When it comes to true wireless earbuds, Jabra consistently covers nearly all the bases. The company has continued to improve design, features and technology since the Elite 65t, but there was one thing it was still missing: a low-cost model for around $100. That changes today as Jabra is announcing the Elite 3: an $80 set of true wireless earbuds with more features than we typically see at this price. 

Like the other two new models Jabra debuted today, the Elite 3 has a new design with smaller earbuds the company says are comfy enough for all-day wear. What's more, the buds are IP55 rated dust and water resistant so you won't have to worry about using them for workouts or if you get caught in the rain. Even with the lower price, you still get customizable on-board controls on each side with physical buttons instead of touch controls. Jabra gives you options like play/pause, track control, volume, voice assistant and one-touch access to Spotify. There's also the ability to activate HearThrough mode with a single press, the company's name for ambient sound. No on-board option for active noise cancellation (ANC) though because these earbuds only offer passive noise isolation. 

Jabra

Jabra says it set out to build a more affordable set of earbuds that "still offers exceptional sound quality." To do so, the company relies on 6mm drivers along with aptX support. The Elite 3 has four microphones for calls, so you can use them with Zoom between podcasts. They're compatible with Jabra's Sound+ app as well, which will allow you to dial in the EQ, customize the on-board controls and more. Plus, the Elite 3 works with Google Fast Pair on Android devices so setup there should be quick and easy. 

Jabra says the Elite 3 will last up to seven hours with three additional charges in the case. A fast charge feature gives you up to an hour of use after 10 minutes in the case. When the time comes to top off the entire set, you'll need a USB-C cable as this model doesn't support wireless charging. 

The Elite 3 will be available tomorrow (September 1st) from Jabra's website and Amazon in dark grey, navy, beige and light purple color options for $79.99. 

In addition to the Elite 3, Jabra also introduced a new flagship noise-cancelling model with the Elite 7 Pro. There's a sport version of those earbuds as well (Elite 7 Active), but the Pro offers adjustable ANC, customizable controls, long battery life and wireless charging. It also has new tech that Jabra dubbed MultiSensor Voice the company says will improve your audio during calls and Zoom meetings. These two options are more expensive at $180 and $200, plus they won't be available until October 1st.

If you missed the previous sale earlier this month, you have another chance to grab one of Amazon's Echo Show 5s for less. Both the first- and second-gen versions of the compact smart display are on sale right now, with the original Echo Show 5 going for $45 and the updated version, which came out earlier this year, only $10 more. 

Unlike the new Echo Show 8, the Show 5s are designed to fit neatly on your nightstand and act as smart alarm clocks. Each have a 5.5-inch, 960 x 480 touchscreen that shows the time along with things like weather forecasts, news headlines and more. They are also capable of making video calls thanks to their built-in camera and mics, and if you have multiple Alexa devices in your home, the Show 5s can be part of your larger intercom system. And when you need more privacy, you can shutter the camera and flip a switch to turn off the microphone. The smaller display isn't ideal for streaming video, but you are able to do so if you wish, along with music, podcasts, audiobooks and more.

Both Show 5 models shine as smart alarm clocks thanks to their sunrise alarm feature, which slowly brightens the screen 15 minutes before you're supposed to wake up, and tap-to-snooze function. Both also have an ambient light sensor that adjusts the screen's brightness depending on the light in your environment, so you'll never get woken up in the middle of the night by an ultra-bright display.

When it comes to differences between the first- and second-gen devices, there aren't many. The new Echo Show 5 has a 2MP camera, better than the 1MP camera in the first-gen, and it comes in a blue color in addition to the standard black and white options. Only those who plan on using the Show 5 to make video calls and drop in on family members would get the most out of the second-gen model — but when you can grab the latest version for only $10 more than the previous, it's not such a hard sell anymore.

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If you often need to tether to get internet, Netgear has a very interesting new product — if you can afford it. The Nighthawk M5 5G WiFi 6 Mobile Router (unlocked) takes a 5G SIM card that's compatible with AT&T and T-Mobile's networks. Once installed, it will distribute data over WiFi 6 to a maximum of 32 devices with greater range and speed than your smartphone could ever manage. 

Powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon X55 Mobile Platform, it delivers maximum theoretical speeds of up to 1.2Gbps over WiFi 11ax. While few if any devices can handle those speeds, the extra throughput will be handy if multiple devices are connected to it. The router also has a dedicated ethernet port that can deliver up to 1Gbps and connect to a device or mesh WiFi network, for instance. On top of 5GNR Sub 6 GHz, it supports LTE CAT 20, LTE Advanced, 4x4 MIMO and 256QAM. 

Much like AT&T and Netgear's original Nighthawk LTE router, the 5G model can display pertinent information like the WiFi password and how much mobile data you've used. Other features include VPN pass-through support and password protection, 13 hours on a battery charge (or remove the battery and plug into the wall for all-day use), and the ability to plug in wired internet to conserve data.

There is one pain point: the price. The Nighthawk M5 5G WiFi 6 Mobile Router costs $700, considerably more than other 5G MiFi routers on the market. The main benefits are the fast speeds, the fact that it's unlocked to any carrier (though Netgear recommends AT&T and T-Mobile) and the ethernet port. If those features are important for you, it's now available to buy at Netgear's website. 

Polaroid is adding to its line-up of products that mix retro looks with modern smarts. The new Polaroid Now+ is an analog camera with Bluetooth connectivity and five physical lens filters. It's the first time the company has included the latter out of the box. You can clip the filters on to the camera's lens to saturate or deepen the contrast of your photos, or add new effects like starburst, red vignette, and orange, blue and yellow colors.

The new camera, which is out today for $150, is essentially an updated version of last year's Polaroid Now. This time, there's a new Blue Gray colorway (alongside white and black) that ditches the company's rainbow-colored strip for a more muted look. Polaroid also integrated the camera’s light sensor into the lens stage to accommodate the different filters. On top of the core autofocus, dynamic flash, and self-timer functions, the snapper now comes with a tripod mount.

What's more, Polaroid has made way for improvements on the software side. The Polaroid Originals app now boasts a new, streamlined design with new features including aperture priority and tripod mode, designed to offer more control over depth of field and long exposures. You can also swipe between light painting, double exposure and manual mode. The Polaroid Now+ camera is available online exclusively through Polaroid.

In a blow to both Apple and Google, South Korea has today passed a law requiring major app stores to allow alternative payment methods. The Wall Street Journal reports that the bill, due to be rubber-stamped by president Moon Jae-in, forces platform holders to open up their stores. In addition, the new rules will prevent unreasonable delays for app approvals, which has been described as a way to prevent retaliation against developers. Companies which fail to comply with the ruling are at risk of being fined up to three percent of their domestic revenue.

The bill could have global ramifications given the battles that Google and Apple have fought concerning their app platform dominance. Both companies have come under fire for how they run the App and Play stores, respectively, with regulators and developers scrutinizing their business practices. In July, 36 US states launched an antitrust suit against Google over concerns that it is violating antitrust law, while Apple has been engaged in well-documented skirmishes with both Epic Games and Spotify. Officials in both the US and Europe, both of which are wrestling with concerns over the future of digital payments, are likely to look at both South Korea’s law, and how both companies respond to it. 

For anyone struggling to tear kids away from consoles and phones for dinner, homework and, well, real life, spare a thought for the Chinese youth. China has announced a further crackdown on the time children can play online games, with the new limit set to just three hours per week. Platforms like Tencent can now only offer gaming to kids between 8pm and 9pm on Friday, weekends and public holidays.

Earlier this month, Tencent was forced to cut the time minors could play its hit mobile game Honor of Kings to just an hour on weeknights and two hours on the weekend. 

Further strengthening of the rules won’t come as a surprise. Earlier last month, state-owned news outlets published an editorial calling video games “spiritual opium,” outlining all the negative ways gaming could affect China’s youth.

I can already imagine parents telling their kids about the tough gaming rules in China, and how they should count their blessings. I can also imagine most kids ignoring them.

— Mat Smith

VW customers will soon have a choice for in-car 4G connectivity

Starting next month, you'll be able to choose between Verizon and T-Mobile.

Volkswagen has unveiled a new feature for its Car-Net connected vehicle service that lets you get 4G data from two major US telecoms. It offers Verizon or T-Mobile, making it relatively easy to add your vehicle to an existing mobile plan.

Starting in September, VW owners in the US will be able to access the subscription plans on VW's dedicated website or via its mobile app. From there, they can add an account to their existing mobile wireless provider (assuming it's Verizon or T-Mobile) and pair it with their existing Volkswagen Car-Net subscription.

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Jon Stewart's Apple TV+ show premieres on September 30th

New episodes of 'The Problem With Jon Stewart' will arrive every other week.

Apple TV+

Jon Stewart will soon return to a screen near you to once again dissect some of the big issues of the day. His Apple TV+ series, The Problem With Jon Stewart, will premiere on September 30th. Rather than airing on a nightly basis, like The Daily Show, or even weekly, new episodes will arrive every other week. Stewart will tackle one topic per episode (similar to the much-missed Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj), with a companion podcast — of course — set to run alongside it.

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Apple is building a classical music streaming app after buying Primephonic

The classical-only service will shut down on September 7th.

Apple is expanding its music streaming options after buying classical service Primephonic. Apple Music aims to release a dedicated classical music app next year, which will combine Primephonic’s user interface with some of Apple's own features.

Primephonic wrote in a letter to users on its website saying that “to achieve our mission, we need to partner with a leading streaming service that encompasses all music genres and also shares our love for classical music." Primephonic has closed its doors to new users, and it will shut down on September 7th.

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Cheaper 'Neon Genesis Evangelion' Blu-ray sets are on the way

Welcome news for those who missed out on the fancy Ultimate Edition.

GKids

You’ll soon get to grab the Neon Genesis Evangelion Blu-ray set in the US, without paying through the nose. While a spendy $275 Ultimate Edition has already sold out, you'll still have a chance to buy a copy of the saga on Blu-ray as there are two other options on the way from distributor GKids.

Like the Ultimate Edition, the Collector's Edition package will be released on December 8th. Lock in a pre-order and it'll set you back $175, but it'll cost $220 as of the release date. The Standard Edition arrives a month earlier, lacking the classic dub or subtitles. It costs $60 or $46 if you pre-order.

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The biggest news stories you might have missed

A power surge shut down half of NYC's subways for five hours

Apple Arcade is getting an exclusive Lego Star Wars game

Instagram will require users to share their birthday in push for teen safety

Engadget Deals: Google's Nest Audio smart speaker is on sale for $80 right now

Your tiny Xbox 360 gamerpic may finally display properly on modern consoles

Fossil's new Wear OS smartwatches have faster charging and better health tracking

Samsung has launched a walkie talkie app for its smartwatches similar to Apple's, giving you a way to chat with friends without having to make a call. By "smartwatches," though, we really just mean the Galaxy Watch 4 and Watch 4 Classic — the app, first spotted by XDA-Developers, only works with the tech giant's latest wearables and isn't compatible with any of their predecessors. 

That would limit the number of friends you can chat with, since they also need to own the latest Galaxy Watch. That said, the app's Google Play description says "two or more users" can have instant conversations, so you may be able to use the app outside of secret one-on-one chats in the middle of the night. Provided you know other people who have a Watch 4, of course, unless Samsung decides to roll the app out for its previous wearable.

To be able to use the feature, you need to log into your Samsung account on a phone connected to your watch. Samsung also recommends using and running the app for the first time while that watch is connected to a smartphone. After that, you'll be able to create channels for your conversation, connect to a nearby friend's watch and talk by pressing a big mic button at the center of the screen. You'll also be able to toggle the feature off any time you're feeling anti-social. 

The rumored satellite features for future iPhones are reserved for emergency uses only, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. A few days ago, a report by well-known analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said the next iPhones will come with support for Low Earth Orbit satellite calls and messages. Gurman's sources said, however, that Apple isn't turning its devices into actual satellite phones, at least for now. Instead, the tech giant is reportedly developing at least two emergency-related features relying on satellite networks. 

The first feature is called Emergency Message via Satellite and will be added as a third protocol, alongside iMessage and SMS, to the Messages app. It's apparently codenamed Stewie inside the company and will allow users to text emergency services even when there's no signal, which sounds especially useful during emergencies in remote locations, such as mountains and forests.

The tool will also give users a way to text their emergency contacts simply by typing Emergency SOS in the recipient line. Messages will be restricted to a shorter length, but the senders' contacts will get a notification for them even if their phone is set to Do Not Disturb. Satellite messages will appear as gray bubbles instead of blue or green so they can be easily identified. Eventually, the feature could handle phone calls, as well.

Apple is also reportedly working on a second satellite feature that will allow users to report crisis situations like plane crashes and fires. This system will give users a way to report the incident at length and will ask them specifics, such as if anybody needs search-and-rescue services or if anybody in the vicinity is armed. It can also automatically send authorities the reporter's location and their details from the Health app, such as their medical history, age, medications and information like height and weight. The feature can also a notify the reporter's emergency contacts for them.

While both features sound useful, their availability is restricted by satellite location and reach. They might not work for some regions, and in some cases, users may have to walk outdoors in a certain direction where their iPhone can connect to a satellite. Also, Gurman's sources said it's unlikely that the features will be ready before the year ends, which means the next iPhones expected be announced sometime in September won't be able to send messages via satellite yet. 

Instagram will require users to share their birthday, an update the company says is meant to protect young people using its app. The photo app already asks new users to provide a birthday when they sign up, a requirement that’s been in place since the end of 2019. But people who previously signed up may not have shared the information.

But over the “next few weeks” Instagram will begin prompting users who haven’t previously shared a birthdate to do so. While they will initially be able to dismiss the prompts, the app will eventually require birthdays from everyone.

For now, there’s two scenarios in which users will be asked for their birthdays. First, the app will show a notification “a handful of times.” A separate prompt may also appear if users try to view a post that’s hidden behind a warning screen. These warnings appear on “sensitive content” that might not break Instagram’s official rules, but could be considered borderline, such as “suggestive” images or photos of medical procedures. Users will no longer be able to view these posts until they provide a birthday, and younger teens may not be able to see these posts at all.

Instagram

The company also says it will use artificial intelligence to detect when a user may have provided a false birthday, and that some users may be asked to “verify” their age. “In the future, if someone tells us they’re above a certain age, and our technology tells us otherwise, we’ll show them a menu of options to verify their age,” the company says. “This work is still in the early stages, and we look forward to sharing more soon.”

The changes are the latest as Instagram has tried to beef up security and privacy features for its youngest users. The company has also said it will switch to making younger teens’ accounts private by default, and has limited advertisers’ ability to target the demographic. It also recently introduced features to prevent adult strangers from messaging teens. Instagram has also said it’s in the early stages of thinking about a version of its service for users under the age of 13, which has prompted concern from lawmakers and other officials.

Google's Nest Audio has been one of our favorite smart speakers since it came out almost a year ago. When compared to other $100 devices, it packs a lot of value and will be especially attractive for those who already use the Google Assistant a lot. But now you can grab the speaker for even less because Best Buy and B&H Photo have the Nest Audio for only $80. While we did see the speaker drop to $75 ahead of Amazon Prime Day back in June, this is the best price we've seen since then.

The Nest Audio is Google's answer to Amazon's Echo and Apple's HomePod mini and it holds its own against both of those devices. We like its attractive, minimalist design and you have five colors to choose from, so you'll likely find one that fits well with the rest of your home decor. It takes only a few minutes to set up the Nest Audio via the Google Home mobile app, and once that's set, you're able to ask the Google Assistant to play music from a bunch of sources like Spotify, YouTube Music, Apple Music and Pandora.

If the Nest Audio is your first smart speaker that costs more than $50, you'll immediately notice the difference in audio quality. It's leaps and bounds better as a music player than the Nest Mini or the Echo Dot, and it sounds even better if you have two Nest Audios playing in stereo mode. It even has Media EQ, which adapts the audio to better fit what you're listening to (like music vs. podcasts), and Ambient QI, which changes the Assistant's output so you can hear it better in louder environments.

And as with other assistant-toting devices, you'll be able to call upon the Google Assistant when you have a question that needs answering, when you want to know what the weather will be like tomorrow, when you want to turn on your smart lights and more. If you're an Android user or simply use a bunch of Google services every day, the Nest Audio is one of the best smart speakers you could add to your home that will make it easier for you to access your information at any time.

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