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• Amazon no longer offers in-app Audible, Kindle and Music purchases on Android
• Razer's new Barracuda headsets work with any phone or PC
• Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 leaks in retail listing
• Blizzard won't release 'Diablo Immortal' in countries with loot box laws
• Algoriddim’s djay Pro AI adds digital control vinyl support for Mac and iOS
• Fujifilm's flagship X-H2S camera offers 6.2K video and 40 fps burst shooting
• What we bought: My first tube amp… about 20 years late
• Watch NASA's Mars helicopter complete a record-setting flight
• West Pest is an affordable and experimental semimodular synth
• The Monument Valley games are coming to PC on July 12th
• Sonos Ray review: A soundbar that nails the basics
• Orba 2 adds a sampler and more to an excellent musical fidget toy
• Panasonic and Leica unveil 'L squared' project to jointly develop cameras and lenses
• The Morning After: A first look at the DeLorean EV
• France officially bans English gaming terms like 'eSports' and 'streaming'
• Playtime Engineering debuts two new music makers for kids
• Amazon will give Cloud Cam owners a free camera when service shuts down
• Google Pixel 7 prototype reputedly shows up on eBay
• Acer Predator Triton 500 SE review: A refined powerhouse for work and play
• The latest Apple TV 4K is back to a record low of $150
• Atlassian co-founder takes big step toward shutting down Australia's coal power
• Apple's second-gen AirPods are on sale for $100
• DeLorean offers first look at its Alpha5 four seater EV
• Apple's MagSafe Battery pack is the cheapest it's been this year
• US retakes first place from Japan on Top500 supercomputer ranking

Amazon no longer offers in-app Audible, Kindle and Music purchases on Android Posted: 31 May 2022 09:17 AM PDT If you use Amazon's Kindle app on Android, you may have noticed the software doesn't offer the option to buy and rent ebooks or subscribe to the company's Kindle Unlimited service anymore. Amazon announced the change last month and more recently began notifying customers of the move via email. If you're curious about what's going on, the change puts Amazon in compliance with a policy Google will begin enforcing on June 1st. Starting next month, the company will require all developers to process payments involving "digital goods and services" through the Play Store billing system. Previously, Amazon was among a handful of developers Google allowed to use third-party alternatives to collect in-app payments. Rather than give Google a commission for every ebook it sells on Android, Amazon has decided to remove purchases altogether. It has done the same in its Audible and Music apps. In the US, Amazon doesn't offer Kindle in-app purchasing on iOS either.   It's worth noting Amazon isn't the only company that has stopped sales on Android. In April, for instance, Barnes and Noble removed direct purchasing from the Android version of its Nook app. Some companies have legally challenged Google on the matter, with Tinder parent company Match Group filing a suit against the search giant in May. There's the possibility that direct purchasing could return to Amazon's Android Kindle, Audible and Music apps at some point in the future. In March, Google partnered with Spotify to test third-party billing systems. However, how soon that pilot could expand to include other companies is unclear.

Razer's new Barracuda headsets work with any phone or PC Posted: 31 May 2022 08:00 AM PDT Razer's Barracuda X headset from last year was fine if you wanted low-latency wireless audio for your console or Android phone, but it wasn't very practical for much else. That won't be a problem this time around, though. The company has introduced new Barracuda, Barracuda X and Barracuda Pro headsets that (among other upgrades) add Bluetooth with smart device switching. You can use them with iPhones and virtually any other device, and you won't have to manually switch connections when a phone call interrupts your gaming session. You can also expect nearly twice the battery life, at up to 50 hours for the Barracuda X and 40 hours for the other two models. You'll still have Razer's proprietary 2.4GHz wireless connection if lag is a concern. The differences largely come down to audio quality. The Barracuda Pro (pictured above) tops the line with 50mm "TriForce Bio-Cellulose" drivers, a THX Achromatic Audio Amplifier, THX Spatial Audio and hybrid active noise cancellation. The regular Barracuda opts for 'plain' titanium 50mm drivers while shedding the amplifier and ANC. The revised Barracuda X (below), meanwhile, is now more of a conventional gaming headset. While it sticks to more modest 40mm drivers and doesn't include any THX features, you'll get a detachable cardioid microphone, a 3.5mm wired option and 7.1-channel surround audio. Razer All three headsets are available today. The Barracuda X starts the range at $100, while the standard Barracuda and the Pro will respectively cost you $160 and $250. Razer is clearly pivoting the line, then — these are less gaming accessories and more competition for conventional mid-range and budget headphones.

Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 leaks in retail listing Posted: 31 May 2022 07:34 AM PDT It appears Microsoft will soon reveal its next-gen Surface Laptop Go. The successor to the would-be Chromebook competitor popped up in a Korean retailer listing that appears to have gone live a little too early. It seems the page has since been taken down. The listing, which was spotted by The Verge, indicates the Surface Laptop Go 2 will shift from a 10th-gen Intel Core CPU to an 11th-gen Intel processor. This specific configuration boasts the i5-1135G7 and Intel Iris Xe graphics. As with the original Surface Laptop Go from 2020, this laptop will support up to 8GB of RAM and as much as 256GB of storage, according to the listing. The base model specs are unclear, however. Previous reports indicated the laptop will have a baseline of 4GB RAM and 128GB of storage. The base Surface Laptop Go has 64GB of storage. As you might expect, the laptop is slated to ship with Windows 11. The listing promises a battery life of up to 13.5 hours as well. In addition, it suggests the system will have "improved HD camera performance," even though, like its predecessor, it's said to have a 720p webcam. The Surface Laptop Go 2 seems to have a lot of other details in common with the original system. The listing suggests it still has a 12.4-inch display and 3:2 aspect ratio, the same ports (including a 3.5mm headphone jack and the proprietary Surface charging port) and a fingerprint sensor. There's no sign of it having a backlit keyboard as yet, unfortunately. It seems we may not have to wait much longer for Microsoft to formally announce the latest entry-level Surface laptop. The listing suggests preorders will open on June 2nd.

Blizzard won't release 'Diablo Immortal' in countries with loot box laws Posted: 31 May 2022 07:12 AM PDT Don't expect to play Diablo Immortal in the Low Countries when it launches this week. GamesIndustry.biz and Tweakers have learned Blizzard won't release the free-to-play game in Belgium or the Netherlands due to their "gambling restrictions" — that is, their legislation banning loot boxes. It will also be illegal for people in those countries to download them from other regions, and Blizzard's support team warned that it couldn't guarantee that players in the affected countries would avoid bans. Belgium and the Netherlands determined in 2018 that some loot boxes, particularly those you can buy or trade for real money, amounted to gambling. Diablo Immortal tucks access to its best stat-enhancing items, such as some legendary gems, behind legendary crests that are often easier to obtain with real-world currency. While the items you get are frequently good (to the point where some have argued they're unfair), the attributes are random. That could theoretically pressure gamers to pay in hopes of scoring the 'perfect' crest, and might reel in people with addictive personalities. Blizzard halted loot box sales for other games in Belgium after the country cracked down on the practice. The company also isn't unique. EA, Konami, Nintendo and Epic's Psyonix have all pulled games to avoid violating anti-loot box laws. Even so, it's still notable that Blizzard would rather withdraw Diablo Immortal from those countries than change gameplay mechanics.

Algoriddim’s djay Pro AI adds digital control vinyl support for Mac and iOS Posted: 31 May 2022 07:00 AM PDT Many DJs who've gone digital still like the feel of vinyl for their sets, opting for apps and hardware that support a digital vinyl system (DVS). Today Algoriddim's djay Pro AI joins that camp with a few unique twists. Not only will DVS support include iOS devices in addition to Mac, but the control vinyl will offer a special B-Side with three 'tracks' that leverage Neural Mix's ability to isolate stems from any song. This way you can drop the needle on track one for the original version, track two for an instrumental and three for an acapella, all extracted on the fly from any song you want to play. While DVS support is new for djay Pro AI on Mac, the addition of iPhones and iPads with this capability is truly unique. These devices should be able to send a control tone through any class compliant USB mixer or controller connected to analog turntables and using the Neural Mix control disks. And you can potentially map things like performance pads and knobs using its MIDI learn tool, but supported hardware devices for djay Pro AI should work out-of-the-box. This software update also offers an optimized user interface for iOS devices that should adapt automatically when you connect to DJ hardware. In addition to the DVS features, this refresh includes a few more interesting tweaks. You can now edit playlists from connected streaming accounts like TIDAL, SoundCloud, Beatport and Beatsource from inside the djay Pro AI app. There's also mention of new AI audio effects and a Pitch Cue / Tone Play feature that allows you to use pitch-altered cue points for more dynamic mixing. The new software is available today and existing djay Pro AI users will automatically get this update with all the included features. New subscribers can trial the Pro version for seven days and pay $7 per month or $50 per year after that. Mobile users will need an iPhone or iPad running iOS 12 or later and macOS users will need 10.14 or later. Pricing and availability for the Neural Mix control vinyl is still pending, although we know that it will be manufactured and distributed by Stokyo. We're told that most existing disks with a 1kHz time code should work, though, so you should be able to use DVS (without the Neural Mix B-side features) right away. Algoriddim

Fujifilm's flagship X-H2S camera offers 6.2K video and 40 fps burst shooting Posted: 31 May 2022 07:00 AM PDT Fujifilm has launched its new flagship APS-C mirrorless camera, the $2,500 X-H2S, with an all-new 26.2-megapixel (MP) stacked BSI CMOS sensor and a raft of impressive features. Some of the key highlights include 40 fps blackout-free burst shooting, 6.2K 30fps video and 7-stop in-body stabilization.  The X-H2S is the long-rumored successor to the X-H1, released over four years ago. However, it bears little resemblance to that model (apart from the top LCD display) with a substantially different grip and button layout. It's also lighter at 660 grams compared to 673 grams. Unlike the tilt-only display on the X-H1, the X-H2S has a fully articulating 1.62-million dot rear display, making it far better for vloggers and solo video shooters. The 5.76-million-dot 120Hz EVF outclasses other APS-C cameras and hopefully addresses EVF performance issues on the X-T4. It's the first Fujifilm camera with a stacked, backside illuminated sensor (the X-Trans 5HS) and new X-Processor image processor — though the 26.2-MP resolution sensor is the same we've seen on models as far back as the X-T3. By contrast, Canon's new EOS R7 APS-C camera has a 32-megapixel sensor, but it's neither backside illuminated nor stacked. Fujifilm The stacked sensor allows for some impressive shooting speeds. It can hit up to 40 fps in silent electronic shutter mode with no blackout, or 15fps in mechanical shutter mode (at 1/8000th maximum), both with autofocus and auto-exposure enabled. It comes with a high-capacity buffer, allowing you to capture 175 compressed RAW frames in 40fps ES mode (4.4 seconds worth) and 400 compressed RAW frames in mechanical shutter mode.  Fujifilm promises much-improved phase-detect autofocus (AF) performance over the X-T4, with three times the speed and improved accuracy. Meanwhile, the AF algorithms can do prediction for moving subjects, while allowing for zone AF subject detection and low-contrast situations. On top of recognizing humans (face/eye), it can also detect animals, birds, cars, bikes, airplanes and trains.  Also enabled by the faster sensor/processor is a big jump in video specs over the X-T4. The X-H2S supports 6.2K video at 30 fps, DCI 4K (4,096 x 2,160 pixels) at 120 fps and Full HD at 240 fps, with no cropping or sub-sampling on all video modes up to 60 fps. 4K at 120p is mildly cropped at 1.29x, but it's still oversampled with no pixel binning or line skipping. Fujifilm It's also the first Fujifilm APS-C camera to support ProRes (ProRes422, ProResHQ, ProResLT and ProResProxy), along with H.264 and H.265 video. All of those resolutions can be recorded at 4:2:2 10-bit quality, and Fujifilm has introduced F-Log2 recording that allows for 14+ stops of dynamic range below 30 fps and 13+ stops at higher frame rates (with settings at or above ISO1250) — impressive, if accurate. External recording via the full-sized HDMI 2.1 port is equally impressive. On top of all of the above settings (6.2K/29.97P, 4K/120P 4:2:2 10bit), you can record ProRes RAW at 6.2K/29.97P and 4.8K/59.94P, both at 4:2:2 12bit with 13 stops of dynamic range. External recording with ProRes RAW means that Fujifilm won't need to deal with RED RAW patent lawsuits, like the one recently slapped on Nikon's Z9.  Like other stacked sensor cameras, the X-H2S promises well-controlled rolling shutter at 1/90th of a second (11 ms) for video under 30fps and 1/180th of a second (5.6 ms) for higher framerates. That's right up there with other stacked sensor cameras like Sony's A1 or the Canon R3, meaning you should see minimal jello or wobble in video, particularly at higher framerates. Fujifilm Overheating doesn't appear to be much of an issue at normal temperatures, with a promised four hours of 4K60p shooting at 25 degrees C (77 degrees F). That drops to 20 minutes at 40 C (104 F), but you can boost that to 50 minutes with an optional $199 cooling fan.  The X-H2S has improved in-body stabilization over past Fujifilm cameras, as well. It delivers 7 stops of shake reduction compared to 6.5 stops on the X-T4, which should help smooth videos and reduce blur on photos.  Other key features include both CFexpress and SD UHS II card slots, a USB 3.1 gen 2 (10Gbps) port with a handy cable lock screw, 3.5mm microphone/headphone jacks, 10-bit HEIF photo support and an optional $400 vertical grip. It also supports wireless and wired functions like live streaming, tethered shooting, webcam functions (no app required) and cloud storage uploads. CIPA battery life is 610 shots max with the EVF, or 1,580 shots with the vertical grip.  Fujifilm Along with the camera and accessories, Fujifilm has launched two new lenses, the XF150-600mm f/5.6-8 R LM OIS WR zoom telephoto (left), arriving on July 7, 2022 for $2,000. It's also introduced the XF18-120mm f/4 LM PZ WR (right), a versatile wide-telephoto zoom coming in September 2022 for $900. Meanwhile, the X-H2S will be Fujifilm's most expensive APS-C camera to date, arriving on July 7th for $2,500 — the same price as Canon's full-frame EOS R5.

What we bought: My first tube amp… about 20 years late Posted: 31 May 2022 06:30 AM PDT I got my first guitar in the seventh grade. Had a couple of bands in high school and college. And I still play regularly. But, I'm somewhat embarrassed to admit that I only just bought my first tube amp in April of last year. That's right, I played guitar somewhat seriously for around 25 years before I went and bought what is considered by many (mostly obnoxious purists) the only kind of amp worth playing. Eventually, I set my sights on a Fender Blues Jr, a simple 15-watt, 1x12 amp. Specifically, I managed to snag a gorgeous Tweed model used for $400. It was too good of a deal to pass up (even if I did have to drive into New Jersey to pick it up). Now, before you all freak out, it's not that I've never played a tube amp before. My bands often rented a rehearsal space where I was usually playing through Marshall half stack. A JCM800 if I remember correctly, but I'd be lying if I said I cared about anything other than the fact that it was a Marshall half stack at the age of 18. In addition to sounding great, glowing vacuum tubes look great. Terrence O'Brien / Engadget When it was time for me to go out and upgrade from my tiny Yamaha practice amp, I just got the loudest thing I could afford at the time: a 2x12 120-watt Crate solid state amp. I needed something that could be heard over a drummer in my basement or in a small club. It did exactly what I expected it to: It was delightfully crisp and clean, took pedals well and it was loud. That was my only amp for many years. But, being 120w it didn't really do "quiet." Even with the volume at one it was enough to piss off the neighbors. So when I had my first child I knew I needed to get something else. Again, budget and volume were important (turns out kids are expensive). But instead of being loud, this time I needed something that would sound good at levels that wouldn't disturb a sleeping baby. So I snagged a Yamaha THR10 on sale. But over the last few years I'd started getting serious about music again. And, in particular over the last two years, I'd rekindled my love of guitar. Between that, and what I'm going to chalk up to pandemic restlessness, I started looking to upgrade to an actual tube amp. I ended up settling on the Blues Jr in part because I still needed something that didn't get too loud. But I also didn't need anything terribly fancy. I wanted tube warmth and crunch at a reasonable price and without too many bells and whistles. While it took me a while to find the amp's sweet spots, I'm a convert. I now primarily use my THR10 late at night or if I need to be mobile – say, shooting a review in my dining room. But otherwise, I'm firing up the Blues Jr everytime. It can do the jangly clean tones often associated with Fender at lower volumes, and get an almost Vox-ish crunch when cranked. I rarely use the "Fat" switch, which boosts the mids, but I could see it being handy if you're relying entirely on the internal drive and need to take a solo. Terrence O'Brien / Engadget The only real amenity you get is a spring reverb, which sounds pretty great. Cranking it introduces a decent amount of noise to your signal, but it really nails those drippy surf tones. Importantly for me, it has a master volume knob (which not all amps do). That allows you to push the preamp until you start to get some delicious breakup, while keeping things at a level that won't get the cops involved. But it gets loud enough for gigging too, in case I ever decide to play music in front of other humans again (highly unlikely). The biggest selling point, though, was that it's also a pretty solid pedal platform. As a guitarist with more effects than talent, I needed something that wasn't going to get too muddy or noisy as I started stacking multiple delays and reverbs with fuzz. The Fender Blues Jr has been around since about 1995. And, while it has undergone multiple revisions in that time, its core character remains largely unchanged. Honestly, I wish I had discovered it earlier. Because, while I've fallen in love with plenty of instruments and effects over the years, this is the first amp that I've been truly enamored with.

Watch NASA's Mars helicopter complete a record-setting flight Posted: 31 May 2022 06:15 AM PDT NASA's Ingenuity helicopter is still pushing boundaries long after its first Mars liftoff. As CNETnotes, the space agency has shared video of Ingenuity's milestone 25th flight on April 8th, when it broke duration and speed records. The robotic helicopter flew at 12MPH for just over two minutes and 41 seconds, providing footage of the Red Planet's rippling sands and rock fields as part of the 2,310-foot journey. The footage you see below was sped up to cut the viewing time to 35 seconds. The video doesn't include the very start and end of the trip, but for good reason. The navigation camera switches off whenever Ingenuity is within three feet of the Martian surface to prevent dust from interfering with the navigation system. The autonomous flier receives flight plans from JPL, but it uses a combination of the camera, a laser rangefinder and an inertial measurement unit to adapt to real-life conditions. Ingenuity has flown three times since. It's currently preparing for a 29th flight following a brief scare in early May, when the mission team lost communication after the helicopter switched to a low-power state. NASA isn't easily deterred, then — expect the aircraft to keep flying for a while to come.

West Pest is an affordable and experimental semimodular synth Posted: 31 May 2022 06:00 AM PDT It's only been a couple of weeks since Cre8Audio unveiled its first self-contained synth. But the company is back already with a companion to the East Beast, called the West Pest. As the name implies this is a West Coast style synth, made to complement the Beast's east coast flavor.  Just like the Beast this is an analog semi-modular synth built in collaboration with Pittsburg Modular. It has a 20-point patch bay, a one octave keyboard, a 32-step sequencer, an arpeggiator and a "digital multi-function tool" that can be an extra envelope, LFO or a random generator.  In fact the two have more in common than not. Physically they're nearly identical, but with slightly different control layouts and graphics. And they're both just $250, which is stunningly affordable for an analog modular synth.  Of course what separates the West Pest from its sibling is its core sound and design features. Its main oscillator is described as "buzzy" and instead of a filter to shave off harmonics, it has a wave folder to add more. Rather than a traditional envelope and filter combo, the Pest has a Dynamics Controller module, that combines the functions of an envelope generator, VCA, and a low pass filter, which sounds more-or-less like a low pass gate. And there's a generative sequencing function for getting truly unpredictable with your bleeps and bloops.  West Coast style synthesis has enjoyed something of a resurgence these last few years. Small companies like Erica Synths and big players like Korg have dabbled recently. And the OG of the form, Buchla, came roaring back in 2020 with an updated take on the iconic Music Easel. So it would make sense for a company like Cre8Audio looking to make a splash with it's first couple of synths to give it a try too. The West Pest is available to preorder now for $250 and should be shipping "imminently."

The Monument Valley games are coming to PC on July 12th Posted: 31 May 2022 06:00 AM PDT Classic mobile games Monument Valley and Monument Valley 2 are getting a new lease of life. They're coming to PC on July 12th, meaning they'll be playable outside of the iOS, Android and Windows Phone (remember that?) ecosystems for the first time. A vertical phone-style format wouldn't quite cut the mustard for PC players, though. As such, Ustwo Games has upgraded the already-gorgeous visuals with an ultra-wide 21:9 aspect ratio. The expanded view could help you solve the mind-bending puzzles and find the right paths. With that in mind, the developer is calling these the "panoramic editions." The games are coming to Steam and they'll each cost $8. Scoop up a bundle of both titles (which includes all of the expansions) and you'll get a 15 percent discount. As part of the announcement, Ustwo Games released a behind-the-scenes video in which developers talk about porting the games to PC:

Sonos Ray review: A soundbar that nails the basics Posted: 31 May 2022 06:00 AM PDT With the $279 Ray soundbar, Sonos is going after a new market. The company's previous home theater products have all been $400 or more and have primarily been geared toward people intent on getting the best sound possible. The Ray, meanwhile, is more accessible for people who want better sound than their TV speakers can provide, but don't necessarily care about things like Dolby Atmos support or room-shaking bass. The Ray isn't exactly a budget speaker, though, so I set out to discover if Sonos made the right compromises here in its effort to make a more mainstream soundbar. Hardware and setup Physically, the Ray is smaller than the already-compact Beam, with a tapered design that's wider in the front than it is in the back. Unlike other Sonos soundbars, though, the Ray's speakers are all forward-facing; in this way, it reminds me a bit of a wider and flatter version of the Sonos Five speaker. This design means you can tuck the Ray into a media stand and not have to worry about the sound bouncing off of nearby surfaces. Since the Ray doesn't have a mic for voice assistants, you don't need to worry about whether it can hear you if you place it in a media stand, either. As with just about every other Sonos product, the Ray has touch-sensitive buttons on top to start and pause music and adjust the volume. There's also an LED status light on the front, rather than on the top as it is on most Sonos speakers. Again, this is in case you put it on a shelf that would otherwise hide the light if it was on the top. On the back, there's a power jack, setup button, ethernet port and optical audio jack; Sonos left out HDMI support to cut costs, and since the Ray doesn't support more advanced audio formats like Dolby Atmos, the additional bandwidth HDMI allows wasn't needed here. The Sonos Beam (in black) pictured in front of the new Sonos Ray (in white). Nathan Ingraham / Engadget The setup process was simple: I just plugged the Ray into the wall and connected it to my TV with the included optical audio cable. From there, I finished setting it up in the Sonos app on my phone. The process will take a bit longer if you've never set up a Sonos speaker in your home before, because you'll need to do things like authorize the various streaming music services you want to use. But I simply needed to wait for the app to recognize there was a new speaker to set up, tell it which room the Ray was in and then wait for it to get connected to my wireless network. Once that's done, you have the option of tuning the Ray using what Sonos calls Trueplay. This uses the microphone on an iPhone or iPad to balance the speaker's audio based on how your room sounds. It's a bit of a weird process, walking around your space slowly raising and lowering your phone, but I've found it always makes my Sonos speakers sound better, so it's worth the five minutes it takes to set it up if you have a compatible device on hand. How do movies sound? Nathan Ingraham / Engadget I've spent the last week or so watching movies and shows with the Ray and it's an obvious improvement over my TV's built-in speakers. Sonos said it focused on dialogue quality, bass response and a wide soundstage, and it definitely succeeded on two of those fronts. Dialogue sounds extremely clear, whether I was watching a drama like HBO's The Staircase or enjoying Galadriel's narration at the beginning of Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. The latter also provided a great chance to hear how the Ray performed in more intense, action-filled sequences. As the prologue of Fellowship continued to its massive battle against the forces of Sauron, swordplay and arrows flying filled the space around the narration in a well-balanced mix. And the rumbling explosion and massive thud of Sauron's helmet hitting the ground after his defeat were a good opportunity to hear the Ray flex its bass muscles. Another favorite of mine for testing soundbars is the 15-minute intro of Pacific Rim. The beginning of this over-the-top movie has it all – huge battles between giant robots and monsters, cities being destroyed as panicked citizens flee and a solid heroic narration, all of which the Ray faithfully reproduced in a well-balanced mix. The Ray pulls this off despite having much simpler acoustics than the Beam: it includes two center midwoofers, two tweeters with split waveguides to broaden the speaker's soundstage, a bass reflex system that provides a surprising amount of low-end performance, and four Class-D amplifiers. It's an effective system, but my main complaint is that the waveguides and computational audio can only do so much to widen the soundstage. While the Ray clearly has a solid stereo presence, it's not nearly as immersive as the first-generation Sonos Beam that I usually use. Even though my older Beam doesn't support Dolby Atmos, its larger size and more complex speaker array give it a big advantage over the Ray. The Ray is also not the loudest speaker out there. Again, this isn't a huge surprise, as Sonos is marketing this device for use in relatively smaller space. That doesn't mean it was too quiet for me, but I did usually have its volume up over 50 percent for it to be loud enough. If I really wanted to kick things up while watching a big movie, I might get closer to 70 percent. If you're the kind of person who really wants theater-style audio, you'll be better off with a more powerful device. The good news is that, as with all other Sonos home theater devices, you can pair the Ray with the Sonos Sub to improve bass performance. You can also use two Sonos One speakers as rear surrounds to make for a much more immersive experience. The Ray might be an ideal choice for a first soundbar to upgrade your TV's audio and then use it to build out a more complex setup down the line. That said, the Sonos Sub costs a whopping $749; it's hard to imagine someone buying a Ray and then spending three times as much on a subwoofer. Nathan Ingraham / Engadget What about music? While the Ray is meant to be hooked up to your TV, it's also a capable music speaker. Sonos says that when it builds its home theater products, music quality is just as important as how it works with movies and shows. In my testing, the Ray sounds great – songs like Dua Lipa's "Future Nostalgia" and Carly Rae Jepsen's "Cut to the Feeling" have plenty of low end and super-clear vocals. Meanwhile, the hard left- and right-panned guitars in Metallica's "Wherever I May Roam" were quite distinct. While it's still not the loudest speaker, the Ray is more than capable of filling a medium-sized room with clear and lively music. Naturally, the Ray has all the same multi-room audio features as other Sonos speakers. This means you can simultaneously stream the same music to multiple speakers on your WiFi network, or play something different on each one. You can set up custom speaker groups (just the speakers on your first floor, for example) and stream audio directly to the Ray using AirPlay 2. The only real feature it's missing compared to most other Sonos speakers is voice control. There's no mic, which means you can't control the speaker directly with Alexa, Google Assistant or the upcoming Sonos Voice Control feature. That said, if you have other smart speakers, including any other Sonos speaker with a mic, you can use them to control the Ray. Nathan Ingraham / Engadget Wrap up There's no question in my mind that the Ray is a serious upgrade over a TV's built-in speakers. What's less clear is how much better it is compared to other small soundbars, like Roku's $180 Streambar Pro. Sonos has a long history of delivering excellent sound, and the Ray continues that tradition. And just as the portable $179 Sonos Roam is a good gateway drug into the Sonos ecosystem, the Ray is a good first Sonos for someone who wants to improve their TV audio. Yes, you can find cheaper soundbars, but Sonos is betting its reputation for excellent sound quality will make the Ray a success. After spending some time with it, I'd have no problem recommending the Ray to anyone who wants an easy way to upgrade their TV's audio but doesn't care about having the best speaker that supports the most formats. For a lot of people, particularly those with smaller living rooms, the Ray will be just the right soundbar for their space.

Orba 2 adds a sampler and more to an excellent musical fidget toy Posted: 31 May 2022 06:00 AM PDT The Orba is mostly a musical curiosity, but a compelling one especially at the reasonable price of $100. But for its next version Artiphon is hoping to go beyond fidget toy and turn its little MPE grapefruit into a legit groovebox.  Physically almost nothing has change about the Orba 2. It's till the same black half orb with eight touchpads across the top. It still has a builtin speaker and synth engine, the latter of which was recently opened up for anyone to design their own patches. It's still a capable MIDI controller with support for multiple gestures including shake, tilt and spin.  What makes the new version immediately more impressive, is that it now supports sample playback. You can even record your own samples using the Orba app on your phone and then turn that into a preset that can be played. So you could record a bird call, a car horn or just another instrument and play that melodically.  But that's not all, Orba 2 can also quantize your playing, which is extremely helpful if your rhythm is lacking. Lastly, where the original was limited to an eight bar loop, the sequel can handle up a 128 bar loop — or about five minutes of music.  All of that additional power comes at a bit of a premium. But even at the new price of $150, it's still one of the most affordable MPE controllers out there and no doubt still a great fidget toy. But perhaps it will also now be a great groovebox too.

Panasonic and Leica unveil 'L squared' project to jointly develop cameras and lenses Posted: 31 May 2022 05:00 AM PDT Panasonic and Leica have formed a new collaboration called L² (L squared) that will see them jointly develop cameras, lenses and imaging technology, they announced. Both companies are already part of the L-Mount mirrorless alliance (along with Sigma and Leitz) and Panasonic has loaned its camera tech to Leica. However, the new partnership goes deeper, as they'll use "jointly developed technologies" in their respective lens and camera products, while the L² branding will feature in future marketing activities.  "Through this collaboration, the two companies will jointly invest in new technologies that can be incorporated into camera and lens products, and will incorporate jointly developed technologies into each other's Leica and Lumix products to further enhance their product capabilities," the press release states. "Going forward, Leica and Lumix will utilize L² Technology, which will open up new possibilities for creative camera users, in their marketing activities in order to develop a collaborative system over the long term." Panasonic told Engadget that the partnership will apply not just to full-frame L-Mount cameras, but also to Micro Four Thirds models. Hopefully, that means we'll see Leica-branded lenses with fully compatible image stabilization and AF across camera lineups.  There's no word on when we'll see the fruit of this collaboration. It does make some sense, though, as Panasonic tends to get overshadowed by Canon, Sony and Nikon, despite producing good cameras — especially for video. Meanwhile, Leica has a sterling reputation for lens quality, but gets far less respect for its mirrorless cameras because they're mostly rebadged, overpriced Panasonic models. By collaborating, Panasonic could gain some prestige off Leica's iconic reputation and lens quality, while Leica will get access to Panasonic's technological chops.

The Morning After: A first look at the DeLorean EV Posted: 31 May 2022 04:15 AM PDT Good morning and welcome back! If you had time off yesterday, I hope you enjoyed it. And if you didn't, I hope you survived your Monday. DeLorean Due to Memorial Day, it was a relatively quiet tech news day, but we did get a glimpse at a new DeLorean. Yes, DeLorean Motor Company is making an EV. The four-seater Alpha5 should arrive with a 100kWh battery pack, capable of 0 to 60MPH in 2.99 seconds, and a heady $175,000 price. It won't be built by the original DeLorean people but by a Texas company that purchased the rights to the DeLorean name and spare parts. Expect gullwing doors, a futuristic profile and an overall design from the same studio that sketched the original DeLorean. Expect more details later today. — Mat Smith   The biggest stories you might have missed 'Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II' heads to Nintendo Switch on June 8th Valve's latest Steam Deck update promises less fan noise Recommended Reading: How 'Top Gun: Maverick' puts you inside an F-18 Hitting the Books: What the Work from Home revolution means for those who can't Apple trademarks 'realityOS' Are we getting closer to an AR/VR headset announcement? At the start of the year, developers spotted some references to "realityOS," the operating system for Apple's long-rumored virtual and augmented reality headset. Now, just before the start of WWDC 2022 on June 6th, the name has resurfaced in trademark filings seemingly linked to the company. Continue reading. Acer Predator Triton 500 SE review A laptop powerhouse for work and play. Engadget The Triton 500 SE proves Acer can make a truly refined gaming laptop without gimmicks. No extra screens, no hybrid nonsense, no crazy design choices. It has a gorgeous 16-inch screen, and you can add to it the latest and greatest Intel and NVIDIA hardware. Prices, however, start at $2,300 but be prepared to shell out $3,000 if you want all the hardware from our review unit. Devindra Hardawar put the Triton 500 SE through its paces. Continue reading. Google Pixel 7 prototype reputedly shows up on eBay Another major Google device leak. meetveeru/eBay Weeks after a Pixel Watch prototype was left at a restaurant, it appears someone tried to sell a Pixel 7 on eBay. The eBay listing for what looked like a prototype Pixel 7 popped up on the Pixel subreddit, but now it's gone. The images don't reveal much more than we didn't already know — or suspect. The front looks similar to the Pixel 6, hole-punch camera and all. The camera bar on the rear has two lenses as well. Although Google already announced the Pixel 7 and its Pro sibling at I/O, it'll be a while before the phones go on sale. Continue reading. iOS 16 will reportedly include always-on display features But only for future iPhones. In his latest Power On newsletter, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman suggests the company will have a fair amount to share about iOS 16 at the forthcoming WWDC, including enhancements to the lock screen. Gurman says the next version of Apple's mobile operating system will include support for an always-on display initially exclusive to the company's next iPhone Pro models. Devices could show notifications and other glanceable information without you needing to fully wake the iPhone's display. Continue reading.

France officially bans English gaming terms like 'eSports' and 'streaming' Posted: 31 May 2022 02:14 AM PDT English jargon has invaded every corner of France, causing consternation among language purists — a trade fair popular with politicians during election season is called "Made in France," for example. Despite widespread usage in business and elsewhere, the government has decided to pick on gaming, officially banning terms like "streamer" and "cloud gaming," according to AFP. Going forward, the far more convoluted terms joueur-animateur en direct and jeu video en nuage must be used for any government communications. The changes were made in consultation with France's Ministry of Culture, which has in the past touted the gaming industry as a French economic success story. However, it told the AFP it's concerned that English terms could become a "barrier to understanding" for non-gamers. (That's a solid point, as I can attest that many French non-gamers wouldn't have a clue what a term like "streaming" means.) France's language keepers, l'Académie française, has also expressed concern about English jargon in gaming, having published a lexicon of alternate French terms back in 2017.  The changes were issued in the government's official journal, meaning they're binding on all government workers. However, it's hard to see them catching on in daily use or even on French websites or newspapers. Previous efforts by l'Académie française to replace anglicisms have not gone well — its attempt to get people to use l'access sans fil à internet instead of le wifi failed completely, as The Local France points out.

Playtime Engineering debuts two new music makers for kids Posted: 30 May 2022 01:03 PM PDT Ahead of the NAMM 2022 trade show being held in Anaheim next weekend, San Francisco's Playtime Engineering has unveiled a pair of toys, the Blipbox SK2 synthesizer and the Blipbox myTrack groovebox, designed to help even the youngest musically-inclined minds produce, record, save and share electronic beats and melodies.  Playtime Engineering The SK2's spacey surface detailing belies its ability to generate more than 400 pre-recorded melodies ranging from chiptunes to orchestral, as well as multi-mode filters, 16 oscillator schemes and stereo multi-tap delay functions. A signal flow diagram is printed on the unit's front face and all of the controls are labelled so that even basement-level beginners can easily learn and discover new synth sounds. Users will be able to export their tracks through a 1⁄4-inch audio out and import new sounds through the MIDI In. The myTRACK, conversely, is a kid-sized multi-track sampling device that uses a 5x5 grid of playpads to trigger beats and sequences (think, a toned down Ableton Push 2). Each of the 48 pre-included instruments can be applied to any, or all five, of the available tracks as can the process effects controlled by the device's physical levers. In fact, many of the myTRACK's more advanced features are presented as dedicated, physical buttons rather than as buried submenu options. Additionally, those pre-packed sounds and sequences can be updated via USB-C to include new sets such as orchestra, hip-hop, jazz, rock and EDM. An incorporated microphone allows your future Grandmaster Flash to explore the outside world in search of new sounds to capture and modulate. The myTRACK offers a 5-pin MIDI OUT port so that the device can connect to and control an SK2 while its USB-C port is class-compliant USB MIDI in and out, so you'll be able to use it with any Mac or Windows DAW. Playtime Engineering The SK2 will retail for $199 and be available in November 2022. The myTRACK will follow in Q1 2023 for $249

Amazon will give Cloud Cam owners a free camera when service shuts down Posted: 30 May 2022 12:43 PM PDT Amazon is shutting down service for the Cloud Cam, but you may not mind if you're reluctant to buy a replacement. MacRumors and The Verge have learned Amazon will offer owners a free Blink Mini security camera and a one-year subscription to the higher-end Blink Subscription Plus service (normally $100 per year) before Cloud Cam functionality ends on December 2nd. Key Edition owners will also get a fourth-generation Echo speaker to serve as a replacement smart home hub. Ideally, you won't have to pay a cent more to keep your home supervised in the near future. In an email to customers, Amazon said it was shutting down Cloud Cam service to focus on Blink, Ring and other products that "make your home smarter." The move will primarily end storage for video recording, but people using the Cloud Cam Key Edition as a Zigbee hub will also lose the ability to connect to smart locks until they get the Echo substitute. The end of service doesn't come as a complete surprise. Amazon stopped offering the Cloud Cam at the end of 2019 as Blink and Ring ultimately took over. We won't blame you if you're still upset, though. Amazon is joining Wyze and other brands in ending support for security cameras on relatively short notice. This could also leave some users paying more. Some of the Cloud Cam's free features, such as quick video access and motion-based recording, require at least a $30 per year Basic subscription with Blink. That's a small price, but it's more than you might have expected to pay.

Google Pixel 7 prototype reputedly shows up on eBay Posted: 30 May 2022 11:48 AM PDT It seems Google just can't stop its upcoming hardware from showing up in the wild. Weeks after a Pixel Watch prototype was left at a restaurant (and before Google confirmed the device's existence), it appears someone tried to sell a Pixel 7 on eBay. The eBay listing for what certainly looks like a prototype Pixel 7 popped up on the Pixel subreddit, but it has since been taken down. The images that the seller posted didn't shed a ton more light on the device. The front looks similar to the Pixel 6, hole-punch camera and all. The camera bar on the rear has two lenses as well. Take a closer look at one of the images, though, and you'll see something that might raise your eyebrows. In the reflection of the purported Pixel 7's rear is what looks like a Pixel 7 Pro — the device that the seller was using to take the pictures. This suggests that, whoever the seller is, they had access to both models of the upcoming Pixel lineup.  meetveeru/eBay In the description, the seller claimed that Pixel 7 was running Android 13, with apps that are at the developmental stage. They said the phone has 128GB of storage and 8GB RAM and that they were selling it as is with "no guarantees of any sort." The phone would have shipped from McKinney, Texas. Although Google announced the Pixel 7 and its Pro sibling at I/O, it'll be months before the devices, which will run on a second-gen Tensor chip, go on sale. Google will surely provide a more in-depth look at them at a hardware event. But, given the leaks to date, we might already know every detail by the time Google formally shows them off.

Acer Predator Triton 500 SE review: A refined powerhouse for work and play Posted: 30 May 2022 11:35 AM PDT Acer is one of those laptop makers that frequently tries too hard to stand out. Consider the Predator Triton 900, a wild machine with a 360-degree swiveling screen that I found to be mostly useless. Earlier this month, Acer also announced plans to bring its SpatiaLabs glasses-free 3D technology to gaming laptops. Ambitious swings are nice and all, but these days I'm more interested in notebooks that are subtle about their gaming prowess. And after testing out the Predator Triton 500 SE for the past week, I've learned that Acer can pull that off pretty well. The Triton 500 SE packs all of the power you'd want from a large gaming notebook, in a sleek metallic frame that wouldn't look out of place in a stuffy office or lecture hall. There's little need for garish LEDs (except for the keyboard backlight, which you can always turn off), or other obnoxious case bling. It's ready to get down to work. And sure, it's not the only subtle gaming notebook around, but competitors like the Razer Blade cost more than the Triton's $2,300 starting price. What separates the Triton 500 SE from your typical productivity laptop, aside from the powerful hardware, is its glorious 16-inch screen. It has a 16:10 aspect ratio, making it slightly taller than typical widescreen displays and more useful for dealing with documents. Our review unit shipped with the 240Hz WQXGA model (running at 2,560 by 1,600 pixels) which, in my book, is the ideal balance between sharpness and silky smooth refresh. There's no HDR support, but at least it offers a relatively high brightness of 500 nits, as well as full coverage of the DCI-P3 gamut. And while the screen is a big reason the Triton is a hefty 5.3 pounds, that's still better than most 17-inch gaming notebooks (the Razer Blade 17 clocks in at 5.5 pounds). Powering that glorious display is Intel's 12th-gen processors and NVIDIA's latest RTX 30-series GPUs, all the way up to the droolworthy RTX 3080 Ti. The unit we received featured that GPU as well as Intel's top-end Core i9 12900H, 32GB of LPDDR5 RAM and a speedy 1TB NVMe SSD. To be honest, it was that configuration that inspired me to review the Triton 500 SE in the first place. I wondered, can this unassuming notebook actually satisfy gamers? Turns out, yes. Halo Infinite, for example, reached a solid 85fps at the Triton's native resolution at ultra graphics settings. While I missed the HDR and expansive view I've grown used to on the Alienware QD-OLED ultrawide monitor, I was surprised at just how immersive the game felt on a 16-inch display. You can thank the taller 16:10 aspect ratio for that – it sometimes felt like I was about to dive headfirst into Halo Infinite's maps. (That could also be a sign that I need to make my desk a bit more ergonomic for laptops.) The 240Hz display also shined as I lowered the game's graphics settings to reach higher framerates. I'm still not fully sold on such a high refresh rate, but it's nice to see laptop makers pushing for smoother and more realistic gameplay. Gearheads will likely appreciate the Triton 500 SE's built-in overclocking capabilities. Acer's software makes it easy to tweak clock speeds and thermal profiles. Personally, though, I was just glad to have a simple "Turbo" button on the keyboard. It revs up the fans all the way and automatically overclocks the system. In Halo Infinite and all of the benchmarks I ran, it typically led to 8 to 10 percent increase in performance. The big downside? It's so loud you probably wouldn't want to use it without headphones. Devindra Hardawar/Engadget Even without overclocking, the Triton 500 SE annihilated all of the benchmarks we threw at it, delivering performance mostly on-par with the Razer Blade 15. There were a few instances where the Razer edged ahead, like in PCMark 10 and Geekbench 5's Compute test (which mostly stresses the GPU). But in others, including Cinebench R23 and 3DMark's Port Royal ray tracing benchmark, the Triton held a commanding lead. Partially, that's due to our review unit having a slightly faster 12th-gen processor. Hit that Turbo switch and the Triton's numbers soar even higher. PCMark 10 3DMark (TimeSpy Extreme) Geekbench 5 ATTO (top reads/writes) Acer Predator Triton 500 SE (2022, Intel i9-12900H, NVIDIA RTX 3080 Ti) 6,779 4,887 1,736/11,382 6.4 GB/s / 4.9 GB/s Razer Blade 15 (2022, Intel i7-12800H, NVIDIA RTX 3080 Ti) 7,085 4,798 1,795/9,529 4.32 GB/s / 6.45 GB/s ASUS Zephyrus G14 (2022, AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS, Radeon RX 6800S) 7,170 3,821 1,543/9,839 3.5 GB/s / 4 GB/s ASUS Zephyrus G15 (AMD Ryzen 9 5900HS, NVIDIA RTX 3080 Max-Q) 6,881 4,530 1,426/7,267 3.3 GB/s / 2.85 GB/s NVIDIA's Advanced Optimus feature, which intelligently swaps the Triton's GPU between integrated and discrete graphics, also worked flawlessly throughout my testing. I didn't see any of the performance bottlenecking that occurred with older Optimus machines, where discrete GPUs had to be squeezed through integrated graphics. There's also a MUX switch that lets you manually change between both GPUs without rebooting the entire system. After benchmarking and playing several games for a few hours, the Triton 500 SE remained relatively cool. The CPU typically hovered around 78 Celsius under load, while the GPU hit 83 Celsius. It never felt hot to the touch, though it's worth noting that I was testing in my chill basement. Fan noise was about what I'd expect with the Triton's default performance settings – audible, but not nearly as irritating as cranking them up all the way with the Turbo button. Devindra Hardawar/Engadget But even though Acer got cooling and overall performance right, it's a shame that some of the Triton 500 SE's hardware holds it back. The keyboard is fine for gaming, but I'd like more feedback for lengthy typing sessions. And while I appreciated the large and smooth trackpad, the actual clicking mechanism felt stiff – it was particularly bad at registering right clicks. I'm also not a fan of having a fingerprint sensor right on the trackpad, as it often gets in the way while I'm swiping around. Just stick that sensor on the power button, or throw in a Windows Hello webcam already! I'd also like to see Acer bundle more than just a pair of tinny stereo speakers, especially since Razer, Dell and others are cramming many more drivers into their notebooks. Battery life is another disappointment, though I suppose we've grown used to that in powerful gaming laptops. The Triton 500 SE lasted five hours and twenty-five minutes in our benchmark, which involves looping an HD video. That's 17 minutes less than the Razer Blade 15. During my typical workday, it usually lasted around five hours before needing a recharge. Unfortunately, that's typical for gaming laptops with large screens. You'll never want to be too far from a power plug. Still, I'd imagine most people would want to keep their workstations plugged in for the best performance. Acer also included all of the ports you'd need to make it a true workstation, including two USB 3.2 Type A connections, dual USB-C Thunderbolt 4 ports, HDMI, Ethernet and an SD card slot. And thankfully Acer didn't get rid of the headphone jack, something more laptop makers are doing these days. The Acer Predator Triton 500 SE starts at $2,300, which is $200 less than the Razer Blade 15 with 12th-gen Intel chips and $400 less than the most recent Blade 17. Be prepared to shell out $3,000 if you want all of the hardware from our review unit (still cheaper than comparable machines from Razer and others). But if you can live with last year's 11th-gen Intel chips, you can also find older Triton 500 SE models for $2,000 and under. We'd recommend doing whatever it takes to get a 12th-gen chip, though, as the performance difference is huge. Devindra Hardawar/Engadget If anything, the Triton 500 SE proves that Acer is doing more than just chasing gaming gimmicks. After being known for producing cheap and unsophisticated laptops for years, it's nice to see that Acer can make a refined gaming notebook without any unnecessary bling.

The latest Apple TV 4K is back to a record low of $150 Posted: 30 May 2022 08:30 AM PDT Now is a good time to shop for a high-end media streamer. Amazon is once again selling the latest Apple TV 4K at a record-low price of $150 for the 32GB model, or $29 off. However, the 64GB model is also on sale for $170 — an easy choice if you need extra storage for apps and games. We've seen Amazon sell the base model at this price on occasion, but rarely with a similar discount for its higher-end counterpart. Buy Apple TV 4K (32GB) at Amazon - $150Buy Apple TV 4K (64GB) at Amazon - $170 The most recent Apple TV 4K fixes some of the few issues with what was already a powerful media player. The new Siri remote is much more intuitive, and the speedier A12 Bionic chip both enables HDR video at 60 frames per second (for the handful of content that supports it) and better game performance. This is the living room device you want if you're interested in more than basic media playback, particularly given Apple's tight integration and robust app ecosystem. You can get in a Fitness+ workout, control your smart home or use a niche streaming service. Apple TV's main caveat remains the price. At $150, it's expensive if you just want something to watch Netflix, Amazon Prime Video Apple TV+ and other common services. You can buy a Chromecast, Fire TV Stick or Roku player that will handle 4K HDR video and some other popular apps for considerably less. If you're heavily invested in Apple's products or just want the most powerful media box you can get, though, this is still an obvious pick. Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

Atlassian co-founder takes big step toward shutting down Australia's coal power Posted: 30 May 2022 08:00 AM PDT Atlassian co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes just scored a major coup in his quest to end Australia's use of coal energy. The Wall Street Journalreports AGL Energy, Australia's worst emissions producer, has withdrawn plans to 'demerge' its retail power and generation units (thus keeping coal power plants running longer) after Cannon-Brookes bought over 11 percent of the company's stock. The breakup plan is unlikely to pass a shareholder vote after the tech executive's move, AGL said. Both the chairman and CEO of AGL are stepping down as a result of the failed demerger. The board of directors is also conducting a review of the company's strategy, and plans broader changes to the board as well as overall management. The directors want to deliver the best value in light of "Australia's energy transition," the company added. Cannon-Brookes hopes AGL can shut down the coal plants about 10 years sooner than the company's 2045 goal. He originally tried to buy AGL outright with help from Canadian investment giant Brookfield Asset Management, but resorted to buying stock after the energy provider rejected the offers. The Atlassian exec's renewable energy push began in 2017, when he learned of Tesla's proposal to end southern Australian blackouts using large-scale battery storage. He has long singled out AGL as a target. According to Cannon-Brookes, AGL represents about 8 percent of Australia's greenhouse gas emissions. That's more than every car in the country, and more than some entire developed countries. The stock ploy won't guarantee that AGL shuts down its coal plants ahead of schedule. Still, it's a relatively unique effort in the tech world to accelerate the shift toward clean energy. Companies like Amazon, Apple, Google and others have generally focused on reducing their own emissions by either buying renewables or installing solar and wind power at their facilities — Atlassian's co-creator is trying to engineer change across an entire country.

Apple's second-gen AirPods are on sale for $100 Posted: 30 May 2022 07:21 AM PDT Now might be the right time to snap up a pair of Apple's second-gen AirPods if you've been waiting for a good deal. The earphones are on sale on Amazon, where they have dropped from $159 to $100 for Memorial Day. That's 37 percent below the regular price and one of the best deals we've seen for this model. The current price is about $10 more than the record low, however. Buy Apple Airpods (2nd-gen) at Amazon - $99 We gave the second-gen AirPods a score of 84 in our review after finding that the fit won't be suitable for all ears, while sound quality is similar to the first model. There's no active noise cancellation either. However, the earbuds do have a lot going for them. They'll be especially useful for folks who are deep into the Apple ecosystem, as the H1 chip allows them to swiftly pair the earphones with an iPhone, iPad or Mac and switch between devices in a snap. You'll be able to listen for around five hours before needing to recharge, while the charging case provides approximately 24 hours of listening time overall. Meanwhile, the most recent third-gen AirPods are also on sale. They're currently $150, which is $29 off the standard price. We felt that Apple had improved nearly every aspect this time around and gave this model a score of 88. While there's still no ANC, the third-gen AirPods have significantly better sound quality, a more comfortable fit and a longer battery life (around seven hours in our testing). Buy Apple AirPods (3rd-gen) at Amazon - $150 Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

DeLorean offers first look at its Alpha5 four seater EV Posted: 30 May 2022 06:00 AM PDT DeLorean Motor Company has revealed the first images name of its upcoming EV called the Alpha5. The main things that stand are the wedge-like supercar styling, pair of massive gullwing doors and four seats — letting it hit 88 MPH with two extra passengers or carry considerably more than 55 pounds of cocaine. DeLorean first teased its upcoming EV last month, promising a full reveal later this summer on August 18th. To be clear, it won't be built by the original DeLorean, but rather a Texas company that purchased the rights to the DeLorean name and spare parts.  DeLorean The Alpha5 was designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro's ItalDesign studio (which also designed the original DeLorean) but there's no word if it uses stainless steel panels like the OG. It's based on the "Medusa" concept that the original DeLorean company had been working on before it went bankrupt back in 1982.  That vehicle was supposed to have four independent gullwing doors, but the DeLorean appears to have decided (probably wisely, given the complexity of such doors) to stick with two. From a top-front angle, the Alpha5 bears a passing resemblance to Tesla's new Roadster with similar lines on the hood/frunk.  DeLorean DeLorean is targeting a 100kWh battery pack that should provide excellent range, along with a dual-motor, all-wheel-drive setup. It's projected to hit a top speed of 155 MPH and go from 0 to 60 MPH in 2.99 seconds or (yes) 0-88 MPH in 4.35 seconds.  The DeLorean was made famous, of course, by the Back to the Future series of films. Its creator John DeLorean also had a colorful history, having managed the development of American muscle cars like the Pontiac GTO in the '60s and '70s. He was arrested in 1982 and charged with cocaine trafficking, but the trial ended in a not guilty charge. The new DeLorean company will reveal the Alpha5 to the general public tomorrow morning on its website. DeLorean

Apple's MagSafe Battery pack is the cheapest it's been this year Posted: 30 May 2022 04:00 AM PDT For iPhone users looking for extra power plus wireless charging who want to stay in the Apple ecosystem, the MagSafe battery pack is the best (and only) way to go. It's pretty expensive at $99, but Amazon now has it on sale for $80 ($19 off the regular price), the cheapest we've seen it this year.  Buy MagSafe battery pack at Amazon - $80 The MagSafe battery pack snaps magnetically onto the back of all iPhone 12 or 13 models and starts charging the handset once attached with about 5 watts of power. It fits onto the back of even the iPhone 13 mini, so you can continue to use your phone with one hand while powering up. If you plug in the battery pack while charging your iPhone, you'll get up to 15W of power and you can keep track of your phone's and the battery pack's recharge on your iPhone's lock screen. The main downside to the MagSafe battery pack is the 1,460 mAh battery that can't fully charge any of the supported iPhones, and charging speed limited to 5 watts — lower than some third-party models. If you need more juice, take a look at Anker's $60 5,000 mAh MagGo model or the bulky but powerful $60 Belkin 10,000 mAh magnetic charger and portable power bank. Apple's MagSafe model is certainly more elegant and portable than those options, so if you've been looking to buy one, it'd be best to act soon.  Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

US retakes first place from Japan on Top500 supercomputer ranking Posted: 30 May 2022 01:23 AM PDT The United States is on top of the supercomputing world in the Top500 ranking of the most powerful systems. The Frontier system from Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) running on AMD EPYC CPUs took first place from last year's champ, Japan's ARM A64X Fugaku system. It's still in the integration and testing process at the ORNL in Tennessee, but will eventually be operated by the US Air Force and US Department of Energy. Frontier, powered by Hewlett Packard Enterprise's (HPE) Cray EX platform, was the top machine by a wide margin, too. It's the first (known) true exascale system, hitting a peak 1.1 exaflops on the Linmark benchmark. Fugaku, meanwhile, managed less than half that at 442 petaflops, which was still enough to keep it in first place for the previous two years.   Frontier was also the most efficient supercomputer, too. Running at just 52.23 gigaflops per watt, it beat out Japan's MN-3 system to grab first place on the Green500 list. "The fact that the world's fastest machine is also the most energy efficient is just simply amazing," ORNL lab director Thomas Zacharia said at a press conference. Other machines in the TOP10 include another HPE Cray EX system install at EuroHPC in Finland (151.9 petaflops), the IBM-built Summit system using 22-core Power( CPUs and NVIDIA Tesla V100 GPUs (148.8 petaflops) and Lawrence Livermore's Sierra, a smaller-scale version of Summit that hit 94.6 Pflop/s. China held two top-ten spots with its Sunway TaihuLight from the National Research Center of Parallel Computer Engineering & Technology (NRCPC) and Tianhe-2A built by China's National University of Defense Technology (NUDT). However, China is rumored to already have no less than two exascale systems (according to the Linmark benchmark) on new Sunway Oceanlite and Tianhe-3 systems. Due to the current state of semiconductor politics, however, China is reportedly not revealing any new benchmarks or important advances.

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