Last year’s Pixel 6 smartphone was, by no means, a failure. Its sales numbers were great, and Google bragged about how many Pixel 6 and 6 Pro units it eventually shipped. But if you went by forums, blog posts, and subreddits, you found a different story unfolding, with owners complaining about overheating, unreliable…
After years of speculation, Google has finally taken the wraps off the Pixel Watch, its debut attempt at a first-party wearable. We’ve been waiting for this for a long damn time—Pixel Watch rumors started circulating before the pandemic even struck. And now that it’s a reality and we’ll soon be able to wear the Pixel…
At today’s Pixel 7 event, Google has announced a new accessibility feature that will help blind and visually-impaired users take better selfies. “Guided Frame” is a voice coach that will tell users where to hold their phones in order to, for instance, take a selfie. Hold the device in front of you, and it’ll ask you to go up, down, or to the side, until its AI believes you’re in the best place to shoot. When it does, it’ll even trigger the shutter automatically, telling the user when they can relax their hand.
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Follow all of the news from Google’s Pixel 7 event right here!
“There was no way for me to see the possibility of healing on the day the sheriff and coroner pounded on my front door.”
When you’re perched in front of a pricy gaming PC all day long, it’s probably not a bad idea to splurge on a decent chair too—your spine will thank you later. Herman Miller has long been synonymous with proper ergonomics for desk jockeys, and the company’s new Vantum chair is its latest gaming-focused collaboration…
Google’s hardware launch event takes place today at 10am ET, and Team Engadget is covering it live from Brooklyn, New York. Deputy editor Cherlynn Low and Sam Rutherford will be there taking in the company’s announcements live, and we’ll post the breaking news here (and maybe some jokes. Just a few.) We’ll also share pictures from the event of any fun or newsworthy behind-the-scenes happening. Stick around!
Follow all of the news from Google’s Pixel 7 event right here!
“I was like, ‘Oh my God this is so amazing,’ and then it was like, ‘Oh no, sorry, April Fool’s Day,’” one recipient said of Northeastern University School of Law’s error.
Uber has signed a 10-year agreement to use autonomous Ioniq 5 EVs from Hyundai’s Motional for ride-hailing and deliveries, the companies announced. The vehicles will be “strategically deployed” in cities around the US and start offering passenger rides later this year.
“This agreement will be instrumental to the wide scale adoption of robotaxis,” said Motional CEO Karl Iagnemma. “Motional now has unparalleled access to millions of riders and a roadmap to scale significantly over the next ten years.”
The companies are already working together. Late last year, Uber announced that it would test autonomous food delivery with Motional (a joint venture between Hyundai and Aptiv) sometime in 2022. Motional is also working with Lyft, having started public tests in Las Vegas and Los Angeles back in August with the ride-hailing firm. (Uber used to have its own autonomous vehicle division called Advanced Technologies Group, but sold it to Aurora Innovation back in 2020.)
Uber will provide Motional with data to help it best allocate and position vehicles. In turn, Motional said its autonomous vehicles will allow for “reduced vehicle downtime and unnecessary miles traveled.” It’ll also supposedly lead to a better customer experience, with lower wait times and fares.
We’ve heard similar promises before, but so far, only Alphabet division Waymo and GM’s Cruise are offering true driverless services at a reasonably large scale. The Waymo One service is operating in Phoenix and San Francisco, while Cruise rides are currently limited to San Francisco. Both operate only in specific areas of cities and some vehicles still use safety riders.
Motional got off to a later start than both those companies, but has completed more than 100,000 autonomous rides in Las Vegas using previous versions of its vehicles on the Lyft network, it said in August. However, the companies plan to ramp that up soon. “The scope of this partnership shows the important role that shared autonomous vehicles will play in the future of transportation, and in Uber’s strategy to be the global platform to help you go anywhere and get anything,” said Uber’s autonomous driving chief Noah Zych.
The Fox News host grew overexcited several times in a segment about the media dismissing his reporting of a Nord Stream conspiracy theory.
Apple’s most expensive Watch yet (if we ignore the Hermes and ceramic distractions of yesteryear) has landed. The Apple Watch Ultra is surprisingly comfortable for its size, and costs less than expected. Not only does it offer many impressive specialized features for outdoor adventurers but it also lasts longer than other Apple Watches. People who don’t dive, hike, bike or run outside regularly might not need to spend the extra cash on the Ultra — the Series 8 is more than capable.
Reviews Editor Cherlynn Low was frustrated by the new button layout but came away thinking that the Apple Watch Ultra may be the ultimate smartwatch. Check out the full review.
– Mat Smith
Stadia launch title ‘Gylt’ is heading to other platforms next year
Amazon’s Blink security cameras and bundles are up to 54 percent off
Tesla phasing out ultrasonic sensors as it moves toward a camera-only system
The notion of Intel getting into the world of discrete graphics cards once seemed ludicrous. This is the company that killed its last major GPU project in 2009 and spent the 2010s focusing on weak integrated graphics. However, the Arc A750 offers plenty of power for under $300. It can best NVIDIA’s RTX 3060 Ti in some benchmarks and games, making it one of the best deals in the GPU market today. Meanwhile, the Arc 770 excels at 1440p performance and has a decent amount of ray tracing support for a $329 card. We have reservations about long-term support from Intel, however.
When it comes to wireless headphones, the best combine stellar audio with powerful active noise cancellation (ANC) and other handy tools. For this guide, we’ve focused primarily on the over-ear style and offer a range of prices, so you can decide how much you’re comfortable spending.
Inkbox Software has released a graphical operating system, NESOS, for Nintendo’s first home console. The mid-’80s technology restricts the OS to two apps (a word processor and settings – as dull as many personal computers were back then) and eight 832-byte files. There is a pointer, movable icons and customizable interface colors. NESOS fits into just 48K, and the files sit inside the 2K of NVRAM.
It’s only been a year since Amazon launched Glow, its kid-focused video calling device that can also be used for interactive gaming. And the company has already discontinued it, most likely due to lackluster sales. As Bloomberg notes, Glow, while highly rated on Amazon, only has a bit over 500 reviews on the website. The device was launched during the peak of the recent pandemic. There’s likely less demand for a specialized video calling device for kids. And maybe they could just use a phone?
Spotify has bought Kinzen, a company that uses machine learning to detect harmful content online. Spotify said that Kinzen will “help us more effectively deliver a safe, enjoyable experience on our platform around the world” and that the company’s tech is especially suited to podcasts and other audio formats. Looking for signs of harmful audio content is tricky, particularly since there may be nuances that certain systems and non-native speakers may not pick up on. As such, Spotify says Kinzen will help it to “better understand the abuse landscape and identify emerging threats on the platform.”
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