Author Archives: Cheyenne MacDonald

Polaris Dawn is finally headed to space for its groundbreaking civilian mission

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A SpaceX Dragon capsule carrying the four private astronauts of the Polaris Dawn mission has launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida in the early hours of September 10 after a few weeks of delays. The mission was scheduled to lift off at the end of August but was postponed first due to technical issues, then because of poor weather conditions forecasted for the crew’s return. On board are Jared Isaacman — the billionaire who funded the mission — retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Scott “Kidd” Poteet, and SpaceX engineers Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon. They’ll attempt several firsts during the five-day flight, including the first-ever commercial spacewalk.

That attempt will also mark the first spacewalk from a Dragon capsule. Among Polaris Dawn's other goals is to send its crew farther than anyone has traveled since the Apollo program, targeting an altitude of about 870 miles from Earth. The journey will take the capsule and its crew briefly into the Van Allen radiation belt.

Polaris Dawn is meant to be the first of three human spaceflight missions under Isaacman’s Polaris Program. Its crew will put SpaceX’s new Extravehicular Activity space suit to its most important test yet, as they’ll all wear it for protection against the vacuum of space when the Dragon’s doors open for the spacewalk. The spacewalk will take place at an elliptical orbit roughly 435 miles above Earth’s surface, and two crew members will leave the capsule.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/space/polaris-dawn-is-finally-headed-to-space-for-its-groundbreaking-civilian-mission-093346616.html?src=rss

Perennial Order is a stunning 2D Soulslike filled with plant monsters that’ll kill you in one hit

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Indie developer Gardenfiend Games just released a gorgeous plant horror game that its team describes as “Hollow Knight meets Titan Souls.” Perennial Order, which dropped on September 6 for PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, is a 2D boss rush game that pulls inspiration from Dark Souls, Princess Mononoke, and the art style of Magic: The Gathering. Its protagonist is an undead knight with a pitcher plant for a head (or maybe it’s a helmet?) and a stinger grafted onto one arm, and the hostile world it’s set in is crawling with plant-infested monsters. Needless to say, I downloaded it immediately.

You can play Perennial Order solo or with a friend — it offers both local and online co-op, with cross-platform support. There are 15 bosses to face, and with one-hit-death combat, your every move is critical. Thankfully, you respawn close to where you died, because you’ll probably be doing a lot of that with some enemies.

I’ve spent a little bit of time with Perennial Order this weekend, and it is really captivating. The environment and music are beautiful, creating an atmosphere that’s wonderfully bleak as you explore between boss fights and piece together the lore through interactions with talkative NPCs. I love a good plant horror, and Perennial Order does not disappoint. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/perennial-order-is-a-stunning-2d-soulslike-filled-with-plant-monsters-thatll-kill-you-in-one-hit-203121605.html?src=rss

Genmoji and image-generation tools for iPhone reportedly delayed until iOS 18.2

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Many of Apple Intelligence’s most anticipated features will arrive in a trickle well after the release of iOS 18, and according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, it could be December before the iPhone will offer things like AI-generated images and custom emoji. Apple Intelligence is expected to make its debut with iOS 18.1, which Gurman has previously reported will likely come sometime in October. Genmoji and the upcoming image-generation tool, Image Playground, reportedly won’t be among its first features. Instead, Gurman predicts they’ll ship with iOS 18.2, which he says is slated for December.

Apple showed off Genmoji and Image Playground during its June event. With Genmoji, users will be able to create custom emoji from a prompt or make emoji of real people based on their photos. Image Playground, on the other hand, will let users generate images in three styles: Animation, Illustration and Sketch. It’ll be offered as a standalone app and as a built-in tool in other apps, including Messages.

All of these features will eventually be available for the iPhone 16 line, which will be unveiled on Monday Sept. 9 at Apple’s It’s Glowtime event, as well as other recent iPhone models. Apple Intelligence will also bring ChatGPT integration, message summarization, a smarter Siri and more.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/genmoji-and-image-generation-tools-for-iphone-reportedly-delayed-until-ios-182-152526073.html?src=rss

There’s a Stranger Things Polly Pocket set, and its design is really clever

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Mattel's latest Polly Pocket collab is a Stranger Things playset that houses the fictional town of Hawkins and the Upside Down in a compact shaped like a walkie-talkie. The set, introduced this week, contains figurines of the characters Eleven, Mike, Dustin, Lucas and Will — plus a very non-threatening interpretation of the Demogorgon. Pre-orders for the $50 collectible are now open through Mattel Creations and major retailers, including Walmart and Target. It’s expected to start shipping later this month.

The Stranger Things Polly Pocket set and included figurines shown against a white background. It features a blue walkie-talkie shaped compact shown closed on the left, and open on the right. The open side contains a representation of Hawkins, including the middle school. There are also figurines for Eleven, Mike, Will, Lucas, Dustin and a Demogorgon, plus mini walkie talkies and bikes
Mattel

The set also includes a few tiny walkie-talkies, bikes, a wig for Eleven and a little stack of waffles. There’s even a mini sensory deprivation tank on both sides of the compact with a cutout that the Eleven figurine fits into, and a chalkboard with a crack for the Demogorgon to burst through. The packaging it comes in is designed to look like a retro tape recorder. It’s all painfully cute. Now can we get that fifth season sometime soon, please?

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/theres-a-stranger-things-polly-pocket-set-and-its-design-is-really-clever-204550807.html?src=rss

Over 1.4 million Ram 1500 trucks recalled to fix a bug in the anti-lock brake system

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Stellantis, the parent company of Chrysler, has issued a recall for Ram 1500 pickup trucks from 2019 and 2021-2024 due to a software problem in the anti-lock brake system. The bug could cause the anti-lock brake system to “disable the electronic stability control system,” which in turn can increase the risk of a crash, according to a notice from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). 

The recall affects roughly 1.46 million vehicles worldwide, Reuters reports, with the vast majority of them being in the US. So far, there are no known injuries or crashes relating to the issue, according to Reuters. If the problem arises, owners should see the ABS, ESC, Adaptive Cruise Control and Forward Collision Warning lights go on upon starting the truck. Per Reuters, the software issue does not affect foundational braking. 

The NHTSA says notices will be mailed to owners in early October, and they’ll have to bring their trucks into a dealership so the ABS control module software can be updated. As of now, the vehicles do not comply with the federal motor vehicle safety standard for electronic stability control systems, the NHTSA says. If you’re unsure whether the recall applies to your truck, you can plug your information into the NHTSA recall search tool to find out.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/over-14-million-ram-1500-trucks-recalled-to-fix-a-bug-in-the-anti-lock-brake-system-172807815.html?src=rss

Electrolight is a short and sweet Playdate adventure game about branching out

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Heart-warming little adventure games have really found a place to thrive in the Playdate. I picked up Electrolight this weekend while looking for something in the same vein as the bite-sized puzzle/exploration game, Eyeland — cute, low-commitment, not particularly difficult — and found it to be utterly charming.

Electrolight is described as “a tiny game about a tiny piece of light on a tiny adventure.” In it, you’re just a twinkle of light trying to find your way out of a computer so you can see the world. There are only a handful of rooms to explore, with a few simple puzzles to solve and items to collect that will help you advance on your mission. And there are some inspirational messages sprinkled throughout to encourage you on your journey toward new experiences.

A still from the Playdate game Electrolight
Weakty

It’s a short game that’s perfect for a moment when you just want something lighthearted to keep you busy for a half-hour or so. I completed it in about 20 minutes. Electrolight only costs $2 on the Playdate Catalog.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/electrolight-is-a-short-and-sweet-playdate-adventure-game-about-branching-out-213656431.html?src=rss

A creepy, sonar-like sound coming through Starliner’s speaker posed a brief mystery on the ISS

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Starliner is scheduled to undock from the International Space Station and make its return trip to Earth uncrewed in just a matter of days, but it apparently still has a few new mysteries left in it to throw at the team before it departs. On Saturday, astronaut Butch Wilmore alerted NASA’s Mission Control about an unexplained “strange noise” coming from a speaker in the spacecraft, which you can hear in an audio clip of the conversation shared on a NASASpaceflight forum by meteorologist Rob Dale (spotted by Ars Technica). It starts at around the 45-second mark, ringing out on a steady beat. “I don’t know what’s making it,” Wilmore said.

NASA has since said that the sound has stopped in a statement to SpaceNews’ Jeff Foust on Monday, and attributed it to an audio configuration between the ISS and Starliner. It was just speaker feedback, according to the space agency.

The noise was a bit of a head-scratcher over the weekend. After confirming with Mission Control on Saturday that they could hear the sound too, once Wilmore brought his mic over to the speaker, the flight controller in Houston said, “It was kind of like a pulsing noise, almost like a sonar ping.” Wilmore then let it play for about 20 seconds more before wrapping up the call. “Just to make sure I’m on the same page, this is emanating from the speaker in Starliner,” Mission Control asked, “you don’t notice anything else, any other noises, any weird configs in there?” The astronaut noted at the time that everything else seemed normal.

“The space station audio system is complex, allowing multiple spacecraft and modules to be interconnected, and it is common to experience noise and feedback,” NASA said in its explanation to Foust on Monday. “The crew is asked to contact mission control when they hear sounds originating in the comm system.” The incident had no impact to the crew or Starliner’s departure schedule, it added.

The Boeing spacecraft has been docked with the ISS since early June, and engineers have since had their hands full trying to get to the bottom of the issues that arose during its first crewed flight. When Starliner finally heads back to Earth on September 6, it’ll be leaving its crew — Wilmore and NASA astronaut Suni Williams — behind on the ISS, where they’ll continue to work for the next few months while they wait for a ride home from SpaceX in February 2025.

Update, September 2 2024, 2:30PM ET: This story has been updated to include a statement and explanation from NASA.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/space/now-theres-a-creepy-sonar-like-sound-coming-through-one-of-starliners-speakers-184751210.html?src=rss

Apple reportedly plans to drop USB-A ports with the M4 Mac mini and is working on a low-end Magic Keyboard

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Apple’s M4 Mac mini will boast a ton of ports, but not a single one of them will be USB-A, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. In the Power On newsletter, Gurman reports that Apple is ditching USB-A ports with the upcoming Mac mini. The company is working on a standard and Pro version of the computer, and while it won’t have USB-A, the Mac mini with the M4 Pro chip will have five USB-C ports, an ethernet port, HDMI and a headphone jack, according to Gurman. The new Mac mini is also expected to have an internal power supply. Gurman reports that the standard and Pro versions will begin shipping to warehouses in September and October, respectively.

Apple is also reportedly working on a cheaper, pared down version of its Magic Keyboard that’s slated to launch “by the middle of next year.” The company introduced a new Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro this spring, and Gurman indicates it’s now turning its attention to the non-Pro devices. He writes that the upcoming accessory “will be a low-end version that may be designed for an entry-level iPad or the new iPad Airs.”

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/apple-reportedly-plans-to-drop-usb-a-ports-with-the-m4-mac-mini-and-is-working-on-a-low-end-magic-keyboard-154306266.html?src=rss

No, a video game spin-off of The Batman is not in the works, James Gunn says

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If this week’s rumor about a video game set in the universe of 2022’s The Batman got your hopes up, I have some bad news: no such thing is in development at the moment. Responding to a question on Threads about whether Warner Bros. has a game in the works based on the Robert Pattinson-led film, DC Studios’ co-head James Gunn said, “Sadly there is no truth to this whatsoever.” The rumor stems from a Puck report that was published on Friday.

The Batman, directed by Matt Reeves, popped back up in theaters on Wednesday as part of AMC’s celebration of the 85th anniversary of Batman. Work on a sequel is currently underway, and an HBO limited series focusing on The Penguin is slated to come out this fall. We aren’t getting a video game spin-off any time soon, though. And, in case you were wondering, “There is also no truth to Tubthumping by Chumbawamba being played on the set of Superman (this is a real rumor on Reddit someone just sent me!),” Gunn posted.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/no-a-video-game-spin-off-of-the-batman-is-not-in-the-works-james-gunn-says-211149164.html?src=rss

Dragon’s Dogma director Hideaki Itsuno says he’s leaving Capcom to start a new project

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Hideaki Itsuno, who directed the Dragon’s Dogma series and other major games for Capcom, announced on Saturday that he’s leaving the company. “From September, I will start developing a new game in a new environment,” he wrote in a post on X. Itsuno has been with Capcom since the '90s, and worked on a slew of popular series, including Devil May Cry, starting with the second game. He created Dragon’s Dogma, and the most recent title under his belt, Dragon’s Dogma 2, sold over 2.5 million units within 10 days of its release earlier this year. It also reportedly broke Capcom’s Steam record for concurrent players on launch day.

“I hope you will continue to support Capcom’s games and characters,” Itsuno wrote on Saturday, adding, “I hope to create fun, beautiful games that are as memorable as, or even more memorable than, the ones I have created so far. Please stay tuned for my next creation!”

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/dragons-dogma-director-hideaki-itsuno-says-hes-leaving-capcom-to-start-a-new-project-194511310.html?src=rss