Apr 21
Alienware tapped AMD for the first time in more than a decade when it launched the m15 Ryzen Edition R5 last year, and now the company is doubling down on Team Red by releasing a new fleet of PCs powered by Ryzen chips.
Apr 21
The late music legend dispensed the words of wisdom at an after-party, White told “The Late Show” host Stephen Colbert.
Apr 21
Researchers in Japan have developed a set of electric chopsticks they claim enhance the taste of salt. The device is attached to a wristband computer. It uses electrical stimulation to transmit sodium ions from food to the eater’s mouth, according to Meiji University professor Homei Miyashita, who developed the chopsticks with food and drink maker Kirin.
Reuters
Miyashita is also the person behind the lickable TV that was announced a few months ago. Japan was also where I first saw a similarly specced-out electric fork, using the same theories, but with the Western implement. It’s an unusual sensation: like air-fried food compared to actually fried food, it was a different, almost salty, kind of experience.
— Mat Smith
The biggest stories you might have missed
Amazon ordered to reinstate warehouse worker who was fired after protest
Bang & Olufsen’s Beoplay EX earbuds have an AirPods-like design
‘Love Death and Robots’ Season 3 comes to Netflix on May 20th
Apple workers at New York store call for minimum wage of $30 per hour
Sega’s Super Game project already has a ‘Crazy Taxi’ reboot underway
Apple’s 14-inch MacBook Pro is back down to a record low of $1,749
Samsung’s Pokémon-themed Galaxy Z Flip 3 is a delight
It comes with a Pokédex pouch.
Samsung
If this doesn’t get you into foldables, nothing will.
Audi’s Urbansphere EV concept is for tomorrow’s megacities
What can a car be when it has to be more than a car?
Audi
Audi is reimagining the role of the vehicle’s cabin space — from a rigid, safety-centered, face-forward setup to a more open, communal design. This is the biggest Audi concept vehicle to date. It sits on 24-inch rims and measures a whopping 18 feet in length — the same as GM’s Hummer EV; it’s over 6.5 feet wide and 5.8 feet tall. And because the Urbansphere doesn’t have to account for a conventional arrangement of a combustion-powered car’s components, “it prioritizes the occupants’ need to experience ample space as a distinctive comfort factor.”
The best webcams you can buy
Time to upgrade from your tiny laptop cam.
Even if you’re back to taking some of your meetings in the office, chances are back-to-back Zoom calls are now a permanent part of your professional life. Once an afterthought, your computer’s webcam has become one of its most important components — and the fact remains that most built-in cameras are not able to provide consistent high-quality video chat experiences. We tested out a bunch of the latest webcams to see which are worth your money and which you can safely skip.
This third-party Sony camera battery has a built-in USB-C port
Why isn’t this how all rechargeable batteries work?
Nitecore’s UFZ100 has a built-in USB-C port so you don’t need to use a proprietary Sony power adapter to charge it. The battery also includes a handy LED indicator to tell you when it’s below 10 percent charge. With a 2,250mAh capacity, it’s only slightly smaller than Sony’s 2,280mAh NP-FZ100 and works with many of the company’s most recent camera models, including the A6600 and A7 IV. One thing we don’t know about the UFZ100 yet is how much it’ll cost. Third-party battery manufacturers tend to price their offerings lower than Sony, Canon and Nikon, but the added USB-C port on the UFZ100 could make it more expensive.
Apr 21
US Congress was evacuated yesterday after Capitol Police said it was “tracking an aircraft that poses a possible threat to the Capitol Complex,” CBS News reported. Everyone stood down a short time later when it turned out to be a parachute demonstration, but the incident caused a lot of ire. “The Federal Aviation Administration’s apparent failure to notify Capitol Police of the pre-planned flyover [at] Nationals Stadium is outrageous and inexcusable,” wrote House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
The plane belonged to the Army Golden Knights parachuting team, dropping parachutists into the stadium for Military Appreciation Day. The pilot reportedly avoided flying over the restricted airspace over the Capitol Building and was coordinating with the control tower, but may not have had proper clearance, according to The Associated Press.
FlightRadar24
The FAA acknowledged the incident and promised an “expeditious” review. “We know our actions affect others, especially in our nation’s capital region, and we must communicate early and often with our law enforcement partners,” it said in a statement. The plane’s entire voyage was tracked by FlightRadar24 (above).
The incident demonstrates the level of coordination needed between FAA, law enforcement and other interested parties, particularly near restricted areas. As such, it may be an example of why the agency has been so careful in permitting passenger or delivery drones to operate in populated or sensitive areas. Such incidents are rare nowadays, but things could get chaotic with thousands of new drones plying the skies if the government doesn’t have a comprehensive plan.
Apr 21
Elon Musk’s “mass” transportation venture, known as The Boring Company, has been valued at $5.675 billion, according to a press release from the company. Yes, that’s billion with a “B.” And who says the Silicon Valley hype machine is dead?
Apr 21
Given the potential side effects, such as dehydration and lowered inhibitions, is it really worth it to order alcohol on a plane? Here’s what experts have to say.
Apr 21
Amazon’s latest renewable energy projects include its largest solar farm to date
Posted in: Today's ChiliJust ahead of Earth Day on Friday, Amazon has announced investments in 37 more renewable energy projects around the world. The company says these will increase its renewable energy capacity by almost 30 percent, up from 12.2 gigawatts to 15.7 GW.
The company claims the new investments will help it to power its operations entirely with renewable energy by 2025, five years ahead of the original timeline. The latest projects are in the US, Spain, France, Australia, Canada, India, Japan and the United Arab Emirates. They include wind farms, solar farms and eight solar rooftop installations on Amazon buildings. A 500 MW solar farm in Texas will be Amazon’s largest renewable energy project to date in terms of capacity.
Amazon has now invested in 310 projects in 19 countries. It says that when they’re all up and running, they’ll generate enough energy to power 3.9 million homes. The quantity of carbon-free energy they’ll generate will help avoid 17.3 million metric tons of emissions each year — the equivalent of taking more than 3.7 million combustion engine cars off roads.
In 2019, Amazon co-founded The Climate Pledge, a vow to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2040. That’s 10 years ahead of the Paris Agreement’s deadline. Along the more than 300 signatories that have joined the pledge are Microsoft, IBM and Best Buy.
Amazon said it will invest $2 billion into decarbonization efforts through the Climate Pledge Fund. Along with the accelerated timeline for fully switching to renewable energy, Amazon aims to make its shipments net-zero carbon. It hopes to be halfway to that goal by 2030 and to help it get there, the company placed an order with Rivian for 100,000 electric delivery vehicles.
Apr 21
This joke never gets old.
Apr 21
Amazon has unveiled “Buy with Prime,” a service that let’s other online retailers use its vast delivery network to fulfill orders on their own websites. At the same time, it will be another Prime subscriber perk for goods they might not be able to find directly on Amazon.
Merchants using it will be able to put the Prime badge on their own websites beside eligible items available for free next-day or two-day delivery. Then, Prime members can purchase the product using the payment and shipping details already stored on their Amazon accounts.
Sellers will pay for the service with fees depending on the card processor, fulfillment and more. To start with, it’s launching by invitation to Amazon sellers already using Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA), but will eventually expand to other merchants, even if they’re not on Amazon.
FBA retailers currently pay to store inventory in Amazon’s warehouses and use its shipping services, and in return, get the valued Prime logo on Amazon-listed products. Amazon recently announced that it would charge them an additional 5 percent fuel and inflation surcharge on top of the FBA fees they’re already paying. It also has a program called Multi-Channel Fulfillment that allows retailers to store and ship goods using its logistics chain.
Using FBA may have been akin to a deal with the devil for some sellers, however. Amazon has been accused in the past of using seller data to create its own private label products like car trunk organizers and Peak Design bags, The Wall Street Journal reported back in 2020. Amazon denied this, but the SEC recently launched an investigation into the practice.
Buy with Prime also means Amazon will be competing directly with shipping services like FedEx and UPS. The company recently said that it was about to become the largest delivery service in the US, according to CNBC. It also recently reported that its third-part seller services, including shipping, fulfillment and others, brought in $30.3 billion in the last quarter alone.
Apr 21
Stephen Colbert Trolls His Own Corporate Bosses With A Biting Reality Check
Posted in: Today's ChiliThe “Late Show” host still isn’t impressed by the Paramount+ streaming service.
Who's in charge here?
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.