Author Archives: Sarah Fielding

Google’s new domains can really put a price on a .meme

Posted on by

There's a lot of bad stuff on the internet, but memes tend to be a bright, silly light in digital interactions. Now, they might be even easier to access and create thanks to Google Registry launching a new top-level domain type: .meme. That's right, forget .com or .org, you can lean right into the jokes and get a meme-centric domain. According to Google, ".meme domains are meant to spread humor, ideas, style, and culture. Use it to show your audience that you're in the present." The whole idea feels reminiscent of the early days of Tumblr. 

Google has teamed up with six companies and individuals to showcase options for using .meme. These include Know Your Meme (which highlights trending memes and history) and Tenor (for searching and creating new memes). Plus, there are another four sites devoted entirely to cat memes, including dedicated domains for both Nyan Cat and Grumpy Cat. Basically, if you want to create a lighthearted, meme-filled website, this is your chance. 

The Early Access Period (EAP) for registering a .meme domain has begun, but it includes an extra one-time fee. That additional cost will be reduced every day until December 5 at 11AM ET when .meme domains become available for a base annual price. If you're interested in buying a domain, search the name's availability at get.meme. If it's available, Google will show you a range of partners that you can purchase the domain from, such as GoDaddy.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/googles-new-domains-can-really-put-a-price-on-a-meme-115542941.html?src=rss

Apple is reportedly ending its partnership with Goldman Sachs

Posted on by

Apple and Goldman Sachs are potentially ending their partnership four years after joining forces on an Apple credit card, The Wall Street Journal reports. The companies recently extended their agreement until 2029, but Apple proposes ending the contract in the next 12 to 15 months.

Although the pair launched a high-yield savings account in April of this year, it's likely that Goldman won't be too upset by a possible breakup. Last month, reports suggested the bank was aiming to get out of the consumer lending business. It had gone as far as to tell Apple earlier this year that it would like to get out of the agreement and approached American Express to take over its side of operations. 

Goldman also recently made arrangements to sell home improvement loan company Green Sky and plans to end its other credit card partnership with General Motors. Basically, Goldman tried to diversify outside of corporate and very wealthy clients, potentially writing off billions of dollars before returning to basics. The bank told employees that any layoffs would include one year's salary.

In a statement to CNBC, an Apple representative said: "Apple and Goldman Sachs are focused on providing an incredible experience for our customers to help them lead healthier financial lives. The award-winning Apple Card has seen a great reception from consumers, and we will continue to innovate and deliver the best tools and services for them."

Apple and Goldman's partnership was never a match made in heaven for the companies or consumers. Goldman employees were frustrated with aspects such as the payment schedule and a push for mass application approval. Customers, on the other hand, reported that the bank's customer service was a nightmare, including delayed transfers and lectures from representatives, according to The Information.

The future of Apple's credit card and high-yield savings account is uncertain. The pair are part of Apple's services sector, which is seeing growing revenue compared to reductions in its general sales. Synchrony Financial, which works with Amazon and PayPal, has been exploring the possibility of taking over Goldman's role. The company originally bid against Goldman for the program.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apple-is-reportedly-ending-its-partnership-with-goldman-sachs-104511694.html?src=rss

IKEA’s new smart home sensors focus on safety and avoiding water damage

Posted on by

IKEA isn't going to be making a play for top tech company anytime soon, but it has kept up an offering of solid smart home devices. Its latest releases are a trio of affordable smart home sensors for everything from open doors to water leakage.

First in the lineup is the Parasoll door and window sensor. You can mount it on your door or window (basically any access point) and receive a notification if they open or close unexpectedly. It also pairs directly with an IKEA smart bulb. Speaking of light, there's the Vallhorn wireless motion sensor, which activates lights when movement is detected. You can choose what color and amount of light you want, with the sensor controlling up to 10 IKEA smart bulbs. Rounding out the new offerings is the Barding water leakage sensor, which works to alert you about any rogue water before your floor finds out. The device can send you a mobile notification, or trigger an alarm.

The sensors are small and white, lending themselves to blending in better throughout the house (unless you really love color). All the sensors are compatible with IKEA's Dirigera Hub, but only Vallhorn works with the older Tradfri gateway.

IKEA points to people's desire to feel comfortable and secure in their homes as motivation for these new products. "Everyone wants to feel safe at home and we feel excited about entering a new smart product area that creates not only a better, but safer life at home," Stjepan Begic, Product Design Developer at IKEA of Sweden, said in a statement. "We believe these products can provide our customers with peace of mind and a greater sense of control and comfort." The three new devices follow the release of previous sensors by IKEA, like Vindstyrka, which measures air quality.

The US pricing isn't available yet, but the Parasoll will be €9.99 in Europe, with the Vallhorn and Barding sensors priced at €7.99 and €9.99, respectively. These numbers could transfer over directly into USD or be slightly higher. The sensors should be available in the US in January (Vallhorn), April (Parasoll) and July (Barding) in 2024.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ikeas-new-smart-home-sensors-focus-on-safety-and-avoiding-water-damage-133033586.html?src=rss

A popular female coding influencer’s Instagram is apparently run by a man

Posted on by

Eduards Sizovs, founder of software developer conference DevTernity, has already been in the headlines for reportedly listing fake female speakers for a conference. Now, it has been revealed that Sizovs may also be behind Coding_Unicorn, a popular Instagram account supposedly run by a female coder, 404 Media reports.

Coding_Unicorn has 115,000 followers on Instagram and claims to be run by a professional software developer named Julia. The account features photos — many of which are glamour shots — of Julia at a MacBook alongside "no-BS coding, career, productivity tips." 

404 Media has laid out a range of evidence that Sizovs is responsible for the account, such as a YouTube video showing Sizovs having previously logged into the account's email and photos of Julia's computer screen that show her logged in as Sizovs. Some of Julia's Instagram captions are also exact copies of Sizovs' LinkedIn posts. 

Julia also lists herself as a DevTernity fan and links to the company's upcoming conferences. She was allegedly going to speak at a conference but "switched to helping with the organization." The event, which was set to start on December 7, has been canceled following the allegations that fake women were added to the lineup in an effort for it to look more diverse. Two women — one listed as a staff engineer at Coinbase and another as a Microsoft MVP and WhatsApp senior engineer — were removed from DevTernity's website and have no online presence or, potentially, existence at all, according to The Register.  

Sizovs responded to the conference allegations on X: "The amount of hate and lynching I keep receiving is as if I would have scammed or killed someone. But I won't defend myself because I don't feel guilty. I did nothing terrible that I need to apologize for." Sizovs did admit that one profile listed on the site was a "demo persona" that was "auto-generated, with a random title, random Twitter handle, random picture." However, skeptics claim removing the person should have been simple and that it didn't appear to be auto-generated at all, with the picture even changing early on.

Looking to the future, Sizovs said, "I’ll increase efforts 10x to make sure that next year, if one of our ladies drops out, we have a fallback plan." As for Unicorn_Coding, it's unclear who exactly the woman is in the photos or how she's connected to Sizovs. You can read 404 Media's article to learn more about this wild case.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/a-popular-female-coding-influencers-instagram-is-apparently-run-by-a-man-115046245.html?src=rss

Amazon Cyber Monday deals include up to $400 off Roomba robot vacuums

Posted on by

There's no reason you should have to do anything besides exist in the cold dark of winter, including cleaning. Cyber Monday sales on iRobot's vacuums are making it much more affordable to put your feet up and let a machine do the work for you. A range of iRobot's vacuums are currently discounted, including a 42 percent off deal on the iRobot Roomba 694. The robot vacuum is down to an all-time low price of $159 from $275.

The Roomba 694 is already one of iRobot's more affordable options, but it becomes much easier to justify getting when saving $116. It's also a great product — we named it this year's best budget robot vacuum thanks to its sleek design, good cleaning power and iRobot's always great app. You can control its functions on the device or through that app (except spot-cleaning, which only works with the physical button). It's especially great if you have a smaller place, like an apartment, as the robot vacuum lasted about 45 minutes in our test before recharging in its dock.

If you want to use the iRobot sale to go all out, then check out the iRobot Roomba Combo j9+ — currently 29 percent off. The self-emptying and auto-fill vacuum and mop is usually $1,399 but has dropped to $999 for Cyber Monday. This 2-in-1 model has a retractable mop to leave you out of any system switches. In fact, the dock can refill water for 30 days and empty any debris for 60 days, making cleaning the floors something you rarely need to think about. It also has a dirt detective (which weirdly sounds fun?) that determines which rooms are usually dirtiest and starts with those.

Your Cyber Monday Shopping Guide: See all of Yahoo’s Cyber Monday coverage, here. Follow Engadget for Cyber Monday tech deals. Learn about Cyber Monday trends on In The Know. Hear from Autoblog’s experts on the best Cyber Monday deals for your car, garage, and home, and find Cyber Monday sales to shop on AOL, handpicked just for you.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/amazon-cyber-monday-deals-include-up-to-400-off-roomba-robot-vacuums-151536935.html?src=rss

AirPods Pro with USB-C are on sale for $190 in an Amazon Cyber Monday deal

Posted on by

A good pair of earbuds can make experiences like commuting and exercising much more enjoyable — especially with the knowledge you got them for a steal. Now's your chance as the second-generation Apple AirPods Pro with a USB-C charging port is at an all-time low price for Amazon's Cyber Monday sale. The earbuds have dropped to $190 from $249 — the same 24 percent discount just seen for Black Friday. 

Before we get into all the benefits of the second-gen AirPods Pro, it's worth first reiterating that they don't come with a lightning port. Like other recent Apple products, the AirPods Pro has a USB-C charging case (meaning, among other things, that you can charge it from your iPhone 15). The earbuds and case are also IP54 dust and water-resistant, support low latency lossless audio if paired with the Vision Pro and have excellent noise canceling. 

If you want to stick with the lightning port as long as you can (or just want a better deal), Apple's third-gen AirPods are also on sale, dropping to $140 from $169 for Cyber Monday. The AirPods are IPX4 water and sweat-resistant but don't offer noise canceling. Both the third-gen AirPods and second-gen AirPods Pro have six hours of listening time before needing a rest in their case to recharge. 

Your Cyber Monday Shopping Guide: See all of Yahoo’s Cyber Monday coverage, here. Follow Engadget for Cyber Monday tech deals. Learn about Cyber Monday trends on In The Know. Hear from Autoblog’s experts on the best Cyber Monday deals for your car, garage, and home, and find Cyber Monday sales to shop on AOL, handpicked just for you.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/airpods-pro-with-usb-c-are-on-sale-for-190-in-an-amazon-cyber-monday-deal-143004734.html?src=rss

Nintendo eShop gift cards are 10 percent off for Cyber Monday

Posted on by

Cyber Monday is here and, with it, the last big day of deals before the present buying frenzy known as the holiday season begins. Gift cards are a great option for the people in your life who are hard to shop for, and Nintendo is making them all the more enticing with a sale. Right now, you can pick up a $99 gift card to Nintendo's eShop for $89 on Amazon — a 10 percent discount. 

If $89 still feels steep to spend, Nintendo has 10 percent off deals on a bunch of gift card values. You can get a $70 gift card for $63, $35 for $31.50, $10 for $9 and $5 for $4.50. The "card" comes as a code, a great digital gift option for someone you want to give a present to but won't see in person. They can put the gift cards towards thousands of new and classic games on the Nintendo Switch.

Speaking of games, you can also pick up some incredible Nintendo Switch titles for a deal. Notably, the Nintendo Switch OLED and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Bundle is available at Walmart for $329, down from $418. It comes with the Nintendo Switch console, the game Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and a subscription to Switch Online for three months. Then there are Nintendo games on sale like Kirby and the Forgotten Land, down to $42 from $60, and Portal: Companion Collection for $7 versus its usual $20 — a 66 percent discount.

Your Cyber Monday Shopping Guide: See all of Yahoo’s Cyber Monday coverage, here. Follow Engadget for Cyber Monday tech deals. Learn about Cyber Monday trends on In The Know. Hear from Autoblog’s experts on the best Cyber Monday deals for your car, garage, and home, and find Cyber Monday sales to shop on AOL, handpicked just for you.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/nintendo-eshop-gift-cards-are-10-percent-off-for-cyber-monday-103500403.html?src=rss

iRobot’s Roomba Combo j7+ is $305 off for Black Friday

Posted on by

Sometimes Black Friday is about picking up a fun new gadget and other times it's about getting a really good deal on that practical item you need. The majorly discounted iRobot's Roomba Combo j7+ falls deeply into that latter category, but the $305 savings is enough to get anyone excited. You can access the deal at Wellbots with Engadget's exclusive coupon ENGBF305 — and get free shipping. 

The iRobot Roomba Combo j7+ is a 2-in-1 vacuum and mop for cleaning all types of floors. It can do both tasks in the same go (without you needing to interfere) due to its retractable mop pad. The Roomba reportedly has a 96.4 percent debris removal rate, using iRobot's Edge-Sweeping Brush, Dual Multi-Surface Rubber Brushes and Power-Lifting Suction. The combo device also includes advances obstacle avoidance, home mapping and self emptying. Plus, you can control it through an app or with voice control services like Alexa or Google. 

We found the Roomba Combo j7+ took a little adjusting to during our test, but grew to appreciate features like its awareness of high-traffic zones. In fact, we recently named it the best robot vacuum and mop 2-in-1 on the market — with the standard j7+ as the runner up for best standard midrange. 

Your Black Friday Shopping Guide: See all of Yahoo’s Black Friday coverage, here. Follow Engadget for Black Friday tech deals. Learn about Black Friday trends on In The Know. Hear from Autoblog’s experts on the best Black Friday deals for your car, garage, and home, and find Black Friday sales to shop on AOL, handpicked just for you.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/irobots-roomba-combo-j7-is-305-off-for-black-friday-150050432.html?src=rss

Anker Black Friday deals 2023: Portable charges, cables and surge protectors are still on sale for up to 60 percent off

Posted on by

The holiday shopping period is a great time to stock up on things you might need for yourself in addition to gifts for other people. Charging cables, adapters and other handy accessories are good items grab while they're on sale, and Anker's got a lot of deals for you to choose from for this Black Friday shopping season. A ton of charging gear has been heavily discounted, including this USB-C to HDMI Adapter, which is a whopping 60 percent off. Anker Black Friday deals cover portable chargers, cords, wall plugs, surge protectors and basically every item needed to keep your devices functioning. Here are the best Black Friday deals on Anker devices that you can still get today.

Anker Magnetic Power Bank

Anker's 20W Magnetic Power Bank provides up to 22 hours of extra battery life for the iPhone 12, 13, 14 and 15. It's compatible with MagSafe and has a 10N magnetic force, stronger than the initial MagSafe charger. Its grip makes it super easy to use your iPhone as usual while still giving it a boost. Get the magnetic power bank in Black, White, Purple or Pink — all for the same price.

Anker Prime 100W USB-C Charger

This 100W Anker Prime USB-C Charger is great to have near your desk or bedside table when you want to juice up multiple devices. It comes with one USB-A port and two USB-C ports, with 100W of power evenly distributed when you use two of them (though using all three will still produce a fast charge). It's compatible with every iPhone since the iPhone 12, along with recent MacBooks, Galaxy Tabs, the HP Chromebook 14 and more. 

Anker 563 10-in-1 USB-C Hub

MacBooks are great, but their lack of an HDMI port can sometimes be frustrating. Anker's 563 10-in-1 USB-C Hub solves that problem (and with a 4K display) while giving you plenty of extra ports along with it. The device has two HDMI ports, a USB-C port to connect your laptop, a USB-C data port, two USB-A data ports, an Ethernet port, a 100W max PD-IN port, an SD card slot and a microSD card slot.  

Anker iPhone Fast Charging Cable 2-pack

One charging cable is enough in theory, but it always leads to instant regret the moment you realize it's still at work or even all the way downstairs. Anker's iPhone Fast Charging Cable 2-pack is nearly half off, making it an easy decision to spring for the extra. The 10-foot-long braided cables can charge an iPhone 14 Pro to 50 percent in 30 minutes (if you have a compatible plug, of course). Either way, their length and overall high-speed charges make them a good option to pick up.

Anker Prime Power Bank 200W

Anker's 200W Prime Power Bank is the one to buy if you want super fast charging in a compact device. It comes with one USB-A 200W port and two USB-C 100W ports. The included 100W charging base brings the power bank back up to full charge in just an hour and 15 minutes. 

Surge Protector Power Strip

The last thing you want for your nice gaming desktop or console (besides getting very wet) is for it to face a power surge. For $22, Anker's 12-outlet Surge Protector Power Strip gives you peace of mind that all your devices and game progress are protected. 

Anker SOLIX F1200 Portable Power Station

Are you already dreaming about warmer weather and beautiful camping excursions? If you need a new portable power station for that adventure, now is the time to get it. Anker's SOLIX F1200 Portable Power Station is half off, bringing it from $1,400 to $700. It's still quite a chunk of change, but it's a steal in comparison. It can recharge to 80 percent in just one hour, checks its temperature up to 100 times every second and has a five-year warranty. Plus, it comes with car, AC and solar charging cables. 

Your Black Friday Shopping Guide: See all of Yahoo’s Black Friday coverage, here. Follow Engadget for Black Friday tech deals. Learn about Black Friday trends on In The Know. Hear from Autoblog’s experts on the best Black Friday deals for your car, garage, and home, and find Black Friday sales to shop on AOL, handpicked just for you.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/anker-black-friday-deals-2023-portable-charges-cables-and-surge-protectors-are-still-on-sale-for-up-to-60-percent-off-151931824.html?src=rss

Audible Cyber Monday sale brings a Premium Plus membership down to $6 for the first four months

Posted on by

Today is the last day to get an Audible subscription at a discounted rate for the holidays. A Cyber Monday deal on the audiobook subscription service brings a Premium Plus membership down to just $6 per month for the first four months — that's more than half off the typical $15-per-month cost of access. In addition, new subscribers will get a $20 Audible credit as well that they can use towards the purchase of audiobooks on the platform.

If you're looking to listen to more audiobooks while you're commuting or cleaning the house, or you want a good gift for the book lover in your life, this Audible deal is a great option. Audible's Premium Plus subscription comes with one credit every month to purchase a new or best-selling title. It also has thousands of included titles you can download anytime — including podcasts and Audible originals — and exclusive sales for members. 

The deal covers the first four months of the subscription before returning to $15 per month — though you can cancel any time. After that, the best deal is an Annual Premium Plus Plan, which, at $150 for the year, saves you $30. 

Your Cyber Monday Shopping Guide: See all of Yahoo’s Cyber Monday coverage, here. Follow Engadget for Cyber Monday tech deals. Learn about Cyber Monday trends on In The Know. Hear from Autoblog’s experts on the best Cyber Monday deals for your car, garage, and home, and find Cyber Monday sales to shop on AOL, handpicked just for you.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audible-cyber-monday-sale-brings-a-premium-plus-membership-down-to-6-for-the-first-four-months-183045873.html?src=rss