Mar 29
The Fox News host spun the Oscars moment into a ridiculous commentary on the film industry vs. conservatives.
Mar 29
The Fox News host spun the Oscars moment into a ridiculous commentary on the film industry vs. conservatives.
Mar 29
Willow — a line of smart breast pumps that promises a higher milk yield than other pumps — today unveiled the Willow Go. The new model retails at $329, a considerable drop from the $500 price tag of the Willow 3.0. While some insurance plans offer breast pumps for free or at a reduced cost, many will only cover the cost of a manual breast pump (which normally are in the ballpark of $20). The Willow Go is likely to be an attractive option for women who are forced to pay out-of-pocket for a smart breast pump. According to the company, the Willow Go costs $150 through most insurers. Each set includes two cups.
“More than 20 percent of Willow pumps were purchased with insurance in 2021. Offering Willow Go at an affordable price point, as low as $150 with most insurance plans, allows more moms than ever to have access to best-in-class technology without requiring any tubes, cords or bulky external motors,” said Willow CEO Laura Chambers in a statement.
We reviewed the Willow 3.0., which debuted at CES in 2020, and noted it seemed like a quieter, more user-friendly version of the older models, along with advanced features and more milk capacity. Willow Go seems to follow the same trend, and is at a lower price point. Since the smart breast pump market is more saturated in 2022 than it was when Willow first launched, it might be worth it to shop around. There are cheaper smart breast pumps in the market today than the Willow Go, as well as high-end models that offer hospital-grade technology for upward of $2,000.
Willow Go offers more milk capacity than other generations of the Willow, at 14 ounces. This is a considerably heftier load than the Willow 3.0., which can only hold four ounces of milk per bag (for a total of eight ounces). The Willow Go offers an “Expression” mode with nine levels of suction, a notable upgrade from the seven levels offered by the Willow 3.0. The device comes with two reusable milk containers for storage. Alternatively, mothers can opt to store their milk in disposable bags, which retail at $24 for a pack of 48.
Mar 29
Xiaomi has come a long way since the launch of its budget Redmi line back in 2013, and while the latter has since extended its coverage across a wider price range, it isn’t about to abandon the budget market. Ahead of its 12th anniversary on April 6th, Xiaomi announced a new Redmi 10 5G which, starting from $199, happens to be the company’s — and some markets’ — cheapest 5G smartphone to date. To put things into perspective, the OnePlus Nord N200 5G costs $240, and Samsung’s recently-launched Galaxy A13 5G is priced at $250.
The Redmi 10 5G — not to be confused with the 4G-only Redmi 10 or 10A — is powered by an octa-core MediaTek Dimensity 700 processor with dual 5G standby, and it runs on MIUI 13 based on Android 11. You get a reasonably-sized 6.58-inch 2,408 x 1,080 LCD with up to 90Hz refresh rate, along with a generous 5,000mAh battery which supports 18W fast charging (interestingly, the phone comes with a 22.5W charger), a side-mounted fingerprint sensor and a 3.5mm headphone jack.
Xiaomi
There’s not much going on in terms of design — just a plastic body with a grooved concentric circle texture and flat edges. Likewise with photography: just a 50-megapixel main camera paired with a 2-megapixel depth camera on the back, plus a 5-megapixel “dot drop” selfie camera above the screen.
As with all Xiaomi phones these days, the Redmi 10 5G won’t be headed to the US, but a spokesperson confirmed that we can expect it to land in most of Xiaomi’s global markets, including the UK, Europe, South East Asia, Middle East and more. You’ll have two options: the $199 model comes with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage, whereas the $229 version bumps the storage up to 128GB. These will come in “Graphite Gray,” “Chrome Silver” and “Aurora Green.”
Xiaomi
Also announced for the international markets are the higher-end Redmi Note 11 Pro+ 5G and Redmi Note 11S 5G, both of which also pack a MediaTek processor (Dimensity 920 and Dimensity 810, respectively) with dual 5G standby, a side-mounted fingerprint reader, an IR blaster, a 3.5mm headphone jack and dual speakers (with JBL tuning on the Pro+).
The Redmi Note 11 Pro+ 5G has been available in China since October, and it’s all about its 15-minute fast charging on its 4,500mAh dual-cell battery, thanks to Xiaomi’s 120W HyperCharge tech. You also get a 6.67-inch 2,400 x 1,080 AMOLED screen, which delivers up to 120Hz refresh rate and up to 360Hz touch sampling rate for some slick scrolling, as well as a high brightness mode of up to 700 nits for outdoor usage. With its 108-megapixel main camera (Samsung HM2 sensor), 8-megapixel ultra-wide camera, 2-megapixel telemacro camera and 16-megapixel punch-hole selfie camera, you should be able to get some nice photos out of this device. Prices range from $369 (6GB + 128GB) to $449 (8GB + 256GB), and you can pick “Graphite Gray,” “Star Blue” or “Forest Green.”
Xiaomi
The marginally cheaper Redmi Note 11S 5G is a slight variant of China’s earlier Redmi Note 11 5G, with the main difference being the extra 2-megapixel macro camera on the back. The rest appears to be identical: 6.6-inch 2,400 x 1,080 LCD (90Hz refresh rate, 240Hz touch sampling rate), 5,000mAh battery with 33W fast charging, 50-megapixel main camera, 8-megapixel ultra-wide camera and 13-megapixel punch-hole selfie camera. Prices range from $249 (4GB + 64GB) to $299 (6GB + 128GB), with color options including “Midnight Black,” “Twilight Blue” and a sparkly “Star Blue.”
Mar 29
Gmail is getting a new look on the web, which should be heading your way soon (if it hasn’t arrived already). Its intended, Google says, to better integrate Gmail with the Chat and Meet components that you may or may not make much use of—and it means you’ve now got a few new options when it comes to getting Gmail…
Mar 29
Records Given To House Panel Show 7-Hour Gap In Trump Jan. 6 Phone Log: Reports
Posted in: Today's ChiliThe Jan. 6 House committee is looking into whether Trump used backchannels or “burner phones” to communicate at the time of the attack.
Mar 29
Your TikTok habits may vary, but I’ve sometimes pulled myself out of a fugue of lengthy viewing, hopping and browsing on the social app, barely recalling what I just spent 15 minutes doing. For me, and possibly you, a new watch-history feature could offer some insight to exactly what we’re wasting our time on.
According to Hammond Oh, TikTok is testing a watch-history tool to show you a list of videos that previously appeared in your For You feed, making it easier to rediscover clips (and creators) you may have not liked or followed.
There are other ways to seek out your TikTok watch history, but they’re not exactly easy to use. One method involves navigating to the Discover page, tapping search, entering an asterisk and toggling on the “watch videos” option in the search filters tab. As is the case with random feature tests on TikTok, Instagram and others, this might not make its way to all users, but keep an eye on your For You feed — just in case.
— Mat Smith
The biggest stories you might have missed
OnePlus as we knew it is dead. Here’s what’s next
The company is chasing mainstream appeal.
OnePlus began as a startup making smartphones with high-end specs at relatively reasonable prices. In an age of black slabs, the company was able to forge an identity for itself, backed by devoted fans and a strong online presence. But now, after 10 generations of flagship phones, Sam Rutherford feels like the OnePlus we knew is gone, and it’s probably not coming back.
Samsung’s $700 Smart Monitor M8 is now available to pre-order
You can control smart home devices using the 32-inch 4K display.
Samsung
Samsung’s latest Smart Monitor is now available to pre-order. The kinda-familiar-looking Smart Monitor M8 has support for streaming services including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ and Apple TV, as well as cloud gaming platforms. You won’t necessarily need to connect to external speakers, with two built-in 5W speakers and a tweeter that delivers 2.2-channel audio. The Smart Monitor M8 starts at $700 for the white model. The spring green, sunset pink and daylight blue models will cost you a little extra at $730.
Amazon Games’ chief is leaving the company
Just after finally achieving some success with ‘Lost Ark’ and ‘New World.’
The Amazon Games struggle bus was finally going somewhere, but now studio head Mike Frazzini is stepping down. On LinkedIn, Frazzini cited the desire to spend more time with family. “While there’s never really a perfect time to step away from a great role, now is a good time,” he wrote. Amazon’s MMORPG New World was one of 2021’s biggest moneymakers on Steam.
Spotify adds promised COVID-19 content advisory
This follows the drama with Joe Rogan’s podcast.
Getty
Spotify has finally acted on its promise to add a COVID-19 content advisory label. You’ll now see a tab for a COVID-19 Guide when you visit podcasts and other content discussing the coronavirus. Tap it and you’ll visit a section that points you to authoritative sources (such as the World Health Organization and the UK’s National Health Service) as well as trustworthy content from the likes of The Guardian and the BBC.
Mar 29
The new omicron subvariant is the dominant strain circulating around the world. Here’s what experts know about reinfection.
Mar 29
The long-awaited current-gen versions of Apex Legends are almost here. Respawn Entertainment will release native PS5 and Xbox Series X/S versions of the battle royale when the Warriors Collection event goes live today.
All three consoles will support 4K output and full 60Hz gameplay as well as HDR. The PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X versions are getting higher-resolution shadow maps and larger level-of-detail distances (so you can see objects from further away).
Some features players might have been expecting at the outset will arrive in future patches. Those include support for 120Hz gameplay, adaptive triggers and haptic feedback on PS5, as well as audio and visual improvements.
The Warriors Collection Event will bring next-gen versions of Apex Legends to PS5 and XSX!
PlayStation players: check out the info below to learn how to update your game 👇
Xbox players: no action is needed. Apex will update via Smart Delivery.🔗: https://t.co/Hye8qEKTVhpic.twitter.com/5HfUSAYkWD
— Apex Legends (@PlayApex) March 29, 2022
Not having 120 fps capabilities at the jump will be disappointing for many, given the fast pace of Apex Legends matches and the fact the developers have long been discussing that feature as one of their goals for the current-gen versions. Still, after the native PS5 and Xbox Series X/S editions land, it should be somewhat easier for developers to roll out updates across all platforms, so hopefully it won’t be long before 120 fps support is added.
Thanks to Microsoft’s Smart Delivery tech, the Xbox Series X/S versions of Apex Legends should automatically download if you have the Xbox One edition installed. PS5 players will need to download their console’s version manually from the options menu on the Apex Legends game page or from the PSN store if they don’t have the PS4 edition on their system.
Beyond the current-gen versions, there’s a lot more for Apex Legends players to check out later today. The 9v9 Control mode, which proved popular when it debuted earlier this year, is back until April 12th. The Caustic Treatment area of King’s Canyon is getting some changes so it can act as a Control battleground.
There’s a new map called Drop-Off for the 3v3 Arena team deathmatch mode. A collection of 24 limited-time cosmetics will be available during the Warriors Collection event, including skins. Collect them all and you’ll unlock a new sword Heirloom item for Crypto.
Respawn Entertainment/EA
Mar 29
8BitDo’s Pro 2 was already great value at its regular price of $50, but now the controller has dropped to an all-time low on Amazon. It’s on sale for $42.50, which is 15 percent off the usual price.
Buy 8BitDo Pro 2 controller at Amazon – $42.50
As with the excellent SN30 Pro+, the Pro 2 is compatible with Nintendo Switch, Windows, macOS, Android and Raspberry Pi. This time around, the controller has two back buttons. Like all of the other inputs, those buttons on the handles (where your ring finger or pinky might rest naturally) are fully customizable through a Windows, Mac, Android and iOS app. The controller has a profile configuration switcher as well, so you can swap between three input configurations without having to fire up the app.
It’s a little disappointing that the controller isn’t compatible with iOS devices, PlayStation or Xbox. For those who game on pretty much every other major platform, though, the 8BitDo Pro 2 is well worth checking out, particularly if you pick up a cheap smartphone clip so you can more easily play cloud gaming titles just about anywhere.
Razer
Elsewhere as part of Amazon’s gaming accessory sale, you can save on Razer’s wired Wolverine V2 Chroma controller. It also dropped to an all-time low. At $127.50, the white variant is slightly cheaper than the black model ($130). The controller usually costs $150.
Buy Razer Wolverine V2 Chroma (white) at Amazon – $127.50Buy Razer Wolverine V2 Chroma (black) at Amazon – $130
The Wolverine V2 Chroma is compatible with Xbox consoles and PC. It’s a worthy alternative to Microsoft’s Elite Wireless Series 2 controller.
It has six more buttons than a standard Xbox controller and they’re all remappable. Those could be useful for swiftly building structures in Fortnite (once that becomes a thing again) or executing rapid combos. There’s also full RGB support via Razer’s Xbox controller app, swappable thumbsticks and a hair-trigger mode that could give you an advantage over your rivals.
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