Nikon is taking a trip back to its glory days of 35mm film photography with its second Z-series APS-C (DX) mirrorless camera, the Z FC. Designed to evoke the company's famous FM2 SLR from the '80s, it offers generous manual controls, including dedicated dials for shutter speed, exposure compensation and ISO. The decidedly retro look might also appeal to folks looking at stylish models from Fujifilm and others.

Unlike Fujifilm's models, however, the Z FC has a standalone mode dial, so you won't set modes by combining settings from the ISO, shutter or aperture dials. It has a d-pad type control at the back, but (like the Z50) lacks a dedicated joystick. 

Nikon

The Z FC (presumably the FC stands for film camera?) isn't just about the looks and handling, though. It uses Nikon's Z mount system and shares the 20.9-megapixel sensor, Expeed 6 processor and other features with Nikon's Z50. 

However, it adds a fully-articulating OLED (rather than LCD) display, and a significantly faster USB-C socket for transfers, charging and director power. Other physical features include a 2.36 million-dot electronic viewfinder, single SD card slot, microphone port (no headphone port) and an EN-EL25 battery that delivers up to 300 shots on a charge. 

Nikon

Like the Z50, it can shoot at 11 fps with autofocus and auto-exposure enabled, with object, face and eye-tracking. However, it now lets you combine face and eye-tracking with a wide focus mode, expanding where the camera looks for a subject. 

You can shoot oversampled 4K video using the full sensor width, and the Z FC introduces full-time eye autofocus mode while shooting video. That, combined with the fully-articulating sensor, will make the Z FC much more useful for vlogging and shooting selfies than the Z50. 

To best take advantage of the small size and retro looks, Nikon also introduced the Nikkor Z 28mm f/2.8 (SE). It's relatively small and has a good field of view for tourist or street photography, and also offers a pleasantly retro look. 

The Z FC arrives in late July at $960 for the body only, $1,100 with the DX 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR kit lens or $1,200 with the new 28mm F.2.8 (SE) lens. The latter will also be sold separately for $300, but it won't arrive until the fall. 

Nikon

We may have to say farewell to SoftBank's adorable humanoid robot Pepper. According to Reuters, the Japanese conglomerate has stopped the robot's production last year and is slashing jobs across robotics-related businesses in several countries. Apparently, there wasn't much demand for Pepper, and SoftBank only ever produced 27,000 units manufactured by Foxconn. 

Nikkei has also reported that Pepper's production was halted due to weak demand, but the SoftBank rep it talked to denied that the company is killing the robot entirely. "We plan to resume production if demand recovers," the spokesperson said.

While Pepper sold out in under a minute when it was released in Japan in 2015, the company only produced 1,000 machines for its consumer launch. Pepper was built as a social robot that can recognize faces and basic human emotions, so it can interact with people. Most of the units SoftBank produced are leased to corporate clients, and the company also placed the robot in its mobile phone stores in Japan.

With a price of over $1,600, though, Pepper a bit too expensive for most developers and small businesses. Reuters' sources said its sales suffered from limited functionality and unreliability. Further, SoftBank wasn't able to give the robot more features, because culture clashes between its French business in charge of robotics projects and its Tokyo management reportedly affected Pepper's development. 

After SoftBank shifted its focus to the cleaning robot Whiz, Pepper was sidelined. The company plans to cut about half of its 330 staff positions in France in September, Reuters said, and half of the sales staff positions in the US and Britain had already been cut.

Following a beta test that started in mid-April, Microsoft has rolled out its Xbox Cloud Gaming service to all Game Pass Ultimate subscribers on iOS and PC. With today’s announcement, you can visit the xCloud website and start playing some of the games included in the Game Pass library through your browser. On PC, the service supports Edge and Chrome, while on iOS it’s accessible through Safari. What’s more, you can use a controller over Bluetooth or USB to play the included games.

Microsoft also shared that it’s now using custom Xbox Series X hardware to power the xCloud experience. For those with a fast enough internet connection, the new hardware will allow you to steam games at 1080p and up to 60 frames per second. At the same time, Microsoft is expanding its Designed for Xbox to include two iOS controllers: the Backbone One and Razer Kishi. With the new badge, both controllers will come with a complimentary three-month trial of Game Pass Ultimate for those who haven’t tried the service before.

Getting to the point where xCloud is available on iOS devices has been something of a journey for Microsoft. Citing its App Store policies, Apple initially said it wouldn’t allow game streaming apps on its devices, but then later carved out an exception to allow those apps to work through a browser.

When Microsoft released the first Insider preview of Windows 11 earlier today, it made an already confusing situation even harder to parse. As you may have noticed, you don't need a specific CPU or a TPM 2.0 chip to install the preview. In a new blog post, the company has outlined its reasons for doing that, and it comes down to a desire on Microsoft's part to get a better idea of what systems can run Windows 11.

"By providing preview builds to the diverse systems in our Windows Insider Program, we will learn how Windows 11 performs across CPU models more comprehensively, informing any adjustments we should make to our minimum system requirements in the future," the company said.

Microsoft says its "confident" PCs with 8th-generation Intel and AMD Zen 2 processors will meet the security, reliability and compatibility standards it plans to set with Windows 11. The company plans to pay close attention to those who test the OS on systems with 7th-generation Intel and AMD Zen 1 CPUs to see if some of the models in those families meet its standards.

Microsoft has also temporarily stopped offering its PC Health Check. The software was at the center of a lot of the confusion that came out over whether a specific computer could run Windows 11 or not. Acknowledging that fact, Microsoft said the app "was not fully prepared to share the level of detail or accuracy you expected from us." The company plans to address the faults of the app before rereleasing it later this year, ahead of the general availability of Windows 11 in the fall.

Samsung made a virtual appearance at Mobile World Congress with an event centered around Wear OS. The company has been working with Google on the smartwatch operating system over the last several months, and it showed off the latest One UI Watch experience during the stream.

One UI for Wear OS is designed to create a more seamless integration between smartwatches and phones, with apps and settings mirrored between Galaxy devices. Samsung didn't reveal a new Wear OS watch that takes advantage of the interface, unfortunately. You'll need to wait until an Unpacked event later this summer for that. That said, you can get caught up on the highlights from Samsung's MWC event with our four-minute supercut.

If you recently bought a Windows laptop, there's a good chance it may include a high refresh rate display. As far as recent computer advances go, it's one of the more noticeable upgrades you can get since they help make every interaction, including scrolling, look and feel significantly smoother. But turning up the refresh rate on your laptop's display is also a major battery drain. You can get the best of both worlds by manually switching between different refresh rates, but that's time-consuming to do and so Microsoft is introducing a new feature called Dynamic refresh rate (DRR) with the first Windows 11 Insider preview

As the name suggests, DRR will lower your laptop's refresh rate to 60Hz when you're doing things like writing emails and documents and then increase it to 120Hz when inking and scrolling so that those interactions feel more instantaneous. As of today, support for the feature is mainly limited to a handful of apps from Microsoft and Adobe. For instance, your computer's refresh rate will increase to a faster refresh rate when you're inking and scrolling in Office. However, Microsoft says more apps will support the feature over time. One thing to note is DDR won't turn on while you're playing a game, so no need to worry about putting you at a disadvantage in a competitve multiplayer match.

To try out DRR, you'll need a laptop that features a display with support for a variable refresh rate of at least 120Hz. You'll also need a graphics driver that supports the feature. As such, even if you have a laptop that meets the above requirements, you may not be able to enable DRR after installing the first Windows 11 Insider build. That's something Microsoft says it's working with manufacturers to address. But if your laptop has the necessary driver support, you'll find the option to turn on DRR in the Systems menu. 

At its MWC event today, Samsung showed off its latest smartwatch interface called One UI Watch. This software will run on top of the new Wear OS, which the company co-developed with Google. Those who follow Samsung closely will remember a version of One UI already exists for watches — it's meant to make the interface between Galaxy phones and watches feel more coherent. From what we saw today, it appears the latest One UI for Wear OS will attempt to do that too. In a press release, the company said "One UI Watch together with the new unified platform will create an entirely new Galaxy Watch experience."

When Google announced the latest wearable platform was made in collaboration with Samsung, it shared how it learned from the Korean company how to optimize certain processes for better responsiveness and battery performance. We also saw some changes to navigation, like a double click of a physical button to switch between running apps. But we have yet to get a full breakdown of the updated OS.

Today, Samsung showed a few more details on how things will work. For example, when you install compatible apps on your phone, they'll also be downloaded onto your smartwatch. Settings from your phone will also port over to your wrist — the various clocks for different cities you've picked will show up, while the numbers you've blocked will remain blocked. This also works the other way around, so if you block a person from your watch, they'll also get blacklisted on your Galaxy phones. According to a video of the new UI, the layout of the watch's Settings menu will also "closely reflect" that on your phone. 

Samsung

One of Tizen's shortcomings was a lack of third-party app support, and with the new Wear OS that opens up a whole new library of titles you can install. One UI Watch will offer the Google Play Store so you can get apps directly from your wearable. Some of the apps this brings include Couch25K, Facer, Adidas, GolfBuddy, Calm, as well as Google's apps like Maps, Messages, YouTube Music and more. 

Samsung and Google both also said there will be a new watch face design tool for Android developers to create more useful options that better display the data their users want at a glance.

While this is by no means an exhaustive look at the new Wear OS or One UI Watch, it gives us a better idea of what to expect. To fully experience the software, though, we'll have to wait till it rolls out to the public (or when devices ship with it) to not only see what it's like but also if it truly delivers the performance benefits that both companies have promised. 

Windows fans and developers can get their first taste of Windows 11 today, as Microsoft has begun rolling out the first preview for Windows Insiders. The build will show off the operating system's refined interface, with a centered taskbar and redesigned Start menu, as well as its improved window management. But you'll have to wait a bit for some of the more advanced features, like the integrated Microsoft Teams chat and Android app compatibility. To try out the Windows 11 preview build, you can sign up on the web or from the "Windows Insider Program" section in Windows 10's settings. 

You'll have to make sure your PC meets the Windows 11 minimum hardware requirements to test the preview build, naturally. (Microsoft is making an exception for systems that meet the Windows Insider program's requirements though. Yes, it's all very confusing.) Microsoft's compatibility app will let you know if your system passes muster.

Microsoft

The first Insider Preview, Build 22000.51, looks a lot like the leaked build that we looked at a few weeks ago. There are a few notable changes though: the File Explorer now has a cleaner command bar, the Microsoft Store app has been updated with a new UI, and you'll also be able to customize your touchscreen keyboard. If you use an external monitor alongside a laptop, you'll also see the improved docking experience, which can place Windows in their correct spots whenever you plug into your monitor. And when you disconnect, that monitor's open windows neatly minimize to your task bar.   

There are many programs for digital art, ranging from Adobe Illustrator to Clip Studio Paint, and each has its pros and cons. However, while all-purpose software offers a breadth of functionality that’s perfect for beginners, they sometimes lack the specialized tools that a more advanced user requires.

If you’re specifically interested in digital painting, you’ll want a tool that’s designed with your use case in mind. That’s where Paintstorm Studio comes in. This beloved program comes with myriad lifelike brushes, and it’s on sale now for only $15.

Whether you’re a photorealist or an impressionist, Paintstorm Studio is designed to give you all the brush options you need to achieve your next masterpiece. You'll have full control of your brush options, including bristle brushes of any kind. You can input parameters to bind the perspective of your piece and use the dynamic interface to make global changes for opacity, color and more. Most notably, Paintstorm’s brushes can take an underlayer’s color while blending, kind of like painting in real life.

With Paintstorm Studio, you can also control your mask brushes to give another layer of customization to your art. You can even assign hotkeys to individual brushes to give yourself a menu of tested favorites that you'll always quickly have on hand. That definitely beats swapping brushes in real life, and there’s no mess involved at the end. These unique features earned Paintstorm Studio 4.1 out of five stars on the App Store, while Creative Bloq calls it "The best digital art software for creatives in 2021."

With a lifetime subscription, you only have to pay for this specialized program once, so you don’t have to worry about monthly fees or planned obsolescence. Start working on your next digital painting with Paintstorm Studio, now on sale for $15, or 21 percent off.

Prices subject to change.

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It wouldn't be summer without another Plus chip from Qualcomm, and this year you're getting one slightly early. Qualcomm has introduced the Snapdragon 888 Plus, a souped-up version of (what else?) the base 888 from late last year. The 888 Plus includes the obligatory clock speed boost from a peak 2.86GHz to nearly 3GHz, but it also throws in an upgraded AI engine that promises more than a 20 percent performance boost for tasks like camera effects and noise cancellation.

You can otherwise expect the familiar Kryo 680 CPU architecture and Adreno 660 graphics. The X60 modem still tops out at 7.5Gbps, although that's not exactly an issue when even the fastest current 5G connections won't come close to taxing Qualcomm's hardware.

As with last year's 865 Plus, it's really all about the companies building the chip into their devices. Qualcomm already has a string of high-profile customers lined up for the Snapdragon 888 Plus, including ASUS' next ROG Phone, Honor's Magic 3, at least one Motorola device as well as handsets from Vivo and Xiaomi. We also wouldn't rule out phones from other major customers, such as Samsung's possible foldable phone updates.

The first phones using the Snapdragon 888 Plus are due to ship sometime in the third quarter of the year. The improvements won't have you regretting that ROG Phone 5 purchase (or any other 888-based phone, really), but they will ensure that Android phones in the back half of 2021 will use Qualcomm's absolute latest technology.