Author Archives: Lawrence Bonk

Cash App Pay integrates with Google Play to offer ‘next gen consumers more choice’

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Cash App Pay has integrated with Google Play to give consumers another option when buying stuff online. This will be especially useful for Android users, as Google Play is baked right into the OS. Cash App says this partnership will give “next gen consumers more choice” and the company specifically called out the gaming space.

Cash App users will be able to pull money from a pre-existing balance or via a linked debit card to pay for stuff on Google Play. Cash App currently has four million monthly active users and the company claims to have added one million new users each quarter for the last year. That’s a lot of new people flowing into Google’s ecosystem.

To use Cash App on an Android device, just select the payment method when checking out on Google Play. Obviously, new users should download the app and make an account before all of that.

The Cash App integration, however, extends beyond Europe and Google already allows PayPal as an option in most countries. Also, Android developers who distribute apps on the Google Play store Google’s parent company Alphabet is considered a gatekeeper under the DMA and one of the mandates of the legislation is that these organizations must allow for alternative payment methods. 

The Cash App integration, however, extends beyond Europe and Google already allowed PayPal as an option in most countries. Also, Android developers who distribute apps on the Google Play store can already use an array of third-party payment systems in Europe, to comply with the DMA. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cash-app-pay-integrates-with-google-play-to-offer-next-gen-consumers-more-choice-172310452.html?src=rss

Nintendo finally made a first-party Joy-Con charging station

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Nintendo just announced its own first-party Joy-Con controller charging station, which releases on October 17. This is an obvious boon for couch co-op addicts, as you can have two Joy-Cons charging on the dock and another two charging via the console at the same time. Nintendo’s charging station also integrates with the company’s retro wireless NES gamepads, which are primarily used with Nintendo Switch Online games.

The Joy-Con Charging Stand (Two-Way) accessory draws power from the Switch’s dock, via the USB-C port, or any other power adapter. The vertical support can also be removed to make it more portable, another bonus for those couch co-op sleepovers. Nintendo hasn’t released any pricing information yet to go along with the October release date. It’s currently set for a launch in the US, Europe and Japan. October 17 is the same day that Super Mario Party Jamboree launches, so that would make for some good accessory-based synergy.

It’s worth noting that the Nintendo Switch is over seven years old. This accessory will be released 2,785 days after the console originally launched. Heck, the Switch 2 (or whatever it ends up being called) will probably hit store shelves early next year. What I’m saying is that this would have been a lot more useful six or seven years ago. Better late than never?

This is likely to be the Switch’s final holiday season. There’s a new Legend of Zelda game hitting on September 26, along with a themed console. Another big holiday-adjacent title is Mario & Luigi: Brothership, which comes out on November 7.

Update, July 18 2024, 2:57 PM ET: This story has been updated to confirm a US release after speaking to a company rep. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/nintendo-finally-made-a-first-party-joy-con-charging-station-152326371.html?src=rss

Xbox 360’s digital store heads to Valhalla with an avalanche of cheap games

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Microsoft’s Xbox 360 digital storefront will close up shop on July 29, which is creeping up on us. To commemorate the closure, the company is holding a fire sale of sorts, with all kinds of games available for around $1.

If you have a working Xbox 360 or if the game supports backwards compatibility, you can pretty much spend $20 and have stuff to play for years. The underrated FPS Black, by the Burnout devs, is just one dollar, and the iconic zombie shooter Dead Island is $0.74. That fantastic Strider reboot? It’s $1.50.

Of course, not every game is quite that cheap. Devil May Cry 4 will set you back a whopping $2 and Dishonored a full $3. Resident Evil: Revelations is $2, and the same goes for Dead Rising 2. Watch Dogs is $4, if you really wanna get crazy. You can see the full list by clicking the link above. 

Microsoft has also brought back the 360’s iconic Blade dashboard as a dynamic theme for modern consoles. If you are of a certain age, this is likely to fill you right up with nostalgia. It looks like the old UI. It feels like the old UI. It doesn’t, however, make that satisfying “whoosh” sound. You can’t win ‘em all. As for the aforementioned deals, they vanish like bubbles on July 29.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/xbox-360s-digital-store-heads-to-valhalla-with-an-avalanche-of-cheap-games-161551444.html?src=rss

This Amazon Prime Day deal on a four-pack of Samsung Galaxy SmartTag2 trackers has the best price we’ve seen

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Amazon Prime Day has been dropping hot deals all week and things don’t seem to be slowing down. One of today’s best deals is for a four-pack of Samsung Galaxy SmartTag2 trackers, which are down to $65. That’s a record-low price and a discount of $35. You get two black trackers and two white trackers, so they can sub in during a game of backgammon. We tested and reviewed this product so we know these tags are the real deal. 

Samsung’s tracking tags are extremely reliable and easy to use, and both are reasons why they made our list of the best Bluetooth trackers. This is obviously the best choice for those already tied into the Galaxy ecosystem, but they only work with Samsung devices. This could be a dealbreaker for some.

We loved the large finding network and the attractive design. These things are downright cute. The design also features a large hole near the top which makes it easy to attach keys, cables, luggage or even bicycle components. The affiliated app features an intuitive interface that makes it easy to track down lost objects.

I already mentioned the biggest downside. This product only works with Samsung phones and tablets. This is in reference to the app and finder network. You can pop the tags on anything and let them do their thing. Each tag does include an NFC code that pulls up contact info and a custom message, if someone with an iPhone happens to find one laying about.

Your Prime Day Shopping Guide: See all of our Prime Day coverage. Shop the best Prime Day deals on Yahoo Life. Follow Engadget for Prime Day tech deals. Hear from Autoblog’s experts on the best Amazon Prime Day deals for your car, garage, and home, and find Prime Day sales to shop on AOL, handpicked just for you.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/this-amazon-prime-day-deal-on-a-four-pack-of-samsung-galaxy-smarttag2-trackers-has-the-best-price-weve-seen-142513645.html?src=rss

Tinder’s new AI will pick your most attractive photos for you

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Tinder is trying to end the long-festering nightmare of having to actually look at yourself long enough to choose profile pictures. The new Photo Selector feature uses AI to pore through pictures to pick the ones most likely to get that much-coveted right swipe.

The tool has been in a testing phase since August of last year and it’s finally ready for prime time. Photo Selector works by automatically browsing through a smartphone’s entire camera roll and using AI algorithms to pick the, well, hottest ones. It’s like a supercharged version of the pre-existing Smart Photos feature.

“With Photo Selector, Tinder offers a digital companion that curates a diverse selection of photos from users’ camera roll optimized to help users find a match,” the company wrote in a press release.

You have to pose for a selfie and give the system access to the camera roll to get started. The AI uses that selfie to find other photos and presents you with a selection of your best and brightest glow ups. You make the final selections and then get married and sail off into the sunset or whatever.

Photo Selector will be available to US customers later this month, with a global launch coming at some point during the summer. I very much plan on popping a wig and some glasses on my cat to try to trick the algo.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/tinders-new-ai-will-pick-your-most-attractive-photos-for-you-100020367.html?src=rss

Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 2 has leaked online two months before release

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A pre-release build of Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 has leaked online two months before release, according to reporting by Insider Gaming. This is a fully playable version that was “randomly posted on a tracker,” according to sources who have downloaded and experimented with the build. It remains unclear how the game ended up online.

Players have said that the game is around 75GB in size. Though this leaked build is playable, it does have some issues. There are missing strings and a bunch of placeholder assets, but the version does include server data that should allow for online play. As expected, gameplay footage has begun popping up online, but we’ll refrain from posting any so as to keep things spoiler-free. We will drop a trailer though, because the game looks neat. 

In addition to forgoing gameplay videos, we don’t recommend heading to a torrent site to look for the leaked build. This is not only bad for the hard-working folks who made the game, but will more than likely riddle your PC with more bugs than an open Florida patio in summer. Torrents ain’t what they used to be.

Developers Focus Entertainment and Saber Interactive have issued a statement regarding the leak, asking fans to wait for the official release and thanking them for ongoing support. Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 comes out on September 9 and will be available for the PS5, Xbox Series S|X and PC.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/warhammer-40k-space-marine-2-has-leaked-online-two-months-before-release-185034761.html?src=rss

Sling will finally stream its first live event in 4K, the 2024 MLB All-Star Game

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Sling is coming in hot in the year 2024 and offering its users live 4K content. The platform says that Sling TV subscribers will be able to watch the forthcoming MLB All-Star Game in glorious UHD. The event airs on Fox Sports on July 16.

The company says this 4K experience will only be available to customers in “certain markets,” though did indicate that this will lead to more high-resolution offerings in the near future. “Get ready to see your favorite sports like never before,” said Seth Van Sickel, senior vice president of product & operations, Sling Video Services. 

Competitor Fubo TV has been offering 4K streams on select sporting events since 2019 and YouTube TV has been doing the same since 2021. Univision aired the first 4K soccer broadcast all the way back in 2016.

It is true, however, that a vast majority sporting events aren’t streamed in 4K. Even many that are advertised as being 4K are actually upscaled 1080p streams. It’s actually pretty difficult to broadcast live sports in 4K, due to the number of cameras required to adequately cover one of these events. Major NFL games often require 80 to 100 cameras and, well, 4K cameras are much more expensive than HD cameras.

There are also several bottlenecks to overcome. 4K cameras require at least twice the amount of cabling running from the cam to the production area. With a sporting event, that translates to thousands of feet of dense cabling for a single camera, let alone 80. 4K cameras also increase the number of required video console inputs by a factor of four.

The stream has to be processed and compressed for broadcast, which takes a whole lot of computing power. These processors must be kept cool, which is yet another expense. Finally, the broadcaster has to send the feed to its distribution partners, and many of them simply can’t handle 4K. The whole thing is just an expensive undertaking, despite the fact that 4K TVs have been standard in homes for around a decade.

As for Sling, it plans on continuing with this experiment in 4K streaming with college and pro football on Fox Sports and the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympics on NBC. Maybe this will finally make 4K sports streaming the norm and not a once-in-a-while experience.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/sling-will-finally-stream-its-first-live-event-in-4k-the-2024-mlb-all-star-game-173536869.html?src=rss

Google reportedly offered EU cloud firms over $500 million to continue antitrust case against Microsoft

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Google reportedly offered a group of EU-based cloud firms $512 million (€470 million) as an attempt to derail an antitrust settlement with Microsoft and force the continuation of a formal complaint, according to Bloomberg. The attempt failed and the settlement went through.

Here’s how it went down. A non-profit trade organization called the Cloud Infrastructure Services Providers in Europe (CISPE) issued a complaint to the EU’s antitrust arm, alleging that Microsoft made it too difficult for business customers to change providers because the software was tied to Azure cloud services.

This led to a negotiation between CISPE and Microsoft to give the former better access to the latter’s technologies and end the formal complaint. That’s when Google, a rival to Microsoft, stepped in. The company allegedly offered the aforementioned financial package to the group, so long as they continued with the complaint. This is according to confidential documents and people familiar with the matter, all of which were vetted by Bloomberg.

The financial package broke down into two parts. The vast majority of Google’s offer included software licenses for its cloud technology over five years, with a value of $495 million or €455 million. The remaining amount was offered in cash, as well as a long-term partnership proposal. Amazon Web Services (AWS) also contributed money to Google's offer, despite being an actual member of CISPE. 

Google’s deal was conditional, however, on CISPE continuing its EU antitrust complaint against Microsoft. This didn’t influence the cloud companies that comprise CISPE, which are mostly European firms. Instead, the group went in the opposite direction. It entered into a similar agreement with Microsoft that allows them to use enhanced Azure features and gives them the ability to offer Microsoft products and services on their local cloud infrastructures. There was also a cash payout agreement from Microsoft to CISPE of around $11 million, according to people familiar with the agreement.

"Microsoft's playbook of paying off complainants rather than addressing the substance of their complaint hurts businesses and shouldn't fool anyone," Amit Zavery, head of platform at Google Cloud, told CRN. “We are exploring our options to continue to fight against Microsoft's anti-competitive licensing in order to promote choice, innovation, and the growth of the digital economy in Europe.”

It’s worth noting that Zavery didn’t address the allegations that, well, Google did the same exact thing. According to The Register, an individual familiar with the matter called Google’s response “a bit rich.”

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/google-reportedly-offered-eu-cloud-firms-over-500-million-to-continue-antitrust-case-against-microsoft-160721324.html?src=rss

Prime Day tablet deals: Apple’s 10th-gen iPad drops to a record low of $299

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Apple’s 10th-gen iPad just dropped to $299 for Amazon Prime Day, which is a discount of $50. That's the lowest sale price we've seen, and some users are seeing an additional, clippable coupon that can take off another $20 from the sale price. That would bring the tablet down to $279, but just know that the additional coupon seems to be hit or miss for folks. Regardless, $299 is a fantastic deal one one of our top picks for the best iPads.

This Prime Day iPad deal is for the bare-bones version of the device with 64GB of internal storage. However, this particular iPad model shines brightest when consuming content and, well, most of that is on the cloud nowadays. Also, this particular model is Wi-Fi only with no cellular service, if that’s a dealbreaker for you. Also: the deal extends to all four colorways.

Despite being released back in the ancient days of 2022, the 10th-gen iPad is still a capable machine with an A14 Bionic chip, a 10.9-inch Retina display, two 12MP cameras and a robust battery that should last a full day before requiring a trip to the outlet. It won’t beat the recently-released iPad Air and Pro models, but it’s also a fraction of the price.

As a matter of fact, this tablet still has a place on our list of the best iPads. We appreciated the solid battery life, the modern design that recalls its pricer cousins and USB-C charging. At the end of the day, it’s an iPad. It’s great, despite being significantly underpowered when compared to the Pro and Air. To put it another way, this is the tablet to get if your primary use cases are consuming content, surfing the web, playing games and writing emails. This is not the tablet to get if you want to start editing videos.

Your Prime Day Shopping Guide: See all of our Prime Day coverage. Shop the best Prime Day deals on Yahoo Life. Follow Engadget for Prime Day tech deals. Hear from Autoblog’s experts on the best Amazon Prime Day deals for your car, garage, and home, and find Prime Day sales to shop on AOL, handpicked just for you.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/prime-day-tablet-deals-apples-10th-gen-ipad-drops-to-a-record-low-of-299-070443368.html?src=rss

OnePlus just unveiled a new full-sized tablet with some decent specs

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OnePlus just held a press event and introduced a trio of new gadgets. There’s an upgraded tablet, new earbuds and a smartwatch. The OnePlus Pad 2 is a refresh of last year’s model, which we mostly enjoyed, so let’s start there.

The Pad 2 is an upgrade over the previous iteration in nearly every way. There’s a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset and a 12.1-inch screen with 3K resolution and a 144Hz refresh rate. The company also promises “stronger audio output” which is always nice, as the primary use for many tablets is consuming content. OnePlus even says that this sound system can emulate spatial audio.

This tablet ships with a 9,510mAh battery that can be fully charged in just over 80 minutes and will operate on standby for up to 43 days. Preorders are available now and the tablet costs $550. It’ll be widely available on July 30. OnePlus is also releasing a suite of accessories for the device, including a keyboard and stylus.

Two smartwatches.
OnePlus

The OnePlus Watch 2R, as the name suggests, is a minor refresh of the just-released Watch 2. It has all of the features of its predecessor, including a maximum battery life of 100 hours, but it's both lighter in weight and cheaper.

It’s powered by the latest Wear OS and integrates with the company’s health-monitoring app for fitness tracking. The Watch 2R is available for purchase right now and costs $230. It’s available in both green and gray.

Some earbuds.
OnePlus

Finally, there’s the OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro. These new earbuds offer improved noise cancellation, up to 49dB, over previous iterations. The buds also have something called Smart Noise Cancellation, which uses an algorithm to automatically reduce unwanted sounds in response to ambient noise.

These earbuds include three microphones for calls, a transparency mode and an extra-large 12.4mm audio driver, which OnePlus says allows for deep bass. They are available now and cost $80.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/oneplus-just-unveiled-a-new-full-sized-tablet-with-some-decent-specs-140023477.html?src=rss