One of the devices Apple revealed during its latest hardware event is an updated 10.2-inch iPad with prices that start at $329. You can get the base tablet for $30 less than that, though, if you pre-order from Walmart where it’s currently listed for $299. The listing says the tablet will begin shipping on September 28th, a few days later than its official release date of September 24th. But if you don’t mind waiting a bit to get your purchase, you can get the 64GB WiFi version of the 2021 10.2-inch iPad in either Silver or Space Gray from the retail giant’s website.
Apple focused on updating the base iPad’s internals instead of overhauling its design. It’s now powered by an A13 Bionic chip, which also powers the iPhone 11, the iPhone 11 Pro and the Pro Max. The tech giant says it has a 20 percent faster overall performance compared to the previous generation. In addition, the new iPad is equipped with a new 12-megapixel ultra wide, front-facing camera that has a 122-degree field-of-view, which sounds especially useful for video meetings and online classes. Even better? It supports Apple’s Center Stage feature, which gives it the capability to detect people and keep you in the frame as you move around. Center Stage works with Facetime, as well as Zoom.
Like Apple’s other products, the new base iPad has Retina display. It will ship with iPadOS 15, which features intuitive multitasking, a Translate app and a Live Text function that can detect text in photos. The OS will also add a Focus feature that will let you filter notifications. In case 64GB isn’t enough for you, Apple will also sell a 256GB version, but that’s not available at a discount right now.
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Lucid has revealed the EPA range of its first, limited edition Air EV and it’s mighty impressive. The Air Dream Edition Range will go 520 miles on a charge, “delivering at least 100-plus miles of additional range of its closest competitor,” the company announced. The models tested “now occupy the top six positions for overall EPA range ratings among EVs,” according to Lucid.
The Air Dream Edition models (Range and Performance) both offer 113kWh battery packs — significantly larger than the 100 kWh used in Tesla’s Model S Long Range Plus — but the company said the prodigious range is not just due to that.
“This landmark has been achieved… not by simply installing an oversize battery pack,” said Lucid CEO/CTO Peter Rawlinson. “Our race-proven 900V battery and BMS [battery management system] technology, our miniaturized drive units, coupled with our Wunderbox [drivetrain] technology endow Lucid Air with ultra-high efficiency, enabling it to travel more miles from less battery energy.”
Lucid Motors
The Air’s very low 0.21 drag coefficient likely helps too, particularly on the highway. When considering EPA range versus battery size, the range model delivers 4.6 miles per kWh, compared to 4.01 miles per kWh for the Tesla Model S long range.
Performance isn’t sacrificed in the range model either, despite the name. It still delivers 933 horsepower, enough to kick it from 0 to 60 MPH in 2.7 seconds and hit a top speed of 168 MPH. The 1,111 horsepower performance version, meanwhile, will travel 471 miles on a charge and the 800 horsepower Lucid Air Grand Touring will go 516 miles. Tests were done with 19-inch wheels, and all models will travel significantly less far (though probably look cooler) with 21-inch wheels.
You’ll certainly pay for that range and performance, however. The Air Dream Edition models, released in limited run of 500 and arriving first to market, will start at $169,000. The Air Grand Touring model will show up later for $139,000, followed by the $95,000 Air Touring and finally the base, sub-$80,000 Air. When they’ll go on sale is still an open question, though. Lucid most recently promised the second half of 2021 for the first limited edition models, but it has already missed a number of previous deadlines.
Bringing broadband connectivity to unserved and underserved areas is very important. Internet connectivity brings access to jobs, healthcare, education, and entertainment. People who live in developed nations like the US and other countries typically have plenty of access to broadband in cities, but those in rural areas often go unserved. Project Taara is investigating wireless means to bring fiber-like speeds … Continue reading
The China Command Space Engineering Office has announced that the Shenzhou-12 spacecraft will return Chinese astronauts to earth on September 17. The Chinese agency confirmed the spacecraft had successfully separated from the Chinese space station. Crewmembers completed all pre-separation work with assistance from ground control. Among the items on the task list that had to be completed before returning to … Continue reading
The 2022 Ford Fiesta arrives in Europe with a few styling updates and a mild power upgrade for the hotter Fiesta ST version. Ford has discontinued the Fiesta (and other cars except for the Mustang) in America beginning a few years back. But in Europe, the Fiesta remains a strong competitor against other superminis like the Vauxhall Corsa, VW Polo, … Continue reading
Alphabet ended Project Loon earlier this year, but the things it learned from the internet-broadcasting balloon initiative haven’t gone to waste. The high speed wireless optical link technology originally developed for Loon is currently being used for another moonshot called Project Taara. In a new blog post, Taara’s Director of Engineering, Baris Erkmen, has revealed that the initiative’s wireless optical communications (WOC) links are now beaming high-speed connectivity across the Congo River.
The idea for Taara started when the Loon team successfully used WOC to beam data between Loon balloons that were more than 100 kilometers apart. The team wanted to explore how the technology can be used on the ground. As part of the team’s exploration on WOC’s potential applications, they worked on bridging the connectivity gap between Brazzaville in the Republic of the Congo and Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The two locations are separated by the Congo River and are only 4.8 kilometers apart. However, internet connectivity costs much, much more in Kinshasa, because providers will have to lay down enough fiber connection to cover 400 kilometers of ground around the river. What Project Taara did was install links that can beam high-speed connectivity from Brazzaville to Kinshasa across the river instead. Within 20 days and with 99.9 percent availability, the links served served nearly 700 TB of data.
Taara’s WOC links work by seeking each other out and linking their beams of light together to create a high-speed internet connection. It’s not ideal for use in foggy locations, but Project Taara has developed network planning tools that can estimate WOC availability based on various factors like weather. In the future, the team will be able to use those tools to plan for the locations where Taara’s technology will work best.
Baris Erkmen, Director of Engineering for Taara, wrote in the post:
“Better tracking accuracy, automated environmental responses and better planning tools are helping Taara’s links deliver reliable high-speed bandwidth to places that fiber can’t reach, and helping us connect communities that are cut off from traditional ways of delivering connectivity. We’re really excited about these advances, and are looking forward to building on them as we continue developing and refining Taara’s capabilities.”
Microsoft isn’t so much declaring war on passwords as bragging about a successful first strike against them. The Windows maker has announced users can now remove the password from their Microsoft account in favor of something that’s (hopefully) more secure.
The feature, which had already rolled out to enterprise users, will let you ditch your password and leverage Windows Hello’s biometric security tools. Alternatively, you can grab your phone and use the Windows Authenticator app to grant you access to your machine.
Given that passwords have now become such a pain for so many people to use, switching to something more elegant is welcome news. Of course, for this news to drop at the same time as the announcement that Microsoft had to patch a fairly substantial security vulnerability in Office is slightly less comforting.
It just has to work out how to integrate the necessary infrastructure.
The state of New York has passed a bill banning the sale of gas-powered cars by 2035 which, it hopes, will help slash the state’s emissions. It’s the third major US state to do so, after California and Massachusetts, while Washington state tried, but the bill was vetoed. Given the scale of the challenge to get New York EV-ready, leaders have already tasked a number of agencies to start working on a zero-emissions vehicle masterplan. That will include creating a market for zero-emission vehicles, rolling out charging infrastructure and developing incentives for purchase.
The company also announced a new tablet and wearable.
Xiaomi
Xiaomi’s new device launch includes the flagship X11T Pro, the romantically named superphone with a number of gee-whizz features. That includes 120W HyperCharge technology that promises to juice your phone full in less than 20 minutes. On the imaging front, the X11T Pro is packing a 108-megapixel primary camera that can shoot 8K Video with Samsung’s HD10+ (and AI cinema modes). Watching those magnum opuses should be pretty enjoyable, too, since the phone’s display has a 120Hz refresh rate, Dolby Vision and HDR10+.
At the same time, the company unveiled the Pad 5, an 11-inch tablet with a WQHD+ screen and support for Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos. More importantly, however, Xiaomi’s ubiquitous Mi Smart Band 6 now has updates for NFC contactless payments. You’ll also be able to connect to Alexa for voice control, among other things.
Flight of the Navigator may not have been a global smash hit, but it certainly jibes with a certain age group right now. Now, several years after Disney first planned to do something with the film, the company has announced a reboot for Disney+ is in the works. Details are thin on the ground at such an early stage, but we do know that Bryce Dallas Howard (star of Jurassic World and regular Lucasfilm director) will helm the remake. If you’re looking for your fill of Disney content, Kris Nadus has done their regular deep-dive on this week’s episode of Marvel’s What If.
The robot dog can navigate around obstacles without human intervention.
Boston Dynamics
Well, it’s official, the robot dog that will hunt us all down in the end-times has learned to navigate on its own. Boston Dynamics has announced a software update to its Spot robot means the machine can reroute itself when its regular planned path is blocked. The company says this will enable Spot to better run autonomous inspection tours, taking photos in hazardous or hard-to-reach areas. Yeah, sure, that’s the reason.
Reuben Klamer, the inventor of Milton Bradley’s The Game of Life board game and the designer of a Starfleet phaser rifle for the original Star Trek TV series, died at his home in La Jolla, California on Tuesday at the age of 99, according to the Toy Association.
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