Friday, February 18, 2022

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Apple taps 'Oldboy' director to shoot a martial arts fantasy film on an iPhone 13 Pro

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 11:50 PM PST

Apple has commissioned famous Korean director Park Chan-wook to create a short film as part of its "Shot on iPhone" campaign. Park, perhaps best known for the action thriller flick Oldboy, used an iPhone 13 Pro to shoot a 20-minute fantasy martial arts movie entitled Life Is But a Dream, which the tech giant has released on YouTube. 

The film starts off with horror-like elements after an undertaker digs up a grave to steal a coffin and awakens the ghost of a swordsman, who then awakens the ghost of a hero who fell after saving the undertaker's village. After that, it becomes a blend of action, romance, dark comedy, dancing and pansori, a Korean genre of musical storytelling. 

Apple has also released a behind-the-scenes clip alongside the short film showing Park and his crew using an iPhone 13 Pro on gimbals and mounts for the shoot. The crew specifically praised the phone's ability to quickly shift focus, blur the background and shoot in low light. In the behind-the-scenes footage released alongside the film, Park said it's a story he's always wanted to tell and that he didn't have a specific camera in mind when he conceptualized it. 

You can watch the "making of" video below:

Congressional lawmakers try again to secure some benefits for gig workers

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 06:52 PM PST

Senators Mark Warner (D-VA) and Todd Young (R-IN), along with Rep. Susan DelBene (D-WA) introduced a bill today that would create a $20 million pilot program with the Department of Labor to incentivize states and cities to test out portable benefits. The idea that benefits like health insurance and paid vacation should be universal, rather than tied to your job, has gained steam in recent years. Such social insurance programs, normally backed by Democrats, have sparked interest from some Republicans motivated by the rapidly changing workforce and economic climate following the pandemic.

"More Americans than ever are engaging in part-time, contract or other alternative work arrangements. As the workforce changes, it is increasingly important that we provide workers with an ability to access more flexible benefits that can be carried to multiple jobs across a day, a year, and even a career," said Sen. Warner in a statement.

Under the bill, the Department of Labor would create a $20 million grant fund to incentivize states, cities and nonprofits to experiment with portable benefits for independent workers. It's not the first time Warner and DelBene have introduced such legislation. The duo has been regularly pushing to pass portable benefits bills since 2017 — none of which have gotten very far. One of their measures, to provide states with emergency unemployment benefits for gig workers, was folded into the CARES Act.

The bill gives states and cities a lot of room to figure out what their portable benefits program will look like. This could include unemployment benefits, life and disability insurance, sick leave, worker training and health insurance.

A number of states such as California, Massachusetts, Illinois, New Jersey and Colorado have looked at implementing portable benefits programs of their own. But critics of portable benefits warn that such a system would mean that gig economy companies like Uber, Lyft, Doordash and others would be largely off the hook. Indeed, Uber and other gig companies have backed portable benefits legislation in their fight to continue to classify their workers as independent contractors.

Crunchyroll has finally arrived on the Nintendo Switch

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 03:51 PM PST

You can now catch up on episodes of Naruto or Tokyo Revengers on your Switch while waiting for the subway. The anime streaming platform Crunchyroll today unveiled an app for Nintendo's handheld console.

Using your Nintendo Switch to watch movies is still a relatively new concept (and not for those who already suffer from eye strain due to hours of gameplay), but one that's taking off. There are currently Switch apps for Hulu, YouTube, Twitch Pokémon TV and Funimation. It's fair to say we'll likely see more entertainment offerings on the Switch soon, given its popularity. Nearly 103 million units of the Switch have been sold globally, surpassing its predecessor the Wii, Wii U, GameCube and Nintendo 64. Switch sales skyrocketed during the pandemic, leading to a global shortage that has carried over to 2022 and absurd price gouging.

The user base for Switch is considerably larger and more diverse than other game consoles (half of all Switch users are women and users tend to be older). But there are far fewer streaming options on Switch than other consoles, much to the chagrin of current owners.

While Crunchyroll is free, you'll need to purchase one of its premium plans in order to stream shows on multiple devices or watch shows off-line. Plans start at $7.99 a month.

Kickstarter responds to backlash over its decentralized crowdfunding platform

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 02:17 PM PST

Kickstarter's plan to create a decentralized crowdfunding platform ran into more than a little criticism, and the company is eager to reassure jittery users. The firm has clarified how it will develop the blockchain-based system, with promises it would take input along the way. To start, Kickstarter said it was "not going to force" a decentralized system on the community without testing it. It would ensure a "proof of concept" existed for those creators who wanted to try it, and would only integrate those parts that "offer value" in light of community input.

To that end, Kickstarter promised to form an advisory council that will shape feature development, including the decentralized protocol. The council would include a wide range of users and participants.

The crowdfunding firm also noted that work on the platform would occur through a Public Benefit Corporation, and that it would ensure the necessary blockchain wasn't harmful to the environment. The team-up was already known to be using the "carbon-negative" Celo chain.

Kickstarter unveiled the plans in December in hopes of bringing crowdfunding to many platforms beyond its own. As Mashablenotes, the company soon faced a backlash over several issues. Critics were not only worried about the high energy consumption that often comes with blockchain-based transactions, but that Kickstarter was tarnishing its reputation by tying itself to the technology behind scam-prone NFTs and cryptocurrencies. Some veteran creators, such as Doctor Popular, vowed to either stop backing projects or host their own projects elsewhere.

The clarification might reassure users worried they would have to move to the blockchain just to buy or fund a hot new product. However, the response also follows two months after the uproar began. That's a long time to leave users wondering about certain issues, and it's not guaranteed disaffected users will come back.

Peloton owners can now play a video game while they work out

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 01:55 PM PST

Peloton today launched Lanebreak, a new series of workouts that mimic a racing game for its connected stationary bike. Riders get behind a virtual wheel, race down a multi-lane highway and gain points for higher levels of output and resistance. The fitness company briefly beta tested Lanebreak last July, and is now launching the new mode as a software update to all Peloton bikes in the US, UK, Canada, Germany and Australia.

Unlike the majority of other Peloton workouts, there's no instructor on Lanebreak offering encouragement throughout the ride. Instead, riders can choose from a selection of different pop-centric playlists to listen to in the background, featuring the likes of David Guetta, David Bowie, Bruno Mars and Ed Sheeran.

For Peloton riders who are bored with the usual slate of instructor-led classes, Lanebreak adds a change of pace. It's also the first new program that the fitness company has added to their fitness library in a while, following a major expansion in 2020 that included barre, yoga, pilates and strength training classes.

The fitness company, once a darling of the pandemic, has now run into financial woes due to a decline in demand. Earlier this month, Peloton replaced its CEO and laid-off roughly 20 percent of its workforce in an effort to streamline its expenses. But despite its struggles on Wall Street, Peloton's incredibly loyal customer base has a 96% one-year retention rate. The bikes are a large upfront investment, and few Peloton riders want the added hassle of reselling and moving their $1,495 bike. While it's unlikely that Lanebreak will recruit new Peloton riders, it'll add some variety to a fitness library that, for some seasoned riders, has become stale.

Twitter now lets anyone pin DM conversations

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 01:20 PM PST

You might be used to pinning text conversations on your phone, and now you can pin your Twitter chats in much the same way. Twitter's DM conversation pinning is now available to everyone on Android, iOS and the web without requiring a Blue subscription. The functionality is familiar — on mobile, you just have to slide a favorite conversation to the right and tap button to float it to the top of your inbox. You can pin up to six threads this way.

The expansion comes just a few months after DM conversation pins came to Blue users in November 2021. Not that it's a shock, however. Twitter said it would use Blue to offer early access to features, and DM pinning was one of the first.

This broader release mainly gives a rough sense of how long it might take for Blue-first features to reach a general audience. While the timing is likely to vary based on the feature, the wait for this DM upgrade might just line up with what you'd expect. The months-long interval may have helped Blue members justify their $3 monthly outlay, but it wasn't extreme.

Spotify's deal with Joe Rogan is reportedly worth at least $200 million

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 12:56 PM PST

As soon as Spotify struck a deal with Joe Rogan in 2020 to become the exclusive distributor of his podcast, The Joe Rogan Experience, it was evident that the company was paying him a pretty penny. Initial reports pegged the value of the deal at around $100 million. However, in the wake of a firestorm over claims that Rogan was enabling the spread of COVID-19 vaccine misinformation, a new report suggests Spotify is paying much more than that.

According to The New York Times, the three-and-a-half year deal is worth at least $200 million, with a possibility of additional payments. As the report notes, that's more than Spotify paid to buy major podcast production companies Gimlet Media and The Ringer — each of those deals was worth a little under $200 million.

Rogan's show is Spotify's most popular podcast in 93 countries, including the US. Episodes of The Joe Rogan Experience can garner tens of millions of listeners. Spotify CEO Daniel Ek reportedly told employees this month that big exclusive deals such as the Rogan one helped make the company as successful as it is. Spotify has remained behind Rogan, even after his use of racist language on the show came under the spotlight. Rogan removed some episodes containing that language from Spotify.

The backlash against Rogan and the company ramped up after hundreds of doctors, nurses, scientists and educators sent an open letter to Spotify in January urging the company to take more action against the spread of misinformation. They sent the request after Dr. Robert Malone made claims about COVID-19 vaccines on The Joe Rogan Experience that they called "false and societally harmful assertions."

Notable critics including Neil Young and Joni Mitchell accused Spotify of spreading harmful misinformation and pulled their music from the platform. Around the same time, Brené Brown put episodes of her Spotify-exclusive podcasts on hold. Film director Ava DuVernay struck a podcast deal with Spotify last year, but cut ties this month before producing any content for the company. Reports suggest Barack and Michelle Obama may not renew their Spotify deal, which is set to expire in a few months.

Spotify has also faced criticism from employees over Rogan. The host and editor of Gimlet's Science VS podcast said they'd no longer make episodes of their show until "Spotify implements stronger methods to stop the spread of misinformation on the platform." There was one exception to that stance, though. Wendy Zukerman and Blythe Terrell are publishing episodes that debunk misinformation being spread on the platform. They released one earlier this month that examines some of the claims made in Rogan's chat with Malone. 

YouTube could ‘break’ sharing on borderline content to fight misinformation

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 12:18 PM PST

YouTube is eyeing new measures to tackle misinformation on its platform. Among the changes being considered, according to Chief Product Officer Neal Mohan, are updates that would effectively "break" sharing features for videos with "borderline content."

The change would be a major shift for the platform, though it's not clear if the company will actually take such a step. Mohan described the possibility in a lengthy blog post outlining the company's approach to preventing misinformation from going viral. In the post, he noted that so-called borderline content — "videos that don't quite cross the line of our policies for removal but that we don't necessarily want to recommend to people" — can be particularly challenging to deal with.

That's because YouTube aims to remove these videos from its recommendations, but they can still spread widely when shared on other platforms. "One possible way to address this is to disable the share button or break the link on videos that we're already limiting in recommendations," he wrote. "That effectively means you couldn't embed or link to a borderline video on another site."

Mohan added that the company was still wrestling with whether or not it should take this more aggressive approach. "We grapple with whether preventing shares may go too far in restricting a viewer's freedoms." He said an alternative approach could be adding "an interstitial that appears before a viewer can watch a borderline embedded or linked video, letting them know the content may contain misinformation."

If YouTube were to prevent sharing of some videos, it would be a dramatic step for the platform, which has repeatedly cited statistics claiming that less than 1 percent of views on borderline content comes from recommendations. But critics have pointed out that this doesn't fully address the issue, and fact checkers and misinformation researchers have cited YouTube as a major vector of misinformation. Last month, a group of 80 fact checking organizations signed an open letter to the video platform urging it to do more to stop harmful misinformation and disinformation.

The YouTube exec hinted at other changes to come as well. He said the company is also considering adding "additional types of labels to search results" when there's a developing situation and authoritative information may not be available. The company is also looking to beef up its partnerships with "with experts and non-governmental organizations around the world" and invest in technology to detect "hyperlocal misinformation, with capability to support local languages."

Ford's Mustang Mach-E ousts the Tesla Model 3 as Consumer Reports' top EV

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 11:31 AM PST

Tesla's Model 3 has been Consumer Reports' top EV choice for the past two years, but the publication is ready to declare a new champion. CR has revealed that Ford's Mustang Mach-E has ousted the Model 3 as its EV Top Pick. The Mustang crossover is not only "more practical," according to editors, but has better first-year reliability and a "far easier" infotainment system that doesn't require multiple steps for basic tasks. A better ride and reduced noise help, too.

Ford's BlueCruise driver assist technology also gave the Mach-E an edge thanks to a more effective drive monitoring system that now counts toward vehicle scores. Tesla's Autopilot was docked for functioning while drivers look away.

Consumer Reports still recommended the Model 3 thanks to its sports car-like performance, long range, charging network and technology. However, the outlet couldn't recommend the Mach-E's more direct rival, the Model Y, as an EV Top Pick. Tesla's SUV-like ride has "much worse" reliability than average vehicles in the lineup, and is noticeably worse than the average-rated Model 3.

This isn't going to please Tesla, which has had a less-than-amicable relationship with Consumer Reports over the years. The two have disputed test results, and CR has temporarily pulled recommendations for some models. However, it also reflects lingering concerns about Tesla's reliability. The EV producer has issued a string of recalls in recent months, and owners have frequently reported build quality issues. This might not have cost Tesla the lead by itself, but it certainly didn't help the company's chances.

Intel delays its first Arc desktop gaming GPUs until spring

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 10:59 AM PST

Intel has shed more light on the roadmap for its Arc gaming GPUs, including more clarity about when consumers can expect to get their hands on them. As previously announced, the GPUs will debut in laptops from Intel's OEM partners this quarter, presumably alongside 12th-gen Alder Lake CPUs.

However, desktop gamers will need to wait a little longer before they can plug Arc GPUs into their rigs. Intel says those graphics cards will ship in Q2. It previously said those would arrive in Q1 as well. As for add-in GPUs for workstations, those will be available in Q3.

The first-gen Alchemist GPUs will have support for hardware-based ray-tracing, mesh shading, variable rate shading and DirectX 12 Ultimate. Gamers can expect to harness Intel's AI-driven super sampling tech too.

Intel says its Accelerated Computing Systems and Graphics Group (AXG) expects to ship more than 4 million discrete GPUs this year. Elsewhere, the company has started architecture work on the third generation of Arc GPUs, which are codenamed Celestial. Those will be geared toward the "ultra-enthusiast segment." The second-gen GPUs, codenamed Battlemage, are also in development.

Meanwhile, at an investor meeting, Intel revealed plans for a service that will enable access to Arc GPUs via the cloud. It says Project Endgame, which will be available later this year, is "an always-accessible, low-latency computing experience," but it hasn't shared additional details as yet.

FDA clears the first smartphone app to program insulin pump doses

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 10:00 AM PST

Tandem Diabetes Care says the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared its smartphone app to program and cancel insulin doses from the t:slim X2 insulin pump. The company claims it's the first time the FDA has cleared a phone app for such a purpose.

The t:connect mobile app on iOS and Android will enable users to program and cancel bolus insulin doses from the pump, according to Tandem Diabetes Care. When connected to the pump, the app can display information about the last 24 hours of a user's glucose trends, changes in status (including alerts and alarms) and insulin therapy data.

Pumps typically require users to dial in insulin doses manually. Given that they are often able to view glucose readings on their handset, patients will be able to use their phone to determine how much insulin they need and then program their dose.

The FDA clearance could be a step toward a more convenient way for diabetes patients to administer insulin doses. Tandem Diabetes Care plans to offer the feature at no extra cost to new and in-warranty t:slim X2 insulin pump customers via a software update. The plan is to grant access to a limited number of users in the spring ahead of a broader rollout this summer.

NHTSA opens probe into Tesla's 'phantom braking' issue following owner complaints

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 09:50 AM PST

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced the start of a new investigation into Tesla on Thursday — this time, in response to a flurry of complaints by owners that their vehicles would randomly and dangerously decelerate while at freeway speeds, which they've come to call "phantom braking."  

Per the NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation (ODI), the agency has received "354 complaints alleging unexpected brake activation in 2021-2022 Tesla Model 3 and Model Y vehicles" over the past nine months. 

"The complaints allege that while utilizing the ADAS features including adaptive cruise control," the ODI summary reads, "the vehicle unexpectedly applies its brakes while driving at highway speeds. Complainants report that the rapid deceleration can occur without warning, at random, and often repeatedly in a single drive cycle."

As such, the ODI is launching this preliminary investigation "to determine the scope and severity of the potential problem and to fully assess the potential safety-related issues" with further steps to follow depending, of course, on what, if anything, the investigators uncover.

Many of the complaints have come very recently. The Washington Post notes that following one of its pieces published earlier this month, the "NHTSA received about 250 complaints about phantom braking during the following two weeks. That compared to 107 complaints in the prior three months — a steep surge of its own — and only 34 in the preceding 22 months."

"It's when the traffic is coming towards me that it randomly throws on the brake," Sally Bergquist, of Alexander City, Al, a 2021 Model S owner who experienced the phantom braking effect, told The Post. "This random braking is really concerning to me." 

Tesla has had to issue a number of recalls for defects in its products in recent months, from software glitches to separating suspensions. Despite these issues, Tesla vehicles remain hot sellers in the EV marketplace and CEO Elon Musk remains steadfastly confident in his company's "Full Self-Driving" technology. 

"It's not like some little feature," Musk declared on Tesla's Q4 earnings call. "It's like the most profound software upgrade maybe in history."

This news comes in the immediate wake of Consumer Reportsnaming the Ford Mustang Mach-E its Car of the Year over the Model 3, and word that Musk on Thursday accused the SEC of harassment for its "endless" and "unrelenting" investigation into Tesla — not because his personal tweets (the subject of said SEC investigations) violated long-standing federal regulations, but because he is an outspoken critic of the government. Tesla could not be reached for comment in response to any of this as Musk dissolved the company's PR department in 2020.

Twitter is having issues, so you might be missing some tweets (updated)

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 09:25 AM PST

Twitter hasn't been having a good day. As The Vergereports, code sleuth Jane Manchun Wong and other users have noticed a partial Twitter outage today (February 17th) that has led to missing tweets, including on profile pages. The social network's status page shows nothing wrong, but Downdetector indicated a surge in user-reported problems around 11AM Eastern. Most of the alerts came from people in the Easter US.

Twitter told Engadget it was investigating the problem and would follow up. The company's support account also told users about a "rise in cases." It's still possible to view many tweets and create new posts, at least as of this writing. Wong noted that Twitter "mitigated" the situation by reverting a code switch.

This is the second incident so far this month. On February 11th, the company suffered and fixed a "technical bug" that prevented people from posting or loading timelines. It's unclear if the failures are related, but this likely isn't what the company would want as it tests a long-form article feature and ditches a two-factor provider linked to secret surveillance operations.

Update 2/17 4:11PM ET: A Twitter spokesperson said the problem has "since been resolved." While the company didn't go into detail as to what went wrong, Engadget understands the problem wasn't related to the failure on February 11th.

'Stranger Things' season 4 premieres in two parts, starting May 27th

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 08:56 AM PST

It took three years, but Netflix is finally ready to set a release date for Stranger Things season 4 — or rather, release dates. The streaming service has revealed that Stranger Things season 4 will debut in two parts, with Volume 1 arriving on May 27th and Volume 2 appearing July 1st. This split doesn't just exist keep you subscribed to Netflix, either. The Duffer Brothers noted the fourth run is "nearly twice the length" of any past season, so you may have plenty to watch in that five-week span.

The season 4 release date will also represent bittersweet news for fans. Stranger Things season 5 will be the last, the Duffer Brothers said. And no, this doesn't reflect Netflix's fondness for cancelling shows after a few seasons. The creators had a story arc in mind from the beginning, and had expected to wrap in four or five seasons. Like it or not, the nostalgic thriller series was never going to continue for much longer.

The fourth season also promises a more ambitious storyline that covers Eleven and Will's new life in California, Hopper's presence in Russia and the return of Dr. Brenner. You can expect the usual mix of supernatural occurrences and shady government dealings.

Netflix isn't likely worried about the series winding down. While Stranger Things has been one of the company's tentpole shows for the past several years, the service is more of a powerhouse than it was in 2016. Netflix has numerous popular (and sometimes critically acclaimed) shows, and it's now in the habit of releasing dozens of movies per year with top-tier stars and producers. Netflix's success no longer hinges on a handful of productions. It can afford to have Stranger Things bow out gracefully, rather than dragging it out for the sake of boosting subscriber counts.

OtterBox says early OtterSpot wireless charging battery packs may swell

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 08:34 AM PST

OtterBox says it has detected an issue with early units of its OtterSpot system. The company released the wireless charging batteries back in August 2019. It says that units that were manufactured between July and August that year may swell "under multi-stack and higher temperature conditions."

As yet, no injuries have been reported due to the issue, OtterBox told The Verge. The company is contacting customers it knows bought an affected unit, but if you have any OtterSpot battery packs, it's worth checking the serial numbers. If the number starts with 229, 250 or 259, the unit could be affected by this issue and it's worth calling customer service at 1-855-688-7269. OtterBox says it will replace potentially defective batteries at no cost.

The conditions under which affected units could swell may not be rare. One of the key selling points of OtterSpot is that it comprises a base unit and stackable battery packs, which you can use to wirelessly charge devices on the go. Up to three packs can be charged on the base simultaneously. You can juice up a Qi-compatible device at the same time by placing it on top.

The issue might not affect too many units, since OtterBox says it only had a limited quantity at launch. Still, if you have one, it's worth checking the serial number just in case.

Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra review: The best of two Galaxies

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 08:00 AM PST

The S22 Ultra is, for all intents and purposes, a new Galaxy Note. It has the same rectangular silhouette, the same onboard S Pen and the same list of top-tier specs. With the S22 Ultra, Samsung is introducing a more mainstream audience to the S Pen that's long been the hallmark of the Note series. By merging the two lines, Samsung is consolidating its top-tier products, bringing together the most popular features across its portfolio. That's not to say there's nothing new about the S22 Ultra — Samsung brought updated camera, display and software features this year as well.

It's strange to review a phone that's supposed to be new, but feels so familiar. If you've been missing the Note series, that familiarity will be welcome. But for those simply considering a new Galaxy S flagship, the S Pen alone won't be enough of an upgrade. Thankfully, though, Samsung promises display and camera improvements that might make the S22 Ultra even better than its predecessor.

Design

The difference between the S22 Ultra and last year's model starts with their design. The S22 Ultra is pretty much a Note 20 Ultra clone, which makes it a departure from the S21 Ultra's rounder silhouette. With the same rectangular shape, curved edges and matte brushed metal finish, the two handsets look and feel almost identical. The S Pen slot is even in the same location at the left side of the bottom edge. If I didn't give you the exact dimensions, you probably wouldn't even be able to tell that the S22 Ultra is slightly wider, shorter and thicker than the Note. You might notice, though, that the S22 Ultra is about 21 grams (or 0.74 ounces) heavier.

The phone weighs more than the Pixel 6 Pro, too, though the iPhone 13 Pro Max still beats it at 240 grams. Google's premium flagship already reminded me of the Note 20 Ultra, aside from its colorful two-tone design and camera bar. Instead of a rectangular module at the top left corner housing the array of sensors, the S22 Ultra's cameras are neatly laid out in two columns on the back with no boundaries containing them. I prefer this streamlined, less cluttered look to the Note 20 and S21 Ultra's versions.

I also appreciated the S22 Ultra's Gorilla Glass Victus+ covering, especially after it fell from the top of a cabinet and survived without a scratch. I was somewhat disappointed that the review unit I received was the boring black version, not one of the other three color options. If I were shopping for myself, I'd choose either the green or burgundy, which I got to see in person at a recent Samsung hands-on event.

Display and audio

As is usually the case with Samsung's devices, the S22 Ultra's screen is sumptuous. Its 6.8-inch Super AMOLED panel is colorful, bright and easy to read in the sun, thanks to its peak brightness of 1,750 nits. Like previous Galaxy flagships, the S22 Ultra also refreshes at 120Hz, making for a smooth scrolling experience.

The Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra
Cherlynn Low / Engadget

To ensure users can see what's on their phones regardless of the lighting conditions, Samsung this year introduced what it's calling "Vision Booster." The feature is meant to kick in when it detects you're in direct sunlight or in super dim environments, adjusting not only the display brightness but also its color and contrast. You'll need to have adaptive brightness on for it to work.

I didn't notice much of a difference when I was playing Two Dots in bed one night, even when I pulled up the same scene on my Pixel 6 Pro to compare. Samsung says the effect is more noticeable in sunlight, but I still didn't observe a significant difference as the sun shone on the S22 Ultra's screen when I made my way to the office. Perhaps this is something where the effect is so subtle that it's hard to notice, but I never had trouble reading things on the S22 Ultra, regardless of the lighting around me.

I don't generally play music through my phone, but one night when my WiFi went out and I couldn't use my speakers, I had to resort to streaming Spotify on the S22 Ultra and it provided decent audio quality. It was loud enough to deliver the background noise I was looking for, though songs like Heartbreaker by Wabisabi sounded hollow and were lacking in bass. It was, however, better at handling mid-heavy sounds like the audio cues for games like Two Dots.

The Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra

S Pen

Another aspect of the S22 Ultra that's more than a little reminiscent of the Note is the onboard S Pen. The main difference between the S Pens on the S22 Ultra and the Note 20 Ultra is the improved latency of 2.8 milliseconds this year (down from 9ms). This means you'll be getting a slightly better version of an already responsive writing experience, along with Samsung's nifty handwriting recognition software in its Notes app. If you use Samsung's keyboard instead of switching to Gboard, you'll also be able to use the S Pen to scrawl text into search fields and URL boxes throughout the system.

Samsung also provides a list of suggested functions when you pop the S Pen out of its slot, so you can quickly do things like create a note or select a portion of your screen to take a screenshot of and immediately draw on it.

Three screenshots showing some handwriting on the Samsung Note app with an orange outline around some of the writing and a box at the bottom showing the words the system recognized.
Engadget (Screenshot)

There's not much I can say about the S Pen now that we haven't already covered in previous reviews. Samsung's stylus is competent, if a bit of a blunt object for those looking to create finer works of art. But as a pencil for jotting down a quick list, or signing documents on the fly or as a cursor for the big screen, the S Pen is more than adequate. In fact, in more mainstream functions like acting as a remote control for your camera or music playback, it's perfectly capable. The only issue is whether you're the sort of person who would pull out a stylus to interact with your phone, as opposed to simply using your hands. Either way, the S Pen is a nice accessory to have when you need it, and it stays out of your way when you don't.

Cameras

The S22 Ultra shares the same camera setup as the S21 Ultra, with a 108-megapixel main sensor, a 12-MP ultrawide option and a pair of 10-MP telephoto lenses. What's new this year are features like auto-framing and improved video stabilization in videos, better stereo depth mapping for more accurate portrait blur and something Samsung is calling Adaptive Pixel. This stitches together high-res images from the 108-MP sensor and a photo taken with nona-binning for bigger pixels to capture more light, supposedly resulting in brighter pictures that retain crisp detail.

The Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra
Cherlynn Low / Engadget

In reality, Adaptive Pixel is tricky to figure out, and its results might not be worth the effort. First, you have to set the S22 Ultra to shoot at the highest resolution and then, when the system detects you're shooting in low light, it performs the stitching in the background. There's no way you can be certain Adaptive Pixel is at work; there are no user-facing indicators. I shot a few photos of the New York City nightscape with the S22 Ultra both at the default 12-MP and at 108-MP, and they were mostly indistinguishable from each other. When I zoomed in to see more detail, buildings looked equally muddy, mostly due to flares from the various lights in the image.

I took more pictures in low light with the camera set to default resolution and 108-MP, and honestly the effects were incredibly subtle. The high-res shots were sometimes better exposed, but not always. And any improvement in clarity was so subtle that you wouldn't notice unless you were extremely zoomed in.

Either way, though, Samsung's photos held their own against those from the iPhone 13 Pro and Pixel 6 Pro. Google continues to deliver superior pictures in low light thanks to its Night Sight mode, but Apple and Samsung's offerings are closing the gap. In daylight, the S22 Ultra produced slightly more saturated pictures than the Pixel 6 Pro, which generally renders a more neutral tone. Which camera suits you better ultimately boils down to your preference: Do you like richer-looking pictures, even if they're not the most realistic? Meanwhile, the iPhone 13 series offers Photographic Styles that let you select a default color temperature and contrast setting so all your shots come out tuned to your tastes.

Up front, the S22 Ultra's 40-MP camera is also similar to the S21 Ultra's. Samsung says it improved its stereo depth mapping system for more accurate bokeh effects in portraits, though, and from my experience it seems effective. Compared to selfies I took with the iPhone 13 Pro and Pixel 6 Pro, Samsung's flagship was just as accurate at differentiating my hair from my background, blurring out exactly the same areas as the other two did. Previous Samsung cameras delivered somewhat artificial and awkward-looking portraits, but this time around the S22 Ultra produces more natural-looking bokeh.

The S22 Ultra's other updates are around video recording. Specifically, Samsung added an auto-framing feature that will detect faces in view and keep up to 10 subjects centered in the scene. You can also select the people you want to prioritize, and the system will follow them around. This was generally effective in my testing, and though I held the S22 Ultra still from a fixed point, the camera followed our video producer Brian around as he strolled around our office. But as he got to the extreme sides of its field of view, the scene started to show noticeable fisheye distortion, warping Brian's face.

There are plenty of other features Samsung carried over from its previous flagships, but breaking them down here would take forever. Suffice to say that most features you've enjoyed on the S21 Ultra or older, like capable image stabilization and Director's View for recording with both the front and rear cameras, are there. And if you're one of the people who enjoyed the 100x Space Zoom feature from before, you can still use the S22 Ultra to get super up close to faraway objects. Though I generally found this feature slightly creepy, in some cases the results were actually clear enough to read. For the most part, though, I found Space Zoom most useful at up to 30x zoom. Anything beyond that was usually muddy and unusable.

Samsung software exclusives

Thanks to a collaboration with Google, the S22 series gets a custom version of the Duo video calling app that exclusively enables new screen sharing and auto framing features.

When my colleague Sam and I called each other on our review units, I was able to show him a game I was playing by selecting the new screen share button in Duo. As I launched other apps while on the call, a small icon appeared on the left side of the screen to remind me I was still sharing my screen.

A screenshot of a Google Duo video call on the Galaxy S22 Ultra. A man's face fills the screen, while a woman's face is in a small box to the bottom left. Below their faces is a row of options including
Engadget (Screenshot)

This integration isn't as sophisticated as Apple's SharePlay, which has thoughtful limitations on what notifications can be seen while you're sharing your screen. Meanwhile, another S22 Ultra reviewer I called could see the message alerts that popped up during our chat. Samsung and Google's Live Sharing feature also doesn't natively support streaming apps like Netflix or Hulu, meaning you won't be able to watch shows together with your friends (unless it's on YouTube).

Samsung also added the auto-framing feature it introduced in its camera app to Duo, so you can make sure your face is centered while you're on your call. When I enabled this feature, the app automatically switched to a wider angle shot via the front camera, zooming in to keep me in view as I moved around my living room. It's helpful if you want to leave your phone propped up somewhere while you're talking, but it does nothing if you're just going to hold your phone up or remain stationary, which is how I take most of my video calls. This feature is more useful on smart displays, since you can't move them around as easily as phones.

Samsung also offers a "collaboration view" feature that allows you to use your S22 handset as a second screen for a Tab S8. For example, if you open Samsung Notes on the tablet and click the phone icon on the top right (after both devices are connected to the same WiFi), you can use your S22 as a secondary menu or control panel for paintbrush options. We don't have a Tab S8 in for review yet, so I unfortunately couldn't test this feature.

The Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra
Cherlynn Low / Engadget

As with older Samsung flagships, you can also quickly share content to other nearby Galaxy devices and use Link To Windows to connect to your laptop. One UI 4.0 also offers new color palettes and themes that permeate the entire system, a la Material You on Android 12, which lets you refresh your interface any time you get bored.

Performance and battery life

The S22 series are among the first flagships to use Qualcomm's new Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processors, and in general you'll get the expected speedy performance from the premium processors. My S22 Ultra didn't break a sweat when I was jumping between reading Reddit and playing a spot-the-difference game while using it as a hotspot for my other devices while my internet was out. I'm actually surprised I never noticed the handset running warm during my time with it, and I have to give credit to Samsung for its improved thermal system here.

I was also slightly taken aback to see the S22 Ultra's battery life drop from 75 percent when I took it out of its box at noon to just 20 percent by the evening. I initially chalked that up to power used during setup, but in general the S22 Ultra never made it through a full 24 hours. On our video rundown battery test, the S22 Ultra's result of 17 hours and 16 minutes beat the Pixel 6 Pro by just three minutes, but was hours behind the S21 Ultra, which lasted 21 hours and 42 minutes. It's possible that the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 is not as power efficient as its predecessor, and Samsung also confirmed to Engadget that the S Pen draws power from the S22 Ultra while inside its slot, which might be why the S21 Ultra has a longer runtime.

The Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra

Wrap-up

I have to confess: While writing this review, I kept typing "the Note 22 Ultra" and had to correct my mistake at least a dozen times. Those of you who are Note fans will find this a pleasant reunion. The main upgrades for those coming from a Note 20 Ultra will be in the cameras and software, and considering that phone is about two years old by now, you'll probably be thankful for the updated specs.

But if you've never held a Galaxy Note before, the change could be a welcome refresh. With the addition of the S Pen, too, the S22 Ultra is, more than ever, the phone for the most demanding of power users.

If you want a premium Android flagship but don't need extras like the S Pen or a second telephoto lens, you'll probably find the S22+ good enough. The only real complaints I have with the S22 Ultra are that the display and camera updates Samsung added this year are a little underwhelming. Minor gripes aside, the S22 Ultra is still an excellent phone and the best premium Android flagship you can buy.

Key specs

Spec

Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra

Display

6.8-inch 3,088 x 1,440 (19.3:9) curved AMOLED, up to 120Hz, with Vision Booster and 240Hz touch sampling in Game Mode

Dimensions

6.43 x 3.06 x 0.4 inches / 163.3 x 77.9 x 8.9 mm; 8.07 oz / 229 grams

Processor, RAM and Storage

Snapdragon 8 Gen 1; 8GB / 12GB RAM;128GB / 256GB / 512GB / 1TB storage

Rear cameras

108MP main camera, dual pixel auto focus and f/1.8 aperture

12MP ultrawide camera, 120-degree FOV and f/2.2 aperture

10MP telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom and f/2.4 aperture

10MP telephoto camera with 10x optical zoom and f/4.9 aperture

Front camera

40MP, f/2.2, 80-degree FOV

Battery

5,000 mAh, fast-charging with up to 45W wired USB-C charger, Qi-certified, 15W wireless charging, Wireless Powershare

Sensors and connectivity

Under-display ultrasonic fingerprint sensor, NFC, WiFi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2

Water resistance

IP68

Formula 1 will use a VAR-style virtual control room to avoid controversy

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 07:53 AM PST

The 2021 Formula 1 season ended messily, to put it lightly, and the FIA is hoping technology will prevent a repeat. As part of a string of changes, Formula 1 is implementing a "Virtual Race Control Room" akin to the Video Assistance Referee (VAR) you see in soccer. The "backup" will sit outside the circuit and use a real-time link with the race director to enforce rules using the "most modern technological tools."

The race director will also be cut off from direct radio communications to reduce pressure. It will still be possible to ask questions, but there will be a strict procedure for this.

The move comes after a controversial end to the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in December 2021. Lewis Hamilton was leading the race, with five lapped drivers sitting behind the safety car and preventing rival Max Verstappen from realistically contesting Hamilton's position. However, race director Michael Masi made the controversial decision to let those trailing drivers "unlap" themselves by passing the safety car, giving Verstappen a much easier time of challenging Hamilton's lead. With the help of fresh tires, Verstappen passed Hamilton (who was using worn tires) to win the race and, in turn, the Driver's Championship. 

Hamilton's Mercedes team appealed Masi's call by pointing to rules requiring all cars to unlap themselves, and for racing to resume the following lap, rather than immediately. The team also claimed Verstappen's front wing briefly passed Hamilton while behind the safety car. Race stewards rejected the appeal.

There are no guarantees the virtual control room will improve F1 rule enforcement. This and VAR represent a shift in officiating techniques, however. Sports leagues appear less and less content to rely solely on human judgment — technology isn't replacing race directors or referees, but it might ensure their calls hold up under scrutiny.

Snapchat will let you change your username starting February 23rd

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 07:17 AM PST

Snap says it will soon roll out a much-requested and long-awaited feature to all users: a way to change their Snapchat username. The company started testing the option recently, and it will be available for everyone on iOS and Android as of February 23rd.

You'll be able to switch your handle without setting up a new account and having to start over with your friends list, memories, Snap score and so on. However, users will only be able to change their name once per year. To do so, go to your profile and open the settings. Tap Username and then select the Change Username option.

Snap acknowledged that people grow and change over time. Many of them won't want to be stuck with a bad Snapchat username they came up with a decade ago, perhaps when they were a young teen. So, this feature might come as music to the ears of those whose usernames include a "Gangnam Style" reference.

Elon Musk accuses SEC of conducting a 'harassment campaign'

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 06:46 AM PST

If you thought Elon Musk was upset about frequent attention from the SEC... you guessed correctly. Musk and Tesla have written to a Southern District of New York court accusing the SEC of conducting a "harassment campaign." The regulator allegedly broke a promise to pay Tesla shareholders $40 million as part of its 2018 settlement with Musk over his tweets about taking the EV maker private, and instead devoted its resources to "endless, unfounded investigations" into the CEO and his company.

The two maintained the SEC was sending subpoenas "unilaterally" and that the court, not just the Commission, was to monitor his compliance with the consent decree from the settlement. The SEC was supposedly retaliating against Musk for being an "outspoken critic of the government," and more interested in stifling his First Amendment right to free speech than fairly enforcing the law. There haven't been any findings of wrongdoing, according to the complaint.

Musk and Tesla asked the court for a "course correction" including a conference to discuss the SEC's alleged failure to pay as well as the frequent investigations. They hoped the court would put the claimed harassment "to an end" while forcing the SEC to pay shareholders.

Late yesterday, Judge Alison Nathan ordered the SEC to respond to Musk's claim by February 24th, The Verge reported. 

We've asked the SEC for comment. The government body has made repeated inquiries into Musk's tweets in the years since the settlement, writing Tesla in 2019 and 2020 over posts it found concerning. While it's true the SEC hasn't found Musk at fault for those tweets, officials still claimed Musk was discussing key financial topics (such as production levels and stock valuations) without the pre-approval required under the 2018 agreement. Tesla argued these tweets weren't covered under the terms of the deal, but it's safe to say the situation isn't entirely clear-cut.

The best soundbars you can buy, plus how to choose one

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 06:30 AM PST

It's no secret that the built-in speakers in most TVs are trash. They don't project enough sound out to the front so you can hear well — especially subtle details. Thankfully, you don't have to splurge for a five-speaker (or more) surround-sound setup to fix the problem. In most living rooms, a single soundbar and maybe a subwoofer will suffice. To help guide your shopping spree, we've compiled a list of everything you need to look for when searching for the best soundbar for you, along with a list of the top picks for a range of budgets.

What to look for in a soundbar

Features

When it comes to features, the more you pay the more you're going to get. Most affordable options ($150 or less) will improve your television's audio, but that's about it. Step into the $300 to $400 range and you'll find things like built-in voice control, wireless connectivity, Chromecast, AirPlay 2 and even options like Android TV. They're all helpful when you want to avoid looking for the remote, but the best audio quality is usually only in the top tier and the formats those premium devices support. I'm talking about things like Dolby Atmos, DTS:X and other audio standards. These are what you'll want to look for if truly immersive sound is what you crave for your living room setup. And not all Atmos soundbars are equal, so you'll need to look at the finer details carefully before you break into the savings account.

Ports

Sony HT-A7000 soundbar, SA-SW5 subwoofer, SA-SW3 subwoofer and SA-RS3S speakers.
Sony

This is a big one. A lot of the more affordable soundbars have limited options when it comes to connectivity. They either offer an optical port or one HDMI jack and, if you're lucky, both. Things get slightly better in the mid-range section, but that's not always the case. The Sonos Beam, for example, is $449, but only has a single HDMI port. If you want to connect your set-top box, gaming console and more directly to your soundbar for the best possible audio, you'll likely want to look for an option with at least two HDMI (eARC) inputs. HDMI connections are essential for things like Dolby Atmos, DTS:X and other high-res and immersive audio formats. And with the new HDMI 2.1 spec, soundbars can support HDR, 8K and 4K/120 passthrough to make these speakers an even better companion for a game console.

Channels

Another big thing you'll want to pay attention to is channels. That's the 2.1, 7.1.2 or other decimal number that companies include in product descriptions. The first figure corresponds to the number of channels. A 2 would just be left and right while a more robust Atmos system, especially one with rear satellite speakers, could be 5 or 7 (left, right, center and upward). The second number refers to the subwoofer, so if your soundbar comes with one or has them built in, you'll see a 1 here. The third numeral is upfiring speakers, important for the immersive effect of Dolby Atmos. Not all Atmos-enabled units have them, but if they do, the third number will tell you how many are in play.

Wireless

Sony HT-A7000 soundbar, SA-SW5 subwoofer, SA-SW3 subwoofer and SA-RS3S speakers.
Sony

Most soundbars these days offer either Bluetooth, WiFi or both. When it comes to WiFi, that connectivity affords you luxuries like voice control (either built-in or with a separate device), Chromecast, Spotify Connect and AirPlay 2. Depending on your preferences, you might be able to live without some of these. For me, AirPlay 2 and Chromecast are essentials, but the rest I can live without. Those two give me the ability to beam music and podcasts from my go-to apps without having to settle for — or struggle to pair — a Bluetooth connection.

Size

This one might seem obvious but humor me for a minute. Nothing is more soul-crushing than getting a pricey soundbar in your living room only to discover you have to rearrange everything to find a spot for it. This was my plight when the Sennheiser Ambeo Soundbar review unit arrived at my door. Yes, that speaker is absurdly large (and heavy), and most soundbars aren't nearly as big. Indeed, I learned a valuable lesson: Make sure the space where you want to put a soundbar will accommodate the thing you're about to spend hundreds (if not thousands) of dollars on.

Basically, it all comes down to the TV you have (or are planning to get) and what the primary goal is for your living-room audio. Is it ease of use? Do you want the best possible sound from a single speaker or speaker/sub combo? Do you just want to be able to actually hear your TV better?

Engadget picks

By paying attention to each of those areas, you should have a good idea of what to look for in a soundbar or soundbar/sub combo. With that said, we've put numerous products through their paces at Engadget over the years, and have a few favorites at various price points to get you started.

Best premium soundbar: Sony HT-A7000

Sony HT-A7000 soundbar, SA-SW5 subwoofer, SA-SW3 subwoofer and SA-RS3S speakers.
The HT-A7000 and optional SA-SW5 subwoofer.
Sony

Sony has a long track record for high-end soundbars and its latest is another great-sounding product. The A7000 is a robust Dolby Atmos device, capable of immersive 7.1.2 audio thanks to Sony's 360 Sound Mapping, Sound Field Optimization, vertical surround technology and S-Force Pro front surround. There's a lot of tech at work here, and I haven't even mentioned 360 Reality Audio or DSEE Extreme upscaling for compression, both handy when it comes to listening to music. Speaking of audio, you'll have the option of using Chromecast, Spotify Connect or AirPlay 2 to send your tunes to the A7000.

Two HDMI eARC inputs means you can hook up multiple streaming boxes or gaming consoles to this soundbar. Thanks to HDMI 2.1 support, you can expect 8K and 4K/120 passthrough to your television, so the A7000 is a great option for gamers who crave a robust home theater setup. This soundbar is expensive at $1,400 and it doesn't come with a subwoofer. However, Sony does give you multiple options for both a sub and rear satellite speakers. The SA-SW3 sub is $400 while the SA-SW5 is $700. For rear speakers, the SA-RS3S is $350 while the truly wireless (and much better looking) SA-RS5 set is $600.

Buy Sony HT-A7000 at Amazon - $1,400

Runner-up premium soundbar: Sonos Arc

Sonos has finally given us an upgrade to the Playbar, and it’s impressive. The Arc has an improved design, modern features and stellar sound. Plus, Arc automatically adjusts if you choose to expand your system.
Kyle Maack/Engadget

The top end of Sonos' home theater lineup was well overdue for a refresh by the time the company introduced the Arc in 2020. This unit replaced the Playbar that debuted in 2013, offering directional sound via Dolby Atmos as the main upgrade. The Arc sports a more modern design, stellar sound and all of Sonos' smarts – including the ability to automatically calibrate to your living room and when you add additional speakers.

The $899 price doesn't include a sub, but the Playbar didn't come with one either. And sadly, Sonos doesn't include a second HDMI jack here for directly connecting devices besides your TV. As is typically the case with the company's wares, expansion gets expensive quickly as the wireless sub is $749 and satellite One speakers are $219 each. However, the combination of the Arc and a sub will get you pretty far sound-wise, even if they are separate purchases.

Buy Arc at Sonos - $899

Best midrange soundbar: Sonos Beam

Sonos Beam (Gen 2)
Devindra Hardawar/Engadget

Solid sound quality? Check. Dolby Atmos? Yep. Compact and easy to set up? Uh huh. Compatible with other Sonos products for a more robust system? You betcha. The first-gen Sonos Beam has been one of our favorites since it arrived in 2018, but there was one thing it didn't have: Dolby Atmos. With the 2021 model, the company's big addition was that immersive sound, though it's a bit limited since the Beam doesn't have any upward-firing speakers. Sonos manages to make things seem more directional by tweaking audio timing and frequency instead of adding more drivers. The new Beam still only has the one HDMI port which means you won't be connecting a gaming console or set-top box directly to this. It also means that if you have an older TV with an optical jack, you'll need an adapter here.

Buy Beam (Gen 2) at Sonos - $449

Best budget soundbar: Vizio V21t-J8

Vizio V21t-J8 soundbar
Vizio

If you're looking for a way to improve your TV sound on a budget, Vizio has some solid options. With the V21t-J8, you get a 2.1-channel setup in a compact soundbar and 4.5-inch wireless sub combo. This would be a great choice if you don't want your add-on TV speaker to take up a lot of space. There's no WiFi connectivity, but that's really the only sacrifice when it comes to the basics. HDMI ARC/eARC and optical connections link to your television while a 3.5mm aux jack and Bluetooth allow you to play music from your phone or another device. DTS Virtual:X compatibility offers some of the effect of surround sound without a bigger unit or additional speakers.

Buy Vizio V21t-J8 at Amazon - $160

Runner-up budget soundbar: Roku Streambar

Roku Streambar
Valentina Palladino / Engadget

Roku has a line of products that not only allow you to improve your television's sound quality, but they also have a streaming player built right in. For $130, the Streambar gives you all the benefits of a Roku player, including 4K HDR, inside of a soundbar with four 1.9-inch drivers. There are a lot of handy features here too, like the ability to dull the roar of commercials, enhanced speech clarity and compatibility with most voice assistants. Plus, the Streambar supports AirPlay for beaming both video and audio to the device. Roku doesn't pair a subwoofer with this soundbar, but it does offer one separately for $180.

Buy Roku Streambar at Amazon - $130

Star Trek: Discovery’s faster ship travel comes at the expense of its supporting cast

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 06:00 AM PST

The following contains spoilers for season four, episodes eight and nine of 'Star Trek: Discovery' and season one of 'Star Trek: Prodigy.'

In the initial pitch for Star Trek, way back in 1964, the series was described as "Wagon Train to the Stars." This was mostly in reference to its sense of exploration and discovery, but it also hints at something else that would become a hallmark of the series: the travel. Lots and lots of travel. It may take days, weeks or, in the case of shows like Voyager, years, for the crew to get to their destination and as such, it allows plenty of time for adventure and character growth. However, new technologies introduced in shows like Discovery and Prodigy have eliminated that travel time, fundamentally changing the nature of their plots.

That's keenly on display in this week's episode of Discovery, where the ship must continue their pursuit of Cleveland Booker and Ruon Tarka. Last week we discovered that the planet-killing Dark Matter Anomaly was basically a piece of mining equipment from an unknown species, and Book and Tarka's desire to destroy it would make for a very unpleasant first contact, one that could potentially start a war. The pair had already stolen a prototype spore drive and fitted it into Book's ship, meaning they now had access to the ability to leap across the galaxy in seconds. As the only other vessel in the fleet with a working spore drive, this meant the USS Discovery was now in the uncomfortable position of hunting down one of its own.

Pictured: Sonequa Martin-Green as Burnham, Emily Coutts as Detmer and Rachael Ancheril as Commander Nhan of the Paramount+ original series STAR TREK: DISCOVERY. Photo Cr: Michael Gibson/Paramount+ (C) 2021 CBS Interactive. All Rights Reserved.
CBS

Some of the episode is focused on the crew's feelings about this; Admiral Vance can't trust Michael to hunt down her boyfriend so he even assigns Commander Nhan to the mission to step in if things get messy. There's even some dialogue between minor crew members like Nielsen and Rhys and how they feel about the whole thing. It's nice to see them get some screen time, but it also shows how little we get to hear from them in a typical Discovery season.

Consider how many classic episodes of the franchise took place during, or were about a long trip between planets. It's in the title of the original series' "Journey to Babel," where we meet Sarek for the first time and get to see the relationship between him and his son Spock. "Data's Day" is a Next Generation episode about a typical day in the life of Commander Data, which also involves transporting a diplomat while there's also a wedding on board the ship. This was the first appearance of Keiko O'Brien, a character who would later go on to play a large role in Deep Space Nine when her husband was part of the main cast.

Pictured: Sonequa Martin-Green as Burnham of the Paramount+ original series STAR TREK: DISCOVERY. Photo Cr: Michael Gibson/Paramount+ (C) 2021 CBS Interactive. All Rights Reserved.
CBS

Meanwhile, the chances for our recurring characters to shine have been few and far between. Last week's installment did have Owosekun kicking ass, but not in any way that really gave us deeper insight into her character, with her best development remaining "New Eden" back in season two. We haven't even seen Jett Reno much this year, though that's due to actress Tig Notaro avoiding travel during the pandemic. The background character that's gotten the most development thus far is Airiam, who had an entire episode dedicated to her — because she was about to die.

The immediate travel time also makes itself felt with the main cast, who get to return to familiar locations on a regular basis. Starfleet Headquarters, Earth or any of the various planets the ship has visited before — nothing is off the table for a drop-in, which means that past storylines and characters like Admiral Vance can be readily revisited. That leaves even less time for the audience to get to know the rest of the crew.

Pictured: Oded Fehr as Admiral Vance of the Paramount+ original series STAR TREK: DISCOVERY. Photo Cr: Michael Gibson/Paramount+ (C) 2021 CBS Interactive. All Rights Reserved.
CBS

It's an interesting contrast with Prodigy, which also features super-fast engine tech, the protostar engine. It's not instantaneous like the spore drive, but it does cut a journey that would have taken Voyager 70 years down to mere days. It's a natural outgrowth of all the technological development we saw during Voyager's seven seasons, as opposed to the quantum leap that the spore drive represented to Discovery's 23rd-century setting.

But even with faster travel times, Prodigy can still focus on character development due to simply having a smaller recurring cast to deal with. On the Protostar it's just the six kids and their holographic Janeway, and a lot of their time is spent in transit by virtue of the plot — they were on the run from the Diviner and thus couldn't stay in one place very long, and when the show returns from its hiatus they'll be running from the flesh-and-blood Janeway. In my interview earlier this month with showrunners Dan and Kevin Hageman, they also said they didn't want the vessel to just be zipping around, either; there will be limits to what the ship can do, which leaves plenty of time for even more character development. (Even Murf is due for a character arc.)

ictured: Shawn Doyle as Ruon Tarka and David Ajala as Book of the Paramount+ original series STAR TREK: DISCOVERY. Photo Cr: Michael Gibson/Paramount+ (C) 2021 CBS Interactive. All Rights Reserved.
CBS

After the cursory hand-wringing Discovery jumps straight into the action, with a game of cat-and-mouse as Book and Tarka pursue the DMA and the USS Discovery pursues both the DMA and Book's ship. It's a bit exciting, though loaded with technobabble: They can't outrun each other so the show needs to find sci-fi tricks to keep the chase interesting. But the bulk of the action is still focused solidly on Michael, Book and Tarka, pushing a lot of the usual teamwork and ensuring character interaction usually found in Star Trek shows to the background. It's still an interesting story, to be sure — it's just not one that serves its recurring characters very well.

AMD's Ryzen 6000 mobile chips could push ultraportables to new gaming heights

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 06:00 AM PST

It's clear that AMD is taking some big swings with its new Ryzen 6000 mobile chips. At CES, the company announced that they would sport integrated RDNA2 graphics for the first time, offering enough power to play modern games in 1080p. But while AMD was quick to show off its top-end model, the Ryzen 9 6980HX, it had little to say about its U-series hardware for ultraportables. It turns out, the chip giant was saving some of the most intriguing details for last.

While more graphics power is certainly nice to have, courtesy of its new Radeon 680M integrated GPU, AMD is emphasizing efficiency above all with the Ryzen 6000 line. Improvements in its Zen 3+ core, power management and its 6nm process led AMD to make some bold claims during a recent briefing with media. For one, AMD says it was able to push base clock speeds up around 40 percent in its 15-watt U-series parts. That led to a 17 percent increase in performance over the previous generation, as well as an 81 percent jump in graphics speeds and an additional 3 hours of battery life. Not bad for a company that, just a few years ago, had no presence in the ultraportable market. 

AMD Ryzen 6000 mobile chart comparing 15w to Intel 28w performance.
AMD

To drive the efficiency point home, AMD says that its 15-watt U-series chips can practically obliterate Intel's 11th-gen 28-watt hardware. The company's testing shows that the new Ryzen 7 6800U is around 24 percent faster than the Core i7-11857G. Of course, we always have to take internal benchmarks with a grain of salt. And it's worth noting that AMD didn't have access to Intel's 12th-gen hardware, which promises to be vastly superior to the 11th-gen thanks to their hybrid core model.

AMD boasts that it's offering full-powered cores across the board with the Ryzen 6000 line, whereas Intel has to split things up between powerful P-cores and efficient (and archaic) E-cores. And there's no doubt that the Radeon 680M is also going to be a compelling feature for mainstream gamers. AMD says its Ryzen 5 6600U can reach up to 128 fps in Age of Empires4, compared to the 86fps Intel's Irix Xe graphics reached on the i7-1135G7. The difference is more pronounced among more demanding titles: AMD's graphics hit 52 fps in Shadow of the Tomb Raider, while Intel's only reached 32fps. (The company notes that you may have to use low graphics settings to see similar scores in some games.)

AMD Ryzen 6800U vs Intel's 1165G7
AMD

With performance like that, it may make more sense for cash-strapped PC shoppers to just rely on integrated graphics, rather than shelling out hundreds more for a system with a cheap dedicated GPU. The Radeon 680M, which is built into the new Ryzen 7 and 9 chips, offers up to 12 compute cores that can reach 2.4GHz. The lower-tier Radeon 660M graphics on the Ryzen 5 halves that compute core figure, and reaches up to 1.9GHz.

Here's the thing, though: Both Intel and AMD will breathlessly claim their new chips are better than their competitor's last-gen hardware. Neither company was able to pit their freshest wares against each other. So as compelling as the Ryzen 6000 mobile chips sound now, it'll be interesting to see how they stack up to Intel's 12th-gen hybrid chips once we can get some independent head-to-head comparisons. For now, though, it seems like an AMD ultraportable may be just what some consumers are looking for.

Amazon is matching Samsung's pre-order discount on Galaxy S22 smartphones

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 05:48 AM PST

You have about one more week to pre-order Samsung's latest smartphones before they come out on February 25th. Samsung has a number of offers available to those who pre-order, but now Amazon is matching one of the discounts. The online retailer has knocked up to $100 off the higher-storage variants, so you can essentially get extra onboard space at no additional cost. The 256GB Galaxy S22 Ultra is $1,200 and $100 off, while the 512GB version is also $100 off and down to $1,300. As for the Galaxy S22+ and S22, the 256GB models of those handsets are $50 off and on sale for $1,000 and $800, respectively.

Buy Galaxy S22 Ultra (256GB) at Amazon - $1,200Buy Galaxy S22+ (256GB) at Amazon - $1,000Buy Galaxy S22 (256GB) at Amazon - $800

Samsung unveiled the three smartphones last week and the Galaxy S22 Ultra is the most premium of the bunch. It has a mesmerizing 6.8-inch QHD+ OLED screen with a 120Hz refresh rate, an impressive rear camera array, and is outfitted with the highest specs you can get in a Samsung phone — a Qualcomm's 4nm Snapdragon Gen 1 chip, up to 12GB of RAM and up to 1TB of onboard storage. Samsung married the designs of its S- and Note-series phones in this new model, and fans of the Note family will be happy to see that the S22 Ultra comes with a built-in S Pen. While we had a bit of time to test out the Galaxy S22 Ultra before Samsung's announcement, stay tuned for a full review coming soon.

The Galaxy S22+ and S22 may not have all the bells and whistles found on the Ultra, but Samsung made important updates to the insides of both smartphones. They share a design that looks similar to last year's flagships, but they're now made partially of post-consumer recycled material and come in new colors. The 6.6-inch S22+ and the 6.1-inch S22 both have FHD+ displays with 120Hz refresh rates, a triple rear camera array, a 40-megapixel selfie camera and a new Vision Booster feature, which adjusts screen settings automatically throughout the day to make it easier to view in different environments. As far as performance goes, both handsets run on Qualcomm's 4nm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chip, 8GB of RAM and up to 256GB of storage. Keep an eye out on Engadget for our full review in the coming weeks.

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Guerrilla Games explains why 'Horizon Forbidden West' works well on the PS4

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 05:00 AM PST

Guerrilla Games set itself up with an unusual challenge when developing Horizon Forbidden West, which comes out on Friday, February 18th. According to the game's director and technical director, Guerrilla was well aware of the PS5 and much of its capabilities when it started working on Forbidden West in 2018. But, the company also planned to make the game work on the PS4, a console that turns nine years old this fall.

It's not unusual for games to be released on both consoles, but Forbidden West is notable for being a particularly massive and detailed game, perhaps the most advanced title yet to come out on the PS5. In a conversation with Engadget, game director Mathijs de Jonge and technical director Michiel van der Leeuw discussed Guerrilla's process for making sure that the game worked for the PS4 while simultaneously showing off everything the PS5 is capable of.

"We knew it was going to be tricky making something that would make the PlayStation 5 shine, but also be really rewarding for people who have PlayStation 4," said van der Leeuw. "So we're very happy that we knew about the PS5's capabilities very early on, because that meant we could plan for how we're going to make this distinction."

The most immediately obvious difference between the two versions is visual fidelity, with the PS5 targeting 4K resolution (reduced to a checkerboard-upscaled 1800p when running in 60 fps "performance" mode). "From the start, we targeted having higher-fidelity characters, high-fidelity environments, higher-fidelity vegetation, everything, just for the PS5," van der Leeuw said. "So you'll just see different models for the PS4 version, but with the same sort of atmosphere throughout the game."

The realities of play-testing during a worldwide pandemic actually provided Guerrilla plenty of opportunities to get feedback on the PS4 experience. "It was really difficult for us, the pandemic just hit us while we're in peak production," van der Leeuw added. But Guerrilla was able to use Sony's PlayStation Now game streaming technology to send early builds of the game to PS4 play testers. "Because of the pandemic, we had to switch to remote play testing," said de Jonge. Sony would have done that with the PS5, but it wasn't possible to have people into their offices during the pandemic.

The upshot of this was that Guerrilla had to make sure the PS4 version was getting plenty of attention throughout the development process. "It was a big advantage, in a way, that we did have the PlayStation 4," de Jonge said, "because that meant we really had to get the build in a good state rather than just focusing on the PS5 version."

Horizon Forbidden West PS5
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While the team was conscious of making things work for the PS4 throughout the game's development, they also were painstaking about having the PS5 version stand out visually. "We'd look at screenshots for every single thing on-screen, whether it was the grass, the sky, the leaves, the cloth, the hair – everything should have something where if you look at the screenshots, you'd feel like this is definitely the PS5 version," van der Leeuw said.

While improved fidelity and frame rate were obvious things to expect in the PS5 version, Guerrilla put a lot of thought into how the PS5's controller could be a differentiator – but it was somewhat of a balancing act getting the experience right. "In our early prototypes, I remember that we set the [adaptive trigger] values relatively high," de Jonge said, "and I remember that after a few minutes we already felt some fatigue with the triggers. And then we started adding the haptic feedback. And then you have to balance how much haptic you have versus how much pressure you put on the triggers."

Somewhat surprisingly, the team working on haptics is separate from the team working on the adaptive triggers. "Haptics are handled in our studio by the audio design designers, but the adaptive triggers are handled by our game designers," de Jonge said. Obviously, no part of game design happens in a vacuum, but he specifically cites the collaboration between those teams as something he was proud of in the development process.

The end result is something that doesn't scream out to you as a huge update, but a skillfully executed component that helps Horizon Forbidden West shine on the PS5. "I think it was great to see also how we could [use haptics and adaptive triggers] make the different weapons stand out, sort of give them their own character," de Jonge said. "So it really feels different when you use a slingshot versus when you fire an arrow using a bow."

Like most games specifically built for the PS5, Horizon Forbidden West loads quickly, thanks to the console's built-in SSD. With such a massive map to explore, near-instantaneous loading (like when you fast travel) is a huge quality of life improvement. But van de Leeuw said these optimizations are more than just having a fast drive. "You don't realize how easily games are bottlenecked," he said. "If you run a PC game on a very fast SSD, it doesn't automatically load in like seven seconds. There's so much work we had to do."

Horizon Forbidden West PS5
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The end result is a game so quick that the development team had to revamp the tips that appear on loading screens. "In Horizon Zero Dawn, we called it fast travel, but it could take maybe a minute to actually load," de Jonge said. "With the PS5, it's maybe four or five seconds, it loads so quickly that players can't even read the hints." But from testing, Guerrilla knew that players came to rely on these hints, so they decided to slow things down just a bit. "We had to add a very simple feature where it hangs on the loading screen for enough time so you can actually read at least one hint while it loads." Of course, people who want to speed through things can just mash X or turn off the pause in settings so that the game loads up as fast as possible.

While Engadget hasn't tested Horizon Forbidden West on the PS4 yet, early reportsindicate that Guerrilla stuck the landing, building a game that doesn't feel compromised on the PS4 that still shows off the power of the PS5. "I'm quite happy how it turned out," said van der Leeuw. "I'm very proud of the PS5 version. But the PS4 version has the same sort of atmosphere, same sort of feel. Of course, it's a generation older, but it holds up, I think, quite well."

Wordle clones have jumped the S_ARK

Posted: 17 Feb 2022 04:32 AM PST

Four Wordle puzzles at once? That was so five hours ago. Now, a site called Sedecordle has come up with a version that lets you do no less than 16 Wordle-style puzzles at a time, following the path of Octordle (eight), Quardle (four) and Dordle (two). 

When I checked out a Sedecordle puzzle, I thought "that's not so bad" before I realized it didn't fit on the screen and I had to scroll (and scroll) to reach the end of the puzzle. Sedecordle ups the ante on Octordle in terms of the number of guesses too, giving you 22 shots at each puzzle compared to 13. That increases your odds of avoiding a failure that would really suck if you got, say, the first 15 correct. 

With Wordle becoming an online phenomenon, clones have taken over app stores, with some dubious versions even tacking on hefty subscription charges. Online versions like Sedecordle are at least expanding on the idea by adding an element of challenge. 

I would love to tell you that I tried to do one, but even Quardle is a huge time sink that has been driving users mad. Suffice to say, you'd have to be a massive Wordle fan and slightly masochistic to try one four times that size. Much as folks expanded on the original Rubik's cube with up to 22 sides, knock-offs are now taking Wordle to its logical, very silly conclusion. 
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