Outriders is finally coming to Xbox Game Pass for PC

Earlier this year, we saw the Square Enix RPG shooter Outriders get a surprise day-one release on Xbox Game Pass. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a day-one release for all versions of Game Pass – only the console and cloud versions, leaving PC subscribers to buy a copy outright if they wanted to play on day one. Now, months later, Square Enix … Continue reading

Doctor Strange 2, Thor 4, Black Panther, Indiana Jones 5 all delayed by Disney

Disney just revealed significant delays to several major motion pictures in the near future. The Marvel Cinematic Universe movies (based on Marvel Comics superheroes) include Thor: Love and Thunder, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Also bumped: Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, The Marvels, and Indiana Jones! When one domino falls, the rest go … Continue reading

Shrinking lung cancer tumor prompts call for more research on CBD

A unique lung cancer case has prompted a call for additional research into the popular cannabinoid CBD as a potential cancer treatment, according to a newly published report in BMJ Case Reports. Though more research is needed, CBD has grown in popularity as a medicinal compound, with user reports claiming effects like reduced inflammation, a decrease in pain, improvements in … Continue reading

Here's everything Apple announced at its fall Mac event

On Monday, Apple held its second and likely last hardware event of the fall. “Unleashed” saw the company spend about an hour talking about updates to its Mac and Music product lineups. After the by-the-numbers affair that was the iPhone 13 event, Monday’s presentation was a more exciting thing to watch, thanks in large part to the first significant refresh to the MacBook Pro in five years. Here’s everything the company announced at the event.

MacBook Pro

Macbook Pro 2021 redesign
Apple

Unsurprisingly, the redesigned MacBook Pros were the star of the show, and there’s a lot to unpack between the two new 14- and 16-inch models. As expected, both laptops represent a return to form for the MacBook Pro line. Apple has replaced the Touch Bar with a standard set of function keys, as well as added MagSafe, an SD card slot and an HDMI port. New to both computers are 120Hz ProMotion displays. The 14-inch model will run its screen at 3,024 x 1,964, while the 16-inch variant has a 3,456 x 2,234 panel. Each also has an iPhone-style camera notch that is likely to be divisive.

Additionally, you can configure both models with Apple’s new, more powerful M1 Pro and Max chips (more on them in a moment). All those new features come at a cost, with the 14-inch base model and 16-inch base model set to start at $1,999 and $2,499 respectively. You can pre-order both computers today, with general availability to follow on October 26th. In the meantime, macOS Monterey will land the day before on October 25th.

M1 Pro and M1 Max

Apple M1 Pro and M1 Max chip
Apple

At the heart of the 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pros are Apple’s new M1 Pro and M1 Max chips. Both feature 5nm 10-core processors made up of eight high-performance cores and two high-efficiency units. Where they differ from one another is in terms of potential video and memory performance. The M1 Pro comes with up to 16 GPU cores and can support up to 32GB of RAM with 200 GB/s of bandwidth. The M1 Max, meanwhile, tops out at 32 graphics cores and double the RAM and memory bandwidth. In practice, Apple claims the chips are 70 percent faster than its previous M1 SoC and offer up to 1.7 times faster performance than competing CPUs from Intel and AMD. They should also make short work of the company’s updated Final Cut and Logic suites.

AirPods

Airpods
Apple

Going into Monday’s event, we were confident Apple would update its “basic” AirPods. But other than an AirPods Pro-like design, we weren’t expecting them to get many new features. So what we saw today was a surprise. While you won’t find ANC on the updated AirPods, they do include support for Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking and Adaptive EQ. The latter allows the AirPods to adjust the low and mid-range frequencies of audio in real-time. Other notable specs include IPX4 sweat and water resistance and up to 30 hours total of battery life with help from the included charging case.

You can pre-order the new AirPods starting today for $179. They’ll begin shipping on October 26th. For those who want to save some money, Apple has discounted the second-generation AirPods to $129.

Apple Music Voice Plan

Apple HomePod Mini
Apple

Alongside the third-generation AirPods, the company announced a discounted Apple Music plan. It will only set you back $5 per month but the catch is you can only control the service through Siri. Apple pitched the plan as the ideal complement for the HomePod mini. Speaking of Apple’s diminutive smart speaker, it will be available in three additional colors — yellow, orange and blue — starting in November.

Follow all of the news from Apple’s Mac event right here.

The Story of Marvel Studios' Authors Want to Invert Your Notions About the MCU

Fans are paying outsized amounts of attention the moment any tidbit of Marvel news breaks, and because the studio puts out so much information about what’s in the pipeline, it can be easy to get the impression you’re getting the full picture. But Tara Bennett and Paul Terry, the co-authors of Abrams’ upcoming The

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Microsoft Knew Bill Gates Was Inappropriate With Female Staff as Early as 2008

Microsoft brass knew that founder and former chairman of the board Bill Gates was propositioning female staff at the company as early as 2008 and told him to stop, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday.

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Where to Watch Dune (All of Them)

The spice must flow, and flow it will when Denis Villeneuve’s long-awaited adaptation of sci-fi grandmaster Frank Herbert’s Dune arrives in the U.S. on October 22. But Villeneuve’s movie isn’t the only Dune available to check out—there’s a cult classic movie adaptation from 1984, two well-regarded miniseries that…

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New Documentary Zooms In On Pete Buttigieg’s Historic Presidential Run

“Mayor Pete” promises an intimate look at Buttigieg’s marriage to husband Chasten and the grueling 2020 campaign.

A Black Heritage Center Has Submitted A Proposal To Melt Down Charlottesville’s Lee Statue

And then turn it into art. The Confederate monument was at the center of a deadly white supremacist rally in 2017.

This Dutch World War II Film Is The Top Movie On Netflix Right Now

A 2017 heist film and a new Norwegian dark comedy are also trending.