The Morning After: The Steam Deck will support Epic's anti-cheat software

Cheating is rife across many gaming platforms, but the biggest cheaters are usually found around PC gaming — despite games companies banning thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of the scamps. Valve’s Steam Deck, its upcoming handheld, should make it harder to bend the rules.

TMA
Steam

The company announced titles that depend on Epic’s Easy Anti-Cheat (EAC) software can now run on the portable. Valve said adding Steam Deck support to titles that use EAC is “a simple process.” Developers won’t need to update their SDK version or make other time-consuming changes. It joins BattlEye support, meaning, as Valve notes: “The two largest anti-cheat services are now easily supported on Proton and Steam Deck.”

However, it’s still unclear whether some of the most popular multiplayer games on Steam that use BattlEye and EAC, including titles like Rainbow Six Siege and PUBG, will work on day one.

— Mat Smith

Another TV show is making PR problems for Peloton

Must be a hard workout.

TMA
Billions

Peloton didn’t need more bad news. The premiere episode of Billions season six includes a scene that, like the Sex and the City follow-up And Just Like That, points a finger at Peloton’s Bike for causing a heart attack for Mike “Wags” Wagner (played by David Costabile). Unlike And Just Like That, however, Wagner survives — he even references the AJLT scene, telling staff that he’s “not going out” like that character.

Continue reading.

Latest Galaxy S22 leak includes possible pricing for Europe

And less memory for the highest-specced model

TMA
Evan Blass

According to WinFuture’s Roland Quandt, European pricing for the Galaxy S22 series will start at €849 (roughly $1,018), with the base models of the Galaxy S22 Plus and Ultra slated to cost €1,049 ($1,188) and €1,249 ($1,414). If accurate, this should mean the 2022 Samsung’s Galaxy S lineup will cost just as much as it did in 2021. In Europe at least, the Galaxy S22 Ultra will ship with 8GB of RAM, while the S21 Ultra packs 12GB of RAM.

And if you thought that was pricey, a separate leak from Android Police earlier this month suggested the company could charge an extra $100 stateside for every model in the Galaxy S22 lineup. We should know more very soon.

Continue reading.

Apple pulls verification requirement for US education shoppers

The move may be temporary.

Earlier this week, Apple began requiring students and teachers in the US to verify their identity through authentication service UNiDAYS before they could take advantage of the company’s discounted education pricing. However, that’s since disappeared. You can once again buy discounted Macs, iPads and other Apple products from the company’s US education website without needing to verify you’re currently a student or a teacher.

Continue reading.

Google claims court ruling would force it to ‘censor’ the internet

The company appealed to Australia’s High Court to overturn a defamation case.

Google has asked the High Court of Australia to overturn a 2020 ruling it warns could have a “devastating” effect on the wider internet. Google claims it will be forced to “act as censor” if the country’s highest court doesn’t overturn a decision that awarded a lawyer $40,000 in defamation damages for an article the company had linked to through its search engine.

In 2016, George Defteros, a Victoria state lawyer, contacted Google to ask the company to remove a 2004 article from The Age. The piece featured reporting on murder charges prosecutors filed against Defteros related to the death of three men. Those charges were later dropped in 2005. The company refused to remove the article from its search results as it viewed the publication as a reputable source.

Continue reading.

 

The biggest news stories you might have missed


Sony will release a movie made using the PlayStation game-builder ‘Dreams’

‘We Met in Virtual Reality’ finds love in the metaverse

PlatinumGames’ long-awaited shoot ’em-up arrives February 22nd

What we bought: A rice cooker whose greatest trick isn’t actually rice

The latest ‘Star Trek: Picard’ season two trailer teases a time-traveling adventure

China Lifts Strict Covid-19 Lockdown in Xian After Daily Cases Hit Zero

The city of Xian, China lifted its covid-19 lockdown on Monday after a month of imposing some of the toughest public health measures in the world, according to Chinese state media the Global Times. But the lockdown worked. Xian, which has a population of 13 million people, hasn’t had a new case of covid-19 since three…

Read more…

Fashion Designer Thierry Mugler Dies At 73

The French fashion giant dressed the likes of Cardi B., Madonna, Beyonce and Lady Gaga.

This is the 2022 Ford Bronco Raptor

<img width="1280" height="800" src="https://cdn.slashgear.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/2022-Ford-Bronco-Raptor_18-1280×800.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" loading="lazy" style="margin: auto;margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%" data-attachment-id="708332" data-permalink="https://www.slashgear.com/2022-ford-bronco-raptor-official-details-24708331/2022-ford-bronco-raptor_18/" data-orig-file="https://cdn.slashgear.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/2022-Ford-Bronco-Raptor_18.jpg" data-orig-size="1440,900" data-comments-opened="0" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="2022 Ford Bronco Raptor_18" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="

Source: Ford

” data-medium-file=”https://cdn.slashgear.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/2022-Ford-Bronco-Raptor_18-1152×720.jpg” data-large-file=”https://cdn.slashgear.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/2022-Ford-Bronco-Raptor_18-1280×800.jpg” />If you thought getting hold of a new Ford Bronco was tough, the 2022 Ford Bronco Raptor is about to get SUV enthusiasts even more excited. Taller, wider, and more potent than the regular Bronco, it’s the handiwork of Ford Performance and, the automaker claims, the most powerful street-legal Bronco so far. It’s also the first time that we’ve seen … Continue reading

What Sarah Palin’s Case Against The New York Times Might Mean For Press Freedom

A shoddy editorial by the storied newspaper is at the center of a case that could impact press freedoms in the 21st century.

Sony's WH-XB910N ANC headphones are 49 percent off in Amazon's one-day sale

For anyone looking for ANC wireless over-ear headphones at a decent price, Sony’s WH-XB910N should be front of mind. If you’ve been checking them out, now is the time to buy as they’re on sale at Amazon for just $128, a full 49 percent off the regular $250 price. 

Buy Sony WH-XB910N headphones at Amazon – $128

The WH-XB910N headphones aren’t quite up to the standard of Sony’s $350 flagship WH-1000XM4 headphones, but they still deliver excellent sound quality while looking great. You get clear mids and highs, powerful bass and Sony’s 360 Reality Audio surround sound, available on select songs with Deezer, Tidal, Amazon Music HD and other streaming services. The active noise cancellation (ANC) works well though, again, it’s not quite up to the standard of the WH-1000XM4 model (which is nearly triple the price).  

The WH-XB910N headphones are great for working at home, thanks to the “Precise Voice Pickup” that amplifies your voice on calls. It also offers on-board controls and an ambient sound mode so you can be better aware of your environment. It’ll last over a day thanks to the 30-hour battery life, and you can get an additional 4.5 hours with a 10-minute quick charge.

The $128 price is one of the best we’ve seen, topping the $138 deal available over the holidays last year. There aren’t many other models that can rival it at that price, so act soon before they’re gone. 

Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

Steve Bannon Is Key Player In New Cryptocurrency. What Could Go Wrong?

Steve Bannon, indicted for allegedly bilking contributors in a “build the wall” scheme — and pardoned by Donald Trump — is now promoting a cryptocurrency.

Plaid must pay $58 million to users of Venmo, Robinhood and other apps

Even if you’ve never heard of a company called Plaid, they may owe you part of a multi-million dollar lawsuit settlement, Fast Company has reported. Plaid, which connects consumer bank accounts to services like Venmo, Robinhood, Coinbase and other apps, was accused of collecting excessive financial data from consumers. While denying any wrongdoing, it agreed to pay $58 million to all consumers with a linked bank account to any of its approximately 5,000 client apps.

The lawsuit accused Plaid of collecting “more financial data than was needed from users.” It also claimed that the company obtained users’ bank login information via its own “Plaid Link” interface, “which had the look and feel of the user’s own bank account login screen,” according to the settlement website. On top of the $58 million payout, the company was forced to change some of its business practices. 

Millions of people use apps linked to Plaid, so any payout might be pretty slim. Still, if you’re a US resident who had a bank account connected to the app between January 1st, 2013 and November 19th, 2021, you may qualify to receive a claim. For more, see the settlement site’s FAQ

You may have already received an email about the lawsuit, or you can check the settlement’s search section to see if you’ve used an app that qualifies. In any case, you have until April 28th, 2022 to submit your claim.

NBA Great John Stockton’s Season Tickets Suspended Over Mask Refusal

The Basketball Hall of Famer and coronavirus conspiracy theorist says he can’t return to Gonzaga University’s games until the rules change.

New Zealand Moves Country To ‘Red’ Alert Amid Omicron, PM Cancels Wedding

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the “red” level wouldn’t mean more lockdowns, but Kiwis should expect new restrictions for “some weeks” to come.