). You likewise won't be thrilled if you prefer services like Apple Music or Spotify. Only a handful of Bowie songs have received the spatial audio treatment to date, though — this is still a treat for enthusiasts eager for some audio bliss.
Sleep Number is back at CES this year with the latest version of its 360 smart bed. The company has packed more features into the product, such as the ability to monitor body temperature. The graphite-infused foam mattress can cool or heat each side of the bed to maintain each person's preferred temperature throughout the night. The Climate360 mattress also has such a feature. The smart bed can warm your feet to help you drift off too.
As with the current model, there's a snoring detection function. That can prompt the bed to raise your head to mitigate moderate snoring. In addition, the bed can tilt entirely to open your airway and help you breathe more easily while keeping your spine properly aligned.
One of the core ideas behind the latest model is that it's designed to adapt to your changing needs. For instance, it can be raised or lowered to help those who are pregnant, have an injury or are simply getting a little older to get in and out of bed.
Sleep Number
The 360 smart bed offers sleep tracking, and will provide details on things like how long and well you slept. Eventually, it may be able to monitor for signs of insomnia, sleep apnea or cardiac events and alert the sleeper about possible conditions. Software updates should add more features and insights over time.
The revamped 360 smart bed will be available in 2023. Pricing is expected to start at $1,099.
Sleep Number also announced some smart furniture that's designed to complement the bed. Features include mobility aids, individual noise reduction tech, ambient lighting and a built-in charging and storage pocket. The company will start shipping the furniture next year too.
Follow all of the latest news from CES 2022 right here!
In 2020, Spotify revealed that it was testing an ad setup that would make promo codes and special URLs during podcast ads a thing of the past. Starting today, those in-app advertisements are starting to roll out. The company says its call-to-action (CTA) cards will begin showing up on its original and exclusive shows when the corresponding ad or offer is mentioned during an episode.
The new CTA cards will show up in the Spotify app as soon as the ad plays during a podcast on the player interface as well as on the show and episode pages. If you leave any of those places to do something else — like stream music, for example — the ads will display when you return back to that podcast in those three locations. Essentially, Spotify sees this as a way to not only relieve you have having to remember a promo code or specific URL, but it also argues you'll be able to interact with ads or brands you're interested in when you have the time to do so. There's no doubt a simple tap, if you're interested in what you've just heard, is much more convenient than manually typing in the usual info. Of course, the downside is you'll now see ads in the app when listening to certain podcasts — even if you're a paid subscriber.
Spotify doesn't see this as a potential issue, since even paid users hear ads on podcasts when listening to shows through its app. The advertisements keep podcasts afloat after all, and have turned the medium into a lucrative tool for businesses to promote goods and services. However, some might argue seeing an ad in the app and listening to one during a show are two very different things. Brands will probably be willing to jump on board quickly though since Spotify says the clickable ads have generated twice as many site visits during the early adoption phase than the "traditional" ad reads for companies like Ulta Beauty, Athletic Greens and Squarespace.
The CTA cards are powered by Spotify's Streaming Ad Insertion, a powerful analytics platform for podcast ads that automatically slots in pre-recorded promotional reads in the ideal spot for each listener. This is how the app knows when to begin showing the corresponding card for the ad when you hear it during a show. Of course, Spotify is promoting the CTA method as the first "interactive" podcast ads, and there's no doubt brands will be excited to have a more visible and, most importantly, clickable way to reach audiences. But it will be interesting to see how listeners respond to visual ads in their streaming app, especially those who pay a monthly premium so they don't have to hear them on non-podcast content.
Follow all of the latest news from CES 2022 right here!
Apple's AirPods Max might finally be within reach if you were waiting for them to reach a price threshhold. Woot is selling the over-ear headphones in pink for just $400 to Amazon Prime members, or a steep $149 below their official sticker. That's the lowest price we've seen yet, and even the $460 for gray (the only other color option at Woot right now) is a solid deal. Just remember that Woot's return policy isn't the same as Amazon's.
The AirPods Max represent a considerably better value at this price. They pack a superb balanced sound, quality active noise cancellation and clever controls. In the Apple ecosystem, you'll also get perks like simple pairing and spatial audio. Throw in solid battery life and you'll likely be happy.
The caveats are familiar. Some of the advantages disappear if you use Android or Windows, and you may be better off with more universal alternatives like Sony's WH-1000XM4. Apple's included case offers little protection, too — you'll really want to buy a third-party shell if you routinely stuff the AirPods Max into your bag. If those aren't obstacles, though, you'll have few reasons to complain.
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The following contains minor spoilers for episode six of 'Star Trek: Prodigy.'
Star Trek: Discovery may have gone on an unexpected hiatus, but the new year does mean the return of its franchise stablemate Prodigy. When we last left the young crew of the USS Protostar, they had just left the Murder Planet and successfully fled the Diviner’s ship thanks to the activation of the ship’s secret experimental engine. Episode six, Kobayashi, picks up this thread, pushing the story… and possibly the timeline forward in some significant ways this week.
The title is a dead giveaway to one of the threads running through the episode, at least: “Kobayashi” is the name of the ship from the infamous “Kobayashi Maru” test (“Maru” means ship in Japanese). It’s basically a no-win scenario that cadets at Starfleet Academy are run through to test their readiness for command, except this time it’s self-proclaimed captain Dal in the big chair via a holodeck simulation.
Nickelodeon
That plot in itself is a fairly predictable set of circumstances, as Dal refuses to accept failure and tackles the holographic test again and again… and again. Aside from the absolute hilarity as Dal’s frustration mounts, it’s a pretty standard character study, designed to flesh out Dal and craft him more into the leader he wants to be.
There’s also some fan service here thanks to cameos from some favorite characters brought to life thanks to the wonders of CGI and well-chosen sound clips. As with Janeway, the show being animated keeps the older characters from having that creepy Rogue One Princess Leia look, but the audio samples could have used a lot more processing to have them match up. And why a show designed for newcomers needed this much fan service, I don’t know, but at least it’s not Rise of Skywalker bad.
Nickelodeon
The real progress in the episode occurs in the B-plot, where Gwyn is sulking after her father’s betrayal and she and Zero try to learn more about the protostar engine at the heart of their ship. Janeway has the files, except they’re classified and it’s up to Gwyn and Zero to try to open them up. And, though the initial reveal from them is a bit of a shocker (to be delved into next week), it’s the flashback sequence early in the episode that yielded the juiciest info for now.
We’re shown the Diviner 17 years earlier, in horrible health and already looking for the USS Protostar. He decides to create a “progeny,” in the hopes of continuing his race, even though it is against the rules. (Whose rules? That’s another unanswered question.) But the interesting reveal here is that the Diviner was already looking for the Protostar 17 years ago, suggesting that this series may not occupy the 2383 time frame we were given in press materials (though never mentioned on-screen).
Nickelodeon
Star Trek: Voyager returned from its Delta Quadrant trip in 2378, meaning that in order for a holographic recreation of Kathryn Janeway to exist (and the captain of the Protostar to be who it is) the earliest the Protostar could have disappeared is 2379. Even assuming the Protostar is built and launched in a year (which I doubt), Prodigy can’t take place any earlier than 2396, placing it firmly around the time of Picard, which is set in 2399. It’s possible that Prodigy is actually a few years later, however, making it the first Star Trek series set in the 25th century. Or the Protostar traveled through time, complicating things even further.
But assuming the time period is, in fact, the 25th century, this isn’t the first time we’ve seen the future of the Federation or Starfleet: Discovery is now set in the 32nd century, after all. But being much closer to the time period of earlier shows like The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine and, of course, Voyager makes Prodigy more of a direct continuation of that era. The inclusion of Janeway as a training hologram already gave us a peek as the vaunted status the Voyager crew holds after their Delta Quadrant sojourn, but now the advanced tech seen in episode three “Starstruck” suddenly makes a lot more sense knowing it might be a few years… or decades since Voyager.
With the exception of Picard, the live-action shows have largely stayed away from the immediate future of the TNG-DS9-Voyager era, choosing instead to retread the 23rd century or even jump forward nearly a thousand years. It’s certainly odd given the popularity of those shows, but in leaving it be Paramount+ has left a lot of room for Prodigy and Lower Decks to do something interesting there, experimenting with new genres while still appeasing hard-core fans. This may be the future we’ve been waiting to see on Star Trek.
If the base iPad doesn't have all of the power or bells and whistles you're looking for, your next best bet is the 2020 iPad Air. We gave the tablet a score of 90 when it first came out thanks in part to its speedy performance, healthy battery life and fun colors. Normally $599, the iPad Air is back on sale at Amazon right now for $539, or $60 off its normal price. Only the silver model has been discounted at the time of writing this, but if you don't mind skipping out on one of the more unique color options, this sale price is one of the best we've seen in months.
The Air sits in between the 10.2-inch iPad and the iPad Pros as Apple's mid-tier option. It runs on an A14 Bionic chipset with a six-core CPU and a four-core GPU, and this particular model on sale has 64GB of storage and WiFi 6 capabilities. Apple refreshed the tablet's design to make it look more like the Pros, complete with flat edges, a USB-C port for charging and a lovely 10.9-inch Liquid Retina Display. You won't get FaceID on this machine, but you will get TouchID thanks to the fingerprint reader on the device's power button.
Overall, we found the Air to be zippy both in performance and WiFi speeds, and its battery lasted up to 12.5 hours in our testing. While the latest iPad Pros are better if you're looking for a laptop replacement, you could use the Air as a 2-in-1 while on the go thanks to its compatibility with Apple's Magic Keyboard. It also supports the second-generation Apple Pencil, allowing it to be a digital notebook for those that prefer writing things out by hand.
A discount like this is a good one to consider if you want an all-purpose tablet that's one step up from the base iPad. However, there are a few noteworthy discounts on the 10.2-inch tablet right now, too. The 256GB WiFi model is $30 off and down to $449, while the 256GB, WiFi + Cellular model has hit a record low fo $580.
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Dual-screens, foldable OLED tablets, curved vertical screens and more. This year’s CES might be a quieter, more divisive affair, but pretty much everyone had some weird displays to show off.
Samsung’s epic 55-inch Odyssey gaming monitor is curved for a more immersive play experience. However, it can also rotate 90 degrees for more… spreadsheets and Slack channels? It can pivot and tilt via the height adjustable stand, so you can set it to the optimal angle — surprisingly important when you have a very tall, curved screen.
Then there’s ASUS’ ZenBook 17 Fold, an OLED tablet that can disguise itself like a 12.5-inch laptop thanks to a keyboard on top of the lower half of the screen. If you want to use the entire 17-inch display, you can stand the tablet up and use the keyboard separately. The images look like heady concept products from a few years ago – ASUS demoed this form-factor as Project Precog back in 2018 — but this is a genuine device headed to stores. Hopefully, ASUS learned lessons from Lenovo and Microsoft’s attempts at foldables.
BMW unveiled an e-ink vehicle exterior that can change color depending on weather and traffic conditions or just your mood. Alas no, this futuristic feature is nowhere near production-ready despite appearing at the show on a live demonstration vehicle. The current iteration can only swap between a pair of colors, thus the monochromatic e-readerish appearance you see here. However, the palette could eventually expand to display a rainbow of shades.
Finally, during its CES 2022 keynote address on Wednesday, GM officially unveiled its new 2024 Chevrolet Silverado EV, GM's second fully electric model built on the Ultium battery platform.
The fully electric full-size pickup will be available in two versions when it arrives late next year: the RST First Edition and a WT model designed for fleet usage. Both will have an estimated 400-mile range.
Razer’s first smart face mask, the Zephyr, went on sale in October for $100 and promptly sold out. Two years since it first revealed its debut mask, the company now plans to release a Pro version of the mask in 2022. It will have all the features of the standard model, including the dual-fan active filtration system with N95 filters and RGB lighting, but add voice amplification in the mix.
It will amplify your voice by 60 decibels up to one meter away. A button on the side will allow you to toggle the feature on and off. Sadly, funny voices are not included.
In addition to new laptops, masks and concepts galore, Razer also teamed up with Fossil to launch a special edition smartwatch. The Razer x Fossil Gen 6 smartwatch at CES 2022 is basically what you might expect: a pretty standard Wear OS device with straps and faces that are unequivocally lime green and Razery.
Popcorn Time, the app that was once popular for making pirating movies as easy as watching Netflix, has shut down. Its original developers took the service down and abandoned the project merely a few days after it launched in 2014. But since the project was open source, other developers were able pick up where they left off, and it's been killed and revived a few more times ever since. It remains to be seen whether Popcorn Time is now gone for good, but it looks like the biggest contributor to its most recent demise is the dwindling interest in the app.
On its website, the developers posted a graph of "popcorn time" searches over the past seven years. While the app enjoyed a ton of searches in the months after its launch in 2015, the graph shows a sharp decline in interest by 2016. Its popularity continued to wane, and it never really recovered after that, at least based on Google Trends.
According to Bloomberg, the group behind Popcorn Time announced its closure in an email. While they didn't say whether law enforcement action was a factor behind their decision to shut down the app this time around, Popcorn Time has had brushes with the law in the past. The original version may have closed after authorities got involved, and Hollywood studios even sued individual users who allegedly downloaded and shared copies of movies illegally.
Developers associated with Popcorn Time previously talked about how they're not responsible for piracy themselves, because the service doesn't actually host any content. Instead, it relied on a peer-to-peer sharing system and only provided a way for users to access content hosted on other people's computers.
