Looking for a way to tell the world “I have more money than I know what to do with” that doesn’t involve buying and tanking a popular social media network? Caviar, a brand known for putting luxury before taste, has wrapped an iPhone 14 Pro Max in a case with 24K gold plating and encrusted it with a Rolex Cosmograph…
Samsung has detailed pricing and availability for its revamped Smart Monitors. The 2023 Smart Monitor M5, M7 and M8 will be available in June, including new 27-inch models. The headlining M8 starts at $650 for the 27-inch version, and $700 for its 32-inch counterpart. It boasts a new, slim design (about 0.45in thick) and can now rotate to portrait mode for reading long documents. The 4K screen is the most capable of the trio with a 400-nit typical brightness, HDR10+ support, an included webcam and a built-in SmartThings hub. You’ll also get far-field Alexa and Bixby voice control as well as HDMI 2.0 input, a USB-C port with 65W laptop charging and two USB-A ports.
The Smart Monitor M7 is aimed at users who want the M8’s design without as many extras. It drops the included webcam (though you can still add it later) and SmartThings hub, and you’ll have to be content with 300-nit brightness and regular HDR10. You get a 4K resolution and other luxuries from the M8, however. The prices are also more palatable, beginning at $550 for the 27-inch model and $600 for the 32-inch equivalent.
A Smart Monitor M5 is also available for those who just want the basics. It’s a 1080p display with a 250-nit brightness, no far-field mics and a simpler design without pivot or tilt. Input is likewise limited to two HDMI 1.4 jacks and a pair of USB-A ports. It’s definitely more affordable, though, starting at $280 for a 27-inch panel and climbing to $300 for the 32-inch edition.
All of the Smart Monitors have new software tricks. They can detect nearby compatible smartphones (such as the Galaxy S23 series) through Bluetooth and wake up to show calendars, photos and other helpful content. You can now use a mouse and keyboard in many of the smart TV apps, and Multi View lets you juggle the built-in browser and Microsoft 365 apps in full screen. Screen mirroring is available for Apple devices (via AirPlay) in addition to Android.
These aren’t intended as high-end gaming monitors given their 60Hz refresh rates, and you’ll want to turn to the 5K-capable Viewfinity S9 if you want a more pro-oriented screen. As before, they’re primarily appealing if your monitor doubles as your TV, or if the looks of the M7 and M8 stand out in a sea of generic designs.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/samsungs-2023-smart-monitors-arrive-in-june-starting-at-280-133952508.html?src=rss
“I had no immune system left to fight it,” Bridges said about the virus. “Chemo had wiped that out, which made it really, really tough.”
You know about Twister. The famous party game asks 2-3 players to balance their limbs on a series of colored dots, dictated by an increasingly absurd set of instructions. Right hand red. Left foot green. Repeat until multiple people fall on the floor in presumed hilarity. Now, Hasbro is changing the game: Twister Air is a music-focused, augmented reality alternative to the game that has no floor mat and less risk of falling down that you can play by yourself.
Specifically, Twister Air is a standing version of the classic game that uses a phone or tablet’s camera to track player movements, tasking them to match colored Twisters Air ankle and wrist bands with colored dots on the device’s screen. The game comes with 8 colored bands, but users will have to download a free iOS or Android app to play it.
At a glance, the game looks a little more like Dance Central than the original Twister. Players do rack up points by striking and holding weird poses, but they do so while listening to one of 16 included music tracks, including a new original song called “Twist in the air.” That shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone who grew up watching commercials of the game: Twister ads have featured original bops that reflected the tone of multiple eras, from the 1960s, the 1980s, the 1990s and even the 2010s.
Perhaps the biggest departure from the original game, however, is the player count. Twister Air is played in either a solo or two player mode. The days of collapsing into a pile of unbalanced limbs are over.
Twister Air is up for pre-order on Amazon and will be available in stores on August 1st.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/hasbros-augmented-reality-twister-lets-you-play-by-yourself-130056818.html?src=rss
The New York actor says starring opposite Hayes in the Broadway drama “lifts my soul into the stratosphere every day.”
BMW has unveiled the details of the new 2024 BMW 5-Series, including the most important bit: there will, in fact, be a fully electric version called the i5.
Once-successful Virgin Orbit has been sold for parts at auction after the company declared bankruptcy in April. In a $16.1 million deal, Rocket Lab USA, a small satellite launch provider and aerospace manufacturer, bought Virgin Orbit’s 144,000 square foot Long Beach headquarters and a variety of on-site machinery and equipment.
Rocket Lab USA is currently developing Neutron, a larger launch vehicle, from its headquarters, conveniently also located in Long Beach. In a statement about the purchase, Peter Beck, Rocket Lab’s CEO and founder, said adding Virgin Orbit’s lease “provides co-located engineering, manufacturing and test capabilities for our Neutron team.”
The now-defunct Virgin Orbit started in 2017 as an off-shoot of Virgin Galactic, billionaire Richard Branson’s space tourism venture. Its goal was to use a modified Boeing 747 aircraft, known as Cosmic Girl, to deploy small satellites into low Earth orbit, but only four of its six flights since its first in 2020 have been successful. The company attempted to save money through methods like going public in 2021 and, most recently, furloughing its 750 or so employees. However, they weren’t enough, and the company reported a $191.2 million net loss for 2022. In April, Virgin Orbit officially declared bankruptcy and laid off most of its employees.
In total, Virgin Orbit has earned just over $36 million from bankruptcy sales, CNBC reported. Cosmic Girl sold for $17 million to Stratolaunch, creator of the world’s largest plane. A small satellite transport business, Launcher, paid an additional $2.7 million for Virgin Orbit’s launch site in the Mojave Desert — about a six-hour drive from their south Los Angeles headquarters. Launcher is owned by Vast, a company attempting to launch the first private space station.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/virgin-orbit-gets-stripped-for-parts-as-the-company-shuts-down-113504530.html?src=rss
“Nice try!” the actor responded to claims that her husband was involved in an altercation on the red carpet for “Asteroid City.”
Apparently, the PlayStation VR2 sold way better than its predecessor in the weeks after it became available. During a business presentation, Sony has revealed (PDF) that it sold almost 600,000 PS VR2 units within its first six weeks of availability. That’s around 8 percent more than its PS VR sales for the same time window. As PushSquare notes, that number only covers sales until the beginning of April, so Sony has most likely already crossed the 600,000 threshold. Especially since the headset is now available at retailers after being exclusively sold for two months at Sony’s website.
In addition to announcing PS VR2’s successful launch, Sony has also shared some information on its future plans. Apparently, the company intends to put more and more money into developing new franchises for the PlayStation over the next few years. By fiscal year 2025, it’s aiming for a 50-50 split of PlayStation Studios investments’ between old and new IPs. Based on the graph it presented, it’s mostly been focusing on well-known franchises for the console, such as God of War and Horizon, these past years. In 2019, for instance, it only put 20 percent of its investments on the development of new properties. For fiscal year 2023, its focus is still on current IPs, though not by much: 40 percent of its PlayStation Studios investments will go towards new franchises.
One other area that Sony intends to put more money in is live service games like Destiny 2 and MLB: The Show. By fiscal year 2025, it expects 60 percent of its PS5 investments to go towards live services and 40 percent towards traditional games. Further, the company expects sales from add-on or downloadable content to keep growing in the future. Sony has also revealed that it expects the PS5 to overtake the PS4 on all key metrics very soon. It believes the PS5 would have more monthly active users playing more hours on the newer console by February 2024. To note, Sony sold more PS5 units than it predicted for fiscal year 2022 after it solved its supply chain crisis to release more consoles.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/sony-says-it-sold-600000-ps-vr-2-units-in-six-weeks-081130103.html?src=rss
Helen Holland, 81, sustained “multiple broken bones and massive internal injuries” in the May 10 collision in London.
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